Everyone in Canterlot City loves the game Duel Monsters, especially the students of Canterlot High. When Discord Corporation throws a citywide tournament and Twilight is taken hostage, what will Sunset do to get her back? Contains SunLight
Duel Monsters. The favorite pastime of many of Canterlot High's students. The HuMane 7 are some of the best players in the school.
School is out for summer, and Discord Corporation, a new stockholder for Duel Monsters, is hosting a citywide summer tournament. But the company president has a more sinister agenda. He wants Sunset's magic, and he's willing to kidnap Twilight and hold her hostage to get the Equine girl to participate in his tournament. Sunset will have to face many tough opponents and fight for the one she loves. (I suck at summaries. ^^;)
The bell resonated throughout the halls of Canterlot High School, signaling the end of not only the day, but the entire school year. The students, having finished their final exams, practically stampeded out of their classrooms. Among them was one particular group of friends: Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity, Twilight Sparkle, and Sunset Shimmer. These seven girls were well known by their peers for saving the school multiple times. Not to mention, they were all very skilled at the most popular card game in the world, a game called Duel Monsters.
"Man, am I glad school is over!" said Rainbow Dash, stretching her arms as the group made it out the building's front doors. "No more pencils, no more books—."
"No more teachers' dirty looks!" Pinkie said rather loudly. Everyone shot her a look, to which she responded, "What? I was just finishing the lyrics."
"And the stress of finals has been dreadful for my complexion," Rarity complained as she examined her reflection in a pocket mirror. "It'll take days to get rid of these bags!"
"I'm just looking forward to spending more time working at the animal shelter," said Fluttershy with a small smile.
Rainbow laughed. "You all have fun with that! I'm gonna spend the summer honing my Dueling skills!" She held up a deck of Duel Monsters cards. "My U.A. deck needs a bit of fine-tuning, but I'll be going pro by the time school starts!"
"I wouldn't get too ambitious, Rainbow," Twilight piped up, adjusting her glasses. "Baby steps. You should try entering some local tournaments first."
"Speakin' o' which," said Applejack, "any o' y'all plannin' on signin' up for the tournament DisCorp is hosting this summer? Starts next week. It's like a celebration or somethin' 'cause they bought some of the rights to Duel Monsters."
"No, not me," said Sunset. "My deck doesn't even have an archetype. Just dragons, spellcasters, and warriors with no real rhyme or reason."
Twilight put a hand on the amber girl's shoulder. "You're still one of the strongest Duelists we know, Sunset, competitive archetype or not."
Sunset blushed slightly. "Thanks, Twilight. That means a lot to me." More than Twilight knew, really. And Sunset wasn't even entirely sure why. Ever since this Twilight had transferred over from Crystal Prep Academy, she'd had this fluttery feeling in her chest. There was just something so cute about the nerdy girl.
Wait, did she really just think—?
"Sunset Shimmer! The Great and Powerful Trixie challenges you to a rematch!"
Sunset breathed a sigh of both relief from her thoughts being interrupted and frustration from the reason. "Trixie, if this is about your Tempest Magician, I won it from you in the beginning of the year tournament fair and square. And you know the ante rule isn't permitted on school grounds outside of tournaments."
"That may apply during the school year, but now that it's summer vacation, I can finally take my card back!" Trixie sneered. She strapped a silver device called a Duel Blade to her arm. These Duel Blades were the latest version of the Duel Disk system, with enhanced realism. Unlike previous Duel Disk models, the card tray was telescoping, and it only extended forward past the wearer's hand, and not their elbow. It also had a slot for the cards in a Duelist's hand. "I'll be wagering my Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon!"
"You must be pretty confident if you're wagering such a good card," said Sunset. "Alright. Let's do this." She strapped on her own bronze Duel Blade.
"Duel Blade, activate! Deck loaded!" both girls shouted as they placed their decks in the deck slots on their devices.
"Link established. Game system initiating," said a computerized female voice from the Duel Blades as they connected wirelessly.
"Let's Duel!" the players shouted as they drew their first five cards.
Sunset LP: 8000; Hand: 5 Trixie LP: 8000; Hand: 5
"I think I'll go first," said Sunset as she looked over her hand. Scapeghost first turn. Nice. "I'll set one card, set one monster, and pass the turn to you." Two enormous holographic images of facedown cards appeared in front of her.
Sunset LP: 8000; Hand: 3 Trixie LP: 8000; Hand: 5
Trixie made a tsk noise. "I expected more from you, Shimmer. Draw!" She drew a card from her deck. "I activate the spell card Dark Magic Veil! I need to pay a thousand Life Points to activate it, but it lets me summon my Dark Magician straight from my hand!" A purple magic circle glowed in the air, and a tall man in a dark violet robe and carrying an emerald scepter appeared in the middle of it.
Sunset's friends all gasped. "A Dark Magician without tributing? That doesn't seem very fair," said Fluttershy.
"But Sunset doesn't seem very worried," Rarity pointed out.
"That's probably because she has something really super duper huge planned!" Pinkie Pie bubbled.
"Well, nothing can stop my monsters!" Trixie gloated. "Since Trixie has yet to normal summon, here comes Chocolate Magician Girl in attack mode!" She slapped the new card onto the card tray of her Duel Blade, and her monster materialized in a flash of light. She was a young girl with blue hair and robe. She also had a scepter, as well as the wings of a bat. "She'll be attacking your monster! Go, Chocolate Magician Girl, blast it!"
"Sorry, Trixie, but you've attacked into my Scapeghost," said Sunset. Her facedown monster card flipped up to reveal four different colored fluffy horned creatures just as Chocolate Magician Girl blasted it with her staff. The other girls cheered.
"What?!" Trixie gasped.
"That's right," Sunset replied. "When my Scapeghost is changed from facedown to face-up, he summons four Scapeghost Tokens in defense mode to protect my Life Points!" The four fluffy animals depicted on Sunset's card separated to form a shield around the girl.
"She does know that they're called Black Sheep Tokens, right?" Applejack whispered.
"She does. But I think she just prefers her name for them," Fluttershy answered.
"Then I guess I'll have to whittle those tokens away one at a time! Dark Magician, dark magic attack!" Trixie ordered. Her Dark Magician raised his scepter and used his magic to obliterate one of the tokens. "I'll be ending my turn there."
Sunset LP: 8000; Hand: 3 Trixie LP: 7000; Hand: 3
"I draw!" Sunset said as she pulled another card. "First, I'll play Monster Reborn to revive the Scapeghost you destroyed!" The cluster of fluffs reappeared. "Then, I'll normal summon my Alexandrite Dragon!" A tall dragon with gem-like scales descended on the field. "And Scapeghost is a tuner monster. So if you want that Tempest Magician, get ready, because she's coming at ya!"
Trixie laughed. "As if! Don't you know that the non-tuners involved in the Synchro Summon of that card have to be spellcasters?"
"That won't be a problem. Reveal facedown! DNA Surgery!" Sunset thrust her hand into the air, and her second facedown card flipped over. "With this continuous trap card on the field, every monster we control becomes the type I'm about to declare. So thanks for reminding me that it should be spellcaster."
"Aw yeah! Go, Sunset!" Rainbow Dash yelled.
"Yay," Fluttershy agreed.
Sunset grinned as she continued. "I tune my level one Scapeghost to my level four Alexandrite Dragon and one of my level one Scapeghost Tokens!" she said. Her dragon and token transformed into five balls of light, and her Scapeghost transformed into a green energy ring around them. "Level six! I Synchro Summon! Let's go, Tempest Magician!" And she threw the card into a monster zone. The new monster was a female magician in dark blue robes. A gold circlet adorned her head, and a gold necklace was around her neck. She carried a staff made of bones with a demon-like skull at the top, and a flock of bats surrounded her. "And of course, when she's Synchro Summoned, she gains a spell counter." One of the gems on the magician's necklace glowed slightly.
"Well, she's not strong enough to defeat my Dark Magician!" Trixie growled. "And you know the penalty for attacking my Chocolate Magician Girl!"
"Yeah, she's the one that summons new spellcasters from your Graveyard," Sunset reminded her opponent.
"What?!" Trixie gasped as she read her card. "Oh no! I mixed up my Magician Girls' effects!"
"Tempest Magician, destroy her Chocolate Magician Girl!" Sunset commanded. Her monster nodded and raised her staff, shooting a powerful bolt of energy at the opposing girl. "Now, I'll activate Pot of Greed! This spell card lets me draw two more cards from my deck," Sunset said as she did so. "I'll set both of them facedown and end my turn."
Sunset LP: 8000; Hand: 1 Trixie LP: 6400; Hand: 3
Trixie drew her next card. "I made a simple mistake. One I don't intend to repeat! I summon Berry Magician Girl!" Her next monster was small and actually looked like a baby. She had pink armor, a tiny wand, and pixie wings. "When she's normal summoned, I can add another Magician Girl card from my deck to my hand. I'll be choosing my personal favorite, Dark Magician Girl!" She held up the card depicting a female version of Dark Magician. "Now, my Dark Magician, attack the Tempest Magician with your dark magic attack!"
"I don't think so! You've activated my trap card!" Sunset shot back. One of her cards flipped up. "My Mask of Weakness will lower the attack points of your attacking monster by 700. So let's let your Dark Magician try it on!"
"No! Not my magician!" Trixie cried as a hideous mask materialized over her monster's face. She watched in disbelief as the magic blast that should've destroyed its target was instead reflected right back, destroying her monster. "Grr...! I have nothing left to do but end my turn."
Sunset LP: 8000; Hand: 1 Trixie LP: 6000; Hand: 4
"Sorry to do this to you, Trixie," said Sunset as she drew her next card. "I'm tributing my last two Scapeghost Tokens to summon my Buster Blader!" This monster was a purple-armored knight wielding a massive silver sword. "Now I play Foolish Burial! This lets me send a monster card from my deck straight to the Graveyard, but he won't be there for long. I'm reviving him with Call of the Haunted. So come forth, Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
"What?! Th-that's impossible!" Trixie shrieked as the legendary beast rose up over her. "Seto Kaiba has all the Blue-Eyes cards! There's no way you can have one!"
"Two, actually," the amber girl corrected. "Remember when DisCorp reprinted a bunch of classic cards last month? Blue-Eyes was one of them, and I was lucky enough to get two."
"No way!" the frightened girl said.
"Now, before I start attacking, I'll activate the effect of Tempest Magician," said Sunset. "By removing her counter, I can dish out 500 points of damage!" The light from her magician's gem was absorbed into her staff and fired straight at Trixie. "And now it's time for a battle. Tempest Magician, attack the Berry Magician Girl!"
"Trixie activates the effect of her magician!" the blue girl said, recovering slightly from the shock of seeing Blue-Eyes. "She changes to defense mode to protect my Life Points, and a new spellcaster comes forth from my hand! Go, Dark Magician Girl in defense mode!" The new monster materialized as Berry Magician Girl was destroyed.
"Nothing my Buster Blader can't handle. Slice and dice her!" Sunset commanded, prompting her warrior to charge with his sword and destroy Trixie's favorite card. "And now you're open to a direct attack! Blue-Eyes White Dragon, white lightning!"
Trixie stared in absolute terror as the colossal dragon fired a ball of glowing plasma right at her.
Sunset LP: 8000; Hand: 0 Trixie LP: 2500; Hand: 4
"It's my turn!" Trixie said after she recovered. "Draw! I play the spell card Silent Doom!" She slapped the card onto her Duel Blade. "This card lets me revive a normal monster from my Graveyard in defense mode, and you already know who it is. Return to me now, Dark Magician!" Her robed mage reappeared from a violet portal. "Next, I play two facedowns and end my turn." She smirked. It's over. One of those cards will win the whole Duel for me, and the other is just a decoy. Good luck getting rid of either of them, Shimmer! she thought to herself.
Sunset LP: 8000; Hand: 0 Trixie LP: 2500; Hand: 2
"Then I guess it's my move! Draw!" Sunset said. "I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior!" she shouted as she called forth a ruby-armored knight with a cape. The jewel in the center of his shield glowed with a soft light. "Like Tempest Magician, he gets a counter when he's summoned, but I'll be using that counter to activate his special ability! I think I'll get rid of your facedown on the right!"
"No! My Mirror Force!" Trixie wailed as Breaker blasted away her card. "I can't believe you guessed it!"
"Guessed it, huh?" Sunset asked with a slight raise of her eyebrow. "Must mean the other one is a scare tactic."
It's true, Trixie thought. I can't do anything with that Magical Mallet now.
"Let's go, Buster Blader! Destroy the Dark Magician!" the fiery-haired girl yelled. "And Blue-Eyes White Dragon! Attack directly with your white lightning and end this Duel!"
"NOOOOOOOOOOO!" Trixie screamed as she was blasted by the legendary beast.
Winner: Sunset
The holograms disappeared and the girls' Duel Blades folded in. It was over. Sunset's friends all cheered for her, Pinkie Pie the loudest and Rainbow Dash with the biggest grin.
Sunset herself simply raised the corners of her mouth in a small smile. "Good Duel, Trixie," she said.
Trixie huffed. "Easy for you to say. You had a perfect game." She then straightened and gave Sunset a black card depicting a large black and purple dragon. "But if Trixie is anything, she is a woman of her word. As promised, one Dark Rebellion. But mark my words, I will get my Tempest Magician back!" With an overly dramatic flair, the blue girl threw a smoke bomb.
The seven friends coughed, and when the smoke cleared, the stage magician was nowhere to be seen.
Pinkie Pie gasped. "She's GONE!" Then she spotted Trixie watching them from behind the pedestal of the Wondercolt statue. "Oh wait. There she is."
"That was some mighty fine Duelin', sugar cube!" Applejack complimented. "How'd ya manage to pull it off?"
Sunset shrugged. "I don't know. Just got lucky, I guess."
"Don't be so modest, darling," Rarity smiled. "You won on a combination of luck and skill. You really could go far in the Dueling world."
"I gotta agree with Rares on this," said Rainbow. "Are you sure you don't wanna sign up for the DisCorp tourney?"
Sunset just shook her head slightly. "I'm sure. I love the game and all, but competitive play just isn't really my thing."
"Don't worry, Sunset. It's not really mine either," Twilight sympathized. "At least not until I find the best way to get my Cyber Dragons and Dark Magicians to work well together. But we'll still go with the rest of you to the signups, right?"
This got a full smile from the amber girl. "Definitely," she agreed. "Let's get going now so you all can register."
"Actually, I won't be participating either," Fluttershy admitted. "I just find the idea of a competition so scary..."
"Aw, don't worry about a thing, Fluttershy," said Pinkie. She threw an arm around the timid girl in a side hug. "We know you'll be there in spirit, rooting for us all the way!"
Fluttershy's face brightened considerably at that. "Exactly."
The next half hour brought the girls across Canterlot City to the tournament registration office and home to prepare their decks. As they parted ways for the evening, they waved goodbye to each other with promises to meet up in the morning.
Sunset decided to spend the night at Twilight's house. Having come from another world, she didn't have a home of her own. She spent her earlier years in this dimension living at a homeless shelter, but ever since she was accepted into her group of friends, she alternated which house she stayed at every few days. She was against it at first, not wanting to be a burden to her friends, but they all insisted. It ended up being really fun.
The two girls took the city bus from the registration office to Twilight's large house in the higher end suburbs. Once they got settled in, they decided to have some tabletop Duels. This took up a good few hours.
"I play Smashing Ground, destroying the monster you control with the highest defense points," said Sunset, tapping her spell card on Twilight's Cyber End Dragon. The purple girl just moved her fusion monster to her Graveyard pile. "And now that that's out of the way, I'll play Heavy Storm to clear away all spell and trap cards, normal summon my Herald of Creation and use him to attack The Calculator for game."
Twilight chuckled softly as she reshuffled her deck. "That was a great match, Sunset."
"You weren't bad yourself. I honestly thought I was doomed when Cyber End Dragon came to the field," Sunset confessed.
"You managed to pull off a really close win, though," Twilight pointed out with a grin.
"I gotta ask, though," Sunset spoke up. "Why use a card like The Calculator in this deck? It just seems kinda random."
Twilight pulled the thunder-type monster card out of her deck. "This is actually my favorite card," she told her friend. "Shining Armor gave it to me when I first started playing Duel Monsters. You can actually tell that he was the original owner of this card. Look." She pointed to the card's top left corner, which was slightly bent. "He always manages to mess up the one corner." The girls shared a laugh. Then Twilight stretched and yawned. "Wow, I'm tired. I think I might skip my late night reading and just go straight to bed. Want me to set up a sleeping bag for you?"
"Nah, I'll set it up myself in a minute," the amber girl responded. "Just gotta do something really quick."
"Alright," Twilight said with another yawn. "Goodnight." With that, she went off to her room.
Sunset crept past a softly snoring Spike to where she had left her backpack. From her bag, she pulled a leather-bound journal with a red and yellow sun on the front. This journal was magically linked to its twin in the world of Equestria, Sunset's home world, where that dimension's version of Twilight Sparkle would receive her written messages. Pulling out a pen, she jotted down a quick note.
Dear Princess Twilight,
Things are going well here in the human world. There hasn't been a single magic outbreak since Camp Everfree. There is something I wanted to talk to you about, though. It's about this world's you. Nothing bad, I promise. Just some things that I might need help understanding. Hope I can talk to you again soon.
Your friend,
Sunset Shimmer
With that done, the dimensionally displaced girl put the journal away, grabbed a sleeping bag from the hallway closet, and quietly entered Twilight's room. Her friend seemed to have fallen asleep already. She couldn't help but notice how peaceful the purple girl looked while she slept. One wouldn't know from looking at her that she had literally transformed into a demon not that long ago. But Sunset was getting more exhausted by the second. She didn't even bother to change into her pajamas, just took off her leather jacket, rolled out the sleeping bag, crawled into it, and drifted off to sleep.
On the other side of Canterlot City, in a building owned by the Discord Corporation, DisCorp for short, all was not well. A grey-haired, red-eyed man sat in a high-backed chair, surrounded by eerie human silhouettes. "And we're absolutely certain that Shimmer has the magic we're looking for?" he asked.
"Yes sir. Three of us saw it happen," said a male voice from one of the silhouettes.
"Then we should act now. Nightmare, is she asleep?"
"Yes. I can sense her dreams," came a female voice.
The man grinned wickedly and tapped his fingertips together. "Excellent. Then let's jack in."
Sunset's dream was suddenly interrupted when everything went white. She was silent for a moment, then tried calling out. "Hello? Is anyone there?" Her voice echoed in the void.
"You must be Sunset Shimmer," said a male voice.
Sunset jumped as the man named Discord appeared about twenty feet in front of her. "How do you know my name? What are you doing here? Heck, how did you even get in my head?"
"Oh, I know a lot of things," Discord said. "My associates have been keeping an eye you, and we're all very impressed by your magic. As for how I got in here, I have some allies that are like you in that regard. One of them has magic that lets me enter other people's dreams."
"There are other people with magic?" Sunset gasped.
Discord nodded. "Indeed. And they're not from this world. I've gathered many allies from across the multiverse. Oh! Forgive me for being so rude! I haven't introduced myself! The name's Discord, president of the Discord Corporation. But enough chitchat. I'd like to Duel you."
"You hacked into my dream with otherworldly magic... to play Duel Monsters?" Sunset asked. "That doesn't even make any sense."
"My dear, what's the fun in making sense?" Discord replied with a grin. He snapped his fingers, and two Duel Blades appeared out of nowhere. One of them was Sunset's bronze one, and the other looked like it was made of solid gold. "Here. We'll each use our real world decks. Oh, and you won't be able to wake up until the game is finished."
"I really have no choice, huh?" Sunset muttered as she and Discord strapped on their Duel Blades. "Alright, I'll play your game, Discord."
"Tell you what. I'll even let you go first," Discord offered.
"Gee, thanks..." Sunset grumbled. "I'll summon my Maha Vailo in attack mode and equip her with the spell card Black Pendant." A blue-robed, dark-skinned mage appeared on her field, and a golden necklace with a black gem materialized around her neck. "Normally, Black Pendant would only give her 500 extra attack points, but she has a special ability that gives her 500 bonus attack points for every card equipped to her, so she currently has 2550 attack points. I'll end my turn there."
"Okay. Draw!" Sunset pulled another card from her deck. "I'll tribute my Maha Vailo to summon my Kaiser Glider!" A large golden dragon appeared on the field to replace the spellcaster. "And since Black Pendant left the field, you take 500 damage! Now, Kaiser Glider, attack the facedown!"
"So sorry, Ms. Shimmer, but that was my Masked Dragon," said Discord. His small red and white dragon appeared for a moment before being exploded by Kaiser Glider's energy blast. "When he's destroyed by battle, I can summon a dragon with 1500 or less attack points from my deck. I choose my Exploder Dragon in attack mode." The new monster was a black dragon carrying a bomb.
Why would he put a monster with only a thousand attack points in attack position? Sunset wondered. Might have to be careful. "I'll set a card and end my turn."
"Then it's my draw," said Discord. He looked at his new card. "That'll work nicely when paired with Exploder. But first, I'll summon my Debris Dragon." This dragon was about the size of Exploder and light blue in color. "Now, Exploder Dragon, blow up that Kaiser Glider!"
"Check your math, Discord. My monster is stronger," Sunset taunted.
"Well, let me explain Exploder Dragon's effect to you," Discord replied as his monster charged forward. "Neither player takes any battle damage from a battle involving Exploder. Also, when he's destroyed by battle, he takes the monster that destroyed him down as well."
"What?!"
Exploder Dragon lit the fuse of its bomb with a small flame from its mouth. Just as it was about to make contact with Kaiser Glider, the bomb went off, and both dragons were eliminated.
"Ah!" Sunset cried out as the flames from the explosion reached her. Unlike the holograms of a normal Duel, she actually felt the heat against her skin. "It's hot...! How is that real?"
"It's not. We're still in the dream world, which has very different rules," Discord reminded her. "Anyway, since my Exploder Dragon was destroyed, the effect of my Interplanetarypurplythorny Dragon activates from my hand, allowing me to Special Summon him." He placed the card in a monster zone, and a much larger black and purple dragon appeared next to his Debris Dragon. "Now, both of you, attack directly!"
Sunset raised her arms in front of her to shield herself, but she was still blown back by the force of the two attacks. "This is crazy...!" she murmured.
"And now, I'll end my turn with a facedown card," Discord finished.
Sunset stepped forward slightly as she drew her next card. "I play Pot of Greed so I can draw two more cards! Then I summon Axe Dragonute in attack mode!" She slapped the card onto her Duel Blade to call forth the axe-wielding dragon. "Okay, Axe Dragonute! Attack his Debris Dragon! Axe slash attack!"
"I play my trap card Negate Attack," said Discord. "Let me explain to you how it works. Your attack... is negated!" He smiled sarcastically.
"Then I'll activate a trap card of my own! Dark Bribe!" Sunset countered. "This'll let you draw a new card, but it'll prevent the activation of your trap and destroy it! My attack continues, and your Debris Dragon is destroyed!"
Discord winced as his monster took the hit. "Clever," he complimented, drawing his card. "But my other monster is still stronger."
"Fine by me. When Axe Dragonute is done attacking, he changes to defense mode." Her monster shifted its axe into a more defensive position. "Next, I play a facedown. That's where I'll be ending my turn."
Discord drew another card. "I think I'll be activating this. The Hand Destruction spell card! This forces us each to discard and draw two cards. I'll be discarding my Delta Flyer and Totem Dragon."
Sunset growled. "Fine. I discard my Breaker the Magical Warrior and D.D. Warrior."
"And now, it's drawing time!" Discord said enthusiastically. He drew two new cards and sneered. "Exactly what I was hoping for. I activate Dragon's Mirror! This allows me to Fusion Summon a dragon by banishing the fusion material from my Graveyard!"
"Uh-oh. This can't be good."
"I banish all five dragon-type monsters in my Graveyard to summon my ultimate beast! Go, Five-Headed Dragon!" Discord yelled. The field in front of him glowed brightly. When the light died down, he was standing next to a monumentally colossal dragon with five different colored heads, including one made of fire.
"Wh-what the heck is that thing!" Sunset shrieked, trembling.
"The most powerful card in my entire deck!" Discord answered proudly. "Now to get your monster out of the way with my Interplanetarypurplythorny Dragon to clear the way for five-thousand points of direct damage!"
"I can survive at least one more turn with this! The trap card Half Unbreak!" Sunset reacted quickly. "For the rest of this turn, Axe Dragonute can't be destroyed by battle, and I would only take half the damage if he was in attack mode!"
"Very well. I end my turn with two facedowns," said Discord.
Sunset put a hand on her deck. "Come on, deck, give me a level four monster..." she prayed before drawing. She looked at her new card in excitement. "Yes! I summon Herald of Creation!" Her white-cloaked sorcerer appeared next to her dragon. "And now, I overlay my level four Axe Dragonute and Herald of Creation to build the Overlay Network!" A spiraling red portal appeared on the floor, and her monsters transformed into streaks of light before being drawn into it. "I Xyz Summon my Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon!" From the portal rose a new monster, the card she had won from Trixie that afternoon. Two balls of light representing its Xyz material orbited around it.
"Very impressive," Discord admitted as the dragon let out a mighty roar.
"If you think that's impressive, just watch this!" Sunset said confidently. "I activate Dark Rebellion's special ability! By using both of his overlay units, he can absorb half of the attack points from your Five-Headed Dragon!"
Dark Rebellion roared again and clamped his jaw down on his two overlay units. He and his target were both surrounded by a dark aura as 2500 attack points transferred from one to the other.
Discord, however, didn't seem phased.
"Alright, Dark Rebellion, attack his Interplanetary Dragon!" Sunset commanded.
"It really almost pains my to do this, but I activate Dimensional Prison!" said Discord. Just as his monster was about to be struck, a rift opened in front of it and swallowed up the attacker. "Now your monster banished. What do you know? It didn't pain me at all."
"I draw! I'll start this final turn by giving Fiver a 1000-point boost with Blustering Winds. Now, both of you, attack her directly to finish this Duel!"
Winner: Discord
Sunset fell on her back as the attacks landed, battered and panting heavily. "I don't believe it... He beat me..."
"Oh, cheer up. It was a good match!" Discord said with false sympathy. "In fact, you should enter my tournament! So that I can take your magic when you lose. I mean, I could just absorb the magic from your little friends, but your power is stronger than all of them combined from what I've heard."
"I'm not joining the tournament just so you can take my magic!" Sunset growled.
"I had a feeling you wouldn't cooperate," said Discord. "That's why I prepared a little incentive." He snapped his fingers.
Twilight materialized next to the madman, bound in a mummy position by ropes of dark energy. "Sunset...! Help...!" she cried.
"If you don't enter the tournament, how else are you going to save Ms. Twilight Sparkle?" Discord let out a cackle as he and Twilight faded from view.
Sunset jolted awake with a scream and looked around in a panic. Her worst fears were confirmed when she saw that Twilight's bed was empty. "No...! No, Twilight!" she cried out, her eyes clamped shut tight in a futile effort to hold back her tears.
Twilight's mother burst into the room and saw the empty bed. "What happened?! Where is my daughter?!" she demanded.
"She... she was taken..." Sunset sobbed. And now I have to get her back.
"WHAT?!" Rainbow Dash shouted at the top of her lungs.
"Weren't you paying attention, Dashie?" Pinkie Pie asked. "Sunset said that the president of DisCorp got into her dream with magic to play Duel Monsters with her and defeated her using a disaster dragon deck and now he's holding Twilight hostage to force Sunset to participate in his tournament so she can try to save Twilight while he tries to take her magic the entire time!"
It was morning, and the girls were gathered at Sugarcube Corner. Sunset had just finished telling them what had happened the previous night. Needless to say, they were furious. Even Fluttershy had a terrifyingly angry expression.
"I heard what she said, Pinkie! I just don't believe it..." Rainbow replied.
"Of all the things that could happen, this is the! Worst! Possible! THING!" Rarity wailed.
Sunset clenched her fists. "I'm going to get her back. No matter what it takes."
"And I'm going to help," Fluttershy piped up.
"Fluttershy, you really don't have to," Sunset assured. "I know you—."
"No! Listen, Sunset!" Fluttershy snapped, causing her fiery-haired friend to recoil slightly. It may have been pretty quiet, but it was still loud by Fluttershy's standards. "I may be scared, but nobody, and I mean NOBODY, messes with my friends and gets away with it. The more of us in the tournament, the better our chances are. I'm willing to put my fears aside for the greater good." She then hid behind her hair. "Sorry for shouting... I'm just so... peeved!"
A random woman nearby gasped, scowled, and covered her child's ears.
"I... thanks, Fluttershy," said Sunset. "For your help and the tough love."
"Well," Applejack said, "the tourney's only six days away, and y'all need to sign up. We can meet at my place in an hour to help ya prepare a bit."
"Thanks, AJ," said Sunset as she stood up. "Come on, Fluttershy. Let's go."
Not much longer later, the two girls reached the registration office. Sitting behind the desk and typing away on a computer was a man who appeared to be in his late thirties. When he heard the door open, he looked up and forced a smile. "Hello, ladies. How can I help you?"
"We're here to register for the Summer Sun Tournament," Sunset answered.
"Of course. Name?"
"Sunset Shimmer."
"Sun... set... Shimmer..." the man whispered to himself as he slowly typed it out. "Age?"
"Seventeen."
"Type of deck?"
"Dragons, warriors, and spellcasters."
"Home address?"
"Um... unlisted?"
The man shrugged. "Whatever." He finished entering the information and handed Sunset two slips of paper with Discord's face on them. "You're all set to go. These are your Entry Tickets. Don't lose them. You need them in order to participate. Next!" And the process was repeated with Fluttershy.
Over the next six days, the girls spent every free minute they had practicing, preparing, and improving their dueling decks. On the first day of the tournament, they gathered with hundreds of other Duelists in the center of the city to wait for Discord to officially announce the beginning of his competition. A Jumbotron had been installed so that he could make the announcement to a crowd of any size.
"Any minute now," Sunset whispered. "You ready for this, girls?"
"I was born ready!" Rainbow Dash answered.
"My Madolche monsters are delicious and ready to destroy!" confirmed Pinkie Pie.
"I even polished my Duel Blade last night so I can win in style!" said Rarity.
"Then let's do this thing!"
"Yay," came Fluttershy's soft voice.
With a hum of electricity, the Jumbotron came to life. Displayed on its massive screen was a live video of Discord. "Welcome ladies and gentlemen, newbies and pros, to my Summer Sun Tournament!" he greeted to the cheers of many. "The tournament grounds will be Canterlot City itself. You will all traverse the city streets looking for Duels. Once someone challenges you, there's no way out. You must accept. At the beginning of each Duel, you and your opponent can wager any number of your Entry Tickets, two of which you received upon registration. Once you collect seven of these tickets, bring them to the registration office to be verified so you can participate in the final round of the tournament. Just know that only the first eight contestants to do so will qualify, so be quick about it. The winner of this final round will get the chance to Duel me for fabulous prizes! There will also be an ante rule in play, but it'll be a little different. Instead of taking their rarest cards, a winner can go through their opponent's deck and choose whichever single card they want. Now, without further delay, let the games begin!"
Here we go. Sunset thought. I'll win those seven tickets. Then, I'm coming for you, Discord.
The first few hours of the tournament passed by rather uneventfully. The six girls all Dueled with mixed results. Sunset soon found that many of her other classmates were competing, including Flash, Lyra, Bon-Bon, Treehugger, and even Derpy. There were some unfamiliar faces as well. Rainbow Dash ended up at one point facing a goldenrod-skinned, grey-haired woman in a pith helmet who used an Artifact deck, though the athletic girl would later swear that she recognized her from somewhere.
The sun was beginning to touch the city skyline and lengthen the shadows when the girls met up downtown. As they talked about how their Duels went, revealing that they each had won at least one more Entry Ticket, the air suddenly went cold.
Rarity shivered. "D-do you girls f-feel that?" she asked through chattering teeth.
"Yeah. It's an ominous chill foreshadowing that something bad is about to happen," Pinkie replied.
Fluttershy trembled and hid behind Rainbow Dash. "Please, don't say things like that..." she begged.
"Yeah, it was prob'ly just a gust of wind or—," Applejack started, but she was cut off by a scream from a nearby alley.
"That didn't sound good. Let's go see what's happening," said Sunset. She dashed into the alley, only to bump into a pink woman in an official-looking suit. "Hey, I remember you. Cadence, right? From the Friendship Games?"
"Please... you have to help me..." Cadence panted. "That woman... she's merciless... like nothing I've ever seen... She took my Rainbow Dragon...!"
"What? Who?" Sunset asked.
"I believe she was referring to me," said a new voice. Sunset looked further down the alley to see a dark woman with matted blueish-green hair. The Duel Blade strapped to her left arm was a sickly green color. "I am Chrysalis, one of Discord's elites, and you, Ms. Shimmer, have fallen right into my trap."
"I should've expected the coward to send his cronies after me," Sunset growled. "I'm guessing you want a Duel?"
"Indeed," Chrysalis answered. "When I defeat you and bring you to Discord, he will reward me handsomely."
The other girls caught up to Sunset. "What in the hay is goin' on here?" Applejack inquired.
"Looks like I'm Dueling Chrysalis," was Sunset's answer.
"I begin this Duel with the Terraforming spell card," Chrysalis said. "This allows me to add a field card from my deck to my hand, which I will then play." She placed her new card into her Duel Blade's field zone. Everything around them turned a sinister shade of violet.
"What is this...?" Sunset wondered aloud.
"I don't know. This is a completely different field spell from the one she used against me," Cadence admitted.
"Well, I intend to go all out in this match," Chrysalis sneered, "so I started off strong... with Malefic World!"
"I've never even heard of that card! What does it do?" Sunset demanded.
"I'm glad you asked," said Chrysalis. "You see, my deck relies on something called Malefic monsters, special cards from my home dimension. This field spell card was designed specifically to support them. It lets me add a random Malefic card to my hand instead of conducting my normal draw phase each turn. But we'll be seeing more of that later. For now, I'll set one card facedown and show you how my monsters work." She pulled another card from her deck and placed it in the banished zone. "I banish my Red-Eyes Black Dragon in order to summon Malefic Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"
Sunset's eyes went wide as a dark vortex opened on the field, generating a very real-feeling gust. From the vortex, a massive black dragon with white streaks through its scales and gleaming ruby eyes emerged. "That is one scary-looking Red-Eyes," she commented.
"Thank you," said Chrysalis. "Now, I think I will end my turn."
Sunset drew her new card. "I've never heard of these Malefic things, so I might have to get a little creative here," she said. "I activate Card Destruction! This forces us both to discard our entire hand and draw the same number of cards we got rid of!"
"Fine by me. Everything in my hand is replaceable," Chrysalis said as she complied with the card's effect.
Sunset drew her new hand and grinned. "Alright! I banish Dark Blade and Mystical Elf from my Graveyard to Special Summon from my hand, Chaos Sorcerer!" She placed the card on her Duel Blade, and a black-cloaked mage with magic energy crackling in the palms of his hands appeared. "Next, I activate Chaos Sorcerer's special ability! Instead of attacking this turn, he can banish your monster! Go, chaos void!" Her monster thrust both of his hands forward, opening a dark portal that swallowed the opposing dragon into oblivion.
Chrysalis growled. "You'll pay for that, Sunset Shimmer!"
"Not before I attack directly with this monster!" Sunset declared, summoning an armored swordsman. "Go, Blade Knight, cut her down to size!" This command prompted her knight to slash with his sword straight at Chrysalis. "I'll end my turn with a facedown."
"Very well. I'll play Malefic World's effect. Here's how it goes," said Chrysalis. She searched through her deck for three cards and held them up, their backs facing Sunset. "In my hand right now are three Malefic monsters. You don't know what they are, but I do. You will randomly select one to add to my hand, and the others get shuffled back into my deck. So, make your choice."
Sunset hesitated for a moment, then pointed. "I choose the middle card."
Chrysalis smirked wickedly. "Excellent choice." She placed the selected card in the hand slot and the other two back in the deck slot. "Now, I activate the continuous trap card known as Malefic Paradox!" The area around them began to warp. "This card can only remain on the field so long as Malefic World is in play," she explained. "You see, my lovely Malefic monsters do have their downsides. Normally, I'm only allowed to control one of them at a time and it becomes the only monster I can attack with. But with Malefic Paradox in play, both of those effects are negated. That means I can control as many Malefic monsters as I wish, and they can all attack you!"
"Oh no!" Sunset gasped. "And with how easy they are to summon, this can only spell trouble!"
"Indeed. For you!" Chrysalis taunted. "I banish Rainbow Dragon from my deck and Cyber End Dragon from my extra deck to summon their counterparts! Rise, Malefic Rainbow Dragon and Malefic Cyber End Dragon!" Her new monsters emerged on the field with mighty roars.
Cadence gasped in shock. "She used my Rainbow Dragon... my favorite card... to summon that... that abomination!"
"And that Cyber End Dragon she used..." Sunset breathed out. "It's just like Twilight's..."
"Now, my Malefic Rainbow Dragon!" Chrysalis cackled. "Get that annoying Chaos Sorcerer off the field! Spectral Surge!" Her dragon fired a beam of black energy at Sunset's wizard, annihilating it.
Sunset winced as the shockwave and debris from the explosion of the attack hit her. To her surprise, it hurt. "That attack... It was real?!"
"Oh, did I forget to mention that?" Chrysalis asked in a falsely apologetic tone. "So sorry. It often slips my mind just how dangerous these cards can really be. In fact, I only just recalled that people have been known to lose their souls when they lost against them." Of course, one could easily tell from her sarcastic delivery of this new information that she had just been waiting to reveal it until it was too late to back out.
"Lose their souls?!" the amber girl repeated incredulously. Her friends verbally shared in her horror.
"That's right! And once Discord rewards me for bringing him your magic-filled soul, I will return to my dimension and use the power he will grant me to get revenge on all those who betrayed me by wiping them from existence!"
"There is so much wrong with that evil plan, I don't even know where to start," Sunset told her opponent bluntly. "And that's coming from me!"
"Oh, spare me the chitchat!" groaned Chrysalis. "Malefic Cyber End Dragon, destroy her Blade Knight!" Her mechanical monstrosity began charging laser blasts in its three mouths.
"I activate my Half Unbreak trap card!" Sunset declared. A bubble-like shield formed around her knight. "Blade Knight isn't going anywhere, and I only take half the battle damage!"
"You're only prolonging the inevitable," the madwoman hissed after her monster's attack struck. "I end my turn."
Sunset pulled another card from her deck. "I activate Pot of Greed!" she said, then drew twice more. Okay, I have my Buster Blader now, but he won't help much, she thought. This card might, though. "I'll play the continuous spell The Dark Door!" A massive black archway formed over the field. "Now, no matter what your Malefic Paradox says, neither of us can attack more than once per turn! I'll switch Blade Knight to defense mode and end."
"That move was nothing short of desperate!" Chrysalis mocked. "I'll find a way to get rid of your Dark Door. And when I do, your soul will belong to me!" She began laughing maniacally.
Maybe she's right, thought Sunset, her enemy's cackle echoing through her head. Maybe I am just getting desperate. I need to find a way to defeat her, and fast... But how can I when she barely has to lift a finger to bring out god-tier monsters like those?
"In my draw phase, Malefic World's effect activates," Chrysalis said. She held up three new cards from her deck. "You know what to do."
Sunset hesitated noticeably longer than she did the last time. "I... I choose the left card," she finally decided.
"Perfect," the evil woman sneered. "I banish my Blue-Eyes White Dragon to summon Malefic Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Her wicked version of a card all too familiar to Sunset emerged with a growl. "Now, attack her Blade Knight! Spectral lightning!" Her monster fired off a burst of black electricity. "And as much as I would love to end you now, your Dark Door prevents it, so I end my turn."
Sunset drew her next card. "Still nothing I can summon that's strong enough to save me..." she said in a quiet panic. "I guess I'll set this monster, set this card, and end my turn."
"And now, Malefic World comes into play," said Chrysalis. She began to search her deck. Ah. Here they are. My three Malefic Parallel Gears. She'll bring about her own doom. "Select one."
"I choose the left card again," Sunset said in a soft voice.
Chrysalis laughed as the other two cards returned to the deck. "Your fate is sealed, Sunset Shimmer! I summon the tuner monster Malefic Parallel Gear!" Her small machine monster appeared. "And now, I tune my level two Malefic Parallel Gear with my level eight Malefic Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Her dragon broke down into eight balls of light, and her gear formed two green energy rings. "Level ten! I Synchro Summon! Grace the field with your might, Malefic Paradox Dragon!"
The shadows warped between the two Duelists, condensing into a reptilian shape. Soon, the darkness began to take a definite form. Staring down Sunset was an enormous pitch-black dragon accented in silver.
"Another four-thousand attacker?!" Sunset cried. "How many of those do you have?!"
"Trust me, Shimmer, you have yet to see the best my deck has to offer," Chrysalis sneered. "Now, I set a card facedown and end my turn. If you set a trap, I might be able to make use of it," she added in an undertone.
Why didn't she attack? Sunset wondered. That's almost scaring me more than her Synchro monster. She must be waiting for something. Either way, I shouldn't let this turn go to waste. "I draw! First, I flip summon my Scapeghost! When he's flipped up, four Scapeghost Tokens appear in defense mode to protect me!" the fiery-haired girl explained as the tokens surrounded her. "Next, I'll tribute Scapeghost to set one more monster."
"A monster with high defense points, no doubt. You think it will protect you, along with those pathetic tokens," Chrysalis guessed.
"I can at least stall with this setup," said Sunset. "For now, I'll be ending my turn."
"This time, I'll conduct my normal draw phase," Chrysalis declared as she took another card from her deck. "Now, Malefic Paradox Dragon, attack the facedown!"
"Not so fast, Chrysalis! You've fallen for my trap card!" Sunset countered. "I'm activating Mirror Force in response to your attack, so all your monsters are destroyed!" A barrier formed around her field, deflecting Malefic Paradox Dragon's attack right back at Chrysalis's field and wiping her monsters out. "The perfect counter for any tight situation!"
"Nooooooo! You destroyed my monsters!" Chrysalis shrieked dramatically. Then she smirked widely at her teenage opponent. "I mean... thank you for destroying my monsters."
"What?" Sunset was thoroughly confused by this.
"Since one of the destroyed monsters was my Malefic Paradox Dragon," the villain explained, "I'm able to respond with a trap card of my own. Sin Paradigm Shift!" A spiraling portal appeared where her Synchro monster had been a moment before. "With the loss of my Paradox Dragon, I can pay half my Life Points to activate this card and summon forth a mighty harbinger of destruction straight from my deck!" Her Duel Blade ejected a card for her. She grabbed it and held it high above her head. "Abandon all hope when you face... MALEFIC TRUTH DRAGON!" And she threw the card down with all her might onto the Duel Blade's card tray.
A monster bigger than any Sunset had ever seen before shot out of the portal before it closed. This golden-yellow dragon was easily as big as Canterlot High School, perhaps even bigger. A glowing red diamond was embedded in the center of its chest, and its wings were long and wide enough to land a plane on them, before that plane was immediately swallowed up by its gaping maw. Its eyes were like black holes, but they still glowed with a sinister light. The girls all screamed in terror, and Fluttershy and Rarity fainted.
"That thing..." Sunset breathed, unable to muster the strength to speak much louder. "Five-thousand attack, and summoned so easily... That's... that's not possible..."
"The only thing here that is not possible is your victory, Sunset Shimmer," Chrysalis taunted. "Now that I control the most powerful of the Malefic cards, you may as well give in. But for the time being, I will end my turn."
Sunset steeled her nerves. She couldn't let this creep see how scared she was anymore. With as neutral of an expression as she could manage, she drew her next card.
"As I said, there is nothing you can do," Chrysalis sneered. "Draw! Now, I will attach an equip spell card to my Malefic Truth Dragon. It is known as Dragon Treasure, which gives it three-hundred extra attack points. Now, I play Stop Defense! This lets me change one of your weak little tokens to attack position!"
"But my tokens all have zero attack points!" Sunset said.
"Which works out wonderfully for me!" Chrysalis cackled. "Malefic Truth Dragon, attack the token!" Her dragon blasted a wave of evil power at Sunset's field. "You'll be taking a lot of damage! And that's not even the best part! When this dragon destroys a monster by battle, all of your face-up monsters die! Say goodbye to all those tokens!"
Sunset screamed in agony as the attack hit her and vaporized all her fluffy shields. She fell to her knees and wrapped her arms around herself, trembling.
"Sunset!" Rainbow Dash cried out. "Are you okay?!"
"I-I'll be fine..." Sunset said, though she wondered how true that was.
Her opponent laughed. "Fine?! On my next turn, you will be anything BUT fine! Make your move, Sunset Shimmer! It will be your last!"
This is it. It's over... Sunset thought. She practically has everything set up perfectly for a win. I won't be able to save Twilight. There's just no way I can stand up to her Malefic Truth Dragon...
Something sparked inside her mind.
Wait a minute...
She looked down at her hand and remembered that she had Buster Blader. Dragon... The spark fully ignited and became a roaring fire, giving off the bright light of epiphany, illuminating the way for the amber girl. Of course, that's it! Her Malefic monsters! They're all dragons! She rose to her feet slowly. "Chrysalis! I'm not losing this Duel!"
Chrysalis chuckled. "Such beautiful false hope," she said. "And what makes you think that?"
"Because I'm fighting for something that matters," Sunset answered. A golden aura began to glow around her, taking a shape that almost resembled her equine traits from when she ponied up. "I'm going to free Twilight from Discord. The first step to that is defeating you, and I just figured out how." She placed a hand on her deck. "It all comes down to this next card."
Deck, don't fail me now...
Sunset gripped the top card of her deck. Her aura surged briefly. "Harmonious Draw!" she yelled with all her remaining strength, not quite knowing where that term came from or why she was compelled to say it. As she drew, the card seemed to leave a streak of orange light behind it. She looked at the card and smiled. "Just what I needed! Now, I flip summon Tiger Dragon!" An orange dragon with black stripes emerged as her monster card flipped over.
"Twenty-four hundred attack points?!" Chrysalis mocked. "How can you possibly hope to overcome my monster with that?!"
"I don't," Sunset answered. "Tiger Dragon is here to power up a friend. I activate the card I just drew, Polymerization! Using it, I'll fuse together the Tiger Dragon on my field and the Buster Blader in my hand!" Buster Blader appeared next to Sunset's dragon for only a split second before they were both drawn into a blue and orange vortex. Sunset took a card from her extra deck and held it high. As she lowered it to her Duel Blade, she finished speaking. "When the unbreakable will of a knight is combined with the unmatched strength of a dragon, no enemy stands a chance! Show your might now in this Duel, noble warrior! I Fusion Summon Buster Blader, the Dragon Destroyer Swordsman!"
In a burst of glittering white light, a tall warrior emerged. He was clad in gleaming silvery-white armor with golden accents and wielded a curved, jewel-encrusted broadsword that was easily as long as he was tall. He held the sword over his head as a testament to his own strength. From beneath his helmet came an echoing war cry that could make even the toughest opponents shake in their boots.
Fluttershy sat up and held her head. "Oh, what happened...?" she moaned. When she saw the two monsters on the field, she gasped. "Is that...?"
"You bet it is, 'Shy!" Applejack cheered, pumping her fist in excitement. "That there is Sunset's best monster!"
"While my Dragon Destroyer Swordsman is on the field," Sunset told her enemy, "he forces all of your dragon-type monsters into defense mode and negates their effects!"
Chrysalis growled as her Malefic Truth Dragon changed to defense position. "A minor setback. My monster's defense points are still too high for you."
"Oh, I didn't say that was it," Sunset said with a grin. "He also gains an extra thousand attack points for every dragon in your Graveyard and on your field. That's four by my count, but how many of your cards you got rid of thanks to my Card Destruction were dragons?"
"They... both were..." Chrysalis realized. "Meaning your warrior has 9800 attack..." She smirked. "With all that power, I bet you wish it had left my dragon in attack mode. I'm not going down just yet."
"I beg to differ," said Sunset. "My Dragon Destroyer has one last effect. When he attacks a defensive monster, he inflicts piercing battle damage! In this particular battle, forty-eight-hundred points of it!"
"WHAT?! NO!"
"Buster Blader, the Dragon Destroyer Swordsman!" Sunset yelled. "Attack the Malefic Truth Dragon! Pierce right through its defenses and finish Chrysalis off! Destruction sword slash!"
The mighty warrior charged forward and jumped, blade whistling through the air as he sliced at his target. The enormous dragon stood no chance against his sword. And then, he aimed the followup strike at its master.
"No! This can't be!" Chrysalis wailed as the sword came down on her. "I can't lose!"
Winner: Sunset
Chrysalis flew back from the force of the slash. She skidded a few feet down the alley as the Duel holograms vanished around them and laid there, motionless.
"Is she... dead?" Sunset wondered aloud.
Cadence rushed forward and checked the other woman's pulse. "No," she answered. "Just unconscious."
The amber girl breathed a sigh of relief. Then, she was tackle-hugged by her friends.
"Sunset, that was awesome!" Rainbow squealed.
"We almost lost you, darling! Don't! Ever! Do! That! Again!" Rarity sobbed.
"I knew you could do it!" Pinkie Pie cheered. "I never doubted you for a second! Besides, the rest of the story would be really boring if you lost now."
"I get it! I scared you, but I won!" Sunset laughed. "Just let me go get my prize." However, as she approached the unconscious woman, she noticed that something was missing. "She... doesn't have any Entry Tickets..." she whispered. "All that, and I'm still no closer to saving Twilight..."
"That's not true," said Cadence. "You defeated this woman. And, if what you're saying about Discord is true, you've also gained me as an ally."
"Really?" Sunset asked.
Cadence nodded. "Twilight is like a little sister to me. If she is in danger, I'll do everything in my power to save her. And if you're working for the same goal, I'm on your side."
Sunset smiled. "Thank you, so much. But if you want to help..." She went through Chrysalis's deck, pulled out the Rainbow Dragon, and handed it to Cadence. "You might need this back."
Cadence placed the card in her deck box. "Time to put you back where you belong," she said. She then took two cards out of it and held them out for Sunset. "A thank you gift. They should work well in your deck."
Sunset took the cards gently in her hands. "Black Luster Soldier and Black Luster Ritual? These are so rare," she said. "I don't know what to say."
"How about 'see you in the finals'?" Cadence suggested.
The corners of Sunset's mouth turned up in a small grin. "I can't wait to Duel you then."