Chapter 6: For the Win
When she found herself sprawled on the marble tile, Mai promptly decided that the next member of the Big Five was going to get a piece of her mind, and maybe a good shot or two with her high heeled boots. She sat up, taking a quick survey of the scenery. She was on the second floor of a mansion, looking out over the main hall or foyer of sort. A staircase sloped down to the main floor. Antique paintings lined the dark wood paneled walls, while ornate suits of armor and weapons stood guard between each painting. "I'd never thought I would say this, but this place is actually creepier than my parent's house," Mai said, to no answer. She gripped the railing, making her way downstairs. "Okay you creeps, why don't you come out and we'll have ourselves a little "talk"." She popped the bones in her neck to make her point. "Kind of creepy when you decide to trap the woman by herself in a mansion without anybody else here."
Mai stopped, chuckling to herself. "My lord, I sounded just like Joey then." He probably would have burst out in laughter at the response before trying to pull of some Disney Prince routine, thinking she needed rescuing. As if she ever needed rescuing in the first place. She wondered how he was doing, alone in the blimp, with only the sociopath to keep him company. Hopefully Marik was distracted with something else at this point to leave Joey alone. If he wasn't. . .Mai shuddered at the possibilities. "I've gotta get out of here as soon as possible."
There was a hallway to her left and with no other exits known to her at this time, she decided to take it. Mai stopped though, an idea coming to her. There were two sets of armor at the foot of the steps, each with swords in their possession. Mai removed the gauntlets and threw them aside, exposing the hilt and pommel of the blade. She gripped it and began to tug but it held fast. Growing frustrated, Mai jerked harder and with a screeching hiss, the blade flew out, sending Mai back a few steps, the sword clattering to the floor with a metallic ring. She crouched down, picking the blade up. It was a simple longsword, with sharp edges and a well made and sturdy hilt.
"Just in case," Mai told herself, hefting the sword over her right shoulder. "Better safe and sorry." Mai peered down the hallway. It was faintly lit by hanging crystal chandeliers.
"Nice job," she snorted sarcastically. "Let's make this more disturbing than it already is. At least the blonde usually lives in the horror movies." She took one step, then another and upon her satisfaction that nothing was out to snatch her up, she entered the hallway.
It seemed to go on forever, with hardly a change in scenery. The walls were of a dark stained wood, further adding to the vibe. There was a creak behind her and Mai froze, spinning about, the sword held out in front of her in the classic fencer's stance. She held the position a little longer and when the noise passed, she relaxed. "It's not a fencing rapier," she said to the sword. "But hey, a blade's a blade, right?" Her former fencing instructor, one of the many "instructors" that her mother and father hired in her childhood, would have been disappointed.
She huffed in annoyance. How could a hall go on forever? It was an impossibility. "Little twerps." In response, she struck the right wall with the pommel of the sword. The wall cracked, small chunks falling away from the point of impact. "What the?-" Curiously, she tapped the cracked region with a fingernail and more miniscule pieces fell away, exposing something metallic behind it. "I wonder. . ." She hefted the sword over her left shoulder like a baseball and swung with all her might. The sword held fast into the wall with a harsh "clang" as it sliced through the false panel, into the metal behind it. She yanked the blade out and swung again, knocking away more and more of the offending object until a sizable hole emerged. She dropped the sword onto the ground, deciding that it was no longer needed at the moment.
The panel that Mai had thought was in actuality a door, judging by the seam in the center. She used her boots to remove the debris and tentatively pressed on the door. The door did not budge and she adjusted her tactic, leaning her left shoulder against the seam and pushing as hard as she could. The door swung in suddenly and she fell over, her ankle catching onto something and twisting it sharply. She hissed and gingerly stood back up, gauging the extent of her ankle injury. It wasn't so bad that she was unable to put her weight on it, thankfull. Mai found herself in the warehouse where the blimp was stored and she laughed in surprise. This was unexpected! She trotted before breaking into a full on run, pivoting neatly to bound up the stairs excitedly.
The hall was quiet, too quiet for her liking. "Hello, is anybody there?" She asked, heart beginning to increase in pace. The hair on the back of her neck and arms stood up on end. "Something's not right. . ."
There was a door towards the end that was open, shrouded in darkness. "That's Joey's room," she remarked. "Oh no. . ." She ran to it, pausing just at the frame, in case there was an intruder. But there was no one save for Joey, still in the bed, face slick with the sheen of sweat like he was in the throes of a nightmare.
"Joseph," she went to him, heart sinking at the sight. There was no change at all to his condition. He was still trapped in the dark. She fought the temptation to brush back some of the hair that obscured his face.
His eyes suddenly shot open, taking her aback. "Joey? You're awake!" He said nothing, rubbing his eyes as he sat upright. Joey pulled the covers of the bed away, shifting himself until he sat on the edge of the bed. "So," Mai said coolly, "You just going to give me the silent treatment or what?"
"You should really pay more attention to your surroundings, Ms. Mai Valentine," the sound that came out of Joey's mouth was not his. "You're so much better than that." the features changed and contorted, revealing a man with thinning hair and small rectangular glasses, in an expensive black suit. He adjusted his business tie, smirking just a touch.
Mai took a couple of steps back, wishing that she still had the sword in her possession. "What the hell?" She spat.
"Allow me to greet myself." He took Mai's hand, slipping a business. "I am Johnson, former head of the legal department of KaibaCorp."
Mai rolled her eyes, snatching her hand away from Johnson's. "Oh great, lawyers. I hate lawyers."
"A pity," Johnson replied nasally. "Because you're about to take part in the trial of the century."
"It it too soon to say that I'm already tired of the Law and Order puns?"
The scenery melted away and she found herself in a courtroom, standing behind the platform of the defendant. Johnson stood behind the judge's podium, no longer the man in the designer suit but instead the monster, Judge Man, holding a gavel in one hand. "The People v. Mai Valentine will now begin! I have no need for a Deck Master, for I already am one."
"Will you stop with the courtroom puns already? It's not even five minutes and I need to hit you in the head with that stupid hammer-"
"Gavel." Johnson corrected her.
"Whatever. First you pretend to be a boy in a coma, now you're having some sort of Law and Order fetish over there. I am so done here." A screen of Duel Monster cards appeared in front of her. "So I guess I pick my cards from here?" Mai tentatively tapped on a card. "Okay, that is kind of cool. Kind of." She emphasized, eyes narrowed. Two cards stood out in particular. "Red Eyes Black Dragon," she thought, looking at the first one. She instinctively tapped on it. The second intrigued her, for she have never heard of it. "Arduous Decision. Hmmm. . .I bet I could find a use for it. For my Deck Master, I choose my Cyber Harpie."
"Duel!"
"I summon Hysteric Angel in attack mode and the prosecution will rest its case."
Mai sighed gustily. "It's never gonna end, is it? Well, I summon Cyber Harpie in attack mode and then the equip card Cyber Shield, which increases her attack by 500. Say bye to your Hysteric Angel!" Cyber Harpie slashed through Hysteric Angel, cutting Johnson's points to 3700. "Then I play one card face down and end my turn."
Johnson drew a card. It wasn't the card he needed at the moment, but he could fix that. Lawyers fixed situations all the time; dueling was the same thing. The image on the card shifted and changed to one he was satisfied. "I set one card face down and end my turn."
"Wow, real crafty there," Mai said sarcastically. She drew and bit her lip. The Red Eyes Black Dragon had already shown up in her hand, almost too quickly for her liking. "Coincidence, or something else entirely? I'll set it aside for later. I don't know what this sleazeball of a lawyer is planning. I summon Unfriendly Amazon in attack mode and I attack your face down card." Unfriendly Amazon drove her sword through the face down card, destroying it, revealing the monster "Slekengel"
"You activated its flip effect, which allows me to draw one card." Johnson smirked as he drew another card.
"But I still get to knock you down a few pegs. Cyber Harpie, attack Johnson directly!" Johnson grimaced as his points went from 3700 to 1700. "Wow, looks like the Big 5 ain't as "big" as I thought."
"This is only a minor setback," Johnson drawled. " Besides, I drew the card that will effectively dismantle the defense's case and then I'll be able to escape to the real world in your body."
"That's a little creepy and disgusting," Mai interrupted. "You really aren't helping your case, buster. See, I can do the puns too."
"I place Mystical Elf in defense mode and set one card face down."
"Hmph. Cyber Harpie, attack Mystical Elf."
"I activate the ability of my Deck Master. By sacrificing 1000 of my Life Points, I can destroy all of your monsters on the field and for each monster, you lose 500 of your Points as well." Her two monsters shattered as a bolt of light pierced them both in the chest. Mai was repelled back from the blast, striking the middle of her back on the wooden railing that separated the galley from the defendant. "And if the defendant rests their case."
"Just shut up and go already, you twit." Mai rapped her nails on the wooden podium, growing impatient with the lawyer.
"Very well. I summon Curtain of the Dark Ones and then play Polymerization, creating Kamionwizard!" Kamionwizard didn't seem like much, reminding Mai of a jester clothed in black and red, bearing a scythe. "Finally I play the card Sinister Justice, which lets any Fusion Monster attack on the same turn it was summoned, so Kamionwizard, attack Mai directly!" Mai shielded herself from the blow, which whittled her points down to 1700. "Then as an added bonus, if the Fusion monster that attacked is Level Four or lower, I gain 800 life points."
"Dammit," Mai muttered. "How was he able to set things up so quickly? It takes forever to set up strategies like that, that's why duelists often have multiple strategies built into a deck, in case one can't work out. I summon my Amazon Fighter in defense mode."
Johnson once again looked down at the card he drew. It was not the card he needed, again, so Johnson decided to take it upon himself to "tweak" it. He could take no chances. He had to escape this nightmare. Monster Reborn morphed into Leading Question. There, much better. "I play the card Leading Question which lets my Fusion monsters gain 800 attack points during the Battle Phase. Kamionwizard attack Amazon Fighter! And I gain another 800 Life Points as well." Johnson began to laugh. "You can't be on the defense forever!"
"Watch me." Mai drew. She had implanted some powerful monster in her deck,"That Arduous Decision could work, but in the meantime, I'm going to have to wait. I summon Amazoness Paladin in attack mode. Finally I place one card face down and end my turn. Make your move." A plan was formulating in her mind, but it needed the right cards to work. She prayed that Yugi's whole"Heart of the Cards" will work a second time.
"Seems that the defense's case has already rested," Johnson mocked.
"Look bud, I've been a card shark for pretty much my adult life and I can tell when some dirtbag is cheating. I haven't figured out how yet, but when I do, you're gonna wish you hadn't."
"You got this Mai!" Mai spun around to find Yugi and Tea waving at her, running through the aisles of the benches. Both looked freezing, the flush of red on their cheeks, Yugi rubbing his arms to get warm.
"What. . .how? How did you guys get here? We were all separated. And why do you guys look like you just ran through the Arctic tundra?"
"That would be because we were kind of there," Tea explained.
"Objection, The defendant may not discuss strategy with the witnesses."
"Also he really likes making courtroom puns," Mai snorted. She turned back to Johnson. "I'm getting there you moron. I'm going to make you regret ever dueling me!"
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Noa caught onto Johnson's plan right away. With so many eyes everywhere, he could easily spy on the movements of everybody in his Virtual World. An all-knowing, omnipotent god he was, yes. Noa thoughtfully leaned on one hand, watching the duel in the courtroom. Did Mai Valentine catch onto his act? Maybe, it was hard to determine; she was a inscrutable duelist to read, perhaps even more so in the wake of the quarterfinals of Battle City. Johnson never stood a chance against her in any other duel, save that one he set up from the beginning.
"I should have used more useful goons," Noa sighed wistfully. "Ones that wouldn't resort to cheating to even have a chance at winning."
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"Hmm, the last card I will need for this duel," Johnson thought to himself, watching as the card morphed from De-Fusion to Reinforcements of the Army. "Its a pity that this trial must end so soon Ms. Valentine," Johnson lamented. "First I summon One Eyed Shield Dragon in attack mode then I play Reinforcements of the Army, which allows me to move one Level Four of lower Warrior type monster from my deck to my hand. Then I use Polymerization on my One Eyed Shield Dragon and Armaill which I pulled from my deck for make Dragoness the Wicked Knight. Now my monsters, take out her last line of defense!" Dragoness the Wicked Knight was a female dressed in grass green and cream hued armor that reminded Mai of dragon scales. She bore a pair of crooked scimitars for weapons. A pair of wings unfurled from her back as she lunged forward, her scimitars bared.
"Not so fast! I play Mirror Wall, which stops the attack and cuts your monsters' attack points in half!" Both monsters were repelled by the glass barrier, flying back to Johnson's side of the field. "And since there wasn't any battle Damage, you don't gain back any Life Points." Johnson grimaced. "How do you like them apples, bud?"
"You'll pay for this!"
"Oh will she now?" A young man dressed in white slammed open the courtroom doors, a smug expression gracing his lips.
"Noa?" Yugi asked.
Noa was nothing in reply, turning to Johnson. "You know, I should have known better than to hire people like you to duel, especially if they're so desperate to rig the duel in their favor."
"So he was cheating then," Mai said, her suspicions confirmed.
"Quite. If it wasn't a card he was pleased with, he changed it to one he needed at that moment. It's what I get for hiring people like you. Now it's time for you to get your comeuppance. I will not tolerate cheating!"Noa raised a hand, ready to banish him into the far depths of the virtual realm.
"Please!" Johnson pleaded. "You must understand! I was desperate-"
"Hold on there," Mai injected. "Don't I get a say in this?"
Noa paused. "And what do you recommend his punishment to be?"
"Let him finish out the duel, as long as he plays fair."
"So you want me to show mercy then?" Noa asked, one eyebrow raised, his curiosity piqued.
"Naw, I just want to be the one that completely blows him out of the water."
Noa crossed his arms, satisfied with her explanation. "Cutthroat huh? I like how you think."
"Kid, I am so out of your league."
"That's. . .sort of disturbing," Tea added after a pause. Yugi said nothing, instead nodding in agreement, a mildly disgusted look on his face.
Mai drew a card. "I play Pot of Greed, then I move my Deck Master to the field. Next I summon another Cyber Harpie and I sacrifice both of them to bring Red Eyes Black Dragon to the field!"
"Red Eyes?" Tea turned to Yugi, surprise on her face. "But that's. . ."
"You're telling me."
"Next I play the card Harpie's Feather Duster and wipe both Sinister Justice and Leading Question from the field, in case this plan goes bust." A storm of feathers swept across the field, taking both cards with it. "Then the piece de la resistance, Arduous Decision."
Johnson looked rather confused at the card. "Arduous Decision?"
"Yeah and here's how it works. I pick two cards from the top of my deck and you have to pick one of them. If it's a Trap or Magic Card, then both cards go to the Graveyard. If its a monster, I get to summon it directly from my hand to the field." Mai drew both cards, flashing them in the air. One was Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry, the other, Rose Whip. "So what it'll be, Johnson? Bet you can't cheat your way out of this one."
Underneath the Judge Man suit, Johnson began to pale. There was no way he could win this one, but there was a chance that he could survive it long enough to draw the right cards again."I um. . ."
"First time I've seen a lawyer sweat," Mai taunted. "I thought you guys were good at this sort of thing." In her left hand was Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry; the right held Rose Whip.
"I pick the right one!" Johnson blurted.
Mai raised a coy eyebrow. "You sure?"
"I um. . .yes! I'm sure!"
Mai smiled. "Sucks to be you. . ."
"No I change my mind! I choose the left one!"
Mai feigned a crestfallen expression, to further lure Johnson. "Well if you have to. . ." She slapped the card down onto the disk. "Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry take the field!" Simorgh was a massive bird, with feathers the hue of sunlight and burnished gold. Its face was like an eagle, with a crimson and gold mandala pendant mounted on its brow. It possessed two pairs of wings, taloned hands protruding from each joint. The primaries and secondary feathers on its wings were of a banded cream and gold. Long tail feathers the same hue as the wings spread out behind like a fan. A necklace of bleached claws and a pendant of jade rested on its collarbone. An ornamental crest of hammered gold sat upon its back, a physical representation of its divinity.
"What?" Johnson yelled. "I picked the left one! I was positive it was a Magic card!"
"Like I said, card shark." Mai cracked her knuckles. "This is going to be fun. Simorgh, attack Kamionwizard with Shining Feathered Blast!" Simorgh screeched, the earth quaking under their feet with the reverberation with the sound. Simorgh flapped its wings once, sending a wave of golden light towards Kamionwizard. It tried in vain to shield itself from the light but it disintegrated, pieces of it sloughing off with the blast. Johnson's Life Points dipped down to 700. "Now its Red Eyes turn. Red Eyes, take out Dragoness, the Wicked Knight!" Red Eyes spewed an orb of red fire and black lightning, striking Dragoness full in the chest and she was blasted into oblivion. The last of Johnson's Life Points vanished along with his monster.
"Finally, Amazoness Paladin finish him off-"
"Mai!" Yugi reached across the railing, gripping her forearm. "Johnson already lost! You don't need to attack any more."
Mai paused in her movements, watching as Johnson began to dissipate into pixels. Noa had vanished as well, sometime during the duel, she recalled. She dropped her arm, horrifically realizing what she was about to do. "I—I didn't even think about it. I just. . ." It dawned on her just why she was set on attacking him, even after his Life Points were depleted. "He took advantage of my memories. . ."
"It's okay Mai," Yugi offered. "We understand."
"Do you?"
"Its just a duel," Tea told her reassuringly. "You probably didn't even realize it."
"Yeah, I guess." Mai shrugged, stepping out from behind the podium. "That ending was pretty awesome though," she admitted, fist bumping both of them.
"It was, but why the Red Eyes?"
"Because, you wanna keep the enemy on their toes. They weren't expecting it so I took advantage," she lied, feeling slightly guilty in the aftermath of the deception.
Yugi didn't seem to by it, judging by the skepticism etched on his face. Thankfully he said nothing of it. "Okay, so three members of the Big Five have been defeated: Gansley, Crump, and Johnson. That leaves two left."
"Since Noa seems to be targeting Kaiba specifically, chances are one of those two will go after him and the last. . .Oh no. . ." Mai trailed off.
"What?" Tea asked, concern in her voice.
"They're desperate to escape this place. They'll go after the weakest link. Serenity doesn't even know how to play the game!"
"We need to get to her before they do!" Mai bolted out of the side doors where Noa had made his grand entrance, with Yugi and Tea running hurriedly behind.
"Wait for us!"
For the Win is preformed by Two Steps from Hell.
Yeah. . .they'll pop up quite a bit here.
So I'm sure you guys are wondering why the duel went the way it did. That would be because Mai became stuck between a rock and a hard place. Her deck relies on a "Swarming" strategy, summoning as many monsters as she can, and quickly, before powering them up and overwhelming her opponent. They are also relatively low powered, mainly ranging around the Level Four range. Johnson can take quick advantage of this by using his Deck Master ability, clearing her field in a single move. Had she used cards like Elegant Egotist or Nightmare Tri-Force Mirror, Johnson would have won in a few short turns, knocking her life Points down in large chunks. This is why she went on the defensive. If she attacked, Johnson would have activated his ability and whoops, there goes her plan flying out the window.
Why Johnson didn't do it his final turn? He was so rattled by Mai pulling the wool over his eyes he completely forgot. Psychological warfare on Mai's part.