If this duelist doesn't show up soon I'm going to become more irate than I already am. If he doesn't have the courage to face me he should at least have the dignity to forfeit in person. Time is money.
Finally I hear the sounds of the elevator reach the surface. To my faint surprise the figure of a woman emerges. No matter, I'll crush her like all the others. I show no mercy to any of my opponents, regardless of sex, race or social status. I don't play favorites.
She's walking confidently, head held high. As she reaches her side of the platform she removes her veil in a pseudo-dramatic flourish. My mind instantly identifies her features from the countless faces I have encountered in my life. This is a fine turn of events. Ishizu Ishtar- museum curator and delusional mystic- is about to be defeated by the very card she gave me!
Why does this woman persist in relying on superstitious fairy tales? Right now she's ranting about how I should accept my destiny, how she is fated to win this duel. Don't expect to win me over Ishtar. Waste your words on someone who cares.
Duel monsters is a game of skill and chance. There is no guiding force, like Yugi's idiotic, naive belief in the heart of the cards, behind it. The cards are merely slips of paper: the only "life" in them is a product of my technological genius. We are merely two human beings brought together by random chance. Fate had nothing to do with it.
I don't believe in fate. I control my life, not some mystical force. I believe only in what can be seen, felt, smelt, tasted, and heard. Destiny is a foolish dream for weak people who have no purpose in life and don't have the guts to make something of themselves.
Have you ever stopped to consider that your faith may be false? What if the foundation of your belief is merely a crutch you use to keep from facing the truth? I wonder what will happen when I pull away your support. When all your magic mumbo-jumbo fails, when you loose despite that ugly piece of junk hanging around your neck, what will you do? Will you stumble and fall?
Reality is cruel. Maybe I don't blame you for trying to avoid it. You want to blame something for your brother's descent into madness, so you chose fate. I pity you, really. Your defeat will shatter your hope; crush your dreams. What will you have left after this duel is over? Nothing. I'll have taken it all.
A/N: The last paragraph was kinda out of character. Sorry about that. The next chapter will be from Ishizu's point of view. Please review!