CHAPTER SEVEN



Steakhouse Scuffle!



Royal Shadow Warrior




The Restaurant District was conveniently located only a stone’s throw from the Hotel Strip, and consisted of a strip loaded with eateries of all shapes and sizes. Not every restaurant in Duelatopia was here – a few classy places were in parts of the city that fit their themes, and fast food places and street vendors were present everywhere – but here was the place to go when you needed a variety.

A few well-known chains had opened in Duelatopia over the years. The Olive Garden had a spot, as did TJI Fridays. Pizza Hut was here, and it would even deliver to guests. But there were enough unique establishments to please any palates. Here a Chinese place, there a Thai place.

And eventually the small group saw their goal – a large place called The Sizzling Sirloin. It was a big sit-down place, as they could see from the outside, and even from a distance they could smell the delicious aromas of charbroiled beef and grilled onions. It was clear that dinner was about to be served.

Yumi, Chelsea, and Ren walked in, and were met by a surprise. Sitting on a couch in the entrance hall were Sam and Erik.

“Sam!” said Yumi, in surprise.

The two rivals looked at each other in silence for a few seconds. Yumi noticed that both Sam and Erik were at the same spot she was, Green, as indicated by their badges. Sam slowly looked at the three of them, smirking a little when she saw that Ren was behind.

“Don’t tell me they won’t let you in?” asked Yumi.

“Coming here was Erik’s idea,” said Sam. “The waitress said that there’s a ten-minute wait for a table. This is a popular spot.”

She smirked.

“As long as you’re all here, want to make it a party of five? Separate checks, of course.”

“We’ll pay for all of us,” said Chelsea. “I beat a guy, and he gave me this.”

She showed her the coupon and Sam looked closely at it.

“Really?” she asked. “I do hope one of you is ready to work up an appetite…”

“What do you mean?” asked Chelsea.

“Show that to the waitress when she gets here, and she’ll tell you,” said Sam. “But in the future, be wary of any so-called coupons that have gold stars in the upper left corners. My mom told me about them.”

Chelsea looked at the coupon. There were three gold stars there.

“Uh…” said Chelsea. “Do all of these… coupons have three?”

“No,” said Sam. “Three means second-hardest. Four is hardest.”

“Hardest what?” demanded Yumi.

“Hey, y’all!” said a voice.

The voice came from a young woman in a short skirt and a halter top with the restaurant’s logo – clearly she was a waitress. She had blonde hair tied in a ponytail and deep green eyes.

“I’m Mary Jane, and I’ll be your waitress,” she said. “Party of three?”

“Depends…” said Chelsea. “Can you tell us what the deal is with this?”

Mary Jane looked at the coupon and then grinned.

“Well,” she said with a chuckle, “I was wondering when one’a those would show up. This should be fun…”

“What?” asked Ren.

“The coupon doesn’t guarantee a free meal, per say,” said Mary Jane. “That’s an invitation… to one of the Bonuses.”

There was a pause. They remembered what Sheena had said about the Bonuses of Duelatopia:

These folks could be any employee you see in Duelatopia. A store owner, bellhop, ice cream man… They might approach you with a challenge, and the reward is the same as a standard duel – one upgrade for winning, but no downgrade for losing. You might also be able to make some small wager in the process.

“So if one of y’all want, we can whet your appetites with a duel,” she continued. “If you lose, no harm, no foul, but you aren’t eating here without paying. Win, and you get upgraded, and your order is on the house.”

“Don’t look at the two of us,” said Sam. “It’s your coupon.”

Chelsea sighed.

“I’ve dueled enough for one day…” she said.

“I might be able to…” said Ren, glancing at the menu on the wall. “The thought of a free porterhouse is hard to turn down.”

He turned to Mary Jane.

“Who would I be dueling?”

“You’re looking at her!” laughed Mary Jane.

Ren looked at her. Then he chuckled.

“A sweet thing like you? Yeah, I think I could handle it…”

Mary Jane turned around.

“Hey, Luke!” she shouted. “Clear off the podium! We’re gonna have a dinner show!”

Lovely, thought Ren. I get to duel in front of a packed house… Ah well… It was bound to happen sooner or later…


* * * * * * * * * *



The podium, as she called it, was a circular, upraised, wooden stage with the proper dimensions for a dueling ring. As Ren shuffled his deck, his group was seated at a large table nearby.

“I don’t think this will take long…” said Ren, “but… uh… don’t order the best stuff on the menu until it looks like I’m winning.”

“We wouldn’t think of it, Ren,” said Chelsea. “Now knock ‘em dead.”

Ren stepped up to face Mary Jane, who had her own Duel Disk set.

“Ready, hon?” she asked. “I should warn you, the cards in my deck are rather… Unorthodox…”

“So you have a unique strategy,” said Ren. “That’s actually good. If there’s one thing a serious duelist hates it’s jerks who show no creativity and build decks that are cookie cutter.”

“That’s for sure,” said Sam. “Mom won’t invite anyone who uses cookie cutter decks. Those people give dueling a bad name. No one will ever win glory on this island with such a deck.”

“Well then…” said Mary Jane, as her Disk activated, “as they say in my business…”

She drew five cards.

“Dinner is served!”


(Ren: 8,000) -------------------- (Mary Jane: 8,000)



Ren drew his sixth card.

“I’ll start out by playing Graceful Charity…” he said, holding the card aloft.

In a sparkle of light, the lovely angel appeared, and her feathers fell on his deck. He drew three cards.

He looked over his hand, and then made two discards.

“Next I’ll summon one of my favorites,” he said. “Come on out, Getsu Fuhma!”

He threw the card on his Disk, and in a shower of petals, the lovely, red-headed, female ronin appeared, holding aloft her katana. (1,700/1,200)




Several whistles and catcalls came from the audience. Getsu Fuhma looked rather annoyed…

“Ignore them…” muttered Ren.

Then he spoke up.

“That’s enough to start…”

“All right!” said Mary Jane energetically.

She drew her first card.

“First I’ll set a Monster in Defense Mode, and a card facedown…”

A facedown card, and a facedown Monster appeared.

“And then I play a Continuous Spell Card. Soup’s on, hon!”

She placed the card in her Disk, and with a rumbling, a huge device rose up behind her. It was basically a giant iron cauldron with a fire burning under it, with a huge ladle inside. Steam was coming out of whatever was cooking inside the immense crockery. The smells of cooked meats and spices wafted from it.

“What is that?” asked Sam.

“Well, uhm…” muttered Erik. “I think it’s supposed to be a very big pot of soup…”

“Brilliant deduction,” said Mary Jane. “It’s called a Curry Pot, and for as long as it’s on the field, any Monster that would normally go to the Graveyards is removed from play.

“It does something else, but we’ll get into that later. For now, my turn is over, so I’ll leave it to you to bring out the next course.”

“You got it!” said Ren, drawing.

What’s she playing? thought Yumi. If this is some sort of RFG Deck, it’s a weird one…

Ren looked at the card.

Wow, he thought, I haven’t gotten a chance to use this guy yet!

“Chew on this!” he shouted. “I summon Double Pinaska!”

A new Warrior leapt onto the podium with a somersault. He had Spanish features, slick hair, and a slim moustache. He was dressed in leather pantaloons and a vest, and he had two sharp rapiers which he twirled dramatically. (1,500/1,500)

“All right!” he said, “Getsu Fuhma, attack her facedown Monster! Blade of Vengeance!”

Getsu Fuhma charged, and an odd Monster appeared on Mary Jane’s card. It looked like… Some sort of orange tuber with arms and legs, and a green, leafy plume on top, with arms and legs. It was crouching in defense.

Getsu Fuhma slashed with her sword, and it was blown into pieces.

“Uh, were my eyes deceiving me, or was that a carrot?” asked Ren.

“It was a Carrotman,” said Mary Jane, nodding. “Low in calories, high in vitamin A.”

She turned her head as the pieces of her Monster flew up and landed in the Curry Pot.

And all’s going according to plan, she thought. All I need to do now… Is brace myself…

“I don’t know what’s up…” said Ren, “but now you’re wide open! Double Pinaska, attack Mary Jane directly! Double slash!”

The Spaniard leapt up and did a somersault again, and when he came down, he made two slashes across Mary Jane’s torso. She gasped and fell on her behind. Everyone in the audience cheered.

“Getting nailed is the hardest part of dueling…” muttered Sam.

“Lucky for Mary Jane, she fell on her softest part,” chuckled Erik.


(R: 8,000) -------------------- (M J: 6,500)



“I’ll place this facedown and end my turn…” said Ren, fitting a card into his Disk.

A facedown card appeared behind his two Warriors.

“All right,” said Mary Jane, drawing a new card.

She looked at it, and then chose another.

“I summon another Monster, this time in Attack Mode. Don’t cry, it’s only Onionman!”

She played the card, and another strange Monster appeared. This one was definitely an onion, standing five feet tall, again with arms and legs. (1,200/1,200)

“Good grief, are all your Monsters edible?” asked Ren. “I wouldn’t mind if a few weren’t vegetables, but…”

“I admit that this onion looks rather bland…” said Mary Jane. “That’s why no good chef is ever far from his spice rack.

“I play the Spell Card, Mixed Spice – Garam Masala.”

She played the card.

“Say WHAT?” asked Ren.

“If you want to know what Garam Masala is, let’s just say that it’s a seasoning that only serious cooks use. And this Spell lets me search my deck for three similar Spells, and add them to my hand…”

She took her deck and looked through it, quickly taking three cards.

“Now I play one of them,” she said. “It’s called Spell Spice – Red Pepper.”

As she played the card, a cloud of red dust covered the field, and Getsu Fuhma started to cough…

“What’s wrong?” asked Ren, getting nervous.

“She must not be a fan of spicy food,” said Mary Jane. “This Spell Card deducts 300 Attack Points from one of your Monsters for one round.”

Getsu Fuhma fell to an Attack of 1,400.

Then they noticed that Onionman was burning with flames.

“And what do you know?” continued Mary Jane. “Those 300 points go right to MY Monster!”

Onionman rose to an Attack of 1,500.

“Want more?” asked Mary Jane. “I always say, there’s no such thing as too much seasoning. I’ll play a second Spell Spice – Red Pepper!”

She played the card, and Getsu Fuhma fell to 1,100, while Onionman rose to 1,800.

“That should do…” said Mary Jane. “Onionman, attack Getsu Fuhma with bulb basher!”

Onionman flew at the ronin, fist-first…

“Double Pinaska, defend!” shouted Ren.

There was a loud WHACK! and Onionman fell backwards, landing on its back.

When everyone looked, Double Pinaska was holding Getsu Fuhma in a gentle embrace and glaring at Onionman with a look of anger…

“How…” asked Mary Jane.

“Didn’t tell you about Double Pinaska’s ability,” said Ren. “It’s a powerful ability that I can use once per duel. When I choose to use it, I can negate one attack, no matter what the target, no matter how powerful it is.”

Mary Jane looked at her other cards.

“In that case…” she said, “I’ll play this. It’s called Spell Spice – Cinnamon.”

She played the card, and sparkling brown dust fell on Onionman.

“It moves my Monster to Defense Mode.”

Onionman knelt in Defense.

“Oh no you don’t!” laughed Ren, as his facedown card lifted. “I activate Final Attack Orders. Now any Monster in face-up Defense Mode is moved to Attack Mode and kept there.”

Onionman stood back up.

Mary Jane looked at her hand again.

“Very well…” she said. “I’ll place another card facedown, and my turn is over…”

A facedown card appeared.

Onionman’s Attack fell back down to 1,200, and Getsu Fuhma’s rose back to 1,700.

“About time,” said Ren, drawing a card.

“Sam, I thought you said three stars was second-hardest,” said Chelsea. “She’s hardly giving Ren a challenge, and her cards are barely better than stuff you’d find in a starter pack.”

“Are you calling me a liar?” asked Sam. “I was told that three stars is second-highest.”

“I dunno…” said Yumi. “I’m getting some pretty ominous vibes from that Curry Pot up there… Something tells me it’s hiding a secret, and Mary Jane is waiting for the right time to let it loose.”

Mary Jane looked at her and smirked.

Ren added his card to his hand.

“I’ll sacrifice Double Pinaska…”

Double Pinaska faded away into mist.

“…and summon Penumbral Soldier Lady!”

In an aura of darkness, the gorgeous, armored Warrior of Darkness appeared, holding her sword and shield. (2,100/1,400)




“Getsu Fuhma, chop up that onion!” he shouted.

Getsu swung with her sword, slicing the vegetable into slices. The pieces flew up and fell into the Curry Pot.

“I activate a Trap Card!” shouted Mary Jane, as one of her facedown cards lifted. “It’s called Counter Spice – Cumin. Since one of my Monsters was destroyed, I can Special Summon another from my hand. So meet Potatoman!”

A new vegetable Monster leapt out. This one… well, it was a potato, again with arms and legs. (900/800)

“I say potato, you say po-tat-o…”

“Now you’re talking…” said Ren with a smile. “I love potatoes. And I especially love them when they’re turned into French fries! Penumbral Soldier Lady, cut up that tater!”

Penumbral Soldier Lady charged forward and brought her sword down on Potatoman, smashing it to pieces. Once again, the pieces flew up and fell into the Curry Pot.


(R: 8,000) -------------------- (M J: 4,800)



“So what’s next?” said Ren with a grin. “You gonna bring out Hungry Burger?”

“No way,” said Mary Jane, with a wicked smile. “Hamburgers are only on the lunch menu. And I have something far more tantalizing. And you’ve helped me bring it out.

“You see, now that carrots, onions, and potatoes have been added to the mix, I can activate Curry Pot’s true effect…

“The time for soup, salad, and appetizers is past. The main course is about to begin. Start hoping you’ll last until dessert…”

“I knew it…” muttered Yumi.

“First…” said Mary Jane, “all Monsters remaining on the field are now removed from play…”

Ren stepped back in shock as Getsu Fuhma and Penumbral Soldier Lady exploded into gibbets of light.

“HEY!” he shouted.

“And then…” continued Mary Jane, taking a card from her deck, “I get to summon this…”

As she put the card on her Disk, the Curry Pot began to boil and then overflow…

And then, a huge creature leapt out of it, and landed on the podium with a crash. It was ten feet tall, with white armor decorated by garlands of roots and tubers, and a helmet that resembled a gravy boat. Its feet were clawed, and it held a huge spoon in its right hand and carried some sort of beverage cooler in its left. Its eyes glowed with evil light. (0/0)

“Meet my Curry Fiend Roux,” said Mary Jane. “Don’t try serving him with ketchup… He prefers the taste of blood!”

“Okay…” muttered Ren. “Zero attack points… I’m guessing this is one of those Monsters that gains Attack Points based on some sort of condition…”

“Indeed…” said Mary Jane. “For every Monster that has been removed from play, he gains 300 Attack Points. And for every card with the word ‘Spice’ in its name in my Graveyard, he gains 200 more.

“Do the math…”

“Math was never my strong point…” muttered Sam.

Erik counted on his fingers.

“Six Monsters…” he muttered. “Five spices… It all adds up to 2,800!”

“That’s as strong as my Dark Magician of Chaos!” shouted Yumi.

Ren sneered. He fit a card into his Disk.

“All right!” he said. “I’ll place this facedown, and that will be my turn…”

A facedown card appeared.

He started to sweat. He remembered one time he had dueled Yumi and had taken a direct attack from Dark Magician of Chaos. Yumi had apologized to him for a straight three hours afterwards before he spoke again, it had been so painful…

Mary Jane drew a card.

I’ll save this for when I need it… she thought, looking at it.

“Curry Fiend Roux…” she ordered, “attack Ren directly! Montezuma’s revenge!”

As the huge Fiend lumbered forward, Ren looked at his facedown card.

Okay, decision time… he thought. If I spring my Trap, I’ll lose less Life Points… But then, my chances of beating this thing go from slim to almost nonexistent.

Well, like my dad said… Sometimes you gotta fall down before you can get back up.

Curry Fiend Roux swung its spoon, and hurled a mass of soup, and the soup turned into fire. Ren screamed as it struck him, and fell down on one knee.


(R: 5,200) -------------------- (M J: 4,800)



He gasped for breath.

“Ow…” he muttered.

He glared at his foe.

“I’m not beaten yet, MJ,” he said, “You know what the strangest thing about food is?”

“What’s that?” asked Mary Jane.

“One minute it may be haute cuisine…” said Ren, standing up, “but the instant you put it in the sink, it becomes garbage.

“And that’s what I’m going to do your big lug over there!”

“Yumi,” asked Sam. “Out of curiosity, does Ren have another Getsu Fuhma in his deck?”

“I’m not sure,” replied Yumi. “We all agreed not to ask each other about the exact compositions of our decks in case we ever had to duel each other. Why do you ask?”

“Well, seeing as that big thing is a Fiend,” she said, “she’s someone who might be kinda useful to have right now…”

She’s right, thought Ren. Any Fiend that Getsu Fuhma battles is automatically destroyed. She’d be killed too, but at least I’d solve the immediate problem…

I do have a second one… But she could be at the bottom of my deck for all I know…

He drew a card.


Continued…