The Ultimate Challenge Part 3
After an entire chapter of explanation, the 12 duelists were caught up to speed, they now understood their situation, the winner of the tournament will be used as a mold for the next universe' inhalants. The rest would be sent back to their lives and (thankfully) have their memories erased of this event, and would eventually be wiped from existence, along with the current universe. God waited for about 2 minutes before starting the first match of the tournament, not because he wanted to allow them prep time, because he found it funny the drastically differing thoughts that went through all of their minds.
Okay then, the tournament will begin now; the first match will be Maximillion Pegasus…
For the first time in many years, Maximillion felt absolute horror, he was confident in his ability's as a duelist, he may have lost to Kaiba and Yugi in the past, but he had reworked his deck in the many years he had to himself.
Vs. Joey Wheeler!
At the exact same instance, both duelists breathed a sigh of relief, for differing reasons of course. Pegasus was relieved because, despite openly admitting Joey Wheeler is one of the best duelists alive in his time, was still a novice compared to him, Kaiba was brilliant and Yugi had the Pharaoh when the 2 defeated him, but Wheeler had nothing on him. Joey, on the other hand, was relieved that he even knew his opponent, over half the people here were from the future of his time, he had no confidence that he could handle a duelist with cards that haven't been invented yet, at least not at the moment. Joey thought that if he could defeat Pegasus, he could put up a good fight against anyone, or at the very least, may end up dueling Yugi or Kaiba next round, someone he's at least familiar with.
The remainder of you will be put in stasis until the finish of this round; you will be woken in what will feel like a minute to you.
Slifer took the hint and everyone but Joey and Pegasus disappeared, Obelisk then summoned a dueling field that would fit both of their tastes, an old-styled, early Dueling Arena, one they both have used before, and Pegasus prefers to use when dueling, while Joey plugged in his Duel Disk. And with this, the duel started.
Pegasus: 4000 | Turn 1 | Joey: 4000
"I'll start this by activating Gold Sarcophagus," Pegasus started, "now I can banish my Toon World, and in 2 turns I can add it to my hand, next I'll lay 2 cards face down and finish."
Pegasus started panicking when he first saw his hand, almost literally nothing he could do, his only monsters were regular and Manga Ryu-Ran, impossible to summon at all right now, and other than Sarcophagus, the only other cards were useless traps, he had to bank on faking the novice out.
"Alright then…" Joey said as he drew his sixth card, "And I'll summon Goblin Attack Force (ATK: 2300 DEF: 0) in attack mode!" Joey was treading water here; he could see Pegasus couldn't summon any monsters because of his reliance on Toon World, but those trap cards could do anything. (Okay, it looks like I'm safe to summon, he didn't activate either of those cards, but that doesn't mean they won't activate when I attack), Joey thought to himself.
"I'll play one face down card and end my turn."
Pegasus: 4000 | Turn 2 | Joey: 4000
"I draw, and next turn I get Toon World." Pegasus breathed a small sigh of relief, he didn't get a monster but instead Jar of Greed, and seeing how Wheeler didn't attack last turn, playing another facedown would just give the effect again. "I place another card face down and end my turn."
"Draw."
(Okay, he placed another face down card, he gets Toon World next turn no matter what, so…)
"Goblin Attack Force! Direct Attack!"
(Pegasus 4000 - 1700)
"But now they have to change to defense mode".
Pegasus gasped when hit, he felt happy and scared at the same time, sure he would have only 700 after he activates Toon World, but if Joey had summoned another monster before attacking he would be finished, Joey couldn't touch him for the rest of the turn, not to mention his Attack Force was now an open target.
"Bluffing, eh? I set one monster in defense mode and end my turn."
"Not yet!" Pegasus interrupted, "I activate my face down Jar of Greed, so I can draw one card."
Pegasus: 1700 | Turn 3 | Joey: 4000
"I draw, and now Toon World is finally added to my hand!" Pegasus got a smug grin on his face, he was about to completely change the duel in his favor, "And I pay 1000 life points to activate it -
(Pegasus 1700 - 700)
-and I normal summon Toon Cannon Soldier (ATK: 1400 DEF: 1300), but now I can special summon Toon Mermaid (ATK: 1400 DEF: 1500). Joey begun worrying, but he remembered that some of the toons couldn't attack to the first turn they're summoned. "Now I sacrifice both of them to summon: Manga Ryu-Ran! (ATK: 2200 DEF: 2600) I will leave it in defense mode for right now, and I end my turn."
Joey drew a card, he was worried now, he panicked for one moment, but then he realized he could easily topple the dragon, but had overlooked it in his stress. Joey had a plan.
"I activate Shield and Sword! Changing all monsters' attack points with their defense points!" Pegasus was worried, but he had a plan, "And now I sacrifice my face down monster and Goblin Attack Force to summon the Red Eyes Black Dragon! (ATK: 2400 DEF: 2000) Now I attack and destroy your monster!"
"Not so fast! I activate my facedown card! Toon Briefcase!" Joey's dragon suddenly returned to Joey's deck, and then the deck shuffled itself, "Now your Red Eyes is out of commission." Joey started panicking, he was wide open and there was a monster that could wipe out half his life points in one hit.
"Okay then, I'll play a card face down and finish my turn."
Pegasus: 700 | Turn 4 | Joey: 4000
"Draw." Pegasus started, "Now I switch Manga Ryu-Ran to attack mode, and I summon Toon Masked Sorcerer, now I attack directly with Ryu-Ran!"
(Joey 4000 - 1800)
"And I end my turn." Joey was starting to worry, he wasn't certain if he could get a card that could help him at this point, but when he drew his next card, he was confident that he would survive a little while longer.
"I summon Little-Wingaurd to attack mode, (ATK: 1400 DEF: 1800) and I attack Masked Sorcerer!"
(Pegasus 700 - 100)
Pegasus could swear his heart had stopped when Joey attacked, he panicked when he summoned it and miscalculated the attack in his head, Pegasus couldn't allow this to happen again, it didn't matter if could simply attack and finish him, that facedown card could be anything, and could finish the game his next turn.
"And after he attacks, I can use his ability and switch him to defense mode, now I play one card facedown and end my turn."
Pegasus: 100 | Turn 5 | Joey: 1800
"I draw." Pegasus stopped for a moment before continuing, Joey could have easily just activated a trap that would finish him off right then and there, "Now I will summon Toon Alligator in attack mode and…" Pegasus realized he was getting reckless, if he had attacked it could have ended there, (I need to stop thinking about this, I need to just go ahead and attack!)
"I end my turn."
"Draw," Joey knew he was in control right now, he bluffed with the two facedown cards, if Pegasus attacked, Joey would have been finished, (If I can keep this up for two turns, I've won, I have the cards, I just need to get them altogether.)
"Now I summon Alligator's Sword in attack mode! And I play another card facedown, and then I'll end my turn."
Pegasus: 100 | Turn 6 | Joey: 1800
"Draw!" Pegasus may as well have drawn a Get out of Jail Free Card, he drew Royal Decree, a trap card that will negate all trap cards other than itself, as soon as Pegasus activates this, he will be free to attack, he could feel the weight start to rise off his shoulders, "and I play one card facedown and end my turn."
Joey drew, he was just as scared as Pegasus was that trap card could destroy him easily, but if he could live one more turn he could finish him off, "I summon one monster in defense mode, and then I end my turn."
Pegasus: 100 | Turn 7 | Joey: 1800
"And now, Wheeler, you will be going home! I activate Royal Decree! Now that you can't activate any traps, I attack directly with Ryu-Ran!"
"Not yet Pegasus!" Joey had predicted something like this, he remembered back to his duel with Espa Roba in Battle City, where his deck was crippled by Jinzo so he had tweaked his deck to give him a way to work against that restriction. "I activate my facedown card: Order to Charge! Since it's a quick-play spell card, I can activate it as easily as I could a trap card! And with it, I can sacrifice Alligator's Sword to destroy a monster on your field, like Ryu-Ran!"
"Grrr," Pegasus was getting angry, he wanted to finish Wheeler as fast as possible, and he thought he was in the clear but, "Then I attack with Toon Alligator,
(Joey 1800 - 1000)
and thanks to his effect, I draw one card, and now I special summon Toon Dark Magician Girl by sacrificing Alligator! Your move Wheeler!"
"And now it's all over Pegasus!" Pegasus clutched his fist, within seconds his knuckles turned white, "I activate my facedown card: Question!" Pegasus felt himself get nauseas, he could have won earlier, and the idiot novice had faked out the creator of the game. "Now you name the first monster sent to my graveyard at the start of the duel, if you're right, it gets banished, if you're wrong though…"
Pegasus had no clue, he remembered the beginning of the duel, he summoned Red Eyes Black Dragon by sacrificing Goblin Attack Force… after… what was the facedown card!?
"It… was… Time Wizard?"
"Nope, sorry man, but the card I get now is, Baby Dragon!" Joey won, he knew it now, "and now I can sacrifice both of my monsters to summon, Insect Queen! And now to make sure you can't stop me, I activate the spell card: Giant Trunade!"
Pegasus held in tears, after every spell and trap was returned to the owners hand, Toon World was gone and with it every Toon on Pegasus' field, he was open.
"Sorry buddy, but now I sacrifice Little Wingaurd to attack directly with Insect Queen!"
(Pegasus 100 - 0)
God returned Pegasus to where he was when he was brought here, God, fortunately, wiped away his memories of these events, but more importantly, match 1 was finished, Joey Wheeler was going to continue in the tournament.
As a prize for winning this duel, Joey was told he would be placed into the VIP section, which Joey figured was just a big room with a fridge of infinite food and a couch facing towards a wall that was just glass, Joey walked over to the glass and looked out.
He saw, down where he and Pegasus and himself just finished dueling, Set Kaiba, standing in front of a kid with a red jacket…
S