Yu-Gi-Oh! KNIGHTS
Chapter 1: Knight's Beginning
My name is Brad Arkson, and for the longest time, I’ve realized that I may not be destined for greatness. I’m a plain Duel Academy student; I have below average grades, and I don’t stand out much, what with my normal blonde hair, dull blue eyes, and a chubby looking body. I don’t even have any real dueling skills, everybody beats me. Especially all the bullies here. I go to a below-average school, filled with lots of bullies, gang members, and wannabe hookers and mafia. I’ve yet to meet anyone else in this school who is somewhat decent.
Basically, I’m stuck here. My family and I had a disagreement, so I’d lost my free ride into a prestigious school, where I bet there would’ve been a lot of nice people and cute girls. But because I’m so dreadfully average, my parents decided I belonged here until I was able to show that I could do at least one thing worth mentioning. It’s been two years, and still, I haven’t been able to do a thing. I’m beginning to lose hope, and I know that I’ll probably be here in this stinkhole until the start of my pitiful dueling career.
I had started to get ready to go home when I was pulled aside, and slammed into a wall. My feet couldn’t touch the ground, with just his forearm pressed tightly against my chest. It was choking me, and I couldn't breathe. Only one guy was that strong to hoist people into the air like that. I opened one eye, looking straight at my eternal rival, Roy Evers.
“Hey Brat. I see you’ve gained weight. Trying to get all blubbery, so it won’t hurt as bad when I give you your daily pounding?” Roy Evers, he was the school bully. Before he came here, he was the number one duelist in a previous school, but his anger problems got the best of him. Like all misfits, this was the last school that would take him in, after he’d promptly beaten a kid so badly, he needed to go to the hospital. The reason why? Roy felt like it, because he’d won too easily, he needed to beat him some more. Ten games straight, it wasn’t even a contest. After the final attack, the kid just fell in a coma, and hasn’t woken since. Luckily, Roy only duels when provoked, so if you just take his beatings, you won’t have to go through his ‘Ultimate Beatdown’ deck.
He’d given me his lashing, then I was finally allowed to go home. My body ached, I could already feel my arms bruising in places he’d hit while I tried to defend myself. Just makes him want to hit harder, I suppose. In any case, I was glad to finally be out of school for a while. It’s a holiday, some sort of memorial, so we get the entire week off. I was just glad it kept me away from school, so I could recover slightly from the daily butt kicking I always received. Every day, it was the same. Go to school, get my butt kicked, go home, painfully await the next day where I do it all over again. It was too bad I was completely normal. Anyone who was above normal would maybe stand up to Roy. Unfortunately, I was not that kind of person. I'm simply the person who takes it and leaves.
On the way home, everything was normal. It was turning into night, with a mild storm brewing. I couldn't shake the fact that I felt somewhat strange. It wasn’t from the constant physical pain I was enduring, that was actually normal; re-thinking that over made me chuckle dryly. No, this was different, I think I was being followed. Looking around, I noticed someone I’d never seen before on my route home. I merely shrugged, and continued walking. It was a homeless person, covered only in dusty rags, filled with holes. Why would he be following me, besides the fact that maybe he wanted some spare change? I looked back at him, and the moment I did, he rushed to me, running at full speed. My eyes grew wide, realizing that I was suddenly in danger.
Without a moment’s hesitation, I turned and ran, hurrying home. The beating from Roy definitely affected me, my sore muscles slowed me down. I knew I was in no shape to continue running for more than a couple blocks. Panicking, I looked for a way out. I ducked into an alley, hoping I’d lose him there. Instead, I was face to face with a brick wall. I cursed aloud, under my breath. Turning around, I saw the stranger right behind me, looming over me with impressive height. I could only fall to my knees, hoping he wouldn’t kill me.
“Please sir. I haven’t done anything to you.” I said, my fingers gripped the pavement. He said nothing, just standing in front of me, looking down at me. I then realized, in a sad, pathetic way, that somehow, I was not at ease. I’d accepted that I was lowly, and I’d lost hope in everything because I was such a hopeless wreck. I thought before that I could die and no one would care. Yet, all of a sudden, here I am, pleading for my life, as if I had some meaning still left. My hope had returned, all too late.
The stranger reached down and grabbed me, pulled me up to his level. He asked in a gruff voice,
“Who are you?” as he looked straight into my eyes. I gulped, staring back at his. He was also blonde, though extremely dirty, but his eyes were a striking blue, as if emblazoned with purpose. I gulped at the intensity of the man, then shakingly responded:
“My name is Brad Arkson.” He blinked, then set me down on my own two feet.
“My name is Ark. I am your ancestor.”