Chapter 11 – Mr. M and His Funky Molecules, Part 2
"Take the field, Shapeshift!" I declare as my mental companion somersaults onto the field, striking a confident pose in the face of the Chemicritter horde. Covering his face with his left hand, he raises his head up to face the ceiling while holding out his right hand in a "Stop!" gesture.
(Elemental Hero Shapeshift: Level 1, DARK, Warrior-type; 0 ATK/0 DEF)
Let's do this Ben! Hit them with my special effect! Shapeshift suggests, his voice echoing in my mind louder than normal.
"Shapeshift… he's the one that you created, isn't he? I can't recall you ever using him against me," Mr. M comments with a soft whistle of admiration. This, of course, only manages to make Shapeshift's ego grow even further, causing him to do a small dance that involves moving his arms like they're waves. "That must be some effect, to put a monster with zero ATK on the field."
"It is!" I reply, though in all actuality I do not recall just what Shapeshift's effect is, so perhaps my voice doesn't betray a sense of complete confidence. Raising my hand, I call out, "Alright, Shapeshift! Hit him with your effect!"
…
…
Nothing happens.
You have to describe it, boss, Shapeshift whispers. You remember what it is, right?
Of course I remember! I respond, although of course I do not remember—though before I can argue with him further, I feel the words coming to mind without even realizing. "Using Shapeshift's effect, I can target one monster on your side of the field, and if I do, Shapeshift gains ATK, DEF, and a level to match your monster's! Oh, and then he can't be destroyed by battle while this effect is active! Go on, Shapeshift, morph into his Dioxogre!"
With a loud snicker, Shapeshift's body begins to transform, soon becoming a mirror image of the fiend that Mr. M controls, albeit with a slight yellow tint on its body. And, of course, rather than mimicking the monster's stern, still pose, Shapeshift begins to do his dance again—which looks rather weird coming from a muscular fiend like Dioxogre. (Elemental Hero Shapeshift: Level 8, DARK, Warrior-type; 2800 ATK/2000 DEF)
"Alright, Shapeshift, time to give Dioxogre a taste of its own medicine! Oxygen Eraser!" I command, feeling a rush of adrenaline coursing through my veins as I sit on this faux-leather couch across from an old man while holograms the size of toys fight to the death for our amusement.
Shapeshift-Ogre ceases his dance and instead channels the flames from his horns into a massive ball of flames. The orange orb swirls and spits as he hurls it, sending off sparks in every direction as it hurtles toward Dioxogre. It won't take down Mr. M's Life Points at all, but as long as that big guy is out of the way…
"Stop right there, old chum! I'll activate a second copy of Burnout!" Mr. M states, revealing the facedown. "By removing Dioxogre from play, I'll be summoning Chemicritters Argo Alligator and Heli Hound!"
As Dioxogre swirls away into nothingness, in its place appear the silhouettes of two monsters. Once the dust clears, I can see clearly an alligator and a dog, of the Great Dane breed I believe. The alligator is outlined in a faint purple glow, transparent and crystalline with sharp-looking ridges lining its back, and a long tail that, despite the known strength of the beast, looks as if it could shatter with one wrong touch. Similarly, the dog stands tall and noble, its chin held high in the air with its tail long and straight, pointed like an arrow toward the ceiling; a faint orange-red glow runs through it, with the molecules bouncing around wildly inside both of them. (Chemicritter Argo Alligator: Level 6, DARK, Reptile-type; 2300 ATK/500 DEF) (Chemicritter Heli Hound: Level 3, FIRE, Beast-type; 1600 ATK/1600 DEF)
The moment Dioxogre disappears from the field, Shapeshift begins to return to normal. The bulging muscles of the ogre unwind themselves, his arms shrinking from the size of thick pipes back down to the regular, slightly noodle-like arms Shapeshift normally possesses. His dark hair returns, covering his face which holds a look of slight shame. Sorry, Ben… I hear him say as his stats drop back down. (Elemental Hero Shapeshift: Level 1, DARK, Warrior-type; 0 ATK/0 DEF)
I grimace inwardly; how could I have forgotten this part? "Unfortunately… when the target that Shapeshift is mimicking is removed from the field, he returns to his normal form. You've saved yourself for another turn, Mr. M," I say, already working out my next turn; Hero Barrier should save me from at least one attack, although… there's two monsters with actual ATK, and even then he can just use Oxy Ox again.
This isn't looking good…
[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.
Don't give up! Shapeshift interjects, looking back at me with a look of determination in his tiny eyes. We can still do this. Just remember my effects!
Easier said than done, I remark offhandedly, seeing as I didn't even remember his effect until now. Besides, what good will it do me on Mr. M's turn?
Unless…
THERE WE GO! YOU'VE GOT IT! Shapeshift howls triumphantly, throwing his head back and pumping his fist into the sky.
"Your monster is much more animated than a normal hologram," Mr. M comments.
"Oh. Er… yes, I suppose he is," I reply, not really sure how I'm supposed to respond to that. With Mr. M's apparent intelligence, I don't know what I could even say to explain it. "Anyway, I'll be ending my turn there. You're up, Mr. M!"
"Thank you, Ben. I draw!" Mr. M draws a card from the top of his deck, and begins to grin in a rather unpleasant manner. "This is going to be what really brings about my victory. I activate the Field Spell, Catalyst Field!"
As he places the card into the Field Zone, rather than the world around us shifting to resemble the environment portrayed on the card, it's the previously blank screen of the table that changes. It starts as a pattern of hexagons crossing its way across the field, deep blue and purple covering the blackness of the field. Soon, the tiny orbs present in each of the Chemicritter monsters begin to bounce about at rapid speeds, some smashing together to create explosive shockwaves, others joining and beginning the dance anew. Color swirls all around, every shade and hue clashing and retreating in a battle of dominance.
"While this card is on my field, I can Normal Summon a Level 5 or higher Gemini monster without tributing, and in addition to my usual Normal Summon, I can Normal Summon an additional Gemini monster!" Mr. M explains, the corners of his eyes crinkling with pride as he begins to grin. "Allow me to begin your downfall by activating the effect of my Oxy Ox, in order to Special Summon my Poly-Chemicritter Hydragon from my Hand in defense mode!"
Clustered around a large, frost-white central body, five transparent bluish heads attached to long necks thrash and flail about, their jaws snapping, green and blue heterochromatic sweeping across the field in surveying glances. Inside their barely see-through body, which is solid and sturdy unlike the relatively fragile look of many of the other Chemicritters, blue and green orbs are linked together, bouncing around rapidly. H-O-H are etched angularly across its broad chest, and outside of the main body, gradients of blue and green tint the hard glass-like skin. (Poly-Chemicritter Hydragon: Level 8, WATER, Dragon-type/Gemini; 200 ATK/2800 DEF)
"200 ATK?" I question, furrowing my brow in response.
Mr. M waves his hand. "No need to worry about that, my friend, it is the effect that is important—which I'll gain by Gemini Summoning my Hydragon! Now, whenever a Gemini monster is Normal Summoned, I can have it gain 500 ATK and DEF—and if you try to destroy a Gemini with a card effect, I can destroy another card I control instead. Water can be quite the useful chemical, eh, Ben?"
"Useful." I agree flatly, feeling a surge of annoyance at the potential of this deck. My eyes lock with the miniature Hydragon—and a shock of pain surges through my mind, strong enough to make me squeeze my eyes shut and lean forward, putting my head in my hand. "Ah!"
"Ben?" Mr. M says, concern lacing his voice. I can hear the faux leather of the couch squeak as he stands up, and further squeaking at what must be Dr. Pepper rising at a surprisingly quick pace.
The sting stabs deep into my brain, like the stinger of a hornet being driven relentlessly into my hippocampus. It lingers only for a moment, but in return gives me only a little bit of memory back. As the pain subsides, and my eyes slide open again, I look up to see Mr. M and Dr. Pepper both standing.
I give Mr. M a small, pained smile. "You… played a different deck the last time we dueled…" I say, sitting up straight and shaking my head to try and clear out my mind. "Much different. Did losing to me so much make you change, Mr. M?"
The old man studies me for a moment, probably trying to guess at just how much I remembered. After a moment, he smiles back at me, and as he speaks, the tiniest hint of an accent slips into his voice. "Well, you were certainly a catalyst in your own way, my young friend. But I think I've finally got you knackered this time."
"Don't be so sure. Remember, I can always use Shapeshift's ability to make him as powerful as your strongest monster," I remind him. And, of course, there's Hero Barrier in case you can pull anything else.
"But will that be enough?" Mr. M inquires, tapping his chin playfully. "I don't think so, personally. I Gemini Summon Chemicritter Argo Alligator! Through his effect, whenever he battles a monster, both he and the attacked monster are removed from play at the end of the Damage Step—and, I'll also use Hydragon's effect to give him an extra 500 ATK and DEF! Go on, Argo Alligator, give Shapeshift a taste of your Death Roll!" (Chemicritter Argo Alligator: 2800 ATK/1000 DEF)
The small alligator takes a couple of hesitant steps before breaking into a run, making a beeline straight for Shapeshift. I frown a little as I flip up my trap card; I hadn't wanted to use it so soon.
"I activate Hero Barrier, to negate your Alligator's attack! Shapeshift will be sticking around for a while to come!"
As the alligator leaps through the air toward my hero, Shapeshift is surrounded by a swirling blue orb of energy, which tosses the Chemicritter back the moment it touches. It soon dissipates, and Shapeshift remains safe.
"Now, to make sure you don't try anything else, I'll be using Shapeshift's effect to change him into your Argo Alligator!" I say proudly.
In response, Shapeshift begins to morph once more, taking the form of Argo Alligator, albeit with a slightly darker tone to its glassy, angular skin. There's also a mischievous look in his reptilian eyes, and his powerful jaws seem to be quirked upward in a slight grin. (Elemental Hero Shapeshift: Level 6, DARK, Warrior-type; 2800 ATK/1000 DEF)
"Well done. I hadn't prepared for a second Hero Barrier," Mr. M remarks. "There's little else I can do this turn; I'll set one card face-down and end things there."
"I thought you mentioned you knew the ins and outs of my deck?" I reply. "Draw!"
"Oh, I do. Perhaps better than you do, until you regain your memories," he replies offhandedly. "But worry not about me, I know perfectly well what I'm doing. Look to your own cards and consider whether or not you can defeat me."
Something about his words truly irks me. Perhaps it's the airy familiarity with which he speaks them, or the implication that he knows my deck better than I do, or the almost fatherly chiding that goes along with the suggestion that I pay attention to my own cards and quit trash talking, but whatever it is annoys the hell out of me.
Looking down to the card I drew, I realize that Polymerization has come into my possession. I can't keep the grin from my face as I lay it onto the field. "By activating Polymerization, as I'm sure you're so well aware, I can Fusion Summon one of my Heroes!"
The look on Mr. M's face is one of amusement, as if he's watching a TV show that does not star that annoying news reporter he had been complaining about. "Oh yes, do continue."
GAH! How can he stay so cool during this?! Shapeshift fumes in my mind. This is maddening! It's like he's trying to mess with our heads!
My head.
Still! You value my input. Your head and half of mine.
A third.
Quarter. Now let's stop, as this is getting rather silly, I say finally.
"Well, I believe that I'll stop you for a moment, Ben. I activate my face-down card, the Spell Hand Destruction! Both of us discard two cards from our Hands, then we draw two more to replace them," Mr. M explains, sending two of the cards in his hand to the graveyard pile, then drawing two more.
Hesitantly, I send Poison Rose and Voltic to the graveyard—which admittedly puts a little bit of a damper on my plans to Fusion Summon. For my two new cards, I draw a second copy of Polymerization, and luckily, Ice Edge. "You almost ruined my little scheme there, Mr. M, but it seems I've gotten lucky! I fuse my Elemental Heroes Knospe and Ice Edge in my Hand in order to Fusion Summon Elemental Hero Gaia!"
Without the visual spectacle of the two monsters swirling away into a spinning vortex, the summon of Gaia is heralded with little fanfare outside the nice little rumbles that the table gives off as he stomps his way onto the scene. At this much smaller scale, he still stands tall over the rest, a symbol of justice, firm and proud like a member of the Terracotta Army—if the Terracotta Army had been made into action figures, of course. (Elemental Hero Gaia: Level 6, EARTH, Warrior-type; 2200 ATK/2600 DEF)
"And there he is," Mr. M says admiringly, looking as if he were about to reach out and touch the living boulder. "I had been wondering who you would first summon; I suppose it's my own bad luck that you drew Polymerization."
"That's right! And since you're so familiar with my deck, then you'll no doubt know what Gaia can do with his own effect. I'll be using Stone Splitter to cut Argo Alligator down to size!"
Breaking off a piece of rock from his shoulder, Gaia hurls it across the playing field toward the crystalline alligator. It seems to slice clean through, leaving only a tiny web of cracks where it entered. (Argo Alligator: 2800 ATK – 1400 ATK. Gaia: 2200 ATK – 3600 ATK)
As the table displays the increase and decrease in stats, I feel a building sense of excitement swelling up inside of me, the same sort of anticipation that one feels when they realize they are on the cusp of victory. No backrow to defend against me… and a 0 ATK monster on the field, in attack position no less. It's over.
"Go on, Gaia! Crush his Oxy Ox with your Stone Age Smackdown!"
Lumbering forward on its great, powerful legs, once it reaches the halfway point Gaia leaps into the air. Doing several twists in midair that shouldn't be possible for a creature its size and weight, Gaia finds himself upside-down with his thick stony legs extended. As it cuts through the air and closes the gap between it and Oxy Ox, it axes his legs downward and practically stomps the chemical ox out of existence.
Ben: 1200 LP / Mr. M: 400 LP
A smile comes across Mr. M's face.
"Go on, Shapeshift! Hit his Argo Alligator with a Death Roll!"
You got it, Boss! Shapeshift replies, lunging at the Chemicritter, spinning all the way like an arrow. His jaws clench shut, focused directly at Argo Alligator to almost complete the illusion of a spinning arrow. He impacts, and the creature shatters like the glass it appears to be made of.
Ben: 1200 LP / Mr. M: 0 LP
The Chemicritters begin disappearing at once, but it takes a moment before my Heroes begin to vanish. Mr. M starts to collect his cards, seemingly not paying attention to the apparent holograms moving to stand directly in front of me; Shapeshift returns to his usual form and gives me a thumbs up before fading away, and Gaia gives me a low bow.
"You did well, Ben." Mr. M comments, packing his cards away back into the little red box. Setting it off to the side, he stands up and leans across the table to offer me his hand. "Shake an old man's hand, won't you? My losing streak may not have ended yet, but we must still show one another respect."
I feel weirdly obligated to honor his request, though as I stand up and take hold of his hand, the strength and warmth I feel reminds me of something I cannot yet place; a feeling, or a person perhaps? Possibly Mr. M's true identity? We shake, and release, and I sit back down to pick up my cards.
Removing my Fusion Deck and hand from the duel field part of the table, I move to collect my deck, only to clumsily spill some of the cards across the table. "Oh, I'm sorry," I apologize quickly, hurrying to pick up the mess I've made.
Ben, WAIT! Don't— Shapeshift begins to shout in my mind as I place my hand on the top card of my deck. Despite his warnings, however, something compels me to flip it over and look at it.
"It's… blank?" I say softly.
The card in question is indeed blank, at least where the artwork should be, though I can tell that it is meant to be a monster of some sort. It bears the orangish coloring of an effect monster, though where the portrait should be is a white space, like a blank canvas. The name and text box are all blank, and where the stats should be, it is simply [blank] / [blank].
"What…" I say, feeling my focus drawn solely to that card.
BEN! Shapeshift screams.
I find myself staring, and leaning toward the card. I hear Mr. M speaking, and Shapeshift speaking, and… a third person speaking…
…third person…
…who? Where?
And then, my consciousness fades.
"Ben!" Mr. M shouts as the young man collapses onto the table, splashing his cards about onto the field. He leaps to his feet in a surprising display of agility for his age and hurries over, beginning to shake the young man to try and wake him. When he gets no response, he then feels for a pulse, worried that he might have lost him again. He sighs in relief as he finds it, however. "Thank God…"
His aged back creaks as he bends down to pick the boy up, but he eventually has him stood up, an arm draped over his shoulder. It's slow going as they begin the walk from the living room to the stairs, and then even slower as they climb up to his room. By the time Mr. M lays Ben down on his bed, his ancient muscles are screaming.
"Ah… I thought I was in better shape than that," he says softly. He looks over to the door as Dr. Pepper creeps in, the tortoise settling himself down on the little bed on the floor next to Ben's. "So, my friend, how does it feel to see him again?"
Dr. Pepper stares at him.
"You were so much more talkative before Ben came back," Mr. M sighs, casting another look over his shoulder to the boy. "Keep an eye on him, won't you? I'll see to his cards."
Stare.
"…Right…" Mr. M says, awkwardly sliding out of the room to get away from the tortoise's gaze. He slowly makes his way back downstairs and into the living room, to the table with all the cards tossed about on it, and begins gathering them all up once more. His hand lingers on the card that Ben had been so fixated on, and he brings it up to his eyes to get a good look at it.
"Don Zaloog? I didn't put that in there," he mutters to himself curiously, before packing it in with the rest of the cards. "Oh, Dr. Pepper… quite the sneak you are."
He then sees Shapeshift, alone on the playing field. Taking the card up in his hands, Mr. M sweeps his gaze over it, many, many memories flooding back to his mind of days long since passed. "You've kept watch over him all these years, haven't you? Whether he realized it or not. All of you have…"
Mr. M walks over to an old fireplace built into the back wall of the room, opposite the television. Upon the mantle, there rest several framed pictures; he browses each of them with a slight mist in his eyes, all of them holding memories of the past, but stops in front of one specific one.
The edges are a bit burnt, as if it had been plucked from a fire, and then cut almost perfectly in half. The picture has yellowed a bit from apparent age, or perhaps other outside influences, but the subject of the image is still clear enough, at least the part of the subject in this half of the portrait.
"Ben…" Mr. M says quietly, a tear rolling down his cheek as he looks at the photo.
Indeed, shown in that image is Ben, or at least someone who looks like Ben. The hair is the same, messy and dark brown; the eyes shine brightly, a bit grayer than usual but of a similar shape; and that confident, yet somehow still goofy grin… but instead of the clothes he had been wearing upon his return to New Domino City, in this image, the person wears a yellow jacket.
AND THERE WE SHALL END IT! Perhaps a bit of an anticlimactic end to the duel, but as Mr. M had mentioned, Ben's missing a lot of his Fusion monsters, so we might not be seeing everything he has up his sleeves yet ;) Anyways, how about that ending? What's up with Don Zaloog, why was the card blank, and why does Mr. M think that a tortoise put him in Ben's deck? Who is the person in the battered photograph? Was this really the extent of Mr. M's skills? (I'll go ahead and answer that—no.)
Keep the theories coming guys, I love reading them! Now, to address a few reviews left for me~
Raidentensho: Never said that the person in his dreams was Aki, did I ;) I'll go ahead and say that it's not her, Akiza is definitely not a yandere. This woman is a part of the 'baggage' I mentioned at the beginning of the story as kind of a roadblock for Ben and Akiza's eventual relationship. But, I will say that she and Mr. M have some sort of link to one another.
Time Thief: Unfortunately, it's been an INCREDIBLY long time since I last played Majora's Mask, far too long actually, so I admittedly am not sure what you think is the reference, but I can promise you it's not. And you're sensing the kinda GX-ish themes too, yeah? Good to know ;)
(I feel disgusted with myself for how many times I've used the winky face in this A/N. Ugh.)
So that's where we're going to call it today. New chapter, hopefully within the next two weeks. Maybe we'll start wrapping up mysteries? Maybe not.
But, as always, take care, brrrrush yo hair, I'll see ya when I see ya, stay healthy, and PEACE~
~Chase
(P.S. Apologies if this chapter seems a little bit off or anything. We're supposed to be moving back home to the States in a few months, but who knows what the hell is going to happen with COVID, but still my wife and I have been packing stuff in order to make sure we're ready and I've finding the time to write in the middle of all the work and stuff. If it's bad, let me know and I'll rewrite it when I have some time.)
Custom cards, for anyone who is interested:
Elemental Hero Shapeshift
Level 1 / Dark / Warrior-effect
Effect: Once per turn, during either player's turn, you can target 1 monster your opponent controls, and if you do, this card's ATK, DEF, and level become equal to that of the targeted monster, until that monster leaves the field. This card cannot be destroyed by battle.
ATK/DEF: 0 / 0
Chemicritter Argo Alligator
Level 6 / Dark / Reptile-Gemini
Effect: This card is treated as a Normal Monster while face-up on the field or in the Graveyard. While this card is a Normal Monster on the field, you can Normal Summon it to have it become an effect monster with this effect.
- When this card battles an opponent's monster, after damage calculation, remove from play this card and the opponent's monster that battled this card.
ATK/DEF: 2300 / 500
Chemicritter Heli Hound
Level 3 / Fire / Beast-Gemini
I didn't come up with an effect for it lol
ATK/DEF: 1600 / 1600