State of the Meta

by Yung Warrior

A self-insert in which a competitive player from 2016 finds himself warped into the world of GX. Between adjusting his deck to make up for the inverted power creep, making grades, and saving the world, there's much to do, but all good players know how to adapt to their circumstances. SI-OC, 1st Person POV

29. Coffee's For Closers

Chapter 29: Coffee's For Closers

Songs

Yu-Gi-Oh Duelists of the Roses OST – Vs. Yorkists

Dragon Ball FighterZ OST – Vegeta's Theme

Modestep & Koven – Take It All

Fallout Boy – Coffee's For Closers

(Jamie Lancaster POV)

"You've grown up a lot, son. Seems that school's done some good for you, judging by your improved grades." Tobias Lancaster, father of Jamie Lancaster, said with terse sentimentality at the Domino City airport. He shook my hand and I shook back, avoiding direct eye contact by focusing on his nose. It was a rather unremarkable nose, in case you were curious.

"We're so happy to see you again, honey bun!" said Joanna Lancaster, Jamie's mother, as she gave me a hug. She had the same bright green eyes as me, though her hair was the shade of autumn wheat, a pleasant golden blonde. I had Tobias' brown hair, though he was balding and had an extremely short cut.

"It's great to see you both again, mom and dad!" Each lie was more hideous than the last, and shame churned in my belly like spoiled milk. Why did the gods rob these parents of their only child? If Yubel's words were true and the gentle darkness brought me here, why did it make me Jamie Lancaster? There was nothing gentle about this, it was cruel and perverse. Or perhaps the darkness is only gentle in comparison to the light, the brutal Light of Destruction that brainwashes and corrupts the hearts of men in order to destroy life. It doesn't make a difference in the end, both are malicious and misanthropic forces that only seem to bring about misery.

I told my parents much on the ensuing car ride back to the Lancaster home, and even more over dinner later. Obviously I omitted everything supernatural, but I was able to speak genuinely about the friendships I had formed, and my rise through the ranks of Obelisk Blue.

Zane had graduated after a thrilling final match with Jaden Yuki, a match which ended up being a draw, as it was in canon. Every pro dueling sponsor wanted to scoop him up, but for the moment he was choosing to go independent and make a name for himself first in the arena, so that when the time came to be sponsored, he could wring those corporations out of every last dollar he could. His first televised match would be in a week's time – no rest for the wicked.

And now that the Kaiser had flown the coop, there was an existing vacancy for number one duelist at Central Academy. That was a gap I meant to finally and totally close. The shadow riders were defeated, and we only lost two keys (though the beasts were gone in the end anyways). It was time to start thinking about the rest of my life, and the time was now to start working towards building some credentials. Is it arrogant, to pursue the number one spot so fervently? The answer is yes, and my response is so what? There's nothing wrong with trying to reach a high goal. People will certainly criticize me for it, but so what? People will criticize anyone for any reason, so why even be concerned about it?

Needless to say, Tobias and Joanna were very excited to hear of my upcoming interview at KaibaCorp on Friday. Joanna fretted greatly about what to wear, and how I should cut my hair (it was getting too long to be professional) while Tobias starting reciting job interview tips and tricks he doubtless read in some disposable Forbes article.

Imagine my shock when Tobias casually asked me how "that Black Soldier or whatever" card was working out. I had always wondered where this boy got a copy of Black Luster Soldier, Envoy of the Beginning, since it was such a rare card in this realm. Apparently his father won it in a sweepstakes hosted by Industrial Illusions, and gifted it to Jamie on his last birthday…his last birthday before I came into the picture. I wasn't sure if it was better or worse that the boy was doted on by his parents – maybe it would have been easier if he wasn't so beloved.

What happened to that boy? The real Jamie Lancaster, I mean…did he die by the hand of the gods, swatted like a fly? Or was he somewhere else? Whenever I looked upon the faces of these proud parents, or thought about them, the same questions just came back.

And what about me? I'm not completely who Jamie was, nor the man I used to be…I just don't know. Professor Banner's words came back again – "We are all fish swimming in an ocean of infinite paths…"

XxXxXXXXxXXxxxxXXXXx

The next few days passed uneventfully. I was slow to rise in the mornings, always waking up with the names of my real family on my lips. On the worst days, I would even think of her again., the girl that I lost everything for back in my old life. On this day, the day of the interview, I rose an hour before my alarm was set to go off after a bad dream. Sneaking downstairs, I poured myself a cup of light roasted coffee from the percolator that Tobias prepared the previous evening. Sitting alone in the kitchen, I watched the dawn while sipping the dark drink, stone-faced.

I needed this to turn out– working for Harrington Rosewood was getting old. Not that working at Rosewood Sporting Goods itself is bad, but working for Harry long enough would cause anybody who had the ability to quit to do so, as he was an asshole. Ideally I'd like to work independently someday, either in the pro leagues or somewhere else, but this was just an internship, and KaibaCorp wouldn't be a bad place to establish some experience.

For a time, my mind drifted to older days, better days in some respects. Worse in others. What was I supposed to do, not think of the old life? Pretend it never existed? Cast aside my old ties completely? Was that the way of it? Was I wrong for keeping the past alive in my memory? It made me terribly sad – there are many words for it, but the simplicity of sadness was the most fitting. Was that weakness?

I wore a recently bought suit – black jacket and pants, white shirt, and solid red tie. I expected I might have been slightly overdressed, but you can never be too sure with Kaiba, and it's always better to be overdressed than underdressed. My hair was shorn short again, a simple summer cut that let a slight amount of bangs over my forehead while the sides and back were razored short.

Bastion made it to the station before me, having the same idea as me. He wore a light gray suit with a white shirt and a yellow tie, perhaps to represent his house. It made him look rather like a university professor, whereas my look was more reminiscent of a politician.

"Jamie," He greeted with a smile that didn't completely mask his nerves. "Good to see you, we didn't get the chance to hang out much at the end of term."

"It went by quickly." I shook his hand. "It's good to see you too. How is Jasmine?"

"She is...a bit nervous. Later this afternoon, she has an interview at Café la Geen." He admitted with a chuckle.

"The coffee shop?" I asked mechanically, despite the fact that I knew perfectly well what he was referring to. It was one of my favorite spots in the city to grab a cup of joe and relax. In the past few days, it had become a home base of sorts as I learned how to navigate Domino City. I spent a solid afternoon poring over the city map in that coffee shop.

"Yes, do you go there often?" He asked, and I nodded, a curdled expression on my face. "Well, maybe you might see her there! I'm sure she'll ace her interview!" Bastion didn't seem to really pick up on Jasmine and I's mutual dislike – either that or he was trolling me, but that wasn't really Bastion's style.

"Oh, I'm sure she will." I said wryly as we boarded our train. I was torn between wanting to avoid the coffee shop altogether or perhaps stopping by there more often, as it was fun to verbally spar with her. But such things were the least of my concerns, the looming Kaibacorp tower reminding me of that.

Forty-eight other applicants were among us as we stood in the courtyard outside the tower. There were slightly more girls than boys, and there was little in the way of idle talk –on the contrary, everyone seemed to be sizing up each other, doubtless making all sorts of frantic appraisals in their head. None of them stood out – the outfits and hairstyles were perfectly chosen for the occasion. What's more, their eyes were all the same – closed off, cold, like sharks.

I had to chuckle, internally – I never felt I had it in me to be a ruthless career striver, and yet I found myself in the company of those who clearly were. I wanted to make a name for myself, true, but the interview etiquette, the networking (a detestable term), and the soft power plays were something I could do, but would rather avoid. Bastion definitely seemed to be out of his element, but luckily he did not make the mistake of trying to talk to anyone. His social awkwardness actually served him in this situation, for it made him seem aloof and above it all.

A fountain with a statue of a Blue-Eyes White Dragon sat in the center of a paver patio, the dragon's mouth pouring out water into the basin. Well-kept shrubs and trees starkly dotted the otherwise completely modern landscape. It was going to be a miserably hot day – the humidity already dulled the senses, and wearing a suit was going to be unbearable soon.

Fortunately, before long a man wearing a dark grey suit and a sky blue tie opened the big glass front doors. His appearance was unremarkable and his eyes were obscured by sunglasses, but his words quickly grabbed our attention. "Would all of the summer internship applicants follow me, please?"

Bastion and I were the last to trail in as the others were walking as fast as they possibly could without outright running. The atrium looked like something out of science fiction – holographic screens were hanging in the air, with news stories and articles being displayed upon them. Blue light peeked through the tiles, and our footsteps caused brief imprints of light on the floor, as if there was chalk on the soles of our shoes. The room was also strangely dark, with the floor being the only source of light.

We applicants, as well as our guide, seemed to be the only people here. Where were the workers? Wasn't this building normally used for business? I didn't get a good look at it during the entrance exam, but I assumed so. There was a tense silence as our expectations were cast into doubt.

"Man, this is weird, huh?" I said a little too loudly to Bastion, causing a few of the other applicants to give me a dirty look. Meanwhile, the Ra Yellow prodigy was busy inspecting the floor lights, wondering how they worked.

We waited for a few minutes more, the tension growing thicker, until suddenly the room was bathed in bright white light, blinding us momentarily as our eyes were used to the semidarkness.

The ceiling lights were so damn bright you could perform surgery, but that became the least of my concerns as I observed three men walking down a staircase that lead to the atrium where we were standing. Two of them were simply dressed guards with sunglasses and cold expressions. The third was Kaiba himself, dressed in a snowy white suit with a light blue tie. He held a briefcase in one hand, and his expression was the same as always – sneering and imperious. He was a tall bastard too, easily six-foot-one.

"Let me have your attention for a moment." He said to the dead-silent group of kids, as if there was any chance of him being ignored. He could have ordered this lot to start doing jumping jacks and they would have asked how many.

"Here's how this whole process is going to go. There are fifty of you, and yes I only let fifty people interview because it is a nice, clean number. You each will have three minutes to explain to me individually why you are not a piece of literal trash."

You could have heard a pin drop. A few confused and even humorous expressions arose on some of the stupider applicants faces. Surely this was a joke, right?

"Do you think I'm fucking with you?" Kaiba said blandly, standing at the bottom of the stairwell with his arms behind his back. His eyes roved across the crowd, judging. "I am not fucking with you. You see, what Kaibacorp considers average is not what the world considers average. Another provider, another family, some menial job and an easygoing life which preserves the status quo…this is completely fucking unacceptable at my company. PUT. THAT COFFEE. DOWN." Kaiba's voice suddenly rose to a yell, and his eyes swiveled to a red-haired girl who was sipping some kind of iced coffee. She was visibly shaking, and had no choice but to set her drink on the floor.

"Coffee is for closers. It's for the people who innovate, who build, and who pave the way for the infinite future! That is living, and only the living need coffee!" Every word was heavy with purpose – how could this man have such disdain for humanity as a whole, and yet be such an idealist? "And if you're not doing that, then you're basically a decomposing sack of meat and blood, with some bones to keep it all standing. What word describes such a state better than trash?"

"I don't have to listen to this shit." One guy folded already, which made me wonder why even bothered showing up in the first place. Kaiba didn't exactly have a reputation for being soft and cuddly. In fact, I'm pretty sure he just called the vast majority of the human race trash. Can't say I'm surprised – this is the same man who orchestrated a series of murderous theme park games in an effort to kill his main rival, a task which included strapping electric chairs to a rollercoaster. Yeah, the manga was pretty fucked up in the earlier chapters.

"You certainly don't, pal. Now get the fuck out of my building before I release the hounds on your pathetic ass." Kaiba pointed towards the door. The boy abandoned all pretenses of dignity and starting running for the exit, whimpering as he did so. Kaiba watched him go before continuing.

"Anyways, where was I? Oh, yes, the interview. Now that you have a better idea of the sort of person I want working for me, you will get the chance to sell your pitch. I want people whose hearts beat with a purpose and want to build the future. I want people who aren't afraid to take what they want! In short, I want people with BRASS BALLS."

"This internship will be hard fucking work, there's no denying it. If you don't like the sound of a little hard work, then leave! But if you stay you'll come out the other side with experience and most importantly, money" - Kaiba practically shuddered with pleasure as he said the word – "which will put you ten million steps ahead of your peers. Exactly. Ten. Million. Now then, there are forty-nine of you, of course that asshole had to ruin my nice, perfect fifty… so this process should take about….eh, whatever forty-nine times three is."

The walls suddenly opened up, as if we were in the Batcave or something. Clean, cushy benches unfolded from the wall, long enough to seat all of us comfortably. I was still reeling from the speech. It was completely fucking insane of course, but I had to admit that Kaiba's relentless mentality was the main tool that got him this far, and I could understand it. His will was absolute, and if putting up with some mean words was what it took to earn the kind of money he was talking about, then I could do that.

"We will proceed in alphabetical order by surname, so that should give you a good idea of when you'll be shooting your shot. And by the way, don't go over three minutes." With that, Kaiba swept from the room, ascending the stairs quickly and leaving us dumbfounded.

One of the guards went with him, while the other remained behind. Pressing a button on his phone, a holographic screen expanded in front of him and showed an Excel spreadsheet. It took me a while, but I finally recognized him as Roland, Kaiba's ever-present right hand man. Considering it's been ten years since Battle City, Roland must have been in Kaiba's employ at least that long. I wonder what it would be like, working for such a man that long.

"Darling Adagio, you will be the first to interview. Follow me, please." The girl with the strange name looked frightened and confused from Kaiba's speech – couldn't blame her. At least Bastion and I would have some time to gather our thoughts, since our last names were in the middle of the alphabet.

Bastion and I took our seats. I would be up before him, and he looked glad for that. With an ashen expression, he said "Jamie, I'm not so sure about this anymore. I knew Kaiba was off his rocker, but I didn't know he was this crazy!"

"Relax, it's probably just a performance to scare off the faint of heart. Like the coffee girl." I tilted my head towards the girl in question, who had hesitantly grabbed her drink off the floor and was now taking tentative sips of it, as if Kaiba would emerge from the walls at any moment and snatch it from her hands. "The main thing to remember about Kaiba is that he respects audacity. When you're in that office, act like you already own the world, and you might just have it in your hands. He doesn't like shyness or humility, because he believes that all people are basically power-hungry scum at heart and any goodness is just a façade."

"I heard that he holds some care for children – why else would he build Kaiba Land?" Bastion brought up. "Plus, KaibaCorp is on record supporting various local orphanages."

"You're right, but now that we're in here, he doesn't think of us as kids. It might be a good idea to bring up how we helped save his school from a traitorous superintendent. I've heard that he's had to deal with a lot of betrayals in his career." I responded, and Bastion saw sense in that.

"There was also that fiasco with Wheeler." The Ra Yellow said, the gears in his mind spinning hard and fast. Wow, I had nearly forgot about that. "So perhaps that will be enough to make us stand out. Plus, you're an Obelisk Blue, so that might be something."

I nodded. "We'll be alright. Just show no weakness."

Briskly, the line grew shorter, and before long I couldn't help but notice that none of the applicants were coming back out. They went up the stairs with Roland, entered the office, and then they didn't leave. What the hell is going on here, exactly?

"Jamie Lancaster," Roland betrayed a slight sign of surprise as he said my name, "follow me, please."

Nodding to Bastion one last time, I quickly trailed behind Roland. I nearly tripped once on the stairs, but I played it off as best I could. He opened the door to the office for me before going inside himself.

Kaiba sat down with his fingers steepled. There was no chair on my side of the desk, so I was had no choice but to stand. Roland stood off to the side like a statue, perfectly unmoving.

Cat-green eyes met wintry blue, and Kaiba started laughing arrogantly. "Oh yes, do you remember this idiot, Roland? This was the one who thought he could leverage his way into the internship with the whole Wheeler incident. And now he stands before me, trying to get the job the honest way."

I was already pissed, but I kept my anger under control. "I recall you sympathizing with my efforts at the time, sir. You even said you would have done the same in my position." That wasn't my proudest moment, to be sure. But there was no going back now.

"Oh, is that a fact?" Kaiba said mockingly.

"…Yeah, it is." I said, thrown a bit off-guard by the question.

"Well good, because I agree with that. You should do whatever you can to further your position. Sadly, you underestimated my ability to cover up my tracks."

"…Have my three minutes already started, sir?" I asked in low voice.

Kaiba actually looked a bit surprised before reaching over to his stopwatch, which was positioned so I could see how much time had passed. "Now it has."

"Mister Kaiba, I am here today interviewing for the personal secretary position. I am an Obelisk Blue freshman and am in the top five of my class academically. I am proficient with Microsoft Office and have good organizational skills –"

"Never mind that." Kaiba interrupted. "You were one of the seven key keepers, weren't you?"

"Yes, sir. I defeated the Shadow rider Camula in five turns. With the assistance of the Slifer Red duelist Jaden Yuki, I also defeated their leader, Kagemaru." I gave the canned answer I prepared.

"Saved me the trouble of killing him myself." Kaiba said casually. "From what I gather, he meant to conquer this planet and live forever as an immortal. How foolish. Even if by some miracle he managed to defeat me, I know of someone else who would never let his rampage go unopposed."

"Yugi." I thought. Such power those two syllables held! Now that I was in this world, where dueling was a matter of life and death, it was difficult not to think of Yugi as a titan, an indefatigable force of nature that must not be broached lightly.

"Traitors….it seems that I am surrounded by them day and night, their noses sniffing for some whiff of opportunity, their eyes searching for any scrap of power they can find. Ever since I was a child, I have been surrounded by foes and false friends. What those smirking worms don't understand is that loyalty, true loyalty, is like water in the desert for me, and I treasure it thusly. Why, Roland here has been my loyal man since I was a boy, and before that he worked for my stepfather. For thirty years, he has assisted the Kaiba family. In that time, he has married a Brazilian supermodel and has fathered six fine children, none of them wanting for anything in this world. He owns a vacation home in Florida and recently drove off the lot with a new Escalade." Kaiba stated. "That is the fruit of loyalty."

Roland's expression remained unchanged, but he bowed his head nonetheless. Kaiba said to me, "I have looked over your resume, and your professors speak most highly of you, Crowler in particular. It is good that you have his ear, since he will be the new headmaster of Central Duel Academy this coming fall. Crowler may look like a fucking fairy, but he's got a bigger pair of balls than Sheppard ever did, and he showed great bravery in his duty as a key keeper. I understand he nearly lost his life battling the traitor Banner."

"It's true, sir." I was starting to wonder what the point of this long, drawn-out speech was. I knew that Kaiba liked to hear himself talk, but the bastard was using up my three minutes!

"In short, this process is a formality. A man of your ambition and talent should not be spending his summers flipping burgers. But that does not mean that this interview is over. Answer this question." The clock hit three minutes, and Kaiba turned it off. I looked at him blankly.

"Do you think yourself a duelist, Jamie Lancaster?"

I nodded.

"Hmph!" Kaiba leaned back, fixing me with a cool stare. "We shall see. And one more thing." His left hand reached underneath his desk.

I perceived it a moment before it actually happened. The floor beneath me gave out, and I barely managed to scurry away in time. Leaping back, I saw that I had been standing on a trap door the whole time, the panels swinging on hinges ominously. The hole was deep and dark, and there was no way of knowing where it went.

I couldn't hide my horrified expression, no matter how hard I tried. Did this son of a bitch just try to kill me?

"Relax, Lancaster, this is merely a garbage chute that leads to our main dumpster. And yes, it is where the other applicants have gone. Don't worry, they can see themselves out just fine. Good to see you have some wits about you."

XxXxXxXxXXXXxXxXXXxxxx

I wordlessly left the office after that, not waiting for any further tricks. Kaiba was a terrible man, I realized numbly. "Terrible yes," a darker corner of my mind whispered, "but great."

He claimed to reward loyalty, at least. Having any support from Kaiba in the future, especially against the Society of Light and Yubel, could make all the difference in the world. It didn't matter if he was a douche, what mattered was the mission.

There was a name in-between mine and Bastion's – more fodder for the garbage chute, I guess. The remaining applicants looked surprised that I had actually returned and began muttering amongst themselves.

"How did it go?" Bastion asked hastily. "Quickly, tell me what you can."

"Bring up the Shadow Riders and how you were a key keeper. He seems to respect duelists – obviously - so be passionate about dueling. Talk about your relevant skills if you have time. You were applying for Research and Development, right?"

"Yes. I believe my expertise and knowledge should set me apart, but we shall see. I just have to make it through three minutes." Bastion surmised.

"If you take longer than three minutes, he will open a trapdoor that leads to the dumpster." I said, and I had to laugh because it was so ridiculous.

Bastion looked skeptical, but then took a breath and nodded in acceptance. "I'll be careful. Gods, Jamie, this sort of thing really isn't my specialty."

"You'll be fine, man. You've faced life or death battles, you can do this. Like you said, it's only three minutes, and then we're in the clear."

I should have known I was tempting fate when I said that.

Soon enough, Bastion was called up, and he actually came back as well, which was theoretically a good sign. I asked him how the interview went, but for once he was quiet. Bastion was one of the most long-winded people I had ever met, apart from Kaiba himself of course. That he was this stone-faced was uncharacteristic. It looked as though he was deep in thought, and I had to wonder what Kaiba said that put Bastion in such a state.

The rest of the applicants went up, the last one looking like he was going to the gallows. Into the trash they went. Finally, it was just Bastion and I left in the hall. You could cut the tension with a knife.

After a few minutes, the benches began folding back into the wall, and Bastion and I had to quickly rise to avoid getting hurt. We were both on high alert, not trusting anything about the situation.

Kaiba and Roland emerged from the office and began to descend the stairs slowly. The briefcase was back in his hand.

"Bastion Misawa, Jamie Lancaster. When I asked you if you were duelists, you both replied in the affirmative. You have both fought with your lives on the line against the Shadow Riders, so you should know the answer to this question. What is dueling?" Kaiba boomed.

I moved to cut off Bastion, who would probably say "the application of formula" or some such nonsense. Kaiba would eviscerate him if he said anything like that. "It's a battle." I said.

"That's right!" Kaiba roared. "Whether it is by swords or chess pieces, guns or cards, games are merely another way to wage war. Do you know what God gave people so they could play games in this world? A single chip called life!"

He opened the briefcase. Inside were three Battle City model duel disks, along with ten forty-card deck slots. Of course, why would I expect anything different, anything less absurd?

"You two brought your decks, as instructed?" He asked as comprehension dawned on both of our faces. I should have realized this the moment the application asked me to bring my cards! I brought both the Divas and my public deck, but there was no way I could use the Divas here. Kaiba would probably take them away from me by force.

We were each given a duel disk. "This is the final stage of your interview! If you truly wish to achieve the great heights KaibaCorp can offer, then you will fight me as if your very life depends on it!"

No fucking way! "Wha…duel Seto Kaiba? I never calculated for this possibility!" Bastion shared my abject shock. Even working together, beating the second greatest duelist of all time was a bit of a tall order.

"Is i then, mister Kaiba?" My voice came across calmer than I actually felt.

"Yes, it will be. I will start out with 4000 life points, while the both of you will share a 4000 life point total. I wish to see if you both truly carry the fiery will of a true duelist!" Kaiba activated his duel disk.

Bastion looked a bit nervous, to say the least. "Jamie, our odds of actually beating Seto Kaiba are nearly 50000 to one!"

"First of all, I have no idea how you could possibly calculate the odds on that, logistically speaking. Second, it doesn't matter what the odds are, our only chance at getting this job is if we duel! So that's what we're gonna do!" I turned my own disk on, Bastion doing the same shortly thereafter.

"But…he's the White Dragon! The legendary rival to the king of games!" Bastion protested, his fear overtaking him.

"That doesn't matter! He might be a legendary duelist, but he's also just a man! If we work together and fight hard, we can win! My last duel was als 1, where everything was at stake, and Jaden and I managed to beat the odds! So let's fight, Bastion!" I tried to sound courageous, but as much as I hated to admit it, our chances of winning this were slim. But he had no choice but to try.

Bastion swallowed his fear and put on a brave face before nodding at me. Kaiba looked at us with faint amusement, the same way a lion would gaze upon two mice.

"I suppose you think that this is unfair, that none of the others had to do this. And you would be right, for a duelist must always be prepared to prove himself!"

It was decided that I would go first. I still couldn't believe that this was happening, but at the same time, I was a little excited. How would I stack up to Kaiba? What if I could actually beat him? Anything's possible if I draw the right cards and he doesn't.

"I set a monster along with two face-downs." I said simply, not wasting any time. Bastion and I shared a field, as well as a life point total. It was different than the fight against Kagemaru, where Jaden and I operated mostly independently of each other. Here, Bastion and I were truly in the same boat. We could see the set cards the other one set, and we could also see each other's hand.

Kaiba drew with a flourish – even after many years, he still held on to duelist pageantry. "Since I control no monsters, I can special summon Kaiser Vorse Raider (1900/1200) from my hand!" An orc with blue skin and a studded double-sided axe crashed onto the field. To no one's surprise, it seemed that Kaiba would be striking hard and fast with a beatdown strategy. However, since it was his first turn, he could not attack.

"Then, I set a monster and a face-down! Take your turn!" He bellowed intensely. Bastion was startled for a moment before drawing.

"I summon Armageddon Knight (1400/1200) in attack mode!" Ah, so he was playing either his dark deck or his zombie deck. A black knight rode onto the field, a crimson scarf covering most of his face and a dueling sabre in his hand. "When this card is summoned, I can send a dark monster from my deck to the graveyard."

The sent monster was Ryu Kokki, so I figured this must have been his zombie deck. Interesting. I can certainly work with this, since having dark monsters in the graveyard will make it easier to summon my Chaos Sorcerer and Black Luster Soldier. "The card my father gave me…" I thought with a pang of sadness before persisting.

"I set a card and end my turn." Bastion finished shakily.

Kaiba drew his next card and started to cackle arrogantly. "That was your one and only chance to mount a defense. I hope it was enough! My draw!"

"It's like looking in the mirror! Here comes Kaibaman (200/700)!" The next creature was the spitting image of Kaiba himself, as the name would suggest. The only difference was that the monster was wearing an angular white helmet that reminded me disturbingly of Griffith's from Berserk. But there was no time to think of manga references – I knew what Kaibaman's effect was, and so I could infer that we were officially in deep doo-doo.

"I almost regret having to call on you to deal with such trash…but at least allow these wretches a moment of beauty before they are defeated! I activate Kaibaman's effect, tributing it to summon an incredible creature of unsurpassed power and beauty!"

"I summon Blue-Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!"

Specks of light scattered everywhere, like miniature stars, before a burst of blinding photons flooded the room, momentarily blinding Bastion and I. From a sphere of light came the legendary beast, its hide pale as milkglass and its eyes as piercing and intense as Kaiba's own. He was right – the Blue-Eyes was a uniquely beautiful creature, its form surprisingly lithe, yet coiled with power.

"Ah, no way! On the second turn!" Bastion stammered.

"Stand your ground! It's just a big beatstick, we can defeat it!" I barked, although I too was beginning to realize just how screwed we were. The dragon roared at us, freezing me to the spot.

"HAHAHAHA….ah, it feels so good to laugh. Now then, Blue-Eyes –" He spoke to the dragon with a gentle caress, as if to a lover – "destroy his Armageddon Knight."

The burst stream of destruction washed over Bastion's swordsman like waves on a shore – in exactly one second his monster was obliterated. We had face-downs, but we did not use them yet. (Jamie-Bastion 2400/Kaiba 4000)

"Kaiser Vorse Raider, attack Lancaster's face-down monster!" The brutish orc leapt forward with a jumping slash, bringing its axe down violently at my defense. However, the beast found its weapon entangled in a mass of pink gum, and it struggled to extricate itself. He made the mistake of attacking my Marshmallon (300/500), a monster that was getting out of more tight spots all the time.

Kaiba twitched in annoyance. It seemed that he recognized this card from somewhere – perhaps Yugi used it against him at some point in these past ten years. It's hard for me to believe those two didn't clash at least once. For now, though, I had to focus on this match.

Kaiba's monster returned to his side of the field. "I hate to mar your perfect victory, but since you attacked Marshmallon, you take 1000 points of damage, mister Kaiba."

"I know!" He said snappishly. The pink ball of gum rushed forward and tackled him, taking a nice chuck out of his LP total. (Jamie-Bastion 2400/Kaiba 3000)

"Incredible…you actually inflicted some damage to Seto Kaiba! Jolly good show, Jamie!" Bastion cheered.

"See, I told you we could win! Let's keep it up!" I responded with a clenched fist. It did feel more possible now than it did before, at the very least.

Kaiba's tone was between an amused laugh and an animalistic snarl. "An irksome trap, nothing more. End turn."

I drew, feeling as though I had just poked a bear. "I set another monster and end my turn." I said simply, having few other options.

"Is that truly it? Such defenses won't hold up forever! Vorse Raider, smite his set monster!"

Again, the offense was stymied. This time, the Vorse Raider crossed blades with my Spirit Reaper (300/200), a weak zombie that couldn't be destroyed by battle.

"An amusing strategy Lancaster, but you do realize that you actually have to attack in order to win, unless you're playing Final Countdown or some such nonsense." The CEO said with an acerbic smirk.

"Actually, I'm playing Exodia." I replied facetiously. Bastion nearly laughed, but caught himself just in time, causing a strangled snort to escape his lips. The smirk slipped from Kaiba's lips like snow from a windowsill.

"I set a card and end my turn." He snarled.

"My go!" said Bastion. "Jamie, I know you'll want a light and dark monster in the graveyard, but I'm gonna need to banish some things this turn."

"Do whatever you need to do."

"I will!" the Ra Yellow said with heightened resolve. "First, I activate Foolish Burial to send a monster from my deck to the graveyard!"

As I looked at the display on my duel disk, I noticed that we now had three dark monsters exactly in the grave. And if I remembered correctly…that meant we had a good chance of winning now! "Let's go, Bastion!"

Now of all times, I was glad that he overcame his fear. "I banish three dark monsters from the graveyard, which allows me to summon a beast with blades as black as midnight, a dragon that will blot out your own light, mister Kaiba! Come forth, Dark Armed Dragon (2800/1000)!"

A hellish volcano of dark energy burst from the ground, the emerging creature a shadowy mirror of Chazz's ace monster, the Armed Dragon LVL 7. The comparison was distasteful to me, but I could at least rest assured knowing that this monster was more powerful than Chazz's. It was a sharp contrast to the glowing simplicity of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon – the Dark Armed Dragon boasted an intricate, detailed design, with spikes and swords ensconced all around its body.

Kaiba let out a single scoff. "You believe a monster like that can defeat me? I hope you are prepared to back up that claim, boy!"

"I will! Dark Armed Dragon, destroy his Kaiser Vorse Raider with dark sonic disk!" Bastion declared, the beast letting loose a volley of thin energy blades at Kaiba's monster. Something about this seemed like we were falling into a trap, but we had no choice but to attack eventually, and we had face downs of our own.

"Activate reverse card, Shrink!" Kaiba responded. I expected that the Dark Armed Dragon would have its stats cut in half, which is why I had my own Shrink face-down. However, he chose a different target – his own Vorse Raider. The orc grew miniscule before the dragon. Bastion and I both groaned, because we were both familiar with this strategy.

"And then, I will play Crush Card Virus!" A plague of toxins consumed the Vorse Raider and burst forth onto the field. "Since my Vorse Raider is a dark monster with less than a thousand attack points, I can use him as a sacrifice for this virus! It destroys all monsters on your field with over 1500 attack points. Furthermore, if you draw any monsters with over 1500 attack points for the next three turns, then they are also destroyed!" The plague ate apart the Dark Armed Dragon while leaving my Spirit Reaper and Marshmallon unharmed.

Bastion was crestfallen as Kaiba laughed. "So much for your little offensive!" I grumbled. Hopefully I wouldn't draw my Black Luster Soldier in the next three turns, if we lasted that long. My friend ended his turn, meaning it was time for Kaiba to take another pass at us.

"Draw. Now then, I think it's time we end this ridiculous farce, don't you?" then he turned to me. "Though I will say this much. Your idea of turtling behind defensive monsters until you can bring out your big gun is a rather interesting one. Normally, it would prove rather effective against my own dueling style."

I gulped, knowing that he probably had something to break my defense now. His eyes flashed as he turned over a card in his hand. "I activate Enemy Controller! This card allows me to switch one of your monster's battle positions. I think it's time for your Marshmallon to get roasted!" As he spoke, Marshmallon was forced into attack mode, its squishy body no longer serving as any kind of shield.

"Now, I summon Slate Warrior (1900/400) in attack mode!" His next monster was a bizarre blue-skinned humanoid with yellow armor covering the bulk of its body, including the lower half of its mouth.

"Say goodbye to your careers, losers! Blue-Eyes, strike his Marshmallon with white lightning!" The white-hot laser streaked towards my weak monster.

"I activate Mirror Force!" I cried out, using Bastion's face-down. I wouldn't go down like just another weakling, another piece of fodder! The attack was caught by a net of energy and began to reflect back at Kaiba's field.

"WRONG! I chain Trap Jammer to negate your Mirror Force!" He countered. The beam broke through the mirror and continued its deadly arc.

It was a pointless gesture of defiance, but I chose to use my other face-down. "I play Shrink to halve your precious Blue-Eyes attack!" The laser blasted apart my Marshmallon nonetheless, but at least it wasn't a fatal blow, and he would have to use his Slate Warrior, a monster he held in far lower esteem, to net the victory. (Jamie-Bastion 1200/Kaiba 3000)

It was spiteful of me, but it's not like this man knew nothing of spite. He gave me a sour smile before wordlessly nodding at his Slate Warrior to finish us off. The blue warrior struck my Marshmallon with its staff in very sudden and unceremonious fashion, knocking Bastion and I to the ground. (Jamie-Bastion 0/Kaiba 3000)

Bastion wore a resigned expression as he rose – I don't think he ever really believed we could win, but at least he was able to put aside his fear and try. He even got to summon a decently powerful monster, which is something I couldn't say.

However, I could not handle defeat so placidly. "Fuck!" I swore, There wasn't a damn thing I could have done, it was like he had us in the palm of his hand from the very beginning. But we did at least do some damage…beating Kaiba was not beyond the realm of possibility, and it was a possibility I was very keen on exploring, if only to humble the bastard as Yugi once did.

"Do you understand now, gentlemen? The nature of a duelist is necessarily defined in conflict. They find themselves or find themselves lacking. This was the only way I could get the measure of you, and see if you are true." Kaiba explained as he sheathed his duel disk.

"What did you conclude?" Bastion asked with as much dignity as he could muster, though he and I still looked disheveled, and in my case, pissed off.

"What do you think? We lost. We're probably next for the garbage chute." I spat bitterly, always having been a bit of a sore loser.

"Yes. You did lose. And in quite humiliating fashion, to boot." Kaiba sneered while Bastion and I grew angry. I was so fucking sick of this egomaniac at this point.

"But I can see how the shame burns – good! I despise those who pretend to shrug off defeat as though it is a flea bite, or worse yet, pretend that merely playing the game was enough to satisfy them. Defeat should fucking hurt. A duelist should place everything on the line in a fight, and you two did. So in that respect, you have a glimmer of potential."

He pulled out two empty name tags and pins with the letters 'KC' on them. "If allied to my vision, that glimmer may become something more. Welcome to the KaibaCorp family. You'll start next Tuesday."

A/N

Hope you all enjoyed. A shorter chapter this time around, but I couldn't write as much as I would have liked to in these past two weeks due to the fact that I attended a music festival this past weekend. It was a lot of fun! Well, that and writing this chapter were both fun.

I'm sure the outcome of that match was anything but a surprise, but it served as a good reminder to Bastion and especially Jamie that it's a big world at there, and there are still plenty of heights they have yet to ascend to. Although they got their asses beat quickly and efficiently, they still at least showed enough potential to earn their internships.

Otherwise, I decided to show how Jamie's feelings about his reincarnation have evolved. It's something that he doesn't like to think about, but he's dealing with it day by day. Some people might call that Wangst, and you're certainly free to call it that if that's your opinion. I am of the opinion that a person would have some difficulties with their identity and would feel sad about their old life from time to time. I think that's part of making the character grounded, but then again, I don't really read a lot of self-insert stories so I don't know how most authors choose to broach this topic. Anyways, we'll see how that grows over time.

By the way, just in case I don't get a chapter out by the 20th, I would like to take this moment to commemorate State of the Meta's (nearly) one-year anniversary! It's been such a pleasure to write this for you all, and you guys have showed such great support for this story. It's brought a lot of fulfillment to me personally to write this, so I won't stop any time soon. Thank you all, and we'll see you next time!