Author's Note: Stuff!

Chapter Ten: Walkabout

Ryu flopped down on Autumn's couch, and she gave him an annoyed look in return. "We're supposed to be searching out people with magic and telling them to look out for hot spots of darkness, not relaxing."

He shrugged and almost offhandedly grabbed a magazine off the coffee table. "Yeah, but it's really not as difficult to start out with as you seem to think. We already know a bunch of magical people who aren't part of this group."

She raised an eyebrow, not seeing what he was getting at. "Oh? Who might these mystery people be? I don't remember that many people we know, non-evil ones at least, who can use magic."

He smirked and tossed her the magazine he had been reading. "Let's start with the obvious. Take a look at page thirty-one."

Frowning, Autumn flipped the magazine over, revealing it as an issue of Duelist Monthly, the previous month's issue. Just like he said, she searched through it until she came to a the page he had mentioned. "Yugi Moto, one of the world's best duelists, will be having his deck put on display at Seto Kaiba's Duelist Academy this month…"

She sighed and sat down next to him, then chucked the magazine in his face. "Okay, so Yugi was obvious. Got anybody else in mind?"

He grinned; satisfied that he had one-upped her. "A few more, yeah. Mai Valentine, Weevil Underwood, Rex Raptor, Joey Wheeler, Seto Kaiba, Raphael, Amelda, and Varon for starters. Pegasus J. Crawford can be thrown in there as well, along with Ryou Bakura."

"And what makes you think most of them have magic? Bakura and Pegasus I get, because they had Millennium Items. The rest…I don't see how you got those." She was instantly irritated by the smug and superior look that surfaced on his face as she revealed that she didn't get it.

"Well, it's pretty simple. From what Drake told us there was a test, where you had to be accepted by a fragment of the Orichalcos in order to gain its power. People couldn't just have been accepted because of darkness in their hearts, otherwise anyone could use it. So by my thinking it's likely that it requires magic to use. Which also rules in all those weirdoes who used it while working for Eikyuu." She frowned, but couldn't see a flaw in that logic.

"Okay, so we look for those people first. But that hardly does much. That's only a dozen or so. We need a lot more people than that to do any slowing down." In response to her question he hopped off the couch and walked out of the room.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?" She followed him as he walked through her apartment, finally stopping in her room. She was about to protest, but he sat down at her computer before she could say a word.

"We can find more people using the best magic ever invented. The internet. I've used it to look for information on magical stuff before, and I know that there a lot of people on the net with experience or knowledge about supernatural stuff. We're bound to find a bunch of magical people if we just use the internet." Once again Autumn was almost shocked by the simplistic but well thought out plan.

"Well, we can put some stuff out on the internet easy. But…how do we convince people like Weevil, Rex, and the Doom Soldiers to help out? I mean, those Doom guys were trying to undo the Earth, not save it." In response, Ryu looked up from the computer and at her, raising one clenched fist.

"If we have to, we'll use force. Now, let's get to work."

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Drake stopped in the alley, staring at it as if he had been here before. It took him several seconds to realize that he had in fact been here before. 'This is where I was first rescued by Yumi and the rest of the gang. Had it been anyone else…maybe I wouldn't be here today.'

Slowly his gaze drifted to the DD2 that was strapped to his arm, and most importantly to the empty deck slot. He had gotten this duel disk when Battle City was announced, and he had never bothered to upgrade. He had a DD3 in storage, and could technically get any model he wanted as a Kaiba Corp. employee, but he hadn't wanted to. He liked the DD2…but now it was a mute point. "I can't duel again but…that's not the answer I need is it?"

Pressing a button at the base of the disk, he loosened it and slipped it off his arm. Taking in a deep breath he knelt and placed it down on the ground in front of him. Here in this place where his blood had been long since absorbed into the pavement was the perfect place.

"That man, he gave me an answer without realizing. It's not that I can't duel ever again…no, it's a choice I have to make. And my choice…" He paused, still looking at his DD2. This was an important moment for him.

"I will never duel again, because that is my choice."

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Ryu and Autumn so far had been at a total loss for locating the Doom Soldiers. They knew where most of the others were, not including the duelists who had worked for Eikyuu. Already they had put information out on various sites on the internet, hoping to get in touch with people with magic from different parts of the world.

"You've Got Mail!" Immediately Ryu clicked on the link, taking him to his e-mail homepage. The message was prominently displayed, and to his irritation it was in a very vocal manner.

Defying all logic there was a cartoon rabbit running around on his screen, speaking to him in a sing-song voice. "E-mail for Ryu-boy, E-mail for Ryu-boy, E-mail for Ryu-boy!"

In an effort to forestall the irritation, he clicked on it, and the message displayed itself for him. "Hey Autumn, we just got an e-mail from Pegasus. Damned if I know how he has my e-mail address, but it's from him nonetheless."

Autumn walked back into the room and sat down on a chair next to them, leaning in read it. Just in case she was having trouble seeing it with him in the way, Ryu read it out loud. "Dear Ryu-boy. It has recently come to my attention that you are seeking magically inclined people in order to prevent this dreadful coming apocalypse. With my vast resources, I should be able to speed this process along. First you'll have to come to my private island to meet with me to discuss the terms of this arrangement. Bring whoever you'd like along. Oh, and do be a good boy and bring your dueling deck."

He sighed, shaking his head as soon as he finished reading it. "Damn it…that guy is just as eccentric as everybody says he is. A dancing bunny? To hell with it, his resources would really help us. And he's instructions here saying we'll be met at the airport tonight if we want to go. What do you say Autumn?"

She took a moment to think it over and then finally came to a decision. "It looks like we're going to Duelist Kingdom!"

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At eight of the same night the two duelists found their way to Domino City Airport, where three men in suits were waiting to usher them onto a private plan. Ryu was quite happy to have the star treatment, because he hadn't gotten a chance to do anything like this in ages.

The jet was relatively small, but filled with all the amenities that any superstar might want. Of course this was because Pegasus was one of the richest people on the planet. A lot of people questioned who this was, since he was simply an artist and creator of a widely popular card game.

Those people failed to take in account that Industrial Illusions didn't only produce Duel Monsters, they also produced hundreds of other games, ranging from cards games to arcade games. In addition, billions of dollars were spent on Duel monsters each year by the populace of the world, making it the best selling game in the world. It was no wonder that Pegasus was rich enough to have his own private island, castle included.

It was a few hours later they jet landed on a private landing pad on Pegasus' castle. They exited the jet, and to their surprise found Pegasus waiting for them. "Welcome my honored guests to my humble abode. Please, make yourself at home. Would you like some wine? Cheese perhaps? Biscuits? And believe me; you'll never believe that it's not butter I put on those things as delicious as they taste."

The two of them grimaced, not really amused by the eccentric multi-billionaire's attitude. "We'll come along, but we do have to get to the point sooner or later. The fate of the world could be resting on us."

Pegasus just chuckled, waving them along as if he hadn't a care in the world. They followed him deep into his castle, finally stopping at a position that overlooked a giant pit. Having never been there before, neither of them knew what this was. "Now, I believe you mentioned wanting to get down to business. First, I have to know if the people I'm dealing with are capable of protecting themselves, let alone the world."

Ryu understood immediately what he meant. "So basically you want a duel, to see just how tough we are. Fine, I'll accept your challenge. Yugi may have been the only person to have ever beaten you, but I'll make sure I'm the second!"

Minutes later they were standing at opposite ends of the pit, Ryu looking very confused. "Okay, so ummm…now what?"

"Just watch. I loved having this built, just for the finalists of Duelist Kingdom." He clapped his hands together, and the floor started to roll out. To Ryu's absolute astonishment it was quickly revealed as a dueling platform, and each duelist was now standing in front of the playing field.

Pegasus grinned, obviously happy with Ryu's reaction. "Well Ryu-boy, would you care to take the first move, or should I?" (PLP: 4000)

Ryu placed his deck down in the appropriate spot, and then picked up six cards, fanning them out to let him see what they were. "You know, I think I'll start us off, just so you can see what you're up against." (RLP: 4000)

He looked over his hand, trying to figure out what to do. He honestly didn't have a clue what sort of strategy Pegasus used, as he had never heard. All he knew was that this was a guy who Yugi, one of the world's strongest duelists, had barely managed to defeat. 'Okay…so I can't be reckless against him. I have to play smart.'

"I start by summoning Dragon Egg(0/500) in defense mode. Then I set one magic or trap card face down, and end my turn." To his surprise instead of appearing as holographic projections they merely appeared as glowing lights on the field. He had almost forgotten what it was like to duel on a platform instead of using a duel disk.

Pegasus smiled in a delighted manner, his silvery hair framing his face as he drew. "Oh deary me, what a dreadful hand. I suppose all I can do is set this monster in defense mode. Your turn Ryu."

Ryu frowned, pretty sure he was being toyed with. 'He knows the effect of Dragon Egg, he created the damned thing. So he's not going to attack and trigger it unless he wants to. Which means…I'll just have to come to him!'

"Fine, if you won't attack, then I will! I summon Sapphire Dragon(1900/1600) in attack mode! Then I activate Dragon's Lore, which lets me draw a card whenever a dragon destroys a monster. So, Sapphire Dragon attacks!" His jeweled dragon launched a wave of blue flame, which destroyed the set monster.

"Oh dear, you destroyed my Sangan(1000/600). But luckily for me that means I get to add a brand new monster from my deck to my hand, provided it has fifteen hundred or less attack. Is there anything else you wanted to do?" Ryu drew a new card in response, and then shook his head.

Pegasus casually drew another card, giving him seven total cards thanks to Sangan's effect. "Still not good enough. Ah, I know, I'll activate Tiny Pound Hammer and shuffle it and five other cards back into my deck."

Using the effect of his card he shuffled and redrew a brand new hand, except for one card from the old hand that remained. "Oh well, still not that good. I set a monster in defense mode and one magic or trap card. End turn."

Again it was Ryu's turn, and he was beginning to be a little frustrated. Either Pegasus really was getting bad hands, or he was messing around with him. "I summon Ruby Dragon(1600/1400) in attack mode!"

A red colored dragon, otherwise identical to Sapphire Dragon, now joined its brethren. "Ruby Dragon attacks the set monster!"

A cackling jar appeared and shattered, laughing as it was blown away. "Oh, truly a pity. You destroyed Morphing Jar(700/700) so now we both discard our hands and draw new hands of five cards."

Ryu grimaced and tossed out his hand of cards, then snapped another five cards off his deck. Pegasus really must be desperate if everything he had done so far had been for new hands. "You'll regret my new hand, because I now also get a new card thanks to Dragon's Lore, giving me six cards to defeat you with."

"Oh? Does that mean my Null and Void trap card does nothing? Or are all those cards sent to the grave?" He snarled as he was forced to toss out his entire hand, leaving him with only those cards he had on the field.

"Either way, you're still open for a direct attack by Sapphire Dragon. Take a bite out of his life points!" Sapphire Dragon started to move, and then stopped, looking down at its feet. To Ryu's surprise a big bear trap was clamped around its leg.

Pegasus smiled and picked up one of the cards he had tossed out. "I discarded Sinister Bear Trap, which lets me remove it from the grave to negate an attack and draw cards equal to half the attacking monster's level. Which is two."

With no other possible moves he could make, Ryu was forced to end his turn. He was starting to get a bad feeling about this duel. Like he was outclassed by a lot. 'I can't give in, I have to win this!'

The experienced game creator fanned out the eight cards he was now holding, looking almost amused as he saw what he had. "Well, I suppose I should start playing for real now, right? Activate magic card, Plummeting Safe!"

From the sky came a massive safe, which hit Sapphire Dragon and crushed it into the ground. Seconds later the door to the safe popped open, revealing the Sapphire Dragon with its eyes all swirly. "What the heck does this do?"

"Plummeting Safe destroys one monster on the opponent's field, but instead of going to the grave it returns to their deck. However, whenever it is drawn in the draw phase it is reshuffled back into the deck." Ryu grimaced but complied, returning his Sapphire Dragon to his deck. He could still grab it using Ruby Dragon's effect if he wanted.

"Now, I'll play Instant Replay to use Plummeting Safe again, this time on Ruby Dragon." Once more the act was repeated, getting rid of Ryu's Ruby Dragon. And he had to shuffle that monster back into his deck.

"I'll continue by playing Repeat Performance, which lets me activate the effect of one normal magic card I've played this turn. So Plummeting Safe does its job against Dragon Egg as well." Ryu ground his teeth together as his final monster was also returned to his deck.

Pegasus smirked, knowing that all that stood between him and Ryu's life points was a single face down card. "Oh my little combo is far from over. I play Reward of Reload. If cards were shuffled into either player's deck during this turn, those cards are placed on top of the deck. So your three dragons come back to you."

The dragon user realized quickly what this meant as he placed the three dragons on top of his deck. His next draw would be one of them, and it would be shuffled back into his deck. That meant his next turn he would be stuck with nothing to play. 'That proves it, I really am outclassed here.'

Autumn was having similar thoughts herself, not sure what to make of the situation. Pegasus was really good, he was quickly proving that. The question was, could Ryu stand up to him. 'Come on Ryu, I know you can fight back!"

Since it was still Pegasus' turn, Ryu knew he had a lot to worry about. Whatever other strategies the game creator had in mind, they would probably also be just as deadly. "Ah, here we go. I summon Funny Bunny(1300/1200) in attack mode. He attacks directly."

The same purple rabbit that had been in his e-mail was now on the field, and it was charging directly towards him. Ryu glanced at his set card, but realized now wasn't the best time to use it. So instead he was hit by the attack. "And when Funny Bunny does life point damage, I draw two cards." (RLP: 2700)

After a quick glance at the drawn cards, Pegasus slid them into his duel disk, giving his bunny a little bit of a defense, just in case Ryu managed to pull something off. "Your turn Ryu-boy."

He drew, and flipped over Dragon Egg, which he shuffled back into his deck. "Since I've got no cards in my hand, I have to end my turn."

Pegasus glanced down at his drawn card, and smiled immediately. "Perfect, just what I was waiting for. Now the real duel can begin. I play Toon World, and this little theme park has an entrance fee of a thousand life points." (PLP: 3000)

A green bordered book appeared on his field, and its pages flipped open, drawing Funny Bunny in. It popped out again, but looked exactly the same. "Funny Bunny is a unique monster in that he's already a cartoon, so he doesn't change much when Toon World is used. However, he gains some additional powers. Direct attack."

Another series of blows landed, but because it wasn't the duel disk system Ryu didn't feel anything. The blows weren't even on him at all. However, the damage dealt to his life points was as substantial as anything else. "And of course I get to draw two cards since Funny Bunny dealt damage to your life points." (RLP: 1400)

He looked the cards over and grinned slightly, before slapping one of them down. "I summon Toon Masked Sorcerer(900/1400) in attack mode! Just like Funny Bunny, as long as Toon World is in play he can attack directly. End turn."

Ryu took a deep breath, and then snatched a new card off his deck. "Okay, tiem for a little defense. I summon Carbonedon(900/600) in defense mode!" A grey skinned monster with spines on its back appeared, its arms wrapped around itself protectively.

He nodded to Pegasus, since that was the only move he could make for right now. The game's creator smiled and drew his card, looking quite happy about what he saw out of the five cards he held. "Ooo, I'll enjoy this, but you won't. You see, since they can be special summons, I summon two Twin Gemini Elves(1900/900) in attack mode!"

He slapped two more cards from his hand down on the field, and two pairs of female elves appeared, only they were distinctively distorted and cartoonish. "Feel lucky that these monsters can't attack during the turn they are summoned. However…Funny Bunny, direct attack!"

The cartoon rabbit leaped over the head of his monster to land solid blows on Ryu. But it jumped away, having accomplished nothing. "Sorry Pegasus, my continuous trap card stops you. Spirit Barrier works whenever I have a monster on the field, and all life point damage from battle to me is zero. So direct attacks won't work."

Pegasus shrugged as if it were no consequence. "Well then, I suppose I'll just have to make it possible to deal damage. Toon Masked Sorcerer destroys Carbonedon." A blast from the cartoon magician did in Ryu's only monster easily.

A quick wave of his hand showed Ryu that Pegasus was done. And now it was his turn to see if he could make a recovery. "Okay Pegasus, my soul and life may not be riding on this duel, but I don't intend to lose. My turn, draw!"

He immediately snapped the card up to show it to Pegasus. It revealed a magic card depicting a kingly figure handing bags loaded with gold to a peasant. "King's Ransom activates! At a cost of one thousand life points I can now draw four cards!" (RLP: 400)

Fanning out the four brand new cards, he came to a conclusion. "Okay, it's clobbering time! I summon Pitch-Dark Dragon(900/600)! Next up, Stamping Destruction!" The massive and hideous black dragon slammed its foot down towards Toon World, intent on destroying.

Pegasus shook a finger, chuckling as one of his face down cards revealed itself. "Now now, you should know better than to destroy such a wonderful place as a world of Toons. Magic Jammer costs a single discard, but negates your magic card."

Ryu smirked to Pegasus' great surprise. "Actually, I was pretty much expecting something like that. Go, Dragon's Explosive Rage! This lets me sacrifice a dragon on my field to destroy two magic or trap cards on your field!"

Pitch-Dark Dragon's roared and flew directly at Pegasus, exploded just meters away from him. The detonation filled his side of the field with smoke, and when it cleared the only monster in play was Funny Bunny.

"You nearly cleared my field completely, but unfortunately it cost you almost all your life points and all but one card from your hand. What more can you do?" Ryu looked up at Autumn briefly, and then slapped his final card down onto the platform.

"Tribute for Greed activates! By sacrificing cards on my field I can draw one card for each, so I tribute Dragon's Lore and Spirit Barrier to draw two cards!" His two face-up cards shattered, and he slid two more cards off his deck.

Pegasus' visible eye widened, surprised by this sudden display of power. 'Is this Ryu's true power?'

"Pegasus, you're a truly skilled duelist, but I have no intention of being extinguished here! Like a burning star I'll rise and meet my friends at the tip of the sky as a true duelist! Go, Brain Control!" Funny Bunny slid over to him, and looked at Pegasus apologetically.

"Oh it's alright my little fellow. Go ahead, I'm not bothered." Funny Bunny giggled, giving Ryu pause. The fact that it responded at all seemed odd, but he wasn't about to let that stop him.

"Funny Bunny, attack him directly!" The cartoon rabbit launched its attack, reducing Pegasus' life points and putting him on more of a level with Ryu. But still, Ryu was far behind in life points. (PLP: 1700)

"Next up, I draw two cards because of Funny Bunny's effect. In combination with that I play Dragon Horde, which lets me remove one dragon from the grave whenever I draw cards in order to draw two more!" He picked up Pitch-Dark Dragon and placed it in the removed from play pile. Then he drew four cards total.

"Quick-play magic card, Shards of the Dragon Treasure! This magic card works if I have a dragon in my out of play pile. I can now choose a magic card from my deck and add it to my hand, as long as it relates to dragons." He flipped through his deck until he found the card he wanted, and placed it in his hand.

"Second quick-play magic card activates, Dragon Dream! By discarding a dragon from my hand I can special summon a dragon from the removed from play pile to the field!" Pitch-Dark Dragon emerged as Ryu slid a card from his hand into the grave.

Pegasus eyed him curious, impressed by the display but not quite sure what Ryu was getting at. "All this card drawing and comboing is impressive, but what's the purpose? Another nine hundred points of damage?"

Ryu smirked and pointed at his field, which suddenly started glowing. "Actually, since you created the card you should know what Carbonedon does. And now…I just put the tenth card on top of it. So by removing it from the graveyard I can special summon Diamond Dragon(2100/2800) to the field in attack mode!"

The game creator's eye widened in amazement, realizing exactly what Ryu had just intended to accomplish. "Very impressive…you special summoned out your dragons while it was still the battle phase, and since my field is empty, you can defeat me."

"Damn right! Diamond Dragon, attack him directly with Diamond Burst!" The towering silvery dragon raised its horned head and sprayed shards of diamond at Pegasus, slamming into the holographic barrier that separated the monsters from the duelists.

To Ryu's surprise his opponent merely smiled and picked up another card from his grave. "You didn't think I discarded so many cards just to get a better hand did you? False Hopes activates from my graveyard and negates one attack on my life points, destroying the attacker."

Diamond Dragon faded away, leaving just Pitch-Dark Dragon on Ryu's field. He grimaced and pointed at Pegasus, still determined to have a go at it. "Pitch-Dark Dragon, direct attack!" (PLP: 800)

"Now, I set these last two cards from my hand face down, and end my turn." With that one motion he emptied his hand, despite knowing that if Pegasus drew something with thirteen hundred or more attack points, he could be finished off.

Pegasus slid a card off his deck, giving him a total of three cards to combat what Ryu had in play. "First of all, I play Remove Brainwashing, returning Funny Bunny to me. Then Funny Bunny attacks."

"Reveal continuous trap card, Damage Splitter! This cuts all damage I receive in half for as long as it's in play!" Pitch-Dark Dragon was blown away, but it wasn't enough to finish him off despite that. (RLP: 200)

According to Funny Bunny's effect, Pegasus drew another two cards. "That's understandable. I set two cards face down and end my turn."

Ryu flipped up his face down card as soon as he drew. "Villager's Offering lets me destroy one monster on the opponent's field to act as a tribute, so I sacrifice Funny Bunny for Emerald Dragon(2400/1400)!" The green dragon descended and roared, shaking the field.

"Emerald Burst!" Pegasus shrugged and flipped up one of his face down cards. Immediately three robed priests appeared to block the priests.

"Since Waboku blocked the damage and you have no more cards, I get to draw. Let's see what I get." He drew again, and smiled slightly at whatever he saw. It would be perfect.

"I activate Scapegoat, producing four goat tokens. Then I end my turn." Four multi-colored goats now provided a defense between him and Ryu's powerful dragon.

"Go magic card, Gem Fabrication! By paying half my life points I can special summon two jeweled dragons from my hand, cemetery, or deck to the field." He slipped two more cards out of his deck and then threw them down. (RLP: 100)

"Crystal Dragon(2500/1900) and Bloodstone Dragon(2900/1600)!" Two massive shapes formed next to his Emerald Dragon. One with a body of white crystal, while the other had a red and black body, and blood red evil eyes.

"I attack with all three of my monsters to blow away three of your Scapegoats!" Three of the measly defenders were burned to ash, leaving one very shocked looking pink goat. Instead of having its eyes closed and asleep its eyes were now wide open and staring at the three dragons in horror.

Ryu nodded to Pegasus, confident that he could handle this duel. There was just a very meager barrier between him and Pegasus now. All he had to do was break that down and he would be able to win the duel. "Go ahead Pegasus, let's take this duel to its final stage."

Pegasus sighed, and drew. "Yes Ryu-boy, it is time to end this duel. You managed to defeat Toon World, which is impressive, but that's not my full strength. I like to call my deck a Toon Control Deck. And now, it's over."

He reached down and picked up his set card, holding it up to him. It looked like a person mutating or something, Ryu didn't recognize it. "This card is called Metamorphosis, and it requires that I sacrifice a monster. In exchange I can special summon a fusion monster from my fusion deck with an equal level. I sacrifice my Goat Token."

Ryu looked at him like he was crazy. "But Goat Tokens are level one monsters. I can't even think of a single level one fusion monster, and I don't see how one could be a threat to my monsters in the first place."

"You're mistaken. There is one level one fusion in the game. Meet my deadliest monster, Thousand-Eyes Restrict(0/0)!" Ryu and Autumn stared at the beast in horror as it appeared. It was big, but not on the level with his monsters. However, it was a hideous beast with eyes peaking out all over it, its body absolutely disgusting.

"As long as Thousand-Eyes Restrict is in play your monsters will be paralyzed by its gaze, and prevented from attacking or switching modes. In addition I can use its ultimate ability. Absorb Bloodstone Dragon." A maw on the creature opened up, and the evil dragon roared as it was sucked in.

One of the "wings" of the fusion monster lowered, showing the head of Bloodstone Dragon jutting out. Ryu stared at the head of his monster in disgust. "What…what have you done to it?"

"Thousand-Eyes Restrict can absorb monsters, placing them as equip cards on him. Now, Thousand-Eyes Restrict, use your siphoned power and destroy Emerald Dragon." The jutting dragon's head opened up its mouth and sprayed out fire, swarming over Emerald Dragon and vaporizing it. (RLP: 0)

The field faded away, leaving a very shocked Ryu staring at Pegasus. "You…won. Even after all my words and my efforts, you still beat me. I guess I'm not as strong as I need to be after all."

Pegasus smiled, and started clapping. "Oh you may have lost, but it's been quite some time since I've had such a challenge, or such a fun duel. You have to remember that I'm one of the game's monster notorious players for a reason, and only a few people have ever beaten me. But, with a little bit of work, you could surpass me, I can see that."

Ryu stared down at his cards, thinking hard about his most recent defeat. Over the years he had lost many times, to many different duelists. He had also won a number of duels, but the defeats still weighed on him more heavily. The last significant duel he had been in he had lost, just like he had now.

His right hand clenched as the images of those defeats flashed through his mind. 'This time though, I can't afford to lose. If I'm going to help protect the world, then I absolutely cannot accept defeat. I will get stronger, no matter what!'

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Author's Notes: And onwards we march.

Next Time: While Ryu and Autumn work with Pegasus to contact people around the world with magic, the others are still busy. The man posing as Drake, the man who is all of his darkest aspects, now heads to Spain to gain a legendary item. But what will happen if a creature of evil gets a hold of this item?

See it all in, Dead Men Tell Tales!

Review Response

Time Mage: Guy is skilled, but more on Ryu's level than anything else. And it was depression.

G.O.T. Nick: You'll see sooner or later.

WolfGeneral: Yeah, he isn't good anything good.

The White Mage: I do so because it is necessary for reasons I cannot explain.