Aster vs Zane 1/2 - 8

***

The next day, everyone gathered in a special room, filled with anticipation. We were all there to witness the most eagerly awaited duel of the year. The room was filled with seats and in front of us was a projection of a video of a duel starring between Zane Trusdale and Aster Phoenix.

On one side stood Aster Phoenix, the reigning number one duelist in the world, standing confidently on one side. On the other side stood Zane Truesdale, a rising star prodigy from Duel Academy. Both had yet to taste defeat in their professional careers.

[Heeeeeeeey Hubby, who do you want to win?] Dark Magician Girl popped out in existence and perched on Gojo's shoulder in spirit form, communicating telepathically.

[Didn't expect that question,] Gojo replied, glancing at Syrus before turning to Jaden and Alexis.

[I want them both to lose.] Gojo nodded his head as he concluded his answer.

[Hubby…] Dark Magician Girl gave him a disapproving look. [Shouldn't you be cheering for one of them to win?] She thought Aster might be his rival, but Gojo quickly dispelled that notion.

[Nah, never that,] Gojo said. [One of them is unintentionally cheating, and the other one is just crazy.]

[...Aren't you a bit of both combined?] she teased, covering her mouth to stifle a laugh.

[No.] Gojo denies this, but his attention was caught by a nearby conversation.

"Yoooo did you hear? News about someone in a costume taking down people in the alleyway. It kinda looks like Jaden's Elemental Hero Flame Wingman," a student said, discussing a viral news story from the newspaper he read.

"Oh, I read about that in a newspaper today! So cool." another student chimed in.

[?????] Both Dark Magician Girl and Gojo's ear perked up upon hearing this news.

[What?!] X2

~

Meanwhile, Chancellor Crowler and Vice Chancellor Jean were deep in conversation. They were discussing the 'Red Slifer Slacker' and how letting a Slifer from Jaden's year graduate might affect the school's reputation. The conversation then shifted to possibly tearing down the red dormitory, but that decision would be handled later.

~

"Will we finally get to see Aster's main deck in action today?" Bastion asked, watching as Zane and Aster shuffled their decks on the screen before inserting it into their duel disk. "He said he was going to use it."

"Oh? And what made him decide to use his main deck?" Gojo rolled his eyes, the bandages covering his eyes shifting slightly. "Is he trying to get revenge by taking on a graduate from Academy Island after losing twice to undergrads? Tsk tsk tsk. Shameful."

"And this man just doesn't stop..." Tyranno muttered, glancing at Gojo. 'What did Aster even do?' he thought to himself.

***

Meanwhile, in Kaiba Land's Blue-Eyes White Dragon Stadium...

Aster Phoenix and Zane Truesdale were engaged in small talk.

"I've heard a lot about you, Aster Phoenix. You even went out of your way to visit Duel Academy after I left. I've always wanted to challenge you at least once." Zane said, smiling at Aster. He had heard from Syrus that Aster had challenged both Jaden and Gojo with a deck of scrap, only to lose.

"Take it easy on me, senior." Aster said with a grin, unfazed by Zane's comments. He had come to Duel Academy with a purpose and a mission. Deep down, he knew he could win if he wanted to. Jaden, the duelist he was instructed to lose to, hadn't shown him anything special.

What Aster hadn't anticipated was running into Gojo on the same day. Intrigued, he couldn't resist the urge to gauge Gojo's dueling skills.

Although Gojo defeated Aster in a single turn, Aster wasn't bothered. He hadn't brought his main deck at the time but he was certainly surprised by a fusion monster requiring five monsters.

With determination in their eyes, Zane and Aster both shouted, "Let's do this. Duel!"

"I'm going to start! Draw!" Aster Phoenix drew his card, looked at his hands and smiled.

"I play polymerization and fuse both Elemental Hero Avian and Burstinatrix in my hand to fusion summon Elemental Hero Phoenix Enforcer!"

The monster was in attack position with a flat 2100 attack points.

"Here's a fun fact about this monster," Aster declared with a grin. "It cannot be destroyed by battle!"

Spectators and viewers alike were taken aback by the sight.

"I then set two cards face down and end my turn."

Aster is still holding one card in his hand.

Zane felt a bit tense. His eyes widened as he recognized Aster's deck—it was from the Elemental Hero series, just like Jaden's. The fusion monster Aster had just played seemed familiar. The name Phoenix Enforcer struck a chord, reminding him of his past encounters against Jaden's Destiny Hero Phoenix Enforcer.

~

"He uses an elemental hero deck just like me…" Jaden murmured in surprise with his eyes widening.

Gojo narrowed his eyes as he watched the duel on the screen. He couldn't see the hidden cheats behind the duelists since it was just a video livestream. Although he knew Zane's duel spirit was aiding him, it wasn't visible through the video. This also meant he had no way of knowing if Aster had similar hidden help.

"What a pain," Chazz complained.

"Wait, doesn't this give Zane the advantage? He has experience going against it," Alexis added.

"Unfortunately, experience won't matter in this duel. If I'm right—and I know I'm right—then that deck should be different from Jaden's, aside from the few Elemental Hero monsters and maybe a few spells and traps," Gojo explained.

"Really?!" everyone asked in surprise. Even Dark Magician Girl looked at Gojo, astonished by his statement.

"Are you fuckers not paying attention to the name of the fusion monster, 'Phoenix Enforcer'? It has the word 'phoenix' in it, just like in his damn name. Does that not ring a bell?" Gojo snapped. He continued, explaining that Aster could be using another archetype hero deck.

'...This is the original user of the Destiny Hero deck. From what I can remember it has lots of banned cards back in my world,' Gojo thought to himself.

~

'I can't believe it.' Zane was thinking to himself. Here he was, facing off against an Elemental Hero deck once more, this time with his reputation and status on the line against one of the number 1 duelists in the world. Despite the pressure, a deep grin spread across his face.

"My turn, I draw!" Zane drew his card, his eyes narrowing with determination. "I summon Cyber Dragon Core!"

The sleek, silver dragon materialized on Zane's side of the field.

400 Attack points.

"When Cyber Dragon Core is summoned, I can add one 'Cyber' spell or trap card from my deck to my hand." Without hesitation, he selected the Cybernetic Zone card and added it to his hand.

"Thanks to Cyber Dragon Core, its name is treated as Cyber Dragon, allowing me to special summon Cyber Dragon Vier from my hand in defense mode."

Another silver dragon emerged on his side of the field, its defense at 1600 points. This monster held a unique ability, boosting itself by 500 Attack and 500 Defense points for every Cyber Dragon on the field.

Zane knew Aster was incredibly strong, as one of the best in the world. There was no room for doubt. He had to go all out from the start to shift the momentum in his favor, after all, he knew that Aster was currently holding back right now.

"Next, I activate Graceful Charity, drawing three new cards and discarding two. I'll discard Cyber Dragon Drei and Cyber Dragon Herz."

"When Cyber Dragon Herz gets sent to the graveyard, it allows me to retrieve another Cyber Dragon card. I chose Cyber Dragon from my deck."

"Now, I equip your Elemental Hero Phoenix Enforcer with 'Pestilence'!" Zane announced, surprising Aster. He used an equip spell on Aster's monster.

As the Equip spell took effect, the attack points of Aster's Elemental Hero Phoenix Enforcer plummeted to 0.

"Attack! Cyber dragon Core!" Zane commanded, hoping that Aster would use his face down cards.

If it was only that easy, Aster took the hit, losing 400 life points with a smile, irking Zane.

Zane clicked his tongue, noticing his opponent's resilience. Zane believed he could trick Aster into thinking that its effects were also negated when it lost all of its attack points, causing him to use his face-down cards. Without pausing, Zane continued with his momentum.

"I play Cybernetic Fusion Support. By halving my life points, I can special summon a fusion machine by banishing monsters from my hand, field, and/or graveyard as fusion materials!"

Zane's life points dropped to 2000, yet his battle phase wasn't over.

"I banish Cyber Dragon Herz and Drei from my graveyard, along with Cyber Dragon Vier on my field, to special summon my Cyber End Dragon!"

With a roar, Cyber End Dragon emerged, boasting a formidable 4000 attack points.

"Cyber End Dragon, attack Elemental Hero Phoenix Enforcer and end this duel!" Zane commanded, pointing confidently at Aster's monster.

As the Cyber End Dragon was channeling its attack and launching it, Aster made his move.

"I activate my trap card, 'Draining Shield'," Aster began, only to be cut off as Zane's fusion monster self-destructed, forming a cloud of dust, leaving him bewildered.

"What just happened?!" Aster exclaimed as the dust settled.

Before the attack could connect, Zane revealed his own counter. "I activate Cybernetic Zone, banishing Cyber End Dragon until the end of my turn and doubling its attack until my standby phase,"

"I'll end my turn by setting all my cards," Zane declared, his voice dripping with confidence. As Zane crossed his arm, Cyber End Dragon emerged once more on his side of the field, its attack power soaring to 8000 points.

As the situation became more serious, Aster shifted his attention to his deck. It was his turn, and he knew he needed to amp up his game.

Closing his eyes briefly, Aster gathered his resolve before reopening them, locking eyes with his opponent, Zane. He drew his next card, experiencing a slight tingle of anticipation in this duel.

"I draw!" Aster declared, his smirk widening as he surveyed his hand and made his play.

"I play Pot of Greed!" Aster revealed, placing the card on the field. "I will draw two new cards from my deck!" Drawing two new cards.

Zane's eyes widened as Aster played pot of greed.

"I summon Elemental Hero Sparkman in attack mode, and then activate polymerization!"

"Come forth Elemental Hero Shining Phoenix Enforcer!" A silver metallic superhero emerges with 2500 attack points. Since the Elemental Hero Phoenix was no longer present, the equip spell Pestilence was sent to the graveyard.

"Here's the thing: Elemental Hero Shining Phoenix Enforcer gains 300 attack points for every Elemental Hero monster in the graveyard. There are currently 4 in my graveyard. Not only that, it also cannot be destroyed by battle." Aster explains as his monster's attack points rose to 3700.

"Its attacks are still lower than Cyber End Dragon." Zane countered with a smirk.

"That's true. But attack points aren't everything." Aster said before glancing at Zane's Cyber Dragon Core (400 attack) on the field and the four face-down cards.

"How tedious." Aster murmured, his gaze sharpening. He activated "Card of Demise" to replenish his hand, swiftly followed by "Card of Destruction" to shuffle his hand, signaling a shift in strategy.

Aster was prepared to turn the tide of the duel with just these four new cards.

Aster: 3600 LP

Zane: 2000 LP

~

The spectators and viewers were awestruck by the duel. High-level exchanges and commentary went wild, exaggerating the events of Zane's turn.

***