Zypher: And hello all to another wonderful chapter of Yami no Game: Dark Saga! Glad you all enjoy so much and like always, enjoy this chapter just as much! And as for the names for Tiger Axe, the decision has been made and Aspher is now his new name.
0
Yami no Game: Dark Saga
Chapter 7
0
-9 Hours into the Dueling Tournament-
"He's gone! I can't find him anywhere!" Diamond reported as she, Yami, Aqua and Kaiser landed back down with the group. "He has to be at Pegasus' castle then."
"If so, how are we supposed to help him?" Myrrh replied. Yami was silent but soon spoke his answer. "We will just have to collect ten star chips to gain entry into the castle." They knew he was right cause they can see that even he can't do anything to help Mokuba. A forced entry would likely play into Pegasus' hand. As of now, the status was Yami with six star chips and Jounouchi with two. Jounouchi frowned in disappointment as he looked at his glove of eight empty spots.
'I really need ta get more star chips.'
0
In another area, Mai yawned as she dueled another lowly duelist. "Attack Harpie queens...Triangle Ecstasy Spark." she spoke with a bored tone as a triangle appeared between the three harpies, a large blast of energy overwhelming the duelist's monster, taking out the monster and the rest of his life points with it. "There. You happy? I win..." she lamented, still bored. "Now give me all your star chips and beat it!" The duelist whined as he handed her his star chips and left out the duel box. "Now I'm out of the tournament!" he sobbed as he walked off. 'Boring...I just can't get into it like I normally do...' she thought with a sigh. She left out the duel box and walked off, ignoring the other duelists that were around the area. She laid down on a grassy incline, looking up into the sky and soon saw an image of Jounouchi in the clouds.
"There's one thing that doesn't change...it's what you can show...but you can't see!"
She sneered in anger as she sat up. "Argh! That so pisses me off! I can't believe I lost a duel! To a nobody like him! The whole world should blow up into smithereens before I let myself lose to a third-rate duelist!" she hissed. 'And that stupid saying! I still don't understand it. It's so irritating!' She finally relaxed and thought about it. "What's something you can show but can't see? Hmm...a bald guy with a toupee? A skinny girl with a D cup? No...that can't be right..." Mai grumbled more to herself, unaware of the person behind her until she heard his voice. "Ah ha! I finally found you, Kujaku Mai!" Ryuzaki shouted. "Huh...?" she murmured as she turned to face him. "It's me again! Dinosaur Ryuzaki, the world's greatest duelist! Thanks for making a fool out of me on the boat here!"
'Great...another loser...' she thought, rubbing her head as she felt an oncoming headache. "I want to duel you one more time! Right here and now!" he demanded and Mai groaned. "Shut up! I'm not interested in fighting a person I already beat once before. Get lost! Shoo!" she hissed. Ryuzaki sneered, clenching his fists angrily. "Why you...you're making fun of me again, eh...? Listen here! In case you forgotten, I was the runner-up in the last tournament compared to every duelist in Japan! I even have five star chips to prove it!" he stated, showing his duelist glove. The blonde only whistled nonchalantly as she held up her own glove, showing Ryuzaki the eight star chips she already gained.
'No way! She already has eight star chips!'
"Read it and weep! Two more star chips and I'll be in Pegasus' castle. But don't be afraid...I've already decided who I'm going to get my last two chips from. Believe me, he's not a loser like you!" she said. Ryuzaki growled again. "Who is it? Yami?" he questioned with a flare of anger. 'I'm the one who's going to beat him!' Mai looked away from his as she stood. "No. Before I fight him, there's another guy I have to take down..." A thought suddenly came to mind and looked to Ryuzaki again. "Actually~ I'll take up on your challenge for a duel...if you follow one condition~" she spoke. "You mean it? Then I'm all ears! What's your condition, Mai?" She looked back to him with a slight smirk upon her face. "You have to beat someone for me first!" Ryuzaki sneered at the request but agreed. 'I hate doing anything for her, but if I've got to, I've got to...' He sighed mentally. 'If Sekai were here, he would be laughing his ass off at me. I'm glad he went to another country for another Duel Monsters tourney for this week.'
"I'll do it! So, who is this guy you hate so much?" he asked as he walked over to her. "Come with me and you'll find out." she said as she walked off but stopped short and looked back to him. "Oh, and before I forget, until you beat him, you're my slave. Got it?" Ryuzaki sputtered. "What?! That's crazy!" he snapped. "Fine then, I guess you don't want to duel against me then." Mai claimed and started walking off again. "Oh fine! I'll be your slave!" he hissed as he followed behind her. 'Still so gullible...' They walked for a while before Mai spoke up again. "By the way...riddle me this: What's something you can show but can't see?" she asked. "What's this, a quiz?" Ryuzaki muttered to himself before thinking of something. "Oh! I know! It's the octopus in a piece of takoyaki (Japanese snack food made of fried octopus covered in batter)! That one's easy!" Mai groaned at the stupid answer. 'It was stupid of me to ask!' she thought. "Come on, slave!" Mai hissed as she started walking off again.
"Grr...I'm sick of your bossy tone already!"
0
Soon, they group made it into a plains area where some duelists roamed and Jou, eager for another battle, went up to a random kid. "Hey! Wanna duel against me?!" The kid looked to him before seeing Yami not far behind him and gulped. "That guy with you...he's Yami, isn't he? I'll pass...I don't want to fight him next..." he whispered meekly before running off. "No! Wait!" But the kid was long gone. Jounouchi stomped his foot angrily. "Man, he got away! That's the fourth person today!" he growled. "I don't believe it myself. Just one look at Yami and they run off. He doesn't even need to be a demon to scare people off." Myrrh mused. "Cowards..." Jounouchi mumbled. "This will become a problem. If everyone is scared of facing Yami, Jounouchi will never get to duel." Ryou murmured. "And if we let him go by himself, he might get his butt kicked." Honda added. "Shut up, Honda! I don't see ya duelin'!"
"Oho ho ho ho~!" Jounouchi jumped when he heard the familiar laugh. "No, not her. I recognize that laugh anywhere..." Jounouchi groaned as he turned slowly to look behind him. "We meet again, Jounouchi!" Mai greeted with another laugh. "Ulp...it's you again..." Mai chuckled to herself as she looked at them. "I see that you guys are glued to the hip, as usual! Do you all walk in a line as well? Maybe you were all little ducklings in your past life~" she teased and Aqua snorted. "Ducklings. That's the understatement of the day if she actually knew what we were…" he spoke quietly. "We're not ducklings!" Jounouchi defended, sneering. Mai only laughed to herself again before looking to Yami, almost imagining she saw a tail swaying behind him. "Be honest, Yami...isn't it a nuisance to have all these people tailing after you? I can bet if you were alone and not with these dead-weights hanging off you, you would be at the castle by now." Mai surmised. Yami's eyes narrowed into a glare but didn't say a word. Her eyes also narrowed but she smirked smugly. 'Oops...I made him mad. Better not provoke him or he would duel me right out the tournament. Besides, this isn't the time to fight him just yet...my real target happens to be...' She pointed to Jou, the smirk still on her face. "Jounouchi! I let you defeat me last time but this time you'll have to fight my slave!" she told him and he looked baffled. "Yer slave?" he questioned. Ryuzaki came from behind the tree and snickered. "Heh heh...long time no see, Yami! And how are you doing, Jounouchi?" he asked with a sarcastic tone. 'Dinosaur Ryuzaki? The powerhouse player that was the runner-up of the previous tournament? Can Jou-kun spare a chance of beating him?' Yami inquired, deep in thought. "Fine! I'll take ya on!" Jounouchi spoke, clenching a fist in anger. Ryuzaki smirked. "Alright then." he said. 'What a sucker no matter how you look at him. I should thank Mai for such an easy duel.'
"Uh, Jounouchi! Wait a minute! Shouldn't you think about this?" Honda murmured and Jounouchi glowered at the brunet. "I'm not a ducklin'!" he snapped. "Wait! What does that have to do with anything?! You might be getting yourself into a duel you can't win and if you lose this, you could lose all your star chips and be booted off the island!" Honda protested. Mai only watched the exchange with a small smirk. 'What a simple guy. I wish I could play you again and win back my star chips but that would be a little immature of me. If Ryuzaki beats Jounouchi and I beat Ryuzaki afterward then in a way, it's like beating them both!' Myrrh seethed a little in anger with seeing Mai again. 'What is the matter with her anyway? Why is she always going after Jou-kun? It's obvious she's afraid of losing to Yami but she doesn't have to take it out on him.' She took a glance at Yami. 'Just wait and see! Yami will support Jou-kun just like he did last time and he'll win this duel without a problem!' After Honda and Jounouchi's little verbal spar, Ryuzaki pointed over to a duel box not far from them. "Is that battle box ok with you?"
"Yeah!"
"Fine then! I'll be waiting for you!" he spoke as he walked off, Mai following. "Get him, Ryuzakiiiiii!" she gushed. Jounouchi watched them leave before looking at Yami. "Yami, I have a favor to ask ya." he spoke and Yami turned to him. "In this duel...don't give me any advice." Jounouchi requested, surprising everyone.
"What are you saying?!"
"Are you nuts, Jounouchi?!"
"Ryuzaki is not a person you can beat easily!" Jounouchi only smiled. "It's pretty dumb of me, huh? In my mind, I'm yellin' at myself for what I just suggested. If I bet all my star chips in this duel and lose, it's all over for me...I won't be able ta save Shizuka. But...I want to win on my own for once!" he spoke, giving a determined look to them. "If I can win...Shizuka can win too! That's how I feel!" he finished and Yugi nodded, understanding completely. "That's how I feel too and I know you can win, Jou-kun!" Yugi said, then turned to them. "Come on! Let's root for him!"
"Yeah!"
"You're right!" Jounouchi smiled at them before he made his way to the duel box, everyone following behind him. But they didn't notice the slight look of fear that passed his face. 'Great, without Yami saying anything throughout the duel, even to Yugi, I'm worried. His voice always holds confidence and that normally gives me my confidence.' he thought as he entered the box, closing the door behind him. Sitting down, he brought out his deck and both placed them on the table. "Beat him, my faithful slave! There'll be a prize for you if you win!" Mai called. "You can do it, Jounouchi! Make his dumb dinosaurs extinct!" Honda shouted. Ryuzaki chuckled to himself. "The audience is pretty lively, huh? By the way, how many star chips are we betting?" Ryuzaki questioned. "All of them! All two of the star chips I have!" Jounouchi announced, placing his down. "All right! Two for me, too." Ryuzaki replied earnestly, placing his down as well. "This field is part wasteland and part grassland! My dinosaur cards will get a power boost because of the wasteland. Get ready, alright?" Jounouchi didn't respond but knew that his deck would be pretty strong but he knew of a way to win. 'With the same combo I used to defeat Mai.'
"Let's start!" Ryuzaki called and they drew their cards after they shuffled their decks. "You can do it, Jou-kun!" Myrrh called. "Get him, slave! Smash him into the ground!" Mai cheered, thinking that Ryuzaki would win the duel easily with his dinosaurs. Jounouchi looked at the cards in his hand and grinned. "This is so lucky!" he exclaimed. 'I can't believe I drew Baby Dragon and Time Wizard on my first turn! I already won this duel!' Ryuzaki watched him calmly. "I'll go first. I play Baby Dragon in defense mode!" Jounouchi claimed, placing the card onto the field. 'Now go ahead, Ryuzaki! Play whatever card ya like! Either way, yer dinos are done!'
"Ok then. I play this!" Ryuzaki called, putting the card onto the field. "Two-Headed King Rex!" Jounouchi gulped. 'Oh no.' Ryuzaki smirked. "Go, King Rex! Kill that Baby Dragon in one hit!" he commanded and with a deafening roar, King Rex stomped the blonde's monster flat. "No!" he cried and Ryuzaki laughed. "Don't you know anything about this game? You can't just put out your best and expect that I would let you play a combo! Use your head a little!" Ryuzaki jeered. "Jou-kun!" Yugi, Myrrh and Diamond called, worried for him. 'Great...I lost my combo first turn and already these dinosaurs look tougher than I thought.' Mai let out a laugh. "The match is already decided!"
"It isn't over yet! I know Jounouchi can win." Keara spoke as she watched the duel quietly by Yami and Aqua's side. "Whatever! Get him, Ryuzaki baby~! He's nothing but a lousy beginner!" Mai called, grinning like there's no tomorrow.
"Keara's right, Jou-kun! You can still win this!"
"Yeah, Ryuzaki's theme deck sucks!"
Ryuzaki huffed at the jabs before watching the other across the table. "C'mon! Hurry up and play a card!" he demanded. "Alright, alright!" Jounouchi drew his card and looked at his hand. 'There has to be something ta beat this thing!' The blonde looked at his Battle Steer and grinned, seeing as it had more base attack than the King Rex. "I have strong monsters too! I play Battle Steer! Now go and destroy that King Rex!" Ryuzaki laughed as Jounouchi made his move. "You dimwit! Did you forget that my King Rex gets a field power bonus from the wasteland?" he claimed and Jounouchi almost slapped himself. 'Great! Why did I forget 'bout the power bonus already?!' Mai laughed again at the second mistake Jounouchi made. "Flatten him!" she said cheerfully. "I will! King Rex! Dinosaur Foot Stomp!" he ordered as King Rex's attack increased to 2080 and flattened Jounouchi's Battle Steer, decreasing his life points down to 1720. "Ohh Ryuzakiii! If you beat Jounouchi, we can have a special duel! Just you and me!" she cheered. "Yeah, yeah." he grumbled, waving her off.
'I can't forget my real goal...to beat Kujaku Mai for humiliating me on the boat! I'll finish this idiot off quickly.' While Ryuzaki was deep in thought, so was Jounouchi. 'Ok...my side of the field is Sogen...the grassland! That's perfect terrain for warriors and knights! And I have loads of them in my deck!' Jounouchi grinned as he drew his card and picked up the next one he was going to play. "Here's my next card! Axe Raider in attack mode!" He placed the card onto the field. "And because of Sogen, he gets a field power boost!" he said as Axe Raider's attack rose to 2210. 'He should keep me safe for this turn while I think of something and after his turn, I'll defeat that King Rex.' he thought. Ryuzaki smirked as he drew his card. "I play a new monster. Sword Dragon!" Ryuzaki announced, slapping the card onto the field and the monster appeared with a hiss. "Go! Dino Tail Sword!" The monster roared and with a swing of its tail, Axe Raider was sliced in half before he faded off the field. "Great...he played a dinosaur card with an even stronger attack power!" Jounouchi sulked as his life points decreased to 1145. Yugi watched on with worry. 'Jou-kun will lose if he keeps this up.' Jounouchi looked down, a defeated look crossing his face. 'Aww man...am I not good enough to beat him...?' he pondered to himself before turning to glance over to Yugi. 'Yugi...whether it's you, Yami or Aqua...I need...' He mentally shook his head defiantly. 'No! That would be pathetic of me! I can't ask them fer help! I gotta win this on my own! It's a promise to myself!'
"My turn!" he called as he drew his card and examined his hand. 'None of these cards are good enough ta beat those dinosaurs. What can I do?' Amber eyes glanced at the Time Wizard. 'Yugi gave me this card...it has the ability to control time...take it forwards or backwards...but I don't know any other uses for it except for the combo I use to defeat Mai. Could it have some other hidden power I don't know of?' Jounouchi finally came to a decision and placed the Time Wizard face down. 'It might come in handy in some way.' Mai watched the move intensely. 'It's safe to say that must be Time Wizard! But knowing Jounouchi, he probably played it without knowing how to use it except for in that Baby Dragon/Thousand Dragon combo.' she thought then looked at Ryuzaki. "Ryuzaki! Jounouchi just played the Time Wizard!"
"Yeah, I know! It's cool! He doesn't even know how to use it truly so I have nothing to worry about!" he said. Yugi looked to the card as well. 'The Time Wizard...I hope Jou-kun can figure out more of the hidden power it holds.' Jounouchi drew his card before placing one onto the field. "I play the Rock Golem in defense mode!" Ryuzaki only laughed. "Defense, schme-fense! I'm just gonna kill everything you throw out! Go Megasaurus (or Megazowler)! Megasaurus Charge!" The dino duelist placed the monster onto the field and with a roar, the dinosaur charged into the golem, destroying it. "Fine then! How about this card? Swamp Battleguard!" The monster appeared onto the field. "Attack!" Swamp Battleguard charged in but Ryuzaki only laughed more. "Useless! It's only more prey for my dinosaurs!" he rasped as Sword Dragon countered and destroyed his Swamp Battleguard. Again, his life points decreased to 665 and Ryuzaki laughed even more. "Do you give up, yet? It will be pointless to go on!" Ryuzaki goaded. "Jou-kun!" Diamond called. Ryou shook his head with worry. "With that field power bonus on their side, those dinosaur cards are too tough for Jounouchi to fight! I just don't know what he can possibly do to beat them..." Ryou muttered. Myrrh looked down to Yugi. "Yugi! Isn't there a way Jounouchi can beat Ryuzaki? There has to be a way!" He looked up to her then looked down to the ground. "There is one way..." he whispered. 'There's a chance if Jou-kun uses the Time Wizard but doing so is a big risk and we don't know if he'll realize that if he does take that chance.'
"Then you have to tell him! He said for Yami to not give him hints but he didn't say anything about you! If you don't, he will lose!" Myrrh claimed. "She's right." Honda spoke. "Yeah, think about Jounouchi's sister. Just think about what happens if he loses." Diamond added. Yugi looked back into the duel box and was about to call out to him if Yami's mental voice didn't stop him. /Don't say anything, Yugi. We will not interfere with this battle./ he murmured. /But Yami? He said that you couldn't tell him how to win the duel! Not Aqua or I! I have to help him or else he may lose!/
/But a promise to me is a promise to all three of us, Yugi. If you help him, I would be breaking my promise to him./ Yugi looked down, hating to force Yami to break a promise in his need to help his friend. /Besides, if you rescue him from this predicament, that's when he will utterly lose. For Jounouchi, this is a battle against himself./ Yami explained. /Really?/ Yugi inquired. /Yes. The only thing we can do is watch him. Remember what he said earlier...if he can win, then Shizuka can win too./ Yugi nodded in agreement. /Yeah! You're right!/ he exclaimed happily. /And look at his eyes! Those aren't the eyes of somebody who's given up hope./ he added and Yugi turned to Jounouchi and saw the determination still flaring high. Yugi smiled brightly. "Jou-kun! You can win this!" Jounouchi turned to him and smiled before he drew his card. "Alright! I play this card! Flame Swordsman!" The warrior monster appeared onto the field, ready to attack. "So, you pulled out a decent card for a change! No matter, he's dead anyway!"
"Ya wanna bet? Go, Flame Swordsman! Attack!" Flame Swordsman charged in. "Megasaurus has the same attack power! Let's just see who wins!" Ryuzaki called as Megasaurus charged in. "Megasaurus Charge! Trample the Flame Swordsman!" Flame Swordsman held up his blade in preparation to defend and it became a standoff as the two monsters collided. Mai laughed with glee. "You have my condolences! Taking the charge of a dinosaur with thousands of pounds of force behind it. This match is over...huh?!" she began before gaping in shock as Megasaurus was sliced in half from the fiery blade. "Sweet! Flame Swordsman cuts down yer dinosaur!" Jounouchi cheered as Flame Swordsman made his attack. "How's that, Dino Breath? Say hello to the strongest monster in my deck! He's gonna whip your lizards off the board one at a time!"
"Go Jounouchi!" Kaiser shouted. "Yeah! You can beat him now!" Honda called. Ryuzaki snarled in anger as he looked at him. 'Dinosaurs are not lizards, you idiot! How dare you mock my dinos and hurt my deck!' Mai only laughed mockingly. "That was a lucky shot! There's no way Jounouchi can beat my slave-warrior, Ryuzaki!" Myrrh only huffed. "Whatever! Didn't you just lose to Jounouchi a few hours ago?" she retorted. "Hmph! As if! That was just bad luck...plus he cheated! Even a kindergartner could win once in a while with Yami telling him how to play the game!" Mai snapped and Yami snarled in anger. Myrrh and Mai glared at each other from the corner of their eyes before Myrrh turned back to the duel box. "You can win this, Jounouchi! Show her what you can really do!" Jounouchi took a glance at her and nodded. "You bet!" he replied before turning his gaze back to Ryuzaki. "Yer move, Lizard man! Lizman? Or maybe Lizzo?" he joked and Ryuzaki sneered in disgust before looking down to the field. 'Thanks to his Flame Swordsman, my dinos won't stand a chance against his fiery sword but my deck got a card that can beat it! I've got the ultimate power and he won't be acting smug for long.' Ryuzaki thought as he drew his card and it was another dinosaur monster. 'Rats...not the one I need...'
"I play Uraby in defense mode!" Ryuzaki called, placing the raptor monster onto the field. "Alright! My turn! Flame Swordsman, attack! Toki Enzan Ken (Fighting Spirit Flame Slash Sword)! Kill Twin Headed King Rex!" Jounouchi called and his monster jumped in to attack, dealing a critical blow to the dinosaur and knocking Ryuzaki's life points down to 720. "I can do this!" he said as his friends cheered from the outside. "Go Jou-kun! You can do it!" Yugi called happily. "Keep it up Jounouchi and you'll win in no time!" Honda cheered. Ryuzaki groaned in anger, knowing that he's letting Jounouchi get the upper hand. Mai was fuming, not enjoying this either. "Hey! What do you think you're doing?! If you're really my slave, fight with the pride of serving me! Kujaku Mai!" she snapped and Ryuzaki sneered, on the last thread of his patience with the woman. 'What a loudmouth...once I beat this guy, you're next, Mai! I'm going to get payback for what you did on the cruise here!' Jounouchi took a glance over to Yami and Aqua who were still silent but he could see that they were proud to see he was winning even without their assistance. 'Watch me, Yami! I'm going to win on my own!'
'Be careful, Jounouchi. Who knows what cards Dinosaur Ryuzaki could have...' Yami thought as he continued to watch. 'Don't settle in the glory of your victory just yet. Ryuzaki may definitely pull out a strong card that could beat the Flame Swordsman soon.' Ryuzaki drew his next card and growled. 'This isn't it either!' The dinosaur user placed the card down onto the field. "I'll play Crawling Dragon #2 in defense mode!" With that done, Ryuzaki gave the turn to Jounouchi. "Alright! Attack again, Flame Swordsman!" Flame Swordsman again dealt a crushing blow to the dinosaur monster as his friends cheered for him more while Mai was getting steadily more pissed. "Ryuzaki! If you lose this duel, I won't duel with you!" she screamed and Jounouchi grinned. "What's wrong, Dino boy? Are ya cards goin' extinct on ya?"
"Grr...shut up!" Ryuzaki growled before looking down to his deck. 'This is it! I just know it! I'll draw my ultimate card now and put this idiot in his place!' he thought as he picked up the card and smirked. "Meet my ultimate beast! The Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" Ryuzaki called, playing the card allowing the large, black dragon to appear on the field with a roar. 'Oh shit, that looks like a super strong card!' Jounouchi thought. "No way...!" Yugi whispered, surprised. 'The Red-Eyes Black Dragon is a very legendary and rare card! Collectors would pay hundreds of thousands of yen for it! And its attack strength is worth the money!' Ryuzaki laughed as he took a glance at Jounouchi's fearful state over his previous bravado of beating his dinosaurs. "This is my rarest card. Yeah, it's not as rare as the Blue-Eyes White Dragon but I spent everything I had to get this super-powerful card! The Red-Eyes Black Dragon is a dark monster, so I don't get a field power bonus but your card still doesn't have the firepower to take it on!" Ryuzaki stated, a grin still on his face.
"Go Red-Eyes! Black Fire Bullet!" he commanded and the dragon roared before letting out a large fireball of black and red flames engulfing Jounouchi's Flame Swordsman, defeating it and lowering his life points to a mere 65. 'No, he got my Flame Swordsman!' Yugi and the others watched from the outside, worried now since Ryuzaki had the Red-Eyes on the field. 'What do I do now? The Flame Swordsman was my strongest card...' he thought, looking down to the duel table with a heavy heart. Ryuzaki's grin broadens even more. 'I won!' Ryuzaki thought. "Not like I'm surprised or anything. That chump couldn't stand a chance against me." he muttered quietly to himself. 'Heh heh...not bad, slave! Not bad at all!' Mai thought as she watched with a smirk at seeing her suspicions confirmed that Jounouchi couldn't win a duel on his own without help from someone more tuned to the game. Myrrh looked down to Yugi with worry. "Yugi, tell me...is he going to lose this duel? Is there still a way how he can win now?" she asked. Yugi didn't say a word and neither did Yami or Aqua.
'There is a way...only one way. And that's with the card on the field! His Time Wizard! I wish I could tell him but I promise to not give advice to him. Yami and Aqua are sticking with this promise as well. I just hope he can figure this out on his own.' Yugi thought. "C'mon! Draw your card! I got people to beat today!" Ryuzaki shouted and Jounouchi picked up his next card. 'No good...I don't have a chance against that Red-Eyes. Could this be my last turn and I lose everythin' here?' Ryuzaki watched him and snickered under his breath. 'It looks like he's not going to use that Time Wizard he has on the board. Many know it's a scary card but a newbie like him will never realize what it can do...or even have the guts ta use it!' Jounouchi closed his eyes, ready to admit defeat. 'Shizuka...' he thought, knowing that now, he wouldn't be able to save her. "Go for it, slave!" Mai preened and Ryuzaki glanced at her. 'Wait a sec! Come to think of it...Mai lost to this guy when he used Time Wizard! In other words...if I can get my hands on that card, defeating her would be a breeze for me!' He turned back to look at Jounouchi and grinned. "Listen up, Jounouchi! There's a standard rule in trading card games: the winner gets to take one card from the loser's deck! So if I win, I'm taking that Time Wizard of yours! Got it?"
"Time what...?" he muttered as he looked back to him then down to the board. 'Oh, this...I forgot I put it on the board earlier for Baby Dragon...'
"Ok? I'll wager my Red-Eyes Black Dragon! Of course, that's if you beat me. If you can, it's yours...and this card alone is worth a few hundred thousand yen." Ryuzaki spoke and that had Jounouchi sitting up quickly. "What?!" he exclaimed. 'A few hundred thousand yen?! That kind of money would last me for months!'
"Hey! Wait a minute, Ryuzaki! I won't accept that kind of trade! This is my match!" Mai yelled. 'If Ryuzaki gets that Time Wizard card, I'll be in real trouble just like before!'
"You're my slave! Can't you just listen to my orders?!" she raged and Ryuzaki sneered at her. "I'm not your "slave", stupid! Don't think I am just 'cause I kept quiet and played along!" With them arguing, Jounouchi thought it over then grinned. "I'll do it!" he claimed.
"Townie!"
"Wench!"
"Dimwit!"
"Grr..."
'Why are those two getting so heated up and fightin' over it? Is it that good of a card? Is that why they're so desperate fer my Time Wizard? It has to be good! Yugi gave it to me after all! But the problem is I don't know what'll happen if I use it alone. I have no choice now...this is my last gamble! All or nothin'! If I lose this, I'll never save Shizuka!'
"I'll play this monster on the board...and use Time Wizard!" Jounouchi declared as he placed the monster onto the field in defense mode then flipped over his Time Wizard. "Huh...?" Both Mai and Ryuzaki responded, dumbfounded. /Do you think he figured it out?/ Yugi asked. /Let's hope so./ Yami murmured. "Go Time Roulette!" he called and the Time Wizard raised its staff to begin its spell. The spinner started to spin. "Now, the arrow of time has begun to turn! If I win...Time Magic! If I lose...Self-Destruct! It's all on fate now..." Jounouchi murmured as he watched the spinner. 'Come on! Let me have another chance!' he pleaded mentally. 'Please, Time Wizard! Don't fail Jounouchi now!' Yugi thought, anxiety showing in his eyes. Aqua placed his hands upon Yugi's shoulders, gripping them lightly as the spinner slowed to a stop. It ticked a few times before stopping on the win space and Jounouchi cheered. "Yes! I win! Go Time Magic!" Time Wizard waved its staff and soon, time rushed by thousands of years and once the passage of time came to a stop, Ryuzaki looked down to the field and gaped. "No! My dinos are gone and so is my Red-Eyes!" he exclaimed as his monsters were nothing but fossils in the wasteland field. 'Whew! And my monster barely survived...' Jounouchi thought. /This is great! Jounouchi came through with the Time Wizard! I was starting to worry so much about him./ Yugi whispered in relief. Yami nodded in agreement. /Ryuzaki's dinosaur cards are a force to mess with but even they couldn't survive the time magic./
"This isn't possible! Are you telling me that I lost?!" he growled as his life points decreased to 0 with the loss of his monsters to time. "Hooray!" Everyone, excluding Yami and Aqua but including Mai, shouted. Hearing her voice, Myrrh took a glance at her. "What was that I heard...?" she questioned suspiciously. "Oops~" Mai whispered, shrugging her shoulders as she was found out. Jounouchi looked over to his friends and smiled. 'Yugi...! It was luck but I managed to win on my own...' he thought then picked up the Red-Eyes from the field, seeing as Ryuzaki was wallowing in self-pity for his loss. "And I got a super-rare card out of it too!" The blonde cheered jovially as he left out the box and they walked off to leave Mai to chew out Ryuzaki for losing.
0
Zypher: And that's all for today's chapter. Hope you all enjoyed and will be waiting eagerly for the next chapter. If you don't know about Sekei, he's one of my OCs that I never really used much, since I never use Ryuzaki in my stories. I don't know if I mentioned him in my bio but he's considered one of Ryuzaki's close friends. To people, they may think of him as a sibling to Ryuzaki but he isn't compared to those like Diamond and Kaiser. Now, here's another page in our short stories. Hope you enjoy it.
-Shadow Realm: Jounouchi's Deck-
"Great job, Time Wizard! We're all glad you can through for Katsuya-sama!" Fier spoke as he looked to the tiny clockwork wizard. "It was nothing. Even though my spin is truly a win or lose situation, I do try my best to complete Jou-sama's wish to win a duel." he spoke. "Well? Why are we standing here for? We should go greet the newest addition to Katsuya-sama deck." Fier said and he along with Time Wizard and Ohtar who they met up with on the way, headed towards the dragon's den where Laito, Meneg and the newly acquired Red-Eyes Black Dragon stayed. The black scaled dragon was outside, being acquainted with the small, slightly wounded Laito and the wise Meneg. /"Will you be alright in your new home, Red-Eyes?"/ The elder dragon spoke. /"I'm sure I will fit in. Compared to my last master, I think Jounouchi-sama will treat me better than a card to flaunt around for its rarity."/ Red Eyes replied. Fier and Ohtar finally made it to the den and the dragons turned to see them. /"Fier! Ohtar! You're here!"/ Laito said happily as he flew into the swordsman's arms and Fier chuckled. "Yeah, we're here and we're fine." Fier said with a smile. /"But you both took so much damage! And Ohtar, you were literally cut in half by that Sword Dragon! Are you both sure you're alright?"/ Laito questioned. "Don't worry, Laito. We're fine and we'll heal up soon so we'll be prepared for the next battle." Ohtar reassured. /"Oh, ok! You wanna meet Akai now? She's a great friend already!"/ he chittered happily as he jumped from Fier's arms and dragged the two warrior monsters over to the Red-Eyes. /"Akai! Here's Fier and Ohtar! Fier's like the boss of the realm here!"/ She looked down to the two warriors and nodded her head in greeting.
/"It's nice to meet you both. Fier, I suppose?"/ she spoke, looking at him. "Yeah, that's me." he answered and she nodded again. /"I'm sorry for the massive damage you took from my attack. Hopefully, you are alright."/ Akai apologized. "Don't worry. I'm fine. You are an extraordinarily strong monster and Katsuya-sama is grateful to have a powerful monster as a part of his deck now." Fier replied and the dragon nodded. /"I'm happy to be accepted into the deck so easily. I thought it would take me years just like it did when I was in Ryuzaki's deck."/
"Well, if you wish, you can come and meet more monsters. I'm sure Laito won't mind giving you a tour. Right?" Laito nodded enthusiastically and Akai laughed. /"I'll be happy to meet more of my new master's monsters and get more adapted to his deck. I think I'll like being here if all the monsters are as friendly as the four of you."/ Akai said. "Don't worry. They are." Ohtar assured before they left the dragons to head back to the warriors' dorm. "I think Akai will do well here and will help Jou-sama into many victories." Ohtar spoke. "Yeah. I'm glad we have a powerful monster in our arsenal and from what she said, I think I'm even happier that Katsuya-sama got her from a master that couldn't treat her well." Fier replied. "Yep, I'm sure she will feel welcomed here. Let's go ahead and train before Katsuya-sama gets into another duel so we will be in top shape." Fier nodded in agreement and they both headed to the training grounds to spar with one another.
0
Zypher: And there, another end to another story. Hope you enjoyed. And before I go, I need another vote. In the manga, the duel in the Shadow Realm between Bakura and Yami doesn't happen because Ryou is still wary of placing the Ring (and the fact Ryou's already with the group which gives him all the more reason to not put it on and risk having Bakura try to kill them again) back on and won't do so until a later time. If you want me to place in that duel, tell me so and I will. If not, I'll continue on the path of the manga and both Bakura and Crimson will show at a later time which I won't mention where so I won't spoil anything.
Translations:
Ohtar - Elven for Warrior
Akai - Japanese for red