Amid the blazing Nazca Line track, three D-Wheels raced at full throttle, each vying for the inside curve in the opening turn of the Turbo Duel.
"Kid, it's only been a day… your speed's improved this much?"
The Shadow Turbo Duelist looked astonished as Miles's D-Wheel kept pace beside his, neither gaining nor losing ground.
Same D-Wheel as yesterday, yet now he couldn't shake him off. Was it because of the different soul inside?
Well, maybe Aisha's body was lighter… though that wasn't the main reason.
Yesterday, Miles had been using Ren's HERO Deck for the Turbo Duel. That Deck didn't include any Speed Spells, so going first hadn't mattered much; he hadn't pushed Viel's custom D-Wheel to its limit at the start.
That said, this time was different.
Winning first turn meant reaching 2 Speed Counters ahead of the opponent—crucial for activating key Speed Spells early.
"Get ready—humans have a strong will to live!"
Miles closed in so tight it looked like his D-Wheel might crash straight into the black one ahead.
"What are you doing, kid!?"
At such close range, if they accelerated into the curve together, both could wipe out on the first turn.
"Talking about wanting to live—you're acting like you've got a death wish!"
"Heh. I value my life plenty. That's why I'm not the one accelerating… you are."
Holding his rival in check, Miles's lips curved into a victorious grin.
"Go, Krista!"
"Leave it to me, Miles!"
Miles wasn't dueling alone. By blocking the Shadow Duelist's line with his D-Wheel, he'd opened a gap for Krista to slip through.
Seizing the chance, Krista accelerated along the inner lane, overtaking them both and clearing the first flaming curve.
Perfect teamwork. The opening move was theirs.
In the three-way Turbo Duel, the turn order now went: Krista → Shadow Duelist → Miles → Shadow Duelist… and so on.
Watching Krista in the lead, Miles called out, "Don't call it cheap—it's survival. In a fight to live, every tactic counts."
"Kid, tell me your real name."
"Miles."
"Miles, huh? Good. Then this Turbo Duel will decide both victory and life or death."
"My turn—Draw!"
Leading the duel, Krista drew her first card.
She glanced at the six cards in her D-Wheel's slot, then back at Miles behind her.
"Miles, let's show him the teamwork bound by Stardust's destiny!"
"Yeah! Go, Krista!"
"I Normal Summon in Defense Position—[Top Runner]!"
[Top Runner] Level 4│WIND│Machine / Tuner│ATK 1100 / DEF 800
[While this card is face-up on the field, all face-up Synchro Monsters you control gain 600 ATK.]
A mechanical creature sprinted beside her flaming track—the card's name fitting her position perfectly at the front.
"Next, I activate the effect of [Quickdraw Synchron] in my hand! I discard [Lady Ninja Yae] to Special Summon it!"
[Quickdraw Synchron] Level 5│WIND│Machine / Tuner│ATK 700 / DEF 1400
[You can send 1 monster from your hand to the Graveyard; Special Summon this card from your hand.]
A small gunslinger-shaped Tuner appeared beside Top Runner, its cape fluttering in the wind.
Two Tuners on the field—indeed, she wasn't Synchro Summoning yet.
"I Set 3 cards. Turn end!"
Krista Shia had emptied her hand in a single turn, choosing not to Synchro Summon yet. Instead, she left both Tuners for Miles's upcoming turn—setting the stage as perfect support.
"My turn—Draw!"
Turn rotation shifted. The Shadow Duelist drew his card; both sides' Speed Counters increased with the D-Wheel's acceleration.
[Shadow Duelist, SPC: 0 → 1]
[Miles & Krista, SPC: 0 → 1]
Nevertheless, with only 1 Speed Counter, options were limited. That's why taking the first turn had been so vital.
Even so, the Shadow Duelist activated a Speed Spell.
"Speed Spell - Level Bump! Both players gain 1 Speed Counter!"
Using the Speed Spell to boost both sides' counters:
[Shadow Duelist, SPC: 1 → 2]
[Miles & Krista, SPC: 1 → 2]
Though he'd traded one card, the Shadow Duelist had achieved the crucial 2 Speed Counters on his first turn.
Then came a classic 2-SPC Speed Spell:
"Speed Spell - Angel Baton! When you have 2 or more Speed Counters, draw 2 cards from your Deck, then discard 1 card!"
The blessing of the angel allowed him to sift through his burning purple Deck for a key card.
"I discard from my hand—the monster [Earthbound Immortal Uru]!"
"Earthbound Immortal!?"
Miles and Krista exchanged startled looks. Discarding a high-Level monster usually meant a revival combo.
Although in Turbo Duels, with only 2 Speed Counters, there shouldn't be a Speed Spell capable of reviving from the Graveyard.
Unless…
"Spell Card, Monster Reborn—activate!"
He used a Normal Spell instead, willingly taking the 2000 LP damage penalty from Speed World's rule.
[Shadow Duelist, LP: 4000 → 2000]
Half his Life Points gone in the opening turn. The pain of the Shadow Game twisted his expression, but not his conviction.
Light of resurrection clashed with the burning Nazca Lines below, an eerie and beautiful contrast.
"Hear the earth's cries of fifty years! The hatred buried deep within it awakens the god sealed beneath! Burn, Uru—burn with fury!"
The purple Nazca Lines took shape, forming the image of a colossal spider.
"Revived from the earth—Special Summon! [Earthbound Immortal Uru]!"
[Earthbound Immortal Uru] Level 10│DARK│Insect│ATK 3000 / DEF 3000
A monstrous black spider materialized, its eight legs crushing the burning ground.
"So this is an Earthbound Immortal…" Krista gazed up at the massive creature she'd only heard rumors of. Students at Synchron Academy had spoken of such beings—dark gods sleeping beneath the earth.
No wonder no one dared leave the campus at night.
As always, the Earthbound Immortal's effect made it immune to Spells and Traps while a Field Spell was active, untargetable by monsters, and able to attack directly.
Combined with [Speed World], it was an almost perfect setup.
A direct 3000 damage attack—this was why the Shadow Duelist had risked half his LP just to summon it on turn one.
Even at 2000 LP, as long as Uru stood, he was untouchable by normal attacks.
"Battle! In this Shadow Turbo Duel, feel the wrath of the earth itself!"
The massive spider raised one claw, ready to crush Krista's D-Wheel.
"That wrath? No thanks."
Without looking back, Krista flipped a Trap Card beside her D-Wheel.
The Earthbound Immortal's effects—this was intel passed down from other students who'd faced Shadow Turbo Duels.
If not for the current chaos in Axet, Krista would've eventually faced one herself to avenge her classmates.
That's why she'd prepared a countermeasure card specifically for direct attacks.
"Continuous Trap, [Spirit Barrier]—activate!"
[Spirit Barrier - Continuous Trap]
[As long as you control a monster, you take no Battle Damage.]
A radiant barrier of souls shielded her D-Wheel from Uru's crushing strike.
"As long as I have a monster on my field, [Spirit Barrier] makes me immune to battle damage. That means your Earthbound Immortal's direct attacks are useless!"
In a 4000-LP duel, an unblockable 3000 direct attack was the greatest threat. But one card—[Spirit Barrier]—nullified it completely.
Miles had calculated the same defense, even including the card in his own Deck.
However, Krista had acted first.
"Nice work, Krista!"
Krista smiled. "Miles, I'll show you just how reliable I can be in this Duel!"
Her D-Wheel kept the lead, unfazed by Uru's assault.
The Shadow Duelist sneered. "A trap to block an Earthbound Immortal, huh? Still, that alone won't save you. If you think that's enough to win, you're too naive!"
With his attack halted, the Shadow Duelist ended his Battle Phase and hurled two cards from his D-Wheel's slot onto the burning track.
"I Set two cards. Turn end!"
"A trap just to stop an Earthbound Immortal? Not only that!"
Timing it for the instant the Shadow Duelist ended his turn, Krista flipped her second face-down Trap.
"—I activate the Trap Card [Dust Tornado]!"
[Target 1 Spell/Trap your opponent controls; destroy that target. Then, you can Set 1 Spell/Trap from your hand.]
A pre-placed Trap that substitutes for a Quick-Play Spell in Turbo Duels; by using it in the End Phase, you can blow away a newly Set card and seize tempo for the next turn.
"I'll destroy the leftmost Set card!"
A cyclone of sand tore across the flaming track, shredding the freshly Set card in an instant.
Trap [Contaminated Earth] — destroyed.
It was the same Trap the Shadow Duelist had used when dueling Miles before: when your Level 5 or higher monster is destroyed by a card effect, you can Special Summon another Earthbound Immortal from your Deck.
With the hummingbird Earthbound Immortal already taken by Miles, that meant the Shadow Duelist's Deck still held the monkey Earthbound Immortal. By sniping this Trap early, Krista had preempted the second Immortal's summon.
The tougher an opponent is, the more reliable they are as an ally… Especially when that reliable ally is a beautiful girl who's single-mindedly supporting you and creating your openings.
Miles felt his Turbo Duel experience leveling up fast.
Krista continued, "[Dust Tornado] has another effect: after it resolves, I can Set 1 Spell/Trap from my hand."
It was a rarely used clause, but since Krista had spent her entire hand on turn one, the only way to capitalize on it now was with Miles's hand.
"It's yours, Miles."
"Got it, Krista!"
Grateful for her meticulous support, Miles didn't waste it—he slid a Trap from his D-Wheel's slot and Set it, a card he'd likely need next turn.
Only then did the Shadow Duelist's 'eat-your-fill-of-fluff' End Phase truly conclude.
"My turn—Draw!"
[Miles & Krista, SPC: 2 → 3]
[Shadow Duelist, SPC: 2 → 3]
Thanks to [Speed Spell – Level Bump], everyone's Speed Counters were a point ahead of the normal curve.
Albeit without a Speed Spell in hand, that extra counter didn't help Miles right now. All he could do was make full use of what Krista had left him.
"I Normal Summon in Defense Position—take the flaming track, [Mokey Mokey]!"
[Mokey Mokey] Level 1│LIGHT│Fairy│ATK 300 / DEF 100
The 1-star tofu block flapped its tiny wings down the purple-black flame track, its square body practically melting in the heat.
Right then, with Mokey Mokey's summon, the Extra Deck lit up. With Krista's Tuners already in place, they had the Levels to make a Synchro.
"Knew you'd read my intent, Miles! For an Earthbound Immortal, this Synchro is perfect!"
Miles's Extra Deck only held [Stardust Dragon] and [Stardust Chronicle Spark Dragon], leaving him little flexibility. Krista, a Synchron ace, had Synchros for every Level her setup could reach.
"Link into my Extra Deck, Miles—Synchro with Mokey Mokey!"
Multiple Synchro options appeared before him, and one in particular answered the Immortal that couldn't be targeted for attacks.
"I tune the Level 5 [Quickdraw Synchron] with the Level 1 [Mokey Mokey]—Synchro Summon!"
At that moment, [Quickdraw Synchron]'s other effect kicked in:
[For a Synchro Summon, you can substitute this card for any 1 "Synchron" Tuner.]
The little gunslinger drew its revolver and fired at the spinning roulette—
Bang—!
The bullet struck the slot labeled [Drill Synchron].
"I use [Quickdraw Synchron] as a substitute for [Drill Synchron]!"
1★ + 5★ = 6★!
Krista: "Fate, ruin—break through them with this card!"
Miles: "Warrior who pierces all obstacles—forge a path through the earth! Synchro Summon—[Drill Warrior]!"
[Drill Warrior] Level 6│EARTH│Warrior│Synchro│ATK 2400 / DEF 2000
["Drill Synchron" + 1+ non-Tuner monsters]
A scarf snapping in the wind, the Synchro warrior raised a whirring drill and leapt into Miles's field.
"Thanks to [Top Runner], all Synchro Monsters I control gain 600 ATK!"
[Drill Warrior, ATK: 2400 → 3000]
"I activate [Drill Warrior]'s effect!"
[Once per turn, during your Main Phase: This card's ATK becomes half its current ATK, and it can attack your opponent directly this turn.]
[Drill Warrior, ATK: 3000 → 1500]
If you can't select the Earthbound Immortal as an attack target, hit the duelist directly instead.
"Battle, Drill Warrior—Pierce the Earth!'"
The warrior slipped past the Immortal's massive body and lunged straight for the Shadow Duelist.
"The ones to be destroyed are you! Wail with the earth—Trap Card, [Earthbound Release]!"
He flipped a Trap beside his D-Wheel.
The ground heaved violently; a colossal black hand burst from the track, its palm thundering down toward Miles and Krista to crush everything.
[When an opponent's Level 6 or higher monster is Summoned/Special Summoned, while you control an "Earthbound Immortal": Destroy all monsters your opponent controls, then inflict damage to your opponent equal to the total original ATK of those destroyed monsters.]
"With the Earthbound Immortal's wrath, I'll wipe out your field and burn your Life Points!"
Miles and Krista's monsters—[Drill Warrior] and [Top Runner]—had a combined original ATK of 3500. Not only would the direct attack be stopped, but their LP would be forced into [Speed World]'s 800-burn kill range.
Next turn, with 4 Speed Counters, if he had any Speed Spell at all, he could cash them in for [Speed World 2]'s 800 damage and end it.
The Shadow Duelist roared, "This card ends the cycle of this nation's destruction—no more repeats of tragedy! It's the will of the gods!"
A titanic fist, like congealed hatred from the magic-stone leyline, came crashing down.
"You're no god—you can't speak for one!" Miles shot back. "You and I are both human! And this card… is Stardust's light, the will of humanity to live on!"
The Trap he'd Set early with Krista's [Dust Tornado]—just as he'd planned—now shone.
Stardust's radiance illuminated the track, a road of hope stretching on to meet the Earthbound Immortal's rage head-on.
"All yours, Miles!" Riding the stardust-lit path, Krista felt gentle motes brush her cheek.
"With Stardust's light—we carve the road ahead and seize the future—Trap Card, [Starlight Road], activate!"
[When a card or effect is activated that would destroy 2 or more cards you control: Negate the effect, and if you do, destroy it, then you can Special Summon 1 "Stardust Dragon" from your Extra Deck (this Special Summon is treated as a Synchro Summon).]
...
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