The friends played Duel Monsters all the way until late in the afternoon. The storm had passed and they decided to head out to the beach to enjoy the incoming sunlight. They had been stuck indoors for so long that they wanted to get out for just a little. The sky was still dark once they got outside but there were strong rays of sunlight peering through to give them enough warmth to enjoy the rest of their day.
Patty drove her friends to the beach in her new pickup truck to finally relax and enjoy what was left of their winter break. Once Patty parked her truck, her friends got out and sprinted for the beach. Ren came driving by with Andre, Sabrina, and Rosita moments later. As soon as he parked, the two girls ran out and headed for the sand to enjoy the fresh salty air and the feeling of warm sand under their feet, leaving Ren and Andre to get the stuff from the trunk.
Despite the heavy breeze and the occasional rumble of thunder overhead, they pressed on toward the sand. Tyson and Nick charged towards the water, throwing off their shirts and jumping in. Patty shook her head and helped Yuri and Nikki with the towels and chairs, though it was hard for Nikki to do anything, for he had never seen Patty this way before. She wore a white long-sleeved mesh top and very, very short denim cutoffs.
Max rolled around in the sand, happily wagging his tail. Most likely he was waiting for food.
When they got their spot set up, Yuri sat down on the lounge chair to enjoy the view of the ocean in front of him.
Max barked and hopped onto his lap. The palm trees were swaying gracefully in the wind. The seagulls squawking overhead and the waves crashing against the sand relaxed Yuri of his nerves. Though, Nick and Tyson's whooping from the surf made it a little hard to concentrate on the serenity around him.
Patty decided she would go into the water as well, and she stripped down to her bright pink bikini. By how Nikki looked at her, Yuri was afraid blood would pour down her nose. The body may have changed quite drastically, but somewhere under all those curves and long hair was the old Carter Kim who used to perv on Patty when they were younger.
"Coming guys?" Patty asked, trying to free her ankles from her crumpled shorts.
"I'm good for now," said Yuri. "I don't think I can go anywhere; Max fell asleep."
"How about you, Nikki?"
"Yeah, hell yeah!" she said springing up to her feet.
"I'll race you!" Patty said, running for the water.
"No fair, you got a head start!" Nikki called running for the water.
The friends played until the sun began to set on the horizon. The sky turned bright orange and the clouds a shade of pink and dark purple. They gathered around a fire that Tyson started after buying some logs at the pier shop. They each held onto cones of their favorite flavored ice cream, mint chocolate chip.
"Guys," said Nick. "Moments like this aren't going to last forever. Once we toss our caps, win that tournament, and our last summer vacation comes and ends, who knows if we'll ever see each other again. As much as I want you guys to stay here in Aquarius with me, I know you have your goals and ambitions. I encourage you to follow your dreams but never forget this bond of friendship we have. Can we make a promise that we never forget each other?"
"There's no need for such a pledge, Nick," Patty said with a smile. "You guys are in my heart. I love you, all of you. We have plenty of moments like this to enjoy. So let's not ruin them with all this talk of the future. Let's cherish them. Make the most of them."
"Hell yeah!" called out Tyson.
"And I wish you both the best in the tournament!" she continued. "So Yuri, Nick. Rest up, guys. You've got a lot of asses to kick!"
"Hey, if we can, let's stop by Burger World," said Tyson. "All that swimming made me hungry."
"You're always hungry," Rosita groaned, shaking her head.
"I don't think I can get any food," said Nick. "With the restaurant closed, me and Sam are low on cash."
"That's okay," said Yuri. "I'll pay for everyone's food. It's on me."
"My man," Tyson said, slapping Yuri a high-five.
"Oy," Patty said. "Well, if you promise not to get any ketchup in my new truck, I suppose we can stop by the restaurant."
They packed up their things, washed the sand from their bodies under the shower stall by the boardwalk, and walked back to the parking lot to Patty's truck where they loaded their things and got in. Just as Yuri was about to step in, he saw someone familiar talking to two bikini-clad girls. A guy with a blonde mullet leaning against a motorcycle.
"Shun?" Yuri said.
The bounty hunter looked over his shoulder. "Yuri?" he said. "Excuse me, ladies." Shun turned around to face him. "So, what can I do for you?"
"What? You're not going to Duel me for the bounty? Where are the other bounty hunters your boss hired to take me out?"
"They all went home."
"Huh?"
"Did I speak Chinese? They all left. And your brother Leon paid us a hefty sum of cash in order to get us to leave you and pals alone. It was an offer we just couldn't refuse. And you know something, kid? As tempting as forty million bucks is, I'm afraid dealing with you was just too costly and too much trouble. We at the Bounty Hunters Guild don't usually request outside help when it comes to a contract, but you were just so much of a pain that we hired a lot of it. It's time for it to end. We paid those freelancers too much money just to see them easily taken out by you and your friends. We just decided to take your brother's money and then pack it up and leave. I hate to admit it but you're good, Yuri. Really good. Every cent Brett put on your head was worth it."
He held out his hand to apologize. "I'm sorry for the trouble we caused you."
Yuri shook his hand, cringing from the firm grip Shun had.
"Duelists like you come by every once in a while, Yuri. You and your friends have gotten so much stronger since I got here. And I can't help but feel honored to have been part of that road to your success. You've earned my respect. But that doesn't mean I won't be back. I've decided to acknowledge you as my rival. If someone wants you taken out and pays me, rest assured I'll be there to face you. And I look forward to it. Consider yourself on probation."
He hopped on his motorcycle and took off towards the bridge to the Martin Islands.
"See ya, Shun," Yuri whispered. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all.
"Yuri, come on!" Andre called from Ren's car.
Yuri took one last look at Shun before returning to Patty's truck. "Ow, my face," Yuri grumbled, looking at the sunburn across his nose. He felt some irritation on his shoulders and back as well.
"I told you to put some lotion on," said Patty, getting in the driver's seat. Ding! Ding! Ding! Went her door ajar alarm. "Now, look at yourself." She slammed the door.
"I don't have any sunburns," said Tyson.
"You're too black to have a sunburn," Nick grumbled, tending to the burn on his forehead.
"Aw, screw you, man!" Tyson shouted as everyone laughed at Nick's offensive joke. Tyson even cracked a smile and laughed too. "This is a sweet truck, Patty," he said when the laughing died down.
"I worked an entire year to get this," said Patty, driving out of the parking lot.
"So quickly?" Yuri asked. "And with such a meager pay? Even with what Sergei pays you at the diner, it won't cover something like this in such a short time."
"Yeah, that's true, yo," said Tyson. "And didn't you just get a new computer for your art program? That alone was like fourteen hundred bombs."
"I work two jobs," Patty said, biting her lower lip.
Yuri noticed her voice getting shaky.
"Wow, Patty, that's a lot of hours. It's no wonder you're always so busy," said Nick. He was looking out the window at a group of bikini-clad girls heading for the beach. There were also holographic monsters popping up here and there around town from many duelists trying out their Duel Disks.
"Well, here we are," Patty said entering the burger restaurant. She pulled into the drive-through. "Hey, cool, the Dragonfire Burger: a spicy new burger commemorating the launch of the new Duel Disk system."
"Hey, I'll try that," Yuri said, looking at the poster on the window, advertising the spicy new burger.
"Me too," Nick said holding up his finger.
"I'm not accustomed to spicy foods," Nikki said bashfully. "I'll stick with a regular cheeseburger."
"Order up fellas," said Yuri.
"And ladies," added Patty.
"And ladies," Yuri repeated.
The clerk behind the com spoke. "Welcome to Burger World, can I take your order?"
Patty leaned out the window. "Yeah, uh, I'll have three number fours; medium! One number five; medium and…"
Tyson rolled down his window, leaned forward, and called out from the back.
"Yeah, how ya doin' baby-boo? I'll have, uh...six number fours. The, uh, Dragonfire Burger; extra cheese and jalapenos. Two Triple Decker BB-Q burgers; with crispier bacon, please. The Super-Special-Awesome Burger with extra cheese. A Bacon Master Burger; extra bacon. Two orders of six Mini-Man Sliders with large fries…and uh, a diet coke."
Tyson's friends all looked at him.
"Anything else?"
"We're good ma'am!" Patty called out before Tyson could shout out an order more. Nick also covered Tyson's mouth with his hand.
"Okay, your total is fifty-ninety-five. Wait in the lot, and we'll be right out with your order."
"Thank you!" Patty called out. And then she rolled to the pay window. "Hey, guys. I know it's a bit early but maybe we can stop by Wal-Mart and start hoarding supplies for the tournament this summer."
"Camping supplies?" said Nikki. "Da fuck? Where are we going?"
"Ask Yuri," said Patty.
"Well," said Yuri. "Leon bought his own island a while back. He wants to host the tournament there is a battle royale-style event. Lucky for us we can bring friends alone, however, that's gonna come out of my own pocket."
"Pfft not that it matters," said Patty. "I doubt that sixteen million in your bank account has disappeared."
"Well..."
Patty looked at him through the mirror. "What?"
"I'm sorry, Patty. My dad found out the funds. He was pissed."
"Oh no." Patty smacked her forehead on the steering wheel. "You serious, Yuri?"
"Do you think I'd let Nick suffer from the agony of knowing he has to win his sister back into the family via tournament if I did? He took it all away not long after Julio became my general manager. If it wasn't for him and the brand deals he made, I wouldn't have the cash I have now. I'm still rolling in dough, trust me, but it's not enough to help Nick out of his predicament."
Tyson nudged his way forward and peered between the seats at Yuri. "Yuri, you know this is important to Nick. Why are you going to participate in the tournament?"
"What does it matter?" said Nikki. "If either Yuri or Nick wins, we get the prize money and can split it, right?"
"No. It doesn't work that way, Nikki. When I got my invitation to the tournament I received two weird cards." Yuri opened his backpack to fish out his case of special cards. He opened it and showed them the cards he got with the invitation."
"What the hell?" said Nick.
"You didn't open your envelope, Nick?" Nikki asked.
"No. I was...I was in shock about beating Brett and the accident with the Dragon Sisters that I completely forgot. What are those, Yuri?"
"This one depicting a vault full of cash is called Treasure of the Kings. And this one is the King's Crown."
"What does it mean?" Patty wondered.
"The Treasure of the Kings is a card a Duelist must present in the finals of the tournament. If you beat Leon and win the championship from him, this card will grant you the $100,000,000 grand prize. The King's Crown card does something else. It gives the winner one wish. Anything I want, I can have to myself. And it could be anything. No restrictions. The prize money, the company, Leon's island. All the cards in the world."
"Pretty much something money can't buy, right?"
"Basically."
"What would you wish for, Yuri?"
"For Leon to return to the family. It's what my father wants. No more of this Caldwell nonsense."
I'm sorry to say this but winning that title is important to me."
"More important than Jeannie?" Tyson asked.
"It's not like that!" Yuri yelled. "I know it sounds lame compared to Nick's goal but this is important. I didn't want to tell you guys this but...my father has cancer."
"WHAT!?"
"Yuri..." Patty whispered, placing her hand on his. "Why didn't you tell us."
"Because he didn't want me to. He didn't want to worry you guys. But now...it's gotten really bad. My dad..." Yuri sniffed. His lips started to tremble. He tried to fight it back, but he couldn't. He broke down into tears and started to sob.
Tyson rubbed his shoulder. "It's all right, man, take it easy. What are you trying to say."
Patty handed him a bottle of water so he could drink it and calm his nerves. "Thanks, Patty." Yuri sniffed and drank some of the water. "My dad doesn't have much time to live. It's just been confirmed."
"Oh man," Tyson said, his voice cracking. He propped his elbow on the window and started blinking his eyes to keep the tears from coming out. He sniffed twice.
"He probably had until the end of the year or maybe even a few months."
"So the only thing anybody can do now is to make him comfortable," said Nikki.
"That's right. But there's another problem. Leon. Remember, he left the family because of his hatred towards me. Despite that, he still owns a large percentage of the company. It's practically his. The only reason my dad didn't completely kick him out of Phobos Corp for what he did was because of his genius when it comes to matters concerning the business. I hate to admit it, but Phobos Corp wouldn't be what it is without Leon. He designed the holographic technology we use. He made up the modern rules. He keeps our shareholders and investors in line. My father hates him for walking out on the family and changing his name because of me. But he needs him."
"A necessary evil, huh?" said Patty.
"And it gets worse. Because Leon owns so much stock and is a reliable asset to the company, the board of directors has already decided to name him the successor to my father."
"What! No!" Nick yelled. "They can't do that!"
"Technically they can," said Patty. "Leon does a hell of a job at Phobos Corp. And just because he changed his name, it doesn't mean he's not Mr. Montgomery's legitimate flesh and blood son. Plus, even if Yuri is the heir to the company, he's got no experience. The Phobos Corp board of directors are slimebuckets. Each and every one of them. Crystal told me all about those guys when she worked there as an assistant to Mr. Montgomery last summer. They don't care what Mr. Montgomery's wishes are. They just want what's going to make them more money. And Leon's the ticket to making that happen."
"And legally he's not family," Yuri added, "Surname change or whatever doesn't matter here. He's Leon Caldwell. I'm Yuri Montgomery. That means Phobos Corp will fall to him. It will no longer be the property of the Montgomery Family. He'll take everything from us. Our home. Our ownership of this island. Everything!"
"He can do that?" Nick asked.
"The one who controls Phobos controls everything," said Tyson. "Duel Monsters. The hi-tech holographic technology. And this island. Leon will take it all and put it under his new Caldwell name. And what'll happen to you guys?"
Yuri slumped in his seat. "I don't know. And I don't think he cares. More than likely he'll make us pack our bags and kick us out to the streets."
Tyson snarled like an angry bull. "Man, Yuri, that's low. Real fucking low! I can't believe you guys are related."
"So that's why winning this tournament is important to you," said Nick. "You're going to use that Wish card to keep Phobos Corp away from Leon."
"More than that. I'm going to wish for them to make me CEO of the company right on the spot."
His friends gasped.
"But I thought you didn't want to be CEO, Yuri?" Nikki said.
"I do now. Now that I've seen my true potential. And...now that I'm a lot closer to my father. Ever since Black Tyranno came into my life and helped me beat Randall Lawson, my father saw the potential in me. And we started to become closer than we've ever been all these years. Because of my victories and fame, I started to understand just how much this game and this company mean to my dad. I want to run this business and continue my father's dream by taking over as head of the company and KEEPING it in the Montgomery name!"
"You don't know anything about being CEO," said Nikki.
"I can learn. I'm a fast learner. And my dad will be there to teach me until it's time for him to go. It's going to be rough and the company is going to suffer for a bit. But I think I can manage to keep it strong. All that matters is Leon doesn't take our legacy."
Patty sat back in her chair and took a deep breath. "Wow," she said. "Wow. There's a lot riding for both of you, huh?"
"Talk about drama," Tyson said. "Nick needs to win these games to earn the money to get his sister back and provide for her. And Yuri needs to win so he can take on Leon so he can secure his birthright. Holy shit, Batman! This is some extreme shit."
"And I wish there was a way you both could win," Patty said. "I guess all we can do now is wish you guys luck."
When they finished their meal, Patty then drove her friends to a nearby store to buy booster packs and a movie to watch that night.
Nick disappeared into the mega-store saying he was on the lookout for the most important item on the list but before anyone could ask him what the item was he dashed into the store. Patty and Yuri went to get the supplies for their journey to Leon's island. She pulled out a cart and pushed it into the busy store with Yuri following behind her. He gave her his sweater to keep her warm and to hide the mesh top and short-shorts she wore underneath which caused some unwanted attention outside. They passed by Ren and Andre near the entrance. They were looking to get an ointment to treat the sunburn on Sabrina's back.
"Poor girl," said Yuri.
"Well, I warned her," said Andre. "See you guys when we get back to Yuri's place. Ren, you coming?"
"I think I'll stick with them for a while longer. You give Sabrina that cream. And be gentle. That looked like a really bad burn."
"Yeah, she's tearing up. Hopefully, this will make her feel better." Andre paid for the items in the self-checkout and left the store.
Ren looked back at Patty and Yuri smiling. "Well, it's been a while since I've seen you two together. Glad to know that little incident a few months back hasn't changed your friendship."
"Yeah, I feel good about this," Patty said tossing a pack of gummy bears into the cart. "Everything we've been through. So many adventures. And there's plenty more right over that horizon. Yuri and Nick. My two best friends in the biggest tournament in Duel Monsters history. You two are going to make me so proud."
"Oh yeah," Yuri said rather droll.
"You're still thinking about Leon, huh?"
"Yeah, in all honesty, guys, this whole thing sucks. I already knew about the tournament cards long before my dad gave him the chance to enter the tournament. The whole time Nick was Dueling through all those tests to get himself into the qualifier, I was hoping he would lose."
"Ah, I see," said Ren. "That's why you held back on telling him about the cards. You somehow expected he would lose."
"Yeah. I mean it's Nick we're talking about here. I thought he was going to be that lame, overconfident, smelly jackass we once knew. But he's changed. And he's gotten so strong. The qualifier was my last hope of getting him from entering the tournament but he's just too good now. He's in. If we make it to the finals, I'll have to Duel him. And if I win, I'll be responsible for keeping his sister away."
"Oh honey," Patty whispered sadly. She brushed her pink highlighted bangs off her eyes with her fingertips. "Nick won't think anything less of you if you beat him."
"And I know you won't think any less of him if he beats you," Ren said as he joined them. "Ever since he rescued you from those kids, you two have been like brothers. And not stupid Duel Monsters tournament is going to change that."
All of a sudden, a boy ran up to them. "Are you Yuri?" he asked.
"Guilty as charged."
"Wow! And you must be Patty McKnight!"
"That's me."
"Wow! Cool! And Ren Kakihara, right? The Vampire Duelist?"
"Bleh, bleh, bleh," said Ren, mimicking the stereotypical vampiric catchphrase.
"So cool! Can I have your autographs?" He took out a small notebook from his pocket and a pen. Yuri and Patty signed the notebook at once, making him grow the biggest smile they had ever seen.
The boy introduced himself as Mike, a student from the fourth grade. He was a good lad sporting a red t-shirt, baggy denim shorts, and a baseball cap put on backward over his rose-blonde hair.
"It was nice to meet you, Mike," said Patty. "But we need to get going."
"No! No, not yet! I can't let you do that. Please! If I could just have one Duel with you, Mr. Yuri."
"A Duel?"
"Go for it!" said Patty. "Make this kid's night. There's a basketball court over there you guys can play in."
"Yeah!" said Mike. "My friends are already there. Please, Yuri! Just one Duel."
"All right. All right. My friends and I need to get some food for our movie night though and some supplies for the big tournament this summer. Once we finish buying our stuff, we'll meet you there."
"Great! Thanks, Yuri."
And so, Yuri and the others finished getting snacks for the movie and their small gathering of early camping supplies for the Millennium Games. As promised, he would go face Mike for his Duel. He told Tyson, Nikki, and Nick to wait for them since he felt this Duel was going to be quick. Yuri walked across the busy street to the basketball court where Mike and his friends were waiting.
After a friendly handshake, they shuffled their decks and got into their places.
"You ready?" he called out to Yuri.
"Yeah, let's have a great match!" Yuri called back, activating his Duel Disk.
"You said it!" Mike shouted. He drew his card dramatically. "I summon Mechanical Spider in attack mode!"
Mike summoned a red spider with purple stripes, glowing blue eyes, and sickles at the ends of its legs.
Mechanical Spider
ATK/400 DEF/500
"Ah, Machine-Type monsters," said Ren.
"Not bad," said Patty. She and Ren were sitting on a wooden bench next to the battlefield.
"Thanks, guys!" Nick said proudly. "Okay, then I place one card face-down and end my turn."
"Okay, my turn," Yuri said, drawing his card. "I summon Tomozaurus in attack mode!" He said, summoning a dark-brown forty-foot carnivorous dinosaur that sent painful memories into Yuri's head. It confused him a little.
"You okay, sir?" Mike asked.
"I'm all right," Yuri said with a wan smile. "In fact, I'm attacking your spider now!"
Tomozaurus was one-hundred attack points stronger than Mechanical Spider. He flattened it with his foot and dropped Mike to 1900 Life Points.
"Then I place two cards face-down and end my turn," Yuri said, putting his card in one of the Spell/Trap card slots on his Duel Disk.
"My turn," Mike said, drawing his card. "I summon Yaiba Robo in attack mode!"
Mike summoned a yellow box with a Japanese symbol painted black on the side. Googly eyes attached to black cables slithered out from the box and then all sorts of weapons from axes to chainsaws, to pincers and an even larger ax sprouted from its body.
Yaiba Robo
ATK/1000 DEF/1300
"Uh-oh, Yuri," teased Patty. "He's stronger than your Tomozaurus."
"ATTACK!" Mike commanded. The box screeched and hovered towards Yuri's monster, revving up its chainsaw.
"I activate my spell card!" called Yuri. "Rush Recklessly. This card will boost my Tomozaurus' attack by seven hundred points raising his attack to twelve-hundred."
"Aw, nuts!" Mike said, snapping his fingers after Tomozaurus swiped Yaiba Robo away with his tail.
His Life Points dropped to 1700.
"Wow, Yuri's getting good," Patty said.
"I choose to end my turn without playing a card," Yuri said, ending his turn.
"Okay, now I got you!" Mike said in excitement when he drew his card. "I summon my Patrol Robo with an attack strength of eleven hundred points!"
"Impressive," Yuri said when the monster appeared on Mike's field.
It stood nine feet tall with a polished bronze body that reflected the lights of the park. It was equipped with a drill and an axe for weapons, and six small wheels at the bottom to mobilize itself. Mike jumped with joy, for he felt he was finally going to rid the field of the Tomozaurus Yuri had. But much to his dismay, Yuri activated a trap card when he attacked called Negate Attack, which sadly ended the boy's battle phase.
"Aw, so close!" Mike said, snapping his fingers. "I'll get you next time."
"We'll see," Yuri said. He drew his card. It was a spell called Pot of Greed, which allowed him to draw two cards from his deck. "I will equip my Tomozaurus with two equip spell cards. Invigoration and Raise Body Heat."
"What do those do?" Mike asked.
"Invigoration increases the attack of Earth-Attribute monsters by four hundred points but decreases their defense by four hundred points," Yuri explained. "And as for Raise Body Heat, it increases the attack and defense of Dinosaur-Type monsters by three hundred points."
"Oh, geez!" Mike said, slapping his forehead, almost knocking his cap off. "That's a total of seven hundred points!"
"Cool, now Yuri's monster is one hundred points stronger than that Patrol Robo," Patty said with excitement. She was jumping in her seat. Duels made her happy.
Poor Mike could only watch as another one of his monsters was flattened by Tomozarus. And there was not much he could do for the next three turns, for he drew monsters weaker than Yuri's. One the next turn he lost his Mechanical Snail. On the next it was his Golgoil, that got sent to the Graveyard, and then on the next turn, it was Shovel Crusher bulldozer monster.
The match was drawing attention from the other kids who came to watch the duel.
They were laughing at Mike, calling him weak and a loser.
"Hey come off it!" snapped Yuri.
"My turn," Mike said. He drew his card. "Okay, this time, I got you, sir. I summon Cyber Soldier!"
Mike slapped his card onto his Duel Disk. The holograms blinked rapidly as they were ready to project a big monster. And big it was. It was a sphere-shaped machine warrior. Its ball-shaped body was light-blue with the word soldier written in red paint on the right side. It had scrawny arms with red pincers and brilliant diamond-shaped yellow, blue and red shoulders. Its legs were hunched under its body with large plates to provide a significant defense for its body and its small round head which was white with black eyes and a crown of yellow spikes with a long trunk coming out of the mouth. Its attack strength was 1500 making it more than a match for Tomozaurus.
"Whoa!" said the kids.
"All right, attack Yuri's Tomozaurus!"
The creature beeped in response. Its arms and legs sank into its body, and it began to spin, then it shot towards Tomozaurus and smacked it into the air. Yuri looked up into the night sky as his monster tumbled back to earth and erupted into an explosion once it hit the ground. The blast damaging Yuri's Life Points by 300.
"And just to make sure you don't get any ideas next turn; I'm equipping my Cyber Soldier with Machine Conversion Factory. This card will boost my machine's attack and defense by three hundred points, raising its attack to eighteen hundred and its defense to two-thousand!"
"The kid's got him now," Patty said, crossing her arms.
"You're hot!" A little kid said, bashfully admiring her.
"Come on Yuri!" cheered Ren. "Don't you got some beefed up Dino in that deck somewhere?"
"I do, but I have to draw him first. And I didn't. Well, that sucks. I summon Anthrosaurus in defense mode!"
"Yes, I got you now," said Mike. "Because here comes my Giant Mech-Soldier!"
He summoned a fifteen-foot giant machine clad in ornate royal purple armor with beautiful black carvings. He had massive shoulder armor and leg plates with a beautifully designed blue cloth in between his legs. He carried a large tower shield that matched his armor and carried an earth-shattering axe-blade in his right hand. His battle mode activated causing his piercing green eyes to start glowing. The Giant Mech-Soldier's attack was 1750.
"Cool, he's one of my favorite monsters," Yuri said, looking up at the mechanical giant.
"Well, one of your favorite monsters is about cream your Anthrosaurus. Go, Giant Mech-Soldier! Destroy his puny monster with your axe-blade attack!"
Giant Mech-Soldier, heeded his little master's command and charged towards Yuri's side of the field. He let out a mighty shout and smashed his ax onto Anthrosaurus. The red-armored dinosaurs yelped in agony and exploded.
"Now I place one card face-down and end my turn," Mike said, with a cocky grin.
The kids around him were now impressed with his dueling. He saw Patty clapping for his attack, causing him to blush. He couldn't believe it. Even a high school girl in her senior year was impressed with his skills.
"Here, we go," Yuri said, beginning his turn. "I play Polymerization to fuse my Two-Headed King Rex and Crawling Dragon #2 to create the mighty: Bracchio-Raidus!"
Yuri's new monster was a forty-foot-tall sauropod dinosaur with rough blue skin, thick legs, and a long tail and neck. It had glowing green eyes and stomped on the ground ready for battle, snorting angrily sending plumes of white mist from its nostrils. It charged towards Cyber Soldier and whipped it with its tail. The beast flew into the sky and landed with a thunderous explosion. Mike grunted, watching his Life Points decrease to 1300.
"Impressive monster," said Mike. "But this duel is just beginning!"
Mike-1300 LP
Yuri-1700 LP
"My move! Sweet! First, I use my face-down card, Call of the Haunted, to bring back my Cyber Soldier. And now to summon my ultimate monster. Go, MACHINE KING!"
"Where did that kid get a card like that!" Ren stammered.
"Uh-oh," said Patty. "You know a card is bad news when Ren freaks out like that."
"Think you can stand up to my Machine King, Yuri!" Mike boasted, he balled his fist.
Machine King
ATK/2200 DEF/2000
"Sure, I've dealt with Machine King before. And my Bracchio-Raidus will rid the field of that automaton, as soon as I activate this card. The field spell: Wasteland."
Yuri put the field spell card into a special slot on the side of his Duel Disk. The ground around them turned into a dusty desert with dead trees growing out of the crusty soil and a few dinosaur skulls littered around the ground.
"This will increase the attack and defense of Rock, Zombie, and Dinosaur monsters by two-hundred points, raising my Bracchio-Raidus's attack to twenty-four hundred, making him more than a match for your Machine King. Bracchio-Raidus, attack his monster!"
"Yuri, you big dino-dummy!" shouted Patty.
Machine King grabbed Bracchio-Raidus by the neck. The tall dinosaur struggled to get free. If the beast had been real, his great feet would have caused the earth to shake.
"What happened?" Yuri asked.
"Machine King gains one hundred points for every Machine-Type monster on the field!" Patty cried out. "Every machine including itself."
Including itself! Yuri thought. How could I forget? He counted the monsters. Giant-Mech Soldier, plus Machine King, plus the revived Cyber Soldier meant Machine King got a three-hundred-point boost raising its attack to twenty-five hundred!
"Machine King, counter attack!" commanded Mike.
The machine monster raised up its right fist and launched it. The missile entered Bracchi-Raidus's chest and exited out of its back. Bracchio-Raidus moaned in pain and collapsed to the ground with a thunderous explosion.
Yuri's Life Points fell to 1600.
"I started off slow at the beginning. But now the match is mine!"
"It's too early to be proclaiming that," Yuri said, sending his Bracchio-Raidus card to the Graveyard. "I'll set one card face down. Your turn, kiddo."
"And it will be a good one," Mike said. He sneered when he drew his card. "First I play the spell card: Shallow Grave. It allows us to summon a monster from our Graveyards in Defense mode. I choose to revive my Patrol Robo. And with another Machine-Type monster out on my field, my Machine King gets another one hundred points. Now he's at twenty-six hundred."
"Very well," said Yuri. "I summon Bracchio-Raidus in defense mode."
"Really, that all you got?" said Mike. "I summon Mech Bass!"
Yuri's face cringed when he saw a mechanical fish with a plasma cannon on its back sprout onto the field. Its sharp fins were made of shiny turquoise metal. Its head dark blue with bright yellow eyes and a large open mouth with black rubber lips. The rest of its body was colored in polished gunmetal. It had eighteen hundred attack points and because it was a machine it increased the Machine King by another 100 points. Now it was standing at 2700.
"Oh no, now he's way stronger than that Black Tyranno Yuri's packing," Patty said in disappointment.
"Don't count Yuri out just yet," said Ren. "Remember, he beat the Regional Champion and won that holiday event in New York."
"Yeah, but this situation is worse," said Patty. "Every time that kid summons a machine it just boosts that royal Bucket O' Bolts' attack by another hundred points."
"This is definitely the match Yuri needs before the games," Ren said with a smile that made Patty blush like the love-stricken ten-year-old standing beside her.
"Okay, now to rid the field of that field spell," Mike said, activating a spell card called Mystical Space Typhoon. It allowed him to destroy one spell/trap card on the field. With the Wasteland field gone, Brachio-Raidus was back at 2200 and 2000 attack and defense points.
Then Mike used another spell, Stop Defense. Now Bracchio-Raidus was forced into attack mode. Mike jumped up into the air and pumped his fist, declaring his attack. Machine King's eyes glowed, charging up a powerful laser beam that sent Yuri's dinosaurs back to the Graveyard. His Life Points now dropped to 1100.
"I don't believe it!" cheered Mike. "Not only have I got the best monsters out on the field, but I've also got the lead!"
"He has a point," Patty said, resting her fingers on her chin. "He does have Yuri bent over a barrel."
"I love that analogy, girlfriend," Ren groaned, rubbing his temple. "Now I've got images in my head,"
"I really hate to do this to you, kid," Yuri said when his turn began. "Especially since you were doing really well. You play a lot better than most of the students at the high school."
"Gee, you think so?" Mike asked.
"I mean it, kid. You Duel well. Maybe it should be you going to the Millennium Tournament, instead of me."
"Cool, you're going to the tournament. I wish I could go."
"With skills like yours, maybe someday you will go to a big competition," Yuri said with a comforting smile. "But having said all that, I'm afraid I must end this Duel, my friend."
"That look in his eye," Patty said, breathlessly. "Guys, I think our star has been drawn."
Yuri held up a spell card. "Okay, I play the spell card: Earthquake. This spell card will force all your monsters into defense mode."
"What for?" Mike asked, babbling in confusion. He watched helplessly as his monsters bowed down.
"I now summon Black Tyranno to the field!"
"Wait that means you're…"
The summoning of the Black Tyranno interrupted Mike's sentence. The beast stomped onto the field and gave a thunderous roar, causing all the kids to cover their ears.
"If you have that card," Mike said, removing his palms from his ears. "Then that must mean you're Yuri Montgomery! The guy who beat that jerk, Randal Lawson, the regional champion!"
"Whoa!" said the children. They exchanged looks with one another.
"Yuri's Black Tyranno sure has become quite the celebrity," Patty said, admiring the black-armored dinosaur.
"Then you know what my Black Tyranno does?" Yuri asked.
"I'm ready, Yuri!"
Once Yuri declared his attack, Black Tyranno eye's glowed. He roared and trampled Mike's machine monsters then stomped the ground in front of the boy reducing his Life Points to 0.
"My turn! My turn!" the other children called out.
"Come on guys, don't push!" Yuri laughed trying to hold back the mob of young challengers. "I have enough time to duel all of you."
"Aww, would you look at that," said Patty clasping her hands together.
"Our Yuri sure does have that effect on people, doesn't he?" said Ren.
After six short duels, Yuri finally had enough. The hour was getting to be very late and it looked like the storm was starting to catch up to them again. Yuri said goodbye to the children one last time and hopped aboard Patty's truck. On their way over the bridge, the weather started getting worse. Even the high beams of Patty's truck and the strong windshield wipers didn't give Patty a good view of the road. Add the fact that she was driving horribly fast, and Yuri was starting to get anxious. Finally, she pulled up into his neighborhood. Once Patty got to the gate of the mansion, she remained inside the truck.
"What's going on?" Yuri asked. "Don't you want to see the movie?"
"I do, I do. It's just...something's come up. It's...it's Jason."
"Your old boyfriend?" Nick said. "I should come with you."
"No! Please, don't. I won't run away with him or anything, Nick. I swear."
"I love you, Patty," said Nick. "But this isn't gonna work if you keep distancing yourself from me like this. Remember what happened to that Macedonian girl Yuri once knew?"
"Ugh, don't remind me," Yuri said in disgust. "In any relationship be it romantic or friendly, you need support. And one of the keys to support is communication. If you start to make excuses to limit your communication, you never meant to be friends or lovers with that person. Don't play around with people's hearts, Patty. It really sucks."
"I'm not. Trust me, I'm not. I'll be right back. I need to see what he wants. When we've finished our little chat I'll be back."
"You've got until eight-thirty," said Yuri. "Be careful out there, Patty. The storm's back and the roads are gonna get rough."
"I understand. Thank you."
Nick climbed up and kissed Patty goodbye. He closed the door, slapped it twice, and sent Patty on her way.
Patty - Enron Docks
"Jason?" Patty thought. "It's him. It's really him."
Patty arrived at the docks of Enron Island. Patty got out of the truck, holding Max in her hands.
"Jason?" Patty called out into the darkness of the harbor. It was a foggy night. The light of the iron lamp posts across the boardwalk pierced the darkness. The island's most advanced lighthouse stood quietly in the distance. The bell of a buoy rang somewhere in the water, but it was too dark to see where it was. The air was salty and smelled of fish from the market just down the street.
Max scurried beside her. His dog tag jingling with each step.
"That's funny," Patty said walking up and down the boardwalk. "I could have sworn Jason told me to meet him here. But why so late at night and in this crummy weather? Max, I don't like this. I think we should go back and tell Yuri to meet us some other time. This is stupid."
Max whimpered with agreement.
"Come on, baby, let's get out of here."
She walked the boardwalk again. The ocean's waves soothed her, for now, until she heard a cackle coming from the fog. She yelped and backed up. Max barked at the stranger.
A figure walked out of the mist. A youth of twenty-four in a black overcoat, black slacks, shoes, and a beanie. His face was riddled with acne scars and his eyes were as dark as the ocean at night. A standard-issue Duel Disk was mounted on his right wrist. Then, what appeared to be an imp walked out of the fog, too.
A little boy, dressed in a black leather jacket over a white t-shirt with black skulls. He had baggy denim jeans and a beanie on his head.
"Pamela McKnight?" he asked.
"That's her, bro!" said the little boy. "That's the one. Just like in the picture."
"Who are you?" Patty cried out. "I warn you, I'm armed!"
"Take it easy, sweets, the name's Lloyd and this here is my brother, Marcus. "I aint here to hurt you. It's just that there's a rumor going about that you beat the Queen of Dragons. Someone with a lot of cash put a bounty on your ass and I'm here to claim it."
"Someone put a bounty on me?" cried Patty. "Who?"
"That's none of your concern."
"Yeah!" sneered Marcus.
"My client wants you taken out. If you lose, you're gonna hand over your rarest and most powerful card. Zera the Mant."
"What makes you think I'm going to give up my Zera the Mant even if I do lose?" Patty sneered.
"You don't want to do that, baby. You run, I'm going to have to get physical on you. I don't want to have to do that, especially in front of my little brother. My client won't reward me with the bounty if I don't give them proof."
"Fair enough," said Patty, activating her Duel Disk.
"Let's get this party started then," Lloyd said, activating his.
"All right!" cheered Marcus.
"DUEL!" Lloyd and Patty both cried out.
Patty-4000 LP
Lloyd-4000 LP
"I'll start things off," Lloyd said. He drew.
"For my first move, I think I'll use a little Hinotama to deal 500 points of damage to your Life Points!"
"What the!" cried Patty.
Fireballs fell from the sky and landed all around her and reducing her Life Points to 3500.
"Take that!" Lloyd said, balling his fists.
"Yeah, no one's better than my brother!" cheered Marcus, giving a leap of joy.
"And now," said Marcus, "I'm going to summon...what the..."
A cloud of darkness shot out of the ground in front of Patty. The wind coming out of the cloud sounding like screeching. The cloud dispersed and revealed a tall warrior wearing black, bladed armor. He had tall, spiked, red hair and wore a black visor over his eyes. A torn red surcoat swayed over his legs.
"What is that?" said Lloyd.
"When you inflict damage to me and I have no other cards on the field, I can special summon Gorz The Emissary of Darkness to the field. And then, I can activate one of his effects depending on what kind of damage I took. Since I took effect damage, Gorz will inflict the same amount of damage to you."
Gorz gave a mighty bound toward LLoyd and punched him in the stomach as a swirl of darkness came out of his fist. Lloyd fell to the ground.
Patty-3500 LP
Lloyd-3500 LP
Gorz The Emissary of Darkness
ATK/2700 DEF/25000
"Big brother!" cried Marcus.
"I'm fine, bro," said Lloyd. "She just got a lucky shot that's all. I'm still not done with my turn. I summon a monster in defense mode and place two cards face down on the field. Your move."
"Draw!" said Patty.
Max barked at Gorz. The dark monster looked down at him and silenced the puppy who whimpered with fright and hid behind Patty's leg.
"I summon Legendary Fiend!"
Patty put her card on the Duel Disk.
She summoned a four-armed creature of the night. It had black wings and black horns. Its upper body was blue and the lower half was covered in brown fur. The same color covered his forearms. His yellow eyes pierced the darkness.
Legendary Fiend
ATK/1500 DEF/1800
"This is scary, bro!" Marcus called out. Fiend monsters were terrifying, but to see them at night was like walking into a nightmare. Legendary Fiend made a horrible sound like a hundred dogs barking in sync.
"I know," said Lloyd. "How can someone as cute as her be summoning creatures like that?"
"What? You thought because I'm a girl I'd be running cute little fairies and pretty female monsters?" Patty sneered, feeling enticed by the look of fear on their faces. "Well, the joke's on you asshole."
"Watch your mouth, girl, my little brother is here."
"You think he's scary now, kid?" said Patty. "Wait till you see him attack. Legendary Fiend, destroy his face-down monster!"
"Ha!" laughed Lloyd. "You attacked my Steel Ogre Grotto Number 2!"
The card flipped up and then a colossal iron giant rose up to Lloyd's defense. He was made of black steel with gold bands and a triangle-shaped head with one green eye.
Roooorr! Went the metal creature crossing his large arms and blocking Legendary Fiend's attack.
Steel Ogre Grotto # 2
ATK/1900 DEF/2200
"Yes!" cheered Marcus. "Take that!"
Patty grimaced. Her Life Points dropped to 2800.
"I can still wipe him out with Gorz!" said Patty. "Attack him now!"
Gorz took out his large blade and jumped up at Steel Ogre Grotto #2.
"I think not!" said Lloyd. "Activate trap card, Spellbinding Circle! Now your Gorz will be trapped in the pentagram and will remain trapped."
"And my bro, kicks butt again! You're not so scary!"
"I end my turn," said Patty.
"Don't worry, bro, I got this," said Lloyd. "What next? Ah, here we go. I summon Metal Guardian in defense mode!"
Metal Guardian
ATK/1150 DEF/2150
"Then I'm going to use, Yellow Luster Shield, which boosts my monster's defense points by three hundred!"
2200 + 300 = 2500
2150 + 300 = 2450
"Now, you won't have anything powerful enough to get past my wall of monsters. Next, I activate Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two cards. Excellent, how's about another Hinotama to heat things up!"
More fireballs rained down on Patty. Her Life Points fell to 2300.
"I place one card, face down, and end my turn."
"Damn, bro, you really are the best duelist I know!"
"Now it goes to me," said Patty. "I summon Invader of Darkness!"
Patty summoned a giant figure with a body of gold armor enveloped in a black, hooded cloak.
Invader of Darkness
ATK/2900 DEF/2500
The fear came back on the faces of the two brothers.
"Then, I will use the Zera Ritual spell card, and I will offer the Shadow Specter in my hand and my Gorz on the field to summon, Zera the Mant!"
Marcus and Lloyd babbled in fright when Patty's favorite monsters stomped onto the field from the darkness.
Zera the Mant
ATK/2800 DEF/2300
"I will use my Invader of Darkness to destroy your Steel Ogre Grotto!"
"I think not," said Lloyd. "I activate the spell card, Shrink, this will cut your monster's attack in half."
"Don't count on it," said Patty. "That's a quick-play spell, and so long as my Invader of Darkness is out on the field, you can't play quick-play spells."
Lloyd cried out in shock as Invader of Darkness held out his massive hand, charged a ball of dark energy, and fired it. The blast decimated Steel Ogre Grotto #2. He groaned as his body fell apart. Then, Zera charged in and demolished Metal Guardian leaving Lloyd wide open for a direct attack from Patty's Legendary Fiend. She smiled as the beast brandished his claws.
"Did I forget to mention?" Patty said with a sexy smile. "Legendary Fiend gains 700 attack points every standby phase, so now his attack points are 2200." She giggled in an adorable manner.
Legendary Fiend slashed his claws on the side of a brick wall, sharpening them until they glistened. He showed them off to Lloyd and snarled. He took flight and charged at Lloyd, slashing him across the chest and lowering his Life Points to 1300.
Legendary Fiend made his horrible roar again and flew back to Patty's side of the field.
He had no cards in his hand. He drew to begin his turn. Nothing. It was an equip spell-card.
He ended his turn and then braced himself for an onslaught as Patty attacked him with all her fiends. The beasts coming towards him all at once in the darkness of the night proved too much for Lloyd. He fainted before the creatures could touch him.
"So much for that," said Patty. "Let me guess, it was that loser Brett who sent you here to get me, huh?"
Lloyd stood up. "Yeah, it was. But win or lose, you and Zera the Mant are coming with us."
"Us? AAACK!" Someone grabbed her from behind and held her tight.
"Brett just wasted some girls in his harem and he's looking for some...replacements. He says you and that cute little sister of Nick's will do nicely."
"Let me go!" shouted Patty. "HELP!
Max tried to fight back. He bit the thug holding Patty on the ankle. It stung but the man shrugged it off and kicked the little puppy. Another ruffian picked Max up by the scruff of his neck and threw him in a trash can.
"MAX!" Patty shouted. "HELP! HELP!"
Bang! Bang! Bang! A silenced pistol popped from the mist and one by one the thugs went down, lifeless.
"What the?" Patty said. She screamed when a bullet flew over her head and struck the man holding her right in the forehead. His lifeless arms released her and he fell to the ground with a sickening thud.
Lloyd and Marcus were holding on to each other under a crate. "Hey, this wasn't part of the deal!" Marcus said. "No one said my brother was going to get put in danger."
"Then get the hell out of here," said the female gunman. She came out of the mist to reveal herself.
"Hey, I know you," said Patty. "You're Brett's cousin, Franny." She gasped when she saw her face was bruised and there was a bandage on her arm where she had been shot. "What happened?"
"No time to explain," said Franny. "We need your help."