Author's Note: Apologies for the delay with this chapter. I'm still kind of getting used to my new online class. Plus admittedly my mind's been on a couple other projects for the last few days.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX.

Chapter 13: Mirror, Mirror

"So… you're a computer program based on me." Jaden realized. "But you're also an A.I.? How's that even possible?"

"I kinda figured you'd ask something like that." Haou responded. "I know I probably would if I were in your shoes. Fortunately, the person who installed me provided me with an explanation. Do you remember what happened right after you returned to Duel Academy after the whole Dark World thing? About how you were required to undergo a thorough physical?"

"Yeah. For awhile, everyone was freaked out that something might be wrong with me." Jaden recalled. "I mean I guess it makes sense that they would since vanished after going to another dimension. But everything was fine."

"Of course it was. But that's not the point." Haou told him. "One of the medical tests you were put through was a detailed neurological scan using the highest level of technology. That scan made a copy of your brainwave pattern, and that pattern was eventually used to make me."

"So what you're saying is that your mind is a digital copy of Jaden's." Aster realized.

"Right you are, Aster." Haou confirmed. "Which means I'm not just some computer-controlled puppet like all the duelists you've fought up to now. I'm able to think for myself."

"So what is it that you want?" Jaden asked Haou. "Who put you in this simulated world to do all this?"

"Who put me in here? I can't say." Haou answered. "I was only given information on my origin. But as for what I want, that's obvious. I want to destroy you! I want to watch die a horrible and painful death! And I will not rest until I see that happen! Killing you is the whole reason why I exist!"

"Why? Did the person who put you in here program you to want that?" Jaden asked.

"…The only way for this simulation to end is for one of you to beat me in a duel." Haou told them after a pause. "You're all welcome to try and defeat me, of course. But I should warn you that I play for keeps. If any of you lose a duel with me, you'll be dead. It would've been the same for Blair when she faced me, but I needed her alive to serve as bait."

"If you want a duel, you've got one!" Jaden told him.

"Hold on, Jaden! I think we should talk about this for a bit." Aster cut in.

"Yeah mate. Having you duel your evil twin there might not be the best idea." Clive agreed.

"Looks like you all need some time to figure out what you want to do." Haou observed. "Very well, I'll give you twenty minutes to decide who will face me. If you can't decide after the twenty minutes are up, then I'll come after you and decide which of you I'll duel. I'll be waiting in the castle for your decision."

With that, Haou walked back into the castle. Jaden and the others meanwhile gathered together to decide what to do.

"Well, this has gotten totally messed up." Lena declared.

"I don't get why you guys didn't let me go ahead and duel Haou." Jaden told the others.

"Because having you duel a copy of yourself probably isn't the best idea." Aster explained. "Think about it. He could easily predict your every move."

"Don't forget that I could predict his too." Jaden pointed out.

"Maybe, but the other problem is that I'm not sure you could think straight that duel." Aster told him. "I'm sure Haou reminds you of the way you were when you were the Supreme King."

"The what?" Lena responded with a raised eyebrow.

"That may be true, but I'm still the best person to take him on." Jaden insisted.

"That's where you're wrong, Jaden Yuki." Hiroki told him. "The one here best suited to take on that virtual copy of you is me. And since I'm guessing this Haou is a Hero user like you, there's no way I can pass up challenging him."

"You do remember that the Fusion Master creamed you in a duel before this whole ride began, right?" Clive pointed out to Hiroki.

"He only got lucky!" Hiroki told him.

"Yeah well… this may make me sound like a coward, but I don't think my luck would be good enough against this fake Fusion Master." Clive told them. "One thing my dad taught me about gambling is to never bet more than you can afford to lose, especially when you think the odds are against you."

"You're smart not to want to go against that other Jaden." Blair told Clive. "Keep in mind, I've dueled him once before. He's extremely powerful."

"Well, maybe I should take a crack at this other Jaden." Lena suggested.

"Nah. I'm probably the better choice." Aster told them. "After all, I have beaten the real Jaden before."

"…Guys, why don't we take a little break to cool down before we decide anything?" Jaden suggested.

"That's probably a good idea." Aster agreed. With that, Jaden nodded and began to walk off. "Hey, where are you going?"

"I just need to be by myself for a bit." Jaden told them.

"Well… okay. But don't do anything rash." A suspicious Aster told him.

Jaden nodded and headed away from the castle. After a few moments he came to a large rock several feet away and ducked behind it. Once he was certain that he was alone, the wandering pro duelist leaned against the side of the rock and sighed.

"Tough day, huh?" Yubel asked as she appeared.

"You can say that again." Jaden replied.

"Aster is right about one thing. That game character of you must remind you of the way you used to be." Yubel deduced. "The way you were when the darkness inside you went out of control."

"I'm not the same person I was from back then." Jaden pointed out.

"Neither of us is." Yubel replied. "You're going to go ahead and duel him, aren't you?"

"I can't let any of the others risk their lives like that." Jaden told her. "Especially when I'm the one that other me is really after. Besides… there's something about Haou that I want to know."

"And what's that?" Yubel asked.

"Whether or not Haou was just programed to want to kill me, or if he really wants me dead." Jaden answered. "I think the only way to find that out is to duel him."

"Then I guess we know what you have to do." Yubel replied.

"Yep. It's time I go and face myself." Jaden decided.

Kaiba was leaning against the wall of the lab as he watched Alec and Randy continue their work to try and shut down the simulation from the outside. As dire as the situation was, the legendary duelist couldn't help but be rather amused by the way thing had turned out. The final enemy of the simulation was based on one of the very heroes that Alec had sent in to rescue Blair. Kaiba couldn't help but wonder about what would happen if a duelist faced his exact double.

"Mr. Kaiba?" Alec spoke as he approached. "I'm afraid we're making very little progress trying to disengage the artificial intelligence."

"I see." Kaiba replied. "What about making it so we can see what's going on in the simulation?"

"Actually we have been working on that, and Randy thinks it might be possible if we bypass a few circuits." Alec answered.

"Good. Get on it right away." Kaiba ordered. "I want to see the duel against that A.I. when it happens."

"May I ask why?" Alec inquired.

"Do you know what a duel is, Flynn? When you get right down to it, a duel is like two mirrors facing one another." Kaiba told him. "In order to win, you have to put yourself in the mind of your opponent, asking yourself how you would respond to the move you've just made. But what if both duelists have the exact same mind? They would know exactly how the other one would think and react. In a duel like that, the only way to win would be for one of them to exploit their own weaknesses and overcome them at the same time."

"I see… you're hoping that Jaden Yuki will end up dueling the digital copy of himself that's running the simulation." Alec realized. "Did you consider the possibility that maybe one of the others might duel him?"

"That thought crossed my mind, but I prefer to be optimistic." Kaiba replied. "In any case, I want that feed into the simulation up and running as soon as possible."

"We'll get right on it, sir." Alec replied.

Suddenly Kaiba's phone began to buzz. He pulled the device out of his pocket and found that he had gotten a text from his investigator.

After reading the text, a small smile appeared on Kaiba's face. "Well, it seems we may have found our mole. I just got some information on your assistant, Rita, specifically a picture of her taken from her driver's license. Tell me Flynn, is this the same woman who's been working for you?"

Kaiba held up his phone and showed Alec the picture of a woman with long unkempt brown hair wearing glasses with thick black round frames. Whoever the woman was, it was not the woman he had hired as his assistant.

"This… this can't be!" Alec exclaimed. "Are you saying that's the real Rita?"

"The records don't lie." Kaiba replied as he put his phone back in his pocket. "The Rita Mendez who's been working here is an imposter."

At that moment, Rita walked into the room looking at the clipboard that was in her hand. "Dr. Flynn, I have the power estimates you wanted."

"You can drop the act, whoever you are." Kaiba told her. "We know you're not the real Rita Mendez."

"I… I don't…" Rita began, but she stopped when Kaiba pull his phone back out to show her the picture he had shown Alec.

In a flash, Rita rushed over and grabbed Randy by the arm, twisting it behind his back. At the same time, she pulled out a knife and put it to his throat.

"Make one false move and you'll be cleaning this man's blood off the floor for weeks." The woman who had been calling herself Rita warned.

"You certainly are quick to show your true colors." Kaiba remarked.

"Keeping up my disguise would be pointless now that you've seen through me." Rita replied. "Besides, I was getting sick of playing the role of the innocent lab tech."

"What have you done with the real Rita Mendez?" Alec demanded to know.

"She's at her apartment, which I've been using as my base of operations." The false Rita answered. "Don't worry, she's alive. I needed her technical knowledge to install that A.I."

"Just who the hell are you?" Kaiba demanded to know.

"I go by the codename, Lamia." The woman answered. "And before you ask me why I did all this, all I'll say is that I was ordered to by my commander."

"And just who is this commander of yours?" Kaiba asked.

"That, I won't tell you." Lamia replied. "What I will tell you though is that he wants Jaden Yuki dead. All this was to achieve that objective."

"I don't know what grudge this commander of yours has against some bush league duelist like Jaden Yuki, but I'm going to make you pay for jeopardizing my company like this!" Kaiba told her.

"I don't have time for the likes of you." Lamia told him.

Suddenly Lamia pushed Randy forward towards Alec and Kaiba. While they were distracted by this, the assassin dashed out of the room and was gone in a flash. As Alec checked to see if Randy was okay, an enraged Kaiba went over to an intercom built into the wall.

"Attention all security personal! The woman known as Rita Mendez is an imposture! I want her captured at all costs!" Kaiba ordered.

Haou waited patiently atop his throne in the castle for someone to show up to duel. He found that he really didn't care which member of the team showed up since he was going to destroy them all in the end anyway. Plus he was certain that there was only one person who would step up to face him. Suddenly Haou heard footsteps coming towards the door to the throne room. He smirked when he saw that it was Jaden, exactly the person he had been expecting.

"I knew it would be you in the end." Haou told Jaden. "And you even showed up five minutes early. I'm guessing your friends don't know that you're here. You probably went through the secret entrance into the castle, didn't you?"

"I can't let my friends risk their lives against someone who's after me." Jaden told him. "You're my problem, and I'll solve it myself."

"Of course. You couldn't do anything else." Haou replied as he got off his throne. "So, shall we begin this little duel?"

As Jaden stepped forward to take Haou on, Aster arrived at the door to the throne room with the rest of the team. "Jaden, what the hell are you doing?"

"I'm doing exactly what it looks like, Aster." Jaden told him. "This is something I have to do myself."

"Are you crazy? This opponent can anticipate every one of your moves!" Aster pointed out.

"Forget it, Aster. There's no talking Jaden out of this." Blair told him. "Jaden's made up his mind that he has to do this."

"Don't worry Aster. I'm happy to take you on once I kill Jaden." Haou told him. "In the meantime, just relax and enjoy the show."

"You're not taking on anyone after me!" Jaden told Haou. "One way or another, I'm bringing this whole thing to an end!"

Author's Note: Sorry if this chapter was just a little bit too short. I really wanted to get one more update done before working on the final duel, which I plan to finish outlining before the end of the weekend. Hopefully the duel will be worth the wait.

Please review and let me know what you think.