(A/N: So sorry for the wait ladies and gentlemen. A lot has happened since the last update in my life—most notably some video games that desperately needed playing. Granted, New Pokemon Snap is going to be released soon, but you guys deserve something to keep you busy during 2021's cavalcade of games I suddenly want to play, so here it is: Hajime Vs Sonia. Enjoy)
"First I draw!" Hajime shouted and plucked the top card from his deck, glancing at his hand of six. Pro duelist now that he was, he barely had to think about his opening move before making it. "I'm setting two cards face-down," he declared as the face-down holograms appeared before him. "And then I'm summoning Blackland Fire Dragon in attack mode!"
The green dragon roared as it landed on the battlefield, beating its wings with its basic 1,500 attack points and 800 defense points.
Why play that card now? Yami wondered. Hajime usually saves it until he's ready to fuse it to make Blackland Void Dragon.
"I end my turn."
"Then behold, I shall draw!" Sonia declared and plucked the top card of her deck. She looked at her hand of six. She too barely needed to think about her move before making it. "I summon Queen's Knight in attack mode!"
The red-clad blonde warrior took to the field. She had 1,500 attack points and 1,600 defense points.
"Hmm, Princess Sonia's intent can't be to draw," Taka thought, working out the math. "What is she planning?"
"How about you stop thinking and just watch?" Mondo advised.
"I activate the spell card Double Summon," Sonia shouted. "This spell card will allow me to summon another monster directly from my hand! Behold, King's Knight!" A blonde, bearded knight in orange armor made his way onto the battlefield.
Yami and Yugi both knew this strategy well. So did Hajime. Yami had put it on full display against Kaiba back in Battle City.
"And now that both King's Knight and Queen's Knight are on my field, I can directly summon Jack's Knight from my deck to the field!"
All three knights now stood upon the battlefield. Hajime's poor dragon was vastly outnumbered.
"And now, I activate the magic of Polymerization! Allowing me to fuse all three of my monsters together!"
"Fuse them together?" Yugi gasped from within Yami.
"Behold the power of the Ace! Come forth Arcana Knight Joker!" Sonia shouted, holding up Polymerization above her head. Dark, holographic clouds formed and a bolt of lightning struck the battlefield. Through the beam, a broadsword cleaved through the plasma and now a purple haired, black and gold knight stood upon the battlefield. It had 3,800 attack points and 2,500 defense points.
"Yeah! You got it Miss Sonia! Let him have it!" Kazuichi shouted.
"I attack with Arcana Knight Joker against Blackland Fire Dragon!" Sonia declared.
"I might not be able to stop you, but I can at least mitigate the damage," Hajime stated. "Go, Intimidation!"
Hajime's trap card revealed itself to Sonia, but she hardly seem bothered.
"From my hand, a quick play spell, Mystical Space Typhoon!" Sonia shouted.
Shocked faces went all around the audience as a twister blew away Hajime's trap card.
"Sorry, Hajime. But you won't win this duel through intimidation tactics," Sonia said with a serious face.
Hajime smirked wryly at her. "I never intended to," he smirked.
"What?" Sonia's confident look briefly crumbled.
"I didn't think I'd catch you in a beginner's trap. It may have cost me intimidation, but you walked right into my real trap. I activate Relieve Monster! Now I can return Blackland Fire Dragon to my hand in exchange for summoning a new monster in its place and I choose UFO Turtle, in defense mode!"
A turtle wearing a UFO on its back with only 1200 defense points was promptly cut down to size by Sonia's monster.
"When UFO Turtle is destroyed, I can special summon any Fire monster from my deck in attack position as long as it has 1,500 attack points or less. And I choose this monster: Masked Dragon!" A dragon covered in a white sinew and wearing a creepy mask appeared on Hajime's side of the battlefield. It had 1,400 attack points and 1,100 defense points. It was in attack position.
"I don't understand," Sonia spoke, mouth agape.
"I'm not naïve enough to summon Blackland Void Dragon against you so early into the duel, Sonia. You're an amazing duelist. I'd only be playing straight into your hands if I was so foolish. So, I used my knowledge of you and your deck to gain a little advantage. I forced you to bring out a powerful monster defensively, which you're prone to doing on your first turn," Hajime said, as if he was analyzing her. "Didn't expect the fusion monster though. That's new. And though it might not seem like it right now, I can assure you, you've carefully helped me plan out my strategy."
Sonia smiled faintly, actually rather unfazed by this development. "Well-played, Hajime. I can see why you were dubbed the Ultimate Duelist. Still, Arcana Knight Joker is a mighty knight that you will be hard pressed to destroy. You will not vanquish it so easily."
"You might be right about that," Hajime said. "But the duel is only just beginning."
"Quite true," Sonia said. "I end my turn." With only two cards left in hand, it wasn't like she could do much else.
"All right then," Hajime stated. "I draw!" With four cards in hand, he nodded and simply stated. "I'm setting a monster." The sideways hologram was placed carefully on the duel disk and appeared accordingly. "Then I switch Masked Dragon to defense mode." Hajime bit his lip. I was really hoping she'd have summoned two Darklords like she normally does and wiped out Masked Dragon too. He stared at the Polymerization and Blackland Fire Dragon in his hand. If I did, I could've gotten Koumouri Dragon to the field and I would've only needed one of my substitute fusion monsters to summon Blackland Void Dragon. Still, he looked at his face-down Cyber Jar. There's hardly anything even a duelist of Yugi or Kaiba's caliber can do against a monster like this. "I end my turn."
Sonia studied both Hajime's face and the field. In spite of his rather charming poker face, I can only surmise Hajime's face-down monster is Cyber Jar, Sonia thought. She drew the top card of her deck and looked at it. Fortunately for me, I am able to part with Arcana Knight Joker for a period of time it would seem.
"I attack your face-down monster with Arcana Knight Joker!" Sonia declared without hesitating, her newly drawn card clasped between her finger tips.
Huh? Hajime hadn't expected Sonia to brashly go on the offensive. While it was all according to plan, the fire in Sonia's eyes was unsettling. She was clearly up to something.
As Cyber Jar flipped face-up, Arcana Knight Joker was sucked into it along with Masked Dragon before Cyber Jar detonated, destroying all three monsters. Joker's ability to stop targeting effects was useless against Cyber Jar's board wiping ability.
Hajime picked up the top five cards of his deck. Oh yeah. He could do some real damage with these.
"I set three monsters face-down into defense position," he declared as all three holograms were placed sideways on his duel disk.
Sonia looked at the five cards she'd picked up. "I summon to the field Guardian of the Throne Room and Zolga to the battlefield!" Sonia shouted. The battle-ready machine with 1650 attack points and 1600 defense points hit the field along with mysteriously floating Zolga's 1700 attack and 1200 defense points."
Hajime's entire strategy with Cyber Jar involves gathering resources to make his next big move. That being the case, I have no choice, but to attack.
"Zolga, attack Hajime's centermost monster!" Sonia ordered, pointer finger aimed at said face-down hologram.
Ah, crud, Hajime thought. There went The Dark – Hex Sealed Fusion, completely blown up by Zolga's mysterious eye beams.
"And next, Guardian of the Throne Room, attack Hajime's monster on the right!" Sonia shouted.
Magician of Faith was completely eradicated when Hajime had no magic cards in his graveyard to benefit from her effect.
"Now that my attack orders have been carried out, my soldiers will now leave the battlefield and be replaced with one of my most powerful allies. Behold the might of Darklord Desire!"
A red-winged being with black and gold armor took to Sonia's side of the battlefield. It had 3,000 attack points and 2,800 defense points.
"And since Zolga was tributed to summon a monster, I gain 2000 life points." Sonia's life points shot up to 6,000 points, giving her a huge advantage.
With her battlefield buffed and primed for action, Sonia felt she was ready for whatever Hajime could throw at her. "My turn is over," Sonia said to Hajime, psyching herself up as she brought her fists up by her shoulders. "It is how you say in this country: Bring it!"
Hajime refused to be intimidated. "I see the gauntlet you've thrown at my feet, Sonia, and I gladly pick it up. I draw!"
Hajime could not believe the luck his draw had brought him. I might not be able to play Blackland Void Dragon now, but I can still put this duel in my favor. "I activate Polymerization!" Hajime shouted and placed the spell card into the appropriate slot. "Now I fuse my Versago the Destroyer on my field with the Buster Blader in my hand in order to summon Dark Paladin!"
The green clad spellcaster stormed onto the battlefield, lightning crackling from its off hand.
"And thanks to Masked Dragon being in my graveyard, he gains a 500 point attack boost, leaving him just strong enough to defeat Darklord Desire."
Sonia jolted back. She'd been careless. She was so focused on Hajime's attempts to summon Blackland Void Dragon, she forgot about Hajime's other potent monsters.
"Dark Paladin!" Hajime shouted. "Attack Darklord Desire! Buster Scepter Blast!"
Dark Paladin generated a green energy sphere at the tip of its scepter and flung it with a swing of the weapon into Darklord Desire. The monster was overwhelmed by the attack and exploded, chipping away at Sonia's life points, but she still had 5,600 more.
Hajime still had four cards in his hand, one of them was his still trusty Blackland Fire Dragon. I don't need to worry about how many life points she has, Hajime thought. I just need to bring her down slowly.
"My turn is over," Hajime declared.
"Then it's my turn now," Sonia stated. "I draw." She looked at her now plentiful hand thanks to Hajime's Cyber Jar and how his recklessness from her standpoint would be his undoing. "I activate the power of Premature Burial!"
Hajime sweated and gasped. That was not a good card for her to be playing right now. He suddenly realized why she'd walked straight into Cyber Jar. She'd had Premature Burial since the start of that turn.
"At the cost of 800 life points," Sonia said as her life points ticked down only to 4,800. "The monster I choose to revive from the graveyard is none other than Arcana Knight Joker!"
Not good, Hajime thought.
"Joker! Attack Dark Paladin now! Royal Flush Saber Strike!"
Joker swung its blade out, causing tumultuous and chaotic wind pressures to circle around the blade before it left a holographic gash in Dark Paladin, causing the spellcaster to stumble back and let out a silent scream before evaporating into nothing.
Hajime's life points appropriately dropped to 3,600. He'd made zero gains in the long run and now he was back to square 1 against Sonia's Arcana Knight…and he was also down a Cyber Jar.
"This is the power of the Nevermind Royal Family!" Sonia boasted. "Behold the power I possess as the Ultimate Princess!" She then lit up like a 1,000-watt bulb. "I've always wanted to say that while being filmed on TV!" she cooed, eyes sparkling.
Well, I'm glad at least she's happy right now, Hajime thought, knowing that he was in a pretty bad situation right now.
"Your turn, Hajime. Dazzle me in a way only an Ultimate Duelist can!" Sonia encouraged.
You say that, but I'm running out of options, Hajime thought. Nevertheless, he drew the top card of his deck in the hopes of turning things around. Pot of Greed came to hand. Hajime sighed, closing his eyes briefly. Pot of Greed wasn't a bad draw, but it didn't give him a way out of this mess immediately either. Everything came down to what he pulled out of his next move, or he could kiss his Blackland Void Dragon strategy goodbye. "I activate Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two cards!"
Hajime's heart beat inside his head as he went for his deck, time seeming to slow down. It doesn't matter if I win or lose. It's just a tournament. It only matters if I'm having fun, but I want to have fun… he thought as he pinched the top two cards of his deck between his fingers, I'll only be able to if I can duel someone like Sonia for a bit longer, even if I lose.
More dramatically than intended or necessary, Hajime pulled the top two cards of his deck to his hand as though he were quick drawing a sword from its sheathe. He looked at the two cards he'd drawn and saw his entire hand. Yup. This would do it. His poker face cracked. Even Tristan could tell he'd drawn something really good.
I forgot I had this now, Hajime thought. Heh, he thought admonishing himself, shows what happens when I'm under pressure. Ultimate Duelist? Hah. I think I've still got a ways to go. "I activate the power of Invocation!" Hajime exclaimed, activating the spell card. "Think of it like an extra Polymerization but with a little added bonus," Hajime said with a smile. "And now I fuse together Aleister the Invoker with Winged Dragon Guardian of the Fortress #1 in order to summon Invoked Raidjin!"
A knight in a suit of amor wielding an electrified sword, garbed in a green cape appeared on Hajime's side of the field. An additional blue, plasma sword was sheathed behind its back. The monster had 2,200 attack points and 2,400 defense points.
"That monster is so cool!" Sonia exclaimed, eyes sparkling. "It is like something straight out of a Role Playing Game! The dashing knight come to the rescue! Like an royal guardsman of Ancient Novoselic Royalty!"
"Well he's certainly coming to my rescue, especially when I equip him with this spell card: Fusion Weapon!" A spell card was placed onto the field that showed an armored knight, garbed I black acquiring some kind of forbidden power. "This spell card increases the attack power of any weak Fusion monster, like one that's level 6 or lower, with 1,500 extra attack points."
"Did you say 1,500?" Sonia gasped.
He had and the proof spoke for itself as a windy and electrified aura coated Invoked Raidjin and brought its attack power all the way up to 3,700.
Sonia was a bit confused. "How strange. Hajime, did you miscalculate."
Hajime smirked with confidence. "No I didn't," he answered. "For you see, Invoked Raidjin needed those attack points in combination with its special ability. I'm allowed to target one monster on the field and switch it into face-down defense position."
"Woohoo! Go, Hajime!" Ibuki cheered.
"Yeah! That'll show her!" Hiyoko shouted. "Sonia's stupid knight's defense is pitiful against a monster like that beefed up by Fusion Weapon!"
Hajime felt reassured by his classmates. "Invoked Raidjin! Use your special power to—"
"You'll be doing nothing of the sort!" Sonia declared commandingly. "For I activate the power of Arcana Knight Joker's own special ability, allowing it to negate a monster effect by discarding a monster card from my hand to the graveyard." Sonia slid one of her Darklords straight to the grave. She gave Hajime a serious look. "You seem to be forgetting the fact that my deck thrives on monsters in my graveyard, making Arcana Knight Joker a perfect gatekeeper for the Darklord throne. A grave miscalculation on your part Hajime and now you've only two cards remaining in your hand and I know what both of them are. A shame you will not be able to use them. This duel is over. I draw."
Hajime slumped his shoulders. His eyes were hidden from the sunlight.
"No, don't tell me that was all Hajime had," Téa gasped.
"Sure looks like it," Tristan said, wrapping his knuckles.
"Oh no, poor Hajime," Miho said with a sad expression, hands clasped together in prayer.
"Hmmmmm," Solomon stated, deep in thought.
Sonia drew the top card of her deck. "I will not ask for forgiveness. You fought valiantly, Hajime. But nothing is as detrimental to one's campaign of war as one's overconfidence. I summon Maha Vailo to the field in attack mode!"
The bewitching, blue-clad spellcaster appeared on Sonia's side of the field with its iconic 1,550 attack points.
"And I shall equip with Cestus of Dagla, boosting its power 500 points thanks to the Cestus itself, plus an additional 500 with Maha Vailo's ability!"
Maha Vailo's power rocketed up to 2,550. While the combined might of both monsters wouldn't put Hajime out of the game, it might as well have. A direct attack from Maha Vailo would result in an additional 2,550 life points to Sonia, while bringing Hajime down to almost nothing.
And Sonia did not intend to show any mercy. She threw out her arm and her presence suddenly felt incredibly intimidating. "Bow down," she declared as Arcana Knight Joker raised its blade to cut down Invoked Raidjin.
"Hajime!" Ibuki shouted in concern.
Arcana Knight Joker raised its blade to its maximum height, sunlight gleaming of the sword as it swung forward, cutting Hajime's monster in two and ridding him of 100 life points.
…At least…that was what was supposed to happen.
A sudden tempest electrocuted Arcana Knight Joker, halting its attack.
"What was that you were saying about overconfidence being the downfall of a war campaign?" Hajime asked and pulled his eyes out of the shade. "Invoked Raidjin's ability isn't limited to just my turn, Sonia. I can do it on yours as well!" He shouted, pointer finger aimed straight at her. "Sure, your deck enjoys having tons of monsters in the graveyard, but is what's left of it worth discarding to save your knight?"
Sonia quickly glanced at her hand of 3. Neither monster card in her hand was worth discarding if Hajime suddenly somehow again turned the tables next turn. With luck, he'd target Maha Vailo with his attack. She could afford to lose a few life points and she would not be so foolish again.
So, she smiled nervously. "Impressive as always, Hajime. I yield to your strategy for now."
Arcana Knight Joker was swept up by a whirlwind and reappeared in card form, which was flipped face-down and planted onto the battlefield.
Close call, Hajime thought. If she'd actually discarded a monster, I'd be in a lot of trouble right now if I don't top deck Card of Sanctuary. The top card of Hajime's deck was not Card of Sanctuary. However…
Koumouri Dragon!
He was one step closer to getting Blackland Void Dragon on the field. He kept up his poker face for now. If his luck continued to hold, he'd have everything he needed next turn to completely shut. Sonia. Down.
"Invoked Raidjin!" Hajime shouted, "Destroy Maha Vailo!"
Hajime knew he could manage Arcana Knight Joker for now. If Sonia wasn't willing to give up monster cards, he could simply put it back in his place and she'd need a monster just as powerful if it meant crushing Hajime's monster.
Hajime's monster tore forth across the battlefield and with its blade of lighting struck down Maha Vailo and caused it to fall backwards as the hologram exploded.
Sonia's 4,800 life points were diminished, leaving her with 3,650. The game was practically a tie. Sonia only had the lead by 50 life points.
Hajime let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.
"My turn's over, for now," Hajime stated.
"Very well, then it is my turn," Sonia stated. "I shall draw." She looked at her hand of four cards. Yes. This was exactly what she needed to turn the tables right back onto Hajime. "I summon to the field Capricious Darklord!"
A purplish-skinned fairy with a red halo and only one wing, garbed in a black and gold dress appeared on the field. She had 0 attack points.
What the…? Hajime was confused, but also on guard. This could be trouble.
"And now, I activate the effect of Capricious Darklord, allowing me to instantly summon any Fairy type monster of my choosing. And the monster I choose? Darklord Morningstar!"
Darklord Moringstar was, without question, Sonia's Ace monster, but in order to summon it, Hajime knew this would mean Sonia intended to sacrifice Arcana Knight Joker.
I have a bad feeling about this, Hajime thought.
Both of Sonia's monsters vanished and, in their place, appeared the 8-winged, purple skinned, white haired, fallen angel himself: Darklord Morningstar.
Descending from a thunderous cluster of dark clouds, Morningstar floated down, blade in hand, like the biblical angel of death. His ethereal black blade was clutched within his hand.
"When Darklord Morningstar is summoned, I am able to summon as many Darklord monsters directly from my hand or deck as you have monsters with special abilities. Since you have one such monster, I am able to freely summon Darklord Ixchel in defense mode!"
The beautifully fair-skinned Ixchel appeared in a flash of black light as she fanned out her wings and sang a high note before dropping to her knees and using her wings for protection.
"And since Capricious Darklord was sent to the graveyard, monsters you control lose 500 attack and defense for every fairy monster on the field and I have two."
Invoked Raidjin was haunted by the spirit of Capricious Darklord, bringing it down to 2,700 attack points, weaker than Darklord Morningstar.
"Then I'll just—"
"Sorry, Hajime, but I'm afraid you missed your chance to stop me this time. As long as Darklord Morningstar has a servant of his at my side, I'm afraid the only way to vanquish him is to defeat him in battle. You. Can't. Target him."
Hajime's blood ran cold. That's why Sonia played Ixchel in defense mode. It was her only option. Putting in face-down defense position wouldn't matter and of course Hajime would want to protect his life points.
"This time there will be no escape. Morningstar," Sonia commanded. "Take Invoked Raidjin down."
In a blur of black light, Morningstar slashed forward, passing straight by Hajime. Invoked Raidjin turned the color of dust and then the hologram slowly eroded away, leaving Hajime with 3,300.
"I think you know the only way you can defeat me now, Hajime," Sonia told him. "Bring it out. Let our favorite monsters clash here and now!"
Hajime grit his teeth. Sonia had him good. He needed a fusion substitute monster and he needed it now. What he drew…wasn't that. If anything, it was a gamble right now. But it was a gamble he had to attempt.
"I activate Card of Sanctity!" Hajime shouted. "This maxes out our hands to 6 cards each."
Sonia and Hajime drew their cards and now had full hands once more. Hajime scanned his hand. His eyes landed with elation on Goddess with a Third Eye. This was it. There was no turning back now.
"I activate Polymerization!" Hajime shouted. "I'll fuse together Koumouri Dragon, Blackland Fire Dragon and Goddess with a Third Eye in order to summon Blackland Void Dragon!"
The serpentine, black dragon emerged from Hajime's deck with a roar and light seeping from its lava-like orange eyes.
"And now, Blackland Void Dragon gains 200 points for every monster in not directly found in our decks," Hajime pointed out. However, something was off when this took effect. By all accounts, Hajime knew his monster would go up to 6,100 points, but it instead went up to 6,300 points.
6,300? Hajime thought, brow furrowing. Is this a glitch? Sonia doesn't use fusion monsters.
Sonia gulped inconspicuously. I know what Hajime's thinking, and it is no glitch. I pray he does not realize what this will mean for our duel. A massive black aura vaguely in the shape of a humanoid monster hovered behind, a blue light gleamed upon its forehead.
Hajime waited and gazed at each of the Kaiba brothers and Yami. No one said anything or batted an eyelash at the 200 point boost Hajime wasn't expecting. Yami didn't know Sonia as well as Hajime did it seemed.
Well, if there not going to say anything, I guess that means its fine. He swallowed. I sure hope I don't get disqualified.
Hajime was, of course, forgetting the simple problem with his theory: if there was ever a glitch in a KaibaCorp product, not only would Kaiba have it patched immediately, but he'd fire the person responsible.
"Blackland Void Dragon, destroy Darklord Morningstar!" Hajime shouted. "Void Gale Blast!"
A blast of dark energy tore into Darklord Morningstar ripping it to shreds. The ensuing blast from Hajime's dragon was also hazardous to Sonia's life points, leaving her with only 350. No trace of Morningstar was left behind, leaving nothing but a single feather behind that dispersed into light as it hit the ground. Sonia was forced to place Morningstar in the banished zone of the duel, a direct result of death by Hajime's ace monster.
"Blackland Void Dragon is truly a terrifying beast," Sonia stated.
Hajime nodded. He looked at the cards that remained in his hand. He'd flushed everything to get his best monster on the field. Not a single monster remained in his hand, but it hardly mattered. Still, Sonia had beaten him once by making him overconfident. He wasn't making that mistake again.
"I place one card face-down and end my turn," Hajime stated.
Sonia nodded. "Hajime, I just want you to know that, no matter what happens," Sonia said with a gentle smile. "I've had fun."
"Yeah, me too," Hajime said. And then he realized the implications of what she just said. "Hold on, you make it sound like you can do something about my dragon."
"I can," Sonia said with a smirk of confidence. "My apologies, I didn't mean to keep it hidden from you, but Darklord Morningstar is no longer my most powerful monster."
"It…kind of feels like you did," Hajime said, sweating a little.
"Oh, what I meant by that was, I apologize for not telling you such a detail before the tournament. I was so happy when I acquired this monster, a gift from my brother, shortly after the incident with Dartz. It was the only Darklord monster missing from my collection. Hajime, you will be the first to ever see it."
Wind and dust began to circulate around Sonia in an odd spiral fashion.
What's with this oppressive feeling? Hajime thought as dark clouds loomed overhead and strong winds blew at his 7 o' clock position. He didn't know where the holograms started and the game's Ancient Egyptian Origins ended.
"I activate the spell card Forbidden Fusion!" Sonia shouted. "Now, I must fusion a dark-attribute monster using one monster on my field, and at least one monster from my graveyard or banished from my field and place them both on the bottom of my deck. Then, I must banish cards equal to the summoned monsters level from the top of my deck. So, I offer up Darklord Ixchel, Capricious Darklord and Darklord Morningstar to summon a primordial power that has not been seen in nearly 7,000 years!"
A large bolt of black lightning struck the arena as a twister spiraled higher and wider the more intense it got.
"What the hell…is this…?" Hajime grunted, trying not to get blown off his feet, raising his arms in an X-pattern.
Hajime's instincts instantly told him this was bad news. He was activating his trap card now.
A figure graced the battlefield with its presence. Clad in dark armor and wielding a sword even more edgy and impressive-looking than Darklord Morningstar's, it emerged from the wind storm. It carried a shield in its opposite hand and, not to be outdone by Sonia's previously best monster, it had ten wings instead of eight.
"Behold!" Sonia declared, "Lucifer, The First Darklord!"
Sonia's monster had terrifying stats to match its splendor: 4,000 attack and defense points. Each.
"Bow to him, for you are in the presence of a god," Sonia said as she waved her hand and purple light gave off from Lucifer's sword.
The light was so intense that it shattered the hologram of Blackland Void Dragon.
"Wh-what?" Hajime stammered, startled.
"Lucifer's power, when infused with the power of its incomplete form, Darklord Morningstar, allows it to destroy everything on your side of the field once per turn."
You've gotta be kidding me, Hajime thought, panicking.
"And now, Lucifer! Attack!" Sonia shouted. But nothing happened. "Eh?"
Hajime breathed a sigh of relief. "Sorry, guess you were too wrapped up in your summoning of your monster to notice. While you were busy summoning your monster, I activated my trap card," Hajime said and ejected it from the graveyard to show Sonia. It was Negate Attack.
"But why?" Sonia gasped. How could Hajime have known he was in so much danger?
"Call it intuition. Call it fear. Call it whatever you want, but the minute you made such a spectacle of summoning your monster, I knew Blackland Void Dragon might get destroyed or my life points might be in serious trouble. You knew I had plans to summon it, so that meant I knew you had to be ready for it by the time it was."
"Let our favorite monsters clash here and now!"
"You were waiting to spring this on me. You had a counter set for Blackland Void Dragon the whole time. I might only get one turn to beat you, Sonia, but sometimes one turn is all I need!"
Hajime's hand dove for the top card of his deck. He needed a way out of his predicament and fast. Anything he played was going to get destroyed before it even got a chance to defend him. Unfortunately, he didn't find a way out of his predicament, only a way to survive.
"I activate Fusion Potion!" Hajime declared. "By removing one fusion monster from my graveyard, I can gain life points equal to its original attack."
Hajime selected Dark Paladin. "In exchange for banishing a fusion monster from my graveyard, I can gain life points equal to its level times 200."
He specifically left Blackland Void Dragon in his graveyard. If he wanted to take Lucifer down, Monster Reborn and it were his only options unless Sonia played a new monster.
Hajime removed Dark Paladin from his graveyard with the gift of 1,600 additional life points, bringing him up to 4,900.
There's no point in setting a monster. Sonia will just destroy it instantly. "I end my turn."
"Resigned to your fate I see," Sonia said as she drew her card. She looked at her hand. There wasn't a single monster she could currently play under these circumstances besides Darklord Ukoback and his attack power was way too low to finish Hajime off. If he drew any 4-star monster, it'd be her defeat. She would simply have to defeat Hajime next turn. "Lucifer! Attack Hajime directly! Blade of the Morning Star!"
Hajime screamed as he took the hard-light hologram to the chest, stumbling back and gripping at his shirt. It was like getting whacked with a stick as heavy as a sledgehammer, except in a scrapping motion and didn't have the common courtesy to be over with a simple whack.
His life points plummeted all the way to 900 points. He was in the lead, but as he hunched over on his knees panting, he knew that he was down to his final draw. If he didn't draw Monster Reborn now, this duel was over.
Hajime brought himself to the most tranquil he could get as he placed his hand upon his deck. It doesn't matter how this turns out. I don't need to obsess over winning or losing. But…that doesn't mean I'm just giving up. And, no matter what, I believe in myself, Chiaki, my son, and my deck. I believe…
"IN THE HEART OF THE CARDS!"
Light shined as Hajime drew the top card of his deck. Light so bright it pierced the darkness of Sonia's occultic storm.
Hajime didn't need to announce the name of Monster Reborn. Or, if he did, it was drowned out by the special effects as Blackland Void Dragon rose from the grave with a deafening roar.
Yami could only smile. Hajime was truly an inspiring sight to behold.
Sonia's lips turned into a frown as it looked, for a moment, that she might cry. However she quickly turned her frown upside-down, wiped her eye, took a deep breath and shouted, arm extended, fingers spanned out. "Do not hold back! You have fought hard and earned your victory, Hajime!" Sonia put her arms in front of her stomach and smiled calmly. "I have no regrets."
"Neither do I," Hajime said. "Thank you for an amazing duel, Sonia." He then gazed up at his monster. "Blackland Void Dragon! Void Gale Blast!"
Blackland Void Dragon unleashed its might down onto Lucifer who brought up its shield in an attempt to block the fury of the dragon's might. But even the primordial angel itself could not last long against the power of the void. Soon, Lucifer's shield, the angel itself and eventually Sonia were engulfed by the attack.
"NNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGHHHH!" Sonia declared, gritting her teeth before she was blown off her feet and landed on her back. Her life points hit 0. The duel was over. Hajime was the winner.
The crowd erupted in cheer, chanting the Ultimate Duelist's name, but he neither waved nor acknowledged them. He merely stuck his hands in his pockets, took a moment to bask in the cheers and then waltzed over to help Sonia up, taking her hand.
"That was a fantastic display, Hajime," Sonia stated, brushing dust off her skirt as she looked him in the eye. "I would not have had that any other way, sans winning instead."
"You're a credit to your country, Sonia. I really felt the power of Novoselic royalty during that."
"My," Sonia said, chuckling and blushing. "Were you not married and a father, I'd think you were courting me, Hajime."
Hajime laughed nervously.
"I shall be cheering for your further victories," Sonia stated. "Of course, if you end up facing Gundham, I hope you don't mind if I switch sides, though if you were able to best me, I am uncertain of his chances."
"Well, he's got his work cut out for him just to get that chance," Hajime said.
"Quite. Joseph Wheeler is a formidable duelist," Sonia stated. "Even if Kaiba disagrees."
Hajime, again, laughed nervously, but mostly because he agreed and had conflicting feelings about agreeing given Kaiba was currently his boss.
With that, Hajime and Sonia parted ways, Hajime returning to the break room and Sonia sitting down with Class 77-B. She immediately offered to take her turn holding baby Izuru.
"You're going to be a good baby for Auntie Sonia now, aren't you?" Sonia asked, bouncing the little boy in her lap, poking his tummy with her finger.
Izuru responded by immediately spitting up all over his shirt. Thankfully none of it got far enough to reach Sonia's skirt.
Mahiru sighed. "Jeeeez. Give him here. I'll change him."
Another commercial break later and it was finally time for the second match of the second round of the Kaiba Corp Grand Prix. Leon and Espa Roba, matched in stature, walked out onto the arena, politely waving at the crowd.
"Well, whatdya think about this one, gramps?" Tristan asked, putting his hands behind his head.
"Hard to say," Solomon responded, nodding his head. "Both of them duel in such unique ways, it's difficult to say which one will outperform the other."
"Quite true," Bakura said. "Although in a battle between myths and machines, I think I'd have to side with the side that has greater potential."
Tristan gave him a glazed look. "Can you just say you're rooting for Leon like a normal person instead of getting all flowery there?"
Miho laughed at Tristan's delivery of his statement.
Up on the arena, Leon and Espa faced each other down. No words were exchanged, for none need be said. Leon was already confident in his abilities and Espa could practically read his mind and predict the pleasantries silently. The Espa Roba that would taunt his opponents before a match was also long gone.
Leon, however, broke the silence as their duel disks were activated and their life points ascended. "I'm looking forward to this, Espa."
"Likewise," Espa responded, folding his arms.
The auto-selector for the first turn flipped back and forth.
Mukuro felt something buzz inside her shirt pocket. It was her phone signaling a text from Junko.
It was decided Leon would make the first move of the duel.
The message read: If Leon wins, give me a grade for his ability on a scale of ten. You can do at least that much, right?
Competitive gazes were exchanged by both.
Mukuro merely texted Junko "Yes" and hit the send button and then put her phone back.
The second match of the second round of the Kaiba Corp Grand Prix was about to begin.
(A/N: Whoo boy. Man, sorry that duel took forever but I really wanted the matchup to live up to the hype like I said. But what's this? Junko making a move? Don't…don't break your brains over what the twisted little bitch is up to. It's not worth your mental health.
Next time on Dueling Trigger Finger, Leon Vs Espa Roba. Place your bets and, until next time—which hopefully won't be months—from all of me, to all of you, let your hearts stay human and your wrath draconic. Ja ne!)