Chapter 3: Family Matters
Tatsumaki and Yoroi took their places to begin the duel. They engaged their Holo Systems and began, drawing their opening hands.
Tatsumaki's opener was Breaker the Magical Warrior, Sangan, Swords of Revealing Light, Magical Merchant, Mirror Force, and his sixth card to start his turn was Dust Tornado.
"Fortunately for you, I don't have a very flashy opening play. I'll simply Set a monster and two other cards, and pass it over to you."
"Draw!" Yoroi found Delinquent Duo as his draw for turn, which was pretty much ideal.
"I activate Delinquent Duo! By paying 1000 Life Points, I get to discard a random card out of your hand!"
Tatsumaki gave his hand a quick shuffle, then fanned out the cards. Yoroi picked the one on the far right, and Tatsumaki revealed it to be Sangan. Then, the second part of Duo's effect kicked in, forcing him to discard a card of his choosing. He picked Breaker.
"Next, I Summon Skilled Dark Magician [Level 4/DARK/Spellcaster/ATK1900/DEF1700], and he'll go ahead and attack your Set monster!"
"My Magical Merchant's effect will now activate! I send cards from the top of my deck to the graveyard until I hit a Spell or Trap, and add it to my hand!"
Tatsumaki flipped over cards, sending away Airknight Parshath and Cyber Jar before hitting Premature Burial and adding it to his hand.
"That's a little worrisome, but I think I can handle it," said Yoroi. " I'll Set two cards and end my turn."
"As your turn ends, I'll activate my Trap card, Dust Tornado, to destroy one of your Set cards!"
"Congratulations, you hit my Sakuretsu Armor," replied Yoroi sarcastically, trying to downplay the significance of that card's destruction. No one was falling for it.
Tatsumaki: 8000 Life Points.
Yoroi: 7000 Life Points.
"Now it's my turn!" exclaimed Tatsumaki. "I draw, but before we continue, I gotta ask. Why do you have such a problem with me? We just met back at the diner and I haven't done a damn thing to you, so what the hell is your problem?"
"The same problem I have with all of your kind!" shouted Yoroi. "You stupid, pampered rich kids who've never known hunger a day in your life! I was born with nothing, and had to claw and scrape my way to where I am today, and it still doesn't measure up to the kind of luxury you were simply born into! My clothes are worn out and falling apart, my shoes have had holes worn into the soles, and the same goes for Emi! Yet you've never known what it's like to struggle in poverty, never known what it's like to not know whether or not you'd be able to eat dinner at night, never known what it's like to have to wear the same shirt day in and day out until it disintegrates off your back! You've never had to lie, cheat, steal, or duel for food or clothes or shelter, yet you choose to lower yourself to our level for your own selfish reasons! At the diner, you talked about not wanting your mother's legacy to give you unfair advantages on your way to the Pro Dueling Circuit, but the truth is that your mother's legacy is what gave you everything you have now, from your deck to your Duel Disk to your stupid fucking designer clothes! You want me to believe you don't want to rely on your mom's legacy? Then don't go around wearing thousands of dollars in jewelry on your neck and fingers, don't wear that silk shirt, and don't walk around places like this flaunting how much better off you are by buying your way into a gang like the Breakers! I cannot accept a world where a rich, spoiled little punk like you who duels just because he thinks it's fun is somehow a superior duelist to someone who's had to rely on dueling and crime just to survive! My past and my hardships have made me far stronger than you will ever be, and I'm going to prove it right here and now! Then you can run home and cry to your stupid mommy about how you lost to some poor kid in tattered clothes and she'll give you some money for ice cream to make you feel all better!"
"Did you even catch what my last name was?" asked Tatsumaki angrily. He couldn't exactly disagree with a lot of what Yoroi said, but telling him to go home and cry to his mom would not stand no matter the validity of any previous points. "I don't think you did. If I remember right, it was never said out loud after you guys entered the diner. My mom made a ton of money as a Pro Duelist, it's true. But I won't be crying home to her if you beat me. For one, a single duel isn't something to get that upset over, and for two, my mother was Rin Adachi, and she was shot to death by a deranged fan of hers four years ago! And if you talk about her like that ever again, I won't just beat you in a duel, I'll cut out your fucking tongue and feed it to you!"
"What?! He's the son of Rin Adachi?!" exclaimed Emi. "I was such a huge fan of hers when I was a kid!"
"No, that can't be…" muttered Yoroi. "You can't be her son, that's impossible! You're lying to me! Your last name can't be Adachi, you liar!"
"It's the truth," said Tatsumaki through gritted teeth, barely containing his rage. "Now, before you start spouting your stupid bullshit again, I'm gonna continue this duel. I Summon Bazoo the Soul Eater and activate his effect! By removing from play three monsters in my graveyard, he gains 300 ATK for each one! I remove Sangan, Breaker the Magical Warrior, and Magical Merchant, increasing Bazoo's ATK to 2500! Now, Bazoo, attack Skilled Dark Magician!"
Yoroi barely managed to react in time, still rattled from the reveal of his opponent's family name. "I activate my Set card, Book of Moon!" he declared hastily. "This turns your monster to face-down Defense mode and stops your attack!"
"Fine, then," said Tatsumaki, who, unlike his foe, who was trying to fake being unbothered by his play being stopped, was actually unbothered. "I activate Swords of Revealing Light, preventing you from attacking for the next three turns. Your move."
"Yeah, my move!" shouted Yoroi as he drew a card with a shaky and suddenly sweaty hand.
On the sidelines, Enzo turned to Emi. "Your friend seems pretty shaken up since learning Tatsumaki's last name. What's going on with him? Is he intimidated or something?"
"I don't know," admitted Emi. "but whatever it is, I think it runs deeper than just intimidation. I've never seen him like this before."
Yoroi's breath was coming in shaky heaves now, resembling the chug of a car engine that hadn't been oiled for several thousand miles over what was recommended. Once he caught a bit of breath, he made his play. "This removes from play a face-down Monster of my choosing! Your Bazoo joins the cards he used to pump himself up! Next, I Summon D.D. Warrior Lady [Level 4/LIGHT/Warrior/ATK1500/DEF1600], but since I can't attack, I'll Set a card and end my turn."
"Draw!" Tatsumaki checked his card, deliberately ignoring the obviously damaged mental state of his opponent. After invoking his mother, all remaining sympathy had left the young man's body. From here on, there would be no witty comments, no toying around, and certainly no checking on Yoroi's well-being. This was not the time for the hand of forgiveness. This was the time for the cold shoulder of retribution. Unfortunately, given the card he drew, it seemed like the retribution part of that equation would have to wait a turn or two longer. The cold shoulder, however, could still be applied.
"I Set a monster and end my turn," he said with uncharacteristic venom in his voice.
"My turn. I draw my card," said Yoroi shakily. He knew he had to get his head back in the game, but it was proving extremely difficult. He never imagined the darkest part of his past would be standing before him, and now that it was, he was struggling to pull himself together.
"I Summon Breaker the Magical Warrior [Level 4/DARK/Spellcaster/ATK1600/DEF1000]. When he's Summoned, he gains a Spell Counter, which I can then remove to destroy a Spell or Trap card. I'll use it to get rid of your Swords of Revealing Light! Now, my Warrior Lady will attack your monster."
"Nice try," exclaimed Tatsumaki, "but I activate my Trap card, Mirror Force, wiping your field clean of all your monsters!"
As Yoroi's monsters were destroyed by the effect of his foe's Trap, he fell to his knees, clutching his chest with his left hand, hyperventilating and on the verge of tears. Could he do this? Did he deserve to even duel an Adachi, let alone win? Did he deserve to even be in his presence?
No. Of course he didn't. How could he have been so foolish as to not think it would come back to haunt him? There was only one option available to him now. The grip of his right hand slipped, and the cards in his hand fell to the floor. His breathing slowed, and he began to move his right hand toward the top of his deck.
Emi saw the motion and would not have any of it. "Oh, hell no!" she shouted, running over to Yoroi and slapping his right hand away before he could complete the signal to surrender the duel. She then grabbed him by his shoulders, forcing him to look her in the eye. "You and I have come too far and gone through too much for you to back out now! I'll cut off that hand before I ever let you use it to concede!"
"Emi, I…"
"No, shut the fuck up! I'm talking now! I don't know what it is that has you looking like you've seen a ghost, but that's not important right now! What's important is that you're in a duel to get into the Breakers, to accomplish the goal we've been working towards together for two years! What's important is that you need to pick up your cards, get back on your feet, and make sure I don't leave you behind! You got that? If you don't get in with me, I swear I'll never let you live it down! Now, get up and win this!"
Yoroi's breathing slowly returned to normal, and his previously shaky hands steadied. She was right, after all. And any other method of delivering that message probably wouldn't have gotten through to him. "You're right. I can worry about everything else later. I'm sorry I worried you. Thanks, Emi."
"You're welcome, dumbass." replied the black haired girl as she turned and walked back to her spot among the spectators.
Yoroi slowly picked up his cards and stood back up, turning his full attention back to his opponent. "Sorry about that. I got too much in my own head for a while there. But now I'm ready to keep going!"
"Frankly, my pity well is bottomed out for you," replied Tatsumaki in an almost chilling monotone. "I don't give a damn about your existential problems, I'm just here to teach you a lesson about shooting your mouth off to your betters."
"Maybe I deserve that icy tone of voice, but you're mistaken if you think you're one of those betters. Since I never left my Battle Phase, I activate my Trap card, Call of the Haunted, allowing me to resurrect my D.D. Warrior Lady! Now, let's try this again! Warrior Lady will attack your Set monster!"
"The Flip effect of Dekoichi the Battlechanted Locomotive [Level 4/DARK/Machine/ATK1400/DEF1000] activates, allowing me to draw a card from my deck."
"That's all I have for now. Your turn."
"I draw. First, I activate Mystical Space Typhoon, destroying your Call of the Haunted, which in turn sends D.D. Warrior Lady back to the graveyard. Next, I discard Thunder Dragon from my hand to activate its effect, which adds two more copies of it from my deck to my hand. Now, I pay 800 Life Points to activate Premature Burial, reviving the Airknight Parshath [Level 5/LIGHT/Fairy/ATK1900/DEF1400] in my graveyard, put there by my Magical Merchant a few turns ago. Now, Airknight will attack you directly, and when he deals battle damage, I get to draw a card. I end my turn."
Tatsumaki: 7200 Life Points.
Yoroi: 5100 Life Points.
"My turn! Draw!" Yoroi had to admit, though not aloud of course, that he wasn't in a great position. Tatsumaki had made many favorable trades in a row, and it was slowly choking him of options. He would have to bank on the card he just drew getting him somewhere. "I activate Pot of Greed, letting me draw two cards!"
First card. Mataza the Zapper. Not good enough here.
Second card. Yoroi smiled. Now that would get the ball rolling.
"I activate the Spell card, Snatch Steal! I'll equip it to your Airknight, allowing me to take control of it!"
If he had been expecting a reaction from his opponent, he would have been disappointed, for Tatsumaki simply stood in silence, staring him down with an icy expression playing across his face. The kind of expression you'd expect from a seasoned contract killer about to dispassionately dispatch a distant target with a Dragunov.
The blankness of his opponent's expression did have an unsettling effect on Yoroi, but he was determined not to let him know that. "Now, I Summon Mataza the Zapper [Level 3/DARK/Warrior/ATK1300/DEF800]. First, Airknight will attack you directly, and his effect will now let me draw a card! Next, Mataza the Zapper will attack, and his effect allows him to do so twice! I'll Set a card and end my turn!"
Tatsumaki: 2700 Life Points.
Yoroi: 5100 Life Points.
"There you go, Yoroi!" shouted Emi. "Way to turn the tables!"
"Draw," said Tatsumaki, almost sounding bored now. "First, during my turn, Snatch Steal gives me 1000 Life Points. I now activate Graceful Charity, so I'll draw three cards and discard two." Tatsumaki threw out both copies of Thunder Dragon that had been sitting in his hand. "Next, I'll activate the Spell card, Lightning Vortex. By discarding a card from my hand, all face-up monsters on your field are destroyed. I end my turn."
Tatsumaki: 3700 Life Points.
Yoroi: 5100 Life Points.
"My turn! Draw! You've left your field wide open! I Summon Exiled Force [Level 4/EARTH/Warrior/ATK1000/DEF1000] and attack you directly! I end my turn."
Tatsumaki: 2700 Life Points.
Yoroi: 5100 Life Points.
"Draw. I activate Card Destruction, causing both of us to discard our hands and draw the same number of cards. You have no cards in your hand, so I'll be the only one doing this. I discard three cards and draw three cards. Next, I activate Heavy Storm, destroying all Spells and Traps on the field. Now, with your Ring of Destruction out of my way, I Summon another Bazoo, and his effect will remove the Airknight, Thunder Dragon, and Cyber Jar in my grave from play to give him 900 extra ATK. Bazoo will now attack Exiled Force. I'll Set one card and end my turn."
Tatsumaki: 2700 Life Points.
Yoroi: 3600 Life Points.
Yoroi was getting worried now. Tatsumaki seemed to have all the resources he could ask for, meanwhile he was relying solely on the top of his deck, which was definitely not a position you wanted to be in, especially not against a duelist as skilled as Tatsumaki was demonstrating himself to be.
"Draw! I Set one card and pass."
"Draw. During my turn, the Sinister Serpent I discarded comes back to my hand. Now, I'll activate my own copy of Call of the Haunted to bring Dark Magician of Chaos out of my graveyard. Now, DMOC's effect gives me back Graceful Charity from my graveyard, which I'll go ahead and activate again to draw three and discard two. I now activate the effect of Bazoo, removing another Thunder Dragon to boost his ATK by 300. Now, Bazoo attacks you directly, and DMOC will finish you off."
"Not quite! I activate Sakuretsu Armor, destroying the monster trying to attack me!"
"Fine. You live another turn. I Set a monster and one card, and end my turn."
Tatsumaki: 2700 Life Points.
Yoroi: 1700 Life Points.
"These kids are good," remarked Enzo. "Tatsumaki has an overwhelming advantage in terms of cards and options available to him, but despite that, Yoroi keeps finding a way to hang in there and work towards turning the tables. Even though he's on the back foot, he's got spirit, I'll give him that."
"Yeah, he's not giving up despite the odds," agreed Manda. "But Tatsumaki's whole demeanor has changed since the subject of his mom came up. He was having fun when he dueled me, but now it's like there's no joy in it, like the only thing on his mind is making his opponent suffer."
"It's a little creepy," said Emi. "I take it he's not normally like this?"
"Like I said, he was smiling and having fun during our duel," replied Manda. "and even though I just met him today, he struck me as a pretty upbeat kinda guy. Wouldn't you agree, boss?"
"Yeah," agreed Enzo. "Guess that goes away when you insult his mom, which is understandable, all things considered."
"My turn! Draw!" exclaimed Yoroi. "Finally, it's here! Now I'll show you just what kind of duelist I am! From my graveyard, I remove from play the LIGHT monster, D.D. Warrior Lady, and the DARK monster, Mataza the Zapper, in order to Summon the almighty Chaos Sorcerer [Level 6/DARK/Spellcaster/ATK2300/DEF2000]!"
"What?!" exclaimed all the adult members of the Breakers simultaneously, even Kiri.
"This kid has a Chaos Sorcerer?" asked Taza.
"Incredible. That's almost as rare a card as DMOC." said Enzo.
"I can't believe this is happening right before my eyes," said Manda. "I never thought I'd see a teenager bring him out!"
Emi smiled. "It's about time! Show him what the strongest monster in your deck can do, Yoroi!"
"With pleasure! Now, I activate the effect of Chaos Sorcerer, allowing me to remove from play a face-up monster on your field, so now your Bazoo is out of here! Unfortunately, Chaos Sorcerer can't attack the turn he uses this effect, so your Set monster is safe for now. I'll end my turn here."
"Draw. First, Sinister Serpent once again returns to my hand. Now, I flip open my Magician of Faith, triggering her effect. When she's turned face-up, I add a Spell from my grave back to my hand, and I think I'll once again recycle Graceful Charity to draw more cards."
Tatsumaki drew three cards, discarding Sinister Serpent and another copy of Dekoichi. He studied his hand, and one card in particular was enough for a slight grin to crack through his icy exterior.
"I hope you don't think you're special with that Chaos Sorcerer. After all, rare doesn't necessarily mean unique."
"No, don't tell me…" gasped Emi.
"There's no way!" exclaimed Yoroi. "You're bluffing!"
"Am I?" wondered Tatsumaki facetiously. "I remove from play the DARK Dekoichi and the LIGHT Thunder Dragon from my graveyard, to call forth my own Chaos Sorcerer!"
"Boss, what the hell is even happening anymore?!" asked Jo. "You're telling me both of these guys have such a rare card?"
"It would seem so," confirmed Enzo with quite a bit less 'cool' in his voice than he would have liked.
"Oh, shit." said Emi.
"Oh, shit," repeated Yoroi. After all, what else was there to say in this situation?
"Now, since Chaos Sorcerer is a Special Summon, I can still Summon my third and final copy of Dekoichi the Battlechanted Locomotive from my hand. I admit, you've done better than I expected, but this is the end of the line. I activate the effect of my Chaos Sorcerer to remove yours from play, then Dekoichi will attack you directly for 1400 damage. Finally, Magician of Faith attacks you for exactly 300 damage. This duel is over."
Yoroi once again sank to his knees. Who was he kidding? Of course he didn't deserve to win a duel against an Adachi. He would never deserve that; not after what happened.
Tatsumaki: 2700 Life Points.
Yoroi: 0 Life Points.
"I hope you know better now than to judge a duelist by their background rather than their ability," said Tatsumaki as the holograms faded. "Still, your skill as a duelist is definitely up there, matched only by your smart mouth and bad attitude. You clearly have talent. If you can learn to think before running your mouth, I think I'd be willing to cast my vote to let you join."
"Dammit, why?!"cried Yoroi, punching the ground. "I can't fucking believe my luck! Goddammit!"
"Yoroi, it's okay," said Emi, who had rushed over to him and was now crouching beside him. "You tried your absolute hardest. Sometimes things just don't work out is all."
"Not that, Emi," replied Yoroi, in a softer voice. "Losing, I can handle. What I mean is, why does he have to be Rin's son?"
"What the hell?! Why are you suddenly so obsessed with my mom?" asked Tatsumaki.
"You said that your mom was gunned down by a deranged fan. Do you remember what his name was?"
"Yeah, Norio Watsuki. They caught the guy and sentenced him to life in prison. What about it?" asked Tatsumaki cautiously.
"As much as I hate to admit it, I owe you an apology for what I said earlier, and for your situation in general," replied Yoroi.
"I mean, apology tentatively accepted," said Tatsumaki, "but how does my situation have anything to do with you?"
"Yoroi, what are you talking about?" asked Emi.
"Sorry I never told you this before, Emi. It's not something I like remembering." Yoroi forced himself to look up. He tried to look the son of Rin Adachi in the eyes, but couldn't bring himself to do so.
"My full name is Yoroi Watsuki. The man who killed your mom was my father."
