Disclaimer/Author's Note:
Okay, I got a ton of feedback through various resources about the last
duel. The Jinzo/CotH thing made me feel like a n00b...sorry...but the
amplifier/imperial order thing hasn't been released here, so I think I
deserve that leeway. NO REWRITES!!! Anyway, you should all be happy! The
finals are upon us! And this is a kinda long chapter, even though there's
no duel. Wow, a duel is shorter than a non-duel? Hmm...
Yu Gi Oh-
Tournament of the Eclipse
Chapter 20-Launched Sky High
The four duelists had done it-they had all qualified for the finals of the tournament! And they were currently standing at the final wall, the last barrier blocking them from what was rightfully theirs. "Who wants to go first?" asked Aldrai. "Not me," replied Aarion, "I've already been up there, so one of you three can have the honor." Mystic, Aldrai, and Adriel all looked at each other. "Umm...so then..." said Adriel. Aarion sighed. "You know, it's not like this is the last time you're going to see each other."
"But it might be the last time we see each other as friends..." thought Adriel. "I guess I'll go first..." he commented. "No wait, I want to go first!" shouted Mystic. The three got into a verbal fight. Aarion sighed once more. "Fine. Each of you take a card." All three of them took cards. "Now flip them." Adriel held a card that looked like Dragonoid Swordwielder, but different..before the others flipped their card, he asked "Hey, how come this card looks different from your other one? It's got the same effect..." Aarion looked at the card. "Oh yeah...last night, after we all went to sleep, one of the other eliminators woke me up. Kaiba wanted to see us. He said even though I was the only eliminator who didn't fail, they could all stay...and that after studying the prototype dragonoid cards I use, he wanted to change them. So now my other ones are all valuable because they're one of a kind now, but these are the new official ones." Mystic changed the subject back by flipping a magic card. "Okay...I drew Raigeki. So do I beat Adriel?" Aarion gestured to Aldrai, who flipped his card. Magic Jammer.
"Shoot...a three-way tie. Usually, the way I know how to do it, monsters beat traps, which beat magic, which beat monsters. This time, it's a tie...how else can we do it?" The three thought carefully about the fairest way to choose who got to go in first. "I know," said Adriel, who began to pace, "We can do...this!" He sprinted to the wall and shoved all eight of his phases in. The machine dropped them into the verification system and opened the door. "Later!" he said, going through the entrance. The door snapped shut. "Ooh...he's gonna get it..." whispered Mystic in a growling tone. He went next, followed by Aldrai, and lastly by Aarion. When they got to the top, they found themselves in a sort of open mall. It was a bit small, having a card shop, two or three food stands, a clothing store, and most excitingly, upper-society lavatories. Staying in the wild for a few weeks definitely had hygiene-related effects.
So after visiting the bathhouses for an hour or so, the refreshed quartet made a beeline straight for the card shops. "Finally, I don't have to carry my deck in my backpack any more!" Adriel was gawking at a small black metal deck carrier with a gold dragon silhouette. It was complicated- a place for the deck, side deck, and fusion deck, respectively. And ever since he forgot his deck box at home, Adriel was anxious about the condition of his cards. He immediately rushed in, but stopped when he remembered that Aldrai, Mystic, and himself had all pooled points. "Um, guys, you don't mind, do you?" Mystic grinned. "Well, let's see...we have...a few hundred left, I guess buying cards so freely wasn't such a good idea...sorry, Adriel..." Both of them hung their heads. "Hey, don't worry. I have points too, remember?" Aarion grinned as the other three's heads snapped around to face him.
"So now your total is...7,562 points." Mystic and Aldrai stared at Aarion. "How the heck..." Aarion laughed. "Eliminators get 2000 points to start off with, seeing as how they're going to need to buy good cards to eliminate weaker duelists, which is what we're hired for. And of course, we still get the 500 point bonus for winning duels. Finally, I'm one guy. I don't need to buy a lot to survive in this tournament." Adriel ran up with the box, giddy. "It's 1500 points, okay?" Mystic did some quick calculation. "50 points is 3 dollars...50 into 1500 is 30...so that's...90 DOLLARS?!?!" Adriel grinned sheepishly. "Don't worry, if that's how it works, then we have 453.72. 90 is nothing, so go ahead. In fact, dividing this up equally, the food on this level is free since there are only eight finalists, so we each have 113.43 to spend, which equates to about 1890 points each."
Adriel gave the box to the shopkeeper, who asked "Hey, your name Adriel?" He nodded. "Good, hold on a few minutes. Browse for a while." The four did just that, until the shopkeeper returned, with the name 'Adriel' engraved in gold on the box with detailed lettering. "There you go." Adriel gave the man his DuelDisk so he could take off 1500 points. "No, that's okay. It's free for you. And all the finalists." Adriel took the box, stunned. "Hey wait, why is there a price tag, then? I mean, everyone on this level is a finalist." said Mystic. "No, not everyone. Any spectators who came along can also buy the boxes, although it'd come out of the accounts of the people they're with. But according to what you just said, you three are also finalists. Hold on..." He looked at his computer. "Aldrai, Matthew, and Aarion, then? The other four have already passed through, you might've seen them already." The three nodded. "But I like to be called 'Mystic', not Matthew, sir." The shopkeeper nodded. "Okay then, give me a sec." The group went back to browsing. Adriel already had his deck out, so he was looking at cards that he could replace in his deck. The other three didn't bother getting their decks out, but thought about new strategies to use in the finals.
"Okay, here they are." The shopkeeper held out three boxes. Aldrai's was a royal blue color with a silver sword on his, while Mystic's was steel blue with an orange pentagram. Finally, Aarion's was a misty black with a lime green dragon symbol, a bit more dark-looking than Adriel's. Finally, the group took a bunch of slips from displays of cards. "We'd like to buy these sets, please." The shopkeeper came back with a bunch of cellophane-sealed card sets, giving them to their new owners. "Thanks!" They left and went to the food court. "Ahhh...fast food! I'm tired of my own cooking!" said Adriel. "Yeah...it's nice to eat for free at places like this, although some of the food is a bit odd-looking to me." Replied Mystic. "Try it, it's good." They ate for a while, before the light began to disappear. Their DuelDisks were forced on and the monitors swung out. "Hey, it's Kaiba!" shouted Aldrai.
"Duelists, the time has come for the finals. I'm happy to say that everything went according to plan, and only eight of you are left. The last few boats with the final losers just set sail for the mainland. Now all of you, get inside the dome that should be appearing in the middle of the stage in a few seconds." As Kaiba said this, a giant red circle appeared on the ground. The four ran inside it as two glass half-domes began to rise from the ground. The dirt around them was blown away to reveal large engines attached to the bottom of the half-dome via long metal rods. "Just for you, I've stationed helicopters around the island to show you what you're really standing on." As the picture of the sun finally succumbed to the shadow that was overtaking it, eclipsing it completely, the rest of the island exploded, leaving a sturdy metal skeleton. In the center of the island was an upside- down column of long, thin receivers attached to the bottom of the dome. Another few seconds passed as the skeleton's base exploded into giant shards of metal as the wiry part above ground exploded at various joints, totaling the island. The dome-shuttle mobilized the instant it started sinking into the water. "You'll arrive in an hour or two. Your ride should be pleasant, as I've taken great pains to nullify the g-forces that should be acting upon you at such a speed and altitude. Wave goodbye to Earth!" Adriel, Aldrai, and Mystic flopped onto the ground to watch the smoking ruins get smaller, and eventually disappear into the huge ocean. "I hope all the people who were working on the island are okay..." A few small shapes were seen heading away. "It's the boats!" Eventually, the edges of the mainland also appeared. "Wow, we must be high up!" exclaimed Aldrai. "Yeah. Look up." said Mystic. The moon was becoming more and more visible. "No way...we're dueling in space?!" shouted Adriel. "Yes, that's right." said a familiar voice. The four duelists wheeled around to see a familiar face that wasn't too familiar. "You...you're Seto Kaiba's grandson!" stammered Mystic. "Yes, I am. And according to what I know about you, you're Matthew Galloway, and your friends here are Adriel Zaytel, Aldrai Kastien, and Aarion Aranith. "But wait, that's not-" started Adriel, but the Millennium Eye glowed faintly, and he understood why Aarion had lied about his name. "That's not what?" asked Kaiba. "Nothing. I thought you had one of our names wrong, but I guess it was a mispronunciation." Kaiba nodded. "Anyway, I'm just telling the eight of you that remain that I'm not in the finals, but the winner out of the eight of you gets to duel me for a grand prize. And you'll just have to wait to find out what that prize is." He left. "Okay...that was weird. I wonder when we get there?" asked Aldrai. Aarion and Adriel walked off, talking, while Aldrai and Mystic gazed into space. About an hour later, the four duelists were found asleep. Suddenly, a large jolt woke them. Gravity was gone, so the dome was now upside down and facing Earth. The moon was gone. The DuelDisks activated again as Kaiba spoke from a hatch that had been opened near the center of the platform. "Rails will be dropping down and meeting in the center of the dome. Grab onto them and pull your way to the exit. When all of you are out, the hatch will automatically shut down and artificial gravity will assert itself. Be ready." Eight spiked rails slowly came out of holes in the bottom of the platform. When they hit the dome, the spikes extended, making the dome look like a bit of a maze. The four grabbed hold of a spike, climbed to the main pole, and climbed down to the exit. The nine of them climbed into a long elevator. Looking around the room, there was of course Adriel, Aldrai, Mystic, Aarion, Kaiba, and also Sean, who had apparently not been eliminated. "Hey Aldrai." said Sean. Aldrai waved. Apart from Sean, there was tall, blonde boy wearing casual clothes and an aloof look in his eyes. There was also a blonde girl, tall and thin, wearing designer clothes. Finally, there was a brown-haired boy who looked kind of nerdy, short and a little more than thin. These were the other four duelists in the finals. Kaiba spoke. "Go ahead and choose your opponents now, because I'm not going to have random pairings like my grandfather's Battle City tournament." Sean motioned towards Aldrai, but Aldrai was already attacking the nerdy kid, forcing the name 'Hunter' out of him. Instead, Aarion floated up to the fiend master. "My name is Aarion. I want to duel you." Sean nodded. Mystic said 'hi' to the blonde girl, who giggled a bit seductively. "I'm Aria." Adriel had already shaken hands with the blonde guy. "I'm Michael Tsunami, descendant of Mako Tsunami!" Adriel instinctively knew what to prepare for. "Good, so we don't have to go through introductions when we get to the main station. Which is right about now." Said Kaiba as the elevator docked with the station. The group pulled on various handholds to get out, landing with a harsh bump as they climbed back into gravity. A tall suit walked up to them and handed each an envelope. "Inside is a key card to your room and one or more last items that might help you in your experience as a finalist. Now then, choose an opponent-" The suit was cut off as Kaiba said, "Already done that. You all have probably eaten, but if not, there's maps in your rooms. Other than that, there's no bedtime, but I suggest you get some sleep if at all possible." He stalked off and the suit followed him. "Alright...good night, I guess." Adriel left, and the others didn't wait too long to do the same. As they found their rooms, they went in to find all sorts of dueling paraphernalia, including a modified gaming system that was edited to keep track of a player's deck and hold duel simulations. As Adriel threw the envelope onto his large bed, a card slipped out of it. "The final Blue Eyes..." Aldrai opened his door. Immediately, he put his things down and inspected all of the items on the desk next to his bed. "I can use this..."he dropped what he was carrying onto his bed and grabbed the envelope, pulling out a card. "What's this? Black Luster Soldier-Envoy of the Beginning, Freed The Matchless General, Freed The Brave Wanderer, and Marauding Captain..." As with Aldrai, Mystic dumped his stuff and looked at the pile of gizmos on his desk. "Hmm...wonder what that guy meant by 'items that might help'." He opened the envelope and dumped out the rest of the cards. "Dark Magician of Chaos, Dedication through Light and Darkness, Breaker the Magical Warrior, and Diffusion Wave-Motion...cool." Aarion stalked into his room and dumped the envelope's contents onto his bed. "There's nothing else he could've given me...I have every card I need for my deck theme." He looked at the one card that fell out. "Of course he'd do that to me..."
All eight of the duelists in the space station prepared their decks, working on themes for the next day, and trying to come up with innovative tricks. And the next morning, all of them were exhausted and exhilarated at the same time. The TV screens flashed on at nine in the morning and the image of an alarm clock and the sound of a loud alarm made themselves present in every room. Ten seconds later, the face of Kaiba appeared on the screen. "Good morning, duelists. You have an hour to prepare for the match. Remember, the pairings are Aldrai Kastien versus Hunter Danaus, Sean Kahland versus Aarion Aranith, Matthew Galloway versus Aria Donella, and Adriel Zaytel versus Michael Tsunami. The order is random, because it all depends on who gets to the platform first. And of course, some of you might want to freshen up first, eat something...whatever suits your mood. The first pair to step into their dueling stations will be going last, the second pair third, the third pair second, and the last pair will be the first to duel.
Immediately, Adriel and Aarion started to head towards the arena. Aldrai went down to eat, and Mystic decided to have one last practice duel. Sean also headed to the arena, but the other three went down to eat. The first duelist to arrive was Aarion. Kaiba nodded to him from the center of the circular chamber. He looked around. There were eight small things that looked like roller coaster cars in a large circle. Each platform was a different color, apparently corresponding to the deck box given to the duelists on the last stage. Aarion went across the room to his. The computer screen in front of him displayed instructions on what to do before the finals started. As the others arrived, they also found their platforms and read the instructions, placing the deck boxes in a depression in the desk for verification. A plug was sticking out of the computer, and each duelist had to plug their DuelDisks into it. Upon doing so, the computer and DuelDisk were both activated. Kaiba was still in the center, standing by a small computer terminal.
"Congratulations, all eight of you have arrived. The order of dueling will be Adriel versus Michael, followed by Aldrai versus Hunter, Mystic versus Aria, and Aarion versus Sean. As you can see, each of you is standing at a duel terminal. Notice you and your opponent are facing each other from directly across the room. Much like the Battle City competition's Battle Royale, the two duelists dueling will be raised up gradually, depending on how many life points they lose. At the end of the duel, the winner will be shot up to the top of the station, while the loser will descend and join me on this platform. At the end of the first round, the four losers will accompany me in going to the top from the platform I'm standing on now, so we can watch the last two rounds. When the next two duelists are eliminated, they must dismount their platforms, which will drop back down.
"I should warn you that at any time, if necessary, the dueling platforms might drop down and rotate in order to make the two duelists face each other. So if you get nauseous, there's a bag under the computer. Finally, the winner of the finals will have a chance to duel me for a grand prize, which you will learn more about upon the moment when the victor of the finals is announced. And without further ado, let the finals begin!"
*~End~*
Author's Note
Okay, there was that chapter. I should tell you, something will be...interrupting...the finals. And it's not a virtual world with a 7-year old kid terrorizing a bunch of teenagers.
Yu Gi Oh-
Tournament of the Eclipse
Chapter 20-Launched Sky High
The four duelists had done it-they had all qualified for the finals of the tournament! And they were currently standing at the final wall, the last barrier blocking them from what was rightfully theirs. "Who wants to go first?" asked Aldrai. "Not me," replied Aarion, "I've already been up there, so one of you three can have the honor." Mystic, Aldrai, and Adriel all looked at each other. "Umm...so then..." said Adriel. Aarion sighed. "You know, it's not like this is the last time you're going to see each other."
"But it might be the last time we see each other as friends..." thought Adriel. "I guess I'll go first..." he commented. "No wait, I want to go first!" shouted Mystic. The three got into a verbal fight. Aarion sighed once more. "Fine. Each of you take a card." All three of them took cards. "Now flip them." Adriel held a card that looked like Dragonoid Swordwielder, but different..before the others flipped their card, he asked "Hey, how come this card looks different from your other one? It's got the same effect..." Aarion looked at the card. "Oh yeah...last night, after we all went to sleep, one of the other eliminators woke me up. Kaiba wanted to see us. He said even though I was the only eliminator who didn't fail, they could all stay...and that after studying the prototype dragonoid cards I use, he wanted to change them. So now my other ones are all valuable because they're one of a kind now, but these are the new official ones." Mystic changed the subject back by flipping a magic card. "Okay...I drew Raigeki. So do I beat Adriel?" Aarion gestured to Aldrai, who flipped his card. Magic Jammer.
"Shoot...a three-way tie. Usually, the way I know how to do it, monsters beat traps, which beat magic, which beat monsters. This time, it's a tie...how else can we do it?" The three thought carefully about the fairest way to choose who got to go in first. "I know," said Adriel, who began to pace, "We can do...this!" He sprinted to the wall and shoved all eight of his phases in. The machine dropped them into the verification system and opened the door. "Later!" he said, going through the entrance. The door snapped shut. "Ooh...he's gonna get it..." whispered Mystic in a growling tone. He went next, followed by Aldrai, and lastly by Aarion. When they got to the top, they found themselves in a sort of open mall. It was a bit small, having a card shop, two or three food stands, a clothing store, and most excitingly, upper-society lavatories. Staying in the wild for a few weeks definitely had hygiene-related effects.
So after visiting the bathhouses for an hour or so, the refreshed quartet made a beeline straight for the card shops. "Finally, I don't have to carry my deck in my backpack any more!" Adriel was gawking at a small black metal deck carrier with a gold dragon silhouette. It was complicated- a place for the deck, side deck, and fusion deck, respectively. And ever since he forgot his deck box at home, Adriel was anxious about the condition of his cards. He immediately rushed in, but stopped when he remembered that Aldrai, Mystic, and himself had all pooled points. "Um, guys, you don't mind, do you?" Mystic grinned. "Well, let's see...we have...a few hundred left, I guess buying cards so freely wasn't such a good idea...sorry, Adriel..." Both of them hung their heads. "Hey, don't worry. I have points too, remember?" Aarion grinned as the other three's heads snapped around to face him.
"So now your total is...7,562 points." Mystic and Aldrai stared at Aarion. "How the heck..." Aarion laughed. "Eliminators get 2000 points to start off with, seeing as how they're going to need to buy good cards to eliminate weaker duelists, which is what we're hired for. And of course, we still get the 500 point bonus for winning duels. Finally, I'm one guy. I don't need to buy a lot to survive in this tournament." Adriel ran up with the box, giddy. "It's 1500 points, okay?" Mystic did some quick calculation. "50 points is 3 dollars...50 into 1500 is 30...so that's...90 DOLLARS?!?!" Adriel grinned sheepishly. "Don't worry, if that's how it works, then we have 453.72. 90 is nothing, so go ahead. In fact, dividing this up equally, the food on this level is free since there are only eight finalists, so we each have 113.43 to spend, which equates to about 1890 points each."
Adriel gave the box to the shopkeeper, who asked "Hey, your name Adriel?" He nodded. "Good, hold on a few minutes. Browse for a while." The four did just that, until the shopkeeper returned, with the name 'Adriel' engraved in gold on the box with detailed lettering. "There you go." Adriel gave the man his DuelDisk so he could take off 1500 points. "No, that's okay. It's free for you. And all the finalists." Adriel took the box, stunned. "Hey wait, why is there a price tag, then? I mean, everyone on this level is a finalist." said Mystic. "No, not everyone. Any spectators who came along can also buy the boxes, although it'd come out of the accounts of the people they're with. But according to what you just said, you three are also finalists. Hold on..." He looked at his computer. "Aldrai, Matthew, and Aarion, then? The other four have already passed through, you might've seen them already." The three nodded. "But I like to be called 'Mystic', not Matthew, sir." The shopkeeper nodded. "Okay then, give me a sec." The group went back to browsing. Adriel already had his deck out, so he was looking at cards that he could replace in his deck. The other three didn't bother getting their decks out, but thought about new strategies to use in the finals.
"Okay, here they are." The shopkeeper held out three boxes. Aldrai's was a royal blue color with a silver sword on his, while Mystic's was steel blue with an orange pentagram. Finally, Aarion's was a misty black with a lime green dragon symbol, a bit more dark-looking than Adriel's. Finally, the group took a bunch of slips from displays of cards. "We'd like to buy these sets, please." The shopkeeper came back with a bunch of cellophane-sealed card sets, giving them to their new owners. "Thanks!" They left and went to the food court. "Ahhh...fast food! I'm tired of my own cooking!" said Adriel. "Yeah...it's nice to eat for free at places like this, although some of the food is a bit odd-looking to me." Replied Mystic. "Try it, it's good." They ate for a while, before the light began to disappear. Their DuelDisks were forced on and the monitors swung out. "Hey, it's Kaiba!" shouted Aldrai.
"Duelists, the time has come for the finals. I'm happy to say that everything went according to plan, and only eight of you are left. The last few boats with the final losers just set sail for the mainland. Now all of you, get inside the dome that should be appearing in the middle of the stage in a few seconds." As Kaiba said this, a giant red circle appeared on the ground. The four ran inside it as two glass half-domes began to rise from the ground. The dirt around them was blown away to reveal large engines attached to the bottom of the half-dome via long metal rods. "Just for you, I've stationed helicopters around the island to show you what you're really standing on." As the picture of the sun finally succumbed to the shadow that was overtaking it, eclipsing it completely, the rest of the island exploded, leaving a sturdy metal skeleton. In the center of the island was an upside- down column of long, thin receivers attached to the bottom of the dome. Another few seconds passed as the skeleton's base exploded into giant shards of metal as the wiry part above ground exploded at various joints, totaling the island. The dome-shuttle mobilized the instant it started sinking into the water. "You'll arrive in an hour or two. Your ride should be pleasant, as I've taken great pains to nullify the g-forces that should be acting upon you at such a speed and altitude. Wave goodbye to Earth!" Adriel, Aldrai, and Mystic flopped onto the ground to watch the smoking ruins get smaller, and eventually disappear into the huge ocean. "I hope all the people who were working on the island are okay..." A few small shapes were seen heading away. "It's the boats!" Eventually, the edges of the mainland also appeared. "Wow, we must be high up!" exclaimed Aldrai. "Yeah. Look up." said Mystic. The moon was becoming more and more visible. "No way...we're dueling in space?!" shouted Adriel. "Yes, that's right." said a familiar voice. The four duelists wheeled around to see a familiar face that wasn't too familiar. "You...you're Seto Kaiba's grandson!" stammered Mystic. "Yes, I am. And according to what I know about you, you're Matthew Galloway, and your friends here are Adriel Zaytel, Aldrai Kastien, and Aarion Aranith. "But wait, that's not-" started Adriel, but the Millennium Eye glowed faintly, and he understood why Aarion had lied about his name. "That's not what?" asked Kaiba. "Nothing. I thought you had one of our names wrong, but I guess it was a mispronunciation." Kaiba nodded. "Anyway, I'm just telling the eight of you that remain that I'm not in the finals, but the winner out of the eight of you gets to duel me for a grand prize. And you'll just have to wait to find out what that prize is." He left. "Okay...that was weird. I wonder when we get there?" asked Aldrai. Aarion and Adriel walked off, talking, while Aldrai and Mystic gazed into space. About an hour later, the four duelists were found asleep. Suddenly, a large jolt woke them. Gravity was gone, so the dome was now upside down and facing Earth. The moon was gone. The DuelDisks activated again as Kaiba spoke from a hatch that had been opened near the center of the platform. "Rails will be dropping down and meeting in the center of the dome. Grab onto them and pull your way to the exit. When all of you are out, the hatch will automatically shut down and artificial gravity will assert itself. Be ready." Eight spiked rails slowly came out of holes in the bottom of the platform. When they hit the dome, the spikes extended, making the dome look like a bit of a maze. The four grabbed hold of a spike, climbed to the main pole, and climbed down to the exit. The nine of them climbed into a long elevator. Looking around the room, there was of course Adriel, Aldrai, Mystic, Aarion, Kaiba, and also Sean, who had apparently not been eliminated. "Hey Aldrai." said Sean. Aldrai waved. Apart from Sean, there was tall, blonde boy wearing casual clothes and an aloof look in his eyes. There was also a blonde girl, tall and thin, wearing designer clothes. Finally, there was a brown-haired boy who looked kind of nerdy, short and a little more than thin. These were the other four duelists in the finals. Kaiba spoke. "Go ahead and choose your opponents now, because I'm not going to have random pairings like my grandfather's Battle City tournament." Sean motioned towards Aldrai, but Aldrai was already attacking the nerdy kid, forcing the name 'Hunter' out of him. Instead, Aarion floated up to the fiend master. "My name is Aarion. I want to duel you." Sean nodded. Mystic said 'hi' to the blonde girl, who giggled a bit seductively. "I'm Aria." Adriel had already shaken hands with the blonde guy. "I'm Michael Tsunami, descendant of Mako Tsunami!" Adriel instinctively knew what to prepare for. "Good, so we don't have to go through introductions when we get to the main station. Which is right about now." Said Kaiba as the elevator docked with the station. The group pulled on various handholds to get out, landing with a harsh bump as they climbed back into gravity. A tall suit walked up to them and handed each an envelope. "Inside is a key card to your room and one or more last items that might help you in your experience as a finalist. Now then, choose an opponent-" The suit was cut off as Kaiba said, "Already done that. You all have probably eaten, but if not, there's maps in your rooms. Other than that, there's no bedtime, but I suggest you get some sleep if at all possible." He stalked off and the suit followed him. "Alright...good night, I guess." Adriel left, and the others didn't wait too long to do the same. As they found their rooms, they went in to find all sorts of dueling paraphernalia, including a modified gaming system that was edited to keep track of a player's deck and hold duel simulations. As Adriel threw the envelope onto his large bed, a card slipped out of it. "The final Blue Eyes..." Aldrai opened his door. Immediately, he put his things down and inspected all of the items on the desk next to his bed. "I can use this..."he dropped what he was carrying onto his bed and grabbed the envelope, pulling out a card. "What's this? Black Luster Soldier-Envoy of the Beginning, Freed The Matchless General, Freed The Brave Wanderer, and Marauding Captain..." As with Aldrai, Mystic dumped his stuff and looked at the pile of gizmos on his desk. "Hmm...wonder what that guy meant by 'items that might help'." He opened the envelope and dumped out the rest of the cards. "Dark Magician of Chaos, Dedication through Light and Darkness, Breaker the Magical Warrior, and Diffusion Wave-Motion...cool." Aarion stalked into his room and dumped the envelope's contents onto his bed. "There's nothing else he could've given me...I have every card I need for my deck theme." He looked at the one card that fell out. "Of course he'd do that to me..."
All eight of the duelists in the space station prepared their decks, working on themes for the next day, and trying to come up with innovative tricks. And the next morning, all of them were exhausted and exhilarated at the same time. The TV screens flashed on at nine in the morning and the image of an alarm clock and the sound of a loud alarm made themselves present in every room. Ten seconds later, the face of Kaiba appeared on the screen. "Good morning, duelists. You have an hour to prepare for the match. Remember, the pairings are Aldrai Kastien versus Hunter Danaus, Sean Kahland versus Aarion Aranith, Matthew Galloway versus Aria Donella, and Adriel Zaytel versus Michael Tsunami. The order is random, because it all depends on who gets to the platform first. And of course, some of you might want to freshen up first, eat something...whatever suits your mood. The first pair to step into their dueling stations will be going last, the second pair third, the third pair second, and the last pair will be the first to duel.
Immediately, Adriel and Aarion started to head towards the arena. Aldrai went down to eat, and Mystic decided to have one last practice duel. Sean also headed to the arena, but the other three went down to eat. The first duelist to arrive was Aarion. Kaiba nodded to him from the center of the circular chamber. He looked around. There were eight small things that looked like roller coaster cars in a large circle. Each platform was a different color, apparently corresponding to the deck box given to the duelists on the last stage. Aarion went across the room to his. The computer screen in front of him displayed instructions on what to do before the finals started. As the others arrived, they also found their platforms and read the instructions, placing the deck boxes in a depression in the desk for verification. A plug was sticking out of the computer, and each duelist had to plug their DuelDisks into it. Upon doing so, the computer and DuelDisk were both activated. Kaiba was still in the center, standing by a small computer terminal.
"Congratulations, all eight of you have arrived. The order of dueling will be Adriel versus Michael, followed by Aldrai versus Hunter, Mystic versus Aria, and Aarion versus Sean. As you can see, each of you is standing at a duel terminal. Notice you and your opponent are facing each other from directly across the room. Much like the Battle City competition's Battle Royale, the two duelists dueling will be raised up gradually, depending on how many life points they lose. At the end of the duel, the winner will be shot up to the top of the station, while the loser will descend and join me on this platform. At the end of the first round, the four losers will accompany me in going to the top from the platform I'm standing on now, so we can watch the last two rounds. When the next two duelists are eliminated, they must dismount their platforms, which will drop back down.
"I should warn you that at any time, if necessary, the dueling platforms might drop down and rotate in order to make the two duelists face each other. So if you get nauseous, there's a bag under the computer. Finally, the winner of the finals will have a chance to duel me for a grand prize, which you will learn more about upon the moment when the victor of the finals is announced. And without further ado, let the finals begin!"
*~End~*
Author's Note
Okay, there was that chapter. I should tell you, something will be...interrupting...the finals. And it's not a virtual world with a 7-year old kid terrorizing a bunch of teenagers.