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Fanfic Chapter 22: Rematch Pt. 2: The Infected Deck
Episode Basis: Face-Off Pt. 2
Previously, on Yu-Gi-Oh! Yugi and the gang finally escaped the underground caverns and emerged directly in front of Pegasus' castle. Tea reflected on how Yugi saved her life and how he can be an entirely different person when he duels. When the group was literally a dozen steps away from the front entrance, they encountered Kaiba who insisted on a rematch with Yugi. What Yugi didn't know was that Pegasus was forcing Kaiba to duel Yugi, otherwise Kaiba would never be able to challenge Pegasus himself and save Mokuba. There was some clever manipulation on Kaiba's part but in the end, their life points stood even at 1500. Kaiba doesn't seem worried, why do you think is that?
"This is way too intense," Tristan commented as he watched Yugi and Kaiba stare each other down.
"Don't forget, Tristan, Yugi beat Kaiba once before."
"I'd like to beat Kaiba all right," Joey said in a tone that showed that he wasn't talking about in a duel.
"What's with Kaiba anyway?" Tea asked. In her mind, she was thinking, He says he's changed, but he's acting like the same old creep that we know and loathe. I don't get it.
From a tower behind Kaiba, out of sight of the duel, Bandit Keith watched this duel take place. "Man, look at these two jokers, they're really going at it, which is fine with me, because I have the best seat in the house for scoping out the competition."
Kaiba's trying to finish me off as quickly as possible, Yugi analyzed. And that's not like him; he enjoys toying with his opponents almost as much as he enjoys winning. Last time we dueled, he spent half the match messing with me. But this time, he's all business.
"What's the matter, Yugi, you look worried?" Kaiba noted. "Finally realizing that without your precious Exodia cards, you don't stand a chance against me?"
"I won't need Exodia to defeat you, Kaiba."
With a flick of his wrist, the wire connecting the Duel Disk with the arm band that held the deck and life point counter retracted bringing the device to Kaiba's hand. He drew a new card from his deck. "If I keep drawing cards like this, you will. I arm my genie with the De-Spell card. The De-Spell card can destroy any magic card and that's a lost I'm sure you can't afford, Yugi." La Jinn reappeared from his lamp. "La Jinn, activate De-Spell!"
"Oh no!"
Yugi's Swords of Revealing Light card was destroyed. "That's a tough loss, Yugi. I guess now you'll just lose three turns sooner."
Can Yugi really defeat Kaiba this time? Harold wondered. When they first dueled, Yugi was able to defeat Kaiba by drawing Exodia. The second time, it wasn't even Kaiba who was dueling, but some specter using his deck. I'm pretty sure that the Kaiba that Yugi's dueling right now is the real McCoy, but without Exodia, how can Yugi win? Especially if Kaiba plays all three of his Blue-Eyes White Dragons like he did during the first duel. Unfortunately, because their cards are surrounding them, I can't read either Duelist's expressions. But Kaiba wouldn't cheat, would he? As irritating as Kaiba is, he would never play unfair. So this all leads back to my earlier question, can Yugi defeat Kaiba?
"That genie's big trouble but as long as he has the lamp to hide in, Yugi can't touch him," Bakura explained.
"Is there any way to destroy the lamp?" Tea asked.
Yugi drew the Mystic Box magic card. It could be just the card I need to evict La Jinn from his lamp. "But first, I call upon the Dark Magician!" Yugi's monster appeared.
"I'm surprised you'd put your magician at risk, Yugi, when you have no idea, what I have in store for you."
"But perhaps before I attack, I should see what you're planning for my self." One of Yugi's cards turned around. It was a magic card called Eye of Truth. "The Eye of Truth sees all, and it will see all the cards in your hand!" Kaiba's four cards turned around. He had another De-Spell card, Saggi the Dark Clown, the Ancient Lamp, and a Blue-Eyes White Dragon.
Yugi gasped. "What's this, you have a Blue-Eyes White Dragon and you haven't played it yet?"
"You can always count on Kaiba to have a Blue-Eyes or three up his sneaky, slimy sleeve," Joey said snidely.
"Kaiba sure loves his Blue-Eyes," Tristan commented.
"Three Blue-Eyes White Dragons, that's got to be nearly impossible for Yugi to beat!" Bakura said.
"Yeah, well, Yugi will beat three Blue-Eyes before and he can do it again."
"Yeah, but don't forget, Yugi was only able to defeat them last time because of Exodia. He might be able to defeat one, maybe two, but all three, I doubt it."
What's Kaiba up to? Why hasn't he played his Blue-Eyes White Dragon yet?
Yugi may have glimpsed the Blue-Eyes in my hand, but I doubt that even he could guess what I have been planning, because it hasn't been done before. The Blue-Eyes White Dragons are extremely rare so most people suspect they can't be combined at all for the simple reason that they don't believe that a Duelist could have one, let alone three. I have the only three working Blue-Eyes White Dragons in my deck, and if I can draw them as well as a Polymerization card, I can combine them to form a creature of unsurpassed power! "So, Yugi, the mundane magic of your Eye of Truth allowed you a sneak peek at my hand, but what good does it do you? The fact still remains that your magician can not touch my genie while he has his lamp to hide in."
"Then I'll extinguish it with my magical Mystic Box! Watch closely, Kaiba, as my Dark Magician is sealed within the box."
"It's a trick!"
"It's more than a meer magic trick as you're about to find out, Kaiba. Now watch as the Mystic Box is skewered!" Swords penetrated every edge of the Mystic Box. "Have I destroyed my own Dark Magician? Or…" The Mystic Box opened and it was revealed that what was skewered wasn't the Dark Magician, but… "Have I extinguished your Ancient Lamp just as I promised?"
"No, you've destroyed my genie's lamp!"
"And the magic's only half-done, Kaiba, for my Dark Magician emerges from the Mystic Box unharmed!"
"That's some act," Harold commented as the Dark Magician appeared in front of Kaiba.
"But… how?"
"You know a good magician never reveals his secrets," Yugi said scolding. The Dark Magician waved his finger in a no-no gesture as if to emphasize what Yugi was saying. "Now, Dark Magician, Dark Magic Attack!" And La Jinn was destroyed.
(Y: 1500)
(K: 800)
"It's just as you said, Kaiba, the Ancient Lamp may have protected your genie, but once it was destroyed, your genie was no match for my Dark Magician!"
Kaiba quickly composed himself. Yugi's Mystic Box caught him off-guard, but only for a second. "Your little magic show may have been entertaining, but let's not lose perspective, shall we? You know I've got a Blue-Eyes waiting in the wings and I know you have nothing that can stand against it!"
"You know nothing! The Eye of Truth showed me your hand, not the other way around."
"I don't need to see your hand," Kaiba said as he drew a trap card. "But I think you need to be taught a lesson and I'll be happy to make my next play painfully instructive." This combination of Saggi the Dark Clown and the contagious Crush Card should help me infect Yugi's deck. Kaiba threw his Duel Disk on the ground summoning the monster. "Behold, Saggi the Dark Clown!"
"Saggi?" I was expecting Kaiba to sick his Blue-Eyes White Dragon on me. He knows that Saggi is no match for my Dark Magician. What's he up to? He didn't have any trap cards before, when I looked at his hand, but he may have drawn some new ones by now. The only way to know for sure is to attack, but I dare not risk my Dark Magician. "Dark Magician, return!" Dark Magician was recalled to its card form. Yugi drew a new card. All right, good card, Gaia the Fierce Knight. He wiped the floor with Saggi last time. "And he shall do so again! I summon Gaia, the Fierce Knight in attack mode!" The warrior on a horse appeared. Gaia charged and stabbed Saggi with his lances. Saggi literally fell to pieces. "Your Dark Clown is vanquished, Kaiba!"
"Vanquished and sacrificed are two entirely different things, Yugi." The pieces of Saggi transformed into purple specs of light which started to attach to Gaia. Gaia disappeared from the field.
"No, not Gaia!"
"Not just Gaia, Yugi." Yugi's Dark Magician card disappeared too.
"What have you done, Kaiba?" Yugi demanded to know.
"It's really quite ingenious actually. Knowing you couldn't resist attacking my Dark Clown, I infected him with the Crush Card virus.
"A Crush Card?"
"By destroying the infected Saggi, you released the Crush Card virus, a virus that is so highly contagious to Duel Monsters that even as I speak these words, it's infecting all but the weakest cards in your precious dueling deck."
Something new appeared on Yugi's life point counter: The word 'Virus.'
"The only monsters that are unaffected are those with an attack power of weaker than 1500. Looks like I broken the heart of your cards!" Kaiba burst into triumphant laughter.
"Well-played, but it will take more than a virus to win this duel, Kaiba!"
Kaiba chuckled, "Yes, I guess it will, Yugi. Actually… I'm looking forward to exposing you to a wide array of debilitating cards."
"Just keep talking, tough guy, don't forget, Yugi trounced the floor with you last time!"
"Yes, but last time he didn't have a crush card virus forcing him to play just magic cards and weak monsters," Bakura reminded them.
"I don't think Yugi's going to give up that easily," Harold commented.
"He'll win," Tea assured the guys. "I'm sure of it!"
"This is turning out to be quite the show," Bandit Keith critiqued, "All I'm missing is a bag of popcorn and a soda. Oh well, from the looks of things, this duel isn't going to last long enough for me to enjoy them anyway. Besides, getting the low down on these chump's dueling strategies is plenty for me to snack on."
"Your turn, Yugi, let's see how your disease ridden deck serves you now."
"You may have infected the body of my deck, Kaiba, but it's the heart that will see me through this duel!" Yugi drew the Summoned Skull. I can't use him, Kaiba's virus will infect him the moment I lay him on the field.
"Face it, Yugi, to continue playing in this duel you're going to have to serve up your weakest monsters."
He's right, for now I can only defend. "I play Silver Fang in defense mode, and his attack points are low enough to make him immune to your virus."
"It's ironic that a wolf would be the first of your sacrificial lambs." Kaiba drew a card. Ah, good, the second of my three Blue-Eyes White Dragons. All I need is one more and then, nothing will keep me from victory! Soon, with one earth-shattering blast, I'll defeat Yugi once and for all! And once I'm done with him, I'll go after Pegasus and save my brother from his grip. But while I'm waiting for my third Blue-Eyes, I'll clear the field of Yugi's ravenous beast. "Battle Ox, awaken, and let loose the dogs of war!" The Battle Ox charged and sliced Silver Fang in half. "Your puppy has been put down."
"It's cool, just a minor set back, no big deal," Tristan assured Yugi.
"You trying to convince him, us, or yourself?" Harold asked.
"All of the above," Tristan replied.
Come on, Yugi, I know you can win, Tea mentally cheered. No one has ever beaten you before and no one ever will.
Kaiba laughed, "Your pitiful defenses can't even withstand the crude assault of my Battle Ox, how do you expect to protect your life points when your defenses are demolished and you have nothing to shield you from my even more powerful monsters. I guess we'll find out soon enough!"
Kaiba's right, but how can I defeat any monster when his crush card forces me to play my weakest monsters?
"You should accept your fate for now, Yugi, after all, you'll have the rest of your life to brood over this defeat."
No, I can't give in to his taunting. I've come here to rescue my Grandpa and I can't let Kaiba defeat me! Yugi drew a card. "Gripphore (1), go, I summon you!" A burly pink creature appeared.
"A Gripphore," Kaiba asked. "I think you made a grave miscalculation, Yugi. His pitiful defenses are no match for my Battle Ox!"
Now it was Yugi's turn to chuckle. "Who said I was playing him in defense mode?"
"What, what do you mean?"
Another of Yugi's cards turned around. It was the Horn of the Unicorn. "I'm attacking with my Gripphore, with some help from my Horn of the Unicorn, raising his attack power by 700 points!"
(G: 1200-1900)
"Magic Lightning Combo Attack!" A burst of lightning destroyed Battle Ox.
(Y: 1500)
(K: 600)
"All right, I'm feeling a come back coming on," Joey announced.
"Stellar move!" Tea congratulated.
"Good show," Bakura agreed. "Brilliant play!" Tristan agreed.
"Impressive, Yugi, using a combo to counter the paralyzing effects of my virus. But I'm afraid there are just some hazards in my deck that are simply inevitable." Kaiba drew his third Blue-Eyes White Dragon. At last, now all I need is a Polymerization card! "Prepare for ultimate annihilation, Yugi, but first… I'm activating Gift of the Mystical Elf! If there's one thing I learned from dueling you, Yugi, it's that you have the uncanny ability to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, but I'm not going to give you such an opportunity today," Kaiba said as a Mystical Elf appeared and started chanting. "Which is why I'm using Gift of the Mystical Elf to raise my life points by 300!"
(Y: 1500)
(K: 900)
I never seen Kaiba duel so methodically before, every move he plays is so precise, he's leaving nothing to chance. It's as if to him, this is a battle between life and death!
Kaiba retracted his duel disk. Soon, Little Brother, soon I will have completed Pegasus' twisted little task and then nothing will stop me from rescuing you! "Behold, the mighty Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Kaiba's dragon appeared growling. It towered over everyone. "Take flight, Blue-Eyes White Dragon, and attack Gripphore with White Lightning Attack!" The Blue-Eyes attacked from the air. There was an incredible flash of light, and Gripphore was destroyed.
(Y: 400)
(K: 900)
"This is only the beginning! Soon, you will know what fear truly is!"
"I'm not afraid of your Blue-Eyes, Kaiba," Yugi said as he summoned Giant Soldier of Stone in defense mode. "I defeated him once before and with my Giant Soldier of Stone protecting me I'll manage to defeat him again!"
"I'm afraid you're mistaken." The next card Kaiba drew was the key card he needed: Polymerization. "Yugi, when you battled my three Blue-Eyes before, they were three separate dragons, formidable yes but not unbeatable as you had clearly shown me," Kaiba began. He retracted his Duel Disk and played the card. "But now, I've found a way to combine their power, merge their attack points to create…" Three cards appeared in front of Kaiba. "A monster without peer, with a force so strong, that no monster can stand against it!" The three cards merged with the flying Blue-Eyes White Dragon. There was an incredible light show complete with explosions as a new monster appeared. It had three heads, each of a Blue-Eyes White Dragon but its body was bigger and more fierce-looking. "I create… THE BLUE-EYES ULTIMATE DRAGON (2)!"
Yugi realized why Kaiba refrained from playing his Blue-Eyes White Dragon immediately; he was waiting to merge the powers of all three of them.
Kaiba laughed triumphantly again. "Yugi Moto, there's no escape, nothing can save you now!"
Tristan was beginning to realize Kaiba's plan. "That jerk, he was setting Yugi up for this creature the entire time!"
Bandit Keith realized it too. "Yugi's done for, Kaiba has that little twerp on the ropes and now this ultimate Blue-Eyes is going to knock him out of the ring!"
This just can't be the end, it can't, Tea tried convincing herself. Yugi will find a way to come back, I know it.
Yugi hated to admit it, but, Kaiba has really played a brilliant strategy, setting me up with that crush card, holding out for all three of his Blue-Eyes and at the same time widdling down my life points to a sparse 400. Now he's got me cornered and staring at the face of the toughest Duel Monster I ever faced.
"Yugi, how I savior this moment, this is the moment I've been waiting for ever since you handed me my first and only Duel Monsters defeat. Prepare yourself to see the full power of my creature unleashed! Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, Neutron Blast Attack!" Energy emitted from each head of the Blue-Eyes converged in front of it and formed a blast so powerful that the very castle shook. Yugi's soldier was destroyed. "Yugi, perhaps you should just give in." Yugi started to draw a card but paused, actually considering what Kaiba was suggesting.
Yugi's friends wouldn't let him quit. "No, Yugi, don't," Joey called.
"You can win this!"
"Yes, because we all believe in you!"
"A true Duelist doesn't back down! You have to remember what you're fighting for, the heart of the cards just like your Grandpa taught you! You never let anyone down before and I know you won't let your Grandpa down now!"
Yugi flashed back to when Pegasus first took his Grandpa's soul. No, Grandpa, for your sake, I must keep fighting! "No, Kaiba, I will never give in to the likes of you!"
Kaiba relished in the statement. "That's the kind of determination I expect from you. Fight on, gather every last bit of your strength, Yugi, I want you to be at your best when I take you down!"
Everything rides on this last card, this duel, this tournament, my Grandpa, but as hopeless as it may seem, I must fight on! With each of his friends mentally lending support and encouragement, Yugi grabbed the card at the top of his deck.
"It all comes down to this, so draw your card and face your fate," Kaiba declared.
Heart of the Cards, guide me, Yugi mentally called. "Let's finish this, Kaiba!" He drew his card.
To Be Continued
Monster Glossary
(1)
Name: Gripphore
Level: 3
Type: Beast
Attribute: Earth
ATK: 1200
DEF: 1500
(2)
Name: Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon
Level: 11
Type: Dragon/Fusion
Attribute: Light
ATK: 4500
DEF: 3800
