In what seemed like in no time at all, Canterlot High had their own dueling arena. Manly because Pegasus had hired a construction team who seemed powered by fifty gallons of red bull, a hundred gallons of caffeine, and acted as though they were going to get a billion dollars if the project was completed within a single weekend…done right! And so, low and behold, the weekend after the contract with the school board was signed a second story had been added above the gym.
“Oh Lordy,” cried Applejack as she, Hunter, and Moondancer walked up the stairway to the room, gazing around wide eyed at the sight before them. The room was roughly the same size as the gym below, minus the stage where in its place was what looked like a built in concession stand. Along the clean and freshly painted walls were rows of bleachers, much like the ones below them; only these looked like they were made of hard plastic rather than wood. Opposite of where the concession stands were, Hunter spotted a doorway with large bay windows on either side. On one of those windows, written in fancy cursive, was ‘Trading Corner’. Looking through the windows, Hunter spotted several long milky white tables as well as several glass cases. In the middle of the room was a large, blue circular platform slightly raised above the ground with the school mascot framed directly in the middle. No doubt this was where they were all meant to duel.
They weren’t the only three here as several people were right behind them as well as quite a few already mulling about the room, looking it over with barely contained excitement. There were, of course, those from the dueling team. Lightning and Pharynx were walking around, arms lightly touching the other as the teenage boy pointed out all the security systems that were mostly hidden from sight. Wallflower and Autumn were off near the concession stand going over how best to decorate the place. Autumn wanted to put up some posters of the team in kung-fu poses while Wallflower thought some nice flowers would be best. Also in the room were other notable duelists, some of the best in the school. Flash Sentry, for example, had walked to the top of the stands in order to get a bird’s eye view of the entire room. Trixie was running around only to suddenly stop, sliding on the floor as her cape bellowed behind her. Pinkie Pie was bouncing around, knocking off the hat of Night Quill who gave her an annoyed look before plopping it back onto his head. Rainbow Dash had just zoomed up the steps, looking around the room like she was staring at a mountain of Christmas Presents. Fluttershy timidly moved near the bleachers, doing her best not to draw too much attention to herself. Sunset was walking around, lightly biting her lower lip as she stared at the painting of the mascot on the walls. Then there was Rarity, who was nearly knocked down by her little sister and her friends as they charged head first to the platform.
Then, finally, there was Principal Celestia and Vice-Principal Luna. Both women were on the platform, arms crossed as they watched their students with smiles on their faces. Clearly they were happy to see their students so impressed with this new addition. Or maybe Principal Celestia was just happy that her sunburn had greatly lessened over the last couple of days. Behind them was a table with a cloth covered several objects, waiting to be unveiled. And next to them was Photo Finish, holding her camera while looking very impatient.
“Land sakes,” muttered Applejack, her voice slightly echoing in the room. “This sure is something. Heh, bet this will sure beat dueling in the park. Well, if ah’m allowed ta duel in here.”
“I’m sure this won’t be strictly for the dueling team,” said Hunter in a reassuring tone. He opened his mouth to continue, but paused when he spotted another figure peeking her head out from the stairway noticing her fireball like hair. It was Spitfire, looking on with a pitiable expression on her face as her eyes lingered towards Rainbow who was heading over to Lightning causing warning bells to ring in his head. Hunter understood why right away as there had been an incident between Spitfire and Rainbow during lunch the following Monday after their duel against Appleloosa. After it was over, Lightning had decided to tell the entire team about what had been going on. About how Spitfire had been stalking her and preventing her from joining any team even going so far as to follow them all the way to Appleloosa. She also mentioned that it was being taken care of. That Vice-Principal Luna was taking steps to correct this behavior. At first, Hunter wondered if these measures had done anything given how long she had been doing this. However, that opinion was quickly changed as Spitfire pulled her head back and began to head down the stairs.
Turning back to everyone, Hunter cleared his throat before continuing where he had left off. “I mean, it’s not like the dueling team is going to be using it 24/7. I’m sure that the principals have thought of something.”
“Good,” replied Applejack with a grin. “Because Ah wanna keep improving on mah Predaplant deck. Ah know one of these days Ah’m gonna beat ya!”
“Keep on coming,” replied Hunter, grinning back. “Dueling against you will be good practice to help me get used to my new deck. And, for your help, I just got my hands on the new and very rare Predaplant monster. Should really help you.”
“Rarity!” yelled Moondancer, moving past the two duelist and making her way towards the fashionista. Rarity jerked a little when she heard her name being called before turning. When she saw that it was Moondancer, her face softened as a smile appeared. A very coy one at that.
“Moondancer, darling,” cried Rarity. “How are you? Did your duel disk download those new designs Micro Chips uploaded yesterday?”
“Yes, I did!” breathed Moondancer. Even though her back was facing Hunter, he could tell that she was now speaking through her teeth. “And I was very surprised to see that my outfit keeps changing based on what ritual monster I summon. Like when I summon my Devotee, I’m suddenly wearing a flaming bikini! Or that new outfit with my Phoenix!”
“I bet Hunter loved them!” cried Rarity, clasping her hands together while hearts appeared in her eyes. “Did he stop the duel right then and there, rush towards you to pick you up in his arms and-”
“No, he didn’t,” growled Moondancer, her ears turning red. Rarity seemed to come back to earth, looking at Moondancer with concern as she approached her. “See, I was dueling my sister when those…outfits appeared on me! In the backyard. And even though they were just holograms, my sister thought I was becoming ah…It doesn’t matter what she thought! What matters is that you are going to come over to my house and explain what you did! And that I had no idea you did it! And when you are done with that, you’re going to have Micro remove that program from my duel disk!”
“Ah yes,” said Rarity, looking downcast. “Did not think that one through all the way. I suppose correcting that mistake would be the right thing to do.” Then she suddenly brightened. “And while I’m there, your room could use a nice makeover. I could also go over some new designs which-”
“Rarity!” yelled Moondancer.
“Well you could at least show Hunter those outfits before they are deleted,” complained Rarity, doing her best to ignore the several strands of hair that were rising from Moondancer’s head. “After all, they were made for him to see you in them. It would be such a shame if he missed out on them.”
“Missed out on what?” asked Hunter, very curious now. And he grew even more curious when Moondancer turned her head around, her entire face now bright red, and then placed her hand over Rarity’s mouth.
“Nothing,” said Moondancer. “You heard nothing. Nothing at all. Right, Rarity?”
“Ok everyone, gather around,” said Celestia while clapping her hands, interrupting whatever Rarity’s reply would have been. Quickly, the pale white girl separated herself from Moondancer and quickly moved to her friends. Moondancer, face still red, reached out for her, as if trying to grab her hair and pull her back put was too slow. For a moment she stood there until Hunter wrapped an arm around her waist, causing her to jump a little before they both headed over to where the team had gathered. It was like there were two clumps of students, the dueling team standing closer to Vice-Principal Luna and the rest grouped up closer to Principal Celestia.
“Thank you everyone for coming to the grand reveal of the Pegasus Dueling Arena,” continued Celestia once everyone stopped moving, still smiling brightly. “And while the man who generously donated this wonderful arena to us could not be present, the six students who impressed him are! So please, give a round of applause to your classmates who made all of this possible! Moondancer. Autumn Blaze. Pharynx. Lightning Dust. Star Hunter. Wallflower Blush. Canterlot High’s very first official dueling team!” She paused for a moment as heavy clapping filled the air with a few students hooting and hollering. Briefly, Hunter looked over at his teammates to see that a few of them were red in the face.
“The six of you should feel proud of what you have done,” said Celestia as the adulation began to die down. “You have represented your school to show that we can compete in this sport on a more serious level. The skills you have shown have already born fruit, allowing us this massive arena as well as additional funding to all of our arts programs whose budgets will be increased. And yes, that goes for after school clubs as well like the gardening club.” At that, Celestia turned to give Wallflower a wink causing said girl’s face to turn completely red while still smiling.
“Starting today, the Pegasus Arena will be shared not just by our dueling team or our school, but the entire community,” said Celestia as stepped forward. “It’s primary role will still be to house our team, as well as the new location for the finals of the Autumn Crown and where the entire Friendship Cup will be taking place. But It will also be a place where duelists all over town can gather in unity. It was with that in mind that Mr. Pegasus added a card shop to the design, a place where people can gather and even store the cards they wish to trade. So that certain people don’t have to lug around a mountain of cards anymore.”
Hunter now felt himself grow flushed at this. It was true that he had been given permission to use the library for his trading, but hauling all those cards from his aunt’s apartment to school everyday had been extremely…taxing. But if they were going to allow him to store the cards here, and provided that there was some security to keep them safe, then this was just what the doctor ordered.
“Ah, excuse me,” said Sunset Shimmer, raising her hand as if this were a class. “I think we can fit the school in here for the Autumn Crown, but won’t it be a little, ah, tight if we had two schools inside?” Hunter found himself nodding as he looked around. The place was large, but only large enough to fit one school inside with everyone sitting shoulder to shoulder. It seemed unlikely that they would be able to fit two schools worth. Then again, not everyone from Crystal Prep tended to show up to the Friendship Cup.
“You’re right Ms. Shimmer,” said Celestia. “And, thankfully, Mr. Pegasus thought of that.” With that said, the ceiling of the roof split in half. Everyone watched as the sides began to move, pulling the bleachers back while the sky became more and more visible until finally it stopped. “Should the need arise, the roof opens up like so. Our duel monsters will then be able to take their full form as well as project themselves into the sky so that those around the school can watch!”
“Furthermore,” added Celestia. “This arena also has within it a holographic opponent system, featuring many different decks for all of you to duel against should you be in need of a partner. From what we have been told, there are three settings: red, yellow, and blue.” As she spoke, the air next to the principal began to flicker before the figure of a small boy appeared wearing a red coat with a duel disk on his arm. The crowd gasped in surprise, but Celestia continued to talk. “As you can see, the holograms are highly realistic and will come with a multitude of decks which will be updated regularly. This one right here is the red setting, aka: easy mode.” Celestia then nodded and the hologram then vanished.
“As I said, this arena will be for everyone’s use,” said Celestia. “However, in order to use it, we will require signed permission slips from everyone’s parents or legal guardians. This area hosts the latest in hard light technology, meaning that the holograms will become significantly more real. While there are safety measures in place to prevent any serious injuries from occurring, we can not prevent them completely. Should anyone use this area without said permission slip, they will be banned for life.”
“We have also been given these,” added Luna as she pulled the cloth off the table, unveiling twelve of the latest models of duel disks. Each one of them blue, looking like something that Crystal Prep would have; sleeker than the more common model while also lacking a card tray. “These duel disks will only be used by the members of the duel team during official events and practice as well as any participants in the Friendship Cup. Should I find that anyone at this school has taken them out of the building without permission, there will be legal consequences. Also, as part of our agreement with Mr. Pegasus, he will be supplying them with regular maintenance as long as we are not caught cheating or involved in any illegal dueling activities. Should that happen, it will be next to impossible for us to maintain any of this. If any of you are caught doing so, there will be harsh consequences.”
“Don’t worry about that Luna, I’ll make sure no one on my team will do any such thing,” said Celestia with a warming smile towards her sister. Yet, Luna did not return it. She, as well as the rest of the dueling team, stared at her as if she had just sprouted a second head.
“I’m sorry sister, but did you just say ‘your team’?” asked Luna, in a tone that clearly sounded as though she were forcing herself to stay calm.
“Ah, yes,” said Celestia, looking back at Luna curiously. As if she didn’t understand what the problem was of what she had just said. “I did.”
“I see,” said Luna as she approached Celestia with all the students watching. “I find that odd since you were the one to place me as coach.”
“As I recall, Vice-Principal Luna, you didn’t even want this position,” stated Celestia firmly, temper slightly flaring up as she spoke. Clearly, she did not like having this conversation now in front of all of the students watching them. “Didn’t you say that this position should go to the one who had worked hard to make this a reality? That the better duelist should have it?”
“That was before I found out the reason you gave me this position is because you wanted to go to that Hawaiian trip!” argued Luna, temper flaring as well. “Besides, I’m allowed to change my mind. You did remind me that I had been asking to take on more responsibility so I’m ready to take it. And besides, how are you going to manage this team when you can’t even handle being a substitute teacher for a single class!” At this comment, Hunter could see Celestia’s hands clench tightly while her shoulders stiffened. He could even tell that some of her hair was beginning to stand on end showing that this comment clearly hit a sore spot.
“Oh, I remember that class,” said Pharynx with a wince, just loud enough for everyone in the team to hear. “Every five seconds she was being called away to do something, turning science class into a study hall. I think at one point she came back half covered in cake.”
“But on the plus side, I got to finish six pages in the kung-fu musical I’ve been working on,” said Autumn with a wild grin on her face.
“Yeah, that’s right!” shouted Lightning, fist in the air. “We already have a coach and that’s Coach Luna! She was there with us when we faced off against Appleloosa!”
“Yeah, but isn’t Principal Celestia supposed to be the better duelist,” Flash pointed out. “I mean, she went off against Principal Sombra in the Friendship Games.”
“Yeah, and how well did that turn out for her?” Moondancer pointed out, staring at Flash as she spoke. At the same time, Hunter could see that the other members of the duel team were nodding with Moondancer.
“Ok, that’s a little unfair,” said Sunset, approaching Moondancer with her hands raised in a peaceful gesture. “Principal Sombra is in charge of a pro-dueling school. So it would be pretty unfair to compare that to how Vice-Principal Luna did in her duel against…whoever she dueled in Appleloosa.”
Tensions within the room began to rise as did the volume of their voices. While the duelists who had been with Luna during their trip to Appleloosa, including Rainbow Dash, argued in favor that she should remain as coach, the others did not see it that way. They argued that the better duelist should be in charge, yet Hunter felt there might be more to it than what they were saying. Vice-Principal Luna was generally un-liked since she was in charge of discipline, dealing out punishments and watching over the kids in detention. So perhaps there was a bit of bias there. Out of the corner of his eye, Hunter could see a similar standoff going on with the sisters with Photo Finish looking bored.
“Everybody calm down!” shouted Pinkie Pie as she appeared in-between the two older women. Everyone turned to look at her as Pinkie cleared her throat. “What we have here is a case where both parties have equal rights to the team. Now, normally, I would suggest something like cutting it in half so we could share it…but I don’t think it’ll work this time. So how about we just use our go-to and have our principals duel for it!”
As the crowd cheered, Celestia gave Pinkie a smile. “That is an excellent idea Pinkie Pie,” she said as she took one of the new duel disks off the table and slid it onto her arm. “What better way to break in this new arena than with a duel to see who will be coach. Unless Luna wants to back out?”
“YOU GOT THIS COACH LUNA!” shouted Lightning, Wallflower, and Pharynx at the same time. While Luna didn’t turn to look at them, Hunter could see her smiling as she took her own duel disk off the table.
“No sister, I won’t,” said the midnight blue woman as she slid the duel disk on her arm before inserting her deck. “So bring it on because I won’t hold anything back!” At the same time, their duel disks activated creating a tray of blue light which connected to their devices.
As the two turned to get to their appropriate sides of the platform, the rest of the floor was a madhouse. Students rushed to be seated, most of them moving to sit close to Principal Celestia on either side in a show of support. Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash and Lightning Dust quickly moved the table out of the way before making their way to the opposite side of the gym where the rest of the dueling team went to Vice-Principal Luna’s side. After a moment or two, a girl named Scootaloo dashed across the room in order to sit next to her idol and cheer for Luna as well.
Celestia’s Life Points: 8000
Luna’s Life Points: 8000
Turn 1: Celestia
“Being the older sister, I’ll make the first move,” announced Celestia as she drew. (hand: 6) “And if you think this deck is the same as it was when I dueled against Principal Sombra, you will be sorely mistaken! First, I’ll summon Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands in attack mode.” (1400/1000) Hunter noticed Moondancer stiffen slightly as a greenish grey liquid appeared in front of Principal Celestia which then morphed into a creature with hands and arms coming out over everywhere. “When this creature is summoned, I’m allowed to add a ritual spell card or monster to my hand like Dawn of the Herald.” She then paused to smile before holding up her spell card. “Now witness as I tribute the level 6 Lightray Sorcerer in my hand to bring your end. We have heard the heavens calls, ready to receive them. Let its light shine down upon us all and banish the darkness. Ritual Summon Level Six: Herald of Perfection!” (1800/2800) Descending from the now open ceiling was a massive monster that looked almost egg-like with an hourglass figure. This monster had lights of red, purple, green and so on coming out of parts of its body while its wings were similarly multi-colored. The monster then hunched over, showing that it was in defense position.
“As an added bonus, sister, I am also able to now banish the ritual card to bring my Lightray monster back to my hand,” continued Celestia, looking pleased with herself while adding her monster back to her hand. “And now that I have two light monsters on the field, I think I’ll summon Guardian of Order in attack mode!” (2500/1200) Soaring down onto the field was a large warrior in white and gold armor, with wings coming out of its back in an X shape.
“These three should be more than enough as the opening act,” said Celestia as the students around her cheered. “So I’ll end it here and let you go.”
“Looks like Principal Celestia really has upped her game,” mused Moondancer, looking at the field as Celestia’s face down appeared. “Perfection might not be able to beat over her opponents with brute force, but its effect will slow Coach Luna down while filling up her graveyard. Then she can start beating down on her opponent with overwhelming brute force.”
“Do you think Coach Luna can do this?” asked Wallflower nervously.
“Well…,” began Hunter as he thought about it for a moment. “Perfection isn’t perfect. We do know that one of the cards in her hand right now is a spellcaster and not a fairy. She might not even have any left in her hand. On top of that, while Perfection is powerful, it’ll begin to eat away at her hand and leave her with nothing.” He then paused to smile. “But, if she thinks that Coach Luna’s deck is the same then she’s in for a big surprise. After our duel against Appleloosa, she asked if I had some certain cards to boost the power of her deck.”
“Wow, really?” asked Lightning, excited. “What cards?”
Hunter chuckled. “I won’t ruin the surprise.”
Turn 2: Luna
“Let me show you what I got,” said Luna as she drew. (hand: 6) “I hope you’re ready for this sister. First, I’ll discard Ahrima, the Wicked Warden in order to add Lair of Darkness to my hand! Then, I’LL ACTIVATE IT!” With that loud exclamation, Luna’s field took over the arena. The ground became black, with cracks appearing in every which way. As the bleachers turned into upturned earth, with geysers spewing out green mist in spots where no one was sitting, black vapors began to rise from the cracks. Distorted faces appeared in these misty steams, with jagged smiles that leered at everyone they saw.
But, as the ground began to change around Celestia, the principal grinned.
“Sorry sister, but you’re going to have to do better than that,” she said as she discarded a card from her hand. “I discard my Harvest Angel of Wisdom in order to negate that vile field spells activation and destroy it!” The lights from Perfection began to shine brighter than searchlights on the ground, burning away the decay wherever they shined until all was normal again leaving an annoyed looking Luna.
“It’ll take more than that to stop me! I summon Lilith, Lady of Lament in attack mode.” (2000/0) As Luna spoke, a demonic woman whose body seemed incase in black scale like armor appeared in the mist. Flapping her wings, she hovered in the air while her long red hair swayed this way and that. In the stands, some of the boys who had been cheering for Celestia began to drool at the sight of Lilith. “When this monster is summoned, her attack is decreased to 1000. But don’t let her lower attack fool you because she’s got a powerful ability. By tributing one dark monster on my side of the field, I can search out three trap cards and then you get to pick one at random.”
“Let me guess, you’re going to tribute Lilith,” said Celestia with a slight grin on her face. “After all, without that horrible field spell of yours, you have no choice.”
“Thank you so much for reminding me,” grumbled Luna as Lilith vanished on the spot. As she did, a series of cards appeared in front of Luna showing her options. “Hmm, I’ll take this one. Then that one. Oh, can’t forget about this.” Once the cards had been selected, the panel before her vanished as three very large cards appeared above her head. “Pick one sister.”
Celestia frowned. “I’ll pick the one on the right,” she said. Instantly a card appeared on Luna’s field while the rest of her deck began to shuffle.
“A good pick, for me at least,” said Luna as Lilith stood up straight again, turning to look at Celestia. “Unfortunately, I can’t do anything else this turn. So I’ll set two more cards and end my turn.”
Turn Three: Celestia
“Not that it will do you any good,” said Celestia as she drew (hand: 3). When she looked at the card, her eyes widened in surprise for a moment before a smile crossed her lips. “I’ll play the spell card Pot of Desires, a rare card that just so happened to be the grand prize for a limbo contest back in Hawaii. When activated, I am forced to banish the top ten cards of my deck face down before being allowed to draw two. It’s a high cost, but worth it if I can keep adding fuel for Perfection.” Still grinning, Celestia drew two more cards. “Next I’ll activate Card Trader. Starting during my next standby phase, I can shuffle one card in my hand back into my deck to get another draw.”
“I almost feel bad for doing this, but I aim to win this duel,” continued Celestia as she removed Manju from her holographic card tray. “I tribute my monster in order to bring out Airknight Parshath in attack mode!” (1900/1400) Galloping onto the field was a centaur like creature, with white wings on its back and covering its horse like lower body. The majority of its armor was blue while carrying a large sword. “Airknight Parshath, attack Luna directly!” Airknight rose onto its hind legs as it made a mad yell, raising its sword high above its head. Once all four of its legs were back on the ground, the centaur charged at Luna while its sword began to glow a golden hue. Running past the Vice-Principal it slashed her right across the stomach causing the slightly younger woman to fall to her knees in pain.
Luna’s Life Points: 6100
“Well, uh, that hurt more than I thought it would,” Luna managed to say through gritted teeth as she slowly began to stand back up.
“At least we know its working,” said Celestia. “When my Airknight deals damage, I’m allowed to draw a card. More power for my Perfection. With that done, my Guardian of Order will attack you directly as well!” Celestia’s Guardian wasted no time as its fist became covered in golden light, pulling it back as if to throw a punch from across the field. When it did, a beam of light shot from its fist hitting Luna in the face and knocking her down. Several students made noises of amusement as they saw the head of discipline face down on the floor.
Luna’s Life Points: 3600
“Sister, you should know now that there is nothing you can do,” said Celestia, looking confident again. “This duel is all but over. Just concede.”
“No,” said Luna as she slowly got up, staggering a little as she did. “I still have life points and cards in my hand. I can do this!”
Now Celestia looked annoyed, closing her eyes and turning her head to look away from her sister. “Why do you have to be so stubborn? But, if you insist on putting yourself through all this pain then be my guest. It’s your turn.”
“Thank you,” said Luna as she pressed a button on her duel disk. “But if you thought that my field spell was the only way I had to get tokens, then you are sorely mistaken. I activate my face down card: Fires of Doomsday! With this card I get to summon two Doomsday tokens in defense mode.” (0/0) Fire flames appeared in two spots on Luna’s side of the field. Though they quickly died down, the smoke and ash remained which combined into two smoky creatures with a single green eye.
“Wait, if she could use that, why didn’t she bring them out to protect her from those attacks?” asked Scootaloo as she looked puzzled by the sight before. “If she had done that then she wouldn’t have taken any damage. Well, maybe a little damage.”
“It's because Coach Luna needs some tribute fodder for her deck to function,” said Pharynx, who only briefly glanced at the younger girl. “Without that, the Coach has no chance of winning this. But, the question you really should be asking is: Did Principal Celestia let her summon those tokens because she didn’t have any more fairies in her hand or is she trying to bait her?”
Turn Four: Luna
“I draw!” shouted Luna as she drew (hand: 3). As she looked at her card, Hunter noticed her eyes were moving rapidly between the card she had just drawn and the other two cards in her hand. It was if she were examining a very complex puzzle, trying to put all the pieces together in her head. Several times she frowned, clearly not getting the desired result she wanted. Then, after about a minute of this, she seemed to settle on a plan.
“You’re not the only one who can get more cards,” she said. “I’ll play the spell card Reoccurring Nightmare. This spell lets me take two dark monsters in my graveyard with zero defense points and add them back to my hand. Lucky for me Lilith and Ahrima fit the bill nicely.”
Celestia, however, shook her head. “Let you have another chance to get Lair of Darkness out? Or another trap? I don’t think so. I discard my Power Angel Valkyria to negate that spell and destroy it!” As Celestia slid her card into the graveyard slot, the lights from Herald of Perfection shined down onto Luna to blast the card out of her hand.
“So you stopped that move,” said Luna who, surprisingly, began to grin. “But can you stop this one? I activate my trap Crush Card Virus! By tributing one of my tokens, I can destroy all monsters you control and in your hand that have over 1500 attack points!” Everyone gasped as one of the tokens exploded, becoming thousands of tiny specks that fluttered over to Celestia’s side of the field.
“Like I’d let that happen!” shouted Celestia, looking panicked as she discarded another card. “I’ll discard my Minerva, Scholar of the Sky to negate and destroy that trap!” Once again the lights began to shine out of Herald, burning away all of the germs Luna had unleashed upon the field. Yet Luna didn’t seem upset that her trap had failed. Quite the contrary, she seemed pleased as clear as the ground began to tremble. For a moment, the audience began to scream as massive cracks appeared in the floor thinking that the floor was about to give way. Thankfully they quickly remembered that this was the work of the hard light technology.
“Now the fun can begin, sister,” said Luna as she smiled broadly. “You may have stopped my trap, but I still tributed a monster on my side of the field. This activates the effect of Darkest Diabolos, Lord of the Lair, allowing me to special summon him from my hand!” The cracked earth beneath the women’s feet finally gave way as a massive black dragon erupted out of the ground behind Luna. Darkest Diabolos (3000/2000) was massive, even more so than when they were at Appleloosa. Perhaps it was because of the hard light technology, making everything more impressive for the glowing red cracks in its scales seemed more ominous than before. As did the gentle clanging of the chains on the dragon’s body.
“No, not if I-” began Celestia as she reached for the single remaining card in her hand, only to stop as she realized that it wasn’t a fairy. Hunter, as well as anyone else paying attention, knew that it was Lightray Sorcerer. A spellcaster.
“Sister, I had wanted to save that Crush Card Virus for something special,” said Luna. “But you forced me to burn through it as well as several other cards. I’m not going to let it be for nothing! I’m taking over the field right now by activating the continuous trap Sinister Yorishiro instead!” Luna’s face down flipped upright, revealing a card that seemed to emanate a black fog as well as a feeling of uneasiness. “Now, once per turn, I can normal summon a high level fiend from my hand without a tribute. So please everyone, give it up for my favorite card of all time: YUBEL!” (0/0) A whirlwind appeared in front of Luna, one with enough power that Night Quill hat to catch his hat before it went flying away! Then, a figure of a bat winged demon appeared. A grey and black creature that looked like it could be either male or female having heterochromia with one eye green while the other eye was orange. And, between both eyes was a third whose red pupil glared as Yubel smirked with its green lips.
As Celestia tensed at this, the crowd began to laugh. “What good is a monster with no attack points?” someone shouted. Others hooted and hollered, wondering in Luna had thrown the game. None of those students had noticed that Celestia was biting her lower lips as she scanned the field, eyes piecing together the situation she was in. But others like Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Moondancer, and Hunter had noticed and were realizing what she was realizing.
“I don’t get it,” said Scootaloo as she tilted her head. “Why summon something that useless?”
“Don’t you use Vehicriods?” asked Lightning, a slight smirk on her face. “I mean, that’s like the pot calling the kettle black.”
“Hey!” shouted Scootaloo.
“Lightning, knock it off,” said Rainbow, giving her renewed friend a meaningful glare. Lightning looked nervous for a moment, scratching the back of her head while Rainbow turned to her small fan. “Scoots, you really got to brush up on your duel monsters history to get this one. It might look weak, but that thing is like a walking trap. Yubel has the effect where it can’t be destroyed by battle and, when you attack into it, you take all the damage. Meaning the only way to get rid of it is to use destruction effects. That or bounce it off the field.”
“And the more you try to destroy it, the stronger it gets,” mumbled Moondancer as Scootaloo looked at Rainbow with wide eyes. “Principal Celestia is going to have to find a way to destroy it not once, but three times if she hopes to still win this duel.”
“You’ve had your fun, sister,” said Luna as she glared at Perfection. “But it ends now! Darkest Diabolos, turn off Perfection’s light once and for all!” Darkest Diabolos opened its jaw and, as it did, small bits of liquid shadows began to leak out from its teeth. The dragon then unleashed a torrent of the stuff onto the field, filling it up completely so that all of Celestia’s monsters seemed to drain into the stuff. Then, after a moment, Diabolos seemed to inhale the darkness back into itself. But, after it had done so, Herald of Perfection was no longer on the field.
“And now sister, I end my turn,” said Luna. “During this time, as per the cost of keeping Yubel on the field, I must tribute one monster I control. So I’ll tribute my remaining token.” Hunter watched as Celestia trembled, her fists clenched as the last token vanished from sight.
“Oh wow,” said Autumn as she took the sight in. “Now things are really getting interesting! Coach Luna has a monster that provides the perfect defense and a powerful offense! I wonder what Principal Celestia will do in the next act!”
Turn Five: Celestia
“Not bad, you managed to get your two best monsters out at the same time,” said Celestia as she drew (hand: 2) Hunter watched as Celestia’s hands were shaking slightly, as if this were the one thing she had hoped not to face. Perhaps it was when Coach Luna managed to get Yubel out onto the field that Celestia had a hard time countering. “It used to take you forever to get Yubel on the field with the right number of tributes for its cost. You’ve really improved, sister. But so have I! Now that it's my standby phase, I can activate the effect of Card Trader returning Lightray Sorcerer back to my deck in order to draw another card.” Celestia looked at the new card she had gotten and then placed it face down on the field. “All I can do right now is set a monster face down before changing the rest of my monsters into defense mode. Now go Luna and make your move.”
Turn Six: Luna
“My, someone’s a bit testy right now,” said Luna, drawing her new card (hand: 1). “Is someone upset because their big move didn’t work out as planned?”
“I’m miffed, not testy,” said Celestia. “Right now I’m trying to figure out how to win this duel when my best monster is gone and my hand is mostly empty. Things are looking bad for me.”
“I agree,” said Luna as she played her card. “And things might be getting worse because I play Allure of Darkness which allows me to draw two cards but then I must banish one dark monster or suffer a penalty.” Calmly, Luna drew her cards. Her lips twitched slightly as she removed one of them from her hand. “The monster I banish is Plague Wolf. But thankfully, the card I get to keep is much better: Terraforming!”
“NO!” shouted Celestia as a card slid out of Luna’s deck.
“Oh yes,” said Luna as she played her field spell. “Sister, Perfection might have been a good nightlight for a while. But sooner or later, we all have to face our nightmares! I play Lair of Darkness!” With that said, the field morphed again, with mist like faces coming out of the cracks in the earth that surrounded Celestia and laughed at her.
“Now I can show everyone the true power of this three card combo,” said Luna. “Diabolos, end Guardian of Order now!” At her grim command, Darkest Diabolos spewed out more of its liquid darkness onto the field before sucking it back up along with Celestia’s strongest monster. “Now I end my turn. But first, I have to tribute a monster to keep Yubel on the field. Thankfully, my field spell allows me to tribute one of yours. Yubel, feast on that Airknight!” Everyone watched as Yubel held out a hand as Celestia’s last face up monster exploded, turning into thousands of bright lights that went right into the fiend’s hand. “And finally, my field spell’s other effect kicks in. During the end phase of every turn, we both get Torment Tokens to our side of the field equal to the number of tributes that occurred during our turn. So I get one.” The ground on Luna’s side of the field cracked, allowing a black mass to rise. This Torment Token (1000/1000) moved its featureless arms across its chest in a defensive pose.
“With that, I end my turn,” said Luna, smiling from her side of the field. “So tell me sister, what will you do?”
Turn Seven: Celestia
“It’s a little early to be talking like that,” said Celestia as she drew. (hand: 2) “My life points remain untouched.”
“That may be so, but I have the field advantage,” said Luna. “And besides, all I need is one life point to win so just saying your life points are higher doesn’t really mean anything.”
“The field is yours…for now,” said Celestia. “But all that might change because I flip summon my Morphing Jar!” (700/600) Celestia’s card was replaced with, well, a jar. A large silver looking one at that. “When this card is flipped face up, we both discard our hands and draw until we have five cards. That’s five additional ways to reclaim the field.”
“So be it,” said Luna as the two of them drew until they had five cards in their hands. For a moment, the two looked over what they had drawn but Hunter focused mostly on Celestia. She was looking intently at one card in particular, at least that’s what he believed. Several times she looked up from the card to look at Yubel before returning to look at the card.
“Yes, this should do it,” said Celestia at last. “Time to take back the field and end this duel! Right now, my graveyard is jam packed with light monsters with different names! Meaning I can special summon Lightray Diabolos and Lightray Gearfried to the field in attack mode!” On either side of Celestia appeared massive pillars of light that seemed to dispel the shadows around her. When they vanished, two massive monsters stood before her. Lightray Diabolos (2800/1000) looked like a white version of Darkest Diabolos, but with several key differences. First of all, the main color scheme of the monster was white and blue with golden wings on its shoulders as well as on its head. Threads of white light had replaced the chains which fluttered about as if caught in a non-existent wind. Lightray Gearfried (2800/2200) was a large warrior who was about a head taller than Celestia decked out in white armor with a blue undercoat. In one hand he held a massive sword which held in its middle a glowing blue gem with the other held a large shield.
“Lets see which is stronger sister, my monsters of light or your dark fiends,” said Celestia with a slight smile on her face.
“It won’t matter,” said Luna, shaking her head. “If you attack my Yubel, it’ll remain and you’ll take all the damage. And neither of those monsters has enough attack points to match my Diabolos.”
“Not on their own,” said Celestia, warning bells going off in Hunter’s head as she said that. The same much have been true for Coach Luna as she looked ready to brace herself. “Lightray Diabolos, attack that dark knock-off!” The Diabolos of light opened its jaw as golden light began to rise from its long throat. “And now I activate the quick play spell card: Rush Recklessly! This gives my monster 700 more attack points until the end of the turn, more than enough to take down your dragon!” Lightray Diabolos (3500/1000) took several steps forward before firing a beam of light that put a hole right in the middle of Darkness Diabolos’ chest, destroying it.
Luna’s Life Points: 3100
“Lightray Gearfried, slay Yubel!” commanded Celestia as she pointed at Luna’s monster. Gearfried readied his sword, raising it high above his head as the blue glow of the gem implanted in it began to shine even brighter. He then swung it, sending a disk across the field right towards his target which stood there looking smug. That was until a golden chalice appeared in front of Yubel who took it and, at the same time, its attack points rose by 400. “I activate my other quick play spell card: Forbidden Chalice! In exchange for giving your monster a little attack point boost, all of its effects are negated!” As Yubel looked at the chalice, the blue disk sliced right through it and cut the monster in half.
Luna’s Life Points: 700
“Pity I don’t have another Rush Recklessly or else this match…would be…” Celestia’s words trailed off as the earth began to shake. Then, right in front of Luna, came a row of spikes. “What’s going on?”
“You destroyed my Yubel,” answered Luna with a grin. “Yes, Forbidden Chalice does negate my Yubel’s effect…but only while it's face up on the field. Destruction effects go off! Meaning I can summon its next form from either my deck or graveyard: Yubel-Terror Incarnate!” (0/0) People screamed as Luna’s new monster appeared on the field, a massive dragon like creature with twin heads and a crown of spikes between them. And, in the middle of its chest, was an eye just like on the forehead of the original Yubel. Only much, much larger.
“I-I thought that Chalice would stop that thing from coming out!” growled Celestia as she stared at the monster whose shadow engulfed both of her own.
“It was a good try, sister,” said Luna as she now stood between her monster’s feet. “But not good enough. Because now you are dealing with a stronger version of Yubel, one that reflects any damage taken when you attack it and nukes the entire field at the end of my turn.”
“I’m aware,” said Celestia. “Ah, I end my turn.”
Turn Eight: Luna
“I draw,” said Luna as she looked at the cards she held. (hand: 6) “And thank you so much for refreshing my hand. I’ll be sure to put these to good use.” Celestia let out a small growl but said nothing as Luna held up a card. “First, I’ll tribute my Yubel-Terror Incarnate and my Torment Token in order to special summon Duke Shade, the Sinister Shadow Lord from my hand!” Most of the crowd watched in confusion as both of Luna’s remaining monsters vanished. But there were those who knew what she was going, and the power of that single move. But before they could explain it to the people around them, Duke Shade (500/2000) appeared on the field sitting on a throne. The Duke was a lean figure who looked a lot like Lilith, without the bat wings and having a milky white face.
“Duke Shades affect grants him 500 additional attack points for each monster used as a tribute,” explained Luna as Duke Shade’s attack rose. (1500/2000) At the same time the ground began to shake once again. The crowd then cried out as Darkest Diabolos burst from the ground while letting out a terrifying roar that seemed to shake the entire room. As the Duke gave the dragon a passing glance, Darkness Diabolos bared its fangs at its Lightray version. “Oh, remember how I said I can special summon my dragon from my hand when a monster is tributed? Well the same thing happens when it's in the graveyard!”
“Terrific,” muttered Celestia.
“Next, when Yubel-Terror Incarnate leaves the field I am allowed to summon its final version! Yubel- The Ultimate Nightmare!” shouted Luna, raising her hands above her head as a new figure appeared behind her. If Yubel-Terror Incarnate was large, then this form was mammoth. The crowd screamed as Ultimate Nightmare was a fitting name for this thing. It seemed to keep most of the body it had in its twin dragon head form, only now there was another head between the two long necks. Another face appeared on its chest, along with human-like faces on dragon heads with eyes on its elbows and kneecaps! It’s four leathery wings were extended outwards as if ready to take flight.
Briefly, Hunter looked up from the duel to see the expressions on some of the other students. Pinkie Pie was doing her best impression of a cat, on all fours on top of Sunset’s head. The flame haired girl looked split between horrified by the monster Luna had summoned and in pain due to her pink haired friend. Fluttershy looked like she was trying not to wet herself while Rarity was trying not to gag. As for Applejack, she was trying to hide her sister’s eyes while her own jaw was hanging open.
“If you think that’s scary, just wait till you see its effect,” said Luna. “But that lesson will be a little later down the road. First, we have to finish the chapter of Darkest Diabolos. You all know how he can be summoned by now, but did you know he has another effect? No? Well, by tributing a dark monster, dear Principal Celestia will have to place one of the cards in her hand on either the top or bottom of her deck. I could use one of mine…but thanks to my field spell, I have the power to use one of hers! Diabolos, take your revenge!” A red light shined out from the red jewel in the center of Luna’s dragon, hitting Lightray Diabolos right in the chest before it vanished. Hunter’s attention shifted to Celestia, who was biting her lower lip as she sent a card in her hand to the bottom of her deck.
“Yubel- The Ultimate Nightmare, attack Lightray Gearfried!” shouted Luna.
“Is she giving up?” shouted Snips as all the eyes on Yubel began to glow. “That thing just looks scary, but it has no attack points.”
“Should I explain it or would you sister?” asked Luna as flames came out of the twin dragon heads connected to Yubel. “Unlike the other forms of Yubel, this one can attack and then reflect any damage I would have taken to my opponent. What’s more, the monster I attacked is destroyed.” Flames seared into Gearfried, who let out a voiceless cry before turning into ash. From there, thorny vines came out of the ground to surround Celestia. They wrapped around her quickly, holding her in place in a very uncomfortable pose as the thrones dug into her body.
Celestia’s Life Points: 5200
“Duke Shade, crack that Jar!” commanded Luna. The Duke gave Celestia’s remaining monster a brief glance before flicking its tail on the ground. From there a shadowy claw crossed the field which then picked up Morphing Jar and crushed it.
Celestia’s Life Points: 4400
“Last, but not least, Darkest Diabolos, attack my sister directly!” Luna monster didn’t hesitate to follow that command. It opened its mouth and sent the familiar wave of inky darkness that knocked Celestia down to the ground.
Celestia’s Life Points: 1400
The crowd was silent now as Celestia slowly got back to her feet. It seemed impossible. For most of the duel, Celestia had seemed on top. Not even taking any damage even when she lost control of the field. And now here she was, no more monsters with no more cards in her hand and depleted of nearly all of her life points. The older sister was breathing heavily, no doubt shocked by all those attacks.
“This…isn’t a pleasant feeling I’m experiencing right now,” said Celestia as she looked at her younger sister. “This is almost just like when I dueled Sombra. I managed to make a great comeback, destroying all his monsters, and then when it was his turn he crushed me. Now, here I am. I have taken down most of your field and then in one turn I find myself face to face with some of your best monsters.”
“If it makes you feel any better, the only reason I am able to do any of this is thanks to you sister,” said Luna.
“Thanks for rubbing it in,” said Celestia, a hint of bitterness in her voice. “If I knew that Forbidden Chalice wouldn’t have-”
“You are mistaken, Celestia,” said Luna, interrupting the other. “I mean, I am able to stand here right now defeating you because of all the times you defeated me in the past. Each defeat was another lesson that I learned, forcing me to consider how I can improve. And because you sent me away to coach our dueling team, I had such a wonderful time that I want to keep on doing it, perhaps helping future students down the road to be better.”
As Luna spoke, Celestia’s eyes widened. Not out of fear, but something else. It was like she was seeing her sister in a whole new light. Then, slowly, a smile appeared on the older woman’s face. “I’m glad to hear that. But, I’m not going to give up so easily. I still have a chance to turn this duel around.”
“True,” said Luna. “I end my turn. Show me everything you got sister. And I’ll keep showing you what I have!”
Turn Nine: Celestia
“I will!” said Celestia as she drew. (hand: 1) “All I can do is set this monster face down. You better hope that you can topple it.”
Turn Ten: Luna
“Interesting threat,” said Luna as she looked at what she had just drawn. (hand: 6) “I’ll finish this duel here and now using the cards that one of my students gave me! But first, I play the spell card Boogie Trap! After discarding two cards in my hand, I can target one trap in my graveyard and set it on the field. And the card I’m choosing is my Crush Card Virus! With this card back on my field I am able to play the card: The Fang of Critias!” Appearing on the field was a dark, silver dragon with spikes on its knees and a massive gem in its forehead. “I’ll use its power to turn my Crush Card Virus into something far more deadly!” As Luna discarded her trap, a black mist spewed out of her graveyard towards the dragon who began to cough while its owner began to chant. “Mighty dragon, no sword nor spell or even tiny germ may take you down. Make its power your own as you spread the plague with every flap of thy wings! Fusion Summon: Doom Virus Dragon!” (1900/1500) The scales on Critias shattered, revealing a smaller dragon with purple scales that seemed to be rotting off it despite it otherwise looking perfectly healthy.
“No,” whispered Celestia as her face down card turned black before crumbling into dust.
“Yes sister,” said Luna with a nod. “Doom Virus is much like my Crush Card Virus. All monsters on the field and in your hand that have over 1500 attack points are now infected, as will all similar monsters you draw over the next three turns. With this, even if you had something in the graveyard to protect you this turn, any monster you draw will be revealed and most likely destroyed.”
Celestia nodded, placing a hand over her duel disk to signal her defeat.
The next day, pictures were placed in both the trophy room as well as the Pegasus Arena. In these photos, perfectly framed, showed Star Hunter, Moondancer, Wallflower Blush, Autumn Blaze, Pharynx, and Lightning Dust. All six students were positioned around Vice-Principal Luna as they all held up their duel disk. For as long as Canterlot High stood, students would remember who they were. They were the first dueling team this school ever had and their legacy was one that would not be forgotten.
Not the end.