This story was done in collaboration between me, Jriddle41 (Sodormatchmaker on DeviantART), and DaveMan1000 (both here and on DeviantART), and we own the OCs that are used in the story. AaronCottrell97 (known as stevecottrell on DeviantART) provided the Duel Layouts and additional ideas. Everything else belongs to their respective owners:
Thomas and Friends (c) Hit Entertainment and Mattel
The Railway Series (c) Rev Wilbert Awdry
Yu-Gi-Oh! (c) Konami
Gundam SEED characters, Orb, Blue Cosmos, M1 Astray, Strike Rouge, Murasame (c) Sunrise
Character of Lisa Drake (c) DaveMan1000
Character of David Xadashi (c) DaveMan1000
WARNING: Once again, this story is rated T for violence, some blood, suggestive themes, and some language. Reader discretion is advised.
WARNING 2: If you haven't read "Yu-Gi-Oh! The Sodor Chronicles Season 2", "Yu-Gi-Oh! The Sodor Chronicles Season 4", "Yu-Gi-Oh! The Sodor Chronicles (Pyramid of Light", "David Xadashi", "Lisa Drake", or "Team 4D's", you might want to do so before reading this story
Title: A Meeting of Duelists
Opening up outside Discord's New York City mansion somewhere in Queens the very next morning, Matt, Michael, Carlie, James R., Zack, and Discord were all getting ready to meet up with David, his friends, and his family in Manhattan before going to the New York City stadium to sign up for the Duel Monsters tournament.
"Shall we take the Duel Runners today?" offered Zack.
"Nah, it's too nice of a morning," replied James R., dismissing the idea, "I vote we take the subway."
"Good idea," praised Michael, "After all, a little walk never hurts anybody."
"I'll say," agreed Discord, "Now, Dave-boy and his friends and family are currently settled in Manhattan at the Crown Gates Hotel. It should take us half an hour to get there by subway."
"Sounds like a plan to me," said Matt in agreement.
And so, a walk to the nearest subway station commenced.
(elsewhere…)
Over at one of the outdoor cafés in the Manhattan area, half an hour later, David, Ren, Futaba, Gabriella, Janice, and Sean were all sitting at a table underneath an umbrella, eating some of the food they purchased from one of the nearby bakeries. Soon, they saw Team 4D's, Zack, and Discord all arrive.
"Heeeey!" called Sean, standing up and waving.
"Over here!" finished Janice.
"How's it going?" greeted Matt, "You guys are eating out today?"
"Indeed, given the exceptional morning," replied David, "Dad wanted to check out one of these bakeries."
"(はい,) Hai, (Yes,)" agreed Ren, speaking in Japanese briefly, "These bakeries make great breads, pastries, and other goodies."
"Hey, can I try one of those?" asked James R., and Janice handed him a piece of pastry. After eating it and waiting for a few seconds… "Oh man! That's delicious! After we finish signing up for the tournament, we need to come back here so I can buy a couple of those pastries."
"Sure, sure, James," nodded Discord.
"By the way, where are your Duel Runners?" asked Sean, "Did you guys take the subway to get here?"
"Duh," said Carlie brightly.
"And besides, it's too nice of a morning to be driving on our Duel Runners," remarked Michael, "So, we all decided to walk around the city today."
"That's interesting," grinned Janice, "Since you're all not using your Duel Runners right now, that means we can all walk around and see the city more easily. It would also give us a chance to get to know each other."
"A good point there, Janice," agreed Sean.
"Yeah," nodded Matt, "It shouldn't be too far of a walk from here to the nearest subway station. We'll need to take it to reach the New York City stadium in upper Manhattan."
"Of course, Fudo-san," acknowledged David.
"In that case, let's enjoy the sights as we head over there!" requested Sean.
With that agreed to, the large party started exploring the city while heading for the nearest subway. As the left, however, a young woman, aged 20, with neck-length raven hair and ocean blue eyes was shown slowly emerging from behind some potted plants. Around her neck was a camera, in her left hand was a small notepad, and in her right hand was a pen. When the coast was finally clear, the young woman wrote something on the notepad.
"World famous duelists get breakfast at outdoor café…" The young woman mumbled as she wrote, "Now, they are heading for the New York City stadium to sign up for the new tournament hosted by the state governor Rex Godwin…" She then looked up, "This might be the big scoop I'm looking for!"
The raven-haired young woman then slowly scampered after the party group of duelists.
(elsewhere…)
Later inside the subway, the group was waiting for their ride to show up. The raven-haired young woman, as she came down the stairs into the area, quickly hid behind a large stone pillar so that nobody could see her. When it was safe, she took her notepad and pen out, but accidentally dropped the pen, resulting in it landing on the floor with a soft clatter. With the group, nobody seemed to pay any attention. Michael, however, looked up slightly, as though he heard the clatter.
"Oh boy, that was too close…" The raven-haired young woman sighed to herself, sitting on the floor. She then went to work on her notepad, "Now, let me see… Famous duelists are waiting for the subway, in order to travel to upper Manhattan…"
"…and reach the New York City stadium so we can sign up for the upcoming Duel Monsters tournament," A male voice, with a British cockney accent, seemed to finish.
"Huh?"
To the young woman's surprise, she saw Michael standing nearby, arms folded, and a neutral-looking glare on his face. It was then Matt noticed that Michael wasn't standing by his side…
"Mike? Hey, where'd you go?" he pondered, looking nearby, "Mike?"
"Over here," replied Michael, as all eyes came upon him, "It looks like we have somebody spying on us."
"S-Spying?!" The young woman hiding behind the pillar wailed, emerging with a seriously panicked expression on her face, "T-That's not what I'm doing at all!"
"You're not a spy?" asked Janice.
"Who exactly are you?" put in Carlie.
"I'm Megan Haw, and I'm a reporter for the Daily Writer's Group," The raven-haired young woman answered, "I was walking down the streets of lower Manhattan when I saw…Michael…among your group," She smiled dreamily, "I'm his no.1 fan, and me getting a chance to talk to him or even interview him would be one of the many things in my bucket list I can finally accomplish."
To prove her point, Megan took a few photographs out of her jacket pocket and showed them to the group. The pictures were of herself in the bedroom of her home in various poses with a poster of Michael standing beside Wheel of Fortune on the wall. Michael frowned, but said nothing. Sean and James R., however, both realized that Megan was more than a no.1 fan…
"I think I see where this is going," snickered Sean, "Do you know where this is going, James?"
"Oh, I do," replied James R., looking equally amused, "But I shall not say anything about that!"
Although he didn't, he did turn and wink at Carlie, Janice, and Gabriella, giving them a hint on what he and Sean were talking about. This realization caused Carlie and Janice both to giggle in response, and Gabriella to tilt her head in innocent confusion. Megan, not getting the joke, merely blinked before the sound of a subway training starting to arrive echoed throughout the area.
"That must be our train," realized Discord, before looking at Megan and smiling kindly, "I'm sorry, Megan, but we must be going now."
"If it's okay, could I come with you guys?" offered Megan, "I want to tell you some of my goals in life—besides the obvious bucket list."
"I see no ill will," accepted David.
"We're always happy to meet a new friend," added James R..
"Why not," grunted Michael, although not out of rudeness or hostility.
Soon, the subway train had finished arriving by the platform, and people started emerging from the train on one end, and other people (such as Team 4D's, Zack, David, Ren, Futaba, Gabriella, Sean, and Janice, while also joined by Megan) walked inside.
(inside…)
Minutes later, the subway train was heading to the next station. Megan was talking to her new friends about how she always wanted to become a famous reporter of special events held in New York City and eventually all around the United States. But, until then, she was stuck doing mostly minor reports on things like small Duel Monsters-based tournaments, because she was still new to the world of reporting and blogging.
"Man, wanting to become a famous reporter must be difficult to achieve," commented Matt.
"It is, but my determination to success is too great to let something like that dampen my spirit," reassured Megan. She then looked at Michael whilst smiling, "So, how about it, Mike? Will you be willing to let me give you a brief interview before we arrive at our destination?"
"Err… Maybe another time," said Michael, uneasily.
"By the way, Megan, do you play Duel Monsters?" asked Sean.
"Not very well, but I do like the game," As Megan spoke, she took a Duel Monsters Deck out of her pocket, "Actually, I also use this Deck to tell my fortune."
"Tell your fortune?" pondered Carlie.
"I play a 'Fortune Fairy' Deck," continued Megan, "Whenever I start my day, or begin a day of reporting or blogging, I determine my luck or future for the day through the flavor text on my 'Fortune Fairy' monsters. You could say it was my fate to meet with all of you today."
"Really? It was fate?" remarked Matt, "No offense or anything, but I don't actually believe in that kind of stuff…"
"Then how would you interpret the means of which we crossed paths with each other, Fudo-san?" teased David.
"Oh, well, um…"
"Or how we all got to meet with Thomas and his friends on the Island of Sodor?" put in Carlie.
"Or how Discord adopted us?" finished Zack.
"Okay, okay! You guys got me there," groaned Matt.
Everyone shared a small laugh over that. For now, until they arrived at the New York City stadium, they could kick back, relax, and share some exciting stories.
(elsewhere…)
Finally, after making two stops at different subway stations, the large party arrived at a station somewhere in upper Manhattan. Emerging from the subway station, they noticed that the New York City stadium was only a few blocks away.
"There it is!" James R. cried out, "Our destination, dead ahead!"
"Well, I guess this is where I make my leave," said Megan, "I have to cover a small street duel somewhere around this area. I hope we can meet again soon."
"We'll be seeing you, Megan," added Janice.
"Oh, one more thing," Megan, turning around one more time, remembered, "If you're interested in shopping, you should check out the stores in this area; you'll find some pretty sweet stuff to buy."
"Really?" wondered Futaba, growing interested.
"Really! In fact, one of the clothing stores is having a 70% off sale today!"
That was all David's Mother needed to hear…
"Gabriella," Futaba began, looking at her daughter, "would you like to come with Mommy for a little shopping spree?"
"I love shopping!" squeed Gabriella.
"Well, in that case, you two have fun now," smiled Ren, but was then grabbed by the right arm by his wife, "Wha-?"
"Oh no, dear, you're coming with us," teased Futaba, "Somebody strong is needed to carry our purchases."
"(しまった!) Shimatta! (Oh no!)" Ren panicked in Japanese, before trying to find an excuse to get out of going with Futaba and Gabriella, "But what about David? Shouldn't he come, too?"
"Dave has a tournament to sign up for," reminded Sean.
"And he'll be with us the entire time," added Janice.
"Oh yeah…" groaned Ren, before looking to Futaba in defeat, "Alright, lead on."
And so, poor Ren was dragged away by Futaba in order to go shopping with her and Gabriella at one of the nearby stores, leaving Team 4D's, Zack, David, Sean, Janice, and Megan all to laugh at the humorous scene.
"(かわいそうなお父さん,) Kawaisōna otōsan, (Poor Dad,)" chuckled David in Japanese, "I dread to see the result of such a spree."
"Once again, it was great meeting all of you, and I do hope we can meet again," said Megan happily.
"We're gonna be in New York City for a while, so that might be a possibility," Zack pointed out.
"We hope you succeed in your goals," encouraged Carlie.
Megan nodded before turning and running off for another part of the city.
"Megan seems like such a nice young woman," admired Discord.
"She sure is," agreed Matt, "Now, what do you guys say we head to the stadium? We have a tournament to sign up for."
"I'm all for that," smiled Carlie.
"I'll race you there!" challenged Michael, running forth.
"H-Hey!" protested Matt, following close behind.
"Wait for us!" laughed James R..
And so, the group started racing towards the large stadium in the background.
(elsewhere…)
At long last, Matt, Michael, James R., Carlie, Zack, Discord, David, Sean, and Janice all arrived outside the humongous stadium. Without wasting a second, Matt opened the door and allowed his friends inside before entering himself.
(inside…)
Inside the stadium lobby, the area looked…quite fancy and large for a stadium housing a Turbo Duel track.
"This is the lobby?" pondered James R..
"I think that's an obvious statement," answered Discord.
Up at the front desk, a young woman was busy doing her nails while waiting for more people to show up to sign up for the tournament Rex organized. At last, she looked up when the sound of footsteps grew louder.
"Oh! May I help you all?" The reception woman offered.
"My name is Matt Fudo," began Matt, before gesturing to Michael, James R., Carlie, and David, "Michael Atlas, James Hogan, Carlie Izayoi, David Xadashi, and myself are here to sign up for Rex Godwin's new tournament."
"Very well," The reception woman nodded, taking out a sheet of paper and handing it to the duelists, "Just sign your names here, please," She then noticed Discord, Zack, Janice, and Sean standing nearby, "Are any of you here to sign up, too?"
"Nope, we're just here to cheer them on," denied Sean.
"Besides, I'm sure you know of me," put in Discord, "Discord J. Crawford, ex-CEO of Industrial Illusions."
"Ex-CEO?" The reception woman pondered.
"I'm just taking a bit of a leave from the office," replied Discord, "I've left Zack here in-charge of running things while I enjoy my brief retirement."
"Ah, I see."
Soon enough, Matt, Michael, Carlie, and James R., along with David, had finished signing up for the Turbo Duel tournament. With their work now done, the large group was getting ready to leave the building when suddenly…
"Holy crap! So this is where we need to sign up for the tournament?" A high, yet husky-sounding, female voice echoed, rather loudly might I add, "Damn, the lobby looks huge!"
"Wha-?" began James R., but stopped short of finishing.
"Try to tone down the use of bad language, Lisa," A second high-pitched, more girly-sounding, female voice scolded, "We're in a public place, and so some kids could possibly hear you."
"Yeah! We can't let them start cursing thanks to you running your mouth," A third female voice, the lowest-sounding (yet was still a bit high-pitched as well), chuckled.
"That's for sure," A fourth female voice, whose vocal pitch was in between the second and third female voices, jokingly put in.
"Hey, hey, hey! I'm not THAT uncouth, thank you very much!" The first female voice snapped in response to the teasing.
"Now, now, you four, behave yourselves," A fifth, more adult female voice advised.
"Yes, ma'am!" The second, third, and fourth female voices said in unison.
"Ugh! Fine…" The first female voice grunted and groaned.
Matt and the others finally turned to the doorway, finding several more arrivals in the form of five females; one was a 17-year old teenage girl, three were 18-year old young women, and the remaining was a 32-year old woman:
-The lone teenage girl had pink hair and brown eyes. Her attire consisted of a cherry red half jacket, a pink tank top exposing her midriff, a pink and cherry red skirt, cherry red tight socks, pink and cherry red metal boots, and cherry red gloves.
-The first young woman, the leader of the foursome, had chin-length, wavy blonde hair and blue eyes. Her clothing consisted of a green-colored tank top, a small, opened red-and-black vest-like jacket over the shirt, blue-colored jeans with a belt, a black wristband on the right wrist, and red/orange boots of a sort.
-The second young woman, who had a tomboyish demeanor, had short, ear-length red hair and purple eyes. She wore similar clothing to the first young woman, but instead wore a normal pink t-shirt rather than a green tank top.
-The third young woman, the smartest and second-in-command of the foursome, had shoulder-length dark blue hair, amber eyes, and wore pink wire-framed glasses. As for clothing, it was very similar to the other two young women, but she wore a bright yellow long-sleeved shirt instead of a pink t-shirt (like the second young woman) or green tank top (like the first young woman).
-The woman, meanwhile, had brown hair and gentle blue eyes. Her attire consisted of a white t-shirt with a red and black jacket (similar to the vests the other three girls wore), blue jeans with a belt, and red/orange boots.
"Who are they?" pondered Michael.
"Beats me," replied James R., as his eyes instantly turned into hearts, "but three of those ladies sure do look attractive—especially the red-haired one!"
"Oh brother," sighed Carlie, rolling her eyes.
"You can say that again," agreed Zack.
Discord simply smiled, "Wait, I know that woman…" he said, looking at one of the arrivals, "Can it be? Yes, it is! Erica! Over here!"
Nearby, Ms. Simmons overheard someone calling her name and, with a careful glance, saw Discord J. Crawford waving to her.
"Why, it's my old friend Discord," gasped Ms. Simmons, before smiling as well.
With that said, both the Orb teacher and creator of Duel Monsters approached and embraced, having not seen each other for quite some time. It was then the lone teenage girl realized something about Discord…
"Who is that guy?" The pink-haired girl quizzed, "How does Ms. Simmons know him?"
"It's Discord J. Crawford," The second young woman (Mayura) replied.
"You mean 'the' Discord J. Crawford?" The third young woman (Juri) realized.
"It sure is!" The voice of James R. proclaimed loudly and getting the attention of the arrivals, taking a step forth and looking seemingly at the first girl, "He's the creator of Duel Monsters for crying out loud! And we…" He pointed to himself, and then to Matt, Michael, and Carlie, "…are the country's best duelists!"
"Oh really?" The first girl (Lisa) smirked, thinking this guy was trying to flirt with her, "Well, care to tell what kind of Deck you run? I'm rather interested in finding it out."
With that said James R. seemingly approached Lisa, but then…walked right past her. It turned out the brown-haired young man's attention was instead towards the three young women. The sight caused Lisa to become silently irritated as an anger pressure mark appeared on the side of her head.
"As you can see, I run a 'Blackwing'/'Assault Blackwing' Deck," said James R., holding up his Deck while his eyes again turned into hearts, "It's mighty strong, and I hardly ever lose using it."
Asagi had a blank look on her face as she blinked a couple of times, Juri looked a little bit uncomfortable (because she wasn't a big fan of other guys hitting on her), and Mayura simply raised an eyebrow in response.
"Really?" Mayura pondered, sounding very unimpressed.
"Oh, really really!" insisted James R., looking and sounding as lovestruck as ever. Right now, his attention was towards the tomboyish, red-haired young woman, "You know, you kinda remind me of another lovely redhead I once met. She had a similar voice to yours, but her hair was much longer and was a mixture of red and yellow in color like a sunset—then again, it also reminded me of bacon…"
"I see," groaned Mayura, with the roll of her eyes and a deadpan expression on her face, "Well, I've got bad news for you, pal… That was a nice try of flirting on your part, but I'm not at all interested in somebody like you," James R. kept smiling as he listened to the scolding, "And you run a 'Blackwing'/'Assault Blackwing' Deck? Seriously? Do you know how overrated those archetypes are?"
To the surprise of no one, the hearts in James R.'s eyes immediately cracked apart, and he ended up face-faulting in sheer disappointment over being turned down like that. Carlie, Zack, Sean, Janice, and even Discord all couldn't help but snicker a bit at the humorous scene, while Matt just shook his head while smirking a little bit. On the other hand, David didn't say a word about the whole thing. It was then Asagi let out an excited squeal when she noticed among the group…
"Oh my gosh!" she cried out, while her eyes turned into hearts, "It's Michael Atlas!"
"You're so right, Asagi!" added Mayura, almost the second she saw Michael as her own eyes turned into hearts, "I can't believe we're actually bearing witness to the King of Turbo Duelists himself! We're so lucky!"
"Geez! You two are so boy crazy…" muttered Lisa, rolling her eyes over the antics of both Mayura and Asagi.
"Oh, I don't know about that, Lisa," blushed Juri, although she was acting a bit more subdued compared to her two best friends, "I'll admit Mike is rather handsome."
"Not you too, Juri." Lisa said in annoyance, before facepalming.
James R. merely groaned over the fact his friend Michael was way more popular with girls than he was, while Michael himself didn't dare to say a word over the fact that a trio of young women were about to geek out over who he was. This happened to be the second time he encountered some female fans of his. It was then Ms. Simmons spoke up…
"Okay, okay! I think that's enough excitement for a little while," she said informingly, before turning to the people who didn't know her or her students, "I think an introductory is in order."
"For sure," agreed Discord, before introducing his old friend to Team 4D's along with Zack, David, Sean, and Janice, "I want you all to meet Erica Simmons; she's an old friend of mine, and, most importantly, a teacher at a Duel School in 'Hartford - Connecticut'. She initially worked at Industrial Illusions as a card designer before I recommended her to apply for a teaching position at Orb."
"Orb?" repeated James R..
"Oh, that's the name I gave the Duel School when it was being built, James."
"And these four students accompanying me are some of Orb's finest duelists," Ms. Simmons added to that, before motioning her right hand towards Asagi, "This is Asagi Caldwell."
"Hi!" winked Asagi, giving the peace sign with her left hand.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," remarked Matt, holding his right hand out.
Asagi held her own right hand out in response. The mischevious look on the wavy blonde-haired young woman's face as she shook hands with Matt indicated that she would try to engage in some playful flirting with him later on, despite knowing that he was already dating another girl. Ms. Simmons then looked towards Mayura, intending to introduce her next…
"That's Mayura Labatt." said Ms. Simmons.
"I'm happy to meet you all," smiled Mayura, but was quickly met by a lovestruck James R. leaning towards her, "Huh?"
"Mayura… That's a lovely name you have there," flirted James R., "Hey, do you mind if I call you 'May' instead?"
"Ngh… Buzz off!" Mayura grumbled, bringing her right hand towards the brown-haired young man's forehead. She then used the index and middle fingers both to push him away from her before massaging her forehead from annoyance, "Ah, geez…"
"My name is Juri Wu Nien," said Juri bashfully, carefully adjusting her glasses.
Michael stepped forward, "In that case," he remarked, holding his right hand out whilst smirking, "I'm pleased to meet someone like you, Juri."
Juri didn't say a word back, but a blush did reappear on her face as she shyly shook Michael's hand and kept her head down a little bit to try and keep her blushing face from being noticed by anybody else. Zack raised an eyebrow when he saw her do that.
"Hey, are you okay there?" wondered Zack, adjusting his own glasses a bit, "Earth to Juri! Come in!"
"Oh, don't mind her acting like that," reassured Asagi, smiling cheekily, "Juri often behaves that way around cute boys."
"What?! Cute boys?" pondered Carlie, while trying to hold back a laugh, "You're saying that Mike is cute?"
"You're joking, right?" put in Zack, also finding this to be amusing, "This is Michael Atlas we're talking about. He's one of the country's best duelists, and has no time to be cute for any of his fangirls."
"No way am I joking!" insisted Asagi, still smiling, "And Juri's no fangirl either! She actually told me one time that she has a huge crush on Mike and wanted to meet him as soon as possible."
"A-A-Asagi!" protested Juri, turning to stare at one of her best friends as the blush on her face deepened, "It's not like that at all!"
"You sure about that?" asked Zack, not looking very convinced (if at all), "'cause it sorta looks that way to most of us."
"Yeah, what he said," agreed Janice.
An unamused Michael only rolled his eyes in annoyance over his friends' immature statements about him, while Juri started twiddling her fingers about nervously and in embarrassment as the blush on her face further deepened; it was an awkward situation she really did not like finding herself to be in. Fortunately, Lisa decided now to speak up in the defense of her good friend…
"Listen, don't any of you go thinking that Juri is someone who's shy and standoffish around certain boys," she was saying, "She might be that at times, yes, but she's still really kind and caring—not to mention she's really smart for someone her age."
"Oh?" pondered Zack, growing intrigued.
"She's really smart?" added Sean.
"Oh, y-yes, I am," acknowledged Juri, slowly coming out of her shell and no longer feeling shy or embarrassed, "In fact, I'm somewhat of a science and mechanical genius. Do you have a math problem you need help with? I can solve it quickly. Need assistance with a robotics project? I'm there."
Zack, Sean, and even David were amazed over what they were hearing from the intelligent, dark blue-haired young woman.
"You really know all about robotics?" asked Sean hopefully.
Juri smiled, "I do," she confirmed, "If you'd like, I can come over to where you're staying at and give you a hand with whatever project you're working on."
David made a mental reminder to take up Juri on her offer.
"As you can now tell, Juri is one of Orb's most gifted and intelligent students," explained Ms. Simmons, folding her arms and acting like a Mother who's very proud of her child, "Her intellect and grades both also extend to real school as well."
"In fact, she actually had a real shot at graduating high school at the age of 14," put in Mayura, "She's that smart."
"Graduating high school at 14? Oh man, that is an achievement," admired Sean.
"But I turned down the chance because I wanted to properly graduate alongside my two best friends," Juri pointed out, being joined by both Mayura and Asagi, "Which we ended up doing last year."
"Good for you three," said Carlie positively.
"After all, we're like 'The Three Musketeers'," grinned Asagi.
"Heck yeah!" added Mayura proudly, "We three are nearly inseparable!"
"And finally," cut in Ms. Simmons, before laying a hand on Lisa's shoulder, "this is Lisa Drake; she is one of Orb's more recent attendees."
"Yo," greeted Lisa, eyeing Matt, Michael, and James R., "You'll forgive me for not fangirling out over who you guys are like my three friends did earlier on, but I have a reputation to uphold," She then eyed David curiously, "Well now, who's the porcupine?"
David looked up, "Excuse me?"
"You've barely said a word this whole time," continued Lisa sharply, "It's not a funeral, ya know; open up, for goodness sake!"
Matt and the likes cringed slightly from the scene.
"Yikes," winced Carlie, before leaning over to Juri, "Your friend, if you don't mind me saying this, has a rough, blunt attitude."
"Yeah, but she's really nice once you get to know her," reassured Juri, "After all, she was the one who saved Orb from being shut down a few years ago."
"I sure did!" bragged Lisa, placing both hands to her hips and closing her eyes proudly.
"Right after you recklessly wagered it to Muruta Azrael and his own Duel School," reminded Mayura.
Lisa immediately collapsed, anime style.
"Okay, okay! So that wasn't the brightest idea I ever thought of!" Lisa snapped, standing back up while looking extremely annoyed over being reminded of her lack of patience and tendency to not think her actions through enough, "Still, I pulled off a big win against that Shani of Blue Cosmos! Moreover, I thoroughly kicked his ass!"
"A surefire victory I safely assume," The voice of David agreed, before adding in a firm… "Neglecting the fact that such a gamble would've cost you immensely should you have succumbed to defeat at the hand of your adversary."
"Huh?" gawked Lisa.
She cast a surprised glance towards David when she heard him say something like that. The three Astray girls each winced in response, knowing that this was likely going to end pretty badly for David.
"What was that?" Lisa asked quietly, frowning deeply.
"Do not take me for an ignoramus, Drake-san," continued David, "I am well informed of your audacious behavior on the dueling field. And I must confess, out of the plethora of competitors in this event, you are unquestionable the most irresponsible of the lot."
Lisa did not look amused at all. David, meanwhile, looked like he wasn't going to back down from getting his point across. Sean and Janice both looked concerned, and feared that Lisa would retaliate with physical force if she were to be pushed too far.
"Umm, Dave… maybe you should cool it with-" Sean tried to speak up, but was interrupted.
"I have full control of the situation, Sean," insisted David, before looking back at Lisa, "Of course, having Orb shut down was presumably only a single strand in the lengthy string of consequences that would've come your way."
"Hey, pal, do you even know what you're saying?!" demanded Lisa angrily, "I don't need to be lectured by a robot for every single dumb mistake I made!"
"Resorting to name-calling implies you are defensive and therefore find my sentiment valid."
The pink-haired girl just huffed in response.
"There's also your reportedly frequent acts of general reckless sporting to take into consideration," David added, stating the matter of facts.
"Look, buddy," countered Lisa blunty, "I was always told that if you got nothing nice to say, then don't say nothing at all. Get it?"
David didn't respond.
"What? No witty comeback, smartass?" challenged Lisa.
David still didn't respond.
"Oh, I get it," said Lisa snidely, "You got nothing nice to say, so you're keeping quiet. That's real cute."
Again David didn't respond, and Lisa's expression softened a little.
"You…really got nothing nice to say…?" The pink-haired girl asked, becoming a little confused, "That's cold if you ask me."
"Wow… He outwitted Lisa into dead silence," thought Mayura, before she leaned over towards the other girls and gestured to David whilst grinning, "I like him already. You two get what I'm saying?"
Asagi and Juri both giggled in response. Lisa immediately overheard that comment and glared at her three friends with an evil-looking eye, causing them to stop with their laughing and begin whistling innocently as if they had done nothing wrong. Ms. Simmons couldn't help but chuckle playfully over the scene, as did Discord. Soon, Sean, Janice, James R., and Carlie were all shown laughing, too.
"Grrr! Shaddap!" screeched Lisa, nearly red in the face.
"Now, now, Lisa, David was only joking," reassured Ms. Simmons, speaking about David. She then looked at her four students, "Okay, since we're here, you girls need to sign up for the tournament before we do anything else."
"Yes, ma'am," The three Astray girls agreed at once.
"For sure," finished Lisa, deciding to drop the argument and focus on the tournament.
And thus, the four female duelists from the Orb Duel School approached the reception desk, and the young woman there handed them the sign up slip.
"It's too bad Mr. Kisaka declined to come inside, I bet he would have loved to meet with Matt and the others," said Asagi, signing her name on the slip.
"Well, somebody needs to look after our Duel Runners," reminded Juri, signing her own name on the slip.
"Good point," agreed Lisa, signing her name on the slip.
As soon as Mayura finished signing her name, the reception woman nodded silently and put the form away until more people who wanted to sign up arrived.
"Well, now that that's done, what should we do now?" asked Lisa, "I'm interested in seeing this city more fully."
"Well, I'm more interested in getting to know these guys," cut in Mayura, clearly referring to Team 4D's, Zack, Discord, David, Sean, and Janice. She then looked over to Asagi and Juri, "How about you two?"
Before an answer could be given…
"Why, isn't this a nice surprise!" A male voice, rather familiar might I add, echoed, "Lisa Drake of Orb, you and your friends are here, too?"
Lisa recoiled in horror, and Ms. Simmons and the Astray girls weren't exactly excited to hear that voice either. Standing by the lobby entrance were four figures:
-The first one was a 22-year old young man with mustard yellow or blonde-like hair with some stray fringes. His attire consisted of a long-sleeved dark brown shirt, white pants, a blue sleeveless jacket with a red and white-stripped collar, and black boots. He was effectively the leader of his two best friends.
-The second was an 21-year old young man with short red/orange hair. His attire was similar to the first young man's, except he wore a red tank top instead of a long-sleeved dark brown shirt, and his jacket had short sleeves and was made to almost look like a crop top in a way. He was the second-in-command of the trio.
-The third, the youngest of the trio of students, was an 18-year old teenage boy with light green hair with some covering his left eye. His attire was, again, very similar to his two companions, except his sleeveless shirt was orange in color and the jacket was unbuttoned.
-The fourth person was the worst of all; it was a 32-year old man with blonde hair, and a nasty gleam in his blue eyes. He wore a fancy bluish-white business suit with a violet tie and a purple dress shirt underneath the jacket of the suit and fancy black shoes.
"Unbelievable…" mumbled Discord, who knew who one of those visitors was.
Zack did, too, "Are those-?"
"Not them!" added Mayura, narrowing her eyes.
"Damn…" cursed Lisa, being very unhappy to see those people from Blue Cosmos.
"Azrael, Orga, Clotho, and Shani…" put in Asagi.
Even the reception woman was shocked over who she was seeing.
"So help me, I'm actually pleased to see all of you," The ruthless blonde-haired man, Muruta Azrael, greeted, smiling as kindly as can be at those who were from Orb (although there was hidden vitriol in his tone), "Now, I'm sure you remember Orga, Clotho, and Shani, Blue Cosmos's three best duelists, yes?"
Orga Sabnak, Clotho Buer, and Shani Andras each grinned in response, signaling that they did remember their respective rivals (Orga: Juri, Clotho: Asagi, and Shani: Mayura) along with Lisa.
"Muruta Azrael," frowned Discord.
"That's Muruta Azrael?" thought Matt, recalling Mayura mentioning that name, "Well, now we know what he looks like, and we certainly heard of his ruthless, no nonsense attitude towards his students and enemies, too."
"And you must be Discord J. Crawford of Industrial Illusions!" continued Azrael, turning his attention to Discord, "It's so wonderful to see you again. I'm sure things at the company are going well, yes?"
He held his right hand out, and Discord reluctantly offered his right hand. The two men then shook hands as Ms. Simmons approached, who was looking at the former man (Azrael).
"Why are you here, Azrael?" questioned Ms. Simmons sternly.
"And hello to you, Erica," said Azrael pleasantly, "Why, you're asking? It's because Orga, Clotho, and Shani here were invited to compete in this new tournament. So, we've come all the way here to sign them up."
"They were invited?" gasped Juri, "But last I heard, Blue Cosmos's reputation as a duel school took a big hit after Shani was defeated by Lisa."
"Yes, I'm well aware my school lost some support from the results of that January 2010 duel, but it's still very popular and successful," Azrael insisted, still smiling but was seething on the inside over being reminded of the loss, "And it's clear their dueling skills have attracted the attention of the tournament organizers."
Before anything more could be said, some of the tournament's main organizers emerged from the nearby door, immediately becoming shocked when they saw Azrael.
"Mr. Azrael!" The first man cried out.
"Y-You're here?" The second man stammered.
"Ah, good morning, gentlemen!" chortled Azrael, "Yes, I'm here to sign my three best students up for this new tournament. Can we go and talk about the details first?"
"Y-Yes, sir…" The first man obeyed fearfully, "Right this…way."
The two men started to lead Azrael through the door they came through. Before leaving for a few minutes, the ruthless blonde-haired man looked towards his three top students.
"Boys, be sure not to cause any trouble while I'm away. Understood?" he requested.
"We understand, Headmaster Azrael," obeyed Shani, who spoke in a creepy monotone way.
"We'll 'behave' while you're talking to those gentlemen," added Clotho.
"See you in a few minutes," finished Orga.
And Azrael went with the men into the next room, leaving the three Bio-CPU boys to interact with everyone else in the lobby. Lisa was not thrilled to see any of them, but she was especially unhappy to see…
"You again?!" growled Lisa, looking at Shani hatefully.
"Hello, Lisa," greeted Shani, as though he were happy to see Lisa again, "It's been a long time."
Lisa spat on the floor, "Heh! Not long enough!"
"Relax, why don't you… I don't have any beef with you," reassured Shani, before looking at his two best friends, "You guys don't have any beef either, right?"
"Not one little bit," agreed Orga.
"Hell no," added Clotho, shaking his head.
"What?" quizzed Lisa, looking a little surprised to say the least, "None of you are pissed with me for getting you, your headmaster, and your school humiliated two years ago?"
"We're not mad at all," answered Shani, "There are no hard feelings between us whatsoever. You see, thanks to my loss, I've realized the error of my ways and turned over a new leaf. No longer am I like who I was years ago; in fact, I now hate who I was before."
"Same here," agreed Orga, while Clotho smiled and nodded, "We three are changed young men."
Discord, Matt, Michael, James R., Carlie, Zack, David, Sean, and Janice all watched the scene with looks of suspicion on their faces, unsure if they should trust them or not. Lisa, meanwhile, said nothing, but Ms. Simmons, Asagi, Mayura, and Juri all looked like they didn't believe the three male Blue Cosmos students at all—for the right reasons.
"'Them', changing for the better?" Juri whispered to her two best friends.
"I seriously doubt that," agreed Asagi, "After all, we've been dealing with those three for a long time."
"Hey, Shani!" called Mayura, "You honestly expect us to believe you guys really did change between then and now?"
"I'm serious, Mayura!" insisted Shani, looking at the tomboyish, red-haired young woman while still smiling, "We've changed—I've changed—for the better!" He looked back at Lisa, "Come on, Lisa, I'm telling you the truth!"
Lisa, despite still being sore over David's comments and him putting her down, knew that, deep down, Shani and his two friends were lying to her and everybody else. Despite that, she decided to play along just to make sure that they were being truthful.
"Now I see…" Lisa said at last, walking up to her 'former' enemy, "Well, who am I to argue with a statement like that?"
"Wait, you're just gonna believe him like that?" quizzed James R..
"Hey, if the girl says I'm telling the truth, then I am," said Shani.
"Whatever you say," deadpanned Zack, "Of course, even I know that you're telling us nothing but a hot, steaming pile of crap."
Angrily, Shani turned and quickly rushed at Zack, grabbed him by the shirt collar, and slammed him into the wall. Did Zack look scared or angry from being attacked like that? Nope. Instead, he seemed to smile smugly at Shani for some reason.
"Bastard! You want to repeat that to my face?!" The light green-haired boy threatened, before realizing something… "Oh…"
"Shani!" snapped Orga, displeased that his friend did something stupid.
"You dimwit!" added Clotho, facepalming.
"Ha! I knew it!" jeered Lisa, who was happy that the three Bio-CPU boys were lying all along, "You three almost had me fooled there, Shani," She narrowed her eyes, "Listen if you're saying you've truly changed for the better, you're gonna have to prove it to me; simply SAYING that you have changed isn't enough to convince anybody, and the same goes for your two pals."
Shani, Clotho, and Orga each scowled in response, while Ms. Simmons, Asagi, Mayura, and Juri all looked relieved that Lisa revealed that she wasn't actually fooled by the obvious lies those three young men were telling. It was also enough for the rest of the party to know not to trust any of the three Bio-CPU boys. Finally, Azrael and the two men emerged from the nearby room.
"Well, you three, you're all signed up," he said proudly, as the man beside him held up the sign up sheet with the names 'Orga Sabnak', 'Clotho Buer' and 'Shani Andras' written down, "Now the whole country—no, the whole world—can see one of you win this tournament in the name of Blue Cosmos."
"And that will be me!" boasted Clotho, only to be shoved aside by Shani, "Hey!"
"I think you meant me," interjected Shani.
"Not you or Clotho, Shani, but me!" Orga pointed out.
And so, the Bio-CPU boys commenced an argument on which one of them would win the tournament for Blue Cosmos, much to the amusement of everyone else and the annoyance of Azrael. Before Azrael could speak and get his three students to shut up, a new voice (male) echoed…
"Ah, welcome, duelists."
All eyes were turned to the nearby door on the left side of the lobby. Emerging from the room byond was a tall, pale skinned man, with long gray hair that reached into his lower back, with one section of it tied into a ponytail. He wore a dark grey suit and pants, over a collared shirt that featured the condor geoglyph emblazoned on it.
"Are you Rex Godwin?" asked Matt.
"That's him," confirmed Azrael, "He's the newly elected governor of New York."
"I'm pleased to finally meet all of you," greeted Rex, walking towards the reception desk, "As you all know by now, I have invited all of you to compete in this new tournament I'm hosting."
Team 4D's, Discord, Zack, David, Sean, Janice, Lisa, the Astray girls, Ms. Simmons, Azrael, and the Bio-CPU boys all did not say anything in response.
"With all of you signed up," Rex went on, "we now have a total of thirteen duelists ready to compete."
"I've just one question about that," interrupted Michael, "While no disrespect or anything, why would you invite us to compete in this new tournament? Is there a reason for it other than using the best duelists in the country for the publicity?"
"The choice of contenders does appear rather calculated," added David.
"I'm afraid I cannot answer that at this time," refused Rex, shaking his head, "However, I will say that everything about why I invited you will become clear in due time," He then had one more message to add in before leaving, "The tournament will begin in a few days. I hope you will all be ready for when it comes… Good day."
The gray-haired man turned and walked towards the room he came out of, opening the door and walking back inside.
"Well, it's been great seeing all of you, but now I need to get my boys back to the Plaza Hotel so we can go over strategies for round one beginning on Saturday," said Azrael, who was now ready to leave, "Come along, you three."
With that said, he, Orga, Clotho, and Shani left the stadium, leaving behind Team 4D's, Discord, Zack, David, Sean, Janice, Lisa, the Astray girls, and Ms. Simmons.
"So, we'll have to deal with Clotho, Shani, and Orga, huh?" frowned Mayura.
"It looks like it," figured Juri.
"I've beaten Shani once, and I can do it again!" declared Lisa, "Between then and now, I've become MUCH stronger as a duelist!"
"Those three must be as bad as you say they are," remarked James R..
"They are," confirmed Asagi, "Mayura, Juri, and I have been dealing with their bullying ever since Duel Monsters came out in the United States."
"Not to mention Shani had the nerve to hit on me and pinch my butt," added Lisa, remembering her first encounter with the Bio-CPU boys. She then placed her left hand on the back of her skirt where she was pinched, "That made me want to wreck him more than anything!"
"That's not even the worst part," said Juri.
"You mean there's more?" gasped Carlie.
"As is to be expected from his type…" retorted David.
"When we were hanging out at the mall, those jerks somehow showed up," explained Mayura, as faded clips of the encounter with the Biological CPU trio in Hartford's mall played out in the background, "After taunting Lisa on how she was seemingly slacking off in learning how to play Duel Monsters and not preparing for her match against Shani, they made a really sick bet with her. If she lost the duel, then not only would Orb be shut down as wagered with Azrael, she and her parents would also have to relocate to Blue Cosmos, with her having to become the trio's servant."
"Ouch…" grimaced Matt.
"But there's good news to be had, right?" asked David.
"You're damn right there is," confirmed Lisa, "Since I won the Turbo Duel, I was spared of that absolute horror, and I also saved Orb from being shut down."
"And we're all very proud that you saved our school," praised Ms. Simmons, laying a hand onto the pink-haired girl's shoulder.
Lisa smiled, feeling so much better, now.
"Hey, since we're all now friends, why don't we spend some time getting to know each other?" suggested James R., "After all, we have a couple of days to kill before the tournament begins."
"Good idea," accepted Janice.
"I don't know about any of you, but I'm eager to go out and explore the city," squealed Asagi excitedly, before happily clutching onto Matt's right arm and looking at him with a cute expression on her face, "Say, Matt, do you think you could show me around the city on your Duel Runner? I bet it would be soooo wonderful!"
Mayura looked very annoyed over one of her best friends hitting on the American Duel Monsters champion, considering that Asagi knew that Matt was currently dating another girl (despite said girl also living in another country). Did that stop the wavy blonde-haired young woman? Not even close.
"Please?" pleaded Asagi, not letting up with the playful flirting, "Pretty please?"
Matt looked nervous, "Um… thanks, but I…think I'll pass," he responded politely, "Besides, I already have a girlfriend…"
"What are you talking about, Matt?" interrupted Michael, grinning, "A pretty young woman just asked you to show her around New York City! If you want my opinion, you really should take Asagi out for a little exploration."
"M-Mike-!" Matt freaked out.
"I agree!" exclaimed James R., nudging at his friend's side, "If a girl asks you to show her around, you should say yes and get on with it—I believe it's the right thing to do, after all."
"And besides, how can you resist a woman giving you such an adorable look?" teased Zack.
"Do it, now!" insisted Carlie, also smirking.
"Fudo-san, you shouldn't keep a girl waiting!" chuckled David.
"It's very rude after all," finished Lisa jokingly.
Matt found himself stammering and stuttering, wondering how he would get himself out of a situation like this, which earned the rest of the group (even David) a hearty laugh. The light-hearted atmosphere was immediately demolished when yet another male voice snapped everyone out of it…
"Heh! If it isn't robo-boy and his two bodyguards!" The male voice cracked cruelly, "I'm actually surprised to find you're here as well!"
David stopped laughing, "It can't be…" he uttered, "Not him…"
Both Sean and Janice were, likewise, upset to hear that male voice. Standing at the entrance of the lobby was a young man with spiky black hair; it was the same young man that David told his new friends about during lunch at the John F. Kennedy Airport.
"You're…!" began James R..
It was Vincent Stevens, the same bully from David's past when he arrived in England from Japan at a young age all because he couldn't speak English properly at the time and for a few other reasons—Vincent had been picking on David ever since then.
"Vincent-kun, what are you doing here in New York City?" questioned David, "Aren't you supposed to be back in Manchester?"
"What? And let you hog all the glory for yourself? As if!" scoffed Vincent, pointing the thumb of his right hand at himself, "The 'Level-up King' is going to be making his big comeback through this tournament!"
"How did you even get here?" demanded Sean.
"Pfft! I took a flight from Manchester, that's what!" replied Vincent, as he looked around at the people in the lobby, "The same flight that you guys took to get here. However, I didn't want to give myself away so soon, so I kept myself hidden with the crowds so that neither you nor the folks could spot me."
After some silence from Team 4D's…
"So, you're Vincent," began Carlie, remembering the story by David.
"Yeah, so?" huffed Vincent, turning to face the main group of duelists, "Say, are you guys fans of mine?"
"Not even close," said Carlie coldly.
"Huh?"
"We heard of you from David," James R. pointed out, "You and your pals were bullying him just because he couldn't speak much English when he first arrived from Japan! Do you know how sick and racist that is?!"
"Are you trying to tell me what to do, pal?" hissed Vincent, getting into the unflinching brown-haired young man's face, "Because let me tell you that it would be a very bad idea to tell me what to do! In fact, I should just-"
"Hey, you!" snapped Lisa, trying to get Vincent's attention, "Yeah, I'm talking to you, &$#*!"
The rather moderately strong name-calling word certainly got Vincent's attention, and it was not exactly in a good way…
"WHAT?! What the hell did you call me!?" he asked dangerously.
"You know exactly what I called you!" retorted Lisa, "Now, I may not know a lot about you, but I still won't take kindly to bullies who pick on people who are different than yourself!"
"Neither will we!" Asagi, Mayura, and Juri each agreed at the same time.
Ms. Simmons nodded silently yet firmly, which meant she was on her students' side and that she wouldn't stand for people who bullied other people just for not being the same. While the argument went on, David finally noticed that Vincent wasn't nearly as burly as he was a few years ago. Rather, it would seem he gained a little bit of weight between their first duel and their meeting here in America.
"Vincent-kun, how can you speak so confidently of your victory when you clearly haven't been adequately managing your appearance?" questioned David.
"Huh?" quizzed Vincent, looking back at the aqua blue-haired boy, "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Well you seemed to be much leaner and well built back in the day," continued David, gesturing towards Vincent's body, "Now it seems you have, how you would say in layman's terms, really let yourself go."
"Why you-!" snarled Vincent, turning his attention back fully towards his favorite target, "For that comment, you've just earned yourself a knuckle sandwich—and don't worry about paying for it," He beat his fists together, "it's on the house!"
As Vincent approached David, he (Vincent) raised a fist and prepared to bring it down onto him (David) in revenge for the mocking of his weight. David raised his arms in defense and braced for impact. Before Vincent could slug David in the face, Mayura quickly got in the way and roughly kneed him (Vincent) in the gut, causing him to reel back while clutching his stomach and groaning in pain.
"Try to lay a hand on him, and next time my knee will go MUCH lower!" warned Mayura icily.
Vincent winced from the hit, "Damn you…" he cursed, before recovering and resumed being smug, "Meh… I guess this is why you made so many friends—especially of the female variety—because they feel the need to protect you from me and the big bad world, robo-boy."
"None of the sorts, Vincent-kun," said David, "They just don't like you."
"Don't like me? What's not to like about me?" snorted Vincent, walking over to the reception desk and signing his name on the sheet of paper when it was handed to him, "After all, once I defeat you and win this Turbo Duel tournament, the people back in Manchester will be cheering my name once again," He flashed everyone in the lobby a thumbs up, "Ciao!"
He then left the stadium's lobby while feeling very pleased with himself.
"So, that's Vincent," remarked Matt.
"He's definitely the definition of arrogant, self-centered, and complete jerk," figured Zack, "About as much as those other guys we met not too long ago."
"You have no idea," acknowledged Janice.
"In that case, I should have aimed my knee a little lower," huffed Mayura.
"I wouldn't worry too much about him, Dave," comforted Ms. Simmons, "The best thing to do is not listen to a word he says."
"Such has been the case since the day I met him," David pointed out, before shaking his head, "However, I'm used to it, and it does not bother me much anymore."
"Well, whatever, let's forget about that guy for the time being and go get something to eat," suggested Lisa, "I'm feeling pretty hungry after such a long drive from Hartford all the way to here."
"Let's go and get Mr. Kisaka first," interrupted Asagi, "We should introduce him to everyone else we've met today."
"I agree," accepted Ms. Simmons.
"Here here!" Juri added pleasantly.
"We can't forget Gabriella and my parents either," reminded David.
"When you put it that way, let's do it!" cheered James R..
And so, the large party of duelists and their friends all finally left the building to spend as much of the day together as they could. The same two men who Azrael spoke to earlier on came back out to speak to the reception woman, just as another new arrival showed up.
"New York City stadium… I'm finally here," The shadowed arrival remarked, before stepping out and revealing himself to be…Paul.
Standing by his side was Maria, and she was none too pleased about what her boss had planned to do.
"I can't believe I agreed to let you do this," muttered Maria.
At the desk, the reception woman and two men noticed the arrival of two members of the NYPD and immediately saluted in order to show respect.
"O-Officer Truman!" The second man greeted, looking truly surprised to say the least, "This is most unexpected!"
"What brings you here to the New York City stadium?" The first man asked nervously, "Is it to help prepare security for Saturday?"
"It's not that," replied Paul, "Rather, I've come…because I want to sign up for the tournament."
Silence…
"What did you say, sir?" The first man whispered, thinking he misheard the statement.
"I said I want to sign up for the tournament," repeated Paul, smirking pridefully.
More silence ensued, and Paul was getting rather anxious over it.
"What?" he questioned defensively, "Why the silent treatment? I'm being serious here! I want to sign up for the big Turbo Duel tournament."
Finally, the two men, even the reception woman, burst out laughing over the announcement.
"Hey!" snapped Paul, absolutely gobsmacked over his treatment, "What's so funny?!"
"T-That's a good one, sir!" The reception woman chortled, "For a moment there we thought you were being serious!"
"Man, you got us real good!" The second man added, "You wanting to join Governor Godwin's tournament… Wow, that's a really funny one!"
Maria only facepalmed in complete embarrassment, while Paul finally lost his temper. He approached the first man who was still laughing up a storm, grabbed him by the jacket collar, and brought him close until he (Paul) and him (The first man) were looking at each other in the eyes. This resulted in the laughter finally stopping.
"Is there a problem with that?" asked Paul angrily, "A problem with someone like me wanting to enter this tournament?"
"T-Then…you were being serious about it?" The first man stammered fearfully.
"Gee, you're not as dumb as you sound."
"O-Our humble apologies, sir," The reception woman apologized hastily, getting the sign up sheet out, "There's a spot on the list reserved for someone like you."
Paul softened up and signed his name on the sheet.
"According to Governor Godwin, the tournament begins in a few days," The reception woman went on, "Make sure you are prepared for then."
"I will," reassured Paul, looking at his Deck in deep thought, "Get ready, punk! This time I will win and haul you away."
Maria remained completely silent, but she still hoped that her boss knew what he was doing. If not, then both of them would be out of a job in a matter of days.
"Sir, I hope to God you know what you're doing," pleaded Maria.
"Pshaw! Officer Strienhart, you're too by the book," scoffed Paul, "Once I win against that Matt Fudo scumbag and have him arrested, all will be well again."
"I'm telling you you're making a big mistake!" Maria warned, now sounding more urgent, "You're not doing this to make things better, you're doing this to make your damaged ego feel better."
The two police officers argued a bit as they left the stadium lobby.
(elsewhere…)
Later outside the Daily Writer's Group's building during the afternoon, some voices were heard coming from inside the building…
"Haw, I have a special assignment for you," The voice of a man was heard saying.
"Name it, Mr. Robinson!" The voice of Megan requested.
(inside…)
Inside the boss's office, Mr. Robinson, the name of the man, was seated at his desk speaking to Megan about a job he had for her.
"This Saturday is the start of Governor Godwin's Duel Monsters tournament," explained Mr. Robinson, "Angela was originally supposed to cover it, but she had to go on medical leave for a few weeks due to a sprained ankle. After thinking long and hard, I've decided to give you the opportunity to cover the tournament."
"M-Me?" gasped Megan, "I-I mean… No disrespect on you picking me for the job, but this is a really big tournament, sir."
"I know, but I feel I can trust you to report on it," smiled Mr. Robinson, "I'm hopeful that you will give interviews to some of the competitors."
Megan was delighted, "Yes, sir… Thank you, Mr. Robinson!" she exclaimed happily, "I promise I won't let you down!"
"I know you won't."
Wow, talk about a very lucky break for Megan. It looks like she'll be seeing her new friends again real soon.
(elsewhere…)
Inside the New York City stadium later that evening, the security guards were preparing to lock it up for the night. Standing nearby were the same two assistant organizers who Azrael spoke to when he arrived with his three top students.
"Another day has passed," The first man acknowledged.
"Give it another day, and we'll likely have everybody needed for the tournament," The second man added, "Well, want to grab some dinner before we report to Governor Godwin?"
The first man nodded in agreement, but before they both could leave…
"Bonsoir," The voice of a young woman called out, speaking in French.
The two men looked over to see a young woman entering the building. It was Sherry LeBlanc, the same duelist who battled with Carlie the day before. Without her helmet being on, it was shown she had long, waist length blonde hair.
"May we help you, madame?" The second man asked curiously.
"My name is Sherry LeBlanc, and I would like to sign up for this new Duel Monsters tournament," answered Sherry, "I got a personal invitation from Rex Godwin."
"I'm sorry, ma'am, but we're about to close up for tonight, so you might have to wait until-" The first man started to say, but got interrupted.
"I said…" As Sherry spoke, she shot a very cold glare at the two men, "…I would like to sign up."
The two organizers felt intimidated by the blonde-haired young French woman, and so they decided to grant her request without any complaints.
"Consider it done," The second man trembled, taking out a slip of paper.
"That is what I thought," said Sherry, pleased. She signed her full name on the slip of paper, "Get ready, Carlie, we will finish our battle in this tournament."
Adding Sherry to the list that meant fifteen duelists were going to compete in this new tournament. I bet Rex would be pleased to know that only one more duelist would be needed for the tournament to proceed.
(elsewhere…)
Somewhere at city hall later into the night, all was surprisingly quiet. Even the sounds of traffic around the area were not nearly as loud as it usually was during the day.
(inside…)
Inside his office, Rex was busy looking over some forms when he heard a knock on his door.
"Enter," called Rex, not looking up.
The doors opened, and a short, effeminate man walked inside. The man generally resembled a clown or jester. He wore red lipstick, had two red lines running vertically over his eyes, and spiky purple hair. He was dressed in a red coat with a black collar and gold trim, underneath a white shirt with gold lining, gloves, and black and gold boots.
"Governor, I bring you good news," The clown-like man began, ending his sentence with a sinister giggle.
"I'm listening, Lazar," acknowledged Rex, finally looking up.
"There have been a total of fifteen duelists signed up for your tournament," explained Lazar, as he was named, "Once we get one more, the tournament can officially proceed."
"Very good," smiled Rex, standing up from his desk and walking towards the window so he could look out at some of the city, "There is thing that makes me happier though… Among the duelists I have invited to take part, I actually got some of the more famous ones to agree to come."
"Of course, Governor," agreed Lazar, "But I must admit, I am curious to know why you wanted to bring them here to compete. It's not likely for the publicity."
"I have my reasons for," Rex replied, before looking over his shoulder at his assistant, "Now, unless there's anything else you wish to tell me, you may leave now."
"I wish you a good night, sir," bowed Lazar.
With that being said, he turned and left the room, leaving Rex to resume staring out the window at the lovely night sky.
"Yes, I do have my reasons for it," he thought to himself, "I must see…the dragons."
(outside…)
Outside the building, Rex continued to look out the window at the bright moon in the sky. I wonder what he meant by 'see the dragons'? Well, whatever he meant by it, it had to mean something, am I right?