So… This is March.
Usually, what I like most about March is, it isn't February. Problem is that the weather has been bad lately. We had an actual blizzard last night that we have not seen since two Decembers ago, and even worse, it turned into freezing rain at about 6AM.
Times like this I am really glad I use public transportation. Still, it could have been worse. I hear some states west of New England were practically buried in these blizzards and parts of Michigan and Kentucky are without power.
Anyway, you knew it was coming, the obligatory exhibition chapter. I had to use a calculator a lot just designing the "house rules" for this fic; ironically, for such a big fan of this game, I stink at math.
Hope everyone out there has someone to stay close to during this bad winter. Nobody should have to be alone during these times. Stay warm, stay safe.
Chapter Three
He Started to Brainstorm
As you might expect, I didn't sleep well that night.
Now, doctors will often say that when you have insomnia, it's not a good idea simply to lie in bed trying to sleep. You should get up and do something, maybe read or watch television, anything to occupy your mind - supposedly that helps you sleep.
The Hungarian Horntail card was still on the front of my mind, as was the foundation of a deck I might be able to build if, by some miracle, Phil would let me keep it. On a whim, when I got up around 2AM, I decided to start doing just that.
As I started to go through my binders and boxes of old cards (and trust me, I had a lot) it seemed at first more daunting than I assumed. The card's effect depended on Normal Dragon Monsters, and while there was no shortage of those, there wasn't exactly an abundance of them that were useful. Ryu-Ran, Hyozanryu, and Mikazukinoyaiba were Level 7 monsters with barely better offensive power than Alexandrite Dragon (and in the case of the latter, a monster whose name I doubt I could have pronounced) while Parrot Dragon, Crawling Dragon, and Sky Dragon were literally worse than Alexandrite Dragon, despite being mid-level.
Maybe all these old cards would do well in a deck focused around Dragons and Xyzs, but there were much easier ways to summon those, and I figured that I needed some other way to use high-Level Normals before this was truly feasible.
At least I managed what I had intended; after two hours, I felt drowsy enough to fall asleep.
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It was 7:30AM when I woke up. Or rather, when Jenni woke me up using a portable air horn. In case anyone reading didn't get the memo from the last chapter, I had an appointment to get to by 9AM. Phil was rarely very punctual, but on the off-chance he was, I could not be late.
So, after a great deal of expletives on my part, I managed to shower, change, and rush out - skipping breakfast, unfortunately - by eight, pausing briefly as she threw me my backpack on the way out the door. Again, fortunate, as my mobile and wallet were in it. I caught sight of her rolling her eyes as I fumbled to catch it. Hopefully, I would remember to apologize and say "thank you" later. This time, I managed to catch the train, with almost a minute to spare.
Seemed I had mostly avoided the morning commute, as the train wasn't as crowded this time. As I sat down, again in the corner with caution in mind, the mobile inside the backpack rang. When I opened it, I found Jenni had added two protein cereal bars and a 12-ounce bottle of high-caffeine soda.
And she was the one calling right now. My first words when I answered were, "Marry me, Jenni."
"Oh Terone… This is so sudden…"
Of course, I was kidding, and via her tone, I figured she knew that. She quickly got to the point.
"I looked up those cards you asked me about, and yeah, they're real. Sending you a link right now, ever hear of a set called Parallel Reality?"
"Uhm, no." Honestly, I had not.
A chime from the mobile indicated an email message, so I switched to a different window on the screen. An email from the United Nations indicated I had inherited £50 million (again). Ignoring that, I clicked on Jenni's message and then on the link included.
It showed a set that had come out about 10 years previous, and the distinctive picture of Archdemon Zera, Lord of Lies on the package, the cover card of the set. The make-up seemed typical, 80 different cards in the set, one Holographic Rare (the cover card), 8 Ultra Rares, 10 Super Rares, 18 Rares, and 44 Commons.
The list included most of the cards Orville had used, the other Ritual-based Fusions and Zera's Ritual Monster Card among the Ultras, the other Ritual Monsters and Corrupted Summoning among the Supers, with the Ritual Spells among the Rares. The Supers also had some other old Ritual Monsters, like Javelin Beetle and Crab Turtle, while the Rares had both Sengenjin and Seiyaryu. The Commons had a lot of cards that seemed useful for Rituals, like Samsara and Grisaille Prison. The only card new to me was one called Revival of Sennen Genjin. I was about to look that one up when Jenni spoke up again.
"Interesting, huh? Seems they were planning a second booster with these Fusion-Ritual things, but it was canceled. Seems this set was a failure."
"Why's that?"
"Well, the term 'junk rare' comes to mind."
I saw what Jenni meant, and I'm pretty sure everyone who has played this game knows what she meant. The folks who designed these booster packs often had a weird sense of humor, including cards among the Rares that were even worse than the Commons in terms of playability. Monsters like Gil Garth and Sealmaster Meisei, along with Spells and Traps like Localized Tornado and Self-Mummification. Maybe there was an oddball player here and there who could find some use for these cards. In this case, the Ultra Rares were incredibly powerful but incredibly hard to use, a problem cards from Gate Guardian to Metaltron XII have always had.
(I've heard rumors about the Perfectly Ultimate Great Moth that claim there's a combo that lets you summon two of them in the same turn. But even if that's true, they still weren't all-that great, being nothing but offensive beatsticks.)
In short, not many players are going to fork over money for booster packs when the most likely pull is a reprint of an old school Ritual with no effect, even if there's a chance of an upgraded version.
"Did you find anything on this Dragon card?" I asked.
"Not a thing, other than fanmade cards on some websites, and even there, the effects aren't even close to what you described. Of course, about 90% of the cards on these websites are broken and pretty hilarious. You should what they have for Kim Possible alone. One thing I did look up are the dates on public domain works, and no Rowling's books won't pass the line for a few decades."
A chime above indicated the train was getting to my stop. "Maybe later, Jenni. Hopefully, Phil can tell me about this himself."
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The building I was headed for was hard to miss even if you weren't an employee - or in my case, a client. The regional office of Frantisec Enterprises (the region in question being Great Britain of course) was neither the largest nor fanciest building in Southwark, but it still stood out. The company logo at the top of the building was an eye. A violet eye in a white field, similar to the Wise Foods logo but more human, more feminine, and less stern. The initials FE were underneath it. There was a rumor (maybe urban legend) claiming that anyone who approached the building with malicious intent (such as to rob the place) would get an uncomfortable feeling simply looking at that eye, as if something was watching him, warning him not to come further. More extreme versions of the story claimed that if you ignore this warning and succeeded at whatever illicit act you planned in this building, the eye will continue to haunt you, watching your every move and promising all sorts of terrible retribution - arrest and imprisonment, falling victim to an "accident", having your credit rating slashed…
While I never put much stock in such rumors, it would be no surprise if it were true. Frantisect Enterprises was a very big company, with a hand in all facets of media. It owned major newspapers in every major city in North America and Europe, owned over a dozen cable television networks, syndicated radio, films, website services, software design, online video games, you name it. Naturally, they also sponsor participants of competitive sports and events of all varieties, including pro duelists like myself.
The owner is Josephine Frantisect, a woman who claims in her autobiography (required reading during the training seminar) to be the great, great, great, great granddaughter of the company's founder, a woman referred to simply as Mabel. Supposedly, Mabel was a classic success story, an orphan girl who stowed away upon a freighter, arrived in America with nothing but the clothes on her back, started selling newspapers on a street corner for pennies, eventually founding a small town newspaper, which grew into a media empire spanning the globe.
I've only seen Ms. Frantisect in person only once. It was at a competition where she wanted to personally congratulate the winners of a series of exhibition matches against another corporate sponsor (I think she may have made a wager with their CEO). She was beautiful and intimidating at the same time, nearly six feet tall, with dusky skin and nearly floor-length platinum blonde hair tied in a ponytail. She wore dark glasses, despite the event happening at night; I've heard others comment that she is never seen without them.
The strangest part about that event was a disclosure form everyone had to sign - we had to promise not to use any Reptile-Type cards during the event and would be disqualified and fired on the spot if we violated this rule. Strange, right? But while I may have been a "n00b" at the time, I wasn't about to argue with the boss.
But, I'm rambling, I wasn't there to meet with her, but rather someone much lower on the corporate ladder. He was someone I had associated with rather often, but was just as strange.
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I actually got to Phil's office five minutes early. A rather spacious and comfortable place, with a mahogany desk and a leather chair facing a sofa and coffee table where his clients were supposed to wait.
He wasn't there at the moment, and something I noticed was the coffee table, which was covered with books and DVDs of movies. I perused the titles. They included Jaws, Gone With the Wind, Back to the Future, Dune, and a book which I certainly had read many times, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
Well, that was weird. It seems Phil had put out some incredibly popular films and novels of many genres. I assume he wanted to use them as visual aids, but I had no idea why - at the moment.
"Hey, Terone, how ya doin', how ya doin'?"
Well, he seems happy, I thought.
Like I told you, while I saw Phil at least every two weeks, he was someone I knew very little about. He seemed the typical executive at first glance. He was about fifty years old or so, always wore a suit and tie that looked both expensive and very uncomfortable. But the aftershave he wore was likely even cheaper than the stuff I used.
I'd been to his house once, for a New Year's Eve party, a townhouse in Soho. The place certainly looked expensive, but most of it was empty, not much furniture at all, and clearly big enough for a large family. If Phil has any family at all, I've never seen them. Another client at the party told me Phil had gotten the place dirt cheap because a serial killer had lived there. (It does seem like urban legends about this company are common among its employees.) Point I'm making is, Phil often seemed to be pretending he was richer and higher on the social ladder than he actually was, but exactly why, I had no clue.
Phil wasn't the only one who had come in. There was also an older, larger looking man wearing a similar suit with a dour expression. I'll get to him later, but I quickly forgot he was there, due to the other man who had come in. I had no idea who he was, but he was indeed someone who would stand out.
He was tall, slightly taller than I was, wore a pink shirt and black trousers with suspenders, along with a red necktie with polka dots. He wore glasses and had bushy, black hair, with what was likely an entire bottle of hairspray applied. I was used to seeing folks with a bizarre sense of fashion (I'm a pro duelist, after all) but rarely in public.
"Terone, saw the duel last night," started Phil. "Kinda sorry we couldn't broadcast it, you were superb!"
"Why thank you," I said, with a clear sarcasm tone. "I suppose you know how the card got in my deck?"
"Don't blame Orville, okay? He was doing me a favor."
"You know him?"
"His daughter is going to marry my niece. Look, no harm, no foul, right? Yes, it was sort of a test run, but would you have gone out and used that card if we had asked you?"
"So, this thing isn't a legal card?"
"Technically, no, it isn't," said the oddly dressed man, "not yet, anyway."
"Ahem, Terone Brickman," said Phil, "I'd like you to meet Manuel Manute."
As was proper, I suppose, I stood up and offered my hand, and the strange man grabbed it and gave a very enthusiastic handshake. "Pleased to meet you!" he exclaimed. "Call me, Manny, everyone does."
"Uh…"
"Now, Terry - mind if I call you Terry? - short question. What do you know about show business?"
"Only that there's no business like it. No business I know."
I had meant that as a joke, of course, and I was completely unprepared for him to grab me with an aggressive hug. "I love this kid already!" he laughed.
I'd have yelled for help, but knowing Phil, he likely had the exits covered. I might have told him (in so many words) that the feeling was definitely not mutual, had I been able to breathe at that moment.
As he let go, he stated, "I'm guessing you're wondering just who the hell this guy in front of you is and why he's here?"
"Well… yes…" I gasped.
"Well, I'm a… negotiating intermediary who provides an introductory assessment of proposals of media endeavors."
"He's a pitchman," added Phil.
I nodded in reply. Jenni had taught me a thing or two about interpreting "doublespeak". Still, it seemed like Manny was rather proud of this translated description of his job.
"Exactly!" he exclaimed. "You see, Terry, every movie, book, television program, video game, and whatnot starts with an idea, and it goes through many steps. Writing out the script, now that's the easy part. Selling the script, that is the hard part, and it's where the pitch comes in. Sit down, let me explain exactly just how a pitch works."
I had known Manny for about three minutes, and while my first impression of him was that he was an annoying person with no sense of personal space, I had to admit, I was curious now.
"Say you're an up-and-coming screenplay writer and you've put out some low-budget flicks with limited release. You've written something that you think is worthy of a higher budget with better release, so you figure you'll sell it to a moderately successful movie studio. You figure, if you make a name for yourself, then someday you can sell to the big folks in Hollywood. So, you type out a hard copy, and that's where I come in. My job is to get them to like this idea.
"See, making the pitch is a two-part process, and the first is the actual pitch itself. I go into meeting with the guys in charge, and I describe the idea. I go into detail about what the plot is, who the characters are, who the target audience is, and I make it sound as wondrous, thrilling, and exciting as possible, telling them why folks are going to line up in droves - and pay $15 a ticket - to see this movie!" He stopped, holding up his hands to his eyes to emphasize. "I'd tell them, 'This is going to be the biggest thing sinceSpielberg made Raiders of the Lost Ark!' I'd be exaggerating, sure, but I have to get their attention, here!"
"I should say so."
"Then, however, I get to the part I don't like, which is where I explain… The cost. Here I have to tell them what the budget will likely be, price of props, sets, special effect, actors' salaries, all that stuff. These folks aren't going to invest in a project unless they're very sure it will make a profit, especially since the projected budget is always less than how much it actually costs. Seriously, I've never worked on a project that stayed within budget. And they know this is a concern because for every movie that actually is the best thing since Raiders of the Lost Ark, there's gonna be about ten that are the worst thing since John Carter of Mars."
That was very hard to believe; I had actually watched that once, as I figured a movie with such a high budget might at least be "so bad it's good". It was… okay, but clearly not worth the astronomical cost.
"But sometimes, sadly, the bad decision works the other way, and the pitchman is pitching a great idea, but doesn't pitch well enough." Manny picked up the copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. "You're a fan of this book, so I've heard."
"Damn straight!"
"Well I assume you know how hard it was for the author to actually turn this idea into a reality."
He did indeed have a point there. J.K. Rowling's first novel was rejected by twelve publishers; most said the book was too long and that teenagers didn't like books with such length. In fact, even the company that eventually did accept it had serious doubts. The editor in charge of critiquing it brought chapter one home with him, where his eight-year-old daughter read it - and proceeded to nag her father incessantly for the second chapter. That was when, it seemed, the publisher realized that maybe those other twelve publishers had made a mistake.
Heh, possibly the funniest anecdote of all was how Rowling was interviewed by a critic working for a local newspaper shortly after the book had its first printing, and at the end of the interview, she gave the critic a signed copy of the book as a gift. After she had left, the critic threw it away, thinking it would be a failure - little did he know he had just thrown away a signed, first edition printing of the fourth-most successful book in history, which just a year later would be worth £67 thousand.
"All these books and movies almost never saw the light of day." Manny waved his hand over the assorted literature on the coffee table. "Here, see this one?"
The book he was pointing to now was one that really brought back memories, Dr. Seuss' first published work, To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street.
"Twenty-seven. That's how many times the good doctor tried to publish it, and after the 27th failure, he was ready to give up. He left his home with the manuscript intending to burn it, when by pure chance, he ran into an old friend who had just opened his own publishing business…"
I had honestly not known that. In fact, I had no idea this was true for most of these books. "Well, I guess… God moves in mysterious ways."
"Obviously, all of these eventually saw public release, but sometimes you have to wonder how many authors weren't so lucky, how many excellent stories never got a chance because nobody would take that risk."
Of course, what Manny was saying was interesting and all, but he had not yet explained one important thing. I cleared my throat and said, "Is there a point to all this?"
Phil was the one who answered now. "Glad you asked. That card in your deck is a prototype for what we hope to be the first crossover in Duel Monsters history, and what you have is one of many."
"There's going to be a whole archetype of cards based on Harry Potter?" I gasped. Maybe this would be worth it after all.
"Oh, more than that Terry! Much, much more!" Manny grabbed hold of me again, lifting his right arm for a dramatic pose. "We call it… Duel Monsters BLOCKBUSTER!"
I fell back on the couch gasping for air. "Medic…"
"I like this kid even more! Are you a fan of fighting video games? Like the old Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat titles?" I nodded, and he went on. "Maybe then, you've heard of the old Capcom vs franchise?"
I had indeed…
Those old fighting games started with one that had X-Men characters and then one that expanded with other Marvel characters. But both had unlockable secret characters, the first from Street Fighter 2, the second from Darkstalkers.
Then Capcom figured they'd make a game that nixed the "secret" part and made spin-offs featuring both Marvel and Street Fighter characters, then added other Capcom characters. Then they expanded, making games with Capcom characters and characters from their rival, SNK (fighters from King of Fighters, Samurai Shodown, and Art of Fighting).
Eventually, it got to the point where you could pit any popular character from Marvel Comics and any video game character not owned by Nintendo against another (and Nintendo had its own version of this). Arthur the Knight Warrior could fight Magneto, Albert Wesker could fight M. Bison, it was all possible in this world-gone-mad crossover. Of course, it was hard to think of a logical reason why Wesker would be fighting M. Bison, but who cared? It was fun!
And as I was wrapping my mind around this idea that strangely made sense now, Manny continued his explanation.
"You see, Terry, the hardest job for a pitchman like myself occurs when a project involves copyrighted material, which requires special contracts called licensing deals. Simply putting music belonging to other artists in a movie is an expensive headache that nobody looks forward to. But about ten years ago, someone at I2 with infinite patience, I would assume, called my agency with an offer to handle what may be the most daunting task we have ever pursued.
"That card you hold is part of a project that has been over a decade in the making, Terry, and I'm only one of a larger team employed by both I2 and KaibaCorp, who -"
"I thought those two companies hate each other."
"They do! But convincing them to work together was only the first part. The project they proposed requires cooperation from several Fortune 500 companies, all of whom are only willing to even consider such an alliance if it promises incredible profit. If you think getting them to come to the table is difficult, you should have seen how hard it was with Disney."
"Get out!" I shouted.
"No joke, Terone," said Phil, "this was ten years of living hell for everyone involved. Your job in this may be the easiest, you simply have to… well, do your job."
I was starting to get the picture. "So, the idea is for me to use this card and be a beta tester and promoter?"
"In a nutshell, yes, but like we said, you're not the only one. In fact, we fully expect a lot of your opponents in the next month to be using these prototype cards."
Which meant, of course, Frantisec wasn't the only sponsor that was in on this. It made sense - neither I2 nor KaibaCorp would show favoritism towards any one group of pro duelists, at least not publicly.
"So, uh, what's my motivation here?"
"A 30% raise, and a 5% cut of profits acquired by FE from this endeavor, should it be deemed successful. I should also point out, Mr. Brickman, that the schedules for the next quarter will not be made until this promotion is over."
That comment had come from the third man in the room, and I was startled by his sudden comment but not surprised. Raymond M. Trask was a man who had made a reputation of being unnoticed.
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I wish I could say more about Mr. Trask right now. After all, he was Phil's boss, and by extension, mine, but as I said, it was often hard to notice him. When he was noticed, he was a large, imposing man with gray hair, and unlike Phil, his suit was unmistakably expensive and custom made, probably Italian. While he was overweight, he wasn't sloppy-fat, having a bulky, solid build. He never smiled.
And that was all I knew for sure. I think he was the regional CEO (I wasn't very learned in business titles) but that was all I knew. Well, other than the notion that he was a typical high-ranking executive, meaning I certainly knew what his motivation was. Much like any other corporate shark, he knew what worked, having given me a bribe and a threat in the same breath.
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"So, when exactly does this little shindig start?"
"Five days, meaning you have that long to decide. Phil?"
Phil nodded, producing a manilla envelope and handing it forward. "That has all the instructions you should need, I suggest you get acquainted with it. You are dismissed."
Not like I was all too keen on staying. However, when I sat up and went to get my coat, he added one more thing:
"Incidentally, Mr. Brickman, don't lose that card. It is not yours, not yet anyway, nor is it ours. These prototypes are being lent to the participants. However… Given how this goes, that might change."
"I will guard it with my life!" I said, resisting the urge to salute.
Of course, I did not mean that as hyperbole, I wanted this card, I wanted it badly. And like the man had said, the only job I had was doing my job.
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"This is a lot to take in," muttered Jenni.
"These people are eccentric, Jenni, they feel like they have to do eccentric shit to stay relevant."
The envelope had a DVD, along with a card case and a stamped envelope. It seemed this was the way I was to return the card if I decided not to participate. Very little chance of that happening.
"Just wish more of them would follow Howard Hughes' example and just build giant airplanes out of wood. Well, might as well get this over with." I took the DVD, placing it in the appropriate slot under the television. As I went to sit back down on the sofa where Jenni was, I noticed she had somehow produced a bag of potato chips.
The video started, beginning with a splash shot of a purple screen followed by the company logo spinning into view. A woman walked onto the screen from the left, none other than Josephine Frantisec herself; or rather I would assume, a computer rated generated image of her. She was smiling, her arms crossed over her chest.
"Welcome, duelist!" She beamed. Welcome to the latest and I hope greatest new mechanic in the world of duel monsters at an intro celebration that we call -" she struck a pose, much like Manny had, and the title appeared behind her in big silvery letters "- Duel Monsters BLOCKBUSTER!
"We've pulled out all the stops, spared no expense, and for the next three months, the magic of the Solid Vision hologram system will allow your favorite characters to come to life! Whether they're from the silver screen, small screen, digital screen, or no screen at all, they will face each other in an epic showdown to discover who is superior!"
As she continued to speak, dozens of screens passed behind her, each showing an iconic scene from a famous movie or TV show, or video game. I recognized a few of the characters at least, Darth Vader, the Ghostbusters, Beetlejuice, Samurai Jack, Dick Tracy, Doctor Who, Spider-Man, even Mario and Luigi… Were all these characters included?
"What happens when RoboCop confronts Predator? Can Rambo bring down Skeletor? Will Pac-Man find Lara Croft hard to swallow? Time to find out!"
Phil and Manny had been wrong. This promotion was not as big as they claimed. It was a hundred times bigger.
"First of all, I'll state the obvious rule. In order to progress in our little contest, you have to duel. Simple right? And of course, you have to duel with the card you have been given, which for now, we will refer to as a Blockbuster Monster Card. In fact, you must keep this card in your decks at all times, no exceptions. This may sound a little strict, but trust me, you want to have it there.
"You may have noticed an added feature there in the lower left corner, which all Blockbusters have. This feature will look familiar to any fan of RPG video games, it's an XP bar. Whenever you defeat a proper opponent in this event, your special card will gain experience! And in gaining experience, it gains Experience Tiers, which is our term for 'Experience Levels', just so we won't confuse it with Level Stars. The maximum Experience Tier is 10 for your main Blockbuster, and each time it gains an even-numbered Tier, you'll be able to upgrade the card with one of a variety of new Monster Effects!"
Whoa, I thought. Jenni seemed to see it too, pushing the bag of chips towards me so I could grab a handful.
"You may have noted, by the way, that I said you had to duel a proper opponent. You can't simply go and find some ten year old newbie and expect your Blockbuster to advance very far. This event will use a system that, again, RPG fans will recognize as a type of scaled leveling, based on how powerful your deck is."
How do you rate the "power" of a deck? I thought, but she answered the question quickly. Behind Josephine, an enlarged version of the card Sangan was posted up.
"The power of a card is based on a system that we call Deck Points, or DP for short, and is measured in three factors, each factor given a rating of one to ten. The Rarity of the card, the Usefulness of the card, and the Notoriety of the duelist using it. This particular card is incredibly common, so in the first category, it only rates a 1 there, but then again, it is useful in pretty much any deck that uses any monsters with lower Attack Scores than 1,500, but there are a few that don't, so it would rate 8 in the second category. For Notoriety, this means the success rate of the duelist, as per fame and win/loss/draw ratio. To give an example there, let's use another card along with the duelist using it."
Sangan's card turned around, revealing a far more powerful one, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. A portrait appeared next of a duelist anyone who had even touched a Duel Disk had heard of.
"Seto Kaiba, CEO of KaibaCorp and inventor of the Duel Disk, along with his well-known signature card. Now, when he is using his own ace card, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon would rate about an 8 in Usefulness, because as powerful as it is, it is still a Normal Monster. With only three of these cards in circulation, it would definitely rank 10 in Rarity, and in Notoriety, a full 10, seeing as this is Kaiba we're talking about. However, if you were somehow able to convince him to let you borrow it, it would only rate about a 5, because, let's face it, you're no Seto Kaiba."
Fair enough, I thought.
"Plus, its rating in the Usefulness category would drop to about 4," she snapped her fingers, and several other cards - Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, Burst Stream of Destruction, Kaibaman, and paladin of White Dragon - appeared in smaller form over it - "because he has a lot of cards he uses to support it. These cards would also score high on DP as well, making Kaiba's deck one of the most powerful in existence."
No kidding.
"But I'm sure that doesn't come as a surprise. All three DP scores of a card are averaged, and then all DP of all cards in the deck are combined and averaged, resulting in the overall DP of the deck. Thus, to give a theoretical example, let's say a duelist with 40 cards in the main deck plus 15 in the Extra Deck with all 55 cards having a DP of 5 in each category. Each card would have a DP of 5 and consequently a deck with a DP of 5. A proper opponent for this duelist would be anyone with a DP of 3 to 7, anywhere from 2 below to 2 above. A victory over a lower ranked duelist would be too easy, while any higher would be, how should I put this, suspicious.
"Whatever the case, the amount of experience your Blockbuster gets is proportionate to the power level of your opponent. Should your opponent have and use a Blockbuster of their own, the amount is doubled, and that is doubled again if your Blockbuster defeats another!
"One thing I should point out is that Blockbuster cards all have 10 DP in all three categories, meaning the one you have will already increase your deck's DP substantially. For example, if your deck has 10 cards with a DP of 7, 5 with a DP 8, and the rest the average DP of 5, which would apply to most pros of your caliber. Replacing one of the 5 DP cards with that same Tier 6 Blockbuster would increase the DP from 5.90 to 5.96; while that doesn't seem like an awful lot, it can grow fast, and that is only with one Blockbuster.
"Oh, did I mention? You can earn more than one Blockbuster card!"
I'd heard enough, I didn't want to wait five days, I wanted to find an opponent now. But seeing as I couldn't, I continued to listen - and what I heard next did douse my enthusiasm slightly.
"Nuh-uh-uh!" she said, shaking her finger. "This is the hard part! To make this more interesting, you gain additional Blockbuster's using the ante rule!"
"Say what?" asked Jenni.
Once again, it seemed like this recorded image of Josephine responded in kind. "Don't get carried away, I'm not about to turn this into a full-fledged gambling fiasco. To gain a Blockbuster, you must wager another Blockbuster. Since these cards are rentals, so to speak, there's no real risk involved. You can still challenge other pros with Blockbusters so long as you have one yourself. Of course, you're only starting with one, so the beginning of this event will require the most caution on your part. An old saying where I come from is, 'For one to rise, another must fall'.
"Putting additional Blockbusters in your deck is optional, unlike your main Blockbuster. Winning one from another duelist causes it to automatically lose all its XP and its Tier is reduced to 1, but its DP value is still a full 10. When two or more Blockbusters are used in a duel, the XP gained is pooled and then divided equally between them. Because less XP is needed to advance in lower Tiers, and XP is shared by Blockbuster cards, additional Blockbusters can rise in Tier fast, but only to a maximum of Tier 6.
"I should remind you, these cards are not part of any specific archetype, but you may yet find ways to get them to support each other in a duel.
"By now, you're likely wondering just how to find your opponents in this contest. Well, no specific venue has been set, believe it or not. Some might call this an embellished version of the old Battle City, but this event goes beyond one city." She snapped her fingers, and a Mercader projection world map appeared behind her, pinpoints of blue lights appearing where major cities would be. "This event encompasses the entire world! In fact, if you can find an opponent in outer space, then by all means!
"Twenty-four hours before the start of this event, we'll be emailing you information on how to download a special app onto your mobile devices, which I do believe all of you possess. To find an opponent, use the queue feature on this app, and it will find the closest proper opponent who is also using the queue. Or, if you know a specific duelist you'd like to battle, a different feature on that app will let you deliver a challenge.
"Now naturally, due to the ante rule, it won't be long before the available proper duelists become more widespread, and the nearest available queues might be in another city, nation, or even continent. Now you're probably saying right now, 'Wait a minute Josephine, I'm not as rich as you are, I can't afford to jet set around the globe at a moment's notice!'
"Of course, you won't be required to do so, although if you can, you're welcome to. Still, if you can't, we do have another method to arrange such duels. But that won't be an issue until your main Blockbuster is high level and you're well up the ladder on our little competition.
"One more thing, there will be rewards at the end, and the better you do, the better you'll be rewarded. In fact… You may even be able to keep that card we gave you!"
The logo for Duel Monsters BLOCKBUSTER! appeared again with flashing lights, and Josephine again crossed her hands with her smug smile. "Good luck, duelist! Remember, we're counting on you, so do us proud!"
"Well, uhm, interesting," said Jenni. "What do you think her stake in this really is?"
I stood up, suddenly realizing that the breakfast bar I'd eaten six hours ago and that handful of potato chips was all I'd had to eat all day. "Probably made a bet with the other syndicate bigwigs, maybe she plans to meet with them at Sardi's or the Jackrabbit Lounge, where they have to treat the one whose pros do the best. Do we have any of those leftover chicken wings left?"
"I assume you're going to do it?" she asked.
"What, like I have a choice? But this is pretty amazing. Glad I have five days to take it all in."
"Well, we'd best get started again on revamping the deck, right?"
I almost choked on the bite of chicken I had just taken. Oh crud, I totally forgot about that!
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Five days later…
I woke up that morning to a rather distinctive smell. "Oh brother," I muttered. Jenni was making her famous creme brulee French toast.
This type of French toast was made with Karo syrup, brown sugar, and heavy cream, making it even less healthy for breakfast than those Sugar Blasted Fruity Kabooms that my niece was always asking me to get from the store. Plus, Jenni and I had an agreement, whenever one of us cooked something for the two of us using a piece of cookware that had to be hand washed, the other had to wash it. Cleaning hardened sugar off of a skillet wasn't a task I looked forward to.
Still, I couldn't complain, she only made it for special occasions. Today certainly qualified.
As I sat up, I picked up the deck case on the side of the bed. Jenni and I had spent all the available time we had working on it, and I was still anxious that it may not have been enough. I had been sparring with GLaDOS and Jenni herself, taking time occasionally to swap cards until my win-loss ratio was almost even. The deck I had wasn't perfect, but I was as ready as I'd ever be.
It was 8AM - the app instructions claimed the actual event started at 10, but I could use the queue system an hour in advance…
I hate waiting…
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"Slow down!" Jenni was starting to sound like my mother, I even recognized the tone. "I don't want to have to call the paramedics again. If you start to choke."
I rolled my eyes. "You just had to bring that up."
"So, do you have any opponents in mind?"
I was about to answer - after all, there were a lot of folks I assumed were in this competition and was anxious to go up against a few of them - but then a chime on my mobile indicated it was 9AM.
"A few," I said, "but for now, let's run this new deck up the flagpole and see if anyone salutes it."
I hit the icon, and a pop-up with the word "Searching" next to a swirling circle came on the screen, above "Est. Wait time, 10 minutes."
"That should be just enough for a quick change of wardrobe," said Jenni.
Indeed it was, and I had a special closet for that one purpose. Pro Dueling was as much about theater as it was about competing, much like pro wrestlers, and while the monsters were the true stars of the match, the duelists needed a lot of "pizzazz" to make an impression. (But I will swear on my Duel Disk that no, the duels are not scripted with specific outcomes in mind, something most pros have been accused of.) I was no different.
A secret I will share with you now, most of my "Duelist of Hogwarts" outfit is a hand-me-down from my father, who originally used it as a Sith Lord costume and wore it to a science-fiction convention when he was in college. (My mother claimed he looked "ridiculous", but I can only assume that is true, as I believe he burned all the photographic evidence.) It consisted of tight trousers, gloves, and boots, and a looser tunic with a sash all of it black. The cloak was the part I had added later, a long, black cloak with gold clasps (not real gold, of course) and a hood with a widow's peak.
Seriously, when that short, loudmouthed woman in The Incredibles warned the hero about capes, she knew what she was talking about, you'd have to be an idiot to try to fight in this awkward, unwieldy thing. Still, it's dramatic, and because I wouldn't have to actually fight in it, that's what matters.
"How do I look?"
"Like a total geek," said Jenni. Of course, she was a self-proclaimed geek herself, so I took that as a compliment. "I'm sure you can -"
Then, the mobile chimed. It seemed the queue had finished.
I nervously picked up the phone and looked at the results. The anxiety I was feeling went away quickly. "Oh, for the love of -"
"What?"
I turned the phone towards her so she could see. My first opponent for Duel Monsters BLOCKBUSTER? Monty Haile.
So, who exactly was this Monty Haile person? Well, we'll find out next chapter, where Terone's first "official" Blockbuster duel starts.
Before anyone asks, some of the characters Josephine mentioned in that video will probably appear in card form, but not all. While I'm not going to ask for submissions, I welcome ideas. Drop a review or PM if you have any.
Oh, and by the way if anyone here is wondering what the three books more successful than Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone are, they would be (not counting religious scripture, which are omitted from bestseller lists for convenience) Don Quixote, A Tale of Two Cities, and The Little Prince.
