Whilst the final tournament duel of the day was wrapping up another group was watching from a penthouse/office in LA, unfortunately for the students that group was the same one that had been plaguing the students over the past couple of months dating all the way back to the beginning of the Battle City Tournament and they were planning their next move.
"Victor, I'm surprised that you haven't sent us to the island." Jack commented as he folded his arms. "You usually do that after the tournament duels are done for the day."
"Money and resources are one of the main problems." Victor responded as he watched Miranda practically defeat herself. "As rich as I obviously am these daily trips to the island are costing me money and what have they gotten me? Several souls of defeated agents, three student souls that weren't even the main targets and, oh yes, how could I forget? There was also the return of the three Legendary Dragons."
"I know that's a major problem but we still have to go after them before they get to strong for us to handle." Sarah responded as the duel academy stream ended since the match had ended, she sat down at the computer and after some searching came upon Chloe's Duel Academy Profile. "I suggest we target the girl who wields Timeaus first."
"You've been obsessed over her ever since you got brought into the fold!" Jack commented as he rolled his eyes. "She's not even the best duelist amongst the ones who hold the Legendary Dragons! That honor goes to Theresa!"
"That is true but the Eye of Timeaus is the strongest Legendary Dragon card." Victor responded as he shook his head. "Besides thanks to Sheamus's little operation earlier this week she isn't in the best of terms with her Legendary Dragon therefore she should be targeted before she can make amends!" Victor added before turning to Sarah. "Make the arrangements I'll have a boat take the two of you to the island during the promotion duels."
"I'll send word as soon as I find a suitable agent." Sarah responded before leaving the office, with Victor preoccupied with making the preparations Jack took his chance and ran up to Sarah.
"Hey Sarah, I have a quick question." Jack said as he caught up to her and whilst Sarah kept walking she did glance over her shoulder at her partner in crime. "Why are you so obsessed with the Richardson chick anyway? I mean I know she's hot but I didn't think that you were into girl on girl….." Jack never got a chance to finish as Sarah span around and punched him in the face knocking him to the ground.
"That's on a need to know basis!" Sarah snapped at him as Jack rubbed his aching jaw. "And as far as I'm concerned there are only two people who need to know, myself and Chloe Richardson!" Sarah added before storming off leaving a hurt and confused Jack in the dust.
"What the hell was that about?!" Jack wondered out loud as he pulled himself to his feet, the punch had removed his hood from his head revealing a scruffy young man with messy dark brown hair and an unkempt goatee, before he could say anything else he heard a female voice chuckling behind him and glanced over his shoulder seeing Juliana at her desk typing away at her computer with one eye on Jack. "How much did you see?"
"All of it." Juliana added with a devilish smirk. "The real question is what are you willing to do for me to keep my mouth shut?" Juliana asked and Jack blinked before grinning broadly as an idea entered his head.
"Does that involve the two of us sneaking off to a disused room and making out?" Jack asked hopefully and Juliana shook her head before grabbing what looked like a mountain of paperwork.
"No, but maybe after you do this for me I'll consider it." Juliana responded and Jack begrudgingly stood up and grabbed the paperwork…only to subsequently drop all of it after tripping on Juliana's outstretched heel
"Son of a bitch….." Jack grunted as Juliana started whistling innocently as she typed away at her computer.
"Oh and there's another thing." Juliana said as her devilish grin grew wider. "That's just the first pile of printouts that I need to do, there's at least ten more to go."
"The opportunity to tap that ass had better be worth this bullshit!" Jack grunted as he started gathering up the scattered pieces of work.
*the next morning*
Usually on the weekends most of the students preferred to have lie ins since there weren't any classes on the weekends, however as that particular Saturday hosted the latest round of promotion duels some of the students were getting up as early as they could to avoid being late, namely the students who were up for promotion.
"Five more minutes….." Chloe moaned as she turned in her bed, however for a certain female Osiris Red Student getting out of bed was proving to be harder than her roommate anticipated.
"Seriously Chloe, did you forget what's happening today all ready?" Chelsea asked as she pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance, Chloe's roommate had been awake for the past twenty minutes or so and was already dressed, whilst she had initially decided to let her roommate sleep for a couple of more minutes those "couple of more minutes" had quickly turned into ten minutes.
"But it's the weekend!" Chloe responded with a grunt as she continued to ignore her roommate.
"Yeah, I know, and it's also the day of the promotion duels!" Chelsea responded and that was all she needed for Chloe to bolt out of bed and start getting dressed in a hurry. "Don't worry Chloe the duels aren't going to start for another hour yet."
"But I still seriously slept in late!" Chloe responded as she put her jeans, crop top and blazer on. "And I'm in the first match against Lance!"
"Chloe, you'll do fine, I'm sure of it." Chelsea responded as she shook her head. "You've dueled against Lanced before right? How did you do in those duels?"
"I lost both matches and lost the first after Lance put me in a Lava Golem lock." Chloe responded as she grabbed her duel disk and main deck, side deck and extra deck. "Did I mention that my first duel against him was my first non-practice duel after my stepdad taught me how to play the game?" Chloe added and Chelsea winced.
"No wonder you hate that card so much." Chelsea said with a wince before grabbing her own duel disk and decks. "But you can relax, that was months ago and you're a much better duelist then you were back then."
"The same can be said for Lance." Chloe pointed out and Chelsea frowned knowing that she had a point. "Thanks for waking me up before I slept through the duels by the way?"
"It's nothing they wouldn't have preceded without you anyway." Chelsea responded before remembering something. "Oh yeah, the new banlist is on the website."
"Did my deck get hit?" Chloe asked before sighing in relief when Chelsea shook her head before getting her IPad out, accessing DA's website and looking at the banlist.
"Nah, the two Morphing Jars got banned, Coach Soldier Wolfbark, Mermail Abyssgunde, Rekindling and Infernity Barrier are all limited, Necroface and Hieratic Seal of Convocation are Semi-Limited and Primal Seed and Magical Stone Excavation are Unlimited." Chelsea responded as she read off the banlist and Chloe grinned when she heard one of the limits. "Let me guess, you just realized that Rekindling's limit has given you a big advantage?"
"You got that right." Chloe responded with a grin before she checked the time on her watch. "I know you said that the duels aren't starting for another hour but maybe we can get there early."
"Sounds like a good idea to me, according to DA's website the duels are being held in the main arena." Chelsea responded and Chloe grinned in response. "Let's go!" Chelsea added and the two girls soon left their dorm room. "Hopefully this will be the last time we're going to leave this dorm room as its residents." Chelsea thought before following Chloe down the hallway.
*meanwhile*
"Does I2 have it out for me or something?" Lance wondered out loud as he took out two out of the three copies of Rekindling that he had in his deck, put them in in his side deck and replacing them with two other Spell Cards from his side deck, he was currently in the dorm room that he shared with Ash and had just found out about the new banlist. "Seriously, first Return from a Different Dimension gets banned and now this?"
"Just be glad that they didn't outright ban Rekindling." Ash responded as he shook his head and Lance shuddered in response. "Still, you can't let this distract you from your match against Chloe."
"I know she's come a long way since she joined Duel Academy and I know that it'll be stupid to underestimate her." Lance responded as he glanced over his shoulder at him. "And then there's my post Promotion Duels plans."
"Namely asking her out?" Ash asked and Lance nodded. "Well, good luck with that and your duel my friend I think you're going to need it in both instances."
"I know I'm going to need it." Lance responded as he grabbed his deck. "Still I've come a long way as well and if there was a way for both of us to advance up a dorm we'll have definitely earned it."
"I believe there may be a way but I guess we'll have to see." Ash responded and Lance nodded before checking the time on his watch. "Is it time to go?"
"No but I think it'll be best if we get going regardless." Lance responded as he stood up. "I don't want to be late however." Lance added and Ash nodded in response before the two teams left.
*later*
The students had, once again, gathered in the main arena to watch a series of duels, however unlike the recent tournament duels that had been taking place over the past two weeks these matches had repercussions beyond a simple tournament as they would determine if certain students would advance up a dorm or not.
"I hope you're not feeling to rusty Martin." Jeff chuckled as he shuffled his deck. "Chelsea was considered to be good enough for Ra Yellow when she joined the school and she's only improved since then."
"I do not doubt Ms. Cunningham's obvious talents as a duelist." Martin responded as he looked over his deck. "But at the end of the day she is just a student, I was a pro duelist before she even came out of the closet."
"Yes but if anyone knows that girl's stubborn streak it's me Martin." Maria chimed in as she finished shuffling her deck. "She won't give up for anything."
"We at least get to relax for a few minutes anyway." Hamden added as he glanced out towards the arena. "The first match is between two students."
"Yes, that reminds me, I'd better get into position." Martin added before he started making his way to the booth. "Hamden, since I obviously can't be in two places at once I'll need you to take over from me whilst I am dueling Chelsea."
"Just give me the word and I'll go up to the booth." Hamden responded and Martin nodded before walking off, whilst that was going on the students were pouring into the stands for the second day in a row whilst the students who were up for promotion where getting ready for their matches.
"Chloe, are you going to be okay going into your match with Lance?" Chelsea asked as she watched her roommate shuffle her deck.
"Yeah, I will be." Chloe responded as she briefly glanced over her shoulder before returning her attention back to her deck. "Why do you ask?"
"You just seem nervous, that's all." Chelsea responded as she shrugged her shoulders and Chloe finished shuffling her deck.
"Last minute nerves I guess, besides if anyone should be nervous it's you." Chloe responded as she turned to her roommate and folded her arms. "I'm just facing a fellow student who happens to be my best friend….."
"And crush." Chelsea interrupted her with a cheeky grin and Chloe blushed furiously.
"I'm not even going to justify that with a response." Chloe said as the red in her cheeks disappeared. "But you on the other hand, you're facing Martin in your promotion duel and if you lose then who knows how long it'll be before you get another chance?"
"That's why I don't plan on losing!" Chelsea responded with a confident smirk. "Besides, my deck still has a few tricks that you haven't seen yet, trust me I'll be fine!"
"Have you even seen Martin duel?" Chloe asked and Chelsea went to answer but hesitated. "I thought not."
"Chloe, it's time." One of the Duel Proctors told her and Chloe took a deep breath before she started making her way to the arena.
"Good luck Chloe!" Chelsea called out to her and Chloe glanced over her shoulder, smirked and continued to follow the proctor.
"Welcome to the start of the day's promotion duels." Martin announced over the PA system and the crowd cheered. "As you know this is the time where several students will duel for their right to be promoted to a dorm higher than the one that they are already in and we are kicking things off with a duel between two students, first from the Osiris Red Girl's Dorm, Chloe Richardson!" Martin announced and the crowd cheered as Chloe stepped onto the arena. "And her opponent from the Ra Yellow Boy's Dorm here is Lance Alvers!" Martin announced and the crowd cheered again as Lance stepped onto the arena.
"I hope your ready Chloe." Lance commented as they started shuffling their decks. "We may be friends but I'm not going to let that stop me from taking my place in Obelisk Blue!"
"And I won't let that stop me from taking my place in Ra Yellow!" Chloe retorted and Lance grinned as they finished shuffling their decks.
"Now I know this question has been asked off me since the first match of the second round so I'll get this out of the way, no, the rules that apply to the second round matches of the Tag Team Tournament won't apply to today's matches." Martin announced and Chloe and Lance sighed in relief. "These duels are independent from the Tag Team Tournament and as such they won't be held to the same rules."
"I guess that just leaves one thing Lance." Chloe commented as they drew their opening hands. "Who's going first?"
"I always say ladies first Chloe so you go first." Lance responded after looking over his hand and Chloe nodded before drawing her first card. "My hand isn't that bad but I'd rather see what she has in store for me before I make any moves."
"Ugh, out of all the duels for me to get a bad hand in!" Chloe thought with a wince as she looked over her hand, it consisted of three monsters, two traps and a newly drawn spell card but all but one of the monsters were too high a level for her to summon right away whilst the monster she could summon was a weak one. "At least it's not as bad as my first hand of the Battle City Semi-Finals." Chloe thought before picking up the Trap Cards and the Monster. "I set two cards facedown and a monster in defense mode." Chloe announced as the holograms off the three cards appeared on the field. "And that ends my turn." Chloe announced and Lance drew his card.
"She's playing defensively and unless that facedown monster in Apprentice Magician I'm going to go ahead and assume that she got a bad opening hand." Lance thought as he drew his card, when he looked at the card he drew he quickly played it. "I activate Dark World Dealings, now we both draw one card and discard another." Lance played the card and he and Chloe quickly drew their cards, however when he saw one of the cards he had drawn his eyes widened.
"Something wrong Lance?" Chloe asked as she discarded one of her monsters for Dark World Dealing's effect and Lance shook his head.
"No, it's nothing." Lance said dismissively as he discarded a card. "If only it was nothing! I mean, out of all the duels to draw Lava Golem in and on my first turn as well." Lance thought before getting an idea. "Well, she doesn't have enough cards for me to use its effect so….." Lance thought before discarding Lava Golem. "If I need to use it I have ways to bring it back but at least now I can get it out of my hair." Lance thought before retrieving Lava Golem from the graveyard. "Next I remove the monster I just discarded from play to summon Inferno in defense mode!" Lance played the card and the small red flame with the blue demonic face appeared on the field (4/1100/1900).
"I'm getting the feeling that he was lying about it being nothing, he was pretty quick to discard it and remove it from play." Chloe thought as she watched Lance make his move. "And that just makes me wonder what the monster he drew was."
"But Inferno's not staying around! I sacrifice him to summon one of my old favorites, Thestalos, the Firestorm Monarch!" Lance played the card and Inferno disappeared from the field, in its place stood the mighty monarch of fire (6/2400/1000). "You've seen enough of my duels to know how this guy's effect works Chloe to hold up your hand!" Lance instructed and Chloe did as she was told. "I pick the card on the far right!"
"Sorry Lance but I'm not getting burnt yet!" Chloe responded as the fireball hit the card. "The card you just targeted was the only Spell Card in my hand and all my other cards are monsters." Chloe added as she sent her Spell Card to the graveyard.
"Out of all the rotten luck, still there's one more thing he can do!" Lance sighed to himself before pointing to Chloe's facedown monster. "Thestalos, attack her defense monster!" Lance commanded and the monarch threw a fireball at the monster, revealed to be Dopelwarrior (2/800/800) which was quickly destroyed. "You set that guy?"
"He was the only monster I could summon at the time." Chloe admitted as she sent her monster to the graveyard. "So in other words, my opening hand was pretty crap."
"I'll say." Lance commented before looking over his hand. "I end my turn." Lance announced and Chloe drew her card.
"Now this is more like it!" Chloe thought before playing the card. "I summon Blade Knight in attack mode!" Chloe played the card and the blue armored knight appeared on the field (4/1600/1000). "And I end my turn at that!"
"Wait, what?" Lance asked with a confused look on his face as he drew his card. "You do realize that Blade Knight's a lot weaker than Thestalos right? Even if you could use his effect this is pretty basic stuff when it comes to Duel Monsters."
"I know all right." Chloe responded with a grin. "Besides, even if I wasn't as good at this game as I am, I still know how to do basic math!"
"Yeah, I guessed that." Lance commented as he shook his head. "This trap couldn't be more obvious if she tried but with Heavy Storm still banned I can't get rid of those trap cards!" Lance thought before looking at his drawn card. "But I can get rid of one trap card!" Lance thought before playing the card. "I activate Night Beam! With this I can destroy one facedown Spell/Trap Card on your side of the field and you can't activate a trap card in response to it."
"So what card are you going to target?" Chloe asked as she did her best to maintain her poker face.
"I chose the one on the right!" Lance announced as the beam charged towards the facedown card destroying it and Chloe sent it to the graveyard. "That trap couldn't be more obvious if you tried Chloe! Thestalos, attack Blade Knight!" Lance commanded and the monarch threw a fireball at the knight destroying him and bringing Chloe's life-points down to 7200. "Looks like I've drawn first blood!"
"But at the same time you played right into my hand! I activate my Trap Card Rope of Life!" Chloe activated the trap and Lance's eyes widened as she discarded the rest of her hand and Blade Knight reappeared on the field. "Not only does Blade Knight get another chance but he gains eight hundred attack points in addition to the four hundred attack points he gets from his effect!" Chloe explained as Blade Knight's attack shot up to 2800.
"But…..but your other facedown card….." Lance trailed off as Chloe sent Rope of Life to the graveyard and retrieved the other trap card.
"You mean this? It was Magician's Circle." Chloe answered before turning the Trap Card around to confirm it. "I originally set it in the hope of drawing one of my Spellcaster monsters but it ended up helping me in a different way." Chloe explained before returning the trap card to the graveyard. "So how do you feel after pretty much defeating your own Monarch?"
"Well for one thing I wish I had drawn MST as well." Lance responded with a grunt. "I set a monster in defense mode to end my turn." Lance set the monster down and Chloe quickly drew her card.
"Okay, my life-points may have been damaged but at least I can deal some damage back!" Chloe thought before looking at her drawn card. "Perfect! Now I can take out his defense monster as well!" Chloe thought before playing the card. "I summon Gemini Elf in attack mode!" Chloe played the card and the twin elves appeared on the field (4/1900/400).
"Great, right now I'm almost wishing that I hadn't banished Lava Golem last turn!" Lance thought with a frown as he stared down Chloe's two monsters. "On the other hand using that monster against her again might just screw up my chances of dating her."
"Blade Knight, overthrow that monarch now!" Chloe called out and the knight leapt into the air before bringing his sword down upon Thestalos's head destroying him and bringing Lance's life-points down to 7600. "Gemini Elf, attack his defense monster!" Chloe commanded and the elves fired their twin attack at the monster, revealed to be UFO Turtle, which was quickly destroyed.
"I use UFO Turtle's effect to Special Summon Solar Flare Dragon in defense mode!" Lance called out as he sent his monster to the graveyard and a few seconds later the dragon made of fire appeared on the field crouched down (4/1500/1000). "Good thing that you don't have a third monster!"
"For you maybe, for now I end my turn." Chloe announced and Lance drew his card.
"On the Brightside I can't access Lava Golem as long as it's removed from play unless I play something like Burial from a Different Dimension and even then I'd need a card that could return it to my deck." Lance thought as he looked at his drawn card. "Royal Firestorm Guards, well that's half of the problem solved and I already have Thestalos and Inferno in my graveyard so I'm halfway to the activation requirements." Lance thought before adding the monster to his hand and switching Solar Flare Dragon to defense mode. "I shift my dragon to defense mode!" Lance announced as the dragon crouched down. "And to keep him company I summon another one!" Lance played the card and a second Solar Flare Dragon appeared on the field.
"In other words, I can't attack you because of Solar Flare Dragon's effect." Chloe responded with a sigh as she looked over her hand. "Besides Lance, if you intend to beat me with a Solar Flare Dragon lock then that's hardly an impressive way to win a match!"
"If you're trying to talk me out of this move then you're a little late, just saying." Lance responded before looking over his hand. "I end my turn which means that my dragons effects activates!" Lance announced and the two dragons breathed fire at Chloe causing her life-points dropped to 62000, Chloe said nothing as she drew her card.
"Lance isn't messing around, isn't he?" Chelsea commented to Andreas, Beth and Marcus, the other students up for promotion were watching the duel from the sidelines and whilst they weren't the only students up for promotion they were the only ones talking amongst themselves, the others were watching the duel silently.
"I don't blame him." Andreas commented as he folded his arms. "As nice as the rooms in Ra Yellow are the students there all have the same goal, to graduate to Obelisk Blue."
"Yeah, the same can be said for the Osiris Red students and Ra Yellow." Chelsea responded with a nod. "There's also the fact that they've known each other since before they joined Duel Academy so they pretty much know each other's strategies like the back of their hands."
"Even so, I bet they wish that they were scheduled to duel a teacher." Marcus responded with a nod. "No matter whom wins one of them won't get to graduate and considering how close they are I don't think they want that."
"Well they could always try to go for a draw but Lance graduating to Obelisk Blue would depend on several factors which I'm sure you're familiar with." Andreas responded and Chelsea nodded. "It's not an easy situation for anyone to be in and, as excited as they must've been to face off against each other in the first place, they probably realized that for themselves at some point prior to the match."
"Yeah, this is making me glad that I'm facing a teacher in my duel." Chelsea responded with a nod. "I'd hate to be a similar situation to them, like facing Beth for instance."
"Okay, there's not much I can do at the moment….." Chloe thought before eyeing her newly drawn monster, it was a card that she had recently added to her deck and she grinned when she saw it. "I summon a new addition to my deck, Mathematician, in attack mode!" Chloe played the card and like she said a new monster appeared on the field, he was an old man in green wizard's robes with a long flowing beard and was carrying a staff with a pair of comical eyes on it (3/1500/500).
"Mathematician? This is a duel monsters game not a math test!" Lance protested as he stared at the strange Spellcaster.
"Lance, you know as well as I do that math is an important part of the game." Chloe pointed out and Lance nodded reluctantly once he realized that she had a point. "For example, I'm going to use Mathematician's effect to do some subtraction!"
"You've lost me." Lance admitted and Chloe shook her head.
"Basically when Mathematician is normal summoned he lets me take one Level Four or Lower monster in my deck and send it to the graveyard." Chloe explained before doing just that. "He has another effect but more on that later, for now I end my turn."
"She's probably hoping that I'll crash Solar Flare Dragon into Mathematician, fortunately I'm not that stupid." Lance thought as he drew his card, when he saw what it was he grinned. "Sorry Chloe but I'm about to weaken Blade Knight!"
"Just try it!" Chloe taunted him but quickly regretted it when Lance played a Spell Card. "Spellbook inside the Pot!?"
"You got it and you've used this card more than enough times to know that it lets us both draw three cards." Lance added as he drew his cards and Chloe, reluctantly, did likewise causing her knight's attack to drop to 2400. "Oh yeah, there's the ticket! I summon the Tuner Monster Laval Coatl in attack mode!" Lance played the card and a new monster appeared on the field it was a small red and yellow creature with wings and a sharp beak (2/1300/700). "Like Mathematician he has an effect that I'll get into later, for now I tune Coatl with one of my Solar Flare Dragons!" Lance announced as the monsters leapt into the air.
"Wait, he's breaking his own lock?!" Chelsea asked as she watched the Synchro Summon be performed.
"I guess he got tired of playing defensively." Marcus responded with a shrug before the bright flash enveloped the field and Flamvell Uruquizas appeared on the field (6/21000/400).
"Okay, you had me worried for a second there." Chloe commented as she folded her arms. "But even without the bonus from its effect Blade Knight is still stronger!"
"Trust me Chloe, that's not an issue whilst I have Flamvell Baby in my hand!" Lance responded as he turned the monster around. "And I activate his effect by discarding him from my hand during the Main Phase of my turn Uruquizas gets just enough attack points to dismiss that knight of yours!" Lance added as Uriqizas's attack shot up to 2500. "Flamvell Uruquizas, attack Blade Knight!" Lance commanded and the soldier charged towards the knight before punching him through the chest engulfing him in flames in the process and bringing Chloe's life-points down to 6100. "Your Blade Knight/Rope of Life combo is good but it'll take more than outdated strategies to beat me Chloe."
"I know that and whilst Spellbook inside the Pot did weaken Blade Knight it's given me the cards I need for a new strategy!" Chloe responded and Lance frowned at that.
"And knowing her deck that means that she's about to do one of two things, a Synchro Summon or an XYZ Summon." Lance thought with a frown before picking up another card that he drew with Spellbook inside the Pot. "Since Uruquizas has inflicted battle damage he gains three hundred attack points." Lance commented as his monster's attack rose to 2800. "Not only that but the boost from Baby is permanent which means I have a powerhouse on my side of the field and you have two weak Spellcasters."
"You should know as well as I do that strength isn't everything Lance." Chloe responded with a confident grin. "Now are you going to end your turn? I'm pretty sure there other students would like to duel before the finals of the Tag Team Tournament."
"Not just yet, I set a card facedown and end my turn." Lance set the card down and, once Solar Flare Dragon's effect had reduced her life-points down to 5600, Chloe drew her card.
"I could easily take out Lance's remaining dragon with either my elves Mathematician but that would leave my other monster open to an attack from Uruquizas and quite frankly the last thing I need is for that monster to get stronger." Chloe thought with a frown before looking at her drawn card and grinning. "Or I could take a third option!"
"I know that grin she's just drawn a good card." Lance thought as he shook his head. "She was never that good at Poker Faces."
"I activate my Spell Card Resonance Device! Since Gemini Elf and Mathematician are both Earth Type Spellcaster Monsters I can make Mathematician's Level the same as Gemini Elf!" Chloe played the card and like she said Mathematician's Level increased to four. "And that means I can use them to build the Overlay Network!"
"I knew it." Lance grunted as the two monsters turned into white orbs of light. "Chloe, you realize that your lack of skill with poker faces is going to bite you on the ass someday, right?"
"If I had a dollar for every time Martin told me that during Duel Theory I'd be the richest eighteen year old girl in the world." Chloe responded as she shook her head and the overlay network opened up. "In any case I use my monsters to XYZ Summon Downerd Magician in attack mode!" Chloe played the card and from the Overlay Network a new monster appeared on the field, she was a young girl with long, flowing purple hair and blue eyes who was wearing a pair of goggles, a red dress and was levitating a crystal ball (Rank: 4/2100/200).
"Okay, now it's my turn to be unimpressed." Lance commented as he folded his arms. "That monster's only strong enough to take out my dragon and that's stretching it, she'll only do slightly better against Uruquizas than your other monsters."
"Look again." Chloe responded and Lance blinked before realizing that Downerd Magician's attack had shot up to 2500. "My magician gains two hundred attack points for each XYZ Material attached to her."
"That's a pretty good effect but your forgetting one thing." Lance pointed out as he folded his arms. "Even with your monster's effect she's still weaker than Uruquizas by three hundred points so unless you're planning on using an Equip Spell…..that's exactly what you're planning isn't it?"
"Well that and two other moves." Chloe responded before playing a card. "First I activate Overlay Regen! I can use this Spell Card and turn it into an extra XYZ Material for Downerd Magician!" Chloe responded as her monster's attack increased to 2700. "And now I activate Wonder Wand and equip it to her!" Chloe played the card and the wand appeared in the girl's hands increasing her attack power to 3200.
"Nice try Chloe but you're forgetting one other thing!" Lance responded with a confident grin. "Namely Solar Flare Dragon's effect, Uruquizas is a Pyro Type Monster and even without the lock he still protects Uruquizas!"
"Lance, has anyone ever told you that you talk too much?" Chloe asked as she shook her head. "In case you haven't noticed I haven't done my Normal Summon yet! So I use it to summon another new monster, Azure Dragon Summoner!" Chloe played the card and another new monster appeared on the field, he was a young male in blue and gold robes with blue hair and eyes (4/1500/600).
"So what are you planning to crash him into Solar Flare Dragon?" Lance asked as he folded his arms. "That doesn't seem wise or productive!"
"Actually that's exactly what I'm planning! Azure Dragon Summoner, attack Solar Flare Dragon!" Chloe commanded and the youth casted a spell at the dragon at the same time as it breathed fire at the youth destroying them both. "Why did I do that? Simple, when Azure Dragon Summoner is sent from the field to the graveyard I can search my deck for a Dragon, Warrior or Spellcaster type monster, obviously I don't have any dragons but….."
"But that's pretty much a universal searcher for your deck!" Lance realized and Chloe nodded.
"Yes and no, he would be if his effect didn't specifically state that it had to be a normal type monster." Chloe responded once she searched through her deck, found the card that she was looking for and added it to her hand. "Not that I don't have plenty of those either but still!" Chloe added as she shuffled her deck. "But more importantly the cost is now clear! Downerd Magician, attack Flamvell Uruquizas!" Chloe commanded and the Spellcaster casted her spell at the warrior destroying him and bringing Lance's life-points down to 7400. "I may still be behind on life-points but I've destroyed one of your strongest monsters."
"Emphasis on "one of", my deck has plenty of powerful monsters!" Lance responded before glancing towards his pocket. "And at this rate I'm going to have to use Lava Golem! This won't be pretty!"
"Downerd Magician has a side effect, when she inflicts battle damage to my opponent she has to lose one of her overlay units." Chloe explained before sending Overlay Regen to the graveyard and reducing her attack to 3000. "And I end my turn." Chloe announced and Lance drew his card.
"It's like Chloe said! She's behind on life-points but she still has plenty of moves left!" Chelsea commented with a grin as she watched the duel. "She'll be in Ra Yellow before you know it!"
"Yes, but I fear she might not be ready." Andreas responded as he adjusted his glasses. "Marcus, tell me because I'd rather not look up and see it but is she giving me one of her signature death glares?"
"Oh yeah, better clarify before she kicks you in the nuts." Marcus responded as a large sweat-drop rolled down his head as Chelsea glared at the German Student.
"I expected as much." Andreas responded with a sigh. "Chelsea, before your foot has a meeting with my genitals let it be known that I was the one who suggested those new cards to Chloe and I am very familiar with their effects."
"I'm listening." Chelsea responded as she started to calm down.
"Chloe already explained Azure Dragon Summoner's effect after she crashed him into Solar Flare Dragon but a better move would've been to crash Mathematician into Solar Flare Dragon instead." Andreas explained as he turned to her. "Azure Dragon Summoner may be a good searcher for her deck but when Mathematician is destroyed and sent to the graveyard his second effect would've activated allowing her to draw another card."
"Okay, I can kind of see your point." Chelsea admitted with a nod. "But honestly, can you name one duelist in duel monsters history that hasn't made a major misplay? If we were that nick picky about Duel Monsters then Joey Wheeler's legacy as an underdog duelist would've been ignored long ago."
"Point taken, let's hope for her sake that she doesn't make another misplay." Andreas conceded as they resumed watching the duel.
"I have the means to get Lava Golem back into my deck but what's the chance of her forgiving me?" Lance thought as he bit his lip. "Her first encounter with that monster almost caused her to quit the game outright, she's grown a lot since then but still….." Lance trailed off before playing a card. "I activate Burial from a Different Dimension to return the monster I banished for Inferno a couple of turns back to my graveyard!" Lance played the card and reached into his pocket, he stared at the monster for a few seconds before returning it to the graveyard and sending his Spell Card with it.
"That monster's probably something powerful if he wanted it back that badly." Chloe thought as Lance looked over his hand. "But in that case why did he banish it in the first place?"
"Now I summon a monster I drew earlier but couldn't use, Royal Firestorm Guards!" Lance played the card and the large red demon appeared on the field (4/1700/1200). "And since I normal summoned him I can shuffle four Pyro Type Monsters back into my deck and draw two cards." Lance added before picking up Inferno, one of his Solar Flare Dragons, Thestalos and Lava Golem, shuffling them into his deck and drawing twice. "Now let's see what I've got here….." Lance thoughts trailed off when he saw the second card he drew. "I drew Lava Golem AGAIN?! Is fate against the idea of me and Chloe dating or something?!"
"Lance doesn't look happy with his draws! This could be my opening!" Chloe thought as she waited for Lance to finish his move and soon enough Lance set the other card he drew facedown.
"I set one card facedown and end my turn!" Lance announced and Chloe drew her card. "I activate Thunder of Ruler!"
"I just knew you would draw that eventually." Chloe sighed before looking at her drawn card. "This will come in handy, I just know it! But right now it's pretty much a dead draw." Chloe thought before adding it to her hand. "I pass in that case." Chloe announced and Lance drew his card.
"Okay, it's cool I mean maybe I can win this without using Lava Golem!" Lance thought before looking at his drawn card. "Or not…." Lance sighed before adding it to his hand. "Chloe before I make this move let me make one thing clear, you've forced me into a corner, I have no other ways of winning otherwise….."
"What's he going on about?" Chloe thought with a confused look on her face.
"And I hope you'll forgive me when this duel's over." Lance added with a heavy sigh before playing his drawn card. "First I activate XYZ Encore! Downerd Magician returns to the extra deck and her materials return to the field." Lance played the card and Downerd Magician disappeared from the field and in her place Gemini Elf and Mathematician returned to the field. "And even if they were the same level normally you can't bring her back because Encore also reduces the monster's levels by one."
"Okay, fine, I have more copies of Resonance Device and plenty of Rank Threes!" Chloe responded as she sent Wonder Wand to the graveyard. "In other words I don't see the point!"
"You'll see it in a few seconds." Lance said as he, hesitantly, picked up another card. "The monster I'm about to summon requires two tributes BUT I can tribute my opponent's monsters to summon it to their side of the field."
"Oh no….." Chloe thought as realization hit her like a ton of bricks. "Lance, if this is a joke it stopped being funny a few seconds ago!" Chloe responded and Lance let out another heavy sigh.
"Trust me, I wish it was a joke but it's not!" Lance responded as he played the card. "Chloe, I'm sorry, I tribute your Gemini Elf and Mathematician so that I can summon Lava Golem to your side of the field in attack mode!"
"Oh god, this is gonna get ugly!" Chelsea said with a wince as Chloe's two Spellcaster's disappeared from the field and in their place stood the massive golem made of lava as it stood behind Chloe (8/3000/2500) and after a few seconds the large cage dropped around Chloe trapping her. "Can you think of a way for Chloe to get out of this?"
"That is easier said than done." Andreas responded with a frown. "If Lance's facedown card is Mask of Restrict then she'll have nowhere to go."
"He's right I mean she could use it in a Synchro Summon but how many Level Nine Spellcaster Synchros do you know or Warrior Synchros for that matter?" Marcus asked and it didn't take Chelsea long to shake her head. "She could always do another XYZ Summon with it but she only has two Level Eight monsters doesn't she?"
"Yeah, Gilford the Lightning and Silent Magician Level Eight." Chelsea responded with a nod. "As much as I'd hate to say it I don't see Chloe winning this one especially given her nasty history with that monster." Chelsea responded and whilst that conversation was going on Lance was trying to talk to Chloe who hadn't talked once since Lava Golem was played.
"Err, Chloe, are you in there?" Lance asked and Chloe didn't answer, her head was lowered to the point where her long hair was covering her eyes and Lance winced. "Man Lance, you really screwed up this time." Lance thought before Chloe eventually looked up but he still couldn't see her eyes because of her hair. "I, err, I switch Firestorm Guards to defense mode and end my turn." Lance announced as his guards crouched down and Chloe drew her card without a word, she didn't even make a sound as Lava Golem's effect resolved for the first time bringing her life-points down to 4600. "Chloe, are you even going to say something? Look I know your first encounter with this card was nasty but I forced into a corner!" Lance added and before he could say anything else Chloe held up her hand to tell him to stop talking.
"I am going to say something." Chloe said as she kept her head low, she took a deep breath before raising her head revealing a huge grin on her face. "Thanks!"
"Thanks?" Lance echoed as he stared at his friend strangely. "That's not something I'm used to hearing when I play Lava Golem in a duel!"
"Your right, it's not." Chloe responded as she took another deep breath. "Lance, remember the promise you made me just before we left Domino City for New York to compete in Battle City?"
"The one I made not to use Lava Golem against you?" Lance asked and Chloe nodded. "What about it?"
"Back then I was still scared of that monster and seeing you use it against Andreas in your first duel against him didn't help." Chloe responded as she picked up a card. "But as you know the further I made it into Battle City the more my confidence grew and eventually I realized how silly my fear or this monster is." Chloe added as she looked up at Lava Golem. "Sure, he's scary and he has a nasty effect and I had a rough first experience with this card but at the end of the day he's still a duel monsters card."
"That still doesn't explain your reaction when you figured out what I was up to last turn." Lance pointed out and Chloe shrugged her shoulders.
"Force of habit I guess." Chloe responded as she held the card up. "But you want to know the one duel that really helped me get over it? Your expulsion duel, more specifically when Mark turned this card against you!"
"Oh shit!" Lance thought when he realized what she was up to. "Don't tell me you have what I think you have between your fingers right now!"
"I'll let you be the judge of that!" Chloe responded as she played the card. "I activate the card that'll let me finally get over my fear of Lava Golem, Owner's Seal! With this Spell Card I return all monsters on my side of the field to you, namely this big lug!" Chloe played the card and Lava Golem disappeared from the field, Lance looked around for a bit but quickly realized where it was now once the cage dropped around him.
"I'm beginning to think it's time I took this card out of my deck." Lance commented with a frown. "But even so I still have a three-thousand attack beatstick on my side of the field!"
"Yeah, I can see that." Chloe responded before setting a card. "That ends my turn!" Chloe announced and Lance drew his card.
"Why didn't she summon anything? Even with Lava Golem on my side of the field I can end this right now!" Lance thought before wincing as Lava Golem's effect kicked in bringing his life-points down to 64000. "You may have overcome your fears Chloe but you couldn't overcome me! Now if you excuse me I have a room in Obelisk Blue with my name on it!" Lance boasted before switching Firestorm Guards back to attack mode. "Attack her life-points directly!" Lance commanded and the golem started seeping lava…
"Sorry Lance but I'm getting rid of that monster for good! I activate Dimensional Prison!" Chloe activated the trap and Lance's eyes widened as Lava Golem was sucked into a portal banishing it. "Looks like your room in Obelisk Blue will have to wait a bit longer!"
"Maybe not but I have more tricks up my sleeve!" Lance responded as he pocketed Lava Golem again. "Royal Firestorm Guards, attack her directly!" Lance commanded and the demon flew towards Chloe before slashing her with his claws bringing her life-points down to 2900. "You may have been able to turn my own monster against me but the truth is your still behind on life-points, I set one card facedown and end my turn." Lance set the card and Chloe drew her card.
"I don't know what that facedown card is but I can't afford to take any more direct attacks." Chloe thought before looking at her drawn card. "Magician of Faith, do I even have any Spell Cards in my graveyard?" Chloe thought as she replayed the duel in her head. "I played Resonance Device to summon Downerd Magician but that won't be of much use to me right now…..that's right! Lance forced me to discard a Spell Card when he summoned Thestalos earlier, what was it again?" Chloe thought before remembering the card's name and setting the monster. "I set a monster in defense mode and end my turn." Chloe announced and Lance drew his card.
"If I had drawn another Tuner I could've done another Synchro Summon." Lance thought with a frown as he looked at his drawn card. "But I didn't so I'll just hang onto this." Lance thought before adding the card to his hand. "Royal Firestorm Guards, attack her defense monster!" Lance commanded and the demon flew towards the monster, revealed to be Magician of Faith (1/300/200) which was quickly destroyed. "I'm guessing that your about to use her effect?"
"That's right." Chloe responded with a nod before picking up and searching through her deck, however when she saw one monster she knew what she was going to do. "I forgot that I had used Mathematician's effect on this monster but if I play my cards right I can do some major damage to Lance!" Chloe thought before picking up the Spell Card she discarded for Thestalos's effect and adding it to her hand. "Anything else you can do Lance?" Chloe asked as she returned the other cards to her graveyard alongside Magician of Faith.
"No, go ahead and take your turn." Lance told her and Chloe nodded before drawing her card. "She hasn't played any Spell Cards that could help her right now so that card she retrieved is likely the card I targeted for Thestalos's effect, she never did reveal what that card is." Lance thought as he watching Chloe make her move.
"I activate my Spell Card Spellbook Inside the Pot!" Chloe played the card and both duelists drew three cards. "And no, Spellbook inside the Pot wasn't the card you made me discard."
"I had a feeling it wasn't because if it was you would've played it by now." Lance responded as she sent her spell card to the graveyard. "So what was it?"
"I'll show you! I activate Level Modulation!" Chloe played the card and Lance did a double take.
"You never sent any Level Monsters to the graveyard!" Lance protested and Chloe shook her head.
"Remember when I summoned Mathematician earlier?" Chloe asked and Lance nodded as he drew two cards. "I'll give you one guess as to which monster I sent to the graveyard via his effect!"
"Silent Magician Level Four!" Lance quickly realized and sure enough the younger version of Chloe's signature monster appeared on the field (4/1000/1000). "Do you really think I'm letting her stay on the field long enough to summon your best monster you have another thing coming."
"That's good because that wasn't my plan to begin with." Chloe responded before playing a card. "I activate Level Up!"
"I just knew you were going to play that card." Lance sighed to himself as Silent Magician Level Four started glowing and growing until she reached her final form, Silent Magician Level 8 (8/3500/1000).
"Level Modulation may have prevented Level Four from attacking but Level Eight? She's about to dismiss your guards!" Chloe commanded and Silent Magician pointed her staff at the demon before a white beam of light emitted from it vaporizing the demon and bringing Lance's life-points down to 4600."It seems the tide has turned in my favor!"
"We'll see about that Chloe! Don't forget that you're still behind on life-points." Lance pointed out and Chloe frowned when she realized that he had a point. "Can I take my move?"
"Give me a sec." Chloe responded before picking up the third card she drew with Spellbook inside the Pot. "I set one card facedown and end my turn." Chloe announced and Lance drew his card.
"D.D. Dynamite, and thanks to Chloe's move I now have Inferno Tempest in my hand." Lance thought as he looked at his two cards. "Unless she draws Megamorph I have more than enough life-points to take the hit, on the other hand if she draws a monster then I will lose the match and my place in Obelisk Blue I'll have to act fast." Lance thought before setting the cards. "I set two cards facedown and end my turn."
"Lance is taking a big risk if Chloe draws a decently powerful level four monster then she has this match in the bag." Chelsea commented as Chloe drew her card. "I really hate this, as far as I'm concerned they both deserve a promotion for how far they've come since they joined the academy."
"Agreed and they've certainly shown it since the duel began." Andreas responded with a nod. "That said, as much as I like Lance, I have to say that Chloe deserves her promotion more than he does because of how little experience and self-confidence that she had when she joined."
"Yeah and look at her now." Marcus agreed with a nod. "When we left for Battle City I thought someone like Brandon or Otto would come in third but Chloe surprised us all."
"Otto included." Chelsea added with a grin before they turned their attention back to the duel.
"Great, I drew a Spell Card and it's not even one I can use!" Chloe thought as she looked at the card. "Well, it's now or never!" Chloe thought before pointing to Lance. "Silent Magician, attack his life-points directly!" Chloe commanded and the magician pointed her staff at Lance before firing a beam of light…
"I activate my trap card Nutrient Z!" Lance activated the long forgotten about trap and sighed in relief as his life-points shot up to 9000 before wincing as they dropped to 5500.
"What?" Chloe asked with a confused look on her face. "Why didn't you wait until my next turn when that attack would've won me the duel?"
"I have two reasons and they are my remaining facedown cards! Go Inferno Tempest!" Lance activated the Spell Card and Chloe's eyes widened as it hit her. "You've seen enough of my duels to know how this works Chloe."
"Yeah, that Quick Play Spell forces us both to banish all monsters in our decks and graveyards since you just took over three thousand points of damage." Chloe responded with a nod before they went to work first banishing the monsters in their graveyards before moving on to their decks, however once they were done Chloe realized something. "Lance, how many cards do you have left in your deck?"
"I have just the one." Lance said as he patted his bulky blazer pocket. "Just my luck that most of the cards I had left in my deck where monsters, you?"
"Believe it or not I can say the same thing." Chloe responded as she held up her duel disk confirming that fact. "I've heard of duels being down to the wire but this is ridiculous!"
"Tell me about it!" Lance responded with a grin before frowning. "But you don't have to worry about losing the duel via deck out! I activate my trap card D.D. Dynamite!"
"Holy shit, how much damage will that cause!?" Chelsea exclaimed as she stated doing the math in her head whilst a stick of dynamite appeared on the field. "They still had a fair amount of cards left in their decks before Lance used that Spell Card so….."
"I'll save you some time." Andreas responded as he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "More damage than either of them can spare!"
"I was hoping it wouldn't come to this but hey, if I'm going to be promoted to Obelisk Blue I may as well end this duel with a bang!" Lance added as the dynamite went off resulting in a huge explosion that enveloped the field, Lance and Chloe started coughing as the smoke cleared. "Chloe, are you okay?"
"I'm better than okay!" Chloe responded as the smoke started to clear. "In fact I'm still in this duel!"
"Chloe are you so desperate to get out of Osiris Red that you're resorting to denial….." Lance started before looking at Chloe's life-point counter which showed that her life-points were untouched. "But how? I'm pretty sure I just inflicted enough effect damage to end ten duels!"
"Did you forget about my own facedown card?" Chloe asked as she pointed to her trap card. "You may remember it from my expulsion duel!"
"You happened to draw Power Guard? Are you kidding me?!" Lance exclaimed once he recognized the artwork. "It doesn't matter anyway! We're both down to our last cards and there's no way that you can draw another monster at this point since all of them are removed from play."
"Then I'll just have to make my last move count." Chloe responded as she played the card she just drew. "I move to my Second Main Phase and I activate Megamorph!" Chloe played the card and Silent Magician doubled in size and power raising her attack all the way up to seven thousand. "Unless your last card is another Nutrient Z this match is over!"
"I don't have another Nutrient Z and to be frank it's hard enough to find one copy of that card nowadays." Lance responded as he took a deep breath. "I guess it comes down to just one card."
"Yeah, I guess it does," Chloe responded with a nod. "Lance, before I end my turn I want to say something."
"Go ahead." Lance responded with a nod and Chloe grinned a bit.
"Win or lose this has been one of my best duels to date and I'm glad that I got to face you again." Chloe said with a happy sigh and Lance nodded.
"The same goes for me Chloe." Lance nodded in agreement ad Chloe bit her lip.
"Depending on what he draws I have the match won or lost, but if I lose at least I can say that I didn't go down easily." Chloe thought before nodding to Lance. "I end my turn." Chloe announced and Lance closed his eyes before he drew his final card.
"Here it goes, if I drew the right card I have this match won." Lance thought as he took a deep breath. "I didn't even have a good look at my last card when I was done resolving Inferno Tempest's effect all I saw was that it's a Spell Card." Lance thought before finally looking at the card. "Oh, you have got to be kidding me."
"Huh?" Chloe asked as she stared at Lance confusingly.
"Chloe, I'm not going to lose this match…..but I'm not going to win either." Lance said as he played the card. "And neither are you, I activate Heaven's Lost Property!"
"Wait, seriously?!" Chloe asked before the card's hologram showed up. "Lance you realize what this means right?"
"Yeah, the match will end in a draw due to a double deck out." Lance responded as they drew their cards, once it was registered that they could draw no more cards the holograms disappeared.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, this match has been declared a draw!" Martin announced and most of the crowd cheered, the other half booed as they clearly wanted to see a winner come out of the match. "Chloe, Lance, I applaud your efforts in the duel and since she was able to draw against a student from a higher dorm Chloe will be promoted to Ra Yellow!" Martin announced and Chloe, despite her disappointment over how the match ended Chloe couldn't help but grin at that. "As for Lance, I will need to review the footage of the duel with the other teachers so please wait a moment."
"Way to go Chloe!" Chelsea said happily as she wrapped her arm around her roommate's shoulders. "That was a great duel!"
"Thanks Chelsea." Chloe responded with a grin as she turned to her, Marcus and Andreas joined them on the arena clearly happy for her. "I just wish it hadn't ended in a draw."
"The same goes for me Chloe." Lance responded with a nod. "Still, to be honest I wouldn't have minded losing a duel like that but I guess we can't have it all."
"Chloe, Lance, can I have your attention for a moment." Martin's voice rang out and they looked up seeing him standing by the arena alongside the Ra Yellow Headmistress. "Sarah is here to get you fitted for your blazer Chloe. Don't worry, it won't take long." Martin added and Chloe nodded before hopping off the arena. "And Lance, I think you had better follow them."
"Wait, does that mean?" Lance asked and Martin nodded.
"Yes, as your life-points were higher than hers at the time of the draw you are now officially an Obelisk Blue Student, welcome to the dorm." Martin responded and Lance pumped his fist in celebration as Marcus and Andreas patted him on the back. "You had better get going the changing room for new Obelisk Blue Students isn't that far from the one for Ra Yellow so Sarah will show you the way."
"Right, right, I'm on my way." Lance responded before hopping off the arena. "You're not coming as well?"
"Chelsea's promotion duel is next and I'm her opponent." Martin responded as she turned to him. "Please do keep that temper of yours under control during the match Chelsea."
"Just don't give me detention for the rest of the year after I beat you." Chelsea responded with a big grin on her face as Andreas and Marcus returned to their seats and Lance followed Sarah and Chloe to the changing room.