Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh Arc V
The sound of the boy's footsteps echoed off the hallway as they approached the arena for their final duel.
In a side hall leaning against the wall with his arms crossed and facial expression neutral was Nakajima. Having eavesdropped on their conversation he had only learned a little, but very important, nonetheless.
It was then that he called the President.
'Nakajima? What happened? Why did you not answer before?' Reiji got straight to the point.
"Apologies sir, I was in the process of gathering information," Nakajima admitted. "I've learned some important things about the XYZ user."
There was a momentary silence at the end of the other line.
'Go on!' Reiji requested.
"He is the one who attacked Sawatari, or at least I believe him to be," Nakajima started.
'And why do you believe that?' Reiji asked coolly.
Not that he didn't believe him, quite the contrary. Nakajima was one of the few he completely trusted, and perhaps, one of the few he could call a friend, especially after… that. However, he still required an explanation.
"He bears an uncanny resemblance to Yuya Sakaki," that caught Reiji's attention. "However, I have ascertained that they are not the same person. Their faces are similar, yes, but Sakaki has red and green hair along with red eyes whereas this boy possesses black and purple hair and purple eyes. Additionally, his behaviour and deck contrast heavily with Sakaki's. He is much colder, more focused, and strategic, and his deck is focused solely on XYZ summoning which Sakaki lacks."
On the other side, Reiji quickly processed this. As surprised as he should have been, Reiji just wasn't. This was not the first Yuya doppelganger he had learned of, nor was he the only one.
'Sawatari was mistaken in his accusation then,' Reiji surmised.
"That, or he just didn't care," Nakajima put bluntly. "As we saw from their last duel he does not have a high opinion of Yuya Sakaki."
That was an understatement if ever there was one. Following the duel, Sawatari started investing more time towards his duel studies in finding a way to avenge his loss. So much that his grades had gone up.
'True enough,' the President admitted. 'Back to the matter at hand, what else have you learned?'
"He's definitely a resident of the XYZ dimension. He derides Fusion summoning in ways no one else would. And -," Nakajima hesitated. "I believe he's suffering from PTSD."
Another silence.
'Are you sure?' Reiji asked quietly.
"He reacts badly whenever someone else uses the method, and earlier I heard him voicing disdain for it," he paused. "I know the signs, Reiji." Thanks to his lifestyle, he knew them very well. "And I am telling you he has it."
Another silence passed between them. This one much longer than the others.
It had been three years since Reiji travelled to the Fusion Dimension and back. According to his father, the preparations for the invasion were almost complete. While they didn't know when it started they knew it had to have been at least two years ago. They could only imagine the damage that had been inflicted on the dimension and its residents, both physical and psychological.
'I see. Anything else?' he asked.
"While I believe he is behind the first incident, I don't believe it's the same for the others. His behaviour and attitude just don't add up to the damage that's been dealt," Nakajima concluded. "Also, I believe his partner is worth looking into. His skill with Ritual Summon could make him a worthy candidate for the Lancers."
'Noted. I will take both of those into account. In the meantime, please return to base,' Reiji said.
"Actually, if it's okay with you, I would like to watch the finals," Nakajima requested.
'Very well. Return as soon as possible,' their conversation concluded.
Nakajima exhaled. That had gone well.
Normally, he wouldn't stick around for these things, but he wanted to acquire more data on the two duellists. And surprisingly, he wanted to see if they would win.
It was rare for any duel or duellist to excite him, but like Reiji, he had his moments.
Duel Arena
Yuto and Necro proceeded to their final match of the tournament. In spite of their earlier conversation, Yuto was calm and focused like he normally was, reminding himself that this was not a battlefield, just a regular duel tournament.
Necro walked beside him equally focused. One more duel and they were both set.
Just then, a flash of orange and green flew right by them towards the end of the duel field. The figures bent forward and performed several handsprings and flips before landing side by side at the centre and facing their opponents. They stood back-to-back with confident smirks across their faces. Their attires consisted of orange and green long coats with dark sleeves.
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!" the announcer boomed out. "THE FINAL MATCH IS ABOUT TO BEGIN! ON THE RIGHT, WE HAVE THE TEAM OF UNDERDOGS WHO JOINED SEPARATELY! WHO'D HAVE THOUGHT THEY'D MAKE IT THIS FAR? PLEASE GIVE IT UP FOR KAITO AND NECRO!"
The audience made up of spectators and competitors (including the opponents they had defeated) cheered loudly.
Yuto allowed himself a small smile. It reminded him of the matches between Spade and Clover branches before the invasion where everyone would cheer for the duellists regardless of where they were from. There was the World Duel Carnival as well, though he had never participated.
"AND FOR OUR OTHER FINALISTS! THE TWIN TAG TEAM LEGENDS WHO RULE THESE TOURNAMENTS! PLEASE GIVE IT UP FOR PARA AND DOX, THE PARADOX BROTHERS!"
The cheers intensified, so much that some covered their ears.
"Huh, so they were in the tournament," Necro murmured a grin forming across his face. "Interesting!"
"Do you know them?" Yuto asked.
"Only by reputation," Necro answered. "They're a pretty famous tag team in the world of pro duelling. I heard they even went up against the likes of Strong Ishijima and Yusho Sakaki. You?"
Yuto shook his head. "I'm not from around here so I've never heard of them."
Necro paused. That sounded odd. Even if Kaito was from another country, the Paradox Brothers were ranked seventh on the list of the World's Best Duelling Tag Teams meaning that their reputation was big enough that he should have at least heard their name.
Yuto was a little curious about Yusho Sakaki since Tea and Yuzu talked about him yesterday. He shot his opponents a glance and realized they were staring at him. Necro was beside him, but their gazes were focused solely on him. Why though?
"DUELLISTS TAKE YOUR POSITIONS!" the announcer shouted. The teams stood apart from each other and activated their duel disks. "ACTION FIELD ON! LABYRINTH OF MYSTERY!"
A series of black walls with colourful intricate designs ranging from flowers to stars to weapons to humanoid animals rose of from the ground and separated the duellists. Between the walls, there were shelves that left open space (likely for Action Cards), and the maze was divided up into floors with stairs leading to each one.
"Kaito!" Necro yelled.
"I'm fine," Yuto yelled back.
The Paradox brothers' smiles grew bigger. The more unpredictable the field, the more entertaining the duel would be.
Despite the separation, Yuto couldn't help but marvel at the unique appearance of the field. Judging by the level of depth put into the design the creator must have been quite passionate about their work.
"Alright then, let's get to it," Necro muttered not caring about the drastic change in scenery. "If it's all the same to you, we'd like to-"
"We humbly refuse!" the brothers interrupted in perfect synchronisation.
"Huh," Necro exclaimed.
"Please excuse us," Para apologised. "What my brother and I mean is that we do not wish to skip the chant."
"The chant is what kickstarts every Action Duel," Dox continued. "As entertainers, it would be unethical to skip it."
Necro shot them a disbelieving look. "Are you for-"
"DUELLISTS LOCKED IN BATTLE!" Yuto shouted, much to his partner's surprise. "That's how it starts, right?"
"What are you?" Necro started.
"KICKING AGAINST THE EARTH AND DANCING IN THE AIR ALONGSIDE THEIR MONSTERS!" Para continued with an enthusiastic smile.
Necro gave up. "Oh, what the hell it's the last match. THEY STORM THROUGH THIS FIELD!"
"BEHOLD! THE NEWEST AND GREATEST EVOLUTION OF DUELLING!" Dox added cheerfully.
Before they all finished. "ACTION DUEL!"
The action cards dispersed, and the duel began.
Kaito and Necro LP: 8000 Cards in Hand: 5
Para and Dox LP: 8000 Cards in Hand: 5
"First moves mine!" Para declared. "To start I activate the spell Foolish Burial! With this, I can send one card from my deck to GY!" A card was ejected from the deck and was promptly placed in the GY. "Next, I activate the spell Different Dimension Capsule! I select one card from my deck and banish it, and during the second standby phase after this card's activation I can add that card to my hand."
In the middle of the field, a gold sarcophagus appeared. As it opened, a card from Para's deck flew into the sarcophagus causing it to recede and then slowly disappear into the ground as though it were being buried.
Yuto was beginning to see a pattern here. They were sending specific cards to specific areas to use later, not too unlike his own deck. Whether that involved banishing the card to activate an effect or summoning a monster he didn't know yet.
Necro was warier. It didn't take a genius to figure out they were setting up for Gate Guardian. Were they planning on tribute summoning them? Or would they special summon them from somewhere else? He didn't know what pieces they'd gotten yet, but he needed to get rid of them as fast as humanly possible.
"I then summon Kaiser Sea Horse (Water/Level 4/Sea Serpent/1700ATK/1650DEF)!" An entirely blue armoured warrior with a fish-like appearance and wielding a trident stood fiercely on the battlefield. "I set one card and end my turn!" He smiled at them. "Your move. Better make it count."
Yuto glanced at his hand. For once, it was all monsters, but nothing he couldn't work with.
"My turn!" he shouted. "I summon Phantom Knights: Ancient Cloak (Dark/Level 3/Warrior/800 ATK/1000 DEF). Next, because there is a Phantom Knights monster on the field, I can special summon Phantom Knights: Silent Boots (Dark/Level 3/Warrior/200 ATK/1200 DEF)! I overlay level 3 Ragged Gloves and Silent Boots! Souls of warriors fallen on the battlefield, revive now and become light to render the darkness! XYZ Summon! Appear before us! Rank 3, Phantom Knights: Break Sword (Dark/Rank 3/Warrior/XYZ/2000 ATK/1000 DEF)!" His familiar knight rode onto the battlefield ready to fight. "Turn end!"
The audience started to cheer loudly. The duel just started and already things were getting intense.
"An XYZ right off the bat! You don't play around, do you?" Para applauded.
"Wouldn't that be a little boring?" Yuto countered.
"I suppose," Para admitted. "I guess it's only fair that we do the same. Right, brother?"
Dox smirked. "Agreed, brother!"
Necro was even more nervous than before. Glancing down at his own hand he began plotting to get rid of Gate Guardian before it could be summoned.
"My turn!" Dox shouted. "I discard one card to special summon The Tricky (Wind/Level 5/Spellcaster/2000ATK/1200DEF)!" A black and white jester with question marks on its face and stomach with a blue cape appeared and bowed to its foes. "Unfortunately, he's not staying. I tribute him to set one monster from my hand!"
Yuto and Necro's eyes both widened. Tribute summoning was hardly unusual around these parts, but the monster wasn't often set instead of in attack position. The likely reasons were either high DEF or a powerful flip effect. The only thing that was certain was that the monster had to be level 5 or 6.
"Turn end!" Dox declared.
Necro narrowed his eyes at the field. So far, the brothers were playing defence, while Kaito was either prepping for Dark Rebellion or fortifying his own defences.
'I don't know what you're planning, but I won't let you get that monster out!' he silently swore. 'At the very least, I'll delay it.'
"My turn! I summon Manju Of The Ten Thousand Hands (Light/Level 4/Fairy/1400 ATK/1000 DEF)!" A grey creature with red eyes and multiple hands as its body appeared. One of the hands went straight for Necro's deck and extracted a card only to pace it in his hand. "When this card is summoned, I can add a Ritual spell or monster card to my hand. I'm going for a monster. And I'm not done there! I activate the Ritual spell Nekroz Cycle! By sending the correct materials from my hand or field to the GY I can Ritual summon one Nekroz Ritual monster. I tribute level 4 Manju Of The Ten Thousand Hands and level 5 Exa, Enforcer of the Nekroz (Water/Level 5/Dragon/2000 ATK/1000 DEF)."
At the centre of the field, an altar with a magical mirror appeared. Surrounding it were nine blue flames that corresponded with the offered monster's levels. Like the previous, the flames were absorbed into the mirror and an explosion of blinding blue light took place.
"Oh, mighty dragon of the Ice Barrier! Through this ritual be reborn once again as a warrior and cut down your enemies with your blade of ice! Ritual Summon! Come forth! Level 9! Nekroz of Trishula (Water/Level 9/Warrior/Ritual/2700 ATK/2000 DEF)," Necro chanted.
The draconic warrior from their first duel emerged from the mirror and took to the field.
"When he's Ritual summoned, I can banish three cards on my opponents' side: one from their field, their GY, and randomly from their hand!" Necro recited. "From your field, I banish Different Dimension Capsule!"
A blizzard erupted from Trishula's sword and covered the gold sarcophagus in ice and shattered it.
"With that gone, you won't be adding that card to your hand next turn. From your GY, I will banish," Necro quickly scanned through the cards and smirked. So, that's what they had been planning. Clever. "Kazejin (Wind/Level 7/Spellcaster/2400 ATK/1000 DEF)." Trishula's blade struck out again, this time at Para's duel disk. "And now from the hand." True to his word, the card selected was random and it was from Dox's hand. "Finally, I activate the Continuous spell Ritual Cage!" Bright lights erupted from the ground and surrounded Trishula like a cage, however, it protected rather than trap it. "As long as this card remains on the field, we take no damage from attacks involving Ritual monsters, nor can they be targeted or destroyed by card effects. Turn end!"
Instead of drawing straight away, Para and Dox both started to clap softly, much to Yuto's confusion.
"Very good! In just one turn you got rid of all of Gate Guardians' set pieces," Dox applauded.
Necro's eyes widened. "So, the one in your hand was?"
Dox nodded. "It was Suijin (Water/Level 7/Aqua/2500 ATK/2400 DEF)."
"And the card I banished was Sanga of the Thunder (Light/Level 7/Thunder/2600 ATK/2200 DEF)," Para added. "In doing so, you prevented us from summoning Gate Guardian. Most impressive."
"Gate Guardian?" Yuto repeated.
"It's their ace monster. To summon it, you need those three monsters," Necro explained.
Yuto narrowed his eyes. From the sound of it, the card was quite powerful, especially if it concerned Necro enough to get rid of it early on. However, the lack of worriedness on his opponents' faces gave him the impression it wasn't that simple.
"From this turn onwards, I can draw!" Para declared. "I activate the spell Card of Sanctity! Now each of us draws until we have six cards in our hands."
The duo was caught off guard by this tactic as they were essentially helping their opponents.
Para drew five, Dox four, Yuto three, and Necro five.
"I activate Monster Reborn and summon Unshaven Angler (Water/Level 4/Fish/1500 ATK/1600 DEF) from my brother's GY!" A piranha-like creature rose up from the ground and roared. Para let out a smirk. "Now, let's begin!"
He performed a backflip to the ground below and started running. Diving behind a corner, there was a small flash of light.
"This card can be treated as two tributes for a water monster," Necro's eyes widened as he realized where this was going. "I release Angler to summon Suijin (Water/Level 7/Aqua/2500 ATK/2400 DEF)!"
A large blue monster with the Kanji for water hovered over the field. Necro's eyes widened in horror.
"Did you really think it would be that easy?" Para said sarcastically.
"People have targeted our pieces before. So much, that having spares became necessary," Dox added.
Necro gritted his teeth and said nothing. Yuto wasn't as phased. Having a spare version of a card in the deck wasn't unheard of, though it usually depended on how rare the card was.
"If it's any consolation, your last move wasn't in vain. You did get rid of all the pieces we initially gathered. So, it will be a while before Gate Guardian is summoned," Para offered. "Until then, I set one card and end my turn."
'What?! He's not going to attack?' Yuto thought. 'Maybe he's wary of Break Swords ability. Or is something else?'
"Kaito, of all the things you do, don't attack Suijin!" Necro warned. "It's got a very nasty effect for it."
"Spoiling the surprise? How rude," Para sarcastically complained. "Then again, there's no rule against it." He turned his attention to Yuto. "It's the same with our other pieces as well, with the only differences being an attribute, ATK and DEF points."
Yuto was a little perturbed as to why they would tell him that but didn't question it.
"My turn! I set one card and activate Break Swords effect. By using one overlay unit I target two cards on the field: one from mine, and one from my opponents, and destroy them both," he explained. "I target my face down and Suijin."
"Counter trap activate! Divine Wrath!" Para shouted. "When a monster effect is activated, I can discard one card to negate the effect and destroy it!"
From the sky, lightning rained down on Yuto's monster vaporizing it in an instant.
"When Break Sword is destroyed, the materials used in its summoning return to the field with an extra level," Ancient Cloak and Silent Boots rose again as level 4 monsters. "Using them I rebuild the overlay network. "Fallen warrior who rides through battlefield piercing through the enemy's defences! XYZ Summon! Appear before us! Rank 4, Phantom Knights: Shattered Lance (Dark/Rank 4/Warrior/XYZ/2600 ATK/1500 DEF)."
The XYZ monster from their first duel rode onto the battlefield ready for action.
'It's a bit early to use Dark Rebellion, and given Suijin's effect it's best to play safe,' Yuto decided. "Battle Phase! Shattered Lance attacks Kaiser Seahorse!"
Shattered Lance charged towards Kaiser Seahorse and impaled it with its lance generating a small explosion.
Para and Dox LP: 7100 Cards in Hand: Para 3 Dox 6
"Action Magic: Rhizanthella!" Para shouted. "When a monster is destroyed by battle, I can resurrect that monster and regain any LP lost. Welcome back Kaiser Seahorse!"
Several red orchids sprouted up from the ground and began to release pollen which then converged into one point to form a familiar figure. The pollen emitted a bright red light that dissipated revealing Kaiser Seahorse.
Para and Dox LP: 8000 Cards in Hand: Para 2 Dox 6
Yuto frowned. 'When did he? Wait! That flash from before! Somewhere on the wall?' He looked around quickly at the field but couldn't see anything besides the wall symbols. 'Wait a second! Could the Action Spells be?' Yuto noticed one of those symbols on the ground behind him in the form of a yellow star. 'Only one way to find out.'
Placing his palm on the symbol there was a small flash. When it cleared there was a card in his hand.
'I was right,' Yuto acknowledged. 'Hmm, I can't use it now, but definitely later.' "I set three cards, one monster, and end my turn!"
"My turn!" Dox shouted. "Brother, may I?"
Para nodded. "Go for it!"
"Kaiser Seahorse can be treated as two tributes for a light monster. I release it to summon Sanga of the Thunder (Light/Level 7/Thunder/2600 ATK/2200 DEF)," a large yellow and brown monster with the Kanji for electricity loomed over the field.
"Crap," Necro muttered. That was two pieces now. One more and they'd be dealing with Gate Guardian.
"I'm not done. Next, I flip summon Labyrinth Wall (Earth/Level 5/Rock/0 ATK/3000DEF)," instead of a monster appearing, the entire area was reinforced with hard brown stone.
"3000DEF!" Necro exclaimed. "Why would you?"
"Summon it to Attack Mode? You're about to find out," Dox informed him with an excited grin. "I activate the spell Magical Labyrinth! This card can only be equipped to Labyrinth Wall. By tributing the said card I can special summon one Wall Shadow (Dark/Level 7/Warrior/1600 ATK/3000 DEF) from my deck."
The altered labyrinth disappeared and from the shadows rose a creature with green skin, silver claws, and multiple red eyes across its body.
"Different people have different opinions about the labyrinth. Some say it's endless, some say others get lost in it for eternity, while others say it's full of mysteries and surprises," the entire audience had gone silent, as had their opponents. "Our opinion is that you never know what to expect because anything can happen at any time from anywhere, much like a duel. To simplify, it's a place where you can always expect the unexpected."
There was something about that speech that sounded poetic yet rang true for many of the people present.
'Put it that way, and it kind of sounds like life in general,' Nakajima mused.
"Enough about that though," Dox stated. "The true show starts now. I activate the Ritual spell Wondrous Labyrinth!" Necro's eyes widened. "I can only use this when Wall Shadow is on the field. If I tribute it I can summon a certain monster from my hand, but if banish it I can summon it from my deck. I banish Wall Shadow to summon Maze Shadow (Dark/Level 7/Warrior/Ritual/1600 ATK/3000 DEF)." As Wall Shadow disappeared a large shadow began to stretch out from the walls all around. "Protector of the labyrinth who dwells in darkness! With this offering, evolve and assassinate all who dare trespass against you! Ritual Summon! Come forth! Level 7, Maze Shadow!"
A creature heavily resembling Wall Shadow emerged from the walls of the field. It was much bigger than its predecessor with blue skin and gold eyes, but tis claws remained the same.
"As long as there are monsters on my, or in this case, our side of the field, this card can't be targeted for attacks or card effects," Dox explained. "Now for its second effect, by cutting its ATK in half it can attack you directly. Battle phase! Maze Shadow attack Necro!"
Maze Shadow instantly disappeared into the wall, and before anyone could react Necro was pierced through the back from behind.
"Tch," he scowled but quickly brushed it off. He had been through much worse.
Kaito and Necro LP: 7200 Cards in Hand: Kaito 2 Necro 6
"Maze Shadow's third effect activates. Once per turn when this card inflicts battle damage, I can target one card on my opponent's field and banish it. I think I'll go for Ritual Cage," Dox continued as shadows from the ground corrupted the light from the cage until it shattered.
'That's a very dangerous card,' Necro decided. 'And a very troublesome one also.'
"Trap activate! The Phantom Knights of Dark Gauntlets! I can send one Phantom Knights spell or trap from my deck to the GY. I choose the spell The Phantom Knights of Shadow Veil!" Yuto shouted.
"Then I shall do the same!" Dox countered. "I activate Foolish Burial and send one card from my deck to the GY. Finally, I set one card and end my turn."
It didn't take a genius to figure out what card Dox had selected. They knew it, and the audience knew it, hence why they were cheering so loudly. Gate Guardian was a rare and popular card so seeing it in action was a real treat.
"My turn!" Necro stared at his hand. Despite the big draw a few minutes ago the odds were not in his favour. He had two Djinns, two Nekroz, two traps, and one Ritual spell. It wasn't exactly a bad hand like most players could get but it wasn't perfect either. With no Ritual monsters, he couldn't mount a perfect offence. Oh well, defence it was. "I set one monster and two cards. Turn end!"
"Bad hand?" Para guessed.
"More inconvenient than bad," Necro replied. "In duels, drawing is the one thing that is all about luck. And right now, it's not on my side."
Everyone, ranging from the duellists to the promoters to the audience (hell, even Nakajima) rolled their eyes. That was an understatement.
"So sad, and unfortunately true," Dox lamented. "But it is what it is."
"And always will be," Para finished. "Enough about that. Let's get on with the show. My turn! I play Pot of Greed, meaning I can draw two cards!" A big smile came to Para's lips. "Ladies and Gentlemen! The moment you've all been waiting for is finally here."
The audience tensed in anticipation. Nakajima was also curious. The Paradox brothers were well known to them. Their level of teamwork and duelling capability showed they had the potential to be Lancers. Reiji was not pushed on the idea, however, he was not against it either.
"Brother, if you would be so kind?" Para requested.
"Of course," Dox returned. "I activate the trap Call of the Haunted! This lets me summon one monster from the GY in attack position! And I choose Kazejin (Wind/Level 7/Spellcaster/2400 ATK/1000 DEF)!"
"Trap activate! Dark Bribe!" Necro shouted. "When an opponent activates a spell or trap card, they draw one card and the spell/trap is negated and destroyed."
"Your efforts to stop us summoning our ace are commendable," Para applauded. "Unfortunately, they're also for nought. Trap activate! United Front! When a trap card is activated while we control two or more monsters with the same level, we can negate that card and destroy it."
With all traps out of the way, a large green monster with Kanji for wind rose from the GY.
"Now, I release Sanga the Thunder, Kazejin, and Suijin! Deity born from lightning, wind and water! With your powers defend us from harm and crush all those who oppose you! Come forth! Level eleven, Gate Guardian (Dark/Level 11/Warrior/3750 ATK/3400 DEF)!"
The three monsters started to glow and merged together. When the light cleared, the three monsters had become a large chimeric giant with Sanga at the top as the head and arms, Kazejin at the centre, and Suijin at the bottom as the legs.
Yuto and Necro were shocked at the size of it. From Yuto's perspective, it was as tall as Academia's Ancient Gear Chaos Giant, although perhaps a little smaller.
Even more than that, Yuto could have sworn it was a fusion monster. Back in Heartland, he heard rumours about a duellist who could Fusion summon monsters by just releasing them. Although those monsters were machines.
However, one look at the card on the duel disk and he could see that it was just a regular effect monster which soothed him, sort of.
The crowd was cheering like crazy.
"Next, I activate two equip spells and equip them to Gate Guardian. Power of the Guardians and Fairy Meteor Crush! Battle Phase! Gate Guardian attack Shattered Lance!" Para commanded.
"Trap activate! The Phantom Knights of Lost Vambrace! I target Gate Guardian and it loses 600ATK. Additionally, this trap is summoned to the field as a monster (Dark/Level 2/Warrior/600 ATK/0 DEF) in defence mode. Also, Action Magic: Twinkle Comet! I target Gate Guardian and until the end of this turn it loses 1000ATK and you take 500 damage!" Yuto shouted.
Gate Guardian (3750 – 2750 – 2150ATK).
Para and Dox LP: 7500 Cards in Hand: Para 1 Dox 2
"Power of the Guardians effect activates! For every attack involving the equipped monster, it gains one counter, and for each counter, it gains 500ATK!" Para stated.
Power of the Guardians (Counters 0 – 1).
Gate Guardian (2150 – 2650ATK).
"Trap activate! Phantom Knights' Wing! I target Shattered Lance and it gains 500ATK!" Yuto countered once more.
Phantom Knights: Shattered Lance (2600 – 3100ATK).
Too late to stop the attack, Gate Guardian unleashed a stream of energy which Shattered Lance fired straight back with relative ease creating an explosion off the monster.
Para and Dox LP: 7050 Cards in Hand: Para 1 Dox 2
Necro felt a small spark of hope at Gate Guardian's destruction.
The audience was in a state of disbelief as all the hype died down.
Nakajima knew better.
As the smoke cleared, Gate Guardian stood unharmed and unmoving.
"No way," Necro exclaimed.
"I knew it wouldn't be that simple," Yuto glanced towards Para. "No way you'd let your ace monster be destroyed that easily. So, which card is it?"
The Paradox brothers chuckled.
"Power of the Guardians has a second effect. When the equipped monster would be destroyed, be it by battle or card effect we can simply remove a counter to protect it," Para explained.
Power of the Guardians (Counters 1 – 0).
Gate Guardian (2650 – 2150ATK).
"And we're not done either. While you were all fighting, I grabbed this. Action Magic: Wrath of the Minotaur! If a monster attacked this turn it can make a second attack with a 500ATK boost!" Dox intervened.
Gate Guardian (2150 – 2650ATK).
"Gate Guardian attack Lost Vambrace!" Para ordered much to the surprise of the others. "I know it can't be destroyed but thanks to Fairy Meteor Crush piercing damage is inflicted so it really doesn't matter."
Both boys paled at that and immediately started looking for a symbol that could help them.
Power of the Guardians (Counters 0 – 1).
Gate Guardian (2650 – 3150ATK).
Yuto managed to find a symbol of a sword while Kaito found a shield. As they reached for them the attack collided full force and sent them both flying to the ground below.
Kaito and Necro LP: 4050 Cards in Hand: Kaito 3 Necro 5
The duo shakily stood back up.
"Turn end! Now that you've tasted Gate Guardians' power, what will you do?" Para enquired.
They didn't answer immediately.
"Well, we're screwed," Necro declared bitterly.
"No, we're just in a tough situation," Yuto corrected. "We'll get through it."
Necro shot him a look of disbelief. "Are you for real?! How can you be so sure?"
"I'm not," Yuto retorted. "But a duel isn't over until the LP or decks run out. And since we have both, we can still fight."
There was a round of applause from the duelling brothers.
"We like you!" they said in unison. "Let's see how you back up that statement. Think you can handle it?"
Much to his own surprise, a smile formed across Yuto's face. He couldn't quite describe it but, the idea of beating this monster and making a comeback in this duel despite the odds… excited him.
A feeling he had not felt in a long time.
"Without a doubt! The fun has just begun!"
And that's it for this chapter! I was going to conclude the tournament this chapter, but I knew this duel would take much longer so I split it up. I hope it was alright though. I realize that I am not very good at writing duels, though Duel Links has helped me improve. In the future, I'll try just focus on duelling than dialogue.
I bet you all didn't expect to see the Paradox brothers though. I thought they would be the perfect antagonists for the Tag Tournament. I also think that if they were entertainers, tag duels would be something they were famous for.
Hope you enjoyed reading it! Please review!
OC Cards
Wondrous Labyrinth (Ritual Spell)
If you control a Wall Shadow, you can tribute it to Ritual summon one Maze Shadow from your hand.
Alternatively, you can banish it to special summon one from your deck.
Maze Shadow
Level 7 Ritual Dark Warrior 1600ATK/3000DEF
Effect: As long as you have a monster on the field, this card cannot be targeted for attacks or card effects.
By having this cards ATK, it can attack your opponent directly.
When this card inflicts battle damage on your opponent, you can target one card on the field and banish it.