Hey, guys! Sorry for the long wait! I'll try my best to update faster!
Disclaimer: Mage of Hope doesn't own Yu-Gi-Oh GX series, only the OCs!
"I can't believe that Zane guy! No wonder Syrus has zero confidence," muttered Jaden to herself as she was writing down a form. She had to gather some papers that she had forgotten to pick up during class yesterday before arriving at the store.
Jaden wanted a private duel with Zane, so she was writing him a request letter. Luckily for her, the store had only one white sheet of paper available, since the others were already used up for other activities. She had to work somewhere private, and obviously, her dorm room wasn't going to cut out for her, since Syrus or Chumley could walk in any time and see the request paper.
If she was going to duel Zane, she didn't want it to be a public duel, since she knows she'll win and probably tarnish his reputation. She wasn't the sort of person to do that. Besides, if he was an Obelisk Blue and the top student in this school, then he has to be pretty busy all the time. She doesn't like Zane, but that doesn't mean she's willing to humiliate him.
'Hmm...Reasons why I want to duel Zane...' pondered Jaden thoughtfully before adding in a childish response. 'He's a douche. And I bet he probably smells bad, too.'
Crowler, who was simply passing by, spotted Jaden writing down something with a few papers scattered on the counter. Curiousity begged him to see what Jaden was doing, so he walked over.
"Hey, Jaden? Could I have a look at that piece of paper?" The teacher asked. Before Jaden had a chance to response, Crowler snatched it out of her hands. "Oh, really? I can? Thank you!"
"I-"
"Ah, I see! You don't like it, do ya? You want it back?"
"Yea-"
"Ah! You can't have it back!"
"Um-"
"Nah, I'm kidding! Here you go!"
"I-"
"Aaah! Psyche again!"
For the past couple of seconds, Crowler was giving the paper back to Jaden, but as she tried to get it back, Crowler decided to be a jerk and continue pulling it back, tempting her. One more try, and Jaden was sure she might have done something that could get her in more trouble than before.
Crowler started reading the paper outloud. "Hmm...what's this?"
As I open my heart
My feelings are more solemn
My true love is a Monster
Named Ancient Gear Golem
"T-that's so beautiful!" sobbed Crowler, wiping away a tear with his personal hankerchief.
It wasn't until a few seconds later that he realized that the poem belonged to him! Damnit, he must have accidentally mixed his papers with Jaden's! Luckily, he only wrote down one copy of the poem, plus it didn't clarify that the poem was him...Not exactly, at least. Quickly, he tried to come up with a different response.
"And yet, a little gay."
That seemed like a diligent reply back.
Jaden panicked, not knowing why that piece of paper was there. Hell, she's never even wrote poetry before! Whoever wrote this was...sorta skilled, but still, it was weird, especially with the Ancient Gear Golem part.
"I-it's not mine! A friend wrote it for me!" said Jaden, half-lying. "And that's the wrong paper."
"R-right! Whatever!" Crowler stoled one of her papers, relieved that it wasn't another one of his poems. He scanned the paper over, realizing it was a request form for Zane. "You want to challenge Zane, the top duelist in our school, to a duel? That sounds like a marvelous idea! I'm going to approve it right away!"
"I-" Before Jaden could protest, she stopped. "R-really?" Crowler, out of all people, was going to help her out? What was with the sudden change of heart?
"Ha! Fuck no!" Crowler laughed like a madman as he tore up the form into tiny little pieces.
Jaden's jaw dropped as she watched with horror. 'Oh god, why?' she thought, wondering what sort of god would want her to continue suffering from Crowler's wrath.
Meanwhile, in the Slifer Red dorms...
Syrus was all huddled up in a small corner of his bed; his knees close to his chest as a blanket was draped over his head like a veil. He was still depressed not only because he yelled at Jaden, but also because of Zane's strict words. Even now, he could still hear them echoing in his head.
"I would have never given you that card, had I known you would misplay it. Sure you may know how to use Power Bond, but there's more to dueling than just that!"
"Gah! I can't take this!"
The petite blue-haired boy laid flat on his belly; the blue bedsheets covering his body as he hid himself away from the light. He was shaking, sweat dripping from his body due to lack of air inside the bedsheets and because of the anxiety Syrus suffered from Zane's words.
"Oh, man! I'm no good at Duel Monsters! I'll only let Jaden down!" muttered Syrus, curled up in his own bedsheets as more and more negative thoughts filled his head like crazy. Still, he at least managed to hold back the tears threatening to fall.
He could see it all now in his imagination; him and Jaden facing off against their opponents in the Tag Team Match. The two of them would be down to their last Life Points, with only Syrus having one Monster. Luckily, the other pair didn't have any Monsters, but they had way more Attack Points than Jaden and Syrus's.
Just then, when it was the opponent's turn, he used a Spell card to take control of Syrus's Monsters to attack Jaden, thus finishing off the remainders of their Life Points. Syrus stares in shock while everyone else laughs, and Jaden just curses him for ruining everything.
"Aah!" Syrus shot up, accidentally hitting his head on the side of the wall. "Ow...What do I do? I like dueling...But I don't want Jaden hating me if we lose...What should I do..."
Later, somewhere around the forests of Duel Academy...
"Stupid Crowler! Stupid Zane! Stupid...Stupid Chazz! Yeah!" grumbled Jaden, stomping around the forest, obviously in a bad mood and listing off names of the people she didn't like in Duel Academy. Already, her mind was filled with ideas on how to get back on them. The #1 person on her Revenge List had originally been Zane, but after Crowler's stunt, she replaced him with the gender-mistaken teacher.
"Kuri? Kuri kuri kuri?" ("Jaden? Are you alright?") Winged Kuriboh floated near Jaden, landing right on her shoulder. He nuzzled her face with his brown-colored fur body, knowing that his soft fur always made her happy.
"Awww! Thanks for cheering me up, Winged Kuriboh!~" awed Jaden, hugging Winged Kuriboh tightly like he was a stuffed animal. "I shouldn't be mad anymore! I should do something! And you just gave me a good idea!"
Winged Kuriboh let out a small sigh, wiping away any sweat from his forehead. At least Jaden was feeling a lot better and not plotting any revenge schemes. Knowing her, they would all end up badly.
"Instead, I'll just plan a water bucket trap for Crowler! The next time class starts, I'll just put a bucket of ice, cold water on top of a door, so when he enters, he'll get all cold, and his makeup will be ruined! Yay!"
"Kuri kuri..." ("Oh, brother...") Winged Kuriboh shook his head, knowing that if Jaden does somehow succeed, this would not end well...
"Whoa! My cards!"
"Huh?"
A rain of cards fell on top of Jaden, prompting her to release Winged Kuriboh and look up to see Chumley gripping onto the tree branch...like a wild sloth would. Though, Chumley was trying his best not to fall off.
"...Chumley, should I even ask why you're imitating an animal now?" deadpanned Jaden.
"H-hey? What up?" replied Chumley, trying to sound less nervous and more cool. It was kinda hard to since he was hanging onto a tree branch in his current position. "Hey, could you help stack up my cards? They...sorta fell."
With nothing better to do at the moment, Jaden started picking up the cards, discovering a number of Beast-Type Monsters with all of them being Koalas. "Cool! Koalas! They so suit you, Chum!"
Chumley nodded, agreeing with that statement. "Yeah, they're so cool! I once flattened a mean guy with a Warrior deck before with those!"
An irk mark formed at the corner of Jaden's forehead at the word 'flattened.' She absolutely despised the word 'flat' ever since Chumley kept calling her by now. Sure, he wasn't right now, but still...
"What."
Feeling Jaden's rage spiking up, Winged Kuriboh shrieked before vanishing back to the Spirit World where he would be safe from the chaos that was about to occur. He didn't really know females that much, but he knew right now, he wanted to avoid Jaden at all costs.
Chumley looked confused, and yet a little nervous. Somehow, he could sense that whatever he said made Jaden all silent all of a sudden. And he knew that whenever the hyperactive, cheerful girl was quiet, things would turn serious.
"Uh...Jaden? You ok-"
"DIE, EVIL KOALA MAN THING!"
"AAAAAAHHHHH!"
The koala-like duelist found himself clinging more onto the tree branch as Jaden started shaking the tree uncontrollably with unimaginable, reborn started rustling and falling softly to the ground as the tree branches connected to the tree were swinging back and forth.
"WAAAAAHHHH! WHAT DID I DO WRONG?!"
"YOU CALLED ME FLAT, DAMNIT! FLAT! NOW DIE, EVIL KOALA MAN THING! COME DOWN HERE AND BE A MAN!"
"B-BUT I'LL DIE IF I DO! STOP SHAKING THE TREE! C-COME ON! CAN'T WE TALK THINGS THROUGH?! C-CAN'T WE HAVE A PICK-UP DUEL OR SOMETHING?!"
Jaden blinked, completely forgetting her anger towards Chumley over the previous wods he had spoken. "Hey...A pick-up duel...Why didn't I think of that?" She swirled around and ran towards the opposite direction.
"Hey! Where are you going?" asked Chumley, relieved that Jaden wasn't planning on wringing his neck anytime soon.
"The Obelisk Blue Dorm!"
"W-why there?!"
"For a pick-up duel! With Zane!"
"WHAT?! THE Zane?! W-WAAH!"
Distracted, Chumely's grip loosened and he fell on his back, groaning. He was lucky that he wasn't too far off from the ground, or he would have seriously have gotten some broken bones. After collecting his Koala cards, Chumley set out to find Jaden, knowing that if Slifer Reds weren't allowed in the Obelisk Blue dorms, Jaden sure wasn't welcomed either!
At the Obelisk Blue dorms...
"Ow! What's your problem?!" cried out Jaden after being shoved to the ground by two Obelisk Blue members. All she did was barge in the Blue Dorms and declare that she wanted to face Zane! She didn't think that was a reason to kick her out and push her to the ground!
One of the Obelisk Blue boys that pushed her scoffed at her rude remark. "Nothing's wrong, but you sure will if you don't beat it!"
"Yeah, Zane wouldn't waste his time with you!" said the other Obelisk Blue boy before scooping up some mud using a bucket and splattering it all over Jaden, dirtying her uniform, hair, and face. The Obelisk Blues only laughed at her pathetic sight before leaving the poor duelist alone.
Okay, scratch Crowler off of #1 of her Revenge List, because those two Obelisk Blues were tied for first! Once she learned their names, they'll be getting the cold water bucket penalty!
"Jaden!"
Chumley pushed aside small branches and shrubs, seeing Jaden's body splattered with mud that most likely had been the work of some nasty Obelisk Blues. He was so filled with anger that even his whole body was shaking. He always hated it when the Obelisk Blues treat the Slifer Reds like trash; simply discriminating them because of their color difference and ranks!
Hearing Chumley's voice, Jaden saw the older boy rushing towards her. To her surprise, Chumley removed his own jacket and tossed it around Jaden's shoulders. "H-huh? Why are you giving me your jacket, Chum?"
"Because you definitely need it more than me. Also...I haven't washed my jacket in a few days, so...yeah."
Jaden would be slightly disgusted if she wasn't already touched by Chumley's offer of giving up his jacket to help her. "Aww! Thanks, Chum! The next time we duel, I'll probably hold back on you and not attack you with Flame Wingman!"
"Hold on! 'Probably?' What does that mean? You always cream me with that guy! I hate that guy!"
"Too bad, so sad! Hehehe!~"
After taking a short, yet warm shower, the only available clothing Jaden could wear was her pajamas since the rest were too smelly or just plain unclean. At least she would receive her uniform back from the cleaners later, but for now, Jaden just wanted to sit back and relax in her and Chumley's dorm room.
As the two of them headed towards their room, Chumley turned to Jaden, who was drying her Kuriboh-like hair with a towel. "So, what are you going to do now?"
"Well, I'll tell you one thing I'm not gonna do! Giving up!" said Jaden with fierce determination in her soul. "I'm gonna get Zane to duel me one way or another! ...Oh, and also pull a prank on Dr. Crowler!"
"Wait, what?!"
Jaden entered their room after opening the door, discovering a figure completely covered in a blue blanket in the middle bed. Both Jaden and Chumley knew full well the middle bed belonged to Syrus, so Syrus must still be depressed or asleep.
Pouting, Jaden walked over and began poking at Syrus's figure. "Sy? Sy! It's me, Jaden! Come on, please get up? I'll...give you half my dinner portions?"
"..."
"I'll let you borrow my Flame Wingman for a day?"
"..."
"Thunder Giant?"
"..."
"Avian and Burstinatrix?"
"..."
"Winged Kuriboh?"
"..."
"Des Koala?"
"Hey! That's my card!"
"Oops! Sorry, Chum! Uh...Sparkman?"
"..."
Finally fed up, Jaden tossed the blanket aside with ease, only to find that a couple pillows were stacked together to make it look like Syrus was here. Both Jaden and Chumley gasped at the absence of Syrus. If he wasn't here, where was he?
"Several fluffed pillows? Impossible!" gasped Jaden, before recollecting on her words. "Wait, what am I talking about? Of course it's possible!"
"Look, he left a note!" announced Chumley, picking up a piece of paper on the desk. "I'll go read it outloud!"
"Dear Jaden and Chumley,
I'm leaving Duel Academy. Don't try and stop me. It's for the best. I would only be hold you guys back if I stayed. P.S. Jaden, I saw your poem accidentally while you were taking a nap in class. If you were a guy, I'd say it was...pretty gay. - From, Syrus - "
Immediantly, Jaden snatched the note from Chumley, crumpling it in her hand as she growled in irritation. "A. Friend. Wrote. It. For. ME!"
Chumley stepped back, now curious to see what kind of poem Jaden had in her possession. "Uh...Jaden? What kind of poem was Sy-"
"Chumley."
"Y-yeah?"
"I dare you to finish that sentence."
"I-I was going to ask if we were going to search for Syrus or not!"
"Much better."
Both Slifer Reds had begun their search for hours without end, calling out Syrus's name and trying to search all the places the little teenage boy could have been hiding. After a failed walkthrough inside the forest, both ended up near the beach area, hoping to find the blue-haired Slifer Red.
"Syrus! Sy! Please, come out! I'll let you actually have one my Elemental Heroes! Just please don't pick Flame Wingman! He's my favorite card! You can borrow him!"
"Sy! Come on! Please! I'm sorry! I admit it! I did take part of your dinner yesterday! I'm sorry!"
Deciding to search deeper, Jaden rushed down a steep cliffway path that lead to a different, rocky beach shore. Chumley was above her on top of a cliff, wanting to locate Syrus from above just in case so he could warn Jaden. After a few minutes, he grew impatient and decided to follow after Jaden instead.
Jaden placed her palms on her knees, gasping heavily since she barely got some rest searching for her best friend. Her face was flustered, and her breath hot and heavy. Chumley was in the same position as Jaden, only he was more exhausted than she was since he wasn't used to all this exercise.
A faint glow caught Jaden's attention before she saw that her deck was glowing from her front pocket. Blinking, Jaden saw Winged Kuriboh signaling her with his tiny paws. If she wasn't in such a hurry to locate Syrus, she would have squealed at the cute gesture he was making.
"Kuri kuri!" ("Follow me!")
Catching his breath, Chumley heard Winged Kuriboh's purrs before shaking his head back and forth. "E-either I'm hallucinating from hunger...or I'm just hearing things!"
Pointing to another pathway, Winged Kuriboh nodded at Jaden to follow him before flying off. Jaden glanced behind her shoulder, shouting at her plump companion, "Chumley, hurry! He went this way! The spirit who came from my pocket told me so!"
"What, what?!" Chumley picked at his ears as Jaden took off. "Ugh! Never mind! Wait up!"
Meanwhile, Zane was staring off into the sunset, allowing the calm warmth and breeze waft throughout the air like harmless butterflies as he felt warm, yet cool at te same time. He was standing right next to the lighthouse where he usually goes to whenever he wants to think alone.
Sensing some footsteps approaching, Zane merely saw Alexis walking towards him. His shoulders relaxed, momentarily tensed before just in case some intruder or anything of the sort happened. Alexis was one of the people he could trust, so he could relax easily with her around.
"So, any new leads?" asked Zane quietly.
Sadly, Alexis shook her head. "I still can't believe he's still gone...I keep looking for some sign, but it's almost like my brother just vanished out of thin air."
Zane wasn't really a man of words, but he still had the effort to try and encourage his close friend. "Don't give up. You'll find him."
Alexis nodded, appreciating the older young man giving her even a spark of hope. "Thanks. But, speaking of brothers, I saw yours the other day."
The senior Obelisk Blue wasn't even the bit fazed by the mention of his little brother. "And?"
Flinching at bit at his somewhat rude comment, Alexis continued, "Well, he lost at this practice duel with his friend, Jaden Yuki. You know? The kid who beat Crowler at the entrance exams?"
"...The kid with the Elemental Hero deck?"
Alexis nodded. "Yeah, and your name came up during the practice match. I think Jaden wants to duel you. Considering the fact that he managed to defeat Crowler all on his own, he's sure to be really strong. So? Will you accept?"
"..." Zane stayed silent, unsure what to think of at the moment. Sure, it would be nice to have a good challenge every now and then...
"Eek! Oh no! Not Jaden! Go away!"
"Huh?" Alexis and Zane overheard Syrus's voice not too far away and walked towards the sound of his cries. From their point of view, they saw Syrus standing near a wooden raft with a somewhat frightened look on his face.
Syrus, who had finished preparing his things, was about to head out into the sea when he spotted Jaden running down from a rocky, narrow path right towards his way! Not wanting her to stop him, he jumped right onto the raft, causing it to slowly start floating away from shore.
"Don't you even dare try to run away from me, Syrus! You can't win! I once played Sonic all day! " yelled Jaden, coming to a stop in her tracks. She took a few steps back, then rushed forward and leaped with all her might, successfully landing right on top of the raft and shocking the life out of Syrus.
Unfortunately for both Slifer Reds, the impact of her jump had enough force to break apart the ropes holding the wooden pieces of the raft together.
"Gaah!" Both of them screamed right as they plundered into the water. Seconds later, they emerged right up the surface, all soaked from head to toe. Syrus was still clearly upset and tried swimming away, but Jaden placed him in a headlock and tried to prevent him from leaving while struggling to stay afloat.
Chumley, who was trying to catch up at Jaden's speed, was far away from where Jaden currently was. However, he was able to hear the loud yelling coming from Syrus and Jaden, indicating that Jaden must have foudn Syrus. However, his ears were not prepared for what was to come next.
"Damnit, Jaden! Why couldn't you just let me go?!"
"What the-?! No! No! Don't touch that spot!"
"Gah! I-I can't-!"
"Kyaaa! No! Not there! G-grab something else! Don't touch that!"
"I'm sorry! Aah! We're sinking!"
Eyes widening, Chumley felt adrenaline impusing into his veins as he ran even faster than he could ever imagine in his whole life.
"I'm coming!" he hollered before jumping onto the water, closing his eyes and waiting to be fully submerged underwater. It took him a few seconds to realize that the water was actually not that deep and rather shallow.
Jaden and Syrus popped out from the water as well, coughing for some air before they managed to regain oxygen inside their bodies. "Why are you trying to stop me, Jaden?" asked Syrus, still depressed. "If I leave, they'll assign you a new, better Tag Team partner. Much better than useless, old me..."
"Sy! You're just a little upset! Stop thinking about your brother's words!" scolded Jaden, shaking the smaller boy by the shoulders. "You just gotta believe in yourself!"
"B-but...I'm weak...and I couldn't even beat you..."
"He is right, you know," a new voice boomed in the area. Chumley, Syrus, and Jaden glanced up, recognizing Alexis with an older, dark-haired student with her. From instinct, Jaden could already tell that was Zane Truesdale.
"Zane..." gasped Syrus, unsure why his older, smarter, and even stronger brother was even here. Heck, how did he even know he was here? Oh right, him and Jaden were making all that noise.
"You dropping out?" Zane questioned monotonously, receiving a slow nod from an ashamed Syrus. Zane merely turned around, arms still crossed. "...Well, it's about time."
Hurt by his words once again, Syrus swam through the water to try and rebuild his raft. However, happy memories of his time in Duel Academy and the harsh memories of his weaknesses clashed together in Syrus's mind, making him sniffle and sob quietly to himself as tears fell.
Heartbroken by the sight of a pitiful and emotionally hurt Syrus, Jaden angrily glared at Zane; her fists ready to knock the teeth out of him. "Hey! How could you say that to your own brother, jerk?!"
Zane didn't even flinch at her sharp tone. "Simple. Because he deserves to. He can't handle the pressure, then he should leave while he still can."
At first, Jaden had the upmost respect for Zane Truesdale since she's heard that he's the top duelist at Duel Academy. However, seeing him hurting his poor, innocent little brother like that without no remorse sickened Jaden to the point where she had zero respect for him now, even if he is a great duelist.
"That's not true! You think you know him at all, but you don't!" growled Jaden, standing up for Syrus. "And you know what? Just to prove it, I'm gonna duel you! Right now!"
Shocked, Syrus went up to Jaden, tugging on her arm. "No! Jaden! He's too powerful! He's the top duelist at this school for a reason!"
Jaden smiled down at Syrus, lightly ruffling his blue hair. "Don't worry, Sy! If all ends wrong, I can always just kick his ass as Plan B!"
'B-but Zane's a black belt at karate! He'll totally defeat Jaden right before she could even get a hold of him!' thought Syrus.
"Dueling you?" Zane smirked, giving a curt nod. "Alright, why not? Not a lot of Slifers come and challenge me anyways."
"Then, get your game on!"
'She's gonna die!' Syrus thought, anime tears falling as he thought of several outcomes that was considered possible as failure for Jaden.
By the time everyone found a secure location to duel, which happened to be near the lighthouse, it was already pitch dark out, but the flashing light rotating over and over out in the lighthouse provided perfect eyesight for Jaden and Zane, who were about to duel.
"DUEL!"
- DUEL -
Jaden - 4000 LP
VS
Zane - 4000 LP
"Oh man...this isn't good!" murmured Syrus, looking quite anxious while placing his hands on his hair. He was fidgeting around, moving left to right and wondering what he should do. "My big brother taking on my best friend! There's no way this could turn out good!"
From the looks of things, Jaden wasn't even nervous. She was so excited, everyone could see that she was practically jumping up and down with joy, making them sweatdrop at the tomboyish Slifer Red.
"Yay! Yay! Yay! I get to duel the top duelist in school! I'm so lucky!~" squealed Jaden with a child-like look on her face. She giggled some more before taking a deep breath to calm down.
Syrus and Zane stared at her for a moment, noting that her slight actions were somewhat...adorable. Both shook their heads at the same time. Wait, what were they thinking of just now? Zane just stared down at the five cards he drew, while Syrus looked down at his shoes, blushing.
"Me first! Draw!" said Jaden. "Okay! I summon Winged Kuriboh in Defense Mode!~"
The little Fairy-type popped onto the field, but floated right in the air afterwards, much to Jaden's amusement.
Winged Kuriboh - (LIGHT/Fairy) - LV1 - (300/200)
"And then, I place one card facedown and that's all for now!"
"That's all, huh? My turn." Zane drew his card and announced, "For my first move, I summon Cyber Dragon in Attack Mode!"
Emerging underneath the ground and causing rubble all over, a steel, serpent-like, amored dragon appeared right in front of Zane, its summoner. Just looking at it would make anyone fear it for its deadly power and looks.
Cyber Dragon - (LIGHT/Machine) - LV5 - (2100/1600)
"Whaaaat?! You can't summon a Level 5 Monster without a sacrifice! It's against the rules!" protested Jaden, taken aback by the Monster's high Attack Points and how it appears.
"No, it's completely legit," replied Zane calmly. "See, when you have at least one Monster, and I don't, I can Special Summon this Monster onto my field. Next, I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy that facedown of yours."
A tornado burst from the card and blew away Jaden's only facedown card, revealing that it was Transcendent Wings before it was destroyed.
"No! Not that card! I wanted to use that!"
"Hmph. I bet you were planning to sacrifice your Kuriboh in order to bring out the Level 10 version of it, and use his ability,right?" questioned Zane, still being stoic. "That trick may have worked on Princeton, but it won't work on me. You're going to have to try a lot harder than that if you want to win."
"That is true..." said Jaden, pouting that her strategy completely went down the drain. "That, and because I found Winged Kuriboh LV10 to be absolutely cute and cool-looking!"
Winged Kuriboh let out a little sigh and sweatdropped. Ever since she pulled that Transcendent Wing stunt on Chazz, she's been pulling the same strategy nonstop ever since on other duelists! He lost count after 25 times! In a way, he's kinda glad that Zane managed to destroy Trascendent Wings, but he knows that it's gonna hurt when Cyber Dragon attacks.
"Now that that facedown's out the way, it's time to attack!" shouted Zane. "Cyber Dragon! Wipe him out with Strident Blast!"
Cyber Dragon opened its metal-like jaws, aiming and firing a blast of fire which no doubt incinerated Winged Kuriboh as he tried to hold on and endured the blast, only to get overwhelmed by the flames.
Jaden gritted her teeth, relieved that her Monster was in Defense Mode. Even if Winged Kuriboh was in Attack Mode, his special ability would have prevented her from taking any Battle Damage anyways.
'Oh, man! I tried to warn her that Zane was good! My big brother really is still powerful!' thought Syrus, feeling doubt and worry for his female best friend.
"Now, I activate the Spell card, Different Dimension Capsule. It allows me to pick any card from my deck," continued Zane while a strange-looking sarcophagus with a twisted-looking clock appeared. Zane took his entire deck from his duel disk and began fishing for a card before taking one out. "Then, I simply place it in the capsule, then in two turns, I get to take it out and put it right into my hand."
After putting the chosen card inside the sarcophagus, the coffin-like object slowly sank underneath the ground and away from the field.
"Awesome! I can't wait to see what card you chose!" said Jaden to Zane. "I'm gonna take a guess and you can tell me if I'm right, okay? Is it...Pot of Greed?"
"No."
"Polymerization!"
"No."
As Jaden ventured more guesses, Syrus felt sweat beading down his forehead, having a grave feeling about the card Zane tossed away. 'It can't be that card...Can it?'
"Dark Magician?"
"No."
"Pot of Greed!"
"You just said that."
"Oh...Is it Blue-Eyes White Dragon?"
"Jaden, would you just make your move? It's your turn."
"Oh, right! Sorry!" After drawing her card, Jaden smirked; a new plan already formulated inside her head. "I play Polymerization and fuse together Avian and Burstinatrix to create Elemental Hero Flame Wingman!"
Flames erupted below the ground as Flame Wingman emerged victoriously, roaring when he made his appearance right on the nick of time.
Elemental Hero Flame Wingman - (WIND/Fusion/Warrior) - LV6 - (2100/1200)
"Now, I'll equip Flame Wingman with Kishido Spirit! If he faces off against a Monster with the same Attack Points as him, Flame Wingman doesn't get destroyed!" said Jaden. "So, go! Flame Wingman! Attack Cyber Dragon!"
Flame Wingman sprang into action; his wing spreaded out while he prepared firing his own fire blast from his arm. Cyber Dragon tried to retaliate by lashing its tail at him, but Flame Wingman dodged with ease and burned the dragon into ashes.
"Yeah! Way to go, Jaden!" cheered Chumley while Syrus simply watched the duel, uneased.
"And now, Flame Wingman's ability activates! See, if he destroys a Monster in battle, the Attack Points of that Monster are sent straight towards your Life Points!"
The Elemental Hero flew down towards Zane before giving him a faceful of fire. Zane simply crossed his arms and watched calmly as the blast hit him, but he wasn't even fazed due to the fact that it was still a hologram.
Jaden - 4000 LP
Zane - 1900 LP
"Nice moves, kid," commented Zane before drawing his card. "But, now that my field's empty, I can to summon another Cyber Dragon from my hand. But I'm not done, because now, I play Monster Reborn. And since there's only one Monster in my Graveyard, I don't need to recall who needs to be brought back, now do I?"
At that moment, two Cyber Dragons showed up on the spot, guarding their master.
Cyber Dragon - (LIGHT/Machine) - LV5 - (2100/1600) X2
"Now, I play Polymerization! Dragons, unite!" commanded Zane as his two Monsters swirled around and disappeared in a portal. "Now, Cyber Twin Dragon! Emerge!"
Instead of a single, one-headed dragon, a two-headed cybernetic Monster came out, appearing much fierce compared to the other two previous Cyber Dragons.
Cyber Twin Dragon - (LIGHT/Fusion/Machine) - LV8 - (2800/2100)
"W-whoa! Twin Dragon?! One was bad enough! And he's even stronger than Flame Wingman!" said Chumley, astonished at how the tables turned on Jaden.
"Now my dragon can attack twice in a round! Twin Dragon! Attack!" ordered Zane, his command as sharp as the Twin Dragon's battle cry.
The Cyber Twin Dragon made quick work of Flame Wingman, quickly disposing him with a stronger blast of its attack. It then turned to Jaden, who then shielded her face with her arms as she was forced to take the blast coming from the Fusion Monster.
Jaden - 300 LP
Zane - 1900 LP
"Now, I'm going to end my turn here," said Zane.
Jaden giggled, then grinned widely. "This is so great! I'm having a blast, Zane! I knew you were strong, but I didn't think you were this strong!"
"Huh?" Zane nodded curtly and gave her a small smile. "I guess you're not half-bad, either."
'Whoa! This is the first I've seen Zane compliment someone before!' thought Syrus, surprised as he kept his eyes wide for the duel.
"Then, it's my go!" said Jaden, glancing at the card she was holding. "I play...Pot of Greed, letting me draw two cards! And I know you have a Pot of Greed inside that coffin of yours, Zane!"
"Why do you automatically assume it's Pot of Greed? It's definitely not!" shouted Chumley, irritated.
"But, Pot of Greed is awesome! I mean, you get to draw two free cards without paying any costs! And lookie here! I play Graceful Charity! That means, I get to draw three more cards, but discard two! I'll ditch these two, and play Fusion Gate! Both of us can Fusion Summon any Monsters, but those Monsters are removed from play then. And now, I Fusion Summon Clayman and Bubbleman to form...Elemental Hero Mudballman! In Defense Mode!"
The two Fusion-Material Heroes were sucked inside a dark portal, and in a few more seconds, another new Monster struggled his way out of the portal. He was large and buffed with a heavy, armored rock-like body, but with Bubbleman's face.
Elemental Hero Mudballman - (EARTH/Fusion/Warrior) - LV6 - (1900/3000)
"Awesome! Now Cyber Twin Dragon can't pierce through that unbelievable defense!" praised Chumley.
'I don't believe it! Jaden might actually win!' thought Syrus, actually finding hope within Jaden.
"Now, give me your best shot, Zane!" challenged Jaden.
"My best shot? You got it!" Zane accepted her challenge with no hesitation and drew his card while the sarcophagus from before popped from the ground, looking unharmed. "It's been two turns since I-"
"AAAAAHHH! ZOMBIE!" screamed Jaden, freaked out and cowering behind Mudballman, using him as a shield. "Mudballman! Kill it!"
Everyone, including Mudballman, sweatdropped. Either Jaden has a huge phobia of zombies, or she completely forgot about the whole Different Dimension Capsule spell Zane performed a few turns ago.
"Jaden, no zombie's going to come out of there," told Alexis. "Remember when Zane used that Different Dimension Capsule card?"
Jaden blinked, unsure what she was talking about.
"The spell where he placed a card inside the coffin?"
"..."
"...You thought Pot of Greed was inside."
"Ohhhh! Yeah! I remember now! Thanks, Alexis!"
Zane cleared his throat, gaining Jaden's attention. "Anyways, it's been two turns since I activated this card. Now, I can take back my card right into my hand!"
The sarcophagus glowed before it started cracking up and burst into a pile of little pieces, revealing the only content inside; a card. That card flew right into Zane's hands while Jaden watched amusely.
"Wow! Great magic show!" Jaden said, applauding for Zane as her fears for zombies went away.
"...You played well," complimented Zane. "But not good enough."
"Well, bring it on! I dare you to try and attack!" replied Jaden, confident in Mudballman's defensive skills. "I'm ready for anything you throw at me!"
"I'm sure you are," the male duelist agreed. "A good duelist is ready for anything. And that means not just knowing how to use all their cards, but knowing how to play them, too. And though you seem aloof at times, you sure did know how to play your cards well, Jaden."
'...Knowing how to play your cards?' pondered Syrus, agape at his brother's words of compliments and advice.
'Nice words of advice. Hope Sy's listening,' thought Jaden, smirking. 'Maybe this guy ain't so bad after all. But, that's not gonna stop me from kicking his ass.'
Syrus's eyes widen, realizing what his brother meant. 'Of course! Knowing how to play a card, and knowing how to use one are completely two different things! I get it now!'
Zane's thoughts about the duel haven't ceased at all, as he continued his turn. "First, I play the De-Fusion card! It splits my Monsters back into two different Cyber Dragons! Next, I'll activate the power of Power Bond! With this spell, I'm allowed to summon a Machine-Type Fusion Monster! With the two Cyber Dragons on my field, and the last one in my hand, I can now fuse the three of them together to create the Cyber End Dragon!"
In a flash, a light flooded the entire area and instantly vanished when another being took form onto the field. That being happened to be a larger, much stronger, cybernetic dragon with three heads instead of two.
Cyber End Dragon - (LIGHT/Fusion/Machine) - LV10 - (4000/2800)
"Plus, it's Attack Points are doubled thanks to Power Bond's effect!"
Cyber End Dragon - (LIGHT/Fusion/Machine) - LV10 - (8000/2800)
"W-what?! 8000?!" exclaimed Chumley. Never before had he seen an Attack Power that high before!
"And there's more! If Cyber End Dragon attacks, then the difference between my Monster's Attack Points and your Monster's Defense Points come straight out of your Life Points! You barely have any left, though! This is it!"
Noticing Jaden's worried look, Chumley tried to encourage her. "Don't give up! You can still win! All you have to do is survive this last turn and you can make it!"
"That's right," agreed Alexis. "At the end of the turn Power Bond is used, the player who activated the card takes damage equal to the Monster's original Attack Points!"
'Yeah, but that won't matter anymore,' thought Syrus, clenching his fists while his face looked serious about this duel. 'If Cyber End Dragon Attacks, it'll inflict piercing damage, and it's bad news for Jaden.'
"Cyber End Dragon, attack Mudballman!" ordered Zane. "Super Strident Blaze!'
At the same time, all three cybernetic heads launched powerful beams from their mouths, the three beams colliding together to form as one larger beam that shattered through Mudballman's defense and straight towards Jaden.
After the attack, Jaden, with her bangs covering her eyes, collapsed on her knees as her Life Points decreased all the way down.
Jaden - 0 LP
Zane - 1900 LP
Winner: Zane
"Jaden lost?" wondered Chumley.
"Jaden lost?" gasped Alexis.
"Jaden lost?!" cried out Syrus before rushing towards Jaden with concern written in his face. "Jaden! Are you alright?!"
The girl looked up at Zane with no hints of resentment or anger. Instead, she grinned at the duelist who beat her and gave him a thumbs-up. "Nice duel, Zane!"
Zane gave her a small smile like before and walked away, leaving Syrus alone in the care of his friends. Alexis quickly caught up to him before slowing down to his pace as she walked besides him.
"So Zane...what do you think?"
"...I think Sy chose some good friends."
"Waaaah! Jaden! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
"Nooo! I wanna mess up your hair! Punishment for trying to run away!"
"Chumley, save me! Last time Jaden did this, it took me an hour to get my hair right again!"
"Um...I'll go save some dinner for you two!"
"Traitor! Aaah! Not the hair, Jay! Not the hair!"
Alexis looked behind her shoulder, sweatdropping at the scene behind her. "Uh...Zane? Should we-"
"Let men be men, Alexis."
"But-"
"Let men. Be men."
"...*Sigh* I give up."
Meanwhile, in the Spirit World...
"This is an outrage!" declared Flame Wingman, slamming his fist on the desk. Again, the Elemental Heroes were all gathered for another of what they called "Jaden Meetings."
"Flame Wingman, calm down," said Burstinatrix, looking quite annoyed. "I know you're concerned for Jaden's well-being, but this is ridiculous!"
Standing right behind Flame Wingman was a large board with pictures pinned to it. One used to be a picture of Crowler, until a certain Fusion Monster couldn't stand his face and ripped it in half. The others consisted of Bastion, Chazz, Syrus, Alexis, and a new one, Zane.
"I agree with Flame Wingman," said Avian, his arms crossed. "We must find a way to protect our mistress! She's too young to be married anyways!"
"Avian, of all people, you?! I think we should let Jaden do as she pleases!"
"That's what I thought too, Burstinatrix! Until I saw Jaden hanging out with more boys than girls!"
While some of the Elemental Heroes were talking amongst themselves, the three Hero Kids looked at Sparkman with curiosity in their eyes. Sparkman glanced down at the kids, knowing that curiosity meant two things.
One; trouble. Two; they wanted to know something.
"Sparkman? Why is Jaden scared of zombies?" asked Hero Kid #1.
Sparkman let out a sigh of relief, which could barely be heard over the huge argument over "Jaden's innocence." He bent down and said, "Okay, I guess I'll tell you three in order to pass the time. You see, when Jaden was very young..."
Flashback...
"Jaden, it's time to go to bed," spoke Sparkman, urging the little six year old girl as she continued watching TV. Her parents were out grocery shopping and would be back later, thus leaving their only daughter alone in a dark house in the middle of the night.
Jaden pouted, glancing at the clock. "But, Sparky! I'm not sleepy! Please let me watch more? The movie's almost over!"
"No, Jaden. Just because it's Saturday doesn't mean I'll let you stay up past your bedtime. It's already past 10!"
"P-please...?" Jaden begged, her lips whimpering as her eyes went wide with tears.
Sparkman groaned silently, unable to look away from that cute expression. If there was any weak points for the Elemental Hero, it was Jaden's unbearable cute puppy dog eyes. Just looking at them would make anyone obey the girl.
"...Alright. Just ten more minutes, okay?"
"Yay! Thank you, Sparky!"
Exactly ten minutes later, Sparkman returned to check up on Jaden. However, he didn't expect to find her hiding behind the couch pillows, covering her ears with a horrified look on her face.
"Jaden? What's wrong?" Sparkman's question came to a stop when he heard screaming from the TV. He saw a woman being eaten alive by zombies as other people were running away from other zombies in the background. Some were being bitten in the neck or forehead while some tried to fight back using guns.
Sparkman knew he couldn't exactly touch the remote to turn off the TV, since he is a Duel Spirit after all. The best he could do was block Jaden's path of view and try hugging her, even though he couldn't do it physically.
"S-sparkman! I wanna go to my room!" cried out Jaden, who was downright terrified. "C-can you help me?"
The Elemental Hero nodded, still not allowing her to see what was on TV. He decided to deal with the whole TV problem to Jaden's parents. Right now, he was escorting Jaden up the stairs, taking the lead since Jaden was terrified that a zombie might come out and eat her, so he had to walk in the front.
Once they arrived in her room, Jaden ran to the bed, quickly covering herself with the bed covers. Sparkman passed the time by telling the little girl the adventures he and the other Elemental Heroes had, some which were made up. Nevertheless, they seemed to have worked, since Jaden was more excited to hear about the stories rather than scared about the zombie movie.
"*Yawn*I'm sleepy..." Jaden let out another yawn before her head landed on her pillow. Sparkman patted her head gently, even ruffling a bit of her hair before returning to her deck.
"...And that's what happened," said Sparkman, feeling a bit nostalgic over the past memories.
After hearing the story, the Hero Kids were more than happy to help out their owner more. "Don't worry!" The three of them said, saluting. "We promise to protect Jaden!"
"That's right! Besides, I'm gonna be the one marrying Jaden!" announced Hero Kid #2 proudly.
After that loud outburst, the room grew silent, void of any talking.
Hero Kid#2 found himself pinned to the wall; a grotesque, monstrous arm aiming straight at his face. He was literally sweating as Flame Wingman pointed his weapon at him.
"What. Did. You. Say?"
"Hey, lay off, Flame Wingman," said Mudballman, defending Hero Kid#2. "He's just a kid, remember?"
Normally, Hero Kid #2 would start protesting how he wasn't a kid despite his looks. However, in this situation, he would have to agree with Mudballman in order to live just a little longer. Especially if there was a arm that could shoot fire at your face.
Flame Wingman sighed, backing away. "I guess you're right. Maybe I was being a bit too overprotective. I'm sor-"
"Plus, Jaden might turn out hot!" spoke up Hero Kid #3, fantasies forming inside his mind as he drooled over Jaden.
At this moment, the Hero Kid might as well have signed his own doom.
"THAT'S IT!"
"Quick, somebody pin him down!"
"Get off me! Someone has to teach him a lesson!"
"I got his arm!"
"Can I still marry Jaden?"
"NO!"
"Grrrr!"
"I got his tail! His tail! Ow! He bit me!"
"I got his other arm!"
"Jeez! How heavy is this guy?!"
And that's a wrap! Yeah, just a couple of pointers here and there.
Sorry for the wait! School was bugging me over and over! I managed to get this one ahead though, so no worries here!
I managed to get references from other series here! Oh, and the whole Pot of Greed thing? Definitely got it from the new Yu-Gi-Oh Abridged episode!
It might take me a while to update again! Also, if anyone wants to, I have another Yu-Gi-Oh fanfic involving a bit of Tagforce! It's not much, but it's all I got to offer! Any ideas would be cool!