"By Red-Eyes Alternative Black Dragon's effect, Red-Eyes Black Dragon is revived!"
Joey shouted. A spiral pillar of flame roared skyward, molding itself into the silhouette of a burning black dragon. The armor like blazing magma slowly peeled away, returning to the most classic form: Red-Eyes Black Dragon!
[Red-Eyes Black Dragon, ATK 2400]
"Sorry to trouble you again, old friend," Joey smiled at Red-Eyes. "But I'll have to borrow your strength once more."
Red-Eyes seemed to truly understand and let out a domineering draconic roar in response.
"The Red-Eyes revived by Alternative Black Dragon has its ATK doubled!"
[Red-Eyes Black Dragon, ATK 2400 → 4800]
"Oh my God, four thousand eight attack points!" Pegasus feigned shock. "Unbelievable, Joey-boy!"
Joey squinted at him. "Your acting is way too over the top, Pegasus."
"Is it?"
Pegasus dropped the terrified look in an instant, gracefully brushed aside the hair covering half his face, and chuckled.
"My, I thought Joey-boy was the simple-minded type. Seems you're not that easy to fool."
Joey snorted heavily.
He hadn't forgotten Pegasus's underhanded hidden ability with Relinquished. Back then, Yugi had been burned hard by it.
When Relinquished has a monster equipped from absorbing it, if it's attacked, it can choose any of its equipped monsters to take the attack instead.
The equipped monster can be destroyed in place of Relinquished, and the battle damage is dealt to the original owner of the destroyed monster.
This effect is even nastier than its printed card version; the real card only nerfed it, not removed it.
The printed Relinquished, when it has an equipped monster and takes an attack, the controller also takes the damage, but they can reflect effect damage to the opponent equal to the battle damage they took.
Also, in the anime Relinquished could absorb only once per turn, but it had no limit on total equipped monsters. In the real card, it can equip at most one, and if it already has one equipped it can't absorb a new one.
So if Joey really charged in recklessly with his 4800-ATK Red-Eyes, Relinquished would simply use the equipped "Archfiend Black Skull Dragon" as a shield.
Black Skull Dragon would be destroyed instead of Relinquished, and the resulting 1600 battle damage would be reflected back to Joey, the original owner of Black Skull Dragon.
Relinquished itself would be unscathed. Next turn it would of course absorb Joey's 4800-ATK Red-Eyes, and Joey might truly be done for.
"My, pity you saw through that," Pegasus smiled. "But that means your hard-won 4800-ATK Red-Eyes can't attack. No matter how many you bring, they're just fodder for Relinquished."
"Is that so?" Joey huffed. "I admit, Relinquished is a tough monster. But the duelist isn't invincible—don't forget that, Pegasus.
I activate this card from my hand!"
He slammed a Spell onto his Duel Disk. Electricity traced along the disk as if power truly flowed into Red-Eyes; the dragon raised its head and roared.
"Spell Card 'Inferno Fire Blast'!"
"When you control 'Red-Eyes Black Dragon,' choose one Red-Eyes Black Dragon you control and inflict damage to your opponent equal to its original ATK!"
Pegasus's smile vanished.
"Original ATK!?"
"That's right. Alternative Black Dragon doubled Red-Eyes's original ATK!" Joey said. "Therefore, Red-Eyes's original ATK is now…"
[Red-Eyes Black Dragon, ATK 4800]
"Four thousand eight hundred."
Pegasus's face twitched.
A 4800-point Inferno Fire Blast—after taking that, not even his adopted sons would be able to identify the remains!
"Take this, Pegasus!" Joey shouted. "Red-Eyes Black Dragon—Inferno Fire Blast!"
Red-Eyes opened its jaws. Hellfire seemed to well up endlessly into its maw, coalescing into a spiraling black fireball spewed toward Pegasus!
"I activate my set card—Trap Card 'Graverobber'!"
Pegasus instantly sprung his trap.
"Take one card from your opponent's Graveyard and you may use Graverobber as that card immediately."
Joey's expression tightened.
"You bastard, using my card!"
In the original, the all-purpose Trap Graverobber was one of Joey's iconic cards, often the key to his victories.
"I don't quite understand. This was published by Industrial Illusions after all," Pegasus smiled.
"In that case, you're surely most familiar with Graverobber's effect.
The card I'll take from your Graveyard is… Counter Trap 'Trap of Board Eraser'!"
"When an effect other than battle damage would inflict damage, negate the effect damage to yourself, then you may also discard one random card from your opponent's hand."
Pegasus chuckled.
"Now then, show me your hand."
Joey wordlessly revealed his cards.
"Oh, 'Red-Eyes Spirit,' a Trap that can revive any Red-Eyes monster from the Graveyard. That won't do." Pegasus snapped his fingers. "This card disappears, Joey-boy."
The Trap vanished to dust from Joey's hand.
"Tch, damn you, Pegasus," Joey muttered.
"Hahaha, I'll take that as a compliment," Pegasus smiled. "It's a pity your Inferno Fire Blast combo failed.
But it's still your turn. Come, Joey-boy—what will you do now?"
Joey grunted.
"On the turn I activate Inferno Fire Blast, Red-Eyes can't attack. My turn's over."
"Oh? Ending just like that?" Pegasus said with a smile.
"Is that really wise, Joey-boy? Could it be—your perfectly powered-up Red-Eyes will become Relinquished's fodder next turn?"
Joey: "…"
"Oh! I forgot, sorry. Even if you could attack, damage to Relinquished would only rebound and speed your defeat. So you're 'utterly helpless,' yes?"
Joey: "…"
Pegasus laughed heartily.
"In that case, I'll take it from here, Joey-boy!
My turn, draw!
Go, Relinquished—absorb Joey-boy's soul—and his Red-Eyes Black Dragon!"