My Little Pony: Friendship is Numerous

by Monty Eggman


RANK 52: An Abducted Victory:

RANK 52: An Abducted Victory:
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THE STORY SO FAR...:
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In Canterlot High School, every student is wild over the world's most popular trading card game: Duel Monsters! Every day, players of the card game, known as "Duelists", go head-to-head to see who among them is the best around. Among the Duelists in attendance at CHS, one of the best is a young teenager named Sunset Shimmer, a girl from another world...

The second Duel of the Quarterfinal Round had begun, featuring a long-awaited Duel by not only the spectators, but also the combatants: Fluttershy and Gilda were finally about to have their rematch against each other, and both sides promised to give it everything they got, to show off everything that they had learned since their first Duel against each other during the Inter-school Duel so many months ago.

Both Gilda and Fluttershy played their absolute best moves against each other, showing the other that they had gained a significant amount of skill since the last time they met. Both Duelists were quite evenly matched and it wasn't quite clear who would come out on top. The end of the Duel featured appearances by the two new ace monsters of the two Duelists' Decks: Fluttershy would call up her Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon - which she had obtained from a booster pack that Rainbow Dash had bought for her, while Gilda would Summon her Dark Requiem Xyz Dragon - which she received from her grandpa after she finally managed to defeat him in a Duel.

Though both had fought well, in the end it was Gilda who managed to come out on top and be allowed to move on. Fluttershy, however, had no regrets or bitterness due to the result, knowing that she had given it her all and was proud of herself for doing so. Now the next Duel of the Quarterfinals was about to go underway, in which one of the competing Duelists had attracted the suspicions of Sunset Shimmer...

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Deep in the interiors of CHS's stadium, Sunset Shimmer and Twilight Sparkle were in the building's infirmary room with Fluttershy - who, after fighting an intense Duel with her friend/rival Gilda, had fainted a little afterwards, both out of exhaustion as well as from all of the stress that she held back while in the tournament. The pale-yellow girl was sitting on a bed with her two friends, who waited with her to make sure things would be alright before they returned to the stadium field.

"You feeling okay, Fluttershy?" asked Sunset. "You were a bit unsteady on your feet on the way over here."

"I'll be fine." Fluttershy told her. "I just need a little rest after that Duel..."

"No kidding..." said Spike, who was sitting on Twilight's lap. "If I fought such an big Duel like you did just now, I'd probably need a little breather, too. Personally, I'm kinda glad I wasn't the one out there; I've got enough on my table to worry about already without adding super-intense card games to it."

"And what exactly would those be?" asked Twilight amusingly.

"Uhh...well, I'll, uh...I'll get back to you on that one." the dragon-turned-puppy responded. His friend simply giggled a bit at what he said.

Just then, the door to the room opened and in stepped Gilda, Martin, and Gabby. "Knock knock." Gilda said. "Just comin' in to see how Flutters is doin'."

"She'll be okay." Sunset told her. "A little rest and she'll be back to her usual self again."

"That's good." said Martin. "I was worried that it might have been something more serious." He then said to both Fluttershy and Gilda, "In any case, you two were phenomenal out there. Easily one of the best Duels I've seen so far!"

"Yeah! You two were super-awesome!!" Gabby chimed in excitedly. "EEEEE!!! I'm so glad that I got to see it all before my eyes!!"

"Thanks, guys." Gilda told them. "That means a whole lot." She then turned to Fluttershy and said to her, "And I agree with 'em: That was the best Duel I've ever had. Thanks for takin' me on, Flutters."

Nodding, the shy girl said, "It was my pleasure, Gilda... And thank you for treating me like a serious opponent out there."

"Hey, no prob." the kindly roughneck replied. "It's easy to treat you like a real opponent when you already are one. And I'm lookin' forward to the next time we rematch each other. And just so ya know: I'm plannin' to win it and pull ahead of you!"

"...I'll Duel you anytime, anywhere." Fluttershy responded. "To be honest, I'm looking forward to it too."

Happy to hear that, Gilda then turned to Sunset and Twilight and told them both, "We'll stay here and keep an eye on Fluttershy for a bit longer. Meanwhile, you've gotta get up there to judge the next Duel."

"Yeah, we don't want to miss that." Sunset said. She then thought to herself, (Especially since the next Duel will feature Sonata... I'm still not sure what she and her sisters are trying to accomplish during this tournament, but if they try to cause any trouble, I have to try and put a stop to it! For now, all I can do is wait and see what happens next...) Turning over to Twilight she told her, "Twilight, Spike...we'd better do as Gilda says and get back up there for the next match."

"Right. I'll do my best to lend you a hoof-er, hand!" the young Princess told her. The three of them then left the infirmary, heading towards the outdoor field.

Elsewhere, far away from all the action, Sonata and her fellow sirens Adagio and Aria were going over a few last minute details before the next Duel. Handing the blue pony-tailed girl her Deck, the Dazzlings' leader told her, "Here...everything is all set to go, Sonata."

"So...are you sure this is gonna work, Dagi?" Sonata asked her.

"Of course it will." Adagio answered. "Aria and I have done all of the more difficult thinking for you already. So now it's up to you follow through and play this Duel exactly as we rehearsed."

"Yeah, so don't screw it up." Aria rudely added, still not confident that Sonata was the best choice for entering the tournament.

Huffing, Sonata snatched the Deck rather quickly and said, "I'm not! I'll beat that dork and show you, Aria! Just watch me!" Sliding the Deck into her D-Pad and adjusting her Duel Gazer, the blue siren headed for the arena. Aria just sighed a little and followed her.

Adagio headed for the arena as well, thinking to herself, (Everything's going according to plan: No one - not even Shimmer and her little friends - will suspect a thing... Not only are we going to take this tournament...) She then pulled a card out of her skirt pocket as continued her soliloquy. (...but afterwards, we plan on taking even more...)

Up in the stands, Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Flash Sentry were still sitting together, discussing the tournament so far. "Sooooo...uh, guys...?" Rainbow began to ask, "What are results of the tournament so far?"

"You forgot already?" asked Pinkie Pie. "Jeez... we only had a Duel just a few minutes ago. It's not like it's been months between the last Duel and right now!"

"Look, I'm not the best when it comes t' rememberin' everything, alright?" Dash whined a little. "Give me a break, already..."

Tapping on her D-Pad, Rarity pulled up the tournament bracket to aid in answering her athletic friend's question. "Well, according to this, the standings are as follows:" she began. "So far, Ember and Gilda have both made it into the Semifinal Round, and will Duel each other when that time comes. The four remaining Duelists in the Quarterfinals are Sonata, Bright Mind, Octavia, and my sister Sweetie Belle."

"And if Ah'm correct," Applejack chimed in, "the next Duel is Sonata and Bright Mind."

"So, who's Bright Mind again...?" asked Rainbow.

"He was the guy I dueled in the first round." Flash told her. "The guy with the Alien Deck. And man, was he a tough one; he really knew how to work his Deck perfectly."

"Oh yeah..." the cyan-skinned teen replied, remembering that match. She then asked him, "Just t' be clear: You're not bitter about that guy beating you at all are you? I mean, I'm pretty sure you're not since you're usually pretty calm, but I was just wondering..."

Chuckling a little, he answered her, saying, "Nope. I'm not mad at the guy at all. He was a great Duelist, and I'm just happy that I got to fight him in the first place. To be honest, that's the real reason I wanted to enter the tournament: To duel against people that I've never met before. And since that's exactly what happened in the first round, I'm pretty satisfied with that. Sure, I'd like to try and beat him the next time I duel him, but just for the fun of it...that's all."

"Well, I think that's a very good way to feel about it." Rarity told him. "No one should feel bitter or even hate their opponents after a Duel, or after any sort of competition, really. I feel that both players should have a good feeling about it all afterwards, regardless of the result." Putting on a serious look, she then said, "That being said, I do hope Bright Mind can defeat Sonata in this Duel... And that's only because I - like Sunset - am suspicious of her actions."

"You ain't the only one, Rares." AJ told her. "Don't forget, mah Brother heard her talkin' to the other two Dazzlings about some kinda plan they've got goin'. And let's not forget how Sonata was makin' fun of Derpy after she beat her in the first round. There's no doubt about it: Those gals are nothin' but a heap o' trouble!"

"And speak of the devil," Dash then said, "there's Sonata walking into the arena now..." Just as she had said, the light-blue, pony-tailed siren was walking into the arena at that moment, with Adagio and Aria preferring to keep to themselves near the arena entrance they came out of. Naturally, the two of them had smug looks on their faces, as if they figured they had this Duel won before it even started. Sonata, however, had a more determined look on her face, as she was still a bit annoyed by Aria's previous comment towards her.

"And there's Bright Mind..." said Flash, seeing the intelligent young boy walking onto the field, ready to duel. He, along with the other people he was sitting with (and likely everyone in the audience) was hoping that he would win the Duel in the hopes that it may put an end to whatever scheme the Dazzlings might have had planned.

Soon after, the two two competing Duelists were joined by Sunset, Twilight, and Spike, as well as the MC, Megan Williams. With everyone and everything ready to go, it was time to get things started. "Alllllllllright, dueling fans!!" Megan announced with her usual pep. "It's time for our third Quarterfinal Match! This Duel will be between Sonata Dusk, an Atlantean Deck user...versus Bright Mind, an Alien Deck user! And the winner will continue on to the Semifinals!"

Smirking, Sonata then asked her opponent, "So...ready to get beat?"

"Hmmmm...no, I am not." Bright replied, switching on his Duel Gazer. "I intend to win this tournament, Ms. Dusk. And I have no plans on allowing a troublesome hindrance such as yourself to impede my progress forward."

Huffing, the siren then said back, "Okay, now you're just using big words to make fun of me, aren't you? Think you're so smart... Well, I'll teach you a lesson you won't forget!" She then activated her Gazer as well, ready to fight.

Sitting down on one of the benches on the outskirts of the main arena, Twilight kept her eyes focused on what was about to take place in front of her. "Man...I hope that Bright guy can win this one..." said Spike. "I'd hate to see what might happen if those sirens actually win this whole thing..."

(I agree...) thought Twilight, (especially since we don't yet know WHAT they're planning... It's safe to assume that, whatever the sirens' plan is, it hinges on them winning the tournament, so there's no doubt that they're liable to try anything they can to stay in the competition...)

Bright Mind looked at his Deck, took a deep breath to calm himself, and thought, (After witnessing her previous Duel, I made a few slight alterations to my Deck with the cards I have in my Side Deck... It should be satisfactory; it all depends on what Ms. Dusk decided to swap out in HER Side Deck...)

Noticing that Bright Mind was in deep thought, Adagio smirked and thought to herself, (I can see you're wracking your brain to try and come up with a strategy to defeat my sister... Too bad for you; nothing you can think of will prepare you for what we've come up with for her. This will be one problem that even someone as smart as you won't be able to solve...)

Sunset took a slight glance over towards Adagio and Aria, knowing that they were up to something, but didn't know what yet. For now, she had a job to do. Clearing her throat, she then said, "Are both Duelists ready?" After seeing them both nod yes, the judge then shouted, "Then let the Duel begin!"

"Let's DUEL!!" shouted both Sonata and Bright (Sonata Dusk: LP 4,000) (Bright Mind: LP 4,000). And with the drawing of their respective opening hands, their game was ready to begin...

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Up in the audience stands, Flash Sentry was paying close attention to the Duel, hoping that Bright Mind would come out the victor. But it was not simply for the fact that he wanted Sonata out of the tournament, but also because he openly stated that he respected Bright's strength as a Duelist after his match against him. (You can do it, Bright...) he mentally urged him. (Don't let her overcome you...)

After a coin flip, it was determined that the first move would go to Sonata. She looked over the cards in her opening hand...and spotted one that drew her attention right away. (Alright...just gotta do this how Dagi told me...) Taking the card, she put it into her D-Pad and said, "I'll set this card face-down!" Then, taking another card out of her hand, she added, "Then I'll Summon Atlantean Dragoons in Attack Mode!" After playing the card, a pair of blue, armor-wearing fish people riding on giant armored sea horses (one in gold armor and one in silver) appeared on the field, wielding weapons that were a combination of a sword and lance (Atlantean Dragoons: Level 4 / ATK 1800 / DEF 0). "And that's all I've got this turn!" she said, finishing her move.

"Very well, then." said Bright Mind, drawing a card from his Deck and looking at it. (Hmmm...) he thought. (Offering to the Snake Deity... That could come in handy later...) He spent a few moments looking over the cards in his hand in order to come with the best possible strategy.

Sunset continued to watch the Duel closely, with most of her attention on Sonata due to her suspicions of her and her sisters. (So far, Sonata hasn't acted too much out of the ordinary...) the red-and-yellow girl thought to herself. (Sure, there was her unsportsmanlike conduct after her Duel with Derpy...but honestly, I expected her to do something like that. Hopefully, this Duel can help me figure out if those three really are up to something sinister or not...that is, assuming Bright doesn't beat Sonata right here of course.) With that thought in her mind, Sunset kept her eyes on the match, making sure to pay attention to everything that went down.

"Alright," said Bright Mind after having thought of his opening move, taking a card from his hand, "I believe I'll attempt this endeavor."

"Alright! We get it!!" shouted Sonata. "You're a walking thesaurus! Just make your move already!!"

Bright hummed a bit in displeasure, but chose to ignore Sonata's rudeness. "I'll Summon my Alien Warrior in Attack Position." he said, playing the card from his hand. The monster was an extremely buff-looking alien with massive clawed hands, sharp teeth, and muscular limbs on a mostly grey-and-white body (Alien Warrior: Level 4 / ATK 1800 / DEF 1000). "And of course," he then added, "no one - not even an alien invader - could be without man's best friend. So I'll also Summon Alien Dog to the field in Attack Position to accompany my Warrior." The second card he played was another alien-like being, but in the body shape of a canine, with a blue-and-white-body and green eyes (Alien Dog: Level 3 / ATK 1500 / DEF 1000).

"Huh?? How'd you do that??" asked Sonata, confused. "How'd you get to play two monsters at once?"

"Hmmm...it's quite simple, really." Bright explained to his opponent. "By Normal Summoning any Alien monster, Alien Dog's effect permits me the right to Special Summon it from my hand, which gives me a notable advantage in monsters." He then told her, "But that isn't the only power my little cosmic canine possesses: By Special Summoning Alien Dog via its effect, I can now place a total of 2 A-Counters on any of the monsters you control. Of course, as you currently control just a single monster, that makes such an easy decision all the easier."

Sonata growled a bit under her breath as a pair of grotesque, purple, blob-like creatures slithered onto the field and attached themselves onto Atlantean Dragoons, leaving a slimy trail in their wake (Atlantean Dragoons: A-Counters 0 + 2 = 2). "Grrr...think you're SO smart, huh?" Sonata asked rhetorically.

"As much as I want Bright to win this Duel..." Rarity began to say to her friends, "I do wish he would stop using those ugly little things during his Duels. It's hard for me to even look at those creatures..."

"Well, seeing as how those A-Counters are part of Bright's main strategy, I don't think he's going to take them out of his Deck just because you don't like the way they look." Flash told her.

"I suppose that's true..." the fashionista responded.

"Still, what's he planning to do with those things now that he stuck 'em on Sonata's monster?" asked Rainbow Dash.

Continuing his turn, Bright then took two more cards from his hand and said, "Next, I shall place these cards face-down, and then I will continue on to my Battle Phase! I will send my Alien Warrior to attack your Dragoons!"

"Huh?" asked Twilight. "Why is he doing that? His monster's attack points are the same as Sonata's monster, so they'll both be destroyed!"

"Not quite." Sunset told her friend. "Just watch..."

"And now for the effect of my Alien Warrior!" Bright Mind declared. "When an Alien does battle with a monster that has A-Counters, that monster loses 300 attack and defense points for each of the counters placed upon it!" And after he said that, the two globs on Atlantean Dragoons began to glow in a bright purple aura, which then surrounded Sonata's monster and weakened it significantly (Atlantean Dragoons: ATK 1800 - 600 = 1200).

"Oh, now I get it!" said Spike. "THAT'S why he put those counters on her monster!"

"Exactly." Sunset told the little purple puppy. "He Special Summoned Alien Dog both to weaken Sonata's monster, and also to attack with it once Dragoons was gone. That move will give Bright a considerable lead very early in the Duel."

"Go! Alien Warrior!!" shouted the grey-skinned boy. "Cosmic Claw Strike!!" His monster snarled as it leapt forward towards Sonata's monster, raising its claws in order to strike it with a powerful swipe.

"Not so fast, you Smart Alec!" Sonata suddenly shouted back, tapping her D-Pad's touch screen. "I activate a Continuous Trap! Gozen Match!!"

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Gozen Match:
(Continuous Trap Card)

Each player can only control 1 Attribute of monster. Send all other face-up monsters they control to the GY.

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"Rrrgh! No, not that card!" said Bright, having been taken by surprise.

"That ain't good..." Babs Seed told her Apple Bloom and Scootaloo in the stands. "'Cause of that card, the two of 'em are now only allowed to control one monster Attribute on each'a their sides of the field!"

"Uhh, meaning...?" asked Scootaloo.

"Well, Sonata's got a WATER-Attribute monster out," Babs explained, "so that means she can only control WATER-Attribute monsters as long as it's on the field. But Bright's got two different monster Attributes on his side'a the field: EARTH for Alien Warrior, n' LIGHT for Alien Dog. Which means he's gotta pick one'a those two Attributes, n' send the monster of the other Attribute to the Graveyard."

"I...still don't quite get it, but it doesn't sound good." Scootaloo replied.

But Bright Mind certainly understood what was going to happen, and was left with the decision of which of his two monsters to keep, and which one to let go. After coming to that decision, he then said, "I'll send Alien Dog to my Graveyard and keep Alien Warrior on the field." And with that, the otherworldly pooch vanished from the field. "Now, Alien Warrior, finish your attack!!" And with that, his monster slashed Sonata's creature, destroying it and damaging her a bit (Sonata Dusk: LP 4,000 - 600 = 3,400).

"Well, so much for that strategy he came up with..." said Twilight. "It was a good one, but Sonata had the best counter for it." Sunset thought the same thing, which seemed to make her a bit more focused on the Duel in front of them all...

"Well, I must admit, that Trap Card took me by surprise..." the intelligent young boy said to his opponent. "Now I have no choice but to finish my turn."

"Hmph...not so smart now, are ya?" Sonata rudely replied, drawing a card from her Deck. "I may not be real book-smart or anything like that, but I don't need t' be as smart as you in order to give you a real beating!" She then looked at the card she drew and smirked, thinking, (Especially now that I managed to draw this little "secret weapon"... If he thinks he's in trouble now, just wait 'til he sees this card...!)

"So...the first battle of the Duel ended," stated Ember while standing on the sidelines, "and although she took some damage, that Sonata chick managed to keep herself safe for the most part... Now I guess we'll see if she can mount a counterattack."

Placing the card that she had just drawn for her turn in her hand, Sonata then took out a different card and said, "Now for my next move, I Summon my Abyss Soldier in Attack Mode!" Her new monster appeared to be some sort of human/whale hybrid creature that was mostly dark blue and white in color and carrying a golden trident as its weapon of choice (Abyss Soldier: Level 4 / ATK 1800 / DEF 1300). "This guy's got a really cool special effect:" the blue-skinned girl began to explain. "Once on each of my turns, I can ditch any WATER monster I'm holding to have him send any card that's the field back to the hand!" Showing the card in her that she planned to discard for the cost, Sonata placed the card in the Graveyard slot and added, "I'll get rid of this card...and have Abyss Soldier bounce one of your face-down cards away! And I'll pick the one on my right!"

"Huh? She's not going after his monster?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"I guess not..." said Pinkie. "Sonata must be REALLY worried about what Bright's got face-down if she's doing that!"

"Or there's more to her plan than just getting rid of one of his cards on the field..." noted Flash. Everyone watched closely as Sonata's monster whipped up a large wave of water aimed straight for the face-down card that Sonata had targeted with Abyss Soldier's effect.

"Hmmmm...I'm a bit sorry to say this," the boy began to tell her, "but it seems as though you chose the wrong card as the target for your monster's effect."

"What's that mean?!" asked Sonata in surprise.

"Because I'm going to activate the card you targeted before your monster's effect can resolve!" he told her. "I activate the Quick-Play Spell, 'A' Cell Recombination Device!"

"Wait a moment..." began Rarity. "Flash dear...didn't Bright use that card on you during your Duel with him?"

"Yep." the bright-orange boy answered her. "That was a pretty slick play, activating that card before Sonata could get rid of it. And now that she can't use Abyss Soldier's effect for the rest of the turn, even though it didn't work. And not only that, but now Bright can send any Alien monster from his Deck to the Graveyard and put more of those A-Counters on Sonata's monster equal to the Level of whatever monster he sends from the Deck!"

"Oh...more A-Counters..." said Rarity, not too thrilled to see more of those purple creatures. "How...how nice for him, I guess..."

Looking through his Deck, Bright Mind thought for a while, trying to decide what monster would be the best choice to send to the Graveyard. After thinking about it for a few seconds, he made his decision and said, "I will transport the Level 4 Alien Stealthbuster from my Deck to the Graveyard... And that means 4 A-Counters will be placed on your Abyss Soldier!" And as he said that, more of those strange, repugnant blobs clung themselves onto Sonata's only monster (Abyss Soldier: A-Counters: 0 + 4 = 4).

"Good move." Sunset said. "Now Sonata can't attack with Abyss Soldier. Because if she does, her monster will lose a total of 1,200 attack points if she sends it to attack his Alien Warrior."

"Ohhhh, I get it!" said Spike, realizing that fact. "That WAS a really good move! That means that Bright guy's safe for this turn!"

"...I'm not so sure..." said Twilight, pointing to Sonata, who didn't seem even remotely irritated by Bright's counter-play. "She doesn't seem too worried about this situation at all..."

"...Yeah, you're right." replied Sunset. "Just what is she up to...?"

"Pffft...! You really think that's gonna stop me, nerd?" Sonata said to her opponent. "I couldn't care less if Abyss Soldier's effect worked or not!"

"You...don't?" asked Bright Mind. "And what, may I ask, do you mean by that?"

"While I may not be able to bounce of your cards away," she then told him in a rather condescending tone of voice, "I still get to use the effect of the monster I discarded from my hand!"

"From her hand??" asked Sweetie Belle.

"Rrrgh...of course! I see what her plan was..." stated Octavia. "Sonata is using an Atlantean Deck, and their main gimmick involves activating their effects AFTER they have been used to activate the effect of other WATER-Attribute monsters. And it doesn't matter if the activated effects work or not; as long as they are used to pay the cost of the effect, they'll still grant her some sort of advantage afterwards."

"Uhhhhh...yeah, I didn't follow any of that, Tavi." said Vinyl.

Sighing a little, the cello player then told her DJ friend, "To put it in simpler terms: By discarding an Atlantean for an effect, she can then also use the effect of whatever monster she discards."

And that's just what Sonata planned to do. "I activate the effect of Neptabyss, the Atlantean Prince, which I discarded for Abyss Soldier's effect! This lets me bring back any of my Atlantean monsters from the Graveyard other than himself! And I'll choose Atlantean Dragoons!" And in an instant, her seahorse-riding monster returned to the field in Attack Mode, ready to strike.

"I see...so you were prepared to reclaim your lost resources afterwards." stated Bright Mind. "However, I still have placed several A-Counters on your Abyss Soldier, which will aid in weakening him should I plan to attack you next turn. I highly doubt you have something that can overcome that."

"Yyyyyyeah, about that..." said the siren as she pulled out the card that she had drawn during her turn. "I'm a bit sorry to say this... Well actually, I'm not! You're totally, one hundred-percent wrong! I DO have a card that completely wrecks you!"

"What?" asked the boy. "What do you mean??"

"I activate the Spell Card...Counter Cleaner!!" she shouted, playing the card that she was holding. After doing so, a strange, jar-shaped vacuum cleaner appeared on her side of the field. Bright Mind gasped in shock upon seeing the device appearing on his opponent's field.

"Counter Cleaner...?" asked Applejack. "Ah've never heard of that card... What's it do?"

"Don't look at me, AJ..." Dash told her. "I've never seen it before either. Looks pretty ugly, though." She turned over to Flash and asked him, "You ever heard of that card, Flash?"

"...I actually have." he told her. "By paying 500 of her Life Points, Sonata can use her Spell Card to get rid of every single counter that's currently on the field. Which means that the A-Counters that he stuck on her Abyss Soldier will get cleared up right away."

"They will?!" asked Rainbow in surprise.

"But...but if you said that Bright's Deck is focused on placing those A-Counters on the monsters on the field," Rarity began to say to Flash, "Then that card is practically the perfect counter against his strategy!"

"Yeah...it is..." said Flash Sentry, now growing a bit more suspicious of Sonata.

He wasn't the only one, of course: Sunset, who was already suspecting that Sonata and her sisters were up to no good, now suspected them even more. (To think that Sonata would have the perfect card to use against Bright Mind like that... Was she really that prepared for him, or...?)

Giving off an overconfident smirk, Sonata casually told her foe, "Now I'll just go and drop five hundred of my Life Points to switch on this little device and completely ruin your strategy!" (Sonata Dusk: LP 3,400 - 500 = 2,900) And with that, the machine spurred to life and began drawing in a massive amount of air that sucked up anything and everything too weak to resist the suction. Unfortunately for Bright Mind, that included the four A-Counters that he had placed on Abyss Soldier. The blobs tried to stay attached, but they couldn't hold on, and were drawn into the vacuum, never to be seen again (Abyss Soldier: A-Counters 4 - 4 = 0). "So, how does it feel?" asked Sonata smugly. "Y'know, to have your Deck's best strategy get stopped by just ONE card?"

Bright Mind wasn't happy to see her manage to counter his main tactic, but wasn't about to let her see him sweat. "Need I remind you that this Duel hasn't ended yet?" he asked her. "And I don't intend on just simply handing you a victory. Despite whatever stratagem you use against me, I will not surrender!"

"Hmph. Have it your way, then." Sonata replied, not caring in the slightest. "If you won't give up, then I'll knock you down!" Moving onto her Battle Phase, she then shouted, "Abyss Soldier, attack that Alien Warrior with Piercing Trident!" Her monster then moved forward with its trident staff to strike Bright's only monster, who raised its claws to strike it right back. Both monsters struck each other, causing both of them to be destroyed. "Now that he's gone, I'll send Dragoons to attack you directly!!"

Bright Mind braced himself as he took the attack of both the seahorse-riding warriors. "Urrrrgh!!!" he grunted upon receiving the heavy blow (Bright Mind: LP 4,000 - 1,800 = 2,200). Still not willing to give in to her, the boy asked, "Are you quite finished...?"

"I guess I'll hafta to end my turn for now." Sonata answered him. "But on my next turn, I'll send your not-so-smarty-pants back to grade school! Heh heh heh!"

Watching the Duel intently, Twilight then asked Sunset, "So...what now? How is Bright going to get out of this one?"

"Hmmmm...it won't be easy," her jacket-wearing friend told her, "but there's still a chance if he - literally - plays his cards right. Even though Sonata surprised him with that Counter Cleaner card, he still has a good chance to recover from it."

"Well, let's hope so..." said Spike. "I'd hate to see what might happen if Sonata ends up winning the whole tournament. You just know they're gonna rub it in our faces later..."

(Maybe...but that's not what I'm worried about.) Sunset thought to herself. (Those three want to win this tournament for some reason, and I'm sure it isn't just for bragging rights. I just hope that whatever that reason is, we can stop them from achieving it...) She then looked up in the audience stands where her friends were sitting, and saw he ex-boyfriend Flash Sentry with a serious look on his face. She could tell from that look in his eye that he wanted Bright Mind to win, too.

(Urrgh...how could I have allowed this to happen...?) Bright asked himself. (To think that she had a card that perfectly countered my A-Counter tactic... Now I'm out of monsters, and my hand is getting very low as well...) Fortunately, the boy was as brave as he was smart; he put on a determined look and said to himself, "Even so, there is no way I'm going to give up this Duel! Quitters never win, and I don't intend to quit anytime soon! I'll use everything I know and overcome this hindrance!" Looking at his Deck, he took a deep breath to calm himself and slowly drew his next card. "Hmmm...another Alien Warrior..." he said, looking at the card he had drawn for the turn. "Unfortunately, this monster ties in attack points with Atlantean Dragoons, so they'll both be destroyed and I'll be wide open to a yet another direct attack... However, there may be another way to use my Alien Warrior to overcome her monster on the field..."

"C'mon already!" whined Sonata. "Are you gonna take your turn SOMETIME this year, or do I have to call 'Slow Play'?"

Ignoring his opponent's rude remark, he thought to himself, (I traveled quite a long ways away from home to test myself; to see just how far I've come as a Duelist...and as a person. This Duel is just another challenge that I must overcome, and I intend to see it through to the end!) With that thought in his mind, he then played the card he drew. "I Summon another Alien Warrior in Attack Position!" he said, playing his second copy of the buffed-out interstellar monster. "And in addition, I'll place a card face-down to complete my move."

"Pffft, so THAT'S what I had to wait for you to do this turn?" asked Sonata. "With how long you took to make up your mind, I was expecting a lot more than just two cards!" Drawing a card from her Deck, she then looked at it and seemed a little confused. (Huh? What's this card for?) she asked herself. (This isn't gonna help me right now...) She just stared at the card with a puzzled look on her face for reasons only she knew...

"Huh? Now what's up with her?" Spike then asked. "Why's Sonata looking at her card as if she'd never seen it before?"

"That's a good question..." said Twilight. "Why would she be confused about the cards in her own Deck? I mean, even if she and the other Dazzlings built that Deck together, she should know every card in it at least subconsciously..."

"...Hmmmm..." hummed Sunset, also wondering what sort of card she drew that would make Sonata seem so confused.

For about a minute or so, Sonata didn't seem to know what to do next as she just continued to stare at the card she had drawn for the turn with a perplexed and perturbed look on her face. Sighing, Bright then told her, "For someone who was complaining about taking too long on my move, you certainly seem to be taking a long time figuring out your own."

Annoyed a little by that remark, Sonata then snapped back, "Sh-shut up!" She then placed the card away in her hand for now and thought, (I don't know what's up with this card I drew, but who cares? I don't need it anyway! I've got this Duel in the bag!) Taking a different card from her hand, she played it on her D-Pad and shouted, "I'm Summoning Atlantean Marksman in Attack Mode!!"

Sonata's next monster was yet another fish-man creature, but this one held a rather different kind of weapon: The contraption seemed to be a combination of a trident (which was common among Sonata's Atlantean monsters) and a crossbow. It even had an aiming scope on the back end, which suggested that this monster was a sniper of sorts (Atlantean Marksman: Level 3 / ATK 1400 / DEF 0).

"Pfft, big deal." said Rainbow Dash in a casual tone of voice. "That thing's not so tough..."

"Maybe not on its own," said Flash, "but with that Atlantean Dragoons still on the field, it'll allow Sonata to hit Bright's Life Points directly when she attacks with that Marksman."

"Sh-she can attack him directly?!?" exclaimed Pinkie Pie. "That's not good!"

Bright, of course, knew about that too, and he asked his opponent, "So...I suppose you'll be striking me directly, is that it?"

"That's exactly what I plan on doing!" said Sonata. "Why should I attack you monster and have them both be destroyed when I can just chip away at you with this guy? So let's see ya try and think your way outta this one, Smart Alec! Go, Marksman! Attack that guy directly!!"

Obeying her order, Sonata's monster aimed its trident crossbow straight at Bright Mind, preparing to knock 1,400 of his Life points in one shot. Everyone in attendance watched with anticipation, hoping that the boy would be able to save himself from the attack.

"Ready...aim...and FIRE!!!" shouted the dueling Dazzling. And in an instant, her monster fired its weapon, sending the three-pronged projectile soaring straight towards Bright Mind.

"Watch out!!" Spike shouted involuntary, prompting Twilight to "Shhh!" him so that no one else would know that he was able to speak.

Luckily, Bright Mind was too focused on making his next move to hear the dragon-turned-puppy anyway. "I counter your attack by activating my face-down Trap Card!" he shouted, flipping the card face-up for all to see.

"Huh?? What's that card?" asked Sonata, clueless as to what it was that he foe was playing.

"It is known as Offering to the Snake Deity." the sweater vest-wearing boy explained to her. "This Trap Card has the power to destroy 3 cards on the field: To be more specific, it destroys a single Reptile-Type monster that I have on the field, and 2 cards that YOU have on the field!"

"WHAT?!?" exclaimed Sonata. "Does that mean-?!"

"That is correct:" Bright told her, already knowing what she was going to ask him. "I designate my Alien Warrior, along with your two Atlantean monsters, as targets for my Trap Card's effect. So all three of them will be destroyed right now!" Everyone watched as Alien Warrior began to glow in an intense yellow light and subsequently grew bigger...and bigger...and even bigger than that until it completely transformed into a massive, two-headed snake creature made of pure energy that seemed to take on fiery-like properties. The shot that Atlantean Marksman fired from his weapon ended up striking the massive energy creature and immediately burst into flames before it could hit Bright Mind directly.

"Woah...get a load of that...!" said Flash, legitimately impressed by Bright's move.

"I'll say!" Rainbow added. "Sonata's not gonna know what hit her after this!" The others had little to say as they watched the power of Bright Mind's Trap Card for themselves.

"Now, go!" the book-smart Duelist shouted. "Eliminate both Dragoons and Marksman!!" The massive energy snake creature hissed and lunged forward with both of its heads, striking both of Sonata's monsters like lightning bolts. Needless to say, it didn't take a genius to know that neither monster was going to survive the devastating blow. After the energy creature had used up all its power, there was no trace of Sonata's monsters left, aside from a pair of scorched marks on the ground where they had once stood.

"Rrrrrgh...! That's not fair!!" protested Sonata. "How was I supposed to play around that?! You just got lucky, having that Trap Card to play just now!"

"Maybe, but as they say, 'Luck favors the prepared'." Bright told her. "I never go into any unknown situation without readying myself for whatever I might think I'll encounter. With everything that I have experienced in my life, I know for a fact that going into something blindly is a fool's errand."

"Grrrrr...We'll see who the fool is after this over...!" said Sonata, now getting more annoyed than before.

"That's enough, Sonata." Sunset told her sternly. "Just because he's gotten ahead of you this turn doesn't mean you have the right to badmouth him. So cool it, or you're out of here." The siren grumbled, but knew she had no choice but to play nice...for now. Sighing, the Judge then said to Bright, "Sorry you had to hear her say all of that."

"No need to concern yourself, Ms. Shimmer." the boy replied. "Trust me when I say that I have heard far worse than that." Looking at his Deck, he then said in his mind, (I remember those days...as much as I would prefer to forget them... At school, I was always at the top of my class: I aced every test, perfectly completed many projects; nothing was too difficult for me...except making friends... As smart as I was or am right now, trying to associate with others had always proven difficult. Whether it was jealousy of my intelligence, or maybe because I was seen as an "easy target", whatever the case, the only interaction I had with others was negative; I was picked on and bullied by my classmates, and felt...alienated one might say.

(That's probably what led me to choosing an Alien Deck and coming out all this way for the tournament...) he continued to ponder. (I thought of this tournament as a way to truly test my abilities in both dueling as well as to try and see for myself just far I've come; to prove to others and myself that I have the power to stand up on my own two feet and be able to handle myself, no matter who or what I face out there...) He then looked around at all of the other people that came for the tournament: Either as a spectator, a competitor, or as an official. (Most of all...) he then thought, (I came to this city because I wanted to find something here that I couldn't find back home... Here, I'm not just some estranged individual to be ignored or scoffed at... Here, I'm just like everyone else: I'm just another person that loves Duel Monsters, and nothing more than that. And because of that very reason, maybe...just maybe, I might find the one thing I've always wanted back home: A friend...a friend that I can relate to, even if it's just a shared interest in dueling... That's the reason I'm here, and that's why I'm not going to give up, no matter how difficult the challenge is! I don't plan on staying an outcast any longer! I'll use everything I know and achieve my goals, and shall not cease until I have done just that!)

Seeing the intense and determined look that Bright Mind was displaying while deep in thought, Sunset could tell that he had some self-driven goals of his own while competing in the tournament, even though she did not know exactly what it was that was pushing him. It was for that reason that she secretly hoped that he would win - even more than the initial reason of just wanting to make sure that Sonata and her sisters wouldn't succeed in what ever plot they were up to. Nodding to him, Sunset told the boy, "It's your turn now, Bright Mind."

"...Yes, it is." the boy said calmly. He then placed his fingers on his Deck and drew his next card. "Hmmm...what do we have now...?" he asked himself, closely examining his new card. ("A" Cell Breeding Device... Unfortunately, that won't help me in my current situation...) He then looked over what he had in his hand to see if he was holding any other cards that would be more helpful. (The only other card that I have left is my Alien Telepath... And while its attack power of 1600 is solid, it would be a danger to play it this late in the Duel, as my opponent is very likely to draw a card that could exceed it. And even if it were to survive the next turn, due to her Gozen Match Trap Card, I would be restricted to only playing other FIRE-Attirbute monsters like my Telepath; the only other FIRE monster in my Deck is Alien Mars, and assuming that I would even be fortunate to draw it, it lacks sufficient power to hold its own for a long period...)

"If I thought you were gonna take THIS long to make a move," complained Sonata, "I would've brought a music player and listened to some tunes right now instead of just standing here...!"

Just then, Bright gasped and realized something. (Wait..."tunes"? That's it!! I know what I can do!) Smiling, he then said to Sonata, "Alright then...I'll hasten my turn a little for you... Though, if you knew what plan that I've concocted just now, you wouldn't have such an ambitious attitude right now..." Tapping his screen a few times, he then caused a card to eject out of the D-Pad's Graveyard slot, which he then picked out. "I activate the Graveyard effect of 'A' Cell Recombination Device! By banishing it from the Duel, I am then permitted to search through my Deck, select an Alien monster from within it, and place it into my hand!" He then did just that, placing the banished Spell Card in his Deck Box and allowing the D-Pad's auto-shuffle function to give him the card he chose.

"So...what do you believe Bright Mind chose to add to his hand just now...?" asked Rarity.

"At this point," Applejack answered her, "he'll need to pull a real winner outta his Deck. Right now, he's got a chance to get a very powerful monster on the field and end this Duel quickly, so he needs to make the most of that chance!"

Bright Mind then revealed the monster he added to his hand by playing it on the field. "I Summon the Tuner Monster, Alien Ammonite in Attack Position!" The newly-summoned creature on Bright's side of the field appeared to be some sort of mutated shelled animal. Its yellow eyes pierced through its water-blue skin and shell, and its mouth contained several fangs that jutted out in all directions, not to mention several tentacles with claws on the end of each of them (Alien Ammonite: Level 1 / ATK 500 / DEF 200).

"A Tuner monster...?" Sunset asked herself. "Does that mean he has...?"

Snickering a bit, Sonata then mocked her opponent, telling him, "Way to go summoning a Tuner Monster all by itself, smart guy! Without any other monsters out, you can't use it to Synchro Summon anything! And that wimpy attack power of 500 ain't gonna stand up to nothing!"

"...First off, the correct term is, 'ISN'T going to stand up to ANYTHING, Ms. Sonata." Bright corrected her. "And second, my Alien Ammonite won't be all by itself for very much longer. After it is Normal Summoned, my Tuner Monster allows me to Special Summon any Alien monster from my Graveyard that is no higher than Level 4. However, the monster it summons self-destructs during my End Phase...not that it really matters, though, because I plan to use the monster I resurrect along with my Ammonite to Summon a Synchro Monster!"

(A Synchro Monster...?) thought Sonata. Hearing him say that made her take a quick glance at the last card she had in her hand; the one she drew last turn that caused her a bit of confusion. Looking back up, she then told her foe, "Well good luck tryin' to do that! You forget about my Trap Card, Gozen Match? Because of it, you can't have monsters with different Attributes on the field at the same time! Your Alien Ammonite is a LIGHT monster, so that means you can only bring out other LIGHT monsters! Which means your EARTH-Attribute Alien Warriors can't come out of your Graveyard! So much for your big-brain plan, huh?!"

But Bright Mind chuckled a little and told her, "I must admit, that was quite observant of you to recall all of that information." He then smiled and added, "However, there is one part of the equation that you failed to recognize."

"Oh, yeah? And what's that?!"

Brigth then answered Sonata's question, saying, "If you recall, I used my 'A' Cell Recombination Device's effect in the Graveyard to add Alien Ammonite to my hand. However, before that, I had used my Spell Card's effect to place another monster in the Graveyard. I suppose I can't blame you for forgetting about that, since the monster that 'A' Cell Recombination Device sent to the Graveyard was from my Deck; therefore, you never actually saw it for yourself."

"H-huh??" asked Sonata, confused.

"What's he talking about, Sunset?" Spike asked her.

"It's quite simple:" the young Judge told him. " Earlier, Bright had used the effect of 'A' Cell Recombination Device to place those A-Counters on Sonata's monsters. But in order to do so, he first had to send a monster from his Deck to the Graveyard. And now, thanks to the effect of his Alien Ammonite, he can Summon it back to the field."

Bright Mind then took the card in question out of his D-Pad and revealed it. "The monster I sent to the Graveyard with my Spell is my Alien Stealthbuster; which just so happens to be a LIGHT monster."

"WHAT?!?" shouted Sonata as her opponent played the card onto his side of the field. The creature was a buffed-out extraterrestrial, much like Alien Warrior was, but with some noticeable differences: It was mostly black and dark purple, as opposed to the usual white colors that the Alien monsters sported. Its eyes were the same yellow colors as the orbs growing on its body, and each of hands wielded long, razor-sharp claws that looked like they could cut anything (Alien Stealthbuster: Level 4 / ATK 1700 / DEF 1500). "There's no way!!" she then protested. "How could you have known to do that ahead of time?!"

"Well, given the fact that you had already activated Gozen Match by the time I used my Spell Card, the decision was actually quite easy. for me to make." Bright answered her. "Not to mention that I've had Gozen Match used on me enough times to make this tactic of mine second-nature."

"That's incredible!!" cheered Pinkie Pie. "That Bright guy had this all planned out from the start!! That was so super-smart of him!!"

"Yeah, and the best part? Sonata didn't see it comin' from a mile away!" Rainbow commented. "Until today, I never thought she'd look even more clueless than she already does!"

(I never would've expected anything less out of Bright.) Flash thought, happy to see his First Round opponent managing to get back control of the Duel.

Sonata grumbled, annoyed by Bright's earlier move. "And before you ask," Bright then told her, "yes; I am fully aware that - due to your Trap Card - the monster that I Synchro Summon using these two monsters must also be LIGHT-Attribute. And I have every intention of doing just that!" Thrusting his right arm forward towards his two monsters, he shouted, "I tune Alien Ammonite, Level 1...to my Alien Stealthbuster, Level 4!!" His Tuner monster then transformed into pure energy, shrinking down into a small white light that flew into the air, returning as a single green ring that surrounded Alien Stealthbuster, transforming it into four more lights (Level 1 + Level 4 = Level 5).

Sonata could only watch as Bright continued the Synchro Summoning, sweating a little at whatever he could bring out to fight her. Adagio and Aria also watched, and neither of them had very pleased looks on their faces.

"Stronghold from the furthest reaches of the galaxy!" Bright Mind chanted. "Descend to Earth and begin the invasion! Let nothing infiltrate your insurmountable defenses! Synchro Summon!! Interstellar might, Level 5! Cosmic Fortress Gol'gar!!" After the chant was completed, a massive pillar of light engulfed the ring and smaller lights, and then the light pillar continued to expand and shape itself into a massive being. The new monster that Bright summoned to the field appeared to be a fortress, but it also seemed to be alive, with various grey-blue tentacles coming off of its sides, as well as a similarly-colored face and head on the top of it. Large pink tendrils grew upon the front of it, and the creature/building had several dirty green spines on its "back" as well, further giving the Synchro Monster a very intimidating appearance.

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Cosmic Fortress Gol'gar
(Synchro-Effect Monster/Reptile/LIGHT/Level 5/ATK 2600/DEF 1800)

"Alien Ammonite" + 1+ non-Tuner "Alien" monsters
Once per turn: You can target any number of face-up Spell/Trap Cards on the field; return them to the hand, and if you do, place a number of A-Counters on monsters on the field, equal to the number of cards returned to the hand by this effect. Once per turn; you can remove 2 A-Counters from anywhere on the field, then target 1 card your opponent controls; destroy it.

*******************************

"My word...!!" said Rarity with a gasp. "What IS that thing?!"

"If y'all ask me," Applejack answered her, "Ah'd say it's big ol' alien castle or somethin' like that, based on all'a the cannons n' other weapons it's got on it."

"Well, it's about time that Bright Guy got a big monster on the field." Rainbow commented. "And look at Sonata; she's shakin' in her boots just lookin' at Bright's monster!"

Flash said nothing, but thought to himself, (I'm glad Bright managed to stick a powerful card on his side of the field and take control of the Duel...) He then glanced down at Sonata, and then to her sisters on the sidelines. (...But I can't help but believe that those Dazzlings might have one last trick up their sleeves... Whatever it is, I hope he can overcome it...)

Glancing up at his newly-summoned Synchro Monster, Bright Mind thought to himself, (My Gol'gar only has 2600 attack points, which isn't quite enough to defeat my opponent... However, she only has one card in her hand, so the odds of her overcoming my monster and striking back at me are exceedingly low... If I can survive the next turn, I should be able to achieve victory, with whatever she draws next turn being the only unknown variable.) Knowing what he had to do next, Bright then shouted, "Cosmic Fortress Gol'gar! Ready your cannons and prepare to fire!!" The fort responded immediately, adjusting all of its ballistic weaponry and pointing them all towards Sonata.

"Uhh...um...c-can't we resolve this...p-peacefully...??" Sonata meekly asked, trembling at the hundreds of cannon aimed right at her.

Bright answered her question...by pointing forward and shouted, "Now FIRE!!!" And with that command, the fortress fired every last one of its mighty cannons, blasting the area around Sonata with heavy explosives. The assault continued for some time before the fortress had used up all its ammunition. "With that onslaught," the boy told his opponent as he pushed up his glasses, "your Life Points are now down to a mere portion of what they once were. Unless you get a lucky draw next turn, I'm afraid this Duel will be concluded very shortly."

Sonata didn't have much to say as she stood there on the smoky, charred ground, her hair frazzled a bit from the earlier attack (Sonata Dusk: LP 2,900 - 2,600 = 300). "Why...why you..." she uttered in a soft - but annoyed - tone of voice. It was clear that she didn't find Bright Mind's last move to be pleasant at all.

"Now Sonata's got only 300 Life Points left!!" cheered Spike. "One more blow like that, and she's outta here!"

"It sure seems like it..." said Twilight, "but we can't assume anything just yet: Sonata still has her turn coming up, and there's a chance she could turn it all around..."

"I agree..." said Sunset. "As much as I would hate to see the Dazzlings win another Duel, I can't help but feel like they have something else planned... We just have to hope that Sonata doesn't draw anything helpful next turn..."

On the other side of the arena, Aria was grumbling a bit after seeing Sonata take such a big hit to her Life Points. "Grrr...what is she DOING?" she asked Adagio angrily. "The only way we can get our job done is if she wins this Duel, but she let that dork get way ahead of her!!"

"Aria, settle down." Adagio told her. "This game isn't over quite yet, and Sonata knows better than to disappoint us... At least, she had better know that." Folding her arms in front of her and smirking, she then added, "In any case, I can assure you that Sonata isn't out of this just yet... After all, we've stacked the deck against that know-it-all on the other side...so to speak."

"Pfft...whatever. I'm just sayin' that Sonata had better not screw this up." the other Dazzling replied back. "Otherwise, I'm not gonna be the one who's gotta tell our client that we couldn't get anything done."

"And none of us will, Aria." said Adagio. And with that last sentence, the two of them returned their attention to the Duel in front of them.

Looking at the Duel in front of him, as well as the stats on his D-Pad's screen, Bright Mind thought to himself, (Okay...only 300 Life Points left to go, and I should have everything all prepared in case any possible setback: Even if she manages to destroy or remove Gol'gar on my field, as long as she doesn't Summon any monsters with an attack power higher than 1300, I can still play my Alien Telepath and finish off the remainder of her Life Points... And if she manages to summon a monster that can stand up to Gol'gar's attack power in some manner, I can use his effect to accumulate A-Counters and destroy whatever monster she plays, allowing me to attack her directly and win that way... And just to make sure that can happen...) He then took the card he drew this turn and played it, saying, "I now activate 'A' Cell Breeding Device!" After playing his Spell Card, a small containment tank filled with a strange, yellow liquid appeared on his side of the field. Also inside the tank was a small, purple creature similar to the A-Counter creatures that seemed to be growing inside of it.

"Thanks to that card," Sunset began to explain, "Bright can place an A-Counter on one monster on the field during each of his Standby Phases."

"And then what?" asked Spike.

"Cosmic Fortress Gol'gar's effect allows it to 2 A-Counters from the field to destroy any card controlled by the opponent." Sunset told him. "In addition, it can also send any number of Spell or Trap Cards on the field back to the players' hands to generate more A-Counters; 1 for each card bounced back."

"Oh, I see!" Twilight remarked. "He's planning to set up enough counters next turn to ensure that he'll beat whatever monster Sonata might bring out!"

"Exactly." the red-and-yellow teen confirmed. "We just have to hope that either she doesn't summon a monster, or summons one that he can defeat easily."

Satisfied that he had done everything he could, Bright Mind then told his opponent, "Alright, it's your turn. And unless you draw something adequate now, I'm afraid it will be your last."

"Oh yeah?! We'll see about that, Mr. Thinks-He's-So-Smart-and-Knows-Everything!!" the blue girl snapped back. Growling a little, she then thought, (Alright, Sonata...time to prove to everyone - ESPECIALLY Aria - that I'm not some dunderhead who only has tacos on the brain!!) Then, at the mere mention of her favorite snack, she smiled and began to salivate. (Oh yeah...with extra cheese...and juicy onions...and maybe a little avocado, and...) Then, realizing she was distracting herself, shook her head and shouted in her mind, (No! NO!! Revenge now, tacos later!)

"It's my turn...! I draw!!" said the blue-skinned siren as she drew her top card. Everyone waited with anticipation, wondering what she drew...with most of those watching secretly hoping that the card she got wouldn't help her in her current predicament.

(Don't you dare disappoint me, Sonata...) thought Adagio

Watching the Duel closely, Sunset thought to herself, (Now what are you planning to do, Sonata...?)

Looking at the card she had drawn for the turn, Sonata immediately played it, saying, "I play Pot of Desires! I banish ten cards off the top of my Deck and draw two MORE cards!" And she did just that.

"You're kidding me!" said Rainbow Dash. "She managed to top-deck Pot of Desires NOW of all times?! Why can't she just lose??"

"This is distressing, I will admit..." said Rarity. "There's no telling just what Sonata might end up drawing from her Deck now..."

"Hopefully nothing that'll win her the Duel..." stated Applejack.

"I dunno..." Pinkie chimed in. "I've got this funny feeling that things might not turn out the way we hope... And by 'funny', I don't mean 'ha ha' funny; DEFINITELY not 'ha ha' funny."

After drawing her two new cards and seeing what they were, she then thought to herself, (Hm...? Foolish Burial? What do I do with-) She then glanced at the other card she drew and read it very closely. (Waaaaaait a second...) she then pondered, trying to recall something about the card she had drawn. Then after a few more seconds had passed, Sonata finally remembered what she was supposed to do with these two cards. Gasping, and then smirking wickedly a little, she went ahead with her plan and played the first card she drew with her Spell Card. "I activate Foolish Burial from my hand!! With it, I can send any monster from my Deck straight to the Graveyard!"

"Hm? Foolish Burial?" asked Bright Mind. "This late in the Duel?" The boy was curious as to what his opponent was trying to do this time.

He wasn't the only one: Sunset, Twilight, and Spike were also wondering what Sonata was up to. "If she's sending a monster straight from her Deck to the Graveyard," the red-and-yellow girl told her friends, "it must be an important card; it all depends on whatever else Sonata has left in her hand to play..." Twilight and Spike looked at each other, still unsure of what was going to happen next before turning their attention back to the Duel in progress.

After selecting which monster she wanted to send to the Graveyard, Sonata took it out of her Deck and placed it into the appropriate slot on her D-Pad. "And now, for my next move..." she began to say as she revealed the other card in her hand, "I'll Summon Right-Hand Shark in Attack Mode!" The next monster she played on her field was a medium-sized shark with what looked liked bits of armor near the head area. Razor-sharp teeth could be seen on its face, and it had five protruding fins, giving it the appearance of a human hand (Right-Hand Shark: Level 4 / ATK 1500 / DEF 1300).

"Right-Hand Shark...?" asked Apple Bloom. "Ah've never seen a card like that before..."

"Yeah, what's it do?" asked Scootaloo.

"I know what it does." Babs Seed answered, not sounding too happy from her tone of voice. "An' lemme tell ya, it ain't gonna be good for dat Bright guy, dat's f' sure."

Smirking, Sonata then said to her foe, "Now I'm gonna activate Right-Hand's effect: Right after I Normal Summon it, its effect will Special Summon Left-Hand Shark, which I sent to the Graveyard just a few seconds ago with Foolish Burial!" Taking the card back out of her Graveyard, she then shouted, "Now, come out! Left-Hand Shark!!" Her second monster was almost identical to the first: A shark creature that was shaped like a human hand. The only differences were that it was a lighter color than the first one, and also the positioning of its five fins were the opposite of the other (Left-Hand Shark: Level 3 / ATK 1300 / DEF 1500). "Now that I've got both of these guys on the field," Sonata began to say, "I'm gonna bring out one of my Deck's most powerful Xyz Monsters!"

"An Xyz Monster??" asked Bright Mind.

"But...but HOW??" asked Twilight. "Both of her monsters are different Levels! They shouldn't be able to combine into an Xyz Monster!"

"Yeah, you're right!" Spike added. "Looks like Sonata screwed up big time!"

"I don't think so..." said a worried Sunset Shimmer. "For once, it doesn't look like Sonata made a mistake."

"I know what you're thinking:" Sonata began to say to Bright. "You're wondering how I can Xyz Summon using a Level 4 and a Level 3, aren't you?"

"It crossed my mind, yes..." said the book-smart boy, wondering where his opponent was going with this.

"Well, here's how:" she then told him. "If Left-Hand is Special Summoned from the Graveyard, its Level increases by one, making it a Level 4 monster!" And after she said that, Left-Hand Shark began to glow a light blue as its power increased a little bit (Left-Hand Shark: Level 3 > 4).

"Oh no...!" gasped Bright Mind, not feeling good about what was coming next.

"I thought so..." said Sunset, also not happy about the situation. "Sonata was well aware of her monsters' different Levels, so she had one of them adjust its Level to match the other. Now she had two Level 4 monsters on the field, meaning she CAN Xyz Summon now!"

"That's...that's not good, is it?" asked Spike.

"Not if it helps Sonata win the Duel..." Twilight told him.

Bright sweated a little as he watched Sonata make her big play. "Get ready to REALLY get schooled, Mr. Not-So-Smarty-Pants!!" She taunted him. "I Overlay Right-Hand and Left-Hand - both Level 4, and create an Overlay Network!!" Her two monsters then transformed into a pair of blue beams of light that flew into a red summoning portal. "Howl, unknown roar!" she then began chanting. "Rise from the darkness of the abyss!! Tear my foes to pieces with your razor-sharp fangs!! Xyz Summon!! Emerge from the depths, Rank 4! Bahamut Shark!!"

After the chant was complete, a massive torrent of seawater shot out from the portal like a geyser As everyone in attendance watched, they saw a figure emerging from out of the geyser. The figure was a humanoid-shaped shark creature displaying a white-and-aqua blue color scheme with bits of purple here and there. Its arms and legs each ended with several razor-sharp black talons, and several wing-like fins could be seeing coming out of its back. Several more fins could be seen on its head, and they appeared as sharp as its talons. Orbiting the new monster were a pair of blue light orbs as it belted out a massive roar that shook the arena.

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Bahamut Shark:
(Xyz-Effect Monster/Sea Serpent/WATER/Rank 4/ATK 2600/DEF 2100)

2 Level 4 WATER monsters
Once per turn: You can detach 1 material from this card; Special Summon 1 Rank 3 or lower WATER Xyz Monster from your Extra Deck. This card cannot attack for the rest of this turn.

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"Oh no... Bahamut Shark...!" said Bright Mind. "I did not expect her to have that rare and powerful monster at her disposal..." Taking another look at her monster, he then thought to himself, (That being said, her monster's attack points are equal to Gol'gar's, so if she attacks, they'll just destroy each other...)

But Sonata, always quick to shred away any hope her opponents might have had, told him, "If you think that you'll be okay just 'cause your monster is as strong as mine is, think again! Thanks to both of the monsters I used to summon him, Bahamut Shark can't be destroyed either in battle OR with card effects!!" This caused Bright Mind to gasp in total surprise.

"That means if she attacks him," Sunset told Twilight and Spike, "only HIS monster will be destroyed."

"Yeah, that's DEFINITELY not good at all..." the purple puppy responded.

Bright wasn't happy to hear that, but he was ready point something else out. "Even if you do attack my monster, you cannot damage me in that battle, so I'll still have a chance to turn the situation back in my favor!"

"Yeeeaaahhh, ABOUT that...no; you're not doin' that." Sonata quickly responded. "That's 'cause even IF my monster didn't have that little protection effect, you still wouldn't survive this turn, thanks to this card! I activate...De-Synchro!!"

"Wh-WHAT?!?" exclaimed Bright, not expecting that move at all.

"This card lets me target any Synchro Monster on the field and send right back into the Extra Deck!" the blue siren told him. "Annnnnnnd - since that ugly fort of yours is the only Synchro out, even YOU can figure out which monster's getting booted off the field!" And in an instant, Bright's Gol'gar was taken off the field, leaving him completely defenseless.

"That's insane!!" exclaimed Twilight. "She had the perfect counter for him! Again!!"

"How does she keep doin' that?!" asked Spike.

Sunset said nothing, but having kept such a close eye on the Duel so far, she noticed something that no one else seemed to notice during all of the confusion. (That card she just played... De-Synchro...) she thought to herself, (that was the same card that she had drawn on her last turn; the one that she seemed confused about, like she didn't know what she would use it for...) Mulling over everything, Sunset then asked herself, (Could...could it be that-?)

Back on the field, it seemed that - somehow - Sonata managed to out-think Bright Mind, despite what everyone expected. Bright Mind himself was especially shocked, unsure just how it could have happened. "This...this can't be...!" he said to himself. "I thought I calculated every possible outcome that could have occurred... How could she have had every possible counter to my strategy??"

"Simple:" Sonata told him smugly. "Either I'm not as dumb as everybody thinks I am... Or YOU'RE not as smart as you thought you were. Either way, you're gonna get trashed!" Pointing forward, she then shouted, "Now, Bahamut Shark!! Rip him to pieces!! Direct attack!!"

Everyone could only watch as the blue-skinned siren's powerful Xyz Monster moved itself into an offensive stance and began glowing a faint, blue aura. At this point, it seemed that Bright's time in this tournament was about to come to an end.

"Go!!! Divine Voice!!!" Sonata ordered to her monster. The massive beast let out a powerful scream that could shatter glass (so it was a good thing that there wasn't a single glass window in the stadium. The massive sound waves generated by the scream struck Bright hard, wiping out his Life Points and ending the Duel (Bright Mind: LP 2,200 - 2,600 = 0) (WINNER: Sonata Dusk)...

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The result of the Duel shocked everyone in the audience, as they were hoping that Bright would beat Sonata. But it was Sonata who beat him instead. Sighing, Sunset reluctantly announced the official result, saying, "The winner of this Duel...is Sonata Dusk!" Not surprisingly, there was some considerable booing from the audience, not that Sonata cared what they thought in the slightest.

"Hmph...she managed to pull it off after all." said Aria. "Guess that means she isn't totally useless."

"With how things were, I'm honestly surprised you had any doubt, Aria." Adagio told her. "I told you, with what I had planned, anyone - even Sonata - would have been able to beat him."

Bright Mind just sat there for a moment, still shocked and shook up from the fact that he lost despite having put up a strong fight. "This is unbelievable... I had everything planned out... or at least I thought I did..." he said to himself. "But somehow victory was taken from me... I don't understand..."

"Heh, so much for the so-called 'brainiac'!" Sonata teased him. "Guess you're not as 'bright' as your name suggests! Why don't you back to your little lab or whatever and leave the dueling to people that actually CAN duel?"

"Why that little-!" snarled Spike. "It's one thing to beat him, but what she's doing now is WAY over the line!" Twilight nodded in agreement, angry at Sonata's taunting. Sunset was about to say something to Sonata about her cruel words, but...

"Hey! Cut that out!!" shouted a loud voice from the stands, one that also sounded like they had enough of what the Dazzling was saying.

The sudden outburst from the audience got the attention of Sunset, Twilight, and Spike, not to mention everyone else. They all looked over in the direction that the voice came from and saw from whom the voice had come from. "F...Flash?" Sunset asked, a bit surprised to hear her ex getting involved in this.

Flash quickly ran down the steps in the seating area and made a grace leap into the arena, running over to where Bright Mind was. Bright looked up at the Duelist that was his first round opponent and seemed surprised by Flash's sudden entrance. (What is this...?) the book-smart boy wondered.

"Huh??" said Sonata, a bit startled. "What do YOU want??"

Flash gave the blue siren a fierce glare - one that told her he wasn't in the mood to mess around. "What I WANT is for you to stop saying those things to Bright!" he then told her. "Just because you beat him, it doesn't give you the right to bad-mouth him like you tried to do to Derpy earlier!"

"What?!" Sonata shouted. "What's it to you what I say or don't say to him?! Not only that, why're you sticking up for some guy that beat YOU in a Duel?!" After that comment, Sunset - who was watching them closely during the whole thing - suddenly gasped a little to herself, as if she noticed something no one else did...

"Why am I sticking up for him...?" Flash asked back. "I'll tell you why: Because no true Duelist lets something like losing a Duel to someone keep them from respecting or even making friends with that person." Giving Sonata another intimidating glare, he then added, "And also because no true Duelist makes fun of someone for losing a Duel either!" Turning back to Bright, he then wrapped up his speech, saying, "Yeah, Bright here did beat me in a Duel; so what? That doesn't mean he's a bad guy or that I don't respect him. In fact, it's because he was able to win against me that I respect him a whole lot. He was doing just what everyone else in this tournament was doing, and that was playing his best game and not giving up, no matter what. And there's nothing wrong with that!"

Flash's speech, and the fact that he was sticking up for Bright Mind was enough to clam down everyone watching, including Sunset. The young Judge smiled and thought, (That's just like Flash... Always sticking up for others, no matter what. I doubt I could have said all that better myself.)

Flash then helped Bright get back on his feet, saying to him, "You okay there, buddy?"

"Um...I am." the book-smart boy replied. "But...why did you stick up for me like that...? No one's ever done that for me before..."

"We take care of each other at CHS." Flash told him. "You may be from out-of-town, but as long as you're at our school, you're one of us. And like I said, I respect you, both as a Duelist and as a person."

"Um, thank you very much..." Bright replied, feeling a little better even after everything that had happened.

"C'mon, Bright: Why don't we go and grab some drinks from the food court?" the blue-haired boy offered. "My treat."

"Sure... I suppose that I could use a refreshment after all of this." Bright answered, accepting the proposition. "You're sure that you don't mind?"

"I insist, buddy." Flash responded. "Like I said: We help each other out here, and I wanna make good on that promise. Call it a Canterlot City Official Welcoming Gesture!" Sunset and Twilight watched as the two boys left the stadium, seeming to have just forged a friendship with each other as the audience cheered for them; both for Bright putting up a great fight, and Flash for his heartfelt speech. The two girls were quite happy to see that something good came out of what started as an upsetting situation.

And speaking of "upset", that's exactly what Sonata and her sisters were after what just happened. "Y-you've gotta be kidding me...!!" Sonata whined. "What kinda stupid, mixed-up school IS this?!?"

"Yeah, seriously!!" Aria scowled. "What kinda school cheers for the LOSER?!?"

Hearing this, Sunset smirked a bit and told her, "That's just it: Our school DOESN'T cheer for the loser... Which is why no one is cheering for the three of you."

"WHAT?!?" Aria shouted, knowing an insult when she heard it. But she didn't have anything else to say about it other than a low growl.

Adagio was also unamused by Sunset's comment and thought to herself, (Is that so, Shimmer...? We'll show YOU who the "loser" is...!) Huffing, she then told her sisters, "Let's go. We have work to do." The other Dazzlings, still miffed by what just happened, followed their leader out of the arena.

After the troublesome trio had left, Sunset put a serious look on her face and said to Twilight, "We should go too."

"Go?" asked the Princess of Friendship. "Go where?"

"...To see Flash and Bright Mind." the red-and-yellow girl answered. "There's something I need to talk with them about, and I want you and Spike to be there with me."

"Uh, sure. Whatever you say, Sunset." Spike replied.

Sunset nodded to them and then turned to Megan Williams, telling her, "Announce to everyone that there will be a 15-minute intermission; I have something I need to take care of before the next Duel." Megan nodded, understanding. And with that, the Sunset, Twilight, and Spike headed for the stadium food court.

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In the stadium's interiors, several spectators were hanging out and talking with each other, mostly about the tournament. Many had gathered in the food court either to have a quick snack, or even to show off their card collections and trade cards with one another. At one of the tables sat Flash Sentry and Bright Mind, each enjoying their favorite soft drinks.

"So, you said you don't have a lot of friends back where you come from?" asked Flash. "That's surprising; I would have thought otherwise."

"Sad, but it is true..." Bright responded. "It's the typical case of the book-smart boy being alienated by his peers and classmates... I suppose the whole 'alienated' part of that is what might have led me to run an Alien Deck; perhaps I felt a connection to them... After all, they would be considered outcasts on our planet just as most people in my school made me feel..."

"Wow...I'm sorry to hear that, dude..." Flash responded, feeling sorry for him. "Do you get teased a lot at your school?"

"I had been for a while, but I never used to let it get to me." Bright told him. "But what Sonata was saying to me... That was the first time I felt hurt by someone's words in a long time..."

"I see..." Flash then told him, "Well, don't let the things she said get to you either! Sonata doesn't know what she's talking about; you're a great Duelist, and an even better person; you're ten times better than she and the rest of the Dazzlings will ever be. Honestly, I think the people at your school are really missing out not having you as a friend."

"That is quite kind of you to say, Flash." Bright said. "I do wish my hometown was as caring to others as yours is."

"Hey, you can always transfer." the blue-haired boy told him. "We'd be more than happy to have you as a fellow classmate."

"Hmmm...I may consider it..." Bright then reached into a backpack that he had with him and told Flash, "Anyway, I feel I should thank you properly for what you have done for me..." He then pulled out what appeared to be a binder from out of his bag.

"Thank me properly?" asked Flash.

Opening the binder, revealing it to be full of Duel Monsters cards, Bright paged through it for a bit before finding what he was looking for. Taking out a card from the page, he then told Flash, "Here, I'd like you to have this as a token of our new friendship. I insist."

"You're giving me a card?" asked the blue-haired boy. He then took the card and looked at it, gasping a little. "WOAH! Is this Heroic Champion - Claivesolish from the new set?! I've been looking for it ever since it was announced!" He then looked Bright and asked him, "Are...you sure I can just have it?"

"I'm quite sure, Flash." the smart boy answered. "I was happy to hear you consider me a friend, and besides that, you'll have much better use of this card than I will anyway. Call it a...Bright Mind Official Welcoming Gesture."

"Well, if you're sure of it, then I'll accept it! Thanks!" Flash responded, putting the new card away in his deck box.

"I'm glad to see that you're feeling better after what happened." said a girl's voice from nearby. The two boys looked over to see that it was Sunset that had spoken to them. Right beside her were Twilight and Spike.

"Oh, hey Sunset." Flash greeted her. "What's up?"

"Not much; just checking up on things." the red-and-yellow girl replied. She then spoke to Bright directly, saying, "Sorry that you lost that Duel, not to mention having to hear Sonata's insults. Unfortunately, she and her sisters are always like that..."

"It is alright, Ms. Shimmer." the green-haired, glasses-wearing boy replied. He took a sip from his drink and told her, "As I had stated to Flash before you arrived, I'm no stranger to enduring mockery of some sort. Believe me, I've heard worse than that."

"Wow, I gotta say...you're tougher than you look to just take those insults without even a flinch." Spike suddenly said.

Eyes widening a little, Bright then asked Twilight, "Um...did your puppy just speak??"

"Urk...! Spike!" the young Princess.

"Uh...oops!" the dragon-turned-puppy gasped, realizing that he had just spoke within earshot of someone who didn't know his real identity.

"Hmmmm...I see what it is..." the book-smart boy hummed. "...A mechanical canine companion!"

"A what??" asked Twilight and Spike.

"And a well-built one at that as well." Bright said, inspecting Spike closely. "Self-aware, positively life-like in every way... I'm actually quite jealous. To have your own pet robot puppy. I must know how you came across one such as this."

"A robot..." the purple teen repeated. Realizing that Bright didn't know what Spike really was, she decided to play along and told him, "Yes! That's right! He's...he's a robot! Designed him myself! Can't tell you how, though; super-top secret."

"Oh...I see." Bright said with some disappointment. "Very well. It's a shame, but I can understand."

"Really...?" asked Spike in a low-volume voice while giving his friend an unimpressed look. "A robot dog? Me?"

"YOU want to try to explain that we're from an alternate universe...?" whispered Twilight. "I don't think he'd go for that."

Quickly changing the subject, Sunset then said to Bright Mind, "Anyway, Twilight's, um...'robot' aside, there IS something I want to speak with you about... It concerns your Duel earlier." She then asked him, "During your match, did you...notice anything peculiar going on? Like, anything that didn't seem right?"

"Peculiar, you say?" asked Bright. Humming for a little bit, the boy thought about every move made during his Duel with Sonata. Then, he told her, "Well, now that you mention it, there did seem to be something particularly unusual about that Duel... The thing that bothers me the most is the fact that my opponent seemed to be perfectly prepared to fight me, as if her whole Deck was built just to beat my own..."

Sighing sadly, Sunset then said, "Yeah, I was afraid you'd say that... I had the same feeling myself, and I don't think it's a coincidence."

"What are you saying, Sunset?" asked Flash.

Taking a deep breath, the young Judge figured she should just come out and say what she thought. "Bright..." she began to say, "I hate to say this, but..." Taking a pause to collect herself, she finished her remark, saying, "...But I think Sonata was cheating."

"CHEATING?!?" exclaimed everyone listening.

"Shhh!! Keep it down...!" Sunset quickly told them, doing her best to not let them unintentionally cause a scene. Luckily, no one else heard the outburst. Calmed down, the jacket-clad teen told them, "Yes...I think Sonata had cheated during that Duel, and that's the only reason you lost."

"But...what would make you think that?" asked Flash.

"I know what some of you are thinking:" Sunset began. "And no, I'm not saying this because of my personal displeasure towards the Dazzlings. I'm saying this as an Official Tournament Judge with a keen eye for even the faintest of clues."

"What kinds of clues?" asked Spike.

"Well, first was that Gozen Match Trap Card she played." Sunset started explaining. "That was the card that blocked both players from having more than one Attribute of monster on their respective fields simultaneously. It took advantage of the fact that all of the Alien monsters have different Attributes, thus severely limiting Bright's options for summoning monsters." She then told them, "Of course, that alone wasn't enough to think that she was breaking the rules, since Gozen Match is a pretty commonly-seen floodgate."

"So what then?" asked Twilight. "What DID make you think Sonata cheated?"

"Well, for that, we must move onto the next suspect card she played: Counter Cleaner." the red-and-yellow girl stated. "Since Bright's Deck is heavily dependent on using counters, that card was probably the absolute worst thing for him to face. But that's where it gets suspicious: Counter Cleaner is a perfect counter to Aliens...almost TOO perfect. Counter-based Decks don't show up often enough in major tournaments, so it would be a waste of space in your Side Deck. And that would still be the case even if there WERE counter-based Decks that were popular in the current format. Do you see what I'm saying here?"

"...I do." Bright Mind deducted. "What you've concluded is that Sonata placed that card in her Deck before her Duel with me, but the card was not in her Side Deck when the tournament began."

"Is that a bad thing?" asked Spike.

"It IS against the tournament rules, Spike." Sunset answered the purple puppy. "They clearly state that after your Deck is registered for the tournament, it is illegal to include any outside cards: That means cards that were NOT originally in your Main Deck, Side Deck, or Extra Deck. Swapping with cards in your Side Deck between rounds is fine, but those cards had to have been registered upon entering the competition."

"That sure sounds like that could've happened..." said Flash. "But even if the odds against it are low, it still TECHNICALLY could be possible that those cards were in her Side Deck originally. What made you think otherwise?"

"...Do you recall the moment during the Duel where Sonata drew a card from her Deck but seemed confused after looking at it?" Sunset asked them all. "Like she had never seen it before or knew what to do with it?"

"Yeah, I did notice that..." said Twilight. "What about it?"

"I was paying attention to that card ever since that moment, wondering why drawing that card got her so confused." the Judge stated. "And then when she played it, it all came together for me: If she had that card in her Deck legitimately, why would seeing it startle her? Why wouldn't she know about it? It's my understanding that she DIDN'T know it was in her Deck, that it was put in there without even HER knowing. That's why I think Sonata had cards added to her Deck illegally, so that she would be practically guaranteed to win against Bright."

"But...what card was it that she played?" asked Flash.

Before Sunset could answer, Bright did it for her. "...It was De-Synchro; the card she used to defeat my Cosmic Fortress Gol'gar." he spoke up, causing everyone except Sunset to gasp.

Sunset nodded to say that he was correct. "He's right." she said. "And not only that, it also worked as a perfect counter to his best monster; a monster that he didn't even play during his first tournament Duel, and is, in fact, a hard card to come by. So how did she even know he had one? Put it together with what Snips, Snails, and Big Mac told us so far, and I smell a rat... Three of 'em!"

"So it's true..." said Twilight. "The Dazzlings ARE planning something again!"

"Guess they didn't get the hint the first time, huh?" asked Spike. "Let's go and teach 'em all a lesson!"

"We can't do that just yet, Spike..." Sunset told him. "Before we can confront them for breaking the rules, we need to be absolutely sure that they did. Otherwise, we run the risk of falsely accusing someone of wrongdoing, or getting into a argument that we can't truly win."

"So how are you gonna prove that they cheated?" asked Flash.

"I've got it all figured out." the jacket-wearing girl answered. She then turned to Twilight and told her, "And that's why I wanted you to be here: I need you to dig up the necessary information that will help prove their wrongdoing. That way, we can send a strong message to both them and anyone else who would knowingly break the rules in order to win a tournament!"

"But...wh-what can I do?" asked the young Princess.

"You will go into the stadium main office and speak to Mr. Dunstan about the Tournament Entrant Data Files." Sunset instructed her. "Those files contain every last bit of information about everyone registered for the tournament. If I'm right about knowing how Sonata cheated during that Duel, those files will provide more than enough proof of her poor sportsmanship. I'll let Mr. Dunstan know ahead of time to let you inside, so all you need to worry about is making sure you get the info we need. The future of this tournament, and possibly the image of the city is in your hands...not to add too much pressure or anything; just reminding you of how important this is."

Nodding, Twilight replied, "I understand. And believe me, with everything I've been through, I'm kinda used to working under pressure."

"I should go with you." Bright said to the young Princess. "My Duel Pad was equipped with a specially-made function that records every Duel I have played. I normally use it to review my past matches in order to improve myself, but I feel it'll find a much greater function right now."

"Sounds good to me." said Sunset. "Then I'll leave everything to the two of you, then?" Twilight and Bright nodded to say that they were ready to help in any possible way. Sunset then turned to Flash Sentry and asked him, "While Twilight's away, you mind filling in for her as my assistant during the remaining Duels?"

"Uh, sure! No problem, Sunset." her ex-boyfriend replied, always happy to help.

Looking at her phone's clock, Sunset told everyone, "Okay...Flash and I have to get back into the arena for the next Duel... Meanwhile, Twilight and Bright have to dig up any evidence that can prove Sonata cheated during the last Duel. Everyone...good luck." The others nodded and split into their respective groups. In Sunset's mind she then told herself, (I'm not gonna the Dazzlings ruin this tournament for everyone...! But more importantly...I need to make sure that they don't plan anything worse... After all, if that...thing I saw on Sonata's hand was what I think it was, more than this tournament could be at risk...!)

-- To Be Continued...

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TOURNAMENT RESULTS (Round 2):

1. Ember vs. Steel Shadows [WINNER: Ember]
2. Gilda vs. Fluttershy [WINNER: Gilda]
3. Sonata Dusk vs. Bright Mind [WINNER: Sonata Dusk]
4. Octavia Melody vs. Sweetie Belle [WINNER: ???]

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