Chapter 130: The End of a Destined Battle
[The OG author recommends reading this chapter with the BGM "Clear Mind" playing. Come accelerate with us.]
"The crystallized dreams gathered here will open the gates of new evolution. Be the shining path forward--"
"Accel Synchro. Come forth, Shooting Star Dragon!!"
Rin Seiya's red D-Wheel surged back onto the track, and with it came the high-speed world's answer to her call. The Level 10 Accel Synchro ace that defined Yusei Fudo.
Shooting Star Dragon [WIND / Level 10 / Dragon-Type / Synchro / Effect]
ATK: 3300 / DEF: 2500
[Synchro Tuner + Stardust Dragon]
The Shooting Star Dragon that Rin Seiya had summoned matched the anime version exactly. Same appearance, same effects.
It could negate card destruction effects, phase itself out during the opponent's turn to dodge threats while negating one attack, and burn through its deck to add attack count. The whole package. Known affectionately by fans as the universe's little overachiever.
"Amano. Ending this with this monster is the only finale worthy of our destined battle."
With nine Speed Counters still active, Rin Seiya had returned from the Clear Mind state and had already pulled ahead of Amano on the track.
But she'd also noticed the trap he'd activated during her Synchro Summon. Synchro Striker Unit. And that her Formula Synchron had been pulled from her Graveyard onto his field.
"You want to use that to fight Shooting Star Dragon? Challenge accepted, Amano."
Rin Seiya pressed her fingertip to the deck on the Duel Disk, and the shared field spell's effect lit up.
"Speed World's effect: I remove 7 Speed Counters to draw 1 card from my deck."
Just like Speed World 2 in the 5D's anime, Eden's version of Speed World carried the same built-in options.
[Remove your own Speed Counters to activate one of the following effects:
- 4 Counters: Inflict damage to your opponent equal to the number of Speed Spell cards in your hand x800.
- 7 Counters: Draw 1 card from your deck.
- 10 Counters: Destroy 1 card on the field.]
Four for burn, seven for draw, ten for destruction.
Speed Counters were the lifeblood of the format. Burning them away was rarely worth it unless the situation demanded it. But Rin Seiya had already used Overboost this turn, which would drop her counters to one at the end of the turn anyway. Nothing to lose.
Rin Seiya's Speed Counters: 9 to 2.
One final draw from seven counters. She scanned the card.
"My deck is telling me to put everything on this one strike. Speed Spell: Speed Energy, activate."
The same Speed Spell she'd used before, boosting a monster's ATK by the number of Speed Counters she held times 200.
"I have 2 Speed Counters right now, so Shooting Star Dragon gains 400 attack."
Shooting Star Dragon ATK: 3300 to 3700.
She hadn't even activated her main effect yet, and she was already raising the stakes. Rin Seiya's belief in her deck in this moment was absolute.
"Now, Shooting Star Dragon's effect activates."
Shooting Star Dragon's most iconic effect, the one it was built around --
[Once per turn: Excavate the top 5 cards of your deck, then return them to the deck. This turn, this card can make a number of attacks equal to the number of Tuner monsters excavated.]
Flip five cards. Count the Tuners. That's how many times Shooting Star Dragon attacks this turn.
Flip zero Tuners, and it can't attack at all. Everything depended on what the deck gave back.
"Amano. I'm staking the outcome of our destined battle on this. Watch the bond between me and Shooting Star Dragon."
Even with her counters down to two, Rin Seiya's D-Wheel hadn't slowed a single beat. It carved through the track like a streak of shooting light.
Excavated: Drill Synchron.
Steam Synchron.
Quickdraw Synchron.
Road Synchron.
Stardust Synchron.
All five cards were Tuners.
Five attacks this turn.
You almost had to respect it. Then again, Rin Seiya was a duelist with Stardust Dragon's card spirit backing her. A bond with her deck that strong was exactly what you'd expect.
"This is everything I have, Amano. Your turn. Show me your Synchro."
She knew why he'd set that trap from the opening turn and waited this long to use it. She knew the Formula Synchron effect:
[During your opponent's Main Phase: you can use monsters you control, including this card, as Synchro Material for a Synchro Summon.]
Performing a Synchro during the opponent's turn. That was the only way he had left to answer Shooting Star Dragon.
"Can your Synchro surpass Shooting Star Dragon, Amano?"
"Formula Synchron's effect activates. Accel Synchro. Faster than light itself."
Formula Synchron accelerated from Amano's field and launched into the brilliance ahead, opening a path to Synchro Summon during the opponent's turn.
"Level 2 Synchro Tuner Formula Synchron, Accel Synchro with Level 8 Synchro Red Dragon Archfiend!!"
The moment the Moonlight Butterfly received the Accel Synchro signal, the butterfly-wing artwork along its tail fins released trails of starlight in both directions.
"You can Accel Synchro too?" The Emperor's composure broke, just slightly.
He'd assumed this was just a pair of academy students who'd snuck into the venue for a thrill. He hadn't expected this.
The times had changed. Even students were capable of something like this now.
"They disappeared again--" The crowd erupted for the second time as both duelists vanished in succession. To anyone unfamiliar with the format, it could have looked like a stage trick.
2 + 8 = 10.
The next moment, Amano reappeared on the track. The Moonlight Butterfly cut past Rin Seiya's D-Wheel at a distance that could only be described as face-to-face.
For a fraction of a second, nose to nose at full speed, Rin Seiya caught a glimpse of something through the gap in Amano's helmet. A faint smile at the corner of his mouth.
What does that mean?
The next second, she knew.
"The trail of flowing stars weaves together every wish. Fill this world together with bonds that have no end."
"Accel Synchro. Come, light--"
A chant Rin Seiya had never heard before. In the next instant, brilliant golden stardust gathered beside Amano's charging D-Wheel.
"I Synchro Summon in Defense Position. Stardust Chronicle Spark Dragon.""
Stardust Chronicle Spark Dragon [LIGHT / Level 10 / Dragon-Type / Synchro / Effect]
ATK: 3000 / DEF: 2500
[Synchro Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner Synchro monsters]
The Accel Synchro from Formula Synchron and Red Dragon Archfiend blazed into the sky, brilliant golden starlight reaching toward the cosmos itself, assembling a radiant dragon form.
"Stardust. That's a Stardust Dragon?!"
Not the same card. But unmistakably a dragon bearing the Stardust name.
"Why. Why can you summon Stardust too."
This was the most stunned Rin Seiya had been all duel. More than when he'd summoned Black Rose Moonlight Dragon. Something nameless had closed around her heart and squeezed, driving her pulse faster, making each beat feel like a percussion from somewhere deep in her soul.
"But even so, Stardust Chronicle Spark Dragon only has 2500 defense. It can't stop Shooting Star Dragon."
"Then let the battle decide the ending, Seiya."
"Here we go--"
The moment Rin Seiya drove into the Battle Phase, Shooting Star Dragon's shining form split into five across the track, five phantom images, one for each attack.
"First strike. Destroy Stardust Chronicle Spark Dragon."
"Stardust Phantom--!!"
"Right now, Stardust Chronicle Spark Dragon's effect activates."
[Once per turn: banish 1 Synchro Monster from your Graveyard. Until the end of this turn, this card is unaffected by other card effects. This effect can be activated during the opponent's turn.]
An effect activatable on the opponent's turn. Banish a Synchro from the Graveyard to gain full immunity for the rest of the turn.
"I banish Crimson Nova the Dark Cubic Lord from my Graveyard."
"Immunity doesn't matter in battle. Keep attacking, Shooting Star Dragon."
Battle destruction was the answer to blanket protection. Simple.
One fifth of Shooting Star Dragon's phantom surged forward and crashed through the golden dragon body above the track.
Stardust Chronicle Spark Dragon: destroyed.
"Your field is empty now, Amano. And Shooting Star Dragon still has four attacks left."
"Who says my field is empty. The moment it was destroyed, Stardust Chronicle Spark Dragon's second effect activates--"
[When this card is destroyed by the opponent: target 1 of your banished Dragon-Type Synchro Monsters; Special Summon that target.]
Amano reached into the banish zone on the D-Wheel's Duel Disk and slammed the card back onto the field.
"I Special Summon the banished Crimson Nova the Dark Cubic Lord in Defense Position."
Crimson Nova: DEF: 2500.
The first of the dragons returned, carrying with it the golden light particles that Stardust Chronicle had left behind, and added its roar to the red flames burning across the track.
"Keep attacking, Shooting Star Dragon--"
"Stardust Phantom. Second Strike!!"
The relentless starlight barrage slammed into Crimson Nova's fire and held. Every spectator in Court A had gone tense enough to forget breathing.
Crimson Nova: destroyed.
Amano kept throwing cards at the Duel Disk.
"Crimson Nova the Dark Cubic Lord's effect: when this card is destroyed and sent to the Graveyard, I Special Summon Red Dragon Archfiend from the Extra Deck as a Synchro Summon."
"Special Summon in Attack Position. Wa ga tamashii--"
"ROAR--!!"
Red Dragon Archfiend ATK: 3000.
The third dragon burst into the field, inheriting the line of fire the others had left behind.
Rin Seiya drove the third phantom forward.
"Keep attacking. That should be the last one--"
"Stardust Phantom. Third Strike!!"
Red Dragon Archfiend: destroyed.
Amano LP: 3900 to 3200.
Three attacks absorbed. Rin Seiya couldn't help but feel something for the sheer stubbornness of it.
If even one fewer Tuner had flipped, the five-attack gamble she'd poured everything into would have fallen short. Amano would have survived on raw endurance alone.
"But it ends here, Amano. This duel is mine."
"Direct attack, Shooting Star Dragon. Stardust Phantom, Fourth Strike!!""
The fourth phantom streaked toward Amano's D-Wheel.
"Seiya. Weren't you curious why I Special Summoned Red Dragon Archfiend in Attack Position at the end there?"
"For the soul clash, obviously. Two monsters in Attack Position meeting head-on in the finale of a destined battle."
"No. It was for this."
Amano flipped the last face-down card trailing his D-Wheel.
"Trap Card: Starlight Road!!"
Starlight Road, Trap Card
[Can be activated when an opponent's Special Summoned monster declares a direct attack and that monster's ATK is equal to or higher than your current LP. Negate that attack. Draw 1 card from your deck. Then, you can Special Summon 1 Stardust monster from your Extra Deck or Graveyard.]
A trap that could only be activated by allowing your LP to fall into the opponent's lethal range first.
"I negate Shooting Star Dragon's fourth attack, then draw 1 card from my deck. After that, I Special Summon 1 Stardust monster from my Extra Deck."
Above Amano's head, a golden stardust pathway extended across the track toward the finish line. One final thread of hope, brilliantly lit.
"I survived."
Amano drew the card from that golden path and drove it onto the Duel Disk.
"A flash of light that cuts through the sea of stars. Let the pulse of the soul thunder through the world."
"Synchro Summon. Spark Dragon--"
Spark Dragon [LIGHT / Level 8 / Dragon-Type / Synchro / Effect]
ATK: 2500 / DEF: 2000
From the luminous path overhead, a LIGHT-attribute Stardust-type dragon spread its wings and fell into formation beside Amano's D-Wheel.
"Another. Another Stardust Dragon. A shining Stardust."
Rin Seiya's pulse jumped faster. Something inside her was responding to this in a way she couldn't pin down or explain.
The girl who had always dreamed of becoming Yusei Fudo. Who had always believed that was her role.
Was that really what she wanted?
"It's not over. Shooting Star Dragon still has one attack left."
Rin Seiya directed the final Shooting Star Dragon itself, the real body, toward Amano's Defense Position Spark Dragon.
"Stardust Phantom. Fifth Strike!!"
"Spark Dragon's effect activates." Amano raised his arm toward the flash of starlight overhead.
[Once per turn: target 1 face-up card you control; that card cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects once this turn. This effect can also be activated during the opponent's turn.]
"I target Spark Dragon itself, granting it one instance of immunity from battle and effects."
"Stardust Sonic Barrier--!!"
A defensive wall woven from golden light particles closed around Spark Dragon's body. Shooting Star Dragon's final strike hit it and held.
All five attacks absorbed.
And Amano still had Spark Dragon standing on the field.
Fiona's voice came through the helmet earpiece, shaking:
"That was a miracle, Amano. The whole arena just lost its mind."
Five attacks blocked. Not a single one had landed. And Rin Seiya, rather than feeling deflated, felt her pulse climb even faster.
This was it. This was the destined battle she'd been waiting for.
Tens of thousands of people roaring in a venue that had been holding its breath. They'd fought all the way to this moment, to the very last strike.
"My turn ends. Your move, Amano."
Rin Seiya eased off the throttle.
Rin Seiya's Speed Counters: 2 to 1.
Her resources were spent. But her LP was untouched and Shooting Star Dragon was still on the field, able to negate destruction effects, able to phase itself out at any moment to dodge and negate one attack. A dragon that didn't go down easily.
"I won't lose, Amano."
"My turn. Draw."
Amano's Speed Counters: 5 to 6.
Starlight Road's draw effect last turn had given him an extra card. Three cards in hand, plus Spark Dragon on the field. Everything riding on this turn.
"Spell Card: Monster Reborn, activate."
Fiona: "A regular Spell Card?!"
Not a Speed Spell. A standard Spell Card.
Of the two ordinary Spells Amano had kept in his deck, Monster Reborn and Card of Demise. The one he'd assumed he might never need had come up in the final turn.
He'd spent last turn holding his LP carefully. Now he was spending that margin.
Amano LP: 3200 to 1200.
"Monster Reborn. I revive Red Dragon Archfiend from the Graveyard."
"ROAR--!!"
Red Dragon Archfiend ATK: 3000.
The third arrival of the crimson dragon, this time standing alongside Spark Dragon.
The end of a destined battle, and the rivals were fighting together. Somehow that felt right.
Fiona: "Two Level 8 monsters. Don't tell me you're going for an Xyz Summon. And don't tell me you know how to do that too, Amano."
Because looking at the field, even Spark Dragon plus Red Dragon Archfiend couldn't beat Shooting Star Dragon outright.
"No. Xyz won't work."
Even Number 107: Galaxy-Eyes Tachyon Dragon wouldn't solve it. The anime-version Shooting Star Dragon could phase itself out, dodge the attack, and negate it. The Xyz route was a dead end.
"We're finishing this with Synchro. Maximum attack power, beyond the shooting star. I'm betting on the luck that won me ten straight rounds of poker in the slums. Speed Spell: De-Synchro Boost, activate."
The inverse of the earlier Synchro Boost.
Speed Spell: De-Synchro Boost
[Can be activated while you have 4 or more Speed Counters. Roll a die once. All monsters you control gain the following effect based on the result:
- 1 or 2: Level decreases by 4.
- 3 or 4: Level decreases by 5.
- 5 or 6: Level decreases by 6.]
This time the die lowered Levels. One in three odds of getting the result he needed.
"One in three. Go."
The golden die tumbled onto the Riding Duel track, spinning slowly to a stop.
Six.
Conservation of luck. He'd rolled one earlier, now he rolled six. Though honestly, there was nothing balanced about it. Both results were exactly what Amano had wanted. That was just how his luck worked.
"Both Spark Dragon and Red Dragon Archfiend lose 6 Levels."
Spark Dragon: Level 8 to Level 2.
Red Dragon Archfiend: Level 8 to Level 2.
"Level 2. What are you doing with that?" Rin Seiya's curiosity broke through.
"The last card. Speed Spell: Synchro of Death, activate."
Speed Spell: Synchro of Death
[Can be activated while you have 5 or more Speed Counters. Select 1 Synchro Monster from your Extra Deck. Banish the Tuner and non-Tuner Synchro Materials required for that monster's Synchro Summon from your Graveyard, then Special Summon that monster as a Synchro Summon. The monster Special Summoned by this effect is banished during the End Phase.]
The Graveyard equivalent of Dark Fusion. A Speed Spell that performed a Synchro Summon using monsters from the Graveyard rather than the field. Required five or more Speed Counters to activate.
With two Level 2 monsters on the field, it was time to bring the finish down.
"I select Star Junk Synchron and Priestess Who Receives the Star Chalice from my Graveyard."
Star Junk Synchron: Level 3 / Tuner.
Priestess Who Receives the Star Chalice: Level 2.
"This is my miracle Synchro for the final act of our destined battle, Rin Seiya."
Just like the finale of Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's.
"Level 3 Tuner Star Junk Synchron, tune with Level 2 Priestess Who Receives the Star Chalice."
The triple Synchro rings spread outward and passed through Eve's perfectly flat form one more time.
This time, though, they weren't leading to the Ib they'd produced before.
This was a skill unlocked through Rin Seiya.
[Romance Skill: Longing to be Yusei Fudo]
[Unlocks Junk, Warrior, and Stardust series Synchro monsters in the Extra Deck. Opens Synchron monster card exchange in the points shop.]
This skill didn't just let Amano exchange for Synchron monsters in the shop. It had also unlocked the Junk monster line in his Extra Deck.
If she'd spent all this time longing to be Yusei Fudo, then the finale of their destined battle had to include this punch.
"The gathered stars call forth new power. Be the shining path forward--"
"With ultimate attack power. Surpass the shooting star."
"Synchro Summon. Appear, Junk Warrior."
Junk Warrior [DARK / Level 5 / Warrior-Type / Synchro / Effect]
ATK: 2300 / DEF: 1300
Junk Warrior vaulted through the Synchro light and materialized in the air between Amano's two dragons, landing with a punch that split the sky.
"Here is Junk Warrior's effect."
[When this card is Synchro Summoned: this card gains ATK equal to the combined ATK of all Level 2 or lower monsters you currently control.]
The two Level 2 monsters still on Amano's field: Spark Dragon and Red Dragon Archfiend.
"The bond of Stardust and Red Dragon, all of it channeled into this one punch."
"Junk Warrior gains 5500 ATK from the combined power of Spark Dragon and Red Dragon Archfiend."
Junk Warrior: ATK: 2300 to 7800.
"Seven thousand eight hundred-- wait, that can't be right--" Rin Seiya's composure cracked completely.
When did the roles reverse entirely?
She was supposed to be Yusei Fudo.
He'd summoned Stardust. He'd thrown the Junk punch. Amano was the one playing Yusei Fudo right now.
Then who was she?
She couldn't answer it. But what she could say was that not once in her life, not for a single moment, had her heart been beating this hard.
"Battle. Junk Warrior, attack Shooting Star Dragon."
This was a one-shot kill. Rin Seiya could phase Shooting Star Dragon out right now, dodge the attack, negate it. That was the play.
But even if she did, Spark Dragon and Red Dragon Archfiend were still on the field. She had nowhere left to go.
It was over.
At the end of a destined battle, Amano hadn't reached for an eight-star Xyz monster. He'd put everything on one final dice roll and one impossible Synchro, and thrown a punch beyond all limits.
"Amano. You are the most incredible Synchro duelist I have ever seen."
In the last moment, Rin Seiya chose not to activate Shooting Star Dragon's effect.
The iron fist, charged with the full combined power of Spark Dragon and Red Dragon Archfiend, fell from the highest point above the high-speed track.
Like the final scene of Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's.
The colossal Junk punch, carrying everything beyond its limits, came down on Shooting Star Dragon, on Rin Seiya's D-Wheel, and on every last Life Point Rin Seiya had left.
"Over Limit. Junk Punch!!"
Shooting Star Dragon: destroyed.
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH--"
Rin Seiya LP: 4000 to 0.
[Riding Duel]
[Victor]
[Amano Rei]
***
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