(A/N: I really enjoy writing for Celeste. Can you tell?)
Rebecca, having the first turn went for the top card of her deck and pulled it to her hand. Nodding to herself, she already knew her first move. "I summon to the field Luster Dragon!" She declared as the crystalline dragon appeared on her side of the field with a growl. It had 1,900 attack points and 1,500 defense points. "And next, I equip it with the spell card Dragon Treasure!"
A glowing green jewel appeared on Luster Dragon's chest, causing it to roar as its stats increased. Its attack power was now 2,200 and its defense was now 1,800.
"That ends my turn," Rebecca said.
"Really?" Celeste asked with a raised eyebrow. "This is your best opening move?"
"Hey! I have a monster with over 2,000 attack points on the first turn! I'd call that a good first move!" Rebecca shouted.
Celeste sighed, hands on her chest. "Honestly, what are the standards in America for dueling these days?" She then covered her hand with her mouth and chuckled. "Pay close attention, dear. I'll show you what a skilled duelist is capable of." She drew the top card of her deck and swapped cards in her off-hand rather quickly. She then raised a spell card above her head. "With the power of Vampire Kingdom!"
Instantly, a gigantic castle erected itself behind Celeste. "Next, I activate the power of the spell card Cost Down!" Celeste said, showing off a card depicting two daggers striking a monster's levels. "Now, by discarding one card from my hand," she said, sending a monster to the graveyard. "All monsters in my hand have two less level starts until the end of my turn. And with that, I normal summon without tribute my favorite monster: Vampire Scarlet Scourge!"
A pretty boy vampire with shoulder length hair and carrying a scepter appeared on Celeste's side of the battlefield, knelt down towards Rebecca, his back to Celeste. He then used his free hand to wrap his cloak part way around his body and smirked at Rebecca. His attack power was 2,200 and the same could be said of his defense power.
"Why, I do believe that gives me the same amount of attack points as your dragon," Celeste said. "Oh wait, no it doesn't. When I attack, Vampire Kingdom will make monster stronger." She ejected the card she'd sent to the graveyard. "But wait there's more. Since the card in my graveyard is Vampire Familiar, I can send one vampire monster from my hand to the graveyard in exchange for summoning it from the graveyard." Celeste sent a monster to the graveyard as the little tiny bat monster appeared with its 500 attack points and 0 defense points. "And since Vampire Familiar was special summoned, I can pay 500 life points," Celeste said as her life total fell to 3,500. "This will let me add any vampire monster from my deck straight to my hand." Celeste said. She fanned out her deck, found her monster and added it to her hand. "Oh, but why stop there? Let's have a little more fun. In exchange for 1,000 more life points, I can special summon any Vampire monster in my graveyard." Celeste's life total fell to 2,500. "So, let's bring back the Vampire Lady that I discarded, shall we?" Celeste's purple clad, blue skinned, green haired undead servant appeared on her side of the field. It had 1,550 attack and defense points each. "Lucky for you, for this turn monster cannot attack this turn. However, I think I've more than proven that your turn was, how do I put this elegantly?" Celeste asked, tapping a finger to her chin, only to snap her fingers. "Oh yes. Subpar."
Rebecca growled.
"Now then, let me show you why Vampires are the kings and queens of the night! Vampire Scarlet Scourge, attack! Destroy Luster Dragon!"
Scarlet Scourge leapt into the air and dove towards Luster Dragon. Vampire Castle gave off an eerie glow and Scarlet Scourge's attack power rose to 2,700. Hungering for prey, it delivered a fatal bite to the neck and causing Luster Dragon to disappear. Rebecca's life points fell to 3,500.
"And now, Vampire Familiar attacks!" Celeste exclaimed. Her little bat creature zipped towards Rebecca. Vampire Castle gave off the same glow as Celeste's monster increased in power to 1,000 attack points. It whipped Rebecca in the chest with its tail, causing her to cry out as she stumbled backwards, clutching her abdomen. Her life points then became 2,500.
"And just like that, despite my self-inflicted damage, I brought you down to the same. And I have three monsters on the field, one of which capable of wiping you out with a direct attack on my next turn." Celeste smiled sweetly and cocked her head to one side. "I'd take my next turn very carefully if I were you."
"You…don't look down on me!" Rebecca shouted. "I'll show you what I'm capable of!"
"Right, because that worked out so well the first time," Celeste said nonchalantly, though the sarcasm in her words couldn't be any clearer.
Rebecca growled, balling her fists and turned her head towards Yugi. "Yugi, why are you friends with her?" Rebecca snapped. "She's mean! And she's treating me like a little kid!"
Yami opened his mouth to speak but Celeste's voice rang out first. "Don't answer that," she said.
Yami turned his attention towards the red-eyed duelist.
"First of all, Rebecca, you're 12. To me, you are a little kid. Weren't you carrying around a Teddy Bear until just last year?"
"I was going through a phase!" Rebecca shouted.
"Tell that to the internet," Celeste responded.
Rebecca stomped her foot, getting madder.
"Celeste," Yami called her name with a stern tone.
"Oh, my apologies," Celeste said insincerely, "But I was under the impression you've let Kaiba get away with worse and you still think of him as a friend whether or not he feels the same. We're friends because I lost a simple bet in Battle City, yet I've never once tried to be warm and fuzzy like your entourage from Domino High. I am who I am," Celeste said, arms folded. "Nothing will ever change that."
When the arena stayed silent, Celeste asked Rebecca. "Do you know why I'm standing here?"
"Not really," Rebecca said, knowing what Celeste meant.
"Then, permit me to enlighten you," Celeste said, her fist covering her mouth. "Kaiba did not offer a prestigious cash prize like Maximilian Pegasus or a fancy title and rare cards as were the rules of Battle City. No, he offered a prize far grander than that, a chance to duel Yugi Muto on a stage with almost the entire world watching. And while some will be here for the fame, the glory, and the sponsorships, I am here for one simple reason: to duel Yugi on that very stage." She lowered her fist, fiddled with her finger brace and glanced to one side. "I am not the type of girl that plays nicely with others. However…I will admit…Yugi and Joey…changed me during the course of Battle City." Her fist went back to covering her mouth. "They gave me a reason to improve. Self-betterment. Drive. Acumen. I went from being adrift in the world of gambling to suddenly wanting to earn my keep. I have long since had a goal of a kingdom of Vampire Butlers waiting on me hand and foot. I've told every interviewer that dream. But…how shall I achieve that dream? Money, obviously, but how do I acquire enough of it. Gambling, obviously, for it is my forte, but how can I gamble without being bored. And I believe that Kaiba has provided me an ample opportunity.
"Whether or not I win against Yugi, the fact that I could make it to him makes me popular among various gambling formats and men everywhere would jump at the chance to serve me because of who I am. I am a driven woman, Rebecca. I couldn't possibly see myself losing to a child with no goal and no dreams. You are but a primary schooler chasing fairy tales with a butterfly net. That is why I am harsh with you. So, if you care to prove me wrong and shut me up, by all means," Celeste glared at Rebecca. "Give me your best shot."
"Grrrr, I won't let you look down on me!" Rebecca growled. "I'll crush you! I swear I'll crush you!"
Behind her fist, Celeste smirked. Heh, that's the spirit. "By the way, since Scarlet Scourge destroyed your Luster Dragon, it's mine now."
Rebecca jolted back. "What?!"
Luster Dragon was immediately summoned to Celeste's side of the field. She had essentially an army of monsters.
"What's the matter? Nervous? You should be. This is the power of the big leagues, Rebecca. You should quit now before you embarrass yourself."
"Grrrrr," Rebecca growled. "I'll show you! I draw!" She pulled the top card of her deck to her hand. She noticed a particular trap card in her hand. This'll work! She fetched it and a monster card from her hand. "I summon to the field my Cure Mermaid!"
Cure Mermaid hit the field with its red, fishy tail, 1,500 attack points and 800 defense points.
"Next, I set a card face-down onto the field," Rebecca stated.
The face-down hologram appeared.
"And now, since I can, I'm attacking Vampire Familiar! Go, Cure Mermaid!"
Rebecca's monster swam towards Celeste's and then slapped it across the face with its tail, sending it flying against the wall behind the arena and causing it to burst into fragments.
Because Vampire Kingdom had boosted Celeste's monster, she only lost 500 life points, reducing her to 2,000.
"My turn's complete," Rebecca said. And hopefully…it won't be my last. She gulped.
Celeste studied Rebecca. She wants me to attack, that much is obvious, Celeste thought. She looked at her hand of four cards. Nothing she had right now would let her remove Rebecca's trap.
The best strategy for right now then…is to strike and respond with a summonable monster, Celeste thought.
"I attack now with your own Luster Dragon! Destroy Cure Mermaid!"
Perfect, Rebecca thought. "Activate trap!"
Celeste's eyes bugged out when she saw just which trap she triggered.
"My trap card is Wall of Disruption!" Rebecca shouted. "Now your monsters lose 800 attack points each for each monster you control. And since you have 3, that's 2,400 points each!"
All of Celeste's monsters now had 0 attack points as a now drained Luster Dragon was on the attack towards a perfectly fine Cure Mermaid.
Blowing a stream of water in the shape of a heart, the geyser from Rebecca's monster blasted into her stolen monster and sent it careening to the ground, destroying it. Celeste now only had 500 life points left to defend herself with.
"How's that?" Rebecca said, snapping her fingers as she moved her arm across her body. "One more attack on my turn and you're done."
"Yes, pity I anticipated this would end badly for me," Celeste said, barely affected. She held up a card in her hand and moved to remove Scarlet Scourge and Vampire Lady from her duel disk. "I now sacrifice Vampire Scarlet Scourge and Vampire Lady in order to summon Vampire Vamp!"
A female vampire dressed in all blue with medium sized bat wings appeared on Celeste's field. She also had silver hair. She had 2,000 attack points and 2,000 defense points.
Celeste looked at the remaining three cards in her hand. This is the only card that will remotely help me, she thought, setting one card face-down. "I'm setting a card face-down," she stated. "And ending my turn."
"All right then, I draw!" Rebecca declared, drawing the top card of her deck to her hand. "First, since it's my turn, Cure Mermaid's effect activates!"
"Denied!" Celeste shouted. "I activate Vampire Domination!"
"What?" Rebecca gasped.
Celeste flipped her trap card face-up showcasing a blond vampire and two vampiric dogs. "Whenever a spell, trap or monster effect is activated while I control a vampire monster, I can negate the activation and, if I do, destroy that card. So sorry," she said.
Rebecca whined. "No! My mermaid!"
A shadow cast over Vampire Vamp as her eyes glowed and a dark shadow consumed Cure Mermaid spontaneously as it was erased into nothing.
"And since a monster was destroyed this way, I gain life points equal to its attack points."
Celeste's life points shot up to 2,000.
"B-but…" Rebecca stuttered.
Celeste looked at her expression. "Oh, I'm sorry, was she essential to some big, game winning play you were about to about to pull off? Terrible sorry."
"No you're not!" Rebecca shouted, tears in her eyes. "You…do you think you're being funny?"
"Not really," Celeste said, fiddling with a lock of her hair. "I'm just calling it as I see it while trying to amuse myself amidst all this boredom."
"Yugi! Do something about her! I…I don't understand why you're friends with someone like her!" Rebecca shouted.
"I could say the same of you."
Rebecca's head slowly turned in Celeste's direction. The gambler looked positively put off.
"I mean really, crying on live television? Have you no sense of professionalism?"
"You're a bully!" Rebecca shouted.
"Yes, name calling. That will fix things," Celeste said sarcastically.
"Celeste, enough! You're going too far!" Yami snapped.
"Yugi, it's not my fault if the girl can't handle the pressure. If she can't be bothered to put up a decent duel without—" Celeste put on a sickeningly sweet voice to mock Rebecca, "—Oh! Impressing her precious Yugi-senpai! Look at me! I smell like roses and I've already picked out our wedding cake."
"That's…" Rebecca stared at the floor.
"Celeste! Stop!" Yami shouted. He stood up.
"Mokuba, I would like to treat this judge as hostile," Celeste remarked.
Mokuba turned towards the camera and drew his fingers in front of his neck, cutting to an emergency commercial break. He then climbed onto the arena and signaled for the sound team to cut the microphones.
"Hey, I cut the feed except for the onlookers," Mokuba told the Pharaoh. "If you want to have a chat, now's the time."
Yami nodded to Mokuba. "Thank you, Mokuba."
He looked at poor Rebecca, who was still staring at the ground in despair. He then marched over to Celeste.
"Celeste, I don't know what kind of game you're playing, but you've greatly upset Rebecca."
"I'm playing duel monsters, obviously. It's not my fault my opponent is emotionally immature," she said dismissively as if she'd done nothing wrong.
Yami shook his head and looked at Mokuba.
"I mean…I don't think Seto would qualify this under poor sportsmanship," he said, scratching his cheek, sweating. "You and my brother have hurled way worse at each other. Hell, my brother's hurled worse at Joey."
"He's not wrong," Celeste said.
Yami shut his eyes. "Celeste, I'm disappointed in you," he told her.
"Whatever," Celeste said. She'd deal with the earful later, when she was in a better mood.
He marched over to Rebecca. "Are you all right?"
Rebecca tipped her head up. "Yugi…"
He put a reassuring hand on Rebecca's shoulder. "Don't let Celeste get to you. She is…regrettably, quite condescending and arrogant at times."
"She wasn't wrong. I…I just want to impress you, Yugi," Rebecca said.
"You do impress me, Rebecca," Yami told her.
Rebecca gasped, covering her mouth. "Wh-what are you saying?"
"It doesn't matter to me how far you go in this tournament, just the fact that you're dueling in it is amazing. It is no mistake that you're standing here. And as your friend, I could not be prouder, just as I am of Joey."
"Yugi…" Rebecca said and sniffed, shoulders shaking.
"Take a moment to compose yourself," Yami told her. "Celeste wasn't wrong about one thing. You should take better care of yourself in front of an audience. But I have faith in you, Rebecca. You can duel Celeste. At the very least, you can prove her wrong. Prove to her that you are worth her time. You've already impressed me. Now impress her," Yami said, gesturing to the gambler. "Celeste is actually quite good company once you can make it past her thorny exterior."
"Can we hurry this up, my tea will be cold and it's still bubbling in the break room," Celeste remarked.
Rebecca scrunched up her face. "You'll wait patiently!" she snapped.
Yami chuckled. "Just try to calm down and have fun." He moved back to his judge's chair. He then gave Rebecca a thumb's up. "Reach Celeste with the Heart of the Cards."
Rebecca took a deep breath. Yugi was right. And…so was Celeste. She…she had been kind of acting like a spoiled brat. But…no more. Her grandpa was watching and so was everyone from her school. People she knew and maybe even some she didn't know tuned in to see Rebecca Hawkins duel live on a prestigious stage. And she would give those people what they wanted.
"All right, Celeste! You want a duel? I'll give you a duel! I'll give you the toughest duel a 12-year-old prodigy can offer! And if that's not good enough for you, then screw you and your standards!"
"Oh my, that's the best boast you've hurled at me all duel," Celeste said. She gazed at the tough look Rebecca was giving her. If the eyes are a window to the soul, then I like what I see. Those are now the eyes of a duelist worth defeating. "All right, bring it on. At least try to wake me up," Celeste said and pretended to yawn.
"You want a wake up call? You're getting one! Here goes!" Rebecca exclaimed. Renewed with vigor, she was more than prepared to deal with Celeste now. "Now that Luster Dragon is back in my graveyard, I can activate this! Silent Doom!" The card artwork depicted glowing energy being poured out by a human hand. "This will let me special summon Luster Dragon back to the field in defense mode!"
Rebecca's crystalline dragon returned, squatting in front of its master.
"Next! I activate Adamantine Sword Revival! This spell card will let me sacrifice the monster I just tributed in order to special summon, from my deck, my Diamon Head Dragon!" Rebecca's green dragon roared as it swept its tail across its body, revealing its customized 2,900 attack points from being summoned off of Luster Dragon. "And now! I activate the spell card Stamping Destruction! Since I control a dragon monster, I can destroy any spell or trap on the field. So say goodbye to your Vampire Kingdom!"
Celeste watched as Diamond Head Dragon took flight and stomped on the castle's hologram, shattering it to rubble.
Celeste closed one eye as she raised her duel disk to protect her opened eye from getting dust and hologram fragments in it. "Not bad," Celeste admitted.
"There's more, since you controlled the spell, you lose 500 life points."
Celeste's life points depleted to 1,500 as she fanned out her dress.
"And now, I go on the attack!" Rebecca shouted. "Diamon Head Dragon, destroy Vampire Vamp! Diamond Breath attack!"
Diamond Head Dragon breathed literal diamond dust unto Celeste's vampire, destroying it in the ensuing dust cloud.
Celeste's life points fell to only 600.
Rebecca looked at the sole card in her hand: Luster Dragon #2. "My turn's over for now. Your move, Celeste. And no matter what you say or do, I'm not backing down! I have you on the ropes after all because I'm a genius!"
Celeste smirked. "So you say," she remarked. "But let's see what you're really made of. I draw!" Celeste pulled the top card of her deck to her hand. With only three cards in hand and my field basically empty, I'm certainly low on options, Celeste thought. She then noticed Fissure in her hand. But at least I'm not helpless.
"I activate the spell card, Fissure!" Celeste declared. "This card will allow me to destroy your monster instantly!"
Rebecca gasped, gazing up at Diamond Head Dragon. "No! My Dragon!"
"Oh well," Celeste said, sliding the spell card into the slot.
A gaping holographic hole opened up and swallowed Diamond Head Dragon into its abyss before slamming shut.
"And now that you have nothing to protect you, I can summon this monster: Vampire Sorcerer!" A blue skinned, green haired wizard appeared on Celeste's side of the field, complete with wizard's hat and staff. It had 1,500 attack and defense points each.
"Vampire Sorcerer!" Celeste exclaimed. "Attack her directly! Vampire Magic!"
Sorcerer's eyes gleamed before it raised its scepter and blasted Rebecca in the chest with a beam from the gem on its staff. Rebecca was thrown back to the ground. Her life points fell all the way to 1,000.
Celeste looked at what remained in her hand. It will have to do, she thought. "I end my turn."
Groaning, Rebecca pulled herself to her feet. She and Celeste were coming down to the wire on life points and it was only the 7th turn of the duel, Rebecca's 4th.
With only Luster Dragon #2 in her hand, Rebecca knew whatever she could use to counterattack had to come from the top of her deck.
"Let's go!" She declared. "I draw!" She pulled the top card of her deck to her hand, revealing Luster Dragon's crimson counterpart. That'll do. "I'm summoning Ruby Dragon!" she shouted. "In attack mode!"
The red encrusted dragon howled as it stormed the field with 1,600 attack points and 1,300 defense points.
"Ruby Dragon, go! Destroy Celeste's Vampire Sorcerer!"
Ruby Dragon charged and clawed at Celeste's monster, destroying it.
Celeste's life points trailed down to 500.
"Since Vampire Sorcerer was destroyed, I can select any Vampire card from my deck," Celeste stated. She pulled out her deck and added a nice trap card to her hand.
"Well, feel free to draw because that will conclude my turn," Rebecca told her.
"Oh my, how interesting," Celeste said. "Very well, if you insist." She drew the top card of her deck to her hand. Nodding to herself, she declared, "I'm setting two cards face-down onto the field," Celeste stated. "Your move, mademoiselle," she said with a sweet smile and a chuckle.
Rebecca gazed intently at Celeste. She must know…she probably figures I don't have any counters for face-down cards right now. And she's right. "I draw!" Rebecca shouted. She looked at the monster she'd pulled to her hand: Fire Princess. Celeste is down to her last 500 life points. If I summon Luster Dragon now and one of those cards is something like Mirror Force, Widespread Ruin or Sakuretsu Armor, she could leave me completely defenseless. Nodding to herself, I'm better off playing it safe. "I attack with Ruby Dragon to your life points directly!"
"Reveal trap: Vampire Awakening!" Celeste declared, arm extended, palm spread out.
"Huh? It's not a Mirror Force?" Rebecca gasped.
"Do I seem that plebian to you?" Celeste asked. "Vampire Awakening now allows me to summon any monster from my graveyard to the field! And I choose my personal favorite: Vampire Scarlet Scourge!"
From below the arena, the hologram of a coffin emerged and Scarlet Scourge burst forth from it. Ruby Dragon's attack was halted by the glamorous vampire as the 6-star monster pressed its palm to the dragon's head. Then, it smacked the monster in the face with its staff before feeding on its neck and turning the monster gray, when it was then destroyed.
Rebecca clenched her fists and tensed her body. Celeste was now in the lead by 100 life points. The score stood 500 for Celeste and 400 for Rebecca.
"Fortunately for you," Celeste said. "At the end of this turn, my monster is destroyed, so sorry."
Rebecca gazed at her hand. No…if…if I had played Luster Dragon…I…I could've won.
"Please spare me the tears over your bad decision making your composure fall apart. It happens," Celeste said without a hint of sympathy.
Rebecca switched from sad to mad on a dime. "Youuuuuu!" She shouted and then growled. "Fine! We'll keep dueling! Because next turn, you're going to lose! I summon Fire Princess! In attack mode!"
The red clad, pale blonde sorceress emerged onto Rebecca's field. She had 1,300 attack points and 1,500 defense points. "I might not have one right now, but all I need on my next turn is to draw a card that will gain me life points and you lose automatically!" Rebecca shouted. "As long as Fire Princess is on the field, whenever I gain life points, you take 500 points of damage."
"Not a bad strategy, I must say," Celeste said, looking genuinely impressed. She quickly changed her expression to one far smugger. "However, that strategy revolves around keeping a 1,300 attack point monster on the field until your next turn and then drawing a card from your deck that will net you an instant victory. I hate to break it to you Rebecca, but you will never ever defeat me with that strategy."
"What?!"
Celeste smiled sweetly. "How quick we are to forget my dear. I am the Ultimate Gambler. Luck, bluffs and skill are my bread and butter. You face someone who has just as much faith in her deck as anyone sitting in the front row opposite our fair judge here." She put her fist in front of her mouth once more, staring at Rebecca intently. "As long as the Heart of the Cards and my talent guide me, you will never ever draw the card you need to defeat me."
"H-how can you be so sure of that?" Rebecca questioned.
"Because, Rebecca," Celeste said and returned to her sweet smile. "I'm simply better than you in every conceivable way."
Rebecca looked to Yami for moral support. His words…were not exactly what she wanted to hear. "Celeste might be rude, and I don't exactly believe she is better than you in all ways, but there is no denying her skill with the heart of the cards," he said.
"Quite true, my darling Yugi, quite true," Celeste said, keeping up her ever so sweet smile. "I could not have won the Canadian Nationals without everything you and Joey have taught me." She dropped the smile and gazed at Rebecca vigorously. "You've managed to put me in a corner, Rebecca. There is no denying how far you've come in this duel. You've more than exceeded my expectations of you. However…" Celeste said. "All of your efforts will fall short, when your opponent simply outstrips you in every conceivable fashion." She pinched the top card of her deck. "I draw."
Pulling the card to her hand, Celeste was not at all surprised by the card she'd drawn: Card of Demise. "I activate Card of Demise! This spell card will allow me to draw until I am holding five cards! The drawback is that I must discard my entire hand five turns later," she smiled as she drew her cards, "But the duel will be long over by then." She drew so that she was now holding five cards. Oh, I like how this looks. "First, I will activate Graceful Charity, allowing me to draw three cards, as long as I discard two of them."
Celeste drew three cards, bringing her to a total of 7 after playing Graceful Charity, then discarding down to 5 again. One of the cards she discarded was a powerful monster with 2,400 attack that resembled Red-Eyes Black Dragon, but with blue flames adorning the card artwork.
She glanced back at her hand. With a little bit of risk taking, this duel will end in my favor. "Next, I activate the spell card Rain of Mercy!" Celeste declared. "This spell card will increase both of our life points by 1,000 each."
Celeste now had 1,500 life points and Rebecca now had 1,400.
"Thanks for that, you've activated the power of Fire Princess, which means you take 500 points of damage for giving me life points. Go! Fire Princess!" Rebecca shouted.
Rebecca's monster unleashed a torrent of fire from her scepter which engulfed around Celeste, causing her to wince and bring her arms closer together to stave off the heat. Her life points fell to 1,000.
"Not to worry," Celeste said, patting down her skirt. "Tis a price worth paying, really. For now, with more than 500 life points, I can now activate Vampire's Domain!" Celeste inserted and activated the spell card that showed a vampire cast in shadow standing atop a castle rooftop. "At the cost of 500 life points upon activation, this continuous spell lets me summon an additional vampire monster in addition to my normal summon for the turn. Next, I shall summon to the field Vampire Ghost!" she declared. "A bit of a redundant naming given Vampires are already undead," she said as the monster appeared on the field, revealing its 1,500 attack points and 0 defense points. "But that's Industrial Illusions' naming department for you."
A pretty boy ghost wrapped in a ratty cloak appeared on Celeste's side of the field with a disposition that made him look he listened to heavy metal while writing dry poetry in his parents' basement.
"And next, I activate the power of Vampire's Domain!" Celeste declared as her life points fell to 500. "And with that, I sacrifice Vampire Ghost in order to summon Vampire Grimson!" The monster that was on the artwork of Vampire's Domain now stormed Celeste's field with its wings, red robe and dangerous looking scythe. It had 2,000 attack points and 1,400 defense points.
"And now, Vampire Grimson attacks!" Celeste shouted.
With a powerful slash of its scythe, Grimson cut open Fire Princess, causing a death wail to be emitted from the sorceress
"Oh no!" Rebecca exclaimed, resulting in her life points falling to 700.
"Oh and one more thing," Celeste said. "When I inflict battle damage to you by destroying a monster with Grimson, I get to take that monster for myself at the end of my battle phase. So now, Fire Princess belongs to me! And because I'm not an idiot, defense position, please."
Rebecca's own monster was now summoned to Celeste's side of the field in defense position.
"And just to add insult to injury, when a Vampire monster inflicts damage while Vampire's Domain is on the field, I gain life points equal to the damage I just dealt."
Celeste's life points then shot up to 1,200.
Celeste looked at her hand. She had one card left in her hand, a trap card. She looked at her remaining face-down card. This…is all I have left, but…it will have to do. "I'm setting one card face-down and ending my turn!" With an empty hand, Celeste gazed at her other trap card. I could still activate it now, but the odds are currently not in my favor, if but barely outside them. But if I could inflict even 100 points of damage, I could secure victory. Of course, she thought as she gazed at Rebecca's empty field. That's assuming she doesn't immediately forfeit depending on what she draws.
Rebecca looked extremely troubled and nervous, sweating forming at the top right side of her head.
"Like I said," Celeste sighed. "Your strategy involved keeping such a weak monster on the field," Celeste said, fiddling with the hair of her ringlet. "So, go ahead, draw a four-star monster and annihilate your own monster. It won't help you."
Rebecca puffed her cheeks. "I hate you! You're mean! You're not even taking me seriously! I'm going to wipe that smug, bored look off your face and make you regret being a terrible friend to my Yugi!"
Celeste gave Rebecca a serious stare. "Oh, by all means. Make my day."
"I draw!" Rebecca exclaimed. She beamed at the card she'd just pulled to hand. I've got this! "I summon to the field Dragon Knight of Creation!"
A gilded knight-like monster stormed the field. It had 1,800 attack points and 600 defense points. It held aloft a runed broadsword. Wearing golden armor and sporting a fashionable reddish chestnut mane, it looked quite formidable.
"I hope you liked those life points, Celeste," Rebecca shouted. "Cause you can kiss most of them goodbye!"
Celeste winced. No…it couldn't be…
"Dragon Knight of Creation! Attack!" Rebecca shouted. "Destroy Fire Princess!"
With a slice of its powerful sword, Rebecca cut down her own monster. Since it was in defense position though, Celeste didn't lose any of her life points.
"And now that I've destroyed a monster by battle, Dragon Knight of Creation's special ability activates! First, I start by choosing a 7 or 8 star dragon monster in my deck and sending it directly to the graveyard!" Rebecca pulled out her deck, selecting a monster and sending it right to the graveyard. "Then, I can discard any card from my hand, which I will do so now," Rebecca said, discarding the Luster Dragon she'd been hanging onto. "You're luck's about to run out, Miss Gambler! Because now I can sacrifice Dragon Knight of Creation in the middle of combat in order to bring out the monster I just sent to the graveyard! So say hello to Tr-Horned Dragon!"
A flightless dragon that more resembled a dinosaur with its huge jaws, blue skin and golden claws stormed the field. It stood strongly with its 2,850 attack points and 2,350 defense points.
"And now! Tri-Horned Dragon! Attack and destroy Vampire Grimson!"
The powerful dragon stampeded forward and charged at Celeste's monster. She gazed at the trap card she'd played just last turn. I could try it…but it would only save me a few life points. She gazed at her other face-down card. In a worst case scenario, I can still use this to try and win the duel. She nodded and permitted Tri-Horned Dragon to cut apart her monster, leaving her with only 350 life points.
"That ends my turn, Celeste! And judging from your lack of activations, you don't have a Mirror Force or any attack stopping trap cards, so it seems like this duel is over!" Rebecca exclaimed.
"True, I'm completely open sans a pair of seemingly useless face-down cards," Celeste said. "But," she said as she went for the top card of her deck. "Let's see if your luck holds." She drew the top card of her deck. It was exactly what she wanted to see. Excellent. "I set one card face-down onto the field," Celeste stated. "That will be all." The pieces are set in motion. No matter what she draws, the minute she attacks, Celeste thought, her eyes flashing, the duel will be decided in an instant.
"All right then, I draw!" Rebecca exclaimed. She looked at Celeste's field and back at the card she drew. I could play this, but Celeste is wide open. But this time I know I can attack right away! And if something happens...I'll deal with it then.
"Tri-Horned Dragon, finish her off!" Rebecca exclaimed. "Tri-Horned slash!"
Celeste gasped. She had to get up and act quickly. "Sorry, but I'm activating the face-down trap card Call of the Haunted! This trap card will let me summon any monster from my graveyard straight to the field in face-up attack position and I choose a monster making its debut in this tournament! Go! Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon!" Celeste exclaimed.
Bursting forth from the ground, Celeste's monster rose from its second grave, bursting forth with a distorted cry of the otherwise majestic Red-Eyes Black Dragon.
"Zombie Dragon?!" Téa exclaimed.
"Where'd Celeste get a card like that?" Tristan wondered aloud.
"You'd be surprised what you can get your hands on when money is no object," Celeste said. "And now, I'm going to end this duel!"
"Good luck with that!" Rebecca exclaimed. "Once my monster finishes its attack, your monster will be destroyed and you'll lose the duel! Just look at the difference in our attack points!"
Celeste smirked smugly. "You'd like to think that wouldn't you?"
"What?" Rebecca gasped.
"I activate my second trap card! Vampire Takeover! This trap card lets me activate a Vampire Kingdom directly from my deck as long as I am currently controlling a zombie-type monster!" Celeste raised her arm to the sky. "Rise my kingdom! Let this mere peasant become beholden to my power!"
The tip of Celeste's finger brace and her right eye glinted red as Vampire Kingdom erected itself behind her.
"I think that's the first time I've ever seen Celeste this fired up," Sayaka stated.
"Perhaps she is far more comfortable showing her true self when on the battlefield," Sakura stated.
"Huh? True self?" Hina questioned.
"Celeste might try to hide it behind her ladylike mannerisms," Sakura said. "But inside, she hides a completely different soul. Isn't that right, Hifumi?"
"Ah, er, well…" Hifumi said, stuttering. "Yes…well…Miss Ludenberg does engage in such behaviors every now and then. Ack! B-b-but y-y-you didn't hear that from me!"
"Yo, dude, chill," Leon told him. "You act like Celeste's gonna kill you for snitching or something."
Hifumi slumped over. "Mr. Kuwata, I appreciate you, but you have no idea what that woman is like when Hurricane Ludenberg is unleashed."
As Vampire Kingdom finished erecting itself, Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon put its back to the sun and perched on top of it. Then it flew off the top of the balcony and stretched out its wings, screeching to the heavens as blue fire shot out from its mouth.
"I don't think I need to remind you how my card works," Celeste said. "When a zombie-type monster of mine engages in battle while Vampire Kingdom is active, my monster gains 500 attack points. So sorry, but this duel is over. Your monster will die and then, on my turn, I will finish you off."
However, Rebecca wasn't fazed by Celeste's talk of imminent doom and gloom. "Sorry, Celeste, but that's where you're wrong."
"What?" Celeste asked, flatly.
"I was saving this card in my hand just in case you tried something like this, so behold the card that will seal your fate! From my hand, I activate a Quick-Play spell! Rush Recklessly!"
The spell card was slid into the reader and activated, causing its artwork to show a red boar charging towards the bottom left of the card's artwork.
"This spell card lets me increase the attack of a monster of my choice by 700 for the turn! And I choose Tri-Horned Dragon!" The increase in Tri-Horned Dragon's attack points gave it a total of 3,550 points, more than enough to eliminate Celeste with her zombified dragon's soon to be elevated 2,900 attack points.
Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon breathed intense blue flames down onto Tri-Horned Dragon below. The hot flames beat down onto the blue dragon, but it plowed through them. Then it began to charge towards Celeste and leapt at the castle, charging its way up to the sky to bring Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon down.
"No…" Celeste said, biting her lip. "It doesn't…it doesn't…END LIKE THIS!"
"Wh-what are you doing?" Rebecca stammered.
"Reveal final trap card! FIRE DARTS!"
The exact same trap card Celeste had used to win her duel with Johnson would now be her saving grace to win an otherwise unwinnable duel now. "Three dice will now be rolled. Afterwards, the result is tallied up. Then, it is multiplied by 100 and the result is subtracted from your life points! Since you have 700 life points left, the odds might not be rigged in my favor, but I can still win this duel! GO! Fire darts!"
From the card artwork, a skeletal hand emerged and clenched a die covered in flames. Then it hurled it into the air before doing this precisely two more times. All three dice were hurled into the air just as Tri-Horned Dragon was climbing to the top of Vampire Kingdom. It weaved back and forth, evading bursts of flame from Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon.
"Tell me, Rebecca, do you know what the real difference between you and me is?" Celeste asked.
"Huh?"
"It's luck," Celeste said. "You are quite skilled, I acknowledge that. You couldn't have pushed me into this kind of a corner if you didn't have the skills for it. However, you lack the experience, training and luck I've used and endured countless battles, even games outside of dueling, for many years. And that is why now…this final roll of the dice…Shall be! Your! Reckoning!"
The first die fell to the ground, rolled and bounced. It landed on a 2.
So far so good, Celeste thought.
The second die fell to the ground and rolled to its result. It landed on a 1.
The final die felt like it was falling slowly. A 1, 2 or a 3 would mean victory for Rebecca, but anything higher than that would secure victory from the jaws of defeat for Celestia Ludenberg.
The dice fell on 3 and then bounced, showing its 1 being face up. It bounced again, revealing its four face up, which was good news for Celeste. Then it tipped forward, revealing the 6. However, then it continued to tip. If it flipped over, it would go back to three. However, if it stayed where it was, Celeste would win unambiguously.
Celeste gasped and Rebecca leapt into the air to cheer just as it looked like the die would roll over back to three. However, as Rebecca's feet touched the ground again, both players could see the die tilting back in the other direction. Celeste's upset gasp turned into a giddy, smug smile and Rebecca's jump for joy turned into a premature victory celebration. The die stopped moving, staying on 6.
"The total result is 9," Celeste said. "That means 900 points of damage sent straight to your life points."
"No…" Rebecca shook. "No! This can't be I almost won!"
Celeste smirked as she turned her body sideways. "I'll share with you an idiom a competitor of mine once shared with me. Almost only counts…" she said as she pointed her braceless, left index finger directly across towards Rebecca, "…when it comes to horseshoes and hand grenades."
With that, Celeste's trap card alit with nine separate orbs of blazing energy that quickly turned into miniature spear shaped objects. All nine converged on Rebecca simultaneously and struck her down knocking her over.
"AAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGH!" Rebecca screamed, both in minor pain and the aggravation of her life points going from 700 to 0.
With that, Vampire Kingdom, Red-Eyes Zombie Dragon and Tri-Horned Dragon all vanished and the chibi Celeste on the big screen was celebrating victory.
Celeste let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. Too close, she thought.
Rebecca got up to a sitting position, seeing Celeste soaking up the praise of people cheering for her. It couldn't be. This was her duel. Her tournament. This was her chance to show Yugi how far she'd come. It wasn't fair.
Tears started to well up in Rebecca's eyes. In her jealous, upset haze, she envisioned Yugi walking over and making out with Celeste in front of everyone to cement that Celeste was his girlfriend and far more cherished than Rebecca ever could be. That was how it felt to Rebecca to lose right now. It was like a dagger to the heart. She didn't matter. She never did matter.
Seeing the distraught emotion on her face, Yami stood up, taking a step towards Rebecca. "Rebecca, are you…?"
However, before he could finish, Rebecca bolted from the arena and ran off in the opposite direction, away from the group and away from the stadium.
"Ah, Rebecca!" Yami called out in alarm.
Celeste stopped soaking in praise to notice this. She looked surprised. "Oh? She ran off. My, how unexpected. I was just about to compliment her for a fantastic duel. She more than exceeded my expectations."
"I'll go find her," Téa said, getting up.
"Now, now," Solomon said. "Let's let the little one have her space. I'm sure she's just in shock over losing, but she'll come around."
"You sure about that gramps," Tristan said. "She seemed pretty upset."
Solomon laughed. "I know a thing or two about raising children when they're that young. She'll be just fine."
Serenity nodded. "Yeah, I think so too."
While Solomon was right and that Rebecca had the capacity to bounce back. For the moment, she was anything but fine. She sat on a bench with her legs pulled up onto the bench, eyes buried in her knees, crying and sniffing, glasses set down next to her so as not to ruin them. It wasn't just the pain of losing that was now bothering her, but also that she knew how much she'd just embarrassed herself on live television.
I acted like a total baby, Rebecca sniffed. How am I supposed to face Yugi and everyone again after that?
"You okay, Rebecca?"
A concerned voice Rebecca didn't immediately recognize called out to her. Putting her glasses on and blinking out a pair of tears, the identity of the person came into view. Between the green hair and pink eyes, Rebecca recognized her instantly. "You're…Miaka Senri."
Miaka nodded and sat down out of arm's reach of Rebecca. "You know, turning into a moe blob by crying doesn't automatically improve your cuteness factor."
Rebecca sank her chin into her knees. "If you came here to make fun of me, go away," she said, sniffing.
"Actually, I was going to ask if you wanted something to eat," Miaka said. "My treat."
"Huh?" Rebecca asked, turning towards Miaka.
"You know what makes me feel better when I'm in emotional turmoil? Junk food. Lots of it." She stood up and gave Rebecca a beckoning gesture. "Come on, I saw a pretty neat vendor nearby."
Rebecca sniffed. "Okay."
She followed the older girl over to a food cart where Miaka ordered two tempura battered hotdogs. One for her and one for Rebecca. She then handed one to Rebecca. "Go on, eat. It's delicious." She said and took a bite, the crunchy meaty goodness filling her tongue and teeth.
Rebecca took a bite. She chewed slowly at first, only to chew faster and her mood to brighten immediately. "Mmmmmm! This is delicious!"
"I've got a little more pocket change," Miaka said. "I think I saw a Tsukune stand not far from here."
Rebecca's eyes said it all. Her mouth was redundant when it requested a simple, "Please?"
Before long, Miaka and Rebecca were back on the bench they had started with the young blonde devouring traditional Japanese street food and feeling better with every bite. Miaka, for her part, was eating only the tempura hot dog. And as she gazed at Rebecca, the blonde's mood improving with every swallow, the Ultimate Cosplayer gave the young dueling prodigy a most gentle smile.
Returning to the break room, Joey was elated to see Celeste's return. "Ha Hallright!" He exclaimed. "Way to go, Frenchy! Up high!" Joey exclaimed, giving her his palm to slap.
Celeste, for her part, gave Joey mischievously sweet smile and poked his palm with a single finger and then walked past him.
"Hey! Don't leave me hanging, what was that for?" Joey asked.
"Ahahaha," Celeste said, turning around, chuckling, covering her mouth with her hand. "My apologies, Joey. It was just, you looked so happy I felt I had no choice but to tease you."
Joey sighed, grumbling. "You're a real piece a work, you know that? Still, I'm glad you managed to make it to the next round. Since Mai ain't in the tournament no more, if there's one person I really wanna duel again, it's you, Frenchy."
"My goodness," Celeste said, faking surprise. "Is this your way of professing your undying love for me?"
"Yeah, you wish," Joey said, giving her an "are you kidding me?" type of look.
"Quite the shame," Celeste said, scratching her cheek. "You would look good in a suit with red eyes and fangs."
"Hey!" Joey exclaimed, offended. "I ain't your servant! …I ain't nobody's servant!"
Celeste only continued to laugh at him. "Yes because announcing it twice makes it more convincing. Don't you have a jumbo sub sandwich to choke on while you wait for your next duel or has your stomach finally caught up with your eyes?"
Joey growled. "You know what? Fine. I tried to be nice. This is me walking away," Joey said and went over to a different part of the break room.
Celeste sighed. Really, he can be so…overwhelming. That carefree attitude of his is going to get him killed one of these days, or worse. She then blushed and slapped her cheeks. Wh-why do I care?! She then walked over to the beverage counter to make herself some tea. As she procured a tea bag and started preparations, she only had one more word on her mind regarding Joey, Idiot!
It wasn't long before the announcement was made for the next duel. "Makoto Naegi and Nagito Komaeda, please report to the arena now!"
"Guess it's time," Makoto said aloud to himself. By the time he got out to the arena, Nagito was already waiting for him on the opposite side.
"You can do it, Makoto!" Sayaka cheered. "We believe in you!"
"Come on, big brother! Round two! You got this!" Komaru added from a different part of the audience.
"Y-you can win!" Mukuro cheered.
"Crush him, Makoto! You can do it!" Hina exclaimed with gusto.
Nagito's reception from his classmates was…less positive. "Should we…bother?" Kazuichi asked.
"I won't if no one else will," Fuyuhiko said.
"Come on, Nagito! It's the battle of the luck boys between classes! Win it for Class 77-B!" Ibuki exclaimed.
"I suppose it does look like that, doesn't it?" Peko questioned. "The school will undoubtedly receive good data from the duel, regardless of who wins."
"If luck be the deciding factor in this war then we must consider the karmic scales set forth by the Unstable One," Gundham stated.
"Yes, Nagito's first round victory with little effort," Sonia stated. "And several of us here have born witness to Makoto's skill with our own eyes."
"Kind of makes it difficult to determine the outcome," Teruteru said, gazing at the field with actual interest.
"Still, it'll be fun to watch either way," Mahiru said, camera at the ready.
"Hey! Shrimp!" Hiyoko shouted. "You better wipe that smug smirk off that idiot's face or I'll beat you over the head with my sandal when you lose!"
"Jeez, Hiyoko, traitor much?" Ibuki asked.
"Oh hello pot, this is the kettle calling! You're black!" Hiyoko fired back.
Ibuki stared at her for a bit before smirking, pointing her index fingers to one side and replying, "Fair enough."
At ground level upon the arena, the two jacket wearing, luck empowered students of Hope's Peak Academy stared each other down.
"You know, I'll be honest, Makoto," Nagito said. "Ever since Battle City, I always did want to face off against you. I'm actually looking forward to our duel. Not only to see whose luck is better, but which of us holds the stronger hope in our hearts. I'm…honestly really looking forward to that."
"Well, I can't say I'm not at least a little bit curious about the luck part," Makoto said. "Honestly, I've never really thought much of my so-called talent until I got to Hope's Peak. Honestly, I'm really surprised I even made it this far. I know how skilled you are Nagito. I wouldn't be surprised if I actually lost."
Nagito was elated. "And that is what I like about you, Makoto. You're so humble. When you graduate, your hope will shine brighter than anyone else in your class or mine. But, that's a discussion for another time." He readied his duel disk. "All the people watching came here to see a show. I say we give them one."
Makoto smiled. "I couldn't have put it better myself. Let's duel, Nagito!"
Makoto readied his duel disk too. The two luckiest students in Hope's Peak Academy stared each other down as their life points ascended to 4,000 each. They each drew a hand of five cards and gave each other competitive stares.
"Let's Duel!" Makoto shouted.
"Let's duel," Nagito said loudly, though much more calmly.
The randomizer flipped back and forth and after a few seconds of waiting, it was determined that Makoto would go first. Nagito puzzled to himself if that meant good luck or bad luck for him, but by the end of the duel it would all be made clear whether he or Makoto would be the last lucky student standing. His heart pounded. He couldn't wait to see hope and hope collide.
"Let's go!" Makoto exclaimed. "I draw!"
And with that the sixth duel of the second round of the Kaiba Corp Grand Prix was about to begin.
(A/N: I'll be honest, ensuring that Celeste's final move made sense and was as climatic as it was ended being so freaking hard to ensure. I know it feels like I'm blowing my load too early with all these climactic finishes before we're even into round three, but I like to make each duel feel special just like the show.
But next up the "battle of the Hope boys" as people call it. Nagito Vs Makoto. Older vs younger. Newer vs Older. Sequel vs OG. Which lucky student will reign supreme? You can only find out by tuning into the next chapter of Dueling Trigger Finger! And, as always, until next time, from all of me, to all of you, let your hearts stay human and your wrath draconic! Ja ne!)