It had been an hour since Chloe's duel with Damien and naturally word had spread among the city's duelling population that both competing duellists had been injured in the first duel of the tournament, as far as the rest of the duellists where concerned Damien had been put into a coma due to a malfunctioning Duel Disk but only a handful of them knew the truth.
One such duellist was Alex Fenix and even he didn't know the whole story, he was currently enjoying a drink at a small bar near where he had had his first duel of the tournament defeating some kid who had apparently won his regional championship, it had been a relatively easy duel and thankfully he hadn't hospitalized him in the process.
"Give me another." Alex said putting the now empty glass on the bar counter; the bartender nodded and started pouring him a drink.
"Still haven't heard of manners, hmmm Alexander?" A feminine voice with a Southern Drawl said and Alex turned around and saw Miranda behind him.
"I'm not in the mood Miranda, go bug someone else." Alex grunted turning his back to her.
"It's because of that Duel Academy duellist, the one who got injured, isn't it?" Miranda asked sitting down next to him. "I saw you on the news footage so I know you where there."
"It is." Alex sighed. "She was a mess throughout the duel once that punk's attacks drew blood, to the point that I could tell that it hurt her to move let alone do anything Duel Monsters related, it's a miracle that she got away from that with minor injuries."
"I don't like seeing duellists get injured myself Alex, I'm just glad she'll be okay." Miranda sighed. "So, injuries aside, how did she do?"
"She was obviously a rookie, couldn't tell you how long she had been duelling but I do know that much, but she did well and knew how her cards worked so there's definitely potential there." Alex said as the bartender handed him his drink. "And she was the Osiris Red Student; I want to see the other kids in action now."
"Yeah, no kidding, the fact that she came back from a lifepoint difference of 7800 impressed me enough." Miranda nodded before ordering a drink for herself. "I heard one news station speculate that she rigged her own duel disk on purpose."
"That's bullshit Miranda; she didn't seem the type to do something like that." Alex shook his head. "Besides, she's the same age as my kids; the day that someone in that age group acquires the knowhow to do something like that is the day that I eat my duel disk."
"What a coincidence Alex, those were my thoughts exactly." Miranda nodded in agreement. "Never mind the fact that the news was speculating on a story involving two hospitalized teenagers."
"That's another reason why I don't bother with News Stations." Alex agreed. "So, how are you doing as far as duels go?"
"I haven't found an opponent yet but I'm still looking." Miranda said with a sigh. "I don't intend to duel those Duel Academy kids anyway, I want to see how many of them make it to the semi finals."
"Yeah same here, except for the fact that, since I have kids, I want to let them have their fun first." Alex smiled. "As for me I just beat some kid who won his regional tournament, he didn't last too long and I got a sweet card out of it." Alex said holding up the spell card Power Bond.
"Running a machine deck this time huh? Where do you get the money for all these cards?" Miranda asked as the bartender brought Alex's drink over.
"Those regional tournaments I entered gave me some sweet prize money for winning, that and my regular construction job." Alex shrugged as he downed his beer in one gulp. "I'm off to find another duel."
"See you around Alex." Miranda said waving to him.
"Hey Miranda, there's one more thing." Alex said stopping at the door and glancing over his shoulder at the younger woman. "Don't underestimate those Duel Academy kids, you might just regret it."
"Right, thanks for the warning." Miranda said as Alex left.
*meanwhile at the hospital*
"Damn it, what's taking so long?" Lance asked as he paced back and forth, the teachers had fronted the money for Chloe and Damien's hospital stays since neither teen had insurance and Chloe's parents had been called on the way over, they where currently in the waiting room waiting to visit Chloe.
"Lance, I know you're worried but pacing back and forth won't help." Brandon said putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Besides you heard the doc, she sustained minor injuries and needs her rest."
"I know man." Lance grunted clenching his fists. "Damn it, I should've accepted the duel in Chloe's place, then she wouldn't be injured."
"Lance, blaming yourself won't help either." Brandon sighed. "Besides, do you think your siblings would enjoy watching their older brother get injured?"
"I would've been able to take it." Lance said finally sitting down on a chair. "But Chloe on the other hand, where do I even begin? She's a rookie; she hasn't been in a situation like that before."
"And she's tougher than she looks." Theresa said reassuringly.
"I know but..." Lance started but stopped when he saw the doctor approaching them.
"Chloe Richardson is ready to see visitors." The doctor said and all the teens and teachers got up and went to her private room and entered it, Chloe's arm was stitched up and her abdomen was bandaged up and she was in a hospital gown, before he entered however Jeff turned to the doctor.
"Doc, will she have to stay here much longer?" Jeff asked.
"Well the blood loss was minor all things considered and she will be in pain for another hour by my estimate, she should be ready to leave and duel again in an hour or so though I'll have to advise that she take it easy whilst duelling." The doctor responded after checking his notes. "As for her opponent it's hard to say, duel induced comas are so rare that we don't typically have a set time frame for recovery."
"Thanks." Jeff said before entering the room.
"Hey guys." Chloe said sitting up with a wince. "I was starting to get bored without you."
"We're just glad you're okay." Lance said with a small smile on his face. "No thanks to Damien mind you." Lance said bitterly.
"Lance, I defeated him that's all that matters." Chloe said plainly. "Though the fact that I got a hospital stay out of the deal isn't exactly fun."
"That reminds me actually." Martin said reaching into his pocket. "Here's your prize from the duel, a Locater card and his rarest cards." Martin said handing them over.
"I thought that Seal thingy was his rarest card?" Marcus blinked.
"Technically it was but I don't think she wants anything to do with it." Martin said and Chloe nodded in response taking the cards.
"Besides Marcus, these will be perfect for my deck." Chloe said swapping out her Unhappy Maiden and Battle Warrior for the two cards. "Speaking of the seal, why haven't I heard of it before?"
"I must admit, I was wondering the same thing." Lance agreed and his siblings nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, you'd think we'd of heard of such a powerful card before." Marcus chimed in.
"I think there's a reason we've never heard of it, just look at what happened to Chloe and her opponent." Andreas said sternly.
"Andreas is right but not for the reasons he thinks." Martin said with a sigh. "Truth is the Orichalcos was supposed to be destroyed years ago by the first Battle City champion Yugi Moto but apparently it's returned, I must warn you that the card is incredibly dangerous, if you lose whilst that card is in play your soul will be taken from you."
"That's what happened to Nathan and Damien?" Lance asked and Martin nodded. "Why didn't you tell us sooner? We could've prepared for any duels involving that thing!"
"I'm with Lance." Marcus nodded in agreement.
"I must admit, I am wondering the same thing." Andreas agreed.
"Guys, we wanted to tell you." Theresa said causing everyone's attention to turn to her.
"Wait, what? You knew all this time?" Lance asked, the tone of his voice making it clear that he didn't know whether to be confused or angry.
"Me, Theresa and Kimberly knew." Brandon nodded. "Quite frankly you guys weren't supposed to learn about the seal until you reached Obelisk Blue, obviously given the circumstances we can't keep the secret from you any longer."
"Lance, I'd suggest sending your siblings out of the room." Hamden said turning to them. "I think they've seen enough of the seal for one day."
"But I'm only two years younger than Lance!" Mike protested.
"Mike, I want you to leave, now." Lance said sternly, Mike gulped and went to leave the room. "Actually hold on." Lance said reaching into his pocket and handing over a five dollar bill. "I saw a vending machine in the waiting room, maybe you can get you and Sophie something to eat."
"Thanks bro." Mike said taking the five dollar bill and leaving with Sophie.
"You where saying?" Lance asked turning to the teachers.
"Truth is Lance...Duel Academy policy says that only students in Obelisk Blue can learn about the Orichalcos on the slim chance that, say for example, a Ra Yellow student gets curious and tries to revive it, and obviously you already know about it so there's no point in hiding it." Jeff said resting his hands on his lap. "The Seal of the Orichalcos is no ordinary card, it's powered by an ancient magic long thought to have been destroyed by Yugi Moto."
"Didn't Damien describe the Orichalcos as an ancient evil during the duel?" Chloe remembered and Lance nodded.
"Yeah, after you tried to destroy it with Breaker's effect." Lance nodded. "I just thought he was being Melodramatic."
"I kind of wish he was." Chloe said with a wince looking at her stitched up arm and bandaged abdomen. "So what do we do if we encounter more duellists with duel disks like Damien's? We can't refuse a request to duel."
"We can't? I refused Damien's request before you accepted it." Lance pointed out.
"I think the organisers let that slip based on the fact that he wasn't challenging any pacific person Lance." Martin told him before sighing. "As for what you should do if challenged, don't be afraid to accept, there's no telling what they'll do should you refuse." Martin said before turning to the Ra Yellow students and the sole Osiris Red student. "Kids, I need you to promise me one thing before any of you get into any more duels." Martin paused, wondering how to word the next sentence. "Whoever has revived the Orichalcos might try to trick you into using the Orichalcos, the temptation will be great but I need you to promise that under no circumstances that you play the seal, if you do the staff might have to consider expulsion from the school, among other things."
"You're kidding right? That thing put my friend in the hospital and the guy who used it in a coma, there's no way in hell I'm using it." Lance said folding his arms.
"I couldn't of said it better myself Lance." Marcus agreed. "Just the thought of being in an Orichalcos duel after seeing what it did to Chloe sends shivers up my spine, the day I use it is the day I turn in my blazer."
"This Orichalcos...it's no simple Spell card, its pure evil." Andreas said with rage in his eyes. "I don't even want to think about what could've happened if the duel had continued past the turn that Chloe had finished it, you have my word that I will not use that card."
"Do I even need to say it? Look at where that damn thing has landed me!" Chloe said sitting up with a wince. "I won't use that damn card, not even if it was the last card in my deck."
"Well said, all of you." Jeff said with a sigh. "This tournament was hard enough on you kids already but now that the Seal of the Orichalcos is involved I expect all of you to put your training to good use."
"We would've put it to good use even if the Orichalcos wasn't involved." Lance said with a grin. "Hell if anything the Orichalcos just gives us extra motivation to win our matches."
"Yeah, not losing our soul is great motivation, isn't it?" Marcus agreed with a nod, Andreas nodded in agreement. "Not that I'm complaining about him not being here but has anyone seen Otto since the announcement of the tournament's start?"
"He ditched me shortly after we split off from you guys." Kimberly said resting her arms on the arm rests of her chair. "I haven't seen him since."
"Well it's not like anyone's missing him." Lance shrugged. "Besides we did plan on avoiding him throughout the tournament so it's perfect."
"Okay then, Chloe according to the doctor you should be ready to leave in an hour so..." They were cut off by the door opening and they looked up seeing Chancellor Wilkins who had a concerned look on her face.
"Soon as I heard about the duel I delayed the meeting until tomorrow." Wilkins said looking around. "Ms. Richardson, I'm sorry that you where dragged into such a duel but I'm glad that you only suffered minor injuries."
"What you should be apologizing for is putting our names on the big screen without our consent." Lance grunted.
"Lance, this is the worst possible time to bring that up, you know that right?" Brandon said glancing at him. "As much as I agree with you..."
"No, Brandon he's right." Wilkins sighed. "I apologize if my decision to put your names on the screen put unnecessary pressure on you." Wilkins said before turning to her fellow teachers. "Do they know about the Orichalcos?"
"They do." Martin nodded. "And we've warned them against using it; they are strongly in favour of not using that card."
"I can see why." Wilkins said with a nod. "Okay, the NYPD is hard at work trying to figure out who Damien's employers are as they found an earpiece in his personal effects, they obviously can't interrogate him but there was no other way around it."
"If they need statements from me, my siblings and Chloe we'll be happy to give them." Lance said assertively and Chloe nodded in agreement.
"I'll let them know." Wilkins said before leaving the room.
"She doesn't waste any time, does she?" Lance commented.
"Well she is a busy woman." Martin pointed out. "Anyway with the meeting delayed we will now be able to accompany you throughout the city, I will accompany Brandon and Theresa, Jeff will accompany Andreas and Marcus, Maria will accompany Kimberly and Otto, provided he chooses to show up, and Hamden will accompany Lance, his siblings and Chloe."
"So in other words, I'm stuck here for another hour." Hamden said folding his arms. "At least I'll have some company."
"Yeah, we're off to get some duelling done." Brandon said as he and Theresa stood up. "Lance, give me a call when Chloe's discharged okay?"
"You got it." Lance nodded as the two Obelisk Blue students left with Martin; the other students watched them leave and Kimberly left with Maria leaving the three Ra Yellow students and the Osiris Red Student in the room alone.
"I hope the news about the Orichalcos hasn't dampened your hopes for winning this tournament, students." Hamden said folding his arms.
"Nah, besides I want to test out my new cards." Chloe said, she would've shrugged but the pain she was in due to her injuries prevented that. "All though I personally never want to see that damn card again."
"I don't think we'll get a choice." Marcus said leaning back in his chair. "There's bound to be more guys like Damien in the city and I'm willing to bet that they are much better duellists than him to boot."
"We'll be ready for them, I don't know about you but the last thing I want is for my soul to be trapped by some twisted card." Lance said as the door opened and his siblings came in with armfuls of candy. "What the...I only gave you five dollars!"
"We had some of our own cash." Sophie said sweetly before elbowing Mike.
"Huh...oh right, bro here's the change that we got from your five dollar note." Mike said reaching into his pocket and retrieving some lose change which he handed to Lance; Lance pocketed the change and leaned back in his chair. "So bro, what's the plan once Chloe's discharged?"
"Find me a duel, that's what." Lance said resting his hands behind his head. "I don't want to be left in the dust by Chloe...no offence."
"None taken but just be careful if you end up in a duel where the Orichalcos is played." Chloe said before wincing. "I just worried your siblings, haven't I?"
"Nah, my bro's unbeatable!" Mike said patting his older brother on the back.
"If that was true I'd be in Obelisk Blue but that's beside the point." Lance thought with a small smile on his face. "Did you guys catch any news on any more duels?"
"That Alex guy from the duel beat some kid who won a regional tournament." Mike remembered. "I don't think I remember any other duels though."
"They'll be others; hell there's a city full of duellists here." Andreas shrugged. "Speaking of which, as much as I'd like to be here for when you're discharged, I and Marcus need to do some catching up off our own."
"Yeah, I understand." Chloe nodded. "Hopefully I should be discharged soon though; I overheard Jeff talking to the doctor."
"Yeah, that sounds about right." Jeff said checking the time on his watch. "Give us a call when she is discharged though."
"I will." Hamden nodded and the three duellists left. "This was certainly an interesting way to start the tournament." Hamden said and Lance frowned.
"That's the best way you can think of to describe it?" Lance asked before shrugging. "It doesn't matter; as soon as Chloe's discharged I'll be on the hunt for a duel." Lance said honestly and his younger siblings pouted.
"Don't forget about us bro, I've improved my deck a lot since my last attempt at applying for Duel Academy." Mike said with a grin.
"And I've improved a lot since...well since I started playing a few weeks ago." Sophie said sheepishly.
"I guess we'll have to see for ourselves." Lance chuckled, just then the door opened and the doctor entered.
"Well Ms. Richardson, you're free to go." The doctor said and Chloe grinned. "Just need some information; are you on any medication?"
"I'm on Anti-Depressants." Chloe said honestly causing Hamden to look at her surprised. "Other than that I don't take anything."
"Okay then, any allergies?" The doctor asked and she shook her head. "Okay then, here's a prescription from some pain relief medication, be careful not to take them shortly after taking your anti-depressants."
"Is it possible I could pick them up for her?" Hamden offered but the doctor shook his head.
"No, you can't unless you're a trusted guardian of her." The doctor shook his head.
"Don't worry, I'll cover it." A familiar sounding voice rang out and they looked up seeing Chloe's stepdad. "How are you feeling Chloe?"
"Like hell." Chloe said honestly but was clearly happy to see her dad. "Not that I'm complaining about seeing you dad but...you flew in just because I was hospitalized?"
"Well, we flew in because this is our daughter's first major tournament." Chloe's stepmother said walking up. "All though I didn't expect to receive news about you and your opponent being hospitalized."
"I didn't exactly expect it to happen either." Chloe said standing up. "You guys mind giving me a few minutes to get dressed?"
"Sure." Lance said as he, his siblings and Hamden left the room and Lance closed the door behind him. "Look, I can understand if you're mad at me for not preventing Chloe's hospital stay but..."
"Lance relax we don't blame you, we blame her opponent." Chloe's stepdad reassured him before turning to Hamden. "I heard rumours that the Seal of the Orichalcos is to blame for my daughter's hospital stay, is it true?"
"Unfortunately yes, it is." Hamden said with a regretful nod. "We also believe there are more duellists with the card in the city."
"We'll be ready Mr. Richardson, don't worry about us." Lance said folding his arms. "We've been training practically nonstop since our participation in the tournament was announced."
"That's good to know." Chloe's stepdad said with a nod. "Lance, just do one thing for me throughout the tournament, look after Chloe, you know how emotionally fragile she can get and given her history here..."
"Say no more." Lance nodded before the door opened and a fully clothed Chloe stepped out of the room.
"So, what's the plan?" Chloe asked the others.
"First we'll need to pick up the painkillers, after that Lance can worry about finding an opponent." Mr. Richardson said as he led them away from the teens unaware of a cloaked figure listening in.
"Hey boss, I found your target." The man said into his earpiece. "He's just leaving the hospital with that girl who defeated Damien."
"Arrr that be excellent news shipmate, after that landlubber's failure my boss will be happy when I defeat my target and feed his soul to Davy Jones' Locker, as for whatever rare card he has, well I guess I can use it as a coaster." The voice on the other end said.
"Err, by Davy Jones' Locker do you mean..." The cloaked figure asked and the voice on the other end groaned.
"Yes, I meant the Orichalcos." The voice on the other end said before hanging up, the cloaked figure groaned before leaving.
"I don't get paid enough for this." The figure muttered as he walked away.
*elsewhere*
Monitoring the conversation between the two minions was Michael, much to his displeasure, who was standing on a rooftop opposite the hospital that Chloe was just discharged from; he put a finger to his earpiece and contacted his boss.
"Sir, Captain Leviathan is in position." Michael said with a groan. "What should we do about Damien?"
"He won't be a problem; he'll be in that coma for as long as his soul is within the Orichalcos, with any luck he'll be declared brain dead before his soul can return." The leader said simply. "What about my other operatives?"
"They are trailing their targets as we speak." Michael said simply.
"Good." The leader said before hanging up.
"Where does he find fools like Captain Leviathan?" Michael thought before walking off.
*20 minutes later*
With her parents back at their hotel Chloe and the others were making their way through the city and they where currently in the area known as Queens, Lance was on the lookout for any duellists but so far they found none.
"How long have we been searching again?" Lance wondered as he looked around, he did see some duellists but most of them where already duelling. "Seriously by the time I find an opponent the Semi Finals will start!"
"You'll find one, don't worry." Hamden reassured him.
"Halt landlubbers, which one of you be Lance Alvers?" A heavily accented male voice rang out.
"What did he call us?" Lance asked Chloe who just shrugged her shoulders, he sighed before turning around...and nearly died laughing at the site of the source of the voice, and he was a big burly man in a pirate uniform complete with a plastic Parrot and eyepatch with a long black beard, brown eyes and shoulder length black hair. "Nice outfit but you're a couple of months early for Halloween."
"Don't you dare mock me landlubber, are you Lance Alvers or not?" The man demanded and Lance stopped laughing.
"I am, let me guess you saw my picture on the big screen and you think I'm an easy target?" Lance asked folding his arms. "And can you please stop calling us that?"
"No." The man said plainly. "I am Captain Steven Leviathan, scourge of the seven seas and the duelling arenas, and I think your female friend met an associate of mine, a yellow bellied coward by the name of Damien."
"Wait, he knows Damien? I'd better start taking this guy seriously if he has the Seal of the Orichalcos in his deck." Lance thought. "I accept your challenge Cap, and to prove it I ante up my rarest card Lava Golem."
"Ah, that will be a fine coaster for my drinks." Leviathan grinned. "I ante up my rarest card as well, but unlike you I won't reveal it just yet."
"Fine, though based on your name and attire I'd say you run a water deck so whatever you ante up won't be of much use to me." Lance said activating his duel disk, his eyes narrowed when Leviathan activated his duel disk, the same type of duel disk used by Damien. "Guys get back as far as you can, I don't think I need to remind you what happened the last time we encountered someone with that duel disk."
"Right, got it." Chloe nodded as she and the others backed off.
"Oh, how noble of you to warn them, not that it matters." Leviathan grinned. "Don't worry; once I defeat you I'll focus my attention on them."
"You just made your first mistake of the match; no one threatens my friends and family and gets away with." Lance growled as he drew his opening hand.
"Oh I'm so scared." Leviathan said sarcastically as he drew his hand. "Who's going first landlubber?"
"If you call me that one more time I'll scream." Lance groaned. "Anyway you can go first." Lance said looking at his hand.
"You just made your first mistake." Leviathan said drawing his card. "But don't take my word for it; I start by summoning Airorca in attack mode!" Leviathan played the card and a red and white fish with wings appeared on the field (3/1400/300). "I set two cards facedown and end my turn." Leviathan played the cards and Lance drew his card. "I activate the continuous trap card Forgotten Temple of the Deep, as long as this card is on the field it is treated as the spell card Umi and once per turn I can remove one Aqua, Fish or Sea Serpent monster from my field as long as it's level four or lower."
"That's probably to make up for the fact that Seal of the Orichalcos will take up his field spell card slot." Lance thought before Airoca disappeared from the field. "You're using it already?"
"Aye and you'll see why soon." Leviathan grinned.
"Regardless of what you have planned you just made a big mistake by leaving your field open." Lance said looking at his new card. "But don't take my word for it; I summon Darkfire Soldier number 1 in attack mode!" Lance played the card and the soldier appeared on the field (4/1700/1100). "Darkfire Soldier, attack his lifepoints directly!" The soldier charged forward and Leviathan grinned.
"Not so fast kid, I activate my trap card Poseidon Wave!" Leviathan activated the trap and a wall of water blocked the attack. "This trap card can only be activated when an attack is declared, with it I can target the attacking monster and negate its attack and if I had Airoca on the field I would've been able to deal 800 points of damage to your lifepoints."
"Is it me or is his tactics not making any sense?" Chloe commented.
"I noticed that as well." Hamden frowned. "If he had kept his monster on the field he could've gained an early lead and kept his own lifepoints safe, what is he planning?"
"Guys, please stop giving my opponent ideas." Lance said as he sweatdropped. "I end my turn by setting three cards facedown." Lance announced but too his surprise Airoca returned to the field. "Huh?"
"I forgot to mention, at the end of the turn that I use Hidden Temple's other effect I can Special Summon the monster I removed from play." Leviathan grinned as he drew his card. "You're finished Landlubber! I activate the Seal of the Orichalcos!" Lance's eyes narrowed when he heard the name of the card and sure enough the infamous seal surrounded the two duellists, Lance shielded his eyes as the card activated before looking up seeing the seal on Leviathan's forehead as well as Airoca's increasing its attack to 1900.
"Do you have any idea what you've just done?" Lance demanded as Leviathan cackled evilly.
"Other than seal my victory against you?" Leviathan taunted and the other duellists groaned.
"I haven't heard jokes that bad since Lance took part in amateur night at a comedy club." Chloe said as she facepalmed.
"Gee, thanks." Lance muttered. "Don't bother explaining its effects; I watched my friend's duel with Damien."
"That maybe but do you know about Airoca's effect?" Leviathan asked and Lance shook his head. "In order to activate it I have to remove one Fish, Sea Serpent or Aqua Type monster from my hand so say goodbye Kairyu-Shin (5/1800/1500)." Leviathan said pocketing the monster. "And say hello to the effect of Airoca which lets me destroy Darkfire Soldier in return for removing Airoca from play until my next standby phase!" The fish charged forward and bit into Darkfire Soldier destroying it and Leviathan's monster, Lance sent his monster to the graveyard and Leviathan pocketed his card. "And now I activate the spell card Fish and Swaps, all I need to do is discard two cards from my hand and I can return the monster I banished for Airoca's effect to my hand alongside Airoca himself." Leviathan said discarding two cards and returning the monsters to his hand.
"Is there a point to all of this?" Lance asked scratching his head.
"I was wondering the same thing." Chloe said equally confused.
"You'll see soon enough Landlubbers!" Leviathan grinned. "But first I think I'll help us both with the spell card Card of Sanctity!" The two duellists drew until their hands had six cards and Leviathan grinned. "I now summon The Dragon Dwelling in the Deep in attack mode!" Leviathan played the card and a large blue dragon appeared on the field roaring at Lance (4/1700/1400) and soon enough the Orichalcos symbol appeared in the dragon's head raising its attack to 2200. "On top of being a mighty beast my dragon has a special ability, during each of our standby phases this dragon gets an Ocean Counter, this however won't come into effect until it's removed the field but for now I'll have my dragon attack directly!" The dragon reared its head back and Lance braced himself remembering what happened to Chloe in her Orichalcos duel, the dragon fired a stream of water from its mouth sending Lance flying.
C: 8000
L: 5800
Lance got to his feet coughing up water as he did. "Damien wasn't kidding about the battle damage being real, at least I'm not bleeding." Lance said standing up straight.
"Still standing huh? I'll set this card facedown and activate Soul Release to remove one monster from my graveyard." Leviathan said retrieving the monster and pocketing it. "That ends my turn!" Leviathan said and Lance drew his card and Leviathan's dragon gained its first Ocean Counter.
"Well, that's my first battle city duel won." Chloe blinked and glanced over her shoulder seeing Axel Loather looking at a locater card and a duel monsters card. "Now then, I need to find another duel...what on Earth?" Axel said upon seeing the field. "Who's duelling?"
"Lance Alvers, one of the duellists from Duel Academy, and Captain Leviathan." Hamden answered. "I'm going to guess that your next question is about the duel field?"
"Yeah, what's up with the field?" Axel blinked.
"You really don't want to know." Lance said glancing over his shoulder at Axel before looking at his new card. "First I'll activate one of my Trap cards Call of the Haunted to bring back my Darkfire Soldier!" Lance announced as the soldier reappeared. "But he isn't sticking around; I sacrifice him to bring out Thestalos, The Firestorm Monarch!" Darkfire Soldier disappeared from the field and in his place stood the firestorm monarch who looked wearily at his surroundings (6/2400/1500). "And now his effect activates..."
"Not so fast, I activate my trap card Oh Fish!" Leviathan grinned as he retrieved the monster he removed from play from his pocket and returned him to his deck and shuffled it. "This trap card can only be activated when an effect monster's effect is about to be activated, not only does it allow me to return the monster I removed from play to my deck BUT I can negate Thestalos' effect and destroy him!"
"WHAT?" Lance yelled as Thestalous was consumed by a tidal wave. "Great, unless I think of something soon I'm about to suffer another direct attack from his dragon." Lance thought before picking up a card. "I set this facedown and end my turn."
"Then it's time for you to take another hit!" Leviathan said as he drew his card and the dragon gained another counter. "Go my dragon, wash away his lifepoints!" The dragon reared its head back again and Lance smirked.
"Not this time, I activate Draining Shield!" Lance activated the card and the stream of water was blocked by an invisible forcefield. "This negates your attack and adds your dragons attack points to my lifepoints." Lance said as his lifepoints went back up to 8000.
"You'll be walking the plank soon enough." Leviathan grunted as Lance sent Draining Shield to the graveyard. "I end my turn."
"I'm going to assume you mean that you're going to get your ass kicked by me." Lance said drawing his card. "Okay, my lifepoints are back up to a comfortable level but I need to get rid of that dragon, never mind the fact that I don't know what those counters will do once that dragon's destroyed." Lance thought before looking at his card. "I set this monster in defence mode and end my turn." Lance announced and Leviathan drew his card and a third counter appeared on the dragon.
"Time I increased my army; I summon Spearfish Soldier in attack mode!" Leviathan played the card and a humanoid Spearfish wielding twin lances appeared on the field (4/1700/1100) and as the Orchalcos symbol appeared on its forehead the Soldier's attack rose to 2200. "That's not all; I activate a second Soul Release which I use to remove the other monster I discarded for Fish and Swap's effect." Leviathan retrieved the card and pocketed it and Spearfish Soldier's attack rose to 2300. "That be the effect of Spearfish Soldier boy, for each monster that I have removed from play it gains a hundred attack points."
"Great, now I have two powerful monsters to deal with, at least my monster will buy me some time." Lance thought,
"Go my dragon, strike down his monster and clear a path for my Spearfish!" Leviathan commanded and the dragon reared its head back and let loose with a stream of water engulfing the monster. "Now Spearfish attack his...WHAT?" Leviathan shouted when he realized that the monster was not only still on the field but it was Obnoxious Celtic Guardian (4/1400/1200).
"I'd say you're going to have to do better than that but no, you're actually going to have to do WORSE than that to get past my Obnoxious Celtic Guardian because he can't be destroyed by any monsters with more than 1900 attack points and thanks to your seal both of your monsters qualify." Lance smirked and Leviathan growled.
"Fine Landlubber, I end my turn." Leviathan growled and Lance drew his card and smirked.
"That's good, because I'm about to slay that dragon of yours, ironically with a dragon of my own!" Lance grinned as he looked at his new card. "I sacrifice my Celtic Guardian to summon Cthonian Emperor Dragon in attack mode!" The Celtic Guardian disappeared and in its place stood a massive green and black dragon which roared at Leviathan (6/2400/1500).
"That doesn't concern me, even if you destroy my dragon my Spearfish will still stand!" Leviathan grinned.
"That's where you're wrong because my dragon can attack twice!" Lance grinned and his siblings cheered him on from the sidelines.
"That's the way bro! Send that captain to Davy Jones' Locker!" Mike cheered.
"Something's wrong." Axel observed and the others turned their attention to him. "For someone who's staring down a monster that has more attack points than either of his monsters and can attack twice this Leviathan character is surprisingly calm."
"Axel has a point." Hamden agreed stroking his chin. "Then again his whole strategy so far has been a complete mystery, he has good spell and trap cards but it seems to me that he isn't much of a strategic thinker."
"What are you waiting for landlubber? Give me ya best shot!" Leviathan said with a manic grin as Lance observed Leviathan's field.
"The only trap card that guy's got on the field is Hidden Temple of the Deep which aside from acting as Umi has no benefit for him as it will only remove one monster from the field until my end phase, why is he taunting me?" Lance thought before pointing to his dragon. "Cthonian Emperer Dragon attack The Dragon Dwelling in the Deep now!" Lance commanded as his dragon took a deep breath before breathing fire at the weaker dragon which suddenly disappeared as Leviathan removed it from his duel disk.
"That's just what I was hoping you'd do, I once again trigger the effect of Hidden Temple of the Deep!" Leviathan said pocketing the monster.
"Okay I'm convinced; this guy's an escaped mental patient who Damien's employer outfitted with a water deck, that stupid duel disk and the Seal." Lance thought before narrowing his eyes. "Fine, I guess I'll just attack Spearfish...WHAT!" Lance yelled once he realized that Spearfish Soldier's attack had jumped to 3000.
"Did you forget about my Dragon's Ocean Counters so soon Landlubber?" Leviathan asked with a massive grin. "First off since I removed my dragon from play my Spearfish gains an extra 100 attack points bringing its total to 2400, now by my count my dragon had 6 Ocean counters before I removed it from play and when it's removed from the field, regardless of circumstance, each of my beasts of the deep gain 100 attack points for each Ocean Counter until the end of the turn bringing my Spearfish's attack all the way up to 3000! Good luck getting past him!"
"As much as I hate to admit it, this guy's smarter than we gave him credit for." Chloe said with a gulp.
"Why thank you little lady! Maybe after I'm done with your boyfriend I'll show you a real man!" Leviathan grinned.
"First of all he's not my boyfriend, second you're like twice my age so no thanks." Chloe said clearly disgusted.
"And third I wouldn't be thanking her just yet because you just made a mistake." Lance added with a grin.
"What are you talking about? My plan is foolproof!" Leviathan snapped.
"You're the fool Leviathan or did you forget about my remaining facedown card?" Lance grinned. "You see I knew that by removing your dragon from the field your soldier would have enough attack points to slay my dragon but with my Quick Play Spell Card Rush Recklessly, that all changes!" Lance grinned as Emperor Dragon's attack jumped to 3100. "Now, as I was saying, Emperor Dragon, roast Spearfish Soldier!" The dragon breathed fire at the soldier incinerating him.
C: 7900
L: 8000
"That wasn't so bad." The captain muttered with a grin...which quickly disappeared once he remembered the Dragon's effect.
"Go my dragon, deep fry the captain!" Lance said and the dragon breathed fire at Leviathan, he dived out of the way but his jacket caught on fire, fortunately he had the presence of mind to quickly take off the jacket revealing a black muscle shirt underneath.
C: 4800
L: 8000
"Wait, did...did his jacket just catch on fire?" Axel said clearly shocked.
"That's an effect of the spell card that's in play, the Seal of the Orichalcos, the monsters are real and so is the damage." Chloe said rubbing her injured arm worriedly.
"Yeah, and that's not even the nastiest effect." Lance chimed in before folding his arms. "It's your turn Captain." Leviathan growled and drew his card, even as Dragon Dwelling in the Deep returned to the field with its attack boost intact.
"You'll pay for that!" Leviathan growled before looking at his new card...and he grinned maniacally. "Especially now that I've drawn the mightiest sea beast in my deck, it's only a matter of time before I feed your soul to the Orichalcos!" Leviathan taunted and Lance raised an eyebrow.
"Are you going to summon the thing or are you going to stand there taunting me all day?" Lance asked folding his arms.
"I'll be glad too; I sacrifice The Dragon Dwelling in the Deep to summon The Rage of Deep Sea!" The dragon disappeared and in its place stood a semi transparent muscular bearded man with long hair, he was muscular but seemed to be missing the lower half of his body and he was wielding a trident (5/0/0) and when they saw the stats all the other duellists fell over anime style.
"A...a Five Star Monster...with zero attack points...even with the Orichalcos's magic powering him up that's still weaker than the majority of the monsters in my deck." Lance said flabbergasted as the symbol of the Orichalcos appeared on its forehead boosting its attack to 500...and to Lance's surprise it jumped up to 2000. "Let me guess, it has an effect."
"Right you are matey, Rage of Deep Sea gains 500 attack points for each Sea Serpent, Fish and Aqua type monster in my graveyard and I have two; Spearfish Soldier and The Dragon Dwelling in the Cave." Leviathan explained and Lance raised an eyebrow.
"My dragon's still stronger." Lance pointed out clearly unimpressed.
"Then allow me to change your tune, you see the majority of the cards, five to be precise, in my hand are monsters of the variety I just mentioned, you want to know what the other card is?" Leviathan said turning his card around slowly, Lance's eyes went as wide as dinner plates when he saw it.
"Card...card destruction?" Lance stammered upon seeing the monster. "If you play that card then..."
"My monster will have 5000 attack points." Leviathan grinned as he played the card; both players discarded their cards and drew new ones, when Leviathan saw his new cards his grin grew wilder. "But why stop there? I activate Spell Reproduction to bring back Card Destruction at the cost of two spell cards." Leviathan played the card, discarded two cards and retrieved the card from his deck and quickly played it, once again both players discarded their hands and drew new which was around the time that Lance noticed that Leviathan's deck was running low, Leviathan didn't seem to notice as Rage of Deep Sea's attack jumped to 7000.
"Guys, please tell me that monster's stats are a technical glitch." Brandon gulped as he approached them.
"You have no idea how much I wish it was!" Lance called out with fear in his eyes.
"What brings you here? I thought you were with Theresa and Martin?" Chloe asked before noticing an equally concerned Theresa and Martin.
"We were in the neighbourhood, noticed an orichalcos duel going on." Theresa said folding her arms. "Who's the guy that Lance is facing?"
"Some nutball calling himself Captain Leviathan, that monster of his gains 500 attack points for each Sea Serpent, Aqua and Fish monster in his graveyard." Chloe explained folding her arms. "He already had two in the graveyard, he sent another five monster cards to the graveyard with Card Destruction and when he used it again via Spell Reproduction he spent another four to the graveyard."
"So in other words, unless Lance thinks of something quick he's done for." Brandon said with a frown. "How are you holding up?"
"Still sore from my duel with Damien but the painkillers I got from the hospital helped." Chloe explained.
"Glad to hear it." Brandon nodded. "Well, at least he hasn't got an equip card in his hand."
"Funny you should mention that, I equip Rage of the Deep Sea with my Axe of Despair increasing his attack points to 8000!" Leviathan grinned as the monster's attack rose to 8000.
"Brandon, if I get out of here I'm kicking your ass for that!" Lance shouted at his friend who gulped.
"Lance, don't listen to him, trust in your deck." Hamden shouted and Lance grinned.
"No need, he's made a big mistake that I can exploit on my next move!" Lance said before smirking. "Give me your best shot."
"Gladly, Rage of the Deep Sea attack Cthorian Emperor Dragon!" The monster tossed its trident at the dragon impaling him; it went through the dragon and grazed Lance's shoulder.
C: 4800
L: 400
"Good luck exploiting any weakness I have with a monster that NOTHING in Duel Monsters can match on my side of the field landlubber!" Leviathan taunted. "I end my turn but next turn your soul will be fed to the Orichalcos."
"There won't be a next turn." Lance said drawing his card. "I don't even need a monster to defeat you!" Lance said picking up a card. "First I set a card facedown and I activate Emergency Provisions, sending the card I set to my graveyard and giving me one thousand lifepoints." Lance said sending his Backfire to the graveyard and boosting his lifepoints to 1400.
"No amount of lifepoints can save you!" Leviathan grinned.
"You didn't let me finish, next I activate Delinquent Duo, now by paying a thousand lifepoints I can send two cards from your hand to the graveyard, the first one is at random and the second is up to you." Lance explained.
"I thought that was on the Forbidden list?" Chloe asked.
"Only in the advanced format, this tournament's using the Traditional Format where it's merely limited." Axel explained. "Obviously he's done his research."
"It doesn't matter because guess what? The two cards you just sent to my graveyard with Sea Serpents and you know what that means!" Leviathan laughed maniacally as Rage of the Deep Sea's attack rose to 9000.
"It's...it's..." Chloe stammered unable to finish her sentence.
"IT'S EXACTLY 9000!" Someone in the audience shouted only to get odd looks from everyone else.
"If you're that desperate to lose you may as well have given up!" Leviathan taunted and Lance grinned.
"Tell me, how many cards do you have left in your deck?" Lance asked and Leviathan blinked before checking.
"Three cards left, why do you ask?" Leviathan asked, Lance noticed that he had two cards left in his hand and grinned.
"Perfect, I activate Card of Sanctity!" Lance said and Leviathan's jaw dropped.
"But...but I only have two cards left in my hand!" Leviathan said as realization dawned on him, he reluctantly drew his cards until he decked out giving Lance the win.
"YES! Way to go Lance!" Chloe shouted as the rest of the audience cheered him on.
"No...no...don't let the Seal take me!" Leviathan said growing increasingly more desperate with each word as the holograms disappeared.
"You brought this upon yourself Leviathan, live with it, whilst you can." Lance said sternly...only for his eyes to widen when Leviathan drew a gun on him.
"Well, if the seal's going to take me than I'm taking you with me!" Leviathan said with a crazed look in his eyes, before anyone could make a move though the Seal closed in around Leviathan, he fired several shots in Lance's direction but the bullet's bounced off the seal, he dropped the gun in fear and let out a blood curdling scream as his soul was taken, he fell face first to the ground out like a light.
"Lance, you okay?" Chloe asked as Lance collapsed to his knees.
"Yeah...yeah, I've just never had a gun drawn on me before." Lance said visibly shaken from the experience.
"The academy has trained shrinks on its pay role if you want to talk about this when you get back Lance." Hamden said putting a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Thanks." Lance said slowly getting up and walking up to Leviathan's prone form, being careful not to look at the gun he picked up the Locater Card he won before searching for Leviathan's rarest card before he found it. "Huh that's weird, Sacred Pheonix of Nephtys? Why would a water duellist have this? Not that I'm complaining." Lance thought before adding it to his deck and walking back to the others. "Looks like we're on even ground as far as Locater Cards go Chloe."
"Yeah, just don't go pulling stunts like that again; you nearly gave me a heart attack." Chloe joked before turning to Brandon and Theresa. "How are you guys doing as far as duels are concerned?"
"We're still looking." Brandon said as the crowd started to disperse. "We heard that a bunch of duels where happening here which was what brought us here."
"I think what just happened killed their interests in any other duels for the rest of the day." Lance commented observing the leaving crowd "Quite frankly I can't blame them."
"Yeah, I think I'll go back to my hotel room." Axel agreed before walking off. "You did well though Lance, I look forward to our eventual match."
"Yeah, I agree there." Lance said watching as the teen walked off. "Two duels, two comatose opponents, at least the winner didn't end up in hospital this time."
"Yeah, I vote we try to keep it that way." Brandon said before pausing. "And by that I mean no more hospital trips for us."
"Yeah, I agree there." Theresa nodded before turning to Chloe and Lance. "So, what are you guys going to do now?"
"I think we'll head back to the hotel, I think we both want to rest up as my arm's sore from that monster's attack." Lance said turning to Chloe who nodded in agreement.
"Yeah, I'm sore as well." Chloe said nodding in agreement,
"But bro, me and Sophie haven't duelled yet!" Mike pointed out.
"Relax, we'll keep an eye on them, make sure they'll get some duels." Brandon offered and Lance smiled.
"Thanks, though I still owe you an asskicking for mentioning equip spells to Leviathan." Lance joked.
"How about we save that for when we duel?" Brandon said sheepishly and Lance nodded before he, Chloe and Hamden left.
"Oh and Brandon, if they end up in a Orichalcos duel call me as soon as possible." Lance said glancing over his shoulder.
"You have my word." Brandon nodded as the teens and they're teacher left. "You guys aren't going to be too much trouble right?"
"We'll be good." Sophie said sweetly.
"Good, come on let's search for some duels." Brandon said leading the group in the opposite direction unaware of the fact that Michael had been watching the duel from an alleyway.
"Sir, Captain Leviathan has fallen, the fool was too busy powering up his own monster to notice how low his deck was." Michael said plainly.
"No matter, he was our second weakest duellist behind Damien." The leader said plainly. "My other agents are in position."
"And I'll be there to witness their duels." Michael said before walking off. "Not to mention their failures." Michael thought as he walked off.