The duel field inside the Kaiba Corp restroom buzzed with unnatural energy as the glowing sigil of the Orichalcos pulsed like a heartbeat beneath Dartz's feet. The dark green aura seeped into the air, thick and oppressive. Even with the artificial light of the holographic duel field flickering around them, Connor could feel the overwhelming presence of something ancient—something evil, breathing in time with the pulse of the glowing seal.
Dartz, standing tall and regal, held his cards with practiced ease, but his confident smirk faltered. He glanced down at his opening hand and scowled. His expression twisted with visible irritation. His lips curled downward, his brow knitted tightly.
"This isn't what I planned…" he muttered under his breath, voice low and sharp.
From the opposite side of the small, dim restroom-turned-duel-arena, the Duelist Exterminator stood unmoving. His face was partially obscured beneath the brim of his pristine white hat, casting a shadow over his sharp, calculating eyes.
"Duels with me tend not to work out well for those who rely too heavily on magic," he said coldly. His voice was like the crack of ice in winter—calm but final.
Dartz's eyes flashed. He regained composure instantly, his mouth curling into a mocking smirk. "Then allow me to show you real magic."
He slammed a card onto his duel disk with flourish. "I activate the spell card—The Seal of Orichalcos!"
The restroom darkened. Wind that shouldn't exist indoors whipped around them. The runes of the seal flared to life, green tendrils slithering across the ground, entwining the duel field in cursed energy. The walls flickered as the seal covered the entire field.
Connor gasped and stumbled slightly, his five-year-old body trembling under the weight of the aura. It was like a lead blanket pressing down on his lungs. His small hands trembled as he clenched his duel disk.
"The Seal grants all my monsters 500 extra attack points," Dartz explained, his voice rising with dark pride. "And no one else may interfere with this duel. You're locked in—with me."
He drew a card and held it high. "I summon Orichalcos Gigas in attack mode!"
From the field erupted a hulking abomination of sinew and steel. Its claws scraped the ground as its blood-red eyes fixated on Connor.
[Orichalcos Gigas – ATK 400 → 900]
Dartz waved his hand with practiced arrogance. "I end my turn by setting one card face-down."
The Duelist Exterminator's lips pressed into a line. He drew his card with clinical precision. The glowing eye of his duel disk scanned the battlefield, though his gaze remained fixed on Dartz.
"I summon Banisher of the Radiance."
A figure cloaked in radiant light descended onto the field. Its holy glow cut through the tainted energy of the Orichalcos like a beacon.
[Banisher of the Radiance – ATK 1600]
"While this card remains on the field, any card sent to the graveyard is instead banished."
Dartz's expression darkened. A muscle in his cheek twitched. "Banishing my monsters… You think that'll stop me?"
The Exterminator didn't respond. His face remained unreadable.
"I set two cards face-down and end my turn," he stated.
Connor took a deep breath. His hand trembled as he drew his card. He stared at it, then at the looming figures of Dartz's monsters. Despite the fear, his mind was clear. His blue eyes narrowed with determination.
"I summon Jerry Beans Man in attack mode!"
A small but determined green bean warrior popped onto the field, fists clenched and ready.
[Jerry Beans Man – ATK 1750]
"I set two cards face-down. That's my turn."
Dartz let out a low chuckle as he drew. "You've played admirably, for a child. But not well enough."
"I pay 500 life points to special summon Orichalcos Kyutora."
[Dartz LP: 4000 → 3500]
A floating, grotesque orb appeared—a massive eye with a swirling iris, blinking slowly.
[Orichalcos Kyutora – ATK 0 → 500]
"Now, Orichalcos Gigas, attack Banisher of the Radiance!"
The Exterminator raised a hand. "Trap card—Mirror Force."
A reflective barrier surged upward, catching Gigas's charge and hurling it back. The monster exploded in a torrent of dark energy. Dartz flinched.
"When Orichalcos Gigas is destroyed, it returns next turn stronger," Dartz growled.
[Orichalcos Gigas – ATK 900 → 1400]
"And when Kyutora is destroyed, I summon Orichalcos Shunoros."
The ground shook. A massive, metallic colossus emerged. Sparks flew as Orichalcos symbols glowed across its armor.
"And with Shunoros comes Orichalcos Dexia and Aristeros."
[Shunoros – ATK 0 → 500]
[Dexia – ATK 0 → 500]
[Aristeros – DEF 0 → 0]
"I end my turn."
The Exterminator's gaze remained steady. He drew with grace, then raised a card.
"I activate Fissure. Your monster with the lowest ATK is destroyed. That would be Shunoros."
The colossus shattered into shards of green crystal. Dartz snarled.
"I chain Martyr Curse! Dexia is forced to battle your Banisher."
[Dexia gains 1600 + 300 → 1900]
Banisher exploded.
[Exterminator LP: 4000 → 3500]
"I summon D.D. Warrior Lady."
[D.D. Warrior Lady – ATK 1500]
"She attacks Orichalcos Gigas."
"I redirect the attack to Aristeros," Dartz snapped.
[Aristeros – DEF 0 → 1800]
[Exterminator LP: 3500 → 3200] [Both are banished]
"I end my turn."
Connor began, his eyes narrowing as he gestured toward the glowing Spell Card.
"This," he said, "is one of those deceptively simple cards—a Normal Spell that digs into the top layers of my deck and pulls out something special. When I activate Enchanting Fitting Room, I get to reveal the top four cards of my Deck. Then, among those cards, I can Special Summon any Level 3 or lower Normal Monsters that I find there. But there's a price: I have to pay 800 Life Points.
[Connor LP: 4000 → 3200]
"Sonic Duck and Bunilla, to the field!"
[Sonic Duck – ATK 1700]
[Bunilla – ATK 150]
"Creature Swap. I give you Bunilla, I take Gigas."
[Dartz now controls Bunilla – ATK 150 → 650]
Connor's hand trembled slightly, but he forced a steady breath.
"Now Jerry Beans Man—attack Bunilla!"
[Dartz LP: 3500 → 2400]
"Creature Seizure! I take Dexia, give you Jerry Beans Man."
[Dexia – ATK 0] [Jerry Beans Man – ATK 1750 → 2250]
"Dexia attacks Jerry Beans Man!"
[Dexia gains 1750 + 300 → 2050]
[Dartz LP: 2400 → 2100]
"Sonic Duck and Gigas—finish him off!" Connor yelled, eyes burning.
[Gigas – ATK 1400]
[Sonic Duck – ATK 1700]
[Dartz LP: 2100 → 0]
The monsters roared, surging across the field in a flash of light and fury. Dartz's eyes went wide as the attacks landed.
"No! Not to a child! Not to a freak!"
The Orichalcos seal beneath him cracked, green lightning splitting the air. His body seized violently. The glow flared, then shattered like glass.
With a scream, Dartz vanished in a blaze of cursed energy, swallowed by his own arrogance.
Connor panted, sweat running down his small brow. His duel disk powered down slowly.
"That… was for my classmates," he whispered.
The Duelist Exterminator finally moved, stepping forward with the same cold intensity. He nodded once.
"You did well, kid."
And with that, the darkness lifted. The green haze faded. The Kaiba Corp bathroom returned to silence—just fluorescent light, porcelain, and tile.
The duel field inside the Kaiba Corp restroom had faded, but the heavy tension lingered like smoke after a fire. The cracked tiles beneath their feet, the flickering light above the mirrors, and the bloodied air thick with the remnants of magic bore witness to a clash that should have ended. And yet—
Dartz staggered backward, bracing himself against the wall of the last stall. His chest heaved, his pristine white robes stained with sweat and shadow. "No… This cannot be…" he muttered, breathless. The pulsing green light of the Seal of Orichalcos flickered erratically around his feet, like a dying flame resisting the wind.
Connor, sweat dripping down his brow, leaned against the sink, his tiny five-year-old frame trembling from both exhaustion and dread. Despite the body of a child, his eyes were sharp with maturity, hardened by pain and trauma. He ran a sleeve across his face, trying to process the madness they'd just endured. "I can't believe it's finally over," he whispered, his voice shaking.
The Duelist Exterminator, towering beside him, said nothing. The old man's face was unreadable, carved from stone. Wrinkles lined his face, deep from decades of blood-soaked experience. Beneath the brim of his white cowboy hat, his eyes remained fixed on the stall where Dartz had vanished. Then, with unnerving calm, he spoke:
"It's not."
The fluorescent lights buzzed overhead as a low, twisted laugh began to echo through the restroom—inhuman, wrong. It scratched at the ears like nails on metal.
Dartz's voice returned, but it had changed. The madness was still there, but now something darker laced his tone. "You fools… You think a duel was all it took? That was merely a game. Now, the real nightmare begins."
The metal stall door blew off its hinges, slamming against the wall with a metallic shriek. A wave of corrupt energy spilled out like toxic mist. Dartz stood in the center of it all, transformed. The emerald glow had consumed him. His eyes blazed with otherworldly power, the pupils vertical slits, his face contorted and twitching. Black veins crawled across his skin. From the mirror behind him, the faint outline of a massive serpent—the Great Leviathan—began to slither forward.
Connor stepped back, eyes wide. His hands trembled, not with fear, but with raw anger. "He's… trying to fuse with the Leviathan. He's becoming it."
The Duelist Exterminator didn't move. His posture remained straight, his breathing even. His right hand reached under his long coat.
Dartz roared as green light burst from his limbs. His body twisted, bones snapping and reforming, scales forming along his forearms. From his back, a distorted shadow of wings spread, barely formed and flaring with corrupted magic. "I am eternal! I am the beginning and the end! I AM THE WORLD'S SALVATION THROUGH OBLIVION!"
Connor shouted, "We have to do something now! If he merges with that thing, it's over for all of us!"
The Duelist Exterminator finally moved.
His arm emerged from his coat—but instead of a card, he held a gun.
It was old but well-maintained, matte black, heavy in his calloused hand. His finger rested on the trigger with the comfort of a man who'd long accepted what he must do. He didn't look at Connor. His eyes remained on Dartz.
"Wait—what are you doing?" Connor gasped.
A single, deafening gunshot cracked through the restroom.
Time seemed to stop. Dartz jerked violently. His twisted form flinched backward as the bullet struck dead center in his chest. The green light flared violently, then sputtered like a dying candle. Blood—dark, too dark—oozed from the wound, soaking into his now-tattered robes.
The Leviathan's shadow above him screamed in silence, thrashing once before beginning to unravel like smoke in the wind.
Dartz's eyes widened, his mouth slightly agape. For the first time, true fear shimmered behind his monstrous gaze. His voice was broken, nearly human again. "No… no… this power… I was supposed to be…"
The Exterminator took slow, deliberate steps forward, his pistol still raised. His lined face remained cold. "I've studied your kind, Dartz. Your type thinks you're chosen because you have some ancient magic or cosmic prophecy protecting you."
Another step.
"But you bleed just like any other man."
Dartz collapsed to one knee. The sigil beneath his feet cracked. The remaining light of the Orichalcos blinked wildly, uncontrolled. The Leviathan's form shimmered in and out of existence.
Connor watched in stunned silence, his breath shallow. Despite everything Dartz had done, it was surreal to see him so human—so vulnerable.
"I knew your type before you ever opened your first spellbook," the Exterminator continued, eyes devoid of compassion. "Relying on ancient gods and cursed seals, pretending that makes you invincible. But you forgot the one truth I've carried for decades."
Dartz coughed, blood speckling his lips. "And what's that?"
"No one's immune to a bullet."
Dartz fell backward, his body hitting the tiles with a sickening thud. His glowing eyes dimmed, the emerald color fading as if drawn out of him. The Leviathan screamed one last time before vanishing into nothingness, swallowed by its own failure.
The stall wall behind him was splattered with blood and magic residue. The seal cracked and faded, leaving only the battered form of a man who thought himself a god.
Connor stood frozen. His young face was pale, his lips slightly parted, eyes locked on Dartz's motionless form.
The silence that followed was deafening.
The Duelist Exterminator turned to the boy, his face unreadable. "You okay?"
Connor nodded slowly, but didn't speak. He looked down at his trembling hands.
"He... He would have destroyed the world."
"He would have tried," the Exterminator replied, turning back toward the door. "But he lost. And in the end, that's all that matters."
Connor stood silently for a moment, watching the figure vanish into the darkness of the hallway.
"Hey," Connor called out, taking a tentative step forward. His voice echoed faintly in the now quiet and empty restroom. "Thanks. I couldn't have done it without you."
The Duelist Exterminator paused mid-step. His tall frame stiffened for a heartbeat, his silhouette framed by the flickering hallway lights. But he didn't turn. He didn't respond.
Connor waited, a bit of hope lingering in his wide blue eyes, but the man simply resumed walking, his long coat billowing slightly as he disappeared into the shadows of the corridor. Just like that, he was gone—a ghost who had arrived just in time and vanished without a trace.
Letting out a breath he didn't realize he was holding, Connor let out a nervous chuckle, rubbing the back of his head. "Well, anyway... thanks again," he muttered to the empty space.
Now alone, the surreal weight of what had just happened settled on his small shoulders. Dartz—the ancient, dark force from another era—was gone. The threat had been neutralized. But Connor knew there was more to do.
He turned and moved quickly through the dimly lit Kaiba Corp facility. His small feet padded quietly over the polished tile, guided not by instinct but by fragments of schematics he'd seen in stolen glances during his time exploring. Each hallway he passed bore the sterile chill of corporate precision, illuminated by cold fluorescent lights that buzzed quietly overhead.
Eventually, he reached an unmarked steel door. It looked like any other in the hallway, but Connor's heart pounded as he gripped the handle. He twisted it open with effort, revealing a room that seemed untouched by time.
His breath caught in his throat.
Before him stood a vault—not just any vault, but the kind of secret treasure room he'd only dreamed of. Duel Monsters cards lined the shelves from wall to wall in glass cases and thick binders. Display pedestals held iconic, rare cards illuminated under soft museum-like lighting.
It was Dartz's private collection.
Connor stepped inside, his mouth slightly agape. Every shelf was a monument to Duel Monsters history: pristine first editions, cards lost to time, tournament exclusives, banned artifacts of power.
He had never seen so many legends gathered in one place.
Carefully, reverently, he moved to one of the shelves. His eyes scanned quickly, fingers trembling with anticipation. He wasn't here to gawk. He had a mission—a deck to build. One that could compete against the strongest duelists in the world.
"Perfect," he whispered.
He began pulling cards with precision, selecting only those necessary for the Goat Control strategy he'd studied in the meta archives. Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning. Metamorphosis. Scapegoat. Tsukuyomi. Thousand-Eyes Restrict. As he held each card in his hand, he could feel the immense weight of their power—and their rarity.
His fingers moved next to the trap section: Mirror Force. Ring of Destruction. Torrential Tribute. His eyes gleamed with anticipation. He knew how deadly this deck could become if constructed correctly.
It was the strategy of legends.
With his chosen cards gathered, he tucked them into a makeshift deck box he fashioned from one of Dartz's display containers. With practiced stealth, he exited the vault the way he had come, making sure no trace of his presence remained.
As he slipped through the halls of the Kaiba Corp building, he moved with the caution of a seasoned infiltrator. Every echo of footsteps made his heart skip. But luck was on his side tonight.
As Connor emerged into the night air through a side exit, the city lights of San Francisco greeted him. The wind brushed through his blonde hair, a gentle but refreshing contrast to the stuffy tension of the facility.
Ahead, parked by the sidewalk, was the red car. Rebecca leaned impatiently against the side, arms crossed, foot tapping. Arthur Hawkins stood nearby, leaning on his cane with the composure of a man who'd seen too much.
"Connor! What took you so long?" Rebecca snapped, eyebrows furrowed. Her voice cracked with genuine irritation. "You said you just needed a bathroom break!"
Connor put on a sheepish grin, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah… I, uh, got a little lost trying to find my way back. This place is a maze. But I'm here now, no worries!"
Rebecca rolled her eyes dramatically, clearly not satisfied with his answer. "Typical. You always take forever."
Arthur's gaze was sharp. He watched Connor silently, his eyes scanning the boy's posture, his expression, the faint adrenaline still lingering in his movements.
Connor did his best to keep calm, swallowing the excitement and tension he still carried. He stuffed the deck box deep into his jacket pocket.
"We were starting to get worried," Arthur said finally, his voice calm but layered with concern. "Next time, let one of us know. This place isn't as safe as it looks."
Connor nodded quickly. "Right. Sorry about that, Granduncle."
Arthur studied him for another moment, then gave a small nod of approval.
"Well, as long as you're safe," he said. "Now, let's go get those cards you wanted from the card shop you told me about."
Connor smiled, his nerves easing just slightly. "Right behind you."
As they climbed into the car, Rebecca grumbled under her breath. Arthur started the engine, pulling out into the city streets. The headlights cut through the darkness, and the car rumbled quietly through the sleeping city.
Connor leaned back into the seat, his fingers gripping the newly acquired deck box in his pocket. He stared out the window, the neon lights reflecting off the glass. He had what he needed now. A deck built for control, for strategy, for victory.
He was no longer just another duelist.
He was ready for Battle City.
And whatever came next—he would face it, card in hand, head held high.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
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"I'd love your feedback — once I finish this fanfiction, which one would you be most interested in reading next?"
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Marvel Zombies: The main character ends up completely screwed over by a douchebag genie.
Rick and Morty: An alternate version of Morty goes on a journey to fully master magic.