Yuu loved the light, even when it did not belong to him. Clavis had taught him to spot the pinprick glint of duradine crystals, magnified through the needle-eyes of mica and quartz and diffused all across the cave wall, making it glitter with false stars. Yuu brought back his pickaxe and swung as if he were piercing the night sky.
"Give it a rest, Yuu." The squeal of metal wheels on rails approached as a headlamp washed away the dark and stars. Yuu tipped his goggles up and shielded his eyes as the blinding light extended an arm to the top of its helmet and shut it off, leaving them in near total darkness again.
"Hey, Clav," Yuu said, turning back to the wall. "Is it lunchtime already?"
"Not for another hour," Clavis said, "but rest anyway." In the dark, his most prominent feature was the great cloud of his beard, which trapped a heap of dust over the course of their day. He'd make a show out of dusting it at lunchtime, drawing laughs from the other miners. A sheaf of low-grade duradine glowed softly at his belt. It was enough to make a full deck, which he and Yuu split to play Duel Monsters at their lunch table. The other miners would scoff at this, calling it a waste of their already meager pay. Yuu, however, admired Clavis for holding on to it. It was as if his deck of duradine cards could be completed by the right find.
Yuu pushed his goggles back down. "I'm still feeling one hundred percent, though! Well, eighty-seven percent. Point five." He grinned, hefting his pickaxe.
He could just barely make out Clav's annoyed scowl. "Take a break so I can pick up all of this waste rock, you dunce. I leave you alone for twenty minutes and I have to dig you out."
"Oh." Yuu suddenly realized that there was a waist-high wall of rubble between him and Clavis. "My bad, Clav. I'll help you out."
Clavis huffed, but didn't object as Yuu clambered over the pile and started shoveling it into the minecart with his hands. "We get paid the same thing, kid. No need to overextend yourself."
Yuu dumped an armful of rock into the cart. "Wait, you haven't gotten a raise in twenty years? Ow." He winced as Clavis's fist came down on his hard hat, rattling his spine.
"Shut up, you brat. That's just how the mines work. The only way things really get better is if you score a commission." If a miner found high-grade duradine, Heart Excavation would give them a bonus once it was sold.
"Then it's fine if I'm trying hard to find high-grades, right? Today's my lucky day, I can feel it." Excavating a high-grade duradine was something that Yuu had dreamed of ever since he came to the mines. There was little else to dream for.
Clavis shook his head. "Chief Oga will just cheat you out of it. No way he'll pass up a chance to skim some money."
Yuu glanced down to Clavis's belt. "Is that why you bought all of yours back?"
Clavis patted his deck. "Nah. These are all low-grade. Barely fit to duel with. But hey, they belong to me. Even if I myself belong to Heart Excavation." There was an invisible weight around Clavis's shoulders as he heaved up stones to take away. "Stop changing the subject, Yuu. Don't let them work you to death."
Yuu smiled and hoped Clavis could see it in the dark. "I'll be alright, Clav. Really."
Clavis harrumphed, but said nothing else. Soon, they'd eliminated the rubble on the tunnel floor. Clavis sighed and sat down, wiping the sweat from underneath his hard hat. "Air tastes like cement today," he grumbled.
"You can sit right there and check this dig," Yuu said, swinging his pickaxe up. "Courtesy of Yuu Tokari."
His first swing chipped the rock at an angle, the first line of the wedges he aimed to break from the wall. Swinging from the other side was clumsier, but soon, he'd made a V-shaped crack. Yuu could feel the faint lights of duradine watching him, waiting for him to dig through and greet them. As he broke the layers of translucent rock, the lights converged and grew brighter.
Blue light exploded across the tunnel, making Yuu stumble back and drop his pickaxe in shock. Clavis stood up, his eyes aglow with azure. "My god," he murmured.
"Oh man," Yuu said, fumbling on the ground for his pickaxe. "Oh man oh man oh man." His smile felt like it was going to tear his face apart.
"Come on, kid," Clavis said. He had leveled his shovel at the duradine in the wall. "Let's dig this thing."
With Yuu's careful strikes and Clavis clearing away the waste rock, the shape of the duradine came into view. Yuu had mined low-grade before; this was nothing like it. It was smaller than the other stones; usually, duradine broke into five or six cards. This, however, looked like it was only one.
Clavis swiped away at the rock with renewed vigor. Yuu had never seen the man so worked up, his entire body contorting with each hit of his shovel. He was laughing, battering away the rubble without a care in the world.
Clavis held his hand up, panting. Yuu's last strike had made a crack between the bottom edge of the duradine card and the cave wall. He gestured forth. "Go ahead, Yuu."
Yuu stepped forward. The duradine was cool to the touch, with a glass-like surface. The bottom half of the card shimmered and pulsed slightly, making him feel as if he were underwater. Yuu picked it up. "Lucky, lucky me," he murmured.
The lunch bell rang, echoing down the black corridors of the Heart Mines. Yuu helped Clavis push the cart back into the main cave, where the rest of the workers were. The algae gas exchangers doubled as lights, the whole area lit up pond-scum green. Somehow, the miners found their appetite here, tearing through the wrappers of Hearty Heart Sandwiches or even the ritzy Big Heart Bento Box. Chief Oga was watching from the head of the cave, selling lunches at a table, a pile of collected low-grade duradine shining next to him. Clavis avoided meeting his gaze.
"Now look, Yuu," he'd said. "You've got to hold on to this one, okay? Find someone other than the chief to sell to."
"Okay," Yuu said. "Why don't you take it, then?"
Clavis shook his head. "Don't be ridiculous, kid. You earned this. Find the right buyer and you'll get to leave this crummy job."
Yuu nodded, because he knew Clavis was right. This might be his only opportunity to get back to San Domino. Still, the duradine in the wall hadn't glowed nearly as much as the old man's joy at finding it.
They walked to the table, careful to choose the most harshly lit area. If you looked directly at Yuu's pocket, you could still make out a faint rectangle of duradine, so he scooted forward and waited while Clavis went to buy their meals.
"Hey, Yuu there." The bald man said it like "Yuu" sounding like "you" was the funniest thing in the world. He had already sat down, leaning across the table, smiling like an old friend. Zato Sanada spread his hands to the sky. "Nice weather we got today."
"Not a cloud in the sky," Yuu said, his eyes flickering back to where Clavis was talking to the chief. "Need something, Zato?"
"Need is such a self-important word. I'm a wanter like everyone else." Zato jabbed his thumb to the scene three tables down, where a few miners were spinning stone tops on the table, a pile of coins set to their side. "We got a good game going over there. Simon managed to carve a real heater. Looks undefeatable, but the pot is big if he loses."
Zato smiled, his teeth glowing green in the algae light. "You interested?"
"I'll pass for today, Zato." Games like this were common among the miners; gambling on them, even more so. Yuu had gotten roped into it once or twice, and it never ended well.
"That's fine, that's fine." Zato's eyes narrowed. "You haven't forgotten about what you owe from last time, right? 17 dollars. I can wait, but I can't forget."
"I know, Zato," Yuu said, trying his best to smile. "You'll get your money."
"Never doubted you!" Zato cheered, patting Yuu on the head. He stood up, but instead of walking away, he walked around the table.
"Of course, waiting too long really just feels like forgetting, doesn't it?" he hissed, throwing an arm over Yuu's shoulder. "It's effectively the same thing, Yuu. I can't read your mind, after all. Please don't forget about little old me."
"Zato." Clavis slammed his palms down on the table with two Hearty Heart Sandwiches. "Get your hands off of him."
"I was just leaving," Zato said innocently, standing to go. Yuu blinked numbly as Clavis slid his sandwich over to him.
"By the way, Yuu kid," Zato added, turning around. "I decided to save you the trouble and claim some of the debt right now. This should cover half of it." As he spoke, he lifted the blue duradine card. When it came into view, Zato realized what he was holding, and he froze in the blue light along with the entire room.
Yuu had stood up before he'd realized it, grabbing the card and ramming Zato to the ground. Zato sat, stunned, looking at the card in Yuu's hands.
A chair scraped back. Chief Oga had stood up. He walked across the room, seemingly the only person able to move. He picked his ear with his pinky, regarding Yuu's duradine with dull eyes. "So, you found another one, hm? Good job. That's a regular five-dollar bonus for you." He held out his hand.
Yuu pulled the card to his chest. "Sir!" he stammered. "I'd like to buy this card."
Chief Oga shook his head. "That's not up to you. Hand it over."
By now, some of the miners had collected themselves, realizing what they were seeing, mumbling as they surrounded Oga and Yuu.
"Five dollars? That's it?"
"That's a high-grade, it's gotta be!"
"The chief's not even letting him buy it?"
"Why's that kid even want it in the first place?"
"Shut up!" Chief Oga roared, cowing the crowd of workers. "Yuu Tokari, I'm ordering you to hand over that duradine." His shadow seemed to fill the cavern ceiling, pressing down on Yuu.
Clavis flung an arm between them. "Chief, wait-" He'd barely gotten the words out when Oga's fist connected with his side, sending him sprawling against the lunch table.
"Clavis!" Yuu screamed, reaching out. Clavis groaned and clutched his ribs, while the Chief stepped forward, his hands crushing inwards as if to rip Yuu's card from his hands, or his head from his neck.
"What about a wager?" The voice came from the ground. Zato was picking himself up, spreading his hands peacefully. "That's the only fair way to settle, I think."
Yuu's eyes met Zato's, and an understanding passed between them. Right now, the entire room seemed to press inward on the chief, changed in the blue light of Yuu's duradine. "That's right, boss," Yuu said. "If you win, I'll hand the duradine over. If I lose, you'll let me buy it. It's just low-grade duradine, right? You can hand it over at that price."
Veins bulged in Chief Oga's neck, as he glared Yuu down. "Fine. But I get the choice of game. Do you accept?"
There were a few more begrudged murmurs from the audience, but no more than would accompany any usual wager. Zato nodded and stepped back. The crowd parted as Yuu gripped the duradine resolutely, intensifying its glow. "I accept."
"Then the game I choose," Chief Oga said with a twisted grin, "Is Duel Monsters.
"Oh, but Yuu! Looks like you don't have a deck. Well, that's too bad! Looks like I win by default." The chief burst out laughing, his shadow rumbling across the cavern. The miners cowered beneath it, gritting their teeth. Zato deflated, his hands flexing at his sides.
"That's where you're wrong." Clavis pulled himself upright and staggered over to Yuu. "He's got a deck right here." He raised his stack of low-grade.
"Clav," Yuu said, staring at the cards. "Are you sure?"
Clavis nodded. "It's your lucky day, isn't it?"
Yuu took the cards, tears in his eyes. "Yeah, it is."
"Looks like we've got a match!" Zato roared, his voice at a pitch that no one had heard before. Bring out the sunstones!"
In higher tech games of Duel Monsters, the cards were placed into machines to read them. Some of them were even small enough to fit on duelist's arms. But for the miners of Heart Excavation, a source of bright light - sunstones, in this instance - would do just fine. Yuu shuffled his deck, thinking back to his half-games with Clavis. The high-grade slotted in with them, taking on the same sheen as the low-grade as they molded together into a single crystal.
The long, flat sunstone lanterns had straps to bind them to miners as they worked. Yuu and the chief took those straps and wrapped them around their forearm and bicep, making an awkward, metal-banded version of those Duel Monsters machines.
Yuu placed his duradine deck on the platform of the lantern, staring across the emerald room at Chief Oga. He could feel light and shadows pressing in from all sides, but there was something in him that had pushed back on them, like a ripple from a stone in the ocean. He pulled his hard hat from his head and let it fall to the ground, revealing spikes of deep cyan hair. "Lucky, lucky me," he repeated.
The miners had pulled the tables together, sitting in a circle around them, though some had elected to stay standing. Zato was one of them, having inserted himself as the announcer. He'd already taken a few bets from the crowd during the setup, so now he flung his arms wide and shouted loud enough to shake the earth.
"It's time to duel!"
In the bowels of the Heart Mines, the workers crowded around as the sunstones cast the dueling field in shadows on the ceiling. Yuu took a deep breath and placed his hand on his duradine deck, readying himself for the first draw.
Clavis had told him once, "You've got to break five cards clean off! One move! Or else you'll look foolish." They'd spent a whole hour practicing placing their hand on the duradine crystal, drawing five cards in a dramatic arc. Yuu was confident that he could look cool in this duel; he wasn't as assured in his chances of victory.
He glanced ruefully at Clavis, wishing they'd focused more on strategy than style. The old man seemed to be okay, sitting down at the table while another miner checked his injured side. Though he'd entrusted Yuu with his deck, he was looking anxiously at the field, rubbing his beard.
Yuu smiled at him. It was all he could do to stop people from worrying. Right now, his worries were his own to face. And Oga wouldn't go down without a fight. They locked eyes across the room.
"Let's Duel!" Five cards went into Yuu's hand. He'd seen them all before: the low-grades he'd learned Duel Monsters on. Still, it was a passable start.
"I'm first!" Chief Oga shouted, to no objections from his employees. "For my first play, I'm summoning the Immortal Bushi in attack mode!"
He slammed the card down onto the sunstone; the shadowy impression of a samurai took shape on the ceiling. The miners began whispering, in awe of the scale and detail that duradine light produced. The samurai fell from the ceiling and hit the field, frowning down at Yuu with its tall topknot hair.
The Immortal Bushi / Level 3 / EARTH / Warrior / ATK 1200 / DEF 600
"Next, I'll place two cards facedown, and end my turn." The card remained opaque as it hit the playing field in the Spell/Trap zone.
"Phew," Yuu said, then turned to Clavis. "Hey, it's all good, Clav! He forgot to attack me!"
Clavis slapped a hand over his forehead. Zato leaned over to Yuu and spoke out of the corner of his mouth. "Actually, you can't attack on the first turn. That's one of the first things you learn about the game."
"Oh." Yuu turned red. "Right. Well now I know."
Zato paled. "Hey, are you sure you know what you're doing?"
Yuu gave him a winning smile. Zato walked away, probably to hedge some of his bets. Chief Oga burst out laughing. "It's too late to quit now!" he shouted.
"That suits me just fine!" Yuu retorted. "It's my draw!" He ripped a card from his crystal deck, drawing it just the way Clavis had taught him. Looking at his hand, there wasn't much he could do. He supposed he'd actually need to draw the high-grade to make any use of it, and that was a chance all its own.
"I'm bringing out Minefieldriller!" he shouted, letting the shadows congeal into hard, mechanical treads of a tank. A wicked drill began to turn on the head of the machine, ready to gore the samurai.
Minefieldriller / Level 4 / EARTH / Machine / ATK 1500 / DEF 1500
"Minefieldriller! Attack his Immortal Bushi!"
Minefieldriller charged, its drill spinning, shattering the Immortal Bushi apart. Wait, shattering? Yuu rubbed his eyes. Where the samurai warrior's body should be on the ground, there were instead cogs and plates of metal.
"I've activated Scrap-Iron Scarecrow," the chief said smugly as one of his facedown cards flipped over. "It negates your monster's attack."
"You think that's enough to stop me?" Yuu retorted. "Well, it is. For one turn, at least."
"That's not all." Chief Oga grinned. "Scrap-Iron Scarecrow resets itself after activation!" The scrap metal came back together as though magnetized, and Oga's card was once again set on the sunstone.
"Wait, so you can negate all of my attacks?" Yuu shouted. "How is that even fair?"
"Life's not fair, kid!" Chief Oga shot back, laughing.
"Don't panic, Yuu!" Clavis shouted from the sidelines. "Trap cards can't be activated the turn they're set!"
"What does that have to do with-" Yuu blinked. That means he can only use that card once per turn. All I have to do is summon another monster! "Alright, alright, I'm fine. I'll just end my turn here, then!"
"Yuu only played one card?" Zato wiped his forehead, which is to say his entire head. "Oh, no."
"You're in for it now, kid," Chief Oga snarled as he drew a card. "I'm bringing out Kagemusha of the Blue Flame! And I'll get straight to attacking. Immortal Bushi attacks Minefieldriller!"
Kagemusha of the Blue Flame / Level 2 / EARTH / Warrior / ATK 800 / DEF 400
"Huh?" Yuu looked back and forth checking the cards' stats. "But Immortal Bushi is weaker. Won't it get destroyed?"
Chief Oga rubbed his chin. "You know what, you're right, Yuu. I didn't think of that."
"You really forgot?"
"Of course not!" Chief Oga shouted. "I'm activating my trap card, Metalmorph! It equips to my Immortal Bushi, giving it an additional 300 attack points!"
"So now they're equal, and they'll both be destroyed," Clavis mused. "But wait…!"
"Metalmorph has an additional effect when the equipped monster attacks," Chief Oga added. "It gains attack points equal to half of its opponent's!"
"Wait, so that's 2250 in total!" Yuu shouted.
"You know, you're pretty good with quick addition," Zato commented.
"Thanks!" Yuu replied. "But that means my monster loses though, right?"
Zato nodded grimly.
The samurai had been overtaken by an eerie metallic sheen, which had flowed over his swords. The reflection of Minefieldriller in the Bushi's armor suddenly became stunningly real, surging forth from his chest, composed of that same silvery liquid. It crashed into the real Minefieldriller, breaking it to pieces and forcing the card from the board. Yuu sighed as he placed the monster into his graveyard.
"And now, Kagemusha of the Blue Flame attacks directly!"
The second warrior, dormant until now, suddenly sprang forward, drawing a sword from behind his back. Yuu barely had time to think before the shadowy blade cut through him; or rather, passed through him. He felt himself for an injury and found nothing.
The miners had brought out a construction signboard, the same kind used for traffic messages. It had two sides; on Chief Oga's, it read 4000. On Yuu's, the numbers began to flicker, and now rested at 2450.
"Hey Zato," he whispered, leaning over. "What's that on the signboard?"
Zato looked like he would tear his hair out if he had any. "Those are your life points, Yuu. You've lost almost half of them."
"That's the end of my turn!" Oga called.
"Cool." Yuu drew a card. "Alright, now we're talking! I'm activating the spell card, Raimei! It deals 300 points of damage!"
Chief Oga's life points flickered and went to 3700. Chief Oga himself did not react.
This is a pretty bad spot, Yuu thought. I need a way to break through his defenses. Ugh, where's that high-grade? But as he looked around the room, he saw the disappointment on their faces. They don't think I can win. They're probably right. Clavis should be the one up here, not me.
Alright, that's enough out of me! Yuu shook his head hard. Time to focus on what I can do. I got five cards.
"I'm summoning Superheavy Samurai Swordsman!" he exclaimed. "And I'll activate its effect to change it to defense position." A third samurai appeared on the battlefield, but this time on Yuu's side, and this time blocky and mechanical, as though it were an action figure.
Superheavy Samurai Swordsman / Level 3 / EARTH / Machine / ATK 1000 / DEF 1800
"I'll put two cards facedown and end my turn," Yuu declared.
"Hmph. You didn't think your monster could stand up to my Immortal Bushi, did you?" Chief Oga said. "I draw! Now, I'll tribute my Kagemusha of the Blue Flame to summon the Level 5 Freed, the Matchless General!"
Freed the Matchless General / Level 5 / EARTH / ATK 2300 / DEF 1700
"Now he's got two monsters that can wipe out Swordsman," Clavis told Zato. "Unless that facedown card is what I think it is…!"
"I'm activating a Spell Card too! Night Beam! It destroys a facedown card on your field without you getting to activate it!"
Clavis paled. "Oh, no."
"I'm choosing the card on the left," Oga continued. "Now, get that trash off of the field."
Yuu stayed silent. As Clavis and Zato watched with anticipation, he flipped over the card and put it in the graveyard: D2 Shield.
"That card would've let Yuu make his Swordsman indestructible," Clavis lamented.
"I am gonna lose so much money," Zato moaned, his face in his hands.
"That kind of weak play is exactly why you're not cut out to be a duelist, Yuu." Chief Oga had dialed back his tone, a calm shadow taking up half of the room. "Think about it. Every duelist of San Domino has a whole deck of high-grades. What can either of us hope to accomplish?"
Yuu said nothing, his head down.
"I know you agree. You don't have to fight it." Chief Oga's twisted grin returned. "I'll relieve you of those dreams here. Immortal Bushi! Strike down his monster!"
The Immortal Bushi raised his blade and charged at the Superheavy Samurai, who seemed to grow as he got closer. Then, he kept growing, towering over the approaching warrior. The Immortal Bushi suddenly found himself overshadowed, as the Samurai lifted his shield.
"What's going on?" Chief Oga shouted.
"I'll tell you what's happening," Yuu said, reaching for his other facedown card. "I activate my second copy of D2 Shield!"
The miners went crazy. Zato placed a hand over his heart, breathing heavily. Clavis smiled and shook his head. Yuu swept his arm out in his thousand-practiced bravado.
"D2 Shield doubled the defense power of my Swordsman! Time for some big numbers!"
Superheavy Samurai Swordsman - DEF 1800 DEF 3600
The Immortal Bushi's sword clanged off of the D2 shield, jarring the warrior's arm. Chief Oga grimaced as his life points dropped to 2100.
"Swordsman's got its own effect, too! Any monster who fights it has its attack points reduced to 0 afterwards!"
The Immortal Bushi clutched his wrist in pain, dropping his sword. The Matchless General looked on in concern, fear creasing his face.
"I'll place a card facedown and end my turn," Oga snarled.
"Let's dig in!" Yuu shouted, pulling another card from the top of his deck. As he examined it, his eyes widened. It's here! He quickly scanned his hand, a strategy coming together in the back of his mind.
"The first thing I'll do is switch Superheavy Samurai Swordsman into attack mode!" he shouted. "Next, I'll activate Mystical Space Typhoon from my hand! Destroy Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!
Oga braced himself as the storm scattered his scarecrow into the wind. But as it dissipated, he grinned to himself.
"Now I'll activate the effect of a monster in my hand! Because a card was destroyed by card effect, I can special summon it to the field!" Yuu thrust the card in his hand skyward. "This is the high-grade that no one's taking from me! Level 7! Appear, Crime of Prometheus!"
Blinding light erupted onto the cavern floor. The miners shielded their eyes as the formless energy took shape, and something vaguely humanoid alighted onto the battlefield.
Crime of Prometheus / Level 7 / LIGHT / Pyro / ATK 2500 / DEF 2100
"So that's the power of a high grade!" Zato marveled.
"Well done, Yuu!" Clavis shouted.
"Go, Prometheus," Yuu cheered. "Attack Freed the Matchless General!"
Prometheus raised an open palm, and hard wavefronts of light began contorting in a sphere. "Prometheus has another effect, too," Yuu said, grinning. "When it attacks, I can choose a card on your field to destroy, and I'll also draw a card from the deal! So say goodbye to Freed the Matchless General!"
The waves shot forward and embedded themselves in Freed's chest. The old general looked pained as his skin turned pink, light infiltrating his veins and turning his skin translucent.
"If Freed is destroyed, Yuu will be able to attack directly." Clavis stood up. "Crime of Prometheus has enough ATK to eliminate the rest of Oga's life points!"
The audience realized what they were seeing, as Crime of Prometheus swept its hand in sync with Yuu's. "It's time to end this!" he declared. "Prometheus! Stolen Sun Strike!"
"Not so fast," Chief Oga sneered. "I activate my Trap Card!"
An explosion ballooned outwards from Oga's sunstone, spiraling tongues of flame morphing outwards into a spherical surface. As the white light of Prometheus advanced, it was suddenly engulfed in the advancing wave front. It thrashed at the center of the blaze for a split-second before disappearing from view. Superheavy Samurai Swordsman fared worse, its steel frame melting into distended slag on the cave floor. Chief Oga clenched his fist. "Erupt, Blazing Mirror Force!"
"He's got a card like that?" Zato yelled.
"That's not a low-grade at all," Clavis agreed.
"We'll each take damage equal to half of their combined attack points." Oga reached into the flames as they spread out, engulfing the cavern. The miners dove for cover as the room lit vermillion. In the center of the conflagration, Yuu felt like the fire was corroding him, burning him away to nothing but ash. He stood numb as his life points fell to 700. Without Prometheus and the blaze of light, the room was swallowed by darkness again.
In reality, he hadn't thought that far ahead when claiming the card. He'd mostly gotten swept up in the heat of the moment, put upon by Clavis and Zato. Why should he have to be the one fighting? In all of this time spent dreaming about his lucky find, he never once considered what he would do with it. Wasn't it enough to be lucky? Suddenly, he was keenly aware of himself at the bottom of the insurmountable world, staring up into the stars.
The stars. Yuu had never really intended to reach them. At the very least, he knew that he lacked the talent. Maybe it really was better to let it all end here. Lunch break was almost over, after all.
"Keep going!" It wasn't a voice he recognized that ripped him from his despair. Rather, it was someone in the crowd, a miner he'd never heard before. The cascade of shouts grew, until everyone in the audience clamored. Some were angry, some were hopeful. All of them were focused on the duel.
"Come on, kid!" Zato shouted. "Your luck's about to turn!"
"Yuu!" Clavis shouted. "The effect of Prometheus still resolves! You destroyed Freed!"
Yuu looked across the field. Freed the Matchless General had been reduced to a pile of ash; only the metallic Immortal Bushi remained. Yuu drew a card. An evil grin greeted him from mouth of a bright-red tomato. He couldn't attack with it, but it was the perfect card to defend his comeback.
"I'm setting a monster facedown," he said. "That's the end of my turn."
"Hang in there, Yuu!" Clavis shouted from the sidelines. "Oga took as much damage as you!"
Yuu glanced to the screen and saw it was true: Oga's life points had dropped all the way to 350. Two more Raimei and I'm set!
Chief Oga scoffed as he drew a card. "The damage doesn't matter. Not when I'm bringing out my ace! Go, Junk Synchron!" More scrap metal conglomerated in the shadows, but this time, a heroic orange sheen spread across the creature's body. Twin scraps of paper trailed from its shoulders like a scarf.
Junk Synchron / Level 3 / Dark / Warrior / Tuner / ATK 1300 / DEF 500
"A tuner monster?" Clavis paled. "Oh, no."
"All bets are off!" Zato screamed. "Do you hear me? They're off!"
"I'm activating the effect of Junk Synchron," Oga said. "It lets me call back a monster from the scrap heap! I'll summon back my Kagemusha of the Blue Flame!"
Junk Synchron plunged its hands into the earth, dredging up the broken body of the kagemusha. Suddenly, the dust and blood were swept away from the warrior's body, and it stood, prepared again for battle.
"Now, Level 3 Junk Synchron tunes Level 3 Immortal Bushi and Level 2 Kagemusha of the Blue Flame." Chief Oga said. "I synchro summon!"
As the miners watched, Junk Synchron exploded into three circle of green light. They surrounded the two samurai and began to spin, as the warriors decomposed and recomposed piece by piece in the light.
3+2+3=8
"The only way to live in a prison is to rule it," Chief Oga declared, reaching into his pocket and drawing out a card that glowed bright red. "Come forth! Level 8 Junk Jailer!"
Rust-eaten cogs spun and locked into place. Old chains hung down from the creature's body as it stomped on the ground, sending a shockwave through the cave. In its hands, it wielded a manacle on a chain like a spinning hammer, its eyes glowing red.
Junk Jailer / Level 8 / Dark / Warrior / Synchro / ATK 3000 / DEF 500
"He's got his own high grade!"
"Just how many people did you cheat to build that deck?"
"Shut it!" Oga roared, his eyes tidal waves. "This card is mine! Understand?" The clamor died down to an angry rumble. "Now, Junk Jailer reduces the attack points of all of your monsters to 0. Though, it looks like the one you have is too scared to fight! That's too bad; Junk Jailer, attack his facedown monster!"
"Alright!" Yuu jumped up in celebration. "You attacked my Mystic Tomato!"
Mystic Tomato / Level 4 / DARK / Plant / ATK 1400 / DEF 1100
Mystic Tomato popped up from the facedown card, grinning - until it saw the steel manacle of Junk Jailer crashing down on it. The crowd winced at the ensuing vegetable gore.
Good thing I haven't eaten yet, Yuu thought. "Mystic Tomato's effect activates when it's destroyed! I can special summon a DARK monster from my deck!"
The ghostly apparition of Mystic Tomato reappeared on the field, laughing as it approached Yuu's deck - and then, it stopped, its grin froze, the manacle of Junk Jailer forced around its mouth like a bit.
"You thought you could get away from me?" Chief Oga asked. "Once per turn, Junk Jailer can negate the activation of a monster effect!"
Junk Jailer spun Mystic Tomato's ghost over its head with the chain, before swinging it downwards to splatter on the cave floor. One of the miners threw up and went to buy a second lunch.
"That ends my turn," Chief Oga declared. "Now, I'll accept your surrender and that Crime of Prometheus."
Yuu took a deep breath. "Sorry, Chief. I'm not surrendering yet. I'm not surrendering ever!" He slashed his hand across the duradine, scraping his knuckles as he drew his card. A picture of an ankh, a looped cross, with sharpened blades greeted him.
It was never about reaching the stars. It was about bringing them down to earth. "I normal summon Constellar Kaus in attack mode!" An ivory-clad archer sprang forth, its bow trained on Junk Jailer.
Constellar Kaus / Level 4 / LIGHT / Beast-Warrior / ATK 1800 / DEF 700
"What are you doing!" Zato screamed. "Attack mode? That monster's too weak to beat Jailer!"
"I'm not done yet!" Yuu exclaimed, slamming the final card from his hand onto the field. "I activate the spell card, Battle Reborn! It lets me Special Summon a monster from my graveyard with ATK less than or equal to the highest on the field! Junk Jailer has 3000, so I can choose whoever I want. Guess who it is?"
"Come on, then!" Oga laughed. "Bring that card out for its farewell tour!"
"You know, Chief, I like your style." Yuu had his finger pointed straight up to the cave ceiling. "You really know how to bring out an ace. Let me try it too!"
The shadows converged, and suddenly, the miners could see stars in their firmament. Those stars grew brighter, until lines of light cracked between them, constellating like lightning.
"Stolen from the gods, this star descends for all of humanity!" Yuu's pointed finger flexed, turning into a grasping hand. "Return to us now! Crime of Prometheus!"
The shadow ceiling broke apart, the light falling like a drop of honey to the field. When it hit the ground, it plumed, casting brilliant rays across the mine. Standing in the center was the robed, humanoid ghost that Yuu had seen before. It was impossible to truly know, but it felt as though it was looking straight at him.
"Prometheus," Yuu declared. "Like it or not, you're stuck with me. And that means we're taking this all the way to the top! Attack Junk Jailer and destroy it with Stolen Sun Strike!"
Prometheus raised a hand, and light scintillated in half-moon waves, washing over the scrap-clad warrior.
"You're wasting your time!" Chief Oga said. "Junk Jailer negates your monster's effect! It's not destroying anything!"
Junk Jailer stood steadfast and intercepted Prometheus, this time swinging the manacle to cut the primordial being in half. Once again, Prometheus dissipated into the dark. Yuu's life points fell to 200.
"At least you're going down fighting, right?" Chief Oga said. "Be proud, kid. Now attack with your other monster and put an end to your fantasy!"
"I was actually planning to do just that."
Chief Oga stumbled back as the white fires reignited, this time surrounding Yuu. "What's going on?"
"Crime of Prometheus has an effect when it's destroyed," Yuu explained, light surging from his mouth every time he opened it. "I select one monster I control to gain Prometheus's original attack points."
Chief Oga watched, stunned, as Constellar Kaus braced itself, possessed by divine miasma. "That's Kaus's 1800…plus 2500?"
"And that monster," Yuu declared, "takes the name of the Crime of Prometheus!"
Every joint and orifice of Kaus ignited at once, transforming its shape. The ivory bow doubled in size, old runes running down the curve of its body. Its eyes affixed its enemy with unflinching rebellion.
"The Crime of Prometheus lives on in all of us," Yuu declared. "Now go! Crime of Prometheus! Inherited Star Strike!"
The archer, now enveloped by the aura of Prometheus, raised its bow. A stream of light burst forth, pulverizing Junk Jailer's torso like a waterfall. Chief Oga screamed as Junk Jailer crashed to the ground. He fell to his knees, his life points finally hitting 0.
Chief Oga - 0 LP
Yuu Tokari - 200 LP
The lights and shadows dissipated as the sunstones hit the ground, inactive once more. Yuu was left staring up at where he'd seen those stars, and remained that way as Zato tackled him into a hug. He was nearly crushed in the swell of his colleagues, but they parted as Clavis burst through and, tears in his eyes, hugged Yuu close. Yuu felt as though the stars had come down and surrounded him, pressing him into their warmth.
Chief Oga hadn't gotten up. He was on his hands and knees, staring into the ground until some miners approached him.
"So, you had a high-grade after all, Chief?"
"Skimmed it off our work. Anything to make money, huh?"
"You're disgusting."
The miners, emboldened, turned to go. Chief Oga's arms gave out, bringing his face ever closer to the floor.
"Hold it!"
Yuu's hands were around Chief Oga's shoulders. He wasn't strong enough to lift him to his feet, but he rotated the chief until he was sitting on the ground, Yuu kneeling with him.
"I know why you had that high-grade, Chief," Yuu said. "You weren't going to sell it, were you? You were going to keep it as your ace monster."
Chief Oga's eyes welled with tears.
"I'm a duelist. I know that now," Yuu said. "That's how I know you're a duelist too - eh?"
Yuu sprawled to the side, the chief having shoved him over. "Shut up!" the chief said, hiding his eyes. "You've got no idea what you're talking about. A duelist? Neither of us could call ourselves that."
He stood up. "I'll let you keep that low-grade Prometheus trash. No charge, either. Consider it a bonus for the dining entertainment." He glared around the room. "You've got two minutes left on your lunch break!"
"Oh man!" Yuu sprang to his feet and dove for his wrapped sandwich on the table. "Clavis, help me!"
"Help you how?" Clavis said, bewildered, but eventually he was hammering the sandwich with the heel of his palm like it was a bolt into a rock wall, the rock wall being Yuu's face hole. He stopped when Yuu began to choke.
"Hang on kid, don't die on me!" All of the other workers either hurriedly finished their meals, or stood up and stretched as they waited for the second half of their workday to be upon them. With the duel over, the magic had dissipated from the room, and a dreary mood leached back into the mines of Heart Excavation. All of them fell back into rhythm, except for Zato Sanada, who kept a careful eye on the chief and Yuu.
He smiled to himself. Maybe it was his lucky day, too.