[color=ed1c24][center][h3]Leo Wilde – Slifer Red[/h3][/center][/color]

The door to Slifer dorm room 202 burst open as Leo made his entrance, barging into the room with a huge grin on his face and wearing his new red uniform jacket with pride. He was here, finally here at Duel Academy and ready to take this place by storm; the fact that he had been placed into the lowest ranked dorm in the school, the place for people who had passed but failed to really impress during the exam didn’t bother him, it didn’t do anything to change the fact that he was [i]here[/i], he had [i]made it[/i] and nothing was going to stand in his way to stop him from going pro now!

[color=ed1c24]“Hell yeah!”[/color]

A loud snore from the top bunk finally alerted him to the presence of another person in the room. 

[color=ed1c24]“Oh sh... sorry dude.”[/color]

Looks like his roommate had made it here first and already begun to unpack; if by ‘unpack’ you meant scatter his stuff all over the room. Leo walked over to his bunk, carefully stepping over everything in his path so that he could drop his own belongings onto the bed. “Man, this place is a pigsty.” He almost began to pick up the clothing strewn across the floor, before he reminded himself that he wasn’t at the orphanage anymore and wasn’t picking up after a bunch of kids anymore; this was a grown-ass teenager who could pick up after himself!

Leo would need to have a talk to him about keeping this place clean later or at least about keeping his mess to his portion of the room. No way was he putting up with this for the next few years. Until then he had stuff to do, like taking his deck for a spin around the island and racking up as many Duel Points as he could, ha! The fact that this school would just give you money for winning duels was more than he could ever ask for. No more placing bets on back alley duels to earn his keep, he could just walk up to any other student whenever he wanted and earn some cash.

This must have been what it felt like to be a pro-duellist.

[color=ed1c24]“Alright, time to get started.”[/color]

Grabbing his deck and his fancy as hell PDA, he took off out of the room and used his Duel Radar to find himself an opponent.

----

[color=00aeef][center][h3]Cassandra Moore – Obelisk Blue[/h3][/center][/color]

Upon arriving at Duel Academy for the first time, Cassandra had been struck by how grand and lavish the whole place seemed to be. From the main building with its giant spires and domed roof, to the lush greenery that covered most of the island to that fact that the whole facility was on its own private island in the first place, it truly was a marvellous and amazing place to see and be at. Even so, it seemed that even the main academy building itself was no match for the splendour of the Obelisk dormitories; the place looked like a palace or a chateau from the outside while it resembled a fancy hotel, complete with its own restaurants and entertainment facilities.

On her way here, she had heard people say that this place had been founded and funded by a famous duellist; she hadn’t recognised his name, not being one to really pay attention to things like the pro-circuit, but if that was the case then it made sense that they’d put this much time and effort into making this school so nice. Whoever he was, that duellist must have been a kind and generous person to provide them with so much, just so that they could learn to duel.

Cassandra hummed to herself as she walked through the dormitory halls, her new home for the foreseeable future, with a small smile on her face to match the happy tune. Other students rushed past her while she moved at a more sedate pace, in a hurry to either find their rooms or to check out the other amenities; instead of sharing their urgency she would stop occasionally to admire parts of the dorms that stood out to her, like a nice painting hanging in one of the lounges or a vase used to fill an alcove in one of the hallways. The result was that by the time she finally reached her dorm room most of the other students had already settled in; in fact, she barely had time to set down her bag or even look around the room before her neighbour opened the adjoining door between their rooms and challenged her to a duel.

She was a taken aback for a second, as much by the fact that someone actually wanted to duel her for a change as the suddenness of it, but she recovered quickly and responded with a widening of her smile. [color=00aeef]“Of course. I think I passed a duel arena on the way here, should we use that?”[/color]

They walked in silence the whole way; silence aside from Cassandra’s continued humming of course. It seemed Lexa, despite being the one who suggested this duel, wasn’t the talkative type. Soon enough, without having spoken a word, Cassandra found herself in a duel against her new roommate. Once they were stood across from each other, Lexa finally broke the silence between them to ask, “Heads or Tails?”

[color=00aeef]“Hmm, heads.”[/color]

Lexa flips a coin, catching it in the palm of the same hand. “Tails. Unlucky.”

She stands back a bit, creating proper space for dueling as her duel disk came to life.
[hider=Lexa’s theme][youtube]https://youtu.be/cgeYfMD3V2Y[/youtube][/hider]
“I guess I’ll go first. I’ll set two face-downs, one monster and one not, then end my turn.”
Cassandra drew her sixth card and added it to her starting hand; it was a good one too, turning a lacklustre hand into something she could do a lot more with. [color=00aeef]“I activate Reptilianne Ramifications, discarding Reptilianne Poison for cost and use its effect to add one Reptilianne monster and one Reptilianne spell to my hand. Hmm, I’ll add Scylla and Rage.”[/color]
[hider=Reptilianne Ramifications, Reptilianne Rage][img]https://ms.yugipedia.com//thumb/b/b7/ReptilianneRamifications-BODE-EN-SR-1E.png/300px-ReptilianneRamifications-BODE-EN-SR-1E.png[/img]
[img]https://cdn.statically.io/gh/The-Olacaryn-Nebulae/TheOlacarynNebulae/02598f1/91580102.jpg[/img][/hider]
Adding the two stated cards from her deck to her hand, Cassandra then separated one of those cards from the rest and placed it face-up on the field. [color=00aeef]“Next, I’ll normal summon Reptilianne Scylla. Then…”[/color] she pulled a second card from her hand and placed it in a spell and trap zone, [color=00aeef]“I activate Reptilianne Poison and target your face-down monster.”[/color]

Reptilianne Scylla - 1800/1200
[hider=Reptilianne Scylla, Reptilianne Poison][img]https://ms.yugipedia.com//thumb/8/85/ReptilianneScylla-SOVR-EN-C-1E.png/300px-ReptilianneScylla-SOVR-EN-C-1E.png[/img][img]https://ms.yugipedia.com//thumb/4/46/ReptiliannePoison-SOVR-EN-R-1E.jpg/300px-ReptiliannePoison-SOVR-EN-R-1E.jpg[/img][/hider]
[color=00aeef]“Your monster is changed to attack position and… oh, its attack is already 0.”[/color]

Lexa gives Cassandra a cheeky wink.

Psychic Rover - 0/700
[hider=Psychic Rover][img]https://images.ygoprodeck.com/images/cards/53154400.jpg[/img][/hider]
[color=00aeef]“I move to the battle phase and attack Psychic Rover with Reptilianne Scylla.”[/color]

“I activate my face-down, That Six.”
[hider=That Six][img]https://ms.yugipedia.com//thumb/5/51/ThatSix-DUEA-EN-SP-1E.png/300px-ThatSix-DUEA-EN-SP-1E.png[/img][/hider]
Still, Reptilianne Scylla’s attack went through anyway. It chomped down on Psychic Rover, brutally shattering it into pieces.

[8000 LP > 6200 LP]

“Psychic Rover’s effect activates. It allows me to roll a die. If the result is 2 through 5, he comes back.” With that, an oversized die hologram appeared in Lexa’s hand, which she tossed up as if it were weightless. It came crashing down, bouncing around like a real die. It landed on a 3, and thus Psychic Rover appeared once more, in face-up defense position.

“Now, when Psychic Rover is special summoned, he lets me roll another die, and if the result is a 1 or a 6, he’ll destroy up to 2 cards on the field.” Another die appears in her hand, and she tosses it over her shoulder like a piece of trash. “With That Six active, I can guarantee the result will always be either a 1 or a 6. Psychic Rover, destroy Reptilianne Scylla.”

The man in a jumpsuit aimed his crackling electrified gauntlet at Reptilianne Scylla, and with a quick zap, it shattered into pieces just like he did.

If Cassandra was bothered by her monster being destroyed it didn’t show, the small, self-assured smile that had been present on her lips all day was still there. [color=00aeef]“I end my turn.”[/color]

“Very well. My draw.” She pauses for a moment before placing a card onto her duel disk. “I summon Dicelops in attack, and activate its effect to roll a die.”

Dicelops - 1800/200
[hider=Dicelops][img]https://ms.yugipedia.com//thumb/5/5e/Dicelops-MP17-EN-C-1E.png/300px-Dicelops-MP17-EN-C-1E.png[/img][/hider]
As she did previously, Lexa rolled an oversized hologram die, and after bouncing a bit, it landed on a 5, causing her to discard a card.

“Seems luck’s not on my side this time. Now, I attack directly with Dicelops!”

[8000 LP > 6200 LP]

“With that, I end my turn.”

[color=00aeef]“Looks like we’re tied again. I’ll draw.”[/color] The card added to Cassandra’s hand wouldn’t change anything right now, so she quietly placed it with the rest and picked another card out instead. [color=00aeef]“I place one monster and two backrow face down and end my turn.”[/color]

“Draw. I activate Dicelops’ effect once again.” The die appears, and this time it lands directly on a natural 1. Dicelops eye glows, and Cassandra’s hand is revealed: Back to the Front and Reptilianne Rage.
[hider=Back to the Front][img]https://ms.yugipedia.com//thumb/4/48/BacktotheFront-SDAZ-EN-C-1E.png/300px-BacktotheFront-SDAZ-EN-C-1E.png[/img][/hider]
“I choose Back to the Front.”

Dicelops’ eye glows brighter before a laser erupts from it, sending Back to the Front to the grave.

“Now I summon Hinezumi Hanabi in attack.”
Hinezumi Hanabi - 2000/200 (6 counters)
[hider=Hinezumi Hanabi][img]https://ms.yugipedia.com//thumb/1/16/HinezumiHanabi-MP21-EN-C-1E.png/300px-HinezumiHanabi-MP21-EN-C-1E.png[/img][/hider]

“Time to battle. Dicelops, attack her face-down.”

The face-down flips up to reveal a blond snake girl with a cobra head on top of her head like a crown. As the monster appeared, Cassandra’s smile widened noticeably as from her perspective the snake girl turned to look and wave at her over her shoulder; Cassandra waved back.

Reptilianne Naga - 0/0
[hider=Reptilianne Naga][img]https://ms.yugipedia.com//thumb/7/7c/ReptilianneNaga-ABPF-EN-C-1E.jpg/300px-ReptilianneNaga-ABPF-EN-C-1E.jpg[/img][/hider]
[color=00aeef]“Reptilianne Naga can’t be destroyed by battle and at the end of the battle phase your Dicelops’ attack will be reduced to 0.”[/color]

“Hmm. Not ideal. I guess I’ll end my turn.” She could have attacked with Hinezumi Hanabi to reduce its threat to her, but for a deck with effects revolving around monsters with zero attack, was there any guarantee that would be any better?

Hmm… Another gamble…

“Hinezumi Hanabi’s effect activates. It becomes your monster, and you get to roll a die this time.”

Another large die appears in Cassandra’s hands this time. It feels weightless. She tosses it up, following Lexa’s example, and it comes to a stop on 4.

“I use the effect of That Six. That result is instead treated as a 1.”

Hinezumi Hanabi loses one counter and its fuse shortens, just slightly. Better to keep it from blowing up when it rejoins her side of the field.

“Quite an unfortunate turn. Your go.”

Cassandra drew again, adding another card to her hand which, although useful, once again wouldn’t affect her turn too much. Looking at the current field, her cards in hand and her cards in the grave, Cassandra hummed to herself in thought for a few moments before coming to a decision. [color=00aeef]“Hmm… I think I should be able to end things here.”[/color]

She began by flipping one of the face-down cards in her backrow face-up. [color=00aeef]“I activate Back to the Front, targetting the Scylla in my grave and special summoning it in defense position.”[/color] The monster, a hideous beast with multiple mouths with the upper body of a woman sprouting from where it’s head should be, was summoned back to the field. [color=00aeef]“Then, I use Naga and Scylla as material for a Link summon; I summon Reptilianne Echidna.”[/color]

Reptilianne Echidna - 200/LINK-2
[hider=Reptilianne Echidna][img]https://ms.yugipedia.com//thumb/6/6c/ReptilianneEchidna-DUOV-EN-UR-1E.png/300px-ReptilianneEchidna-DUOV-EN-UR-1E.png[/img][/hider]
A blue-skinned woman with the lower body of a snake and bat-like wings appeared in place of the tributed snake women, unfurling her wings and coiling her snake tail under herself on the field.

[color=00aeef]“Next, I’ll activate Echidna’s effect to add reptile monsters from my deck to my hand up to the number of monsters with 0 attack you control; that’s two, so I’ll add another Scylla and Reptilianne Vaskii to my hand.”[/color]

Reptilianne Vaskii - 2600/0
[hider=Reptilianne Vaskii][img]https://ms.yugipedia.com//thumb/4/4c/ReptilianneVaskii-ABPF-EN-R-1E.jpg/300px-ReptilianneVaskii-ABPF-EN-R-1E.jpg[/img][/hider]
[color=00aeef]“I normal summon Scylla and special summon Vaskii by tributing two monsters with 0 attack from anywhere on the field; I’ll use your Diceclops and Psychic Rover as my tributes.”[/color]

Cassandra continued to smile as her side of the board quickly filled with various serpentine monsters, humming to herself as she removed the obstacles standing between herself and her opponent’s lifepoints. [color=00aeef]“I enter the battle phase.”[/color]

[color=00aeef]“Attack with Hinezumi Hanabi.”[/color]

[6200 LP > 4200 LP]

[color=00aeef]“Attack with Reptilianne Scylla.”[/color]

[4200 LP > 2400 LP]

[color=00aeef]“Attack with Reptilianne Vaskii.”[/color]

[2400 LP > 0 LP]

As the metaphorical smoking wreckage of her lifepoints are made literal by the holograms, Lexa emerges from it with the same unchanging smile on her face that she’s been wearing since they met. “And that’s game. Well played.”

Cassandra’s duel disk deactivated now that the duel was over, her monsters fading from view. [color=00aeef]“Hmm, thank you. You played well too; it was a fun duel.”[/color]

“Good to know. I’ll send a contact request. We’ll probably bump into each other a lot, so might as well.”

Tilting her head slightly to the side, Cassandra looked at the other girl like she didn’t quite know what she meant. [color=00aeef]“A contact request? Oh, you mean like exchanging numbers?”[/color]

Lexa nods. “The school PDAs call it contact requests, since once the request is sent, the rest is automatic after being accepted or denied.” She shrugs. “Though it really is just a feature for exchanging numbers.”

[color=00aeef]“Oh, that makes sense.”[/color]

Lexa nods again before turning to leave, giving a lazy wave before walking away. “Well then, I’ll see you around.”

Cassandra waved too, waiting until Lexa was gone before pulling her deck out of her duel disk and holding it close to her mouth and whispering to it. [color=00aeef]“Thank you for your hard work everyone; you did great, as always.”[/color] Putting her deck away, she began to walk back to her dorm room. Along the way she pulled out her PDA to check her messages, finding the promised contact request from Lexa as well as another message from the school congratulating her on her win.

[color=00aeef]“Hmm? What are duel points?”[/color]