Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monster GX Fan Fiction ❯ The Darkness of Destiny ❯ Betrayal - Jaden vs. The Elemental Heroes ( Chapter 9 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

The Darkness of Destiny
 
Chapter 9
 
Betrayal - Jaden vs. The Elemental Heroes
 
“Hey, what's up guys?” Jaden asked, running down the hall. Beside him, Alexis frowned and jogged to keep up. Hassleberry and Syrus turned and shushed him. The two were clustered around the door to Chancellor Sheppard's office.
 
“Quiet!” Syrus urged. Jaden put his ear to the door and listened.
 
“I don't care how good his dueling skills are, he is a detriment to the grades of this school. Getting rid of him would bring our school's GPA up eight whole points. I'm afraid I will have to exercise my authority. Mr. Yuki must leave the school,” the voice inside said. Jaden gasped, and the voice grunted. There was a beep, and the door slid open.
 
“Ah, Jaden. We were just talking about you,” Chancellor Sheppard said nervously, standing up. Jaden nodded and walked inside, staring at the large man in the blue blazer. The brunette adult glared down at him. A custom Duel Disk painted a brighter silver was on his left arm. “Jaden, meet Professor Pryce, he's our new superintendent, recently appointed at the start of the third semester.” Sheppard explained.
 
“Huh? But wasn't the super-.” Jaden started.
 
“Kagemaru was a fool,” Pryce snapped, glaring down at him. “He let you remain in this school only so he could feed on your duel spirit. But I will not be subject to such superstitious nonsense. I am in charge now, and I am afraid I shall be taking action against you, Mr. Yuki.”
 
“Action? What did I do?” Jaden protested.
 
“You didn't do a thing, and that's exactly the problem. Your grades have been steadily declining. Your duels are all that are keeping you from total failure. Out of a total of fifty-four written exams throughout your three years thus far, you have passed only three. You are an embarrassment to this school in more ways than one, and I am afraid now you must pay,” Pryce growled.
 
“No way, there must be a way!” Alexis protested. Pryce thought for a moment and tapped his chin.
 
“Perhaps…tell me, do you wield the Neos deck I've heard so much about?” he asked.
 
“What, you mean the Neo-Spacians? Yeah, they're here,” Jaden replied, holding up his deck. Pryce smiled.
 
“Then I'll make you a deal. Duel and defeat me, and I promise you will graduate this academy at the top of your class, all your previous tests shall upgraded to As automatically. But lose, and not only will you be expelled, but I get to demand anything I want from you,” he sneered.
 
“What? No way Sarge, ya can't take a battle with spoils like that,” Hassleberry protested.
 
“Given the alternative of outright expulsion, what choice does he have? So, do we have a deal?” Pryce asked, holding out a hand.
 
“Totally, I'm always ready to throw down,” Jaden replied, shaking his head. Pryce smiled.
 
- - - - - - - - - -
 
“Now, no pressure. This duel will only affect everything you've ever worked for here!” Pryce laughed, turning on his duel disk. Jaden nodded and turned on his own.
 
“Alright, teach, get your game on!”
 
-Jaden LP: 4000, Pryce LP: 4000-
 
“I'll start,” Pryce said, drawing. “I place three cards face-down, and activate `Confiscation'. Now I can look at your hand, and discard any card I choose at the cost of 1000 points.” Jaden nodded and held his cards out. Elemental Hero Avian, Elemental Hero Necroshade, Elemental Hero Neos, Polyermization, and Bubble Rod. “Get rid of Necroshade,” Pryce commanded. Jaden nodded and discarded the card. “Alright, that's all.”
 
“You got it,” Jaden said, drawing. “Now I play…”
 
“Hold that thought!” Pryce laughed. “I activate `The Eye of Truth'!” The trap shot a ray of light at Jaden's Duel Disk. “As long as this card remains in play, I can see your hand!” Five holograms appeared over Jaden's head. Pryce nodded at the sight of Jaden's newly drawn card, Common Soul.
 
“Now back to my move, and I'll use the effect of Necroshade in the Graveyard. Now he lets me summon an Elemental Hero, and I don't have to make a sacrifice! So I'll roll out `Elemental Hero Neos' (2500, 2000)!” The space Hero appeared in a flourish of karate chops. “Sorry teach, maybe next time you should pay attention to what you make me discard.” Jaden advised.
 
“You foolish boy, don't you think I was expecting that? I saw your hand, and knew exactly what you do!” Pryce laughed. “I wanted you to play your Hero, because now I can use this! I activate `Phoenix Wing Wind Blast'!” A massive torrent of wind burst over the field, and Neos was flung into the air. “Now by sending `Magical Blast' to the Grave, I can send any card on your side of the field to the top of your deck.” Jaden grimaced.
 
Not good,” Alexis murmured. “Not only is Jaden going to all but lose his next Draw Phase, but he also lost his summon.”
 
“I see by the holograms on the wall the other cards in your hand are useless, so I'll go,” Pryce sneered, drawing. “And now, behold my next card `Conscription'! Now I get to look at the top of your deck, and then, if it is a Spell or Trap card, it gets added to your hand. But, if it happens to be a Monster card, I can call it to my side of the field!” Jaden gasped. “And thanks to my other Trap, I know exactly what you have! The top card of your deck is Elemental Hero Neos!” Pryce crowed. Jaden looked down as the Neos card vanished in a glimmer of golden light. Pryce held up his hand as the card appeared on his Duel Disk.
 
“Sam hill!” Hassleberry cried.
 
”Jaden!” Syrus screamed, jumping up.
 
“Neos is mine!” Pryce roared, casting out a hand over the field. A glowing white circle appeared in front of him, the gleaming silver Hero rising up in a puff of smoke. “Now, I know your grades are poor, but when your opponent has a monster with 2500 points, and you have nothing in your hand or on the field for protection, I assume even you can figure out what comes next! Elemental Hero Neos, attack Jaden directly! Silver Strike!” Neos leapt up and raised a hand, bringing down a devastating karate chop. Jaden let out a scream and collapsed.
 
“No!” Alexis cried.
 
-Pryce LP: 3000, Jaden LP: 1500-
 
“Getting attacked by your own soldier, nothin's lower than that,” Hassleberry muttered. Jaden slowly climbed to his feet and drew. The hologram of Elemental Hero Bubbleman appeared above his head in his hand.
 
“Alright, now it's my move, and the reverse effect of your Eye of Truth activates. Since I'm holding a Spell card, I get a thousand point boost!” Jaden called.
 
“And trust me, you'll need every last one of them!” Pryce laughed. Jaden scowled.
-Pryce LP: 3000, 2500-
 
“I summon `Elemental Hero Bubbleman' (800, 1200) in attack mode,” he announced. “And when Bubbleman is called out all alone, he calls for backup, in the form of two more cards,” Jaden drew, and Pryce's eyes lit up. De-Fusion and Neo-Spacian Flare Scarab. “And next I'll hook up Bubbleman with the Equip Spell `Bubble Rod'! This gives Bubbleman 800 extra points!” The blue Hero held up his hand as a glowing blue staff appeared in a flash of light.
 
“So, it's still not enough to defeat my Neos. Try again,” Pryce sneered.
 
“I'm not done! Next, I'll roll out `Polyermization'. I'll take one part `Avian', mix in some Bubbleman, and bring out `Elemental Hero Mariner' (1400, 1500)!” The aquatic hero appeared in a burst of water. “Now I'll toss down a face down, and activate Mariner's super power! If I have a face down card, he gets to attack you directly!” Pryce scowled as the hero leapt out and whirled an anchor overhead. “Mariner, attack!” Jaden yelled. The hero roared and flung down the anchor. Pryce cringed as a cloud of dust exploded when the anchor hologram passed through him.
 
-Pryce LP: 1600, Jaden : 2500-
 
“Ya know teach, if this duel was just for fun, you should really be enjoying it more,” Jaden said. Pryce growled as he drew.
 
“Fun? You think I challenged you for fun?” he sneered.
 
“Well, yeah, why else would you want to duel me?” Jaden explained. Pryce snorted.
 
“You just answered your own question. I'm only willing to let you stay here if you win, but to do that, you must first learn the greatest lesson of dueling, and indeed, all life,” he replied.
 
“What lesson is that?” Jaden asked. Pryce grinned.
 
“Rather than tell you, I'll show you! Neos, attack!” he shouted. Neos leapt up and aimed a kick at the Mariner. “I've already seen your face down card, so go ahead and activate it already,” Pryce laughed.
 
“You got it! I reveal my `De-Fusion', splitting Bubbleman and Avian apart!” Mariner flashed white and split, Avian and Bubbleman diving aside as Neos' kick hit empty air.
 
“Predictable as always. As a duelist you must be willing to move past the familiar and always find new strategies. Now then, I place one card face-down and end my turn,”
 
“Sweet. My move,” Jaden said, drawing. Pryce looked up at the holograms of Jaden's hand. Common Soul, Flare Scarab, Polyermization, and Sparkman. Perfect. Pryce smirked. “Now it's time to take this lesson up a notch!”
 
-Pryce LP: 1600, Jaden LP: 3500-
 
“I play the Spell card `Polymerization'. I'll fuse together my Sparkman, Bubbleman, and Avian! Give a big round of applause for `Elemental Hero Tempest' (2800, 2800)!” Jaden cried. There was a swirl of yellow and blue light as the blue and green hero flew onto the field.
 
“Ah, you summoned a monster powerful enough to defeat my Neos,” Pryce chuckled. “And now it's time to destroy him, right?” Jaden growled. “What are you waiting for? You can render me defenseless in one attack. Unless…you don't want to destroy Neos, do you?”
 
“I guess I end my turn,” Jaden muttered.
 
“Hah, pathetic. Now you see what kind of duelist you really are,” Pryce sneered.
 
“What's that supposed to mean?” Jaden protested.
 
“To win you must be willing to do whatever it takes, even if you must cast aside your own monsters. Childish beliefs like Duel Spirits, friendship and trust can only take you so far! To truly succeed in the dueling world you must be willing to do anything to claim victory! And unless you're willing to get rid of Neos to defeat me, then you'll never become a champion!” Pryce crowed. “Your monsters are nothing but servants, and if you insist on holding onto an immature bond with them, you will never defeat me!”
 
“No way dude, you're wrong. My deck and I believe in each other, and that lets us overcome any challenge! We can beat you!” Jaden countered.
 
“Can you? If your bond is so strong, let's see it survive my face down card! I reveal `Hand Control'!” Pryce shouted. “It lets me name a Spell card, and if you are holding it, I can play that card! And since I can see your hand, I know you're holding the Spell card `Common Soul'! But, since I am activating it, I get to choose the target of its effect! And guess which monster I pick!” Jaden gasped as the Common Soul hologram appeared on his field.
 
“By the effect of Common Soul, I'll summon one Neo-Spacian from your hand to my side of the field! And I choose `Flare Scarab' (500, 500)!” Pryce said. There was a plume of flame on Pryce's field as the fiery insect rose up. “Now, I'll use Scarab's effect. For every Spell and Trap on your side of the field, he gets 400 points. And by the effect of Common Soul, all those points are generously donated to Neos!” A band of yellow energy flowed out of Flare Scarab (900, 500) and into Neos (3400, 2000).
 
“But I'm afraid I'm not done. I play the Spell card `Pot of Greed', which lets me draw two cards. And then I play `Riryoku'! It drains away half the points of your Tempest and adds them to Neos!” Neos (4800) glowed even brighter, while Tempest (1400) groaned and stumbled forward.
 
“Not again!” Syrus cried.
 
“Hang in there Jaden!” Alexis cried.
 
“Neos, attack Hero Tempest! Silver Strike!” Pryce commanded. Neo zoomed across the field and delivered a hard karate chop to Tempest. The large Hero roared.
 
“I'll use Tempest's effect! By sending Common Soul to the Graveyard, Tempest survives!” Jaden called. Flare Scarab flashed as it vanished, the card returning to Jaden's hand.
 
“Which is more than I can say for your Life Points!” Pryce sneered.
 
-Pryce LP: 1600, Jaden: 100
 
“I place a card face down and end my turn,” Pryce finished.
 
“My move,” Jaden said, drawing.
 
-Pryce LP: 1600, Jaden LP: 1100-
 
“I play `Graceful Charity'. Now I can draw three cards, as long as I discard two.” Jaden drew. The holograms of Burstinatrix, Flare Scarab, Spark Blaster and Pot of Greed appeared above his head. “I discard Spark Blaster and Flare Scarab, and active `Pot of Greed' to draw two more cards!” Jaden drew, and Pryce's eyes went wide at Jaden's new cards. Miracle Fusion and Hero Dice. “I summon `Elemental Hero Burstinatrix (1200, 800), and play the Spell card `Miracle Fusion'. So by removing Burstinatrix and Avian from play, I can summon `Elemental Hero Flame Wingman' (2100, 1200)!”
 
“Yeah, his highest ranking monster!” Hassleberry cheered.
 
“So what, you're still unwilling to get rid of my Neos, so what does it matter?” Pryce sneered.
 
“I'd never destroy Neos! He and I are friends, and I don't need to get rid of him to win! I play the Spell card `Hero Dice'!” A glowing red die appeared in the air and rolled onto the field. It slowed to a stop on six. “Sweetness! Now my Wingman can attack you directly!”
 
“Way to play, Jay!” Sryus called.
 
“Flame Wingman, attack Pryce directly! Skydive Scorcher!” Jaden yelled. Flame Wingman leapt up into the air and covered itself with flames before going into a nosedive. “School's out, teach!” Jaden laughed.
 
“Not so fast! Your bond with your deck overcomes anything? Overcome the fierce power of `Gravity Well'!” Pryce roared. A large, black pit appeared in the middle of the field. A torrent of wind whipped past the two duelists. “Nothing can escape its intense gravity, so watch as all Warriors on the field are crushed into atoms!” Pryce laughed. Jaden gasped as Neos, Tempest and Flame Wingman was drawn into the black vortex.
 
“My move,” Pryce said, drawing. His eyes lit up, and he looked up at Jaden with a sneer. “It's been lots of fun, Mr. Yuki, but the game is over. You claim your bond with your deck can overcome anything, but it has failed you!”
 
“Bring it on teach, I'm ready!” Jaden countered.
 
“Are you ready for this! It's the Spell card `Scrap Fusion'!” Pryce laughed. “It lets me fuse together monsters in the Grave into a new beast! Except it doesn't fuse my monsters. It fuses yours!”
 
“Say what?!” Jaden cried. A white light shone from his Duel Disk as Sparkman and Flame Wingman flew out in a flash of light.
 
“I call forth `Elemental Hero Shining Flare Wingman' (2500, 2100)!” Pryce yelled. “And now, you have no cards in hand, none in your Graveyard, and none on the field to stop me! Let's see your bond with your deck survive this! Shining Flare Wingman attack!” The shining white hero flew up in the air and held up his hands, a giant ball of fire forming. “End of the line, Mr. Yuki! Wingman, destroy him!” Pryce snapped. Flare Wingman nodded and threw the fireball through the air towards Jaden. Jaden let out a scream of agony as the fire exploded at his feet.
 
-Jaden LP: 0000-
 
- - - - - - - - - -
 
“No way…he got expelled?” Aster gasped. Alexis nodded and stared at the floor.
 
“I've never seen anything like it…Pryce just destroyed him, he manipulated his every move, every emotion, he turned his bond with his deck against him,” she whispered.
 
“That punk! That's low,” Aster growled. “What happened to Jaden after that?”
 
“Pryce let him stay a day to say his goodbyes and gather his things, but he left the island the next day. I haven't seen him since,” Alexis replied.
“How did a scum like Pryce did a job like that? Jaden was one of the best duelists there was!” Aster sighed.
 
“It's just that, I mean, Jaden's lost now and then…Pryce was just so mean to him. He was willing to do anything to win, no matter who or what he had to destroy to do it. That's just disgusting,” Alexis spat. Aster nodded and turned his head aside. Victory at any cost…
 
“Yeah…I guess it is,” he replied
 
Gravity Well
Trap
Declare a type of monster. Destroy all monsters on the field of that type.