Hello again. I really hope you are enjoying this story so far. Enjoy this new chapter please.
Chapter 4
"Next time I see a garden with man-eating wolves growing out of it, I'll know exactly what to do," Tea said as the group was catching their breath after quite a bit of running. Joey and Tristan were sitting on the ground, Mr. Muto and Tea were standing up nearby, Yugi was sitting on a rock, and Caitlin was sitting on a low tree branch, dangling her feet.
"Yeah, blind em', then run for your life," Tristan said, finally succeeding in being able to breathe normally.
"Bingo," Tea told him, Caitlin smirking.
"Like that could ever happen in real life," she said, placing her arms on her knees. She laughed, and pretty soon, Tea joined in.
"Hey, we just won a fight!" Joey realized, standing up suddenly.
"Victory dance!" Tristan shouted as he and Joey placed their hand on each other's shoulders.
"Can can, kick a little can can, tell me who's the man man," they started chanting. Caitlin placed her face in her hands, clearly tired of hearing that annoying song. Tea sweat dropped, and Yugi and Mr. Muto just watched, smiling.
"Ah, to be young again," Mr. Muto told himself. Yugi laughed to himself, before he noticed something was troubling his counterpart.
"Something on your mind?" he asked the Pharaoh. Both of them continued to watch Joey and Tristan make fools of themselves, with Tea, Mr. Muto, and Caitlin just watching, Caitlin's face still buried in her hands.
"We've got to win this game before anyone else gets hurt," he pointed out, narrowing his eyes.
"Yeah, like those two," Yugi told the king. Not soon after that, both Joey and Tristan were panting heavily, before collapsing onto the ground.
"Ah, Joey, Tristan," Tea said anxiously.
"Are you guys alright?" Caitlin asked, looking at the two boys. Then, they heard a very strange sound, coming from none other than…
"Please, help us, we need food," Joey pleaded as Yugi's eyes widened at the noise coming from their stomachs.
"Yeah, we're wasting away to nothing," Tristan continued.
"We're serious here Tea!" Joey yelled anxiously, both of them sitting back up.
"Wait, I just thought of something. I packed some snacks in my bag," Tristan remembered, mentally slapping himself.
"That's not good," Joey said as both boys once again fell on the ground, and Caitlin's palm met her face.
"All our stuff is back at the campsite," the blonde boy and brunette boy said at the same time. Yugi and Tea laughed, while Caitlin stared at Mr. Muto, nodding her head with plea to get them to stop.
"Oh toughen up. You can survive weeks without food," the ex-archeologist said, crossing his arms as Caitlin nodded her head, agreeing with him.
"WEEKS?" both boys exclaimed.
"I don't know about you four, but I'm getting some grub," Joey yelled.
"Yeah, you can diet all you want," Tristan said.
"Later," Joey yelled behind them as he and Tristan raced off. "First come, first serve baby." He and Tristan raced along, while back at the clearing, Caitlin said to herself "Three, two, one." As soon as she said one, both Tristan and Joey collided into tree branches, hitting their faces, falling flat onto their backs.
"Find any food yet?" Tea asked as she, Yugi, Mr. Muto, and Caitlin caught up with them. Both boys stood up faster than Caitlin could have.
"No, but when we do, don't expect us to share any with you," Joey said, placing the back of his hand on his side.
"That's right. It's finders keepers dudes," Tristan said, clenching his fists.
"So that's how it's going to be? Fine, then I guess if I happen to find any food, I get to keep it all to myself," Tea said, reaching behind her into Mr. Muto's backpack. She pulled out a small bag of chips as Caitlin handed her friend a small water bottle. Both boys gasped widely, their mouths almost dropping to the ground.
"Can of baked beans?" Mr. Muto asked, taking a can out of his sack.
"Don't mind if I do," Yug replied, taking the can.
"You had a bag of food all along?" both boys asked, very shocked.
"I never said I didn't. All you boys had to do was ask nicely," Mr. Muto replied.
"Pretty please," they pleaded, starving.
"How do they pack so much flavor into one chip?" Tea asked, mocking her two friends as Yugi, Caitlin, and Mr. Muto laughed. Both boys started stomping around angrily while shouting insults, before Yugi got their attention.
"Hey, do you hear that?" he asked. The boys stopped dancing, and everyone looked at the tri-colored boy.
"All I hear is my stomach," Joey retorted, staring blankly ahead in front of him.
"There it is again," Caitlin continued, also hearing it.
"It sounds like an earthquake," Tea realized.
"Hey guys, look," Joey said, pointing out of the trees. "Whoever said you can't move a mountain?" Caitlin rolled her eyes at the boy, who luckily, didn't notice.
"It isn't those mountains that are moving Joey. It's us," Yugi realized. They all sprinted out of the clearing toward the edge of whatever they were standing on.
"Ah. Seems peaceful enough," Joey told the group.
"Wait, something's not right," Caitlin said.
"Ah, nothing's wrong Caitlin. It's just your nerves getting to you," Joey replied. Not two seconds later, a head came out of the water.
"You were saying?" Caitlin told the blonde duelist.
"This isn't just an island. It's an island turtle," Yugi realized, his grandpa's mouth dropping.
"This whole island is a turtle?" Tea questioned.
"I'm guessing that's how he got his name," Joey told the girl. The turtle turned to look at the gang of hitchhikers on his back.
"What are you lookin' at?" Joey yelled at the beast.
"Relax guys. Island turtles are usually pretty peaceful creatures until provoked," Yugi reassured them.
"If he does get mad, all hell breaks loose," Caitlin finished.
"Ah well. Hey, this qualifies as a victory," Joey told Tristan.
"How do you figure?" Yugi questioned his two male friends.
"Victory dance time!" Joey and Tristan shouted as they began dancing and singing. Yugi placed his hands on his hips, closing his eyes in frustration. Tea sweat dropped, and Caitlin's face met her palm once again.
"I need more female friends," Tea said sarcastically, Caitlin also saying the same thing, though it was partially muffled by her hand. At that moment, the turtle roared.
"Something tells me he's not a fan of your song," Yugi pointed out.
"Well who asked him?" Joey questioned as the back of the creature tipped, forcing the group to hang onto some trees to avoid falling overboard.
"Looks like he's going for a swim," Tristan said as they braced themselves.
"Look, land ho!" Yugi shouted as he pointed to a sand bank not far from them.
"Abandon ship!" Joey called, Caitlin hopping off of the tree she had grabbed.
"Good call," Yugi told them as they all ran for the rim of the turtle's back.
"Cannonball!" Joey called as he, Yugi, Tea, Tristan, and Mr. Muto jumped in, Caitlin following in after them, diving into the cold water.
"That turtle left us high and dry," Tristan told the group as they watched the creature disappear over the horizon.
"No, he left us low and wet," Joey replied, Caitlin once again rolling her eyes at her friend's joke.
"Hey, look over there," Caitlin called, spotting shore. And atop the sand, was a shrine of some sort.
"That turtle tossed us towards a tremendous temple," Tristan said, more to himself, but Joey overheard.
"Say that five times fast," he said sarcastically. As they approached the front of the temple, they noticed the doors were locked, but not two seconds later, they opened.
"Should we go in?" Joey pondered, looking at the tri-colored male and female next to him. Yugi's puzzle flashed.
"Follow me. If we truly have become part of some ancient game, then we need to play along if we expect to get out," the Pharaoh told them. They all walked inside, and as soon as they did, the doors slammed shut behind them.
"We're trapped!" Tea exclaimed.
"Great. Why am I not surprised?" Tristan asked as they looked at the far side of the wall of the temple.
"So what's with the giant teapot?" Joey asked, spotting the golden-yellow lamp.
"That's no teapot. Stand back!" the Pharaoh warned, narrowing his eyes. Sure enough, a few seconds later, a giant green genie rose out of the pot, his golden bracelets glittering in the sunlight of the hole in the temple roof.
"It's La Jinn, the Genie of the Lamp," the Pharaoh and Caitlin said together, shocked. He posed, ready to fight the intruders of his home.
"Leave him to me," the Pharaoh said, standing in front of his friends in a protective position. The genie smiled, mocking the once-king. He stepped forward, placing his capsule in the slot.
"Be careful Yugi," Tea told herself quietly. Even though she couldn't read the girl's thoughts, she knew what Tea wanted.
I understand Tea…Caitlin told herself. She quietly stepped away, and pulled out one of her capsule, fired, and hid in the darkness until the right time.
"Load capsule! Now fire! Come forth, Celtic Guardian!" the Pharaoh commanded, summoning his elf knight. La Jinn roared as he fired a stream of fire from his mouth.
"Attack!" the Pharaoh yelled to his elf knight. The elf jumped forward, attempting to slash the genie. But as he was about to hit hi chest, the genie grabbed the sword, stopping the elf knight in his tracks. "Oh no," the Pharaoh said, panicking. The genie tossed the elf to the side of a pillar, making him land hard on the floor. The Pharaoh went down on one knee in pain.
"YUGI!" they all called. The genie shook his finger at the king, and then, fired again at the helpless man.
"Caitlin!" Tea shouted. The girl leaped out of the shadows, blocking the attack of the genie. But she wasn't wearing her blue armor. She now had on white armor with black arm, leg, and shoulder guards. She had red decorations on her black pads, and yellow on the white. She still had the staff of Valkyria, but now it was white with red and yellow gems instead of green. Her headdress was white with a red gem holding it together. And now, instead of white wings, they were made of fire.
"Whoa, nice getto," Joey told himself. She turned and smiled at her friend, before turning to face the genie again.
"You're dealing with me now," she said, firing beams of magic combined with fire from her scepter. The genie dodged, firing at her, and she dodged back.
"Why do you have that color armor now?" Tea questioned, staring in awe at her friend.
"I guess Valkyria has a more special ability than I first thought," Caitlin replied.
"And that would be?" Tristan asked.
"She can fuse with any monster of my choice, as long as it serves my master," they heard a voice say.
"Who said that?" Mr. Muto asked.
"Tell you later," Caitlin said, getting her fire staff ready, turning back to the genie. But her reaction was a bit too late. The genie nailed her with his fist, making her fly back into the wall.
"Caitlin! Attack!" the Pharaoh commanded his elf knight. Once again, the same result. He was flung onto the floor hard, making the pain inside the Pharaoh's body even more intense.
"Yugi!" they all called again.
"Stay back!" he told them.
"Let us help," Tristan told his friend.
"I said no," the Pharaoh responded. As he turned, the genie smashed the floor in front of him, the shockwave blowing him backwards, before Caitlin caught him, and set him down.
"Can things get any worse?" Joey asked. At that moment, water started flowing into the temple, and began freezing itself over.
"Spoke too soon," Caitlin told her blonde friend. The ice surrounded Mr. Muto and Tea.
"No! We're about to become frozen popsicles," Mr. Muto said, panicking.
"Tea! Grandpa!" the Pharaoh yelled. Two ice packs were at the front. As La Jinn slashed his arm at the four teens, Caitlin flew up, and the three boys dodged. Yugi was thrown into an ice needle, while Joey and Tristan jumped away from them. Both monsters poised, ready to fight. Joey and Tristan stood back to back with the Pharaoh, Caitlin hovering above them.
"An Aqua Mandoor," she told herself.
"Please go, and leave these two to me," the Pharaoh told his three friends.
"But Yuge-," Joey began, but was interrupted.
"I refuse to allow anyone else to get hurt," the Pharaoh pleaded.
"Oh, and you think Tristan, Caitlin, and I want to see you getting hurt?" Joey asked.
"Well, I, uh," the Pharaoh stuttered.
"Then why don't you stop trying to be the hero for once and let us help you out Yugi?" Joey reprimanded. The Pharaoh grimaced. Caitlin floated down next to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. She nodded at him, and he turned to face La Jinn.
"Load capsule! Now fire!" both boys shouted.
"I play Baby Dragon!" Joey called, summoning his orange winged friend.
"And I play Thunderkid!" Tristan shouted, playing his lizard. Joey turned around to face his two tri-colored friends.
"We'll handle Jack Frosts' freaky cousin. You two deal with the big green guy," Joey told them.
"Thank you," the Pharaoh said. They turned to face their respective opponents.
"Attack!" the Pharaoh commanded. They all launched attacks, Caitin flying around La Jinn to stir up a tornado with her fire wings. La Jinn attacked back, throwing the Celtic Guardian, who was caught by Caitlin so the Pharaoh wouldn't be hurt again. Joey and Tristan were attacked by the Aqua Mandoor, who hurt their monsters with ice spheres. They crouched over in pain.
This situation is getting worse. If I could just find a weakness…the Pharaoh thought.
"Aw man. We got ice in the front, and fire in the rear," Joey said. The Pharaoh mentally slapped himself for not seeing it before.
Fire and ice. Wait…he thought. "I know what we need to do, but it won't work without your help. Each of these monsters' strength, is the other one's weakness," he told them.
"I see. So we make these two fight," Joey realized.
"Sounds good to me," Tristan said.
"Then let's do it," the Pharaoh said, and they turned to face their enemies.
"Attack!" the Pharaoh commanded. All three monsters launched forward, Caitlin flying above Yugi's monster. Like planned, La Jinn and Aqua Mandoor fired.
"PULL BACK!" the Pharaoh yelled. Baby Dragon flew aside with Thunderkid on his back, and Caitlin grabbed the Celtic Guardian and flew out of the way. The attacks struck the other monsters, obliterating them from the field. The teens smiled at having won. They ran over to Grandpa and Tea, who had been freed.
"Tea, Grandpa," Tristan said as they ran up after returning their monsters to their capsules.
"Hey guys," Tea said, shutting her eyes in relief.
"You're alright," the Pharaoh said, borrowing Yugi's voice for a minute.
"Thanks to you boys, and Caitlin as well," Mr. Muto said. The Pharaoh and Yugi switched back, and five seconds later, the ground started shaking. They turned, and saw a tablet rising from the ground with familiar symbols on it.
"Not another Egyptian tablet," Joey complained.
"Toughen up," Caitlin said, mocking her friend, who poked her playfully.
"Any idea what it says?" Tristan asked.
"Well, let's see," Mr. Muto said, and began reading, Caitlin having to help, since, for some reason, the other half of the riddle was in ancient Atlantian.
"Before the shadows blanket the land, go to the fortress of fear," Mr. Muto said.
"Locate the place where the spirits sleep and the pathway you seek will appear," Caitlin finished.
"I wonder what that could mean," Mr. Muto pondered.
"You're asking us?" Joey questioned.
"Well, it did say before the shadows blanket the land. I bet that means sunset!" Yugi realized.
"Yes, but what about the rest, like this fortress of fear, and this pathway. And what about where the spirits sleep?" Mr. Muto continued.
"I'm guessing it's talking about a casket, and maybe, it's inside some sort of guarded castle," Caitlin said.
"Hey, wait, this might be it," Joey said, pulling out the map.
"That house. That has to be the fortress the riddle was talking about. Hopefully, the pathway there means the pathway home," Yugi said, slightly confident.
"Yeah, but it doesn't look close," Tea said.
"Can't we fly there on Firewing?" Joey asked Caitlin.
"He needs rest. He's not used to fusing with people like he did with me and Valkyria. And as for that voice, she was the one speaking. While we're merged, she and I can communicate easily," Caitlin explained.
"Then I guess we're stuck here," Joey complained.
"Come on, we've gotten way too far in this game to quit here. Now let's get to that castle so we can go home," Yugi told them confidently.
In case you're wondering, I made up Valkyria's effect. I just thought it would be fun to have someone else with that ability of fusion. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
