The Knight of Shadows

It was a sunny day in Domino City, and there wasn't a care in the world to be had. Unless of course, you were Jaden Yuki, who was running through the streets at full tilt. 
"Alright, I got my deck, my gear, and about 2 minutes to get to the Duel Academy entrance exams before they start. At least since I'm not a student yet, they can't throw me in detention hall for being late." He said to himself as he ran past other people in the street. 
"Watch out!" He shouted when he realized he was about to run into somebody. He didn't stop in time and crashed into them, falling backwards as his cards spilled onto the ground. 
"Sorry." Jaden said as he began to pick up his cards.
"You're a duelist, aren't you?" The man who he bumped into asked.
"Yep, I'm going to try out at the academy." Jaden responded. 
"You don't say." The other man said as he reached into his deck box and pulled out a card. Jaden laughed as he stood up but stopped laughing when he realized he was talking to one of the greatest duelists in history. 
"Why don't you take this? Something just tells me that it belongs with you." The former King of Games said as he handed Jaden a card. 
"Wow, really?" Jaden asked as he took the card. 
"Good luck." Yugi said as he left. 
"Thank you. I'll make you proud." Jaden said. Yugi just turned back and gave him a thumbs up. Jaden looked at the card he was given. It looked like Kuriboh with a pair of angel wings. It was then that Jaden heard a voice call out to him, but when he looked around there was no one there.
He then looked at his watch and realized he was almost late. 
"The exam!" he said before running off. 
"Hey there!" A voice shouted out. Jaden turned to where the voice came from and saw a boy his age with black hair and blue eyes and wearing a pair of faded blue jeans, a black shirt, a black long sleeve jacket, and a black backpack sitting on a black motorcycle. 
"You headed to the DA entrance exam?" He asked. 
"Yeah, you goin' there too?" Jaden asked. 
"Yep. Hop on and I'll give you a lift." The stranger offered. 
"Thanks. What's your name?" Jaden asked. 
"My name is Michael." He said. 
"Cool, my name's Jaden." The other boy replied. 
"Well, get on." Michael said. Jaden got on the back and Michael drove them both to the entrance exams. While they were driving, Michael began to think to himself.
'So this is the reincarnation of the Supreme King? He does look like the original, but I guess time will tell if he is the man I've come to Duel Academy to find.' He thought to himself. They arrived just under the wire and signed in before the end of exams. 
"That was a close one. Thanks for giving me a ride, I might not have made it if it weren't for you." Jaden said. 
"My pleasure." Michael responded. They turned their attention down to the duel field and took notice of one of the student's duels. The student had 3200 life points, Vorse Raider, and a face down card on his field and his opponent had 1900 life points, Gear Golem the Moving Fortress, and Big Shield Gardna on his field.
"Okay new guy, multiple choice. You got multiple monsters staring you down. Do you A: throw in the towel, B: beg for mercy, or C: run home to momma?" the proctor asked. 
"I'll go with D: none of the above, and activate this." The student said as he revealed his face-down card. 
"That's Ring of Destruction!" The proctor exclaimed. 
"Exactly, which means I can destroy any monster on the field and deal damage to both of us equal to that monster's attack points," the student explained as a metal collar attached itself to Vorse Raider's neck before exploding, dropping his opponent's life points to 0. 
"Not bad kid. Welcome to the academy." The proctor praised.
"Thank you, oh wise proctor." The student said before leaving the arena. 
"Not a bad move." Michael said from the stands. 
"That's Bastion Misawa. They say he's one of only two of the applicants to get a perfect score on the written exam." A short blue haired boy next to him and Jaden said. 
"Wow, I just barely passed." Jaden said. 
"Yeah, me too. My name's Syrus by the way, it's nice to meet you. I kinda have anxiety problems, I don't know how I won my match." The blue haired boy said. 
"So you're in. Congratulations, we'll be in too once we win our duels." Jaden said as he patted Syrus on the back. 
"Wait, you two haven't dueled yet?" Syrus asked. 
"No. We only managed to get here just before they closed." Michael explained.
"Then you might have a problem, I think this was supposed to be the last duel." Syrus informed them. In another part of the building, the staff were having a conversation about this year's applicants. 
"Looks like we've got a pretty good crop this year." One of them said. 
"We do indeed." Another staff member agreed. The man from registration walked up to one of the teachers. 
"I'm sorry to interrupt, but two more applicants have arrived to take their exams Mr. Crowler." He said. 
"Did you just call me Mr.?" the person he spoke to asked. 
"Oh sorry, I'm new here Mrs." The man said. 
"I have a PhD in dueling, I've earned the title Dr thank you, now just tell the truants they'll have to come back next year." Crowler said.
"Actually Dr. Crowler, they arrived just before registry had closed. Besides, we have time for two more duels." One of the staff members said. 
"Yes, I say we give them a chance." Another staff member said. 
"They're technically not even late." One of them argued. 
"Enough! If they can't be bothered to show up on time, then they shouldn't be allowed to enroll!" Crowler shouted. 
"I agree." Another staff member said. 
"Ah, Dr. Maxwell, always the voice of reason." Crowler said as he turned to face his colleague, who was just as cold as he was. That's when Crowler's phone rang. 
"Who is it?" he asked as he answered the call. 
"It's Sheppard." A man on the other end answered. 
"Oh, Chancellor Sheppard." Crowler said.
"Just calling to make sure everything is running smoothly Crowler. We wouldn't want a repeat of last year, would we? When you cut a third of our applicants for some ridiculous reason. What was it, calling you Mr. or Mrs.? Whatever, just make sure every duelist gets their chance." Chancellor said. 
"Absolutely. Furry chinned wind bag." Crowler said as he hung up. 
'Doesn't he realize there are enough talent-less flunkies at this academy already? But he's the boss, and if he wants to these scrimshankers a duel, fine.' Crowler thought to himself. 
"Dr Maxwell, you and I will duel the applicants." Crowler said
"With pleasure." His colleague said as he rose from his seat. He knew exactly what Crowler had in mind, and he couldn't be more on board. Back with Jaden and Michael, Bastion had just returned to his seat. 
"Impressive duel Bastion." Michael complimented. 
"Thank you." Bastion replied. 
"Yeah, by the looks of things, you just might be the second-best duelist here." Jaden said. 
"Jaden Yuki, please report to exam field 4." A voice said over the intercom. 
"Go time. Wish me luck guys." Jaden said before walking off. 
"Wait, if I'm the second-best duelist here, then who's the first?" Bastion asked. 
"Yours truly. It's what I'm best at." Jaden said before walking down.
[Timeskip over Jaden's duel]
"Looks like he's in." Bastion said. 
"Yep." Michael said. 
'I'm all but convinced he's the one I'm searching for.' He thought to himself. Jaden walked back up and joined them. 
"Sweet duel huh?" He asked. 
"Yeah, you sent that Golem to the scrap heap." Syrus complimented. 
"An excellent duel." Michael praised. 
"Michael Shadows, please report to exam field 2." The voice from earlier said. 
"Looks like it's my turn." Michael said before walking down. 
"Wait, did they say Michael Shadows?" Bastion asked. 
"Yeah, I think so, why?" Syrus asked. 
"He's the heir of the Shadows family. He's earned the nickname the Knight of Shadows." Bastion explained.
"Who are the Shadows family? And how did he get a nickname like that?" Jaden asked. 
"The Shadows family are a wealthy and prestigious family from Domino City. It's said that they descend from a line of knights that served royalty in the middle ages. That's part of why he got the nickname, the other reason is his personality and the fact he always duels using fiend type monsters," Bastion explained. 
"He sounds strong." Syrus said. 
"I've also heard that he uses a special deck that has been passed down through his family. And this may just be a rumor, but I've heard he's never lost a duel, and even beat retired pros as a child." Bastion added. 
"If all that is true, we may be in for an incredible duel." Jaden said.
Meanwhile, Michael had just arrived at the duel field. He reached into his bag and pulled out a knight's gauntlet that had a duel disk attached. It was like the Duel Academy standard duel disk, but was jet-black and the outer edge was sharp like a blade. 
"Greetings. I look forward to the opportunity to duel against you." Michael said. 
"Even if you can't show up on time, at least you show proper respect." Maxwell said. 
"Might I know the name of my opponent?" Michael asked. 
"Dr. Maxwell." His opponent introduced. 
"Very well then, let the duel begin." Michael said as he activated his duel disk. 
"Indeed." His opponent said as he activated his duel disk.
Both: "Let's duel."
Michael: 4000 LP
Maxwell: 4000 LP
"I'll go first." Maxwell said. Michael just nodded in response. 
"I play the spell card Graceful Charity. Now I can draw cards as long as I discard two cards after." Maxwell explained. 
'Crowler had the right idea about using our own decks, but I'll succeed where he failed.' He thought to himself as he discarded two cards. 
"Next I play the spell card Monster Reborn to resurrect my Immortal Bushi." He continued.
Level 3/DARK/Warrior
ATK 1200/DEF 600
"Now I play the Great Sword equip spell. This card raises the attack points of a warrior type monster by 300 and allows it to be treated as two tributes for the tribute summon of a warrior type monster." the Dr. explained. 
"Wait, two tributes?" Syrus asked in the stands. 
"That means he can summon a high-level monster." Alexis said. 
"I sacrifice my Immortal Bushi to summon Gilford the Lightning!" Maxwell shouted. 
"No way!" Syrus shouted. 
"He has such a card!?" Bastion exclaimed.
Level 8/LIGHT/Warrior
ATK 2800/DEF 1400
"And now I equip my monster with the spell card Mist Body, which means he can't be destroyed by battle. Next, I play the Dark Door continuous spell, so we can only attack with one monster each turn. Finally, I place one card face-down and end my turn." Maxwell said. 
"So not only does he have a strong monster on his first turn, but it can't be destroyed by battle, Michael can only attack once, and he has to worry about a face-down card?" Syrus asked in the stands. 
"Yes, it seems Michael may be in trouble." Bastion said. 
"Lighten up guys." Jaden said. 
"What do you mean Jay?" Syrus asked. 
"Just look at Michael. He doesn't seem concerned." Jaden pointed out. Just as Jaden said, Michael wasn't showing the slightest bit of worry. 
"It's my turn, I draw." Michael said. 
'My face-down card is Mirror Force, so if he attacks, he'll be wide open.' Maxwell thought to himself. 
"One turn." Michael said. 
"What?" his opponent asked. 
"I'll defeat you in a single turn." Michael said.
Everyone in the audience began to talk among themselves about Michael's declaration. Defeat one of the best teachers in Duel Academy in a single turn? Could he really do it? 
"You really think you can defeat me in one turn?" Maxwell asked. 
"I don't think I can, I know I can, but rather than just talk about it, I'll show you." Michael answered. 
"I play the Dark World Lightning spell card. With it, I can destroy any face-down card on the field, as long I discard a card after it's destroyed." He explained. 
"Say what?" Maxwell asked. 
"I choose to destroy your set card." Michael declared as a blast of purple lightning shot from his trap at his opponent's face-down card, destroying it.
"Since it was destroyed, I discard one card." Michael said as he slipped a card in his graveyard. Just then, a fiendish looking monster with a green cloak appeared and fired a blast of purple energy at Maxwell's Dark Door, destroying it.
"What happened?!" He asked. 
"The card I discarded was Gren, Tactician of Dark World, and due to his special ability, when he's discarded from my hand by a card effect, 1 spell or trap card is destroyed, and I chose your Dark Door." Michael explained. 
"Alright! He destroyed two of his opponent's cards." Syrus exclaimed. 
"But he still has to deal with Gilford the Lightning, and with Mist Body protecting it, he's got his work cut out for him." Bastion said. 
"Yeah, but I get the feeling Michael's not done yet." Jaden said. 
"I play the Double Spell magic card, so by discarding my Dark World Dealings, I can use any spell from your graveyard, such as Graceful Charity." Michael explained as he drew and then discarded.
"And now the effects of Silva, Warlord of Dark World and Ceruli, Guru of Dark World activate, causing them to be revived from my graveyard." he explained. 
"Impossible!" Maxwell shouted.
Silva
Level 5/DARK/Fiend
ATK 2300/DEF 1400
Ceruli
Level 1/DARK/Fiend
ATK 100/DEF 300
Silva revived onto Michael's field, but Ceruli appeared on Maxwell's field. 
"Why is this thing on my field?" He asked. 
"Ceruli's effect causes him to be summoned to your field. And now that he's there, his other special ability activates, forcing the player opposing him to discard one card from their hand," Michael explained. 
"But wait, if this thing is on my field, then that would make you." Maxwell began to say. 
"It's opponent, which means I discard 1 card from my hand," Michael said as he did just that. 
"And now the effect of the Goldd, Wu Lord of Dark World that I discarded activates. With it, I can summon him to my field, and as a bonus, since he was discarded from my hand by your card effect, I can destroy up to two cards on your field." Michael explained. 
"Two cards?!" Maxwell exclaimed. 
"So I'll say hello to Goldd, and you can say goodbye to Ceruli and Gilford." Michael said as Maxwell's monsters exploded.
Goldd, Wu Lord of Dark World
Level 5/DARK/Fiend
ATK 2300/DEF 1400
"No way!" Maxwell exclaimed. 
"And now my monsters, attack directly." Michael ordered. His monsters brandished their weapons and struck the professor, knocking him onto his back. 
"Well played Master Michael." Ceruli said as he appeared next to him. 
"Thanks. Sorry you had to get blasted." Michael said apologetically. 
"Think nothing of it." Ceruli said before disappearing.
Maxwell: 0 LP
Winner: Michael
"No way! He beat Maxwell in one turn!" A student in the crowd said. 'So the rumors are true! The Dark World Deck does exist! I'll make it mine, no matter what!' A teen with black spiky hair in the audience thought to himself. 
"Alright, he's in!" Jaden shouted. 
"An excellent duel, although this means that the rumors are true." Bastion said. Michael then joined them back in the stands. 
"So how was that?" he asked. 
"Dude, you killed it!" Jaden said as he gave Michael a fist-bump. 
"Yeah. Think you could give me some pointers some time?" Syrus asked. 
"Sure." Michael replied. 
"So you're really a member of the Shadows family?" Bastion asked. 
"Indeed. But please, just call me Michael." The boy responded.
"Alright. But if you don't mind my asking, why is someone with your talent going to Duel Academy? With your skills and your family's status, you could enter the Pro Leagues easily." Bastion asked. 
"I have my reasons." was all Michael said. 
"I see. I apologize if I was being intrusive." Bastion replied. 
"It's fine." Michael assured. 
"Well, looks like we all get to go to Duel Academy." Jaden said. 
"I look forward to it." Michael said. 
'And I look forward to our joint future as well, Jaden.' Michael thought to himself.