[I][B]A wise man once said, crime doesn’t pay.

He wasn’t really a very wise man, when you look at the big picture.

Sure, police tend to catch criminals, but for each one they catch, many more slip through the cracks. Crime can indeed pay if you’re good at it. Criminals in history have gotten wealth… power… in one case, even the Presidency. (He was eventually caught, but he never had to answer to his crimes.)

Stories tell of some criminals who justify their actions – Robin Hood for example. His victims were bigger crooks than he was, and his spoils went to charity. Many stories are told that romanticize the life of the bandit, highwayman, or pirate… (I sometimes like to watch an anime show about pirates called “One Piece”; it isn’t the best anime, but it’s decent.)

I’m not sure what to make of my current opponent. She’s certainly a criminal, but is she selfish… or simply misunderstood?

One thing’s for sure…

Her deck packs a wallop…



[size=3][B]CHAPTER TWELVE



Honor Among Thieves



The sun was going down, and the bright lights of Glitzville were lighting up the streets as the four teens walked out of the restaurant.

“So,” muttered Francesca, “we’ve taken care of three of the Shadow Spawn…”

“Leaving three more…” added Andy.

“We can take them,” said Stan, confidently. “I think we can do it so long as we stay together…”

He leafed through his deck and removed the three special Monster Cards he had.

“Maybe there’s some truth in Merlee’s story, you know,” he said. “Maybe we are the descendents of some greater powers…”

He expected Andy and Francesca to object, but they didn’t. The words from Flurrie and Koops still echoed in their minds.

Stan shuffled the cards back into his deck.

“So, who’s up for some ice cream?” he asked.

“Good idea,” said a voice. “A man always told me that the best dishes are served cold…”

They paused, and saw the creepy girl in the black cowled cloak in front of them. Her cape whipped in the wind, revealing a curved figure in a tight black leotard.

“Look,” said Stan, narrowing his eyes, “I’m getting enough of this, spook-girl! Who are you, and what do you want?”

The girl chuckled.

“My real name is something that I keep secret,” she said. “Aside from me, only my parents know it – that is, if they’re still alive. You may call me Raven…”

Stan’s eyes narrowed again.

“As for what I want,” she continued, “I want what every contestant wants – to duel and gain another Crystal Card. I have three already…”

“Really?” said Andy, suspiciously. “No other strings attached?”

“I’m not a vampire!” she chuckled. “But it wouldn’t be sporting to duel you or Francesca, Andy – I’ve seen what’s in both of your decks…”

She pointed to Stan.

“So how about it Stan? Care to match wits with the Princess of Thieves?”

Princess of the Thieves? thought Stan. This is seriously weird.

“I’m not scared of you,” muttered Stan. “I’ll take you on…”

“Perfect,” said Raven with a smile.

She took her deck and began to shuffle.


[B]
* * * * * * * * * *


A hundred yards away, Crump was watching.

Interesting, he thought. Stan looks like he’s about to have the gauntlet thrown in his face.

That’s quite an odd opponent he’s got. Maybe I should keep a close eye on this… It might be useful later…


[B]
* * * * * * * * * *


“I have to warn you,” said Raven, with a smile, “my particular deck strategy is one that has rarely been perfected… however, my win-loss ratio is well over 90-10!”

“I like those odds,” chuckled Stan.

“What kind of a deck do you think she has?” asked Andy. “Spellcasters?”

“Zombies?” pondered Yumi.

“My bet is some strange type of Fiends…” suggested Francesca. “Man, we’ve seen a lot of those…”

The holo-imagers shot out, and the Disks flipped into position.

The scores set to 8,000.

“It’s time to duel!” laughed Raven, as she drew her first hand. “The first move is yours!”

“Awfully nice of you,” said Stan, drawing his first card.

He looked at it.

“And I’ll summon my Illusory Gentleman, in Attack Mode!”

He threw the card down, and the colorfully dressed Dark Spellcaster with his beady eye appeared, brandishing his staff. (1,500/1,600)

“Now it’s your move, spook,” he said.

“The name’s Raven!” she snarled, drawing a card.

Not bad, she thought.

She fit a card into a slot.

“I’ll place one card facedown,” she announced.

A card appeared in front of her.

“And then I’ll uproot this,” she said, placing another card down. “Mystic Tomato, in Defense Mode!”

A huge tomato-o-lantern with a lolling tongue appeared in front of her, and made a goofy face. (1,400/1,100)




“Your move…” she said with a smile.

Andy drew.

I know that thing’s effect, he thought. If it’s destroyed in battle, she gets to summon a Dark Monster with an Attack Score of 1,500 or less from her deck…

He considered his options.

I don’t have any other way to get rid of it, and if I don’t attack, she might sacrifice it for something powerful… Well, this guy should be able to handle whatever low-Attack Monster she summons…

“I summon Skilled White Magician in Attack Mode!” he shouted.

He threw the card down, and the sorcerer of Light appeared, holding his gleaming staff. (1,700/1,900)

“Illusory Gentleman, squash her tomater with dark illusion!”

The Illusory Gentleman thrust forth his staff, and blasted a steam of colored lights, reducing Mystic Tomato to pulp!

“Heh, heh…” chuckled Raven. “Impressive…”

A card flew out of her deck. She placed it on her Disk.

“I summon Dark Scorpion Chick the Yellow in Attack Mode!”

A form materialized in front of her. It was a teenage boy wearing black leather – a black top and red pants, as well as a red headband. He had blonde, wavy hair, and carried a wooden mallet. (1,000/1,000)




Stan drew back.

“A Dark Scorpion?” he mused.


[B]
* * * * * * * * * *


Well, this is odd… thought Crump.

I truly doubt that Chick the Yellow is the only Dark Scorpion in Raven’s deck… but she’ll have a hard time ahead of her…

After all, the strongest member of the Dark Scorpions has only 1,800 Attack Points, and Stan has Monsters far stronger than that…


[B]
* * * * * * * * * *


“I don’t know what your game is, Raven…” said Stan.

“Maybe my strategy is too complex for your simple mind,” commented Raven with a sneer.

“In case you didn’t notice,” explained Stan, “my Skilled White Magician has 700 more Attack Points than Chick there…”

Raven was silent, but Chick grinned at Skilled White Magician, daring him to attack…

That facedown card worries me, thought Stan, but I could get ahead if I took a risk…

“Skilled White Magician,” ordered Stan, “attack Chick the Yellow!”

Skilled White Magician aimed his staff.

“Not quite, Stan!” laughed Raven. “I activate my Trap!”

He card lifted.

“Great Escape!”

Chick the Yellow pulled a grappling hook and rope from his belt and threw it upward! He yanked himself out of the way of the Spellcaster’s blast!

“Surprised?” asked Raven. “The Dark Scorpions are the best thieves in the world, Stan – they always have a few tricks to keep themselves away from the law. This Trap protects one of them from attacks for one round.”

Chick leapt back onto the field.

“Ugh, I end my turn…” grunted Stan.

“Don’t worry, Stan!” called Andy. “Both your Monsters are still stronger than that weakling!”

Raven drew.

“Chick may be too weak,” she said, “but he’s only the first of a team that will destroy you! I sacrifice Chick the Yellow for his powerful teammate, Dark Scorpion Gorg the Strong!”

Chick the Yellow vanished into the shadows, and a larger form emerged. The new Warrior was dressed in the same outfit, but was far more muscular, with a bald head. He carried a heavy mace in his hands. (1,800/1,500)




“Eek!” stammered Stan.

“Gorg, attack his Skilled White Magician with Scorpion Crush!”

Gorg hollered, and charged forward, clobbering Skilled White Magician with his mace – not to mention to pieces.

Stan’s Life Points fell to 7,900.

“And that’s not all!” exclaimed Raven. “Now I get to enact one of Gorg’s effects… and I’ll enact the one which sends one of your cards from the field to the top of your deck!”

The Illusory Gentleman vanished, and his card flew off of Stan’s Disk and onto the top of his deck.

“Now it’s your move, flyboy…” she dared.

Stan drew, getting The Illusory Gentleman again.

Not many options… he thought.

“I’ll summon my Illusory Gentleman again, this time in Defense Mode,” he said, “and that will end my turn.”

He put the card down, and the Spellcaster appeared again.

“I see you’re running out of moves, Stan,” said Raven with a smile, “but a good thief always has plenty!”

She drew.

She put a card down on her Disk.

“You met the strength of the Dark Scorpions,” she exclaimed, “now meet the heart! I summon Dark Scorpion Meanae the Thorn!”

Another Warrior arose. A lovely, leggy female appeared, dressed in the same leather outfit. She had long, black hair, had tattoos on her arms, and carried a bullwhip. (1,000/1,800)




“Gorg, wipe out his Illusory Gentleman!” shouted Raven.

Gorg charged forward, and made short work of The Illusory Gentleman.

“Meanae, attack him directly! Scorpion lash attack!”

Meanae yelped with glee and leapt into the air… she vanished in a blur…

“Huh?” said Stan, looking around.

“STAN! Behind you!” screamed Francesca.

Too late. Meanae appeared behind Stan and lashed him across the buttocks with her whip! Stan screamed!

His Life Points fell to 6,900.

Meanae gave a cruel laugh, and leapt back to Raven’s side.

“Are all your Monsters so cruel, that they have to humiliate me?” growled Stan.

“Stan,” scolded Raven, “the Dark Scorpions learned a long time ago that fate dealt them a bad hand – that’s why they had to become thieves in the first place. Enemies aren’t worthy of their respect – to them, respect has to be earned. It’s a cruel world, and there are few people you can trust…

“But they watch out for each other. For instance, since Meanae damaged your Life Points, I get to add another Dark Scorpion to my hand from either my deck or Graveyard…”

A dark orb flew out of her discard slot and transformed into a card. She took it.

“I’ll retrieve Chick and save him for later. Any questions?”

“Yeah, I have one,” stated Stan. “Why exactly did you decide to base a deck on the Dark Scorpions, of all themes?”

“Well, not that it’s any of your business,” responded Raven, “but I grew up in Madripor.”

Stan, his three friends, and everyone watching gasped.

“You can’t be serious!” gulped Andy.

“That county has been on the U.S. embargo list for decades!” shouted Francesca.

“Yes, due to human rights violations that the ruling class don’t care about,” sneered Raven. “In Madripor, there are two kinds of citizens – the very rich, and the very poor. The rich upper class are a group of spoiled rotten snobs who never earned a red cent of the wealth they have, and they only rule the county by default. They treat the poor like animals, hardly caring about their welfare. It’s a common sight for one of the lower class to drop dead in the streets and a member of the upper class to walk right over him!

“I was born into that lower class… And when I was ten, my parents left me out on the streets, because they couldn’t afford to feed me! I suppose I can’t really blame them…

“I thought I was doomed… but after starving and shivering for two nights, I was saved by a ragtag man in with a quarterstaff who called himself Stick. He offered me a chance to survive – and also wreck revenge against the upper class that had put folks like me in my position. I eagerly accepted…

“You see, Stick was the leader of a gang of young thieves who struck back against the corrupt establishment of Madripor. He reasoned that most of the rich didn’t deserve the wealth they had, so if you could take it from them, you should try. He trained me and a great deal of others in burglary, pilfering, pickpocketing, anything to filch wealth from anyone who had too much – and I soon became one of his best.”

She chuckled.

“Stick loved calling me ‘The Princess of Thieves’. I was pretty much his heir!”

She paused.

“You know the expression ‘Honor Among Thieves’, Stan?” she continued. “We lived by that term. We had to watch each other’s backs. In Madripor, thieves were hanged, and trials were nonexistent. I was arrested nine times – once I came so close to execution that I saw the gallows that had been prepared for me. But each time my family got me out before it could be done. And I repaid the favor many times – I took part in rescue missions every week, it seemed.

“Eventually, my family raised enough money to bribe a merchant vessel to take us away from Madripor and take us to the States. It was there that I discovered Duel Monsters… and in doing so, I found the Dark Scorpions. They so much reminded me of my own family – the way they were a team that stood by each other… a group of thieves who dared to challenge the establishment.

“So now, stealing from spoiled snobs is just a secondary hobby… dueling is my life.”

She paused again.

“And I believe it’s your turn.”

Stan didn’t know what to think. Raven was a criminal… but she made a good point. Who were worse criminals? Those who stole, or those who horded wealth like the world owed it to them and neglected those who truly needed it?

But he still had to try to win. He drew.

“Try to get past this,” he dared. “I summon Mystical Elf in Defense Mode…”

He set a card down, and the peaceful, blue-skinned elf appeared, kneeling. (800/2,000)

“Humph,” chuckled Raven. “She kind of looks like your friend there…”

Francesca gave her a dirty look. Stan ignored her.

Stick had taught her how to survive in a corrupt country, but he hadn’t taught her many manners…

“I’ll also place this card facedown,” he said, placing a card into a slot. “Make your move.”

Raven drew.

Hmm, she thought. I can’t break that Elf’s Defense yet, and he likely intends to sacrifice her for something stronger…

Fortunately, I can buy myself some time…

She put a card down on her Disk.

“I’ll summon back an old friend,” she said. “You remember Chick the Yellow, don’t you?”

Chick the Yellow reappeared, holding his hammer. (1,000/1,000)

“And now,” she said, fitting a card into a slot, “I play Swords of Revealing Light!”

A rain of Swords crashed down upon Stan!

“Clever,” grunted Stan. “But you activated my Trap…”

His card lifted. A card showing a Grecian emperor in a toga holding a scroll and holding his right arm in a commanding manner appeared.

“I activate An Eye For An Eye!” he exclaimed.

To Raven’s surprise, a cage of Swords surrounded her!



Continued…