A/N: Part 2 of Kyle's final duel against Jade.
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Kyle's LP - 1800
Jade's LP - 2200
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Jade drew her next card, contemplated it for a moment as Solemn Wishes boosted her LP another 500 points, and then set the card she'd just drawn onto the field. "One card face-down, and then I play the magic card Change of Heart on your Blue-Eyes!"
Kyle narrowed his eyes. No way to counter that. Damn it.
The massive dragon obediently crossed the alley and repositioned itself alongside Jade's face-down. It looked disturbingly comfortable there.
Jade looked up – way up – at the holographic creature. "This is ridiculous. Even Cosmo Queen isn't this tall. I'm going to need a megaphone to order my attack, or it'll never hear me."
Kyle scoffed. I see I'm not the only one to think that! "This is why the duel platforms are so tall, I'll bet."
"Bet Kaiba's gotten more than one crick in his neck," she agreed. "But thanks to Change of Heart, it's following my orders for a turn. Let's see how well it does; Blue-Eyes, attack his Wall of Illusion!"
First I'm ordering Monica's monster around, and now Jade's doing it, too. How irritating. And what's more, that attack will win the duel unless... Kyle frowned as he pressed one of his m/t activation buttons. "It won't work as well as you think. Activate Waboku."
A translucent wall of light appeared in front of the Wall of Illusion and absorbed the dragon's attack, which unhindered would have won the game for Jade.
Undaunted, Jade shrugged. "Jury says: double-edged sword. Why do you think I attacked Wall specifically? If it won't win me the duel, I'm going to make fine and sure that I put its effect to good use."
"Yeah, yeah," Kyle mumbled. For the second time, Blue-Eyes vanished from the field as Kyle removed its card from his duel disk and put it back into his hand. Waboku doesn't stop an attack, only attack power, so Wall's effect worked. And against Blue-Eyes. Damn it.
You still have several monsters at your disposal to sacrifice for it.
And she'll keep trying to take Blue-Eyes off the field. Not right now, thank you.
"That ends my turn," Jade announced.
Kyle drew his next card. "I seem to be low on a hand at this point. So I think I'll play Pot of Greed." He drew his next two cards, and frowned at them.
"Hm," he said, after a moment of contemplation. "Well, then." He reached over to his disk and turned over one of his monster cards. "I flip Magician of Faith (300/400) into attack mode." He took only a moment to choose the magic card he desired from his graveyard – it was the one he'd just put there. "And then I'll play Pot of Greed once more."
Jade rolled her eyes. He pointedly ignored the expression. Sorry if I'm boring you. "Then I switch Wall of Illusion to defense mode once again, and sacrifice my Magician for Total Defense Shogun (1550/2500) in defense mode."
Kyle offered a grim smile to Jade. "I'm sure you recall his effect. Shogun, attack her face-down monster!"
As Shogun charged forward, Jade hit a magic/trap activation button. "Activate Waboku. But since you're so eager to know, my face-down is Maiden of the Moonlight (1500/1300)."
"Goody. No hidden effects. Your Maiden is going down next turn, though. That ends my turn."
"I draw," Jade said, eyeing her next card, "and play my Graceful Charity." Solemn Wishes, seeming to have become a permanent fixture on her field, adjusted her LP accordingly, putting her at 3700. "And that'll be enough for this turn."
Kyle felt a small twitch of impatience in his left eye – though for her Solemn Wishes or her apparent lack of a plan, he wasn't sure. I'd just as soon get on with this game and find a victor. I can't waste my time anymore. He drew, and then looked down at the Blue-Eyes in his hand. Thusly... back to the field with you, whether or not I feel you're mine. "I sacrifice my two remaining face-down monsters to once again play Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)."
She frowned. "I'm beginning to feel sorry for that poor thing. You don't seem to be a very good dragon duelist."
Kyle glared venomously at her. "I don't recall asking your opinion." Then he let out a small sigh. "I'm not a dragon duelist. I'm using it to help me win. As it stands, neither I nor Blue-Eyes need your sympathy. So don't bother. Blue-Eyes, attack her Maiden!"
She laughed. "Activate Enchanted Javelin!"
He closed his eyes and shook his head – thus he missed the dramatic sight of a jewel-encrusted javelin appearing on the field and spearing straight through the huge dragon. It didn't stop Blue-Eyes from attacking, however; the great blast of lightning washed over Jade's Maiden of the Moonlight and vanquished it in an instant.
Still, the destruction of her monster was overshadowed by the sudden skyrocketing of Jade's Life Points by 3000.
Kyle pursed his lips as Maiden vanished under the attack. "Your monster is still destroyed, so no sacrifice fodder for you. End turn."
Kyle!
What?
You ended your turn without instructing your Shogun to attack?
It's in defense mo– oh. Damn it!
You forgot its effect? Is its effect not precisely why it is one of your favorite cards? This duel is hinging on her fluctuating Life Points more than anything else; you opened her defenses and you did not attack?
It was a brain fart, Theoris, I'll make up for it.
..."Brain fart"?
Oh, never mind! You don't want to know anyway. This entire discussion manifested itself on Kyle's face as an expression of disgust almost instantly after he announced the end of his turn, and he whapped his forehead with his free hand. "Damn it, damn it, damn it..."
Unable to witness Kyle's self-punishment with a straight face, Jade started to laugh. Between giggles, she commented, "I don't know what you were just thinking, Kyle, but oh, the look on your face right now..."
He scowled at her. "I'm glad you're amused. I should have ordered Shogun to attack your Maiden so that Blue-Eyes could have wrecked you more easily. It's now your turn, so I hope you appreciate my brain's temporary leave of absence."
"Oh, quite," she replied, still chuckling as she drew her next card. "But then, it's hard not to be amused at 7200 LP. I'll play a monster in defense and end my turn."
He ground his teeth as he drew his next card. Damn it. I've given her almost double her starting Life Points. Like I hadn't even touched them. Better start changing that about now. "I play Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your face-down magic/trap card."
"Dark Spirit of the Silent," she called, holding it up briefly before putting it into her graveyard slot.
"Hrm. Maybe I should've gone after Wishes." Kyle harrumphed. "Doesn't matter. Blue-Eyes, attack her monster!"
Blue-Eyes's mouth craned open and loosed another terrible blast of blinding white energy. The crackling burst stream of energy tore through the card and the seemingly frail Magician of Faith (300/400) beneath it. Jade recalled one of her magic cards to her hand, courtesy of the spellcaster's effect.
"And now, with that out of the way... Shogun, attack her Life Points directly!"
Total Defense Shogun leaped up – though curiously, he still looked as if he was crouched behind his massive shield – and brought a massive sword to bear on Jade. Again, the simulated explosion of a direct attack pushed her back a bit, though not nearly as strongly this time around.
"Good," Kyle said in satisfaction, as his Shogun returned to his defensive position next to Blue-Eyes. "That ends my turn."
"I draw, and then replay my Graceful Charity. You really ought to think about getting a Solemn Wishes card yourself, Kyle," she noted, again discarding two cards from her hand by her Charity.
"I'll give that serious consideration," he responded. "Later. We have a duel yet unfinished right now."
"Oh, don't worry about that. I'll play one card face-down, and a monster in defense. Your turn once more."
"Good." Kyle drew his next card...
And he temporarily forgot how to breathe. Oh, you've GOT to be kidding me...
Is there something wrong, Kyle?
You're looking at it, same as me. You figure it out.
It is your decision to make the play, Kyle. It always is.
I know. Wish I didn't feel so guilty about plays like this when they pop up. He looked up at Jade, who seemed ready to tap her foot in her impatience for him to make a move. She probably knows I've got Bickuribox. Wonder what she'd make of this.
Ah, to hell with it, Kyle, just do it.
He nodded once, mostly to himself, and then slid a card into an empty slot, his heart once more leaping to his throat as he did so. "I play Polymerization."
Jade's eyebrow quirked upward, but she said nothing.
"Don't think I'll use any of those weaker fusion monsters, either," he said. "I'm assuming you wanted an all-out fight from me... correct?"
"That's right," she affirmed. "Show me what you've got."
"Only the best." He pulled the Blue-Eyes on his disk off the playing field once more. "I tribute the Blue-Eyes White Dragon on my field... and the other two I've got in my hand..."
He clicked his fusion deck slot open, removed the only fusion monster in it that really mattered now, and placed it on the field.
"...to form Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon (4500/3800)."
The Blue-Eyes White Dragon hologram vanished, only to be replaced by another dragon twice its size – which was, no doubt, a massive drain on the substantial batteries of the holoprojectors.
The three heads of the famed Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, whose gargantuan form was even more threatening than those of the creatures used to create it, snarled down at Jade. The vibration of the low-pitched noises rattled through both duelists, across the ground, and even made the other holograms on the field shimmer just the slightest bit.
Jade took an instinctive step backwards. She knew that it was a hologram, a production of prisms and light, and yet she still felt awed by the sheer size and power of the creature before her.
"Impressive," she managed, her green eyes never leaving the colossal monster. "But you still won't win."
"If I don't, then I don't," he said nonchalantly. "But I get the impression that this is about the most powerful monster you've faced in your career as a duelist, so I'd advise you to respect it as such. Unfortunately, Ultimate Dragon can't attack this turn, since it's a fusion. But Shogun isn't bound by the same restriction. Shogun, attack her monster!"
"Activate Negate Attack!" she called hurriedly, scrambling to activate the corresponding trap as Kyle's monster bounded forth.
Shogun's sword was raised over the hologram of the only face-down monster card on her field, but as soon as the words were out of her mouth, and along with it the according trap flipping face-up, the defensive warrior stopped his attack and returned to Kyle's field wearing a slight scowl of disappointment.
"I stand blocked," Kyle noted. "And that'll end my turn."
Jade's eyes had yet to leave the Ultimate Dragon, but she pulled them away as she drew her next card. "I've no shame in admitting that – yes, it is the most powerful monster I've ever faced, Kyle. But even something as powerful as the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon isn't immune. First, I play Dian Keto, for an extra 1000 LP, and then I activate the power of the magic card Soul Exchange, to sacrifice my face-down Fire Sorceress (1000/1500) and your Ultimate Dragon for my Cosmo Queen (2900/2450)!"
Kyle stared at her in anger and frustration as Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon vanished into smoke in the wake of Cosmo Queen's summoning. After all that, it was STILL a waste! "You really are trying to wreck me, aren't you?" he said.
"What did I call this duel, Kyle? One of ultimate stakes. If you want the short answer, then yes, I am. If you want the real truth, it's because I respect you."
"What kind of respect makes you want to take from me what I've worked so hard to hold on to?" he asked her, his eyes taking a desperate light.
"You said it yourself. I don't duel those who aren't worth my time."
"Damn it, Jade, I'm a nobody!" he yelled. "I'm not worth anything here! Here, or anywhere else!"
She regarded him coolly. "You know damn well that's not true."
"Do I? All these pretenses, innuendos, veiled threats, money... and for what? This?!" He held up one of the cards left in his card. "A piece of glorified card paper? Damn it..." He stared at the ground, and gathered himself up. He heaved a sigh, then looked back up at her. "Fine. Fine. Let's play this through. I refuse to cower now."
She looked at him in curiosity. "Kyle... if it's just a card game... why are you so upset?"
He took another deep breath and expelled half of it. "This is more than just some random card game to me. More than just a fad I got into." He stared across the field and gazed into her green eyes. "You know what I'm talking about. I know you do."
"Yes. And that'swhy you don't cower. Your turn," she responded, leaving him to ponder what she'd meant.
He blew the rest of his breath out his nose and hastily slipped the next card off the top of his deck.
He gazed at it for several moments, and then back at Jade. And without further hesitation, he made his play.
"I sacrifice Wall of Illusion and Total Defense Shogun to play Suijin (2500/2400) in attack mode."
On the field, the massive, nebulous creature comprised of cohesive water appeared. Its growled menacingly at Cosmo Queen, though the opposing monster was possessed of more power than the Labyrinth Brother.
Kyle took in another breath – and much to his surprise and relief, the breath was devoid of shuddering.
His fear was gone.
He looked to Jade once more, and strangely, a small, genuine smile crept across his face. "This is it, Jade. I'm not afraid of you anymore. I was... but not anymore."
She raised an eyebrow at him but said nothing.
"If you're wondering why... it's not because I have a Labyrinth Brother on the field. It's great that I do, but that's not why," he said. "I don't know why. But I know it now. I'm not going to lose. Not here, not now, not to you."
Jade drew her next card, then played two from her hand onto the field. "I equip Cosmo Queen with the Book of Secret Arts, and the Axe of Despair, for a power-up to 4200 attack points and 2750 defense," she declared. Then she scoffed. "Like her defense matters with an attack power that high."
In Cosmo Queen's right hand, there appeared a thick book of spells, laid open and balanced perfectly on her palm. In her left, she grasped a massive axe possessing a blade more vicious than that of Vorse Raiser's.
Jade regarded Kyle carefully. "There is a lot of strength in confidence, but a greater weakness in too much of it. This duel's not yet decided, and you know I won't let Gate Guardian slip from me so easily."
"I know this duel's not over yet. So let's play." Kyle's expression was set. No matter what... I'm going to give Jade my best. She still has hell to pay for taking us both through all this struggle. And it's time to make sure she gets hers.