Chapter 10

This castle was much grander than the one in Lancashire. The floors were marble, I liked it.

"Listen, Yugi. When he mistakes me for a Rose Crusader, don't correct him. We want him to think this."

"Why?" He asked.

"Just trust me." I said, opening the door. The rooms were still just as dark, which pissed me off. The castle was surprisingly empty, and the doors didn't close behind us.

The foyer lit up, revealing a duel table. Sitting on the far end was an ugly man who I could only assume was King Richard 3.

"Hello." I said. A gusty draft blew in from somewhere, blowing one of the Rose Cards from my pocket. I was quick to grab and re pocket it.

"I see you have Rose Cards. You must be one of Lord Crawford's Rose Crusaders! Your timing couldn't be better. When I heard Yugi had landed, I rushed my troops to the front. However, I arrived much too early. It will be A long time before Lord Crawford's men arrive. Until then, why don't we play a duel or two?"

"Sure..." I said, sitting down in the provided chair. I drew my hand, and boy was it a doozy. Mystical Space Typhoon, Battlin Boxer Veil, Amarylease, Spirit of the Harp, and Wicked Dreadroot. I was particularly interested in Amarylease. Amarylease was essentially a Cost Down card. When sent to the graveyard, I could banish it once per turn to summon a monster for one less tribute. In this version, however, it cut the level of a monster by half. And with only 100 attack and 200 defense, getting it destroyed was gonna be easy. I set it down in defense mode, along with Space Typhoon and ended my turn.

Slysheen summoned something and ended his turn. I drew. Yomi Ship. I moved Amarylease forward and ended my turn.

Slysheen summoned something and attacked Amarylease. It went to the graveyard. Now was my chance.

"I activate Amarylease's effect. I halve the Star Counters of my monsters in order to summon

it now." I put Wicked Dreadroot Facedown. There was nothing to do now but slowly advance.

Slysheen summoned something and ended his turn. I drew. Fencing Fire Ferret. I should probably set up a contingency plan on case this failed. I summoned SotH in front of Alector, advanced Dreadroot, and ended my turn.

The battle went on for a few more turns, but I inevitably defeated him. It was really easy too. Like stupid easy. So stupidly easy that he moved between two of my monsters and that's how he lost. THIS was the great King of England?!

"Drat! I lost! Well what do you expect from a beginner? Don't let it bother you. The important thing is how I preform on the battlefield. And with the support of Lord Crawford and the Rose Crusaders, England will be ours for the taking!"

"I wonder about that." I muttered. I heard heels clicking against stone.

"I'm afraid it won't be that easy sire!" A very camp voice echoed through the halls. Pegasus?

"Who? What?!" Slysheen said. I stayed where I was and put my head down. I knew what lines came next, and I wanted to be dramatic. Pegasus walked up within feet of the duel table.

"Lord Crawford. It's about time. And what exactly are you talking about, may I ask?"

"I fear that aside from Seto, all of the Rose Crusaders have fallen to the Rose Duelist. They were beaten by the very person you just had the pleasure of dueling. Sire, I present to you the Rose Duelist!"

I lifted my head and unleashed a wicked grin. "Hey. Sup."

Richard just gaped and made some sort of squeaking noise.

"And may I add that I've decided to join Yugi in his bid for power!"

A louder squeaking noise from the fallen King.

"My duel with Lucy taught me the true meaning of power. She may even be more powerful than Seto and the Rose Crusaders. That would mean that Yugi is likely to succeed in landing his troops. With the greatest Duelist backing the Lancastrians, the Yorkists will be defeated. I would be a fool not to back the winning horse!"

Okay, back up for a second. I defeated Pegasus using almost everything except cheating. The only reason I was able to defeat him is that I got both Zombiestein and Dreadroot, my two strongest monsters, out on the field for the first time in forever. So basically, I used almost exclusively raw power. That's not the true meaning of power!

Whatever. He was backing me, I shouldn't complain.

"And what of your hostage son, Crawford?" Richard countered.

"You wouldn't touch a hair on his head if both you and your troops are defeated!" From outside, I could hear marching.

"Oh my! It looks like Yugi and his troops have arrived. It's show time!" Pegasus declared. I got up and took Yugi by the hand. We ran thought the halls as I looked desperately.

"Lucy! Where are we going?!" Yugi asked.

"Looking for the armory. They've got to have swords and shit there." I said.

"Lucy, I can't run this fast!" Yugi said. He was stumbling behind me.

"Then I'll have to carry you!" I said, and before Yugi could protest, I pulled him in front of me, grabbed him by the waist, and hoisted him over my shoulder.

"So this is the product of six years of abuse..." I heard him whisper.

"Don't worry about me. Ah ha!" I said, finding the door to the Armory. I flung it open and set Yugi down. Rows of armor and racks of weapons lined the walls. I looked around, trying to find something even a little sword proof.

I opened wardrobe after wardrobe, but the only armor sizes I could find were too big for Yugi. At least, until I got to a chest.

"Finally, the minus sized armor!" I said, lifting a helmet out of the chest. "Yugi, put this on."

"What? Why?" He asked.

"This is the final battle. It's gonna be chaos out there. If you get killed, I will never forgive myself." I said, shoving the helmet on his head, then taking it back off so he could put the chain mail breastplate on.

But as I took the armor out of the chest, it became apparent that there was a trapdoor in the bottom of the chest. No way...

"Yugi! Over here!" I motioned. I opened the trapdoor to reveal a secret passage.

"Oh cool! I've always heard of these but we never had any back in Tewksbury!"

"Secret passages, am I right?" I said, and held out a hand for a high five. He looked at me oddly.

"Never mind. You go first, wait for me at the bottom." I said, and looked around a little more. I wonder if there was a light sword I could 'borrow'.

"Oh sweet!" I said, picking up a couple of cutlasses and flipping them around. "Now I won't have to borrow Yugi's knife anymore!" I ran over to the last wardrobe and opened it. Inside was a golden chest piece. It looked...familiar. I put it on and climbed down the ladder into the passage.

"Well there's air flowing through it, so there must be an exit." Yugi said. The path was very long and lit with a few torches along the way. I grabbed one and carried it with us as we walked through the dark, dank tunnel. We could hear footsteps and swords clashing above us as the battle raged on.

I heard crumbling, and pulled Yugi back.

"Wait what are you..." He started.

"Shhhhh..." I cut him off. I looked around slowly. Dust and dirt drifted down from the ceiling. It caved in and sunlight streamed in from above. When the dust cleared, an unidentifiable soldier coughed to make himself known. I just stared in fear.

"Lucy? What're ya doin here?" I recognized that dialect.

"Jou? Is that you?" I asked. The soldier removed his helmet, revealing a familiar puffy haired blonde.

"My name's not Jou. It's Joey. But yea, it's me."

"Hi Joey!" I grinned, and waved. "You need a boost? That's a pretty steep cliff."

"Sure." He said. I clasped my two hands in a stirrup shape and crouched. He stepped in my hand and I lifted. He was a lot heavier in a suit of armor.

"Thanks!" He said, and gave a small salute. I replicated the action. I grabbed Yugi's wrist and led him around the debris and we continued along the tunnel.

After walking a while longer, we found stairs that led up.

"This must be the exit." I said, and started up the stairs. Sure enough, there was a door at the end of the stairs. Light poured into the tunnel when I opened it. We were just outside the clearing.

"Damnit! I should be out there, fighting for my king! But I can't leave you and you're NOT going with me." I said. Wait. What about the whistle? It had summoned monsters to the material plane before. Maybe I could use it to summon an army of monsters and turn the tide of the battle?

It was worth a shot. I took out the whistle, three cards for my album, and two cards from my deck. Ma'at, Sphinx Teleia, Meteor Black Dragon, Interplanetarypurplethorny Dragon, and The Wicked Dreadroot. I blew the whistle. The cards glowed an intense white and shot beams of light into the sky.

When the brightness subsided, there stood the five selected monsters. And goddamn they were huge. I stood at a measly five foot three, sure, but Dreadroot was taller than most of the trees surrounding us, and Ma'at was almost a giant among men. Hell, Teleia was as tall as a normal man, and she stood on four legs.

"Friends! Today we are faced with the greatest threat England has faced since the Romans! Yorkist forces are threatening to snuff out the good Lancastrian forces and the fair king Henry Tudor! As a Lancastrian Supporter, I cannot allow this to happen! So I ask of you- no, plead for your assistance! Will you help me?"

The monsters roared in approval. I smiled.

"Then charge!" I yelled. Everyone did so except Teleia. I could hear the screams of the Yorkists forces.

"Teleia? Why have you not joined the charge?" I asked.

"Because I am your steed." She said, kneeling. I looked at Yugi, who looked back.

"Alright." I said, climbing on. Yugi sat behind me. "Chaaaarge!" I yelled again. Teleia took off in a blaze of speed and jumped into the air.

"This is amaaaaazing!" I yelled, and Yugi clung onto my waist for dear life, screaming. I flung my two cutlasses out to each side, clunking two Yorkists upside their helmeted heads. I spotted a wild mess of yellow.

"There!" I screamed. Teleia bounded over, creating a clearing wherever she stepped. The scene before me was Slysheen facing off against Jou. I got off of Teleia.

"Teleia. Take Yugi to safety, guard him with your life and don't stop for anyone!" I shouted over the yells and the clatters of swords. She nodded and bounded off. I turned to Slysheen.

"I believe I'm the one you want." I said. I looked at Jou. " My friend. I hate to butt in, but you've got a full life ahead of you. Don't risk it on him. I'll take him on in your place."

"As if I'm going to let you take this guy on by yourself. You may be a great Duelist, but swords fighting is an entirely different prospect. We take him on together." He said.

I smiled, and glanced back at Slysheen. "He may have two swords, but between yours and my cutlasses, we have three. He can't block all of them at once. You take the front, I'll sneak around the back and stab him."

He nodded. Let's just say my plan worked a little too well. Our victim ended up with a slit throat and stab wounds. It was probably a bad idea to try to climb on his back because he had hit me in the forehead with his blade and it was now gushing blood.

The entire battle ended soon after, thanks to my monsters. The Yorkist forces were defeated, and left behind a very odd looking crown of England, which I picked up.

"We did it..." I murmured. The crown was splattered with blood from where I had touched it. I rushed over to where the survivors of the battle had gathered.

"Pegasus. I think there is a coronation to be held." I said, handing him the crown.

"Indeed." He said. Yami knelt, and I stood back. Yugi stood next to me, and Teleia sat behind both of us. All the other monsters I had summoned had gone back into my deck.

"Actually Lucy, why don't you do it?" Pegasus said.

I balked. "Me? But I don't know what to say!"

"You retrieved the crown, you must crown the king. It doesn't matter what you say." He said, handing the crown back to me. I gulped, and slowly approached Yami. I looked back at Yugi, who gave me a thumbs up. I took a deep breath and started.

"Lo here, this long usurped royalty from the temples of this wretch have I pluck'd off to grace thy brows withal. Wear it, use it, and make much of it. " I said. I knelt as Yami rose, as did everyone else.

"My thanks to you, Lucy. Without your help, this victory would not be ours. Earning the respect of Lord Crawford and enlisting his aid ensured the fall of Richard 3. I cannot thank you enough."

I blushed a little. "You flatter me."

"I owe you my thanks as well for I would have hated to be on the losing side." Pegasus said. Yeah...

"But there is one thing I don't get. Where's Seto? I haven't seen him since the beginning of this adventure." I said.

"My thoughts exactly. Pegasus, where is Seto?" Yami asked.

"Knowing him, probably Stonehenge."

"I see. I hate to admit it, but we don't have power enough to take out a Duelist of that level. I must ask you a favor once again... Face the evil threat and end him once and for all!"

Well I was going to point out that we have an army and we could just fight him with swords and shit, but never question the king. So I agreed, on one condition. When we get back, I wanted a video of him saying something encouraging to me. Though he questioned what a video was, he ultimately agreed. And so Yugi and I set out for Stonehenge.

It really wasn't that far of a walk, just a couple of hours. But when we got there, shit was going down. The sky was an ugly purple again, the wind was howling, and admiral frickboy was waiting for me in the centre of the ruins.

"You're here much sooner than I expected. I knew that Crawford would turn on us eventually. But I didn't expect the tide of the battle to turn so soon. Actually, Crawford's betrayal and the fall of the Yorkists matter not to me. All I hoped for from this tireless struggle was to find an opponent worthy of my attention. When I knew you would be summoned, I waited. Each time a member of my Rose Crusaders fell before you, I shivered in anticipation. Once you beat the last member, I knew you were ready to face me. Long have I starved to best a Duelist of equal power to me, hungered for-"

"OKAY STOP IT!" I shouted. 'It's getting weird and I need an adult. No wait, scratch that! Let's duel!" Goddamn admiral jackass!

And so the epic battle began. I drew my hand. Remove Trap, Giant Trap Hole, Non Spellcasting Area, Trap Master, and Wicked Dreadroot. I essentially set my whole hand except Dreadroot down and ended my turn. He set down two cards and ended his turn. I drew. This duel was a bit different. We were always required to have five cards in our hand. So I got Amarylease, Mystical Space Typhoon, Bio Mage, and Spirit of the Harp. I set Amarylease and Space Typhoon, moved my cards, and ended my turn. Kaiba set another card and flipped up Lord of Dragons. That could be a problem. When in face up defense position dragons are immune to the opponents spells. But on the other hand, it was only 700/600, which means it would be easy enough to kill in its current state.

If I could just get Amarylease killed, I could summon Dreadroot on the following turn. There was a Facedown card near it, maybe it was a Blue Eyes? Knowing Kaiba it HAD to be a Blue Eyes. The guy had three of them. Truth be told, he could only have two to play, since his Deck Leader counted for one as well, and you can only have up to three of a card in a deck. I ended my turn.

He lay down a card and attacked Amarylease. Sure enough, it WAS a Blue Eyes. Since it was in defense mode, no points were lost.

"When Amarylease is sent to the graveyard, once per turn I can cut the stars of a monster in half to summon it." I lay down the Wicked Dreadroot card right in front of the Blue Eyes. The next step would be to get Zombiestein out here on the next turn. But for now, my turn is gone.

Kaiba moved in to attack Dreadroot. Boy did he get a surprise. Blue Eyes 1 was destroyed, and a whopping 3000 points of collateral damage was dished out.

"What?! What on Earth is that?!" He all but shrieked. "Why did I take so much damage?!"

"This is the Wicked Dreadroot, an evil god. With the exception of itself, all monsters on the field lose half their attack. Spells and traps have no effect on it." I explained. I saw Kaiba turn a whole new shade of white. I ended my turn.

He set down another card, probably a second Blue Eyes, and ended his turn. I drew. Mirage Dragon. That was even better than Zombiestein. I set him down and sent Dreadroot after the Facedown card. Turns out it WAS the second Blue Eyes. -3000 points, end game. Victor: Lucy Miyako.

That was actually pretty easy. I expected much harder of a time. I took a step back.

"Well done, Duelist. I may have lost, but my heart sings with the joy of having faced you in battle. 'Twas a great battle to be remembered. I take great pride to fall by your hand."

"Sure whatever. Will you leave us alone now? You're really creepy, to be honest." I said. Hey, I had gotten the Rose Card, I've earned my right to be a bitch to him.

"And if you believe that, I'll sell you swampland in the outer reaches of the realm! A duel to be remembered indeed, at least that much is true! For thanks to you, I have completed Rose Summoning Ritual!"

Oh come the frick on! We were pawns?! That's it, first chance I get I'm kicking him in the balls so hard they puncture his stomach!

"All I needed was for the Rose Cards to be all in one place, and for a catalyst, a powerful duel! Now the Card Guardian shall rise, and ensure my rule for centuries to come!"

The earth began to shake, and Lightning struck the center of Stonehenge. I fell backwards, and hit my head on a rock. Everything went black.

...

"...Lucy..."

Huh? Everything around me was still black, save for a blinding light that shone from above me like a spotlight. A figure eclipsed the light.

"The time has come for you to awaken." The voice cooed. The light engulfed the area until I couldn't see anything.

...

"Lucy!" I could hear Yugi calling my name frantically. I opened my eyes lazily.

"Oh thank God! I thought you were dead!" He was crying. I put my hand on the back of his head and rubbed it.

"Hon, it'll take more than a knock to this thick skull to kill me." I said, tapping my knuckles against the top of my head and immediately regretting it. "So what happened? Did I go Berserk again?"

"Yes, but this time, it was different. You may have unlocked a new level of Berserk or something. You beat the Guardian in seven turns and shoved a sword down his throat for good measure. Then you just passed out like you had never woken up. You weren't breathing, so I thought you were dead."

I sat up. "Well. It seems like I've made quite the mess. But no matter. Where is my pack?" I asked.

Yami pulled my pack from behind one of the pillars. "Is this what you mean?"

"Yes! Thank you." I said. I unzipped my pack and pulled out the bottle of Chardonnay I had purchased in Towton and had mysteriously not been crushed by the events since.

"This calls for a celebration! A celebration of our new King!" I shouted, holding the bottle high above my head. The soldiers who were there with us cheered.

...

Soon, camp was set up around Stonehenge. The sound of drunken cheering, flickering bonfires, and the thick smell of cooked meat filled the air. Tents littered the grass, and I was in one of them, writing a letter to Yami.

"Dear Yami,

I know what I'm about to say is cryptic, and even convoluted. But there are some things you must know to ensure your people's population. Some of these I do not know how to stop. But if you trust me and do as these instructions say, tragedies that can be prevented will be prevented. For the others, this letter serves as a mere warning. Pass this on to your heirs as if it were a great treasure.

-Diversify the potato crop. 400 years from now, a virus will emerge and decimate the potato crop, causing famine and resulting in over 1 million deaths, especially in Ireland. The only way to stop it is to cultivate a diverse range of potatoes and hope one of them is resistant to the virus.

-One of your descendants, Henry VIII, is going to be a little crazy about getting a male heir. So crazy he'll go through seven (or eight, I can't remember which) wives trying to get one, and when he finally does get one, the heir will die a child. You might want to set a law or suggestion that females can take the throne if needed.

-Be wary of plagues. Remember to burn dead bodies to prevent spreading.

"One more -"

I heard the sheets on the tent spreading. I looked up and saw Yugi in the entrance. He seemed a little different, clumsier. Then I noticed an entire bottle of wine in his hand, half empty. He stumbled over to me, and in the candlelight I could see that his face was completely flushed.

"Okay before you say anything, you've had enough wine for tonight. A young lad like you doesn't need to die of alcohol poisoning." I said, wrenching the bottle from his hand. He said nothing, but made a saddened look at me and whined a little.

"Nope. No more." I responded, taking a swig. Ech, a bitter variety. But it had a nice aftertaste, so I took another swig and continued to write my letter.

"Sit." I said. He responded by dropping to his knees and slamming his head on the small table I was writing on, making everything on the table jump six inches. Good thing I was writing with a modern pen and not a ink well. I went back to writing.

"-thing. Yugi has feelings for you. Whether or not it may be right for a man to love another man, it is different in my time period than yours. But he's a sweet-"

I felt two arms throw themselves around my shoulders and Yugi shove himself on my back. I took another swig of wine and placed it far away from him.

"-young man, and I would strongly recommend considering him as a spouse.

Goodbye, Yami and Yugi. Know that I love you both.

Warmest regards,

Lucy Miyako, the Rose Duelist."

I capped my pen, put it in my art kit, put my art kit back in my backpack, got out a Caramello bar, and ate one section from it. Yugi moaned drunkenly, trying to reach for the bottle. I took the bottle and poured the rest of the wine out on the ground. He let out a high pitched whine.

"Last call's at one, but for you it's now!" I said. He made the most adorable pouting face. I shook free from his grip and crawled over to the sleeping pads.

"Look Yugi! These blankets are so lonely without you, come cuddle them!" I said, patting the blanket. I blew the candle out and got under the blankets. I felt him get under the covers with me and wrap his hands around my waist. Whatever. He was probably an affectionate drunk.

As I drifted off to sleep, the wine helping, I could feel him nuzzling between my shoulder blades. As long as he didn't throw up on me, I would be okay.