Lost in the Twilight
"What's going on here?" Proxy jumped off her D-Board, landing next to Blaze Rose.
The two oGear duelists were standing on the rooftop of a building, watching Playmaker and PhantomFire who were about to duel. Proxy was lost – what happened in a few hours to cause her mentor and her partner to face against each other?
"I don't know, but it looks like a promising match-up." Blaze Rose answered.
Playmaker – the duelist that everyone in LINK VRAINS idolized and viewed as the strongest versus PhantomFire, a ghost from the past, a legend who plumbed to the bottom until his name became long forgotten. Blaze Rose felt bad for the Cyberse duelist. At first glance, it might seem like there were no stakes in this duel – since, without a Knight of Hanoi present, the loser wouldn't be turned into an Another victim. But the truth tended to stay hidden for those too ignorant to look for it. Playmaker was, unknowingly, placing his entire existence as a bet in this match.
"Shouldn't we interfere?" Proxy asked.
"No." Blaze Rose shook her head. She sat down at the edge of the building and smiled. "Let's enjoy ourselves. We might see something amazing happen during this duel."
Proxy sighed and placed her hands over her chest, hoping that the two duelists won't hurt each other or the server. She remembered well the chaos that ensued when Playmaker dueled Revolver, the hellish flames that scorched the ground and the fierce storm that tore through the virtual buildings. The girl tensed at the memories, but they only caused her to grip her chest harder and pray for both Playmaker and Phantomus.
Below them, PhantomFire and Playmaker stared at each other, both of their Duel Disks glowing, their eyes inspecting the other's posture. Blue Angel gulped at the sight, the two duelists were looking at each other like wild beasts about to tear each other apart.
"Playmaker, you keep calling yourself an Emissary of Revenge." PhantomFire pointed at his opponent. "I know that you believe there's no future for you beyond this madness and that deep inside you believe yourself to be something beyond a human – a creature so disfigured and corrupted that it got no place in society. But in this duel, I'll prove how wrong you're!"
"I'm not wrong." Playmaker stated. "You can have your beliefs, but don't try to force them on me. I told that to Akira, and I'll tell it to you as well, you don't know me, or what I went through, so you have no right to judge me!"
"Heh, don't you overestimate your importance for me?" PhantomFire asked with a smug smile on his face.
"What would that mean?" Playmaker questioned.
"It means that you're nothing more than a bug in front of me!" PhantomFire shouted. "I'm not here to question or judge you, I'm going to crush you using your own strength, I'll step on you like the worthless insect you are and show you how much of a human you're once you fall back into that pit of despair you barely crawled from ten years ago!"
Playmaker's blood ran cold at the sound of that threat. Did this man figure it out? Everyone else fought against Playmaker because they were either paid, looking for fame, or because they wanted to stop him from dirtying his hands. Even Akira who has looked through the fails about the Lost Incident didn't realize it – the reason why Playmaker had to keep winning, to keep moving forward without the memories of the words 'You Lost' there to remind him of the pain, screaming and starvation that broke his soul.
But, this man knew about? Playmaker gritted his teeth, anger, fear, anxiety all spacing in his chest. To lose a duel, to see the words 'You Lost' glow in front of his eyes, again, would be too much for him to bear.
"It's all or nothing for you in this duel, Playmaker," PhantomFire smirked. "Will you win, or will the rage burning in your eyes backstab you in the last moment?"
"Threats like aren't enough to erase my fire for revenge." Playmaker replied. "A duel is the only way to make you step aside."
"Indeed, it is." PhantomFire nodded. "Let's go!"
A Master Duel field formed in front of the two. Blue Angel stepped aside and PhantomFire's students looked intently from the rooftop.
"Duel!"
『Playmaker LP: 4000, Hand: 5 (VS) PhantomFire LP: 4000, Hand: 5』
"Your style of dueling is filled with flaws, Playmaker," PhantomFire commented. "For starters, you don't know what hand advantage means and always burn through your hand for a single Link Monster. But I don't need to use your weaknesses as an advantage to win, so I'll let you have that precious draw."
"What does that mean exactly?" Ai asked.
"It means that he'll take the first turn." Playmaker narrowed his eyes.
"Indeed it does." PhantomFire nodded and took two cards from his hand, placing them face down. "I'll set two Trap Cards and end my turn!"
"EH?!" Ai exclaimed. "He announced the type of cards he's setting? Does he even know how to duel?"
"He's doing it deliberately." Playmaker replied. "This man… He's so sure in his victory that he's not afraid of announcing the type of cards he's playing. But I won't let that intimidate me. It's my turn, draw!"
『Turn 2 [Playmaker] LP: 4000, Hand: 6』
"When there are no monsters on my field, I can Special Summon Linkslayer (Lv.5, ATK: 2000) from my hand!" One of Playmaker's more famous Main Deck monsters appeared on the field, activating its energy claws. "Linkslayer's effect allows me at the cost of discarding up to two cards to destroy the same amount of spell or trap cards you control! I discard two cards to destroy both of your set cards!"
Linkslayer leaped in the air and swung its blades at PhantomFire's field, cutting through the set cards, which flipped face-up to reveal their identities before getting destroyed. Playmaker narrowed his eyes: The Regulation of Tribe and Metaverse, what was his opponent going for with these cards?
"Ha! How's that?" Ai pointed a finger at Phantomus. "Both of your set cards have been dealt with!"
"Is that so?" PhantomFire smirked.
"Huh?" Ai blinked in confusion by those words.
"The effect of ChronoDevil oGear Tamer Raccoonia activates from my hand!" PhantomFire showed the card to his opponent and continued. "When Spell or Trap Cards I control are destroyed by an opponent's card effect, I can Special Summon her onto my field!"
A teenage girl with brown hair and eyes appeared in front of PhantomFire. The monster had fluffy dog-like ears and a bushy tail to go with the humanoid beast motive. She wore a short black dress with a light brown front and a caramel-colored shirt underneath. In addition to these clothes, she wore a bronze breastplate, hide boots and a pair of metal gloves.
ChronoDevil oGear Tamer Raccoonia
Level: 6/Attribute: DARK/Type: Beast-Warrior/Effect
ATK: 300/DEF: 2500
Effect: If a Spell/Trap(s) you control leaves the field because of an opponent's effect, and is now in the GY: You can Special Summon this card from the hand, then you can Set the Spell/Trap(s) destroyed by this effect to your side of the field. Card(s) set by this effect can be activated the turn they were set.
"It got only three hundred attack points and he brought it in Attack Position?" Ai tilted its head to the side. "Does he want us to attack?"
"You won't have the chance for that." PhantomFire shook his finger at the Ignis. "When Raccoonia is summoned by her effect, I can set the cards you just destroyed on my side of the field!" The beast-warrior held out her arms summoning a sand clock in her palm. The clock turned upside down and immediately PhantomFire's set cards returned on the field. "In addition, I can activate the cards set by this effect on the same turn!"
"You knew that I would go after your set cards." Playmaker commented.
"That much should be obvious even for a complete idiot." PhantomFire sneered. "But the question now is, will you attack? Since you already know what my set cards are, you should also be able to realize what the result of such an attack would be."
"Um, what's he talking about?" Ai looked at its origin.
"The Regulation of Tribe's effect allows him to stop whichever type of monster he wishes from attacking." Playmaker commented.
"All monsters in your deck are Cyberse." Ai realized. "That punk! Anything goes for him, as long as he wins!"
"It's a powerful card, indeed." Playmaker nodded. "But maintaining it comes at a big cost. I'll Normal Summon Storm Cipher (Lv.4, ATK: 2400)." A warrior-like monster made from blue energy and rocks appeared next to Playmaker's other monster. "Now battle! Storm Cipher attack his monster!"
"Very well then!" PhantomFire shouted back and pressed a button on his Duel Disk. "I'll respond in kind! Trap activate The Regulation of Tribe! When this card activates, I choose a monster type and all monsters of said type are rendered unable to attack while this card is face-up on the field! I choose Cyberse type!" Chains shoot out of PhantomFire's card and tied down Playmaker's monsters, rendering them unable to fight.
"Ah, why did you have to go and activate his trap?!" Ai screamed.
"Because of its cost." Playmaker stated. "In order to keep his trap around, PhantomFire will have to tribute a monster on each of his Standby Phases, or else it will be destroyed."
"I see!" Ai slammed its fist against its wrist. "If he keeps paying for that trap, he'll quickly run out of monsters, and if he does, we'll be able to attack in no time!"
"I'll set a card and end my turn." Playmaker finished and glared at his opponent.
"Then I'll use this moment to activate my second set card!" PhantomFire called out. "Through the effect of Metaverse I can take a Field Spell from my deck and either add it to my hand or activate it directly! Of course, I choose to activate Lair of Darkness!" PhantomFire's card appeared in his palm and began to glow.
Black vines shot out of the ground and the windows of the buildings, with black flames erupting from the streets. Blue Angel, Proxy and Blaze Rose all stepped back, getting to a safer distance, while Ai trembled inside Playmaker's Duel Disk. The silhouettes of dark spirits floated through the darkness that surrounded PhantomFire and Playmaker.
"Lair of Darkness' effect turns the attribute all monsters on the field to DARK!" PhantomFire clenched his right hand into a fist. "Of course since your deck doesn't focus on any attribute, this won't be a problem for you, but I figured that it would be fitting to give the origin of the DARK Ignis a deck composed of only DARK monsters."
Playmaker narrowed his eyes and looked at his monsters. There was no change in Storm Cipher, who was already DARK, but the dark spirits flew toward Linkslayer and possessed it, giving the Cyberse monster a dark purple aura around it.
Linkslayer, Attribute: EARTH → DARK
"Now it's my turn, I draw!"
『Turn 3 [PhantomFire] LP: 4000, Hand: 3』
"And now the effect of The Regulation of Tribe activates!" Playmaker pointed out. "You must release a monster!"
"Indeed I do." PhantomFire chuckled before pointing at Linkslayer. "I choose to release Linkslayer for my trap's maintaining cost!"
"What!?" Playmaker gasped and turned toward his monster. Sure enough, Linkslayer's body was consumed by the dark spirits living in Lair of Darkness and its essence was sent to The Regulation of Tribe, getting absorbed by the trap.
"H-he tribute our monster for his card," Ai muttered, shocked by this turn of events.
"Did you expect that I'll let you enjoy being a part of this duel for free?" PhantomFire laughed at his opponent's face. It was just priceless. "Playmaker, before you stands a God among Gods, the ultimate duelist! Dueling is my kingdom, and you dared to step foot in it, so of course, you'll have to pay the debts! And with the power of Lair of Darkness, I'm able to use one of your monsters as a tribute during each of my turns."
"That's unfair!" Ai protested.
"The fact that you were allowed to last for a turn is fair enough." PhantomFire retorted, confusing the Ignis. "But back to me, I'm going to activate Allure of Darkness! Through its effect, I draw two cards, then banish a DARK monster from my hand." PhantomFire observed his hand and nodded before getting rid of a card. "Next, I'm going to Normal Summon a favorite of mine, ChronoGear Time Tamer Wolfy!"
Time Tamer Wolfy was a wolf girl that had yellow eyes and short grey hair with wolf ears and a grey tail. Her outfit consisted of a large, mechanical in appearance hairclips on the sides of her head, short, sleeveless, cardinal red dress with silver buttons that reach a bit under her tights, grey shorts and red slip-on shoes with a silver clock gear tied around her left ankle. The girl's weapon was a whip with two clock arrows on the handle.
ChronoGear Time Tamer Wolfy
Level: 4/Attribute: DARK/Type: Beast-Warrior/Tuner/Effect
ATK: 1700/DEF: 400
Effect: Cannot be used as Material for Fusion, Synchro or Xyz Summon, unless all other materials are DARK monsters. If this card is Normal or Special Summon you can target 1 banished "ChronoGear" monster; Special Summon it, but its ATK and DEF become 0 and for the rest of this turn it's treated as a Level 4 monster. If this card is Special Summoned by the effect of a "ChronoGear" card: You can target up to 2 "ChronoGear" Spell/Trap cards in your GY or banished; shuffle them into the deck.
"Hey there!" the monster waved.
"Um, his monster just talked, Playmaker." Ai pointed at the new Time Tamer.
"I activate Wolfy's effect!" Evan gestured toward his monster. "When she's summoned, I can retrieve one of my banished ChronoGear monsters as long as its attack and defense become zero, and its effect becomes four. So, come back, ChronoGear Time Veiler!"
Wolfy whipped the ground next to her and a black portal opened, after which a little girl with short red hair and large blue eyes jumped onto the field. The girl had two triangular metal objects on the sides of her head and was wearing a black bodysuit with light armor plates on top of it, covering most of her body. The only things that weren't protected by the armor were her arms, which had comically big hide gloves on them, and her feet, which were covered by her boots. The girl was hugging a large wand, which was two heads larger than her, with a clock on the top.
ChronoGear Time Veiler
Level: 2/Attribute: DARK/Type: Psychic/Tuner/Effect
ATK: 0/DEF: 900
Effect: If this card is used as Material for the Fusion, Synchro, Xyz or Link Summon of a "Chrono" monster: You can draw 1 card. If this card is Special Summoned by the effect of a "ChronoGear" card: You can Special Summon 1 "ChronoGear Token" (Machine/DARK/Level 1/ATK 0/DEF 0).
"Is it me, or does Phantomus use a lot of female monsters?" Proxy asked, sweating.
"Well, he's the one who created these cards in the first place." Blaze Rose shrugged. "I'm just surprised that he didn't put some weird fetish in there, but I wouldn't rather not think of the possibility for that to happen."
"Now, due to Wolfy's effect, Time Veiler will become a Level Four monster." PhantomFire clicked his fingers.
ChronoGear Time Veiler, ATK: 0 → 0, DEF: 900 → 0, Lv.2 → 4
"Appear circuit of past and future!" The air between the two teams cracked and a black void opened up. The pseudo-black hole began to suck in PhantomFire's monsters. "Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning requirements are two oGear monsters! I set ChronoDevil oGear Tamer Racconnia and ChronoGear Time Tamer Wolfy in the Link Markers! Link Summon! ChronoGear Time Timer Kitty (ATK: 1700, Link-2)!" PhantomFire's standard Link 2 monster appeared from the black hole with a wink.
"Next, Kitty's effect will revive Time Tamer Wolfy to my field!" The wolf girl rose again holding her whip with both hands. "Watch carefully now Playmaker, and engrave the sight of this legendary monster into your eyes! I overlay Level Four Wolfy and Veiler! With these two monsters, I build the Overlay Network!"
The two cards appeared in front of PhantomFire and he pressed them together, creating a bolt of purple lightning that he threw into the sky. A purple 'X' made of data with a crimson right inside of it appeared behind PhantomFire and his two monsters turned into data that entered the two small holes on the sides of the ring.
"It's an Xyz Summon!" Ai gasped.
Purple flowed out of the 'X' circuit in four beams past PhantomFire creating a galaxy-like portal in front of him. Black lightning shot out of the duelist's Duel Disk and he threw his arms forward.
"Formed from pitch-black darkness, to fight those foolish enough to oppose it with its treacherous fangs!" As PhantomFire chanted a black energy core formed inside the portal and a frightening creature began to materialize. "Now, descend! Xyz Summon! Appear! Rank Four! Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon (RANK: 4, ATK: 2500)!"
The pitch black dragon flew out of the portal and landed in the center Monster Zone, roaring.
"AAAHHH!" Ai screamed and hid into Playmaker's Duel Disk. "That's one scary looking dragon!"
"That's one of the better monsters within my collection," PhantomFire noted. "Of course its effects are nowhere near as good as its brothers', but believe me when I tell you that it's still one beast you shouldn't underestimate. And since I used Time Veiler as material to summon it, I get to draw a card." PhatnomFire looked at the cards in his hand and then back at Playmaker. "Dark Rebellion, activate your effect!"
The black dragon's Overlay Units flew into its claws and shattered. Its wings opened up and purple electricity began to charge inside of them after which the beast fired the lightning at Storm Cypher, locking Playmaker's beatstick in a paralyzed state.
"By using two of Dark Rebellion's Xyz Materials, I'm able to permanently cut the attack points of one monster you control by half, and then give those points to Dark Rebellion itself. Treasure Discharge!"
Storm Cypher, ATK: 2400/2 → 1200
Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon, ATK: 2500 + 1200 → 3700
"Can you survive this turn?" PhantomFire asked. "Dark Rebellion, attack Storm Cypher! Lightning Disobey of Rebellion!" The pitch black dragon roared and charged forward, slashing at the Cyberse monster with its chin blade, cutting it in half.
"I activate Rescue Interlacer's effect!" Playmaker countered. "By discarding this card, I negate all the damage I would take from this attack."
"But now there are no longer any monsters to protect your Life Points!" PhantomFire pointed out. "This means that Time Tamer Kitty can attack you directly, and when Kitty attacks, she gains half the attack points of one monster that she points at!"
"His Link Monster points at Dark Rebellion…" Ai began to sweat, nervously. "And since the dragon got a buff, the Link's attack will be…"
ChronoGear Time Tamer Kitty, ATK: 1700 + 1850 → 3550
Time Tamer Kitty jumped on Dark Rebellion's back and aimed her rifle at Playmaker. The Cyberse Duelist gritted his teeth and the Link Monster fired, with the force of the impact knocking Playmaker a few dozen meters back.
『Playmaker LP: 4000 - 3550 → 450』
"Playmaker!" Blue Angel and Proxy gasped.
"Rgh!" Playmaker groaned, forcing himself to stand back up.
"If this was a Speed Duel, you might have been able to use your skill," PhantomFire commented. "But then again, if that was the case you wouldn't have had this extra card to save yourself from losing!"
"Evan's dueling is really frightening to watch, isn't it?" Blaze Rose commented, catching Proxy's attention. "Due to his trap, Playmaker is unable to attack, due to his Field Spell, Playmaker will lose any monster he summons at the start of the next turn, leaving him open to attacks. Even if the card he had set was a powerful trap, due to Kitty's effect all Trap Cards are going to be sealed away during the Battle Phase."
Proxy gulped and looked back at the duel. She had never seen Playmaker getting pushed back against the wall so badly. Was it possible for him to even break PhantomFire's combo? She wasn't sure, but then again, she was still new to the game, so there was much that she didn't know yet.
"At the end of the battle, Kitty's attack returns to normal," PhantomFire stated, his Link Monster jumped off Dark Rebellion and her attack returned to 1700. "Also, at the End Phase of this turn, the effect of Lair of Darkness activates, and I gain a Torment Token for every monster tribute during this turn." A black flame with green eyes appeared on PhantomFire's field wielding 1000 defense points.
"So his Field Spell not only steals our monsters but also gives him free ones as well?!" Ai crossed its arms, angrily. "That's completely unacceptable."
"But we have an effect as well." Playmaker reminded his partner. "Rescue Interlacer's effect will Special Summon it on our field during the End Phase of this turn!" A female monster in white and red armor, with wheels in place of feet, appeared before Playmaker.
"You're a resistant one," PhantomFire commented. "But if you don't break my combo by next turn, you're going to lose."
"It's my turn!" Playmaker stated and placed his hand on the top of his deck. The Cyberse Duelist bit his lip, just like how PhantomFire said, he had already burned through his entire hand and his only hope was to draw a good card. "DRAW!"
『Turn 4 [Playmaker] LP: 450, Hand: 1』
Playmaker looked at the card he got and mentally sighed in relief that it was a good card. "I Summon ROM Cloudia (Lv.4, ATK: 1800)!" A black sheep appeared on Playmaker's field. "When ROM Cloudia is Summoned, I can target a Cyberse monster in my graveyard and add it to my hand, I add Latency and its effect Special Summons it on my field!" A red robot carrying an hourglass appeared next to Playmaker's other monsters.
"Appear, the circuit that leads to the future!" Playmaker threw an arm toward the sky, summoning the square. "Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning conditions are two Effect Monsters! I set Latency and ROM Cloudia in the Link Markers! Link Summon! Code Talker (ATK: 1300, Link-2)!" The small Code Talker appeared in Playmaker's Extra Monster Zone, pointing down at Rescue Interlacer.
"Because Latency was used as Link Material after it was summoned by its own effect, I get to draw a card!" Playmaker declared, taking another card from his deck. "Also, because Code Talker points toward a monster, it gains five hundred extra attack points!"
Code Talker, ATK: 1300 + 500 → 1800
"I activate Cyberse Cache!" Playmaker showed the card to his opponent. "When there's a Cyberse monster whose attack power is different from its original attack, I draw two new cards."
"Two new cards, huh?" PhantomFire narrowed his eyes. "Even though your hand and field were empty on the last turn… Your ability to draw the right card at the right moment is astonishing. Almost… like you use some sort of hack to get the right cards."
"That's the power I obtained by myself!" Playmaker argued. "There're no hacks or cheats!"
"Then prove it to me," PhantomFire smirked. "Show me what the Lost Incident taught you!"
"You…" Playmaker's face turned severe, and the veins on his forehead could be seen about to burst from the anger he was feeling. "I open the circuit of the future for a second time!"
Another square formed in front of Playmaker. "Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning conditions are two or more Effect Monsters! I set Rescue Interlacer and the Link Two Code Talker in the Link Markers! Link Summon! Decode Talker (ATK: 2300, Link-3)!" Playmaker's ace, the DARK Code Talker flew through the square and landed in front of its master with its broadsword placed in front of it.
"Next, I activate Cybersal Cyclone! This card's ability allows me to destroy your Link Two, Time Tamer Kitty by banishing a Link Monster with the same Link Rating from my graveyard!" Code Talker's spirit appeared in front of Playmaker and turned into a Cyclone that collided with PhantomFire's monster, destroying it. "Also, since I banished a Cyberse monster for the effect of Cybersal Cyclone, I can destroy a card in your Spell or Trap Zone!"
"So you did have a counter against it," PhantomFire smirked, his The Regulation of Tribe disappearing from the field.
"With this, you can no longer stop my attacks." At Playmaker's words, Decode Talker readied its blade. "Battle! Decode Talker attack Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon!"
"What!?' Everyone but PhantomFire yelled in unison.
Decode Talker raised its blade and swung it down at Dark Rebellion, who swung its head upward, blocking Decode Talker's sword with its chin blade. The dragon pushed the warrior back and charged at it.
"I activate my Trap, Cynet Refresh!" Playmaker activated his set card. "When a Cyberse monster attacks, this card destroys all monsters in the Main Monster Zones!"
Decode Talker jumped backward, avoiding Dark Rebellion's counterattack, then swung its broadsword once more, unleashing a slash of dark energy that cut through both Dark Rebellion and the Torment Token, leaving PhantomFire's field empty.
"Now you got no more monsters to protect you!" Playmaker shouted. "Decode Talker, change your target and attack PhantomFire directly! Decode End!"
The Cyberse Link Monster raised its blade and jumped into the sky, slamming its weapon onto PhantomFire. The ChronoGear Duelist screamed, his body was flung back by the impact, slamming into the building behind him.
『PhantomFire LP: 4000 - 2300 → 1700』
"Even PhantomFire was…" Blue Angel covered her mouth in shock.
PhantomFire stepped out of the hole that Decode Talker's attack caused. A large red slash was present on his chest, but the duelist ignored it as he watched Playmaker Talker with a grin on his face. After all the insulting and bad-mouthing, Playmaker was finally starting to give in to his rage.
"Tell me, isn't Decode Talker the first monster you obtained with your skill?" PhantomFire asked.
"…" Playmaker ignored his opponent's question and took a card from his hand. "I set a card, turn end."
"Playmaker, this monster, all the monsters you obtained from the Data Storm, they are what gave you the strength that drove you to win your duels! It wasn't your 'brilliant' dueling, nor your cheat-like luck when drawing! It was them! These monsters are the very manifestations of your rage – and I'm going to crush all of them, one at a time! My turn, draw!"
『Turn 5 [PhantomFire] LP: 1700, Hand: 4』
"I activate ChronoGear Emergency Launch to Special Summon ChronoGear Berfomet (Lv.4, DEF: 1800) from my deck!" the cybernetic zombie raised on PhantomFire's field. "Next Berfomet's effect allows me to add ChronoGear Hellchain from my deck to the hand, and I'll summon it." The demonic creature covered by a torn cloak and chains joined Berfomet on the field. "And through Hellchain's effect, I'm going to revive Time Veiler from my graveyard."
"Now open, the circuit of past and future!" The space over PhantomFire's head tore open, and a black hole replaced it. "Arrowheads confirmed! The Summoning conditions are two or more Chrono monsters! I set Berfomet, Hellchain and Time Veiler in the Link Markers! Link Summon! ChronoGear Gatling Wheel (ATK: 2400, Link-3)!" the bulky warrior carrying a machinegun appeared in the right Extra Monster Zone.
"When Time Veiler's is used to summon a Chrono monster, I can draw a card," PhantomFire stated, adding another card to his hand. "Let's battle now, Playmaker! Gatling Wheel, attack Decode Talker!" The monster aimed its machine gun at Playmaker's ace.
"I activate my trap, Break & Reverse!" Playmaker quickly countered before his monster got gunned down. "I destroy Decode Talker to Special Summon a monster with fewer attack points from my Graveyard. Come, ROM Cloudia (Lv.4, DEF: 0)!" The warrior burst into particles and a black sheep took its place.
"So you would rather destroy your own ace than suffer damage?" PhantomFire spat. "Fine then! I'll destroy ROM Cloudia instead!" Gatling Wheel aimed its machinegun at ROM Cloudia and fired, tearing multiple gun holes through the sheep, before it burst into pixels.
"When ROM Cloudia is destroyed, its effect activates!" Playmaker stated. "I Special Summon Lady Debugger (Lv.4, DEF: 1400) from my Deck!" A humanoid lady bug monster appeared on Playmaker's field. "When Lady Debugger is Summoned, her effect adds a Level Three or lower Cyberse monster from my deck to the hand. I add Micro Coder!"
"So you do have searchers after all." PhantomFire put a hand on his hips. "But let me guess, you run one copy of it only, right? Oh well, even if you ran multiple copies it wouldn't have changed a thing, so maybe it doesn't matter so much. I'll set three cards and end my turn."
"Three set cards?" Ai commented.
"Is he finally making his move?" Playmaker wondered out loud. "It's my turn. I draw!"
『Turn 6 [Playmaker] LP: 450, Hand: 2』
"I Normal Summon Draconnet (Lv.3, ATK: 1400)." a blue dragon-like monster appeared on Playmaker's field. "When Draconnet is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon Bitron (Lv.2, DEF: 2000) from my Deck!" The little white bot flew happily around Playmaker.
"Appear now, the circuit that leads to the future!" Playmaker threw his arm forward. "Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning conditions are three monsters! I set Draconnet, Lady Debugger and Micro Coder in the Link Markers! Link Summon! Powercode Talker (ATK: 2300, Link-3)!" The red Code Talker flew out of the square and landed in front of Playmaker with a loud groan.
"When Micro Coder is used as Link Material from my hand, I can add a Cynet Spell or Trap from my deck to the hand." A card popped out of Playmaker's Duel Disk and he took it. "I activate Cynet Universe! Through its effect, all Link Monsters I control gain three hundred attack points!"
Powercode Talker, ATK: 2300 + 300 → 2600
"Battle!" Playmaker shouted. "Powercode Talker attack Gatling Wheel!" Powercode Talker fired its hook, grabbing onto PhantomFire's monster, then pulled itself toward it. "Now I activate Powercode Talker's effect to release Bitron and double its original attack points!"
Powercode Talker, ATK: 2600 → 4600
Powercode Talker's body burst into flames and the monster swung its fist at Gatling Wheel, tearing the ChronoGear's upper body off its legs.
"Then I'll activate my trap! Defense Draw!" One of PhantomFire's set cards turned face-up and a barrier emerged around him, protecting him from the shockwave. "This card negates all damage I would have taken, and lets me draw a card!"
"Argh!" Ai yelled, grabbing its head. "We were so close to ending this match!"
"You've gotten careless." PhantomFire chuckled. "Not that you haven't been an airhead until now, but if you summoned Encode Talker instead of Powercode, you wouldn't have had to sacrifice your last monster to land an attack on me. Of course, that might not matter to you all that much since my Field Spell will grant you a Token during the End Phase, but you could have done better than that."
"That's my way of dueling!" Playmaker stated. "I move to my Main Phase Two and activate Cynet Universe's effect to shuffle Dragonnet back into my deck." The Cyberse Duelist shuffled his card back and looked at the field.
Most of his other monsters were more useful in the graveyard, so he would have good targets left in case he drew something that could revive, or a card such as Recoded Alive to banish Decode and summon a new Code Talker from his Extra Deck. That was the correct move, he was sure about it.
"Once again, you made a mistake, Playmaker," PhantomFire commented.
"What?" Playmaker blinked in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
"About this! I activate my trap, The Deep Grave!" the second one of PhantomFire's set cards turned face-up. "This card's effect allows me to target a monster in either player's graveyard and revive it on my field during the next turn! I choose your Decode Talker!"
"Our what!?" Ai yelled.
"You choose to keep Decode in the graveyard hoping to revive it or target it with a card effect." PhantomFire read through Playmaker's choice. "It was a logical move to make, I won't blame you about that, but it was still a mistake that's going to cost you greatly. Now, during the end of this turn, a Torment Token will show up on your field. Now it's my turn, draw!"
『Turn 7 [PhantomFire] LP: 1700, Hand: 3』
"And on this turn's Standby Phase, my new friend is going to rise and say hello." PhantomFire grinned, a black portal opened under his feet and Playmaker's ace rose from it.
"That bastard won't stop stealing our monsters..." Ai growled angrily at the sight of his Decode Talker fighting for the enemy.
"How is it, Playmaker?" PhantomFire ran a hand through his hair and turned toward his new Cyberse monster. "First your childhood was stolen away by a group of people whose names you don't know, now your monsters are being stolen in front of your eyes. How does it feel? To be in the same shoes you were into ten years ago? Do you hate me as much as you hate the Knights of Hanoi? Or more than that?"
"Enough!" Proxy yelled, grabbing her head. She looked at Blaze Rose and began to cry. "Why? Why's he mocking Playmaker like that? Doesn't he understand the pain that Playmaker went through to come so far? Even if this is a duel, he doesn't have to be so heartless about it!"
Blaze Rose looked at the girl and then back to the duel. She wasn't going to try and argue with or against what Proxy was saying – the girl was too affectionate toward Playmaker, which blinded her vision the same way his anger blinded him.
"But I must say," PhantomFire continued. "I've always been jealous that such a fine monster fell in your hands instead of mine. Of course, there's nothing stopping from adding it to my collection once I beat you, but you'll need in order to defeat the Knights of Hanoi, so I must control myself. How about I grab it after those bugs are beaten and you no longer need it?"
"…" Playmaker remained silent. He knew that his opponent was trying to force him into giving up on his rational thoughts.
"Of course not!" Ai protested. "Decode Talker is our monster! We pulled it out of the Data Storm!"
"Hmm, I think that I'll take Playmaker's silence as approval," PhantomFire smirked. "But back to the duel, my newly acquired Decode Talker points toward your Powercode Talker, so its effect activates. Power Integration!"
Decode Talker, ATK: 2300 + 500 → 2800
"Now let's battle! Decode Talker, attack Powercode Talker" PhantomFire ordered to his monster, which swung its blade, cutting the red Code Talker in half.
『Playmaker LP: 450 - 200 → 250』
"Since Powercode Talker is now dead, my Decode Talker loses its buff." Decode Talker lowered its sword as its attack points dropped down to 2300. "Now I'll set two more cards and end my turn!"
"What're we going to do, Playmaker?" Ai asked. "We had luck until now, but it's going to run out soon!"
'I have to end it this turn.' Playmaker thought to himself. 'He uses a deck made to counter mine. If I let this duel keep going any longer, he'll overpower me.'
"It's my turn, I draw!"
『Turn 8 [Playmaker] LP: 250, Hand: 1』
"I Normal Summon RAM Clouder (Lv.4, ATK: 1800)!" The white sheep monster appeared in front of Playmaker. "I activate RAM Clouder's effect to release the Torment Token and Special Summon Powercode Talker (ATK: 2300, Link-3)!" the red Code Talker rose once again. "Next, I activate Powercode Talker's effect to negate Decode Talker's effects until the end of this turn! Wire Restruction!"
"Tch," PhantomFire grumped. Now he couldn't use Decode Talker's effect to tribute monsters in the Extra Monster Zone.
"Appear! The circuit that leads to the future!" Playmaker shouted, summoning a square in front of himself. "Arrowheads confirmed! Summoning conditions are two or more monsters! I set RAM Clouder and the Link Three, Powercode Talker in the Link Markers! Link Summon! Firewall Dragon (ATK: 2500, Link-4)!" Playmaker's dragon flew in front of him and roared.
"Even though he summoned the monster in front of Decode Talker's Link Arrow because its effects are negated, it won't gain an additional attack." Blue Angel commented.
"I use Cynet Universe's effect to return Powercode Talker into my Extra Deck!" First, Playmaker had to make sure that he won't repeat the same mistake he did on his last turn. "And due to Cynet Universe's effect, Firewall Dragon gains three hundred more attack points." Second, buff his ace monster.
Firewall Dragon, ATK: 2500 + 300 → 2800
"I now activate Firewall Dragon's effect! For every co-linked monster, I can return a monster from our field or graveyard to the hand! I choose Decode Talker! Emergency Escape!" Third, he would return the monster that was stolen from him.
The dragon unleashed a bolt of blue lightning from its head that zapped Decode Talker. The Cyberse warrior groaned in pain and tried to fight against the effect, but to no use as its body began to fade away.
"Don't think that I'll allow this to happen!" PhantomFire yelled. "I activate my trap, Interdimensional Matter Transporter! Through its effect, I banish Decode Talker until the end of this turn!"
Decode Talker's eyes glowed as its body fixed itself and a portal opened behind it. The warrior leaped through it and disappeared before Firewall Dragon could catch it.
"How annoying!" Ai rubbed its chin. "He would rather banish it than give it back to us. But since Decode is gone, there's nothing protecting his Life Points."
"Battle!" Playmaker threw his arm forward. "Firewall Dragon, attack him and end this duel! Tempest Attack!" The dragon's body turned from blue to red and it fired a red beam that washed through PhantomFire, ending the duel.
Or so it should have.
"Trap open!" PhantomFire activated another trap. "Half or Nothing! Due to this card's effect, you must make a choice, either end the Battle Phase, or halve your monster's attack points until the end of this battle!"
"Come on!" Ai complained. "And we were so close to ending it!"
"Well, what will you choose, Playmaker?" PhantomFire asked. "Halve the damage or no damage at all?"
"The choice is obvious!" Playmaker said. "I choose to halve Firewall Dragon's attack! Go! Attack him!"
Firewall Dragon, ATK: 2800/2 → 1400
"Aaaaarrrrrgggggghhhhhhh!" PhantomFire screamed as the energy hit him in the chest, launching him through the building that Decode Talker slammed him into previously.
『PhantomFire LP: 1700 - 1400 → 300』
"They are now on almost equal footing." Blaze Rose commented surprised. "I'm impressed, even though Evan's just playing with him, Playmaker's managing to pack in some damage."
"Playing with him?" Proxy repeated. "What do you mean?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Blaze Rose turned toward the younger duelist and smirked. "PhantomFire is using a deck filled with trash cards to give Playmaker a fighting chance. He wasn't to defeat him on even grounding and not through some of his more… infamous strategies."
"A deck filled with trash cards…" Proxy looked back at the duel. She could hardly believe what Blaze Rose was telling her. From the side it looked like both of them were giving their best, but if only Playmaker had to push himself to his limits, then…
"Heh, being below a thousand Life Points…" PhantomFire stepped out of the crater that Firewall Dragon's attack caused and rubbed his neck. "It's been a while since I allowed anyone to drop my Life Points so much." The duelist looked down at his hands – they were trembling, his heart was racing with adrenaline. Previous duels were nothing like this, just sitting on his throne watching as his opponent struggled to survive the first turn. "Playmaker… do you know what's the biggest lie you ever told yourself?"
Playmaker didn't respond. He didn't want to think about it, about the stuff that PhantomFire was telling him to think about.
"The worst lie any person could tell themselves is… THAT THEIR PAST MAKES THEM WHO THEY ARE!" PhantomFire shouted loudly.
"What?" Playmaker blinked.
"If you let your past control you, then you're a failure of a human!" PhantomFire continued. "You think that a tragic backstory will make you instantly a hero or a villain, that it would excuse you being a dick to everyone you meet? There's only one truth! Humans don't make their destiny, they are born with it! Whenever you will be a hero or a villain, forgive or punish, forget or hunt down, that's something coded within our very DNA, something none of us can change! You're not Playmaker because you're trying to avenge the victims of the Lost Incident, that tragic event was just a push that caused you to accept your destiny!"
"Are you saying that the incident was meaningless?" Playmaker asked. "How dare you… HOW DARE YOU SAY THAT THE THINGS I, EVERYONE, WENT THROUGH WAS NOTHING MORE THAN SOMETHING WHICH HAPPENED!"
"I'm not going to apologize to you," PhantomFire stated. "During the end of this turn, Lair of Darkness will give you another Torment Token and Decode Talker will return on my field." The Link 3 monster reappeared on PhantomFire's field and landed in his middle Monster Zone.
"This fight ends now! I draw!" PhantomFire declared, drawing.
『Turn 9 [PhantomFire] LP: 300, Hand: 1』
"I… won't be needing this," PhantomFire stated, dropping the card he drew on the ground. "This duel is already over, I simply needed you to end your turn to make it official."
"What!?" Playmaker shouted.
"Let me show you instead of telling you. I activate my last set card." PhantomFire gestured toward his last card. "Quick-Play Spell, Stand-In. I release one monster on the field to Special Summon one monster from your graveyard with the same original type and attribute as the one I tribute. Of course, thanks to Lair of Darkness, I've got a larger variety to choose from."
"No…" Playmaker whispered. The Cyberse Duelist turned toward Firewall Dragon. The Link 4 roared and its body began to slowly disappear, turning into pieces of data that faded away.
"Now come serve your new master, Firewall Dragon (ATK: 2500, Link-4)!" A tower of black flames rose behind PhantomFire and Firewall Dragon flew through, roaring as it landed beside Decode Talker.
"F-Firewall Dragon too…" Ai gulped.
"This can't be…" Playmaker took a step back. "I'm… going to lose?"
Impossible! After all, he went through, after all the new strength he obtained, was all of that for nothing? His field had a single token to protect his life, his hand was empty and there was nothing in his Graveyard which could protect him. It was his absolute lose.
"Firewall Dragon, Decode Talker…" PhantomFire paused for a moment – was it alright to do that? But the Duelist shook his head, pushing away those thoughts. "Destroy Playmaker! Tempest Attack! Decode End!"
The two monsters flew forward and Decode Talker raised its sword ready to strike when it suddenly pulled back and Firewall Dragon fired its laser beam, obliterating the Torment Token. Afterward, the Link 4 pulled back and Decode Talker moved in, slashing Playmaker across the chest.
『Playmaker LP: 250 - 2300 → 0』
『Winner: PhantomFire』
"It can't be…" Blue Angel's eyes widened.
"…Playmaker lost." Proxy fell on her knees, tears running down her cheeks.
Playmaker collapsed on the ground. His breathing became deeper and his eyes widened.
'You Lost' - that was a message that caused him to scream and wake up sweating for ten years. It was a message he tried to suppress into the deeps of his mind for so long, but now it was back. That cursed message was haunting him again. Even as Playmaker he couldn't escape it, his own mast, his biggest fears, and nightmares were back to haunt him.
"How is it?" PhantomFire stepped forward and looked down at the failed duelist. "Now everyone can know, Playmaker's dueling doesn't win."
"…" Playmaker didn't respond. He fought to win and obtain his revenge, but what was the point now that he lost? What was the point in fighting anymore? There was no longer a future for him, the last path he had to take was brutally torn down by PhantomFire.
"I told you, didn't I?" PhantomFire asked. "If you let rage blind you, it'll end up backstabbing you. You're nothing special, just another human. You're a human like Blue Angel over there! Like Proxy! Like the other five victims of the incident! But you won't allow that thought to enter your brain, you won't allow people to get close to you because you fear that they'll betray you. How many friends do you? How many? None!"
PhantomFire kicked the fallen duelist in the stomach, making him cough in pain. "Do you know how much I care about you? I care as much as I care about Blue Angel, but you don't deserve it! As long as you remain this way, people around you will keep suffering, they will keep dying, and you will watch helplessly, void of any empathy."
"You…" Playmaker managed to say. "Don't understand… a thing…"
"You have PTSD." PhantomFire stepped back. "I already know that. I'm not expecting you to make friends, I don't WANT you to become friendly toward others. All I want from you is to open your eyes and see the world for what it truly is. I want you to see the bigger picture, damn it!"
Playmaker slammed his fist against the ground. How could he? How could he see the world when he was trapped inside a pitch black abyss?
"Dark Ignis." PhantomFire continued. "Playmaker's lock on you has been removed. You can escape if you want."
"I…" Ai looked between PhantomFire and Playmaker. "I won't leave Playmaker."
"Ai…" Playmaker's eyes widened.
"I know that you don't trust me, that despite everything we went through you don't think of me as a partner, but…" Ai paused for a moment, thinking carefully its next words. "I see you as my partner. I know, you probably think I'm just saying this because I need someone to protect me from Hanoi, but that's true! The bond I feel with you is special, so even if you lost, if I'm able to leave, I would rather stand here and fight beside you!"
"You already know that the Ignis were based after the victims of the Lost Incident," PhantomFire spoke up. "Did you truly not notice that Ai's the same as you ten years ago. The past you lost was always with you, sitting right there on your wrist, but you never realized it."
"Ai…" Playmaker repeated, a sad smile appearing on his face. Then he collapsed.
"Playmaker!" Ai shook the duelist, but to no avail. "What's wrong? Playmaker?"
"He collapsed from the shock of losing." PhantomFire sighed and walked forward, grabbing his Duel Disk.
"Hey!" Ai protested. "What are you doing to my partner?"
"Logging him out manually," PhantomFire replied pressing a button on Playmaker's Duel Disk. The Cyberse Duelist's body began to glow and then disappeared.
"You were awful." Blue Angel commented. "Hurting him like that…"
"I know, I know." PhantomFire sighed, then raised his Duel Disk. "Proxy, can you hear me?"
"Y-yes!" A trembling voice replied from the other side on the line.
"I want you to log out?"
"Why?"
"Playmaker," PhantomFire replied simply, before giving a more clear answer. "Playmaker didn't lose just against me, he lost against his own trauma. This lost opened an old wound of his and made it deeper. What I want from you is to be there for him and help him bond with Ai, understood?"
"Yes!" The voice on the other line replied before hanging up.
PhantomFire dropped his arm and looked at the fake digital sky. Blue Angel stood behind him, watching her mentor, pondering what he thought about. She didn't see the grin on PhantomFire's face.
This was all a game of chest, and Playmaker was finally moved to the square PhantomFire wanted him on. One more piece and they would reach the checkmate.
Welp, that was a lot of chapters that I wrote in the last week, but I feel that it's time for me to stop and sit back. At this point, I'm probably going to reach the final of the Tower of Hanoi soon, which isn't too bad, but I want to do as little from Season 2 as possible until Season 3 (if such a thing happens) airs. I don't want to end up shooting myself in the foot like I did when introducing Aqua only for the anime to state, literally after that chapter, that she was kidnapped during the Tower Arc.
But that aside. Let's talk a bit about the chapter itself. Usually, when Playmaker loses that happens in a finale of some sort, but not this time because Playmaker's lost and acceptance of his weakness is more important for Evan now, that if it happened after Hanoi was defeated. The duel between Playmaker and PhantomFire was something I have been thinking about since somewhere October last year. I never really figured out what I wanted to have in it, which Monsters/Spell/Trap Cards I wanted each duelist to use, but I'm happy with the way I made this because the duel wasn't supposed to be about two duelists fighting each other, but about Playmaker getting betrayed by his own rage and lost to himself.
Plus let's be honest if PhantomFire went serious Playmaker would lose in 11 different ways on just turn one, so... Yeah. I'm happy how it turned out.
THANKS TO SPRGMR27 FOR FOLLOWING/FAVORITING THIS STORY! YOU CAN FIGURE OUT WHY THIS IS IN ALLCAPS, AND IT'S NOT BECAUSE OF THE USERNAME!
I don't usually do Question of the Chapter and other fancy things like this, I figured out that I might give it a try this once, so my question for you, dear readers, is: "Do you agree with PhantomFire about people being born good or evil with the individual situations that they face only serving to showcase their true identity, or do you think that there's something else that causes people to turn good/evil?"
Pretty philosophical, huh?
Oh well, I'm interested to hear your opinion on the matter.
Until next time! Diabolic Tracer out!