A New Adventure Awaits

Zeon looked out the window of the monorail, his eyes gazing into the water beneath him. He was thinking back to all the events in his life that had lead to this point. The most significant one (other then meeting Ami), was that fateful trip to Egypt. Due to a mysterious set of circumstances, they ended up traveling back in time to ancient Egypt. To make things more complicated, Ami ended up giving birth to their daughter during that time period. They had made it back, and lead a relatively normal life after that.

Zeon had come a long way since that day. He was now an aspiring teacher at Wicken Academy, having taking that path after years after successful runs in the pro league. He was now a bit older: he was in his 30s now, but he still looked rather good. Zeon had aged well, mostly because of his insistence to keep in good shape. It was good that he'd stay like this: fatherhood and teaching proved rather tiring.

Zeon turned his head over to look over at the person sitting next to him, his 13 year old daughter, Auria. It was the first day of school. For the first years, it was mostly an assembly and tour throughout the school. Only the later year students had to go to class during the first day. Ami would have come, but she got an important assignment overseas. Of course, Zeon could bring her to the island in an instant, but he knew his wife wouldn't approve of such an action. He smiled warmly at his daughter, giving her is undivided attention.

"Are you ready for your first day sweetheart? The first day isn't anything to work about. It'll give you a chance to explore the academy later. Maybe you'll make a few friends."

Auria wasn't going to lie to herself.  She was nervous about her first day at this new school.  She had been doing well at her old school, and was barely picking up duel monsters.  She wasn't very good at the game, or at least, she didn't think she was, but she did enjoy it.  Playing with her friends was one of her highlights of her school day.  But, her father had been offered a position at this new school, and now she was being uprooted and sent to this academy that specialized in dueling.  

She sat beside her father in the monorail and stared at the window opposite of her.  Her lips were pursed together and she sat in silence, watching the world speed by the window.  Her hands were in her lap, but in her hands was a small deckbox, which she held tightly in nervousness.  When he spoke to her, she nearly jumped.  

"Wh-what?  O-oh..." she tried to give him a smile, but was certain it wasn't going to pass.  "Father....why do we have to go to this new academy?  I'm not even that good at duel monsters.  Can't I just go back to my old school?"  it was clear that she was nervous, and her fidgeting fingers only made it more obvious.  At one point, the monorail jolted, causing her silverish-white hair to brush across her face.  She pushed it back behind her ear and looked back out the window.

Zeon reached over and ruffled her hair a bit, still giving her a reassuring smile. "Well, that's why this academy exists. To help hone the skills of anyone who comes to join its ranks, not just people who are already good. That group happens to be in very small minority: most people have to work their way up. Plus Wicken Academy offers courses in a variety of non-dueling subjects for students who want a different careers, much more then what your old school could have provided you with. It's a gateway that leads to wherever you want to go. Sure, this school is largely a dueling academy, but it's support in other ventures is nothing to scoff at. You'll do fine here, and I'll be there for you if you need anything."

The young girl nodded at her father's words. She trusted him, even though she was still nervous. What if they didn't like her? what if she failed the entrance exam? Ever since her parents had told her about going to school here, she had been studying as much as she could. She'd even worked on her deck, hoping to improve it just enough to make her parents proud. There was to be an entrance duel, and dueling wasn't exactly her strong point. With both of her parents being well-renowned duelists, she didn't want to let anyone down.

Auria looked up at him, her fingers fidgeting with her deckbox. "What do you think the entrance test will be like?" she asked quietly.

Zeon leaned back, putting a hand under his chin and thinking it over. "Well... it's usually a little different each time. There is a written part to the exam, which won't be a problem for you. Then there's the practical exam, which does involve a duel. The proctors change decks every time so that future takers of the exam cannot gain an advantage. They don't use anything conventional, so it's not like you to worry about facing something unfairly strong. You'll do great, I'm sure of it. And even if you don't, then don't worry about it. You'll learn quite a bit here after all, since it is a dueling academy." Zeon patted her shoulder affectionately, the island starting to come into view as the train neared its destination.

"I...hope so."  She uncrossed her ankles and stood to her feet.  She was wearing a black spaghetti-strap shirt which wrapped around her neck and tied in the back.  Over that shirt, she had on another black t-shirt that missed her shoulders, but covered her upper arms and torso otherwise.  A pink skirt fit around her waist and she wore pink boots and black socks to match.  It was her favorite outfit, and she was happy to be able to wear it before she was forced to wear a uniform.  As she stood to her feet, the pink skirt swayed with motion, and her long, silver hair bounced behind her.  The pink streak in her hair seemed to sparkle a bit as a ray of light hit it.  Auria moved to the window and leaned against it, staring out to the island that was coming in view.  Her eyes widened with excitement, for this was the first time she'd been anywhere other than Japan.  For now, her fears seemed to disappear.  Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.

Zeon watched his daughter get up, his eyes settling on the streak of pink in her hair for a moment. He had no idea why her hair had turned out like that: neither he or Ami had that color of hair. Maybe it was a result of a strange combination between the two. Zeon didn't hate it: in fact, he really liked how it looked. It just was a point of interest that he'd never been able to figure out, even after searching the internet for it at one point.

The structures of the island came more and more into view as the train neared its destination. The structures then mostly got out of view, once the monorail had reached the station. Once it had fully stopped, people started piling off the train, eager to reach their destination. Zeon got up, making sure that Auria was right behind her.

"Well, we're here. I better take you to the exam area. It wouldn't be good for you to get lost on your first day."

As the train came to a stop, she turned and stood beside her father, not wanting to get lost in the sea of people leaving the station.  She clipped her deck box onto her hip and grabbed his hand.  "Lead the way, Father," she said politely.

Zeon took her hand in his, giving her a gently, reassuring squeeze as he took her off the train and towards what appeared to be the main administration building. There were quite the line of students there, leading to a long table where a bunch of the staff were at, checking people in and handing them a small stack of paper afterwards. Zeon turned to his daughter, jerking his head towards the table where the staff were handing out those papers.

"That's where you go to pick up the exam Auria. You're then free to take it anywhere you want in this building. The questions and answers are designed so that you cannot look them up directly on the net, of course. Do you want me to stay in line with you, or do you think you can handle it on your own?"

The written exam. If she did well in anything here, it would be the book smarts department.  It was a trait she shared with her mother, and was why she did so well in her old school. Of course, applying it in paper, and applying it in real life were totally different,  and she had yet to make the connection. Still...she was pretty confident about this part.

"I think I can do this on my own, Father," she said softly, smiling up at him. "But...isn't the entrance duel just after this? Will you be able to go with me for that?"

If Zeon was just an ordinary person, there was no way he would be able to keep that sort of promise with his daughter. He had duties to do here as a teacher, and this was a pretty big campus. Fortunately though, he had a little trick up his sleeve.

"Of course I'll be there! So just do your best and make it to the practical exam!"

Auria nodded, a smile of confidence on her face, then she took her place in the line to collect her exam. It didn't take long to get it. She was soon handed a think packet of several pages, a pen, and and a basic academy duel disk. She was also instructed to return the test here when finished and she would be given a number for her dueling exam. With a curt nod of understanding, she attached the disk to her arm and made her way to a quiet, shaded corner in the courtyard. There she sat down, pushing her legs behind her, then got to work on her exam.

A couple hours later, she was finished and she got up to turn her exam in. As promised, she received a number, 156, and was directed to the duel arena where many proctors were dueling various students to place them in the dorms of the academy. There were three levels here: Amber Eraser, Dreadroot Green, and Avatar Black. Her rank would be determined by her two scores...her knowledge and her skill. Knowing her skill level, she would be lucky to be placed in Dreadroot Green, if her written exam scored high enough.

She was about to sit down when suddenly her number lit up on the screen. In the arena, an announcement was made over the loudspeaker. "Ladies and Gentlemen! Students and faculty! It is the pleasure of Wicken Academy to bring you a feature duel for your entertainment while you wait! Most duels are done without the spotlight, but every so often, we pick one so that we can all view. Now then! Time to see what your new competition will look like! Number...." The voice paused for dramatic effect. "156! Please make your way to the central stage of the arena! Your proctor will meet you there! Good luck!"

Auria's heart dropped to the pit of her stomach like a rock, and a lump formed in her throat. It was bad enough she had to duel to enter....but now she had a feature match?! Shakily, she stood at the entrance to the arena and inserted her deck into her disk. The disk lit up and shuffled her deck. Then, the door opened, and a spotlight shined upon her, and followed her as she made her way to her place on the stage. She gulped visibly and stared at the other end, waiting for her proctor to appear.

Chuku walked onto the stage, slumped over slightly as he made his way towards the stage, his cane tapping against the ground as he did so. Despite being only 37, he looked like he was in his 50s, his hair looking unnaturally grey. He looked thin and unnaturally pale, and his body look like it would fall apart at the slightest bit of stress. This was the result of diving too deep into the shadows and then coming back to the light. Without the powers of the shadows sustaining his body, he had begun to deteriorate physically. Still, he was in good enough shape to do his teaching job. He took his place at the other end, strapping on the duel disk and activating it, looking Auria up and down for a moment.

"Alright then, so are you ready to duel number 156? Don't hold anything back, because I'm not going to pull any punches against you. This is only an Examination deck, but don't think it's not strong because of that."

Auria frowned when the proctor called her by her number.  She raised her duel disk and stepped back into a ready stance, her amber eyes settling into a stare at the proctor.  "I'm not a number...," she said quietly, just loud enough for the microphone to pick it up.  "My name is Auria Masayoshi..."  She drew her five cards and her eyes glanced out to the stands, searching for her father.  When the turn counter beeped, declaring it to be her who was to start the duel, she still had not seen him.  With a little effort, she forced her eyes back to the middle of the arena and faced her opponent.  Her father was probably busy...he'd be here soon.  

"It's my turn!"  With the new rule being that the first person to make a turn couldn't draw a card, she immediately skipped through to her Main Phase.  Looking at her hand, there wasn't much she could do...at least not right now.  This turn would have to be used to set up, and see what she was up against.  "I play the spell card, Foolish Burial.  This allows me to send one monster from my deck into the graveyard.  And I choose....Satellite Cannon!"  The card shot from her deck and into her hand, then she slipped it into her grave, along with the spell card she'd just used.  "I end my turn."  She looked towards the proctor and awaited his move.


Beginning Duel Music (keeping it light for now)

Kohaku didn't waste any time, picking out a card from his hand and lowering it towards his duel disk. He seemed to be very disinterested in the duel: like he could have better things that he could be using his time on right now.

"You're applicant number 156 until you get accepted into the academy. Now then, I summon Armed Dragon Level 3 in attack mode!" A small armored lizard popped into existence, crouching down, taking a battle stance rather quickly. And battle is exactly what Kohaku had in mind for his new monster.

"Armed Dragon Level 3 will attack you directly now. Let's see how good your defense is. Attack her directly!" The monster lunged forward, hitting Aurelia and causing her life points to go down a notch.

Aurelia: 8000 < 6900

Kohaku then quickly picked out a couple of cards from his hand and placed them facedown.

"You didn't have a Gorz or Tragodia to defend yourself with? Leaving an opening like that for your opponent to take advantage of like that is a amaturish mistake. It's fortunate that these test decks aren't designed to be too powerful: you would have taken a really big blow otherwise. I set two cards facedown and end my turn. Back to you now, 156. If you don't step up your game, you're going to get one of the worst scores this academy has ever seen on this exam." Kohaku wasn't sugarcoating things one little bit: he was making it very clear to Auria. She could either swim, or sink to the bottom of the ocean.

Kohaku: 8000 LP
Hand: 3
Monsters: Armed Dragon Level 3
Spells/traps: 2 facedown