Things heat up even further, and it seems like, just maybe, these two are more equal footing than one might expect.
Duel Three
Judai Yuki (Season One)
vs.
Judai Yuki (Season Four)
"This duel is as good as over," Judai told his younger counterpart. "I summon 'Sangan', and 'Neos Wiseman' attacks with Ultimate Nova!"
Judai's newest monster, the three-eyed fuzz ball 'Sangan' appeared in defense mode. Once again, 'Neos Wiseman' released a wave of destructive light, and this time the younger Judai had no defense. 'Bladedge' was overtaken by the attack, which vaporized him and continued through, hitting the younger Judai full force. He braced himself against the force of the attack (7500 -> 4500).
Meanwhile Judai recovered many of the Life Points that he had sacrificed (2900 -> 4700), evening things out.
"One face-down card," Judai concluded. "Recover from that."
"Alright," the younger Judai replied happily, causing his older self to cringe at the sheer optimism. "Should be fun."
He drew, "I summon 'Elemental Hero Sparkman' in attack mode!"
The yellow and blue electrical warrior appeared at the younger Judai's side, sparks running up and down his arms (ATK: 1600).
"Next up," young Judai declared, "I play another 'Polymerization', fusing the Elemental Heroes 'Avian' and 'Burstinatrix' in my hand into my favorite hero," the feathered warrior 'Avian' and the red-suited female hero 'Burstinatrix' appeared and merged into a tall muscular warrior in a half green, half red full body suite with a single white-feathered wing, and a dragon head for a right hand, "'Elemental Hero Flame Wingman' (ATK: 2100)."
He selected another card from his hand, "Next I play 'Miracle Fusion'! I remove 'Sparkman' and 'Flame Wingman' from play to Fusion Summon my ultimate hero," the two monsters merged, and Judai braced himself for what he knew was coming. In the place of the two individual heroes, a new 'Flame Wingman' in shining silver armor appeared, striking a heroic pose. He had two wings, and rather than a dragon head, the new monster had two hands, with a yellow guard strapped to his right arm.
"Future me," young Judai announced, "I'm sure you remember 'Elemental Hero Shining Flare Wingman' (ATK: 2500). He has 'Flame Wingman''s power to inflict damage to my opponent equal to the attack of the monsters he destroys, as well as another super power, the power to absorb three hundred Attack from every Hero in my Graveyard!"
'Flare Wingman' began to shine with a bright light (ATK: 2500 -> 3400).
"Last time I checked," young Judai beamed, "that makes my monster stronger than yours."
He gestured, his expression filled with pride, "Attack, Shining Shoot!"
'Flare Wingman' rose high in the sky and became wreathed in light. Judai looked at a card in his hand, marveling at the fact that he would need its power twice in so many duels.
"You haven't beaten 'Neos' yet," Judai declared. "I send 'Honest' from my hand to the Graveyard to increase the power of 'Neos Wiseman' by an amount equal to your monster's Attack."
"Whoah," younger Judai exclaimed, "that is so cool!"
His monster glowed bright and dropped toward 'Neos'. 'Neos' folded his Yubel wings as he sprouted new, shining rainbow wings from his back and shot into the air to meet his attacker (3000 -> 6400).
The two monsters clashed in midair.
"Cool," young Judai said, a surprising confidence backing his words, "but not enough to beat us."
He selected another card from his hand, "I activate my 'Battle Fusion', increasing my monster's Attack by an amount equal to your monster's Attack."
Reckless! Judai thought. He's gonna knock us both out of the duel.
'Flare Wingman' destroyed 'Neos' in a burst of light (ATK: 3400 -> 9800).
"My monster inflicts battle damage, and then inflicts another sixty-four hundred damage via his super power," young Judai explained.
"And my monster's effect inflicts ninty-eight hundred damage to you," Judai countered, a gleam in his eye and a smirk on his face.
"Then I guess we both lose," young Judai said. As he spoke, 'Flare Wingman' landed in front of Judai, his light blasting Judai with battle damage (4700 -> 1300), and he raised his hand to strike the final blow.
"I guess so," Judai agreed, "that is unless I activate 'Effect Shut'. I win."
"No way," young Judai exclaimed as his 'Wingman' shattered into pixals, destroyed by Judai's Spell, "because I have 'Effect Shut' too! Both of our effects are negated, both of our monsters are destroyed, and in case you didn't notice, I have more Life Points, and more monsters. I win!"
But young Judai had no idea.
"Not to mention," young Judai announced, "that it's still my turn. 'Hero Teen' destroys 'Sangan', Hero Kick!"
The armored monster crushed the 'Sangan' under foot, leaving Judai defenseless.
"When 'Sangan' is destroyed," Judai explained, "I get to search my deck for a new monster."
"Line 'em up," young Judai taunted, "and I'll knock 'em down."
"Good luck," Judai told him as he chose his card.
"Thanks!" young Judai replied, completely missing the point. "You know, you do know your 'Necro Guardna''s effect, right? Well, anyway, another face-down, and its your move. Let's see what else I've got!"
"Be careful what you wish for," Judai replied. "I draw, and I get back in the game with 'Monster Reborn' to revive 'Elemental Hero Neos'!"
In a flash of light, the white warrior appeared again, the jewel in his chest gleaming as he settled into his place at Judai's side.
"You mentioned giving 'Neos' here the power to fuse with alien lifeforms to create new heroes," Judai told his opponent. "Well, I might as well show you that power once before I beat you. Meet one of the heroes of Neo Space, 'Neo-Spacian Dark Panther'!"
A black panther wearing a cape appeared at 'Neos'' side (ATK: 1000).
"Contact Fusion!" Judai declared, pointing at the sky. His monsters shot into the sky in the suggested direction, and in a flash, the two monsters merged together. The panther's claws became weapons attached to 'Neos'' arms, and his suit turned the black of the panther's fur. 'Neos' gained a helm in the shape of the panther's head, and the panther's cape became sweeping black wings. "Form 'Elemental Hero Dark Neos'!"
He chose another card from his hand, "Next let's take this to 'Neos'' home turf. I play the Field Spell card 'Neo Space', taking this fight to a galaxy where 'Neos' and every 'Neos' fusion gains five hundred Attack."
Young Judai watched as the sight of the battle changed. The river gave way to an expanse of space filled with bright, swirling nebulae as far as the eye could see. 'Dark Neos'' power grew (ATK: 2500 -> 3000).
At first Judai thought that his younger self was intimidated, that he was finally taking things seriously, but he was proven wrong momentarily.
"That," the younger Judai exclaimed, clenching his fist triumphantly, "was the most awesome thing I've ever seen!"
"Pretty soon it'll be the last thing you see."
"Cocky," the younger Judai replied, "aren't ya."
"For good reason," Judai told him. "'Neos' attacks with Wrath of the Black Neos!"
'Dark Neos' rose into the air, similar to 'Shining Flare Wingman' earlier, and he fell toward 'Hero Teen', slashing him apart with his claws (4500 -> 3200).
"I play 'Contact Out'," Judai declared, and 'Dark Neos' became a point of light from which the original 'Neos' and 'Dark Panther' emerged.
"'Neos' finally destroys your 'Clayman'," Judai declared, "and-."
"Hold up," the younger Judai interrupted, "you seem to have forgotten about my face-down. This time it is 'Clay Charge'!"
Judai frowned. He should have seen something like that coming, but he hadn't, and so he was forced to watch, helpless, as 'Clayman' charged at the attacking 'Neos'. Both monsters shattered, and Judai took another hit (1300 -> 800).
Well, Judai thought, it looks like I'm gonna need my back-up plan after all.
"I attack directly with 'Dark Panther'," Judai concluded, and the panther slashed the younger man (3200 -> 2200), "set a card, and end my turn. Good luck making a comeback with an empty hand."
"Thanks again," the younger Judai replied. "Man, maybe I misjudged you. If you keep wishing me good luck, then you can't be too bad.
"Anyway," he drew, "one card or one hundred, I'm not outta this yet. I set my newest card and end my turn."
Judai smiled, relieved, I'm not gonna need it after all. Still, it couldn't hurt to finish this with a bit of overkill. I don't want dreams like this to become a regular thing.
He eyes began to glow again, first gold and then green and orange, and Judai drew his card.
"I activate 'Graceful Charity' to draw three cards, and then discard two."
He drew, and sent two monsters, 'Elemental Hero Necroshade' and 'Cross Porter' from his hand to the Graveyard.
"Hey," the younger Judai said, scratching his head, "I just realized that you keep putting Dark monsters into your Graveyard. Why is that?"
"You're about to find out," Judai answered. "I remove seven Dark monsters in my Graveyard from play to summon one of the most powerful monsters ever, the 'Rainbow Dark Dragon'!"
The younger Judai watched in awe as a massive dark dragon appeared. It was serpentine, with jewels all down its sides. It spread its black-feathered wings and roared at the sky (ATK: 4000).
"But I'm just showing off," Judai told his younger self. "With what I just drew, I didn't need to summon 'Rainbow Dragon'. Because I have this. I reveal 'Call of the Haunted' to return 'Neos' to the field, and I play 'Polymerization', forming 'Rainbow Neos'."
The white hero appeared again, and merged with the dragon, becoming a winged 'Neos' in bejeweled white armor. He rose high into the air, basking in the light of 'Neo Space' (4500 -> 5000).
"'Call of the Haunted' remains on the field," Judai explained, "so I can send it to the Grave to return your set card to your deck. And I attack with Rainbow Flare Stream!"
'Rainbow Neos' released a multicolored burst if heat and light. Judai expected to see defeat in his opponent's eyes, but when he looked, he saw his younger self staring 'Neos' in the eye, smiling, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
As Judai watched, astonished, a brown ball of fur with white wings flew past the younger Judai and met the oncoming attack in a flash of light, absorbing it completely.
"'Winged Kuriboh'? But how?"
"Easy," the younger Judai answered. "My face-down was 'Flute of Summoning Kuriboh'. I activated it just as your effect activated, summoning 'Winged Kuriboh' from my deck. My Life Points are safe this turn!"
Judai was shocked at the sheer resourcefulness of his younger self, but he only hesitated for an instant.
"I change 'Dark Panther' to defense mode and end my turn."
"Alright!" the younger Judai exclaimed. He looked up at 'Rainbow Neos'. His eyes lit up as he pondered how he could defeat it. Judai could see his young counterpart shoot down one counterattack plan after another in his head, and each time his eyes got a little brighter. Suddenly Judai felt a twinge of nostalgia for the time when he could bring himself to feel that way.
Finally, after several minutes, the younger Judai said, "I can't think of anything. I guess I'll have to come up with something as I go.
"I draw," he looked at his newest card and smiled, "and I play my own 'Graceful Charity' to draw three cards, and discard 'Elemental Hero Wildheart' and 'Wroughtweiler'. Next I activate the card I kept, 'Fifth Hope'. I shuffle 'Wildheart', 'Avian', 'Burstinatrix', 'Bladedge', and 'Clayman' into my deck to draw three more cards."
Young Judai shuffled his deck, and his hand of zero cards became a hand of three.
"Something's been bothering me this whole game," the younger Judai confided in his older self. "Seeing you fight alongside 'Neos', the monster we created, I can't help but feel that I should be fighting by his side as well. Like, I should have always been fighting with him, you know? I bet that's how you felt when you got him. On that note, I think maybe, win or lose, I should have 'Neos' by my side as well. I summon the 'Elemental Hero Avian' that I just redrew in defense mode," the feathered warrior appeared, striking up a defensive stance.
"Next," the younger Judai continued, "I play 'Name of a Friend', a Spell that duplicates the form of any one monster in your Graveyard. The monster I choose is 'Elemental Hero Neos'."
As he spoke, the form of a white-suited man appeared at his side, looking up at his more powerful counterpart defiantly.
"It's like us," the younger Judai said. "I might be younger and less experienced than you, but just like my 'Neos' and yours, we're otherwise the same. The only real chance I have of winning is my desire to win. My desire to win that I have despite the fact that I'm having fun."
He took the final card from his hand, "I play 'Card of Sanctity'. We each have an empty hand, so we each draw six cards. This is all or nothing."
Both combatants drew their cards. The younger Judai seemed to be forming an idea. He looked over at 'Neos', who nodded down at him.
"Alright," the younger Judai said, "'Neos', I'm trusting you here."
He played a card, "I activate 'Creature Swap'. We each choose a monster to give to our opponent."
"I pick my 'Dark Panther'," Judai declared.
"And I pick 'Avian'," the other Judai declared. The two monsters switched places.
"Now," the younger Judai explained, "I control 'Neos' and a 'Neo-Spacian'."
"Don't tell me you're planning a Contact Fusion," Judai said.
"Nothing so simple," the other Judai replied. "I activate my last 'Polymerization', combining 'Neos' and 'Black Panther' on the field with 'Burstinatrix', 'Wildheart' and 'Bubbleman' in my hand."
The younger Judai's monsters appeared and merged together with 'Neos' in a flash of light. The light lingered, growing brighter as 'Neos' rose slowly into the sky, until 'Neos' was little more than a form of light in the shape of the white warrior. The light began to fade, revealing 'Neos'' new form underneath the glow. He was still 'Neos', but 'Neos' in golden armor and a golden helm, with six gleaming gold wings. He hung in the air across from his bejeweled counterpart, staring him down.
"This is the final round," the young Judai, told his nervous opponent, "your 'Rainbow Neos' vs. my 'Elemental Hero Divine Neos' (ATK: 2500 -> 3000). My monster may be weaker than yours right now, but once per turn, he can absorb the power of one Hero in my Graveyard to gain five hundred Attack and that Hero's effect."
Young Judai smiled, "And the Hero he absorbs is my 'Shining Flare Wingman'!"
'Divine Neos' glowed brighter, a ghostly image of 'Wingman' merging with him (3000 -> 3500 -> 5100). Judai frowned. He knew then that he'd lost.
"My 'Neos' attacks yours," the young Judai commanded, "Legendary Strike!"
'Divine Neos' summoned light into the gem in his chest and then released it. 'Rainbow Neos' counterattacked. The two attacks met in mid air, but 'Divine Neos'' beam cut right through his opponents, piercing the other 'Neos' through the chest (800 -> 700).
'Divine Neos' dropped down, right in front of Judai.
"I finish it," the young Judai declared, "with the 'Flare Wingman''s Solar Flare!"
As 'Neos'' light surged outward, overpowering Judai, his young opponent smiled wide and pointed at him, "Gotcha!"
And in an instant, Judai found himself awake in his bed. He looked around, and then looked over at the Duel Disk on his arm.
Was it real? he wondered. Then he realized how ridiculous that sounded, even in his head and he decided that, as real as it felt, a dream was a dream.
Still, he thought as he took a card from his deck, his 'Elemental Hero Neos', maybe there's something to take away from it, dream or not.
Judai Yuki got up out of his bunk and headed for the door. For his first time in a long time, he went into the world with the makings of an open mind.
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