Empress Nightmare Moon had claimed many victories in her past. The defeat of Celestia, her sister, and conquering Equestria was just one example of her power. Over the millennia that she has ruled, she has seen kingdoms fall under her mighty hoof. She had witnessed her rivals beg for mercy as she towered above them. Their cities lay in ruin and their subjects, at least those who chose to swear their allegiance to Nightmare Moon, were under her domain.
Her rule was ever strong and her empire's power was growing even to this day. True, there were still other nations in the world that could pose a threat in the future. Together they could manage to become a real thorn in her side. Though if they were no less than perfect in the execution of their plans, the full wrath of the moon would be upon them. Nightmare Moon was not the type mare that would lose so easily. She even entertained the thought that none were worthy enough to defeat her. So, why was she losing so badly at a children's card game?!
Nightmare Moon sat at a table, a total of three cards resting in her magical grip. Of these three cards was a single creature that she could summon to her aide and two magic cards, each with their own ability. She looked down at her side of the board for what seemed like the hundredth time. She had two cards faced down. It was cannon fodder for her opponent to maul over in an attempt to figure out what it could be. The other one was to ensure that what remained of her life points would not be depleted.
She had no creatures on her side of the field. The last one she had was brutally destroyed after it had its strength sapped away by her enemy's summons. Speaking of her enemy, Nightmare Moon looked over at her opponent who was currently looking over her own cards. The grey mare sat at the other end of the table. Her sandy blond mane covered one of her golden yellow eyes. She had taken off her armor which was now laying on the floor beside them.
She was one of the many soldiers in her army. Each of them raised their sword in her name, but none dared to challenge her. That was until tonight. Derpy Hooves was the name of the mare that had challenged Nightmare Moon to this duel. The stakes were simple. If she won, she would get a three-day vacation. The longest vacation any soldier she had given would receive. If she lost, her punishment was up for Nightmare Moon to decide. At first, Nightmare Moon had decided on a light punishment as it had been centuries since anyone challenged her to anything and she admired the grey pegasus mare for that.
Nightmare Moon also thought that the duel between them would be like any other she had had in the past. She had bested many at games of strategy from chess to poker. However, this game wasn't like the other ones she had played before. Here, strategy and timing were key and while she had her strategy down pat, her timing proved to be less than ideal. Whether it was because of her own personal blunder or her opponent's tactics of delaying her attacks proved more of a threat than she had realized. Nightmare Moon had planned to give her commander a light punishment but now a much heavier punishment was in store.
To make matters worse, it wasn't the fact that Nightmare Moon's life points were on the verge of being reduced to zero. It wasn't the fact that her strongest monsters were defeated and she now had barely any way of getting them back. She could even swallow the fact that this could very well be a loss for her. What she couldn't accept the fact of was that she was losing to a bunch of sentient pastries!
Pansnake?! Blueberry Moofin?! Sunderaidactel!? Golden Delicious Apple Pie Dragon!?! There was no way the Empress of the Night should be losing to a deck based on baked goods! She was going to have to give the company who made these cards a good talking to once this was all over. "You've been taking quite a while, your highness," Derpy stated. Nightmare Moon bared her fangs.
"I am your ruler, Commander Hooves. I can take as much time as I desire." She retorted. A chill hovered in the air as she spoke.
"Of course, your majesty," replied Derpy. "Please forgive my rudeness." Her calm nature and blank expression made it hard for the Empress of the Night to completely understand her. Nightmare Moon scuffed before looking down on the field. Derpy had three monsters on her side of the field. Her Pansnake was not a major threat as one over her previous moves rendered its effect useless. Not only that, but the monster had a pitiful amount of attack points. Even Nightmare Moon's weakest creatures could destroy it in a mere second. It was only common sense that Derpy would have it in defense mode. It was her Sunderaidactel and her Apple Pie Dragon that were the issue. Both of them had a high attack thanks to her Field Spell, Sweet Sweet Bakery. And her Sunderaidactel's effect was annoying as everything else Derpy had.
The Field Spell was also something that Nightmare Moon despised. It allowed Derpy to special summon one of her 'Dessert Beasts' from her hand or Graveyard for only a measly 1200 Life Points. The payment was nearly ineffective considering she had gained eight hundred of it back in the blink of an eye. If Nightmare Moon hadn't played a trap card a few turns earlier, Derpy would have no doubt gained all her spent Life Points and then some. The Field Spell's other effects were bothersome as well. It place 'Sweet Counters' on Derpy's monsters for every 'Dessert Beast' she controlled, bolstering their attack points by one hundred for each counter. At the same time, it places 'Cavity Counters' on Nightmare Moon's monsters for every 'Dessert Beast' Derpy has and drains their attack points by one hundred for each. Coupled with the ease of being able to summon her monsters, Commander Hooves was an annoying opponent, to say the least. However, Nightmare Moon had a plan.
"I normal summon Nightborn Hedgehog and use its effect," Nightmare Moon said as she placed down her monster card. A hedgehog with jet-black quills was the picture on the card. "Do you respond?"
"May I see the card?" asked Derpy. Nightmare Moon levitated the monster card so she could see it. Nightborn Hedgehog's effect allowed the user to special summon one level three or lower 'Nightborn' monster from the user's Graveyard. However, this effect could only be used once per turn and the summoned monster's effect is negated until the start of the user's next turn. "I don't respond." Nightmare Moon looked through what remained of her graveyard, searching for one monster in particular. A few seconds was all it took to find it.
"I special summon Nightborn Hummingbird," The lunar empress revealed a monster card with a jet-black hummingbird as its picture. "Do you respond?"
"I do not," replied Derpy.
"I activate the spell card: Sacrificial Summoning," Nightmare Moon continued, "It lets me banish two or more monsters I control and special summon a monster from my graveyard whose level is equal to or lesser than the combined levels of the monsters I banished. Do you respond?"
"I do not."
Nightmare Moon placed her two newly summoned monsters in the banished zone right above her graveyard. "Nightborn Hedgehog was level three and Nightborn Humminbird was level two. I special summon Nightborn Avenger, a level 5 Synch monster, and activate his second effect. For every 'Nightborn' monster in my graveyard, it gains one hundred attack points until the end of the turn. As of right now, I have ten in my graveyard and that makes Avenger's attack points 3300."
"I now activate the continuous spell card: The Moon's Saving Grace. Its effects state that no Spell or Trap card effects can be activated during the battle phase that would target a 'Nightborn' monster. Also, should a 'Nightborn' monster I control be destroyed by battle or an opponent's card effect and sent to the graveyard, I can shuffle one level three or lower 'Nightborn' monster into my deck." Nightmare silently wished she had drawn that card earlier into the duel. It could have saved her a lot of trouble. "Going into the battle phase, Avenger attacks Apple Pie Dragon, destroying it. Avenger's third effect activates. Your dragon is banished instead of being sent to the graveyard." Derpy nodded as she moved her dragon into her banished zone and three hundred life points were subtracted from her. Her remaining Life Points were 5200 while Nightmare Moon's was 1500. She had made a small dent in the pegasus' Life Points, but it was a dent none the less.
"Main Phase 2, I activate the spell card: Nightborn Split-" Nightmare Moon flipped over the card that was not a bluff, "I banish a monster I control and I special summon level 1 Nightborn Tokens equal to the banished monster's level. Each token having five hundred attack and defense points and classified as warriors. Any response?"
"None, your majesty," Derpy responded as Nightmare Moon banished her Nightborn Avenger. Five tokens were placed in a defensive position on the monarch's side of the field. It wasn't much of a defense, but, hopefully, Nightmare Moon could do something with it.
"Then it's my End Phase-" Right as the words left Nightmare Moon's mouth, Derpy responded.
"On your End Phase, I activate my trap card: Sweet Sweet Revenge. I target a monster that was destroyed this turn and inflict damage to you equal to half the monster's original attack points. With Apple Pie Dragon being the target, you take nine hundred Life Point damage." Nightmare Moon cursed under her breath. With only six hundred Life Points remaining, she was bound to be done in by living pastries!
"I draw," Derpy said as she added a card from her deck to her hand. "I activate Sweet Sweet Bakery and special summon from my hand Dessert Beast Puggingus. Also since my Life Points are higher than yours, I can use Puddingus' special effect. It allows me to special summon one level three or lower 'Dessert Beast' from my hand for eight hundred Life Points, but its effects are negated until the end of my turn," Derpy took placed her final monster on the field. The sight of it made Nightmare Moon clench her teeth in fear. "I summon Dessert Beast: Baby Jello."
Of all the creatures to aid her in her battle, Commander Hooves decided to bring a baby to fight her empress. Hate couldn't even begin to describe the emotion that Nightmare Moon had for her commander. "I'm left with 4400 Life Points now. I use Puddingus' second effect. I pay five hundred Life Points and draw one card," Derpy said. After adding another card to her hand, she placed two cards faced down. "I activate the continuous spell card: A La Mode. Its effects let my Dessert Beasts gain five hundred attack points and, once per turn, I gain Life Points equal to the number of Dessert Beasts I control times two hundred. With five Dessert Beasts, I gain 1000 Life Points."
Here is why Nightmare Moon hated this deck. Any loss of health could easily be gained back. It mattered not if the damage came from Commander Hooves' own cards or from Nightmare Moon's. This deck was meant to be taken down quickly and brutally. It was a lesson that Nightmare Moon learned a bit too late. Derpy switched her Pansnake to its attacking position. "Going into Battle Phase, I use all of my Dessert Beasts to attack your monsters," said Derpy. All of the night empress' tokens were gone. However, all was not lost. Due to her 'Moon's Saving Grace', she was able to shuffle five of the monster cards in her graveyard back into her deck. She could still win this if she tried. "I end my turn."
It was Nightmare Moon's turn again. She drew a card and almost let out a breath of relief. This would most definitely help. "I activate my field spell: 'Lunar Eclipse Kingdom'," proclaimed Nightmare Moon. Things were finally lucking up. "With it, I can special summon a 'Nightborn' monster from my graveyard. I special summon Nightborn Savior and I activate his ability. Since my Life Points are lower than yours, I can special summon one banished 'Nightborn' monster for every 1000 Life Point difference. I special summon Nightborn Hedgehog, Hummingbird, and Avenger to the field."
Lunar Eclipse Kingdom lets me destroy one of your set cards once per turn by banishing a 'Nightborn' monster I control," Nightmare Moon banished 'Nightborn Hedgehog' as she would not have a use for his ability anymore. She targeted one of Derpy's field spell for destruction. Derpy placed it in her graveyard without hesitation. 'She must have something planned,' Nightmare Moon thought. Commander Hooves had just lost one of her main sources for summoning her monsters with the ease she had been having. 'No matter, I may not be able to finish her off this turn, but I should be able to do it come my next one.'
"I activate Nightborn Hummingbird's effect, I send it to the graveyard and one of the 'Nightborn' monsters I control gain half its attack points until the end of my turn. Saviour will gain the attack points, leaving him at 2200. I active Avenger's second effect. He is at 3300 again," Nightmare Moon could almost feel her smile returning to her face. "Going into Battle Phase, Avenger attacks Baby Jello for 2300 damage." Derpy took the hit and her Life Points went from 4900 to 2600. "Saviour attacks Pansnake for five hundred damage." Again, Derpy took the hit. Now her Life Points were at 2100. Nightmare Moon fought hard to get her smile under control.
"Main Phase Two, I use Saviour's second effect to banish himself and special summon three 'Nightborn' tokens in defense mode," Nightmare Moon could almost sigh with relief. Not only had she dealt a massive blow to Commander Hooves, but she also managed to build up her defenses somewhat. From here, Commander Hooves would have to play defensively to get her monsters back as well as use their effects to regain what Life Points she could. However, Nightmare Moon could feel that the end of the battle was approaching fast. Though this battle was frustrating as every, the empress of the night could relax knowing that she had the duel in her favor now.
"I end my turn."
"On your End Phase," Derpy said, a smile creeping on her face.
'...No...' thought Nightmare Moon. '... There is no way...'
"I activate the trap card: Sweet Sweet Revenge. Targeting Pansnake whose original attack points were 1200, you take six hundred damage. With your Life Points at zero, I win." Hate could not even begin to describe how much Nightmare Moon hated her commander right now. She had just been bested by a deck filled with nothing but baked goods! She is going to find whoever decided to make that deck and make them regret being born.
Nightmare Moon took a deep breath before she responded. "It would appear so, Commander Derpy. Well, I'm a mare of my word. You have bested me and you will receive your vacation. I expect you to be back and more than ready to fulfill your duty once you return." she said as she went about shuffling her cards back into her deck.
"Thank you, your majesty," Derpy said as she bowed, "I'll tell Dinky you said hi. Also, do you think we could have another game? No bets this time. I find it hard to find someone to play this with."
"Can't you have your daughter play it with you?" inquired Nightmare Moon.
"She doesn't like the game as much as I do. I don't want to make her play a game she doesn't like," Derpy answered, the hint of sadness on her voice did not go unnoticed by Nightmare Moon. The ebony alicorn looked at a clock that was on the wall. She had half an hour before anything important happened that she would need to be there for.
"Alright, I'll humor you for one more game, Commander Hooves," Nightmare Moon smiled as she finished shuffling her deck. "However, I must warn you. The only reason you won the last time was because I was unfamiliar with the inner workings of your deck. Now though? I have figure out how your deck works. You won't be able get another win this night." The two of them got their decks ready and drew their starting hands. This battle was going to be a fierce one.