Yu-Gi-Oh! Sorcerer Kings

[Dark Sage]

CHAPTER FIVE



Magic Versus Mesozoic;



Miracle Jurassic

As Yumi, Ren, and Chelsea wandered farther into the city, restaurants and shops gave way to larger buildings.

“I think we’re in the Museum District…” said Ren, looking at the map.

They were indeed, due to the structure that was visible from every part of this district. Construction of it was supposedly just completed, but sadly, it would not be open to guests until winter break.

It loomed over the skyline – a life-size and very real replica of Clock Tower Prison, the infamous Field Spell used by the famous pro-duelist Aster Phoenix, who was now long since retired. The clock tower itself currently worked, and supposedly, when it opened, it would hold many new, colorful attractions, including a wax museum and a supernatural lore archive.

Yumi would have loved to go there if it were open. But this was still the Museum District, and she always liked museums. It ran in the family.

“What do they have here?” she asked.

“Well, let’s see…” said Ren. “The technology museum, the art museum, the planetarium, the Egyptian exhibit…”

Yumi paused to see the Pharaoh standing behind her.

“Maybe later, Yumi,” he said. “I’ve seen plenty of those…”

Yumi nodded.

“The Kaiba Memorial Library…” continued Ren.

“That’s where his Dragons are, right?” asked Chelsea.

Yumi nodded.

“Some other time,” she said.

“Oh, look…” said Ren, pointing.

They looked up, and saw a large building with the entrance flanked by statues of velociraptors.

“The Duelatopia Museum of Natural History,” said Ren. “Just opened this year…”

They looked at each other.

“Why not?” said Yumi. “Who doesn’t love looking at dinosaur fossils?”

“You said it,” replied Ren. “For creatures that have been extinct for millions of years, dinosaurs are pretty popular.”

They walked towards the building.

* * * * * * * * * *

The entrance hall of the museum was huge, and dominated by a very large exhibit. It was a nearly complete skeleton of a triceratops, bigger than any that they had seen before.

Chelsea looked at the sign in front: No eating; No drinking; No horseplay; No flash photography.

Typical rules for a museum. She quickly put her ordinary camera in her case, and switched to the one holding high-speed film.

Yumi read the plaque next to the triceratops.

“Ironhorns…” she read. “Discovered in North Dakota in 2030, by Maurice Leason, both the biggest and most complete triceratops fossil known.”

“He looks like a mean one…” muttered Chelsea. “I’ll bet if some T-Rex were causing trouble, he’d charge at the guy like an offensive linebacker, and jam those horns right into the big guy’s gut.”

“Not likely…” said a voice from behind.

They turned. The voice belonged to a man who was about forty, dressed in a grey formal suit. He held a derby hat by his side. He had hair that seemed to be going prematurely grey, and a bushy mustache.

“The triceratops could never have charged at an enemy like a modern rhino could have,” said the man, in an accent that seemed British. “If it did, its horns would break. If, as you say, it were threatened by a T-Rex or other large predator, its strategy would more likely be to stand its ground, like a defensive football player would, to use your analogy, and let the enemy run itself into its horns.”

“How do you know?” asked Chelsea.

“Well, I…” started the man.

“Hey!” shouted Ren. “I know you! You’re Marlon Farnsworth!”

“Ah heh…” chuckled the man. “You saw me in National Geographic, I assume…”

“Who is this guy?” asked Chelsea.

“He’s a big… what are they called?” asked Ren. “Pale… Platea…

“Paleontologist…” said the man.

“Right,” said Ren. “Three months ago, he headed a group that discovered a complete stegosaurus skeleton.”

“Truthfully, it was only just under 98% complete,” said Marlon. “But I do like to be noticed for my work.”

“So why are you in Duelatopia, Mr. Farnsworth?” asked Yumi.

“Call me Marlon,” he replied. “And I was invited…”

He held up a badge, which was already at Green.

“One must have hobbies, don’t you know,” he said. “And since I discovered Duel Monsters, I took to it like I was a natural.”

“So, Green already…” said Yumi with a grin.

She saw the Pharaoh appear beside her. He nodded.

“Care to try for Blue?”

Marlon looked at her.

“You’re Wheeler’s daughter, aren’t you?” he asked.

Yumi nodded.

“Well, jolly good…” he said. “I accept your challenge… But you’ll find me a great deal harder than your grandfather found that upstart Rex Raptor.”

“Wouldn’t have it any other way…” said Yumi.

She chuckled.

“Rex Raptor… He was a sad story… Came in second in the Japanese nationals behind Weevil Underwood, but once he got to Duelist Kingdom, he sank like a stone.”

“Well, his style was primitive,” said Chelsea. “It had the subtlety of a wrecking ball. Problem is, he relied too much on powerful Monsters, and had very few Spells or Traps. You can’t expect to win simply by charging at the enemy.”

“Exactly,” said Marlon. “And let me tell you, since his time, Dinosaur cards have improved by leaps and bounds… After all… Paleontology is a science…”

* * * * * * * * * *

As Yumi and company walked outside with Marlon, they didn’t know that Nicholas was watching from a safe distance with a pair of binoculars.

Olga walked up to him with two hot dogs that she had gotten from a nearby vendor.

“I specifically told him to put the sauerkraut on and then the mustard,” she said, handing him one. “I hope you’re bloody happy, Mr. Frankfurter Connoisseur.”

Nicholas took it.

“I might be happier in a minute,” he said. “Looks like the Mouto kid is going to duel again.

“She’s awfully cute… Wonder if she’d be interested in a different type of one-on-one?”

Olga took out a pair of opera glasses and looked.

“Where have I seen that guy before?” she asked.

A shadow fell across them…

“His name is Farnsworth,” said the owner of the shadow. “A paleontologist from Liverpool and a duelist who naturally specializes in Dinosaur Monsters.

“Let’s watch closely. The more we can discover about young Yumi and her two henchmen, the better…”

The two teenagers nodded, and continued to look.

* * * * * * * * * *

“So…” asked Yumi. “What’s it like these days in Great Britain?”

“It rains a lot…” answered Marlon. “And the people I have to associate with there are uppity snobs. Plus, the only thing there that’s worth eating is the fish and chips, which would taste a whole lot better if they didn’t serve it wrapped in newspaper. Some traditions we could do without.

“That’s one of the main reasons I got into paleontology… It gives me plenty of excuses to leave home.

“And how’s your neck of the woods?”

“Well, uh, we can’t complain…” muttered Yumi.

Their Disks activated, and they each drew five cards.

The Puzzle glowed, and in a flash of light, the change overtook Yumi.

Her eyes narrowed.

“Game on!” they both said at once.

“Good show…” said Marlon.

(Yumi: 8,000) -------------------- (Marlon: 8,000)

“All right…” said Yumi, drawing a sixth card. “And opening moves don’t get any better than this… I summon my Skilled Dark Magician.”

In an aura of dark energy, the black cloaked mage appeared, holding his staff. (1,900/1,700)

“That will do for now…” she said.

“I see…” said Marlon, drawing a card.

He looked over the cards in his hand, and then chose one.

“I think I’ll go on the defensive for now…” he said.

He placed a card on his Disk, and a facedown Monster appeared.

“That will be all for my move.”

Yumi drew a card.

“Gemini Elf in Attack Mode,” she said.

In a flash of light, two elf twins, one blonde and dressed in blue, and one brunette and dressed in purple, appeared, holding hands. (1,900/900)

“Two Monsters with 1,900 Attack Points?” said Ren. “Marlon better hope his facedown card is a good one…”

Yumi considered.

It’s rather obvious that he’s using Dinosaurs… she thought, and I don’t know of any with Flip-Effects, and not many with strong Defense. Most of them are just heavy on offense. Could it be that he had a bad hand?

Then she paused.

She had once heard of a duelist who had used special Fusion Monsters that were related to Dinosaurs… They were fused with a Spell called Fossil Fusion. Maybe he wasn’t using standard Dinosaurs at all…

She had to be careful…

“Gemini Elf, attack!” she shouted. “Dual magic!”

The two elves raised their free hands and shot twin lightning bolts…

And then they screamed as a backlash knocked them over.

The two elves looked up as Yumi looked where the card had been…

Right now, there was a nest of sorts, and hovering over it was an ovoid sphere, that seemed to be made of crystal or even diamond, only a foot or so across. It glowed with silvery light. (0/2,000)

“What the…” said Ren.

“It’s a Dinosaur, believe it or not,” said Marlon. “It’s called a Miracle Jurassic Egg, and it’s more than just a defensive wall.

“I’d love to tell you what it does, but that’s a secret that I can’t reveal right now… But I will shortly.”

Yumi looked at her hand.

I’d better find a way to scramble that egg before he does… she thought. All it will take is three Spell Cards played between the two of us, and I’ll be able to swap Skilled Dark Magician for the real Dark Magician, and he’ll take it out with no problem…

“I’ll place a card facedown, and end my turn…” she said.

A facedown card appeared.

(Y: 7,900) -------------------- (M: 8,000)

Marlon drew a card.

“I summon one of my favorites,” he said. “Black Stego…”

A new Monster appeared on the field. It was… well, it was a stegosaurus. That was the best way to describe it. (1,200/2,000)

“Why’d he do that?” asked Chelsea. “That guy doesn’t even come close to being able to beat Yumi’s two Spellcasters.”

“Next…” continued Marlon, “I Special Summon Gilasaurus.”

He played the card, and a small Dinosaur the size of a horse with sharp teeth and claws appeared. It glared at Yumi’s forces with reptilian eyes, and grinned a toothy smile. (1,400/400)

“Normally, that would let you Special Summon a Monster from your Graveyard,” he said, “but I don’t believe you have anything there.

“And I’m not done… Next, since that was a Special Summon, I’ll summon two more of them from my deck, by playing Inferno Reckless Summon.”

He played the Spell Card, and two more Gilasaurs appeared, one to each side of the first.

“You’re kidding, right?” asked Yumi. “You do realize, that lets me summon all copies of a Monster I have on my side of the field?”

She placed two cards on her Disk, and two more Skilled Dark Magicians appeared. (1,900/1,700 x2)

“And another thing...” she added. “Since that was a Spell Card, the one that was already on the field gets a counter.”

The first Disk on one of the Magicians’ collar lit up.

“Jolly good…” said Marlon. “I’ll place one card facedown, and that’s enough for my turn…”

He fit a card into his Disk, and a facedown card appeared.

* * * * * * * * * *

“What in blazes?” asked Nicholas. “Yumi’s Monsters are all stronger than his… You’d think he wants his Monsters to be destroyed.”

“That’s because he does Nicholas,” said the shadowy form behind him and Olga. “Farnsworth’s strategy may look odd on the surface, but there is a definite purpose behind it. Continue watching, and you will see…”

* * * * * * * * * *

Yumi drew one card.

“All right!” she shouted. “Gemini Elf, take out one Gilasaurus!”

The twin elves blasted lightning bolts, and one of the smaller Dinosaurs exploded. Marlon cringed.

“And now let’s pause…” said Yumi, with a grin. “Since I just attacked with a Spellcaster, I can activate this…”

Her facedown card lifted.

“It’s a Trap called Magician’s Circle,” she said. “Now, both duelists are allowed to Special Summon a Spellcaster from their decks that has an Attack Score of 2,000 or less.”

“Well, uhm, er…” said Marlon, looking at his deck. “Afraid I don’t have one…”

“Well I have a good one,” said Yumi, taking a card from her deck. “Come on out, Dark Magician Girl!”

In a display of hearts and stars, Dark Magician Girl flew onto the field. She made a small pirouette and smiled sweetly. (2,000/1,700)

“Now let’s continue…” said Yumi. “You two… Destroy his other two Gilasaurs!”

Two Skilled Dark Magicians fired blasts of dark magic, and the remaining two Gilasaurs exploded.

“Dark Magician Girl, attack his Black Stego!”

Dark Magician Girl laughed, and cast her spell at the larger Dinosaur… There was a burst of flame and smoke…

But when it cleared, Black Stego was still there, and crouching in Defense Mode.

“Forgot to mention…” said Marlon. “When Black Stego is attacked while in Attack Mode, where he’s weak, he can quickly shift to Defense Mode, where he’s strong. So that battle was a draw.”

Yumi paused.

“Guess I’ll place this facedown, and end my turn…” she said, placing a card in her Disk.

“Uh, Ren…” muttered Chelsea. “Is it my imagination, or is that Miracle Jurassic Egg glowing even brighter now?”

“Either you have a good imagination,” he said, “or yes. I noticed it too.”

(Y: 7,900) -------------------- (M: 6,500)

Marlon made a draw.

“I play Mystical Space Typhoon,” he said, “to destroy your facedown card.”

He played the card, and the cyclone tore across the field, shattering Yumi’s Spell Shield Type-8.

The second disk on the first Skilled Dark Magician’s collar glowed, and one on each of the other two did as well.

“Good grief!” groaned Ren. “If this guy trying to get Yumi to summon her Dark Magician?”

“I’m worried…” muttered Chelsea. “Either he’s very stupid, or very clever…”

Marlon placed a card in his Disk.

“I’ll place another card facedown, and turn it over to you…” he said.

Yumi drew a card.

That’s it… she said.

“Okay, Marlon…” she said. “I play my Pot of Greed.”

She played the card, and the sinister jar appeared. She made two draws.

“And now that my first Skilled Dark Magician has absorbed the energy from three Spell Cards, I can sacrifice him, to summon the main man from my deck!”

The Spellcaster vanished, and the Dark Magician appeared. He and Dark Magician Girl grinned at each other. (2,500/2,100)

“Well, Marlon…” said Yumi, “I guess we’re not gonna see what that Miracle Jurassic Egg can do after all. Dark Magician, smash his Miracle Jurassic Egg! Dark magic attack!”

“Hold it right there, old girl!” shouted Marlon.

One of his facedown cards lifted, showing the image of Marauding Captain confronting Despair From The Dark.

“I activate Staunch Defender. Now, all your attacks this round must be directed to the Monster I choose, and I choose my Black Stego.”

Dark Magician paused. He turned his staff away from the Egg, and pointed at Black Stego. He cast his spell, and the Dinosaur was blasted to pieces.

“Nice save…” said Yumi. “But what now?”

“Now…” said Marlon, “I finally reveal the secret of my Miracle Jurassic Egg…”

He drew a card.

“You see, Yumi,” he said, adding it to his hand. “Every time one of my Dinosaurs went to the Graveyard, it gained power, in the form of two counters. And now… I can sacrifice it, to Special Summon from my deck any Dinosaur whose Level is equal to or less than the number of counters it has.”

“Wait a second…” said Ren. “Four Dinosaurs, two counters from each… Great Caesar’s ghost! That means he can summon a Level Eight Monster!”

“Indeed!” said Marlon, taking a card from his deck. “So, I bid farewell to the Miracle Jurassic Egg…”

The Egg glowed with blinding light, and then shattered into shards of light…

“And I summon… Ultimate Tyranno!”

With a roar, a huge, shadowy form rose up in front of Marlon. Standing twenty feet tall, it looked like it was part Dinosaur and part Fiend, with bony spurs covering its armored body, and incredibly sharp claws and teeth.

It bellowed a roar that shook the whole courtyard… (3,000/2,200)

“Three… thousand… Attack Points?” said Yumi, nervously.

“That thing could stand up to Kaiba’s Dragon…” muttered Chelsea.

“Not only that,” replied Marlon, “it also has the ability to attack every Monster on your side of the field at once.”

Yumi gulped.

“Uhm, Yumi…” said Marlon, taking a card from his hand. “I know you think this can’t get any worse, but… see… Summoning this thing with my Egg’s effect was a Special Summon…

“And I still can Normal Summon a Monster. Like my Sabersaurus.”

He played a card, and a new Dinosaur appeared. This one looked similar to a triceratops, but even fiercer, with sword-like blades all over its body, and razor sharp horns. (1,900/500)

“All right!” shouted Marlon. “Ultimate Tyranno, attack! Primal rage!”

The next minute was a massacre. The huge Dinosaur went for Dark Magician first, biting him in half. Then it snapped up both Skilled Dark Magicians and then Gemini Elf.

Finally, Dark Magician Girl was swallowed whole.

Yumi bowed her head.

“I’m sorry…” she whispered.



Continued…

[Dark Sage]

Continued from last post:



She glared at her opponent.

“Yumi…” said Marlon. “Remember when I said that triceratops didn’t charge? Well this isn’t a triceratops. Same family, maybe, but different species entirely.

“Sabersaurus, attack her directly!”

Clearly it wasn’t a triceratops, because it charged at Yumi like a rhino. Yumi hollered as it jammed its horns into her torso and she was thrown back ten feet.

(Y: 1,500) -------------------- (M: 6,500)

“Eh…” muttered Marlon. “I must have counted wrong… I should have left you with only 1,200 left.”

“No, you didn’t count wrong…” muttered Yumi, getting up.

She staggered to her feet.

“The instant it destroyed Dark Magician, Dark Magician Girl gained 300 more Attack Points, so I have more to work with…

“So, anything else?”

Marlon looked at the last card in his hand.

“No…” he said.

* * * * * * * * * *

“HA, HA, HA, HA!” laughed the man standing behind Nicholas and Olga. “I have got to look this up on the internet tonight… I have GOT to see that again…”

“What?” asked Nicholas. “Yumi getting clobbered? I didn’t think it was very funny…”

“Not that…” he replied. “I just love seeing that bimbo of hers die…”

There was a pause.

“Dark Magician Girl?” asked Olga.

The man clenched his fist.

“I loathe that harlot…” he muttered. “With her low-cut dress and come-hither smile… I can’t get enough of thinking of ways to kill that Monster in a duel…”

“What did she ever do to you?” asked Nicholas.

“Well, it’s… complicated,” he replied. “But keep this in mind… She’s the key to beating Yumi. She has some sort of connection to that card.”

“Why?” asked Olga. “Is it worth something?”

The man sighed. He took a card out of the folds of his clothing.

“See this?” he asked. “This is a Meteo the Matchless that was given to the semi-finalists in the 2040 Duel Monsters European Invitational. It is ‘worth something’, at least as far as money is concerned.

“But to Yumi, that card is something you cannot put a price on…”

* * * * * * * * * *

Yumi drew a card.

This might help… she thought.

“I play my Graceful Charity!” she exclaimed.

Her deck glowed, and she drew three cards.

All right, she thought, looking at them. Now I might have a chance…

She discarded two cards.

“I place a Monster in Defense Mode, and toss three cards facedown,” she said.

A facedown Monster appeared, and three facedown cards followed.

“Your move…” she said.

Marlon drew a card.

Hmm, Black Tyranno… he thought. That would need two sacrifices, and sacrificing Ultimate Tyranno would be folly…

“Ultimate Tyranno, attack!” he ordered.

The huge Dinosaur charged.

“Go!” shouted Yumi, as her Trap Card lifted. “Mirror Force!”

A blast of light covered the arena, and Marlon’s two Monsters were blasted to atoms.

“Heh, heh, heh…” chuckled Marlon. “Jolly good, Yumi… But I also have a Trap Card…”

His facedown card lifted, showing the image of four workers digging up a dinosaur skeleton.

“Fossil Excavation,” he said. “I simply need to discard one card, and one of my Dinosaurs comes back.”

He discarded his Black Tyranno.

The ground burst open, and a swarm of bones burst out. They all pieced together, forming into a T-Rex skeleton…

Then, in a flash of energy, the skeleton transformed into Ultimate Tyranno.

“Of course…” said Marlon, “a Monster revived by this Trap loses its effect, but given that it can be as much a hindrance as a help in this case, that may be a good thing.

“Now, Ultimate Tyranno, continue your attack!”

The Dinosaur charged. Magician of Faith appeared on the card, and was swallowed whole.

“Thanks,” said Yumi. “Now I get to retrieve one Spell Card from my Graveyard…”

A card slipped out of her discard slot. She added it to her hand.

“Now… It’s my move…”

She drew a card.

She grinned.

“Well, Marlon…” she said. “I honestly don’t know if Rex Raptor ever had a problem with this next guy, but he sure did a job on his pal Weevil Underwood.”

Marlon paused.

“Wait…” he said. “I remember hearing something about that… A Spellcaster Monster whose name made Underwood tremble with fear after he had taken a beating from it in a duel with Yugi. What was it again?

“Wait, don’t tell me… Oh, it’s on the tip of my tongue!”

“I’ll show you…” said Yumi. “I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior.”

In a shadow aura, a mysterious figure appeared. It was a man in red and gold armor, with a cape and pointed helmet that covered all of his face except for glowing blue eyes. He held a longsword in his right hand, and a diamond-shaped shield with a blue gem in the center in his left. (1,600/1,000) –> (1,900/1,000)

“Ah, yes,” said Marlon. “That’s the rascal…”

“Yeah, well…” said Yumi, “Breaker is a guy with an identity crisis. He’s a Spellcaster, and that can never change, but people call him a Warrior, and he tries to act like one, wearing armor and carrying a sword and shield. Frankly, there are times when he doesn’t know what he is…

“But he does know what he’s good at doing. See, when he’s summoned, he gets a counter that boosts his Attack Score by 300. And by expending that counter, he can destroy one Spell or Trap Card.

“So, he’s gonna do that to destroy your Fossil Excavation.”

Breaker held up his shield, and the gem glowed. His Attack fell down to 1,600, and the Trap shattered.

Ultimate Tyranno roared, and then turned back into bones. They fell to the ground in a clatter and turned to dust.

“Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,” said Yumi. “Breaker, attack directly with breaking blade!”

Breaker the Magical Warrior leapt at Marlon with his sword held high. Marlon cringed as the Spellcaster slashed at him with the weapon.

(Y: 1,500) -------------------- (M: 4,900)

“Ergh…” muttered Marlon. “Jolly good, old girl… This is turning into quite an unusual challenge…”

He drew a card.

“I’ll place this in Defense Mode, and that will be all for my turn…”

A facedown Monster appeared.

“Your move…”

Is that another Miracle Jurassic Egg? thought Yumi, as she drew a card. I don’t want to go though that whole process again…

She looked at the card she had gotten back with Magician of Faith. It was sure to be a surprise, because she hadn’t used it yet. She had discarded it with Graceful Charity.

She looked at the card she had just drawn.

She opened her Field Slot and placed a card in it.

“I play Mausoleum of the Emperor!” she shouted.

Darkness shrouded the field…

Two ominous temples rose behind each of them, their doors flanked by flaming braziers. The two duelists were on platforms at each end, separated by a bridge over a dark pit that held mysterious shapes.

“What in the name of…” asked Marlon.

“Creepy, isn’t it?” asked Yumi. “And just to make it even scarier, down below us lurks the Terracotta Army, a collection of hundreds of ancient statues. Both duelists can use these artifacts as sacrifices to summon Monsters, if he or she merely pays 1,000 Life Points for each of them.

“So I’ll pay 1,000 Life Points…”

A stone statue of a warrior in shogun armor holding a sword floated up to her side of the field. It vanished into pixels.

“And I’ll summon Chaos Command Magician.”

A new Spellcaster appeared. This one was dressed in a glossy black robe, with a wide-brimmed hat, and carried a fancy staff. (2,400/1,900)

“Attack his facedown Monster!” she shouted. “Chaos Magic!”

Chaos Command Magician shot a blast of multicolored, burning lights. A dinosaur appeared on the facedown card with a flat, rounded snout. It was blasted to pieces.

“Heh, heh…” chuckled Marlon. “Sorry old girl, that was my Hyper Hammerhead. So it looks like that 1,000 Life Points you spent was a big waste…”

“Oh?” asked Yumi. “How so?”

Marlon paused. He looked at the field.

“Wait a bloody minute…” he said. “It was supposed to return your Monster to your hand! Why didn’t it?”

“Because, Chaos Command Magician is immune to Monster effects that target,” interrupted Ren. “Didn’t you know that?”

Marlon paused.

“Oh…” he said. “Yeah, it… kind of slipped my mind…”

“Breaker, attack directly!” shouted Yumi.

“Not again…” muttered Marlon.

He shielded himself as Breaker slashed with his sword.

* * * * * * * * * *

“Eh, lucky…” muttered Nicholas.

“Don’t give me that,” said Olga. “You were pretty lucky in your first duel from what I heard.”

“Well, that jerk needed to be taken down a peg,” said Nicholas. “Idiot was so certain his brilliant Warrior/RFG strategy could never be defeated, thought he was better than everybody… Guys like that drive me barmy.”

“Well make sure you don’t turn into one yourself,” said the man behind them. “And speaking of which, those first duels were sufficient test runs for your actual decks, but until I say otherwise, use your more… believable ones from now on. We don’t want to scare the Dickens out of everyone on this island, nor do we want to attract undue attention.”

They nodded, and turned back to watch.

* * * * * * * * * *

(Y: 500) -------------------- (M: 3,300)

Marlon considered the situation and the one card left in his hand.

I still have a few heavy hitters in my deck, he thought, and summoning them would be all the easier thanks to this Field Spell. And she has only 500 Life Points left…

But two facedown cards…

He drew.

“I play… Pot of Greed…” he said.

He made two draws.

He grinned.

“Okay, Yumi…” he said. “I’ll use the effect of this Field myself, and pay 1,000 Life Points…”

A statue floated up to his side. It disintegrated.

“And I summon… Dark Driceratops!”

A creature that appeared to be part triceratops and part bird appeared, covered with colorful feathers. (2,400/1,500)

“Next I play… Dinostomp! Now I can destroy one of your Spell or Trap Cards.”

He played the Spell Card, and Dark Driceratops stomped its foot down, and a shockwave tore forth, heading towards the facedown card on the right…

“Chain!” shouted Yumi, as it lifted up. “Rush Recklessly! Now Breaker’s Attack Score goes up by 700 points!”

The Spell Card shattered, and Breaker rose to an Attack of 2,300.

Marlon frowned…

“Dark Driceratops…” he said, “attack Breaker! Sonic screech!”

Dark Driceratops let out a wave of earsplitting sound from its beak, and Breaker shattered.

“Before you end your turn,” said Yumi, “I’ll activate my other Trap…”

Her other facedown card lifted.

“Life-Absorbing Machine. We’ll get to that in a minute.”

“Jolly good…” said Marlon. “My turn is over now.”

(Y: 400) -------------------- (M: 2,300)

“Then I draw one card,” said Yumi, drawing. “And thanks to Life-Absorbing Machine, I gain back half of what I paid last turn…”

The card glowed, and her Life Points went up slightly.

(Y: 900) -------------------- (M: 2,300)

“And that gives me just enough,” she said, fitting a card into her Disk. “I play Premature Burial.”

She glowed as her Life Points dipped, and Dark Magician crawled out of the ground. (2,500/2,100)

“Attack his Dark Driceratops! Dark magic attack!”

Dark Magician cast his dark spell, and Dark Driceratops exploded into a burst of pixels.

“By Jove…” said Marlon.

“Chaos Command Magician…” said Yumi, “attack directly!”

Marlon shielded himself as the chaos mage shot his blast, and he staggered back under it.

Marlon gasped for breath…

(Y: 100) -------------------- (M: 0)

“Wow…” said Ren. “I haven’t seen a duel that close since… I haven’t seen a duel that close!”

As the holograms faded away, the Pharaoh appeared behind Yumi. She looked at her badge, which was now Green.

“Good work,” he said. “The first day, and already you’re two duels ahead.”

“Just promise me you’ll always be there… partner!” she said.

“Well…” said Marlon. “That was invigorating, I must say… I dare say I’d best try harder.”

“You didn’t do too bad,” said Chelsea. “That was closer to beating Yumi than I ever came.

“Say, we didn’t see much of the museum before you showed up. Why don’t you show us around? We’ve got some time to kill…”

“I’d be delighted…” said Marlon with a chuckle.

* * * * * * * * * *

Nicholas and Olga had gone their separate ways, and their strange benefactor was back in the penthouse suite of the hotel, sending text messages on a cell phone.

“There,” he said, as the last one was sent. “Soon they’ll all be out looking.”

He looked at a special projector on the other side of the room and smirked.

“Guess I can kill time for an hour…” he said.

He activated a Duel Disk on his arm, and then hit a remote. The projector activated, and Dark Magician Girl appeared from out of it.

He played a card on his Disk, and Mobius the Frost Monarch appeared.

“Attack!” he shouted.

Mobius shot a blast of ice, and Dark Magician Girl screamed before she was frozen and then shattered into shards.

This was his hobby – having that projector summon Dark Magician Girl, and then using Monsters, Spells, or Traps to kill her.

After all, she had cost him a great treasure.

He fit a card into his Disk and a facedown card appeared.

He hit the remote again, and she appeared again.

He triggered the Trap, and she screamed again as she was bound to a Nightmare Wheel.

He watched as the Wheel turned, and tears appeared in her eyes.

Finally, he placed a card on his Disk, and a Luster Dragon appeared. He gave the command, and she was blown away again.

He never got tired of this.

* * * * * * * * * *

Yumi felt a strange chill… Something unpleasant was happening…

“And this fellah,” said Marlon, “was the herbivore known as the Pachycephalosaurus. Not many fossils exist. You might be interested in knowing that his name means ‘thick-headed lizard’.”

As Chelsea went to take a picture of the large skeleton, they all looked at it, especially the skull, which was abnormally large and rounded.

“Bet folks called him a bonehead a lot,” said Ren.

“An interesting analogy,” said Marlon. “His very thick skull could be used for both defensive and offensive purposes.”

“Uhm, yeah…” muttered Yumi, nervously.

“Say, Marlon, some people say these days that dinosaurs were smarter than we think they were. Do you think there’s any truth to that?”

“Well, from what we know,” said Marlon, “they had very small brains… But even if they were smarter than what we originally assumed, I doubt we could have expected the type of smarts we have seen in popular media…”

* * * * * * * * * *

Meanwhile, Mick and two others were watching the outside of the museum.

“Aw, are they ever going to come out of there?” whined Mick.

“Why?” asked the older boy, who was rather mad at him. “What do you care?”

“Please?” asked Mick. “Just let me duel her again…”

“No,” said the older boy. “For three reasons. One, you’re an idiot. Two, she has a side deck, and she likely has plenty of ways to counter or destroy your Monsters in it. Think of what would have happened if that Trap Card had been Magic Cylinder instead of Dust Tornado.

“Third, you’re an idiot.”

“Hey, stop calling my brother an idiot!” shouted the third member of the group.

The speaker was a young girl wearing similar punk ensemble.

“Oh?” asked the punk. “I was planning on using that coupon, thank you very much!”

“Deal with it,” said the girl. “When Chelsea comes out, I’m gonna duel her, and this time it will be personal… She messes with my family, she messes with me!”

Winning her second victory, Yumi advances to Green status. But a potential enemy might loom ahead, and it seems he isn’t one to lurk hidden like most of her family’s enemies. Danger may lie ahead… What will happen next?



DINOSTOMP (Spell Card)

Quickplay Spell

Image: A dinosaur’s foot crashing down on the underbrush.

Card Description: You can activate this card when you have at least one Dinosaur Type Monster face-up on your side of the field. Destroy one Spell or Trap Card on the field.

Note: “Dinostomp” was first used by Hasselberry in the “Yu-Gi-Oh GX” episode “Camaraderie Contest”. All creative credit goes to the writers of that episode.



Chelsea: Hey, guys… I hate to bring this up, but there’s a stale smell in the air again…

Ren: Think Mick is back for revenge?

Chelsea: No… It’s a similar smell, but different. And it’s just as nasty…

Yumi: It figures… The three of us formed a team, so Mick likely had the same idea with another group…

Coming next, “Chelsea’s Round Two! Electric Boogaloo!”

Ren: Think we’ll see that “special” card you’ve been hinting at?

Chelsea: You never know…

[ssj4supernerd]

I'm had the feeling I was reading the Mandate when I readed the preview. With the nasty(Kanasta, remember?) I hope we're not gonna see the Mandate, because if we want to read that, it's in the Archives.


The duel was also pretty short, but cool. Dinosaurs are way underused, so it's nice to see someone who can work with 'em.

[Inferno_Dragon]

Interesting duel, Marlon's Dino Deck is different than what Hasselberry or Rex would use but it still fits the bill. So we see more enemies. And what is going to happen in the next chapter? The title is confusing. Well I guess I will have to wait.

Keep up the Good Work, DS.