Chapter 12; road to the finals swordmasters vs plants

Sonic and Knuckles sat with their friends and watched Amy and Jet shuffling their decks.

"This is it Amy. I want you to give it you're all. If I am to complete my dream I have to beat your full power."

"Same here Jet. But I also have a dream to achieve. And for that I will not lose."

They returned their decks and headed for their spot on the field.

"Sonic" Knuckles asked " what is Amy's dream?"

"Beats me. I hope she will make it come true though."

Wave and Rouge of course knew what was Amy's dream. She had trusted them with it before Sonic's duel with Knuckles. She wanted to enter the final with Sonic and finally there 'show' him her feelings to see how he would respond. But according to Rouge over Amy's past experience's as Sonic's friend, his moves showed some feelings towards her. And she decided to bet everything on that chance. But before that she had to win. If she lost then they would have to invent a plan B.

They activated their duel disks.

"DUEL!"

"I'll start" Amy said " I draw. I summon forth revival rose. Then I set a card. Your move Jet."

"My average style won't work against Amy. I'll have to stall her a bit."

"My turn. Draw. Ok here goes. I activate the field spell, temple of the six!"

"What? You changed your playing style?"

Behind Jet an old temple appeared.

"Sonic did Jet ever use this card against you?" Wave asked him

"Once. When we first met. He was trying all possible six samurai playing styles to fight me. And this is a really good one if you know how to use it."

Then Jet summoned forth the legendary six samurai enishi. Enishi took a poise like if he was contacting some spiritual from. The temple released a weird mist. When it reached revival rose it lost 100 attack points.

"Hey what happened to my monster?" Amy asked surprised.

My temple of the six's effect is that when a samurai monster is summoned it gets a budisho counter. For every counter it has, your monsters weaken by 100 points."

"Oh no. The samurai's are known for instant summonings! That means that the temple will have tons of counters in no time!" Amy said shocked.

"Indeed. I set a card. Now enishi attack revival rose."

Revival rose was killed off. But the damage didn't affect Amy. (Amy LP 7500)

"Wow" Jet said inside him "she is so determined to win that virtual damage won't affect her?"

"I set a card. Your move Amy."

"My turn. I draw. I discard a card to activate cost down. This allows me to reduce the level of all monsters in my hand by 2. So my level 6 rose tentacles will become a level 4 so I can summon it right now. Also I play the trap ivy shcakles."

Whips emerged from the trap and shackled enishi.

"Now your monster during my turns becomes a plant type. Now rose tentacles attack enishi!"

Enishi was destroyed.

"Also when rose tentacles kills one plant type it deals you 300 points of damage on top of the battle damage and can attack times equal to the number of plant types on your field plus one. So this time it can attack again. Direct attack!"

"AAAH" (Jet LP 5200) "Darn you."

"I set a card. Now ivy shackles' effect is negated until my turn. Your move Jet."

"She is not joking. But so am I not joking" he thought

"My turn. I draw. I activate shien's smoke signal. So I can add a level 3 or lower samurai monster like kageki to my hand. Next I summon him and his effect immediately summons forth my kagemusha."

"No! you're going for….."

"Shi en! Let's go! synchro summon! Appear Shi en! Also I've summoned 3 new samurais so your tentacles loses 300 attack."

"Bring it then!"

"Consider it brought! Shi en destroy tentacles!"

"Too bad. Go wall of thorns."

"Shi en use your effect to pierce through it!"

"Exactly what I've been waiting for. I chain with the trap malevolent catastrophe which destroys all spell or traps!"

Temple of the six was devastated by the thunderstorm cause by malevolent catastrophe.

"Now how's that for storming the castle Jet?"

"It changes nothing. Your tentacles still falls to my samurai."

"Hmph 300 LP is nothing (Amy LP 7200)

"I'm not done!"

Suddenly enishi and kageki appeared on Jet's side.

"What is going on here?"

"You're not the only one with traps Amy. I have double edged sword technique. I played it in chain to your malevolent catastrophe. I revive 2 of my samurais for 1 turn."

"My revival rose also revives because I level 5 or above plant monster was destroyed in defense mode."

"Enishi cut it. Kageki direct attack."

"AAAh" (Amy LP 5500)

"I end my turn with a face down. Then I take damage equal to the attack points of my monsters and after they return to the graveyard. But kageki's attack is 200 without a samurai monster around or when he is dead. So I only take 1900 points of damage. (Jet LP 3300). I end my turn."

At the seats

"Jet isn't going easy at all on Amy. well I guess he is not a knight." Wave noticed

"Typical guy." Rouge said

"Lol look Amy's face" Knuckles said to Storm and Shadow "she is so pissed she is losing"

"Typical girl" Shadow said

Rouge and Wave looked at him at the same time angry

"WE HEARD THAT!"

Shadow started shaking from the sudden pressure. Knuckles and Storm were looking at him with a weird look on their faces. As for Sonic when he heard the phrase 'we heard that' he started laughing non stop.

Back at the arena

"Time to get serious. My turn. I draw. I summon lonefire blossom. Then I tribute it to summon tytanial princess of camelia's in attack mode. Afterwards I activate the spell seed of hope. One plant monster on my field is tributed and then I can summon one monster from my graveyard with less level than the one tribute and for 2 levels in difference I draw a card. Tytanial's level is 8 and rose tentacles level is 6 so I draw a card. Next I play one for one. I discard lord poison to special summon glow up bulb!"

"You.. are about to summon it!"

"Exactly. I tune my level 1 tuner glow up bulb and my level 6 rose tentacles to synchro summon the almighty black rose dragon!"

"So what' it is still weaker than my Shi en."

"I activate black rose dragon's effect. Rage of the Rose!"

The field exploded. Everything on it was destroyed.

"You destroyed all of our cards just to get rid of Shi en? Next turn I end you."

"You really thought I would be defenselss? I activate the spell stardust shimmer which tunes glow up bulb and tentacles in my graveyard to synchro summon my dragon FROM the graveyard!"

"Oh no!"

"Attack with vengeance thorn stream!"

"AAAAAAAH" (Jet LP 900)

"It's over Jet. Next turn I win."

"No" he thought " I can't lose now." He looked at Sonic " not now that I'm so close to finally face him in a tournament. I WON'T lose."

"You haven't defeated me yet Amy."

"Fine try to get out of this. I set one card and end my turn."

"My turn. I set a monster and a card. I end my turn."

"Told you it was over. My turn I draw. I summon botanical lion. Black rose dragon attack his set monster!"

"I activate the effect of my shien's squire so my samurai is not destroyed once."

"Darn. My botanical lion can't beat chamberlain of the six samurai. I end my turn with a face down."

"You should have beaten me when you had the chance Amy. it's over. My turn I draw. I activate the spell monster reincarnation so I return my shi en to the extra deck and discard from my hand kizan. Next I activate the trap backs to the wall."

At the seats

"Sonic is there such a samurai card?" Knuckles asked

"Yes. But no one uses it. Because it is all or nothing. Jet will be left with 100 life points and can special summon as many samurai monsters as he can from the graveyard."

"Sounds good to me." Shadow said

"Yeah but one mistake and Jet loses"

They all silenced and kept looking.

At the arena

Ok (Jet LP 100) Arise the six samurai kizan kageki kagemusha chamberlain and enishi next my kageki and kagemusha wil tune together into Shi en once more. And because I control 2 or more samurais I can special summon great shogun shien from my hand!"

"Oh no. the samurai spell/trap lock."

"Exactly. Shogun shien allows you to activate only 1 spell/trap per turn but shi en negate 1 per turn so your spells and traps are sealed for good. And finally I activate solidarity. Because I only have 1 type of monster in my graveyard all monsters on the field with the same type gain 800 attack points! It's good game."

"I was so close" she said " my face downs are mirror force and magic cilynder. Had you attacked without the samurai lock I would have won."

"Too bad. Great Shogun attack black rose!"

"AAAh" (Amy LP 4600)

"Kizan attack directily!"

"AAAH"(Amy LP 1700)

"Legendary six samurai Shi en attack with your mighty sword of unity!"

"AAAAAAAAH" (Amy LP 0)

"Good game Jet. Looks like you face Sonic in the final round."

"You fought well Amy. But I couldn't afford to lose" he told her as they were heading back to the seats. When they were within the hearing distance of the others he said " I never had the chance to face Sonic in the finals. Always the finalists in every tournament were him and Tails."

"Well you get your chance now Jet. Tails is north right now. He will be back in 2 days."

Knuckles was in deep thoughts.

"Knuckls what are you thinking?" Sonic asked him.

"I am not sure if Tails really is in Thessaloniki Sonic."

"What? What do you mean?"

"I dropped by his house today to leave him a letter with everything that happened until now so he could read it when he returned but I saw his mother and father on the balcony reading newspaper and drinking some coffee. They wouldn't be here if they were invited to a wedding in Thessaloniki right? And the weirdest thing is they looked really worried while reading it."

"Why would Tails lie to us?"

"Try calling him Sonic." Amy said

Sonic called at his Tails' house. His mother picked up.

"Hello?"

"Um miss prowers. It's me Sonic."

"Sonic thank god. Is Tails with you?"

"Uh no. he told us that you were going to Thessaloniki for a wedding."

"Of course not. We have no relatives in Thessaloniki."

"And where is Tails right now?"

"He said he would go out with you guys for night dueling the day before the start of the duel cup. And he never returned! We called the police but they can't find anything. Please Sonic. Find Tails for us."

"I will. I promise." Sonic said and closed. Then he called Tails' phone. And after a minute of calling he received a message from the phone. His eyes widened in shock."

"What's wrong Sonic?" Jet asked

"It says that.. the number I'm calling is no longer existing."

"That's impossible." Amy said. " You called Tails yesterday. You spoke with him."

"I know. Could that mean that he left on his own?"

"Why would he do that? Jet wondered

Noone answered. Sonic's heart was beating fast. His best buddy was gone. What could have happened to him?

"I'm going at the internet café of the dome. Don't follow me guys. I have to do something."

And before anyone could ask he left. He reached the internet café and paid for an hour. Then he sat in a lone computer and entered facebook. Tail's hadn't connected for 2 days. Willing to do anything to find him Sonic hacked into Tails' account and started looking for clues. But then he heard a voice behind him.

"You're wasting your time." A cold familiar and unfamiliar voice. It was him.

"What do you want?" Sonic asked him.

"You won't find your friend. Only I know where he is."

Sonic turned around and tried to punch the champion. But the moment he turned around he grabbed his throat and pressured it. He felt dizzy.

"What did you do with Tails?" he asked in rage.

"He is alright. I didn't kidnap him. I just know where he is."

"Where?! Tell me!"

"Win the final round and I will tell you."

"You bastard! Where is my friend?!"

The champion punched Sonic in the face. Sonic felt like he was falling into a deep hole with no bottom. His eyes closed and he fainted.

When his eyes opened Amy's face was upon him. She looked like she would cry any minute now. When she saw that he opened his eyes she hugged him but not before he saw a tear coming out of her eyes.

"What happened to you?" she tried to ask with an unsteady voice

"I was looking for a clue of Tails' locaton in his facebook, but the champion came again and told me he knows where Tails is. I have to win the final round so he can tell me. I tried to force him to tell me but he punched me and I fainted."

"Let's go back to inform the others."

They headed back to the seats and narrated the others what happened.

"How can a dirty bastard like this guy be a champion?" Knuckles said angry

"What'll happen to Tails if you lose Sonic?" Amy asked

"We'll never know. Because I WON'T LOSE"

Jet looked down. It was a dead end. He had to choose between his friend and his dream.

Then the announcer informed the crowd that the semi-finals for the winner's were over with the finalists being Sonic and Jet and now the tournament would proceed to the semi-finals for the 'losers'. First duel was Shadow vs Rouge. They got up and headed for the arena. But no one said anything like a cheer. Cause everyone was afraid that in this tournament it was possible that their friend's life was on the line. Sonic would never believe the future that was about to come if he knew about it. The destiny that awaited beyond his duel with Jet.