Thanks for this update go to SuperNova23, Luna963, and guisniperman for their likes, favorites, and reviews! I really, really apologize for the four-month-long wait, everyone. This summer's been hectic...crossing fingers that it'll start slowing down soon TT_TT
Disclaimer: I do not own YGO in any way, shape, or form. If I did, well, you know the deal.
Chapter 4
In Hot Water
Mind if I'm honest?
I hadn't thought my first duel on the island would've been with someone as polite as Ty. Or dorky. Or…well, I was expecting an ass like Haga, or a self-confident twenty-something like Mai. I hadn't been expecting to run into a derpy nerd with bad fashion sense and bed hair.
Still, he was invited here for a reason. And I'm running headlong into that reason now.
Welp. At least I'm not dueling Kaiba.
000
"Leogun, attack!"
"Activate face-down; Glass Shield! In exchange for two cards in my hand, the damage I take is halved!"
Ty only raised an eyebrow. "I guess that ends my turn, then." He said. "Your move."
Selena Kuro LP: 950
Ty LP: 1200
Selena let out a breath as she drew. Predictably, it was Sword of Deep-Seated; she needed something more, though. "I'll start with activating Pot of Greed, to give myself two more cards in my hand." She said, moving the Spell to the Graveyard and drawing. She felt a smirk spread across her face.
Perfect.
"I summon Tainted Wisdom in Defense position—"
"Face-down; Horn of Heaven. I sacrifice one of my Beast Tokens to get rid of your Tainted Wisdom."
"I see your Horn and raise you one Mystical Space Typhoon; your trap goes to the Grave and my monster is safe." She shot him a smile. "See? I can lay traps too."
Ty made a sound in his throat. "Technically MST is a spell, soo you didn't do any trap-laying, really."
"Oh shut up and let me get on with my turn." Selena selected the second of her new cards. "Next, I activate Polymerization, to fuse my Tainted Wisdom on the field with Ancient Brain in my hand, to summon the lord of the undead; Skull Knight!" The Spellcaster formed out of the mist blanketing her field, the bone armor, shield and mask stark white against the black robes underneath. The bone forming the backbone of its sword and long horns of its mask were deep crimson, and there were a pair of lights peering out from the bone breastplate of the monster. "And I'll give him an extra punch by equipping him with Sword of Deep-Seated!"
Obediently, the bone-clad knight dropped its blade, taking up the shadow-shrouded sword as the bone-and-steel monstrosity dissolved into mist. "And now, attack Leogun!"
The Skull Knight moved faster than it appeared it could, slashing down with the ebony blade at Ty's lion. Before it made contact, though, a force shield caught the sword and flung Skull Knight back to Selena's side of the field, where it landed on its feet, going to one knee to absorb the impact. "Wha…?"
"My spell; Block Attack." Ty winked. "Not only does it stop your attack in its tracks, it forces your Skull Knight into Defense Mode. I'd say I'm sorry, but I'm not."
Selena glared at him as she placed her last card on the field. "One face-down. I end. Go."
Selena LP: 950
Ty LP: 1200
Ty drew. Selena's confidence in her monster evaporated when she saw the glint come into his eye. "I activate a second Primal Rage, followed with Share the Pain; by sacrificing my last Beast Token, I destroy your Skull Knight. I hope for your sake that your face-down is a counter to that."
Two swords appeared on the field, one in front of Ty's token, and the other aimed at Selena's Skull Knight. Setting her face, she watched as the swords, in unison, dove into the hearts of both monsters, destroying them. Ty hummed. "Apparently it was a decoy. All right, then; you already know the effect of Primal Rage. Leogun, attack."
The lion was already halfway across the field when Selena activated her face-down. "Paralyzing Potion; a non-Machine-type monster equipped with this card can't attack. Not much use for it in my deck, but…well." She said. "And I'm equipping it to your Leogun."
The lion in question was being held in place by an electric net. Ty whistled. "Well, well. Wouldn't have pegged that for a miscellaneous deck." He said. "I set a face-down and end my turn."
Selena LP: 950
Ty LP: 1200
Selena drew. "I'll start by using Fissure to destroy the lowest-ATK monster on your field; in this case, that's Leogun." She said.
"And I answer with my face-down, Solemn Judgement. In exchange for half my Life Points, I can negate any effect on the field."
Ty LP: 600
Selena's smirk returned. "And now that that's out of the way, I'll use Monster Reborn to pull my Skull Knight back from the Graveyard, and equip him with Sword of Deep-Seated again." She said. "And now that you don't have any more face-downs on your field, I attack your Leogun with Skull Knight!"
Selena grinned in satisfaction as Skull Knight's shadow-shrouded, ebony blade tore through Leogun, and it only increased as Ty's Life Point counter hit zero.
Selena LP: 950
Ty LP: 0
"Catch," Selena looked up from the now-inactive tabletop to catch the star chips being tossed her way. They felt warm in her hand. "Hey, good duel. You don't give yourself a ton of credit."
Selena frowned, gathering up her cards and returning her deck to its drawstring pouch. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Ty shrugged. "Just a look in your eyes, I guess." He said. "Also…since you beat me this early, I won't be needing this anymore."
Selena frowned as he held out his duel glove. "Uh, why're you giving me that?"
"Well, for one, you'll need it to display your star chips. If you're not wearing one and one of the security guys catch you, you'll be popped onto a boat back to the mainland." Ty replied. "And, again, you beat me, fair and square. You won my star chips, which means I'm out of the tournament."
Selena's frown deepened as he spoke. She didn't reply right away; just stared at his face and that glove. Finally, she sighed, shook her head, and tossed one of the chips back. "Here."
Ty caught it, though from the look on his face, Selena saw that it was out of reflex (Well, and I doubt he'd want to have his eye put out; those damn chips are sharp) rather than actually wanting to. "What?"
"Keep that star chip," Selena replied, exiting the box. "I'll be able to scrounge up a duel glove from some other hapless sap anyway. I just want to make one little request…."
"And that is…?" She could hear the frown in the college kid's voice, even without looking.
She turned and leaned up against a tree, shoving her hands into her hoodie pocket. "Meet outside Pegasus's Castle when you've got eight or nine star chips on your glove. I'll be making my way there anyhoo, if I want a spot in the finals; we'll have one last duel outside the gates, to determine who gets to be a finalist and who goes home."
Ty was tugging his glove back on, frowning, considering the request. "Sounds fair. And I think you'll have quite a challenge getting there; most of the guys here are probably better than me, anyway." He said. He started turning to leave, before stopping himself and returning his attention to Selena. "Wait; you never explained how you saw that duel in the front row!"
Selena couldn't help but grin. "Simple." She said, pushing off the tree with her shoulder and starting past the skinny nerd. "I'm friends with Yugi."
Watching Ty's face as the statement sunk in was priceless to watch. She paused, just waiting. And watching. Several times his jaw worked, trying to make words that never came out. His brow furrowed deeper and deeper as his brain processed what she'd just said, followed by the blank-faced, slackjawed disbelief when he finally deciphered her words. "Wha…who…you…whaaaaaat?"
Selena's grin widened at his reaction. I wish I had my camera. That face is gold. "No, I'm not joking. Yes, I'm friends with the guy who beat Seto Kaiba." She paused, head cocked, determining how far she should go. "…for that matter, being in the same class as both of them—yes, Kaiba's in high school, shocking, I know—means I can tell you that Kaiba deserved to lose a duel for once. The guy's probably the biggest asshole around." Not to mention in a brain-scrambling magic-induced coma, but there's no need to tell him that.
Ty made a tiny sound that meant that something in him was dying. In a very tiny, squeaky way. Still grinning, Selena clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Easy, buddy; breathe. Remember to breathe. You'll start turning blue if you're not careful."She said, suppressing her snicker. "And you don't need to give me the whole 'do you have any idea how lucky you are' shpeel." I already know how "lucky" I am, all too well. You've got no idea exactly how lucky I am.
Ty made a few more incoherent sounds before he was capable of words again. "You're friends with Yugi Mutou?!"
Selena winked and released his shoulder with a pat. "That's what I said." She said, singsong, as she continued past him, the dumbstruck expression still plastered on his face.
Finally, the laugh bubbling in her chest couldn't be held back. She laughed.
000
Selena flicked the star chip up and caught it in her palm. She was still riding the high of winning her first duel, and her first star chip.
Holding up the chip so it sparkled in the light, she smiled. One down, nine to go. Even if Ty's right about everyone being better than him, I think I can handle enough to get to the finals.
Selena tucked the chip back into the drawstring pouch she had her deck in. It was still only early afternoon, but the girl was already halfway looking for a nice, secluded spot on the island where she could take a break and start playing with her power without being disturbed.
But, for now at least, she figured she could bask in her victory for just a little bit longer.
At least I have one guaranteed duel later on, she thought as she stretched.
"Well, well. Was that a star chip I saw you flicking around?"
Dammit.
Selena froze and looked to the direction of the voice. The speaker was average-looking; she looked more at home in a library, rather than on an island in the middle of nowhere. A few years older than Selena, she was wearing a white shirt, blue cardigan, jeans, and flats. Paired with dirty-blonde hair pulled into a messy bun and thick-framed glasses, she looked less like a gamer and more like a librarian.
The duel glove was a dead giveaway.
Wait. No…gloves. Plural. For whatever bizarre reason, the woman had not one, but two duel gloves, one on each hand. Frowning, Selena pointed to them. "Why…are you wearing those? Don't you need just ten star chips to get into the finals?"
"If I was competing." The woman said. She adjusted her glasses. "But I'm not a competitor. I'm working for Mr. Pegasus."
Selena's frown deepened. "Doesn't he have enough goons wandering around here?"
The woman snorted. "I'm not a 'goon'." She said, voice clipped. "I'm an eliminator."
Selena raised an eyebrow. "So. That mean that you're here to kick people out of the tournament?"
"Exactly." She crossed her arms, pointing with a finger to Selena's bare wrist. "And seeing as you're not wearing a duel glove, that means that you're not an official participant."
"So?"
"So, that means that however you won that chip, it was an illegal win." She tapped her bicep. "Which means I'm going to duel you, take it, and have you shipped off back to the mainland. Clearing out the field for the actual entrants, if you will."
Selena rose and cracked her back. "Sorry, but no thanks." She said. "I decline your challenge. Last I checked, there's nothing in the rules saying I have to accept every duel that comes my way, and I'd rather do a little sight-seeing before my next debacle."
As she turned to leave, Selena felt something cold trickle down her back and the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. Feeling that danger sense, she slammed down the barriers around her mind, blocking off whatever supernatural attack she was being warned about.
Still, she could feel the compulsion pressing against her mind when the woman spoke next.
"I'm afraid I must insist."
000
My first eliminator. For those of you who may be wondering, eliminators were pros that Pegasus hired to add an extra element of peril to the tournament. Basically, not only do duelists need to avoid losing all their star chips to other competitors, but they've also got to avoid getting challenged by an eliminator, who would clear them out if they lost. Kind of like how in Pac-man you don't want to run into any of the ghosts. It's an added incentive to win, because you don't know who the eliminators are until they beat the pants off you and put you out of the tournament.
Meh. I got lucky; at least the lady was nice enough to tell me she was an eliminator before the duel. But she probably did that because she had a way to ensure that her target couldn't refuse a duel. Mental defenses or no, I still felt her compulsion, even if I managed to resist acting on it.
Gods damn it. I hate dueling psychics.
Yep, there's more psychic duelists out there, much to Selena's chagrin XP. In any case, feel free to read, rate, and review if you liked this chapter! And I'll try not to take four months to update this time. Promise.
Keep reading!
~Hikari Hellspawn