A good day to all. So, it's summer time. The season where everyone's just glad school's over. The season of beaches, vacations or just being plain lazy. It's a shame I can't have any of that just yet. Damn you life!
Enough ranting; back to the story. I will finally release one of many original card decks and themes that I have created over the years. I sure hope you like it, and don't worry if you get nothing from simply reading the chapter; all card details, effects, lore, etc. will be explained in the afterword.
Last time on Beyond the Academy:
Jaden and Alexis meet up after a long while, and with that things are starting to look bright for our young protagonist, but with the light come shadows...
Thank you for following the story up until now! You guys make writing so rewarding!
So what are you waiting for; GET YOUR GAME ON!
Chapter 7: The Next Generation
Part 1
Morning dawned on the Rhode's household. Alexis, who got up a little earlier then usual, dressed into a casual outfit, consisting of a light blue sweater and matching blue jeans, along with a pair of white socks. After brushing her teeth, and doing the usual bathroom check-up, she sat down at her desk, thinking of the events that had happened on the previous night.
"I got to see Jaden again! Man, he hasn't changed a bit, yet at the same time, it's like he's gotten a lot more manlier since the last time I saw him," she thought while blushing, then her blush turned into a frown. "Though it might be just me hallucinating, or dreaming that I saw him. After all, it wouldn't be the first time... No, that was definitely him. After all, no one else that I know of is that naive. " She sighed, then exited her room. After leaving her room, she ran into Atticus on the way down.
"Morning, little sis," he yawned.
"Yeah, morning Atty. Where's Mac? Wasn't she with you?" she asked.
"She went down for breakfast already. It's kind of hard to believe that she's such a light sleeper," he commented, before suggesting "Anyways, why don't you go wake Jaden up for breakfast."
"Sure thing. If he's still the same guy, then he'd still be snoozing like there's no tomorrow," she sighed.
"Well then, maybe you should wake your sleeping prince with a kiss," he teased. "Smooch, smooch,..." he stopped after seeing his sister in front of him, ready to beat the crap out of him.
"Say that again, and even the cops won't recognize you when I'm done," she said in a calm, irritated voice, with an emotionless expression.
Atticus's face went pale, and his limbs went numb. "Y-ye-yes, sis," was all he could mutter, as he slowly made his way back down to the kitchen.
"Honestly, that brother of mine," she sighed, as she began to calm down "something like kissing..." she blushed at the thought, then shook her head, while saying, "No, no, no, no! I'm just going to wake him up." After resolving herself, she went to his room, and knocked on the door. "Hey Jaden, you up? It's breakfatst" she asked. After several seconds without a reply, she assumed that he was asleep, and decided to wake him up. She slowly opened the door, and took a look around. On the bed, she saw Jaden all sprawled over, drooling and talking in his sleep.
"But I don't wanna eat anymore celery, mommy. I'm a big boy now! Why can't we have fried shrimp instead!" he said while smiling "MMMM! Fried Shrimp..." and with that last phrase, he began drooling even more.
"Fried Shrimp. Why am I not surprised?" she sighed. She then moved over to the side of the bed, and began calling out to him "Wake up Jaden, it's morning. Breakfast's ready." Jaden just turned around to the side, revealing a slightly exposed chest. Alexis blushed a little. "Wow! Jaden's chest is actually quite well-built and muscular. Are all guys like that?" she thought.
At that moment, Jaden opened his eyes and said "Huh? What happened? What was I doing?" as he yawned.
"Morning sleepyhead," said Alexis.
"Oh, morning Alexis. What's up?" he smiled at her.
"At least be a little concerned. A girl just walked right into your room. Shouldn't you be nervous, or better yet, shocked?" she asked.
"Yeah, but it's you Alexis. We're friends, aren't we? I'm sure you just wanted to wake me up, cause I slept too long, like any good friend would, so why would I find it weird? Plus, it's not like you haven't been in my room before," he stated.
Alexis sighed, and said "We really need to work on that innocent personality of yours. Anyways, breakfast's ready, so come down after you get changed," and with that, she left his room.
"Well, better get ready. Wouldn't want to keep the waiting any longer," he said. Jaden then got up and changed into a new pair of dark blue jeans, a black short-sleeved shirt, and a red jacket that was similar to his Slifer red jacket from his academy days, only not as torn and muddy as it is now. On his way out, Yubel appeared. "Oh, morning Yubel! You find Pharaoh yet?" he asked.
"Yes, I did. He actually spent the night with the maids. Apparently to them, he was 'cute and squishy', and they spent the time feeding him and petting him. Right now, he's on Alexis's lap, and she's currently feeding him again," she answered.
"That little rascal! What am I going to do with him?" he sighed "Well, he'll just have to walk the weight off later, I guess." As he moved towards the staircase, Yubel stopped him.
"Wait Jaden," she said.
"Huh. What is it, Yubel?" he asked.
Yubel paused for a moment, before shaking her head and saying, "It's nothing. Forgive me, Jaden."
"Is that so?" he asked. "Well, I'm off to eat!"
Part 2
Jaden stepped into the kitchen, to find that the others were waiting for him to arrive.
"Morning Jay. What kept ya? You know that it's a golden rule not to let your girlfriend wait for you... OUCH!" Atticus cried out, as Mac pulled his cheek.
"Please don't start something so early in the morning," Mac said, as she glared at him, which made him freeze up.
"Still, you didn't have to pull my cheek," he complained, as he began rubbing his sore cheek.
"I'll keep that in mind" laughed Jaden, as he sat at the table. "Man, this is some awesome grub," he said, marveling at the food that was on the table.
"Well, they only cook this much when we have guests," said Alexis "Looks like it's your lucky day, Jay."
"Yes it is! Thank you for the food!" With that, he dug in.
After breakfast, the group was sitting in the living room, watching the latest dueling news, when Atticus remembered something. "Oh, right! Sis, did you tell Jaden about that?" he asked.
Alexis looked confused, before remembering the same thing. "No, I didn't. Thanks for reminding me, Atty," she said, then turned towards Jaden and continued. "Actually Jay, we received an invitation from duel academy."
"An invitation. What for?" he asked.
"Apparently, Chancellor Sheppard wants to host a reunion of our 'golden generation' of duel academy. It seems like our graduating class was the best in the academy's long history. It's going to happen next week. Atty and I both got our invitations just a couple of days ago, and Mac's coming with us as a special guest from Duel Academy America," she explained.
"That's funny, I never actually got one," he said.
"Maybe you should ask your parents, Jaden. It might've been sent to your house," Mac pointed out.
"Great idea, Mac! I'll check with them in a bit. Also Alexis, could you give me Syrus's number?" Jaden requested.
"Syrus? Don't you have his number?" she asked, confused.
"I did, just like I had yours, but Kaiba made me get a new phone, and I lost all my contacts, partially because, well, I'm not good with phones. That's also why I haven't been able to stay in touch with you," he said with a sad smile.
"Don't worry about it too much, Jay. You're here now, and that's all that matters. Anyways, here's the number," she smiled, as she wrote down the number on a small piece of paper. Jaden took the number from Alexis, then excused himself, and made his way upwards to talk to his old friend, and 'little bro'.
In the middle of the city, at a small eatery, sat a short boy with light blue hair. He wore a pair of small sized glasses, which was probably his most distinguishing feature, other then his hair. The others in the place had already recognized him. "Hey, isn't that kid the pro duelist Truesdale." "Yeah, it's him. Man, he looks so much different off camera." "I heard, that not only is a great duelist, but also really cute!" "Yeah, he is kinda cute, isn't he!" was some of the gossip he heard.
The boy sighed. "We came here, cause we thought it'd be quiet, but man there are a lot of people here today. Though most of them probably came to see Zane. Speaking of which, where is he?" thought the boy.
As he was pondering about the whereabouts of his older brother, his phone began to ring. As he looked at the caller's ID, he thought, "Huh! An unknown number! Who could it be?" He picked up the phone, half expecting it to be a prank phone call, and answered nervously "H-Hello."
"Syrus, is that you pal! Man, it's been ages!" came the voice on the line. The boy named Syrus had heard this voice before, though the last time he did was a long time ago.
"Jaden, is that you bro?" Syrus asked expectantly.
"The one and only! How have you been, Sy," said Jaden.
Syrus was silent for a moment, before "JAAAAADENN! I MISSSEDDDD YOUUUUU, BROOOO!" Syrus was crying and shouting into the phone.
"Woah, chill dood! You're a man. Don't get all emotional in public," sighed Jaden.
"I'm sorry, Jay. It's just (sniff) been ages, and ... and (sniff) I'm just glad that I could hear your voice again, big bro!" Syrus could barely contain his happiness at hearing his best friend's voice again after all this time.
"When you left without warning," he began, after calming down and after the stares died down, "I was sad. We all were sad and disappointed at the fact that'd we probably never see you again."
"I know, and I'm sorry. I'm just not good with goodbyes. But I'm back in Domino for a while, and I'm happy to say, that I'm probably going to that duel academy reunion next week," Jaden responded happily.
"Really! That's great news, Jay! I got my invitation last week, and was still contemplating whether or not I should go, but now that you're going, I'm definitely going to be there!" Syrus declared happily.
"Great man, can't wait! So, how's Zane?" asked Jaden.
"He's doing great. I'm actually waiting for him right now. I'm sure he'll be thrilled to hear that you're going to the reunion!" said Syrus enthusiastically.
"That's great, Sy! Listen, mind letting everyone know that I'm okay, and I'm coming to that reunion. I kinda got a new phone, and lost all my contacts," said Jaden.
"Bummer, Jay. But that explains why you haven't called in a while. Alright, will do Jay! I'll let everyone know," said Syrus.
"Well, thanks Sy. See ya next week," and with that, Jaden hung up.
At that moment, Zane Truesdale stepped into the cafe, and sat at the table. The man was pretty tall, and had long, dark blue hair, and looked more serious compared to Syrus's cute and cuddly look. The first thing he noticed, was that Syrus was happier then usual. In fact, Zane hadn't seen him this happy in months.
"Syrus, you seem to be in good spirits," he pointed out.
"Yeah! Hey, guess what Zane? I got a call from Jaden," Syrus announced.
Zane was stunned for a moment, before regaining his composure. "Is that so?" he asked. "What'd he say?"
"Well actually Zane, he's going to that reunion. You know, the one at duel academy," replied Syrus.
"Oh! So he's actually going to show up," Zane said with a small smile "Well now, this trip to duel academy might actually be worthwhile."
"It is, big bro! Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to go make some calls," Syrus said, as he got up and went to a quiet corner to make his calls.
Zane began thinking, "Jaden, huh? Wait, maybe that's why the Chancellor wanted me to do that..." Zane's smile got wider, as he thought, "Maybe you and I can finally settle the score, Jaden!"
Part 3
After hanging up on Syrus, Jaden proceeded to dial in his home phone number. After a few rings, his mom picked up the phone. "Hi mom!" he said.
"Hi, sweetie. Nice of you to call. Something on your mind?" she asked.
"Well actually mom, I wanted to ask you about the nail you received over the past week. Did you get one from duel academy?" he asked.
"Hang on, let me check," she said, then the line went silent. After a couple of minutes, his mom got back on the line. "Actually sweetie, there was a letter from the DA, but it was addressed to you, so your father and I put it aside until you got back. Which reminds me, we completely forgot to give it to you! Sorry, honey!" his mom apologized over the phone.
"It's alright, mom. Just keep it with you, and I'll come pick it up in a few days," he said.
"Why? What's so important about it?" she asked.
"It's actually an invitation to a reunion for our class of graduates. I'm thinking of going, so I can see my old friends again," he explained.
"Alright, sweetie. I'll keep this here until you pass by to pick it up. See you then," she said.
"Yeah, see ya mom," he replied, as he hung up.
Jaden then began pondering about something. Why on Earth did the DA send over the invitation, when he clearly wasn't at home? Did they expect him to come home at this time? Did someone tip them off about the fact that he was coming home? "Ah! All these complicated thoughts are giving me a headache! Why can't the answer always be as easy and as clear as dueling!" he thought.
He then made his way downstairs, where the others were chatting. "Well, what did she say?" asked Mac.
"Yep, it seems you were right, Mac," he said "It's currently with my parents. I told them that I'd go pick it up in a few days."
"Alright!" exclaimed Atticus. "Next week, we'll go to duel academy, and hang out with everyone!"
"So, what's on today's agenda, Atticus?" asked Jaden.
"Well, we should probably go shopping for Christmas and all, but we'll do that later," he replied. "How about we go to the arcade, and have a blast," he suggested excitedly.
"Yeah, sounds like a plan," came the happy reply from Jaden.
"A plan for you guys maybe, but not for us," said a disapproving Alexis.
"How about we have a nice picnic at the nearby park, especially since it isn't snowing today, and the park's been fully shoveled clean of snow!" suggested Mac.
"Yeah, that'll be fun!" smiled Alexis. "We could play games, swap stories and even eat. I know, Mac, why don'y you and I cook for a change. It'll be fun!"
"But I'm not as experienced as you are at cooking, and I might, you know, screw up," said Mac.
"It'll be alright. Let your 'little sis' teach you everything you need to know," Alexis winked, and Mac blushed a little in embarrassment.
"Alright, I'll see what I can do," replied Mac confidently.
"Wait a sec, I object!" shouted Atticus. "The arcade is fun. You can play games, get good grub, win prizes, meet chi..."
"Atty, I hope you weren't going to say 'meet chicks," Mac shot him a cold glare.
"Of course not," stammered Atticus. "I meant meet children, you know, kids who share our passion in gaming, which are of course guys. Not girls!" Atticus laughed as he tried to cover up his intentions. "What about you, Jay?" he asked.
"I don't know, man. I mean a trip to the arcade sounds tempting, but a picnic might be some good fun, too. Plus, I tried some of Alexis's cooking a few times, and it was some of the best I've ever had!" Jaden gave a genuine smile after that statement.
Alexis began blushing, while Mac, noticing that Alexis was blushing, began giggling softly.
"NOOO! Jaden, my comrade, don't let these girls sway you! Think about the games, the prizes, the food. If you go to the arcade, you'll be able to enjoy all the pizza, hamburgers and corn-dogs you can eat, on the house!" Atticus gave an evil smile. "There are also some rare cards as prizes for the winner."
"Woah! Sweet grub and rare card prizes, now that's cool!" exclaimed Jaden.
Alexis sighed, while Atticus retained his evil smile while thinking "Hehe. That's right, Jaden. You're mine now, hook, line and sinker!"
Mac began complaining, "Hey Atty, that's not fair. You played dirty!"
"Me! Play dirty! What are you talking about?" he played dumb.
"Of course Jaden would be swayed by good food and card prizes," she explained.
"No, Jaden is with me, cause us guys gotta stick together, right Jay?" he smiled.
"Guys, we don't have to fight. I know, how about we..." Jaden stopped due after receiving glares from both sides.
"There is no other option! Choose!" they both shouted in unison. Jaden began backing down due to the intensity and pressure from both sides, when Alexis came to his rescue.
"Guys, stop this. Can't you see that you're troubling our guest," she pointed out.
The two calmed themselves, and apologized while bowing. "We're sorry, Jaden. We both got carried away."
"It's alright, I got it. We can't reach a group decision, so how about this; Lets do it the old fashioned way. Let's duel!" he declared. The others looked at Jaden with surprise for a moment, while Jaden continued, "It'll be the boys vs. the girls. I'll represent the boys team of Atticus and I, and you two can pick who'll represent the girl's team. Winner makes the final call. Deal?" he asked, while looking confident.
"Fine, Jay. We'll take you on. I'll represent the girl's team," said Mac.
Alexis then pulled her back suddenly, and asked, "Would you please excuse us for a moment?"
The two moved into the hallway, before Alexis said, "Mac, are you serious? No offense, you're good. In fact, in my opinion, you're the best female duelist on campus, but Jaden's on a different level then any of the duelists you've faced before. In fact, he's on a totally different level," with concern in her voice.
"Relax, lex. I know he's as good as you say, because I know a good duelist when I see one, and it's because he's that good, that I want to duel him. You know what, I think I'll go ahead and use 'that' deck," Mac smiled confidently.
"Wait, you mean..." gasped Alexis.
"That's right, these next generation decks that were given to the elite students of duel college, the one's designed by Pegasus himself," she smiled confidently.
"Are you sure? Have you fully mastered it, yet?" asked Alexis.
"To a degree. This will be a field test of sorts for this deck," replied Mac, then she began making her way to the backyard for the duel, but stopped and said, "Listen lex, win or lose, it's irrelevant, because of Jaden's a one-of-a-kind person, then I know he'll make the right choice, and I know that you know it too. Well, wish me luck!"
"Sure thing, Mac," smiled Alexis, as the two of them made their way to the backyard.
Part 4
The two duelist stood on opposite ends of the yard. "Jaden, Jaden, he's our man!" Atticus cheered from the sideline, while Alexis simply stood next to him, watching the duel from up close.
"Jaden Yuki, I've heard the rumors. The 'eternal slifer' and the best duelist to graduate from duel academy in years. Now, I finally get to duel you. It's actually quite the honor," said Mac.
"Yeah, same here. I've always wanted to take on the top duelist's from other countries, and now I get that chance. I'm fired up!" he declared excitedly, as the two of them declared their mutual respect for one another.
"In honor of this duel, Jaden, I'm going to show a you a brand new deck that you (and most people, for that matter) haven't seen before," she declared.
"A new deck! Sweet! Alright, time to start. Get your game on, Reggie," declared Jaden.
(Jaden LP: 4000) (Mac LP: 4000)
"I'll start," Jaden announced. "I'll set a monster face-down and end my turn."
"Alright, my turn, I draw," she announced. Mac looked at her hand, and thought, "All right, now's the time."
"I summon Protection Seeker in attack mode," she announced.
"Seeker?" Jaden asked.
"I'll explain after the duel," she replied. A female warrior holding two daggers, and clad in a cloak of thunder, appeared
(Protection Seeker/level 4/Thunder/ATK: 1400)
"Alright, my monster, attack Jaden's face-down," she declared.
"Too bad, Mac," he replied. "My monster was Elemental Hero Clayman, and his defense points are 2000, so you take damage."
(Mac LP: 4000 - 3400)
"That's odd. Reg usually isn't that reckless," commented Atticus.
"Maybe she was just trying to find out what Jaden's face-down was," said Alexis.
"I play two face-downs and end my turn, Jay," declared Mac.
"Alright, I draw," Jaden drew a card. "I activate fusion sage, which allows me too add a polymerization spell card to my hand, which I activate, and fuse my Clayman with the Elemental HERO Sparkman in my hand," he announced "and summon Elemental HERO Thunder Giant!" (ATK: 2400/Level 6) "Now, I activate his effect, allowing me to destroy 1 monster on the field when he's summoned. Go, destroy her seeker."
"Not so fast, Jay. I play a trap," she declared. Her Seeker was gone, but a trap was face-up. "I play Seeker's vengeance. When a 'Seeker' monster is sent from the field to the graveyard, all the battle positions of all monsters you control are changed, so your giant is in defense mode and can't attack (DEF: 1500)," she declared.
"Nice moves. I think I'll play a face-down and end my turn," he said.
"Now, I activate my Protection Seeker's special ability, and add it to my hand, because it was destroyed this turn, provided that I don't summon it this turn, then I draw," she declared, as a smile crept to her face. "I activate the spell card logic cube, which allows me to add a spell card to my hand, because I control no monsters on my field. Next, because I control no monsters, I normal summon Hypersonic Seeker in attack mode without a tribute," she declared. A monster clad in a robe of thunder, with a short sword in it's hand appeared.
(Hypersonic Seeker/level 8/Thunder/ATK: 2300)
"The catch is that his Attack points go down by 500 (ATK: 2300 - 1800), but it's worth it," she said "Next, I activate the equip spell, Laser Wing, that allows a LIGHT monster under 2000 attack points to attack my opponent directly, provided that it's the only monster that can attack this turn, and it switches to defense mode at the end of the turn, with it's defense points halved."
"Directly!" he exclaimed.
"Yup," she nodded "Now my monster, attack!"
(Jaden LP: 4000 - 2200)
"I end my turn with another face-down, so my seeker switches to defense mode (DEF: 2500), and has it's defense mode, and loses half it's defense (DEF: 2500 - 1250)" she declared.
"My turn, I draw," he announced.
"It seems that Reg really is more aggressive then usual," commented Atticus. "It's as if she's trying to push Jaden, more then she's trying to win."
"Maybe you're just thinking things, Atty," said Alexis.
"I play fusion recovery," declared Jaden "and return Sparkman and polymerization back to my hand. Then, I play 'E-Emergency Call', which allows to add a HERO monster to my hand, in this case, Elemental HERO Avian. Next, I play polymerization and fuse Avian, Sparkman and the Bubbleman in my hand, to summon one of my most powerful, classic fusions. Please welcome, Elemental HERO Tempest," he declared. (Level 8/ ATK: 2800) I then switch thunder giant to attack mode."
"Interesting, Jay. You've brought out two top notch fusions. I'm really impressed," she smiled.
"Thanks, but you should be a bit more concerned about your situation. Thunder Giant, attack her seeker!" he declared, as the giant shot thunder out of it's hands and destroyed the seeker. "Then, tempest attacks you directly," he declared.
(Mac LP: 3400 - 600)
"I play both my face-downs" she declared "The first is the trap card, Aquabeam Prison, which returns a monster that attacked this turn back to the deck, and in the case of your tempest, the extra deck." Tempest was trapped in pillars of light, and disappeared from the field. Then I play a quick-play spell card called Invincible Aura. When I take damage that decreases my life points below the 1000 mark, I draw three cards" she drew "then, for each type of card I drew (monster, spell, trap), I gain a certain effect." She looked at her draw, then declared "I drew two spells and a monster, so Jaden, for each spell card, you take 700 points of damage, for a total of 1400 points of damage!"
(Jaden LP: 2200 - 800)
"As for the monster," she continued, "I get to draw another card," as she drew.
"Nice! I play a face-down, and end my turn," he said.
"I draw, then play my own polymerization, and fuse the light and thunder seekers in my hand, to summon my ace monster, Karma Lightning Seeker!" she declared.
(Karma Lightning Seeker/level 9/Thunder/ATK: 2700/Fusion)
"Next, I summon Protection Seeker," she said.
"This isn't looking good for Jaden," said Alexis.
"Don't worry, your boyfriend will be fine, lex. You have to have faith," smiled Atticus.
"Normally, I'd beat you down, but I'll let it slide, cause you're right about the second part," she said.
"Alright, Karma Seeker, attack his Thunder Giant," declared Mac. A flash of lightning, and the giant was gone.
(Jaden LP: 800 - 500)
"Now, I play my face-down, the flute of summoning Kuriboh, which allows me to summon my Winged Kuriboh from my deck in defense mode!" he declared.
"Kurri, Kurri!" the little Kuriboh said. (DEF: 200)
"Wow, it's so much cuter up close!" she said, marveling at the little monster. "Alright, Protection Seeker, destroy that Kuriboh and end the battle phase," she declared "I play a face-down, and end my turn."
"Alright, let's end this. I draw!" he declared. After looking at his cards, he smiled and declared "I play Pot of greed, which allows me to draw two cards from my deck. Next I play Mystical Space Typhoon, and destroy your face-down. Then, I summon Elemental HERO Wildheart in attack mode (ATK: 1500)."
"What! Why? Even if you destroy my other seeker, I'll only lose 100 life points. What are you plotting?" she asked.
"Ah! But I haven't played this yet, have I," he revealed the card, as 'H-Heated Heart', a card that increases a HERO monster's attack power by 500. "I think it's settled, Mac," he smiled.
Mac was shocked at first, but she then smiled. "So it is."
(Mac LP: 600 - 0)
With that, the duel ended. "Alright, that's game!" he said.
"Jay-man, we won!" Atticus jumped up and down in joy.
"So, what's it gonna be, Jay?" asked Mac.
"Like I was saying earlier, how about we go to the picnic first, enjoy the outdoors a little, then spend the rest of the day at the arcade. A compromise for everyone," he explained.
The others looked at him with shocked expressions for a second, before "Well, I guess. Okay, lets do that," smiled Atticus.
"Alright, smart choice Jay," said Mac, before turning back to Alexis and winking. Thus, the fun trip began.
On their way out, Alexis caught up with Mac.
"Congrats on the duel. You played well, despite losing it all in the end, but between you and me, why'd you take it easy on him? I know you had that combo in your hand, so why didn't you use it?" asked Alexis.
Mac smiled, and said "Very perceptive, lex. That's true, I had this spell card and this monster in my hand." She took out her deck, and showed Alexis the two cards. The first was a quick-play spell card called rapid regeneration, a card that allows you to tribute a level 8 or higher monster from your hand or from the field, to special summon a level 7 or lower monster from your hand, provided that monster had the same attribute and type. The second card was a monster called Archery Seeker, a level 7 monster with 2900 attack, that had the ability to inflict piercing battle damage, and inflicting 500 points of damage each time a Seeker successfully attacked.
"Then why didn't you..." Alexis began, before Mac put a finger on her lips.
"That's only half the story," Mac explained. "I showed Jaden the combo I could've played to tease him a little, but he countered by showing me the last card in his hand, a card that would have turned the tables in an instant."
Alexis was confused, but remembered the incident with Chazz, back in their first year at duel academy, and smiled "That's Jaden for you. So what card was it?"
Mac thought for a second, then playfully said "It's a secret!"
Alexis sighed. "I swear, you're picking up some of Atty's habits."
Mac laughed a bit, then showed a serious expression. "A word of advice, Alexis. After studying him since yesterday, Jaden seems to be like a real catch. Not only are his looks top notch, but his kind and caring personality can attract a lot of girls to him, his character is pure and noble, something that is rare these days. His dueling skills are, like you said, miles ahead of most, something people will really look at. Should I continue?" she asked.
"What are you trying to say?" Alexis asked with a confused look.
Mac sighed, and hugged the girl. "Listen Alexis, we've been friends since way back when we were kids, so I know the real you, and how the real you feels. When Atticus first told me about Jaden, and how you really felt about him, along with your failed confession, I was sad too; Sad that you'd probably never find love like that again, especially with you being the workaholic that you are, but you're lucky, you know. Fate's given you another chance, so take it. If you don't tell him how you feel this time, and he ends up with someone else, you'll regret it forever," she said concerned, "and I don't want to see that happen to the both of you."
Alexis seemed stunned for a second, before saying "Thank you, Mac, and you're right. I promise you, I'll tell him before he leaves again. I'm not going to hesitate this anymore. Just let me find the right moment," and with that, she went outside to catch up to the others.
Mac sighed . "The right chance, huh? Maybe I can set it up," she smiled, before frowning. "I really am becoming like him, huh."
Somewhere on duel academy island, in a remote area of the forest, a group of people with their faces covered by hoods were sitting at a long, rectangular table.
"So, are the preparations complete," the person at the far end spoke.
"Yes, my liege. 'He' is coming to the academy for the reunion, as planned. I made sure his parents got the invitation," one of the members spoke.
"Excellent. Soon, you will rise to lead us, our supreme king."
Man, what a great chapter. So, Alexis makes a promise. Lets see if she can keep it to the end! But wow, what a deck! Jaden looked to be on the edge at one point. The conversation between Alexis and Mac still poses a question, though; Did Mac really take it easy, and purposely give up the win, or was that card truly a life saver that Jaden would have used to win it all? The answer... I'll leave it to your imagination!
The first of the next generation decks is know as the 'Seekers'. Their card lore is as follows:
Lords of the storm. They are fighters who transcended all by bonding with the natural element of thunder itself. With their bodies shrouded in Thunder, and their warrior blood boiling, they constantly seek out their next opponents to prove their might and skill, and to strengthen themselves.
They are basically a group of warriors who 'evolved' by bonding with thunder,making them stronger, and they seek out strong opponents to fight. Here are some of the cards used in the duel:
Protection Seeker
Level 4/LIGHT/Thunder
Atk: 1400/Def: 1200
Effect: When this card is sent from the field to the graveyard, at the end of that turn, add it to your hand. You can't summon this card until the end of your opponent's next turn.
Seeker Vengeance
Trap/Counter
Effect: When a seeker monster is destroyed by battle, change the battle positions of all your opponent's monsters on the field.
Hypersonic Seeker
Level 8/LIGHT/Thunder
Atk: 2300/Def: 2500
Effect: When you control no monsters, and your opponent controls at least 1, you can normal summon this card without tributing, but it's attack decreases by 500. You can't conduct any other summon (normal, special, etc.) the turn you activate this effect.
Invincible Aura
Spell/Quick-play
Effect: If you take damage that drops your life points below 1000, draw 3 cards. For each monster card, draw 1 card. For each spell card, inflict 700 points of damage to your opponent. For each trap, discard 1 card from your opponent's hand.
Karma Lightning Seeker
Level 9/LIGHT/Thunder/Fusion
Atk: 2700/Def: 3200
"Light Seeker" + "Thunder Seeker"
When this card is fusion summoned, you can flip a coin. If heads, decrease this card's attack to 0, and increase your life points by the same amount. If tails, then all monsters on the field are destroyed, and both players take damage equal to the total attack of the destroyed monsters.
So those are examples of some of the new cards. Hope you liked them. If you still don't get anything, feel free to ask.
Now for the preview:
Next time on Yugioh GX: Beyond the academy
Jaden spends the day having fun... or does he. What was supposed to be a fun trip to the arcade, turned into the mother of all smack-downs after Jaden's dense personality finally ticked Alexis off. Does Bridget make a re-appearance? All this and more in Chapter 8: Showdown at the Arcade
So for now, I guess I'll turn in. Looking forward to your reviews and support!
With that, I end my turn.
my turn.