This was probably the most abrupt time Hikaru had ever shouted that declaration.
In the past, when Hikaru called out those words, it was either during a duel against members of the Fusion Corps, or while dueling in another dimension. Saying something like that to Darkness, a local opponent who barely even used an Extra Deck, felt a touch forced.
And yet, there was a strange kind of power in those words.
As Hikaru's voice rang out, every ally who had been tense, worried, or filled with regret settled down. It was as though the moment that declaration left his lips, everyone regained their composure and found renewed emotional strength.
This wasn't just a slogan.
It was a way to steady everyone's hearts and a demonstration of the conviction that had earned Hikaru, as President of the Fusion Club, the recognition and respect of every person around him.
Darkness weighed things in his mind.
This duel was no friendly match. It was a battle to determine whether humanity or Darkness itself would survive. For that reason, Darkness had begun preparing for this duel long, long ago.
He had laid everything out before the duel even began. When he watched Hikaru's friends hand over their spirit cards and ace monsters to the pair before the match, Darkness knew he had succeeded.
No matter how favorable the pre-duel conditions appeared...
As this duel, loaded with everyone's convictions, escalated in intensity, it would guide their thoughts and spirits step by step toward the peak.
The students of Duel Academy, pupils of elite duelists from all corners of the world, were the finest generation of next-era duelists this world had to offer. They were the newest and most essential group of dimension-traveling students. They were humanity's future.
In the moment these "futures" of humanity entrusted their faith and hope to the "core," the final duel would unfold.
Because he was Annihilation, and his opponents were Hope.
In this duel, it wasn't only the duelists who mattered. The convictions of the spectators would shape the course of the battle.
When they realized that the "unlimited Extra Deck" clause had been part of his strategy all along, emotional turmoil was inevitable. The ones who fancied themselves clever would feel regret, someone like Chazz Princeton, for instance.
Regret breeds negative emotions.
Enough of that accumulating, and even the two duelists, no matter how resilient, would be affected.
He had not expected, however...
Hikaru Amagi.
A single hollow slogan, and these people had calmed their hearts?
He was, in all honesty, impressed.
When he banished the Extra Deck monsters, he had made sure Hikaru could see the Fusion Monsters being removed. Yet Hikaru, while furious, hadn't lost an ounce of composure.
In fact, it seemed Hikaru had already prepared himself for tricks involving the Extra Deck and Deck size. His anger had been directed more at the act of banishing Fusion Monsters right before his eyes than at the tactical implications.
That was deeply unsettling.
That kind of fortitude... if Hikaru weren't human, if he weren't Darkness's enemy, he would have applauded without reservation.
He looked at the cards in his hand.
Although he didn't need to Special Summon monsters, and those students had even guessed wrong about his plans (he wasn't going to Normal Summon either), leaving a Winda on the opponent's field was still not acceptable.
True, with Winda in play, both sides were limited to one Special Summon per turn, which was a form of lockdown.
But Winda could still serve as Fusion Material. With Hikaru's temperament, his Set cards were almost certainly Fusion-related. When the time came, Winda would become a free Fusion Material for the other side. Rather than allow that, it was better to take her.
Darkness raised his hand and flipped a card face-up: "I activate the effect of Tragoedia. Once per turn, I send 1 monster from my hand to the Graveyard to target 1 monster my opponent controls with the same Level as the discarded monster and take control of it.
I discard the Level 5 Memory Crush King from my hand and take control of Winda."
Tragoedia exhaled a thick fog. Tierra's brow furrowed. She casually severed her puppet strings, and the Winda on the field lost its color in an instant, becoming a lifeless marionette.
"This is bad! Now Jaden's team has to find a way to deal with Winda instead!"
But contrary to what they expected, after seizing Winda, Darkness didn't stop. He continued: "Tragoedia's effect. Once per turn, I target 1 monster in my Graveyard. This card's Level becomes the same as that monster's until the end of the turn.
I target Memory Crush King."
Ten stars materialized before Tragoedia, and then half of them shattered with a crack, leaving only five.
"Using the Level 5 Winda and the Level 5 Tragoedia, I overlay and construct the Xyz network."
He raised his hand, and countless bones gathered from every direction, condensing into a vortex. "Xyz Summon! Rank 5, Adreus, Keeper of Armageddon."
Dark wings spread wide. A red-eyed demon clutching a crimson dagger descended to the field.
Adreus, Keeper of Armageddon. Rank 5. DARK Attribute. Fiend-Type. ATK 2600.
"He used Winda as Xyz Material after stealing it?"
"And it's not even a Number Xyz, just a regular Xyz Monster?"
"He probably just didn't want to leave Winda on their field."
The onlookers could more or less understand the reasoning.
While Winda on the field meant both sides could only Special Summon once per turn, that was a lockdown that cut both ways.
But Winda wasn't a monster that couldn't be used as Fusion Material. Knowing Hikaru, his Set cards were bound to be Fusion-related. When the time came, Winda would be an extra Fusion Material handed to the enemy on a silver platter. Rather than let that happen, it was better to take her outright.
But overlaying Winda for an Xyz Summon? That part they couldn't quite figure out.
What was the purpose of that?
"Turn end."
"He didn't Set any more cards!"
"Good, this is a chance to counterattack!"
"Looks like even with all those powerful cards, Hikaru pushed him to the point where he can't afford to Set anything else."
Countdown to the End: 5.
A quarter of the globe was now shrouded in darkness. Jaden stared at the image, his expression growing more and more serious.
"Jaden, stop spacing out. It's your turn!" Yubel reminded him.
Jaden took a deep breath and nodded.
"My turn! Draw!"
He drew his card and glanced down at it.
He did feel a twinge of regret.
His Set cards, besides Mirror Force, included the Trap Card Favorite Contact.
Because this was a Tag Duel, Hikaru had seen the card too. The Fusion Summon of Winda had been a move to preserve Fusion Materials.
In the end, Darkness had dealt with Winda anyway.
Still, Jaden couldn't quite figure out why Darkness had used Winda as Xyz Material.
But it didn't matter.
Thanks to Hikaru's work and plays, Jaden could finally activate monster effects without interference!
Time to fight back!
"I activate the effect of Evil HERO Sinister Necrom in the Graveyard!" Jaden pulled the card from his GY. "I banish it from the Graveyard to activate this effect. Special Summon 1 Evil HERO monster from my hand or Deck, except Evil HERO Sinister Necrom."
"Special Summon a second Evil HERO Dead-End Prison!"
A mirror shattered. This time, blood poured from the broken glass, and a savage monster howled as it appeared on the field.
"Dead-End Prison's effect! Once per turn, I send 1 HERO monster from my Deck to the Graveyard. This turn, if a HERO Fusion Monster is Fusion Summoned, this face-up card can be used as a substitute for 1 Fusion Material whose name is listed on that Fusion Monster!"
Darkness quietly tapped his Set zone, checking his two face-down cards, then made no move.
But that gesture alone was enough to make several onlookers flinch, thinking he was about to make a big play.
Only after realizing he was just checking his Set cards did they breathe again.
It couldn't be helped. Every face-down Darkness had used so far had been terrifying.
Jaden felt his heart pound too, but as long as he could use monster effects, he figured it would be fine. He moved quickly, sending a monster from his Deck to the GY: "I send Elemental HERO Shadow Mist from my Deck to the Graveyard."
On the field, the blood-soaked demon hero grinned, its silhouette flickering and turning translucent.
"Next, Shadow Mist's effect! Once per turn, when this card is sent to the Graveyard: add 1 HERO monster from the Deck to my hand, except Elemental HERO Shadow Mist."
"I add Evil HERO Toxic Bubble to my hand."
"I reveal my Set card!" Jaden flipped the card he had Set on his very first turn. "Trap Card, Favorite Contact!"
"I return Fusion Materials listed on a Fusion Monster from my hand, field, Graveyard, or banishment to the bottom of the Deck in any order, then Special Summon 1 Fusion Monster that lists a HERO monster as material from my Extra Deck, ignoring its Summoning conditions. If Elemental HERO Neos is returned to the Deck by this effect, neither player can return the Special Summoned monster to the Deck."
Jaden picked up Dead-End Prison from the field and retrieved Neos from the banished zone. "The Fusion condition is an Effect Monster on the field plus Neos."
His eyes began to glow with golden light. Neos leaped onto the field, his body encasing itself in black armor.
"Justice protects all who are weak!"
"Channel the dark power within my heart!"
"Special Summon! Level 10, Evil HERO Neos Overlord!"
The mighty hero made his grand entrance!
Evil HERO Neos Overlord. Level 10. DARK Attribute. Fiend-Type. ATK 2500.
"Neos Overlord!"
"So this is the power of the Supreme King they were talking about?"
"Whoa, that's kind of cool..." Chazz murmured despite the gravity of the situation.
Men are drawn to darkness, and all the more so for this particular duelist who loved black so much he had even dyed his uniform black.
"When Neos Overlord is Special Summoned, or when a monster is sent to my opponent's Graveyard while this card is in the Monster Zone: I target 1 face-up monster my opponent controls and take control of it!"
"I choose your Adreus, Keeper of Armageddon!"
"Mind Suppression!"
Neos Overlord raised his right hand, pointing at the demon guardian of the apocalypse.
"Heh heh heh..."
However...
At that precise moment, Darkness flipped open his Set card.
"Trap Card, Songs of the Dominators!"
"When my opponent activates a monster effect on the field: negate that effect."
An invisible statue of a king materialized behind Darkness. Jaden watched as Neos Overlord's body wavered and stopped mid-action. He wasn't particularly surprised.
Of course the other side had cards like that Set.
Darkness hadn't activated anything when Hikaru attacked, nor when he Fused. Considering his dueling style so far, it wasn't hard to guess that he had stocked up on various counter and negation cards to drag the Countdown to the End all the way to the 20th turn.
The reason Hikaru's turn hadn't triggered any traps was most likely because there was nothing to trigger against. After all, Amano-Iwato's effect had forced Hikaru into a straightforward Fusion and attack with no monster effects involved.
"...Heh heh heh, you don't look surprised. Then... there's a follow-up effect."
What?!
Jaden's eyes went wide.
"If I have a Trap Card in my Graveyard, I can also add 1 card with 'Dominus' in its name from my Deck to my hand.
I add... Dominus Purge to my hand!"
Dominus Purge!
The exact same naming convention as Dominus Impulse!
"Jaden, that card's effect negates and destroys effects that include adding cards from the Deck to the hand!" Hikaru seized the moment to relay the information.
He had been hit by Dominus Impulse himself, so it was no big deal for him. But now it was Jaden's turn, and he needed to make sure Jaden understood the situation.
He hadn't seen Songs of the Dominators before, but he knew both Dominus Impulse and Dominus Purge. When he had noticed those two cards shared the same naming pattern, he had suspected there might be more hand traps in the series. Now he had his confirmation.
"Got it, OK!" Jaden nodded in understanding. He looked over his hand, thinking through his next move.
Can't add cards from the Deck to the hand...
The opponent's monster has 2600 ATK, exactly 100 more than Neos Overlord...
"Then how about this!
This card can be Special Summoned directly!
Special Summon, Evil HERO Toxic Bubble!"
The bubble hero leaped forward, raising the dyed water cannon in its hand with confidence.
"The turn this card is Special Summoned by this effect, I cannot Special Summon non-HERO monsters. When this card is Special Summoned, if I control a Fusion Monster that must be Special Summoned with Dark Fusion: draw 2 cards!"
"Ha ha ha! Your friend was practically cramming last-minute exam answers into your head, telling you about Dominus Purge, and you completely ignored his advice?
Heh heh... Then, I activate from my hand: Dominus Purge!"
Here it comes!
Jaden's eyes locked onto his opponent.
"If my opponent controls a card, this card can be activated from my hand."
"When a Spell/Trap Card, or monster effect, is activated that includes an effect that adds a card from the Deck to the hand: negate that effect. If I have a Trap Card in my Graveyard, also destroy that negated card."
"If this card is activated from the hand, for the rest of this Duel, I cannot activate the effects of DARK, WATER, or FIRE Attribute monsters."
Toxic Bubble was just about to perform its signature double-draw when a massive iron hammer fell from nowhere, crashing down on its head. It shattered into pieces and vanished from the field.
"Doesn't that mean he can't activate any monster effects at all now?"
"The card is strong, but the cost has gotten steep."
Can't activate monster effects from the hand. Can't activate effects of six different Attributes of monsters...
"At last, every color of monster individuality has been erased by me." Darkness didn't seem to care about the cost in the slightest. He spread his arms wide. "With this, humanity's individuality, character, preferences, and aversions will gradually vanish with the changing of the world! Humanity has no hope left!"
"Don't be so sure!" Jaden flashed a grin, baring his white teeth.
"What?"
"Don't forget, Hikaru left me with hope."
"I reveal my Set card: Polymerization!"