Chapter 37: The Lion of Obelisk
(Aster Phoenix POV)
"Aster, have you done as I asked?" A calm, tepid voice echoed.
"Yeah…I dueled the kid, using a deck made from some random packs." The silver-haired pro duelist was in a strange room, with lights so bright no shadow could be seen. He stood across a table from a hooded man, who gazed upon a deck of tarot cards. This man was seated, while Aster stood at full attention, almost as if he was under questioning.
"I see. And did those cards lead you to victory?"
"No. Jaden defeated me." The words left a sour taste in Aster Phoenix's mouth, and he only could think of one way to rectify it. He felt compelled to duel Jaden again, this time wielding his full power. There was no way that lackadaisical Slifer Red would be able to touch him then!
"I can sense your frustration. It is only natural, in our limited understanding, to question the path God has laid out for us." The seated man removed his hood, revealing a long tumble of dark blue hair, along with piercing, perpetually wide blue eyes. His skin was unnaturally sallow and pale. His face was thin, with bladelike cheekbones. His hands, with their unusually sharp and long nails, drew a card from the deck.
"Sartorius, the scriptures speak of a false king with shining golden eyes. Clad in black aura, he is to be master of the sinful black sheep and ruler of all duel spirits. The boy I dueled worked at a Domino's Pizza over the summer and called me a "chill dude". Furthermore, he has brown eyes, not gold." Aster protested.
Sartorius looked at the tarot card in his hand for a moment before setting it face-down on the table. "Aster, the scriptures also say that the devil would only come in disguise. His very essence is a deception. You see, it suits the king of darkness to appear as a simple-minded schoolboy, but his energy reveals the truth. Just below the surface is an infinite blackness, an abyssal void that is ageless and formless. That same energy has existed for millions and millions of years – the boy known as Jaden Yuki is merely a vessel for it."
"But surely if he were the true king of darkness, he would be undefeated in battle. Jaden Yuki has been defeated by the Kaiser and the Lion. Even Chazz Princeton has taken a game from him. And I am certain I could defeat him if I gave it my all." Aster countered. He and Sartorius would often have discussions like this, even though they were friends. They never took it personally – both were devoted to seeking God's truth.
"Another deception, Aster. These rivals are ultimately nothing but tools help the deceiver reach his full potential. Every loss has made Jaden Yuki a better duelist – he has never suffered any true setback. That is the true meaning of undefeated." Sartorius patiently explained.
Aster didn't find that explanation very satisfying, but at the end of the day, he trusted Sartorius. He had always been there for Aster, ever since the day his parents had been murdered. He had taken him in, and shown him the Light. Aster would always be grateful for that.
Taking that into account, the silver-haired boy relented. "Very well. Say that Jaden Yuki is the true king of darkness. What is to be done about him? He has many allies on the island."
"Have faith, my friend. The way will be shown to us in due time. For now, you should focus on your upcoming pro circuit matches." Sartorius put away the tarot deck and rose, looking Aster in the eye.
"Hey, gotta pay the bills somehow, right?" Aster said casually. "I have a match tomorrow night, against some d-lister. But after that, I have a game against Zane Truesdale, the Kaiser himself. That should be a good fight."
Sartorius nodded. "He will be a fine benchmark for you to compare yourself to. He has been undefeated in the pro league thus far. To defeat him would be a great achievement."
"Yeah…I'm gonna fly out to Tokyo tonight." Aster said, his eyes suddenly hardening. "For another hunt."
Sartorius considered that solemnly. "Godspeed, Aster."
"Jaden Yuki, my equal…I refuse to believe it! He's never been through what I have. He has no idea what it takes to be a real hero!" Aster thought with mounting frustration as he left the room.
XxXxxxXXXxxxxxxxxXX
(Speaking of whom…)
"Sweetness! They're serving my favorite meal today!" Jaden cheered. "Nothing like some fried shrimp, eh professor Drummond?"
"Jaden, we have fried shrimp every other day around here, it's either that or anchovies." Syrus interjected. The two of them were sitting with the rest of the Slifer Red population, the student body seated along the walls in rickety wooden tables. Their asses were planted on hard, uncomfortable barstools, and in front of them was a plate of cold fried shrimp, plain white rice, and hard, raw carrot sticks. The plate was accompanied by a glass of tepid water to wash the shit down with.
"I can't believe I still have to be head of this shithole for another year…it was supposed to be a temporary arrangement!" Vector Drummond sat at the "head table", which happened to be a stainless steel butchering table with folding legs. His shirt was un-tucked, his tie was askew, and he was drinking whiskey straight from the flask. He also didn't seem to mind cursing in front of the high school aged students. Lazily, Drummond was thumbing through a newspaper, briefly pausing at an advertisement for a magic show – "Famous showman Kaito Kid and Broadway Dancer Tea Gardner collaborate on global tour!" Oh, how he wished he was there now, rather than here.
"C'mon, teach, it can't be that bad! You get to see us all the time, right?" Jaden laughed, seemingly unaware of his teacher's encroaching despair.
"I guess." Drummond did like Jaden, despite the fact that the boy was a rather poor student in the classroom. His relentlessly positive and upbeat attitude, along with his prodigious talent at dueling, was somewhat endearing to the old at heart history professor. Still, that didn't mean he liked living in a run-down toolshed and dealing with the least motivated section of the student body.
"If you don't mind me asking, professor Drummond, how did you get stuck as the head of Slifer Red? I thought that you were supposed to become the head of Obelisk Blue this year." Syrus asked as he nibbled on his pathetic little carrot sticks.
"Well Syrus, I hate to say it but it looks like the only way they could find a new hire after Banner's mysterious disappearance last year was if they promised headship of Obelisk Blue as part of the deal. Besides, I'm really in no position to negotiate with anyone. Without this job, I'm back to teaching public school again." The very idea was intolerable.
Syrus sighed – he found it hard to believe that a guy like professor Drummond was really able to beat Jamie in a duel, but he found it even harder to believe that Jamie would lie about losing to him. "So who did they hire? They'd have to fill both the Chemistry position and the Obelisk Blue head position, not to mention they'd have to be a duelist on at least Crowler's level." Syrus said as Jaden stole the remaining shrimp from his plate while he wasn't looking.
Drummond shrugged. "Yeah, I don't know how Kaiba found her, but I guess she's pretty much the whole package. Her name is…"
XxXxXxxXxXXXxxxXXxXXX
(Jamie Lancaster POV)
"…Midori Hibiki. I'll be your new head of house. I'll also be teaching a variety of classes here at the academy, including the freshman chemistry classes, 200 and 300 level dueling theory, and advanced attack point quantum mechanics. I hope we can all get along!"
The new head of my house was a familiar face since I read the manga. Miss Hibiki was a raven-haired woman whose eyes were an unusual shade of lilac. She was rather short, a little shorter than myself even. But she had an undeniably mature and experienced air about her that commanded a certain level of attention, even from the entitled brats that made up Obelisk Blue. She wore a simple, modest blue overcoat with jeans and boots. Unlike professor Fontaine, Hibiki was rather utilitarian when it came to fashion.
"So, it appears our head of house is a woman…" A sophomore muttered to one of his buddies behind me.
"She wears less makeup than Crowler at least. Much easier on the eyes as well." Another one jeered.
"I wonder what her deal is. Is she the same person as the Midori Hibiki from the manga? In that case, she would probably know Jaden. That would also mean her brother Koyo exists in this timeline as well." It was not that hard to get over the initial shock of seeing her – I was growing used to the fact that elements from both the anime and the manga would be present in this new, third timeline.
"I wonder how strong she is." Erin whispered, seated on my right. All of us, males and females, were gathered in the main atrium for the opening feast. The food was truly excellent, as always. I was enjoying a medium rare prime rib with roasted broccoli and carrots, along with a cup of gelato for dessert. It was hard to fathom at that moment why guys like Jaden and Bastion choose to stay in their dorms.
But putting the food aside (or rather, in my mouth), Erin and I were on the same page. "Yeah, that's a good question." I recalled that she played Darklords in the manga. Without some of the more modern support cards, that deck was powerful, but inconsistent. With Yubel's army using Exceed monsters, I could no longer be sure of what cards people had and what they didn't.
The student body was split up into smaller round tables – Alexis, Atticus, Erin and I were seated at one in the center of the room. "Well, perhaps she would agree to a practice match outside of class." Alexis posited. As one might expect, Atticus was checking out the new teacher with the calculated precision of an experienced pervert.
"Yeah, hopefully she won't be as hard to convince as Drummond." And hopefully the match would have a different result than my second game against Drummond as well.
"Speaking of hard to convince, good luck with your club, Jamie! Hopefully people show up for it." Alexis wished well. "We'll be there for sure." Atticus and Erin nodded.
"I think a lot will show up. I posted a real eye-catcher on the bulletin board right before this." I was really banking on a certain reaction from my fellow students. Here's hoping!
"It's tomorrow at six, right?" Erin asked.
I nodded. "Bring your cards."
"Aside from minding your studies, I highly encourage you all to get involved in the various extracurricular activities here on campus. There are intramural athletics, student government, the student newspaper, art clubs…something for everyone!" Miss Hibiki had been talking the whole time. "I understand that one of our own, mister Lancaster, has recently started a new club, although I am not sure what they do exactly. All necessary information will be on the bulletin board in the commons." She said with the fresh vigor of a teacher in August.
At the mention of my name, I felt a majority of the Obelisk Blues look at me, some with fondness, most with neutrality, and a few with resentment. Tomorrow should be interesting.
XxXxxxXXxxxxXXXXxxxXXX
Well, I was partially right. The first day of classes was not really that interesting. I understood the necessity of it, but considering this was my second go around through high school, I knew the drill quite well by now. More than anything else, I couldn't wait until the evening rolled around. I went through the motions in class and during my workout, until it was finally time.
Atticus, Alexis, and Erin were the first people there. I sat on the large stairwell in the atrium connecting the male and female wings of Obelisk Blue. Until about 6:30, more and more people filtered in in groups of three and four, everybody talking until a din of white noise arose. This definitely wasn't the entirety of my house. It was probably around seventy-percent, which was good turnout. Now, the rest lies in the execution. Eventually, the idle conversation died down and they began to look upon me with questioning expressions. I stood a few feet above them on the staircase, arms behind my back.
"Alright, Lancaster, what's this about?" Some rando asked.
I summoned everything that I had learned from Kaiba, evil bastard that he is, over the summer.
"Obelisk the Tormentor, despite its name, is a manifestation of the Geb, god of the earth, father of serpents, grower of crops, and wreaker of earthquakes. In its incarnation in Duel Monsters, it is also known as the giant soldier of the royal palace, an earthly being whose strength defended the bloodline of the pharaohs." I intoned, pausing before dropping the hammer. They looked bored, or impatient.
"Look around you – do you truly believe yourselves worthy of representing such a being?"
That got their attention. Instantly, mutinous mutterings broke out like a fever, and a thousand glares of resentment turned my way. "How dare you say that?!" "Who are you to call us weak?" "Arrogant, privileged bastard…" They muttered.
"Look at you! This house was meant to symbolize the super elites of our class, the next legends of a forthcoming era. And yet, again and again, Ra Yellows and Slifer Reds steal wins off of you. I know of duelists in those dorms that could beat every single one of you without breaking a sweat! Doesn't that make you angry?! Because it makes me FUCKING PISSED!" I screamed the last part, my voice echoing off the high walls.
"Look at you! Look at the potential in this room! And look how it is squandered. Most of the guys in this room got into Obelisk Blue because of your connections, because of how rich your parents are. A few got in through a promotion like me, those with at least some shred of ambition." I didn't even mention the girls, because I didn't need to. They all knew that they got in on a categorical basis. I don't need to tell them what they already know – that there was never any merit involved in the claiming of their position.
"So, you are called elites, despite the fact that you have never seized real power nor have you wielded it. You act like elites despite the fact that Slifers and Ras can and do beat your fucking asses on a regular basis. Despite the fact that your grades are lesser, your dueling skills are lesser, that you are lesser, you act like elites."
At this point, the crowd was nearly ready to tear me to pieces. Only Alexis, Erin, and Atticus remained calm, as they both knew what I was going to say beforehand and that they were the exceptions to an otherwise ironclad rule of mediocrity around here.
"The Kaiser has gone on to greater things. He was a great friend of mine, though I have only known him a year." I've known him a sense longer than that, but as a person, not some children's cartoon character…only a year. He is an incredible fighter and a good man, but he was too complacent with you. He soared to great heights so quickly that he had no problem leaving you all behind. Similarly, you all had no problem sublimating yourselves to him, taking his superiority as gospel."
I activated my duel disk. "No more. The malaise that has taken root in this house will be cleansed. This club is for those who want to become true duelists. During our meetings, we will duel each other, honing our skills and decision making through relentless, intense battles. That is how we will get better. Furthermore, we will help each other study and prepare for our classes, and we're going to ace that shit. I don't care if the class is bullshit, we're still acing it. We're gonna improve together and become the legends we were always meant to be! Now who's with me!?"
"Fuck you, Lancaster!" A female voice rose above the angry din. "I didn't come here to be lectured about how weak I am. And let me guess, you're going to be the leader of this club?! Why the fuck should I listen to anything you have to say? Just because you were buttbuddies with the Kaiser doesn't mean you're better than us!"
A girl emerged from the front of the crowd. Her name was Seika Kohinata, a third-year well-known for playing Reptile monsters. She had short, thick black hair and hazel eyes a shade lighter than Alexis'. She wore sheer black tights with the Obelisk Blue girls uniform, as well as a baleful glare directed towards me.
I felt like such a douchebag at this moment – probably because I was. But then I thought of the Society of Light. Or Yubel's army, which was now outfitted with Exceed monsters. There were so many threats out there in the cosmos. I realized that if I truly cared about doing the right thing, about saving lives, then that meant a lifelong war against the Light of Destruction, among other things. What was I supposed to do, let them be weak? This is not a game, no matter how much it appeared to be. They must be stronger, because life isn't going to get easier. It never gets easier.
"Whoever is the strongest will be leader. That's all. This club will have five positions, for the top five strongest duelists in Obelisk Blue. We can decide that here and now, if you'd like." I answered her.
"Very well, then. I'll show you that your brand of leadership isn't required!" She turned on her own duel disk. The crowd slowly began to encircle us, and just as the fight was about to begin, someone else stepped into the ring.
"You might want a bit of help with this one, Seika." To my surprise, as well as the surprise of many others, this new warrior was none other than Harrington Rosewood. He wore the version of the blue uniform with the flowing, showy, and cumbersome coattails, with rather suited him. That reminds me, I should probably turn in my two-weeks notice at Rosewood Sporting Goods. I didn't need the money anymore, nor did I enjoy being patronized by him every day.
"I've worked with Lancaster, and we've talked about card strategy." That is true, but we never spoke about anything related to my own strategies. "I think it's time to remind him who's really in charge around here."
Seika looked a bit befuddled at his unclear offer. "What do you mean, Harrington? That we team up? I'm not sure that's fair."
"This is most unlike you, Harry. I didn't expect you'd come here, in all honesty." After all, this had little to do with tennis. It was especially odd that he would jump to Seika's aid. I didn't recall the two of them being friends. Unless he was trying to endear himself to her…didn't someone ever let him know that the whole "White-Knighting" tactic never works? Then again, his dad makes enough money to the point where it might not matter. I shouldn't jump to conclusions, though.
"Well, a two on one is no problem by me. I wouldn't get too hung up on it, Seika. I wouldn't mind facing you again once you decide to join this club." I offered.
"Making a lot of assumptions, Lancaster. Working at KaibaCorp must have given you a bit of an ego boost. You are not worthy to be placed next to the Kaiser. He was sweet, kind, noble, and handsome."
"Well, I'm one of those things." I said just to tweak her.
"So," Seika continued. "I don't mind teaming up if it means knocking you down a peg." Turning to Harry, she nodded. "Let's do this, Rosewood!"
"Sounds good! I think we'll work really well together." Harry practically wiggled his eyebrows. I guess he's finally moved on from Alexis, if nothing else. He gave me a vicious smirk. "Nothing personal, Lancaster!"
The crowd began to get hyped up, rooting almost unanimously for Seika and Harry's tag team. Erin pushed through the mass of bloodlusted onlookers with a look of concern on her face. "Are you sure about this, Jamie? One of us can team with you if you'd like."
I really did appreciate the offer – Erin was a sweet girl, and at times like these I wish the distance between us wasn't so great. But this was about making a statement. This could easily blow up in my face and humiliate me irreparably, but what was life without risk? And fortune favors the bold, besides.
"That's alright. Thank you though, I mean it. But they just want me, and that's who they're going to get. I wouldn't mind teaming with you during the club meetings though." I said gently.
Erin nodded. "Alright, just be careful. You're going to look like the biggest idiot if this doesn't pay off." She then barked out a nervous laugh.
"I know. Hopefully the heart of the cards will see me through." I chuckled facetiously.
"Oh, gag me." She playfully punched me in the arm before making her way out of the makeshift ring. I smiled at her one last time before my expression hardened.
"I'm ready now. The ground rules will be as follows, if you find them agreeable." I intoned. "I will begin with 8000 life points, while you both will have 4000 each. If I get the first turn, I will draw. Furthermore, in the event I get the first turn, the turn will then pass to Seika, then back to me, then Harrington. No one gets to attack until everyone has had at least one turn. If one of you are defeated, the other is free to continue. In that event, we will go back to standard regulations. Clear?"
"If one of us gets the first turn, then we get to draw as well. We will decide the first turn by coin flip, rather than rock-paper-scissors. And I will take our team's first turn." Seika pressed. Harry instantly nodded in agreement with her.
"Very well. Does anyone have a coin?" Someone did. I called tails, which was incorrect. I got the first turn.
"I'll set a monster and two face-downs." I started off in the same low-key way I usually did. The turn then passed to Seika, who was clearly wearing the pants in this tag team.
"Try this one, Lancaster! I summon Alien Shocktrooper (1900/900) in attack mode! Then, I'll set a card face-down and pass." To her side materialized a green four-legged lizard with a centaur-esque body, the top half of its frame more humanoid than the bottom half. It held a curved scimitar in its webbed hands.
"Very well. I draw." Having more cards available to me at a given time than either of them individually was invaluable. "I activate Foolish Burial, pitching a Spirit Reaper. That does it for my turn."
"Watch out, Seika! He's probably setting up to summon one of his Chaos monsters." Harrington pointed out with perception uncharacteristic to him. Is it possible he might be more of a threat than I thought?
"It's my move!" The tennis prodigy began. "I'll set a backrow and end my turn." He must have bricked. Either way, having a lot of set cards to play through was going to get annoying. It made me wish Harpie's Feather Duster was legal.
"Alright, now we can attack." I repeated, just to be clear with them. "And that's what I plan to do! I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior (1600/1000)!" A red-cloaked knight took the field, arcane energies crackling at the edges of his sword and shield. "When he's summoned, he gets a spell counter, which lets him gain 300 attack points. However, it's not going to be here for long, because I'm going to remove it to destroy a backrow. I choose Harry's face-down." Directing his sword, Breaker hurled a bolt of green plasma at his set Mirror Force.
"Now, Breaker will attack him directly!" With a blur of speed, the magical knight was upon Harrington in a second, landing a harmless slash on his person. "Damn it!" Harry cursed as he took a step back. (Jamie 4000/Seika 4000/Harry 2400)
"Sorry, Seika, he got me there! I didn't want to be the first one to take damage…" He said apologetically to his teammate. Seika subtly rolled her eyes, but said nothing.
"I'll feel a lot better once one of them is out of the picture. I need to make sure my defenses are airtight, or else I'll get overwhelmed in an instant!" I thought with intense focus. "I end my turn."
"During your end phase, I activate my quick-play spell, A-Cell Recombination Device!" Seika cut in. A canister filled with bizarre orange fluid appeared on the field next to Seika's shocktrooper. "You're not the only one who can play around with counters. By sending an Alien monster from my deck to my grave, I can give one of your monsters A-counters equal to the monster's level."
"Wait…huh?" Harrington scratched his head, silently expecting a further explanation.
Seika huffed, rifling through her deck with skillful ease. "See, by pitching a level six Alien Overlord, I can put six A-counters on his Breaker." As she placed the card in her graveyard, a pollen-like spray suddenly shot from the orange canister, covering my monster in disgusting foreign parasites.
"Ew, that's gross Seika! Don't you have any mind for aesthetics?!" Harrington instantly commented. The crowd gave a startled chuckle at the sudden breaking of the tension.
"This is the deck I play. Aliens have brought me great success, and I don't mind at all how they look." Seika responded haughtily. I rather appreciated her attitude – not using a card because it was ugly was the nadir of vanity.
"Now, as I was saying, your Breaker now has six A-Counters on them. When a monster with A-counters battles an Alien monster, they lose 300 attack and defense points for each counter. However, that is not what I am concerned with at the moment. I play my other trap, Brainwashing Beam!" Grey sparkles flashed in the air. Compelled by invisible puppet strings, Breaker the Magical Warrior suddenly flew over to Seika's side of the field.
"Your card's effect is rather obvious." I snarked.
"Don't worry, your monster's only mine for six turns. During each of my end phases, it loses an A-Counter. When it has no counters left, you get it back. See, it's not so bad." She said with mocking sweetness.
"This duel won't last that long." I replied smugly.
"You're right. Especially once I reveal my plan!" Seika drew her next card. "First, I'll use A-Cell Recombination's graveyard effect. By banishing it, I can search an Alien from my deck. Then, I sacrifice your Breaker to tribute summon Cosmic Horror Gangiel (2600/2000)!"
Breaker disappeared in a bright green space-age laser beam. From the mothership descended a mad, writhing creature with innumerable tentacles, teeth, and other appendages. It was enormous, stretching to the ceiling of the atrium. Several members of the audience were grossed out upon seeing the grey mass of flesh, but at this point they were all used to strange-looking creatures. It was rather funny – at first, these monster holograms (as well as their apparitions in shadow games) seemed hyper-real, more vivid and potent than dreams. Nowadays, I barely paid any mind to how crazy this all was.
"This is a seven star monster, but by sacrificing a monster that originally belonged to my opponent, I can play it with only one sacrifice." Seika explained, her hair rustling in the breeze from the doorway. Orange evening light casted long shadows in the atrium. Thankfully, the sun wasn't in my eyes yet.
"Now, let's see what you're hiding behind! Gangiel, attack!" A storm of puckered tentacles shot out at me, causing me to flinch and recoil instinctively. Luckily, my set Marshmallon (300/500) absorbed the blows as easily as always.
"I would think you guys would know better than to attack my set monsters at this point." I mocked, tweaking them further. Playing the part of the asshole made me a bit uncomfortable, although I admit it wasn't hard to fake most of the disdain. There would be no Obelisk White in this timeline, not once I was through with these guys. Marshmallon reflected some of the force from the attack back at Seika, causing her to stumble. (Jamie 4000/Seika 3000/Harry 2400)
"I was hoping that would be a Spirit Reaper, but oh well…I can still overcome your defenses. I activate Cosmic Horror Gangiel's special effect! I can place an A-Counter on one of your monsters at no cost." A pink sucker latched onto my monster, causing Marshmallon to squirm in discomfort.
"I end with that."
"Okay." I drew. Seika was starting to build a board. I should finish off Harry before he can mount a defense, so I can focus on her exclusively.
"I play Don Zaloog (1400/1500)!" The eye-patched thief was fighting on my side for a change. I imagine Bastion would probably go into hysterics if he saw his old foe's image, but luckily this incarnation was only a holographic doppelganger of the malicious duel spirit.
"Sorry Harry, but you know how it is." I shrugged. My adversary did not look so understanding as the rogue unsheathed his dagger and took a pass at him. (Jamie 4000/Seika 3000/Harry 1000)
"Ah, shit! Hey Seika, a little help would be nice! Couldn't you have used one of your face-downs?!" Harry yelped.
"They wouldn't have helped." Seika said drolly, and I had the oddest feeling she wasn't telling the whole truth. Oh well, whatever was going on between the two of them wasn't my business. Harry sent the top two cards of his deck to the graveyard due to Don Zaloog's effect. Since I had some face-downs, I felt comfortable ending my turn there.
"Aw man, I gotta do something or else I'm gonna look bad in front of the lady!" Harry said with faux-indignation.
"Let's go, Rosewood, do something!" Some of his tennis teammates jeered. "Do your best, Harry! Kick that smug lion's ass!" A few female admirers echoed. It appears these last few rounds have not been to the crowd's satisfaction. Yuya Sakaki would certainly not be pleased with me if he were around – I think the only way I could put a smile on the faces of these people would involve my defeat.
"Come on, let's see it!" Harry said to psych himself up as he drew his next card. "Awesome! I've still got a chance! I set a card, then I'll summon The Big Server (300/800)!"
"What the hell?" This definitely wasn't a card in the real game. It must have been one of those bizarre tennis cards he used in his match against Jaden. A robot clothed in tennis gear took the field, its right arm ending in a tennis racket rather than a hand.
"I hope you actually have a plan, Rosewood!" Seika barked impatiently.
"Trust me, babe. When it comes to tennis, I'm always on target. The Big Server can attack you directly, due to its special ability!" Harry continued. From a slot in its arm, the server loaded up a tennis ball. Throwing it skywards, he launched it at me at a perfect angle, the ball passing through me with a whoosh. (Jamie 3700/Seika 3000/Harry 2400)
"Finally, we got some damage on him!" Seika said, seeming somewhat relieved.
"That's not all. When The Big Server successfully attacks directly, I can add the spell card Service Ace to my hand! However, you get to draw a card as well, Lancaster." I nodded, glad at the surprise windfall. I have no idea why he thought 300 damage was a fair price for allowing me to draw a card, but maybe this Service Ace card was good enough to warrant the price.
"And now, I'll play Service Ace!" Harry announced as he ended his battle phase. "Here's the deal, Lancaster. I pick a card in my hand, and you have to guess what kind of card it is – monster, spell, or trap. If you guess it right, then nothing happens. If you guess wrong, you take 1500 points of damage. So," He picked the rightmost of his four cards. "Which is it? Your odds are one in three."
I see he pretty much relies on the same strategy in every one of his duels. Good lord, and this man was an Obelisk Blue! "Very well, I guess monster."
"Ha! Too bad, it's actually – " He paused. "A monster. You were right." The crowd was dead silent for a moment before they begun to laugh at the turn of events.
"Good thing you have a backup plan, right?" Seika pressed.
"Uh…uhm…well…you see…I was really hoping he would have guessed wrong." Harry scratched his head. Seika practically face-faulted. It was really hard not to laugh, but I kept my expression as straight as possible.
"Uh, shit…I end my turn." Harry finished.
I drew quickly, growing impatient. "I think I've seen enough. It's time to end this. I'll start by playing Card of Sanctity, allowing us all to replenish our hands. Then, I'll play Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy one of Seika's face-downs." Her face-down Magic Cylinder was promptly swept away by the cyclone.
"Then, I'll summon Tribe-Infecting Virus (1600/1000)!" This card was limited to one – I was lucky to draw it. The card had a strange appearance, only showing up as a haze of orange, swirling disease. "Sorry Harry, but Seika isn't the only one willing to use some gross cards. As you'll soon see, this virus is quite potent. By discarding one card, I can declare a monster type, and all monsters of the declared type are destroyed. I choose Reptile!"
Instantly, the haze rotted away the bodies of Seika's alien monsters, blood and bones both eaten and torn apart by the super infectious agents. "N..no way!" She hissed, but I wasn't finished yet.
"The card I discarded for that effect was Asura Priest, a light monster. And now, I'll banish the light-attribute Asura Priest along with the dark-attribute Spirit Reaper I sent with Foolish Burial…"
The evening sun burst through the windows, dipping just low enough to cast bright light into the entry hall.
I raised one hand skyward. "Knight of the dawn! You, who heralds a new day dawning, help me bring forth a new era for Obelisk Blue! Slash through the night and destroy that which holds us back! I summon thee, Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning (3000/2500)!"
I couldn't resist indulging in a little duelist pageantry, and if any monster warranted it, it was this one. His armor glinted just as magnificently in the evening light as it did the dawn. With his sword sling casually over his shoulder, the Black Luster Soldier was completely secure in his legendary status, effortlessly causing Harry and Seika to freeze in intimidation. The crowd was quelled into silence by the sheer presence of the knight.
"It's like I said – all that matters to me is that we grow stronger together. I don't care about being the big leader, or about some portentous title. All I want is to restore the name of this house. If you hate me for that, then so be it. Remember this anger and use it to become even more powerful!" I roared.
Seika and Harry didn't respond, still baffled and enraged at how quickly the tables turned on them. After a moment, they still hadn't responded, so I continued. "Black Luster Soldier, attack the Big Server!" With ease, my creature sliced up Harry's monster into ribbons, depleting the rest of his life points.
"And when Black Luster Soldier destroys a monster, it can attack again, as you know." I jerked my head in Seika's direction. Nodding loyally, the soldier of chaos landed a devastating overhead slash on Seika, finishing her off as well. At the same time, Seika and Harry fell on their knees, still agape at how sudden defeat came for them. (Jamie 3700/Seika 0/Harry 0)
Dead silence. The crowd looked askance at each other, each of the bystanders hoping that someone else, anybody else, would step forward and shut me up. No one did. I took a few steps up the stairwell and continued on with my speech as though nothing happened.
"This will be the first meeting of the Obelisk Force. Club meetings will be Mondays and Thursdays at eight. If you have any questions, my phone number is on the bulletin notice. Be there or be square."
A/N
Hope you all enjoyed. Here's to a great 2019!
To me, there's no question that the Obelisk Blues as depicted in canon are complete fodder and are in drastic need of reform. They're pretty much the Yugioh equivalent of the ANBU from Naruto in the sense that they are presented as "elites" while constantly getting doo-dooed on to show that a certain character is "strong". Something has to change if the events of the second season are to be circumvented.
As I'm sure many picked up on in this chapter, the tactic Jamie is using to provoke/motivate the Obelisks is the same tactic that Kaiba used on the intern applicants at the beginning of the summer – piss them off by acting like an arrogant asshole, thereby motivating them to defeat you and thus become stronger in the process. In a meta sense, some of Jamie's personality has been inspired by Kaiba from the beginning, but now he's literally been influenced by Kaiba in-universe as well.
But the key difference here is their intentions. Kaiba mainly did what he did for his own amusement, Jamie here is trying to avoid the collective brainwashing of his friends and peers, along with the destruction of the planet in the process. He had to find a way to light a fire under the Obelisk's collective asses, and since they already think of themselves as elites, doing the nice guy thing wasn't really gonna work. Whether you agree or disagree with Jamie's actions and attitudes, hopefully you found the chapter's events interesting.
Speaking of the impending threat, we got to see a bit of Aster Phoenix this chapter, as well as Sartorius, the primary antagonist of this arc. In writing these characters, I'm taking influence from sources like the Conviction Arc in Berserk and the Stannis/Davos/Melisandre plotline in A Song of Ice and Fire. Overall though, I hope to present both characters in a fairly nuanced fashion and avoid the "church/God is evil" trope that anime is so fond of employing.
Thank you all for your continued readership and best of luck heading into the new year!