Turn 7: Akio / 8000 : Michelle / 8000
Akio drew another card, and smiled. Well, it was about time. Holding the card he just drew high, he declared: "I activate 'Iron Core Transport Unit'! This lets me discard one card from my hand to add an 'Iron Core of Koa'ki Meiru' from my deck to my hand. And I discard 'Koa'ki Meiru Powerhand'!". Saying this, he discarded the monster from his hand and drew the card that had just popped out of the Duel Disk. Then, he continued: "After this, I summon 'Koa'ki Meiru Crusader', and make him attack your face-down monster!"
The hulking beast charged, uncovering Michelle's monster. It was 'Nova Summoner'. The winged wreath of light shattered and exploded after being hit by the beast's sword.
Michelle made no attempt to stop the attack, instead letting her monster get destroyed. "You just destroyed 'Nova Summoner', which lets me activate its effect! When it's destroyed by battle and sent to the graveyard, I can Special Summon one Light FAIRY-type monster from my deck!" Michelle explained. "The monster I Summon is 'Arcana Force 0 - The Fool'!" The odd-looking creature appeared on the field, crouching and shielding itself with its arms in an "X" shape, its Def registering as 0.
Then a picture of the card appeared above it, and it began spinning. "When 'The Fool' is Summoned, the position of the card determines its effect!" Michelle explained, and the card stopped at the upright position. "It's right-side up, which means that the owner of the card must negate any of his own effects that target 'The Fool'."
"Well, since it destroyed one of your monsters by battle, Crusader can recover a card from my Graveyard if its name includes the words "Koa'ki Meiru". This way, the Powerhand I discarded goes right back to my hand."
And, true to word, the card was ejected from his Graveyard.
Then, Akio said: "It's the end of my turn, which means that I have to destroy 'Koa'ki Meiru Crusader', since I won't pay its maintenance cost. It's your turn now."
Turn 8: Akio / 8000 : Michelle / 8000
After 'Crusader' exploded, Michelle drew her next card. "Hmph. Then I play the Spell Card: 'Photon Sanctuary'!" Michelle said as two bluish orbs appeared on her side of the field, one next to either side of 'The Fool'. "This Summons two 'Photon Tokens' on the field, allowing me to Tribute Summon: 'Angel 07'!" The orbs disappeared, only to be replaced with a giant white creature that slowly rose up from the illuminated ground.
Michelle then pointed at Akio and commanded, "Battle Phase! 'Angel 07', attack his face-down monster!" The halo above 'Angel 07' turned, and from the center of it fired a beam of light heading for his face-down Boulder.
The antropomorphous rock was annihilated by the beam fired by 'Angel 07', but Akio, strangely, didn't look exactly worried for the loss of his monster. "Well, since you destroyed Boulder by battle, I can add a level 4 or lower Koa'ki Meiru monster to my hand, and I choose-"
An error noise sounded from Akio's Duel Disk, showing a bright red "X" on the screen. "Sorry, but as long as 'Angel 07' is on the field, you can't activate any monster effects!" Michelle said cheerfully, and Freya and Michelle high-fived each other.
"Now that Battle Phase is over, let's move on. I switch 'The Fool' to Attack Position!" Michelle said, and 'The Fool' stood up from its crouching position, its Atk registering as "0". "I then activate a face-down Spell Card: 'Creature Swap'! We each choose a monster on our side of the field and have them switch with each other." Michelle explained. "I choose 'Arcana Force 0 - The Fool', of course, and you have no choice but to pick your face-down monster!" The two monsters then faded away, only to reappear where the other was originally. "I now activate another face-down card: 'Curse of the Circle'!" A blue star-like mark then appeared on its chest. "Now you can't use 'The Fool' as a Tribute or a Synchro Material!" Michelle sighed, estatic about her executed plan, then said, "Well, turn end."
Turn 9: Akio / 8000 : Michelle / 8000
Well, this girl is something, Akio thought. Luckily, as long as her 'Sanctuary in the Sky' was on the field, the monster on his field was immune to damage. Heh, she probably forgot that the effect applies also to my monsters. Not so clever, girl...
He drew a card. It was 'Pot of Duality'. Good, he reasoned. This should at least give me a better choice of cards. I can't Special Summon, but it's not like I'd have any occasion to do it this turn, anyway...
"First off", he announced, "I activate again the effect of 'Iron Core Transport Unit', this time sending my first Iron Core to the Graveyard to search the other from my Deck." Then, he continued, "I play 'Pot of Duality'", he announced, "which lets me draw the first three cards of my deck, then choose which one to add to my hand, and reshuffle the others in my Deck!"
The three cards that came up were 'Core Overclock', 'Koa'ki Meiru Sea Panther' and 'Core Compression'.
"I choose 'Core Compression', and shuffle the others back in my deck. Then, I immediately activate it! And since I have an 'Iron Core' in my hand, I can send 'Powerhand' to the Graveyard to draw two cards!"
He drew 'Core Blaster' and 'Koa'ki Meiru Powerhand'. Okay, I'm saved. For now. Maybe.
"Then, I summon 'Koa'ki Meiru Powerhand', and activate 'Core Overclock', which gives it a boost of 500 Attack points!"
"I activate a Trap Card: 'Divine Punishment'!" Michelle interjected. "When you activate a Spell, Trap, or Monster effect while I have 'Sanctuary in the Sky' on the field, it's negated and destroyed!" The clouds underneath 'Core Overlock' glowed red, and a large pillar of red lightning shot upward, completely incinerating it.
Akio grimaced and murmured: "Fuck...". Then, he snarled back at Michelle: "Well, it doesn't matter. I have another ace in the hole. I equip 'Powerhand' with 'Iron Core Armor'!".
A greenish grey armor with the Koa'ki Meiru symbol engraved on its chestplate covered the "torso" of the drill monster. He waited a few seconds, wondering if Michelle would activate another Trap card.
Michelle smiled and gestured to him with her right hand, inviting him to attack. In that moment, Akio had a bad feeling about that whole thing. The girl still had another face-down card, and she had been able to counteract his every move so far, but he didn't have much choice, so he resumed: "...And then, I also equip it with 'Core Blaster'. Go, 'Powerhand'! Attack 'Angel O7'!"
Powerhand wielded a bizarre hexagonal bazooka-like weapon and pointed it at the shining figure before it, then pressed the trigger. An orange beam of light emerged from the weapon's muzzle.
"I activate my face-down card: 'Book of Moon'! This forces your monster into face-down defense mode!" Michelle said as her last face-down flipped up, and 'Powerhand' was flipped down, forcing it to drop its "armor" and "weapon" as well, causing them to explode in shards when they touched the ground. "Sorry, did you need those?" Michelle asked Akio in a tone of voice that implied that she was taunting him. She was definitely enjoying herself, and she had been worrying about cards like 'Core Blaster' too.
That was the last straw. The only card that could not only stop his attack, but also prevent him from recovering Core Blaster... and the damn brat HAD to have it.
Forcing himself to keep his cool, - it was just a test duel after all - he said: "Well then... I end my turn".
Turn 10: Akio / 8000 : Michelle / 8000
Michelle drew her next card and examined it, then grinned. "Hey, can I ask you something?" Michelle asked Akio.
Akio answered, clearly quite aggravated: "What is this, a duel or a party? What do you want?"
Michelle, unfazed, continued on, "When I switched 'The Fool' over to your side, was your first thought about how 'The Sanctuary in the Sky' would still protect you?"
That was when he realized that the girl wasn't playing around. Of course he knew the answer. But as usual, he had brushed it aside. Well, not that he could have done much about it anyway...
"You had this planned all along, didn't you?"
Michelle snickered, then announced, "I banish 'The Sanctuary in the Sky' to play my new Field Spell: 'Heaven's Gateway'!" The temple behind Michelle crumbled away, and the clouds become more of a small fog araound their feet. In place of the building stood a large black gate, with light illuminating from it. "Using the effect of 'Heaven's Gateway', I can Special Summon one LIGHT Fairy-type monster from my hand or graveyard, ignoring Summoning conditions, and the monster I choose is the one in my graveyard: 'Splendid Venus'!" Michelle explained as the gate opened, the light brcoming brighter, and on Michelle's field stood the golden goddess, the ace of her deck, Atk registering as 2800.
"Fortunately for you, 'Venus' can't attack due to 'Gateway's' effect, but that doesn't mean I can't attack with 'Angel 07'," Michelle said. She pointed at her opponent and yelled, "Battle Phase! 'Angel 07', attack 'The Fool'!" 'Angel's' halo turned so it faced 'The Fool', then fired its beam of light, striking 'The Fool' dead on and dealing 2500 points of damage to Akio.
Akio grunted when the shining light blinded him, and when he could see again, he was greeted by the spectacle of his life points plummeting down to 5500.
Michelle couldn't help but smile, then explained, "I'm sure you've noticed already, but 'The Fool' can't be destroyed by battle. Turn End."
Turn 11: Akio / 5500 : Michelle / 8000
More disgruntled than ever, Akio drew his card for the turn. He said: "Well, thanks for telling me. Now I know I can switch it in Defense position... uh?". Again, his duel disk made a loud buzz, and the screen displayed a red "X".
Without even waiting for Michelle to start gloating again, he asked, deadpan: "Let me guess: 'The Fool' can't be switched to Defense position?"
"Got it in one," Michelle replied, holding up a finger to emphasize her point.
Then, he said: "I Set one card face-down and end my turn..."
Turn 12: Akio / 5500 : Michelle / 8000
Michelle drew her next card, examining it. Both Michelle and Freya smiled, but they were also wary of the face-down. Too many times in the past had she been destroyed by a single face-down, kind of like what she had been doing to her opponent. She looked at his field, then back at her card, and said, "Battle Phase! 'Angel 07', attack 'The Fool'!" 'Angel 07' performed its usual attack, firing the same laser at 'The Fool'.
Akio interrupted her: "Oh, no you don't. I activate 'Mirror Force'!". The light beam clashed against an invisible barrier, and was reflected back in Michelle's direction, annihilating her monsters. He allowed himself a small grin when he saw those annoying monsters fried by his Trap card, though he knew that thanks to that damned Field Spell, they would soon be back with a vengeance.
Michelle covered her eyes after being blinded by the light, then unshielded them to find her monsters gone. She knew something like that would happen. It always did when she was doing well. Still, she wasn't without options. "Well, I suppose that's one annoyance out of the way, but I can still use the effect of 'Heaven's Gateway' to bring back my 'Splendid Venus'!" Michelle said, the gate opening once more and 'Venus' reappearing on the field. "I also Summon 'Freya, Spirit of Victory' from my hand!" Freya disappeared from her side, only to reappear on her field, jumping out of the ground with a flip and landing with her right hand in a "V". "Turn End," she said.
Turn 13: Akio / 5500 : Michelle / 8000
Akio knew he was in hot waters, and probably about to lose. He had no cards on the field, except for that annoying monster he couldn't get rid of in any way, and only an Iron Core in his hand. His next draw was decisive, and given the incredible strokes of luck he had in the match, though all promptly nullified by Michelle's counter-strategies, his chances of actually drawing something useful were awfully slim. True, probability didn't work that way, but he couldn't help feeling that he had exhausted his luck bonus that day.
He drew his next card, not even bothering to call it, and was dumbfounded to find himself staring at one of the only cards that could possibly save him.
He chuckled, and then yelled: "I activate 'Diamond Core of Koa'ki Meiru! This way, I can choose a 'Koa'ki Meiru' card from my Deck, and add it to my hand! And so, I choose... 'Koa'ki Meiru Sea Panther'!".
He would have never guessed that THAT monster would have been useful to him, but this was precisely a situation that called for its help.
Michelle braced herself for whatever was coming next. There was always the chance that Aiko could turn the Duel around and get back the advantage, and she feared this might be it.
Akio then continued, struggling to keep a manic grin from forming on his face: "I immediately Summon the 'Sea Panther' I added to my hand, and use its Effect! Which means that if I discard this", and while he was saying that, he held the 'Iron Core of Koa'ki Meiru' in his hand high so that everyone could see it, "I can recover a Spell Card from my Graveyard. ANY Spell Card. Including... 'Core Blaster'!"
Michelle's eyes widened, remembering that as one of the Equip Spells she had managed to send to the grave, but more importantly, remembering its devastating effect. She forced herself to calm down, knowing that even with its effect, it wouldn't do too much damage, since 'Freya's' effect prevents her from being attacked, and 'Venus' could easily be revived.
Akio, though, looked like a child on Christmas morning, at least by his usual standards, which meant that he didn't look as if he had drunk by error an entire glass of concentrated citric acid. He yelled: "I then equip my 'Sea Panther' with 'Core Blaster', and make it attack your 'Splendid Venus'!"
The weird monster fired the weapon against Michelle's Venus, obliterating it.
Michelle could only shield herself as 'Venus' screamed from being hit by the weapon, then exploded in shards. Fortunately, she didn't take any damage from it, so it would still be ok. Freya looked back at Michelle, concerned, but Michelle gave her a smile of reassurance, and Freya turned back to face Akio.
With a self-complacent smile, Akio said: "Whoops! Well, she'll be missed. Before ending my turn, I banish 'Diamond Core' from my Graveyard. This means that during this turn, my Koa'ki Meiru monsters can't be destroyed. Now, normally I would have to destroy 'Sea Panther', because I don't have an 'Iron Core' or a WATER monster in my hand, but thanks to the 'Diamond Core', this doesn't happen!"
The hologram of Sea Panther showed an 'Iron Core' emerging from its chest. Its light was dimming, but suddenly, it was covered by a thick layer of diamond, which gradually broke to reveal the fully energized core.
"Of course, now I have to end my turn. Go on..."
Turn 14: Akio / 5500 : Michelle / 8000
Michelle drew her next card while looking at the 'Core Blaster'. The thing would prove to be an annoyance, but nothing more. She announced, "I Tribute my face-down monster to Summon 'Airknight Parshath'!", and the face-down faded away, only to be replaced with a gold-and-blue armored warrior. "Battle Phase!" Michelle said. "'Airknight Parshath', attack 'The Fool'!" The knight charged forward, drawing back his weapon to pierce 'The Fool'. "I should mention that 'Freya' gives all my Fairies 400 more Atk and Def, so enjoy 2300 points of damage!" 'Airknight Parshath' then pierced 'The Fool', dealing 2300 points of damage.
"When 'Airknight Parshath' deals damage, I can draw one card," Michelle said, drawing a card. "Now I'll have 'Freya' attack 'The Fool'!" Freya ran up to 'The Fool' and landed an uppercut punch, dealing 500 more points of damage. Freya could have sworn she heard an odd sound when she struck 'The Fool', but decided it wasn't anything.
When Freya returned to Michelle's side of the field, Michelle said, "Before I end my turn, I'll use 'Heaven's Gateway' to bring back 'Splendid Venus' from the graveyard." 'Venus' then reappeared on the field yet again in all her shining glory, her Atk registering as 2800 before being powered up to 3200. "Also, I'll use the effect of 'Heaven's Reinforcements' to banish 'Angel 07' from my graveyard to add a LIGHT Fairy-type monster from my deck, and I choose 'Gellenduo'." Michelle said, taking out 'Angel 07' from her graveyard and placing 'Gellenduo' in her hand after it was ejected from her deck. "Turn End."
Turn 15: Akio / 2700 : Michelle / 8000
Akio was getting more and more nervous. He had managed to take down 'Venus', true, but what use was it if that monster could keep coming back?
Well, he could at least hope the card he drew could help him get out of that mess. He was disappointed, but not as much as he feared.
ROOKLORD? Now you show up?
His situation was grim: Sea Panther could keep taking down 'Venus', but eventually, he would find himself outnumbered, as Michelle could pretty much summon two monsters per turn. Rooklord could only help for a single turn, then he would be pining for the fjords. So...wait, he thought. I have Powerhand! How the hell did I forget about it?
"Well, I switch my face-down monster, which would be 'Koa'ki Meiru Powerhand', to Attack position. And then, I tribute 'Sea Panther', to Summon another monster... someone might remember him. It's 'Koa'ki Meiru Rooklord'!"
The giant blue mecha-like monster descended on the field, with the roar that had impressed the public once already. Akio grinned and explained: "Well, you saw his effect, so I'll spare you the explanation. But before that, I can activate 'Core Blaster's' effect, which lets me add it to my hand! And then, I banish the now useless 'Sea Panther', so I can destroy two cards you control! And of course, I choose your Field Spell and 'Splendid Venus'!"
Michelle could only watch as 'Rooklord' raised its arms, the ends of its arms opening to reveal them to be actually cannons. They fired two shots, one of the cannonballs striking 'Venus' and destroying her, but the other struck an invisible barrier that cracked as it tried to destroy the gates behind Michelle. "Oh yeah, I forgot about another of 'Gateway's' effects. Once per turn, it can't be destroyed by an opponent's card effect," Michelle said, relieved that she still had a fighting chance.
Well, wasn't that girl full of surprises. As usual, things weren't going like he hoped. At least, he could attack...
Akio ordered: "Well, 'Powerhand', attack 'Freya'!". But the usual buzzing and "X" sign signaled that his orders, again, couldn't be executed. "Oh, what now?", he blurted.
Michelle laughed, then explained, "That's one of 'Freya's' effects. As long as I have another Fairy-type monster on the field, you can't target her for attacks." Freya waved at Akio, looking innocent.
"Well, good to know. This way, I can just get rid of 'Parshath' first. Rooklord, attack!"
The blue monster ran up to the caped figure and punched it. 'Parshath' raised his shield in a vain attempt to block the blow, but was quickly overpowered and crushed. Michelle winced as 500 points of damage was given to her.
"...and then, since you have no other monsters on the field, I can make 'Powerhand' attack and destroy 'Freya'!"
While the monster was charging at her, a display appeared above 'Freya', showing her ATK points decreasing from 500 to 100, just before 'Powerhand's' drill impaled her through her chest. Luckily, the audience was spared a gory spectacle (Duel Monsters still had to be family-friendly after all), and she just disappeared in a glowing haze when the drill touched her, along with another 2000 of Michelle's Life Points.
Freya reappeared next to Michelle, falling face-first onto the ground. "Ow," Freya said as she slowly got back up to her feet. "Freya, you alright?" Michelle asked, concerned for her Spirit Partner. "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just a scratch," Freya responded, waving her off. "We have more important things to worry about, anyway," Freya said, pointing at 'Rooklord'.
Akio continued: "If you two have finished your spiritic session, I'd like to end my turn. But before that, I equip 'Powerhand' with 'Core Blaster'. Then... I have to pay my monsters' maintenance cost. I can of course show 'Reckoned Power' for 'Powerhand' here, but sadly, as I have no Warrior monsters, I'll have to say goodbye to 'Rooklord' here. There, done. Go ahead".
Turn 16: Akio / 2700 : Michelle / 5500
Michelle drew her next card, and was glad to see that it was a monster. Unfortunately, it's level was too high to Normal Summon, but she could get around that. "First, I use 'Heaven's Gateway' to bring back 'Freya, Spirit of Victory' from my graveyard!" Michelle announced as Freya disappeared and reappeared on her field, this time crouching with her arms in an "X" after landing from her usual flip. "Now I activate a Spell Card: 'Court of Justice'!" Michelle said as a metallic golden ring appeared above the field, light radiating from the center. "When I have a Level One Fairy-type monster on my field," Michelle explained, gesturing to Freya. "I can Special Summon one Fairy-type monster from my hand! Come forth, 'Archlord Kristya'!" The light from 'Court of Justice' became brighter, and a pure white angel with red wings descended, floating a few inches above the ground.
"Due to 'Freya's' effect, all Fairy-type monsters gain 400 Atk and Def!" Michelle said as 'Kristya's' Atk rose up to 3200. Michelle pointed at 'The Fool' and commanded, "This will end it! 'Archlord Kristya', attack 'The Fool'!" 'Kristya' swiftly flew toward 'The Fool' and struck its chest. 'The Fool' cried out as it was hit, and Akio's Life Points dropped to zero. The Field Spell and the monsters faded away, and Michelle's face was displayed on various screens, showing her to be the winner. Freya reappeared by Michelle's side, this time already on her feet, and she jumped into the air, cheering, "Yes! We WON!" Michelle shot her arms up into the air, cheering as well, then the two hugged, still laughing.
Akio didn't say anything, simply turned back and walked slowly out of the arena. The tournament ended there for him, after all. No reason to get worked up about it...
"And so, the winner is Michelle Kine," Kim announced. "Press Dalton and Xihucoatl Jones, please make your way to the stage." Michelle and Freya turned to look at Akio, only to find that he was already gone. "Well, let's get out of here," Michelle said to Freya. "Might as well let someone else take the spotlight." Freya nodded, and together they walked off the stage.
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