Turn 1: A New Vanguard
The day had been a complete and utter disaster. By some stroke of luck, Sunset, Rainbow Dash and Applejack had just barely made it past the qualifiers for the Winter Cardfight Blitz...and needless to say, team morale was low. It was bad enough that, due to the Dazzling’s influence, every other team in the school was gunning to eliminate them. To further compound the issue, she was still struggling with her new deck; the sudden change from the Shadow Paladins to Gold Paladins was a not only jarring, but it felt disjointed to her. She just couldn’t connect with the cards anymore, let alone the cards Princess Twilight had given her. That, and her teamwork could use some definite improvement (as Rainbow had repeatedly told her).
“I was just trying to help!” Sunset Shimmer insisted. “You had barely any cards in your hand and-!”
“Yeah, well, you didn’t!” Rainbow Dash, a Spike Brothers user, snapped. “I needed that damage! How else could I pay the cost for any of my card’s skills!?”
“I’m gonna have to side with Sunset on this one. None of this would've happened if you weren't bein’ excessive Dash,” Applejack, a Neo Nectar user, sneered.
“Well excuse me for trying to finish the game!” Rainbow retorted. “If Sunset wasn't showing off with her defensive plays, we-!”
“‘Show off?!’ I saved you from taking the damage that would’ve otherwise eliminated us from the tournament all together!” Sunset nearly yelled. “I used all the cards in my hand, even my perfect shields, to protect you! And yet you couldn't even spare any defence for me! How is that fair!?”
Neither Applejack nor Rainbow Dash honored that with a response.
At that moment, a certain Trixie Lulamoon decided to make herself known, giving the three a sarcastic applause as she walked up. “My, my, what a magnificent showing,” she started, sarcasm heavy in her voice. “Of incompetence, of course. I have to say, seeing the former ‘Shadow Queen’ flounder like that was perhaps my favorite part! Although I have to say, for a team so big on making victory a group effort, you sure threw Sunset Shimmer under the bus the first chance you got. Jealous of being outshone, much?”
“I am not jealous!” Rainbow yelled back, her temper starting to boil over at the Pale Moon user. Despite that, Sunset couldn’t help but doubt the prismatic haired girl’s words. “It was just unfortunate and bad timing that we couldn’t help her out, but we were at least to make use of the counter-blast she had left!”
That...didn’t help the feeling gnawing in Sunset’s gut. Not at all.
“If you say so,” Trixie said, her smirk still present as she shrugged. Looking up, she smiled, “Ooh! It looks like they've already decided the finals brackets. I hope my team and I get the chance to knock you failures out right at the get go!”
At that moment, the holographic screen lit up, revealing the tournament brackets. There were 32 slots overall, and thankfully, both Applejack’s and Pinkie’s teams (the ‘Rain’ and the ‘Boom’, respectively. The names were Pinkie’s idea.) were on the opposite ends of the brackets.
Unfortunately, Pinkie’s team shared the same side as the Dazzlings, the three new idols who had the school wrapped around their respective fingers. It was bad enough that they were sowing discord in amidst the student body; they were somehow strengthening themselves with the palpable negativity in the air. The leader of the Dazzlings, Adagio Dazzle, a Granblue user, read the brackets with a bored stare, but smirked as she saw their placement.
“Well,at least this prevents us from having to fight each other early on?” Rarity, a Royal Paladin user, questioned as she read the brackets.
“Yeah, at least this way, we can save our super special maneuvers for the big finale between us!” Pinkie Pie, an Oracle Think Tank user, cheered. Her cheer did little to raise everyone else’s morale, sadly.
Adagio Dazzle grinned a particularly evil smirk, noticing how one of the ‘Rain’ members was slowly falling back from the group. ‘Perfect,’ she thought to herself, pulling a pack of cards out of her pocket. “You girls go to that Trixie girl and her team,” she ordered her teammates, by name Aria Blaze and Sonata Dusk. “See if you can’t give them anyspecialhelp.”
“And exactly where are you going?” Aria Blaze, an Aqua Force user, questioned her (not that she would ever admit it) big sister, watching her walk away.
“Opportunity is knocking, and I’m going to answer it!” Adagio responded with a knowing grin.
Sonata Dusk, a Bermuda Triangle user, cupped her left ear and tilted said ear upwards as she said, “I don’t hear anything!”
“It’s just an expression, you dolt,” Aria said, rolling her eyes at the youngest of the group. “C’mon Sonata, we have a something to wake up.” Adagio gave her sister a thankful nod, as she walked towards the group. As she approached, she stopped, unable to comprehend what she was hearing.
“Look, Sunset, why don’t you just sit the rest of the tournament out? Your deck clearly isn’t working out for you, and I can’t always be the one to carry you when you’re in it deep,” Rainbow said, her voice condescending and dripping with arrogance. Sunset said nothing but stopped in place, a look of disbelief on her face.
Off to the side, Adagio blinked. These were the girls their leader told them watch out for?
Before Sunset (or Adagio) could say anything, Applejack snorted, “Might wanna check your privilege there, Rainbow. Last I checked, I was the one carrying your two butts outta the fire!” Just like that, the two started arguing over who was doing the most work on the team...again, leaving Sunset completely out of it. Sunset trailed behind the group, unable to stomach their bickering, as well as their implied message of her being useless. Seeing her opportunity, Adagio made her move.
Deep in her thoughts, Sunset nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Turning around, she saw the the orange bushy haired leader of the Dazzlings, Adagio, who was sporting a look of concern. “What do you want?” Sunset questioned angrily, “Make it fast, I’m in a bad mood.”
Adagio shook her head, raising her hands slightly. “Take it easy, I’m not here to pick a fight. Believe it or not, I’m a bit worried about you. After all, what kind of teammates talk to each other like that?” Lowering her hands into her pocket, and as Sunset tensed, she pulled out a pack of cards. “Here, I want you to have these.”
Sunset’s eyes narrowed in suspicion as she opened the pack, only for them to widen at the name of the cards. “Wh-why are you giving these to me? You-you know what these are, right!? What these are capable of doing?!”
“Relax. I’m not forcing it on you nor am I telling you to put it in your deck,” Adagio said, waving off Sunset’s concerns. “Our leader thinks you have what it takes to be one of us,” she continued. “Consider it, well, a peace offering for now. For all we know, you just might need it.”
“What do you mean?” Sunset demanded, snapping out of her reverie. “What leader? What are you talking about?”
“That’s a story for another time,” the siren said, turning around and walking away. “To be honest, I agree with what our leader thinks about you. You had, or rather, still have, the potential to be greater than what you are right now. All you need to do is reach for it again.”
“I refuse to turn back to what I was!” Sunset almost yelled. “Using these cards are only going convince people that-!”
“Then throw them away,” Adagio said, cutting her off. “Like I said, I’m not forcing you to use them. My sisters and I willingly put them into our decks, because we aren’t afraid of what people think. We use what is useful, simple as that.”
“I-” Sunset started, before Adagio closed the gap between them and put both of her hands on Sunset’s shoulders. “Think it over,” Adagio said. “Go talk with your ‘team’ and see what they have to say if you’re so worried.”
Before the Sunset could say anything else, Adagio turned and left, leaving the gymnasium to find her (a fact she would proudly admit) sisters. Sunset watched her go, and back to the cards she was just given, her hands still shaking as she took in every detail of the cards she was given. Every bit of common sense was screaming at her throw it them away and forget about them, yet Sunset couldn’t figure out any logical reasons for the Dazzlings to give those cards to her.
As Sunset turned to walk away, more questions buzzed around in her mind. The Dazzlings had a leader? Who? And how did this leader even know about her? Why did this person even show an interest in her? She had been trying to stay out of the limelight since her fall from grace in prior tournament! She shook her head, clearing her mind; questions for later, she needed to let the team know.
“Girls!” Sunset called as she ran closer to her friends, “you’ll never believe what-!”
“Whoa, easy there,” Rainbow Dash said, gesturing for Sunset to slow down. Based on the looks on everyone else’s faces, it had been clear that she had been bragging about her skills again. “So, like I was saying, you need to be more careful because I can’t afford any losses. Afterall, my kickass skills are probably the only reason we’re still in the tournament.” The others said nothing, but all made faces of annoyance, whereas Sunset made one of disbelief.
Despite this, Rainbow continued, “Now, despite some people’s mistakes and mis-plays,” she stopped to spare a glance at Sunset, which went unnoticed by everyone else. “All we need to do is just keep the constant pressure with rapid and hard-hitting attacks,and not constantly defend,and we’ve got this in the bag!”
“Rainbow,” Applejack said warningly, eyes narrowing. “Not to stick your foot in your own mouth, but you're the reason why most of our fights went south. Yeah, you hit the big numbers, but you and your playstyle also burn through every card in your hand! You gotta remember that this is a tag-team style tournament! Every time you take your turn you drain all our resources just so you can do your own fancy moves! In case you hadn’t noticed, my deck also needs resources so it can do what it needs to do!”
“I can’t help it if I need it to make those big plays!” Rainbow argued back.
“And where does that leave me?” Sunset asked, finally stepping into the conversation. Both Applejack and Rainbow stopped arguing with each other, and paused. “Gold Paladin needs resources too, you know.” When she got no response, she felt a small pain in her chest as she bowed her head to allow her bangs to cover her eyes, as her hands clenched into tight fists.
“Fine, don’t answer that. But at least answer this,” Sunset said as she looked up, a scowl forming on her face. “Did you even want me as a team-mate or would you have preferred Twilight?” The last question got a response from the violet haired pony princess turned human, as she too looked up from her book and cast unsure glances at the other girls
The silence was damning.
“Hold on a minute,” Twilight started, her wavering voice breaking the awkward silence. “You really don’t mean that, right girls? Girls?” No one said anything, turning their faces away from her, all of them looking ashamed. “I don’t believe this! You told me, no, promised me, that you were going to look out for Sunset after I had left! What is this all about!?”
Applejack, finally, spoke up and tried to defuse the situation before it could get any worse, saying, “Girls, I think this would be a good time to take a breather, and I-!”
“So that's it? Just wrapped this up and leave the question hanging in the air?” Sunset demanded, tears forming in her eyes. “Do you know what I sacrificed to help you? Do you know what it feels like out there? With everyone and anyone showing how much they hate you!?”
“Ladies,” Rarity chimed in, sounding nervous. “I think we’re all still a little on edge from thinking we were going to face elimination from the competition, and-!”
“And let’s not forget whose fault that is!” Rainbow bellowed, glaring daggers at Sunset.
“Rainbow!” Twilight scolded this time.
“My point is!” Rarity went on forcefully, glaring at the prismatic girl. “I think we should all calm down and not say things in the heat of the moment. As Applejack was trying to say,” she stopped and glared at Rainbow, almost daring the athlete to cut her off again. Seeing that Rainbow had stayed her tongue, Rarity continued, “We should all take five minutes to compose ourselves.”
Not even giving Rainbow a chance to retort, Twilight followed up, “Rarity’s right. Talking like this while you girls are this stressed will make things harder for everyone. Everyone made mistakes today; yelling at each other would only aggravate the issue.”
“Mistakes?” Sunset repeated, disbelief coloring her tone. “So you’re saying me being on this team was a mistake?”
“That’s not what I said, nor what I meant,” Twilight corrected calmly.
“You’re the one who said it, Sunset Shimmer!” Rainbow pointed out.
“And you’re the one who owes me an apology!” Sunset countered. “I’m getting so sick and tired of you and everyone in the school constantly blaming me for your problems! I get it! I was a bitch! You don’t need to remind me every single day that I was!”
“Don’t blame me for the reputation you built!” Rainbow argued.
“Well, we can’t all be big headed jocks like you!” Sunset yelled back.
“And we can’t all be evil manipulators like you! You know damn well if the Dazzlings didn’t have everyone under their spell, everyone would hate them because they’re just like how you are!” Rainbow shouted, causing the others to gasp in shock.
Sunset took a step back as if she were physically slapped, her eyes tearing up. “Are?” she repeated softly, her voice quivering.
“I meant ‘were’,” Rainbow said immediately, realizing what she had just said in the heat of the moment. “Like ‘how you were’. That's what I meant.”
“Sunset,” Fluttershy, a Great Nature user, said softly as she took Sunset’s hand. “Come on, you know she didn’t mean it. It's just Rainbow being Rainbow; you know how she gets when under pressure.”
“No,” Sunset said, pulling her hand away from the soft spoken girl, “I heard what she said, and I know she meant it.” Sunset stopped, taking a shuddering breath. “You never answered my question.”
“I beg your pardon?” Applejack asked, not liking where the conversation was headed.
“Did you want me as part of this team or did you want Twilight to take my place?” Sunset asked again.
“Darling, please,” Rarity chimed in, “Let's just take that break and we can put this mess behind us.”
“That’s not an answer!” Sunset shouted, causing the other girls to jump. “Just tell me you would have treated Twilight the same had done she what I was did. Just say that you would have treated her the same way and I can put this all behind me.” All the Rainbooms looked around waiting for someone to say something, yet no one did.
Before Twilight could say anything, Sunset cut her off as she continued, “No answer, huh? For some reason, I’m not surprised. Fine, I get it, I quit. Twilight can have my place on the team. After all, it’s what you all want, right?” As she walked away, she stopped in front of Twilight, pulling out her deck a black and purple glove, handing them to the princess. “Here, you’re going to need this back if you want my spot.” She ignored the protests of the others as she ran off, trying to hold back the tears .
Applejack turned to Rainbow, a look of anger on her face as she punched Rainbow, knocking the athletic girl down and ignoring the other’s cry of indignation. “What in hell was that all about!?” she demanded.
“Well, none of you answered her either!” Rainbow pointed out, holding her cheek as she got up.
“You started it!” Applejack countered. “We’ve already drained from playing all day; what made you think any of us had any energy left to deal with this!?”
“Alright, stop it! Stop it, the both of you!” Rarity demanded as she put herself between the two girls. “That’s enough; we’ve already lost Sunset we don’t need to lose anyone else today."
Twilight looked at the deck she was given, then back to Rainbow. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and said, “As it stands, we cannot let the Dazzling’s win the tournament. We have no idea what will happen, and as much as I dislike the idea that you want me to replace her, I will take Sunset’s place for now, on the condition that you will all apologize to her.” Before Rainbow could say anything, Twilight cut her off. “No, Rainbow! You will apologize to her when this is over! That is non-negotiable! Am I understood!?”
Rainbow couldn’t have nodded quickly enough. It wasn’t the first time her temper had cost her a friend, and it seemed as if she was repeating history again.
-The Next Day-
Things were still tense between amongst the Rainbooms. Walking into the gym, they couldn’t help but notice the tension in the air. Pre-Tournament jitters were one thing, but the air was so stifling that it even disturbed Pinkie.
“Whats going on?” the pinkette asked a nearby student.
“You didn’t hear?” a student responded, raising his eyebrow. “Team Oracle was challenged for their spot in the tourney, and they lost. Painfully.”
“Wait, the siblings who dressed like Silent Toms yesterday? Who did they lose to?” Pinkie asked. “How did they lose their spot?”
The student looked at them confused. “Wait, you don’t know?”
“No, we don’t know Poindexter,” Rainbow said, exasperated. “Just tell us already.”
“Well, it was Sunset Shimmer,” Pointpexter started.
“WHAT!?”
The boy flinched at the volume, but looked at the girls, still confused. “I thought you knew. She actually came in early today to challenge anyone for their spot in the tournament, she actually won, despite the circumstances stacked against her.”
“But you need to be part of a team to even take part!” Applejack protested, her southern drawl becoming more pronounced. “How the heck did she even get past that?”
“She challenged them to a three versus one relay,” Poindexter said. “They made a bet of some kind, but Sunset beat all of them soundly. Brutally too, might I add.”
“What deck was she using?” Rainbow asked.
“I heard she was using that weird Gold Paladin deck she recently got,” the boy replied, shrugging. “To be honest, I thought she had gone back to her Shadow Paladins.” As the Rainbooms looked amongst each other uneasily, he continued, “It’s weird though. I thought she was part of your team?”
“We had a bit,” Rarity started, trailing off as she glared at Rainbow Dash, who had the decency to look embarrassed. “We had a bit of a misunderstanding yesterday. Could you be a dear and tell us where dear Sunset is?”
“She’s right over there,” he said, pointing to the lone figure sitting alone on the benches. Following his finger, the six girls saw their familiar red and gold haired friend nursing a hot mug of coffee and reading a book.
“I’ll go talk to her,” Twilight said before the others could say anything. Rainbow was about to protest, but the hard glare she got from the princess stilled any protest the athlete had. As she approached, Twilight couldn’t help but notice a few changes. Gone was Sunset’s old outfit, but in its place was a light grey jacket and white shirt with her collar button being open, as well as black trousers and black leather shoes. Her long hair was tied back in singular pony tail that rested on her back. If she knew Twilight was there, Sunset didn’t show; she was too engrossed with her book to either care nor notice. “Sunset?” Twilight called out, making the girl look up.
“What do you want?” Sunset asked, snapping her book shut. The clipped tone and slam of the book made the princess flinch, as did Sunset’s steel gaze. Sighing, Sunset took a gulp of her drink, saying, “Sorry. It’s just been a tense morning. I’m pretty sure you heard how I had took the spot of another team?”
“No, no, it’s fine,” Twilight said, moving to take a seat next to her. Sunset raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. “I just came by to check on you, that’s all.”
“Well, I’m fine,” the redhead said, turning away to hide her face. Noticing the others, a scowl formed on her face. “Did they put you up to this?”
“No, they didn’t,” Twilight said. “I came here on my own, because you’re my friend. Is it wrong of me to worry about you?”
Sunset said nothing, but looked down at her drink. After a pause, she allowed a small smile to grace her features, as she said, “Thanks, Twilight. Its going to sound strange, but you have no idea how much I needed to hear that.” As Twilight was about to respond, the tapping sound of a microphone pulled the attention of her and other players to the main stage.
“Good morning, fighters!” came the voice of Vice-Principal Luna, the overseer of the entire tournament. The students cheered in response. “First, I want to congratulate all of the teams who have made the second day of the Winter Cardfight Blitz! Let’s give them all a round of applause!” Calming down the crowd for after a few seconds, she continued, “Now, unlike the last round, which was a full on three versus three match between teams, we’ve decided to change how the top four teams will be decided. This format, similar to that of a free for all, will have players from various teams challenge each other all over Canterlot City. Everyone starts with 20 points to start with, must wager at least five points before every cardfight, and both players must wager the same amount of points. The winner will take all the points wagered, but we have a special rule! During their turn, if a player calls ‘Final Turn’ and they manage to win the game in that same turn, the points awarded will be doubled of what was wagered! However, if the player fails to do so, the points awarded will be half of what was wagered. When you run out of points, you aren’t completely out of the game; your team-mates have the option of sharing some of their accumulated points. If all three members run out of points, the team will be eliminated. The first four to acquire a total of 200 and more points , as a team, will secure their place in the finals! So don’t think you can sit on your laurels and hope for other teams to eliminate each other!” Excited whispers and cheers made its way throughout the arena as the players met together and strategized. After a few minutes, the head judge called for attention. “If everyone is ready, please make your way to the outside and we’ll begin!!”
“Well, good luck today,” Sunset said, guzzling down the rest of her drink. As she got up to walk away, Twilight reached out and took her hand. “...Is something wrong?” she asked.
“Sunset, how are you taking part in this tournament?” Twilight asked. “Who and where are your teammates?”
“They’re running a little late,” Sunset said, her eyes looking through the various players. “But don’t worry about me. I know they’ll be here. Still, I wanted to ask-”
“Twilight!” called Applejack. “C’mon! We got a matches to start!” Sunset frowned at the country girl’s woeful timing, but sighed.
“What is it?” Twilight asked, confused.
“Never mind, just go,” Sunset replied, picking up her things as she left. Slipping on a black and red fingerless glove that had silver lines tracing the fingers and was adorned with a single red gem on the back of her hand, she and many made their way to Canterlot City, where the fights would begin.
---Later---
“Now, Climax Jewel Knight Lord Evangeline attacks your Vanguard!” Rarity exclaimed, pointing at her opponent (a Nova Grappler user). A woman clad in radiant jewel armor raised her sword and struck down at giant silver and gold robot, causing it to explode.
“Dammit!” her opponent screamed, as the last point of damage was done. Not even bothering to pick up his cards, he stomped off.
“WINNER! Rarity Belle!”
Rarity sighed as she picked up her cards, checking her standings as the hard-light table faded away. She was, currently, the highest earner on the team, having scored 20 additional points (with a total of 40 points), although her teammates weren’t too far behind with 16 points to Pinkie (with a total of 36) and a surprising 18 points for Fluttershy (with a total of 38 points, who knew the shy girl could be so vicious?)
As she was about to message her team, Rarity heard someone approaching her. Turning, she was surprised to see the familiar yet different Sunset Shimmer, who looked equally surprised, standing before her looking to challenge her.
“Sunset!?” Rarity exclaimed in surprise. “What are-no-how you-wait-Why!?”
Sunset said nothing but watched the fashionista flailed about with a blank expression. After several minutes, Sunset cleared her throat as she pulled out her deck. “Are you going to spend the next five minutes babbling incoherently or are you going to fight me?”
Rarity, caught off guard, composed herself quickly as her glove notified her of an incoming challenger. “Of course, dear,” she said, producing her deck from its case. “I apologize for that, its just, after yesterday…”
“I’m already over it,” Sunset replied, as both of their gloves emitted a soft blue glow from the embedded gems. After a few seconds, the light took the form of a two separate tables, a dark blue forming in front of Rarity and a pale yellow forming in front of Sunset. After shuffling thoroughly, both of them placed their decks in the respective areas, before pulling out the one card in the deck that would act as their starting Vanguards and setting aside the cards for their Generation Zone. During preparation, Sunset couldn’t help but notice Rarity staring at her. “What?” she asked, a bit perturbed.
As they drew their opening hand, Rarity coughed into her hand. “Well, it's just that i couldn't help but notice your change in attire, darling. It looks good on you.”
Sunset rolled her eyes. “If I wore the same thing outfit, it would only cement the fact that I wouldn’t change. Making a switch in attire seemed to be a good start.”
“I see,” the dress designer said, nodding in understanding. “Well, enough banter. How many points are you wagering?”
“I’m wagering all I have,” Sunset said, as the she tapped a button that appeared on the table. “All 20 points.”
“Wait, what!?” Rarity exclaimed. “How do you only have twenty points? The tournament started 2 hours ago!”
“No one’s wanted to fight me, and it’s not like you’re forced to accept any challenge thats thrown at you,” Sunset said, shrugging. “So are you gonna match me or what?”
“No, I will also wager the same amount,” Rarity replied, pressing the same button on her side of the table. “Now, shall we?”
“STAND UP, VANGUARD!”
“Desire Jewel Knight, Heloise!” (G0/ Power 5000)
“Knight of the Setting Sun, Tobias!” (G0 / Power 5000)
As the two flipped their starting vanguards over, two bright flashes of light appeared behind them. From one emerged a young white haired human girl with a wearing a dark blue leotard and matching leggings, as well as a pair of dark blue metal arm greaves. She wielded a small sword, and bowed as she appeared. On the other side, a young silver haired man clad in silver tunic appeared, wielding two small daggers.
“I’ll start us off, if you don’t mind,” Rarity said, drawing her card. “I ride, Jewel Knight, Sabremy!” (G1/Power 7000) In flash of light, Heloise’s form fell on all fours as a lynx wearing white steel and carried a glowing sword in its mouth appeared. “Heloise moves back!” The young human appeared in another flash of light behind the lynx, holding her sword ready to attack. “And that ends my turn.”
“Right then, should have seen this coming,” Sunset muttered, as she drew a card. “I ride, Knight of the Eve’s Radiance, Kyra!” Tobias threw down a smoke bomb, as his form shimmered away into that of a young woman in a leather cuirass with silver ornaments, wielding a crossbow. “Tobias moves back!” The starting vanguard appeared behind Kyra, holding both knives ready. “Now, I call another Kyra and Magician of the Dusky Sky, Reva (G1/Power 7000), right behind her!” In a flash of light, another Kyra, this time her gear adorned with flecks of gold instead of silver, and a hooded figure carrying a black spell book behind her, appeared.
“My Rear-Guard Kyra, assisted by Reva, attacks your vanguard!” The magician raised their spell book high, as a yellow streaks of energy flew into Kyra’s bow. (Power 7000 -> Power 14000). With a yell, the bow-woman released her empowered shot.
“No Guard!” Rarity said, eyes scanning her cards. The arrow hit its mark on the lynx, sending it recoiling back. “Damage check, Draw Trigger! I add 5000 Power to Sabremy and draw one more card.” (Power 7000 -> 12000) (Hand: 6, Damage: 1)
“Now my Vanguard Kyra attacks, boosted by Tobias!” This time, Tobias pulled out a telescope and scanned the lynxx, giving pointing Kyra in the right direction. (Power 7000 -> 12000). When Rarity made a ‘come hither’ motion, Sunset continued, “Drive Check, Critical Trigger! I give all effects to Kyra!” (Power 12000 -> Power 17000, Critical 2) Sunset’s Vanguard let out a battle cry as she pulled out an additional arrow and leapt up, releasing both shots at the same time. The poor lynx could only howl as the arrows hit their mark.
“Damage Check, No Triggers,” Rarity said with a small grimace. (Damage: 1 -> 3)
“I end my turn,” Sunset said, keeping her face calm and stoic. (Hand: 4)
Sunset’s field: (No Damage)
(RC) (Kyra) (Kyra)
(RC) (Tobias) (Reva)
Rarity drew her card, before immediatley placing it onto the table. “I ride, Banding Jewel Knight, Miranda!” (G2/Power 9000) The wounded lynx let out a pained mewl as its form was engulfed in light, and transformed into an elven woman, wearing silver armor adorned with emeralds. She pulled out an emerald studded sword hilt and swung it, making a beam of green energy emerge. “Now, I call Jewel Knight, Swordmy (G2/Power 9000) and activate their skill!” A white panther appeared next to Miranda and howled to the sky. Flipping one of her face up damage face down, Rarity continued, “With Swordmy’s skill, I can call grade one or lower rear-guard from my deck as long as they have ‘Jewel Knight’ in their name. And it should come to no surprise that all my units have that in their names.” As Sunset rolled her eyes, Rarity continued, “I call Jewel Knight, Sabremy behind Swordmy!” (G1/Power 7000). “Now I call Pure Wind Jewel Knight, Kymbelinus!” (G2/Power 9000) On the other side of Miranda, a male elf wearing silver almor appeared over a black body suit appeared in flourish, wielding a rapier whose blade was made out of blue energy.
“Now, my Knights, attack!” Rarity yelled, pointing at Sunset’s field. “Kymbelinus, attack the rear-guard Kyra!” The Knight bowed and darted forward, holding their rapier before them. Sunset did nothing, and the attack went through, removing the archer from the field. “Now with that out of the way, Miranda, boosted by attacks your vanguard!” (Power 9000 -> Power 14000)
Sunset looked as if she was going to place a guard, but instead shook her head. “No guard!” she declared, as her vanguard Kyra braced for the attack.
“Drive check, Heal Trigger! I give the extra power to Swordmy and Heal one damage point,” Rarity declared, as Miranda brought her blade down Kyra’s form, delivering a glancing blow. Sunset frowned as she took the damage, and no trigger appeared before her. “Now Swordmy, boosted by Sabremy, attacks your vanguard!” (Power 9000 -> Power 14000 -> Power 21000). The panther roared as it leapt forward, bringing its claws down on the archer, inflicting another damage. “And thats my turn, darling.”
Rarity’s Field (Damage: 2 Face Up; Hand: 4)
(Swordmy) (Miranda) (Kymbelinus)
(Sabremy) (Heloise) (RC)
-Elsewhere-
Fluttershy sighed as she walked away from the last match. Somehow, her last opponent had managed to deck out themselves before she did. Her musings were interrupted by the loud ringtone of her phone, and as expected, it was Pinkie. “Hello?” she asked.
“CHECK THE TEAM APP! RARITY’S FIGHTING SUNSET!” came Pinkie’s screaming voice. Pulling the phone away from her ear, she shook her head to make the ringing stop, but before she say anything back, the line went dead. Irritated, she flipped over to the Cardfight Vanguard Team Checker App, only to go cold as she saw the name and field of Rarity’s opponent.
“Rarity, Sunset...why?” Fluttershy asked, tearing up. Brushing away her tears, she ran towards the fight, running as fast as she could.
-Back to the CardFight-
It was now Sunset’s turn. She barely made it through Rarity’s last turn, where she had rode onto the Jewel Knight of Radiance, Ashlei (G3/Power 11000), and dealt three damage, putting her at five to Rarity’s two. Grimacing, Sunset drew her card, and kept her expression neutral as she added it to her hand.
Taking a card from her hand, she placed it over her grade 2 vanguard and cried out, “I ride, Knight of the Full Moon, Saint Arc!” (G3/Power 11000) The former grade two raised their spear as a beam of white energy shot down from the sky, engulfing fully them. The light dispersed, revealing a tall, slender woman in form fitting silver armor, wielding war-banner with the emblem of a white moon on its blue cloth. “Now, I release the Generation Zone!” Sunset placed another card in her Drop Zone, making the card shine. Another card shot forth from the Generation Zone and flew into her field. “Oh holy one, embraced by the night sky, descend from your throne and grace us with your presence!” Saint Arc raised her banner in both arms, crying out as her body exploded with silver light. As the light dispersed, Saint Arc’s form was replaced by another woman, clad in regal silver and blue robes over dark-greyish silver armor with dark blue highlights, wielding a greatsword whose blade was in the shape of a crescent moon. A silver tiara replaced the helmet, holding back this new forms long dark blue hair. “Generation Stride, Blade of Righteous Judgement, Diana!” (G4/Power +15000)
“Saint Arc’s Stride Skill!” Sunset called out, taking one point of damage and flipping it face down. “I counterblast one to take five cards from the top of my deck, call one to the field at rest and add one card to my hand!” Looking at the cards she drew, she placed one on the field, calling out, “I call Dream Gazer, Anya and one to my hand.” In a flash of light, a young maiden wearing thin silk blue robes appeared next Diana, kneeling next to the vanguard. (G2/Power 8000). “The rest go to the bottom of the deck.”
“Anya’s Generation Break 1! When this unit is called from the deck, I can check the top three cards from the top of the deck and call one in the same column as her at rest, sending the rest to the bottom of the deck,” Sunset explained as she drew the top three cards and drew placed a card behind Dream Gazer, Anya. In a flash of white light, a dark blue pegasus clad in silver armor appeared. The pegasus let out a low whinney and sat down, bowing its head. “Midnight Pegasus!” (Grade 1/Power 6000).
“Tobias’ Generation Break One skill; Unite! When I have called two or more units during my turn, the Unite ability activates!” Sunset continued, taking her starting vanguard and sliding it underneath her current vanguard. “I send Tobias into the soul check the top five cards of the deck and call one at rest in its spot. Then I add the power of whatever was called to my vanguard, and put the rest of cards not chosen at the bottom of the deck.” Picking one from card from the top five, she placed it behind Diana. On the field, Tobias kneeled and dissolved into silver dust, flowing into Diana’s blade. In a flash of light, the kneeling form of the Knight of the Eve’s Radiance, Kyra, appeared. Krya’s form emitted a soft glow and offered an arrow to Diana, who gracefully took it. (Diana’s Power: 26000 -> 33000).
“Anya’s, Midnight Pegasus’ and Kyra’s Generation Break one, Unite!” Sunset continued. “All three of them stand, and Anya’s Unite adds an additional 5000 Power to herself and to Diana! Midnight Pegasus’ Unite adds their power to any unit that shares the same row as it! Kyra’s Unite lets me countercharge or soul charge at the end of battle she boosted any other unit that had the Unite ability!” (Diana’s Power: 33000 -> 38000) (Anya’s Power: 8000 -> 13000) (Midnight Pegasus Power: 6000 -> 12000) (Kyra’s Power: 7000 -> 13000) (Reva: Power 7000 -> 13000)
Rarity paled at the numbers Sunset was hitting, as all of her opponent’s units began to glow with a soft pale golden light. “When did you get all of these cards? You could have used them in yesterday's matches!”
“I got these yesterday. An acquaintance gave them to me,” Sunset replied casually, taking a card from her hand and placing it in front of Reva, ignoring Rarity’s wince. “I call Crescent Owl in front of Kyra in the right column!” (Grade 0/Critical Trigger/Power 4000/Shield 10000). A large horned owl wearing a silver circlet and bearing silver coating over their talons flew from the above and landed on Reva’s shoulder.
“Now, Crescent Owl attacks your vanguard!” (Power 4000 -> Power 16000) Reva nodded at the owl and pointed her arm hand forward, launching the ow forward and coating the avian in dark blue magic. Rarity did nothing, but took the damage, but unfortunately did not get a trigger during her damage check. “After that battle, Reva’s Unite activates, which lets me return Reva to the bottom of the deck and draw one more card.” On the field, Reva vanished in a burst of light.
“Boosted by Kyra, the Blade of Righteous Judgement, Diana, attacks your Vanguard!” (Power 38000 -> Power 51000) Sunset said, following up the attack. “With Crescent Owl’s skill, I place in my Vanguard’s soul to give it an additional 5000 Power and I draw one more card (Power 51000-> Power 56000)." Crescent Owl let out a low 'hoot', turned into a light golden dust and flew into Diana’s blade. "Now, with Diana’s Stride skill, when she attacks I counterblast one card, soul blast two cards and flip a copy of her over in the Generation Zone as its cost to check the top five cards of the deck, and, for each copy of Blade of Righteous Judgement, Diana in the Generation Zone, I can call up two units at rest. If I had called three or more units, my Vanguard would have an extra critical. From the deck I call Hare of the Moon (G1/Power 5000) And Rabbit Knight Tsuki (G2/Power 9000) at rest! Tsuki’s Unite let's her and any friendly unit in her column. The Hare’s Unite let's me return it to my hand at the end of the turn!” A young girl clad in white robes under golden flecked lamellar armour wielding a naginata, her hair styled in a way that made it look like she had rabbit ears. Behind her, a small bipedal rabbit holding onto a golden crescent shaped shield appeared. (Hare’s Power: 5000 -> 11000)
“Perfect Guard! Protect me, Flashing Jewel Knight, Iseult!” Rarity exclaimed, all but throwing the card into the Guardian circle. A young woman appeared before Ashlei, raising her heavy silver jewel studded gauntlets to block Diana’s swing.
“Triple Drive!” Sunset said. “First check, Critical Trigger! I give all power and effects to Tsuki! Second Check, Heal Trigger! I give all power to Tsuki again and heal one point of damage. Third Check, Critical Trigger! I give all power effects to Anya!” Both rearguards next on either side of the vanguard began to shine with energy. (Anya’s Power: 13000 -> 18000; Critical 2) (Tsuki’s Power: 9000 -> 19000; Critical 2)
“A Triple Trigger this early!?” Rarity exclaimed, looking at her hand. Grimacing, she braced for the next two attacks. “Come on then!”
“Boosted by the Hare of the Moon, Tsuki attacks your Vanguard!” Sunset yelled. The rabbit themed rearguard raised her weapon, as the Hare pulled out small carrot shaped sword. (Power 19000 -> 30000). Rarity said nothing but let the attack hit home, bringing her damage to four, grimacing as no defensive triggers appeared. “The Hare of the Moon’s Generation Break One; Unite, activates. When this unit boosts a unit, and the attack hits, I can return it to my hand. Now, boosted by Midnight Pegasus, Anya attacks your Vanguard!” (Anya’s Power: 18000 -> 30000) Anya bowed her head and cupped her hands before her and fired off a beam of golden energy.
“Generation Guard!” Rarity called, putting a Heal Trigger from her hand and into the Drop Zone. “Holy Dragon, Laserguard Dragon! With its skill, I add 5000 Power to the shield!” In a flash of green light, a white dragon appeared, roaring to form a green circle before it. (Shield: 15000 -> 20000; Total 31000)
“And that ends my turn,” Sunset said, returning Diana’s card to the G-Zone.
Sunset’s field: (Four Damage (All Face-Up)/Hand: 9 Cards)
(Anya) (Saint Arc) (Tsuki)
(Pegasus) (Kyra) (RC)
Rarity gulped, looking at the two remaining cards in her hand. “Stand and Draw!” she declared, moving all of her units into a vertical position before she drew a card. “Stride Generation!” Discarding the card she had just drew, she grabbed a facedown card from her Generation Zone and placed it over her Vanguard. “Radiant one, let your brilliance shine over this battle! Grace this field with your presence! Climax Jewel Knight Lord, Evangeline!” (G4/Power +15000) In a blast of prismatic light, Jewel Knight of Radiance, Ashlei was engulfed in blue crystal, only to shatter and reveal an elven woman clad in a jewel studded black and blue leotard wielding a jewel studded shield and sabre. “Jewel Knight of Radiance, Ashlei’s Stride Skill! When I stride onto a unit with ‘Jewel Knight’ in its name, I can search my deck for up to one card with ‘Jewel Knight’ in its name and call to an open rearguard circle, and then give another two other units with ‘Jewel Knight’ in their name 5000 Power! I give Swordmy and Kymbelinus the power! (Swordmy Power: 9000 -> 14000) (Kymbelinus Power: 9000 -> 14000). “And from my deck I call Heat Wind Jewel Knight, Cymbeline (G1/Power 7000) behind Kymbelinus! With his skill, I add 10000 Power to Kymbelinus!” White crystal grew behind the blonde male and shattered, revealing a young man in white crystal studded armor, kneeling behind Kymbelinus. (Kymbelinus Power: 14000-> 24000)
“Now I use Evangeline’s Stride Skill! With her ability, I can give all rearguards with ‘Jewel Knight’ in their name an extra 3000 Power until the end of turn!” Rarity continued, as Evangeline raised her sword. All other Jewel Knights looked up to her blade as energy rained down on them. (Swordmy’s Power: 14000 -> 17000) (Evangeline’s Power: 26000 -> 29000) (Kymbelinus’ Power: 24000 -> 27000) (Sabremy’s Power: 7000 -10000) (Heloise’s Power: 5000 -> 8000) (Cymbeline’s Power: 7000 ->10000)
“Now Swordmy, boosted by Sabremy, attacks your Vanguard!” The Lynx behind the leopard roared, sharing its power. Swordmy shot forward with its claws extended, as it struck against Saint Arc’s armor, bringing Sunset to five damage again. “Evangeline, boosted by Heloise, attacks your vanguard! With Heloise’s skill, she gets an additional 3000 Power!” (Heloise’s Power: 8000 -> 11000) (Evangeline’s Power: 29000 -> 40000).
Heloise let out a small war cry, raising her sword and as she rallied Evangeline into battle. With battle cry of her own, Evangeline dashed forward and attacked, bringing her sabre down on Saint Arc’s head.
“Perfect Guard! Hare of the Moon!” Sunset said, placing her perfect guard on the Guardian’s circle. The rabbit raised its shield and easily blocked Evangeline’s attack, pushing the sabre back.
“Triple Drive!” Rarity continued, flipping cards over one by one. “First Check, No trigger. Second Check, Critical Trigger! I give all the effects to Kymbelinus! Third Check, no trigger.” Rarity grimaced as she her non-triggers only resulted in Fellowship Jewel Knight, Tracie (G2/Power 9000) and another copy of Jewel Knight of Radiance, Ashlei (G3/Power 11000). “Kymbelinus attacks your Vanguard!” (Kymbelinus Power: 27000 -> 32000; Critical 2)
“Generation Guard!” Sunset called out, dropping her own heal trigger. “Sacred Heaven Prayer Master, Reia!” A young woman appeared in a burst of gold light, glad in golden robes and wielding a golden chalice. “With her skill, I add 5000 Power to the shield, and I intercept with Tsuki!” From her position, Tsuki leapt to aide Reia, using her naginata to help hold back Kymbelinus. (Shield Total: 15000 -> 20000 -> 25000 -> 36000)
“I end my turn,” Rarity said, scowling as she returned Evangeline to the Generation Zone.
Rarity’s field: (4 Damage (1 face-down); 5 Cards in Hand)
(Swordmy) (Ashlei) (Kymbelinus)
(Sabremy) (Heloise) (RC)
Sunset said nothing as she stood all of her rearguards and drew another card from her deck. Her eyes narrowed at the card she drew, she closed her eyes and declared, “Final Turn!”
“What!?” Rarity exclaimed.
“I’m sorry Rarity,” Sunset said, holding out a card from her hand. The card seemed to glow with an ominous red and black energy, one that seemed familiar yet terrifying to Rarity all at the same time. “But this is where the match ends! Generation Stride! Blade of Righteous Judgement, Diana!” Discarding the glowing card, Saint Arc was engulfed in moonlight, right before Diana emerged from the moonlight. “Saint Arc’s Stride Skill; from the top five cards of my deck, I call Rabbit Knight Tsuki at rest!” Diana raised her blade, as the naginata wielder appeared again, next to the vanguard.
“Now, Anya, boosted by Midnight Pegasus, attacks your Vanguard!” (Anya’s Power: 8000 -> 14000). Once again, Anya fired a beam of energy from her hand.
“I intercept with Swordmy!” Rarity said, moving the card. Swordmy leapt in front of Ashlei, roaring as it was reduced to dust.
“Boosted by Anya, the Blade of Righteous Judgement, Diana attacks your vanguard! With her skill, I call Magician of the Dusky Sky, Reva from the deck behind Tsuk at rest, causing Unite to activate! Anya, Midnight Pegasus, Tsuki and Reva all Stand! Anya’s Unite adds 5000 Power to herself and to Diana! Midnight Pegasus adds its power to everything that shares the same row! Tsuki stands herself and any friendly unit in the column! Reva will go into the soul and I can draw an extra card!” (Diana’s Power: 26000-> 31000 -> 46000, Critical 2) (Anya’s Power: 8000 -> 13000) (Midnight Pegasus Power: 6000 -> 12000) (Kyra’s Power: 7000 -> 13000) (Reva: Power 6000 -> 12000)
“No Guard,” Rarity said, hoping to get miracle healing trigger at the sixth damage.
“Triple Drive!” Sunset said. “First check, no trigger. Second Check, no trigger. Final Check, Critical Trigger! I give the extra critical to Diana and the Power to Tsuki!” (Tsuki’s Power: 9000 -> 14000) (Diana’s Critical: 2 -> 3) Diana raised her curved sword over her and struck, releasing three beams of silver energy from her blade. Ashlei tried her best to defend, only to be struck by each beam and knocked over.
Unfortunately for Rarity, the last attack had pushed her over six damage, and that was the end of the game.
“WINNER! Sunset Shimmer!”
Sunset let out a small sigh of relief as she checked her score, smirking as it jumped from 20 points to 80 points, as she had finished the match when she declared Final Turn, which had doubled the points awarded to her in the end. Furthermore, with her recent Victory…
“We have an announcement!” came Vice-Principal Luna’s voice over the PA system. “Remarkably, within the first few hours of the tournament we have two teams who have secured their spots on the brackets of the semi-finals!”
Rarity looked up as she collected her cards. “No, already!?”
“Team Dazzlings was came first, scoring a grand total of 225 Points! Next, we have Team Eventide, who scored a total of 210 points!” Luna continued. “Congratulations to those two teams, and to everyone else, we have only have two slots left for the finals!”
Sunset smiled to herself as she picked up her cards, ignoring the other purple haired girl approaching her.
“I take it your part of Team Eventide?” Rarity asked, already knowing the answer. “If I may ask, who are your teammates?”
“You’ll meet them if you get to the finals and we meet in the finals,” Sunset said, as she walked off.
“Sunset, please!” Rarity called out, only for Sunset to completely walk away.
-----Much Later-----
After a few minutes, Sunset sighed as she made her way to the exit of the arena. She almost,almostused the card that Adagio had given her. Pulling it out of her deck, she quashed the cold pit in her stomach as she gazed upon the image of young woman in white and dark orange robes, emblazoned with a red and black sun on her chest. She carried a look of malice and mania, wielding a large staff that had three red and black floating rings surrounding a fiery red jewel on the top. It was Grade 3, named Harbinger of the Red Sun, Daybreaker Яeverse!
Sunset slowly returned the card to her deck. Had she rode this card…
“Sunset!” a voice called out, getting her attention. Looking up with a small smile, Sunset turned to see two other girls approach her. The first was the tallest amongst the three of them, a long haired blonde wearing a light grey turtleneck and black pants. The other was the shortest of amongst the three of them, with short teal and white hair held back by a red hair piece, wearing a yellow sleeveless sweater over a white shirt and a violet hotpants.
“Ditzy. Coco,” Sunset said, nodding to the two, before she was swept up in a tight hug by the blonde.
“Aw, c’mon! Enough of that!” Ditzy Doo said, squeezing the redhead tightly despite Coco’s concerns and Sunset’s protests. “We made it to top four on the first day! We should be celebrating!”
“Ditzy! She needs air!” Coco Pommel yelled, as Sunset started to turn blue and her back began to bend over in an unnatural way.
“Huh? Oh my god, Sunset!” Ditzy yelled, letting the poor girl down and shaking her. “No, don’t die! I’ll give you a muffin if you come back!”
“Ditzy, I’m okay!” Sunset said, gasping for air. “I’m fine, I’m fine!” After a bit, she composed herself, “So, how were your matches?”
“I had a bit of a struggle,” Coco admitted slowly and quietly, looking down. “My deck struggled a lot against rush type decks and I lost quite a bit.”
“You use Megacolony, right?” Sunset asked, confused. At the other girls sad nod, she placed her hand on the Coco’s shoulder and continued, “Well, don’t worry about it. We’ll get in some more practice and find some cards for your deck before the finals, alright?”
As Coco looked up with a smile, Ditzy spoke up. “Eh, the Narukami deck you lent me really tore up through quite a few decks and I did win quite a few matches, but I overextended a lot and got punished every time. So I made out at 70/30. What about you?”
“I won every match today,” Sunset said with exaggerated flourish. At the look of shock from her two teammates, she continued, “Well, I only fought once, gambling every point I had and banking on a winning during a Final Turn call.”
Ditzy and Coco starred in stunned silence. After a few moments, the blonde shook her head, before she started laughing, “Only you. I swear, you’d think you were the protagonist of some cartoon about a card game with unnecessarily high stakes.”