Chapter 291: Accel Synchro, A Synchronization Spanning Three Thousand Years
"Did it work?!" Kaiba Chiaki stared hard at the surge of data pouring through the main control computer.
The cross-temporal link between the two KaibaCorps, spanning three thousand years, was not only meant to force-broadcast this duel's footage into Eden.
It was also meant to receive the data flowing back from Eden's side. Every possibility contained in this era's future Summoning methods was being transmitted in reverse, from Eden into present-day Domino City.
Through the new-model Duel Disk's vast data network, the one capable of freeing souls from their prison, a synchronization spanning a thousand years had been made real.
Chiaki did not fully understand why Kaiba Seto wanted this done, but if her ancestor had chosen this path, he surely had his reasons.
Whatever else it did, unlocking other Summoning methods would clearly work in Amano Rei's favor. And as a fellow duelist from Eden, Chiaki knew exactly which side she was on.
"Go, Amano. Show them the future of Synchro Summoning!"
A storm of starlight from a Synchro Summon blazed between earth and sky for the second time.
As for the first Synchro Summon of the DM era, that credit belonged to Paradox, the man who had taken on three legendary Kings of Games single-handedly after the events of Duelist City.
Standing at the center of the brilliant starlight, Amano called forth the Synchro card of infinite possibility while every eye in the arena watched in disbelief.
"Synchro Summon! Come forth! Level 5, Junk Speeder!"
[Junk Speeder] [Level 5 / WIND]
[Warrior / Synchro / Effect]
[ATK: 1800] [DEF: 1000]
["Synchron" Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters]
A gathered pulse of rushing wind, its silver-white frame tearing free of the Synchro storm's starlight: Junk Speeder arrived on Amano's field, rendered in the new Duel Disk's most lifelike projection yet.
Rin Seiya's star-bright eyes went wide, staring at Amano on the television screen in disbelief. "Why can you do it? This makes it look like I'm the one who can't!"
"Calm down, Seiya." Nanami Misaki pulled Rin Seiya, who had all but pressed her face to the television screen, back onto the sofa.
"I'd love to calm down, but for some reason my heart is racing right now."
It probably wasn't embarrassment or indignation driving her pulse. Rin Seiya simply felt her heart start pounding uncontrollably the instant Amano's Synchro Summon succeeded.
The feeling was almost like a possession, a pulse carried through a connected soul.
[Longing to be Yusei Fudo] [Unlocks "Junk", "Warrior", and "Stardust" line Synchro Monsters in the Extra Deck.]
In truth, Junk Speeder had been sitting in Amano's Extra Deck the entire time.
Thanks to Rin Seiya's skill, the Junk line of monsters had unlocked in Amano's Extra Deck a long time ago.
Amano raised a hand and declared, "Junk Speeder's effect, activate!"
[This effect can only be activated if this card was Synchro Summoned (during the turn this effect is activated, you cannot Special Summon non-Synchro Monsters from your Extra Deck). Special Summon as many "Synchron" Tuner monsters from your Deck in Defense Position as possible (maximum 1 of each Level).]
Kaiba Seto and Yugi Muto both wore serious expressions, but neither made any move to counter it.
Good. The Speeder had gone through clean.
What awaited Amano next should have been an explosive chain of extensions, the kind storytellers loved to rattle off in a single breath.
That was certainly how it would have gone in the real-card meta from Amano's previous life.
But the dueling field here, in the DM-era Dark Side of Dimensions Chronicle, had not unlocked the Extra Monster Zone yet. With nowhere to place a Synchro Summoned Junk Speeder in an Extra Monster Zone, there was no way to pull all five Synchron monsters out in one motion.
On top of that, Timaeus the United Dragon was already occupying a slot on Amano's field, leaving only three open Monster Zones. Junk Speeder could pull at most three Synchron monsters.
And finally, the most decisive point of all: setting aside the oversized card Star Junk Synchron, Amano's current Deck held only two Synchron monsters. Even without any of the field restrictions above, two was the ceiling.
This was exactly why a card with an effect as strong as Junk Speeder's saw so little play in Amano's hands.
Still, under these circumstances, two Synchron monsters was nothing to complain about.
Amano's fingers caught the two data cards ejected from the new Duel Disk and swept them forward onto the field.
"I Special Summon Junk Synchron and Quickdraw Synchron from my Deck in Defense Position!"
[Junk Synchron] [Level 3 / DARK]
[Warrior / Tuner / Effect]
[ATK: 1300] [DEF: 500]
and
[Quickdraw Synchron] [Level 5 / WIND]
[Machine / Tuner / Effect]
[ATK: 700] [DEF: 1400]
The original squat little orange junk-heap and the revolver-toting cowboy of Quickdraw Synchron appeared on Amano's field together.
"A Synchro Summon? So you already have access to Synchro Summoning too, Amano!"
Yugi Muto had seen a Synchro Summon before. He had been present for Paradox's battle against three Kings of Games.
Kaiba Seto understood it even more clearly, given that the Eden data link had been his own instruction to Chiaki in the first place. "Only by crushing you at your very best does victory in this duel mean anything!"
"I'm not finished! I haven't used my Normal Summon for the turn yet!"
What made the oversized card Star Junk Synchron so powerful was that its effect resembled Junk Synchron's, but its Special Summon didn't cost the Normal Summon for the turn.
Amano's left eye lit with a flicker of pale-blue data. From the hand displayed in front of him, he selected a monster card and swept it forward again.
"I Normal Summon Elemental HERO Burstinatrix!"
[Elemental HERO Burstinatrix] [Level 3 / FIRE]
[Warrior / Normal]
[ATK: 1200] [DEF: 800]
The heroine born of searing flame planted her hands on her hips and took Amano's last open Monster Zone.
"Let's Synchro with a HERO! I tune the Level 5 Tuner Quickdraw Synchron with the Level 3 Elemental HERO Burstinatrix!"
Firing off five shots in a row, Quickdraw Synchron dissolved into a five-fold ring of Synchro starlight that passed straight through Burstinatrix's frame.
Level 5 + Level 3 = Level 8!
Quickdraw Synchron's own effect let it stand in for any Synchron monster as needed.
"The gathering will to fight shall wake the roaring demon god, and become a road of radiant light!"
"Synchro Summon! Smash them apart! Level 8, Junk Destroyer!"
[Junk Destroyer] [Level 8 / EARTH]
[Warrior / Synchro / Effect]
[ATK: 2600] [DEF: 2500]
["Junk Synchron" + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters]
The steel demon god unfolded its four arms and tore through the Synchro storm, its heavy footfall landing on the ground in front of Amano.
Amano swept the Synchro card forward. "When Junk Destroyer is Synchro Summoned successfully, its effect activates!"
[When this card is Synchro Summoned: You can target a number of cards on the field, up to the number of non-Tuner monsters used as material for its Synchro Summon; destroy those cards.]
"Since I used Burstinatrix as Synchro Material, Junk Destroyer can destroy 1 card on the field!"
Yugi raised a hand. "Then right now, I activate my Continuous Trap card, Eternal Soul!"
On Yugi's field, a stone tablet carved with the image of the Dark Magician from three thousand years ago in ancient Egypt rose slowly into place.
Yugi wasn't activating Eternal Soul's effect just yet. Flipping it up was mostly meant to show off its protection.
[Eternal Soul] [Continuous Trap Card: As long as this card remains in your Spell & Trap Card Zone, "Dark Magician" you control cannot be affected by your opponent's card effects.]
A Trap that granted Dark Magician full protection.
On Yugi's field, Dark Magician itself wasn't the only one who benefited from that protection. Dark Magician the Dragon Knight, already Special Summoned, also treated its own card name as "Dark Magician" through its own effect.
The back row protected the front row, while Dark Magician the Dragon Knight in the front row in turn kept the back row safe from destruction. This was the classic Dark Magician mutual-protection loop between the two rows.
But now that Eternal Soul had been revealed in Yugi's back row, Amano obviously wasn't going to waste his destruction on Dark Magician.
"I use Junk Destroyer's effect to destroy Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon!"
If this was a genuine free-for-all, of course both opponents deserved a share.
Last turn Amano had blown up Yugi's back row. This turn, Kaiba Seto's dragon could get an equal share of the rain.
"'Junk Impact Drop'!"
Gravity-charged energy tore loose from the steel arms, and Junk Destroyer smashed Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon apart.
[Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon, destroyed]
"You actually dare destroy my monster. You've got some nerve, Amano Rei!"
"It's a free-for-all, Kaiba. I obviously can't just target Yugi."
"Hmph. That's not what I meant!" Kaiba Seto raised a card high overhead. "I'm asking whether you can bear the price of destroying my monster!"
The card Kaiba held above his head erupted, in the new Duel Disk's most extravagant projection yet, with an entrance effect powerful enough to look like it was cracking the space itself behind him.
"Because you destroyed my monster, I can Special Summon this dragon straight from my hand!"
"Power of pure white sealed within an endless wellspring of time, raise your wings that tremble with the crossing echoes of the soul, and appear now from the azure abyss!"
"Deep-Eyes White Dragon!"
[Deep-Eyes White Dragon] [Level 10 / LIGHT]
[Dragon / Effect]
[ATK: 0] [DEF: 0]
[When a Level 8 or higher Dragon-Type monster you control is destroyed: You can Special Summon this card from your hand.]
The new Duel Disk's ultimate projection quality, paired with Deep-Eyes White Dragon's own proud and majestic frame, combined into a white dragon Summon that shook the entire venue.
"When Deep-Eyes White Dragon is Special Summoned, both of you will feel the wrath of every dragon in the Graveyard!"
[When this card is Normal or Special Summoned: For each Dragon-Type monster in either player's GY, inflict 600 damage to your opponents.]
The three white dragons in Kaiba's Graveyard, plus the one Blue-Eyes White Dragon in Amano's, made four dragon souls in all, roaring as they surfaced behind Deep-Eyes White Dragon and pouring their strength into its ring-shaped wings. A wave of vengeful azure light swept the entire field.
Yugi Muto LP: 5000 to 2600
Amano Rei LP: 5000 to 2600
The damage effect hit Yugi and Amano at the same time. If the LP rule for this duel hadn't started them both at 8000, Kaiba Seto would have taken out both of them at once.
"And then Deep-Eyes White Dragon inherits the power of a dragon from the Graveyard!"
[This card's ATK becomes equal to the ATK of 1 Dragon-Type monster in your GY.]
[Deep-Eyes White Dragon] [ATK: 3000]
With Blue-Eyes Alternative White Dragon destroyed, Kaiba Seto had swapped in a 3000-ATK Deep-Eyes White Dragon in its place.
And Deep-Eyes White Dragon also carried a parting effect that would destroy every monster the opponents controlled the moment it left the field.
That kind of parting shot wasn't especially hard for Amano to deal with at this point, but in a three-way free-for-all, board balance still had to be managed carefully.
Tip the balance too soon, and he could easily land himself in danger.
"Now, moving into the Battle Phase!"
Amano didn't push Junk Synchron, the one Special Summoned via Junk Speeder's effect, into another Synchro Summon. Tuning again at this point would have actually lowered his ATK output.
The Special Summon effect was so overwhelming that most people probably never noticed Junk Speeder was actually a solid attacker in its own right.
"Junk Speeder, attack Dark Magician Girl!"
Junk Speeder's 1800 ATK against Dark Magician Girl's 2000 looked like a suicide charge on paper.
But as Junk Speeder leapt high into the sky and drove a gale-force kick toward Dark Magician Girl, Amano activated the card's effect at the same instant.
"When Junk Speeder battles a monster, its effect activates!"
[This effect can only activate when this card, Synchro Summoned this turn, declares an attack on a monster. This card's ATK becomes double its original ATK until the end of the turn.]
[Junk Speeder] [ATK: 1800 to 3600]
Rin Seiya's voice rose with excitement. "Junk Speeder's ATK can go higher than Blue-Eyes White Dragon's!"
"'Speeder Gale Kick'!!"
A piercing kick that outpaced even a bursting gale shot bore down without mercy on Dark Magician Girl.
[Dark Magician Girl, destroyed]
Yugi Muto LP: 2600 to 1000
The gust from the Synchro monster's strike was strong enough that Yugi could barely keep his eyes open, and his Life Points had visibly dropped into the danger zone.
"Junk Destroyer, attack Dark Magician!"
Junk Destroyer's 2600 ATK steel arm slammed into Dark Magician, winning by a razor-thin margin of 100.
[Dark Magician, destroyed]
Yugi Muto LP: 1000 to 900
"And finally, Timaeus the United Dragon, attack Dark Magician the Dragon Knight!"
A clash between legendary dragons: Timaeus the United Dragon's 2800 ATK charging into Dark Magician the Dragon Knight's 3000.
On the surface it looked like another self-destructive attack, but Timaeus the United Dragon could activate an ATK-boosting effect during damage calculation.
[This effect can only be activated during damage calculation for this card's battle. This card's ATK increases by 100 for each Spell Card in either player's GY or banished.]
Across the three-way free-for-all, there were five Spell Cards sitting in the GY or banished zones, enough to grant Timaeus 500 ATK.
The ATK boost wouldn't be enough to wipe out the rest of Yugi's Life Points, but it would be enough to destroy Dark Magician the Dragon Knight, the linchpin of the front-back protection combo.
"Set Trap Card, activate!" Yugi flipped up his last face-down.
"It won't work, Yugi. Timaeus the United Dragon can't be affected by other cards' effects this turn!"
"No, Amano. What I'm activating is this Trap Card. Trap Card: Weapon Call!"
[Weapon Call] [Trap Card: Add 1 Equip Spell Card from your Deck to your hand. After that, you can equip that card to 1 monster you control that it can legally be equipped to.]
"I equip Axe of Despair from my Deck onto Dark Magician the Dragon Knight, raising its ATK by 1000!"
[Dark Magician the Dragon Knight] [ATK: 3000 to 4000]
Well. Now the self-destructive attack really was self-destructive.
[Timaeus the United Dragon] [ATK: 2800 to 3300]
Gun in one hand, axe in the other, Dark Magician the Dragon Knight brought its full weight down and shattered Timaeus the United Dragon, another legendary dragon in Fusion form.
[Timaeus the United Dragon, destroyed]
Amano Rei LP: 2600 to 1900
"I end the Battle Phase."
Moving into Main Phase 2, Amano lit up the last remaining starlight on his field with the wind of another Synchro Summon.
"I tune the Level 3 Tuner Junk Synchron with the Level 5 Junk Speeder!"
The junk resonated. A triple ring of Synchro starlight swept across the Speeder's silver-white frame and burst into an even brighter blaze.
Level 3 + Level 5 = Level 8!
"The gathered wishes shall become a newborn, shining star of speed, and turn into a road of radiant light!"
"Synchro Summon! Level 8, Accel Synchro Stardust Dragon!"
[Accel Synchro Stardust Dragon] [Level 8 / WIND]
[Dragon / Synchro / Effect]
[ATK: 2500] [DEF: 2000]
[1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters]
In the new Duel Disk's dazzling projection, a Stardust Dragon streaked into the field at full speed. This version, carrying the Accel Synchro prefix, had its entire silver-white body wrapped in a rush of high-speed wind.
"When Accel Synchro Stardust Dragon is Synchro Summoned, its effect activates!"
[This effect can only be activated if this card was Synchro Summoned. Special Summon 1 Level 2 or lower Tuner monster from your GY.]
Outside the screen, Rin Seiya tilted her head, puzzled. "Where would my underclassman even have a Level 2 or lower Tuner?"
The only Tuner monsters Amano had used so far were the Level 3 Junk Synchron and the Level 5 Quickdraw Synchron.
But in fact, one unused Tuner monster was still lying dormant in Amano's Graveyard.
A Tuner sent to the Graveyard earlier as the cost for the Trap Card Damage Capacitor.
"I revive the Level 2 Tuner in my Graveyard, Shiranui Spectralsword!"
[Shiranui Spectralsword] [Level 2 / FIRE]
[Zombie / Tuner / Effect]
[ATK: 800] [DEF: 0]
A burning blade housing the soul of a swordsman took physical shape, hovering over Amano's field.
"Well now, isn't that the demon blade passed down through our own family?"
Since the feed was being force-broadcast across all of Eden, Nanki'in Yukihime, back at the estate, had naturally caught the moment too.
"That girl Sakuya, giving even this card away to someone. Honestly, she's even more lovestruck than I was at her age."
The card hadn't technically been a personal gift from Sakuya, but it was genuinely tied to her skill.
Back in the classroom, Sakuya felt the same thing Rin Seiya had, watching Amano Summon the blade on screen.
It was something like a possession, though not quite the same, as if a soul had reached across space and time to connect in that instant.
"Finally, I set two cards face down. Turn end!"
After Special Summoning the Tuner, Amano didn't rush into another Synchro Summon. The whole point of an Accel Synchro monster, after all, was to hold it and Synchro during the opponent's turn for maximum effect.
Yugi said, "So this is your power of Synchro, Amano. What a duel this has turned into! I'm sure my other self would say exactly the same thing if he saw it."
The instant Amano ended his turn, the Continuous Trap Eternal Soul on Yugi's field activated right on cue.
"By Eternal Soul's effect, once per turn, I can revive Dark Magician from my Graveyard! And when Dark Magician is Special Summoned, my Field Spell, The Magician's Rescue, Special Summons Dark Magician Girl back as well!"
[Dark Magician] [DEF: 2100]
[Dark Magician Girl] [DEF: 1700]
Master and apprentice of dark magic returned to the field, though Yugi Special Summoned both of them in Defense Position.
Partly because his remaining Life Points were already thin, and partly because the next turn belonged to Kaiba Seto.
Given Kaiba Seto's style of play, his offense would only get more ferocious from here.
"My turn, draw!"
Kaiba Seto swept his arm back through an exaggerated arc to draw his card for the turn, the blue data-glow in his left eye scanning the information on it.
"Spell Card: Graceful Charity. I draw 3 cards from my Deck, then discard 2 Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
Sending both Blue-Eyes White Dragons from his hand straight to the Graveyard by this method, Kaiba Seto studied the rest of his hand displayed as AR data on the new Duel Disk in front of him.
"Let it end here. This turn, I bring down the whip of total defeat!"
Amano frowned. "Huh. Wasn't the card behind that line supposed to be banned?"
Kaiba Seto dragged a card forward from his displayed hand and lit it up. At the same instant, a LIGHT and a DARK monster in his Graveyard were ejected into the banished zone.
"I banish the LIGHT-Attribute Blue-Eyes White Dragon, that white phantom beast, and the DARK-Attribute Death Guardian from my Graveyard!"
The DARK-Attribute Death Guardian was the same monster card Kaiba Seto had discarded to the Graveyard back on Turn 1 via The Melody of Awakening Dragon.
No one had expected Kaiba to have kept a Graveyard trap card in reserve that whole time, simply waiting for the chance to use it.
Compared to Amano's and Yugi's Life Points, both guttering like candles in the wind, only Kaiba Seto still stood at a full 8000.
That overwhelming cushion of LP let him press the attack without a shred of hesitation.
"Souls of light and darkness converge at evolution's final point! Let the vortex of chaos take shape as the embodiment of the end!"
"Descend! Chaos Emperor Dragon, Envoy of the End!"
[Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End] [Level 8 / DARK]
[Dragon / Special Summon / Effect]
[ATK: 3000] [DEF: 2500]
[This card cannot be Normal Summoned. Special Summon this card by banishing 1 LIGHT and 1 DARK monster from your GY.]
On the third turn of the free-for-all, Kaiba Seto woke the strongest chaos dragon of all, and a roar heralding annihilation itself rolled through the sky above Domino City.
Amano gritted his teeth. "You're really bringing down the whip of total defeat with that thing, Kaiba?!"
Fair enough, honestly. The card's effect was terrifying. If it went off, it would take both him and Yugi out in an instant.
[Pay 1000 LP. Send all cards in both players' hands and on the field to the GY. Inflict 300 damage to your opponents for each card sent to the GY by this effect.]
If Kaiba Seto activated this effect in the middle of a three-way duel, it would send fifteen cards to the Graveyard in one motion, dealing 4500 points of effect damage to Amano and Yugi simultaneously.
If it were only going to take out Yugi, fine. But Amano wasn't about to let it take him down along the way.
"Like I'd let you get away with that, Kaiba!"
Fortunately, Chaos Emperor Dragon's effect wasn't automatic. It required a separate activation after the Special Summon.
Which meant there was a window between the Special Summon and the effect's activation, and Amano could slip his Accel Synchro effect into that gap.
"Right now, Accel Synchro Stardust Dragon's effect, activate!"
[This effect can only be activated during your Main Phase or your opponent's, by releasing this card. Special Summon 1 "Stardust Dragon" from your Extra Deck, treated as a Synchro Summon. After that, Synchro Summon 1 Synchro Monster. A Synchro Monster Summoned by this effect is unaffected by your opponent's activated effects this turn.]
[Accel Synchro Stardust Dragon] released
"The gathered wishes shall become a newborn, shining star, and turn into a road of radiant light!"
"Synchro Summon! Stardust Dragon!"
[Stardust Dragon] [DEF: 2000]
Having released Accel Synchro Stardust Dragon to Synchro Summon the original Stardust Dragon, Amano could now use the monsters on his field for one more Synchro Summon.
Fire and starlight converged in that instant into a pillar of light shooting skyward, blazing against the data-covered heavens above.
"I tune the Level 2 Tuner Shiranui Spectralsword with the Level 8 Synchro monster Junk Destroyer!"
Level 2 + Level 8 = Level 10!
With Rin Seiya's "Longing to be Yusei Fudo" skill in play, Amano had already Synchro Summoned from the "Junk" and "Stardust" lines this duel. Now it was "Warrior"'s turn.
"The gathered brilliance of the stars converges here into a guardian's orbit! Forge a satellite domain to encircle the battlefield!"
"Synchro Summon! Shine! Level 10, Satellite Warrior!"
[Satellite Warrior] [Level 10 / DARK]
[Warrior / Synchro / Effect]
[ATK: 2500] [DEF: 2000]
[1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner Synchro Monsters]
Its Synchro Summon required Synchro Monsters themselves as material, not just any non-Tuner.
Like a beacon threading through a star chart adrift in space, Satellite Warrior arrived on Kaiba Seto's own turn, its brilliant golden frame reflecting the glow of every star around it, summoned by way of Accel Synchro.
"Take this, Kaiba! Satellite Warrior's effect, activate!"
[If this card is Synchro Summoned: You can target a number of cards your opponents control, up to the number of Synchro Monsters in your GY; destroy them, and this card gains 1000 ATK for each card destroyed.]
The Synchro Monsters in Amano's Graveyard, Junk Speeder, Junk Destroyer, and Accel Synchro Stardust Dragon, came to three in total, letting him target three cards on the field for destruction.
Satellite Warrior's top priority was obvious: stop Chaos Emperor Dragon's effect from ever activating.
Amano began calling names off the list. "I destroy Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End, Deep-Eyes White Dragon, and Dark Magician Girl!"
The brilliance of countless stars poured into the ring of satellites arrayed behind Satellite Warrior, gathering into a beam of energy bright enough to light up the sky.
"'Star Resonance: Celestial Domain Satellite Cannon'!!"
The shot came down from above like a pillar of light connecting heaven and earth, wiping out the Dragon of the End in an instant.
[Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End, destroyed]
[Deep-Eyes White Dragon, destroyed]
[Dark Magician Girl, destroyed]
[Satellite Warrior] [ATK: 2500 to 5500]
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