It was the day after Lance's duel with Eddie (not to mention the second round in general) and the duel academy students where waking up in their hotel room waiting for news on the location of the rest of the Semi-Finals, Tyler had told the teachers to expect an e-mail since the students hadn't included e-mail addresses in their application forms.
Chloe yawned as she straightened her hair in front of a mirror, she hadn't gotten much sleep the previous night due to her nervousness regarding the Battle Royal later on, Kimberly was still at the hospital and she was expected to be out of the hospital in time for the finals, the last time she checked Andreas had been moved their an hour after the conclusion of the duel between Eddie and Lance since they could look after him better than the medical ward at the Duel Dome could.
"Good morning Chloe." Theresa said as she left her room, her hair wasn't in a ponytail and Chloe assumed that she hadn't gotten around to it yet; regardless Chloe glanced over her shoulder and smiled.
"Morning, has there been any news from Hamden yet?" Chloe asked and Theresa shook her head in response.
"Is that considering that he's likely only just woken up?" Theresa asked and Chloe blushed realizing she had a point. "You ready for the match later?"
"As ready as the only rookie in the match can be." Chloe said with a sigh before setting down the hairbrush and turning to Theresa. "What about you?"
"I'm ready, I've chosen my deck for the duel and I'm ready for whatever they throw at me, you included." Theresa said before momentarily glancing towards what was Kimberly's room.
"Expecting her to come out of the room huh?" Chloe asked once she noticed the direction that Theresa was looking in, Theresa nodded sadly and Chloe smiled. "On the Brightside at least her soul's not trapped in the Orichalcos like Andreas."
"Yeah that's true." Theresa agreed before frowning. "Chloe I know what your dad said about how stubborn you can be but I'm asking just so I'm clear on the subject, are you certain you want to face Otto in the next round?" Theresa asked and Chloe frowned, part of her expected the question from the older duelist but still her mind was deadest on the idea.
"As certain as I'll ever be." Chloe said plainly and Theresa nodded.
"Well I can see that there's no way I'm changing your mind on the subject so just be careful if that match does happen okay?" Theresa asked and Chloe nodded, before either of them could say anything else there was a knock at the door.
"Girls it's me, can I come in?" Hamden's voice rang out, Theresa answered by approaching the door and letting him in. "Kaiba just e-mailed me the location of the next few duels; we'll be heading over there after breakfast."
"Whereabouts is it? Is it another Kaiba dome?" Chloe asked and Hamden shook his head in response to her questions.
"You'll see when we get there, in the meantime we'll be going down for breakfast in five minutes, I'd say be ready by then but I can see that you've beaten me to it." Hamden said before leaving the room. Theresa started tying her hair up and turned to Chloe.
"If you want to wait for me outside knock yourself out." Theresa said as she grabbed her hairband. "My hair has a nasty tendency to be incredibly stubborn in morning so I'll be a few minutes."
"Sure, I'll wait outside." Chloe said before she headed out of the room, Lance had just come out of his room and she smiled. "Morning Lance, disappointed that you're not joining me and Theresa in the Battle Royal?" Chloe asked and Lance looked up.
"A bit, though I'm just glad that I don't have to face Axel or Theresa." Lance said earning himself a mock glare from Chloe. "You too, but I'd have an easier time beating you…..err no offense." Lance added quickly and Chloe smirked.
"No offense taken." Chloe answered before running a hand through her hair. "Though I am worried about whom I'll possibly face in the tournament."
"You'll do fine, just because you're a rookie and an Osiris Red student in a duel full of veterans and Obelisk Blue students doesn't mean you'll…..I'm not helping aren't I?" Lance asked ad a progressively bigger sweatdrop rolled down Chloe's head with each word.
"No, you're really not." Chloe said clearly annoyed at her friend's general lack of help. "I'm guessing you'll be joining Marcus and the teachers in the audience?"
"Yeah and so will Brandon, Kimberly would join us but…well you know." Lance trailed off and Chloe nodded quickly getting the idea. "Hamden plans on watching the duel from the hospital like you guys did with my duel yesterday." Lance added.
"Yeah, I figured Kimberly could use the company." Hamden added making Lance jump. "The others are waiting for you guys, where's Theresa?" Hamden asked just as Theresa emerged from her room with her hair tied up in a ponytail.
"Over here teach, and ready to duel." Theresa said holding up her duel disk proudly.
"Good to know, shall we get going?" Hamden asked before leading the three teens out of the duel academy student's little corner of the hotel.
*elsewhere*
Otto was already at the next location of the Semi-Finals and he had to give Kaiba credit, when he held tournaments he knew how to end them with a bang, how did he know this? The stadium was indeed much larger than the duel dome the first two rounds had been held in but it was also much more famous, namely the world famous Madison Square Garden which was making him wonder why he didn't just hold the Semi-Finals there.
"Then again it IS Kaiba I'm talking about." Otto thought as he strolled through the arena with his hands in his jacket pockets. "He always has to flaunt his ego whenever Kaibacorp holds an event such as this and what better way to do it then to hold the first two rounds at one of his personal duel arenas?" Otto thought as he glanced around.
"Hey, how the hell did you get in here?" Otto's train of thought was interrupted when the voice of a security guard rang out; he turned around and adjusted his glasses.
"Relax; I am one of the participants in the Battle City tournament." Otto said coolly whilst still wearing an arrogant smirk.
"I'll need to see your duelist number to confirm this." The guard responded and Otto reached into his pocket and produced his duel number. "Give me a moment to confirm with my supervisor please." The guard added before putting a hand to his earpiece. "Hey Steve it me, can you confirm the identity of a duelist for me and whether or not he's been eliminated?"
"What's his duelist number?" The guard on the other end asked.
"His duelist number is 7." The guard responded and after a few moments he got a response.
"Yeah, he's competing all right." The guard responded. "Otto Freshier, he's a Machine Deck user who's been flagged as a troublemaker due to issues arising from his last two duels."
"What kind of issues?" The guard asked, Otto didn't pay attention to the next part partly because he knew what the guard's supervisor would respond with, the other reason? He found the fact that he had been flagged as a troublemaker amusing to say the least.
"So Kaiba thinks that using the Orichalcos on my weakling brother and turning the safeties on my duel disk off are reasons to flag me as a troublemaker?" Otto thought with a chuckle as he saw the expression on the guard's face darken. "Just wait until he sees what I have in store for that Osiris Red Bitch in the next round." Otto thought as the guard turned his attention to him.
"So you like hurting your opponents in duels eh Otto?" The guard asked with a frown, Otto scoffed and shrugged his shoulders.
"They were hardly opponents, merely weaklings!" Otto said with nothing but contempt in his voice, the guard's frown deepened when he heard that statement.
"Whatever kid, competing duelists get their own locker room and I've been instructed to take you there so if you'll follow me." The guard said before turning his back on the teen and Otto followed him somewhat reluctantly. "Based on that statement alone I should be leading him to his own jail cell." The guard thought but any further thought was interrupted by a voice on his Comm. Channel.
"Hey Ed, the Duel Academy students have arrived." One of the guards who were guarding the entrance commented. "I'm sending the females to their locker rooms and the others, teachers included, to their audience seats."
"Roger that." Ed responded before glancing over at Otto. "It seems your classmates have arrived."
"I heard." Otto said plainly as he followed Ed to the locker room. "Excellent, once the Battle Royal is over and I ensure that I face the Osiris Red bitch my plan will be set into motion." Otto thought with a grin.
*elsewhere*
"So you girls ready for your big match?" The guard asked as he led Theresa and Chloe to their locker room, when he didn't get an answer he glanced over his shoulder and saw Chloe looking around the stadium in awe and chuckled. "Is it first time in Madison Square Garden kid?"
"Yeah, I'm from New York but I've never been here before." Chloe said turning her attention to the guard. "All though I'd rather keep the details of my life here to myself." Chloe thought before deciding to change the subject. "As for the match I'm as ready as I'll ever be." Chloe responded and the guard smiled at that.
"Yeah should be a great match." The guard agreed before turning to Theresa. "What about you?"
"What she said." Theresa said plainly mostly because her attention was focused elsewhere. "I know Chloe's deadest on facing Otto but the others may gang up on her due to her inexperience, good thing my Kaiba deck will help protect her with the modifications I made." Theresa thought before turning to the guard. "What time does the match start?" Theresa asked and the guard checked his watch.
"By my clock it'll start in five minutes." The guard responded before stopping in front of a pair of doors. "Theresa this is your room, Chloe your room is right next to it." The guard said as he pointed to the two doors, Theresa opened hers first and swiftly entered; Chloe went to open her door when she saw a familiar face further down the hallway.
"Otto, great just great but at least his locker room's further down the hallway." Chloe thought as she glared at the German student, Otto spotted her and returned the glare with a smirk followed by him making a slit throat motion with his thumb.
"Just ignore him Chloe and go into the room, you can deal with him later." A much older feminine voice rang out and Chloe looked around but saw no one.
"Is there something wrong kid?" The guard asked and she turned her attention to him.
"It…..it's nothing I just thought I heard someone." Chloe shrugged and the guard looked at her oddly.
"Kid I've been standing beside you this whole time and I didn't hear anything." The guard pointed out and Chloe sweat-dropped.
"Think Chloe think, preferably before he has you dragged off to a mental asylum!" Chloe thought before rubbing the back of her head nervously. "Must be my nerves heading into the match." Chloe said quickly before opening the door to her locker room and entering it, she closed the door behind her and sighed. "Okay Ms.…Voice in my head….what was that about?"
"What was what about?" The voice rang out again and Chloe messaged her forehead.
"You know what I'm talking about! You made me seem crazy for a second there!" Chloe responded as she took a seat, the locker room was fairly small with lockers (as the name suggested) and to her surprise a desktop computer which was prepped up on a desk with what looked like an internet modem. "Then again what do I know about tech? I know nothing besides using my duel disk." Chloe thought.
"Oh sorry about that, I was just giving you advice." The voice rang out again and Chloe facepalmed.
"I'm taking advice from a voice in my head, maybe I am going insane." Chloe muttered under her breath with a moan.
"You will understand in due time Chloe." The voice rang out, before Chloe could respond there was a knock at the door.
"Come in!" Chloe shouted as she rested her arms on her legs. "You're not going to make me look insane again are you?"
"No, I will not." The voice rang out again as Theresa entered the room.
"Hey Chloe, are you ready for the match?" Theresa asked as she entered the room, Chloe looked up at the older student uncertainly.
"Err, yeah I think so." Chloe said rubbing the back of her head nervously. "Why? Have the others arrived?" Chloe asked and Theresa nodded.
"Yeah, Axel and Eddie just showed up." Theresa said before raising an eyebrow. "You okay? You seem frustrated."
"It's nothing, just nerves." Chloe shrugged her shoulders. "Hell I'm so nervous I thought I heard some old lady telling me to ignore Otto."
"I'm not that old!" The voice rang out but Chloe ignored it.
"Yeah that is pretty nervous." Theresa agreed with a small smile; however the smile quickly disappeared when Theresa realized who Chloe was referring too. "I'm guessing by that you mean Otto's arrived."
"Yeah, I saw him just before I entered my room." Chloe answered with a frown. "Still I should be able to surprise him in our match."
"I'm sure you will." Theresa said just as there was a knock at the door, Theresa opened it and the guard stood there.
"Chloe, Theresa, it's time for the battle royal." The guard said and Chloe stood up and followed Theresa who in turn followed the guard, he led them to the arena where the audience where full of cheering fans and duelists previously eliminated from the tournament and Eddie and Axel where waiting for them at the duel arena, the two boys greeted them with respectful nods when they hopped onto the arena.
"That just leaves Otto." Eddie muttered under his breath as the four duelists took up positions at different corners at the arena, Chloe was standing at the bottom left hand corner, Theresa was standing opposite her at the bottom right hand corner and Eddie and Axel were standing opposite the girls at the top left hand and right hand corners respectively leaving Otto with his own spot facing the entranceway to the arena.
"Here he comes." Chloe said and the other duelists looked in the direction she was looking, sure enough Otto had just entered the arena and had quickly hopped on the duel podium taking up a spot, the five duelists started shuffling their decks ignoring the boos directed at Otto.
"If it's any consolation to my opponents I will not be using the Seal of the Orichalcos in this duel." Otto said as he shuffled his deck, the other duelists looked at him oddly and Otto frowned. "What? You don't believe me?"
"I can't imagine why." Chloe muttered under her breath.
"Here I'll show you." Otto said before reaching into his pocket and producing the infamous card. "The Seal will remain in my pocket until my next duel after the battle royal." Otto said and to illustrate his point he returned the seal to his pocket.
"Fine, you convinced us but that doesn't mean we trust you." Eddie said as he finished shuffling his deck, the other duelists followed suit and drew their hands. "That just leaves one thing and that's who's going first."
"I'll decide that!" Kaiba's voice rang out and the five duelists looked up seeing a blimp with a TV Screen on the side that had Kaiba's face on it. "Welcome duelists young and old to the stage that will play host to the last five matches of the Battle City Tournament, all five of you have come a long way to make it this far but only one will walk out the Battle City champion, as for who's going first you will go first in the numerical order of the numbers you were given at the beginning of the Semi-Finals!" Kaiba said before his face disappeared and was replaced with pictures of the five duelists and their numbers beneath them. "The order in the duel is as follows, Otto Freshier, Theresa Daniels, Axel Loather, the reigning champion Eddie Roberts and the underdog of the Semi-Finals Chloe Richardson!" Kaiba announced before his picture appeared again. "Remember duelists, this match is to determine who gets a free pass to the final round and the fourth round matches which will be held later today, with that said the rules for the match are as follows, the match will proceed in the order I just mentioned but no one can attack a player until all five duelists have gone first, other than that all standard rules apply." Kaiba said as the blimp began to leave. "I'll be watching from my office at Kaibacorp's New York Branch so I had better not see any mercy." Kaiba said and just like that the blimp left the airspace.
"He always has to steal the show doesn't he?" Brandon muttered under his breath as Otto drew his first card.
"Well, I certainly don't want to disappoint Kaiba; I set two cards facedown and summon Proto-Cyber Dragon in attack mode!" Otto played the cards and what could only be described as a smaller, low tech version of Cyber Dragon appeared on the field (3/1100/600) but to the other duelist's surprise the dragon's attack, defense and level increased to (5/2100/1600). "As you can see as long as Proto-Cyber Dragon is on the field its name is treated as Cyber Dragon, and that shall end my turn." Otto announced and Theresa drew her card.
"I set my own two cards facedown." Theresa announced as she set the cards she drew, once that was done she picked up the card that she had just drawn. "And I summon Blindly Loyal Goblin in attack mode!" Theresa played the card and her red goblin appeared on the field ready for battle (4/1800/1500) and when he saw the stats of the monster Otto scoffed.
"I expected better from you Theresa but alas your pathetic monster can't hope to stand up to mine!" Otto said with a grin, Theresa ignored him and motioned for Axel to take his turn, Axel responded to this by swiftly drawing his card.
"As much as I hate to agree with Otto he is right." Axel thought as his eyes darted towards Theresa's goblin. "Theresa's monster is formidable but it won't stand a chance against his machine." Otto thought before looking at his hand. "I activate the Spell Card Gladiator Beast's Respite; now by shuffling a single Gladiator Beast monster into my deck this Spell Card will allow me to draw three cards from my deck." Axel announced as he returned a monster to his deck, shuffled it and drew three cards. "I set three cards facedown and summon Gladiator Beast Andal in attack mode!" Axel played the cards and the one eyed humanoid bear appeared on the field (4/1900/1500). "It's your move Eddie."
"Right, here goes something!" Eddie announced as he drew his card, he frowned when he looked at his hand. "All I have is a bunch of tuners and no regular monsters; this leaves me at a disadvantage." Eddie thought before looking at his drawn card. "I activate the Spell Card Cards of Consonance; so long as I discard one weak Dragon Type Tuner this Spell Card will allow me to draw two cards." Eddie discarded one of his monsters and drew two cards. "This is more like it!" Eddie thought before playing the card. "Since you guys have monsters on your side of the field and I don't I can special summon Vice Dragon from my hand, however as a cost I gotta cut his attack and defense points in half." Eddie played the card and the ugly purple dragon from his last duel appeared on the field (5/1000/1200). "Don't get too attached to him though as for my normal summon I'm bringing out the tuner monster Dread Dragon in attack mode!"
"He's not wasting time with his Synchros." Theresa thought as a small strange looking red dragon appeared on the field (2/1100/400).
"Now I tune Dread Dragon with Vice Dragon so I can Synchro Summon Exploder Dragonwing!" Eddie played the card and the two monsters vanished, in the place of Vice Dragon stood the mighty dragon from Eddie's previous duel (7/2400/1600).
"As if we're stupid enough to try to destroy that thing after seeing what it did to Lance's defenses?" Otto scoffed just as Theresa activated a card.
"We won't need to, I counter Exploder Dragonwing's summon with my trap card….." Theresa started but was stopped when Chloe made a move.
"Not so fast Theresa, since Eddie was kind enough to Special Summon his dragon I can Special Summon Extra Veiler in attack mode!" Chloe played the card and a man in a matador costume appeared on her side of the field, he was carrying a sword and a red cape which, funnily enough, had the imprint of a bull's head on it (2/600/200).
"What's she thinking? That monster's easily the weakest on the field." Theresa thought before she activated her trap. "As I was saying I activate Compulsory Evacuation Device to bounce Exploder Dragonwing back to Eddie's Extra Deck!" Theresa activated her trap and just like she said Exploder Dragonwing was sent flying into the air and out of the stadium.
"Damn, now all I have is my traps to defend me." Eddie thought with a frown. "I set two cards facedown and end my turn." Eddie set the two cards down and Chloe drew her card.
"Okay, I should be all set should either of these guys play a card that deals damage to my lifepoints." Chloe thought as she looked over her hand and her new card.
"Chloe, switch Extra Veiler to defense mode and set the trap you just drew." Chloe nearly jumped out of her skin when the voice rang out again earning her odd looks from the older duelists.
"You couldn't choose a better time to give me advice?" Chloe responded mentally as she looked at the card in question. "Who are you anyway?"
"That's not important right now." The voice responded, she waited a few minutes but when no further advice came from her advisor she looked at her trap.
"Hmm, maybe she has a point." Chloe thought as her eyes rested on the trap card in question. "I can't believe I'm actually considering taking the advice of a voice in my head."
"SOMETIME TODAY PLEASE!" Chloe's train of thought was interrupted by Otto's impatient yell and she sweat-dropped.
"Sorry, just strategizing." Chloe said before switching the position of her monster. "I switch Extra Veilor to defense mode and I set a card facedown that ends my turn." Chloe announced as she set the card, the matador knelt down holding his sword defensively.
"What does she know about strategy?" Otto thought with a scoff as he drew his card. "I know what that card does and she obviously doesn't know its side effect." Otto thought before looking at his drawn card. "Proto Cyber Dragon, wipe out that pathetic spellcaster!" The mechanical dragon powered up its laser and Chloe prepared to activate her previously set trap….
"I activate my Trap Card Regulation of Tribe!" Theresa activated her remaining trap to the surprise of both Otto and Chloe and chains sprung for ensnaring Proto-Cyber Dragon. "How it works is simple, I declare a monster type and as long as my trap remains on the field that type can't attack, as you can tell I'm choosing Machine!"
"Drat, she just crippled my deck." Otto thought with a growl, however before either duelist could say anything Axel activated one of his traps.
"My apologies Chloe but I chain Regulation of Tribe with my trap card Parry!" Axel activated the card and Andal charged towards the chains and cut them apart with his sword before disappearing from the field. "In exchange for returning Andal to my deck my trap card negates the activation of and destroys Regulation of Tribe."
"And that leaves me free to attack! Proto-Cyber Dragon I command you to wipe out her pathetic defenses!" Otto commanded and now that it was free from the chain the machine fired up its attack again…
"I was going to activate this sooner but now that Theresa's trap has lured you into activating your trap Axel I'm free to do so!" Chloe said as she activated her trap. "Go Chaos Burst!"
"You're activating WHAT?" Otto yelled as his eyes widened.
"That's right, all I need to do is tribute Extra Veilor and Proto-Cyber Dragon is history!" Chloe announced as Extra Veilor suddenly stood up and bum rushed Proto-Cyber Dragon, it leaped into the air and stabbed the machine in the neck, it let out what sounded like a mechanical howl of pain before swatting away Extra Veilor and vaporizing the Matador with its laser blast, the dragon collapsed soon after disintegrating before a shocked Otto's eyes. "Oh and there's more where that came from, once the attacking monster is destroyed Chaos Burst inflicts 1000 points of damage to your life-points!" Otto's eyes widened when he heard that as the Matador's sword reappeared on the field….
"I'm afraid not Chloe!" Eddie intervened by activating one of his facedown cards. "I activate Spell of Pain, normally this would only work if I was the target but since this is a multiperson match I can use it now and with it I can redirect the damage to you!" Chloe's eyes widened when the sword turned its attention back to Chloe, Chloe quickly glanced over her hand looking for a way to prevent it, she was unable too however and the sword grazed her shoulder.
C: 7000
O: 8000
A: 8000
T: 8000
E: 8000
"What the hell are you doing? Are you siding with Otto?" Chloe accused the two male duelists once she sent her trap to the graveyard.
"We are not siding with anyone." Axel said with a frown on his face. "In this duel its survival of the fittest and that means the weakest duelist is the first to go."
"And as much as I like you Chloe, the weakest duelist is you." Eddie added with a frown on his face before turning to Theresa. "No offense Theresa but you need to realize that and stop defending her."
"Not in this life-time." Theresa said defiantly before turning her attention to Otto. "Are you done?" Theresa asked and Otto, who was overjoyed at this revelation, looked over his hand.
"I set a monster in defense mode, now I am done." Otto said and Theresa drew her card. "This is too perfect, with Axel and Eddie teaming up with me against Chloe that Osiris Red Bitch's life-points will be mine for the taking."
"Okay, that was just fucking harsh!" Lance yelled obviously enraged at this revelation. "I know this duel is merely to determine the next round matches but seriously? Ganging up on Chloe?"
"I don't like it either Lance but at least Chloe has Theresa protecting her for the time being." Brandon said with a frown.
"I don't know guys, personally if I was in this match I'd focus on Chloe as well." Marcus said plainly….only to find himself on the receiving end of a painful headlock from Lance.
"Care to repeat that?" Lance growled as storm clouds started forming above his head.
"Hey…hey just hear me out okay!" Marcus pleaded with him and Lance reluctantly let go of the headlock. "Okay, we all know how fragile Chloe's self-esteem is, especially after the duel we had against her dad if you can call him that, but do you really think Theresa protecting her will help Chloe's self-esteem issues in any way?"
"I see where Marcus is coming from." Jeff said as he rubbed his chin in thought. "Chloe's definitely come a long way and her usage of that trap card was great even if it left her open to an attack, and you just know she'll be at Axel's mercy once his turn begins, but if Chloe has any sense she'll ask Theresa to stop babysitting her."
"Don't get me wrong, she made a good move." Marcus added before folding his arms. "But I think Eddie realizes it as well, his statement to Theresa wasn't about making the duel easier for him it was about what's best for Chloe."
"Great, Chloe's move left her defenseless which wouldn't be a problem if her move hadn't backfired big time." Theresa thought before looking at her newly drawn card. "Maybe this can help though." Theresa thought before playing a spell card. "I activate the spell card Exchange; this lets me trade a card with one of my opponents."
"Well since you put it that way." Otto said holding out his hand. "If you must know my hand is quite excellent and can only help you." Otto said but Theresa shook her head.
"Not what I had in mind Otto, and to be blunt you're the last person on earth I'd want to trade cards with." Theresa said and Otto frowned before Axel started walking towards her. "I'm not trading with you either Axel." Theresa said and Axel nodded before walking back.
"Your loss, my hand is very good." Axel said with a shrug as he returned to his spot on the field, Eddie and Chloe looked over their hands and frowned.
"If you want to trade with me knock yourself out, all I've got is low level tuners." Eddie told her and Theresa shook her head. "Wait, you're trading with Chloe?"
"You got it." Theresa said as she walked towards Chloe, Chloe was equally as confused as Eddie was due to how bad her hand was.
"Why? My hand's not very good." Chloe asked confused before showing her hand to Theresa, it consisted off Defender The Magical Knight (4/1600/2000), Magical Marionette (5/2000/1000), Apprentice Magician (2/400/800) and Blade Knight (4/1600/1000).
"Just trust me on this okay?" Theresa said with a reassuring wink before showing Chloe her hand; it consisted off Axe Dragonite (4/2000/1200), the Spell Card Mirage of Nightmare and her newly drawn trap card which quickly caught Chloe's attention.
"That trap card can help!" Chloe thought before taking it, Theresa turned her hand around and looked over Chloe's hand before taking Blade Knight.
"Humph, a waste of a good spell card!" Otto scoffed as Theresa made her way back to her side of the field; since Chloe hadn't budged she remained still as she was looking over her new trap card.
"Why don't you look for yourself Otto? I summon the monster Chloe just gave me, Blade Knight, in attack mode!" Theresa played the card and the blue armored knight appeared on the field (4/1600/1000). "But before I do anything else I activate Mirage of Nightmare, this spell card lets me draw four cards during Axel's standby phase in exchange for discarding the same amount during my next standby phase." Theresa played the card and the spell card's hologram appeared on the field. "Now Blade Knight, attack Otto's defense monster, Blindly Loyal Goblin attack Otto's life-points directly!" Theresa commanded and the two monsters charged towards Otto, Blade Knight slashed his facedown monster, however it was revealed to be Cyber Phoenix (4/1200/1600) which survived Blade Knight's assault. "Okay so much for that, Blindly Loyal Goblin I command you to attack Cyber Phoenix!" The goblin charged towards the mechanical bird and smashed its club against the bird's head destroying it.
"Whilst we're on the subject of drawing cards since Cyber Phoenix was destroyed I can draw a new card." Otto announced before drawing his card.
"Fine, I end my turn." Theresa announced and Axel drew his card, Mirage of Nightmare's effect activated and Theresa drew four cards without hesitation.
"Not only did Chloe's move backfire but it left her defenseless, and since she has the least amount of life-points out of all of us it makes sense for me to target her." Axel thought before frowning. "Except for two unknown elements, first that card Chloe got from Theresa, for all I know it could be something like Kuriboh." Axel thought before turning his attention to Theresa. "And then there's Theresa's new cards, god only knows what Mirage of Nightmare gave her." Axel thought before looking at his hand. "Rather than attack I'll play it safe, I set a monster in defense mode and end my turn." Axel set the card and once it appeared on the field Eddie drew his card.
"Great, I drew another tuner." Eddie thought with a frown. "All though his effect might come in handy." Eddie thought before playing the card. "I summon the Tuner Monster Magna Drago in attack mode!" Eddie played the card and a small red dragon appeared on the field (2/1400/800). "Magna Drago, attack Chloe's life-points directly!" The dragon breathed fire at Chloe who braced herself for the attack.
"Blade Knight, block Magna Drago's attack!" Theresa commanded and the knight leaped into the path of the flames, he protected himself from it with his shield before charging at the dragon and slashing it with his sword.
C: 7000
O: 8000
A: 8000
T: 8000
E: 7800
"She's still protecting Chloe, and I'm still defenseless." Eddie thought as Blade Knight returned to Theresa's side of the field and Chloe breathed a sigh of relief. "She'll have to stop protecting her at some point; in the meantime I can use my traps to protect the rest of my life-points." Eddie thought before looking at the rest of his hand. "It's your turn Chloe!" Eddie announced and Chloe drew her card.
"Mystical Space Typhoon, great I can use this to destroy one of Eddie's or Axel's traps." Chloe thought as she looked at her card.
"I have a better idea." The voice rang out and Chloe frowned.
"The last time I followed your advice it backfired!" Chloe responded and the voice sighed.
"Yes, I didn't take into account Eddie or Axel's facedown cards but listen to me." The voice said sternly and Chloe did so begrudgingly. "Use it on Theresa's Spell Card."
"Huh…hey she's right! Nightmare's side effect won't activate if it's no longer on the field." Chloe thought before activating her card. "I activate the Spell Card Mystical Space Typhoon!" Chloe played the card and the other duelists braced themselves as a tornado washed over the field. "With this I can destroy one Spell or Trap card you guys control and my card of choice is….Theresa's Mirage of Nightmare Spell Card!" The boy's eyes widened when the tornado changed its course destroying the Spell Card.
"Thanks for that Chloe." Theresa thanked her with a thumbs up; Chloe returned the gesture before picking up a card.
"I'm not done yet, I set a card facedown and I summon Defender the Magical Knight in attack mode!" Chloe set the card she got from Theresa and the magical knight appeared on the field holding his shield out in front of him (4/1600/2000). "Defender, like his pal Break the Magical Warrior, has an effect that centers around the use of Spell Counters, however in this case it lets me protect one Spellcaster type monster from being destroyed in battle as long as it has a counter on him."
"Hmmm, the card's effect might prove troublesome." Axel thought with a frown.
"Defender, attack Otto's life-points directly!" Chloe demanded and Defender drew his sword before charging at Otto.
"Aren't you going to help me again?" Otto demanded from Axel and Eddie who shook their heads, Otto growled and turned around….just in time to see Defender's sword slashing him.
C: 7000
O: 6400
A: 8000
T: 8000
E: 7800
"Now I'm going to help you Otto!" Eddie said as he activated his trap. "I activate Begone, Knave!" Eddie activated the card and too Chloe's surprise Defender disappeared from the field. "Now that your monsters dealt damage to a player it goes back to your hand and we both know that Defender's effect doesn't protect him from that!"
"You were saying about having a better idea?" Chloe scolded the other voice mentally as she looked over the rest of her hand.
"I may be a Duel Spirit but I'm not psychic!" The voice responded and Chloe went to end her turn but stopped when she heard the last part.
"You're a what?" Chloe asked the other voice or Duel Spirit as she had called herself, and the spirit sighed.
"I'll explain later." The voice said before pausing. "Just end your turn for now." The voice added and Chloe nodded.
"That ends my turn." Chloe announced and Otto drew his card angrily, he took one look at his drawn card and smirked.
"Well for starters since Theresa and Axel have monsters and I don't I can summon Cyber Dragon straight from my hand." Otto played the card and the proper version of Cyber Dragon appeared on the field with a mechanical roar (5/2100/1600). "Now I would attack the Osiris Red Bit…."
"Don't even THINK about calling her that." Theresa said as her eyes narrowed, Otto growled before sighing.
"Fine, as I was saying I would attack Chloe's life-points directly but Eddie's trap card would work against me, so instead I activate Cost Down, in exchange for discarding a card from my hand I can reduce the levels of all monsters in my hand by one." Otto played the card and after discarding Biofalcon he picked up a card. "Next I summon a second Cyber Dragon and activate the Spell Card Photon Generator Unit!" Otto played the cards, nearly emptying his hand in the process, and almost as quickly as the second Cyber Dragon appeared the two Cyber Dragons disappeared. "This spell card requires that I tribute two Cyber Dragons but in exchange I can special summon the mighty Cyber Laser Dragon!" Otto retrieved the card from his graveyard and played it, in the place of the first Cyber Dragon stood a massive machine best described as a two headed Cyber Dragon (7/2400/1800). "I end my turn but once you see the true power of my dragon you'll be begging for mercy!" Otto announced and Theresa drew her card.
"I know what Otto's new monster can do and I know how dangerous it is." Theresa thought as her eyes narrowed. "I just hope the others realize this before it's too late!" Theresa thought before picking up three cards. "I set three cards facedown and switch my monsters to defense mode that ends my turn." Theresa set the three cards and her two monsters knelt down and once that was done Axel drew his card.
"I sacrifice my facedown monster to summon Gladiator Beast Alexander in attack mode." Axel swapped the cards out and the facedown monster disappeared, in its place stood the humanoid muscular lion (6/2400/600).
"Perfect, Axel may not realize it but by summoning Alexander he's fallen for my trap." Otto thought as he eyed the Gladiator Beast. "In all likelihood Axel will target either of Theresa's monsters and chose not to use the tagging out ability of his monsters thinking that it will be beast that he has a monster that can go toe to toe with my dragon, a mistake he'll regret on my next turn." Otto thought.
"Alexander, strike down Blindly Loyal Goblin this instant!" Axel commanded and the gladiator beast charged towards the goblin…
"I don't think so, I activate Shift." Theresa activated her card and Alexander stopped in his tracks. "This trap card lets me change your attack target to a monster of my choice, and I'm choosing Cyber Laser Dragon."
"NO!" Otto yelled but it was too late, Alexander changed his course and charged right towards Otto's machine, he decapitated one head with his sword and the remaining head blew a hole right through its chest, both monsters collapsed to the ground seconds later before disintegrating.
"Otto, we're both in Obelisk Blue or did you forget that Cyber Dragons are among the first cards Obelisk Blue Students are taught about?" Theresa pointed out with a frown. "That's why I set those cards down, I know of Cyber Laser Dragons ability to destroy monsters that are either stronger than or just as strong as he is." Theresa added as the three duelists sent their respective cards to the graveyard.
"I see, I guess I should thank you for helping me destroy such a dangerous card." Axel commented before pointing to his facedown card. "But I am far from done, I activate Call of the Haunted and I use it to revive the monster I sacrificed to summon Alexander, Gladiator Beast Laquari!" Axel retrieved the card and once he played it the humanoid tiger appeared on the field (4/1800/400).
"I'm not complaining or anything but why didn't you revive Alexander?" Chloe asked and Axel frowned despite anticipating the question.
"Alexander can only be special summoned by way of a certain Gladiator Beast, and unfortunately that goes for summoning him from the graveyard as well." Axel explained before pointing to Blindly Loyal Goblin. "Gladiator Beast Laquari, finish the job Gladiator Beast Alexander started and strike down Blindly Loyal Goblin now!" Axel commanded and the Gladiator Beast charged towards the goblin.
"Time I made use of the card Theresa gave me." Chloe thought as she went to activate her trap card; however she was caught by surprise when the voice of the spirit rang out again.
"Chloe, hold off on using that card." The spirit told her and Chloe hesitated, in fact she hesitated long enough for Laquari to decapitate Theresa's goblin with his sword.
"Why the hell did you stop me? I could've saved Theresa's goblin!" Chloe responded mentally not noticing that her hand was still near the activate trap button on her duel disk.
"Trust me on this; besides Theresa has better monsters than that Goblin, she'll be fine." The spirit reassured her, Chloe was about to respond when Theresa clearing her throat caught her attention, Chloe looked up and saw the other duelists looking at her.
"Were you going to activate your card Chloe?" Axel asked and Chloe shook her head trying to think of a possible reason for her hesitation that they would buy.
"Err, yeah I was but I forgot about my trap until Theresa's monster was destroyed." Chloe explained hoping that they brought it; Axel said nothing and retrieved one of his cards from his deck.
"Very well, I return Laquari to my deck and tag him out for Gladiator Beast Beastari!" Axel swapped out the cards and Laquari disappeared from the field, in its place stood the humanoid bird from his previous duels which was ready for battle (4/1500/800). "Now his effect activates, with it I can destroy one Spell or Trap Card on the field and seeing as how it's become quite the nuisance already I use it to destroy Begone Knave!" Axel explained as the birdman took flight before charging at the hologram and destroying it.
"I had a feeling my trap card wouldn't stay on the field for long." Eddie thought as he sent his trap to the graveyard. "Still it served me well so I can't complain really."
"Okay, either your psychic or you just got really lucky." Chloe commented to the duel spirit. "And come to think of it, are you going to explain to me what exactly duel spirits are?"
"In time Chloe, as for your first comment well it was more to do with common sense, would Staunch Defender really help in this situation?" The spirit asked and Chloe gulped realizing she had a point.
"That's right, at the time the only monsters on the field were Theresa's goblin, my knight and Axel's Laquari." Chloe thought with a frown.
"I shall end my turn at that." Axel announced and Eddie drew his card.
"Perfect." Eddie thought before playing the card. "As much as I hate repeating myself I'm using Vice Dragon's effect to special summon him to the field at the cost of half his attack and defense points again." Eddie played the card and the ugly purple dragon reappeared on the field. "Next I summon Dragunity Phalanx in attack mode!" Eddie played the card and the small dragon appeared on the field (2/1000/600). "Now I tune my two monsters together to Synchro Summon an old friend of ours, the mighty Exploder Dragonwing!" Eddie swapped out the cards and the two dragons vanished, in Vice Dragon's place stood the mighty dragon from earlier in the duel. "Now for the final piece of my puzzle, my trap card Final Attack Orders!" Eddie flipped the card up and too Theresa's surprise her Blade Knight was forced to his feet. "As long as this trap card is on the field all opposing monsters are forced into attack mode and their positions can't be changed."
"I see, combined with Exploder Dragonwing's special ability that makes for a very lethal combination." Axel commented inadvertently giving Chloe an idea.
"That it will, now Exploder Dragonwing I command you attack Chloe's life-points directly!" Eddie commanded and the dragon prepared to breathe fire at her…
"I activate Waboku and use it to protect Chloe's life points!" Theresa activated her trap and the three priestesses blocked the flames, they were incinerated by them but the flames never got anywhere near Chloe.
"Want to play it like that huh? Fine I end my turn." Eddie announced and Chloe quickly drew her card.
"Okay, for this to work I'll have to pass my turn, I'll suffer some damage but in the end this move will help me." Chloe thought before glancing towards Axel. "I should probably wait until Axel's turn before activating it if I want to deal the most damage." Chloe thought. "I pass for now." Chloe announced catching the other duelists off guard.
"Why did she pass? She still has Defender last time I checked." Theresa thought as Otto drew his card.
"I activate Pot of Avarice; now by returning five monsters in my graveyard to my deck this Spell Card will allow me to draw two cards." Otto explained before retrieving two of his Cyber Dragons, Cyber Laser Dragon, Cyber Phoenix and Proto Cyber Dragon from his graveyard and returning them to his deck, once that was done he drew two cards. "Next I special summon Cyber Dragon by using his effect!" Otto announced and the mechanical dragon reappeared on the field. "Cyber Dragon, attack Chloe's life-points directly!" Otto commanded and the dragon fired its laser at Chloe who winced as the blast hit her on the chest.
C: 4900
O: 6400
T: 8000
A: 8000
E: 7800
"You okay Chloe?" Theresa asked as the younger duelist regained her footing, once she did she nodded meekly.
"I shall end my turn at that." Otto announced and Theresa drew her card.
"Not much I can do so I summon Axe Dragonite in attack mode!" Theresa played the card and the black, axe wielding dragon appeared on the field (4/2000/1200). "I end my turn at that." Theresa announced and Axel drew his card.
"It's now or never; as soon as Axel attacks I'll spring my trap." Chloe thought as Axel looked over his hand.
"Chloe, wait….." The spirit's voice started but was cut off by Chloe mentally.
"No, the last few times I listened to your advice it backfired majorly." Chloe responded mentally as her eyes narrowed.
"I summon Gladiator Beast Darius in attack mode!" Axel played the card and the humanoid horse in red armor appeared on the field (4/1800/500). "Darius, attack Chloe's life-points directly!" Axel commanded and the horse charged towards Chloe…..
"That's just what I was hoping for!" Chloe said as she activated her trap. "I activate Staunch Defender, this trap card forces all monsters on the field to attack a target of my choice and my target is…." Chloe stretched out her arm and pointed towards Exploder Dragonwing…..
"But that means…." Otto trailed off as it dawned on him. "This is going to suck!" Otto muttered under his breath as Cyber Dragon fired its laser at Exploder Dragonwing, at the same time Darius changed course and charged at the massive dragon where he was quickly joined by Theresa's monsters and Beastiari.
"Exploder Dragonwing, COUNTERATTACK!" Eddie commanded and the massive dragon took flight and breathed fire at each of the monsters incinerating them all.
C: 4900
O: 4300
A: 4700
T: 4400
E: 7800
Otto, Theresa and Axel picked up their cards and sent them to the graveyard; Theresa marched up to Chloe and held her hand out. "Chloe, what the hell was that?" Theresa demanded once Chloe handed over Theresa's Staunch Defender trap card, Chloe winced momentarily glancing up at the scoreboard and seeing that Theresa had taken the most damage from the attack.
"I took that trap to protect my life-points; I didn't think you'd summon another monster." Chloe said meekly as Theresa handed her Blade Knight back to her.
"Your right, you didn't think." Theresa said sternly as she glared at the younger duelist. "All you could think about is getting revenge on Otto."
"That's…that's not…." Chloe trailed off, Theresa would've kept going but Chloe sounded like she was about to cry at this point, she simply stormed back to her spot before glancing over at Chloe.
"You know what? Forget it, and you can forget about any further protection from me!" Theresa said before turning to the others. "She's all yours." Theresa said plainly and Axel looked over the rest of his hand.
"I end my turn." Axel said plainly and Eddie drew his card.
"There's no way Chloe's in any shape to duel after that, better put her out of her misery." Eddie thought before looking at his card. "I activate my own Pot of Avarice!" Eddie played the card and returned five monsters to his deck, shuffled it and drew two cards. "Now I play another Cards of Consonance!" Eddie discarded one of his tuners and drew another two cards. "Finally I summon Lord of Dragons and play the Spell Card Flute of Summoning Dragon which I use to Special Summon Luster Dragon number 1 and Rare Metal Dragon both in attack mode!" Eddie played the card and the beautiful sapphire dragon appeared on the field (4/1900/1600) alongside the tanned Dragon magician (4/1200/1100) and the metallic dragon (4/2400/2000). "Go my dragons; attack Chloe's life points directly!" The three dragons breathed fire at Chloe who winced as the attacks hit her.
C: 0000
O: 4300
A: 4700
T: 4400
E: 7800
"And one of the participants in the first match of the next round has been decided!" Kaiba announced as the crowd cheered, Chloe walked off dejectedly, however the only ones in the audience who weren't cheering were the Duel Academy students and the teachers.
"I know I wanted Theresa to stop protecting Chloe but….." Marcus trailed off and Lance clenched his fists in anger.
"But not like that." Lance said with a growl. "Theresa gave Chloe that card; did she not anticipate her using it against her?"
"Probably not, though her choice to leave her field open was a good one." Martin added and Jeff frowned before standing up.
"I'm taking Chloe back to the hotel so that she can calm down without Theresa confronting her again, the fourth round matches aren't until this evening anyway." Jeff announced before leaving the area and heading backstage, whilst that happened Eddie pointed to Lord of Dragons.
"Since my original target's been eliminated I have a new target, Lord of Dragons attack Otto's life-points directly!" Eddie commanded and the magician cast a spell at Otto who winced as the attack connected with him.
O: 3100
A: 4700
T: 4400
E: 7800
"Before you ask, yes our team up ended when Chloe was eliminated." Eddie said and Otto growled. "I end my turn."
"You'll pay for that!" Otto said as he drew his card since Chloe was eliminated from the match. "I set a card facedown and end my turn, just try to attack me with what I have facedown!" Otto dared the other duelists and Theresa, who was still angry at Chloe, drew her card.
"You shouldn't be so angry at Chloe Theresa." A deep booming voice rang out from inside Theresa's head and Theresa sighed, it was her own duel spirit that was addressing her and she had suspected that Chloe had one who was making herself known to her just now. "She was just trying to win the match."
"I know, but if Otto had activated the Orichalcos she would've injured us all in the process, her anger towards Otto was making her make reckless moves and I had to put her in her place even if it was harsh." Theresa responded mentally before looking at her card, whilst she did she started to wonder about Chloe's behavior throughout the duel. "You think Chloe has a duel spirit as well?"
"It certainly seems that way." The voice responded before pausing. "For now fulfill Chloe's wish by ensuring that Chloe faces Otto in her next match." The voice added and Theresa played her card.
"You won't get a chance Otto; I summon Chiron the Mage in attack mode!" Theresa played the card and the centaur appeared on the field (4/1800/1000). "Now I use his effect, by discarding one Spell Card from my hand I can destroy your spell card!" Otto's eyes widened as the centaur pointed its staff at the facedown card, a pulse emanated from it destroying it.
"NO! NOT MY DIMENSION WALL!" Otto yelled out before glaring at Theresa, he reluctantly sent his trap to the grave and glared at her. "You'll pay for that."
"You should worry about your impending elimination, Chiron attack his life-points directly!" Theresa commanded and the beast charged towards Otto before slamming its staff against Otto's chest.
O: 1300
A: 4700
T: 4400
E: 7800
"Are you up for finishing the job Axel?" Theresa asked the other duelist who nodded before drawing his card.
"Off course, and I'll do it with Gladiator Beast Equeste!" Axel played the card and the armored centaur appeared on the field (4/1600/1400). "Equeste, finish off Otto now!" Axel commanded and the centaur charged towards Otto before slashing him with his sword.
O: 0000
A: 4700
T: 4400
E: 7800
"And just like that our first match is decided! Chloe Richardson will take on Otto Freshier in what is sure to be a heated grudge match." Kaiba announced over the cheering crowd as Otto strolled off to the backstage area.
"That couldn't have worked out more perfectly if I tried!" Otto thought with a smirk at he glanced towards the last card in his hand, another Cyber Dragon. "Sure, I could have just surrendered but I have too much pride for that, besides I couldn't run the risk of either Theresa or Axel eliminating her before I had the chance." Otto thought before turning his attention back to the duel just in time to see Eddie draw his card. "Now, let's see how long Theresa and Axel last against our esteemed champion hmm? He does have quite a lot of firepower on his side of the field." Otto thought as he folded his arms, Eddie looked at the card before playing it.
"I activate Card of Sanctity which will allow us to refresh our hands." Eddie announced and the remaining three duelists drew until they had six cards in their hands. "Well guys, it's been a blast but it looks like I'm getting a free trip to the finals."
"Not likely." Theresa said shaking her head. "Our monsters may be the second and third weakest on the field but we have more than enough life-points to survive the onslaught!"
"Why don't you just watch? I start by activating Double Summon, with this I can normal summon twice in one round." Eddie played the card and a strange aura surrounded Eddie's side of the field.
"I know that, I use that card to make Synchro Summons easier." Theresa pointed out with a frown. "What are you getting at?"
"This, I activate my second Spell Card Lightning Vortex!" Theresa and Axel's eyes widened as lightning struck their two monsters destroying them both. "Now I offer Luster Dragon as a tribute to summon the mighty Kaiser Glider!" Luster Dragon disappeared from the field and in its place stood the golden dragon that was ready for battle (6/2400/2000).
"He has enough firepower to finish one of us off but not both of us." Axel thought as his eyes narrowed. "What else is he going to summon?"
"And as for my second summon I summon the tuner monster known as Arcane Apprentice!" Eddie plated the card and the magician in purple robes appeared on the field (2/1000/400). "I don't know about you but I think it's time I gave Lord of Dragons a tune up!" Eddie said as he removed both cards from the field, the two monsters leapt into the air and Arcane Apprentice's staff emitted a pulse that created two green rings which quickly surrounded Lord of Dragons. "I tune Lord of Dragons with Arcane Apprentice to Synchro Summon Explosive Magician in attack mode!" Eddie played the card and Lord of Dragons vanished in a bright light which caused Axel and Theresa to shield their eyes, when they looked up Arcane Apprentice and Lord of Dragons where long gone and in their place stood a magician in white and gold robes that looked similar to the robes traditionally worn by the Dark Magician, Theresa and Axel shared a look knowing that they would face each other (6/2500/1800).
"Well, looks like we're facing each other next." Theresa said as she turned to Axel. "Well, all I can say is may the best duelist win!"
"And I'll say the same to you." Axel said with a nod before the two duelists turned their attention back to Eddie just as he pointed to his monsters.
"Exploder Dragonwing, Rare Metal Dragon, finish off Axel!" Eddie commanded and the two dragons breathed fire at Axel who winced as the flames made contact. "Explosive Magician, Kaiser Glider, finish off Theresa now!" Eddie commanded and Explosive Magician cast a spell at Theresa whilst Kaiser Glider took flight, Glider hit Theresa first followed by Explosive Magician.
A: 0000
T: 0000
E: 7800
"And just like that the second match of the fourth round is decided and it's a clash of the dueling titans, Germany's National Champion Axel Loather takes on arguably the best duelist among the duel academy students Theresa Daniels!" Kaiba announced and the crowd cheered. "However to give the duelists time to prepare the matches will start at 5:00pm tonight!"
"Who are we? Chopped liver?" Lance muttered as a massive sweat-drop rolled down his, Marcus's and Brandon's heads.
"Well to be fair we were eliminated earlier in the tournament." Brandon said before sighing. "I think we'd better check up on Chloe, Theresa was pretty harsh to her."
"Good idea, we were heading back to the hotel anyway." Martin said before standing up and leading the others to outside the arena where Theresa was waiting for them, as soon as he saw her Lance stormed right up to her getting in her face
"Theresa, what the hell was that?" Lance demanded with a tone of voice that clearly caught the older student off guard.
"Excuse me?" Theresa demanded and Lance's eyes narrowed.
"You know what I'm talking about, how you acted towards Chloe just before she was eliminated was unacceptable." Lance said as his eyes narrowed. "What's the matter? Can't stand it when your opponent uses common sense against you? You had to have known that Chloe would use that trap at some point." Lance continued and Brandon quickly got in between them.
"Lance, that's enough." Brandon scolded him. "Look I'm wondering the exact same thing you are but arguing is not going to help." Brandon added sensing Lance's impending accusation, once that was done he turned to Theresa. "Well?"
"Look, I make no excuses for how I acted towards Chloe and I don't blame you for being pissed at me Lance." Theresa said as she pinched the bridge of her nose in annoyance. "That said if Otto had activated the Orichalcos her little stunt would've hurt me, Axel and Otto."
"Then why didn't you say so instead of berating her to the point of tears?" Lance demanded and Theresa sighed.
"I don't know; I did have a feeling she'd go after my life-points at some point since she was my opponent and all but…" Theresa trailed off before sighing. "One of the first things you learn when you enter Obelisk Blue is too put your opponent's safety above potential victory, obviously she didn't know that and whilst there was no injuries this time there could've been especially since Otto disabled the safeties on his duel disk."
"Even so, I think you'd better apologize to Chloe the first chance you get." Marcus added with a frown on his face. "Shall we get going, preferably without any more arguments?"
"Yeah, lets." Theresa said with a sigh before they entered the limo and drove to the hotel.