Author's Note: So much for not letting this sit again, huh?
I'd love to say that there's a really clever and great reason why I held back on this chapter for so long. But, the truth is, I'm a lazy slacker. No wonder I do good writing as Jaden.
Anyway, on to the fanfic.
So, Jesse somehow beats Joey Wheeler, using my card might I add, and Pegasus begins talking about the new era of dueling beginning? What?!
"Yugi-boy has held the title of King of Games for the past 18 years." Pegasus said. "As much of a treat as it would be for us to see him pass on the title, I'm sure Yugi-boy himself would like to name a successor far more."
Please. If I had the title, I'd never get tired of it.
"So, Industrial Illusions has partnered with Kaiba Corporation, Duel Academy and the Princeton group to host the first Genex Tournament!" Pegasus said.
"Genex?" I said, before realizing. "Wait, Chazz, your family's part of this?"
Chazz just shrugged.
"That's enough from me." Pegasus said. "I'll let the Chancellor of Duel Academy explain the rest."
A video monitor flickered on, displaying Crowler. Hey, good to see he looked the same as ever.
"Thank you, Mr. Pegasus." Crowler said. "Ahem! Years ago, the former Chancellor of this esteemed academy had plans to bring Pro Duelists here to challenge the students. Those plans fell through, but he presented an altered version of those plans to Industrial Illusions and Kaiba Corporation. That has led to this. The Genex Tournament."
"Now that I think about it, there was talk about Sheppard trying to make some form of tournament." Atticus said.
"The Genex Tournament will see the best duelists who've graduated from Duel Academy and our sister schools competing against each other." Crowler explained. "These duelists will be chosen from graduates of Duel Academy, West Academy, East Academy and South Academy. Each school will pick a representative. Whoever wins the Genex Tournament will then duel Jesse Anderson for a chance at a title match with the King of Games, Yugi Muto himself."
That was about the gist of it. Afterwards, Crowler went on to explain how the various schools would be deciding their reps, the date of the tournament, technical things, and things the sponsors wanted him to explain. Boring!
After everything was done, Chazz and Atticus went on ahead, while I waited outside the stadium for Jesse.
"Thanks for waiting!" Jesse said, walking out. "Sorry it took me so long."
"Didn't feel like it." I said.
"Here's your Neos back." Jesse said, holding Neos' card out.
I looked at it for a minute, then pushed it back towards him.
"You hold on to it." I said. "You'll be dueling Yugi soon enough."
"If I win that match against the tournament winner." Jesse said.
"Hey, at least you've got a free shot." I said. "Jim and Axel will have to win a chance to duel just to get the title match."
"You think they'll be the representatives of South and West Academy?" Jesse asked.
I stared blankly at him.
"Yeah, you're right." Jesse admitted. "Well, if you're gonna have to take them on, you'll be needing Neos, won't you?"
"I probably won't be picked." I said. "I haven't exactly made a name for myself."
"Jaden." Jesse said, glaring at me. "Quit lying. I know the real reason."
"And what's that?" I asked.
"You wanna quit dueling." Jesse said.
How did he know?!
"How did you know?!" I asked.
"We're basically the same guy." Jesse said. "I can tell these things. Besides, you've been acting different lately."
"Well, what can I say, Jess?" I asked. "If I keep bailing everybody out, what'll people do when I'm gone?"
"That's not the reason, and I'm insulted you'd try lying to me." Jesse said.
I sighed and sat down on the stairs.
"Look, you've seen how things have been these days." I said. "People don't duel for the fun of it anymore. They do it to make a name for themselves. Then they have to keep up that name by tearing others down."
"You mean like what happened to Aster?" Jesse asked, sitting next to me.
"Yeah." I said. "Dimi went after him because he's a Hero user. If I keep dueling, it'll only be a matter of time until I get challenged. And if- When I beat him, you guys will probably be caught in the crossfire as he ruins me."
"Now what kinda talking is that?!" Jesse asked. "Here you are, Mr. Elemental Hero, and yet, when things are at their worst, you're buckling down. Guess now we know why you can't beat me."
"What was that?" I asked, a little annoyed.
"You heard me." Jesse said with a smirk, then put off a serious expression. "Look, I ain't gonna fault you if this is how you normally are. But the Jaden I know would never let things linger like this. The Jaden I know would do what he could to stop it."
Why, when all you wanna do is throw away your lifelong dream, do your friends have to be so encouraging?!
That's when Joey came running out of the stadium.
"'Ey, Anderson!" Joey called.
Jesse and I both turned to look at Joey.
"Glad I caught ya!" Joey said. "That was an amazing duel! Best I've had in years!"
"Thanks? You're welcome?" Jesse said.
"With all that said, you're gonna need to do better if you wanna beat Yuge." Joey said. "So, what do you say I train ya?"
"Train me?" Jesse asked. "But isn't Yugi Muto your best friend?"
"Yep!" Joey said, proudly. "And that's the reason I wanna see him beaten. Yugi's gotten bored with dueling these days. Nobody's been able to give him a good challenge. Well, 'sides me and Kaiba, and even we can't match up."
"So, you want to motivate your friend?" Jesse asked, sending a glance my way.
"Something like that." Joey said. "So, what'd'ya say?"
"Sure!" Jesse said, as he and Joey shook hands. "It's not every day you get personal training from the third best Duelist in the world!"
"Hey, congrats, Jesse!" I said, patting him on the shoulder. "Guess I better get home and let you get on to your training."
"Right." Jesse said. "Then I'll be seeing ya at the tournament, Jay."
Jesse gave me a pat on the shoulder, then we waved to each other as I walked off.
Okay, I'll admit, part of me was jealous that Jesse was getting personal training from a top ranked Duelist like Joey Wheeler, but that still wasn't gonna change my mind.
After I got back to my apartment, Chazz was waiting in the living room, staring at the door, clearly waiting for me to get home.
"'Sup?" I asked.
"We have to talk." Chazz said.
Pro-Tip, never say that. It always comes off as bad.
"Look, I'm sorry I was out late last night. But my buds were all going to the concert! I would've felt like an outsider if I didn't go." Good thing I had a sense of humor about it.
"Since my family is sponsoring the tournament, I've got some insider information about it." Chazz said.
"Ooh, how fortuitous." I said, about to go to my room.
"Sit down and stop with the jokes." Chazz said. "This concerns you."
I turned around, sat down across from Chazz and kicked my feet up.
"Let me guess, I'm Duel Academy's rep?" I asked.
"Not exactly." Chazz said. "There's some debate about who should be the representative. I don't know all the details, but according to my brothers, there's going to be a little tournament to decide who that's gonna be."
"I see." I said.
"Long story short, I'm one of the candidates." Chazz said. "Crowler recommended me personally."
Thanks, Crowler. When there's a nomination for teacher of the century, I'm going to go with Banner. No, wait, Sartyr.
"Another member of staff wanted some student who went on to be number 1 in some other country." Chazz explained. "My brothers have a plan to increase my prestige by entering Dimitri into things and having me beat him to increase my own image."
"They either have a lot of faith in you, or absolutely none at all." I said.
"You're telling me." Chazz said. "Anyway, it seems like a fourth slot is open."
"And you want me to find someone who could possibly beat the other two, but who you could easily defeat?" I asked.
"I told you to knock it off with the jokes." Chazz said. "As much as I hate to admit it, I'm going to need you to enter. I'm not worried about beating you, and I don't know squat about that other guy, but Dimi is a loose cannon."
"You can beat him easily." I said. "Well, okay, maybe not easily, but there's no way you'd lose to a poser like him."
"I know that!" Chazz spat. "It's him losing I'm worried about. If he loses to me, he'll throw my brothers, probably my whole family, under the bus. I might not have the best relationship with them these days, but I'd rather they grow. Get me?"
"So I'll take the fall instead?" I asked.
"I'll make sure you're fine." Chazz said. "Trust me on this. I'll pull a couple strings, get you into the tournament and if anything happens, I have a trump card to play against Dimitri. But that won't work if I beat him."
"Why does it have to be me anyway?" I asked.
"You're not sounding like your usual self, Slacker." Chazz said. "Where's your 'Bring on any Challenge' attitude?"
"I just wanna know why it has to be me." I said.
Chazz could obviously tell there was more to it, but ignored that for now.
"Dimitri wanted to prove he was the best Hero player." Chazz said. "If you enter the tournament, everyone will be wanting to see him duel against you. And there's no way you'll lose to that dark and gritty imitation."
"Sorry, Chazz." I said, with an exaggerated sigh. "I'm just a Duelist for fun."
I got up and headed for my room.
"I always knew you were a slacker, but I never took you for a quitter." Chazz said.
I didn't let it get to me, and just laid down on my bed.
At some point I drifted off to a little nap.
It was a nightmare I'd had several times in the past few years.
I was stranded in a dull, gray world of nothingness, with no one around.
I'd been in a place like that before. I wasn't keen on ever seeing a place like it again.
Anytime I had these nightmares, I would just ride them out. I'd had them enough that they were an instant realization I was sleeping and in a dream.
When I first realized that, I tried to control my dreams. Y'know, try conjuring up a famous Duelist to go a round with, or meeting up with one of my old buds I didn't get to see anymore.
But it never worked out that way. I guess my mind knew that these things wouldn't happen, so it blocked it, or something.
Still, knowing it was a dream made it more enjoyable than when I was actually in that world. I mean, if I was gonna wake up, I could enjoy opening all the packs in a local card shop, or running amok in Kaiba Land.
But, there was part of me that always wondered if this time, it wasn't a dream. And if it wasn't, who was behind it?
Please let it be some creep I've never met.
But enough of my nightmares! My cell phone was ringing!
I quickly jumped up and answered the phone.
"Jaden, I just heard the news!"
Oh, hi, Alexis.
"Oh, hi, Alexis." I said. Hey, quit copying your future self.
"Were you sleeping?" Alexis asked.
"Just a nap." I said. "How could you tell?"
"You slept through class enough that I could never forget that tired sounding voice." Alexis said. "I can call back."
"No worries." I said, standing up. "I should probably grab something to eat anyway. So, what's up?"
"After class let out, I looked up recordings of Jesse's duel!" Alexis said, excitedly. "That was amazing! And that tournament Mr. Pegasus was talking about! There were rumors around school that Chancellor Crowler was planning something big, but I didn't know it would be this big!"
"Yeah." I said. "Jesse sure is amazing. Once he beats Yugi, he'll be the new King of Games, and I can say 'I nearly beat him when'."
"Jesse?" Alexis asked. "C'mon, you know you'll end up being Duel Academy's representative!"
"I dunno, Lex." I said. "According to Chazz, his brothers are up to something."
"Not again." Alexis said. "Well, I'm sure you'll thwart whatever scheme is being cooked up."
Speaking of cooking, I had made my way to the kitchen, and was frying some eggs. Before I left the Academy, Miss Dorothy had given me the secret recipe for her eggwiches as a graduation gift.
"Hey, maybe they're actually gonna do something good for a change." I said.
Alexis and I laughed in unison. Hey, been awhile since I could say that!
"Seriously though, Jaden, I'll put in a good word for you." Alexis said.
"Thanks, Alexis, but I don't think I'm gonna enter this thing." I said, flipping the eggs.
"What?!" Alexis shouted, nearly causing me to miss my catch. "Why?!"
"I'm just not really feeling it." I said. "I mean, shouldn't I earn that chance to duel Yugi?"
"You mean by winning a tournament against the strongest Duelists from every other Duel Academy?" Alexis asked. "And that's only to get a chance to duel the one guy you've never beaten in a proper duel!"
"See?" I said. "Completely handed to me."
"Jaden, I know that tone." Alexis said. "What are you hiding?"
"Hiding?" I asked. "I'm not hiding anything."
"Jaden, I thought we were gonna be honest with each other." Alexis said. "Didn't we agree to that just before your duel against Jesse all those years ago?"
"I thought that was just while we were in a relationship." I said.
"Jaden." Alexis said, sternly.
"Alright." I sighed in defeat. "Remember how I was worried about being corrupted by the Professional world?"
"Jaden, you're too dumb to be corrupted." Is what I had been expecting Alexis to say.
"Yes." Is what she actually said.
"Well, I know I'm not gonna be." I said. "But I'm just worried what'll happen to everyone else. You, Atticus, Chazz, Jesse, y'know, all my friends. You're like my family, so if I go against the wrong Duelist, you guys could end up in trouble because of me."
Alexis waited for a minute, making sure I was done, then spoke.
"Jaden, have you ever let anything awful happen to a friend before?" Alexis asked.
"Well, there was that time with Yubel." I said.
"Jaden, you're still not blaming yourself for how she took over my body, are you?" Alexis asked.
"Of course not." I said. "I meant…"
The words were stuck on my tongue.
Yubel had been my Duel Spirit as a child. She was obsessed with me, to the point of sending my friends to the hospital. In a crazed scheme, she had taken over Alexis' body, in an attempt to lure me into a trap.
I dueled Yubel to save the world, and when I ended the duel, Yubel's card, the one that contained her spirit, burnt up. Because of this, Yubel died.
How could I tell Alexis I still regretted how that ended?
"Just say it already, Jaden." Alexis said. "Whatever you did, I could never judge you for it."
"Don't be so quick to say that, Alexis." I said. "Because, I still… I know Yubel did awful things, possessing your body, harming Atticus and the others, trying to destroy the world… But I still wish things had ended differently."
I expected Alexis to say something, but she remained silent, so I went on.
"I've made friends with so many former enemies and rivals." I said. "But I couldn't save the one I had been friends with when I was a kid. And, okay, Yubel was likely a lost cause, but burning that card, even by accident…"
I couldn't say anything else.
Once she realized I was done, Alexis said, "Thank you, Jaden."
"What?" I asked.
"I can only imagine how hard that had to have been to admit." Alexis said. "You've been repressing that for years, haven't you?"
"Yeah." I admitted.
"Look, I'm not gonna pretend I don't have some disdain for that monster." Alexis said. "My body was stolen, Atticus was controlled like a puppet, and you were treated like an object to be won. But I can understand wanting things to have ended differently. We're talking someone who was apparently close to you as a child. Your favorite card that just so happened to have a spirit attached to it. I know it isn't exactly the same, but I imagine it's like if you fought with a family member before they died. You'd not only feel the usual grief, but feel you held some responsibility for that."
I guess that's pretty close, all things considered.
"I can accept that." Alexis said. "And I'm sure the others would too. But, back to the matter at hand, that was an accident. Even if someone does try to come after us, use us as leverage against you, we'll never let that happen."
"You guys don't exactly have the best track record with that." I said, adding a slight chuckle, so she knew I was joking.
"Hey, if we can get up after Shadow Riders, the Society of Light, Zane's kidnapping scheme and crazy Duel Monsters, we can take on some overzealous Pro!" Alexis said.
I thought about it for a few seconds, and nodded to myself.
"Lex, remember when we talked about me coming to Duel Academy?" I asked.
"Yeah?" Alexis asked back.
"I'll be seeing you there soon!" I said. "Sorry to cut this short, but I've got some calls to make."
"I've got papers to grade anyway." Alexis said. "I'll see ya soon. Nice talking to you."
"Same here!" I said, suddenly full of energy.
After I got off the phone with Alexis, I tried calling Jesse. He didn't answer. Oh, now that he beat Joey Wheeler, he was too good for his old friends, huh? Fine. I get it. Just kidding.
So, I gave Sartorius a call, and told him I'd changed my mind on quitting dueling!
He said he knew I'd change my mind, and it didn't even take tarot cards to see that. Ha!
I called Chazz. I got his answering machine.
"Chazz, I'm not sure exactly what you're planning, and I might just go against you if I don't like it, but I'm in for now!" I said.
I tried Jesse again. He didn't answer, but a few minutes later, I got a text.
"CHECK YOYR DECK"
No punctuation, and a typo! Huh. Well, whatever.
I pulled out my deck and… Hey! When did Neos get back in there?
"Still as mysterious as ever." I chucked.
I scarfed down my eggwich, and was going to head out… except it was getting late, so I killed some time until I felt tired enough to sleep again.
Not like I had anywhere to go anyway.
Well, maybe that's not entirely true.
Duel Academy, watch out, 'cause now, I'm coming back!
Author's Note: Hopefully this chapter flowed well enough, didn't have too many inconsistencies with the earlier chapters.
Like I said at the start, I have no excuse for why I didn't write this earlier. I mean, if I really push things, sure, I have an excuse for missing my PLANNED deadline of February 14th, as I was, uh, a touch sick at the time, let's just say. But then I just let it sit for another few months.
Seeing as the dub of Yu-Gi-Oh GX premiered on October 10th sixteen years ago, I figured, I should probably get a chapter out for today. Also, anyone else feel old? But, from here on, I'm gonna try to get chapters done more frequently.
After all, for better or worse, GX took inspiration from Berserk. Considering its Halloween season at the time of writing this, I'm once again diving into that series, and that has me reflecting.
If Miura could spend 30+ years working nearly non-stop on that series, making sure every little thing was perfect, what's stopping me from writing a goofy little fanfic?
