Chereb

The stories the dragon tells are almost frightening sometimes. Enough that the most thrilling tales leave him with nightmares in fact. But they have an addictive appeal to them- So while the elders scream and shout at him for not listening to their teachings, and for postponing the sacred ritual of a shadow's reveal, the boy travels through the desert as often as he can, finding any excuse to do so.

Recently, the elder's grandson 'Neker' was found to be sensitive of sight. He spotted his grandmother's shadow as it helped about the house, despite it being hidden to normal eyes. The elderly woman was elated at this discovery... So she immediately brought him forth as a possible apprentice. And although Neker is not considered ready to reveal his shadow in the elder's eyes, he bears more promise than himself. For Neker listens to the words of the elders-

And the boy... He does not. So while the elders dote on Neker, he slips out past the trading tomb raiders refused sale in other lands, and past the thieves freely buying and trading their goods in the market, and he runs into the vast sands beyond. It is there that he finds the 'hole'. The entrance to the cavern below. It is a difficult to locate spot after all, save for those who don't know.

Perhaps the reason why it is so hard to find is because it is a simple entry. Or because it is mostly buried in sand. It could be both- And the dragon tells him that it is too dangerous to enter in this way when the boy tells him what it looks like. It could very well collapse around him, and he would never breathe again. But the boy ignores those words. The only other entrance is within the halls of the elders, something he knows from the last time he tried to give them proof. The last time he tried to show them the 'Dragon'.

But the elders are closed minded; though the dragon stood beside him, they saw nothing. Nothing but a mist that 'assured' them he was ready to reveal his shadow. An assurance that made them curse his name when he refused to do so. And so in a way, the only proof he had wasn't proof at all... And had taken him backward.

So he uses the desert entrance, and he listens to the dragon's stories. He even falls asleep there occasionally- his mother scolds him when he returns, and his elder sister, already married, shakes her head from across him. And he apologizes for his actions, helps with the cleaning, and allows them to shout about how he should be more polite and considerate of his actions...

And he returns to the desert for another story, receiving a similar frown from the dragon in regard to not listening to his families words... At least before the shadow sighs and pulls him closer to the wall to sit down. It has been like this for a while. To the point where it is so constant that he no longer hears what the people of his village say, nor sees their disappointed expressions as 'that good for nothing boy' runs out again. He is used to coming here to the one who listens.

This time however, as he enters the room and greets the dragon he is not answered with the usual 'purr' of greeting. Instead, the dragon's eyes are turned to the space behind him, a low growl developing in the back of his throat.

And when the boy turns around, he says only one thing.

"...N... Neker..?"

For a moment the second boy, his hair even wilder than his 'predecessor's' own, stares in shock. His eyes move from the boy to the dragon's head, and remain there for some time, as though in disbelief. And slowly, Neker's face breaks into an amazed grin, laughter coming from within him. "Haha... Ahahaha! I don't believe it," he shouts, running forward only for the dragon to growl. Neker stumbles back somewhat, grin faltering- it quickly returns as he looks to the boy's shocked face however, his 'friend' grabbing his shoulders and shaking him with a shout. "You.. You sly little hyena," he laughs, "The elders were certain you were lying..! How on earth could they have missed this thing!"

"This 'thing' has a voice," the dragon growls immediately, Neker hurriedly bowing in apology.

"Of course," he says quickly, clearly unwilling to possibly find himself eaten or whatever else he imagines the dragon doing. "Forgive me... If I might ask your name?"

Again the dragon growls, though it is less bitter. "Names grant power," he says wisely. "With only a name an entire nation can become cursed- you may call me 'Dragon'... 'Tanniyn'," he tells Neker, the boy nodding. "...Though I have already heard of your own," he mutters calmly.

"Ah- You have," he asks in surprise.

"Yes..." The dragon nods. "'Neker'," he begins, "The 'second prospect' of those elders you follow. I do not recall exactly when such a system began, but I must say... I far preferred the older style," he sighs, curling up on the ground and looking to the boys. "Much simpler..."

Neker looks to his friend as if to ask what the dragon is talking about- the boy however, merely shrugs; he himself has asked, but he has received no answer that would truly explain 'why'... Outside of a growing inability to 'see' and 'hear'.

It is the first time that the boy has had someone else with him to talk to the dragon. For quite some time for that day, there are no stories- instead, they talk, about the village, about the ways of life that now exist. And the dragon speaks when he feels it is right, adding advice where it is needed, but for the most part it is the boys doing the speaking. It is the boys who complain of crotchety old elders and their stiff beliefs. It is the boys who complain of parents who keep them in late, and of annoying siblings both older and younger. It is nice the boy supposes, to talk to someone closer to his age about these things- though the dragon is kind he is also an 'adult', and bears the feeling of someone far surpassing him in power.

It is nice to speak with someone at 'his' level.

By the end of the day however there is nothing more to talk about in regard to such things. The boys are bored, and tired, and they lean against the well tower that sits in the room. They sit there, almost lethargic, before the boy finally speaks. "...Tanniyn," he asks, the dragon lifting its head from the shadows.

"Yes?"

"...Can you tell us a story? ...Like the one you told me before?"

The dragon sits up, great neck too long to stretch upward in the room and stooping down to their level even as it arcs in a perfect curve to graze the ceiling. "Of course," he tells the boys, wise voice rumbling through the room. "Listen carefully... I will continue from whence I left off before. I will tell you of the battle between Ziz, the shape-changer and embodiment of fear," he whispers.

"And how Light itself became divided to defeat it."

"Jonouchi..." Katsuya grimaced in his 'sleep', shaking somewhat. He didn't know it- but this was in fact the most still he had been since he collapsed almost half an hour ago. Honda had been left to pull him off the stairs after he'd gone down, trying his best to keep him from cracking his skull on the ground- though his eyes were open they were unseeing, moving constantly with a film of 'death' over them both. His body had given constant shudders... It shook and trembled even as his friend tried to keep his head from smacking against something, and even as Yugi's spirit finally caught sight of them both.

But he hadn't been able to hear either of them. And Honda couldn't hear Yugi as he called frantically for him to wake up either. So all in all, when he finally started to come to... "Jonouchi," Katsuya heard, his body having slowly calmed down as the voices grew clearer. It was as though he was floating, this feeling. Floating in that familiar dark place in his mind, but even his eyes wouldn't open... "Jonouchi-kun..."

"Jonouchi..."

"Jonouchi-kun..." Wake up, they called. Wake up, wake up,

Wake...

...

The darkness was fading.

"Ngh..." And his eyes were opening.

"Ah- Jonouchi-kun!"

"Jonouchi!"

Katsuya winced, slowly pulling himself up to sit as his senses slowly cleared. Those voices... He couldn't see who it was but... "Ngh... Wh' th' hell..."

"Shit... Finally," the first friend muttered, Katsuya blearily opening his eyes to look at the teen.

"Ngh... Honda..?"

"Jonouchi-kun... Hahh... You had us worried..." Eh? And Yugi..?

As the blond continued to blink somewhat confusedly, shaking his head. The blurs that were his friends were finally clearing... And as his vision cleared completely he found himself flinching and pulling back on reflex, Honda having raised a hand from the side in a punching motion with a scowl. The punch however, never came, and instead his friend's hand slammed down on his shoulder, eyes filled with anger, worry, warning... "I swear to god Jonouchi," he growled, Katsuya staring almost blankly in response. "If that happens again..."

"If... If wha' happens," he muttered, voice somewhat hoarse as he cleared his throat. "What-"

Yugi swallowed from the side, shaking his head slowly. "Jonouchi-kun," he whispered fearfully. "It almost looked like you were having a seizure a moment ago. I know you space out a lot for these 'visions'," he continued with a swallow, "But if this happens every time..."

He choked, turning to look at the spirit in shock. "W-Woah, woah, woah," he sputtered, all senses returned in an instant. "Hang on, seizures? What?"

Honda blinked, looking toward the blank space his friend had been shouting at before sighing. "Yugi's been here the entire time hasn't he," he said almost hopelessly.

They both nodded, though it was obviously only Katsuya's answer that was seen.

Another sigh, along with a muttered 'figures'. "Man... Damn it Jonouchi," Honda muttered, pulling himself up with a scowl. "What the hell do we do about this, huh?" He paused, question echoing gravely in the hall. "If I can't stop it, and you can't stop it..."

"Jonouchi-kun, these 'flashes' of yours are getting dangerous," Yugi added, looking away a moment before holding out a hand for his friend. Katsuya slowly took it, Honda watching almost blankly as his friend was pulled up by 'emptiness' while the spirit continued. "Are... Are you sure that you can... Are you sure that you're..."

"I'll be fine," he insisted, the others narrowing their eyes. "This w's probably a one time thing righ'..? Cause 'f tha' rumblin' earlier," he added.

"Rumbling..?"

"You mean... When Gekkou-kun summoned Dreadroot?" Uh...

What. "Gekkou," he repeated, Honda looking just as confused. Hang on... "...Tenma's got an' older twin brother," he asked incredulously.

Yugi nodded. "From what I can hear from the other me, the Tenma that he fought wasn't the one who orchestrated all of this. In fact," he added worriedly, "From what I can gather he wanted nothing to do with it; Yakou took control of his older brother's mind and made him fight the other me. And even though he won, I... ..." He bowed his head, biting his lip. "I can't really tell from just what he says over our link- he's holding back... He's only telling me the bare minimum, but... ...Something bad happened," he mumbled. "Something... It's hard to explain." Obviously. "Tenma's project... From what I can tell," Yugi whispered hesitantly, "It's entered the final phase. But that's all that he's saying. He has Anzu's hologram with him, so we can talk to her but..." He sighed. "He's not 'all there'... And I think he's in shock... I have to go up and help, but I- Nnn..."

Had a point, Katsuya thought to himself grimly. He had a point, but if what he was hearing was right... Then what was happening now had a lot more to it than any of them could figure right now. "...Tha' energy fr'm earlier," he muttered, turning a narrowed stare to the ground. The thing that came before his headache...

"What energy," Honda asked, his own frown deepening. "Jonouchi, what the hell are you talking about?"

The blond shook himself, looking back up. Right. He ah... He hadn't said anything about that before. Whoops. "I dunno," he admitted with a shrug, swallowing. "I dunno, jus'... Somethin' doesn' feel right abou' these... Vision things," he said, briefly wondering exactly what he was supposed to call those 'vision' things. "Like back at th' school," he went on. "When Osiris w's summoned."

"What happened when Osiris was-"

"You mean how nothing happened then," Honda asked dryly, unknowingly cutting Yugi short. "That was probably one of the better moments of your 'ability', so try again."

"Wait, you didn't end up chanting..?"

Yugi was momentarily ignored yet again as Katsuya nodded, frowning. "Try weirder," he muttered. "I jus' got used t' spittin' out dead languages every time those cards were summoned- it ain' righ' to have it suddenly stop. An' tha' ain' th' point," he continued, shaking his head. "It's more what Osiris said..."

"What Osiris-" His friend groaned, face in his hands. "And you say this not happening is weird... I'll bite Jonouchi," he sighed. "What did the giant God-Dragon say?" He said that so confidently, ahahahahahaaaa..

Ahhhh... Yea, what did he say exactly again? "Somethin' abou' th' 'Evil Gods' not bein' s'pposed t' exist," he offered with a shrug. "Honestly, it makes sense givin' tha' it felt like th' thing was suckin' th' life outta me."

"Okay, you failed to mention that part..!" Whoops. He did. Of course...

"Wouldn't you," he asked 'helpfully', Yugi smacking his face in his hands behind him. "Ahhh, whatever... Tha' ain' th' point," he said for the second time. "Way I figure, these 'Evil Gods' have somethin' t' do with th' scary parts 'f this ability- so it'll all be over soon."

"And you figure that how," Honda asked flatly.

There was a short pause, Katsuya turning to what Honda would perceive as 'empty space'. Time to test a theory. "Yugi," he asked. "Y' said tha' th' rumblin' happened when this 'Dreadroot' thing was summoned... Righ'..?"

The boy nodded, Honda still frowning. "I'm going to assume that was a yes," he stated when Katsuya's expression failed to change, his friend as well nodding before speaking again.

"Th' rumblin' happened righ' b'fore the headache," he said plainly. "An' th' headache happened b'fore I passed out. As f'r when I woke up..." He looked back to Yugi, the spirit blinking.

"You stopped seizing just before the other me told me about the duel," Yugi explained. A frown came over his face, and he crossed his arms in thought. "Actually," he realized, "You woke up just when he finished explaining..." So the end of the duel then.

Which was probably when he beat Dreadroot. "Then tha' settles it," he decided, Honda merely staring blankly at the half-sided conversation he could hear. "Th' reason why everythin's goin' wonky wi' my vision-y thing is th' 'Ja-Shin'!"

"I really wish you would tell me what the hell you're talking about..."

"So if th' Jashin are the cause 'f this," he continued, "I guess we got an entire extra reason t' stop Tenma now.."

"Oiii, Jonouchi..."

"'F course," he added nervously, "'F tha' happens durin' a duel I'm screwed..."

"Jonouchi..!"

"Eh!" He grinned, Yugi still sighing from behind him as he continued paying everything else no mind. "Figure tha' out when th' time comes!"

"Are you even listening to me!"

Katsuya turned, blinking as he looked toward Honda. "Nhy?" What, listening to him? Naaaaahhh...

Course not, he'd be scared to shit if he was. His friend sighed. "Whatever," Honda decided, turning to move on. "...Lets just get going alright," he said, Katsuya staring almost in confusion. "And try not to have any seizures after the next fight got it?" Seiz- What!

"O-Oii, what the hell do you take me for," he snarled, before a small cough pulled his attention to 'empty space' once again. "Nh?"

"Ah... Jonouchi-kun," Yugi began, scratching his cheek. "Listen... I'm going to go up and switch with the other me alright," he said, Katsuya listening as the boy went on. "He needs to rest... The last duel was... ..." The boy sighed, shaking it off. "Once he recovers, one of us will probably come back to check in on how you're doing and tell you how things are at our end. But if anything happens before then..."

He smirked. "Heh- no worries Yugi, we'll let y' know! Nothin's gonna happen- promise yah!"

"You know," Honda said loudly from the side, "I remember the days when I could speak with all my friends at once..."

Again Honda was ignored, Yugi nodding as he and Katsuya both smiled. "Right then... I'll see you later," he called, before vanishing in what looked to be a thin smoke.

Katsuya jumped somewhat at the abrupt departure, before shaking it off. "Phew... Never gonna get used t' tha'..."

"Used to what," Honda asked with a laugh. "It's gotta be incredible if it's flying over your head..."

"What was thaaaaaat..!" Just what was he trying to say damn it..!

"Hey," he muttered ignorantly, "There's a shadow up there..."

"HONDAAAAAA..!"

"No seriously," the teen snapped, roughly turning his friend to look up at the large and almost auditorium standard stairway before them. "Look!"

He turned, slight frown quickly shifting once he spotted what Honda was talking about. He was right; against the windows of the room above there was a shadow, back turned toward them. Slowly the two walked up the stairs, the shadow revealing itself in the light of the now dusk hour; he had light hair- lighter than his own even, though the top of it was wrapped in what almost seemed to be a turban. To match that particular part of his look was a long, sleeveless cloak that was left hanging open over him, along with a sash around his waist. The rest of him however, was decidedly 'normal'; baggy pants, shoes... And a duel disk on his left arm Katsuya noted, the man turning toward them only to sigh.

"Jesus," he muttered in English, rubbing his head. "Not you..." Eh? While he and Honda continued to frown the man again sighed, shaking his head. "A conspiracy," he sighed, the others either unable to understand or unable to understand any more than partially. "It has to be a conspiracy," he repeated, this time in Japanese. "Hahhh..."

"Conspiracy," Katsuya asked with a frown. "Heh?" What?

The man rolled his eyes, explaining. "Word is," he began, "Mutou Yugi has defeated three people now; as the 'gold prize', his defeat nets me 2 million dollars now. As it is," he sighed, "It's bad enough I have to sit around here... But then some cheap guy like you shows up..."

"C-Cheap-!"

"WHAT!"

And still the man continued. "Man... '500 dollars', is a guy like you even worth it?" Five hundred? Well it was better than 100 but... Come on damn it! That was nothing next to Yugi! "Sheesh, it's just pocket change..." Tell him about it! Actually, he could do a lot with five hun- Not the point! "Ahhh..." The American sighed, clicking his tongue. "That's how it is I suppose..." W-What..!

OI! "BASTAAAARD! Don' ignore us," Katsuya snarled, only to be held back by his friend.

"Jonouchi, shut up for a moment!" No! This guy was saying he wasn't even worth a fight damn it..! "Come on..." He looked back to the American before them, continuing as his friend stewed. "It'll be a pain in our ass if he decides to just leave before we can get the card... Just chill out..." Yea yea yea...

"Oh, you think I'm the running type then," the man 'asked', turban-like hat creating a somewhat menacing shade over his eyes. "Now what kind of duelist would I be then eh?" Um... A bad one? "You're wasting your time coming up here," he snarled. "I'll defeat you and fight the 'King of Games' afterward! Your prize might not be much," he laughed, "But regardless of what kind of a pain this is it at least gets me closer to the 2 million..!" Closer to Yu- Why... That... Fucking-

"Stop talkin' like y've won already y' PRICK! You c'n brag when it's over!" His dueldisk clicked into place, cards shuffling and muttering curses under their breaths as he stormed forward. "Duel me!"

"Hhnnnnn, so arrogant..."

Arrogant? He was third place in all Japan right now! "You BASTAAAARRR-"

"You know he's just trying to throw you off right," Honda shouted from behind.

"Shut up! He's pissing me off!"

"Is this because of that headache? Are you getting pissy because of that headache?" No! …

Alright maybe. (It hurt so much...)

"Rrrrhhhggg..."

Chuckling came from across them, and the two looked back with narrowed eyes. "Hnhnhn... What... You think I'm playing around with you? Isn't this the kind of thing your friend deals with all the time, defending his throne?" Shut up...! "Hnhnhahaha... Oh well.. This is a good way to test my deck," the duelist decided. "An easy win..!"

Like hell this guy would even come close... "Bastard..."

"You're telling me..."

"Damn it..." The deck settled into place, Katsuya stepping into his own with a snarl. "I'm gonna break yer damn nose open wi' this deck! Lets do this!"

"Please tell me that was figurative..." Fig- God damn it, shut up Panther Warrior!

He was busy trying to- "HAHAHAHAAAAA! What kind of line is that," his opponent howled, Katsuya scowling. "Is this really what I'm fighting-"

"You... ...Who th' hell do y' think you are..!"

At this the laughter stopped, the duelist's own disk clicking together while his deck shuffled and settled in place. "Me? Card Professor 'Mendo Cino'," he chuckled, either missing or simply ignoring the sudden pale hue that the two before him took. "And now I've got you trapped, 'pocket-money duelist'... SO," he shouted, deck spitting out his hand. "Lets duel..! GO!"

Five cards in each hand, and the deck and Honda were both silent now. It was probably just his grated nerves that kept him from freaking out entirely; just his luck he ran into the guy that was apparently 'high risk' against him according to Pete. Agains the guy that was apparently most likely to cut his head off. Even so...

When he saw why... "I'll make the first attack," Mendo began, drawing his sixth card and making his move. "First... I set a card face down," he announced, the tablet arising from the ground with a swirl of dust. Blank. He hated traps damn it, more than anything he hated... "And... Next," he announced, "I summon the Praying Mantis in attack mode!" When Mendo said 'Mantis', he expected something like Haga's bugs to come up. He was even prepared to sigh in relief, the idea of facing something he already knew how to combat taking a huge load off of him. And then the carving on the tablet actually began to appear.

And then the smoke poured out from the stone, and the monster walked forward.

Though it was covered in the exoskeletal armor of an insect, it was far from it, he realized quickly. With almost reptile-like legs it stood on three-clawed toes, an enormous tail formed from what would have likely been the beast's abdomen. The second set of limbs, set in the middle, were the closest thing to 'insect' other than the face, held together as one would expect a person to pray. However, nestled directly below the snapping, thick-necked monster's head were the third pair of limbs... extended far before it, with blades resembling cruel scythes in the place of 'hands' or any sort of clawed limb. And as the monster tilted its head before hissing in challenge he found himself swallowing. 'Turn end,' Mendo shouted, the blond having completely missed whatever taunts his opponent had given.

His turn then... And he couldn't let that monster attack. That was the first thing on his mind, and it was by far one of the most important things. "Here goes then," he shouted, pulling a card from his deck as he set another on the field. "I'll scatter your mantis all over this room..! Set one face down card," he began, blank-faced tablet already strong and tall at his side. "And following that... The Legendary Fisherman!"

Again the stone carving of a whale-riding man came into being, and again the fisherman was the only one to come out from the tablet's face. "This building," he noted immediately, harpoon gripped loosely in his hand. The tanned fisherman turned from the field to look back at his summoner, frowning. "Isn't this..?" Seto's tower?

A nod was his only answer, before the blond pointed his monster forward. "Fisherman," he ordered, the man turning forward again before nodding. "Go..! Attack the Praying Mantis!" With a nod the man charged harpoon pointed forward for the kill. Just as he came close however...

"Hn! Trap card activate," Mendo countered, the tablet beside him exploding into a bullet of sand that filled the entire arena with dust. "Forceful recall!" The sand blasted the fisherman clean off his feet before either could even react; and within a moment his tablet was cone, card blown off from the duel disk and into his hand. "Your attack is invalidated," Mendo was shouting from across from him, Katsuya's eyes widening as he looked at the card that had returned between the others on his palm. "Your monster is sent from the field and I'm free to counter your attack! Your defense is gone," he chuckled, his opponent stepping back with wide eyes. "So..."

"S...Shit..." Not good..!

"NOW MANTIS," the American snarled, his monster giving a loud screech as it charged. "Direct counter attack... HARDEN SABER!" Shit...

Shit...! "Jonouchi..!"

The blades moved almost too fast for his eyes to see, and as he spun and stumbled back from the blades he could see a few strands of his cut hair fall to the ground. The mantis' blades dug into the arena floor behind him, and as it struggled to pull itself out the blond's eyes widened even further. Almost half of his 'life' was gone already. The attack he'd dodged would have impaled him on the spot, with no holding back. And now... "Understand what your up against," Mendo sneered, drawing the card for his next turn. His monster finally succeeded in wrenching its arm free of the tiles, and was now returning to his side. And with the question his opponent asked... "Ready to give in? Or should I continue..!" Katsuya of course gave no answer to that, and with another laugh his opponent took his turn. "Now! I activate the spell 'Labor Pain'," he shouted, the set card rising up behind him in the form of a great glowing stone slab. "This card affects both players," he explained, blood draining even further from Katsuya's face. There was little to no image on the tablet behind his opponent, simply a constant glowing light... With two hairline strands of the glow attached to their shadows... "Whenever we summon a monster," Mendo explained, "We pay 1000 lifepoints... So think carefully when you summon," he added with a grin. "It could be the last thing you do! HAHAHAHAHA!" 1000... 1000 lifepoints... Constantly...

And with no monster on his field...

"Of course, it's only summoned monsters that activate this spell..." Yea. Of course. "With this, I can easily bypass it! I play another spell," Mendo called out. "Kamakiri's Ootheca! This guy," he explained, opponent stiffening even more as the tablet that appeared slowly bored a hole to release dust, "Is an egg... An egg that produces a kamakiri token each turn," he continued, the dust slowly rising upward into a round 'nest' of sorts. It certainly wasn't an 'egg' in any case... "As tokens from a spell, these don't count as summons..! I don't pay a single thing... HnhnHAHAHAHAAAAA..." One... One thousand points per summon, special or not...

No points taken for tokens, of which his opponent would soon have an abundance of. Which meant an abundance of sacrifices... Which meant even with the cost it was... It was... "Jonouchi this guy's going to have mantises swarming the field in minutes," Honda hissed, sweat dripping down his friend's brow. "What the hell are you going to do..?" What...

What was he... "Y... You got any ideas," he asked as he looked back, wide eyes half broken as Honda stared.

"Are you fucking serious-"

"Set one card face down and end my turn," Mendo shouted, the others snapping their attention forward. "Go on... Find a way to attack!"

"Gh..." Shit...

"Jonouchi..."

Damn it... "My turn then," he grit out, narrowing his eyes. Labor Pain and Kamakiri Ootheca... If he didn't get rid of both he was screwed. The card he drew just now, his mind told him, was 'Hurricane'. Return all magic and trap cards to the hand.

But even with that...

The fact was he told himself as he took a different card in his hand, he could easily put it back on the field- so if he did that too soon he was just as screwed. Instead, he'd have to do this. "Tch... I pay 1000 lifepoints," he called, tablet rising to his side yet again. "An' once again... Legendary Fisherman; this time in d'fense mode," he added, teeth grinding. He should have attacked. Hell anyone else would!

But the chances that the tablet before him hid another 'Forceful Recall'... He just couldn't take that shot. Not when his gut was pounding at him so much- he knew he never got flashes of duels but... Well this time it just felt too risky. Another tablet rose at his side, blank face staring out in contrast to the unmoving carving on the one in front of him.

"One more card face down," he announced. "End turn."

"Hnhnhnhn... Mine then. And with that," his opponent shouted, skittering sounds coming from the 'egg' at his side, "A baby Kamakiri is born!" The scuttling sound grew louder, and, while it resembled a mantis more than its 'brother' did, the creature that climbed out would still have made someone like Insector Haga scream angrily about how it 'wasn't'. With only four legs its bottom ones mirrored the one beside it, somewhat rounded claws at their toes. Two jagged scythes sat on its upper limbs, and large buggy eyes stared forward on another 'too thick for a mantis' neck. With that however... "I now have two monsters for sacrifice," Mendo chuckled, snapping a card from his hand. "So... I pay 1000 life points," he roared, each of his insects shooting upward in a pillar of dust, before merging into a single thick wall. "Offering the Praying Mantis and the Baby Kamakiri to summon this... The mantis with the scythe of the Shinigami himself," the man announced. "Arise! DEATHSCYTHE KILLER!"

If the name hadn't been enough then the figure that charged through the sand 'wall' in front of him more than cemented just how screwed he would be if he didn't figure something out now. It was almost centaurian in appearance. Below the waist it had the body of an insect, long thorax trailing behind it with six limbs clacking across the ground. Above this however, was a 'man', if it could be called that. Covered in either black and shriveled flesh or bone-like exoskeletal armor the monster stepped forward with an enormous scythe in hand. The metal gleamed dully in what was now naught but moonlight, and though it was clear the beast could not speak its eyes looked toward Katsuya with a challenging, inhuman stare. For the same price that Katsuya had given just now, Mendo had summoned 'death' to the field.

While he had nothing but a tablet of stone...

No offense to the fisherman. "Tear the Legendary Fisherman to pieces," Mendo ordered, his monster not caring that all he would cut was tablet. "Go, Deathscythe Killer!" Ku...

"Activate face down card," he countered immediately, a blur of colour taking the strike from the Killer's blade. The tablet beside him smoked and crumbled, the token goat's two halves falling bloodily to the ground before they crumbled into sand. "Hah... Scapegoat," he shouted to his opponent, Mendo's eyes widening. "An' I got three left..."

"Hn! I'll just be testing the waters then," Mendo chuckled, ignoring the scowl from his opponents. "Whatever... I end my turn..!"

"Right! In tha' case..." He had no choice but to stall for now, he told himself with a swallow. And all he had...

Was this card in his hands now.

"Set one card face down," he said with a swallow. "End turn."

He was answered almost immediately with chuckling. "Hnhnhnhn..." And here he'd thought Pete pissed him off; at least Pete was a decent guy after the end. "You managed to postpone your immediate death," Mendo laughed, "But the next turn it's all over! Watch," he shouted, the egg to his side shaking as a new mantis crawled out. A low keen met the air, and it shook itself before looking up in awestruck fear at the monster beside it. He supposed that, in a way, this was the equivalent of being in the presence of a 'God' for the little guy.

Hahaha... If it only knew...

The humor was quickly ripped from the situation as two more kids leaped out from the stone beside him, the pair just quickly cleaved in two by the combination of a metal and an insect's claw. Wincing as the bodies turned to dust he bit his lip. "Ghahahaha... Only one sheep left," Mendo laughed. "Looks like you don't have anything left after all..! Phswww!" He shook his head, giving a sarcastic whistle. "Have to say... Not bad for a pocket-change duelist... But not enough to raise your score either."

"Really," he countered, drawing his next card. He'd show him pocket change... "Well it's my turn..!" And he knew exactly what to do! With what was in his hand... And what was in his deck... He looked forward with stone eyes, setting the cards and moving them about without even sparing the dueldisk a glance. "I activate from my hand the spell 'Cross Shift'," he started, the magic instantly wiping his scapegoat tablet clean. "It allows me to exchange one monster on the field with one on my hand... This," he continued, tone devoid of nearly any emotion, "Is not a summon... I exchange Scapegoat for the Swordsman of Landstar," Katsuya shouted, the blank stone face replacing itself with a cartoon-built 'alien' in armor. "And now that I have two monsters on the field... I'll pay 1000 lifepoints for my last summon this duel!" It was all he could do after all...

And it was all he needed! "Hnnn..!" For as the monsters dissolved into dust and rose upward, forming another tablet behind him, the Psycho Shocker was already working his magic. "HAH!"

"I summon the Cyborg, Psycho Shocker," Katsuya announced, fine red lasers shooting forth from the immense stone as the spandex clad monster stepped forward. "And with his effect... Your traps are all destroyed!"

"GH-"

Stone flew through the air as the lasers connected, Psycho Shocker's summoning nonetheless remaining still. The monster was in attack mode; had to be for the effect to work. And though Mendo was snarling at the loss of his trap...

"HAHA! YES! YES! Alright! Great comeback Jonouchi," Honda laughed, a wide grin on his face. "Come on and say it! You're the man! YES!"

"Yea," he muttered, standing stiffly in place. "Seems like it, doesn' it," he said quietly, Honda's expression quickly fading.

"What..."

"Hnhnhnhn..." Mendo's scowl faded as he looked toward the teen, shaking his head. "It's like he said... Take a look, mister 'non duelist'; true, Psycho Shocker's power surpasses the Deathscythe's at the moment," he said with a shrug. "But anyone who can read knows that I can sacrifice one of my other monsters at any time to increase his power by that amount of attack points. And this Baby Kamakiri here... Well," he chuckled, "500 plus 2300 will easily surpass your 2400... The Psycho Shocker simply can't compete," Mendo sighed. "That being said... What are you going to do now..?" Right now..?

"J... Jonouchi," Honda muttered from the side. "Jonouchi, that..."

"Go on," Mendo taunted, eyes wide as he laughed. "Say it! You have nothing left right? So SAY IT!" No.

He didn't.

"...End turn."

"HHAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!"

How long had it been now, since she had checked in at the hotel here she wondered idly. One month was a long time to put off returning back for someone like herself- ordinarily business trips lasted little more than a few days, after which she would be heading home to see Mokuba. If, that is, he wasn't with her already. She wasn't one to remain away from home- the fact was, she was hardly the sort to bother with 'vacations'.

It was weird, postponing her return like this. If she were to say the reason aloud, she would say that she was simply there because she wished to oversee a few things while Kaibaland was being built. As it was her current location at the US National Duel tournament was simply a matter of location, invitation, and idle curiosity on her part when Mokuba eagerly brought it up.

Evidently Rebecca Hopkins was defending her national crown at the moment, and Mokuba wanted to watch.

A part of her- the part that wasn't busy holding the image of a CEO- knew damn well that it wasn't the dueling he wanted to watch, and as a now bespectacled Rebecca summoned up her Luster Dragon to the Tournament field below she was probably not the only one to notice that her brother's eyes were on the girl and not the monsters themselves. There was a look on his face, whether he knew it or not she would tell herself.

And then that same part that noticed would realize that the look was far too similar to a certain 'mutt's expression half the time at dinner, and she'd feel somewhat sick to her stomach. 'Like' and 'Dislike' were not things she had time for at the moment. In her position particularly. She was finding it alarmingly difficult to ignore the two warring factions in her head however, which brought up the reason that she had yet to, if ever, voice aloud, even to herself.

The last time she'd seen Katsuya- and spoken to him even- he'd grabbed her and kissed her, before going so far as to confess to her...

And then get himself stabbed in the chest by what should have been a hologram. And even she couldn't deny the fact that the act had shaken her. It'd be one thing to deny concern if she'd held composure but the fact remained that, alone or not...

Her eyes narrowed from her seat in the private viewing room of the stadium, her brother too distracted to notice at the moment. One month. Perhaps telling the blond he was on 'house arrest' was a little extreme, a softer voice in the back of her mind muttered. He'd have probably driven Isono and Kyouko both up the wall by now. And she could hardly continue to run from the fact that at some point, she would have to address what he'd done 'that day'. At the same time...

A duel like the one she was watching now had the power to kill Katsuya. A fact she could not deny despite all of her being screaming about how it wasn't possible, and how she wanted anything but that to ever happen. 'And why do you want him to live so badly,' the more annoying side of her thoughts would ask. 'You can hardly say it's for your brother now, this goes beyond that.' That was true, she would admit. It was more than Mokuba.

But before she decided on 'why' she would cram that voice back where it came from with a flushed and scowling face, at which point her brother would ask what she was upset about and she would be left coming up with some last minute (but nonetheless... 'Solid'...) excuse.

Perhaps it was time to head back, she found herself thinking, leaning back a moment in her seat. Yugi's words on the duel field... She wanted to take those words to mind. For her brother's sake... For her own sake... 'Abandon your hatred'.

Hah!

Easier said than done; the world was chock full of idiots and things that reminded her of a bitter past. Regardless... Even Mokuba had commented on how much calmer she'd been in the face of such things following Battle City.

Perhaps it was a step in the right direction.

A step that was quickly challenged and possibly torn down again when chuckling began to echo through the air. "...Hn..?"

"Who's that," Mokuba said with a start, turning to look behind from his chair. There was no answer to the question and the boy stood, frowning. "...Hello?" Again, no response. Odd... Now what was-

"An interesting tournament," the voice chuckled, Seto narrowing her eyes as she stood. The room was still empty; but if there was no one there, then how- "Reminds me of one that my teacher held... Of course," the voice continued, source slowly rising from the ground itself with a hate filled stare, "In those days, I was nothing but a shadow of the 'perfect' moon, which took all the light and praise that the 'sun' could offer..." Hold on now...

This voice..! "W-WUAAH!" Mokuba stumbled back as the hologram arose completely, Yakou Tenma's face twisting into a mad and sneering 'smile' if the expression could even be called such. "H-Hah... What is..."

"Hologram," Seto hissed under her breath, quickly replacing the disguise of deeper tones over her voice. "You... Tenma," she addressed with somewhat wide eyes. "Just what are you doing here..?" And... How, she knew that Pegasus' stolen

"Hnhnhn... It's been a while hasn't it," he asked with a shrug, chuckling under his breath. "I just thought I'd use my resources to say 'hello'..." A damn complex way to say 'hello', the amount of technology needed to 'hologram' call even with a virtual reality pod was already-

Screams were sounding from on the field now, and with still widening eyes the siblings looked down. "What in the..."

"What's going on," Rebecca's opponent was shouting, shaking his disk with wide eyes. "My monster isn't summoning..!"

"Forget that, the entire field vanished completely," she answered, a flash of light skipping over her glasses as she backed away in shock. "What in the..."

"Mr. Kaiba..!" The woman looked down over the 'balcony' of the room she stood in, a frown already coming over top the look of confusion as one of the staff below shouted up. The holograms were gone, she noted immediately. All of them were gone other than the one behind her... "Mr. Kaiba," the man repeated, "We just received word from your Solid Vision department that all access to the system is being denied!" What..? "The dueldisks of the competitors here are not the only ones that have lost access to the system," he added. "Aside from a small handful, the entire world just lost connection!" Lost connec- …

. . .

No... "Impossible," she spat, shaking her head. "ALL at once!" It was impossible, completely impossible but... There was nothing but a shaky nod and all at once her body stiffened. Ohhhh. Ohhhhooooh this was not-

Screw 'abandon your hatred' this man was going to pay dearly. "TENMA," she snarled, switching to Japanese as her fists clenched tight. For the system she designed herself to do such a thing there was only one possible cause... She herself was here. Tenma however... Could be anywhere. "What do you think you're DOING," she snarled warningly, nothing but dark chuckling answering her shouts.

"Huhuhuhuhuh... Realize just what it is I've done," he laughed, coat 'flapping' around him in a nonexistent wind. "For the good of a certain plan I've taken control of the Duel Ring server... Only for a period of 24 hours, I assure you... But I decided that it would be better to let you know before you reacted 'violently'..."

"VIOLENTLY," she roared incredulously, face growing red. "You... The contract between OUR companies does not concern the Duel Ring Server to this extent. Whatever plan YOU have can take a back seat in your closet TENMA, and if you think that telling me will at all lighten whatever strike I intend to give in return then let me tell you this! I will NEVER... NEVER forgive you for even TOUCHING my server network!"

By the time she'd said even this she was already stalking toward the hologram, a part of her mind momentarily forgetting that an attack would do no good. In an instant however the figure began to smoke. From the bottom up Tenma began to evaporate, a mocking bow that caused his hair to hide half his face exactly the last thing he did as he vanished. "Hnhnhn... Save your vengeance drive for the end, 'sir'," he laughed, the mist filling the back end of the room. "Okay..?" Ku...

There were still shouts below. 'It's no good,' they cried, 'Anything we do is blocked; there's a complete cessation on the signal, there's nothing!' Tch... And of course...

'We can't contact the main office in Japan,' someone was muttering. 'The most we got was an e-mail from the manager's home...' Though that certainly explained how the message got through...

"Gh... Nee-sama," Mokuba said with a quiet swallow, looking over the edge of the balcony. "If all connections have been cut to the point where we're getting mails from a home-computer..."

"Something's happened in Japan," she muttered darkly, already turning toward the door. Something incredibly bad, if her gut feeling and current thoughts were any sign. Still... She'd known that 'Yakou' was acting oddly, but this!

He was an entirely different person! Persistence was one thing, but the expression on his face...

She swallowed, a small wave of unease passing over her despite the apparent calm she held. It had been like staring down Noa in the other world, during his 'break down' if it could have been called that. And that...

That was never a good sign. "...Mokuba," she said quickly, looking back to the boy. "Let's go. We can have our luggage sent after us."

"Right," he responded, grabbing the woman's briefcase from the side and carrying it as he followed.

Something had happened in Japan, her mind repeated.

And it looked as though her decision on extending or ceasing her stay in the USA had been decided for her.

With shadowed eyes he looked forward on the field, his expression completely unreadable. Behind him, Honda had been rendered silent in shock. Across from him, his opponent was literally howling with laughter, before drawing a card and starting his turn. And beside him, the Psycho Shocker stood, silent as he usually was...

But unlike usual, he turned to fix his lens covered eyes on the blond at his side. "Boy," he said flatly, Katsuya not looking up. "You sense the darkness in this place." It was not a question, nor was it even an accusation. The Psycho Shocker wasn't one to do that; he was merely stating a fact, as he always did. However, there was apparently more for him to say. "You are lucky you can still see me. ...Or are you," he added almost curiously, confusion flooding his summoner's mind. "Your injuries will not heal while darkness sits on them boy. Do not throw your caution to the wind." And again, this was not an insult, or even a warning; it was a statement, and one that banished all confusion of earlier words from mind. The Psycho Shocker knew just as well as he did what he had in his hand and what he had on the field. He knew what would happen this turn.

He just didn't know what would happen after that. And something told him that what the cyborg was talking about had nothing to do with the duel. Regardless.

"It's my turn again," Mendo laughed, eyes still wide as his apparent success came into view. "And a new baby Kamakiri is born!" The skittering insect crawled out from the egg, tumbling onto the ground as its summoner continued to speak. "Playtime's over," he laughed. "For I offer both of the Kamakiri as a sacrifice to give their power to the Deathscythe!" And as the two tiny mantises became a dust to coat the 'Killer'...

"Jonouchi..!" With the blade gleaming beneath the light of the room... "That thing is... Really strong now.. Ahhhh..."

"GO, DEATHSCYTHE," the blond's opponent roared, the insect-beast rearing as it swung the scythe forward. "Mince Psycho Shocker with the Shinigami's scythe!" The blade came closer...

"Activate trap," he shouted, "Shield and Sword!"

"What..!"

The tablet at his side crumbled into dust, Katsuya's expression still unchanged. "Attack and d'fense reverse," he announced, the difference in power switching to a mere 100 in an instant. "So yer attack bonus 's useless!"

"Gh... But Deathscythe Killer's attack power is still higher than yours," Mendo pointed out, monster still charging as the blade came toward them. "Which means he still wins through! GO! FISSURE SLICE!" Before Psycho Shocker could even move his arms from their typically confident 'crossed' position the blade cut down, cutting him just as cleanly in two as all those before it. It'd been a while, Katsuya realized, since he had to see the insides of his monsters like this... Since he'd seen this sort of detail before the magic of the field could clear it from sight. Looking away as organs turned to sand however he forced himself to continue to hold a mask of indifference. And instead...

Activate the trap that sat beside him now. The trap which had crumbled into dust on the air, smoke filling the area behind him as the sounds of a moving metal 'capsule' came through it.

The trap that he hadn't even realized he still had until a few days ago. "Hnhnhn... Managed to earn yourself extra time it looks like," his opponent laughed, unaware of the trap that was taking form behind the blond. "But what are you going to do now," he continued. "Can you summon a new monster with your remaining lifepoints? Can you defeat the monster you went to such lengths to weaken? Still biding your TIME," he roared, only to pale. "Wh... What..."

As Mendo's eyes fell upon the Time Machine that had evidently appeared behind him in holographic form as well as in reality Katsuya stared back, expression as unchanged as before. "Tha' was a bad move," he told him, "Pickin' th' word 'time'..." The time machine hovered behind him, covered in smoke and steam and ticking as the clock on its door frame spun. As the timer up top shifted the doors opened... And stepping forth from its chambers was a renewed Psycho Shocker, clad in tight leather and cloth and staring forward with sightless lens covered eyes. "Have some peace 'f mind," Katsuya said lowly. "Th's duel's finished... An' you lose! I activated my trap when Psycho Shocker died," he explained, gesturing to the being. "Th' Time Machine! Bringin' him back fr'm one turn ago, back from b'fore I switched his attack with 's defense. 2400 against 1600," he continued, the power coming off the cyborg in waves. "Yer monster doesn' stand a chance! NOW... Psycho Shocker," he ordered. "COUNTER!

"CYBER ENERGY SHOT!"

With an explosion of flames the Deathscythe was gone. Electricity cracked over its burning husk and the body collapsed into ashes in the air, before even that was nothing but sand on the ground with a destroyed tablet. "Hah... You did it Jonouchi," Honda shouted, a grin coming over his friend's face.

"Hah! YEA!" Fist knocked against fist before he turned back to the field, where it was still Mendo's turn. He'd gotten rid of the main problem after all. So... What now?

"Tch... I summon Mantis Guard in Defense mode," the man grit out, a large and again reptilian 'insect' carving its image across the tablet that appeared. Hehehe...

Hehe... And that way, Labor pain left him with next to no power himself, his lifepoint count about as low as his own. "What's this abou'," he laughed, drawing his next card. "Though' y' weren' bettin' on loosin'!"

"Gh..." No response from Mendo.

Not that it mattered. "My turn," the blond went on, "An' b'fore the Psycho Shocker attacks, I activate this from my hand..! Stop Defense," he announced, the mantis jumping out from its tablet the instant the spell was called. "An' now... The final attack! CYBER. ENERGY.

"SHOT!"

"GHHH-!" Again the sparks ripped through the air, and again the scent of fried mantis filled it. With the insect's destruction the field had already begun to smoke away. Dust streamed off to the side and faded from even that... And as Mendo looked forward his eyes widened even more. "You... They said you were worth... 500 dollars... And that's it..!"

Again with the money prizes. "Tch... Listen here Mendo," he growled, stepping forward. "My 'defeat prize' might not be much, but let me tell-"

--!-

"What th' FUUUUUUC-"

"Holy shit Jonouchi look outside!"

"Gh- What th' hell are y' sayin'," he shouted back, hands on his ears, "I can' hear a word yer... Say... Sayin'..." A white jet shot past the window, streaks of steam misting around where it once stood. The plane seemed to almost be circling the tower, the sounds of its engines roaring loudly over the air but that wasn't the point. "Tha'..."

"That plane..." With wings of white and a cockpit shaped like a dragon's head, four legs tucked close beneath the body to serve as a landing gear. Pale-blue tinted glass, two figures clearly visible beneath it... "No way," he muttered, eyes widening. "Sh... He flew back..?"

"For some reason," he breathed, before shaking his head and squinting. "Wait a second..." He frowned. "What th' hell's tha' chasin' her..?"

Again the plane spiraled through the air, evasive maneuvers easily witnessed from those at the window. Behind the plane a shadow could be seen... With great reddish wings and a single white horn on its head. And yet, as the jet finally turned to hover, it was only now that they could see what it was, the pursuer having stopped as well. "No," Honda said incredulously. "No way... They're being chased by a DRAGON!"

"That's not just any dragon," Mendo muttered, coming up to stand beside them with narrowed eyes. Evidently this was almost normal for him, as he continued on as though it was an everyday occurrence. "That's a White Horn..."

White... "A 'White Horn'," Honda repeated, the man beside them nodding.

"Yea. That's Willa Mette's dragon."

When the radar on the sensors hadn't detected anything behind them, she was beginning to wonder if her brother was seeing things. It was a long flight after all; Mokuba had been awake for the entire trip, sitting in the back seat and either playing games or staring out the window. Counting the time difference, he'd been up far longer than he should have.

So really, when he said something was chasing them, she'd been a little skeptical. Nothing on the sensors, nothing behind them... And then they'd caught sight of the shadow beneath them as they circled the KaibaCorp building, and Mokuba was proven right. "What does the radar say now," she asked tensely, the jet doing a barrel roll as her brother gripped the seat and grimaced.

"Same as before," he told her with a swallow. "No heat or radar, it's like it isn't even there!" Well that was all great, but as long as whatever it was blocked their vision, they couldn't land!

"Damn it..." Time to activate the lift fans, she muttered in her mind, flipping a few switches as the jet turned in the air. Time to hover and find out just what the hell was- The woman paled, watching the 'shadow' swoop up in front of them with a roar. "...Th- What the hell..!"

"A DRAGON," Mokuba shouted, the monster snarling from where it stood before the tower. "We're being chased by a DRAGON?" He abruptly choked grabbing at his throat. "Gah- stings..!" Hahahaha... That was his reward for shouting after silence and nothing to drink the entire trip.

"Need some water," she muttered almost humorously, before wincing as the 'White Horn' sent out another roar. "Tch..." How was this thing even there, really...

"Nee-sama, what's a dragon doing in front of the tower," the boy asked, watching skeptically as his sister flipped another switch.

"Being a pain," she hissed. "Tch... TENMA," Seto roared, the cockpit's glass shield opening up as she stood from her seat. "This tower belongs to me and my brother," she spat. "Your worthless excuse for a dragon will NOT disgrace it..! Take a look," she continued, clicking her dueldisk on and setting a card on its field, "At this building's TRUE protector..! BLUE-EYES..!"

"GRAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" In an explosion of light the white scales filled the air, the living, breathing dragon facing the hologram before it with a snarl. With ease, the attack she launched destroyed the being- shards of light flickered out from existence, and with one swift click the 'duel' if it could be called that was ended. "Grrrnnnn..." With a low bow the dragon 'sang', fading out of sight just as quickly as she had been summoned... And as the glass began to close over once more Seto took her seat, flipping the 'hover' off and heading toward the tower's landing pad.

"...Woah," Mokuba commented from the back. "...That was cool..."

"Hn!" She smirked, moving the plane to land. "It's nothing but pest control..." Nonetheless, the smirk was closer to a smile than anything... But the woman frowned just as quickly as the expression came, the cockpit popping open to reveal a single young man standing by the tower's roof exit. Great. Obstacles. "...Mokuba," she said calmly. "...How about you get us a way in while I deal with this one, hm?"

The boy nodded. "Got it!" He hopped out the side, his sister doing the same from the opposite end before walking forward. The teen before them seemed to be whistling at the moment- shaking his head in surprise and staring at the one who was now crossing the arena/landing pad between the jet and himself. "WOW," he shouted, clear English hitting the air. "So that was the famous Blue-Eyes White Dragon... Impressive." Of course it was she was half tempted to growl, it was Blue-Eyes. At least she wasn't stuck listening to Duelist-Sarcasm though, she decided. This one's tone was genuine.

Though on another mental subject she wished she'd worn a little less than what she was now as she'd forgotten to take into consideration the temperature differences in her rush to leave... This coat was almost unbearable now. Regardless.

"I wonder," the American before her asked, holding a deck of cards in his hand as Mokuba slipped unseen toward the controls on the door. "Which one will defeat the other? Your Blue-Eyes... Or my 'White-Horn'..?" Tch..!

Was there even a question..! "Don't even compare my deck to your cheap excuse for a paperweight," she snarled, stepping forward. "Now get out of my way!"

He shook his head, sighing. "Ahhh... Afraid I can't do that," the teen admitted. "Orders from my employer, 'Yakou Tenma' are to keep anyone from entering. To pass," he continued with a slight bow, "You have to beat me, understand? You win, you move on, you lose... You leave," he said after a moment, looking toward the jet and shaking his head. It almost looked as though he'd planned on saying something else for a moment there... "So!" The duelist grinned. "What'll it be..?"

This person... Seto narrowed her eyes, frowning somewhat as she fastened the dueldisk she'd thankfully had with her inside her jet. "You... If I recall correctly you're one of the Card Professors," she noted, the only sound meeting her 'opponent's ears the sound of her disguised voice. "'Willa Mette'."

"Oh..? You know of me," he asked, laughing almost bashfully. "Well! The so-called 'Prince of Cards' knows my name... That's an honor huh!" P-Prince!

...She'd ignore that. ...Just. For now. "I've also heard you're one of the more high ranking professors," she went on, forcing herself not to snarl at her current opponent's responses. "The apparent 'third tier'..."

"Ooooh! I'm a celebrity!" Willa continued to laugh, arms crossed. "Incredible! You know your stuff, 'Prince'!" Again. Again he'd said-

Hm! "Please," Seto snorted, a dark smirk on her face. "We both know you're nothing but Tenma's 'guard dog' right now..."

The teen seemed more or less unaffected, shrugging. "Hey hey... That's a big difference from the truth there," Willa laughed. "I'm not some guy's 'servant'... I'm just here for the prize; he's my financial support you might say..!" Money? So that was his reason then?

Pathetic. "I had a feeling," she muttered coolly. Just another flea-bitten hyena after the next cash-in... "And just what prize might you be after, 'hyena'?"

"Hehehe... That one's new," he chuckled, moving to the side where the controls for the lights around them sat. "The prize for you is 100,000 dollars... And for one duel, that ain't too shabby! Of course," he added, pulling the switch down for a tall arena to rise up from the center of the building behind him, "...We aren't going to be dueling in the dark so..." Willa gestured to the arena as lights filled the air, shrugging while the resulting glare cast his opponent completely in shadow. "Ta-daaah!"

Ahaha... No. This was hardly the time for a duel- the disk would be for hacking the hologram system. Seto rolled her eyes, already walking toward the door with a glare. "Let me be clear," she warned. "I am in no mood to associate myself with this farce you call a blockade- this is my building. My rules- not Tenma's. So either you let me pass now, or-"

"I don't think you should finish that sentence," Willa drawled, moving back to stand in front of the door. "It's useless- either you drink to this rule that Tenma's set up, or who knows... Your entire computer could be gone! Brrf," he added with emphasis, gesturing an explosion as Seto paled. "Just like that!" W... Wh...

"WHAT."

Again Willa shrugged, shaking his head. "Hey- don't look at me like that now! Guy's a complete nutcase, there's no telling what he'll do." Really now! Tell her something she didn't figure out for herself already..! "Something like that..." Something like blowing up her entire damn building! "I really wouldn't put it past the guy," Willa laughed, before giving an almost shocked look to the ground in spite of his words.

"That..." Tenma... That damned bastard of a- "Alright then," she spat, almost forcing the disk into place as her deck was set within it. "You say you'll let me through after this duel? Then I'll hold you to those words, 'hyena'!

DUEL!"

"Lets go," she continued, already drawing herself a hand as Willa smirked. "I'll be moving first! And I draw!" And... In her hand right now... The woman glanced over her cards, before looking back toward her opponent with steel eyes. Hn. "Set a card face down," she announced, the hologram immediately appearing before her knees. "Following that, I summon the Blade Knight in attack mode!" Another hologram rose, the almost 'fringed' blades of the monster's armor meeting the air. "Turn end," Seto shouted. "Your move!"

"Alright then," Willa laughed, expression scarcely serious in regard to the duel. "I draw! And I think I'll do something a little like you- I set a face down card," he began, before taking another card from his hand, "And following that summon Lancer Dragonewt, in defense mode! End turn!" Hnn?

The armed and anthropomorphic dragon appeared in a flash, nonetheless hovering in place as it came to her turn. "Hnhnhnn... What's the matter," she taunted, drawing her next card. "Not going to attack- prize not worth the effort?"

"Ahhh, what can I say, your actions confuse me," he chuckled, shaking his head. Hn! As if...

He just didn't want to get caught in a trap... "My turn then," she instead decided to shout, setting another card on the field. "Summon the Blood Vorse," Seto announced as the hologram appeared, "And attack! If you won't move then I'll move for you! KILLING YOUR MONSTER EASILY," she added. "Hnhnhnhnhn..." Fragments of holographic light misted on the air in the path of her monster's blade, a dark smile on her face. At this rate, she thought to herself, she'd have to stall to buy Mokuba time in unlocking the doors... All the same- Her expression abruptly fell, a glimmer of confusion visible in her eyes. "...What the..."

The mist hadn't faded.

It simply became mist. The entire body of the monster she'd just destroyed was now smoking in the air, the appearance of a ghostly white version of its original form hovering in front of her. "Activate trap," Willa shouted, the woman's eyes snapping to the card and its description as it flipped upward. "Mist body! With this card," he explained, "Dragonewt can't be harmed by normal attacks... And," he added with a grin, "I take no damage!" That-

Immunity to anything outside its 'card type'... "Tch. You..." Alright then. New plan. "I set another trap on the field," she decided, narrowing her eyes. "End turn." Now... 'Come', she thought with a smirk. Come to meet 'doom'. The cards Shrink and Crush Card Virus would destroy him completely, and all he needed to do was attack...

That was all... "My turn," Willa shouted, his own face twisting into a sneering expression of sorts. "Draw!" The teen looked over his card for only a moment, before turning his odd look toward his opponent. "And it looks like you're in for a treat, 'Kaiba'! You set a trap and I'll do the same... I wonder what you're up to," he chuckled, tone taking a dark turn as he set the cards on the field. "Two cards face down," he began. "And in addition, I'll summon this guy! Axe Dragonewt," he announced, the armored and bipedal dragon appearing on the field in a flash. "Now... The Axe attacks, but first I'll play this spell! Card Hexa-Chief!" Hexa-

"Gh- THIS!" A series of holographic chains appeared to pin her cards down in an almost blinding strike of light, Seto's eyes widening. With this her traps couldn't be activated. Nothing would change that- it was as though they'd been removed from play, only without the ability to come back. Her crush card strategy was completely sealed, and with that..!

"Oh my... With that look," Willa noted, his opponent looking up from the cards with narrowed eyes, "I wonder if one of those were important..." He knew damn well it was important, she'd let her 'pokerface' slip... "Well then," the teen shouted with a grin. "No matter..! Now that I've been assured that your traps won't stop me, I can attack! SO! Axe Dragonewt," Willa ordered, monster charging from the mist that formed him. "Get the Blade Knight!"

Shards of glass and metal seemed to fragment before the hologram followed suit, scattering through the air and fading in the light around them. 'End turn,' her opponent had shouted, a bare minimum of cards left in his hand. So... "Mine then," she spat, almost ripping the card from her deck. For a hyena like this to even scratch her... Hn! An embarrassment- that's what it was!

Worse than even the mu- ...Actually, she wouldn't be surprised if Katsuya put up quite a fight now. Not something near Yugi's level of course but...

Given that he'd stood against Ra...

(Speaking of Ra, a duel against Katsuya was probably the worst possible idea anyone could have given recent circumstance.)

Seto looked over her card, instantly switching it for another pair in her hands. "Set one card face down," she started, a clear hologram appearing near the chained images beside them. "Your loss will not take much longer... I offer the Blood Vorse as a sacrifice," Seto announced as the monster swirled in a pillar of light and pixels, "Summoning this! The Sword Stalker- and using his effect," she continued, the almost completely black monster grinning with a fixed and menacing expression while it crackled into existence, "He gains 20% of the attack power from the monster you destroyed not long ago! The monster's vengeance is nigh," the woman went on. "Go... Attack Axe Dragonewt!"

"Trap activate!" What..! As the blade dug through the light-formed beast deja-vu seemed to set over the field. From the scraps of pixel and light game a mist-like image... And before it shattered to pieces the monster returned to its original position, hologram fogging in place. "Bad luck eh, Kaiba? Running into this again..." 'Again'? Why was mist body on the field again, the card was-

Her eyes instantly fell on the trap that had been activated, teeth grinding. "Tch..."

"Synchronic ability," Willa laughed, hands held out to the field in gesture. "The card that gives the equipped monster the same ability that others of the same type have! In other words... Axe Dragonewt, as the same type as the Lancer, gains the power of Mist Body... Which means that, like Lancer Dragonewt," he continued, "Axe Dragonewt is no longer affected by any attacks! Hnhnhnhnhn..." Well wasn't that just- "Your deck's predictable," Willa sneered, shaking his head. "'Attack Attack Attack'... Your monster power is being destroyed and all because of how much you emphasize that ability. Not many monsters in your deck have magic effects... You're going to need a reliable counter other than just attack if you want to beat me, 'Prince of Cards'!" Again with the prince..!

"Hn!" Nonetheless- he'd obviously done his research... Which meant she'd just have to utilize a few new strategies then. Her deck was powerful- but not without cause. "Damn it..."

"My turn now," her opponent shouted, "And I'm gonna keep the spells coming! I activate the spell Union Attack," he called, another card appearing while his opponent held her glare. "Allowing the monsters to combine their attacks into one against a single monster! Your battle damage is 'zero'," Willa added with a shrug, "But then again, so's your monster! Both Dragonewts attack," he shouted, the mist-beasts charging her swordstalker with a snarl, "DOUBLE SLICER!"

"Ksssst...!" The monster shattered in the air, her arms brought up when the backdraft blasted against her. Gh... Damn it all..!

"Swordstalker is crushed!" her opponent laughed, Seto merely gritting her teeth with a scowl. "And your only shield is gone! You can summon as many things in defense as you like," Willa continued, half cackling as his monsters returned to his side of the field, "But your deck doesn't have a single thing to counter this!"

"Hnnn..? And how's that I wonder," she 'asked', looking across the field as calmly as she could in the current situation.

"Hnn?"

She narrowed her eyes, drawing another card before swiping a different one out of her hand. "In the world of Duel Monsters, there is a being that surpasses all others," she warned, narrowing her eyes. "And I'll show you her now... It's my turn! First, I activate the set spell, 'Silence of the Dead'... Bringing back the Blade Knight in defense mode," Seto announced, watching as the crouching knight's hologram instantly appeared before her in the spell card's place. "And... Following that, a spell card from my hand! Cost down! Cutting the levels of monsters in my hand by two during this turn! Watch," she half-sneered. "The flames from this beast's mouth are more than enough 'magic' ability for this deck..."

"You- That monster-"

"RISE," Seto cried, the light of the Blade Knight's hologram shattering into a fine and diamond-like dust in the air. "The supreme being... BLUE EYES WHITE DRAGON!"

"GRAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Mist body only worked against monsters of a different type... So with that...

The light around her began to take solid form, soaring through the air behind her. With a mighty roar it landed before scales had even developed, before its shining blue eyes were clear enough to see, and before its body even held solid form. The dragon lowered its head, and with still narrowed eyes she nodded. "I had your traps in mind when I summoned this dragon," she called out, pointing her monster forward. "You have a defense against almost all cards in existence but dragons are still an exception to the rule! And with this," she went on, "Your Mist Body is finished! GO! BURST STREAM!"

"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAOO!"

"ACTIVATE TRAP!" What? "Delayed Summon!" WHAT-!

"To summon a monster that can surpass Blue-Eyes' power," she asked incredulously, reading the description on the trap. Summon a monster of equal level to your opponent's own when a monster is summoned, provided proper tribute is offered. But even so... "There's not a monster that can do that..! It's-"

"Impossible?" her opponent laughed, Blue Eyes' attack nonetheless launching forward. "Normally yes... But this one..." The card appeared on the field to before the monster itself could, and instantly Seto tensed. True- Blue-Eyes was the most powerful normal monster... But evidently the Tenma brothers decided her deck was too powerful that way. Monsters had come and gone for quite some time with more or less power than Blue-Eyes, each with their own drawbacks...

But if there was one thing she knew about Willa Mette, it was that his trump card had an effect that would be, as Katsuya would put it, 'a bitch to defeat'. And low and behold, she thought with ground teeth.

There he went, summoning it right now. "I sacrifice the two Dragonewts to summon this," Willa announced, the mist-dragons vanishing in a swirl as Blue-Eye's attack vanished into the fog. "The White Horn Dragon!" SHIT. "You know this effect right," the American 'asked', already catching the slight change in his opponent's expression. "White Horn absorbs any attack to add it to its own for one turn... Which means White Horn's power is above yours now," he laughed. "So! Lets see how you feel against your own dragon's fire power... WHITE HORN," Willa ordered, the Blue-Eyes behind his opponent snarling as its flames gathered on the red-scaled monster's horn. "Let's show our opponent what it means to REALLY be prepared..! Lets show him," he continued, Seto's eyes narrowing further, "Just how useless it is to put a 'trophy card' in a professional deck..!" T- Tro...

TROPHY! "That- is- it," she hissed, before raising her voice to a level Willa would more than easily hear. "Enough with the nonsense..! My deck is worth far more than the pennies yours is," Seto spat. "And Blue-Eyes is a monster that you obviously know nothing about..!"

"Hnhnhnhn... Even if what I say is nonsense," her opponent countered, "The attack still stands! I might not have been able to counter an attack from you... But he still has your dragon's power this turn! SO," he laughed, "Lets go... White Horn attacks, with the combined power of it and your dragon! HORN DRIVE," Willa shouted, the beam of light shooting from his dragon's horn. "Now!"

"ACTIVATE TRAP," she responded with ease, Blue-Eyes rearing on her hind legs to catch and inhale the entirety of the flames that had rebounded against her. "The Mechanical Magic Mirror!"

"The- WHAT?"

As Willa paled she merely continued, explaining the card as she went. "I choose one card in your graveyard," she stated clearly, "And take its ability for this turn... And the card I choose is Synchronic Ability; which means that your White Horn's effect," Seto snarled, "Becomes Blue-Eyes- His 'absorbed' power is taken back and added to my dragon's own... Until the end of my turn," she added, her opponent left with no choice but to let time pass until his own passed over. Fifty two hundred returned to 22...

While that same 5200 was added to Blue-Eyes' own three thousand. Her attack power now amounted to eight thousand and two hundred points- More than enough for a one turn kill. "Last turn Willa," she called, her dragon's cheeks almost puffed as her mouth glowed with the stolen power. "Now... Here's the TRUE attack! SHINING BURST!" The fires were launched forward, and the field was bathed in light...

-TSSSSHTT!-

-BROUMMM-

The hologram didn't stand a chance. It shattered into dust and with it Blue-Eyes began to do the same, the duel finally over. Holograms vanished from sight, and with one final look toward her dragon the monster seemed to give a singing cry. "Rrrrrroounnnnnnnnn..."One low growl...

Before it was gone. "Learn from this," Seto snarled, walking forward as her disk locked and snapped back into a dormant state. "No matter what I face... Blue-Eyes remains the ultimate beast- And so long as the dragon stands, so do I." End of story, she thought to herself, continuing her walk as the smoke and sparks from the battle prior continued to fade.

"Heh..." She paused, nonetheless continuing to move past the young man while his attention was on the ground. "Hehehehehe... Strong dragon," Willa laughed, slowly standing as he pulled something out of his back pocket. "Well... Here's the card to the door then," he began, only to jump as the sound of an opening door met the air.

"Nii-sama," Mokuka said cheerily, slate in hand as he looked to his sister. "I got through! We'll have to use the slate at each door that's locked, but the security system surrounding it is at least down now. After you~"

"Hnhnhn... As expected," Seto complimented, stepping forward with a smile. "Good job."

"W-What..." The pair stopped in the doorway, looking back as Willa stared. "Wait... You don't need a key card..?"

Mokuba snorted immediately- and not surprising either, given the question. "Nii-sama and I redesigned the entire security system after Duelist Kingdom," he laughed, shaking his head with an almost mocking smirk. "You think changing the key code can keep us out? I actually had to wait for you guys!" Ah- that was a little far (though he had a point...)...

"What... But then... What was that," the American protested, gesturing back behind him. "What was that duel just now!" Hmmm?

"That?" Seto chuckled, narrowed eyes seeming somewhat less stony as Mokuba walked on ahead. "A 'Warm-Up'. You could say," she added, turning back to walk inside, "That it was even for 'fun'. Now then..."

To find Tenma.

AN: First off, sorry about how long it took me to post this; had a bit of a hectic week between a trip out of town, a trip to the vet, me fussing over badly translated manga...

Mostly it was just me being ALLLLL OVER the place, which means I again had to sacrifice art for the sake of a decently timed update. HOWEVER...

I do have it more or less inked, so you get some of it... More on that below.

What with this being the FINALS for the Contest (Entries are below), the current standings will not be posted now. Instead, wait until the next update; the results will be tallied by then, and I'll be ready to ask what the winner wants for a prize. Annnnd in other news...

Anonymous Review Responses

Actually going to cover that in a bit Imadork!

...But for now, lets just say that Anzu's mom is NOT PLEASED about how she dropped her 'breakfast' on the floor.

Fixed all that you mentioned by the way- And don't feel bad about it, I'm glad you brought those up! It means I can fix it for anyone else reading! (Also, glad you like how I write Beta, ehehe.)

Hnnn... From what I can tell it's a matter of how important the duel is, along with the other one's mindset. Typically, if the duel is particularly life threatening, or if something REALLY important is on the line, Yami insists. Also, note that Battle City was something Yami himself entered to work for; which is likely the main reason Yugi didn't touch any cards during that time... During Duelist Kingdom, it's also a 'Millennium Item' matter. Keep your eyes open though; Yugi does in fact duel during Yugioh R, and you'll see soon enough.

Hahaha, you might not believe it, but that doesn't change the facts about the contest..!

Makes sense Maggiemay. In any case, your vote has been recorded now~ Sorry about how long Kaiba took to get here. You'll have to wait until the end of the arc before she and Jou actually get to interact again though, ehehe... In any case, enjoy!

So close indeed Iona...

And no! Don't do that to yourself! Anyways, I've got your vote now; I hope you enjoy this chapter and the one coming up!

Until then...

Usagi's Manga & Japan Guide/Corner

The section that's learning a lot of Hebrew lately...

'Chereb', pronounced kheh-reb, NOT 'cherub' or whatever, means 'blade, or sword. Alternately 'tools for cutting stone', but that's beside the point.

So why isn't Yugi freaking out NOW? Because it's like he said; all he has is what Yami told him. Yami did indeed tell Yugi that Anzu's soul is in a card, but Yugi already figured this. The Pegasus thing is creey... (-shudder-) ...But Yugi didn't have to see Anzu's corpse/body. If anything, being able to talk to her until they reverse this gives him a hope spot.

Of course, despite that hope spot, he can still feel what his other half feels, and that's on the exact opposite end... But all Yami's really done is mention the card thing, the twin thing, and the fact that R.A. is in its final phase. He didn't mention that the duel was kiiiiinda the one that sealed it- and that is one of the MAJOR reasons why Yami is so gloomy now.

SPEAKING of Yami's gloom, he really is in shock, and really went into shock in the manga; Yugi can't even speak to him for a short bit! And quite frankly, that isn't surprising given what happened in the last chapter.

As to why there isn't more to this scene in all it's awkward glory, Honda pretty much summed it up; Jou can't control this, they can't stop it... The most they can do is pray to god that the seizing STOPS, and that this ability doesn't kill him.

Upon looking again, Mendo's sash thing doesn't hold his pants up. It's actually around his middle, leaving a small bit of skin between the two. But then I ended up wondering what the heck it was...

So I made it a sash again. Hey, it's AU. I can do this! ...I think.

'Ootheca' is the scientific term for a Praying Mantis egg. Interesting eh?

That scene where Katsuya asked for help? Canon. Seems a liiiiittle more serious given the close shave he just got though.

Nothing says 'I WILL KICK YOUR ASS' like 'DEATHSCYTHE KILLER'.

You know, I bet the name 'Deathscythe Killer' just sucks in the monster world. I bet everyone avoids this guy. Poor guy.

When Yakou makes his... Interesting analogy, he refers to the fact that Pegasus seemed to favor Gekkou over the two twins, as he called him someone who had already reached the level of 'perfection'. Gekkou, by the way, uses the kanji for 'moon'.

Hey Usagi! Why's everyone using 'Mr.' all of a sudden?

Because they're in the STATES. Everyone's speaking English, there's no 'san' or 'sama' there..! (Not counting Mokuba's 'nee-sama'/'nii-sama' obviously.)

In the Japanese, Seto opens the cockpit and then STANDS ON A HOVERING JET before doing this. No Seto. NO. THAT IS NOT SAFE. And while I'm all for plane dueling (-coughDomacough-), we are NOT THERE YET.

In the manga, Kaiba's initial appearance (outside the jet thing) involves him wearing this really... Awesome coat. It leads me to believe it's fall or something though... That or Kaiba is in Alaska or something. AHAHAHA. Anyways.

Regardless, he's suddenly back to his iconic Battle City outfit when he shows up at the tower, and I can't help but wonder when he had the time to change, because he seemed REALLY keen on getting back to Japan, and he's also the pilot.

Anyways, I decided to stick with the coat wear that she had at this time. Which means she's actually wearing something very similar to what she had during Death-T in regards to what's under the coat; if you look at the collar in fact, it's identical.

Willa Mette? Comes from 'Willamette', a river and valley in Oregon. Another codename from Intel! Tadaaaah~ (In case you haven't guessed, 'Mendo Cino' came from 'Mendocino, California'... Another codename.)

You know, it's a good thing Willa didn't say how much Yugi was worth, or Seto would probably not have taken things so lightly with him...

Hexa-Chief is a fixative in Japan. OH BRANDNAMES.

Now, the real 'Mist Body' card affects ALL attacks, but the owner still takes battle damage. But... The manga decided that Blue Eyes would pull a Duelist Kingdom (Certain monsters have physical attacks, others have magic; Mist Body was unaffected by physical.) and barrel through, so I changed it to mean that 'it doesn't apply to monsters of the same type'... Annnnd since they're all dragons...

Heeeyyyy~ In the real game, White Horn only takes half the attack. ...Still a rip off. But heyyyyyy, manga why you do this..? (Probably because the cards would have been made AFTER the fact for promotional reasons, ohohoh.)

Now, originally there's this ENTIRE page in the manga, where Seto's all 'WHAT HAPPENS NOW', and Willa is all 'Well see, I know what's in your deck, so I figured I'd be able to counter with my deck easy. Blue Eyes caught me off guard, BUT OH WELL ISN'T THIS GREAT?'

Buuuut it was all before the counter attack. Which was before SETO'S counter attack and... Ahhhh, basically I had to paraphrase or else the speed would be off. Because unlike in manga, I DO NOT BELIEVE IN TALKING AS A FREE ACTION. Duel moves go so much faster...

OH and Synchronic Ability doesn't work like that BUT I GIVE UP DAMNIT. Besides, there are some cards that really do spread effects like that.

Originally, FFSeto (Can't really speak for canon, he's all over the place...) really was just stalling for Mokuba and dueling...

Then Willa insulted Blue-Eyes, herself, threatened the company (albeit indirectly...)... AND SHE GOT PISSED. For obvious reasons.

Also, never use a directly translated RAW. There were lots of awkward moments where I had to guess at what the hell anyone was saying.

Seto's technically still right about her Blue-Eyes line. She's still there so long as the dragon is standing. Hard to stand when you've been blown up by Yugi's Magician though. Heheheeee.

Musical Notes

Because Usagi didn't finish the art... Again! (I'm sorry guys..! -don'thurtme-)

Music? Again there's none? Yes and no.

Switched my gaming spree over to Okami, but that's a little harder to not get into and write at the same time. So instead, I found myself actually playing bits of the soundtrack... For some reason, 'Twin Devils Sorcery' came up. (Which is here: http : / / www. youtube. com/ watch? v=u_v5Kw7vK04& feature= related AND YES, I ACTUALLY HAD TO FIGHT THE BEST THINGS EVERRRR. Holy crap, smarmy monocle steampunk brit. owls. YES. YESSSSS!)

Also 'Ushiwaka's Dance' ( http : / / www. youtube. com/ watch? v=60FJDw9qcFk &feature= related ). Hehehe. Biggest one? 'The Sun Rises' (http : / / www. youtube. com/watch? v=bRGv2_JnyVA &feature= related ). Almost expected for me to be listening to that one!

...In addition, this collection of the Spider Queen (Geisha Spider in the Japanese version)'s pieces. All of them. For whenever Yakou appears.

http : / / www. youtube. com/ watch? v=WmgLu5DQTfg &feature= related

-shuddershuddershudder-

(And look you have links this time, aren't I nice?)

CONTEST SECTION

Same as usual guys! There are two entries tied for the winning place; you have until the next update to vote! Limit one vote per person now...

GO!

FROM IMADORK:

Jounouchi Katsuya will always look out for his friends, no matter how weird things get. That means he will keep on fighting, whether facing maniacs with freaky powers, monsters from a childrens game, or the fact that Kaiba's a girl. Wait, what?

FROM JADEJ.J:

Seto Kaiba has secrets that run skin deep but when Jou gets drawn in all bets are off. Both teens' dark secrets come to the surface & life changing experiences that will take them into dark secrets of Duel Monsters that no one knows.

Well, that's all for now! Until next time everyone... Enjoy the chapter!