Chazz vs Jaden (Promotion Duel)
This duel uses modern support, and went wildly off the rails.
This fic has truly become, "I just write whatever I want to."
"Wait, Chazz, you're my opponent for this exam?" Jaden asked, not sure if he was seeing right. He was sure that Crowler called him up since it was his turn next for the practical exam… and yet the person standing opposite him wasn't another Slifer Red, but rather a familiar Obelisk Blue.
"That's right, Mr. Yuki," Crowler confirmed. "There were an odd number of Slifer Reds this year," the Doctor lied through his teeth, "so I decided to arrange something special just for you. You've demonstrated your skills in the past, and you always talk about how much you love a good duel, so I thought you'd appreciate the chance to go up against the strongest Obelisk Blue freshman."
"Hell yeah I do, teach! You've really got my number." Jaden readied his Duel Disk, a fire burning in his eyes. "I've been waiting for a chance to throw down with this guy again! I hope you're ready, Chazz, because I've got a few more tricks up my sleeve since our last duel," Jaden said, thinking of the box of cards that Ms Dorothy had been able to set aside for him. How sweet of her to remember when he said he loved using Elemental HEROes!
Chazz smiled ominously, knowing that he had more than a few new upgrades to his own deck, thanks to the cases of rare cards delivered to him by Crowler. He calmly walked over to his spot in the arena opposite Jaden's, and readied his Duel Disk as well. "I hope you're ready for a stomping, and for the entire school to see just how out of your league you Slifer slackers are compared to Obelisk Blues like me!"
"I'd like to see you try!" Jaden shot back.
"Let's duel."
"I'll go first!" Chazz drew his first card and cackled. "What an opening hand! I'll start by showing off one of my shiny new cards, Brilliant Fusion!" A shower of gems in a myriad of different colors burst out of Chazz's Duel Disk. "This Continuous Spell lets me Fusion Summon a Gem-Knight monster using monsters from my Deck as Fusion Material!"
Jaden's eyes widened. "From your deck?"
"A one-card Fusion Summon!?" Bastion gasped from the bleachers where he'd been observing the duel. "That's insane! That completely bypasses the usual card disadvantage that Fusions normally end up causing. It's a Fusion Summon with no downsides!" He'd been wanting to keep an eye on Jaden in order to gather more data points on the man's dueling style, and a (somewhat ethically dubious) match against an Obelisk Blue like Chazz would surely do the trick in pushing the dueling savant to show his stuff. That is... assuming Chazz doesn't just end up rolling over him. It wouldn't be very informative if Jaden couldn't put up much of a fight.
"By using the Gem-Knight Garnet and the LIGHT-Attribute B-Buster Drake in my Deck, I Fusion Summon Gem-Knight Seraphinite (0/0) in Defense Position!" An angelic statue-like warrior with an alabaster face formed out of the cascade of gems, taking a knee with its arms crossed over the namesake crystal embedded in its chest. "Brilliant Fusion reduces its ATK and DEF to 0, but it doesn't negate its effect. This card lets me conduct an additional Normal Summon during my Main Phase."
Chazz slammed down two cards from his hand. "So, I Normal Summon both my V-Tiger Jet (1600/1800) and W-Wing Catapult (1300/1500). Then, I banish both of them in order to Special Summon their combined form, VW-Tiger Catapult (2000/2100)!" The two monsters swooped down from the sky, zooming across the arena. Without pausing or slowing down, the V-Tiger Jet landed mid-air on the W-Wing Catapult, the two of them seamlessly merging together into one machine.
"That's it? Your new card is just a fancy Double Summon?" Jaden cocked an eyebrow, unimpressed.
"Unlike Double Summon, Brilliant Fusion leaves behind a body," Chazz explained, "one I can use with this next card, Fusion Tag!"
Jaden squinted at the image of the card that Chazz had just activated. "Hey… that's Sparkman on the art! And Flame Wingman on the tags themselves!"
"That's right, but you're not the only one using Fusion Monsters, Yuki." Chazz clutched a pair of dog tags that formed in his hand. "By revealing a Fusion Monster from my Fusion Deck, I can make one of my monsters take on the name of that revealed card, if I were to use it as Fusion Material this turn. And the card I reveal is XYZ-Dragon Cannon!" The tags shimmered, the image on them shifting. Chazz tossed the tags onto Gem-Knight Seraphinite, and the monster shimmered as well—blasters and laser turrets flickered in and out of existence around it, like a mirage. "Now, I banish my VW-Tiger Catapult and my 'XYZ-Dragon Cannon' in order to fuse them together into the VWXYZ-Dragon Catapult Cannon (3000/2800)!"
Gem-Knight Seraphinite slowly rose to full height. Its stony features turned sleek and machine-like, the mirage in which it had been cloaked turning firmer and more solid. The fighter jet flew towards the other Fusion, breaking apart into dozens of different pieces that attached themselves all over the mechanical humanoid like a suit of power armor. The result was a massive bipedal mecha that towered over the arena, a mishmash of all the machines that were used to make it (or at least, that should have been used to make it).
"What a clever strategy," Bastion mused. "Monsters like Goddess of the Third Eye don't usually work with the VWXYZ Fusions, since their method of being brought out actually isn't a Fusion Summon. But the monsters being banished are still technically Fusion Materials listed on VWXYZ-Dragon Catapult Cannon, so Chazz can use Fusion Tag to change the name of a monster on the field for the purposes of bringing out the Dragon Catapult Cannon. He just cheated out a large boss monster with only a fraction of the effort!"
"A fraction of the usual effort, but it was still a huge card investment," Alexis pointed out. Bastion turned, and noted Jaden's and Alexis' friend groups joining him to discuss the duel they were all watching. "It would've been better if Chazz went second so he could use VWXYZ's effect. As it is, he's sunk four cards into what's just a big beater."
"Alexis, you say that as if 3000 ATK isn't a lot," Syrus whimpered. "Vanilla or not, that thing's still huge."
"Jaden can handle it," Alexis affirmed, completely confident in her friend's abilities. "Let's just see the rest of Chazz's turn…"
"Your head must be getting confused from all these brand new cards, Slifer, so let me help you out with a card that I know you're already familiar with. I activate the Continuous Spell card Mirage of Nightmare." A large copy of the card appeared, hovering ominously behind Chazz. "I Set another card face-down and end my turn."
"Impressive first turn Chazz, but it's going to take more than that to beat me!" Jaden said, unintimidated. "I draw!"
"In the Standby Phase, Mirage of Nightmare activates, allowing me to draw until I have four cards in my hand," Chazz interrupted, taking the chance to refill his empty hand. "Since I drew four cards, it will make me discard four cards during my next Standby Phase, but that won't be an issue."
"I've got cards that draw cards, too! I Normal Summon Elemental HERO Blazeman (1200/1800)." A hero in fiery red armor leapt out to Jaden's side. "When he's Summoned, I get to add a Polymerization from my Deck to my hand. I'll use that immediately to fuse Blazeman and the Elemental HERO Liquid Soldier in my hand, in order to Fusion Summon Elemental HERO Sunrise (2500/1200)!" In a swirl of magic, Jaden's flaming hero was replaced with a massive man in bright red power armor, an image of the sun emblazoned across his abdominal area.
"Sunrise can be fused together with any two HERO monsters with different Attributes," Jaden explained. "Sunrise also gives all my monsters a 200 ATK boost for each different Attribute I control; he's LIGHT, by the way (Sunrise: 2500 ATK - 2700 ATK). Also, when Sunrise is Special Summoned, I get to add a Miracle Fusion from my Deck to my hand."
"Also, since Liquid Soldier was sent to the Graveyard for a Fusion Summon, I get to draw two cards, then discard one from my hand." Jaden drew two cards and looked over them. "I discard the Elemental Hero Burstinatrix."
"Now that I've searched out the Spells that I need, it's safer for me to activate Pot of Desires. By banishing the top ten cards of my Deck face-down, I can draw two more cards." The Duel Disk whirred, automatically counting out ten cards to toss into the face-down banishment. Jaden skimmed through the cards—while not public information to his opponent, Jaden was allowed to look at them himself. Not ideal, but workable—he had really been hoping to get to use Transcendent Wings this game, but all in all, it could be worse. He really missed Pot of Greed.
"Next, I activate Fake Hero and use it to Special Summon Elemental HERO Stratos (1800/300) from my hand in Defense Position." The familiar blue-skinned hero zipped in on his mechanical wings, landing in a guarded stance. With a WIND monster on the field, Sunrise now provided a 400 ATK boost (Sunrise: 2700 ATK 2900 ATK) (Stratos: 1800 ATK 2200 ATK). "Stratos can't attack, and he returns to my hand during the End Phase, but his on-summon effect isn't negated! I'll use his first effect—since I have one other HERO monster on the field, I can destroy one Spell/Trap card on the field."
"In response to your Stratos, I activate my Set card, Waboku." A trio of priestesses in cyan robes appeared by Chazz's side, chanting. "My monsters can't be destroyed by battle, and I take no battle damage this turn." The priestesses started praying, and a soft glow enveloped both Chazz and his Dragon Catapult Cannon.
Jaden tsked. "Stratos' destruction effect is non-targeting, so I don't have to decide what to destroy until it resolves... but you don't have anything else worth destroying anyway. I guess I'll destroy that Brilliant Fusion." Even though Seraphinite had been banished, the Brilliant Fusion Continuous Spell still lingered on Chazz's field, useless. Still, it was better to get rid of it now, before Chazz manages to bounce it with a Giant Trunade or something and then be able to reuse it.
"Aw, didn't wanna destroy my Mirage of Nightmare?" Chazz taunted.
"Yeahhhhh, sure. I'm Slifer Red, not an idiot," Jaden drawled. "Moving on, I finally activate the Miracle Fusion in my hand, fusing the Elemental HERO Blazeman and WATER-Attribute Liquid Soldier in my Graveyard into Elemental HERO Absolute Zero (2500/2000)!" An imposing hero appeared by Jaden's side in a burst of ice crystals. His armor was a pristine white, its pauldrons jutting out angrily like crystals of snow. With a WATER monster now on the field, Sunrise's boost rose to 600 ATK (Sunrise: 2900 ATK - 3100 ATK) (Stratos: 2200 ATK - 2400 ATK) (Absolute Zero: 2500 ATK - 3100 ATK). "Liquid Soldier's effect would also trigger when he's banished, but it's a hard Once Per Turn, so I can't use it a second time."
"Alright, go Jaden!" Syrus cheered. "That's enough ATK points to run over VWXYZ in battle!"
"I enter the Battle Phase!" Jaden declared. "Absolute Zero, attack VWXYZ-Dragon Catapult Cannon!"
"You can't destroy my Dragon Catapult Cannon in battle, though!" Chazz reminded him. Waboku's effect remained until the end of the turn. "I don't even take battle damage!"
"Maybe so, but Sunrise has a third special ability!" Jaden punctuated his point by raising three of his fingers. "When an attack is declared involving another HERO I control, I can target a card on the field and destroy it. And guess what? Waboku doesn't save your robot from effect destruction!"
"No!" Chazz cried out. The icy hero shot forward towards the massive Mechazord—only to juke it out at the last second, revealing that Sunrise was right behind him. Sunrise shot out bursts of radiant magic, the intense light causing the Dragon Catapult Cannon to burn up and collapse.
"I get to do a battle replay, but you wouldn't take any damage from my direct attacks, so I'll end my Battle Phase there. In my Main Phase 2, I activate One Day of Peace. Both of us draw a card, and neither of us take damage until the end of your next turn. But since I activated it after my Battle Phase, it's only me who really gets the protection." Jaden said, winking.
"I Set two cards face-down and end my turn. In the End Phase, Stratos returns to my hand." The aerial flew back into Jaden's hand, with the Slifer deftly catching the card between two fingers. With the WIND monster gone, Sunrise's boost lowered slightly (Sunrise: 3100 ATK - 2900 ATK) (Absolute Zero: 3100 ATK - 2900 ATK)
Alexis and Bastion shared a look. From the murderous expression on Chazz's face, it seems Jaden's opponent realized it too. Were it not for Waboku's effect—if it were just a battle trick like Mirror Force—Jaden would have dealt a perfect, crushing victory on his very first turn. For all Chazz's boasting, it ended up being him that was a hair's width away from a total blowout.
"I always knew Jaden was strong, but this is leaps and bounds beyond what I saw when he fought Crowler," Bastion whispered. Calculations whizzed by in his head. Starting from Blazeman's Normal Summon and taking Liquid Soldier's effect into account, Jaden brought out two powerful Fusions at the cost of just a single card (in terms of card economy). These Fusions weren't just strong offensively, but defensively as well—Absolute Zero in particular infamously had a nasty destruction effect that triggers when it leaves from the field in any way. Jaden used Stratos' effect to destroy Chazz's backrow, and Fake Hero's 'downside' meant that he had Stratos back in hand to use its effects again next turn. He had two face-down cards in reserve, and even had a lingering effect that protected his Life Points from damage.
It was the perfect mix of offense, defense, and grind game. Bastion could not defeat Jaden as he was right now. He needed to recalibrate all his decks.
"Don't count me out just yet!" Chazz growled. "I draw! Due to the effects of Mirage of Nightmare, I discard four random cards from my hand. So go on, Yuki, let's make this quick. Which of these cards do I throw away?" Chazz shuffled his six-card hand so Jaden couldn't tell which one was the card that Chazz had just drawn.
"He doesn't seem as perturbed by this as I expected…" Jaden narrowed his eyes in suspicion. Regardless, there was nothing else to do but press on. "I choose… those four."
Chazz exploded into full-blown laughter, eventually resorting to having to bend over and clutch his stomach. These were deep, booming belly-laughs that spilled out of Chazz like a tsunami. "Oh this is perfect! What else can I say, it truly must be my destiny to crush you under my heel in this duel, slacker!" Chazz revealed the four cards he'd be discarding. "I discard Z-Zillion Tank, Sinister Serpent, Shaddoll Beast, and Electromagnetic Turtle."
"Since Shaddoll Beast was sent to the Graveyard by a card effect, its effect triggers and I get to draw a card. Also, during my Standby Phase, I can add Sinister Serpent from my Graveyard back to my hand—it doesn't matter that I just discarded it!" The card popped out of Chazz's Graveyard and into his awaiting hand.
"So this is Chazz's game," Bastion realized, speaking out loud once more. "Many of the VWXYZ series of cards have the downside of requiring discards to activate their effects. Therefore, Chazz loaded his deck with cards that activate from the Graveyard, or activate when they're sent to the Graveyard. These are cards that he doesn't mind throwing away!"
"I activate one of the cards you most graciously let me keep—the Field Spell Union Hangar." Chazz inserted the card into the Field Spell Zone, and the Obelisk Arena faded away, replaced with stark metal walls and the sound of heavy machinery. Jets, tanks, and all manner of futuristic vehicles of war lined the walls of the hangar, awaiting deployment. "On activation, I can add a LIGHT Machine Union monster from my deck to my hand. And I choose A-Assault Core (1900/200), which I'll Normal Summon!"
The scorpion-like tank rode in on its treads, and immediately the hangar blared to life as platforms shifted and machinery whirred. "Once per turn, if a LIGHT Machine monster is Normal or Special Summoned to my field, I can equip an appropriate other LIGHT Machine Union monster to it from my Deck, with the only downside being that the card can't unequip itself this turn." Chazz smiled menacingly. "But I won't need to."
"I equip C-Crush Wyvern to my A-Assault Core. Now, I banish the A-Assault Core on my field, the B-Buster Drake I sent to the Graveyard with Brilliant Fusion, and the C-Crush Wyvern from my Spell/Trap zone-"
"Chazz can fuse with Spell/Trap cards!?" Syrus shouted.
"-to Special Summon ABC-Dragon Buster (3000/2800)!" The two draconic jets attached themselves to the tail of A-Assault Core, resulting in a two-headed monstrosity bearing down on Jaden and his Elemental HEROes, turrets and missile launchers locked and loaded. "ABC-Dragon Buster only requires that I banish its A, B, and C materials that I control or have in my Graveyard. So, it didn't matter that the C-Crush Wyvern was being treated as an Equip Spell card—it was still a card that I controlled that had the right name."
"Now, my Dragon Buster has a Quick Effect I can use once per turn. By discarding one card—this Metalfoes Fusion, for example—I can banish any card on the field… and I choose one of your face down cards!" If Chazz couldn't kill Yuki this turn, he could at least start dismantling the Slifer's field.
"In response, I activate it! Go, Metaverse!" The field shone blue and white like a digital blueprint, plunging him and his HEROes into cyberspace. When the light settled, only a green wireframe mesh remained for Jaden's floor, ominous swirling energy filling the sky. "With this card, I can activate Fusion Gate directly from my deck!"
Jaden then paused, noticing something strange. Rather than Union Hangar being destroyed, the arena was split perfectly down the middle, with Fusion Gate only taking up Jaden's half of the field. "Hey, what gives? Why wasn't your Union Hangar destroyed when I activated my Field Spell?"
"Ahem," Crowler signaled from the referee booth. "If you had been paying attention in my class during our lesson on Field Spells rather than snoozing through it like you usually do, you would have known that there is a new ruling that allows both players to control a Field Spell at the same time. Industrial Illusions observed that Field Spells were becoming more and more important to players' strategies, and felt this change would make games less polarizing."
"Ahaha, is that so?" Jaden asked, mildly embarrassed.
"Tough luck, Slifer slacker!" Chazz crowed. "Metalfoes Fusion has a Graveyard effect, by the way—I can shuffle it back into my Deck in order to draw a card." Chazz grinned and activated the drawn card immediately. "And what a card this is! I activate Ultimate Slayer!"
A lithe huntress with azure hair and a stoic expression appeared by Chazz's side. She exuded an otherworldly aura, like that of a goddess—though many couldn't tell if it emanated from her, or the massive bow she held at her side. "By sending a Fusion Monster from my Fusion Deck to the Graveyard—in this case, my XYZ-Dragon Cannon—I can return one of your Fusion Monsters back to your Fusion Deck. You also can't activate any monster effects in response to its activation, not that you have any you could use right now. Say goodbye to your Elemental HERO Absolute Zero!"
The huntress pulled back her bow, and an arrow formed of pulsating purple light. She released, and the arrow was let loose with a mighty THWOOM that everyone in the room felt in their bones. The arrow struck true, Absolute Zero's eyes widening as the projectile caught him square in the chest, but rather than pierce through him, the arrow pushed back, its momentum dragging the icy hero with it, all the way back into Jaden's Fusion Deck. The Slifer stumbled back from the recoil as the arrow and monster—reduced to a sphere of light—slammed into his Fusion Deck with great force.
"Actions have consequences, Chazz! When my Absolute Hero leaves the field, he destroys all of your monsters. Go, Revenge of Winter!" Jaden swept his arm out dramatically… only to hold that pose awkwardly as nothing happened. The two-headed mechanical wyvern tank still loomed over him, completely untouched. "Hey, uh, what gives? Is this thing bugged?" Jaden tapped buttons on his Duel Disk, wondering if he missed a prompt.
"Oh, oh, I know this one!" Jasmine, of all people, raised her hand in the audience. "There was another recent rule change. If a monster moves to a zone that isn't public information—like the Fusion Deck or face-down banishment—then any effects it would have from leaving the field don't trigger!"
Everyone was silent, with the whole arena—even other ongoing promotion duels—stopping what they were doing to gape at the girl. "What?" Jasmine blushed under the scrutiny. "Did I do something wrong…? It's a relevant and pretty common interaction for Mirrorjade the Iceblade Dragon."
"No, you didn't do anything wrong." Alexis was the one who spoke up, choosing her words carefully. "We just… didn't expect that from you is all. Since when did you care about the latest judge rulings… or ice dragons, for that matter?" Alexis remembered the great pains she had to go through to convince Jasmine to put any support cards in her Harpie deck that weren't 'cute' or 'sexy'.
Jasmine gasped, holding a hand to her chest. "Don't tell me you've never heard of the Branded lore? People are saying it's the greatest love story of all time! Albaz and Ecclesia are the cutest couple, and it's one of the most romantic sagas to have come out of Duel Monsters to date! It starts in the isolated nation of Dogmatika…" Jasmine started jabbering into Alexis' ear, and everyone mostly moved on.
"Getting back to the duel…" Chazz coughed into his fist. "Let me reveal another card in my hand! By targeting a Machine monster in my Graveyard, I can Special Summon Therion "King" Regulus (2800/1600) from my hand, equipping the targeted monster to it. And I choose to equip to it the XYZ-Dragon Cannon that I sent to the Graveyard for Ultimate Slayer!"
A broad-chested leonine humanoid gladiator leapt out of Chazz's hand, his entry to the field heralded by a massive thud. As a comical show of strength, the fighter dubbed "King" held one arm outstretched high above its head, effortlessly lifting the XYZ-Dragon Cannon and balancing it in one hand.
"Oh!" Jasmine cried out. "The Therions are from Branded lore too! Kitt takes the Springans to the Discolosseum so that they can use the Endless Engine Argyro System to help out Albaz and Ecclesia…" Everyone else started to tune her out again.
"Therion "King" Regulus allows me to negate any card effect or activation by sending any Therion monster—such as itself—to the Graveyard," Chazz explained. It was good extra interruption. "But more important than this 'King' is the monster equipped to it. By banishing ABC-Dragon Buster and the XYZ-Dragon Cannon equipped to Therion "King" Regulus, I call upon the strongest card in my deck, A-to-Z Dragon Buster Cannon (4000/4000)!"
Therion "King" Regulus hurled the tank in its arms at Chazz's other fusion. Like clockwork, the tanks disassembled and reformed, shaping themselves into a gigantic monstrous amalgamation of the six Main Deck monsters that made up the fusion. Gun turrets, wings, treads, and even bits of each one's heads jutted out of the robot's body in unnatural angles. This monster wasn't designed to be sleek or pretty—it was an unapologetic, indulgent display of excess and military might.
"Chazz cheated out a mega powerful monster again!" Alexis held a hand to her open mouth.
"And in an ingenious manner too," Bastion remarked. "A-to-Z has an extra restriction of requiring Chazz to control its Fusion Materials with the appropriate original names, presumably to make the card harder to cheat out. But just like when he summoned ABC-Dragon Buster earlier, XYZ-Dragon Cannon counts as 'in Chazz's control' even if it's just as an Equip."
"Enter Battle Phase!" Chazz cried out. "Dragon Buster Cannon, destroy that slacker's Sunrise!"
"Not so fast, I activate my Set Mirror Force!' A barrier of protective energy surged outwards out of Jaden's Duel Disk.
"Think again! My A-to-Z Dragon Buster Cannon can negate and destroy anything at the cost of a single measly discard." Chazz discarded the last card in his hand, the Sinister Serpent. "Your Mirror Force is worthless!"
The A-to-Z Dragon Buster Cannon fired an indiscriminate volley of lasers, missiles, and artillery blasts, the haphazard guns and turrets and cannons that made up its frame each sending out a nonstop salvo. The Mirror Force met the barrage head on—and was found wanting. The attack broke through the reflective barrier, and Elemental HERO Sunrise took the full force of the Dragon Buster Cannon's attack head on.
"I take no battle damage due to One Day of Peace," Jaden reminded his opponent.
"Fine then. I end my turn." Chazz said. "Take your last turn, Slifer. My A-to-Z Dragon Buster Cannon will shut down any play you make. Then, I'll win this game on my next turn."
"We'll see about that," Jaden said. "I draw!"
"And in your Standby Phase, Mirage of Nightmare triggers again. And by the way, Slifer?" Chazz fanned out the four cards in his hand, making sure Jaden could clearly see each one. "A-to-Z Dragon Buster Cannon's omni-negate isn't Once Per Turn."
"Oh my God," Syrus sputtered out. "So if Jaden tries to do anything, Chazz can negate it—and Chazz can do this up to four times?"
"Five, actually," Bastion said, frowning. "Don't forget that in a pinch, Therion "King" Regulus is an omni-negate as well. Jaden really found himself in quite the pickle here."
Jaden examined his new draw, trying to find an out. 'King of the Swamp… if I discard it, I can search out a Polymerization from my Deck, and- No, that won't work, Chazz will just negate it. Well maybe if I… no, Chazz can negate that too.' Jaden frowned at the behemoth of a mech that dominated the field. 'Chazz has got me locked down! Anything I do is just going to get negated and destroyed, and then he can swing for game next turn."
"What's taking so long, slacker? Is the hopelessness of this situation finally sinking in?" Chazz cackled. "Well don't take too long, otherwise I'll call Crowler on you for slow play!"
"I…" Jaden's eyes darted frantically from card to card, trying to figure out what he could do.
"Kuri, kuri!" Even though it wasn't in his hand, the Duel Spirit of Winged Kuriboh appeared by Jaden's side to give its master some support.
"I'm kind of screwed, little buddy," Jaden whispered to it. "None of the cards in my hand can do anything against Chazz's boss monster without getting shut down."
"Kuri," the puffball pointed not at Jaden's cards, but Chazz's field.
"Yeah, I know it's strong, that's the whole problem, man."
"Kuri." It sounded exasperated. It held an arm to its eye, then gestured towards the holographic display on Jaden's Duel Disk.
"You want me to read its card effect?" Jaden asked, and the Duel Spirit nodded. "I already know, Chazz explained earlier. It says here that in response to my activating a Spell/Trap Card or monster effect-" The realization hit Jaden like lightning.
"Hurry up, slacker! Just surrender, I know nothing in your hand can stop my Dragon Buster Cannon!" Chazz taunted.
"I know," Jaden admitted. "Nothing in my hand can destroy it… but the card I need is already on the field! I activate Fusion Gate's effect to conduct a Fusion Summon!"
"Hmph! I negate it with A-to-Z's effect-" Chazz frowned. "Hey, why isn't it letting me!"
"You weren't entirely correct, Chazz. Your A-to-Z can't negate everything." Jaden looked smug. "It can only negate the activations of Spell/Trap cards, not the mere activations of their effects! I can use my Fusion Gate that's already in play!"
"No matter, I'll just negate it with Therion "King" Regulus then-" Chazz stopped his fingers just moments from pressing the confirmation button.
"Ah, realized it too?" Jaden asked, arms crossed over his chest. "Regulus only negates the effect, but doesn't destroy the card. Since Fusion Gate isn't a Once Per Turn, I'd have been free to just activate it again, and your King would have sacrificed himself in vain."
"Fine!" Chazz spat. "Have your Fusion Summon! There isn't an Elemental HERO in your Fusion Deck that can run over my Dragon Buster Cannon in battle without needing to activate some sort of effect."
"I fuse the Elemental HERO Lady Heat with the WATER-Attribute King of the Swamp both in my hand, banishing both," Jaden thrust his hand out, "in order to Fusion Summon Elemental HERO Absolute ZERO (2500/2000)!" The icy hero reappeared once more, taking a familiar pose by its master's side.
"That's your big play? Don't make me laugh!" Chazz pointed. "A-to-Z Dragon Buster Cannon can negate monster effects! Try using Absolute Hero's destruction effect and I'll just negate it!"
"Oh really?" Jaden smirked. "Then by all means, go ahead. I activate Fusion Gate's effect once more, banishing Absolute Zero and the WIND-Attribute Stratos in my hand, in order to bring out my Elemental HERO Great Tornado (2800/2200)!" A mighty whirlwind kicked up, and Jaden's new HERO, draped in a ragged cloak, stood amidst the rushing winds. "Since Elemental HERO Absolute Zero leaves the field, his effect triggers to destroy all of your monsters!"
"Why do you even bother trying? It's pathetic!" Chazz raised his Duel Disk. "I activate A-to-Z Dragon Buster Cannon's effect to negate… to negate…" Chazz's eyes bulged out of his head. "What the- Why won't it let me!?"
"You didn't let me finish," Jaden said smugly. "Elemental HERO Great Tornado has an effect too—if he's Fusion Summoned, I halve the ATK and DEF of all your face-up monsters. Both Absolute Zero's and Great Tornado's effects activated at the same time, so I got to choose the order in which they go on the Chain. I put Absolute Zero as Chain Link 1, and Great Tornado as Chain Link 2." Jaden cackled. "You missed the activation window to respond to Absolute Zero's effect. You just got chain blocked!"
"No!" Chazz cried as rime and frost started creeping onto his prized monsters.
"Holy-" Bastion caught himself at the last second from uttering an obscenity. "That was a crazy technical manoeuvre! I didn't know Jaden had it in him!"
"He's hopeless in the classroom, but his instinct in a Duel is unmatched," Alexis said, nodding.
Chazz growled. "I can still use A-to-Z Dragon Buster Cannon's effect to negate your Great Tornado's effect and destroy it! I'm taking your stupid HERO down with me!" Chazz discarded Machina Fortress.
The Obelisk Arena was a disaster—a calamitous flurry of cutting gales, a howling blizzard, and a gigantic rampaging robot letting loose all its ammunition in a furious swan song. The Duel between Chazz and Jaden had commanded everyone's undivided attention (their turns were so long that everyone else had already finished their own duels at this point). When all was quiet, no monsters remained on the field.
Jaden stood there, panting and wheezing from the catastrophe that descended upon them. He managed to out Chazz's board of negates, but at a steep cost. He only had one card left in hand. He had to make it count. "The final card in my hand… is Pot of Acquisitiveness. By shuffling three banished monsters back into my Deck, I can draw one card. I choose…" Don't overthink it, just rely on instinct. "Stratos, Liquid Soldier, and Absolute Zero." The two effect monsters returned to Jaden's Deck, while Absolute Zero returned to his Fusion Deck.
'This is it,' Jaden thought. 'This one card better count. I believe in my deck!'
"Now, I draw!" Jaden looked at the card he just drew, and grinned from ear to ear. "I activate A Hero Lives! Since I control no face-up monsters, I can pay half my LP to Special Summon one Level 4 or lower Elemental HERO from my deck. And I choose the Elemental HERO Stratos (1800/300) I just recovered!" (Jaden: 4000 LP - 2000 LP).
Stratos returned to Jaden's side dutifully. "Now I use Stratos' other on-summon effect to add a HERO monster from my Deck to my hand. And I choose Liquid Soldier!" The card shot into his hand. "Now, I activate Fusion Gate again, banishing Stratos and Liquid Soldier. Since they have different Attributes, I can Fusion Summon Elemental HERO Flame Wingman - Infernal Rage (2100/1200)!' Jaden's ace monster—familiar but slightly different—soared into the battlefield.
"Two simultaneous optional effects happen," Jaden said, "but this time, it doesn't really matter in what order they go onto the Chain." He chuckled at his own joke.
"Get to the point," Chazz spat.
"Geez, okay, okay." Jaden held his hands up in surrender. "I had put as Chain Link 2, and thus first to resolve, Infernal Rage's on-summon effect to add a "Favorite" card from my Deck or GY to my hand. And I choose the Equip Spell Favorite Hero."
"Next, Chain Link 1, I use Liquid Soldier's effect to draw two cards and discard one, if it's used as Fusion Material and—in this case—banished." Jaden nodded at his draws. "I discard Elemental HERO Clayman."
"Now I activate Legacy of a Hero. By shuffling back in two Fusion Monsters from my Graveyard that list a HERO monster as material, I can draw three cards. I choose the Elemental HEROes Sunrise and Great Tornado that you destroyed." The cards flew back into Jaden's Extra Deck.
"Can you believe I haven't used my Normal Summon yet? I Normal Summon the Elemental HERO Solid Soldier (1300/1100) I just drew." A man in hard white armor appeared. "When Normal Summoned, he lets me Special Summon another Level 4 or lower HERO from my hand. And I choose Elemental HERO Shadow Mist (1000/1500)!"
"Another lady HERO!" Syrus cried out, admiring the stern woman in tight black leather who just appeared. "Darn, I didn't know Jaden was into this stuff."
"It's just a card, Syrus. I think you're the only one with a problem here," Chumley sighed, speaking up for the first time since the start of the duel. "Now keep quiet, you're embarrassing us."
"If Shadow Mist is Special Summoned, I can add a "Change" Quick-Play Spell Card from my Deck to my hand, and I choose Mask Change!" Jaden searched the Deck for his card, and immediately activated it. "By sending Shadow Mist to the Graveyard, Mask Change lets me bring out a Masked HERO from my Fusion Deck with the same Attribute. Since Shadow Mist was DARK, I bring out Masked HERO Dark Law (2400/1800)." Shadow Mist twirled, an ebony mask appearing in her hands as she began a heroic transformation.
The crowd murmured. They had seen Jaden use all sorts of Elemental HEROes before, but this was the first time they saw him use a Masked HERO! Shadow Mist's black leather turned into a sleek black bodysuit, with reinforcements over her arms and shins. A snarling bestial mask adorned her head, completely covering her head like a full-helm of a knight of old.
"Shadow Mist has another effect that triggers when she's sent to the Graveyard, but I can only activate one of her effects per turn, so I won't bother to explain that. Instead, let me tell you about Dark Law." On cue, the HERO struck a pose. "First of all, any card that would be sent to your Graveyard is banished, instead, so say goodbye to any of their Graveyard effects! Secondly, once per turn, if you add a card from Deck to hand—outside of the Draw Phase—I get to banish a random card from your hand! You'll be punished by your own consistency tools!"
Chazz frowned. He didn't expect his strategy to be countered like this.
"And before you get any ideas about running over my Dark Law in battle, I equip her with the Favorite HERO my Infernal Rage searched out! If I have a card in my Field Zone—which I do—Dark Law gains ATK equal to her original DEF (Dark Law: 2400 ATK - 4200 ATK)".
"Now, since I didn't use a Normal Monster as Fusion Material for Infernal Rage, I can't activate his other effect. Instead, I'll use Fusion Gate a fourth time this turn, fusing Infernal Rage—a WIND monster—with the EARTH-Attribute Solid Soldier also on my field. He's here once more, Elemental HERO Sunrise (2500/1200)! On-summon, he lets me search out a second copy of Miracle Fusion from my Deck." Sunrise returned to Jaden's field, shining with optimism and beaming with life. Also, because Jaden had two Attributes on his field—LIGHT and DARK—Sunrise gave his whole field a 400 ATK boost (Sunrise: 2500 - ATK 2900 ATK) (Dark Law: 4200 ATK - 4600 ATK).
"Jaden found a second copy of Miracle Fusion?" Alexis asked. "That's good, it's one of his most powerful cards."
"It came with Sunrise," Syrus explained, "so that makes it his second copy, in addition to the one Jaden already had."
"Even without using it just yet, Jaden managed to build quite the board." Alexis shook her head fondly. "To think this entire combo started from just one card in hand! Jaden's deck gave him exactly what he needed."
"I'm getting real sick of that Fusion Gate of yours," Chazz snarled, seeing Yuki's fourth Fusion Summon this turn.
"Oh yeah? Well then how about a change of scenery." Jaden swept his hand out. "I enter the Battle Phase-"
"Quick Effect! I banish the Electromagnetic Turtle in my Graveyard to end the Battle Phase!" Chazz had no cards at all left on his field, and if not for this final layer of protection, he'd have been absolutely screwed.
"I'm the turn player, so I have priority! Before you activate that effect, at the start of the Battle Phase, I activate Favorite Hero's second effect, which lets me activate a Field Spell directly from my Deck. I replace my Fusion Gate with Summon Breaker!"
"A floodgate!" Bastion cried out. "Jaden continues to surprise me, I didn't know he ran such cards."
"Well, Dark Law counts as a floodgate of sorts," Alexis said, "so I guess it wasn't such a massive leap."
Jaden's Fusion Gate dissipated, Union Hangar now dominating the whole field. Except, on Jaden's side, a comically large OFF switch appeared, hooked up to a snaking rope of purple energy wires that connected to a hexagon that surrounded Chazz. "Once you summon your third monster, the circuit breaker trips and your turn immediately ends!"
"Now, I enter Main Phase 2. I Set a card face-down and end my turn."
"Finally, I thought your turn would never end!" Chazz sneered. "I draw! In the Draw Phase, I activate the Double Cyclone in my hand, destroying both my Mirage of Nightmare and your Summon Breaker!" The hexagon of energy exploded, Chazz now free of its restriction. Since Jaden's Field Spell was destroyed, Favorite Hero stopped applying its ATK boost to Dark Law (Dark Law: 4600 ATK - 2800 ATK).
"Since Mirage of Nightmare was destroyed, I no longer have to discard during my Standby Phase. But I can still add Sinister Serpent back to my hand!"
Chazz considered his hand carefully. It seems fate was still on his side—he had exactly what he needed to work around Yuki's Masked Hero. "I activate Fusion Deployment! By revealing XYZ-Hyper Dragon Cannon from my Fusion Deck, I can Special Summon one of its Fusion Materials from my Main Deck. Go, X-Xross Cannon (1800/1500)!" A shadow passed over them, followed by a more heavily-armored retrain of Seto Kaiba's classic monster slamming into the ground, having been airdropped directly into the fray.
"In the Main Phase, I can use its effect to equip to it an appropriate LIGHT Machine Union from my Deck. I choose Y-Dragon Yearhead (1500/1600) and unequip it, Special Summoning it to my side of the field!" A reinforced red dragon mech touched down. "Then, when Y-Dragon Yearhead is Special Summoned, I can equip to it a Level 4 LIGHT Machine monster from my hand or Graveyard. I choose the Z-Zillion Tank (1500/1300) in my Graveyard, which I also unequip and Special Summon!" A yellow crab-like vehicle rolled in, with turrets and cannons poking out of its pincers.
"When Z-Zillion Tank is Special Summoned, I can equip to it a banished Level 4 LIGHT Machine monster, and I choose the A-Assault Core (1900/200) that I banished for my Dragon Buster, which I'll also unequip and Special Summon!" The scorpion tank returned. Then, the hangar flared to life, platforms shifting and machinery whirring once more. "I'll now use Union Hangar's effect to equip an appropriate LIGHT Machine Union to the newly summoned A-Assault Core, and I choose *Torque Gear, which boosts my A-Assault Core's ATK/DEF by 500 points!" An auxiliary engine was affixed directly onto A-Assault Core's chassis (A-Assault Core: 1900/200 - 2400/700).
"And by the way, Yuki, all these effects placed the cards directly from my Deck onto the field, so your precious Dark Law never triggers!"
"I'm starting to get dizzy," Syrus groaned. "That entire chain reaction started from just a single card? Chazz's deck is crazy!"
"He did already need the Graveyard and banishment set up a little bit," Alexis reminded him. "But I do agree with you. It feels like each one of Chazz's cards is crazier than the last."
"Now, my effects have locked me into only summoning LIGHT Machine monsters from my Fusion Deck. But that's all I need!" Once more, the three retrains of Kaiba's iconic monsters began to shift and disassemble themselves. "By banishing X-Xross Cannon, Y-Dragon Yearhead, and Z-Zillion Tank—you knew he was coming!—I Special Summon XYZ-Hyper Dragon Cannon (3000/2800)!" The combined form was one many in the audience had seen in their childhood from Kaiba's exploits, but this version seemed… stronger.
"Let's battle! XYZ-Hyper Dragon Cannon, destroy Elemental HERO Sunrise!" Chazz cried. A torrent of laser beams struck the red hero, who grunted before being brutally vaporized. Sunrise's effect doesn't trigger when he himself battles (Jaden: 2000 LP - 1900 LP).
The crowd roared. For all the back-and-forth that had taken place so far, this was somehow the first blood of the Duel, even if it was a measly 100 LP.
"Now that Sunrise is gone, your Dark Law loses its ATK boost," Chazz pointed out (Dark Law: 2800 ATK - 2400 ATK). "That's just low enough for my A-Assault Core to crash into it!"
The scorpion tank charged full-throttle at the Masked HERO, who managed to let loose a blast of dark magic before getting run over. The auxiliary engine on it blew up. "Rather than be destroyed by battle, the equipped Torque Gear gets destroyed, instead," Chazz explained. Torque Gear went to Chazz's Graveyard, since Dark Law was already considered destroyed by battle at that point.
"In response to my monster being destroyed, I activate Hero Signal, which lets me Special Summon Elemental HERO Ocean (1500/1200) from my Deck!" A blue hero wielding a bident floated in.
"Oh, I'm so scared, a 1500 ATK monster!" Chazz mocked. "In my Main Phase 2, now that Dark Law is gone, I activate Graceful Charity. I draw three cards, then choose to discard… Transaction Rollback, and Union Scramble. I Set a card face-down and end my turn."
"Draw! In my Standby Phase, I activate Ocean's effect to return Shadow Mist to my hand-"
"Except you won't!" Chazz interrupted. "Before your Draw Phase ends, I use XYZ-Hyper Dragon Cannon's Quick Effect! I discard Sinister Serpent to destroy Ocean!" A strategically aimed laser disintegrated the HERO.
"Tch," Jaden said. "Well fine. I activate Parallel World Fusion! By shuffling banished monsters back into my deck for Fusion Material, I can conduct the Fusion Summon of an Elemental HERO monster. By shuffling back Liquid Soldier and Infernal Rage, I bring back out my Elemental HERO Absolute Zero (2500/2000)!"
"Not this guy again!" Chazz cursed, already knowing what was coming next. The icy hero once again stood by Jaden's side. It waved at Chazz mockingly.
"I can't conduct any other Special Summons this turn, but he's all I need. I activate Advance Draw and Tribute my Absolute Zero to draw two cards. Now that Absolute Zero has left the field, I use his effect and once again destroy all your monsters! Revenge of Winter!"
Frost once again crept onto Chazz's machines, eventually leading to them shattering into brittle shards of scrap metal.
"Since A-Assault Core was sent to the Graveyard, I can add one other Union monster from my Graveyard to my hand," Chazz spat out. He added back Torque Gear, the only valid target since everything else was banished.
"I activate Fifth Hope! By shuffling five Elemental HERO monsters back into the Deck—Burstinatrix, Clayman, Shadow Mist, Ocean, and Absolute Zero—I can draw another two cards." Jaden did so, the Duel Disk's auto-shuffle function taking care of it.
"Now, I activate the Continuous Spell Future Fusion! By sending the Fusion Materials from my Deck to the Graveyard, I can perform a delayed Fusion Summon that'll come out in two turns. I reveal Elemental HERO Escuridao, and send Winged Kuriboh LV6—which always counts as an Elemental HERO—and the Dark-Attribute Necro Gardna." Two skyscrapers appeared behind Jaden, counting down until his Fusion could come out. "Since the Fusion Summon happens two turns from now, I'm still allowed to activate this card despite being under the lock from Parallel World Fusion. I Set two cards face down and end my turn."
"During your End Phase, I activate the effect of the Transaction Rollback in my Graveyard! By banishing it and paying half my Life Points (Chazz: 4000 LP - 2000 LP), I can copy the activation effect of a different Normal Trap Card in my Graveyard. I choose the Union Scramble that I discarded, which lets me Special Summon three banished LIGHT Machine Normal or Union monsters!" The roar of engines sounded out on Chazz's field. "Come back, B-Buster Drake (1500/1800), C-Crush Wyvern (1200/2000), and W-Wing Catapult (1300/1500)!" The three machines of war landed next to Chazz. Yuki had no monsters left, and Chazz had assembled an army.
"I draw!" Chazz said. "In my Standby Phase, I add Sinister Serpent back to my hand."
"Now, I'll banish the Union Scramble in my Graveyard, and use its other effect to add back the banished V-Tiger Jet (1600/1800) to my hand. I Normal Summon it!" The Tiger Jet touched down, as well.
"Now, I'll use Double Spell. By discarding the Metalfoes Fusion I just drew, I can copy the effects of a Spell card in your Graveyard. And I choose Pot of Acquisitiveness!"
"Oh no," Jaden muttered.
"Oh yes! You see what's going to happen right?" Chazz pulled out three purple-bordered cards. "By shuffling back VW-Tiger Catapult, ABC-Dragon Buster, and XYZ-Dragon Cannon, I can draw a card. The card draw is great, but what I was really after was recovering my Fusions. Assemble, my monsters!"
In another flurry of shifting and morphing machine parts, Chazz once again banished his entire field of monsters (and the A-Assault Core in his Graveyard), in order to bring out VW-Tiger Catapult (2000/2100) and ABC-Dragon Buster (3000/2800).
"I once again shuffle Metalfoes Fusion from my Graveyard back into my Deck, in order to draw a card." Chazz's Duel Disk once again shuffled his deck and gave him a card to draw. "I know that Future Fusion isn't a threat. This game is going to be over before that monster comes out. I activate this Mystical Space Typhoon and destroy one of your face-down cards!"
Jaden grunted as the typhoon blew away his Draining Shield.
"Next, by discarding this Sinister Serpent in my hand, I use ABC-Dragon Buster's effect to banish your other face-down card!"
"I'll activate it right now, then!" Jaden flipped it face-up. "The Flute of Summoning Kuriboh lets me Special Summon Winged Kuriboh (300/200) from my Deck in Defense Position!"
"Tch! Winged Kuriboh's effect only applies after it's been destroyed! I discard Skull-Mark Ladybug and use VW-Tiger Catapult's effect to force your puffball into Attack Position! Also, since it was sent to the Graveyard, Skull-Mark Ladybug gives me 1000 Life Points (Chazz: 2000 LP - 3000 LP)."
"Now, Battle Phase. ABC-Dragon Buster, destroy that Winged Kuriboh and end this Duel!"
"You're not the only one with Graveyard effects! I banish the Necro Gardna in my Graveyard to negate that attack!"
Buster Drake's faltered, its weapons stalling due to some mysterious dark energy. "Fine, I'll destroy it with VW-Winged Catapult then!" As the monster was disintegrated by twin beams from the dragon heads, it left a lingering aura behind that shielded Jaden from any further battle damage—not that Chazz had any more monsters, but it would have been good protection if he did (Jaden: 1900 LP - 200 LP).
"Hmph! All you're doing is stalling the inevitable. I Set another card face-down and end my turn!"
"I draw!" Jaden looked at his draw—that was a good pickup.
"I know you still have Miracle Fusion in hand," Chazz said. "And whatever you bring out, I'm ready to shoot down with my Buster Dragon's Quick Effect."
"We'll see about that," Jaden simply said. "First, I activate this Giant Trunade to bounce back your Spell and Trap cards!"
"Hmph!" Chazz grunted as his Compulsory Evacuation Device and Mirror Force were blown back. There go his contingencies, especially his backup plan for Absolute Zero. His Union Hangar was returned too—suddenly the two opponents were back in the Obelisk Arena. "Well it doesn't matter. You messed up, slacker. You shuffled away all your WATER monsters, so you can't bring out Absolute Zero!"
"Who said that's who I'm gonna summon?" Jaden asked. "First, I banish an Elemental HERO Fusion Monster—Sunrise—from my Graveyard, in order to Special Summon Winged Kuriboh LV6 (300/200) from my Graveyard!" This Winged Kuriboh had a little costume on—a hood and wings reminiscent of Elemental HERO Flame Wingman. Many in the audience cooed at the sight, and the monster waved at them, drinking in the attention. "Read its effect, Chazz," Jaden said, tapping on his Duel Disk.
"When an opponent's monster declares an attack, or your opponent activates a monster effect on the field, as a Quick Effect: You can…" Chazz's eyes widened. "You can Tribute this card; destroy that 1 monster, and if you do, inflict damage to your opponent equal to its original ATK! No!"
"Yes!" Jaden pumped his fist. "If you ever try to activate your ABC-Dragon Buster's Quick Effect, my little buddy here is going to blow you up!"
"You still need to force me to use it," Chazz forced out through gritted teeth. "And you don't have much juice left in your Graveyard."
"I don't," Jaden agreed. "At least, not yet. I activate Future Fusion again. This time, by revealing Elemental HERO Flame Wingman, I'll send to the Graveyard my Elemental HEROes Burstinatrix and Avian. Now, I activate Miracle Fusion and fuse both of them together into Elemental HERO Flame Wingman - Infernal Rage (2100/1200)." Jaden's trusty hero returned to his side.
"No…" Chazz uttered out.
"On-summon, I get to add back the Favorite Hero from my Graveyard to my hand. Next, now that Infernal Rage was Fusion Summoned using a Normal Monster as material this time, I can use its other effect. I Tribute it and Special Summon the original Elemental HERO Flame Wingman (2100/1200) from my Fusion Deck. I equip it with Favorite Hero."
"No…" Chazz repeated, stepping back in disbelief.
"I enter the Battle Phase. At the start of the Battle Phase, Favorite Hero lets me activate a Field Spell directly from my deck. I activate Skyscraper. I don't need its effect, though, since all I need is a card in my Field Spell Zone so that Favorite Hero boosts Flame Wingman's ATK (Flame Wingman: 2100 ATK - 3300 ATK). Now, Flame Wingman, attack ABC-Dragon Buster!" Jaden pointed straight at it. "Skydive Scorcher!"
"NO!" Chazz cried out in despair. If his monster gets destroyed by battle, Flame Wingman's effect would burn him for lethal damage. "I… I… You can't do this to me! This wasn't how it was supposed to go!" He discarded a card—Torque Gear—from his hand. "I activate ABC-Dragon Buster's Quick Effect and banish your Flame Wingman!"
Jaden sighed with finality at the last bits of futile resistance. "Winged Kuriboh LV6's effect activates, then. I Tribute Winged Kuriboh LV6 in order to destroy your ABC-Dragon Buster and deal damage to your LP equal to its ATK."
The twin-headed mech roared and launched two searing laser beams that moved to vaporize Elemental HERO Flame Wingman—but as it did, Winged Kuriboh flew up to the tank's base. It closed its eyes, started to glow… and detonated. Chazz and Jaden braced themselves, the shockwave rattling everyone present. When the smoke cleared, ABC-Dragon Buster was gone. (Chazz: 3000 LP - 0 LP. Jaden wins!)
"I... I lost...?" Chazz said, hollow, dropping to his knees.
"Chazz lost?" Crowler echoed, unbelieving of what he'd seen.
"Even with all the rarest and strongest cards in the game... that Slifer defeated me..." Chazz intoned.
The whole arena was silent, not a single soul wanting to be the one to first to make a sound. This was the greatest Duel that many of them had ever seen in their life. Chazz and Jaden each had turns where they Special Summoned more monsters than some audience members had in an entire week of duels. They built and dismantled armies of monsters, turn after turn after turn. And yet... from the look on Chazz's face, any acknowledgments of celebration seemed inappropriate.
Finally, slowly, Jaden walked up to the fallen Chazz, and extended one hand out with an easy-going smile. "Great game, Chazz! That was an awesome duel!" From anyone else, one might find the words sarcastic, but it was clear that Jaden's remarks were filled with his sincere, honest opinion. "I never felt so pushed before in my life! You pulled off some really sick moves back there. You're an awesome duelist, thanks for the game."
Chazz stared silently at the extended hand—and ignored it. He simply stood up, and wordless exited the Obelisk Arena, the crowd parting around him like the Red Sea. He didn't even bother sticking around to hear what fate would befall him for losing to a Slifer in a Promotion Exam.
"Wooh! Go Jaden!" Syrus cheered. Now that Chazz was gone, Syrus felt emboldened to support his friend and let out some of the pent up excitement he had been storing all duel. Like a dam being burst, everyone else started clapping and cheering. No one heard Sheppard's announcement that Jaden would be promoted to Ra Yellow, while Chazz would be demoted out of Obelisk Blue. Students Jaden had never met before walked up to him to clap him on the back, or congratulate him for winning the duel of epic proportions.
And yet, throughout all this, Jaden couldn't help but stare down the corridor that Chazz had exited out of. At the very least, Jaden had hoped that Chazz would be able to open up and have some fun with their duel, but this didn't seem to be the case. Oh well. He'd give Chazz a rematch whenever the Princeton wanted after this.
It's not like Chazz would do anything drastic, right?
*Torque Gear's real name is Torque Tuning Gear, and also turns the equipped monster into a Tuner. I have decided to limit myself to Fusions only for this chapter, although I may or may not stick with that restriction, depending on how I feel. It would've been much nastier if Chazz could Link off the A/B/C Unions to activate their floating effects first!
I was watching an episode of MBT's Dueltaining! series where his opponent showcased the Therion "King" Regulus interaction for bringing out A-to-Z Dragon Buster ("...HOW DO THESE CARDS EVEN WORK?") and I just knew-I needed to turn this into a duel.
From there, the question became-how the hell does Jaden not lose on the spot vs all these omni-negates then? Inspired by Master Duel frustrations, I thought it would be cool to show off chainblocking, which is a very unique and very stupid mechanic that's unique to Yugioh.
Then, I thought it would be a cute idea to have Chazz's boards run through the progression of LIGHT Machine Unions through the years: VWXYZ, then ABC, then XYZ retrains.
I couldn't give Jaden the usual Destiny HERO and Vision HERO tools that HERO decks love to use, since those are very much Aster Phoenix cards. But I hope you enjoyed getting to see Dark Law, everyone's "favorite" HERO!
I hope you found the breakneck balls-to-the-wall craziness and pace of modern cards to be enjoyable. I don't know which style (format-appropriate cards, vs modern legacy support) I'll end up doing more of in the future. Probably both. As mentioned earlier, this fic really is just a dumping ground for my cool ideas where I just write whatever I want.
'Til next time that inspiration strikes!
EDIT: I tweaked the ending a little bit. I was horrifically mistaken: A/D Changer is not a Quick Effect. I changed it to Necro Gardna instead - which is better, since it's a Jaden card in the anime anyway - and rewrote the previous turn so that Jaden didn't take LP damage from crashing Absolute Zero. It made the Duel better and more dramatic anyway, since Jaden now pulls a turnaround victory from 200 LP!