Turn 8: Overcoming the Sea of Tears
A week had almost passed since the day of the tragic accident.
The victim, Moondancer, had been severally injured by said accident and was already passed the point of no return when the ambulance arrived. The poor girl was declared dead on arrival to the hospital.
Twilight Sparkle was in her apartment, her heart aching as she sat on her bed. Moondancer's body had been flown back to the U.K this morning, so her family could give her a proper funeral. Twilight had hoped she could go as well, but couldn't manage to get a flight or boat ticket there before it was set to happen.
"Moondancer," she whispered before a ring brought her attention back to the real world. She turned to her phone and saw the name of her boyfriend, picking it up in preparation of answering. But instead of hitting the accept, she pressed the decline call button and threw her phone away. The one thing she couldn't stand any more of was the constant calls from everyone she knew, wanting to ask if she was alright. She appreciated it, but still felt like she'd rather be alone right now.
Across town, Tidal was sitting in his hotel room looking at his computer.
"Flash just called and said she wasn't picking up" Cadance's voice came out of the laptop. She and Shining were both on screen, the two sharing a pained look as they spoke with Tidal. "I'm worried. It's not good for her to shut out the world like this."
"I know," Tidal said. "But we can't force her to open up. I think she's having trouble accepting that it's happened."
"I should be there with her," Shining said. He then stared at Tidal, "how's she doing?"
"Not good," Tidal replied with a sad look upon his face. "This whole thing has hit her hard. I know they'd only just met, but in the short span of time they'd become good friends. Then to suddenly lose her."
"She's never had to really deal with a situation like this," Cadance told him. "There was the time Flash was in a coma, but even then she still had hope that she'd see him again."
"The pain of losing someone can sometimes be to much to bare," Shining said. Tidal nodded in agreement, knowing Twilight needed him as the only close friend who was actually with her right now.
"I'll try and do everything I can to help her." Shining and Cadance both nodded, thanking him before finally ending the call. As the screen went blank, Tidal sat back in his chair before sighing. Like Twilight, he too was working to deal with the pain of loss. "Moondancer."
The next day.
Twilight walked like a zombie through her school.
They had offered her some time off after the accident, but Twilight had declined as all she'd do is sit in her apartment letting the thoughts of her lost friend swirl around in her head. No, she was better off here where she could keep her mind off of those things.
"Twilight," the bespectacled girl turned to see one of her classmates walking towards her. "I'm glad I found you. If you're free, I'd like to try out a new deck that I've been working on."
Twilight thought for a moment, until she finally nodded. "Sure," this would hopefully help her keep her mind off things. The two moved over to an empty classroom, where they would compete in a table top duel. Once they'd shuffled each other's decks, they began their Duel.
At one point in the Duel, Twilight had her Warlock in ATK position and Magician's Valkyria in DEF position. She also had her Pendulum Scale set to let her summon monsters between Levels three and eight. Her opponent had Amazoness Tiger and was halfway through her turn.
"I Fusion Summon!" The girl said as she placed a card from her extra deck onto the field. "Amazoness Empress. I attack your Twilight Warlock with Amazoness Empress." Twilight took her destroyed monster and placed in on the Extra Deck. "Next, My Amazoness Tiger will attack your Magician's Valkyria. And thanks to my Empress, you'll still be taking damage."
Twilight sighed as her field was now empty.
Even thought she could summon her Warlock back, she'd need a way to destroy that Empress. But how? "It's my turn," Twilight reached for her deck. "I draw." But as she saw what card she'd drawn, her eyes went wide and she felt a tearing pain in her heart.
Flashback
The girl pulled out her deck before shuffling through the cards, until she came across one that she took out and handed to Twilight. "Here."
Twilight took the card and gasped when she saw it was Magic Tome of Starswirl. She looked up at Moondancer, "I can't take this."
"You will. Consider it a symbol of our friendship. I won't let you refuse."
Twilight smiled at the girl before looking down at the card. "Thank you."
Flashforwards
Now, as she stared at the last gift given to her by her lost friend, the pain of remorse overwhelmed her and caused tears to begin leaking out of her eyes. "Twilight?" She looked up at her opponent, who was staring at her worriedly. "Are you okay?"
Twilight looked down at the card one last before placing it back on her deck and grabbing the rest of her cards. "I'm sorry," she put her deck away. "I...I can't." Before the girl could say anything else, Twilight rushed out of the room.
Tidal was walking down the street near Twilight's school, wondering if she'd want to get some lunch with him.
But he hadn't expected to find her sitting on a bench just outside its gate. "Twilight," she looked up and saw him.
"Oh, hello Tidal. What are you doing here?"
Tidal was about to respond, but then noticed the red puffiness around her eyes. She had been crying. "I...I came to see if you wanted to get some lunch with me," Tidal replied.
"Oh," Twilight looked down towards the pavement, "no thank you. I'm really not hungry."
Tidal sighed, expecting this outcome but hoping a different one. "Okay, that's fine." He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a slip of paper, "here." Twilight took it and saw it was a ticket. That's right, tonight was the finals of the European championships. Tidal's big night. "It's a pretty good seat, so I hope you'll come."
Twilight didn't say anything, instead just placing the ticket into her pocket before walking off.
As she left, Tidal sighed. "Twilight, I fear what might happen if you let your grief overcome you." He knew what might happen when he learned of Moondancer's accident. The thing that first connected the two had been Dueling, so there may be a chance Twilight's grief would cause her to link dueling with the pain of her friend's death.
If that happened, Twilight might lose the will to Duel.
Twilight continued trekking through Paris until she reached the Seine, which she began to walk besides until she finally reached a spot that made the pain continue to build.
The carousel she and Moondancer had eaten lunch together at. The tower the two of them had climbed to look out at all of Paris, and where her lost friend had given her that special card.
As Twilight sat on the bench next to the carousel, she reached into her bag and pulled out her deck. This deck, which once held so many great memories for her, now only reminded her of the Duel she'd had against Moondancer. Simply looking at it reminded her of how they'd met, the way they'd faced off against one another, and even the images she'd seen.
And following those memories, was the pain of no longer having that friend in her life.
How could she go on Dueling, if this pain continued to plague her every time she looked at her deck. "Moondancer," tears began to escape as she spoke the name, "WHY'D YOU HAVE TO GO!?" With that, the tears came in full force and she started weeping with no power to stop herself.
Later.
Tidal was currently in the Duel stadium of Paris, ready to go on stage to compete for the Euro Championship title.
When her heard the announcer call out his name, he stepped out. As he did, he looked over to the seat he'd reserved for Twilight and frowned when he saw it empty. "Oh me amigo." He knew she was having a hard time, but he'd hoped he could show her it was possible to get passed the pain. Like her, he was missing Moondancer and Dueling like that was a struggle. The reason he wanted her to come was because if she could see how he channelled his grief into the game, then maybe...just maybe.
He reached the centre and met his opponent and the ref. They shook hands, shuffled decks and did the coin toss before starting the Duel.
Twilight simply stared out at the river as she watched the sun begin to set.
She had lost track of how long she'd simply been sitting there wallowing in her own misery. Her thoughts were finally broken when one of the passers by chose to stop near her while fiddling with their radio. Eventually, he found the channel he was looking for and Twilight was forced to listen to it.
"We're live here at the Paris Dome to watch the final match of the European Championship. Let us now hear some words of encouragement out two competitors.
"Hola," she turned to the radio as she heard Tidal's voice, "I'll be dedicating this match to a friend of mine who is, sadly, no longer with us. Moondancer, I know you'd want me to give it my all and I will do so in your name."
Twilight simply stared at the radio, realising just how selfish she was being. "Tidal," she got up and rushed away from the carousel towards the stadium. How could she not realise how much Tidal was hurting, yet still he prevails. He was Duelling because Moondancer would want him too.
"I RITUAL SUMMON!" Tidal cried as his ace card appeared before him. Once it had completed its entrance, Tidal took a deep breath. "This one's for you Moondancer," he pointed at his opponent's Cyber Dragon. "Soveruin, attack!" The Ritual Monster rode his seahorse towards the robotic serpent and slashed it into destruction.
Tidal: 3100
Short Circuit: 3800
"Now, Officer Cadet Andrew will attack!" His other monster leapt at the opponent and stabbed him with his rapier.
Tidal: 3100
Short Circuit: 2800
Twilight rushed into the stadium and arrived inside the Duel arena just in time to see Tidal and Soveruin facing off against Cyber-End Dragon, three Cyber Dragons and a Cyber Phoenix.
"I attack!" His opponent declared as Cyber-End fired a triple laser blast at it.
"I activate my Trampa!" Tidal yelled as his face down flipped up, "Raging Whirlpool. I can only activate this card when you declare an attack. Now I can destroy your attacking monster and any monsters on your field whose ATK is equal to or lower then Cyber-End."
A whirlpool appeared below the machine monsters and sucked them within. Everyone watched as the Cyber Monsters were washed away, like being sucked down and plug hole. Tidal's opponent looked horrified by this, now forced to end his turn as Tidal started his.
"Attack!" Soveruin rode forwards and slashed the young man.
Tidal: 1200 (Winner)
Short Circuit: 0
The crowd exploded into a cheer, Twilight remaining quiet as she watched Tidal be given his trophy.
Time seemed to blur as she returned to the stadium foyer, the many other audience members funnelling passed her until she was the only one left. She simply stood in the same place, as the world revolved around her. Until-
"Twilight?" She turned to see Tidal walking towards her, a curious look on his face.
"Tidal," she said back before bowing, "I'm sorry!"
Tidal raised an eyebrow at this, "you're sorry?"
"I should have known you were hurting as well, but all I cared about was myself." Tears once again leaked, "I'm so so sorry." She didn't expect Tidal to forgive her, which meant she was incredibly surprised when she felt Tidal's hand on her head.
"Don't worry me amigo, I don't blame you. I know you're hurting right now, so don't feel like what you're doing is selfish."
Twilight looked up at him before nodding, wiping her eyes as she did. Tidal smiled back before turning to walk away. "Tidal," he stopped and turned back towards her, "can we Duel." This surprised Tidal. "You were able to push through your pain to Duel in Moondancer's name. I need to see if I can do the same."
This made Tidal smile before nodding. "Sure."
Tidal and Twilight returned to the stadium's public Duel Fields, which wasn't an ARC System, as the two took out their Duel Disks and placed them on their arms. They the took out their Decks, ready to slot them in.
But as they did, Twilight froze as the memories returned once again.
Seeing her issue, Tidal spoke out. "Twilight," she looked up at him, "let's dedicate this Duel to Moondancer and give it our all."
Twilight nodded, pushing the memories to the back of her head as she slotted her Deck in. She would do this, for Moondancer.
"DUEL!"
Twilight: 4000
Tidal: 4000
"I'll take the first move," Tidal said as he reached for his deck. "I draw and I'll start by setting the Pendulum Scale, with scale two Big Wave General Strain and scale eleven Torpedo Jet Dolphin!" The columns of light appeared on either side of him, as two monsters flew up into them. One was a man in navy gear who was carrying a gatling gun, while the other was a dolphin wearing a navy hat and a pair of propulsion jets strapped to either side of its dorsal fin.
"Cortar through space time and carve the arc of victoria!" He chanted as the two opened their books, each shooting a beam of light which connected and opened a portal above him. "I PENDULUM SUMMON!"
The portal opened up before a pair of lights shot out and struck the ground, taking form before fading to reveal a pair of monsters.
The first was a navy officer riding a jet ski, "Splash Sargent!" (A1700/D1300/L4)
The second was a women wearing navy uniform and a headset, "and Deep Sea Officer!" (A1200/D800/L3) "And when Deep Sea Officer is special summoned, I can take a Ritual card from my deck and add it to my hand." His deck shuffled before slotting out a card, which he took before placing inside his Duel Disk. "And now I'll activate it. Raging Storm Ritual, which by sacrificing monsters of seven stars or more will allow me to summon Commander of the Raging Storm, Soveruin!"
An underwater tornado appeared, sucking Tidal's monsters into its centre. "I RITUAL SUMMON!" The tornado exploded, revealing Tidal's ace riding the giant seahorse and swinging its cutlass. (A2400/D2200/L7) "I place one card face down and end my turn."
"Then I'll draw!" Twilight did so and looked through her cards before nodding. "I'll also be starting by setting the Pendulum Scale, with scale two Pendulum Caster and scale five Rising Dusk Magician!" The pillars of light appeared on either side of her, as two wizards flew up into them. The first was wearing light blue ropes and had a piece of string around his neck, that held a crystal like shape in front of his chest while his staff had a similar crystal head. The second was wearing dark moon patterned ropes and had a crescent moon on its staff.
"Cut through space time and carve the arc of victory!" She chanted as the two pointed their wands at the sky, each shooting a beam of light which connected and opened a portal above Twilight. "I PENDULUM SUMMON!"
The portal opened and a single light shot out and struck the ground, taking shape before fading to reveal a teenage wizard carrying a sword with a blade shaped like the hand of a clock. "Timebreaker Magician!" (A1400/0/L3/P2) "And when Timebreaker is Pendulum Summoned on his own from the hand, his ATK points are doubled. (A2800/D0/L3/P2) "Then I'll summon Twilight Unicorn to the field, in ATK mode." The purple unicorn with her emblem appeared besides the magician. (A1800/D1300/L4/P7) "Attack!"
Tidal watched as Timebreaker Magician rushed at Soveruin, the two clashing swords before the Ritual Monster's shattered before he was destroyed.
Twilight: 4000
Tidal: 3600
"I activate my Trap!" Tidal cried as his face down flipped up, "Torrential Reborn. This card lets me revive every Water monster that's been destroyed this turn, then deal you five hundred points of damage for each one." A wave of water surged out of the card, Soveruin riding it, which crashed into Twilight and knocked her off her feet.
Twilight: 3500
Tidal: 3600
Twilight moaned as she picked herself up and stood back on her feet. "I'm activating Pendulum Caster's ability." The Pendulum Monster pointed his staff at Timebreaker Magician, then fired a rainbow beam out and struck him. "This allows me to turn a Level three or below monster into a Tuner monster for this turn, which will now allow me to tune him with Twilight Unicorn."
Tidal watched as Twilight's Tuner leapt into the air and transformed into three spheres of lights, which carved three circles that Twilight Unicorn leapt into. "It's time to embrace the power given by those we call friends and ascend to a higher plain of life." Instead of disappearing in a flash, the light infused into Twilight Unicorn as two new appendages appeared on its back. "I SYNCHRO SUMMON!"
The light faded from the monsters body, revealing Twilight Unicorn's new form. She was almost exactly the same, except she was now sporting a pair of wings on her back and was slightly taller. "Twilight Alicorn!" (A2600/D1900/L7) "I end my turn."
"Then it's my turn. I draw before using Torpedo Jet Dolphin's Pendulum Ability," he sent his drawn card to the graveyard. "By discarding one card, I can add a Spell Card from my deck to my hand." His deck shuffled before slotting out a card, which he took and activated immediately. "Now I'll activate it. Rebirth Ritual!"
Twilight frowned as she watched Soveruin be enveloped by the tornado of water.
"RITUAL EVOLUTION!" The tornado exploded, revealing the evolved version of Tidal's best card. "Master of the Storm, Admiral Soveruin!" (A2800/2500/L8) "And don't forget, Rebirth Ritual increases his ATK points this turn." (A3800/D2500/L8) "Now I attack!" Soveruin's snapped the rains of his leviathan, which began to slither through the air like it was water towards Twilight Alicorn. Once close, Soveruin used his cutlass and slashed through Twilight's monster destroying it.
Twilight was knocked back by the force of the attack, slamming into the ground with a loud outcry.
Twilight: 2300
Tidal: 3600
"You alright senorita?" Tidal asked, as Twilight began to pick herself up.
"I...I'm fine," she said once she was back on her feet. She was shaky at first, but managed to stay up and get he balance.
Tidal nodded, "then I end my turn." Admiral Soveruin's ATK power returned to normal. (A2800/D2500/L8)
"Then it's my turn. I draw!" Twilight looked down at the card she'd gotten and gasped, seeing it was the card Moondancer had given her. The aching in her heart returned, as she fought to keep the tears back.
"Twilight," Tidal noticed this, "are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Twilight said as she hid the card behind her other two. "Once again, I'll cut through space time and carve the arc of victory!" The portal opened up above her head, "I PENDULUM SUMMON!"
The portal opened and a pair of lights shot out, hitting the ground and fading to reveal Timebreaker Magician and Twilight Unicorn. "And once again, I'll have Pendulum Caster use her ability to make Timebreaker a Tuner monster." The magician did so, firing the rainbow of light at Timebreaker before he leapt into the air and transformed into the three lights. "Now I tune my level three Timebreaker Magician with my level four Twilight Unicorn!" Once again, the unicorn leapt into the rings and was super charged. "Beings of mystical might, unite you power and let the magic shine for all eternity." In that moment her monsters disappeared in an explosion of light, "I SYNCHRO SUMMON!"
The light faded to reveal Twilight's ace. "Twilight Warlock!" (A2500/D2100/L7/P4) "I activate my Warlock's ability, to look at the top five cards of my deck and add one Spellbook to my hand." She drew five cards and looked through them, then pull one out before shuffling the rest back into her deck. "Now I activate it. Spellbook of Secrets, which let's me add another Spellbook to my hand." Her deck shuffled before slotting out a card, which she then took."
Tidal hummed as he tried to predict Twilight's stratagy. "Knowing senorita Sparkle, it's probably a card to make her monster stronger then mine."
"I activate the Spellbook of Power, which'll increase the attack of my Warlock by one thousand!" The spellcaster roared as red energy surrounded him, his power increasing as it did. (A3500/D2100/L7/P4) "Now I attack your Master of the Storm!" The wizard raised his staff before unleashing a beam of magic energy, which struck Soveruin and destroyed it.
Twilight: 2300
Tidal: 2900
"And when a monster empowered by the Spellbook of Power destroys a monster, I can add another Spellbook from my deck to my hand." Her deck once again shuffled out a card, which she drew and placed in her hand. "I end my turn with a face down." Twilight Warlock's ATK returned to normal. (A2500/D2100/L7/P4)
As Twilight's turn ended, her eyes once again caught sight of the card Moondancer gave her. She shook her head before looking up, only to gasp at what she saw.
Standing between her and her monster, was Moondancer. The girl turned towards Twilight and smiled, making the girl flinch away and shut her eyes. "NO!"
"Twilight?" She slowly opened her eyes, seeing the image of Moondancer was gone, as Tidal stared at her in worry.
"We should stop."
"No!" Twilight said forcefully, "I have to do this."
"Alright." Tidal drew his card, "I play Graciosa Charity." He drew his three cards, smiling as he saw what he'd gotten, then placed two in the graveyard. "Now, since I Coral Medic was sent from my hand to the graveyard, I can use her ability to revive one monster in my graveyard." The woman in coral patterned nurse clothing appeared on the field before she was enveloped by a tornado of water, which then exploded to reveal Admiral Soveruin. "Now, I'll cut through space time once more and carve the arc of victory!" The portal formed above his head, "I PENDULUM SUMMON!"
The portal opened as a single light shot out, struck the ground before fading to reveal a penguin in a navy uniform and holding a harpoon with a trident head sticking out the barrel. "High Tide Penguin Solider!" (A1000/D800/L3/P8) "And when High Tide Penguin is special summoned, I can summon as many other copies of him from my deck." The penguin opened its mouth before spitting out a bubble, which grew in size before popping to reveal another penguin.
Twilight grew worried, wondering what Tidal had planned.
"And now," Tidal took the last card in his hand and held it above his head. "It's time to unleash my ultimate card!" A water spiral exploded out of the ground, engulfing Soveruin and the two penguins. "By tributing Master of the Storm, along with two other Water monsters, I can give birth to his ultimate form." He slapped his card on the Duel Disk, as the water spiral exploded to show Tidal's monster.
Soveruin, now dressed in even more flamboyant navy gear, was sitting on the neck of what looked like the loch-ness monster with wings and spikes. This sea-dragon released a mighty roar, which made the earth beneath Twilight's feet shake. "Hurricane Incarnate. Lord High Admiral, SOVERUIN!" (A3000/3000/L10/P1)
Twilight gasped at the sight of this. This card was definitely Tidal's most powerful, and beating it was not going to be easy.
"Soveruin's effect now activates," Tidal said as the sea-dragon opened its mouth and unleashed a stream of freezing cold air. That breath flew over Twilight's field, causing her face down and Pendulum Monster to become frozen solid. "During my turn, you cannot activate any Spells or Traps on your field. I now activate Soveruin's other ability!" Soveruin raised his sword, as water and wind spiralled around it. He then slashed it through the air, unleashing a tidal-wave that struck Twilight Warlock and destroyed it.
Twilight was also struck by the water, knocking her off her feet as her life points went down.
Twilight: 1800
Tidal: 2900
Twilight moaned as she sat herself up before looking towards Tidal, "what was that?"
Tidal smiled. "High Lord Admiral Soveruin can destroy every monster on the field whose ATK is less then his own, then deal you damage for each one."
Twilight frowned. Simply attacking would have lead to the same result, but he chose to use that effect. He was showing off.
"Twilight," Tidal said, "to defeat this opponent, you will need to push passed what's holding you back." He ended his turn, as Twilight tried to pick herself up.
"I know that," she told him as she got to her feet. "But...it's hard. Even after all I've been through, what if this is as far as I can go?"
"Maybe it is," Tidal told her. Twilight looked down in shame at this, "maybe." She looked up at Tidal in confusion. "If you think this is as far as you can go, then no matter what you'll remain at this level. True strength, is a state of mind. No matter how well you build your deck or how many Duels you win with it, you'll never get any better unless you believe you can get better. Moondancer knew that, same with Flash and the rest of our amigos."
Twilight said nothing, simply continuing to listen as he spoke. "Everyone comes across obstacles in their lives. When that happens, you can either give up and accept that you'll never improve, or keep pushing through the pain and hardships the reach whatever goal you want. It all depends...on you."
Twilight continued to remain quite, as she looked down at her hand and saw the card Moondancer had given her. The question of why she had given such a valuable card to her, still alluded her. Had she known the end was near and wanted to give Twilight something to remember her by, or was it something else.
Twilight looked back up, only to go wide eyed when she saw Moondancer standing infront of her once again. A pain in her heart began to beat, making her tear up.
"I understand what you're going through," Twilight looked passed the ghostly image and focused on Tidal. "Moondancer had so much ahead of her, only for her life to be cut short." Twilight's tears with in full flow at this, "but she wouldn't want her life's end to ruin the one you are still living. She would want you...no, us, to keep chasing our dreams. To let her death stop us, only dishonours her memory."
"Dis...dishonours her memory?"
Tidal nodded. "I will keep chasing my dreams. Not just for me, but for Moondancer too. Now, will you dishonour our friends name and let yourself be stopped from reaching your goals?"
Twilight wasn't sure how to answer that, looking back to the image of Moondancer she saw. A new look appeared on the girls face, one of sadness. Strangely, seeing that hurt more then the pain of loss. "No," she said, "I won't." She stood up straight and strong. "I'll keep pushing forward, in Moondancer's memory." Both Tidal and Moondancer smiled at her, as the image of the girl stepped over to Twilight and hugged her. Twilight gasped at this, as the image exploded into light before spreading around her body like a comforting aura. Twilight smiled at this, knowing now that even though Moondancer was gone, a piece of her still remained within her.
Tidal saw this smile and sighed in relief. It seemed Twilight was back. "Alright amigo, let's see how well you do honouring Moondancer's name. It's your turn."
Twilight smiled as she reached for her deck, "and I draw!" She looked at her card and smiled at what she'd gotten, a plan forming in her head. "Alright, I'll start by playing Magical Mallet. With this, I send all but one of my cards back to the deck and redraw the same number." She did so, replace her two cards and smiling at what she'd gotten. "Perfect, I summon Trunade Magician!" A small elderly wizard appeared infront of her, wearing green wind patterned robes. (A600/D400/L2) "And when Trunade Magician is normal summoned, I can return every Spell and Trap card on the field back to our hands."
Tidal watched as the wizard raised his staff before a powerful gale exploded from around him. The cards in their Pendulum Zones were blown out of the light columns, as the two added the cards back to their hands.
"Next, I'll reset the Pendulum Scale with Scale two Pendulum Caster and Scale eight Harmonizing Magician!" The columns appeared besides her, as the two magicians flew up into them before creating the portal above Twilight's head. "I PENDULUM SUMMON!"
The portal opened and four lights shot out before hitting the ground, taking form and fading to reveal Twilight's monsters. "Twilight Warlock!" (A2500/D2100/L7/P4)
"Twilight Unicorn!" (A1800/D1300/L4/P7)
"Timebreaker Magician!" (A1400/D0/L3/P2)
"And Rising Dusk Magician!" (A1200/D2000/L4/P5)
"I activate my Warlock's ability, too look at the top five cards of my deck and add one Spellbook to my hand." She drew the cards and looked the over, choosing one to add to her hand while shuffling the rest back into her deck. "Now I activate it. Spellbook Star Hall. Now whenever a Spellbook is activated, this card gains a Spell Counter and increases all my Spellcaster's ATK points by one hundred points for each counter."
Tidal was intrigued. What was she up to.
Twilight took hold of the last card in her hand, the pain slowly returning as she did. But even so, she took a deep breath before slotting the card into her Duel Disk. "I activate the Magic Tome of Starswirl!"
Tidal's eyes went wide. "But even with it and Star Hall's effect, you won't have enough points to defeat Soveruin." Twilight just smiled, as the magic book appeared...on Rising Dusk Magician. "What?"
"With this card, Rising Dusk's ATK strength increases." (A1400/D2000/L4/P5) "And since a Spellbook was activated, Star Hall gains a counter and my monsters all gain ATK points." (A2600/D2100/L7/P4), (A700/D400/L2), (A1900/D1300/L4/P7) (A1500/D0/L3/P2),(A1500/D2000/L4/P5)
"Now what?" Tidal asked.
Twilight smiled as she pointed at Tidal's ace. "Now, Rising Dusk Magician attack!"
"What?" Tidal asked as he watched Rising Dusk unleash and blast of dark magic, which Soveruin deflected with his sword. The blast rebounded and struck Rising Dusk Magician, destroying her and shocking Twilight.
Twilight: 300
Tidal: 2900
"Why?" Tidal asked tha panting Twilight, who looked up at him and smiled.
"To win," she said as the ghostly image of Rising Dusk appeared infront of Tidal's monster. "When Rising Dusk Magician is destroyed, I can destroy one card on your field." Tidal's eyes went wide as he realised what she was getting at before looking up and seeing the ghostly image unleash another magical blast, this one actually destroying Tidal's best card. "And with your field empty, the rest of my cards and free the finish you off."
Tidal looked over at Twilight's Warlock and Unicorn as they both fired magical blast at him, the young adult crying out and he was zapped.
Twilight: 300 (Winner)
Tidal: 0
As the monsters faded, Twilight walked over to Tidal. The young man had fallen to the ground after that last attack, but suddenly found a hand being offered to him and smiled up at Twilight before taking it. "Gracias," he said as she pulled him up.
"No," Twilight shook her head, "I should be thanking you."
Tidal nodded as he continued smiling. "I'm sure Moondancer was looking down at our Duel and smiling."
Twilight nodded, "you're probably right." She placed a hand over her chest, "I'll keep the words you told me close to my heart."
"Hey," Tidal laughed, "that sounds like something I'd say." The two laughed at this before heading out of the stadium towards Twilight's apartment.
As the two walked along the edge of the Seine, Twilight looked up at the stars for a moment. Finally, she released a gentle sigh before nodding to herself. "I've decided," Tidal turned to her in curiosity. "I'm going home, to enter the Double X Tournament."
To say Tidal was surprised by this announcement was an understatement. "Are you sure. The Double X is one tough contest."
"You said it yourself, true strength is a state of mind. Moondancer had her eyes set on the Double X, and now that she's...gone, I think she'd want me to compete in her place." She turned to look up at the Eiffel Tower, the place Moondancer had given her her best card. "I'll compete and make it to the very top, to honour her memory." She turned back to Tidal, only to find his whole body was vibrating.
"Amigo...you have filled my heart, WITH JOY!" Twilight laughed at his enthusiasm. "Alright, then I'll help you. We'll make sure that by the end of the Double X, you're standing on the winners podium."
Twilight nodded, happy her friend was willing to help her. "Alright, but we'll need to act fast. The entry deadline's coming up and I still need to find a team."
Tidal nodded in agreement, as an idea popped into her head. "I think I can help with that." Twilight turned to him, confused at the confidant smirk he was radiating.
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I think you did Twilight's grief fairly realistically. And how Tidal pretty much walked her from depression to acceptance, I think was done well.
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I don't know why, but something feels... off... maybe I'm reading too much into the mark that was on Moondancer's hand from the last chapter... but I can't shake the feeling that Moondancer was some sort of doll and not the real one...
I know we are told that she was declared dead by the police off-screen, but in storytelling (especially post the advent of the pulp magazines and carried on into comics and comic books) unless someone's death is 'shown' to the reader, then they are still alive I don't know.
That was a nice chapter. The way you had Twilight dealing with the loss of someone close to her was very realistic. She still has a long way to go before she completely recovers but she is on the right path.
I guess next chapter will be her putting her team together, and maybe giving her boyfriend and family a surprise visit.
turn
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I can't say I know how that feels either, never mind that I wrote a story about loss last year. I totally understand why she'd have a hard time enjoying dueling and why using that card would be painful for her though.
Also, I can't help but imagine what Flash is going through on his end. I mean, I've never been in a relationship before, but if I ever end up getting ghosted by my (currently nonexistent) significant other out of grief, I'd be in panic mode. I'd be leaving voicemails like "Honey, please talk to me. Are you okay? I'm worried about you. Let me try to help. You're scaring me. Don't shut me out.
" Twilight better let Flash give her all the hugs when they see each other again.
You got it fairly well done and accurate.... even if I don't buy for a minute she's dead.
9703754
you are not alone in your doubts.
9703873
It feels WAY too easy.
9703895
I mostly base my assertion off of Banshee's past writing, a character with Moondancer'scloutt in the series proper has never been used as one shot literallycharacter to such a degree and too many things were hinted at in the previous chapter.
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9703907
I think you guys are right that it does seem incredibly odd and contrived that Moondancer would just die so soon after her introduction, but at the same time, the alternative could lead to some dark, sinister secret, which can be anything from "Moondancer was working for the good guys who needed to conveniently fake her death to throw off the bad guys" to "Moondancer was working for the bad guys all along, and her friendship with Twilight was all a lie.". After what Twilight goes through in this chapter, I'm fervently hoping that the truth is as far away from the latter as possible. Then again, both those scenarios could still be possible even if Moondancer's death was real. Hold on, Flash got sucked into the Double X from meeting Tempest, and now, Twilight's getting sucked in because of Moondancer. Twilight and Flash also got those strange visions while dueling Moondancer and Tempest, respectively. Call me crazy, but it's almost as if someone wants the two of them at the Double X. The whole thing is strangely reminiscent of Cold Steel's usual MO except more sinister.
9704230
I mean Mirror Universes exist here.
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I mean absolutely no offense to either of you, but I disagree. Sometimes bad things happen for no good reason. I kinda doubt that after everything Twilight and Tidal went through that Moondancer could show up alive later. But seeing how her friendship with them, even after her death, has been influencing them is interesting and I’d like to see where it goes. I bet we’ll probably learn more about Moondancer down the line via flashbacks and whoever it was she was talking to over the phone in the previous chapter.
9704524
You don't watch YuGiOh do you?
9704525
Of course I do! Every series. I also watch Vanguard too, which this story also takes inspiration from, and spoiler alert: people have died permanently in both shows. It is a sad but true fact.
9704536
Yeah but something like this ain't permanent. No matter how much you wanna believe otherwise until we get definitive proof? I call bullshit on her death.
9704539
Well in that case, let’s just agree to disagree for now and we’ll see how everything turns out as the story goes on. No hard feelings no matter who turns out to be correct.
9704541
Just don't be shocked if she's alive.
9704524
Look, I don't know why she and Flash have to be at that tournament, but all I know is that the the two of them competing in that tournament wasn't an accident.
Regardless, I just hope that Moondancer wasn't working for the bad guys and that her friendship with Twilight wasn't a lie. I mean, do you have any idea how devastating that will be for Twilight if that was the case?
Alright! All caught up to join the conversation. I wanted to say that the series as a whole has been a fun ride. This chapter, however, was not so fun. But that's a good thing, considering. You feel the sense of loss and hopelessness Twilight is going through. And... I get the feeling Moondancer may actually be dead. Yu-Gi-Oh is notorious for dark moments, and I get the idea that Moondancer was being used in some way before being removed to tie up a loose end. It's a dark theory, but I could see it. Anyway, looking forward to seeing what comes next.