//------------------------------// // Chapter 27: An Increase of Casualties // Story: Yu-Gi-Oh! Friendship is Magic // by moviemaster8510 //------------------------------// This chapter's featured card: Dragunity Knight - Gae Bulg Synchro Monster Level: 6 ATK: 2000 DEF: 1100 Attribute: WIND Type: Dragon 1 Dragon-Type Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner Winged Beast-Type monsters If this card attacks or is attacked, during the Damage Step you can banish 1 (only) Winged Beast-Type monster from your Graveyard, to have this card gain the ATK of that monster until the End Phase. Scott and Lucas came barging into Sugarcube Corner. They were greeted by Rainbow Dash. “We came as fast as we could,” said Lucas. “Where is she?” “Upsatairs in her room,” said Rainbow Dash. Lucas ran in and found Pinkie Pie crying on her bed with her face buried in a pillow. Lucas quietly walked up to Pinkie Pie’s bed and sat down. She still seemed to be grieving too much to notice Lucas. He then gently rested a hand on her shoulder. Upon this, she turned around. Upon seeing Lucas, she jumped onto him wrapping her arms around his torso, almost knocking him off the bed in the process. “I heard about what happened,” said Lucas. “I’m so sorry.” “Why?” cried Pinkie Pie vehemently. “Why what?” asked Lucas. “Why do they have to be so mean?” “I don’t know,” responded Lucas. He then pulled Pinkie Pie off of him and set her down in front of him in the bed, resting his hands on her shoulders. Pinkie Pie then talked again, still hyperventilating from her tears. “I don’t think I can go on without them,” sobbed Pinkie Pie. Lucas responded in an assertive tone. “Hey, don’t talk like that. I know perfectly well what it’s like to lose a parent, and it can be devastating, but ending your life will do no one any good. You have friends that are going to fight tooth and nail to see to it that we can defeat Trixie and Gilda and get Mr. and Mrs. Cake back, but our strength is only going to be as good as yours.” “It’s so hard though,” said Pinkie Pie. “I know it is,” said Lucas. “Death is never easy. We can help you though. As your dearest friends, we want to help you see this through. Mr. and Mrs. Cake love you, and they wouldn’t want to see you give up here. Rainbow Dash, your partner, loves you. Your other friends love you. I love you.” Pinkie Pie then issued her first smile in almost 4 hours and hugged Lucas again. “Thank you,” she said. Rainbow Dash and Scott were sitting in the dining room waiting for Lucas to come down with good news. Lucas and Pinkie Pie came down the stairs together. Pinkie Pie then gave a nod to Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash smiled and they each pounded hooves. Feeling a renewed sense of vigor, Pinkie Pie’s straight hair became frizzled again. Both teams walked out of Sugarcube Corner looking for more opponents to duel. Cont. from Wonderbolts vs. Charley and Maddie Final Round: Maddie vs. Spitfire Maddie’s Turn: M:5 S:3 Maddie activates Speed World 2’s effect. By removing 4 speed counters (SpC.: 5 -> 1), she can inflict 800 points of damage for each speed spell she has in her hand. She has two. Spitfire’s Life Points: 1200 -> 0 Maddie wins the round. Charley and Maddie win the match. Maddie stopped her d-wheel by where Charley and Soarin were. Spitfire landed alongside the three of them. “I’m glad to see you’re doing well in the tournament.” “Thanks,” said Charley. Soarin was still a bit unnerved at Charley’s unusually mean-spirited demeanor during their duel. Charley slapped a hand on Soarin, which made him jump and wince with shock. “Relax, Soarin,” said Charley. “It’s me, your friend, Charley.” Soarin although still nervous was reassured that she was back to normal. They then heard screaming not too far off. They hoped it was what they thought it was, but not so much that they might be too late. About 100 feet in front of them into the woods they were near. They saw the pale and wizened bodies of the local school teacher Cheerilee and her friend Berry Punch, but Gilda and Trixie were nowhere In sight. Spitfire even flew above the trees to see if they flew away, but there wasn’t anything there. Maddie punched the nearest tree so hard that she chipped the bark. “Dammit!” she yelled through her frustration. Sammy and Charley hoisted Cheerilee by her arms and wrapped each one around the back of each of their necks. “We’ll take Cheerilee, you get Berry Punch,” said Charley to Soarin and Spitfire. As the two pegasi lifted the unconscious Berry Punch off the ground to Ponyville, Maddie and Charley ran the same way as fast as they could. Cont. from Orion and Alex vs. Rarity and Fluttershy Final Round: Alex vs. Fluttershy Alex’s Turn: Alex summons Dragunity Dux (ATK: 1500 DEF: 1000). When it’s summoned, Alex can equip a level 3 or lower Dragon-type Dragunity monster from his graveyard onto it, choosing Dragunity Phalanx. When it’s equipped to a monster from the graveyard, Alex can special summon it (ATK: 500 DEF: 1100). Alex tunes Dragunity Dux with Dragunity Phalanx to synchro summon Dragunity Knight - Gae Bulg (ATK: 2000 DEF: 1100). Next, Alex activates Double Attack, discarding a monster card from his hand (Dragunity Arma Leyvaten) with a higher level than a monster on the field which Alex will target (Dragunity Knight - Gae Bulg), allowing it to attack twice this turn. Alex attacks Naturia Exterio (ATK: 2800 DEF: 2400). When it attacks, Alex can remove from play a Winged-Beast type monster in the graveyard to have Dragunity Knight - Gae Bulg gain ATK equal to the ATK of the removed monster, choosing Dragunity Dux (ATK: 2000 -> 3500). The attack continues. Fluttershy’s Life Points: 3600 -> 2900 Next, Alex attacks Fluttershy directly. Fluttershy’s Life Points: 2900 -> 0 Alex wins the round. Orion and Alex win the match. Not even a minute after their duel finished, the buzzers located around the vicinity of Ponyville sounded, marking that it was 6 o’clock and the second day of dueling was over. “Whew that was a close one,” said Rarity. “I know,” said Alex. “If we had been dueling any longer, we would’ve had our duel force quitted and marked for losses.” “No, I meant the duel itself, darling,” said Rarity matter-of-factly. “Oh yeah,” said Alex. “That too.” As they took a shortcut through Sweet Apple Acres to return to Ponyville, they saw two ponies lying down on the ground near the endless fields of apple trees. From the massive red coated one and brown vest and hat on the yellow one, Alex and Orion knew instantly that it was Big Macintosh and Braeburn. Everyone ran over to see if they were alright. Alex took a short glance at both of their faces, but it was all he needed to see the problem. Both of their mouths were agape, their coats lighter in color than usual, their manes and tails white, and their bodies wizened. “Oh no,” said Alex with tears welling in his eyes and hands pulling his hair back. Rarity held Fluttershy as she wept on her shoulder. Seeing Big Macintosh and Braeburn in their current conditions was harder for Alex and Orion than the other victims they’ve seen. Unlike the others, they had a closer bond with them, and Alex and Orion were sad to see their friends given this fate. All of the sudden, “Hey, y’all!” called the voice of Applejack. Alex felt violently nauseous and began sobbing uncontrollably. What he thought was hard for him would be much, much worse for Applejack and Apple Bloom; Alex and Orion were their friends, but Applejack and Apple Bloom were family. Applejack and Apple Bloom saw Alex on his knees with Orion crying like babies. “Alex, Orion,” said Applejack concernedly, “what’s wrong.” Alex didn’t want them to see their family like this, but he knew he had no choice. Alex painfully got up and reluctantly stepped aside to show their lifeless brother and cousin. Applejack and Apple Bloom’s ears drooped low and gasped heavily. They rushed over to the two and began giving them CPR, as if it would help. “Come on, Big Mac,” said Applejack quickly with gradual sadness in her voice, “don’t quit on me.” “Braeburn,” said Apple Bloom poking Braeburn’s stomach, “wake up. It’s me, Apple Bloom.” Applejack was also getting nowhere with resuscitating her brother. She then began pounding on his stomach and screaming his name. Alex didn’t want Applejack to harm her brother, so he tried pulling her away, but she was too strong to fight, so Orion helped her, with success. Applejack and Apple Bloom then collapsed on the ground crying as hard as they could. Orion picked up Apple Bloom and let her wrap herself around Orion’s body for comfort as she cried. Alex tried picking up Applejack, but she was too heavy to pick up, but Applejack picked herself up and threw herself at Alex, who caught her and rubbed her back and neck as he cried with her. Back at the theater later that night, Alex and Lucas hung outside the theater looking at the sky as they reflected on all that had happened that day. Maddie decided to stay at Sweet Apple Acres overnight to comfort Applejack after hearing the news of her brother and cousin’s incapacitation. Alex’s face was red and hot from his crying. “You know,” said Alex, “I’ve been thinking.” Lucas turned to acknowledge him. “Ever since we started this tournament, I thought this was going to be easy. We win some duels here, we get the wish and go home. And then Trixie and Gilda show up, and then we have a challenge which even I think I can’t beat. And now they’re picking off not just the family and friends of our friends, but now, they’re picking off our friends. And now I have to face the prospect of facing those two a hot mess of emotions, and that’s going to make dueling them even harder. I’m scared Lucas; all of these factors are going to come and haunt me. I may lose my soul tomorrow and I may not even be able to put up a fight.” Alex then slumped down the wall and began sobbing again. “And then I think of my sister, and the rest of you. If you have to face her, I mean, I want you all to be ready and do your best, but I never wanted any of you to die for this. I couldn’t bear it.” “Listen,” said Lucas, “I’m scared just like you. Right now, I have to console a pony who just lost the closest thing she had to a family. We all have something at stake here. I don’t want to lose Pinkie Pie as much as you don’t want to lose Sammy, but like I said yesterday, I’m going to make sure that nothing happens to them that they could end up like that, even if that means taking my own life, something you promised on that stage as well.” “And I will do my best,” interrupted Alex standing up and facing Lucas. “I won’t let any of you guys die if I can’t do anything about it.” Lucas then said, “Then when tomorrow comes, and you find yourself standing face to face with Gilda and Trixie, you be sure to give them nothing less than hell.” Alex pounded Lucas’ fist, and they hugged one another. They then walked back into the theater to be prepared for the final day of the preliminaries.