Chapter two, also known as the only time John and his rival Christopher ever team up with each other! Also also known as the chapter where Pegasus spouts really convenient exposition that really amounts to nothing. Also also also known as padding!
Chapter Two
The Warning
After my loss in the tournament I headed home by bus. It was only 10:30 in the morning. There was still time to catch a couple Saturday Morning Cartoons while I surfed the web for Duel Monsters news. I’d just have to get my rematch with Christopher another time, Oh well.
I got off of the bus down the street from my house and walked the rest of the way home. When I stepped onto my front porch I saw a package with my name on it sitting beside the door. The return address indicated that the package was sent by an old ally of mine, Maxamillion Pegasus, head of the gaming giant Industrial Illusions, and creator of the Duel Monsters Trading Card Game. I frowned as I picked up the package and carried it inside, I wonder what Pegasus wants this time.
I headed upstairs to my room. My mom was home, cleaning up the kitchen. Despite the fact that she was a capable Duelist, I didn’t like bugging her with the kinds of stuff my team and I were always faced with. I didn’t want her to worry, ya know? So I decided to take the package up to my room and open it there, just in case.
I jumped onto my bed, the only place to sit in my entire room, and sat back against the wall, tearing the package open almost before I was settled. It was a video cassette. Of course it’s a video, I thought. What else would it be? Hasn’t Pegasus heard of DVD? Or email?
I stood up and reached across the room, inserting the tape into my VCR. It started playing automatically. I stepped back and sat on the edge of my mattress, waiting anxiously to hear what the whimsical but often-wise Pegasus had to say.
The screen went blue for a second before an image flickered onto it. Pegasus was sitting at a desk, his fingers resting on the desktop. He had an uncharacteristically nervous look in his visible eye. The one not covered by his shoulder-length white hair.
“Greetings my friend,” said the recording. “I’m afraid I have some bad news. But before I give you said bad news, I must tell you a story.”
Huh, I thought, He cut right to the chase. No one-sided banter or bad jokes. This must be serious.
“I recently acquired,” Pegasus said, “a large collection of ancient scrolls. I intended to use these scrolls to help research new material for the Duel Monsters game, but instead I discovered an ancient legend that, according to astronomical evidence, is about to come to fruition. Two massively powerful forces which have been fighting a back and forth battle for ten thousand years are about to fight their final battle.
“According to the legend,” Pegasus continued, “the two forces, one that represents good fortune, and one that represents bad fortune, have been battling periodically for the last ten thousand years. Every one of their battles contributed to the fate of the world until the next time they would meet. Every time that the spirit of misfortune won, the next age was filled with destruction and despair. You of course know of the Dark Ages. Now they are coming up on their one hundredth and final battle. If the evil Divine Dragon defeats his ancient enemy, then the world will be forever shrouded in misfortune!
“From what I can tell,” Pegasus explained, “astrological signs suggest that their final battle, a great Shadow Duel, will take place near your hometown within twenty-four hours of when I made this tape. Its ten P.M. here. You will not get this tape until tomorrow, giving you a window of at most twelve hours in which the battle can begin.
“The spirit of fair fortune will have found a Duelist from our time to wield his power,” said Pegasus, beginning to wrap up. “You must find this Duelist and warn him of the coming battle. It may not make a difference, but I think you will agree that you have to try. I do not know in what form the Divine Dragon will appear, but I do want to warn you that he could easily mistake the power of your Soul for the power of his Ancient Rival. He may come after you first. If he does, do everything in your power to avoid fighting him. It is a battle that you cannot win. Good luck.”
I was speechless. The tape came to a stop and rewound completely before I finally wrapped my head around what Pegasus had said. How was I supposed to find some Duelist that I probably didn’t even know? Pegasus had way too high an opinion of me.
But he’s right, I admitted to myself, I have to try. Even if it ends up that it doesn’t matter, I have to do everything that I can. I have to try to find this Duelist and warn him of what’s coming, and around here, if you’re looking for a Duelist, there’s only one good place to start. I got up and headed out, back to the Game Center.
I had to wait almost thirty minutes for the next bus to arrive, and, of course, the bus took time getting me to where I was going. By the time I reached the stop closest to the mall, I could sense a powerful evil presence in the air. Something strong was coming. A dark cloud rolled in, casting a shadow over the entire area. The Divine Dragon Spirit could arrive at any moment. Naturally I took the distance between the bus stop and the mall at a run.
I ran straight for the Game Center’s outer entrance. You’ll never guess who was walking out the door just as I approached. There in the doorway was my rival, Christopher Johnson. He had dark brown hair and almost yellow brown eyes and he wore a red shirt, dark blue jeans, and a jean jacket tied around his waist.
He smiled and moved to stand in my way. “Well,” he said, “this sure is a pleasant surprise. I was disappointed that you lost. I was looking forward to our rematch, especially since I’m about to leave for a tour along the west coast for the next eight months.”
“Sorry Christopher,” I said, “but I don’t have time for this right now. I’m looking for someone and I have to find them as soon as I can.”
“Okay,” he said, switching his Duel Disk on (LP: 4000). “Beat me and I’ll let you through.”
I guess I don’t have a choice, I thought, switching my Duel Disk on as well. Fighting him would be faster than running around and then through the mall to reach the Game Center from the other side. But before the duel could begin, my Soul sensed the approach of a powerful invisible Duel Monster Spirit. Maybe more than one. I looked around, and I saw them through the power of my Soul. There were four of them standing on the Game Center roof, right behind Christopher. They were a cat-like beast with wings, made of white energy, a wolf-like beast, made of red energy, a large bird, made of gold energy, and a sort of flying lizard, made of blue energy. There was a fierceness about them.
I have to use my Soul to see them. That means Christopher won’t be able to tell that they’re there. I have to convince him to leave before they attack.
“Christopher, I don’t think this is a good time. You should just go.” I glanced up at the Duel Monster Spirits, and Christopher followed my gaze, stepped back, and gasped. He could see them!
“So you can see Duel Monster Spirits too,” he said to me. “I always thought I was the only one.”
“You have to get out of here. They’re after me.”
“Yeah,” said Christopher, his voice dripping sarcasm, “because you’re really that important.”
It was about then that we heard someone approaching us from the parking lot. We turned. A tall man with gray-white hair and incredibly pale skin, wearing a trench coat, stopped twenty yards away. His expression was blank and his eyes were unfocused, and when he spoke it was obvious that the deep intense voice that he used has not his own.
“You are not the one I’m looking for,” the man said, “but you are strong. Tell me where I can find the one with the Ancient Spirits, or die.”
“Sorry,” I said, “but I honestly don’t know."
“Then I will crush you and take your duel energy to increase my own power,” the man said. The four Spirit Monsters jumped down, landing around the three of us at four equidistant points. They reached out with their own energy, creating a sort of energy cage around us, preventing our escape. Then the four Spirits became energy and plunged into the man’s deck.
“This guy’s being controlled by something,” said Christopher, “and I don’t think he’s going to let us go until we duel him.”
“Wow,” I said sarcastically, “you think?”
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