Inside the arena, yellow sand swirled through the air.
"State your name." Tania smiled as she sized up Bastion Misawa, her eyes scanning the young man before her.
"I am Bastion Misawa," he replied. He unbuttoned his Ra Yellow uniform, revealing rows of card boxes strapped to his chest like a vest of explosives. "And I will definitely defeat you!"
"..."
The onlookers could only stare in silence. Every time they saw Bastion's unique look, they couldn't help but criticize him in their hearts. This guy usually seemed so serious and uprightwhy on earth did he dress like some kind of suicide bomber?
"Hehe, I have two Decks here that concern your fate." Tania spread her hands, displaying two Decks. "One is the Deck of Wisdom, and the other is the Deck of Courage. Come, choose your own destiny."
Tania wore a playful smile.
"I choose to settle this against the Deck of Wisdom!" Bastion declared without a moment's hesitation.
"Very well." Tania nodded and slotted her Deck into her Duel Disk.
"I am as immovable as a mountain. I shall use my Earth Deck to face you." Bastion pulled a Deck from the rows of 'bomb' pouches on his chest and slid it into his Duel Disk.
Instantly, the Duel Disk flared with a red light as it deployed.
"This is an enhanced version of my Earth Deck, originally intended for my match against Jaden. But under the current circumstances, I have no choice." Bastion smiled with quiet confidence.
"Oh? An enhanced Deck?" Jaden Yuki watched Bastion with genuine interest.
He remembered that in the original series, Bastion had used a Magnet Warrior Deck when facing Tania. However, that set of Magnet Warriors hadn't been particularly strong. But this enhanced version...
"By the way, I forgot to mentionthis isn't a Shadow Game." Tania didn't seem to care much about the Decks; she had something else on her mind.
"What? Why is that?" Bastion frowned. "Are you looking down on me?"
"Because I don't want to waste you. I want you" Tania cradled her face in her hands, acting coy.
"Huh?!"
Not only was Bastion stunned, but the people standing around Jaden all wore identical expressions of disbelief.
"In other words, if I win, you have to be my husband and come back to Amazoness Village with me~" Tania said happily.
"Whawhat kind of nonsense is that!" Bastion's face turned bright red, and he gritted his teeth. "And if I win?"
"Then~ I'll be Bastion's bride!" Tania skipped excitedly, acting like a maiden in love.
Coming from such a muscular woman, however, the display was... unsettling.
"What's going on? For some reason, I'm actually a bit jealous of this Duel..." Chazz Princeton mumbled, his eyelid twitching.
Everyone turned to stare at him in confusion.
"What?" Seeing their looks, Chazz waved his hands frantically. "II'm joking! Hey! Misawa, you better win this!"
Bastion glanced at Chazz, who was shaking a fist in encouragement. He gritted his teeth and looked back at Tania. "I have no intention of marrying you, but no matter what, I must win this Duel!"
A classic response from a hardcore card gamer. Truly a man destined to be single forever, Jaden thought, crossing his arms and nodding.
"Misawa, keep it up! Don't let yourself be led astray by beauty!" Professor Banner called out a warning.
"Leave it to me!"
Bastion drew five cards from his Deck.
"Hehe, Bastion Misawa, you're mine." Tania winked and drew her own opening hand.
"DUEL!"
[Tania LP: 4000]
[Bastion Misawa LP: 4000]
"The first move is mine! My turn!" Tania glanced at her hand and revealed a card. "I summon Amazoness Swordswoman!"
With a thunderous boom, a wild, muscular female warrior wielding a scimitar emerged from the summoning circle.
[Amazoness Swordswoman]
[Level: 4]
[Warrior-Type]
[ATK: 1500 / DEF: 1600]
"I set one card and end my turn." Tania placed a card face-down and concluded her move.
Amazoness Swordswoman...
"What an unpleasant Extortion Swordsman," the spirit of Ash Blossom muttered as she appeared beside Jaden. She crossed her tiny arms and sat on Jaden's shoulder with an annoyed huff.
Jaden glanced at the girl sitting on his shoulder and raised an eyebrow but said nothing.
"Still, putting an Extortion Swordsman out there so boldly on the first turn... she really isn't afraid of the opponent using an effect to destroy it," Ash Blossom added.
"Magnet Warriors are a slow Deck. For an Amazoness user, facing a slow Deck is the best possible scenario," Jaden analyzed, shaking his head. "This Duel is going to be difficult for Bastion."
"My turn!" Bastion drew a card. "I'll show you my upgraded Deck! I summon Alpha The Electromagnet Warrior!"
He slammed the card onto his Duel Disk. Electricity crackled as a powerful magnetic force surged around him.
Zzzzt!
A silver magnetic warrior materialized.
[Alpha The Electromagnet Warrior]
[Level: 3]
[Rock-Type]
[ATK: 1700 / DEF: 1100]
"Due to the effect of Alpha The Electromagnet Warrior, when this card is Normal or Special Summoned, I can add one Level 8 Magnet Warrior from my Deck to my hand! I choose to add Berserkion the Electromagna Warrior!"
Bastion retrieved the card from his Deck. Then, without hesitation, he pointed toward Tania's field. "Go! Alpha The Electromagnet Warrior! Attack Amazoness Swordswoman!"
The command was given. The Electromagnet Warrior charged forward, its magnetic blade flashing as it sliced through the Amazoness warrior.
Amidst the smoke of the explosion, Bastion frowned as he watched his Life Points rapidly deplete.
[Bastion Misawa LP: 4000 → 3800]
"So reckless. When Amazoness Swordswoman battles, the opponent takes the damage instead of her. It's always better to find a way to destroy her with an effect before attacking," Ash Blossom complained. "Is this Bastion guy really some kind of top student?"
"It's likely because he doesn't have any other means of destroying her at the moment," Jaden interrupted calmly. "Rather than letting Amazoness Swordswoman sit on the field and become a long-term headache, it's better to spend a bit of Life Points to deal with her now."
"Besides, you shouldn't look at a Duel of this era through the lens of future Dueling." Jaden reached out and flicked Ash Blossom's forehead.
"Ow!" Clutching her forehead, Ash Blossom glared at Jaden. "Geez, don't be so rough..."
Rubbing her head, she turned her gaze back to the field. "Still... even if she's destroyed, an Amazoness Deck should have more up its sleeve than just that. That face-down card..."
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