[Mash POV]
Hello again!
It's me, Mash!And after glancing back at my wide-eyed, probably-worried friends, I'm now heading down to my first ever duel in this new world.
Exciting, right?
And just to be clear, I wasn't kidding when I said Crowler is the one who'll need luck today. Because the only thing that's beating me now… is a goddamn brick of a hand.
Let's talk about the era I'm in for a second. It's 2004-2010, Duel Monsters era. Hand traps? Almost nonexistent. And if they do exist, they're basically extremely weak or niche unlike the "Negate everything because fuck you!" like modern cards.
No Ash Blossom and Depressing Shit.
No Ghost Belle and the Haunted strip club.
No Called by Your Mom.
No Meteor Who flush my entire field.
And definitely no Blue-Haired Twink who rubs her privates on my monsters to negate them!
I'm here to show these 2008 duelists the true horror of modern decks!
…Which is, not being able to play the game at all.
I reached the edge of the duel arena.
Standing on the opposite platform was the man himself—Professor Vellian Crowler. Or, as I like to call him…
A walking Pot of Greed with legs.
He sneered when he saw me, his face twisted in a mix of disgust and theatrical smugness. Then his expression shifted into a condescending smirk as he looked me up and down like I was a stain on his designer boots.
[Look at this ugly-bastard,] I thought. [He really thinks he's gonna get his comeback arc after losing to Jaden.]
Crowler's internal monologue practically radiated off his face as he folded his arms dramatically. [Ho ho ho… After that humiliating defeat to that Kuriboh-headed delinquent, I can finally take my anger out on this no-name brat. I'll destroy him with my Ancient Gear deck and restore my honor!]
I raised my hand in a respectful gesture and smiled politely. "Professor Vellian Crowler. It's an honor to duel you."
Crowler narrowed his eyes. "Signore... Mash, was it? I heard you scored at the very, very bottom of the written exam." He smiled venomously. "And you were just as late as that Jaden Yuki brat."
Then his voice sharpened. "Today, even against a slacker like you, I promise I won't be going easy. Prepare yourself!"[Ho ho ho! This'll be an easy win! I'll erase this stain and redeem myself from earlier!]
He snapped open his duel disk and smirked with theatrical flair. "Prepare yourself!"
[Hoh? this smug Pot of Greed reject looking down on me…?] I thought, a grin tugging at the edge of my mouth. [Alright then. Time to teach him a lesson with my Labrynth deck. And I'll show him and also everyone here the equivalent of a Yata-lock, Labrynth Edition!]
"I sincerely apologize for my poor performance on the written test," I said politely, smiling just a little too innocently. "I hope my dueling skills can make up for it."
Crowler's eye twitched.
"DUEL!" we both shouted in sync.
{Mash LP: 4000
Crowler LP: 4000}
[Ooh...! right! I forgot this era starts with only 4000 LP! If I built a Gimmick Puppet FTK deck, I could've- wait, no, that uses Xyz Monsters. Shit.]
"I'll go first!" Crowler shouted before I even finished my thought.
[Huh!? OH COME ON.][Right. Also in this stupid-ass GX era, turn order isn't decided by a coin flip or die roll. It's determined by whoever can yell first the fastest. I'll add that to my mental notebook then.]
We both drew five cards from our decks. Crowler drew a sixth since he was going first.
[That's another plus of this era, as unlike the modern rules which said only the going second player is able to draw their sixth card. Here? Even if you're going first, you still draw a card! This game was very raw. But more importantly...]I glanced at my hand and nearly burst out laughing.
[I'm sorry, Crowler… but I just drew a damn good hand. You're screwed.]
Crowler looked over his hand with a slimy grin. His lips curled into something so smug it felt like an HR violation.
[Heh! The perfect cards to crush this slacker into the ground!]
[Bro, please don't look at me like that.][You're sexually harassing me with your face.]
Crowler lifted a card. "I activate the Spell Card {Magnet Circle LV2}! This allows me to Special Summon a Level 2 or lower Machine-type monster from my hand! And the machine I'll be summoning will be {Ancient Gear}!"
A bolt of electricity zapped across the arena as a small, rust-covered robot rolled out onto the field. Its gears churned and clicked like a wind-up horror toy.
Mash was surprised as seeing them being summoned to the field first hand is way cooler than seeing it on TV.
{Ancient Gear|2 Star| Earth | Machine/Effect |ATK:100DEF:800| If you control an "Ancient Gear", you can summon this card from your hand in face up attack position}
Crowler held up another card. "And now that I control an Ancient Gear, I'll Special Summon another copy from my hand!"
Another creaking, rattling clunker hit the field with a mechanical hiss. Its metal limbs twitched, and the two rust buckets lined up side by side.
"Whoa!" Syrus blinked. "He summoned two monsters without using his Normal Summon!"
"But that also means…" Bastion adjusted his glasses. "He still hasn't used his Normal Summon this turn."
Jaden leaned forward. "Which means—"
Crowler extended his arm dramatically. "Now! I tribute both of my Ancient Gears to summon my ace monster!" He slapped the final card onto his duel disk. "Behold! The mechanical powerhouse rivaling the legendary Blue-Eyes White Dragon {Ancient Gear Golem}!!"
The two smaller Gears crumbled and fused into molten steel, rising as a massive, stomping titan of iron and steam. With a roar, the Ancient Gear Golem emerged to the field, towering above the arena, glaring down at me like I owed it rent.
{Ancient Gear Golem|8 Star| Earth| Machine/Effect| ATK:3000 DEF:3000| Cannot be special summoned. If this card attacks, your opponent cannot activate any spell or trap cards under the end of damage step. If this card attack a defense position monster, inflict piercing damage}
The arena rumbled under its weight. Even I couldn't help but feel a little thrill. Seeing it on screen was one thing—but having a real hologram Golem glare at you?
Kinda badass.Terrifying... but badass.
Up on the balcony.
"Whoa, look Zane!" Alexis pointed down. "Professor Crowler summoned his Ancient Gear Golem on the first turn!"
Zane narrowed his eyes, arms crossed. "He really is going all out, to a random kid no less. Unless the newbie's got something up his sleeve… he's in trouble. No one's ever won against Crowler after he summoned that card. Until Jaden broke his win streak."
Crowler folded his arms confidently. [Ho ho ho! This is perfect. With my ace monster summoned, it doesn't matter what that boy does next. I've already won!]He grinned. "I end my turn."
{Crowler hands: 2 Card
Field: 1 monster}
[Mash POV]
I exhaled deeply, trying to keep my cool. My left hand equipped with the duel disk was shaking. My right hand, gripping my cards, pinched just a tighter.
Not because I was nervous.
No...
That's because the cards in my hand are perfections! A god-tier hand. My fingers were trembling with anticipation.
I couldn't wait to crush this smug-ass, Pot of Greed-shaped professor into dust.
I shifted my cards into my left hand, raised the right dramatically and-
"Draw!"
I drew my card and slid it smoothly into my hand. The card I just pulled? Just icing on an already glorious cake.
I smiled confidently and locked eyes with Crowler… and his soon-to-be-obliterated Ancient Gear Golem.
"First, I'll Normal Summon {Ariane the Labrynth Servant} in attack mode!"
I slapped the card down.
A fancy silver door erupted on my field as a gothic maid with silver twin-buns and glowing pink eyes emerged from inside. Dressed in black and pink, with horns curling from her head and a striped tail flicking behind her, she spun a long candelabra like a flaming baton, pink fire lighting up the field.
{Ariane the Labrynth Servant|4 star| dark| fiend effect|ATK:1800 DEF:1100|
Crowler scoffed. "Your monster has some cute theatrics, but it's still no match for my Ancient Gear Golem!"
"I'm not done yet," I said coolly. "I'll activate Ariane's effect! By discarding one Normal Trap Card from my hand or field, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower Fiend from my deck!"
I slid a card into my graveyard. "And I'll Special Summon… {Arianna the Labrynth Servant}!"
Another fancy silver door burst onto the field as a second maid appeared from it. This one with a soft green theme, slightly more timid in posture, but wielding a giant, large keychain weapon.
{Arianna the labrynth servant|4 star| dark| fiend/effect| ATK:1600 DEF:2100|
"When Arianna is normal or special summoned to the field, her effect activates!" I continued. "She lets me add one 'Labrynth' card from my deck to my hand."
I pulled my deck out, flicked through it, and plucked the card I needed.
"Now I discard {Labrynth Stovie Torbie} and {Labrynth Chandraglier} from my hand to Set a 'Labrynth' Spell or Trap directly from my deck!"
A card materialized on the field before me, sliding into place with a satisfying click.
"I Set {Welcome Labrynth}! Then, I Set three more cards facedown and end my turn!"
I stepped back, arms crossed, confident as hell.
{Mash hands: 0 Cards
Field: 2 monster, 3 set cards}
Crowler frowned. "Is… that it?" He chuckled mockingly. "After all that build-up, you summoned two monsters that can't even scratch my Ancient Gear Golem?"
He leaned forward, sneering. "Surely you didn't forget my Golem's effect, when it attacks, you can't activate any Spells or Traps until the end of the Damage Step! And also-"
"Yeah, yeah. Just shut up and draw your pathetic card, I don't want to look at your smug ass, ugly ahh face much longer." I said, cutted him off.
Gasps erupted across the stadium.
Chazz's jaw dropped. "What did that kid just say…?"
Alexis smirked behind her hand. "Fufufu…"
Zane raised an eyebrow. "How bold of him."
Syrus was trembling. "N-no way… Did he just insult Professor Crowler to his face, about his face?!"
"I'd have said the same thing," Jaden added, scratching the back of his head. "Difference is… I wouldn't have said it to his face."
Bastion grimacing. [What a psycho… Professor Crowler looks like he's about to explode.]
Crowler stared at the ground. His fists clenched, rage boiling beneath his skin. In all his years of teaching, no one had ever disrespected him this hard. Not like this.
He raised his head, his expression twisted with fury.
"I WILL MAKE SURE TO DESTROY YOU! YOU IMPUDENT AND ARROGANT BRAT!"
He drew his card with a dramatic flourish.
"I activate the Equip Spell {Ancient Gear Fist}! I equip it to my Ancient Gear Golem!"
A massive steel gauntlet launched from the sky like a torpedo, slamming onto the Golem's arm. Its massive fingers clenched into a fist as energy surged through its frame.
{Ancient Gear Fist|Equip Spell|Equip only to an "Ancient Gear" monster. At the end of the Damage Step, if the equipped monster battled a monster and is still on the field: Destroy the monster it battled.}
"And now… I play {Limiter Removal}! And boost my Ancient Gear Golem to 6000!"
Lightning cracked across the field as Crowler slammed the card into his disk. The Golem roared, Gears screeched and strained. Although his attack stats doubled, The monster shook violently, ready to burst.
{Limiter Removal|quick-play|Double the ATK of all Machine monsters you currently control, until the end of this turn. During the End Phase of this turn, destroy those monsters.}
Crowler's eyes narrowed. [I'll make sure this brat won't step foot in Duel Academy after this. I'll crush him completely!]"NOW I ENTER THE BATTLE PHASE—"
"Wait!"
I raised my hand, calm and casual. "Before you attack, I activate my Trap Card {Big Welcome Labrynth}!"
Crowler snarled. "Tch. Suit yourself. As your little trap won't save you! My Ancient Gear Golem will crush your Arianna, and your Life Points along with her!"
I grinned. "I'm not done. I chain it with my other face-down {welcome labrynth}!
"And since I chained a card effect, the activation resolves in reverse order," I explained. "So first, My {Welcome Labrynth} effect activates! I will now Special Summon a 'Labrynth' monster from my deck!"
A massive, ornate grandfather clock appeared on my field, its face ticking erratically. Then, with a loud chime, the cuckoo door burst open but instead of a bird, a bat emerged, fluttering out and diving into a defensive stance.
"Meet Labrynth Cooclock, in defense position!"
Crowler rolled his eyes. "Heh. All that drama for a monster with zero attack and defense?"
"Shut your trap, dickface!" I barked.
Crowler actually flinched.
The crowd gasped again.
I thrust my hand toward the sky.
"Now I'll show you—!"
THE RULER OF THE LABRYNTH LABYRINTH!
THE QUEEN OF THE SILVER CASTLE!
AND THE MOST LOVELIEST OF THEM ALL!
COME FORTH! AS I SUMMON....!
{LOVELY LABRYNTH OF THE SILVER CASTLE}!!
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Hello IG here!
I feel like I want to bury myself like sadam hussein while revamping these chapters. They are so cringe fr fr!
anyway i hope you guys enjoy reading it, Chiao!
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