The air inside the Grand Arena had changed since Rami's "Judicial Duel." The atmosphere was no longer just one of sportsmanship and corporate sponsorship; it had become thick with a heavy, supernatural static. The Top 32 bracket was live, and the crowds were no longer cheering for their favorite school stars. They were whispering about the "Ancient" boy and the strange, impossible light that followed him.
Rami sat in the darkened hallway leading to the main stage, his fingers tracing the edges of his deck. The gold etching on the cards felt warm—not the burning heat of an attack, but a rhythmic, pulsing heat. Like a heartbeat.
"Forty pieces," Rami whispered, looking at the Millennium Puzzle. One more fragment had clicked into place after his victory over the Executioner, but the core of the artifact remained a jagged, hollow mystery.
"It's a beautiful weight, isn't it?"
Rami jumped, his hand flying to his deck. Standing in the shadows of the alcove was a girl he hadn't noticed. She looked to be his age, but she was dressed in flowing, ivory robes that seemed to catch the light even in the dark. Her hair was a shock of silver, and her eyes—pale blue and unnervingly wide—were fixed not on Rami, but on the wooden box in his lap.
"The weight of a soul that hasn't spoken in three thousand years," she said, her voice like the chiming of distant bells.
"Who are you?" Rami asked, standing up.
"I am Selene," she said, stepping into the light. "And in the next hour, I am the one who will silence that pulse. Not out of malice, Rami... but because the Pharaoh's voice is too loud. It drowns out the spirits of the world. I am here to bring the silence of the moon."
She held up her Duel Disk. It wasn't made of plastic or metal. It appeared to be carved from a single piece of white marble, etched with silver filigree.
"The Top 32," she whispered. "The stage is waiting."
The main arena was packed to the rafters. The holographic projectors were dialed to maximum, creating a nightmarish, beautiful landscape of a lunar desert across the field.
[TOP 32 MATCH: RAMI VS. SELENE]
Vance Sterling watched from his private box, his face pale. He wasn't sneering anymore. He was watching Selene with a look of genuine unease. Beside him, his father, Corvus, leaned forward.
"This girl," Corvus muttered. "The scouts said her deck rating was also 'Unmeasurable.' If she breaks him, we don't need the Arbiter's laws."
On the field, Rami and Selene faced each other.
[DUEL START]
[Rami: 5000 LP]
[Selene: 5000 LP]
"The moon rises first," Selene said softly. "I draw."
She glided a card onto the marble disk. "I activate the Field Spell: Sanctuary of the Pale Moon. While the moon hangs high, no monster on the field can be destroyed by card effects. The world must be still."
A giant, ethereal crescent moon materialized above the arena, bathing everything in a cold, silver light.
"I summon Spirit Guide of the Ebb. And I set two cards face down. I end my turn. Your 'Ancient' warriors are loud, Rami. Let us see if they can move in the deep cold."
Rami felt the chill. This wasn't a digital effect. The temperature in the arena had dropped ten degrees. His breath hitched in his throat as he drew his card.
"My turn! I draw!"
The Weaver of Veils.
"I summon the Weaver of Veils in Attack Position!"
The Spellcaster appeared, but as she materialized, her silver-gold robes seemed to freeze. Frost crept up her staff.
"I activate her effect to add Sandswept Sentinel to my hand," Rami said, his teeth chattering. "Now, I activate the Spell: Warmth of the Ancestors! It increases the attack of all 'Ancient' monsters by 500 and protects them from 'Cold' effects!"
[Weaver of Veils: 1100 -> 1600 ATK]
"Attack her Spirit Guide! Moonlight Shatter!"
The Weaver fired a beam of light, but as it reached Selene's monster, a silver mist erupted. The Spirit Guide didn't break; it simply vanished, reappearing behind the Weaver.
"A Spirit monster," Selene explained calmly. "They do not stay to be hit. When attacked, the Guide returns to the hand, and the attack is negated. And because my sanctuary is active, I gain 500 Life Points for every spirit that returns to the stars."
[Selene: 5500 LP]
Rami bit his lip. This was a "Spirit-Loop" deck. Every time he tried to strike, she would simply retreat and heal, dragging the duel into a marathon of exhaustion.
"I set one card face down. I end my turn."
"The moon waxes," Selene said, drawing her card. "I summon Spirit Warrior of the Flow. And since the Ebb is in my hand, I can Special Summon him as well!"
Two spectral figures, one blue and one white, shimmered onto the field.
"Now, I activate the Skill: Lunar Resonance! My spirits can attack your Life Points directly, but their attack is halved. But under the Pale Moon, 'halved' is a mercy. Go, my spirits! Tidal Strike!"
The two ghosts flew past Rami's Weaver, their cold hands passing through his chest. Rami gasped, falling to one knee. The damage felt like a needle of ice piercing his heart.
[Rami: 3800 LP]
"I end my turn," Selene said. "The Ebb and Flow return to my hand. And I gain another 1000 Life Points."
[Selene: 6500 LP]
The crowd was starting to murmur. Rami was being picked apart. He couldn't hit her, and she was slowly draining his life while her own grew higher and higher.
"Rami! Don't let her set the pace!" Maya shouted from the front row, her hands cupped around her mouth.
Rami looked at the Millennium Puzzle. It was pulsing, but the rhythm was erratic. It was like the Pharaoh was trying to speak, but the "Pale Moon" was acting as a muffler, stifling the ancient magic.
"You hear him, don't you?" Selene asked, her eyes softening. "The Pharaoh. He is a storm. He is fire and blood. But the world has had enough of storms, Rami. It is time for the long night."
"No," Rami said, standing up and wiping the frost from his jacket. "The Pharaoh isn't a storm. He's the sun. And the sun doesn't go out just because the moon shows up."
Rami drew his next card. It was Ironclad Symbiote.
"I summon Sandswept Sentinel!"
The rock-hewn warrior appeared, his shield heavy and solid.
"I equip him with the Ironclad Symbiote. And I activate the Spell: Desert Sun-Disk! It forces the Field Spell to change! The Pale Moon is eclipsed!"
A golden disk rose behind the Sentinel, clashing with the silver moon. The arena light turned a harsh, burning orange.
"Now," Rami shouted, "my Sentinel gains the Pierce ability! And I activate his special Ancient Power: Dust to Dust! By paying 1000 Life Points, I can prevent Spirit monsters from returning to the hand this turn!"
[Rami: 2800 LP]
Selene's eyes widened. For the first time, her calm mask slipped. "You would sacrifice your own life to keep my spirits on the field?"
"I'll sacrifice whatever it takes to make you listen," Rami said. "The spirits aren't looking for silence, Selene. They're looking for a leader! Sentinel, attack the Spirit of the Flow! Sandstorm Crusher!"
The Sentinel swung his massive stone fist. The Spirit of the Flow tried to vanish, but the golden dust of the Sun-Disk anchored it to the ground. The fist connected with a thunderous boom.
[Selene: 5100 LP]
"I activate my face-down!" Selene cried. "Spirit's Last Breath! When a spirit is destroyed, I can draw two cards—"
"I chain the effect of The Weaver of Veils!" Rami interrupted. "By banishing her from the field, I negate the activation of a Trap card that triggers on destruction!"
The Weaver dissolved into a swirl of blue petals, neutralizing the trap.
"Now, the Sentinel attacks again!" Rami yelled. "Because the Symbiote is equipped, he can strike twice!"
The second blow landed.
[Selene: 3700 LP]
The orange light of the Sun-Disk began to fade as the turn ended, and the silver moon reclaimed the sky. But the damage was done. Selene's "Loop" was broken.
"You... you destroyed them," Selene whispered, looking at her empty field. "You didn't just win a skirmish. You forced the spirits to stay and die."
"They didn't die," Rami said, breathing hard. "They're in the graveyard. And in my deck, the graveyard isn't a tomb—it's a waiting room."
Selene looked at him, her silver hair falling over her face. She reached for her deck, her hand trembling. "The Pharaoh... his voice is getting louder. I can hear him now. He isn't dreaming anymore, Rami. He's waking up."
Suddenly, the Millennium Puzzle let out a blinding flash of light. The 40 pieces left to solve began to spin rapidly inside the box.
"My turn," Selene said, her voice distorted, as if two people were speaking through her. "I draw! And I activate the Forbidden Skill: Eclipse of the Soul!"
The arena went pitch black. The holographic projectors flickered and died, but the duel didn't stop. A real, physical wind began to howl through the stadium.
"If I cannot bring the silence," Selene screamed, her eyes glowing with a terrifying silver light, "then I will bring the void!"
She slammed a card down. "I summon the Avatar of the Pale Moon!"
A towering, faceless goddess made of silver light rose behind her. The pressure was so intense that the glass in the VIP booths shattered. This was no longer a "Shadow-lite" effect.
The first true Shadow Game of the tournament had begun.
Tournament Standing: Top 32 continues. The stakes have transcended the game.