Hello again everyone! Well, this week has progressed along nicely. I'm feeling much better today than I did earlier this week. My sinus infection is about gone, which I'm thankful for. I still have a little bit of the residual effects from it, but other than that, I'm doing well with it. I found out my mom and sister are coming in for the weekend next week (not this one, but the following), which is cool. Also, my sister got a job within an hour of me, so that's pretty cool. Ironically, me and my mate have been talking about seeing what happens the rest of this year, and if she doesn't find a job, maybe search out of the state. Heh, like I said, rather ironic in a way, lol. Otherwise, real life is pretty good, other than I've overslept everyday this week for work. I've made it in reasonable time, with exception of one day, but all the others, I've overslept till like 8 or so, and need to be at work by 8:30. (/sighs\) Oh well, I'll get it eventually, I hope, lol. I'm just hopeful that it's due that I've been sick that I have overslept so much. We'll see next week, I suppose.
Writing wise, things are progressing. I've been focusing more on MtM than Another this week, but I may switch that soon. Heh, it's a balancing act. But both are moving along nicely. I just hope everyone enjoys both.
Last time, Illidan's match with Viper came to a climatic end, with Illidan revealing his newest weapon in his Chaos arsenal, Chaos Fusion, which created his newest Chaos monster, Chaos Emperor Knight – Envoy of Demise, which brought Viper's Vennominaga crashing down. But who is this figure that appeared after the duel in the portal, and what are his/her plans?
Alright, moving along, it's Review Time!
Metal Overlord 2.0: Lol, thanks about the surprises. True, I haven't used many original cards throughout my stories, but the last two stories, I decided to throw caution to the wind and do it. Glad you liked the name. The name was created by ardee. True, there could be other Chaos Fusions, you never know. You'll have to wait and find out, hehe. Yeah, Viper didn't play too large a role in this story. He was doing the grunt work, I suppose, lol. True, in the show, once Yubel was done with him, he got the boot to the curb, so perhaps the same thing here, hehe. Glad you liked this chapter and are looking forward to this one. Thanks for the review!
Aelsthla-Mental: True, I feel a little bad for Viper. He didn't kill anyone, but he did attack students ruthlessly, leaving everyone confused and unsure of what he had done to them, so I don't feel too bad either. Maybe if he asked, but doubtful if anyone would willingly give up their Dueling Energy. Yes, whatever it was that took Viper's energy was strange, and his "I know you better than you know" attitude is kind of scary. Lol, yeah, well, the anti-venom thing with Nurse Fontaine was due that she wasn't sure it would work. After all, in real life, snake venom has specific anti-venoms, but she was just going on guess work. Use the strongest to get the best results, lol. Glad you liked the chapter. Thanks for the review!
x-knight20: Thanks. Yep, Viper is long gone. Heh, it is kind of sad to lose the guy, but we'll survive. Yes, Illidan is alright, and he has a new Chaos Monster! Thanks for the review!
Nathan: Yep, Viper had Vennominaga attack Illidan twice and nearly take him out, but Illidan did win, lol. Glad you liked the fusion of the Envoys. There could be other combinations of the Chaos monsters, but again, you never know. Maybe it's only the Envoys, or it may not be. I know, very nice playing it low key, lol. But yes, the ending was fun, hehe. Marie had to just finish things off, since she was the better healer there. Very true, oaths sometimes don't play well with Shadow Powers, hehe. Thanks for the review!
Ultimate Legendary Master: Thanks. Nah, no alternate dimension for them, this time… or maybe ever, lol. I know, quit being confusing! Yes, I liked the original version of what happened to Viper's kid than the one that 4Kids made up… I hate how they said he just got sick and died. I find the kid getting hit by a bus much easier to illustrate, and much easier for people to identify with. Just getting sick, that is not quite as dramatic. But I digress, 4Kids just sucks at making things more 'friendly' for people. They should just let it go sometimes. Yes, I didn't have Viper fall to his death, but getting sucked down into his own swamp may have been worse, lol. I'm feeling much better today. I'm not 100, but I'm probably 80-90 better, which is good. My allergies are always hateful this time of year. I have a doctor's appointment next week, so I'll see what I can do about them then. Thanks for the review!
Raymond Barrett: Thanks. Yep, Illidan beat Vennominaga in dramatic fashion with a new Chaos monster. Happy days! Lol, well, what happened to Fontaine is kind of easy to explain. Marie knocked her out with her Shadow Powers and erased her memories of what happened. Kind of a catch-22 to keep from drawing unwanted attention. Hope that helps out. Thanks for the review!
Vyser Dragoon: True, fan made cards are fun, but I prefer to stick with the actual cards, or show cards. Still, I'm getting into created cards, so fun fun, lol. I do use some of the Anime only cards also. Anyways, glad you liked the chapter. Thanks for the review!
Well, that's it for this round of reviews. I thank you all for each of your responses that you sent in. They each mean a lot to me in helping me with my writing and gauging if I got the point across or not. Heh, sometimes I wonder if I'm just writing in circles, but from the reviews I get, I guess I don't, lol. Thank you all for the reviews again, and if anyone who didn't submit one has a comment or question, please, I do urge you to review or PM me. I will try and answer all comments and questions to the best of my abilities, so long as it's not something pertaining to giving away the plot. At any rate, thank you all for your reviews again.
I hope you all like this chapter. Enjoy!
Chapter 10
Late the next morning, Illidan finally woke up, finding Marie had done left his side. "More than likely she went to check up on the students. With only Zane there, anything could happen I suppose."
Weakly, he sat up out of bed, but grimaced from his sore body. The wounds he had had the night before from his Shadow Game with Viper were healed, but his body was still weakened from blood loss and the venom of Viper's snakes.
Finding a nearby crutch, he slowly hobbled out of the infirmary and started making his way back to his and Marie's home. Finally arriving, at a snail's pace, he found the front door unlocked and entered. Inside, he found Marie playing with Arya. Smiling at the sight, he hobbled on into the house quietly, but was surprised when Marie looked back towards him.
"About time you got home." she grumbled.
Frowning, Illidan replied "I'm still hurt you know. Not like I can walk very fast."
"Whatever." Marie wistfully remarked with a smirk. "Why don't you go rest up? After all, the tournament continues on tonight."
Heavily sighing, Illidan nodded and struggled to make it up to their bedroom. Arriving there with sweat rolling down his face, he fell onto the bed panting heavily. After a few minutes of resting, he straightened himself up so he was laying straight on the bed. Closing his eyes, he called upon his Shadow Powers and set them into motion to allow him to begin a deep healing sleep. Finally ready, he allowed himself to fall into the darkness of sleep.
--
After nearly eight hours of sleeping, Illidan finally awoke with two hours till the evening matches were to begin. Testing out his limbs upon waking, he realized that he still had a little bit of residual effects from the poison, and a slight bit of soreness, but he could walk without a crutch now, which was what he had hoped for.
Going downstairs, he found Marie fast asleep with Arya in her arms. Lightly smiling at the two, he decided not to disturb the two and to clean himself up for the evening.
Taking a long hot shower, Illidan slowly scrubbed away the dirt from the day before. After some time in the shower, he stood very still, just letting the hot steamy water trail down his body. Closing his eyes, he stood there enjoying the water while pondering the previous night's events.
"Viper mentioned that he had a master. That master is the one pulling the strings, who wanted the Duel Energy for some purpose. What could someone want with Duel Energy, and where is that person? That portal opened at the end, and the person inside had to be Viper's master, but who was it? I couldn't make out the figure due to the portal, plus it was a blurry image. And why do I have the feeling I knew that voice that I heard?"
Sighing, he glanced downwards at the water draining. "And whatever happened to Syrus? Surely Viper didn't kill him or do anything to him. It doesn't fit the pattern if he had. And then there is Crowler's disappearance. He just up and vanished too, meaning something happened to both Syrus and Crowler, and it wasn't Viper I think. If it had been, he'd have erased their memories of the duel and took their energy and dumped them off at the dorms."
"No, this is different from Viper. Is it possible someone else could have shown up on the island and abducted them? But why those two in specific if they did? It's not like Crowler had any valuable information, nor did Syrus. So why go to the trouble of kidnapping either?"
Heavily sighing, Illidan reopened his eyes and dipped his head into the warm water once more. Deciding he would think about what was going on later, he shut the shower off and began drying off. After finally blow drying his hair out and dressing, he went downstairs to find Marie still fast asleep, while Arya had her eyes open and was glancing around.
Warmly smiling, he reached down and picked his daughter up into his arms and kissed her forehead, making her giggle. Sitting down next to Marie, he used his one free arm to nudge her, making her mumble in her sleep.
Sighing lightly, he nudged her a little more forcibly this time, softly saying "Marie, wake up."
"Ten more minutes…" she sleepily replied.
"Come dear, you need to get up. The duels start in an hour and a half, and we need to still get Arya ready to take to Tea so she can watch her." Illidan admonished.
Grumbling lowly, Marie opened her chocolate colored eyes and half glared at him. "I know…" she growled.
Watching Marie stretch out, Illidan couldn't help but look at her with lust in his eyes. With a sigh, he pushed it aside and said "Go ahead and get ready. I'll start packing up some stuff to take for Arya."
"Thanks."
With that, Marie headed upstairs towards their bedroom. Setting Arya down in her playpen, Illidan began searching for things to take. After finding some bottles full of milk, diapers, and other essentials, he stuffed them into the diaper bag and grabbed the stroller from nearby and unfolded it. Hanging the diaper bag off of one of the handles, Illidan nodded in satisfaction and returned to Arya.
Finding her in her playpen playing with a few blocks, Illidan softly smiled and watched his daughter with amused eyes. Even in the past, he had always enjoyed watching his children playing, and Arya was no exception. It reminded him in a way of his own father from the past, how he would watch him practice or play from time to time.
Hearing the water stop flowing upstairs, meaning Marie had finished with her shower, Illidan grabbed Arya out of the playpen and carried her with him upstairs. Arriving there, he found Marie in a light blue bra and matching pair of panties with a bit of leopard print on each. Feeling lust stir within him, he softly laid down onto the bed after sitting Arya in her nearby crib.
Grabbing a uniform she had worn the year ago, Marie attempted to slide the skirt up and over her hips, only to find it didn't fit properly and that it was a bit too tight on her. Growling lowly, she grumbled "Damn it, I still don't fit in this freaking thing!"
Suppressing a chuckle, Illidan commented "You look very beautiful though."
"I don't give a damn about your opinion! It's the fact that I lost my figure from last year!" she snarled.
Taken aback, Illidan just laid quietly on the bed while she slid the skirt back off and grabbed a new one from nearby. It fit her much better, this time fitting to her form perfectly. Sitting down onto the bed roughly, she heavily sighed, mumbling "I'm sorry…"
Sitting up and moving to where he was sitting directly behind her, he wrapped his arms around Marie's waist and whispered in her ear "It's alright my love. I know you didn't mean anything by it."
"I just wish I had my body back from last year! I gained weight from my pregnancy and can't fit into the same uniform from last year."
Lightly smirking, but quickly dismissing it, Illidan lightly said "I think you look as beautiful as ever. Who cares if you can't wear last year's uniform."
"I do…" Marie dejectedly mumbled. "I guess the only thing I can do is try and work out more."
Pressing his head to her back, Illidan embraced her a bit more. Kissing her neck, he softly said "Don't worry so much about it."
"I know…" she grumbled back. Getting free from his embrace, she stood and sighed. "I guess I need to finish dressing."
"I suppose, unless you like dueling in a bra and skirt." Illidan smartly remarked. "It reminds me of our private duels more than anything."
Laughing, Marie nodded and replied "I don't think the students want to see their headmasters playing a strip match in front of them. Some might, but some might not."
Chuckling at her, Illidan watched while Marie slipped her blouse on. With it on, she walked over and picked Arya up. The little girl instantly reached out for Marie and held on tightly.
"I know baby girl, you don't want me to leave again. It's just for a few hours." Marie soothed.
Standing up himself, Illidan shook his head, lowly saying "You're spoiling her."
Throwing a glare at him, Marie began to say something, but decided against it. Sighing, she slipped on her nearby shoes and left the room with Illidan trailing her. The two made it downstairs, where Marie placed Arya into her stroller. Double checking the diaper bag Illidan had prepared, she nodded and smiled at him.
"Nice job, you got everything in there this time."
"I try." Illidan smartly remarked.
Lightly chuckling at him, she asked "Are you ready?"
"Just got to grab my Duel Disk and then I am. Same for you?"
"Yep." she replied.
Both walked over to the nearby kitchen table and strapped on their Duel Disks. With everything gathered up, the two with Arya set out for Yugi's home.
--
Standing on stage were the eight finalists. Each had just been introduced by Chancellor Shepherd. At long last, the Chancellor cleared his throat and called out "Now then, may I introduce a most honored guest. Welcome the creator of Duel Monsters, Mr. Maximillion Pegasus!"
Walking onto the stage was a man with upper back length silver hair that covered the left side of his face that fell to below his shoulders in length. He had a single brown eye that was viewable and wore a maroon business suit with a black thread like tie in a bow.
Smiling at the eight, Pegasus moved on towards the Chancellor. Illidan watched, somewhat surprised that the creator of the game himself had come to the tournament.
"Seto must have made this a joint venture. Heh, I bet Pegasus couldn't resist that kind of an offer, although I'm sure Seto wished he had, heh." he smugly remarked in his mind.
Making it across the stage, Pegasus shook Shepherd's hand before taking the microphone from the Chancellor. Clearing his throat, he called out in a sing-song voice "Ladies and gents, and of course, DUELISTS!"
The last word brought insane cheers from the crowd, earning him a smirk from the eight behind as well. "We're here with eight of the strongest duelists of our time, who have fought their way through the multiple opponents to get to the Final Eight Duels. Of course, most of them require no introduction. At any rate, without further ado, we'll decide who will duel who to win the title of the Duel King!"
The crowd erupted into cheers instantly while rock music exploded in the background of the arena. The song was easily recognized by almost all as 'Kryptonite' by Three Doors Down.
Looking down at Kaiba, Illidan smirked. "Kaiba is definitely making this a very commercial tournament."
His thoughts were instantly broken when Pegasus called out "To decide the matches, each duelist must first shuffle their decks."
Each of the eight pulled their decks out of their deck holders and began shuffling quickly. Once all had finished, Pegasus declared "And now, each one draws cards until they reach a monster."
Since Yugi had been announced first, he was up first. He looked at the first two cards, which happened to be spell cards. His next card drawn was his Summoned Skull (2500/1200). The crowd gave deafening roar at the sight of the card before Yugi placed it back within his deck.
Next up, Seto drew and revealed his Vorse Raider (1900/1200). With a smirk, he showed it while the crowd cheered wildly.
Joey was up next and revealed his deadly Red Eyes Black Metal Dragon (2800/2400). Giving a friendly wave to the crowd, he listened to the loud cheers for him.
After Joey was done, Zane drew and revealed his Cyber Dragon (2100/1600), earning a loud roar from the crowd.
Kevin Hunter came next. With a closed set of eyes, he drew his card and smirked at the sight of it. Revealing it to the crowd, he showed he had Tyrant Dragon (2900/2500). He wasn't a very well known duelist, but he had garnered a number of fans during the tournament, which cheered loudly for him nonetheless.
Drawing next was Mai, who held up her Cyber Harpie Lady (1800/1300), earning the screams of many girls from the crowd.
Marie was up after that and picked up a few trap cards at first before picking up her Airknight Parshath (1900/1400), earning her a loud roar from the students in the crowd.
All eyes were on Illidan since he was last. He smiled faintly and grabbed the first card off his deck. Revealing it to be Chaos Emperor Dragon - Envoy of the End (3000/2500), the crowd burst out in a loud cheer. Putting the card back, Illidan felt his dragon's Duel Spirit softly growl.
"What's wrong?" he called to the dragon.
In his mind, the dragon appeared and grumbled "I'm unsure, but something just doesn't feel right."
"I'll keep an eye out then." Illidan commented back before dismissing the dragon from his mind.
Pegasus gave a deep chuckle, which instantly broke Illidan out of his thoughts and returned him to the arena and the task at hand. "Excellent, excellent… Now, allow me to explain the system by which the duels will be decided. The one who drew the monster with the highest attack points will face the one who drew the one with the second highest."
Everyone drew a breath in from the shock. Above the field, a monitor began pairing people up from the results, but Illidan paid no heed.
"What's going on?" he pondered. "Could it be that Viper's master is here? But I couldn't be any of the eight of us, unless this Kevin guy is, but I doubt that. I don't know why, but I can't shake the feeling that something big is going to happen, but why?"
Feeling a light tug on his jacket, Illidan glanced over to see Marie smiling at him. "Silly, you'd better watch to see who you have to fight." she chastised.
Weakly smiling, he nodded and glanced up at the monitor. After a moment, the monitor flashed to life and revealed the pairings in the following order:
Marie O'Dell Stormrage vs. Mai Valentine Wheeler
Illidan Stormrage vs. Kevin Hunter
Yugi Moto vs. Joey Wheeler
Zane Truesdale vs. Seto Kaiba
Mai cracked her knuckles at the sight of the matches and smirked. Both Marie and Mai exchanged glares with one another before Mai said "This isn't going to end the same way as last time at Tournament of Power."
"We'll see." Marie commented back with a smug look.
Looking over at his opponent, Illidan noted that Kevin was the youngest of the eight finalists, with an age of sixteen. He was about five foot eight, and had long blonde bangs. He wore a silver t-shirt, covered by a black leather jacket with blue jeans that hovered over his feet. On his wrist, he wore a new Duel Disk, a DD3, and had the quiet dignity of a seasoned duelist, considering his age.
Staring at the monitor in shock, Joey began moaning at his matchup with a dejected voice. "For once, just for once I'd like to have an easy opponent! In Duelist Kingdom, I ended up against Yugi. Battle City wasn't much better since I ended up dueling Marik. Then in Tournament of Power, I had to face Illidan, Yugi and Kaiba."
Giving Joey a sympathetic look, Yugi warmly said "Well, you're among the top five duelists on the planet. I'm quite sure that you have as much of chance of winning this duel as I do."
Brightening a bit, Joey replied "Yeah! Don't forget it either Yugi, I'm going to give this one everything!"
Zane and Seto gave one another a cold disdained look, with Zane quietly saying "Well, Mr. Kaiba, it seems like we'll be dueling each other."
"Yeah right, if you can call what's going to happen a duel." Seto smugly remarked, making Zane's jaws tighten.
Making a motion for everyone to move, Pegasus declared "Alright, everyone but Marie and Mai clear the field! As for the competitors, prepare to duel!"
Illidan gave Marie a light peck on the cheek and whispered "Good luck."
"Thank you." she warmly remarked.
Across the field, Joey did the same with Mai and whispered lowly "Don't get too carried away and lose your temper Mai. Remember, this is Marie, who can turn that against you."
Smugly looking at Joey, Mai remarked "Don't worry hun, I'll be fine."
Nodding, Joey lightly kissed her once more and walked off the field, leaving on the two female duelists and Pegasus alone on it. Pegasus smiled while looking between the two and stepped off the stage.
Noting the two were ready, Pegasus called out "Duelists! Let the first duel of the Final Eight Duels of the Genex Tournament commence! Mai Valentine Wheeler vs. Marie O'Dell Stormrage! Begin!"
The two women simultaneously activated their Duel Disks and yelled "LET'S DUEL!"
Drawing her first card, Marie smiled while hearing the crowd hold it's breath in anticipation. Grabbing two cards from her hand, she placed two cards into her Spell/Trap Slot and said "I place these two cards down and end my turn. (Marie 8000, Mai 8000)
Illidan, along with almost everyone that knew Marie, nearly fell over in anime style at her move. With a nervous laugh, Yugi asked "No monsters?"
"That's not like Marie at all. She almost always plays some kind of monster in defense or attack mode. What kind of strategy does she have up her sleeve I wonder?" Illidan pondered.
Seemingly calm and collected, Marie smiled while watching the turmoil on Mai's face be exposed. Lightly growling, Mai drew her card and hotly said "You won't fool me with your mind games! I summon Cyber Harpie Lady (1800/1300) to the field!"
A hybrid creature, that looked part human, but had nasty, long claws, long red hair, and two large wings attached to her arms appeared. The woman wore hard platinum armor that protected her chest and other parts and let out a harsh cry.
"Attack her directly!" Mai declared. Nodding lightly, the bird woman leapt to the air and came slashing downwards towards Marie.
With a light smirk, Marie pointed at her face down card and called out "I activate my trap Draining Shield, which negates your monster's attack and adds it's attack points to my life points."
Mai's eyes widened as the bird woman struck a golden barrier. The barrier instantly sent a stream of golden energy to Marie's Duel Disk, causing her life point meter to increase a bit.
Gnashing her teeth together, Mai growled out "Damn, I end my turn." (Marie 9800, Mai 8000)
Picking up a new card, Marie lightly chuckled and slapped a monster card to her Duel Disk. "I summon Herald of Purple Light (300/500)."
Appearing onto the field was a small purple ball like creature with purple wings, hands, and feet. It's body glowed brightly with purple light, making it hard to keep eyes on it.
"Next, I activate my face down spell, Enemy Controller. By sacrificing Herald of Purple Light, I get to take control of Cyber Harpie Lady!"
The small ball of purple light instantly vanished while a game controller appeared onto the field. The end of the cord went shooting straight across and plunged into the back of the bird lady, making it screech loudly. After a moment, it was jerked over to Marie's field and took up an offensive stance, much to Mai's surprise.
"Attack her directly!" Marie commanded instantly. With hesitation, the female bird lady launched into the air and came down hard onto Mai with her claws, making Mai grab her chest from the strike.
Upon the monster returning to Marie's field, Marie took a card from her hand and showed Mai, saying "I play the spell Mystik Wok, allowing me to sacrifice Cyber Harpie Lady and add her attack points to my life points!"
Mai gasped in shock while watching one of her favorite monsters vanished from the field and Marie's life points climbed once again.
"I end my turn." (Marie 11600, Mai 6200)
Witnessing Mai's anger on her face, Joey softly said to Illidan "She's really pissed now. I don't think Marie should have played those mind games with her."
"I'm guessing Marie was trying to knock her off balance, but this isn't how she plays normally. I think this is a new strategy, if I had to guess." Illidan remarked.
"Still, Mai won't go easy on her now." Joey replied. "She'll tear Marie to pieces this turn, if she can think straight that is."
"Yeah…" Illidan mumbled.
On the field, Mai furiously drew her card and glared at Marie. "You won't make a fool out of me again! You may have double my life points, but I'll beat you!"
"Then come do it." Marie smugly commented.
Grinding her teeth together, Mai slapped her monster card to her Duel Disk and declared "I summon Harpie Lady (1300/1400)!"
A female bird woman, somewhat like the previous one, appeared onto the field, but was wearing a skin tight purple jumpsuit that formed well to her body. On her arms were wings of that of a bird's, with razor sharp talons on her feet, and long red hair.
"Direct attack her life points!" Mai declared angrily.
The new creature leapt forward and glided towards Marie with her razor sharp claws ready to slash at her.
Smiling, Marie took a card from her hand and placed it into her Graveyard Slot. "Sorry Mai, but I discard Kuriboh, allowing me to reduce all Battle Damage to zero."
A small brown fur ball creature with huge yellow eyes and green clawed hands and feet appeared before Marie. The bird woman slashed at Marie, only to strike the hairball creature instead, leaving Marie unfazed.
Swearing under her breath, Mai growled out "I end my turn." (Marie 11600, Mai 6200)
Picking up a card, Marie showed it to Mai, saying "I play Card of Sanctity! This spell let's us each draw till we hold six cards."
Quietly, Marie drew three cards while Mai drew none. Looking her cards over, Marie smiled and said "It's over for you Mai."
With a bewildered look, Mai hotly asked "What are you talking apart!? I still have 6200 life points left!"
"You'll see soon enough. First, I play the spell Monster Reborn to revive my Kuriboh (300/200)!" Marie declared.
The small brown hairball creature instantly reappeared onto Marie's field and let out a 'Kree' sound.
"Next comes the spell Cost Down! I discard a card from my hand to reduce the level of all monsters in my hand by two, till the end of the turn."
Mai looked at her oddly while Marie placed a card into her Graveyard Slot, asking "You're sacrificing your Kuriboh then, aren't you?"
"Exactly!" Marie replied. "Cost Down takes my level seven monster and makes it a level five, so I'd like to introduce you to Neo-Parshath, the Sky Paladin (2300/2000)!"
Immediately, the fur ball creature vanished only to cause a blinding white light to fill the field. As the light died down, a new angel, this one looking like a powerful warrior touched down onto the field. He had massive white wings that were held to his back with an orange and blue set of bindings, a pair of strong legs that were covered with a flowing white battle skirt, and on each arm were massive sharp blades. His body was covered in bold armor that also covered parts of the blades. The chest area of the warrior was covered in grey and blue armor, and his head had a new helmet to cover his entire face.
"Twenty-three hundred?" Mai wearily asked. "It isn't exactly enough to end the duel, now is it?"
Smirking, Marie replied "Trust me on this when I say it's over. I play the field spell The Sanctuary in the Sky!"
A slot on the end of Marie's Duel Disk instantly shot open, allowing her to place the card into it. The slow quickly shut and her Duel Disk instantly glowed with a rainbow colored energy. Immediately, the scenery began to change as a blue sky with large white fluffy clouds appeared and a large stone building appeared behind Marie.
"Thanks to the power of my field spell, one of Neo-Parshath's effects kicks in. Whenever I have Sanctuary in the Sky on the field, he gains attack and defense points equal to the difference between our life points."
Mai gasped in realization to what Marie had meant when she had said it was over. Seeing Mai knew, Marie softly said "I have 11600 life points, compared to your 6200. The difference is 5400 (2300 + 5400 7700/2000 + 5400 7400)."
Mai immediately lowered her head, allowing her blonde bangs to hide her face while the warrior on the field glowed with a brilliant white glow.
"An attack from me will end this duel right now." Marie quietly explained.
The crowd all was in shock at the results. None had ever seen Marie defeat someone so fast, especially someone at the caliber of Mai.
"Poor Mai…" Joey lightly said.
Looking at Marie, Illidan mumbled in his mind "So that was her strategy. Quite clever my dear."
Softly smiling at Mai, Marie kindly said "Mai, I know how much your Harpie Lady means to you. It's the card closest to your heart, and I respect that and would never want to insult your relationship with that card by destroying it. Don't make me do such a horrible thing to the two of you. Please, Mai, just surrender the duel."
Watching the turmoil running through Mai's face, Marie bit her lip. "I can only hope she listens to me. She's so proud, if not a bit too proud, and I know it would be hard to let a duel go, but I'd rather not have to do something this drastic. Maybe she'll surrender, but I doubt it."
After a moment of thinking it over, Mai heavily sighed and looked to Marie with violet eyes full of resolve. With a slow motion, she moved her hand over her deck and quietly said "You're right. I surrender."
The audience instantly burst into cheers of awe and excitement from the reply. All of the holograms on the field quickly began to disappear, leaving only Mai and Marie. Walking to the middle, the two met and shook hands, which turned into a hug. Smiling at one another, the two women walked off the stage.
Pegasus quickly moved to the center of the stage and happily said "That's what real dueling is all about! Marie Stormrage advances to the semi-finals!"
The crowd cheered once more while the monitor with the duels corrected itself, showing Marie advanced and Mai would not.
Glancing at the monitor himself, Illidan noted that if he won his duel, he'd face Marie in the semi-finals. "Heh, that would be quite a duel. But first thing is first, I have to take care of Kevin... Not to mention, try and figure out what I felt earlier."
Seeing Marie was approaching, Illidan stood and hugged her, giving her a light kiss on the cheek at the same time. "You did well." he commented, earning a smile from her.
"Thanks." she simply remarked.
Noting Joey was consoling Mai on her loss, Illidan smiled weakly. Seeing this, Marie asked "Are you alright?"
"Yeah… We just need to meet with Yugi and Kaiba tonight to discuss something."
Nodding in reply, Marie was about to say something else when Pegasus's voice boomed over the airwaves instead. "Ladies and Gents, now that the first duel is over, we move on to our next duel! It pits one of my old friends, Illidan Stormrage, against the up and coming young man from the Pro League, Kevin Hunter! Duelists, come on down!"
Knowing he had to go, Illidan kissed Marie lightly and walked towards the stage with her calling out "Good luck!"
Smiling and nodding back at her, Illidan went to the stage where Pegasus and Kevin awaited. With Illidan arriving, Pegasus twirled the microphone and spoke once more into it, saying "This will be one of the best duels everyone has seen in ages, that much I guarantee!"
Turning to the two, Pegasus smiled and walked over to Illidan. Switching the microphone off, he said "Why hello again Illi-boy!"
Groaning at the nickname Pegasus had made up for him, Illidan grit his teeth and calmed himself. After a moment of calming down, he replied "Hello Pegasus."
In a mere whisper through his Shadow Powers, Pegasus said "Good luck. This Kevin kid is rather strong."
Smirking, Illidan replied mentally "So I've heard."
"Be on guard. I'd hate to see you lose, Illi-boy."
Lightly growling with annoyance, Illidan bit his tongue to keep from replying. Seeing he wouldn't get a response, Pegasus called out through the microphone "Duelists, shuffle your decks and move into position!"
Both Illidan and Kevin grabbed their decks and began shuffling. Finishing up, each placed their decks within their slots in their Duel Disks. Walking to the opposite ends of the field, each simultaneously turned to face one another.
"I hope you're not going to be too disappointed when you lose this duel." Kevin commented smugly.
Lightly chuckling, Illidan replied "I wouldn't get too confident yet."
Moving off the stage, Pegasus called out "This second round is Illidan Stormrage vs. Kevin Hunter! Duelists, you may begin!"
Each drew five cards, shouting out "Duel!"