Chapter 21
Duke, Joey, and Tristan were making tracks, by going over hills and all over the dirt.
"Yeah, who needs roads when you got one of these bad boys?" Joey asked.
"Yeah, now step on it so we can find Yugi!" yelled Tristan.
"10-4. Hang on fellas," said Duke as he floored the gas, and went racing off across the desert with Joey and Tristan hanging on for dear life. And they actually got thrown out of the car once.
"I told them to buckle up," said Duke as he looked around with his binoculars. He finally spotted them running after him.
"I think we're safer on foot," said Tristan.
"Give me a piggyback, and you got a deal," said Joey.
With Raphael
Raphael was still standing in the same spot he had been in for the past hour.
The Pharaoh should be arriving shortly…he thought. Then, as if to prove his words, atop a hill, the Pharaoh arrived atop his horse.
"Let's do this!" he yelled as he had Capernicus rear, and then they started sliding down the mountain. Then, when Capernicus jumped, he leaped off, and landed in front of the bridge, and started walking forward as Raphael spoke.
"Very impressive cowboy. But you'll need more than a few rodeo tricks to beat me. You see, my associates are interested in stealing your friends soul's, including your sister's, but I'm not," said Raphael.
"I did my part, now released the professor as promised, and do not even lay a finger on Tea or my sister," warned the Pharaoh.
"I can lay a hand on whoever I want. And as for the professor, he's already been set free. But since you are here, you may as well stick around a while," Raphael told the ancient king.
"If you lay a finger on him, you'll have to answer to me!" yelled a voice. The Pharaoh and Raphael looked back across the bridge, and saw a tan female girl with black hair riding a pure red horse with one white stocking, with a flowing mane and tail, and bareback without a bridle no less. She was glaring daggers at the Doma duelist who had dared to trick her brother.
"Caitlin!" yelled the Pharaoh. Then, Raphael whipped off his cape, revealing a tight black tank over his broad muscular body, and took out two axes. He threw them past the Pharaoh, narrowly missing him, and struck the bridge ropes, severing them, tearing away any bondage to getting off the cliff.
"Pharaoh!" yelled Caitlin, worried, since she saw blood in the dark, knowing that one of the axes had struck him. She could see bleeding from the side of his body and his left arm above the duel disk.
"So you're gonna stick around now huh? Because like I said, only you and Caitlin are good enough," said Raphael, facing the Pharaoh. "I need to capture the soul of the Pharaoh himself, and his only living relative, in order to save the world."
"He, save the world? Don't you realize that what you are doing is going to destroy the world in the end, or are you too blind and insane to see it?" the Pharaoh questioned the Doma duelist.
"I'm fine. It's you and Caitlin who are blind. You are fighting on the wrong side," said Raphael.
"Explain yourself!" the Pharaoh said with pure anger at the man in front of him.
"This place is a dark and lonely world to live in. I'm just trying to fix what is left, and try and get back what has been destroyed by people like you," the man said simply. "And I can do that by locking your spirit away, and Caitlin also when I'm done with you."
"Who do you think you are?" the Pharaoh asked him angrily.
"Look, the names Raphael, and I came here to duel, not to chat with the likes of people like you," said the Doma duelist. "I've waited for this duel long enough, and I'm not going to put out duel off a second longer," said Raphael. The two duelists stared at each other with daggers.
"You leave me no choice. But know this, justice will prevail, and righteousness will expunge the darkness," the Pharaoh told Raphael as the sun started coming up.
"That's what I am hoping for," said Raphael as both he and the Pharaoh activated their duel disks, and their life points hit 4000. Caitlin stood on the far side of the bridge, watching the duel, one arm around Rojo's neck, stroking him, with Capernicus nearby.
"Let's duel!" both men said at once.
"I'll start things off with a favorite magic card of mine, known as Guardian's Gift. It allows me to draw two new cards, as long as I toss the five I have right now. Also, its permanent, so starting next round, I can draw two more cards for my hand," Raphael told the ex-king.
I don't get it. Why would he toss out his hand for two cards? He's searching for the Seal of Orichalcos! the Pharaoh screamed in his mind. At the same time, Caitlin also knew what was happening in the duel, since she could see it from inside the puzzle, since her Millennium Item connected to the Pharaoh's, so she knew the whole duel so far.
"I'll place a monster in defense mode, plus one card face down. That's all for now. You know Pharaoh, you should really be thanking me," Raphael told the king as Yugi held his right hand on his left side. "I just gave you a head start. Thanks to Guardian's Gift, along with the cards I played, I have nothing left in my hand."
He may be toying with me, but he does have a point. If I destroy his defense monster, I can take an early lead…thought the king. With difficulty, he pulled a card from his deck without getting blood on it.
"Here goes!" he said to the Doma duelist. His card was Gazelle, the King of Mythical Beasts, and he had two cards in his hand that could benefit the card. He held up Gazelle, Polymerization, and Berfomet.
"I'll fuse together Gazelle and Berfomet to form Chimera, the Flying Mythical Beast," the king said as his monster appeared. A tan two headed lion, one with two ram horns, and the other with a single horn on its head, white cuffs around its paws, two white angel wings on its back, and a snake head at the end of its tail roared at the opposing player.
"I'm sure your defensive monster won't be able to withstand Chimera. Now my mythical beast, attack!" yelled the king as his lion bounded forward. Then Caitlin knew something was up when the monster under Raphael's command glowed.
"Higher defense!" she warned. The monster that appeared, with light purple skin, long red hair, and a green set of pants that looked like it was made of leaves had Chimera by its horns, holding it in place.
"Hehehe. What were you saying about my monster not being able to stand up for itself?" asked Raphael. Sure enough, his monster had 2200 defense points, while Chimera had 2100 attack strength. "My Backup Guardna has more than enough defense points to stop you." The guard monster threw Chimera back, cutting down the Pharaoh's life points.
Pharaoh: 3900
Raphael: 4000
"Back to me. First I'll activate the magic card Gravity Axe," announced Raphael as he played a card he had drawn from his deck via Guardian's Gift. "This allows me to play an almighty beast. And I choose Guardian Grawl." A brown lizard with a yellow vest, green sweats, and long claws got into attacking position.
"Pharaoh, Guardian monsters are extremely powerful. And thanks to the bond Raphael seems to have with his cards, they are even more trickier than they usually are," warned Caitlin, and the Pharaoh listened to her.
"And if you thought that he was scary now, if I combine him with Gravity Axe, he gains another 500 points," pointed out Raphael as his guardian monster gripped the axe.
"3000 points?" the Pharaoh asked, astounded. Caitlin was shocked that anyone could have such a monster.
"Now Guardian Grawl, attack Chimera!" commanded Raphael. The lizard shot at Chimera, and with his axe, cut right through the winged lion, getting rid of him from the field.
Pharaoh: 3000
Raphael: 4000
"My monster may be gone, but his special ability remains, and it allows me to bring back one of the fusion monsters I used to create Chimera," said the Pharaoh, and at the sound of his words, Berfomet appeared back on the field.
"Big deal, so you two-headed pipsqueak left behind an even weaker monster. I'm shaking," said Raphael, staring at the four-armed winged beast and the man that was using him.
"You should be," pointed out the Pharaoh.
"Not quite. My deck is full of Guardian Monsters, and each one is more powerful than the next," said Raphael, expanding his arms to emphasize his point.
"What do you mean Guardian Monsters?" asked the king, confused.
Back at the Trailer
"Professor Hawkins?" Tea called out, heading for his room. She saw him still asleep.
"Your gramps has the right idea," said Tea, looking at Rebecca. She had finished the story of Yugi and the Pharaoh, so Sonic and Shauna had already left, with Knuckles standing guard outside, and all the others taking a short nap, since Joey interrupted them last night. "We could all use a few zz's."
"Not me," said Rebecca, and Tea looked over to see her typing on the computer. "I've been doing some research on the web."
"Wait a second, you're not trading duel monster's cards again, are you?" Tea asked the young girl.
"No, I found this weird article about a cruise ship that sank twelve years ago. The sole survivor of the ship, a young boy, saved himself by swimming to a nearby island," Rebecca told her friend. "He spent three years there, but apparently, he spent time doing nothing but practicing Duel Monsters over and over again until he was rescued. And get this, his name was Raphael."
"Wait, the guy that's dueling Yugi?" Tea questioned. Rebecca then made a break for the door, but Tea stopped her.
"Hey, let go," said Rebecca, clearly wanting to go and find Yugi.
"Relax Rebecca, Yugi can handle that guy," Tea assured her.
"You sure?" she asked.
With Duke and the Boys
"Hey Joey, Duke, Tristan, wait up!" a voice yelled. Joey and Tristan looked behind them, and saw two objects headed for them. One was running, the other apparently floating in mid-air. The one running was a blue hedgehog, and the one flying was a gray hedgehog.
"Hey Sonic, Shauna, you guys caught up fast," said Tristan.
"Yeah, we can do that really well," said Sonic, and Joey was focused on Shauna.
"Let me guess, your power, right?" he asked.
"Yep," said the girl.
"Let's not waste anymore time then," said Duke, flooring the gas, speeding off, with Sonic and Shauna hot on their tail, heading for Death Valley.
Back with Yugi and Raphael
"You could never understand the connection I have with my cards Pharaoh," Raphael said angrily.
"I'm afraid you're mistaken. I also have the same bond with my deck and cards," the Pharaoh replied back.
"Oh really? Take a look at these," Raphael told the king, taking his cards off his deck, and holding them up.
His cards are almost completely worn out…the Pharaoh thought.
"They might be worn out, but I will never stop using them in my deck, because twelve years ago, these cards were not only my friends, but they saved my life," Raphael told the ex-king. "When I was a kid, I was taught that the world was a happy place, but I was wrong. The world is unfair, and nobody gets what they want."
"What a sad way to see the world," the Pharaoh replied simply to the Doma Duelist.
"Yeah, well, life is sad. And the sooner you realize that, the sooner you'll be better off by yourself. I should know. I used to have everything a kid could ever want," Raphael said, and there was a hint of sadness in his voice that Caitlin picked up.
Flashback
Until one day, when everything was taken from me…
A ship glided calmly across the ocean, full of people, and wealthy ones at that. The boat was lavishly decorated, with a ballroom, an outside dining area, and elaborate hallways. Amongst them were five people, a family. Two of the kids, a boy and girl, had blonde hair, though the boys' was sticking up more, and he was the oldest. The girl had wavy blonde hair in a bow, and her dress matched it with perfection, and they all had good manners. The second boy had brown hair, and was wearing a blue suit with a red bowtie.
"Happy birthday Raph," the brown-haired boy said. The blonde boy picked up the present from him.
"A present? Cool," the boy replied, happy.
"Go no, open it," the younger boy said excitedly. The girl also got excited, as did their parents. The blonde boy opened the small black box with yellow paper, and it was a Duel Monster card. The top one was of a beautiful white-haired woman with two white angel wings, and a beautiful Native American dress. She also had a headdress with an eagle's beak over the top half of her face, and a staff in her right hand.
"Awesome, a Guardian Eatos card! Thanks, its perfect!" the blonde boy proclaimed, holding up the card. The blonde girl laughed.
"Well, we only had to go to eighteen stored before we found it," she said happily.
"Is that all?" the blonde boy asked. The girl got up, and ran to stand beside her father, next to the brown haired boy.
"Don't forget to make your birthday wish Raphael," she told her older brother.
"What's it gonna be?" the brown-haired boy asked.
"Nothing, I already have everything I need," Raphael told his family, but at that moment, the ship rocked, knocking over chairs.
"Oh no," Raphael said, and sped off for the deck, and his brother and sister followed. All over the boat, there was panic. People were running around everywhere, making Raphael take his time to get to the deck.
I knew something was wrong…
As Raphael reached the deck, he saw massive waves of water headed right for the ship.
We were heading right for a tidal wave, and there was no turning back…
Raphael and his siblings, along with everyone else on the ship, were tossed around like rag dolls. His brother and sister got tossed to one side, and he tried to grab their hands before they got thrown off the ship. Unfortunately, they were too far apart already, and were separated.
That was the last time I saw my family. The storm ended as quickly as it came. My family made it onto a rescue boat, but I was left behind.
Raphael awoke to the sound of seagulls, to find himself on a beach. He looked up, and saw someone in front of him that looked awfully familiar…
"Guardian Eatos," said Raphael weakly, and then she disappeared, making Raphael question himself on whether he had seen her or not.
I thought my mind was playing tricks on me, but I knew that someone else was on this island, maybe even my family, so I began to search. However, it didn't take long for me to realize that I was alone. Who would watch over me now?
Raphael began to cry, for the thought of being alone on this strange island scared him. Farther off, where he couldn't see, Guardian Eatos stood, watching the young boy.
All I had now were the clothes on my back, and my duel monsters cards. I knew I had two choices, to either sit around and feel sorry for myself, or toughen up and move on. And if I wanted to survive, I knew there was no time for weakness.
End Flashback
"I learned on that island that the world is a cruel place, and sad and lonely. I lost my childhood, but I gained something greater: the truth," said Raphael as the Pharaoh and Caitlin listened.
Flashback
I had an undying trust for my only and true family: my three Guardian Cards. These duel monsters were everything to me.
As Raphael sat in a cave with his cards, a powerful wind blew outside, knocking his cards into the ocean. He ran out of the cave, and dove into the water, and retrieved his cards carefully.
Those cards were my only friends, and they kept me safe, and sane. They helped me keep control of my mind, and I owed it to myself to save them.
Raphael started a fire later that night, and sat his cards on logs near the fire to dry them, but far away enough so that they wouldn't catch on fire.
We shared a powerful bond.
As Raphael sat by the fire, his monsters appeared in spirit form out of their cards.
Guardian Eatos, Guardian Grawl, and Guardian Kehost, these monsters sought me through the hardest years of my life, and protected me.
End Flashback
"Raphael, if you truly respect your cards, then why do you use them for evil?" the Pharaoh questioned.
"Evil Pharaoh? What you consider evil, I consider stopping the world from falling apart from the likes of people like you, your sister, and your friends. It's my destiny," Raphael told him.
Flashback
I always wondered why me, and after 3 long years on that island, I finally got my answer.
Raphael went to the top of a cliff on the south side of the island, and spotted another island with a castle not far off.
How could I have missed it? It was an entire city right off the coast.
Raphael hopped on a raft he built, and started rowing for the island with the castle atop it.
I was saved.
As Raphael paddled further, the city disappeared, and small tidal waves came it atop the teenager.
"Not again," said the boy, watching the waves head for him. They eventually knocked him clear of his raft, back into the ocean. Then, as he sank in the ocean slowly, a bright light appeared, and sucked him in slowly. When the light dimmed, below him, was a beautiful city surrounded by water.
"Hello? Anybody here?" Raphael called out. Another bright light shined. Raphael was lying on a floor that was pure white.
"Welcome Raphael. You've come home, my child," a voice said. "Remember my voice, for we shall me again." The light dimmed, and he awoke to find himself back on his raft.
Soon after I woke up on a rescue boat. They said they found me floating on a raft. I made the covers of newspapers and magazines all around the world. "Miracle boy rejoins society after being stranded on an island," was the headliner. Civilization, please, the world I cam back to was anything but civilized.
Raphael just walked through the streets, looking around at what had become of the world.
End Flashback
"That island may have been lonely, but at least it was a peaceful place to live. And unlike this normal society Pharaoh, that island was a place where no one would walk out on me, like my family," Raphael said as he started to cry. "But I have a new family now."
"How can you blame mankind for what happened to you?" asked the king.
"I told you, people are evil!" yelled the Doma duelist. "It wasn't always this way."
Flashback
When I got back from that deserted island, I witnessed this paradise with my own eyes.
Raphael held his cards up in front of him, and his three guardian monsters appeared behind him. Then, they looked out into the ocean, as did Raphael. They saw an island rising up out of the sea.
"I told you we'd meet again Raphael. Now, are you prepared to leave your old life behind?" the same voice asked, the one he heard the day he was rescued. Raphael nodded yes.
"Excellent. Together, we can rebuild civilization as it once was," said the voice. A bright green light appeared in front of Raphael as a path, and the young man stepped onto it, and headed for the castle. His three monsters followed after him, floating and walking by his side.
End Flashback
"You may not know what lies were told, but we can tell you that no good can come from them," the Pharaoh told the duelist.
"You and what army?" he asked.
"Me, my sister, Yugi, and our cards," the Pharaoh told the duelist.
"Well, that army won't last long, since you won't be around to see what my plan is," said Raphael.
"Wrong, I'm not going anywhere," said the Pharaoh.
"We'll see," said Raphael.
At that moment, Rex and Weevil went spinning down the mountain. They landed a few feet behind Caitlin and Rojo. The mustang began to freak a bit, but Caitlin quickly calmed him down. She didn't notice Rex and Weevil, since she just thought that because Rojo was wild, he might have just been spooked, so he calmed under her hand and words.
"Well, so much for that shortcut," said Rex.
"Hey, look, Yugi started dueling already," said Weevil.
"Look at the mustang," said Rex, pointing at the horse next to the Egyptian girl. They marveled at his beauty.
"Whoa," said Weevil, but then looked back at the duel.
"Its my turn. I activate the magic card Five Star Twilight," said the Pharaoh, activating the card he pulled from his deck.
"Good call," Caitlin whispered to the Pharaoh.
"Since I have a five star monster on the field, five star twilight allows me to summon five new monsters to the field. Now say hello to an unstoppable family of monsters. The Five Kuriboh Brothers!" the Pharaoh announced as five fluff balls, brown, pink, a light purple, light blue, and white, all with green claws, appeared on his side of the field.
"Kuri Kuri," they all chanted. They all had an equal attack of 300.
"He, my cat has coughed up ore frightening things than those things," said Raphael, smirking and scoffing at the Kuriboh monsters.
"Looks can be deceiving. Go, my Kuribohs!" yelled the Pharaoh. All the Kuribohs jumped inside the brown one. "Combine your powers to form Kuribabylon!" A dark blue monster appeared with a giant horn on its head, fangs, large feet, and purple slanted eyes was formed out of the five Kuribohs. It had an attack of 1500.
"Next I activate my Pump Up magic card. My monster's power will now double for this one turn," said the Pharaoh, as his monster's power doubled. "Now my beast, attack with Horn Of Chaos!" yelled the king as his monster lunged forward.
"I don't think so King Puffball! Reveal Rescue from Beyond the Grave!" yelled Raphael, activating his card.
"You can't play a card from your graveyard!" yelled the ex-king, astonished.
"I just did!" yelled Raphael. His Guardian Grawl blocked Kuribabylon, and transformed him back into the Kuriboh brothers.
"This rare and powerful magic card can only be played once transferred to my graveyard. And then comes the fun part for me. It immediately stops your monster's attack," said the Doma duelist.
That must be why he got rid of his entire hand before…thought Yugi.
"So where was I now? Oh right, destroying you, and sealing away your very soul," said Raphael as he drew two cards, since Guardian's Gift was still in effect. "After all, it is the only way to supply the great beast with enough energy to wipe out mankind. But why stand here talking about it? The sooner I end this duel, the sooner you'll be gone forever. I'll end my turn with two cards face down. Then I'll play the magic card Purity of the Cemetery!" A purple mist surrounded the field for a moment, and then disappeared.
"Now here's how it works Pharaoh. For every monster in your graveyard, every turn you loose that many life points times 100. So if you have three monsters, you loose 300 life points," Raphael explained. "And as long as my graveyard remains monster free, the card stays in play."
I have to send a monster of his to the graveyard, or he is a goner…thought the ex-king.
"Yugi, that will be really tough. Because of Raphael's bond to his monsters, I doubt that it will be easy to destroy ne of his monsters," reminded Caitlin, and the Pharaoh listened, then turned back to Raphael.
"Now I have one more thing you may be interested to know. I have no intention of playing my Seal or Orichalcos card," announced Raphael, and the Pharaoh gasped in shock about what he had just heard. "But that does not mean you are out of danger, not by a long shot. Your soul is still sealed, and as long as that is able to happen, you cannot defeat me! And you will loose your soul, but by your own doing. My monster has 3000 attack points, and your multi colored pom pom sisters have no chance to stay alive and beat my guardian. Now attack with Gravity Axe!" announced Raphael, and his Guardian Grawls launched forward. "HAHAHAHAHA!"