I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX or anything created by Kazuki Takahashi. This work of fiction is just for fun.
"Speech"
'Thoughts'
"Mental talk with Duel Spirits"
"Announcements/ messages"
. . . - flashbacks/ what if's?
His father fell to the cold pavement with a hard thud, blood pouring out of his throat where the bullet had hit him.
Little Jaden stood there frozen in fear, staring at his father as his life slipped away. A strange feeling began to spread across his young body as his mind slowly began to go blank.
White flashed across his eyes and he saw his mother fall to the ground, bullet wound square in her head.
Jaden began to hyperventilate as his wide eyes stared at the robber who had the gun pointed straight at him. But, the masked man dropped his gun and took a step back. "Oh god! W-What the h-hell are you?" His voice was laced with fear as he asked the demonic figure that appeared behind Jaden.
The figure was none other than Yubel. Thorny vines shot out from the concrete and wrapped themselves around the robber. "How dare you threaten the life of my king?" Her voice was eerily cold as she approached him. "What I'm about to do to you will make you beg for Hell!" She said as the vines tightened around the man's body, thorns digging deep into his flesh.
Jaden's eyes were darting all over the place, they were constantly flashing between chocolate brown and honey gold. He had no idea what was happening to him right now. He felt as if his body was breaking down and disintegrating, but at the same time reassembling itself anew. It hurt and he wanted to scream!
The robber screamed in agony as Yubel lit his mind ablaze. She was just about to shoot a vine straight through this man's gut when she felt a wild and unstable dark power rise behind her. Her eyes widened and she turned around only to see Jaden clutching and pulling his two-tone hair, breathing erratically as dark shadows were spiraling around his body. The dark energy inside him kept rising and rising.
Yubel realized what was happening and lunged forward to grab him. "Jaden! Wait, please!"
But it was too late. Jaden's young mind and body couldn't take it anymore, so he did the one thing he wanted to do. His lungs burned as he screamed with everything he had. An explosion of dark energy erupted around him then darkness followed.
Jaden awoke with a start, hitting his head on the bunk above him. "Shit!" He whispered harshly as he fell back in his bed. He laid there, taking deep and even breaths to calm his heart and mind down.
When he calmed down enough, he let out a heavy sigh. 'Looks like another sleepless night.' He silently got out of bed, put on a black T-shirt and grabbed his fishing pole before leaving his room.
Jaden went down to the cliffs behind the Slifer Dorm. He sat down and cast his line into the calm ocean. Relaxing his body, he let out a sigh and watched the bobber gently go up and down.
He felt Yubel appear behind him and wrap her arms around him in comfort. "You okay?" She asked in concern.
"I… I don't know." Jaden admitted. "I'm over what happened, I really am. So I don't know why I keep having these nightmares."
"I don't know either. But, I know that they will disappear. You haven't had them for years, so maybe they will last a bit longer and you will be finally free of them." Yubel tried to comfort him and it seemed to work because she felt Jaden relax and smile.
"Yeah, you're right… you usually are." He chuckled. He saw that something caught his line and he reeled it in. Jaden smiled as he saw that he had caught a small fish. He released it and cast his line again.
They stood there in silence, the waves crashing against the rocks were the only sounds around them. "Don't you have an advancement test tomorrow?" Yubel broke the silence.
"Mhm." Jaden smiled. "It's kinda unfair to have an exam like that only a month into the school year, but if I do well tomorrow, I'll advance to the next dorm."
"But you need rest in order to do that, you know?" She voiced her concern.
"Nothing getting hopped up on sugar and caffeine can't help." He joked.
Yubel frowned. "You know I don't like it when you do things like that."
Jaden grinned slightly. Yubel definitely acted as a mother at times. "Don't worry, I'll stay up a bit more and I'll be fresh in the morning." He assured her.
"Alright. By the way…" Yubel smirked mischievously. "How are things with Little Miss Lexi?"
"W-what do you mean?" Jaden asked a bit nervously.
"Well… you seem to like her, so I want to know how things are going there."
He gulped. "I-I don't know what you're talking about. I don't like her."
Yubel grinned as she watched him squirm. "Jaden, lies like these might work on your mom, but did you forget that I'm your Guardian? We share a connection, so I know when you are lying."
"Did you find any leads on Atticus?" Jaden asked in an attempt to change the subject.
Yubel's grin widened, but decided to leave him be for now. "Sadly no… I've searched almost everywhere on this island and there was nothing. If Shadow Games were involved you know there won't be any leads, right?"
"I know." He sighed then smiled. "But I know we'll find him, I can just feel it. We have to, for both his and Alexis' sakes."
Yubel smirked. "Speaking of Alexis…" She went back to her original subject and Jaden let out a loud groan in annoyance.
Syrus had gotten up earlier than his roommates to shake the jitters off about today's tests. "Please, please, please, let me pass today's tests." The small Slifer was sitting on his desk with a headband stuffed with Monster Reborn cards on his head. On his desk were lit candles and a poster of Slifer the Sky Dragon to which he prayed to. "I don't want to be stuck in this red jacket forever… not that there's anything wrong with red, it looks great on you, Slifer… But I wanna be in Ra Yellow, so please give me a chance!"
Apparently the boy had little to no faith in his abilities.
Suddenly, Syrus was startled by a loud ringing noise that made him jump off his chair. "SLIFER!" He picked himself off the ground and looked at Jaden's bed where an alarm clock was ringing right next to his head. "Why am I not surprised?" The boy sighed.
Syrus was worried he'd sleep through today's test and walked over and shook him slightly. "Jaden, wake up. We have a test today and if you skip it you won't be able to advance to the next dorm." Syrus' efforts were to no avail. Jaden didn't seem a bit bothered as he snored away.
Syrus then heard Chumley speak above him from his bunk. "You know, Sy, it would be a good thing if we let Jaden skip today's test, not only for us, but the rest of the Slifers." Syrus looked confused, but the burly boy continued. "After the written test, we'll have to face off against people from our dorms, and I sure don't want to face Jaden. You get me?"
Syrus looked irritated. "Yeah I get it! I now know why you have been forced to repeat the year for a third time!"
Chumley just shrugged and left the room. After a few minutes Syrus left as well because he'd otherwise be late. He believed that Jaden would soon wake up and make it for the written test.
It was an hour and a half later and Jaden was currently running towards the Academy as fast as possible. He wasn't surprised that he'd overslept if he had to be honest with himself. After all, he only had about four hours of sleep last night and the dark circles under his eyes were a clear indication of it.
As he was running he passed a lady who was struggling with pushing a van up the hill. Jaden skidded to a stop and looked back.
"Are you sure you have time to spare?" Yubel asked him.
"The test has probably started, but I can't just let her struggle like that." He ran back and got behind the truck and began pushing it.
The lady looked back at him. "Isn't there a test today? You don't really have time to be helping little old me."
Jaden just smiled. "You're right, but I just can't ignore someone in need. Besides, it won't really hinder me to be a little late, so let's get this thing to the Academy."
The lady gave him a grateful smile. "You are very kind, I'll remember you helping me. The name's Dorothy by the way."
Jaden flashed her a toothy grin. "Jaden Yuki, nice to meet you. So how about we get this thing to the Academy?" They then began pushing harder trying to speed up. Jaden knew he would be late, but to him it would be worth it if he helped her.
Jaden and Dorothy got the van to the Academy and he ran full speed towards Banner's class. He soon got there and jogged to his seat next to Erina. She glanced at him and her eyes widened in shock upon seeing the bags under his eyes. "Jay? You look horrible, have you slept at all?"
Jaden just shook his head. "Not really, but don't worry about it." He said with a smile, but his best friend wasn't even a bit convinced. She let it be for now knowing she will force him to talk later.
Jaden noticed Banner walk up to him with a test and placed it in front of him. "Jaden, you're very late- Are you alright? You don't look like your usual self."
Jaden gave him an apologetic look. "Sorry, I ran into Miss Dorothy and helped her with her van because it had broken down, and I'm fine, Professor, don't worry."
Banner looked at him skeptically at first about him being fine, but gave him a smile. "Alright, I believe you. You have an hour left, so hurry up."
Crowler stood outside of the classroom with the door slightly ajar and was glaring down at Jaden. "Look at that slacker being so nonchalant! Well, I'll teach him a tough lesson today during the practical test. The love letter may not have worked, but this will for sure. Now, I just have some things to prepare before that." Crowler said, leaving to prepare for his plan while laughing.
After an hour, Banner had gathered all the tests and turned to address the class. "Now students, I know you have a practical test next. So, for all those who are interested, the new rare cards have just arrived at the card shop. You might want to go before your test, and please leave calmly-"
He then got interrupted by a couple of students yelling. "THEY'RE HERE!?!" And almost all students left the classroom, running towards the card shop with a few exceptions. Alexis believed in her deck and didn't need new cards, Chazz sent his two friends to get him some, while Bastion was trying to wake up Syrus, who had fallen asleep in the middle of the test.
Erina and Jaden were looking at the two. Jaden suddenly got an evil grin as he decided to wake Syrus himself, while Erina looked confused, wondering what he's up to.
He leaned over Syrus and said with a slightly raised voice. "Look! Dark Magician Girl is making out with Cyber Tutu!"
Erina and Bastion were looking at him like he'd grown a second head. "Jay, there's no w-" The bluenette began to question, but was interrupted by Syrus springing to his feet.
"WHERE?!" He screamed.
Jaden looked at her and smirked. "You were saying?"
She sighed followed by a giggle. "I stand corrected, and how did you know that would work?"
"He talks in his sleep." Jaden revealed, making Syrus get red with embarrassment and the rest to laugh a bit. He looked at Syrus. "Relax, Sy, we had to wake you up somehow." He finished with a smile.
Syrus looked around. "Where is everyone?" Bastion informed him that the test was over and everyone went to get the new rare cards. "I gotta go!" He said and disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
Erina suddenly turned to Jaden and pulled a card out of her jacket. "Here." She handed it to him. "Our very flamboyant 'uncle' apologizes for the late start of school gift."
"Really?" Jaden took the card and read it. 'Grandmerge, huh?' He smirked. "Can't wait to use him. What did he give you?"
"It's a secret." She said in a sing-song voice.
Jaden sighed as Alexis approached them. She looked at Jaden, concern clearly visible on her face. "Jaden, are you okay? You look really exhausted."
He smiled appreciatively over her concern. "Yeah, I'm good, just slept a little bit less than usual." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.
She took a small step forward. "Are you sure? Because if you're not feeling okay, you won't do well-"
She went quiet as Jaden placed his hand on her head and very gently ruffled her blond hair. "I'll be fine." He gave her a warm smile, trying to sell it better. "So don't worry your pretty little head, okay?"
Alexis just stared at him, a faint blush on her cheeks and a strange feeling in her chest. She watched as Jaden removed his hand, still smiling, and turned around and began to walk towards the door. "I could really use some food and a coffee right now. Come on, guys." He said and the other went with him to the card shack to get some breakfast.
The students that rushed out of class were waiting anxiously for the doors of the card shack to open so they could get their hands on the new rare cards. They heard a large amount of footsteps behind them. All of a sudden a bunch of guards moved between all the students and made a clear corridor towards the shop for some reason.
"Oh children!" A man in a navy uniform called to the mob of students waiting. "Looking for these?" He raised the briefcase filled with packs of rare cards for them to see. The crowd burst into cheers as he approached the metal doors and opened them. "Then come and get them."
The metal doors opened fully and the card shack was revealed and the briefcase stood on a table in the middle… and it was empty.
A massive scale facefault ensued from the students and arguments about where all the cards were.
"You know the rules, first come first serve." The counter girl standing next to the case said.
Next to her, a tall man in a long black coat and hat chuckled. "And since I was first, I took everything!" He said as he left the shop, laughing maniacally all the while.
The crowd melted away, all disappointed over the whole ordeal.
Just a minute later, Syrus came into the shop and was shocked over the lack of students. He looked around frantically and came to only one conclusion. "They ran out of cards already?!" He groaned as he pulled on his hair. "Why is the world always against me?!" He sighed. "I can only hope a miracle happens and I pass…"
Just then, Jaden and the others entered as well. "What's up, Sy?" Jaden asked as he saw the depressed look on his small friend's face.
"They ran out of cards before I could even get here…" He said in a very depressed tone.
Jaden patted him on the back in comfort. "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll still ace the practical test."
Before Syrus could say how there's no way that'll happen now, all of them heard someone call out to Jaden. They turned around and saw Dorothy behind the counter. Jaden smiled and waved at her. "Hey, Dorothy! Do you work here as well?"
She smiled and shook her head. "No, I own the shop, cool right?"
Jaden grinned. "Cool? I'd say that's amazing." The group looked at him confused, so he decided to clarify. "On my way to class, I ran into Dorothy and she was having trouble with her van, so I helped her out."
"So, that's why you were almost two hours late to the test?" Erina asked with narrowed eyes and received a sheepish nod as a response.
"Oh, Jaden, and for being such a sweetheart and helping me..." Dorothy pulled out a box from under the counter. "I know it wasn't very nice of me, but I stashed away a few of the new rare card packs just in case you couldn't make it in time. So take your pick, kids!"
All of them stared at her in amazement for a moment before they grinned and took a pack of cards.
"See, Sy? Everything worked out in the end." Erina said as she ripped open her pack.
"Yeah!" The small Slifer exclaimed in joy.
Chazz was walking across the hallways with his two goons, while they tried to explain why they couldn't get him any cards. "We couldn't get you a single one, Chazz, sorry."
He scoffed. "You two are useless! You couldn't do one simple thing, but it doesn't matter, because there isn't a single duelist on this island who can beat me!"
They then heard someone laugh. "Unless that duelist is Jaden Yuki." The three Obelisks turned around to see the man with the black coat and hat.
"And who are you?" Chazz asked in an irritated tone.
"Someone who hates Jaden just as much as you do."
"Hey! That's the creep who took all the rare cards!" Torimaki said.
"What cards? Oh, you mean these cards?" The man said as he opened his coat. Making the three look away in fear as they thought the man was flashing them.
"What's wrong boys? Don't you recognize me? Well, maybe this will help." The man said, taking off his disguise.
Chazz looked at him with a tired and disinterested look. "You looked better covered up, Crowler." He deadpanned. Crowler almost fell backwards as he heard that, but recovered and pointed at him.
"That's not the way you should talk to the person who's going to help you beat Jaden Yugi today. I have a proposition for you, Chazz, one that will make both of us look good and make Jaden Yuki look like the loser he really is."
Chazz growled. "But we aren't even in the same dorm. I can't be his opponent even if I wanted to be."
Crowler smirked widely. "Oh don't worry about that. I'll make sure you duel him. You just make use of all these rare cards to put him in his place. If he loses miserably, he'd be kicked out of the school!" Crowler handed Chazz a stack of the rare cards and both started to laugh evilly.
The practical exams were coming to an end and by some strange coincidence, Jaden was one again the last one to duel, just like during the entrance exam. As Jaden approached the field he'd be dueling in, he had to do a double take to make sure he was seeing right.
"Wait, Chazz is my opponent? Jaden asked in surprise.
Crowler came over to their field, looking all too smug for some reason. "Yes, considering how well you did during the entrance exam, there isn't anyone in the Slifer dorm up to your level. So, I got you an opponent that would give you a challenge..." He pointed to Chazz. "And I figured that dueling one of the top ranked students of the school would be just the challenge you're looking for. What's wrong, aren't you going to thank me?"
Yubel appeared next to Jaden. "Jaden, this is obviously a trap, he'll make sure this won't fail like the love letter." She then got an evil smile. "But, why not go for it? You get a second go at humiliating this spoiled brat."
"I don't like this." Syrus said.
"I'm surprised they can actually put a Slifer against an Obelisk." Alexis said. "Although, I'm sure this is one of Crowler's schemes."
"This is most definitely a trap." Bastion said, also having the feeling that something was not right. "Only a fool would agree to this."
"Sure, I agree."
Everyone, with the exception of Erina, gasped at Jaden's answer.
"Or, if you're someone like Jaden." The bluenette said with a grin.
"You better get your game on this time, Chazz!" Jaden said. "Because it's time to finish what we started back at the arena."
"Yeah, and the result will be the same with me being victorious!" Chazz jabbed. They both inserted their decks and activated their Duel Disks.
Jaden: 4000
Chazz: 4000
"If you say so." Jaden drew his card. "I play Elemental Hero Ocean in defense mode." On the field appeared a blue merman with white leggings holding a white trident. (ATK: 1500/ DEF: 1200)
He then slipped a card into his Duel Disk. "And I play one card facedown and end my turn." A card appeared in front of Jaden's feet.
"Time for me to finally put you in your place, slacker! I draw!" Chazz said angrily as he drew his card. 'Appreciate the rare card, Crowler.' "Fresh off the presses, Magical Mallet!"
"Oh god." Jaden sighed.
"With this, I get a redo! I return the cards that I don't want in my hand to my deck, then I shuffle it and draw the same amount of cards!"
"A rare card on the first draw?" Syrus gasped.
"And a very dangerous card at that." Bastion explained. "Now Chazz can pick which cards he wants and which he doesn't want in his hand."
Chazz shuffled his deck and drew his new cards. "And the best part is…" Chazz showed another Magical Mallet. "That I drew Magical Mallet again! So, if I draw it again, I can just keep going and going!" Chazz once again reshuffled his deck and drew his new cards. "Perfect!"
He slapped a card on his Disk. "First off, I summon V-Tiger Jet in attack mode!" A yellow and green mechanical tiger, shaped like a fighter jet appeared. (ATK: 1600/ DEF: 1800)
"Oh no, he's playing the Union cards." Erina said.
"Yes, and this could get troublesome for Jaden." Bastion noted.
"But I'm not done yet! I play the continuous spell card, Frontline Base! With it, I can special summon one level four or lower Union monster from my hand!" Chazz plucked a card from his hand and placed it on his Disk. "And I summon W-Wing Catapult in attack mode."
A blue, tank-like machine appeared. (ATK: 1300/ DEF: 1500)
"But, there's more!" Chazz said.
"Here we go." Jaden said.
"I remove both my monsters from play in order to summon VW-Tiger Catapult in attack mode!" Both monsters jumped in the air and combined with the tiger attaching itself on top of the catapult. (ATK: 2000/ DEF: 2100)
"Now I activate his special effect." Chazz said with a grin, while Jaden gritted his teeth. "By discarding one card, I can force your monster in attack mode." Chazz put one card in his graveyard and Ocean stood up in attack mode. "Go Tiger Catapult, attack with Heat Seeking Blitz!" Chazz's monster fired a volley of missiles and destroyed Jaden's Ocean.
Jaden LP: 3500
Jaden responded quickly, pressing a button on his Duel Disk. "I activate my trap card, Hero Signal!" A bright spotlight shone and displayed the letter H on the ceiling. "When my monster is destroyed by battle I can Special Summon one Elemental HERO from my hand or deck. And from my deck I summon Elemental Hero Bubbleman in defense mode."
A man wearing a dark blue bodysuit and light blue armor with a white cape appeared. He also had a hydro cannon on his arm. (ATK: 800/ DEF: 1200)
"And I activate his effect! When he is the only monster on my field, I can draw two cards." Jaden said and drew two cards.
Chazz scoffed at him as he placed a card face down. "That won't help you, slacker! I place one card face down and end my turn."
Crowler was watching everything from the viewing room where all the teachers and Chancellor Sheppard were spectating. "My goodness!" He said with fake sincerity. "Looks like Jaden can't play with the big boys after all. I guess he's not as good as he thinks."
Sheppard just kept silent and stared out the window.
Bastion was looking curiously at Chazz and rubbed his chin. "It seems Chazz has a lot of new cards. Didn't Dorothy say that some weird man bought all of the new packs earlier… So where did he get all these cards?"
Erina frowned. "This has to be Crowler's doing, he must have bought all those cards and made a deal with Chazz to humiliate him in front of the whole school. And since he oversees this exam, he can get away with setting up this duel."
Syrus looked at her worried and then looked back at Jaden, hoping that he would be okay.
Alexis on the other hand was looking curiously at the smirk Jaden had. "Wonder what he's up to?" She mumbled.
"My turn!" Jaden drew his seventh card and took another from his hand. "I play Graceful Charity! It allows me to draw three cards and discard two."
Jaden drew three cards. 'This might work.' He thought and sent one of the cards he drew and one more from his hand to the graveyard.
He then held up three cards. "I'll use Polymerization to fuse together my Sparkman and Clayman!"
"So he'll use Thunder Giant to destroy Chazz's monster?" Alexis wondered. "Good plan."
"That's not quite what he's planning." Erina said, causing Alexis to look at her in confusion.
Both Sparkman and Clayman jumped into the vortex that appeared in the sky. Jaden grinned. "I'd like to introduce to everyone the newest addition to the HERO line up! Elemental HERO Grandmerge!"
A man wearing a red and blue bodysuit with Sparkman's armor and accents appeared. He had a lightning cannon on his right hand and a claw on the other, he also had a pair of large white feathered wings spread widely behind him. (ATK: 0/ DEF: 0)
Chazz laughed. "All that for a monster with zero attack? You really are a slacker!"
"Why do you assume he doesn't have an effect?" Jaden asked with a smirk. "He gains attack and defense equal to the combined level of the monsters I used to summon him multiplied by 300!" (ATK: 0-2400/ DEF: 0-2400)
Jaden pointed at VW-Tiger Catapult. "Grandmerge, attack with Lightning Barrage!" Grandmerge flew up and pointed his right hand to Chazz's monster and unleashed a barrage of lightning bolts and destroyed it.
Chazz: 3600
Jaden smirked. "And now I activate his other effect! When he destroys a monster in battle, I can tribute him and summon an Elemental HERO from my extra deck! So, say hello to Elemental HERO Flame Wingman!"
Grandmerge disappeared and Jaden's favorite hero appeared in his place. (ATK: 2100/ DEF: 1200)
"Flame Wingman, attack him with Infernal Rage!"
The hero landed in front of Chazz and unleashed a stream of fire from his dragon arm, causing Chazz to scream.
Chazz: 1500
"I finish with a facedown. How's that for a move, Chazz?" Jaden said with a smile as he slipped a card in his Disk.
Syrus was jumping in joy. Jaden had wiped out over half of Chazz's life points in one turn and had a powerful monster on his field! Bastion was impressed with Jaden's strategies as well, his desire to face him was growing by the minute. Erina was silent with a worried look on her face. She knew what Chazz's plan could be and was worried if he had the more problematic Union monsters in that deck filled with rare cards.
All the teachers were watching the duel and were impressed with the skill Jaden was showing, even the Chancellor was impressed.
Crowler on the other hand was far from happy that Jaden had gained the upper hand. 'I gave Chazz all the rare cards he would need and that slacker still gained the upper hand and is one attack from winning!? You better not ruin my plan on humiliating that slacker, Chazz!' He thought angrily.
Chazz got up and drew his card. "First, I activate Call of the Haunted and bring back my VW." The machine appeared once again on the field. (ATK: 2000/ DEF: 2100)
Chazz picked up a card from his hand and played it. "Next I play Spell Books from the Pot! Now, we both draw three cards!"
Chazz got an arrogant smile as he looked at the cards he drew. "Now, I summon X-Head Cannon, and thanks to Frontline Base I also summon Z-Metal Tank!" Both monsters appeared: X-Head Cannon was a blue humanoid robot from the waist up that had two cannons sticking out of its shoulders, while Z-Metal Tank was a robotic yellow tank with an eye in the middle of its front. (ATK: 1800/ 1500) (ATK: 1500/ DEF: 1300)
Jaden looked troubled as he knew what he was about to summon from somewhere. Chazz laughed maniacally at him. "That's right slacker! I am summoning him. I activate the spell card, Monster Reborn in order to bring back the card I discarded earlier, Y-Dragon Head!" A red robotic dragon appeared on the field. (ATK: 1500/ DEF: 1600)
"No way!" Syrus gasped.
"He has it!" Alexis said.
"Oh boy…" Erina sighed.
"Now I remove X, Y and Z to summon XYZ Dragon Cannon!" The three machines merged together Z bring the bottom, Y the middle and X the top of the new monster. (ATK: 2800/ DEF: 2600)
"Now he has two strong monsters on the field." Bastion noted.
"No he doesn't." Erina said. "This is going to get worse."
"But they won't be staying." Chazz said with a smug smile. "I remove from play my XYZ and VW to summon VWXYZ-Dragon Catapult Cannon in attack mode!"
Both monsters disappeared and in their place stood a Megazord-like robot made out of all of the monsters towering over the field. (ATK: 3000/ DEF: 2800)
"My god!" Bastion gasped.
"I've never seen a monster like that." Alexis admitted.
"Now I activate his special ability and banish one card on your field, and I banish your Bubbleman!" The machine shot a laser at Jaden's monster, removing it from the field.
Chazz held up a card. "And I activate Smashing Ground, destroying your Wingman!" Jaden's Flame Wingman blew up in pixels.
Chazz laughed loudly and pointed at Jaden. "Now, V to Z will attack Jaden directly!" The massive monster unleashed a torrent of plasma blasts, hitting Jaden and causing him to fly on his back.
Jaden: 500
"Finally I can show you where you truly belong! Under my shoe!" Chazz laughed like a madman.
Syrus and Bastion were visually worried, while Erina had an unreadable expression, milling all the cards Jaden could use to get past that giant mech. 'You managed to get past dad's Ultimate Dragon countless times, so I know you can do it, Jaden!' She mentally cheered him on.
Alexis was also watching closely. She was worried for Jaden, but at the same time she somehow knew he would pull through.
Crowler on the other hand was as happy as a child on Christmas morning seeing Chazz turn the tide of the duel and putting Jaden on the losing end.
"I end my turn, but you might as well give up now, you reject. You can't beat me no matter what you draw!" Chazz began laughing. "In fact, you never stood a chance to begin with!" But he got silent as he felt a weird and strong pressure hit him from Jaden's direction.
Jaden, with one swift move, jumped up on his feet and had a look of pure determination on his face no one on the island had seen before. "Give up?" He smirked. "Why would I do that? This has been too much fun to just end it like that. Besides, while I still have cards in my deck, this isn't over. I draw!" Jaden drew his card.
Jaden slid a card in his Disk and grabbed another one from his hand. "First I set a facedown and then I'll use Monster Reborn! With it I'll bring back Yubel from my graveyard!"
Yubel appeared on the field with her wings folded over her. A collection of gasps was heard as her wings opened and she revealed herself to everyone. (ATK: 0/ DEF: 0)
"So that's your plan." Erina smiled as she understood what Jaden was planning. "Looks like Jaden won." Her sudden declaration caused the others to gasp.
"What do you mean? What is that card?" Syrus asked.
"That my dear friends, is Jaden's favorite and most trusted card..." She smiled. "As to what she does and how Jaden won… Well, I'll leave that up to him." The others turned to the field. They were very curious as to what Yubel could do and how Jaden would turn this around.
Yubel got a devilish grin. "So, I'll be getting the honors, right?"
"You sure will." Jaden smirked as he placed another card on his Disk. "I'll also summon Winged Kuriboh to the field."
As soon as Winged Kuriboh appeared on the field, Jaden heard practically every girl squealing in delight. He looked around and saw that they were looking at Winged Kuriboh with hearts in their eyes. And unsurprisingly to him, Erina was one of those girls. She just loved the little fluffball. Jaden then saw his little furry friend blush and make a happy sound, and forced himself not to chuckle. (ATK: 300/ DEF: 200)
"That's your game winning move? Two pathetically weak monsters? Don't make me laugh!" Chazz taunted with a laugh.
Jaden ignored him. "In order to keep Yubel on the field, I have to tribute another monster on my field for her." Jaden explained and gave his small friend an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, buddy." Winged Kuriboh cooed in understanding before he disappeared. "And with that I end my turn."
"I draw!" Chazz drew his card. "And I'm sending you back home!"
Jaden revealed his facedown. "I reveal my trap card, Battle Mania! This trap forces you to attack this turn, no matter what!"
"Hah! Like I care-!"
"I also chain Forbidden Chalice to it!" Jaden interrupted. "It might give your V to Z 400 attack points, but it negates its effects until the end of the turn!"
(ATK: 3000-3400)
Chazz scoffed. "Like that'll matter! I have the stronger monster, and it's time to prove it!" He shouted.
"Do you even read the cards, what the hell?" Erina mumbled to herself.
Chazz laughed. "V to Z, end this duel!" He ordered and the giant machine obliged as it fired its cannons.
"Idiot." Yubel said as she folded her wings in front of her as a shield. The blast hit her, but it got absorbed. Yubel still stood there and Jaden hasn't lost even a single life point.
"What's going on!?" Chazz demanded.
Jaden smirked. "Yubel's effect, that's what. Stats isn't everything, Chazz, and Yubel is the perfect example. She can't be destroyed by battle and I don't take any battle damage when she's attacked."
"That's one powerful effect." Alexis gasped.
"It gets better!" Erina grinned.
"Oh yeah…" Jaden grinned as well. "All damage I would've taken is sent back to you! Yubel, Nightmare Pain!" Chazz took a step back in shock.
Yubel grinned as a thorny vine shot out of the ground and pierced Chazz right through the chest, causing him to double over in pain.
Chazz: 0
"And that's game!" Jaden said, doing his signature pose. "Yubel, you didn't have to be that cruel." He told her mentally. Jaden felt that she used a small bit of her own Shadow Power to make the damage actually painful, but not deadly. She just shrugged before her hologram disappeared.
It was quiet for a few seconds before everyone in the arena began applauding and cheering for Jaden.
Crowler on the other hand was fuming and horrified at what had happened. "Impossible! Even after I gave Chazz all those rare cards he still lost? This is not possible!"
Upon hearing this, Chancellor Sheppard turned to look at him. "What are you talking about? What rare cards?"
Crowler panicked that he accidentally outed himself. If Sheppard found out what he had done to try and humiliate Jaden, he would get fired. "N-nothing, sir! Now excuse me, I have some tests to grade." And with that Crowler made his exit, while Sheppard laughed at his back.
Jaden waved to the crowd as they cheered for him. If winning a duel in the Pros is something like this, he couldn't wait to graduate.
"Jaden!"
He turned around to see Erina, Alexis, Syrus and Bastion run up to him.
As soon as they were close both Erina and Syrus tackled Jaden in a hug. "Great job, Jay!" Erina praised with a giggle. "I would have had to beat you up if you lost." She teased and Jaden chuckled nervously.
"Well played, Jaden!" Chancellor Sheppard said over the loudspeaker. "Not even once in the history of our academy has a Slifer dueled against an Obelisk during the tests. And not only did you hold your own, you even won! Your determination and drive to never give up when faced against overwhelming odds should be an inspiration to the rest of the students. And with great pride, effective immediately, I promote you to Ra Yellow! Well done, my boy!"
With that, the crowd cheered once again!
Erina gave him another hug, while Bastion offered him his hand. "Let me be the first one to welcome you to the Yellow Dorm."
"Thanks." Jaden smiled and shook his hand.
'You really are something, Jaden.' Alexis thought with a smile as she watched him fool around with Syrus.
Later that night at the Slifer dorm, Chumley was observing from the top bunk how Syrus seemed sad for some odd reason. "Hey, Syrus, if you're gonna mope around, you might as well make me a grilled cheese."
"I just thought Jaden would say goodbye to us at least…" Syrus said sadly.
"Who's talking about saying goodbye?"
Syrus jumped up from his bed. There, leaning against the doorway stood Jaden. "Jaden?! What are you doing here!?"
Jaden smiled. "Well, I wanted to say congrats on passing today's test. And in case you've forgotten." He spread his arms and grinned. "This is my dorm too!"
"WHAT?!"
Jaden shrugged. "Sure, Ra Yellow seems nice, even if the yellow walls cause you a headache, but it just isn't the same. I feel more at home here." He explained. "But, Chancellor Sheppard said I can't just leave empty handed, so apparently a bunch of Slifers dropped out and he gave me a room all for myself. You're stuck with me for the next couple of days until they get it ready." He said with a grin.
Syrus sniffed and dove at him, tears filling his eyes like waterfalls. Jaden squirmed. "Hey! Syrus, you're getting my jacket wet!"
Syrus looked up, tears still pouring. "I thought… I thought I lost you forever! Now I'm never letting go!"
Jaden sweatdropped. "Chill out, Sy! Come on, get off!" He tried to unlatch Syrus from him, but the little boy was stuck like glue to him.
"Please, Jay, just a couple more hugs!"
"It's not the hugs, it's the water works!"
Chumley laughed from the top bunk over the whole ordeal.
Another one done! Hope you liked it.
And now you know how Jaden's powers unlocked. It might've been a bit cliche with the whole parents die and he goes ballistic thing, but it seemed fitting for the Supreme King so yeah.
The hardest thing for me was deciding if Jaden should rank up here. Mainly because well... this Jaden is different to cannon Jaden in the sense of his upbringing, so he doesn't have the same way of thinking.
But then I realized that there's nothing impactful he'd gain from ranking up to Ra in season 1 (it actually gets in the way of season 2's first half), so I went for the next best thing, his own room.
But, Jaden will rise in rank throughout the series! It was always something that irked me in the anime, so I figured I'd implement it.
As to why his own room? Well, if you had frequent nightmares and spend most of the nights up, wouldn't you want to a room for yourself? I know I would.
Next up is the abandoned dorm, plus some Jaden and Alexis fluff. See you then!