---Yu-Gi-Oh! Tournament of the Millennium! ---
Chapter 19: Meetings and Match-Ups
"C'mon Yugi! We won't get there in time if we don't hurry!"
Joey raced through the BattleDome, eager to reach the meeting point where they would go up against the clan of the Duelist Traps. He rounded the corner of a corridor and skidded to a stop in front of a large group of people. Ryou was there as well, looking slightly puffed. Joey was about to speak to the group when someone, an unknown duelist, held his hand up to hush him. Every corridor had LCD screens broadcasting duels, but all the screens in the Dome had become static. Yugi rounded the corner too and looked at everyone questioningly.
"Hey. What's up-"
Yugi was cut off as the screens crackled to life. On each screen was the man they'd seen yesterday, at the start of the tournament.
"Welcome Duelists, and congratulations to all who have made it to Round 2. This transmission will relay to you the rules of Round 2, and also some news, both good and bad."
Yugi stared harder at the screen, watching for any suspicious behaviour by the as-of-yet unspecified person.
"First the bad news. Unfortunately, due to fears of flooding the current world metagame, the Exodia pieces earned during the first round will be banned in official play. This is not to say that they can't be used in casual play, and this does not lower the collector value of such cards, but that is the reason that they will not be officiated."
Several of the duelists in the group seemed to be disgruntled by this news, but then the man began to speak again and all fell quiet.
"Now, the good news. All duelists qualified for Round 2 will receive a rare card especially chosen to suit them. To receive this card, simply go to the nearest auto-card vendor, located throughout the BattleDome, and insert your Duelist Recorder module attached to the DuelDisk. The card will be ejected into your possession."
Yugi lightened at this. It was always fun to receive new cards.
"Now. The rules for Round 2. In this round, there is no specified amount of duels required to qualify for the finals. The way to qualify for the finals is to tally up 24000 Life Points of damage. Every duel you partake in, every Life Point your opponent loses, is added to your tally. When you total 24000 Life Points of Damage, you become qualified for the finals, but only if you are one of the first eight. Apart from that, all normal rules apply. Let Round 2 begin!"
The screen flickered and switched back to the duel it had been broadcasting. Yugi turned to face the crowd of people. Everyone he knew was there, Joey and Tristen chatting with some girls, Mai and another young woman in discussion, Teá and Grandpa talking with some of the others, and Mokuba was trying to catch the eye of an Egyptian teenager. Bakura seemed to be having a staring competition with another youth with greasy white dreadlocks. Seto was standing slightly aside from the group, and seemed to be in some kind of conversation with a boy only Yugi's age and a young man who seemed chillingly familiar to Yugi, who exuded an aura of confidence. These were the Duelist Traps.
Suddenly, the boy Seto had been talking with clapped his hands, drawing the attention of all in the corridor. This gave Yugi a chance to study him more deeply.
The boy was about the same height as Joey, and had raven-black hair that was artistically swept back into spikes. His swept-back hair seemed to make his eyes, a deep hazel colour, ominous and foreboding. He wore blackslacks and a worn cotton jacket, Old Navy. It was zipped almost to the top, so Yugi could only see the tops of three letters on the shirt. They were 'LTO'. The boy seemed to radiate assurance, and all in all, Yugi thought he looked rather the skilled duelist. When he spoke, his voice was calm and collected, and everyone listened intently, save Bakura and Seto.
"Alright. Since your entire clan is here now, let's get those new cards, and then we'll begin the Clan War. Duelist Traps, move out!" commanded the boy, and all the others started to move straight away, except the other man Seto had been conversing with.
'Whoa. This guy just screams power, Yami. I bet he'll be really tough.'
'No doubt. But let's face that hurdle when we get to it.'
Yugi hurried after the boy, and caught him as he made to move out of the door.
"Hey, I'm Yugi Moto. Nice to meet you," he offered his hand in a friendly manner. The boy took up his offer warmly and shook Yugi's hand firmly.
"Zeak. I look forward to playing against you, assuming your clan can make it past our team."
Zeak turned and walked through the door, eager to receive his new card. Yugi followed and then hooked his Duelist Recorder to one of the vending machines scattered liberally around the Dome. When his card was ejected, Yugi studied it for a moment and, satisfied, he snapped it into his deck. He turned to see Seto standing in front of everyone else.
"Everyone. Let's proceed to a Dueling Area. Then we can organize who fights who." Kaiba turned around, his black trench coat sweeping out behind him. He walked at a fast pace, and then swung open a door to entire a silvery Dueling Area. Zeak jumped up onto one of the Dueling platforms and cleared his throat.
"Okay, time for introductions! Michael, step forward!"
A young man, about 18, stepped from the crowd. He was one of the two Teá and Grandpa had been speaking to. He had close cropped tan hair, and piercing blue eyes. He was deeply tanned, and his body was well-built, with well-defined muscles rippling beneath his skin. He wore only blue and white board shorts, and a black open front cargo vest.
"Who wants to challenge Michael?" questioned Zeak. With Michael's physique, Zeak had two prime targets. Mai, being lured to the chiseled body, or Joey, who seemed eager to catch Mai's eye, which had been drifting towards Michael ever since she'd first laid eyes on him. Either way, Zeak didn't think they'd fare very well. As he'd guessed, Mai immediately stepped forward.
"I'll challenge him. This guy looks like he'll be an easy target." As soon as Mai volunteered, Joey began to fume. He jumped forward and pointed at Michael furiously.
"I'll challenge you as well, ya great lunk! C'mon!" yelled Joey passionately. Michael looked up to Zeak, who inclined his head slightly in Joey's direction. Michael turned back to the group.
"I accept the challenge of… Mai Valentine! That loser looks too easy…" Michael declared firmly. Zeak nodded, but Joey seemed to disagree with Michael's choice.
"Ah, c'mon! Whadda ya, scared? Takin' on the lady cause ya think she's easy pickin's?" roared Joey furiously. Mai grabbed Joey's wrist and dragged him back.
"Look you, I'll do this myself, thank you very much!" she shouted in Joey's ear, which served to sober him up a little. He slinked back and the next of Zeak's duelists stepped forward. He was the boy with the lanky dreadlocks. He wore black cargoes, black sneakers and a plain black t-shirt that revealed scrawny, pale arms. His eyes were dark brown.
"Ah yes. Everyone, this is Kal. Kal is our resident occultist. Anyone wanna try their luck against him?" Zeak asked confidently. Bakura would accept that challenge.
"Heh, an occultist you say? Very well then, you sound like a good test of my skills. I'll hand you your head on a silver platter when we're done," Bakura taunted Kal, unimpressed by Kal's emaciated form. Zeak nodded and Kal stepped aside, to where Michael was.
"Okay then… how about… Ashley," Zeak pointed to a younger girl, who had curly locks of strawberry-blonde hair. Yugi had to guess she was about 13. Her eyes were emerald, and she wore a pair of denim jeans and a pink t-shirt with 'Stargirl' written across it in red.
"Who wants to duel my sister?" Zeak asked of Yugi's group. He knew who she wanted to duel. She had a major crush on Joey, had since she was 11.
"Can I pick? Can I? Please please please?" Ashley pointed to Joey.
"Him! Joey Wheeler!"
Joey waved his hands frantically. He'd been hoping to get a duel against the lady Mai had been chatting with, who was a blonde bombshell in Joey's opinion.
"Ah, c'mon! You don't wanna duel me! How bout… Yugi! He's more your size!' Joey reached for Yugi, but changed course abruptly, grabbing hold of Mokuba.
"Even better, Mokuba Kaiba! He'd be more your type of duelist!" rushed Joey. Ashley pouted, but relented.
"Alright, Joey, but only cause you asked me. But if I do, you have to spend a day with me after the tournament!" Ashley put forward her ultimatum.
Joey only considered it for a fraction of a second. Once the duels had finished, he could just disappear. Yeah, that was what he'd do. Just disappear. It would be wrong to lead a 13 year old on a false path.
"Fine, fine, fine, okay!" Joey pushed Mokuba forward. Seto's face looked slightly sour, but he let it be. Mokuba didn't want to though.
"Hey, don't I get a say? I wanna have a rematch with Clee!" protested Mokuba vehemently. Clee smiled and patted his arm.
"Don't bother, Moki. I didn't collect the pieces fast enough. I'm just here to cheer."
Mokuba sighed and grumbled, 'Fine. I'll duel her." Clee smiled at him and rejoined the main group.
Next, the blonde woman Joey had been admiring stepped forward. Now that Joey could see her better, he realized that she was actually probably younger than himself, but not by much. Somewhere between 15 and 16. It was the clothes that had made her seem older. Lots of tight leather.
"This is Cristina. She's an amazingly skilled duelist. Who wants to duel her?"
Yugi and Joey both stepped forward. If she was such a good duelist, Yugi wanted a match against her. Cristina studied them and laughed.
"Not the short one, that's for sure!" declared Cristina surely. Yugi's gaze turned stormy and he was about to say something when the final challenger stepped forward.
"So, I guess I'm playing against Yugi, huh? Fair enough. Name's Dale."
The boy who had spoken looked about 14 years old, with pale purple hair that fell around his face, framing his emerald eyes. He wore loose cotton pants the same colour as his eyes, and a plain white t-shirt, over which flapped a pale blue Hawaiian shirt. Overall, he had a very calm, relaxed aura. Still, Yugi felt uneasy about him. There was something veiled behind his eyes, something that wasn't quite right. Still, Yugi supposed he'd discover what was up when he dueled Dale.
Zeak cleared his throat to get everyone's attention, and all in the area turned to face him.
"Now, it is time to let the clan war begin! First challengers, step up!" declared Zeak commandingly. Bakura and Kal both seemed slightly confused. It seemed that they would be dueling in a hallway. Smirking, Zeak nodded to the man he'd been talking to. The man had fine silvery hair that was cut short and swept back into a careful comb-over. The man wore a semi-casual black affair, and radiated confidence. He tapped a panel on the wall and suddenly lights began to flash in the hall way. Sections of the floor began to withdraw and rearrange, the section that Bakura and Kal were standing in raising itself above the rest of the hallway. The surrounding area raised itself as well, but separated from the Dueling Platform, and below it more flooring rose up. TV panels all over the outer viewing platform crackled into life, depicting Bakura and Kal.
Yugi and his friends stared in awe at the Dueling Platform, as did most of the Duelist Traps. Kaiba seemed mildly impressed too.
"Okay, same ante rules as round one guys. Bet your cards!"
Bakura shuffled through his deck and held one up. It depicted a familiar golden sphere.
"I will place my Millennium Eye card on the line. Not that it will be at any risk."
"Then I'll bet my Masked Beast and its ritual. Seems fair to me." The boy's voice was raspy and hoarse, and sent shivers up Yugi's back. Bakura wasn't impressed.
"Just choose your DeckMaster and be done with it," demanded Bakura calmly. Kal's upper lip twisted into the slightest smirk, before he placed a card into his DeckMaster slot. Behind him, a huge, demonic figure with curling horns and a wide, armoured chest appeared.
"I choose Dark Ruler Ha Des. Your choice, Ryou Bakura?"
Bakura selected a monster at random from his deck. It didn't worry him overly much which DeckMaster he used.
"I choose… hmm, Diabound it seems. Very well." Bakura seemed pleased with his choice. His DuelDisk whirred and then a grey beast with the upper body of a human, and a writhing snake's body below the waist, made itself known to all.
Bakura smirked and motioned for Kal to make the first move, looking very bored.
Kal scowled and picked one card from his hand.
"Grand Tiki Elder (1500/800), Attack Mode. End Turn." Kal seemed to want to speak as little as possible, preferring to just look eerie.
Bakura laughed as he drew his cards and placed one on the field. He was supremely confident of victory in this match. His deck was packed with strong cards.
"Not much of an opening move. Are you scared? Because you should be. I don't think a duelist of your caliber could even hope to last against my shadows. Now, Demon of Desire (1950/0) in Attack Mode! Kill that little vermin!"
From Bakura's DuelDisk a green-skinned, many horned creature adorned with gold, jewels and platinum, and rippling with muscles, leapt forward at the strange mask-wearing creature in front of it. It tore away the mask and plunged clawed fingers into the being's eyes. Thick red blood spurted onto the floor, running messily. The creature howled and vanished. Kal's Life Points dropped to 7550, but he didn't seem to care. He simply stared at Bakura with his dead, glazed eyes.
Behind Bakura, he could hear Teá dry-retching and some of the other duelists complaining of the gore. He merely smirked and then ended his turn. He stared down Kal threateningly. The battle had begun…