Whilst Lance, Chloe, Brandon, Theresa, Rajin, Andreas and Kimberly trained for the Battle City tournament on Duel Academy Island Michael was returning to his bosses' safehouse in Domino City having waited a day to let the heat die down, the safehouse was a small building near the docks of Domino City and he had just returned to Domino.
He entered the building and glanced around, wondering if anyone else was there, this was pretty much confirmed when he felt the cold steel of a gun against his head.
"State the password before I blow your brains out." A gruff, English voice said and Michael chuckled.
"We who hide in the shadows will always fight the darkness within." Michael said plainly, the owner of the gun stepped out of the shadows revealing a young man with greased black hair and blue eyes who was wearing a black cloak. "Now Damien, will you please put that gun away." Damien frowned and holstered the gun.
"You have a lot of nerve showing your face around here Michael." Damien said with a growl. "The police know about the attack on that Obelisk Blue student and are on the lookout for you and so does the boss."
"Is that supposed to concern me?" Michael asked with a chuckle. "He has another soul for his collection, that's all that matters."
"Maybe." Damien frowned. "But your trip to Duel Academy was supposed to be recognisance and nothing more."
"Ignore him Damien, the main point is that SHE will be competing." A thick Brooklyn accented voice rang out and Michael growled.
"Robert, what are you doing here?" Michael said as his eyes narrowed.
"Me and Damien where preparing for the tournament when you arrived." Robert said choosing to remain in the shadows. "Besides that your recognisance wasn't complete."
"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?" Michael bellowed. "What could I have possibly missed?"
"That girl you let go? According to our source at Duel Academy she's been added to the roster of competing duellists." Damien said with a frown. "And thanks to your little fuckup you can't go back and finish the job."
"Then we'll have our contact do some recognisance in my place." Michael said folding his arms. "We should've done that from the beginning since he's actually a student there."
"No need, I have several agents on the island already." A posh sounding voice from the other end of the room spoke up, the three men immediately stood to attention upon recognising the voice.
"Oh sir, I didn't realize you where there." Michael said respectively. "Are the other agents ready for the tournament?"
"Indeed they are, they have been training rigorously ever since the tournament's location was announced, and I trust I can say the same for you three?" The leader said stepping out of the shadows revealing him to be a tall, lanky man with short, silver hair in a cloak.
"I'm ready to finish what I started." Robert said.
"I was born ready." Damien smirked folding his arms. "Those punks from Duel Academy won't know what hit them."
"Do I even need to answer that?" Michael asked rhetorically. "You know that I'm the best duellist in your employ and that I am ready for any challenge, just look at what happened to that student I duelled."
"Ah yes, you beat the poor youngster in...six turns was it?" The leader said with a smirk. "Don't you normally beat your opponents in a shorter amount of time?"
"Heh, looks like the old man's slipping up." Damien chuckled only to be met with a glare from Michael, well he assumed it was a glare because he couldn't see his eyes thanks to the cloak but the way his head whipped around to Damien's direction seemed to indicate that.
"Let me make one thing very clear to you Damien." Michael said threateningly. "I am NOT slipping up, the boy just happened to get lucky with a couple of traps that's all." Michael said folding his arms. "Once I had THAT monster on the field however it was all over for him."
"Indeed it was." The leader nodded looking directly at Damien. "And as you are the weakest duellist in my organisation I'd appreciate it if you didn't bad mouth your superiors." The leader added and Damien frowned at that. "Now, speaking of Duel Academy, let's see what they are up too, shall we." The leader said as several TV screens turned on behind him revealing the Obelisk Blue Duel Field. "Ah, it seems Otto's brother is about to duel."
"What, that little squirt?" Damien scoffed. "Judging by his performance in his last duel we chose wisely when choosing between the siblings."
"Maybe we should watch this duel before casting judgement." Michael said as he watched the TV screen.
*meanwhile at the Obelisk Blue Duel Field*
"Okay then Rajin, who's going first?" Andreas asked as the two boys drew their hands, Rajin looked at his hand and shrugged.
"I don't mind either way, you can go first if you wish." Rajin said looking at his hand, Andreas raised an eyebrow before drawing his first card.
"Okay, I set three cards facedown and summon Catsnipped Kitty in attack mode!" Andreas said playing the card.
"He's summoning WHAT?" Lance shouted from the sidelines as the monster, if you could call it that appeared on the field, it was a blue kitten with several spiral designs on it (2/0/500) and Lance and Marcus nearly died of laughter when they saw the monster.
"You gotta be kidding me, is that a duel monster or the protagonist in a preschool TV show?" Lance said in between fits of laughter.
"I've seen plushies more intimidating than that thing!" Marcus added whilst Chloe and Kimberly, who were sitting behind the two boys, pinched the bridge of their noses in annoyance.
"I can't believe I'm saying this but they are making Otto look mature." Chloe muttered under her breath.
"The fact that anyone's making Otto look mature is a scary enough thought." Kimberly agreed. "And if you boys value your genitals you won't be making any jokes about female genitalia, understood?"
"Yes ma'am!" Lance and Marcus gulped in unison.
"Err, Andreas are you sure your more experienced than Chloe?" Rajin asked as he sweatdropped at the site of the monster. "I like cats and all but that thing's attack power is nonexistent!" Rajin added as he looked at his hand.
"Believe me; I get enough ridicule over this card from my own brother." Andreas said pinching the bridge of his nose in annoyance. "That said I end my turn." Andreas said and Rajin drew his card. "For this to work I need him to summon one of his weaker spirits." Andreas thought as he watched Rajin scan his hand...for a good 20 minutes. "Erm, Rajin...some of us do have class to attend to so we'd appreciate it if you made a move by day's end." Andreas said as he sweatdropped.
"Have patience Andreas." Rajin said.
"Marcus, I didn't stick around for his test duel, does he usually take this long?" Lance asked his fellow Ra Yellow student.
"He took even longer during our duel; I was beginning to regret not bringing any food to eat." Marcus said honestly at which point Lance put his feet up.
"Better get comfortable then." Lance said resting his hands behind his head.
"Just don't kick off your shoes, the last thing we need is everyone in the room going to the infirmary because of how bad your feet smell." Chloe muttered under her breath.
"Oh come on! I washed my socks...last month." Lance said and Chloe facepalmed.
"You're not helping your defence Lance." Chloe said simply.
"Okay, I'm making my move." Rajin announced and Marcus barely surpassed the urge to yell "hellujah" at the top of his lungs. "I set a monster in defence mode and end my turn."
"You...your ending your turn...what?" Andreas blinked as he drew his card. "Rajin, I have the weakest monster in my deck on the field in ATTACK MODE! Most duellists would take advantage of that."
"Most duellists are impatient." Rajin answered back. "I on the other hand am not."
"I'm pretty sure there's a difference between patience and just plain stupidity." Marcus said scratching his head in confusion.
"That kid's up to something." Eddie said once his own surprise wore off. "Why else would he defend against a monster with zero attack points?"
"Good question." Martin agreed.
"Err, anyway I switch my Catknipped Kitty to defence mode and I summon Enraged Battle Ox in attack mode." Andreas announced as the kitten knelt down with a soft meow and the Battle Ox appeared on the field enraged as his name suggested (4/1700/1000). "And unlike his other counterpart Enraged Battle Ox can deal damage even if he attacks a monster in defence mode and that's what he's about to do so go Enraged Battle Ox! ATTACK HIS DEFENCE WITH AXE SLAM ATTACK!" Andreas commanded and the Minotaur charged forward and raised its axe...only to change course and attack Catknipped Kitty instead. "What the hell was that?" Andreas blinked as a small golden lamp appeared on the field (2/400/1500).
R: 8000
A: 6800
"Allow me to explain, the monster your Battle Ox almost attacked was Ancient Lamp, when it's flipped up I can make the attacking monster attack your own monster." Rajin explained.
"I guess it's a good thing I switched Catknipped Kitty to defence mode then." Andreas lamented as he sent his monster to the graveyard. "I didn't even get a chance to use my monster's effect, oh well I have more tricks up my sleeve." Andreas thought before activating one of his traps. "Before I end my turn I'll activate a trap card called Beast Rising!" Andreas announced as a trap flipped up. "As long as this is in play I can remove from play one beast or beast warrior type monster target another monster on my side of the field, said targeted monster gains that removed monster's attack points in addition to its own."
"Ah, that sounds like a powerful trap." Rajin nodded.
"That's not all though, I activate a Spell Card called Summoner's Art!" Andreas said activating the spell from his hand. "To put it simply this card allows me to add one Level 5 or higher monster from my deck to my hand." Andreas said as he started searching his deck. "Ah, this shall do nicely." Andreas nodded adding his Big Koala (7/2700/2000) to his hand.
"Andreas has some powerful spells and traps in his deck." Eddie observed folding his arms. "Off course they are useless if he doesn't use them correctly."
"Good to see that the stuff I taught you still rings true." Martin nodded in agreement.
"With that I'll end my turn." Andreas said and Rajin drew his card.
"Ah yes, this will do nicely." Rajin said almost immediately (too the relief of everyone else) before removing Ancient Lamp from the duel disk. "I sacrifice Ancient Lamp to summon Dark Dust Spirit in attack mode!" The lamp disappeared from the field and in its place stood a hideous being with crimson skin and long silver hair (6/2200/1800).
"And there's the monster that will be haunting my nightmares for years to come." Lance gulped at the site of the monster.
"By summoning this spirit I can destroy all other faceup monsters in on the field." Rajin added as the spirit ripped open his own chest and a strong wing sprung forth sucking Enraged Battle Ox in.
"Make that the rest of my life." Lance gulped.
"Dark Dust Spirit, attack his lifepoints directly!" Rajin commanded as the spirit went to rip open his chest again.
"Sorry, but I don't need any more nightmares." Andreas said activating his traps. "I activate my other trap cards, Battle Instinct and Horn of the Phantom Beast!" Andreas said picking up a card. "Battle Instinct lets me special summon a Beast type monster from my hand if you declare a direct attack so say hello too Ape Fighter!" Andreas played the card and the ape in cargo pants appeared on the field (4/1900/1200).
"It's a pleasure to meet you Ape Fighter." Rajin said bowing respectfully and Andreas blinked in confusion even as Dark Dust Spirit resumed its attack.
"Err, I didn't mean that literally." Andreas blinked before shaking his head. "As for Horn of the Phantom Beast, this trap is treated like an equip spell that can only be equipped to Beasts and Beast-Warriors, I was originally going to use it on Catknipped Kitty but that went out the window, anyway the equipped monster gains 800 attack points." Ape Fighter grabbed onto a funny looking horn and blew into it as his attack jumped to 2700, it charged forward and gave Dark Dust Spirit a fierce uppercut shattering the hologram.
R: 7500
A: 6800.
"But that's not all, Ape Fighter against 200 attack points for each monster he destroys and when a monster equipped with the horn successfully destroys a monster I can draw a new card." Andreas explained as Ape Fighter's attack rose to 2900 and he drew a new card.
"Very well then, I'll set this card facedown and end my turn." Rajin announced as the hologram of the card appeared on the field.
"He's surprisingly calm about the fact that I have a monster on the field and he doesn't." Andreas thought as he drew his card. "No matter, Ape Fighter has more than enough attack points to give me the lead." Andreas thought before looking at his new card. "I activate the Spell Card Spiritual Forrest, as long as this is on the field any beast type monsters can't be destroyed in battle." Andreas announced as he played the card. "Better to be safe than sorry, Spirit Monsters can be lethal in the right hands." Andreas thought before pointing to Ape Fighter. "Ape Fighter, attack his lifepoints directly!" Ape Fighter pounded it's chest before charging at Rajin.
"What did I say about most duellists being impatient?" Rajin asked before activating his facedown card. "I activate my trap card Negate Attack which means my lifepoints are safe for the time being." Rajin said as Ape Fighter bounced of an invisible field.
"All right, I'll end my turn." Andreas said as Ape Fighter returned to his side of the field, Rajin drew his card.
"Hmmm interesting, I remove Dark Dust Spirit from play in order to summon Yamato-No-Kami in attack mode!" Rajin retrieved the spirit from his graveyard and pocketed it before summoning the monster and a wild looking man with various claws protruding from his back appeared on the field, he had wild looking hair and was wearing white pants with gold belts (6/2200/1200).
"So you removed that...thing...from the graveyard in order to summon something just as powerful?" Andreas asked raising an eyebrow. "Am I the only one not seeing a logical connection here?"
"You will in a moment." Rajin said picking up three more cards. "For starters I shall destroy Spiritual Forest via the magic of Mystical Space Typhoon!" Rajin announced as a tornado ripped through the spell card's hologram. "Like the monster I removed from play in order to summon him Yamato will return to my hand at the end of my turn but by then he will of fulfilled his purpose for I equip Yamato will the following spell cards, Axe of Despair and Orb of Yasaka."
"Oh great, this is the same combo he used on me during our duel." Marcus said folding his arms. "Because of that card he prevented me from levelling up my Horus and was able to turn the duel around."
"It's that bad?" Chloe asked.
"Let's just say that I'm glad Rajin isn't competing in the tournament." Marcus replied.
"As I'm sure your aware Axe of Despair increases my monster's attack to 3200." Rajin announced as Yamato's attack rose up to 3200. "As for the effect of my orb you'll find out soon enough, now Yamato attack Ape Fighter!" Rajin commanded and the warrior charged forward and slashed him with his axe.
"Damn it that was one of my best cards." Andreas muttered before looking at the lifepoint counter.
R: 9400
A: 6300
"Let me guess, that's the effect of your Orb?" Andreas asked with an annoyed grunt.
"You catch on fast." Rajin nodded. "When a Spirit monster equipped with my orb destroys a monster in battle that monster's original attack points get added to my lifepoints but that's not all, when Yamato destroys a monster card in battle his own effect kicks in allowing me to destroy one spell or trap card on your side of the field and I can't risk you using the effect of Beast Rising now, can I?" As Rajin said that Yamato charged forward and destroyed the hologram of the Beast Rising card with a swing of his axe. "That ends my turn and due to its other effect my Orb gets returned to my hand as well." Rajin said as Yamato returned to his hand and he and Andreas sent their respective cards to the graveyard, Andreas drew his card and smirked.
"All right, I summon Bazoo the Soul Eater in attack mode!" Andreas played the card and a large, blue mandrill appeared on the field staring down Rajin (4/1600/1900). "Like your Yamato Bazoo's effect revolves around removing monsters from play so..." Andreas said retrieving Catknipped Kitty and Ape Fighter from the graveyard. "I remove these two monsters from my graveyard in order to increase Bazoo's attack to 2200." The souls of the two removed monsters appeared on the field, Bazoo opened its mouth and sucked them in and as Andreas said it's attack rose to 2200.
"Wait, didn't he have a third monster in his graveyard?" Chloe realized.
"Yeah Enraged Battle Ox, maybe he's hoping to bring it back from the graveyard at some point." Brandon remembered. "That or he forgot."
"Now Bazoo, attack his lifepoints directly!" Andreas commanded and Bazoo charged forward slamming his body into Rajin's.
R: 7200
A: 6500
"Lucky for you Bazoo's attack boost doesn't stick around so I'll set this facedown and end my turn...and advise anyone squeamish to look away now." Andreas added as the hologram of the facedown card appeared behind the monster, everyone else blinked before seeing what he meant as Bazoo quite literally vomited up the two souls.
"ANDREAS THAT'S JUST GROSS!" Chloe yelled out from the sidelines.
"I did warn you." Andreas shrugged as Rajin drew his card.
"Whatever the case maybe I summon Susa Soldier in attack mode." Rajin said playing the card and a man with silver hair wielding a large sword appeared on the field (4/2000/1200). "Sure the damage I'll inflict to your lifepoints is halved for this turn but given the gap between our lifepoints that's a small price to pay, attack Bazoo the Soul Eater!" Susa Soldier charged at the monster and Andreas smirked.
"Or it would be if you were going to inflict any damage to my lifepoints, I activate the Trap Card Super Rush Recklessly!" Andreas flipped the card up and to everyone's surprise (everyone besides Andreas) Bazoo charged forward at Susa Soldier, the Soldier struck the beast with his sword but at the same time Bazoo slammed it's body into Susa Soldier sending the monster flying. "This trap card can only be activated if I have a Beast type monster on my side of the field, by sacrificing that beast type monster I can return one monster on your side of the field to your deck!" Andreas smirked as Rajin returned the monster to his deck and Andreas sent Bazoo to his graveyard.
"Well played, I'm afraid that I can't do anything else so I'll end my turn." Rajin said and Andreas drew his card.
"Excellent." Andreas thought before looking up at Rajin. "There was another reason I removed those monsters from my graveyard Rajin."
"Really? What was it?" Rajin asked curiously.
"This spell card, I activate Unicorn Beacon!" Andreas announced playing the card. "By removing one card from my hand from play I can special summon one Level 5 or lower monster that's been removed from play in attack mode and my monster of choice is Ape Fighter!" Andreas said removing the Big Koala he had added to his hand earlier and summoning Ape Fighter back to the field. "But that's not all; I also summon the Tuner monster Cherry Inmato in attack mode!" Andreas played the card and what could only be described as humanoid cherries appeared on the field (2/700/400).
"Tuner monsters?" Chloe asked confused.
"I'm guessing your stepdad never got around to telling you about them." Brandon asked and she nodded. "They are a special breed of monster used to summon Synchro Monsters, think Fusion monsters only with no limits on the material used and not requiring the use of a spell card, I'm not a big fan myself but from what I've seen some of these Synchro monsters can be very powerful." Brandon commented.
"Huh, maybe I should look into getting some for my deck." Chloe commented as she watched the duel.
"As Brandon just helpfully explained for me I can use this turner monster in combination with Ape Fighter to summon the Synchro Monster Zeman the Ape King!" Andreas retrieved the card from his extra deck and sent Ape Fighter and Cherry Inmato to the graveyard before summoning the monster, it was an ape in robes and armour who pounded his chest upon being summoned (7/2500/1600).
"That's an Impressive monster." Rajin commented folding his arms. "But I still have some tricks up my sleeve."
"Let's see if you're still so confident after my Ape King attacks, Zemen attack his lifepoints directly!" Andreas commanded and the massive ape charged forward and punched Rajin in the stomach.
R: 4700
A: 6500
Rajin got back to his feet with a wince. "I see your beast is as powerful as he looks."
"You don't know the half off it, for now I'll end my turn." Andreas announced and Rajin drew his card.
"Ah good, Mirror Force will let me destroy his monster next turn." Rajin thought before setting the card he had drawn. "I set this facedown and I summon Inaba White Rabbit in attack mode!" Rajin announced as the hologram of the facedown monster appeared on the field alongside a small white rabbit on some sort of pogo stick (2/700/500).
"What is this? Duel Monsters or a petting zoo?" Lance asked from the sidelines.
"Laugh all you want, Inaba White Rabbit has the ability to bypass your monster and attack your lifepoints directly so go Inaba White Rabbit!" The rabbit bounced up and down on the stick several times and on the last bounce it bounced towards Andreas...only to be grabbed by Zeman and slammed to the ground. "What...What just happened?"
"And you call me inpatient? On top of being a Synchro monster the Ape King has the ability to negate any attacks I chose and I happen to like my lifepoints the way they are thank you very much." Andreas folded his arms as the Rabbit bounced back to Rajin's side of the field seemingly dejected.
"That's broken Andreas!" Marcus shouted from the sidelines.
"Do you see Zemen on the forbidden list? No? Then I'm free to use him as I wish." Andreas shrugged his shoulders.
"He's right Marcus and frankly that's why I'm not a big fan of Synchro Monsters, most of their effects are ludicrously unfair." Brandon informed him.
"Oh please, I haven't even unveiled my Ape King's other effect yet!" Andreas said confidently. "Is that everything Rajin?"
"Yes it is." Rajin said returning Inaba White Rabbit to his hand; Andreas drew his card and looked at it.
"Mystical Space Typhoon, I won't need this, not with Ape King's other effect." Andreas thought before pointing to Ape King. "I attack with Ape King!" The ape charged forward and Rajin grinned.
"You've fallen for my trap, MIRROR FORCE!" Rajin announced pressing the appropriate button; however the card didn't flip up no matter how frantically Rajin pressed the appropriate button. "Wait! Something's wrong with my duel disk it's not responding to my commands!" Rajin said sweating bullets at this point.
"Nothing's wrong with your duel disk, that's just Ape King's other effect taking, well, effect, when he attacks trap cards can't be activated until after Damage Calculation." Andreas explained and Rajin's eyes widened before the ape's fist made contact.
R: 2200
A: 6500
"Can someone please tell me how that card isn't on the forbidden list?" Marcus exclaimed and Brandon frowned.
"You'd have to ask the Duel Monsters committee that." Brandon said as Rajin got up. "The fact still remains though, since Mirror Force can only be activated when the opponent declares an attack Andreas has pretty much rendered Rajin's trap useless."
"I end my turn." Andreas said folding his arms, then to his surprise Rajin surrendered.
"There's nothing I can do, your monster's too powerful." Rajin admitted and the holograms disappeared from the field, Andreas said nothing and made his way to the bleachers.
"Andreas, what the hell was that?" Theresa said stepping in front of him. "I know you wanted to win but he's 14 years old and you used that monster on him?"
"I don't need this." Andreas said brushing past her.
"You're no better than your brother." Theresa said causing Andreas to stop in his tracks.
"DON'T YOU DARE COMPARE ME TO HIM! I am nothing like my brother." Andreas snapped at her. "Yes, I wanted to win, yes I used a monster that he couldn't possibly beat but you know what? We need to be that ruthless at Battle City!" Andreas said frowning. "Do you think the other duellists would care if they find out that we're Duel Academy students? Do you think they'll care if they find out that Chloe is a rookie with two months of experience? Do you think they'll care if they find out that Chloe was abused as a kid...?" Andreas's eyes went wide when he realized that he said the last sentence out loud. "Oh, crap..."
"Nothing like your brother huh? You could've fooled me." Marcus said storming off.
"Wait Marcus..." Andreas called out to him but he wasn't listening, the next thing he knew he was spun around and slapped by a clearly upset Chloe who stormed off as well. "Open mouth, insert foot." Andreas muttered under his breath as he rubbed his sore cheek.
"As much as I disagree with his tactics, he does have a point." Eddie frowned as he stood up. "I'm going to find Chloe, see if I can get her to calm down."
"This is just what this school needs, internal conflicts between the students nominated for the Battle City tournament." Martin sighed before getting up. "I'm going to defuse that situation before Andreas ends up in the infirmary."
"So wait, what Andreas said about Chloe was true?" Evan said scratching his head.
"Pretty much, you really don't want to know the details." Brandon said pinching the bridge of his nose. "Andreas, I've only got one thing to say to you; you're an idiot." Brandon said before storming off.
"Brandon, wait." Theresa called after him but he didn't stop. "Andreas, you'd better start working on ways of apologizing to Chloe."
"I'm already ahead of you on that." Andreas said before turning to Lance. "Feel free to kick my ass."
"That won't be necessary, we already have one student in the infirmary and the last thing we need is two students in the infirmary." The three teens looked up and saw the Obelisk Blue Headmaster approaching them with a stern look on his face. "Questionable duelling practices aside you duelled well Andreas, keep that up and you'll do well in the tournament."
"Do you really think that's my top concern right now? I've possibly screwed up at least two of my friendships." Andreas pointed out.
"Yes, I noticed." Martin said with a sigh. "I think it'd be best for everyone if you apologize to her before the tournament starts."
"Agreed, off course it would help if I knew where to find her!" Andreas said annoyed, he started to leave the duel field but Theresa, Lance and Kimberly ran to catch up with him. "What? You're not pissed off at me as well?"
"Well yes we are and quite frankly I should be throwing you into the girl's locker room after gym for being so rude to Chloe but my main priority is making sure Chloe doesn't do anything stupid." Lance said plainly.
"Did you say anything stupid? What's that supposed to mean?" Theresa asked looking for Lance suspiciously.
"Look you know how badly her abuse...among other things that I won't mention on the off chance of her being around the corner...has affected her? Well, ever since her mother's death...she's been on ant depression meds." Lance said and Theresa stopped in her tracks.
"Anti-Depression meds...you know that's not funny Lance!" Theresa pointed out.
"You really think I'd joke about something like that? About one of my closest friends, who I'm the closest thing to a big brother she's had?" Lance pointed out and Theresa looked at him.
"You...you weren't joking." Theresa realized. "Shit, I had no idea."
"Look, I'm not going to discuss it any more but keep in mind that what she endured would probably reduce anyone else to a mental trainwreck." Lance said.
"You know this shit isn't exactly making me feel any better." Andreas pointed out.
"Do you have to make everything about yourself?" Kimberly accused him before sighing. "Look we're not going to make any process arguing..."
"You guys looking for Chloe as well?" The four teens looked up and saw Eddie standing in front of a door. "Good news is I've narrowed her location down to this room, bad news is I can't go in."
"Why can't you go in?" Lance asked and Eddie motioned above their heads, they looked up and saw the sign for the girl's toilets.
"Who said gentlemen are extinct?" Kimberly asked rhetorically.
"Anyone who's met my brother." Andreas pointed out.
"Oh right, touché." Kimberly admitted. "Well either me or Theresa are going in there, we're pretty much the only ones who can go in their without arousing suspicion."
"I'll go in, besides Lance and Brandon I know her the best." Theresa said stepping forward. "Andreas, be ready with your apology or we'll make you swim ten laps, in the nude, around Duel Academy Pear."
"Well if you're THAT eager to see me naked..." Andreas was cut off by simultaneous punches to the head from Theresa and Kimberly. "How about I just shut up?"
"You do that." Theresa said stepping up to the door and opening the door, it didn't take her long to find Chloe; she was sitting at the other end of the bathroom on the floor and curled up in a ball. "What Lance said about Chloe being on anti-depressants...damn it if I ever meet that dad of hers I'll chop his balls off with a rusty chainsaw." Theresa thought before walking up to Chloe and keeling down next to her. "Chloe, hey it's me, are you okay?"
"No, I'm not." Chloe said, her tone of voice made it clear to her that she had been crying quite a bit since slapping Andreas. "I never should've applied here in the first place."
"Chloe, you know that's not true." Theresa said putting a comforting hand on her unscarred shoulder. "Just look at all the friends you've made since applying."
"Friends, what friends are you talking about? One's an idiot who can't keep his mouth to himself and doesn't know the meaning of restraint; the others probably think I'm mentally ill or something." Chloe said, it was at that point that Theresa noticed that Chloe's blazer was off showing the scar on her right arm for the entire world to see.
"Chloe, don't even think about thinking along those lines." Theresa sighed before pausing. "That didn't make any sense did it?"
"Nope, none at..." Andreas said approaching the door but was stopped by two things 1. One of Chloe's shoes narrowly missing his head and 2. Andreas noticing the scar on Chloe's shoulder again. "Chloe, I know you're pissed at me but I just want to apologize."
"Why should I?" Chloe demanded.
"You forgave Lance for telling his headmaster." Andreas pointed out.
"Yeah but not until after I got my ass kicked by Brandon's Dark Scorpions." Lance pointed out.
"Err, why are you guys hanging out outside the girl's bathroom?" Brandon asked sheepishly as he approached them.
"Chloe's in there." Lance answered simply. "So is Theresa and Chloe's self esteem is about as low as Unhappy Maiden's attack points."
"Gee, I wonder who could've caused that." Brandon said sarcastically.
"At least I'm trying to apologize to her." Andreas said before pausing. "Whilst I am looking like a pervert with no sense of subtlety."
"Err; yeah let's take this someplace else before..." Lance started before pausing. "Brandon...how many teachers are behind us?"
"Err, all three of the headmasters for the Ra, Osiris and Obelisk dorms." Brandon said with a gulp. "No female counterparts though."
"Why do I keep testing my luck? It always ends badly." Lance gulped. "Gentlemen, this is not nearly as bad as it looks, Chloe and Theresa are in there and...I'm not helping our case am I?"
"Nope, you're not." Brandon said before pausing. "Has Martin told you two about..."
"Yes, he did." Jeff said pinching the bridge of his nose in annoyance. "Andreas, do you even know what subtlety is?"
"Yes...maybe." Andreas hesitated. "I'm trying to apologize to her and so far my attempts have been met with one of Chloe's boots nearly missing my head."
"Once again I wonder why?" Brandon said sarcastically and Andreas growled. "Basically Chloe's self esteem is in the toilet, no pun intended, because he can't keep his mouth shut!"
"I'm not surprised, look just try to get her back to her room at Osiris Red, have someone keep an eye on her just in case." Jeff said folding his arms. "That is unless you want to explain to a woman who actually needs the bathroom why several male students are hanging around the girl's bathroom."
"Yeah, I'm already ahead of you in that regard." Theresa said leading Chloe out of the bathroom. "I'm taking her back to Osiris Red, and I'll be keeping an eye on her for the rest of the day." Theresa said leading the younger woman away.
"Send me a text when she's feeling better okay Theresa?" Lance called after her.
"I will." She responded as she led the younger woman away, the Obelisk Blue headmaster turned to him.
"Lance, you know her better than anyone else here, will she be ready for the tournament?" Martin asked with a hint of concern in his voice.
"She will." Lance said looking off to the side a bit. "She may be emotionally fragile at times, and I don't think I need to tell you why, but she'll snap out of it in an hour or so."
"Okay, now if you excuse us we have lessons to attend to." Hamden nodded before the three teachers departed as did most of the students save for Lance, Kimberly and Evan.
"Lance...oh crap I don't know what to say at this point...how close are you to Chloe, really?" Evan asked.
"We're like brother and sister, me and my brother where the first ones she's told about her abuse." Lance said with a sigh. "May god help me if I ever meet her biological dad."
"It just seemed to me like there was something...deeper than that." Evan said and Lance's frown.
"There isn't and there never will be, you want to know the truth? I do care for her but not that much, you saw how she is and I'm worried that having to live with that would drive me nuts." Lance said before pausing. "I know I just sounded like a selfish prick but I'm just being honest."
"No worries, I understand." Evan nodded. "You ever thought the possibility that she feels the same way though?" Evan asked.
"Honestly? I haven't a clue." Lance shrugged. "I'm not a mind reader and if I was I'd be undefeated in Duel Monsters." Lance said before looking to the two Obelisk Blue students dead in the eye. "One more thing, no one else finds out about her abuse as a kid or do I have to remind you about what happened back at the duel field."
"You didn't need to say that to us." Kimberly folded her arms,
"Call me paranoid but I've noticed that most of the duellists here have mouths as big as their duel monsters." Lance said leaning against the wall.
"You're paranoid." The two Obelisk Blue students said simultaneously.
"Ha, ha, that was very funny." Lance grunted before kicking off the wall and leaving the building.
"Where are you going?" Evan asked and Lance glanced over his shoulder.
"Osiris Red Girls Dorm, I want to check on Chloe." Lance said with a grunt as he left, he made his way to the west side of the island and glanced around.
"Lance? What are you doing here?" Lance blinked before looking over his shoulder and saw the Osiris Red Headmistress.
"I'm checking up on Chloe." Lance said honestly.
"Ah yes, I heard that she was upset." Maria nodded. "Though you really should've had Jeff call me in advance,"
"Relax; I wasn't going to make any pit stops to watch girls get dressed." Lance reassured her. "Especially since Theresa and Chloe are in there and I actually value my ability to reproduce."
"Most boys do." Maria chuckled. "Just so there isn't any misunderstands I'll take you too her room myself."
"Thanks." Lance smiled as the two of them approached the dorm.
"What are you doing here young man?" Lance froze and turned around seeing a young woman with black hair in a ponytail and blue eyes in a Ra Yellow uniform.
"I'm checking up on a friend who lives here." Lance gulped. "Maria here can vouch for me." The woman turned to Maria who nodded.
"Sorry about that, being in charge of the Ra Yellow girl's dorm makes me suspicious of boys even looking at the girl's dorm." The woman smiled.
"You think you're paranoid? You should meet my parents." Lance joked before following Maria into the dorm; he ignored the looks and giggles he was getting from the female students as he followed Maria. "Maria, something's been bugging me since you announced that I, Chloe and the others would be participating in Battle City." Lance said and Maria stopped.
"Well, what has been bugging you?" Maria asked looking at Lance.
"As much as I like Chloe there's no way she's ready for a tournament like Battle City, hell she lost her first duel in her first tournament...granted it was against me but you get the idea." Lance said folding his arms. "I'm sure there are Osiris Red students that have been duelling for longer than Chloe has so why was she chosen?"
"That's a valid question young man." Maria admitted folding her arms. "And it is true that Chloe is the least experienced duellist in the dorm but there's something not many duellists know about, you met Eddie Roberts at the duel arena correct?" Maria asked and Lance nodded. "He was allot like Chloe when he applied, a hot headed troublemaking rookie who used a deck consisting of two types of monsters but the teachers and some of the students saw potential in him, much like Chloe, and look at what he's become."
"You know of Chloe's past so you know that it won't be quite that simple." Lance pointed out leaning against the wall. "Well, some of her past." Lance thought. "I know she's a quick learner of the game but Eddie hasn't been through what she has."
"True but it's also true that Eddie was in and out of prison for most of his childhood, we managed to straighten that young man out and whilst it'll be difficult with her this tournament will do her good." Maria said and Lance blinked.
"How did a guy with a criminal record get into Duel Academy?" Lance asked.
"How did I get in? It's simple, my folks where friends with the chancellor at the time, that's how I got in." Lance looked up and saw Eddie. "Lance right? You did well against that Obelisk Blue Student."
"And got my ass kicked." Lance said with a smirk. "Checking on Chloe as well?
"Yeah, she may be a rookie but she will be a tough opponent come Battle City." Eddie said with a nod. "That and the fact that she was abused disturbs me."
"Just be glad you don't know the whole story, it's far from pretty." Lance grunted. "So, you where saying about the reason why Chloe was chosen?"
"Ah yes, basically we selected her, and the others for that matter, because we believe that out of all the duellists at the academy that they have the most potential, Kimberly included." Maria said stopping in front of a door. "Speaking of Chloe this is her room."
"Thanks, I think I can take it from here." Lance said walking up to the door and knocking on it, he waited a few moments and the door was opened, not by Chloe but by Theresa.
"Oh hi Lance, what's up?" Theresa greeted him once her surprise wore off.
"I'm here to check up on Chloe." Lance said plainly. "And so is he." Lance said motioning to Eddie with his head.
"She's calmed down, we've been going over her deck and makeup kit." Theresa said letting the two boys in.
"Can I join in...going over her deck that is." Lance said quickly upon realizing what he almost said.
"Sure." Chloe said looking up from the bottom bunk of her bed, Lance sat down next to a table where the majority of her cards where and Eddie leaned against the wall.
"So...how are you feeling? Self esteem still in the toilet?" Lance asked and Theresa glared at him. "What did I say?"
"No, it's fine Theresa." Chloe said looking at the older student who nodded somewhat reluctantly. "It took a hell of a pep talk but Theresa restored my confidence, she used the fact that I was the only representative for Osiris Red in the Battle City tournament as motivation for doing well, those cards you see on the table? She's helping me reconstruct my deck using an old Spellcaster deck that she's retired."
"Yeah, my parents are so religious that they warned me about going to hell unless I retired that deck." Theresa said sheepishly.
"What, you're serious about that?" Eddie asked.
"As serious as I'll ever be." Theresa shrugged. "Her deck now contains some of the cards Evan used in her duel against him amongst other cards, but since that took her deck ten cards over the limit we selected some of her weaker monsters and spells to get rid of." Theresa added.
Lance blinked before looking through the cards Chloe was getting rid of. "A Man with Wdjat, Neo the Magic Swordsman, some of these cards has been in your deck since the beginning, are you sure?"
"I'm sure; the cards that Theresa gave me are more than worth it." Chloe nodded. "Besides I'll be keeping those cards in my side deck so I'm not getting rid of them completely."
"I did suggest trading them but Chloe insisted, I guess nostalgia can be a funny thing." Theresa commented.
"That it is." Eddie nodded. "I'm glad you okay Chloe, and if it comes too it I look forward to duelling you at Battle City."
"Guess what? We are looking forward to duelling you as well." Lance said looking up at the older man and Theresa nodded in agreement.
"Right, should warn you though that some of my old opponents are returning for the tournament, like Alex Fenix and Miranda Trayson." Eddie said and Theresa raised an eyebrow at this.
"You know them?" Lance asked.
"Not personally, Alex is a three time Semi-Finalist in three regional tournaments, his deck changes every time he competes, Miranda uses a Harpy deck and she's pretty lethal with them, she was a grand finalist at last year's Battle City tournament in London wasn't she Eddie?" Theresa asked.
"Yeah, I beat her in the last match of the tournament, she gave my deck a run for my money but I won the tournament." Eddie nodded.
"Knock, knock!" Andreas knocked on the door. "Err, if it's not too late I want to apologize for my comments earlier Chloe."
"Apology accepted Andreas, next time though keep your comments regarding my past too yourself." Chloe asked.
"Well he was right though, because of your status as Duel Academy students you'll be seen as easy targets by the other duellists; you're going to have to prove them wrong by showing no mercy." Eddie said before his cell phone went off. "I'm heading out to answer this." He told the others before leaving the room.
"So that's why you used that Synchro monster against Rajin earlier." Lance commented folding his arms. "If I see you pull a similar stunt again though expect an asskicking."
"You just don't want to admit that I'm right." Andreas said as Eddie entered the room.
"Well, my ride's arrived so I'm off to New York for the tournament, see you there." Eddie said walking off.
"Hey Eddie, me and the other students have an agreement not to duel each other until the Semi-Finals, any chance you could stick to that?" Lance asked him.
"You want me to do that for a bunch of duellists from my old stomping grounds? Sure." Eddie nodded before leaving.
"What about Kimberly? Does she know?" Theresa asked and realization dawned on Lance.
"I knew I forgot to ask her that, any chance you could next time you see her?" Lance asked and Theresa nodded.
"I will." Theresa said before walking off. "Chloe, are you going to be okay for a few hours? I'm heading back to the Obelisk Blue Girls Dorm."
"Yeah, but if I'm feeling down I'll text you." Chloe said as the older student left. "You ready Lance?"
"You mean for the tournament? I was born ready, and with your new and improved deck you'll be a force to be reckoned with." Lance said before looking at his deck. "Actually I'll think I'll stop by the Duel Academy Card Shop and pick up some fire packs, I've been meaning to update my deck as well." Lance said before leaving. "We need to be ready for anything in this tournament."
"Agreed." Chloe nodded as her friend left, as Lance left Theresa watched him from a small distance.
"Damn it, I want to warn them about the Seal of the Orichalcos but if they spread word among the others I'll be in big trouble." Theresa thought before leaving the dorm. "He's right though, we'll need to be ready for anything come tournament time."