World Championships

by Gabriel Ice

Account of YuGiOh games I've played against my Gameboy, with a made up background story.

2. Breakfast of Champions

Breakfast of Champions

Breakfast was nearly as good in reality as it had been in my
imagination the previous night. The French toast was especially
scrumptious. I savored every bite, and then I washed it down with a
glass of orange juice. All the while, I hoped to myself that my first
duel would go as well as my breakfast had.
The cab ride to the stadium was uneventful. I passed the time by
shuffling my deck and watching scenery out the window. Downtown Seoul
was quite impressive. Even this early in the morning, the streets
were packed with pedestrians, the sidewalks were crowded with those
obnoxious motor scooters that everyone else hated, and the vehicular
traffic was enough to give me nightmares. I made a mental note to
take the subway in the future.
The championships this year were being held at Seoul World Cup
Stadium. I, as a top contender for the title, had to be escorted in
the back way in order to avoid being mobbed by zealous fans. Top
contender? I guess everyone got that label, whether it was true or
not. I was just a rookie compared to most of the duelists in the
competition, and I wasn't sure how far I'd go. Still, any title,
meaningful or not, that would get me the royal treatment of an escort
and the plate of snack food I found waiting for me in the duelist
lounge was something I wasn't complaining about.
Several other duelists sat in the lounge, most of them talking or
posturing for each other. I recognized most of them from television,
even though I had not played against any of them before. On one of
the couches, Tristan Taylor sat conversing with Tea Gardner, Joey
Wheeler, and Yugi Moto. Yugi Moto… the Yugi Moto. I felt a lump form
in my throat just thinking about the fact that he was at the same
tournament.
Bakura Ryou stood to one side, thumbing through his cards. Next to
him stood Espa Roba, Mako Tusnami, Rex Raptor, and Weevil Underwood.
In the corner, scowling at everyone else, was Mai Valentine. She
looked like she's rather kill everyone rather than duel.
I didn't recognize most of the other contenders, but a few of them
were eyeing poster on the bulletin board near the room's entrance. I
walked over to see what was so interesting, and there I found the
answer to any questions I might have had concerning who else was in
the tournament; the poster was a list of the preliminary groups.
I found myself thrown in with Tristan, Tea, Wheeler, Bakura, and,
scarily enough, Yugi Moto. The room suddenly grew warmer.
The poster informed me of the names of the duelists I didn't
recognize, so I tried to think about those rather than my preliminary
draw. "Umbra and Lunis" caught my eye. Were they a dueling team?
Was that even allowed? After them came Arkana, someone named Rare
Hunter (whose parents apparently had a sense of humor or a lapse in
judgment while naming him), Strings (probably a pseudonym), and Marik
Ishtar. After them, I saw Yami Bakura, Ishizu Ishtar, someone named
Shadi, and the most infamous duelist around, Seto Kaibi. I noticed
Kaiba was not yet in the lounge.
The last names I had a chance to read included Maximillon Pegasus,
someone named Simon, and Solomon Trusdale.
Interrupting me was an electronic voice issued from a speaker
somewhere along the wall: "Duelists, please check the main computer
wall for the first pairings of the preliminary rounds. Duels will
begin in five minutes.
Computer wall? I thought. I hadn't seen anything like a computer,
but seeing as how most of the other duelists filed out of the lounge
into the hallway after hearing the announcement, I followed after
them. A short distance farther, I saw the computer.
It was more like a hallway-installed Jumbotron than a computer, but it
did its job. It displayed everyone's name and first opponent in big,
gold letters, along with some instructions about the logistics of the
tournament. Apparently I had to beat everyone in the prelims twice in
order to advance. Everyone, including Yugi Moto.
First, however, I had to deal with Tristan Taylor.

XXX

The crowd outside was unlike anything I had ever seen. They packed
the stadium and stomped their feet – incessantly, it seemed – in
anticipation of the opening of the World Championships. Scattered in
the crowd were people holding banners with athletic slogans, in
English and Korean and a few other languages. A smattering of
national flags waved with patriotic gusto. Some sections were already
chanting. Most wanted to see some of the hometown heroes, of whom I
knew little. Some Korean whiz kid named Paek Jun had made the trip
from Pusan, and a slightly older girl, Ko Soo-Yeon of Seoul, seemed to
be the other crowd favorite. Both were supposed to be pretty good,
but I did not know how much of their reputations came from unearned
praise in the local media.
Tristan looked confident. He also sounded like he knew what he was
doing. "You don't want to play me in the first round," he shouted
across the arena. "You're going down!" I ignored his taunts and
motioned to the moderator that I was ready for the rock-paper-scissors
game that would determine who would go first. I chose scissors, and
Tristan chose paper.
"I elect to go second," I said.
"Ooh, look at Mr. Show-Off!" My choice already seemed to annoy
Tristan, which was my goal. "'Look at me! I can win even going
second.'"
The moderator, an unassuming Korean man in a suit and slicked back
hair, raised his hand and shouted surprisingly loudly. "Each duelist
will be given 8000 life points, as this is the World Championships.
The player with the first turn may not attack until his or her second
turn. Now, get ready. It's time to duel!"
"You're in for it now, rookie," said Tristan. "I play Soul of the
Pure. My life points increase by 800!"
He held up his card, and a magnified holographic version appeared on
the playing field. The crowd sounded its approval.
"I also put one card face down in defense mode and end my turn. Now
try and top that." Tristan sneered.
I said nothing as I drew my next card. I smiled quietly. Vorse
Raider. That, with my original hand of Harpie's Brother, Giant Red
Seasnake, Pot of Greed, Black Pendant, and Blue-Eyes White Dragon, was
more than enough to raise my confidence level.
"I play…" I paused for effect. "Harpie's Brother, in attack mode!"
With those words, a redish winged beast materialized in the front of
my side of the playing field and brandished claws at whatever Tristan
had face down.
"Go, Harpie's Brother! Attack!"
Tristan growled as his defense monster revealed itself. Harpie's
Brother had an attack of 1800, and Tristan's M-Warrior #2 had only
1000 defense points. A few violent claw scrapes later, Tristan's
field became empty.
"I now end my turn," I said. Tristan drew another card.
"You're going to regret that," he said. I play Monster Rebord to
bring back my M-Warrior, and I play one more monster face down in
defense mode. And that's all for me."
"It's going to take more than a couple of defensive monsters to stop
me," I declared as I drew Dunames Dark Witch from my deck. "Try and
stop this. I play… Dunames Dark Witch!"
Tristan frowned as another monster appeared on my field and prepared
for battle.
"Dark Witch, attack his M-Warrior!"
Several beams of light shot from Dark Witch's fingertips, engulfing
M-Warrior. A second later, the spot where the knight once stood was
empty.
"And now," I said, "Harpie's Brother, attack his face down card!"
I nearly laughed when I saw the target was Shadow Specter. Attack
500, defense 200. No challenge.
"I end my turn. Go, Tristan."
"Oh yeah? Well, uh, I play another monster in defense mode!"
"Suit yourself," I said.
"And, uh, that ends my turn."
This guy is a pushover, I though. I drew my next card: Mystical Elf.
It would have been a mistake to play my Blue-Eyes just yet, though.
"I play Vorse Raider, in attack mode!"
Tristan looked glum.
"Harpie's Brother, attack Tristan's face down monster!"
"And fall into my trap!" Now Tristan smiled. "Behold, Hiro's Shadow Scout!"
"But your monster only has 500 defense points," I said. "I can
destroy it easily."
"Yeah, but now it activates its special ability."
"Which is?"
"You have to draw three cards, and all magic cards drawn get sent to
the Graveyard. And I get to see your new cards."
"Fine by me," I said. "I don't have any magic cards in my hand."
"You… what?"
"You heard me."
Tristan growled again, and I drew. I drew well: Dark Magician, Trap
Hole, and Seven Tools of the Bandit.
"And now," I said, "you have no monsters to defend yourself with. I
can attack your life points directly! Go Dark Witch and Vorse
Raider."
Tristan braced for the impact as my two monsters drained his life
points by a grand total of 3700.
"I now place two cards face down and end my turn," I said as I played
the trap cards I had just drawn.
"Very well," said Tristan, "but I can undo some of the damage. I
play Mooyan Curry, which allows me to regain 200 life points, and then
I put a monster face down in defense mode."
"You're kidding me, aren't you?" I really had no idea what his
strategy was, if anything. His deck was apparently just that bad.
"My turn, then," I said. I drew – Cyber-Tech Alligator. "This ends
now! I summon… Giant Red Seasnake, in attack mode, and I equip it
with the magic card Dark Pendant!"
"I get it," said Tristan. "You're raising your attack by 500 points."
"Right," I said. "And that will be more than enough to deplete all
of your life points."
"You had enough strength anyway," said Tristan, who was clearly no
longer confident about winning the match. "Why the magic card?"
"Just in case you have a strong defensive monster, I want to be sure
to destroy it right away."
"Ah, I see," said Tristan.
"Now, Red Seasnake, attack Tristan's face down monster!"
My Seasnake rose up a couple dozen feet in the air and hovered for a
second, and then it jabbed – like lightning – at Tristan's monster
(Kagemusha of the Blue Flame, defense 400, it turned out) and ate it
like a mouse.
"And now, Harpie's Brother, Dark Witch, and Vorse Raider, attack
Tristan's life points!"
With nothing to defend him, Tristan watched in resigned defeat as his
life points dropped to zero. The match ended with me the victor.

XXX

My second match with Tristan was later that day. I was eager to
finish him off and go off to dinner. I had no idea why two matches
would be on the same day, but at least my first match hadn't even
caused me to break a sweat.
"Revenge will be sweet," Tristan crowed, locking eyes with me and
trying his best to make me flinch.
I played scissors again, and so did Tristan. Because we tied, we had
to try again. Once again, we both chose scissors. The third time,
however, Tristan chose paper.
"Am I that unpredictable?" I shot to him. "In any case, I'll go second."
"Same rules as before," said the moderator. "It's time to duel!"
"Great," said Tristan. "I'll start off with a magic card: Goblin's
Secret Remedy! That increases my life points by 600. I'll then play
one monster face down in defense mode and end my turn."
"Terrific," I said. I drew Giant Flea. The rest of my hand
consisted of Gemini Elf, 7 Colored Fish, Raigeki, Summoned Skull, and
Cyber-Tech Alligator. I was happy.
"I summon 7 Colored Fish in attack mode, and I attack your face down
monster!" My fish appeared and bit at Tristan's monster, Kojikocy, a
sword-wielding warrior with a bushy beard and only 1200 defense
points. Kojikocy vanished.
"That ends my turn," I said.
"Prepare to suffer," said Tristan. "I summon Jinzo #7 in attack mode!"
A small robot-man appeared in front of Tristan. Jinzo #7 had 500
attack points.
"My monster is stronger, Tristan," I said.
"Maybe so, but Jinzo #7 bypasses your monster and attacks your life
points directly!"
D'oh! I though, as I took a swipe from a metal arm. I was already
down by 1100 points, and the duel was only just starting.
"And that ends my turn," said Tristan. "Had enough?"
I drew a new card, Dark Magician. "Not even close," I said. "Your
little trick may have cost me some life points, but I still have the
stronger monster on the field, and I'm about to add another. I summon
Gemini Elf in attack mode!"
Two girls with pointy ears took their place on the field, looking
scrappy and ready to kill.
"Attack Tristan's Jinzo #7!"
My elf twins bounced to the other side of the playing field, made a
halfway funny, halfway cruel face at Tristan, and kick with the force
of 1900 attack points at Jinzo #7. Tristan's life points decreased by
1400.
"And now, with nothing to block it, 7 Colored Fish will attack your
life points directly!"
"Aaaagh!" Tristan's face curled up in anger as his life points moved
down to 5400.
"And that's all for now."
Tristan drew. "I don't get this. You're just a rookie. Why do you
have such great cards?"
"I may not have the same sort of experience you do, but I've still
trained. I know what I'm doing. And I know that you're playing like
an amateur."
"Not fair," said Tristan. "Wheeler must have taught me poorly."
"Whatever your excuse, I'm going to win this duel." I drew, but I
only got a Giant Flea. "I play Giant Flea in attack mode!"
"At least you have to play something weak this turn," said Tristan.
"Yes," I said, "but I'm not done yet. I play the magic card, Raigeki!"
"My monster!"
A jolt of electricity shot from my magic card to Tristan's monster
(Sonic Maid, I found out) and sent it to the Graveyard.
"Now," I said, "with your defenses down, I can attack your life
points directly with all three of my monsters."
7 Colored Fish went first, followed by Gemini Elf and Giant Flea.
Tristan's life points plunged down to 200.
"I end my turn. You don't seem as cocky now."
"No I don't, but I still have this: Mooyan Curry!" Tristan played
his magic card and recovered 200 points. "I then place one monster in
defense mode and end my turn. Not like I have anything better to do."
I drew and got King of Yamimakai. "I sacrifice my Giant Flea to
summon Cyber-Tech Alligator in attack mode!" As I said this, my Giant
Flea gracefully bowed out of the match and watched as a cyborg lizard
took its place. "Now, Cyber-Tech, attack Tristan's monster!"
Moon Envoy, defense 1000, went down under the force of a single blow
from Cyber-Tech Alligator's massive claws.
"And to finish you, I attack your life points with Gemini Elf!"
Tristan was finished, and I was a fifth of the way toward advancing
to the second round. The crowd seemed to like my play, though I was a
relative unknown in Korea. Most of the more popular duelists anywhere
were Japanese, so I had to labor under the pressure of people rooting
for both the Japanese stars and the local Korean heroes before they
could hope for me to win. Still, I figured I could turn myself into
the lovable underdog if I looked good enough early.
"Great game there, rookie," said Tristan on the way back to the
lounge. "I don't think I duel enough. I'm not on par with the rest
of the guys here. I don't even know why I'm here, except because Yugi
has the whole dueling world at his feet."
"You fought well," I told him.
"My deck didn't stand a chance. Yours looked like it was designed by
Pegasus himself."
"I'll take that as a complement," I said. "Now, where is that schedule?"
"You don't duel again today."
"Good." I relaxed a bit. "It's dinner time for me."