Yu-Gi-Oh! Reda

by Anti-Mattering

Yu-Gi-Oh! Reda is an alternate universe story set within the Yu-Gi-Oh! metaseries about 12 year old Takano Yumi's climb to the top as a professional duelist. Many challenges await her on the road to victory, with many unexpected consequences to her actions. What's the real price of being the best?

87. Turn 83

Izar's onslaught of legendary cards puts Yumi on the defensive.

---

Yumi awoke in a world of darkness. She couldn't see, couldn't hear, couldn't breathe. She couldn't even really perceive herself as being a person anymore. It was like she'd completely drowned in this inky expanse, losing all connection to anything that might be able to help her recognize herself or anything else.

As soon as she was about to resign herself to this being some new, cruel trick by Izar to kill her without a fight, she felt herself drop to the ground. Was this ground? It was the same black as everything else. It all seemed to go on forever in every direction, nothing to differentiate one part from another.

Regardless, she was able to stand now. Looking down, she could make out her hands and body again, hear the rapid thump of her heart beating in her ears. There was even air here. Most importantly, she could recognize herself as Yumi once more.

"I doubt coming in here was a pleasant experience," she heard, the voice echoing throughout this space. Its owner was unmistakably Izar. "I'm glad. You'll be suffering like that forever once this is over. Look forward to it."

"We can't duel if you don't come out here," Yumi said, getting straight to the point. Talking to him any more than was necessary would only be a waste of time. With Izar, there was no reasoning with him, no humanity to reach. He was evil, plain and simple. All he wanted was to watch others suffer, so no amount of trying to convince him would matter. Her only option was to win.

"So impatient," Izar said, seeming to pop into existence right before her eyes with no fanfare. How unlike him. "But I supposed I agree. I've been waiting to kill you since this war started. Why should I deny myself any longer?"

Yumi felt her throat close up, trying and failing to gasp in shock as her hands clawed at the air around her neck. A second later, she felt herself lifted off the ground, body straightened against her will as Izar stepped towards her. "Like I said, why deny myself any longer?"

She could do nothing as the skin began to peel itself from her face, lungs burning as the air inside them rapidly ran out. It was a mistake to come here. She couldn't fight this. The fact she thought she could had been complete delusion on her part. All she could do now was watch his twisted grin as he slowly dismantled her from body to soul.

That's what he wanted her to think. Hopeless situation or not, though, Yumi continued to resist. A burning orange aura covered her, breaking Izar's control. Falling to the ground, she coughed and sputtered as she refilled her lungs.

"I see," Izar said. "Looks like there's more fight left in you than I expected."

"You won't win like that," Yumi said, standing back up with determination burning in her eyes. "All you ever do is manipulate things in your favor. In a fair fight, I'll show you you're just a coward and a bully."

Izar scoffed. "Don't give me that. It's not like I really would have killed you like that." He cracked a smile, adding, "It wouldn't be any fun like that, would it?"

"If we're dueling, then let's duel," Yumi said. She'd seen enough of his tricks by now. As awful as his torture was, she was going to push through it. She had to this time. No matter how small of a chance at victory she might have, she had to bet on it. Losing wasn't an option when everything was on the line like this.

"You're so eager to die," Izar laughed. "I was hoping we could play with each other just a bit longer." He placed a hand to his face, sliding it down to his neck and shoulder as his grin widened. "Part of me will actually miss you once I've killed you, you know. You're such a hate-able creature, Takano Yumi."

"It's all your own fault," she said back. "You didn't have to do any of this. You could have just left us alone. Left everyone alone."

"But what fun would that be?" he asked. "Just subsisting off lifeless matter for all of ever? No, it's much better to torment lesser creatures like you. Better than you getting ideas of your own."

"You're disgusting," she hissed. She'd had enough of this talking, taking her duel disk from her belt and sliding it onto her left arm.

Izar chuckled, nodding. "That spirit. That's what's going to make it so satisfying to break you. When I watch that spark burn out from inside you when you realize there's nothing left you can do, it's going to make up for all of your disrespect."

She narrowed her eyes at him, pausing for a moment before spitting in his face. Even Izar seemed a bit surprised at this. As for Yumi herself, she was just confused as to where that move came from. She certainly hadn't planned on that, though she couldn't help but think both Kazuhiko and Kyoko would be congratulating her if they'd been able to see it.

"So be it," Izar said, saliva seeming to burn away from where it stuck to his skin. "No more talking." Despite claiming this, though, he held up a hand as Yumi reached for a crystal. "Before we start our game," he added, smile wide as he saw Yumi flinch on instinct as he leaned in towards her, "I'd like to suggest something. What if, instead of 4000 Life Points, we began with 8000?"

"What for?" she asked, obviously suspicious.

"Why not?" he answered bluntly. "After all, this is going to be your final duel. Shouldn't you be able to enjoy it for as long as possible? What's the harm in having a little more fun before the end?"

It was a trap. It was clearly a trap. And yet, what choice did she have? Would he even accept it if she said no? She could fight back with Chaos to some extent, but her odds of taking him on in a blow-for-blow fight seemed dubious at the absolute best. "I don't…"

"Come on, now," he said, waving his hand in front of his face. "Just do it. I'm giving you a chance to survive the third turn. I've seen the alternative paths this duel could take, you know. It won't be any fun destroying you if it's over in a second."

That was probably the most convincing thing he'd said about this up to now. While she had no way of knowing what Izar's new powers meant, she didn't exactly doubt that he might be able to see the future. Possible futures, at least. And if more Life Points meant a better chance at hanging in there with whatever his new deck would entail, she'd have to take it.

"Fine," Yumi finally answered, clenching her fists. "I'll do it."

Izar chuckled, the blue markings on his body glowing. "Then it's decided." In an instant, the two of them were standing on opposite ends of the darkness. "Let's not waste any time!"

"I was thinking the same," Yumi said, sliding her last crystal into her duel disk and watching it whir to life.

"I'm sure you've got your deck the way you want it, right?" he asked sweetly. "I don't want to hear any excuses about bad hands or poor balancing. When you lose, you'll lose trying your hardest. And then I'll devour you."

"It's fine. Let's start." She lifted her arm up, duel disk at the ready as she placed her cards inside.

"Then it's time for the last and final...duel!" Just as they'd agreed, their Life Point counters set themselves to 8000 as things began. The space around them trembled, chalky white material racing in from all directions to form crudely drawn eyes. They pointed in every direction, fidgeting and pulsing as their focus shifted from nothing to Izar to Yumi and back.

"I know how much you enjoy the spotlight," Izar sneered, "so these should give you all the attention you desire. Now all of the humans down in that city will be able to watch your suffering." He laughed, shrugging as he added, "I suppose I could have simply made it all the humans, but I doubt most of them would even understand what they were seeing here. Then again, I could force them to understand. It would be better if they knew why it was they were about to die, correct?"

"Just get on with it," Yumi said, frustrated by his mockery and anxious to start.

He smirked, clearly amused at how easily he could push her buttons. "As you wish, Takano Yumi." The markings on his arm began to glow, energy welling up inside him. "Things are different from last time!" he shouted. "I've ascended! Now even the cards I draw are mine to create! I'll start, draw!"

Five cards appear out of the darkness to become his hand, smirking as he looked them over. "Just as I designed," he said, seeming to confirm that he could now decide the contents of his deck through will alone. That had to be cheating, right?

"I'll begin with this – the Magic Card, Pot of Greed!" He showed the card in front of him before it was swallowed by the shadows. "Now I'll get to draw two new cards from my deck." Another two cards materialized into his hand with a burst of energy all around them.

With a smirk, he revealed another card. "And now, I'll activate my next card – the Magic Card, Pot of Greed!"

"That's allowed?" Yumi questioned, actually feeling quite foolish that she'd bothered to adhere to any limitations on cards while building her deck. Why would Izar even care about that sort of thing?

"I don't see why I can't be allowed to draw two new cards," Izar replied with a laugh, turning around to immediately reveal yet another card. "And now, I'll activate my third and final Pot of Greed!" Cackling, he continued to draw until his hand contained eight cards.

With another chuckle, he selected a card in his hand. "Let's switch things up with this, Angel's Charity!" He took three more cards as Yumi groaned, discarding a copy of Macrocosmus – PAIN and Reckless Greed to satisfy its drawback. "I think that should do it. For the moment."

Seemingly satisfied with his hand, he revealed a pair of cards. "I set my Pendulum Scales with the Scale 1 Macrocosmus – SORROW and the Scale 10 Macrocosmus – PAIN!" Tossing the cards in front of him, they both burned up in pillars of black fire, the grotesque creatures eventually taking form on either side of their master with their respective Scale numbers in front of them.

"With this, I can now Pendulum Summon monsters with Levels 2 to 9, and I'll do just that right now!" Another monster revealed itself, the markings on his body glowing. "Swing, pendulum of destiny! Draw an arc through the darkness leading towards entropy! Pendulum Summon! Come out, my slave! Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!"

From out of the portal shot a burning red dragon with dichromatic eyes, screeching into the air and thrashing about in a panic. Despite being just a monster in a game, Yumi somehow felt that it didn't want anything to do with this duel. It almost seemed like it was in pain if that were possible, its anguished cries shaking the space around them.

"Enough of all that," Izar said quickly, seeming to sense the same thing as Yumi. Shadows wrapped themselves around the monster's neck, pulling it to the ground and further encircling it to clamp its mouth shut. "My apologies, Takano Yumi," he spoke sweetly. "I thought I'd have some fun with our last duel. Borrow a few cards from people here and there. But it seems like they aren't too happy about that."

"You stole this from someone?" she asked, fury building inside her. He wasn't just trying to cheat her now, having stooped so low as to simply rob others of their cards to try to beat her.

"It's fine," he said with a smile. "These cards are far more valuable in my hands. But anyway, we have a duel to get back to, so I'll activate PAIN's effect in my Pendulum Zone. For Pendulum Summoning a monster that isn't from my Macrocosmus series, I'm rewarded with extra Life Points equal to that monster's ATK."

Izar spread his arms wide, soaking in the dark energy that was being siphoned out of an increasingly distressed Odd-Eyes. At 2500, that made his resulting Life Points 10500. Impressive as it was, that was hardly the end of his turn.

"When Macrocosmus – SORROW is in my Pendulum Zone, I'm allowed to use it and another Macrocosmus monster as Synchro Material." Raising a hand, both his monsters dislodged from the columns of light holding them in place. "I'm tuning my Level 4 Macrocosmus – PAIN with my Level 4 Tuner, Macrocosmus – SORROW!" One monster formed a series of four pitch black rings while the other became four matching stars, the latter aligning in the center of the former.

"Rip the stars from the sky as I snuff out the last bits of light shining along this road! Synchro Summon, Level 8! Appear, Stardust Dragon!" Flying out to the field was a brilliant white dragon, raising its head to cry into the air before being slammed against the ground by the same type of shadow shackles as Odd-Eyes. Though it didn't fight quite as vigorously as the other, it was obviously just as displeased with this development.

No time to dwell on that, however, as he was already continuing his plays. "Now I activate Pot of MACRO!" he declared. "I return three Macrocosmus Pendulum Monsters in my Graveyard or Extra Deck to my deck, then draw two new cards."

Again with the drawing. Yumi grit her teeth, dreading what else he could come up with. While she wasn't sure what these two dragons could do, they seemed quite strong at just a glance. What other stolen valuables was he going to use on her next?

His choices were the two PAINs and the SORROW he'd used during this turn, shuffling them back and drawing twice. Once more, he must have created exactly the cards he'd wanted. "I haven't Normal Summoned this turn," he reminded her, taking another card and tossing it into the shadows. "So I'll do that now and call out Macrocosmus – PAIN!"

The dark slime materialized from the surroundings, the orb held inside of it glowing. "When I Normal Summon PAIN, I can discard Upstart Goblin to Summon additional copies of PAIN from my hand or deck." In the end, he only called one copy of the monster. Seemed like a fair trade for giving up an extra draw.

Now it was time for the drawback. "As always, I'll take 1000 damage for each PAIN I Summon by this effect." As he spoke, dark fire covered his chest, the being merely chuckling at this development. As his Life Points fell to 9500, he revealed a new card in hand. "And now, that lets me activate this! Instant Magic, Pain Transfusion!"

Yumi braced, guarding herself as best as she could. "Now feel half of the damage I just took!" A black lightning bolt shot from the card, striking her and sending her to her knees, gasping as her body sparked and shook. She didn't cry out, though. She knew he wanted that. He'd have to settle for watching her Life drop to 7500.

"And now I'll draw an extra card. Thank you." He tossed the new card aside for the time being, revealing the other two in his hand. "Since it's free, I'll go ahead and reset my Pendulum Scales using the Scale 1 Macrocosmus – JUDGMENT and Scale 10 Macrocosmus – PENANCE!" And just like that, his anti-Pendulum strategy was back on lock.

"Now, prepare yourself," he said, menace dripping from his lips. "I overlay both my Level 4 Macrocosmus – PAINs to construct the Overlay Network!" Into the swirling galaxy went both monsters, the stars churning for a few moments before energy burst forth from the center. A white and gold ornament descended, Overlay Units swirling around it. Slowly, it began to transform, Izar calling out, "Xyz Summon, Rank 4!"

Unfolding, the monster took shape. "Appear, Numbers 39: King of Wishes, Hope!" Rising to its full height, the proud warrior gave a shout as the tendrils began to encircle it. It tried its best to shake them off, beating at them with its swords before finally being overpowered and pulled to the floor like the others.

"Numbers…" Yumi mouthed. Though she'd never encountered something like this herself, she could tell just by looking at it that this was a different class of card – one that Izar should not have under any circumstances.

"Don't worry," he told her. "Soon enough, you'll experience the full power of all of these monsters. But I can't attack on my first turn, so instead I'll Set two cards and end. Show me what you can do."

Finally, she could launch a counterattack. "My turn, draw!"

"Takano Yumi begins her turn!" the announcer shouted into his microphone. "She's facing down a ton of strong monsters, so how will she turn things around?" While he would normally be doing this from inside the arena, he had to make due with some "borrowed" equipment from the EEDF facility. According to him, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as a commentator, and not one he'd pass up for anything.

"She can do it," Yuu said immediately, almost as if responding directly to the announcer.

"Those monsters, though," Rio muttered. "There's something weird about them."

"I'm curious about what's going on with them," Kyoko added. "It's like he's forcing them to fight for him. What's that mean? They're just cards, right?" On some level, they were all thinking the same thing. What would happen as this duel continued?

Back at the duel, Yumi was ecstatic. Even just laying a hand on it, she knew what she'd just drawn. It was none other than the card Alramech had created before she left here. Looks like Izar wasn't the only one who could get lucky.

Excitedly, she looked to see what it had turned out to be, gazing at...a blank card. "Huh?" she winced, face falling instantly. It was still a blank card? What the hell was this? How much longer did it need before it was done?

"A problem?" Izar asked, smiling. "Did you draw a bad card? I knew that was a possibility, but are you really about to lose because of that? That's disappointing."

Whatever. She couldn't worry about that right now. "Fine," she muttered. "I start by activating the Magic Card, Unexpected Guy! Since I have no monsters, I can Summon a Normal Monster from my deck." Tapping the screen on her duel disk, she called out her choice. "Let's go, Wallrus!"

The creature gurgled and spat, slapping its brick arms together as it eventually settled into a defensive pose in front of Yumi. "Are you trying to survive by playing a bunch of worthless defenders?" Izar mocked. "If you do that, I swear I'll crush you on my next turn. You can count on that. There's no fun in playing with you if you'll act this cowardly."

"I'm not defending," Yumi said, "I'm attacking!" Wallrus began to glow as she said this, disappearing in a shower of lights. "I Release Wallrus in order to Advance Summon!" Archaic, but it would have to do for now. "Take the stage, Majesty Magician!"

Standing before Izar's three stolen monsters was Yumi's favorite, not the least bit perturbed to be staring down a trio of legendary cards that matched it in ATK. As Majesty Magician gave a flourished bow, Yumi placed another card into her duel disk. "And I equip him with Rusty Sword, giving him the power to increase his ATK equal to his DEF!"

"A classic," Izar said with a mocking tenderness. "And now that your card has 4500 ATK, you'll be attacking, correct?"

"Not yet," she told him, placing another card down. "I activate Common Fusion! By sending Violentist, Butter Fly, Big Bat Knight, and Flame Viper to my Graveyard, I'm allowed to Fusion Summon!" Placing her hands together, her four Normal Monsters swirled together in a vortex behind her. "Forces of the ordinary, join hands to form a storm of change! Combine together to reach a new power!" She brought her hands down, finishing with, "Fusion Summon, Level 10! Helpful, Knight of Commons!"

"How clever," Izar sneered. "You've managed to get around PENANCE. For now." As troublesome as those cards were, she was managing to beat them for the time being. So long as she didn't Pendulum Summon, she'd be fine. Would she be able to win before she had to, though?

"Battle!" she called, choosing to ignore that for the time being. "Majesty Magician, attack Numbers 39! Rusty Slice!" Gripping the sword with both hands, Yumi's monster launched itself forward, flipping up to sail on top of it as the attack headed for Izar's field.

"Trap activate!" he shouted. "Magic Deflector! For the rest of the turn, anything but Normal Magic effects are negated, including your Rusty Sword!" As he explained, the sword underneath Majesty Magician vanished as it was bombarded by waves from the Trap, Yumi's monster sent hurtling towards Hope with even ATK.

"Hope, counterattack!" he ordered, the shadows forcing the Number to its feet and moving its body to draw its swords. Their sheaths vanished as it was made to swing at Majesty Magician, the Spellcaster taking it through the midsection and exploding on contact.

At the very least, Yumi thought, that managed to eliminate one of his monsters. As the dust cleared, she realized the terrible truth. "Just so you know," Izar began, "Numbers can only be destroyed by other Numbers." Hope stood tall on the field before being dragged back to the ground, completely unharmed by the battle. "Unless you can find a way around that, this monster won't be going anywhere."

"In that case," Yumi said, recovering, "I'll just avoid it! Helpful, go! Attack Stardust Dragon!" Lifting its sword, her Fusion Monster stepped forward, swinging down towards the white dragon. Moments before making contact, however, Izar's Number jumped in the way. "What?"

"Hope's effect activates!" he declared. "I detach an Overlay Unit when a monster attacks, letting me negate it!" The yellow orb circling his monster flew into Hope's chest plate, the darkness forcing the effect through. Pulling one of the monster's wings out, it shielded itself and Stardust Dragon against Helpful's sword. "Moon Barrier!"

"No good," she said with a click of her tongue, unable to do anything but watch her monster's attack bounce off her enemy. Investigating further, she also found that Stardust Dragon could stop destruction, while Odd-Eyes doubled battle damage when fighting something higher Leveled. All three of these monsters was troublesome on their own, but even worse together. "Then...I Set one card. Turn end." A turn full of disappointment leading to a disappointing end. To make matters worse, now all she had left in her hand was this useless card that didn't work.

With a smirk, Izar began his assault in earnest. "My turn, draw!" A burst of energy shot out across the darkness as he did, a new card forming. "Well, look at this," he said. "I play MACRO Burst!" A Magic Card materialized in front of him depicting The WORLD exploding. "At the cost of skipping my next Draw Phase, I can attack you with half the total ATK of my monsters!"

"What?" Yumi shouted. "That's unbelievable!"

"Believe it!" he laughed. "All three of my monsters have 2500 ATK, making a total of 7500. Half of that will be 3750 damage headed straight for you!" Gathering up as much energy from his monsters as he could into his right hand, Izar stomped one foot forward, reaching back to ready the attack. "Prepare yourself, Takano Yumi! Here's my power up close!"

He tossed the damage forward like a spear, crackling blue energy streaking across the field headed towards Yumi's face. However, she was prepared. "Trap activate, Majesty Guard!" Yumi dodged to the side, curling into a ball on instinct as the spear made contact with the crude barrier from her card. "Now all the damage...is halved!"

"But you still take it, don't you?" he said, cackling as the energy broke through. It impacted the ground a short ways behind Yumi, exploding and sending her tumbling across the field. Wobbling to her feet, her Life decreased to an uneven 5625.

"Hurry and get up," Izar demanded, stomping his foot to send Yumi tumbling back to her side of the field. "I haven't even started having fun yet." A new card formed in front of him as he explained, "MACRO Burst also lets me draw a card after doing damage." Of course it did.

Raising his hand, Izar called down a bolt of black lightning onto his Xyz Monster. "I'll take my Numbers 39: King of Wishes, Hope and rebuild the Overlay Network!" As it wailed in pain, Hope was forced back into its sealed state, flying into a new galaxy created by the Constellation.

"Using this last little bit of hope, I forge a bolt of lightning that will precede an eternal darkness!" Exploding forth was his new monster taking shape. "Rank-Up Xyz Change! Appear, Shining Numbers 39: King of Wishes, Hope the Lightning!"

"There are Shining Numbers now?" Yumi questioned, her mind getting blown all over again.

"There are so many things in my deck you can't even begin to imagine," Izar said, Hope the Lightning being similarly overtaken by the darkness. Now it wasn't merely holding the monster, but infecting it. Hope's armor, still shining as it was, was slowly dyed an inky black to replace its normal white. The other monsters were undergoing a similar change, screeching as they were invaded by Izar's essence.

"Now, battle! Hope the Lightning, attack Helpful, Knight of Commons! Hope Sword Lightning Slash!" The assimilation complete, Hope the Lightning drew its swords without prompting, black lightning crackling across the metal. Flying into the air, it slashed downwards twice, preparing to dive into Yumi's monster.

"But Helpful has more ATK!" she said. "Go, counterattack!" On her order, Helpful raised its shield, sliding its sword into a notch at the top and thrusting forward at the Number. Though it wouldn't destroy it, Izar's foolish attack would still hit be a good start to wearing down his Life Points.

"At this moment, Hope the Lightning's effect activates! By detaching two Overlay Units, my monster's ATK becomes 5000! Do it!" Hope placed both swords together, lightning falling from the sky to strike the combined weapons and fuse them together.

"Then I banish-"

"You won't do anything!" Izar shouted, cackling into the air. "When Hope the Lightning battles, you're not allowed to activate effects until the end of the Damage Step! Common Fusion can't save you!" Hope's attack bypassed Helpful's retaliatory strike, slicing straight through it with an explosion of electric-tinged energy.

Yumi was blown back by the attack, rolling over several times before coming to a stop. "Majesty Guard...halves the damage." Because of that, she ended up with 5025 Life Points. Additionally, the smoke cleared to reveal a weary but still standing Helpful. "And my monster won't be destroyed by battle."

"I'm well aware," Izar said with a smirk. "I Set one card. Turn end." At least that ATK increase wasn't permanent.

Slowly, Yumi rose to her feet. The force these attacks had was greater than any of the other opponents she'd faced up until now. Even trying to focus on one specific pain was getting difficult, her whole body burning and aching from the abuse.

She couldn't afford to let this much stop her, though. No matter how much it hurt, she had to keep going. "My...turn, draw!" A small smile formed on her lips, this new card hopefully offering her a chance at a comeback in such a dire situation. "I activate this, Pot of Riches! I return three Pendulum Monsters to my deck, shuffle, and draw two new cards!"

"Sounds familiar," Izar said, thin smile creeping along his face.

She chose to return the three in her Graveyard – Violentist, Butter Fly, and Big Bat Knight. With that, she got to draw twice more.

"That's far enough," Izar said. "Trap activate, Draw Discharge!" His card materialized, zapping the cards in Yumi's hand with more lightning and forcing her to drop them. They then floated over to him. "When you draw cards because of your own card effect, I get to inspect them to make sure you don't have any monsters. If you do, though, I'll banish all of them and attack you with damage equal to their ATK."

With a smile, he grabbed both cards. "Now, let's see…" His smile faded into a grimace, tossing the cards back to Yumi in a flash. "Worthless. Carry on, then."

"Looks like even you can still make mistakes," Yumi said, confidence growing just a tad with what seemed like proof positive that, despite his nigh-omnipotence, Izar wasn't completely controlling the duel. Thankfully, both cards she'd drawn were Magic Cards, specifically Value of a Horse's Bone and Topaz Force. While they weren't useful right this moment, they might come in handy soon.

For now, she at least had the offensive advantage. "Battle! Helpful, attack Stardust Dragon!" Raising its sword, Helpful went to strike at the darkened dragon, only to be met with shadows. "What's happening?"

"Trap activate, MACRO Bind!" Izar's new card portrayed The WORLD lashing out at the viewer with chains of darkness. "When you attack, this negates it and equips onto your monster. Anything equipped with MACRO Bind can't attack, and for some extra fun, you'll also be giving me 500 of your Life Points during every End Phase."

As annoying as this was, it wasn't entirely unexpected. "Like with Ren," she muttered. Looks like her new card would be getting used sooner than expected. "In that case, I'll end the Battle Phase and activate this, Value of a Horse's Bone! By sending Helpful to the Graveyard, I can draw two more cards."

Taking a quick breath, Yumi placed her fingers on top of her deck. "Draw!" Upon seeing what she got, she had to do a quick hop from joy before continuing her play. "Alright! Now I'll set my Pendulum Scales using Scaredy Lion as a Scale 2 and Butter Fly as a Scale 9!"

Slapping the cards down on their appropriate spots, her duel disk blade lit up with the PENDULUM lettering. "Now I'm able to Pendulum Summon monsters with Levels from 3 to 8! So let's see an encore, Majesty Magician!" A portal opened between her two monsters as they floated behind her, Majesty Magician streaking out as a beam of rainbow light before rematerializing and tipping its hat to the enemy.

"Thank you for that," Izar sneered. "Now that you've finally Pendulum Summoned, I gain Life Points equal to your monster's ATK thanks to the Macrocosmus – JUDGMENT set in my Pendulum Zone." 12000 Life Points wouldn't be easy to beat, but helping him here would be worth it going forward.

"That's fine," Yumi said. "Because now I can use Scaredy Lion's Pendulum Effect. I'll add a Normal Monster from my deck to my hand." Her choice was Hat-Trick Magician, adding it alongside the other two cards she held. "And with that, I end my turn."

"Completely pointless," Izar laughed. "Draw!" He paused for a moment, then lifted his arms in a shrug. "Or not!" Apparently, he found this hilarious, cackling at his own joke. "No point in wasting more time. Battle!"

"Butter Fly's Pendulum Effect!" Yumi interrupted him. "I send Broken Wand from my deck to the Graveyard, then target Majesty Magician. Now I can prevent the destruction once for the rest of this turn." Majesty Magician began to glow with a green aura, bracing itself for an incoming attack.

"Not too bad," Izar said. "You've learned. When Hope the Lightning attacks, you wouldn't have been able to activate your effect. But using it before means you can get around that restriction." He scoffed. "But in the end, it's pointless! Attack anyway! Hope Sword Lightning Slash!"

The Number drew the swords off its shoulders once again, leaping forward to slash at Yumi's monster. "Numbers can't be destroyed in battle except by other Numbers," he reminded her. "Even with equal ATK, I would still survive the battle!" Both monsters met in the middle, neither managing to fell the other. "But that still means you've used up your protection. Odd-Eyes, finish the job! Spiral Strike Burst!"

With a roar, the crimson dragon jumped upward, launching a vortex of scarlet flames at Majesty Magician. In turn, the magician jumped forward, resisting the attack as best it could until able to strike at the dragon with its cane. The resulting explosion left neither on the field.

"And now you have no defense," Izar said. "Stardust Dragon, direct attack! Shooting Sonic!" The Synchro dragon flew into the air, flapping its wings and rising above the field. Its head reared back, unleashing a swirling mass of silver energy, black stains present through out.

Despite her best efforts to dodge, Stardust's attack swept Yumi's side of the field, clipping her with the blast and sending her backwards. Searing pain filled her skull as her vision went hazy from the shock, body ordering her to stop moving.

As always, though, she couldn't do that. Life Points dropping to a more symmetrical 2525, she dug her fingers into the dark ground and pulled herself forward, slowly getting to her knees before standing back up and advancing to her spot on the field.

"Good, good," Izar praised. "Don't give out just yet. Remember what you're fighting for. When you die, so will everyone watching this. So will the rest of your world, your universe. And after that, I can just keep going forward and taking what I want. No more games, no more chances; just me doing as I please!"

"I won't let that happen," Yumi said, gritting her teeth through the pain and raising her duel disk.

"I guess we'll see about that," Izar quipped. "From where I'm standing, you won't be for much longer. Human bodies are fairly soft and delicate, you know. It won't take much more to put you down." His Pendulum Scales began to glow. "Then, before I end my turn, I Pendulum Summon Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon back to my field!"

His turn came to a close as the red dragon came back to life, its body getting progressively more corrupted as the duel went on. Even Duel Monsters cards weren't immune to Izar's infection, his hold growing stronger the longer he possessed these stolen monsters. Even beyond saving her world, Yumi wanted to find a way to save them, too.

"Draw!" she said, steadying herself after growing lightheaded. All this damage was starting to add up. Maybe that's why he wanted to start with 8000; it meant he could torture her more. Regardless, she was still in the game thanks to it, so he'd soon regret that decision.

"I Pendulum Summon the Majesty Magician in my Extra Deck and the Hat-Trick Magician in my hand!" Yumi declared, her monsters bursting forth from between her Scales.

"And I'll gain more Life Points!" Izar shot back, his markings glowing as his strength grew to 15700. She had to do something about his Pendulum Scales before his Life got too big to take down.

"Scaredy Lion's Pendulum Effect activates," she added. "With this, I'll add Rusty Swordsman to my hand, then Normal Summon him!" As soon as her tiny knight appeared on the field, she played another card. "Equip Magic, Expert Heart! I equip this to Hat-Trick Magician, then use it and my two Level 4 monsters to build the Overlay Network!"

Rusty Swordsman and Hat-Trick Magician crossed their weapons, both transforming into wisps of light along with the Expert Heart card. This made for three materials in total. "I tap into the world of chaos to create a new power! Lay waste to the world order and find form in the ashes! Xyz Summon!"

Even in this desolate place, the power of her card managed to split the ground as her monster awakened. Orange aura growing even brighter, Yumi finished her chant. "Rank 4, Chasm Queen – Telos!" Rising up from the crevice, Telos opened its eyes, sending out a wave of energy that depowered all of Izar's monsters. "When she's Xyz Summoned, all your monsters have their effects negated until the end of my turn!"

"What will that do for you?" Izar sneered.

"Plenty," she replied. "Battle! Chasm Queen – Telos, attack Hope the Lightning!"

Izar stepped back, a grimace on his face. "Looks like you noticed."

"I did," Yumi confirmed. "Your Numbers can't be destroyed in battle except by another Numbers card. It's strong, but it's still just a monster effect. If I negate it, you're wide open!" Telos drew through the air with its fingers, materializing its jagged blade. "Go! Shatter Disarray!"

The Number was no match for Telos as it was now, the creature of Chaos slicing right through it and blowing it apart. Izar braced for the damage, making it the first time Yumi had damaged him this duel. Though it was just 300 points, he was infuriated nonetheless.

"When Telos does damage," Yumi continued, "I'm able to detach an Overlay Unit, then inflict an extra 400 damage for every Equip Magic in the Graveyard!" Telos smashed one of its own Overlay crests as it hovered next to it, slashing through the air in front of Izar and sending him back. Rusty Sword and Broken Wand were the only Equip Magic Cards present so far, so the total damage was 800. This and the previous attack brought him down to 14600 Life Points. A small victory, but a victory all the same.

Though he was still on his feet, Izar was frozen in place. He was far enough away that Yumi couldn't make out an expression on his face, though even being closer likely wouldn't have helped given the mess of hair that had been flung in front of it. "How's that?" she finally said, the silence making her more uncomfortable than anything else. "And there's more-"

"You think you can hurt me?" he shouted, Yumi nearly falling back in shock. His hair had flown out of his face, waving in the air like tendrils stitched to his scalp as energy radiated off him. Unlike before, his expression was plainly visible now – pure, abject fury directed right at her.

And then it was over. His hair fell down once more and his expression lightened. "Did you think I was really upset?" he asked sweetly. "That piddly amount of damage couldn't possibly bother me. I just wanted to see your reaction." The worst part was that she couldn't tell if he was lying or not.

"If you're done with your turn," Izar said, already poised to draw, "then I'll start mine!" He tossed the card forward, calling, "I activate Pot of Greed and Riches! By banishing six random cards from my Extra Deck face-down, I can draw two new cards from my deck!" Knowing him, they were anything but random, but six cards did indeed appear above him and spontaneously burst into flames before he took his next two.

With a chuckle, Izar activated another card. "And now, I'll use this – the Magic Card, Neos Fusion!" Two cards appeared in front of him, falling into the darkness around them. "By sending the cards Elemental HERO Neos and Rainbow Dark Dragon from my deck to the Graveyard, I'm allowed to Summon a new monster."

His card began to shine, both his spent monsters appearing on the field in front of it. The one known as Neos seemed as distressed as the other stolen cards Izar had used so far, but the dragon that came with it was anything but. In fact, it did the work of encircling Neos itself, crushing it between its body as the two of them were pulled into a vortex created by the Neos Fusion card.

"Appear, Rainbow Neos!" Bursting free of the Fusion card, this new monster more than made up for the Numbers card's absence at a staggering 4500 ATK. Like its comrades, its glowing white appearance was quickly overtaken by darkness, staining it a deep gray color as it hovered above Izar's field.

"Now, I activate Rainbow Neos' effect!" he declared. "I'll get rid of Stardust Dragon in order to shuffle every monster on your field back into your deck!" The towering monster crossed its arms over its chest, Stardust Dragon letting out one last defiant screech as it faded away. "Beyond the Rainbow Hole!"

Rainbow Neos flapped its angelic wings, blasting a gust of wind towards the enemy monsters. "Butter Fly, use your effect!" Yumi called out, Majesty Magician being encircled in a green aura. "I send the Equip Magic, Pendulum String, to the Graveyard to prevent destruction!"

"You're not listening, are you?" Izar laughed. "Your monsters aren't destroyed; they're shuffled away! Preventing destruction is useless!" It was true, proven as Yumi's monsters were blown off the field. Majesty Magician shuffled itself back into her Main Deck, Telos returning to the Extra Deck. Looks like holding back on attacking with the former was a mistake.

Still, not all was lost. "Then it's a good thing that wasn't the point of my effect," Yumi countered, Izar quirking an eyebrow. "I activate Pendulum String's effect! When it's sent to the Graveyard, I'm able to Summon back a Normal Pendulum Monster from my Graveyard or Extra Deck, but it's banished when it leaves the field."

Her best option here was Wallrus, the monster returning to the field in Defense Position. It wouldn't do much, but it was better than facing down the opponent's monsters with nothing.

"So you managed to play one last monster," Izar said. "Too bad it won't protect you. Odd-Eyes, burn that thing to cinders! Spiral Strike Burst!" As ordered, the dragon let loose a torrent of burning energy, Wallrus standing no chance of surviving it.

"And now we bring this duel to a close," Izar said, shaking his head. "I would have expected more from you, Takano Yumi. After all, someone who's managed to annoy me as much as you have should be able to survive a little longer." With a sigh, he added, "But I suppose it wasn't meant to be."

Raising a hand, his smile returned. "Rainbow Neos, finish this and kill Takano Yumi! Rainbow Flare Stream!" The gems on his monster glowed blue like the markings on his body, several beams of blinding light blasting out across the field. Though they initially did little besides incinerate the ground where they were being shot, they slowly began to converge on Yumi.

"I banish Majesty Guard in my Graveyard to halve the damage from this attack!" Yumi declared, a golden dome forming around her just as the beams would have struck her. Despite shielding her from a sure kill, the energy still managed to penetrate, knocking her out of the protective radius and sending her tumbling across the floor like a ragdoll.

"So you managed to hang on by a thread," Izar chuckled. "Good, I was nearly convinced you really would die there. Now get back on your feet and continue the duel."

That was much easier said than done. The impact from the attack and subsequent impact with the ground had definitely broken something this time. She couldn't be sure of what given how much everything hurt, but something was out of place inside her body now. Even putting her 275 Life Points aside, she was on her last legs.

Crawling forward and trying to find the strength to get to her knees, Yumi slowly picked up the cards in her hand. She'd finish this duel even if it killed her. If she didn't, she'd die anyway, so it's not like there was anything left to lose.

"I'm getting tired of waiting," Izar said, curling his finger towards himself. This pulled Yumi up by her neck, forcing her to stand despite her injuries and exhaustion. "Better. You should be on your feet as I kill you. I Set a card to end my turn. Start yours now."

Yumi's knees threatened to give out as she was forced to adjust to being upright again. The Chaos was only doing so much, her faltering concentration weakening the energy she was able to put out. "I'll…" Her vision blurred as her hand moved on instinct, somehow managing to make its way to the top of her deck. Despite this, she didn't have the strength to pull a card.

That soon changed, though. Something managed to cut through the haze of pain, waking her up just enough to continue the duel. Looking at her cards, it was the blank one she'd been holding since the start. Apparently, this wasn't just some cruel joke, as it was far less blank now that the green border of a Magic Card had filled itself in.

As it was forming, it must have been giving off some kind of energy, that energy either healing her or providing her with the strength to keep going beyond her limits. Considering it came from Alramech and carried the hopes and dreams of everyone in her life, this wasn't too far fetched a theory. Good as it may have been for her body, however, the card itself was still entirely unusable for the time being. If nothing else, this seemed to prove that it would eventually be ready if she could just hang on long enough to use it.

Placing her hand back to her deck, Yumi took a moment to steady herself. She thought of Sakuya back in Chiba and the future they had together. She thought of her friends no doubt cheering her on. She thought of her parents watching over her from wherever they were right now. She thought of all the worlds that Izar and his kind had devoured up to this point and all the others that he'd destroy if she were to fail.

Everyone was counting on her, and she did mean everyone. "Draw!" she finally said, pulling the card as her aura flared back to life. Looking it over, she sighed with relief. Thankfully, it was something she could use. In fact, it was more than usable – it was ideal. "I Summon Rescue Rabbit to my field!" she said, the courageous coney hopping into position without a care for the gigantic threats eyeing it up from the other side of the field.

"Now I can banish Rescue Rabbit to Summon two copies of Rusty Swordsman from my deck!" Thankfully, the duel was still early enough for her to have multiple copies of cards left to work with. As the second and third version of her monster materialized in front of her, she raised her hand to the sky. "I overlay my two Level 4 Rusty Swordsmen to construct the Overlay Network!"

Swirling into the air, the energy forms of her two monsters were pulled into a galaxy, her monster bursting forth a moment later. "Xyz Summon, Rank 4! Come out, Great Blackstone!" Kneeling on the ground, Blackstone rose to its full height with a grin, taking a bow before readying to fight.

"I Summoned a monster from my Extra Deck with a Rank between my Pendulum Scales," Yumi explained. "Scaredy Lion's Pendulum Effect activates, so I'll add Takotaco to my hand now." She took the new card as it was ejected, placing it in her hand as her deck shuffled itself before quickly taking another card. "And now, I activate this!"

Holding the card up, it shone with an orange light that engulfed the entire field. "I banish the Spellcaster Hat-Trick Magician from my Graveyard, letting me use Rank-Up-Magic Topaz Force!" The light's focus shifted to Great Blackstone, forming into an aura around the monster. "With this card, I can use an Xyz Monster of the same Type as the card I banished as Xyz Material for a rank-up!"

"Copying my tactics," Izar said, though it was obvious to both of them that it should be the other way around.

Yumi ignored this, simply continuing the play. Her monster gave a shout before dematerializing and flying into a new galaxy along with its Overlay Units. "I'll use my Rank 4 Great Blackstone to reconstruct the Overlay Network!" From her Extra Deck, Yumi took Telos' card, watching its image vanish and rewrite in real time. "Forged in the deepest depths, a new power awakens! Taste true freedom as you soar above anyone who would hold you down! Chaos Xyz Change!"

Chaotic energy burst forth from the Xyz portal, Yumi concluding with, "Appear, Rank 5! Chasm Empress – Conatus!" The area briefly took on a new gray color scheme before shifting back to the aesthetic Izar desired, Conatus wasting no time in sealing off his backrow effects as a kind of retaliation to this.

"Chaos is impressive," Izar praised, "but you'll need much more than 3300 ATK to defeat Rainbow Neos."

"You already know I'm more than able to take it down now," Yumi countered. "Battle! Conatus, attack Rainbow Neos! The End of Order!" Conatus spun its staff above its head, absorbing one of the Overlay Units in the process. "I'll detach one of these to lower Rainbow Neos' ATK by 400 for every Magic Card in my Graveyard!" At present, she had nine of them, leaving the enemy with just 900 ATK.

Rainbow Neos' colors faded to gray, Conatus thrusting its weapon forward a moment later. It struggled as it began to implode in on itself, though Izar simply raised a hand to stop it. "If Rainbow Neos would be destroyed, I can banish Neos Fusion from my Graveyard to stop it from happening!"

"But that won't stop the damage!" Yumi pointed out. "Take this!" Though the monster survived, the force from the attack knocked Izar back a good few feet, his Life Points falling to 12200. She could now say with confidence that she was chipping away at his lead.

"Don't assume this means you have the upper hand," he said, floating back to his spot as Rainbow Neos' ATK returned to normal. "I'll take care of that annoyance on my next turn."

"Try it," Yumi said, feeling defiant. It was hard to tell whether it was the Chaos getting to her or the fact that she was managing to dig her way out of this hole, but she was starting to feel a bit confident. "Turn end."

Izar's hand began to glow once more, blue energy exploding around it as he materialized a card and shouted, "Draw!" Raising a hand, Rainbow Neos crossed its arms once again. "Rainbow Neos' effect," Izar declared. "I'll send my Set Fusion Cancel to the Graveyard to return your Pendulum Scales to your deck."

Yumi had a tough decision to make here: Stop it or let it pass? On the one hand, Izar had decided not to try returning her monsters again, likely because that would mean getting rid of Rainbow Neos itself as the cost. This would mean that, should she do nothing here, the extra negation allowed by Topaz Force could be saved for another effect later, Conatus still being protected against attacks so long as its effect could still go off to weaken the enemy.

On the other hand, losing her Pendulum Scales would be a major blow to her field presence, not to mention make any recovery should Conatus fall be that much harder. The protection Butter Fly afforded her monsters was nothing to scoff at, either.

That part might be it. "I won't let you!" Yumi responded, Conatus glowing the same orange as Topaz Force. Izar was most certainly baiting her here, but she'd take it and play past it. She just had to count on being able to properly counter whatever he was planning to throw at her once Rainbow Neos was spent.

"Because of Topaz Force," she explained, "I'm able to negate the effect of a monster of a different Type from Conatus, then halve its ATK and DEF until the end of my turn." Conatus pointed its staff at Rainbow Neos, quelling the storm it was kicking up and forcing it to drop from the sky like a stone. Its body turned gray once more, too, its stats halving as Yumi had said.

"Ah, so you've negated my effect," Izar bemoaned. "What am I going to do now?" He was already taking a card from his hand. "This should do it. I'll activate the Magic Card, MACRO Exchange! I destroy both of my monsters to Summon out the two Macrocosmus cards in my Pendulum Zones!"

Both Odd-Eyes and Rainbow Neos burst into flames, writhing as they slowly burned to cinders. As the fires extinguished themselves, JUDGMENT and PENANCE slowly floated down from their positions to take to the field. The good news was that MACRO Exchange specified that even Pendulum Monsters would go to the Graveyard when destroyed by it, so Odd-Eyes was finally taken out for good. The bad news, however, was his next play.

She knew what was coming. "I overlay my Level 4 Macrocosmus – JUDGMENT with my Macrocosmus – PENANCE to construct the Overlay Network!" Both monsters transformed into purple streaks of light, flying down into the swirling, crackling vortex that was Izar's Summoning portal. "Let the darkness roll in and take the light! Cleanse this sinful existence from reality! Xyz Summon, Rank 4! At the end of everything, there will still be...Macrocosmus – The WORLD!"

Izar's ace monster was finally here. It shambled out of the shadows, forehead mark glowing bright blue now instead of its normal yellow. "The WORLD gains the power of the monsters used to Summon it," Izar said. "That means it has an ATK and DEF of 2000." That would soon change, indicated by the monster absorbing one of its Overlay Units into its head.

"I activate The WORLD's effect!" he declared, the Magic Cards in both their Graveyards being pulled out and transformed into purple orbs. "Last I counted, we have a total of 19 Magic Cards between the two of us. That's an extra 300 for each one, meaning my monster will have an ATK of 7700!"

Each of the orbs shot into The WORLD, knocking it back and forth as each 300-worth of power was absorbed into its body. As soon as it hit that 7700 total, it immediately raised its claws and began charging an attack. "Macrocosmus – The WORLD, destroy Takano Yumi! The End of World!"

On his order, the monster launched a beam of dark fire towards Conatus, Yumi's monster straining to keep the energy at bay. "Go ahead, activate your effect!" Izar goaded. "Reduce my monster's ATK for every Magic Card you have!"

Yumi acted quickly, pointing to Butter Fly. "Butter Fly's effect!" she said. "I send an Equip Magic to the Graveyard to prevent Conatus from being destroyed! And my choice is Leaky Umbrella, which prevents damage once after being sent to the Graveyard!"

Butter Fly's yellow aura shielded Conatus, The WORLD's attack being deflected around the monster and headed for Yumi. She flinched away despite the umbrella materializing before her at the last second, the energy impacting it battering the fabric (or whatever the Equip Magic was made out of) and making a sound not unlike a tin roof caught under a hail storm.

Izar scoffed. "Still hanging on. How much longer can you endure me, though? That deck of yours must be running low on resources by now, and that fragile little body of yours won't be able to take much more. All I need is one opening. When will you give me that opening?"

"Stop stalling," Yumi said, doing her best to stand tall despite her growing exhaustion. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of thinking he might be right about her.

"Fine, fine. I end my turn." He grinned, The WORLD's ATK returning to 2000. "Go ahead and destroy my monster. It won't matter in the long run."

She couldn't tell whether or not he was bluffing. It wouldn't be a surprise if he was given all of the curve balls he'd thrown in this duel so far. Acting scared wouldn't do anything for her, though. "Draw!" The only way out was to push through to the other side, so hesitating wasn't going to work.

Luckily, this was just the card to help her get a step closer. "I activate this!" Yumi declared, holding the card up as a brilliant green light overtook her field. "Rank-Up-Magic Emerald Force!"

"Another one," Izar said, frowning just a bit.

"That's right!" Yumi called back, banishing Leaky Umbrella as part of the cost. "I use my Rank 5 Chasm Empress – Conatus to reconstruct the Overlay Network!" Like before, Conatus transformed into light and flew into the new Xyz portal, the power of Chaos transforming the monster further as the card on Yumi's duel disk rewrote itself once again. "Avatar of Chaos, advance to a new stage! Break through your limits and free the world! Chaos Xyz Change! Come out, Rank 6! Chasm Priestess – Techne!"

Her new monster descended, sending out a thunderous wave towards Izar. "Techne prevents your effects from activating on the field or in your hand until the end of my turn," she explained, the diamond embedded in her monster's hat shining a white light continuously across the field to sustain the effect.

"But you should know The WORLD doesn't activate on the field," Izar said. "You won't be able to stop me from using its effect if you destroy it."

"That's fine," Yumi said. "It won't matter. But first, I activate Scaredy Lion's Pendulum Effect to add Hat-Trick Magician from my deck to my hand. Then I use the rest of Emerald Force's effect, so I get to draw cards equal to half of Techne's Overlay Units rounded up. That means two." Taking these new cards, she nodded, happy that her deck had responded to her again.

"Perfect. Now I'm going to Pendulum Summon!" The portal opened between her Scales, three monsters flying out. "Take the stage, Takotaco, Violentist, and Hat-Trick Magician!"

As soon as they appeared, the monsters were already being cycled out. Takotaco's body began to glow, disappearing moments later and transforming its Level stars into a trio of neon green rings. "I'm tuning my Level 4 Hat-Trick Magician and Level 3 Violentist with my Level 3 Tuner, Takotaco!" Yumi explained, the former two non-Tuners flying through the rings as they disappeared, leaving their collective seven stars behind.

"My red-hot resolve lets me take the next step forward! Climb up higher and higher until we reach the top! I'm burning up! Synchro Summon, Level 10! Zenkai Fire Dragoon!" The flash of light produced by the Synchro Summon soon turned into a whirlwind of orange flames, the vortex dispersed by the white and gold dragon blasting it away with a beat from its wings and a screech from its mouth.

This was exactly the card she needed. Knowing Izar, his plan was to add back the MACRO Burst he'd banished with The WORLD, then reset his Pendulum Scales through some shenanigans and Summon his monsters back. If he did that, he'd win instantly. With Dragoon on the field, though, Yumi was immune from effect damage, forcing him to duke it out in a fair fight.

"Battle!" she declared. "Zenkai Fire Dragoon, attack Macrocosmus – The WORLD! Full Throttle Burning Storm!" Flames erupted from the monster's back, Dragoon emitting a shrill roar before charging forward at high speed, bursting through the defense The WORLD tried to create with its arms and dragging it into the air. From there, its entire body set on fire, engulfing the enemy in its flames before collecting the inferno between its claws and spiking it down onto Izar.

The attack struck him head on, though he suffered no visible injury. Even so, the 1000 damage was definitely annoying. "I'm not done!" Yumi shouted. "By destroying your monster, I'm able to activate Dragoon's effect!" Her monster roared once again, Yumi removing Rusty Swordsman from the Graveyard. "I banish a Normal Monster to give its ATK to Dragoon, then attack again! Let's go, Super Full Throttle Burning Storm!"

Charging the burning energy into its fist, Zenkai Fire Dragoon dove towards Izar, punching into the ground directly in front of him, somehow smashing through the darkness and sending an eruption of flames cascading through him. Unlike before, this combined 4500 damage did manage to properly knock Izar off his feet, sending him tumbling back before he caught himself in midair.

"You'll need more than that to beat me!" he said, his facade falling as his irritation began to show through. "The WORLD was destroyed, so I'm able to add Fusion Cancel back to my hand." An odd choice given that there were currently no Fusion Monsters on the field and no plans to make more as far as Yumi could tell.

Regardless, that was neither here nor there at the moment. "I'm continuing my Battle Phase! Techne, direct attack! Chaos Requiem!" Yumi's monster charged its attack in its two free hands, spinning its staff in front of it before thrusting forward and launching a trio of shifting energy beams at Izar. Once again, he was blown back by the force of her strike, lowering his once-towering Life Points down to 3900.

"There's more where that came from!" Yumi told him, elated at finally taking a decisive upper hand in this duel. She Set a single card and ended her turn, ready for whatever Izar planned to throw at her next. Despite the fatigue and injuries, she was still standing. Better than that, she was in sight of victory. If she could just push through this next turn and keep up this pressure, she could finish it. But that would still take at least one more turn, and something was telling her he wasn't going down without a fight.

"Hell yeah!" Kazuhiko cheered from Earth. "She's kicking his ass!" Behind him, Hideo waved a pair of fans with Yumi's face on them, urging the crowd outside into chanting her name. While she couldn't actually hear them, the hope that their feelings could somehow cross dimensions was still there.

"It's a close match," Sakuya said, feeling a pit in her stomach despite the positive turn. "I just hope she keeps it up."

"She definitely will," Ami said, Suzy nodding beside her. "She has to."

"I know," Sakuya agreed, though something still bothered her. She didn't know what, but Izar must have had one last trick up his non-existent sleeve. Something that none of them could see coming that would completely upend the duel. Maybe it was pure paranoia, but she couldn't stop her worry until things finally came to an end.

And then he started to laugh. It quickly morphed into a cackle, Izar's head snapping back as he levitated forward. Even after returning to his spot, the laughter continued. Yumi had gotten used to hearing that godawful noise by now, but this was becoming more and more unsettling the longer he kept it up. Was he just trying to scare her this late in the game?

"It's finally time," he said suddenly, manic smile spread across his face. "Takano Yumi, you've done well to make it this far! In commemoration of your efforts and to celebrate your death, I'll show you what this deck can truly do!" Materializing a new card, his eyes began to glow a solid blue. "I'll show you my true power! The power of a god!"

---

Cards Used in Order of Appearance

Pot of Greed
Normal Spell Card
Draw 2 cards.

Angel's Charity (Graceful Charity)
Normal Spell Card
Draw 3 cards, then discard 2 cards.

Reckless Greed
Normal Trap Card
Draw 2 cards and skip your next 2 Draw Phases.

Macrocosmus – PAIN
DARK
Level 4
10/10
Fiend/Pendulum/Effect
1000 ATK/1000 DEF
P: If you do not have another "Macrocosmus" card in your Pendulum Zone, you cannot Summon monsters. If you Pendulum Summon a monster(s), except a "Macrocosmus" monster: Gain Life Points equal to that monster(s) ATK.
M: When this card is Normal Summoned: You can discard 1 Spell Card; Special Summon up to 2 "Macrocosmus – PAIN" from your hand or Main Deck in Attack Position, then take 1000 damage for each.

Macrocosmus – SORROW
DARK
Level 4
1/1
Fiend/Pendulum/Tuner/Effect
1000 ATK/1000 DEF
P: If you do not have another "Macrocosmus" card in your Pendulum Zone, you cannot Summon monsters. You can Synchro Summon using this monster and 1 other non-Tuner monster you control or a card in your Pendulum Zone while this card is in your Pendulum Zone.
M: When this card is Normal Summoned: You can discard 1 Spell Card to target 1 Level 4 "Macrocosmus" monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon it in Attack Position, then take 1000 damage.

Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon
DARK
Level 7
4/4
Dragon/Pendulum/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
P: Once per turn, you can reduce the battle damage you take from an attack involving a Pendulum Monster you control to 0.
M: If this card battles an opponent's Level 5 or higher monster, any battle damage this card inflicts to your opponent is doubled.

Stardust Dragon
WIND
Level 8
Dragon/Synchro/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
1 Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters
When a card or effect is activated that would destroy a card(s) on the field (Quick Effect): You can Tribute this card; negate the activation, and if you do, destroy it. During the End Phase, if this effect was activated this turn (and was not negated): You can Special Summon this card from your GY.

Pot of MACRO
Normal Spell Card
Shuffle 3 "Macrocosmus" Pendulum Monsters into the Deck, from your Graveyard and/or face-up from your Extra Deck, then draw 2 cards. You can only activate 1 "Pot of MACRO" per turn.

Upstart Goblin
Normal Spell Card
Draw 1 card, then your opponent gains 1000 LP.

Pain Transfusion
Quick-Play Spell Card
When you take effect damage: Your opponent takes half that amount of damage, and if they do, draw 1 card. You can only activate "Pain Transfusion" once per turn.

Macrocosmus – JUDGMENT
DARK
Level 4
1/1
Fiend/Pendulum/Effect
1000 ATK/1000 DEF
P: If you do not have another "Macrocosmus" card in your Pendulum Zone, you cannot Summon monsters. When your opponent Pendulum Summons a monster(s): Gain Life Points equal to that monster(s) ATK.
M: If this card is in your Graveyard or face-up in your Extra Deck: You can Special Summon this card in Attack Position, and if you do, take 1000 damage and banish it when it leaves the field. This effect cannot be activated the turn this card is sent to the Graveyard or placed face-up in your Extra Deck.

Macrocosmus – PENANCE
DARK
Level 4
10/10
Fiend/Pendulum/Effect
1000 ATK/1000 DEF
P: If you do not have another "Macrocosmus" card in your Pendulum Zone, you cannot Summon monsters. The first time your opponent declares an attack with a Pendulum Summoned monster during their Battle Phase: Negate that attack, and if you do, gain Life Points equal to the attacking monster's ATK.
M: If this card is in your Graveyard or face-up in your Extra Deck: You can Special Summon this card in Attack Position, and if you do, take 1000 damage and banish it when it leaves the field. This effect cannot be activated the turn this card is sent to the Graveyard or placed face-up in your Extra Deck.

Numbers 39: King of Wishes, Hope (Number 39: Utopia)
LIGHT
Rank 4
Warrior/Xyz/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
2 Level 4 monsters
Cannot be destroyed by battle, except with a "Number" monster. During either player's turn: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; negate the attack of 1 monster.

Unexpected Guy (Unexpected Dai)
Normal Spell Card
If you control no monsters: Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from the Deck.

Wallrus
WATER
Level 2
6/5
Beast/Pendulum/Normal
400 ATK/800 DEF
P: Halve any battle damage you take from battles involving Normal Monsters you control. When a Level 4 or lower Normal Monsters(s) with 1500 or less ATK/DEF would be destroyed, you can destroy this card instead.

Majesty Magician
DARK
Level 8
6/4
Spellcaster/Pendulum/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
P: When you Normal Summon a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK/DEF: You can add 1 Equip Spell from your Deck or GY to your hand. Once per turn, if you activate an Equip Spell: Draw 1 card.
M: You can Tribute Summon this card by Tributing 1 monster that was originally a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. This card is treated as an appropriate target for a card that specifically designates a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK/DEF while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard (its Level and ATK/DEF do not change).

Rusty Sword
Equip Spell Card
You can only equip this card to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK and DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases equal to its DEF. When this card attacks, during the Damage Step: You can pay Life Points in multiples of 100 (maximum 500); this card gains ATK equal to that amount.

Common Fusion
Normal Spell Card
Fusion Summon 1 non-Effect Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using Normal Monsters from your hand, field, or Deck as Fusion Material. When the card Fusion Summoned by this effect battles an opponent's monster: You can banish this card in your Graveyard; negate that monster's effects and apply its original ATK and DEF when calculating damage until the end of the Battle Phase.

Violentist
LIGHT
Level 3
1/7
Fiend/Pendulum/Normal
650 ATK/1300 DEF
P: Once per turn: You can target 1 Equip Spell in your GY; equip it to an appropriate monster on the field, but destroy it during the next turn's End Phase.

Butter Fly
WIND
Level 3
4/9
Insect/Pendulum/Normal
900 ATK/700 DEF
P: Once per turn: You can send 1 Equip Spell from your hand or Deck to the GY, then target 1 monster you control that was Special Summoned from the Extra Deck (Quick Effect); the first time that target would be destroyed this turn, it is not destroyed.

Big Bat Knight
EARTH
Level 3
7/1
Warrior/Pendulum/Normal
1100 ATK/500 DEF
P: Once per turn, when a Pendulum Monster you control destroys an opponent's monster, after damage calculation: You can send 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster from your Deck to the GY; inflict 800 damage to your opponent.

Flame Viper
EARTH
Level 2
Pyro
400 ATK/450 DEF

Helpful, Knight of Commons
EARTH
Level 10
Warrior/Fusion
3800 ATK/3050 DEF
4 Level 4 or lower Normal Monsters

Magic Deflector
Normal Trap Card
For the rest of this turn, negate all Equip, Field, Continuous and Quick-Play Spell Card effects on the field.

MACRO Burst
Normal Spell Card
Activate only if you control 2 "Macrocosmus" cards in your Pendulum Zones. Skip your next Draw Phase, also inflict damage to your opponent equal to half the ATK of all monsters you control, then draw 1 card.

Majesty Guard
Normal Trap Card
Monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle this turn, also halve all damage you take this turn. During either player's turn, except the turn this card was sent to the Graveyard: You can banish this card from your Graveyard; halve the battle damage you take from one opponent's monster this turn.

Shining Numbers 39: King of Wishes, Hope the Lightning (Number S39: Utopia the Lightning)
LIGHT
Rank 5
Warrior/Xyz/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
3 Level 5 LIGHT monsters
Cannot be destroyed by battle, except with a "Number" monster. You can also Xyz Summon this card by using a Rank 4 "Utopia" monster you control as material. (Transfer its materials to this card.) Cannot be used as material for an Xyz Summon. If this card battles, your opponent cannot activate cards or effects until the end of the Damage Step. Once per Chain, during damage calculation, if this card battles an opponent's monster while this card has a "Utopia" Xyz Monster as material (Quick Effect): You can detach 2 materials from this card; this card's ATK becomes 5000 during that damage calculation only.

Pot of Riches
Normal Spell Card
Shuffle 3 Pendulum Monsters into the Deck, from your GY and/or face-up from your Extra Deck, then draw 2 cards. You can only activate 1 "Pot of Riches" per turn. You cannot Special Summon the turn you activate this card, except by Pendulum Summon.

Draw Discharge
Normal Trap Card
When your opponent draws a card(s) by their own card effect: Look at those cards, and if any are monsters, inflict damage to your opponent equal to their combined ATK, and if you do that, banish all cards you looked at. You can only activate 1 "Draw Discharge" per turn.

Value of a Horse's Bone (White Elephant's Gift)
Normal Spell Card
Send 1 face-up non-Effect Monster you control to the GY; draw 2 cards.

Rank-Up-Magic Topaz Force
Normal Spell Card
Banish 1 monster from your Graveyard, then target 1 face-up Xyz Monster you control with the same Type as the banished monster; Special Summon from your Extra Deck, 1 Xyz Monster with the same Type as that monster you control but 1 Rank higher, by using it as the Xyz Material. (This Special Summon is treated as an Xyz Summon. Xyz Materials attached to it also become Xyz Materials on the Summoned monster.) It gains this effect.
● Once only, when an opponent's monster with a different Type from this card activates its effect (Quick Effect): Target that monster; negate that effect, and if you do, halve its ATK/DEF until the End Phase of your next turn.

MACRO Bind
Normal Trap Card
When an opponent's monster declares an attack while you control 2 "Macrocosmus" cards in your Pendulum Zones: Negate that attack, then equip this card to that monster. The equipped monster cannot attack. Once per turn, during the End Phase: Inflict 500 damage to the controller of the equipped monster, then gain 500 Life Points.

Scaredy Lion
EARTH
Level 4
2/8
Beast/Pendulum/Normal
1300 ATK/1000 DEF
P: Once per turn, if a monster is Special Summoned from the Extra Deck with a Level/Rank between the Pendulum Scales of cards in your Pendulum Zones: You can add 1 Normal Monster from your Deck to your hand.

Hat-Trick Magician
DARK
Level 4
3/7
Spellcaster/Pendulum/Normal
1200 ATK/1500 DEF
P: Monsters you control equipped with an Equip Spell Card cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects once per turn each.

Broken Wand
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK/ DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: This card's original ATK increases by 500. When this card attacks or is attacked by a monster with higher ATK: You can return this card to your hand and end the Battle Phase.

Rusty Swordsman
EARTH
Level 4
5/9
Warrior/Pendulum/Normal
1500 ATK/1000 DEF
P: Once per turn, if you Pendulum Summon a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster(s): You can draw cards equal to the number of monsters Pendulum Summoned +1, then shuffle cards from your hand into the Deck equal to the number of Level 4 or lower Normal Monsters you control.

Expert Heart
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK/DEF. The equipped monster gains these effects: Cannot be destroyed by battle once per turn. When you take damage from an attack involving this card: This card gains ATK and DEF equal to the damage you took.

Chasm Queen – Telos
DARK
Rank 4
Spellcaster/Xyz/Effect
2800 ATK/2200 DEF
3 Level 4 monsters
You can Xyz Summon this card by using Equip Spell Cards equipped to monsters used as Xyz Material for this card's Summon. When this card is Xyz Summoned: Negate the effect of all face-up monsters on the field besides this card until the End Phase. If this card attacks a Defense Position monster while it has an Equip Spell Card as Xyz Material, inflict piercing battle damage. When this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; inflict 400 damage to your opponent x the number of Equip Spell Cards in both players' Graveyards.

Pot of Greed and Riches (Pot of Extravagance)
Normal Spell Card
At the start of your Main Phase 1: Banish 3 or 6 random face-down cards from your Extra Deck, face-down; draw 1 card for every 3 cards banished. For the rest of this turn after this card resolves, you cannot draw any cards by card effects.

Neos Fusion
Normal Spell Card
Special Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck that lists exactly 2 monsters as material, including "Elemental HERO Neos", by sending those monsters from your hand, Deck, or field, ignoring its Summoning conditions. For the rest of this turn after this card resolves, you cannot Special Summon monsters. If a Fusion Monster(s) you control that lists "Elemental HERO Neos" as material would be destroyed by battle or card effect, or shuffled into the Extra Deck by its own effect, you can banish this card from your GY instead.

Elemental HERO Neos
LIGHT
Level 7
Warrior/Normal
2500 ATK/2000 DEF

Ultimate Gem God – Rainbow Dark Dragon (Rainbow Dark Dragon)
DARK
Level 10
Dragon/Effect
4000 ATK/0 DEF
(This card is always treated as an "Ultimate Crystal" card.)
Cannot be Normal Summoned/Set. Must be Special Summoned (from your hand) by banishing 7 DARK monsters with different names from your GY. You can banish all other DARK monsters from your field and GY; this card gains 500 ATK for each card banished this way.

Rainbow Neos
LIGHT
Level 10
Warrior/Fusion/Effect
4500 ATK/3000 DEF
"Elemental HERO Neos" + 1 "Ultimate Crystal" monster
Must be Fusion Summoned with the above Fusion Material Monsters and cannot be Special Summoned by other ways. Once per turn: You can activate 1 of these effects. ● Send 1 monster you control to the Graveyard; shuffle all monsters your opponent controls into the Deck. ● Send 1 Spell/Trap Card you control to the Graveyard; shuffle all Spell and Trap Cards your opponent controls into the Deck. ● Send 1 card from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard; shuffle all cards in your opponent's Graveyard into the Deck.

Pendulum String
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Normal Pendulum Monster. Apply the equipped monster's Pendulum Effect as if it were a Monster Effect. If this card is sent to the GY: You can Special Summon 1 Normal Pendulum Monster from your GY or face-up Extra Deck, but banish it when it leaves the field.

Rescue Rabbit
EARTH
Level 4
Beast/Effect
300 ATK/100 DEF
Cannot be Special Summoned from the Deck. You can banish this face-up card you control; Special Summon 2 Level 4 or lower Normal Monsters with the same name from your Deck, but destroy them during the End Phase. You can only use this effect of "Rescue Rabbit" once per turn.

Great Blackstone
LIGHT
Rank 4
11/5
Spellcaster/Xyz/Pendulum/Effect
2500 ATK/2000 DEF
P: Once per turn, if you have no cards in your other Pendulum Zone: You can place 1 Pendulum Normal Monster from your Deck in your Pendulum Zone.
M: 2 Level 4 Normal Monsters
If you can Pendulum Summon Level 4, you can Pendulum Summon this face-up card in your Extra Deck. If this card in the Monster Zone is destroyed: You can place it in your Pendulum Zone. When this card is Xyz Summoned: You can detach 2 Xyz Material from this card; during your Main Phase this turn, you can Normal Summon 1 Normal Monster from your hand, in addition to your Normal Summon/Set. If you Normal Summon a Normal Monster while this card is face-up on the field: Draw 1 card, then discard 1 card. (You can only gain each effect once per turn.)

Takotaco
WATER
Level 3
9/2
Fish/Pendulum/Tuner/Normal
800 ATK/800 DEF
P: Once per turn: You can target 1 Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK/DEF you control; this turn, that face-up monster is treated as a Tuner (even if this card leaves the field).

Chasm Empress – Conatus
DARK
Rank 5
Spellcaster/Xyz/Effect
3300/2700 DEF
4 Level 5 monsters
You can Xyz Summon this card by using Equip Spell Cards equipped to monsters used as Xyz Material for this card's Summon. When this card is Xyz Summoned: Your opponent cannot activate Spell/Trap Cards for the rest of the turn. If this card battles an opponent's monster: You can detach 1 Xyz Material from this card; the opponent's monster loses 400 ATK/DEF for each Spell Card in your Graveyard during the Damage Step only. If this card attacks a Defense Position monster while it has an Equip Spell Card as Xyz Material, inflict double piercing battle damage.

Fusion Cancel (De-Fusion)
Quick-Play Spell Card
Target 1 Fusion Monster on the field; return that target to the Extra Deck, then, if all the Fusion Materials that were used for its Fusion Summon are in your GY, you can Special Summon all of them.

MACRO Exchange
Normal Spell Card
If you control 2 "Macrocosmus" cards in your Pendulum Zones, destroy 2 face-up monsters you control, and if you do, Special Summon any cards in your Pendulum Zones in Attack Position. Pendulum Monsters destroyed by this effect are sent to the GY, not the face-up Extra Deck.

Macrocosmus – The WORLD
DARK
Rank 4
Fiend/Xyz/Effect
? ATK/? DEF
2 or more Level 4 monsters
This card's ATK and DEF become the combined ATK and DEF, respectively, of the monsters used as Xyz Material when Summoned. Detach 1 Xyz Material from this card and banish any number of Spell Cards in both Graveyards; this card gains 300 ATK for each card banished by this effect, until the End Phase. When this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard: You can add 1 of the Spell Cards that was banished by this card's effect to your hand.

Leaky Umbrella
Equip Spell Card
Equip only to a Level 4 or lower Normal Monster with 1500 or less ATK/DEF. If this card is sent to the GY: Reduce the next instance of damage you take to 0. The equipped monster gains this effect: Halve all damage you take.

Rank-Up-Magic Emerald Force
Normal Spell Card
Banish 1 Spell Card from your Graveyard, then target 1 face-up Xyz Monster you control; Special Summon from your Extra Deck, 1 Xyz Monster with the same Type as that monster you control but 1 Rank higher, by using it as the Xyz Material. (This Special Summon is treated as an Xyz Summon. Xyz Materials attached to it also become Xyz Materials on the Summoned monster.) It gains this effect.
● If it is Xyz Summoned: Draw cards equal to half the number of materials attached to this card (rounded up).

Chasm Priestess – Techne
DARK
Rank 6
Spellcaster/Xyz/Effect
3800 ATK/3200 DEF
5 Level 6 monsters
You can Xyz Summon this card by using Equip Spells equipped to monsters used as Xyz Material for this card's Summon. When this card is Xyz Summoned: Negate the effects of all face-up cards your opponent controls, also your opponent cannot activate cards or effects on the field or in their hand until the end of your turn. During damage calculation, if this card battles an opponent's monster while it has an Equip Spell as Xyz Material: You can detach 1 material from this card; destroy that opponent's monster, and if you do, inflict damage to your opponent equal to half the ATK of the destroyed monster on the field +400.

Zenkai Fire Dragoon
FIRE
Level 10
4/9
Dragon/Synchro/Pendulum/Effect
3000 ATK/2000 DEF
P: Double all battle damage inflicted by Normal Monsters you control. If a Normal Monster you control inflicts 1500 or more battle damage: You can Tribute that monster; Special Summon this card from your Pendulum Zone, but banish it when it leaves the field.
M: 1 Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters
If you can Pendulum Summon Level 10, you can Pendulum Summon this face-up card in your Extra Deck. If this card in the Monster Zone is destroyed: You can place this card in your Pendulum Zone. Your opponent cannot target this card with card effects. You take no effect damage. Up to twice per turn, when this attacking card destroys a monster by battle: You can banish 1 Normal Monster from your GY; this card gains ATK equal to the banished monster's ATK until the end of the Battle Phase, then this card can attack again in a row.

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IV wishes he could do fanservice like I do.

I say it a lot this late in the game, but I also did plan for Izar to pull these out in the final battle. I've actually had this duel written for about a full year now, and it only needed minor edits to get it ready to go once I actually got here. I was shocked, mainly because I have a habit of writing long duels and then scrapping all of it when I find some element that I dislike. It's a very bad habit and I wish I would stop.

I feel bad for Odd-Eyes and Stardust since they didn't really get to use their effects, but we did establish a few chapters back that Yumi gained the ability to read cards before playing, so it makes sense she could evade them.

I don't think anyone is since it's kind of obvious why, but if anyone is unclear as to why I picked things like Lightning and Rainbow Neos as opposed to different support for those, it's because those are basically the only good ones you could fit into a normal deck. Izar's not out here ranking-up into Hope Ray Victory or Contact Fusing Flare Neos since those cards are just worse than these alternatives. Also fun to give a little manga representation with Lightning and to allude to Yubel with Rainbow Dark Dragon. Also, if anyone is wondering why Decode Talker or Firewall Dragon (lol) aren't here in the ace lineup, it's because Link Monsters didn't exist when this story started and they're awkward to use with MR3.

Some of you probably have ideas as to which of Yugi and Atem's cards Izar has. It's definitely something.

This one was pretty long, but I didn't have a good place to cut it and wanted to get through the four bosses in the rush all in one. The last leg of this duel can more than stand on its own.

Thanks for reading. Share if you're enjoying. Always remember to keep your cards safe before a reality-hopping alien murderer steals them to torment a child.