Aarikku
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Chapter 6 - The Fated GameChapter Six
“See ya!” Leric waved to the departing group.
“Later.” Luke did a sort-of salute wave back. “Well, that was awesome.”
“You did pretty well, too.” Tyson congratulated. “I mean, you were against a card game program, so I didn’t really expect you to win. But yeah, nice job.”
“Er… thanks?” Luke scratched his head.
“Okay, guys.” Martin clapped his hands. “It’s just about time for our lunch break. This is a big company, so there’s a Subway right in the place.”
“Snap.” Said Kevin.
“Ooh, I have to meet Ace once I get a sub!” Tyson remembered. “He thinks he can help me get Omega Ninth Dragon to not kill me.” He explained to Kyle, Kevin and Linlan (who weren’t in Ace’s studio at the time)
“Really? Sweet!” Kyle high-fived him. “I’m gonna have to find a way to boost Ultimate Element some more.”
“Ah, so it was you.” Someone said.
“What’s that mean, Kevin?” Tyson asked.
“Wasn’t me.” Kevin pointed to a figure emerging from the shadows, who Zywen and Ferali recognized as Johnny.
“That guy!” They said together.
“Yo.” Johnny waved. “I’m Johnny. I want to play you.” He said to Tyson.
“Y’know,” Kyle said to Linlan. “Just once, I’d like someone to stage a ridiculously intricate plan to play a card game against me.”
“Do we have time?” Tyson asked Martin.
“No, but that hasn’t stopped you so far.” Martin shook his head. “Go for it.”
“It’ll be a quick one.” Johnny activated his S-R. “You can have the first move.”
“Gladly.” Tyson looked over his holographic hand. “So… why did you want to battle me specifically?”
“I’ve played hundreds of people – entered dozens of tournaments, ranging from locals to nationals. I haven’t yet had one satisfying game. A man needs a challenge. Anyone who takes Noble Dragon seriously enough to have and use Omega Ninth Dragon should be able to put up a fight against its arch-enemy.” Johnny replied. “Now, get on with it.”
“If you insist.” Tyson nodded. Noble Dragon’s arch-enemy? This is gonna be awesome! “I’ll charge Burning Tiger, and tap it to play Ruby Dragon!” A slightly disproportionate statue of Noble Dragon appeared. “It’s in defence mode, as Statues normally are.”
“Of course.” Johnny drew. “I’ll charge Cloudrunner, and tap it for Cloud Eagle!” In a burst of feathers, there appeared a large, brown bird. “I’ll waste no time in this game. Cloud Eagle – attack!” The bird dive-bombed Tyson’s statue, shattering it. In its place, a baby Noble Dragon appeared.
“Not a wise move, Johnny. Y’see, when Ruby Dragon’s destroyed, I can play Heir Dragonling – or any other Level One Fire card with 1000 STK or less – straight to the field.”
Johnny shrugged. “The game wouldn’t be worth it if you didn’t play Noble Dragon. Go.”
“I shall.” Tyson drew, but hardly looked at the extra card. “I’ll sacrifice Heir Dragonling in order to activate its effect – letting me play Noble Dragon for free!” A blaze of fire surrounded the small dragon, as it grew into a fiercer beast.
“Second turn. Nice.” Linlan commented.
“Yeah, but Johnny played right into that.” Kyle noted. “If he cares that much about Noble Dragon, he’d certainly know the Second Turn Noble Dragon gambit.”
“First point, me!” Tyson declared. “Noble Dragon! Gold Blaze!” The orange dragon flapped its wings, and released a blast of fire at the bird. “Extra crispy. It’s finger-lickin’ good.” (Johnny: 9)
“Hm.” Johnny began his turn. “I’ll charge Genie of Stormwinds. Next, I tap one Storm Mana for Typhoon Dragonfly, and the second for Scarred Serpent - both on offence.” A large, white dragonfly and a purple snake appeared.
“Ah…” Kyle said knowingly, as the dragonfly flapped its wings and released a blast of wind. Noble Dragon was blown backwards, and transformed back into a card.
“What happened?” Tyson demanded.
“Dragonflies are one of the centerpieces of my deck. As long as Typhoon Dragonfly’s on my side of the field, I can send an opponent to its owner’s hand whenever I play a Storm fighter.” Johnny explained. “Now! Serpent; attack!” The snake leapt into the air (somehow) and struck Tyson. (Tyson: 9) “Dragonfly!” The insect flapped its wings again, and a small twister blasted Tyson. (Tyson: 8)
“So… he let Tyson play Noble Dragon just to send it back to his hand?” Linlan wondered.
“Free two damage.” Kyle observed.
Tyson drew. “I charge Dragon’s Fury, and tap all three for Noble Dragon again!” Tyson’s star fighter appeared in another fiery blaze, roaring angrily. “You’re making him angry.” Tyson’s eyes narrowed. “You won’t like him when he’s angry. Attack Typhoon Dragonfly!” A giant fireball incinerated the insect. “You won’t be typhooning anything anymore.”
“True.” Johnny drew. “I charge Banyo Dragon, and tap three for Azure Lion and Diamond Chimera on defence.” A blue lion and a translucent statue both appeared. “I’ll also switch Scarred Serpent to Guard.”
“That statue…” Tyson stared at the chimera. “It’s a lion with a snake and bird head? Weird.” He began his turn. “Sweet – I tap two for Bounteous Dragon.” Tyson poked the holograms and the greedy serpent burst from a larger image of its card and began circling Tyson’s field in the air. Hmm… Tyson looked at Johnny’s field. Diamond Chimera’s the same as Ruby Dragon. So I don’t want to attack it. He poked some holograms over the S-R, and eventually the text of Scarred Serpent appeared. Ah. So it takes two attacks to destroy a Feral Soul.
“Is Tyson strategizing again?” Luke asked.
“Looks like it.” Kyle observed.
And Azure Lion’s a Feral Soul! So that’s his plan. Tyson finished his strategy. “I attack Scarred Serpent with Noble Dragon!” Noble Dragon flew into the air and released another fireball of ridiculous proportions. It engulfed the snake, and when the smoke cleared… “It’s still there?”
“Of course it’s still there!” Kyle and Kevin yelled from the sidelines.
Johnny sighed. “Scarred Serpent is also a Feral Soul.”
“I forgot to check its category.” Tyson admitted. “Ah well, no harm, no foul. Bounteous Dragon!” He commanded, and a second smaller fireball finally destroyed Johnny’s snake. “And an extra draw. That’s all for me.”
Johnny drew, now seeming far less excited. “I’ll tap one for Replenish.” A short animation of R-1 being recharged appeared in front of him. “I’ll set a card. Your go.”
“That’s pretty boring.” Tyson said. “I’ll attack Azure Lion with Bounteous Dragon!” The serpentine dragon let loose a stream of fire, and Johnny’s beast was destroyed. “Letting me draw a card, of course. Next, Noble Dragon! Attack that statue!” A huge fireball shattered the crystal beast.
“By doing so, you let me play another Diamond Chimera.” Johnny explained, poking some holograms. The pieces of the first Diamond Chimera faded, and another took its place.
Aw, man. This is gonna take forever. Tyson sighed. “Go.”
“You’ve got your dragon; it’s time to invite the Chimera.” Johnny drew. “I activate the effect of Scarred Serpent!”
“What Scarred Serpent?”
“The one in my Graveyard. By Vanishing it, Azure Lion and Cloud Eagle, I can play Chimera of Fate directly from my deck.” Faded spirits of the three fighters rose from the ground in front of Johnny, and twisted in midair. From the foggy chaos leapt a winged, blue lion with two additional heads – one a purple serpent and the other a white bird. (3500 STK)
“Oh geez.” Tyson gulped.
“Chimera of Fate!” Johnny commanded. “Attack Bounteous Dragon!” The beast roared and leapt at the winding serpent. It landed on the other side of the dragon, and Bounteous Dragon disappeared. (Tyson: 7)
“No problem.” Tyson scanned his hand. Bounteous Dragon left me with a few extra cards. Time to put them to good use. “First, I charge Burning Tiger. Next, I’ll tap two for Cave Nest, letting me search Noble Dragon to my hand.”
“With two Mana left…” Johnny began.
“I’ll have to use Heir Dragonling.” Tyson finished, as the baby Noble Dragon hopped from its card. It was instantly replaced with its larger form. “Two Noble Dragons versus one Chimera. But I can get better odds. I tap my last Mana for Demon Mountain!” The walls and floor were replaced with a brimstone cavern. Smoke and lava erupted randomly from afar – farther than the walls seemed to formerly go.
“Poke, poke.” Kyle said quietly, testing the walls. They still existed, albeit invisibly.
“It doesn’t just make the walls invisible – it also increases the STK of both Noble Dragons by 500.” Tyson explained. “Noble Dragon number one! Attack!” The ferocity of the dragon’s eyes was very evident. It roared furiously as wild flames erupted from its jowls.
“Think again.” Johnny countered. “Go, Cancel Attack!” The flames wrapped around an invisible barrier, much to the dragons’ dismay.
“Next turn, then.” Tyson shrugged.
“Bah.” Johnny drew, but already had what he needed. “I tap one for Armour of Lightning!” The chimera leapt into the air. Steel appeared on its head(s), torso, limbs, wings and tail. “Normally, it only increases a Storm fighter’s STK and GRD by 500. But on certain fighters, it can Transform them. Behold – Lightning-Armoured Chimera!” The creature landed, and roared. Lightning split the sky.
“4000 STK.” Tyson observed. “Same as Noble Dragon, and I’ve got two.”
“You always read the wrong part of the card, don’t you? I scrap Gale Dragonfly to activate the effect of Lightning-Armoured Chimera, allowing it to destroy a Spell or Trap card. Namely, Demon Mountain.” The chimera released an explosion of lightning from its wings, and the mountain shimmered out of existence. “I’ll also play Sar-Chasm.” Johnny decided, and Lightning-Armoured Chimera struck the floor with its steel claws, sending a deep crevice along the floor. One of the Noble Dragons fell down the fissure.
“You fool! You can fly!” Tyson called down to it. “You can fly!”
“Chimera – attack your enemy.” Johnny ordered, as the chasm faded. The overworked creature flapped its wings and a billion volts of electricity arced through the sky, striking down the second Noble Dragon. (Tyson: 6)
“This is bad.” Tyson observed. “I tap one for Banyo Dragon, on defence.” He decided quickly. Whoa, wait. I have Re-Fusion in here. All it would take is a Hell Mulligan and Noble Dragon to play Sigma Dragon. Hell Mulligan I have. “That’s all.” And next turn, I’ve got a surprise.
“It’s been a nice game. I tap one for Cloudrunner.” The white dragon appeared, snapping its jaws.
“How are you going to deal six damage with two fighters?” Tyson asked.
“It’ll be six damage with one fighter. I’ll scrap Banyo Dragon to activate the second effect of Lightning-Armoured Chimera, granting it an additional attack. Now – Cloudrunner! Destroy Banyo Dragon.” A clawing match between the two dragons left only Cloudrunner.
“I still don’t see how two equals six.” Tyson noted.
“That’s because you’re not a Storm player. We focus on strategy. Lightning-Armoured Chimera! Attack twice!” A burst of lightning struck Tyson, followed by a barrage of claws. (Tyson: 4) “Next, I play the Quickplay Spell – Downgrade. It lets me replace a Transformation fighter with what it Transformed from, for free.” The chimera shed its armour. “And that makes it a different fighter. Attack!” Chimera of Fate attacked with more lightning. (Tyson: 3) “Finally, I play Inverse Chimerism Potion. This lets me split Chimera of Fate into the three Feral Souls used to create it.” An entire eagle and snake flew out of the lion’s body.
No! Tyson stared at the oncoming creatures.
“Game.” Explained Johnny, as the eagle’s beak, lion’s claws and snake’s fangs reduced Tyson’s Life to 0. “I thought you’d be better than that.”
“No way.” Linlan said quietly.
“That… was the best move I’ve ever seen.” Kyle noted.
“Same here.” Kevin agreed, as he and Cassandra nodded sagely.
==
Tyson was silent for most of the walk to the lunch area, only speaking to order lunch from the mostly-empty indoor Subway.
“So you lost one game.” Kyle tried to console him. “Johnny just got lucky.”
“Just think,” Linlan also attempted. “After you talk to Ace, you’ll be able to Omega Ninth Dragon the crap out of him.”
“Only if I can play it! That game, I didn’t even summon Sigma Dragon.” Tyson pointed out. “How am I supposed to play Omega?”
“You’ve never had a problem playing Sigma Dragon before.” Said Luke. “Next time, you’re sure to get it.”
“Oi, Tyson!” Martin interjected. “You should get going to Ace. It’s just back the way you came, and if you get lost, ask Leric.”
“Okay.” Tyson sighed, and trudged away.
“You think his deck needs work?” Kyle wondered, after Tyson had gone. “He might be wasting space with Banyo Dragon and stuff.”
“It might work better if he made it purely Fire.” Linlan agreed.
==
Tyson stopped walking, and glanced around. This is right around Leric’s place… so I think I just keep going straight. He turned back the right way, and noticed Johnny going the opposite way. They walked slowly past each other, glaring. Johnny had the slightest smirk. Just you wait. Tyson thought. You ain’t seen nothing yet.
Card of the Chapter is Lightning-Armoured Chimera
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Naardaas
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"Did... he just lose?"
"Of course he lost moron, weren't you paying attention?"
Interesting. You actually had your incincible player lose. Good job.
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Aarikku
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Actually, Kyle technically had a better Win:Loss ratio after Shmod Saga 1, since he played more games than Tyson. But yeah, it always bugs me when the main character never loses. I mean, what's the motivation to get better?
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Naardaas
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Y'know, it was good and all, but now that I think about it this was pretty easy to anticipate. Although, that last move was epic. TYson not playing good cards when he had the chance = FAIL.
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Aarikku
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Eh, Tyson played fine. He was CLOSE to playing Sigma Dragon (and probably would've next turn), but he still needed a Noble Dragon to do it.
And besides, he didn't expect taking 6 damage from one monster.
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Naardaas
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Rule #1: Always assume your opponent can pull off an OTK unless you stop them. He played fine, but obviously not as well as Johnny.
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Aarikku
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...I know. I wrote it.
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Naardaas
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And I assume their next match will be less one-sided.
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Aarikku
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We shall see. I won't spoil too much, but the group's going to have their hands full with other matters shortly.
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Naardaas
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(Multiple Voices) Excellent.
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Naardaas
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Oh, one thing I've noticed in here just recently.
| Quote: | | “Y’know,” Kyle said to Linlan. “Just once, I’d like someone to stage a ridiculously intricate plan to play a card game against me.” |
What's so intricate about what Johnny did? He walked to the factory and challenged Tyson. He didn't orchestrate the Tournament or anything.
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Aarikku
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True, but he did a LOT of sneaking (you can't just waltz into a company), locked a guard out of the surveillance room and studied what Tyson said to figure out if he was the guy with the Noble Dragon. Not to mention that he did that because a fortune teller told him to. So he's been at this for a while.
Granted, Kyle didn't know about the surveillance room, but it's not supposed to be entirely serious.
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Naardaas
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I'll agree with that, but I'd hardly call that ridiculous.
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Aarikku
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It wasn't supposed to be a crucial plot point, y'know.
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Naardaas
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I'd hoped not. Making a main character a stalker is just... wierd.
Oh, and that's my way of dropping a topic.
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Aarikku
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Hmm... maybe I did make him a bit too stalker-ish. I'll have to work on that.
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Naardaas
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No, no... I like the stalker idea, actually. A few seconds after I said that I realized how hilarious you could make that.
"Hey, are you following me?"
"Well... kinda, yeah."
"Why?"
"To challenge you to a card game!"
"How does that make sense?"
*thinks* "...Shut up and just play me!"
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Aarikku
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Johnny's supposed to be the serious character, but you're right - that would've been good.
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Naardaas
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It's always good to experiment with character traits a little bit. Or at least it never hurts. And besides, even serious characters can have jokes about themselves.
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