Chapter 234: Synchro Killer - Meklord Emperor vs. Stardust Dragon
"Synchro Summon: Stardust Dragon!"
[Stardust Dragon]
[Level 8 / WIND]
[Dragon / Synchro / Effect]
[ATK: 2500 / DEF: 2000]
The starlight particles of the Synchro Summon burst outward as Stardust Dragon spread its brilliant wings and descended above Rin Seiya's field.
"I Set three cards face-down and end my turn!"
Rin's opening was confident to the point of looking self-satisfied, the expression of someone enjoying an immersive recreation while also feeling the genuine weight of defending Synchro Academy.
Sakuya frowned. "Rin Seiya-senpai, she knows the opponent is a Synchro Killer and she's just leaving a single Stardust Dragon on the field? It almost looks like she's handing it over."
"Stardust Dragon is different," Amano said. "And senpai has her own plan."
If the opponent was running a Meklord Emperor strategy, Amano had no concerns about someone who knew the 5D's storyline as thoroughly as Rin Seiya being caught off guard. He was more curious about the actual question: why would a Fusion Academy student from a hundred and ten years ago show up with a Meklord Emperor deck in the final moments of an Academy Challenge Tournament, specifically targeting the Synchro Academy stages?
In the anime, the Synchro Killers had appeared to alter a future in which Synchro Summoning led to catastrophic destruction. Was there a parallel in play here?
Over on the spectator platform, Synchro Academy Director Leiden had just received word about Prayano's identity from the Fusion Academy side.
"What? A student from a hundred and ten years ago? How does someone like that qualify for the Academy Challenge Tournament? This is a violation! A clear violation! I'm having his eligibility revoked!"
The violation angle had become somewhat beside the point. Even if a human lifespan could theoretically exceed a hundred and ten years, the figure standing across from Rin Seiya looked nothing like a centenarian.
More importantly, eligibility for the Academy Challenge Tournament was determined by the Eva mainframe. Not even an academy director could override that ruling. If Eva said he qualified, he qualified.
"My turn. Draw."
The grey-white cloaked figure of Prayano remained unreadable. His voice, at least, was unmistakably that of a young man, not of someone aged beyond a century.
"I activate Pot of Greed to draw two cards from my Deck. Then I Normal Summon Meklord Core: Infinity Nucleus in Defense Position."
[Meklord Core: Infinity Nucleus]
[Level 1 / DARK]
[Machine / Effect]
[ATK: 0 / DEF: 0]
After the courtesy Pot of Greed opening, the component that served as the machine heart of the Meklord forces materialized on Prayano's field, suspended in place.
Rin Seiya raised an eyebrow. "The core variant is different from the anime version. It's getting interesting."
"When Meklord Core: Infinity Nucleus is successfully Summoned, I add the Continuous Spell 'Meklord's Creation' from my Deck to my hand, then immediately activate it."
[Meklord's Creation]
[Continuous Spell Card: When this card is activated, add 1 "Meklord" monster from your Deck to your hand.]
"I add Meklord Emperor Wisel Infinity from my Deck to my hand."
"Here we go," Rin murmured, tightening her grip on her remaining hand.
In the anime, the Meklord Emperor was a single assembled unit with five separate components. What Prayano was running was different: a standalone Meklord Emperor card. The deployment conditions and Synchro-killer effect, however, appeared unchanged.
"I then activate Meklord's Creation's secondary effect."
[Discard 1 card from your hand, then target 1 monster you control and destroy it.]
"I discard a card from my hand and target my own Meklord Core: Infinity Nucleus for destruction!"
"Knew it! But I won't let you."
Destroying your own monster on the field was still a card effect that destroyed a field card. Rin had Synchro Summoned Stardust Dragon on her first turn precisely to prevent this moment.
"Stardust Dragon's effect!"
[When a card or effect that would destroy a card on the field is activated, you can Tribute this card to negate that activation and destroy it.]
"I Tribute Stardust Dragon and negate Meklord's Creation's destruction effect!"
Even an effect targeting the controller's own monster was within Stardust Dragon's interception range.
"Starlight Sanctuary!"
Stardust Dragon dissolved into radiant stardust on the field, the light enveloping Meklord's Creation before scattering it.
[Stardust Dragon: Tributed]
[Meklord's Creation: Negated and Destroyed]
Immediately after, Rin flipped one of her set cards. "And simultaneously, I activate Continuous Trap: Salvation Phantom!"
[Salvation Phantom]
[Continuous Trap Card: When a face-up "Stardust Blossom" or a Tuner monster whose text mentions that name leaves your field due to your card's effect, choose one of the following:
Gain that card's original effect, then Special Summon it.
Banish 1 monster from your opponent's field or GY.
Halve all damage you take this turn.]
"With Stardust Dragon gone through its own effect, I activate Salvation Phantom! I choose: all damage I take this turn is halved!"
As the residual stardust of the departed dragon drifted down through the air and settled in Rin's white hair, the scattered guardian light wrapped itself around the slender duelist.
With her field empty but the damage-halving protection active, even if Prayano Summoned additional monsters, his ability to deal decisive damage was severely blunted.
"More capable than I expected, Synchro Academy's top rank." A moment's pause under the grey hood. "But this is as far as your plan goes."
Before anyone could respond, Prayano accessed the hidden field card zone on his Duel Disk and placed a card into it.
"Field Spell: Mobile Fortress - Fortissimo!"
The iron form of a fortress loaded with mechanical components materialized and rose to replace the Gold Stage's duel scenery with a mechanical stronghold.
[Mobile Fortress - Fortissimo]
[Field Spell Card: Once per turn, Special Summon 1 "Meklord Soldier" monster from your hand to your field.]
"From my hand, I Special Summon Meklord Soldier Factory - Accessory in Attack Position!"
[Meklord Soldier Factory - Accessory]
[Level 4]
[Machine / Effect]
[ATK: 1200 / DEF: 1800]
A humanoid mechanical soldier was assembled out of the fortress's robotic arms and parts, forming itself piece by piece before stepping onto Prayano's field.
Rin's eyes lit up. "Even the Meklord Soldier variants are designs that never appeared in the anime. This is genuinely broadening my perspective today!"
"Stop enjoying it and start worrying, Rin Seiya! I activate Meklord Soldier Factory - Accessory's effect!"
[During your Main Phase: Destroy this card, then Special Summon 2 "Meklord Soldier" monsters from your Deck, except "Meklord Soldier Factory - Accessory," in Defense Position.]
"I destroy it to Special Summon Meklord Soldier - Wisel Type 1 and Meklord Soldier - Grannel Type 1 from my Deck in Defense Position!"
The freshly assembled mechanical parts detonated and scattered, instantly recombining into two new Meklord Soldier forms on the field.
[Meklord Soldier - Wisel Type 1]
[Level 4 / DARK]
[Machine / Effect]
[ATK: 1800 / DEF: 0]
[Meklord Soldier - Grannel Type 1]
[Level 4 / WIND]
[Machine / Effect]
[ATK: 1600 / DEF: 1200]
A compact intelligence-type unit and a ground-type unit assembled themselves into position. Larger mechanical components began assembling overhead.
At the same moment, Prayano revealed the card in his hand and activated its effect.
"Because Meklord Soldier Factory - Accessory was destroyed by its own effect, Meklord Emperor Wisel Infinity in my hand activates!"
[When a face-up monster you control is destroyed by a card effect and sent to the GY, you can Special Summon this card from your hand.]
"Unify the Meklord components, assemble the law of infinity to overwhelm fragile Synchro light!"
Steel tore the sky apart. Like the five limbs of the Forbidden One assembling themselves into a whole, the Meklord Emperor too was a machine assembled from its head, arms, and legs.
"Special Summon! Meklord Emperor Wisel Infinity!"
[Meklord Emperor Wisel Infinity]
[Level 10 / DARK]
[Machine / Special Summon / Effect]
[ATK: 2500 / DEF: 2500]
The Synchro Killer had arrived.
The instant the Meklord Emperor appeared on the field, every member of Synchro Academy watching from the stands went rigid.
The image of Wisel tearing through the Silver Stage guardian was still too fresh.
As a Synchro Killer, Meklord Emperor Wisel Infinity's signature effect was unchanged from the anime: it could equip Synchro Monsters directly from the opponent's field.
[Once per turn: Target 1 Synchro Monster your opponent controls and equip it to this card. This card gains ATK equal to the equipped monster's ATK. Other monsters you control cannot declare attacks.]
If a high-ATK Synchro Monster got absorbed, the resulting power swing would be instant death.
But the observers on the Synchro Academy side quickly noticed something.
Rin Seiya had no Synchro Monsters on her field.
Stardust Dragon had sacrificed itself earlier. The Synchro Killer could not equip what was not there to equip. Even a direct attack would be halved by Salvation Phantom, cutting Wisel's twenty-five hundred ATK to a manageable hit.
"That's the strategy," Sakuya said, the realization landing clearly. "That's so clever."
If only that were enough to end it there.
Amano could not see Prayano's expression beneath the grey hood. But something about the way the challenger stood suggested there was more coming.
A cold laugh drifted from under the cloak. "Now I combine the full force of the Meklords into something greater."
Prayano slammed a card from his hand down onto the monster zone.
"When I have three or more Meklord monsters on my field, I can Special Summon Meklord God Dragon - Starmark from my hand!"
The three Meklords on the field broke themselves apart completely, their mechanical components scattering and fusing overhead into the frame of an enormous mechanical dragon.
[Meklord God Dragon - Starmark]
[Level 10 / DARK]
[Machine / Special Summon / Effect]
[ATK: 0 / DEF: 0]
"When Meklord God Dragon - Starmark is Special Summoned, I can target any number of 'Meklord' monsters I control and send them to the GY. This card gains ATK equal to their combined original ATK!"
Meklord Emperor Wisel Infinity, Meklord Soldier - Wisel Type 1, and Meklord Soldier - Grannel Type 1 all dissolved into the dragon's hull.
[Meklord God Dragon - Starmark] [ATK: 2500 + 1800 + 1600 = 5900]
"That's a hundred short of two Blue-Eyes White Dragons combined!" Rin blinked. "I thought you'd open with a grunt unit. I didn't expect you to have a late-game boss card this early."
Per the 5D's storyline Rin knew, the first Undead units to appear were supposed to be the mass-produced weaker variants. Prayano had instead opened directly with what functioned as a final boss card.
"Real life and the anime do diverge. I'll have to take this seriously!"
Between Salvation Phantom's damage halving and the incoming hit, Rin would at least not be one-shot by a stat value that approached two Blue-Eyes White Dragons stacked together.
"Regret not taking this seriously from the beginning when you lose!"
With Meklord God Dragon - Starmark assembled, Prayano threw down a second monster card.
"I banish Meklord Emperor Wisel Infinity, Meklord Soldier - Wisel Type 1, and Meklord Soldier - Grannel Type 1 from my GY! From my hand, I Special Summon Meklord God Dragon - Triple Branch!"
[Meklord God Dragon - Triple Branch]
[Level 10 / DARK]
[Machine / Special Summon / Effect]
[ATK: 3000 / DEF: 0]
The Meklord debris from the Graveyard had been recycled into a second mechanical dragon, this one bearing three serpentine heads.
Rin squinted. "Same three-headed design as Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, but the ATK is only Blue-Eyes White Dragon level. One card, two Blue-Eyes disrespects."
Shio's voice tightened from beside Amano: "This isn't the time for Blue-Eyes jokes! Their combined ATK is already beyond what the damage halving can handle!"
She was right. The combined field ATK was now eight thousand nine hundred. Past the threshold where Salvation Phantom's halving kept Rin alive.
"Battle! Machine God Dragons, advance!"
Prayano swept his arm forward. Both mechanical dragons charged simultaneously, amassing destructive mechanical light.
"Rin Seiya, in the light of the Meklord's infinite law, vanish alongside your Synchro Summons! Direct attack: Meklord God Dragon - Triple Branch! And at the moment of attack declaration, I activate its effect!"
[Once per turn during this card's attack declaration: Look at your opponent's Extra Deck and equip 1 monster from it to this card as an Equip Card. This card gains ATK equal to the equipped monster's ATK. If this card has a Synchro Monster equipped, it can attack monsters up to 3 times per Battle Phase.]
"Meklord Absorption!"
A scanning beam from the three-headed dragon swept Rin Seiya's Extra Deck, displaying every undeployed Synchro Monster within.
"There it is, your ace card, Rin Seiya. I use Meklord God Dragon - Triple Branch's effect to equip your Shooting Star Dragon from your Extra Deck!"
Even without a single Synchro Monster on the field, the Synchro Killer had reached directly into the Extra Deck and stolen Rin's signature monster anyway.
[Meklord God Dragon - Triple Branch] [ATK: 3000 + 3300 = 6300]
The two Meklord God Dragons now stood at fifty-nine hundred and sixty-three hundred ATK respectively.
"How does their back-row first turn compare to Kaiba yesterday?" Kikawayu asked.
Amano shook his head. "Yesterday's would have been stronger if Chiaki had landed the Fusion Release on True Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon. Total ATK alone puts yesterday ahead."
Not that the distinction mattered right now. With an empty field and no way to generate twelve thousand-plus ATK worth of blocking power, Salvation Phantom's halving alone was not going to keep Rin standing.
"Just one more halving then!" Rin swung her arm and flipped the second set card, bracing against the three-headed dragon's triple mechanical beam.
"Trap Card: Damage Diet! All damage I take this turn is halved!"
This turn, Salvation Phantom had already halved damage once. Stacked with Damage Diet's second halving, every hit would land at one quarter of its original value.
Rin LP: 4000
Triple Branch direct attack: 6300 damage, quartered to 1575.
Rin LP: 4000 to 2425
Starmark direct attack: 5900 damage, quartered to 1475.
Rin LP: 2425 to 950
Both mechanical dragons' beams scattered off Rin's defensive layers. She stood her ground.
"You used my own Shooting Star Dragon to try and kill me. I refuse to let that happen."
"Ugh, she's barely alive!" Director Leiden's voice had dropped to something close to a whisper when Prayano's combined ATK crossed twelve thousand. "Hold on, Rin-kun! Please hold on!"
The sun was almost below the horizon now. This duel, at this hour, was genuinely the final act of the Academy Challenge Tournament. Win here and Synchro Academy's stages would hold.
"Continue the direct attack! Meklord God Dragon - Starmark!"
The star-shaped mechanical dragon head discharged another burst of shattering starlight at the open field. Five thousand nine hundred damage, quartered down to one thousand four hundred seventy-five.
Rin LP: 950
She absorbed the hit without moving. Even at one quarter damage, the total had pushed her into triple digits. Without the layered halving, she would have been devastated several times over.
"I Set one card and end my turn. And at the End Phase, Meklord Soldier Factory - Accessory's Graveyard effect activates!"
[When this card is sent to the GY: At the End Phase of that turn, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the number of Meklord monsters you control multiplied by 100.]
"With two Meklord God Dragons and Meklord Core: Infinity Nucleus on my field, you take 300 damage!"
Because Salvation Phantom and Damage Diet were both still active, the effect damage this turn was also quartered. 300 reduced to 75.
Rin LP: 950 to 875
"And at the End Phase," Rin responded immediately, "Stardust Dragon's Graveyard effect activates."
[During the End Phase of the turn this card's effect was used, if it was Tributed for that effect, Special Summon it from the GY.]
"Return to my field: Stardust Dragon!"
[Stardust Dragon] [ATK: 2500]
The scattered stardust from earlier in the turn reversed course, the star particles streaming back together and reforming the white dragon above Rin's field.
"And in response," Prayano said evenly, "Meklord God Dragon - Starmark's effect."
[When a Synchro Monster is Special Summoned to either side of the field, inflict 1000 damage to the controller of that Synchro Monster.]
The Synchro Killer's anti-Synchro passive fired one final time, targeting the player who had just Summoned.
One thousand damage. At one quarter: two hundred fifty.
Rin LP: 875 to 625
A single round had poured an original thirteen thousand five hundred points of damage into Rin Seiya. After all reductions, she had absorbed three thousand three hundred seventy-five points. Life Points reduced to three digits.
She was still standing.
"But senpai can't Synchro anymore!" Sakuya suddenly caught something critical. "If she Synchro Summons, Starmark triggers for another thousand damage! And she only has 625 left!"
Six hundred twenty-five life points. Meklord God Dragon - Starmark's passive would deal exactly one thousand the moment any Synchro Monster hit the field. One Synchro Summon would mean certain death.
"Not quite," Amano said quietly. "She has one."
Damage Diet still had a Graveyard effect: banish it from the GY to halve all effect damage this turn. One thousand halved was five hundred. Five hundred was less than six hundred twenty-five.
One safe Synchro Summon remained.
Sakuya's expression shifted slightly. "Only one chance."
One Synchro Summon against two Meklord God Dragons sitting at fifty-nine hundred and sixty-three hundred ATK. The odds were oppressive.
"One is enough!"
Rin Seiya's expression didn't waver. The confidence behind it was absolute.
"I'll break through with a single Synchro Summon, Undead!"
"My turn! DRAW!"
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