Episode 40. - Burning Heart, Soothing Soul

Today, Duel Masters' North American Champion had taken on a role few would have expected of him. He was helping administration at a tournament. Yodaz was quite pleased about it, despite the menial nature of the task. He was in charge of confirming the decklists of the entries, and now that registration was ending, he would have time to peruse those decklists himself. He was not participating, nor even dueling the winner. His Champion status carried over to the KirriCorp league automatically despite the deck changes and rule alterations, and he would hold the title at least for awhile longer.

Just as he and Corile were about to strike up a good analytical conversation regarding two of the stranger Turbo Rush themed decks he had seen, a youth with black hair approached the registration table.

"Am I too late to enter? Name's Nicholas Burner, I--"

Yodaz glanced up at the clock, though he already knew the answer, and gave it; "Yes, you're a bit too late. Sorry."

Burner puffed an exasperated sigh. So close. His Kaijudo spiked in slight frustration, causing Yodaz to look up at him now. It was only then, that Nicholas Burner realized just who he had been talking to.
"You're... the champion..."

Yodaz nodded, then went back to reading the decklist. Burner's Kaijudo rose slightly more. He could sense that Yodaz was conversing with his own avatar. He smirked. Of course the champion would have Kaijudo. That just made sense. They probably all did. Maybe his trip would not be a waste after all.
"In that case, since I came all the way here, kettou da!"

Yodaz looked up, and raised an eyebrow. It was certainly confident of Burner to challenge him, and even odder to do so when he clearly was not at the tournament to duel. He was about to decline when Burner's Kaijudo rose slightly again, and Corile got a 'glimpse' of the young man's avatar.
"Valdios..."

"Hm?" Yodaz intoned, not to Burner, but rather to Corile.

"Valdios is here..." Corile replied, the wavelength of thought carrying an interested smirk, "Let's do this. I have truly been interested to see, if I can stop him with my restricted power."

Yodaz got the idea clearly now himself, and rummaged in his bag for his deck. By the time he found it, Burner had already deployed his shields. Yodaz's eyebrow raised again. This person was quite... forward. Also rather confident. He already knew at least one part of the deck from Burner's avatar alone. Corile seemed to have a fairly clear idea of exactly what was coming, and after a minor consultation with Yodaz, it was decided...
"You go first."

Nicholas Burner smirked. Advantage already, or at least a fair starting ground. He charged water mana, a Crystal Lancer. Yodaz's eyebrow raised for the third time, trying to imagine a Lancer and an Armored Blaster Valdios getting along in the same deck. He reconsidered the oddness of it a moment later, remembering how utterly fond of the new fiery addition to his own deck Corile had become lately.

This was demonstrated by a happy spike of energy, since that was the very first card he drew. The rest of the hand was not particularly easy to figure out what to do with, but Yodaz was quite used to that by now. He charged Nature mana. A Mana Nexus, and ended his turn.

Burner grinned. So it was true. The champion did use Nature in his control deck. Even better. That meant there would be Natural Snares to feed his manazone. He placed an Aqua Soldier in mana, and summoned an Emeral. Yodaz blinked noncomittally. So far, it looked like Libra's... so it was probably similar, but with Fire rather than Darkness. He sent his own Emeral to mana, and summoned the other that had been in his hand, placing his shield and inwardly smirking at what he had picked up.

"So how's the new rules treating you, champ?" Burner laughed, placing his avatar card into his manazone and summoning an Aqua Hulcus beside the Emeral.

"Not that bad," Yodaz replied, masking Corile's disappointment at not 'needing' to stop the Human Evolution. What Burner did next, surprised him a bit.

"I see. Emeral, ikei! Break that set shield!"
The Terror Pit triggered, swallowing up the Hulcus. Burner's Kaijudo dipped a bit. Yodaz regarded him with slight confusion. What exactly had the strange bold duelist thought it was going to be? Burner ended his turn, and Yodaz charged mana. Corile was slightly disappointed at this, too, but for the plan to work, Fire mana would be needed, even if it was the Magmadragon Jagalzor.

"Crimson Hammer," Yodaz said, "End turn."

The weapon sizzled Burner's Emeral out of existence, just as Yodaz was used to doing against many other duelists. Corile seemed anxious, but happy, anticipating what would come out of Burner's deck next. Yodaz smiled to himself. It was a nice feeling to have again, his mind calculating the possibilities at blazing speed.

Another demonstration of 'blazing speed' now occurred, as Burner placed a Burst Shot into his mana zone and summoned.
"Pyrofighter Magnus! Ikei!"

The shield broke with no trigger. Corile seemed almost elated.
"How to stop... how to stop... hmmm... I know..."

Yodaz charged Darkness mana now. Lost Soul. Burner smirked.
"I guess the new rules have a bit of an--"

"Cranium Clamp," Yodaz announced, casting the spell and cutting Burner off mid-sentence, "Emeral, ikei."

Burner frowned as the champion's visualization for the card kicked in. Emeral seemed to interface with some giant dark mecha, and there was a hissing sound, then a feeling of dizziness. His Pyrofighter and Aqua Hulcus were now gone. Burner shook his head to clear it. He was not out yet. The attack had given him a shield card, but somehow he was not convinced that Cranium Clamp was 'weakened' at all, now that he had lost his Magnus.

"You're... interesting," Yodaz noted as Burner drew and played another Crystal Lancer to mana, "Very aggressive style, yet you put Burst Shot in it. Original to say the least."

"Hehe, yeah, I like to mix it up, you know? Speaking of which, looks like my reserve soldier has come in. Pyrofighter Magnus, ikei! Break shield!"

This shield did not trigger either. Yodaz smirked. His opponent had not destroyed his Emeral, therefore his own plan would still go off. A repeat of the last turn. He charged Fire mana.
"Cranium Clamp. Emeral, ikei."

Burner felt the energy in his mind crunch down. So this is what it was like to be under the influence of the most powerful Kaijudo in the world... His Pyrofighter Magnus and Twin-Cannon Skyterror disappeared into the darkness, and he picked up the broken shield. Now, he was practically trapped. Yodaz was calm. Waiting, almost meditative. Burner licked the left corner of his upper lip. Something was worrying him.
"Bazagazeal Dragon to mana. Summon Mini Titan Gett... end turn."

"It could evolve..." Corile noted, as Yodaz drew an Aqua Hulcus, "Better safe than sorry. We should dispose of it."

Yodaz agreed, charging Darkness mana, a Terror Pit, and sending the Human to the grave with an explosive Volcano Charger spell, then summoning an Aqua Hulcus beside his Emeral. The duel was under control, even though he had needed to attack. He noted now that perhaps using Clamp in that way was not so bad after all. His Kaijudo now spiked as he drew the card by the Hulcus' effect. Corile's new 'friend' was back.

Burner drew his card... and sat there for a short while, apparently contemplating his situation. By now, a few stray duelists had come to see what the champion was doing, dueling, and were buzzing around, murmuring about who Burner possibly was, that Yodaz would duel him and no one else there that day.
"I... end turn," Burner finally said.

Yodaz nodded, drawing his next card. A Corile. There was a strange glimmer of energy from him as he placed the Corile next to the Jagalzor he had drawn just before, but it was fleeting, as he now placed that Corile in his mana zone and summoned an Illusionary Merfolk. The tidal wave of energy that now swept over Nicholas Burner's mind nearly made him slide out of his chair. Yodaz drew his three cards, and smiled. Just what he needed. And he had charged the extra water mana in anticipation of this exact event.
"And also summon Emeral, swapping shield."

Burner could not be sure what it was, but it was almost surely going to destroy whatever he could summon. Yodaz relaxed. The duel was well in hand, since the only thing his opponent could really do at this point that would pose any threat, was not exactly likely. The shield he had picked up had also been a Corile, to replace the one he had put to mana. The stage was set. Burner would need one very specific card to even have a chance of breaking his defensive line now.

"I suppose this would be the reason why you put the Burst Shot in?" Yodaz noted, "I can see why one would be hesitant to use Searing Wave in this situation. I'm quite happy with the changes to that card. Means I have to see it less. Though you've replaced it with something almost as dangerous to me, so I suppose I might have to actually make a move now."

Yodaz had learnt from Libra, indirectly, when it was necessary to risk an attack. Now was one of those times. A deck full of speed attackers was a problem. A Pyrofighter Magnus at this point would be a bigger problem. He decided to give Burner one card, something he could possibly Corile, and to trigger the shield Burner's Emeral had set at the beginning. In this way, he could keep the situational problems to a minimum.
"Aqua Hulcus, ikei--" there was no trigger, "Emeral, break set shield. Ikei!"

To his surprise, Burner's set shield... did not trigger. Yodaz felt his mind go 'uh oh', and the strange feeling of a rush of excitement filling him. He still had the situation more or less in hand, but the extra addition to Burner's hand would make this a bit more of a problem than he had otherwise foreseen. He quickly glanced at his opponent's manazone. Still only six. Not enough to summon the--

"Bazagazeal Dragon... to mana," Burner announced, causing Yodaz's heart to leap, before he reassured himself that all was fine, "And cast Apocalypse Vise!"

The hiss of steam from the Liquid Person, Gel Fish and two Cyber Lords filled his mind. So Burner had yet another fiery way of staying alive.
"So interesting!" Corile celebrated, "And I was so sure we had him cornered!"

Yodaz smiled more, drawing his card. An Energy Stream. He checked his graveyard pile, then dropped the Energy Stream into his mana zone, and cast a Corpse Charger, causing his Illusionary Merfolk to return to him. He was taking no chances. Burst Shot was practically all that was left to be worried about, since Burner had exhausted his hand and still would not be able to instantly summon any Dragon even if he had another.
"But I can..." Yodaz smirked to himself, "I summon Magmadragon Jagalzor!"

The roar of the dragon seemed to echo through the sky, as the troops of the 'Ocean of Death' rallied around their new vanguard, at least in spirit. Burner's own Kaijudo welcomed the volcanic heat that Jagalzor's appearance brought, but that was all. Now, Yodaz had brought the situation down to the final cards.

"Why'd he summon that without being able to get its effect?" came the murmur of one spectator. Yodaz smirked again. It was not clear to everyone. Jagalzor might not be able to get its effect, nor even to give it to those coming after, but there was simply something to be said for six thousand power. Even if Burner were to slow his assault in an attempt to bring forth an evolution card, even his avatar Valdios... there would be a way to stop it. There really was only one thing to even possibly be worried about, and Burner's deck would probably be quite strained if he had tried to fit multiples of that behemoth in there as well.

"Choya, the Unheeding, to mana. Summon Twin-Cannon Skyterror!"

"Aha! We were wrong again!" Corile exclaimed almost delightedly as the cannon blasts whizzed past Jagalzor to shatter the two remaining shield units. The set one triggered, and within moments, the Skyterror had been dragged away by vines. Burner was, again, left with little or nothing. Yodaz's Jagalzor still floated, the superheated air around it causing its appearance to shimmer.

Now, the champion found himself deep in thought. Calculation. There were a lot of instant attacks in this deck he now faced. Enough that it posed a threat. He had already disposed of two Pyrofighters, two Twincannons, and seen multiple Crystal Lancers and Bazagazeal Dragons going into the mana zone. Whatever Burner had been thinking when he built it, the deck was certainly and unmistakably aggressive.

His second shield had been a Cranium Clamp, the reason for his current level of contemplation. Burner held one card in his hand. He had one shield remaining. He would draw a card next turn. Any of those three could be the one that would end the duel. Yodaz could leave the shield where it was, hoping that the card in hand was not the danger, or he could Clamp it away and give Burner the shield instead. Regardless of what he did, a topdeck could win the game for his opponent.

The odd part of this, was that Burner's Kaijudo was betraying no sign of what to do, at all. It did not give off anxious waves, to even hint to Yodaz if he was worried about holding onto his hand card.

"What does it matter?" Corile laughed, "Win or lose, we never saw Valdios, did we now?"

"You realize of course that if it is Valdios in hand and he draws another human, Valdios is exactly what we will see, and it will be the 'last thing' we see, too?" Yodaz grinned, pointing out the irony of the situation to his obviously entertained avatar.

"Ooh... very true. Even more funny!"
Yodaz found himself smiling. Before this, he would not have known that Corile had such a sense of humor, especially not in the face of defeat. It was not even as if he could really change his situation. This was purely a matter of guessing where the instant attack could come from. Playing an odd roulette.

"Leave the shield there. Let me go and stand with Jagalzor. That's what I want."
Now, the champion nodded to himself internally, and dropped the Cranium Clamp into mana.

"I summon Corile--" now, the energy surged, and Cyber Lord and vanguard Dragon stood together on the battlefield, Corile apparently unaffected by the searing heat emanating from Jagalzor's body-- "And an Illusionary Merfolk!"

Another tidal wave of Kaijudo swept over Nicholas Burner. Three more cards went into Yodaz's hand. He would probably need none of them. The duel was about to end, one way or the other. Even an Apocalypse Vise would leave him with at least a Merfolk to keep attacking with, and he would be facing no attack. He could simply play his Mana Nexus and start a chain of shield triggers that would defend him from even the swiftest of Burner's possible assaults.

Burner, on the other hand, was hoping for an altogether different outcome. Just to be left with one final attack. He was poised for action, and finally, Yodaz made his choice clear...
"End turn."

Nicholas practically whipped up his next card. His situation had gone in his favor, and he charged Choya, the Unheeding, to mana.
"Now I summon Twin-Cannon Skyterror! Skyterror, todomeda!"

The blasts bypassed the trio of creatures in Yodaz's battle zone, to finish the duel. Corile's laughter echoed in their mindspace before the entire visualization faded away. Nicholas Burner finally breathed a gigantic sigh of relief. He had won. He had beaten the champion.

Yodaz extended his hand to shake that of his opponent.
"That was good," he said, smirking, his half-hidden eye seeming to shimmer slightly. Burner did note that the champ seemed in no way as tired as he was. Rather, almost peppy.

"That's to be expected, I guess," came Valdios' observation, "We were being a little overwhelmed for awhile..."

"Come now, I'm not that bad," came Corile's almost synthesized laugh. Nicholas twitched, slightly startled at the telepathic communication between them, wondering if he had imagined it.

"It was actually you I was expecting to see next, not your Skyterror," Corile continued, "I had to weigh the chances of you being the one in hand... you being the one in the shields, you being the next to be drawn... it took a little while to calculate, even for me..."

The 'even for me' part made Valdios laugh. Burner himself was now quite sure that he was not imagining this at all, but he was perfectly willing to go along with it if Valdios was. You learnt something new every day. In this case, the fact that he could apparently talk, mentally, to other Kaijudo users... more or less.

Burner felt the urge suddenly to flip over the shield and show 'Corile' just what would have happened. It was a Mini-Titan Gett.

"Very interesting. That would not have changed most of my calculations at all even if I had known it. Unless that Skyterror was what was in hand... No... don't tell me. It's much more interesting to leave it as a... mystery..."

Burner got up now, a little shaky on his feet, but he steadied himself quickly. What he did not expect was the throngs of onlookers suddenly swarming to him, asking him questions and congratulating him on managing to defeat the champion, even if it had only been one duel. Now he found himself the center of attention, which was a feeling he did not mind at all. He let them lead him away, only looking back to see Yodaz smirk once more, and go back to calmly reading through decklists.

"At least I don't have to worry about having any bad effect on a duelist like that. This new meta is going to be strange, I think..." Yodaz noted as he moved on to check through another decklist, "There really are a lot of things they are willing to try to use now."

"Good. Very good," Corile celebrated, "So many different ways to twist and turn and escape and thwart them. We will become invincible, unstoppable yet again!"

Yodaz smiled. This was the same determination Corile had always had, but today it lacked the oddness that had been there before. So he would lose a few duels now and then. It was not as if it did not happen before. Something new would come along, and he would get to learn. He would have to learn.

"You're just happy you probably aren't going to get Seared anymore," he laughed mentally at his avatar. He had taken the card out of his own deck, and had not personally seen one in any duel, nor in any decklist, for quite some time. It had not surprised him that many duelists were now doing without Corile as well. In a way, that was almost calming. It was nice to be relatively unique again, without people copying him in an effort to 'be the best'.

"Maybe that's been it all along..." he thought, "Libra... Maze... they just wanted to be unique and it actually work. I had the 'actually work' part, but not so much the unique, thanks to the bandwagon follower crowd..."

"You said it to that odd woman. You wished to free me from my prison of being the most powerful card. And you did that. I'm... haha... thankful... yes."

Yodaz blinked for a bit.
"What woman?"