A True Friend

The duel continued as Kaiba was about to finish Joey off. "You were a fool to challenge me, Wheeler, and now you'll see that I was right all along. You're worthless and you shouldn't have been in my tournament in the first place. Now go ahead and make your move because you've wasted enough of my time already!"

"Kaiba, you and I may have our differences, but we also have our similarities. We both finished in the top four of the finals and we're both warriors chosen by the Great Goddess Millennia. But when I win this duel, I'll outrank you!" Before Joey could win, he had to deal with Kaiba's Blue-Eyes. He just summoned Baby Dragon in defense mode.

Kaiba played Stop Defense to switch Hayabusa Knight to attack mode. Blue-Eyes White Dragon attacked and destroyed Joey's Knight, but Joey still had life points remaining. He activated a trap called Nutrient Z. It raised Joey's life points by 4000 since he was being attacked by a monster that dealt more than 2000 points of damage. But he still lost life points and had 2100 remaining. Kaiba still stood by his opinion that Joey was an amateur. He ended his turn by playing a card face down.

Joey was lucky because he drew Time Wizard from his deck. He played it and his favorite spin began as Time Roulette was played. It was risky, but Joey prayed for his card to come through. The arrow landed on a time machine, causing Baby Dragon to evolve into Thousand Dragon. But Time Wizard's Time Magic had no effect on Kaiba's Blue-Eyes. Kaiba played Interdimensional Matter Transporter to remove his monster from the field and keep her from aging.

"I'll tell you the real difference between us, Wheeler. You depend on luck while I depend on skill."

But Joey was laughing like he was having fun. "You really kill me, y'know that?"

Kaiba grinned. "You've lost it."

"Wrong," Joey argued. "I just find you ridiculous. Come on. Lighten up, for God's sake. You and I are fighting a great duel, so relax and have fun." That was what Joey was doing. He was trying to show Kaiba the joys of having fun and treating even a fierce battle like it was just a game. And that's what friends should be doing. Joey really was trying to be the friend Kaiba needed.

Kaiba needed what Joey was trying to offer him, but continued to push it away. "I don't have fun."

"Then you're more of a miserable bastard than I thought," said Joey.

"You don't even know the first thing about me," Kaiba shouted. "I duel to gain power and to be the best, not to have fun! But when Yugi beat me, he stole my glory once again!"

"You were good, but Yugi was better. Didn't you hear what Emily said?" Joey asked. "You may not have the same rank as Yugi, but like him, you're still one of the world's greatest duelists. Why can't you just accept that?"

"I don't give a damn what Briar said! And I certainly wouldn't expect someone like you to understand!" Kaiba drew Thunder Dragon from his deck and sacrificed it to activate its special ability, letting him draw two more Thunder Dragons. Next, he played Polymerization to merge them together to form Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon. Then he played Quick Attack so his fusion monster could immediately attack and destroy Thousand Dragon. Finally, Blue-Eyes White Dragon destroyed the rest of Joey's life points.

I'm sorry, Freya, Joey thought. I came close, but I just couldn't do it. I tried.

"That's right, bow down in defeat!" Kaiba barked, seeing Joey on his knees.

Mokuba said something a little nicer to Joey. "You did okay, but you're still no match for my brother."

"Outdueling Joey Wheeler is no cause for celebration," said Kaiba. "This was a waste of my time."

"Hold on, Kaiba," Joey called.

Kaiba was becoming more annoyed of Joey's stubbornness. "Can't you just let it go? It's over."

Joey disagreed. The fight would never be over because Joey would keep challenging Kaiba and come back stronger. Plus, he would never give up on trying to be Kaiba's friend. That made him realize that his quest would never be over either. He didn't succeed like he hoped, but he still completed his trials. He also may have fulfilled his tasks for this journey, but he can still do his part by remaining loyal and helping his friends. He was proud of himself for his efforts. He fought his hardest and remained a true friend, and true to his element. Millennia would be proud of him.

Kaiba wasn't willing to look forward to when such a time would ever come. "Let's go, Mokuba. There's no reason to stick around this dump anymore."

"But there's still one more duel," his brother reminded him.

Kaiba saw Ishizu standing next to him. "I would advise you to be present for the final duel of your tournament," she suggested. "Yugi will need your help to defeat Marik and fulfill his destiny."

Kaiba refused. "As far as I'm concerned, I'm done. Battle City's over for me and the sooner I put this all behind me, the better. I've had about all I can take from you people. So please just leave me alone and have a nice life!"

"Walking away is a huge mistake," said Ishizu.

"Why is that, Ishizu?" Kaiba asked. "Let me guess, did you read it in one of your Egyptian fairy tales or did your imaginary goddess tell you?"

But it wasn't either of those. She warned him that his future was at stake. "Deep down, you know that as well as I do. I know you are able to read the Egyptian text and I also know that you are aware of the story depicted on the stone. The sorcerer may have been the pharaoh's rival, but he was also his friend and one of Millennia's chosen warriors. The sorcerer is your ancestor, Kaiba, and you must do for Yugi what he did for the pharaoh: help your friend. Without you, he can't save the world from destruction. If you continue to deny your ancient heritage, the world will suffer because of your stubbornness. Your rivalry with Yugi has been in existence for thousands of years and it will continue to exist."

It wasn't always a rivalry. The sorcerer constantly challenged the pharaoh in every game and battle to increase their strengths and skills. The pharaoh helped the sorcerer in the same way by reminding him of the importance of winning and having something worth fighting for. They both benefited from each other and were able to work together to save mankind and preserve Millennia's wishes.

"And it's not just Yugi who needs you, Kaiba. So do Emily and Joey. All of Millennia's warriors must unite and work together to save the world and carry out her will."

"That's enough, Ishizu! I hosted this tournament to achieve my goal of becoming number one again, not to help Yugi and his friends or some made-believe goddess!"

Ishizu disagreed. "You were destined to organize this tournament and you had no choice in the matter. You were guided by the Great Goddess herself and if you leave now, you'll be disgracing her and turning your back on mankind."

Kaiba wasn't listening. He just looked at his duel tower. "Look at my duel tower. It stands as a symbol of my hatred towards my stepfather. I can't stand the sight of it!"

Ishizu wondered if this was Kaiba's reason for wanting to leave. He was running away from his stepfather. But she continued to try to reason with him. "This is about more than just your family, Kaiba."

"No, I designed this whole tournament and I was robbed of my victory! But I can still bury my past by destroying that tower!" He turned to his brother to prepare to detonate the tower.

Mokuba heard his brother's order, but didn't like the thought of it. "Destroying the tower won't really solve anything. All it's going to do is cause more anger, destruction, hatred, and pain." He faced his brother and raised his voice. "I think Emily and Yami were right! You're filled with hatred! And I know our childhood wasn't the best, but there were times when you and I had fun! You even used to smile, but now you don't anymore. Why not? You're always in a bad mood and I want you back to how you used to be!"

"Those days are over!" Kaiba shouted.

"They don't have to be!" Mokuba cried. "You can change! Instead of causing more pain and damage, why don't you help Yugi and Emily to prevent more pain and damage? You're one of Millennia's chosen warriors! And if you know the secret to defeating Marik, tell Yugi!"

Kaiba was still against the idea. He wanted to defeat Yugi, not help him. "Yugi's chances of winning the tournament and defeating Marik are slim. But it's true, I figured out how to defeat the Winged Dragon of Ra and the card necessary to do it lives in my deck. But it's not just a matter of holding this card. It has to be played the right way at the right time." Then a red light shined on his forehead, revealing the symbol of his element. Then he returned on his path to the tower. Mokuba wondered if his brother was going to help Yami after all. Kaiba would rather just watch Yami tremble and fall in defeat, but he figured it would also be interesting if he gave him the card.

Joey, Tristan, and Duke met up with the rest of their friends at the duel tower. Yami and the girls were sorry to hear that Joey lost to Kaiba. But there would come a time when Joey would get another chance. But for now, it was time to focus on the next battle at hand. After all, Yami was going to duel Malik. They all went to the arena where Malik was waiting.

Malik was one of the many villains who liked to play by their own rules and there would be no telling what sort of surprises he would have in store. Would two Egyptian God cards be enough to stop him? Yami promised to do his best, but he was going to need everyone's help. Malik was looking forward to this duel for a long time, but Yami knew that by defeating Malik, Marik and the entire world would be saved.

Finally, Ishizu and the Kaiba brothers came to the arena. "Hold on, Yugi," Kaiba called to Yami. "I've got something you need. Take this!" And he tossed the card to him.

Looking at it, Yami saw that it was a magic card called Fiend's Sanctuary. But he was confused and wondered why Kaiba would give it to him. "What is the meaning of this, Kaiba?"

"That's for you to figure out," he answered. Kaiba still didn't want to think of it like he was helping a friend in need, but this was exactly how it was. Still, Yami had to figure out how to use the card on his own. But Kaiba would still be supporting him through the card. "If you really want to win this duel, then use that card and don't just rely on the support of your little fan club or Great Goddess."

Yami placed the card in his deck and shuffled it. "Kaiba, we may not always agree, but I still trust you." Even Joey wasn't too sure. But he remembered that Kaiba said his computer helped him to uncover the many secrets and abilities of Ra. That made Joey wonder if Kaiba was finally acting like a warrior of Millennia and doing something to help his friend.

"Thank you," Ishizu said to Kaiba.

"For what? Just because I gave him the card doesn't mean he'll win. Even if Yugi does figure out how to use it, he'll probably still lose the duel. Maybe then you'll stop believing that fairy tales come true. Yugi is no pharaoh, Briar is no princess, I'm no sorcerer, and Wheeler's no warrior. Above all, the four of us aren't destined to work together to save the world. So wake up and stop living in the past. I realized that the only way to succeed is to look ahead."

Ishizu disagreed. "I assure you that before this duel is over, you will believe me, Kaiba."