herobox | [UAU: juudai makes the call]

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[UAU: juudai makes the call]

[ The pay phone receiver feels tacky in Juudai's hand. He doesn't want to think about what kind of substances it might be coated in. Or maybe it's just the cheap black plastic itself, softening in his hot, sweat-slicked hand. He resists the urge to change hands to wipe his right hand off; there's no point.

This has to be the most depressing alleyway in Domino City. Crumpled newspapers blow in a late-evening breeze in the wind from the vents over the city's subway system. Juudai is here on a tip he earned in a duel from a homeless guy he found in one of the subway stations, curled up under a tattered blanket. They dueled tabletop-style, except on the sheet of cardboard that served as the man's bedding, and Juudai actually would have lost if not for a lucky combo made possible by his very last draw (who would have thought the guy ran a milling deck?). The man had nodded. If you're good enough to beat me, then I won't feel guilty letting you know this, he'd said. Mostly the underground guys only take guys they've already noticed. But there's an old pay phone on Fifty-Ninth Street that's still in operation. Dial the number from the ad sticker on the left side. There's only the one. The old man looked at Juudai with a mixture of respect and knowingness. But you ask me, kid, your future looks too bright to go down there.

Juudai gave the old man a few crumpled five-hundred-yen bills out of the savings he'd brought with him, as thanks. The ad turned out to be an ad for the services of a busty blond named Jessica who was naked from the waist up (Juudai had flushed crimson). The number was printed underneath a message saying to "call for happy time," written in English.

The phone rings.

Finally, someone picks up.

How did you get this number? the unmistakably male voice at the other end demanded. ]

Is this Jessica? [ Juudai smirks.] I'm looking for a happy time.

[ Despite his cocky tone, Juudai's hands tremble. ]

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[There's an impatient noise from the other end of the line. He's usually more patient with potential customers, but he is not patient with anyone who brings up the damned sticker.]

Are you looking to spectate? His next match is booked.

[...that's fairly telling.]

[ Juudai's left hand clenches. So this is the guy in charge of Kaiser's duels, then. He'd expected people would know the name Marufuji Ryou just because of his Pro League prospects - how could his next match be booked solid with people and yet no one's called the cops? It makes him sick. ]

I'm looking for Marufuji Ryou. You know, the guy who was a huge Pro League prospect earlier this year? Lots of people have heard of him. His loved ones have gotten concerned because they haven't heard from him? I thought maybe you might have heard something. You know, I hear you guys have connections and stuff.

[ Play it cool, play it cool... ]

[...well.

He pauses, typing out a quick message on his other phone with one hand. He'll have to keep the boy talking, but on the bright side, he may have a new acquisition before this is over.]

Mm, the league dropout?

[He pauses, as if to search his memory.]

Yes, yes, I may have heard of this boy. Is this the concerned relative speaking?

[ Juudai realizes the advantage in implying people already know. Even though he didn't say anything to Shou before he snuck out of the academy, true to his word. ]

No, I'm acting on their behalf. They couldn't make it into the city.

[ ...Maybe he should have told someone where he was. ]

And he didn't drop out of the league! [ Okay, maybe that stung a little! ]

[...it's risky, but he's calling the boy's bluff. From what he can see over the video feed, he seems too...agitated to be telling the truth.

And, hmm, he wonders what relationship these two might have. This boy seems awfully protective~.]

Oh? A friend of the family, hmm? Coming to me for their sake?

Mm, you're right, you're right. His sponsors dropped him, did they not? So he was kicked out, you could say?

More like dragged out. [ Juudai is actively bristling. ] Kaiser would never -

[ Oh, shit.

He said "Kaiser." ]

- I - I mean, he - he wouldn't give up. For this long. He'd have found a way to get back in by now, or he'd have come home. But he didn't. So I - we want to know where he is.

[ Not good not good not good not good not good not good. ]

[Mmmhmhm, there we are. He sends one last text.]

You're too quick to anger, my dear boy. Be careful not to hurt yourself, hmm~?

[A door opens at the mouth of the alley and a few men -- tall, bulky, tattooed -- step out. He was beginning to wonder whether it was worth covering their living expenses just to keep up this little snare, but oh, it's well worth it now.]

But since you seem to be so attached...why don't I do you a favor? I'm sure he'll be glad to have your company, yes?

[ Oh.

Oh.

Juudai doesn't have any smart last comments for the guy on the phone, so he just slams the receiver down and swings his backpack around in front of him. For a second it looks like he's trying to hold it like some absurd shield, but he's just fumbling with the zippers, and - ah. There it is. He fastens his Duel Disk to his arm, keeping a wary eye on the ever-advancing thugs. ]

I'll take you both at once!

[ He shouts it, and means it.

It's just that they don't seem to have deck holders... ]

[There have been orders given not to damage the merchandise, if they can avoid it. Saruyama wants this one healthy and ready for the duel.

So, before they try anything, one of them pulls a gun, as the other circles around to stand behind Juudai.

They don't say a word. The message, they think, will be clear enough.]

[ Juudai freezes.

(That's a gun.)

Why isn't he pulling out his deck?

(That's a gun.)

Why is he pulling out athat's a gun! ]

H-hey, I think we're thinking about two different kinds of duels here...

[ Juudai's voice is trembling but he manages a pale shadow of his usual cocky smile. ]

Can I see your badge, officer? [ Oh good, he managed some blatant insubordination; while it's true only police officers are allowed to own guns in Japan, only a huge idiot would mistake these guys for cops. Meanwhile, Juudai's eyes keep frantically flickering between the locked and rusted doors in this alleyway and the street outside, maddeningly distant and blocked by Gun-san.

Not good. ]

["Gun-san" flashes an insincere grin, showcasing a set of artificially sharpened teeth, and he nods to his companion.

The other thug reaches forward with a sack, aiming to fit it neatly over Juudai's head and arms. It's much less messy if they can do it this way.]

[ Juudai's eyes are fixed on the gun as if it were a snake. If he keeps his eye on it, it won't shoot! Right? Right!

But he feels movement at his back and sees a shadow shift and ducks instinctively to his right, sprawling towards the wall. He swings his left arm, Duel Disk and all, back behind him, towards the source of the movement. ]

[Bagthug is, indeed, caught in the gut, and doubles over, groaning. Duel Disks are heavy, and not exactly what you want making contact with your soft parts.

Gun-san just leaps forward to grab Juudai's head and press the barrel of the gun against it. He smirks.

"Relax, kid. You don't wanna get hurt, yeah?"]

[ Wow, Juudai is terrified. He's so terrified he's sort of absently noting this from a distance.

So he does what he normally does when he's scared: run his mouth and hope it makes him look like he knows what he's doing. ]

So I guess that makes you Jessica.

[...Gun-san just stares. He knows people get reckless when they're terrified, but...really? Did he really just say that?

He can understand why the monkey wants him. This kid has balls. He chuckles in spite of himself.

(This is when the other man gets up, wincing, with the rag and chloroform, and presses them to Juudai's mouth and nose.)]

[ Juudai catches a sick-sweet breath of the chloroform when the rag hits his face - the other guy, rag-guy, has pinned his right arm from behind while holding his face, and Juudai doesn't have enough leverage with his left arm to do much of anything with it - but he feels his fingers tingling and his lungs are already burning because he didn't get a good breath before clamping his jaw shut.

The liquid stings his eyes and lips and he struggles once, twice - needtobreatheneedtobreathe - no shoot it's in his nose now and now everything is swimming slightly - maybe someone is saying something but it sounds like they're all underwater and his vision is swimming too, why is everything swimming, what is he, a fish? might as well be with how pathetically he's flailing, well, can you call it flailing if his arms are barely swinging hey this doesn't feel too... too good...

Juudai doesn't feel himself hit the ground. ]

Edited 2012-10-21 22:02 (UTC)

[When the announcer had first begun to speak -- "Ladies and gentlemen, we have a special treat for you tonight! A heart-pounding tag duel to the death, with Hell Kaiser Ryo and his mysterious companion in the spotlight!" -- he had just been confused. A little irritated, maybe. What was Saruyama trying to pull, setting him up for a tag duel without giving him so much as an hour's notice?

Now he hears the cage door open behind him, and something heavy hits the concrete floor, and when he turns around his heart comes up into his throat.]

Juudai!

[No, this can't be right, this isn't happening. He forgets about his persona for a second and drops to his knees, grabs Juudai's hand to make sure it's real. It is.

The audience murmurs, and he knows they're trying to make sense of this display of concern, fit it into the plotline that they're all keeping track of.

The collars are already on both of them, and their opponents are entering the other side of the ring.]

...Juudai. Wake up.

Edited 2012-10-21 22:41 (UTC)

[ The last thing Juudai remembers is something about fish - if that makes any sense - and when he comes to he has no idea where he is at first. His head aches, his eyes sting and burn, the inside of his mouth tastes awful, and it feels like the interior of his brain has been packed with cotton balls. He blinks at the bright lights and becomes aware of a distant roar of sound, like the sea heard through a shell. ]

- Mmughh...

[ Juudai manages about that much, at least, before managing to sit up - is that a hand? is someone helping him up? - and rub his stinging eyes. His hand brushes something odd near his collarbone - no, it's something on his neck. Juudai swallows - a collar?

He looks up. ]

- Kaiser?!

[ Kaiser looks... different. Scared, angry, new shadows under his eyes ~~and in them~~, wearing some kind of crazy black outfit that reminds Juudai of what Fubuki wore when he was wearing the Darkness mask and running with the Seven Stars. Juudai looks behind him and sees - bars? Cage bars? Behind the bars, it's darker and harder to see than here in the bright lights, but Juudai can hear voices, like a crowd, a swelling, shifting murmur.

Where is he? ]

Edited 2012-10-21 23:10 (UTC)

[He takes a deep, shuddering breath, and begins to run through the facts in his mind. It's an old technique he uses to keep himself in line, when circumstances threaten to overwhelm.

Juudai is here. Juudai is going to be tag dueling with me. He is frightened. He might be frightened of me. I am also frightened. I do not know why I am frightened.

He needs my help.

He takes Juudai's other hand, to try to help him to his feet, and speaks quietly, trying to control his voice.]

Juudai, listen. We're about to be in a tag duel. You need to try to take as little battle damage as possible.

[ Juudai's mind is a wreck right now; he has no idea where he is, why he's here, what's going on.

We're about to be in a tag duel. You need to try to take as little battle damage as possible.

The collars. Kaiser. Juudai was going to... That's right. The underground. So this must be the underground, and Juudai is tag-dueling with Kaiser - And the collars? Maybe they have something to do with the battle damage. Tighten, or something. (He still remembers hearing Kaiser scream on the phone.)

Tag duel. They're tag dueling together. Number one rule of tag dueling: trust your partner.

Juudai nods. ]

Got it. Okay. Don't worry, Kaiser. [ He says this as he turns to face their opponents, finding his Duel Disk still on his arm, even. ] We'll beat these guys and I'll help you get out of here. We'll be fine.

[ Maybe Juudai's saying that more for his own benefit than Kaiser's. ]

[I'll help you get out of here. We'll be fine.

He feels sick to his stomach. "This is the last duel, I'll be fine, I'll win and then leave", he remembers that.

He doesn't want to watch this, doesn't want to be a part of it. It'll start out fine, everything will go as planned, until Juudai takes damage for the first time and then he'll be thrashing and screaming on the ground and--

No. No, he can't think about that. He has to win, first. Get Juudai out of the arena, get the collars off him...

He speaks quietly, almost at a whisper.]

It's going to hurt. It'll hurt, but you're going to be fine.

[He's going to be fine. No matter what Juudai says, no matter how bad it looks, Juudai is going to be fine. He repeats this mantra to himself as he activates his Duel Disk.]

[He watches the pair across from them. They're obviously a matching set, made for a tag duel. They smirk like they've got something unflattering to say, but he can't feel the confidence that radiated from Inukai. Not bullies, then. Good.

He digs his nails into his palm, so hard they draw a little blood, and suddenly his expression breaks into an almost predatory smile.]

My turn.

Draw!

Edited 2012-10-22 00:30 (UTC)

[ Right now, what's happening is surreal enough that Juudai could almost convince himself that this isn't happening. Maybe he's still unconscious. Maybe he's hallucinating. Maybe this is all some sort of weird setup. Maybe -

but he knows it's not. So he watches. He watches Kaiser turn, that horrible smile splitting his face like the stroke of an ax, like someone watching a well-beloved and trusted dog go rabid, feral. He watches this as if it's not really happening, half-dazed. He's still not completely recovered from the massive chemical dosage it took to keep him out for a few hours. Nothing is real right now.

The other guys are running some kind of beasts and mushroom deck setup, from what Juudai can tell in the first turn - he fixates on the duel to keep from losing what little composure he's managed to gather. Earth attributes, so their field spells will benefit them both. (Don't think about the collar constricting his neck and the armbands biting into his bicep and digging into his upper ribs.) Probably the best thing to do is to keep interrupting their spells and traps where he can, break up their two-man combos and figure out how to support Kaiser best. (Don't think about the wildness in Kaiser's eyes and the way his breathing catches in harried bursts.)

On Juudai's turn, he lays two face-down cards and summons Clayman in defense mode. It's not the best he can do this turn, but he wouldn't take them out and it would empty his hand. Best to play defensive for now, right? (You need to take as little battle damage as possible.) Right? ]

[He tries to keep his awareness of Juudai at the back of his mind, running in parallel to the fever he's set burning in his consciousness (break them down, hear them scream, make them pay). He doesn't want to involve him in his persona, not while he can avoid it.

It's not as hard as he expected. He has discovered, in the past few weeks, that the world now becomes a much smaller place when he's tasted blood. There isn't room for much more than him and his enemy.

...no, not enemy. Target, maybe. Or prey.

His first hand is decent, and could be great in a few turns. He sets traps as usual, summons something to defend while he builds up a combo - better to wipe them out all at once (four thousand in one shot, let's see how good they are at keeping screams down).

He glances at Juudai's field (not at Juudai, too risky), and good, he's putting a defense up. That's enough for now.

He allows himself to hope it holds.]

[ Hope it holds. Hope it holds. But hope apparently isn't on their side tonight.

The shorter of the two duelists smirks wider and activates - oh shit, Shield Crush, which destroys Clayman outright, leaving an opening for his Dig Beak on the field to direct attack -

There's a moment when Juudai thinks to himself, okay, 500 damage, I've taken worse. It'll be fine.

Then the collar activates, and he's not fine. ]

Ah-aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAH! -

[ First thing about electrical shocks: your muscles clench up, suddenly, like two giant hands have seized either end and pulled them taut except in the other direction because instead they're pulling in, making your bones ache and your joints shriek.

Second thing about electrical shocks: they're hot. They burn. Juudai feels like a spot of skin at his neck is bubbling under one of the conductors like the metal is acid eating into him (this is only the feeling; the real damage is an angry red patch of skin but it hurts badly enough).

Third thing about electrical shocks: they are the second-most agonizing thing Juudai has ever experienced in his life, and when the first-most agonizing is the psychic sensation of being burned to death in an instant during a Shadow Duel, second-most is absolutely nothing to sneeze at. Second-most is as good as first.

Juudai's vision whites out for a second and when it clears he registers that he's hit the ground on his hands and knees. The part of his mind that isn't still screaming in pain thinks, oh, not bad, better than falling prone. He's shaking. Violently. It's the kind of shaking that seems to get worse when you notice it, not better.

He opens his mouth to say something, maybe something smart, but all that emerges is a broken, agonized whimper: ]

A-ah...

[ Dully, he hears the crowd roar. ]

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[UAU: juudai makes the call]

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