Our story continues back at the orphanage, where Reggie and Kero had just entered after finishing their little race, with Mira and Homanu entering not long after. As Kero was once again catching his breath, Yusaku descended down the stairs to greet them.
"Oh, good. You're back," Yusaku calmly but respectfully greeted them.
"Yeah, it was a blast!" Reggie cheered, raising her fists towards the ceiling. "I wish you had been there – Kero nearly had Homanu on the ropes, but then Homanu creamed him at the end!"
As in most other situations involving his own expense, Kero slouched and frowned, but eventually recollected himself. "So, Yusaku, how'd you like the super-special-awesome Upgrade Monsters?" he eagerly asked, to Homanu's own annoyance.
"Well, I'll admit, the overall concept of them is rather interesting," Yusaku commented, rather quizzically. "And the fact that they can have multiple effects listed on the same card – at least in this format – is certainly a nice touch. It looks like they might have potential."
"Some potential!" Homanu scoffed, rolling his eyes. "I managed to beat his Upgrade Monster without using any Upgrade Monsters of my own. Obviously, that they're not all that great!"
"I dunno, Homanu," Mira said in disagreement. "I don't think that exactly proves that Upgrade Monsters are worthless-"
"Worthless or not," Homanu interrupted, "I've just shown how I don't need Upgrade Monsters to win all my duels!" With that defiant declaration, he headed downstairs.
"Oof, touch-y," Kero remarked as soon as Homanu was out of sight.
Mira briefly glared at Kero before shifting her attention to Yusaku. "So, what do you think of Game Duels, now that you were able to watch one?" she asked.
"They're pretty cool, if a tad unconventional," was Yusaku's reply. "And yet…" he muttered thoughtfully, holding his chin, "I can't help but feel like I've seen them before…"
"Whaddya mean?" asked Kero.
"I don't know," Yusaku explained. "All those weird Attributes, the fact you can Normal Summon as many monsters as you want in one turn, the Upgrade Monsters… I feel like I've seen them somewhere, but I can't remember when or where…"
"Eh, you're probably stressed out from all the work Sister Golas made you do while we were at the unveiling!" Kero said, slapping Yusaku on the back.
"I wouldn't exactly say the chores Sister Golas gave me were stressful," Yusaku said rather awkwardly.
"Stressed or not, I probably wouldn't worry about it," said Mira. "C'mon, let's go have some lunch." She and the others went downstairs to get their food.
YU-GI-OH! CHRONIXII
LEVEL 1-3
RESCUE GAME DUEL
Later that night, all of the scientists at Giichi Corp's laboratory were hard at work, closely analyzing some statistics on their computers. It wasn't long before Giichi entered through the sliding doors. "What are the statistics for Game Duels?" he ordered.
"Wonderful news, sir!" one of the lab technicians reported, quickly saluting Giichi. "According to our records, the number of Game Duels within the day of its official launch are off the charts!"
"And what is the overall reception to the Upgrade Monsters?"
"Well, sir," the lab technician replied, "there are a select few who show some disdain towards them; but otherwise, a majority of the public are giving out either lukewarm reactions, or expressing their immense love for them!"
"As long as people are somewhat enjoying them, that's all that matters," Giichi said. "Still, I wonder where that Eiko kid got those 'Gandorbis' and 'Orbis Seal' cards from."
"I-I don't know, sir!" the lab technician stammered. "I'm just as shocked as you – I don't recall those cards being implemented into the format's card database!"
"Well, in any case, I want those two cards banned until I find out who or what has caused those cards to come into existence!" Giichi ordered.
"Yes, sir!"
"Good," Giichi said. "I'll let you all get back to work."
"Very good, sir!" the lab technician said, saluting his superior once again. Giichi saluted back, then turned to leave the laboratory.
Giichi himself went back to his own office, locking the door behind him. Once he approached his desk, he entered the code on his desk's virtual keyboard, causing the dark green screen with strange green markings to pop open.
"Everything is going according to plan," Giichi monologued. "The Game Duel format is officially up and running. And once we uncover the identities of who we're looking for, my plan will truly commence…!"
A little over a month had passed since Game Duels were first launched. Throughout this time, those who have participated made improvements to their decks, in ways different from others. At this very moment, everyone was discussing their own progresses with this format. Among them were Mira, Homanu, and Kero, who were all sitting on one of several wooden picnic tables painted forest green, located just outside the orphanage.
"So, how are you guys making out with Game Duels?" Kero eagerly asked his friends.
"Well, I did manage to save up some money and bought a few of the new packs that had some of the cards I was looking for," Mira explained. "I even tried it out in one of the newcomer tournaments, but I lost in the second round. What about you, Homanu?"
"Pretty much the same as you – saved up on some money, and bought some of the cards I wanted," Homanu replied. "There's actually one card I have my eyes on, but I'm gonna have to save up a lot if I want it."
"I'm… kinda having a bit of trouble, because I do see packs with the cards I want, but I'm not really having much luck with getting the cards I really need…" Kero confessed, rather sheepishly.
"Well, that's what you get for blowing your money on random packs instead of saving money for ones with actually useful cards!" Homanu scolded.
"Well, if you were actually excited about these things, you'd do the same!" Kero whined defensively.
The argument between Homanu and Kero abruptly ended when Reggie ran out of the main building. "Everyone, come quick!" she called. "Arthur's gonna be on soon!" This announcement caught the attention of all the other orphans outside, and they began to hastily make their way inside.
"Oh, that's right!" Kero exclaimed, slapping his forehead. "It's the final match of the Alba Litora Gladial Clash, the first major tournament for Game Duels! And whoever made it is gonna duel against Arthur! Oh, man, I don't wanna miss a minute of this!" He shot off into the building like a rocket.
"That Kero… he'll never learn to relax, will he?" Mira playfully sighed.
"I still gotta remember to ask Sister Golas to cut down his sugar intake," Homanu remarked. This earned him a chuckle from Mira as the two went inside.
It wasn't long before all of the orphans gathered inside the building's indoor recreational room, with Sister Golas supervising them. The room was fairly large, complete with all kinds of toys and indoor recreational sets for the especially younger orphans. But the one feature all the orphans had their eyes fixed on was a forty-inch screen smart television that was bolted onto a wall. Without further hesitation, Sister Golas grabbed a nearby remote to turn it on, and then navigate to the proper streaming service.
The screen displayed a birds-eye view of the main stadium in Alba Litora, known as the 'Alba Circuit'. The whole interior, from the bleachers right to the very floor, was illuminated by blue fluorescent light. On the very floor was a futuristic racetrack, some parts of the track connecting to the roads outside. In the center level was a circular floor about the size of a football field with a hexagonal pattern resembling a honeycomb structure. But not long after, the screen displayed the bleachers inside the stadium, a lot of which were filled with those anxiously awaiting for the so-called final match. Eventually, it displayed two middle-aged men in the stadium's commentary box – one dressed in a red suit, and the other in a blue one.
"Hello, duel fans of Alba Litora!" the red-suited man announced. "I'm Bobba, and this is my partner, Jimma. And we are coming to you live from the Alba Litora Circuit, where we are about to witness the final match of the Alba Litora Gladial Clash! And I gotta say, I could not be any more excited about this upcoming match – how about you, Jimma?"
"I'm just as excited as you are, Bobba!" the blue-suited man, Jimma, eagerly agreed. "It's been quite the tournament, but the duelist who came out on top now has the opportunity to face off against a professional duelist who comes all the way from jolly old England, but has become Alba Litora's most beloved idol since he settled in our fair city!"
"But before we reveal the opponent lucky enough to make it this far, I say we introduce our city's idol, Jimma!" said Bobba. "You know him, you love him, and now you're about to see him, ladies and gentlemen! Give it up for one of England's top professional duelists, and now the superstar of Alba Litora! The one and only… ARTHUR RUTHERFORD!"
The audience cheered as smoke flared up from one end of the platform. Emerging through the smoke was a handsome boy of seventeen, with the classic features of blond hair and blue eyes. His attire was militant and upper-class, but still casual. It was a dark brown suit with gold lining, and an orange high collar extending midway to the chest area. On the upper left jacket was the golden emblem of a lion, complete with its mane. Naturally, he was wearing his Disk, which had a bronze dial.
"That's right!" Arthur declared in his cocky but natural English accent, pointing towards the sky. "'Tis I, the great Arthur Rutherford – your idol; your superstar; and most of all, your champion!" Upon this bold declaration, the audience cheered at their wildest for Arthur as his profile was shown on the virtual screens displayed before various parts of the bleachers. Many of the orphans back at home cheered for Arthur as well – especially most of the girls.
"So now that our city's shining star has made his grand entrance," said Bobba, "shall we introduce the opponent lucky enough to face him in this final battle?"
"Indeed, we shall, Bobba!" Jimma eagerly replied. "But it isn't just luck that brought Arthur's opponent to where she is now. As we have seen throughout this tournament, she has practically obliterated her opponents, thus proving she truly isn't one to mess around! Upon the demand – I-I mean, the request – of not using her real name, let's give it up for the duelist simply known as… Hawk!"
Smoke formed from the edge of the platform opposite of Arthur. Leaping through the smoke was a slender girl of sixteen, with forest green eyes and red-violet hair fashioned in two long hair whisps and a sideways ponytail. Her attire consisted of a black crop top underneath a forest green bolero jacket, black jeans with holes in the knees and the left leg slightly rolled up, and white sneakers with black soles. On the left side of her crop top was an electric green decal of the kanji for the 'WIND' Attribute. Her Duel Disk had an emerald dial. The audience cheered after the girl's wild entrance.
"Well, Miss… Hawk," Arthur said to his opponent, "you certainly must've proven to be quite the extraordinary duelist to have made it this far. But I'm afraid that I shall be the victor of this tournament."
"We'll see about that!" Hawk said in her natural sassy tone, punching her right fist into her left palm. "My birds and I are gonna fuck you up!"
"Good Lord, this girl should watch her tongue!" Sister Golas cried with disgust. Even though the word itself was censored on the television, the fact Hawk used such profanity still offended her. "Thank goodness it was censored – there are children watching!"
"Now that our two finalists are here," Jimma announced, "let the final duel of the tournament begin!"
"It's time to activate the Game Duel Field made exclusively for an event such as this!" Bobba also announced. "Game World Brave Battlegrounds!"
With this declaration, a Game Duel Field Card moved up to the center of both duelists' Disks' touchscreens. Its artwork depicted a vast meadow with two knights ready to face each other in battle. The knight closest to the foreground was clad in white armor, while his opponent's armor was ebony black. "Now activating Game World Field: Game World, Brave Battlegrounds," the female computerized voice spoke during this sequence. Afterwards, the scenery around both duelists transformed to reflect the meadowlike environment pictured on the newly activated card, complete with some leaves gently falling.
"No one has ever beaten me back in England," Arthur gloated, raising his Disk, "and none have beaten me since this format was first launched!" With this conceited comment, his Disk projected its orange blade.
"Oh, yeah? Well, first time for everything, bitch!" Hawk taunted, raising her Disk to project its lime green blade.
"Language!" Sister Golas loudly scolded at the screen. "Oy, I can't believe that most of today's programs let people get away with such vulgarity!"
"There, there, Sister Golas," Homanu said, comforting his caretaker. "Like you taught us, it's not so much the program's fault as it is the people on it."
"Now that our competitors have activated their Disks," Bobba declared, "let the duel commence!"
"Game Duel, game start!" Arthur and Hawk shouted.
ARTHUR: 4000 LP / HAWK: 4000 LP
"I'll make the first move!" Arthur declared, his Disk's ring appearing around his wrist. Five stacked digital cards materialized in front of the red-slotted ridge, which he valiantly drew. After analyzing his opening hand, he took a card and declared, "I shall place this card face-down, and end my turn!" He slid the card into his blade's centermost horizontal slot. A card materialized in front of him before disappearing from view.
"Wait – that's your opening move?!" Hawk cried in utter disbelief. "And you're a professional duelist?! What a fuckin' joke!" Without warning, she exploded with cackling laughter. Arthur, however, remained unphased by her remark.
"Something tells me that this Hawk person is really one to put her money where her mouth is," Yusaku observed, crossing his arms.
"Indeed – and such a foul mouth, at that!" Sister Golas exclaimed in disgust.
"Don't you mean a fowl mouth?" Kero jokingly remarked. When he noticed that hardly anyone was laughing, he sheepishly said, "F-O… W… L…? 'Fowl?' 'Cause, you know… her name's Hawk… as in the bird…?" Except for a small chuckle from Reggie, neither Sister Golas nor the other orphans appeared to be amused. "Wow… tough crowd…"
"Lemme show you how you're supposed to duel!" Hawk shouted. Her Disk's ring appeared around her wrist, five stacked digital cards materializing in front of the red-slotted ridge. "I draw!" she declared, viciously drawing the cards. "Excellent!
"I summon three copies of Krownoichi Kunai Ikkyu!" Three cards materialized in between her fingertips, and within a single swipe, she slapped them onto all of her blade's floating zones. Three lime green hexagonal portals appeared in front of her. Flying out of each portal was a female bird humanoid with chestnut hair braided into pigtails, and brown-feathered wings sticking out of their backs. Each of them wore arm-length fishnet cuffs and a fishnet bodysuit that went down from the chest to the legs. A small brown kimono was worn over each of the bodysuits. And true to their names, their main weapons were kunai daggers. [ATK: 200] [ATK: 200] [ATK: 200]
"I activate each of their effects! Since they were summoned this turn, every one of them can inflict you with two hundred points of damage! And since I summoned three, that means you'll be losing six hundred Life Points!" Each of the three bird ninjas flung their daggers at Arthur, striking him on his right shoulder as he winced in pain. [LP: 4000 – 3400]
"Next, I'll place this card face-down!" Hawk continued as another card materialized in her hand, which she slid through one of her blade's horizontal slots. A card materialized behind all of her bird ninjas before disappearing from view.
"Then I'll activate that face-down card: Prosperity of the Forest!"
The card she just placed face-down appeared, and materialized into a FOREST Spell Card, its artwork depicting the runes of some monoliths located in a mystical forest shining a bright green.
"I'm only allowed to activate this while I have one or less cards in my hand," Hawk explained. "And since I do, I get to draw one card for every FOREST-Attribute monster on my field – and I count three!" Her Disk's ring appeared around her wrist once again; but this time, only three stacked cards materialized in front of the red-slotted ridge. Regardless, she vigorously drew them. 'Yes!' she thought, a wickedly confident smile stretching across her face.
"I sacrifice one Kunai Ikkyu to Tribute Summon the Upgrade Monster, Krownoichi Chunin Ayame!"
The bird ninja in the center dissipated into green pixels. Afterwards, a pillar of green light surrounded by leaves appeared behind Hawk. Flying out of the light was another female bird humanoid in ninja attire. In this case, she had a white tengu mask with lime green lights shining out of the eyeholes, and she had forest green steel armor equipped to her upper chest, waist, wings, wrists, and legs. In the center of her chest armor were two unlit hexagons inside each other. Her main weapon was a razor-sharp blade in the shape of an elongated feather, which was attached to each of her wrists. [GRADE: BASE / BASE ATK: 1700]
"Then I'll bring Chunin Ayame to her fullest potential by injecting her with Upgrade Core Super, bringing her to the 'Super' Grade, and granting her two Cores!"
After revealing the Core Card picturing the gray hexagon surrounded by orange light, she placed it underneath Chunin Ayame's card form. Afterwards, the unlit hexagons lit up blue. [GRADE: BASE SUP / BASE ATK: 1700 – SUP ATK: 2300 / CORE: 0 – 2] "Now that she's fully powered, it's time for the fun to really begin!
"First, I'll activate Chunin Ayame's Base Effect! By sending my two other Krownoichis to the Graveyard, she'll gain one thousand Attack Points this turn!" The two kunai-wielding bird ninjas transformed into green pixels, which transferred to the blades of Chunin. [SUP ATK: 2300 – 3300]
"But they won't be saying their goodbyes just yet, 'cause Chunin Ayame's Super Effect will bring them right back! By using one Core, I'm allowed to resurrect two Level Four or lower Winged Beast-Type monsters, just as long as they're of the FOREST or WIND Attributes! Guess who I'm bringing back!?"
As Chunin Ayame's outer hexagon became unlit [CORE: 2 – 1], she unleashed an ear-piercing battle cry as she raised her right blade towards the sky. Two lime green hexagonal portals appeared beside her, the kunai-wielding bird ninja flying out of each one of them. [ATK: 0200] [ATK: 0200]
"And since both of my Kunai Ikkyus are back, I can activate their effects again!" Sure enough, the two bird ninjas flung their kunai daggers at Arthur's right shoulder, making him wince in pain once again. [LP: 3400 – 3000]
"Even with the increased speed that comes with Game Duels, what we're seeing is still unbelievable!" Bobba dramatically announced. "In just one turn, Hawk has officially put Arthur on the ropes by not only inflicting him with damage multiple times, but by significantly powering up her ace!"
"Let's hope that face-down card Arthur has will save him!" Jimma added.
Back at the orphanage, plenty of the orphans were distraught over Arthur's current predicament. This included Kero, whose despair for Arthur was visibly apparent. "No-ho-ho-ho!" he tearfully pleaded at the screen. "Don't lose for us, Arthur! You're my idol! You're the city's idol!"
"Don't worry, Kero!" Reggie said, playfully slapping him on the back. She was one of the few orphans who had maintained her composure despite Arthur's situation. "Little does Hawk realize that she's fallen into his trap!"
"What 'trap?!'" Homanu argued. "All he did was place a card face-down – I don't really see how that would make someone like Hawk fall for anything!"
"That's his trademark!" Reggie eagerly explained. "Arthur's letting himself be pushed into a corner. But once he does, he comes back with the big wham-o!"
"I just hope that whatever card he did play face-down will make him come back with this so-called 'wham-o,'" Mira said with mild concern.
"Professional or not, beating your sorry ass turned out to be a lot easier than I thought!" Hawk sniggered, back in the duel. "And I'm gonna end it by having Chunin Ayame attack you directly!" Chunin Ayame flew up into the sky and began skyrocketing down towards Arthur, sticking out her right blade in the process.
Arthur looked up towards the monster's incoming attack. But after a few seconds, he cracked a confident smirk of his own. "I activate my face-down card!" he declared. "Go, Lionhearted Grit!" A card materialized beside him before transforming into a WHITE MAGIC Trap Card. Its artwork depicted the back of a pearl white-armored knight with long and unruly golden hair, who was standing on the edge of a volcanic cliff. He was defiantly staring at Tyrant Dragon, who flew up from the depths of some lava.
"I'm only allowed to activate this card when you declare an attack, while there are no other cards on my field. From there, I must discard my entire hand, and then send the same number of cards from the top of my deck to the Graveyard!" Four cards materialized in front of him, and Arthur swiped his fingertips across each of the cards, causing them to dissipate into orange pixels. Afterwards, his Disk's ring appeared, four stacked cards materializing in front of the red-slotted ridge. Arthur grabbed the cards and flung them, each card dissipating in the same manner.
"Now I get to add any number of cards from my Graveyard to my hand, up to the number of cards I sent from my hand to the Graveyard. But any Monster Cards that I add to my hand must have one hundred or less Attack Points!" Four streaks of orange light shot from his ring's green-slotted ridge before transforming into cards in his hand.
"And what good is that gonna do you?!" Hawk tauntingly laughed. "Chunin Ayame is still gonna destroy you! Now go!"
Chunin Ayame continued her attack, and successfully struck at Arthur, creating an explosion on his field. The virtual smoke remained, leaving the audiences both in the stadium and at the orphanage in significant suspense.
"Ha! I win!" Hawk gloated as the smoke was still present. But it wasn't long before it slowly started to clear. Much to Hawk's horror and everyone else's immense relief, Arthur was still standing, even though he was now breathing rather heavily. [LP: 100]
"WHAT?!" Hawk screamed in disbelief. "YOU'RE STILL STANDING?!"
"Indeed, I am," Arthur proudly explained through his huffs and puffs. "Once I activate my Trap Card, if my Life Points would become zero this turn, they become one hundred instead!"
"Argh, fine!" Hawk pouted. "I'll just end you with one of my other Krownoichis!"
"That won't happen!" Arthur smugly reminded his opponent. "I said that my Life Points cannot go any lower than one hundred this turn, meaning that if you did attack me, they wouldn't drop to zero. But you wouldn't have been able to attack me anyway, since this Field Spell only allows us to attack with one monster per turn."
Hawk clenched her fists and gritted her teeth in anger. "You lucky bastard…!" she hissed through her teeth. "I guess I'll end my turn! So that means Chunin Ayame loses her power boost!" [SUP ATK: 3300 – 2300]
"Oh, man, that was a close one for Arthur!" Kero said with a huge sigh of relief. "I thought he was a goner for sure!"
"I told you that it was all part of Arthur's trademark dueling style!" Reggie teased, nudging her elbow against his arm.
"But how is Arthur able to acquire such a strong card like that?" Yusaku asked, carefully observing the duel throughout. "This format's only been out for a little over a month, so he either had to work really hard to get such a strong card, or had to resort to some underhanded tricks to get it…"
"What?!" Reggie cried in disbelief. "Yusaku, he's a professional! He probably bought that card, and then some, with all of the hard-earned money he got!"
"But how could he be able to get that card?" Homanu argued. "I don't remember seeing that card available for individual purchase at the Shop!"
"…Maybe he's so famous, they let him have a card that has yet to be released to the public?" Reggie assumed, smiling rather sheepishly. This only increased Homanu's suspicion as he returned his attention to the duel being broadcast.
But Homanu wasn't the only one who was reacting rather negatively about the Trap Card Arthur had just activated. Mira appeared to be staring off in a distance, even though no one else noticed it because they were all focused on the duel. Upon overhearing Homanu's suspicions of how Arthur would have been able to acquire such a card, Mira began to reminisce over her duel against Eiko, and how he, too, was somehow able to acquire cards that were just as powerful. Seeing those events replay in her mind made her wonder if this was all part of some 'big reveal' in regards to Game Duels, or if, dare she think it, something more sinister.
"It's my turn!" Arthur resumed, back at the duel. "But since I activated Lionhearted Grit, I'm not allowed to draw any cards this turn. Then again, I don't need to – thanks to my Trap Card, I have everything I need right in my hand! Now, allow me to show you an ace monster of my own!" Four cards materialized in his left hand. He grabbed one of them and raised it towards the sky.
"I summon the Upgrade Monster, Lionhearted Knight Artorigus!"
He slapped the card onto his blade's centermost floating zone. A pillar of orange light with some flying dust and pebbles shot up from behind Arthur. Leaping out of the light was a lionlike knight in bronze knight's armor, with three unlit hexagons inside each other in the heart area. The knight had sharp hazel eyes, and true to his lion motif, he also had unruly red-brown hair resembling a mane and a pair of fangs, and unleashed a triumphant roar upon his emergence. Curiously, he resembled the same knight depicted on Arthur's previously activated Trap Card. [GRADE: BASE / ATK: 100]
"Now, I shall show off his true strength by injecting him with Upgrade Core Super, bringing him to the 'Super' Grade!" He revealed Upgrade Core Super to Hawk, and immediately slid it underneath Artorigus's card counterpart. "But unlike your Upgrade Monster, who will gain two Cores when she's upgraded, Artorigus will gain three cores!" Sure enough, the three hexagons on Artorigus's armor lit up bright blue, and the lion knight removed the sword from his hilt and raised it towards the sky. [GRADE: BASE – SUP / BASE ATK: 100 – SUP ATK: 100 / CORE: 0 – 3]
"And since this Game Duel Field is of the 'Meadow' Terrain, my Artorigus, who is of the Beast-Warrior Type, shall benefit from this Terrain!" [SUP ATK: 100 – 300]
"But you still call that your monster's true strength?!" Hawk said, exploding with laughter in the bewilderment of Artorigus's rather low Attack Points. "Your monster's Attack Points can't do shit to me!"
"Looks can be quite deceiving, can't they?" Arthur smugly remarked, to Hawk's confusion. "I activate Artorigus's Super Effect! By using one Core, your monster will lose one thousand Attack Points, and then Artorigus will gain Attack Points equal to the same amount your monster just lost!"
"No way!" Hawk cried. But before she could say or do anything else, the outermost hexagon on Artorigus's armor turned off. [CORE 3 – 2] Not long after, Artorigus stuck his sword directly at Chunin Ayame, causing the armored bird ninja to be shrouded by an orange aura. Indeed, Chunin Ayame wailed as the aura transferred from her to the sword. [SUP ATK: 2300 – 1300] [SUP ATK: 300 – 1300]
"Okay, so you've weakened my monster and made yours stronger," Hawk uncaringly scoffed. "That's still not enough to beat me!"
"I beg to differ!" Arthur corrected her. "I activate the Equip Spell Card that shall guarantee my victory: Sacred Lionhearted Blade, Excatibur!"
A card materialized in between his fingertips, which he vigorously swiped through his blade's center horizontal slot. A WHITE MAGIC Spell Card materialized beside him, its artwork depicting a lustrous golden and white metal sword with orange hues of energy brimming through and around it. Engraved on the hilt was the face and mane of a lion. The very same sword pictured on the card dramatically stuck out from beneath the virtual soil.
"Since the only monster on my field is a Warrior or Beast-Warrior monster with an original Attack Point value of one hundred or less, this card will give my monster an additional five hundred Attack Points!" Arthur explained. "Plus, when it attacks one of your monsters, all the battle damage you will take will be doubled!" Artorigus grabbed hold of the sword, pulled it from the earth, and raised it towards the sky while unleashing a triumphant roar. But as he grabbed hold of the sword, his armor changed from bronze to pearl white, and his hair red-brown to gold. [SUP ATK: 1300 – 1800]
"This ends now! Lionhearted Knight Artorigus, attack Krownoichi Chunin Ayame!" Artorigus pointed his sword directly at Chunin Ayame.
"You dumbass!" Hawk loudly taunted. "Don't you know that you'd be inflicting more damage if you attacked either one of my Kunai Ikkyus?! …Then again, it wouldn't matter, since I'm still gonna kick your ass on my next turn!"
"'Tis a shame that you won't get a next turn!" Arthur laughed, rather haughtily. "And the true spectacle of this Game Duel field will guarantee that!" Without warning, the lion knight was shrouded by an orange aura.
"Wha… what's happening?!" Hawk demanded, slightly trembling.
"Since the only monster on my field is a monster that has one hundred or less Attack Points, it shall gain fifteen hundred extra Attack Points during my Battle Phase!" The aura shrouding Artorigus amplified as he continued his attack.[SUP ATK: 1800 – 3300]
Seeing this left Hawk more than aghast. "THIS… THIS… THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!" she wailed.
"Lionhearted Knight Artorigus, slay her Chunin Ayame and bring me victory!" Arthur commanded. "Excatibur Finisher!"
The lion knight charged directly at Chunin Ayame and swung his sword across her chest, creating an explosion on Hawk's field. The force of the explosion flung Hawk and caused her to land hard on her back.[LP: 4000 – 0]
"Ladies and gentlemen," Bobba excitedly announced, "our beloved Arthur Rutherford has reigned supreme! And he certainly kept us at the edge of our seats, especially with his finishing move!"
"He certainly did, Bobba!" Jimma eagerly agreed. "And while his opponent may not be getting the grand prize, she'll still be rewarded with one thousand Gems and plenty of experience points, just for making it this far in the tournament!"
Although the monsters faded from view, the meadowlike scenery remained unchanged. Arthur walked over to Hawk with an outstretched hand. "You may not have beaten me," he said to his fallen opponent, who slowly got herself up, "but you've still fought rather wonderfully. I can definitely see how you've made it this far into the tournament."
"I don't wanna hear any of that bullshit!" Hawk shrieked, catching Arthur off guard. "All I wanted to do was to beat your sorry ass! Next time, I won't be showing any mercy!" With that brash declaration, she furiously ran out of the stadium. Arthur himself was left stunned by Hawk's behavior, but he quickly recovered as he made his way to the center of the stadium, waving at those who were cheering for him.
"He did it!" Reggie wildly cheered. "I knew Arthur would win! I just knew he would!"
"Wasn't it great, Onee-chan!?" Kero excitedly said to Mira. But he was quick to realize that she wasn't as visibly excited as most of the other orphans were. "Um… Mira? You okay?"
"Wha?" Mira cried, quickly snapping out of her inner thought. "Oh! Um, yeah, I'm okay… The duel was great, I guess."
"You guess?! Come on, Mira! You saw how Arthur totally creamed Hawk, didn't you?!"
"I did," Mira said, feeling a little uneasy. "I… have to be alone for a bit…" She got up to head to her bedroom.
"What's with her?" Kero asked, shifting his attention to Homanu.
"Not sure," was Homanu's reply. "But if she really wants to be alone for the time being, we should let her."
"Okay, if you say so," Kero said with a shrug. "I'm gonna buy some more packs at the Shop, in case I get to duel Arthur someday!" He shot off like a rocket to his own bedroom, making Homanu playfully sigh in response.
In her room, Mira was on her computer, browsing the Game Duel Shop for any good packs or deals. But through all this time, she was troubled by what was on her mind – not just the unusual dream she had last week, but also what Homanu said about Eiko. It could be normal for someone experienced in Duel Monsters as a whole to want to try out a duel format as new as Game Duels, but would it be normal for someone to be that good at Duel Monsters? But more importantly, how and where did Eiko acquire some of the powerful cards ever against her, even for this format?
A beeping sound suddenly broke her concentration. Mira discovered that it was coming from her Disk – more specifically, the touchscreen, which was repeatedly beeping and flashing. "Great, what is it now?" the mildly frustrated Mira asked as she picked up the Disk. After tapping on the touchscreen, a small screen popped open, displaying a text message that looked like it was written by someone in a hurry. It read:
MIRA HELP TROUBLE IN CITY FOREST SAVE ME EIKO
It was from Eiko, and it sounded like he was in danger! Mira may have been morbidly suspicious about Eiko ever since her duel against him, but that didn't mean she could just let him suffer like that! Without wasting a second, she fastened her Disk onto her right wrist and navigated through her Disk's touchscreen until she found the feature that would let her send text messages. She hastily said the message she was sending to Homanu and Kero out loud: "There's trouble, and Eiko needs our help! Come to the forest near Alba Central Park at once! From Mira." Once she was sure that the message was successfully sent to her friends, she exited her bedroom, walked quickly down the stairs and out of the orphanage, and ran to the forest to save Eiko.
After five minutes, Mira arrived at the scene of the supposed crime, which was in a forest-like area in the city's central park, as Eiko had claimed. What she saw was a teenage girl grabbing Eiko by the collar and violently shaking him back and forth. It didn't take long for Mira to recognize the attacker.
"Hey! You're that girl who dueled Arthur!" Mira exclaimed, pointing at the girl. Indeed, the person attacking Eiko was none other than Arthur's opponent, Hawk.
"Yeah? And why the hell should you care?" Hawk snorted.
"You really are that much of a sore loser, aren't you?" Mira remarked.
"Mira! There you are!" a male voice called. It belonged to Homanu, who, along with Kero, had caught up to Mira after receiving her text alert. But Homanu was quick to recognize Hawk as well, and he didn't like what she was doing to Eiko. "You better put Eiko down, or else!"
"Boy, when did you have a change of heart, Mr. Suspicious?" Kero playfully teased Homanu.
"Kero, this isn't the time for jokes!" Homanu loudly scolded. "Yes, it's true that I'm still suspicious about him, but he's a child, and he doesn't deserve to be treated like that!"
"I had to find some way to blow off some steam…" Hawk grumbled, "especially since I just had to lose to a lucky bastard like Arthur! Especially when I was that close to beating his sorry ass!" With every sentence she spoke, she tightened her grip on Eiko.
Homanu was absolutely disgusted by the way Hawk was harming Eiko, as he would be when seeing anyone harm a defenseless child. "You bitch… I'll never forgive you!" he snarled. "That's it – we're gonna have a Game Duel, here and now! Let's go!" He defiantly held up his Disk.
"If it's a Game Duel you want, then you got it!" Hawk said. With this declaration, she immediately released her hold on Eiko, making him drop onto the ground. "But it ain't gonna be against you, tough guy – it's gonna be against her!" She viciously pointed to the perplexed Mira.
"Me? Why me?" Mira asked.
"Ever since I came after this snot-nosed brat," Hawk explained, almost uncaringly, "he wouldn't shut up about this 'Mira' person. It was all 'Mira's gonna stop you!' and 'Mira'll teach you a lesson!' Jesus Christ, gag me with a spoon!"
"If me having to duel you will get you to leave him alone," Mira said, holding up her Disk, "then you've got yourself a Game Duel!"
"Actually, let's make things a little more fun," Hawk said slyly. "If you win, then I'll leave this twerp alone. But if I win – and I sure as hell am gonna – let's see… I got it! Once I win, all of the cards in your Disk's database will be mine! If you don't agree to this bet, then the kid's gonna get it!"
'Looks like I have no choice…' Mira thought. She then said aloud, "Okay, Hawk – you have yourself a duel!"
"Good answer!" Hawk beamed. "Time to bring us to Game World Forest!"
With this declaration, a Game Duel Field Card moved up to the center of both Disks' touchscreens, its artwork depicting a forest. "Now activating Game Duel Field: Game World, Forest," the computerized female voice spoke during this sequence.
The entire scenery changed to display the forest pictured on the card. Mira found Hawk standing on top of a mossy stone monolith that had glowing light blue runes carved on it. Eiko was close to Hawk's side, trapped inside a tree that had spawned. He had to quickly balance himself, catching a branch to get steady.
"Get ready to lose, bitch!" Hawk taunted, projecting her Disk's blade.
"We'll see!" Mira replied, doing the same.
"Game Duel, game start!" both duelists shouted.
MIRA: 4000 LP / HAWK: 4000 LP
"I'm going first!" Mira declared as her Disk's ring appeared around her wrist. Five stacked cards materialized in front of the red-slotted ridge, which she hastily drew. 'Okay,' she thought as she cautiously looked at her opening hand, and then at the intimidating Hawk, 'I'm up against someone who not only made it far enough to face Arthur, but nearly creamed Arthur in a snap! I may not exactly know how strong Hawk is, but with the improvements I've made to my deck, I should have some chance against her! Here goes!'
"I summon Destiny Hero Passer and Destiny Hero Paradoxer!"
She grabbed two of the cards in her hand and slapped them onto her blade's leftmost and rightmost floating zones. Afterwards, two hot pink hexagonal portals materialized beside her. Leaping out of one of them was a blue-armored robotic warrior closely resembling Vision Hero Multiply Guy, except his gauntlets and helmet were pitch black with silvery white trim. [ATK: 800] Flying out of the other portal was an angelic warrior resembling Destiny Hero Dark Angel, only he had black metal armor with white trim on his torso, gauntlets, calves, and wings. He also wore a mask that was black on the right side and white on the left. [ATK: 800]
"I activate Passer's effect! Since I summoned him this turn, I have to send the top two cards of my deck to the Graveyard. But after that, he'll immediately gain eight hundred Attack Points!" Her ring appeared, and two cards shot out of the red-slotted ridge before transforming into hot pink pixels. Without warning, the pixels transferred to the blue-armored robotic warrior.[ATK: 800 – 1600]
"Then I activate Paradoxer's effect! Since he, too, was summoned this turn, I get to take two cards in my Graveyard and return them to my deck! Afterwards, I get to draw two cards, but then I have to send two cards from my hand to the Graveyard!"
Lustrous lavender lights shone through the eyeholes of the angelic warrior's mask as two hot pink streaks of light shot from her ring's green-slotted ridge into her red-slotted one. Afterwards, two more stacked cards materialized in front of the red-slotted ridge, which Mira drew. Afterwards, Mira examined her hand's contents, and pressed her finger on two of the cards, which dissipated into hot pink pixels.
"I'll place two cards face-down, and end my turn!" she finished, swiping two cards into her blade's leftmost and rightmost horizontal slots. A card materialized behind each of her monsters before they both faded from view.
"What a combo!" Eiko exclaimed. "Not only did she strengthen one of her monsters, but she also managed to bring the two cards she discarded back into her deck!"
"So, she finally got her time to make her time-themed deck," Homanu commented. "Knowing her, she probably discarded the two cards with Paradoxer's effect with some kind of strategy in mind. Still, I wonder what it could be."
"Go clip Hawk's wings, Onee-chan!" Kero cheered with a leap.
"It's my turn!" Hawk declared. Her Disk's ring appearing around her wrist, five stacked cards materialized in front of the red-slotted ridge. "I draw!" she declared, furiously drawing the five cards.
"I summon two copies of Krownoichi Kunai Ikkyu, and one copy of Krownoichi Shuriken Nikyu!"
Within a single swipe, she slapped three cards onto all of her blade's floating zones. Three lime green hexagonal portals appeared beside her. Flying out of the leftmost and rightmost portals were the kunai-wielding bird ninja humanoids. [ATK: 200] [ATK: 200] Flying out of the center portal was another bird ninja humanoid just like Kunai Ikkyu, except she had spiky medium-cut brown hair, and her main weapons were shuriken discs. [ATK: 600] But without warning, each of her bird ninjas appeared to get stronger. [ATK: 200 – 400] [ATK: 600 – 800] [ATK: 200 – 400]
"Her monsters got stronger?!" the astonished Homanu cried. "But… how is that possible?!"
"It's all thanks to the Game Duel Field's 'Forest' Terrain, that's how!" Hawk conceitedly laughed.
"I know which monster Types are strong in this Terrain," Mira argued while trying to maintain her composure, "but I don't recall Winged Beasts being one of them!"
"That's because my Winged Beasts are special," Hawk explained, wickedly grinning. "All of my Krownoichis are of the FOREST Attribute – and thanks to this Game Duel Field, all monsters of that Attribute get powered up, as well!" Mira just gritted her teeth at this revelation, fully aware of the kind of duel she might be in for.
"Now that I've gotten that out of the way, it's time to activate the effect of both my Kunai Ikkyus! They'll each inflict you with two hundred points of damage! Now go!" The two kunai-wielding bird ninjas flung their daggers at Mira's right shoulder, making her wince in pain. [LP: 4000 – 3600]
"Then I activate Shuriken Nikyu's effect! Since she was summoned this turn, I get to destroy one of your Spell or Trap Cards – and if I do, you'll take six hundred points of damage! The one I choose… is the one on my right!" The third bird ninja flung her shuriken at one of Mira's face-down cards that became visible. The shuriken slashed through the card, shattering it into hot pink pixels. Some of the pixels shot directly at Mira's right hip. [LP: 3600 – 3000]
"If you think I'm having fun now, just wait!" Hawk laughed. "I sacrifice Nikyu to bring out my ace! Come forth, Krownoichi Chunin Ayame!"
The shuriken-wielding bird humanoid dissipated into yellow pixels. But instead of another hexagonal portal, a pillar of green light surrounded by leaves appeared behind Hawk. Flying out of the pillar was a familiar armored bird ninja with feather-shaped blades attached to her wrists. No doubt this was Chunin Ayame, and the monster's emergence startled Mira and Homanu, but greatly terrified Kero. [BASE ATK: 1700]
"And wouldn't you know it, Chunin Ayame's strong in this Terrain, too!" Hawk sniggered. [BASE ATK: 1700 – 1900] "But I'm only getting started – this little runt's gonna realize that wanting you to fight me is the biggest fuckup of his life!" A trickle of sweat slowly rolled down Mira's cheek, for she was aware that Hawk could possibly be right.
'Oh, no!' Eiko worriedly thought as he observed Mira's predicament. 'If Mira ends up losing the duel, then she'll lose her deck, too!' He discreetly peeked at one of the necklaces in his pocket, which was faintly glowing violet. 'And yet you're glowing! You really are convinced that she's one the people we're looking for!'
'I sure am!' the voice from the necklace chirped. 'And I've had just about enough of floating around here doing nothing! Time to be free and meet this girl for myself!'
'No, wait!'
But between Eiko and the voice, it was too late. Within a split second, a streak of pink and violet pixels shot out of Eiko's pocket and spiraled over to Mira's presence in a blinding flash of pink light that, for some reason, only Mira was able to see. It wasn't long before Mira regained her vision. But when she did, she saw something awfully strange – at least to her. It was a girl about half her size, with pointed ears, champagne pink skin, and hair and eyes that were both hot pink. She wore a light hot pink jumpsuit, and boots, gloves, and lipstick that were the same color as her eyes and hair. A hot pink, diamond-shaped beauty mark was on her right cheek. Mira was absolutely dumbfounded by this girl's presence.
"Hello, Mira!" the mysterious maiden cheerfully greeted Mira. "Are you ready to beat this creep?"
FEATURED CARD – LEVEL 1-3
Lionhearted Knight – Artorigus
EARTH/Beast-Warrior – Upgrade – Effect
ATK {BASE 100 / SUP 100}
CORE {SUP 3}
Can be Normal or Special Summoned.
If you have a monster(s) other than this card on your field, this card's Continuous BASE Effect is negated, and you cannot activate its SUP Effect.
REQUIREMENTS
●CONTINUOUS BASE EFFECT / Grade BASE or higher
●SUP EFFECT / Grade SUP: 1 CORE
CONTINUOUS BASE EFFECT This card cannot be destroyed by battle.
SUP EFFECT 1 face-up monster on your opponent's field loses 1000 ATK, then this card gains ATK equal to [the ATK the opponent's monster lost by this effect]. This total increase in ATK lasts while this card is of the SUP Grade.
GIICHI CORPORATION CARD DATABASE
Game World – Brave Battlegrounds
Game Duel Field
BOSS: 4000 LP / PLAYER: 4000 LP
TERRAIN: MEADOW Monsters strong in this Terrain (Celestial Warrior, Magical Knight, Warrior, and Beast-Warrior Types, and/or FOREST Attribute) gain 200 ATK/DEF. Monsters weak in this Terrain (Spellcaster Type) lose 200 ATK/DEF.
Monsters cannot be Set or flipped face-down. All face-up monsters on the field are changed to Attack Position, and their battle positions cannot be changed. The BOSS and the PLAYER must conduct their Battle Phases whenever possible, but they can only attack with 1 monster per turn. If the turn BOSS or PLAYER controls only 1 face-up monster, that monster gains 1000 ATK during the Battle Phase of their turn, or 1500 if their monster has an original ATK of 100 or less. If the LP of the BOSS or PLAYER become 0, they lose the Game Duel.
Krownoichi – Kunai Ikkyu
FOREST/Winged Beast – Effect/1/200/0
REQUIREMENT During your Main Phase that you Normal Summoned or Special Summoned this card.
EFFECT Inflict 200 damage to your opponent. This turn, you can only attack with FOREST/WIND Attribute, Winged Beast Type monsters.
Prosperity of the Forest
FOREST/Spell Card
REQUIREMENT You have 1 or less cards in your hand, and you have not activated "Prosperity of the Forest" this turn.
EFFECT Draw 1 card for each face-up FOREST/WIND Attribute monster on your field. Then, if the current Terrain is Forest, draw 1 card. This turn, you cannot activate cards or effects, or Summon or attack with monsters, except FOREST/WIND Attribute cards.
Krownoichi Chunin – Ayame
FOREST/Winged Beast – Upgrade – Effect
ATK {BASE 1700 / SUP 2300}
CORE {SUP 2}
Can be Normal Summoned by Tributing 1 monster, or Special Summoned.
REQUIREMENTS
●BASE EFFECT / Grade BASE or higher: Send 2 face-up FOREST/WIND Attribute Winged Beast Type monsters other than this card from your field to the Graveyard.
●SUP EFFECT / Grade SUP: 1 CORE
BASE EFFECT This turn, this card gains 1000 ATK, and if it attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage (if the ATK of the attacking monster exceeds the DEF of the attack target, inflict the difference).
SUP EFFECT Special Summon 2 Level 4 or lower, FOREST/WIND Attribute, Winged Beast Type monsters from your Graveyard. This turn, you can only attack with FOREST/WIND Attribute, Winged Beast Type monsters.
Lionhearted Grit
WHITE MAGIC/Trap Card
REQUIREMENT When an opponent's monster declares an attack while you have no other cards on your field and 2 or more cards in your hand, send your entire hand to the Graveyard.
EFFECT Send a number of cards from the top of your Deck to the Graveyard equal to [the number of cards sent to the Graveyard for this card's requirement]. Then, add a number of cards with different names from your Graveyard to your hand, except "Lionhearted Grit", up to [the number of cards sent to the Graveyard for this card's requirement]. Any Monster Cards you add from your Graveyard to your hand must ATK and DEF that are 100 or less, whenever possible. Your LP cannot go lower than 100 this turn, but you cannot draw any cards during your next turn.
Lionhearted Knight – Artorigus
EARTH/Beast-Warrior – Upgrade – Effect
ATK {BASE 100 / SUP 100}
CORE {SUP 3}
Can be Normal/Special Summoned.
If you have a monster(s) other than this card on your field, this card's Continuous BASE Effect is negated, and you cannot activate its SUP Effect.
REQUIREMENTS
●CONTINUOUS BASE EFFECT / Grade BASE or higher
●SUP EFFECT / Grade SUP: 1 CORE
CONTINUOUS BASE EFFECT This card cannot be destroyed by battle.
SUP EFFECT 1 face-up monster on your opponent's field loses 1000 ATK, then this card gains ATK equal to [the ATK the opponent's monster lost by this effect]. This total increase in ATK lasts while this card is of the SUP Grade.
Sacred Lionhearted Blade – Excatibur
WHITE MAGIC/Equip Spell Card
REQUIREMENT If the only monster on your field is a face-up Warrior/Beast-Warrior Type monster with an original ATK of 100 or less, equip this card to that monster.
EFFECT The equipped monster gains 500 ATK, any battle damage your opponent takes from battles involving the equipped monster and an opponent's monster is doubled, and if it attacked an opponent's monster, it can make a second attack during that Battle Phase, but pay 1000 LP when it does. While this card is equipped to a monster, you cannot Summon/Set monsters, nor activate Spell Cards.
Game World – Forest
Game Duel Field
PLAYER 1: 4000 LP / PLAYER 2: 4000 LP
TERRAIN: FOREST Monsters strong in this Terrain (Insect, Beast, Plant, Beast-Warrior, and Pyro Types, and/or FOREST Attribute) gain 200 ATK/DEF. Monsters weak in this Terrain (Fiend Type) lose 200 ATK/DEF.
If a PLAYER's LP become 0, they lose the Game Duel.
Destiny Hero – Passer
ILLUSION MAGIC/Psychic – Effect/3/800/800
REQUIREMENT During your Main Phase that you Normal Summoned or Special Summoned this card, send the top 2 cards of your Deck to the Graveyard.
EFFECT This card gains 800 ATK.
Destiny Hero – Paradoxer
ILLUSION MAGIC/Psychic – Effect/1/800/0
REQUIREMENT During your Main Phase that you Normal Summoned or Special Summoned this card, shuffle 2 cards from your Graveyard into the Deck.
EFFECT Draw 2 cards, then send 2 cards from your hand to the Graveyard.
Krownoichi – Shuriken Nikyu
FOREST/Winged Beast – Effect/2/600/0
REQUIREMENT During your Main Phase that you Normal Summoned or Special Summoned this card.
EFFECT Destroy 1 Spell/Trap Card on your opponent's field. If you do, inflict 600 damage to your opponent. This turn, you can only attack with FOREST/WIND Attribute, Winged Beast Type monsters.
Next time on Yu-Gi-Oh! CHRONIXII…
The battle between Mira and Hawk continues, but now Mira has to worry about this small pink girl who has appeared out of nowhere, and now won't leave Mira alone! Just who is this pink creature, and will she make Mira's life more complicated? But more importantly, will Mira defeat Hawk to save both Eiko and her own deck? Find out in Level 1-4: Meeting Pixel Pinkie! Game Duel, game start!