Zypher: Ok, I lied. I didn't get this out sooner than you all were expecting but I'm working on it now and here's the finished product. So here we are with the Jounouchi and Keith duel that you all must be waiting for. I thank all of those that reviewed the last chapter so here's the next for you. Enjoy.
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Yami no Game: Dark Saga
Chapter 16
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After the announcement was made of Yami's win, Mai stood and walked from the platform. Yami stood as well as the others ran down to congratulate him on the win. "I was worried 'bout ya for a second but I knew you'd pull through." Jou cheered. 'Yes, but I had many to thank. Yugi for his support and Mai for showing me what I was on the verge of losing.' They heard faint clapping and turned to see Pegasus watching with mirth in his hazel gaze. "Good work, Yami-boy! And to think, I wasn't expecting you to pull through~" Yami growled, eyes narrowing as he send a glare in Pegasus' direction. 'You better be ready, Pegasus. I'm only steps away from reaching your domain!' he thought venomously. "We will now start the second half of the tournament! Will the next two duelists please step forward!" Yami turned to glance over to Jou who flinched. "Well, it's time, Jounouchi. Go on." Yami spoke before moving away from the table. 'I'm sure not ready for this.' he thought but brought up his game face as he stepped forward.
"Alrighty then! Here goes nothing!" Keith was already on the other side, lounging about with his feet propped on the dueling table. He gave a mediocre yawn and Jou seethed with anger. "Hey! Get your feet off the table!" he barked. Keith glanced over to Jou over the rim of his glasses and chuckled. "Shit...a baby like you's gonna fight me? Do you really think you can beat me?" he questioned. "I don't like seeing the bottom of anyone's boots but you are about a worthless as dog crap on the soles of mine!" The other blonde gave another laugh but looked over when Yami gave a hiss in disdain. "Such filth like ya don't even deserve ta roam the dueling world! This is a duelist's battlefield and if ya desecrate it, obviously that means you're not meant for it." Keith gave a snort. "Yeah, it's a battlefield alright but does your brat of a friend really have the gall to be called a duelist?" Keith gave another chuckle and Jou growled. "What'd ya say...?" Another laugh from Keith before he revealed the card. "Remember this? I hear you need one of these to participate in this here tournament. I'm sure that you also need this card just to sit at this table. Right, Jounouchi?"
"Yeah, yeah! I know that!" Jou muttered as he dug in the pocket he kept it in but found it was missing. "What the...?" He dug in his other pocket and found it wasn't there either. "Aw hell...where is it?" he murmured to himself, checking his pockets twice over and still nothing. "Ugh. Jou! You didn't lose that card, did you?!" Kaiser hissed. Keith smirked and looked to Croquet. "Hey you! Since the baby doesn't have that card, does that mean he can't duel?"
"Yes! Those without the card will be disqualified!"
"Hey! Hang on one sec here! I know I have that card somewhere!" Jou snapped. 'I know I have it! Aqua handed it to me just last night so there's no way how I could have lost that fast!' he thought in a panic. Keith was still smirking as he held Jou's card in hand. "Guess you're shit out of luck, kid." he spoke, thinking to himself how stupid Jou was that he will never learn that he stolen the card from him the night before. 'You win some, you lose some. That's how the dice roll in the world of games and you fail that test big time!'
"Jou! You must have left the card somewhere!" Yugi called and Jou had a light lit up in his head. "You're right! It must be in my room somewhere…" he murmured before running off. "I'll be right back and I'll have that card with me!"
"You have five minutes!" Croquet called and Jou stopped in horror as he turned to look to the older man. "What?!"
"Like I said. You have five minutes. If you do not possess the card within the time limit, you are deemed disqualified and Keith will win by default."
"But that isn't fair!" Myrrh cried. "Jou won't be able to make it to and from his room in five minutes!" Jou didn't risk a single second and bolted towards the double doors leading back to the rooms. Yugi watched him go before turning to Yami. "Do...do you think he'll make it in time, Yami?" he asked softly. "I'm sure he will. But I feel that something's fishy going on here." Yami murmured, gaze trained on Keith.
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Jou ran through the halls for all his worth, praying for the best to come out of all this. He didn't notice that he came by Diamond, Honda and Ryou who were coming up from the dungeon area. Honda's mind wiped clean of Bakura and Crimson helping him the night before while both Ryou and Diamond not knowing how they got there. Ryou had his suspicions about it having some connection to the demon with his honeyed words that has taken host within his body once more. Back in the main room, Keith was still lounging around. He was getting irritated and looked to Croquet, asking him if the five minutes were up yet and he was given a response of it only being three minutes hat has went by as of now. He gave a sound of annoyance. 'This is the most useless five minutes of my life! Hurry it up so this kid can fail and I can get my revenge back on Pegasus for what he has done to me!'
Yugi gripped onto Yami's arm, looking up to him. "Yami...five minutes isn't going to be enough time for Jou to get back! He's going to be disqualified at this rate!" Yugi whispered. "Shit, kid! Just shut up alright!" Keith called and looked to Croquet again. "As for you, just disqualify the little shit already! He's not gonna be back on time whatsoever! For all we know, he used losing that card as an excuse to dodge this duel cause he knows he won't win against me!" Keith gave a raucous laugh. "He's nothing but a chicken and is probably bawling his eyes out!" Aqua gave a roar, shocking Keith from his taunting. "I suggest you button that yap of yours before I rip it off! You've disrespected Jounouchi enough and I'm getting tired of your banter! He will come back and he will wipe the floor with your ass!" he snarled. Keith actually flinched at the anger radiating off of him and stayed silent. After dealing with the wound from Yami's bite from last night, he didn't even want to risk what Aqua could do as he was bigger and held more teeth naturally.
"The boy has one minute left!" Croquet called.
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Jou panted hard as he returned back to the double door within the time limit but still empty-handed. 'I...I couldn't find it anywhere.' he thought and closed his eyes as tears threatened to spill. 'I came to this island in hopes to save my sister and duelin' was the only way...but ta come this far and fail in the end. I guess it was nothing but luck that drove me this far...' He slammed a fist onto the floor. "Why am I so stupid?!" he cried to himself. 'Shizuka...I can't even brin' the light to you again...forgive me...' He didn't hear anyone walking before him until a familiar voice caught his attention. "Stand up, Jounouchi!" Mai called. Jou reacted slightly but didn't turn to look her in the eye. "Hey! Save those tears for if you lose the duel!" He finally glanced up to her before turning his head away. "Mai...don't even look at me..." he whispered. "If you don't want anyone looking at ya, why'd you come in the first place?" she questioned before sighing and reached into her pocket, taking out a folded handkerchief. "Here. Take this." Jou looked back to her once again and saw the item. The blonde was silent for a moment before reaching out to take the cloth from her. When he touched it though, it was already wet from her tears.
"Kaiser told me about your sister." she murmured and Jou looked to her again. "Kid, don't give up so easily on those dreams of yours. That tear you just shed...let that be the light of hope." she spoke before walking past him. Jou watched her go before looking back to the cloth. He was about to wipe his tears away when he felt something wrapped within and unraveled the handkerchief to see it was Mai's qualification card. "I don't need it anymore." she whispered as if she knew that Jou finally noticed the card in his hands. "Mai..." he whispered. "Go on. Get going! You don't have time for the idle chit chat!" she spoke, turning to him again but with a smile on her face. "Show that low down Keith whose boss around here." After that was said, Mai walked off and Jou smiled before turning back to the doors and to his destiny. His friends turned and smiled. "Jou! You made it!" Myrrh cheered. "We were getting worried about you." Kaiser added.
He held up the card to Croquet as he walked over to the dueling table. "There! Ya satisfied now! Here's your stinkin' card!" he muttered. Croquet flinched, whispering to himself that Jou made it right on time and Keith cursed his luck. "Now, move those feet of yours so we can duel!" Jou demanded and Keith chuckled before doing so. "Guess we will. But get this kid, once you sit down, I'm showing you the experience of Hell itself! I'll beat you down in it and make sure that you'll be reminded every day!" Keith laughed and Jou gulped slightly. Aqua walked over a placed a hand over his shoulder. "You'll do fine, Jounouchi. We all put our trust into you winning this duel." he spoke and Jou thanked him for the confidence before he and the rest left to head back up to the second floor to watch. They pulled out the decks and gave a quick shuffle before setting them on the table. When they were both prepared, Croquet gave the signal for the duel to start. They drew their five cards and Keith gave a smirk. I'll go first and let me warn you, I'm fighting with a machine deck and this will be an experience of Hell at its finest! Go, Pendulum Machine!" he called as the large machine monster in resemblance to a pendulum only with a blade appeared on the field. 'Machine deck...' Jou thought and prepared for what's to come. 'I'll beat this guy...I have ta. I have ta gain that prize money ta save my sister's eyes...'
"My turn!" Jou called as he pulled out his next card. "I play Kung Fu Fighter Ultimator in defense!" The monster appeared on the field in defense and Keith gave a laugh. "That card's is not even worth my time!" he jeered, drawing his next card. "Now Pendulum Machine, turn that monster into dog food with Splitting Blade Death!" The monster came to life as it reached out, grabbing Ultimator as the bladed pendulum reared back before swinging forward, slicing Jou's monster in two. Keith ended his turn and Yami smirked slightly. 'You succeeded with that. Now all you have to do is defeat it, Jounouchi. Hopefully you know the secret power of the Pendulum Machine...'
"Hurry the fuck up, kid! It's your turn!" Keith called out. "I know that! Keep ya pants on!" he hissed in return as he drew his card and smiled. 'Good. I got a good one.' he thought as he set the monster onto the field. "I play Giltia the Dark Knight and his Soul Spear magic will turn that monster of yours into scrap metal!" Jou said and Yami clenched his teeth. 'No! Jounouchi!' With 1850 attack, Giltia casted his magic towards Pendulum Machine. The blast hit but after it passed, the machine was still standing. "Hey! What's the big deal here?!" Keith laughed again with the same taunting tone. "My machine deck monsters are equipped with the best! All of them wear full metal anti-magic armor! Magic attack won't do shit against them!" he explained, getting another good laugh out from Jou's stupidity. 'Great! This won't turn out well!' he thought in panic. "My turn again, kid!" Keith drew his card and grinned. "I sent out Land Ironclad TM-1. The Launcher Spider!" he called, sending out the 2200 attack point monster on the field.
"Take aim and fire!" Launcher Spider readied its attack, opening up the hatches on its shoulders and revealing the multitude of missiles ready to launch. They soon shot out, all targeting Giltia and with the resulting explosion, Giltia was destroyed and Jou's life points shot down to 1650. "Can't you see you're no match for me, ya little shit?!" Keith reprimanded and Jou cursed. 'He's definitely stronger than I thought! No wonder he's the ex-champion.' he thought. Yami growled slightly and Yugi comforted him with a hand on his arm. 'So, Keith's deck is made up with heavyweight machine monsters! With that kind of advantage along with their resistance to magic, he would grind his opponents into the ground with sheer power force.'
/Yami...Jou is gonna win, right...?/ Yugi asked through the mind link. /I'm sure he will, little one. He'll defeat this fool with no problem as long as his struggles doesn't prevent him from making the wrong choice in cards along the way./ Yugi smiled at the reassurance before looking back down to the duel. "Alright!" Jou murmured as he drew his next card. "I play one card face down and I send out Axe Raider in defense mode!"
'Man...this duel won't end quickly enough if I scare him into defense...' Keith thought as he drew his next card. 'Guess I'll trap him with my own card and end it quickly!'
"I'll play a face down as well then I play this card in defense!" he said, placing the card onto the field and the deadly devil Zoa in defense. "Well, I'm done here! Take your turn!" Jou shivered as he looked down to Keith's new monster. "Man, that card looks tough..." he whispered but grinned as he drew his card. "But I have the combination to beat it!" Aqua examined the new card on Keith's field. 'A simple dark monster. Nothing special so Jou can defeat it easy...unless...' His eyes widened at the revelation. 'No...! It's a trap!'
"I play Flame Swordsman in attack mode along with the spell card, Salamandra!" he called as the swordsman appeared on the field, his large fire sword imbued with the magic of the deadly flame serpent. "Now go! Toast that demon with Salamandra!"
"You idiot! You didn't really think I'll leave a monster unattended to be destroyed so easily, do ya!" Keith spoke as he flipped over his trap card, revealing Metalmorph. "Now, Zoa become a machine monster, raising it attack and defense and also giving it the same abilities as every other machine monster in my deck!" Jou gasped as Salamandra came in contact with Metalzoa's new form along with its new attack of 3000. The attack rebounded and came at Flame Swordsman, destroying it and decreasing Jou's life points down to 1150. Keith gloated. "You really are a fucking moron and a top notch idiot to boot!"
"Jou!" Myrrh cried in fear. "Don't you dare lose here, bro!" Kaiser called, glaring death at Keith if they lost this opportunity to save their sister. "And you know what's best! It's still my turn! Now let's rip through those puny defenses of yours!" Keith cackled. "Since you're defending with Axe Raider..." he started as he drew his card. "Let's end that little charade here and now! I play Stop Defense!"
"No!" Axe Raider shifted from defense to attack and Myrrh gasped. "No...if Metalzoa hits with that attack...he'll lose..." she whispered. "Game over, kid! Metalzoa goes in to strike!"
"Jounouchi!" Nearly everyone on the second floor cried. 'Guess this is the end for this valiant little boy...' Pegasus though as he watched and waited for the finishing blow. But before Metalzoa's claws could pierce Axe Raider, it disappeared from sight. "What the...!" Keith hissed. 'Where'd he go?!' He soon found out as his monster gave a roar of defeat, pierced by the spikes within the large gap in the field it fell into before fading off the field. Jou grinned with mirth as he showed Keith his trap card. "Nice try, Keith, but your hulkin' tin can fell for my Chasm of Spikes trap card! Now be prepared ta lose 1/4 of your monster's attack points!" Keith growled in anger as 750 of his monster's attack came from his life points, decreasing his life points down to 1250. "Sorry there, Keith. Ya may be an ex-champion with some skill but I guess ya haven't fallen as low as you can go just yet! And I'm gonna make sure ya hit way past rock bottom!" Jou gloated as they faced off again, one of Keith's strongest machines now a thing of the past.
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Zypher: And there's the first half of this duel. I would've continued with the whole entire duel but it's way too long compared to Mai and Yami's duel so it's being split into two parts. I'll be getting to work on the next half and I promise you, it won't take as long as it did to get this one out. And before I forget, I want to know if you all still want the little Duel Monster stories at the end still? If ya do, I'll have a nice one prepared for you all after the outcome of this duel in the next chapter. Well, hoped you enjoyed this long awaited chapter and I'll see you all soon with another one. -waves- See ya later!