The Hero of Friendship

Kaiba thought he would reign victorious if he won the tournament and got everything he was fighting for, but it was his destiny to lose the duel. It was the only way to save him from the dark influences and to help him discover the truth about letting everything go. But the task was far from complete and so much more still had to be done. It was true that Kaiba needed to let go of his past in order to truly move ahead, but he wouldn't do it so easily. He wouldn't let go of his obsession for wanting to defeat Yugi either even after they finally had the challenge that would prove who the better duelist was.

"I had the perfect strategy," Kaiba whined.

"My friends and I would disagree, Kaiba," said Yami. "And thanks to my Dark Paladin's attack, you lost."

"No, there must be some mistake." But there was no mistake. Kaiba was fighting for all the wrong reasons and in the end, it was his own anger and jealousy that did him in. Battle City is my tournament. I designed it so that I would be the ultimate victor. I wanted to put the memory of my stepfather behind me and be crowned the best duelist on top of my duel tower. But instead, Yugi stands victorious. "I was close," he was telling himself. "Victory was in my grasp. But it slipped away. It's over. I'm nothing."

"What a duel," Joey cheered. "Did you see how my Red-Eyes Black Dragon came through and helped Yugi to win? I know I missed a lot of the action, but I was there for my pal." It was true. Just like a part of Freya lived inside the Black Dragon, so did a part of Joey. And if it wasn't for either of them, Yami and Yugi would have lost to Kaiba. Joey promised that Red-Eyes would come in handy someday and that day was today.

"Seto's out of the tournament now," said Mokuba. "But he came so far."

The brunette continued to put himself down. "I don't get it. My deck was unbeatable. I executed my strategy perfectly; carefully playing each card as I planned. Where did I go wrong?"

"That was the most challenging duel I ever fought," Yami told Kaiba as he approached him.

"Just save it."

"It's true. Destiny chose me to be the victor of the match, but you fought well."

It pained Emily to see the pain in Kaiba's heart. It also made her sad to see him put himself down. "Kaiba, please," she was saying compassionately. "I told you, the more you hold on to your burdens and lustful desires, the more they'll continue to hurt you and hold you back. If you really want to move ahead, then embrace all that my friends and I are offering you. Let go of your obsession for wanting to beat Yugi. You already have what he has; you're recognized as one of the world's greatest duelists. Please, Kaiba, just let it go."

"Will you just fuck off already!?" Kaiba snapped. "I don't need the pep talk from either of you!"

"I see you haven't learned anything from your duel," Emily said, letting the tears flow. "How disappointing. I told you, you'll never succeed or move ahead until you can conquer the darkness in your heart. But you're so weak inside that you can't do it alone. You need help from me, my friends, and the Great Goddess Millennia."

"I've heard enough out of you, Briar," Kaiba snarled.

"Deny the truth and it will destroy you," Emily warned.

"You were doomed to fail right from the start, Kaiba," said Yami. "Fueled by your anger, hatred, jealousy, and lastly, the denial of your past. I, on the other hand, was fueled by my faith in destiny, my friends, and the Great Goddess Millennia. That's how I won. And you will never truly become one of her warriors unless you heed our words and let go of your dark influences."

"Do you understand what we're trying to tell you, Kaiba?" Emily asked. "Yami didn't defeat you on his own. All of his friends helped him and gave him their strength and support. Joey did it through the Red-Eyes Black Dragon, Yugi did it by standing beside him, the rest of our friends and I stood with him all the way, and Millennia was also part of all this. You may be one of her chosen warriors, but it was Yami and Yugi who had to prevail in this duel. And like we always say, there are no ordinary Duel Monster cards. They all carry a piece of someone's soul so that the duelist can never be alone."

Kaiba clenched his fist. "Never duel alone? Wake up! Don't you realize that every single one of us is alone in this goddamn world!? Look at me! I've never had anyone watching over me nor have I ever had to ask for help from anyone!"

That wasn't true. As one of Millennia's chosen warriors, Kaiba was watched over by the Great Goddess. She had been trying to help him learn about the past and embrace his destiny. There was more to it than that. I've helped Kaiba plenty of times before and he's helped me as much. In fact, I wouldn't be the duelist I am today if he hadn't pushed me to be my best, Yugi wondered. This whole adventure would never be so if Yugi and Kaiba never had their first duel either. He may be one of my toughest rivals, but I also consider him one of my friends, and I bet that deep down, Kaiba feels the same way about me. He's just too caught up in his need for power to realize it.

Even Emily could see in Kaiba's heart that the brunette actually did care about Yugi and the others. He just wasn't willing to open his heart to them. Despite the pain Kaiba was causing, Emily had hopes for him and wouldn't give up. "Do you really not consider anyone your friend, Kaiba?"

"Friendship is for fools, Briar," he answered. "I told you, I fight alone. Depending on others is for the weak. So keep your friendships to yourself. I'm not interested in having any pals or some made-believe goddess to slow me down!"

"That's just sad," Emily sobbed.

Kaiba paid no mind to her hurt emotions. He just decided that it was time for him to accept his defeat like a man. "Since there's no one I rely on but myself, there's no one I can blame but myself." He removed Obelisk the Tormentor from his deck and presented it to Yami.

Hearing Kaiba talk about rejecting friendship and Millennia's guidance and support made Joey feel disgusted. He felt like he had to do something as the hero of friendship. Then he had a suggestion. "Hold on, Kaiba. Why don't you duel me? We'll see which of us is a better warrior. Unless you're scared of losing to me." Kaiba scoffed and headed for the stairs. Joey blocked his path. "I asked you a question."

"Get out of my way, Wheeler."

"You think you're too good for the rest of us, don't you? Well, I used to be a stubborn bastard just like you are." Joey remembered how he was a bully and always thought that fighting was the only solution in every challenge, but deep down, he felt alone and didn't like what he was doing. When he was in a battle he couldn't handle on his own, Yugi came to his rescue and it was because of this that Joey learned what it meant to be a true friend and care about someone. That was how friendship came to be his element.

"Now I realize that looking out for each other makes us stronger," continued Joey. "Yugi changed my life and me. And I've seen my pal stick his neck out for you too. Even Emily has been going out of her way to try to be your friend. And did you ever once say 'thank you' to either of them? Not that I ever heard. Trust me, you need friends. Take away all of your flunkies and who will you have left to stand by you?" Then he remembered Freya's suggestion; be a friend to someone who needs a friend. Kaiba was the one for the challenge. By taking this challenge, a yellow light shined on Joey's forehead, revealing the Egyptian symbol of friendship.

"Please tell me you're done," Kaiba groaned. "All this bullshit about friendship is really starting to irritate me, Wheeler."

Mokuba agreed. "The last thing my brother needs is a lecture from you, so lay off!"

Joey was outraged. "How can you defend your brother after all that he said about you? He said he was happy being alone, so I guess that means he doesn't need you."

Hearing that made Mokuba reflect on the times his brother mistreated him in their scheme to take over their stepfather's empire.

Joey turned his attention back to the elder brother. "You've been saying nothing but nasty comments and smart remarks about my dueling skills. The way I see it, you're afraid of losing to me and looking like a fool. Worse, you may even be afraid of disgracing the Great Goddess. I'm one of her chosen warriors too and if you don't believe me, duel me."

"Watch it," Kaiba warned. "Push me too far and you'll regret it, Wheeler."

"I'll take my chances, so do we have a duel or what?"

"I don't see what the point is other than to waste my time. Besides, I'd crush you."

"Prove it," Joey challenged.

Finally, Kaiba gave in and accepted Joey's challenge. He wanted to silence the blonde once and for all. "As soon as we begin this duel of ours, all your friends on Earth and your Great Goddess won't save you."

"She's your Great Goddess too," Joey reminded. "But we'll see. Bring it on, Kaiba!" Then everyone left the tower and prepared the match on the rubble. Joey continued to goad Kaiba to take his best shot, but Kaiba promised that he wouldn't need to give it his best to win.

"I don't think I've ever seen Joey look this confident before," said Duke.

"He's come a long way to get where he is today," said Emily. "He's proven that he's stronger than we think he is. Even Marik trembled in fear against Joey's strength. With everything he learned and gained from his journey, he has a good chance of winning." She looks down and sighs. Joey could have even won this whole tournament if Marik didn't turn their duel into a Shadow Game. Why did Millennia let that tragedy befall him? If Joey is one of her warriors, shouldn't she have not let it happen?

Millennia was still with him, protecting him, Yami thought. And in his heart, Joey knows he's deserving of the Battle City crown. The Great Goddess has already recognized Joey for his loyalty and determination. That's why she watched over him and chose him as her warrior.

Feeling a strange sensation, Téa loses consciousness, but not before Marik takes over her mind. Under his control, she turns around and heads to the aircraft. Speaking through Téa, Marik tells his sister, "The time is near, Ishizu."

At first, Ishizu thought that Téa was a little lost, but then she realized that she was speaking to her brother. "Marik, it's been so long since you last appeared to me. I remembered that you were taking shelter within Téa's mind, but I also sensed that you were weak and couldn't hold on for long."

It was true that Marik was becoming weaker while Malik was growing stronger, but the good half remained in Téa's mind long enough to hear the truth about their past. That was when Marik learned that it was Malik who committed those evil acts long ago. "You came here to save me from myself. Despite everything I've done in my quest for power, you had faith and knew that there was still good within me. And so did the Great Goddess. Though she knew I was using her power for evil purposes, she still gave it to me. But now, the good within me is almost completely extinguished."

Ishizu gasped. "If the evil force defeats the pharaoh in the final battle, you will be gone forever and the entire planet will suffer greatly!"

"I can't allow one duel to decide the fate of the whole world," said Marik. "The time has come for me to step in and reclaim my body, Sister. Though I don't know how, I know that I must banish that evil before it's too late. There's just too much at risk. Take care of Odion."

Ishizu had a feeling her brother was going to use Téa to confront Malik. "No, it's too dangerous! Don't go, please," she pleaded as Marik was using Téa to run to the duel tower. Emily saw her best friend running to the tower and wondered what was up.

Joey decided to let Kaiba make the first move. The brunette had a feeling that this would be a breeze just like their duel in Duelist Kingdom. He summoned Ryu-Kishin Powered, a fiend with 1600 attack points. Next, he played two cards face down and ended his turn. Joey summoned Gearfried the Iron Knight and declared an attack. When he did, Kaiba activate his face down cards Shrink and Crush Card to weaken his monster and devastate Joey's deck. Kaiba lost 1000 life points, but it was worth it.

"A weak duelist should have weak monsters," Kaiba suggested as Joey went through the cards in his deck. "I told you that you couldn't handle an opponent like me."

"Shut it, Kaiba," Joey barked.

"Why don't you just admit you're in over your head and leave now before you hurt yourself?"

"Forget it. We're just getting started and I got strategies you never dreamed of."

Kaiba just moaned. "Don't you know when it's time to quit?" He summoned La Jinn to attack Joey directly. The attack dealt 1800 points of damage. Joey drew his card, promising to find a way to turn things around. He summoned Swordsman of Landstar to the field and activated Graceful Dice to raise his attack points. The roll of the die resulted in a four, giving the Swordsman 2000 attack points and making it strong enough to defeat the Mystical Genie.

Kaiba wasn't too impressed. "You can't win a duel with luck," he said as his monster was destroyed. "You may have won that battle, but you won't win the war."

I don't intend to, Joey wondered. But I do have a challenge to face and I made a promise to succeed. I just have to. It's the only way I can prove that I'm the hero of friendship. Freya told me to be a friend to someone who needs one. Kaiba is the perfect guy for the job. As much as I want to win this duel, I have to prove to Kaiba that there's more to me. And I can help him understand the good that can come from friendship by being his friend. He said I didn't belong in his tournament, but I'll show him. Joey was actually grateful to Kaiba for planning this tournament. It helped him to become stronger and to awaken as Millennia's chosen warrior. Now he needed this challenge to become the hero of friendship. As if his thoughts could be heard, the same symbol shined on his head again.

"Congratulations on making one good move," Kaiba said mockingly. "I guess there is a first time for everything."

"Watch it, pal!"

"I'm not your pal, Wheeler. If I was, I'd be standing with the other geeks cheering my heart out for the biggest loser of the duel. Do you honestly believe you're a warrior chosen by some made-believe goddess? There's nothing for you to prove. More importantly, did you forget I destroyed every powerful monster in your deck?"

Joey remembered, but he wouldn't let his opponent get the best of him. And though Red-Eyes wasn't in his deck, Freya was with him in spirit to give him support.

"It's time I gave you a look at the difference in our firsthand skills," Kaiba said as he drew his card. He summoned Blade Knight and attacked Joey's Swordsman of Landstar. Because Joey's turn was over, the Swordsman's attack points were back to their original value of 500. Now Joey had 1100 life points remaining. "You have no chance," Kaiba said, playing a card face down.

"I'm just getting warmed up," said Joey. He summoned Little-Winguard in attack mode. Next, he equipped it with the Legendary Sword, giving it 300 attack and defense points. Kaiba revealed his face down card Absorb Spell to transfer the effect of Joey's card to his Blade Knight.

"That was a third-rate move on your part," said Kaiba. "Even if you were a warrior, you could never defeat a duelist with real talent."

"Next time I'm dueling someone with talent, I'll remember that," Joey said, playing a card face down. What was Millennia thinking choosing this guy as one of her warriors? He's as nasty as they come and he's got nothing good worth fighting for, let alone to prove. But if he is one of her chosen warriors, I wonder what his element is. I also wonder what challenge he has to face in order to awaken as the hero of his element.