Yu-Gi-Oh! DF Short #1 - Tucker vs. Robert the Athletics Duelist

Rather than continue the John v. Yugi duel, I want to start something new here, today. Oh, no Reaper yet this week, obviously.

Anyway.

I often have ideas for short stories and one-off duels, the likes of which would be filler in the anime, for example, which might have no consequences, or be super important, but that don't warrant their own books or specials. To test whether or not I want to continue this, I wrote this one, where Tucker happens to run into the sports Duelist that he fought in the Book One chapter A Night In Egypt, and they have a rematch where his opponent uses some really cool newer cards. I enjoyed it, so expect more shorts like this in the future.

Rematch of...the Last Ten and a Half Minutes or So;
The Street Fighter and the Athlete

My name is Tucker. Well, that's my last name. My first name is...actually, let's not talk about that. My dad gave me my first name. I guess he technically gave me my last name, too, but it was my mom's last name while she was...

I'm rambling, aren't I?

Either way, you can call me Tucker. I'm tall, like six foot four or something, with hair that's fiery red and sits up in spikes. I have green eyes and freckles. My really good friend Sarah says I'm ginger, but I don't know why. Isn't ginger a spice?

But anyway, I'm all those things, and I also like to help people (I wasn't always that way, but that's another story), I'm not too school smart (I had to ask Sarah to proofread this for me), and I really like fire. I carry a lighter, and I just respect the power of the flames, ya know? And that's really me in a nutshell.

Oh, I'm also a Duelist. That means I play Duel Monsters. I'm not really pro or anything, but I guess since I came back from school full time now to attend a local annex instead, I'm a fully fledged member of Sarah's team, the Duel Force. I compete alongside them in regular matches and Team Duel matches, and I have friends in the team. Sarah is my all time best friend aside from her brother, even if she does poke fun at me all the time, and this cute, sarcastic girl with icy blue hair that I rescued a while back, Frost, hangs out with the team a lot and is an unofficial member too.

Actually, Frost is pretty important to this story. She was with me when it happened. She'd asked me to go with her to the mall and to a movie, and since she's, like, a bud to me now, and since she doesn't have anybody, I said I'd go with her obviously. We'd been hanging out like this for weeks now. The movie had ended (I convinced her to see an action movie, score!), and we were walking around. Frost seemed a little annoyed, but I couldn't really tell for sure, so I just kept talking.

“And then,” I said, making broad hand motions to compliment my words, “Sarah does this thing where she hides one of her monsters so deep under water that when 'Levia Dragon' used its effect, the other monster survived, too. She was able to attack with both and win with only one turn to go.”

“Sounds intense,” Frost replied in a monotone, looking around glassy-eyed at the kiosks in the mall center.

“It really was,” I replied, smiling wide. “It was brilliant! It could have beaten any of the moves in my deck.”

“Yeah,” Frost replied, but I got a feeling that she wasn't really listening anymore.

“Hey,” I asked her, “are you okay?”

She sighed, “Yeah, I guess I just had a different idea about how this was gonna go.”

“I'm sorry,” I told her, “I didn't realize that you wanted to see that other movie so much. My bad. We'll go some other time.”

“That's not it-,” she began, but she was interrupted by an obnoxious voice from across the mostly-open floor.

“Hey,” the voice announced, “I know you! Fire Duelist!”

I looked over at the speaker, a well-muscled guy wearing a cap and baseball shirt, confused, “I...don't know you, random baseball fan guy.”

“Yes you do,” the guy said, walking toward me, huffing and puffing, “we met in Egypt. I was dueling there for money, and you beat me and took the prize that I was using to lure opponents! My manager dropped me! He was a lousy manager, but he was all I had. I would be a Pro Duelist by now if you'd just lost like you were supposed to.”

I thought about it for a second, “Yeah, I still can't remember you. Are you sure we met?”

“My name's Robert!” the guy exclaimed. “I used a football deck that could attack and defend at once.”

I though about it again, “No, still nothing.”

Robert practically roared, “That's it! Rematch, now!”

I was tempted. I love to duel, and I figured that dueling this guy might jog my memory (jog is the word, right?), but Frost had a different idea.

“No way muscle head,” she said, stepping up between Robert and me, but that's when Robert did something dumb: he pushed her. He didn't push her down or anything, he just pushed her away, hard enough that she stumbled and had to catch herself.

“Never mind,” she said, “Paul, kick his butt.”

And now I guess you guys know my first name. Oh well.

“Frost,” I whined, “call me Tucker in front of opponents, okay?”

I turned to Robert and stepped up to face him, “Okay, you're on. We'll play a full eight thousand Life Point game, okay.”

“Whatever you want,” Robert said, activating the duel disk that he wore on his left wrist, just as I activated mine, “it won't really matter. My new deck is uber powerful. It can't lose to the deck of some common Duelist.”

“Too bad for you,” I told him, smirking, “that I'm anything but common.”

I drew my opening hand of six cards, “I'll start us off. I set one monster and two cards.”

“Is that all?” Robert asked, seriously. Then he laughed, “If your moves are going to be that weak, then this will be easier than I thought! I draw,” he pulled his sixth card from his deck, “and I summon my 'Coach Goblin'.”

A wrinkly, elderly goblin with a sweat towel draped over his shoulder appeared at my opponent's side. It blew a whistle that it wore around it's neck, and Robert revealed a monster from his hand.

“I return 'Mega Thunderball',” Robert explained, “to the bottom of my deck,” he placed the card beneath the deck in his deck loader, “to draw one card.”

Robert drew again, and the smirk that he'd been wearing since the start of his turn widened, “Excellent. 'Coach Goblin', attack the set monster!”

The goblin rushed forward toward my hidden monster, his fist raised. My monster revealed itself as a turtle with a UFO for a shell, my 'UFO Turtle' (DEF: 1200). 'Coach Goblin' (ATK: 1200) struck with all of his strength, but his attack was deflected, causing no damage to my monster, or to either payer.

“Sorry,” I said, “but it looks like our monsters are equal, at least for now. Geez, your deck sure is “uber” powerful.”

I chuckled, but my opponent just looked mad. I raised an eyebrow, “Oh come on, man, lighten up!”

I drew a card to begin my second turn, “I change 'UFO Turtle' to attack mode, and I destroy the 'Coach Goblin'.”

My monster fired lasers from the UFO on its back, and the 'Coach Goblin' was vaporized. Robert lost life (8000 → 7800), I had a monster with a strong effect on the field, and I had a tough new Trap card face-down, along with a reliable classic card. I felt really good about my chances. That is, until my opponent began his next turn.

Robert laughed, “Is that really all? You aren't even going to summon anything else? Okay then, I win!”

He drew again, “Activate 'Terraforming'! I add the Field Spell card 'U.A. Stadium' to my hand. And I play it!”

By now a pretty decently-sized crowd of onlookers had gathered to watch the duel in the middle of the mall. All around them, and me and Frost and Robert, the scene changed to resemble a futuristic-looking baseball stadium. I looked around. I'd never seen this card before. It looked cool.

“Next,” Robert said, “I summon 'U.A. Midfielder'.”

A ball player in futuristic armor and a cool high tech helmet with a built in computer display appeared between my 'Turtle' and my opponent. It was a tough-looking monster that looked like it belonged in the arena that had become the site of our battle. Still, my 'Turtle' could handle it. Little did I know, though, that Robert was far from done.

“Because I Normal Summoned a 'U.A.' monster,” Robert declared, “my Field card allows me to search my deck for a 'U.A.' monster, like 'U.A. Mighty Slugger'! And I return 'Midfielder' to my hand to summon 'Slugger'!”

The first monster was replaced by a similarly-armored monster carrying a laser bat (ATK: 2300).

“When a 'U.A.' monster is special summoned,” Robert explained, “it gains five hundred Attack! And I equip is with 'U.A. Powered Jersey'!”

Wait a minute, I though suddenly, I do know these cards. I saw some of them online recently. They're new, and if I remember the effects of the monster and that Spell card right, I might lose this turn!

“Reveal,” I began, but my opponent talked over me, declaring his attack. As his monster's armored baseball uniform was replaced by a strong set of power armor in the same color with holographic displays and the like all over it (ATK: 2300 → 2800 → 3800), it raised it's laser bat, charged up an energy ball, and slammed it at my monster, piercing all of the way through him, hitting me.

“My monster does double damage,” Robert explained, “when fighting a monster. And it gets to attack again!”

The 'Slugger' summoned up another energy ball and slammed it at me directly, but before it could hit, a monster appeared in the energy ball's way. He was muscular and bare-chested, with tattoos all over his body. He was destroyed as well.

“'UFO Turtle''s effect,” I explained, “Allows me to summon 'Flame Ruler'.”

“And it dies,” Robert exclaimed, “you take double damage again, and I win!”

“No,” I said simply, “you don't. I activated 'Damage Diet' to halve the damage that I took during the turn (8000 → 3300).”

“Impossible,” Robert said, arrogance permeating (is this right?) his voice, “when 'Slugger' attacks, you can't activate Traps.”

“Which is why,” I explained, “I activated it as we entered the Battle Phase, saving myself.”

Robert grumbled again, “Then I'll return, 'Slugger', and his 'Jersey', to my hand to summon a defensive monster, my 'U.A. Perfect Ace', in defense mode. My monster can negate one card effect during each of your turns at the cost of one card from my hand.”

His monster appeared, a pitcher this time (DEF: 2500).

“Wow,” I told Richard, “thanks for the heads up about your guy's effect. Now that I know, I'll activate my other face-down card at the End Phase when it's still your turn. Reveal 'Call of the Haunted'! I revive 'Flame Ruler', a monster who can act as both tributed for the tribute summon of a Fire monster.”

The tattooed man appeared again as I drew, and then he disappeared.

“I tribute the 'Flame Ruler',” I declared, a huge bronze dragon with ragged wings and a jewel in its head appeared behind me with a roar, “to summon 'Tyrant Dragon'!”

Robert looked concerned for a moment, but then he recovered his resolve and shot me another confident smile, “I'll admit, I didn't expect you to have such a tough card, but it won't matter. I'll put it down easy!”

“Maybe,” I told him, really enjoying myself, “but not before I put your 'Ace' down. Attack with 'Tyrant Burst'!”

The dragon (ATK: 2900) breathed a massive stream of flames down on the armored pitcher and burned him up in an instant.

“I'll hold the advantage,” I concluded, “by ending my turn with two more face-down cards.”

Robert laughed, “Do you really think that'll help? Don't you remember my monster's effect?”

“Of course I remember!” I replied indignantly (note from Sarah: he spelled that one way wrong).

“He probably didn't remember,” said Frost with disinterest, not even really watching the game.

I looked back at her and said, “You really aren't helping.”

“I really wasn't trying to.”

“I draw,” Robert said, annoyed that my attention was divided, “and I summon 'Midfielder' again, which allows me to search my deck again.”

The original monster reappeared, and the crowd around us, watching, cheered. They were getting fired up, and frankly so was I. This duel was really intense! Robert searched his deck for another monster as his 'Midfielder' waved happily at his new fans.

“I add 'U.A. Goalkeeper' to my hand,” Robert explained, “and then I return the 'Midfielder' to my hand to Special Summon 'U.A. Mighty Slugger'!”

Once again his monster was replaced by the batter in the high tech armored jersey (ATK: 2300 → 3800).

“Then I use a trick that I picked up from a friend,” I countered, “and activate 'Level Reduct' to tribute 'Tyrant Dragon' to summon 'Ryu-Ran' in defense mode, and I chain 'Fires of Life' to increase my Life Points by half of the tributed Fire monster's Defense.”

My 'Tyrant Dragon' disappeared with a roar, becoming a stream of shining flames that poured into me and strengthened me (3300 → 4550). Meanwhile my monster was replaced by a huge spotted egg with scaly legs and a scaly tale protruding from holes in the shell (DEF: 2600). Robert grumbled. He realized that I'd managed to survive for another turn.

“Attack him,” Robert commanded his monster. It hit two energy balls in my direction in succession, crushing my juvenile dragon, and then striking me directly (4550 → 750).

“I return 'Slugger' to my hand,” Robert concluded, his monster and the 'Jersey' disappearing from the field, replaced by another Ultra Athlete in much bulkier armor, “to summon 'U.A. Goalkeeper', in Defense (DEF: 2800), and that ends my turn.”

He pointed at me dramatically and shot me a wicked smirk, the same kind as he'd kept shooting me back in Egypt the last time that we'd fought, “Whatever you do, you won't be able to survive my next turn.”

“Yeah,” I said, smiling, “probably not. So I'll just beat you now, with a move that I adapted from my BFF john, mixed with a little classic Tucker!”

I drew, “But first I have to get the right stuff, and I think I just might. I set a card, and I play 'Card of Sanctity'! We both draw until we have six cards in our hands, but since your hand is full, you get nothin'!”

“That's because,” Robert goaded, “a truly skilled Duelist doesn't need to rely on crutch cards like that.”

“I'll show you who's a skilled Duelist,” I told him as I looked over the cards that I'd drawn. “I play my trump card, 'Incandescent Ordeal'! This allows me to tribute 'Sacrificial Fire' in my hand,” a small fiery bird appeared, and flared up, becoming a pillar of blue flames, “to Ritual Summon 'Legendary Flame Lord'!”

The pillar fell away, and a man in blue armor and a blue crown, a vest made of blue flames, and carrying a dagger and a staff, emerged (ATK: 2400).

“My monster,” I explained, “gathers enough energy to form a Spell Counter every time a Spell resolves, and when he had three, he can cast a spell to destroy every other monster on the field. I reveal 'Salamandra'!”

A fiery dragon appeared and flew into my monster's staff, and his fiery blue and crimson aura was supplemented with orange.

“I set another card,” I declared, “and then play 'Pot of Greed' to draw two, and 'Card Destruction' to destroy my hand of five, and draw five, and to destroy your painstakingly assembled hand, and force you to draw six new cards.”

“No!” Robert exclaimed. Reluctantly he tossed his hand and redrew it.

“That's three Spells,” I told my opponent, “so my monster casts his spell, Incinerating Inferno!”

My monster summoned up a huge torrent of flames and tossed them at the ground above which he floated. The flames washed over both monster zones, but when they faded, the 'Goalkeeper' was still alive, protected by a barrier which quickly faded away.

“I discard a card,” Robert explained, proudly, “to prevent my monster from being destroyed once this turn. Now you'll have to destroy him another way.”

“Thanks to 'Salamandra',” I told him, “my monster is strong enough to destroy him in the conventional way (ATK: 2400 → 3100).”

“But my Life will be safe,” Robert argued.

“Not,” I countered, “once I reveal my face down Spell card 'Rekindling', summoning all Pyro monsters from my Graveyard with two hundred Defense!”

Three pillars of flames rose up around my 'Flame Lord', and from them emerged 'Hazy Flame Hyppogrif', a beast made of flames with six eyes and six legs and a bird-like head and wings (ATK: 2200), and two hounds made of lava, copies of my 'Flamvel Firedog' (ATK: 1900 (each)).

“I remove 'Ryu-Ran' in my Graveyard from play,” I told my opponent, “to summon 'Spirit of the Flames', which gains Attack points during my turn (ATK: 2000),” a red devil, complete with horns, appeared beside my other monsters, “and I attack with them all.”

'Legendary Flame Lord' incinerated 'Goalkeeper' with his crimson fire, and the other four monsters surrounded him with flames, burning the rest of his Life Points away all at once. The remaining holograms faded as our Duel Disks shut down. The audience that had been watching us began to disperse.

“Arrrggh!” Robert cried, clenching his fists and trudging over to me. “You beat me again!” he exclaimed. “I failed to get my revenge!”

I laughed, “W-What revenge? It's a card game, and not even an official match or anything. What kind of revenge could you get by just beating me in a regular game?”

Robert looked confused, calming down, “Well, none I guess. Still, I wanted to beat you and prove that I shoulda won all those years ago.”

“Uh,” I told him, “I won that duel in Egypt. Beating me now wouldn't change that, since we had, like, different decks, and hands, and everything.”

Robert thought about it for a second, “Yeah, I guess you're right.”

“Listen, man,” I told Robert, “I'm sorry that I ended your tour with that scumbag manager back in Egypt, and I'm sorry I hit you in the face after, but losing, it's part of the nature of playing a game. I lose plenty of duels. I also win plenty of them. No one wins every game.”

I reached out my hand to Robert, “But I had fun fighting you today, and I'd be happy to fight again when you're in town. What do you say, can we put the past behind us and be rivals?”

Robert looked reluctant, but then he shrugged, kinda like “hey, why not”, and he took my hand and shook it. We've been rivals ever since, even if he does still take the game more seriously than me.

As Robert and I parted ways, I turned to Frost and said, “Did you see that finish! It was epic!”

“Yeah,” she said, smiling a bit again, finally, “you were relatively impressive I guess. Still, it shouldn't have been so close there at the...hey, what are you doing?”

I held up my phone and showed her the outgoing call screen with a really angry-looking Sarah on it, “I'm calling Sarah to tell her about the duel!”

Frost left me at the mall after that. I don't know why.