Chapter 4: To Be A Hero
I'm not sure how they still worked, but the automatic doors close behind me with a creaky click, and then everything is silent.
It takes a moment, but my eyes soon adjust to the dark inside of the building. It appears to more or less be an abandoned grocery store—which might explain the salesman persona of that thug outside, or else he may just be a bit out of his mind.
From the ceiling, long-dead fluorescent lights hang down in long gray rows, almost like bones forming a ribcage around the massive room. Thick stainless steel counters sit scattered around the room, all a dark smoky gray in the absence of light; some still bear remnants of what once rested on them, from rotting remains of crates to a smashed box that once served as a computer monitor. Shadows fill every corner.
There's something deeply unnerving about this place, but I force it back down. Blitz needs my help, I tell myself. Be a hero, be brave.
My deck slot begins to emit a soft golden glow as I finish my thoughts, giving off a small bit of light similar to what one may expect from a flashlight with low batteries. It startles me at first, but something about it is also comforting, like the presence of a trusted friend… or perhaps multiple trusted friends.
With the guiding light of my deck showing the way, I begin a steady walk across the cracked tile floor, my footsteps echoing throughout the cavernous room, breaking the stillness of the air with thunderous sound. The sheer noise from each step causes me to cringe slightly each time my foot touches the ground, but I push onward, skirting past a scratched steel counter and ducking under a thin metal bar.
"Who's there?" comes a voice from the back of the room. It's gruff and threatening, but instead of becoming afraid and turning back, I push on. Be a hero. "Kuroe, is that you?"
I notice a dim light outlining a doorway toward the back of the room, diagonally left of the entryway. A mohawked figure stands in said doorway, tall and skinny as a twig. I begin crossing across the floor wordlessly, keeping my eyes on the man until his figure leaves the doorframe.
Finally I hear a click, and a few of the overhead lights burst to life with dim light, just barely illuminating the man and myself.
If I hadn't thrashed the green-haired man outside, I'd have assumed this were the very same person. Same clothes, piercings, everything, down to the greedy facial expression… except his hair is a dark purple.
"Hey—you're not supposed to be in here!" he says, frowning at me. "This is private property, get the hell out!"
"Who's gonna make me?" I reply coyly, trying to seem tough. "I'm here for a friend of mine. Hair the same color as yours, but less stupid. You seen him?"
"If you're not going to leave, I'll just have to kick you out," he responds, raising his arm to reveal a banged-up Duel Disk. Countless notches and dents mar the metal surface, and the red piece of plastic that should cover the Graveyard slot has been torn off.
"Still not answering my question," I reply, activating my Duel Disk.
"Yeah, I've seen him. He's in the back, but you'll be a lot worse for wear when I'm done with you." He smirks at me, his greedy black eyes shining coldly in the dim light. "I'm not sure how you beat Kuroe, but you're not getting past me."
[Cue in opening theme: "Imagination" by Caleb Hyles feat. Gareth West (English cover of the first opening for Haikyuu!)]
As the sweat rolls down my face, sweltering heat comes in waves
We open on a shot of Ben's face, staring up at the sky as the shadow of a cloud passes over his face. As the cloud drifts past and the sun beams down on his face again, he begins to smile.
I hear our voices echo, as we're standing side by side!
The camera begins to zoom outward, revealing that standing in a circle around Ben is each of the Omni-Heroes; in no particular order, Escuridão, Great Tornado, Absolute Zero, Nova Master, Gaia, and The Shining.
An open window lets in light, I turn my eyes up to the sky,
Now the camera shoots down to the ground, looking up at the assembled group of heroes and their leader as the urban sprawl of Skyscraper shoots up above them
Questionings if to someone will come our way, Mr. Future
Ben's face focuses in on the camera as we see the shadow of someone's legs stepping in front of us. We can see Ben grin as his heroes fall in line beside him.
(Oh come on, come on) If there is still a chance…
A sudden swift upward shift from the camera, and we're viewing Ben and his heroes from above, and in the shadows of Skyscraper, dark figures begin to form, faceless phantoms that stand to oppose our hero.
(Oh come on, come on) Go and get… it!
Taking the first step, Ben leads the charge as his heroes run forward at the shadow figures. Great Tornado streaks through the sky, a bright green wind trailing behind him as The Shining appears alongside him, bright light emanating from his body. Absolute Zero and Nova run right beside Ben, leaving trails of ice and fire in their tracks, respectively, while Gaia stomps alongside, and Escuridão dodges from shadow to shadow, as dark as darkness itself. Just as they reach the figures and begin to fight, a bright light suddenly consumes the screen.
You can't move me, you can't break me!
The light dissipates and shows the heroes at battle. First, we see The Shining lashing out for a punch, his fist enclosed in a blinding bright aura as it smashes into the stomach of Crab Turtle. Next we see Great Tornado blasting away a slew of Spellcaster monsters, namely Endymion and Breaker, among others.
You will always look right through me!
Nova Master appears on screen next, its full body aflame as it lunges toward Frost and Flame Dragon, Absolute Zero combatting the Flame half as Nova Master prepares to strike the Frost half.
I will falter, I will stumble, but I'll keep on suffering!
Gaia raises a massive boulder above its head, hurling it at Doom Dozer as the insect is restrained by shadow tendrils courtesy of Escuridão.
Never give up, never give in—I can't let it end in failure!
We spin to view Ben now, his fist clenched in anticipation as we begin to rotate, revealing that all the battles are going on simultaneously. Finally tired of seeing his heroes fight at his command, he charges into the fray as well—focusing specifically on one shadow figure.
Oh, my imagination's fighting to believe—
Ben throws a punch of his own as he reaches the character, the air around his fist blurring as he strikes mere shadow—though as the figure disappears, we get a sudden glimpse of gray hair…
Believing in something!
The shadows, Skyscraper, and the heroes all disappear at once, leaving Ben standing in the subway tunnel with Rally and the rest of the Satellite crew, looking at him hopefully.
Oh-oh! Believing in something!
Ben mounts his Duel Runner, pulling his helmet on and giving them a grin.
Oh-oh!
And on the last note, he speeds off down the tunnel, the shot fading to grayscale on his friends waving him off. The title, "Stardust Accelerator: A Hero in Time" appears in bright gold lettering, standing out against the gray as the form of the Crimson Dragon wraps around it.
"DUEL!"
Ben: 4000 LP / Thug 2: 4000 LP
"I'll give you the first move—this duel will end the same no matter who goes first," I concede, drawing my hand. Woodsman, Voltic Spear, and Wroughtweiler all appear as recurring favorites, alongside newcomers the hero of light Flash and the trap card, Hero Counterattack.
My opponent's lips curl back in a cruel sneer. "You're right, I'll be taking the victory and then kicking your ass out of here. I draw!" He draws a card from the top of his deck and his sneer widens. "I'm already ahead here, I summon Luster Dragon in attack mode!"
From a green portal, a large dragon flies out and touches down beside the thug. Its skin is a deep blue and crystalline, and seems to be made of living sapphires. Sharp claws and sharp white fangs glint in light reflected from the gems, its thin, leathery wings flapping quietly as it stares me down with hungry yellow eyes. (Luster Dragon: Level 4, WIND, Dragon-type; 1900 ATK/1600 DEF)
"I'll set one card facedown and end my turn! Are you ready to become dragon food?" he taunts as I wordlessly draw a card: Elemental Hero Sparkman.
I pause for a moment to collect my thoughts and make my decision. There's a few things I can do here, but the same comforting feeling returns as I see Woodsman in my Hand. Perhaps…
"I'll summon Elemental Hero Sparkman in attack mode, and I'll also be equipping him with my Magic Card, Voltic Spear!" I call out, placing the cards onto my Duel Disk.
Sparkman in appearance seems quite similar to Voltic—in fact, if Sparkman were a bit more muscular, they may in fact be twins. A blue bodysuit covers his body, metallic gold armor adorning his chest and shoulders. A set of blue wing-like appendages extend from his back, trimmed with gold, and his hands are outstretched to give a view of the two pale white circles on his palms, lightning crackling inside them. Soon the lightning-bolt shaped spear appears in Sparkman's left hand, sparks leaping off from the tip. (Elemental Hero Sparkman: Level 4, LIGHT, Warrior-type; 1600 ATK – 1900 ATK/1400 DEF)
"Hey genius, can't you do math? Your little superhero has the same amount of ATK as my dragon, you can't do anything without them both being destroyed!" the thug remarks.
"I'll place a card of my own facedown, and I'll call it there," I state, unperturbed by his taunting. A hero doesn't concern himself with the opinion of villains, a voice inside me says; I cannot place it, but I know it well. It's comforting. Let's see him laugh when justice comes down on him.
"Well, before you end your turn allow me to activate my Trap—Dragon's Rebirth! By removing from play my Luster Dragon, I can Special Summon one Dragon from my hand," he explains as his trap flips up, and a swirling vortex opens behind Luster Dragon. "I play my Chthonian Emperor Dragon!"
The sapphire dragon disappears into the vortex, and in its place, a dragon with a long, wormlike body slithers out. Its body is covered in black scales, with white bone-like spines running along its body and coming to a sharp, spear-shaped point at its tail. Four sets of leathery bat-like wings flap powerfully every few seconds, while a pair of blood red eyes settle upon my monster coldly. (Chthonian Emperor Dragon: Level 6, FIRE, Dragon-type/Gemini; 2400 ATK/1500 DEF)
My foe draws a card and grins. "I'll summon my Chthonian Emperor Dragon again to gain his effect!"
I frown and interrupt, "What do you mean? You've already summoned him, are you going to tribute summon another one?"
"He's a Gemini monster, you moron," he thumbs his nose at me, regaining his contemptuous sneer at my apparent lack of knowledge.
"Okay, what the hell is a Gemini monster?" I ask, the term unfamiliar to me. I think of a monster called Gemini Elf, but I get the distinct feeling this isn't what he means.
He rolls his eyes. "Gemini monsters count as Normal Monsters while they're on the field or in the Graveyard, but while they're on the field, you can Normal Summon them a second time to gain their effects," he explains, in a tone that one may use to explain to a young child who won't stop asking annoying questions.
I pause. "…What kind of moron came up with that?"
"I've wondered the same thing for years, but never mind that! Thanks to Chthonian Emperor Dragon's effect, he can attack twice per Battle Phase!" he shouts triumphantly, pointing at my hero. "Chthonian Emperor Dragon, slaughter his little hero! Hellflame Inferno!"
I didn't have a defense for it, so all that I can do is watch as a burst of bright orange flames charge forth from the dragon's gaping maw. Sparkman is consumed by the blaze in an instant, his black silhouette outlined against the burning heat, which radiates off and feels as if it's burning me as well.
Ben: 3500 LP / Thug 2: 4000 LP
I grin at him. "It's time for a counterattack—specifically, my Trap Card, Hero Counterattack!" I say as my facedown card flips upward, revealing an image of ironically enough, Sparkman. "When one of my Heroes is destroyed in battle, you choose one random card in my Hand. If it's an Elemental Hero, I can summon it and destroy one card you control!"
"Oh yeah? Well, not every card can be a Hero! I choose the one on the far right!"
With the grin widening, I take the card and turn it to reveal, "You chose correctly—Elemental Hero Woodsman! And once I summon him, I'll destroy your Emperor Dragon!"
In an instant, Woodsman's card appears on my Duel Disk, and Woodsman appears on my field. He leaps high into the air, nearly touching the tall ceiling of the building, and throws himself at the dragon. He thrusts one hand forward, and vines fly outward, coiling around the dragon and holding it in place as the half-wooden man smashes his outstretched fist into the bound dragon's torso, causing it to shatter into a blizzard of pixels. (Elemental Hero Woodsman: Level 4, EARTH, Warrior-type; 1000 ATK/2000 DEF)
The thug scowls. "You got lucky for now, but just about everything in my deck has more ATK than that little hero! Make your move!"
"Your monsters may have more ATK, but your field's empty. What you should ask is, will you even be able to summon them?" I reply, feeling a swell of courage inside me as I draw my next card, immediately seeing another newcomer: Elemental Hero Forger, an effect monster that appears as a heavily muscled man working at a blazing forge, hammering away at a burning white Voltic Spear. "I'll start out by activating the effect of Woodsman! During my Standby Phase I can add a Polymerization from my Deck to my Hand—and right away, I'll use it to fuse my Woodsman and Elemental Hero Forger in my Hand!"
The swirling blue vortex appears overhead as Woodsman leaps from my field and Forger from my Hand, spinning away into apparent nonexistence as they disappear into the portal.
"Born from the fiery core of the Sun itself, this hero comes forth with a burning fury and an unquenchable thirst for justice! Fire 'em up, Elemental Hero Nova Master!"
Clad in hot red and yellow armor, the Hero bursts forth from a green portal, his red cape swirling and flickering like a living flame. Beneath the armor is a black bodysuit, covered by the armor that appears to be shaped after an inferno, with two gold orbs on the front shoulders glowing with light; I can't help but wonder if Forger had created that armor. The air around him seems to distort from the pure heat coming off of him. (Elemental Hero Nova Master: Level 8, FIRE, Warrior-type; 2600 ATK/2100 DEF)
"Next I'll summon my Elemental Hero Flash!" I announce.
With a blinding flash of light, a blue-suited hero leaps forward and lands right beside the hero, apparently unfazed by the heat put off from Nova Master—a heat which even I feel. Twin silver spikes jut out from his back, curving outward, and steel gauntlets and a gorget cover his arms and throat/upper chest area; a silver visor is runs along his upper face, just over his eyes, and a yellow lightning bolt streaks upward from the visor to the top of his head. (Elemental Hero Flash: Level 4, LIGHT, Warrior-type; 1100 ATK/1600 DEF)
"Justice is coming for you, you villain! Can you hear its sweet melody?" I call out in an overdramatic fashion, feeling confidence surging through me as I see the fearful look in his eyes. "Nova Master, Flash, attack!"
Curling his arms close to his body, Elemental Hero Nova Master conjures a crackling ball of bright orange fire, his cloak billowing outward as he cocks his arm back and hurls it like a football. At this exact time, Flash drops into a low crouch, before breaking into a sprint and practically vanishing in an extraordinary burst of speed. His attack hits first, appearing directly behind the thug and delivering a hard side kick to his back, knocking him forward and directly into the fireball.
Ben: 4000 LP / Thug 2: 300 LP
Flash reappears on my side of the field and the thug drops to one knee, eyes wide and staring as he realizes what just hit him.
"I think that's enough for one turn. Better make this next turn count," I say, throwing a taunt back at him.
And make it count he does.
"I activate my Spell Card, Dragon Shrine! I can send one Dragon-type monster from my Deck to my Graveyard, then if it's a Normal Monster I can send another one—and I'll choose the Normal Monster, Guardragon Justicia, followed by another of the same!" he declares, a triumphant smirk emerging on his face. The 180 from hopeless to arrogant is astounding. "Then, I'll remove my Guardragon monsters and Chthonian Emperor Dragon from play to summon my ace—Frost and Flame Dragon!"
Nova Master and I share a look; if there were a way to describe what a combination of intrigue and, "I don't like where this is going," that would best explain how we felt then.
A whirlwind composed of flames and water swirls into life, steam hissing and fire roaring as it coalesces into a concrete shape. A two-headed dragon appears, a long serpentine tail covered in silver scales forming a body at least ten feet in length. Two short arms with three short claws extends from its body, and just above where the arms jut out the body splits into two heads. One head is a blazing orange-red, constantly shifting its shape as the flames that compose its head shrink and grow and flicker; the other is a pale blue and covered in armor-like scales with a long, thin mouth that gapes open to reveal sharp, dagger-like fangs. (Frost and Flame Dragon: Level 6, WATER, Dragon-type; 2300 ATK/2000 DEF)
I open my mouth to taunt him again, planning a snappy insult regarding his math skills and his mother, but another look from Nova Master quiets me. There's something in his gleaming red-orange eyes that make me cautious about what the new dragon has up its… sleeve?
As far as I can tell, the dragon doesn't have sleeves. Perhaps it's hiding a secret strategy between its scales?
"Got you at a loss for words, don't I?" the thug says snarkily, putting his hands on his hips and puffing out his chest. "What I've got in store for you is gonna make you wish you'd never crawled out of the junk heap! By discarding one card from my Hand, I can destroy a card on your side of the field, and can you guess who I'm going with?"
The fiery head lashes out, its neck stretching like some strange accordion from hell as it opens its blazing maw, revealing several rows of small orange teeth. At that same time, the frosty head thrusts forward, coiling like a constrictor as it exhales breaths of ice crystals.
And with a nod to Nova Master, I call out, "Not quite—Elemental Hero Forger's effect activates! By removing him from play in my Graveyard, I can protect Nova Master for this turn!"
As the flaming head draws near my flaming hero, he strikes out with a smoking hand and grabs the dragon by the throat, the other hand lunging in through the loops of the icy body and tying the two heads into a knot before hurling them back to the thug's side of the field. From there, they comically try and unwind themselves.
"Grr… you've saved your little hero for one turn, but I'll activate my Equip Spell, Dragon Treasure! Frost and Flame Dragon gains 300 ATK and DEF, putting him on the level with your Nova Master!"
A massive round emerald appears behind his dragon, and in response the long serpentine body coils around it protectively, one head on the left, the other on the right as it gazes menacingly at my monsters and I. (2300 ATK – 2600 ATK)
"Frost and Flame Dragon, attack his Flash! Searing Steam Burst!"
The two heads come together, twisting around one another as their maws open in unison. A gout of flames and a torrent of water burst from their mouths and swirl together, filling the area with steam as I feel the stifling heat of the fire encroaching upon us. Again I see my monster incinerated, the lightning-fast hero not quite quick enough to evade its doom, and I not near quick enough to dodge the punishing blow to my life points.
Ben: 2500 ATK / Thug 2: 300 LP
I cringe, but brush it off; I cannot explain what drives me to do so, but I activate Flash's effect: "When Flash is destroyed, I can remove him and up to three other Heroes from my Graveyard from play! Woodsman and Sparkman, I'll see you two later!"
To be quite honest, I'm not entirely sure what "removing from play" even means, aside from not being in the Graveyard, Deck, Hand or even field; however, something in my mind is telling me that it's integral to my strategy.
"Is that effect supposed to help you or something?! Next turn, Frost and Flame Dragon's effect will destroy your Nova Master, and then I'll wipe out your life points!" he howls with a cruel laugh.
Part of me wants to worry—I have to place all my hope on this draw, or else Blitz might never get out of here… but Nova and I lock eyes—again—and I feel the confidence swell up again, like waves at high tide.
I close my eyes, and say a quiet prayer to something, and then I draw… and I grin.
"I play the Magic Card, Hero Pressure! I target one monster you control, and it loses 300 ATK for each Hero on my field! Coincidentally, guess how many life points you have left?"
The arrogance drains from his face like water going down a drain as a burning fist obliterates his dragon in a cloud of steam. Tearing through the steam, Nova Master delivers a heat-packed punch with his flame-covered hand; the thug drops to his knees, staring into space as he realizes he's been beaten.
Ben: 2500 LP / Thug 2: 0 LP
I don't even wait for the holograms to disappear before I'm pushing past the thug, sending him sprawling to the floor on his side. I can't help but find him a bit overdramatic as he lays there catatonic, but I don't give him much mind as I dash toward the door.
But as I approach, who should step forth but yet another almost identical copy of the last two thugs, this one with a yellowish mohawk instead of green or purple.
Unable to keep my annoyance in check, I grumble out, "Oh great, another one."
He smirks at me. "Another one," he confirms. "You may have beaten the last two, but you're not getting past me."
"You know the other two said the same thing, right? Just before I got past them?" I say in a deadpan tone; two duels in a row should be enough, shouldn't it?
"Yeah, but they're nothing compared to me and my turtles!" he says, brandishing his Duel Disk, showing me that the top has been painted like a turtle's shell. "I'll show you why I'm the leader here, come on!"
"Are you sure you don't want to go ahead and surrender? I'll let you pick up your buddies and leave," I offer, really not wanting another duel; the prospect of fighting a bunch of turtles is… uninteresting, to say the least. And it hurts my heart somewhat, something tells me that I rather like turtles.
The look in his eyes tells me enough; namely, it tells me, "Shut up and duel me, you [redacted]," and so I raise my Duel Disk with a weary sigh.
"DUEL!/Duel…"
Ben: 4000 LP / Yet Another Thug: 4000 LP
"The first move is mine! I summon Djinn Presider of Rituals in attack mode!" calls out the third and hopefully final thug.
For someone who was so proud of his "turtles," the fat green thing that comes out of the portal certainly doesn't look like a turtle, or any reptile or amphibian for that matter. Its body is a large doughy blob, with two thick arms and massive hands, one of which holds a large sword with a golden skull at the guard. A dark blue helmet sits atop its head adorned with a crest and red plumage. (Djinn Presider of Rituals: Level 4, DARK, Fiend-type; 1800 ATK/1400 DEF)
"Is that what turtles look like now?"
"Mind your own business! Now I'll play my Ritual Cage Spell Card! While it's on the field, I don't take any damage from battles involving my Ritual monsters, and they can't be destroyed or targeted by card effects!" he announces as a cage of golden light, like something from a fairy tale, surrounds us both, the bars shining with a threatening hum. "From there, I'll place two facedown cards and end my turn!"
As the telltale tone that signifies the facedown cards appearing occurs, I draw a card and look at my hand. Miracle Fusion; the heroes Flash, Clayman and Heat; and the traps, Hero Barrier and a card I've never seen before… Terra Firma Gravity. Something about this card is so familiar to me that just holding it makes my stomach a pit of intermixing happiness and sorrow, as I cannot even remember why it's so important.
I must have been staring at the card for some time, as the thug finally yells out, "Hey, you sleeping with your eyes open or somethin'? Come on!"
Peeling my eyes away from Terra Firma Gravity, I look back up to him. "Yeah, yeah, hold your horses. I summon Elemental Hero Heat in attack mode!"
Burning with the ferocity of a shooting star, Elemental Hero Heat bursts forward from the typical green portal that I've no doubt mentioned more times than I probably need to already. The burning flames that cloak his red-and-orange suit undulate like waves, climbing up his arms toward his closed fists and covering his face like armor. (Elemental Hero Heat: Level 4, FIRE, Pyro-type; 1600 ATK/1200 DEF)
"1600 ATK? Can't you do math, guy?" the thug taunts with a smirk, hardly even a moment after Heat appears on the scene. "My Djinn can crush it with ease!"
"Oh yeah? Even after his 200-ATK bonus?" I point out as the fires surrounding Heat strengthen, roaring like a thousand lions as he takes an offensive stance. "He gains 200 ATK for each Elemental Hero on the field, including himself—which brings him to 1800 ATK, or, as I like to call it… stronger than your fat green guy!" (Elemental Hero Heat: 1800 ATK)
The thug cringes, and I throw my hand outward in a sweeping gesture. Even without words, Heat understands, blazing forward propelled by jets of flames bursting from his back and feet. Cocking back a flame-cloaked fist, he drives a searing punch hard into the bulging stomach of the sword-wielding Djinn, shattering it into a thousand pixels.
Ben: 4000 LP / Yet Another Thug: 3900 LP
"From there, I set one card face-down and end my turn!" I say, placing Hero Barrier onto the field as an extra defense.
"My turn! I draw!" the thug declares as he pulls a card from the top of his deck. Rather than looking down glumly as I had hoped he would, since it would signify an almost imminent defeat for him, he grins, baring his teeth in a predatory smile that seems to send a shiver down even Heat's spine. "You've got no idea what you got yourself into by destroying my Djinn, kid. You see, when Djinn monsters are in the Graveyard, if I Ritual Summon a monster, I can remove them from play as tribute material…"
Not good.
"And I'll do just that! I activate Turtle Oath!" he howls, holding the card triumphantly toward the ceiling as it starts to glow. "I remove from play my Djinn in the Graveyard, as well as send my Djinn Prognosticator and Djinn Disserere from my Hand to the Graveyard, in order to summon my ultimate creature—the mighty Crab Turtle!"
The aforementioned cards disappear in a blinding flash of light, and the building seems to shake as the sounds of drums begins somewhere off in the distance, steadily getting closer, like a snake slinking along the ground.
And then, the monster appears.
Twelve feet tall at least, with a soft purple body encased in layers of green shell that seem to shine like diamonds. Two giant red crab claws jut out from openings on either side of the shell, with a dozen or more red crab legs sticking out at odd angles, moving constantly as if trying to walk through the air… but most unnerving of all is the single green eye, with a slitted pupil like a cat's, staring directly at Heat and I, unblinking. (Crab Turtle: Level 8, WATER, Aqua-type; 2550 ATK/2500 DEF)
"Next I'll activate my face-down, the Equip Spell known as Steel Shell! By equipping it to my Turtle, he gains 400 ATK but loses 200 DEF!" The thug bellows, as the shell turns blue and steel spikes erupt from it. (Crab Turtle: 2950 ATK/2300 DEF)
Oh, even better.
"Crab Turtle, attack his Hero! Piercing Pincer Pinch!" the thug orders, and the abomination that is somewhere between turtle and crab lumbers forward, each step shaking the ground as it walks. As it approaches Heat, it raises a gleaming red pincer and starts to bring it down…
"Not so fast—I activate my Trap, Hero Barrier! When I have a Hero on my field, I can negate your atta—" I stop mid-sentence; the barrier appears around Heat, but the shiny red claw stabs through it and closes around Heat, crushing him to bits.
Ben: 2850 LP / Yet Another Thug: 3900 LP
"How…?" I say, at a complete loss after seeing my Hero and my trap fail right in front of me like that. It's not even disappointment tinging my tone, but rather utter confusion.
"Guess you didn't know about my Djinn Disserere, did you? When he's used for a Ritual Summon, the monster is unaffected by Trap Cards!" he explains, drawing a card from his deck before adding, "Also, my other two Djinns let me draw a card, and make you discard a card when my Crab Turtle destroys one of your monsters!"
I scowl, suddenly wishing I had just picked up a chunk of cement or something and bashed him over the head with it instead of dueling. Hesitantly, I discard my Elemental Hero Flash. How am I gonna get out of this one, voice in my head?
I don't know. How are you going to get out of it, Ben? A voice replies, different than the last one.
I almost jump slightly as I hear it, admittedly a bit startled—which earns a scornful laugh from the thug at the other end of the duel field. Well, I'm more or less hedging my bets all on this next draw…
Are you? You've got to stop thinking so dark. Think… light. Bright, shining light. That's what'll get you through here.
Bright… shining… light? Well… here goes nothing! "I draw!" I announce, drawing the trap, Magic Cylinder. Not exactly helpful…
I begin looking at my Hand once more, trying to figure out which will help me stall out the longest. Clayman has the highest DEF stat, but… my hand lingers briefly on Miracle Fusion, as I recall Flash that now rests in my Graveyard.
Think light, huh? I think to myself. If there's a Fusion for each other attribute, why not LIGHT?
"I play my Magic Card, Miracle Fusion!" I raise my hand proudly, the card shining with a bright white light that flashes between the various colors of the rainbow. "By removing from play Elemental Heroes in my Graveyard or on my field, I can Fusion Summon a Hero from my Fusion Deck!"
His smug look turns to one of confusion as he tries to think of what I might have up my sleeve.
My immediate thoughts go to Nova Master, but I recall at once that with only 2600 ATK, he cannot defeat that cyclopean turtle. "By removing from play Flash and Heat in my Graveyard… I can summon…"
Shine on, Ben! Let me loose!
"The illumination of a distant star coalesces into the Hero with the power of light ready to shine the spotlight on anyone who fights against justice! Elemental Hero The Shining, let your light shine!"
A flash of white leaves us both temporarily blinded, but as it subsides I see the new arrival on the scene. His entire body is covered by a white bodysuit, trimmed with gold that outline various points such as elbows, kneecaps and muscles, all running toward his abdomen upon which a blazing red ruby sits. Two golden protrusions extend at an angle from his back, curving upwards until they reach a few inches from his head; eight golden lines then extend from those, giving an impression of the shining sun. (Elemental Hero The Shining: Level 8, LIGHT, Warrior-type; 2600 ATK/2100 DEF)
"But wait, there's more! The Shining gains 300 ATK for each of my Heroes that has been removed from play, granting him a 600 ATK bonus!" (The Shining: 3200 ATK)
My opponent cringes as he sees the beacon of bright light staring him down. "That guy can beat my turtle…" he says grimly.
"Oh, he can beat a lot more than just the turtle! Go on, The Shining! Hypernova Hammer Fist!" I decree.
At once, my hero of light springs into action. Dropping into a low crouch, he leaps across the field in one fluid motion, landing just in front of the turtle. A fist wreathed in light raises up high in the air, before coming down on the one-eyed amphibian's eye with all the force of a hammer, leaving a burning trail of light tearing the beast in half and crushing it into pixels.
Ben: 2850 LP / Yet Another Thug: 3650 LP
As Shining returns to my side of the field, he looks at me and I look back at him, and we nod in understanding.
Good to be back, partner, I hear his voice say. I cannot help but assume it's his voice—I'd be a bit worried if it were someone else's. While there's still something quite odd about hearing the voice of a monster… it's comforting; my memory does not recall why, but from hearing him I almost feel at home.
Good to have you back, I reply. "From there, I end my turn!"
The thug draws a card, sets a monster, and passes. I draw a second Hero Barrier, which I set as well, but then I summon Woodsman—effectively cleaning out my Hand.
As the half-wooden man appears alongside the shining hero, I feel a surge of triumph welling up in my chest. The sight of those two united makes me feel like a hero too, as I realize that soon… Blitz will be saved.
The Shining delivers another devastating strike to his facedown monster, which is a pale blue tiger encased in a turtle shell, allowing Woodsman to send his encroaching vines to choke 1000 Life Points out of the thug.
Ben: 2850 LP / Yet Another Thug, is this joke tired yet?: 2650 LP
Another turn for the thug sees him summoning a rather cute little turtle with red eyes and a green shell known as Gora Turtle. (Gora Turtle: Level 3, WATER, Aqua-type; 1100 ATK/1100 DEF)
"Gora Turtle, attack his Woodsman!" he declares, a twinkle in his eyes again. The little turtle tucks its limbs into its shell and begins to spin at a rapid pace, before hurling itself at my half-tree before being stopped in its tracks at the reveal of my facedown.
"What, so eager to lose? The second it's my turn, Shining will smash it and Woodsman will deal the killing blow! Hero Barrier, stop that attack!" The swirling blue barrier appears in front of Woodsman, protecting him from the attack and reflecting the spinning turtle back at the thug.
"Oh yeah? I guess you didn't know that while Gora's on the field, mosnters with 1900 ATK can't declare an attack! Now how are you gonna stop him?" the thug asks.
He's stalling. Seriously.
If it works, it works… we'll just need another plan, Shining replies in response to my mental groaning. Perhaps… this?
The top card of my deck begins to shine, the same bright light that heralded the appearance of my light hero emanating from the slot. "I draw…"
This is it!
"And activate my Equip Magic, Wildgrowth Axe!" I say, revealing the card as a vine-covered lumberjack axe appears in the hands of my Woodsman. "By equipping it to Woodsman, he gains 500 ATK and if he destroys a monster in battle, that monster's effect is negated!" (Woodsman: 1500 ATK)
"Go Woodsman! Chop that turtle to bits!"
And so just like the two before him, the thug falls to the power of justice. Rushing out the sliding doors to lick his wounds, I hurry past into the back room. The moment the doors close behind him, the lights go out, leaving me in the dark but for the shining light in the deck slot of my Duel Disk.
The back room is small and cramped, not what you'd expect to see in an old grocery store. It smells oddly of dirt, and as I shine my light around the room I can see that the room has almost entirely caved in, explaining the miniscule size.
And there in the center—Blitz, spread-eagled on the floor. His eyes are closed, glasses broken into pieces a few feet away, and his face is bruised and bloody, but as I kneel beside him I can tell he's still alive.
"Hey, Blitz…" I say, nudging him, trying to wake him up. "Come on Blitz, get up."
His eyes steadily open, struggling at first but finally opening all the way and looking up at me. "Ben…" he groans, his hands clenching as if trying to grasp onto something. Finally his hands lay flat on the floor and he pushes himself partially up. "They really roughed me up, huh? I'm sorry you had to come save me…"
"Don't worry about it, man," I say, sitting down on the floor next to him. "Isn't this what friends are for?"
"Heh, yeah," he says, struggling to sit up as well. It's clear he's in quite a bit of pain still, so rather than hurry him out of the building I give him some time to take it easy. "Still, thanks… it's all my fault I got us into this."
"Nah." I wave it off. "You're just trying to help out a friend, how can I fault you for that?"
"So… how bad did you beat them? You did beat them all didn't you?" he asks after a moment, straightening out his torn vest.
I give him a grin, and stand up. "Villainy is no match for a hero. Even if it's someone who's just a hero for fun," I say, offering my hand. "Let's get you home. Rally and the others are worried sick."
AND THERE WE GO! It's been almost a month, and I am SO SO SOOO sorry about that! To make it short, Windows decided that I no longer needed to be logged into my Microsoft account, so I'd have to sign into that first before I could sign in using my PIN number. The problem—I made my Microsoft account 10+ years ago on my 360, and I gotta say, Microsoft customer support can be a real pain in the ass sometimes.
Anyway, all that aside, I can promise you all I won't be taking such a long break again without informing you all. I will also apologize if there's a bit of a difference in quality in certain parts of the chapter, when I finally did get back onto my computer several of my documents were… a bit less whole than they were the last time they were saved, so I had to rewrite more of this chapter than I would have liked to.
So, what do we see this chapter? Two duels in a row! I've given the baddies a bit of a deck update, mainly because I don't want Ben to be absolutely stomping everyone, which against the generic AI decks is a bit of an issue. Be sure to let me know if you guys still like how the duels are going; these bad guys aside, once Ben reaches the City, you can expect the opponents to be a lot tougher. We also get to see Ben's apparent ability to interact with card spirits-or at least one card spirit, in the form of Elemental Hero The Shining! What does this mean, I wonder? ...Well, not wonder, because I know, but can you all figure it out?
Anyway, I've gone on long enough. So, allow me to say,
Take care, brush yo hair, I'll see ya when I see ya (which will hopefully not be NEAR as long this time), PEACE!
Also before I forget, here are the created cards I've used this chapter:
Elemental Hero Forger
Level 3 / FIRE / Warrior-type
ATK/DEF: 500/1200
Effect: You can discard this card from your Hand to the Graveyard to add 1 Equip Spell that lists a specific "Elemental Hero" in its card text from your Deck to your Hand. If an "Elemental Hero" Fusion Monster you control would be destroyed by a card effect, you can remove this card in your Graveyard from play, and if you do, that monster is not destroyed.
Wildgrowth Axe
Equip Spell Card
Effect: Equip only to "Elemental Hero Woodsman." The equipped monster gains 500 ATK, and if it destroys an opponent's monster by battle, that monster's effect is negated.