The stage was set for the final duel in the worldwide Duel Monsters tournament. The stands were filled with fans from every race on the planet, and the tension was so thick you could use it as gravy. The announcer stepped up to the stand, grabbed his mike, and started to do what he did best.

"Welcome to the finals of this Worldwide Duel Monsters tournament! This year was a shocking one for sure! And after 3 grueling rounds of this tournament, we have our finalists! On one side is our defending champion, the King of Games, Yugi Muto!" The tricolored haired teen walked up to his position on the battle field, causing cheers to erupt from the stands.

The years were kind to the reigning King of Games. He finally had his growth spurt, making him look even more like Atem then ever. His hair remained the same after all the years, and his violet colored eyes retained their intensity. He was wearing a violet jacket and jeans. He looked at the announcer, who proceeded to announce the other duelist.

"Now here comes the challenger! An unknown from the country of America… the Rising Star, Saiku Kamezooka!" An orange haired teen walked up, ready to have the duel of his life. His hair was a mess, spiking in every direction, but was held back slightly by his red headband. His blue eyes stared back at Yugi with the same intensity. He wore a red T-shirt and jeans.

"It's time to duel!" the two shouted as they strapped on their Duel Disks and drew their first five cards. The two looked at their hand and smirked, the strategies already weaving through their heads.

"Since you're new to this tournament, I'll allow you the first move," Yugi said, his voice filled with confidence.

"Okay, then I draw!" Saiku yelled, reaching into his Duel Disk and pulling out a card. He looked at it and added it to his hand. "I summon Defender, the Magical Knight (Attack:1600/Defense:2000) in attack position!"

A flash of gold light appeared in the center of the field. When it died down, a knight was standing in place. He stood tall, dressed in a blue and gold robe, which was tucked into blue and gold steel boots. His upper legs, his torso, and his shoulders were covered in thick armor that matched his robe, which kept all but the front piece of ornate fabric pressed to his body. He held a small dagger in his right hand, obviously not made for attacking. In his left hand was a somewhat rectangular shield that looked almost as big as his body. It was much like his armor, accented by a ruby in the center. He glared at Yugi from behind a gold visor, which was part of an incomplete knight's helmet attached to a traditional Spellcaster's hat.

"Now I can place one spell counter on him. With that, I end my turn!"

Yugi smirked as he drew his card. He didn't even look at it when he started his play. "I activate the spell card Ancient Rules! With it, I can summon a level five or higher normal monster without tributing! I summon the master magician, Dark Magician (Attack:2500/Defense:2100)!"

In a flash of light on the field opposite of Defender, a magician everyone knew and loved appeared. He was decked out in a purple and red robe with matching armor. His pale blue skin only added to his dark features, offset only by the bright blonde hair that wasn't tucked into his armored hat. His hands expertly held a large staff, which looked like a demonic torch. A green sphere rested against the cup like shape on the end of the staff, glowing slightly with an eerie light. His bright green eyes glared at the defending magician, who shivered.

"Dark Magician on your first turn? Whoa!" Saiku could barely contain his excitement.

"Yes, but you won't see him for very long," Yugi said, his smirk growing slightly larger. "I activate the spell card Magical Dimension! With it, I can tribute one Spellcaster on my field and summon one from my hand, regardless of the level!" A coffin rose from the ground, which Dark Magician jumped in without hesitation.

"You have a Spellcaster better than Dark Magician?!" Saiku shouted. When did that happen?

"No," Yugi said. "I now play the spell card Code Changer! With it, I can change the monster type on a card. I change the type from Spellcaster to God!"

"What?!" Saiku yelled as the sky began to darken. Clouds gathered as lightning began to flash and thunder filled the ears of everyone there. Then, every duelist's worst nightmare began to descend from the heavens. A red, winged serpent began to slither down towards the ground, its large scaly masses looking like armor. The sapphire atop its head shone ominously, casting a faint light that caught on the spikes covering its deceptively slender body. Each flap of its mighty wings seemed to echo the raw power it contained within.

"I summon Slifer the Sky Dragon (Attack:?000/Defense:?000)!" Yugi called as the red serpent-like dragon landed behind him, looking down on the field with glowing yellow eyes. The two mouths began to open, and Saiku braced himself for the mighty roar. However... that wasn't the noise that came from the dragon's mouths. No, oddly, it sounded like... his alarm clock. Saiku then realized the awful truth.

This was a dream. Again.

Upon letting the dream world dissipate from his consciousness, Saiku woke up. Sighing, he reached out from under his covers and smashed his fist on top of the clock, silencing it. He slowly got up with a yawn, rubbing an eye with one hand.

"Man…" Saiku sighed, looking out the window. "Why can't I ever have that dream on a weekend…?! Stupid clock…" With an irritated grumble, he slipped out of bed to get ready for the day. He padded into the bathroom and looked in the mirror, running a hand through his hair to ease out some of the tangles. "I wonder if Yugi has trouble like this in the morning…" he mused before deciding to hit the shower, chuckling to himself at the thought of Yugi having a bad hair day.

Several minutes later, he stepped out, feeling refreshed and ready. He eyed his favorite outfit—and really his main outfit, he had over a dozen of them—draped neatly over the chair. A light blue t-shirt with a white stripe down the middle, a pair of black pants with blue hems and threads, socks, and a pair of black shoes with blue laces and white soles. He slipped the outfit on before tying the unique piece to his ensemble, a red strip of fabric, around his head, letting the tassels hang down to the small of his back.

He strolled down the stairs where his mother, Sari, was sitting at the table, clutching a cup of coffee in her hand while working on a crossword puzzle.

"Oh, good morning, honey!" she called him over, her green eyes shining with amusement. "I see someone had a rudely interrupted dream." Saiku turned a startled look to her. Really, though, this was the twentieth time he'd had such a dream. It shouldn't surprise him she could pick up the signs. "I got breakfast ready this morning. Hope you're in the mood for pancakes!"

"Sweet!" he grinned, rushing to his favorite seat, where a small stack of pancakes was waiting, with a handful of berries and a couple sausage links. Saiku was quick to douse the fluffy circles with syrup, gobbling down his mother's fantastic cooking before it got soggy.

"Oh, before I forget…" Sari grinned and pulled out a small stack of bills from her pocket. "I believe this is yours."

"Aw yeah!" Saiku cheered amidst his mouthful, happily taking his allowance. Already, ideas were flashing in his head about what to get. The two sat idly, Sari brushing a few locks of her brown hair back while she scribbled down another answer.

"So, what's on the schedule for today?" Sari asked, unable to keep the silence for much longer. "Anything big?"

"Not that I can think of… no quizzes or tests, at least," he replied after a bit of thought. He then glanced at the clock, realizing it was time to go. "Whoa! Didn't realize I took so long…" he muttered, shooting out of his chair. He quickly grabbed his jacket off the hook in the hallway, a black thing that fell to mid-thigh with a folded-down collar, decorated with a white pinstripe on the back and the right front, accentuated with pure gold cufflinks. He took a quick moment to buff the shiny pins, making sure they looked good. After all, he doubted his mom would appreciate them getting tarnished for their price. He quickly darted upstairs to collect his Duel Disk and deck, stuffing them into his backpack. "Bye, Mom!" he yelled as he headed to the door.

"See you later, Saiku!" his mother called. "Remember to try to be home before seven! Your sister will be back from Grandma's by then!"

"Got it!" he replied as he opened the door... only to have his face assaulted by a flying furry object, which turned out to be a squirrel.

"Wee! Another evil villain vanquished!" a familiar voice screamed out. Saiku got the frightened animal off his face and turned to face the one behind the flying squirrels. He was tall, with black hair and brown eyes. A blue jacket covered some of the boy's shirt, which read, "Peanuts are more complicated than you think." His torn jeans flailed in the wind as he punted poor squirrels across the street with a pair of brown boots.

"Wade, stop it before PETA comes after you," Saiku said as he walked to his strange friend. "Where's Blues?"

"Over at the tree, looking like a fangirl's wet dream," Wade muttered as he punted one last squirrel. Saiku shook his head at his friend's bluntness as he walked to the large oak tree across the street.

"Hey Blues," he greeted the teen at the tree. He was average height, with light brown spiky hair. He had sunglasses over his eyes and a yellow scarf around his neck. He wore a simple grey t-shirt, jeans, and white tennis shoes.

"Hey," was Blues' reply. The three stood in amicable silence, not really finding anything to talk about. "Well, we better get moving if we want to get to school on time," Blues said as he began to walk away.

"Right," Saiku replied as he followed. Wade just muttered, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he followed the two. They were silent until they were in the city limits, where it got much louder, and the rantings that were sure to come wouldn't be overheard so easily.

"Why do we have to walk to school?" Wade started to whine. "There's an invention called the school bus. In some civilized countries, they have entire routes and everything!" Blues shook his head at his friend's ranting. It wasn't anything new, since Wade did this all the time, but it did get annoying sometimes.

"So Blues..." Saiku began, trying to think of a different subject, "Got any challenges to duel today?"

"Duel Monsters! Duel Monsters!" Wade yelled, stopping Blues' reply. "That's all ANYONE ever talks about! Why?! It's a stupid game!" The teens resisted the urge to facepalm. Sometimes Saiku couldn't help but wonder why Wade bothered to hang out with them, being major fans of the card game he hated so much. Though usually he kept his distaste quiet… Not today, apparently.

"Uh... Wade," Blues tried to say, but he was interrupted.

"Every freaking day, someone has to bring it up. 'What new cards you got?' 'Oooh, is that a new Spell Card?' or God help me, 'Man, you're a lucky bastard! I've been looking everywhere for that card!' It's like a freaking epidemic! People wasting money on pieces of cardboard and hologram projectors, just for a stupid game! If that wasn't bad enough, there's that stupid Seto freakin' Kaiba guy! What's his deal?! He has millions of dollars, and instead of using it to help people who need it, like the poor kids in other countries, he wastes it all in virtual reality and this STUPID CARD GAME!"

"Guess he got some extra sugar in his cereal or something…" Saiku muttered as Wade continued to complain.

"And then there's Yugi Muto. The guy frickin' CHEATS! I don't care what you guys say, but in those old videos of duels he's done, he'd grow three extra feet before or during his duel, and no one seems to notice or care! What the hell is with that?!" By now, Wade's rant had lasted a few city blocks. Saiku idly noticed they were nearing the playground, giving him an idea. "And then there's the fact that—"

"Hey, dude," Saiku said as he poked his friend in the forehead, jerking his thumb over at the playground. Wade gave him an odd look, completely distracted now. "Wade's Wild Wednesday, remember? You almost passed it up."

"Oh, yeah!" the brunette brightened. They walked into the gates of the playground, Wade looking around at the equipment. "Hm… What trick to try today… Ah!" He ran over to the swings and sat, swinging back and forth until he was almost going over the bar. After a minute or two of this, he leapt off, curling up into a ball and rolling in the air. He then gracefully landed on his feet by Saiku and Blues.

"Nice. Nine for the takeoff, eight for the form, ten for the landing, but a two for time taken," Saiku criticized. Wade gave a thumbs up before turning to Blues.

"Hey, Blues, I just got an idea! You, me, race to school, now!" Wade barely finished his sentence when Blues dashed past him, rushing for the schoolyard. Wade cursed loudly as he ran after Blues. Saiku just shook his head before dashing off after them.

The redhead regretted doing that. By the time he got to the schoolyard, he was gasping for air, his muscles burning and his face red. Wade and Blues were unaffected by the race, and Wade was now laughing at his physical state.

"See, those card games don't do jack for you! You need to get out and exercise more. Get your body in shape!" Wade claimed as he flexed a muscle. "Although, I do wonder how Blues can do both..." He glanced over at their friend with a quizzical eye.

"I have nine brothers and a sister, remember? Figure it out," Blues said as he walked for the school's door. Wade facepalmed as he was reminded of that fact. Saiku finally caught his breath, and the two followed Blues.

As the trio went through the halls going for their lockers, Saiku noticed that many girls, most not that bad looking, staring in their direction. He shook his head as more than a few tried to get close to Blues only to be tackled by some other girls.

Then he noticed the three rather large football players headed toward them. His eyes narrowed as he recognized them as infamous bullies. They stood in front of them, blocking the way to the lockers.

"Okay you maggots. Pay the toll," one of the bullies taunted.

"What toll? This is a freakin' school hallway!" Saiku yelled.

"There's one now. And you can either pay, or you can get the living crap beaten outta you!" another growled. As if the growl was a silent signal, Wade's composition suddenly changed. He threw back his head and began to laugh maniacally before looking each bully, a wild look in his eyes. Drool dribbled from his lips, and he slouched over.

"Oh goodie..." he began in a creepy voice. "I haven't given anyone a wedgie in a LONG time... Let's see how long you guys stay in the hospital after I give ya some GOOD ones!" The trio's eyes widened. What the hell was with this kid?!

"Wade…" Saiku sighed.

"W-Wade… You mean W-Wade Silson?! Th-the guy who single-handedly put that g-gang in the h-hosp-pital?!" the final jock stuttered, he and his posse immediately starting to back up.

"The one and only," Wade laughed before getting in a stance. "Come at me from any direction you may like!"

"No thanks man! Never mind, you can keep your money!" the leader cried as they ran off.

"Heheheh… Talk about a couple of losers…" He turned to Saiku and Blues after wiping his lip, giving them a megawatt grin. "And you guys say nothing good comes out of being random and creepy. See you wankers at lunch!" Wade gloated as he strutted away to his class. Saiku's head hung as he walked to his class. How was he gonna go so long without a duel?!

Blues was much more composed as he walked to his class; however, inside, he was the most nervous of the three.

As soon as he walked into his math class, every girl's eyes focused on him. He felt like he was under a microscope, each girl trying to get a look at everything he did. He wasn't even sure why, he never DID anything that should attract attention.

Casting his thoughts aside, he took a seat at his desk and got ready for his class. However, as soon as he did, he knew this would be one long class. The teacher was particularly boring today for some reason. Even Blues, who normally could focus on anything, was nearly falling asleep.

Suddenly, a folded up piece of paper subtly landed on his desk. He raised an eyebrow at this and turned his head at the direction it was thrown from. A blond haired girl looked back at him, an expectant look in her blue eyes. She was definitely pretty, looked about his height, and was wearing a pink button up shirt and a blue skirt. Only several years of dealing with girls and a lot of hard work allowed him to keep his impending blush at bay. Racking his brain, he tried to remember this girl's name. After a few seconds, it hit him. Her name was Kazuma, and she was the most popular girl in school!

He opened the note cautiously, making sure the teacher didn't see him as he did. The first thing he did was notice the handwriting, and he barely kept an eyebrow from rising. It was incredibly crisp and neat, as if every letter was measured out. Was she taking classes or something? The only one he knew that was that neat was his little sister Roll!

The next thing he noticed was the actual message. It read, "You're going on a date with me in two days. Pick me up at 6 PM," Blues eyebrow did rise at this. The sandy haired teen looked at back at her. She was a demanding one, wasn't she? Well, it'd be rude not to reply.

He quickly scribbled down his message, "Sorry, but I'm too busy. Important stuff I have to do." He folded up the note, and expertly tossed the note back to her desk. She opened up the note and her expression changed to a confused look. She turned to him, her eyes demanding an explanation. He just shrugged slightly before turning his attention back to the teacher.

He almost shivered a few seconds later. He could feel her eyes staring at him, almost like she hoped he'd burst into flames. She must not be used to rejection. The bell then rang, to which Blues leapt out of his seat and quickly got out of that room. Only three more periods of this... oh joy. He hoped that Wade and Saiku were having a better day.

Wade, if anyone were to ask him, was not having a good day. His first period, English, was a total drag. Not that it wasn't normally—it was tolerable, at least. But today just seemed to be an off day. His teacher must have been having her period or something, because she basically screamed at him all period. All he did was make a pun... and point out that it was pointless for him to learn a language he was speaking since he was two. Who was he to blame for that? It wasn't his fault every English class was just a remedial version of the previous year!

And his second period, Science, had a substitute, so all the kids did was gather around and play their stupid card games. He tried to ignore this fact and play his 3DS, but the yelling that the idiots were making was distracting him from his Pokémon training.

"Aw, c'mon!" a kid whined. "What is it with you? First my Beta, now my Gamma?!"

"Hey, you're the one who has such an obvious strategy. There's no way I'm letting you pull out a Valkyrion," the other gloated. Wade felt his eye twitch.

'C'mon, focus, Wade… Just focus on your game… Let's see… Dialga needs about twenty more EVs in Special Attack before he's maxed out… Damn, I'm out of berries. Ok, so…'

"Take that! 1000 points of damage!" one kid cheered. Wade's whole body twitched.

"…so… I need to battle about twenty Pokemon… ten if I can remember which ones give two SA EVs… But what the hell…." He muttered out loud.

"Dude! Is that an XYZ Dragon Cannon! Awesome!"

'That's it…' Wade stood up in a tense, rapid movement, staring down the groups with blazing eyes. "What is wrong with you people?!" Wade began to yell. "Why do you insist on whittling away your time playing something so stupid?! It's just a freakin' card game, and yet it consumes your very way of life! All I ever hear is 'Duel Monsters this' and 'Duel Monsters that'! Every free second you guys have, you play this moronic game!"

By this time, Wade had got on top of his desk and was belting out each and every word. Most of the students were sweatdropping at their psycho classmate's ranting, and the substitute was watching in silent interest.

"How the hell do you guys live?! There's more to life than these cards games! Go outside, run around, get laid, SOMETHING!" Wade was gonna say more, but the sub grabbed him by his arm and began to drag him down the hall. "Hey, the flip are you doin'?!"

"You cursed, and you mentioned some inappropriate things during class. I'm sorry, but you gotta go to the principal's office," the sub explained. Wade sighed. This was nothing new. He went to the principal's office so much he literally had every detail of that place memorized.

He yanked his arm free from the sub's grip and walked into the office, his hands stuffed in his pockets. He was really not looking forward to this.

Saiku was sitting in his English class, utterly bored out of his mind. As much as he hated to admit it, Wade had a point. Why did they have a whole class dedicated to a language you've spoken your whole life? He'd rather have a Japanese class, since all the great duelists spoke that language. At this point, he was scanning through his deck, with all sorts of strategies running through his head.

"If I use DNA Surgery with THAT card, then-," Saiku's inner plotting was interrupted by the sound of a ruler slapping unto his desk.

"Mr. Kamezooka," the teacher stated, keeping her voice neutral as she glared at him from behind her glasses. "I hope you have a good reason why you are looking at those accursed cards instead of doing your work?"

"Yeah, I'm done with the work," Saiku fired back as he raised his paper. The teacher blinked in surprise as she looked over his paper. After reading it, she sighed in defeat and went back to her desk. Saiku shook his head; this was gonna be a long day.

After the long, mind numbing day of school was over with, the three amigos gathered outside to rendezvous.

"So what's on the plan for today wankers?" Wade asked as he looked over his two friends. The two looked at each other.

"I have to go home and babysit," Blues said. "My parents have some speech or something to give." Wade sighed as he looked over to Saiku.

"I'm going to the card shop," Saiku said. "I have some cash and I wanna get some new cards." Wade's eyes widened as he turned and walked away.

"What is with these people?! Card games this, card games that!" Wade complained as he disappeared over the horizon. Saiku looked over at Blues.

"I'll see you later Blues," Saiku said as he walked towards the card shop. Blues nodded as he headed to his house.

Saiku's face broke out into a large grin as he walked into the card shop. He loved it here! The possibilities were endless when he bought a new pack! He had enough to buy two packs, and he couldn't wait to do so!

"Welcome to the High Corner Game Shop," the shopkeeper greeted, his green eyes sparkling with mirth. Apparently, business was rather slow, considering he was busy dusting off his shirt from cleaning. 'Why the guy wears collared white shirts and black pants in a retail shop I will never know. Those things are practically a dust bunny petting zoo waiting to happen!' It wasn't exactly a question that deserved to be asked, so he never said anything. Henry straightened up as Saiku strolled in, pushing his ponytail behind his shoulder. He was one of the few guys Saiku felt could pull off wearing a ponytail, especially considering his hair was a dark blue.

"Hey! Henry!" Saiku asked as he walked up to the counter. Henry was one person every duelist in the city knew. After all, he had the only store completely dedicated to Duel Monsters. It seemed he knew the game inside and out. No monster was forgotten, no effect was too obscure for the shop owner to know. He could even repair broken Duel Disks, and he did it for much cheaper than Kaiba Corp ever did.

However, the most interesting thing about him was that he was a former American champion. Many rumors about his accomplishments circulated around the small city. Some said he actually took on the best in Japan and won, until he got to Yugi Muto. But according to the rumors, not even the King of Games could stop the powerhouse, instead their game ending in a draw. Of course, no one knew if this was true or not, but one thing was for sure.

Even in retirement, this guy could still duel. No one in the city was able to beat him, and some people even came from out of state to duel the former champion. The one thing that bothered Saiku though was that no one knew why Henry retired. Any time anyone would ask, the store owner would just chuckle and change the subject.

"Ah, good afternoon, Sai!" Henry grinned. "Nice to see a familiar face around here!"

Saiku took a moment to look at the memorabilia lining the walls. While cards were always the big thing, he couldn't deny that some of the bracelets and binders were neat. Though he had to admit, the black tees with the Millenium Puzzle design were a little overkill. 'Maybe I should look into a new binder… Nah. Mom would just call it a waste… Should probably look into one of those cool iron-on design kits and make my own cover.' He eyed the walls before noticing a new shipment had arrived. Though not Duel Monsters, it was something he recognized. "You get Magic, Henry?"

"Oh, yeah, just got a set last night. Seems like a good investment. May not be as popular, but it's an awesome game, nonetheless," the shopkeeper explained, taking a moment to spruce up a counter. Saiku nodded as he held up a few booster packs, examining the covers.

'Probably won't play it any time soon, but the cards are photorealistic as all get out… Gotta hand it to the designers…' Saiku mused before turning to the opposite wall, examining a few posters, some of them being large Duel Monsters card artworks, and others being collection images. "You think they'll sell here? I mean, I haven't seen anyone playing it at school…"

"Meh, who knows. I'm just looking to replace that kiosk," he motioned to a little turntable tower that sported keychains and bookmarks. "Those things fell flat since last month." Saiku gave a nod as he flicked one of the chains, letting it rattle before checking out the actual card section. His brow furrowed slightly as he examined a few structure decks. Most of what was available dealt with warrior monsters…

"You have anything new in the back?" Saiku asked hopefully. Maybe a new shipment would prove promising. After all, what did he have to lose?

"No, sorry buddy, but they didn't release any here in America yet."

"And Japan has them, of course. Man, I have to move there," Saiku sighed. "Well, I guess I'll just save my money. I'll see ya later Henry!" Saiku ran out of the store. If he couldn't buy new cards, then he could go to Blues' house and have a duel with someone!

Deciding to take a shortcut through the park, he ran across the grass, trying to get to Blues as fast as he could. However, he noticed something that made him stop in his tracks. An old man was holding on to a box tightly as a much younger man tried to pry it away from him.

The old man seemed to be in his late 60s, with a full, thick gray beard, very visible wrinkles across his face, and dark blue eyes. The younger man seemed to be about 25, with a scar on his cheek, and brown eyes. Saiku took a look and knew what he had to do.

"Hey you!" Saiku yelled, running up to the two, "Leave that man alone!" The mugger turned to Saiku, a giant smirk appearing on his face.

"Don't try to play the hero, kid," he chuckled, "You may get hurt. All I want are the rare cards this man has." Saiku growled, clenching his fist and settling into a fighting stance. One of the male's eyebrows rose. Just where did this snot learn Muay Thai?

"Back off. I don't want to hurt you, but I will if you push me…" he scowled. To his surprise, the man chuckled.

"Look, kid… You don't wanna pick a fight with someone twice your age… But you got spunk. So, how about a little wager?"

"A wager…?" Saiku blinked, going back to a full stand.

"Sure! You kids are all about wanting to settle things with duels… so, how about this? You beat me in a duel, and I'll not only leave…" his smirk grew. "But I'll also give you my rarest card."

"Deal," Saiku replied, his expression set while he strapped on his Duel Disk, shuffling his cards. "And the same rules apply to me. If you win, you'll get my rarest card."

"Heh, you really are something else…" the man said, copying Saiku's movements. "Mind giving me your name for the record books, kid?"

"Don't see why I should be formal with a thief…" Saiku scowled, locking his deck into his disk.

The mugger let out a low whistle. Damn, this kid was serious about protecting the old man… This was going to be fun.

"Well, if you wanna play it that way… But I'll give you my name, just so you have a name with the face of the man who has your rarest card in the future. Coran Vance."

"Saiku," the redhead muttered. "Just so you know who stopped you."

Saiku Kamezooka vs. Coran Vance

Saiku: 4000

Coran: 4000

"I'll go first!" Coran proclaimed. "I summon Luster Dragon (Attack:1900/Defense:1600)!" A pillar of light shot up from the field for a few seconds as the creature made its entrance. Once the light died down, Luster Dragon was shown in all its glory. Its scales glimmered and shone like gemstones. The center of its chest was made of rocks, strangely enough. Its teeth were open in a feral grin, the tusks sticking out by the sides catching the light. Its glowing red eyes seemed to eye Saiku like a bear would eye a rabbit. Its wings, if they could be called that seeing how they were nothing more than two large bones curving like scythes, flapped once or twice.

"I then set a card facedown and end my turn." Saiku smirked as he saw the dragon.

"A Dragon deck, huh? I have the perfect card for that... if I draw it in time..." Saiku thought as he drew his card. He looked at it, and sadly, it wasn't the card he wanted. However, there was one card he had that could help...

"What, losing hope already?" Coran taunted. Saiku just rolled his eyes.

"I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior (Attack:1600/Defense:1000)!" Saiku called out. In a flash, a figure that looked somewhat similar to Dark Magician appeared. However, it was similar in silhouette only, as its many pieces of thin crimson armor shone in the sun. He held a small, red and gold shield in his left hand. It was very ornate with crisscrossing lines of gold in the red, but a sapphire rested in the center. His deep red cape hung down to his knees, unaffected by the wind blowing through. He leveled the sword in his right hand, staring down at Luster Dragon. "Now that he's summoned, I can place on spell counter on him, increasing his attack to 1900!"

"A Spellcaster deck?" Coran said with a laugh.

"Not exactly," Saiku replied with a smirk. "I place one card face down and end my turn." Coran drew his card, and a wide grin appeared on his face.

"I set one monster card facedown and set one card. With that, I end my turn." Two giant cards materialized onto the field. Saiku considered his options as he drew his new card. The facedown monster was probably a trap. It either had a flip effect, or that spell or trap card would do something. Well, at least his new card would help him out if something bad happened.

"I summon Defender, the Magical Knight (Attack:1600/Defense:2000) in defense position!" Saiku smiled as he called this out. The blue and gold knight appeared besides its comrade, placing his oversized shield in front of himself. "Now I can place a spell counter as on him as well, and I place a card facedown. Now, Breaker, attack the facedown card!"

Breaker charged at the facedown, his sword poised to slice it right down the middle. However, as Saiku guessed, that facedown in the Trap and Spell Zone was there for a reason.

"I activate the trap Negate Attack!" Coran shouted. "I can negate your attack and end your battle phase!" Breaker's sword was stopped inches from the card. He then leapt back to his original spot.

"Alright, fine. I end my turn."

"Prepare for your end!" Coran shouted after drawing a new card. "I tribute my Luster Dragon and my facedown Dragon Dwelling in the Cave to summon Red Eyes Black Dragon (Attack: 2400/ Defense: 2000)!" The two monsters were eaten up in a vortex, and replaced with a much scarier dragon. True to its name, the dragon had bright red eyes, offset by huge plates of gleaming black scales. Unlike Luster Dragon, this thing had real wings, which would have kicked up a storm if it were real.

"Hold up! I activate my trap, Threatening Roar!" Saiku yelled. "You can't conduct your battle phase this turn!"

"Heh, you wasted that trap for sure. I end my turn," Coran said. Saiku drew his card and sighed. Still not the card he wanted. However, Defender's ability would let him save a Spellcaster from destruction, so that was good.

"I place a monster card face down and switch my Breaker to defense position," Saiku said. "And with that, I end my turn." Coran began to laugh as he drew his next card.

"Alright kid, time for the big guns!" Coran claimed as he placed a card on his Duel Disk. "I sacrifice my Red Eyes to bring out a dragon that would make a Blue Eyes feel fear! I summon Strong Wind Dragon (Attack: 2400/Defense: 1000)!" Out of the resulting flash was a completely different beast than Red Eyes. It stood up more on its back legs, and every inch of its body was packed with rippling muscles and bulging veins. Its wings looked odd as well, looking like someone took a wing skeleton and filled the gaps with green curtains. With the glowing yellow eyes and long pointy ears, it was the most unusual thing Saiku had seen.

"Strong Wind Dragon? I've never heard of that. However, it has the same attack as Red Eyes... what was the point of that?" Saiku asked, trying to hide his admiration of this dragon.

"Strong Wind has a special effect! If it was summoned by tributing a Dragon-Type, it gains attack equal to half of the dragon used to summon it! And since Red Eyes had twenty-four-hundred attack...,"

"Strong Wind gains twelve-hundred attack points?!" Saiku cried out in fear as the dragon's strength increased from 2400 to 3600.

"That's right! Now Strong Wind Dragon, attack his facedown!" Coran cried as Strong Wind dove at the facedown. "Oh, and by the way, if Strong Wind's attack is more than the defending monster's defense, the difference is dealt as damage to you!"

"Piercing damage?!" Saiku cried. 'Oh man... my facedown is Nimble Momonga... it only has one-hundred defense!'

Strong Wind Dragon made impact with the card. First, a gold halo of light surrounded the card. Saiku could only watch as a translucent form of the flying-squirrel creature shrieked before shattering in pieces of gold light. His expression morphed into one of panic as his life points fell drastically.

Saiku: 500

Coran: 4000

From its position on Coran's side of the field, Strong Wind Dragon gave a mighty roar of triumph. Its wings flapped viciously, enough to create a tornado had it not been a hologram. Saiku growled at Coran's haughty face. He may have had the advantage, but he didn't have to rub it in! He wasn't completely helpless!

"Nimble Momonga's effect now activates!" Saiku shouted. "Because it was destroyed by battle and sent to the graveyard, I gain one-thousand lifepoints!" Coran's grin faltered slightly as Saiku's lifepoints went back up.

Saiku: 1500

Coran: 4000

"And now I can set two of them onto the field! Of course, my deck is shuffled afterwards." Two more facedown cards appeared in front of Saiku as his deck was shuffled by the Duel Disk. Coran's grin came back even bigger than before.

"You just created two more prime targets for my Strong Wind Dragon!" he laughed. "You're lucky I can't attack again. I end my turn!" Saiku resisted the urge to gulp.

'Damn it, There's no way I'll survive another attack. I need that card!' Saiku thought.

Saiku reached for his top card, hand shaking. If he didn't get the card he needed this turn, he was royally screwed! He looked at his Duel Disk. 'I can't give any of you guys up! Give me something I can use, or we're done for!'

"Heheh. Feeling the heat, kid?" Coran chuckled.

'Deck... don't fail me now!' he mentally pleaded. "I draw!" he yelled as he pulled out his card. His arm trembled slightly. Saiku didn't want to show it, but he was nervous now.

"C'mon, kid! Take a look so I can see how you look in defeat!"

Saiku growled lowly. He wouldn't be goaded by his taunting. Gulping quietly, he slowly turned it over…

"…!"

A/N: Well, here it is, the very first chapter of my very first Yu-Gi-Oh! story. This story will (hopefully) have a compelling story and some over the top duels, just like the show!

If you think I did anything wrong, then by all means, tell me, and I'll try to fix it. Also, for those experienced with writing out duels, please give me some advice, because I could use it.

I do need some OCs... if you have any, please send them to me. I need a name, gender, deck type, key card, personality, appearance, the usual jazz.

And as a final note, some cards may seem outta place, but may not be. This takes place between the original and GX. If some cards are outta place though... sorry. At least I'm not stupid enough to put in Tuner Monsters in.