Read or Become Confused: I use the name Sakura in this story. I need to explain something regarding how it is pronounced. If you see (*) the pronunciation will be Suh-kur-uh, like it would be said in English. (**) means the Japanese pronunciation, which is Sah-kur-uh. Regardless of these two symbols, after their first initial use, the rest of the time will be the name pronounced in the English fashion, unless I use the second symbol (**) to change that. Truthfully, my first manga that I read was Card Captor Sakura and for the longest time I said it the way in English. That is until one of my otaku friends told me I was doing it wrong. It was the same way for Akane from Ranma ½. I said Ah-kain for the longest time. Now, I'm a sub anime freak and have all the pronunciations down pretty good. I still, however, believe that the English pronunciation of Sakura sounds more elegant and fluid, which is why I use it in this story. So…yeah. (Fear America's way of finding something, making it its own, then screwing it up to hell and back. mwahaha)
Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Yu-Gi-Oh. T-T
The Obelisk Blue Dorm was known as the most luxurious of the three large edifices that contained the large population of students and with good cause. The dining area could have probably held the entire Slifer Dorm in it with room to spare. Long, hard-wood tables were lined up and spread out in rows to allow the entirety of the dorm to use it at once. Even with the vast size of the chamber, to fit both the male and female populous meant someone had to plan an efficient means of splaying the tables in order to seat everyone comfortably. Large chandeliers of glass hung from the ceiling. Each was ornamented with charms of different duel monsters dangling from the décor. Lights were embedded into each charm so that they easily lit the room in a grand spectacle.
Lain over top of each table was a cloth of a deep blue to protect the furnishing from the wear and tear of time and use. Chairs were placed so many feet from each other to allow one room enough for personal comfort. Fluffy, elegant-looking cushions of sea-green rested upon the seats of the chairs. In front of each seat was placed a plate of fine China. On the right side of the dish was set two forks and a spoon upon a napkin of deep red; the left shown a knife and a pair of chopsticks, also resting on a napkin. A small length from the plate was set a wine glass mostly for display purposes or the consumption of non-alcoholic wines.
Many silver platters were positioned atop the cloth-enshrouded tables. Coaxing aromas erupted from the delicacies whenever one was bold enough to raise the protective cover. Even one with a lost appetite would find their hunger immediately insatiable after sampling the food before them.
Many a student was seated at the feast, and though it seemed to be quite elaborate, the residents of the dorm had taken to this since the first week of the school year. Those who were working on their second and third year had explained that it was merely a benefit of being in the best dorm, or so they called it.
At first, Yubel and Judai were both taken aback at the splendor set before them. Upon arriving in the chamber, Judai walked out, thinking that he and Yubel had accidently walked in on someone's important occasion or whatnot. As the lovers reached the hallway they bumped into the girl that had asked them to join the Obelisk dinner in the first place.
"I think we made a wrong turn or something," stated Judai as he scratched the back of his head.
The young girl responded by tilting her head to the side and giving Judai a wide smile. Her bright, baby-blue eyes held a bit of mischief as she said," Did you see the room full of people, like someone was getting married or something?" She giggled in response as both Judai and Yubel nodded their heads. The young lass flipped her long light green hair that had fallen into her face behind her back before continuing. "That was the place. I know it seems pretty fancy, but give it a week or so and you'll get used to it."
"I highly doubt that we will be here that long," thought Yubel to herself.
She didn't really wish to eat in such an extravagant room with such a large variety of delicacies. The thought of such formality returned her thoughts to her past life. The memories were not painful, for many were filled with a younger, cuter version of her beloved Judai-chan. However, the ex-spirit did not wish to dwell on them. The past was the past. It is best to learn from it, but not become immersed in it.
"Ah, thank you for the information and invitation, miss…" started Judai, who had just now realized that the three had not been properly introduced in their first meeting. He held out a hand in a display of friendship.
"Sakura*, Minamoto Sakura*," stated the younger girl. She back handed Judai's hand before grabbing it in a vice-like grip. Judai winced a bit, causing Yubel to narrow her eyes.
"Not Sakura**," questioned Judai with a slight smile as he recovered his hand from the tomboy in front of him.
The girl placed her hands behind her back and twisted until she heard the satisfying crack of her spine. When she was done she smiled first at Yubel, who had been eyeing her curiously, then at Judai. She winked and said, "Nope. My mom is Japanese and my dad American. Mother dear wished for me to have a traditional Japanese name and father dearest wished for it to be more Americanized so they compromised." Sakura then proceeded to stretch her arms high over her head whilst keeping her fingers intertwined so as to make an arch. She let out a long sigh as she rested her arms once again by her side. The blue-eyed student placed her hand on her hip and shifted her weight so that she stood more comfortably. "Well, then. How about getting that dinner before it's gone, Judai-sama," stated she whilst looking in Judai's direction, "and…what is it that you're lovely fiancé' here is called?"
"Yubel," stated said ex-spirit quickly and curtly, albeit she still allowed a tiny blush to tint her cheeks at being called Judai's fiancé'.
"Yubel-chan it is, then," replied the girl in an overly happy manner.
Yubel crossed her arms over her chest and replied," No. It is just Yubel."
After seeing the glow in the young girls eyes dull a little and the wide grin thin, Yubel sighed and replied," I'm sorry, but the only one I allow to call me with such familiarity is Judai-chan."
"Same here," replied Judai with a small smile.
Sakura stared at the two for a few moments, before allowing a small pout to embroider her face. The young student had gotten it down to a science. She let her lower lip quiver a bit and tears form in her eyes. Sakura knew that no one had refused her before when she started to act cute, although it made her a little sick to her stomach to act in such a way.
For a few moments, no one said anything and the only noise was the occasional sniffle from Sakura.
When she had had enough, Yubel walked up slowly to the Obelisk Blue, allowing her hips to sway as she did so.
The green-haired lass was about to congratulate herself on a part well played when she felt a gentle hand cup her cheek. She started a bit, but didn't back away. She gazed into blue-green eyes and was immediately trapped within those orbs without any hope of escaping.
Yubel ran the back of her hand across the side of the girl's face before grabbing her chin. She pulled the lass closer to her, much to the young girl's surprise.
A blush made its way to Sakura's face as Yubel's lips and hers were mere inches apart. The poor girl could do nothing except close her eyes and wait. She started to shiver as she felt Yubel's breath on her face. The feeling of soft breathing traversed from her lips down to her neck, then up to her ear. A soft wind was blown into the greenette's ear that made her shiver again.
Then, she heard a soft voice whisper in her ears," That was really cute. But allow me to explain something to you, my dear. Tears don't work on me." She unclosed her eyes as quickly as possible only to see a hand right in front of her face and feel the flick that Yubel had aimed at her forehead.
Sakura fell backwards onto the floor with a soft 'thump'. A look of confusion embroidered her face as she watched Yubel pull on Judai's arm, leading the young man back to the chamber. As she ran a hand through her hair, the Obelisk Blue allowed a small smile to grace her lips and said to no one in particular," Damn. I just seriously got played."
Dinner passed without much fuss after the run-in with the tomboy. Yubel, although at first opposed to the idea, found herself dining on the roast and rolls that formed the heavier part of the meal provided. Differing fowls were also available, such as: turkey, chicken, and duck. Mixed, steamed vegetables and boiled potatoes were served as sides. A faint red wine and glass of sparkling grape juice served to wash down the appealing feast. Desserts of every variety imaginable were presented after the initial feast. Judai respectfully declined; however, Yubel chose a double chocolate cheesecake, smiling down brightly at it as she cut the tip off with her fork. Judai merely smiled sweetly at his love's content, almost child-like, face as she took no time to indulge herself.
After Yubel had finished her succulent treat and wiped her mouth, Judai rose and offered her his hand. "It's about ten till', Yubel-chan. I know we don't need to head to Tome-san's shop right away, but how about we take a look around?"
"Sure, that sounds fun, Judai-chan", replied Yubel with a content smile as she accepted his outstretched hand.
The sky was still fighting to remain vibrant as the sun sunk steadily lower towards the horizon. The moon smiled down upon the lovers as they made their way down a beaten dirt path. Foliage consumed them on all sides as they walked.
Now and then, Judai would poke Yubel on the shoulder opposite the one he walked beside, and then snicker to himself as the blue-eyed beauty looked, to no avail, for what had touched her. After a few moments of immaturity, Yubel, finally fed up with Judai's childishness, elbowed her love in the ribs as he once again tried to trick her. Judai rubbed his chest and stared at Yubel with a hurt expression. Yubel merely smiled at him sweetly and gave the young man a look that said 'what'?
Following a few more minutes of the lovers' antics, they finally reached their point of interest. A large building that looked like a small apartment complex rested comfortably over a cliff that gave a great view of the ocean below. The edifice was slightly weather-worn and unkempt, some of the roofing hung loose as though any day it would fall on an unsuspecting person. The windows were gloomy and unwashed. The staircase that led to the second floor seemed to be termite-infested; many holes could be seen up and down the wooden boards. All the lights were off. It seemed as though no one had been there for quite some time.
Judai looked on in dismay. "What could have happened?" asked the young man aloud. "I thought that the headmaster would keep the Slifer Dorm up and running."
Yubel watched as Judai approached the building and saw as he ran up stairs to his old room. She looked on as her love tried the door only to find that it was locked tight. She watched as Judai banged on the door to no avail. He walked down the stairs and sat on the second one from the bottom. Yubel walked forward and placed her arms around Judai lovingly. She wanted to say something, to rid Judai of the painful feelings in his heart. It hurt to see him like that.
The two lovers held that position for some time before hearing footsteps from beside them. They both looked on as a young man with light blue hair and blue-gray eyes walked over to them from around the other side of the building. On the bridge of his nose was a small pair of glasses and in his mouth was a piece of long grass which he threw to the side. Around his neck hung a gold chain from which hung a Star of David encircled by a gold ring. He wore a simple blue shirt with logo for some random cartoon resting on its chest. Strapped to his arm was a duel disk that seemed rather dirty as if it had been tossed on the ground on more than a few occasions. A pair of blue jeans covered his legs. A pair of seemingly out of place shoes encased his feet. They were perfectly white without a trace of dust or dirt.
The man before the two lovers scratched the back of his head and said, "I was wondering what all the commotion was about. But, I didn't expect Judai-bro to be behind it. How have you been?" The bluenette smiled warmly at the two.
From behind the young man emerged a translucent being who circled him a few times before resting in front of his line of sight. She had eyes that sparkled like two matching emeralds. Small red circles that looked incredibly like blush marks could be seen under each eye. Her long blonde hair was held in place by a strange hat of light blue that covered her forehead only to break apart mid length across her head, resembling a tiara. It began again a little farther back and arched up in a cone-like shape that was striped with pink spirals. The whole thing was held in place with swirly pins that were clipped just above her ears. A yellow choker with a jewel embedded in the middle was wrapped tightly around her neck. The neckline was cut seductively with the shoulders falling down upon the upper part of the arms below the actual shoulder. A gem stone which carried a Star of David rested in the middle of her outfit which held it all together. A small, ruffled, pink cape that barely reached her lower back hung from her shoulder blades. Her forearms were wrapped in guards that, too, were jewel encrusted. The lower part of her outfit was of the same color as the tiara-hat that she wore. A pleated skirt wrapped around the back of her legs and was cut to hang open in the front. Her legs were bare, though the boots that encased her feet were cut off halfway under her knees. These were corresponding to the rest of the outfit, meaning that they, too, were blue with pink spirals.
"Hey, Sho-chan? Why did you leave all of the sudden?" The spirit was now standing in front of the young man with her hands on her hips. She was leaning in gradually to give herself an air of authority and didn't seem all too pleased.
Sho smiled sweetly and pointed, literally, right through the spirit, who, in turn, looked around.
She started at seeing the other couple before her and let out a small 'eep' before quickly darting through her beloved and came to rest behind him. Every now and then she would peek over his shoulder to get a better look.
Judai sweat dropped as he heard her say;"T-they c-can't see me c-can they?" Sho chuckled and turned to the spirit, but before he could say anything another voice was heard.
"Of course we can see you, Dark Magician Girl." Sho and Dark Magician Girl were both quite surprised at the voice. As well was Judai who looked up at the bluenette who still had her arms wrapped around him. He pulled away from her and stood up, looking quizzically from the ex-spirit before him and the spirit not far away.
The eyes of the two women locked and for a time all was still and silent. Then, before she could move, Yubel was being circled by Dark Magician Girl. The blonde-haired beauty took in every aspect of the woman before her. She floated around the blue-eyed beauty for a time. When she began to speak, her voice was calm, but venomous. "You have the aura of a duel spirit radiating from you. And a very dark aura it is." After a few more rotations, Dark Magician Girl came to rest in front of Yubel with her arms crossed and her usual lively face twisted into a scowl. "Also, I can smell the stench of the Monster Realm on you. If I may be so rude as to ask, who are you?"
Yubel, who had patiently waited with her hands on her hips for the spirit to stop inspecting her, narrowed her eyes then turned towards her love. "Judai –chan, May I see your deck for a moment?"
Startled a bit by the question, Judai took a few more moments to process the request. Afterwards he pulled the deck from its holster and handed it Yubel who sifted through it for a moment before finding the card she was looking for. She handed the rest of the cards back to Judai and planted a small kiss on his lips. She uttered a simple 'thanks' before turning back to the inquisitive spirit.
Holding up the card that she had plucked from her beloved's deck she stated simply," This is who I was. As for whom I am, well, only time will tell."
Curious as to what the woman before her meant, Dark Magician Girl gazed at the card Yubel had held in front of her. "Yubel?" questioned the spirit at seeing the picture of demonic entity with one orange and one green eye as well as another, more sinister, eye that was etched into her forehead. Leathery wings feathered from the creature's back. Claws protruded from the beings hands. Dark Magician Girl rested her gaze, once again, upon Yubel.
"What do you mean this is who you were? Are you trying to make fun of me or something?" All of the spirits usual cuteness was lost when she said that. The poison in her voice could have melted through solid steel.
Yubel took the death-glare that Dark Magician Girl gave her and returned it with equal vibrancy.
The two young men, like well learned gentleman, stood back and allowed the women to work things out, themselves.
After a few more moments of the stand-off, Yubel sighed and rubbed her forehead. "Look, to be perfectly honest, I have really no idea how I turned out like this. After Judai-chan fused our souls together, I was ready to spend the rest of; well I suppose his, life as a part of him. When he brought about the idea of making us into separate entities, I was afraid of what might happen."
Dark Magician Girl listened intently to the bluenette's story, still wearing a frown, though not quite as accusing as before.
"I thought that I would still be the horrid creature displayed on this card," continued Yubel as she glanced at the card aforementioned.
"After the use of De-Fusion, yes another card," stated the ex-spirit as Dark Magician Girl raised an eyebrow," I became somewhat human again."
"Again?" questioned Dark Magician Girl in disbelief.
The ex-spirit looked on the current spirit with painful eyes that made Dark Magician Girl regret asking the question. Yubel made a decision. This woman obviously knows the same kind of pain that she had felt. To want to feel the touch of the man you love, but can't because of some stupid force keeping you apart. That feeling of frustration that was bottled up couldn't be measured by any means.
When she spoke again, Yubel's voice was quieter, more gently than before. "Five-thousand years ago I was a servant for a prince of a gorgeous and prosperous kingdom." She took a moment to glance at the face of her love who smiled at her with warmth that only he could provide her. She returned the expression with equal vibrancy.
"I was called to guard the prince of the kingdom with my life if that was what it required. I had grown up with this prince, mind you. You could say that we were best friends. I knew everything about him from his physical aspects, such as every scratch, bruise, or broken bone he had ever acquired, to his personality, meaning his warmth and gentleness, even how much of the royal life he could take before trying to run away."
Yubel let out a small chuckle.
"I even knew his favorite hiding places from the guards who looked for him. It was I who usually found him." She allowed herself a few moments to breathe and let her heart settle before continuing.
"Needless to say, I eventually came to fall in love with this prince. He was incredibly kind. But, as it was in a caste system, it was impossible for me, who was a servant, to be with my prince, romantically. Though, I suppose if it were up to him, he would have thrown the rules out long before. But, I still had my sense of honor," stated Yubel with more feeling than she had meant.
She let out a sigh filled with pent up emotions that Dark Magician Girl could feel bounding off the walls of her heart. Judai walked over to Yubel and embraced her. She hugged him in turn and for a small while, the two lovers remained that way. Eventually, Yubel broke the touch between the two and allowed a few tears to fall. She wiped them away with the back of her hand before once again resting her gaze on the, now, uncomfortable spirit.
"War broke out in our beautiful kingdom that threatened the lives of the royal family. It may be rude for me to say, but I didn't really give a damn about the royal family, save the prince and perhaps the king who had shown me such kindness. Although the king was against it, I was given a choice: to fight in the army as any other learned soldier would, or to become a test subject for the spirit callers who said that they had a solution."
At this Yubel laughed bitterly.
"They had the solution alright. To bind one's spirit, that is to say, their soul, with another, darker, creature." Judai tightened his hold on Yubel. The embrace was neither warm nor romantic, simply a desperate desire to cling to her and not let go.
Yubel looked up, eyes full of calming warmth.
When Judai had relaxed his hold, she continued. "I chose to be the test subject. If I could gain the power to protect the man I love, then the hell with anything else. However, my beloved prince found out about the ceremony and felt that I had made the wrong decision. He tried to stop it in order to protect me. The guards escorted him out before my eyes. Afterwards, I was implanted with a demonic armor that had been crafted from a wicked dragon. The pain was unimaginable. To have one's body and soul ripped to shreds then fused and reformed with another creature's. I wouldn't wish that upon anyone."
She nuzzled Judai's neck as she shivered from the memory.
"Once I had been implanted with the armor, the war was an easy win. With the power I attained and our army the enemy was silenced within a fortnight. Peace once again reigned in our kingdom. But, for me there was nothing left. The fusion of the armor and I could not be reversed. I had become a hideous beast and couldn't even stand for the one I loved the most to see me."
"But, Yubel-chan, it didn't matt-," began Judai, only to be silenced by Yubel's finger on his lips.
Once again the ex-spirit spoke up. "I chose to watch my beloved from the shadows and protect him while remaining unseen. I did so until nature caught up with him and he died. Afterwards I lost all reason to live and merely drifted through different dimensions as my armor allowed. Roughly five-thousand years from that point in time, I came across this dimension and world. As I gazed upon it I saw a child being bullied."
Judai smiled at that and rested his head on Yubel's.
"I couldn't even remember the face of the one that I had loved so much at the time. The pain in my heart was a small thorn that had been whittled away by time. Though, when I saw that child in pain, I became enraged. The children that hurt him, I disciplined most severely. I am not happy that I did so now, but at the time, I needed some way to vent my pent up emotions. Afterwards I dropped a card depicting myself in this realm where the child was sure to find it. For a time I was happy to be with him in his deck and in his heart."
Dark Magician Girl looked on somberly at the ex-spirit feeling an ache in her heart at seeing the two lovers embrace. She could see the pain in the eyes of the woman as well as the man that held her.
"After a time I had hurt many people who saw it pleasurable to harm that child. So many, that the child's parents felt that I had become too dangerous to be with him. They had me sent to a rocket that would be shot into space, supposedly to collect positive energy from the cosmos."
Judai gave Yubel another squeeze and replied," I'm so sor-, "only to once again be quieted by his lover's hand.
She smiled up at him and placed another light kiss on his lips. "I know, Judai-chan. I know."
A few moments lapsed as the two just immersed themselves in each other's love.
"Afterwards, that child's memories were sealed using the top of the line technology of the time. The plan, however, backfired."
Dark Magician Girl started at hearing this. It sounded pretty straight forward to her. What could have gone wrong?
"A light amidst the cosmos held a maddening evil that swept through me and changed the way I perceived things, such as my love for that child. I had come to realize that the child I felt so strongly for was the reincarnation of my prince. For years I kept some sense of sanity by clinging on to that notion. Then, ten years ago, give or take, the rocket that had been launched some time before, fell back upon the third planet. Now, I'm not gonna go full into detail about what I did afterwards, it will make this long story even longer, but I will tell you this. I hurt my most precious person by hurting those he cared about. He had forgotten about me and at the time it caused the small bit of sanity in my mind to elude me. It seems that you have a relationship with that man standing over there," said Yubel as she gazed in Sho's direction. "We have met once before during that incident and he, as well, was one of the people that I hurt."
Upon hearing this Dark Magician Girl felt herself begin to shake. How dare that woman do anything to her Sho-chan? What is it that she did to him in the first place? She was about to ask that very question when what she saw made her stop and just stare. Yubel had broken from Judai's grip and dropped to her knees.
She bowed her head and stated," Please forgive me! There is no excuse for what I did and I have no idea how to make it up to you! But, I will tell you this. I am truly sorry for what I have done. I cannot say that I wish it would not have happened, since if it didn't, I wouldn't be with my beloved Judai-chan, today, but I do wish I could take away all the pain that I have caused."
Dark Magician Girl looked on in surprise at how this woman before would drop to her knees and beg so easily. No. It was not an easy thing to ask for forgiveness, especially when you have wronged someone by causing pain to one they care for. The anger for the fact that this woman caused her Sho-chan some form of pain conflicted with her understanding of the desperation that the woman must have felt at not being recognized by the one she had come to love so deeply. The spirit sighed deeply and gazed up at the fully exposed moon. She had not even noticed that the sun had dropped completely out of sight. The stars sparkled in the sky like many diamonds. It's so beautiful from here. Is it really so horrible to be closer than this? Can one really be driven mad by being closer to the heavens?
"Please raise your head."
Dark Magician Girl was brought out of her thoughts as she heard this. She watched as Sho walked up to Yubel and squatted down with his hands on his knees. Yubel brought herself up to sit in a respectful position. Sho smiled sweetly at her in a way that made Yubel feel a little uncomfortable. Sho laughed at the awkward face that the bluenette made toward him.
"Ha, ha. Are you really that demon who wanted to destroy the twelve dimensions? When did you turn out to be so gorgeous?" asked he in good humor. He rose to his feet and offered his hand to Yubel who took it, although cautiously. The young man merely shrugged it off as Yubel darted to Judai's side once again.
"Humph. What the hell was that supposed to mean Sho-chan?" raged a very angry Dark Magician Girl.
Sho looked over at the spirit and gave her a questioning look, not knowing what it was she was asking.
"Why the hell are you checking out other women? Am I not good enough since I can't touch you?" The beautiful blonde was in tears as she asked this. After seeing Yubel and Judai get touchy-feely, Dark Magician Girl felt a familiar pain shoot through her heart and after suppressing it for so long, it became too much to hold in.
Sho allowed a pained smile to cross his face as he walked over to the upset spirit. He looked deep into her tear-stained eyes and just held her gaze for the longest time. The wind picked up and blew his hair into an awkward position in front of his face. He swept it away revealing his stormy eyes which were on the verge of tears.
"I told you before, Dark Magician Girl, that, even if I can't touch you, I am content with just being able to share your feelings. We are from completely different worlds in the most literal meaning of the term. I'm lucky to have even met you let alone having you fall for me."
Yubel and Judai made their way back to the stairs of the Slifer Dorm and sat down. They wanted to give Sho and Dark Magician Girl some much deserved privacy. Judai allowed himself to fall back with arms behind his head. The moon gazed down on the four and silence loomed except for the occasional sniffle from the green-eyed spirit.
"Hey, Judai-chan?" began Yubel.
"Mm?" stated Judai through closed eyes.
"I think I have found a way to make it up to those two. You know. For all I've done. But, it will require your help," responded the ex-spirit.
"Do tell," replied Judai, eyes still closed to the world.
Sho watched as Yubel placed her lips to Judai's ears. It seemed that the two were having a private chat. He merely shrugged it off and allowed his gaze to jump from the large edifice before him, to the angel that rested aside him, to the forest that spoke with every nudge of the wind. The path that he had traversed was already covered in shadow and was probably unsafe to use as of now. He had tried every door to the Slifer Dorm and came to realize that it was shut tight, so staying there was out of the question. Personally, he didn't mind just dropping onto any patch of grass and sleeping until morning, though he didn't know how Judai or his girlfriend would take it.
"Hey, Sho!" The bespeckled young man turned his head toward the voice and noticed that Judai was up and walking towards him. He wore an amused visage that made Sho question whether his friend had good intentions or ill on mind.
The slightly shorter young man adjusted his glasses and replied," What is it bro? Something you need?"
Judai flashed a wide smile and held up his arm to put his duel disk in plain view. "Let's have a duel. You know, for old times' sake."
Sho raised an eyebrow at this before letting out a laugh full of amusement.
"That's Judai-bro. Always got dueling on the brain." Dark Magician Girl rose behind Sho and with arms crossed, let out a small 'humph'. She was obviously against allowing her beloved Sho-chan's attention to wonder to someone else.
The blue-haired duelist merely looked up at her and gave her an apologetic look before turning back to Judai.
"Let's begin," stated he simply.
Judai and Sho walked the opposite lengths of the Slifer Dorm. They turned and activated their disks.
"Duel!" cried each.
Sho: 4000
Judai: 4000
"I'll begin if you don't mind'" stated Sho as he pulled a card from his deck. The wind blew as he did so, scattering a few leaves from the ground.
"I'll start off with the continuous spell card Teleporter Malfunction. With this card, whenever a player adds a monster to their hand, after revealing it to the opponent, they can send it to the graveyard."
As Sho placed the card in the appropriate slot an image of the card showed up on the field. The picture on the card showed two glass pods amidst many wires and machinery. They were both giving off wild electrical charges. Two scientists were seen running away with frightened expressions.
"I'll set a monster in defense position and another card face down. Turn end." Two face-down cards appeared on the field, one in the back-field and one in front.
"I'll take over now," stated Judai.
"Draw. I summon Elemental Hero Sparkman in attack mode." A hero clad in gold and blue appeared before the young duelist. A blue helmet hid his face from view. The armor he wore sprouted golden fixtures at the back that resembled wings. On each of his palms rested a small orb of some kind that discharged a small amount of electricity now and then.
"I attack your monster with Sparkman. Go, Static Shockwave!"
The hero leaped towards the card. His fists began to glow with stored electricity. As he thrust his fist through the card, a brief image of a dragon was displayed. It was a mixture of red and white. The creature seemed to walk on all fours and had its wings closed tightly against its body. The snout and other facial features of the beast were covered with a mask. Fangs protruded from its mouth and sharp talons embroidered its hands and feet. A long powerful-looking tail fell behind it.
"You destroyed my Masked Dragon, bro. With its effect, I can special summon one dragon from my deck with 1500 or less attack points. It will allow me to summon my Troop Dragon."
Sho removed his deck from the disk a sifted through it before selecting the card and placing it on a monster slot in defense position. The creatures were about half the height of Sparkman, but the daggers in their hands as well as their own claws and teeth gave them a slightly intimidating appearance. A small breastplate hung over each of their necks and in the hand opposite the dagger, was a small buckler. Sho placed the deck back on the disk, which began to make a whirring noise as it shuffled the deck.
Judai smiled at Sho and replied," Not bad. I'll end with two face downs."
The said cards appeared behind the hero whose hand was still letting off small bits of electricity every now and then.
"My draw," stated Sho as he drew another card.
"With my Teleporter Malfunction, I can send the monster I just drew to the graveyard. The monster is Hunter Dragon!" exclaimed the bespeckled duelist.
A brief image of a black dragon with blades resting upon its chin, ears, hands, and feet, was shown on the field. As soon as it made its appearance, the spell began to glow and let out a small bolt of lightning. The dragon vanished in a puff of smoke. Sho placed the card in the slot and the disk took it into the compartment that served as the graveyard.
"Now, from my hand I play Cyberdark Keel."
A metal dragon-like creature appeared on the field. Its body was shaped like a serpent with segmented pieces. The mouth of the creature was hinged allowing it to open and close at its own convenience. Its eyes began to glow an eerie gold which blinked on and off. Every now and then, protruding from its body, were wires that snaked out at different angles.
"When Cyberdark Keel is normal summoned, it can equip one level three or lower dragon type monster to itself," stated Sho, simply.
"It will also gain that monster's attack. I'll equip Hunter Dragon to Keel."
The black dragon appeared on the field. As soon as it did so, the many wires that hung from the metal dragon/serpent latched on to the creature. Cyberdark Keel, then, proceeded to wrap its body around Hunter Dragon.
"With its new boost in power, Cyberdark Keel's attack points become 2500 (800 + 1700 = 2500). I wage an attack on your Sparkman!" exclaimed Sho.
Cyberdark Keel opened its mouth and let out a shockwave that headed straight for Sparkman. However, as it reached the hero, a shield appeared between the two creatures. It appeared to be a wheel of sort. It spun at alarming speeds and let out a protective energy that spun with the wheel, creating a circular shield. The shockwave dispersed, leaving Sparkman still standing.
"What?! How?!" questioned Sho in surprise.
Judai allowed a small laugh to escape him. He was excited to be able to duel one of his friends after so long. He felt an all too familiar sensation rush into him. It felt so good to be able to enjoy a duel like this.
"Easy, bro. I activated my trap card, Hero Barrier." Sure enough as Sho looked on, one of the cards that Judai had set earlier was now revealed.
"With this card, as long as I control a monster with Elemental Hero in its name, I can negate an opponent's attack. Sweet huh?"
Sho merely shook his head in response and allowed himself to smile. Dueling Judai was always a task. Even though he had become much stronger since his days at the academy he still couldn't reach his friend's level. Obviously he was missing something.
The blue-haired duelist let out a sigh. "Turn end."
Judai pulled a card from his deck. "I draw. I activate the monster effect of King of the Swamp. By discarding it, I can add one Polymerization from my deck to my hand," stated the chocolate-eyed duelist.
Judai placed the monster in the graveyard and watched as a card was pushed out further than the rest in his deck.
He pulled it out and said," Now I activate Polymerization. "
"Ah, hell," thought Sho to himself.
"I'm fusing the Sparkman on my field with the Elemental Hero Clayman in my hand to form Elemetal Hero Thunder Giant!" shouted Judai.
A vortex manifested on the field as Sparkman vanished. From the vortex arose a incredibly large being. The creature's head was sealed with a white helmet that spiked at the back. Its body was large and almost circular with a large orb resting at its center. Electricity seemed to be trapped within the orb. The hero's arms were muscular and led to hands with spike-tipped fingers. Embedded in its palms were smaller orbs that continuously leaked small charges. Its legs were muscular to hold up its large body.
"With my hero's effect, whenever it is summoned, it can destroy one face-up monster on the field that has an original attack lower than itself."
Sho's eyes grew wide with realization. "But that means-"
"It means," cut off Judai," that your Keel will be no more, since its original attack is only 800 points. Now, my hero, destroy his monster with Vapor Spark."
The giant moved over to the mechanical creature that had leeched onto the black dragon. Thunder Giant lifted one of its hands over the beast and rained down a series of lightning bolts that obliterated both dragon and machine.
Sho flinched as his monster was destroyed. He raised his arms in front of his face to block the dust that had been kicked up because of the shockwave of the solid vision system.
"Don't forget Judai-bro I still have my Troop Dragon. And, if you wish to attack it, it will merely call more from my deck," stated Sho matter-of-factly.
Judai smirked at his old friend. "Don't worry Sho, I haven't forgotten," stated he as his normally brown eyes flashed gold. He selected a card from his hand and placed it in the Spell/Trap card zone.
"I play the spell card Dark Calling. With this a can dark-fuse the Sparkman and Clayman in my graveyard," said Judai.
Yubel quickly rose from her position on the Slifer steps and shouted," You can't Judai-chan! You know how unpredictable the Evil Heros are. They could hurt him."
Dark Magician Girl looked from Yubel to Judai who had averted his eyes towards the ex-spirit. His eyes no longer held the warmth that she had seen before. They were cold, heartless. His gaze rested then upon the spirit who shivered in response. Then, all of the sudden, the cold was gone, replaced with a reasuring smile that made Dark Magician Girl question as to where the source of the chill had come from.
Judai moved his gaze once again to Yubel and stated," Don't worry, Yubel-chan. Sho isn't like he was back during the different dimension incident. He's much stronger now. You can tell because he adopted the deck that caused Kaiser to fall. I want to see how much stronger he really has become." He then adopted a large smile on his face.
The look on her beloved's face made Yubel sigh in defeat.
"He's having too much damn fun for anyone to stop him now," stated she to no one in particular.
The ex-spirit rested her head against one the top stairs and looked up at the stars. She was about to close her eyes when the blonde-haired spirit floated above her, cutting off her view of the sky.
"What do you mean 'it's dangerous'? Is my Sho-chan going to be alright?" questioned the worried spirit.
The spirit's voice was accusing even spiteful, but Yubel could sense the underlying concern. Yubel showed the same reassuring smile that Judai had given the spirit and sighed yet again. She averted her gaze back towards the duel and looked on as dark shadow immerged from Judai's graveyard and materialized onto the field.
"Judai-chan has met the spirit of every monster in his deck and managed to coax each one to fight with him, " stated Yubel.
"Some of them are a bit more roudy than others and the Evil Heroes are, well, the one he's summoning now is just a complete ass." Needless to say, Dark Magician Girl was shocked. How had this young man managed to meet so many spirits and gather them all together? For a spirit to reside in a card and allow itself to be played in a game was the ultimate form of trust a duel monster could give. When a spirit was destroyed during a duel, they felt real pain. It was unheard of to think that a mere human could do such a thing.
As she, too, returned her attention to the duel she noticed that the shadow had become more refined. The creature was similar to the other hero on the field, though it appeared to be more sinister. The color scheme even made the being seem to dwell rather in the moonlight than the sun. Its large body had a red orb embedded in the middle. The shoulders both had yellow fixations that spiked out at the back and zig-zagged in a shape resembling a lightning bolt. A large purple visor covered the top-half of its face and lightning bolt shaped fixations protruded from the area where its ears should be. Spikes immerged from the creature's arms and on the back of its hands were small red spheres.
"With my Evil Hero Lightning Golem's effect, I can destroy a monster on the field once per turn. Now destroy his Troop Dragon with Voltic Volly Assault!" exclaimed Judai.
After a few seconds of standing still the large anti-hero folded its arms over its chest and said in an arrogant, booming voice," And why the hell should I do that, brat? For what reason do I have to take orders from you?"
Sho and Dark Magician Girl both gaped at the monster. It actually talked. Wait. It actually refused to attack when the duelist said to. How can a monster refuse to listen to the duelist? Yubel and Judai, who were both aware and used to this, merely sweat dropped at the spirit's lack of duty.
What was even more surprising was when Thunder Giant turned towards his dark twin and spoke with an equally booming, albeit slightly gentler voice. "How dare you speak to Judai-sama like that you fiend? You now belong to him and serve him his warrior. Have you no pride to speak of? Do you refuse an order of a commander? Will you show cowardice and run away?" Lightning Golem turned its attention towards the hero beside it and let out an explosive 'humph.
"I merely chose to follow that chibi-brat's orders for the time, because it was in my best interest. Now that I don't need him, tell me, why should I care about his wishes?" stated the Evil Hero with a booming laugh.
"Because," started Judai, acquiring the attention of all around him," he is the one that can banish you back to that dark hell whenever he pleases," stated Judai venomously.
His features were cold and his voice icy. His golden eyes held no warmth or kindness at all and the smile that he wore would chill anyone who received it to the bone. That statement was no idle threat and the spirit before him knew it well.
Haou was not someone you crossed if at all possible. Also, to be thrown back into that place. The Evil Hero could not bear to think about returning to that place, known only as Yami. With quivering hand raised, the spirit released a bolt of a dark-purplish lightning that traveled at the small dragons. They were destroyed, as was the card below them.
"Thank you very much," stated Judai, simply. His eyes had once again turned normal.
The spirit's only reply was a rude noise and a small 'whatever'.
"Alright, Sho. I'll continue now. Since your field is empty, if my two heroes land their attacks, it will be game over. Finish this, Thunder Giant, Lightning Golem!"
The two giants raised their hands in unison and let forth two identical streams of electricity, save for the color. These bolts sped toward Sho and conglomerated around him creating a massive explosion that kicked up dust high into the air.
"Sho-chan?!" exclaimed Dark Magician Girl.
"Damn it! I knew it would happen like this," stated Yubel in frustration and disgust.
I'm gonna go ahead and stop it at this point. If I don't, I fear that this chapter alone will become 10,000 words. That would actually be incredibly short if I was writing an actual book, but since this is for the computer, I think it would be best to allow the reader some time to rest his/her eyes.
I do hope that you have been enjoying this story. It's quite fun to write, (scratches back of head) when I actually get around to doing so.
I hope you will continue to follow the story as it progresses. It will probably be, at the very least, twice the length of what it is now. (bows) Thank you very much.
Oh and to FabioandRichard4Ever I know it sounds pretty straight forward, but what do you mean by one-lined paragraphs? Is it some style of writing? Please share.