“Not so fast, Princess. Ah activate my facedown Trap card 'Negate Attack'.
Negate Attack
ATT: TRAP
Type: Counter Trap Card
Card Text: Activate only when a target opponent's monster declares an attack. Negate the attack and end the Battle Phase.
Before the aura slash could hit the defending warrior a blue and white vortex appeared in front of Applejack's monster. The vortex then absorbed the approaching attack.
“Hmm, well played Applejack. That ends my turn,” huffed Cadence.
“Sorry, Princess. But ya can't get rid of me that easy,” chuckled Applejack, as she drew her card.
When Applejack saw her card, she gave a pleased grin.
“Perfect, Ah activate the Spell card 'Nightmare’s Steelcage'.”
Nightmare’s Steelcage
ATT: SPELL
Type: Spell Card
Card Text: This card remains on the field for 2 of your opponent's turns. While this card is face-up on the field, no monsters can attack. This card is destroyed on your opponent's 2nd End Phase.
Two large metal dome cages appeared around Applejack and Cadence.
“Trying to buy time I see,” smirked Cadence.
“You know it, Princess,” grinned Applejack.
Cadence couldn’t help but chuckle.
“And that’ll do for now,” said Applejack.
Cadence then drew her card.
“Hmm, let’s see,” pondered Cadence as she looked at her card. “I’ll summon this, 'Fairy Archer' in Attack Mode.”
Fairy Archer
ATT:LIGHT
Level: 3 stars
Type: Fairy/Effect
Card Text:During your Main Phase, you can inflict 400 damage to your opponent's Life Point for each face-up LIGHT monster you control. This card cannot attack during the same turn you activate this effect. Only 1 'Fairy Archer' can have it's effect activated per turn.
ATK/DEF: 1400/0600
A four-winged humanoid fairy appeared on the field. She had pale skin, short mahogany hair pulled back into a bun, and green eyes. She wore a violet open chest vest with light blue frills, light orange headband, light blue gloves, green leaf skirt with light violet underwear and dark violet boots with light blue frills. She wielded a large bow and arrow.
“And that will end my turn.”
“Alright, then its my turn,” spoke Applejack, as she drew his card.
When she saw her card, a cocky grin appeared on her face
“Ah activate the Field Spell ‘Amazoness Village’.”
Amazoness Village
ATT: SPELL
Type: Field Spell Card
Card Text: All “Amazoness” monsters gain 200 ATK. Once per turn, when an “Amazoness” monster is destroyed by battle or by a card effect and sent to the Graveyard: You can Special Summon 1 “Amazoness” monster from your Deck with a Level less than or equal to that “Amazoness” monster in the Graveyard.
At that moment the field was changed to a jungle like village. There various straw huts surrounded by lush trees and thick bamboo walls.
“And thanks to my Field Spell, my monsters get a 200 ATK boost.”
All of her monsters ATK were increased (Amazoness Fighter - 1700, Amazoness Paladin- 1900, Amazoness Sword Woman - 1700).
“Next, Ah summon another ‘Amazoness Swords Woman’ in Attack Mode.”
Another tall, slender sword wielding female warrior appeared on the field. Due to the Field Spell her ATK increased to 1700.
“That'll do it for now,” grinned Applejack.
What is she planning? thought Cadence.
---------
On the sidelines, the group was cheering on the duel. Among them Twilight was cheering the loudest.
“Come on, Cadence! You can do it,” shouted Twilight.
Shining Armor couldn't help but chuckle at his little sister's enthusiasm for his wife.
“That's right dear. We know you got this,” Shining spoke.
This was met with bemused scoffs of Big Mac and Star.
“Ah wouldn't get mah hopes up you two,” warned Big Mac. “The Princess still can't attack for another turn.”
“But neither can she, Big Mac,” argued Twilight.
“So Ah guess it's a stalemate for now,” he responded.
Star then turned his attention back to the field.
“You can win this AJ!' he cheered.
---------
Back on the field, Cadence began her turn as she drew her card. As she looked at it she proceeded with her turn.
“I activate Fairy Archer's special ability. She and inflict 400 points of damage to you for each LIGHT monster in control. And since I control four of them, you lose 1600 Life Points,” explained Cadence.
Ah, horseapples!, gulped Applejack.
“Now, take away her Life Points my fairy!”
The fairy maiden then took aim at Applejack. Once she gathered light energy into her arrow, she fired it through the steel cage bars. Applejack did her best to brace herself, but it ultimately failed. As the arrow impacted, the force of the attack knocked Applejack off her hooves. As she laid on the ground, her Life Points were reduced to 1400.
“Nice one, Cadence!” cheered Twilight.
“And that will end my turn. Which means you 'Nightmare Steelcage' is destroyed.”
As Applejack got to her hooves, the two steel domes disappeared from around them.
“You have one more turn left, dear Applejack. Better make count,” Cadence with a confident smirk.
Applejack could only groan in response.
---------
On the sidelines, Star and Big Mac were on edge at Applejack's plight.
“Things aren't looking good, Big Mac,” spoke Star.
“Eenope, but AJ will find a way. She always does,” replied Big Mac.
“Don't be to sure, Big Mac,” Twilight chimed in. “The deck stacked pretty well in her favor.”
“It'll be a miracle if she can pull off an upset,” said Shining Armor.
“I'll bet both of you that AJ can pull it off,” Star countered.
“Interesting, shall we wager the usual then?” asked Twilight.
“You bet,” Star grinned, as he held out his hand. “Do we got a bet?”
“Oh, it's a bet,” Twilight responded, as she shook his hand.
They then turned their attention back to the duel.
Come on, AJ! I know you can win! pleaded Star.
At that moment, Star's Millennium Pendant began to glow. Star then saw translucent image of Moon floating next to him.
Moon? What's up?
Take a close look at this duel.
What do you mean?
Do you notice something about the two duelists?
Star then looked at both Applejack and Cadence. On the surface, they looked the same as they've always had.
I don't see anything different.
Lemme me give you a little help.
Moon then activated the powers of the Millennium Pendant. As he did, the pendant then illuminated and cast a spell on Star's eyes. It was then that Star saw the two duelists shrouded in a weird aura.
What the- What is that around them?
That is the duel aura. It the power a duelists summons whenever he/she duels. In short, it's very essence of a duelist's spirit.
I see... But what does that-
Take a closer look at them again.
Star then looked again. This time he saw the Applejack had a light orange aura that shrouded her, but when he saw Cadence she had two auras that swirled around her. The first was a light pink aura, but the second was a harvest gold aura.
Wait, why does Cadence have two of them? Is it because she's an alicorn?
No, my young friend. While the first pink aura is her normal duelist aura, the second one is the a special one.
Why? What's so special about?
That is a special aura called the 'Millennium Aura'.
Millennium Aura?
Yes, it's a special aura that only a select few duelist possess. And the only ones that can possess it are the descendants of the Millennium Guardians.
You mean?
Yes, she is one of their descendants and a present day Millennium Guardian.
No way...
Now we one step closer to assembling the guardians, and stopping Ehm's plan.
Let's hope finding the others will be this easy.
---------
Deep within Abyssal Realm, Ehm made her way to the dungeon. Still shrouded in her violet flame, she proceeded down the corridor.
It's time to bend the Elements to my will, she darkly chuckled.
As she reached the dungeon, Ehm opened the doors to see Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash were shackled to the wall. Still weak from having part of their Element of Harmony magic taken from them, they were barely able to remain conscious. As she entered into the room, the three quickly noticed her presence.
“Who are you?” asked a weakened Rainbow Dash.
“I'm the ruler of this castle, Empress Ehm,” she proudly spoke.
“Empress Ehm?!” they responded.
“Correct, my dear ponies. And judging by your reaction, you know who I am?”
They weakly nodded.
“Good, then we can just skip the formalities then. You three are going to play a very key role in my plan,” Ehm darkly grinned.
“And what plan is that?” asked Rainbow Dash.
“You and the other Elements are going to help me usher in a new era of darkness in Equestria.”
“What?! We we never help you!” Pinkie Pie protested.
Ehm then looked at them with a sinister grin that sent a cold chill down their spines.
“My dear, you say that as if you have a choice.”
Before they could respond, Ehm had used her magic to summon a large light violet crystal placed it in the center of the room. In their confusion, the three were teleported to three different sides of the room.
“What's the meaning of this?” asked Rarity.
“My apologies, but I need to position you at the right angles in order for this crystal to work.”
“Angles?” they asked with titled heads.
“Why yes. If you look closely you'll see your Cutie Mark on the surface of the crystal.”
When they looked toward, they indeed saw they were face their own Cutie Mark.
“Before I use this crystal, I want to give you three the chance to join me and my Abyssal Army.”
“Fat chance freak!” spat Rainbow Dash.
“No way, jose,” Pinkie Pie responded.
“Indeed, we'd never join you,” glared Rarity.
These responses were met with foreboding glare.
“Very well. If you will not be my knights, then you will be my pawns,” Ehm spoke.
Without a chance to retort, Ehm cast a spell on the crystal. It then began to glow with a dark aura, as their respective Cutie Marks illuminated. In a flash, the three were hit with a continual beam of dark light, which caused them to cry out in pain.
“The power from this crystal will slowly turn you into my loyal minions in no time.”
“You...won't....get...away....with...this....” Pinkie Pie spoke between yelps.
As she left the room, she turned to give them one final glance.
“But I already have my little pony,” she grinned.
She then closed the door to their screams of agony.
---------
Back on the field, as she drew her card, Applejack assessed her predicament. Cadence's words were still buzzing around in her head.
She's right. If Ah don't draw what Ah need now Ah'm a goner, thought Applejack.
When she saw her card, displayed the biggest corn-fed grin she could muster.
Well, Ah'll be a summer rose on a winter's day. This is just what Ah needed.
She then turned her attention to Cadence.
“It's been fun in all, Princess. But Ah think it's about it Ah ended this duel,” declared Applejack.
“Is that so, Applejack,” said the skeptical Princess.
“Ah let my cards do the talkin'. First, Ah summon 'Amazoness Tiger' in Attack Mode.”
Amazoness Tiger
ATT: EARTH
Level: 4 stars
Type: Beast/Effect
Card Text: You can only control 1 "Amazoness Tiger". This card gains 400 ATK for each "Amazoness" monster you control. Your opponent cannot attack any face-up "Amazoness" monsters, except this one.
ATK/DEF: 1100/1500
At that moment, a large Bengal tiger emerged onto the field. She had light blue eyes with the left eye scarred shut. She wore a tribal spike collar in broken chain at the base and tribal bands on all four legs. Due to the Field Spell, her ATK was increased to 1300.
“Don't tell me you plan on beating me with that do you,” mocked Cadence.
“Oh, heavens no. Ah plan on beatin' ya with this card. Ah activate the Spell card 'Amazoness Spellcaster'.”
Amazoness Spellcaster
ATT: SPELL
Type: Spell Card
Card Text: Target 1 "Amazoness" monster you control and 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; switch the original ATK of those targets until the end of this turn.
“What's that card do?” asked Cadence.
“Well ya see Princess, Ah select one monster on my side of the and a monster on your side of the field and those to monsters switch their original ATK,” explained Applejack.
“What?!”
“And Ah choose your 'Crystal Fairy Guardian' and my 'Amazoness Tiger'.”
Just then, the two creatures were illuminate with a strange aura. Their ATK were switched (Crystal Fairy Guardian's ATK was changed to 1100 and Amazoness Tiger's ATK was changed to 3000).
Oh no, gasped Cadence.
“Now, I attack your Crystal Fairy Guardian with Amazoness Paladin. Strike her down with Amazonian Slash!” ordered Applejack.
The graceful swordswoman then drew her blade and charged into battle. Her blade then began to glow with a powerful light. With a swift sweep of her sword she delivered slash at the crystal maiden. As he blade connected, the defending fairy was immediately destroyed. Cadence Life Points were then reduced to 3500.
“Err...” groaned Cadence.
“And with your monster gone, my monsters effects are active again. Which means mah tiger's ATK is increases by 2000.”
Amazoness Tiger's ATK was increased to 5000.
This isn't good, gulped Cadence.
“Now, go my tiger! Attack her 'Fairy Archer' with Primal Pounce and end this duel!”
With a mighty roar, the bulky beast preparing to strike. With her target in her sight, the amazonian beast raced toward the defending fairy. With no way to defend the approaching attack, Cadence could only watch as predatory beast leapt into the air and delivered a crushing strike to the defending maiden. The impact sent a shockwave toward Cadence, which took the rest of her Life Points. Cadence then fell to the ground in disbelief.
“And there you have it folks. The winner of the match is Applejack,” announced Pegasus.
The crowd cheered loudly as the duel drew to a close. Cadence continued to stare at the ground with cognitive content.
“I...I...I lost. I can't believe I lost in the first round”, she said, still in shock.
Applejack walked over to Cadence. With a heartfelt smile, she offered Cadence her hand.
“That was a great match, Princess.”
With a heavy sigh, Cadence accepted her gesture. Applejack then helped her to her hooves.
“Thank you, dear Applejack,” she said, with a soft smile. “I was indeed a fantastic duel. It's just a shame I didn't.”
“Sorry, but told ya I wouldn't go easy on ya,” Applejack chuckled.
“I suppose you did.”
The two then shook hands as a sign of respect. The two then head to the sidelines.
---------
On the sidelines, Twilight and Shining Armor stood with their mouths agaped at the events that just took place.
“It's not possible. How could Cadence lose?” spoke a shocked Twilight.
“I can't believe it either. Cadence is one of the best duelists in the kingdom,” said Shining Armor.
Star, in the meantime, was jumping around the sidelines excited at the outcome.
“Alright, AJ! I knew you could do it!” he shouted.
“Way to go lil sis,” Big Mac said with a stoic smile.
It was then Star turned his attention to a certain purple unicorn.
“Say Twilight~” Star grinned.
“Don't do it, Star,” warned a bemused Twilight.
“You know what time it is~?”
“Star, I know you won the bet. But please-”
“It's time for the 'You were wrong' dance.”
Star then started to dance around Twilight and Shining Armor victoriously.
“How long is he going to do this?” asked Shining Armor.
“Only a few more seconds,” groaned Twilight, as she rubbed her temples.
---------
Back on the field, one the previous combatants were off the field, Pegasus turned his attention to the titantron.
“Okay, due fans. It time to introduce the next match of the second round,” he declared.
The next two cards then flipped over to reveal Phantom Heart and Derpy.
“And our next match will be Phantom Heart vs. Derpy Hooves!”