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Also, I know I'm a bit late in posting this chapter and I make no promises that I'll get the next chapter up by next Monday. I've started school again and, while my schedule isn't quite that hectic this semester, I still might not find time to post within a week. I'll try my hardest to get the next chapter out by Tuesday of next week at the latest but, once again, I make no promises.
I hope that you enjoy this chapter and reviews, as always, are much appreciated.
4
Rising in the Ranks
Jaden gasped and sat up sharply as the nightmare replayed in his mind. He shivered and drew his knees close to his body, resting his chin on them as his mind replayed the events of his nightmare. He hated these nightmares, he really did. He knew that they would be there for a while and that he needed to overcome them, but it was difficult and it meant that he would usually go without sleep for days.
"Jaden?"
Jaden looked up to find Chazz standing there between the bottom bunk and the mattress they had moved for Hassleberry, who was still fast asleep. "Yeah?" he asked.
"Another nightmare?" Chazz asked, sitting down on the bed.
Jaden nodded.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
Jaden smiled a little, thinking about how far Chazz had come since they had first met. Back when they first met, Jaden was sure Chazz would never offer to listen to Jaden's problems and yet now he was doing just that. It just showed that Jaden wasn't the only one changed by what happened over the summer.
"I guess. Dr. Nakamura says that talking about my nightmares will help." He fell silent and then said, "I was watching what happened to Kasumi. It was just so hard watching that happen to her and not knowing if she would survive or not. And now I have to relive it, along with everything else that happened—and not just what happened this summer, either—practically every time I close my eyes."
Chazz said nothing, just listened to Jaden as he talked, like Nakamura did, for which Jaden was grateful. When he was done, he sighed and added, "I'm sorry."
"For what?" Chazz asked, raising an eyebrow. "You said talking about your nightmares helped, right, Slacker?"
"Right." Jaden fell silent.
Chazz observed him for a moment. "You don't still blame yourself for what happened, do you?"
Jaden flinched a little and looked away.
Chazz sighed in irritation. "Seriously? After all these months, you still blame yourself?"
Jaden pressed his lips together. "I think a part of me always will," he admitted. "I'm trying, though, Chazz." He fell silent for a long moment, then said, "Dr. Nakamura suggested a few sessions ago that I should try talking with Alexis or Kyle or Kasumi and Raiden about this."
"Then why don't you?" Chazz asked.
Jaden shrugged. He didn't know. He had been avoiding talking with Alexis about what happened and, on his bad days, he would avoid his girlfriend, Kyle, and his siblings altogether.
He turned to the alarm clock beside his bed. "I think I'm going to try to get some more sleep," he said quietly.
Chazz nodded and stood up and walked over to the ladder.
"Hey, Chazz?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks."
Chazz shrugged. "No problem," he said and climbed back onto the top bunk.
Jaden lied back down and closed his eyes, drifting off into a fitful sleep.
. . .
Several hours later found Jaden, Syrus and Hassleberry wide awake in their dorm room. Chazz was overseeing the rest of the construction of the other half of the Slifer Red Dorm, as he said that he was planning on remodeling the entire dorm but was focusing on the half that wasn't being used for now. The construction team was really working hard and fast and it was almost done.
Jaden, who was still tired after only having a few hours of sleep, yawned as Syrus and Hassleberry argued; he was seated at the desk, watching them with tired amusement.
"I've got one word for you. Shower. Try using it, it actually gets you clean," Syrus shouted.
"Oh yeah, what's with you?" Hassleberry shouted. "You talk in your sleep and with a nightlight on, too! And for your information, I showered last week."
"Stand under the water next time!"
"Guys, will you two calm down?" Jaden said quietly. "If we're going to be roommates, we should all get along. Why don't you two hug it out?"
Hassleberry frowned. "I don't do hugs," he said.
"That's probably 'cause your stench scares everyone away," Syrus said.
"Are they arguing again?" Chazz asked as he walked into the dorm room.
"Yup," Jaden said and then yawned again.
Chazz scoffed.
"Hey, are we interrupting?"
The four of them turned to find Alexis, Arina, and Kasumi standing in the doorway with a bag in each of their hands.
Jaden frowned. "What's up?" he asked.
"We left our dorms," Alexis said. "Can you spare four extra rooms?"
"Of course," Chazz said immediately.
"Sure thing," said Jaden. "But wait, four? Who's the fourth?"
"Raiden," Kasumi said.
"Why?"
"Crowler," the three girls said at once.
. . .
In the library, Crowler and Bonaparte were scheming again, surrounded by lit candles.
"So, tell me, monsieur, who's our lucky star for today?" Bonaparte asked. "The suspense is tres stressful."
"I'm sensing sarcasm," Crowler said and shook his head. "But don't worry. This plan will work." He held up a picture of Syrus Truesdale. "This is our ticket to fame, Syrus Truesdale, younger brother of the Dueling League professional Zane. The press will eat this up, because if our little Slifer wins, he gets promoted to Ra Yellow." All eyes will be on our school for training the first ever pro family, he thought.
If this Syrus kid gets promoted, there will be one less slacker to deal with, Bonaparte thought as well. Bringing moi one step closer to bidding the Red Dorm adieu.
The lights flickered on at that moment and Crowler and Bonaparte turned to find Conway approached them. "Do you mind?" Crowler demanded. "We were busy planning."
"My apologies," Conway said. "But Professor Satyr was too busy and asked me to come ask something from you. Since you are Chancellor, temporary or not, you have to approve all possible promotions. Satyr believes that Steven Ravenholm of Ra Yellow deserves a promotion into the Blue Dorm, as he was on the verge of being promoted before he went missing last year."
"Steven Ravenholm?" Crowler echoed. He remembered him; the former Shadow Rider had been on the verge of being promoted until he went missing along with Raven Johnson, Raiden Yuki, Atticus Rhodes, Yusuke Fujiwara and several others. "Yes, I do believe it's time that he be promoted."
Conway nodded. "I will let Professor Satyr know," he said and left the library.
"I should organize the matches now. I think I have perfect people for Steven and Syrus to go against," Crowler said with a smile.
. . .
The new addition to the Slifer Dorm was really well done on the inside, though it still looked similar on the outside. Chazz had gone all out with the money he had saved up and Jaden had to wonder if he had any left after what he did. It was large with a lounge and stairs that led to bedrooms that were twice the size of the other dorm rooms in the Slifer Dorm. It also had high ceilings and marble floors, except for in the lounge where there were carpeted floors.
"Not bad, Chazz," Jaden commented. "This must have cost a lot."
"My brothers gave me quite a bit of money when they started teaching me how to manage my money better," Chazz said with a shrug.
"Seems rather overkill to me," Syrus admitted.
"I'm impressed, Chazz," Alexis said, gazing around.
"Yeah, it's huge and looks like it'll be very comfortable. Are there other rooms here too?" Kasumi asked curiously.
"Right up there," Chazz said, pointing to the second floor.
"This sure is sweet," Raiden said, and Jaden jumped.
"Where the hell did you come from?" he gasped.
Raiden pointed at the still open door.
Jaden face-palmed and glanced at his siblings, girlfriend, and Arina. "So why did you four come over here to this dorm?" he asked.
Alexis, looking irritated, pulled out something from her pack. It was a red dress with puffy shoulder sleeves and a frilly bottom that went down to mid-thigh. Kasumi's was the same, except that it was blue, while Arina's outfit was a frilly green top and blue mini-skirt.
"Nice, uh, uniforms?" Jaden said uncertainly.
"Oh please, this was Crowler's idea," Alexis scoffed.
"Yeah, it was," Kasumi growled, resisting the urge to set the stupid thing on fire. She decided she would do just that once she was not around people who didn't know about her gift.
"Yeah, he wants Alexis and Atticus to become pop idols that sing while they duel and wants me to be one that performs before I duel since I was in a traveling circus and all that," Arina said.
"Why are you here, then? And you, Kasumi?" Syrus asked, glancing at Raiden and Kasumi.
"Atticus thought I should become a pop idol, too, and Crowler agreed," Raiden growled.
Jaden blinked and then burst out laughing, so hard that he fell to the ground.
"It's not funny!" Raiden yelled, glaring at his brother, who was howling with laughter.
"He wants you…to become…a pop idol that…sings while he duels," Jaden gasped, laughing so hard he had tears in his eyes.
Raiden glowered. "Stop laughing already!" he exclaimed.
"At least he's laughing," Alexis mused with a small smile. It was rare, nowadays, that Jaden would actually laugh about something because, on his bad days, he would often sink into a depression and distance himself from everyone, especially those who had been Kaage's victims. Today, Alexis realized, was another one of his good days.
Kasumi chuckled. "But that's why I'm here, Syrus. Crowler wants me to join Raiden and be a pop idol as well," she said. "Why? I have no idea."
"Probably because he's trying to keep going with the brother and sister pop idol teams theme," Raiden said with a shrug.
"What happened to that uniform Crowler gave you, Raiden?" Alexis asked.
"Threw it away as soon as I was able. There was no way I was going to let anyone see it. Judai would never let me live it down," Raiden muttered.
"I don't like this idea anyway," Arina said. "I definitely don't want to wear that."
"I would rather burn it than wear it," Kasumi said, glaring at her dress.
"No joke. Can you even picture me wearing this?" Alexis said, throwing her dress away and glancing at Jaden, who had stopped laughing and got to his feet, as if waiting for him to respond.
"Uhh…" Jaden, to be frankly honest, was picturing Alexis in that dress and he decided that it would look nice on her, even if she would never wear it.
"Jaden…" Alexis said warningly, narrowing her eyes.
"Um, well, I think you would look good in it, because, erm, you look beautiful in anything that you wear," Jaden said uncertainly, hoping he said the right thing. He must have, though, since Alexis didn't retaliate.
'I think this is more about Chancellor Crowler,' Yubel said, materializing behind Jaden.
"I agree, Yubel," Raiden said with a nod at the fiend duel spirit. "Ever since Crowler became Chancellor, he's become more dangerous."
"Yeah and he's trying to use us to further his career," Alexis said in frustration. Jaden moved to her side and curled his arms around her, rubbing her back as she leaned against him.
"We need to put a stop to this," Kasumi said as Arina tossed her outfit on top of the pile in the middle of the room.
The door opened and Bastion walked into the room with a quiet Steven just behind. "Syrus, there you are," he said.
"You're looking for me?" Syrus asked.
Bastion nodded. "Yeah, Crowler has a couple of duels for you and Steven for a chance to be promoted," he said, gesturing to Steven, who nodded.
"Oh, that's right," Raiden said as he remembered. "You were on the verge of getting promoted when I disappeared."
"Yeah, the test was supposed to happen the day I disappeared," Steven said. "So they're doing it now."
"With whom?" Syrus asked curiously.
"You're going against a girl in Obelisk Blue named Missy," Bastion said. "And Steven's going against Raven."
"Well, if what you said about Steven is true, Raiden, then that means that only Syrus is Crowler's next victim," Chazz commented.
"But this might also be a good thing for Syrus," Kasumi said.
"Yeah," Jaden said with a nod. "This could be the chance for everyone to see the brave Syrus. Plus getting a promotion is totally sweet!"
"One question," Syrus said, starting to tremble. "When you find the brave Syrus, could you let him know the wimpy one is looking for him?" With that, he was out of the room in a matter of seconds.
"Hey, Syrus," Bastion shouted, trying to catch him, but he was too slow.
"Get back here, soldier," Hassleberry shouted and gave chase.
. . .
Soon after Hassleberry had chased after Syrus, Alexis was in one of the rooms that was part of Chazz's addition, unpacking and thinking about the past summer. She didn't remember much after she had lost the duel against Kaage, but Chazz and Atticus had filled her in because Jaden didn't want to talk about it with her. She had tried broaching the subject subtly with Jaden but, every time she did, he would figure it out and shut down. He refused to talk about it with anyone other than Dr. Nakamura and, while Alexis knew that was helping, she wanted to help as well.
She loved Jaden. She really did, but she was also worried about him. She sighed and paused in unpacking. "I just wish there was some way I could get him to open up to me," she said quietly to herself. She hated feeling so helpless when it came to helping someone she loved.
She glanced toward the window of the room, curling her arms around herself. "I just wish Jaden would talk to me," she said.
"I do talk to you, Lex," Jaden said from behind her and Alexis felt his arms curl around her waist as his chin rested on her shoulder.
She turned and smiled a little at him. "I know, but I don't mean about just everyday things, I mean about what happened," she said.
Jaden looked away. "I just…It's not easy," he said quietly.
Alexis turned around in Jaden's arms and placed a hand on his cheek. "I know," she said quietly. "I don't wanna push you, Jay, but I wanna help you somehow."
Jaden gave her a small smile. "Just being there for me is enough," he said.
"It doesn't seem like it those days you're pushing me away," Alexis said.
"The fact that you keep coming back and keep trying to help, even though I keep trying to avoid you, is enough. It shows that you care. And I'm trying, Lex, but…there are just times when I just feel better when I'm away from you guys. Dr. Nakamura said that this is normal," Jaden said.
"But why doesn't it happen all the time?" Alexis wondered. "I mean, I've read a little bit about stress disorders and PTSD, and doesn't this usually happen like all the time?"
"Dr. Nakamura says that it affects everyone differently. She also says that the fact that I'm not avoiding everyone and everything associated with what happened means that I'm getting better."
Alexis smiled. "That's good," she said and gently pressed her lips to Jaden's. He kissed her back, drawing her closer to him and deepening the kiss.
. . .
"How's Jaden been?" Raiden asked Chazz in the lounge as they waited for Hassleberry to get back from finding Syrus. They were both seated on the couch, watching Kasumi, who was setting fire to the three uniforms Crowler had given them in the fireplace that was within the lounge. Bastion had already left as had Steven.
"He had another nightmare last night, but he's been doing okay," Chazz said with a shrug.
Raiden sighed, leaning back against the couch. "I wish he would talk to me about this," he murmured. "I want to help him, but I don't know how if he won't talk to me."
"Maybe he's just not ready yet," Chazz suggested.
"Maybe. So what do you plan on doing with the rest of the dorm?" Raiden asked curiously, changing the subject.
"I dunno. Maybe just remodel it the same way or something. At least make the rooms a bit more livable," Chazz said with a shrug.
Arina sat down next to Chazz and rested her head on his shoulder. "Hey," she said.
"Hey," Chazz said and then glanced toward Kasumi.
"I'm kind of surprised you're even using your power," Arina admitted.
"Figured that since I'm stuck with this power, I may as well know how to use it," Kasumi replied. as she watched the outfits burn, keeping her hands poised over them as if that was how she was keeping the flames under control, though it wasn't quite needed since she was using the fireplace since she didn't want to leave scorch marks.
"She's been practicing over the summer," Raiden said.
"And how did that work out?" Arina asked; she knew about Kasumi's ability to control fire because of how she had attacked Kaage when Kyle lost to him in Honolulu.
"She burned Mom's garden and part of our backyard. Trying to explain how that happened to Mom and Dad sucked," Raiden said.
"Yeah, especially since you and Jaden can't lie to save your life," Chazz mused.
"We weren't allowed to leave the house except for Jaden's therapy sessions for three weeks," Raiden grumbled.
"I've gotten better control since then," Kasumi said.
The door opened and Hikari poked her head inside. "Wow, this place is nice," she said, stepping into the room with Kira just behind her and Justin just behind them.
"Why are you here?" Chazz said.
"Just thought we'd check this place out. It's really nice," Kira said.
"Hey, Kas, what're you doing here?" Hikari asked, glancing at her twin.
"Crowler," Kasumi growled.
"What did he do?" Justin asked curiously.
Kasumi explained what happened. Kira shook her head. "Sounds like he was planning on using you," she said.
"He sounds like wonderful teacher," Justin said, rolling his eyes.
"Where's Jaden?" Kasumi asked.
"I think he's with Alexis," Raiden said.
"Oh."
. . .
Later on, while Hassleberry was talking with Syrus, Steven was thinking about his own duel against Raven. He had never dueled Raven before, though he had seen a few of her duels before. She was really good and he was a bit nervous; he was planning on trying his best and show that he deserved to be promoted, but he was still nervous.
He glanced at his deck, flipping through the cards, the cards his big sister had given him before she went off to college. He still kept in contact with his sister and he smiled as he remembered when he last saw her; she had come home from college for summer vacation. He thought that it was nice that he was able to see her, especially since she had, from what she told him, been trying to contact him in the days following what happened in the Abandoned Dorm.
Steven wanted to make his sister proud of him and make sure his didn't regret giving him her old deck. But beating Raven is definitely going to be difficult, he thought as he looked through his cards again.
. . .
The following day, Syrus was heading toward the main building, thinking back to his talk with Hassleberry.
"We've gotta locate the source of your fear, so you can launch a sneak attack on it."
I know that it is Power Bond, but I have to believe that I can make it in this duel without this card, he thought. He had spent part of the night after his talk with Hassleberry thinking about what he should do and whether he had the strength to face this duel and go on to the Pro League without Power Bond's help.
And he made his decision and decided that he would seek out someone and give them Power Bond so that he could focus on winning this duel against Missy without that card.
When he entered the building, he glanced at the envelope that contained the Power Bond card and then looked around. He spotted Chazz. "Hey, Chazz," he called, jogging over to join him and holding out the envelope.
"Can you give this to Jaden?" he asked.
Chazz took the envelope. "Why?"
"Just give it to him, and no peeking," Syrus shouted as he ran off.
Chazz nevertheless opened the envelope. "Power Bond!" he exclaimed in shock.
"What did I just say?" Syrus shouted just before he ran out of earshot.
. . .
In the main arena, the gang was all seated together near the bottom, waiting to see the duels get underway. Jaden and Alexis were side by side with each other while Kasumi sat on Jaden's other side. Arina was on Alexis's other side and Raiden, Atticus and Kira sat below them with Hikari, Justin, Bastion, and Hassleberry above them. Celina maneuvered her way through the crowd and took a seat on Hassleberry's other side and Kyle soon joined them as well.
In the teacher's stands, Bonaparte glanced at Crowler. "Do you honestly think that pipsqueak has what it takes to win?"
"I'm sure he does, and you shouldn't be talking about pipsqueaks," Crowler retorted.
Conway sighed and shook his head, silently wishing Syrus good luck.
Chazz joined the rest of the gang in the student section and took a seat beside Arina.
"Where've you been?" Arina asked.
"Nowhere," Chazz said with a shrug.
Down in the Arena, Syrus was up first, facing off against Missy. She was a tall girl with dark-magenta colored hair in two long ponytails with pale-purple eyes dressed in the Obelisk Blue uniform.
"So you're Zane's brother, huh?" she said, looking him over. "Don't take this too personal, hun, but you're not exactly what I was expecting." She opened the locket that hung around her neck, showing that it was a picture of Zane and gazed at it with a small infatuated smile on her face. "I mean, just look at him, I guess the hottie gene skipped you."
"No fear, soldier," Hassleberry called down into the Arena.
"Look, I'm a girl who gets what she wants," Missy said. "Once I win, Zane's gonna be mine since I'll be moving on to the Pro League."
"Who told you that?" Syrus asked.
"Crowler. You win, you go to Ra. I win, I go pro," Missy stated.
"All right, let's go," Syrus said.
"Game on!" they shouted as they drew their opening hands.
Syrus: 8000
Missy: 8000
"I'll start," Missy said, drawing a card and then placing it on her duel disk. "And I summon Prickle Fairy in Defense Mode."
A green skinned fairy with long blonde hair, dressed in pink with vines around her body appeared on the field and then knelt down (A: 300/D: 2000).
"And while Prickle Fairy is on the field, you can't attack any Insect-type monsters. I will end my turn with that."
"All right, my turn, then," Syrus said, drawing a card and glancing at it and then at his hand and nodded. "I'm starting by playing Shield Crush, which allows me to destroy a monster hiding in Defense Mode, and I choose your Prickle Fairy."
Prickle Fairy shattered into golden pixels.
"And next I summon Steamroid in Attack Mode," Syrus added, placing the card on his duel disk. A cartoonish train engine with cartoon eyes appeared on the field (A: 1800/D: 1800).
"And now Steamroid, roll all over her Life Points, attack," Syrus ordered and Steamroid, blowing the train horn, surged forward and crashed into Missy, knocking out some of her Life Points.
Syrus: 8000
Missy: 6200
"And with that, I end my turn," Syrus added, grinning.
"Nice job, Syrus," Kasumi said.
"He's doing well so far," Raiden agreed and glanced toward Jaden, who was simply watching the duel, not saying anything. He sighed and returned his attention to the duel as well.
The crowd cheered, though, and Syrus grinned when he heard his name being repeated over by the crowd. People are cheering for me. I finally have fans! he thought excitedly. "You hear that, Missy? The crowd loves me," he said with a laugh, signaling the end of his turn.
"That's about to change," Missy said as she drew a card. "And I summon Pinch Hopper in Attack Mode, though he won't be here for long."
A winged green bug appeared on the field (A: 1000/D: 1200).
"I say that because now I activate the Spell Multiplication of Ants and tribute Pinch Hopper to Special Summon two Army Ant Tokens to my field in Defense Mode."
Pinch Hopper vanished and two large army ants appeared on the field in its place (A: 500/D: 500) x2.
"And, because of Pinch Hopper's effect, I'm allowed to Special Summon an Insect-type monster from my hand directly to the field. So meet my sweet, strong diva; Insect Princess," Missy added, placing the card on her duel disk.
In a spray of petal, a green-skinned female with antennae hanging over her head and large butterfly wings appeared on the field (A: 1900/D: 1200).
"And I know your Steamroid's effect, it loses 500 ATK when it's attack so, Insect Princess, attack Steamroid," Missy ordered and Insect Princess flapped her butterfly wings, unleashing a blast of wind that struck Steamroid and destroyed it.
Syrus: 7400
Missy: 6200
"And I will place this facedown and end my turn," said Missy, inserting a card into her duel disk and a facedown appeared at her feet.
"My draw," Syrus said, drawing a card. "And I summon Ambulanceroid to my field in Defense Mode."
An ambulance with cartoonish eyes appeared on the field and crossed its tires in front of it (A: 300/D: 1200).
"And then I play Monster Reincarnation and discard one card to add Steamroid from my Graveyard back to my hand," Syrus added and retrieved said card from the Graveyard.
"Not bad," Raiden said from the stands. "By doing that, Ambulanceroid will let him Special Summon Steamroid."
"And now, because of Ambulanceroid's effect, I can Special Summon Steamroid back to my field in Attack Mode," Syrus added, echoing what Raiden just said and his train engine returned to the field (A: 1800/D: 1800).
"And now, Steamroid, attack that Insect Princess," Syrus ordered, "and, remember, he gains 500 Attack when he attacks a monster."
"Too bad I'm gonna have to stop you there. Go, Negate Attack," Missy said, revealing her face-down.
Syrus sighed and inserted a card into his duel disk. Well, at least I have some defense, he thought. "I place this facedown and end my turn," he said.
"You really aren't like your brother at all," Missy said, drawing a card. "I play Pot of Greed to draw two more cards." She did so and added, "And next, I play the Field Spell Insect Garden!"
Immediately, the arena changed so that they were in a large garden with plants nearly as big as Syrus himself growing around the arena. "What does this do?" the pale-blue haired boy asked.
"It means that all Insect-Type monsters that are Level 4 or lower that I control are given to you, such as my two Army Ant Tokens," Missy said as her two Army Ant Tokens moved to Syrus's side of the field. He eyed them warily.
"And, just so you know, my Insect Princess's effect means that all Insect-type monsters you control must remain in Attack Mode," Missy added and then picked up one card in her hand. "And next, I activate Insect Pheromone." She inserted the card and her Insect Princess gave off a sweet odor that seemed to draw the insects to it.
"Now, Insect Princess, attack that Army Ant Token," Missy ordered and the princess flapped her wings and the first Army Ant Token was destroyed.
Syrus: 6000
Missy: 6200
"And now, because she destroyed an Insect-Type monster, Insect Princess gains 500 Attack," Missy said as Insect Princess's Attack increased (A: 1900-2400). "And, thanks to Insect Pheromone, your other Army Ant Token is forced to attack my Insect Princess," Missy added. Syrus gasped as the other Army Ant Token marched forward, only to be destroyed as Insect Princess flapped her wings at him.
Syrus: 4100
Missy: 6200
"And her Attack increases again," Missy said with a smile (Insect Princess A: 2400-2900).
"Please tell me you're done," Syrus whined.
"Hey, Truesdale, you'll never win unless you defeat your fears," Hassleberry shouted from the audience.
Hassleberry's right, Syrus thought. Whenever I get scared, I doubt myself. I hear this voice saying give up, you're not good enough.
"You're not good enough, dweeb," Missy taunted. "So just give up."
See, there it is, Syrus thought and drew a card. "I play Spellbook Inside the Pot so that we each draw three cards," he said and drew three cards at the same time as Missy. "And next, I Normal Summon Submarineroid in Attack Mode."
His cartoonish submarine appeared on the field (A: 800/D: 1800).
"That monster is nowhere near strong enough to defeat my Insect Princess," Missy scoffed.
"I activate his effect, which allows him to attack you directly," Syrus said and the submarine dived into the ground and surged toward Missy, unleashing the missile it was carrying at her.
Syrus: 4100
Missy: 5400
"And, since it attacked, Submarineroid is switched to Defense Mode." Submarineroid took on a Defensive Position. "And then I switch Steamroid to Defense Mode and end my turn,"
"Not bad," Jaden commented quietly, causing his friends to glance at him. That was the first time he had spoken since the duel began. "But I think he should use Power Bond soon."
Chazz sighed. "Too bad it's not in his deck," he said.
"What do you mean, Chazz?" Arina asked.
Chazz held out the envelope toward Jaden who took it with a frown and opened it, shock flaring in his eyes when he spotted it. "Power Bond!" He turned to stare at his foster brother in shock and anger.
"You better have an explanation," Hassleberry growled.
"Yeah, why would you do this?" Kasumi asked, narrowing her eyes.
Chazz held up his hands defensively. "Calm down, you guys. Syrus gave me that envelope and told me to give it to you, Jaden," he said.
"Why would he do that, though?" Kyle wondered.
"Maybe he wants to win without that card," Hikari suggested.
Back in the arena, Missy was drawing a card. "I have to win," she said and placed the card she just drew on her duel disk. "I summon Dark Spider."
A green and gold spider with long black and purple legs appeared on the field (A: 0/D: 0).
"And I'll give him over to you."
The spider immediately walked to Syrus's side of the field.
"Now, Insect Princess, attack Dark Spider," Missy ordered and Insect Princess flapped her wings again, destroying Dark Spider and sending Syrus skidding back a few feet.
Syrus: 1200
Missy: 5400
"Oh boy, that's not good," Celina said.
"He's still in this, though," Raiden said. "He's still got Life Points left."
"And now Insect Princess's Attack is increased by 500 again," Missy said (Insect Princess A: 2900-3400). "And I will end my turn with that. I'll take you out next turn and then it'll be goodbye dweeb, and hello hottie."
"I'm still in this," Syrus said, drawing a card.
"You won't be in this for long. You've just been lucky so far. After all, that's all you've ever had, luck," Missy sneered.
"What are you talking about?" Syrus asked with a frown.
"You can practice all you want, but you'll never be as good as Zane."
"Take that back!" Syrus suddenly shouted, causing everyone to stare at the little Slifer in shock.
"I've lived in Zane's shadow my entire life," Syrus said. "He's always getting good grades and became a Pro." He sighed and added, "Then there's me, Zane's little brother, scared I'd never be that good. But no more. It's time I faced my fears. I play Vehicroid Connection Zone. With this, I'm can fuse Submarineroid, Steamroid and Drillroid in my hand in order to Fusion Summon Super Vehicroid Jumbo Drill in Attack Mode." A vortex appeared, swallowing Submarineroid, Steamroid and another roid in Syrus's hand and formed a giant pink and purple drill (A: 3000/D: 2000).
"And I also summon Stealthroid in Attack Mode," Syrus added, placing the card on his duel disk and a spaceship with red wings appeared (A: 1200/D: 0).
"It's still not enough to take out my Insect Princess, neither monster is," Missy said.
"But I also activate Block Attack," Syrus said, holding up the second to last card in his hand. "This'll switch your Insect Princess to Defense Mode."
Insect Princess suddenly crouched down, her arms over her chest.
"Now, Super Vehicroid Jumbo Drill, attack Insect Princess," Syrus ordered. "And when it attacks a monster in Defense Mode, it does piercing damage!"
His drill charged forward, drill spinning and going straight through the princess and she shattered into golden pixels.
Syrus: 1200
Missy:3600
"And now, Stealthroid, attack Missy directly," Syrus ordered. His space ship flew forward and blasted Missy with a blast of green energy.
Syrus: 1200
Missy:2400
"And, because Stealthroid attacked, I can now destroy one Spell or Trap card on the field since I control another roid monster. Say goodbye to your Insect Garden," Syrus said with a grin and Missy swore as her garden vanished.
"Oh you're so getting it," Missy growled as Syrus signaled the end of his turn. She drew a card and glanced at it and then placed it on her duel disk. "I summon Insect Knight in Attack Mode."
A blue and gray insect with a circular shield and sword and orange-red eyes appeared on the field (A: 1900/D: 1500).
"Now, Insect Knight, destroy that Stealthroid of his," Missy ordered and the knight shot forward and slammed his sword into Stealthroid, destroying it.
Syrus: 500
Missy:2400
"One move away and I will win and be with my Zane," Missy said with a smile as she set a card. "Make your final move."
Syrus drew a card. "I play Card of Demise. Now I can draw until I have five cards in my hand, though I have to discard my entire hand in five turns," he said and drew five cards; he glanced at them and grinned. "And now it's time I ended this duel by playing Polymerization and fusing Rescueroid in my hand with Ambulanceroid on my field in order to Fusion Summon Ambulance Rescueroid in Attack Mode!"
Ambulanceroid and an aqua-blue and gray fire-truck appeared before swirling together. In their place was a red fire truck with flashing lights and cartoonish eyes (A: 2300/D: 1800).
Missy didn't look worried, at least until Syrus held up another card.
"Next, I play Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your face-down," he said and a mini-tornado spun across the field, destroying Missy's facedown Draining Shield Trap. She gasped, her eyes widening as she realized what was happening.
"Now, Jumbo Drill, destroy Insect Knight," Syrus ordered and his drill surged forward and crashed into Insect Knight, destroying him.
Syrus: 500
Missy:1300
"Ambulance Rescueroid, attack Missy directly and end this duel," Syrus ordered.
"But if I lose, I'll never meet my sweet Zane," Missy cried. "It's not fair."
The fire-red truck surged forward and crashed into Missy, taking out the rest of her Life Points.
Syrus: 500 WINNER
Missy: 0
Syrus struck a pose and immediately held up the peace sign.
"The winner, Zane's little brother," Crowler announced.
Syrus face-faulted. "Aww, didn't he hear my speech?" he whined.
"Nice job, Syrus," Kasumi cheered.
"Soldier, I knew you had it in you," Hassleberry said with a smile.
"Not too shabby," Chazz said.
"All right," Crowler said, "clear the field for the next match between Steven Ravenholm and Raven Johnson."
Syrus joined his friends in the audience, still smiling happily as he took a seat.
"Congrats, Sy," Jaden said quietly.
"Thanks, Jay," Syrus said.
On the duel platform, Steven and Raven approached each other. "May the best person win," Steven said quietly, holding out a hand.
Raven grinned. "Good luck," she said, taking Steven's hand and shaking it before they moved back to their respected positions.
"Let's duel," the two of them declared as they drew their opening hands.
Raven: 8000
Steven: 8000
"I've only ever seen Steven duel once and that was when he was a Shadow Rider. Wonder how good he is," Alexis said.
"He's actually really good, had me on the ropes when we last dueled," Raiden said.
"Yeah, he nearly won it, too," Atticus said thoughtfully.
"I'll go first," Raven said, drawing a card. "And I set this monster in facedown Defense Mode and place this facedown and that's it." A horizontal facedown appeared along with a vertical one. "You're move, Steven."
"My draw," Steven said, drawing a card. "And I summon Gemini Scorpion in Attack Mode." A warrior with white hair in black, dark-blue and red armor wielding two daggers appeared on the field (A: 1600/D: 400). "And when Gemini Scorpion is Normal Summoned, I can Special Summon one Level 4 or lower Gemini monster from my hand and I choose Evocator Chevalier in Attack Mode." A Warrior in flame-colored armor wielding a slightly curved blade appeared on the field (A: 1900/D: 900).
"Now, Evocator Chevalier, attack Raven's facedown monster," Steven ordered. His monster shot forward and swung his sword at the horizontal card.
"I activate my Trap, Mirror Force," Raven called as her facedown flipped up and a sparkling shield appeared around the facedown card, tossing Evocator's attack back at him and destroying both him and Gemini Scorpion.
Steven pressed his lips together. "I play the Continuous Spell Burden of the Mighty, which means all your monsters lose 100 Attack times their Levels. I also place this facedown and end my turn," he said.
Raven drew a card. "I'll start my turn by Flip Summoning Stealth Bird," she said and a bird that seemed to blend in with its surroundings appeared on the field (A: 700-400/D: 1700). "And when Stealth Bird is Flip Summoned, you take 1000 points of damage." A gust of dark energy shot across the field to slam into Steven's duel disk.
Raven: 8000
Steven: 7000
"And then I summon Hunter Owl in Attack Mode," Raven added as an owl wielding a scythe appeared on the field (A: 1000-600/D: 900). "And, due to its effect, it gains 500 Attack for every Wind monster I control, including itself." Hunter Owl's attack jumped a bit (A: 600-1100).
"Now, Stealth Bird, attack Steven directly."
"Not so fast. Go, Negate Attack," Steven said, revealing his facedown.
Raven nodded. "All right. I'll activate Stealth Bird's effect, flipping it back into facedown Defense Mode and end my turn," she said as Stealth Bird vanished and a horizontal facedown appeared instead.
Steven drew a card and then glanced at his hand. "I summon Phantom Dragonray Bronto in Attack Mode," he said and the blue fish with a snake-like head jutting out of its mouth appeared on the field (A: 1500/D: 1000).
Raven shivered as she gazed at the Water monster and had to remind herself that it was just a hologram, though her mind did flash back to what happened to her mother.
"And next, I activate Supervise and equip it onto Phantom Dragonray Bronto so now he's treated as an Effect monster and gains his effect, which means his original Attack becomes 2300." Phantom Dragonray Bronto growled as he was surrounded by a blue aura (A: 1500-2300).
"Now, Phantom Dragonray Bronto, attack Hunter Owl," Steven ordered and his monster released a blast of water that enveloped Hunter Owl, destroying it and Raven yelped as the water surged toward her.
Raven: 6800
Steven: 7000
"And, due to Phantom Dragonray Bronto's effect, it's changed to Defense Mode at the end of the Battle Phase and can't change his position until the end of my next turn, unless by a card effect. I end my turn with that," Steven said. "Are you okay?
"Y...Yeah," Raven said shakily, relaxing only when the holographic water vanished. She really wished she didn't react that way whenever she saw water, even if it was in hologram form, but, after what happened, she did still have a very strong fear of water.
"My turn again," she said once she calmed down, drawing a card. "And I Flip Summon Stealth Bird again to deal you another 1000 points of damage." Stealth Bird reappeared on the field (A: 700-400/D: 1700).
Steven shielded himself with his duel disk as the blast of dark energy came at him.
Raven: 6800
Steven: 6000
"And, next, I summon Wind Effigy in Attack Mode." A cyclone with colorful wings spun onto the field (A: 1800-1400/D: 200). "Now, Wind Effigy, attack Phantom Dragonray Bronto." The cyclone spun across the field and crashed into the fish monster, destroying it.
"Not bad," Steven said quietly. "But, since Supervise was sent to the Graveyard while it was face-up on the field, its effect activates, allowing me to Special Summon one Normal Monster from my Graveyard and I choose Evocator Chevalier." His flame-colored armored monster returned to the field (A: 1900/D: 900).
"Not bad," Raiden commented from the stands. "Now Raven's Stealth Bird can't attack."
"But Stealth Bird is still a threat at the moment since it can deal 1000 points of damage every turn and its effect can be used over and over again because of its other effect," Bastion commented.
Raiden nodded. "But I have no doubt Steven can turn things around," he said.
"I activate Stealth Bird's effect, switching it to facedown Defense Mode and end my turn," Raven said as Stealth Bird vanished and a horizontal facedown appeared in its place.
"My turn," Steven said and drew a card. He smiled at what he drew before he picked another card in his hand. "I tribute Evocator Chevalier to summon Chthonian Emperor Dragon in Attack Mode." The large black, green and gold winged dragon that those who went to Honolulu remembered from Keith's duel during the Duel Monsters U.S. Championship Tournament appeared on the field with a growl (A: 2400/1500).
"Pretty strong monster," Celina said. "Especially its effect when it's Gemini Summoned."
"And next, I activate Double Summon," Steven said, holding up the card he had just drawn. "This allows me to Normal Summon a second monster but, instead, I'm gonna use it to Gemini Summon Chthonian Emperor Dragon as an Effect monster. Now it can attack twice during the same Battle Phase."
Dang, that's gonna leave me wide open. Good thing he doesn't have another monster on the field, Raven thought.
"Now, Chthonian Emperor Dragon, attack Wind Effigy," Steven commanded and the dragon roared, unleash a blast of energy that slammed into Wind Effigy, destroying it.
Raven: 5800
Steven: 6000
"And I'll use his second attack to take out your facedown Stealth Bird." Another blast of energy slammed into the facedown monster, flipping it up and then it shattered into pixels. "And I will end my turn with that."
"At least he won't be taking damage from Stealth Bird's effect now," Bastion said. "Plus Burden of the Mighty will still weaken all of Raven's monsters."
"He's also got the lead, though not by much," Alexis said.
"I draw," Raven said, drawing a card. "And I banish Stealth Bird and Wind Effigy from my Graveyard in order to Special Summon Dark Simorgh from my hand in Attack Mode." She pocketed the two cards before slapping another one on her duel disk. A large black bird appeared on the field and spread its wings (A: 2700-2000/D: 1000).
"Next, I activate D.D.R. – Different Dimension Reincarnation, discarding one card in my hand in order to Special Summon one of my banished monster in Attack Mode and equip it with that card and I choose Wind Effigy." The cyclone monster returned to the field (A: 1800-1400/D: 200).
"Also, when I use Wind Effigy for the Tribute Summon of a Wind Normal Monster, it counts as two Tributes. So I tribute Wind Effigy to Tribtue Summon Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry from my hand, as it is treated as a Normal Monster while it's in my hand, in Attack Mode." The cyclone vanished and, out of the burst of wind, a large golden bird with two sets of wings materialized on the field (A: 2900-2100/D: 2000).
"Not bad," Steven commented.
"It gets better," Raven said with a smile. "When Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry is Tribute Summoned by tributing only Wind monsters, its effect activates, allowing me to return up to two cards that you control to your hand and I choose Chthonian Emperor Dragon and Burden of the Mighty." Both cards vanished and Steven, with a grimace, added both cards to her hand while Raven's monsters' Attack returned to normal (Dark Simorgh A: 2000-2700) (Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry (A: 2100-2900).
"Now, Dark Simorgh, attack Steven directly," Raven ordered and, with a sharp cry, Dark Simorgh unleashed a powerful gust of wind that surged across the field and slammed into Steven; he braced himself and managed to stay on his feet.
Raven: 5800
Steven: 3300
"Now, Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry, attack Steven as well," Raven ordered and the large golden bird also unleashed a powerful gust of wind that knocked Steven off his feet and took out another large chunk of his Life Points.
Raven: 5800
Steven: 400
"Nice move by Raven," Arina commented. "In just one turn, she almost wiped out all of Steven's Life Points."
"Not bad," Jaden said softly, speaking for the first time since the duel began.
"Are you okay?" Alexis asked.
Jaden glanced at her. "I'm fine," he assured her.
She didn't look like she believed him but she said nothing.
"Looks like Raven's taken the lead. Are you sure Steven was on the verge of being promoted, Crowler?" Bonaparte asked.
"Oh, he was," Crowler said.
"The duel isn't over yet," Conway added.
"I end my turn with that," Raven said.
Steven mutely drew a card and glanced at it. "I activate Graceful Charity to draw three cards and then discard two," he said and did so before adding, "And next, I activate Pot of Greed to draw two more cards." He did so before inserting another card into his duel disk. "I also activate Burden of the Mighty again." Dark Simorgh and Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry weakened due to the Spell's power (Dark Simorgh A: 2700-2000) (Simorgh, Bird of Ancestry A: 2900-2100).
"I also activate the Continuous Spell Herculean Power," Steven added, inserting another card into his duel disk. "While this is in play, since you control monsters while I don't, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower Gemini monster from my hand, like my Dark Valkyria."
The dark fairy with metallic black wings appeared on the field (A: 1800/D: 1050).
"And next I Gemini Summon Dark Valkyria, which gives her effect. She gains a Spell Counter as well as 300 Attack," Steven added as Dark Valkyria was surrounded by an orange aura (A: 1800-2100 Spell Counters: 1).
"Now, Dark Valkyria, attack Dark Simorgh," Steven ordered and the dark fairy nodded before unleashing a blast of energy that slammed into the large black bird and obliterated it.
Raven: 5700
Steven: 400
"Next, I activate Dark Valkyria's last effect and remove the Spell Counter on it in order to target one monster on the field and destroy it and I choose your other Simorgh," Steven added as Dark Valkyria's power decreased (A: 2100-1800) and the large golden bird shattered.
That's not good, Raven thought, shielding herself from the pixels.
"And then I place this facedown and end my turn," Steven said.
"He wiped out Raven's entire field," Syrus noted. "But there's still a huge gap in their Life Points."
"Well, if Steven lasts this turn, he's gonna have to mount a comeback during his next turn," Chazz said.
"I draw," Raven said, drawing a card and then holding it out. "I activate Spellbook Inside the Pot so that we each draw three cards." They each drew and then Raven added, "And, next, I summon Mist Condor in Attack Mode." In a cyclone of wind, a dark-blue condor appeared on the field (A: 1400-1000/D: 400).
"And next, I activate Swallow's Nest in order to Tribute one card on my field to Special Summon 1 Winged Beast-Type monster from my Deck with the same Level as the Tributed monster and I Special Summon Mist Valley Falcon in Attack Mode." Mist Condor vanished and was replaced by a white-haired person with a glowing sword and brown and red feathers on its back (A: 2000-1600/D: 1200).
"Also, since I have exactly five Wind monsters in my Graveyard, I can Special Summon Windrose the Elemental Lord in Attack Mode," Raven added and, out of a cyclone of glowing wind, stepped a gold-and-green winged beast with large wings encircled by purple spirals (A: 2800-2000/D: 2200).
"Nice monster," Steven commented.
Raven smiled. "Windrose has an effect when its Special Summoned; all Spell and Trap cards you control are destroyed," she said.
"Then I'll activate my Trap before that happens; Waboku. Now my monster can't be destroyed by battle and all battle damage I would take goes to zero," Steven said, revealing the facedown before both it and Burden of the Mighty are destroyed, returning Windrose and Mist Valley Falcon's Attack to normal (Falcon A: 1600-2000) (Windrose A: 2000-2800).
Raven grimaced. "Well, guess I can't do anything else. I place this facedown and end my turn," she said.
"I draw," Steven said, drawing a card. He smiled. "Time to end this duel. I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your facedown." The mini cyclone spun across the field and destroyed Raven's facedown Magic Cylinder card."
"And next, I activate Monster Reborn to bring back Chthonian Emperor Dragon," Steven added and the large black, green and gold dragon returned to the field with a roar (A: 2400/D: 1500). "And next I'll Gemini Summon him so that he can attack twice during this Battle Phase."
"Not bad," Raven said with a nod. "But it's steal weaker than Windrose."
"That's before I activate this," Steven said, holding up a card. "Megamorph. Since my Life Points are lower than yours, my monsters Attack is doubled."
"Damn," Raven swore as Chthonian Emperor Dragon was surrounded by a red aura as its power increased (A: 2400-4800).
"Now, Chthonian Emperor Dragon, take out Raven's two monsters," Steven ordered and, with a powerful blast of energy, Chthonian Emperor Dragon destroyed both Windrose and Mist Valley Falcon, taking out a huge chunk of Raven's Life Points.
Raven: 900
Steven: 400
"And now, Dark Valkyria, attack Raven directly," Steven said and his dark fairy released a blast of dark magic that slammed into Raven, sending her skidding back.
Raven: 0
Steven: 400 WINNER
"And there you have it, our winner is Steven Ravenholm who will be promoted to Obelisk Blue!" Crowler declared as cheers erupted from the audience.
Steven turned off his duel disk and walked over to join Raven. "Nice duel, Raven," he said, holding out a hand.
Raven took it and let the boy pull her to her feet. "Thanks, I wanna a rematch, though," she said.
Steven nodded in agreement with a small smile.
. . .
Back at the Slifer Dorm, everyone gathered in the lounge area of Chazz's addition. Jaden walked over to join Syrus and then held out the card. "Here, Syrus," he said.
"Ah, keep it," Syrus said with a smile. "I first I thought I needed that card to be as good as Zane. But I already have what I need to be a winner. That's why I don't need to carry this card anymore."
Jaden smiled and placed the card in Syrus's hand. "Then keep it as a reminder of how much better and braver you've gotten," he said.
Syrus smiled and nodded. "Thanks, Jay," he said.
"Congrats on your win, too, Steven, and welcome to Obelisk Blue," Raiden said to Steven, who had joined them along with Raven to congratulate Syrus as well.
"Thank you," Steven said.
. . .
Later that night, everyone was eating dinner in the Slifer Red Cafeteria.
"You're in my seat, Hassleberry!"
Everyone turned to find Syrus standing by the table, now in a Ra Yellow blazer.
"But you moved to the Yellow Barracks," Hassleberry protested, mouth filled with shrimp.
"So what? I'll always be a Slifer at heart," the new Ra said, taking a plate of food. "And I expect my seat to be empty next time."
"When did you get so tough?"
"Since I took your advice, Sarge."
"Let's take this outside!"
Hikari and Kasumi laughed at the arguing Ras while Jaden, stealing a shrimp off Chazz's plate, chuckled and shook his head.
"Drop that shrimp, Slacker," Chazz said firmly, glaring at his foster brother.
"Who are you calling a shrimp?" Syrus shouted.
"One battle at a time, soldier," Hassleberry shot back.
Raiden shook his head in amusement at Syrus and Hassleberry who were still arguing and Chazz who had grabbed Jaden in a headlock, demanding that he drop the shrimp he had stolen. Thankfully, Jaden was laughing as he fought to get free.
'He looks like he's having fun,' Rogue commented, materializing beside Raiden.
'He's getting better,' Yubel, who had floated over to join Raiden and Rogue, said. 'Slowly, but he's getting better.'
"And I'm thankful," Raiden admitted.
"So am I," Kasumi admitted. "Even if he still isn't talking to us about what happened."
"What happened?" Hikari asked.
Kasumi glanced at her sister. "Ask me again sometime," she said.
…
A/n what do you think?
Blaze: and that was chapter 4. I hope that you liked it and the duels that I included
Bakura: eh
Blaze: you're bored, aren't you?
Bakura: maybe. I think I'm going to go get KaibaCorp Headquarters on fire (walks off)
Kaiba: DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT IT (Chases after Bakura)
Jesse: okay then. So what's gonna happen next?
Blaze: (glances at notes) it's an OC chapter that will include a tag-duel and callofduty1944's OCs get their chance to shine (and will also include the two OCs who dueled in this chapter teaming up) but will also include another therapy session and a couple of pranks being played. It's, pretty much, a humor/breather/filler chapter since I gotta include a few of those before I get to what I decided to do following the second Jaden/Aster duel (which is different. I wouldn't say it's dark per say but...let's just say Haou is going to get more screentime and I'll leave it at that).
Jaden: long explanation. Anything else you wanna tell us?
Blaze: yeah, the poll I had on my profile is closed now and I have decided that I am going to post the first chapter of both The Ties That Bind and Allegiance today. I decided to let you all know in this chapter just in case you wanted to check out either of those stories (or both of them).
Jaden: cool
Kaiba: WHY DID YOU SET THE BLUE-EYES WHITE JET ON FIRE?!
Bakura: because you wouldn't let me set KaibaCorp Headquarters on fire, foolish mortal
Blaze: (sighs and shakes head) well, I hope that you enjoyed this chapter and reviews, as always, are much appreciated.