Inside the arena.
Tania stood atop the high platform, silently waiting for Jaden Yuki to arrive. When she saw Jaden and Alexis Rhodes approaching, a smirk played across her lips. With a sudden, lithe leap, she descended from the platform, landing gracefully on the arena floor.
"Let us begin, Jaden Yuki," Tania said, her voice cold as she deployed her Duel Disk. "The duel between you and me."
A dark aura surged from the black rings on Tania's fingers.
A Shadow Item!
It was one of the many artifacts possessing powers similar to the ancient Millennium Items.
"Oh? It looks like you want to play a Shadow Game this time?" Jaden deployed his own Duel Disk, a flicker of excitement igniting in his eyes.
[Detection: Host is participating in a Shadow Game.]
[Environment for Link Summoning is loading...]
"Hmm?" Tania blinked in confusion as a black Extra Monster Zone suddenly materialized above her Duel Disk. "Interesting. Is this the fabled Link Summoning?"
"You know about Link Summoning too?" Jaden was surprised for a moment, but then a thought struck him. "I suppose Camula told you? I didn't expect that vampire to actually survive."
Jaden drew five cards from his deck and locked eyes with Tania.
"Now, let's duel!"
"DUEL!"
Ra Yellow Dorm.
Bastion Misawa sat hunched over his desk, staring blankly at the scenery outside his window. Tania's silhouette kept flickering through his mind. Suddenly, as if reaching a breaking point, he slammed his hand on the table and stood up. He grabbed his Duel Disk and bolted for the door.
"I can't take this... I have to win against Tania at least once..." he muttered. "That woman... that woman..."
Beep, beep, beep!
The communicator at his waist chirped. Bastion answered it quickly, and Chazz Princeton's face appeared on the small screen.
"Chazz?"
"It's The Chazz!" Chazz corrected him with a look of annoyance. He quickly moved on, his tone turning serious. "Jaden has already started a Shadow Game with Tania. Get over to the arena, now!"
"Jaden? Against Tania?" Bastion's expression shifted instantly. He redirected his path and sprinted toward the arena.
By the time he reached the stands, he realized he wasn't the only one there. Aside from Jaden in the heat of battle, Alexis, Chazz, Zane Truesdale, Professor Crowler, and Professor Banner were all present. They were watching the field with intense focus, their expressions varying from worry to grim fascination.
"What's happening? What's the situation...?" Bastion gasped, looking down at the field.
The duel had already reached a fever pitch. Both duelists had their signature monsters standing tall on the field.
[Tania: LP 4000]
[Jaden Yuki: LP 4000]
"Their Life Points haven't changed at all?" Bastion's face twisted into a look of disbelief.
"I take Vision HERO Increase and Vision HERO Vyon on my field and set the Link Markers!" Jaden announced calmly. He removed the two cards from his Duel Disk and pulled a new card from his Extra Deck.
Ding! Ding!
Two Link Markers flashed, etching themselves into Jaden's Extra Monster Zone.
"Link Summon! Xtra HERO Cross Crusader!"
[Xtra HERO Cross Crusader]
[Warrior Type]
[Link Markers: Bottom-Left, Bottom-Right]
[ATK 1600 / LINK-2]
"Is that... Jaden's new HERO?" Bastion watched the summoned monster with a look of shock.
"It seems the arrival of Link Summoning hasn't just evolved Jaden's dueling style," Professor Banner murmured, narrowing his eyes as he pondered. "Even his HEROes are evolving alongside him."
"When Xtra HERO Cross Crusader is Link Summoned successfully, I can target one Destiny HERO monster in my Graveyard and Special Summon it," Jaden continued, his movements precise as he laid out his strategy. "I choose Destiny HERO - Malicious!"
Cross Crusader served as a vital pivot for the HERO deck, allowing Jaden to generate card advantage and resources with irreplaceable efficiency.
"Now, I send Malicious to the Graveyard to activate Cross Crusader's second effect! I add one HERO monster from my deck to my hand."
A card popped out of Jaden's deck. He snatched it and held it up.
"I choose... Evil HERO Adusted Gold!"
"An Evil HERO?!"
The name, both familiar and haunting, sent a wave of shock through Alexis and Chazz. Even Zane Truesdale was staring intently at the card in Jaden's hand. He hadn't forgotten. Three years ago, during their middle school graduation duel, Jaden had used this card to seize his full attention.
"An Evil HERO... I knew Jaden had those cards in his deck, but I've truly never seen him use them since that day," Alexis said softly.
Anyone who had witnessed the duel between Jaden and Zane years ago had a lingering impression of the Evil HEROes. However, since then, none of them had seen Jaden touch that archetype again. Why was he bringing them out now?
Professor Banner's eyes thinned. He could feel an incredibly powerful darkness radiating from Adusted Gold. This darkness was almost identical to the power dormant within Jaden himself.
Could it be... Banner thought. Is the source of Jaden's power actually derived from these specific Evil HEROes?
"Mamma Mia! Elemental HERO, Destiny HERO, Masked HERO, Vision HERO, Xtra HERO, and now an Evil HERO..." Professor Crowler sobbed into his handkerchief, overwhelmed. "How high is the ceiling for Jaden's HEROes? Does his deck even have a limit?"
Every deck usually focused on a single sub-series, but Jaden's HERO deck seemed to encompass an endless variety of archetypes.
"Evil... Evil HERO..." Tania stared blankly at the card.
Suddenly, a realization struck her like a bolt of lightning. In an instant, the puzzle pieces fell into place.
"Wait... does this mean..."
"The Supreme King's Army... the Supreme King..."
Tania finally understood why Jaden had asked her about the Supreme King's Army earlier. She understood why this young man possessed such a terrifying darkness. It wasn't just a power he usedhe was the darkness itself. He was the former ruler of the Spirit World!
"So that's it... I see now..." Tania whispered, her doubts finally cleared.
But a new question replaced them.
"With the power of the Supreme King, he could crush me effortlessly. Wiping out the entire Amazoness Tribe would be as easy as turning over his hand. And yet, in this duel, he hasn't let the darkness consume me... what is he planning? Does he actually want the power of the Amazoness?"
Recalling Jaden's earlier words, Tania looked at the boy whose eyes now shimmered with a dull, golden light.
"It is exactly as you think," Jaden said, his voice cutting through her thoughts.
She looked up to see Jaden sending Adusted Gold to the Graveyard and pulling Dark Calling from his deck.
"If I want to completely overthrow the current Supreme King's Army in the Spirit World, my own strength and the spirits by my side aren't enough. I need to gather more allies. I need the strength of the Amazoness, the Dragonmaids, and every spirit currently oppressed by the Dark World."
Jaden slotted Dark Calling into the Spell and Trap Zone of his Duel Disk.
"I accepted this duel to ask for your opinion. Tania, are you interested in joining the new Supreme King's Army? Will the Amazoness Tribe serve me and fight for a brand-new Spirit World?"
A violent surge of dark energy erupted from the Duel Disk, hitting Tania like a tidal wave. Her eyes widened in terror and awe. Within that endless darkness, she saw the silhouette of a king clad in pitch-black armor standing before her.
Was this... the Supreme King's true form?
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