Village of Vengeance
As Isis predicted, Shada and Joseph found the royal family and were relieved to see that the three of them were all right. When Atem learned that Bakura and Max's trails had been traced to Kul Elna, he decided to lead the royal army to the outskirts. He asked Shada to follow him and for Joseph to take his wife and daughter back to the palace. Mystery refused to leave. She knew she and Emily would be safe if they returned home, but she also knew Atem wouldn't stand a chance if he faced Bakura alone. But he was not about to risk his family's safety. Atem and Mystery saw that their reasons were the same, but they didn't want to have it both ways; not after what happened last night. Mystery knew she would never forgive herself if she lost her husband to the shadows, but she finally succumbed to his words and climbed on Flygon's back. Right now, this matter wasn't for debate. So Joseph took the princess and queen back to the palace and Atem led his team to the outskirts. Mana promised Mystery that she would protect Atem, so she decided to go with him.
When they reached the dead village, everyone looked around in fear. "What is this place?" a soldier asked.
"I am told this place was once populated with criminals and deviants who served the Dark Lord," Shada answered. "And then one day, they all just disappeared." Then he gasped, feeling an ominous presence nearby.
The rest of the soldiers were sensing that same force all over the village. "I heard this town is inhabited by ghosts," one of them whimpered.
Mana whimpers and holds Kirlia in her arms. "I have an idea. Let's leave a note for Bakura and Max and ask them if they wouldn't mind meeting us somewhere that isn't haunted. Anyone with me?" Although no one answered, she took everybody's silence as a 'no'.
A few seconds later, skeletons start rising from the ground and coming out of houses. The spirits of Kul Elna were attacking the royals for intruding in their domain. As frightened as the soldiers were, they had to fight and protect their king. They were able to deal damage and shatter the skeletons, but many more spirits kept coming to attack.
Mana whimpers once again, and then hears Mahad's voice in her head. "Mana, you have the power to defeat them. Be strong." Hearing her master's words, Mana gathers her courage, jumps off of Atem's horse, and raises her wand. "You don't need to protect me. I should really be the one protecting you! Hyaah!" she cries, shattering the skeleton coming to attack her. She turns around and tells Atem, "If I want to be one of your elite spellcasters someday, then I need to stop hiding behind you. If Mahad were here, he'd say the same thing." Kirlia nods and begins fighting to protect her companion.
"Very well," said Atem.
Shada activates his diadiank and summons a Shadow Creature called Two-Headed Jackal Warrior to fight off the evil spirits. "We'll fight, you find Bakura and Max. Good luck."
Atem nods once again and wishes the same thing to his friends. He finds the stairs that lead to the underground shrine and begins walking.
Bakura and Max sense how restless the spirits are and assure them that there's nothing to fear. "Not to worry, my friends," said Bakura. "Soon revenge will be ours." He chuckles and silently whispers, "The son shall pay for the sins of his father."
Atem reaches the bottom of the stairwell and calls for Bakura and Max. It's dark, but it's not difficult to see anything. The place was actually lit up a little bit. "I know you're both here."
Bakura and Max chuckle once again. "Well, I must say, I'm impressed, Pharaoh," Bakura told him. "Your father never had the courage to come to this place, which makes him a wiser man than you."
"We're actually pleased to see that you've retuned from the edge of the shadows," said Max. "No, we're not surprised, only pleased. This will give us the pleasure of crushing you once again."
Atem growls at them. "Let's duel."
The thieves turn back and tell him, "There's something you should have a look at first." Atem looks behind them and sees the stone tablet Max and Bakura mentioned when they first came to the palace; the Millennium Stone. Bakura fixes his gaze at Atem and explains, "As you can see, each of the seven Millennium Items fit neatly inside. Oh, and did we mention that the Stone is guarded by the very spirits who were imprisoned in order to create the Items? Your father captured their spirits in order to gain their power in an attempt to dominate mankind. How do I know, you ask? Because I am the only villager who escaped. The 'soul' survivor, if you will."
"And how do I know," questioned Max. "I was born here, but raised in the city. When I met Bakura, he told me all that happened and I agreed to help him avenge our people."
Atem growls once again, finding what Max and Bakura are saying to be lies. "My father created the Millennium Items to fulfill the Great Goddess' wishes and bring peace and prosperity to Egypt. Understand?"
"We understand that's what you've been told by your so-called guardians," said Max. "But they lie." Then she and Bakura order the evil spirits to surround and attack Atem.
"Soon your spirit will join theirs, Pharaoh. Trapped for all eternity. And without your Millennium Puzzle, you can't call on the Great Goddess to protect you."
That was one thing Atem admitted Bakura to be right about. He was down on his knees, groaning from the pain of feeling the evil spirits through him. A few seconds later, the pain subsides and a tall figure stands in front of Atem. "Enough! When you threaten the pharaoh, you threaten me!" Atem opens his eyes and sees the Dark Magician.
This time, Bakura growls. "Oh, I see. Getting destroyed once wasn't enough, so you decided to come back for round two."
"I am here to save my king."
Atem tries to persuade the Dark Magician and tell him, "You don't have to put yourself in harm's way again."
"I made a vow to always protect you and your family, my pharaoh. That promise will hold true no matter how powerful our foes may be."
"Mahad, tell me," Atem was silently saying, "did my father truly destroy this village in order to forge the Millennium Items?"
Bakura heard him and said, "Excuse me, I can answer that, seeing I was there when it all happened. And believe me, it was an evening I'll never forget. I watched in horror as your father's henchmen harnessed the spirits of my fellow villagers in order to further his selfish needs."
Atem was in shock, finally accepting that Bakura was telling the truth. "How could he? My own father?"
Mahad speaks up and tells the king, "What Bakura has failed to mention was that every citizen of this village was evil and loyal to Cobalt." To clarify how he knows, he explains, "I always sensed the darkness within my Millennium Ring, so I began to research the magic spell used to create it." Remembering that the Millennium Spellbook contained all of Millennia's powers and secrets, Mahad wondered if there was any information about the Millennium Items, so he asked Mystery if he could look at the book for a little while. He was surprised at what he discovered, but what shocked him even more was when he found out what happened at Kul Elna.
Not even the former pharaoh could believe what his subject had found out. How could the sacred treasures of a peaceful and loving goddess carry out her will if they were plagued with the Dark Lord's evil? Mahad kept assuring King Aknamkanon that it wasn't his fault, but the pharaoh kept convincing himself that he was responsible for these disasters. Although he knew the damage couldn't be reversed, he knew that perhaps his children could use Millennia's powers to finally fulfill her wishes. So he took Atem and Mystery with him and began praying to the Egyptian Gods to guide and protect his son and future daughter-in-law as he confessed his crimes.
After hearing the story, Atem knew that it wasn't his father's fault after all. He paid the price by confessing a crime that wasn't his. "He was innocent!"
"It's true," said Mahad, "your father took the blame so that you could continue his legacy; by finally fulfilling Millennia's wishes and bringing peace to the land of Egypt."
Atem heard his father's voice ring through his head as he recalled the prayer. "By bringing the seven Millennium Items into this world, I have unleashed a great threat. My reign will soon end, but please, guide the Children of Millennia so that they may use her treasures to carry out her wishes."
"My father was a worthy king," Atem protested. He stands up and adds, "And I owe it to him to take you two down and return this land to the prosperity it once knew. In the name of the former pharaoh, return those Millennium Items to where they belong!"
Max and Bakura grin. "And you think they belong with you?" questioned Bakura. "If you had truly been paying attention, you would know that Millennia's powers had been abused in your hands and the hands of your guardians. But we plan to make better use of them by returning them to their resting place." But the two thieves knew that the only way to settle things was by playing another Shadow Game, so they summoned the beasts of their souls. Thanks to the Millennium Items Bakura and Max acquired, their monsters evolved once again. The Angel of Death's wings lost their feathers and became bat-like and Diabound's skin turned into a gruesome green color with dark blue markings.
Bakura makes the first move and orders his Diabound to attack. Diabound launches the Thunderforce attack it stole from Slifer, but Mahad raises his scepter to shiled himself and redirect the attack; making it attack his foes. Diabound and the Angel evade the attack, but a pillar is blasted. Diabound catches the pillar to keep it from crushing the Millennium Stone, but while it's occupied, Mahad takes this chance to attack. A blast of green magic is shot at the beast's face.
Feeling the pain of the attack, Bakura groans and places his hand over his eye. "Attack all you want," he hisses, "You'll never defeat our Diabound and Angel. And if you think they're a force to be reckoned with, just wait until you meet Zorc, the Dark One."
Atem gasped hearing that. He wondered where he heard that name before and he knew it wasn't just because of the dream he had back at the cave. He finally remembered that Zorc was the name of a creature born from the will of the Dark Lord Cobalt. Said to be equal to the Dark Lord in power, he created his own world of darkness; the Realm of Shadows. Cobalt realized the dangers of his own creation and saw that this was not the evil he wanted to bring to the world. So as a safety measure, the Dark Lord banished his creation and closed the border between Earth and the Shadow Realm forever. But Cobalt was the Lord of darkness and knew everything about the Shadow Realm; fearing that one day the border would open again, but hoping his evil empire would be built in his favor.
"Bakura, is this why you and Max have been trying to acquire the Millennium Items," asked Atem, "to unleash the might beast born from the will of the Dark Lord?"
"That's right," Bakura answered. "But although gathering the Items will open the border again, Zorc won't gain the power he needs to dominate the world. That is why I seek the powers of the Stars. That's why I kidnapped your daughter. And once I obtain the Millennium Star, I'll do my part and kill the princess; destroying Millennia and ending the Battle of the Gods once and for all!" he said and cackled.
Atem was confused. Why would Bakura want the Millennium Star if he already had the Cobalt Star? Unless… Bakura never gave himself to the Dark Lord. But before Atem assumes that to be sure, he remembered the times Bakura displayed the Dark Lord's power by showing his wings and casting magic. Still, he wasn't going to let the Dark Lord's wishes come to pass or let any harm befall his daughter.
"This Stone is the element we need to carry out our plan, so I shall call forth another Shadow Creature to defend it," Bakura said and summoned a monster called Skeleton Fiend. Standing on the Millennium Stone was a turtle with a shell made of skulls. The Millennium Stone would be protected while Diabound and the Angel of Death would be battling. Since the darkness provided additional power for the two Shadow Creatures, the thieves decided to take advantage of the matter by concealing their monsters; making them invisible to the human eye.
But Atem remembered that trick from last night's battle and knew how to draw Diabound and the Angel out of hiding. The Dark Magician had the same idea, so he used his Rapid Spell Fire to blast every corner of the shrine. Inside, it was dark, but outside, there was daylight; penetrating the darkness and exposing the Shadow Creatures. There would be no more surprise attacks.
But as usual, the two thieves were one step ahead of their opponents and knew how to keep the game in their favor no matter how much damage they took. They were very strong-willed and would never give in. After all they had suffered and endured, nothing could push them past their limits. "Your spellcaster may have improved his skills," groaned Max, "but I'm afraid he's still not good enough to keep us down." Back on their feet, Max and Bakura begin receiving additional strength from the help of their fellow spirits; restoring their energy and making their monsters stronger.
Mahad tries to blast them with his Dark Magic, but Diabound and the Angel of Death are shielded by the spirits. The Angel takes this chance to strike back and launches her Spiral Wave; fiercely flapping her wings and pushing the Dark Magician away. Not waiting for him to get up and fight back, Bakura decides to finish him off. Diabound launches its Lightning Blast and attacks the mage.
Seeing nothing but a crater from the Blast's impact, everyone assumes that the Dark Magician has been defeated. But Atem doesn't find himself feeling weak. That's when he looks up and sees a feminine magician dressed in pink and blue carrying the Dark Magician to the surface. Everyone starts to wonder who summoned her until Atem sees Mana.
Looking down at her friends, she says, "Don't worry, Master. I summoned Dark Magician Girl to save you. Not too bad, huh?" Mana considered it to be a fitting name for her new friend because she was the apprentice to the Dark Magician.
Mahad was just as proud. "Mana, you always were my top student. And even in my absence, I can see you've been kepping up with your training." He knew that his student had been trying so hard to find the Magician inside herself. At last, she had come to realize the magic inside herself and found her strength. Her amulet was even glowing; giving off a light as bright as Mahad's did when he came to realize his own strength. That wasn't the only surprise. Mana's Kirlia had also evolved into Gardevoir; a fully evolved Magical Creature.
Carefully, Gardevoir uses her psychic powers to send Mana below the shrine so she can help her friends fight their adversaries. The Dark Magicians steady themselves and blast pink and green bolts of magic towards Diabound and the Angel of Death, but their attacks are in vain as the Spirit Shield protects them.
"Nice try," Max tormented. "But it's going to take more than just pointed hats and magic wands to defeat our Diabound and Angel of Death. Don't forget we're not alone. Spirits of Kul Elna, give our creatures some company, won't you?" The spirits surround the beasts and create duplicates. The situation became thrice the terror for the king and his friends. Diabound and the Angel prepare themselves to attack. Seeing that, Mahad and his apprentice find that the fiends won't be able to protect themselves as they attack, so the Dark Magicians obliterate the shadows. The real Diabound and Angel still launch their attacks; missing Dark Magician Girl, but striking her master.
Mana rushes to Atem's aid as she sees him on his knees. The Shadow Creatures begin to attack again, but Mana decides to match wits by performing a few tricks of her own. She raises her wand and creates magical hats to confuse Diabound and the Angel of Death as well as protect herself and Atem. The monsters aren't fooled by Mana's displays and end up destroying all of the hats; revealing their foes. They attack again until suddenly, a blue sword appears and slashes Diabound's arm.
Everyone starts to wonder where that came from until they see the rest of the royals coming down the stairs. Seto, Isis, Jirachi, and Karim had come to help their friends by order of the queen. Bakura and Max weren't worried. This was just another opportunity to acquire more Millennium Items.
Seto was happy to see that his king was all right, but what surprised him even more was seeing the friend he thought he had lost. But Seto couldn't find himself to say anything, whether it be a compliment or a smart remark. He did know this much; anyone was in good hands with Mahad as long as he was around whether in person or in spirit. Even Isis was just as happy to see Mahad. Just as the Great Goddess had promised her, Mahad had returned.
"Know this," Mahad was telling his friends, "Although my spirit is sealed in stone, I can still fight to protect the royal family and my friends. So I thank Millennia for lending me her power one last time. Even she would want something like this to be done for her family."
That was what Seto expected Mahad to say. He had to admit, his devotion was inspirational. But there was no time to be impressed or catch up as friends. Max and Bakura were still waiting to complete their Shadow Game and the pharaoh was weak from taking all those attacks. Seeing that, Isis summoned a blue-skinned maiden dressed in green named Mystical Elf. The Elf chanted a spell and healed Atem's bruises and restored his energy.
Max and Bakura both growled. They were disgusted to see everyone always helping each other and not really doing anything to fight back. It was becoming a real nuisance to the both of them. Atem was ready to get back in the game, but Seto insisted that he stayed back for he was still powerless without his Millennium Puzzle. It didn't matter to the thieves if Seto and the others would fight on Atem's behalf. They knew that defeating them meant acquiring three more Millennium Items for a total of five.
Seto and the others were ready. On their side of the battlefield were the Dark Magicians, Isis' Mystical Elf, Seto's Duos, and a yellow Dragon named Curse of Dragon summoned by Karim. On the opposing side were the mighty Diabound and the Angel of Death. Ready to strike, the mages, the warrior, and the Dragon surround their opponents and attack them. But as strong as their attacks were, neither one of them could penetrate the Spirit Shield even if they had bombarded them from many different directions.
Bakura chuckles in amusement. "Our Diabound and Angel of Death have received some added support from the spirit world. The evil spirits of Kul Elna, to be precise. And they despise your kingdom and so-called Great Goddess Millennia as much as Max and I do. So as long as we remain in their village, they'll be protecting us." Hearing that, the royal team groans as they try to contain their frustration. Some of them react in shock and worry. It was one thing to be in the domain of the Children of Cobalt, but were the two fiends finally invincible?