Legal Disclaimer: This story follows the same rules as "The Preliminaries Begin". Vanessa Lymon, Natalie Granger, and any physical descriptions associated with them can't be used without my permission.
Hell's Fury Tournament
Chapter 4: Science Friction
The next morning, Serenity and Tea were headed for the anteroom.
"Are we really ready for this?" asked Serenity.
"All we can do is our best, " said Tea. "Let's go."
When Tea and Serenity arrived there, they saw the other fourteen contestants sitting and watching a monitor showing the dueling arena. Meanwhile, the audience was up in the balcony above the dueling arena when Lily appeared with a microphone.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the start of our Hell's Fury Tournament, " said Lily. "Will both Melody and Vanessa please enter the dueling arena?"
The instant she said that, two corridors opened up in the anteroom. Before entering the corridors, Melody and Vanessa pulled out, exchanged, shuffled, and cut their decks. They quickly gave their decks back to each other and placed back into their Duel Disks. Afterwards, they entered the corridors and arrived on opposite sides of the dueling arena. They plugged their Duel Disks into the arena's controls.
"Duelists, ready?" asked Lily.
"I'm ready, " said Melody.
"Let's do this, " said Vanessa.
"Begin, " said Lily.
"Let's duel!" they both exclaimed.
The Duel Disks activated and moved into position.
Vanessa: 8,000
Melody: 8,000
Both of them drew five cards.
"I'll go first, " said Melody as she drew a sixth card. "I summon Mermaid Knight in attack mode."
Melody placed Mermaid Knight on top of her Duel Disk. A red-haired mermaid with a greenish fishtail, who was wearing purple armor with gold trim covering her torso and most of her tail and was wielding a purple shield and an angled sword, appeared on Melody's side of the field. (1,500/700)
"I place one card facedown and end my turn, " said Melody as a facedown card appeared behind Mermaid Knight.
"A mermaid? Somebody has been reading too many fairy tales, " said Vanessa.
"You should never underestimate your opponent, especially their cards, " said Melody.
"Anyway, my move, " said Vanessa as she drew a sixth card. "I place two cards facedown and summon Space Mambo in attack mode."
Vanessa placed Space Mambo on top of her Duel Disk. A blue fish with a crop circle-like design on its body appeared on Vanessa's side of the field. (1,700/1,000) Then, two facedown cards appeared behind Space Mambo.
"Now, Space Mambo, attack Mermaid Knight with Cosmic Splash!" exclaimed Vanessa.
Space Mambo swam toward Mermaid Knight, slamming her into the ground and shattering her into pixels. Melody moved Mermaid Knight from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard.
Vanessa: 8,000
Melody: 7,800
"I end my turn, " said Vanessa.
"My move, " said Melody as she drew a card. "I play Pot of Greed."
Melody immediately drew two cards from my deck.
"Next, I activate my facedown card, Snatch Steal, to take control of Space Mambo, " said Melody as a facedown card flipped up.
"Not so fast. I counter that with my facedown card, Ring of Destruction, to destroy Space Mambo before you can steal it, " said Vanessa as a facedown card flipped up.
A fire ring suddenly appeared around Space Mambo, causing it to self-destruct.
Vanessa: 6,300
Melody: 6,100
"No problem. I now play the Ritual Magic card called Doriado's Blessing, which allows me to summon a monster as long as I sacrifice enough monsters whose total levels are at least three. Therefore, I sacrifice the Spherous Lady in my hand to summon Elemental Mistress Doriado, " said Melody as she discarded Doriado's Blessing and Spherous Lady into her Graveyard and placed Elemental Mistress Doriado on top of her Duel Disk.
A golden blonde woman, who was wearing a white robe, a purple vest with yellow and aqua blue trim covering the neck and shoulders, and a red hat with a green patch, yellow trim, and a gem in the middle, appeared on Melody's side of the field. (1,200/1,400)
"Elemental Mistress Doriado, attack her Life Points directly with Elemental Orb!" exclaimed Melody.
Elemental Mistress Doriado created and fired a ball of white energy at Vanessa, causing her to twitch.
Vanessa: 5,100
Melody: 6,100
"Now, I place one card facedown and end my turn, " said Melody as a facedown card appeared behind Elemental Mistress Doriado.
"My move, " said Vanessa as she drew a card. "I play my facedown card, Swords of Revealing Light, to keep you from attacking for three turns."
A facedown card flipped up. Suddenly, yellow light swords appeared in the sky and rained down onto Melody, surrounding her and Elemental Mistress Doriado.
"I now summon Maiden of the Moonlight in attack mode, " said Vanessa as she placed her on top of her Duel Disk.
A woman with brown hair and white wings, who was wearing a white dress, purple armbands, and gold bracelets, appeared on Vanessa's side of the field. (1,500/1,300)
"Maiden of the Moonlight, attack Elemental Mistress Doriado with Lunar Energy Blast!" exclaimed Vanessa.
"Think again. I activate one of my facedown cards, Fuh-Rin-Ka-Zan, " said Melody as a facedown card flipped up.
"I've never heard of that card. What does it do?" asked Vanessa.
"This card gives me the ability to either destroy your monsters, destroy your Magic and Trap cards, send two cards from your hand to the Graveyard, or draw two cards as long as there is one face-up EARTH, FIRE, WIND, and WATER monster each on the field. Elemental Mistress Doriado's special effect covers that condition, " said Melody. "For this turn, I choose to destroy your monster."
"Nice move, but I can counter it with my facedown card, Book of Moon, which changes a monster into facedown defense mode. Therefore, I choose to flip your Elemental Mistress Doriado facedown, negating your trap's effects, " said Vanessa as a facedown card flipped up.
Melody flipped Elemental Mistress Doriado facedown and sideways on top of her Duel Disk. Elemental Mistress Doriado was changed into a facedown card that was positioned sideways. Maiden of the Moonlight fired a white energy beam at the set card. Melody flipped her set card upright on top of her Duel Disk. Elemental Mistress Doriado reappeared on Melody's side of the field and instantly shattering into pixels. (1,200/1,400) Melody moved Elemental Mistress Doriado from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard.
"I end my turn, " said Vanessa.
"Nice job, but this duel is far from over. My move, " said Melody as she drew a card. "I set one monster in defense mode."
Melody placed one card facedown and sideways on top of her Duel Disk. A facedown card positioned sideways appeared on her side of the field.
"That's all for now, " said Melody.
"If that's all you got, this will be an easy victory. My move, " said Vanessa as she drew a card. "I now play Graceful Charity."
Vanessa drew three cards from her deck and discarded two cards to her Graveyard.
"I now sacrifice my Maiden of the Moonlight to summon Penumbral Soldier Lady, " said Vanessa.
Once Vanessa moved Maiden of the Moonlight from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard, it vanished from her side of the field. Next, she placed Penumbral Soldier Lady on top of her Duel Disk. A blond woman appeared on Vanessa's side of the field. (2,100/1,400) She was wearing a silver headband, silver chest plate with a yellow crescent moon across the chest, silver gauntlets, a silver skirt with yellow crescent moons along the skirt, and silver boots and was wielding a broadsword with a crescent moon near the hilt and a silver and white shield with a crescent moon emblazed on it.
"Next, I equip her with Fairy Meteor Crush, allowing me to inflict damage even if your monster is in defense mode, " said Vanessa.
Suddenly, Penumbral Soldier Lady's sword gave off a yellowish glow.
"Penumbral Soldier Lady, attack her set monster with Luminous Blade Strike!" exclaimed Vanessa.
Penumbral Soldier Lady used her sword to destroy the set monster. Melody quickly flipped her set card upright on top of her Duel Disk. Cyber Jar appeared on Melody's side of the field, immediately sucked up Penumbral Soldier Lady into itself, and self-destructed. (900/900) Melody moved Cyber Jar from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard. Vanessa also moved Penumbral Soldier Lady from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard. They both picked up five cards from their decks and showed them to each other.
Vanessa: 5,100
Melody: 4,900
"I may have lost some Life Points, but it was worth it, " said Melody. "I set two monsters in defense mode."
Melody placed two cards facedown and sideways on top of her Duel Disk. Two facedown cards positioned sideways appeared on Melody's side of the field.
"I set one monster in defense mode and summon Double Coston in attack mode, " said Vanessa as she placed one card upright and another card facedown and sideways on top of her Duel Disk.
First, a pair of black ghosts connected by ectoplasm appeared on Vanessa's side of the field. (1,700/1,650) Then, a facedown card positioned sideways appeared next to Double Coston.
"I place one card facedown and end my turn, " said Vanessa as a facedown card appeared behind Double Coston.
"My move, " said Melody as she drew a card. "I flip summon both of my set monsters, which are Magician of Faith, allowing me to retrieve Pot of Greed from the Graveyard, and Raging Flame Sprite."
Melody flipped both Magician of Faith and Raging Flame Sprite upright on top of her Duel Disk. Magician of Faith appeared on Melody's side of the field. (300/400) A boy with brown hair, who was wearing a brown hat, brown clothes, and black boots and was wielding a candle-like mace, appeared next to Magician of Faith. (100/200) Melody grabbed Pot of Greed from her Graveyard and showed it to Vanessa.
"I now sacrifice my Magician of Faith to summon Queen of Autumn Leaves, " said Melody.
Once Melody moved Magician of Faith from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard, it vanished from her side of the field. Next, she placed Queen of Autumn Leaves on top of her Duel Disk. A scarlet red-haired elfish woman with wooden hands, who was wearing a scarlet red gown, appeared next to Raging Flame Sprite. (1,800/1,500)
"Good move, but you are still bound by Swords of Revealing Light, " said Vanessa.
"I don't think so. I activate Mystical Space Typhoon, which I use to destroy your Swords of Revealing Light, " said Melody.
A black tornado suddenly appeared and destroyed the light swords.
"Raging Flame Sprite, attack her Life Points directly with Candle Light Blaze!" exclaimed Melody.
Raging Flame Sprite jumped over Vanessa's monsters and used his mace to release a column of orange flame at Vanessa, causing her to twitch.
Vanessa: 5,000
Melody: 4,900
"That barely scratched me, " said Vanessa.
"Raging Flame Sprite has two special abilities. First, it can attack an opponent's Life Points directly. Second, if it successfully attack an opponent directly, its attack strength increases by 1,000 points, " said Melody.
Raging Flame Sprite's attack strength had increased. (1,100/200)
"Queen of Autumn Leaves, attack Double Coston with Autumnal Slash!" exclaimed Melody.
"You wish. I've activated Negate Attack, canceling your attack, " said Vanessa as a facedown card flipped up.
Queen of Autumn Leaves used her hands to slash Double Coston; however, a force field appeared in front of Double Coston and dissipated the attack.
"Okay. I place three cards facedown, ending my turn, " said Melody as three facedown cards appeared behind Raging Flame Sprite and Queen of Autumn Leaves.
"My move, " said Vanessa as she drew a card. "Thanks to the special ability of my Double Coston, I can sacrifice it to summon a DARK monster whose level at least seven. Therefore, I sacrifice it to summon Mikazukinoyaiba in attack mode."
Once Vanessa moved Double Coston from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard, it vanished from her side of the field. Next, she placed Mikazukinoyaiba on top of her Duel Disk. A green dragon, which was wearing a red and black pointed helmet, red and black chest plate covering the shoulders and upper torso, and red armbands and was wielding a crescent moon-shaped sword, appeared next to the set monster. (2,200/2,350)
"I flip summon my set monster, which is Magician of Faith, allowing me to retrieve Book of Moon from the Graveyard, " said Vanessa as she flipped her upright on top of her Duel Disk.
Magician of Faith reappeared next to Mikazukinoyaiba. (300/400) Vanessa immediately grabbed Book of Moon from her Graveyard, showed it to Melody, and placed it into her hand.
"Mikazukinoyaiba, attack Raging Flame Sprite with Crescent Blade Strike!" exclaimed Vanessa.
Mikazukinoyaiba used its sword to slice Raging Flame Sprite, shattering him into pixels. Melody moved Raging Flame Sprite from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard.
Vanessa: 5,000
Melody: 3,800
"I place one card facedown to end my turn, " said Vanessa as a facedown card appeared behind Mikazukinoyaiba.
"My draw, " said Melody as she drew a card. "I play Fulfillment of the Contract to bring back Elemental Mistress Doriado at a cost of 800 Life Points."
Vanessa: 5,000
Melody: 3,000
Melody moved Elemental Mistress Doriado from her Graveyard to the top of her Duel Disk. Elemental Mistress Doriado reappeared next to Queen of Autumn Leaves. (1,200/1,400)
"I set one monster in defense mode, " said Melody as she placed one card facedown and sideways on top of her Duel Disk.
A facedown card positioned sideways appeared next to Queen of Autumn Leaves.
"Queen of Autumn Leaves, attack Magician of Faith with Autumnal Slash!" exclaimed Melody.
"Not so fast. I activate my facedown card, Book of Moon, to flip my Magician of Faith. Not only are my Life Points safe this turn, but also I can retrieve a Magic card from my Graveyard, " said Vanessa as a facedown card flipped up.
Vanessa flipped Magician of Faith facedown and sideways on top of her Duel Disk. Magician of Faith turned into a facedown card that was positioned sideways. Queen of Autumn Leaves used her attack to slash the set card. Vanessa quickly flipped her set card upright on top of her Duel Disk. Magician of Faith reappeared next to Mikazukinoyaiba and instantly shattered into pixels. (300/400) Vanessa moved Magician of Faith from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard.
"Now I can retrieve my Fairy Meteor Crush from the Graveyard, " said Vanessa as she took it from her Graveyard, showed it to Melody, and placed it into her Graveyard.
"I'll end my turn, " said Melody.
"My move, " said Vanessa as she drew a card. "I place one card facedown."
A facedown card appeared behind Mikazukinoyaiba.
"Mikazukinoyaiba, attack Elemental Mistress Doriado with Crescent Blade Strike!" exclaimed Vanessa.
"I don't think so. I activate my facedown card, Waboku, saving my monsters for one turn, " said Melody as a facedown card flipped up.
Mikazukinoyaiba used his attack to blast Elemental Mistress Doriado but was unable to do it.
"I have to end my turn, " said Vanessa.
"My move, " said Melody as she drew a card. "I flip my set card, which is Mask of Darkness, allowing me to bring my Fuh-Rin-Ka-Zan from the Graveyard to my deck."
Melody flipped Mask of Darkness upright on top of her Duel Disk. A tan mask with a red X below the right eye appeared next to Elemental Mistress Doriado. (900/400) After grabbing Fuh-Rin-Ka-Zan from her Graveyard and showing it to Vanessa, Melody moved it to her hand.
"Next, I activate my far left facedown card, Dust Tornado, to destroy your facedown card, " said Melody as a facedown card flipped up. "It also allows me to place a Magic or Trap card."
A tornado appeared and shattered Vanessa's facedown card into pixels. Another facedown card appeared where Dust Tornado was originally.
"Finally, I equip Elemental Mistress Doriado with Ritual Weapon, which increases the stats of a Ritual monster whose level is at most six by 1,500 points, " said Melody.
A golden crossbow appeared on Elemental Mistress Doriado's left arm, changing its stats. (2,700/2,900)
"Now, Elemental Mistress Doriado, attack Mikazukinoyaiba with Elemental Arrow Barrage!" exclaimed Melody.
Elemental Mistress Doriado used the crossbow to fire white energy arrows at Mikazukinoyaiba, shattering it into pixels. Vanessa moved Mikazukinoyaiba from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard.
Vanessa: 4,500
Melody: 3,000
"Queen of Autumn Leaves, attack her Life Points directly with Autumnal Slash!" exclaimed Melody.
Queen of Autumn Leaves used her hand to swipe Vanessa, causing her to twitch.
Vanessa: 2,700
Melody: 3,000
"Mask of Darkness, attack her Life Points directly with Hidden Optic Blast!" exclaimed Melody.
Mask of Darkness fired two black energy blasts from its eyes, causing Vanessa to twitch again.
Vanessa: 1,800
Melody: 3,000
"I end my turn, " said Melody.
"If you think that you can defeat me, you're crazy. My move, " said Vanessa as she drew a card. "I play Monster Reincarnation."
Vanessa discarded Micro Ray and retrieved a monster from his Graveyard.
"Now, I play Polymerization, combining UFOroid and Penumbral Soldier Lady in my hand, to summon UFOroid Fighter, " said Vanessa as she discarded three cards in the Graveyard and moved a card from her Fusion Deck to the top of her Duel Disk. "Thanks to his special effect, his attack and defensive strength is equal to the combined attack strengths of the monsters used to summon it."
A black-haired man with green and white wings, who was wearing blue visors, silver shoulder pads, and a blue and yellow jumpsuit, riding a silver and white saucer, and was wielding a silver laser on his right arm, appeared on Vanessa's side of the field. (3,300/3,300)
"UFOroid Fighter, attack Mask of Darkness with Cosmic Flux Blast!" exclaimed Vanessa.
UFOroid Fighter fired a white light beam from his laser at Mask of Darkness, shattering it into pixels. Melody moved Mask of Darkness from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard.
Vanessa: 1,800
Melody: 0600
"This is your last chance. One more turn, and this duel is over, " said Vanessa. "I end my turn."
"You're right. This turn will end the duel. My move, " said Melody as she drew a card. "I activate a familiar facedown card called Fuh-Rin-Ka-Zan, allowing me to destroy your UFOroid Fighter."
A facedown card flipped up. Suddenly, a beam of energy came from it and blasted UFOroid Fighter into pixels. Vanessa moved UFOroid Fighter from the top of her Duel Disk to her Graveyard.
"No, it can't be, " said Vanessa.
"Elemental Mistress Doriado, attack her Life Points directly with Elemental Arrow Barrage!" exclaimed Melody.
Elemental Mistress Doriado used her equip attack to blast Vanessa, causing her to fall to her knees.
Vanessa: 0000
Melody: 0600
The monsters and the field instantly vanished. Every card remaining on the Duel Disks were removed and placed back into both Vanessa's and Melody's decks. They unplugged their Duel Disks from the arena's controls.
"The winner and our first quarterfinalist is Melody Chambers from South America, " said Lily.
The crowd applauded and shouted.
"How cool is that. I did it, " said Melody.
"I can't believe I lost to creatures from fairy tales, " said Vanessa.
"Excuse me. They are mythological creatures, not creatures from fairy tales, " said Melody.
Both women left the arena and headed to the balcony to watch the other seven matches.
Suddenly, Rose Kennedy appeared next to the bingo machine.
"May I have your attention please?" asked Rose.
Everyone immediately turned toward Rose.
"It's time to announce our second pairing for the quarterfinal matches. Everyone in the anteroom listen up, " said Rose. "Let's begin."
Rose pressed a button on her remote, causing the sixteen numbered balls to rotate. One of them moved through a tube and exited the machine through the third eye on the Witch of the Black Forest's forehead. Rose immediately picked up the ball.
"Our next competitor is number six, Rebecca Hawkins from North America, " said Rose.
"Let's start the machine again, " said Rose.
The bingo machine immediately began to spin the balls around. Soon, another ball was released from the machine. Rose immediately picked up the second ball.
"Her opponent is number two, Natalie Granger from Africa, " said Rose as a 31-year-old, black, and average-looking woman with hazel eyes and long, curly, and black hair stepped forward.
Natalie was wearing deep red lipstick, a pair of sparkling diamond earrings, a denim miniskirt, layered blue and black tops, and matching flip-flops. Inside the anteroom, Rebecca and Natalie shook hands.
"Right. Let's do this, " said Rebecca as she shook Natalie's hand.
"I'm ready to win it all, " said Natalie as she shook Rebecca's hand.