"The effect of Yubel - Terror Incarnate!"
Yubel shouted.
"Disappear, Neos and that Neo-Spacian!"
The Terror Incarnate roared, unleashing a tidal wave of destruction toward Jaden's field.
Neos and Dark Panther crouched in defensive stances, shields appearing, but it was useless. Yubel's attack shattered their defenses, obliterating both Neos and Dark Panther.
Jaden shielded himself. "Neos..."
"Forget about your Neos, Jaden!" Yubel said. "You don't need him, you don't need anyone! All you need is me—me alone is enough!"
Jaden brushed the dust from his clothes, ignoring Yubel's words. He steadied himself and took a deep breath. "My turn. Draw."
He didn't argue or debate Yubel—almost as if he hadn't heard her. This only made Yubel angrier.
"Do you not even see me anymore, Jaden?"
Jaden replied, "No, I just know that whatever I say now isn't your true intent. Your perception has been twisted, and that's mostly my fault.
If I hadn't abandoned you, hadn't let you leave my side, maybe none of this would have happened."
He shook his head, then continued.
"But that ends today. I'll bring you back through this duel. This time, I won't let us be separated.
I activate the Spell Card 'Graceful Charity.' Draw three, discard two."
He revealed one discarded card.
"I discard the Spell Card 'Card of Compensation.' When it's discarded from my hand, I draw two more cards."
While Jaden continued his plays, Yubel kept grumbling—sometimes cursing Neos, sometimes cursing Kira, blaming them for taking Jaden's affection away from her.
"I activate the Spell Card 'O – Oversoul.' I can Special Summon an Elemental HERO Normal Monster from my Graveyard."
Jaden lifted his arm as the O-shaped glyph, burning with violet flames, shot from his card. Neos, long-sleeping in the Graveyard, soared into the sky and landed with a flourish.
[Elemental HERO Neos, ATK 2500]
"Neos again! How much do you like that monster?!"
Neos didn't answer, just floated confidently in front of Jaden.
"Neos is an important friend to me—and so are you, Yubel. All of you are irreplaceable. And there are even more friends—without them, I couldn't have come this far.
Normal Summon 'Neo-Spacian Grand Mole'!"
A rumble came from underground, and a silvery drill burst from below. It split to reveal a fuzzy mole's head.
[Neo-Spacian Grand Mole, ATK 900]
If Jaden said about any other monster, "I couldn't have made it this far without them," it might sound polite, but for Grand Mole, it's no exaggeration. As the only basic Neo-Spacian ever on the banlist, the mole's status is unquestioned.
"I return 'Elemental HERO Neos' and 'Neo-Spacian Grand Mole' from my field to the Deck for Contact Fusion!"
Jaden pumped his fist.
"Power of the earth, pierce the nebula—
—Elemental HERO Grand Neos, Summon!"
Neos spread his arms, engulfed by golden light. Grand Mole's energy fused with Neos, transforming into earth armor, with the drill weaponizing Neos's arm.
[Elemental HERO Grand Neos, ATK 2500]
Yubel said, "Another transformation? It doesn't matter how many forms you have! No matter how strong your monster is, it can't break my defenses!"
Jaden countered, "Grand Neos's effect activates! Once per turn, I can return a monster on the field to its owner's hand!"
Yubel: "!"
Another nasty effect!
Yubel glared at Grand Neos, recalling how bright and honest Jaden used to be—now warped by the Duel King. These Neo-Spacians, with their tricky effects, must be to blame.
"Dimensional Hole!"
At Jaden's command, Grand Neos's drill launched an energy blast. A black vortex opened above Yubel, dragging her enormous body toward it.
Yubel looked up at her demon form being sucked into the void, momentarily dazed.
She suddenly asked, "Jaden, do you know what lies beyond the Second Darkness—what the final darkness is?"
Jaden replied, "Yubel's third stage—the final form, right?"
He recalled Kira mentioning this.
Yubel nodded.
"To protect those important to you, to gain power by sacrificing what's most precious—that's painful, but it's not rare. Across all worlds, people have always been willing to sacrifice for love.
Becoming hated for the sake of protecting someone, even being hated by the one you want to protect—that pain gave birth to 'the Terror Incarnate.'
But that's not the end."
She paused, grief on her face.
"When you've lost everything, and even been hated, all that's left is loneliness. When you lose even the right to be hated, forgotten completely, wandering alone in endless darkness—that's a pain beyond words."
Jaden: "Yubel..."
The next moment, Yubel lifted her head. "Now, Jaden, let me show you the final darkness, born from experiencing endless loneliness and sorrow.
I activate my Set card—Trap Card: 'Darklight'!
I tribute one DARK monster with 1500 or less ATK to destroy all Special Summoned monsters on the field!
I tribute 'Yubel - Terror Incarnate' with 0 ATK. Neos, disappear once more!"
Jaden frowned. "Sacrificing yourself to destroy Neos—taking us both down?"
"No, not taking us both down—evolving," Yubel said coldly. "When 'Yubel - Terror Incarnate' leaves the field, I Special Summon my final form from the hand, deck, or graveyard—
—Yubel - The Ultimate Nightmare!!!"
…