Leo and Drystan stood facing each other dust fell from the ceiling.
“This guy…” Leo thought. “He’s crazy trying to stop us like this while this place is falling apart.”
The man stared calmly at the young boy.
“Crazy or not, I can’t get Luna out of here while he’s blocking the way. I have to hurry!”
“Leo, be careful…” Luna warned.
“I’ll be fine! Don’t worry, sis!” Leo replied confidently.
“So, shall we begin?” Drystan asked.
“Bring it!”
DUEL!
Leo (LP 4000) VS Drystan (LP 4000)
“My turn,” Drystan stated, drawing a sixth card. “I Summon Ape Fighter.”
“‘Ape’?!” Leo exclaimed, as the opponent’s beast appeared.
Ape Fighter
LV: 4
ATK: 1900
“I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn,” Drystan concluded.
Leo paused. “Of all the Decks he could be using, it had to be this one.”
“What’s wrong?”
“This is no time to be discouraged!” Leo scoffed. “It’s my turn! I activate the Spell Morphtronics, Assemble! If the opponent controls a monster while I have none, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower non-Tuner “Morphtronic” monster from my Deck. I Summon Morphtronic Celfon!” Another humanoid machine, transforming from a large cell phone, emerged in front of Leo.
Morphtronic Celfon
LV: 1
ATK: 100
“The monster Summoned by this effect cannot be used as Synchro Material and is destroyed during the End Phase. In addition, I can only Summon “Morphtronic” or “Power Tool” monsters this turn. However, I’ll be activating Celfon’s effect! Once per turn, if this monster is in Attack Position, a random number between one and six will be dialed by Celfon. Then I excavate that many cards from my Deck and, if there’s a “Morphtronic” monster, I can Special Summon one of them! Dial Up!”
The number buttons on Celfon’s chest began flashing randomly until only ‘4’ was lit.
“Yes! A four! Now I reveal four cards!” Leo continued. “Aw, yeah! I Summon Morphtronic Boarden!”
Morphtronic Boarden
LV: 3
ATK: 500
“Next I Normal Summon Morphtronic Cameran!”
Morphtronic Cameran
LV: 2
ATK: 800
“Summon all the monsters you like, but none of them can defeat my Ape Fighter,” said Drystan.
“I won’t need to!” Leo countered. “While Boarden is in Attack Position, all of my Morphtronics can attack directly!”
“What?”
“Go!”
First, Leo’s Celfon struck.
Drystan
LP: 4000 – 100 = 3900
Next, the hooded man was struck by Boarden.
Drystan
LP: 3900 – 500 = 3400
Third, Cameran landed a blow.
Drystan
LP: 3400 – 800 = 2600
“How’d you like that?!” Leo boasted.
Drystan chuckled. “Not bad, but it means nothing. I activate the Trap Card Wild Cry. At the end of the Battle Phase, if I took Battle Damage, I can Summon a Level 4 or lower “Ape” monster from my Deck. Come, Ape Sentry!”
Ape Sentry
LV: 2
ATK: 900
“Then, I can destroy a monster on the opponent’s field. Disappear, Cameran.”
Leo flinched as his machine exploded. The room shook from the impact, causing dust to fall from the ceiling. “I have to finish this soon,” he thought. “I’ll Set one card face-down. Then, during my End Phase, Celfon is destroyed by the effect of Morphtronics, Assemble! I end my turn.”
“Then it’s my turn,” Drystan declared. “I tune Level 2 Ape Sentry with Level 4 Ape Fighter.”
2 + 4 = 6
“Wild beast of the forest, let your enemies feel the tremors from your mighty hammer! Synchro Summon! Appear now, Ape Hammerer!”
A giant beast wielding a mallet landed behind Drystan.
Ape Hammerer
LV: 6
ATK: 2200
“Then I Normal Summon Ape Knight!”
Ape Knight
LV: 3
ATK: 1200
“Battle! Ape Hammerer, destroy that Boarden,” Drystan commanded, his beast’s mallet embedding Leo’s machine into the ground.
2200 – 500 = 1700
Leo
LP: 4000 – 1700 = 2300
“At this moment, Ape Hammerer’s effect activates. When it destroys a monster by battle, all of my “Ape” monsters gain 300 ATK.”
Ape Hammerer
LV: 6
ATK: 2200 + 300 = 2500
Ape Knight
LV: 3
ATK: 1200 + 300 = 1500
“Ape Knight, direct attack!”
“I activate a Trap! Morphtronics, Scramble! When you attack me directly while I control no monsters, that attack is negated, then I Special Summon a “Morphtronic” from my hand! I Summon Morphtronic Magnen!” Leo stated. Ape Knight’s sword bounced off an invisible barrier as a new machine appeared in front of Leo.
Morphtronic Magnen
LV: 3
DEF: 800
“I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn,” Drystan concluded.
“My move!” Leo glanced at his drawn card. “Yes! It’s here!”
“That’s right, boy,” the man thought. “Continue to hope while you can.”
Leo then grabbed a different card from his hand. “I activate the Spell Junk Box! This card lets me Special Summon a Level 4 or lower “Morphtronic” from my Graveyard! Come on back, Celfon!”
Morphtronic Celfon
LV: 1
ATK: 100
“I activate Celfon’s effect! Dial Up!” The buttons on his monster’s chest began flashing until only a two was lit. Leo then revealed the top two cards of his Deck. “I Special Summon Morphtronic Staplen in Defense Position!” A stapler-shaped machine appeared before him.
Morphtronic Staplen
LV: 4
DEF: 1000
“Next I Summon the Tuner Monster Morphtronic Remoten!”
Morphtronic Remoten
LV: 3
ATK: 300
“I now tune Level 3 Remoten with Level 1 Celfon and Level 3 Magnen!”
3 + 1 + 3 = 7
“Docking strength with courage to protect the world's peace! Synchro Summon! Envoy of love and justice, Power Tool Dragon!”
Drystan watched as a great mechanical dragon descended behind Leo, staring at it intently.
Power Tool Dragon
LV: 7
ATK: 2300
“I activate Power Tool Dragon’s monster effect!” Leo continued. “Once per turn, I choose three Equip Spells from my Deck, then you pick one of them at random to be added to my hand while the others get shuffled back. Power Search!”
The images of three cards appeared and revealed themselves to the hooded man before vanishing and reappearing face-down.
“Relying on luck is unbecoming,” Drystan commented.
“Just pick already!” replied the green-haired boy.
“The card on the far right.”
Leo’s Duel Disk’s shuffle feature triggered and, upon stopping, left a card sticking out on top of his Deck. He then grabbed it and the remaining card in his hand. “I activate the Equip Spells Double Tool C&D and Break! Draw! and I’ll equip them to Power Tool Dragon!” The mechanical dragon began to glow as its arms were replaced by a drill and buzz saw. “During my turn, Double Tool C&D raises the ATK of the equipped monster by 1000!”
Power Tool Dragon
LV: 7
ATK: 2300 + 1000 = 3300
“3300 ATK…” Drystan mumbled.
“Battle!” Leo declared. “Power Tool Dragon, attack Ape Hammerer! Crafty Break!”
Power Tool Dragon pierced Ape Hammerer with its drill, creating an explosion. The smoke smothered Leo’s opponent.
3300 – 2500 = 800
Drystan
LP: 2600 – 800 = 1800
“At this moment, Break! Draw!’s effect activates!” Leo continued, as his dragon retreated to its original spot behind him. “When the equipped monster destroy an opponent’s monster by battle, I draw one card! And with that, I’ll end my turn!”
Power Tool Dragon
LV: 7
ATK: 3300 – 1000 = 2300
With a single motion of his arm, Drystan wafted the smoke away.
“How’s that? There’s more where that came from!” Leo boasted.
“Not bad, boy. It seems you’re not all talk after all,” Drystan stated.
“I don’t like this…” Luna thought, noticing the opponent’s grin.
“However, it’ll take much more than that to defeat me.”
The twins gasped as the smoke completely cleared, revealing Ape Hammerer.
Ape Hammerer
LV: 6
ATK: 2200
“But how?!” exclaimed Leo. “There’s no way it could’ve survived, even if it had an effect to avoid destruction by battle! Double Tool negates the effects of the opponent’s monster that the equipped monster attacks!”
“A closer look would do you well, child,” Drystan stated.
“What?” Leo gasped upon seeing the Trap Card that floated in front of his opponent.
“I’ve activated the Trap Card Return of the Ape King. By Tributing a monster, I can Special Summon an “Ape” from my Graveyard. As you can see, I’ve already Tributed Ape Knight to revive my Ape Hammerer.”
“Great… but during your turn, you can’t attack any of my monsters except the monster equipped with Double Tool C&D! You won’t be powering up your monster so easily now!”
“Toys, at best. And they mean nothing to me.”
“Huh?”
“When Ape Knight is sent to the Graveyard, I can add an “Ape” monster from my Deck to my hand. I’ve already added the Tuner Monster Disharmony Ape from my Deck to my hand.”
“…‘Disharmony’?”
“All you’ve done up to now is play right into my hands, and now you and your sister shall die for it.”
Leo scoffed. “That’s not happening!”
Drystan chuckled. “It’s my turn. I Summon Disharmony Ape!”
Disharmony Ape
LV: 2
ATK: 300
The small black simian creature stared at the twins, with a gaze that made both shudder.
“I tune Level 2 Disharmony Ape with Level 6 Ape Hammerer,” Drystan continued. The Signer marks on the twins’ right arms began to glow as the small ape became two black rings that encircled Ape Hammerer.
2 + 6 = 8
“When life's light grows dim, your delighted self fades into the chaos! Synchro Summon! Rise and despair, Disharmony – Gloomy Ape!”
Disharmony – Gloomy Ape
LV: 8
ATK: 2600
A great, menacing ape landed between Drystan and the exit, letting out a large roar.
“Ow…” Leo reacted, covering his ears. He flinched as small chunks of debris landed at his feet. “That was close! Luna, are you okay? Luna?”
His sister stared at the beast with uneasiness as she grasped her right arm. “Something’s wrong here…”
“The monster using Disharmony Ape as Synchro Material gains 500 ATK,” Drystan continued.
Disharmony – Gloomy Ape
LV: 8
ATK: 2600 + 500 = 3100
“3100 ATK?!” Leo exclaimed. “But…”
“Disharmony – Gloomy Ape! Attack Power Tool Dragon! Hardened Fist!” the hooded man commanded.
Leo’s machine braced itself as the ape’s fist collided with its arms. “Power Tool Dragon’s effect! By sending an Equip Card to the Graveyard, it can avoid being destroyed! I send Break! Draw! to the Graveyard!”
“But you’ll still take the Battle Damage!”
The giant ape slammed Power Tool Dragon into the wall, more pieces of the ceiling falling onto the ground.
3100 – 2300 = 800
Leo
LP: 2300 – 800 = 1500
“Big mistake!” Leo grinned. “At this moment, I activate the effect of Double Tool C&D! After battling the opponent’s monster during their turn, I destroy that monster!”
His dragon charged forward, aiming for the beast’s gut with the buzz saw. As the ape blocked the saw, Power Tool Dragon lunged with its drill, piercing the stomach. Sparks began to fly.
“It’s a… hit?”
Drystan chuckled.
“Did I just… hear something?” Leo wondered.
“Gloomy Ape’s effect. By discarding an “Ape” or “Disharmony” monster from my hand, it can avoid destruction. Since it’s not your turn, this effect won’t be negated by your Equip Spell,” the man stated. His beast swatted Power Tool Dragon away. “I’ll Set one card face-down and end my turn.”
“That was so strange… I could’ve sworn I heard… screaming,” Leo thought.
“What’s wrong? It’s your turn.”
“You don’t have to tell me twice! I draw!”
Power Tool Dragon
LV: 7
ATK: 2300 + 1000 = 3300
“I activate Power Tool’s effect! Power Search!” Just as before, three cards appeared, vanished, then reappeared face-down. Drystan pointed at the middle card. Leo’s Deck was then shuffled by his Duel Disk and left a card sticking out on top to be added to his hand. “I activate Pot of Avarice! I shuffle five monsters from my Graveyard into my Deck then draw two cards!”
Leo stared intently at the four cards in his hand.
“I should be able to do something with this,” he thought. “I activate the Spell Morphtronic Accelerator! I shuffle a “Morphtronic” monster from my hand into the Deck to destroy a card on the field! The card I’ll destroy is Dish—”
“Wait…” a female voice said.
“Luna…?” Leo turned towards his sister, interrupting him before he had physically pointed out his target.
“Don’t… don’t do it…” Luna rose to her feet, approaching her brother.
“But why?”
“There’s something wrong with that monster… I can feel it…”
Leo closed his free hand into a fist and clenched hard.
“Please…”
Shutting his eyes, Leo continued with his move. “The card I’ll destroy is that Set card!” He placed the appropriate monster card into his Deck, the image of which then appeared and crashed into one of Drystan’s two face-down cards. “After destroying its target, Morphtronic Accelerator lets me draw a card!” Leo said, after his Deck was shuffled by his Duel Disk.
Drystan remained silent, grinning.
“What’s so funny?”
“Such a mistake you’ve made, child. I activate the effect of the Trap Card you just destroyed, Chaos Tune,” Drystan stated.
“What?!”
“When it’s destroyed, I can add a “Disharmony” monster from my Deck to my hand. I’ll choose the Tuner Monster Disharmony Catalyst.”
“Disharmony… Catalyst?” Leo mumbled. “So you’re looking to Synchro Summon? I won’t let that happen! I’ll have Power Too—”
Silence filled the room.
“Yes? On with it,” Drystan said.
“Right… Luna asked me not to destroy it… if she says something’s wrong, I’ll have to believe her!” thought Leo, grabbing the remaining three cards in his hand. “I’ll have Power Tool Dragon switch to Defense Position.”
Power Tool Dragon
LV: 7
DEF: 2500
“Next, I equip it with Central Shield! Any Battle Damage I take from battles not involving the equipped monster becomes zero! Then I’ll Set two cards face-down and end my turn.”
Power Tool Dragon
LV: 7
ATK: 3300 – 1000 = 2300
“Couldn’t do it?” Drystan said. “It doesn’t matter. The longer this Duel goes on, the less chance you’ll have of ever escaping.”
Leo scoffed.
“It’s my turn,” the man continued. “I Summon Disharmony Catalyst.” A disfigured creature appeared at his side.
Disharmony Catalyst
LV: 2
ATK: 0
“I tune Level 2 Disharmony Catalyst with Level 8 Disharmony – Gloomy Ape!”
The twins became wide-eyed as the giant ape vanished and became eight black stars surrounded by two dark rings. However, what caught their attention was not the dark colors of the rings and stars of the Synchro Summon procedure they’re used to seeing.
2 + 8 = 10
“Chaos begins, laughter becoming cries of agony! Let loose the shadows within your heart and shatter harmony! Synchro Summon! Descend, Ultimate Disharmony – Simian of Despair!”
The stars and rings became engulfed in a black pillar which faded away, leaving behind a larger beast than before. Its eyes were stained red and on its arms and legs were gauntlets that had spikes point in all directions.
Ultimate Disharmony – Simian of Despair
LV: 10
ATK: 3400
“Luna… did you see that?!” Leo asked.
“Yes… I did…” she answered.
“Something was… inside that monster! If I had…”
“On your last turn, if my monster had been targeted by your Morphtronic Accelerator or your attack, the creature you saw within would have died,” Drystan finished. “By your hands, no less.”
The twins were frozen, speechless. They could not shake the sight of what appeared to be an unconscious pink horse with the image of colored balloons on both sides of its flank, with a wound on the side of its stomach.
“It should be quite clear now. Out of the three of you—that is, you twins and the horse inside my beast—someone shall die here tonight. The only question is: Who?”
“How could you…?” Luna asked.
“You creep! How could you hurt innocent Duel Monster spirits like this?” Leo shouted.
“You were the one that hurt that pathetic creature, or did you not notice the wound inflicted on its belly?” Drystan countered.
“What…?”
“That’s right. It was you who injured it, remember?”
“Big mistake!” Leo grinned. “At this moment, I activate the effect of Double Tool C&D! After battling the opponent’s monster during their turn, I destroy that monster!”
His dragon charged forward, aiming for the beast’s gut with the buzz saw. As the ape blocked the saw, Power Tool Dragon lunged with its drill, piercing the stomach. Sparks began to fly.
“It’s a… hit?”
Drystan chuckled.
“Did I just… hear something?” Leo wondered.
“So what will it be?” Drystan asked. “You cannot get past me without destroying my monster, in turn killing the one trapped inside. Sure, you’ll be free, but your conscience will forever be stained with the blood of an innocent being. On the other hand, if you hesitate, it’ll be you two who die here. Either way, only despair awaits you.”
“Why you…” Leo grumbled.
Luna looked on towards the center of the giant beast with great worry. “How are we supposed to get it out…?”
“Just why would you do this? How could you do something so heartless?!” the boy exclaimed.
“Compared to what we’ve experienced, I hardly think you’re in any position to call us ‘heartless’,” Drystan replied.
“What…?”
“For those like you, there’s only one thing that you should do: Die.”
Leo flinched.
“Battle! Ultimate Disharmony – Simian of Despair! Attack Power Tool Dragon!”
Leo gasped as the ape’s hand reached for his machine.
“The Hand of Despair!”
“I activate the Continuous Trap Morphtronic Bind!” Leo declared, glancing at his Morphtronic Staplen as an electric grid spawned between his and his opponent’s fields. “As long as I control a “Morphtronic” monster, Level 4 or higher monsters you control can’t attack or change Battle Position.”
“A wasted effort. I activate the Counter Trap Chaos Rend,” Drystan stated. “If I control a “Disharmony” monster, I can negate the activation of a Spell or Trap Card and destroy it.”
The grid and the card generating it shattered as the ape’s fist slammed into Power Tool Dragon.
“Power Tool Dragon’s effect! I send Double Tool C&D to the Graveyard to prevent it from being destroyed!” Leo stated. The machine’s drill and buzz saw vanished.
“A monster using Disharmony Catalyst as Synchro Material can inflict piercing damage!” Drystan continued.
“What?!” Power Tool Dragon was hurled into a wall and left heavily damaged.
3400 – 2500 = 900
Leo
LP: 1500 – 900 = 600
The wall behind Power Tool Dragon cracked. The crack itself swiftly made its way to the ceiling above the twins, releasing a large chunk of debris.
“Luna!” Leo instinctively dove at his sister, who had been frozen in shock as she saw the ceiling crumble. The two coughed as the dust cleared, barely avoiding the rubble. “Are you okay?!”
“Yes…” she answered. “I’m fine. Thank you, Leo…”
“Simian of Despair’s monster effect activates,” Drystan continued. “By banishing an “Ape” or “Disharmony” monster from my Graveyard, it can attack twice this turn!”
“Two attacks?! But that means—” the brother noticed.
“It ends here. Attack Power Tool Dragon! The Hand of Despair!” The ape launched its fist at Power Tool Dragon once more.
Leo quickly rose to his feet. “I activate the Trap Card Block Lock! This card changes your attack target to a “Morphtronic” monster I control! I’ll use it to have you attack my Morphtronic Staplen!”
Morphtronic Staplen
LV: 4
DEF: 1000
The stapler-shaped machine jumped in front of Power Tool, receiving the blow.
“The Defense Position Staplen can’t be destroyed in battle, then switches to Attack Position after damage calculation! In addition, due to Central Shield’s effect, I take no Battle Damage from battles not involving Power Tool Dragon!” The ape’s fist hurled Staplen into the wall next to the mechanical dragon, the latter collapsing in a humanoid form.
Morphtronic Staplen
LV: 4
ATK: 1400
The room shook violently from the impact. Several pieces of debris fell from the ceiling, scattered throughout the room.
Drystan chuckled. “It appears you won’t be escaping after all. Farewell,” he said, turning around and sprinting to the exit as his ape vanished.
“Wait!” Leo shouted, only for his path to be cut off by huge chunks of rubble. The twins became surrounded by a wall of debris that prevented their escape.
“Leo… what are we gonna do…?” Luna gripped her brother tightly.
“I… I don’t know,” he replied, returning the embrace.
The two looked up and screamed as they saw another piece of the ceiling fall.