Monica: Glad you're enjoying! Read ahead and you'll see what mischief your namesake's up to this chapter – lots of it, one would surmise!
Lumen: *shrug* Unfortunately, as a suspense writer, it's my business to not bring things to a tidy conclusion. It's all part of the plan to keep my loyal readers as long as humanly possible.
Wolf: Good to know my reviewers are ganging up on me for something or other. You wanted to see sac rules for a while, I figured this would be the best time to do it. And we'll be seeing more of Madison, don't you worry.
-------
Kyle's opponent, a wiry red-head sporting a pair of lens-less glasses – Kyle could only assume it was a style he'd yet to pick up on – cracked his knuckles as the minute hand struck the 12. "Let's get this show on the road," the kid said. His name tag read "Cole Calvert". "Faster I can get to the finals, the better off we'll all be."
Kyle shook his head in silent disapproval. I really can't say I'm much for the trash talking right now, but if he's gonna get into it... "In that case, I'm glad to hear you've got your place in the bleachers already staked out."
Calvert scoffed. "Bring it on, dude. Ro-sham-bo."
Both of the duelists pumped their fists through the air three times. Calvert called, "Shoot!"
Kyle had chosen rock; Calvert's choice was scissors. Kyle smirked. "I'll be all too happy to bring it on by going first."
They quickly shuffled their decks and prepared the duelist calculator conveniently set up in the center of the table, then drew their cards and regarded each other intently for a moment before Kyle made his first move.
"I'll place one monster face-down," he announced, "and that'll be all for me."
"Not even attempting to feint with a face-down magic or trap card? Shame, shame," Calvert reproved.
"Then attack and find out how much I need to feint."
"Hrm. Perhaps I will, at that. I play Mechanicalchaser (1850/800) in attack mode and attack your monster."
Kyle obediently flipped his monster over. "You've attacked my Wall of Illusion (1000/1850), with a defense just strong enough to survive the attack. And now its special effect kicks in and returns your Mechanicalchaser to your hand."
Calvert harrumphed. "No matter. I'll just bring him out again next turn."
"Maybe. That everything?"
"Yeah, go."
Kyle drew his next card and perused his hand for a moment. "I place one magic/trap face-down, along with another monster face-down. That'll be all for me this turn."
Calvert drew. "I re-play Mechanicalchaser (1850/800) in attack mode and attack your face-down monster."
Kyle smirked and flipped over the m/t he had waiting. "Activate Waboku. But you still get to see my monster, so say hello to Crass Clown (1350/1400)."
Calvert glared. "And now all you have to do is use its effect next turn to clear my field."
"Unless you've got any magic or trap cards at the ready in your hand," Kyle remarked, his smirk widening. "Or you just might get lucky next turn."
"Somehow I doubt that," his opponent grumbled. "End turn."
Kyle drew, then grinned at the drawn card. "Awesome. Exactly what I need. First off, I play Muka Muka (600/300) in attack mode. His special effect causes his attack and defense power to increase by 300 for every card I've got in my hand, and right now I'm holding four. So instead of an attack power of 600..."
"...it has an attack power of 1800."
"Exactly. And now I'll switch Crass Clown to attack mode, and his little effect comes into play. Back to your hand with that rusted out Duel Monster."
Calvert's glare only deepened as he once more returned his Mechanicalchaser to his hand.
"Next I switch Wall of Illusion to attack mode, and all three of my monsters attack your Life Points."
The opponent let out a sigh. "Which ends the game." He threw his hand of cards on the table in disgust. Kyle didn't see all of it, but he caught a glimpse of several higher-level monsters. He smiled to himself. If all my duels are going to be this easy because of Madison's rules – or Kaiba's – then there's no way I'm not going to the finals at this rate!
--
Kyle had to wait about half an hour before the other duels were finished. Several people called referees to their tables at differing times to consult about the rules. But it didn't look like anyone had yet been disqualified, which was just as well; he didn't much feel like going forward in a tourney where the participants didn't play by the rules.
His second opponent was a young woman, a few years older than him. She looked sprightly and energetic. He wondered if some of that had to do with winning her previous duel. Her name tag read "Carla Eisenberg".
"Hi," she said brightly as he sat down. "Ready to get going?"
"Whenever you are," he answered.
"Oh, one thing?"
He raised an eyebrow in askance.
"No trash-talking, okay? I know psychology's part of this game, but I have a hard enough time with figuring out appropriate plays. I don't need my opponent distracting me with taunts."
Kyle nodded. "Fair enough. I was actually hoping for an opponent who felt that way."
"Good, now you've got one. Ro-sham-bo?"
He nodded again, and once more let his fist fly thrice through the air. On "Shoot!", his first two fingers formed a scissors-like formation. She'd picked paper.
"I'll go first," he said.
"Fine by me."
They shuffled and drew their cards. Kyle drew his sixth card, then considered his move. "I'll place three magic/trap cards face-down, and one monster face-down. That ends my turn."
"Already this is looking dangerous," she chuckled. "Okay, then. I play Gamma the Magnet Warrior (1500/1800) in attack mode."
"Activate Trap Hole," Kyle announced, flipping over the corresponding trap card.
She gave him a look before discarding Gamma to the graveyard. "My, my. And Gamma has such a low attack power, comparatively speaking. Wonder what you've got hiding."
"You'll see. Anything else, or can I take my turn now?"
"Not yet. I place one magic/trap face-down and then end my turn." She tsked at him. "So impatient."
"True. I just like taking my turn." Kyle drew his next card. "All right, then. I play Sangan (1000/600) in attack mode."
"Activate Call of the Haunted," she responded, flipping her trap card face-up. "Familiar with it?"
Kyle nodded. "Yeah. It's a trap version of Premature Burial, only without the Life Point cost. You bring back a monster from your grave in attack mode. If either Call or your monster is destroyed, the other goes with it."
"Indeed. And since the only monster in my graveyard is Gamma, I'm bringing him back."
"Fair enough." Kyle flipped his other monster face-up. "Then Gamma gets to meet my Harpie's Brother (1800/600) in battle."
She frowned and mumbled something to herself. Noncommitally, Kyle said, "Harpie's Brother attacks Gamma."
"Destroyed," she muttered, discarding her monster and reducing her LP count by 300.
"And then Sangan attacks your Life Points."
She obediently subtracted another thousand Life Points from her score.
"My turn's done."
"Hmph." She drew. "All right, then. I play Vorse Raider (1900/1200) in attack mode."
Kyle blinked and looked at the monster's level stars. There aren't too many normal Duel Monsters out there that are level 4 and have an attack power of 1900...
Yet this appears to be one of them, does it not?
Yeah. Kyle mentally shrugged. Doesn't matter. If I can somehow make it to the finals, I could get a whole bunch of them. That one's at least super rare.
"Vorse Raider attacks your Harpie's Brother."
Kyle flipped another of his face-down m/t's. "Activate Widespread Ruin. This destroys the monster on your field with the highest attack points."
She harrumphed once more and disgustedly sent her Vorse Raider to the graveyard. "My turn's done. My last duel was longer than this..."
Kyle shrugged. "Them's the brakes about dueling. You win some, you lose some." He drew his next card. "Harpie's Brother and Sangan attack your Life Points."
"And that does it for me," she grumbled.
He chuckled. "Don't worry. There are all sorts of tournaments out there."
She picked up her deck and got to her feet. "None like this one."
He couldn't help but agree on that point.
--
Monica took her seat and sighed in bored fashion as she waited for her next opponent. Her last two duels had been easy. Almost frightfully so. She hoped it wouldn't be like this all the way through. I want a challenge, damn it.
Her next opponent was a tall black man wearing a well-tailored suit and a confident expression. "Ms. Zocallos, I've heard so many good things about you."
"They're all true," she responded blandly.
"Well, I suppose we'll see about that, once we get this duel underway. And as you're always in a hurry, let's not waste time." He took his seat and placed his deck on the table. "Ro-sham-bo."
Monica chose rock, while her opponent – a man whose name was Frank Endouwi – chose scissors. She wordlessly drew her first six cards and glanced up at him to watch as he drew his first five.
"I place two magic/trap cards face-down, and then play Dimensional Warrior (1200/1000) in attack mode," she announced. "And that ends my turn."
"Such a weak monster, in attack mode? I don't suppose you were actually serious about participating in this tournament, were you?" He drew, then announced, "I play Vorse Raider (1900/1200) in attack mode and have it attack your Dimensional Warrior."
"Destroyed," she said, "and I lose 700 Life Points, but its special effect removes both it and the monster that attacked it from the game. So it's not quite as weak as you might think."
"Indeed." A frown creased his brow. "Very well, then. I shall place one magic/trap card face-down and end my turn."
She drew her next card. "I'll also place a magic/trap face-down, and then play Koumori Dragon (1500/1200) in attack mode. And Koumori Dragon attacks your Life Points."
"I lose 1500," he answered, setting his duelist calculator to 2500.
"End turn."
He drew his next card. "I play Dark Hole."
"Hrm." She discarded Koumori Dragon.
"Now I place one monster face-down."
She flipped one of her traps. "Activate Acid Trap Hole," she announced. "If that monster's got less than 2000 defense points, it's gone."
"Not quite. I activate my Seven Tools of the Bandit and give up one thousand Life Points to keep my monster right where it is."
She harrumphed. "Fine, then."
"Next I place one magic/trap card face-down and end my turn."
She drew, then said, "All I'll do this turn is place one magic/trap face-down. Back to you."
He took his next card. "I place another monster face-down."
"Maybe I'll have better luck with my Shadow of Eyes card," she said, as she turned another of her traps face-up. "It forces you to play that monster in attack mode."
He gave her a look as he turned his Magician of Faith (300/400) to attack mode. "Very well... but since she's in attack mode, it would be a shame not to attack, no matter how weak she may be. Magician of Faith attacks your Life Points."
"Minus 300," she answered, deducting Life Points accordingly.
"End turn."
She drew, then smirked. "I play Polymerization. And trust me, I don't have any of those wussy monsters with 1500 attack points."
"Indeed." Her opponent raised an eyebrow.
"Indeed," she nodded. "I'm fusing together the Summoned Skull and Red-Eyes Black Dragon I've got in my hand in order to play Black Skull Dragon (3200/2500) in attack mode." She discarded the Summoned Skull and Red-Eyes Black Dragon cards from her hand, then reached over to her fusion deck, picked up the fusion monster she'd just summoned, and placed it appropriately on the field.
Endouwi quirked an eyebrow. "Impressive."
"So glad you approve. Black Skull Dragon attacks your Magician of Faith."
"Don't be too eager to win the game that you forget about my traps. Activate Negate Attack."
She scoffed. "Fine. End turn."
He drew his next card, but didn't put it into play. Instead he reached out to his Magician and turned it sideways. "I switch my Magician of Faith to defense mode and end my turn."
Running scared. Smart. She drew. "I place one magic/trap face-down, then have my Black Skull Dragon attack your Magician of Faith again."
"Destroyed this time. But thankfully without LP loss."
"Your monsters might not be so lucky next time. End turn."
He offered a smile as he drew. "Quite the confident one. Just don't let that confidence turn into arrogance. I place one magic/trap face-down and end my turn."
"Fine." She drew. "I place another magic/trap face-down, and have my Dragon attack your face-down monster."
"Hm. This time I'm activating my Fairy Box trap card." Endouwi picked up the coin that had been placed on the table for such occasion as players would have need for one. "I flip this. If I call it right, your monster's attack power is set to zero. If I'm wrong, nothing happens and the attack goes through unchecked."
"So flip the coin and call it already."
He tsked. "Impatience, Ms. Zocallos. I call heads." He flipped the coin high into the air and let it drop onto the table.
It landed heads-up.
Endouwi smiled. "Well, I guess luck is on my side. At any rate, your attack still goes through, just with an attack power of zero. And you've attacked my face-down Cyber Jar (900/900)."
Monica winced. "I really loathe Cyber Jars when they're used against me."
"But they work oh so well when they operate on your side, don't they?" He grinned. "You take 900 damage to your Life Points. And then my monster's effect kicks in."
Yeah, yeah... all monsters on the field are destroyed, then we each draw five new cards and show them to each other... any monsters level 4 or below go to the field, everything else stays in our hands. But first... "Before we put those monsters on the field, I'm going to activate my Light of Intervention trap. That way there won't be any surprises."
"Fair enough," he responded, drawing his next five cards. The expression on his face wasn't exactly a happy one, though, when he saw what he'd drawn, and Monica could only hope that he'd gotten nothing worth playing.
Since she'd been the one to cause Cyber Jar's effect, she revealed her drawn cards to him first – a Waboku trap, a level 6 Meteor Dragon (1800/2000), a level 4 Dragon Dwelling in the Cave (1300/2000), a level 3 Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000), and a level 2 Skelengel (900/700). She played the first two monsters in attack mode, and Skelengel in defense.
His hand revealed three traps, a magic card, and a Morphing Jar (700/600). She smiled. Great. Morphing Jar's a flip effect monster, but with Light of Intervention in play, he has to put it face-up.
"Okay, then," she said. "Now that that's out of the way, it's still my Battle Phase, and my monsters can still attack. So I'm having my Giant Soldier attack your Morphing Jar."
"Don't forget about Fairy Box. Tails." Endouwi flipped the coin, but it once again landed heads.
"Well, bye-bye to your Morphing Jar, then. And then Dragon attacks your Life Points directly."
Endouwi discarded his Morphing Jar with one hand and flipped the coin with the other. "Tails again."
This time the coin landed tails. Monica sighed. No damage to him, then... "End turn."
He drew, then announced, "First I need to deduct five hundred Life Points from myself, since Fairy Box demands a price for every turn I use it. Then I place three magic/trap cards face-down and end my turn."
Monica drew, then frowned. This isn't doing me much good right now, and at this rate, Fairy Box is doing more damage than I would. Besides, I can't risk getting caught by his traps... "I'll end my turn without playing anything."
Endouwi nodded and drew. "Minus another 500 Life Points, and I will also refrain from playing a card and end my turn."
Monica arched an eyebrow at his Life Point counter, now hovering at 1000. "Getting pretty low on Life Points and not much to show for it."
"We'll see."
"That we will." She drew her next card, then glanced up at him. "I think I'm going to risk it. I switch Skelengel to attack mode, and then have it attack your Life Points."
"Once more, Fairy Box comes into effect. Tails." The coin dropped tails.
"Hrm. Giant Soldier attacks, then."
"Heads." And the coin landed heads.
Monica scowled. "Fine. Third time's a charm. Dragon attacks."
"Tails."
The coin landed heads.
He frowned. "It seems my luck has run out."
"So have your Life Points."
"Those, too." He gathered his cards together and offered her a hand. "Good match."
She shook the proffered hand. "You, too."
And she meant it.
--
Her fourth opponent was a girl that was about her age, a couple years older at most. Her long blond hair hung freely, and Monica couldn't help but be reminded of Kyle's former hair style. However, this girl's complexion was much more tan than Kyle's. Monica suppressed a smile as she thought, Prettier, too... though compared to Kyle, that's not so tough...
"Hi," said the girl whose name tag read "Courtney Daniels". "Ready to lose?"
"Only if you are," Monica scoffed in response.
"Well, then, let's get this going, hm? Ro-sham-bo."
Monica's throw was paper; Courtney's was scissors. The blonde smirked. "Guess I'll go first, then."
"Go for it."
Courtney drew her first six cards, looked at the for only a moment, then nodded definitively. "Good. I play Swords of Revealing Light to start off."
Monica raised an eyebrow. "You're pinning me for three turns right off the bat? Wouldn't it have been better to wait?"
"You'll see why. Next I place one magic/trap face-down and follow it up with a face-down monster. My turn's finished."
"Glad to hear it." Monica drew. "I also place one magic/trap face-down and one monster face-down."
"Not so fast with the monster," Courtney responded, and she flipped her face-down m/t. "I activate Shadow of Eyes."
Monica gave an irritated scoff and turned her Witch of the Black Forest (1100/1200) to attack mode. I really hate it when I see cards I love being used against me. And I can't even have the benefit of an attack thanks to that Swords card. "I can't attack, so that'll end my turn."
"Fine by me." Courtney drew, then announced, "I play Harpie's Feather Duster to rid your field of that face-down m/t."
"Not if I use it first," Monica shot back. "It's your turn, so I'm allowed, and I'm going to. Activate Acid Trap Hole. Hopefully you're familiar with it."
"Quite. My face-down Earthbound Spirit (500/2000) goes to the graveyard. But it's not really like I needed it." Courtney laid down her next card. "I play Mechanicalchaser (1850/800) in attack mode, and have it attack your Witch."
"Destroyed, and I lose 750 LP," Monica answered. "But I also gain Witch's effect." She searched her deck for an appropriate monster card, grinned when she found the one she wanted, and placed it among the other cards of her hand before shuffling her deck.
"End turn."
"Good." Monica drew, then nodded in approval. "I'm putting the field magic card Mountain into play. It increases the attack and defense power of all Dragon-types, Winged Beast-types, and Thunder-types we play by 200 points."
"Fine. Then what?"
"Then I play Goblin Attack Force (2300/0) in attack mode, that's what." She grinned. One of the most powerful level 4 monsters to date. Too bad it goes to defense mode after attacking... but her Swords card is the only thing that's keeping me from doing exactly that. "My turn ends there."
Courtney drew, then frowned ever so slightly. "Looks like I'll have to go to the defensive, for the moment. I switch Mechanicalchaser to defense mode and then place one monster face-down to end my turn."
One turn left for Swords, and then it's playtime. Monica drew. Hmm. This might do me some good... but first... "I place one magic/trap face-down," she announced, "and then play the magic card Graceful Charity. By its effect I can draw three extra cards into my hand and then discard any two from the resulting mess."
"Then hurry up with it."
Monica drew her three new cards, then narrowed her eyes at her hand. Tough choice. But I'd best go with... these two... "I'm discarding my Dimensional Warrior and Acid Trap Hole cards."
"Then I assume you've got something more useful in the wings," Courtney responded.
"That, I do. I place one more magic/trap face-down, and then play Zombyra the Dark (2100/500) in attack mode. But once more, I'll have to end my turn without the fun of attacking. On the other hand, next turn won't be so shabby."
Courtney rolled her eyes. "Please. Just because my Swords card is gone now–" and at this she discarded her Swords of Revealing Light "–doesn't mean you're going to stay on the offensive. Quite the opposite, I think. I sacrifice my Mechanicalchaser and face-down Sangan (1000/600) to play Tri-Horned Dragon (2850/2350) in attack mode."
Monica cursed under her breath. I'm in trouble.
"And thanks to your field card, Tri-Horned Dragon gets a nice boost of two hundred attack and defense."
"Thank you for pointing that out, I might not have seen it otherwise," Monica grumbled. "Remember Sangan's effect."
"Thank you for pointing that out, I might not have seen it otherwise," Courtney parroted, and she searched her deck for an appropriate monster card. She found one a moment later and collected it into her hand before shuffling. "And now that that's overwith, Tri-Horned Dragon attacks your Zombyra."
"Destroyed," Monica muttered, and she reduced her Life Points accordingly – the value had by this point descended to 2300.
"Finally, I place one magic/trap face-down and end my turn."
Monica drew her next card in silence – and scowled at it. Fat lot of good you're gonna do me right now... She pulled another of her hand's cards from among the pack and placed it on the field. "I play Monster Reborn, to revive my Witch of the Black Forest and place her in defense mode. Then I switch Goblin Attack Force to defense mode and end my turn."
Courtney drew her next card, but paid little attention to it and instead opted to bring out the card she'd retrieved by way of her Sangan's effect. "I play Gazelle, the King of Mythical Beasts (1500/1200) in attack mode, and have him attack your Goblin Attack Force."
"Destroyed."
"Then Tri-Horned attacks your Witch."
"Also destroyed." Monica began to look through her deck. "I get her effect again."
"I'm well-aware of that. My turn's finished whenever you are."
Monica was meticulous in her choice, but quite sure of it once she made it. Then she shuffled her deck and drew her next card. This might do, too. "I play Pot of Greed to draw two new cards."
"Be my guest."
Monica blinked in surprise at her two next cards, both good. "Now I play Change of Heart to take control of your Tri-Horned Dragon."
"Was expecting that," Courtney smirked, "which is why I placed my Shift trap card. Lets me choose your target for you. And I don't want you getting your hands on my dragon. You can have Gazelle instead."
Damn, there goes that strategy... still, all isn't lost... "Fine," Monica responded, taking Gazelle onto her field for a moment. Let's try this out instead... "In that case, I sacrifice Gazelle in order to place one monster face-down. Then I place one magic/trap face-down and end my turn."
"Your defenses aren't going to do much against a monster that, for the moment, is stronger than a Blue-Eyes White Dragon, you know," Courtney chuckled amusedly as she drew her next card.
Monica's gaze snapped up at the remark... but the look in her opponent's eyes was nothing more than cockiness. There was no hidden knowledge there. Just "smarminess", as my dad might like to say...
"Anyway, I play Hayabusa Knight (1000/700) in attack mode. And this monster's special in that it gets to attack twice in a single turn. But first let's clear away your face-down. Tri-Horned Dragon attacks your face-down monster."
Monica flipped it over for a moment. "You've destroyed my Beast of Gilfer (2200/2500), and whenever he's sent to the graveyard, he can be equipped to one opposing monster as an equipment magic card and reduce that monster's attack power by 500. In this case, I'm targeting your Hayabusa Knight."
"Fine by me, Tri-Horned is still unaffected."
"Not really. Like I said, you destroyed Beast of Gilfer; it's been sent to the graveyard, it just came back, s'all. But since it was destroyed and sent to the graveyard, I'm activating my Michizure trap card, which lets my monster take one of yours with it to the grave. And in this case, I pick Tri-Horned Dragon."
At this, Courtney scowled. "And this is legal?"
"If you don't think so, by all means, ask a referee," Monica responded coolly. "Any of them would agree with me. You can deal with it or you can quit here and now."
Her opponent harrumphed. "I'm not going to waste my time or effort. Fine, Tri-Horned is destroyed. But Hayabusa Knight is still here, and he attacks your Life Points directly – twice, which is, if I'm not terribly mistaken, also legal."
"That it is," Monica agreed, and she deducted 1000 Life Points in accordance with that proclamation. "Anything else?"
"No, that should do it."
Monica drew her next card, and then smirked. That last phrase was more true than she'd know... She reached to the face-down card she'd played just before her Graceful Charity card and flipped it over. "I activate Polymerization. Now, normally I'd have the required fusion material in my hand, but in this case, I have something a bit different. What I've got is Red-Eyed Black Dragon..." She revealed the named card. "...and also Goddess With the Third Eye." She also showed this one to Courtney. "Goddess' effect is especially handy, because she can substitute as one part of virtually any fusion monster."
Courtney scoffed. "So what, you have a Black Skull Dragon?"
"I do, but that's not the monster I'm bringing out."
The blonde opponent frowned. "What else does Red-Eyes fuse into?"
Monica discarded her Polymerization, Red-Eyes, and Goddess cards and picked up her chosen fusion monster. "This one – Meteor Black Dragon (3500/2000). Since he's also a dragon, he gets that nifty bonus from my Mountain card, all the way up to 3700 attack points. But it's not quite enough to wipe out all of your as yet untouched Life Points, so I'm adding one more card to the combination." She placed a magic card on the field. "Say hello to Dragon's Gunfire. I can only play this when I have a dragon on my field, and using it, I can deal 800 direct damage to your Life Points."
"That takes me down to 3200," Courtney noted.
"And then it's all simple math from here. Your Knight's attack power, with Gilfer attached to him, is 500. My Dragon's is 3700."
Courtney scowled. "Just enough to destroy all of my Life Points in one turn."
"You've got it." Monica grinned. "Unless, of course, you have some method of stopping the attack."
Courtney shook her head. "No. No, I don't." She sighed. "Ah, well. Maybe there'll be another tourney like this one sometime."
"One can always hope." Monica nodded in appreciation as she gathered her cards. "Good duel."
"Yeah... it was." Courtney offered a small smile. "Maybe I'll stick around. See some more good dueling."
Monica smirked. "You could very well do that."
--
12:58 p.m.
--
Abigail Madison sighed as she stepped into her office. What with all the chaos today, she'd not yet gotten a chance to take a look at recent stock reports.
She shook her head reproachfully at the numbers. At last count, our stock values were at $23.54 a share. And we were making three times that much before Seto Kaiba turned his operation away from weapons and toward building useless platforms for silly games! Somebody ought to teach that boy to grow up.
And in the meantime, KaibaCorp gets all the credit for that technology. Nobody pays attention to Madison Enterprises, the people that allowed such marvelous stupidity to exist despite its fragility. Absolutely unbelievable.
We'll get back at him for it, soon enough. But first I need the right method. And I'll have exactly that by tomorrow morning.
At that thought, she smiled in satisfaction. Roll over, Seto Kaiba.
--
1:37 p.m.
--
Kyle took a deep breath before stepping into the waiting area that had been set up for the semi-finalists. Though his first matches had been insanely easy, his later ones had been notoriously difficult, and it was only with the help of Sanga of the Thunder that he was able to get through that last one. His opponent didn't bother to read up on Sanga's effect before trying to attack it, and the referee had judged Kyle's interpretation -- an intepretation he'd gotten directly from Zack -- as correct. The opponent lost his monster and the rest of his Life Points upon activation of Sanga's effect.
This was just as well, since Kyle's Life Points had been cut down to 200.
Well, I still won, he thought. And now look at what I'm gonna get from it. At the very least, $2500 and some good cards.
There were several comfortable chairs strewn about the room, and the table in the middle had several refreshments on it; obviously this place was a lounge. Kyle strolled over to the table and surveyed the food. Hmm. Cheese, some donuts...
These are strange foods to me.
Kyle couldn't help but emit an amused snort. I suppose they would be. Care to try one out for yourself?
Do you believe that is a wise course of action?
Well, that depends. Are you feeling strong enough to take over?
That is not a pertinent issue.
Sure it is. Are you?
...Yes, but I believe you know to what I refer.
You're afraid someone's going to traipse in and catch you eating a donut? Kyle snickered. You're too cautious. If you want a donut, have a donut. I like 'em, myself. Especially the cream-filled ones.
Cream-filled?
Kyle chuckled. One of these. He picked up a closed donut with chocolate icing. Probably vanilla cream inside. Good stuff.
...If you wish to accustom me to the tastes of your world, perhaps you would be better served to show me a simple food, rather than one such as that.
Probably right. Kyle put the cream-filled donut down and picked up a plain one instead. Does that mean you'll eat it, then?
You make this sound like one of your boyhood "dares".
It's not a dare, Theoris, it's just a question. Gonna do it?
...Very well.
Okay. So... how do we do this? Do I have to be asleep?
No. Just let go of yourself. You may feel as though you are drifting in a pond. You will still be able to detect everything that is happening.
If you say so. Kyle closed his eyes and tried to disfocus. It was a remarkably difficult task, given the high he was on at the moment for getting into the semi-finals.
But a mere moment later, he felt his eyes opening again -- and he wasn't even instructing them to do so.
Theoris... this is weird...
I know. Do not be afraid. Kyle's eyes blinked once, and his head turned one way, then another. He felt his arm come up, and his eyes scanned the donut his fingers were pinching. What an odd shape for a food... but then again, this is a very odd world you live in.
Kyle would have chuckled if he'd been in control of his faculties. So says you. Go on and eat it, it's not gonna bite you.
So says you, Theoris responded. Nevertheless, he brought the donut to Kyle's mouth and took a tentative bite out of it. His jaw worked the baked dough for a moment, and his eyes widened. By Ra, Kyle, I have chewed sugar cane that was not so sweet as this!
Interesting. I've never had sugar cane. Kyle was amused, though he began to feel slightly concerned when he felt his gag reflex trying to build up. Hey, hey, don't choke on it, okay? It's just sweetened bread.
Sweetened to enormous proportions, I must say...
Don't like it?
It is... different. Much different.
The door to the lounge swung open. Theoris mentally uttered a curse and turned quickly away from the door, then closed Kyle's eyes.
Kyle opened his eyes and blinked in dizziness. Whoa... what's wrong?
I cannot be seen inhabiting your body. It is obvious when I do.
Obvious how?
"Kyle?"
He frowned and turned back to the door.
Monica was standing there.
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Why did I cut it off there? Well, think of the implications. If she's standing there, what does that mean? If you can't figure it out, well, then you'll have to wait another five days! No worries, it's not all THAT long. Meantime, take a moment to leave a review, won't you? Please? Stay tuned for the Madison Enterprises tournament semi-finals!