Chapter 5

"The First Duel: Souls"

The young girl who had watched Yugi from afar the night before was sitting on her bed, reading the rulebook to herself. Her name was Tsuki Date, and she was eleven years old. Her parents had come to Egypt on business, and had thought that this tournament would be a good way for her to keep out of trouble during their stay.

Tsuki had never been very good at Duel Monsters, but at least it was something to do. She picked up the chain with its two mini-items, and looked them over carefully. Something about them was familiar, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. They looked a lot like her scale, old and beautiful.

Thinking of the scale, she reached into her backpack. Out from it, she pulled a gold scale and set it in her lap. She remembered the story her parents had told her about how the scale had come to her. They said that one the day they brought her home from the hospital, they had found a tall man in a white cloak and turban waiting for them.

The man had given the scale to her father and told him that she was destined to have it, and that she should be given it when she was ready; whatever that meant. She placed the chain in a dish of the scale and watched it level off. She had always wondered what was so special about it, aside from the fact that it was ancient and solid gold.

As she stared at it, the scale began to glow. It glowed more and more until it engulfed the entire room. An instant later, when the light dimmed, where a young girl had been sitting, there was now a beautiful young woman in her early twenties. She had the same short black hair as the girl had, but with gold rings around two side strands. The eyes that had once been gray and innocent were now brown and mysterious.

The woman was the spirit of the Millennium Scale: Dedi, queen of Egypt. She hated taking over her host like this, but she didn't have any other options. Their bond was weak, as she took over very seldom, so Tsuki knew nothing of her. She only knew that there were times when she seemed in a heap of trouble, then she'd black out and the trouble would be gone by the time she woke up.

But Dedi would never have another opportunity like this, so she had to force her way out. She reached into Tsuki's backpack and pulled out a newspaper clipping. She gazed at the image tenderly. The picture was of Yami, after the Battle City tournament had ended. Her long lost love, the Pharaoh. She'd been so amazed when she'd seen this image. She never dreamed that she'd ever find him again. But there he was, just as handsome as she remembered.

She put the clipping and the scale back in the pack, then slipped the chain of mini-items around her neck. Then she crossed to the closet and pulled out a cloak. She pulled it over her head and grabbed her Duel Disk 2, hooking it to her arm. She put Tsuki's deck in her pocket and headed out of the hotel. Her search for her beloved began today.

* * *

Meanwhile, another early bird was already roaming the streets of the quiet Egyptian village known as Al Karnak. Weevil paused for a moment, letting the cool morning air surround him. It was peaceful here; unlike the busy city life of Domino, where Battle City had been held.

Glancing around again, the young dueling genius could see that some native Egyptians were already setting up their shops for business. There weren't any duelists out yet as far as he could see, but that didn't really matter anyway. He had been in such a rush to get started that he had forgotten about the needs of the body (A/N: Food. Eww. What were all you people thinking?), so he still needed breakfast. There had to be some decent cafes that were open and serving breakfast by now. Weevil continued on his way, still looking forward to the first day of the tournament.

* * *

Dedi had not seen her homeland in centuries. It was wonderful to let the memories fill her as she walked the streets. The smells were all so familiar, but it was quiet – something it had rarely been during her time. The bazaar was always bustling by this time, trying to beat the heat of the afternoon. But no matter. The quiet had a very calming effect, and she needed to keep her thoughts together if her search was going to go smoothly.

She spotted a small café and strode over to it, seating herself at a table under the cloth hangings. She wasn't really hungry, but there was no better place to people watch. Well, except perhaps from the safety of the [insert name of wooden thingy royals are carried on]. But those days were long gone and she had long since adapted to it. So she just sat back to watch as the port town came to life.

Sighing to herself, the queen of old pulled out the picture of Yami again. She remembered those days like yesterday. He had to be here; he just had to! It wouldn't be right for the duel monsters champion not to attend a tournament in his home country of Egypt. Not that many knew he was from Egypt. His host body was listed as a Yugi Moto, from Japan. The boy even looks like him…

Lost in her own thoughts, it took her a moment to realize that she was being watched. Straightening up, Dedi looked around to see who was looking at her. Her eyes came to rest on a small boy with blue hair, who was sitting two tables away, looking very annoyed. She cast a inquiring eye at him, "Do you have a problem?"

Weevil snorted and turned his nose upwards slightly, "With you? You might say that. I can't stand fans of the no-good, publicity seeking Moto! He's nothing special at all! Just lucky!" Weevil took another sip of his tea, trying to get the bad taste of talking about Yugi out of his mouth.

"Don't you dare say things like that!" Dedi said, standing up. Her temper had gotten the better of her, like it usually did, but she had a right to defend Yami and his host body. Anyone who spoke so ill of her love could not be pure of soul. But before he could be banished, he needed to be tested. She plunged a hand into her backpack and drew out the scale. She would test him. And then she would have his soul. She began walking towards him, fire in her eyes.

Weevil, who was in the middle of another sip of tea, saw the very angry woman walking over towards him. She was holding something very strange in her hand, and that made Weevil a bit nervous. He put down his cup and stumbled out of his chair, knocking it over in his haste. The bug brawler took a step backwards, as she still kept advancing, "What's your problem? I'm allowed to have my opinions!"

Dedi stood over him and held out the scale, "The power of my Millennium Scale will determine that." The scale began to glow.

Weevil felt a tug down in his naval and before he could even begin to guess what was happening, he found himself surrounded by darkness, "What the-? Where am I?" He looked around, and saw that same woman standing in front of him, but in a much different outfit.

She looked like something out of a history text book, in traditional ornate Egyptian garb: a white dress lined with gold, which was more of a belly-shirt and skirt than a dress. If not for how strange the situation was, she would've looked very beautiful and inviting. "Welcome to the Shadow Realm, mortal," she said, "Your fate rests in my scale now." She waved a hand and the scale she'd been holding in the living realm appeared, a hundred times larger than it had been.

Weevil gulped nervously, "The…Shadow Realm? What is that? And what do you mean my… fate… rests in that thing!?" Weevil was pointing fretfully at the large, golden instrument that was the only thing visible for what seemed like an endless eternity.

"The Millennium Scale allows me to judge your soul, boy," Dedi said, waving her hand again. A white glow surrounded Weevil and lifted him high in the air.

The young boy's eyes widened suddenly. He could feel himself being lifted off of the ground by what appeared to be nothing! He began to struggle, but he was frozen to his spot, give or take an inch. He began to yell down at the Egyptian woman whom he knew was still standing down there, "HEY! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!?! PUT ME DOWN! HOW ARE YOU DOING THIS???"

"Silence," Dedi said, "It will be over soon enough." She waved her hand again and Weevil was set down on the right side of the giant scale. Instantly, the scale began to tip back and forth, trying to balance it self. Dedi waited for it to settle on the high or low setting, but it would not! It just kept rocking back and forth, up and down. She raised an eyebrow quizzically. What was going on? The boy was neither pure nor impure – the scale couldn't decide! How was this possible??

Weevil, meanwhile, was getting rather seasick. Of course, a little case of nausea couldn't stop him from talking, "I've had enough of this teeter-totter of yours! Let me down right now!" he squawked.

Dedi snapped her fingers and the scale disappeared, letting Weevil drop to the floor. This had always been a flaw in the scale – it had difficulty judging children's souls because there wasn't much to go by. "Very well. Your fate is still undecided," she said, "If the scale cannot come to a conclusion, I will have to draw my own. Let us return to the living world. There we shall duel for the fate of your soul."

"The WHAT???" Weevil began, but Dedi snapped her fingers again and in an instant, the blackness warped around them and melted away, revealing the quiet morning street once again.

Weevil's soul returned to his body, and he fell to his knees, sweating heavily. Even though it was probably well over 100 degrees in the dusty village street, Weevil felt cold all over. What had that woman that towered over him done?

Dedi stood over the boy, eyes narrowed. His soul was borderline, and she couldn't let him go without testing how dangerous he really was. "Get up, Mr. Underwood," she said, "I'm not quite sure what to do with you yet, so perhaps you would duel me so I may get a better feel for the threat you pose to my mission. We'll each bet one item on this duel, agreed?"

Weevil recovered himself, and stood up indignantly, "You dare challenge Weevil Underwood, regional champion, to a duel?" He sniggered slightly, "Fine. I agree to your terms. Let's duel!" The scrawny boy pulled out his deck and inserted it into his Duel Disk 2. It was amazing that it still worked with all the wind and the sand blowing about. As he waited for the machine to finish shuffling, he began to wonder just what mission she meant. Was there something more to this tournament than the $5,000,000 prize? This was something to look into, indeed. Perhaps there was more to this woman than she was letting on. The Duel Disk blasted out its holo-projectors, signaling that it was ready to begin at his command.

Dedi pulled out her own deck and readied her Duel Disk 2. But as she was about to slide her deck into the slot, felt her side deck in the pocket of her shorts and a thought struck her. The deck she was about to use had been created by her host, young Tsuki Date, and was sure to have a few mistakes in it. She quickly rearranged her deck, incorporating the side deck into her original deck. Then she inserted the improved deck into the slot and the holo-projectors shot out as well. "I'm ready when you are. Shall we Ro-Sham-Bo to see who goes first?" she asked, smirking, such a childish means for deciding anything, but then again, her opponent was a child…

"Very well," Weevil replied, wondering if she was insulting him by using a child's game to determine the game's start. The two shouted out the age old game's only line, "Ro-Sham-Bo!" Weevil's hand showed rock, to his opponent's scissors, "Rock wins and I win the first turn honors!" He quickly drew his six cards and surveyed them briefly. 'Not a bad opening hand', he thought to himself, 'Still, there's no way of knowing yet if it's good enough,' (Flying Kamikari #2, Petit Moth, Cocoon of Evolution, Reckless Parasite, Graceful Charity, and Drill Bug) Weevil had no idea who this Egyptian weirdo was and the best way to gather info on a duelist was to test them early. The bug brawler placed one card on the field, "I play the Flying Kamikari #2 (1500/800) in Attack mode!" Weevil chuckled a bit as the large flying insect appeared on the street, buzzing angrily at his opponent. Time to find out who this person was, where she got the nerve to think herself his equal in Duel Monsters, "Hey, who are you anyway? And how do you know who I am?" His squeaky voice easily made itself heard over the wind.

Dedi drew her own opening hand (Mystical Elf, Shining Angel, Red Archery Girl, Red Medicine, and Waboku), and then pulled out a card for this turn (Nemuriko). She sighed and shook her head, placing her magic and trap cards face-down. How was she supposed to back up her confident attitude with a deck so child-like? She placed Mystical Elf in face-down defense mode and turned to look at her opponent.

"Who am I?" she echoed, the wind blowing through her short black hair, "You may call me Tsuki Date…you may never know my true name. And as for how I know you…well, you are the "regional champion", aren't you? Don't you think your reputation precedes you?" Her chocolate-brown eyes went misty for a moment as she said, "You aren't really the one I was hoping to meet here, but perhaps you'll prove useful."

Weevil smirked, and stuck his nose in the air, "Well, I suppose, you are right about that. I am internationally famous, but I had figured that an amateur like you wouldn't keep up with who's who in Duel Monsters." He drew his card, and got Insect Soldiers of the Sky, then played Petit Moth (300/200) in defense mode. Weevil pointed his finger out at Tsuki's card, "Go Kamikari, ATTACK!" the bug swooped in for the kill…

"Sorry kid," Dedi said, as her Mystical Elf (800/2000) emerged out of her face-down card, "But that attack's not gonna do you any good!" And the Flying Kamikari was blown backwards by a magical wind, headed straight towards Weevil! Then she flipped up another of her face-down cards. "That takes you down by 500 points! And I'll also play the "Red Medicine" card, bringing my life points up by 500!" She put her hands on her hips and smirked, "I think that puts me 1000 points in the lead! Not bad for an amateur, eh?" she said. The score was now her: 4500 to him: 3500. Finally, she remembered to draw a card for that turn, and got "Last Will". Next she slid Nemuriko (800/700) into defense mode.

The large, life-like insect smashed into Weevil, throwing him backwards several feet. Rubbing his sore backside, he stood up again and glared angrily at his opponent, "This match is only starting. Watch this!" He quickly pulled a card (Dark-Piercing Light) and then placed it into his Duel Disk 2, "My Dark Piercing light card will flip all face-down monsters face-up!" A bright light emitted form the top of the field and it revealed his tiny Petit Moth, and her strange looking Nemuriko.

Dedi's brow furrowed, confused. Why had he played such a weak monster? It was an insect card, but even Tsuki's weak monster cards could defeat a card like that!

The insect master grinned evilly, "Confused, are you? My next move will make perfect sense. I will equip my Petit Moth with the Cocoon of Evolution, changing its stats to 0/2000!" He folded his arms confidently, "I've found a way to leave my Moth in Defense mode while it evolves, without leaving it vurnerable!" Weevil's thoughts had slipped back to Battle City, in that duel with Joey, the one that had eliminated him. This time would be different. This time he would show the world that he was still the number one duelist in Japan! "Kamikari! Attack her Nemuriko!" The frightening insect swooped in, and crashed into the smaller creature, eliminating it.

Dedi growled softly. Her Mystical Elf was strong enough to defend her from attacks now, but what happened when his Cocoon evolved? She didn't even want to know what kind of monster was waiting for her under that disgusting pod. The queen of Egypt drew a new card from her deck. Her face lit up, as the card she had pulled was "Insect Barrier". She grinned widely, "Sorry, Weevil," she said, unable to contain her happiness, "but you won't be taking any of my life points for a while! I play Insect Barrier," she slapped the card down "keeping you're bugs at bay! You can't attack with them as long as this card's in play! And in the meantime, I think I'll just play this one monster in Defense mode (Red Archery Girl (1400/1500)).

Weevil gasped as he watched the golden lights form a barrier in the middle of the field, "WHAT?!? The Insect Barrier? But, but…"

Dedi smirked and put a hand on her hip, "I knew who I was dueling, and that's why I slipped that card into my deck!"

The insect duelist scowled. "Insect Barrier" was probably the worst thing that could have happened to him and his prized bugs. He drew a card (trap hole) and laid it face-down. Then he took Needle Worm (750/600) and placed it in defense mode. This Egyptian beauty would get a real surprise when she finally attacked him.

That made him start to think a bit more. Hadn't she challenged him to a duel? Why was she still just playing defense while he was making strategic moves? Perhaps some motivation would help, "Hee hee hee! Are you scared to attack my insects? What happened to your confidence? You seemed so sure that you could handle anything that I threw your way! There's only four more turns until my Ultimate Great Moth is born from its cocoon!"

Dedi glowered quietly to herself, but said nothing. He was right. She really should have taken more time to examine her deck and her current situation. She was wasting time here; she should be looking for her love, not dueling here! The judger of souls sighed resignedly. She was duty bound by the gods of Egypt and the magic of the Millennium Scale to duel this boy for his soul. She was almost letting him retain his semi-tainted soul. Dedi drew her next card and almost fell over in surprise! It was the "Fairy Witch" (800/500), not a strong card at all. She sighed; Tsuki's cards were beginning to surface, and that wasn't good. But as long as Weevil couldn't attack, she might be able to win.

Meanwhile, Mai was cruising the streets, admiring the mini Millennium Scale and Key she'd collected, to add to her mini Puzzle and Ring. Her first duel had been relatively easy. Then the flicker of holographic images caught her eye and she turned. Down the road, she could make out two duelists engaged in battle. "Oooh, looks like a show," she said to herself and made her way down the street. When she reached the site, she recognized Weevil Underwood at once, but his opponent was a complete stranger to her. She couldn't help but wonder who was winning. The magic gate that was formed between the fields was intriguing; she'd never seen it before. She leaned back against the side of a sand-stone building to watch.

Dedi took slight notice of their spectator, and then turned back to the duel. She placed "Fairy Witch" in defense-mode and said, "I end my turn here, Weevil."

Weevil drew again (Big Insect (1200/1500)), and cursed to himself. What good would his Great Moth be if he still couldn't attack with it? "I'll place my Insect Soldiers of the Sky in attack mode (1000/800)! That will end my turn, but you've only got three turns left before my ultimate destroyer erupts from his cocoon to annihilate you!"

She drew her next card and had to hide her disappointment again. It was "Eldeen" (950/1000). Again she placed it in defense-mode, a sweat-drop forming on her head. At this rate, she would quickly lose her lead. But there was at least one thing that she could do, "I'll flip my Red Archery Girl into attack mode! And I'll use it to destroy your Insect Soldiers!" The Red Archery Girl began to appear on the field, when Weevil held out a hand.

"I'm activating my trap card, the Trap Hole! This card destroys any monster that you summon with 1000 attack power or higher!" The ground beneath the mermaid crumbled and took the surprised fish woman with it. Dedi clenched her fists in rage. She needed every advantage she could get in this duel, but he was matching her blow for blow.

Weevil drew his card from the top of his deck and examined it carefully, not quite believing his luck, "I'll use this De-spell card to rid you of your barrier! Now, Kamikari, attack her face-down card!" His bug buzzed forward and destroyed another low-powered monster. Weevil shook his index finger at his opponent, "Tsk, tsk. Your monsters are no match for my mighty insects! And you have only two turns before I completely obliterate you!"

Dedi couldn't even bring herself to look at him. This little brat was going to get the better of her…and it wasn't even her fault. She drew her next card, "Ookazi". Finally! Something worth playing! "First, I'll play the magic card Ookazi, bringing your life points down by 800 points! And then I'll play the Shining Angel in attack-mode (1400/800), which I'll use to destroy Insect Soldiers of the Sky!"

What happened next was some of the most amazing holograph displays Mai had ever seen. First, a huge burning house emerged from the Ookazi card and covered Weevil's side of the field. Even at her distance she could feel the heat coming off of it. His life points dropped by 800. Then a tall, handsome angel swooped in, put its hands on the Insect Soldier and both of them disappeared in a heavenly light. The Shining Angel returned back down to Earth, hands free. Weevil: 2300 – Tsuki: 4500.

Weevil had thought that he couldn't get any hotter than he had been, but the burning house that had engulfed him for those last several seconds had proven him very wrong. He drew his card (Insect Imitation) and grinned, "I'll use this Insect Imitation card!" Several large eggs in a twig-nest appeared in front of Weevil's monsters, "This card allows me to tribute my Big Insect for a monster with one more star than he has! And I choose my 5 star Hunter Spider!" The Big Insect crawled into one of the large green eggs and disappeared, and out of another came a large black and orange spider (1600/1400)!

Weevil pointed at the Shining Angel, "Attack my precious spider!" The Hunter Spider shot out long strands of webbing, which wrapped themselves completely around the angel, then crushed him. Dedi cursed while Weevil grinned, "Not only does that change the score, but you're forced to summon another light monster in attack mode!" Weevil: 2300 – Tsuki: 4300.

Dedi fumbled through her deck, realizing that the strongest light monster she had left was "Happy Lover". She sighed as she placed it in attack mode on the field. The little girl's parents had put the card in her deck not for its strength, but to remind her how much they loved her. Now, however, it was going to hurt her more than help.

"Now Flying Kamikari #2, attack that puffball!" Weevil raised his right hand, and the flying insect flew in and claimed another monster. This significantly changed the score: Weevil: 2300 – Tsuki: 3600. The bug brawler straightened up and laughed sinisterly, "You only have one more turn before my Cocoon hatches and you haven't even taken a crack at it! HA HA HA HA HA!"

Dedi cursed softly under her breath. He was right! She needed to draw something useful, but could she? She closed her eyes and drew… Pot of Greed. Her eyes widened in surprise. She didn't even know that Tsuki owned a card this rare, "Activate Pot of Greed, giving me two more cards!" The two cards she picked up were Chorus of Sactuary and Book of Secret Arts. The ancient ruler breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn't sure how strong the Ultimate Great Moth would be, but if she played these cards then at least she increased her chances of stopping the giant bug in its tracks, "I'll use these two cards together, to increase the defense power of my Mystical Elf (800/2800)!"

Weevil drew his card (Widespread Ruin) and began to speak softly to his opponent, "There are very few monsters in the entire game of Duel Monsters that can defeat a Defense power so high," He looked up at her, a triumphant glittering in his eyes, "But the Ultimate Great Moth is one of them!! I sacrifice My Cocoon of Evolution to summon the instrument of your defeat! Reveal, the Ultimate Great Moth (3500/3000)!!"

In another spectacular display of holographic technology, the cocoon broke open before everyone's eyes and in a flash of white light, the huge, green-skinned, blue-winged, massive, mother of all insects appeared.

Weevil enjoyed watching the shock on Tsuki's face as his Moth appeared, "Now, for one final move, I summon the Drill Bug (1100/200)! Go my bugs! Finish this match!" The Ultimate Great Moth blasted a furious beam of venom from its mouth, which hit the Mystical Elf and disintegrated it. The remaining three bugs buzzed forward and took turns smashing into Dedi. When the assault had ended, there was a brief moment of calculations by his opponent's Duel Disk 2, and her LP dropped to 0, giving Weevil Underwood, regional champion, the victory. Grinning widely, Weevil started slowly walking over to claim his new item.

Dedi fell to the dust, and skidded a few feet before coming to a stop, and lying motionless on the street, as the hot Egyptian wind blew around her. She pushed herself up to a sitting position and reached for her necklace. Slowly she unhooked the mini Puzzle off the chain and let it fall to the dirt at Weevil's feet. "Take it…" she said softly.

Mai couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor girl. She wanted to go over and see if she was alright, but didn't dare just yet.

Weevil laughed softly as he picked up the dusty puzzle, "Next time, you should be more careful who you challenge. Did you really think you had a chance against Weevil Underwood?! Hee hee hee…" Admiring his new prize, he hooked the puzzle onto the chain around his neck that held the other two he had been given to start with (a ring, and an eye), "That's three down, four to go! Thanks for your help, it's been a pleasure!" On that note, the cocky little dueling genius walked off, snickering to himself.