The rest of the limo ride mostly consisted of Phil rolling around the information Lumina gave him in his head, all the while ignoring Jaden’s excited chattering. Yet, as soon as the vehicle came to a halt and the doors smoothly opened to reveal their destination, all talk was silenced as the three boys gaped in open astonishment towards the building set before them. The arena was vast, taking up multiple city blocks with its white marble columns, each one covered with intricate carvings of Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Even the walls of the arena were left with no more than a single inch of unused space, with vast murals stretching almost as far as the eye could see. Terrifying monsters, most of which Phil recognized immediately as ones used by Kaiba, fought furious battles, forever frozen in their moments of triumph and rage. Vorse Raider, Saggi the Dark Clown, Battle Ox, Hitotsu-Me Giant, La Jinn, and XYZ-Dragon Cannon. These monsters and more were drawn in striking colors and only a singular look would be enough to terrify the mere observer. Yet, above it all, at the very top of the largest mural, watched an enormous, blazing sun, who’s rays beat down upon all the other painted monsters without mercy. A sun that, for all of the natural power it displayed, was in the middle of being eaten by what was the largest Blue-Eyes White Dragon Phil had ever seen, all the while the horrifying presence of Obelisk the Tormentor held the skies up with a single hand and an expression of disdainful rage. Truly, the arena was one that represented every single inch of Kaiba’s pride as a duelist.

“Holy shit.” Phil muttered quietly in awe. He had seen some impressive stadiums back on Earth, but few could match what lay before him in grandeur. Or stimulate his own pride as a duelist as this one did.

“We… we get to duel, in this?” Jaden asked Roland, who was watching them gape with a tiny smile on his face.

“Of course. This is, after all, a tournament that Mr. Kaiba himself has ordered to take place, and the participants are gathered from each of his own Duel Academy branches. What better arena would there be for such duelists to clash in?”

Jaden fell silent for a moment while his body shook in sheer joy. “This… this is so sweet! When do we start! Who do we duel first! Do I get to go first? Let’s go let’s go let’s go!” With every word the Slifer Red began to visibly fill with more and more energy as he began to race around the nearby surroundings, one moment staring starstruck at a detail in the mural, while the next saw him eagerly flexing his duel disk and searching for someone, anyone, who he could challenge to a duel.

Phil couldn’t help himself, bursting out in laughter at the sight while Chazz simply looked on in mild annoyance towards the lack of control that his peer displayed. Jaden’s antics continued for a few more minutes until finally Roland mentioned something about ‘not wanting to keep Mr. Kaiba waiting’ and Ms. Hibiki squarely grabbed Jaden by his collar to give him a firm look.

“Heh heh. Right. Don’t want to keep him waiting.” Jaden muttered sheepishly upon realizing how caught up in his own excitement he had gotten.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

While the majesty displayed on the outside of the arena set an awe-inspiring level to reach, the inside fell behind in not even a single aspect. Hundreds of thousands of seats rose up in the stands, reaching up into the very sky itself. Murals winded themselves around the walls, displaying countless duels frozen in time in their most precarious moments. Kaiba’s three Blue-Eyes facing off against the emerging form of Exodia. Pegasus revealing the rubbery form of Blue-Eyes Toon Dragon. Kaiba defying fate against Ishizu Ishtar in Battle City by tributing Obelisk the Tormentor. Each mural was displayed so realistically that it almost seemed like they would jump to life with a snap of Phil’s fingers. Yet, in the center of it all, was a single white marble platform. The seams between each slab of marble were so incredibly small that it appeared to be a singular marble block, one that was scattered with elegant blue sapphires embedded in the marble itself, making the construct feel like an elegant yet simple beauty.

Phil let out a sliding whistle of appreciation as his group made their way to the center stage, joining a small crowd of students while the professors made their way to the commentator’s box that loomed above it all.

A massive broadcasting screen flared to life as Phil cast his eyes around the arena to note the faces of the other students. A few were ones he recognized, some felt like ones he should recognize, but most were unfamiliar faces.

Interesting. There’s Jesse whatshislastname. I think he was the dude who played Crystal Beasts? Mr. Eye Bandage would be Crocodile Cook, hell if I remember what he plays though. And shit, there’s the two American students I recognize from the manga. David and Reggie, right?

Phil’s thoughts were interrupted as Kaiba’s sneering face appeared on the broadcasting screen with an arrogant laugh.

“Six academies. Eighteen children. Yes, children. You fools may have been given the right to participate in my tournament by your betters because they think you have a droplet of talent, but until you prove your strength here, in my arena, you are nothing but worms. Those with pride, with strength, are the only ones fit to be called duelists.” Kaiba waited a moment for his biting words to sink in before continuing with a smirk. “Now that the meaningless pleasantries are out of the way, time for the rules. On this first day, the weakest among you will be weeded out, discarded before you can embarrass yourself too much before the spectators show up. Each duel will be best of one. In order to ascend to the next stage, each team must win two out of the three duels against the opposing team. The order of dueling shall be determined by your team captain. A fifteen-card side deck is allowed, but all cards in your main and side deck must be submitted in a list to Roland before the tournament begins. All other rules will follow the standard ruleset unless I say so otherwise at a later time. Roland! Start the countdown. I will not wish you luck, as a true duelist needs it not. Instead, if you wish to no longer be a worm, rip and tear your way to the top!”

Kaiba’s face disappeared with one last mocking laugh and Roland took center stage once more with a solemn look on his face.

“Duelists! You have one hour to submit your decklist and side deck to me. You are not allowed to leave the grounds of the arena until the matches are over for the day, though you are permitted to ask your teammates and professors for advice. If you are lacking a card for your side deck, you may submit a request to me, which will be delivered to Mr. Kaiba for consideration. Your time starts now!”

Immediately the duelists split off into their own groups by academy. A side deck, and best of one format. Interesting. I can’t imagine the side deck mattering at all in the early rounds, but the later ones will show who put in the work towards research and siding choices. And winning two out of the three duels… can’t say I’ve ever done any team battles back on Earth, so that’s a new one to me. Guess it makes sense, though. Could be some possible strategies to abuse with that, too. If the first two duelists for an academy win their duels and their third duelist is willing to forfeit, that means the next academy won’t be able to make any preparations against that third duelist, making them a complete unknown factor. Though if the first or second person loses, the final game gets even more intense. I wonder if that will mean the teams will put their two best players up first, or space them out and hope to catch the weak link. Phil caught himself and slapped his own face a few times, distracting himself from the endless loop his thoughts were beginning to go down. Thar be dragons, Phil. He reminded himself. No sense overthinking things, after all.

“Chazz, Jaden, hows about we think up some sort of plan.” Phil beckoned to both of the boys, breaking them out of their own thoughts with his words.

Chazz gave a quick glance around them. Most of the students had found their own secluded areas in the stands, but a small handful were still loitering around the marble arena. “Here? Shouldn’t we find someplace without people at all?”

Phil shrugged his shoulders. “We could, but up in the stands I feel like it would be easier to eavesdrop. At least out here in the open, there’s no seats or pillars to hide behind. We should be able to see anyone get close enough to hear as long as we keep our voices down.”

Chazz and Jaden nodded in understanding towards Phil’s reasoning as he continued. “I don’t think there’s any point arguing about order for our first match since we don’t know who we’ve got yet. How about side decks? I’ve already got ideas for mine, and in all honesty that little twist is going to help me rather than hurt me. Do you guys plan on doing anything with them?”

“I don’t need one.” Chazz responded in a matter-of-fact tone. “My dragons will be more than enough to crush any petty tricks.”

Phil cocked his head slightly to the side, considering Chazz’s words and mentally running through what he remembered of the boy’s decklist in his mind. Then he shrugged. “Eh sure. Your deck should be well-rounded enough anyways now, provided you don’t brick too badly.”

Meanwhile, Jaden stretched his arms behind his head, clearly still eager to rumble. “I don’t plan on using one either, Phil. My Elemental Heroes are all I need to have some sweet duels!”

Good ol’ Jaden. Still as unflappable as ever. Phil chuckled to himself. Honestly, he hadn’t expected much else from either of them. One was too prideful by default to even consider using a side deck, and the other just wanted to have fun duels.

“Right on. What about our opponents. Do either of you recognize any of them?” Said Phil as he moved onto the second topic of interest. Any additional names could potentially jog his memory, perhaps revealing traits from the anime that could be exploited.

Chazz took a moment to think, while Jaden instantly shook his head no. “I recognize two of the duelists from the East Academy.” Chazz finally realized. “The guy in glasses belongs to the Gecko family. I believe his name is Adrian? And the girl standing beside him, I’ve dueled her in a tournament before. Anastasia Capet. She fought well. I can’t say for sure what strategies they favor, as I’ve never seen Gecko play and it’s been far too long since I last faced Anastasia.”

Phil nodded his head in understanding. Nope, neither of those names rings a single bell. Ah well. “I suppose we’ll have to be careful, but you could say that about everyone here. The guy with teal hair is Jesse, he uses Crystal Beasts if I remember correctly. I also recognize two of the Americans, David and Reggie. If they’re the same as I saw them last, I think David plays a machine deck and Reggie’s focuses on fairies.”

Chazz scoffed. “Fairies? You’ve got to be kidding me. Do they even have a single good card?”

“Aannddd I see you’ve forgotten the existence of Ms. Hibiki’s Darklords, haven’t you?” Phil shot back with amusement. He knew from personal experience that if you fucked around with fairies, you sure as hell found out.

“Hmph.” Chazz clearly didn’t take Phil’s words fully to heart, though he did give Reggie a slightly more serious look. “I don’t buy it.”

Phil rolled his eyes, but by the time a retort was halfway formed in his mouth, Roland once more stepped forward.

“Attention duelists! There is only twenty minutes remaining!”

Ugh. Not gonna get DQ’d from a tournament again for waiting until the literal last minute to begin writing down my list. Phil inwardly groaned to himself as he approached Roland with the required information.

“Here ya’ go boss, one main and side deck as requested.” Phil lazily said, attempting to use the casual words to dispel any nervousness about setting his deck choices in stone for the rest of the tournament.

Roland quickly and professionally scanned through the document with a glance before placing it in a solid leather briefcase that was, to Phil’s mild amusement upon realizing the fact, handcuffed to Roland’s left arm.

“Your list has been accepted. The requested cards will be delivered to you before the beginning of the first round.” Roland informed Phil in clipped tones.

Now… time to sit back and relax until pairings are announced. Phil thought to himself. He always disliked this part of the tournaments, the calm before the storm where all you could do was wait. There would never be enough time to start a friendly game, or go get some food. No, all you could do is bullshit a bit with friends while watching the timer tick away second by second.

It was bloody infuriating.

Yet, somehow Phil was able to make it through the torment by the combined power of cracking endless jokes with Jaden, and even managing to get a few chuckles out of Chazz. So, when order was finally announced, Phil was at least slightly less impatient than normal.

Roland’s voice boomed from the speakers placed in clusters around the stands, a jet black microphone produced out of nowhere to fit his right hand.

“DUELISTS! ARE! YOU! READY! ROUND ONE, NORTH ACADEMY! VERSUS! DUEL ACADEMY!

Phil let out a peal of laughter, holding out his hands as he stepped forwards while Chazz and Jaden made their way to the sidelines. On the other side of the arena, a large man with a short brown beard that hugged his chin closely lumbered onto the stage with a mocking grin.

Roland deftly stepped off the marble stage, nodding at each of them in turn to make sure they were ready. Then, once the students from the other schools had made their way to the stands, Roland viciously sent his hand chopping down like a guillotine.

“FIRST GAME! PHILIP JENSON VERSUS CZAR! BEGIN!”