With Yugi already prepared, Jaden gave a grin of his own, activating his Duel Disc, ready for their rematch.
Yugi: You have greatly improved since we last Dueled, but don't expect me to go any easier on you.
Jaden just smiled and nodded in reply, setting his Life Point counter to 8000, ready to throw down.
Yugi/Jaden: Let's Duel!/Get your game on!
Their more familiar words issued before a Duel, Jaden and Yugi each drew the top five Cards from their Decks, with Yugi then drawing a sixth and making the first move.
Yugi: I'll start by playing the Spell: Ancient Rules, and with its magics, I can Summon any Level five or above Monster from my hand without tribute, so come forth, Dark Magician! (ATK: 2500)
Placing his signature Card on his Duel Disc, the sight amazed Jaden and those watching to see Yugi Summon one of his best Cards on the first move.
Yugi: To keep going, I now Summon Mystical Elf in Defence mode. (DEF: 2000) I end my turn with two Cards face-down. You're up, Jaden.
Jaden: (Draws) I Summon Elemental HERO Bubbleman. (DEF: 1200) And when he's all alone on the Field, I get to draw two new Cards. (Draws 2) I'll throw two face-downs and end my turn.
Yugi: (Draws) For my move, I play the Spell: Thousand Knives. Now since I have Dark Magician on the Field, I can Destroy your Monster.
Appearing around Dark Magician, a mass of daggers began to form, which, under the command of Dark Magician himself, then launched at Bubbleman, Destroying the HERO in a powerful blast, leaving Jaden open to Attack.
Yugi: Dark Magician, Attack Jaden! Dark Magic Attack!
Swinging around his staff, Dark Magician released a stream of black energy at Jaden, looking s though Yugi would be the first to deal any Damage in their Duel.
Jaden: Hold up there, Yugi, I activate my face-down: A HERO Emerges, and thanks to this, you must select one Card in my hand, and if it's a Monster, it gets called to the Field.
Smiling at Jaden's familiar strategy, Yugi then took a chance.
Yugi: I choose the one on your far right.
Jaden: Good choice, well for me that is, because I get to Summon my good friend Elemental HERO Bladedge! (ATK: 2600)
As Bladedge appeared on the Field, the magics Dark Magician cast died down, with the Spellcaster returning by Yugi's side
Yugi: Not bad, Jaden, but you're not the only one who can Summon during Battle. I activate Magical Dimension!
Revealing the face-down on his left, a golden sarcophagus appeared behind Mystical Elf, turning her into pure energy as she was absorbed inside.
Yugi: With Magical Dimension, I can sacrifice one Spellcaster to Summon another, so welcome to the Field, Dark Magician Girl! (ATK: 2000)
Placing the final Card in his hand upon his Duel Disc, the sarcophagus opened up, amazing Jaden and those watching as Dark Magician Girl made her appearance, expressing her cuteness and her power.
Yugi: Now that I Summoned Dark Magician Girl, Magical Dimesnion's final effect activates, allowing me to Destroy any of your Monsters.
Closing itself, the sarcophagus expelled the energies from the small port Mystical Elf had been absorbed into, slamming into Bladedge's chest and causing him to shatter apart.
Yugi: Now let's try this again. Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl, Attack with Dark Burning Magic!
Bringing their staffs together, Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl released their power as one, casting out a pink sphere gathering with dark black energy that they then threw at Jaden, managing to strike the HERO Duelist with a 4500 Attack Point blast.
But despite taking such a hit, Jaden remained standing and expressing a confident grin on his face.
Jaden: Sweet move, Yugi.
Yugi: Thank you, Jaden. It's good to see you still have a lot more fight in you. And since I can't do anymore this round, I end my turn.
Current Scores:
Yugi: 8000
Jaden: 3500
As Jaden readied himself for his move, Alexis watched on, not only impressed to see Jaden facing the retired King of Games, but the Duel began to grow with attention, with many now watching the match between the pair.
Jaden: Seems we're getting an audience, so let's give them a real sweet Duel. (Draws) I Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two more Cards. (Draws 2) Next up, I activate my face-down: Monster Reborn, and i'll use it to back Elemental HERO Bladedge.
Watching as Bladedge returned from the depths of the Graveyard and before Jaden, Yugi prepared himself.
Jaden: And check this out, I play Polymerization to fuse Bladedge with wildheart to Summon Elemental HERO Wildedge! (ATK: 2600)
Combining the power of the HERO on his field and the second from his hand, the pair of Monsters took the armoured savagely form that was Wildedge.
But instead of Attacking, Jaden just grinned.
Jaden: I throw one card face-down. That's all from me.
Yugi: My turn then. (Draws) I activate the Spell: Spider Web. With this Card, I can take any Card you played last round and use it as my own, and I choose Pot of Greed.
His Spell taking effect, a thick strand of webbing shot from the Spell and into Jaden's Duel Disc Graveyard, retrieving his Pot of Greed for Yugi to play.
And from his draw, Yugi smiled.
Yugi: I trusted in the heart of the Cards and it rewarded me. I activate the Spell: Brain Control.
Dropping his Life Points to 7200, a green mist circled around Wildedge, forcing him over to Yugi's side and to fight along Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl, rather than against them.
Yugi: Wildedge, Attack Jaden! Scimitar Slash!
A little surprised that Yugi knew the Attack name for his Monster, but seeing Wildedge come at him, Jaden retaliated.
Jaden: Not so fast! I activate my face-down: Negate Attack!
His Trap in effect, a clear barrier produced itself before Jaden, not only stopping Wildedge, but its power also kept Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl at bay.
Yugi: Another impressive counter. I'll end my turn with a face-down Card.
With his move over, the effects of Brain Control wore off, dispelling the green mesmeric energies controlling Wildedge and allowing him back to Jaden's side.
And though they were in combat, from the determination Jaden and Yugi expressed, alongside the cheers and support of Alexis and those watching, Dark Magician, Dark Magician Girl and even Wildedge smiled.
Yugi: 7200
Jaden: 3500
Jaden: (Draws) I Summon Elemental HERO Clayman in Defense mode. (DEF: 2000) Next, I play my Spell: Heavy Storm!
Activating his Spell, the winds around the Duelists increased, revealing Yugi's face-downs, Spellbinding Circle and Spiritual Swords of Revealing Light, before both Trap Cards shattered apart.
Jaden: Now that the storm's over, I'll activate Card of Sanctity. now we get to draw until we have six Cards in our hands.
Both Duelists reacted to Jaden's Spell and each drew the six Cards atop their Decks, seeing their Decks and the heart of the Cards showing its kindness in their draws.
Jaden: Now it's time to show off a new Spell. I activate Favorite HERO. And thanks to this, Wildedge gains Attack power equal to his Defence. Talk about the best defence am I right?
With the Equip Card, Wildegde could feel his Defence adding to his strength, giving him a 2300 Attack bonus. (ATK: 2600 → 4900)
Jaden: Sorry to do this, Dark Magician Girl, but Wildedge, Attack!
Leaping at Dark Magician Girl, Wildedge ran his bladed arm along Dark Magician Girl, causing her to cry out and shatter apart, dealing 2900 Points of Damage to Yugi in the process.
Jaden: I now activate his ability, which allows Wildedge to make a second Attack, so it's round two, only against Dark Magician.
Returning to Battle, Wildedge cut down Dark Magician, Destroying the second Spellcaster and delivering 1800 further Points of Damage to Yugi.
However, just like Jaden and his HERO Monsters, Yugi cared more about the wellbeing of his Monsters than his Life Point loss.
Jaden: I set two Cards face-down and end my move.
Current Scores:
Yugi: 2500
Jaden: 3500
With only 1000 Life Points separating them, those watching found the Duel growing in intensity, wondering if Jaden would emerge victorious or if the retired King of Games had any tricks he could pull to make him the winner.
And drawing, his Card total now seven, Yugi made his move.
Yugi: I'll start by activating Double Spell. By discarding one Spell Card, I can use any Spell you've used, Jaden, and I choose your Heavy Storm.
Not wanting to risk his face-downs, Jaden quickly countered.
Jaden: I activate my face-down: Magic Jammer. Now by giving up one Card in my hand, I can stop your Spell.
Sending Card Trooper to his Graveyard, the shine around Double Spell faded, before the Spell all but shattered apart, bringing a small smile to Yugi's face at the continued strategy Jaden showed, alongside the respect for his Cards.
Yugi: Good move, Jaden, but check this out, I now activate Soul Taker.
Playing his second Spell Card, Jaden noticed a great wind circling around himself and Wildedge, seemingly draining his Monster of his energy.
Yugi: With the power of Soul Taker, I can sacrifice your Monster to Summon any creature in my hand.
Yugi: Even though you gain 1000 Life Points due to my Spell, it's worth it to call out my Summoned Skull! (ATK: 2500)
Drained of the last of his energy, Wildedge's being shattered apart and his very spirit was offered up, causing a dark fog to circle before Yugi as the Summoned Skull rose from the dark void, giving off a feral hiss to its appearance.
Yugi: Summoned Skull, Lightning Strike Attack!
His body coursing with electricity, Summoned Skull expelled the lightning from his body, firing it all at Jaden.
Bracing himself, Jaden groaned greatly as the lightning consumed him, dealing 2500 Points of Damage and lowering his Life Points down to 2000, giving Yugi the faint lead with 500 Life Points.
Yugi: I end my turn with four Cards face-down.
Placing the last four Cards in his hand and in his Duel Disc, Yugi's expression remained serious, waiting to see Jaden's retaliation.
Current Scores:
Yugi: 2500
Jaden: 2000
Jaden: That was amazing, Yugi.
Yugi: You are putting up a great Duel yourself, Jaden.
Jaden: Thanks. And now it's my my move.
Yugi: Before you do anything, I play my Trap: Time Seal! And with the power of this Trap Card, you cannot draw this round.
Revealing the Trap, the second to his left, Jaden looked to see chains wrap around his Duel Disc, preventing him access to his Deck.
Jaden: You might've skipped my draw phase, but Time Seal has no power over my Spells or Trap Cards, so I activate my face-down: Jar of Avarice. This Trap lets me choose any five Cards from my Graveyard and return them back to my Deck.
His Trap taking effect, the chains Time Seal formed shattered apart, allowing Favourite HERO, Card of Sanctity, Wildheart, Bladedge and Heavy Storm to slide from out Jaden's Duel Disc Graveyard, which he then placed back in his Deck.
Jaden: And as a bonus, I now get to draw one new Card. (Draws)
Jaden: Next up, I activate my Miracle Contact. This lets me fuse Neos with any Neo-Spacians From my field, hand or Graveyard, so I fuse Neos with Neo-Spacian Dark Panther and Grand Mole to Summon Elemental HERO Nebula Neos! (ATK: 3000)
From his hand, the three Neo-Spacian Monsters appeared, each glowing with a dark purple light as their forms turned into one, which maintained Neo's more humanoid and developed physique, the skin of Chaos Neos and Grand Neos' armour, the sight amazing many watching the Duel to see another of Jaden's fused HERO Monsters appear on the Field.
Jaden: I now activate Nebula Neos' ability, which means I can draw Cards equal to the number of Cards on your field. (Draws four)
Jaden: Now that I've got my Cards, I'll start off by using my Spell: Heavy Storm.
Reactivating his Spell as to Destroy all Yugi's Spell and Trap Cards, Yugi fought back.
Yugi: I activate Emergency Provisions! Now for each Spell or Trap Card I destroy, I get back 1000 Life points for each.
Revealing his final two face-downs, Regulation for Tribute and Soul Shield, the Traps shattered to pieces, while restoring Yugi's Life Points by 2000, returning his Life Points up to 4500.
Jaden: i activate my spell double hero attack Since I have Nebula Neos on the Field, I can bring back any Fusion HERO Monster from my Graveyard, so welcome back, Elemental HERO Wildedge!
Taking effect through one of his more recent Spells, Nebula Neos shone with a growing purple light, the effects filling the area and amazing many to see Wildedge return, taking a proud stance beside Nebula Neos and leaving Summoned Skull up against two powerful opponents.
Jaden: Before I attack, I activate the Spell Card: Raigeki. So it looks like Summoned Skull is about to get fried.
Playing his Spell, a bolt of thunder struck down and upon Summoned Skull, who, despite his power to generate and control thunder within his being, was no match for the overwhelming might of Jaden's Spell, causing the Fiend Type to shatter to bits, leaving Yugi open to Attack.
Jaden: This was a seriously great Duel, Yugi, and I want to thank you for giving me a rematch.
Yugi: It was an honour to Duel you, Jaden. Now do what needs to be done.
Nodding in reply with a confident grin on his face, Jaden gave his final command for the Duel.
Jaden: Nebula Neos and Wildedge attack he life points
Following the command out of loyalty to their Summoner, Nebula Neos allowed a dark purple energy to circle around his right fist, while Wildedge readied his left, both HERO Monsters charging at Yugi and delivering the final blow, cutting his Life Points down to 0.
Ending Scores:
Yugi: 0
Jaden: 2000
Jaden: That's Game!
With Jaden's signature line and his pose, the growing crowd around the Duelist all gave a great applause, all enjoying the match greatly, while Jaden found Yugi approach him, looking at the HERO Duelist with pure respect.
Yugi: That was a good match, Jaden. It seems you've only improved since our last Duel, and I can tell you'll just keep amazing everyone if you keep it up.
Jaden: That means a lot coming from you, Yugi. And from someone who claimed to have retired from Dueling, you've still got game.
As Yugi and Jaden looked upon one another with a continued respect and friendship, they found the applause of the crowd fill their ears, before both felt a familiar embrace, Yugi smiling as he saw Téa wrapping her arms around him, an action Alexis copied and applied to Jaden.
Téa: That was a fantastic Duel. Sorry I didn't get here to catch the first half, but my dance classes went on longer than I expected.
Jaden: It's nice to see you, Téa. After the tournament, we lost track, so how's it been.
Téa: I can't complain. I have a good career, a good life and a wonderful boyfriend.
The later of her words brought a small and modest blush to Yugi, while Téa looked upon Alexis, seeing the blonde sharing the same devoted smile.
Téa: Anyway, it's great to see you, Jaden. You too, Alexis. I hope life as King of games has been kind to the two of you.
Alexis: I'll admit it's interesting, but it's great to be with the one you love.
From Alexis' words and her looking at Jaden with a warm smile, this caused Yugi and Téa to smile back.
Téa: So now that your match is over, what are your plans? Yugi and I were going to meet up with Joey, Mai and the others at Kaiba Land, and you are more than welcome to tag along.
Alexis: Sounds like fun. And maybe after, you and I could have a match?
Téa: I mightn't be as good as Jaden or Yugi, but you're on.
Heading off, the four left the Turtle gaming shop as to make their way to the Domino station, none were aware that through the entirety of their match, a pair of figures clad in cloaks had been watching from the distance, studying the Duel and techniques of the Duelists.
And keeping watch, the figures were now waiting for the right moment to strike.
.
.
.
Boarding the next train which would allow Yugi, Jaden, Téa and Alexis the closest route to Kaiba Land, the four found themselves lucky and with access to four seats facing one another, with Jaden and Alexis facing the other couple, allowing them to continue to converse and chat amongst themselves.
Alexis: So, Téa, you said something about dancing classes before.
From the mentioned topic, Téa gave a warm smile.
Téa: It's been a passion of mine ever since I can remember, in fact it's kind of how I met Yugi and Joey. Before we became friends, I used to work at a burger shop, and when they came in one day I freaked, namely because I thought they would bust me in about lying about (my age/being eighteen). After I told them I was working there to save up money for dancing classes, I thought they would laugh at me, but instead, they were really supportive.
From Téa's reply, Jaden smiled and gave his own thoughts.
Jaden: You know, you and Alexis are both alike. Both of you worked hard to follow your dreams and finally reached them. Alexis' dream was to a be teacher at Duel Academy, and she finally got her dream. We know that you followed your dreams to be a great dancer and famous dancer, even becoming the teacher of Domino's dance school. Like Alexis, you teach the next generation, and I bet I can speak for me and Yugi when I say we are seriously proud of you.
Alexis: We couldn't have reached our goals without someone like you to support us, Jaden. Believe it or not, you inspire me much more than you think.
From Alexis' words and the way she looked at him with a growing devotion, Jaden was left surprised.
Jaden: I'm not too sure what to say. I'm... surprised.
Finding Jaden's awe kind of cute, Alexis leaned in, kissing his cheek.
Alexis: You don't need to say anything, Jaden. You've already said and done so much for me.
Looking at one another and leaning in, Jaden and Alexis were about to kiss, but stopped as all felt the train suddenly break, throwing the passengers around and nearly knocking Jaden and Alexis from out their seats.
Yugi: Are you two alright?
Alexis: Just a little shaken up. But what happened?
Looking out the window, Alexis and the others found the train had stopped, it now stationed half way through a tunnel, leaving little but darkness to be seen, annoying many passengers and concerning a few at the sudden halt.
Though hearing the conductor's voice then fill the carts helped ease the passengers.
Conductor: Your attention all passengers, I apologize for the sudden delay, it appears we have a minor incident our engineers are attending to as I speak, however, we request the cooperation of all passengers, so please vacate the carts for the time being.
Following the conductor's guidance, the passengers all exited, vacating each cart, with Jaden, Alexis, Yugi and Téa being the last few to exit their cart.
However, as Jaden/Yugi was about to leave through the door, a swift object shot past him and jammed into the door, revealing it to be the Trap Card: Shockwave, which sent an electrical charge through the door, automatically locking it.
Confused and concerned by the action, the intensity of the atmosphere grew when Yugi and Jaden heard Téa and Alexis both cry out, turning to see the girls, both bound together by chains, through the Trap: Fiendish Chain, while a robed figure held them captive.
Jaden/Yugi: Alexis/Téa!
Staring the figure down, the tension grew as the door leading to the next cart behind (the figure/Jaden and Yugi) slid open, revealing two more beings, both clad in the same dark hoods at what could be guessed was their ally.
?: Sorry, but your schedule has been derailed.
Jaden: let them go
Hearing Jaden's command, the trio just smirked.
?: You are in no position to give us orders, not when we have successfully hunted down and captured our prey.
?: And unless you want this to end, you better do as we say, so follow us, Jaden.
Listening to the taller of the two figures standing side by side and watching them exit the cart, Jaden and Yugi shook a little as the train suddenly returned to surface, finding it taking off and exiting the tunnel, allowing the sights of Domino City to be seen again.
But with Alexis and Téa still in jeopardy, left with no other options but to follow their attackers, Jaden and Yugi complied.
