Trouble in Paradise
"This looks like to be it." Andrew muttered as he walked down to the Domino Pier, where a bunch of different kinds of boats were gathered. He was dragging a white suitcase with one hand, while carrying tickets with his other hand. The tickets that Michael gave him on his birthday. Andrew was currently staring at a cruise ship. A big, white one. With the 'Kageyama Cruises' on its side. "The Kageyama Cruises. Where it'll take me and Jenny out to the ocean for a few days."
His mom, Marie, was right behind him. "So, are you looking forward to this?"
Andrew smiled. "Well, that's all I've been doing since we made plans for this. I can't wait to see what's it like on that ship."
"Hey, Andrew!" A female voice called out.
"Guess who's already here." Marie commented with a smile.
Andrew turned and saw his girlfriend, Jenny, waving to him. She was wearing a light-blue tank top, a white sarong and sandals. And on top of that, she was also wearing a white sunhat, with her hair hanging loosely instead of her usual ponytail. And there was a blue suitcase standing near her.
"Jenny!" Andrew walked over to her. "Glad you could make it!"
"Me too. I can't believe we actually get to spend our time together on a cruise ship." Jenny smiled brightly before glancing at the cruise ship. "To tell you the truth, I've never had a a vacation on a ship before. I can't wait to see what it's like there."
"Me neither." Andrew replied.
"Then I guess everything's set?"
Andrew looked behind Jenny and saw her mom, Leila.
"It's been a while, Leila." Marie said, approaching them.
"Nice to see you, Marie." Leila turned to Jenny. "And you're sure you have everything you need?"
Jenny gave her an almost annoyed look. "Yes, Mom, I do."
"And what about you, Andrew?" Marie asked, a little concerned. "You've got your toothbrush, and sun lotion, and..."
"Mom, please!" Andrew interrupted, just the same as Jenny. "I told you already. All the necessary things are with me."
His mom smiled a bit. "I'm sorry. Just wanted to be sure."
At that moment, the cruise ship let out a horn-like sound.
"Oh! It's about to take off!" Jenny pointed out.
"Then we better get onboard." Andrew replied.
Leila gave her daughter a hug. "Take care of yourself, Jenny."
Jenny hugged back. "Of course, Mom."
Marie gave Andrew as well. "Be sure to call home every day, okay?"
"Count on it." Andrew replied, hugging back.
The moms let go of their children, letting them aboard the ship.
With one more horn-like sound, the cruise ship took off. Many people on the pier waved their goodbyes to many of the passengers. Including Marie and Leila, who waved to Andrew and Jenny, who waved back.
"Wow!" Jenny muttered as she and Andrew had a look around an area of the ship. It was full of lots of people who visited to different kinds of shops, bars and even restaurants. "Look at this place. This ship seems to have anything for the passengers here."
"It's even greater than I thought." Andrew said.
Jenny had a thoughtful look. "I wonder if they sell any sundresses here."
Andrew smiled in amusement.
"Hey, let go!"
The couple turned to the direction the scream came from and saw a commotion occurring in a nearby clothe shop. There were two young women who were fighting over a black dress. At least it looked like one. And they both pulled it like it was a tag-o-war. One of the women had brown hair in shoulder-length, wearing a simple white blouse, black skirt and sandals.
The other woman looked like someone with the aura of a wealthy person. She had blonde hair that was curled at the ends and emerald green eyes, wearing a black sweater, a pair of jeans and black, high heeled shoes.
"You let go, you peasant!" The blonde woman insulted.
The struggle went for a moment until the other woman tripped and fell, which caused her to lose her grip. "Ow!"
"Ha! It's all mine!" The blonde woman said triumphantly.
The other woman stood up, glaring at her. "I saw it first! Give me that or..."
SLAP!
"Ow!" She yelped when she suddenly got slapped on her hand. The one responsible for that was standing between her and the blonde woman. It was a young man who gave off same wealthy sense as the woman. His hair was colored in two tones. Gray with black roots. He was wearing a white shirt, black pants and brown shoes.
"Don't you lay a finger on my lady, peasant!" He told her with arrogance in his voice. "And don't get in her way. Such an elegant dress only fits a woman of her class."
The woman smiled smugly. "Well, you know it, darling."
The man smiled to her. "Anything for you, my dear." He then gave the other woman a glare. "Now get out of our sight. Shoo shoo!"
The other woman reluctantly left with a hurt expression.
Andrew and Jenny frowned at the scene. "Now that was rude." The latter said.
"Tell me about it. Treating people like that is just wrong."
Jenny sighed before smiling. "Well, I won't let people like those two ruin our time here onboard." She grabbed Andrew's hand. "Let's go find our cabin."
Andrew smiled. "Right." They moved on.
"Aaaah! This is great." Jenny said, falling on a pretty big bed. The two of them found themselves what turned out to be their cabin. Including the bed, the room contained a desk, a closet, and a suite bathroom. There was a window on the wall, showing the blue sea.
"It sure is nice here." Andrew replied, placing his suitcase near the corner. "I think I'm gonna like it here."
"Same here." Jenny replied. She then started to take her tank top off.
"What? What are you...?!" Andrew stuttered as his face turned red.
As soon Jenny got the top off, a blue bikini top was revealed. She then turned to him. "I think I want to head to the swimming pool. You coming? Hm?" She then noticed how red his face was and he wasn't responding. With a mischievous look, she posed a bit. "Like what you see?"
Andrew shook his head frantically. "No! I mean, yes! I... no... I..."
Jenny couldn't suppress her laughter. "I'm sorry, I just couldn't resist!"
Andrew pouted. "Very funny."
Jenny walked up to him and kissed him briefly. "Don't get mad, I was just kidding. Is it really wrong if I messed with my boyfriend?"
Andrew sighed and smiled. "Fine, I can't stay mad with you. So, are we headed to the pool or what?"
"Sure!"
Some time later, they made their way to the pool. Jenny was still wearing her sarong, along with her sunhat and now, blue sunglasses as well. Andrew was wearing his blue swimming trunks, along with his white t-shirt.
After a while, they reached to an area on the deck, which they assumed was where they could find the pool. And the pool was relatively big. And the area around it was rather luxurious. There were a few rows of sun chairs surrounding it, standing near the walls that had big windows. There were more sun chairs in an area on an upper level where anyone could have clear view over the sea. There were also a couple of bars near the pool area.
"Now this is where I can spend the time all day." Jenny said, sounding really excited.
"The place looks rather full though." Andrew replied, noting the big amount of people.
"I'm sure we can find a place to sit somewhere." The fairy duelist said, starting to walk further. "Now let's see... ooff!" Until she accidentally bumped into someone. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't see you..." She trailed off when she noticed who she bumped into.
It was the same rude woman she and Andrew saw earlier. She was wearing a yellow, exotic one-piece swimsuit with a split in the center. She had a white beach bag hanging on her right shoulder.
She gave Jenny a disgusted look. "Watch where you're going, you little plebe! And don't you dare to touch me! Hmph! Why there are so many filthy peasants onboard is beyond me."
Jenny started to get angry and was ready to yell at her, but stopped when Andrew grabbed her arm. "Jenny, calm down! She's not worth it."
The fairy duelist kept glaring at the rude woman, who gave her one last 'hmph' before walking away. Once she was out of sight, Jenny took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Andrew..."
"It's alright." Andrew assured her. "Let's just ignore her and find somewhere to sit."
"Right."
At that, the couple walked around to find a spot. After a while, they found two sun chairs that were unoccupied, standing near one of the bars. As Jenny took a seat, she glanced around the area. She then noticed that woman nearby, sitting together with her boyfriend. The fairy duelist scowled in their direction.
She was slightly surprised to see a glass with a drink appear in front of her. She turned to see Andrew, who was holding it, and another drink with his other hand. "I figured you wanted a cold drink." He said, smiling.
Jenny smiled back. "Thank you." She then took a sip. She sighed in delight.
"Feeling better?"
"Yeah. I'm fine."
"Then just relax, okay? Remember, we came here to enjoy the cruise trip. And I know we'll have plenty of fun, as long we won't let pompous people like those two distract us. Sound good?" Andrew held up his own glass.
Jenny nodded. "You got it!" At that, they toasted.
At that, the couple spent most of the day together, enjoying themselves. They took a dip in the pool and relaxed on their sun chairs.
After that, they visited the different shops they found, checking on different clothes, souvenirs, and even Duel Monsters cards.
They even stopped by somewhere on deck to just watch the view over the ocean.
Later that day, they started to get hungry and decided to get something to eat.
And thus, they found themselves sitting together in a fancy restaurant where round tables where placed in front of a stage where a group musicians played jazz music.
But not before having a change of clothes. Andrew was wearing a blue t-shirt and a pair of jeans. Jenny was her tank top again, but now she had a shirt instead of her sarong. A colorful skirt with a floral pattern.
And they both had a plate with steak and baked potato.
"Now this is great." Jenny said, taking a bite of her steak. "Thanks for today, Andrew."
"Don't mention it." Andrew replied.
"No, for real. It was silly of me to let myself getting distracted from having fun. I'm just glad I could share the time here with you."
"Me too..."
They both leaned towards each other, intending to kiss...
"Excuse me, sir!"
Until a loud voice startled them and ruined their moment. They turned and saw the pompous couple from before, with the man speaking to a waiter.
"Bring us some Champagne!" He then glanced at his girlfriend with a... relatively charming smile. "The best kind you have to offer for me and my lady here."
"Oh, hush you!" The woman replied, laughing.
Andrew and Jenny had a deadpanned look on their faces. "I know you said we should just ignore them, but..." The latter trailed off.
"Yeah, easier said than done, apparently."
"Excuse me, ladies and gentlemen..."
A new voice spoke up. And in a microphone given how loud and clear it sounded. So all the guests turned their attention to the stage, where the person who spoke up stood. It was a tall, bearded man dressed in a white uniform with a matching captain's hat. "May I have your attention, please?" After a moment, all people settled down and it was completely quiet. "Thank you." The man nodded slightly. "Now, for starters, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Remus Lee. Your captain on today's cruise. I hope that all of you are enjoying the trip so far. While we have plenty of enjoyments to offer, I'd be happy to announce a special event."
That got the guests curious. Especially Andrew and Jenny. "A special event?" The former repeated
"Wonder what that would be." The latter said.
The captain continued. "What I'm about to announce is a competition of sorts. Where anyone is more than welcome to participate. And of course, the winners will get some generous prizes."
"Prizes, he said." The pompous man said, smirking with interest.
"Hopefully something really worthwhile for us." His girlfriend added.
"First of all, the winners will get this..." The captain gestured to a woman with short, black hair, dressed in a uniform in from of a white, short-sleeved shirt and a black skirt. She was carrying a small box. When she stood next to the captain, she held it so whatever was inside could be visible for everyone. Inside the box were two identical medals. They were golden with parts of them being shaped like wings and the 'Kageyama Cruises' insignia in the middle. "Two of the finest medals our competition has to offer for the winners. And along with these two medals..." He pulled out many different kinds of coupons from his pocket. "The winners will get discount coupons for all the different shops on this ship, including bars and restaurants."
Some people let out some 'oooh' at that.
"Gold medals and discount coupons, huh." Andrew said, smiling a bit.
"That's actually some pretty good prizes." Jenny added. But then, she looked thoughtful. "Wait, what did he mean by 'winners'?
As if hearing her, the captain said, "Oh! And I bet some of you are wondering what I meant by 'winners'. In plural. Allow me to explain. There are two requirements you need in order to participate this contest. First of all, you will require a partner."
"A partner." Jenny repeated, as it dawned on her.
"In other words, this will be a team effort." Andrew reasoned.
"As for the other requirement..." The captain continued. "You are going to need... a deck and duel disk."
That earned him many wide-eyed looks from the guests.
He smirked as he snapped his fingers, allowing a screen to descend behind. "Ladies and gentlemen, I give you..." The screen turned on and showed big, colorful words that said. "Kageyama Cruises' Tag Team Tournament!"
It only took a couple of seconds before many people cheered loudly, clearly excited about this announcement. Andrew and Jenny were especially eager. "A tag-team dueling tournament? That's awesome!" Andrew said.
"Now I definitely want to participate." Jenny added, sounding excited and determined. She turned to her boyfriend. "Andrew. Let's win this whole thing!"
He smiled to her and nodded. "Right!"
The captain chuckled. "Glad to see that many of you are determined to compete. That's good. Now then, for those of you who want to participate, you can go find a nearby reception and register to the tournament. The tournament will start about one hour from now. I'll see you all then."
And so, many people stood line in different places of the ship to register themselves. Andrew and Jenny found themselves in a line on the deck near the front. And they were just filling some papers.
"Done." Andrew said as he finished.
"Same here." Jenny added.
The woman sitting behind the desk gathered up the papers and nodded. "Thank you very much. Just head to the place of the tournament before it begins."
"Sure." Andrew nodded as he and Jenny started to leave.
"This will be easy!"
They stopped and turned to another reception where they saw the obnoxious couple again, apparently filling their own papers.
"The prize is as good as ours." The man cockily.
The woman smiled smugly. "Naturally, my darling. There's no way any of these peasants can defeat us." She then laughed loudly.
Jenny looked disturbed. "I should have known that they would enter.
Andrew smiled to her. "Don't worry. I know we can win. We do make a good team, after all."
Jenny smiled back. "That's true."
Later on, Andrew and Jenny, as well as the many other participants, were standing together in the restaurant again, where all the tables and chairs have been removed to make room for them. As they waited patiently, the captain showed himself and took his place on the stage once more. "Welcome everyone, to the Kageyama Cruises' Tag-Team Tournament! I'm pleased to see that many teams have come here to compete. Only one team will be victorious. Which one? We'll find find out soon enough. So let's take a look at the screen so we can see the order of the upcoming matches."
The screen from before descended again. And after it came to life, it showed a diagram with images of the participants, as well as their match-ups.
"And this is how the first round will start. Is everyone ready?" The captain asked, earning cheers from many competitors. "In that case, let the tournament... begin!"
And so, the many duels started. And with a bang, in fact. There were monsters getting blasted and destroyed everywhere.
In one area, Elemental HERO Liquid Soldier just punched a guy in a grey hoodie, who cried out as he fell on the floor.
1400-0000
As his partner, a guy in a black t-shirt and jeans with a white bandana on his head, rushed over to check on him, Andrew sighed in relief before he turned to Jenny, and they both smiled and gave each other a high five.
In another area, a couple of brunette twin girls in matching white sundresses cried out as they were caught in an explosion.
0700-0000
And the ones responsible for their defeat were the obnoxious couple who had a smug expression on their faces.
And the tournament kept going like this, one victory and loss, right after another. And, after what felt like a really long time...
"And now, ladies and gentlemen, we have finally reached the final round!" The captain announced. "And let's introduce the two teams who managed to reach this point. First off, we have this young couple. Let's hear it for Andrew Wilson and Jenny Siegrain!" The spectators applauded as Andrew and Jenny waved to them. "And now, facing those two, we have Todd Zawadzki and Beatrice Malinowzka!" The two named people turned out to be the pompous couple, who had a smug expression on their faces. "Now duelists, get ready to duel!"
Andrew and Jenny had their duel disks ready, inserting their decks. Their opponents happened to have their own,, custom made duel disks. They looked to be golden, with some rubies decorating them.
"So in this final round, I have to deal with you again." Beatrice said, giving Jenny a disgusted look. But that look changed into a cocky smirk. "Then again, this isn't so bad. Because now I get a chance to put you in your place."
Jenny scowled. "Right, because egocentric pricks like you always get what you want."
Todd gave her a hateful glare. "Hey! No one gets to talk to my dear like that! Peasants like you should know who's your superior."
"If that's how you think of yourselves..." Andrew spoke up with a challenging look. "Why don't you show us?"
Todd and Beatrice inserted their decks into their duel disks. "Bring it on!"
Andrew turned to his girlfriend. "Let's show them what we've got, Jenny."
She smiled and nodded to him. "Right!"
"And without further ado..." The captain paused. "Let the final round... begin!"
All four duelists drew their opening hands.
"DUEL!"
Andrew & Jenny: 8000
Todd & Beatrice: 8000
"Ladies first. And preferably those of more class before maggots." Beatrice declared and drew her sixth card. "And I'll start with Queen's Bodyguard in attack mode!" From a flash of light, a squad of men and women appeared, wearing red shades and regal uniforms, wielding swords. (ATK: 1700 DEF: 1200 LV: 4) "I'll end my turn with two facedowns." She concluded as two cards appeared near her feet.
"Then it's my turn!" Jenny drew. "And I summon Fairy Archer in attack mode!" The familiar bow wielding fairy appeared. (ATK: 1400 DEF: 600 LV: 3) And I activate her special ability. For every light attribute monster I control, she can deal 400 points of damage to you." The fairy conjured an arrow of light and used the bow to fire it away. Beatrice cried out when the arrow hit her and exploded.
Todd & Beatrice: 8000-7600
After recovering from the attack, she gave Jenny an annoyed look. "How dare you!"
Jenny simply smiled. "I'm just playing the game." She then inserted two cards into her duel disk. "I place two cards facedown and leave it at that."
"I'll make you pay for your assault towards my fair lady!" Todd declared and drew his sixth card. He looked at it and smirked. "And I drew just the card that will help me with that! Masked Knight LV 3!" The monster that appeared in front of him was a short knight in gray armor with the plates ornamented with gold, steel wings attached to the armor and a sword sheathed across his back. (ATK: 1500 DEF: 800 LV: 3)
"LV!" Andrew repeated in shock. "Just like Chazz's Armed Dragon and Clover's Horus the Black Flame Dragon!"
Jenny narrowed her eyes. "Well, I'm not in a mood to find out about its effects. So I activate the trap card, Forced Back!" One of her facedown cards flipped up. "This lets me negate the normal or flip summon of a monster and force it back to its owner's hand!"
"What?!" Todd exclaimed.
Andrew smiled to her. "Nice one, Jenny!"
"Oh no you don't!" Beatrice interjected. "I activate the counter trap, Ultimate Providence!" One of her facedown cards flipped up. "With this, I can negate the activation of a spell, trap or monster effect, as long as I discard the same type of card I'm negating."
"No way!" Jenny's eyes widened.
Beatrice smirked as she held up a trap card from her hand. "So I'll discard this to get rid of your trap card." As she discarded it, Jenny's trap card shattered into pixels.
"Thanks, my dear." Todd said, smiling to her before focusing on the duel. "Now then, with my Masked Knight safe, it's time I'll use his special ability. Go, get her!" The knight unsheathed his sword as its blade glowed brightly. He swung it horizontally, sending an arc of energy that blasted Jenny, who skidded back a bit.
Andrew & Jenny: 8000-7600
"Are you okay?" Andrew asked, concerned.
Jenny recovered almost instantly. "I'm fine, don't worry."
"Well, you should be worried." Todd retorted. "Especially since my Masked Knight can cause 400 points of damage each turn, as long as he's willing to give up his attack. Not that it matters, since none of us can attack right now. Now then..." He took a card from his hand. "I activate the spell card, The A. Forces!" The named spell card appeared on his field. "This card gives our warrior type monsters 200 attack points for every warrior or spellcaster type monster we control. So thanks to my Masked Knight himself, and my dear, Beatrice's Queen's Bodyguard on the field, that's 400 extra points!" The two named monsters glowed with a white aura. (ATK: 1500-1900) (ATK: 1700-2100) "And to end my turn, I'll place one card facedown." He concluded while inserting a card into his duel disk. "And so, we are prepared for whatever you maggots will throw at us."
"Naturally." Beatrice agreed.
"We'll see." Andrew drew his sixth card and looked over his hand. 'I don't have anything to take down any of their monsters right now. I have no choice but to protect myself.' He inserted a card into his duel disk. "I place one card facedown and summon Elemental HERO Solid Soldier in defense mode!" The purple hero in silver armor and crossed his arms. (ATK: 1300 DEF: 1100 LV: 4) "And thanks to his special ability, I can summon another level 4 or lower HERO from my hand. And I choose Elemental HERO Lady Heat!" The white and orange clad fire heroine joined the armored hero and kneeled down. (ATK: 1300 DEF: 1000 LV: 4) "And to end my turn, I activate her special ability. Each time during my end phase, you take 200 of damage for every Elemental HERO I control."
"Beg your pardon!?" Todd exclaimed.
"Now let them have it!" Lady Heat conjured one fireball with each hand, and threw each of them at one of the obnoxious opponents, who cried out when they got burned.
Todd & Beatrice: 7600-7200
After they recovered, they glared at him. Jenny, however, smiled to him. "Nice shot, Andrew!"
"Thanks."
"You little pest!" Beatrice said angrily. "I'll teach you!" She drew her next card and looked at it. She smirked. "Ah, the perfect card for me. I summon Allure Queen LV 3!" From a flash of orange flames, a slender, brown-haired woman emerged. She was dressed in a maroon and black dress, holding a magical staff in one hand. (ATK: 500 DEF: 500 LV: 3)
"Another LV monster?" Jenny questioned.
"How observant of you. Now then, since she happens to be a spellcaster, our warrior type monsters grow stronger." (ATK: 1900-2100) (ATK: 2100-2300) "And just like my darling's Masked Knight, she has a special ability. Once per turn, I can select one level 3 or lower monster you control and equip it to her."
Jenny gasped. "But then..." She eyed on her Fairy Archer.
"That's right. I'll be taking that pesky fairy of yours!" Allure Queen held up her staff as its red jewel glowed brightly. At that time, Fairy Archer clutched her head and groaned before she suddenly turned into a small ball of light, which was then absorbed into the staff. "Which means you're now wide open for a direct attack! Starting with Queen's Bodyguard!" The sword wielding squad charged forward.
"I activate Negate Attack!" Jenny's facedown card flipped up and created a red barrier that protected her from their swords. "Not only does this trap stop your attack. But it also ends your battle phase."
Beatrice scoffed. "Whatever. You're only delaying the inevitable. It's not like you can take out my monsters."
"Do you wanna bet?" Jenny drew. "First I'll play Graceful Charity, which allows me to draw three cards and then discard two of them." She drew three cards. After looking over her hand for a moment, she discarded two cards. "Next I activate Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two more cards." She drew again. "And one of them is a spell card known as Valhalla, Hall of the Fallen!" The named spell card appeared. "Once per turn, if I have no monsters on the field, I can special summon a fairy type monster from my hand. And I choose Royal Knight!" The new monster that appeared was a figure with a white, mechanical body, wielding a sword. It had a pair of wings that seemed to be kept in place by some kind of orbs near its shoulders. (ATK: 1300 DEF: 800 LV: 3)
"That thing isn't strong enough to take down my Queen's Bodyguard."
"I'm just getting started, because now I summon Hoshiningen!" The familiar yellow star with boots appeared. (ATK: 500 DEF: 700 LV: 2) "And thanks to its special ability, all light monsters on the field gain 500 extra attack points, while all dark monsters become 400 points weaker." The star emanated a bright glow that made the Royal Knight feel stronger. (ATK: 1300-1800) (ATK: 500-1000) As for Beatrice's monsters, they winced and covered their eyes because of the bright light. (ATK: 500-100) (ATK: 2300-1900)
Beatrice scowled. "Nice try, but even though you weakened my Bodyguard, your monster is still too weak."
Jenny smirked and held up a card. "That's why I've got this. The Sanctum of Parshath!" The named spell card appeared. "Thanks to this continuous spell, all fairy type monsters gain 300 attack and defense points." (ATK: 1800-2100 DEF: 800-1100) (ATK: 1000-1300 DEF: 700-1000) "Now my Royal Knight, attack her Queen's Bodyguard!" The winged knight took flight as he raised his sword. He then dived and struck each of the sword wielding enemies in uniforms, shattering them into pixels.
Todd & Beatrice: 7200-7000
"And now I activate his special ability! When he destroys a monster in battle, I regain life points equal to your destroyed monster's defense points." Royal Knight his sword towards her, with its blade emanating golden light that bathed her.
Andrew & Jenny: 7600-8800
"And with one warrior type monster out of the way, the Masked Knight loses a few points." (ATK: 2100-1900) "But I'm not going after him. The target for my Hoshiningen's attack is your Allure Queen! Now go!" The yellow star made some squeaking sound as it dashed forward.
"I don't think so! I activate the trap card, Call of the Haunted!" Beatrice's facedown card flipped up. "Now I can summon a monster back from my graveyard, meaning my Queen's Bodyguard will serve me on the field once more!" The sword wielding squad appeared again. (ATK: 1700-2300-1900 DEF: 1200 LV: 4) (ATK: 1900-2100) Their return caused the star to stop in its tracks.
Jenny raised an eyebrow. "So your little platoon is back. It's not like they can stop my attack or something."
Beatrice gave her a smug look and wagged a finger. "On the contrary. As long as my Queen's Bodyguard is on the field, your monster can't touch my Allure Queen. Ha!"
Now it was Jenny turn to give her a smug look. "Thanks for the information. Otherwise, I would have lost my monster and some of our life points."
Everything went silent as Beatrice and Todd blinked twice at the revelation. And then, they fell over.
And some people in the crowd couldn't help but laugh a bit.
The rich couple got up quickly and yelled angrily. "Stop your laughing, peasants!"
Jenny giggled. "Well, I've had enough fun for now, so I'll stop my attack and end my turn by playing the spell card, Backup Squad." A spell card appeared next to The Sanctum of Pasrhath.
"Let's see if you laugh after this!" Todd drew. "Now that this is my standby phase, my Masked Knight is, how should I say... promoting!" The knight suddenly glowed brightly.
"No!" Jenny muttered.
"It can't be." Andrew added.
But just as they feared, the glowing died down and revealed the Masked Knight. He was now taller and thinner than before. "Haha! Down to your knees, peasants. Because now you are standing before Masked Knight LV 5!" (ATK: 2300 DEF: 1300 LV: 5) "And don't forget, The A. Forces card makes him stronger." (ATK: 2300-2900)
"2900 attack points. That's more than enough to take out my Royal Knight." Jenny gritted.
"Indeed." Todd agreed smugly. "But, as much as I want to put you in your place for how you treated my Beatrice, that honor belongs to her."
"Certainly." Beatrice replied.
"Is that so?" Andrew asked with a deadpan look.
"So I'll be focusing on you instead." Todd continued, smirking towards him. "And I'll start by activating my Masked Knight's new and improved special ability. Once per turn, by giving up his attack, he can deal 1000 points of damage to you. Now strike him down!" The knight unsheathed his sword and swung it, sending an arc of energy again.
"Not this time!" Andrew countered. "Reveal facedown card! Spell of Pain!" His facedown card flipped up. And then a transparent wall was formed, absorbing the energy arc.
"What in the world!" Todd exclaimed. "What's going on?"
"My Spell of Pain, that's what." Andrew replied with a smirk. "I can only activate it when my opponent tries to damage me using a card effect. With this spell, I can reflect the damage back to you."
"You can't!" Todd protested angrily.
"Watch me!" At that, the energy was sent right back to Todd, blasting him hard.
Todd & Beatrice: 7000-6000
"NOOO! How dare you do that to my man!" Beatrice screamed hysterically.
Todd coughed a little before giving Andrew a glare. "You little runt."
"You've got yourself to blame for being so eager to use your monster's ability. And if your Masked Knight LV 5 is anything like its LV 3 form, I have no reason to worry about his attack."
But the moment he finished that sentence, he was surprised to Todd chuckle, which soon after changed into laughter.
"What's so funny?"
"You believe you're safe from my knight's attack? I'm afraid you're mistaken. I have a spell card that will allow him to attack this turn." Todd picked up a card from his hand.
"What is it?" Jenny wondered nervously.
Todd smirked and revealed it. "I activate the spell card, Level Up!"
Andrew and Jenny gasped.
"Oh? Are the two you afraid? That's good! Because with this spell card, I'm given the privilege to level up my Masked Knight, once again!" The knight glowed brightly again. "Now, behold the superior Masked Knight LV 7!" The glowing died down and revealed the Masked Knight, who was now even taller and looked more intimidating than his previous form. (ATK: 2900 DEF: 1800 LV: 7)
"LV 7..." Jenny gritted her teeth again.
"This is bad." Andrew muttered.
"And it gets worse. Thanks to The A. Forces, my Masked Knight gains extra attack points." (ATK: 2900-3500) "But that's not all. I summon Command Knight in attack mode!" A female warrior in red armor with a black cape appeared, wielding a sword. (ATK: 1200 DEF: 1900 LV: 4) "With another warrior on the field, our monsters grow even stronger!" (ATK: 1200-2000) (ATK: 3500-3700) (ATK: 1900-2100) "And to make things easier for us, my Command Knight gives all our warrior type monsters 400 more attack points." The female warrior emanated a bright aura that spread to the Masked Knight and Queen's Bodyguard. (ATK: 2000-2400) (ATK: 3700-4100) (ATK: 2100-2500)
"Now there's no way those peasants will stand a chance." Beatrice said confidently.
"Indeed. Especially after I activate my trap card." Todd's facedown card flipped up. "It's called Meteorain, and here's how it works: during this turn, my monsters are able to cause piercing damage when they attack your monsters. Which makes you an easy target now!" He pointed one finger towards Andrew, who narrowed his eyes. "First, I'll have Command Knight attack that Lady Heat of his!" The female knight drew her sword cut the fire heroine in the middle, making her explode. Andrew was forced to use his arms to protect himself.
Andrew & Jenny: 8800-7400
"Are you alright?" Jenny asked worriedly.
Andrew recovered after a moment and turned to her. "Don't worry about me."
"Okay." At that, Jenny drew a card.
Which Beatrice noticed. "Now wait just a minute! Why are you drawing a card? It's still Todd's turn, you stupid girl!"
Jenny smirked. "Well, I played this card, remember?" She pointed to a certain spell card that was currently glowing. "My Backup Squad. It lets me draw a card for every 1000 points of damage I take. Sure, the attack was focused on Andrew, but since this is a tag team duel, each duelist shares their life points with their partner, therefore, they also share the damage dealt to them."
Todd scowled. "Well, is that so? No card you draw can help you defeat our superior monsters. Which reminds me. It's time for my Masked Knight to attack! Crush that Solid Soldier with Supreme Blade Strike!" The tall knight unsheathed his sword and charged forward. He then swung it downwards, chopping down the silver armored hero. The shockwaves from the attack caused both Andrew and Jenny fall on the floor.
Andrew & Jenny: 7400-4400
As they got back on their feet, Andrew grunted. "That knight sure is strong."
"Yeah, but we'll take him down. Especially since I now can draw 3 more cards." Jenny replied as she drew.
Todd smirked. "And with that out of the way, I activate my Masked Knight's special ability!"
Andrew and Jenny gasped at that.
"Unlike his previous forms, Masked Knight LV 7 can use his ability on the same turn he attacks. And that ability allows him to deal you 1500 points of damage once per turn!" The knight swung his sword again, sending another energy arc that blasted Andrew.
Andrew & Jenny: 4400-2900
"Hahahaha!" Todd laughed triumphantly. "That'll teach you to mess with people of a class like ours!"
"Does this guy ever shut up." Andrew asked quietly.
Jenny didn't say anything. All she did was draw another card.
"That's enough punishment for you, so I'll end my turn with a facedown." Todd concluded while inserting a card into his duel disk. "So make your move, assuming you can make one."
"Fine then." Andrew drew his next card. "I summon Fortress Warrior in defense mode." The four-legged, structure wielding creature made of stone appeared. (ATK: 600 DEF: 1200 LV: 2) "Then I'll end my turn with a facedown." A card appeared near his feet.
"Pathetic." Beatrice said and drew. "I, on the other hand, am going to play a real card. During my standby phase, if my Allure Queen LV 3 is equipped due to her own effect, I can sacrifice her and summon Allure Queen LV 5!" A blinding light enveloped her monster. Andrew and Jenny were blinded for a moment before they could see again. And then, they saw the Allure Queen in a different form. Her dress and hair were longer, her staff were bigger, and two ribbons flowed down the back of her dress. She also even looked more mature. (ATK: 1000-600 DEF: 1000 LV: 5) "And now that she's grown stronger, my Allure Queen can take a monster that's up to level 5."
Jenny gritted her teeth at this.
"And I think I'll take your Hoshiningen!" The queen pointed her staff towards the yellow star.
"I activate my trap card!" Andrew interjected and revealed his facedown card. "Fiendish Chain! This lets me pick a monster on the field. And then, my trap card will keep that monster from attacking and use its abilities. So your Allure Queen will be neutralized!" His trap card glowed brightly.
"That's what you think, peasant!" Todd countered. "I activate the trap card, Royal Decree!" His facedown card flipped up. "As long as this card is on the field, all other trap cards in play are negated!"
Andrew gasped as his own trap card turned dark.
Beatrice smirked. "Thanks to my darling, nothing can protect that repulsive thing you call a monster." Hoshiningen turned into a ball of light before getting absorbed into the Allure Queen's staff. "And with that little pest gone, my monsters' attack points return to normal." (ATK: 600-1000) (ATK: 2500-2900) "And of course, the same thing goes for your so called Royal Knight!"
Jenny gave her remaining monster a worried look as it lost power. (ATK: 2100-1600)
"Now, Queen's Bodyguard, attack her Royal Knight!" The squad charged forward and stabbed the angelic knight in many places with their swords until he shattered into pixels.
Andrew & Jenny: 2900-1600
"My monster may be gone, but my Backup Squad lets me draw again." Jenny drew.
"Draw as many cards you want, nothing you get can save you. Especially after my Allure Queen strikes your life points directly! Now attack!" The queen pointed her staff towards Jenny and shot out a fireball, causing Jenny to cover herself with her arms when the flames burned around her.
Andrew & Jenny: 1600-0600
Many people in the crowd gasped at this. As the flames died down, Jenny drew another card from her deck.
"And that ends my turn." Beatrice concluded with a smug look on her face. "You might as well surrender. A maggot like you can't possibly defeat my monsters."
Jenny scowled. "You know what? I think it's about time someone teaches you some manners. My turn!" She drew.
'With a total of 8 cards in her hand, Jenny must have something to turn this around.' Andrew thought.
Jenny looked over her hand really carefully. "Hmmm..." And, after a few seconds... "Okay! First I activate the spell card, Spell Absorption." The named card appeared. "With this in play, I gain 500 life points whenever a spell card is activated. Next I activate the field spell, The Sanctuary in the Sky!" The scenery changed into the stone palace on the clouds. "And thanks to this, our side gains 500 extra points."
Andrew & Jenny: 0600-1100
"Then I activate the effect of my Valhalla card and summon Guardian Angel Joan to the field!" From a flash of light, the orange-haired angel in white dress descended from above. (ATK: 2800-3100 DEF: 2000-2300 LV: 7)
The monster's attack points caused the rich couple to gasp, while Andrew smiled and nodded to his girlfriend.
"And then I'll summon Zeradias, Herald of Heaven!" The feather winged man with green helmet appeared, wielding his javelin. (ATK: 2100-2400 DEF: 800-1100 LV: 4) "And I'll equip him with the spell card Cestus of Dagla!" The spell card appeared behind Zeradias and released golden energy that enveloped him. "Thanks to this spell, my monster gains 500 more attack points." (ATK: 2400-2900)
Andrew & Jenny: 1100-1600
"And now my Guardian Angel, attack her Queen's Bodyguard!" The angel held out her palms and fired beam of light that engulfed the sword wielding squad, wiping them out completely.
Todd & Beatrice: 6000-5800 (ATK: 2400-2200) (ATK: 4100-3900)
"And next I activate Joan's special ability." The angel raised her hands, causing small light particles rain down around Jenny. "You see, when my Guardian Angel destroys a monster in battle and sends it to the graveyard, I gain life points equal to that monster's original attack points, which are 1700, if I remember correctly."
Andrew & Jenny: 1600-3300
"Preposterous!" Beatrice protested.
"And now I'll attack your Allure Queen with Zeradias. Now go!" The herald charged forward and readied his javelin. And just as he got right in front of the queen, he thrusted it.
"Heh!" Beatrice smirked as Allure Queen raised her staff and blocked the attack.
"What?!" Jenny exclaimed.
The two monsters struggled against each until they both pushed each other back. And then... Hoshiningen suddenly appeared in front the Allure Queen before vanishing.
"What happened?"
"That was my Queen's special ability." Beatrice explained. "If she would be destroyed in battle, then she can use the monster she took from you as a shield."
"That was unexpected." Andrew admitted.
"Well, that's what you expect from my fair lady." Todd replied proudly.
"Your monster may be safe, but you still lose life points." Jenny pointed out.
Todd & Beatrice: 5800-3900
"So what?" Beatrice scoffed. "We still have more points than you, maggots."
Jenny smirked. "That's where you're wrong. Because my Cestus of Dagla has another effect. If my equipped monster is lucky enough to cause you battle damage, then all the life points you lost are added to our own."
"Say what!" The rich couple exclaimed as she and Andrew were briefly engulfed by a golden aura.
Andrew & Jenny: 3300-5200
She then looked over her hand again. Two of her remaining cards were trap cards. 'With Royal Decree in play, my traps won't work.' She then looked up. "That ends my turn."
"Nice comeback." Andrew complimented.
"You know it." She smiled and winked to him.
"I wouldn't celebrate just yet!" Todd spoke up and drew his next card. "Because I'm about to end this duel once and for all. And I'll use this card to do it." He inserted a card into his duel disk, making a spell card appear above the Masked Knight. "It's an equip spell card known as Fairy Meteor Crush. And with this card, when my Knight attacks a monster in defense mode whose defense points are less than his attack points, the difference is dealt to you as damage."
Andrew and Jenny widened their eyes.
"Which means once my Masked Knight destroys your little rock and my Command strikes you directly, the total damage you'll take this turn will wipe you out."
Jenny raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure? Because I think your math's a bit off. For starters, playing that spell card gives us another 500 life points."
Andrew & Jenny: 5200-5700
"So the battle damage won't be enough to defeat us."
Todd laughed triumphantly. "You're mistaken, little girl. When I said total damage, I was talking about more than battle damage, or did you forget about my Masked Knight's special ability? He can cause 1500 points of direct damage to you!" The knight swung his sword, blasting Andrew with another arc of energy.
Andrew & Jenny: 5700-4200
Andrew grunted as he fell down on the floor.
"Are you okay?" Jenny asked worriedly.
"He won't be for very long. And neither will you for that matter." Beatrice said smugly.
Jenny glared at her. "We'll just see. Especially since Backup Squad now lets me draw a card again." She drew a card.
"Not that you'll get a chance to use it."
"Indeed. Like I said, I'll just have to attack with my two knights and it's all over! Now my Masked Knight, obliterate that Fortress Warrior!" The tall knight raised his sword and swung it downwards, striking the stone creature with so much force that the attack caused some strong shockwaves. They even made the spectators to try to protect themselves. "And now Command Knight, finish this!" The female knight charged forward, raised her sword, heading straight toward Andrew's field, which was covered in a dust cloud. "Now strike him down!" The knight swung her sword.
But then, something came out of the dust cloud and took the hit.
"What?!" Todd exclaimed as he saw the Fortress Warrior get slashed Command Knight's sword and shattered into pixels. "Hold on! Where did that monster come from? It was already destroyed!" When the smoke dissipated, he saw Andrew get back on his feet. He smirked.
Andrew & Jenny: 4200
"You should have lost life points! What in the world is meaning of this!?" Todd demanded.
"That would be my monster's special ability." Andrew replied. "You see, my Fortress Warrior is able to survive in battle once per turn. That's why he was able to protect me."
"But Todd's Masked Knight is equipped with Fairy Meteor Crush, so you should have taken battle damage from the previous battle!" Beatrice pointed out. "How do you explain that?!"
"That would be Fortress Warrior's second ability." Jenny replied.
"That's right." Andrew nodded. "Any battle damage my Fortress Warrior takes is reduced to 0."
"ZERO!?" The rich couple repeated in loud voice.
"Meaning your two attacks failed to finish us off." He added.
Todd and Beatrice started to get annoyed. "You little... fine!" The former growled and inserted his remaining card into his duel disk. "I'll end my turn with a facedown."
"And now it's my turn!" Andrew drew his next card. "I activate the spell card, Legacy of a Hero! If I have at least two level 4 or higher Elemental Heroes in my graveyard, I can draw three cards." He drew his extra cards. "And of course, thanks to Jenny's Spell Absorption, this move gives us some extra points."
Andrew & Jenny: 4200-4700
"And one of the cards I drew happens to be The Warrior Returning Alive. With this, I can take one warrior type monster from my graveyard and return it to my hand." A card came out of his graveyard slot.
Andrew & Jenny: 4700-5200
"And I choose Solid Soldier, which I'm summoning to the field right now!" The silver armored hero appeared again and kneeled down. (ATK: 1300 DEF: 1100 LV: 4) "And thanks to his ability, I can summon another HERO to the field, like Elemental HERO Stratos!" The turbine winged her appeared and kneeled down right next to Solid Soldier. (ATK: 1800 DEF: 300 LV: 4) "And when he's summoned to the field, I can destroy one spell or trap card for every other HERO monster I control. And I think I'll destroy Fairy Meteor Crush!" The named spell card shattered into pixels.
Todd growled at this.
"And to end my turn, I place a card facedown." Andrew concluded and inserted a card into his duel disk.
"You won't get away with this!" Beatrice drew her next card. "Especially since my Allure Queen is about take another one of your monsters."
"Too bad my Guardian Angel's level is a little too high for her." Jenny stated.
Beatrice glanced at her new card and grinned. "That's easy enough to fix, thanks to this." She revealed it. "The spell card, Demotion. By equipping this card to a monster on the field, I can reduce that monster's level by 2."
Jenny gasped.
"Which means I can turn your Guardian Angel into a level 5 monster!" A red aura enveloped the angel. (7-5) "And I couldn't care less about the extra life points you get..."
Andrew & Jenny: 5200-5700
"Because now my Allure Queen can take her from you!" The queen pointed her staff towards the angel, who turned into a ball of light before getting absorbed into it. "And for my next move, I activate the spell card, Monster Reborn! So now I can summon a monster back from the graveyard. So once again, I'll bring back Queen's Bodyguard!" The sword wielding squad appeared again. (ATK: 1700 DEF: 1200 LV: 4) "And there's also the extra points from The A. Forces and Command Knight." (ATK: 1700-2900) (ATK: 3900-4100) (ATK: 2200-2400)
Andrew & Jenny: 5700-6200
"But my Zeradias has the same attack points, so they'll be only destroying each other." Jenny pointed.
"Not if I can help it!" Todd spoke up as his facedown card flipped up. "With my Mystical Space Typhoon, I can destroy one spell or trap card on the field, like The Sanctum of Pasrhath!"
Jenny gasped as the named spell card was blown away by a whirlwind.
Andrew & Jenny: 6200-6700
"With that card out of the way, your monster loses its extra points." (ATK: 2900-2600 DEF: 1100-800) "So now my Beatrice can get rid of it."
"I activate my spell card!" Andrew interrupted and revealed his facedown card. "Mask Change! By sending a HERO monster to the graveyard, I can summon a Masked HERO with the same attribute. So now, Stratos, transform!" The named hero was engulfed by light. "Meet my Masked HERO Divine Wind!" The light died down and revealed the hero in emerald green armor with white cape. (ATK. 2700 DEF: 1900 LV: 8) "And that gives us another boost."
Andrew & Jenny: 6700-7200
Beatrice scoffed. "It doesn't matter. That won't save your partner's monster and once that thing's out of the way, my Queen will cause some extra damage. Queen's Bodyguard, attack!" The squad charged forward and swung their swords. The Herald tried to protect himself, but with fours swords against his javelin, he was easily skewered.
Andrew & Jenny: 7200
"What?!" Her eyes widened. "Why didn't you lose any life points?"
"Simple." Jenny smirked. "With The Sanctuary in the Sky in play, when a fairy type monster is in battle, the battle damage of its controller becomes 0."
Beatrice looked annoyed. "Is that so? Then it's a good thing you have no monsters left on the field, allowing my Allure Queen to attack you directly. Go!" She commanded. But for some reason, her Allure Queen was just standing there. "What are you waiting for? Attack her!" And then, a green aura enveloped her. "What?! What is this?"
"That would be Divine Wind's special ability." The rich couple turned to Andrew, who spoke up. When they did, they noticed that his Masked HERO was surrounded by the same green aura. "You see, as long as he's on the field, he keeps my opponent from attacking with more than one monster each turn. And you already attacked with Queen's Bodyguard, so you can't attack again until next turn."
"That's ridiculous!" Beatrice protested.
"Sorry, but that's how it is." Jenny replied. "And with that, it's my turn." She drew and looked over hand. 'I don't have any monster strong enough to take down Queen's Bodyguard, and as long as there are other monsters on their side of the field, I can't attack Command Knight either. But I can still cause some damage.' She took a card from her hand. "First I'll use the effect of Valhalla and summon Athena to the field!" The silver-haired with spear and shield appeared. (ATK: 2600 DEF: 800 LV: 7) "And then I'll summon Consecrated Light in defense mode!" A small pink orb appeared, emanating light. It had a relaxed expression on its face. (ATK: 0 DEF: 0 LV: 1) "And next I activate Athena's special ability! Every time a fairy type monster is summoned, you take 600 points of damage!" The silver-haired woman pointed her spear towards Beatrice and shot out a golden energy beam at her, making her cry out.
Todd & Beatrice: 3900-3300
Beatrice recovered and looked up, ready to glare at her. "Huh?" But then she noticed that her monsters were surrounded by a white aura, and didn't seem to move an inch. "What's wrong with my monsters?"
"That's the effect of my Consecrated Light." Jenny explained. "As long as it remains on the field, none of us can attack with a dark attribute monster. We're not even allowed to summon them."
"What?!" Beatrice exclaimed furiously.
"You heard me right. And that's it for me this turn." Jenny concluded.
"This duel is far from over, peasant!" Todd declared and drew his next card. After glancing at it, he smirked. "This might even things up. I activate Card of Sanctity! Now all us must draw until we each hold six cards in our hands." All duelists drew their extra cards.
Andrew & Jenny: 7200-7700
Todd looked over his new hand and chuckled. "Now this is perfect! I'll discard one card from my hand in order to activate the spell card, Twin Twisters!" After discarding one of his cards, he held up the named spell card, from which two whirlwinds emerged. "This allows me to destroy up to two spell or trap cards. And I think I'll get rid of the little girl's Spell Absorption and field spell!"
"Oh no!" Jenny cried out as she covered herself with her arms when the two whirlwinds assaulted her. Moments later, Spell Absorption shattered into pixels while the field returned to normal.
"No more protection for your life points. And no more extra points either. Now then." Todd turned to Andrew. "I think I shall take care of your monsters. But first I'm going to summon another Command Knight in attack mode!" A second female warrior appeared. (ATK: 1200 DEF: 1900 LV: 4)
"Another one?" Andrew widened his eyes.
"That's right, and that means our warrior type monsters get even more attack points!" (ATK: 1200-3000) (ATK: 2400-3000) (ATK: 4100-4700) (2900-3500) "But first, since your Divine Wind makes it so I can only attack with one monster each turn, I'll have one of my Command Knight's destroy him!" One of the female knight dashed forward and swung her sword. The Masked HERO crossed his arms protectively and took the attack head on. And then, to Todd's surprise, he was still standing. "What?!"
"Nice try, but my Divine Wind has another ability. He can't be destroyed in battle."
Todd gave him an incredulous look. "Outrageous! That means my monsters can't get through!" He gritted his teeth in anger. But when he glanced at his hand, he noticed a certain spell card. He grinned. "That is, if I didn't I have this!" He held it up. "Offerings to the Doomed! This allows me to destroy on face-up monster on the field. So your Divine Wind is no more!"
Andrew gasped as his Masked HERO exploded.
"Which means I'm free to attack with my other monsters, starting with my second Command Knight!" The other female knight dashed forward and cut Solid Soldier in half. "And now my Masked Knight, strike him directly with Supreme Blade Strike!" The tall knight swung his sword and struck Andrew hard enough to knock him down on the floor.
Andrew & Jenny: 7700-3000
Andrew grunted as he tried to get up.
"Now, are you ready to give up? It is very obvious that maggots like you are inferior to us." Todd said smugly.
"In your dreams, you jerk!" Jenny snapped.
Todd gave her a glare. "What?"
"You've heard me. There's no way we give up. Especially since your attack allows me to draw 4 more cards." Jenny drew her extra cards. "So how about you drop your pathetic superiority talk so we can continue?"
Beatrice gave her a disgusted look. "You little pest! How dare you talk to us like that! Shut your filthy mouth!"
"Or better yet, let my Masked Knight do it for you!" Todd added with an evil grin. "After all, he can still use his special ability, dealing 1500 points of damage to you!" The knight swung his sword, sending arc of energy that blasted Jenny, making her cry out.
Andrew & Jenny: 3000-1500
"Jenny!" Andrew called out worriedly.
"I-I'm fine. Don't worry." Jenny assured, drawing another card.
"Well, let's see if we can change that." Todd said. "I place one card facedown and activate my Card of Demise!" A facedown card appeared, along with a spell card. "This lets me draw until I hold 5 cards in my hand." He drew a new hand. "And now I activate the spell card, Spell Economics!" Another spell appeared. "With this in play, I'm able to activate spell cards without paying life points. Meaning I don't have to pay a thousand points in order to activate this card." He held up another spell card. "Delinquent Duo! This card forces you to discard one random card from your hand."
Jenny gasped as two purple and blue demons appeared in front of her. The purple one its index finger over hand before grabbing one of her cards, and slid it into her graveyard slot.
"And there's more. If you have other cards in your hand, you lose another one."
"What?!" Jenny exclaimed at that.
"But luckily for you, you get to choose which card it will be."
Jenny scowled as she looked over her hand. After a moment she grabbed a trap card, which the blue demon snagged and put into her graveyard slot.
"Now that was fun. In fact, it was so fun..." Todd smirked and held up another card from his hand. "I think I'll do it again!"
Jenny's eyes widened. "Another one?"
"That's right!" At that, the purple demon snagged another one of Jenny's cards. The fairy duelist started to get frustrated as she picked another card for the blue demon to grab. "And you know what they say..." Todd held up another spell card. "Third time's the charm!"
"Not again!" Jenny screamed as the purple demon stole yet another card. She was really annoyed as she was then forced to pick another card which the blue demon grabbed. Now she was really upset.
"From the look on your face, you must. have lost some useful cards." Beatrice noted, sounding way too happy to the fairy duelist's liking. "I wonder what pathetic cards you have left."
"Perhaps I can have a look." Todd replied, holding up his remaining card. "I activate the spell card, Confiscation! Normally I would pay 1000 points to activate this card, but that won't be necessary. Anyway, this card lets take a look at your hand and discard one more card."
Jenny gritted her teeth as her cards glowed.
Todd observed the card images appeared in front of him. "Well well. Looks like most of her cards are trap cards. Not that she can use any of them. So I'll discard the monster card called Tethys, Goddess of Light!" The image shattered into pixels.
Jenny gave the card in question an apologetic look as it slid into her graveyard slot. 'Sorry, Tethys.'
"And that's all for me." Todd concluded. "Perhaps now you would consider to surrender?"
"Not gonna happen!" Andrew drew his next card. "We won't stand down until our last life point expires."
Todd scoffed. "Suit yourself."
Andrew glanced at his new card and widened his eyes a bit. 'This card...'
Flashback
With some time before the tournament began, Andrew and Jenny looked over their cards, preparing themselves.
"This tournament won't be easy." Andrew muttered. "We might be facing tough opponents."
"Yeah, but like you said, we make a good team." Jenny replied.
"True."
"Well, I'm done." Jenny put her deck into her deck holder. "What about you?"
Her boyfriend looked thoughtful. "Almost. I feel like I need something. Something that might give my deck a certain edge."
Jenny closed her eyes in a moment before opening them. "Oh! I know!" She then pulled out a card from her pocket and held it out to him to see. It was a monster card with the image of a blue eyed girl with pink hair, clad in ragged, greenish clothing with red accents, with the hood on. She had a a pair of horns sticking out of the hood, an eye patch covering her right eye, fiendish looking hands with red nails, and a pair of black wings, which seemed to be missing a bunch of feather, revealing their red, skeletal structure. "You can have this card in your deck. I've got it for a while, but never played it before. But I think you'll have a better use of it."
Andrew grabbed the card and looked at it. He then looked up to face Jenny. "You sure you want to give me this card?"
She smiled fondly. "Yeah, I'm sure of it. Think of it as a gift."
Andrew smiled back. "Thanks, Jenny."
Flashback end
'I guess there's no better opportunity for playing this card than now.' Andrew looked up with a determined look. "I summon Condemned Maiden in defense mode!" The black winged girl appeared and kneeled down. (ATK: 100 DEF: 2000 LV: 4)
"You must be desperate if you think you can protect yourself with such an ugly thing." Todd insulted.
"You should know better than judging a monster by their appearance." Andrew replied before continuing. "And by the way, Condemned Maiden happens to be a fairy type monster, which means Athena deals another 600 points of damage to you!"
The goddess pointed her staff towards Todd and blasted him with another energy beam.
Todd & Beatrice: 3300-2700
"And now I play Monster Reborn to bring back Lady Heat in defense mode!" The fire heroine appeared again. (ATK 1300 DEF: 1000 LV: 4) Andrew inserted a card into his duel disk. "I place two card facedown and use Lady Heat's ability to cause some damage to you!" The fire heroine conjured a fireball and threw it at the obnoxious couple.
Todd & Beatrice: 2700-2500
"You won't get away with this!" Beatrice growled.
"I'm pretty sure we will." Jenny replied confidently. "Especially since my Consecrated Light keeps your dark monsters from attacking.
"I wouldn't be so sure." Todd said with a smirk, getting everyone's attention.
"What do you mean, Todd?" Beatrice asked.
"Just make your move, and you'll see."
She raised an eyebrow. "Okay then." She drew.
"Reveal facedown card!" Todd's facedown card flipped up. "Forbidden Chalice."
"Oh no!" Andrew and Jenny screamed.
"That's right! This card allows me to give a monster on the field 400 extra attack points. But in exchange for those points, that monster's special abilities are negated. So your little light bulb is neutralized." The light emanated from the pink ball got weaker. (ATK: 0-400)
Beatrice laughed haughtily. "Why thank you, darling! Now with that thing's effects negated, I can activate my Allure Queen's ability and evolve her again!" The queen's body glowed brightly again. "Now I summon Allure Queen LV 7!" The light died down, and the woman was even taller her hair longer. Her dress shrank back, but left two elegant sleeves on her arms with more ribbons trailing form her back, and she was holding an even bigger staff with a blue crystal on the tip. (ATK: 1500 DEF: 1500 LV: 7)
"Great." Jenny muttered. "Now she's even stronger."
"And now that Allure Queen's in her highest level, she can now equip herself with any monster on your field, regardless their level. So I'll be taking your Athena!" The queen raised her staff as its blue crystal glowed. And then, Athena turned into an orb of light before getting absorbed into it. "And now it's time to say goodbye to your little thing. Queen's Bodyguard, destroy it!" The squad surrounded the pink orb and stabbed it mercilessly.
Jenny gritted her teeth.
"Now it's over! Allure Queen LV 7, attack her directly with Alluring Flame!" The queen pointed her staff towards Jenny and shot out a stream of flames.
"Not so fast!" Andrew interjected and held up a card from his hand. "From my hand, activate the spell card, Mask Change II!"
"From your hand?!" Todd repeated as he and Beatrice gave him incredulous looks.
"You can't do that! It's still my turn!" The latter protested.
"Actually, I can..." Andrew pointed at the winged girl who glowed with a white aura. "With Condemned Maiden on the field, I can activate a quick-play spell card from my hand during my opponent's turn. Moving on." He discarded one of his cards. "By discarding one of my cards, I can send one of my monsters to the graveyard and summon a Masked HERO with the same attribute, but a higher level. So now, my Condemned Maiden!" The named monster glowed brightly. "I'll transform you into Masked HERO Koga!" The light died down and revealed the golden armored hero with blades on his arms. (ATK: 2500 DEF: 1800 LV: 8) "And thanks to his special ability, Koga gains 500 attack points for every monster you two control. So with 3 monsters on Todd's field, and two on yours, that's five, giving my monster 2500 extra points!" (ATK: 2500-5000)
Beatrice gasped at that, but only for a moment before she grinned. "I don't see how that's gonna help your partner. My attack is still focused on her!"
"That's where Koga's second ability comes in." Andrew continued. "By removing a HERO monster in my graveyard from play, I can reduce a monster's attack points with the same amount as that HERO's attack points."
"What?!"
Andrew held up a certain monster card. "So I'll remove Stratos to drain your Allure Queen's strength!" The golden hero rushed over to Jenny field and swung both his blades in an X-motion, sending an X shaped energy arc that overwhelmed the flames and knocked the Queen over. (ATK: 1500-0)
Beatrice glared at him. "You little..."
"Thanks, Andrew." Jenny said gratefully.
"Anytime. So what will you do now? With my Masked HERO on the field, my partner might be able to wipe out your monsters and your life points."
Beatrice growled and looked over her hand. She then noticed a spell card and grinned before grabbing it. "Don't be so sure! I activate the spell card One Day of Peace! First of all, each player gets to draw 1 card from their deck." All duelists drew. "And then, none of us will take any damage until the end of my opponent's next turn, which in this case, is the little girl's."
Jenny narrowed her eyes.
"Haha! Nicely done, Beatrice!" Todd complimented. "Now no matter what she does, we'll survive the upcoming turn, and victory will be ours."
"Just as planned." Beatrice replied smugly. "But just in case I summon my own Command Knight in defense mode." A third female knight appeared and kneeled down. (ATK: 1200 DEF: 1900) "And even though her presence makes your Masked HERO stronger..." (ATK: 5000-5500) "She makes our warriors stronger as well. (ATK: 1200-3600) (ATK: 3000-3600) x2 (ATK: 4700-5300) (ATK: 3500-4100) "And that ends my turn, allowing my Allure Queen to regain her strength. (ATK: 0-1500) "Now there's no guarantee that you can win."
"Don't get too cocky." Jenny said and drew her next card.
"Jenny, hold on!" Andrew interrupted. "I activate Koga's ability again!" He then took his Divine Wind card from the graveyard. "I'll remove one of my heroes to weaken Beatrice's Queen's Bodyguard!" The golden hero emanated a strong light that made the sword wielding squad feel weaker. (ATK: 4100-1400) "Then I activate my facedown spell card, Form Change!" His facedown card flipped up. "This lets me return a HERO fusion monster to my fusion deck and summon a Masked HERO with the same level but a different name. So now..." His Masked HERO glowed even brighter. "I'll change Koga into Masked HERO Acid!" The light died down and revealed the gun wielding hero in his dar-blue armor. (ATK: 2600 DEF: 2100 LV: 8) "When he's summoned to the field, all your spells and traps are destroyed."
"Say what?!" The rich couple exclaimed.
"Nice one!" Jenny said to him.
The Masked HERO aimed his gun and fired a stream of acid that destroyed Todd's Royal Decree, The A. Forces and Spell Economics. (ATK: 3600-2400) x2 (ATK: 5300-4100) (ATK: 3600-2400) (ATK: 1400-200) And then, he aimed at the Allure Queen, who barely avoided the shot, but accidentally let her staff get hit. The crystal cracked a bit, and then... Athena emerged from it before vanishing.
"Oh right!" The fairy duelist noted. "Since Athena acted as an equip spell, she was destroyed as well."
"And that's not all." Andrew replied. "With all their spells and traps destroyed, my Acid makes all their monsters 300 attack points weaker." (ATK: 2400-2100) x3 (ATK: 4100-3800) (ATK: 2400-2100) (ATK: 200-0) "Now this should make things easier for you."
"Well, let me see." Jenny looked over hand for a moment before smiling. "Okay, first I'll remove 2 light monsters from play..." Tethys and Athena appeared briefly. "..in order to summon Soul of Purity and Light!" The transparent angel appeared from a flash of light. (ATK: 2000 DEF: 1800 LV: 6) "And then I activate the spell card, D.D.R - Different Dimension Reincarnation! This lets me discard one card from my hand and then summon a monster that I've removed from the game. And I think I'll summon Tethys, Goddess of Light!" As Jenny discarded discarded one of her cards, her angelic duel spirit emerged. (ATK: 2400 DEF: 1800 LV: 5) She gave her a slight nod, which she returned. "And now my two monsters, attack!" The two angelic beings held up their palms, each of them firing a beam of light, which combined together into a huge beam that destroyed both the squad and the queen.
Beatrice gave her a hateful look.
"And I'll end my turn with two facedowns." She concluded while inserting two cards into her duel disk.
"That's it! No more games!" Todd almost roared and reached for his deck.
"Hang on a second!" Andrew interrupted. "You activated Offerings to the Doomed during your last turn. And since you did, you have to skip your draw phase this turn."
"Fine! it doesn't matter! Since the two of you have exactly 1500 life points left, my Masked Knight's ability will put an end to this! Masked Knight LV 7, put them down now!" The tall knight swung his sword, sending another energy arc at them.
"Reveal facedown card!" One of Jenny's facedown cards flipped up. "Damage Polarizer!" The energy arc was suddenly absorbed into it. "Nice try, but thanks to my counter trap, I can negate the activation of an effect that would cause damage.
"Beg your pardon?!" Todd growled.
"However, after that happens, each player gets to draw a card from their deck." Jenny added as she drew an extra card. Everyone else did the same thing.
Todd looked frustrated. "This is getting annoying." He muttered to himself and eyed on Andrew's monsters. "If I attack now, I should be able to win." He then noticed Jenny's facedown card. "But wait! Maybe that girl's facedown card is something to block my attack. It might be risky." He then looked over his hand before inserting his two cards into his duel disk. "I place two cards facedown and end my turn by switching my Masked Knight to defense mode." Two cards appeared as the Masked Knight kneeled down.
"My turn then." Andrew drew his next card and looked at it. "Looks like this the end."
"Huh?" The rich couple gave him confused looks.
"First I activate the spell card, Mask Charge! This lets me take a HERO monster and a Change card from my graveyard and add them to my hand." Solid Soldier and Mask Change came out of his graveyard slot. "Then I'll use the spell card Mask Change to transform my Lady Heat into a new HERO!" The fire heroine glowed brightly. "I summon Masked HERO Goka!" The light died down and revealed the hero in red and black armor. (ATK: 2200 DEF: 1800 LV: 6) "This guy gains 100 attack points for every HERO monster in my graveyard. And Lady Heat is the only one there." (ATK: 2200-2300)
Todd scoffed. "That's nothing compared to our monsters."
"I'm not done just yet." Andrew held up a spell card. "I activate Enemy Controller! With this spell, I can switch the battle mode of one of your monsters. So I'll switch your Masked Knight back to attack mode."
Todd gasped as his knight stood up again.
"Next I activate the spell card, Polymerization!" A fusion vortex appeared above his field. "And with it I'll fuse my two Masked Heroes and summon Contrast HERO Chaos!" The two heroes entered the vortex. And then, in a flash of light, they were replaced by the black and white hero that Andrew used to save Clover from Banner's control. (ATK: 3000 DEF: 2600 LV: 9)
"I've never seen that before." Jenny muttered in awe.
"Why would you summon a monster like that?" Beatrice questioned. "That monster can't possibly get through our defenses."
"That's what I like to know as well." Todd added.
Andrew shrugged. "Let's just say I have my reasons. Contrast HERO Chaos, attack!" The hero jumped up in the air.
"Beg your pardon?" Todd questioned.
"Confused? Let me clear things up with you... with this!" Andrew held up a spell card. "I activate Battle Fusion! This card gives my fusion monster extra attack points equal to its opponent's attack points, making him stronger than your Masked Knight!" The hero glowed with a blue aura. (ATK: 3000-6800)
"So that's what you were going for." Todd muttered before smirking. "But unfortunately for you, I was prepared! I activate the trap card, Magic Cylinder!" One of his facedown cards flipped up. "Thanks to this, your attack is negated, and you'll take damage equal to your monster's attack points!"
"Ah!" Andrew's eyes widened.
"Don't worry, Andrew! I've got this!" Jenny called out and revealed her facedown card. "I activate the trap card, Trap Jammer, and this cancels out your trap card!"
"That won't work! Thanks to my other trap!" Todd's other facedown card flipped up. "United Front! If I control at least two monsters with the same level, I can negate and destroy your trap card!"
Jenny gasped.
"Haha!" Beatrice laughed. "That means you peasants are finally defeated!"
Todd smirked. "Was there any doubt?"
"Well, I doubt that your move will work." Andrew spoke up, getting everyone's attention.
"How come!?" Todd demanded.
"How about you ask my Contrast HERO?" The hero monster held up a knife, which emanated a powerful glow. "Thanks to his special ability, I can negate the effects of one face-up card on the field. That includes your now revealed counter trap!"
"NOOOOOO!" The rich couple screamed in horror as the hero threw his knife, destroying Todd's counter trap.
"Nice!" Jenny cheered. "And now for their other trap!" Her Trap Jammer glowed brightly as Todd's Magic Cylinder shattered into pixels. "Now, Andrew!"
He nodded to her. "Now, Contrast HERO Chaos! Destroy their Masked Knight with Twilight Burst!" The hero clapped his hands, releasing waves of light and dark energy that enveloped the tall knight, who roared in pain before he exploded. The explosion was powerful enough to knock both opponents down on the floor.
Todd & Beatrice: 2500-0000
As the holograms vanished, the captain spoke up. "And it's over. Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for our winners... Andrew Wilson and Jenny Siegrain!" The spectators let out loud cheers and applauded for the winning team.
The rich couple, on the other hand, weren't so happy as they sat on the floor, really depressed. "It can't be... we lost." Todd muttered.
"No fair..." Beatrice whined.
Andrew let out a sigh of relief. "I'm glad that's over-Whoa!" He was suddenly wrapped by the arms of a happy Jenny.
"Andrew, we did it! We won!"
He laughed a little as he hugged back. "Yeah, we did. We really pulled it through."
They then heard footsteps approaching them. They turned and saw the rich glaring at them. Andrew and Jenny gave them wary looks. And then, Todd held out his hand, like offering to a handshake. Surprised by this, they looked up as Todd avoided eye contact and cleared his throat.
"Well, I can't say that I'm pleased with the result. A loss is most certainly humiliating. However... I must confess that this was... quite entertaining. I suppose congratulations is in order."
Now that was surprising. After everything they said and their obnoxious attitude, this was definitely not what Andrew and Jenny expected from them.
After a moment, Andrew smiled and accepted the handshake. "Thank you. But this victory wasn't easily won. The two of you are really good. Your Masked Knight cards are especially impressive."
Even though he still avoided eye contact, Todd smiled almost arrogantly. "Why thank you. My knights are impressive, aren't they. Quite noble and fabulous like me, if I say so myself." He then laughed while Andrew sweat dropped.
Jenny approached Beatrice. "And I must say that I'm impressed by your Allure Queen cards. They are quite pretty too. Not as pretty as you, though."
Beatrice smiled. "Well, you have a good eye. Many people say that I'm quite the beauty. But then again, what else would you expect from moi." She then laughed as well, making jenny sweat drop.
As the rich couple kept laughing it off, the younger couple had one and the same thought... 'They don't seem to be sore losers at least.'
Later on, Andrew and Jenny were standing together on the stage as the captain gave each of them the medals, hanging them around their necks. He then handed them the discount coupons. He then turned to the audience. "And this is the end of Kageyama Cruises' Tag Team Tournament. We had many spectacular duels. With many turns of events. Much rivalry. And of course, we got to witness teamwork in the finest forms. And now that that's over, let us give us the winning team another round of applause!"
The audience cheered and applauded for Andrew and Jenny. Even Todd and Beatrice clapped for them. Andrew and Jenny waved to everyone happily.
And so, it was late at night, with the cruise ship floating in the sea under the star filled sky. Very few people were still up. And two of them were Andrew and Jenny, who were standing together at the front of the ship, enjoying the starry view.
"What a day. It sure hasn't been boring here at all." Jenny said.
"Yeah. It really has been exciting today." Andrew replied. "And I'm glad I get to have that kind of fun with you."
"Me too." The fairy duelist leaned against her boyfriend. "Ya know, come to think of it, it was almost never boring during our first year at Duel Academy."
"That's true. We've been through a lot of adventures there. I mean, we had to deal with dangerous things like the Shadow Riders. But there were also fun times as well." As he spoke, images of all their friends appeared in their minds. Jaden, Syrus, Chumley, Bastion, Alexis, Zane, Chazz, Shiori, Michael, Matt, Mahiru, Xander, Clover, Nathan, Kaito, Cynthia and Atticus. "Especially with all the others."
"Yeah." Jenny turned and saw Tethys appear right next to her. "Especially with certain friends that some of us wouldn't believe we had." The Goddess of Light smiled before vanishing.
Andrew smiled and turned to see Phantom Magician and Wynn appear. "No kidding." The two of them nodded to him before vanishing.
"Makes me wonder what awaits us for the next year."
"Well, whatever it'll be..." He placed a hand on her cheek, making her face him. "I'll be happy to face it with you."
Jenny smiled lovingly. "Same here." At that, they leaned towards each other, shared a kiss that lasted some time as they stood silently under the full moon.
Season 1 : The End
Phew! I'm finally done with final chapter on the first season of The Second Hero. And to think it took me almost 5 years to write this story. And before I wrap things up here, I have a few words to say.
First of all, I would like to thank Squeegeman for acting like my editor for my work. I really appreciate it.
I also would like to thank pokemonking0924, HunterHQ, SilentObserv3r, Br0kenThOrn, chiripa012 and anyone else who gave me card suggestions, chapter ideas, OC ideas. Not to mention pointing out any errors I made while writing the chapters.
And finally, I would like to thank everyone who either followed, favorited and reviewed my story. Really much appreciated. Thank you!
So with that said, I'll be focusing on my next three chapters on my 5D's story. And after that, you guys better expect the second season of this GX story:
The Second Hero 2 - The Light of Destruction
So, now that that's done, take care, everyone! Until next time!