Sorry, I was kinda brief last time. I'm not too sure what to say, except
that I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed for spending their time to
comment on my story. And I'd also like to say that Yami Bakura is sticking
around, at least for a while. And I've had a great idea for my tournament.
I'm going to use the DeckMaster system that was used in the Noa story-arc.
This will change the tournament slightly from the regular dueling system.
Anyway, let's get started.
***Yu-Gi-Oh! Tournament of the Millennium***
Chapter 4: A Tournament's Start
"WHAT?! WHERE'S MY GOD CARD?! IT'S GONE!" Joey flung the bed covers onto the floor and scrabbled under his bed. "It was in my deck! Where could it have disappeared to?"
Somehow, overnight, Joey's Winged Dragon of Ra card had vanished from his deck, even though it had been tucked under his arm during the night. Granted, it wasn't real, but that was beside the point. The point was that someone obviously knew about the God Cards and had managed to swipe the card from under his nose, or arm, as it may be. He'd definately have to tell Yugi about this.
*************
Ryou looked at his deck with some apprehension. There was something wrong with it, something just out of reach of his concious mind. It was somehow... different. He placed it on his desk and walked outside. He was going to the trading store to try and get a Dark Necrofear because he needed it to get into the tournament. If he couldn't find one then he would borrow Yugi's.
Ryou was halfway down the path from his front door when it hit him. The difference in his deck. It was the Ouuja Board.
He ran back inside to look at his card. With a trembling hand he shuffled through his deck and pulled the card out. If he was right then that could only mean one thing. He looked at the card. Where was it? There, in the corner. A fingerprint. A bloody fingerprint.
Ryou suddenly felt queasy. This could only mean one thing. His yami was back.
'Yes, Ryou, I am. And if you tell anyone before it is time I will kill them all.' Ryou jumped. The voice was echoing through his mind.
Ryou spoke aloud. "You! How did you come back?"
A snicker and then a cold voice replied, 'You don't need to know. All you need to know is that if you tell anyone about me I will kill them. And you know I will.' The voice was deep and threatening.
Ryou gulped. He knew that his Yami wasn't kidding.
'I may have trouble taking you over again due to your protection but it will become depleted. And then...' The spirit's voice trailed off ominously.
Ryou waited. When the voice failed to come again he grabbed his bag and hurried out the door. He needed to see Ishizu.
*********************
Ryou looked gloomily out of the aeroplane's window. He hadn't managed to work up the nerve to ask Ishizu for help, in case the Spirit made good on his word. Then he glanced down at his deck. As a final symbol of rejection and hate Ryou had dismantled his deck and was now rebuilding it, clean of the Spirit's terrible aura of hatred.
It was going to be a spirit deck. He'd packed it with rare spirit monsters, and lots of cards to support them. He also included the Millennium Ring and Millennium Eye, much as he had wanted to throw them away. They were just too good.
He was sitting next to Yugi during the flight across the Pacific to Singapore. There they would swap planes and continue on to their destination, Sydney, Australia.
He stared out of the window at the endless blanket of cloud that ran underneath them. Behind him he could here snatches of conversation from his fellow passangers.
"No way, Tris, I'm gonna win this-"
"Watch out Tsunami. My bugs are hungry!"
"Fat chance Rex. You're about as likely to win as Joey is to turn down food!"
"Wait until you see what I've got in store for you."
"Bakura, Bakura. Hey! Bakura!" Bakura woke with a start as Yugi stopped shaking his arm. He must have drifted off to sleep during the flight.
"Yes Yugi?"
"It's time to get off. We're in Singapore. We have to switch over now." Yugi grabbed his bag and ran down the aisle. Ryou slowly stood up and picked up his backpack. He dropped his deck into it and walked off the plane.
****************
Eight hours later, they were in Sydney Airport. Yugi watched in amusement as Mai chased Joey around the airport, shouting at him about being a pervert. Apparently he had mistaken Mai's lingerie case for his bag of snacks and had dived into it eagerly as soon as they got off the plane.
"JOEY WHEELER, YOU GET YOUR PERVERTED BUTT BACK HERE RIGHT NOW!!! I WANT AN EXPLANATION AND APOLOGY!!"
Yugi turned away from the free entertainment and noticed someone in a black trenchcoat approaching them. He had a shiny, interlocked 'KC' on his collar.
"Hey guys! It's a Kaiba Corp. employee!" He turned back to the man. As he approached Yugi got a better look at his face. He had a goatee, and thick black eyebrows. He lifted up a silver briefcase and opened it. Inside were several sets of earpieces and microphones. Yugi looked at them curiously. "What are these?"
"These are Kaiba's latest innovation, DigiTech Translators. They can translate over fifteen different languages. The competitors in the tournament will be the test subjects for it, as there are many different nationalities and languages that you may encounter duelists using during this tournament."
He took one out and handed it to Yugi. Yugi looked at it. The ear-piece looked like a big metal ear muff, with a small LCD screen at the bottom. Yugi turned it on and saw that it was already set to translate English to Japanese. He clipped it onto his ear and was suddenly aware that he could fully understand the announcements being broadcast around the airport. He had known a little English before, but not much.
"HEY GUYS!" shouted Yugi loudly. Everyone stopped to see what the matter was. Yugi didn't often shout.
"What's up, Yug?" Joey wandered up to him unconcernedly.
"These are translators from Kaiba Corp. As participants in the tournament we get to test them before Kaiba releases them to the public. They're really cool!" Yugi looked around.
"Hey! There's an eyepiece so we can read in English too! Pretty neat, huh, Joey?"
Joey muttered an unhappy agreement. He hated having to say anything of Kaiba's was good.
Yugi pulled out the preliminary instruction letter he had received on the plane. His violet eyes roved over the information as he searched for a certain part.
"It says we've got to go to a place called the Sydney BattleDome. Let's go guys." Yugi picked up his luggage and ran out the line of waiting taxis. Grandpa laughed at his enthusiasm and followed Yugi, though at a slightly slower place.
***********
They ended up filling three taxis. Yugi, Grandpa, Tea and Bakura were in the first, Joey, Mai, Rex and Weevil were in the second (with Mai insisting she sat in the front, to be away from the boys) and Bandit Keith, Mako Tsunami and unlucky Tristen stuck in the last one. Needless to say, the third would not have been fun, what with the amount of arguing between Keith and Mako about the other's preferred playing style. Of course, Tristen happened to be stuck in between them.
The second taxi had been little better, with snide comments flying thick and fast between Weevil and Joey or Mai and Rex.
Yugi yawned and stretched as he hopped out of the taxi. It had been a nice drive, but he was eager to stretch his legs after the flight. He looked around. It was a fine, sunny day and a slight breeze blew through the trees, making them sway gently. It was very quiet, due to the fact that all roads to the BattleDome had been closed off, and most duelists were already inside the BattleDome.
They were pretty much the only ones left outside. Yugi glanced at his watch worriedly.
"We're late. I hope they haven't started yet."
Mai snorted derisively. "I seriously doubt if the tournament will start without the world champion." She looked around at the group of duelists. "Besides, there are-" Mai started counting on her fingers. "-There are 4 world class duelists here alongside you. Joey, Mako, Bakura and of course, me. They won't have started yet." She walked haughtily towards the BattleDome.
***************
On top of the BattleDome a lone man stared into the sky. The sun glinted off his expensive mirrored sunglasses. His trench coat whipped around him in a frenzy by the turbulent winds that buffeted him roughly. The man's suspicions were confirmed when a helicopter flew out of the sun's glare. Kaiba had arrived.
As the helicopter landed on the helipad Seto pulled the pilot's headset off his head and dropped it on the seat. The cockpit opened and Mokuba jumped out. He had a silver and black vest and a strange helmet with a clear green visor that dropped over his face. His long, black hair was blowing wildly in the dying hurricane of the helicopter's slowly stopping blades. He pulled his deck out of a holder clipped to his belt and slotted it into the DuelDisk that was attached to his arm. Then he ran gleefully to the lift that lead down to the main area.
"Come on Seto!" shouted Mokuba in an urgent voice. "We'll miss the start of the tournament!"
Seto climbed out of the helicopter and picked up his case, then walked to the lift.
As they descended Seto muttered softly to himself.
"Watch out Yugi. With two Kaibas in this tournament your chances have dropped considerably."
"Did you say something Seto?" Mokuba glanced at Seto questioningly.
Seto smirked coldly.
"No Mokuba. I didn't say a thing..."
*****************
A young European woman stared down at a strange-looking device that was sitting in her hand. It was a weaved-wire globe, that had golden beads on each section of wire. The wire was strung through the middle as well, and here the golden beads were shifting, sliding up and down the length of the wires gently. The whole device had a slight glow, giving it a mystical quality. There were seven beads inside and, as she watched, they all shifted to the very centre of the globe and shone brightly.
She looked up at the BattleDome in interest.
"How curious. It seems that all seven of the Sennen Items are inside this very structure." She watched a bead on the outer layer of the globe slide slowly around the entire length of the globe continuously. "And my target seems to be there as well. How very fortunate."
She shook her long auburn hair and tightned her DuelDisk slightly. Her target had finally stopped it's travelling long enough for her to catch up. Now she would make sure to seal it away as her ancestors had done so long ago...
**************
Yugi watched the giant plasma screen flicker slightly as the Industrial Illusions logo appeared on it, followed by the interlocked 'KC' that represented KaibaCorp. It flickered again and a man in his late thirties appeared. He had long, blonde hair tied up in a ponytail, and bright green eyes.
"Welcome to the Tournament of the Millennia! It is an elite tournament which has been organised for the best duelists from around the world, namely you."
"This tournament is world-class and, as such, will play a very big role in improving your ranking in the world of Duel Monsters. The winner will be declared the greatest duelist in the world. Along with this honour and prestiege there are also a lot of excellent cards at stake. It will be a wonderful chance to improve your decks and your reputations, so use this opportunity wisely."
Yugi stared at the man on screen. Something felt "wrong" about him, and Yugi couldn't quite pin it down. He also thought it strange that this man hadn't given an introduction. It was most likely Thomas Harris, but no-one knew who he was, so it was impossible to tell.
"Now, onto an important matter. There has been a rule change which none of you have been informed of, since it was only changed last night. A new twist has been thrown into this tournament, just to make it exciting. A select few of you may have played a certain virtual-reality game in which duels took place using the Deckmaster System. This is the system we will use."
Joey looked down at his deck. It had been a while ago, but he remembered it well. The Big 5 had captured them in a virtual world for the second time, with that crazy computer kid Noa.
"What this entails is that before each duel you will select a monster in your deck and remove it from the duel. This monster will fight by your side and advise you, as well as lend you some rather handy abilities they gain from being in the Deckmaster Position. They can enter the duel to fight for you, but be warned, because if your Deckmaster leaves the field you instantly LOSE THE GAME."
The giant face grew serious as it began to explain the rules in greater depth.
"Your Deckmaster stays beside you for the entire duel, to help and support you. The only time it will leave your side is if you summon it onto the field. When it is beside you it is referred to as being in the Deckmaster Position. Because this is a special position your Deckmaster can't be affected by ANY card effects, whether they be your's or your opponent's."
"Each Deckmaster has their own unique effect on the game, save one: The Blue-Eyes White Dragon. It's previous effect was that a monster it was fused into could attack on their first turn, but this rule has been abolished for this tournament, making it's ability effectively useless."
"Other than the Blue-Eyes every monster has an effect. The effect is gauged by the rarity, stats and any effects of the card, although it is impossible to work out most Deckmasters' effects. When you select your Deckmaster it will not initially inform you of it's effect. It will only reveal it's effect after a certain period of time. This period is noticably longer for the monsters with better effects, although the attitudes of the monster towards it's owner may make it inclined to reveal or withhold the information at different times."
"This adds a new aspect to the game, because if you treat you monster well and look after it there is a greater chance of getting the requisite information faster. Your DuelDisk will beam the status of every monster you play to the mainframe right here. This means that if you swap your Deckmaster for another that has been treated well and protected in previous games then it's trust for you will be much higher than one you simply use as bait for traps."
"Your Deckmaster will stay with you at all times, even once the duels have finished. They will be your companion for the tournament, and for those of you who progress to the next round, will be useful allies."
"There are certain monsters that cannot be used as Deckmasters, namely, Fusion and Ritual Monsters. Monsters with a Special Summon Requirement may be used as Deckmasters, but may only come to the field once their summon requirements have been successfully fulfilled."
Yugi noticed a lot of people looking through their deck, to select their perfect partner. Luckily, Yugi already knew the effect of 3 of his monsters: Kuriboh, Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl. That gave him a significant advantage over others. When this was combined with the fact that he had all 3 God Cards in his possession, it made him an even more forbiddable opponent than before.
"During your own Main Phase you may Special Summon your Deckmaster onto the field, but once it has entered the field it may not return to the Deckmaster Position. Also, cards that are activated due to a monster being summoned may not be activated when the Deckmaster is summoned onto the field. You must note that summoning your Deckmaster can be very risky, due to the fact that it leaves them completely exposed to anything your opponent throws at you."
"There is one more thing I must say about the Deckmaster while it is on the field. There is one time it may leave the field and that is when you fuse it to create a new monster, or use it for certain effects, like using the Baby Dragon to bring out the Thousand Dragon. The new monster is now counted as your Deckmaster, so you lose if the fused monster leaves the field."
"Next, progressing. Every time you participate in a duel you must put at least one piece of Exodia on the line. If you lose you must give your piece, along with your rarest card, to the duel's winner. The first 32 people to collect the 5 seperate pieces of Exodia will progress to the next round, but more information will be distributed to those people apon their progression."
"Until then, spread throughout the city and enjoy the tournament. The first round will run for 3 days, and begins at 1:00. The time is now 12:00, so in one hour I expect to see some action. Until the next round, goodbye."
The screen went black and people began to wander outside. Yugi turned to Joey and the rest of them.
"Well, I'll see you guys at the hotel in a while then, unless I meet you somewhere in the city." Yugi said cheerfully to his friends.
"You'd better hope not. 'Cause I don' wanna hafta eliminate you before you get to the next round, Yug." Joey joked. He then waved and walked away.
"Yeah. I'd better get going as well. Don't want that loser getting to far ahead of us." Mai strolled off, drawing several appreciative stares from male duelists as she passed.
Ryou waved and jogged away in the opposite direction with Tristen.
*********************
That left only Tea and Grandpa with Yugi. They all strolled through the Dome and out into the surrounding city. When they reached a park the trio sat down on a bench and started discussing the merits of different Deckmasters.
"I think he should stick with the Dark Magician because he knows what it can do."
"But if he doesn't use other monsters he'll never discover new efffects."
"Guys, I'll pick what to use."
Yugi pulled out his deck and looked at his Dark Magician.
"I think I'll stick with the Dark Magician, at least for the moment. It's effect is pretty useful."
Yugi placed the Dark Magician into a reader that had opened on the opposite side of the DuelDisk to where field magic cards were placed.
A blast of violet light emerged from the DuelDisk and dissipitated to reveal the Dark Magician. He swung around to stare at Yugi.
"Master. How may I help you?" The Dark Magician's voice was calm and smooth, with a strange resonant quality. His turquoise eyes studied Yugi carefully. He knew his master well, for he was a kind and virtuous master, with a very strong link to the Shadow Realm and his real self.
Yugi looked stunned. "Wow, they've updated the programming. I don't remember the Deckmasters being able to talk." (I haven't seen the Noa story arc, so I have no idea whether they were actually capable of talking in the show.)
"Come on. Let's go find a good opponent to duel. There's bound to be one somewhere."
The four walked through a grove of trees, into the centre of the park. Yugi noticed a crowd of people gathered around two figures in a shady area of trees. One of them looked vaugely familiar.
As Yugi walked closer he saw that one duelist's Deckmaster was a Spikebot, while the other was using Jirai Gumo. The one using Jirai Gumo had vivid blue hair and large glasses. It was Weevil!
Yugi, Tea, Grandpa and DM got close enough to here the banter. It seemed that the duel was just starting. Yugi looked at his watch. 1:01. They hadn't taken long to find a duel.
*************
Weevil sneered at the other boy as he drew his starting hand and browsed it. It was perfect for what he needed. Of course it was, since he had secretly placed the top ten cards in a specific order, guaranteed to get good results.
"Hah, watch this! I'll summon the Pinch Hopper (1000/1200) in Defense Mode."
A small grasshopper appeared on the grass in front of Weevil.
"Now I'll play Dark Hole to destroy my Pinch Hopper!"
The other duelist spluttered in surprise.
"What! What did you do that for?!"
Weevil snickered cruelly.
"When Pinch Hopper dies it allows me to summon any monster in my hand. So I'll summon Giant Mantis (2900/2100)! It also gains 100 Atk from my Pinch Hopper being in the Graveyard! Next, I'll play Quick Attack! This allows my Giant Mantis to attack first turn, and without the pesky Tribute that is normally required for it to attack!"
A giant green preying mantis replaced the Pinch Hopper and rubbed it's front legs together, making a threatening cricking sound.
"Next I'll play Life Shortening Cards, allowing me to draw 5 new cards! And they're just what I need. I'll equip my Giant Mantis with Plasma Insect Armour and Laser Cannon Armour, increasing it's attack to 4000!"
Two beams of light flew around the giant bug and formed a long, glowing cannon on it's back, with two smaller cannons sitting on it's shoulders.
"Next I'll play Second Coin Toss and activate my Deckmaster's effect!" cried Weevil triumphantly.
"No way! How could you have worked it out so fast?" the smaller boy wondered aloud.
"All that talk about treating your monster with respect is just that- talk. I simply threatened to rip my Jirai Gumo's card in halve and it told me. It's very intelligent."
Weevil laughed madly. "Jirai Gumo's effect doubles my insect's attack up to 8000, but there is a 50% chance that the attack will miss and I'll lose half my Life Points. But with Second Coin Toss that chance is reduced to 25%! Now, Giant Mantis, destroy him!" Weevil pointed directly at the other duelist.
The mantis bent down, revealing the cannon on it's back to the young duelist. All three cannons began to glow a furious green. Suddenly a sizzling green bolt of energy lanced from the tip of the barrels and struck the boy. The recoil pushed the bug back about ten metres.
Weevil cackled as the smoke cleared to reveal a defeated duelist. He deactivated his DuelDisk and walked over to the boy.
"Your Exodia piece please! And your rareset card. Hmm, only a Flame Cerebrus. How disappointing." Weevil picked up the card and tore it in half. "I have no need for it."
The boy cried out in anguish and the entire crowd booed and shouted angrily at Weevil.
"What the hell was that for?!"
"Why didn't you just give it back?!"
"You suck, Underwood!"
Weevil turned to the crowd to reply, but his reply was cut short when he saw the Datk Magician standing in the crowd.
"Yugi Moto! I should have guessed you would be here! And using the Dark Magician as your Deckmaster, so predictable."
Yugi's Millennium Puzzle flashed and Yami emerged.
"Weevil! Your dirty tricks and underhanded tactics are cruel and heartless. It seems you have a penchant for causing others pain through the destruction of their possessions. Well Weevil, I challenge you to a duel!" Yami shouted as he pointed accusingly at Weevil.
Weevil sneered and snickered a dry, cunning laugh.
"Very well Yugi. But I think you will find me a tougher opponent than you believe me to be. I am far more skilled than when we duelled at Duelist Kingdom oh so long ago."
Yami smiled coldly. "I too have improved. But enough talk. We will bet 1 card each on the duel's outcome. I will bet Exodia the Forbidden One."
Weevil looked at his two cards.
"As you wish Yugi. I will bet 1 piece as well. Now let's duel."
------------------------------------------------------
Next time, Yugi and Weevil go head to head in an exciting duel. Who will triumph? Find out in the next chapter of Tournament of the Millennia!
Anyway, let's get started.
***Yu-Gi-Oh! Tournament of the Millennium***
Chapter 4: A Tournament's Start
"WHAT?! WHERE'S MY GOD CARD?! IT'S GONE!" Joey flung the bed covers onto the floor and scrabbled under his bed. "It was in my deck! Where could it have disappeared to?"
Somehow, overnight, Joey's Winged Dragon of Ra card had vanished from his deck, even though it had been tucked under his arm during the night. Granted, it wasn't real, but that was beside the point. The point was that someone obviously knew about the God Cards and had managed to swipe the card from under his nose, or arm, as it may be. He'd definately have to tell Yugi about this.
*************
Ryou looked at his deck with some apprehension. There was something wrong with it, something just out of reach of his concious mind. It was somehow... different. He placed it on his desk and walked outside. He was going to the trading store to try and get a Dark Necrofear because he needed it to get into the tournament. If he couldn't find one then he would borrow Yugi's.
Ryou was halfway down the path from his front door when it hit him. The difference in his deck. It was the Ouuja Board.
He ran back inside to look at his card. With a trembling hand he shuffled through his deck and pulled the card out. If he was right then that could only mean one thing. He looked at the card. Where was it? There, in the corner. A fingerprint. A bloody fingerprint.
Ryou suddenly felt queasy. This could only mean one thing. His yami was back.
'Yes, Ryou, I am. And if you tell anyone before it is time I will kill them all.' Ryou jumped. The voice was echoing through his mind.
Ryou spoke aloud. "You! How did you come back?"
A snicker and then a cold voice replied, 'You don't need to know. All you need to know is that if you tell anyone about me I will kill them. And you know I will.' The voice was deep and threatening.
Ryou gulped. He knew that his Yami wasn't kidding.
'I may have trouble taking you over again due to your protection but it will become depleted. And then...' The spirit's voice trailed off ominously.
Ryou waited. When the voice failed to come again he grabbed his bag and hurried out the door. He needed to see Ishizu.
*********************
Ryou looked gloomily out of the aeroplane's window. He hadn't managed to work up the nerve to ask Ishizu for help, in case the Spirit made good on his word. Then he glanced down at his deck. As a final symbol of rejection and hate Ryou had dismantled his deck and was now rebuilding it, clean of the Spirit's terrible aura of hatred.
It was going to be a spirit deck. He'd packed it with rare spirit monsters, and lots of cards to support them. He also included the Millennium Ring and Millennium Eye, much as he had wanted to throw them away. They were just too good.
He was sitting next to Yugi during the flight across the Pacific to Singapore. There they would swap planes and continue on to their destination, Sydney, Australia.
He stared out of the window at the endless blanket of cloud that ran underneath them. Behind him he could here snatches of conversation from his fellow passangers.
"No way, Tris, I'm gonna win this-"
"Watch out Tsunami. My bugs are hungry!"
"Fat chance Rex. You're about as likely to win as Joey is to turn down food!"
"Wait until you see what I've got in store for you."
"Bakura, Bakura. Hey! Bakura!" Bakura woke with a start as Yugi stopped shaking his arm. He must have drifted off to sleep during the flight.
"Yes Yugi?"
"It's time to get off. We're in Singapore. We have to switch over now." Yugi grabbed his bag and ran down the aisle. Ryou slowly stood up and picked up his backpack. He dropped his deck into it and walked off the plane.
****************
Eight hours later, they were in Sydney Airport. Yugi watched in amusement as Mai chased Joey around the airport, shouting at him about being a pervert. Apparently he had mistaken Mai's lingerie case for his bag of snacks and had dived into it eagerly as soon as they got off the plane.
"JOEY WHEELER, YOU GET YOUR PERVERTED BUTT BACK HERE RIGHT NOW!!! I WANT AN EXPLANATION AND APOLOGY!!"
Yugi turned away from the free entertainment and noticed someone in a black trenchcoat approaching them. He had a shiny, interlocked 'KC' on his collar.
"Hey guys! It's a Kaiba Corp. employee!" He turned back to the man. As he approached Yugi got a better look at his face. He had a goatee, and thick black eyebrows. He lifted up a silver briefcase and opened it. Inside were several sets of earpieces and microphones. Yugi looked at them curiously. "What are these?"
"These are Kaiba's latest innovation, DigiTech Translators. They can translate over fifteen different languages. The competitors in the tournament will be the test subjects for it, as there are many different nationalities and languages that you may encounter duelists using during this tournament."
He took one out and handed it to Yugi. Yugi looked at it. The ear-piece looked like a big metal ear muff, with a small LCD screen at the bottom. Yugi turned it on and saw that it was already set to translate English to Japanese. He clipped it onto his ear and was suddenly aware that he could fully understand the announcements being broadcast around the airport. He had known a little English before, but not much.
"HEY GUYS!" shouted Yugi loudly. Everyone stopped to see what the matter was. Yugi didn't often shout.
"What's up, Yug?" Joey wandered up to him unconcernedly.
"These are translators from Kaiba Corp. As participants in the tournament we get to test them before Kaiba releases them to the public. They're really cool!" Yugi looked around.
"Hey! There's an eyepiece so we can read in English too! Pretty neat, huh, Joey?"
Joey muttered an unhappy agreement. He hated having to say anything of Kaiba's was good.
Yugi pulled out the preliminary instruction letter he had received on the plane. His violet eyes roved over the information as he searched for a certain part.
"It says we've got to go to a place called the Sydney BattleDome. Let's go guys." Yugi picked up his luggage and ran out the line of waiting taxis. Grandpa laughed at his enthusiasm and followed Yugi, though at a slightly slower place.
***********
They ended up filling three taxis. Yugi, Grandpa, Tea and Bakura were in the first, Joey, Mai, Rex and Weevil were in the second (with Mai insisting she sat in the front, to be away from the boys) and Bandit Keith, Mako Tsunami and unlucky Tristen stuck in the last one. Needless to say, the third would not have been fun, what with the amount of arguing between Keith and Mako about the other's preferred playing style. Of course, Tristen happened to be stuck in between them.
The second taxi had been little better, with snide comments flying thick and fast between Weevil and Joey or Mai and Rex.
Yugi yawned and stretched as he hopped out of the taxi. It had been a nice drive, but he was eager to stretch his legs after the flight. He looked around. It was a fine, sunny day and a slight breeze blew through the trees, making them sway gently. It was very quiet, due to the fact that all roads to the BattleDome had been closed off, and most duelists were already inside the BattleDome.
They were pretty much the only ones left outside. Yugi glanced at his watch worriedly.
"We're late. I hope they haven't started yet."
Mai snorted derisively. "I seriously doubt if the tournament will start without the world champion." She looked around at the group of duelists. "Besides, there are-" Mai started counting on her fingers. "-There are 4 world class duelists here alongside you. Joey, Mako, Bakura and of course, me. They won't have started yet." She walked haughtily towards the BattleDome.
***************
On top of the BattleDome a lone man stared into the sky. The sun glinted off his expensive mirrored sunglasses. His trench coat whipped around him in a frenzy by the turbulent winds that buffeted him roughly. The man's suspicions were confirmed when a helicopter flew out of the sun's glare. Kaiba had arrived.
As the helicopter landed on the helipad Seto pulled the pilot's headset off his head and dropped it on the seat. The cockpit opened and Mokuba jumped out. He had a silver and black vest and a strange helmet with a clear green visor that dropped over his face. His long, black hair was blowing wildly in the dying hurricane of the helicopter's slowly stopping blades. He pulled his deck out of a holder clipped to his belt and slotted it into the DuelDisk that was attached to his arm. Then he ran gleefully to the lift that lead down to the main area.
"Come on Seto!" shouted Mokuba in an urgent voice. "We'll miss the start of the tournament!"
Seto climbed out of the helicopter and picked up his case, then walked to the lift.
As they descended Seto muttered softly to himself.
"Watch out Yugi. With two Kaibas in this tournament your chances have dropped considerably."
"Did you say something Seto?" Mokuba glanced at Seto questioningly.
Seto smirked coldly.
"No Mokuba. I didn't say a thing..."
*****************
A young European woman stared down at a strange-looking device that was sitting in her hand. It was a weaved-wire globe, that had golden beads on each section of wire. The wire was strung through the middle as well, and here the golden beads were shifting, sliding up and down the length of the wires gently. The whole device had a slight glow, giving it a mystical quality. There were seven beads inside and, as she watched, they all shifted to the very centre of the globe and shone brightly.
She looked up at the BattleDome in interest.
"How curious. It seems that all seven of the Sennen Items are inside this very structure." She watched a bead on the outer layer of the globe slide slowly around the entire length of the globe continuously. "And my target seems to be there as well. How very fortunate."
She shook her long auburn hair and tightned her DuelDisk slightly. Her target had finally stopped it's travelling long enough for her to catch up. Now she would make sure to seal it away as her ancestors had done so long ago...
**************
Yugi watched the giant plasma screen flicker slightly as the Industrial Illusions logo appeared on it, followed by the interlocked 'KC' that represented KaibaCorp. It flickered again and a man in his late thirties appeared. He had long, blonde hair tied up in a ponytail, and bright green eyes.
"Welcome to the Tournament of the Millennia! It is an elite tournament which has been organised for the best duelists from around the world, namely you."
"This tournament is world-class and, as such, will play a very big role in improving your ranking in the world of Duel Monsters. The winner will be declared the greatest duelist in the world. Along with this honour and prestiege there are also a lot of excellent cards at stake. It will be a wonderful chance to improve your decks and your reputations, so use this opportunity wisely."
Yugi stared at the man on screen. Something felt "wrong" about him, and Yugi couldn't quite pin it down. He also thought it strange that this man hadn't given an introduction. It was most likely Thomas Harris, but no-one knew who he was, so it was impossible to tell.
"Now, onto an important matter. There has been a rule change which none of you have been informed of, since it was only changed last night. A new twist has been thrown into this tournament, just to make it exciting. A select few of you may have played a certain virtual-reality game in which duels took place using the Deckmaster System. This is the system we will use."
Joey looked down at his deck. It had been a while ago, but he remembered it well. The Big 5 had captured them in a virtual world for the second time, with that crazy computer kid Noa.
"What this entails is that before each duel you will select a monster in your deck and remove it from the duel. This monster will fight by your side and advise you, as well as lend you some rather handy abilities they gain from being in the Deckmaster Position. They can enter the duel to fight for you, but be warned, because if your Deckmaster leaves the field you instantly LOSE THE GAME."
The giant face grew serious as it began to explain the rules in greater depth.
"Your Deckmaster stays beside you for the entire duel, to help and support you. The only time it will leave your side is if you summon it onto the field. When it is beside you it is referred to as being in the Deckmaster Position. Because this is a special position your Deckmaster can't be affected by ANY card effects, whether they be your's or your opponent's."
"Each Deckmaster has their own unique effect on the game, save one: The Blue-Eyes White Dragon. It's previous effect was that a monster it was fused into could attack on their first turn, but this rule has been abolished for this tournament, making it's ability effectively useless."
"Other than the Blue-Eyes every monster has an effect. The effect is gauged by the rarity, stats and any effects of the card, although it is impossible to work out most Deckmasters' effects. When you select your Deckmaster it will not initially inform you of it's effect. It will only reveal it's effect after a certain period of time. This period is noticably longer for the monsters with better effects, although the attitudes of the monster towards it's owner may make it inclined to reveal or withhold the information at different times."
"This adds a new aspect to the game, because if you treat you monster well and look after it there is a greater chance of getting the requisite information faster. Your DuelDisk will beam the status of every monster you play to the mainframe right here. This means that if you swap your Deckmaster for another that has been treated well and protected in previous games then it's trust for you will be much higher than one you simply use as bait for traps."
"Your Deckmaster will stay with you at all times, even once the duels have finished. They will be your companion for the tournament, and for those of you who progress to the next round, will be useful allies."
"There are certain monsters that cannot be used as Deckmasters, namely, Fusion and Ritual Monsters. Monsters with a Special Summon Requirement may be used as Deckmasters, but may only come to the field once their summon requirements have been successfully fulfilled."
Yugi noticed a lot of people looking through their deck, to select their perfect partner. Luckily, Yugi already knew the effect of 3 of his monsters: Kuriboh, Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl. That gave him a significant advantage over others. When this was combined with the fact that he had all 3 God Cards in his possession, it made him an even more forbiddable opponent than before.
"During your own Main Phase you may Special Summon your Deckmaster onto the field, but once it has entered the field it may not return to the Deckmaster Position. Also, cards that are activated due to a monster being summoned may not be activated when the Deckmaster is summoned onto the field. You must note that summoning your Deckmaster can be very risky, due to the fact that it leaves them completely exposed to anything your opponent throws at you."
"There is one more thing I must say about the Deckmaster while it is on the field. There is one time it may leave the field and that is when you fuse it to create a new monster, or use it for certain effects, like using the Baby Dragon to bring out the Thousand Dragon. The new monster is now counted as your Deckmaster, so you lose if the fused monster leaves the field."
"Next, progressing. Every time you participate in a duel you must put at least one piece of Exodia on the line. If you lose you must give your piece, along with your rarest card, to the duel's winner. The first 32 people to collect the 5 seperate pieces of Exodia will progress to the next round, but more information will be distributed to those people apon their progression."
"Until then, spread throughout the city and enjoy the tournament. The first round will run for 3 days, and begins at 1:00. The time is now 12:00, so in one hour I expect to see some action. Until the next round, goodbye."
The screen went black and people began to wander outside. Yugi turned to Joey and the rest of them.
"Well, I'll see you guys at the hotel in a while then, unless I meet you somewhere in the city." Yugi said cheerfully to his friends.
"You'd better hope not. 'Cause I don' wanna hafta eliminate you before you get to the next round, Yug." Joey joked. He then waved and walked away.
"Yeah. I'd better get going as well. Don't want that loser getting to far ahead of us." Mai strolled off, drawing several appreciative stares from male duelists as she passed.
Ryou waved and jogged away in the opposite direction with Tristen.
*********************
That left only Tea and Grandpa with Yugi. They all strolled through the Dome and out into the surrounding city. When they reached a park the trio sat down on a bench and started discussing the merits of different Deckmasters.
"I think he should stick with the Dark Magician because he knows what it can do."
"But if he doesn't use other monsters he'll never discover new efffects."
"Guys, I'll pick what to use."
Yugi pulled out his deck and looked at his Dark Magician.
"I think I'll stick with the Dark Magician, at least for the moment. It's effect is pretty useful."
Yugi placed the Dark Magician into a reader that had opened on the opposite side of the DuelDisk to where field magic cards were placed.
A blast of violet light emerged from the DuelDisk and dissipitated to reveal the Dark Magician. He swung around to stare at Yugi.
"Master. How may I help you?" The Dark Magician's voice was calm and smooth, with a strange resonant quality. His turquoise eyes studied Yugi carefully. He knew his master well, for he was a kind and virtuous master, with a very strong link to the Shadow Realm and his real self.
Yugi looked stunned. "Wow, they've updated the programming. I don't remember the Deckmasters being able to talk." (I haven't seen the Noa story arc, so I have no idea whether they were actually capable of talking in the show.)
"Come on. Let's go find a good opponent to duel. There's bound to be one somewhere."
The four walked through a grove of trees, into the centre of the park. Yugi noticed a crowd of people gathered around two figures in a shady area of trees. One of them looked vaugely familiar.
As Yugi walked closer he saw that one duelist's Deckmaster was a Spikebot, while the other was using Jirai Gumo. The one using Jirai Gumo had vivid blue hair and large glasses. It was Weevil!
Yugi, Tea, Grandpa and DM got close enough to here the banter. It seemed that the duel was just starting. Yugi looked at his watch. 1:01. They hadn't taken long to find a duel.
*************
Weevil sneered at the other boy as he drew his starting hand and browsed it. It was perfect for what he needed. Of course it was, since he had secretly placed the top ten cards in a specific order, guaranteed to get good results.
"Hah, watch this! I'll summon the Pinch Hopper (1000/1200) in Defense Mode."
A small grasshopper appeared on the grass in front of Weevil.
"Now I'll play Dark Hole to destroy my Pinch Hopper!"
The other duelist spluttered in surprise.
"What! What did you do that for?!"
Weevil snickered cruelly.
"When Pinch Hopper dies it allows me to summon any monster in my hand. So I'll summon Giant Mantis (2900/2100)! It also gains 100 Atk from my Pinch Hopper being in the Graveyard! Next, I'll play Quick Attack! This allows my Giant Mantis to attack first turn, and without the pesky Tribute that is normally required for it to attack!"
A giant green preying mantis replaced the Pinch Hopper and rubbed it's front legs together, making a threatening cricking sound.
"Next I'll play Life Shortening Cards, allowing me to draw 5 new cards! And they're just what I need. I'll equip my Giant Mantis with Plasma Insect Armour and Laser Cannon Armour, increasing it's attack to 4000!"
Two beams of light flew around the giant bug and formed a long, glowing cannon on it's back, with two smaller cannons sitting on it's shoulders.
"Next I'll play Second Coin Toss and activate my Deckmaster's effect!" cried Weevil triumphantly.
"No way! How could you have worked it out so fast?" the smaller boy wondered aloud.
"All that talk about treating your monster with respect is just that- talk. I simply threatened to rip my Jirai Gumo's card in halve and it told me. It's very intelligent."
Weevil laughed madly. "Jirai Gumo's effect doubles my insect's attack up to 8000, but there is a 50% chance that the attack will miss and I'll lose half my Life Points. But with Second Coin Toss that chance is reduced to 25%! Now, Giant Mantis, destroy him!" Weevil pointed directly at the other duelist.
The mantis bent down, revealing the cannon on it's back to the young duelist. All three cannons began to glow a furious green. Suddenly a sizzling green bolt of energy lanced from the tip of the barrels and struck the boy. The recoil pushed the bug back about ten metres.
Weevil cackled as the smoke cleared to reveal a defeated duelist. He deactivated his DuelDisk and walked over to the boy.
"Your Exodia piece please! And your rareset card. Hmm, only a Flame Cerebrus. How disappointing." Weevil picked up the card and tore it in half. "I have no need for it."
The boy cried out in anguish and the entire crowd booed and shouted angrily at Weevil.
"What the hell was that for?!"
"Why didn't you just give it back?!"
"You suck, Underwood!"
Weevil turned to the crowd to reply, but his reply was cut short when he saw the Datk Magician standing in the crowd.
"Yugi Moto! I should have guessed you would be here! And using the Dark Magician as your Deckmaster, so predictable."
Yugi's Millennium Puzzle flashed and Yami emerged.
"Weevil! Your dirty tricks and underhanded tactics are cruel and heartless. It seems you have a penchant for causing others pain through the destruction of their possessions. Well Weevil, I challenge you to a duel!" Yami shouted as he pointed accusingly at Weevil.
Weevil sneered and snickered a dry, cunning laugh.
"Very well Yugi. But I think you will find me a tougher opponent than you believe me to be. I am far more skilled than when we duelled at Duelist Kingdom oh so long ago."
Yami smiled coldly. "I too have improved. But enough talk. We will bet 1 card each on the duel's outcome. I will bet Exodia the Forbidden One."
Weevil looked at his two cards.
"As you wish Yugi. I will bet 1 piece as well. Now let's duel."
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Next time, Yugi and Weevil go head to head in an exciting duel. Who will triumph? Find out in the next chapter of Tournament of the Millennia!