//------------------------------// // Chapter 16: Singularity // Story: Dueling is Magic! A Rip in Time // by Wolfgang //------------------------------// Dueling is Magic! A Rip in Time Chapter 16: Singularity *********************\ Paradox has transformed himself into a far more powerful monster, fueled by a power that Yusei and the others thought had been defeated! Yusei struggles to regain control of the duel as Paradox delivers a relentless onslaught from Malefic Singularity Dragon. But in the midst of it all, there remains hope... *********************\ Author’s Note: I made a few mistakes in the duel in the previous chapter, but I’ve corrected them. I forgot that Malefic Regen Flash made you skip your next Draw Phase, and I had miscounted the damage Paradox took from Truth Dragon’s battle with Shooting Star Dragon. I’ve fixed both, however. The duel is winding down. We’re currently on Turn 19. Seven to go before the duel is finally over! /*********************\ Were it not for the glowing blue light of its eyes and the light from the portals, they might never have seen the shadow that hovered above Paradox. But the light was there, defining the darkness of Nightshroud. “It can’t be!” said Yusei. “What... we defeated you!” “How did you return?” Twilight demanded. “I think I can explain that one,” said Rainbow Dash. All eyes turned to her. “When we got separated, I ended up in Tartarus. Nightshroud was there. And... I...” “What is it, Dash?” asked Yusei. “I made a deal with it,” Dash said. She hung her head in shame. “It gave me the power to duel Paradox, but it wasn’t enough. I couldn’t beat him. Guess that’s what I get for not staying loyal to you guys, huh?” “Dash, why did you do that?” asked Twilight. “I did it to protect you guys!” Rainbow Dash shouted. “But I shouldn’t have tried the way I did. We fought AGAINST Nightshroud, and here I am teaming up with it! Some friend I am.” “Dash, you might not have done the right thing,” said Yusei, “but your heart was in the right place. It always has been.” “Yusei’s right, Dash,” said Applejack. “No point beatin’ yerself up over it.” “You did the right thing in your heart, dear,” Rarity chimed in. “I don’t believe for a single moment that your loyalty to your friends and Equestria wavered at all.” “You’re our friend, Dashie,” said Pinkie Pie. “You never stopped being our friend.” “And we’ll never stop being your friends,” Fluttershy added. “No matter what happens, we love you, Rainbow Dash,” said Twilight. Rainbow Dash sniffed and wiped her eyes. “Thanks, you guys,” she said. Yusei smiled and turned back to Paradox and the massive, black dragon he was merged with. “So how did you and Nightshroud wind up together?” he asked. “After I defeated Rainbow Dash, Nightshroud abandoned her,” Paradox answered. “Seeing my power, it came to me and offered to increase it even further.” “And what do you get out of all this?” Yusei said to Nightshroud. “You will learn soon enough,” replied the shadow before vanishing. “This duel is far from over,” Paradox said. “It’s still my turn. I activate the effect of Malefic Singularity Dragon! By sending a card from my hand and a ‘Malefic’ monster from my deck to the Graveyard, I can destroy one other monster on the field, and if I do, I can destroy a Spell or Trap as well. I send ‘Malefic Rainbow Dragon’ from my hand and ‘Malefic Parallel Gear’ from my deck to the Graveyard to destroy Shooting Star Dragon! Go, Causal Destruction!” Ghostly images of Malefic Rainbow Dragon and Malefic Parallel Gear appeared and were sucked into the black hole on Singularity Dragon’s body. Jagged bolts of crimson lightning flashed from the tips of its wings. They danced through the air, but were moving toward Shooting Star Dragon. “I activate Shooting Star’s effect!” said Yusei. “I can remove it from play and negate one attack this turn!” Shooting Star vanished and the lightning struck the spot where it had been before vanishing. “Since you didn’t destroy Shooting Star Dragon, you can’t destroy a Spell or Trap.” “That was never the point,” said Paradox. “I Set one card and end my turn.” “During the End Phase, Shooting Star Dragon returns to the field,” said Yusei. “Before you take your turn, you should know of another of Singularity Dragon’s effects,” said Paradox. “As long as it’s in play, each player may only control a single monster.” “Oh no,” said Twilight. “That’s not good. Shooting Star Dragon’s no match for that thing!” “Yeah, but Yusei can just keep negating attacks, right?” asked Rainbow Dash. “There’s that, but I don’t know if it’ll be enough. What if Singularity Dragon has a damage effect?” Twilight shuddered. “Yusei only has twelve hundred Life Points left. That’s not much at all.” Life Point Count Paradox: 3200 Yusei: 1200 “My turn!” said Yusei. He glanced at his card and a spark ignited in his mind. All right! he thought. “I activate Shooting Star Dragon’s effect! I check the top five cards of my deck, and this turn, Shooting Star can attack once for each Tuner in those cards.” Yusei drew five cards and looked at them. “There are four Tuners here, Paradox: ‘Hyper Synchron’, ‘Effect Veiler’, ‘Drill Synchron’ and ‘Debris Dragon’. This means Shooting Star Dragon can attack four times this turn!” “With only thirty three hundred Attack Points, how much good could that possibly do?” Paradox laughed. “A lot of good, actually,” Yusei replied. “I activate ‘Half-Shut’! Until the End Phase, Malefic Singularity Dragon’s Attack Points are cut in half, but it can’t be destroyed by battle.” “Malefic Singularity Dragon’s Attack Points will be at twenty five hundred,” said Twilight. “Exactly eight hundred points below Shooting Star Dragon’s!” “And if my math is correct- and being a business mare, there’s no reason it shouldn’t be- four attacks would result in thirty two hundred points of damage,” Rarity added. “Exactly enough to win the duel!” “Then it’s too bad you won’t get that chance!” said Paradox. “I activate ‘Malefic Force’! This Trap equips itself to a ‘Malefic’ monster I control and makes it immune to my opponent’s Spell Cards!” “Well, at least I know what it is,” said Yusei. “I end my turn.” “Heh. My turn,” said Paradox. “But instead of drawing, I will use Malefic World’s effect to add a random ‘Malefic’ monster to my hand. “Next, I activate Singularity Dragon’s effect! By sending ‘Malefic Red Dragon Archfiend’ from my hand, and ‘Malefic Black-Winged Dragon’ from my deck to the Graveyard, I can destroy Shooting Star Dragon!” “I activate Shooting Star’s effect!” said Yusei. “I remove it from the game until the end of the turn and I can negate one attack this turn!” “Destroying your dragon still isn't the point,” said Paradox. “I Set one card face-down. Your move.” Shooting Star Dragon returned to the field in a flash of light. Yusei drew, Set a card and ended his turn. “This is bad, isn't it?” asked Rainbow Dash. “Yusei’s holding his own for now,” said Twilight. “But what if Paradox figures out a way around Shooting Star Dragon’s ability to stop attacks?” asked the eldest Celestia. “Then, sister, we must hope that he does not,” said the Luna beside her. “My turn,” Paradox announced. “I activate the Spell Card ‘Malefic Life Burst’. This lets me destroy one of your face-down cards while granting me two thousand Life Points!” “I activate Shooting Star Dragon’s effect!” said Yusei. “When a card other than Shooting Star Dragon would be destroyed by a card or effect, I can negate its activation and destroy that card!” “I was prepared for this, Yusei! I play the Trap ‘Malefic Shock Wave’! When you activate a monster effect, this Trap targets that monster and negates its effects!” “Then I’ll just activate Shooting Star’s self-removing effect so you can’t stop it!” “Too bad. The monster targeted by Malefic Shock Wave cannot activate its effects in response!” “What?!” Paradox laughed as a massive shock wave erupted from the body of Malefic Singularity Dragon. It ripped through Shooting Star Dragon and destroyed the face-down card behind it. “Fortunately for you, I cannot attack this turn. Your move, Yusei.” Yusei drew. I need more options! he thought. If I don’t find a way to defend myself, that thing will destroy Shooting Star Dragon and I’ll lose the duel! “I play the Trap ‘Hope for Escape’,” said Yusei. “By paying a thousand Life Points when my opponent’s Life Points are higher, I can draw one card for every one thousand points of difference between us.” Life Point Count Paradox: 5200 Yusei: 200 “Wow,” said Rainbow Dash. “This means Yusei gets to draw five cards!” “That’s good, right?” asked the pink-haired Celestia. “Hopefully,” said Twilight. “The more cards Yusei has, the better his options might be.” Yusei drew his cards and looked them over. His eyes fell on one. Of course, he thought. Could it have been anything else? “I Set three cards face-down and end my turn!” “Yusei’s almost filled up his back row again,” said the younger Spike. “He must be making his move!” said Dash. “My turn!” said Paradox. “Disappear from the world, Yusei! I attack with Malefic Singularity Dragon! Go, Dark Singularity Stream!” The grinning dragon opened its mouth and launched a spinning beam of dark energy that convulsed and contorted itself hideously. A second beam erupted from the black and red vortex on its front and twisted itself around the first, matching its movements. “Yusei!” cried Rainbow Dash. “I can’t watch!” squeaked Fluttershy. “Because of Malefic Shock Wave, Shooting Star Dragon’s effect is negated, which means you cannot stop this attack!” laughed Paradox. “Vanish from my sight, you insignificant vermin!” The twisting rays struck Shooting Star Dragon and exploded. Smoke filled the empty space where everyone floated. As the noise died down, Paradox could be heard laughing. But then it stopped, suddenly cut off. “That’s... not possible!” said Paradox. “Why is Stardust Dragon there?! How?! WHY?!” “The bonds I have with my friends and with Stardust are too strong for you or anyone else to destroy,” said Yusei. “No matter what you throw at me, I’ll always be ready because WE stand strong!” “You just don’t get it!” Paradox roared. “It was you, your father, and Maximillion Pegasus who led the world to its doom! The three of you are the reason my era is silent and shrouded in darkness!” “There’s always a way out of the darkness, Paradox!” Yusei replied. “Look! This is the card I used to defeat Z-One: The Continuous Trap, ‘Gathering Wishes’! When Shooting Star Dragon is destroyed by battle, this card reduces the damage to zero. Then, by removing appropriate Synchro Material Monsters from my Graveyard, I can Synchro Summon ‘Stardust Dragon’!” Ghostly images of Turret Warrior, Necro Linker, and Turbo Synchron appeared around Stardust and vanished a moment later. “It doesn’t matter, Yusei! As soon as the Battle Phase ends, Singularity Dragon will activate its final effect, dealing sixteen hundred points of damage if it battled this turn!” “Then it’s a good thing the Battle Phase isn’t over yet. Gathering Wishes has a few other effects. First, Stardust’s Attack Points go up by the Attack Points of every Dragon-Type Synchro Monster in my Graveyard. Only Shooting Star Dragon is there, but that’s still plenty!” Stardust Dragon ATK/5800 “Also, I can force one of your monsters to battle Stardust by returning a Synchro Monster in my Graveyard to the Extra Deck,” Yusei continued. “I return Junk Gardna, Nitro Warrior, Formula Synchron, Armory Arm, and Junk Berserker to my Extra Deck, which means that you’ll have to fight me five times!” Stardust Dragon roared and beat its wings, launching itself straight up. It spun around in the air and dove, firing multiple beams at Paradox and Malefic Singularity Dragon. “Malefic Singularity Dragon’s effect!” yelled Paradox. “By removing a ‘Malefic’ monster from my Graveyard, I can prevent its destruction!” Ghosts of Malefic Parallel Gear, Malefic Black-Winged Dragon, Malefic Red Dragon Archfiend, Malefic Armed Dragon, and Malefic Paradox Dragon appeared around the shadowy dragon. Each one intercepted a beam from Stardust’s attacks before being sucked into the vortex on Singularity Dragon’s body. Life Point Count Paradox: 1200 Yusei: 200 “What was the point of that?” Paradox said before laughing. “I still live, and now you’ve made me angry! I activate the Quick-Play Spell ‘Malefic Parasite’! This card forces you to use one of your Spell or Trap Cards. If it’s face-down, it forces it to activate. If it’s face-up, it forces you to activate its effect.” “Say what?” said Yusei. “You want to fight so badly, then so be it! Gathering Wishes activates one final time!” Paradox laughed. “There’s only one Synchro Monster left in Yusei’s Graveyard,” the big Spike said. “Shooting Star Dragon!” moaned Rainbow Dash. “Oh jeez, he’s done for! Without it in the Graveyard, Stardust goes back to twenty five hundred points!” “I’m not out of it yet, Paradox,” said Yusei, “but your dragon is! I play the Trap ‘Shooting Star’! If I have Stardust Dragon in play, I can destroy one card on the field!” “You’re a fool, Yusei,” Paradox spat. “Malefic Singularity Dragon cannot be destroyed by your card effects!” “Then how about its own effect?” “What?” “Stardust Dragon, destroy Malefic World!” Stardust roared and flew straight at Paradox. The ‘Malefic World’ card appeared beside him. White light streaked past Stardust as it gained speed and smashed through the card. “Malefic monsters need Malefic World in order to stay on the field,” said Discord. “Without it, they self-destruct!” “And without Malefic World, there’s no danger of anyone dying,” Yusei added. He turned to smile at Fluttershy. “I’m keeping my promise to you, Fluttershy. No matter what.” “Y-yusei!” said Fluttershy. She pointed a hoof over his shoulder. Yusei turned back around. “No way!” he said. Malefic Singularity Dragon was still there. TO BE CONTINUED /*********************\ Next time on Dueling is Magic! A Rip in Time Yusei has finally succeeded in destroying Malefic World, but Malefic Singularity Dragon remains. A seemingly immortal monster looms before him, and time is running out as the Singularity draws in more energy from the eras that Paradox has attacked! “We are not so easily destroyed, Yusei! But you.... you will die here with your equine friends!” “No one’s gonna die today, Paradox!” Yusei struggles to regain a foothold in the duel and begins to wonder if there’s a way he can keep his promise to Fluttershy. But in the midst of Paradox’s and Nightshroud’s taunting, Yusei sees the light of hope... Chapter 17 Salvation