Yu Gi Oh!: East Academy

The year is 2055. Israel's eighty-year-long war with the Palestinians has ended seven years ago with the 'Ottamna Accords. Peace and prosperity followed — the Israelis were finally able to focus on peaceful applications of sciences, culture and the like, as well as exchange ideas and technology with their Arab neighbours.
Duelling became a popular sport again, having been mostly ignored while the war lasted. After seven years of peace, the renowned philanthropist Avrum Rozen donated a large sum of money to the until-then largely dormant East Duel Academy to facilitate the resumption of its activities, on the condition that he'll be its headmaster.
Its board of directors — complimented by his interest — agreed, and he took control over it, completely refurbishing its infrastructure and recruiting new staff members, both duelling tournament winners and people he knew would be good teachers.
That was a year ago. It is now September 1st, and East Academy's students are arriving — first, by plane, to Ben Gurion airport, where they are directed to East Academy's lounge, then group-by-group, by private jet to East Academy's complex, hidden in the searing heat of the Negev Desert.
The last group, however, encountered an unexpected problem...

---

The short, stocky woman – her grey hair revealed that she wasn't exactly young — tapped her microphone, causing feedback to echo through the spacey lounge.
“Excuse me,” she said, her voice ringing from the multitude of speakers installed in the room. “It seems that the jet that was supposed to fly you to East Academy had encountered a technical problem and will be running late. I do apologise, and I will inform you at the moment the helicopter will be ready, or when they'll tell me the jet is fixed. Meanwhile, the duelling field is at your disposal.”
She sighed, turned the microphone off, and headed toward the lounge's bar. Of course, it did not serve alcohol, but she needed something to drink.
You're free to start duels, interact, whatever. The characters already have their duel disks.

The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground

Thumbing through the cards of his trusty deck, Justin didn't seem particularly anxious. Then again, why should he be? He was guaranteed to have a ton of fun at the academy. Sure, he could hardly be called a great duelist, but what did that matter? The whole point of this game - and any game, really - was to have fun! Playing to win was just a secondary objective for Justin.

...Though one win every once in a while didn't hurt.

Finished with looking over his familiar cards, Justin got to his feet, putting his cards away. If they were going to be here for a while... well, might as well check out the duel arena, see if there was an opponent available.

Mort sighed as he looked up at the clock, before adjusting his bag and pulling out his deck. He began thumbing through the cards until he reached King of the Skull Servants. Standing off to the side, away from most of the other people in the room, he stared at the card for a while in silence as he leaned against the wall.

'We'll be at the Duel Academy soon...' he thought to himself, 'After that... I guess we'll just have to see how things go, won't we?'

This could have been some deep and thought-provoking statement about myself, but that would be too much work to come up with.

"Do you really think... your adherence to winning above all else gives you respect?" the man gritted out as he slowly and painfully pulled himself standing, knees shaking, and the Duel Disk glowing fainter and fainter.

Five hundred Life Points, and his opponent had a full field of powerful monsters. Would Nagare Ryota's Cinderella run end here?

"Your light may be strong... but as long as I have the Will of Evolution in me, I will find a way!" he bellowed, going into the draw phase of his final turn.

And then... black lightning crackled, the heavens grew dark, and the Pro League were witnessing their most talented Duelist, the Lightsworn master Argyle...

Reggie opened his eyes.

The first night at Duel Academy East, and I dream of that moment again, he thought. He did admire Edo Phoenix and his casual, almost professional manner in taking on all comers and winning most of the time.

However, deep in his heart, there was one moment that shone through.

When an unknown entrant waltzed into the Pro League's free tournament with a deck what was previously thought to be... well, evil... it was a sight to behold.

The man wielding the frightening full potential of the Cyberdarks - Nagare Ryota - had carved a path of victories to a deciding bout with the reigning champion - and nigh-unbeatable - Lightsworn master.

What had followed was the most awe-inspiring reversals of all time, and the repercussions were being felt to this day.

Reggie grinned. It was because of Nagare Ryota going beyond the impossible and summoning the most powerful of all the Cyberdarks, with a voice that made even the earth itself tremble... the thought that you could take a winning deck and ride on its fame immediately died on the vine.

He had been seven years old when that happened, and it was only during the boat ride to the Duel Academy that he truly began to understand what the legend said about the Will of Evolution.

As he prepared for the new day, he checked his belongings, put together the Deck that he had worked on for so long, and gave a silent prayer that he would go through this part of his life with the professionalism of Edo Phoenix... and the flaming passion of Nagare Ryota.

His purple eyes hardening in resolve, Regulus Gale took up his things and walked to his first class of the day.

Yes, this is a reference to the other character/NPC I wanted to insert. And yes, the custom cards I was planning to add were Cyberdark support cards. Anyway, it's not relevant for now; just a little peek into my character's motivation.

edited 2nd Sep '12 5:19:33 AM by Nitramy

Neither goony beard-men nor rainbow-haired she-twinks will stand in the way of my dreams!

A boy stood in the back of the group, slightly hunched over. This made him appear even shorter than usual, but it never hurt to remain in the shadows for the moment. Being trapped in an airport wasn't the worst thing that could happen. Plenty of wealthy tourists. Wealthy tourists who likely didn't speak the native tongue of security guards. The boy's face lit up with a cheeky grin. His beady black eyes scanned for his first target. He would strike swiftly and silently. His nimble fingers danced to warm themselves up for the task ahead.

A few moments later, Jacques was dancing through a crowd, trying to stuff a thick brown wallet into one of his many short pockets. Unfortunately for the thief, his motions had not gone undetected and the gentleman who owned the wallet was charging after him.

Crap, thought the fifteen-year old, looking back to see the man closing in on him. My skills must have gotten rusty over the flight here... To compound matters, Jacques momentary lapse in focus caused him to trip and bump into another student.

"OOF!" was the sound Jacques made in the moment of realization as he bounced off and landed on the cold, hard floor.

I'm going to let you guys figure out which one of you he bumped into.

"Evii is right though" -Saturn "I didn't know you were a bitch Evii." -Lior Val

While most of the students were looking though their cards, getting to know their classmates, or even sleeping, there is one student who is a little different. To all outside appearances, the fifteen year old known as Roxas Lionheart was talking to a wall. It looks like he's having a full blown conversation, he's waving his arms wildly in what is probably an attempt to help others better understand whatever point he's trying to make, his tone is constantly changing in pitch, he's even leaving gaps in his speech for others to talk.

"Oh please, everybody knows Aster Phoenix could beat Kaiba even if he had both hands tied behind his back. (A loud and sharp growl filled the air, unheard by all but Roxas.) What do you mean what's wrong with me, what's wrong with you? You can't even speak english. You're all like I am a dragon my vocal cords cant possibly make all those noises. You're just lazy aren't you? (A low, rough growl comes out this time, and lasts for a good 3 minutes. Roxas sighs and shakes his head a little. Roxas frowns. Not a lot, but enough to be noticeable.) You're right, I am a little nervous. It's just that, well we are sort of new at this aren't we. All the other students here must have a ton of experience. They've probably been doing this their entire lives. What if, what if were not good enough and we get kicked out. (A soft noise comes out this time. It sounds less like a growl and more like a hum. It feels comforting. A determined look comes to Roxas's face and a small smile makes an appearance.) You're right. These thoughts, these thoughts of defeat and failure have no place inside of my soul. There just distraction's. There chains weighing down my soul and preventing us from moving forwards. Only the limitless sky above should be in our thoughts. If we want to proceed from here we have to get stronger. We should go to the dueling field."

Upon reconfirming his desire a giant grin came upon Roxas's face and he began to jog to the duel arena. With the passions of his soul reignited, Roxas is excited for the future.

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Art leaned back, thinking about this Duel Academy East, namely about what he could learn. He did make sure to register as Art Caltenrich so no repeats of the middle school incident could happen.

It looked like these students brought in were from all over the globe. He'd definitely need to make sure to keep a cool head, despite the temperature.

Walking out toward the dueling field now, he stretched and looked around for a decent adversary.

At which point some kid bumped into him. He barely felt anything, being a bit bigger than the other kids had its advantages. Looking at the French kid, he asked, "Hey, you okay there?"

Peter leaned against a wall, his face expressionless. His mind, however, was not as calm as his exterior would suggest.

Tch, the jet broke down? You've got to be kidding me. They'd better not be putting us in any danger here. I had my fill of shoddy transportation travelling with my dad.

Well, whatever. I guess this my chance to meet my new classmates. First impressions are important, after all.

He quickly checked himself over. His light brown hair was carefully combed in a way that made it look unkept, and one wouldn't be able to see his eyes unless they looked up close. His cloak was, just as he had planned for, concealing most of his body.

Good, good! All I have to do is keep this is up, and I'll be able to get a reputation as the aloof, mysterious badass! He grinned despite himself, but returned to expressionlessness a few moments later, hoping nobody had noticed his little mistake.

He could feel Golem Sentry trying to tell him something, but he ignored it. That jerk was probably just going to mock his attempt at establishing himself, and it wouldn't do to be seen talk to himself. Although, Peter observed, not all of his classmates seemed to care about such things.

Dismissing the boy taalking to himself, Peter turned his attention to the Dueling Arena. He had no interest in entering the fray himself, but seeing what his new peers could do would be helpful.

A dark haired young man wearing a blue bandanna gulped down the contents of a water bottle. Isaac let out a satisfied sigh after he finished drinking and let the bottle fall back to his side, dangling on the strap that attached it to his belt. He headed over to the duel arena, using several cards to fan himself with as he strolled past other students.

Damn, it was hot over here! While Isaac was all for summer and dry heat, this was ridiculous! Of all the places to put a school, why one of the hottest areas of the world? He pulled down his sunglasses while walking past a guy talking to a wall. Had the heat gone to his head already? Isaac hoped someone in charge took care of the kid.

He stopped at the dueling area near another boy with messy brown hair wearing a long cloak. Isaac looked him up and down. "Dude, its like a 100 degrees out here. Aren't you hot?"

Caramon grumbled, and followed the rest of the crowd as it naturally gravitated toward the dueling arena. They were duelists after all, given a suitable arena (which was basically just a piece of space of the correct size), and there would be a duel taking place in it. It was a law of their trade, basically. At East Academy it was probably even more in effect.

He sighed, and took a look around at his fellow students. When the duels inevitably took place, it'd give him a chance to scope out his fellow students styles, and their decks. He needed to figure out which ones used Synchos, and which ones didn't, which would be an important fact to know ahead of time. He wanted to spring his monsters on somebody unsuspecting, and if they were some sort of Gishki Ritual deck, then his deck's main strength would fall rather flat. Oh well. That's what this was for, anyway.

Peter looked at the boy. He obviously wasn't used to being in a desert. Ha! This is perfect chance!

"Hmm. You obviously haven't spent much time in this kind of climate. Better to be a little uncomfortable now than to have blistered skin later."

Yes! Perfect! I sounded like a total badass there! In fact he was uncomfortably hot, but he was hardly going to admit that! And anyway, desert people wore baggy clothing all the time, so there probably was some truth to what he had just said.

"Man, it is really hot out." Roxas said to himself and definitely not to an invisible and intangible giant dragon. That would be ridiculous.

"Man I could really use some practice duels. I have the feeling my deck doesn't flow right, but I would like to try it out a little more before I make any adjustment's. Aside from that, some of my cards I have used so little that I am not really sure how they work. I really wanna make at least a little progress before I get to the academy. Where on Earth is that dueling field supposed to be." Rainbow Dragon gave off a short grunt as if to say "Follow me" before flying through a door. Needless to say, Roxas followed his lead and found himself at the dueling field.

"Thanks buddy." Roxas looked around and grew so excited at seeing so many duelists in one place, that he cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted at the top of his lungs "Hello, my name is Roxas Lionheart! Who here is ready to get their game on?"

edited 3rd Jul '12 8:14:07 PM by luckybreak91

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Jacques rubbed the crown of his head. "Tch, yeah I'm fine. Or I will be..." Jacques looked behind himself and noticed that the gentleman had gone off in another direction. "Hmm... Nevermind, I'm fine now."

Situation analysis: Pending... An image shakily appeared behind Jacques, visible to few. It was a rather barebones looking robot, sitting in a floating throne, held aloft by thrusters. Situation analysis: Complete. Situation: Acceptable.

"Yeah, whatever you say there, Gamma..." muttered Jacques, rolling his eyes at the robotic observation of his partner. He turned to the boy he had bumped into. Taller, more muscular... Would make a good meatshield if he needed one. "Name's Jacques Mandeau, duelist extraordinaire. You?"

"Evii is right though" -Saturn "I didn't know you were a bitch Evii." -Lior Val

"...Art Caltenrich. Nice to meetcha, erm, duelist extraordinaire."

Did this kid have a big head or something? And why was he looking off and seeming to communicate with things? Things Art could not see...why was it the Duel Academies seemed to attract all the weirdos?

He looked over at that guy exclaiming his name and such, and wondered if it wouldn't be wise to get in some practice before beginning the year?

"Well, you do seem quite confident. Maybe I'd like to challenge you, Lionheart."

"Its better to have the AC running then to have blistered skin." Isaac grumbled.

He wiped the sweat off his brow. It was not true that he wasn't used to hot weather, it was just that he was used to hot weather with a means of cooling off nearby. A pool, or the beach, or a lake, or something!

A shouted challenge followed by another boy accepting it grabbed his attention.

"Least we got something to occupy our time." he said to the cloaked boy. "Ten bucks on the Lion Kid!"

Peter looked at the two who had announced their intent to duel. The loudmouth- Roxas, he said his name was- seemed like the clear underdog. Although, he seemed to have a Duel Spirit, so maybe… Nah. It took more than just having a Duel Spirit to be strong. And it's not like he knew for certain that his opponent didn't have one.

"I'll take that bet," he said, allowing himself a thin smile.

Jacques watched Art walk away. The guy couldn't see or hear Gamma-03. Whether that was for good or ill was to be seen.

"Maybe it's best if you don't talk to me right now, Gamma," the duelist said, rolling his head making cracking sounds. "Makes me look a little... Y'know, nuts."

Processing request... Understood. Machine King Prototype Unit Gamma-03 entering Hibernation Mode. Will maintain threat analysis during this mode as a safety precaution. The machine faded out of its flickering existence.

Jacques remembered meeting the spirit back on the streets of Montreal. Gamma was a dutiful protector for the thief and he appreciated the assistance. Although, sometimes, Gamma would get a bit... Buggy.

Jacques attention was piqued when he heard someone offering up a bet. He pivoted on the spot and spotted the claimant. "You're o—" He was interrupted by the cloak wearer. What a weirdo; guy would boil alive before the jet would even arrive...

"Evii is right though" -Saturn "I didn't know you were a bitch Evii." -Lior Val

Roxas moved to face Art and extended his hand for a handshake.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Art, and of course I am confident. There is no sense in not being confident. If you are weak you should challenge the world until you become strong, and if you are strong than you should proudly show off your strength and continue to test it against the world. Without confidence you can never improve. I appreciate you giving me a duel. Let us make it a grand one."

edited 3rd Jul '12 8:10:57 PM by luckybreak91

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"Hmm, I suppose I can agree with that sentiment. Lets make it a grand duel, then." With that, he prepared his duel disk. It was time to show what he was capable of. This guy's confidence was almost magnetic, a certain property that would get him a lot of friends. But he did have to wonder...

"So, your name's Roxas...really? And you don't try to shorten or change your name? Wow...I really envy your confidence." He had to admit, that much confidence in a potentially embarrassing name...

This would be a duel of two people who had bizarre names...how strange. It was like the manga he used to read in what spare time he could find.

Though he was already at a disadvantage...a hero, even just in a name, always beat the villain. And there was no question what kind of character his name belonged to. But he was not going to let that stop him. He'd make a duel on his own.

His duel disk ready, he looked forward to seeing what kind of cards this guy used.

edited 3rd Jul '12 8:51:45 PM by NickTheSwing

Jacques had not finished his sentence but Isaac heard enough of it. Cupping his hand, he brought them to his mouth and yelled out.

"Hey, Roxas!" He shouted from the sidelines, "Win this thing, alright? I stand to win 20 dollars if you do!"

Heat or no heat, Isaac could not help but feel alive when a duel was on.

Art Caltenrich, I can tell this is gonna be fun. As Roxas prepared his duel disk he continued his conversation with Art

"Since I am the challenger you get to decide who goes first. Why would you envy my confidence anyway? You are clearly a pretty confident guy since you're standing in a room with a whole bunch of people staring right at you and you aren't even breaking a sweat. You are a pretty amazing guy Art. You have a cool name, you are tall and handsome, you're kind enough to treat a kid who is shouting his lungs off in public with respect, you are humble enough to think said kid can give you a challenge, and you walk and act and talk in a cool, calm, and serious manner. Art Caltenrich, you are like a hero out of a great work of fiction. It feels like you just stepped off the screen of a movie or a video game, or off the pages of some manga or book. I can't wait. I am almost shaking I'm so excited to duel you."

His duel disk ready, he looked forward to seeing what kind of cards this guy used.

edited 3rd Jul '12 9:54:41 PM by luckybreak91

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Mort had been mostly lost in his own thoughts before, but had now noticed that there seemed to be something going on. 'It looks like people are starting to duel each other...' he thought, watching as the two prepared for their duel. 'Now that I think about it, these guys will be my classmates, won't they?' Mort walked closer, so that he would be able to get a better view of the duel. Airports aren't known for being entertaining, and in heat like this, everyone would be looking for a distraction. A crowd would probably be gathering shortly, so it would be best to get close now, before a wall of people could form a barrier between him and the duel.

Mort smirked, suddenly feeling a bit more excited. 'This is going to be our class' first duel- the first of many!' A duel was, fittingly, an exciting way to start what would hopefully be an exciting year!

This could have been some deep and thought-provoking statement about myself, but that would be too much work to come up with.

Wow. This kid...looked up to him already? He knew not to let that kinda thing get to his head, but he had to admit, it was a little bit refreshing to have this much admiration already.

"Umm, wow, thanks, little guy. You flatter me, really, you do."

The hero part, though, caught him in an awkward position. "A hero out of fiction". His namesake started as that. Started being the key word. Did this kid know? If he did, would his active mouth mean others might know in turn?

He shrugged it off, Paranoia, way to act like him, Art.

He said, "Alright, then I think I'll take the first move!" He drew his cards, looking over them carefully for any ability to pull off the "Hero Combo" he achieved a measure of fame for in his old school.

edited 3rd Jul '12 10:12:45 PM by NickTheSwing

Little guy? I'm not really that short ... am I? I am 5'4. Maybe I'm slouching? No, no I am not. I have proper posture. Eh, I suppose it doesn't really matter. I wonder though, after my little speech he began to look a little odd. I mean, part of it was obviously him feeling awkward at some kid extolling his virtues, but there was something else there. I suppose it doesn't matter. It's time to draw my hand. I hope I get something good. Something that will make this duel really interesting. After all, we agreed it would be a grand one, did we not. Let us make a beautiful game Rainbow Dragon!

edited 3rd Jul '12 10:37:24 PM by luckybreak91

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Caramon tilted his head as two other students started to duel. Art and...Roxas, they were. Knowing their names were a pretty important part of being a fellow student. He brought up his Disk, and activated its recording function, prepared to gather data. That Roxas had mentioned something about a Rainbow Dragon, he thought, but he couldn't be sure. Either way, that meant that he was probably running a Crystal Beast deck....which was sorta bad for him. Well, there was only one way to find out for sure.