Chapter 12: Face of the Clown
Hello everybody, thank you all who waited for this next chapter. This will be covering Dennis's and Shun's duel which I di make alterations to. I also gave out what Yuri's plan is, or well, a part of it. I hope you enjoy.
(Synchro Dimension: Duel Stadium)
Dennis was fixing his glove as he stood at the starting line next to Kurosaki. He turned to Kurosaki and gave him a smile, "Even though we're allies, I guess we'll be forced to duel now. May the better duelist win, and by that, no hard feelings for the both of us, right."
Shun just gave him a scowl, "We're not friends, so stop pretending." He didn't even know whether to call Dennis an ally let alone friend. It just seemed too good to be true; Dennis was a fellow Xyz duelist, even though he wasn't from the Xyz Dimension. He was a cheerful, charismatic, and funny individual. Even still, Shun didn't know whether he could trust him, it had been the little instances that alerted him. The way at some moments during Yuya's outburst on Reiji Dennis had seemed utterly unaffected, and the way he turned his head at times, as though he had something to hide. Not only that, but his dueling was intense, far too intense compared to other supposed LDS duelists he had faced.
"Geez, I get it, you're a loner. Just trying to be nice." Dennis replied as they got on their respective D-Wheels. In truth, he was a spy, and was waiting for the right moment to take Yuzu and Serena. However, he had to play it off as though they were allies.
"All right, the last duel of the 1st round is finally here, Dennis Macfield vs Kurosaki Shun! Let's do this! RIDING DUEL…ACCELERATION!"
Shun LP: 4000
Dennis LP: 4000
With that the 2 duelists shot forth on their motorbikes, Shay started off the duel, "From my hand I summon Raidraptor – Skull Eagle!" A mechanical bird appeared in front of Kurosaki (ATTR:Dark/LV:3/ATK:1000/DEF:500). "Now I activate the spell, Radraptor – Call! I'll use it to special summon another Skull Eagle from my deck!" With that an identical eagle appeared next to its partner. "I overlay my 2 Level 3 Skull Eagle's to build the overlay network. Xyz Summon! Come forth, Rank 3! Raidraptor – Fiend Eagle!" With that the 2 eagles vanished into the portal below them, unleashing a new avian creature to take its place (ATTR:Dark/Rk:3/ATK: 1000/DEF:1000). "Since I used them to Xyz summon, the effects of the 2 Skull Eagle activate, boosting my Fiend Eagle by 300 points each, so that's a total of 1600 ATK! However, now I use its effect to deal damage to you equal to the attack points of a special summoned monster on the field, so take this!" With that, Dennis was blasted back even further behind Kurosaki (Dennis LP: 4000 – 1600 = 2400). "I'll set 2 cards, turn end."
"Alright, it's showtime! My turn, Draw!" Dennis started off his turn, "I activate Performage Cup Tricker's effect from my hand, letting me detach an overlay unit from your Eagle in order to special summon it," the last dark orb rotating around Fiend Eagle vanished as Dennis's monster appeared (ATTR:Light/LV:5/ATK:1200/DEF:1400). "Now I'll activate the spell, Magical Pendulum Box! Now I'll reveal the top 2 cards of my deck, if they're Pendulum cards I add them to my hand, if not they go to the graveyard, so let's see what I get." Dennis drew 2 cards and smiled, "Looks like I got Performage Bonus Dealer and Damage Juggler, so I add them to my hand. But why stop there when I can use them to set the Pendulum Scale!" With that he set the Scale 3 Dealer and Scale 6 Juggler in the Pendulum Scale and used them to Pendulum summon 3 level 4-5 monsters from his hand; Performage Wind Drainer (ATTR:Wind/LV:5/ATK:2100/ DEF:0), Wing Sandwichman (ATTR:Earth/LV:5/ATK:1800/DEF:1200), and Ball Balancer (ATTR:Earth/LV:4/ATK:1000/DEF:1800). "Now I'll activate the pendulum effect of Bonus Dealer, since I Pendulum summoned 3 or more Performage monsters, I can draw 2 cards as an extra bonus!" With the 2 more cards came to his hand. "Now I'll normal summon Performage Fire Dancer!" A new entertainer filled up the last monster space Dennis had (ATTR:4/LV:4/ ATK:1400/DEF:1200).
"I use my level 4 Ball Balancer and level 4 Fire Dancer to build the overlay network! Show must go on! Artisan of the stage, swoop down from the skies! Xyz Summon! Appear now! Rank 4! Performage Trapeze Magician!" With that a circus-like magician appeared with a happy smile on its face (ATTR:Light/Rk:4/ATK:2500/DEF:2000).
"Already Dennis has summoned his ace monster!" Melissa Claire noted from above.
"But that's not all folks, for now I overlay my level 5 Sandwichman, Wind Drainer, and Cup Tricker to build the network again! Arrive, hell's artist! Xyz Summon! Rank 5! Performage Shadow Maker!" With that a conniving and funny trickster appeared from the network (ATTR: Dark/Rk:5/ATK:2600/DEF:2000).
From the shadows, Yuri smiled as Dennis pulled off a combination with his 2 Xyz monsters, letting him special summon 2 more Shadow Maker's and granting 2 of the total the ability to attack twice. Yuri personally looked down on Xyz monsters, though Dennis had still found use of them, "Well done my friend."
"Alright now I suppose there's been a rain check so this show will sadly end early! Go, Trapeze Magician, attack Fiend Eagle!" With that, the monster made it way towards the mechanical bird, but Shun had plans as well.
"I activate my Continuous Trap, Raidraptor – Target Flag! Now I target Trapeze Magician and draw one card, and that card is Last Strix, a monster! Now when Trapeze Magician leaves the field Target Flag will be destroyed, and when that happens I can take a look at your hand and destroy all monsters in your hand!"
Dennis looked at the 2 cards in his hand…one of which was Fusion. The one thing which could tip off the already highly suspicious Kurosaki. "Even so…what's to stop me from beating you before that happens?"
"Nothing but my superior skills. I'll tell you this, before this duel is over, I will unmask you!" Kurosaki stated with rage.
"Well then we'll see about that, on with the show! Trapeze Magician, destroy Fiend Eagle!" With that the Magician broke the bird, obliterating it (Shun LP: 4000 – 1500 = 2500).
"I activate my Quick Play Spell, Rank-Up Magic, Double Death Force! Since you Fiend Eagle, I can Special Summon it and then use it as a material to summon a Raidraptor with twice its level! Prideful Falcon! Spread those wings dyed with the blood of heroes, and charge through the path of revolution! Rank Up-Xyz Evolution! Appear now! Rank 6! Raidraptor – Revolution Falcon!" With that a new falcon burst from the overlay network, one of Shun's ace mosters, ready to purge all lies and evil. "I'll use Revolution Falcon's effect, letting me destroy a special summoned monster you control and deal you damage equal to half of its power! So say farewell to Trapeze Magician!" With that a volley of bullets shot at the Magician, destroying it…had Dennis not acted fast enough.
"I activate Performage Magic Tactician's effect from my hand, allowing me to discard it and send one of my Shadow Makers to the graveyard to change the target to another Shadow Maker I control!" With that the bullets changed target at one of the 2 remaining Shadow Makers, destroying it. "Thanks to Trapeze Magician's effect, I don't take effect damage that's less than or equal to its power. Turn End."
"Amazing, not only did Kurosaki stop Dennis's assault, he's taken control of the fight right out from under him." Melissa Claire exclaimed as Shun began his turn.
"Draw, Now I detach an overlay unit from Revolution Falcon to let him attack all your special summoned monsters, and when it battles them, their attack points became 0." Shun knew he was on to something now, while it's true that it was smart of Dennis to save his Magician and life points, the panicked expression he had told Shun he was hiding something. It hadn't been the monster as he had easily discarded it, so that one card in his hand had to be important. "Now attack! Go Revolution Falcon, destroy Sky Magician!" With that, the mechanical war bird sent a new volley of bullets at the magician.
Snatching an Action Card from the track, Dennis activated it, "Action Magic, Battle Change! Now I redirect the attack to Shadow Maker!" The bullets changed course to the last dark monster when, "I activate the Pendulum effect of Overlay Juggler, allowing me to take Shadow Maker and attach it to Trapeze Magician as an overlay unit!" The shadow vanished and became an orb of light surrounding the magician.
"Then I'll just bring it down, go Revolution Falcon!" With that the bird launched a final volley of bullets at the sorcerer, Dennis attempted to dive for an Action Card but was stopped by Shun, "Don't even think about it!" With that, the bullets pierced the wizard and it was destroyed.
Dennis watching in shock as his prized monster, his beloved mask, was ripped to pieces in front of his eyes, smoke now covering his appearance. When the smoke cleared Dennis was unharmed, "I found the Action Card Damage Banish, which let me reduce the damage to 0."
"With that, Target Flag is destroyed and you have to show it to me now, reveal what that card is!" Shun demanded.
Dennis gave a bitter laugh before starting with a dark voice, "Very well…it's Fusion." He revealed the card with a menacing smile. "You were right, congratulations. I did lie to all of you; it was all just an act. In truth, I am of Academia!"
Shun snarled, "I knew it, and using Xyz monsters to hide like that, unforgivable. I set 2 cards and end my turn. Now hurry up, I'll beat you down by my next turn."
"You'd have to have a next turn first, now it's time for a real performance. DRAW!" Dennis gave a manic smile, "Spell Card activate, Performage Pendulum dealing! Now I destroy all Pendulum monsters of the Performage archetype and draw 2 cards!" He then drew his 2 cards and smiled wickedly. "I summon Performage – Spell Master form my hand!" With that, a sinister new clown entered the stadium, with a black and bloody clown costume (ATTR:Dark/ LV:4/ATK:1200/DEF:1300). "I'll use its effect to add a Spell Card to my hand…and I think I'll choose Antique Gear Mask!" The sound of that horrid archetype caused Kurosaki to twitch as the rest of the Lancers watched the duel in shock and horror. "Now I'll activate Fusion, to fuse Spell Master and the Damage Juggler in my hand together! Acrobat that freely manipulates even the pain, merge with the dark wizard, and become a new witch that spurs the sky! Fusion Summon! Appear, Level 7! Performage Trapeze Force Witch!" With that a new and rather unhinged witch-like performer appeared from the shadows (ATTR:Dark/LV:6/ATK:2400/ DEF:2000).
Cursing, Shun activated his face-downs, "Activate Continuous Traps, Raidraptor – Chain Lock, and Raidraptor – Reactor! Since you special summoned a monster, Chain Lock will let me switch it to defense mode, and thanks to Reactor's effect, since it did change battle position, it gets destroyed and you take damage equal to it attack points." With that the snares lept at Force Witch…but stopped. Slowly the chains were reeled back into the trap card as both Chain Lock and Reactor were forced back into face-down position. "What kind of witch craft is this, Dennis." Shun glared at the false performer, who laughed in response.
"It's Force Witch's power. Thanks to its effect Performage monsters I control can't be targeted by card effects or be destroyed by them. Now I think it's about time we got on with the show and call forth the 2nd act. It was an act known as…The Hunting Game." Dennis gave a mad smile at Kurosaki. "For said game I think Force Witch needs a change in wardrobe, so I'll equip it with Antique Gear Mask." With that a mechanical mask resembling the face of Antique Gear Hound Dog appeared and was placed on Force Witch's face. "Now for the hunting game to commence, go Force Witch, destroy Revolution Falcon!" With that a strange aura surrounded the witch and it shot a volley of strings at the mechanical bird.
"I activate Revolution Falcon's effect, it reduces the attack of the special summoned monster it's battling to 0!"
"Pointless, thanks to my new mask, I can negate the effect of the monster that the equipped monster is battling!" With that the bullets from revolution Falcon were scattered by the masks, putting holes all over the dueling track. "By the way, don't even think about going for Action cards, my mask also keeps you from activating Spells or Traps when Force Witch attacks. Speaking of effects, want to know Force Witch's? When a Performage monster I control battles another monster, that monster loses 600 attack points. By the way, I also grabbed this," Dennis revealed another action card he had taken earlier, "Said card is Rise Over Loss, now when a monster my opponent controls loses ATK, a monster I control gains ATK equal to ½ your loss." As the strings of Force Witch latched onto Revolution Falcon, it slowly squeezed and compressed the bird, draining it of its power. However, following that the witch levitated higher above the stadium and began to whirl the bird over and under it like a jump rope before slowly descending. Not stopping the spin, the momentum picked up and revolution falcon slammed into the ground before ripping up a chunk of the motorcycle track. Shay changed position to get around, but Force Witch moved along with it, tearing the ground in front of Shun, using Revolution Falcon as a buzz saw.
"Um, is it just me or is Dennis getting really brutal. Maybe it's a part of this new act?" Melissa said as she began to sweat.
"It's over Kurosaki, thanks to the mask's final effect, the damage you take from this battle will be doubled, so that's 2600 points of damage!" With that, the witch flung the broken bird, landing atop of Kurosaki. The explosion shook the stadium and everyone sat in wonder of what happened…when Kurosaki appeared from the smoke with a new mechanical avian, Last Strix, his life points at 100. "What…how?!" Dennis exclaimed.
"I activated Last Strix's effect from my hand, letting me special summon it to reduce the damage by 100 for each spell and trap I had, so with 2, that made the damage 2400."
Cursing, Dennis ended his turn, "You're rather persistent, aren't you."
Shun just looked ahead, "No matter what, I will best my enemies with my iron will and steeled strength."
Dennis laughed, "I know, that's what all of you from the Spade Branch say."
Shun glared at Dennis, "How do you know that!?"
"I picked it up back when I was spying on Heartland, before the invasion…"
(Weeks before the Invasion; Xyz Dimension: Heartland Square)
Dennis was fxing up his cards on a table and looked at the adoring crowd, "It's showtime, who will be the volunteer?" Suddenly, he stared at one of the girl's standing in the back. In a flash, Trapeze Magician lifted the young dove and brought her before him, Dennis taking a knightly bow, "Trapeze Magician has chosen you for this duet my dear. Shall we duel…"
(Present day)
"It was sad really, I wanted to keep doing those street performances, but I had been ordered by the Professor…and so I gave the green light for the hunting game."
"Who…who was it?" Shun asked as he began to squirm, wondering what was so important that Academia had to invade his kind home.
From the shadows, Yuri smiled and laughed along with Dennis, before they both said, "A little birdie, her name…was Ruri."
"WHAT!" Shun roared.
"Following the initial assault, a friend of mine came to bring her to Academia, I was there too, I led Ruri from your base to where he could take her without trouble. You were so close you know. I was watching from afar. Another few seconds and you may have saved her." Dennis smirked.
"You bastard, why did you do this?" Shun roared.
"It was nothing personal, I was just following orders." Dennis replied nonchalantly. "Doesn't matter anyway, knowing that won't save you. Even if you do beat me, you'll be no closer to finding her."
"You're right…in that case I'll take you all on. I'll take on all Academian scum until I find her!" Shun roared.
From his room, Yuya shook at the sight of Kurosaki's rage and the rage that was boiling deep within him, the rage of Yuto. "No, please stop."
"My turn, draw! I activate Last Strix's effect, now I can tribute it to summona Raidraptor Xyz monster from my extra deck in Defense Mode, and I summon Raidraptor – Ultimate Falcon!" With that the small bird vanished and was replaced by the much larger avian (ATTR:Dark/ Rk:10/ATK:3500/DEF:2000). "The only down side is that I can't use its effects, and it returns to my Extra Deck on my end phase, but that won't be a problem because I activate the spell, Rank-Up Magic, Skip Force! Now I can rank up Ultimate Falcon to summon the final one with the highest rank! Falcon of my very soul! With your heart of unwavering conviction and deep affection, become my sturdy last defense and descend! Rank-Up Xyz Evolution! Appear! Level 12! Raidraptor – Final Fortress Falcon!" With that a large and robust red mechanical falcon descended from the overlay network and stared down the witch (ATTR:Dark/Rk:12/ATK:3800/ DEF:2800). "Battle, go Final Fortress, destroy his Force Witch!" With that the beast shot from its mouth a column of flame at the Witch.
Dennis acted fast, "I activate Wind Drainer's effect from my graveyard, since a special summoned monster you control declared an attack I could special summon it in defense mode. Not only that but tanks to Force Witch's effect, you can't target it for attacks if I control other Performage monsters.
"So what, I'll use Final Fortress Falcon's effect, detaching an overlay network and banish as many Xyz Raidraptors from my graveyard. Now it can attack equal to the number of them that have been banished!"
Dennis sighed, "You just don't get it, thanks to Antique Gear Mask, the 1st time when you destroy Force Witch, it won't be destroyed, and thanks to my Witch's effect, Fortress Falcon will lose 600 attack points for each Performage it battles, leaving it down to 2000 once it battles my Force Witch for the 2nd time around."
It was now time for Shun to give a wicked grin, "Final Fortress Falcon is unaffected by card effects, so it will retain all of its power." As Dennis's eyes widened, Shun roared, "For green lighting the invasion that wripped apart everything I knew and love, this is the first strike!" The flames roasted Wind Drainer, destroying it. "For ruining my sister's happiness and taking part in her kidnapping, feel the 2nd strike!" The blast of flame hit Force Witch, thought the helmet kept it from being destroyed (Dennis LP: 2400 – 1400 = 1000).
From his room, Yuya was shaking at the sight of all this rage when he felt Yuto's voice from within him, "These feelings…don't you understand?"
"I do…but these duels with so much anger and hatred, I don't like them." Yuya commented.
Back at the duel, Shun continued, "For nearly destroying the ideals of my school and best friend, Yuto…"
"And for all the smiles in Heartland that died because of you…" Yuto continued.
"THIS IS OUR REVENGE, FINAL STRIKE!" With that the last column of fire burned the witch to ash and Dennis was blaste into the surface he'd ripped up earlier, causing him to fall off his bike (Dennis LP: 0).
WINNER: SHUN
As Dennis raised his head at Kurosaki, he simply said, "You win…Kurosaki." He fell unconscious afterwards.
Shun went to Dennis and attemted to card him, only to find he couldn't. "Damn Reiji…" With that he tried to punch him, but was grabbed by Security who held him back while they put the fallen duelist on a stretcher.
"Sora, it's time to make our move. Since Dennis's allegiance has been revealed it's likely that they're going to take him hostage." Yuri told the boy.
"Alright, so what's our next move?" Sora commented.
"Just follow me." With that the 2 disappeared into the shadows.
Back at the City Council Court Room, one of the members commented, "It seems you had enemies within your lines."
"I suspected as much…but what about your lines." Reiji said.
"He raises a good point; it's time to put down Roger, useful as he was." White Taki said. "He then brought up a screen, "By order of the Council, I order that Roger be stripped of both his title and his powers."
"That won't be happening!" A booming voice stated when suddenly a hologram of Roger appeared before them, along with 30 Security guards bursting through the door. "Pardon for this intrusion, but I fail to understand why I am supposed to lose my power."
"Well it's rather simple. As helpful as you've been in keeping peace, how do we know when you're going to summon your allies from Academia." White Taki stated with a smile.
At that Roger laughed, "ACADEMIA! You think I am a part of Academia! How rich!"
"No, you aren't. You went rogue and came here by yourself without alerting anyone." Reiji noted.
"Quite right, I am not playing servant to anyone; be it the Professor or the Council. Soon I will grow even more powerful than the Professor, Akaba Leo himself! What of you Akaba Reiji? I know you seek to defeat your father, so perhaps we can be of use to one another?" Roger asked in a soft tone.
"Sorry but I'll have to say, no. I don't make deals with lunatics." Reiji stated.
"Too bad, but thanks to my 'King's Gambit,' Security is under my total control, so I'm basically King now. It won't be long before that becomes official." Roger stated before the hologram vanished.
Reiji turned his head and looked at the Security officers. If he wanted he could take them all out. However, he knew that Roger's plan did hinge on a few factors, so he would have to play this chess game accordingly. "All there is to do now is wait."
Back at the City Duel Stadium, Dennis was being taken through the halls by the Council Security officers when they were intercepted by Security police officers. "Stand aside, we have orders from the Council to take the boy to them."
"We've been ordered by Roger to take him, so he comes with us." One of the Security officers stated.
"You're both wrong, he comes with us." A voice said behind both forces, causing them to turn to its location when they were overcome by a violet light, and they were no more than mere cards.
From his seat, Roger freezed at what he had heard. The com-link was on the fritz, but he recognized that voice anywhere. "Yuri…is here." At that point he clenched his head. Yuri, of all Academia why did it have to be him. This made it all the more possible for his perfect plans to be foiled. "Where do I find someone strong enough to take him down?"
A few hours later, as darkness fully took the city; Dennis opened his eyes and found himself in an alleyway, a familiar face kneeling over him. "Yuri…is that you?"
"Who else? Nice job getting your ass handed to you by some Xyz trash." Yuri mocked him.
"Sheesh, can't you at least ask if I'm alright?"
"Afraid not, you'll live. Now what have you figured out?" As Dennis told them about his journey, Yuri simply sighed, "Well I guess we know where Jean-Michel Roger disappeared to. Nice work Dennis."
"So what's the plan Yuri?" Sora questioned.
"Well since both Roger and Reiji are going to keep us from Yuzu and Serena, it will be harder to take them. However, they aren't allies in the slightest, Roger's too power-hungry for Reiji to even consider allying with, so that means…" Yuri smiled, "Here's what we do, Dennis, we're going to send you back to Academia. Inform the Professor too have Barrett and a lot of Obelisk Force squads ready. Once I give the signal, that's when we'll make our move."
"What do we need them for?" The 2 asked.
Yuri sighed, "This is a chance guys. If we pull this off we'll have enough cards for the Arc Area Reactor and the girls along with a traitor." He then turned to Dennis, "Get some rest, just leave everything to us. We'll take things here." With that he teleported Dennis back to Academia before turning to Sora, "Let's go, better stay out of sight."
As they left, Yuri heard Starve Venom's voice from with his deck, "This is more than just that… isn't it?"
Yuri smirked as he discreetly dropped a few cards on separate roads, "Indeed, I told you Venom, it's time to spark up the city with some real fun."
"I look forward to it." Venom stated.
(Fusion Dimension: Academia)
Leo Akaba sat upon his throne as he stared at the kneeling Barrett, "Dennis has returned and informed us of the situation. Prepare the Obelisk Force, one Yuri gives the signal, leave at once."
"When do you think he'll send it?" Barrett asked.
"No idea, Dennis didn't specify. We can only hope that it will be good." The Professor noted.
OC Cards
Performage Pendulum Dealing (Spell:Normal) - When you only control Performage Pendulum Cards, destroy as many as possible, then draw cards equal to the number destroyed.
Performage - Spell Master (ATTR:Dark/ LV:4/ATK:1200/DEF:1300) - When this card is Normal or Special summoned, you can add one Spell card from your deck or graveyard or one pendulum card in your extra deack to your hand.
Wind Drainer and Antique Gear Mask had their effects a bit changed to suit the duel.
And that ends this chapter, I hope all of you aren't too disappointed the duel turned out the same way. However, I did add Force Witch and Final Fortress Falcon. For the former, I really didn't understand in the episode where Dennis revealed himself as a spy to use an Ancient Gear monster only to save Force Witch for a comparatively unimportant duel. However, I also knew that I couldn't use Satellite Cannon Falcon then, and since I also didn't like how Shun didn't win a duel with Ultimate or Final Fortress, I decided to use them. While I was originally going to use Ultimate Falcon, I wanted the "1st strike, 2nd strike, 3rd strike" from the anime, so I went with Final Fortress Falcon. I hope you enjoyed the duel and I'll have the next chapter available as soon as possible.
