The next chapter! I'll be updating slower over the next couple weeks, with finals coming up, but I'll update when I can! Enjoy! I don't own Yugioh GX.

Asuka gaped. This had to be a joke, right? Sure, Judai had said that he knew a great restaurant near the site of their next duel, but Asuka hadn't been expecting this.

"Remind me why we're here, Judai?" Asuka asked.

This was one of the fanciest restaurants in town, a place that boasted a great deal of business from the Supreme King himself. It wasn't the sort of place that you just walked into in the middle of the day, dressed like...well, like Judai and herself. At least know I know how Judai knows a restaurant here in town...

"Because I thought I'd treat you to lunch, that's why," Judai answered. "Why? Want to eat somewhere else?"

"Judai!" Asuka was blushing all of a sudden. This was a place where the nobles often ate, and any man who was planning on proposing would try to find some way to afford to bring his girlfriend here. Definitely not the sort of place that you would choose for a casual meal with a friend. "We're in the middle of a tournament!"

"And the middle of the day, meaning it's lunch time. Just because there's a tournament going on doesn't mean we don't need to stop for food now and again. Besides, our next duel's outside of this restaurant, so we're still where we need to be."

Asuka was just thinking Judai was way too sly for his own good when she remembered that Misawa had picked out the dueling sites. Daichi Misawa, when I get my hands on you...

Judai dragged Asuka through the front door and up to the podium, where a waiter stood. The waiter eyed them distastefully, making Asuka feel subconscious.

"Don't you feel a little out of place, though, Judai? I mean, we're not exactly dressed for lunch in a fancy restaurant."

"Aw, come on! You look fine," Judai said. "Besides, it doesn't matter anyway." He walked up to the podium, and the waiter raised an eyebrow at them.

"Sir, can I help you?" he asked.

"Yeah, I need a table for two," Judai answered smoothly.

"Do you have a reservation?"

"Not really." Judai shrugged. "But I figured you could get me a table anyway."

"No registration, no service. We're extremely busy, today, 'sir.'"

Judai raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Get out."

"Aw, come on, pal!" Judai said. "Please don't make me play that card..."

"What card?"

"Prince of Neo Space."

The man laughed. "Oh, that's rich! Yeah, you the prince!? Dressed like that!?" He laughed again. "I don't think so!"

With a sigh, Judai rolled up his sleeve. "Then what's this?" he asked, pointing to a mark on his arm. Asuka's eyes widened slightly—the royal birthmark. Was he seriously flashing a mark on his arm to gain access to this place?

Asuka thought the poor guy was going to have a heart attack as he stared at the mark on Judai's arm. "T-that's—"

"So, what do you say?" Judai asked, pulling his sleeve back down. "Can you serve us or not?"

"Oh, yes, right away, sir! I'm sorry, no disrespect intended! I just—we weren't expecting you today!"

Judai shrugged. "Hey, it's no big deal, man. Just get me and the lady a table. And don't tell anyone else who I am, got it? I don't want everyone staring. Feels like being in a zoo, and I don't like zoos."

"Oh, yes, sir! Absolutely! My lips are sealed."

He led them to a curtained-off area, where there was only one table. Asuka wasn't sure that they should be doing this. After all, people called and made reservations months in advance, and here they were taking someone's table! This place was always booked solid.

"Judai," she whispered. "Maybe we shouldn't be doing this. I mean, there's somebody else coming who's going to want their table."

"And they'll have it, Asuka. Don't worry."

The waiter handed them their menus, smiling—he was doing his best to kiss up now that he knew who this was.

"What can I get you to drink?" the waiter asked, his pen at the ready.

"I think you know what I'll have," Judai answered. The waiter nodded and scribbled something down.

"And for the lady?"

"I'll have an iced tea, please," Asuka answered, feeling slightly self-conscious. She really shouldn't have been here, with Judai, dressed like this. It just wasn't right.

"Very well, I'll return shortly with your drinks." The waiter turned and walked off.

Once they were alone, Asuka turned to Judai and said, "So, you come here often? I thought the manager was exaggerating about how many times your family's been in his restaurant!"

"It's my mom's favorite restaurant from when she lived in town, so my dad brings her out here for their anniversary and her birthday. I get to tag along on her birthday, so I've grown used to this place. By the way, don't worry about us taking anyone's table. The manager has one that's always on reserve for if my family suddenly drops in. As you can see, it's hidden away from prying eyes, just in case I should ever drop in with a girl," he teased, making Asuka blush. With a grin, Judai added, "He's trying to get a job as a chef in the castle, so he's kissing up to us."

"O-oh. So you knew you could just barge in here, flash your title, and get a table." Her tone indicated that she thought this was in poor taste.

He frowned. "Well, when you put it that way, it sounds bad. I just wanted to treat you to some of the best food in town, that's all. I mean, you deserve the best."

Asuka couldn't help but blush. "Judai..."

"Here are your drinks, sir," the waiter said, placing two glasses on the table in front of Judai and Asuka. "So, are you ready to order?"

"I'll have my usual," Judai answered.

Asuka glanced at the menu, then said, "I'll just have a salad."

The waiter nodded, taking note. "Alright. It will be a few minutes." He turned and left to give their orders to the chef.

This had to be the most awkward moment of Asuka's life: sitting here in a fancy restaurant with the prince of Neo Space, dressed in such an inappropriate outfit, about to eat lunch when they were in the middle of a tournament.

"Relax, Asuka," Judai said, grinning. "You look nervous. You know, there isn't anyone hiding under the table, and I'm not planning on drugging you or anything."

Asuka smiled slightly. "Judai..."

The waiter came back at that moment, but he didn't have their orders yet. "I'm sorry, sir, but there's someone outside asking if there are any duelists here who are in the tournament."

Judai sighed, standing up. "That would be us. How long do you think it'll be til our food's ready?"

"Well," the waiter said, smirking slightly at Judai's annoyance, "I could easily delay your order for you, sir."

"Great!" Judai said. "You're getting one heckuva tip for that one! Just try to make sure it's ready when we're done, okay?" He turned to Asuka. "Come on, let's go duel!"

Asuka got up, very much relieved that they had been interrupted. "Right!"

"So, you two are our opponents?" a man in a military uniform asked as Johan and Yubel ran over.

"Yeah, that's us!" Johan said. "I'm Johan, and this is Yubel."

The man nodded. "I'm General Tony Claymont. This here's my son, Andrew."

The younger man, probably in his early twenties, waved at the introduction. Now that Johan stopped and thought about it, these two did look alike; they had the same gray eyes and brown hair, although Andrew's was longer and pulled back into a ponytail. Like his father, he wasn't really dressed for a duel—he was dressed for an archaeological dig. Everything from his shoes to his hat just screamed archeology.

"Alright," Yubel said. "Now that the introductions are out of the way, can we get on with the duel?"

General Claymont laughed. "Spunky...I like that! Reminds me of Andy's mother."

"Dad!" Andrew said, looking annoyed. "I told you, it's ANDREW."

"Sorry, son. I forgot."

Andrew rolled his eyes, mumbling something about early-onset Alzheimer's.

"Uh, anyway, let's duel!" Johan said, trying to change the subject.

Yubel and Johan: 8000
The Claymonts: 8000

"I'll go first, if you don't mind!" Yubel said, drawing her card. "I'll play a monster in face-down defense position, throw one card face down, and end my turn."

"I'll go next!" General Claymont said. "I summon Electro Gunner in attack mode!" (1800)

A floating robot with cannons for arms appeared on the general's field.

"That'll do it for me. Turn end."

Johan drew his card. "I summon Crystal Beast Topaz Tiger!" (Atk 1600)

A topaz appeared on Johan's field, shattering as a tiger burst out of it. The tiger had a white horn on its head, spikes on its legs, and a topaz on the side of its neck.

"Next, I'll activate Crystal Tree!"

A small tree, with no leaves or anything, appeared on Johan's field.

"What's that?" General Claymont asked. "We're dueling, not gardening! Dueling is war, son!"

Johan rubbed the back of his head. "You're taking this too seriously, don't you think? Anyway, that's it for me. Turn end."

"Then it's my turn," Andrew said, drawing his card. "I summon Thousand-Eyed Ghost!" (Def 1000)

A really creepy, spherical mummy that seemed to be made almost entirely of eyes appeared on Andrew's field.

"Next, I'll play one card face down and end my turn."

Yubel drew her next card. "Well, I see we've come full circle. Okay, then, I'll flip summon my Ryko, Lightsworn Hunter! When this card is flipped face-up, I destroy one card on the field and send the top three cards of my deck to the graveyard. So, Andrew, I think I'll get rid of that worrisome face-down card of yours."

Ryko pounced, destroying the selected card and leaving Andrew looking pretty ticked off. Yubel smirked as she sent three cards from her deck to the graveyard.

"Oh. Well, would you look at that? One of the cards I just sent to the graveyard was Wulf, Lightsworn Beast! This card can only be summoned when he's sent from my deck to the graveyard, so it looks like he gets to come out and play!" (Atk 2100)

A humanoid wolf in white and gold armor with glowing claws appeared on the field.

"Now, I'll sacrifice Ryko to summon Gragonith, Lightsworn Dragon!" (Atk 2000)

A white dragon appeared on Yubel's field, clad in white and gold armor. It had a golden mane and tail and red horns on its head.

"Gragonith gains 300 attack points for each Lightsworn monster in my grave with a different name. Ryko makes one, and there were two sent to the grave a minute ago by Ryko's effect, so Gragonith gains 900 attack points!" (Atk 2900)

"What!? Aw, man!" the general exclaimed.

Yubel just smiled. "Yeah. I get that a lot." Getting serious, she said, "Gragonith, attack that mummy!"

Gragonith opened its mouth and fired a burst of light at Thousand-Eyed Ghost, destroying it.

"When my Thousand-Eyed Ghost leaves the field, I can summon a level four or lower monster from my deck! I summon my Three-Eyed Ghost!" (Def 900)

Going along with the ancient Egypt theme, this one resembled the headdresses worn by ancient Egyptian nobles, though the head it rested on had a third eye in the middle of its forehead.

"Now for the rest of Gragonith's special ability—when it attacks a defending monster, the difference is dealt as damage to the opponent!"

Yubel and Johan: 8000
The Claymonts: 6100

"Now Wulf attacks Electro Gunner!"

Wulf slashed through the robot, tearing it to ribbons.

Yubel and Johan: 8000
The Claymonts: 5800

"That about does it for me. Though, at this moment, I send three cards from the top of my deck to the graveyard due to Gragonith's ability."

"How many abilities does that thing have!?" Andrew asked, gaping.

"That's the last one," Yubel said, sending three cards to the grave. "But, oh, look at that... Another Lightsworn in the grave. That means Gragonith's attack rises to 3200. It's your turn, General."

"Alrighty, then, little lady. I'll show you how it's done where I come from!" he said as he drew his next card. "I'll start by summoning Sergeant Electro!" (Atk 1600)

Sergeant Electro was a white robot that bore some resemblance to Electro Gunner, though this one had a machine gun for one hand and a blade for the other.

"Are you going senile, old man?" Yubel asked. "Gragonith has way more attack points than that monster."

"True, but who said I was attacking Gragonith? My target's that tiger of your partner's!"

"They're tied, thought!" Johan protested. "You'll take your own monster out, too!"

General Claymont wagged a finger at him. "Not after I activate this!" He held up a card. "Electronic Motor! This continuous spell raises the attack of all machine-type monsters on my field by 300 points, meaning Sergeant Electro has enough points to take out your tiger, boy!"

Sergeant Electro fired its machine gun at Topaz Tiger, destroying it.

Yubel and Johan: 7700
The Claymonts: 5800

A topaz appeared on Johan's field, next to the Crystal Tree.

"Wait, what's going on here?" the general asked.

"When a Crystal Beast is destroyed, it stays on the field as a crystal in my spell and trap zone," Johan explained.

General Claymont looked slightly annoyed, but he continued, "Sergeant Electro has a special effect. Once per turn, I can pick one face-down card of yours, and that card can't be activated as long as Sergeant Electro is on the field. Yubel, your card is the only one right now, so I'll disable it! Then I set one card and end my turn."

"It's back to me, then!" Johan said, drawing. "I summon Crystal Beast Amethyst Cat!" (Atk 1200)

A pink cat burst out of a purple gemstone that appeared on Johan's field.

"Amethyst Cat can attack the opponent directly, but only with half her attack points. So, Amethyst Cat, attack them directly!"

Yubel and Johan: 7700
The Claymonts: 5200

General Claymont shook his head. "Boy, I gotta tell ya, I haven't had a duel like this in quite awhile."

Yubel smirked. "If you think this is impressive, wait until you see our ace cards."

"We've got some aces of our own, you know," the general said casually. "Maybe you'll get to see them."

Johan was suddenly excited. He wanted to see these cards of theirs. He just hoped the duel would last long enough to give them a chance to play them. "I play one card face down and end my turn."

"It's back to me, then," Andrew said. "I'll start by summoning another Thousand-Eyed Ghost! Then, I'll equip it with Prominence and destroy it!"

Johan blinked. "Why would you do that?"

"Because that dragon over there is a real pain, that's why!" Andrew answered. "Using this card this way lets me destroy every card on your field, and you take 500 damage for each monster destroyed this way!"

With the demise of Thousand-Eyed Ghost, all of the cards on Yubel and Johan's field were destroyed, including Wulf, Gragonith, and Amethyst Cat.

Yubel and Johan: 6200
The Claymonts: 5200

"Next, because of Thousand-Eyed Ghost's effect, I summon One-Eyed Ghost in defense mode!" (500)

A mummy with a golden eye appeared.

"Then I'll play a card face down and end my turn."

Yubel glared. "Took out Gragonith that easily, huh? Well, that's just fine." She gave an evil, demented smirk. "You've just set the stage for my most powerful creature. Are you ready? Because I've got four Lightsworn monsters in my graveyard, and something's itching to come out!"

Johan looked over at his partner. "Yubel...you mean, you've got...?"

"No."

Johan wanted to hit her for that.

"But I will in a minute! I activate Monster Reincarnation! By sending one card from my hand to the grave, I can exchange it for a monster that's in my graveyard. And I think I'll summon that monster right away! When there are four or more Lightsworn monsters in my graveyard, I can special summon the Judgment Dragon!" (Atk 3000)

Johan never got tired of seeing it—that enormous white dragon put many other monsters to shame, and it was so much easier to summon than his own dragon. Yubel's deck was meant to take opponents out as quickly as possible, which made sense since she used a deck that destroyed itself each turn. General Claymont and Andrew stepped back, staring in awe.

"What is that?" the general asked, obviously stunned.

"The most powerful card in my deck, the Judgment Dragon," Yubel answered. And you're about to see what it does, too. By paying 1000 life points, I can destroy all other cards on the field!"

Yubel and Johan: 5200
The Claymonts: 5200

"What!?" Andrew exclaimed. Right after he said this, all of the cards on the field were wiped out in a flash of light, leaving only the Judgment Dragon standing.

"You have some sort of card-destroying fetish, don't you?" an obviously annoyed Andrew said.

Yubel just laughed. "Hey, whatever it takes to win. After all, we can't afford to lose this duel. You two work for Prince Ojin!"

"Huh?" Johan looked at Yubel. "They do?"

"You're worse than Judai sometimes, Johan. Of course they do! I wouldn't be surprised if they had some of the stolen Planet series cards, too. Those are those 'ace cards' of yours, aren't they?"

General Claymont looked extremely uncomfortable. "Stolen...it's such an ugly word, don't you think? I mean, all's fair in love and war, and this ain't love!"

Andrew closed his eyes, looking annoyed. "Dad, you've all but admitted it now." He looked at Yubel and asked, "How did you know?"

"I'm a close friend of the Neo-Spacian prince, so I hear about war issues and such. Your father's name has come up before when I went to sneak the prince out of council meetings. If you were asking how I knew you had the Planet series, I got a text message earlier, saying that Misgarth had sent in a spy a long time ago who had taken the cards, and the cards themselves were all in this tournament."

Andrew just shook his head, obviously stunned.

"So, since I'm well aware that you two are carrying stolen property, if Johan and I win this duel, you'll fork it over, got it?"

"And what if we win?" General Claymont asked.

"Well, that's a good question. How about we give you our most powerful cards."

Johan looked at Yubel, wondering what exactly she was getting at. Bad feeling...

"My Judgment Dragon and Johan's ace card."

"Yubel! You can't do that!"

"You going to stop me, Andersen?"

Normally when Yubel addressed him this way, he would back down. But not this time. "Yes, actually, I am! I refuse your stupid ante! That's my family you're talking about! I'm not going to risk any of them in a duel!"

Yubel shrugged. "Fine, then. It's useless on its own anyway. I'll just offer up my whole deck. How does that sound?"

"Sounds good to me!" General Claymont said. "You've got yourself a deal."

Yubel smirked. "Great. Okay, then. I'll end it this turn."

General Claymont looked confused. "Hold on, little lady. We still have 5200 life points left! You've only got one monster, and it only has 3000 points! How are you gonna end this in one turn?"

"Watch," Yubel said, taking a card from her hand. "I activate Monster Reborn to bring back Gragonith, Lightsworn Dragon! (Atk 2000) Don't forget, his special ability gives him 300 points for each Lightsworn in my graveyard. With Ryko, Wulf, Jain, Aurkus, and Celestia, my dragon gains 1500 attack points, for a grand total of 3500!"

The general looked pretty worried now. "Now, hold on one minute, young lady! You're telling me you made that bet with us when you knew you would win this turn!?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Yubel said, shrugging. "Now, Judgment Dragon and Gragonith, attack them directly!

Yubel and Johan: 5200
The Claymonts: 0

General Claymont went into a fit of rage. "That's not right! How dare you trick us like that!?"

"Hey, I never said you'd get another turn," Yubel said, shrugging. "You just assumed that you would. It's fair. Remember, 'all's fair in love and war, and this ain't love.'"

The general opened his mouth to retort, but realized she had just turned his own words against him and stamped his foot instead. Andrew just laughed.

"Come on, Dad, you've got to admit, she's good. Besides, weren't we going to give them back the Planet series cards if we lost, anyway?"

"Wait, you were? Then why did you take the bet?" Johan asked.

"Because my father is a shameless gambler, that's why. Sorry about that."

Andrew snatched his father's deck, flipping through it until he found what he was looking for, then handing the rest back to the general. He removed a card from his own deck as well.

"Honestly, with how poorly my father and I work together, I'm surprised we lasted this long. I'm not really much of a duelist... I was lassoed into this by my dad. But, anyway, here. The Blazing Mars and The Supremacy Sun. They're yours."

Yubel took the cards from Andrew, smiling. "Well, for a man from Misgarth, you're surprisingly decent."

"You shouldn't judge us based on rumors," Andrew said quietly. "If I've learned anything today."

The cryptic response sounded vaguely flirtatious, making Yubel blush. Johan gritted his teeth in annoyance.

"Yeah, that's great, Andrew. Anyway, Yubel and I need to get to our next duel, if you don't mind!" He grabbed Yubel's hand and pulled her away from the older man.

"Johan?" Yubel asked, seemingly stunned.

"Come on! This tournament isn't going to win itself!"

Yubel smiled, thinking she had a pretty good idea what was bothering Johan. "Idiot..."

Andrew shook his head. "Well, that wasn't exactly planned, was it?"

"You're telling me!" his father said. "I was hoping to be out of this tournament sooner! Sheesh, the duelists in this place are terrible! Now, when I lived in Neo Space, we had some pretty good duelists."

Smiling, Andrew said, "Well, let's hope that this prince can defeat Ojin. Otherwise, this kingdom is doomed."

"You're sure that psychic said that Misgarth was leading the world to ruin?"

"With that satellite and the cryptic information about planets, what else could it mean? The Planet series, SORA, Misgarth's desire for more power... I just wish I knew what she meant by 'deadly bright.'"

His father shrugged. "Well, it's not like it's our problem anymore. I say we leave it up to this Neo-Spacian prince to resolve. With any luck, he's at least half as good as his two friends were!"

Andrew nodded. "Yes, hopefully." He glanced in the direction Yubel and Johan had headed. "Or maybe those two can defeat Ojin. You never know, after all."

"Let's not get carried away, son," his father said, patting him on the shoulder. "Come on, let's go."

The two headed home, their goal achieved.