Disclaimer: See Chapter 42 for details
Chapter 43: Dragon Demolition, Part 2The score stood as Kevin: 500 v. Miranda: 1500. Kevin has just used his mighty Chaos Emperor Dragon to flood the field, but didn't realize Miranda's trap card, Hallowed Life Barrier, saved her for the turn. Now Kevin has no cards whatsoever, and its opponent's turn…
"It might not be a monster I can attack with, but it will allow me to bring out my ultimate creature! Reveal, Hail of Light Dragon!" A luminous burst of energy filled the arena. "This lets me summon an all powerful monster when I have a wind, water, and light monster in my graveyard" Miranda explained.
"Wait a minute, you don't have all of those types of monsters in your graveyard" objected Kevin.
"Originally I didn't, but your dragon's ability gave me just the monsters I needed in my graveyard to summon this card! Sirius, Winged Dragon from the Sky of Above (3300/2600)!" Miranda responded as her light, yellow dragon flew from the heavens onto the field. It released a defining roar, which sent a chill through Kevin's spine.
"Oh man! Great, I'm fixing to lose," thought Kevin.
"Don't look so sad. Luckily for you, when my monster first comes to the field, it can't attack you, so you're saved, for a turn" Miranda replied, much to Kevin's delight. "Next turn, my dragon will destroy you and the rest of your life points! You've only got one draw left, Kevin."
Kevin confidently drew. He released a sigh of relief, knowing it was a monster card, so he'd hopefully be saved for a turn. "I'll place a monster in facedown defense mode, and then end my turn" he announced as the brown back card appeared on the field.
Miranda drew. "Drat! Not a monster card. Looks like you're save for a turn, Hunter! Now, Sirius, attack his facedown monster now!" she demanded as the monster unleashed a golden energy beam, tearing through Kevin's defending monster, which was revealed as Pitch-Dark Dragon. "I'll end my turn now" she declared.
"Whoa! Miranda's got this match in the bag, it's just a matter of time until either Kevin doesn't get a monster or Miranda gets another monster, then Kevin's trapped and Miranda's one duel closer to a tournament victory" Tristan preached.
"I'm not sure. Miranda's good, but Yugi could defeat her" Anzu replied.
"Yeah, I second that," corrected Tristan.
Kevin drew, letting another sigh escape his mouth. "It seems like Lady Luck is on my side today, which I desperately need. I'll use The Warrior Returning Alive magic card to bring back a monster I lost due to my Chaos Emperor Dragon, Envoy of the End's special ability, my Retrained Elven Swordsman (1400/1200), who I'll place in defense mode" he explained. "Try getting past this! I end my turn" Kevin added.
Miranda drew, smiling at her card. "It's just about over for you! I use my Raise Dead magic card to bring back an old friend, Red Eyes Black Dragon!" she decreed as her monster rose from inside the earth, shrilling as it came from the grave. "Now Red Eyes Black Dragon, attack his facedown monster with Inferno Fire Blast!" she commanded as the dragon unleashed another red-orange fire blast, aimed for Kevin's only defending creature. The inferno smashed into the card, but to everyone's surprise, the monster wasn't destroyed. Instead, the elven warrior in green and gold armor was unfazed by the attack, not showing even the slightest sign of damage.
"What's this?" a flabbergasted Miranda wondered.
"You've attacked my Retrained Elven Swordsman! His special ability prevents him from being destroyed by monsters with more than 1900 attack points, so that not only rules out your Red Eyes Black Dragon, but your Sirius can't touch my monster either!" Kevin happily enlightened Miranda.
"Fine then" Miranda spat. "Since there's nothing I can do now, I'll place this magic or trap card on the field and complete my turn."
"So, who do you think is gonna win Seto?" Mokuba asked his older brother.
"I don't care. Whichever of them wins gets to possess that Blue Eyes White Dragon, and I'll be sure to get it" Kaiba icily responded.
Kevin drew. "I'll use this magic card, Lottery Roll! This card allows me to roll a die and I get to draw a number of cards equal to the roll. However, I also lose 100 points for each card I get to draw, so if I roll a five or a six, then this duel's over" he explained as the die flung out of the card, wildly spinning on the field like an out-of-control raging bull. The die finally calmed down, landing on a four.
"Talk about lucky" Miranda complimented. Kevin drew his four cards. "But your life points also go down to a slim 100" she added as Kevin's life points suffered a minor reduction. (K: 100)
"Yes, but thanks to my card I can summon the invincible Spirit Reaper (300/200) in defense mode!" announced Kevin as the tiny purple zombie materialized on the field.
"Invincible? Your card has less than a tenth of the attack strength my monsters are packing" Miranda snapped.
"Looks can be deceiving. You should realize that my Spirit Reaper can never be destroyed in battle by any of your monsters, so all your attacks will be completely useless." Kevin replied, activating a magic card. "Next, I'll use Grave Arm to destroy your Red Eyes Black Dragon once and for all!" he declared as a gray and blue ghostly hand materialized on the field, snatching the dragon. The dragon tried to fight the hand and remain on the field, but his efforts were futile. The dragon was dragged into the depths of the graveyard to remain there.
However, the maneuver had Miranda a little puzzled. "Tell me something. Why didn't you use your magic card on my Sirius? He has much more attack power than the Red Eyes Black Dragon," she noted.
"I'm no fool," responded Kevin. "I know of your monster's ability. If I had used my card to destroy your dragon, you'd have been able to summon the counterpart of your card, and I would have been just back where I started, like walking in a circle."
"Bravo. Not many people know of Sirius' final effect, but you are obviously exempt from that rule. But just knowing effects won't save you, you've got to battle your way to win this duel" Miranda replied.
"Wow. Kevin just made a smart move guys" Anzu complimented from the sidelines.
"Yes, Kevin did choose the better of the two monsters to destroy, but he's still up against that dragon, and we don't know too much about it, so I'm assuming Kevin doesn't either. It's anyone's game…still" a grim reply came from Yugi.
"Yeah. Don't worry; I plan to bring some action to this duel. But for now, I'll set a card on the field and end my turn. Back to you," answered Kevin.
Miranda drew. "Well, nothing that can bring my Red Eyes back, and I don't have a new monster to summon, and Spirit Reaper can't be destroyed by Sirius, so there's nothing I can do" she thought. "Very well, I'll pass this turn since there's nothing I can do."
Kevin drew. "Works for me" he stated. "Oh yeah! Your dragon's history! I sacrifice Retrained Elven Swordsman to bring forth the mighty Dragon Seeker (2000/2100)!"
"Alright, I see your game Kevin. Just try to use its ability, and we'll see what happens" Miranda cleverly strategized.
"You know what happens next! When Dragon Seeker's summoned to the field, I can automatically destroy one dragon creature on the field, and there's only one on the field, so say your goodbye!" Kevin explained his plot.
"Oh yeah, Kevin's got this match in the bag!" Tristan declared.
"Don't be too sure" cut off Yugi. "Miranda doesn't seemed worried by this attempt at all"
"Dragon Seeker, I use your special effect now! Destroy her Sirius!" commanded Kevin as the slayer unsheathed a long, sharp sword, ready to slice the mighty light dragon's neck with.
"Not this soon! Reverse trap card, Dragon's Relic!" Miranda countered.
"Oh man, I forgot she had set a card facedown," Kevin recalled.
"This trap lets me negate your monsters ability, protecting my dragon as well, for the price of discarding one card from my hand," she explained as she slipped a card into her graveyard slot, triggering her card's ability. An thin, golden light exploded from inside the card, creating a small, but powerful barrier between the two monsters. Dragon Seeker tried with all his might to break through the barrier and complete his task, but ultimately gave up and returned to his side of the field.
"Alright, good play Miranda" complimented Kevin.
"Why thank you. Good attempt on your half as well" Miranda re-complimented to her opponent.
"Thanks, so since I can't attack, I'll stop you from attacking as I play Swords of Revealing Light!" Kevin slammed the card in his duel disk, creating an array of yellow swords centering themselves on Miranda's field, creating a barrier so that Miranda's monsters would be unable to attack.
"So he's trying to buy some time," thought Black Joker.
"Only a desperate amateur would use Swords of Revealing Light just to buy themselves from time. Pathetic" considered Kaiba.
"I draw" Miranda called, picking up the first card on her deck. "I use Pot of Greed to draw two cards," she announced, picking up two more cards from her deck. "Next, I'll set a monster in defense mode and end my turn" she said, completing her move.
Kevin drew once more. "Perfect! I activate Dark Core! This card lets me discard one card…" he began.
"To remove a monster on my side of the field from play" Miranda finished, explaining her knowledge of Duel Monsters cards.
"Well, if you know what it does, guess which monster I'll be using it on" Kevin instructed.
"How should I know?" Miranda sarcastically responded.
"I'll use it on Sirius!" Kevin slipped a card into his graveyard slot, triggering a black ball of energy, which encased the light dragon. The dragon tried with its might to resist the gravitational force of the card, but the magic was too powerful. Miranda took the card off her duel disk, sliding it in a side remove-from-play pocket. Her strongest beast was gone.
"That'll be my turn," said Kevin, satisfied by this turn's work.
"Then allow me to draw" Miranda swiftly drew. "I'll place another monster in defense mode. Just try and attack me now" she baited.
"You guys think Miranda's got this one?" Anzu wondered.
"She's good, but this duel's had so many twists and turns, I wouldn't be surprised if Kevin pulls ahead shortly" Tristan responded.
"Yeah, good point" reconsidered Anzu.
"Interesting…it seems as if Miranda's been baiting Kevin throughout this entire duel, letting him achieve small victories here and there, but even though Kevin may have won all the battles…Miranda seems to be winning the war" Black Joker pointed out.
"I draw" Kevin declared. "Now I'll use Graceful Charity!" He slipped the magic card in place. He drew his three cards and analyzed them: Twin-Headed Behemoth, his second Pitch-Dark Dragon, and Raise Dead. After careful consideration, he slipped Twin-Headed Behemoth and Buster Blader into his graveyard. His plan was nearly complete.
"Then I'll use this card! Raise Dead will allow me to summon back Dark Blade!" he announced as his evil warrior rose from the earth back onto the field. "Following that, I use the magic card Fusion! This fuses the Dark Blade on the field with Pitch-Dark Dragon in my hand, summoning Dark Blade Dragon Knight (2200/1500)" Kevin announced as his dragon materialized on the field. Dark Blade responded by launching himself in the air, landing perfectly on the dragon's back, now as one monster.
"However, first I'll send Dragon Seeker to attack your face down monster card on the right!" instructed Kevin as his Dragon Seeker launched a punch at the facedown monster, shattering it. A woman in a dark black robe was destroyed by the attack.
"You destroyed my Witch of the Black Forest! This lets me take my Summoned Skull from my deck and put it into my hand" she explained as her deck holster spit out the monster she requested, which Miranda added to her hand.
"Since fusion monsters can't attack on their first turn, I'll finish my move there," replied Kevin as his turn ended.
Miranda drew. "You summoned a fusion monster, and so can I! Activate, Constellation Draco, allowing me to summon back from the grave my Red Eyes Black Dragon (2400/2000)! Looks like he didn't stay in the graveyard like you planned" Miranda played as her faithful dragon rose from the grave, ready to fight once more.
"Then I'll use my own Fusion magic card to combine my Red Eyes Black Dragon with Summoned Skull to form Black Skull Dragon (3200/2500)," continued Miranda as both monsters appeared on the field. The monsters then disappeared inside a magical vortex, combining together to produce a powerful, but ancient dragon with charcoal skin and thick, powerful claws capable of destroying enemies. His bone structure became increasingly thicker and more powerful than that of the original Red Eyes Black Dragon. This monster's roar was not high-pitched like the original dragon, but instead deeper and ricocheted over the playing field.
"I can't attack you, and your lucky for that, so I'll end my turn" she added as the lights entrapping her monsters disappeared from sight.
"Wow. Didn't plan on that happening" thought Kevin.
"You know Tristan, Kevin sure isn't taking control of this duel" Anzu replied. "I'll bet you 20 bucks Miranda wins this".
"You think? I'll take that. I'll bet 20 bucks that Kevin takes it" Tristan responded.
"It seems Kevin here has underestimated Miranda. Next turn, she'll wipe him out. There's no card in his entire deck that'll get him out of this predicament. He's got no cards in his hand, so this card he draws could decide the entire match. Alas, it makes no matter to me who wins, that Blue Eyes will eventually find its way into my deck" analyzed Kaiba, whose only concern was when he would receive the fourth legendary dragon.
"Finally this incessant match draws to its conclusion. Hunter's gone, and I get to send another fool to his ultimate demise" Joker expected.
Kevin drew. His heart was beating rather fast; knowing all he'd work for could be destroyed by one draw. Just one card. To his surprise, Lady Luck had saved him once more. "I use Weakening from the Floor of Death! This card allows me to bring back a monster from my graveyard into my hand, in exchange for allowing you to draw two cards" he enlightened Miranda, who was particularly intrigued by the last part.
Kevin dug through his graveyard slot to his monster of choice, while Miranda picked up the two cards from her deck. "I summon my monster, Swift Gaia the Fierce Knight (2300/2100) to the field now!" he announced as his knight appeared on the field, riding his signature violet horse. His twin pincers ready to blowback his opponent.
"What's your game? You never played Swift Gaia the Fierce Knight!" protested Miranda.
"That may be true, but Swift Gaia was one of the monsters that I discarded due to my Chaos Emperor Dragon's ability" clarified Kevin. "That'll be my move this turn"
Miranda drew. "That'll be the duel!" she corrected. "Black Skull Dragon, cremate his Swift Gaia with your Molten Fireball Attack!" she commanded as the dragon unleashed a mighty fireball ready to eliminate Swift Gaia and end the duel.
"Reverse trap! Spellbinding Circle!" sprang Kevin, as the magical yellow hex appeared on the field, encasing Black Skull Dragon and nullifying its attack before it could destroy its intended target.
Kevin drew once more. "I'll place this card face down and end my turn," he declared, another brown back card materializing on the field.
Miranda drew. "Oh yes! I play the mighty Spear Dragon (1900/0) in attack mode! Spear Dragon, attack Spirit Reaper and win the duel with your Cyclone Blast!" she demanded as the dragon unleashed a windy twister, ready to swallow up Spirit Reaper.
"Not this time! I activate the spell, Mirage Magic! This not only negates your attack, but raises my life points by 1900!" explained Kevin as a mirror appeared, absorbing the attack and using it to raise Kevin's life points (K: 2000)
Kevin drew and was surprised by his card. "Perfect! This card will end the match Miranda! I use Dragon Slaying Summoning!" he revealed.
"Dragon Slaying Summoning?" recalled Yugi, Kaiba, and Black Joker simultaneously.
"Something wrong Yugi?" Anzu questioned.
"No, I'll be fine, its just a powerful card Kevin has right now" Yugi explained.
"What's it do Yugi?" Tristan asked.
"Well, it lets Kevin bring a Buster Blader or Dragon Seeker to the field, in exchange for his monsters. This could be the end of the match right here, right now," he explained.
"I'll use my magic effect to sacrifice all my monsters to bring out my Buster Blader (2600/2300)!" Kevin proclaimed as his monsters turned into ectoplasm, one by one. The ectoplasms then merged together to form the shape of Buster Blader, and afterward, the purple and golden armor costume of the warrior began to take shape, including his long, dragon slaying sword.
"My monster gains a total of five thousand attack points from all the dragons that you've played in this duel" added Kevin, his monster's attack points skyrocketing to a whopping 7600. "This game's mine! Go Buster Blader, attack her Black Skull Dragon!" demanded Kevin as the monster slashed its mighty sword into the dragon's neck, eliminating the creature once and for all. (M: 0)
"Oh man, I lost" Miranda said, a little disappointment in her face.
"Don't worry, it was a good fight" Kevin stated, shutting off his duel disk.
"Yeah, you're right" Miranda replied, shutting her duel disk off as well.
"Ok, we don't need a Pokemon rerun going on here" snapped Kaiba. "Clear the field fools! It's time for myself to duel now, and I'm going to end up dueling the champion of Duel #2, in other words, I'm dueling you Joker" Kaiba pointed as his opponent.
"Very well Mr. Kaiba" Black Joker coolly walked onto the field.
"I don't know what your game is, but I'm here to end it right now by defeating you" Kaiba icily noted. "So your charades' up because its time to duel! And once I win, I'll be rid of you freak shows once and for all."
"You mean once you lose, you'll be trapped to spend an eternity soulless and your precious Blue Eyes will belong to me. There's no way out Mr. Kaiba. It's like locking yourself in your own room, and there's no way out. Get ready, because this is a duel" laughed Black Joker.
Both duelist's life points shot up to 4000.
CARDS PLAYED
Hail of Light Dragon: MAGIC/Desc: You can only activate this card when there is a WIND, a WATER, and a LIGHT monsters in your Graveyard. Special Summon one "Sirius Wing Dragon of the Sky Above" from your hand or Deck.
Sirius, Winged Dragon of the Sky Above: Level 8/ 3300/2600/Dragon Type/Desc: When this monster is sent to the Graveyard, Special Summon one "Hades Core Dragon of the Earth Under" from your hand or your Deck in face- up attack mode or defense mode. If Special summoned from your Deck, the Deck is then shuffled. As long as this card is face-up on the field, all Life Point damage (excluding Battle Damage) done to the cardholder become 0.
Pitch-Dark Dragon: Level 3/ 900/600/Dragon Type/Desc: Once per turn, during your Main Phase, if you control this monster on the field, you can equip it to your "Dark Blade" as an Equip Spell Card OR change it back to a monster in face-up Attack Position. When equipped to a monster by this card's effect, that monster's ATK/DEF is increased by 400 points, and when it attacks with an ATK that is higher than the DEF of a Defense Position Monster, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent's Life Points. (1 monster can only be equipped with 1 Union Monster at a time. If the Monster that this card is equipped to is destroyed in battle, this card is destroyed instead.)
The Warrior Returning Alive: MAGIC/Desc: Select 1 Warrior-Type monster in your Graveyard and return it to your hand.
Raise Dead: MAGIC/Desc: Select 1 Monster Card from either your opponent's or your own Graveyard and place it on the field under your control in Attack or Defense Position (face-up). This is considered a Special Summon.
Retrained Elven Swordsman: Level 4/ 1400/1200/ Warrior Type/Desc: This monster cannot be destroyed in battle with a monster with an attack of 1900 or more. Battle damage is calculated normally.
Lottery Roll: MAGIC/Desc: Roll a die. Draw a number of cards equal to the roll of the die. Afterwards, reduce your life points by the number rolled x100.
Spirit Reaper: Level 3/ 300/200/ Zombie Type/Desc: This monster is not destroyed as a result of battle at any time, although damage calculation applied normally. When this card is specially designated as the effect of a Magic, Trap or Effect Monster Card, this card is immediately destroyed. When this card attacks your opponent's Life Points directly 1 card randomly selected from your opponent's hand and discarded to the Graveyard.
Grave Arm: QUICK-PLAY MAGIC/Desc: Destroy one monster on the field.
Dragon Seeker: Level 6/ 2000/2100/ Fiend Type/Desc: When this card is Summoned (excluding Special Summon), destroy 1 face-up Dragon-Type monster on the field.
Dragon's Relic: TRAP/Desc: Discard one card from your hand to negate a magic, trap, or monster effect targeting a dragon-type monster on your side of the field.
Swords of Revealing Light: MAGIC/Desc: Counting from your opponent's turn, none of your opponent's monsters can attack for 3 turns. When this card is activated, opponent's facedown monsters are turned face-up, but remain in Defense Position. Any effects the monsters may have are immediately activated.
Pot of Greed: MAGIC/Desc: Draw 2 cards from your deck.
Dark Core: MAGIC/Desc: Discard one card from your hand to remove one monster on the field from play.
Fusion: MAGIC/Desc: Fuses 2 or more monsters to form a new Fusion Monster.
Dark Blade Dragon Knight: Level 6/ 2200/1500/ Warrior/Desc: "Dark Blade" + "Pitch-Dark Dragon" Each time this card inflicts Battle Damage to your opponent, you can select up to 3 Monster Cards from your opponent's Graveyard and remove them from play.
Witch of the Black Forest: Level 4/ 1100/1200/ Spellcaster Type/Desc: When this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard, move 1 monster with a DEF of 1500 or less from your Deck to your hand. Your Deck is then shuffled.
Constellation Draco: MAGIC/Desc: Select one Dragon-Type monster from your Graveyard. Special Summon it and equip it with this card. If this card is destroyed, the equipped monster is also destroyed.
Black Skull Dragon: Level 8/ 3200/2500/ Dragon Type/Desc: "Red Eyes Black Dragon" + "Summoned Skull"
Weakening from the Floor of Death: MAGIC/Desc: Place one monster from your graveyard into your hand. Your opponent draws two cards from their deck.
Swift Gaia the Fierce Knight: Level 7/ 2300/2100/ Warrior Type/Desc: This monster may be summoned without tributes if it's the only monster in your hand. This is still a normal summon.
Spear Dragon: Level 4/ 1900/0/ Dragon Type/Desc: If this card attacks with an ATK that is higher than the DEF of your opponent's Defense Position monster, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent's Life Points. When this card attacks, it is changed to Defense Position at the end of the Damage Step.
Mirage Magic: QUICK-PLAY MAGIC/Desc: Negate an attack by your opponent and increase your life points by an amount equal to the attacking monster's attack points.
Dragon Slaying Summoning: MAGIC/Desc: Sacrifice all monsters on your side of the field. Special summon one "Buster Blader" or "Dragon Seeker" from your deck, hand, or graveyard to the field. During this turn, the special summoned monster cannot be targeted by your opponent's magic and trap cards.
Buster Blader: Level 7/ 2600/2300/ Warrior Type/Desc: Increase this monster's attack points by 500 for each dragon-type monster on your opponent's side of the field and in your opponent's graveyard.
All cards in bold-face print are not my property, but belong to 'BlakDragon220'.