Chapter 8- Learning

Time: 3:10 pm EST
Location: 6 blocks east of Ryou's new home.

Ryou couldn't help but feel nervous as they began the short walk down hill to his home. His new friends had insisted on forming a tight group, with Nicole and Laura guarding the back, Andro the front and Ryou between them. Andro had replaced his dagger in a chest pocket, ready if he needed it. The three seemed nervous, watching the road and yards around them for some sort of attacker. But who? Or what?

When they finally reached the house, The quartet hurried inside and shut, locked, and bolted the door shut.

"Well THAT went better then Wednesday!"

"What do you mean?"

"The crazy stalkers didn't jump us today! YES! SCORE ONE FOR US!"

Ryou twitched.

"Stalkers?"

"We're the creators of the card-game. Strange people tend to follow us around."

"Like creepy, stalky, thingies!"

A game? THAT caught Ryou's interest!

"What kind of game?"

Laura laughed.

"A fun game! Ow!"

The mini-psycho hopped backwards, rubbing the spot on her forehead where Andro flicked her. The giant cleared his throat.

"It's, eh, a game of skill and strength, where the players play the roles of ancient warriors. You have to be a quick thinker to so much as land a blow."

"Could I see?"

Nicole nodded, grinning.

"Sure! Come'on!"

She lead the group to the basement where, after removing piles of sketches, statistics, and such from her desk, took out a binder and started flipping through it.

"The name of the game is Tenu. In Tenu each player is represented by a Ankh card, a character from an ancient civilization. The players use cards to declare attacks, spells, to guard, anything. The player who ether kills their opponent or is the last one with a deck to draw from wins."

"So it's a one-on-one fight?"

"Not quite. More then two players can participate at a time and can choose to assist each other in battle. You can also use the cards for an RPG where your character wanders a world similar to what they would have lived in in life, doing basically whatever you want."

An RPG! Ryou's favorite game had always been Monster World, with Duel Monsters a close second, and now he had people who he could play with! Okay, people who his other half didn't have a reason to harm. He hadn't sealed random people's souls in inanimate objects since Ryou had discovered him! No, Yugi and friends didn't count…

"Can I play?"

Nicole laughed.

"Of coarse! You'll be needing a few things though, like cards, and a character, and a Tenu Board…"

She went back to digging through her desk, Ryou watching peering over her shoulder with Laura and Andro laughing at the clutter. After a few moments Nic had accumulated a new, less useless pile on her desk.

"Here is your Ankh card, some booster packs and a Tenu Board. You'll need the Board to play because we haven't figured out how to simplify the game to a playable level without it and-"

"Why are the Ankh and Item blank?"

"Because what makes the game fun is the variety. No two characters are the same, just as no two players are the same."

"Then how to I customize the card?"

Laura hopped up to the desk, picked up the card, and stuck it in Ryou's hands.

"Put your palm over the image area, silly! The card will do the rest!"

"Alright."

Ryou did exactly what the neurotic midget said and, to his amazement, when he opened his hands the card had changed. Staring back at him, with a lazy yet dangerous grin, was his other half. Only different.

Clothed in blood red cloths with a load of stolen gold strapped to his back, Thief Bakura even had the checker-board scar across his cheek.

'Name- Neb-Thau Ba-Khu-Ra
Level- 5
Civ/ Egypt
Cls/ Thief
Atk/ 500
Def/ 1000
Spd/ 500
-Special-
Thief's Art 1) Art of Stealing Items: Steal one random item from your opponent.
Exp/ 0

'What sorcery is this?'

Ryou nearly jumped out of his skin.

'How did the image change? These mortals do not possess Millennium Items, nor are they priests! How can they do this?'

"How did the card do that?"

Nicole chuckled, amused by the question.

"That's a trade secret. Now what are you waiting for? Build your deck and we'll teach you to play!"

Ryou carefully opened the packs, carefully looking over the cards. Though he had no idea what most of them did, some were obvious.

"Can you teach me to play?"

Andro grinned evilly, baring most of his teeth.

"I thought you'd never ask."

Neb-Thau Ba-Khu-Ra- Neb-Thau is one way of saying 'Lord Thief' in Egyptian and Ba-khu-Ra is Bakura's Egyptian name.