Uh-huh. You know what time it is, right? I've gotten a brand spankin' new
episode of Duelists of The Future waiting on you! I've been majorly busy,
and haven't had much time for anything, so please forgive me for the lack
of updating. Plus, to add to it, I stumbled up on a bit of the infamous
Writer's Block. I knew what to do with the story itself, I knew who was (or
should I say, is) going to win the duel, I just couldn't figure out how I
wanted to execute it. But anyways, I worked through it, and now I have a
new episode to present. Hopefully it'll be up to par to the last episodes.
I believe it is, but I can never know what people will think about it until
they tell me. Last time, Misty and Mai squared off, and Mai was crushing
her. Can Misty possibly turn the duel around? And what's with Brock and his
newfound abilites? Go ahead and read on. Note: Brock's ordeal won't be
revealed until later. It's not time just yet.
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Duelists of The Future- Season 1- Episode 12, 'The Victory Goes To... Part 2' (4/13/2003)
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Previously...
"That's right. Sit still and don't move," Geoff said somewhat soothingly. Don't even think about the sounds around you. Don't think about your heartbeat, the grumbling noise your stomach might make, or even my voice," Geoff told him.
"Well, you know, that's kinda hard to do if you're talking," Ash snapped sarcastically.
"Fine, then, I won't say a word. I'll just shut up. But, remeber what I said," Geoff ordered, then sat back down on the bag. Ash tried to relax his mind and forget about anything and everything. He tried to free his mind of all thoughts and concentrate on "restoring his inner balance" as Geoff said.
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The container broke into pieces, and the object began floating up toward the ceiling. Without warning, a brilliant, yellow light shined throughout the entire plane, and Brock shielded his eyes to keep from being blinded. A small, white cloud (for lack of a better term) rose out the orb as the light faded, then threw itself into Brock. It entered into his body, but he wasn't aware of it. After the light faded away, Brock removed his arms from around his eyes.
[What happened?] Brock wondered. Before he could began to think on the subject further, sudden pain erupted in his abdomen area. (time passed; he had fallen unconscious, then awakened) Brock noticed that he felt very different on the inside, like something had happened to him while he was unconscious. Also, he realized that there wasn't any built up water in his lungs. There wasn't any water in his mouth either... and his eyes no longer tingled. He could see just as clearly underwater as he could on land...
"What the..." Brock inadvertantly spit out, then it dawned on him that he just spoke clearly while underwater. A few bubbles appeared from the air coming out of his mouth, but no water flowed back in. "What's going on?" Brock could feel that something was off inside. He took in a large amount of air, and no water gushed through his lungs. He stretched his mouth wide open, and no water rushed down his throat. "What's happened to me?" Brock was baffled. (Later) He scrutinized the pedestal. After close examination, Brock found a small inscription on the pedestal. Perhaps this could shine some light on what happened to him! Brock began to read it aloud.
"Disturb not the ancient artifact within, For the cursed object will only bring complications to him who touch. This warning goes out to all people who seek the artifact, Do not listen to your greed, But, instead, take heed."
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Seto Kaiba: "Whatever I do, I've got to find a way to knock Misty out of the tournament. If she manages to save her sisters, they're gonna rat me out, and I'll be finished!"
Mai: "We're gonna have an all-out match, winner take all. You have six stars and I have nine. Add it up, and your total is fifteen stars, which is, if I recall correctly, the amount of stars required to enter the main tournament. We're gonna bet all our stars on this match, and whoever wins is the only one who can advance."
***Mai's/Misty's Life Points- 2000***
"My first move is, Harpie Lady, in attack mode!" Her standard monster jumped out of the holocard and took its place on the field, smirking at Misty.
ATK: 1300 DEF: 1400
"And, I'll lay one other card face-down on the field."
"I play Red Archery Girl, in attack mode!" Misty slapped her card onto the card reader, thus bringing the creature into battle.
ATK: 1400 DEF: 1500
"Attack Harpie Lady!" Misty commanded. Her monster snickered as it raised its bow and arrow to attack. It fired an arrow at Mai's monster, but she was prepared.
"A direct assault, hunh? Well, let's see how well your attack stands up to this. I activate my magic card Cyber Shield, to power up my Harpie Lady with 500 attack points!" Mai announced. This startled Misty a little, but not much. After all, she was sort of expecting it.
ATK: 1800
The arrow struck Harpie Lady right in the chest, but it simply bounced off the golden shield the monster had been equipped with. "Now, Harpie Lady! Attack Red Archery Girl with your Cyber Slash!" Harpie Lady carried out Mai's command and slashed the mermaid, causing it to shatter into pieces.
Misty's Life Points- 1600
"What's that?!" Misty wondered aloud as the Dark Magician Girl's attack struck the wall, but it didn't manage to scratch the surface. "Where'd that wall come from?!"
"This wall is the hidden trap I had set up on the field. It's called Mirror Wall, and its special ability is to block all attacks that come its way. Also, the attacking monster's attack and defense power is reduced in half," Mai told her. Misty frowned at this turn of events.
"I play the magic card Elegant Egotist to triple my Harpie attack force!"
Three Harpie Ladies were now on the field, and they smirked at Misty and her monsters.
ATK: 2450 DEF: 2100 (DEF ?)
"There's three of them!" Misty quipped.
"That's right. And now, I'm gonna attack your Beaver Warrior! Harpie Ladies, combine your powers and attack Misty's warrior!" The three Harpie Ladies began to power up a charge. A small, yellow light connected to each Harpie's claw, forming a triangle. Within the yellow triangle appeared a giant, red X. "Exteminator attack!!" Mai shouted triumphantly. The Harpie Ladies unleashed the fierce attack on the Beaver Warrior and utterly obliterated the monster.
"Prepare yourself to meet: the Harpie's Pet Dragon!" Mai slapped down this card, bringing forth the dragon in battle. A loud boom sounded, and the monstrosity took a stance on the field, breathing smoke out of its mouth.
ATK: 2000 DEF: 1700 (DEF ?) (it raised to 2900 because three Harpie Ladies were on the field)
"I summon Koumori Dragon, in defense mode!" The dragon loaded onto the field and growled ferociously, but Mai wasn't phased.
"I'm activating my face-down card, the Gorgon's Eye!" Mai turned the card over, activating its effect. "In case you don't know, Gorgon's Eye is a special trap card which turns all monsters you play into stone! Once a stone monster has been destroyed, half of its defensive power will be deducted from your life points! (Misty gasped again) And now, Harpie Ladies, Exterminator Attack!" The three sister combined their powers once again to forge the giant X, then launched it at the stone style Kourmori Dragon. The red X tore through the monster and shattered it into tiny pieces.
Misty's Life Points- 200
"Mai's strategy seems unstoppable. With this strategy, she's knocked my life points down to a scarce 200, and at the same time, she's managed to keep a perfect score. I haven't touched one of her monsters. Soon it'll be all over. I... I've failed my sisters..."
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It was around 9:36 pm. Downtown Celadon City was a beautiful sight at night. The skyscrapers were lit up, bright flurescent street lamps illuminated the streets, and flashy, neon signs decorated restaurants and gas stations. A black limo coasted down a rather busy boulevard, and inside was three figures. Two was male, and one was a female. Justin Timberlake's "Rock Your Body" (a classic in this decade) was playing over the stereo at a medium volume level. One of the men were addressing the woman.
"Are you ready for this?" he asked.
"Yes, I'm ready," she replied while grooving to the beat. The man cleared his throat, causing her to stop temporarily.
"You know the dangers and risks that is involved in accepting this, right?"
"Of course. I knew of the risks involved when I first began working, so what's the point of asking me this now?"
"I'm just making sure, don't want any kind of screwups," the man told her. She rolled her eyes and sighed.
"Look, just tell me what I need to know, all right?" she snapped.
The man then accessed his S.C.T and transported a piece of paper. It appeared to be a map. He unfolded the map and layed it across his lap, then looked up at the woman. "Okay, his stronghold is... here," he said while pointing to a location on the map. The woman leaned over to get a better view, as did the other male. "Once you arrive at the first island, you know you'll have to work your way through to reach the second. Once you do that, just follow this map until you reach the stronghold, understood?"
"Mm-hmm," the woman nodded. She took the map from the man and stored it within her own S.C.T, then started dancing to the music once again, while singing along softly.
"Is your, um.. uh.. eh, heh, your um... thing.. that t-thick stack of cards, do you have it with you?" the man wondered.
"Just how dense do you think I am?! Of course I've got it with me," the woman responded sharply. She was a bit annoyed as she stopped dancing, crossed her legs and folded her arms, gazing out of the window to look at the passing scenery outside.
"I was just making sure, ma'am, no need to be so... hostile. Anyways, take this," he reached out and handed the woman a face-down card. "It may prove useful when you arrive."
"Thanks," she answered while taking the card. Stashing it away, she sighed heavily. "So, how much longer until we arrive at the airport?"
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Off in the distance, Seto Kaiba grinned evily. Mai was really obliterating Misty. There was nothing else the girl could do except lose. Seto was confident that no other card in Misty's deck would get her out of this bind. Although he and Misty were friends, he would not stand by and let her save the people that would eject him from his company and put him in prison: her sisters. Misty had lost all hope. She knew she had blew her chance. The duel was over. Mai's two trap cards really collaborated well with each other. Mirror Wall prevented her from attacking, and the Gorgon's Eye stopped from defending herself. She was virtually paralyzed! Misty knew that once Mai could attack and take out the rest of her life points, it would be all over. Mai smirked in glee.
"If I recall correctly, I remeber hearing a young, fiery red-head girl telling me about how she would win and I would lose..."
"Just shut it, Mai!" Misty snapped.
"Well, girl, you might as well forfeit. There's nothing you can do to stop me," she teased. "My strategy is top notch. Mirror Wall keeps you from attacking me, and Gorgon's Eye stops you from defending yourself. With those two cards, you're just a huge target waiting to be obliterated."
Misty sighed deeply. "She's right. There isn't anything I can do," she said and reluctantly drew a card, just for the sake of it. She looked at it, then placed onto the digital card reader. Her face started to brighten a little. "I'll summon one card, in attack mode," she said and watched it materialize onto the field. The card was a Suijin.
ATK: 2500 DEF: 2200
"Heh, you can't do anything else, hmm? A forfeit would've been easier, but I guess you're just allowing me to finish the match with a bang. How considerate of you," Mai said, and Misty rolled her eyes. "Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Suijin with Fearsome Fire Blast!" Mai shouted. The monster gathered a large breath, then spewed out red hot fire at Suijin. As the attack neared ever closer, Mai smiled. "This is the end of the line for you, girl. Get ready to cough up your stars."
"I don't think so! Suijin, raise Tidal Defense Shield!!" Misty announced. Mai let out a small gasp (as well as Seto) as a huge wave of water sprouted out of the ground. Harpie's Pet Dragon's fire blast plastered into the water, but the shield successfully negated the attack. Misty smirked and said, "Worked like a charm."
"What the... how did you manage to do that?! Gorgon's Eye stops any and all defenses! Your Suijin should've turned into stone!" Mai exclaimed.
"No, it wasn't supposed to turn into stone. Now, if I recall correctly, I remeber you telling me that Gorgon's Eye was a special trap card that turned all monsters played in defense mode into stone. I didn't play Suijin in defense mode; I played it in attack mode! Since it was in attack mode, your Gorgon's Eye couldn't work. Then, I activated Suijin's special ability when your Harpie's Pet Dragon attacked, protecting Suijin from the blast," Misty explained.
"No! I thought you were as good as gone!" Mai yelled. "Oh well, since you're determined to fight, I say let the duel continue. You may have Suijin out on the field, but it still can't attack any of my monsters, because my Mirror Wall won't let you."
"I'm not through yet, Mai," Misty retorted and drew a card. This time, she got a card called Gift of the Mystical Elf. "Ah ha! This is just what I need to put me back in the game! Mai, you may have knocked my life points down to a scarce 200, but it won't be like that any longer! I play Gift of the Mystical Elf!" Misty yelled, forcing Mai to gasp. "With my Gift of the Mystical Elf card, I will receive 300 life points for every monster on the field, including yours!" she announced.
"No!" yelled Mai.
Misty's card immediately went to work upon being place on the field. "I'll receive 300 life points from my Suijin, 300 life points from your Harpie's Pet Dragon, and 300 life points for each of your Harpie Ladies. Since there are three, I get 900 points from them. With all of the additional life points combined with my original 200 life points, my life points bin has now rocketed up to 1700!"
Misty's Life Points- 1700
"Weren't looking for that, were you, Mai?" Misty asked. Mai simply snarled in return. "Those 1700 points puts me back in the game, so this time I'm gonna be extra careful not to blow it," Misty muttered to herself.
Seto's eyes shot open. [I thought Misty was finished for sure; I had no idea she would pull off a move like that! C'mon Mai, don't let her stage a big comeback. Wipe her out!]
"I have to admit, that was a move I never expected from you. But, it still won't do you much good. In case you have forgotten, my monsters are still protected by Mirror Wall, which means your Suijin can't touch them. Now, all I've gotta do is work around your defense shield, and I think I know just how," Mai said and drew a card from her deck. It wasn't what she was looking for. "Drat! Oh well, I'll simply add this to my hand. Also, I'll give my Harpie's Pet Dragon another try at attacking your Suijin. Blast that blue box to ashes!" Mai yelled. Her monster spit out the fire beam at Suijin.
"Haven't learned a thing, have you, Mai? Suijin, raise Tidal Defense Shield!" Misty snapped. The wave of water rose up and protected Suijin from the fire blast. "Don't you get it? No matter how many times you come at my Suijin, your pet dragon's attack will never reach it. Not as long as it has Tidal Defense Shield to protect it. Now, you've given me another draw phase. I wonder what I'll do with it?" Misty spoke while drawing a card. The card turned out to be a Spirit of the Harp. She already had Witch of the Black Forest in her hand, so now she needed a Polymerization card to fuse the two monsters together. "No move this time, I pass."
Mai pulled up a card from her deck. She still didn't draw what she wanted. "Hmm... I'll pass my turn, since there's nothing I can do."
Misty smirked, then picked up a card from her deck. It wasn't Polymerization, but it could still come in handy later. "I'll lay out this card face-down and end my turn," Misty said while doing so. Mai drew a card from her deck. This time, she got just what she wanted.
"Perfect! Prepare to meet the card that'll end your little comeback, girl! I play the Shadow of Eyes!" Mai announced while slamming the card onto the field. Misty couldn't help letting out a gasp. "Ha! Watch the field, Misty. You'll see why Shadow of Eyes is going to put you out of commission," Mai commented. Suijin's little round Chinese symbol began to glow.
"My monster is preparing to strike!" Misty quipped in shock.
"That's right," Mai spoke in a sing-song fashion. "So, what are you waiting for Suijin? Attack my monsters with your powerful Tidal Surge attack!" she shouted. Suijin couldn't resist Shadow of Eyes' magic force and attacked Mai's Harpie Lady Sisters. Of course, since an attack was declared, Mai's Mirror Wall sprouted out of the ground to protect the ladies. The wave splashed against the wall, but it didn't get through. Suijin met an equal attack from its reflection. "All right!" exclaimed Mai. "Now your Suijin is gonna lose half of its attack and defense points!"
ATK: 1250 DEF: 1100
"And that makes it a big target for my monsters! Harpie's Pet Dragon, extinguish Suijin from the field! Fearsome Fire Blast!" The dragon obeyed Mai and launched its fire blast at Suijin. In all the excitement, Mai forgot about Misty's face-down card. She flipped it up quickly.
"Magical Hats, activate now!" she yelled. Mai's eyes bucked open as four black hats covered Suijin and shuffled around to a random pattern. Her monster's attack struck the third hat and utterly obliterated it. Smoke covered the field for a short time, and Mai hoped that she destroyed the right hat. But when the smoke cleared, nothing was underneath.
"Darn!" she stomped angrily. "Stupid Magical Hats! I would've taken a large chunk of your life points if you didn't have that stupid card out on the field! If my attack had succeeded, you would've had only 50 life points left!" Mai screamed in frustration.
"It's a good thing I played Magical Hats," Misty said, then drew a card from her deck. It was Pot of Greed, so she decided to play it, which allowed her to draw two more cards from her deck. She did so, and got a Polymerization card, along with Metalmorph. She added those two cards to her hand. "No move this time."
"Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack the second hat!" Mai commanded. The dragon performed its attack and wiped out the second hat. A huge explosion erupted, and wind blew against both Mai and Misty. When the smoke cleared out, Mai still hadn't managed to get Suijin. She sighed deeply. "Missed again," she muttered.
"I just love those Magical Hats," Misty commented, and Mai gagged in disgust. She drew a card from her deck, then her lips curved into a huge smile. "Now I've got all the cards I need to stage the perfect comeback!" she exclaimed. Mai's facial expression took a turn for the worst, as did Seto's. "Yahoo! Now, Mai, I've just drawn the card that'll bring down your so-called 'invincible' strategy! I play Remove Trap, which I'll use to exterminate your stupid Mirror Wall!!" Misty shouted. Mai gasped in utter surprise.
"Oh no!!" she shrieked. Seto's eyes popped open in disbelief.
[I can't believe it! She's actually managing to come back from behind! What if Mai loses?! What if Misty wins this match, then go on to win the tournament?! If the old wench finds the cure to my virus and heals her sisters and the boy, I'm gonna be doomed!!] he thought to himself. He began to fill with worry. Mai's Mirror Wall rose out of the ground and exploded into crystal shards. The Harpie Ladies and their pet shielded themselves from the sharp pieces. Mai watched what was happening, utterly shocked.
"She... sh-she.. she eliminated my Mirror Wall. That just about wrecks my strategy!" she yelled.
"Good riddance to that blasted Mirror Wall. Now, with that nuisance out of the way, it's time to began Phase 2 of my plan. I summon both Spirit of the Harp, and Witch of the Black Forest, both in attack mode!" Misty said while placing down the cards, bringing them into battle.
(Witch of the Black Forest) ATK: 1100 DEF: 1200 | (Spirit of the Harp) ATK: 800 DEF: 2000
"Then, I'll lay out this Polymerization card to fuse these two monsters together to create my favorite monster!" Misty stated while playing the card. Bright light erupted on Misty's side of the field, and a large warp appeared. The warp passed over the two monsters, sucking them into it. The warp then began to spin around extremely fast, making the two monsters look like blurs. Then, white light shone all over Misty's side of the field, and when it faded, the Musician King stood.
ATK: 1750 DEF: 1550
"Then, I'm gonna lay out this magic card called Metalmorph, which turns my Musician King into the more powerful Heavy Metal King! Oh, I just love that Heavy Metal King," she said. The transformation didn't take long to complete, and the Heavy Metal King now stood in the place in which The Musician King stood moments ago.
ATK: 2050 DEF: 1750
"Then, I'll release my Suijin back onto the field and end my turn."
Mai began to laugh in glee. "You mean, after all that talk, that's all you managed to put out on the field? You are a sad case, really. In case you haven't noticed, my Harpie Ladies and their pet dragon are far more powerful than that measly Heavy Metal King. I would attack your Suijin, but seeing as how the Heavy Metal King has a greater chance of defeating my monsters with power boosts, I'm gonna take it out! Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Heavy Metal King!" The dragon reared back and fired its beam at Heavy Metal King.
"Suijin, defend it with Tidal Defense Shield!" Misty yelled. Mai gasped as Suijin fired a beam of water into Harpie's Pet Dragon's fire beam and negated the attack. "Worked like a charm," Misty commented.
"But.. I thought Suijin could only defend itself from oncoming attacks. I didn't know that it could defend other monsters as well!" exclaimed Mai. (In case you didn't know, Suijin did defend Dark Magician in the anime episode where Yugi and Joey were dueling against Para and Dox)
"Thought wrong, tramp," Misty quipped, then pulled a card from her deck. She got just what she wanted, then placed it onto the field. "I'll summon one monster face-down. Now, Heavy Metal King, attack one of the Harpie Lady Sisters!"
"Wha.. you must be out of your mind! Your Heavy Metal King is no match for my Harpie Lady Sisters," Mai said.
"Oh, yeah? Then watch, look, and learn, Mai!" Heavy Metal King's attack strength began to rise as it stroked the guitar, which emitted a rising high-pitched noise. Sonic waves launched out of the guitar, heading toward the orange-haired Harpie Lady.
ATK: 2750
"It's attack power has increased by 700 points!" shrieked a surprised Mai.
"That's right, and 2750 attack points are more than enough to destroy that Harpie Lady with!" Misty confirmed as Heavy Metal King's attack struck the Harpie Lady. The waves were too much for her to handle and she shattered into pieces.
Mai's Life Points- 1700
"Now we're equal," snapped Misty, and Mai glared at her.
"Not for long," she retorted.
"Don't forget, Mai, your Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack strength has dropped by 300 because one of the Harpie Ladies have been destroyed," Misty informed her.
ATK: 2600
Mai simply snarled in disgust, then drew a card. "Hmm... I've still got two Harpie Ladies on the field, and the Harpie's Pet Dragon. Misty will be able to take Harpie's Pet Dragon out on her next turn, but she'll probably go for another Harpie Lady. Once she destroy it, Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack strength will lower even more. Then, she'll destroy the last one standing, which will cause my Pet Dragon's attack power to drop back to its original 2000 points. Then, she'll destroy it! I've got to take Heavy Metal King out immediately," she murmered to herself. "So, I'll just play another Elegant Egotist card to multiply the two Harpie Ladies already on the field!" she said while placing down the card. Each Harpie Lady produced two clones, so there was a total of six Harpie Ladies on the field once the process was complete. Mai smirked in delight. (Yes, Mai said in Episode 5 of the anime series that she would keep using that card over and over again to multiply her Harpie Ladies endlessly, but Joey defeated her before she could)
"So, that means Harpie's Pet Dragon attack power rises..." Misty started, and Mai finished for her.
"1200 points, which brings it total attack power level to..."
ATK: 3800
"3800 points!" Mai shouted, then laughed heartily. Misty sighed heavily and frowned. "And all 3800 points are aimed straight at Heavy Metal King! Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Heavy Metal King! Fearsome Fire Blast!!" Mai yelled in glee. Her monster obeyed her instruction and shot out a huge fire beam out of its mouth. Misty thought her monster was doomed, then she remebered something... As the attack neared ever closer, some blue fragments materializd out of thin air and formed into a blue, rubbery- looking monster which jumped in front of Heavy Metal King. The attack hit it instead and blew it into pieces.
"What the heck was that?!" Mai exclaimed.
"That blue thing you saw is a special, extremely rare monster known as Revival Jam. Revival Jam blocks any and all your monsters attacks. And the best thing about it is that it's indestructable! Which means it's gonna be reforming itself right about now!" Misty announced. Mai gasped in shock as the blue creature began reforming itself, just like Misty said. Once all the fragments merged together, it floated back into the holographic Revival Jam card.
"Ugh... it's disgusting!"
"Yeah, maybe to you it is, but to me, it's one of the cutest monsters ever made! And it's powerful ability is bringing me one step closer to victory," Misty commented. "As long as my beautiful Revival Jam is on the field, your supercharged dragon can't get anywhere near my monsters. But, my monsters can get yours! Heavy Metal King, attack one of those ugly, hideous Harpie Ladies now!" Heavy Metal King stroked the guitar and unleashed its attack.
ATK: 2750
The Harpie Lady didn't stand a chance against Heavy Metal King's attack and shattered into pieces. Mai's life point meter dropped again.
Mai's Life Points- 1400
Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack points dropped to 3500 (and of course, Heavy Metal King's power dropped back to 2050). "Now you're 300 life points behind me Mai, and your dragon lost 300 attack points. If I recall correctly, you told me I was doomed, remeber?" Misty jeered, then began laughing. She was finally starting to enjoy this duel, now that things were going her way. She was finally winning the duel, and she intended on keeping it that way. Mai frowned angrily.
"This duel isn't over yet!" she snapped. Of course, Seto was still standing in the distance watching. He was so nervous that his hand began to twitch. Seto was starting to get a little scared. If Misty won this duel, she had a chance at winning the tournament, and if she did that, he was basically sunk. If that old wench was as good as she stated, then chances are she would find a cure and administer it to the sisters. Then, it would be all over.
[Mai, you'd better not fail me. If you do, I promise there's gonna be hell to pay!] he thought.
Back to the duel, Mai was still trying to figure out what she should do to tip the scale in her favor. But, no ideas was coming to her mind. She drew a card, and it turned out being another Negate Attack card. It could come in handy for negating Heavy Metal King's next attack, but it wouldn't buy her much time because it was a one time only card. She placed it face-down. "Hmm... maybe I might have better luck attacking Suijin. I've gotta try something! Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Suijin!" Mai snapped. Her monster fired yet another wave of fire at Suijin, but Misty was prepared. Revival Jam materialized in front of Suijin and took the blow. It exploded into liquid, gooey pieces, then started rematerializing yet again. Mai was getting very annoyed at the creature. The creature reformed itself, then sunk back down into the holocard.
"My Revival Jam stopped another one of your attacks, and now, you've left me the chance of attacking another Harpie Lady. Go, Heavy Metal King, attack one!"
ATK: 2750
Harpie Lady was no match for the attack and burst into pieces. Mai lost yet another 300 life points, bringing her down to 1100. Her Harpie's Pet Dragon also lost another 300 points, dragging its attack power down to 3200. Mai was now 600 life points behind Misty. Soon, Misty was going to wipe her out unless she did something. "I switch all my Harpie Ladies to defensive mode!" Her monsters all huddled together.
"Running scared, eh, Mai?" Misty teased. Mai rolled her eyes and did not comment. Misty pulled up a card from her deck, then added it to her hand for later use. "Heavy Metal King, attack yet another Harpie Lady!" Misty commanded. Her monster's attack strength raised up to 2750 as sonic waves made their way toward a Harpie Lady.
"Not so fast, Misty! I play Negate Attack!" Mai stated and activated her magic card. A warp appeared in front of the Harpie Lady which absorbed the oncoming attack, then dissappeared. Mai sighed a sigh a relief. "That buys me a bit of time."
Heavy Metal King's attack power returned to 2050. "You may have gotten lucky enough to evade that attack, Mai, but next time, things will be different. Face it, Mai, there's only so much you can do to protect your Harpie Ladies without Mirror Wall..." before Misty could finish, Mai interrupted her.
"Don't even say it, 'cause it's not happening. I'll defeat you one way or another," she snapped and drew a card. Unfortunately, for her, it wasn't going to help her out of her current predicament. She added it to her hand. The only thing she could do was desperately try to destroy Heavy Metal King. Maybe there was a certain number of times Revival Jam could be used. "Harpie's Pet Dragon, try another Fearsome Fire Blast!"
"Trying again, Mai? When will you learn?" Misty jeered as the dragon's fire blast headed toward Heavy Metal King at blazing speeds. But, once again, the Revival Jam sprung out of its holocard and blocked the attack by allowing itself to be hit. It exploded into numerous pieces, but they began to reform themselves yet again. "Your monster's attack can't get anywhere near my monsters, because my adorable Revival Jam blocks all your attacks. Then, it keeps reforming because it's indestructable. No monster in all of Duel Monsters can destroy it. So, as long as I have this monster working for me, me and my monsters are indestructable!"
"She's right. With Revival Jam out on the field, I can't touch her," Mai acknowledged quietly.
"Heavy Metal King, strike again!" shouted Misty. The monster stroked the guitar and sent another wave of sonic waves at a Harpie Lady. The attack power rose up to 2750 again, which was enough to do away with the monster; it erupted into pieces. Mai didn't lose any life points because it had been switched into defense mode. Misty laughed and said, "How does it feel to be on the losing end? How does it feel to be totally powerless against your opponent, Mai? You can't touch me, thanks to my wonderful Revival Jam, but I can destroy any one of your Harpie Ladies, and eventually, I'll be able to do away with the dragon, too! After all your monsters are gone, there will be nothing standing between my monsters and you!" Misty told her. Then she cackled joyfully, obviously savoring the moment.
(Harpie's Pet Dragon) ATK: 2900 | (Heavy Metal King) ATK: 2050
[No, Mai! You cannot lose to Misty! You have to win, for my sake! Don't fail me, Mai, don't fail me!] Seto said mentally.
Mai didn't know what to do. Just as Misty said before, she was powerless against her now. With Revival Jam on the field, she couldn't hurt Misty's monsters, but Misty was free to attack any of her monsters. How could she get out of this mess? What if she couldn't get out of this mess? Mai pulled up a card from the deck. She didn't get anything that would help her out, so she simply added it to her hand. [There's gotta be a weakness somewhere. There must be a way to destroy Revival Jam. It can't be invulnerable, like Misty claims. Maybe, instead of trying to attack her monsters, I should try attacking it directly. I doubt it'll work, but I don't have any better ideas.] "This time, I'm gonna do something a little differenty. Instead of attacking your monsters, I'm gonna assault your Revival Jam directly! Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Revival Jam!"
"Do you really think this is gonna work?" Misty inquired. Revival Jam sprouted out of the holocard and was struck by the fire blast. A huge explosion erupted on the field, but when the smoke cleared out, Revival Jam was reforming itself again. "Ah, it didn't work. My Revival Jam still stands, or should I say, float? Anyway, Heavy Metal King, let's obliterate another Harpie Lady!" Yet another Harpie Lady shattered into pieces after it met Heavy Metal's King's supercharged attack. Misty smirked defiantly at her triumph. She was beating Mai into a submission. Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack power dropped to 2600.
"I.. I'm losing..." Mai muttered to herself. It was starting to dawn on her that Misty was blowing her out. Could she possibly win? She had to win. Not only did she want the $10,000 dollars Seto Kaiba was offering her, but she would fail her mission if she lost. Somehow, someway, she had to get back in the game before it was all over.
"Only two Harpie Ladies and a dragon are left standing. After I get rid of them, you can kiss your life points goodbye," Misty chimed, grinning afterwards. [Don't worry, Lily, Daisy, Violet, I'll save you all if it's the last thing I do. Once I win the tournament, I'm gonna pay that wench the 3 million dollars so she can find a cure. Just hold on, sisters. I promise I won't let you down. I won't fail you; I can't fail you.] Mai reached out and drew a card, then gasped. She stood there staring at the card. Misty was confused as she watched her. What did she draw? Would it help her win, or was it starting to sink on her that she was losing? What was going on? All these thoughts pulsed through Misty's mind as she stared at Mai. Mai's lips slowly began to curve up into a smile.
"Well... well... well..." she spoke while looking up at Misty, "Look what we have here. Your Revival Jam is history, and so is you! I play this magic card, the Mystic Box!" she yelled and slapped it onto the card reader. Misty let out a gasp. "Allright, girl, watch the field." Mai's Mystic Box went to work. A box appeared around Harpie's Pet Dragon and locked it inside. Suddenly, a large array of swords and knives appeared out of thin air and skewered the box.
"You're... destroying your own monster?" Misty wondered.
"Maybe, maybe not. Did I destroy my own monster? It appears as though I did, seeing as how the box in which my Harpie's Pet Dragon was sealed in got skewered. But, look closely," Mai said. Another box materialized out of thin air next to the first one. The first box opened up to reveal Misty's Revival Jam monster covered in swords. Misty was surprised.
"What?! How'd my monster get skewered? Harpie's Pet Dragon was the one in the box!" she exclaimed.
"It's magic, baby. And that's only half of the trick. The best thing about it is, My pet dragon will emerge from the second box without a scratch." True to her word, the second box opened and Harpie's Pet Dragon emerged from the box in perfect condition. Misty eyes were simply bucked wide open in shock. "And now, to finish my turn, I'll play two cards: Reinforcements to increase my pet dragon's attack strength by 500 points, and a De-spell card to wipe out your Heavy Metal King's magic boost, turning it back into The Musician King!" Mai announced.
(Harpie's Pet Dragon) ATK: 3100 | (The Musician King) ATK: 1750 DEF: 1550
"And now, Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack The Musician King!" she shouted. The monster powered a large blast of fire and shot it out of its mouth, which obliterated the king from the field.
Misty's Life Points- 650
"We're not equal anymore, tramp. And without that disgusting Revival Jam to hide behind, there's nothing stopping me from blowing away your Suijin, then blowing away you!" Mai yelled. Then she started laughing in glee.
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Brock had begun to patch Tristan up inside the tint, but he started to cough up more blood, so Brock rushed him down to one of the medical centers on the shores of the island. After bursting through the doors and telling a nearby doctor of his internal injuries, the doctor rushed him into the Emergency Room to get him stabilized. Brock walked off into one of the bathrooms to put on some khaki cargo pants and a red jersey. After doing so, he slipped on some white tennis shoes, then came out of the bathroom. He made his way to the small waiting area and took a seat in one of the chairs. Rubbing his hands through his hair, he sighed heavily. He wished he hadn't been exploring that sunken plane. If he hadn't, he would've been able to defend Tristan from Surge. Brock hoped that his best friend would be all right; internal injuries could be quite serious. Brock also didn't know what he would going to do about his newfound abilites. What was wrong with him? What happened to him? The inscription also brought a gallon of stress.
(Flashback)
"Disturb not the ancient artifact within, For the cursed object will only bring complications to him who touch. This warning goes out to all people who seek the artifact, Do not listen to your greed, But, instead, take heed."
(End Flashback)
The inscription warned him that bad things would start happening to him. What kind of complications would arouse? How cursed was the artifact? What would become of him? Brock shook his head and sighed again. He was beginning to get scared. He was scared for his life. What if he would eventually... die? A voice spoke to him and startled him. He looked up to see the doctor standing beside the chair. Brock slowly began to stand up.
"Uh... I assume you've come to tell me about my friend?" he asked.
"Yes," the doctor nodded.
"Well, how is he?"
"He'll be fine, fortunately. His injuries weren't too bad; we got him stabilized very quickly. It's a good thing you came to us, young man. If you hadn't, he could've bled to death from the inside," the doctor told him.
"So, he'll be all right?"
The doctor nodded. "Yes. For the most part, his injuries have been taken care of. He'll still be rather sore, though. What happened to him anyway?" the doctor wondered.
Brock feared that if he told the doctor what really happened and the doctor contacted local security, they would investigate Surge, which would probably make the man hire an assassin to kill them both out of anger. So he decided to lie about what happened. "He.. uh, was trying an extreme stunt and he messed up," Brock said.
"Oh, well, you should tell him to watch himself. He could've hurt himself pretty badly."
"I'll do that. By the way, is he able to leave yet? And where can I find him?" Brock inquired.
"Yeah, he can leave, since his injuries have been taken care of. Your friend should be in room 97. Once you leave this waiting room, take a right and follow that cooridor all the way to the end. Then, take a left. His room should be there," the doctor stated, then walked off. Brock followed the directions the doctor gave him to Tristan's room. Once he arrived there, he opened the door and walked inside. Tristan was sitting on the foot of the bed slipping on some black tennis shoes. He looked up when Brock entered.
"Hey, man," he greeted.
"What's up?" Brock returned and slapped hands with him. "How are you?"
"I'm a bit sore," Tristan replied.
"The doctor said that you can go now. He said you'll be sore for a little while, though."
Tristan nodded, then said, "Stupid Surge. We need to find security and tell them about what he did."
"No, we shouldn't. It's likely Surge will attempt to assassinate us both if we get the cops on him. Remeber that day when Surge attacked you in your house? You did say he was extremely pissed because you got him locked up." (By the way, that was after I ended the scene, heh heh)
"I guess you have a point," Tristan answered reluctantly. "He'd better not attack me again, 'cause I'll kill him if he try," he said and got off the bed, heading toward the door. Brock got up and followed him. "I've had enough of this; he's going down if he messes with me again. Surge has attacked me, my Grandmother, you, all in an effort to get my two powerful cards. Well, if he bothers me again, that dick is going in the ground."
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Meanwhile, Surge was getting himself patched up by Vicki in his tint. Jason was off spectacting some duels nearby. As Vicki patched him up, he sighed heavily. He failed once again. He still hadn't managed to obtain those two powerful cards. Slifer The Sky Dragon and Obelisk The Tormentor are two of the most rare and powerful cards ever made from the game, and he had to get them, somehow, someway.
"Well, boss, what are you gonna do now?" wondered Vicki. She was still patching up Surge. Surge shifted to a more comfortabe position and scoffed.
"I don't know. This is really starting to get tiresome, to be so close to those cards and not get them. It's getting frustrating!" he snapped angrily.
"Boss, maybe you should give up and let him have the cards. I mean, they're not that special, right? They're not so important that you'll get a good pummeling over them, are they?"
"They are that important! One of them belonged to me!" Surge answered, then rubbed his hands through his spikey, messy, blonde hair. "Slifer The Sky Dragon was my card, and that dick had it taken from me! This is unacceptable! I won't be humiliated like this! I want my card back, and I want it now!!" he shouted in disgust.
"Calm down, boss, please," Vicki told him. "We'll find a way to retrieve the cards; you just have to give these things time, all right? You can't rush this, Surge. You're gonna have to wait it out."
"I don't wanna wait to get something that should've never left me."
"I know, and I wouldn't want to either, but sometimes, that's just the way life is. Deal with it. Now, after we get through patching you up, we'll go and spy on Tristan," she suggested.
"No, I'm going to pummel him, and force the cards out of his possesion!"
"Don't do that, boss! You see force isn't working, so back down!" Vicki yelled. Surge gave her a nasty glare, but she stared him down defiantly. Both of them looked at each other for awhile, then Surge turned away and sighed. "Now, listen up. If you play your cards right, you can have the two god cards. This is what we should do. We should watch Tristan for awhile and see if he leaves his cards alone or something, so that we can sneak in and grab them, then run off. It won't be that simple, of course, but it's better than running around, picking fights, right?"
"Whatever," Surge replied while shrugging.
"Perk up, boss," Vicki chimed. "Don't worry about it. We'll have those cards in your hands in a matter of time. Just let the prick think he's gotten away for now. Then, when the time is right, we'll strike and take them back, understand? Right now, the wisest thing to do is wait."
"Okay, I'll wait."
"Good," Vicki said, then continued patching him up. "Everything will be fine in due time."
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Misty's life points were now down at 650. Her strategy had been wrecked because Mai successfully destroy Revival Jam, which stopped all of Mai's monsters from attacking her. Harpie's Pet Dragon wiped out Heavy Metal King also. What was she going to do now? Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack points returned back to 2600. It was Misty's turn now, and she drew a card. She grinned slightly and added the card to her hand. Mai's eyes narrowed. "No move this time, Mai. I pass," she told her.
Mai couldn't help but be a bit on the precautious side. What was Misty up to? Why was she grinning? Mai knew Misty had some sort of trick up her sleeve, but what was it? There wasn't anyway she could know for sure, unfortunately. For now, the only thing she could do was attack... or, she could take a wait-and-see attitude. After drawing a card of her own, she said, "I pass my turn this time."
Misty rolled her eyes and sighed. [She's wrecking my strategy again. If she keeps taking a wait-and-see attitude, I'll never be able to make my play.] Misty pulled up another card from her deck. She eyed it, then looked up at Mai. "No move this time, either."
Mai's eyes narrowed again. She didn't know what Misty was up to, and there was no sure fire way to tell, either. She was sick of waiting around though; it was time to strike while she had the chance. "I may have passed a turn last time, but not this time around. I'm attacking your Suijin with my pet dragon. Fearsome Fire Blast!" she yelled. Harpie's Pet Dragon complied and blew up Suijin with its blast of fire, which was exactly what Misty wanted Mai to do. "There goes your Suijin, Misty. If you don't play a monster this time, I'll finish you off!"
"Thanks a lot, Mai," retorted Misty, who was grinning. "You attacked my Suijin, which was exactly what I wanted you to do. Now, I can play this Reborn the Monster card (Mai gasped) to revive it, and it'll be back at full power too!" she announced. Her magic card went to work, and within moments, a fully revitalized Suijin found its way onto the field.
ATK: 2500 DEF: 2200
"Oh no!" Mai gulped.
"Suijin, attack one of the remaining Harpie Ladies with Tidal Surge!" shouted Misty. The small, blue circle with a Chinese symbol on it began to glow, then a large, powerful wave of water shot out of it. The Harpie Lady was struck down and killed by the attack. Fortunately, for Mai, it was in defense mode. Unfortunately, for Mai, the Harpie's Pet Dragon lost another 300 life points, making it vulnerable to Suijin's next attack.
ATK: 2300
"Your Harpie's Pet Dragon is getting weaker and weaker everytime I destroy a Harpie Lady. Once I destroy it and the last remaining Harpie Lady, they'll be nothing left to defend you from my Suijin's watery wrath," Misty chimed. "You may have destroyed my Revival Jam, but I'll still defeat you without it."
Mai scowled at Misty and these turn of events. Things weren't going exactly as she planned them. She didn't want to admit it, but Misty was winning the duel, not her. Mai was a little surprised at how quickly the match got tipped in Misty's favor. When the duel first began, she was beating Misty into an utter submission. Misty was powerless against her strategy: the Harpie Ladies and their pet was too strong for her to handle. Or so she thought. Now, in just a few minutes, Misty was beating her. How could she turn this back around? Mai knew that Misty would destroy her last two monsters soon, then she would be open to direct damage. Something had to be done. Mai slowly pulled up a card from her deck. "My only move will be switching Harpie's Pet Dragon to defense mode," she spoke.
"Suijin, attack the last Harpie Lady! Tidal Surge!" Misty shouted. Suijin's powerful attack reached the Harpie Lady and struck it. The lady was no match for the attack, and it burst into several, small pieces. Harpie's Pet Dragon attack strength was now at 2000. "Allright! Just two more attacks and I win!" exclaimed Misty.
Mai knew she was right. She had nothing to use against her. All the Harpie Ladies had been destroyed, taking away all of Harpie's pet Dragon's attack boost. It was no match against Suijin now. Mai drew a card, then subtly gasped. She stared at the card for a little while, then added it to her hand. "I pass, do your worst."
"And that's just what I'll do. Suijin, attack the dragon!" Misty yelled. Suijin powered up once more and shot out the powerful wave of water which drowned the dragon, causing it to dissappear off the field. There wasn't any monsters left on Mai's side of the field, meaning that Misty could directly attack her life points on her next turn. Mai grabbed another card from the deck. It turned out to be a Reborn the Monster card. Mai suddenly started to piece an idea together in her head. This could be just what she needed!
"All right, Misty, I play this: Reborn the monster to ressurrect the previously destroyed Harpie's Pet Dragon!" Mai slapped the card onto the card reader, thus bringing forth the monster. It appeared on the field, snarling and growling viciously.
ATK: 2000 DEF: 1700 (?)
"And now, I'll play Gaia the Fierce Knight, in attack mode!" Mai summoned the creature onto the field, besides Harpie's Pet Dragon.
ATK: 2300 DEF: 2100
"Then, I'll wrap it up with this: a Ritual card!" she announced. Misty let out a gasp of fear.
"What?"
"I had nearly forgotten about this card. It was given to me a while back, in Celadon City (recognize something?). A friend of mine handed to me, claiming that it could be useful, and I think he may have been correct! This Ritual card will help get me out of this jam you've jutted me into, Misty! I'm sacrificing my pet dragon and my Gaia, in order to initiate the Black Luster Ritual!"
"I can't believe it," Misty said softly to herself. "I.. I wonder what's gonna emerge?"
Three black pots appeared. The one in the center of the three was fairly larger than the other two on the side of it. Some bluish aura emerged from the two smaller pots; Harpie's Pet Dragon and Gaia the Fierce Knight were sucked down into the pots. Moments passed, then smoke shot out of the central pot without warning. Then, a large, tall figure started to emerge from the central pot. The Black Luster Soldier floated out of the pot and slowly landed on the field as the ritual pots dissappeared.
"Surprised, Misty?" You can look out for a world of trouble now, but first, I'm ending my turn," Mai stated. She knew that if she attacked now, Misty would just negate her attack with the defense shield. Misty reached out for a card. She drew it, but unfortunately, she didn't get anything worthwhile. She cursed under her breath and passed her turn. Mai grabbed a card from her deck, hoping for a good one. Did she get it? Misty gulped as Mai drew the card. Seto was still as nervous as ever. What would card could it possibly be? Would it be nothing? Or could it possibly be the card that'll finish Misty off...
"This is perfect! I play Fissure!" Mai yelled while slamming the card down. Misty gasped in shock. "Ha, ha! Fissure is a card that can destroy one of your face-up cards with the lowest attack. Since the only card on your side of field is Suijin, that means it gets destroyed!"
"No!" Misty couldn't believe it. The holocard loaded, and two large, transparent hands appeared over the card. They reared back and struck the ground, causing a seismic shockwave which tore through the ground. The ground beneath Suijin collapsed, and the elemental box fell through and dissappeared off the field. Mai smirked triumphantly.
"There's nothing you can do to delay this, Misty. I told you I'd be the victor, and you'd be the loser, and what do you know? It's playing out just like I said it would! Now, prepare yourself Misty! Black Luster Soldier, attack Misty directly with your Chaos Blade attack!" Mai shouted defiantly. The soldier jumped into the air, then came back down and struck the ground with its sword, causing a powerful, yellow energy beam to flow through the ground. It hit Misty (picture a slow-motion scene of Misty falling toward the ground for about 3 1/2 seconds) and knocked her onto the ground, but she wasn't hurt at all. Mai cackled obnoxiously.
Misty's Life Points- 0
Seto's face lightened up and his lips curved into a devious smile. [Hmm... gave me a lot of tense moments, Mai, but well done, nevertheless. You shall get your reward,] he thought to himself, then walked back toward the entrance of the cave, eager to crush more duelists. Now that Misty was out, he had nothing to worry about any longer.
Misty looked up in time to see her life points spiral down to 0. Her face took on a look of utter shock as she layed there in disbelief. She lost... she lost the duel. It was all over, now she could never save her sisters. Now that she was officially out of the tournament, she could never get the money needed to pay the old wench in order to get her help. And that meant that her sisters were doomed. She failed them... in essence, she killed them... Mai walked over to Misty and grabbed her arm tightly. She ejected the stars out of Misty's dueling glove, then shoved her arm back onto the ground. Scrapping them up, she inserted them onto her dueling glove and smirked. She was officially in the main tournament, much to her pleasure. She then started walking off, not saying a word to Misty. Misty got off the ground and darted pass Mai angrily, tears forming in her eyes. Her sisters were going to die, and there was nothing she could about it...
(Ending Discloser Below.) --Episode Written By: GateGuardian3500-- Once again, I am terribly sorry for the long wait. My life can be very unpredictable at times... Anyways, I apologize again because this episode was a little shorter than the others before it. But, there wasn't a whole lot that could be done this time around. The main focus of the episode is the showdown between Misty and Mai itself, hence the title name. I threw in the scenes with Brock/Tristan and Vicki/Surge to move their little story arc along, and to plump out the episode so that it wouldn't be overwhelmingly short. I don't know when the next episode will be up, but I will try to get it up as fast as I can. Let's just hope that no more of that disgusting Writer's Block rear its ugly head any time soon. Peace out, and thanks to all that gave my fanfic a chance! I really appreciate that!
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Duelists of The Future- Season 1- Episode 12, 'The Victory Goes To... Part 2' (4/13/2003)
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Previously...
"That's right. Sit still and don't move," Geoff said somewhat soothingly. Don't even think about the sounds around you. Don't think about your heartbeat, the grumbling noise your stomach might make, or even my voice," Geoff told him.
"Well, you know, that's kinda hard to do if you're talking," Ash snapped sarcastically.
"Fine, then, I won't say a word. I'll just shut up. But, remeber what I said," Geoff ordered, then sat back down on the bag. Ash tried to relax his mind and forget about anything and everything. He tried to free his mind of all thoughts and concentrate on "restoring his inner balance" as Geoff said.
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The container broke into pieces, and the object began floating up toward the ceiling. Without warning, a brilliant, yellow light shined throughout the entire plane, and Brock shielded his eyes to keep from being blinded. A small, white cloud (for lack of a better term) rose out the orb as the light faded, then threw itself into Brock. It entered into his body, but he wasn't aware of it. After the light faded away, Brock removed his arms from around his eyes.
[What happened?] Brock wondered. Before he could began to think on the subject further, sudden pain erupted in his abdomen area. (time passed; he had fallen unconscious, then awakened) Brock noticed that he felt very different on the inside, like something had happened to him while he was unconscious. Also, he realized that there wasn't any built up water in his lungs. There wasn't any water in his mouth either... and his eyes no longer tingled. He could see just as clearly underwater as he could on land...
"What the..." Brock inadvertantly spit out, then it dawned on him that he just spoke clearly while underwater. A few bubbles appeared from the air coming out of his mouth, but no water flowed back in. "What's going on?" Brock could feel that something was off inside. He took in a large amount of air, and no water gushed through his lungs. He stretched his mouth wide open, and no water rushed down his throat. "What's happened to me?" Brock was baffled. (Later) He scrutinized the pedestal. After close examination, Brock found a small inscription on the pedestal. Perhaps this could shine some light on what happened to him! Brock began to read it aloud.
"Disturb not the ancient artifact within, For the cursed object will only bring complications to him who touch. This warning goes out to all people who seek the artifact, Do not listen to your greed, But, instead, take heed."
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Seto Kaiba: "Whatever I do, I've got to find a way to knock Misty out of the tournament. If she manages to save her sisters, they're gonna rat me out, and I'll be finished!"
Mai: "We're gonna have an all-out match, winner take all. You have six stars and I have nine. Add it up, and your total is fifteen stars, which is, if I recall correctly, the amount of stars required to enter the main tournament. We're gonna bet all our stars on this match, and whoever wins is the only one who can advance."
***Mai's/Misty's Life Points- 2000***
"My first move is, Harpie Lady, in attack mode!" Her standard monster jumped out of the holocard and took its place on the field, smirking at Misty.
ATK: 1300 DEF: 1400
"And, I'll lay one other card face-down on the field."
"I play Red Archery Girl, in attack mode!" Misty slapped her card onto the card reader, thus bringing the creature into battle.
ATK: 1400 DEF: 1500
"Attack Harpie Lady!" Misty commanded. Her monster snickered as it raised its bow and arrow to attack. It fired an arrow at Mai's monster, but she was prepared.
"A direct assault, hunh? Well, let's see how well your attack stands up to this. I activate my magic card Cyber Shield, to power up my Harpie Lady with 500 attack points!" Mai announced. This startled Misty a little, but not much. After all, she was sort of expecting it.
ATK: 1800
The arrow struck Harpie Lady right in the chest, but it simply bounced off the golden shield the monster had been equipped with. "Now, Harpie Lady! Attack Red Archery Girl with your Cyber Slash!" Harpie Lady carried out Mai's command and slashed the mermaid, causing it to shatter into pieces.
Misty's Life Points- 1600
"What's that?!" Misty wondered aloud as the Dark Magician Girl's attack struck the wall, but it didn't manage to scratch the surface. "Where'd that wall come from?!"
"This wall is the hidden trap I had set up on the field. It's called Mirror Wall, and its special ability is to block all attacks that come its way. Also, the attacking monster's attack and defense power is reduced in half," Mai told her. Misty frowned at this turn of events.
"I play the magic card Elegant Egotist to triple my Harpie attack force!"
Three Harpie Ladies were now on the field, and they smirked at Misty and her monsters.
ATK: 2450 DEF: 2100 (DEF ?)
"There's three of them!" Misty quipped.
"That's right. And now, I'm gonna attack your Beaver Warrior! Harpie Ladies, combine your powers and attack Misty's warrior!" The three Harpie Ladies began to power up a charge. A small, yellow light connected to each Harpie's claw, forming a triangle. Within the yellow triangle appeared a giant, red X. "Exteminator attack!!" Mai shouted triumphantly. The Harpie Ladies unleashed the fierce attack on the Beaver Warrior and utterly obliterated the monster.
"Prepare yourself to meet: the Harpie's Pet Dragon!" Mai slapped down this card, bringing forth the dragon in battle. A loud boom sounded, and the monstrosity took a stance on the field, breathing smoke out of its mouth.
ATK: 2000 DEF: 1700 (DEF ?) (it raised to 2900 because three Harpie Ladies were on the field)
"I summon Koumori Dragon, in defense mode!" The dragon loaded onto the field and growled ferociously, but Mai wasn't phased.
"I'm activating my face-down card, the Gorgon's Eye!" Mai turned the card over, activating its effect. "In case you don't know, Gorgon's Eye is a special trap card which turns all monsters you play into stone! Once a stone monster has been destroyed, half of its defensive power will be deducted from your life points! (Misty gasped again) And now, Harpie Ladies, Exterminator Attack!" The three sister combined their powers once again to forge the giant X, then launched it at the stone style Kourmori Dragon. The red X tore through the monster and shattered it into tiny pieces.
Misty's Life Points- 200
"Mai's strategy seems unstoppable. With this strategy, she's knocked my life points down to a scarce 200, and at the same time, she's managed to keep a perfect score. I haven't touched one of her monsters. Soon it'll be all over. I... I've failed my sisters..."
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It was around 9:36 pm. Downtown Celadon City was a beautiful sight at night. The skyscrapers were lit up, bright flurescent street lamps illuminated the streets, and flashy, neon signs decorated restaurants and gas stations. A black limo coasted down a rather busy boulevard, and inside was three figures. Two was male, and one was a female. Justin Timberlake's "Rock Your Body" (a classic in this decade) was playing over the stereo at a medium volume level. One of the men were addressing the woman.
"Are you ready for this?" he asked.
"Yes, I'm ready," she replied while grooving to the beat. The man cleared his throat, causing her to stop temporarily.
"You know the dangers and risks that is involved in accepting this, right?"
"Of course. I knew of the risks involved when I first began working, so what's the point of asking me this now?"
"I'm just making sure, don't want any kind of screwups," the man told her. She rolled her eyes and sighed.
"Look, just tell me what I need to know, all right?" she snapped.
The man then accessed his S.C.T and transported a piece of paper. It appeared to be a map. He unfolded the map and layed it across his lap, then looked up at the woman. "Okay, his stronghold is... here," he said while pointing to a location on the map. The woman leaned over to get a better view, as did the other male. "Once you arrive at the first island, you know you'll have to work your way through to reach the second. Once you do that, just follow this map until you reach the stronghold, understood?"
"Mm-hmm," the woman nodded. She took the map from the man and stored it within her own S.C.T, then started dancing to the music once again, while singing along softly.
"Is your, um.. uh.. eh, heh, your um... thing.. that t-thick stack of cards, do you have it with you?" the man wondered.
"Just how dense do you think I am?! Of course I've got it with me," the woman responded sharply. She was a bit annoyed as she stopped dancing, crossed her legs and folded her arms, gazing out of the window to look at the passing scenery outside.
"I was just making sure, ma'am, no need to be so... hostile. Anyways, take this," he reached out and handed the woman a face-down card. "It may prove useful when you arrive."
"Thanks," she answered while taking the card. Stashing it away, she sighed heavily. "So, how much longer until we arrive at the airport?"
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Off in the distance, Seto Kaiba grinned evily. Mai was really obliterating Misty. There was nothing else the girl could do except lose. Seto was confident that no other card in Misty's deck would get her out of this bind. Although he and Misty were friends, he would not stand by and let her save the people that would eject him from his company and put him in prison: her sisters. Misty had lost all hope. She knew she had blew her chance. The duel was over. Mai's two trap cards really collaborated well with each other. Mirror Wall prevented her from attacking, and the Gorgon's Eye stopped from defending herself. She was virtually paralyzed! Misty knew that once Mai could attack and take out the rest of her life points, it would be all over. Mai smirked in glee.
"If I recall correctly, I remeber hearing a young, fiery red-head girl telling me about how she would win and I would lose..."
"Just shut it, Mai!" Misty snapped.
"Well, girl, you might as well forfeit. There's nothing you can do to stop me," she teased. "My strategy is top notch. Mirror Wall keeps you from attacking me, and Gorgon's Eye stops you from defending yourself. With those two cards, you're just a huge target waiting to be obliterated."
Misty sighed deeply. "She's right. There isn't anything I can do," she said and reluctantly drew a card, just for the sake of it. She looked at it, then placed onto the digital card reader. Her face started to brighten a little. "I'll summon one card, in attack mode," she said and watched it materialize onto the field. The card was a Suijin.
ATK: 2500 DEF: 2200
"Heh, you can't do anything else, hmm? A forfeit would've been easier, but I guess you're just allowing me to finish the match with a bang. How considerate of you," Mai said, and Misty rolled her eyes. "Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Suijin with Fearsome Fire Blast!" Mai shouted. The monster gathered a large breath, then spewed out red hot fire at Suijin. As the attack neared ever closer, Mai smiled. "This is the end of the line for you, girl. Get ready to cough up your stars."
"I don't think so! Suijin, raise Tidal Defense Shield!!" Misty announced. Mai let out a small gasp (as well as Seto) as a huge wave of water sprouted out of the ground. Harpie's Pet Dragon's fire blast plastered into the water, but the shield successfully negated the attack. Misty smirked and said, "Worked like a charm."
"What the... how did you manage to do that?! Gorgon's Eye stops any and all defenses! Your Suijin should've turned into stone!" Mai exclaimed.
"No, it wasn't supposed to turn into stone. Now, if I recall correctly, I remeber you telling me that Gorgon's Eye was a special trap card that turned all monsters played in defense mode into stone. I didn't play Suijin in defense mode; I played it in attack mode! Since it was in attack mode, your Gorgon's Eye couldn't work. Then, I activated Suijin's special ability when your Harpie's Pet Dragon attacked, protecting Suijin from the blast," Misty explained.
"No! I thought you were as good as gone!" Mai yelled. "Oh well, since you're determined to fight, I say let the duel continue. You may have Suijin out on the field, but it still can't attack any of my monsters, because my Mirror Wall won't let you."
"I'm not through yet, Mai," Misty retorted and drew a card. This time, she got a card called Gift of the Mystical Elf. "Ah ha! This is just what I need to put me back in the game! Mai, you may have knocked my life points down to a scarce 200, but it won't be like that any longer! I play Gift of the Mystical Elf!" Misty yelled, forcing Mai to gasp. "With my Gift of the Mystical Elf card, I will receive 300 life points for every monster on the field, including yours!" she announced.
"No!" yelled Mai.
Misty's card immediately went to work upon being place on the field. "I'll receive 300 life points from my Suijin, 300 life points from your Harpie's Pet Dragon, and 300 life points for each of your Harpie Ladies. Since there are three, I get 900 points from them. With all of the additional life points combined with my original 200 life points, my life points bin has now rocketed up to 1700!"
Misty's Life Points- 1700
"Weren't looking for that, were you, Mai?" Misty asked. Mai simply snarled in return. "Those 1700 points puts me back in the game, so this time I'm gonna be extra careful not to blow it," Misty muttered to herself.
Seto's eyes shot open. [I thought Misty was finished for sure; I had no idea she would pull off a move like that! C'mon Mai, don't let her stage a big comeback. Wipe her out!]
"I have to admit, that was a move I never expected from you. But, it still won't do you much good. In case you have forgotten, my monsters are still protected by Mirror Wall, which means your Suijin can't touch them. Now, all I've gotta do is work around your defense shield, and I think I know just how," Mai said and drew a card from her deck. It wasn't what she was looking for. "Drat! Oh well, I'll simply add this to my hand. Also, I'll give my Harpie's Pet Dragon another try at attacking your Suijin. Blast that blue box to ashes!" Mai yelled. Her monster spit out the fire beam at Suijin.
"Haven't learned a thing, have you, Mai? Suijin, raise Tidal Defense Shield!" Misty snapped. The wave of water rose up and protected Suijin from the fire blast. "Don't you get it? No matter how many times you come at my Suijin, your pet dragon's attack will never reach it. Not as long as it has Tidal Defense Shield to protect it. Now, you've given me another draw phase. I wonder what I'll do with it?" Misty spoke while drawing a card. The card turned out to be a Spirit of the Harp. She already had Witch of the Black Forest in her hand, so now she needed a Polymerization card to fuse the two monsters together. "No move this time, I pass."
Mai pulled up a card from her deck. She still didn't draw what she wanted. "Hmm... I'll pass my turn, since there's nothing I can do."
Misty smirked, then picked up a card from her deck. It wasn't Polymerization, but it could still come in handy later. "I'll lay out this card face-down and end my turn," Misty said while doing so. Mai drew a card from her deck. This time, she got just what she wanted.
"Perfect! Prepare to meet the card that'll end your little comeback, girl! I play the Shadow of Eyes!" Mai announced while slamming the card onto the field. Misty couldn't help letting out a gasp. "Ha! Watch the field, Misty. You'll see why Shadow of Eyes is going to put you out of commission," Mai commented. Suijin's little round Chinese symbol began to glow.
"My monster is preparing to strike!" Misty quipped in shock.
"That's right," Mai spoke in a sing-song fashion. "So, what are you waiting for Suijin? Attack my monsters with your powerful Tidal Surge attack!" she shouted. Suijin couldn't resist Shadow of Eyes' magic force and attacked Mai's Harpie Lady Sisters. Of course, since an attack was declared, Mai's Mirror Wall sprouted out of the ground to protect the ladies. The wave splashed against the wall, but it didn't get through. Suijin met an equal attack from its reflection. "All right!" exclaimed Mai. "Now your Suijin is gonna lose half of its attack and defense points!"
ATK: 1250 DEF: 1100
"And that makes it a big target for my monsters! Harpie's Pet Dragon, extinguish Suijin from the field! Fearsome Fire Blast!" The dragon obeyed Mai and launched its fire blast at Suijin. In all the excitement, Mai forgot about Misty's face-down card. She flipped it up quickly.
"Magical Hats, activate now!" she yelled. Mai's eyes bucked open as four black hats covered Suijin and shuffled around to a random pattern. Her monster's attack struck the third hat and utterly obliterated it. Smoke covered the field for a short time, and Mai hoped that she destroyed the right hat. But when the smoke cleared, nothing was underneath.
"Darn!" she stomped angrily. "Stupid Magical Hats! I would've taken a large chunk of your life points if you didn't have that stupid card out on the field! If my attack had succeeded, you would've had only 50 life points left!" Mai screamed in frustration.
"It's a good thing I played Magical Hats," Misty said, then drew a card from her deck. It was Pot of Greed, so she decided to play it, which allowed her to draw two more cards from her deck. She did so, and got a Polymerization card, along with Metalmorph. She added those two cards to her hand. "No move this time."
"Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack the second hat!" Mai commanded. The dragon performed its attack and wiped out the second hat. A huge explosion erupted, and wind blew against both Mai and Misty. When the smoke cleared out, Mai still hadn't managed to get Suijin. She sighed deeply. "Missed again," she muttered.
"I just love those Magical Hats," Misty commented, and Mai gagged in disgust. She drew a card from her deck, then her lips curved into a huge smile. "Now I've got all the cards I need to stage the perfect comeback!" she exclaimed. Mai's facial expression took a turn for the worst, as did Seto's. "Yahoo! Now, Mai, I've just drawn the card that'll bring down your so-called 'invincible' strategy! I play Remove Trap, which I'll use to exterminate your stupid Mirror Wall!!" Misty shouted. Mai gasped in utter surprise.
"Oh no!!" she shrieked. Seto's eyes popped open in disbelief.
[I can't believe it! She's actually managing to come back from behind! What if Mai loses?! What if Misty wins this match, then go on to win the tournament?! If the old wench finds the cure to my virus and heals her sisters and the boy, I'm gonna be doomed!!] he thought to himself. He began to fill with worry. Mai's Mirror Wall rose out of the ground and exploded into crystal shards. The Harpie Ladies and their pet shielded themselves from the sharp pieces. Mai watched what was happening, utterly shocked.
"She... sh-she.. she eliminated my Mirror Wall. That just about wrecks my strategy!" she yelled.
"Good riddance to that blasted Mirror Wall. Now, with that nuisance out of the way, it's time to began Phase 2 of my plan. I summon both Spirit of the Harp, and Witch of the Black Forest, both in attack mode!" Misty said while placing down the cards, bringing them into battle.
(Witch of the Black Forest) ATK: 1100 DEF: 1200 | (Spirit of the Harp) ATK: 800 DEF: 2000
"Then, I'll lay out this Polymerization card to fuse these two monsters together to create my favorite monster!" Misty stated while playing the card. Bright light erupted on Misty's side of the field, and a large warp appeared. The warp passed over the two monsters, sucking them into it. The warp then began to spin around extremely fast, making the two monsters look like blurs. Then, white light shone all over Misty's side of the field, and when it faded, the Musician King stood.
ATK: 1750 DEF: 1550
"Then, I'm gonna lay out this magic card called Metalmorph, which turns my Musician King into the more powerful Heavy Metal King! Oh, I just love that Heavy Metal King," she said. The transformation didn't take long to complete, and the Heavy Metal King now stood in the place in which The Musician King stood moments ago.
ATK: 2050 DEF: 1750
"Then, I'll release my Suijin back onto the field and end my turn."
Mai began to laugh in glee. "You mean, after all that talk, that's all you managed to put out on the field? You are a sad case, really. In case you haven't noticed, my Harpie Ladies and their pet dragon are far more powerful than that measly Heavy Metal King. I would attack your Suijin, but seeing as how the Heavy Metal King has a greater chance of defeating my monsters with power boosts, I'm gonna take it out! Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Heavy Metal King!" The dragon reared back and fired its beam at Heavy Metal King.
"Suijin, defend it with Tidal Defense Shield!" Misty yelled. Mai gasped as Suijin fired a beam of water into Harpie's Pet Dragon's fire beam and negated the attack. "Worked like a charm," Misty commented.
"But.. I thought Suijin could only defend itself from oncoming attacks. I didn't know that it could defend other monsters as well!" exclaimed Mai. (In case you didn't know, Suijin did defend Dark Magician in the anime episode where Yugi and Joey were dueling against Para and Dox)
"Thought wrong, tramp," Misty quipped, then pulled a card from her deck. She got just what she wanted, then placed it onto the field. "I'll summon one monster face-down. Now, Heavy Metal King, attack one of the Harpie Lady Sisters!"
"Wha.. you must be out of your mind! Your Heavy Metal King is no match for my Harpie Lady Sisters," Mai said.
"Oh, yeah? Then watch, look, and learn, Mai!" Heavy Metal King's attack strength began to rise as it stroked the guitar, which emitted a rising high-pitched noise. Sonic waves launched out of the guitar, heading toward the orange-haired Harpie Lady.
ATK: 2750
"It's attack power has increased by 700 points!" shrieked a surprised Mai.
"That's right, and 2750 attack points are more than enough to destroy that Harpie Lady with!" Misty confirmed as Heavy Metal King's attack struck the Harpie Lady. The waves were too much for her to handle and she shattered into pieces.
Mai's Life Points- 1700
"Now we're equal," snapped Misty, and Mai glared at her.
"Not for long," she retorted.
"Don't forget, Mai, your Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack strength has dropped by 300 because one of the Harpie Ladies have been destroyed," Misty informed her.
ATK: 2600
Mai simply snarled in disgust, then drew a card. "Hmm... I've still got two Harpie Ladies on the field, and the Harpie's Pet Dragon. Misty will be able to take Harpie's Pet Dragon out on her next turn, but she'll probably go for another Harpie Lady. Once she destroy it, Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack strength will lower even more. Then, she'll destroy the last one standing, which will cause my Pet Dragon's attack power to drop back to its original 2000 points. Then, she'll destroy it! I've got to take Heavy Metal King out immediately," she murmered to herself. "So, I'll just play another Elegant Egotist card to multiply the two Harpie Ladies already on the field!" she said while placing down the card. Each Harpie Lady produced two clones, so there was a total of six Harpie Ladies on the field once the process was complete. Mai smirked in delight. (Yes, Mai said in Episode 5 of the anime series that she would keep using that card over and over again to multiply her Harpie Ladies endlessly, but Joey defeated her before she could)
"So, that means Harpie's Pet Dragon attack power rises..." Misty started, and Mai finished for her.
"1200 points, which brings it total attack power level to..."
ATK: 3800
"3800 points!" Mai shouted, then laughed heartily. Misty sighed heavily and frowned. "And all 3800 points are aimed straight at Heavy Metal King! Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Heavy Metal King! Fearsome Fire Blast!!" Mai yelled in glee. Her monster obeyed her instruction and shot out a huge fire beam out of its mouth. Misty thought her monster was doomed, then she remebered something... As the attack neared ever closer, some blue fragments materializd out of thin air and formed into a blue, rubbery- looking monster which jumped in front of Heavy Metal King. The attack hit it instead and blew it into pieces.
"What the heck was that?!" Mai exclaimed.
"That blue thing you saw is a special, extremely rare monster known as Revival Jam. Revival Jam blocks any and all your monsters attacks. And the best thing about it is that it's indestructable! Which means it's gonna be reforming itself right about now!" Misty announced. Mai gasped in shock as the blue creature began reforming itself, just like Misty said. Once all the fragments merged together, it floated back into the holographic Revival Jam card.
"Ugh... it's disgusting!"
"Yeah, maybe to you it is, but to me, it's one of the cutest monsters ever made! And it's powerful ability is bringing me one step closer to victory," Misty commented. "As long as my beautiful Revival Jam is on the field, your supercharged dragon can't get anywhere near my monsters. But, my monsters can get yours! Heavy Metal King, attack one of those ugly, hideous Harpie Ladies now!" Heavy Metal King stroked the guitar and unleashed its attack.
ATK: 2750
The Harpie Lady didn't stand a chance against Heavy Metal King's attack and shattered into pieces. Mai's life point meter dropped again.
Mai's Life Points- 1400
Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack points dropped to 3500 (and of course, Heavy Metal King's power dropped back to 2050). "Now you're 300 life points behind me Mai, and your dragon lost 300 attack points. If I recall correctly, you told me I was doomed, remeber?" Misty jeered, then began laughing. She was finally starting to enjoy this duel, now that things were going her way. She was finally winning the duel, and she intended on keeping it that way. Mai frowned angrily.
"This duel isn't over yet!" she snapped. Of course, Seto was still standing in the distance watching. He was so nervous that his hand began to twitch. Seto was starting to get a little scared. If Misty won this duel, she had a chance at winning the tournament, and if she did that, he was basically sunk. If that old wench was as good as she stated, then chances are she would find a cure and administer it to the sisters. Then, it would be all over.
[Mai, you'd better not fail me. If you do, I promise there's gonna be hell to pay!] he thought.
Back to the duel, Mai was still trying to figure out what she should do to tip the scale in her favor. But, no ideas was coming to her mind. She drew a card, and it turned out being another Negate Attack card. It could come in handy for negating Heavy Metal King's next attack, but it wouldn't buy her much time because it was a one time only card. She placed it face-down. "Hmm... maybe I might have better luck attacking Suijin. I've gotta try something! Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Suijin!" Mai snapped. Her monster fired yet another wave of fire at Suijin, but Misty was prepared. Revival Jam materialized in front of Suijin and took the blow. It exploded into liquid, gooey pieces, then started rematerializing yet again. Mai was getting very annoyed at the creature. The creature reformed itself, then sunk back down into the holocard.
"My Revival Jam stopped another one of your attacks, and now, you've left me the chance of attacking another Harpie Lady. Go, Heavy Metal King, attack one!"
ATK: 2750
Harpie Lady was no match for the attack and burst into pieces. Mai lost yet another 300 life points, bringing her down to 1100. Her Harpie's Pet Dragon also lost another 300 points, dragging its attack power down to 3200. Mai was now 600 life points behind Misty. Soon, Misty was going to wipe her out unless she did something. "I switch all my Harpie Ladies to defensive mode!" Her monsters all huddled together.
"Running scared, eh, Mai?" Misty teased. Mai rolled her eyes and did not comment. Misty pulled up a card from her deck, then added it to her hand for later use. "Heavy Metal King, attack yet another Harpie Lady!" Misty commanded. Her monster's attack strength raised up to 2750 as sonic waves made their way toward a Harpie Lady.
"Not so fast, Misty! I play Negate Attack!" Mai stated and activated her magic card. A warp appeared in front of the Harpie Lady which absorbed the oncoming attack, then dissappeared. Mai sighed a sigh a relief. "That buys me a bit of time."
Heavy Metal King's attack power returned to 2050. "You may have gotten lucky enough to evade that attack, Mai, but next time, things will be different. Face it, Mai, there's only so much you can do to protect your Harpie Ladies without Mirror Wall..." before Misty could finish, Mai interrupted her.
"Don't even say it, 'cause it's not happening. I'll defeat you one way or another," she snapped and drew a card. Unfortunately, for her, it wasn't going to help her out of her current predicament. She added it to her hand. The only thing she could do was desperately try to destroy Heavy Metal King. Maybe there was a certain number of times Revival Jam could be used. "Harpie's Pet Dragon, try another Fearsome Fire Blast!"
"Trying again, Mai? When will you learn?" Misty jeered as the dragon's fire blast headed toward Heavy Metal King at blazing speeds. But, once again, the Revival Jam sprung out of its holocard and blocked the attack by allowing itself to be hit. It exploded into numerous pieces, but they began to reform themselves yet again. "Your monster's attack can't get anywhere near my monsters, because my adorable Revival Jam blocks all your attacks. Then, it keeps reforming because it's indestructable. No monster in all of Duel Monsters can destroy it. So, as long as I have this monster working for me, me and my monsters are indestructable!"
"She's right. With Revival Jam out on the field, I can't touch her," Mai acknowledged quietly.
"Heavy Metal King, strike again!" shouted Misty. The monster stroked the guitar and sent another wave of sonic waves at a Harpie Lady. The attack power rose up to 2750 again, which was enough to do away with the monster; it erupted into pieces. Mai didn't lose any life points because it had been switched into defense mode. Misty laughed and said, "How does it feel to be on the losing end? How does it feel to be totally powerless against your opponent, Mai? You can't touch me, thanks to my wonderful Revival Jam, but I can destroy any one of your Harpie Ladies, and eventually, I'll be able to do away with the dragon, too! After all your monsters are gone, there will be nothing standing between my monsters and you!" Misty told her. Then she cackled joyfully, obviously savoring the moment.
(Harpie's Pet Dragon) ATK: 2900 | (Heavy Metal King) ATK: 2050
[No, Mai! You cannot lose to Misty! You have to win, for my sake! Don't fail me, Mai, don't fail me!] Seto said mentally.
Mai didn't know what to do. Just as Misty said before, she was powerless against her now. With Revival Jam on the field, she couldn't hurt Misty's monsters, but Misty was free to attack any of her monsters. How could she get out of this mess? What if she couldn't get out of this mess? Mai pulled up a card from the deck. She didn't get anything that would help her out, so she simply added it to her hand. [There's gotta be a weakness somewhere. There must be a way to destroy Revival Jam. It can't be invulnerable, like Misty claims. Maybe, instead of trying to attack her monsters, I should try attacking it directly. I doubt it'll work, but I don't have any better ideas.] "This time, I'm gonna do something a little differenty. Instead of attacking your monsters, I'm gonna assault your Revival Jam directly! Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack Revival Jam!"
"Do you really think this is gonna work?" Misty inquired. Revival Jam sprouted out of the holocard and was struck by the fire blast. A huge explosion erupted on the field, but when the smoke cleared out, Revival Jam was reforming itself again. "Ah, it didn't work. My Revival Jam still stands, or should I say, float? Anyway, Heavy Metal King, let's obliterate another Harpie Lady!" Yet another Harpie Lady shattered into pieces after it met Heavy Metal's King's supercharged attack. Misty smirked defiantly at her triumph. She was beating Mai into a submission. Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack power dropped to 2600.
"I.. I'm losing..." Mai muttered to herself. It was starting to dawn on her that Misty was blowing her out. Could she possibly win? She had to win. Not only did she want the $10,000 dollars Seto Kaiba was offering her, but she would fail her mission if she lost. Somehow, someway, she had to get back in the game before it was all over.
"Only two Harpie Ladies and a dragon are left standing. After I get rid of them, you can kiss your life points goodbye," Misty chimed, grinning afterwards. [Don't worry, Lily, Daisy, Violet, I'll save you all if it's the last thing I do. Once I win the tournament, I'm gonna pay that wench the 3 million dollars so she can find a cure. Just hold on, sisters. I promise I won't let you down. I won't fail you; I can't fail you.] Mai reached out and drew a card, then gasped. She stood there staring at the card. Misty was confused as she watched her. What did she draw? Would it help her win, or was it starting to sink on her that she was losing? What was going on? All these thoughts pulsed through Misty's mind as she stared at Mai. Mai's lips slowly began to curve up into a smile.
"Well... well... well..." she spoke while looking up at Misty, "Look what we have here. Your Revival Jam is history, and so is you! I play this magic card, the Mystic Box!" she yelled and slapped it onto the card reader. Misty let out a gasp. "Allright, girl, watch the field." Mai's Mystic Box went to work. A box appeared around Harpie's Pet Dragon and locked it inside. Suddenly, a large array of swords and knives appeared out of thin air and skewered the box.
"You're... destroying your own monster?" Misty wondered.
"Maybe, maybe not. Did I destroy my own monster? It appears as though I did, seeing as how the box in which my Harpie's Pet Dragon was sealed in got skewered. But, look closely," Mai said. Another box materialized out of thin air next to the first one. The first box opened up to reveal Misty's Revival Jam monster covered in swords. Misty was surprised.
"What?! How'd my monster get skewered? Harpie's Pet Dragon was the one in the box!" she exclaimed.
"It's magic, baby. And that's only half of the trick. The best thing about it is, My pet dragon will emerge from the second box without a scratch." True to her word, the second box opened and Harpie's Pet Dragon emerged from the box in perfect condition. Misty eyes were simply bucked wide open in shock. "And now, to finish my turn, I'll play two cards: Reinforcements to increase my pet dragon's attack strength by 500 points, and a De-spell card to wipe out your Heavy Metal King's magic boost, turning it back into The Musician King!" Mai announced.
(Harpie's Pet Dragon) ATK: 3100 | (The Musician King) ATK: 1750 DEF: 1550
"And now, Harpie's Pet Dragon, attack The Musician King!" she shouted. The monster powered a large blast of fire and shot it out of its mouth, which obliterated the king from the field.
Misty's Life Points- 650
"We're not equal anymore, tramp. And without that disgusting Revival Jam to hide behind, there's nothing stopping me from blowing away your Suijin, then blowing away you!" Mai yelled. Then she started laughing in glee.
-----------------------------------------
Brock had begun to patch Tristan up inside the tint, but he started to cough up more blood, so Brock rushed him down to one of the medical centers on the shores of the island. After bursting through the doors and telling a nearby doctor of his internal injuries, the doctor rushed him into the Emergency Room to get him stabilized. Brock walked off into one of the bathrooms to put on some khaki cargo pants and a red jersey. After doing so, he slipped on some white tennis shoes, then came out of the bathroom. He made his way to the small waiting area and took a seat in one of the chairs. Rubbing his hands through his hair, he sighed heavily. He wished he hadn't been exploring that sunken plane. If he hadn't, he would've been able to defend Tristan from Surge. Brock hoped that his best friend would be all right; internal injuries could be quite serious. Brock also didn't know what he would going to do about his newfound abilites. What was wrong with him? What happened to him? The inscription also brought a gallon of stress.
(Flashback)
"Disturb not the ancient artifact within, For the cursed object will only bring complications to him who touch. This warning goes out to all people who seek the artifact, Do not listen to your greed, But, instead, take heed."
(End Flashback)
The inscription warned him that bad things would start happening to him. What kind of complications would arouse? How cursed was the artifact? What would become of him? Brock shook his head and sighed again. He was beginning to get scared. He was scared for his life. What if he would eventually... die? A voice spoke to him and startled him. He looked up to see the doctor standing beside the chair. Brock slowly began to stand up.
"Uh... I assume you've come to tell me about my friend?" he asked.
"Yes," the doctor nodded.
"Well, how is he?"
"He'll be fine, fortunately. His injuries weren't too bad; we got him stabilized very quickly. It's a good thing you came to us, young man. If you hadn't, he could've bled to death from the inside," the doctor told him.
"So, he'll be all right?"
The doctor nodded. "Yes. For the most part, his injuries have been taken care of. He'll still be rather sore, though. What happened to him anyway?" the doctor wondered.
Brock feared that if he told the doctor what really happened and the doctor contacted local security, they would investigate Surge, which would probably make the man hire an assassin to kill them both out of anger. So he decided to lie about what happened. "He.. uh, was trying an extreme stunt and he messed up," Brock said.
"Oh, well, you should tell him to watch himself. He could've hurt himself pretty badly."
"I'll do that. By the way, is he able to leave yet? And where can I find him?" Brock inquired.
"Yeah, he can leave, since his injuries have been taken care of. Your friend should be in room 97. Once you leave this waiting room, take a right and follow that cooridor all the way to the end. Then, take a left. His room should be there," the doctor stated, then walked off. Brock followed the directions the doctor gave him to Tristan's room. Once he arrived there, he opened the door and walked inside. Tristan was sitting on the foot of the bed slipping on some black tennis shoes. He looked up when Brock entered.
"Hey, man," he greeted.
"What's up?" Brock returned and slapped hands with him. "How are you?"
"I'm a bit sore," Tristan replied.
"The doctor said that you can go now. He said you'll be sore for a little while, though."
Tristan nodded, then said, "Stupid Surge. We need to find security and tell them about what he did."
"No, we shouldn't. It's likely Surge will attempt to assassinate us both if we get the cops on him. Remeber that day when Surge attacked you in your house? You did say he was extremely pissed because you got him locked up." (By the way, that was after I ended the scene, heh heh)
"I guess you have a point," Tristan answered reluctantly. "He'd better not attack me again, 'cause I'll kill him if he try," he said and got off the bed, heading toward the door. Brock got up and followed him. "I've had enough of this; he's going down if he messes with me again. Surge has attacked me, my Grandmother, you, all in an effort to get my two powerful cards. Well, if he bothers me again, that dick is going in the ground."
-----------------------------------------
Meanwhile, Surge was getting himself patched up by Vicki in his tint. Jason was off spectacting some duels nearby. As Vicki patched him up, he sighed heavily. He failed once again. He still hadn't managed to obtain those two powerful cards. Slifer The Sky Dragon and Obelisk The Tormentor are two of the most rare and powerful cards ever made from the game, and he had to get them, somehow, someway.
"Well, boss, what are you gonna do now?" wondered Vicki. She was still patching up Surge. Surge shifted to a more comfortabe position and scoffed.
"I don't know. This is really starting to get tiresome, to be so close to those cards and not get them. It's getting frustrating!" he snapped angrily.
"Boss, maybe you should give up and let him have the cards. I mean, they're not that special, right? They're not so important that you'll get a good pummeling over them, are they?"
"They are that important! One of them belonged to me!" Surge answered, then rubbed his hands through his spikey, messy, blonde hair. "Slifer The Sky Dragon was my card, and that dick had it taken from me! This is unacceptable! I won't be humiliated like this! I want my card back, and I want it now!!" he shouted in disgust.
"Calm down, boss, please," Vicki told him. "We'll find a way to retrieve the cards; you just have to give these things time, all right? You can't rush this, Surge. You're gonna have to wait it out."
"I don't wanna wait to get something that should've never left me."
"I know, and I wouldn't want to either, but sometimes, that's just the way life is. Deal with it. Now, after we get through patching you up, we'll go and spy on Tristan," she suggested.
"No, I'm going to pummel him, and force the cards out of his possesion!"
"Don't do that, boss! You see force isn't working, so back down!" Vicki yelled. Surge gave her a nasty glare, but she stared him down defiantly. Both of them looked at each other for awhile, then Surge turned away and sighed. "Now, listen up. If you play your cards right, you can have the two god cards. This is what we should do. We should watch Tristan for awhile and see if he leaves his cards alone or something, so that we can sneak in and grab them, then run off. It won't be that simple, of course, but it's better than running around, picking fights, right?"
"Whatever," Surge replied while shrugging.
"Perk up, boss," Vicki chimed. "Don't worry about it. We'll have those cards in your hands in a matter of time. Just let the prick think he's gotten away for now. Then, when the time is right, we'll strike and take them back, understand? Right now, the wisest thing to do is wait."
"Okay, I'll wait."
"Good," Vicki said, then continued patching him up. "Everything will be fine in due time."
-----------------------------------------
Misty's life points were now down at 650. Her strategy had been wrecked because Mai successfully destroy Revival Jam, which stopped all of Mai's monsters from attacking her. Harpie's Pet Dragon wiped out Heavy Metal King also. What was she going to do now? Harpie's Pet Dragon's attack points returned back to 2600. It was Misty's turn now, and she drew a card. She grinned slightly and added the card to her hand. Mai's eyes narrowed. "No move this time, Mai. I pass," she told her.
Mai couldn't help but be a bit on the precautious side. What was Misty up to? Why was she grinning? Mai knew Misty had some sort of trick up her sleeve, but what was it? There wasn't anyway she could know for sure, unfortunately. For now, the only thing she could do was attack... or, she could take a wait-and-see attitude. After drawing a card of her own, she said, "I pass my turn this time."
Misty rolled her eyes and sighed. [She's wrecking my strategy again. If she keeps taking a wait-and-see attitude, I'll never be able to make my play.] Misty pulled up another card from her deck. She eyed it, then looked up at Mai. "No move this time, either."
Mai's eyes narrowed again. She didn't know what Misty was up to, and there was no sure fire way to tell, either. She was sick of waiting around though; it was time to strike while she had the chance. "I may have passed a turn last time, but not this time around. I'm attacking your Suijin with my pet dragon. Fearsome Fire Blast!" she yelled. Harpie's Pet Dragon complied and blew up Suijin with its blast of fire, which was exactly what Misty wanted Mai to do. "There goes your Suijin, Misty. If you don't play a monster this time, I'll finish you off!"
"Thanks a lot, Mai," retorted Misty, who was grinning. "You attacked my Suijin, which was exactly what I wanted you to do. Now, I can play this Reborn the Monster card (Mai gasped) to revive it, and it'll be back at full power too!" she announced. Her magic card went to work, and within moments, a fully revitalized Suijin found its way onto the field.
ATK: 2500 DEF: 2200
"Oh no!" Mai gulped.
"Suijin, attack one of the remaining Harpie Ladies with Tidal Surge!" shouted Misty. The small, blue circle with a Chinese symbol on it began to glow, then a large, powerful wave of water shot out of it. The Harpie Lady was struck down and killed by the attack. Fortunately, for Mai, it was in defense mode. Unfortunately, for Mai, the Harpie's Pet Dragon lost another 300 life points, making it vulnerable to Suijin's next attack.
ATK: 2300
"Your Harpie's Pet Dragon is getting weaker and weaker everytime I destroy a Harpie Lady. Once I destroy it and the last remaining Harpie Lady, they'll be nothing left to defend you from my Suijin's watery wrath," Misty chimed. "You may have destroyed my Revival Jam, but I'll still defeat you without it."
Mai scowled at Misty and these turn of events. Things weren't going exactly as she planned them. She didn't want to admit it, but Misty was winning the duel, not her. Mai was a little surprised at how quickly the match got tipped in Misty's favor. When the duel first began, she was beating Misty into an utter submission. Misty was powerless against her strategy: the Harpie Ladies and their pet was too strong for her to handle. Or so she thought. Now, in just a few minutes, Misty was beating her. How could she turn this back around? Mai knew that Misty would destroy her last two monsters soon, then she would be open to direct damage. Something had to be done. Mai slowly pulled up a card from her deck. "My only move will be switching Harpie's Pet Dragon to defense mode," she spoke.
"Suijin, attack the last Harpie Lady! Tidal Surge!" Misty shouted. Suijin's powerful attack reached the Harpie Lady and struck it. The lady was no match for the attack, and it burst into several, small pieces. Harpie's Pet Dragon attack strength was now at 2000. "Allright! Just two more attacks and I win!" exclaimed Misty.
Mai knew she was right. She had nothing to use against her. All the Harpie Ladies had been destroyed, taking away all of Harpie's pet Dragon's attack boost. It was no match against Suijin now. Mai drew a card, then subtly gasped. She stared at the card for a little while, then added it to her hand. "I pass, do your worst."
"And that's just what I'll do. Suijin, attack the dragon!" Misty yelled. Suijin powered up once more and shot out the powerful wave of water which drowned the dragon, causing it to dissappear off the field. There wasn't any monsters left on Mai's side of the field, meaning that Misty could directly attack her life points on her next turn. Mai grabbed another card from the deck. It turned out to be a Reborn the Monster card. Mai suddenly started to piece an idea together in her head. This could be just what she needed!
"All right, Misty, I play this: Reborn the monster to ressurrect the previously destroyed Harpie's Pet Dragon!" Mai slapped the card onto the card reader, thus bringing forth the monster. It appeared on the field, snarling and growling viciously.
ATK: 2000 DEF: 1700 (?)
"And now, I'll play Gaia the Fierce Knight, in attack mode!" Mai summoned the creature onto the field, besides Harpie's Pet Dragon.
ATK: 2300 DEF: 2100
"Then, I'll wrap it up with this: a Ritual card!" she announced. Misty let out a gasp of fear.
"What?"
"I had nearly forgotten about this card. It was given to me a while back, in Celadon City (recognize something?). A friend of mine handed to me, claiming that it could be useful, and I think he may have been correct! This Ritual card will help get me out of this jam you've jutted me into, Misty! I'm sacrificing my pet dragon and my Gaia, in order to initiate the Black Luster Ritual!"
"I can't believe it," Misty said softly to herself. "I.. I wonder what's gonna emerge?"
Three black pots appeared. The one in the center of the three was fairly larger than the other two on the side of it. Some bluish aura emerged from the two smaller pots; Harpie's Pet Dragon and Gaia the Fierce Knight were sucked down into the pots. Moments passed, then smoke shot out of the central pot without warning. Then, a large, tall figure started to emerge from the central pot. The Black Luster Soldier floated out of the pot and slowly landed on the field as the ritual pots dissappeared.
"Surprised, Misty?" You can look out for a world of trouble now, but first, I'm ending my turn," Mai stated. She knew that if she attacked now, Misty would just negate her attack with the defense shield. Misty reached out for a card. She drew it, but unfortunately, she didn't get anything worthwhile. She cursed under her breath and passed her turn. Mai grabbed a card from her deck, hoping for a good one. Did she get it? Misty gulped as Mai drew the card. Seto was still as nervous as ever. What would card could it possibly be? Would it be nothing? Or could it possibly be the card that'll finish Misty off...
"This is perfect! I play Fissure!" Mai yelled while slamming the card down. Misty gasped in shock. "Ha, ha! Fissure is a card that can destroy one of your face-up cards with the lowest attack. Since the only card on your side of field is Suijin, that means it gets destroyed!"
"No!" Misty couldn't believe it. The holocard loaded, and two large, transparent hands appeared over the card. They reared back and struck the ground, causing a seismic shockwave which tore through the ground. The ground beneath Suijin collapsed, and the elemental box fell through and dissappeared off the field. Mai smirked triumphantly.
"There's nothing you can do to delay this, Misty. I told you I'd be the victor, and you'd be the loser, and what do you know? It's playing out just like I said it would! Now, prepare yourself Misty! Black Luster Soldier, attack Misty directly with your Chaos Blade attack!" Mai shouted defiantly. The soldier jumped into the air, then came back down and struck the ground with its sword, causing a powerful, yellow energy beam to flow through the ground. It hit Misty (picture a slow-motion scene of Misty falling toward the ground for about 3 1/2 seconds) and knocked her onto the ground, but she wasn't hurt at all. Mai cackled obnoxiously.
Misty's Life Points- 0
Seto's face lightened up and his lips curved into a devious smile. [Hmm... gave me a lot of tense moments, Mai, but well done, nevertheless. You shall get your reward,] he thought to himself, then walked back toward the entrance of the cave, eager to crush more duelists. Now that Misty was out, he had nothing to worry about any longer.
Misty looked up in time to see her life points spiral down to 0. Her face took on a look of utter shock as she layed there in disbelief. She lost... she lost the duel. It was all over, now she could never save her sisters. Now that she was officially out of the tournament, she could never get the money needed to pay the old wench in order to get her help. And that meant that her sisters were doomed. She failed them... in essence, she killed them... Mai walked over to Misty and grabbed her arm tightly. She ejected the stars out of Misty's dueling glove, then shoved her arm back onto the ground. Scrapping them up, she inserted them onto her dueling glove and smirked. She was officially in the main tournament, much to her pleasure. She then started walking off, not saying a word to Misty. Misty got off the ground and darted pass Mai angrily, tears forming in her eyes. Her sisters were going to die, and there was nothing she could about it...
(Ending Discloser Below.) --Episode Written By: GateGuardian3500-- Once again, I am terribly sorry for the long wait. My life can be very unpredictable at times... Anyways, I apologize again because this episode was a little shorter than the others before it. But, there wasn't a whole lot that could be done this time around. The main focus of the episode is the showdown between Misty and Mai itself, hence the title name. I threw in the scenes with Brock/Tristan and Vicki/Surge to move their little story arc along, and to plump out the episode so that it wouldn't be overwhelmingly short. I don't know when the next episode will be up, but I will try to get it up as fast as I can. Let's just hope that no more of that disgusting Writer's Block rear its ugly head any time soon. Peace out, and thanks to all that gave my fanfic a chance! I really appreciate that!