Chapter 20: Balance Between Realms
When Leona announced the final Deck Limitation, she proclaimed, "You will each build a deck following the rules commonly referred to as 'goat format'. The Denkard app will limit your card pool based on the cards that were legally available in 2005, including the ban list for that year. The rules from 2005 will apply.
"Both players will draw a card during their opening turn, even if you go first." That rule gave a significant advantage to whoever goes first. Bryan hoped that Matt would get that advantage.
"Your Main Deck and Fusion Deck can have an unlimited number of cards." That shouldn't matter much. Deck speed frequently relies on having the minimum number of cards to pick from. If Matt decided to put 2,222 cards in his deck, there'd be basically zero chance of getting whatever specific card he needed on a given turn.
"Ignition effects will receive priority." What did that one even mean? He quickly hammered out a text to the Guardian chat, not even noticing how many spelling errors slipped past Autocorrect. But Leona clarified that a monster's ignition effect can be activated immediately after summoning before the opponent can respond.
"When the number of monsters on the field changes, it triggers a replay, not a redirect." Apparently the rules used to say that a replay meant you basically restart the Battle Step, but nowadays the same monster has to attack but just gets to pick a different target.
"Continuous Trap Cards will not be able to activate their ignition effects at the same time they flip face-up." Apparently that meant that Continuous Traps needed to be already face-up for their effects to matter. Flipping them face-up only affected future cards.
"Cards that search the deck can be used without legal targets." In the case of an automated duel like the Denkard technology, that just meant that the deck would shuffled after playing a search card. Bryan couldn't believe that was a rule, though, considering in-person duels still required you to check the deck before you realized there was no legal target. Like, he'd played E - Emergency Call previously and realized afterward that he already used up every E-Hero card in his deck.
The next several rules were equally obscure, pedantic, and boring. Bryan zoned out as Leona talked about triggers, monsters equipping monsters, battle positions, battles with zero attack points, union monsters, and not being allowed to self-destruct through paying Life Points. Not until she announced, "Make sure you test your decks," did he zone back in.
Matt seemed to be lost in thought, probably struggling to process all the rules Leona just piled on.
Bryan asked, "Should we go get your deck started?" But Matt continued staring off toward the audience. That's when Bryan realized what was happening. "Are you staring into the camera?"
"Show no fear," he said.
The only possible response was laughter. "Dude, let's go." He had to peel Matt away from the stage and then guide him around people and walls as he continued to stare over his shoulder at the camera until they left the ballroom. In the hallway, Bryan asked, "Can you guide yourself now? It's pretty crowded out here and I don't want to twist my rotator cuff shoving you around."
"Fine. Next time, just give me a piggy-back ride."
"Sure thing. How about we figure out your deck? Seems like we're going to need every minute of this hour to identify the cards that were available back then and put them together in a competitive way."
Matt shook his head as they reached the stairs. "Nah. I've read about successful decks back then. There were plenty of options, but the key cards were often the same. Gonna play a lot of deck milling cards and some crazy Chaos monsters and call it a day."
"You think it'll be that easy?"
"I honestly think the hard part will be anticipating Ash's burn deck this time. The cards were so different back then, so his strategy won't be something he's shown us already. He's already proven himself skilled with OTKs, and he's been around long enough that he might have played Goat Format when he was a kid."
Bryan made a face. "You really think Ash is that old?"
"Dude, I don't know. He's more than 30, so he's reeeeally old."
Dexter said, "I'll not take offense, thank you." His wrinkles looked definitely older than 30, but he still carried himself like a man with a lot of youthful vigor.
After a few seconds of silence, Matt asked, "You ever get the feeling you're being watched?"
"Sometimes, I guess."
He stopped and turned around near the top of the stairs. "How about being followed?"
"Followed?" Bryan turned around to find several people were on the staircase behind them. It was strange because no one had ever taken the stairs right behind them in the whole weekend. And also because everyone stopped as soon as they stopped.
Dexter glanced at the crowd, then turned back to the boys. "I suspect they want to interfere in the tournament through one or more methods. Go ahead while I keep them out here."
Bryan remembered the creepy guy who talked to him while he was building the no-duplicates deck. "You think they all want to offer us jobs as professional duelists?"
"I suspect they want inside information," said Matt as he walked away from the crowd. He put a hand on Bryan's back and guided him into the business center, which was slightly strange. But one step outside the room, Matt nearly shouted, "The Empty Jar strategy is unbeatable." He made sure the door shut behind him as soon as the words were spoken. With a smirk on his face, he said, "That should give them something to gossip about."
Now his behavior made sense. "And knowing you, that's specifically a strategy that you will not be using."
"Correct. I'm not wild about the idea of either me or Ash just running out of cards."
"No, of course not. You'd rather feel like you had the chance to actually hurt him."
Matt grinned. "So if Empty Jar is out, what strategy do you think I should try instead?"
Bryan felt like a deer in the headlights. Or a Kuriboh in front of Ra. "You mean for Goat Format."
"Yes."
"Which is based on the cards available in 2005."
"Yes."
Shaking his head, Bryan groaned. "There's no point playing this game. You know I don't have a damn clue what cards were available then. Was that before Elemental Heroes were invented?"
"Actually, it was the same year. Your four OG Heroes should be available, but none of the really versatile characters that followed. Even Bubbleman won't be in this list."
"Oh, wow. That's really old."
Matt sighed. "I guess we should get started. You want to give it a try?"
Bryan put his arms akimbo, which he instantly regretted because it made him feel like a cheerleader, or Peter Pan. "I don't think I can even name the four OG Heroes, and you want me to put together a deck based on cards from a million years ago. Let's not pretend that I'm you're equal here."
"In this topic, maybe. But you built two winning decks in this tournament. Sure, the rules are a bit wonky, but that means your talent is there. You just need the circumstances to prove it. I'll bet you could handle this round, too."
"Don't add to my stress right now. I'm already trying not to think about the fact that we could be an extra thousand dollars richer if you win this thing."
Matt made a face. "Thousand? I thought you bet five hundred dollars."
"I did."
"And were the odds two-to-one? Surely they weren't so convinced that I could win from Day 1."
"No, the odds were higher than that. Can't remember the number off the top of my head." Matt smirked again. "But you still remember, don't you?"
He turned away to look at the computer. "A higher number actually means lower odds. Whenever you finally remember, multiply that number by 500 to get the real payout. But maybe it's better for your blood pressure if you don't think about it too much. I don't need your stress on top of mine."
Maybe he was right about Bryan's stress level being affected by the bet. In fact, Past Bryan must have had the same thought, which is why Bryan didn't write down anything about the odds or the bet. All he had was the claim ticket. He really couldn't remember what the odds were, but they had to be at least ten-to-one, right? So Matt might win him five thousand dollars? That number already got his heart rate so high that he started feeling anxious.
That was the moment Melody entered the business center wearing a green dress. Bryan remembered her from the fitness center. Right behind her was someone who looked just like her, except she wore a swimsuit underneath a lab coat and carried a medical bag. It look a couple of beats, but Bryan remembered that Matt had said the doctor was Melody's twin, Hilde.
Matt asked, "A lifeguard and a doctor? Does Leona pay so little, or are you trying to fulfill multiple fantasies at once?" Bryan winced at that joke. Hilde looked… okay… for a woman who had to be in her sixties, but the idea of Matt fantasizing about her made even Bryan gag.
Hilde replied, "How's my third-favorite patient?"
"Third?" Matt repeated.
"Out of how many?" asked Bryan.
"Three, right now," said Hilde. She opened the bag and removed a few tools, which she started using on Matt. "Just making sure you're still doing alright after that last duel. Any new symptoms? Your blood pressure's a bit higher than earlier. Feeling any new pressure?"
Shaking his head, Matt said, "Can't think of a single reason I would feel pressure right now."
Bryan knew he was being sarcastic, but doctors worked better if they knew the truth. "He's stressed about the tournament's final duel."
"I'm no stranger to sarcasm," said Hilde. His help was wasn't needed after all.
Melody looked antsier than everyone else combined. "Oh! Ask him about Tree."
Matt made a face. "What tree?"
"Spirit Tree weakens ever since you touch it," said Melody. Her voice quivered.
Hilde interrupted before her sister could start crying. "Most likely, it's a coincidence. I'm not seeing any physiological differences in you that would result in your absorbing its energy. How are feeling, though?"
"Feeling fine," said Matt.
"Anything unusual happen in the past hour?"
"The weirdest thing that happened was Ash Staotar telling me that duel holograms are a good way to kill ghosts."
Melody gasped. "Ash Staotar? He's the one who—"
"—last made contact with the Spirit Tree," said Hilde. Bryan assumed that was a case of twins finishing each other's sentences, although he had thought Melody was going to say something else. "What did he say, exactly?" Matt told her everything Ash had said about making sure to always finish every attack during a duel. "He sounds more brutal than I remember. So either Matt is lying about his spiritual connection, Leona is even stronger than we thought, or Ash is actually the one who's drawing energy from the tree."
Matt paused, and Bryan tried to anticipate what puzzle he was putting together. Obviously it all related back to Melody's belief in the spirits that haunted this hotel. Melody was trying to ward them off with her oils, Ash was trying to obliterate them, and the Spirit Tree was supposedly the guardian that was doing a piss-poor job of guiding spirits to the Spirit Realm.
But what did Leona have to do with it? Just because she was the hotel's proprietor? He bet that was the question Matt would ask.
"How can Ash steal energy from a tree?" asked Matt. So maybe not the question Bryan thought he would ask first, but there was still time to come back to ask about Leona.
Hilde said, "Normally, humans can't handle raw spiritual energy. But Ash Staotar lived here before, in Florence. For a while, he studied the Spirit Tree as much as Melody does. Maybe he came across a way to channel the energy without needing a spiritual connection. It seems more likely than his secretly being divine."
Bryan asked, "Divine as in 'god-like'?"
"Who needs a thesaurus with you around?" said Hilde. The words felt like an insult, but her expression showed sorrow. Like she was using anger to hide how she really felt. Scared, perhaps?
Matt asked, "Let's pretend the worst-case scenario. If Ash is secretly divine and has the power of the Spirit Tree on his side, then what's he doing and how do we stop him?"
"We don't," said Melody.
"Okay. Let's pretend it's a less-than-worst-case scenario."
Hilde said, "If we assume what Ash told you was true, or a version of the truth, then he thinks he's saving this universe by wiping out all the spirits that exist in the Shadow Realm. But that won't solve the problem. If spirits don't return to the Spirit Realm, then balance is lost. The Spirit Realm will keep feeding spiritual energy to the Physical Realm until it runs dry. Without the Spirit Realm, the Physical Realm will wither until it's absorbed into the Shadow Realm."
Bryan asked, "What would that mean? Like, spirits become physical beings?"
"Maybe, in the last few seconds before the imbalance causes the universe the collapse."
At that moment, Dexter opened the glass door to the business center. "Pardon me, but Mr. Luther needs time to finish assembling his deck. Please grant him time to focus."
Melody nodded. "Matt needs to win this duel to protect the Spirit Tree."
Hilde quickly added, "Right. Defeat Ash so he's not able to continue destroying spirits."
"How does that work?" asked Matt. "By dueling him, isn't my dueling energy creating the same issue?"
"Intention matters. He wants destruction. You don't. By winning, your will overpowers his."
When Matt looked back at Bryan, he had the same level of bewilderment in his eyes that Bryan felt. "Seriously?"
"Good luck." With that, the two ladies left the room. Dexter closed the door behind them and continued to stand guard in case anyone else wanted to come interrupt.
Matt leaned back in the chair until it almost fell over, but then he caught himself at the last second. "I can't believe this place. Like I needed her stress on top of yours and mine."
Bryan confessed, "I don't understand what they're saying. Like, they agree that duel holograms can kill spirits, but you have to want to kill spirits in order to do it?"
"Yeah, that part doesn't make sense to me, either."
"And what does Leona have to do with this?"
Matt looked over again. "You caught that, too?"
Bryan shrugged. "Any ideas?"
Matt shook his head. "Only that I have to win this duel. The winner is supposed to get some one-on-one time with Leona Moxley. Maybe she can also explain the real reason you're here."
"Me?"
"Yeah. You're not just my backup in case I get sick, even though you played that role splendidly. They have something else mind, but no one will say what it is. I asked Dexter, but if he knows, he's good at keeping secrets. Come to think of it, Dexter just now cut the conversation with Melody and Hilde short. You think maybe he knows what's really going on here?"
Bryan tried to think of everything he'd learned about Dexter. Apart from being super-knowledgeable and really good at his job as a glorified babysitter, there was nothing unusual that stood out. He always seemed liked a simple guy.
"Here's a far-fetched theory. You mentioned how no one knows who Ash's second is," said Bryan.
"Vidya said he doesn't have one."
"What if she's wrong? What if Dexter is actually his second?"
Matt tried not to laugh. "What. And Dexter just casually snuck himself in with us so he could pay all our expenses while spying on me above all the other competitors?" Then he stopped for a moment and looked up. He was considering Bryan's crazy idea after all. "It's interesting, dude, but not great. Too many holes."
"I was just thinking about how Hilde and Melody match up, so it would be interesting if someone else here were Ash's second."
"Considering he doesn't have one, the only way he could have one is if it were Vidya," said Matt. "And she's Leona's assistant, so that would mean Leona set the whole thing up so that her stooge could win the tournament. That's such a risky decision and public relations nightmare that it's too stupid to even consider."
Bryan nodded. "Yeah. I didn't even think about the Leona connection. It would be dumb to rig her own public tournament." But considering the way Matt quietly stared at the computer screen without touching the mouse or keyboard, he still had the brain gears turning.
Matt and Bryan were escorted back to the ballroom by Dexter. Not that Matt still needed a babysitter. "No one can see what's in my deck now," he pointed out. Pulling one of the RF tiles from his Duel Disk, he showed its blank glass to Dexter. "Is this your card? Trick question because it's blank until I pair with the duel station."
"Plus, Dr. Hilde seemed to think he was in fine health," said Bryan. "Probably getting hungry by now, though, right?" That was a coded and loaded question. Bryan was hungry, and understandably so. Suppertime seemed to come late in Italy.
"I was fine until you mentioned it," said Matt. He looked at Dexter. "Can we pre-order food so it's ready the second the duel ends?"
"A tournament buffet is already planned for all participants," he answered.
Bryan said, "I like the sound of 'buffet'."
"Because you like blonde, ditzy massage therapists? Or because you're still scared of vampires?" asked Matt.
"The second one."
For the first time, Matt entered the ballroom and didn't find a seat in the back. There was no reason to sit and wait his turn anymore. And for the first time, Bryan also picked a seat in the third row—the closest row that didn't have "Reserved" posted on the chairs. But Dexter ushered Bryan up to the front, to one of the end chairs in the middle-right section. Or middle-left. Matt's right when he was on-stage. It was the same spot Leona sat in, but she was in the middle-left section. Either the signs were fake, or Bryan's seat was reserved specifically because he was Matt's second.
Ash was already waiting in the ballroom, standing tall and prepared to duel. Matt asked him, "Did you even bother to leave the room?"
He smirked. "I assembled my deck from my suite to avoid spectators."
"Yeah, I had that same problem. My second and my babysitter kept away the looky-loos for me."
"Then we should have a chance for a thrilling competition."
As always, Leona was the last to enter the ballroom. Or more accurately, she drew all the attention as she moved. Everyone scrambled to fill all remaining seats as soon as she entered because the duel console started up the instant her butt touched her chair.
Matt stared down his opponent while they waited for the duel system to determine who would receive the first turn with all six cards. "This is the first time I spent my whole hour in front of the computer, preparing for a duel," he said.
"I'm honored to be considered such a challenge."
"Hilde and Melody mentioned that you used to live here in Florence."
Ash didn't reply, but he didn't shy away from the comment. If anything, his expression dared for Matt to go further.
"What gets me is that everything publicly available about you says you're an investment banker from Iran. In fact, there's nothing else about you online at all except for a foreign food blog that either has some egregious grammatical issues, or else Google Translate can't really tell what you're saying."
He smiled. "I'm no wordsmith, but I do enjoy a variety of dishes." As if 20 years of food blogging didn't get that point across. Maybe Ash was just the kind of man to stay offline unless he had something to say. But Matt suspected there was something more important about his very-short work history.
Once, Matt might have considered himself to be lucky with the cards, but for this duel, Ash took the first victory by being granted the right to begin.
Ash had been mostly silent during his other duels—so quiet that even the cameras that recorded and broadcast the tournament on ESPNYG couldn't pick up what he said—but he was loud enough for Matt to hear him now.
"Why not start off with a reset of sorts?" He placed two cards face-down in his backfield, then he activated a third. "Card Destruction has us discard our hands and draw new cards." Ash only discarded and drew three cards, but Matt had to lose all five of his cards.
With a satisfied grin, Ash said, "Much better. Premature Burial will revive my Sacred Crane (4: 1600|400)." It was weird to watch a glowing bird emerge from under the ground without getting even a speck of dirt on itself. Even weirder was watching the bird's glow infect the deck. "When special summoned, Sacred Crane lets me draw one card."
He already activated one of his face-down cards—one of the Goat Format rules where a spell could still be activated the same turn it placed face-down. That meant Ash had few traps, if any. The strategy felt familiar.
Matt said, "That's not a burn deck."
"How astute. Perhaps it still could be. When I play Monster Gate, I use Sacred Crane as a tribute to open a portal into the realm of my deck. Now, let's look for a monster eligible for normal summoning."
While Ash excavated the cards from his deck, Matt's expression fell. "You've played a Burn strategy in every round of this tournament so far until now."
"Have I? How awfully predictable of me."
Predictable. That word sounded like it was meant as an insult. "Are you saying I'm predictable?" asked Matt.
"Not at all. Why would you suspect that?"
Because you're playing the same deck I'm using, thought Matt, but he kept the words to himself. It might be too early to let Ash know that he had already figured out a way to rattle his opponent. More important was the question about who would want to share that information. There were a dozen bloggers and gamblers outside the business center while Matt assembled his deck, but they never entered the room, and the computer screen was positioned in a way that they couldn't see it from outside. Bryan had guessed that Dexter was working with Ash, but the same limitation applied: He never entered the room far enough to see the deck Matt was building.
Although Melody and Hilde did. They had stood right behind Matt while they spoke, in full view of the computer screen. And Melody said they knew Ash as a local who spent a lot of time in the Denkard. Maybe he took advantage of their old friendship to glean information that could help him gain the upper hand. But didn't they want Matt to win the duel? They had described a scenario where Ash was trying to unbalance the universe and cause its implosion. If they wanted to avoid that, they wouldn't go sharing information about Matt's deck.
Right?
"Another Sacred Crane (4: 1600|400)," said Ash as he summoned another glowing bird—not a zombie this time. "With its grace, I draw one more card. Have I normal summoned yet?"
"No," said Matt, aware that Ash was teasing anyway.
"Then Sacred Crane can give way to Jinzo (6: 2400|1500)." Jinzo was an ancient card, but it still had its uses in modern-day dueling. Standing taller than everyone else in the room by head and shoulders, Jinzo was a lanky machine capable of preventing traps from activating their effects. Not that Matt had a chance to set up any of them… or that he had many in his deck. Jinzo might be a threat for the Dark Magician, but that wasn't Matt's ace card this time.
Ash said, "I believe that's all for this turn."
Matt: 8000 LP, 5 cards
Ash: 7200 LP, 3 cards
Matt drew his first card—technically his eleventh card—and asked an unrelated question. "Can you tell me your side of the story?"
"What story is that?"
"Why are you trying so hard to destroy the wayward spirits around here?" While he waited for an answer, Matt played Reasoning. This card was the other half of the OTK strategy, intended to summon powerful monsters straight to the field.
Ash smirked. "Knowing you, your deck will include the most famous Dark Magician card of the entire Goat Format. So I predict your next monster card will be Level 8."
Matt milled several cards off the top of his deck until he finally found a monster. "Airknight Parshath (5: 1900|1400) has 5 stars. You were wrong, so I get to special summon him." The card might have been named for the mythical Perseus, but the resemblance was lacking. Parshath was a centaur with feathery fringe all around his body, and his hands were replaced by a sword and a shield.
"The spirits?" asked Matt while he played Toon Table of Contents to take a Toon card from his deck.
Ash said, "The spirits seem harmless to you. Most are mere lost, fearful souls willing to break the cycle of reincarnation out of a selfish desire for immortality."
Matt played another copy of Toon Table of Contents, this time grabbing Toon Cannon Soldier.
"Rare spirits are capable of summoning massive spiritual reserves. Either they consume other spirits, they steal the souls of the living, or they find a way to steal power directly from the Overworld."
"What happens when spirits amass spiritual energy?" asked Matt. Ash pointed to Matt's cards, prompting Matt to play another copy of Reasoning.
Ash said, "I will guess Level 8 again." This time, Matt did draw the card Ash predicted: Dark Magician of Chaos. It was a powerful card capable of delivering its own one-turn kill in the right circumstances. But since Ash correctly guessed its level, Matt was forced to drop it in the Graveyard along with all the other spells he had drawn along the way.
"Spirits that become too powerful are able to interact with physical space."
"Oh."
"Yes. Their once-harmless nature becomes a risk to our safety. As spirits, they exist only in imaginary space, immune to every defense we might mount against them… save for duel energy. When we duel, we amass spiritual pressure that rivals even the most powerful spirits. If we are close to the spirits, we can even usurp their energy and weaken at the same time we fight back."
Matt was getting confused. Everything Ash said made sense. After all, spirits already interacted with physical space to some degree: The fact that they were visible meant they reflected light waves.
The judge urged Matt to continue his turn. "Brain Control," he said. His Life Points dropped by 800, but he took control of Jinzo long enough to declare two direct attacks against Ash. Jinzo's (2400) mechanical laser beams seemed to reveal spirits that disintegrated in the attack. Airknight Parshath (1900) didn't cut through spirits so obviously, but Matt suspected they were still there.
"My turn to play Monster Gate." Using Jinzo as a Tribute, Matt milled through his deck until he found his own copy of Sacred Crane (4: 1600|400) to summon. He also enjoyed the benefit of drawing an extra card.
Matt: 7200 LP, 4 cards
Ash: 2900 LP, 3 cards
As he picked up the top card from his deck, Ash said, "Sometimes I wonder whether my travels have been worth it. No matter how many spirits I force back into the Overworld, there are always more left behind."
Matt winced, but Ash didn't care enough to stop the duel.
He said, "My Monster Reincarnation lets me discard to take Chaos Sorcerer back into my hand. Since you removed my only monster, I am forced to summon Sacred Crane (4: 1600|400) just so I can use it to play Monster Gate again." This time he went through his deck until he found a staple card from Goat Format: "Ah. Sinister Serpent (1: 300|250). Small, but useful."
And risky. It was a tiny, winged snake known for being destroyed over and over again, yet Ash played it in attack mode.
"Now to draw attention to the real fame for Goat Format, I shall summon the first Chaos monster of our duel." By banishing Sacred Crane and Chaos Sorcerer from the Graveyard, Ash special summoned Chaos Sorcerer (6: 2300|2000) from his hand. Wearing tattered magician's robes and with hands glowing both black and white, he wasn't the strongest of the Chaos monsters but was arguably the prime example.
"I shall also activate Dimension Fusion." His other face-down card rose to reveal its name, then it disappeared in a flash. A crack floating in space remained in its place. The crack expanded to reveal Dark Magician of Chaos (8: 2600|2100) and Sacred Crane (4: 1600|400). Like an older brother of the original Dark Magician, the DMOC wore tight leather in place of traditional magician's robes. His staff shone brightly across the Graveyard.
"Monster Gate returns to my hand," said Ash.
Matt was about to argue that DMOC's effect doesn't work that way. The player only gets to retrieve a spell card from the Graveyard during the End Phase. But that was today's rule. In 2005, DMOC's effect took place the instant the monster hit the field. That ruling sure would have been handy during the School Duel.
"Likewise, I draw one more card for summoning Sacred Crane." Ash beamed. "Arguably the most versatile card in existence: Pot of Greed." The OG Pot card hit the field. Unlike all the current versions, this one only had one face. The goblin wasn't counteracted by any negative effect; just draw two cards with no additional punishment: an effect so powerful it was banned in the very first ban list.
Ash must have drawn Reasoning because he played it immediately. "Please guess what level my next monster card will be."
Matt considered his own deck. He and Ash had nearly the same cards so far. Ash's strategy had been to prevent Matt from playing Dark Magician of Chaos, but Ash already had his DMOC on the field. With a glance at the field, Matt counted that his opponent had already played three copies of Sacred Crane. He couldn't be certain what Ash would draw, but he knew that Ash and Matt had all the same cards.
Amid all the blurry images while his brain cranked through all the possibilities, only one image remained clear enough to distinguish, maybe because he already had one on the field.
"Five stars," said Matt.
Ash began excavating cards from his deck until he revealed his own copy of Airknight Parshath (5). "Well done. I do not special summon anything else after all. Unless Monster Gate works in my favor." He sacrificed Sinister Serpent to activate yet another summoning effect. As luck would have it, Ash ran multiple copies of Airknight Parshath (5: 1900|1400), just like Matt did. "How lucky. This time I'm able to complete a successful special summoning."
"That's not why this round is lucky," said Matt.
Ash unleashed a barrage of attacks. First, Airknight Parshath (1900) delivered a piercing strike on Matt's Sacred Crane (400). Parshath's sword was able to slice into Matt even through his defensive monster, dealing 1500 points of damage. Not only that, but Parshath's heavenly aura released another card from Ash's deck to his hand. Chaos Sorcerer (2300) unleashed a devastating blast to eliminate Matt's copy of Airknight Parshath (1900), and then the field was wide open for direct attacks from Sacred Crane (1600) and DMOC (2800).
Matt's comment was driven home when he still had Life Points on the board. "How lucky you were to prevent Reasoning from giving me one more monster," said Ash. "Any other monster would have ended the duel this turn."
With a single nod, Matt said, "That's right."
"Oh well. I'll set one card and end my turn."
Matt: 900 LP, 4 cards
Ash: 900 LP, 1 card
As Matt drew, he stared straight through his card, trying to piece together everything he had learned from Hilde and Melody and comparing it to Ash's story. "This tournament is supposedly a way to gather spiritual energy and strengthen the Spirit Tree," he said.
"A temporary deterrent," said Ash. "The ritual requires repetition. A permanent solution is necessary to protect this universe."
"Killing spirits is supposed to be permanent?"
After he paused for a beat, Ash shook his head. "No. That is also a temporary reprieve."
"So you don't know what would permanently prevent the universe from imploding?"
"Not yet."
Matt nodded. "I see. Well, here's granting another year to figure it out. I'll play Snatch Steal and equip it to your Dark Magician of Chaos. Now he's mine." Technically he wasn't actually Matt's card. Matt's card was in the Graveyard. Well, technically Matt didn't own that card. Everything in his Graveyard and Main Deck were just tools used to mimic real cards. So nothing in this duel really belonged to Matt…
…except for the victory. Dark Magician of Chaos (2800) blasted Ash's copy of Airknight Parshath (1900). Matt waited just in case Ash's face-down card was a trap, but Ash's Life Points fell to zero. It must have been a copy of Scapegoat—the namesake for Goat Format.
Matt: 900 LP, 4 cards
Ash: 0 LP, 1 card
Matt was surprised how quiet everything was as the hologram projectors shut down. At Duel Academy, spectators were quick to cheer and applaud and show their excitement at the end of a duel. But these grown-up stiffs in business attire were dead silent. One might think they were about to claim that a teenager winning a duel tournament was "fake news". Or maybe they were mentally counting the money they lost from betting on Ash?
"Congratulations," said Ash as they shook hands. Somehow he looked happy. This was obviously the reaction of a man whose self-worth did not revolve around being Number 1 all the time. He added, "Word of advice from one more experienced: Keep your head down for a bit, unless you enjoy telling the same two stories repeated in perpetuity."
"Which two stories?"
"'How did you do it' and 'what's next'."
Matt smirked. "Maybe I like being the center of attention."
"You certainly will be for the rest of the weekend. At least until another school student wins a major dueling tournament."
Bryan was surprised to see Dexter grab Matt and lead him out the back of the ballroom like he was some kind of celebrity. For a moment Bryan stayed behind, but when he was mobbed by questions intended for Matt, he excused himself with the excuse that he was starving. Luckily the mobs in Italy were more physically polite than back home, so he didn't have to use any of those old football moves to get away.
He caught up to Matt and Dexter in the back hall. "I was wondering if you would join us," said Matt.
"I didn't realize you weren't leaving through the front door."
Dexter said, "All the hallways connect. There happen to be fewer spectators loitering about back here, making it an overall easier course to set for the dining room."
"Ooo. I'll eat to that."
Instead of using the hotel dining area, the tournament buffet was set up in a different ballroom. Several participants were already there serving themselves. Matt stopped outside the room and pulled Bryan to the side. Stripping himself of his red jacket, he told Bryan to do the same. "Dex, can you take these and meet us back in the room?"
"Surely." Dexter straightened out the jackets before gingerly folding them over his arm, then he turned to walk back down the hall.
Bryan said, "I guess he's not concerned about your health anymore."
"Probably just following orders."
The ballroom had tables lined up along each wall. One wall had salads, vegetable plates, and various dishes marked "vegan". The next wall had a variety of breads and meat dishes. The third wall was filled with desserts, pastries, and drinks. Matt first stopped at the salad table, but Bryan skipped past it to grab something with more calories. As he took his buffet plate to the brisket and a plate that looked like chicken in spicy curry, he saw that Matt had taken an entire serving tray from the salad table. It was easily the size of four buffet plates, and Matt proceeded to fill it up.
"You know a buffet means you can keep coming back for more, right?" asked Bryan.
"I don't want to stay here," said Matt. "Better to take a lot of food upstairs and eat in peace."
"Are you feeling ill?"
"Maybe a little. Maybe I'm hungrier than I realized, but I wouldn't mind eating and going straight to bed after."
Bryan transferred his plate to Matt's serving tray, then he proceeded to use his long arms to tuck a row of sodas from wrist to elbow, ending in a plate half full of chocolate and half full of fruit. He personally didn't think of fruit as a dessert, but chocolate-covered fruit just meant his dessert ticked two boxes on the food pyramid. Matt kept the serving tray in one hand, then filled up another plate with whatever he couldn't fit. They managed to exit the ballroom without drawing attention to themselves, likely because every eye went to the wayward serving tray instead of to its carrier. Between that and losing the jackets, no one even congratulated them before they reached the elevator.
"Phone's in my back pocket," said Matt as he turned and exposed his butt to Bryan.
Frowning, Bryan said, "Thankfully you already emailed me a copy of the key so I have it on my phone." He slapped his pockets a few times before realizing his mistake. "Shit. My phone's in my jacket, and Dexter has that."
Matt laughed. "The elevator won't go up without the room key." Just for an extra bit of jackass behavior, he shook his hips to show off his butt even more. Bryan finally accepted the optics and yoinked Matt's phone out of his pocket as quickly as he could.
"Joke's on you. It's not that different from slapping each other at football practice."
"It's different when the other guy is asking for it though, isn't it?"
Bryan winced. "Stop trying to make it weird."
Keeping Matt's phone in-hand, Bryan had the electronic room key ready to get inside the suite. He and Matt gently set the plates and tray on the desk space like their own miniature buffet. Bryan stepped away to pee while Matt washed his hands without the extra activity. When Bryan came back, Matt was arranging one of the plates with finger foods. Well, technically brisket wasn't intended as a finger food, but everything is finger food if you don't care about the grease.
"What do you think Leona will say about you at the ceremony tomorrow?"
"Probably the usual drivel about young people being the future of dueling."
"What do you think of Howard? Might be nice to keep in touch with him."
"Do what you want."
Bryan made a face. "I'm looking for your input. You're the one who claims to be able to read people."
Matt made a face. "I do not claim that."
"Not in those words, no. But you judge people constantly, plus you never think you're wrong."
"What's even the point of passing judgment if I think I'm wrong?"
Bryan waited for the exact moment Matt looked happy with the contents of the plate and then swooped in, graciously lifting the plate out of Matt's hands and claiming it for himself. Matt reached to reclaim the plate, but Bryan was too tall. He kept the plate for himself as he plopped down in one of the chairs and started chowing down.
As soon as he felt the ecstasy of the juicy brisket coupled with the flawless seasoning prepared by whoever cooks the Denkard meals, Matt claimed the entire serving tray and remainder of the food for his own meal. He sat down in the opposite chair where Bryan couldn't reach him. He matched Bryan's disappointment with a smug grin of his own.
Sneering from his plate to Matt's tray, Bryan said, "See what I mean? You did that on purpose."
Matt stuffed his mouth full of brisket. When he finished swallowing, he said, "You're predictable."
"Oh, yeah? What am I thinking about now?"
Pausing for hardly longer than a beat, he said "You want to know why all ancient magic spells rhyme in modern-day English."
Bryan made a face. His reaction must have been obvious because Matt looked satisfied that he was spot-on. "I'm just saying! It doesn't make sense when magic from BC eras are based in a language that developed in CE. We're supposed to believe it's just a huge coincidence that every single spell rhymes?"
"No argument here. TV writers just don't think that deeply when they plan their magic systems. And most people don't care."
"So now that you've judged me and the entire Writers Guild of America, judge Hilde and Melody."
Matt narrowed his eyes. "Why them?"
Bryan shrugged. "It just seems fishy that they knew Ash from years ago, they entered the room while you were putting your deck together, then Ash happened to have almost the exact same deck."
"You don't think it was coincidence?"
"Not really."
"Why not?"
The fact that Matt wasn't already mocking him meant that Matt thought he might be right. Or that Matt thought he was so hilariously wrong that he wanted to make fun of the whole thought process. Either way, Bryan decided to share that he had a little help.
"In every duel so far, Ash played a Burn deck. When I was talking to Howard about it, he mentioned that Goat Format actually had some pretty effective Burn deck strategies. So the main reasons Ash would skip using a Burn deck are that he wanted you to think he would play a Burn deck when he'd be ready to hit you with something else, or he figured out what strategy you were using and wanted to compete against you with the exact same strategy."
Matt just nodded and stayed quiet until he had eaten just more than half the food on the tray. "It's a valid theory. I suppose there's no way to prove it, though."
"You didn't answer the question."
"Yeah." He waited a moment before saying, "I think everything about this hotel is strange."
"You mean all the ghost worship?"
"For sure, that's part of it. I can't tell if it's a religion of theirs or if they just all heard the same mythology growing up around here. But the only way to be absolutely sure that this tournament is just a ritual meant to delay this Great Cataclysm is to talk to Leona Moxley about it."
Bryan said, "Luckily you should have that chance tomorrow. She invited you to breakfast, right?"
"No idea what expect. I've never heard of a tournament delaying the awards ceremony until the day after the finals."
"I mean, it's really late," said Bryan. It had been dark outside even before the final duel began. By the time they had their supper, it was almost bedtime—or pre-bedtime study hour, if the school semester had been in-session.
As if proving his point, Matt yawned. He downed the rest of his soda and stood up. "I'm going to go take a shit."
Bryan opened his arms in an exaggerated shrug. "Here's a detail I didn't need and didn't ask for."
"I don't like to leave room for misinterpretation," said Matt as he closed the bathroom door.
Just as Bryan slunk over to snack off of Matt's plate, someone knocked at the front door. At first Bryan was eager to jump up, but then he remembered how people might be ready to mob Matt for having won the tournament. He peeked through the peephole and saw only Dexter.
Bryan opened the door to find two Slifer Red jackets on coat hangers. "Here you are, Mr. Knight. Two school jackets pressed and cleaned."
"We're supposed to clean these?" asked Bryan.
"Certainly a recommended action, at least once per semester." The wry grin on Dexter's face gave the impression that he was making a joke. He noticed the plates and trays on the table. "I hope you enjoyed your small celebration tonight. I can ensure more drinks are brought up with some chocolate-and-pistachio biscotti in thirty minutes."
Bryan asked, "Biscotti? Like the bread sticks from Starbucks?"
He might as well have shot Dexter in the stomach with that comment. "Almond biscuits, twice-baked to serve dry and crunchy. But yes, they are oblong and can be dipped in your drink, not unlike the gritty snack sticks you have come to term 'biscotti'." It seemed rare that Bryan could hear air quotes.
Dexter turned but then caught himself. He reached into one of his jacket pockets and produced Bryan's phone. "Removed from your jacket to ensure it was not damaging during cleaning," he said as he handed it over. Next, he reached into an inside, jacket pocket. "Also, I noticed your wager slip was in your pocket. I took the liberty of exchanging it for you." He handed Bryan a roll of dollar bills bigger than a softball.
Bryan was speechless. "What's this?"
"Your winnings. From the wager you placed yesterday on the tournament's outcome?" He waited another moment, looking increasingly concerned until the moment he realized, "Ah, you are in shock."
He never did remember what the total was. But Bryan had enough presence of mind to ask, "Did you deduct your handling fee?"
"No deductions. Not even an exchange from euros to dollars."
"Well, let me tip you, at least."
Dexter held up his hand. "Wholly unnecessary. Enjoy your success. Perhaps consider sharing it with Mr. Luther, if you so choose. I do believe you intended half of your wager to be on his behalf." That did sound like something Bryan would say to justify throwing away five hundred dollars on a bet that was far from assured. Dexter pulled the door shut with the words, "Good evening."
Bryan was still stunned, but at least he was able to go back to his chair and sit down. He dropped both jackets on the back of Matt's chair and set his phone on the table. He decided to count the money just because he had no idea how much a "softball" of bills was worth. He couldn't wrap his head around the magic required to transform $500 into $20,000.
After a moment of internal debate, he got up to go tell Matt about it. His friend was out of the bathroom, but he had apparently lay down on the bed only to pass out instantly. Not even his own bed—Matt was passed out on top of the covers in Bryan's bed. The events of the day finally overwhelmed him. Bryan decided to let him sleep. Extra money would be just as exciting in the morning.
Once again, he had forgotten about his phone until he heard it buzzing from the table where he left it. In addition to text messages from his school friends—many of whom already heard the good news—he found messages from his mom, who likely had to work through much of the tournament.
"How did it go?" she asked.
Bryan wasn't sure what the TV schedule was back home. Maybe she'd have a chance to watch it later. Still, Bryan texted back, "he did it" followed by "now i can help w tuition".
Just one more chapter to go for this arc. I'll take a break after these are published so I can spend time properly crafting the next arc. That's basically me pulling a Netflix, throwing out 8 episodes, then stepping back to prep the next set. The end of the year is always pretty busy, and this will be the first time I'm taking this approach, so I can't guarantee how long it will take, but I can guarantee that I'm going to finish this story.
