Dueling is Magic! Many Futures

by Wolfgang

Chapter 43: Inner Peace

Dueling is Magic!
Many Futures

Chapter 43
Inner Peace

/*********************\

"My turn!" shouted Twilight.

Player: Twilight Sparkle
LP: 2400
Hand: 1

"I summon 'Royal Magical Library,'" Twilight said. A massive, curved wall of shelves appeared behind her. Magical platforms floated along beside them, robed figures taking and replacing books as they passed.

Royal Magical Library
DEF / 2000
LV 4

"I activate the Library's effect. I can remove three Spell Counters from it to draw one card. I'll also use it with my Citadel, which can substitute its own Spell Counters for the cost." Three of the glowing lights circling the citadel in the distance behind Twilight raced towards the Magical Library, sparking quickly and vanishing into the books. Twilight drew a card and smiled. "I activate 'Golden Bamboo Sword.' If I control a 'Bamboo Sword' card, this lets me draw two cards. And since it's a Spell Card, my Citadel and Royal Library each gain one Spell Counter! Next I play 'Spell Power Grasp' to place a Spell Counter on the Library and add another 'Spell Power Grasp' from my deck to my hand. Finally, I'll activate the Library's effect again with its own Spell Counters, then follow up with the effect of 'Arcane Barrier,' sending it and the Library to the Graveyard to draw one card for each Spell Counter the Barrier had. I draw a total of five cards!"

"Impressive, my little pony," said Paradox. "You've replenished your hand very quickly, but you've used your Normal Summon to do it."

"Don't need it anymore," said Twilight. "The 'Magical Citadel of Endymion' has nine Spell Counters on it. I remove six of them to Special Summon 'Endymion, the Master Magician' from my hand!"

Six of the lights around the Citadel raced down in front of Twilight and formed a circle. A blue portal appeared around them and "Endymion" leapt through, twirling his staff like a baton.

Endymion, the Master Magician
ATK / 2700
LV 7

"Endymion's effect activates! When I Special Summon him by removing Spell Counters from his Citadel, I can add a Spell Card in my Graveyard back to my hand. I choose and activate 'Golden Bamboo Sword' so I can draw two more cards!"

"What do you hope to accomplish by drawing more and more cards?" Paradox asked.

"I've already got my plan for this turn," Twilight replied. "I'm just getting set for the future. "I'll use 'Cursed Bamboo Sword's' effect to return 'Broken Bamboo Sword' to my hand, then I'll equip the Broken Bamboo Sword to Endymion. I'll also activate the Continuous Spell 'Soul Devouring Bamboo Sword' and select Endymion for its effect. If Endymion inflicts Battle Damage, you have to skip your next Draw Phase." The broken sword appeared in front of Endymion and he took hold of it, but then it was suddenly repaired and a dark energy burned along the blade.

"I suppose it's pointless to ask if you're finished," Paradox stated dryly.

"It is. I equip Endymion with 'One-Shot Wand,' which increases his Attack Points by eight hundred, and then I play 'Diffusion Wave-Motion,' paying a thousand Life Points so Endymion can attack all of your monsters!" Endymion drove the end of his staff into the ground as a thin wand with a wide, angled yellow adornment materialized in front of him. He took the wand in his hand.

Endymion, the Master Magician
ATK / 3500
LV 7

"Endymion, attack Paradox's monsters, starting with Malefic Blue-Eyes White Dragon, then follow up on Malefic Black-Winged Dragon!" Endymion swung the One-Shot Wand and released yellow burst of wide, flat energy that cut through the white dragon. The bamboo sword in his other hand glowed brighter and grew to an impossible length. Endymion raised the sword as it continued to grow, then brought it down on the bird-like dragon, cutting it at an angle from shoulder to leg.

Player: Paradox
LP: 1900
Hand: 2

"Endymion, attack Malefic Remnant Dragon!" Twilight ordered. Endymion swung the wand and fired another energy blade, cutting through the black dragon. A distortion appeared behind its shattering form and another one emerged onto the field.

"Malefic Remnant Dragon's effect lets me summon another from my Extra Deck during my opponent's turn, treating it as being Synchro Summoned," said Paradox. "However, the one that was destroyed cannot activate its effect, as it was not Synchro Summoned the usual way, and it has no Tuner in my Graveyard."

"But thanks to 'Diffusion Wave-Motion,' I can attack the new one too! Endymion, attack!" Endymion raised the bamboo sword in his other hand and cut through the new Remnant Dragon. A third one appeared in its place. Endymion fired off another energy blast and destroyed it too.

"Looks like you're all out of dragons, Paradox," Twilight sneered. "And that means you're wide open! Rainbow can take you out next turn, and you'll finally start getting what you deserve for what you did in Equestria!"

"Is that right?" Paradox replied. "I have made mistakes in my lives, both as a human and as an android, but you have made a much more fatal error! When the final Remnant Dragon is destroyed, and because all three are in my Graveyard, I can now Special Summon 'Malefic Paradox Dragon' from my Extra Deck, treating it as being Synchro Summoned!"

"What?!"

"No way!" said Dash.

“Born from the threshold of the dimension of Darkness, the time has come to lower the curtain of destruction on the stage that surpasses time and space!” Paradox chanted. A new distortion appeared above him, much larger than any other. "Rise from the cracks in time, 'Malefic Paradox Dragon!'" From the distortion came Paradox's dragon, black armor with white running along the ridges shifting across its body as it moved, thick wings carrying it through the air. Yellow spikes jutted out from behind its head. Its blank red eyes seemed to stare directly at Twilight.

Malefic Paradox Dragon
ATK / 4000
LV 10

"Malefic Paradox Dragon's effect activates. When Synchro Summoned, I can Special Summon any Synchro Monster in my Graveyard, ignoring all Summoning conditions. I revive 'Black-Winged Dragon.'" The bird-like dragon emerged from a portal in the ground, but it lacked the Malefic armor that covered its face and chest before.

Black-Winged Dragon
DEF / 2000
LV 8

"Paradox Dragon's curse applies, lowering the Attack Points of all monsters you each control by the Attack Points of all other Synchro Monsters I control. Each of your monsters will lose twenty-eight hundred Attack Points so long as Paradox Dragon and Black-Winged Dragon are on the field."

Endymion, the Master Magician
ATK / 700
LV 7

Twilight frowned. "I Set a card and end my turn."

Paradox suddenly laughed. "It just occurred to me that you and I aren't that different," he chuckled.

"What are you talking about?"

"When I was in your world, the destruction I caused wreaked such havoc, I created a paradox the likes of which even I could not have anticipated. Now, here you are, in my world, doing the same thing. You turned my field into a burning wasteland, but this gave rise to something you clearly did not anticipate: Malefic Paradox Dragon!" As Paradox said its name, the black dragon roared.

"At least I'm not trying to erase a whole dimension!" Twilight shouted back. "Besides, you have this coming to you, and you know it!"

"Twilight, chill out!" Rainbow Dash called. "He's just baiting you!"

"I know that," Twilight said, "and it's working. But mark my words, I'm gonna show him what REAL destruction looks like!"

"Twi, why are you getting so worked up over this?" Rainbow asked. "He said he was sorry and he helped fix what he did back in Equestria. And right now, he's clearly being controlled by whatever's been messing around with the humans!"

"That doesn't mean I should forgive him!" Twilight screamed.

No one said anything for many moments. Then, Paradox spoke.

"What Yusei said in your world is true. There is a way to save humanity without destruction. I am truly sorry for what I did in Equestria, Twilight Sparkle, though I don't expect you to forgive me. If this duel is how you must come to terms with my actions, then so be it. We will carry on. But you must know that you cannot win. Yusei eventually realized that simply containing or preventing the problem wouldn't save us. He knows now that we must eliminate our singular nature, eliminate greed and apathy and misunderstanding. Humanity cannot save itself because our old habits will never completely die out. I see that as well. We must be saved by one who lacks these negative traits."

"Nightshroud doesn't lack those things, Paradox," Twilight replied. "He's just as selfish as any of us! I know why he is what he is. He tried to become more powerful and it cost him! I still don't know why he's so interested in taking the humans down with him, but we're going to stop him. You should just get out of my way while you still can."

"Twilight..." said Rainbow Dash. She shook her head and placed a hoof over her deck. "My turn!" She pulled her hoof away and the next card followed.

"During your Standby Phase, 'Gem-Flash Energy' activates its effect, but the damage it inflicts will be absorbed by Black-Winged Dragon," Paradox said. Streams of light shot out of the gems on Dash's field, but Black-Winged Dragon opened its beaked maw and swallowed the light. The some of long white feathers on its wings changed to black and red. "The damage is converted into a Black Feather Counter. Black-Winged Dragon loses seven hundred Attack Points for each of these counters it has."

"Whatever. I summon 'Crystal Beast Cobalt Eagle.'" A brown-feathered eagle emerged onto the field. A dark grey breastplate with cobalt stones embedded in it covered its chest, and a blue cobalt rested on the joints of each wing. A dark aura appeared around it and the bird fell to the ground, weakened from Malefic Paradox Dragon's effect.

Crystal Beast Cobalt Eagle
ATK / 1400 --> 0
LV 4

"I'll use Cobalt Eagle's effect to put 'Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus' on top of my deck," Dash continued. The great white pegasus disappeared from the field. "Since it's gone, the Equip Spells it had are also destroyed."

Holograms of "Golden Rule" and "Cursed Bamboo Sword" appeared and shattered like glass.

"I play 'Magic Planter' and send 'Gem-Flash Energy' to the Graveyard to draw two cards. Next, play 'Double Summon,' which lets me Normal Summon twice this turn. I Summon 'Sapphire Pegasus' back to the field and use its effect to put 'Crystal Beast Topaz Tiger' on the field as a Continuous Spell." The white pegasus reemerged on the field. A giant topaz stone appeared in the row of gems behind it.

Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus
ATK / 1800 --> 0
LV 4

"It's about time I got in on this Field Spell game we're all playing. I activate 'Ancient City - Rainbow Ruins!'" A colosseum flanked by massive stone pillars and crowned with a bright rainbow appeared in the distance behind Rainbow Dash. "'Rainbow Ruins' gains a new effect for each 'Crystal Beast' in my Spell Zones. I've got four, so I'll use its fourth effect to draw one card." Rainbow Dash drew and looked at the new card. "YES! It's here! All seven 'Crystal Beasts' are either on the field or in the Graveyard, which means I can Special Summon 'Rainbow Dragon' from my hand!"

The four stones and the gems on Rainbow Dash's monsters began to glow. A ghost of Amber Mammoth appeared with its own gems glowing. Beams of light shot into the air from each crystal, twisting around each other, then separating and forming a ring high above the field. The great white body of Rainbow Dragon flew out of the ring, its roar echoing throughout the city.

Rainbow Dragon
ATK / 4000 --> 1200
LV 10

"I play 'Effect Veiler' from my hand!" shouted Twilight. "During my opponent's Main Phase, I can send this monster from my hand to the Graveyard to negate the effects of a monster on the field for the rest of the turn. I choose 'Malefic Paradox Dragon!'"

"And without its effect, all our monsters' Attack Points return to normal!" Rainbow Dash added. "Rainbow Dragon, attack Black-Winged Dragon! Over the Rainbow!" The seven gems on each side of the dragon's neck briefly lit up from bottom to top. The dragon's eyes flashed and it opened its mouth. Two rainbow rings appeared in front of its mouth as a pure white stream of energy fired out of its throat.

"I activate the Trap Card 'Malefic Claw Stream!'" said Paradox. "If I control a 'Malefic' Synchro Monster, I can destroy one monster my opponent controls. Malefic Paradox Dragon, destroy Rainbow Dragon!" Paradox's face-down card flipped up. A violet whirlwind erupted from the picture and headed straight for Dash's dragon.

"I don't think so! I play 'My Body as a Shield!' I pay fifteen hundred Life Points to negate and destroy any card that would destroy monsters on the field!" Rainbow Dash quickly slid her card into her Duel Disk then flew into the air and put herself between the whirlwind and Rainbow Dragon. The whirlwind struck her and she cried out, but kept flying. It soon died away and the Trap it came from shattered.

Rainbow Dragon's attack continued, engulfing Black-Winged Dragon and destroying it.

Player: Rainbow Dash
LP: 1200
Hand: 0

"I end my turn!" said Rainbow Dash as she landed. "Let's see you get past this, Paradox!"

"Effect Veiler's effect ends at the end of Rainbow's turn, but Paradox Dragon's curse doesn't apply without another Synchro Monster on your field," said Twilight. "And something else you should know: Since I dealt Battle Damage to you with Endymion, 'Soul Devouring Bamboo Sword' makes you skip your Draw Phase."

"Regardless of what you may think, I still have the upper hand in terms of raw power! My turn!" Paradox announced. "I'll remove a Dark Ammo Counter from 'Corrupt Reload' and reveal 'Malefic Compass Gear' in my hand. 'Compass Gear' is returned to my deck and I draw a new card in its place. Now I play 'Malefic Divide' and resurrect 'Malefic Remnant Dragon!' As it is a Synchro Monster, Paradox Dragon's effect reapplies and all monsters you each control lose three thousand Attack Points! Malefic Paradox Dragon, attack Rainbow Dragon with Paradox Stream!"

Malefic Paradox Dragon
ATK / 4000
LV 10

Malefic Remnant Dragon
ATK / 3000
LV 9

Rainbow Dragon
ATK / 1000
LV 10

Endymion, the Master Magician
ATK / 500
LV 7

"I activate Rainbow Dragon's effect! During anyone's turn, I can send every 'Crystal Beast' monster from my field to the Graveyard and pump up its Attack Points by a thousand for each one. Then I'll use the second effect of 'Rainbow Ruins' to cut the Battle Damage in half!" Cobalt Eagle and Sapphire Pegasus vanished, with two of the gems on Rainbow Dragon's body lighting up. Rainbow Dragon spat out another beam of energy as Paradox Dragon let loose its own spiraling beam, but it was quickly overpowered and Rainbow Dragon was destroyed.

"And don't think I haven't forgotten about you, Twilight Sparkle," Paradox said as he turned his gaze to Twilight. "Your remaining Life Points are only fourteen hundred. You cannot survive this next attack! Malefic Remnant Dragon, attack 'Endymion, the Master Magician' with Timesplitter Stream!"

"I reveal 'Magicians' Defense!'" shouted Twilight. "While it's face-up and I control a Spellcaster-Type monster, all damage I take is halved!" Endymion spun his staff like a baton and dispersed some of the oncoming energy, but he was still destroyed and Twilight was hit.

Life Point Count
Paradox: 400
Twilight: 150
Rainbow Dash: 700

"One-Shot Wand's effect activates," Twilight said. "If the monster it's equipped to battles, I can destroy the wand after damage calculation to draw one card."

"I activate 'Malefic Greed,'" Paradox continued. "If I control 'Malefic World' and two different 'Malefic' monsters, I can draw two cards. I'll end my turn by Setting one card face-down. During the End Phase, the monster summoned by 'Malefic Divide' is removed from the game." Malefic Remnant Dragon's eyes widened as it dissipated into ash and flecks of dark light.

"My turn," said Twilight. "I play 'Spell Power Grasp,' placing a Spell Counter on 'Magical Citadel of Endymion' and adding another 'Spell Power Grasp' to my hand. Since it was a Spell, the Citadel also gains a Spell Counter for its activation."

Magical Citadel of Endymion
Spell Counters: 16

Dash whistled and said, "Wow, you're really piling those things up, Twi."

"I remove six Spell Counters to revive 'Endymion, the Master Magician' in Defense Mode. When Summoned this way, I can add a Spell in my Graveyard to my hand. I choose 'Golden Bamboo Sword,' and then I'll play it to draw two cards. I'll Set three cards and end my turn."

"My turn," Dash said. "I activate Rainbow Ruins' fourth effect and draw one card. Now I play 'Rare Value.' Twilight, you pick one of my 'Crystal Beasts' to send to the Graveyard, then I draw one card."

"Alright, Rainbow. I choose Topaz Tiger.'"

The giant topaz stone vanished and Rainbow Dash drew two cards, then immediately Set them face-down and ended her turn.

"My turn," said Paradox. "Rainbow Dash, you have no monsters in play and are wide open. You've also become something of a nuisance in this duel. I will eliminate you, and then I will deal with your friend."

"No!" Twilight shouted. "You hurt so many of my friends and you nearly destroyed my world! I won't let you do it again! Go, 'Magical Dimension!' If I have a Spellcaster on the field, I can Release a monster I control and Special Summon a Spellcaster-Type monster from my hand, then I can destroy a monster on the field. I Release Endymion and Special Summon 'Defender, the Magical Knight' from my hand in Defense Mode!"

Chains appeared and bound the black dragon. A coffin appeared in the middle of the field. Endymion and Paradox Dragon turned into balls of light and disappeared into the coffin, its lid slamming shut over them. When it reopened, a magician wearing thick blue armor and holding a short sword in one hand and a tower shield in the other emerged.

Defender, the Magical Knight
DEF / 2000
LV 4

"You think by ending a paradox that any of you are safe? No, you simply reveal the truth of time! I activate 'Malefic Paradigm Shift!' When 'Malefic Paradox Dragon' is destroyed, I can pay half my Life Points to Special Summon 'Malefic Truth Dragon' from my hand, deck, or Graveyard!"

An enormous portal opened behind Paradox. Through it came a huge golden dragon, twice as large as Malefic Paradox Dragon. Sharp white teeth fit perfectly together in a wicked grin as the creature glared down on the three duelists. Enormous gold wings flared out to either side as it roared.

Malefic Truth Dragon
ATK / 5000
LV 12

"Now I play 'Malefic Graverobber!' By targeting a Level Seven or above monster in my opponent's Graveyard, I can Special Summon a 'Malefic' monster from my hand, deck, or Graveyard with the same Level, ignoring its conditions. After that, if the target's name is written in my monster's Summon procedure, I gain Life Points equal to its original Attack Points! I choose 'Rainbow Dragon' in your Graveyard, Rainbow Dash, and Special Summon 'Malefic Rainbow Dragon!' Then I gain Life Points equal to its original Attack strength!"

Another portal emerged and 'Rainbow Dragon' flew through it. However, its face and wings became incased in black and white armor soon after.

Malefic Rainbow Dragon
ATK / 4000
LV 10

Player: Paradox
LP: 4400
Hand: 1

"The only downsides to this are that I cannot attack with 'Malefic Rainbow Dragon' this turn, nor can I Summon other monsters for the rest of the turn. But that hardly matters now. Battle! Malefic Truth Dragon, direct attack!" The dragon inhaled and spat out a stream of crimson energy at Rainbow Dash.

"I play 'Rainbow Gravity!' I've still got all seven 'Crystal Beasts' gathered, so this lets me Summon 'Rainbow Dragon' from my deck or Graveyard, ignoring its Summoning conditions! Now I'll use Rainbow Ruins' effect to halve the damage from this battle!"

Player: Rainbow Dash
LP: 200
Hand: 0

"Rainbow! Are you okay?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. That was close, though."

"We're not out of the woods yet." Both ponies looked up and saw countless black spikes appear around Paradox's dragon.

"Malefic Truth Dragon's effect activates," Paradox said with a grin. "When a 'Malefic' monster I control destroys a monster in battle, Truth Dragon destroys all opposing monsters and inflicts eight hundred damage to my opponent for each one destroyed!" The spikes lurched forward, racing toward Twilight's monster like rain in a hurricane.

"I use Defender's effect! Once per turn, I can remove Spell Counters on the field equal to the number of Spellcasters on the field that would be destroyed by battle or an effect." The red Spell Counter gem in Defender's shield began to glow. Defender knelt behind the tower shield and a wide barrier projected itself from the shield's edges around himself and Twilight. The spikes struck the barrier to no avail, vanishing in clouds of light on impact.

"I Set one card face-down and end my turn," said Paradox.

"My turn!" Twilight said.

"Trap Card, open! 'Malefic Time Bomb!' I choose a 'Malefic' monster I control and it cannot be attacked or destroyed by your effects, but it is destroyed during the End Phase. When it's destroyed, we all take damage equal to its original Attack Points. This is your last turn, Twilight!"

"So that's it, then? You're just gonna keep destroying everything around you? You haven't changed at all from when you rampaged in my home, have you?!"

"Whether or not I've changed doesn't matter since you're about to lose."

"Yusei believed in you! He fought so hard to save your life! You're just gonna throw all of that away?"

"I am repaying his kindness by working with him to save our world."

"You SHOULD be helping us to save him! You never cared about Yusei or anyone else, just your stupid mission! You nearly destroyed my world and now you're going to let this one be covered in darkness! I'll never forgive you!"

"TWILIGHT!" Rainbow Dash shouted. "That's enough!"

Twilight looked over at her friend.

"Rainbow, he-"

"I know what he did. I know he nearly destroyed our world, but he's sorry and he helped fix it! Besides, that's all over now. You've gotta forgive him!"

"No I don't, Rainbow. He doesn't deserve it."

"Maybe not, but you do."

"I deserve to be forgiven?"

"No, you deserve to forgive Paradox."

"How dare you!"

"No, listen! You being so angry has been bugging me a lot, and I just figured out why. When I was angry at you about the whole Duel Monsters Spirit thing you kept from us, I ended up forgiving you, didn't I? But the thing is, I didn't do it just for you. I did it for myself too."

"I don't follow. What are you talking about, Rainbow?"

"I was a mess inside because of how angry I was. But when I forgave you, that all went away. Twilight, even if Paradox doesn't deserve to be forgiven, you deserve some peace of mind. You should forgive him. It doesn't have to be for him, but it should be for yourself."

"Forgive him... for myself?" Twilight raised a hoof to eye level. "I... deserve peace." She closed her eyes.

She heard something. The sound her magic made. A blade being drawn. The ticking of a clock.

She saw a silhouette. A man looked over his shoulder at her.

Her eyes flashed open. She looked at the card she just drew. "Lightwave Tuning."

"You're right, Rainbow. I should forgive Paradox."

"So have you accepted your defeat?" Paradox asked.

Twilight smiled. "Nope! I forgive you, but I'm still gonna beat you!"

"You still hope for a bright future," Paradox said. "Then show me!"

"I will. But first things first: As this is my second Standby Phase since I played it, 'Soul Devouring Bamboo Sword' is destroyed. But I don't need it anymore. I activate 'Call of the Haunted' to Special Summon 'Blast Magician' from my Graveyard in Attack Mode. Now I activate 'Soul Taker!' This destroys a monster on your field, but you gain a thousand Life Points. I choose 'Malefic Truth Dragon!'"

"I use Malefic Truth Dragon's effect! I can remove a 'Malefic' monster in my Graveyard from the game to negate its destruction!" Malefic Black-Winged Dragon suddenly appeared on the field in front of Malefic Truth Dragon. A massive clawed hand made of dark energy reached out of nowhere and gripped the black dragon's chest. It pulled out a ball of light and vanished. Malefic Black-Winged Dragon exploded and disappeared.

"Then no Life Points for you, but Blast Magician and Magical Citadel each gain a Spell Counter."

Spell Counters
Blast Magician: 1
Magical Citadel of Endymion: 14

"I play my last copy of 'Spell Power Grasp' and give a Spell Counter to Blast Magician. The Citadel and Blast Magician also gain a Spell Counter for the activation of a Spell Card. And finally, I play 'Lightwave Tuning,' which lets me turn a Level Four LIGHT monster I control into a Tuner while it's on the field. I choose 'Defender, the Magical Knight!'"

"Twilight, are you going to summon 'Arcanite Magician?'" Rainbow Dash asked.

"No, Dash. I've got something else in mind." Twilight turned her attention back to the duel. "I activate Blast Magician's effect. I can remove any number of Spell Counters to destroy one monster on the field whose Attack Points are less than or equal to that number, multiplied by seven hundred. I remove four counters from Blast and four from the Citadel to destroy Malefic Truth Dragon!"

"I remove another 'Malefic' monster from my Graveyard to negate that destruction," said Paradox. Blast Magician gathered eight Spell Counter lights into a massive fireball above his staff, then hurled the fireball at Malefic Truth Dragon. This time, it was Malefic Blue-Eyes that intercepted it.

"Then I'll do it again, this time taking all eight Spell Counters from the Citadel!"

"And I will negate that destruction as well!" Another fireball was formed and thrown, but was intercepted by Malefic Remnant Dragon.

"Twilight, what are you doing?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"Do you remember how Yusei beat Paradox when they fought at the Singularity? He forced Paradox to get rid of all the 'Malefic' monsters in his Graveyard. I'm doing the same thing. Paradox has two monsters left that he can use to shield Malefic Truth Dragon. If I can get rid of those, and if you can weaken the dragon, then we can win this!"

"How are you gonna get rid of them?"

"With my new monster. Level Four Defender tunes with Blast Magician!" Defender raised his tower shield and slammed the edge into the ground. His body vanished as four stars appeared and drew green rings around Blast Magician. His body became an orange outline and was stripped away, revealing four more stars that formed a straight line.

"Hero's blade that sets forth unyielding light, here and now, awaken with a flash! Synchro Summon! Appear, Level Eight! Magical Swordsman of Awakening, 'Enlightenment Paladin!'"

The column of light vanished. Before Twilight stood a tall human dressed in white robes and armor. A white cape hung from around his neck. In each hand was a different type of blade. In the right was a sword with a long, curved blade and a single edge, and a golden gear-like handguard in front of the handle. The blade in his left hand he held in reverse. It too had a gear-like handguard, but the handle was much longer and the blade was straighter.

Enlightenment Paladin
ATK / 2500
LV 8

"Whoa... Twilight, what is that? I've never seen it before!" said Dash.

"If I use a 'Magician' monster as Synchro Material to Summon it, Enlightenment Paladin lets me add a Spell Card in my Graveyard to my hand. I choose and activate 'Soul Taker!'"

"Your persistence will get you nowhere, Twilight Sparkle! I remove another 'Malefic' monster from my Graveyard to negate Truth Dragon's destruction!" Another Remnant Dragon appeared and was destroyed.

"You've only got one monster left, Paradox. I activate 'Spellbook of Power.' Enlightenment Paladin gains one thousand Attack Points! Next, I remove six Spell Counters from the Citadel to summon Endymion from my Graveyard. I'll then use his effect to get back 'Spellbook of Power' and give Enlightenment Paladin another boost!"

Enlightenment Paladin
ATK / 4500
LV 8

"You've gone as far as you can, Twilight," said Paradox. "You cannot attack Malefic Rainbow Dragon, and your Paladin isn't strong enough to win against Truth Dragon."

"I've gone as far as I can on my own, but I can go farther when my friends are helping me. Rainbow, now!"

Dash nodded. "I play 'Crystal Slicer!' If I send a 'Crystal Beast' from my deck to the Graveyard and let you draw one card, I can cut your dragon's original Attack Points in half!"

"You don't have any more 'Crystal Beasts' in your deck," said Paradox. "All seven are on the field or in your Graveyard."

"What, you think I don't have more than one copy of each in here? I'll use 'Crystal Beast Sapphire Pegasus' to bring your dragon down to size!" A ghostly image of Sapphire Pegasus appeared and slammed into the massive golden dragon.

Malefic Truth Dragon
ATK / 2500
LV 12

"Battle!" Twilight shouted. "Enlightenment Paladin, attack Malefic Truth Dragon!" The white-clad paladin held each blade aloft. The handles began to glow as he merged them together. The curved handguards also disappeared. He spun the twin-bladed staff and threw it at Paradox's dragon.

"I remove another 'Malefic' monster to save it!"

"But you still take Battle Damage!"

Malefic Paradox Dragon suddenly appeared in front of Truth Dragon. The spinning blade stuck into the creature's chest. Enlightenment Paladin ran up to it and jumped, grabbing the handle between the blades and planting his feet on the dragon's chest. With a push, the Paladin pulled the blade out and back flipped away from the dragon as it exploded.

Player: Paradox
LP: 2400
Hand: 1

"This is my last move, Paradox! I play the Trap 'Miracle Locus!' Enlightenment Paladin can declare up to two attacks on monsters this turn, but you draw one card and you don't take any more Battle Damage for the rest of the turn. Enlightenment Paladin, destroy Malefic Truth Dragon!" Twilight ordered. Once again the Paladin began spinning his twin bladed staff, but held onto it as he flew past the dragon's neck, cutting through it. The dragon roared and was destroyed.

"Enlightenment Paladin's second effect activates," said Twilight calmly. "When he destroys a monster by battle, it inflicts damage to you equal to the Attack Points that monster had on the field."

"What?!"

Enlightenment Paladin separated his blades and held them to either side, pointing them behind him. A translucent image of Malefic Truth Dragon appeared behind him, glaring down at Paradox. It vanished in a flash of light as the paladin swung his blades downward on Paradox, sending him flying several feet before he crashed back to the ground.

Life Point Count
Paradox: 0
Twilight: 150
Rainbow Dash: 700

"Paradox!" cried Twilight. She ran up to where he lay on the ground. "Hey, are you alright?"

He groaned and opened his eyes. "Twilight... Sparkle?" he said. Rainbow Dash flew over the two of them and landed on his other side. "Rainbow Dash? What... ah!" His hand shot to his temple. "I... I lost to Antinomy. Then I... we..."

"We dueled," said Twilight.

"It feels strange," Paradox said as he sat up. "I remember... but it's like these are not my memories. As if I were only watching through someone else's eyes. And yet... no, I was there. I was really there."

"You made mistakes, Paradox," came another voice. Paradox looked over his shoulder, then stood up. The man with the visor stood with his arms crossed. "If you had focused on one or the other instead of switching between the two constantly, you would have won."

"Actually, Antinomy, that was no mistake."

"What?"

"I see it. I wasn't in full control of myself, but I still knew what I was doing. They weren't the only ones fighting."

"You misplayed on purpose?"

"I did. My way of apologizing to Twilight Sparkle, and asking her for help."

"I had no idea, Paradox," said Twilight. "I'm sorry for everything I said."

"Thank you," Paradox replied. "And thank you both for saving me."

"No problem," said Dash. "So, what do we do about him?" She pointed at Antinomy.

"He's defeated me once already. I'm not sure I can defeat him, even now. We know each other too well."

"Then let me help! If me and Twilight could beat you, I'm sure you and I can take him!"

"I will accept this challenge," Antinomy said. "But this will not be a Battle Royale. This will be a Tag Team duel. You both will function as a single duelist against me."

"I'm fine with that!" said Rainbow Dash.

"We must be careful," Paradox said. "It is possible for our decks to get in each other's way."

"We'll be fine!" Dash reassured him. Her Duel Disk flared up on her forearm and she shot into the air. Paradox and Antinomy mounted their D-Wheels.

"Twilight, go rejoin your friends!" Paradox said. "Make your way to the Momentum Core in the tower's lower levels and stop Yusei from opening the door between worlds! You must hold back the night!"

Twilight nodded, turned around and ran into the tower.

Antinomy looked up at Rainbow Dash. "You know nothing of my deck, and this is effectively a rematch between old friends. If it's all the same to you, who goes first will be between myself and Paradox."

"That's fine," Dash answered.

"Then let's go!" Paradox shouted. He revved his D-Wheel's engine and sped off, with Antinomy and Rainbow Dash racing beside him.

* * * * *

Yusei held up a card and stared at it. I made this, he thought, and yet I didn't. It was... another me. One that doesn't exist anymore.

He heard heavy footsteps behind him. Aporia. He turned to face him.

"We need time, Aporia. Can you and the others hold them?"

"Yes, my lord."

"Then go. Your orders are to simply buy me time. Do whatever you must."

"Yes, Yusei."

Aporia left. Yusei looked at the card again.

"'Cosmic Blazar Dragon,'" he said, reading the name of the card. "History may repeat itself after all."

/*********************\

Next time on Dueling is Magic! Many Futures

Jack and Crow race down the highway as their rematch begins! Though his tactics have changed, Jack still seems to be on the defensive until Crow summons Bayamo the War Hammer! Can Jack turn the tide and fight back against Crow's new Synchro Monster? Or will he be overwhelmed again by the violent storm?

"You can't stop a perfect storm, Jack!"

"There's no such thing as perfection in a duel! There is only the next level!"

Chapter 44

Perfect Storm

/*********************\

Featured Card

Enlightenment Paladin
DARK
Level 8
Spellcaster / Synchro / Effect
1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters
If this card is Synchro Summoned using a "Magician" monster as Material: You can target 1 Spell Card in your Graveyard; return it to your hand. If this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle: You can inflict damage to your opponent equal to the ATK that monster had on the field.
ATK / 2500
DEF / 2000

Author's Note:

Bet you didn't see THAT coming! I was able to use the anime version of "Enlightenment Paladin" to give Twilight the edge she needed. It DOES pose a few problems, though. For starters, only certain "Magician" monsters actually count for its effect- and some cards that aren't "Magicians" also count, like Time Wizard or Nightwing Sorceress. Other cards which DO have "Magician" in their name, such as Endymion, the Master Magician, or even Dark Magician, don't count. This is because they don't have 魔術師 (Majotsushi) in their Japanese names. To solve this problem, the OCG/TCG release of Enlightenment Paladin restricted it to "Magician" Pendulum Monsters.

Yes, the card Yusei received from Z-one is "Cosmic Blazar Dragon." I decided to go ahead and reveal it because it's getting a TCG printing next March- no, I'm NOT kidding! A special set called Duelist Saga is being released in March, and part of its advertisement is this: "Yusei’s secret ace Synchro Monster whose existence was revealed in Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D’s, but was never called to action in our timeline."

Three guesses what it is, right?

In any case, Dash/Paradox vs. Antinomy is going to happen in future chapters, but not right away. I've been ITCHING to get into Crow and Jack's rematch. Quite frankly, I think it's my best duel to date. You'll see just how much Jack has grown.

In the meantime, kick back, relax, and catch up on ARC-V. With the revelations we received in recent episodes regarding the four dimensions, Yuya, and Yuzu, I now have a concrete idea of what I can and can't do in this story to keep it in line with the canon. You can watch the first thirty episodes of ARC-V in Japanese with English subs (the subs use English names for the cards, Japanese names for everything else) on http://crunchyroll.com/yu-gi-oh-arc-v/.

Oh yeah, and I threw another little Protomen reference in there.

Comments

[Blazewind strike]

That was fast, are you the same person(I kid).

But Yuya be like, what one of my aces, I call bull. But didn't expect that, I guess Arc-V cards are up for grabs(I will laugh if some how Clear Wing get's in here some how).

[Utopianking]

Excellent. I'm personally waiting for the effect reveal for Zarc. That should be next month, from what I've heard.

[Regreme]

Another excellent chapter, as always.^^

[Wolfgang]

7761476 Well, we know it's a Fusion Monster based on the texts of Astrograph and Chronograph Sorcerers. They treat its summon as a Fusion Summon. Honestly, I'm friggin' terrified of what it might do.

[Wolfgang]

7761117 SOME cards are up. Anything to do with Pendulums directly are off limits. Which means there will be NO appearance of Nirvana High Paladin in this story. I MAY still use Xyz-related cards since I think I can justify giving Pinkie the Madolche series, but I'll mostly be drawing on very early support, real basic stuff. Gotta keep it looking fresh, you know?

[Maxout020]

7761952 You could have her use Fluffals as a reference to he split-personality. Just a thought.

Also, YOWZAH what a match! I didn't see Paladin coming, but then again the duel was so intense I wasn't sure WHAT to expect!

And now we have a 2 on 1 with Dash Paradox and Antinomy AND the Jack and Crow rematch?! I'm gonna need more coffee.

And lastly, HOLY SHIT ARE YOU SERIOUS?! THEY'RE PRINTING COSMIC BLAZER DRAGON?!

Please don't screw this up Konami, PLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASE!!!

[Blazewind strike]

7761952 Would Cardians, Assault Blackwings, Red cards working in the story?

[Haoryu Changer]

*Spoilers*

Kind of sad Yusho lost in his first shown duel in the series. His monsters rock though!

[Wolfgang]

7764027 Cardians might, but I'm not sure I could find someone to use them. I've already decided against the Assault Blackwing series, but other new BW cards are fair game. As for the Red cards, well, we'll see.

[Blazewind strike]

7783270 Well Tyrant been confirmed now.