I'm on a writing roll! ^_^

One note about the Soul Monsters: Their attack strength does NOT determine how well they fight outside of duels. For example, while a Blue Eyes White Dragon (3000) might beat a Black Magician (2500), the Black Magician might just as easily beat the Blue Eyes White Dragon. It all depends on how well they are at fighting. So, the more experienced, the better.

*Chapter Three: Entering Teknisk Wereld, and Hope's Ally*

Hope suddenly felt a very weird sensation. It was like part of her was being torn away, but she felt no pain. Just a sense of weariness. The last thing she saw was nothing but darkness.

Hope soon regained consciousness in a beautiful forest. The trees towered above her, looking as if they went beyond the sky. The leaves were a bright green, looking like glowing emeralds as a few sunrays hit the dew collected on them. The grass was the same shade of green, and looked very healthy. The only thing wrong with the forest was it was completely silent. There was no sound aside from Hope's steady breathing.

What happened? The last thing I can remember was putting on the Envoyant Machine… Did I make it to Teknisk Wereld? No, this can't be it! It's too real! Hope walked over to a tree and touched the trunk. It felt solid, and was as wooden as any tree she had ever felt. Did something go wrong, or is this just too real for me to handle?

She suddenly heard a noise behind her. Spinning around quickly, Hope sighed with relief when she saw it was only a cat. The cat stared, not moving at all. It was pitch-black with a golden necklace, a golden bracelet on its tail, and a golden bracelet with green beads hanging off it. What caught Hope's attention though were its blood-red eyes, not blinking at all. The cat held her gaze for a little bit longer, then turned around and left, disappearing into the forest.

Hope wiped away sweat on her forehead. That cat had given her the creeps; she was sure something was wrong with it. Shaking her head, she decided to follow it. I'm lost, so why not? Maybe it's a domestic cat, and it can lead me to where it lives. So she nervously walked the direction it had gone.

After about thirty minutes of non-stop walking, Hope decided this was getting her nowhere. Nothing had happened, and that made her even more uncomfortable. The still silence in the forest was never interrupted, and that did nothing to help her mood. She was too uneasy to stop and rest though, and kept walking.

Suddenly, Hope saw something move. She looked over in that direction, but saw nothing. Shrugging, she continued walking, only to stop again when she heard another noise. She looked around, trying to find the source of the noise.

Then, something jumped down right in front of her. It looked like a huge, purple beetle. It has six big, powerful-looking legs, and the front two were curved in, like that was how it could grab things. A huge horn was on its forehead, and an even bigger horn was on the very top of its head. It had two smaller pinchers, and yellow, narrow eyes that glared at Hope.

Oh my gosh, what IS that thing?! Hope thought frantically, trying to fight panic from overwhelming her. It looks like a beetle… a very big beetle… how can this be real… no, this CAN'T be real… oh no, it's coming this way!

The beetle gave a sound that sounded like as much of a snarl as it could give, lowered its pair of horns, and charged. Hope did the most natural thing; she ran for her life, backtracking where she had gone. Recklessly charging around trees, she gasped for breath as she continued to run, not hesitating at anything. The beetle was fast though, and Hope was tired from walking so long. The conclusion of the chase was obvious. Hope stumbled, and fell down to the ground in a small clearing. The beetle charged, and she barely managed to roll out of the way.

What can I do?! There's no way I'm going to survive this! I'm about to die... no! I can't! There has to be something!

The beetle charged again. Hope jumped out of the way and hit the ground again. The impact stunned her for a second. When she got her wits back, she began to look hastily around the clearing for something that could help. She despaired, seeing nothing besides grass.

That's when she felt it. A spot on her hip was warm. She reached into her pocket, and pulled out her Soul Card.

Oh! I forgot all about this! This is my only chance… I have to hope this will help! How do I activate this again…?

The beetle turned around and began to run toward Hope. This was her last chance to live. Hope grabbed the card, and raised it above her head. Her shout rang through the forest.

"Soul Card! I call upon your power! Please help defeat this beast!"

The card began to glow, too bright to even look at. Hope covered her face with her free arm. She heard the beetle stop, and assumed it was bothered by the glare too.

Just as suddenly as it had started, the glow faded. Hope could hear the bug begin to run again. This is it. I tried… now I'll die. Hope, not wanting her last site to be a horn impaling her, kept her arm over her face.

A horrible-sounding scream of rage came in front of her, then silence. Hope stayed still for a few seconds, panting heavily. Something was wrong. Why wasn't she dead? She had to see, so she brought her arm away from her face.

The corpse of the beetle lay there, dead. Blood streamed from a wound in its chest, apparently the only part it could be hurt in. But that wasn't what caught Hope's attention.

She was staring in the eyes of another person that held a sword, the point colored red.

To be continued…opHo