This world of ours is quite a place to live. Since the dawn of time, Earth has continued to evolve as the ages moved onward. It is now the far distant future, about around the year 2025. In this day of age, the cities on Earth have really evolved beyond what they were before and each has become a bustling metropolis where one major franchise has found a way to linked people from all over the world together. And that "major connector" is none other than the card game, Duel Monsters.
Yes. Duel Monsters has tied together so many people and have helped make them what they are now. Just look at so many others that have heed the call before. There were legends like Yugi Muto, Jaden Yuki, Yusei Fudo and Yuma Tsukumo. And then...among all of these great duelists, there's little me.
Hello. My name is Lucian Aurnion and this is the story of how my life changed...after I too picked up a Duel Monsters deck.
~ Forthzia City | Early Morning | Aurnion Residence ~
Our story begins outside one of the many homes along Rieze Street, one of the many roads within the large city known as Forthzia. The house is pretty normal, decorated out in front with rows of planted bushes and flowers. A delivery robot was seen descending up and down the street, tossing the daily newspaper to each house. On the house's side was a mailbox with the name "Aurnion" embedded on the mailbox. As the thrown paper hit against the door and landed on the porch, the door was seen slowly opening and we spy a young teenage boy with short blonde hair strolling outside. He was seen wearing blue and teal checkered pajamas as he rubbed his eyes.
"Oh...the paper came." he yawned. As he bent down to pick up the paper, he soon heard his name being called.
"Good morning there Lucian!"
Lucian turned towards the voice, seeing one of his neighbors coming outside. With a light smile on his face, he waved his hand towards the neighbor.
"Your parents send you out for the paper?" he asked. Lucian chuckled and shook his head.
"No. Not really. They already left for the day. Its just my usual routine." he said. The neighbor chuckled right back.
"Right. I should've remembered that your folks are super busy lately. But, hey. What can you expect from people who work as hard as they do? Your parents are BIG names here in town. You ought to be proud." he said. Lucian nodded.
"Believe me. I am." he said. The neighbor then tipped his hat, wishing Lucian a good day before heading back to his house. Lucian soon followed his example, taking the paper inside before tossing it on the counter in the kitchen. He then made his way towards the fridge, reaching inside to grab a glass of milk.
Yeah. This boring fellow is me, Lucian Aurnion. I'm fifteen years old and mostly live on my own at home. See, my parents are really important figures in Forthzia City. My dad is a scientist who is trying to evolve the way we live here while my mom works at her office job almost all the time. I pretty much mostly see them in the late evening for only a short while or on "special occasions".
With glass poured, Lucian then went on to begin making his breakfast. Once breakfast was made, he took a seat at the table and began to eat. He started to munch when he heard the presence of someone else. He turned to see a middle aged man with short silver hair entering the room.
"Ah. Good morning Lucian. I see you made breakfast for yourself." he said. Lucian nodded.
"I did Eli. Sorry I didn't wake you sooner. I wanted you to take it easy." he said. Eli chuckled in a hearty tone as he approached Lucian's side.
"Now now...you don't need to worry about me. Your parents hired me to help keep things in order around the house in their absence. Besides, you know I'm always an early bird, never a night owl. But I appreciate the kind gesture." he insisted. Lucian lightly smiled as Eli began fishing around the kitchen himself.
Oh yeah. This is Eli, full name: Elliot Verez. He's an aide around the house that my parents hired a few years back. His job is mostly to help keep the house clean, watch out for me, give me helpful advice and such. With how long he's been with us, people would almost say he was our "butler". But I like to think of Eli as...a grandpa I get to spend time with.
~ DUELISTS OF TOMORROW ~
~ A Few Hours Later... ~
We join Eli and Lucian a few hours later, enjoying time together in front of the television as they watched several stories on the news. At this precise moment, the news was talking more about Lucian's father.
"In other news, local scientist, Luke Aurnion, appeared before reporters today to talk more about one of the many projects planned for the people of Forthzia City. He explains how..." the reporter on screen rambled. When Lucian's father appeared on the screen, a little smile came to Lucian's face. Eli quickly took notice before looking back to the screen again.
"Ah yes. Your father certainly gets excited when he talks about his big plans to help benefit the people of this city. No wonder he's been said to be one of the mayor's favorites." Eli said. Lucian nodded.
"Yeah. He's invented all kinds of stuff since he first took up his job at Newtech Industries. Everyone in town practically loves him." he replied. But just then, Eli took notice of Lucian looking down at his twirling fingers.
"Hmm? Something wrong Lucian?" he asked. Lucian quickly glanced to him before shaking his head.
"No. Not really. It's just...I was thinking about...a dream I had last night." he said. This brought a stern look to Eli's face, having already guessed what Lucian was speaking of.
"Let me guess. Does it have something to do with "that" dream again? The one where you're all alone?" he asked. Lucian nodded.
"Yeah. The one where I keep hearing of my parent's big accomplishments echoing around me and how little I've really done to compare." he sighed. Lucian continued twitling his fingers, locking his two hands together.
"Come now Lucian. You're still young in your years. You can't exactly hope to become a big figure as your parents anytime soon." Eli said. Lucian nodded.
"I know that. Believe me. It's just...whenever I have that dream, it makes me want to cry. Sometimes...I wonder if my parents like working more than they do spending time with me. I mean...you see how I rarely get to see them." he said. Eli sighed.
"I agree. They may have hired me to help keep things in order around the house. But...after spending the last five years here, I feel like I've become more of a "parent" to you than either of them. And here I am, constantly reminding them to put aside work to spend time with their son." he said. Just then, he heard a sniffle and glanced his eyes, catching a small tear in Lucian's eye.
"Oh...but what am I saying? Of course your parents love you more than their work. Its just...things have become quite stressful with them ever since they started taking on all the extra work they do." he continued. Lucian wiped the tear from his eye.
"Well, even so, the least they could do...was remember today was my birthday. I mean...this happens each year. They promise they would stick around to spend a day with me...but then work happens." he said. All fell silent as the television continued to play. But just then, Eli reached into his pocket and took out a small envelope, lightly tossing it onto Lucian's lap.
"Hmm? What's this?" Lucian asked. Eli smiled.
"Consider it a birthday gift from me. Maybe receiving a gift would put a smile on that face of yours." he said. Lucian turned to the envelope and opened it up, seeing a few bills inside as well as a small card placed in a foil sleeve.
"What's this? A card?" he thought. Looking at the card, he flipped it over to see the image of a mighty dragon on the other side. It was a Duel Monsters card, its name was Judgment Dragon.
"Wait...is this a Duel Monsters card?" Lucian asked. Eli nodded.
"I know how you started to seem particularly fond of the game as of late. And, well, while I was out shopping yesterday, I couldn't help but catch a glimpse of someone selling it in the marketplace. The clerk told me it was a very rare card. So...I figured that if you ever decided to give the game a try, I wanted to make sure you had one of the best cards as one of your firsts." he said. Lucian looked at Judgment Dragon's card before a smile came onto his face, looking back to Eli.
"Thanks a bunch Eli. That's really nice of you." he said. He then slipped the card back into the envelope before starting back for his room.
"Hmm? And where are you off to in such a hurry?" Eli asked.
"Well, seeing as I finally got my first Duel Monsters card, I think I'll see if I can get a few more...so I can start a collection." he said "I'm gonna go get dressed." With that, he rushed back for his bedroom and closed the door. Eli watched silently before a smile came to his face.
~ DUELISTS OF TOMORROW ~
~ Forthzia Streets | An Hour Later ~
We later find Lucian strolling down the streets around the city, maintaining a smile on his face, as he occasionally waved to people he passed by. He looks down towards his pants pocket, envisioning his wallet of money, full of the funds he saved up after so long. He then took out his Judgment Dragon card, still in its sleeve.
"Eli's gift sure inspired me to finally take up the Duel Monsters game. Heh. Before any of this, I didn't know whether I wanted to take up the game at all. Probably because I was worried that you had to be some kind of "professional" to even think of playing it." he chuckled. Just then, he heard another person's voice nearby, giving a chuckle. It sounded like a girl's voice.
"Nope. You don't need "professional skills" on your resume to start playing Duel Monsters there kiddo."
Turning towards the voice, Lucian spotted a teenage girl, about his age, with shoulder length black hair and bright green eyes. She stood against the side of a nearby building, her arms crossed.
"Oh. Hello there. I suppose you overheard me, didn't you?" Lucian asked. The girl grinned.
"Yeah. Sorta." She smirked with a wink. Just then, she happened to catch a glimpse of the Judgment Dragon card sitting in Lucian's hand, her expression suddenly shifting to surprise.
"N-No way! That kid has Judgment Dragon?! T-That's like one of the most RAREST cards in Duel Monsters! How'd HE get it?!" she thought, glaring on at the card before facing Lucian. But realizing she was giving her thoughts away, she quickly regained her composure.
"Hmm? Something all right?" Lucian asked. The girl shook her head as she approached him, offering a hand out.
"No. Just...thinking of something else. But if you're thinking about becoming a Duel Monsters duelist, you'll probably want a fellow duelist to help ya out. Hey there. I'm Alice, Alice Shiranoi." she said, introducing herself. Lucian smiled back before shaking her hand.
"Cool. Thanks. I'm Lucian Aurnion by the way." he said. This once again brought the surprised look back to Alice's face.
"Wait. Your name's "Aurnion"? Like...THOSE Aurnions? Are you their kid or something?" she asked. Lucian nodded.
"Yeah. Sort of. My mom and dad are the Aurnion that you probably hear a lot about in the news and such." he explained. He continued looking on at Alice's surprised expression as she was abruptly quiet. Just then, she suddenly turned away with her back facing him.
"No way. This is TOO perfect! I'm about to swindle myself a Judgment Dragon card...right under the nose of some wanna-be newbie! And from an "Aurnion" kid no doubt! Oh man! Its so perfect that I wanna cry!" Alice thought. She then felt Lucian tapping at her shoulder, snapping her out of her day dream.
"Uhhh...pardon me again. Are you all right?" he asked. Alice swiftly spun around, facing Lucian again.
"Ah. Sorry about that. Thought I got a text message or something." she answered. But Lucian quickly pointed out how "strange" that was, seeing as he didn't hear a sound or anything. Alice begun to look on fearfully before she swiftly put her arm on Lucian's shoulder.
"Ah! I-It was on quiet mode! I never like hearing those loud ringtones during a conversation." she laughed in a coy tone "A-Ahem. Anyway, seeing as we're both duelists here, let an "old pro" help you out. I know the best place to find some Duel Monster cards so you can make yourself a "primo" deck to go with that card you got there. Whaddya say?" Lucian gasped.
"R-Really? That would be great." he replied. Alice lightly snickered.
"Sure. What's a friend for, right?" she asked. As the two started walking off together, they were watched nearby by another pair of boys, each wearing a duel disk of their own.
"Oh boy. Looks like Alice found another victim for her famous "sneaky snitch" maneuver." one said. The other nodded.
~ A While Later | Forthzia City Park ~
After agreeing to help Lucian with learning the ropes of Duel Monsters, we later find the two together at the park with Lucian looking over all the cards he obtained, using his money and doing some trading, a deck of Lightsworn cards.
"Heh. A boy's savings worth spent. Thanks a lot for helping me pick out the right cards there Alice." Lucian said. Alice smirked.
"Yeah. Well, I know my way around Duel Monster cards. Trust me. With a deck like that, you can't go wrong." she said. But then, she had another sly sneer as Lucian continued looking at his cards.
"Heh heh heh. No way is some NEWBIE skilled enough to use the Lightsworn cards. They're better off in the hands of an ACTUAL person whose played the game long enough to understand them. And soon...the best card among them, his Judgment Dragon, will be coming home with me!"
Lucian picked up a plastic bag nearby, holding a boxed up duel disk that he also purchased at the suggestion of Alice. As he opened the box and slipped out the disk, Alice's sinister smile grew.
"Say, since you've got everything you need to be a duelist, why not play a game with me?" she asked. Lucian glanced over to her.
"Hmm? You...want to duel me?" he asked. Alice nodded.
"Sure. Why not? Heck, I wanna see if you've got the skills or what. In fact, how about we make your first duel a little "interesting"?" she asked. Lucian started to look on in worry.
"W-What do you mean?" he asked. Alice grinned.
"Nothing big really. It's something I like to do with new duelists I help out like such. Its simple. Whoever wins the duel can ask for one favor from the loser. And the LOSER has no choice but to grant that favor, sound good?" she asked. Lucian thought to himself for a while before giving a nod.
"Okay. If its just for fun, I'd be happy to." he said. With that being said, Alice quickly drew out her duel disk and clamped it onto her wrist.
"All righty! Let's see what you got kid! Its time to duel!" she shouted. Lucian nodded as he soon clamped on his duel disk. With a press of a button, their disks were activated and synchronized up with the other one, projecting a digital space around the two duelists. Once the virtual space was constructed, their decks started to shuffle. When they stopped, the two players placed their hands atop their decks.
"Now let's do this!" Alice smirked. Lucian nodded.
"I always wanted to say this." he remarked. With that, they each swiftly drew five cards from their decks.
"Let's DUEL!" they shouted.
DUEL BEGIN!
Lucian Aurnion VS. Alice Shiranoi
4000 - 4000