ONE MORE TIME
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"LET'S DUEL!"
The crowd had erupted into mayhem upon the declaration from the two duelists, but then settled down soon after, waiting with baited breath for the rematch of the century to commence.
After a minute of observing the five he already held, Kaiba drew his sixth card.
"This is it," he thought. "An opportunity to test myself simply for the sake of testing myself. It's all I've ever wanted my entire time in Duel Monsters, and I'm going to make the most of it."
"I summon Blade Knight (1600/1000) in attack mode," he declared, placing a card vertically on his Duel Disk.
A metallic-blue-armored warrior with a curved and thick sword rose onto the field. He wore a protective, knight-like helmet with a diamond-shaped and closed visor. He had blue, double-layered shoulder pads, and his black-gloved hands grasped his almost glowing sword, and a gray and black shield. The sword had a red handle, with a green and circular gemstone embedded at the center of it.
"Then I'll add one facedown card and end my turn."
Yugi nodded, and drew his first card of the duel as well.
He looked up from his hand, eyes blazing. "My turn! I summon Skilled Dark Magician (1900/1700)!"
A mage in black robes with large shoulder pads, a green staff held in two hands, black gloves, a black helmet, and only his face visible appeared.
"Then, I'll play Graceful Charity, which as you know allows me to draw three cards before discarding two of them."
Kaiba seemed unbothered by this, while the crowd seemed on the edge of their seats as Yugi looked over his now seven card hand before selecting two of them and sliding them into the graveyard slot on his Duel Disk.
Meanwhile, a small orb lit up on the Skilled Dark Magician's staff.
"Since one of us played a spell card, my magician gains a spell counter as I'm sure you remember," Yugi explained, before then pointing authoritatively at Kaiba's field.
"Now, attack his Knight with Skilled Dark Magic Attack!"
The magician raised his staff and from it issued forth a sphere of black energy. Just as it seemed ready to slam into Kaiba's monster, he reacted.
"I activate my facedown trap Command Silencer! Now your attack is negated, and I am allowed to draw one card."
A large totem pole materialized between the two monsters. It let out a wave of sonic energy, which was so loud that it brought the Skilled Dark Magician down on one knee, covering his ears in order to protect them.
Yugi nodded again. "Fine. I'll end my turn there."
Kaiba drew again, and grinned as he saw what his latest card was.
"I call out my Vorse Raider (1900/1200) in attack mode!"
A thick, tan, and bulky beast erupted onto the field, wielding a dark-chrome and pointed axe. It had vicious, yellow teeth, and equally disturbing, red eyes. Its war helmet barely contained the large, white horns on its head's tip.
"Its attack points are currently equal to that of my Skilled Dark Magician," observed Yugi.
"Not if I activate my quick-play spell card, Shrink, in order to halve your magician's attack points!"
Yugi frowned in as his spellcaster (950/1700) suddenly seemed to shrink to half his previous size. Meanwhile another orb lit up around his staff.
"Don't forget that by your activation of a spell card, Skilled Dark Magician gains another counter," countered Yugi authoritatively.
Kaiba gave him a bored look. "It's not going to matter, is it? Vorse Raider, cut his magician to pieces! Bloodlust Slash!"
The growling creature charged across the field, and raised its axe above the helpless magician, ready to cleave him in half.
It was then that Yugi reacted. "I activate the effect of the monster I discarded last turn… And it's one that I'm sure you'll remember from our duel in Battle City! Electromagnetic Turtle (0/1800)!"
A small, mechanical reptile appeared floating over Vorse Raider. It was barely three feet across, and had a metal shell and helmet. The letters 'S' and 'N' were emblazoned across its front, and a small tail which extended out behind it. It fell onto the attacking monster, with a small spark leaving its body: following which the mad beast stopped in its tracks, and slowly stalked back over to Kaiba's field.
"I should have expected stall tactics like these," Kaiba half-sneered, but it was clearly said bereft of much actual venom.
Yugi smirked. "As I said earlier, I'm sure you remember that since Electromagnetic Turtle was discarded during your battle phase, it ends immediately. Do you have anything else in store?"
Kaiba's brow creased. "Fine. I set one card and end my turn."
As Yugi drew, the strength of his Skilled Dark Magician (1900/1700) returned to normal.
"I activate Summoner's Art," he declared, sliding a card into his Duel Disk. "This allows me to add one level five or higher normal monster from my deck to my hand. I choose the Summoned Skull (2500/1200)."
He located the card as another orb appeared around his sole monster's staff.
"But more importantly, as you know, my Skilled Dark Magician gains his final spell counter… Which means I can sacrifice him to summon my one and only Dark Magician (2500/2100) from my deck!"
The black robed mage vanished in a small flash of light, which consumed Yugi's field for a moment. A taller, sleeker form emerged from within it, leaping into the air before flipping forward into a crouch in the middle of the arena. It was the easily recognizable wizard in purple robes, and as he stood up and brandished his green staff, the crowd went wild.
Kaiba folded his arms, a faint smile gracing his face. "So, he finally makes his appearance…"
Yugi thrust a hand forward, and called out, loudly enough to be heard over the crowd, "Now, Dark Magician attack his Vorse Raider! Dark Magic Attack!"
The iconic mage raised a hand, causing the Kaiba's snarling, beastly creature to freeze in place. It seemed to struggle momentarily, but it was to little avail: a moment later, the Dark Magician's brow furrowed, and seconds later its target seemed to turn purple before then shattering into pieces.
(Kaiba: 7400, Yugi: 8000)
"Not bad, Yugi, I must admit," drawled Kaiba. "Only your second turn and you've already brought out your favorite monster… You certainly haven't lost your touch."
"It hasn't been that long since the Duel Dome, Kaiba," chuckled Yugi.
"Well, that one was interrupted," responded his opponent. "Today, we'll be seeing this through to the end."
Yugi nodded, privately musing that in a way the two duels couldn't be more different, because the Kaiba he was facing right now was driven by completely different things than the one he had faced that night in the Dome before Aigami had rained on their parade.
He then glanced down at his hand before plucking a card out of it. "I set one card facedown and end my turn."
The CEO drew.
"It's time, Yugi," he declared simply. "If you decided to bring out your Dark Magician this early, well…"
The crowd seemed to draw a collective breath as they quickly grasped what was being implied.
"I activate Cost Down, discarding one card from my hand in order to reduce the levels of all monsters in my hand by two. So, I'll sacrifice Blade Knight to summon my ultimate beast… Come out, Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!"
A hole burned in the sky, and through the opening emerged the enormous light-blue dragon, dark-blue eyes flashing brilliantly. It had very short, thin arms, but immense wings that cast a shadow over most of Kaiba's field. The enormous torso was supported on a pair of powerful legs, barreling down to sharpened, white nails for feet. The dragon mightily hovered about in midair, flaunting its razor-like teeth in Yugi's direction.
If the crowd had been excited before, it now quickly shifted into delirium. A showdown between two of the three most iconic monsters in the game, this early on? It was almost too good to be true.
The Dark Magician narrowed his eyes and lifted his staff. The two had no need to get acquainted.
"Now Yugi, watch as my dragon ends this battle before its even begun! White Lighting!"
The dragon parted its jaws, and a sphere of white energy began to form between them. It raised its head, and a sphere of white energy began to form within its mouth. Like a whip-lash, it then swung its long neck forward, and let out all the pent-up energy in one massive, glowing wave in the direction of its eternal rival. The attack hit the mage full on, completely consuming it.
A dome of energy began to expand around the field, blinding both duelists as well as the crowd. When it finally exploded, dust clouded the air.
Kaiba seemed about to gloat, before he noticed that the life-point counts hadn't shifted.
"Kuriboh, again?" he observed with a hint of annoyance. Yugi and his Dark Magician came into view, unharmed.
"Not quite, Kaiba," chuckled the shorter duelist. "It was Wabuko."
"I'm not sure how I'd have felt being back on the receiving end of that one again," admitted Kaiba with a smirk, drawing a similar expression from his opponent.
There was clearly an inside-joke between the two on this topic, but no one in the crowd seemed to get it besides Tea, who herself smiled at the memory of Yugi handing the little furball over to Kaiba that night at the Tower.
Kaiba then plucked another card out of his hand and slid it into his Duel Disk. "Fine, it looks like this exchange was just the appetizer for now. I activate my facedown Silent Doom. Now, the both of us may special summon one monster from our graveyards in facedown defense mode."
He found the appropriate one in his graveyard and placed it facedown and horizontally on his Duel Disk.
Yugi didn't really have a choice, as the only monster within his graveyard was Skilled Dark Magician (1900/1700), which he plucked out of his graveyard.
"Then I set my final card facedown," continued Kaiba. "That ends my turn."
Yugi snapped the top card off his deck, taking a moment to assess the game-state.
Kaiba now had an empty hand, but a considerable field presence to outweigh it. Yugi knew his opponent well enough to be cognizant of the fact that he wouldn't overcommit without having some kind of backup.
"I tribute my facedown monster in order to call upon my Summoned Skull (2500/1200)!"
Lightning suddenly struck the field without warning, and from within it came a demonic monster made of white bone and red muscle. Each of its hands and feet had three claws; on its back a pair of blue wings. The head looked mostly like a skull, with a pair of frighteningly sharp horns curving out the top of it.
At this, the crowd erupted once again, pleased to see yet another iconic monster from Yugi.
"Then, Kaiba, I will equip my Dark Magician with Magician's Tome! This will increase his attack points by seven hundred!"
The purple-robed spellcaster glowed with magical energy as his attack points took a slight turn upward (3200/2100). Kaiba's face remained impassive at this.
"Now, Dark Magician: destroy his Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" declared the King of Games.
"Not so fast Yugi!" retorted his opponent. "I activate my facedown trap card, Attack Guidance Armor!"
A large, mask-shaped metal piece of armor appeared out of nowhere, and fitted itself onto the Summoned Skull. It began to glow, and for some reason, attracted the Dark Magician's attention. He turned to the demon, eyes blazing, and let lose a bolt of green energy. It slammed into the fiend, who let out a small groan of pain before he exploded into nothingness.
(Kaiba: 7400, Yugi: 7300)
"As you know by this point, Attack Guidance Armor changes the target of your attack to any one face-up monster on the field," chuckled Kaiba.
Even as he said this, his mind momentarily turned back to that final move of his duel with Apep, which was the last time he had used this card.
Shaking out of the reverie, he focused his attention back on Yugi, who commented, "That kind of preparedness is a surprise coming from you, Kaiba."
"There's more where that came from," retorted the CEO.
Yugi smiled at this, before glancing back at his hand and announcing, "Fine. I'll put this one card facedown and end my turn."
Kaiba drew.
"Now, I think it's time we restore the natural state of affairs when it comes down to the hierarchy of power between my Blue-Eyes and your Magician, don't you? I activate Aura with Eyes of Blue, which can only be activated if I have a Blue Eyes White Dragon in play. Now, I can destroy one face-up magic or trap card on your side of the field, and draw one card!"
The Blue Eyes opened its maw, but this time it was not an attack that issued forth. It was a sort of light, cleansing wave of energy which washed over Yugi's field, specifically, the Dark Magician. When it finished, he was gasping for air and his strength had taken a noticeable dip (2500/2100).
Yugi frowned. "You should know that when Magician's Tome is destroyed, I gain one thousand life-points."
(Kaiba: 7400, Yugi: 8300)
"It doesn't matter!" boomed Kaiba. "Blue Eyes, destroy his Dark Magician! White Lightning!"
The powerful dragon let out another torrent of shining white energy in the direction of its eternal rival. This time, it seemed like the attack was well on its way to succeeding, when Yugi tapped a button on his Duel Disk once again.
"Go, Zero Gravity! This will change the battle position of all face-up monsters. This means that since it'll be in defense mode, your Blue-Eyes will not be able to target my Dark Magician!"
As if by some unseen force, the jaws of the dragon were clamped shut, and it folded its wings over itself, stopping the attack mid-stream.
"Fine!" nodded Kaiba, still not betraying any sense of annoyance. "I set one card facedown and end my turn."
Yugi drew calmly. "Time's up for your dragon, Kaiba. I activate Thousand Knives!"
Several glowing knives with maroon-colored hilts all materialized in mid-air around Yugi's iconic monster, drawing another reaction from the crowd.
"As I'm sure you remember, when my Dark Magician is in play this lets me destroy one monster on your field!"
As he spoke, the mage swung its staff forward, directing the knives forward. They seemed to multiply as they flew through the air, suddenly almost at the point where they looked a threat to the gargantuan dragon they were targeting.
"If my Blue-Eyes is going down, he's going to take your Dark Magician with him," retorted Kaiba, tapping a button on his Duel Disk. "I activate my facedown Book of Taiyou, which allows me to flip one facedown monster face-up, preserving any effect which would have been activated had it been flipped normally!"
The brown-backed card that had been sitting on his field since he had summoned it with Silent Doom vanished, replaced by a small, sphere-shaped jar. It was made of stainless steel and had all kinds of complicated dials and antennas on it. On one side it sported a large, green, bulbous eye.
"Cyber Jar (900/900)!" gasped Yugi in realization.
Kaiba nodded. "You know what's next. All monsters in play are destroyed, and we each draw five cards from our deck. Any level four or lower monsters that are drawn this way may be special summoned in face-up attack or facedown defense position!"
The small, mechanical creature suddenly exploded, sending out arcs of energy. Two arcs hit the dragon and the magician respectively, slicing them both in half, which resulted in two further explosions that also vaporized the knives that remained in mid-air through all this.
Amidst the smoke and devastation, the two rivals drew the appropriate number of cards from their deck, with the crowd murmuring in shock as the game state being reset like this.
Kaiba gave a confident smirk. "I summon X-Head Cannon (1800/1600) in attack mode, and then I'll set another monster facedown."
A blue and yellow legless robot creature materialized on his field, sporting twin cannons extending out of its shoulders. Next to it was another brown card, positioned horizontally.
Yugi grimaced. Well, time to start from scratch again.
"I summon Queen's Knight (1600/1400) and Magician's Valkyria (1600/1800)."
Two female monsters appeared on Yugi's field. One was a warrior with blond hair that fell to her mid-back, dressed in pink armor, except for her legs which were bare, and holding a sword in her left hand and a triangle like shield.
Next to her was a young female mage with long chestnut colored hair that reached her mid-back, wearing blue and purple dress and hat. In her right hand was a light grey scepter with three green jewels in it.
Now Yugi had five cards in his hand, as compared to Kaiba's three.
"Well, it's still my move," declared Yugi, gazing over the five cards he held before plucking out one of them and sliding it into his Duel Disk.
"I play Reinforcement of the Army, which allows me to add one level four or lower warrior-type monster from my deck to my hand. I choose King's Knight (1600/1400), which I will then summon in attack mode!
A tall, blue-caped knight appeared on the field, wearing a short golden helmet and a golden suit of armor, similar to that of Queen's Knight's, except it also had blue, spiked, ring-like attachments near the right wrist. The shield he held was thick, golden, and round-shaped, with a star-like design on the front of it. He too pulled out a sword, matching the one Queen's Knight had.
"Now, with both King's Knight and Queen's Knight on the field, I can special summon Jack's Knight (1900/1000) from my deck!"
This one had a blue, king's-like crown, and similar armor to King's Knight; however, this one's armor was blue in addition to golden. He had blue, cape-like pants, and a kite-shaped, blue shield with a golden cross design. He drew his sword, and the three knights clashed them together.
Kaiba rolled his eyes. "So, are we just reliving the greatest hits today?"
"Well, everyone watching seems to be loving it, so maybe we should just keep going with the flow," joked Yugi, before then pointing at Kaiba's field.
"Now I'll have Queen's Knight attack your facedown monster: Sword of Hearts!"
The red armored woman ran forward, bringing her sword back and then swinging it forward to cut the facedown card in half.
It flipped up to reveal a black-robed demonic creature, with a lean frame and skeletal hands snaking out of its sleeves. Its face was completely shrouded, exposing only two horns sticking out of either side of its head. It raised a scythe in defense, but it was to no avail, as the sword mercilessly cleaved it in half.
"That was a mistake, Yugi. By destroying my Abyss Guardian (0/0), you not only take eight hundred points of damage, but the battle phase ends then and there!" hissed Kaiba.
Yugi recoiled as black smoke exploded outward from Kaiba's field, wafting through his monsters and then surrounding him.
(Kaiba: 7400, Yugi: 7500)
Yugi frowned. Attacking X-Head Cannon with Jack's Knight, followed by direct attacks from King's Knight and Valkyria would have brought Kaiba to his knees; a total of thirty-three hundred points of damage. Yet his opponent had neutered it all with just one monster.
"Fine. I'll set one card facedown and end my turn. Your move, Kaiba."
Kaiba snapped the top card off his deck.
"I switch X-Head Cannon to defense mode, then I set one monster in defense mode. I add two facedown cards, and end my turn."
The hovering machine touched down on the ground, its massive arms forming an 'X' across its chest. Appearing next to it was a horizontal card, and behind it were two more vertical ones.
Yugi drew, giving him four cards in his hand to Kaiba's just one.
"All right, try and find a way out of this, Kaiba! Jack's Knight, attack and destroy X-Head Cannon for good!"
The most powerful monster that Yugi had on the field nodded to his master, and then took off through the darkness, bringing his sword down on the weaker machine. This time, there was no avoiding it. With a heavy metallic screech, the X-Head Cannon broke apart, and the multiple pieces exploded in mid-air.
"Now for your facedown: King's Knight, attack!"
The second male knight took the charge this time. He slashed downward, and the card flipped up to reveal a furry, demonic creature. It looked a bit like a pumpkin, with orange skin, large, primal yellow eyes, and long, green limbs. It let out a harsh screech before it vanished into nothingness.
"You destroyed Sangan (1000/600), and you know what that means," declared Kaiba. "I can now add one monster with fifteen hundred or less attack points to my hand from my deck… But there's more: I also chain my facedown trap, Soul Rope! Since you destroyed a monster on my field, I can pay one thousand life-points and summon one level four monster from my deck straight to the field!"
As his life-points dipped, the genius of what Kaiba was working toward began to dawn on Yugi.
(Kaiba: 6400, Yugi: 7500)
"I'll choose to bring out Y-Dragon Head (1500/1600) in defense mode," he announced. "Then, with Sangan's effect, I'll add Z-Metal Tank (1500/1300) to my hand."
Suddenly, a red, metal dragon with turquoise eyes and lightning currents running all over it materialized onto Kaiba's field, wings crossed across the front of its body in a protective stance.
"Y-Dragon Head has too many defense points for either of your Queen's Knight or Magician's Valkyria to destroy it," continued the CEO, smirking faintly.
Yugi grimaced. Of course, this was true. He looked at his hand once more before admitting, "Fine. That will end my turn."
Kaiba drew.
"Since you seem so set on going old-school, Yugi, I only think it's right that I join you. First, I summon Z-Metal Tank (1500/1300) in attack mode!"
A yellow and green, four-legged machine appeared on his field; with each of its legs thicker than its torso alone. Antenna-like attachments stuck out of its head, framing one large eye that strangely resembled the Eye of Anubis.
"Still only two," thought Yugi desperately, but a part of him knew that his opponent wouldn't have put in all this effort if he couldn't apply the finishing touch.
"Finally, I activate my facedown trap Call of the Haunted, which allows me to once again special summon X-Head Cannon (1800/1600) from my graveyard!"
The familiar blue mechanical terror reappeared on his field, floating in between Y-Dragon Head and Z-Metal Tank.
"I think you know what's coming now, Yugi… Now I'll remove all three monsters from play to fuse them into my XYZ Dragon Cannon (2800/2600)!"
Launching into the air by use of their thrusters, the three machine creatures began to form into one creature. The tank became the bottom and took up position while waiting for the other two to link up.
Slowly, Y-Dragon Head's wings broke off of its body while its head retracted. X-Head Cannon lowered itself into a port within the dragon's back and linked up, before finally the two came landed on the tank and they all settled back on the ground. A bit of electricity flashed through the air when the three finally fully powered up.
The crowd continued to murmur, remembering Kaiba's use of this iconic fusion at the Battle City semi-final.
Yugi couldn't help but smile. "You're one to talk about doing the greatest hits, Kaiba."
"Hey, you did say the crowd loves it," retorted Kaiba, also fighting back a smirk. He then pointed at Yugi's field.
"Next, I'll activate his effect, discarding one card from my hand in order to destroy one card on your field. So, I'll send White Stone of Legend (300/250) to the graveyard and target your Magician's Valkyria for destruction!"
The mechanical fusion's main guns began to glow, whir and buzz, before it soon expelled two columns of white nuclear energy from the two guns toward the female mage on Yugi's field. She let out a small cry of shock before the energy consumed her completely.
"And you probably haven't heard of White Stone of Legend before this, but when it's send to the graveyard from either my field or hand, I can add one Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500) from my deck to my hand," continued Kaiba evenly.
Yugi's frown deepened. Yet another way for Kaiba to access his ace monster sooner.
"Don't worry yourself about my Blue-Eyes yet though, because I have something more pressing for you right here! XYZ Dragon Cannon, destroy his Queen's Knight… Full Laser Destruction!"
The mechanized terror let out another whir, and once again, two streams of nuclear energy exited out of the X-Head Cannon's turret guns. The attacks surged forth, slamming into the female knight, evaporating her on contact.
(Kaiba: 6400, Yugi: 6200)
"I set this final card facedown and end my turn," chuckled Kaiba. "Make your move."
Yugi drew, glancing from his hand to the field before speaking.
"All right, Kaiba, if you are ready to start breaking the heavy hitters… I think it's time I do the same."
"There's nothing I would like more," retorted the CEO with a smirk.
"Be careful what you wish for, Kaiba, warned Yugi, also with a bit of a smirk, before sliding a card into his Duel Disk and continuing, "I activate the Warrior Returning Alive, which lets me add one warrior-type monster in my graveyard back to my hand. I choose Queen's Knight (1500/1600)."
"Are you planning to just give me another chance to destroy her?" drawled his opponent.
"Actually, no," interrupted Yugi. "And if you let me finish, you'll see my true aim. I then activate Fusion Sage, which allows me to add Polymerization from my deck to my hand."
Kaiba's brow furrowed. "Wait, Polymerization…"
"Which I will then play immediately! Polymerization, activate, and fuse the King's Knight and Jack's Knight on my field with the Queen's Knight in my hand to summon my one and only Arcana Knight Joker (3800/2500)!"
A spectral form of the female knight appeared on his field once again in between the two male ones. All three of them drew their swords, crossing them in mid-air. Then, they began to meld together, entering a rapidly spinning vortex that gave off an extremely bright light.
Finally, a far more powerful looking knight emerged from the swirling portal. He stood a good seven feet tall, and wore purple armor, with many parts of it, such as the shoulders and abdomen, covered by golden and silver plates. A black joker hat covered his head, while he wielded a gigantic broadsword in his right hand and a triangular, silver shield was strapped to his left.
"Don't let the name 'Joker' fool you, he's deadly serious," warned Yugi.
Kaiba snorted. "I wasn't planning to, but don't expect me to tremble in fear either."
"Well, maybe it's time for him to show you different," declared Yugi with a grin. "Arcana Knight Joker, attack and destroy XYZ Dragon Cannon!"
The tall man switched his sword into his right hand, took three menacing steps forward, and then charged full tilt towards his mechanized opponent. He brought his sword backward in a flourish and was about to swing it forward, when he paused in mid-air, disconcerted by the appearance of a spinning black vortex.
"Negate Attack," realized Yugi.
"You catch on quickly," chuckled Kaiba.
The spikey-haired duelist shrugged. "All right, your Dragon Cannon will survive for another turn then, I suppose. My turn ends."
Kaiba drew, and with a single glance at the new card he slid it into his graveyard.
"I discard this card in order to have XYZ Dragon Cannon destroy your Arcana Knight Joker!"
The mechanical beast let out another strange groan, and the X-Head Cannon's turrets, the Y-Dragon Head's mouth, and the Z-Metal Tank's cannons began to light up at the same time. At Kaiba's command, all three unleashed a wave of energy simultaneously in the Knight's direction.
"So much for that lesson he was supposed to teach me," Kaiba taunted loudly enough for his voice to carry over the din.
"It'll keep," replied Yugi evenly, sliding a card from his hand into his own graveyard. At this, the seemingly defenseless warrior snapped his shield upward, letting it take the full force of the attack. It was strong enough that the energy generated by the XYZ Dragon Cannon just bounced off and crashed into a rock in the corner.
Kaiba froze.
"Wait… How did that happen?!"
"You didn't really think Arcana Knight Joker had no effects, did you?" Yugi responded with a taunt of his own. "It's got a rather simple but extremely effective one. At the cost of one discard, it can negate any spell, trap or monster effect that would targets it… meaning you just discarded a card for nothing!"
Kaiba allowed himself a faint smirk. "Not nothing…"
Yet he kept that thought to himself. "All right. Since you're so confident, I'll give you a chance to show off. I end my turn."
This gave Yugi pause. He had already seen this from Kaiba in the semi-final duel between him and Joey, but it was different to experience it up close while being the opponent himself. After all, in all their prior clashes, the man had never seemed so calm at being foiled.
Kaiba's dueling style had always largely been one that revolved around brute force and just crushing whatever was in front of him.
Of course, he was also a brilliant and ruthless strategist: after all, at Battle City it was he who had studied the Winged Dragon of Ra and realized that Fiend's Sanctuary was the key to beating it.
Yet when he had dueled Atem (and Yugi by proxy), all this would be largely cast aside in favor of simply trying to overwhelm them, as if Kaiba himself was too wrapped up in his own anger and resentment to think the duel through like he normally would.
This, of course, was what oftentimes led to his eventual loss, and Atem himself had made this clear to Kaiba at the conclusion of their duel at Battle City.
Yugi found himself staring at his opponent, lost in thought.
"I know something has changed within him… Even moreso since the whole thing with Apep. It's as if he finally decided to take what Atem said to him over a year ago to heart. What exactly happened?"
He shook his head, bringing his focus back to the duel. The duel that was likely going to be the toughest of his life given Kaiba's new demeanor. The thought alone made his blood boil with anticipation.
He drew, and then pointed at the apparently defenseless XYZ Dragon Cannon.
"This time, your machine is gone for good! Attack, Arcana Knight Joker!"
The warrior brandished his blade and rushed across the field again. This time it would succeed, Yugi was sure of it, Kaiba had no facedown cards after all…
"I remove Necro Gardna (600/1300) from my graveyard in order to negate your attack," interrupted Kaiba coolly.
Yugi gasped as a black skinned, red-armored demon materialized in front of the XYZ Dragon Cannon. It had long, dirty white hair tumbling down its shoulders, along with black, heavy gauntlets covering his hands and arms.
With a low growl, the undead creature exploded in mid-air, preventing the Arcana Knight Joker from advancing further.
"When did you-…" spluttered Yugi.
"I just discarded a card to my XYZ Dragon Cannon's effect," replied Kaiba, his trademark smirk curling across his face. "Surely you remember?"
"Well, I do now," muttered Yugi. There it was again, the kind of planning he still wasn't used to seeing from Kaiba. It was in sharp contrast to the man who would plunder ahead on every move and simply try to crush everything in his path.
He looked over his hand.
"I set two cards facedown. That will end my turn."
The CEO drew, and flipped a card around.
"I activate Card of Demise, which as you know allows me to draw until I hold five cards. After five turns have passed, I will then need to discard my entire hand."
"And he's probably already got something planned for that eventuality," thought Yugi silently as he watched his opponent increase his own hand size by three.
Kaiba smirked with satisfaction at the sight of his new cards.
"All right, I think I've had enough of your Arcana Knight Joker. I discard a card for my XYZ Dragon Cannon to destroy it."
"That's not going to happen," informed Yugi, even as the machine let out another hum and prepped for attack again. "As long as I discard a card, Arcana Knight Joker is immune to-…"
"You think I don't have a counter for that?" asked Kaiba airily. "I activate Forbidden Chalice. At the cost of increasing the attack points of your Arcana Knight Joker by four hundred, its effect is negated till the end of the turn."
Yugi silently cursed as his fusion's attack points rose (4200/2500)… yet it would do him no good since this was not that kind of battle.
This time, even as the energy kept surging on, the Arcana Knight Joker did not react. He merely stood stoically, facing the oncoming blaze without a reaction. Just as it seemed that his fate was sealed, Yugi finally decided to act.
"I'm not going to allow you to destroy him, Kaiba! I activate De-Fusion, which returns Arcana Knight Joker to my Fusion Deck and in doing so summons Queen's Knight (1500/1600), King's Knight (1600/1400) and Jack's Knight (1900/1000) from my graveyard back to the field, all in defense mode!"
The purple warrior evaporated into a large sphere of light, and before the XYZ Dragon Cannon's attack could hit it, the sphere dematerialized into three smaller ones, which then spread out into three different zones of Yugi's field, causing the attack to slam harmlessly into the water behind them, generating a large splash that drew some oohs from the crowd.
The three spheres then began to gain shape and color, morphing into the familiar Knights that had appeared in duels between the two so many times.
This drew no outward reaction from Kaiba, which made Yugi think again.
"I just made him discard a card for nothing, and he doesn't seem to mind. Obviously, that card is probably something he wants in the graveyard… I have to be prepared for anything."
Kaiba, indeed, was taking this in his stride, and simply pointed at his opponent's field.
"I'm not going to bother discarding another card for my Dragon Cannon's effect, so instead I'll just move into my battle phase and target Jack's Knight!"
The most powerful remaining warrior seemed prepared for the end as the XYZ Dragon Cannon prepped another powerful attack.
"I won't let you destroy him like that, Kaiba," growled Yugi, tapping a button on his Duel Disk. "I activate Spellbinding Circle, which prevents your XYZ Dragon Cannon from attacking or changing its battle position!"
A green circle with strange golden symbols with formed on the top, left, right, and bottom formed, with a white question mark like symbol in the center appeared above the field. The circle took up a defensive stance in front of the blonde knight, quelling the flames. Pushing the flames backwards, the circle finally wrapped around the vibrating machine, holding it steady. It struggled for a bit, but was unable to free itself.
"Well, that's another throwback. Gonna pull out your Winged Dragon – Guardian of the Fortress next?" taunted Kaiba.
"I'll keep you guessing, Kaiba," responded his opponent with a good-natured laugh.
Kaiba found himself smiling slightly too, despite his plans being thwarted. "I'll just set this card facedown and call it a turn."
Yugi drew, ruminating on the fact that his powerful fusion had been neutered. But then, he saw his new card, and forgot all about it.
In fact, Kaiba seemed to realize what it was too. The very act of pulling the card off the top of his deck seemed to have sent a pulse out across the field.
Kaiba's eyes widened. "Yugi, is that-…"
Yugi looked up to meet his opponent's gaze. "Kaiba, you remember what I was able to do during my duel that night in the tower?"
"Yeah, the same thing I did in Egypt," replied his opponent quietly, fist clenched by his side.
"Well, I never told anyone this, but… They stuck around. I didn't have the slightest clue as to why… At first, I thought perhaps they stayed to help against Apep if it came to it, but that ended soon as well, and I still had no idea why they were still there. So, I just put them away safely, until… Until Pegasus announced this tournament."
It dawned on Kaiba. "That's when you realized it."
"Right," Yugi agreed. "They knew somehow, Kaiba. They knew that everything from when I accessed them for the first time all those months ago would lead to this moment. You and me, this duel… And they wanted to be here for it."
Kaiba felt goosebumps on his back. "Well, who can blame them? Everyone's been saying this is going to be one for the history books."
"I'm inclined to agree," muttered Yugi with a faint smile. "And all these years we've known and dueled each other made me think that you'd want this as well."
"You're right on that count," affirmed Kaiba, his own voice quivering with anticipation. "Well then, probably not a good idea to keep a God waiting."
His opponent nodded, and slowly used his shivering right hand to pluck all three monster cards off his Duel Disk.
"I sacrifice all three of my Knights!" Three streaks of light shot down to the field, taking the Poker Knights into the sky.
Lightning blasts rained from above across the vast expanse of ocean before them, as a long, waving, red-scaled tail could be seen fluttering through the clouds. The body began to drive itself from the heavens, growing thicker as more of it appeared. It was long enough to wrap around itself numerous times; soon, the double-mouthed head of the legend soon made itself known, breathing out light mist in impatience. It had unforgiving, unwavering, yellow eyes, and sharpened, red spikes running all the way down its enormous body. Long, thin, red wings also were present on its sides.
"I summon Slifer the Sky Dragon (X000/X000)!" cried out Yugi, his voice just barely audible over the combined din of the summoning as well as the devolution of the crowd into total pandemonium, having gone from initially confused by the momentary pause in the action to utter shock at seeing one of the legendary God cards in the flesh. It was, after all, the first time one had been played in official play since Battle City.
The goosebumps were present on the back of Kaiba's neck now more than ever, and the adrenaline was pumping through him like never before.
He looked up directly at the gigantic head floating above Yugi's field, with the rest of it extending out behind the platform for dozens of feet. He met its gaze, piercing mortal blue eyes locking onto divine yellow ones.
Slifer let out an Earth-shattering roar, seemingly furious at being challenged.
Kaiba smirked, refusing to drop his eyes. After all, he had stood against a God recently, a bigger one than Slifer at that.
"No distractions. For once, the world isn't at stake. I'm not here to prove anything, all that matters is me, my opponent, and our cards."
This was what he lived for.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
I feel like I've said this at least three times now, but I really could've ended it here too. It would've been a bit cruel but at the same time kind of symbolic because 1) the GX Ceremonial Battle between Yugi and Jaden also ends with Slifer being summoned and the rest left to the viewer's imagination and 2) Nightrise also "ended" at a similar point.
Now to address that latter point, yes to my old readers, the elephant in the room is that this duel is very similar to the old incomplete Atem-Kaiba duel from Nightrise.
Yes, that is intentional.
I basically had that duel planned to be the "perfect" Atem/Yugi vs Kaiba duel, and it's that same outline that I'm finally going to be put down on paper after over a decade, with a bunch of improvements (some have already been included).
Also yes, there have been a lot of throwbacks in this duel, from Summoned Skull to XYZ to the Poker Knights. I understand it may seem a bit weird given they were using more advanced cards in prior duels, but I think I still have a good mix of the old and new, and plus I am going for maximum nostalgia here and the greatest hits aspect is important to that.
I also always planned to use the Gods in this duel, and planned for it all the way back in Yugi's duel with Pharaoh when I figured using the Wicked Gods there would be a neat way to bring the OG Gods back for this final clash.
This next chapter is going to be one of my favorites of this story and as a sneak peak, will be called "Gods versus Mortals".
ChroniclerDL: Appreciate the praise and continuing to be along for the ride, my friend. Never thought of the definitive ending vs adventure continues being a Western vs Japanese thing, but it feels apt. I think you'll find the ending of this story to be more of a combination, in that everything from both the original series as well as this story will be neatly tied up, but there is always the potential for more hijinks in the characters' future. This would be apt because I grew up watching the dub but obviously I want to pay tribute also to Kazuki's original vision.
Reaver72: Yes yes yes enjoy ALL the nostalgia haha. In a lot of ways I feel like the 2020s are the nostalgia decade media-wise, and I myself have certainly felt a lot of it for the media of my younger days (specifically 2008-12ish, which was also the prime of my fanfiction career). You're right in that I really felt bad about not writing out the Joey vs Kaiba duel, but doing one semi-final and not the other would've felt weird, and I REALLY couldn't get through another Harpies duel to be honest with you. And yes, as I said above, you will finally get to see the ending of the old Nightrise duel (albeit with Yugi in place of Atem, but still). Thank you once again for sticking with me for so long!
Rivia10: Well that is the highest praise, my friend, as having this be the true conclusion to the original series was always my goal. I grew up with these characters and just want to see them all happy and at peace with themselves. Kaiba's arc has been very fulfilling to write, and I'm glad that you seem to feel that way about it too. As for the victor, I'm going to keep you guessing, but it will certainly be a wild ride!
Metal Overlord 2.0: It's all good my friend! Again, just glad to have you along for the last leg of this ride too. I'm glad you keep noticing that Kaiba is still himself, just with some development, I'd never want to write him as truly OOC (or anyone for that matter). My goal with him has always been to pursue logical character development based on how IRL people react to what life throws at them… because Kaiba is still, after all, only human (maybe partially ;)). Once again, glad you're still with me for this, the end is near but we'll be going out with a bang!
Well, that does it for now. The destination is within sight, I'm going to keep powering away to get us there soonish! Until then, any feedback is appreciated as always!