To Last the Turn – Part 4
The spirit of the Millennium Puzzle and Maximillion Pegasus kept their eyes locked on each other for what felt like forever.
Give it your best shot, Pegasus dared silently. He was becoming sick of those confident purple eyes—not only did they taunt him, but they reminded him way too creepily of little Yugi. Sure, they were sharper and held less innocence, but they were the same shade of purple and were overflowing with the need to win. It was a good thing they were similar—because his intention was to send those eyes to where Yugi was now.
The spirit broke the silence first. His lips curved up slightly. "Now, to complete my strategy, I play this." He laid a card facedown, and Pegasus hissed in annoyance as Yugi's friends stopped him from finding out the identity of the card once again. "And also one monster card, in defensive mode," the spirit added, entertained. "That ends my turn."
Pegasus could have screamed, his buttons were so pushed. He was so used to reading his opponent's cards, like it was a necessary step in solving a math problem. Without it, it was uncomfortable, and it felt almost wrong. He examined the spirit's field. Two cards face down—clever boy. He knows when Relinquished is back under my control, I'll have the power to assimilate his monsters! Those cards he threw must be part of a strategy to try and stop me!
"It's my turn now!" he claimed, hair flying. "And the effects of your turn are over." In a scatter of sparkles, Relinquished was returned to his side of the field. "Now, your Brain Control card has expired, and Relinquished is back where he belongs—with his daddy." He chuckled. "And even with your two mystery cards out on the field, I think you'll find that he's just as effective as ever."
The spirit only grunted, undeterred.
That is, after I make a small addition to him, thought Pegasus deviously. And create the most sinister beast my deck can produce! And I'll crush this fool and make him regret ever trifling my powers. "If you think you have Relinquished all figured out, think again." Pegasus slid two cards onto his platform. "Because I'm using my Polymerization card to fuse him with Thousand Eyes Idol! Now prepare yourself for the ultimate merged monster! Oh yes—behold my beauty."
Parts on Relinquished's body began to squirm and wiggle, and the parts suddenly peeked open, revealing thousands of tiny eyes. Relinquished turned maroon and his shell burst open, a snarling face glowering back with teeth like daggers. A gold eye shivered above the face on a tentacle.
"With the Thousand Eyes Idol and Relinquished fused together, I've created the one…the only…the Thousand Eyes Restrict! He's quite a looker, eh?"
The spirit gaped at the monster, and decided that it was one of the first times when the term monster was actually accurate.
"If you think he's a real stunner now…well, just wait until all one-thousand of his eyes open up!" Pegasus smiled coyly. "Then I think you'll find that he's much more than just a pretty face." His face darkened, his smile laced with shadows.
The spirit frowned in disgust, but perked when the heart-lifting words of Yugi's friends met his ears again.
"Come on Yug', I know you can do dis, we're with ya, pal!"
"We won't give up on you, Yugi. We're in this together!"
"Yugi . . . we believe in you. Like we always have. We believe in you with all our hearts!"
The power of their bond rocketed through the spirit again, like a drumming, electrifying heartbeat. It gave him the ability to stand up straighter, to crystallize his line of sight.
"The end is truly in sight, wouldn't you say?" Pegasus joked with a laugh.
The spirit growled, centering his concentration on the power pulsing through him. "Not with my Chaos Mage protecting me!"
"Oh, I think you'll find that once all eyes are on your Magician of Black Chaos, he won't even be able to protect himself!" Pegasus retorted lightly with a crazed laugh. "Oh, trust me, you'll see what I mean very shortly."
All the spirit replied with was a hushed "hmm."
Soon, every eyeball on my Thousand Eyes Restrict will open up, and all the monsters Yugi has on the field will be paralyzed! Unable to attack or defend, Pegasus schemed. Then NOTHING will stop me from assimilating that Chaos Mage, and winning this duel once and for all!
The spirit of the Puzzle pondered quietly to himself. I may not know what Pegasus is planning to do with that monstrosity of his…but whatever is may be, I CAN'T let it happen. He glanced up after blinking once to narrow his eyes and grit his teeth, a flame of respect dancing in his heart. Not after the tremendous act of bravery Yugi made to give us a fighting chance against Pegasus. The memory of his sacrifice filtered through his mind, and it was as crisp and painful as if he had lost Yugi only moments ago.
"We both have to trust in the Heart of the Cards!" he had thought as he reached for his deck with a quivering hand. "This next card that I pull…might be my last . . ." The spirit had sensed the crushing pain, the dangerous drain of energy, and the hope. But he had also sensed the terror Yugi had been attempting to swallow down. He'd be frightened of the whole situation, especially Pegasus, who hadn't seemed to care that Yugi was close to being lost to the shadows. Please make it one that can defeat Pegasus! Yugi had hoped. And the Heart of the Cards had come through for them again, granting the Dark Magic Ritual card. The spirit was convinced it had been aware of Yugi's pain and courage and was rewarding him. But not enough, for Yugi had collapsed from the agony, stress, and exhaustion within the following minute. The spirit could still hear Yugi's low, crinkling last sigh of anguish whistling in his eardrum.
He blinked out of the hurtful memory, now feeling like he was made of an unbreakable substance. Yugi risked everything to give me this chance. I can't let his last heroic effort be in vain.
He heard Pegasus chuckling from across the field, and it set him over the edge. "Pegasus!" he snapped. "You can do your worst, but this duel will be won by the card Yugi picked in his final act of courage!" He pointed at the man, daring him to think otherwise. He felt the sensation again, as if Yugi was right behind him, blushing and immensely thankful for the loyalty.
But Pegasus just brushed it off with crossed arms and a giggle. "We'll see about that! Thousand Eyes Restrict! Time to open your peepers!"
As his command, the eyes began to pop open like firecrackers. They were of different colors, ranging from orange to yellow to a sickly bright green, and were wrinkly and bloodshot.
"Chaos Mage!" the spirit said, his voice booming. "Prepare yourself. Try to hold him off!"
"There is nothing you can do to hold this attack off!" Pegasus countered. "For now I unleash . . . the Thousand Eyes Spell!"
The eyes all glowed dark green, beams of light shooting out like miniature flashlights. The Magician of Black Chaos stiffened, but then was outlined in a green glow mirroring the beams, his limbs spread out and frozen.
"My Chaos Mage!" the spirit cried.
"He's trapped by the mystic gaze of my ultimate beast!" Pegasus explained. "And don't think you can rescue him, there's no escape from the mesmerizing eyes whose gaze blankets your field. Even the monsters you've hidden from me have become paralyzed!"
"You haven't won yet," the spirit snapped.
"Don't be a fool. In just a matter of moments, my Thousand Eyes Restrict will assimilate your Chaos Mage, absorb his magical powers, and finish you off with one thunderous blast," Pegasus said. "There's nothing you can do!"
The golden eye on Thousand Eyes Restrict opened and locked onto the Magician of Black Chaos like a gun.
"Accept it," Pegasus said to the scowling spirit. "It's all over. Yugi's last card has failed you both! His Millennium Puzzle will soon be mine!"
That's IT.
"Chaos Mage," Pegasus said confidently. "Come to me. Absorption Force!"
"Just the play I was waiting for," the spirit muttered, flipping his facedown card up.
The Thousand Eyes Restrict's golden eye revealed a bright pink beam, ready to strike. As the light got closer, the Magician of Black Chaos squinted, uncertain.
Pegasus guffawed. "In mere moments, your Magician of Black Chaos will be assimilated, and all his powers will be mine!"
"WRONG."
Pegasus's smile cracked. "Huh?"
He watched as tiny balls of fur began to spread across the field and defend the Magician of Black Chaos.
"W-what's happening?" Pegasus demanded.
"You were right about your Thousand Eyes Spell: it did affect all my hidden monsters," the spirit explained with a knowing gleam in his eye. "Specifically, my Kuriboh. And it paralyzed him, along with my Chaos Mage."
"No, this can't be!"
"Yes," the spirit confirmed, holding up a Magic card. "And I activated my other down card, Multiply! One Kuriboh is becoming many."
The Kuribohs on the field cooed and continued to multiply, completely blocking out the Magician of Black Chaos. They looked dizzy, their eyes spiraling and glazed.
Those disgusting fuzzballs. They're spreading like wildfire! Pegasus thought irritably.
"And because it's too late to call back the Absorption Force spell that you just cast," the spirit continued fiercely, "your Thousand Eyes Restrict has no choice but to assimilate them all! If it can."
Pegasus gasped. No!
The Kuribohs eclipsed every single eyeball on the Thousand Eyes Restrict, making it gain 300 attack points.
"Those furry freaks have covered him from head to toe!" Pegasus snarled. "There must be a thousand of them."
The spirit chuckled. "Tens of thousands, Pegasus. And because of the way the Kuribohs attack, you're about to see just as many explosions!"
"Noooo!"Pegasus roared, realizing too late. "Kuribohs self-destruct on contact with the enemy!"
As he said it, little fiery eruptions were born from the Kuribohs, combining into one huge explosion that made Pegasus look away from the force. As the heat died down, he shot a glare at the spirit. "Curse you, Yugi Mutou—you and your Kuribohs!"
Smoke cleared, allowing the spirit's triumphant face to be seen. "Of course, Kuriboh was my monster, so I do lose 300 life points. But still, that's a small price to pay for crippling that giant eye-sore!"
The Thousand Eyes Restrict smoked all over and was absolutely cleansed of eyeballs.
Noo! Pegasus thought in horror. My Thousand Eyes Restrict—he's blind!
"And now that your monster's transfixing gaze has been broken," the spirit said, "my Chaos Mage is free! And you, Pegasus…are through."
Pegasus cowered, the blood draining from his face.
"Attack, Magician!" the spirit commanded, his voice resonating across the Shadow Realm. "With Chaos Scepter Blast!"
The Magician of Black Chaos expertly spun his scepter in his hand and hammered it into the ground. Blue sparks of energy joined together to form an orb, and it raced at the Thousand Eyes Restrict, smashing into it and causing an enormous outburst of golden light and flames.
"Your Thousand Eyes Restrict has been…destroyed!" the spirit shouted.
Pupils shrinking, Pegasus held his temples, threw his head back, and screamed, "Ohhh noooooooooo!"
The spirit watched on with indifference, deep down knowing this is what the man deserved. But then something shifted in the Shadow Realm. The spirit felt himself be coaxed into spirit form, and a warm feeling trickled into him. Yugi's body was inhabited by another soul, and this soul was young, pure, and bright. His heart soared, and he felt like he was made of sunlight.
Yugi!
The boy had been returned, and he was in control of his body. He stood up straight and met Pegasus's shattered gaze. "Pegasus . . ." Yugi was slightly shaking, but his voice was solid and strong. "You're finished. We've won." And as he spoke, the people who had aided him came to mind: the spirit, Tea, Tristan, and Joey. And he suddenly felt as if he could take on the world.
No . . . how can this be? It's . . . it's . . . impossible. Pegasus stared soullessly at the shadowy sky. My Eye, my magic! It all failed me. Cecilia . . . my love . . . I'm sorry. He held his head in his hands, elbows on the dueling platform. "I've lost!" he wailed, and then began to mumble incoherent strings of words as he grieved.
Yugi smiled gently and sighed, closing his eyes. He couldn't remember the last time he'd been so happy. He transported himself to the mind room, where he stood before the grinning spirit.
"Spirit of the Puzzle . . . I don't know how to thank you."
The spirit shook his head. He couldn't even put his relief and joy into words. The fact that Pegasus was defeated and that Yugi was safe meant more to him than the King of Games title did. "It was your courage. And the love your friends had for you that prevailed this day."
Yugi smiled tiredly. He had marks on his face from the collapse and from the strenuous effort it had been to last in the Shadow Realm. "And your determination."
The spirit nodded and popped a thumbs up. Yugi beamed childishly and raised a hand. The spirit and Yugi high-fived, their palms passing right through each other's. "We all did it!" Yugi said, euphoric. "Together!"
"That's right," the spirit agreed, overjoyed. "As friends."
"And in the end, that's what it came down to," Yugi added, glancing off into the dark. The spirit followed his gaze and saw Joey, Tristan, and Tea smiling back. "Friends, being there for one another."
Yugi blinked back into his physical body, and saw that the Shadow Realm was fading around them. As it completely dissolved, he heard three different voices shouting his name. Timidly, he turned, and then his face broke into a grin.
"You guys! Thanks!" he said as Tea, Joey, and Tristan made an arc around him.
Joey grabbed Yugi's shoulders. "Aw man, Yug'! You did it! You really, finally did it!" He kept his head down, as if he was hiding tears.
Tea shoved Joey aside. "What Joey is trying to say is that it's really great you and your grandpa are going to be reunited!"
Joey poked his head back in behind Tea. "Yeah, for sure! But also, Yug'—"
"Also," Tristan cut in, "we wanted to say how impressed we are with you for being so brave and all."
"Yeah, impressed," Joey tried again. "And we're—"
"And," Tea interrupted warmly, "we're proud of you, too."
Joey stomped his feet and yelled, having a tantrum. His fists punched the air and steam was practically coming out of his ears. "You guys were stealing everything I was gonna say!"
Yugi, Tea, and Tristan laughed.
"So then talk!" Tea said with a smile. "Yeesh."
"Ah, forget it," Joey said, winking. "Who cares? He won!" His shoulders shook, and then he, Tea, and Tristan jumped in the air, yelling, "Go Yugi!", "He won!", and "Yeah!"
Yugi's chest was inflated with bliss, and his eyes glittered. "We all won. Thanks guys."
No—now he couldn't remember the last time he'd been so happy.
The spirit was present for the whole celebration. He watched Yugi's friends cheer and congratulate him, and he didn't feel as lonely as he had before. He sensed Yugi's joy and love, and it swept around his shoulders like a quilt, making him comforted and at ease.
He couldn't remember being so happy, too.
