Aster: 1800 LP
Jaden: 2800 LP
Aster's Field: Clock Tower Prison, Destiny Hero - Doom Lord
Aster: I'll place one card face-down and end my turn.
Jaden: You think things are intense now, just wait. It's my move!
Aster: During your standby phase, Clock Tower Prison's effect activates, causing it to gain a clock counter.
The hands on the clock moved forward to 3 o' clock.
Bonaparte: That's quite the time piece.
Crowler: Yes, exquisite workmanship.
Jaden: Whatever that clock is for, I'm sure the cards in my deck can stop it.
Aster: Wrong. No one can stop the hands of fate.
Jaden: Don't be so sure. I summon Wroughtweiler in attack mode.
Level 4/Earth/Machine
ATK 800/DEF 1200
Jaden: Now attack Doom Lord!
Wroughtweiler ran forward and tackled Doom Lord, destroying him.
Aster: 1600 LP
Aster: I play the trap Destiny Signal!
Aster's trap flipped up, shining a light in the sky like Hero Signal, but with a D in place of the E.
Jaden: That's real original.
Aster: I heard that. You're just bitter that I have the upper hand. When one of my monsters is destroyed in battle, I can play this card to summon a level 4 or lower Destiny Hero from my deck, like my Destiny Hero – Captain Tenacious!
Level 3/Dark/Warrior
ATK & DEF 800
Aster: And now that introductions are out of the way, the captain can demonstrate his hidden talent.
Jaden: Talent? What's he gonna do, play the kazoo?
Aster: Go ahead, make jokes. But believe me, I'll have the last laugh. My move. And now that it's my standby phase, the effect of my Captain Tenacious activates.
A bright light flashed on Aster's field and his Doom Lord reappeared.
Level 3/Dark/Warrior
ATK 600/DEF 800
Hassleberry: How'd Doom Lord come back? What's goin' on Bastion?
Bastion: Scientifically speaking, Jaden's getting his bum kicked.
Hassleberry: Thanks for the technical evaluation.
Aster: You see, due to Captain's special ability, during each of my standby phases I can summon back a monster you destroyed in battle. And now I'll summon Destiny Hero – Diamond Dude.
Level 4/Dark/Warrior
ATK 1400/DEF 1600
Aster: Due to his special ability, once each turn I can reveal the top card of my deck, and if that card is a normal spell it gets sent to my graveyard so I can activate it on my next turn. Look at that, it's my Misfortune spell card. How appropriate, because now misfortune's in your future. Now Diamond Dude, attack that mutt with Diamond Knuckle!
Diamond Dude rushed forward and struck Wroughtweiler, destroying him in one punch.
Jaden: 2200 LP
Jaden: You're not the only one who can activate a monster effect, Aster. When Wroughtweiler goes to the graveyard, I can fetch an Elemental Hero and a Polymerization from the grave, and I choose Bubbleman.
Aster: Is that supposed to scare me or something? Sorry, not gonna happen. Captain Tenacious, attack directly!
Tenacious charged Jaden and gave him an uppercut, knocking him onto his back.
Jaden: 1400 LP
Aster: I place one card face-down and end my turn.
Jaden: It's about time. I draw!
Aster: Speaking of time, it sure does fly when you're having fun. Too bad time's on my side today.
Prison: 2 counters
Jaden: Alright then, time to summon Bubbleman, and just wait till he clocks you, especially since his special ability lets me draw 2 cards. And now I play the equip spell Bubble Blaster, raising his attack points by 800.
Bubbleman: 800-1600 ATK
Jaden: Now attack Captain Tenacious!
Aster: Sorry to burst your bubble, but I play the trap D – Shield, which not only switches Tenacious to defense mode, but also prevents him from being destroyed in battle.
Chazz: He may be annoying, but he's good.
Crowler: Aster took a monster that revives other monsters and made it invincible.
Bonaparte: Guess that's why they pay him the big bucks.
Aster: My move, I draw.
Jaden: And since it's your second standby phase, I get my Wingman back.
Level 8/Light/Warrior
ATK 2500-3400/DEF 2100
Aster: Congratulations, but in case you forgot, I get a card back too. Since Diamond Dude sent Misfortune to my grave last turn, I can activate it, allowing me to deal damage to you equal to half the original attack of one of your monsters, like your Flare Wingman.
An energy barrier appeared in front of Aster, and Flare Wingman shot an energy blast at it, but it bounced off the barrier and hit Jaden.
Jaden: 150 LP
Jaden: You turned him against me.
Lily: That was low.
Syrus & Hassleberry: No joke.
Aster: And now I activate Doom Lord's special ability, sending your Wingman two turns into the future. See ya.
Doom Lord struck Flare Wingman, causing him to vanish again.
Alexis: Poor Jaden. Thanks to Aster's destiny cards, he's lost control of his own monsters. I've never seen him like this.
Bastion: This duel is remarkable. It breaks every known formula. Jaden can't make a choice because all of his moves have been predetermined.
Sartorius: I can see your struggle. Everything you've ever believed in has turned out to be a lie. There are no choices. Freedom is but an illusion, for you see my young friend, destiny has led you to me. Jaden, I have infused Aster's deck with the truth, and when he defeats you in this duel, your eyes will finally open. Soon you shall walk along the path of light, by my side.
Jaden: Let's try this again. I draw!
Aster: Ah ah ah, how many times are you gonna forget about the nine-story clock towering above your head?
Prison: 3 counters
Aster: It's nine o' clock. The countdown to your defeat is almost over. You hear the bell, don't you? Well, it tolls for you. Told ya you were destined to lose. Now do you believe in destiny?
Jaden: Heh.
Aster: What's the matter? Pressure getting to you?
Jaden: You kidding me? Guys like me live for pressure. It keeps me at the top of my game. Anyway, I've been looking for a serious challenge since the start of the semester, plus with all these new Destiny Heroes of yours, I'm picking up some sweet new strategies.
Aster: Dude, you gotta get out more. And besides, you could never handle a deck like mine, so stick to your own heroes. My Destiny Heroes are the strongest heroes there are, they're the strongest cards in the game.
Jaden: Give me a break. Sure, they're cool and all, but I wouldn't call them the best in the game.
Aster: I'd watch what I say if I were you.
Jaden: Alright, then I'll watch myself say this: Bubbleman, attack Doom Lord with Bombarding Bubble Barrage!
Aster: 600 LP
Hassleberry: Yowza, now that was a good old-fashioned hind-whoopin'.
Aster: Think you're tough? Just wait till my Captain's special ability kicks in.
Jaden: Big deal, I play Clayman in defense mode!
Level 4/Earth/Warrior
ATK 800/DEF 2000
Jaden: Now give me your best shot.
Aster: If you insist. I draw! And since it's my standby phase, the effect of Captain Tenacious activates, reviving my Doom Lord. Next, I activate Diamond Dude's effect, so I check the top card of my deck. It's my Magical Stone Excavation, so it's sent to my graveyard and I can activate it next turn. Now I'll use Doom Lord's effect to send Bubbleman two rounds into the future.
Doom Lord struck Bubbleman, causing him to vanish as his Bubble Blaster clattered to the ground before it shattered.
Syrus: Oh man, things aren't looking for Jaden.
Aster: Next, I play the equip spell Ring of Magnetism onto Captain Tenacious. He may lose 500 attack and defense points, but now you can only attack him.
Tenacious: 800-300 ATK/DEF
Bastion: Now Jaden is forced to attack a monster that can't be destroyed in battle.
Alexis: What's his problem? You'd think these two had some kind of history or something.
Lily: It's like he can't stand that Jaden beat him before.
Aster: What's wrong, feel like you've lost control?
Jaden: Not quite. I draw!
Aster: Sorry bro, but I call the shots, and my time has arrived.
Prison: 4 counters
The air around the clock tower became distorted, making the whole structure ripple like waves on the ocean.
Jaden: I don't know what that clock is about to do, but I'd better put a stop to it. I play Polymerization to fuse Elemental Heroes Wildheart and Necroshade to summon Elemental Hero Necroid Shaman!
Level 6/Dark/Warrior
ATK 1900/DEF 1800
Aster: You call that freak a hero? Sorry, but he doesn't even register on the hero scale.
Jaden: He may not be the coolest hero, but due to his special ability, when he's summoned, he can send one of your monsters to the graveyard and summon another monster from your graveyard to take its place.
Aster: What?
Jaden: I send Tenacious to your graveyard in order to summon Avian to your field in attack mode!
Level 3/Wind/Warrior
ATK & DEF 1000
Hassleberry: Excellent maneuver soldier.
Lily: Now he can attack and end the duel.
Alexis: Go get him Jaden!
Jaden: Necroid Shaman, attack Doom Lord!
Necroid Shaman raised his staff and struck Doom Lord, but Aster was unfazed by the attack.
Aster: 600 LP
Aster: Nice try, but since Clock Tower Prison has 4 counters, I don't take any damage in battle.
Jaden: I place two cards face-down and end my turn.
Chazz: All these monsters and Jaden gets his butt kicked by a clock?
Bastion: It's worse than that. Aster has controlled this entire duel. And as long as that clock is out, Jaden can't fight back.
Aster: During my standby phase, your wingman returns to your field. And now I activate the effect of Magical Stone Excavation in my graveyard, letting me discard two cards to add a spell card to my hand, like my Misfortune card, which I'll use to make you take damage equal to half your Wingman's original attack points. You're through!
Jaden: Not this time Aster. I play De-Fusion and Burial from a Different Dimension! First all banished monsters are sent to the graveyard, and then Flare Wingman splits back into Flame Wingman and Sparkman, so your Misfortune has no target.
Flame Wingman
Level 6/Wind/Warrior
ATK 2100/DEF 1200
Sparkman
Level 4/Light/Warrior
ATK 1600/DEF 1400
Aster: Fine. It's your move.
Jaden: Thanks. I draw! And it's just the draw I needed. I activate the field spell Fusion Gate, which means Clock Tower Prison is destroyed!
Aster: Thanks.
Jaden: What?
Aster: You see Jaden, when Clock Tower Prison is destroyed when it has four or more Clock counters, the monster inside is released. So say hello to Destiny Hero – Dreadmaster!
Level 8/Dark/Warrior
ATK & DEF ?
Aster: When he's summoned, he automatically destroys any monster on my field that isn't a Destiny Hero, which means Avian is destroyed. Then, his special ability lets me summon up to two Destiny Heroes from my grave, so I choose Tenacious and Doom Lord! One more thing, Dreadmaster's attack and defense are equal to the combined attack of my other Destiny Heroes.
Dreadmaster: ?-2800 ATK/DEF
Jaden: Not bad. I gotta admit, your monsters just get cooler and cooler. But I've got a sweet hero of my own. I use Fusion Gate to banish Sparkman and Clayman to fuse them and summon Elemental Hero Thunder Giant!
Level 6/Light/Warrior
ATK 2400/DEF 1500
Jaden: And now his special ability activates, destroying one of your monsters whose original attack is less than or equal to his attack. Destroy Diamond Dude with Static Blast!
Thunder Giant raised his hand and fired a blast of lightning at Diamond Dude, but Dreadmaster slammed him fist into the ground, causing a volley of stones to deflect the blast.
Jaden: What the-
Aster: Guess I forgot to mention. When Dreadmaster is summoned in attack mode, his special ability prevents my Destiny Heroes from being destroyed by battle or effect that turn while keeping me from taking any battle damage.
Jaden: Great.
Aster: Listen Jaden, your dueling skills may not be half bad, but there's something I have that you never will.
Jaden: What's that?
Aster: Purpose. A reason to duel besides having fun.
Jaden stared down at his duel disk as he remembered his destiny that Michael told him about the year before.
Jaden: If only he knew. Someday my dueling has to be good enough to save the world. I've known for a while, but it's still a lot to think about. So, what reason besides fun do you have?
Aster: The reason I duel is to bring justice to the world by punishing people who think they're above the law.
Jaden: Uh, come again?
Aster: My father was a card designer working for Industrial Illusions. He put his heart into every design he created. He was my hero.
Jaden: What happened?
Aster: Some punk took him away from me. I came in one night and he was beaten up and passed out on the floor. The ambulance took him to the hospital. Whoever attacked him left him in a coma, one the doctors said he'd likely never wake from.
Jaden: That's awful. Wait a minute, did your father,
Aster: That's right. My father created the Destiny Heroes. They were the last cards he ever made. He taught me that justice would always prevail, but he was wrong. After all these years, they still haven't caught the one responsible.
Lily: That's horrible.
Aster: I swore I'd use the cards he created to bring criminals to justice, and some day I'm going to find the scum who attacked him and make them pay for what they did! And I'll know them when I see them, because they'll have the last Destiny card, the last one my father made. And when I find them, they're gonna regret the day they were born!
Jaden: Don't you get it Aster? Your dad wouldn't want you using his cards for revenge, he'd want you to use them to remember him by and enjoy dueling with.
Aster: You don't know anything about him! He was my hero, and I won't stop until the man who attacked him pays for what he did! It's time to end this.
Sartorius: Finally, the chosen duelist belongs to me.
Aster: Dreadmaster, attack Thunder Giant!
Dreadmaster jumped into the air and dove at Thunder Giant, delivering a punch that shook the arena.
Jaden: 0 LP
Aster: Told ya. You can't hide from destiny.
Jaden's cards flew out of his duel disk and he collapsed onto the arena floor.
Alexis: Jaden!
Jaden: Something's wrong. Everything's going blank.