A/N: Refer to Chapter 25.

Wolf: Glad you're enjoying so far. Picked that ending pretty well, didn't I? Seemed like the best split.

Monica: It's a vague reference to the government, especially in times when rumors of spying abound. When "Big Brother's watching", that means you're being spied on by the government and you'd better be on your best behavior.

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"Red-Moon Baby (700/1000) in defense mode, end turn."

"Sanga, attack Aqua Madoor." Another blast of lightning caused the water magician to explode. "End turn."

"Bite Shoes (500/300) in defense mode, end turn."

"Sanga, attack Bite Shoes." Lightning wrapped around the small pair of fiend-possessed high heels. "End turn."

I REALLY need to get rid of that Light of Intervention card! Bite Shoes might have bought me a chance if its flip effect had taken place! Kyle drew his next card and blinked. Well, this might do. "I play Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your Light of Intervention."

"Activate trap card Magic Drain," Zack responded. "Unless you discard another magic card from your hand, the effect of your Typhoon is negated and Light stays on the field."

"I can't discard another magic card."

"Then in that case, Light sticks around." Zack smirked. "You'll have to do better than that. You have to figure out how to destroy the armor before you can destroy the person inside it."

Kyle sighed. "Fine. In that case, I'll play Neo the Magic Swordsman (1700/1000) in defense mode."

"Activate Bottomless Trap Hole," was the reply. "It destroys a summoned monster whose attack points are 1500 or higher."

Kyle nearly pounded his pedestal in frustration as the Neo hologram disappeared in a crag not unlike that of a regular Trap Hole. Now I'm only down to one defensive monster, and if he has another trap card like that, my Life Points are down the drain! "End turn, then, if you're so determined to make me get rid of my monsters."

"I told you, Kyle, I'm a tough competitor. If you're going to have Sanga, you'll have to be able to stand up to all sorts of people like me. I recruited you because I think you've got the ability to become an expert duelist, with or without Sanga. Show me how badly you want to prove me right."

Zack drew his next card. "All right. First, I place one magic/trap face-down. Next, I play Witch of the Black Forest (1100/1200) in attack mode."

On Zack's field, there appeared a three-eyed woman with dark hair and even darker robes.

"After that, I play the ritual magic card Novox's Prayer."

Behind Witch of the Black Forest, a small girl looking to be a dead ringer for Little Red Riding Hood wavered into existence. She had a determined look on her face, and her fingers were interlaced in prayer. Kyle watched in curiosity.

"In order to fulfill the conditions of this card, I have to sacrifice monsters from my field and/or my hand. Their total level stars have to equal at least 7. Witch of the Black Forest is level 4, and the Dark Witch in my hand is level 5, more than enough to accommodate the cost."

Zack's Witch was suddenly engulfed in blue flame and vanished from her position on the field.

"After fulfilling the conditions of Novox's Prayer, I can ritual summon Skull Guardian (2050/2500) in defense mode."

In Witch's place there appeared a slender humanoid creature clad in brown and silver armor. Its forearms were actually long blades, and its helmet looked as if it should belong on an insect's head. It knelt down and crossed its blade-arms in front of its body in an X-shaped defensive position.

"Beyond that, I also gain the effect of Witch of the Black Forest, of which I'm sure you're aware."

Yeah, yeah, get a monster in your deck that has a defense of 1500 or less... Kyle nodded.

After gathering his new monster into his hand, Zack frowned and chewed his lip a moment. "You know, come to think of it, I don't really need this, and I would really like something else."

"And how do you intend to get what you want?"

"Simple." Zack placed another magic card on his rear field. "I play Card Destruction, to demolish each and every card in our hands in exchange for the same number of cards off the tops of our decks."

Kyle ground his teeth in frustration. Not only am I losing Weather Report, Crass Clown, and Magician of Faith, but I'm also losing Launcher Spider, my best defense! I can only hope I get something good in exchange...

Zack inspected his new card and nodded in approval. "Yep, this was exactly what I wanted. All right, then. I place another magic/trap card face-down on the field. And finally... Sanga, destroy Red-Moon Baby."

The minuscule zombie vanished under Sanga's assault.

"Your move."

Kyle pulled the next card off the top of his deck – and audibly sighed with relief. This might be the turning point. "I play Monster Reborn, to return my Amphibian Beast to the field in attack mode."

Zack raised an eyebrow. "Okay, then. You're aware putting it in attack mode endangers your Life Points, right?"

"Not if its attack power is higher than Sanga's." Kyle smirked. "Now I play the equip card Malevolent Nuzzler, to increase Amphibian Beast's attack power to 3100. I think that goes beyond Sanga's tolerance."

From one of Kyle's formerly empty m/t holo-plates, there emerged a sadistic-looking, three-eyed, green-skinned female. The area below her torso was hazy, as if she was a genie, and she wrapped herself around the giant aquatic creature to accentuate that appearance. She grinned evilly at Zack's field of monsters.

"It does, but if you want to attack Sanga, you'll need a hell of a lot more Life Points than you've got right now to stay in the game after such a disastrous decision."

"Who said I was going after Sanga? I just need to keep my attack power higher than yours, that's all. And it doesn't look to me like any of your other monsters have a similar effect, so with that said... Amphibian Beast, attack Skull Guardian!"

But even as Kyle's Amphibian Beast leapt forward, Zack began to laugh. "You're way too predictable, Kyle. Activate Enchanted Javelin!"

A jewel-encrusted spear appeared on Zack's field and bolted toward Amphibian Beast as the massive, magic-enhanced creature bore down upon the defensive Skull Guardian. The mystical weapon shot through the huge reptile, but did no apparent damage to it, and in the meantime, it rent Skull Guardian to shards with its razored claws.

There had to have been more to that trap than just some fun light effects...

Zack's grin confirmed that thought. "Take a look at my Life Point counters, Kyle."

Kyle did so – and did a double take.

Where they had once displayed 2300 in bold white, now they read 5400.

"Thanks to the effect of my Enchanted Javelin, I gain Life Points equal to the attack strength of an attacking monster. Simple math should tell you the rest. I should thank you – without that attack, I'd still be sitting on a measly 2300."

"Don't expect to stay there for long," Kyle responded, though the response was only half-hearted. Now what am I going to do? He's got nothing to worry about as long as he keeps his other monsters in defense mode, and I can't even try to attack Sanga unless I want to lose the game...

Zack smirked. "I'd love to see how you plan to do something about it."

"You'll see soon enough. I end my turn."

Zack drew his next card, then looked up at Kyle. "Not gonna play anything this turn. Your move."

"Fine." Kyle drew, inspected the card a moment, then shrugged. "Think I'll hang on to this one. Amphibian Beast, attack his Gyakutenno Megami."

Another swiping claw attack bore down on the elf equipped with the Horn of Light. She emitted a short shriek before shattering under the blow.

"Looks as if you're starting to make a comeback," Zack noted casually.

"It does, at that. End turn."

Zack drew, then again said, "I'll end my turn without playing anything."

Kyle began his turn, drew, then ordered, "Amphibian Beast, attack his face-down monster."

Yet again, his massive creature came through and sliced Zack's other Gyakutenno Megami to nothingness.

That brings him down to Sanga as the last Duel Monster blocking my way to his Life Points. "End turn."

"Goody." Zack drew his next card, then looked up at Kyle. "Having fun yet?"

"It's only really fun to me when I'm winning," Kyle admitted. "Right now I've got a way to go yet to do that."

"And after this turn, you're going to be even further away. I equip Sanga of the Thunder with Bright Castle." As Zack placed his magic card on the field, a miniature castle with white spires formed underneath Sanga, and the huge Duel Monster gained a whitish aura about it. "This magic card increases Sanga's attack power by 700, much like your Malevolent Nuzzler. Only difference is that it can only be equipped to Light monsters. So now Sanga has 3300 attack points. Sanga, attack his Amphibian Beast!"

"Activate Waboku!" Kyle hurriedly announced, flipping over his face-down trap to supplement the command. At least I'll be able to stop his attack–

"Activate Seven Tools of the Bandit," Zack responded calmly, and he turned over his own trap card. As the protective translucent shield of Kyle's Waboku appeared on the field, the distorted Swiss army knife of Zack's Seven Tools did the same. This time it used its corkscrew to punch a hole through the shield and shatter it – its use reduced Zack's Life Points to 4400.

The familiar lightning attack speared through the huge Fish-type Duel Monster and reduced it to fragmented holographic glass, which vanished but a moment later – along with Kyle's Malevolent Nuzzler. Kyle's Life Points scrolled down to 850.

Damn it! He's taken out my trump card! And Monster Reborn is restricted, so I can't bring it back again!

"I end my turn there."

Kyle sighed and drew his next card. Pretty much all I can do is buy time for myself until another strategy comes along. "I play Spirit of the Harp (800/2000) in defense mode, and then play the field magic card Chorus of Sanctuary. This powers up the defense of every defensive monster on the field by 500 points."

"Which still isn't enough to save your Spirit."

"No, but it'll give me a little time, at least. I also place one magic/trap card face-down and end my turn."

"Hnh." Zack drew, then looked back to Sanga. "Sanga, take out his Spirit of the Harp."

Another bolt of lightning incinerated Kyle's monster.

"This is getting a little monotonous, wouldn't you agree?" Zack inquired.

"I'd say so. What, you expect me to quit?"

"Not really. Just trying to see what you'd be inclined to do at this point."

"I'd keep playing. After all..." Kyle smirked. "...you're the one that thought I could do this. So with that challenge presented to me, I have to find a way to make it work."

"Good for you. I'll end my turn and watch the sparks fly."

Kyle drew his next card, and then fought very hard to keep a grin from spreading on his face. Just when I thought I had nothing left. He looked to his field. Gotta keep playing. See where it goes. "I place Magician of Faith (300/400) in defense mode. Chorus of Sanctuary increases her defense power to 900."

"Even worse than its predecessor."

"True. Not that I'm worried. You can only attack once. I place one magic/trap face-down, as well, and end my turn."

"Heh. You seem pretty confident for someone who's got barely anything left to lose." Zack drew. "Sanga, destroy his Magician of Faith."

The familiar lightning strike swept over Kyle's monster and sent it to the grave as it had all its predecessors...

But when the smoke from that attack cleared, Zack found himself surprised to see that one of Kyle's trap cards had flipped face-up. "What's this?"

"A trap, of course. And a particularly fun one, at that. It's Michizure, and it can only be activated when you destroy one of my monsters... something you seem to have made a hobby of doing. Think of it as a little revenge. When you destroy one of my monsters, I get to destroy one of yours. And in this case, how can I help but choose Sanga?"

Zack could only watch helplessly as a pair of massive arms shot up from the m/t slot on which Kyle had placed his trap card. The arms reached out and encircled Sanga, then dragged the monster into the dark recesses from which they'd come.

"Good," Kyle said. "Now we've got a little room to maneuver."

Zack pursed his lips. "That's irritating. But don't worry, he'll show up again."

"Not if I take out your Life Points before then. That was your last monster. Of course, you're free to put another one on the field... or even more than one, considering that Ultimate Offering trap you've still got active. That's assuming, of course, you have any monsters in your hand."

Zack scowled. "I don't. My turn's finished."

"Great." Kyle drew, then grinned. "Looks like things are starting to look up for me. I place two magic/trap cards face-down, and then play Mad Sword Beast (1400/1200) in attack mode!"

A quadrupedal creature with a hard shell protecting its back and a vicious steel spike on the tip of its snout appeared on Kyle's field, apparently ready to take on any and all opposition.

"Mad Sword Beast, attack his Life Points directly!"

The Duel Monster charged across the field and struck the base of Zack's pedestal, which bucked under the simulated hit. Zack stumbled and instinctively grabbed for the railing around him to help steady himself. His Life Point counters descended to 3000.

Kyle looked on in satisfaction. "That'll work. My turn ends there."

"Good to know." Zack drew, then chuckled. "Okay, then. You've made a good comeback, but now it's my turn. I play Seiyaryu (2500/2300) in attack mode!"

A pinkish dragon with tapered wings shimmered into existence, glaring at Kyle's Mad Sword Beast with eyes of yellow flame.

"It's not sticking around long. Activate Trap Hole!"

As had happened to Kyle's Amphibian Beast the first time he'd tried to summon it, Zack's Seiyaryu vanished in a crag that had spontaneously opened underneath it. Zack muttered a curse under his breath.

Kyle found himself slightly amused by his friend's frustration. "Since you didn't counter my trap, I assume you didn't have anything to counter it with. So I'll activate another of my face-downs, Jar of Greed, which allows me to draw one card."

"You do that."

"I am." Kyle picked up the next card from his deck. "Anything else?"

"Nope, looks like that'll about do it. Your turn."

"Good." Kyle drew another card, then looked at the field. "Okay, first thing's first. I play Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your Light of Intervention."

Zack harrumphed as he discarded his trap card. "Thus allowing you to play your monsters face-down once again."

"That's the idea. And then I do exactly that – one monster in face-down defense mode. Mad Sword Beast, attack his Life Points again!"

Again, Mad Sword Beast rushed forth and slammed itself into Zack's pedestal. Zack again had to grab the railing to stay steady on the platform as his Life Points were reduced to 1600.

"That's more like it," Kyle said, grinning. "That'll end my turn."

"Hm. You like that, do you?" Zack drew his next card. "Then you'll love this. I play Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two more cards from my deck." He slipped the next two cards off the top of his deck and added them to his hand. "Good. Now I play Thunder Nyan-Nyan (1900/800) in attack mode."

An infantile Duel Monster bearing a set of drumsticks and crouched behind a set of drums – drums? – appeared, looking ready to pound away and presumably destroy its opposition.

"Thunder Nyan-Nyan, attack Mad Sword Beast!"

But just as Zack's monster began beating away on her drum set, Kyle responded. "Activate quick-play magic card, Rush Recklessly! This increases the attack power of one of my monsters by 700 for the duration of the turn. Mad Sword Beast, take it to 'em!"

With an abrupt boost to an attack power of 2100, Mad Sword Beast charged and smashed into Thunder Nyan-Nyan, which only had time to emit a sharp squeak before it vanished into nothingness. Zack's Life Point counters continued to descend, this time to 1400.

"I'm not finished," Zack vowed. "I'll put my Ultimate Offering card to use, and sacrifice 500 Life Points to place one monster on my field face-down." His Life Points scrolled down to 900.

"Fine by me," Kyle shrugged. "You done?"

"For now."

Kyle smirked as he drew his next card. "Not just for now. For the duel. I play Remove Trap, which allows me to destroy one face-up trap card on your field – in this case, Ultimate Offering."

Zack silently discarded his Ultimate Offering card.

"Now I reveal my face-down monster, Hane-Hane (450/500), whose special effect allows me to return one monster on the field to its owner's hand – regardless of whether it's face-up or face-down. So... back to your hand with that monster."

Zack frowned as he collected his monster from the field. "And without my Ultimate Offering card, I can't bring it back out."

"Exactly. And now all I need to do is attack. So... Mad Sword Beast, attack his Life Points and finish this duel up."

For a fourth and final time, Mad Sword Beast crashed into Zack's platform, and this time, the Life Points of Kyle's opponent finally dropped to rock bottom.

Zero.

Kyle let out a colossal breath he didn't even know had built up inside his chest as he stared at the expired Life Point counters. They didn't change – didn't shoot back up unexpectedly, didn't shift around up and down... they simply stayed right there.

I... won?

Zack, for his part, was content to offer Kyle a small smile. "Well, Kyle. It looks like we were both right about you. Even though you're officially at a relatively amateur level, you've got great potential when you know how to play the game."

He collected his deck, then pressed a button on his pedestal, and the platform responded by lowering itself to the ground. Kyle, after a few moments, did the same. They both walked around to one side of the massive holo-field, which was audibly powering down.

Zack's small smile was still there. Kyle's expression was one of slight dumbfoundedness. The older man chuckled. "Why're you so surprised, Kyle? You knew what you were doing. So it's only right that you're rewarded with this."

He held out his Sanga of the Thunder card – no longer his, but Kyle's. His smile widened. "Take it, Kyle. You've earned it today."

Slowly... gingerly... Kyle reached out and took the card.

Zack's smile receded somewhat. "Treat him with respect. Don't just get a thrill out of the power he wields. When you play him... make sure to protect him. And he'll protect you in return."

Kyle nodded slowly. "I will. I promise."

"Good." Zack emitted a sigh. "You probably won't see me for a while. I've got some things to work out, came up recently. Don't worry, if you need cards, you know how to find my website. I'll even give you a discount every so often. And I'll keep in touch."

Kyle cocked his head. "You're gonna leave so soon? This doesn't have anything to do with Jade, does it?"

Zack shook his head in response. "Nah. Just things I need to take care of. Besides which..." He offered another small smile. "She's your problem, now."

The older duelist turned toward the hallway and made his way up it. "I'll keep in touch. In the meantime, savor your victory. And make sure to get yourself some more like it." As he was about to turn the corner at the end of the hallway, he winked at his conqueror.

That was the last moment Kyle would see Zack for a long time.

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Okay! Thus concludes the Fury of Thunder dualogy. Next up, Kyle prepares himself for the coming realities of growing up and entering college, and he establishes an unexpected rapport with a longtime enemy. Stay tuned, and please do review!