Yu-Gi-Oh! Friendship is Dueling 1: Duelist Kingdom

Chapters

Prologue
Duel 1: A New Day
Duel 2: Clash of Dragons
Duel 3: The road to Duelist Kingdom
Duel 4: Heart of the Swarm
Duel 5: Old Friend, New Rival
Duel 6: Rising Shadow
Duel 7: The Dragon Buster
Duel 8: Facing your Demons
Duel 9: Duel between Designers
Duel 10: Heavy Metal
Duel 11: Dragon's Den
Duel 12: Double Duel
Duel 13: Power and Potential
Duel 14: Last Minute Challanger
Duel 16: Burst vs Gilda
Duel 17: Sunset vs Gold
Duel 18: Inferno vs Rainbow Dash
Duel 19: Rarity vs Sombra
Duel 20: No Matter What
Duel 21: Duel against the darkness
Duel 22: Fate of Two Worlds! Burst vs Sombra!
Epilogue
Duel 15: The Finals

Prologue

A dueling tournament...

"And the winner of the duel is Sombra!", the announcer cheered as the crowd screamed in adoration. Sombra had a smirk as he raised his fist triumphantly. After the match though, he frowned. He was the current duelist to beat in the world. The only one to match that honor was that punk Blueblood. Sombra stood at the top and was currently undefeated. But it wasn't enough.

"Every duelist I've beaten has sworn to try and defeat me again someday. That's not what I want.", Sombra said. "I want every duelist to fear me. I want people to never touch a deck again after I beat them. I want power to shake the world to its core!"

"Then let me help you with that.", a hooded figure said. Sombra turned to face the figure. "But might I also add, congratulations on your victory. From what I hear, you've been invited to compete in Duelist Kingdom. If you win there, the whole world will acknowledge you as the king of all duelists. None oppose you there."

"...You've caught my interest. So how are you going to give me this power?", Sombra asked with a grin. The hooded figure reached into the folds of his robe and handed Sombra an envelope.

"Meet me at the location enclosed in this. There will be another duelist there who I've also taken interest in.", the figure said. Sombra nodded and headed off to the location found in the envelope.

A faraway duel school....

"Master Tirek?", a student asked. Tirek turned his attention to the student.

"Yes? How can I help you?", Tirek asked.

"Well I was trying to get some help with my summoning technique. Do you think you could pencil me in to see Master Scorpan?" Tirek's heart sank slightly.

"No problem. Now go on." Tirek sighed as the student left. He and Scorpan both ran this duel school. But considering Scorpan had trounced him in every duel they'd had. It was no wonder the students flocked to him for advice or help. "If only I had the strength of the God Cards, I'd be able to show them! I'd show them that I'm strong too! And maybe Scorpan would then fully recognize me as his equal in dueling."

"Then fortune smiles upon you today.", a hooded figure said. The guy had walked in while Tirek was going off about being unrecognized. "Relax. I'm here to help you attain the strength you crave." Tirek was puzzled.

"You have the Egyptian God Cards?", Tirek asked. "That can't be. Only Yugi Moto is fit to wield those beasts."

"I don't. But I can give you cards that rival their power. All you need do is meet me at the location enclosed in this envelope. I do hope you will come Tirek." Tirek opened the envelope and the figure left.

Later that night...

Sombra had arrived where the hooded figure had told him to meet. And to no surprise the same figure was waiting for him. "Okay. I'm here. So what's this power you're going to give me?", Sombra asked eagerly. The figure smiled as he handed Sombra a pair of cards.

"A monster who shares the same ambitions as you. Say hello to Dark Master Zorc.", the figure said. Zorc soon materialized.

"So you wish to rule your world?", Zorc asked. "I like you already. Tell me. Do you wish all to know fear in your presence? To strip your enemies of all will to fight?" Sombra grinned as Zorc spoke.

"More than you know. I can tell we'll get along well.", Sombra said.

"Then let our bond be forged.", Zorc said. As Sombra and Zorc made contact, Sombra felt great power flow into him. When he opened his eyes, dark magic was leaking out of them.

"Duelist Kingdom...your future king is on his way.", Sombra said with an evil grin. Tirek had just shown up and saw Sombra leaving.

"Mind telling me just what the current favorite to win Duelist Kingdom is doing here?", Tirek asked.

"Just wishing him luck in the tournament.", the figure replied. "And now it's time I bestow the strength I promised you." The figure fished into his robe and pulled out three cards. "Behold. The Wicked God Cards." Tirek was hesitant before accepting the cards. "I assure you that despite their appearance, their power is undeniable. Their strength rivals even that of the God Cards." Tirek then took the cards and left. The figure let out a low chuckle as he left. "Enjoy your power while you can fools. For soon....you will fall at my hands."

Duel 1: A New Day

Burst was sleeping soundly. That is, until his alarm clock went off. He let out a yawn as he got up. Burst then smiled. 'Yup. Today's going to be awesome!', he thought with a smile. Burst got out of bed and got dressed before he got ready for the day. After brushing his teeth, he went downstairs for breakfast. "Morning Mom!" Lumina Burst smiled as he son came downstairs.

"Good morning Burst. I hope you didn't forget your deck. You said you had a duel with one of your friends today. Rainbow Dash right?", she asked. Burst nodded as he ate.

"Uh-huh. She's wanted a go at me ever since I won that tournament sophomore year. Plus, I'll get to show off some of my new cards today."

"Well I hope you have fun.", Lumina said as she kissed Burst on the forehead. "You know, I should have figured you'd be good with a Blue Eyes deck. Your are named after Blue Eyes' original attack name. In fact, you kind of look like a human Blue Eyes. Snowy white hair, white skin with the faintest tint of blue, and your eyes are a nice shade of blue themselves!"

"MOM!", Burst shouted with a blush. Burst then got his duel disk and put it in his backpack. He then checked to make sure he had his deck box with all his cards. "See ya after school Mom!" Burst then headed to the bus stop. Blue Eyes then materialized. "Ready for our duel today?", Burst asked.

"You know it Burst! I always wanted to see how I'd do against Rainbow Dragon!", Blue Eyes said. Burst smiled.

"Then let's rock the dragon!", Burst said as Blue Eyes returned to his card. The bus then pulled up and got on. As Burst got off, Inferno was waiting for him. "Hey dude! How're things going?"

"Pretty good. I got a date with Rarity today. She was hoping to get some new cards at Discord's card shop.", Inferno said with a grin. The two of them headed in and the day carried on normally. Until lunch period hit. Burst found Rainbow Dash waiting for him.

" 'Sup Burst?", Rainbow asked with a smile. "Ready to see which dragon is more awesome?"

"You know it! Let's duel!"

Burst: 8000
Rainbow Dash: 8000

"I got the first move!", Burst said. 'Alright. From what I know, summoning Rainbow Dragon has something to do with all seven Crystal Beasts. But what's their connection? I guess I'll just have to duel on until I have to face it. But until then...' "I summon White Stone of Ancients! Now I'll target him with Sage with Eyes of Blue from my hand! Now I'll send both to the graveyard to special summon Blue Eyes White Dragon from my deck!" Blue-Eyes let out a mighty roar as he was summoned! "Next I'll set a card and end my turn! Now that White Stone of Ancients is in my graveyard, I can special summon another 'Blue Eyes' monster from my deck! I special summon Dragon Spirit of White!" 'Better save my better moves for later on. Now how's Dash going to play off this turn?'

"Pretty sweet start! But now it's my turn!", Rainbow said as she drew a card. "I summon Crystal Beast-Emerald Turtle in defense mode! Then I'll play Crystal Tree and end my turn!" 'Good thing all of Burst's monsters can easily take down my Crystal Beasts! I hate seeing them go, but it puts me close to getting Rainbow Dragon on my field and I can put them in my spell and trap zone! Plus, the more I have on my field, that means I can use Rainbow Dragon's attack boost effect to the fullest! Just gotta keep an eye on how Crystal Tree grows! I still gotta set other spells and traps, and I can't mess-up by flooding my back-row!'

"My move then! I'll attack Emerald Tortoise! Go Blue-Eyes! White Lightning!" Blue Eyes released a blast of lighting that fried Emerlad Tortoise! "But I'm not done yet! I activate my trap! Lineage of Destruction! Since I destroyed a monster in defense mode, I can target a level eight monster I control! It can attack again! Hit it Blue-Eyes!" Rainbow braced herself as she took damage from the attack! "Now I play The Melody of Awakening Dragon! I'll discard a card and add two dragon-type monsters with 3000 or more attack and 2500 or less defense to my hand! Now I'll reveal the Blue-Eyes White Dragon in my hand to special summon Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon! Next I'll tribute Dragon Spirit of White to special summon Blue Eyes White Dragon from my hand! Next I'll set a card and end my turn." 'Sweet! Chaos MAX is in my hand now! But I gotta wait until I can use him and my trap at the right time if I need a quick win!'

Burst: 8000
Rainbow Dash: 5000

"Since you destroyed Emerald Tortoise, I can place him face-up in my spell and trap zone! Next Crystal Tree's effect activates! I can place a crystal counter on it! Now I'll send it to the graveyard to set a Crystal Beast from my deck face-up in my spell and trap zone! Next I'll draw! I summon Sapphire Pegasus and equip him with Crystal Release! And since I summoned him, I can set a crystal beast in my spell and trap zone from my hand, deck, or graveyard! I'll chose my deck! Next I'll set a card and end my turn." 'Oh man! Burst's got a whole dragon army! But it's a good thing I've got Crystal Tree on my field! Just gotta keep filling up my back-row! Then I can really sick Rainbow Dragon on him!'

'Weird. Why would she summon a monster in attack mode? All of my dragons have more attack points. Wait...her face-down! But what could she be planning? I can't waste my own face-down, so I'll have to run the risk!' "My turn! I draw! I'll attack your Sapphire Pegasus! Go Blue-Eyes! White Lightning!"

"I don't think so! I activate my trap! Rainbow Path! I can send a Crystal Beast from my spell and trap zone to the graveyard to negate the attack and add Rainbow Dragon or Rainbow Dark Dragon to my hand!"

"Not bad Dash! But I'll still take down your Pegasus! I'll use Alternative's effect to destroy him!" Sapphire Pegasus was taken down by a bolt of lightning! 'So that was her plan! Looks like she's setting up her field for her boss monster!'

"I choose not to put Sapphire Pegasus in my spell and trap zone! Now that Crystal Release was destroyed, I can set a Crystal Beast from my deck to my spell and trap zone! Then I can activate my other trap! Crystal Raigeki! I'll send a Crystal Beast from my spell and trap zone to the graveyard so I can destroy one card you control! I choose Blue Eyes Alternative White Dragon!" Alternative was struck down by a bolt of crystal lightning! 'Just gotta wait until my next turn! I've got Rainbow Dragon in my hand! But its too bad I can't summon him yet. I've gotta wait for the most EPIC moment!'

"Good move Dash. I end my turn.", Burst said. 'Alright. So she can place her monsters in her spell and trap zone as continuous spell cards. But that doesn't protect her life points. And she's making a point to keep track of how many Crystal Beasts are on her field and in the grave. She's also keeping track of which beasts are where. Does Rainbow Dragon need seven Crystal Beasts with different names to activate an effect?' Burst then looked to his face-down. 'Maybe it's a good thing I decided to save this for later. Because something tells me Rainbow's got more than one way to summon her dragons.'

"My turn! I draw!", Rainbow said. 'Sweet! Just what I needed! Time for Blue-Eyes to taste the rainbow!' "I play Crystal Beacon! Since I have three Crystal Beasts in my spell and trap zone I can special summon a Crystal Beast from my deck! Now that I've got seven Crystal Beasts in my graveyard, spell and trap zone, and field, I can special summon Rainbow Dragon! Come on out pal!" Rainbow Dragon descended on, what else, a rainbow. "Attack Blue Eyes White Dragon! Spectrum Surge!" Burst winced as Blue Eyes was destroyed! "I'll set a card and that's it for my turn! Your move Burst!"

Burst: 7000
Rainbow Dash: 5000

"My turn! I draw!", Burst said. "I summon Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands! Now I'll add a ritual spell from my deck to my hand! That's all for me." 'Her monster's pretty strong! He's got as many attack points as Chaos MAX! But Rainbow Dragon takes a while to get it out, and it looks like he can only use some of its effects after the turn he's summoned! That gives me a good window to make to strike back!'

"My move then! I draw!", Rainbow said. "I activate my trap! Rainbow Gravity! Now I'll special summon Rainbow Dark Dragon! Now I'll attack Manju with Rainbow Dark Dragon and Blue Eyes with Rainbow Dragon! I end my turn." 'Awesome just got doubled! I got two monsters with 4000 attack, and Burst's monster zones are empty. I bet that face-down of his was just a bluff! If it were really good, he'd have used it up earlier!'

Burst: 3600
Rainbow Dash: 5000

'Her monsters have high attack, but they're defenseless! Now I can use my trap to its fullest! Here goes nothing!' "My turn! I draw! First I'll activate my trap! Curse of Anubis! This switches all effect monsters on the field into face-up defense mode and makes their defense zero! However, your dragons already have zero defense so their defense stays the same. However, their battle positions can't be changed! Now I'll banish White Stone of Ancients from my graveyard to add a 'Blue Eyes' monster from my graveyard to my hand! Now I play Chaos Form! I'll banish Blue Eyes Alternative White Dragon from my graveyard since his name counts as 'Blue Eyes White Dragon' when he's on the field or in the graveyard! Now to bring out the Blue Eyes monster I added to my hand! Come on out! Blue Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon! Now I'll attack your Rainbow Dragon! Chaos Neutron Blast!" Rainbow braced herself as Rainbow Dragon was destroyed! "And since Chaos MAX destroyed him while he was in defense mode, you take double piercing damage!" Rainbow's life points dropped to zero in an instant! "Good duel Dash. You almost had me!"

"Yeah. I can't believe I didn't see that combo coming! It's the same one you used to beat Sunset back at the tournament in Sophomore Year! Too bad Rainbow Dragon's effects can't be used the turn he's summoned.", Rainbow Dash said. "Hey, you know a good card shop right? Maybe I can find some new cards there! Mind me tagging along?" The two of them then walked off.

"Of course not! Maybe Discord will even bust out his rarest cards.", Burst said. However, the two hadn't realized their conversation grabbed the attention of another duelist.

'This Discord could have the cards I'm searching for.', they thought.

Duel 2: Clash of Dragons

The rest of the day passed by quick, and Burst led Rainbow Dash to Discord's card shop. Inferno, Sunset, and Rarity were already there. "Hey Discord!"

"Ah, Burst! I was wondering when you'd drop by! So how can I help you and your friend with the multi-color hair?", Discord asked.

"This here's Rainbow Dash. She's looking to get some good cards for her Rainbow Dragon deck. Think you can help her out?", Burst asked. "Plus, could you show us your rarest cards?" Discord chuckled.

"It'd be my pleasure. I don't whip these out too often, but here they are!" Discord pulled five cards out and revealed them. "Behold! One of the most rare cards in the game! Exodia the Forbidden One! When all five cards are in your hand, you win the duel!", Discord said proudly.

"So...AWESOME! That's the card Yugi first beat Kaiba with!", Rainbow Dash was going total fan-girl. Everyone smiled at her moment of fandom. Rainbow blushed! "A-anyway! Can you recommend any cards for my Rainbow Dragon deck?", Rainbow said as she handed over her deck. Discord looked over her cards carefully.

"Hmmm. I'd recommend the card Terraforming. It's quite useful for searching for field spells like Advanced Dark or Rainbow Ruins. Throw in at least two copies and your deck should be good!"

"Thanks!" Soon the door opened again, and Discord turned his attention to the new patron.

"Hello. Can I help you?"

"If a commoner like you can't then it comes as no surprise.", Blueblood said flatly. Rarity instantly shot him a dirty look. "Oh. It's you."

"Rarity. You want me to punch him now or later?", Inferno asked.

"Now, now darling. Don't forget to let me get in a slap.", Rarity said. Blueblood smirked.

"Glad to see I left an impression on you."

"Did you come here just to talk down to my friends?!", Rainbow Dash demanded. "Because if you did, let's settle this with our decks!"

"As amusing as it would be to put you commoners in your place, with the exception of one among you, I've more important business.", Blueblood said. He then noticed Exodia on the counter. "Impossible!" Blueblood rushed to the counter. "Exodia the Forbidden One? In this dump?" Blueblood then brought the briefcase he brought with him onto the counter. "Listen old man! If you give me Exodia, I'll trade you all of these cards! And if you won't take cards, I'll pay you quite handsomely. So, what do you say?" Discord let out a chuckle.

"I'm afraid I won't be parting with Exodia period. I share a bond with all my cards. No matter how rare they are.", Discord said with a smile. "Learn to have a bond with your cards Blueblood. Then you'll be a step closer to being a true duelist." Blueblood frowned and then turned to Burst.

"Very well. There are others things of interest. I must say Burst Stream. Congratulations on winning that tournament sophomore year."

"Thanks. So what do you want?", Burst asked bluntly.

"Right to the point I see. Very well. I'd like your whole deck. In my hands, I would propel it to its full potential! Surely you can be more reasonable than that old fool?"

"That 'old fool' is one of my best friends.", Burst said sternly. "And secondly, there's no way I'm parting with my cards. If you were so willing to get rid of yours, then something tells me Blue Eyes wouldn't be in good hands." Blueblood scowled.

"Fine.", Blueblood growled. "But this isn't over yet." 'Bonds with your cards. How foolish.' And with that Blueblood left. The next day was a half day, and Burst and some of his friends decided to take another trip to Discord's card shop. However, Discord couldn't be found! The group was wondering what had happened when the shop's phone rang. Burst picked it up.

"Hello?", Burst answered.

"Am I speaking with Burst Stream?", a voice said.

"That's me."

"Master Blueblood requests your attendance this afternoon regarding your friend Mr. Discord. Duel disk and deck are required." Burst's gaze steeled.

"Tell him I'll be right on time. Just pick us up at Discord's card shop.", Burst said a he hung up the phone. "Blueblood has Discord. And I bet he's didn't have him over for a social call. Let's rock the dragon." A limo soon pulled in front of the shop. "Right on cue." Burst then turned to his friends. "You guys coming?"

"No way we're missing you kick Bluebood's butt.", Sunset said with a smile. Burst and his friends got inside the limo and arrived at Blueblood's mansion. As they went inside, they saw Discord on his knees and Blueblood holding five cards.

"Hmph. Good of you to be punctual.", Blueblood said with a smirk. "Five cards that allow you to win the duel instantly just by having them in your hand. How useless." Blueblood then tossed the cards like useless trash. Discord scrambled to get the cards.

"Maybe to you. But that just shows how much of a fool you are.", Burst said firmly. "This game's about having fun! If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were a clone of Seto Kaiba."

"It will take more than petty insults to wound my pride.", Blueblood said with a smirk. "But now that you're here, how about a little wager? If you win, I'll find cards I can 'bond' with. But if you lose...YOU HAVE TO GIVE ME YOUR DECK! Unless of course you're scared."

"I came here to take you on Blueblood. Challenge accepted!", Burst said as he activated his duel disk!

"LET'S DUEL!", both boys said.

Burst: 8000
Blueblood: 8000

"I'll take the first move!", Blueblood boasted. "I'll set a card and summon Alexandrite Dragon!" A dragon with gems embedded in its scales appeared. "I end my turn."

"My move! I draw! I summon a monster in defense mode and end my turn!", Burst said. 'Looks like Blueblood's taste in monsters reflects his lavish lifestyle. Not to mention his current monster's got high base attack for a level four monster. What other high-end monsters did this rich kid buy?'

Blueblood smirked as he drew his next card. 'I've seen how this commoner duels. He relies on special summoning his monsters at little-to-no cost. A pity he won't be able to thanks to the card I set earlier! And his Blue-Eyes pales in comparison to the dragon lurking in my deck! And thanks to the card I drew, his current monster can't hide in defense mode!' "And now it ends! I activate my trap! Vanity's Emptiness! Neither of us can special summon monsters! The only way to summon left is tribute summon! Next I'll play Stop Defense to switch your monster into attack mode! Alexandrite Dragon, wipe out his monster!" Burst winced as White Stone of Ancients was destroyed! "I end my turn."

Burst: 6600
Blueblood: 8000

'Not good!', Burst thought. 'My deck usually runs on special summoning! In just one turn he's locked down most of my deck!' "I draw! I summon a Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands! Then I'll add a ritual monster to my hand! Then I'll end my turn." 'Great. I've got one of the ritual spells I need, but I can't special summon right now! And that means I've left Manju vulnerable! But there's gotta be some way to get rid of his trap! No card is invincible! I'm sure that trap's got the word vanity in it for a reason. And considering its on Blueblood's field, it'll probably vanish if he does something that triggers its destruction! But what could it be?!'

"My turn. I draw! I summon Victoria! Now I'll activate her effect! I can special summon a dragon-type monster from my opponent's graveyard! I'll special summon your White Stone of Ancients! Now I'll destroy Manju with Victoria! Then I'll attack you directly with Alexandrite Dragon and your White Stone of Ancients!"

"AGH!", Burst wailed as his life points took a major hit! 'He's using my own monsters against me! That fairy on his field seems to be tied to special summoning dragons from an opponent's graveyard! Wait...Blueblood's been reviving dragons in specific! Only a select few cards require three type-specific tributes! And most of them are just prize cards! But there was one that was legal! If I'm reading his strategy right, Blueblood got his hands on a copy of it! But I guess it could be worse. He could have Chaos Emperor Dragon.'

"I end my turn.", Blueblood said with a smirk as he looked at his cards. 'All I need is one more turn. Then I can unleash my ultimate beast!'

Burst: 3600
Blueblood: 8000

"I draw! I play Cards of Consonance to discard White Stone of Legends to draw two new cards! Now I can add a Blue Eyes White Dragon to my hand! Then I'll end my turn." 'I guess this is the part where I find out if my suspicions are confirmed.'

"I draw! And now to bring out my best monster! I activate Victoria's effect! I'll special summon White Stone of Legends from your graveyard! Now I'll tribute all three dragons on my field to summon Victory Dragon!" A golden dragon with blue eyes was brought onto the field! "Attack him directly! Victory Flame!" Burst braced himself as he took damage! "I'll end my turn now. WHAT?!" Blueblood was surprised as Vanity's Emptiness faded off the field! "What happened to my trap?!" Burst smiled.

'So it looks like I was right! Blueblood's trap only works if he doesn't send cards to the graveyard when its on the field! Now I've got a fighting chance!' "The trap has the word vanity for a reason! The second a card hits the graveyard, it gets destroyed! Just what I was waiting for!"

"WHAT?!", Blueblood screamed.

"Next you're going to say: What do you mean you were waiting for this?", Burst said.

"What do you mean you were waiting for this? Huh?!"

"Now that Vanity's Emptiness is gone, I can special summon no problem! I activate Advanced Ritual Art! I'll send Blue Eyes White Dragon from my deck to the graveyard! Now I ritual summon Blue Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon! Attack Victory Dragon! Chaos Neutron Blast!" Blueblood braced himself as Victory Dragon was destroyed! Burst then looked at his cards. 'I won't need this, but its good to have a bit of extra safety.' "Then I'll end my turn with a face-down."

Burst: 1200
Blueblood: 6400

"I summon a monster in defense mode and set a card! I end my turn!", Blueblood panicked!

"You really don't know what Chaos MAX can do. Do you?", Burst asked.

"Um, no?!", Blueblood asked nervously.

"I'll attack your monster with Chaos MAX!", Burst cried out!

"I activate my trap! Mirror Force! This will stop your attack and destroy your monster!"

"I don't think so! Chaos MAX can't be targeted or destroyed by card effects!" Chaos MAX smashed through the Mirror Force and destroyed Blueblood's monster! "And it's not over yet! Chaos MAX's other effect is that when he destroys a defense mode monster, he inflicts double piercing damage!" Blueblood cringed as his life points took a hit! "I end my turn."

Burst: 1200
Blueblood: 2600

"I...I play Swords of Revealing light to stop you from attacking for three of your turns!", Blueblood said. "Try to get to my life points now! I end my turn!" 'HOW?! This commoner has turned the tide in only one turn! No duelist I've ever fought has ever pushed me to my limits before!'

"I'm not gonna try! I am going to get at your life points! I draw! I play Twin Twisters! I discard a card to destroy up to two spell or trap cards on the field! I can only select one at the moment, and you know which one it is!"

"NO!", Blueblood screamed.

"You still have a lot to learn about cards. They're more than just pieces of paper. And sharing a bond with them is what truly makes a duel come to life! Let's do it Blue Eyes! ROCK THE DRAGON!" Chaos MAX unleashed a mighty final strike with his breath attack! Wiping out the last of Blueblood's life points! "And that's game!" Burst's friends ran up to him!

"Nice comeback Burst!", Sunset said.

"Way to rock the dragon man!", Inferno said.

"You put on quite the duel darling.", Rarity said.

"SO...AWESOME!", Rainbow Dash cheered. "At first you were all locked-down on your summons, then when Blueblood brought his monster out and you turned the tables!"

"Thanks all of you. Now how about we celebrate? I'm pretty sure my Mom wouldn't mind. But first, we'd better tend to Discord." Burst and the others walked over to Discord and helped him up. "You alright?"

"He didn't rip the cards up, so I'm fine. I'm just happy Exodia is in one piece."

"We'll get you back to your shop Discord." However, unbeknownst to Burst, his duel had been monitored by Industrial Illusions. In specific, the duels of Burst and his friends were recorded. And Gold had brought them to the attention of his adopted father Pegasus.

"Ah. This is the boy who won that tournament your school had sophomore year correct?", Pegasus.

"That's right Dad. It's also where I met my girlfriend.", Gold said with a smile. "Burst uses a Blue Eyes White Dragon deck. And they share a powerful bond. The same goes for Sunset, Inferno, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity with their monster partners."

"Interesting. And according to this Burst has beaten Blueblood. Aside from him, the other favorite to win my next Duelist Kingdom tournament is the duelist called Sombra. Hmmm. Perhaps we should pay Burst a visit. Care to drop-in on your friend Gold?" Meanwhile, Burst and his friends had just gotten Discord back to his shop and then they headed for Burst's house. However, the group was surprised to find a limo parked in the driveway. Burst was about to open the door, Gold was the one who opened it.

"Hi Burst! My dad wanted to meet you, so we thought we'd pop in for a visit. Come on! I'll introduce you!", Gold said. Sunset chuckled a little.

"What's so funny?", Burst asked.

"Boy are you going to be in for a surprise.", Sunset said with a smile. Burst and his friends went inside his home and were shocked, save for Sunset, when they saw Gold's father!

"Burst. Inferno. Rainbow. Rarity. Sunset. It's my pleasure to introduce you to my dad. Maximillion Pegasus!"

Duel 3: The road to Duelist Kingdom

"Gold?", Burst asked.

"Yeah?"

"Your dad is the creator of Duel Monsters?! Why didn't you tell us?"

"In my defense, I told Sunset.", Gold replied.

"Then why didn't she tell us?", Burst asked.

"You didn't ask.", Sunset said with a shrug.

"Moving past this pleasant surprise, why did you decide to drop-in Mr. Pegasus?", Burst asked.

"Please, call me Pegasus. And as for why I'm here, it concerns you and your friends.", Pegasus answered. "In your case, it has to do with your most recent victory. You are the duelist who defeated Blueblood correct?"

"I did.", Burst said with a nod.

"Also notable is your victory at your school's tournament.", Pegasus added. "It was quite the comeback."

"Wait...you saw me win?"

"I was watching in disguise. I also came because I wanted to see Gold duel. Anyway, you and your friends are currently the strongest duelists at CHS. This brings me to why I am here.", Pegasus said with a smile as he pulled out a case and opened it. Five gloves were in the case along with two star-like items paired with each glove. "I would be honored if you and your friends would participate in Duelist Kingdom!" Burst and the others were in awe! Duelist Kingdom was where Yugi Moto had become the King of Games! "I take it you're interested?", Pegasus said with a chuckle.

"Pegasus. It'd be our pleasure.", Burst said with a smile.

"Excellent! These dueling gloves and star chips will serve as your admission to Duelist Kingdom! The boat leaves tomorrow at 6 pm. Good luck duelists! Come Gold. We must make preparations for the tournament." Gold nodded as he kissed Sunset goodbye and left with his adopted father. Burst's mom then called the group to the TV room.

"Burst! The Duel Monsters Regional Match is on!", she called. Burst and his friends gathered around the TV. After the duel was over, a sneak peak was given for duelists who were the favorites to win Duelist Kingdom.

"Oh, man. Looks like we're going to be up against some serious competition.", Burst noted.

"No problem! We'll be able to take them on no sweat!", Rainbow Dash boasted.

"Besides, isn't fighting challenging duels the fun part of tournaments?", Inferno added.

"You know? You're right! Although we'd better tell the others. Something tells me Pinkie's going to want to plan a party after Duelist Kingdom is over."

"Don't forget! You've got us by your side Burst!", Blue Eyes said as he materialized. Burst smiled.

"Duelist Kingdom, here we come!"

Duel 4: Heart of the Swarm

Burst, Inferno, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Sunset had arrived at the dock, and their friends and family had arrived to see them off. 'Heart of the cards. Guide us.', Burst thought as he and his friends waved goodbye as they boarded the boat. As they boarded. someone caught sight of Rainbow Dash.

"Dash? That you?", the girl asked. Rainbow Dash turned around and found herself looking at an old friend.

"Gilda?!" Rainbow Dash ran up to meet her old friend. "It's good to see you again! But how'd you make it into this tournament?"

"You know how I said I was going to be a pro duelist? Well I got noticed for my talent with Harpies!", Gilda said with a proud smile.

"Nice! My friends and I got special invites to participate! Come on! I'll introduce you!", Rainbow said with a grin. "Meet Burst, Inferno, Sunset, and Rarity!"

"Wait...Burst? As in...Burst Stream?", Gilda asked.

"Only me I know that's around.", Burst answered. "Beating Blueblood must've gotten around fast. Wasn't he one of the favorites to win?"

"Heck yeah he was! But now, everyone's hearing about the new kid on the block. Can't wait to see you in the finals! And Dash...", Gilda said as she turned to Rainbow. "Can't wait to take you on! Let's see if you got your Crystal Beasts perfected!"

"Same here G! How about we catch up? I wanna hear all about the AWESOME duels you've had!" Rainbow and Gilda went off to chat, so Burst and the others went to explore the ship.

"Huh. Some duelists are trading cards right before the tournament.", Burst noted.

"You'll not catch me doing such a thing. Each of my cards is like a precious gem.", Rarity said with a small smile.

"No way I'd ever give up my cards.", Inferno said. "The Red Eyes cards are pretty closely-knit. Mess with one, and you get the whole flock sicked on you!"

"Looks like there's also some dueling stars here.", Sunset said. "There's Garble. He's known for using a dragon deck. Usually he sticks to brute force. Then there's Chrysalis. She's known for tricky strategies and traps that she sets for her opponents. Let's hope she's not like her counterpart from Equestria."

"Why's that Sunset?", Burst asked.

"The Chrysalis from Equestria was the ruler of the changelings and was just as deceptive.", Sunset said. "Twilight told me about her on her last visit. She also impersonated the mare Twilight's brother was going to marry in a bid to takeover. Uh oh."

"What? Sunset what is it?", Burst asked.

"She's coming this way.", Sunset said nervously. Chrysalis had a smile as she walked over.

"One of you wouldn't happen to be Burst Stream would you?", she asked.

"That'd be me. So just what makes me such a big deal?", Burst asked.

"Everyone's heard of you. You did beat Blueblood. One of the favorites to win the tournament.", Chrysalis answered. "Say...how about a little wager?"

"What kind?", Burst asked.

"It's just one little duel. If I win, you hand over your rarest card. But if you win, I'll let you get a kiss.", Chrysalis said with a wink. "Interested?"

"No thanks. No way I'm risking my best card over something so stupid.", Burst said bluntly. "Besides, I've seen a girl prettier than you." And with that, Burst and his friends left. Chrysalis was fuming!

"That's it. I KNOW who I'm taking down first..." The next day, the boat arrived at the island Duelist Kingdom was being held at. Pegasus addressed the duelists as they gathered.

"Greetings duelists!", he announced. "Each of you have been invited because you are among the best of the new generation of duelists! And now the time has come to put your skills to the test! For the next few days, this island will be your battlefield! But only one among you will be left standing as the champion! Each of you has a dueling glove and two star chips. Any duelist who gains ten star chips will advance to my castle where the Duelist Kingdom Finals will be held! When the fireworks go off, the duels will begin! Good luck to all of you!" The crowd cheered, and the fireworks soon went off! Duelist Kingdom had begun!

"So which area should we scope out for duels first?", Rainbow asked.

"I'd say the forest. I saw a lot of duelists heading there.", Inferno said.

"Guess that's as good a place to start. Let's go.", Burst said. However as Burst as his friends entered the forest, Burst's friends were stuck in something! "Guys! What happened?!" Suddenly a giant spider web had materialized! Chrysalis then stepped out from behind the trees.

"I was wondering when you'd come into my parlor.", Chrysalis said with a smirk. "You humiliated me back on the boat Burst! And I won't let a brat like you get away with that!" Chrysalis activated her duel disk. "I'll put all of my star chips on the line! As well as the freedom of your friends! What do you say?"

"Bring it on Chryssi! I'll put both of my star chips on the line too! It's time to duel!", Burst said as he activated his duel disk!

Burst: 8000
Chrysalis: 8000

"Ladies first!", Chrysalis said. "I summon Cross-Sword Beetle! Then I'll set a card and end my turn."

"My move! I draw! I summon White Stone of Ancients in defense mode!", Burst said. 'Chrysalis has an insect deck. So there's no telling what kinds of creepy crawlies are in her deck. Plus, she's known for setting traps for her opponents. This is my first duel in a big tournament. I can't be careless!'

'Perfect! He's stepped into my web!'Chrysalis smirked. "I activate my trap! Infinite Dismissal! It destroys all level three or lower monster the turn they were summoned!"

"Then it's a good thing I'm ending my turn.", Burst said with a smile. White Stone of Ancients was instantly destroyed! "Now I can special summon a Blue Eyes monster from my deck! I special summon Blue Eyes White Dragon!" 'Blue-Eyes might not have any effects, but at least he's got good attack points!'

"My turn! I'll switch Cross-Sword Beetle into defense mode! Then I'll set another monster in defense mode! I end my turn." 'Now I just need him to take the bait. I have a little gift for Burst.'

"I draw!", Burst said. "I'll attack your face-down monster!" Chrysalis smiled as her monster was destroyed. "That's all for me."

"Thanks to you destroying Resonance Insect, I can add a level five or higher insect-type monster from my deck to my hand! Now I'll tribute your Blue Eyes White Dragon to special summon Kumongous, the Sticky String Kaiju to your field! Blue Eyes was gone and replaced with a giant spider that looked like it came from an old Godzilla movie! "Now I can special summon Gadarla, the Mystery Dust Kaiju from my hand! Then I'll tribute Cross-Sword Beetle to summon Empress Mantis! Now I'll equip her with Insect Armor with Laser Cannon! This increases her attack points by 700! Destroy Kumongous! Poison Dust Gust!" Burst winced as Kumongous was destroyed! "Then I'll attack you directly with Empress Mantis!" Empress Mantis cut into Burst's life points! "I end my turn. You're like a fly caught in my web! And next turn, my insects will bite the last of your life points!"

Burst: 4800
Chrysalis: 8000

'Looks like she's got an insect army! Well, I guess it's time to play exterminator! And I know just the bug zapper to fry her bugs!But first, I better wake them up!' "Not bad. But it's my turn! I draw! I'll play The Melody of Awakening Dragon! I discard a card to add two dragons with 3000 or more attack and 2500 or less defense from my deck to my hand! I'll reveal Blue Eyes White Dragon to special summon Blue Eyes Alternative White Dragon! Now I'll activate his effect! I can target and destroy one monster you control! Your Gadarla just got bug-zapped!" Chrysalis winced as her strongest monster was destroyed! "Then I'll play Return of the Dragon Lords to revive the Blue Eyes White Dragon in my graveyard! Attack her Empress Mantis! White Lightning!" Empress Mantis was fried with a blast of energy from Blue Eyes' mouth! "That's all for me."

Burst: 4800
Chrysalis: 7200

"I draw! I end my turn with a face-down.", Chrysalis said. 'Looks like my prey is putting up quite the fight. But trap should snare his life points again!'

"I'll destroy your monster with Blue Eyes Alternative's effect! Then I'll attack you directly with Blue Eyes!", Burst cried out!

"I activate Blazing Mirror Force! I can destroy all attack mode monster you control! Then we both take equal to half of their combined attack points!" Both Burst and Chrysalis winced as they both took damage!

"I play Trade-In to discard the Blue Eyes White dragon in my hand. Now I can draw two cards and now I'll end my turn." 'Great! Soon I'll be able to bring out just the monster to exterminate her hive of a deck!'

Burst: 1800
Chrysalis: 4200

"My turn.", Chrysalis said with a smirk. "I banish two insect-type monsters in my graveyard to special summon Doomdozer! But I won't have him attack yet. I'll let you squirm for an extra turn before I finish you! I want to savor my imminent victory." 'And now he's snared in my web once again. I think I'll see him squirm before

"Your overconfidence is your weakness Chrysalis.", Burst said as he drew his next card. "Because the duel isn't over until the last card is drawn! And the duel ends now! I play Dragon's Mirror! I'll banish the two Blue Eyes White Dragons in my graveyard and Blue Eyes Alternative since his name counts as Blue Eyes White Dragon while he's on the field or in the graveyard! I fusion summon Neo Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon!" Chrysalis gasped as Neo Ultimate descended! "I'll attack Doomdozer! Neo Neutron Blast!" Neo Ultimate unleashed a blast from all of it's three mouths! Incinerating him instantly!

Burst: 1800
Chrysalis: 2800

"But I'm not done yet! I can send another 'Blue-Eyes' fusion monster from my extra deck so I can attack again! Rock the dragon Neo Ultimate!"

"NO!", Chrysalis hissed as her life points dropped to zero! The spider web holding Burst's friends disintegrated and they regained movement. Burst then walked over and Chrysalis grumbled as she handed over her star chips. "Here. Take them.", she said with a pout. Burst went back to his friends, and Chrysalis watched sadly. Burst noticed her and went back to her.

"Maybe if you could improve your attitude, people might like you more.", Burst said with a smile. Burst then offered her his hand. Chrysalis took it with a puzzled expression on her face.

"I don't understand. I trapped your friends and forced you to duel me. Why are you forgiving me so easily?", she asked.

"Simple. You looked lonely. And I don't like seeing someone all alone.", Burst replied.

"Well...thanks. I guess.", Chrysalis said as she walked off. 'A guy like him would be perfect for Celestia.' Burst went back to his friends.

"Well I'm almost halfway to the tournament. Let's see where we can find some other duels to get us to the final round!"

Duel 5: Old Friend, New Rival

"Hmm. Wonder where we should head next?", Burst said. "Some duels are going on in the fields, so maybe we should head there." Burst and the others headed for the fields and found a duel that was just about wrapped up.

"Harpy Lady! Finish him off!", Gilda commanded. Harpy Lady slashed at the duelist's life points and Gilda struck a victory pose. "Aw yeah! Who's awesome?" Gilda then noticed Rainbow Dash and her friends. "Hey Dash. You having any luck with your duels?"

"I haven't been in action yet, but Burst's almost halfway qualified!", Rainbow said proudly.

"Then how about I be your first opponent! I wanna see if your Crystal Beasts have gotten any better! I'll put half my star chips on the line."

"You're about to find out! I'll put up all of my star chips!" Both girls activated their duel disks! "Let's duel!"

Rainbow Dash: 8000
Gilda: 8000

'This is good!' Rainbow Dash thought as she looked over her starting hand. 'I just need to get enough Crystal Beasts out Rainbow Dark Dragon and I win!' "I'll kick things off!", Rainbow Dash said. "First I'll play Terraforming to add a field spell from my deck to my hand! Then I'll activate the field spell Advanced Dark! Now all Crystal Beast monsters on my field or in my graveyard become dark attribute! Then I'll summon Crystal Beast-Amber Mammoth in attack mode! Then I'll end my turn."

"My turn! I draw!", Gilda said. "I summon Harpie Lady in attack mode! Then I'll play Elegant Egotist! This lets me special summon Harpie Lady Sisters in attack mode from my hand or deck! Now I activate Triangle Ecstasy Spark! This boost my Sisters' attack points to 2700! Destroy Amber Mammoth!"

"Not so fast! Advanced Dark's effect activates! I can send a Crystal Beast from my deck to my graveyard to avoid taking damage! Too bad Amber Mammoth is destroyed still. I choose not to put him in my spell and trap zone."

"Not bad Dash. I'll strike back next turn. For now, I'll hand things over to you.", Gilda said.

'Two down, five to go!' "My move! I draw!", Rainbow called out. "Nice! I'll summon Sapphire Pegasus in attack mode! Then I'll play Crystal Tree! Thanks to Sapphire Pegasus, I can set a Crystal Beast from my deck to spell and trap zone face-up as a continuous spell card! Now I can place a crystal counter on Crystal Tree! Then I'll send it to my graveyard with the single counter to set a Crystal Beast from my deck as a continuous face-up spell card! Then I'll set a card and end my turn." 'There, two more! I got this!'

"Not bad. Not bad at all!", Gilda said with a smile. "But it's my turn now! I play Terraforming to add a field spell from my deck to my hand! Now I'll summon Harpy Channeler! Then I'll discard a 'Harpie' card from my hand! I'll discard Harpie Lady #2! Now I can special summon another Harpie from my deck! Now I'll overlay my three Harpie Ladies to xyz summon Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon! Now his effect activates! I can attack you directly!"

"What?!", Rainbow Dash freaked out when Gilda said this! "That can't be real!" Rainbow braced herself as she took damage from the dragon's fireball attack!

Rainbow Dash: 6000
Gilda: 8000

"Pretty sweet right?", Gilda said with a proud smile. "It's a new card I picked up! Makes getting at your life points easier! Even if you do have a monster on the field! Too bad he can only pull it off when he's got an overlay unit. On the plus side though, you can't target 'Harpie' monsters with effects or attacks! Now I'll attack your Sapphire Pegasus with my Harpy Lady Sisters!"

"I'll send another Crystal Beast from my deck to the graveyard to make all damage zero! Then I'll put Sapphire Pegasus in my spell and trap zone!"

"Nice save. I end my turn with a face-down."

'Sheesh, that dragon came out of nowhere. But that won't stop me, I've already won this duel!' Rainbow drew her next card. "I draw! Nice! I summon Ruby Carbuncle! Now I activate my trap! Rainbow Gravity! Since I have seven total Crystal Beasts on my field and in my graveyard, I special summon Rainbow Dark Dragon!" A black version of Rainbow Dragon descended! "Now I'll banish all dark monsters I control and in my graveyard to have him gain 500 attack points for each one! Take down her Pet Phantasmal Dragon!"

"Sorry! But as long as Pet Phantasmal Dragon has an overlay unit, you can't target my Harpie monster with effects or for attacks!", Gilda boasted.

"I don't think so! Advanced Dark's other effect activates! When Rainbow Dragon or Rainbow Dark Dragon attacks, I can negate the effects of the attack target during the battle phase! Dark Spectrum Surge!"

"Nnnggh!", Gilda winced as her monster was destroyed!

"That's all for my turn.", Rainbow said.

Rainbow Dash: 6000
Gilda: 2500

"Almost had me there Dash!", Gilda said. "But now it's my turn! I activate my trap! Xyz Reborn! I'll revive Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon! Attack her directly!" Rainbow braced herself as a fireball collided with her life points! "I'll set a card and end my turn."

'You've gotta be kidding me!', Rainbow thought.

Rainbow Dash: 4000
Gilda: 2500

"I draw! That Rainbow Dark Dragon of yours is pretty strong! Too bad it's vulnerable to card effects!", Gilda said with a smirk. "I activate my trap! Phoenix Wing Wind Blast! This targets one card you control and I can return it to the top of your deck! I'll target Rainbow Dark Dragon!"

"Not gonna happen G!", Rainbow countered! "I activate my trap! Solemn Scolding! I pay 3000 life points so I can negate the activation of your trap card!"

"Darn! So much for that.", Gilda said with a frown. "I end my turn."

Rainbow Dash: 1000
Gilda: 2500

'Phew! , if I didn’t get this good of a starting hand it would be me getting annihilated right now instead of her. Glad all that deck advice made me 300% awesomer!' "I draw! Now all you've got left is your Harpie Lady Sisters!", Rainbow said with a grin. "Let's end this Rainbow Dark Dragon!" Gilda's last monster was destroyed by a wave of rainbow-colored energy! "And that's game!" Gilda walked over to Rainbow Dash.

"Okay. I put half of my star chips up, so that means you get three of my six.", Gilda said as she handed over three of her star chips. "Congrats Dash! You just made it to the halfway point."

"Yeah. But now you're set back Gilda.", Rainbow Dash noted.

"Yeah. But at least you gave me a good challenge! You know what that means.", Gilda said with a proud smile.

"We're rivals now. Aren't we?"

"Yup. You better make it to the finals!" And with that, Gilda walked off. Rainbow Dash smiled.

'You haven't changed a bit G.', Rainbow thought.

Duel 6: Rising Shadow

'Hmmm. Which duelist shall be the first to fall by my hands?', Sombra wondered. He didn't have to wait long.

"Hey!", Rex Raptor shouted. "You're the top duelist Sombra aren't you?"

"And you are?", Sombra asked.

"WHAT?! You've never heard of the dino duelist Rex Raptor?! I was a regional champion!", Rex shouted.

"Maybe that's because you're a fossil. Just like your deck's monsters.", Sombra said with a smirk.

"You punk! I'll teach you! I've gotten five star chips so far! I'll wage them all on the line along with my pride!", Rex growled.

"Then I'll put up all of my star chips on the line as well. If only to accelerate your extinction."

Sombra: 8000
Rex Raptor: 8000

"I'm up first!", Rex said. "I discard Destroyersaurus! Now I can add the field spell Jurassic World to my hand! Now I'll activate it! All dinosaur-type monsters gain 300 attack! I summon Sabersaurus! Try and get past this blast from the past!"

"You're like your namesake. Big. Lumbering. And very foolish.", Sombra said with a smirk. "I draw! I play Soul Exchange! Now I'll tribute the monster you control and use it to bring out my own monster! Archfiend of Gilfer! Attack him directly! Gilfer Flame!"

"AGH!", Rex howled as the flames crashed into his life points!

"Next I'll set a card and end my turn."

Sombra: 8000
Rex Raptor: 5800

"It's not over yet!", Rex growled. "I summon Black Veloci! Now I activate the spell card Big Evolution Pill! I tribute Black Veloci! Now for the next three of your turns, I don't have to tribute summon for dinosaur-type monsters! Then I'll end my turn with a face-down."

"In that case, it's my move! I draw! Now I'll attack you directly! Gilfer!", Sombra commanded. "Attack him directly!"

"Not so fast! I activate Negate Attack! This stops your attack!"

"Hmph. No matter. I end my turn by summoning Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands and add a ritual monster to my hand."

"My turn! I draw!", Rex said. "I summon out Ultimate Tyranno! With him on the field, I can attack all monsters you control once! Go! Ultimate Tail Swipe!" All of Sombra's monsters were wiped out in a tail swipe! "I think Tyranno and I have trampled on you enough for this turn! That'll be all for me."

Sombra: 5000
Rex Raptor: 5800

"You shouldn't have taken down Gilfer. Now that he's been destroyed by your monster, I can equip Gilfer to your monster! He loses 500 attack points! Now I play the ritual spell Contract with the Dark Master! I'll tribute two monsters from my hand to bring out Dark Master-Zorc!" A pillar of shadow shot up from the ground and Zorc stepped out! "Now for his ability! Dark Dice Roll! I can roll a die and can activate an effect based on the number I roll!" A red die was rolled and came to a stop. "The result is a three! Now I can destroy one monster you control! Dark Thunder Break!" A black thunderbolt struck down Ultimate Tyranno! "Now Zorc can attack you directly! Dark Inferno!" Rex wailed in pain as dark flames burned away at his life points! "That should be enough punishment for now. I end my turn with a face-down card."

Sombra: 5000
Rex Raptor: 3100

"This isn't over! I've got an even stronger monster in my deck!", Rex boasted. But when he drew his next card, he froze in fear! Sombra noticed Rex's despair and smiled. Rex then noticed. "Wh-why are you smiling?!"

"I can sense your fear.", Sombra said as dark magic began to leak out of his eyes. "The time has come for your extinction! I draw! I equip Zorc with the Sword of Dark Destruction! This boosts Zorc's attack by 400 points! Enough to wipe out the last of your life points!" Sombra had an evil grin as dark magic leaked out of his eyes! "Zorc Oblivion!" Zorc wrapped his fist in darkness and obliterated the last of Rex's life points! Rex grumbled as he recovered from the force of the attack.

"Fine! Here's the star chips as promised. Now to put my cards back in....AHHH!" Rex panicked when he saw all of his cards were blank! Sombra snatched the star chips from Rex and walked off with an evil smile. "My cards!"

"So this is your power Zorc? You can sever the link between duelists and their cards?", Sombra asked.

"Yes. By severing the bonds between duelists and their cards, they can never duel again! That is, until WE undo the magic that separates them! And the spell can be undone by our hands, or when we are defeated. But with our might combined we are unstoppable! I shall reign over the monsters as their dark master! And you shall reign as the king of the human world!"

"Yes. King Sombra. I like the sound of that! How fitting that this tournament is named Duelist Kingdom. For this is where I shall be crowned among the fools that dared to stand against me!" Sombra walked off with seven star chips on his dueling glove. "Now. Who has the honor of being my next victim?"

Duel 7: The Dragon Buster

"So just to recap: Rainbow Dash is up to five star chips, Burst has four, and the rest of us are at zero.", Inferno said. "Meaning we'd better find some duels pretty soon."

"Then lets move on.", Burst said with a smile. However, they were being watched.

"So that's the famous Burst Stream.", the duelist said. The duelist then saw Rarity. "Ah. He has quite the lovely maiden in his company. I'm sure she wouldn't mind being rescued from the dragon by a knight.", he said. Burst and his friends were walking when the figure swung from the trees and snatched up Rarity! He then landed on a rock.

"What the? Let me go!", Rarity screamed! The duelist landed and smiled at her.

"Worry not fair maiden! For I am rescuing you from this ferocious dragon user!", the duelist said.

"Who do you think you are?!", Rarity demanded.

"Ah. How rude of me. I am Lance Buster! Vanquisher of dragon decks! And your current rescuer."

"Hey buddy! Get your hands of my girlfriend!", Inferno shouted. Lance looked at Inferno and laughed.

"A maiden loving a dragon? Absurd! That's not how the story goes!", Lance said with a smirk as he jumped down to face Inferno.

"Well this isn't your story! Give Rarity back!", Inferno growled!

"Very well. I'll allow you a chance to win back your maiden. Simply best me in a duel! But no dragon user has ever defeated me! In fact, I'll wager all eight of my star chips!", Lance boasted.

'Is he serious? That many?', Inferno thought. 'Geez. I suppose it'll make things easier for me when I kick his butt for messing with Rarity like that!' "Rarity's not some prize pretty boy! But I'm gonna duel you just the same!", Inferno spat! "I'll wager one of my star chips."

Inferno: 8000
Lance: 8000

"I'll take the first move! I'll set a card and summon Blade Knight! I end my turn.", Lance said with a smirk. "Attack if you dare!"

"Getting real tired of your attitude!", Inferno said. "I summon Black Stone of Legend! Now I'll tribute him to bring out Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon! Now I'll normal summon another Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon! This unlocks his effect! Attack him directly! Black Flare!"

"I'll activate my trap! Magical Arm Shield! I'll target the other monster you control! Now you'll be attacking him instead! However since they have equal attack, they'll destroy each other! Neither of us will take damage!"

"I don't think so! Black Flare's effect activates! Since he attacked, I can inflict his attack points as damage! You saved your monster, but you still get burned!", Inferno said with a smile. "Then I'll set a card and play Dragon Shrine! I'll send a normal dragon-type monster to the graveyard! Now I can send another dragon from my deck to the grave since the dragon I sent was a normal dragon." 'And they say Red-Eyes' burn focus isn't very helpful to the deck!', Inferno confidently thought.

Inferno: 8000
Lance: 5600

"My turn then! I draw! I summon Skilled White Magician! Then I play the Emblem of Dragon Destroyer! This lets me add a 'Buster Blader' monster to my hand! Now I can place a spell counter on my Skilled White Magician! Now I'll attack you directly with Blade Knight! Then I'll play the spell card Ego Boost! Since a monster declared an attack, I can target one monster I control and boost its attack by 1000 points until the end of the battle phase! I target Blade Knight!"

"I don't think so! I activate my trap! Red-Eyes Spirit! I can target a 'Red-Eyes' monster in my graveyard and special summon it! I special summon Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon!", Inferno countered! Blade Knight was destroyed by a tail whip from REDMD! 'This is my best card in the main deck! He's toast!'

"Hmph. Impressive. But your dragons won't be standing for long! I end my turn with a face-down card. And since I played another spell card, I can place another spell counter on my Skilled White Magician.", Lance said with a frown.

"My move! I draw! Now I'll activate REDMD's effect! I'll special summon a dragon-type from my graveyard! Welcome back Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" Red-Eyes stood triumphantly stood upon returning to the field. Inferno smiled to his partner almost as if he was thinking the same thing as Inferno: 'Let's burn this punk to a crisp!'

Inferno continued his turn, "Then I'll play Red-Eyes Insight! This lets me add a 'Red-Eyes' spell or trap from my deck to my hand! I'll add Red-Eyes Fusion! Now I'll activate it! I'll send Red-Eyes Black Dragon and Meteor Dragon Red-Eyes Impact to the graveyard to fusion summon Meteor Black Comet Dragon! Now I'll activate his effect! Since he was fusion-summoned, I can send one 'Red-Eyes' normal monster from my deck to my graveyard and inflict half its attack as damage!" Lance winced as the flames licked at his life points! "You just made the worst mistake of your life. You tried to steal a dragon's treasure! Now you'll pay the price! I'll attack you directly with both of my dragons!"

"Not so fast! I activate my trap! Spiritual Swords of Revealing Light! Once per attack, I can pay 1000 life points to negate the attack!", Lance said triumphantly.

'This guy's just holding off the inevitable.' "I end my turn with a face-down card.", Inferno said with a small smile.

Inferno: 8000
Lance: 2400

"I draw! And now it ends! I play Swords of Revealing Light! This prevents your monsters from attacking! Now I can place a third spell counter on Skilled White Magician! Now I'll tribute him to special summon Buster Blader from my hand! Behold the ultimate bane of dragons!" A fearsome warrior clad in purple armor and wielding a gigantic sword appeared on the field! "Now that he's on the field, he gains 500 attack points for each dragon you control and in your graveyard! Then I'll play Assault Armor! I equip it to Buster Blader and then I'll send it to the graveyard so Buster Blader can attack twice! Now I'll strike down your Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon! Buster Slash!"

"AGH!", Inferno wailed as REDMD was slashed into ribbons! 'It's okay Inferno!', Inferno thought as he calmed himself. 'You still win, even without REDMD at this point.'

Inferno: 4700
Lance: 2400

"Now for your other dragon!", Lance said with a smirk! Meteor Black Comet Dragon was destroyed with a single slash!

'This is it!' "You won't be getting at him!", Inferno said defiantly! "I activate my trap! Red-Eyes Burn! Since you destroyed one of my Red-Eyes monsters by battle, I can inflict its attack points as damage to both of us!"

"NO!", Lance wailed as flames crashed into both his and Inferno's life points! Inferno took a hit, but he was still standing by the end of it, but Lance's life points had dropped to zero! Inferno took Lance's star chips while he was processing his defeat,climbed up the rock Rarity was on, scooped her up into his arms and jumped down landing safely with her.

"My hero.", Rarity said as she kissed Inferno.

"Anything for my treasure.", Inferno said with a smile as he broke the kiss.

"Looks like one of us made it to the finals.", Burst said with a smile. "Just four more of us to go."

Duel 8: Facing your Demons

Sunset sighed as she looked at her new deck. Twilight and the other girls had given her a new start, and with that she also left behind her old deck. Now she had a new deck and new monster partners. And yet she was still haunted by her past actions. Even after she had been forgiven and everyone gave her a second chance, she still had traces of fear in her heart of what she had done. Burst noticed her troubled expression and went over to her. "Hey Sunny. You OK?", he asked.

"It's nothing Burst. Just...thinking., Sunset said with a smile.

"Sunset. I know something's bothering you. Is it about...the incident?", Burst asked.

Sunset sighed. "Yes."

"But Sunset. Everyone's forgiven you. You have real friends now.", Burst said.

"I know!", Sunset shouted. "...I know. But I still have nightmares sometimes. Nightmares about everyone hating me."

"You're still troubled by it?", Gold asked. The group turned to face him.

"Gold? What're you doing here?", Inferno asked.

"I'm here to help Sunset out. Wouldn't be much of a boyfriend if I wasn't there for my girl when she needs me." Gold then walked over to Sunset. "Sunset. If you're still troubled about your past actions, there is a way to get past this."

"How?", Sunset asked.

"There's a hidden duel arena where you can get enough star chips to advance to the finals. Only my Dad and I know about it. But there is a catch. You have to face yourself. It won't be easy, but just maybe it can help you get over your past. Not to mention propel you into the finals. But just remember that you're not alone." Gold then put his hand on her shoulder. "Even if you're by yourself. We're always in your heart." Sunset put her hand on Gold's.

"Thanks Gold. You really rose to the occasion.", Sunset said with a smile. "So where's this secret dueling arena?" Gold led Sunset and the others to a cave.

"There's one thing I forgot to mention. If you go in there, you must go alone.", Gold mentioned.

"Well Gold, like you said. I'm never alone as long as you're in my heart." And with that, Sunset entered the cave. As she ventured deeper, she heard a sound. Laughter. "Who's there?" Suddenly there was a pillar of flame! As the blaze died down, a figure stood in its place. It was the demonic form Sunset had when she had forced Twilight's crown on her head.

"Did you miss me Sunset?", Demon Shimmer asked.

"Not one bit!", Sunset spat back.

"Did you really think you were free of me?", Demon Shimmer asked with a smirk. "You don't want to admit it, but deep down I am your true self! I am the strongest parts of you!"

"You're not! I'll prove you're not!", Sunset said.

"So that's how it's gonna be, huh? Very well then." A blood red duel disk materialized on Demon Shimmer's arm. Sunset activated her own duel disk in response.

"LET'S DUEL!"

Sunset: 8000
Demon Shimmer: 8000

"I've got the first move!", Demon Shimmer said. "I summon Archfiend Cavalry in attack mode! I end my turn."

"My turn! I draw!", Sunset said. She gave a quick glance at her hand and sighed. 'Junk. At least I can stall for a turn with this. I just have to hope I get something usable my next draw' "I summon a monster in defense mode!"

"My turn then! I'll attack your monster! Fiendish Lance Charge!", Demon Shimmer cried out! Archfiend Cavalry charged at Sunset's monster!

"Marshamllon's effect activates! Since he was attacked when he was face-down, you take 1000 points of damage! Also, Marshmallon can't be destroyed by battle!"

Sunset: 8000
Demon Shimmer: 7000

"Hmph. I guess that lame little monster saved you. I'll set a card and end my turn."

"My turn then! I draw!" 'Just what I was hoping for!' "I special summon Guardian Eatos since I have no monsters in my graveyard! Destroy Archfiend Cavalry! Guardian Feather Storm!" Eatos sent out a flurry of razor sharp feathers! Cutting Archfiend Cavalry to bits! Demon Shimmer smiled as the attack was carried out.

"I activate my trap! Dark Mirror Force! Since you declared an attack, I can banish all defense-mode monsters you control!" Marshmallon faded off of the field!

"If that's the case, I'll play The Flute of Summoning Kuriboh to add Kuriboh to my hand! Then I'll end my turn.", Sunset said. 'Perfect! Another layer of defense for now.', Sunset thought as she looked to her opponent. 'I need to show her how I'm not her anymore! This new deck and this new deck can take this old me down!'

Sunset: 8000
Demon Shimmer: 6400

"Not bad. But I believe I've let you get in enough free-shots.", Demon Shimmer said with a smirk. "I play Swords of Concealing Light! All monsters you control are changed into face-down defense mode!" Guardian Eatos soon shielded herself with her wings. "Now I play Different Dimension Capsule! I'll banish a card from my deck face-down for two standby phases! Then I play Soul Exchange! This lets me tribute a monster you control! This lets me bring out Breaker the Dark Magical Warrior! Now that he was normal summoned, I can place two spell counters on him! Now I'll remove one to destroy your face-down card!" Sunset's face-down, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow was destroyed! "Now I'll attack you directly!"

"I'll discard Kuriboh! Now I take no damage from your attack!", Sunset said.

"Hmph. I guess your lame little monster saved you for now. I play Fires of Doomsday to special summon two Doomsday tokens! I end my turn."

'I'm out of monsters and none of these spells can save me. I need a way around this hand.' "My move! I draw! I play Single Purchase! I have over three cards in my hand besides Single Purchase and none of them are monsters! Now I'll banish my whole hand face-up! Now I can add a monster from my deck to my hand! Then I'll end my turn." 'This is it! As soon as I can get him out, I'll have no doubt about what the outcome of my choice got me!

"I draw! Now I'll attack you directly with Breaker!", Demon Shimmer said with a savage grin!

"Agh!", Sunset cried out as Breaker slashed at her life points! 'It's days like this I wish Monster Reborn wasn't banned, or that I had picked up Soul Charge! And as long as Breaker has a spell counter he can destroy a spell or trap card on my field!'

"I'll end my turn. Your move Sunny.", Demons Shimmer said with a smirk.

Sunset: 6000
Demon Shimmer: 6400

"I pass my turn.", Sunset said with a frown.

Demon Shimmer had a wicked smile as she began her turn. "Now that it's my second standby phase after their activation, Swords of Concealing Light goes away! Now I can also destroy D.D. Capsule! This lets me add my banished card to my hand! Now I'll tribute my Doomsday Tokens to summon The Supremacy Sun! Now I'll attack you with both of my monsters! Dark Solar Flames!"

"AH!", Sunset cried as her life points took a massive hit! The damage knocked her to the ground!

"I believe I've let you burn enough for this turn.", Demon Shimmer said with a savage grin. "I end my turn. And soon it will be the end for you!"

Sunset: 1000
Demon Shimmer: 6400

'Maybe I really did get weaker. Maybe I'm past my prime because I lost back then. Maybe all this talk about a new me is just....talk....No! I'm better than this!' Sunset then had a flash of all the friends she was able to make since her defeat at the fall formal. The good moments she already had and the more to come if she stuck with them. 'That's not who I am! Not anymore! I'll show her!'

Demon Shimmer had an evil smile as she saw Sunset lying on the ground, but it soon faded when she heard Sunset laughing. "What's so funny?!", she demanded.

"Heh heh. You know? I thought it was the end when I got blasted with The Magic of Friendship. But I was wrong." Sunset then rose to her feet. A triumphant smile was upon her face. "It was only a new beginning for me! You're not my strength! You're my weakness! One of which being the massive amount of overconfidence I used to have! Why do you think I let you get in those free hits?" Demon Shimmer's mouth dropped in horror! "Now it's time to end this! I draw! I'll play Foolish Burial! I'll send a monster from my deck to my graveyard! Now I'll banish one dark and one light monster from my graveyard! I summon Black Luster Soldier-Envoy of the Beginning!" A swirl of light appeared and a BLS stepped through!

"Nice to meet you at last Sunset.", BLS said with a smile. "Now let's end this chapter of your story!"

Sunset nodded. "I'll attack with BLS! Now I'll discard Honest! Since I discarded Honest, I can target the opponent's monster I'm battling and gain its attack until the end of this turn! I'll target The Supremacy Sun! This boosts BLS by 3000 points! Attack with Genesis Slash!" BLS's sword pulsed with a green and gold light as it destroyed The Supremacy Sun with one slash! "I'm not finished yet! Since BLS destroyed a monster by battle, he can attack again! Destroy Breaker the Dark Magical Warrior!"

"NO!", Demon Shimmer hissed as Breaker was destroyed! Demon Shimmer then gazed at her own body as she began to fade into nothing! "No..NO! NOOOOOOO!!!", she screamed as she faded into nothingness. The darkness then lifted to reveal a pedestal. Sunset walked towards is. There was a star symbol on it with a question mark next to it. Below it was a series of numbers ranging from one to eight.

"I'm guessing this is what Gold said could propel me to the finals.", Sunset said with a smile as she selected the number eight. In a flash, eight star chips appeared. Sunset collected the star chips and put them into her dueling glove. The pedestal then retracted into the ground. Sunset walked out of the cave to meet her friends and proudly displayed her ten star chips. "Two of us in the finals, three left to go."

Duel 9: Duel between Designers

Rarity sighed. Her boyfriend had made it to the finals. Sunset had made it to the finals. Burst and Rainbow Dash were at the halfway mark. And where was she? Dead last among their group. 'Maybe it wasn't the best idea to come along. So far I've been relegated to the cheering section.', she thought. Inferno picked up on her distress. Rarity noticed him coming over and stood up. "Oh. Hello darling."

"You're upset aren't you?", Inferno asked.

"What tipped you off?"

"Your dramatic sighing. You always do that when you're upset. Or drape yourself on a couch.", Inferno said with a chuckle. "In all seriousness though, let's try to find you a duel."

"You know just how to make a lady smile darling.", Rarity said with a small smile. "Hello? What's this?" Rarity noticed two girls talking. From the looks of it, the taller girl was hounding the shorter girl. They were girls Rarity recognized. "Would you excuse me for a moment Inferno? I have business to attend to."

"Does it have anything to do with either of those girls?", Inferno asked.

"Let's just say I'm....acquainted with the taller one.", Rarity said as she walked over.

"For the last time Coco. The only way we're gonna make it to the finals is if YOU hand over your star chips from the duels you've won. Then I'll duel my way to through the finals.", Suri said with a frown.

"Still using the work of others to get yourself credit I see?", Rarity asked coldly. Suri turned to Rarity and had a nervous smile.

"Hiiii Rares! You're not still mad about that business back in Manhattan right?", she asked.

"Oh darling. I'm absolutely livid. But not just about you stealing my work back then. I'm FURIOUS you're making your assistant do all the work for you! If you're going to compete, do it yourself!", Rarity said sternly.

"Coming from the girl who's scared to get even the tiniest bit dirty?", Suri asked with a smirk.

"Oh. It. Is. ON!", Rarity said as she activated her duel disk.

"If that's the case, I'll wager five of my star chips.", Suri said.

"And I'll put all of my star chips on the line as well!"

Rarity: 8000
Suri: 8000

'Time to put her in her place!', Rarity thought as she called out her move. "I'll take the first move! I summon Gem-Knight Alexandrite! Now I'll tribute him to special summon a 'Gem-Knight' normal monster from my deck! I summon Gem-Knight Crystal in attack mode! Then I'll play Fusion Conscription! I'll reveal a fusion monster in my extra deck! Then I can add one of the fusion materials listed from my deck or graveyard to my hand! I'll add from my deck. Then I'll end my turn." 'My dazzling gem knights are prepared for anything!'

"I draw!", Suri said. "I summon Edge Imp Chain! Then I'll attack! Since I attacked, Chain's effect activates! I can add another Edge Imp Chain from my deck to my hand!"

"But your own monster will be destroyed!", Rarity said with a look of confusion.

"Exactly what I was hoping for!" Gem-Knight Crystal smashed Edge Imp Chain to bits! "Since Edge Imp Chain was sent from the field to the graveyard, I can add a 'Frightfur' card from my deck to my hand! Then I'll end my turn."

Rarity: 8000
Suri: 6750

'I don't like what she's getting at here. But I'm going to need to advance anyway though!' "In that case, I draw!", Rarity said. "I play Absorb Fusion! I'll banish the fusion materials in my hand! I fusion summon Gem-Knight Seraphinite!" Suri smirked as Rarity's monster was summoned.

"I activate my trap! Anti-Fusion Device! This card targets and destroys one fusion monster you control!" Seraphanite was destroyed instantly!

'No! This can't be!' "In that case, I'll end my turn.", Rarity said with a small frown.

"I draw! I summon Fluffal Owl! Since he was summoned from my hand, I can add one 'Polymerization' from my deck to my hand! Now I'll put it to use! I fuse Edge Imp Chain with Fluffal Owl to fusion summon Frightfur Sheep! Attack her directly!" Rarity winced as her life points took a hit! "That's all for my turn."

Rarity: 6000
Suri: 6750

'She's using my own fusion strategy against me! She doesn't have an original bone in her body! I need this next card to be something to turn this around!' Rarity drew her next card. 'Excellent.' "I play Brilliant Fusion! I'll send fusion materials from my deck to the graveyard to fusion summon a 'Gem-Knight' fusion monster from my extra deck! I fusion summon Gem-Knight Lady Brilliant Diamond!" Lady Brilliant Diamond materialized and drew her sword! "I'm not done yet! I summon Gem-Knight Emerald! Now I'll tribute him to activate Lady Brilliant Diamond's effect! I special summon Gem-Knight Master Diamond! Now his effect activates! He gains 100 attack for each 'Gem' monster in my graveyard! Destroy Frightfur Sheep!" Frightfur was cut to shreds with one slash! "I'm not done yet! I'll discard a spell card to have Lady Brilliant Diamond gain her attack points back! I'll have her attack you directly! Diamond Prism Slash!" Suri winced as she took damage! "I'll then end my turn with a face-down." 'Flawless comeback Rarity!'

Rarity: 6000
Suri: 1950

"I draw! I summon Edge Imp Saw! Then I'll play Frightfur Fusion! I'll banish Edge Imp Saw and Fluffal Owl in my graveyard to fusion summon Frightfur Leo! Now I'll activate his effect! I'll target and destroy one monster you control! Then I can inflict its original attack as damage to your life points! I choose Master Diamond!" A saw blade cut Master Diamond to bits!

"I activate my trap! Brilliant Spark! If one of my Gem-Knights was destroyed by battle or by card effect, I can target one of them and inflict their attack as damage! I choose Master Diamond!"

"No!", Suri wailed as her life points dropped to zero!

'A beautiful strategy. Master Diamond, I'm sorry Darling. Your sacrifice gave me my victory.', Rarity thought as she collected her star chips and turned to Coco. "By the way darling. If you are in need of a new employer, I could always use some extra help around my boutique. That is, if you're interested." Rarity then made her way back to Inferno. "Just three star chips away from the finals."

Duel 10: Heavy Metal

Sombra was scouting for another duelist to beat. A dark smile plastered on his face as he searched for his next victim. He didn't have to look far. "Hey you!" Sombra turned and found another famed duelist, or rather infamous duelist, who had competed in the first Duelist Kingdom. Bandit Keith. "You're that punk Sombra who's making a name for himself! If I beat you, my name'll go down in history again!"

"Fitting. Considering you're going to be history when I'm through with you.", Sombra said with a smirk. "I know your reputation as a gambling man Keith. So how about this? I'll wager up all of my star chips. And if you beat me, I'll never pick up a deck again. However, I'll not hold you to the same stakes." Bandit Keith paused for a moment before laughing.

"HAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHA! You're letting your opponent decide his own stakes? This is too good! In that case, I'll put all of my chips on the line too! Get ready to get crushed by the heavy metal of my machine deck! I'll even let you have the first move!"

Sombra: 8000
Bandit Keith: 8000

"In that case, I summon Chthonian Soldier in attack mode! Then I'll set a card face-down! I end my turn.", Sombra said.

"I've got just the tool to take down your soldier! I play the spell card Ancient Rules to special summon Slot Machine from my hand! Next I'll equip him with 7 Completed! This boosts his attack or defense by 700 points! I choose to boost his attack! Waste his Chthonian Soldier!" Chthonian Soldier was decimated in a flurry of laser blasts! However, Sombra had a smile as his soldier was destroyed.

"My soldier is quite vengeful. When he is destroyed, you also take the battle damage I took!" Keith winced as Chthonian Soldier's axe slashed at his life points!

"Keep smiling. I can't wait to wipe that smirk off your face! I end my turn."

Sombra: 6500
Bandit Keith: 6500

"My move. I draw! I summon Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands to add a ritual monster from my deck to my hand! I end my turn."

"I draw!", Keith said with a smirk. "I play Soul Exchange! This lets me use one monster on your field as the tribute for a tribute summon! Now I'll tribute your Manju with my Slot Machine to summon Fiendish Engine Omega! Now I'll activate his effect! I'll have Engine gain 1000 attack until the end of my turn! The only downside is that he's destroyed at the end of my turn!"

"I activate my trap! Draining Shield! Now I can target your attacking monster and negate your attack! Then I gain his attack points as life points!"

"I end my turn.", Keith growled. "Now Fiendish Engine Omega is destroyed and I can special summon an Engine Token."

Sombra: 10500
Bandit Keith: 6500

"My move! I draw! I summon Sonic Bird to add a ritual spell from my deck to my hand! Now I'll activate Contract with the Abyss! This lets me ritual summon any dark monster! The only drawback is that the levels of my tributes have to equal the exact level of the ritual monster I want to summon! I ritual summon Dark Master-Zorc!" Zorc appeared out of a swirl of darkness! "Attack him directly! Dark Inferno!" Bandit Keith cringed as the dark flames burned away at his life points! "Then I'll set a card and end my turn."

Sombra: 10500
Keith: 3800

"Now it's my move! I summon Cannon Soldier! Now I play Card Advance! I can look at the top five cards of my deck and rearrange them in any order! I'm also allowed one extra tribute summon this turn! I'll tribute summon Cannon Soldier and my Engine Token to bring out Barrel Dragon! Now for my first big gamble! I can target a monster you control and toss a coin three times! If at least two of the results are heads, I can destroy that monster!" Keith tossed a coin. The first result was heads! Keith then tossed it a second time. Another heads! "One last time!" Keith tossed the coin again, and the result was heads again! "I'll waste your Dark Master! Barrel Shot!" A laser blast fried Zorc! "Now I'll play Megamorph! This doubles Barrel Dragon's attack since my life points are lower than yours! Give him all three barrels!" Sombra had an unimpressed expression as he took the hit. "Looks like my gamble is paying off! I end my turn!"

Sombra: 5300
Bandit Keith: 3800

Sombra smiled as Keith boasted. "Actually, it backfired. I draw! I play Fulfillment of the Contract! I pay 800 life points to revive a ritual monster from my graveyard! Dark Master-Zorc returns to my field! Now I activate my trap card! Raigeki Break! I can discard a card and then target a card on the field and destroy it! I choose Barrel Dragon!" A bolt of lightning sent Barrel Dragon to the scrapheap! "Now I'll attack you directly!" Keith wailed in pain as dark flames once again burned through his life points! "I end my turn."

Sombra: 4500
Keith: 1100

"I....I summon a monster in defense mode!", Keith said in a panic! "Your monster can't do piercing damage!"

"You're so right. But I won't need to inflict piercing damage.", Sombra said as dark magic leaked out of his eyes. "I activate Zorc's effect! Dark Dice Roll! I can roll a six-sided die and activate a certain effect based on the number it lands on! It's my gamble now!" A dark die materialized and Sombra rolled it. The die landed on a three! "And it just payed off! Now I can destroy one monster you control! Dark Thunder Break!" A bolt of black lightning struck down Keith's defense mode monster! "Now to end it! Zorc Oblivion!"

"AARRGH!", Keith screamed as his life points dropped to zero! Keith was a sore loser however, and tried to charge at Sombra! Sombra then decked Keith and took his star chips.

"Don't play if you can't pay the price.", Sombra said with an evil smile as he left.

"Now we simply wait for the fools to file into the finals.", Zorc said.

"And one step closer to my reign."

Duel 11: Dragon's Den

"Well, well.", Garble said as he looked through his binoculars. "What have we here?" Garble was looking at Burst and his friends. "Boys! We've got a fresh score! You know the drill." Garble's flunkies nodded as they got into position. Burst and his friends continued on their path. Unaware that an ambush was waiting for them. Suddenly, Blue Eyes materialized.

"Blue-Eyes?", Burst asked.

"I sense a LOT of dragons in this area.", Blue-Eyes said as his eyes narrowed. "And they are NOT friendly."

"NOW!", Garble commanded! At that moment, Garble and his minions surrounded Burst and his friends! "Looks like we've caught the new duelist to beat!"

"And you're Garble. The dragon duelist. So what're you after?", Burst asked.

"Ain't it obvious?", Garble snorted. "I'm after more than just your star chips! I want all your Blue-Eyes cards! So let's make this interesting! If you lose, I get all of your Blue-Eyes cards! And if you win I'll hand over all of my star chips!"

"I guess I've got no choice.", Burst said as he noted his surroundings. "Let's duel!"

Burst: 8000
Garble: 8000

"I got the first move! I summon Luster Dragon in attack mode! Then I'll set a card and end my turn.", Garble said with a smirk.

'I don't he's playing fair with that look on his face. But I don't care! I'll beat him fair and square!' "My turn then. I draw! I reveal one Blue-Eyes White Dragon to special summon Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon! Now I'll activate his effect! I'll destroy your monster!" Luster Dragon was destroyed by a bolt of lightning! "Then I'll set a card and end my turn."

"I draw!" Garble sneered as he looked at his hand. "I activate my face-down card! Compulsory Evacuation Device! This'll return your monster to your hand! Next I'll summon Keeper of the Shrine! Then I play Card Advance! I can look at the top five cards of my deck and rearrange them in any order! I'm also allowed an extra tribute summon this turn! And Keeper can be treated as two tributes for a dragon-type monster! I tribute him to summon Tyrant Dragon!" A fearsome dragon with orange scales descended! "Attack him directly! Tyrant Blaze!" Burst cringed as the flames crashed into his life points! "I'll set a card and end my turn."

Burst: 5100
Garble: 8000

"I draw!", Burst said. He then looked over his hand. 'This should be enough.' "I'll reveal Blue-Eyes in my hand to special summon Blue-Eyes Alternative! Now I summon White Stone of Ancients! I'll tune him with Blue-Eyes Alternative! I synchro summon Blue-Eyes Spirit Dragon in defense mode! I end my turn. Now White Stone's effect activates! I can special summon a 'Blue-Eyes' monster from my deck! I special summon Dragon Spirit of White in defense mode! Now I can banish a spell or trap card you control! I choose your face-down! Now I'll tribute Dragon Spirit to special summon Blue-Eyes from my hand!" 'He's still giving me that look. I need to up my game.'

"I draw! Yes! I equip Tyrant Dragon with Dragon Shield! Now he can't be destroyed by battle or by card effects!", Garble said with a sneer.

'Is he serious?', Burst thought as he chuckled.

"What's so funny?!"

"You just wasted your best monster. You won't take any damage, but neither will I.", Burst replied. Garble's jaw dropped.

"YOU MEAN I JUST MADE MY BEST MONSTER A LIVING WALL?!", Garble screamed. Burst nodded. "Fine! I end my turn."

"I draw! I switch Blue-Eyes Spirit Dragon into attack mode! Then I'll play Return of the Dragon Lords to Revive Dragon Spirit of White from my graveyard! Now I'll banish your Dragon Shield! Then I'll destroy your monster with Blue-Eyes! White Lightning!" Garble winced as his monster was destroyed! "Now I'll attack you directly with my other dragons! Double Spirit Lightning!" Garble froze when he was hit full force! "I end my turn. It's too bad you rely on brute force with no strategy."

Burst: 5100
Garble: 2900

"My turn. I draw!", Garble said. "I play The Melody of Awakening Dragon! I'll discard a card and add two dragon-type monster with 3000 or more attack and 2500 defense to my hand! And now it's over! I'll banish one light and one dark monster from my graveyard! I summon Chaos Emperor Dragon!" But before Garble could summon the legendary forbidden monster, his duel disk flashed red! "What?!" In frustration, Garble kept trying to summon his monster. A red X kept going off in his monster zone. "Why can't I summon my best monster?!"

"You DO know that Chaos Emperor Dragon is banned right?", Burst asked. 'How is he a top ranked duelist again?' Garble's jaw dropped. "Its effect is so OP that it was banned because it was too strong.You can't even have ONE copy of that thing."

"Indeed.", Gold said.

"When did you get here Gold?", Sunset asked.

"Dad put me in charge of monitoring the use of any banned cards that were smuggled in. Me and some of the security guys wait until one is activated for proof they were brought and we exact the penalty."

"And that is?", Inferno asked. Gold then turned to Garble.

"Any duelist who activates a banned card has all of their star chips confiscated and is disqualified from the tournament.", Gold said.

"WHAT?!", Garble screamed.

"Sorry Garble. But those are the rules."

"You can't do this!", Garble screamed. "I...I'M THE KING OF THE DRAGON DUELISTS!"

'Some king. I can still show him.' "Gold?", Burst asked.

"Yeah?"

"Let's allow this 'king' a chance to fight for his throne.", Burst said with a small smile.

"I guess I can allow this for one duel.", Gold said. "For this turn, Chaos Emperor Dragon is legal."

"Your done for!", Garble said with a sneer. "I pay 1000 life points to activate Chaos Emperor Dragon's effect! We both send all cards from our hands and fields to the graveyard and you take 300 damage for each card sent! I have two cards total, and you have three on your field and two in your hand! This means you take 2100 points of damage!" Burst winced as his field was wiped out! Chaos Emperor Dragon also left the field too! "WHAT?! Nobody told me that happened!"

Burst: 3000
Garble: 1900

'This is it!' "My turn! I draw!", Burst said. "I banish White Stone of Ancients to add Blue Eyes White Dragon to my hand! Now I'll play Trade-In! I'll discard Blue-Eyes to draw two new cards! Then I'll play Return of the Dragon Lords! I revive Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my graveyard! You're a disgrace to all those who pride themselves in being called dragon masters. Real dragon duelists duel with honor, and respect! Let's show him how real dragons duel Blue-Eyes! Attack him directly! White Lightning!"

"NO!", Garble hissed as the last of his life points were obliterated! Gold then collected Garble's star chips. "I should've won.", Garble fumed as he handed over his star chips.

"You should've been booted off this island.", Gold said as he walked over to Burst and handed over the star chips. "Looks like you've just made it to the finals Burst.", Gold said with a smile.

"And it looks like there's only two of us left that need to make it.", Burst said as he looked to Rarity and Rainbow Dash. "But something tells me the duels are only going to get harder from here on in."

Duel 12: Double Duel

"Man! I can't believe we're dead last!", Rainbow Dash moaned. "Burst, Inferno, and Sunset are all set to head to the finals! I've only got six star chips and you've got seven."

"I think we have more pressing concerns Rainbow Dash.", Rarity said. "Like finding a place to sleep. Fortunately, we did remember to pack sleeping bags."

"Yeah." Rainbow's stomach then growled. "But I think I forgot to pack food!"

"Excuse us duelists!" Burst and his friends turned to see nearly identical twins approach them. The two were brothers by the looks of it. "We couldn't help but overhear your predicament. I am Flim. My brother Flam and I would be more than happy to hand over some provisions."

"Sweet! What's the price?", Rainbow asked.

"Why the cost is only half your star chips.", Flam said with a grin.

"How about we come to a new deal?", Rarity asked. "How about if Rainbow Dash and I win, you hand over half of your star chips and the food free of charge?"

"Well brother. What say you?", Flim asked.

"It's certainly more entertaining than you simply handing over your star chips. Very well! We accept your terms!"

Rarity and Rainbow Dash: 16000
Flim and Flam: 16000

"Ladies first!", Rarity said. "I summon Gem-Knight Garnet! Then I'll set a card and end my turn." 'Not a bad start to this duel! I'd best save my trap for when I need it.'

"I draw!", Flim said. "I summon Machina Soldier! Now his effect activates! Since he's the only monster I control, I can special summon a 'Machina' monster from my hand! I special summon Machina Sniper! With him on the field, you can't attack any 'Machina' monsters except Sniper! Then I'll set two cards and end my turn."

"My move!", Rainbow said. 'Nice! This is a pretty sweet hand!' "I summon Crystal Beast-Sapphire Pegasus! Now I can place a 'Crystal Beast' from my hand, deck, or graveyard face-up in my spell and trap zone! But first I'll play Crystal Tree! Once a Crystal Beast is set in my spell and trap zone, I can place a crystal counter on it! If I place a Crystal Beast in my spell and trap zone, I can place one crystal counter on Crystal Tree! Then I'll use Pegasus's effect! Now I'll send Crystal Tree to my graveyard with one crystal counter to set one Crystal Beast from my deck to my spell and trap zone! Then I'll set a card and end my turn!" This duel's going to get 20% more awesome REAL soon!'

"My turn then! I draw!", Flam said. "I summon Machina Gearframe! Now his effect activates! I can add a 'Machina' monster from my deck to my hand! Now I'll attack your Pegasus! Both monster will destroy each other, but at least our life points won't take a hit." Both monsters clashed and their attacks destroyed them both! "Now I play Solidarity and end my turn."

"I draw!", Rarity said. "I play Polymerization! I'll fuse Gem-Knight Garnet with another Gem-Knight in my hand! I fusion summon Gem-Knight Ruby! Now I activate Twin Twisters! I'll discard a card to destroy your two face-downs!" Two twisters blew away Flim's face-downs! "Next I'll summon Gem-Knight Alexandrite! Then I'll activate his effect! I tribute him to special summon a 'Gem-Knight' monster from my deck! I summon Gem-Knight Crystal! Ruby will attack your Machina Sniper while Crystal attacks your Soldier!" Ruby cut Machina Sniper to scrap while Crystal destroyed Machina Soldier with a single blow! "I'll then place another card face-down and end my turn." 'Quite the dazzling combo if I do say so myself.'

Rarity and Rainbow Dash: 16000
Flim and Flam: 14650

"I draw! I summon a monster in defense mode and end my turn.", Flim said.

"My turn then!", Rainbow said. "Sweet! Just the card I needed!' "I draw! I play Crystal Beacon! This lets me special summon a Crystal Beast if I have at least two Crystal Beasts in my spell and trap zone! I special summon Amber Mammoth! Now I'll equip him with Crystal Release to boost him by 800 points! Then I'll play Terraforming! This lets me add a field spell from my deck to my hand! Now I'll activate the field spell I added! I activate the field spell Rainbow Ruins! Then I'll have Amber Mammoth attack you directly!" Flam winced as his life points took a hit! "I end my turn." 'Man. These guys' monsters are being sent to the scrapyard in almost no time. So much for mechanical might.'

Rarity and Rainbow Dash: 16000
Flim and Flam: 12150

"I draw!", Flam said. "I'll discard machine-type monsters from my hands whose levels equal eight or more to special summon Machina Fortress! Now I'll activate Limiter Removal! This card doubles the attack of all machine-type monsters I control until the end of this turn! Destroy Amber Mammoth!" Machina Fortress fired a powerful laser from it's cannon!

"Not so fast!", Rainbow cried out! "I activate Rainbow Ruins' effect! Since I have at least two Crystal Beasts in my spell and trap zone, I can halve all battle damage I take! Also, I choose not to set Amber Mammoth in my spell and trap zone! Now I activate my trap! Crystal Pair! I can place a Crystal Beast face-up in my spell and trap zone since Amber Mammoth was destroyed! And since he was destroyed with Crystal Release, I can place another Crystal Beast from my deck in my spell and trap zone!" 'Looks like they've hit their self-destruct button!'

"Well played Ms. Dash. I end my turn. Sadly, Fortress can't handle the strain his upgrade puts on him and is destroyed by Limiter Removal's effect. When my turn ends, Fortress is destroyed." Machina Fortress self-destructed!

Rarity and Rainbow Dash: 14750
Flim and Flam: 12150

'Looks like its time for my Gem Knights to shine once more!' "I draw!", Rarity said. "I'll attack your face-down monster with Gem-Knight Crystal!"

"Now my monster's effect activates!", Flim said. "I'll equip Blast Sphere to your monster! I'll have to wait until your next standby phase for it too pay off."

"Regardless, I activate Ruby's effect! I can tribute a 'Gem' monster I control! I tribute Crystal! Now Ruby gains Crystal's attack points until the end of this turn! Attack him directly!" Ruby charged forth and slashed at Flim's life points! "I end my turn. Now Ruby's attack points go back to normal." 'This duel's going to come to a dazzling finish! Just a few more turns!'

Rarity and Rainbow Dash: 14750
Flim and Flam: 7200

"I draw!", Flim said. "I summon Machina Gearframe! Once he's summoned I can add a 'Machina' monster from my deck to my hand! Then I'll end my turn with a face-down."

"My turn now!", Rainbow said as she drew her card. "Now I activate Rainbow Ruins' effect! Since I have four Crystal Beasts in my spell and trap zone, I can draw a card during my main phase! Now I activate Rare Value! Since I have two or more Crystal Beasts in my graveyard, you can select one Crystal Beast and send it to the graveyard! Then I can draw two cards!"

"I'll choose the one on the far left.", Flam said.

"Sweet!", Rainbow said as she sent the card to the graveyard and draw two new cards. "Now I summon a monster in defense mode and set a card to end my turn!" 'Six down

"I draw!", Flam said. "I'll send three machine-type monsters from my hand to the graveyard to special summon Machina Cannon! Now he gains 800 attack for each card sent! Attack her defense mode monster!"

"Not so fast! I activate my trap! Rainbow Path!", Rainbow Dash said. "I can negate your attack by sending one Crystal Beast from my spell and trap zone to the graveyard to add Rainbow Dragon or Rainbow Dark Dragon to my hand! I'll add Rainbow Dragon!" 'Just gotta wait one more turn! Then I can kick things into awesome!'

"In that case, I'll end my turn.", Flam said.

"I draw!", Rarity said. "I play De-Fusion to bring back Garnet and another Gem-Knight from my graveyard! Then I'll play Gem-Knight Fusion! I'll fuse my two Gem-Knights on my field and the one in my hand to fusion summon Gem-Knight Lady Brilliant Diamond! Attack him directly!"

"Not so fast! I activate my trap! Mirror Force! This destroys all attack mode monsters you control!", Flim said with a smirk.

"In that case, I activate my own trap! Brilliant Spark! When a face-up Gem-Knight I control is destroyed by battle or by card effect, I can inflict their attack points as damage equal to their original attack points to my opponent's life points!" Flim cringed as diamond shards cut through his life points! "I end my turn with another face-down." 'Forgive me Lady Diamond. But your sacrifice won't be in vain!'

Rarity and Rainbow Dash: 14750
Flim and Flam: 3800

"I draw!", Flim said. "I play Double Summon! I summon Commander Covington and Machina Defender! Next I play Soul Charge! I pay 1000 life points per monster I want to revive from my graveyard! I revive Machina Soldier and Machina Sniper! Now I'll send Sniper, Soldier, and Defender to the graveyard to special summon Machina Force from my deck!" A fearsome looking machine assembled itself from the three machines Flim had sent to the graveyard! "Now I'll equip him with Megamorph! This doubles his attack since our life points are lower! Now I pay 1000 life points so he can attack!" Rarity braced herself as a hail of firepower rained down on her life points! "Now I end my turn. What?!" Flim was shocked to find that Machina Force's attack points were cut in half!

"Megamorph is a tricky card darling.", Rarity said with a smile. "It works well when your life points are low, but the second your life points are higher than your opponent's it cuts the attack of your monster in half." 'You'd think they'd be good with numbers.'

"Looks like I just signed a bad deal. I end my turn.", Flim said with a frown.

Rarity and Rainbow Dash: 5550
Flim and Flam: 3800

"My turn!", Rainbow said as she drew her next card. "Nice! I summon Ruby Carbuncle! Now that I have seven total Crystal Beasts on my field and in my graveyard, I can special summon Rainbow Dragon from my hand! Now I'll play Forbidden Chalice! Rainbow Dragon has his effects negated, but he gains 400 attack! Attack Flam Directly! Spectrum Surge!" Flam winced as he took the full force of Rainbow Dash's attack! "And that's game!"

"Well, we lost fair and square.", Flim said.

"And as per our deal, here's half of our star chips as well as the food we promised.", Flam finished. "A pleasure doing business with you. Come brother! We must search for other potential customers!" And with that, the two of them left. Rarity and Rainbow Dash proudly displayed their ten star chips to their friends.

"Looks like we all made it.", Rarity said with a smile.

"Yeah. But the hardest part is just ahead. The finals.", Rainbow Dash added.

"Well, let's leave tomorrow's problems for tomorrow. It's getting late. So let's rest up.", Burst said. And with that, the group set up camp for the night.

Duel 13: Power and Potential

Night had fallen on Duelist Kingdom. And Burst and his friends were sitting by a fire. They had just finished dinner and were eagerly anticipating the finals. "Man I can't wait for the finals!", Rainbow Dash said with a grin.

"You do know we're going to have to duel against each other right?", Sunset asked.

"That's what's going to make this so awesome!", Rainbow countered.

"Don't we USUALLY duel each other at school Rainbow Dash?", Rarity asked.

"Yeah. Well....here we're doing this in front of the whole world! The finals are going to be televised! Everyone we know and more are going to be watching us duel!"

"Yeah. But let's be honest on the two of us who are favorites to win.", Sunset added. "Burst and Inferno."

"True. But just what makes them the most likely to win?", Rainbow asked.

"Because we're partnered with two legendary dragons.", Burst stated. Blue-Eyes then materialized.

"Burst's right. Red Eyes and I are quite famous in our world as well as this one.", Blue-Eyes said.

"Might I ask Blue-Eyes, just what makes you and Red-Eyes so legendary?", Rarity asked.

"I'm glad you asked us.", Red-Eyes said as he materialized. "Blue-Eyes here represents great power. And the victory that is gained through it."

"While Red-Eyes represents potential. But only for those who have the courage to fight.", Blue-Eyes finished.

"Wow.", Rainbow said in awe. "So that means either Burst or Inferno could win." Red-Eyes let out a chuckle.

"Unlikely Dash. If anything, Burst is gonna win. I do have my upgraded forms, but Blue-Eyes has his own upgrades too. And their usually stronger than mine in terms of abilities and sheer power."

"Come on Red-Eyes. You're my best friend!", Blue-Eyes said with a smile.

"And I know just how we can cement that.", Burst said as he strapped on his duel disk and stood up. "Let's have a duel!"

"Yeah..yeah that's it!", Inferno said as he strapped on his own duel disk. "Let's see if you can live up to your potential Red-Eyes!" Red-Eyes was still for a moment, then he nodded.

"Let's do it!"

Burst: 8000
inferno: 8000

"I'll fire this duel up!", Inferno said. 'Awesome! Just the hand I needed to start with!' "I summon Black Stone of Legend! Now I'll tribute him to special summon Red-Eyes Black Dragon from my deck! Now I'll equip Red-Eyes with Black Metal Dragon! This boosts his attack by 600 points!"

'Looks like he got a good hand too. Time for me to bring out my own monsters!' "My move! I draw!", Burst said. "I summon White Stone of Ancients! Now I'll discard Sage with Eyes of Blue to target him and send White Stone to the graveyard to special summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my deck! Next I'll play The Melody of Awakening Dragon! I can add two dragon-type monsters with 3000 or more attack and 2500 or less defense from my deck to my hand! Then I'll reveal the Blue-Eyes I just added to special summon Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon! Then I'll contact fuse my two dragons! And since Alternative counts as Blue-Eyes White Dragon while he's on the field or in the graveyard! I fusion summon Blue-Eyes Twin Burst Dragon!" A two-headed Blue-Eyes materialized. "Now I'll attack Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"

"But both of our monsters will be destroyed!" 'Is he serious?'

'That's what he thinks! Twin Burst's not going anywhere!' "Not Twin-Burst! He can't be destroyed by battle!" Both dragons clashed, but only Blue-Eyes Twin Burst was left standing. "I'll set a card and end my turn. And since I ended my turn, I can special summon a 'Blue-Eyes' monster from my deck! I special summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"

'Good thing I can use Black Metal Dragon's effect since my monster got fried!' "You actually helped me out.", Inferno said with a smile. "Since Black Metal Dragon was sent to the graveyard, I can add a 'Red-Eyes' card from my deck to my hand! Now it's my turn! I'll draw and activate the card I added! Red-Eyes Fusion! I'll send Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon and Summoned Skull from my deck to the graveyard! I fusion summon Archfiend Black Skull Dragon! Thanks to Red-Eyes Fusion's effect also makes his name Red-Eyes Black Dragon! Now I'll attack Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Blue-Eyes was destroyed by a blast of flame! "Now Archfiend's effect activates! Since damage calculation was performed, I can target one 'Red-Eyes' normal monster in my graveyard and inflict its attack points as damage! Then I can shuffle that monster back into my deck! I'll call it a turn with a face-down." 'Pretty sick burn Red-Eyes.'

Burst: 5400
Inferno: 8000

'That effect is pretty strong! good thing there's a work-around for that!' "I draw!", Burst said. "You've still got one normal monster left in your graveyard, so if I attack I'll trigger your dragon's effect again. So in that case, I play Return of the Dragon Lords! I'll revive Blue-Eyes Alternative! Then I'll activate his effect! I can target and destroy one monster you control!"

"In that case, I activate my trap! Red-Eyes Burn! Since you destroyed Archfiend, and his name counts as Red-Eyes due to Fusion's effect, you take his attack points as damage!" Burst cringed as flames crashed into his life points! 'Looks like that roasted both of our life points!'

Burst: 2200
Inferno: 4800

"It'll take more than that to stop me Inferno! I play Trade-in to discard the Blue-Eyes White Dragon in my hand to draw two new cards! Then I'll play Dragon's Mirror! I'll banish Blue-Eyes Alternative from my field and the two Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my graveyard to fusion summon Neo Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon! Now I'll attack you directly with Neo Ultimate! Neutron Blast Overdrive!" Inferno braced himself as he was hit full force with blasts of light energy! "I'll call it a turn." 'Looks like both of our decks aren't pulling any punches! No way I'd rather have it! Especially when dueling my best friend!'

Burst: 2200
Inferno: 300

"It's my move! I draw!", Inferno said. "I'm not ending this duel without getting in one last hit! I play Red-Eyes Insight! I can add one 'Red-Eyes' spell or trap from my deck to my hand! I'll add a Red-Eyes spell! I play Red-Eyes Fusion! I'll send Red-Eyes Black Dragon and Meteor Dragon Red-Eyes Impact from my deck to the graveyard to fusion summon Meteor Black Comet Dragon!" A flaming dragon descended from the sky! Its wings blazing! "Now his effect activates! I can send a 'Red-Eyes' monster from my deck to the graveyard and inflict half its attack as damage! I'll send Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon!" Burst winced as flames licked at his life points! "I end my turn. Come at me bro!" 'Well, there's no one I'd rather lose to. At least we both had a fun duel!'

Burst: 800
inferno: 300

"In that case, I draw! You know Inferno? This duel's been pretty fun.", Burst said with a smile.

"Same here. What about you Red-Eyes?"

"Won't lie. I'm having a blast!", Red-Eyes said with a grin.

"Best duel we've had for the whole tournament!", Blue-Eyes said with a smile.

"Well then it's time to give this duel a big finale! I play The Melody of Awakening Dragon! I'll discard a card in my hand to add two dragon-type monsters with 3000 or more attack and 2500 or less defense from my deck to my hand! I'll reveal the Blue-Eyes White Dragon I added to special summon Alternative! Then I'll play Chaos Form to tribute Blue-Eyes from my hand to ritual summon Blue-Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon! Then I'll play Return of the Dragon Lords to revive Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my graveyard! I'll use Alternative's effect to destroy Meteor Black Comet Dragon!" Meteor Black Dragon was destroyed by a lightning bolt! "Now I'll attack you directly with all of my dragons! White Lightning Barrage!" Inferno's life points dropped to zero when the oncoming lightning crashed into him! When the light faded, both Burst and Inferno were exhausted.

"That...was pretty epic.", Burst said with an exhausted smile. Both Blue-Eyes and Red-Eyes were worn out too.

"I'd say.", Inferno said weakly. "But now? I think we'd better hit the hay."

"Sounds like a good idea for all of us. We've got our toughest challenges tomorrow.", Sunset said. The group of friends went to sleep. Each dreaming of their fated duels in the finals.

Duel 14: Last Minute Challanger

As Burst and his friends were sleeping, a helicopter had landed at Pegasus's castle. Understandably, Pegasus and Gold were fairly cross at whoever decided to show up in the middle of the night. "Who could possibly be awake now?", Gold mumbled.

"Kaiba?", Pegasus guessed as he and Gold approached the helicopter. The figure who had been riding in it then stepped out. "Oh. Well I was close." Blueblood had arrived in Duelist Kingdom. "Well Blueblood? What do you want to complain about at this hour?"

"I wish to challenge Burst Stream!", Blueblood demanded.

Pegasus sighed. 'Mmmhm. This is Kaiba all over again.' "Fine. Only because I know you're going to keep whining about it if I say no."

"How do your aunts put up with you?", Gold grumbled.

The next morning...

Burst and his friends had woken up, and made their way towards Pegasus's castle. "Looks like we've made it to the hardest part.", Burst said as he and his friends walked up the steps.

"And its' about to get harder!", Blueblood proclaimed as Burst and his friends neared the door. Blueblood then walked towards Burst and his friends, and bowed!

"Uh...Blueblood? What are you doing?", Burst asked. 'Does this guy EVER call it quits? I thought he learned his lesson already!'

"I wish for you to make me your student!", Blueblood said as he looked up at Burst. "I even took your advice!"

'Well I'll be. He did learn his lesson.' Burst sighed and smiled. "I admire your resolve, but don't you think this is just the least bit of overkill? Go home!"

"If that's how it's going to be, then duel me! If I beat you, you have to acknowledge me as your student!"

"Fine. But if I win you go back home."

Burst: 8000
Blueblood: 8000

"I'll take the first move!", Burst said. "I reveal Blue-Eyes White Dragon in my hand to special summon Blue-Eyes Alternative! Then I'll end my turn." 'I wonder what he has in store for me with this new deck?'

"I draw!", Blueblood said. "I summon Elemental Hero Avian! Now I'll play Mask Change! I can target one 'Hero' monster I control and send it to the graveyard! Then I can special summon one Masked Hero from my extra deck with the same attribute as the monster I sent! I summon Masked Hero Blast!" A monster that looked like a Japanese super hero materialized from a gust of wind! "Now that he's been special summoned, he can target one monster you control and halve its attack points!" A gust of wind halved Blue-Eyes Alternative's attack points! "I'll destroy your monster! Blast Hurricane!" Blue-Eyes Alternative was blown away by a powerful hurricane! "Then I'll set a card and end my turn."

Burst: 7300
Blueblood: 8000

"My move!", Burst said as he drew his next card. "I'll summon White Stone of Ancients! Then I'll target him by discarding Sage with Eyes of Blue from my hand! Now I'll send White Stone to the graveyard! This lets me special summon a 'Blue-Eyes' monster from my deck! I special summon Dragon Spirit of White! Then I'll use his effect! I can target and banish one of your spell or trap cards!" A ray of light banished Blueblood's face-down! "Now for Spirit's other effect! I'll tribute him to special summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my hand! Attack Masked Hero Blast! White Lightning!" Masked Hero Blast was destroyed by a blast of lightning! "Then I'll set a card and end my turn." 'I gotta say. This new deck of his is a lot more fun to duel against! It plays at a much faster speed than that old tribute deck.'

Burst: 7300
Blueblood: 7200

"I draw!", Blueblood said. "I play Mask Charge! This lets me add a 'Change' quick-play spell card and a 'Hero' monster from my graveyard to my hand! Now I summon Elemental Hero Voltic! Then I'll target him with Mask Change! I summon Masked Hero Koga!"

'Or ARE you?' "No you don't!", Burst said. "I activate my trap! Champion's Vigilance! When my opponent would activate a spell or trap card, or when a monster would be summoned, I can negate the activation or summon and destroy that card if I control a level seven or higher normal monster! Fortunately, Blue-Eyes is a normal monster! I negate your monster's summon!" Masked Hero Koga was destroyed before he even set foot on the field!

"In that case, I end my turn with a face-down."

"My turn! I draw! I play Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your face-down! Then I'll attack you directly with Blue-Eyes! White Lightning!" Blueblood winced as his life points took a huge hit! "Then I'll set my own card and end my turn." 'Time for you to show me what your HEROES can do Blueblood!'

Burst: 7300
Blueblood: 4200

"I should've expected nothing less Master.", Blueblood said. "I draw! I play A Hero Lives! Since I control no monsters, I can pay half my life points to special summon a level four or lower 'Elemental Hero' monster from my deck! Then I'll summon Elemental Hero Shadow Mist! I'll target her with Mask Change to summon out Masked Hero Dark Law! Then I'll play Fusion Tag! I'll reveal one fusion monster from my extra deck then target one monster I control! It's name becomes the same as that fusion material if I use it for a fusion summon! Clayman's name becomes Koga! Now I play Fusion Substitute! I'll fusion summon a monster using both monsters on my field! I fusion summon Contrast Hero Chaos! While he's on the field, he also counts as a light attribute monster! Then I'll attack your Blue-Eyes! I'll discard Honest for Chaos to gain Blue-Eyes' attack points! Chaos Kick!" Blue-Eyes was destroyed by a powerful kick! "Then I'll end my turn."

Burst: 4300
Blueblood: 2100

'Time for me to bring out one of my ace monsters!' "I draw!", Burst said. "I summon Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands! I'll use his effect to add a ritual spell to my hand!"

"I think not! Once per turn, during either of our turns, I can target one card on the field and negate the target's effect until the end of this turn!"

'Good effect. Too bad it can only be used on one card per turn. This gives me just the opening I need!' "In that case, I'll play Trade-In to discard the Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon in my hand to draw two new cards! Then I'll play Chaos Form! I'll banish Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my graveyard to ritual summon Blue-Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon! Attack Chaos! Chaos Neutron Blast!" Blueblood winced as his monster was wiped out! "I end my turn."

Burst: 4300
Blueblood: 1100

"In the past I'd have said it was all over...but the duel isn't over until the last card is drawn!", Blueblood said with a small smile. "I guess that's something I picked up from you. I summon Elemental Hero Heat! Then I'll play Mask Charge to add a 'Hero' monster and one 'Change' quick-play spell from my graveyard to my hand! I'll activate Mask Change and use it on Heat! I summon Masked Hero Goka! Now his effect activates! He gains 100 attack for each 'Hero' monster in my graveyard! There's seven monsters, so that boosts Goka's attack to 2900! I know I won't win, but I'm still gonna throw one last punch! Blazing Fist!" Goka Charged at Blue-Eyes Chaos-MAX only for Chaos MAX to counter with a punch of his own! Goka fell to the floor and Blueblood's life points dropped to zero! "Well, I lost. But I'll admit that was quite fun."

"You really have learned Blublood.", Burst said with a nod. "But can I give you some advice? Change your wardrobe when you get back home." Blueblood looked at his usual clothing. 'Wouldn't want people still thinking you're nothing but a spoiled rich-kid.'

"Wow. Did I always overdress like this?"

"You have no idea.", Burst answered.

"Anyway Burst, may I still call you master?"

"...Why?"

"I've been watching One Punch Man a lot."

"And like Genos you wanted to be my student. I never pegged you for an anime fan though." 'Then again, all his best monsters are based on Japanese superheroes.

"I also used to watch Japanese super hero shows a lot as a kid. That's why I brought out my old Masked Hero deck."

"Well Blueblood, you've got my permission. See you around." Blueblood then left on the helicopter he had arrived on. "Now that that's done, let's head inside." Burst and his friends headed to the main castle door and each of them presented their star chips. "This is it..." And with that, Burst and his friends headed inside.

Duel 16: Burst vs Gilda

The next morning, the finalists gathered to see who would be dueling. "The first round is...Burst Stream against Gilda!", Pegasus announced. Burst and Gilda took the dueling arena.

"Hope you left Harpie's Feather Duster at home.", Burst said with a smile.

"I'm not like Garble. I'm smart enough to ditch a banned card.", Gilda replied.

Burst: 8000
Gilda: 8000

"I got the first move!", Gilda said. "I summon Harpie Lady! Then I'll equip her with Cyber Shield! Then I'll set a card and end my turn!"

'One harpy on its own isn't too bad. But something tells me she's got her whole flock waiting to strike in her deck! Better play it safe.' "My turn!", Burst said as he drew his card. "I summon a monster in defense mode and end my turn with a face-down! Your move!"

"I draw! I summon Harpie Dancer and attack your face-down with her! Then I'll attack you directly with Harpie Lady!" Burst's monster was ripped to shreds instantly while Gilda's other Harpie slashed at his life points directly! "I end my turn."

Burst: 6200
Gilda: 8000

'Just what I was hoping for!' "White Stone of Ancient's effect activates! I can special summon a 'Blue-Eyes' monster from my deck! I'll special summon Dragon Spirit of White! And when he's summoned, I can target and banish one of your spell or trap cards!" Gilda's trap was revealed and vanished in a flash of light! "That Mirror Wall could've been trouble for me. Now I can start my turn! I draw! Now I'll play The Melody of Awakening Dragon! I'll discard a card and add two dragon-type monsters with 3000 or more attack and 2500 or less defense from my deck to my hand! Now I'll reveal Blue-Eyes White Dragon in my hand to special summon Blue-Eyes Alternative! I'll attack both of your monsters!" Blue-Eyes Alternative and Dragon Spirit wiped out Gilda's harpies with blasts of lightning! "Then I'll set a card and end my turn." 'Looks like my dragons have clipped her Harpies' wings so far. She needs at least three harpies to get out her pet phantasmal dragon on the field. That thing gives some serious protection to her harpies.'

Burst: 6200
Gilda: 5500

"Not bad Burst! But now it's my turn! I draw!", Gilda said. "I summon Harpie Lady 3! Then I'll activate Elegant Egotist! Since Harpie Lady 3' counts as Harpie Lady, I can target her and special summon another Harpie Lady from my deck! I'll bring out Harpie Lady! Then I'll play Soul Charge! This lets me revive as many monsters as I want from my graveyard at the cost of 1000 life points per monster! I'll bring back my other Harpie Lady! Now I overlay all three of them to xyz summon Harpie's Pet Phantasmal Dragon! Now I can attack you directly since he's got an overlay unit!" Pet Phantasmal Dragon charged with its claws aimed at Burst!

'Now!' "I activate my trap! Mirror Force! When your monster attacks, I can destroy all attack mode monsters you control! And at the moment, that includes your dragon! And since Mirror Force doesn't target, your dragon is fair game!" Pet Phantasmal Dragon was destroyed before it could even close-in!

"I end my turn.", Gilda said. "Good counter."

Burst: 6200
Gilda: 4500

'She's also a much better sport than Garble.' "Thanks.", Burst said as he drew his next card. "I play Trade-In to discard Blue-Eyes from my hand! This lets me draw two new cards! Next I'll play Return of the Dragon Lords to revive Blue-Eyes from my graveyard! Now I'll attack you directly with all of my dragons for game!" Gilda's remaining life points were gone in a flash of light! When the light died down, Burst was left standing. "Good duel.", Burst said as he helped Gilda up.

"Yeah. No wonder you beat Blueblood.", Gilda said as she took Burst's hand. "You were able to counter my best cards!"

"Thanks. Now let's see who's going up in the next duel."

Duel 17: Sunset vs Gold

"The next round of the finals is Sunset against Goldenrise!", Pegasus announced as Sunset and Gold took the field.

"Hope you don't wanna break up with me if I beat you.", Sunset said jokingly.

"Quite the contrary. I like a girl who can give me a good duel.", Gold said with a smile. "Especially if she can beat me."

Sunset: 8000
Gold: 8000

"Ladies first.", Gold said.

"How charming. I summon Blue Flame Swordsman in attack mode! Then I'll equip him with Salamandra! This boost him by 700 points! Then I'll set two cards and end my turn." 'Not a bad way to start off! And I got a pretty good starting hand too. Let's see if you rise to the occassion Gold.'

"In that case, I draw!", Gold said. 'Great! One of the custom cards Dad made for me!' "Time to show off the custom deck my Dad made! I summon Statue of the Holy! Then I'll set a card and end my turn." A stone angle materialized on the field.

"My turn then!", Sunset said as she drew her card. "Since I don't have any monsters in my graveyard, I can special summon Guardian Eatos from my hand!" Eatos descended from the heavens!

'Just what I was hoping for!' "Now I can activate my statue's effect! Since you special summoned a monster, I can destroy it to special summon two spirit tokens in attack mode! They can't be destroyed by battle or card effects!"

'Looks like he's setting up for a tribute! But his tokens are sitting ducks for me to cause some serious damage!' "Too bad your life points are gonna have a huge dent! I'll attack with both of my monsters!"

'Good thing I came prepared!' "I activate my trap! Nutrient Z! Since I'm about to take over 2000 points of damage, I gain 4000 life points!" Gold winced as both monsters attacked his tokens!

"Not bad Gold. I end my turn.", Sunset said with a smile. 'He's putting up a better duel than he did Sophomore Year. Then again, I'm not running a deck that's meant to cripple my opponents.'

Sunset: 8000
Gold: 7000

"I draw!", Gold said. 'Now to take this duel to the next level!' "I play The Melody of Awakening Dragon! This lets me add two dragon-type monsters with 3000 or more attack and 2500 or less defense from my deck to my hand! Now I'll tribute my tokens to summon Crimson Dragon!" A dragon with crimson scales and crystal wings materialized in a flash of red light! But aside from the wings and the color, it looked almost exactly like Blue-Eyes! "Now I can activate his effect! I can target and destroy one of your monsters! Then Crimson gains that monster's attack points! I'll destroy Blue Flame Swordsman! This boosts Crimson to 5500! I'll attack Guardian Eatos! Crimson Plasma Blast!"

'That's what he thinks!' "I activate one of my face-downs! The Flute of Summoning Kuriboh! This lets me add a Kuriboh or Winged Kuriboh from my deck to my hand, or special summon Kuriboh or Winged Kuriboh from my deck! I'll add Kuriboh to my hand! Then I'll discard him so that I don't take any damage!" Kuriboh jumped in front of the stream of plasma headed towards Sunset and nullified it with a barrier! With the attack halted, Kuriboh faded away into the graveyard.

"Not bad. I'll end my turn with another face-down."

"I draw!", Sunset said. "I activate my trap! Compulsory Evacuation Device! I can target one monster on the field and return it to the hand! I'll target Crimson Dragon!" Crimson Dragon faded with a beam of light and returned to Gold's hand. "Now I summon Dawn Knight! I'll attack you directly with him!" Gold winced as his life points took a hit! "I end my turn." Too bad his monster has no protection from card effects!'

Sunset: 8000
Gold: 5600

"My turn! I draw! I play one of the custom spells that Dad whipped up for me! I play Free Summon! This lets me summon a level five or higher monster from my hand with no tributes! I summon Crimson Dragon! Too bad he doesn't keep his power boost though. I also activate my trap card! Imperial Iron Wall!" 'This ought to throw a wrench in her summoning BLS!'

"And I'm not letting him getting any more! Since it's your main phase, I'll send Effect Veiler from my hand to the graveyard to target one face-up effect monster you control! Its effects are negated until the end of this turn! But that's more than enough to keep your monster from gaining more attack points!"

"I'm still taking down your monster! Crimson Plasma Blast!" Dawn Knight was vaporized in a blast of plasma! "Now I'll end my turn."

Sunset: 6400
Gold: 5600

'Good thing I've still got the lead in life points!' "I draw! Nice!", Sunset said as she looked at her hand. "I'll banish Kuriboh and Effect Veilier from my graveyard!"

"I don't think so!", Gold countered. "Imperial Iron Wall's effect prevents both of us from banishing monsters!"

"Not if I destroy it! I play Mystical Space Typhoon! This'll take care of your trap!" Imperial Iron Wall was destroyed! "NOW I'll banish Effect Veiler and Kuriboh! I summon BLS! Then I'll activate his effect! I'll banish Crimson Dragon!" BLS fired a beam of light from his sword at Crimson Dragon! Banishing it from the field! "The only down side is that I can't attack right now. So I'll end my turn with a face-down."

"My turn then.", Gold said as he drew a card. "I'll summon a monster in defense mode and end my turn!" 'I love a girl who can give me a good duel. Especially if she knows how to counter me.'

"I draw! I'll attack your monster! Genesis Slash!" Gold's monster was cut to bits! "Now BLS's other effect activates! Since he destroyed your monster by battle, he can attack again!" Gold winced as BLS slashed at his life points! "I'll end my turn with a face-down." 'What surprise do you have waiting for me now Gold?'

Sunset: 6400
Gold: 2600

"I draw! I'll play Burial from a Different Dimension! This returns up to three of my banished cards to my graveyard! Then I'll activate my trap! Oasis of Dragon's Soul! This lets me target one monster in my graveyard and special summon it in defense position! It becomes wyrm-type.I'll revive Crimson Dragon! If either Oasis or the monster is destroyed, the other goes to the graveyard too! Unfortunately, I can't change Crimson's position the turn he's summoned. So I end my turn." 'Can't wait to see how Sunset's going to deal with Crimson now.'

"I draw!" Sunset took a look at her hand. "I'll set a card and end my turn."

"My turn then!", Gold said as he drew his next card. "I'll switch Crimson into attack mode and activate his effect!"

"I don't think so! I activate my trap! Destruction Jammer! I can discard one card to negate the activation of a spell, trap, or monster effect that destroys a monster on my field! Then I can destroy the card that used its effect!" Crimson Dragon was struck down by its own effect! "And that leaves your field wide open! Attack him directly BLS! Envoy Blade Strike!" Gold's remaining life points dropped to zero in one swift strike of BLS's blade! Sunset walked over to Gold as she knelt to his level. "You know, this seems pretty familiar.", she said with a smile.

"Yeah. When you kicked my butt at that tournament Sophomore Year.", Gold said with a small smile.

"Mmhm. But there's a change to the story this time." Sunset offered Gold her hand. Gold smiled as he took Sunset's hand and got up.

"Actually there's more than one..." Gold said as he leaned in and kissed Sunset! "A little something to seal your victory. And there's more I'd like to share with you. That is..IF you're interested in dating a fellow displaced being from Equestria." Sunset was blushing all the while.

"I...I'll think about it.", Sunset said with a small smile as she and Gold joined the others to watch the next duel.

Duel 18: Inferno vs Rainbow Dash

"The next duel is Rainbow Dash against Inferno Flare!", Pegasus announced.

"Well this oughta be good.", Burst said. "One legendary dragon against another."

"Now to see which one comes out on top.", Sunset noted.

"Best of luck darling!", Rarity cheered. Inferno smiled at Rarity before stepping on the dueling field.

inferno: 8000
Rainbow Dash: 8000

"I'll take the first move!", Inferno said. 'Not bad! Just the cards I need to get this duel fired up!' "I summon Black Stone of Legend! Now I'll tribute him to bring out a level seven or lower 'Red-Eyes' monster from my deck! I'll bring out Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon! I'll end my turn with two face-downs." 'Wonder if Dash is hot-headed enough to try and attack me?'

"I draw!", Rainbow Dash said. "I summon a monster in defense mode! Then I'll set a card face-down! Your move!"

'That trap of hers could be trouble. Better get out a monster that can burn past her defenses!' "I draw! Nice! I'll summon out another Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon from my hand! And since my first copy counted as a normal monster, Black Flare's effect is now unlocked since he's a gemini monster! Now I'll attack your face-down!" Rainbow's monster was destroyed! "And since damage calcualtion was performed, Flare's effect activates! You take damage equal to his attack points!" Rainbow shielded herself as flames crashed against her life points! "I'll then overlay my two monsters! I xyz summon Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon! I'll end my turn now." 'This should but Dash in the hot seat riiight about now.'

Inferno: 8000
Rainbow Dash: 5600

'Just gotta get enough Crystal Beasts on my field and grave!' "I'll place my destroyed Crystal Beast face-up in my spell and trap zone! Now I'll draw! I summon Crystal Beast-Sapphire Pegasus! And since he was summoned, I can place another Crystal Beast face-up in my spell and trap zone!"

"I activate Flare Metal's effect! Since you activated card effects, you take 500 damage since they resolved! You activated two effect, so you take 1000 points of damage!" Rainbow winced as twin blasts of flame struck against her life points!

'Great. Now I get burned for any effect I activate! And my whole deck revolves around effects! But I'm betting his dragon's got no protection from card effects!' "If we're back to my turn, I activate my trap! Crystal Raigeki! I'll send one of my Crystal Beasts from my spell and trap zone to destroy one monster you control!" A crystallized bolt of lightning struck Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon! But when the dust cleared, Red-Eyes was still standing! "What?! How is he still standing?!"

"One of Red-Eyes Flare Metal Dragon's effect.", Inferno said with a smile. "As long as he has an overlay unit, he can't be destroyed by card effects! And since another one of your card effects resolved, you take another 500 in damage." A small spark of flame hit Rainbow Dash's life points. "You might wanna hold off on using your Crystal Beasts' effects." 'All these turns and I've not even done battle damage to her. I guess I got her stuck ina burn lock-down.'

"In that case...I end my turn with a face-down.", Rainbow Dash said with a small frown.

Inferno: 8000
Rainbow Dash: 4100

"My move!", Inferno said as he drew his next card. 'Time to turn up the heat for this duel!' "I'll play Red-Eyes Insight! This lets me add a 'Red-Eyes' spell or trap to my hand by sending a 'Red-Eyes' monster from my hand or deck to the graveyard! I'll send Red-Eyes Black Dragon from my hand to add a 'Red-Eyes' spell card to my hand! Then I'll play the spell I added! Red-Eyes Fusion! I'll send Red-Eyes Black Dragon and Meteor Dragon Red-Eyes Impact from my deck to the graveyard to fusion summon Meteor Black Comet Dragon! And since he was summoned, I can use his effect! I can send a 'Red-Eyes' monster from my deck to the graveyard! Then I can inflict half of its attack points as damage! I'll send Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon from my deck to the graveyard to inflict 1400 points of damage!" Rainbow Dash braced herself as flames crashed into her life points! "I'll then end my turn."

Inferno: 8000
Rainbow Dash: 2700

"Aw man! I haven't put a single dent in your life points and you haven't even done any battle damage!", Rainbow said as she drew her next card. "I'll summon another Crystal Beast! Topaz Tiger! Then I'll play Terraforming to add a field spell to my hand! Then I'll activate the field spell I added! Advanced Dark! Now comes Flare Metal's effect activates because I used Terraforming and Advanced Dark's effect activates when it hits the field." Once gain, sparks of flame hit Rainbow's life points! "I'll end my turn with a face-down."

Inferno: 8000
Rainbow Dash: 1700

"I draw!", Inferno said. "Now I'll attack Sapphire Pegasus with Meteor Black Comet Dragon!"

"I activate my trap! Compulsory Evacuation Device! This returns one monster on the field to the hand! I choose Flare Metal Dragon! But he goes back to the extra deck! Now I don't have to worry about him putting a dent in my life points!" Red-Eyes Flare Metal vanished from the field and Inferno placed him back in his extra deck. "And then I'll use Advanced Dark's effect! I'll send a Crystal Beast from my deck to the graveyard to prevent any battle damage! And then I'll put Pegasus in my spell and trap zone!" 'So much for burning up my life points! Now i can activate my card effects no problem!'

"In that case, I'll target one level seven or lower 'Red-Eyes' monster in my graveyard with Black Stone's effect. I can shuffle that target into my deck and add Black Stone to my hand. Then I'll summon him and tribute him to bring out Red-Eyes Black Dragon from my deck! I just used up my attack, so I'll end my turn." 'The duel's not over yet Dash. Something tells me you've got one of your Rainbow Dragons ready and waiting.'

"I draw! I'll set a card and play Crystal Beacon! This lets me special summon a Crystal Beast since I've got at least two Crystal Beasts in my spell and trap zone! I'll special summon Crystal Beast-Ruby Carbuncle! Then I'll set a card and end my turn!" 'C'mon. Take the bait...'

'I guess I'll let her get out one of her aces. Wouldn't be fun if our dragons didn't get to face-off!'"I draw!", Inferno said. "I'll attack Topaz Tiger with Red-Eyes!"

'Gotcha!' "I activate Rainbow Path! When one of my opponent's monsters attacks, I can send a Crystal Beast from my spell and trap zone to the graveyard to negate the attack and add Rainbow Dragon or Rainbow Dark Dragon to my hand! I'll add Rainbow Dark Dragon!"

"In that case, I'll attack Ruby Carbuncle with Meteor Black Comet Dragon!"

"And I'll activate Advanced Dark's effect! I'll send a Crystal Beast from my deck to the graveyard to prevent myself from taking damage!"

"I guess I'll end my turn." 'Looks like she's holding on pretty tight now.'

"Then it's my move!", Rainbow Dash said as she drew her next card. "I'll set two cards, switch my monster into defense mode and end my turn!"

"I draw! I'll attack Ruby Carbuncle with Red-Eyes!"

"I activate my trap! Rainbow Gravity! This lets me special summon Rainbow Dragon from my deck! Then I'll play Shift! This switches your attack from Ruby to Rainbow Dragon!" Red-Eyes snapped his attention to Rainbow Dragon and charged at him! Only to get swatted down!

'Time to end this in a blaze of glory!' "I can't say I didn't see that coming. Which is why I prepared for it! I activate my trap! Red-Eyes Burn! Since Red-Eyes was destroyed, we both take damage equal to his attack points!" Both duelists were hit with red beams of energy following Red-Eyes's destruction! But when the beams faded, Inferno still had life points and Rainbow Dash's fell to zero.

"You do know you could have ended this all earlier right?', Rainbow Dash asked with a smile.

"Yeah. But I know you try to get Rainbow Dragon out ever duel you play."

"Thanks Inferno. There's just one duel left before the finals really begin." The two friends then met back up with the others while they awaited the last duel for the day.

Duel 19: Rarity vs Sombra

Rarity and Sombra took the dueling arena and activated their duel disks. "Ladies first.", Sombra said.

Rarity: 8000
Sombra: 8000

"Quite the gentleman.", Rarity said as she drew her hand. "I summon Gem-Knight Alexandrite! Then I'll tribute him to special summon Gem-Knight Crystal from my deck! Then I'll set a card and end my turn." 'I wonder what monsters he has waiting in his deck.'

"I draw! Time to shatter your crystal! I activate Soul Exchange! I'll use your monster as a tribute for the monster I want to summon! I summon Breaker the Dark Magical Warrior! And since he was normal summoned, I can place two spell counters on him! This in turn boosts his attack by 400 for each counter on him! But first, I'll remove a spell counter on him to destroy one spell or trap card you control! I'll destroy your face-down card!" A bolt of dark magic shot from Breaker's sword and destroyed Rarity's face-down card! "Now I'll attack you directly! Dark Magic Slash!" Rarity winced as she took damage, and Sombra smiled as her life points dropped. "I'll set two cards and end my turn."

Rarity: 6000
Sombra: 8000

'It seems like his monsters don't share this air of chivalry.', Rarity thought. "I draw! I play Brilliant Fusion! This lets me fusion summon using monsters from my deck! I'll send three Gem-Knights to the graveyard to fusion summon Gem-Knight Master Diamond! The only downside is that his attack is zero as a result. But I'll discard a spell card to have him gain his attack points back until the end of your turn! Destroy Breaker the Dark Magical Warrior!"

"I think not! I activate my trap! Negate Attack! This stops your monster's attack!"

"I guess that can't be helped. I end my turn." 'No wonder he's the current champion. He seems to be prepared for anything I throw at him!'

"In that case, I draw!", Sombra said as he drew his next card. "I summon Armageddon Knight! Then I'll use Breaker's effect! I'll remove a spell counter from him to destroy Brilliant Fusion!" As a bolt of dark magic fried Brilliant Fusion, Master Diamond faded away with it! "Now that you have nothing to keep your life points guarded! Attack her directly!" Rarity cringed as Sombra's monsters slashed into her life points! "I end my turn."

Rarity: 3000
Sombra: 8000

'I haven't even landed a scratch on him yet!' "Time to see if I can turn this duel around!" Sombra chuckled. "What's so funny?"

"The fact you have such optimism. It's adorable.", Sombra said with a smirk.

'Time to show this arrogant brute a thing or two about manners!' "Well a friend of mine said the duel's not over until the last card is drawn!", Rarity retorted as she drew her next card. "Since you've used up all of Breaker's spell counters, his attack points are back to normal! Now I play Soul Charge! I'll revive Master Diamond from my graveyard by paying 1000 life points!"

"No you won't.", Sombra said with an evil smile. "I activate my trap! Bottomless Trap Hole! When my opponent summons a monster with 1500 or more attack, I can destroy that monster!" The second Master Diamond set foot on the field, a pit swallowed him up! "Your friend was a fool to give you such advice. Because there is no hope left for you!"

"I...I end my turn.", Rarity said with a defeated sigh. 'He's acting a lot more vicious than when he started. I've got the feeling his charm was a ruse!'

Rarity: 2000
Sombra: 8000

"Yes. That's it. Give in to despair.", Sombra said as dark magic began to slowly leak from his eyes. "This is the fear I shall instill in all duelists when I reign! Now I draw! This is your end. When I'm done here, you'll never be able to pick up a deck again! I play Pre-preparation of Rites! This lets me add a ritual spell from my deck to my hand and the ritual monster listed on the ritual spell! I play Contract with the Dark Master! I'll offer up both of my monsters as tribute! Now it all ends! Rise! Dark Master-Zorc!" A gigantic demon rose from a pillar of shadow! It looked as fearsome as it was terrifying! Burst then noticed Blue-Eyes's spirit materialize the second Zorc hit the field!

"Blue-Eyes?!"

"Burst. That monster is pure evil! He's tried to take over my world many times! And now he's gained great power by bonding with a duelist who shares his ambitions! Your friend and her monsters are in grave danger! Stop the duel right now!" But it was too late!

"End this Zorc!!", Sombra cried out! Zorc began gathering darkness into a single compressed orb. "Dark Oblivion!" Zorc launched the orb of darkness at Rarity, and it exploded upon hitting her! Dropping her life points to zero! "And so it ends.", Sombra said with an evil smile as he walked off. Rarity began to gathering her cards, but gasped in horror as she looked at Master Diamond's card! It was blank! All of her cards were blank!

'My Gem-Knights...my darlings...what did that monster do to you?!', Rarity thought as she gazed at her blank cards in horror.

Seeing her distress, Burst and his friends rushed to the arena to see what was wrong! They were shocked to see Rarity's blank cards! The others' monster partners' spirits then materialized.

"He's struck again hasn't he?", Rainbow Dragon asked.

"Wait. AGAIN? What are you talking about RD?", Rainbow Dash asked.

"The Dark Master. Zorc.", BLS replied coldly as he nodded.

"You know that monster?", Sunset asked.

"Know him? We had to kick his butt back in our world!", Red-Eyes said.

"Care to explain just who this guy is and why he's here?", Inferno asked. Blue-Eyes sighed.

"Zorc is an evil monster from our world. And he's tried many times to conquer our world. However, me and my friends were able to put a stop to him. But it seems he's found a duelist who shares his ambitions of ruling. Sombra."

"Sombra did mention him reigning.", Rarity said as she slowly recovered from seeing her blank cards.

"And now it seems they have the means to realize their ambitions. Rarity. Sombra and Zorc have cut the link between you and your cards!", Blue-Eyes continued. "And with powerful dark magic it seems as well."

"Hold up!", Rainbow Dash shouted. "Red-Eyes is a dark monster, but he's a good guy!"

"Evil comes from many monster types and attributes.", BLS replied.

"And Zorc is pure evil. I can only think of few monsters worse than him.", Blue-Eyes.

"This is terrible. A duelist's deck is the heart of their spirit.", Burst said as he looked to Blue-Eyes. "Is there any way to undo this?"

"There are only two ways. Either Sombra and Zorc lift the spell themselves, or they are defeated.", Blue-Eyes replied. "But it's unlikely they'd do the first option."

"Then it looks like we're doing this the hard way!", Rainbow Dash said as she cracked her knuckles.

"The stakes aren't that simple Rainbow. Both of our worlds are in danger.", Rainbow Dragon stated.

"If Sombra wins, he'll be able to sever the bonds of every duelist in the world! No duelist would be able to oppose him! And Zorc will be able to rule over our world!"

"But how can they pull off something like that?", Sunset asked.

"With each victory a monster partnered with a duelist partner claims, their power and bond increases. And at this tournament, winning would propel the power of both greatly.", BLS replied. "And if they win, Sombra and Zorc's dark power will grow strong enough to sever the bonds of every duelist and their cards in the world! Not to mention, they'll be able to seal the gateway that enables our spirits to visit you." Burst and his friends were silent as they took in the stakes of this tournament. However, Gold had gone to speak with Pegasus.

"Dad? Were Sombra and Zorc the darkness you sensed here?", Gold asked. Pegasus nodded.

"Exactly." Pegasus then looked down to Burst, Inferno, and Sunset. "And it will be one of them who will defeat this evil."

Duel 20: No Matter What

Burst couldn't sleep that night. 'The fate of the world is in the hands of me and my friends.', he thought. 'If Sombra and Zorc win, both of our worlds are in serious trouble.' Meanwhile, Inferno was keeping Rarity company.

"Inferno?", Rarity asked.

"Yeah?"

"Thank you for staying with me. Losing Diamond...all of my Gem-Knights...." Rarity's eyes began to tear up. Inferno pulled Rarity into a tight hug.

"I can't claim to know how you're hurting. But I can only imagine if I ever lost Red-Eyes.", Inferno said. "Rarity. Burst, Sunset, and I WILL make sure Sombra is stopped." Rarity then held onto one of Inferno's hands as he pulled out of the hug.

"Darling?"

"Yes?" Rarity then leaned in and kissed Inferno!

"Thank you.", Rarity said with a small smile.

"Anytime.", Inferno said with a smile as he left for his room.

The next day...

Burst and his friends gathered for the next duels to be announced. Pegaus addressed the group once everyone had gathered. "Today's first duel is one for the ages! It pits two legendary dragon users against each other! Today's first duel is Burst Stream against Inferno Flare!" Burst and Inferno looked at each other and then made their way to the dueling arena. But before they separated, Inferno spoke to Burst.

"Burst?"

"Yeah?"

"Promise me one thing. Whichever one of us wins, that person stops Sombra. No matter what!"

"You didn't even need to ask." And with that, the two friends went to separate sides of the dueling arena.

Burst: 8000
Inferno: 8000

"I got the first move!", Burst said. 'Not bad! Got a good hand to start the duel! Time to rock the dragon!' "I'll reveal Blue-Eyes White Dragon in my hand to special summon Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon! Then I'll play Trade-In to discard Blue-Eyes and draw two new cards! Now I'll summon White Stone of Ancients! I'll tune Blue-Eyes Alternative with White Stone to synchro summon Blue-Eyes Spirit Dragon in defense mode! Then I'll set a card and end my turn! Now White Stone's effect activates! I can special summon a 'Blue-Eyes' monster from my deck! I summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my deck! Then I'll set a card and end my turn."

"I draw!" 'Nice! got some good draw power cards!' "I play Allure of Darkness! I can draw two cards so long as I banish one dark monster from my hand!" Inferno removed a card from his hand and placed it in his deck box. "Now I'll play Pre-Preparation of Rites! This lets me add a ritual monster and ritual spell from my deck to my hand! I'll activate Dark Dragon Ritual! I tribute a monster from my hand to ritual summon Paladin of Dark Dragon! Now I'll tribute him to bring out REDMD from my deck! Then I'll use his effect to bring back Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon! Then I'll play Red-Eyes Insight! I'll discard Red-Eyes Black Dragon from my deck to add a 'Red-Eyes' spell or trap from my deck to my hand! I'll add a spell! Now I activate Red-Eyes Fusion! I'll send Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon from my field and Summoned Skull from my deck to the graveyard! I fusion summon Archfiend Black Skull Dragon! Now I'll attack Blue-Eyes Spirit Dragon! Archfiend Blaze!" Archfiend Black Skull destroyed Blue-Eyes Spirit with a gigantic blast of flame! "Now his effect activates! I can target one 'Red-Eyes' normal monster in my graveyard and inflict its attack points as damage! Then that monster is shuffled into my deck!" Flames crashed into Burst's life points! "Then I'll end my turn by setting a card face-down." 'This duel has a lot higher stakes than when we dueled two nights ago. One of us has to stop Sombra!'

Burst: 5600
Inferno: 8000

"My turn!", Burst said as he drew his next card. 'Nice! This should help me search for the dragons I need!' "I'll banish White Stone of Ancients to return a Blue-Eyes monster from my graveyard to my hand! I'll return Blue-Eyes Alternative! Then I'll discard a card to activate The Melody of Awakening Dragon! I can add two dragon-type monsters with 3000 or more attack and 2500 or less defense from my deck to my hand! I'll reveal the Blue-Eyes White Dragon I added to special summon Blue-Eyes Alternative from my hand! I'll use Alternative's effect to destroy Archfiend Black Skull Dragon! I'll then attack REDMD with Blue-Eyes!" Archfiend Black Skull was struck down with one bolt of lightning while REDMD was destroyed by a blast of white lightning! "I'll end my turn." 'Now that I've taken down REDMD, Inferno can't swarm the field! That's going to help in dealing with his monsters on the field!'

Burst: 5600
Inferno: 7800

'REDMD may be in my grave, but there's more than one way to summon a dragon!' "I'll use Black Stone's effect from my graveyard! I'll shuffle a level seven 'Red-Eyes' monster from my graveyard back into my deck and add Black Stone of Legend back to my hand! Now I'll draw! I summon Black Stone of Legend and tribute him to special summon Red-Eyes Black Dragon from my deck! Then I'll equip him with Black Metal Dragon to boost him by 600 points! I'll attack Blue-Eyes Alternative! Both monsters will destroy each other, but at least I won't have to worry about him zapping one of my monsters any more!" Blue-Eyes Alternative and Red-Eyes destroyed each other with their colliding attacks! "Then I'll activate my trap! Red-Eyes Burn! Since Red-Eyes was destroyed, I can inflict damage to both of us equal to his attack points! I end my turn." 'MAN that burn effect still stings no matter how many times I use it! At least I got rid of Blue-Eyes Alternative in the process!'

Burst: 3200
Inferno: 5400

'Not bad Inferno! But now your field's wide open for me to attack!' "I draw! I'll attack you directly with Blue-Eyes! White Lightning!" Inferno winced as his life points took a massive hit! "Now I'll end my turn." 'This is exactly like that duel we had yesterday. I wonder if it'll have the same result? Only one way to find out!'

Burst: 3200
Inferno: 2400

"My turn! I draw! Since Black Metal Dragon was destroyed, I can add a Red-Eyes spell or trap from my deck to my hand! I'll add Red-Eyes Fusion! Now I'll activate it! I'll fuse Red-Eyes Black Flare Dragon and Meteor Dragon Red-Eyes Impact to fusion summon Meteor Black Comet Dragon! Then I'll activate his effect! I'll send a 'Red-Eyes' monster from my deck to the graveyard and inflict half its attack as damage! I'll send Red-Eyes Black Dragon! That means you take 1200 in damage! And I'll also attack Blue-Eyes! Meteor Flare!" A flaming blast hit Blue-Eyes! destroying him! "I end my turn." 'At least I gave it one last hit before the end.'

Burst: 1500
Inferno: 2400

"It all comes down to this.", Burst said as he drew a card. "I activate my trap! Curse of Anubis! This changes all effect monsters on the field into face-up defense mode! And until the end of this turn, their defense is zero! Now I activate the ritual spell Chaos Form! I'll banish Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my graveyard to bring out Blue-Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon! Attack Meteor Black Comet Dragon! Chaos Neutron Blast!" Chaos MAX unleashed a powerful blast of light and dark energy that destroyed Meteor Black Comet Dragon! "And don't forget! Chaos Max inflicts double piercing damage!" Inferno's life points dropped to zero! 'I guess it's all up to me now. Unless Sunset beats Sombra.'

"Good duel Burst.", Inferno said as he and Burst fist-bumped.

"Thanks. But something tells me things are going to get harder from here."

Duel 21: Duel against the darkness

Sunset was glaring at Sombra as he stepped onto the dueling arena. "You're going to pay for what you did to Rarity." Sunset then activated her duel disk. Sombra just smirked at her.

"You're motivated. Good. This will make your despair all the more sweeter." Sombra activated his duel disk in king.

Sunset: 8000
Sombra: 8000

"I summon Lancer Archfiend! Then I'll play Terraforming to add a field spell from my deck to my hand! Now I activate it! I play the field spell Mystic Plasma Zone! This boosts the attack of all dark monsters I control by 500 points, and lowers their defense by 400 points! Then I'll set a card and end my turn."

"I draw!" Sunset then looked at her hand. 'I can't afford to take any risks in dealing with this guy! He's going to pay for hurting my friend! But if I fail, at least Burst is still standing!' "I summon Valkyrian Knight! Then I'll equip her with Salamandra to boost her attack by 700 points! Destroy Lancer Archfiend! Blazing Ember Slash!" Lancer Archfiend was cut down with one strike! "Then I'll set two cards and end my turn."

Sunset: 8000
Sombra: 7600

'How adorable. She thinks she can beat me.' "You actually managed to get a scratch on me.", Sombra said with a smirk. "You're far more impressive than your friend already. But it will take more than that to put a dent in me. I draw! I summon Double Coston! Then I'll play Card Advance! Now I'm allowed an extra tribute summon this turn! I'll tribute Double Coston! I summon Invader of Darkness! Now! Destroy Valkyrian Knight!"

'Not if my trap has anything to say about it!' "I don't think so! I activate my trap! Scrap-Iron Scarecrow! This'll stop your attack! And then I can set it face-down again."

"Hmph. A delay. But nothing more. I end my turn."

"In that case, I draw! Since I don't have any monsters in my graveyard, I can special summon Guardian Eatos! Then I'll equip her with Celestial Sword Eatos! Next I'll summon Dawn Knight! I'll take down your monster with Eatos!" Invader of Darkness was destroyed with one strike! "Then I'll attack you directly with both of my monsters!" Sombra took a huge hit to his life points! "I'll end my turn with another face-down." 'That oughta wipe that smug smile off his face! All I need is one more attack!'

Sunset: 8000
Sombra: 3100

"Still feeling high-and-mighty your highness?", Sunset asked. Sombra rose to his feet, and Sunset was unsettled by his evil smile.

"Oh. I'm feeling fine. I draw! I play Pre-Preparation of Rites! This lets me add a ritual spell and ritual monster from my deck to my hand! And I know just the ones to add! I'll activate Contract with the Dark Master! I'll tribute Ritual Raven! His effect lets him be used as the entire tribute for the ritual summon of a dark monster! Rise! Dark Master-Zorc!" Zorc materialized from a pillar of shadow! "Now for his effect! Dark Die Roll!" A die materialized and Sombra rolled it. It landed on a one! "Now I can destroy all monsters you control! Dark Hurricane!" A black hurricane wiped out all of Sunset's monsters!

"Since Dawn Knight was destroyed, I can send a light monster from my deck to the graveyard!" Sunset searched her deck and found the monster she was looking for. 'Good! Now I've got BLS in my hand! Just gotta wait for him to make a direct attack!'

"Should that really be of any concern? I'll attack you directly!"

"I don't think so! I'll activate my face-down! The Flute of Summoning Kuriboh! I'll add Kuriboh to my hand! Then I'll discard him to prevent any battle damage!"

"Keep on delaying your defeat.", Sombra said with a smirk. "I'll end my turn."

"I draw! I play The Warrior Returning Alive! This lets me add a warrior-type monster from my graveyard to my hand! Now I'll banish Dawn Knight and Kuriboh from my graveyard! I summon BLS! Now I'll attack Zorc!" 'With this attack, its over!'

"I think not. I activate my trap! Torrential Tribute! Since you summoned a monster, all monsters on the field are destroyed!" A flood washed away all the monsters on the field!

"I end my turn.", Sunset said with a frown. 'Not good! He got rid of my best monster! But at least he took Zorc with him!'

"I draw! Perfect. I play Soul Charge to revive Zorc at the cost of 1000 life points! Then I'll play Hidden Armory! This lets me search for an equip spell of my choice and add it to my hand! Then I'll play the equip spell I added! Megamorph! This doubles Zorc's attack points! Then I'll attack you directly! Zorc Oblivion!"

"Did you forget about my other trap? Scrap-Iron Scarecrow stops your attack!"

"Oh I didn't forget. I activate my own trap! Dark Illusion! If a spell, trap, or monster effect targets a dark monster I control, I can negate the activation and destroy that card!" Sunset's trap was destroyed by a bolt of dark magic, and she cringed as Zorc's fist collided with her life points! "I end my turn."

Sunset: 2600
Sombra: 2100

"I draw!" Sunset looked at her hand. 'It won't help too much. But at least it'll lessen the damage I take!' "I'll set a card and end my turn."

"My turn.", Sombra said as he drew his next card. "I'll attack you directly!"

"I activate my trap! Nutrient Z! Since I'm about to take over 2000 in damage, I gain 4000 life points!" Sunset grimaced as her life points still took a hit! 'I'm still in the duel! But just barely.' Sunset then looked at her life points.

"It seems you've save yourself for one more turn. I end my turn."

Sunset: 900
Sombra: 2100

'Maybe I'm low on life points, but that works in my favor! Especially with Megamorph's effect!' Sunset smiled. "Since my life points are lower, Megamorph cuts your monster's life points in half!" Sombra frowned. "I draw! I summon Mystical Elf! Then I'll play Symbols of Duty! I'll send a normal monster to my graveyard to special summon a monster from either one of our graveyards! I'll bring back BLS! Then I'll attack your monster! Envoy Slash!" BLS charged at Zorc and cut him down with one slash! "And since he destroyed your monster by battle, BLS can attack again!"

"I activate my trap! Damage Vaccine Omega MAX! This lets me gain life points equal to the damage I took!"

"I guess I'll end my turn.", Sunset said with a frown. "But at least your monster's gone."

Sunset: 900
Sombra: 1800

"Oh I don't think so.", Sombra said with an evil grin. "I play Pre-Preparation of Rites! This lets me add a ritual monster from my deck or graveyard! I'll add Zorc from my graveyard! Then I'll add a ritual spell from my deck to my hand! I add Advanced Ritual Art! Then I'll activate it! I can send normal monsters from my deck whose levels equal the level of the monster I want to summon! I'll send Tri-Horned Dragon to the graveyard to ritual summon Zorc!" Sunset panicked as Zorc once again materialized! "Now I'll activate his effect! Dark Die Roll!" A dark die materialized, and landed on a five! "Now I can destroy one monster you control! Dark Thunder Break!"

"BLS!", Sunset screamed as BLS was struck down with a bolt of dark thunder! 'No...this can't be happening...'

"And now it ends! I'll attack you directly! Show her true terror Zorc! Zorc Oblivion!" A blast of darkness collided with Sunset's life points! Dropping them to zero! As dark magic leaked from Sombra's eyes and Zorc's card, Sunset's cards turned blank.

"This can't be real...", Sunset whispered.

"Now. Who's going to be my last victim?", Sombra said with an evil smile.

Duel 22: Fate of Two Worlds! Burst vs Sombra!

Burst and his friends met after dinner to discuss the imminent matter at hand. "Burst. You're the only one left.", Sunset said. "That means you're the only one who can stop Sombra now."

"Not to put pressure, but the fate of two worlds is lying on your shoulders.", Rainbow Dash added. "No big deal."

Burst sighed. "I know."

"You know, I thought you'd be freaking out. You alright man?", Inferno asked.

"It's true darling. I thought you'd be absolutely terrified right now.", Rarity said.

"Oh I am. In fact, I'm pretty scared. But I'm not gonna let that stop me. If heroes run away...who's left to help?"

"Don't forget. You're never alone out there.", Blue-Eyes said as he materialized. "I'm always with you Burst."

"And so are we.", all of his friends added. Burst smiled.

"Thanks everyone. But I think I'd better get some sleep. Tomorrow's going to be my hardest duel yet." With that, Burst headed off for bed. Meanwhile, Sombra was anticipation his victory.

"Only one duelist stands in our way Zorc. And he shall soon fall to us.", Sombra said with a dark smile.

"Tomorrow, we claim our victory." Zorc said. "And the worlds shall be ours!"

The next morning...

Burst walked onto the dueling arena with a determined gaze on his face. 'Every duel has led to this moment. Now the future lies on every draw.' Sombra strode triumphantly into the arena.

'The time of my reign has arrived!', Sombra then smirked as Burst took the field. 'And only he stands in my way...' Both duelists were staring each other down. "So. Like what I did with your friends?"

"Try and scare me all you want. I'm not backing down. And I'm gonna stop you!" Burst activated his duel disk!

"I know you're going to try." Sombra activated his duel disk in kind.

"LET'S DUEL!"

Burst: 8000
Sombra: 8000

"I'll take the first move!", Sombra said. "I summon Axe Dragonute in attack mode! Then I'll play Terraforming! This lets me add a field spell to my hand! Now I'll activate the field spell I added! Mystic Plasma Zone! This boosts the attack of all dark monsters I control by 500 points and lowers their defense by 400! Then I'll set a card and end my turn." 'Only this fool stands in my way. How sad for him that he thinks he can beat me.'

"I draw!", Burst said. 'Sombra. I'm going to pay you back for hurting my friends! I'm not gonna let you and Zorc win! Blue-Eyes and I are going to make sure you and Zorc are stopped!' "I summon White Stone of Ancients! Then I'll discard Sage with Eyes of Blue to target is and send both to the graveyard to special summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my deck! Then I'll attack your Axe Dragonute! White Lightning!" Axe Dragonute was destroyed by a blast of lightning! "I end my turn. Now White Stone's effect activates! This lets me special summon a 'Blue-Eyes' monster from my deck! I summon Dragon Spirit of White! Now that he's been summoned, I can banish one spell or trap card you control!"

Burst: 8000
Sombra: 7500

"That was your one free hit.", Sombra said with a smirk. "Now it's my turn. I draw! I play Soul Exchange! This lets me use one of your monsters as a tribute! I'll tribute your Blue-Eyes to summon Dragon Seeker! Once he's summoned, I can target and destroy one face-up dragon-type monster you control! I'll destroy Dragon Spirit of White!" A blast of darkness destroyed Dragon Spirit! "Now I'll attack you directly!" Burst winced as Dragon Seeker's claws cut into his life points! "I'll end my turn with two face-downs." 'Looks like the legendary Blue-Eyes isn't so mighty after all.'

Burst: 5500
Sombra: 7500

"My turn!" Burst drew his next card. 'He may have the lead in life points. But that'll change soon enough!' "I play The Melody of Awakening Dragon! By discarding a card, I can add two dragon-type monsters with 3000 or more attack and 2500 or less defense from my deck to my hand! I'll reveal the Blue-Eyes White Dragon I added to special summon the Blue-Eyes Altternative I also added to my hand! Then I'll play Return of the Dragon Lords to revive the Blue-Eyes in my graveyard! I'll use Alternative's effect to destroy your monster!" Dragon Seeker was fried with a lightning bolt! "Then I'll attack you directly with Blue-Eyes! White Lightning!"

"I activate my trap! Damage Diet! This halves all battle damage I take this turn!"

"I guess I'll end my turn by contact fusing my monsters into Blue-Eyes Twin Burst!" Burst's dragons fused into a two-headed dragon! 'At least now I have a monster that can take major hits and stay on the field!'

Burst: 5500
Sombra: 6000

"I summon a monster in defense mode and end my turn.", Sombra said with a smirk.

'That monster of his could spell trouble for some of my other Blue-Eyes. Better get rid of it while I have the chance!' "I draw! I'll attack your monster!" Blue-Eyes Twin Burst charged at Sombra's monster and destroyed it!

"Just what I was hoping for! Wall of Illusion's effect activates! When damage calculation is carried out, I can return the monster that destroyed it! But Blue-Eyes Twin Burst doesn't come from your hand. Does he? He's returned to the extra deck!"

"I end my turn.", Burst said calmly. 'At least now my other monsters are safe from being bounced back to my hand.'

"I summon Mystic Tomato, then I'll get rid of my field spell with Mystical Space Typhoon. I'll end my turn with a face-down."

'Why would he destroy his own field? It gave his monsters a decent power boost! Unless...he's trying to drag this out. He's planning on savoring his victory. That'll come back to bite him now!' "In that case, I draw! I play Trade-In to discard Blue-Eyes from my hand and draw two cards! Now I'll summon Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands! I'll use his effect to add a ritual spell to my hand! Now I'll banish Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my graveyard with Chaos Form! This lets me ritual summon Blue-Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon!"

"I activate my trap! Adhesion Trap Hole! I won't destroy your monster just yet. I intend to cripple it! Adhesion Trap Hole halves your monster's attack points!"

"No matter! I can still take down your monster! Chaos Neutron Blast!" Mystic Tomato was fried! "I'll end my turn." 'Chaos MAX might be crippled. But at least he's still on the field. The downside is that he's vulnerable now! Especially since Zorc has more attack points than Chaos MAX now!'

Burst: 5500
Sombra: 5400

"Mystic Tomato's destruction allows me to special summon a dark monster with 1500 or less attack from my deck! I'll bring that monster to the field in attack mode! Ritual Raven! Then I'll draw and end my turn with a face-down."

"I draw! I'll attack Ritual Raven!" As Chaos MAX charged at Ritual Raven, Sombra smiled.

"No. You won't! I activate my trap! Storming Mirror Force! This returns all attack mode monsters you control to your hand!" A gust of wind blew Chaos MAX off the field and back into Burst's hand!

'Now one of my best monsters is off the field, and I'm wide open! But I can't call it quits yet!' "I end my turn. But the duel's not over until the last card's drawn!", Burst said defiantly. Sombra smirked.

"So YOU'RE the fool who gave your friends that stupid advice. That'll make crushing you all the more enjoyable. My move! I draw! I play Pre-Preparation of Rites! This lets me add a ritual spell from my deck to my hand and a ritual monster from my deck or my graveyard! I'll add both from my deck! Now I play Contract with the Dark Master! I'll tribute Ritual Raven since he can be used as the whole tribute for the ritual summon of a dark monster! Rise! Dark Master-Zorc!" Zorc appeared out of a pillar of shadow! "Attack him directly! Dark Lightning!" Zorc shot bolts of purple lightning from his hands! Striking Burst dead-on! "I think I've punished you enough for one turn."

Burst: 2800
Sombra: 5400

It was taking everything Burst had just to stay standing! "I...I draw! I summon a monster in defense mode! Then I'll end my turn." 'At least this card can help me get Blue-Eyes back for one final strike.'

"How futile.", Sombra said with an evil smile. "I activate Zorc's effect! Dark Die Roll!" A die rolled, and landed on a three! "I can destroy one monster you control! Dark Thunder Break!" A bolt of black thunder destroyed Burst's monster! "Attack him directly Zorc! Let him know despair! Zorc Oblivion!" Zorc wrapped his fist in darkness and struck Burst with a devastating punch! Burst was winded and fell to his knees! Dark magic leaked from Sombra's eyes as his smile grew. "I end my turn with another face-down. Still think the duel's not over yet 'hero'?"

Burst: 100
Sombra: 5400

"Wh..White Stone's effect activates! I special summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon from my deck!" However, Burst's mind was in a frenzy! 'Not good. Really, really not good! I'm down to only 100 life points! Not to mention even if Blue-Eyes can destroy Zorc, Sombra' might just search for a way to revive him!'

'It's not over yet Burst!', Blue-Eyes said. 'It's like you said! The duel's not over until the last card is drawn!'

'Don't leave us out of the pep-talk!', Inferno said. Burst lifted his head and saw his friends alongside Blue-Eyes! 'Don't forget Burst. You're not alone in this. We might not be right by your side, but we're always in your heart!'

'You really gonna call it quits without giving it your all?', Rainbow Dash asked.

'Come on darling!, Rarity said. 'You've still got one card to draw!'

'Well Burst? Are you gonna rock the dragon or what?', Sunset said. Burst smiled as his friends lifted his spirits. Back in the real world, Burst began to rise! A rainbow-colored flash went off on the top of his deck!

Suggested music:

"My turn! I draw!" Burst smiled as he read the card he drew. "I activate the spell card Harmony Absolute! I'll tribute Blue-Eyes from my field to summon Blue Eyes Absolute Dragon from my deck!" a brilliant pillar of light engulfed Blue-Eyes! And when the light died down, a humanoid Blue-Eyes standing in platinum armor stood! There were three gems on each of its wings.

"Those look like the old Elements of Harmony...", Sunset said in awe.

"Wait. The same things that have crazy amounts of magical power?", Inferno asked. Sunset nodded.

"I think we're in for a good show."

"Now one of Absolute's effects activates! He gains 300 attack for each monster in my graveyard! There's six, so that means he gains 1800 attack! He was at 5000 for base power, so this brings him up to 6800! Attack Zorc! Absolute White Lightning!"

"I think not! I activate my trap! Mirror Force!", Sombra said with a dark smile. But when Blue-Eyes got close to the barrier, he SMASHED it to pieces! "WHAT?!"

"Another one of Blue-Eyes Absolute's effects! He's unaffected by all card effects! Also, he can't be destroyed by battle! And I take no battle damage if he gets attacked!" Blue-Eyes charged up his attack, and fired a white lightning with a rainbow-colored aura around it right at Zorc! Destroying him instantly! "I'll end my turn."

Burst: 100
Sombra: 1300

"This isn't over! I play Hidden Armory! This lets me add an equip spell from my deck to my hand! I play Fulfillment of the Contract! I pay 800 life points to revive Zorc from my graveyard in defense mode! Too bad you can't inflict damage when you attack!", Sombra said with a strained smile.

"You really know how to tempt fate don't you?", Burst asked. "Let's rock the dragon Blue-Eyes!" Both Blue-Eyes and Burst called out their final attack!

"ABSOLUTE....NEUTRON...BLAST!" Blue-Eyes Absolute fired a rainbow-colored neutron blast from his hands like a Kamehameha!

"One of Blue-Eyes Absolute's final effects it that he can inflict piercing damage when he destroys a defense mode monster!"

"NNOOOOOOOO!", Sombra screamed as he was engulfed by the blast! When the light died-down, Sombra was on the floor. Burst stood triumphant! Burst's friends rushed onto the field to congratulate him! But they froze when they saw Sombra slowly rise. "This...isn't....OVER!" Dark magic exploded from Sombra! A curved horn sprouted from his forehead with a red tip.

"We won't be destroyed so easily!", Zorc bellowed as he and Sombra began to fuse! Sombra was soon wearing armor that resembled Zorc!

"If we can't win the duel, we'll simply destroy you!", the two of them bellowed! Sombra sent a blast of dark magic flying at Burst and his friends! But a pair of white dragon wings blocked it! "What?!" Burst's friends were also staring in awe! The dragon wings were coming from Burst! As Burst lifted his wings, it was revealed that his eyes had turned dragonic!

"You won't lay a finger on them!", Burst shouted! Blue-Eyes then materialized by Burst's side. "Let's finish this together Blue-Eyes!" Blue-Eyes nodded.

"Let's rock the dragon!" Both Burst and Blue-Eyes charged their fists with energy and charged at the fused Sombra and Zorc!

"WHITE LIGHTNING OVERDRIVE!", the two of them shouted! As their attack connected, Sombra and Zorc began to disintegrate!

"AAAUUUUGGGGGHHHHhhhhhh!", Sombra and Zorc howled as they were destroyed! When the light faded, Burst and Blue-Eyes stood victorious!

"I guess a spirit can hit pretty hard.", Burst said with a smile as his eyes returned to normal and his wings faded away.

"Oh he's more than a spirit Burst.", Pegasus said as he approached the group. "Congratualtions. You and your friends have saved our world and the monsters'. But it also had a little perk from the energy. All duelists with bonds to their cards can summon the real monsters. Don't believe me? Fist-bump Blue-Eyes." Blue-Eyes put his fist out. And Burst, to his surprise, actually made contact with Blue-Eyes!

"This is awesome!", Burst cheered. Sunset and Rarity then noticed that their decks had been restored after Sombra and Zorc's defeat. Rarity summoned Master Diamond.

"Good to see you again milady.", Master Diamond said.

"Oh how I've missed you Diamond!", Rarity squealed as she hugged Master Diamond tightly.

"Good to be back Sunset.", BLS said. Sunset fist-bumped BLS.

"No other monster I'd have by my side.", Sunset said with a smile.

"Hi-wing!", Rainbow Dragon said as Rainbow Dash gave him a hi-five.

"We SO gotta hang out back home.", Inferno said.

"Yup. Hope you're planning on a movie marathon.", Red-Eyes said with a smile.

"Of course, there is ONE more thing for you to collect." Pegasus clapped his hands, and a man carrying a briefcase came out. "The cash prize for winning the tournament. Not to mention how famous you'll be since the finals were televised. Fortunately we cut the cameras before Sombra and Zorc made their attack."

"I'd say this is more of a bonus prize.", Burst said as he accepted the money. "Come on guys lets head home." Burst and his friends headed for the boat while Gold and Pegasus headed for their helicopter. As they left, Burst and his friends as well as their monster partners watched Duelist Kingdom fade into the horizon as they headed home.

Epilogue

When Burst and his friends returned home, they got a text from Pinkie to head towards Sugar Cube Corner. Once they arrived, Pinkie flipped on the lights! A huge party was prepared for Burst's big win! "LET'S PARTY!" Pinkie then summoned some of her monster to join in on the party. Burst and his friends then summoned their own monster partners and partied away!

Meanwhile at Crystal Prep...

Ice could feel it. All the other students were staring at him. He knew they were probably talking about him as he walked by, but pretended not to notice. 'Great. They're probably thinking of how much I 'disgraced the school's reputation.' Hmph. Typical. Most of the students here are stuck-up rich kids. Not to mention the principal here seems like a real ice queen. Not to mention the dueling here is as lifeless as ever. But it's not like they'd believe an evil monster used my body as a suit and tried to destroy everyone I love.' As he was walking, a group of five girls were looking at him. Indigo Zap in specific was curious about him.

"Any of you know who that guy is? Or for that matter why everyone's gossiping about him?", she asked.

"His name's Dark Ice.", Sugar Coat replied. "He's been absent from Crystal Prep since Sophomore Year, and resurfaced this year. According to the records he was quite the duelist. But he always went against the instructed tactics and deck builds."

"He sounds kinda cool.", Lemon Zest added. "I can see where he's coming from. All the dueling stuff we learn is so BORING!"

"Not to mention he's got the guts to not even follow the dress code.", Sunny Flare said. "He's just wearing whatever he feels like. I hear even Principal Cinch is scared of him!"

Principal Cinch's Office...

Cinch was reading the latest newspaper, and froze when she saw the headline: CHS Student Burst Stream Wins Duelist Kingdom! Cinch frowned as she read the article. "It appears there is actually a threat from Canterlot High School now. No matter." Cinch then looked over a series of files on her desk. Each one containing the dueling information for students. "I've just the tool to use against him." Cinch closed the file. It read: Twilight Sparkle. Meanwhile, Ice was still walking towards his locker. Unaware that he was being watched.

'I was too late to protect you last time Ice.', the dragon said. 'But I'm here now. And you'll be meeting me sooner than you think.' Red Dragon Archfiend then vanished in a swirl of flame.

Author's Note

To be continued in Yu-Gi-Oh! Friendship is Dueling 2: The Friendship Games!

Duel 15: The Finals

Burst and his friends entered the castle and saw Pegasus and Gold were waiting for them. As well as two other duelists. "Gilda!", Rainbow cried as she ran to meet with her old friend. "Looks like you made it!"

"You too Dash.", Gilda said with a smile. "Same goes for the rest of your friends. And then there's the last favorite to win." Burst and his friends turned to where Gilda was pointing. They were looking at Sombra. "No surprise he made it though. I can't say I'm crazy about his attitude." Pegasus then addressed the finalists.

"Greetings duelists! Congratulations on making it this far! But your challenges have only increased here! Some of you may also be wondering who the eight finalist is. The answer is the young man standing next to me. And now for the part you're all been waiting for! The match-ups for the finals! The first match will be Burst Stream against Gilda! Tomorrow, the finals officially begin! Rest well duelists! For you will need your strength for the duels ahead." Burst and his friends were about to head to their rooms, until Sombra approached them.

"So. You're the one who defeated Blueblood.", Sombra said. "Burst Stream. Right?"

"That's me.", Burst answered. "And everyone knows who you are. You're Sombra." Burst then felt a wave of evil energy, and it was all coming from Sombra! Blue-Eyes then mentally spoke to Burst.

'Be careful Burst!', Blue-Eyes said. 'I'm getting a bad feeling not just from him, but also from his monster!'

"So is there a reason you came over here?", Burst asked.

"Simply to wish you luck.", Sombra said as he walked off. Once he was gone, Burst addressed his friends.

"Come on guys. Let's get some rest."

Meanwhile, Sombra was anticipating his future reign. "So these are the fools in our way Zorc. They'll soon fall by our hands."

"And when they fall, no one shall be left to oppose us.", Zorc finished.