"I Xyz Summon... Number 16: Shock Master!"
The Crusaders all gaped as a strange monster appeared. It was bulky, metallic, had a long neck, and was covered in pinkish panels. There were two antennae and red dome-like eyes on its head, and a 16 mark identical to the one on Silver Spoon's elbow glowed on the surface of one of the panels.
"What the heck is that thing?!" Scootaloo cried.
"This is my mighty Number monster!" Silver Spoon answered with an evil smirk. "You might as well surrender now. There's no way to defeat this! Now, Number 16, destroy Aquaactress Guppy!" Her monster fried the fish with an electrical surge. "Now, let's see you try to top that!"
Crusaders
LP: 6300
Hand (AB): 2
Hand (SB): 6
Hand (SL): 3
Opponents
LP: 7300
Hand (DT): 6
Hand (SS): 3
Hand (FW): 4
Scootaloo shook her head to clear her thoughts as she drew. "I activate the effect of my Speedroid Razorang!" she declared. "By changing him to defense mode, I can decrease your Number card's attack points by 800 until the end of the turn! Next, I summon Speedroid Red-Eyed Dice!" A yellow die with glowing red eyes rolled onto the field and hovered at the girls' eye level. "I'll tune my level one Red-Eyed Dice with my level four Razorang! Level five! I Synchro Summon! Hi-Speedroid Hagoita!" Her new monster could only be described as a giant, rocket-powered racket.
Silver Spoon laughed. "Do you honestly think that your little toy can defeat my Number?!"
"Well, he has more attack points right now, so it's worth a try!" said Scootaloo. "Hagoita, attack that freaky Number thing!" Her monster smacked a rocket shuttle cog at its target, which exploded on contact and sent up a massive smoke cloud.
"Nice shot, Scoots! Ya beat it!" Apple Bloom cheered.
"Check again," said Silver Spoon. The smoke cleared, revealing that her monster was still standing.
"But how?!" Scootaloo demanded.
"You see," Diamond Tiara said, "a Number monster can only be defeated... by another Number!"
"Huh?! We don't have Numbers!" Sweetie Belle cried.
Crusaders
LP: 6300
Hand (AB): 2
Hand (SB): 6
Hand (SL): 3
Opponents
LP: 6800
Hand (DT): 6
Hand (SS): 3
Hand (FW): 4
"But I do, and I think it's time for me to show you!" Diamond Tiara smirked. "Draw! I first activate Temple of the Kings! Once per turn, this lets me activate a trap card the same turn it's set. This turn, it'll be Zoma the Spirit, a trap that summons itself as a monster!" The trap monster was black and had glowing eyes. "Then, I'll summon Landrobe the Rock Vassal, and overlay it with my level four Zoma to build the Overlay Network!" Another starry Xyz portal appeared, this time with a 52 mark matching one that appeared on Diamond Tiara's cheek. "I Xyz Summon Number 52: Diamond Crab King!" True to its name, her Number monster was a crab made entirely of diamonds, the 52 mark on one of its claws.
"Another one?!" Apple Bloom yelled. "Well, at least it doesn't have any attack points."
"That's what you think! I use one of Diamond Crab King's overlay units to activate his effect!" Diamond Tiara declared. Her crab clamped its claw on one of its overlay units. "Until the end of the turn, his zero attack and 3000 defense are swapped, plus the Rush Recklessly I'm playing for a bigger boost, and he's going right for your Gigaplant! Trim the hedge, Diamond Crab King!" The Number card slashed at Apple Bloom's gemini monster with its huge claws, cutting it to ribbons, then shifted its claws to guard its face. "And he changes to defense mode when he's done attacking. I end my turn with that."
Crusaders
LP: 5700
Hand (AB): 2
Hand (SB): 6
Hand (SL): 3
Opponents
LP: 7300
Hand (DT): 3
Hand (SS): 3
Hand (FW): 4
Apple Bloom drew her next card and sighed hopelessly. "Ah can't do it..." she said. "There's nothin' Ah have that can defeat those Numbers..."
"Might I suggest using your own Number cards?" a male voice piped up.
Apple Bloom looked to the source of the voice and screamed. Hovering next to her was a semitransparent blue man with spiked hair and eyes of two different colors. "G-ghost!"
Diamond Tiara squinted. "What are you talking about? I don't see any ghost."
"What do ya mean ya don't see him?! There's a gosh darn floatin' blue guy right here!" Apple Bloom insisted.
"I can see him too!" Sweetie Belle said.
"Me too!" Scootaloo gasped.
"Only you three can see me, due to your connection with the key," the ghostly man said. "My name is Astral, and those Number cards are fragments of my memories."
Sweetie Belle raised an eyebrow. "Your memories... are Duel Monsters cards?"
"Duel Monsters..." Astral mused. "Yes. I Duel! That was it!"
"How can a ghost play card games?" Scootaloo asked.
Astral was silent for a moment. "Observation number one," he finally said, "humans seem to Duel for fun."
"Look, if these Numbers are a part of ya, can ya tell us how to defeat 'em?" asked Apple Bloom.
"As I said, use the Number cards in your own decks."
"But we don't have any!" the farm girl replied. "Heck, we don't have any Xyz monsters at all!"
"Are you certain of that?" Astral said.
"Actually, now that Ah think about it," Apple Bloom replied, "they didn't have 'em either at the start of the Duel..." She looked through her extra deck before finally finding an Xyz card that definitely hadn't been there before. "Ah... Ah have one!"
Sweetie Belle checked her extra deck as well. "Huh? How did I get this?" she wondered.
"I know this thing wasn't here before," said Scootaloo, also holding an Xyz monster.
"The only way to win is to summon them," Astral said. "Do it now."
"Look, I don't know who you losers are talking to, but I'd really like to get on with this Duel!" said Diamond Tiara. "Make your next pathetic move!"
Apple Bloom was silent for half a second before grinning confidently. "Ah think y'all are about to be pretty surprised," she said. "Ah'm summonin' mah Copy Plant!" A twisted, gnarled tree creature with glowing eyes grew out of the ground. "His effect lets him copy the level of another face-up plant-type monster on the field like mah Rose Witch! And now, Ah overlay my level four Rose Witch and Copy Plant!" Another starry portal drew in Apple Bloom's monsters. "For the very first time, Ah Xyz Summon! Let's go, Number 39: Utopia!"
An oddly shaped object rose from the portal and slowly transformed into a warrior in white and gold armor. Two swords were sheathed at his hips, and a pair of wings sprouted from his back. A glowing 39 blazed on his left shoulder plate.
"What?!" Silver Spoon shrieked. "You have a Number card?!"
Sweetie Belle threw her friend a sideways look. "You're not gonna turn evil, are you?"
Astral shook his head. "You three share my energy between you. The Number cards are not able to take control."
"Good enough for me," said Apple Bloom. "Alright, Utopia, attack that Sonic Duck! Risin' sun slash!" Her monster unsheathed one of his swords, which glowed gold, and cut the duck down with ease. "Ah'm endin' mah turn with that."
Crusaders
LP: 5700
Hand (AB): 2
Hand (SB): 6
Hand (SL): 3
Opponents
LP: 6500
Hand (DT): 3
Hand (SS): 3
Hand (FW): 4
Featherweight drew and grinned wickedly. "I play my Summoner Monk, and his effect makes me do it in defense mode!" he declared, calling forth the dark-robed monk. "When he's on the field, I can discard a spell card to summon a level four monster straight from my deck! Come on out, Sacred Crane, which lets me draw a card when it's Special Summoned!" Another bird-like monster.
"Is Featherweight about to summon another Number?!" Sweetie Belle said.
"Indeed I am!" Featherweight answered as another portal opened. "With my level four Summoner Monk and Sacred Crane, I build the Overlay Network and Xyz Summon! Go, Number 44: Sky Pegasus!" As his equine Number monster emerged, a 44 symbol glowed on his forehead. "He'll be in defense mode, and I'll get rid of an overlay unit to use his effect! You have a choice. You can either pay up a thousand Life Points, or say goodbye to Utopia!"
The girls glanced at each other, instantly conveying what they had decided. "Thousand Life Points," they chorused.
"Very well. I end my turn."
Crusaders
LP: 4700
Hand (AB): 2
Hand (SB): 6
Hand (SL): 3
Opponents
LP: 6500
Hand (DT): 3
Hand (SS): 3
Hand (FW): 4
"You know, I really shouldn't be left out of the Number party here. Draw!" Sweetie Belle said, whipping a card out from her deck. "I activate Ancient Rules! With this, I can Special Summon a level five or higher monster from my hand! I'll take my second Aquaactress Arowana!" The monster Sweetie already controlled gained a twin, but they were both instantly drawn into another portal. "I'm overlaying my two level six Arowanas to Xyz Summon!" she declared. "Time to bring out Number 21: Frozen Lady Justice!"
A pale woman appeared on the field. She wore a beautiful yet somewhat short white dress. Her hair and sword both seemed to be made of ice shards.
"Excellent," Astral encouraged. "The more Number cards you three can get on the field, the better your chances. Now, use Number 21's ability."
"Okay, if you think it'll help," said Sweetie Belle. "I'll remove one overlay unit to activate Frozen Lady Justice's effect!" Her Number card pierced through an overlay unit with her sword. "Sure, she has to give up a thousand attack points because she lost a material, but she wipes out all your monsters that are in defense mode!"
"What?!" their three opponents gasped. They watched as Frozen Lady Justice swung her sword above her head and caused ice spikes to form on the ground, impaling both Diamond Crab King and Sky Pegasus.
"To finish off, I'll play one facedown," Sweetie Belle concluded.
Crusaders
LP: 4700
Hand (AB): 2
Hand (SB): 4
Hand (SL): 3
Opponents
LP: 6500
Hand (DT): 3
Hand (SS): 3
Hand (FW): 4
Silver Spoon glared. "Draw! I don't like your facedown card, so I'll activate Shock Master's special ability!" Her freaky-looking monster absorbed an overlay unit. "For the cost of one material, I can declare a card type that I don't want you to use on me. For the rest of this turn, you can't activate any trap cards!"
"Oh no!" Sweetie Belle shrieked. Her card became covered in electricity.
"Now, Shock Master, attack the Frozen Lady Justice!" Silver Spoon ordered. Her monster charged a plasma bolt.
"We'll be activating Utopia's ability now!" Astral declared.
"Astral, we've got this!" Apple Bloom snapped. "Besides, they can't even hear ya! Ah'm activatin' Utopia's effect!" Her Number monster drew an overlay unit into his chest piece. "By coughin' up a material, he can block your attack!"
Shock Master fired off an electrical blast at Frozen Lady Justice. Then, out of nowhere, Utopia jumped between them. He raised one of his wings to guard against the attack, completely absorbing it.
Silver Spoon growled in frustration. "Grrr! I summon my B-Buster Drake and end my turn!"
Crusaders
LP: 4700
Hand (AB): 2
Hand (SB): 4
Hand (SL): 3
Opponents
LP: 6500
Hand (DT): 3
Hand (SS): 3
Hand (FW): 4
"Now," Astral said as he turned to Scootaloo, "it is time for you to summon your own Number."
"I'll see if I can," the orange girl replied. "Just need something that can get more than one monster on the field." She drew her card, then grinned. "Like my Speedroid Double Yoyo! When this guy is summoned, my Red-Eyed Dice will be coming back from the Graveyard to join him!" Her die reappeared alongside a monster that really did look like two giant yoyos.
"But you can't summon your Number with those two. They are not the correct level," Astral pointed out.
"Not yet," Scootaloo corrected. "I activate my spell card Level Lifter! All I have to do is discard a monster, and all of my monsters will change to match its level! I'm getting rid of my Slot Machine!"
"This probably isn't good," Featherweight observed.
"Now that both of my monsters are level seven, I'm gonna overlay them!" Scootaloo declared. "I Xyz Summon Number 42: Galaxy Tomahawk!" Her monster appeared to be an arrowhead-shaped spaceship. "Next, I'm playing Shield and Sword! This spell card swaps the attack and defense of every monster on the field until the end phase! Go, Galaxy Tomahawk, get rid of that Shock Master!"
"No! Not my precious Number card!"
Galaxy Tomahawk raced across the field and sliced through it's target.
Crusaders
LP: 4700
Hand (AB): 2
Hand (SB): 4
Hand (SL): 0
Opponents
LP: 5100
Hand (DT): 3
Hand (SS): 3
Hand (FW): 4
"You'll pay for destroying our Numbers!" Diamond Tiara hissed, her new card already in her hand. "And it all starts with Raigeki!" Lightning crashed down on the Crusaders' field, destroying their Number cards. "Now, I summon Dark Blade and attack directly!"
As Diamond Tiara's black-armored knight charged, Sweetie Belle chuckled. "Looks like you forgot about my trap card! And it's Magic Cylinder!"
"No!" Diamond Tiara growled. Her monster's attack was redirected at her and her team.
Crusaders
LP: 4700
Hand (AB): 2
Hand (SB): 4
Hand (SL): 0
Opponents
LP: 3300
Hand (DT): 2
Hand (SS): 3
Hand (FW): 4
"Guess Ah'm up!" Apple Bloom said. "And Ah'm really feelin' the flow now!"
"I do not understand," said Astral. "What do you mean by 'feeling the flow'?"
"It just means Ah'm all ready to go!" the red-haired girl told him. "Draw! Ah activate mah Puppet Plant!" A seemingly sentient plant grew next to her. "By discardin' him, Ah can take control of your Dark Blade for a while!" The vines of her monster wrapped around Dark Blade and dragged it to her field. "Next up is mah Pot of Avarice! Ah get to shuffle five monsters back into mah deck or extra deck and draw two cards!" She did so and smiled. "And now for mah Botanical Lion, which Ah'll overlay with Dark Blade to bring back Utopia! Now, Utopia, attack that B-Buster Drake!"
"We'll still be in this, even when that attack lands!" Silver Spoon pointed out.
"In that case, Ah'm playin' Utopia's effect to negate his own attack!"
Everyone looked at her in confusion. "Why would you do that?" Scootaloo asked.
"Let's just say Ah had a feelin' this would come in handy," Apple Bloom winked. "The quick play spell Double or Nothin'! Since Utopia's attack was negated, he gets another chance to hit ya, but with twice the attack points!"
"B-but that's enough to...!"
"You know it! Go, Utopia, risin' sun slash!"
Utopia swung his swords with all his strength, knocking all three enemies on their backs and reducing their Life Points to nothing.
Winners: Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo
"... Girls... we did it," Sweetie Belle said. "We won!" She and her friends shared a tight group hug.
Astral nodded. "And now that we have defeated them, their Number cards belong to us." He held out his hand. A glowing card flew from each of the fallen opponents and into his waiting grasp.
"Uh... we kinda did all the work," Apple Bloom reminded the ethereal man.
"But we also would've been crushed without the Numbers he brought us," Scootaloo pointed out.
"One thing is for sure, though," Sweetie Belle grinned. "We have six Numbers between the three of us now, and there's absolutely no possible way whatsoever for us to lose this tournament as long as we have them!"
[A few moments later...]
"DISQUALIFIED?!" the Crusaders all shouted after Principal Celestia told them the bad news.
"I'm sorry, but yes," Vice Principal Luna said to them. "For using unregistered cards that might give you an unfair advantage. Not to mention that your opponents are literally unconscious right now."
"Well, we probably should've seen that coming," Sweetie Belle admitted. "But at least we had fun Dueling!"
"Yeah!" Scootaloo agreed. "Crazy, saving-our-jerky-classmates-from-magical-trading-cards kind of fun, that is."
"Who cares if we win the tournament, anyway?" Apple Bloom asked with a smile. "We're really startin' to grow as Duelists now!"
"Observation number two," said Astral. "Some humans do not seem to care about winning or losing, instead choosing to see the end result as an opportunity to improve."
That afternoon, after the tournament had ended, the Crusaders sat next to the pedestal of the Wondercolt statue in front of the school. Astral hovered above their heads, watching them.
"Listen, Astral," Apple Bloom finally said to him. "Not to be rude or nothin', but why're ya still followin' us around?"
"I am bound to your key, for a reason that I myself am not quite sure of," the ghostly man answered. "And I need your help."
"Help? What do you need us to do?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"I need you to seek out those who are wielding Number cards," was Astral's answer. "The more you three help me collect, the more I can piece together my memory. Maybe then I can remember what I was sent to this world to do. And you've seen how dangerous they can be in the wrong hands."
"One thing's for sure, Crusaders: this won't be easy," said Scootaloo. "But Astral really does need us, and I'm not gonna let him down!"
"Me neither!" Apple Bloom agreed. "Astral, of course we'll help ya! You're our friend, after all!"
Astral looked at her with a quizzical expression. "Am I?"
"Yeah!" squeaked Sweetie Belle. "You helped us defeat those Numbers! Now, we'll help you get the rest of them, no matter how dangerous it'll be! Because that's what friends do!"
Observation number three, Astral thought. Friendship is a powerful thing. Those joined by its bonds will brave many dangers for each other. These three humans are a prime example of that bond.
"And since you're our friend, ya oughta know our names," Apple Bloom told him. "Ah'm Apple Bloom, and they're Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. Ah call 'em Sweetie and Scoots for short sometimes."
Astral smiled at the girls. "Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. I am very pleased to be your friend."
"Alright, girls, it's time to start collecting!" Scootaloo said.
"CANTERLOT CRUSADERS NUMBER CARD COLLECTORS! YAY!"