Yu-Gi-Oh! Realm of the Duelist

[Umbra]

[left]Hi guys this is my first fanfic hope you like it[/left]

[left][spoiler=Prologue: The New World]

Adam adjusted the collar of his suit. The press conference was probably the most important thing that would happen to him, after all; he needed to look good. From behind the curtain, the fully-lit stage in front of him looked endlessly large, and the podium endlessly small. The conference room was filled to the brink with all kinds of media: TV stations, journalists and bloggers. The tech guys were still out there, making sure that everything was perfect. His laptop was being plugged in to the monitor, the words [i]Project Mundus Nova[/i] in orange over a black background written across it. He looked down at his hands, and found that he was shivering.

[i]I'm probably just nervous.[/i]

He had every right to be. After all, his entire career depended on how the next fifteen minutes went. Mundus Nova had been his idea from the very beginning, and the company had thrown a lot of money at him. They expected it to be a success - “revolutionary”, they had called it - and he definitely needed it to be. Over the last five years, he had poured his heart and soul into perfecting Mundus Nova, and he was sure that a flop would completely wreck him. He tapped the earphone in his left ear.

“Rachel, are you there?”

Not five seconds later, his second-in-command came around the corner. Rachel Fields had been assigned to him when they first started working on the project, and now she was one of the few who had been with him all the way through. If he was the brain behind Mundus Nova, she was most definitely the heart. There had been times where he had considered giving up on the whole thing, when everything seemed to pile up and collapse on itself, but every time she had been there, cheering him on. And now, here they were. She smiled at him.

“Everything alright, Adam?”

He cast a glance at the tech guys on the stage, who seemed to almost be finished. The visuals had been turned on; Project Mundus Nova was now clearly written on the two massive screens on the back wall. A camera flashed now and then, and a silent mumbling could be heard from the press.

“As long as they do what they're supposed to, we should be fine.”

He turned back to look at her. She had dressed up as well; a white, long-sleeved blouse and black trousers, with a pair of black high heels to match. In his strictly business-like suit, he couldn't help but to think of all the sleepless nights they had spent together, trying to fix the smallest quirks and bugs in Mundus Nova's systems. Many times, the team had discussed, argued, screamed at each other over the smallest things. They had seen each other at the worst of times, and now at the best of times. He couldn't help but to crack a smile.

“You look stunning, you know.”

She smiled back at him, and took a step closer.

“You don't look too shabby yourself, [i]boss.[/i]”

For a moment, their lips met. They had been a couple for four years now, and Adam still treasured every day they had together. It simply felt too good to be true, as if she could be pulled away from him at any second. They had had their fights and their differences, of course, but nothing that couldn't be solved. He loved her, more than anything else in this world. His earphone crackled.

“Everything's set up, boss. We're ready to go.”

They broke away from each other as he looked back at the stage. Save for the podium and the laptop on it, it was empty. The stage no longer seemed endless, and the press was simply that; press. Nothing he couldn't handle. With the smile still plastered to his face, he nodded at Rachel.

“Let's not keep them waiting, shall we?”

Their arms around each other, they stepped out onto the stage.[/left]
[left]
[hr][/left]

Gary Hammond, seventeen, was one of fifteen-thousand who had hooked up to the livestream. This one in particular was cast by one of the major players in his region; Michael “Saberman” Lavaughn, who had topped the European Championships the year before. Even with Industrial Illusions' press conference being held in America, there were barely any latency issues worth mentioning. The D-Gazer's built-in screens allowed him to see directly through Saberman's eyes, half a world away.

In the corner of his eye, he saw the chat log overflowing with discussions, with people from across the continent talking to each other about whatever they wanted. He didn't feel the need to say anything; it would be lost to the flood anyhow. The clock at the bottom right of his screen flashed brightly; 18:00. Over there it was only noon, but it was the assigned time; the conference would start at any second. They had seen the name already: “Project Mundus Nova”, confirming the name they had heard rumors of so many months ago.

The chat turned completely quiet as two people stepped out on the stage. A dark-haired man in a business suit of the same color, and a blonde woman at his side. Gary knew their names even before the stream re-focused on them: Adam McAllister and Rachel Fields, both of them high-ups at Industrial. There had been rumors of them being relocated from the main AugDuel team for many years now, although no one had been sure where they'd gone. Some had even said they were fired, which obviously wasn't the case now.

They came up to the podium, and the man tapped his microphone.

“Ladies and gentlemen, press and players from all other the world; welcome. Eight years ago, we gave you the Augmented Duel system, allowing you to seamlessly integrate your duels into your real-life location, allowing full immersion into the game wherever you are. We have continued to provide support for the system, as well as making it more affordable for everyone.”

He cleared his throat.

“Today I am glad to announce the next step in the evolution of Duel Monsters and the Augmented Duel. This is the culmination of many years of work, and a source of pride for all of us here at Industrial Illusions. Rachel?”

The blonde woman nodded, and tapped a key on the laptop in front of them. The Mundus Nova logo on the screens behind them suddenly started changing, and Gary was struck by an odd sense of vertigo as the stream shifted slightly upward to focus on them. The letters changed in both form and color, with a picture forming just above them. Flashes of white filled the room as the physical photographers took their pictures. Now near the bottom of the stream, Adam started talking again as the words finally settled.

“On this day, I welcome you to the Duelist Realm. The first, fully-integrated Duel Monsters experience. Players will be able to create their own virtual avatar and immerse themselves in a living, breathing world that will change according to their actions. You can bring your deck into the fray to fight other duelists, or take on the challenging monsters out in the wilds. You can play at any time, anywhere, and see the new world directly through your D-Gazers.”

Gary, barely able to contain his excitement, cast a quick glance over at the chat – and saw that it had exploded. He could barely finish a sentence before it vanished, replaced by countless others. Most were cries of joy and praise, others simply said that it looked amazing. The doomsayers, as always, said that they hated it, or that it would never come out, but they were few and far in between. Saberman was clearly excited as well; the stream was visibly shaking. Adam continued.

“But enough talk. Rachel, show them what we've got.”

There was a click... and just like that, the world changed. Saberman had mentioned that he would be able to connect his own stream directly to their source, and now Gary could see why. They were no longer in a conference room; he was standing at the top of a mountain, overlooking a vast jungle. He could feel the wind in his face; cold, but not unbearable. Ahead, the jungle soon gave way to a shoreline, and at his sides the mountain range stretched to the horizon. When Adam spoke, his voice was distant and echoing.

“The Realm calls for you, Duelist.”

Gary heard a single stroke of giant wings somewhere behind him before it flew past, blocking out the sun. A dragon, with glistening white scales and deep-set eyes that seemed to shimmer in blue, had appeared. It circled above him, and with every flap of its wings he felt the wind on his face.

[i]This can't be happening. This is too real, too amazing.[/i]

He watched in awe as the Blue-Eyes White Dragon come to a halt above him, treading the air with its wings, and looked directly at him.

“Will you answer it?”

The stream faded to black. The conference room exploded in applause and shouting. And somewhere, in the darkness between the worlds, a plan was put into motion.
[/spoiler]

[Bahamut - Envoy of the End]

*Sees author*

*Immediately drops everything and reads it*

[quote]Hi guys this is my first fanfic hope you like it[/quote]

Trololol

Very much enjoyed the setting up and visuals, and how everything was presented as a prologue. I'm just not sure about the way some of it was presented. Just some of the way we were let in on information was a bit... direct. Like Gary Hammond, seventeen, ... just seemed a bit... blunt. The background of Rachel and Adam (although it was better as it was then by them telling each other all their history in speech, which I think is something I'm guilty of at times). Kinda weird as professionals they'd walk on stage arm in arm, but other than that everything was natural and could picture it all nicely.

The last sentence was incredibly brief and sort of.. 'wut?' Didn't really have the impact on me. I mean I like that it was just one offhand comment off the back of appauluse and good feeling and stuff that's all doom, which I liked. But the wording 'a plan was put into motion' was a bit weak IMO. Yeah, of course someone is going to be doing something dark and sinister in all this. It wouldn't be a story otherwise. A baddie smirking at the back of the conference room or backstage? Whirrings of sinister looking machinery? You know, something a bit more... oomph.

[Brinolovania]

Huh...this does look interesting [s]and kinda like Dead Zone[/s]

I haven't read your previous stuff, but judging by this, they're probably at least as good as people say.

[Umbra]

[quote name='Verz Bahamut' timestamp='1333835590' post='5905499']
Trololol
[/quote]

sorry I dont speak russian

[quote name='Verz Bahamut' timestamp='1333835590' post='5905499']
Very much enjoyed the setting up and visuals, and how everything was presented as a prologue. I'm just not sure about the way some of it was presented. Just some of the way we were let in on information was a bit... direct. Like Gary Hammond, seventeen, ... just seemed a bit... blunt. The background of Rachel and Adam (although it was better as it was then by them telling each other all their history in speech, which I think is something I'm guilty of at times). Kinda weird as professionals they'd walk on stage arm in arm, but other than that everything was natural and could picture it all nicely.
[/quote]

To be honest, I agree. I could have gone to greater lengths in the way I described Gary, Rachel and Adam, but it wouldn't have felt natural. I don't want to have that scene where the character stops by a mirror on their way somewhere and casually spends half a paragraph describing exactly what they look like, as well as the clothes they'll be wearing for the foreseeable future, unless there's a reason to have it.

Their behavior, on the other hand, I could definitely change. It's neither professional, as you say, nor really appropriate for the setting. I'll post an updated version before I start the series proper.

[quote name='Verz Bahamut' timestamp='1333835590' post='5905499']
The last sentence was incredibly brief and sort of.. 'wut?' Didn't really have the impact on me. I mean I like that it was just one offhand comment off the back of appauluse and good feeling and stuff that's all doom, which I liked. But the wording 'a plan was put into motion' was a bit weak IMO. Yeah, of course someone is going to be doing something dark and sinister in all this. It wouldn't be a story otherwise. A baddie smirking at the back of the conference room or backstage? Whirrings of sinister looking machinery? You know, something a bit more... oomph.
[/quote]

I was going for ominousness rather than impact, but that obviously didn't work out. I'm not entirely pleased with that line either; again, that'll be fixed in the updated version.


[b]Pacmanexus[/b], I would have responded with a quote, but the forum decided to bug out on me. I'm glad you find it interesting, it's always nice to welcome a new reader. I take your striked-out comment as praise, by the way. Dead Zone is definitely one of the best stories ever written on this forum, even if it wasn't finished.

I guess that depends on who you talk to. I would say they're alright.

[Dr. Cakey]

I think your Latin is off. Will check when not lazy.

But yez, i needz moar