//------------------------------//
// Trade Bait Part 1 
// Story: Duel Monsters Are Magic: ARC-V 
// by snivygamer97 
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“Aw man! Why do we have to wait for Yuya and Zuzu to go to the Duel School?” Rainbow Dash complained, annoyed that she had to wait to see what the school had in store for them. “I mean, from where we are from we are usually done with school by the time we’re teens.”
“Um, Rainbow Dash…,” Spike tried to warn the brash woman not to say too much about where they are from.
“Where are you guys from? From what I can tell it is good to get some extra learning in your head so that you are more prepared for being on your own in adulthood,” Ruri noted.
“Oh, we…,” Pinkie Pie started only for Spike to cover her mouth before she could reveal where they were from.
“Well, that doesn’t really matter, does it?” Spike asked a bit nervously.
“I guess not, but I’d rather know for certain,” Allie answered.
“Well, you see…,” Spike tried to think of an explanation before Pinkie Pie interrupted.
“We come from a dimension where we’re talking ponies but we’ve been to this dimension and learned how to duel at a few points in history and have saved the world multiple times both in this world and our own!” Pinkie Pie explained at a fast pace, much to the shock and confusion of everyone present.
“Really?” Tate asked, not seeming to believe the story.
“Come on, you guys, maybe they’re not entirely lying. After all, I’ve experienced some weird things in the past,” Ruri tried to defend.
“Yeah, but nothing like different dimensions and talking ponies,” Frederick whispered to Tate and Allie.
“Hold on, you guys. I think I see Yuya and Zuzu!” Spike said as he noticed the pair leave the school.
“Congratulations, Yuya. Your obsession with Pendulum Summoning just reached an all-time low,” Zuzu chastised. “You’ll have to show up to our next math class with a paper bag on your head.”
“A paper bag. That’s not a bad idea. I’d get some huge laughs,” Yuya joked.
“I think you’ve gotten enough laughs in school,” Zuzu said, only for both to notice Frederick, Allie, Tate, Ruri, Rainbow, Spike, and Pinkie.
“Hurray for Yuya!” The three kids cheered. 
“What’s up, you guys?” Yuya asked curiously.
“Gong told us you finally Pendulum Summoned again,” Frederick answered.
“Is it really true?” Tate asked.
“You bet!” Yuya said.
“Not only that, but we figured out how to do it! We just need to set the scales and we can summon monsters whose levels are between the scales!” Pinkie Pie said.
“Really? It’s that simple?” Allie was excited.
“You better believe it! Pinkie and Yuya will excite the dueling world by being able to perform this Pendulum Summoning!” Rainbow Dash yelled.
“You’d think that she learned how to do it,” Spike snarked, which annoyed Rainbow Dash.
“Well, talking about how Pendulum Summoning is done is one thing. How about we head to the duel school and we’ll show you guys,” Yuya said.
“That sounds good to me,” Ruri agreed. “I’ve heard some impressive things from Rua and I’d like to see this Pendulum Summoning for myself.”
Everyone else seemed to agree to this and they decided to go to the duel school. However, much to the group’s confusion, three darts with a plastic sticky end hit Yuya right in the middle of his face.
“Triple bull’s-eye!” Zuzu was in awe at the accuracy of the thrower.
“Impressed? I assure you, that was mere child’s play. I could have done it blind-folded,” The thrower, a young man with brown and yellow hair, bragged.
“Uh, who are you?” Yuya asked.
“Me? Merely one of your biggest fans,” The thrower said as he grabbed Yuya’s hand and shook it. “To be precise, the name’s Sylvio. It’s an honor.”
“Oh, hi,” Yuya awkwardly accepted the praise.
“I caught your duel against the Sledgehammer on TV. You were tres magnifique!” Sylvio praised. “Oh, allow me,” Sylvio said as he plucked off the darts on Yuya’s face. “Your new Pendulum Summoning technique took my breath away. And those cards you used- sorry, what do you call them, Yuya, hmm?”
“You mean my Pendulum Cards?” Yuya asked.
“Precisely. I’d be interested in learning how you acquired them. Only a duelist of the highest caliber could possibly possess such rare cards,” Sylvio said.
“There’s no need to pump up his ego,” Zuzu countered. “It’s already ready to burst as it is.”
“Hey, Sylvio? I know you think that Yuya’s a great duelist, but you’ll see that I’m also great! I was able to defeat many an opponent on my own!” Rainbow Dash bragged.
“Yes, yes. You’re special. Now, back to Yuya,” Sylvio said, much to the annoyance of Rainbow Dash. “Seriously, you’re a sensational duelist, Yuya.”
“Um, yeah, so maybe we should get going soon?” Spike suggested. He didn’t know why, but there was something that he considered untrustworthy about this Sylvio character.
“I agree with your dragon friend. This Sylvio just screams slimy weasel to me,” Yubel said to Rainbow Dash.
“Yeah! No offense, but Yubel thinks that you’re just trying to use Yuya for his cards,” Rainbow agreed with Spike, in part because of Yubel and in part because of Sylvio’s earlier brushing her off.
“Um, who is Yubel?” Sylvio questioned rudely.
“Oh, they’re…,” Pinkie began only to be interrupted by Spike covering her mouth again. 
“I don’t really know what to say either way, but Yuya, remember your promise to Tate and the others. You’re showing everyone how Pendulum Summoning works in person,” Zuzu reminded Yuya.
Yuya went from sucking in the praise to remembering his earlier promise. “That’s right, I almost forgot!”
“Yeah! I have a friend that also would like to see the Pendulum Summon,” Ruri commented.
“If you’re planning to demonstrate your Pendulum technique, Yuya, then I have access to a most ideal venue. An hour from now you could showcase your talents at the Leo Institute. You’ll take center stage on their center court,” Sylvio said.
Yuya was shocked to hear this. “I thought that was for Leo students only.”
“He can’t duel there!” Zuzu protested.
“I’ve already reserved the space. I happen to be one of the school’s top students. My father is also expected to be the city’s next mayor, so I definitely have influence with the school’s higher-ups,” Sylvio explained.
“Letting Yuya duel there is an amazing honor!” Tate was excited.
“Can we come along?” Allie asked.
“Pretty please? We’ll be your best friends,” Frederick pleaded.
Zuzu, meanwhile, wasn’t so comfortable sucking up to Sylvio. “I don’t see why Yuya can’t do his demo at our school.”
“Come on, Zuzu! Sylvio is just being nice! We shouldn’t be rude and say no!” Pinkie Pie said.
“Well, even if you aren’t going I will. I’d rather be able to do something if this Sylvio really is a jerk,” Rainbow Dash said.
“I agree with Pinkie Pie. It shall be a new experience. Plus I heard the Leo Institute has a great snack bar!” Frederick said. 
“Yeah! Let’s go!” Tate, Allie, and Pinkie Pie agreed.
“Fine then, but I’m coming along, too,” Zuzu finally reluctantly agreed. “As the only loyal student from You Show, I think I’d better check out our competitor. But first, I’ll go pick up this friend of Ruri’s. What is her name?”
“Her name is Rin, and she should be waiting in front of the Yusho school,” Ruri answered.
“Well, you’re all more than welcome to join us,” Sylvio said. “And now, au revoir!” At this, Sylvio walked off, with the others going past him with varying levels of trust. Sylvio, meanwhile, went behind the group and mimicked throwing a dart. “It’s all going according to plan.”
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Zuzu arrived at the Yusho school not that long after leaving the high school. It didn’t take her long in order to find this Rin girl, in part because she had green hair like Rua and in part because she had a similar face to Ruri and herself, much to her shock.
“Wait hold on! Why do you resemble me?! It was already a shock to see Ruri resemble me, but you too?! Is this just some coincidence or are you trying to pull some kind of sick joke?!” Zuzu demanded.
“No, I’m not joking or faking or anything! I’d like to ask why you look like me and Ruri, whoever you are!” The girl, who Zuzu assumed to be Rin, countered. However after a moment, Rin’s face went from one of anger and confusion to one of realization. “Wait, you’re the Zuzu that Ruri called and told me about, aren’t you?”
“Um, yes. I’m here to take you to the Leo Institute so we can see Yuya and Pinkie Pie Pendulum Summon,” Zuzu answered, more calmly but still confused. “You ready to go?”
“Yes, I am. Let’s get going,” Rin said as she and Zuzu began to walk. “So, I’ve heard some strange yet promising things about this Pendulum Summoning that your boyfriend was able to invent. I, unfortunately, was at work and thus missed the duel against the Sledgehammer. So, is it true? That Pendulum Summoning is the next big thing in the world of Duel Monsters?”
“First of all, Yuya is not my boyfriend,” Zuzu bluntly said with a blush on her face, ready to get out her fan and whack Rin if she continued down this line of speaking.
“Oh, sorry. I just assumed because you remind me of my relationship with my best friend Yugo. He can have a big mouth and can act rashly. He annoys me to no end, but I still love him. Who knows, maybe someday we can be more than just friends,” Rin explained.
“That sounds… sweet. As for Pendulum Summoning, I can say that it really is an impressive form of summoning. I just wish that I could do it myself. Unfortunately, you need to have Pendulum cards in order to do so and Yuya and Pinkie Pie are the only people with these cards,” Zuzu said with a small frown.
“Well, don’t worry. Maybe soon someone will make some Pendulum cards and you will be able to pull off a Pendulum Summon,” Rin tried to cheer up Zuzu.
“Thanks, Rin. Looks like we’re almost at the Leo Institute. I guess you can see this Pendulum Summon for yourself soon enough.”
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“On behalf of my fellow students, welcome to the Leo Institute of Dueling,” Sylvio said as Tate, Allie, Pinkie Pie and Frederick looked excited upon seeing how grand the institute was on the inside, while Lulu, Rainbow Dash, Spike, and Yuya were more confused. Still, they figured it was hard to blame the kids for their excitement, seeing as how the institute had many accommodations for the students, all of whom seemed to enjoy themselves. “As you probably know, the Institute is managed by the Leo Corporation. They’ve spared no expense to turn our school into one of the world’s top dueling institutions. Yes, we have only the best.”
“This place produced lots of champions,” Tate informed his friends.
“I know. That’s why they’re the top of the top,” Frederick agreed.
“I heard that they have the best equipment here, too,” Allie commented.
“Wow. Sounds like this Leo Institute is a big name school,” Spike was impressed in spite of himself.
“True, but we’re even better than this school, Spike,” Rainbow Dash whispered to Spike.
“Our faculty always says that if you want to achieve excellence, you must surround yourself with excellence,” Sylvio said.
“It’s just like at You Show, but we surround ourselves with mediocrity,” Allie commented, though Lulu was uncertain how to feel about this.
“I’ve heard that You Show’s an okay school,” Sylvio commented, though he gave a disgusted look when no one was looking, which Rainbow Dash noticed.
“Hey! I saw that!” Rainbow protested.
“Oh, sorry about that. I just ate some bad curry earlier,” Sylvio apologized. “Just make sure you don’t make the same mistake again.”
“Yeah, Dashie! I know you don’t want to trust Sylvio and all, but maybe you should at least give him the benefit of the doubt!” Pinkie Pie called out her friend.
“Fine. I’ll at least try to be nice to him,” Rainbow grumbled reluctantly.
“I have to admit this place has a lot of things our school can’t offer,” Yuya said as he looked at a list of classes. “Their classes are unbelievable. You can learn Xyz Summoning, Synchro Summoning-- Whoa! They even teach Fusion Summoning.” At this, four young adults and teens, one male holding a sucker and the other three females with weird looking hair, stopped and looked back at Yuya for a few seconds. Before starting to walk away. Yuya noticed them, however, and wasn’t sure what to make of these people. However, before he could be left wondering Lulu interrupted his thinking. 
“Um, Yuya? Sylvio found the dueling court for us,” Lulu called out.
“Yeah! The center dueling zone is this way,” Sylvio said, pointing to the left.
Meanwhile, Spike, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie were shocked, having seen the group and realized that they were familiar to them.
“Twilight? Is that really her?” Spike asked the other two, nearly in tears of joy at having seen his sister.
“I think so. You guys go check and make sure it is her. I’ll watch Sylvio and make sure that he doesn’t pull anything funny,” Rainbow Dash suggested.
“Wait, Rainbow Dash, do you mean something funny haha or funny weird?” Pinkie Pie asked to be sure.
“The weird sort of funny,” Rainbow confirmed. “Now, get going.”
And so, the group headed into the dueling zone, with the three kids looking amazed at what they saw.
“Unglaublich!” Frederick yelled, amazed. “This is the coolest dueling zone I ever saw!”
Suddenly, three young teens around Sylvio’s age approached the group. “Hey!” One of them greeted.
“These gents have also become big fans of yours. They’re curious about the cards you use to Pendulum Summon. You wouldn’t mind letting them have a look, would you?” Sylvio asked politely.
“Show them my cards?” Yuya asked uncertainly.
“Red flag,” Rainbow whispered as she tried to enter the Duel Field, only for a staff member to prevent her from getting in.
“No need to worry, they’re best buds with me,” Sylvio reassured.
“Do you think we should trust them, Yuya? After all, something feels off about this situation,” Lulu asked.
“I...um...I...um,” Yuya was conflicted.
“Come on, Yuya! Even if you give the cards to us, you can simply take them back even if we are jerks. Isn't that right, Ruri?” Sylvio asked.
At this, Lulu started to lose her faith in this young man. Sylvio was clearly only interested in Yuya for his cards and nothing else. And, if her hunch was right, they planned on stealing them! “Yuya…”
“Don’t do it!” Rainbow Dash tried to call out, also knowing where this was going.
“Well, okay,” Yuya reluctantly agreed as he got out Stargazer Magician and Timegazer Magician from his pocket. “Here they--,” At this, Sylvio snatched both of the cards.
“See?” Sylvio said as he showed the cards to his friends.
“Amazing!” One of the friends yelled.
“That’s radical!” Another guy yelled.
“So, I can Pendulum Summon with these cards?” the third friend asked. At this, the three friends got excited and started to grab the cards only for Sylvio to take them back.
“Gentlemen, please. You can’t have these Pendulum cards, they aren’t yours…” Sylvio said with a manic grin as he looked at Yuya. “They’re mine. I’m adding them to my rare card collection!”
“Huh?!” Yuya was shocked.
“I knew there was something off about you!” Lulu yelled. “Give those cards back right now!”
“Yeah! Or else you’ll have to answer to me!” Rainbow Dash yelled from the outside of the arena as she prepared her duel disk.
“No. These cards now belong to me. I happen to prefer rare cards. In my opinion, they’re the only cards that are worth collecting. Yuya, your cards are so unique that I simply can’t resist them,” Sylvio explained. “Still, there is another reason I invited you here. Naturally, I need to learn how to use these cards. You still want Yuya to show you how to Pendulum Summon, right?” Sylvio asked his friends, who all confirmed that they wanted to see a Pendulum Summon. “That’s why I reserved the main Duel Zone for our showdown,” Sylvio put on and prepared his duel disk.
“Well, you’re gonna have to call and cancel,” Yuya refused.
“Agreed. The only place you’ll be seeing a Pendulum Summon is from inside a detention room once we tell the staff about what you’ve done!” Rainbow Dash threatened.
“Excuse me? After I went to all this trouble? You better snap to it,” Sylvio said as he grabbed Yuya’s goggles and snapped them against Yuya’s face. “I don’t wanna get rough so I suggest you get your head in the game and your deck in order. Oh, and somebody do tell the rainbow haired tomboy that the staff here will answer to me before her.”
Suddenly, Sylvio’s duel disk beeped, with Claude being on the other line. “Dueling wasn’t part of the plan. You were ordered to retrieve the cards and bring them to us immediately.”
Sylvio scoffed at this. “That was your plan. But my priorities are a little different, understand? I plan to keep these rare cards for myself.”
“Do not try to defy us!” Claude yelled. “Report to us immediately with the cards-,”
“No, let him be,” Declan shot out as he entered the observation room.
“Mr. President.”
“Do not interfere with Sylvio.”
“Now, let’s get on with it,” Sylvio said, snapping as he did so. In an instant, the three kids were grabbed by Sylvio’s friends.
“Wait. You’re now taking the others captive too?!” Lulu snarled angrily. 
“Yeah! Sylvio, tell them to let my friends go!” Yuya demanded.
“Don’t worry. Your friends are perfectly safe-- at least they are for the moment, until our duel gets underway,” Sylvio said with a sneer.
“What do you mean?” Yuya and Lulu demanded as Sylvio’s friends held the three kids hostage on a white marked part of the Action Field.
“You’ll see. By the way, I have something for you,” Sylvio said as he got a stack of cards out of his jacket and threw them to the ground. “I’m offering these in exchange for your Pendulum cards. I knew you’d like them, Yuya, because they’re worthless, like you!” Sylvio proceeded to laugh like a madman at his own comment.
“No card’s worthless,” Yuya commented sadly, yet determined.
“Yuya’s right. Any card can be useful if you use them right!” Lulu also disagreed with Sylvio. 
“I speak from experience. I know people that would disagree massively with your statement and prove you wrong all at once!” Rainbow Dash called out.
“Yeah. But this isn’t exactly a fair trade,” Yuya said as he picked up and looked over the cards. 
“Yeah! I’d like to make a suggestion,” Lulu said.
“So, Sakaki’s gal pal wants to butt into our business. Very well. What do you want?” Sylvio asked.
“Duel me in addition to Yuya! If you don’t want to play fair in this situation, then why should we not work together to make things more fair?” Lulu suggested.
“Hmm. I would like to embarrass more than one Duelist. Very well, you have a deal. I’ll even let you go first,” Sylvio agreed.
“Ruri…,” Yuya tried to not get Lulu involved.
“Trust me, Yuya. I know what I’m doing,” Lulu reassured.
Meanwhile with Claude and Declan...
“Are you sure about this, sir?” Claude asked Declan in the surveillance room.
“I am. Allow him to proceed,” Declan answered.
“Now I’ll select an Action Field. Let’s hope your pals aren’t scared of heights, because my choice of field will take them all sky high! I choose Prison Tower of Darkville!” Sylvio announced as the Action Field formed. A dark and massive city formed with a bridge at the center of the field, with the trio of Allie, Tate, and Frederick being trapped at the top of a tower bridge. “It would be a waste to have a Prison Tower without prisoners, don’t you think?”
Meanwhile, Yuya jumped from rooftop to rooftop in order to try and get to his friends, but to no avail. “Hang on, guys! Don’t panic! I’ll get you down!”
“Don’t worry! I’ll deal with Sylvio while you focus on saving the others,” Lulu suggested.
“Right!” Yuya agreed.
“Okay, Sylvio, I’ll go first! I start by summoning Lyrilusc-Turquoise Warbler (100 Attack)! I was able to special summon her because I control no monsters. Next, I’ll special summon Lyrilusc-Sapphire Swallow (100 Attack) thanks to her ability and also summon Lyrilusc-Cobalt Sparrow(0 Attack)! Now, I’ll use these three to build the Overlay Network! I Xyz summon Lyrilusc-Assembled Nightingale (0 Attack->600 Attack)!” Lulu played. “Thanks to my Nightingale’s effect, my monster gains 200 attack points for every Overlay Unit she has! I place two cards facedown and end my turn.”
Sylvio was shocked at the move, before proceeding to laugh at how Lulu was only able to summon a weak monster. “Seriously? You claim that you are capable of defeating me yet you play a weak monster, even if it is an Xyz monster?! Beating you will be no effort. However, before I defeat you, I think I’ll go and get the secrets of Pendulum Summoning from Yuya.” At this, Sylvio ran to look for Yuya while Lulu tried to chase after him.
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Pinkie Pie and Spike looked around to see if they could find Twilight, Starlight, and “Trixie.” They spent a good few minutes looking before they finally found the group, and indeed Twilight, Starlight, and “Trixie” were indeed present. 
Pinkie Pie jumped and enveloped the trio in a hug. “Twilight! Starlight! Trixie! It’s so good to see you guys!”
“We’ve missed you all a lot,” Spike said as he hugged Twilight.
“We’ve missed you guys too. So, what brings you to the Leo Corporation anyway?” Twilight asked the duo as they broke up their hug, with “Trixie” looking annoyed.
“Oh, we’re here to see a friend of ours pull off a Pendulum Summon in front of his friends,” Spike answered. “What are you guys doing here?”
Twilight’s smile disappeared at this, being sad that she had to lie to two of her friends about what she and the others were doing here. “Well, you see…”
“We were looking here to see if we could find you guys. After all, where best to find strong Duelists like you guys than at a duel school?” Starlight improvised a lie as Twilight mouthed a thank you.
“Well, if you think this school is the best, then you should definitely see the You Show school. It teaches one how to be a dueltainer!” Pinkie Pie yelled excitedly, much to the annoyance of many Leo students.
“Really? Well, maybe you can show us the school as soon as we’re done here,” Twilight suggested.
“Hold on. What makes the two of you certain that You Show is where to be? There are other schools, you know. Also, what is a Pendulum Summon?” Sora finally asked, having kept out of this conversation up until now.
“Trixie agrees with Sora! Tell us what we want to know now!” “Trixie” yelled threateningly.
“Um, Trixie, are you okay? You seem to be more irritable than normal,” Starlight asked in concern.
“Irritable is an understatement,” Spike whispered to himself.
“Oh, a Pendulum Summon is a new summoning method that allows one to summon multiple higher level monsters at once!” Pinkie Pie explained.
“Interesting. Mind if we duel so I can see it for myself?” Sora asked like an excited kid.
“Sure! I’d like to have a nice duel!” Pinkie agreed.
“Hold on, Sora. Trixie would like to duel against the bubbly one. Besides, Trixie would like to get back at her for her earlier death grip,``''Trixie” said as she prepared her duel disk.
“Wait, you mean a hug?” Pinkie Pie asked.
“Hold on, Trixie! I want to be the one to challenge this Pinkie Pie! Why can’t you just stay out of my way?!” Sora demanded.
“Look, just let me challenge her and Trixie will be willing to buy you another of those “lollipops,”” “Trixie” suggested.
“Well, that sounds sweet. Okay, but you’ll have to buy me multiple candies later,” Sora finally agreed.
“Alright then, let’s duel!” Pinkie Pie called out.
“I’ll go first. I summon my Lunalight Blue Cat to the field in attack mode (1600 Attack)! Then, I’ll place a card facedown and end my turn,``''Trixie” played.
“Wait! Lunalight? But, Trixie, you don’t have that in your deck!” Starlight yelled out.
“I agree! I should have realized sooner, but you aren’t really Trixie, are you? Who are you really?” Twilight demanded.
“Hm. So you guys aren’t quite as dim as Trixie claimed you’d be. Very well then, my name is Celina, and I’m the best duelist to have come out of my school. Trixie agreed to swap places with me and agreed to let me come in her place. She said she wanted to check out our school,” The Trixie double, named Celina, revealed.
“So, Trixie is back at your home then? Well, why did you come with us on this mission?” Starlight asked.
“Simple. I want to prove myself to my classmates and the Professor. And, coming here will hopefully help me with that. Now, if you are all done getting in my way, I have a duel to win,” Celina said.
“Um, can someone please explain to me what this Celina girl is talking about?” Spike asked the others.
“I’m afraid I can’t, Spike,” Twilight said apologetically. 
“Well, either way, let’s make this duel a fun one! I draw! I’ll use Stargazer Magician(1) and Timegazer(8) Magician in order to set the Pendulum Scale! We’ll be having a blast starting now! I can summon monsters from between levels 2 through 7 all at once! Now, come on out Performapal Sword Fish(600 Defense) and Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon (2500 Attack)!” Pinkie Pie cheered.
“Whoa! What is this? Is this Pendulum Summoning?” Twilight asked, amazed and shocked all at once.
“Yes, it is. You see, by placing scales between certain numbers, you can summon monsters whose levels are between the scale numbers once per turn,” Spike explained.
“I-I don’t believe it,” Twilight muttered.
“Believe it Twilight! Now, once per turn, I can have Performapal Sword Fish lower a monster’s attack and defense by 600 until the end phase. So, go ahead and lower Blue Cat’s points by 600, buddy! Nice! Now, I’ll have Odd-Eyes attack your Blue Cat! Spiral Flame Strike!” Pinkie Pie yelled out.
“Not so fast! I play the trap card Lunalight Barrier. With it, in exchange for my monster’s attack points going to zero, I can equip this card to my Blue Cat and prevent her from being destroyed in battle! (Celina-1500 LP)”
“Wow! That was impressive there, Cece! You should really be carefully there, seeing as how you’re low on Life Points. I’ll end my turn with a facedown,” Pinkie Pie said cheerfully.
“Very well. It’s my move! I summon out Lunalight White Rabbit. With her ability, I can return a spell or trap on the field to the owner’s hand. So say goodbye to your trap card! Now, I play the spell Polymerization! With it, I’ll fuse the reflexes of a fierce feline with the magical tricks of a hopping rabbit in order to create a new lunar legend! Emerge, Lunalight Cat Dancer (2400 Attack)!”
“A fusion summon on the second turn? Impressive,” Spike was impressed.
“If you think that was impressive then you’ve seen nothing yet! I play the spell Lunalight Perfume! With it, I can revive a Lunalight monster from my graveyard, and I choose Lunalight Blue Cat! Next, I activate my monster’s special ability! When Blue Cat is revived from the graveyard, I can double the attack points of another Lunalight monster for one turn, and I choose Cat Dancer (4800 Attack)!”
“Yikes! Looks like Pinkie Pie will be saying goodbye to Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!” Spike yelled, getting worried.
“Hold on. Remember that Pinkie still has full Life Points. Even if she loses her monster, she’ll still remain in this duel and hopefully turn things around,” Twilight pointed out.
“I’d rather you not underestimate me, Twilight. I activate Lunalight Cat Dancer’s special ability! With it, I can sacrifice a monster on my field to allow Cat Dancer to attack all monsters twice! Now, Cat Dancer, attack that Dragon and end this duel! (Pinkie Pie-0 LP) Like there was ever any doubt I would win? You did passably, but not good enough. If you ever want to stand a chance against me, you better start improving while you can,” Celina said.
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“None of this is really real, right?” Frederick asked, trying to calm his fears.
“The ARC system here is fully interactive, so if we fall, it will feel real enough,” Tate answered, confirming his friend’s fears.
“I think it’s better if we don’t test it out!” Frederick said.
“I’m coming guys!” Yuya called out as he noticed Sylvio and stopped.
“You want to save your friends? Then give me what I want. Duel me now. Just like your friend is,” Sylvio said.
“Leave him alone! This is our duel, not his!” Lulu yelled out.
“This is his duel! After all, he wants to save his friends and I want to learn to Pendulum Summon! We both have something to gain here,” Sylvio countered.
“All right then,” Yuya agreed bitterly as he got out his Duel Disk and activated it, putting Block Spider into his deck before shuffling.
“We’re going to duel until I learn what I need to. And after that, I’ll crush you both!” Sylvio cried out.
“Now, you’re gonna show us how to Pendulum Summon!” One of Sylvio’s friends yelled.
“Sylvio already snagged your precious Pendulum cards,” Another friend said.
“And next he’s gonna pick your puny brain!” His third friend yelled as all three of them posed.
“He's right. I plan on becoming a Pendulum Master, and you’ll be my teacher, Yuya!” Sylvio demanded as Yuya was entered into the duel.
“Battle royal mode engaged,” A computer said.
“All right, it’s show time!” Yuya yelled as he ran past Sylvio and up some stairs up to the rooftops. “Performapal Whip Snake, whip into shape (1700 Attack)! Quick-- let’s swing into action!” Yuya swung from one rooftop to another by using Whip Snake as a rope. “Your move, Sylvio.”
“Run, twerp,” Sylvio said as he drew his card.
“I won’t let you stop him!” Lulu yelled as she tried to confront Sylvio.
“Please! You may be a part of this duel, but I have business with Yuya!” Sylvio reminded as he looked over his hand and noticed that Timegazer Magician was in it. “Perfect.” Sylvio was ready to play Timegazer until he was interrupted by Declan.
“No. It’s not time for that card yet,” Declan commanded.
“Listen, I don’t know who you are, but don’t interfere!” Sylvio yelled. 
“You will obey me,” Declan demanded.
“Wait. Who are you talking to?” Lulu wondered, having heard Sylvio’s conversation with Declan.
“Even if I knew I wouldn’t tell you. Still, no matter. I’ll save this monster for the final blow. Instead I’ll pick something to give my game a little lift,” Sylvio said as he switched cards. “Lightning Hoverboard (1400 Attack)!” Sylvio jumped onto Lightning Hoverboard and chased after Yuya, leaving Lulu to grab onto her Nightingale’s legs and chase after him. Soon, both caught up to Yuya. “You aren’t going to save your friends this way, Yuya. In fact, you’re only going to get them into deeper danger.”
“He’s going to save them! Besides, your monster is weaker than Yuya’s! You don’t stand a chance!” Lulu reminded.
Yuya swung up onto a lower part of the bridge as he was looking for an Action Card. “Gotta be here someplace. I knew it-- an Action Card!” Yuya ran for the card that he had noticed. However, upon grabbing it, he noticed that it was a trap. “It’s a trap!” 
Suddenly, Sylvio appeared on Yuya’s Duel Disk communication feature. “Indeed it is, and it just snared you. Rack ‘em up, Break Shot!” Sylvio yelled as many giant pool balls rolled across the bridge and into Yuya. Yuya ended up on top of one of the balls while Whip Snake was flattened. “Tough break for you. That trap just squashed 900 attack points out of your snake (800 Attack). Mm-mm, mmm… That’s a newbie mistake. Whenever you pick up an Action Card there’s always an element of risk. And you’re not out of trouble yet.”
“What? What do you mean?” Yuya asked as he rolled across the bridge.
“I’ll give you one clue. That ball you’re on doesn’t have any brakes, and you could use some right now,” Sylvio joked.
Yuya realized too late that he was going to ram into the tower wall. Upon hitting the wall, the tower where Tate, Allie, and Frederick were on fell over, with the three kids holding on for dear life not to fall off.
“They need help!” Yuya yelled.
“I know. But you’ve got your own problems, namely… my Lightning Hoverboard! It’s gonna light up your snake! Shock it to him!” Sylvio yelled.
“Hold on! I activate my trap card Waboku! With it, I can prevent the destruction of Yuya’s monster and reduce the damage to zero,” Lulu countered Sylvio’s attack.
“Nice try, Ruri, but no dice! I activate Lightning Hoverboard’s special ability! With it, I can negate a trap card and destroy it once per battle phase! Then you take 800 points of damage! (Lulu-3200 LP)” Sylvio stopped the trap.
“How can you sleep at night when you willingly harm innocent people?” Lulu demanded to know in response to Sylvio's callousness. 
“Hey, it’s not like they’re going to die,” Sylvio responded as his monster’s attack continued.
“I can’t outrun ‘em. Great an Action Card!” Yuya was relieved to see another Action Card, only to realize that it was another trap. “Oh no, not again.”
“Nice work! You found another treacherous trap-- Jump Shot! Hey Whip Snake, catch!” Sylvio joked as Whip Snake was flattened by another pool ball. Whip Snake’s attack points lowered to 400 and then he was destroyed by Lightning Hoverboard (Yuya-3000 LP). “Better luck next duel. Come on. You’d better get on “the ball,” Yuya and Ruri, before you find yourself under it. I place one card facedown and end my turn.” Much to both Duelist’s horror, the ball rose into the air before falling and breaking the bridge apart, with the three kids being even more scared.
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At this point, Zuzu and Rin arrived at the Leo Institute. 
“So, what do you think that Sylvio guy was up to? It seems weird that someone we don’t even know would be willing to take us into their school like this. I don’t know. Maybe I’m just being irrational and jealous. What do you think, Rin?” Zuzu asked Rin’s opinion.
“I’m not sure. I’ve met people that pretend to be nice only to take advantage of others' kindness for their own gain. I believe that he is likely tricking the others. However, we can always stop them if too much trouble occurs,” Rin explained. 
“Then we should find the Action Field as soon as possible so that no one gets hurt!” Zuzu yelled. “The only question is where is it?” Zuzu and Luna looked around to try and find the Action Field. After a few minutes of searching, the duo ran into a woman with tanish skin and dressed in yellow and blue who was looking over her deck.
“Excuse me. We’re looking for our friends and we are in need of some assistance. Do you know where the Action Field is?” Zuzu politely asked the woman.
“It’s up ahead and to the right. You can’t miss it,” The woman bluntly answered.
“Thanks,” Rin said. “We appreciate it.”
“Yeah, whatever,” The woman grumbled as she went back to looking over her deck.
After a minute of searching, they noticed that the Action Field was active and that their friends were in trouble.
“I knew it! That Sylvio guy was just trying to mess with us!” Zuzu yelled, ready to get out her fan.
“Why are Tate, Allie, and Frederick stuck on top of that tower like that?! We need to save them! Before they fall off and die!” Rin yelled.
“Right!” Zuzu agreed. 	As they began to try and enter the arena, the duo was stopped by another woman that looked like them, Celina.
“Wait, what?! I thought it was a lot to know that Trixie looked like me, but seriously?! Two more lookalikes?! What are you both doing here?!” Celina demanded.
“Listen, whoever you are, we don’t know what is happening any more than you do. We’d rather just go and help our friends before they get hurt!” Zuzu yelled as she headed for the duel arena.
“Lies! You must know what is going on! How about this? We’ll duel right here and now, just like how I dueled that Pinkie Pie girl. After the duel, you can do whatever it was you are doing, but if I win you better explain to me the truth!” Celina gave the ultimatum.
“Zuzu…,” Rin was uncertain as to what to say as she didn’t want to insult the lookalike, but also was unhappy with how she was getting in their way.
“You’re on!” Zuzu agreed as she prepped her duel disk.
“I’ll just look at the duel from here. Nobody, acknowledge me or anything,” Sora said as he stood next to Rainbow Dash, who was standing at the seating for the duel arena, with the others following suit.
“Um, who are you?” Rainbow asked.
“Name’s Sora. I’m going to watch the duel between Cece and the girl with a similar bracelet while also seeing the other duel in the arena. What about you?” Sora asked.
“I’m here to make sure my friends remain safe! And, unfortunately, I’ve been forced to the sidelines and unable to help them!” Rainbow yelled.
“Come on! It can’t be that bad, Dashie!” Pinkie yelled.
“Pinkie… our friends are being held at the top of an unstable tower. I’d say they are in trouble,” Rainbow bitterly noted.
No one knew what to say, being too horrified knowing that their friends and potential friends could die and there was nothing they could do about it.
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“I should take those whiners down, but I won’t-- not yet. That tower will stand till Yuya teaches me to Pendulum Summon,” Sylvio said.
At this, Yuya climbed back up to the pillar he was holding on to, noticing that his friends were holding on tight to remain on the tower. “I have to find a way to help them.”
“Then show me how to Pendulum Summon. And if you do, I may save your friends,” Sylvio repeated his ultimatum. 
“I can save them!” Yuya yelled.
“Yeah! We can! I activate my facedown trap Xyz Layerer! With it, I can add another Overlay Unit onto my Lyrilusc-Assembled Nightingale (800 Attack)! Now, I’ll have her attack you directly, Sylvio! (Sylvio-3200 LP),” Lulu played.
“You’ll pay for that attack, soon enough," Sylvio growled.
"Well, not anytime soon! Especially with my Nightingale's ability! With it, I can have her attack you directly multiple times, equal to her number of Overlay Units!" Lulu explained.
"What?!" Sylvio was angry and shocked.
"That's right! Now, take on another attack from my Assembled Nightingale!" Lulu cried out.
"Not so fast! I play my trap Striker Defender! If I control a monster and you attack me directly, I can negate any attack from your attacking monster and put an end to your battle phase. Even better, you can't attack again until this card leaves the field," Sylvio said with a grin.
"I-I end my turn," Lulu said.
"You have managed to deal me some damage. But, no matter. Yuya, it’s your turn. And another opportunity to teach me to Pendulum Summon is coming up,” Sylvio said.
“I’ll save them myself! I can’t get to them by foot, do it’s time to H-two-go with Performapal Skeeter Skimmer (500 Attack)! I’ll get there as fast as I can, guys,” Yuya said as he jumped on top of Skeeter Skimmer and moved across the water.
“I’ve toyed with this twerp for long enough. No more Mr. Nice Guy,” Sylvio said as he motioned throwing a dart. “Since he won’t cooperate, I’ll set him in my sights. You’re sunk, Yuya.” At this, Sylvio drew a card. 
“You have drawn well, Sylvio,” Declan said.
“Ooh, must be my lucky day. I don’t need this Lightning Hoverboard anymore. I’ll tribute it so that I can activate the spell Tribute Trade. I can add a monster to my hand as long as it’s one level higher than the monster I just tributed. Stargazer Magician, I hope you’re ready to work some magic,” Sylvio said aloud.
“He’s using my Pendulum card?” Yuya was shocked.
“I see that finally got your attention. You know what’s coming next, of course.”
“You need two cards to pull off a Pendulum Summon, Sylvio.”
At this, Sylvio chuckled.
“I guess the creep has the other card, huh?” Lulu asked.
“Correct, young lady. I’ve planned ahead thanks to my little friend. I’ve had Timegazer from the start of the duel, in fact! So, you refused to show me how to Pendulum Summon, but so what? If someone as lame as you can do it, anyone can pull it off,” Sylvio said as he laughed aloud. “And I bet I’ll do it so much better.”
“The first step is to set the Pendulum Cards. Do exactly as you’re told. You will start with Scale One Stargazer Magician,” Declan commanded.
“If you insist. For my first move, I select Scale One Stargazer Magician,” Sylvio said.
“Can he really do it? I thought Pinkie Pie and I were the only ones,” Yuya said, starting to get worried.
“You will also use your Scale Eight Timegazer Magician,” Declan continued. 
“And my Scale Eight Timegazer Magician,” Sylvio said, repeating what Declan said.
“And next, I’ll set the Pendulum Scale,” Both Declan and Sylvio said at once as Sylvio placed the two cards on his duel disk and the magicians appeared. “Pendulum Summon!”
“Monsters emerge! Allow me to introduce Power Dart Striker (LV 5/1800 Attack), along with its colleague, Rocket Dart Striker (LV 6/1900 Attack), and the most powerful of my trio, Ultimate Dart Striker (LV 7/ 2400 Attack)!” Sylvio yelled out before he started laughing. “Incredible! I actually did it, on my first try. Oh, thank you for the cards, Yuya. Now I truly am a Pendulum Master.”
“No way. It worked,” Yuya was shocked.
“I can’t believe it. He actually got it to work,” Lulu was similarly surprised.
“Well done, Sylvio. Now, take aim and strike Yuya down,” Declan said.