Chandeliers silently crawled in the air one centimeter at a time. Stone busts of various famous people seemed to be boring its sight into her soul. She would be shuddering at the thought, if only she was still a seven-year old. Her sixteen year old self had no use for fear. She was required to carry herself in a prideful, confident self. It was imprinted in her since the age of twelve, and four years later she was quite good at playing her own facade.
As her steps created a rhythmic pendulum in her head, her stride took her straight to the room with the biggest door. Her family was always fond of grandiosity of the surface. This two-meter tall door overshadowed her as lights escaped the slight gap between the floor and the double slabs of metal.
Jeanne tried her best to contain herself, though her emotion made it a bit too hard for her. The door weighed at least four kilograms, and pushing them via two trained hands was something mandatorily required for her. As the door made a loud, mechanical noise with every slight push, the burden on Jeanne's shoulder lessened.
Behind this large, gold-plated doors were her Father and Mother. They would most likely be sitting on their favorite chairs and were either be reading a different newspaper or be lounging around drinking their morning tea. And of course, she was proven right when she opened the door.
"Mother, Father." She began with her family hierarchy. "I would like to demand an explanation for my sudden school transfer."
"Oh, were you not informed by Madeline?"
Claire Leonhart, the firstborn of Imelda Leonhart. Jeanne would always found her mother drinking her favorite tea as per her precise, and without even a margin of error, schedule for the weekends. She was a controlling woman, who wanted everything to go everything the way she wanted it to be. She had ambitions and the repertoire to back them up, but as a decent human being? Jeanne would attest two hundred pages to the court if she was ever brought up the chance to do so.
And yet, she was still her mother.
"My maid was not informed at all before you dropped the info out of the blue, Mother. I've checked." Crossing her arms, her feet tapped rhythmically. "You know I hate surprises, Mother. I had to miss a social meeting with the girl's association because of you."
She was about to be discussing the latest ongoings with her friend. Lately the neighborhood had been plagued with evangelists knocking on their doors. Jeanne had seen their agents in the act and interacted with one too. In all honesty they all disgusted her with their holier-than-thou attitude and their faithful eyes. She had nothing personal with religion, but overly obsessed people screamed rejection for her.
"Have a sit, Jeanne. I'll give you the required perspective then." With that the raven-haired girl sat on the sofa against her mother. Separated by an ivory table, Jeanne knew she wasn't done being angry. She had to at the least show dissatisfaction. Her mother loved seeing her when she pouted, and that made negotiation with her easier. "We're thinking of your future when we made this decision. Duel Academy is a very prestigious school with their alumni either becoming someone influential or a high-achiever. We want you, as a daughter of the Leonhart family, to enroll there."
"But I've already promised my friends here that I'll enroll in the same school as her! That's not fair, Mother!"
"Life isn't fair, Jeanne. That's why I want you to get accustomed to it. One day you'll be the best cook in the country and your employee burned your hard work into ground what took you five years to build in fifty seconds. Your father decided that he'd invest my money on Industrial Illusion's shares, when it was clear as day that Kaiba Corporation would soon control our dystopian society."
Jeanne's Father slowly lowered his head while raising the newspaper in his hands. Jeanne was made sure that her seat was lined-up in such a way that her father would took a hit.
Carlos Leonhart married into the family when he was twenty-three. He was five years younger than Claire when they were married. He was four years younger when Claire had conceived Jeanne, and yet the distance between them felt like lightyears apart. Her father was distant to her and her mother, but more-so her mother. Poor man had her sympathy, and no large part of it was bias from him always giving her more funds to fuel the monthly spending of her hobby.
"Are you trying to guilt trip me?"
"Yes, Jeanne. But will you be able to refuse even still?"
That was a definite no for Jeanne.
"Then let me at least say goodbye to my friends. It's still 17:00 and if I can be sent by car by my maid I can comeback before my night curfew. If I were to be transferred tomorrow, I demand a chance of farewell."
Her mother took a sip of her cup of tea with closed eyes, before returning to do her business.
Jeanne didn't hear a no.
The passing lights blared past the car's side window. The four-wheeled exotic ran past the other cars with the power of three-hundred horses. Everything was a soundless blur for Jeanne. Palm on her cheek and looking out the window. Every mile reminded her of times she shouldn't have took. Every car decisions she wanted to rewind. The cityscape created dim shapes in the distance, and it vanished in a dark, lightless tunnel.
Andei city was a region split into two: The rich and the poor. The rich ruled the cityscape. They created large buildings to overcompensate their miniscule worth in the grand scheme of the universe. Their egos are large, their cash a mountain, but in the end it meant nothing. Only the sane and influential built a lovely home with a loving family living in it. The insane and corrupted would not know how to spend their cash, and it showed itself in full force.
The Leonhart families, the Cruseo family, most of her friends in the Girl's Academy that placated themselves with the delusion that their contribution will be appreciated by society was laughable. Sure, their intentions were noble. Their reasoning were sound. Who wouldn't want their neighborhood safer and free from crimes? Yet these people never tackle the real problems of Andei.
And now came the part where the ins and outs of this particular bubble of society was described. If there were the good then there will be the bad. Yet Jeanne had reminisced about the bad. The ignorant, intolerant fools that partook in their silly game of what-ifs. Society wasn't always the problem, but those who made up society was always the problem.
Past the tunnel was the poor district. It was basically lines of buildings in its rotten, dilapidated state behind a row of steel fences. The area was a quarantine zone. Well, it looked like one. The truth, however, was something more sinister. Jeanne placed a hand on the glass before her. Her eyes caught the glimpses of children running past the crossings without care. The alleyways were dark, and she could see someone her age being repeatedly pummeled by a group of ruffians. Each of them were wearing an old version of the market-distributed Duel Disk.
Kaiba Corp. had been giving their older versions of Duel Disk at a disgustingly low price each year. They sold like hotcakes for those who can't afford the current model, and they prefer not to. Older versions and older models make a very iconic duo to Disk Tinkers that roamed the night streets or dwell inside their tech caves. One such tinkers that Jeanne knew, was her friend: Cyr.
She was ahead of time. Even her name knew that she would be. She likened herself to be called a Seer rather than a Sir. She had people mispronouncing her name before, but she didn't pay them any of her time. Time was precious for her, and she'd rather spend her time creating the latest iteration of duel disk in her mind.
"Madeline. Do you have our stories straight?"
"The usual, right Young Miss?"
Jeanne nodded.
Her nod was neither with a smile, nor with a frown, as she kept herself busy with wearing the duel disk and attaching it perfectly lightly on her arm. It was amazing how something so unapologetically bulky could be so easy to carry in one's arms. So weightless as if it has no weight to carry.
The car pulled over before a particular sideway and Jeanne was ready for her surprise visit. She eyed for passerby, subconsciously noting the bent street lamp above her eyes. Before her was a dark alleyway like the rest of dark alleyways in this accursed town. Though she knew better. Once she walked into the alleyway, there would be a hidden corner that lead to an underground bar with little to modest patron each day. Before the entrance was a cute stairway leading downwards and greeting its visitors was the ornate single wooden door.
The door was pushed by a hand and a little bell chimed above her. The ringing was physical. The little ball clinking against the cup with its force just right to not distract the activity inside the small bar. It was a four-sided, square shaped bar with its floor of a lightly-trimmed wooden planks and the ceiling of marbles and stones. At the end of Jeanne's line of sight, a brightly-lit placate revealed the bar's name: Columbus.
Neon lamps were installed in a few key places and a small single stage-light pointed its light to a singer in her mid-thirties. She wasn't wearing a load of make-up, and though her outfit screamed youthfulness and vigorous desire, she had shown her age in the tone of her skin and the stretchiness of her exposed limbs. Jeanne cannot be fooled by that sort of things after she gained the immunity of sight from her mother. The older woman waved at Jeanne, flashing a smile with a wink while still in tune with the music in play. Her dance was a routine, and she was glad that Marianne broke away from it to greet her.
On the other end of the stage was a sitting bar with two-parts of connected wooden tables. One side faced the shelves containing a modest size of alcohol, while the other side faced the bartender's exit. The purpose of them were for the customer to order, and for the waitress to deliver orders. Plates of food from the kitchen would be placed on the side-counter, which then will be decorated with the bartender's own creations. Afterward, the waitress would serve them to the guests on their four-seated tables.
"Hey Jeanne. Fancy seeing you tonight. Sleepover with Joe's kid?" The waitress said as she eyed the duel disk on Jeanne's arm. "Should I take the usual order downstairs later? It'll be Joe's treat."
One of the part-timer of Joe, Sierra, asked as she walked past by Jeanne. Her classy uniform exuded her own air of maturity, as her tanned skin made an exotic contrast with her blue and white shirt, skirt, and apron combination. Her smile showed a pearl-white teeth, and her red lips told many nice things about her beauty. Sierra was a cute college student that Jeanne dearly respected.
"Not tonight," as much as the usual order did enticed her. "I'm somewhat in a hurry. Could go for the quick usual though."
"Alright. Nice seeing you tonight, Jeanne."
Jeanne nodded.
"Nice seeing you too, Sierra."
After waving goodbye to the waitress, she continued her way toward the counter, where a lone bartender had stationed himself into his position. He was smirking, and her smirk grew wider as she locked eyes with Jeanne.
The bartender was an old man in his fifties. Jeanne knew full well that he would be outliving her by a hundred years from how lively he always looked. Even now he was energetically humming a tune she knew too well. It was Gramps' favorite tune from his hey-days as a pro-duelist. Hi eyebrow raised as he saw the sight of a raven-haired girl who were coated in pale warmth. The old man leaned on the front-counter, his arms crossed and hands on top of the other.
"Well, well, it's rare to see you so late at night Ms. Jeanne," he laughed at his young bar patron. "Are you old enough to try my Liquor now?"
"Not yet, Joe." Jeanne shook her head. "But, I will in four years. Well, six and a half years going by the international age of consent. For now I'll just have the quick usual."
"Another quick fix for the young lass, eh? Boy does that sound so wrong coming from an old man," Joe chuckled. "Make yourself at home, alright? Cyrabelle's busy doing her thing in the basement. What a great timing for you though. She was complaining all day yesterday about you not coming here in weeks." Gramps Joe pulled out a box of Orange Juice from the fridge before popping out a bottle of clean soda from the shelves below the liquor's. "Trouble in the family?"
"Ugh, you have no idea, Joe." Jeanne sighed as she sat on the seat that was ten centimeters higher than the seat for the four-legged tables behind her. "That's why I'm here. As usual. I need to tell Cyr about this matter. She needed to know about it the most."
"Well, I'll never understand about those rich folks. Why can't each and every one of them be like you, Jeanne?"
"I'm not a saint, Joe."
"Well, you are to her, Jeanne," Joe smiled wryly. "Make sure not to make her cry, Jeanne." Joe set the glass of Orange Squash on the counter. Jeanne stood from her seat and walked with the glass of her favorite to the door next to the kitchen door beside the bar. As she walked, Joe continued his talk. "If you did make her cry. Try to patch things up then and there, alright?"
Jeanne nodded at Joe as she opened the door. Now she needed to walk slowly down the underground. If she counted right there would be twenty-four stairs in total, and at the end she would stare at three doors leading to three different rooms. The one on the left had a storage sign on it. It lead to the storage room. The one of the right had a grape sign on it and that one lead to the wine cellar. On the middle was a room of no significance, except it had a symbol for employee's break room. This room was her destination. Behind this room was Jeanne's objective.
Managing her breath, she opened the door with duel disk ready in her arm.
That night was a lonely night. Cyrabelle Kim was doing her nightly routine as usual. She had made her schedule precise and meaningful. During the day she would take on her clients. They would request the usual maintenance, changing spares, maybe even trading their old disks for a cheap reproductions up to the standards of the new. The business was booming. Everyone was in the rage for custom-made duel disks. Her custom-made duel disks. She was a thinker and a tinker leagues ahead of her time. Cyrabelle was a gifted individual.
During the night she would hone her own talent. She would be sitting on her work desk and be picking apart the newest Kaiba Corp. licensed duel disk system. If she were feeling frisky, a server off-shore would be hacked with close to no effort. There were qualities not found in many others of the same business as her, and she'd rather keep her identity underground. She got by with the nickname "Memory", but her close friends called her something else. Her grandpa would call her "Cyrabelle", and her closest friend would call her "Cyr."
Cyrabelle slowly pulled down her metallic-golden headphone as she turned around on the swivel chair. There she was in her expensive coat. She eyed the raven-haired girl before her. Slender body, a state of the art duel disk on her left arm, black jeans pressed onto a wide hip and naughty thighs. Cyr was subconsciously holding her tongue in place as she made her gaze move from her high-heeled black boots toward her oval-shaped, porcelain white, pretty face. Her emerald eyes were unusual as they peeked from the black-lens glasses supported by her perky and small nose.
If it wasn't obvious, Cyrabelle wanted to gobble her up on the spot.
"What a surprise." Blushing, Cyr lowered her raised leg as she bashfully smiled. She wasn't wearing a skirt, but her cargo pants had the potential to show what's under her pants through the big tube presented to Jeanne. "Jeanne Leonhart in my workshop at this late of the night? Did Grandpa Joe forgot that it was Christmas? Now where did I put those darn mistletoes?"
"Nice meeting you too, Cyr." Jeanne pressed a button on her duel disk and it ejected itself from her arm. Pulling it away, she handed the big machinery to Cyr. "I want you to look at this for me. This should be the big step you need for your next project."
Cyrabelle's eyes lighted up. Delicately she picked the duel disk given to her and touched all over it with her hands. She had made sure to wipe them clean before-hand. It felt light in her grasps. This was none other than a duel disk especially made for teenagers, and especially made even more for duelists enrolled in the Duel Academia. After a few moments of eyeing the deck compartment of the duel disk, she looked at Jeanne. "What are you trying to tell me?"
"It's time for me to go, Cyr." Jeanne sighed. She smiled as she pushed the duel disk close to Cyrabelle's chest. "Would you mind running through a check of it for me? This would be the first in a long while.
Silence draped an invisible curtain before them. Whirring and whizzes of machineries behind Cyrabelle was the only companion to the cold atmosphere between them. In a single click, the computer to the side of the work desk played a tune devoid of meaning. It was background noise, nothing that were picked up by the ears of both individuals in the same room. Cyrabelle swiveled her chair toward her cutting table, preparing to cut the duel disk apart.
First was the storage unit that enclosed inside it mountains of data containing more than five thousand names and card descriptions. To unearth the sensitive, four-by-four microchip from its cartridge, she must first disable the security protocol associated with the basic protections of the disk. Afterward, she had to reprogram the advanced protections to allow the injection of custom firmware, essentially a glorified dummy program, into the system. The dummy program itself was easy to make and require close to no experience in producing one beforehand as it only require one to create a blank file that activated in place of the security program through something easily distributed like a flash drive. It was a by-the-basic approach that she had shared with her rivals, but it was nonetheless a delicate process ruined by the smallest of mistakes. Bypassing the security after the basic protection would trigger a self-preservation mode for the duel disk and fry the content into charcoals. Many have had mistaken the process and doomed their duel disk forever. For this process, she was done in less than five minutes. A silent sound could be heard as a square-shaped circuitry was placed onto a clean plate.
Second was the dismantling process of the hardware. To ensure detachment in its maximum originality and pristine condition, Cyrabelle needed to keep the Duel Disk activated at all times until the process ended. If it was shut down during this time, it would lead to memory corruptions or the system behaving in such a way that it would take more than a tour to Kaiba Corp. to fix the problems. Worse is, she would have to reprogram the entirety of the duel disk without so much as a line of code difference than an original model. It would take her weeks at best, a month at worst. If Jeanne would visit her at night, then she was doing something reckless. She was in a hurry, and that was when pressure reappeared before Cyrabelle's eyes. She took a short moment of rest to exhale a deep breath. She plugged a power supply to the opened tail end of the Disk's core. After the circular screen had lit up, comes the easy parts. She would first detach the v-shaped board apart from the core. Then, she would dismantle the core from the top all the way to the bottom. The composition of the duel disk had never been changed that much, and even if it changed it would just be a simple position switch of motherboard and CPU. To think someone could create a machinery this small yet complex was far-fetched for its time. It was as if it came straight from a Japanese anime. Yet here she was, making a killing profit from composing an improved fake. Whoever were the lead engineer of this machine truly was a genius. It was doubtful that Seto Kaiba alone could create something twenty years into the future in the past. After all was said and done, the last bit of Jeanne's Duel Disk was a pale-colored crystal that lit up a dim green light.
Final touches were currently in progress. After bypassing the protection software copying the signature files on the Academia disk was an utter cakewalk. What Cyrabelle needed to do was now to upload the extended firmware aside from the dummy file to replace the entirety of Kaiba Corp.'s programming language and change it with her own. There were two purposes in dismantling Jeanne's duel disk. The first one was for her to check if there were tracking devices in its system. Short answer: There was. Jeanne had clearly took pre-precautions just to go this far. A single duel would activate the tracking system until the system either die or its whole memory is wiped to a clean slate and then rewritten back in. The tracker was programmed in a simple language, showing how cheap its inclusion was to the system. Cyrabelle easily rewired everything pertaining to said program without much effort. The second purpose was to complete her own brand of Duel Disk. Most engineer for Duel Disks can apply for their license once they finished their High-School education, but she'd rather not join the overly bloated Kaiba Corp. which treated their engineers like utter crap. She believed that going indie was the answer. The Duel Academia will be the latest model that will always receive a constant upgrade in its firmware while its hardware will always be the same. If she can record the updates and the upgrades of such machinery through wiretap alone, she can already make millions from selling them to the highest underground bidder at its barebones, borderline unreadable renditions. She could be skipping town thereafter, with riches unimaginable even for her.
Jeanne had just spent fifteen minutes looking at an underdressed girl tinkering around with heavy machineries before her. She was in a way, entranced. The exposed nape of Cyr was one thing, but the depression of her collarbones were something she would die to see every morning the instant her eyes opened however lazily. Why would a girl of delicate figure modify and tinker with a complex machinery in her undies were something quite alien for Jeanne, and no matter how hard Cyr would try to justify her workshop uniform she wouldn't believe them. And yet, she would be lying if those exposed skins weren't eye candy. Her skinny-fit arms and long, thin fingers. Her revealed navel and back-skin from the spine going south. Plump pair of thighs and shaved clean legs devoid of any hair. She shook her head as her arms were crossed before her beating chest. She looked away with hand grasping her pants' pocket, trying her best not to look at the green-white striped underwear Cyr was wearing.
She failed miserably.
With a quick swivel-back, the mechanic placed the Academia duel disk before Jeanne. "Finished it. I've provided some dummy tracker software for you and you can manually edit it through your academia PDA. It's fairly simple to edit if you have a clean-cut schedule and adhering to your given curfew." The girl leaned back on her chair. Pulling back her entire body back and getting herself comfortable. "Speaking of curfew, aren't you needed to be home in like, right now?"
"I..." Jeanne placed the duel disk inside her crossed arms, hugging it tightly with her chest still beating fast. "I would like to stay a little longer." She ran a hand to swipe her bangs aside. Her emerald eyes now looking straight toward Cyr. Her small and pale pink lips spoke delicately, as if they would be ruined with just a single nudge in the wrong places. "If you don't mind, that is." Jeanne's face had turned red in luminescent. In Cyrabelle's eyes, all light seemed to have focused themselves to converge at one single point: Jeanne's entire self. "Can I stay for a little longer, please?"
"T-Take however long you want," the blonde-haired girl coughed and cleared her tone. "Let me just get a towel because whew! I am sweating bullets in this heat!" Leaping to the floor, Jeanne cocked her head to the side and expressed a confused smile. Cyr hurriedly walked toward a room separate from her workshop: Her room. She had been there before. It was packed with plush, character dolls. All of them were collector items in one way or the other. Jeanne's favorite doll in Cyr's collection was a doll that depicted the appearance of a cute and small Black Luster Soldier in its adorable 4 head 1 body ratio. If she remembered right, Cyr's favorite doll was a princess doll she placed inside a display.
How much was that doll worth though? Jeanne remembered buying that from a peddler on some random sideway stand.
"Hey, I'm back." With the sound of the door opening and closing, was the figure of Cyrabelle in a white-blue one-piece dress that went down up to her knee where it met her brown-colored boots. She was wearing a denim jacket over her dress and a baggy factory hat over her short, wavy-blond hair. The freckles around her nose was more visible now, and a waft of nice-smelling odor oozed from her body. A custom-made silver-black duel disk on her arm was proudly displayed to Jeanne. They were now looking at each other's face, eyes locked and between each other's arms' length. "And I brought a friend to play."
"Alright, let's head upstairs." It was nice that Cyr would humor Jeanne using her own language. "This should be a good entertainment for the bar-goers."
"Are you sure?" The girl jolted her head back. "This might get... personal and emotional from me."
"Gramps, Sierra, and Marianne needs to know this, right? Didn't see Destiny Boy along the way, but I'll text him later." Jeanne's smile, as it was reflected on Cyr's eyes, made her realize that she could make such a sappy emotion. "Sorry that you had to go along with my selfishness."
Cyr shook her head.
"I understand. I'm not your only friend in this neighborhood, I know that," Cyr bit her lips as she welled her emotions inside. "I'll go ahead and tell Gramps. We need an empty stage for your farewell duel, right?"
"...Thanks."
Cyr looked back from the door, smiling. That smile was saddening, and Jeanne didn't know why. With a flick of her hand, Cyr went out the door and left her workshop for Jeanne's lonely self.
She equipped the Duel Disk onto her arm, and inserted her deck onto the open slot. The Duel Disk lit up and the shufflers delicately arranged her deck for a fair symphony. The sound of magic being made was close to a minute, but to Jeanne it felt like hours. And yet she was ready. A few steps later, she was out of the room.
The air in the bar had been different. Eyes were now on Jeanne as she walked toward the stage. Cyrabelle was waiting at one end of the stage, and it didn't took her long to stand on the other. Jeanne was to the left from the bar's perspective, Cyr was to their right. Now that she was finally on stage, she realized that the platform was big. Big enough to held a duel with solid vision technology.
"This is it, Jeanne." Cyr's duel disk roared to live. She had an earpiece with a microphone attached to it resting on one side of her ear. Jeanne, eyeing the same model of microphone on one of the mic stands, placed it on her ears too. "It's going to be our new beginning. You're always looking at this stage with wondrous eyes before. How does it feel to be actually standing on it?"
"Overwhelming." Jeanne tried her best not to profusely sweat. She looked around her and off the stage, where people began to whistle and wave when in-sight. "This stage is so large, and yet it's just for the two of us. That sounds..."
"Romantic?"
"Exhilarating."
"Oh," Cyr said, didn't know what to expect about Jeanne's reply. "Well, I'm ready when you are, Jeanne. Last time I got to go first, so you can take the lead." As she said that, the crowd began to cheer. Sierra was encouraging both of them from the bottom of her lung. "And let's not keep our audience waiting."
Jeanne nodded, and both girls were ready for their match.
"Duel!"
Turn 01 – Jeanne
Jeanne Leonhart
LP: 4000
Card in Hand: 5
Cyrabelle Kim
LP: 4000
Card in Hand: 5
Duel Start
In a slick motion, Jeanne placed her index and middle finger on top of her deck, and pulled a card from the top. "Draw." She looked at the card, added it onto her hand, and smiled. "I open my Main Phase by summoning Dawn Knight in attack position!"
The Duel Academia disk glimmered in various light as an image of a still card popped out of nothingness. From there appeared in a flash of bright white light a Warrior with red scarf. Easily six foot tall in height. Under his most outstanding property were a full-suit of metallic armor befitting of his name. He faced Cyrabelle and his straight gaze seemed unwavering. He had this aura that seemed to brighten him, even if it was only a slight glitter that vanished in the wind.
"Next, I add Lightning Blade to this knight's armory by equipping him with this electrifying blade." Dawn Knight raised his sword up high as Lightning zapped the steel from out of nowhere, causing the audience to gasp at the sight of the powered up knight. And then, the crowd cheered at the sight of the mighty warrior. "Let's see if you can defeat this strong challenger, Cyrabelle!"
Before the blonde-haired technician was a Brown-haired knight with a thunder-infused sword. It sure was gallant and its strength imposing. Still, Cyrabelle knew that she could take the guy for a spin.
Turn 2 – Cyrabelle
Jeanne Leonhart
LP: 4000
Cards in Hand: 4
Cyrabelle Kim
LP: 4000
Cards in Hand: 5
"Now it's time for the counterattack!" Cyrabelle placed all of her energy toward the tip of her fingers as she drew a card from the top. "Draw!" She held her drawn card on eye level before looking back toward her opponent. Placing the card between her ring and pinky finger against her palm, she played a card onto one of the five open slots on her board. "Activating Vallhalla, Hall of the Fallen from my hand!"
White, angelic feathers began to fall onto the stage, as the background slowly transitioned into something holy. Behind Cyrabelle was a single throne of stone draped in red cloth. Pillars jutted out from the ground to form a gigantic shrine instantaneously. A single beam of light shot down from the heavens and struck deep onto the ground. As the ball of light took form of a maiden in heavenly battle gear, the wings behind her back grew twice in size. A green and bright spear and a gem-adorned shield in hand, the woman directed her glare toward the knight. She was shorter than the male, but as her wings made her float with perpetual motion. She easily hovered above him, but the knight didn't look so concerned.
"With Valhalla's effect, I can special summon a Fairy monster from my hand once per-turn. I chose Power Angel Valkyria to show her beauty. Pretty nice-looking lady she is, huh?"
Jeanne smirked as she eyed the design of Cyr's Fairy monster. An angelic being in green hue. Her armor ended with a short skirt that revealed her cream-colored thighs that linked to a metallic pair of greave. "That's true, but the fact is that monster's strength is not enough to defeat my Dawn Knight."
"Not for long, Jeanne. I have an ace card just waiting to be played." With another motion from her hand, she swung her arm back and forth. There were two confirmed cards being placed, and the battlefield reflected the changes. Firstly, the valkyria was wreathed in a bright light, which from its cocoon appeared a gallant figure of a knight standing proudly on all four. It was centaur-like in form and already bigger than Dawn Knight in stature, with wings covering its armor in-front as the back flaps in a rhythm. Before long, the centaur-like figure sprouted a larger set of wings. They began to grow bigger, and afterward the centaur had become gigantic. It was monstrous in size, almost touching the ceiling of the bar.
The arch-paladin appeared, and with his light: His majesty. Gone were his hoofs, exchanged with a radiant and formless light. His design became complex. Golden steel that jut out and covered his wings and his halo had grown three times in size and more regal. His sword and shield now an abstract concept that can cleave almost anything in half just from its sheer size alone. It stared menacingly at Dawn Knight, and even the powered-up Warrior was visibly shaking.
Cyr noticed the different reaction of Dawn Knight and laughed softly. "Even your monster know when to fold, Jeanne. Let me introduce my ace monster: Neo-Parshath, the Sky Paladin. Though it might be much of a difference, my Parshath had the upper hands in firepower." Cyrabelle placed her hand on Neo-Parshath's shield, which she felt the sensation on the palm of her hand. "And just so you know, this big man is summoned in attack position. So let's finish this quickly. Battle phase!" At her command, the gigantic angel readied his sword and shield pointing forward. And with a single point from her finger, Neo-Parshath pulled back his sword-arm. "Stab through that knight with your divine sword, Sky Paladin! Light-stroke!"
A soft nod from the Paladin and the sword had struck through the empowered knight. The Knight screamed in pain before it was destroyed by combat. Jeanne held up her arms high as to shield the virtual splash damage caused by the light particles assaulting Jeanne. "Not bad, but that was nothing more than a scratch damage. Plus, I get to activate Dawn Knight's effect." As she placed her knight to her graveyard, she pulled out her deck and search for a single card that was immediately sent to the graveyard.
"Is that so? Well at this point, I'll activate Neo-Parshath's effect. If he dealt battle damage to my opponent, I can draw one card." As she said that with a smile, she drew a card. "Then I'll set two cards and call that a good turn." Cyrabelle placed two cards face-down on the spell/trap card slot. Two face-down cards appeared for a second before it flashed out into invisibility. "Your turn, friend."
Turn 3—Jeanne
Jeanne Leonhart
LP: 3900
Cards in Hand: 4
Cyrabelle Kim
LP: 4000
Cards in Hand: 1
"It's my turn, and I draw!" Jeanne said as she looked at the card she just drew. "Well would you look at that? It seems I've found just the thing to play. I summon Valkyrian Knight in attack position!"
A blazing red light shot up from the earth as a falcon screeched energetically into creation. From the fire that caught the falcon and assimilate it revealed a woman in fiery-red armor. A flowing blue cape whistled with the scorching wind and Jeanne could feel her excitement welling up. Her eyes now locked to the warrior donned in regal golden and red that looked back toward her with an assuring smile. Valkyrian Knight placed her flaming sword before her as if she was praying, before she slashed the air before her and her eyes lit up with fury. Jeanne, smiling, then picked a card from her hand and slid it excitedly into the spell/trap slot face-up.
"I play the equip spell card: Megamorph. I equip the unsealed powers onto Valkyrian Knight. Since my Life Points are lower than yours, Cyr, my Valkyrian Knight has its Attack power doubled." As the seal hovered from the revealed card toward the flaming Knight's chest, she roared a powerful roar. Her body was now enveloped in a blue flame the shape of a falcon. "This will then give my Knight enough power to surpass your Paladin! Go, Valkyrian knight. Send that Sky Paladin into the heaven!"
Cyrabelle smirked as the flaming knight unleashed a gigantic ball of blue flame from her sword. As the blue flame transformed into a launching falcon, it was then absorbed into the void before it could reach Neo-Parshath. As Jeanne exclaimed her surprise, a single card was flipped face up. "I activate Negate Attack. This will negate all of the attacks from your monster and end the battle phase. However," Cyrabelle pointed at an empty space next to Negate Attack. From there a single card resurfaced: A magic card. "I activate a quick-play spell card beforehand: Celestial Transformation. With this card I special summon Meltiel, Sage of the Sky from my hand."
From the sky, a ray of light appeared beside of Neo-Parshath. A single entity descended from it slowly. A human-like figure garbed in red armor and white wings that covered where its legs would be. Its arms spread wide as a single gigantic red and metallic halo spun in place before its waist in perpetual motion. Its green eyes stayed at Jeanne's eyes.
"Now, you might be wondering why I summoned Meltiel in the first place. Negate Attack already ended the battle phase, so why bother?" Before she continued, a ray of light shone above Cyrabelle and she was indeed sparkling beneath it. "Meltiel gives me 1000 additional life points if a counter trap was activated. Now doesn't that work so well in my favor? However, Meltiel will be destroyed at the end of the turn I activated Celestial Transformation."
"That's good." Jeanne sighed a breath of relief. "Even if you have a thousand more life points, it won't do a thing," Jeanne said. "I still have my powerful Valkyrian Knight on my side. I'll stay the turn and see what you got to overcome her."
"I won't disappoint you, Jeanne!"
Turn 04—Cyrabelle
Jeanne Leonhart
LP: 3900
Cards in Hand: 2
Cyrabelle Kim
LP: 5000
Cards in Hand: 0
"Draw!" she said as she drew a card. She was confident, and the smile on her face gone from one ear to another. "I activate Pot of Greed." She drew two more cards from her deck. "To complete the preparation, I'll normal summon Hoshiningen." From her hand, she slapped a card onto her duel disk. A bright circle of light appeared on the floor and from the circle of light appeared a star that twinkled and spun in place. A big grin permeated its smug face, and with that dance Neo-Parshath gained a significant increase in power. "Its effect: All LIGHT monster on the field will gain 500 ATK. Neo-Parshath is indeed a LIGHT monster."
"True, but it will not be able to surpass the wall that is Valkyrian Knight."
"Maybe not, but I didn't say my turn was over, did I?" She placed the last card in her hand into the opened slot to the side of her duel disk. "Field Spell card activate. Arise and reveal yourself: The Sanctuary in the Sky!"
As the card inserted itself into the duel disk, the Field Spell appeared itself. With Valhalla at its center-piece, now the roof were supplanted by the Sanctuary's own. There were feathers floating around, and all of them angelic. Clouds began to form on the platform, and the audience felt floaty.
"Neo-Parshath's effect activates. If The Sanctuary in the Sky is on the field, based on the difference between our Life Points, with mine being higher than yours, Neo-Parshath will gain attack points equal to the difference! Now it will have enough power to defeat Valkyrian Knight!"
"Impressive!"
"It's just the luck of the draw, Jeanne." Her giggling sounded mocking, but there were warmth in it. "Still, thanks. Neo-Parshath, attack Valkyrian Knight!"
A ray of light shines above the fiery knight, and instantly disintegrated her in cold white. No screams, only terror. Even Cyrabelle wasn't ready for that attack and was mildly spooked. "No freaking way. What the heck?"
"That's a little gruesome for my taste," Sierra said as she shook her head. The audience nodded in unison, agreeing her words.
"Same, to be honest," Cyrabelle blinked, she didn't know what to tell. "Uhm, I activate Neo-Parshath's effect." She drew one card from her deck and added it to her hand. "Any card effects in response to that, Jeanne?"
Jeanne could only stay herself in silence before snapping out of it. "Um, Valkyrian Knight's effect activates in the graveyard." A falcon-like flame appeared from inside Jeanne's duel disk that brought to the battlefield a single soul. From the soul of the phoenix formed the soul of a knight. Two cards were ejected by the duel disk, and they were picked up by Jeanne before being placed to her deck holster attached to her belt. "I remove from play Valkyian Knight and another warrior monster, Dawn Knight, from the graveyard to special summon one level five or higher Warrior monster. Come forth, King's ace: Jack's Knight!"
An insignia for a Jack appeared before it was slashed into two by a sword equal to the owner's height. His blonde hair parted at the middle, revealing a face full of anger. Its head was crowned in blue headgear. Three points jutted upward from the front and the sides as if it were a regal crown. Jack's Knight stood tall. Taller than Hoshiningen. Its sword was not raised, and his shield on stand-by. It knew that it can overpower Hoshiningen, and his stare kept himself locked to the star-shaped Fairy.
"Great play. However, do you have any other cads that can defeat my Neo-Parshath, Jeanne?" Cyrabelle smiled as Jeanne looked toward her deck. She was focused. "I set one card face-down."
It was for insurance. Jeanne would know that the biggest hurdle for victory was Sanctuary in the Sky. Judgment of Anubis will not only negate an effect that can destroy it, it will also take one card away from Jeanne. Not even an equip card could save Jeanne from the looming threat of Neo-Parshath. The match was surely hers to be won, and yet.
And yet the thoughts echoed that she will lose the duel.
She didn't want that, and she clung to the thought that she will surpass Jeanne's firepower and come out a winner. And then, maybe she could persuade Jeanne to think this one over. It was as if nothing had ever happened. It would just be like old times.
"Was that all?" Jeanne looked at the suddenly quiet Cyr. She noted the different attitude, but continued on. "My turn, then?"
"...May I ask something from you, Jeanne?"
Turn 05—Jeanne
Jeanne Leonhart
LP: 3800
Cards in Hand: 2
Cyrabelle Kim
LP: 5000
Cards in Hand: 0
"Sure." Jeanne drew one card as she replied. "What's on your mind, Cyr?"
"Are you going to Duel Academia after this?" Cyrabelle held her chest with her hand. She was trembling, and her heart was thumping. "Are you going to leave me? Are you going to leave us?"
"Is that true, Jeanne!?" Sierra called out from the audience. Joe kept himself composed enough by wiping the glasses clean with a cloth over and over again. A few members in the audience was clearly reacting to what Cyrabelle said. "Are you going to leave us?"
"How did you figure that out?"
"Oh come on it was obvious!" Cyrabelle didn't mean to yell, but she was. "The Duel Academia custom-made duel disk, the sudden visit, that way you dressed yourself up. Wasn't that obvious enough, Jeanne? You think I'm blind or something? I know you the best, Jeanne. More than your friends back in the city and more than your parents. I'm your best... friend."
The girl hung her head as she looked to the ground.
"Cyr, I—"
"This could be our last duel," a sniffle was picked by the microphone. "After this there's no telling if I'd ever see you again. You could be gone forever from my life, Jeanne. That's what I'm afraid of."
"I'm sorry," Jeanne replied. "Sorry that it has to be this way. This stage, this duel, this parting. Words aren't enough to describe it." She balled up her free hand into a fist, before placing it close to her heart. "But we're both duelists, Cyr. You know me the best and I know you the best. Mere words won't satisfy the both of us anyway. So let's duel this out."
"...You're one selfish girl, you know that?" Her eyes lit up, but a frown lingered on her face. "But let's see you defeat my Neo-Parshath, Jeanne! Action speaks more than words for a duelist. Show me that you are one!"
"Gladly!" Jeanne slapped a card to the spell/trap zone. "I activate: Polymerization!"
Three pillars of light appeared and shot themselves into a single point in the sky. Breaking through the heavenly barrier and into a void. The figure of a Jack, the figure of a Queen, and the figure of a King. All of them intertwined into a single figure that descended from the heavens. "I Fusion summon using Jack's Knight I control, and both Queen's Knight and King's Knight from my hand to Fusion summon my Ace Card! Arcana Knight Joker!"
The figure descended and kneeled before Jeanne. The raven-haired girl nodded, and the knight raised his head, then his figure, without missing a beat. He unsheathed both of his swords, ready to defeat the angelic paladin.
"Arcana Knight Joker... I see," Cyr sighed, smiling afterward. "Because of Hoshiningen's effect, your knight would also gain a power-up."
"You always think for my benefits, Cyr. As a friend, you are indeed irreplaceable. But," Jeanne paused. Her eyes began to well up with tears that she couldn't help but release. "But even so, don't say something sad like never going to see me again. I promise that I'll be back. I will see you again, Cyr. That is a promise I intend to keep!"
"Jeanne."
"Arcana Knight Joker, attack Neo-Parshath with your twin-blades of destruction!" The knight nodded as it leaped into the air. Two hands raised, ready to release a stream of fury. The blades began to rain down from the heavens, and with that the paladin was no more, cut into particles of light that became nothing more than mist. "Due to the Field's spell effect, there was no damage. It's your turn, Cyr."
Turn 06—Cyrabelle
Jeanne Leonhart
LP: 3800
Cards in Hand: 0
Cyrabelle Kim
LP: 5000
Cards in Hand: 0
"I... draw," a single card was picked up from the top of the deck. A counter trap card: Forced Back. She didn't need the card. The duel had been decided, and yet she didn't want it to end with that. She will have to fight the fight and win by tooth and nail if she had to. "And set a card face-down. I end my turn."
The audience was silent. They were breathless, holding their breath. Was it the end? Thought everyone. Everyone but Jeanne.
It was now a battle between Jeanne and her will. Her determination.
Turn 07—Jeanne
Jeanne Leonhart
LP: 3800
Cards in Hand: 0
Cyrabelle Kim
LP: 5000
Cards in Hand: 0
The card was drawn wordlessly. Jeanne was silent. Everyone was silent. Before the Leonhart heir were two set cards and a monster placed in attack mode. Without even glancing it twice, she knew that it was a trap laid by Cyrabelle. Jeanne remembered the first time Cyr had been using trap cards. It was a method for her to prolong their games, and they were various in executions and ideas. Sometimes a full wall of light that blocked her path, sometimes effects which negates her card effects.
But now, she was sure the card she drawn won't be countered in any way.
"Battle phase! Arcana Knight Joker attacks your Hoshiningen!"
A flash of light appeared for a split second, and the knight was now before Cyrabelle. Behind him, Hoshiningen had been sliced into bits and shrieked in sadness. The blonde-haired duelist fell silent. But a smile appeared on her face. Though tears began to stream down her cheeks and fell down her chin, she remained standing as she watched her best friend standing tall in-front of her.
A spell card was played from Jeanne's hand, and Arcana Knight Joker disappeared. In its regal place was three figures of knights. All kneeling before Jeanne before turning around in unison. What came afterward was Cyrabelle's swift defeat.
And as the game came to an end, she fell on her knees.
Jeanne Leonhart: Victorious
The audience wasn't sure what to feel, but seeing the usually tough figure of Cyrabelle bawling and letting her feelings out, they couldn't do much but held back their tears. The microphone was turned off, but her cry struck the chord on everyone's heart.
With a few steps, Jeanne was now standing before Cyrabelle. She then kneeled and took Cyrabelle's hand in both of hers. The crying girl looked up to find Jeanne, smiling. Though her eyes were welling with tears, she continued talking. Her voice was sweet, and there were no fakeness in any of her words. From her hand she revealed a silver ring and slid it onto Cyrabelle's ring finger.
In a mix of disbelief and shock, everyone's eyes were drawn onto the girls on stage. Joe, eyes wide, dropped the glass he was cleaning and shattered on the ground. It was a total silence, and nobody in the audience dared to break it.
"This is not a lie nor a scam." Jeanne looked closely at Cyrabelle's face, brushing her bang aside to see her beautiful face. "I bestowed my feelings to you the way I think was most fitting. I love you, Cyrabelle. Be mine."
"Ah... ah—"the stuttering word that came from her mouth was soon stopped as the girl nodded repeatedly. Sniffling all the while. Suddenly, the girl before her closed her head in and their lips touched. As she did that, their kiss were shielded with Jeanne raising Cyr's duel disk. No viewers allowed.
One member of the audience couldn't help himself and bawl at the sight. A few people began to cheer for the couple and soon the whole room was clapping. Some began to whistle and one man said "Hell yeah!" in an ear-piercing scream and overdone gesture. Sierra smirked as she shook her head with her arms crossed. Her mouth was muttering insults toward the two, but there were no ill will directed at the two. Marianne made sure that Joe didn't faint, but seeing the old man staring into an empty space didn't really help matters.
The star of the shows soon break away from each other's lips. And from there came the cuddling. Hugging themselves in each other's warmth, they were in peace. With everyone's cheers in the background, they couldn't help but be entranced in one another with their love accepted.
"Young Mistress Jeanne. Are you ready for the transfer?"
Jeanne nodded. Her maid made sure that there was at least warmth in that question. She smiled at that by-the-book sets of words. She placed her left hand close to her chest,, before she picked up her baggage.
She didn't remember what exactly happened after the duel last night, but she knew it was something good. Cyr was never that happy before in her life, and her bubbly self was something she likened to see almost every single day. Taking a deep breath, the girl trudged toward the black sedan waiting for her before the fountain of Leonhart's family estate.
After the baggage had been placed inside the car's trunk, she went inside the car. The overgrown estate of her family was always expanding in an alarming place. It was too big for its own good. She hated the estate, and she hated herself for being a part of it.
She hoped that the new destination of her journey would let her forget the horror that was her own house.
"Goodbye, Mother. Goodbye Father. Thank you for raising me."
The car's engine was started, and the suspension began to work. After a few more moment of staring at what was her home, the young mistress left. A gigantic gate began opening in the distance, making way for the black sedan. No time to look behind her, Jeanne Leonhart was gone.
Author Note:
Hey, it's me. The author. I hope you guys like this fanfiction of mine.
I was in a deep slump from my life not working out how I wanted it to and from legitimate family problems that I still struggled to accept. I just wanted to wish everyone a good day, and hope that you guys have something to say about my fic. Any comments are welcomed, though I would like it if it was something more concrete, hahaha.
Anyway, after this would be the cards used by both Jeanne and Cyrabelle in their duel along with the effects. Let me know if this format of storytelling in a Yugioh fanfiction worked or if there's something missing/underdeveloped/bad in how I write things.
Jeanne's:
Dawn Knight
Monster. Effect. Warrior/LIGHT
Level 4
ATK 1400 / DEF 1200
If this card is sent from the field to the Graveyard: You can send 1 LIGHT monter from your Deck to the Graveyard. If this card is sent from your Deck to the Graveyard: Target 1 LIGHT monster in your Graveyard; place that target on the top of your deck. You can only use 1 "Dawn Knight" effect per-turn, and only once that turn.
Valkyrian Knight
Monster. Effect. Warrior/FIRE
Level 4
ATK 1900 / DEF 1200
Monsters your opponent controls cannot target face-up Warrior-Type monsters for attacks, except "Valkyrian Knight". When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the Graveyard: You can banish 1 Warrior-Type monster and this card from your Graveyard, then target 1 Level 5 or higher Warrior-Type monster in your Graveyard; Special Summon that target.
Jack's Knight
Monster. Normal. Warrior/LIGHT
Level 5
ATK 1900 / DEF 1000
A strong monster swordsman. His loyalty is to justice. His duty is to protect the weak.
Queen's Knight
Monster. Normal. Warrior/LIGHT
Level 4
ATK 1500 / DEF 1600
This knight catches her opponents off guard, dominating them with swift yet graceful attacks.
King's Knight
Monster. Normal. Warrior/LIGHT
Level 4
ATK 1600 / DEF 1400
When this card is Normal Summoned while you control "Queen's Knight". You can Special Summon 1 "Jack's Knight" from your Deck.
Arcana Knight Joker
Monster. Effect. Fusion. Warrior/LIGHT
Level 9
ATK 3800 / DEF 2500
"Queen's Knight" + "Jack's Knight" + "King's Knight"
A Fusion Summon of this card can only be done with the above Fusion materials. Once per turn, during either player's turn, when a Spell/Trap Card, or monster effect, is activated that targets this face-up card on the field: You can discard the same type of card (Monster, Spell, or Trap); negate the effect.
Lightning Blade
Spell. Equip.
Equip only to a Warrior-Type monster. It gains 800 ATK. All WATER monsters lose 500 ATK.
Megamorph
Spell. Equip.
While your LP is lower than your opponent's, the equipped monster's ATK becomes double its original ATK. While your LP is higher, the equipped monster's ATK becomes half its original ATK.
Polymerization
Spell.
Arhcetype: Polymerization/Fusion
Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or field as Fusion Material.
Cyrabelle's
Power Angel Valkyrie
Monster. Effect. Fairy/LIGHT
Level 4
ATK 1800 / DEF 1050
If you negate the activation of a Spell/Trap Card, or monster effect: Add 1 LIGHT Fairy monster from your deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of "Power Angel Valkyria" once per-turn.
Airknight Parshath
Monter. Effect. Fairy/LIGHT
Level 5
ATK 1900 / DEF 1400
Archetype: Parshath
If this card attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage (Note: Piercing battle damage is when a monster's difference in value of attack against the opponent's defense was dealt to the opponent's life point.) If this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: Draw 1 card.
Neo-Parshath, the Sky Paladin
Monster. Effect. Fairy/LIGHT
Level 7
ATK 2300 / DEF 2000
Archetype: Parshath
You can Special Summon this card (from your hand) by Tributing 1 "Airknight Parshath". If this card attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing battle damage. If this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: Draw 1 card. While "The Sanctuary in the Sky" is on the field and your LP is higher than your opponent's, this card gains ATK/DEF equal to the difference in LP.
Meltiel, Sage of the Sky
Monster. Effect. Fairy/LIGHT
Level 4
ATK 1600 / DEF 1200
Each time a Counter Trap Card is activated, immediately after it resolves, gain 1000 LP, and if you do, if "The Sanctuary in the Sky" is on the field, destroy 1 card your opponent controls.
Hoshiningen
Monster. Effect. Fairy/LIGHT
Level 2
ATK 500 / DEF 700
All LIGHT monsters on the field gain 500 ATK, also all DARK monsters on the field lose 400 ATK.
Valhalla, Hall of the Fallen
Spell. Continuous.
Once per turn: You can Special Summon 1 Fairy monster from your hand. You must control no monsters to activate and to resolve this effect.
Celestial Transformation
Spell. Quick-Play.
Special Summon 1 Fairy monster from your hand. That monster's attack is halved, also it is destroyed during the End Phase.
The Sanctuary in the Sky
Spell. Field.
Battle damage to the controller of a Fairy monster from a battle involving that monster becomes 0.
Negate Attack
Trap. Counter.
When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target the attacking monster; negate the attack, then end the Battle Phase.
Forced Back
Trap. Counter.
Negate the Normal Summon or Flip Summon of a monster and return the monster to its owner's hand.
Judgement of Anubis
Trap. Counter.
When your opponent activates a Spell Card that would destroy a Spell/Trap Card(s) on the field: Discard 1 card; negate the activation, and if you do, destroy it, then you can destroy 1 face-up monster your opponent controls, and if you do that, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the destroyed monster's ATK on the field.
"Cyrabelle, you got a customer."
Joe's yelling could be heard even a block away from their bar. Cyrabelle, who wasn't wearing her headphone jolted her head toward the workshop's door and yelled back. I'm coming! Just let me get this project finished first."
"Don't keep them waiting, okay?"
"Yeah, yeah." Cyrabelle, finished at her yelling, laid back against her chair. She sighed. Her whole body aches, and there were pain down her hips. But, when she raised her left finger and focused on her ring finger's, all the fatigue seemed to have melted away. She was clearly in a blissful state. "I'll be waiting for you, Jeanne. In the meantime," she placed her lips against it, before walking toward the door. "I'll do my best here. See you soon, Jeanne."