Disclaimer:

This story is based on the Tristan Taylor Discord, this fanfiction contains the majority of the people (with permission) and *gasp* actual plot.

I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh, the OC/characters presented, or the real people I roped in or Duel Links.

Synopsis:

Duel Links' newest rendition is impressive, that's for sure. But our cast of characters is in for a helluva shock when they discover a virus has made it into the system. Now, they have to duel AIs that have gone insane, from little Bella to outright insane Yami Yugi. Now, this is the game of your life.


Chapter 1:

Manda

I glanced down at my phone, needling my lower lip between my teeth. On the screen, my barcode showed up reassuringly; all I'd have to do is show it to the security, get scanned, and then I'd get to go in, and be one of the first people (in the public, anyway) to try out the new Duel Links system. A few others had gathered outside Kaiba-Land, a few quietly chattering among themselves. Those had bought out the first public trial was here. We were allowed to come two hours earlier than the theme park opened and allowed to go straight to the park after, which was pretty impressive, though made me feel exhausted as hell. I'd had to grab a hotel just get here at this time in the morning, considering I lived hours away from Kaiba-Land. I blinked quickly, flipping out a compartment mirror to check my makeup. Still nice and smooth. My brown eyes gazed steadily at my reflection, my face cast with a blue hue. The sun hadn't properly risen yet, considering the late winter. There was still a sharp chill in the air; hence the heavy white coat I was wearing which definitely-had-nothing-to-do-with-Kaiba.

I slipped my phone away and once again glanced at the crowd. The person standing closest to me was a male with a short hair, a ginger beard, and tall stature. He had a good mouthful of teeth (I mean, a sparkling white uncommon from where I had been brought up in Liverpool, England) and an unmistakable American twang. He wore a light green t-shirt and khaki cargo pants. He was talking to a smaller male with thick, dark hair, dense brown eyes, and designer stubble. He, too, spoke with an American twang. They seemed to be getting along well.

There was a female, just a few inches taller than me and rather curvy, her hair dyed a russet tone (her dark blonde roots were showing through) and tied back. She wore little makeup and was invested in her phone, flicking through it quickly, blue eyes darting. She wore simple jeans and a heavy-looking cream sweater, which was probably adding pounds to her figure.

There was another group that would be coming in later in the day. I (and obviously these guys too) had decided to come early to beat the huge crowds that came to Kaiba-Land. It had cost a little extra, but hey, I love stuff like this, and the little voice in my head whispered, "treat yourself," and made my finger slip. Whoops.

I brushed back my hair and sucked in my cheeks to chew on them. Two security guards came strolling down to the gates, taking out high tech phones.

"Hello," one of them, a small blonde, greeted easily, "if you could just get your barcodes up, we'll get you through quickly enough."

The other, a taller brunette, didn't say anything. He had a sour expression on his face like he'd been forced to eat something nasty.

There was a quick kerfuffle as people reached for their phones (the lass that had been swiping it just turned it to face them, barcode already up) and got them up, myself included. As each barcode was scanned, their phones lit up green. I suppose that meant none of us were imposters.

The gates were opened, and in we went. A giant statue of the Blue-Eyes reared up before us, mouths open to reveal a sharp plethora of teeth. It was impressive, even if I had seen it before. A flash of light caught my eye and I twisted around to see the lass taking photos of the Blue Eyes on her phone. Her eyes caught mine and she flushed.

"I'm sorry," she said, "you aren't in the picture, I promise, I just wanted… well. I've never been here before."

She sounded so awkward I wanted to pat her head.

"It's fine," I assured her.

"If you'd come on, we need to get started," one of the guards said, half apologetically.

"Sure," I said, hurrying after them, the lass not far behind.

"I'm Maria, by the way," the lass-now-called-Maria said.

"Manda," I threw back.

We were directed to a large new building, sat among a cluster of shops. It had blacked out windows, curiously enough. We were coerced through the door into a comfortable foyer furnished in dark blue, and the security guard that had initially spoken to use held out a box.

"Please would you turn off your phones and pop them in here," he said, "not to be distrustful, but unfortunately there are plenty out there who might be tempted to connect to the core, steal the software, plant some kind of malware, stuff like that. Please don't worry about your phones, we're putting the box into a safe."

I turned off my phone and slipped it into the box. I pushed my hands into my pockets, stretching my arms slyly and trying to hold back a yawn. God, I felt knackered. I blinked quickly.

"Please take a seat," he said, gesturing to a comfy looking sofa. We sat down, and the TV bolstered to the wall turned itself on.

"Unfortunately, I don't have time to personally meet and greet you today," Kaiba said, his eyes boring into the camera, "so I'm leaving you this recording. You'll be taken to the pods and plugged into the system, where you'll duel AIs and each other in due course. It's as simple as that. When you enter the game, you'll be confronted with the Duel-School teacher commonly found in the computer game version. She will help you get your surroundings. You all have prior accounts on Duel Links, so you all have decks, no matter how bad they are. Enjoy yourself."

"Short but sweet," Maria murmured, leaning back in her chair.

"Mmm," agreed the taller American. He turned to flash us a quick grin, "I'm Alex by the way. You can call me Boxer, though."

"If we're going by the Duel Links names, you can call me Rabbit," Maria said, smiling.

"Ah, Dom. Cube." The smaller American introduced.

"Granny," I said, with a slight shrug, "it's more Discord than Duel Links, but it'll do."

The three of them turned to give me a confused look.

"I'm twenty-seven," I explained. "I get called 'Granny' in groups because I'm usually older than everyone."

"Fair enough," Dom said. I nodded.

The blonde security guard cut in, politely asking us to follow him. I stood quickly, my legs protesting the sudden push (you are talking to someone that actually managed to break their ankle going downstairs, love) and started following him. We cut from the foyer into a large room with several pods.

"Oh god, it's like Alien," I joked, glancing around. There was no visible reaction though doubtless more than one of them had at least seen or heard of the film. No takers? None? Well damn.

The security went round, cracking open each pod and directing people into them. I climb into it, feeling slightly claustrophobic, and settled down. The lid closed tightly.

"In the same way your duel disks can connect to the Duel Monsters holograms, this machine will be able to connect with your brain and Duel Links. Your brain is essentially an organic machine," I could hear one of the guards explaining to someone they were strapping in. I strained, trying to see who it was to little avail. "The gas that will flood the pod contains little nanobots that will flood into your brain and connect with it."

I'm really not sure if they're making that up or not. I squinted, trying to relax. My heart thumped quickly in my chest, my breath stupidly loud in my ears. Stop panicking, I told myself. There was a low hissing noise. I squeezed my eyes shut and took in several deep breathes. When I opened then, I felt a little ill. It was like the loading screen for Duel Links, with the blue blocks rushing around me. White letters formed in front of me, reading out my Duel Links code and name.

"Loading may take some time," a calm, female voice stated. "Two to three minutes or so. Please be patient."

It's not like I had a choice at this point. I glanced down and grinned. At least I was still wearing my flash white coat. In just a few minutes, I'd be dueling the crap out of everyone, shouting out the most cringe one-liners I could think of. I chuckled and then winced. The noise echoed several times, bouncing back at me.

Oh, that was awful. I wondered if any of the others had panicked once they were sealed into the pods. A few cards fluttered in front of me landing on the so-called ground. I leaned down and flipped them over, one by one, reading the cards. God, this is just like an update on Duel Links. The cards disappeared once I'd turned them all, to be replenished momentarily.

"We are now ready," the voice announced. It took a blink. That was it. A blink and I'd come from floating squares to the actual damn plaza in Duel Links. I swallowed thickly. The ground was sturdy cobblestone beneath me, leading up to the fountain. I strode towards it quickly and pushed my hand under the water. It was cool and refreshing on my palm. I splashed a little on my face, closing my eyes. Wow, that felt good. A bubble of laughter caught in my throat. This was amazing. It was honestly so real. I couldn't actually find a single fault in it, visually. There was a light clicking from behind me. I turned to face the source, only to see a slender woman wearing a suit. The Duel School lady. Her red hair was twisted up into her signature style, gleaming in the sunlight.

She smiled. "Hello, Manda."

"Hello," I said, sounding slightly breathless.

"In a moment, the AIs will be available to play. They are just loading while I give you this introduction." She held out her hand and a blue orb appeared in it, pulsing with light. "Please, accept this gift. Once you touch it, it will transfer to your account. If you wish to see your orb, number and gem count, you need only ask for the subject and the number."

"Thank you," I said, reaching out to touch it. It burst the moment I laid finger on it. "Erm, orb count."

Blue text appeared before me, reading out, "20 orbs."

The Duel School lady smiled encouragingly, "good job. The gateway is available in a similar way; you need only ask for it."

"Ah, thanks. Oh, do you know when I'll see the others again?" I blurted.

"You and the other players will be directed to play at the PVP arena once you have completed a few duels."

I nodded quickly. "Right."

She hadn't stopped smiling once the entire time I'd been talking to her, I noted. Her smile had only even gotten bigger or reduced slightly. It was somewhat creepy. I chewed the inside of my cheek, allowing my eyes to roam away from her. The trees were a definite contrast to the world outside. In the winter, our trees had shed every leaf and had been reduced to bare bones. Here, they were relentlessly cheery.

"Hey…" a sickly sweet little girls voice said. "Would you like to duel me, please?"

I glance down at the young girl who had seemingly come out of nowhere. Bella, I remembered, a smile growing on my mouth. Nice.

"Err, sure," I said, tucking my hair behind my cheek.

She beamed, her eyes squeezing shut. She was like an over-exaggerated chibi little girl, eyes startlingly wide and sweet, just like the game.

"Don't be mad when you lose, okay?"

I swear I almost did a double take. Well, damn. I hope they don't all have that spunk, or I'll get annoyed real fast.

"Five duels," I reminded myself, cracking my knuckles and giving her a stink-eye. "Let's do this shi-sugar."


Thanks for reading if you made it this far. Please feel free to check out our discord and meet us. Please R&R, and yes, we are aware there are many OCs in this story. The original cast in Yu-Gi-Oh will eventually show up. If this isn't your cup of tea, that's fine.