~Chapter XXXVI~

"Is that who I think it is?" asked Haku as he watched Akefia riding on horseback as his Diabound followed him.

"The Thief King," Atem scowled. "He's caused me enough trouble." The young pharaoh turned to face the others. "We must defeat him before nightfall; he could be just as dangerous as that queen if we do not stop him."

"Rena must have summoned him knowing that he would hinder us," Janeiro guessed. "And I bet he won't leave us alone if we ignore him..."

"Everyone; this is a realm consisting of magic," Atem told them. "If you believe strong enough then you can summon a DiaDhank for your own use. Use it to summon your Ka!"

"Ka?" Joey repeated, sounding confused.

"Your Ka will come to you if you call it," Atem explained. "Don't think; just believe!"

Everyone stood with their eyes closed, and one by one, in a cloud of sparkles, a DiaDhank formed on each of their wrists.

"Whoa!" Joey exclaimed, admiring the DiaDhank with awe. "What is this? A gold Duel Disk or something'?"

"It is indeed very similar to a Duel Disk, Joey," Atem told him. "Use it like one. Call upon the monster which resides within your soul."

Joey scratched his head thoughtfully. He had no idea how to do that; he was used to summoning monsters by placing down cards from his Duel Monsters deck.

Ryo turned to face the Pharaoh. "You would like us to summon our Ka to defeat him?" he queried.

"Yes," answered Atem. "The Thief King is relentless. He will not stop until he gets what he wants. Right now he wants his revenge, and he will do everything in his power to hurt everyone he despises."

The white-haired teen looked thoughtful for a moment. "He wasn't always like that..." he murmured under his breath.

"We can stop him!" Tea announced. "There's only one of him against all of us! If we work together, we can defeat him!"

"Be careful, Tea," Atem warned. "You mustn't underestimate him. His Ka was able to destroy Slifer the Sky Dragon; its power matches that of the Egyptian Gods."

"It won't be able to focus on everyone's Ka at once," Marik pointed out. "Even if it can overwhelm one of the gods, it won't be able to destroy all of our monsters at once."

"We can surround his monster and have all of our monsters attack it at once," Ishizu planned.

"Don't be so sure," came Rena's voice which echoed through the world. "It wouldn't be fun to watch you defeat the thief with ease; that's why I won't let you face him with such large numbers!"

As everyone looked around to try figuring out where the voice was coming from, a red magician with tanned skin and white hair, almost appearing somewhat identical to Akefia, floated down before the group with a grin on his face.

"What the-! Is that the Dark Magician?!" exclaimed Tristan.

"No," Yugi responded. "Not mine, at least. I've seen this one before; Arkana used it in his duel against the Pharaoh."

"He did indeed," Atem recalled. "I remember the duel quite well. I never thought I'd see Arkana's Dark Magician again..."

"I don't think this Arkana was the one who originally mastered such a beast," Tauren spoke up. "This is the Ka of the false queen."

Rena's Ka. It had come into existence three years prior to now, since that is when Rena's spirit first formed. It must have appeared before Arkana in a dream or vision after his accident - a vision deliberately created by Rena to give the Pharaoh a warning that one day she would be a threat when Arkana faced him in that duel.

The Red Magician pointed his sceptre and blasted a ball of energy towards them, a psychotic grin on his face. The energy blast was not destructive, however, as instead when everyone re-opened their eyes they each found themselves in different locations throughout the city. Not only would they have to spend more time finding each other, but they would have to tackle Akefia. Preferably they would fight him as a group, but Rena obviously didn't want things to be that way and would probably use the Red Magician again to keep everyone apart. It looked like the heroes would have to fight Akefia alone if they came across him.

To some, such as Tea, Sakura or Ishizu, the thought of facing Akefia alone was worrying, but others seemed to be searching for him rather than looking for the others.

Akuto was one man who sprinted straight through the city's streets in search of the thief. He never liked him. This was a man who had tortured him and left a woman to die. This was a man who abandoned his own child and almost brought harm to during the original palace tragedy. Akuto had quite a few reasons to want to get back at him.

The black-haired bandit, now once again covering the lower half of his face with his bandana, figured that running across the rooftops would help him to find Akefia much faster. He followed the sounds of screaming, and from his new height he could see Diabound in the distance. Keeping his eyes locked onto the beast, Akuto made his way towards the scene of destruction.

Akefia laughed hysterically, surrounded by flaming buildings as people fled the scene. Diabound fired its signature beam which brought an end to many of these unfortunate shadows; even if they had no real conscience, Akefia found joy in hearing dying screams as he caused so much devastation.

"Akefia!" yelled Akuto as he stood atop one of the fallen buildings. Akefia curiously turned his head as he watched Akuto lower his bandana. It took the thief king a few moments to remember the man, but once he recalled who he was, he grinned.

"You're not one of them, are you?" he asked. "How delightful; I'm going to enjoy destroying something which can actually feel pain!"

"I won't be destroyed by someone as lowly as you," Akuto informed. "You're the one who deserves to be obliterated!"

Akefia only laughed. "Very well; let's see if you can entertain me!" he challenged, raising his arm. "Diabound! Attack with Helical Shockwave!" His large Ka floated to his side, its snake head preparing to launch the attack. Akuto was quick to react by jumping from the ruined building milliseconds before the beam was fired, the impact destroying the rest of the structure and sending Akuto flying by a few feet before he hit the ground. He flipped back onto his feet and held up the arm which had a DiaDhank attached to it.

"Safira! Come to my side and help me bring an end to this miserable thief's life once and for all!" he hollered. Akefia frowned as a humanoid dragon let out a screech and suddenly swooped down from the skies, heading straight for Akefia. Diabound flew in front of him protectively and caught the blue dragon, and so Safira began to claw at Diabound aggressively as the white beast fought back with all of its brute strength, leaving Akuto to deal with Akefia himself.

Akuto darted towards Akefia with his two daggers ready for use, but as he raised one arm to attack with Akefia swiftly grabbed him by both wrists and wrestled him for a moment before throwing him to the floor. The thief in the red cloak cackled and grabbed Akuto by his hair, then slamming his face into the sandy ground.

"Come now, Akuto, I thought you were a bandit!" he mocked, lifting the man's head out of the sand so that he could hear him. "Or was your survival just mere luck on the night my Diabound destroyed the others?" The silver-haired thief glanced up at the sky, witnessing the duel between Diabound and Safira. His cruel grin widened.

"You were saved by that blind girl," he discovered. "The one who became the dragon which is now your Ka. Oh, how poetic!" His laughter made fury build up within Akuto before the former bandit grabbed his arms and flipped his foe onto his back. He dropped down, straddling Akefia's waist, with both of his daggers at the thief's neck, once again held by the wrists.

"Do not insult Safira, you heartless dog," Akuto hissed. Akefia was scowling but his smirk was quick to return.

"I've found your weakness," he said. "Diabound! Destroy Safira, and make her death last!"

Diabound continued to battle with Safira, but Akuto looked determined to end Akefia right now and knew that if he did so then Diabound would also vanish.

"What did she see in you?" Akuto asked through clenched teeth. "What did Nefertari see in you, Akefia?!"

That name. He hadn't heard it in over five thousand years. It pulled on the strings of his heart and caused him to lose focus for a moment. Nefertari. The one person who understood him. The woman he once truly loved.

"She died for you!" Akuto snapped. "Everyone has always thought of me as some evil bandit, but I was there for her when you should've been! It's your fault she died! If you weren't so selfish, you would've been able to protect her!" Akefia's puzzled expression slowly shifted into one of hate and anger as Akuto continued to speak. "The last time I saw her she was in tears; she wasn't the same woman who stood with you at her side. She was broken, but she still cared about you! And in her arms she was holding a little white-haired kid - your kid! A kid I had to raise! A kid I had to protect from you because you had just lost your mind!"

There was a silence, and for a moment it looked like Akuto had got through to Akefia. But the thief suddenly used all of his strength to throw Akuto off of him and kick him as hard as he could in the ribs. The thief jumped up to his feet and glared down at the other man. "Nefertari's fatal mistake was caring about someone like me," he spoke quietly. "She died because she was a fool. I thought she knew better." The man kicked Akuto again, seeing him grimace in pain. Instead of finishing him off, however, Akefia decided to flee. "Diabound!" he called. "We are done here!" And with that, Akefia left Akuto on the ground.

Safira, in her dragon form, lowered to the ground and carefully lifted Akuto, knowing that the streets weren't safe for him. She decided to fly him to safety, knowing that he would be safer with one of the others he knew well.

...

Tauren had witnessed the fight between Safira and Diabound and was running towards the scene, but on the way he was stopped by a blast of energy which narrowly avoided him. The teal-haired man turned around, narrowing his light green eyes upon seeing his cousin.

"It's been some time since we've had a confrontation, Mana," Tauren said to her, looking at both her and her Ka, the Dark Magician Girl.

"You must be helping that queen," Mana accused, pointing her wand. "You served another queen in the past who was associated with Apophis; you must be serving this queen, too!"

"I sided with a queen who hated Apophis," Tauren corrected. "This queen is not the same woman. I want to stop her before she summons Apophis, but right now I must stop the Thief King."

Mana looked surprised. "The Thief King?" she echoed, remembering the man. "He's the one who killed my master and the Pharaoh!"

"He is," Tauren nodded. "You can help us, Mana; the Pharaoh is the one who told me and many other allies, new and old, to defeat the thief."

"The Pharaoh's here, too?" Mana gasped in surprise. "And... Master Mahad?"

"He has not been seen," Tauren admitted. "It is possible that he might be here, but we must defeat the King of Thieves so that we can defeat the queen; if we do not act quickly, then Apophis will be summoned into this world when the sun sets."

Mana looked towards the sun, seeing that already it was quite low. She looked back at Tauren and nodded her head. "If the Pharaoh is with you, then I will fight beside you," she decided. Tauren smiled slightly.

"Let us defeat the thief," he said to her. The pair looked toward the fight scene, only to see Diabound flying further away through the city.

...

Akefia walked through the streets slowly, with Diabound destroying everything in his path. The scar-faced man wore a face of emptiness just like he used to do. These false screams were not bringing any joy to him. He was just lost in thought, hearing what Akuto had said to him over and over again in his head.

A son. Akefia had a son.

He remembered him.

"Father...? Please, can you hear me...? I know you're in there..."

When he was trapped within the Millennium Ring, he heard a voice calling for him. It was a voice foreign to him, but now the young male's voice made sense to him. That voice belonged to his son who was once cared for by Akuto. But being a fusion of himself and Zorc, Akefia had done nothing to respond to the boy that day.

"Akefia!" he suddenly heard. The man stopped walking and didn't even turn to face behind him. "Diabound, destroy," he commanded emotionlessly, causing his Diabound to turn and unleash its Helical Shockwave. Ryo was the one to dive out of the way of the attack, his survival causing Akefia to turn and face him. The thief said nothing and instead only began to walk towards the younger male.

"Please, Akefia, allow me to speak," Ryo requested, his shakiness evident in his fearful voice. "You must listen to me. I know who you are. I know everything about you. I've relived your memories because you and I share the same soul."

"Diabound," Akefia called again. "Attack now with Helical Shockwave." Diabound repeated its attack and Ryo dodged again, but this time he did not move out of the way quick enough to remain unscathed. He held his wounded arm painfully, gritting his teeth to contain his growls and whimpers of pain. Still, Ryo was determined to get through to his past self.

"Everyone is coming for you," he continued. "People from my time and your time. People who have always hated you and people who could once call you an ally. They want to destroy you for good, Akefia. I'm supposed to be fighting you right now, but I will not. They do not know you like how I know you; you're not the villain they think you are."

"Diabound!" Akefia shouted. Diabound knew exactly what to do and repeated his attack, this time almost giving Ryo the full force of it. The young teenager collapsed to the ground but forced himself back onto his feet. Akefia stopped walking while Ryo began to limp closer to him, his eyes half-lidded.

"You can't... gain anything... here..." Ryo panted. "We're all... victims... in... that queen's... game... Please, Akefia... You must... listen... to me... We have... to stop... her... You're... You're not... our... enemy..."

Ryo dropped to his knees from his wounds and Akefia stared at him for a moment, frowning when he had made his decision. "Diabound," he spoke, this time in a soft tone of voice as if he was already regretting his choice. "Destroy him." Ryo could do nothing as his brown eyes stared up at the beast, too petrified to look away. He could see it ready to fire in his direction.

And he did.

But the beam did not hit him.

Ryo slowly lifted his head to see what had stopped the attack, seeing the Gravekeeper's Heretic standing in front of him. That Gravekeeper must have been Janeiro's Ka.

Only it wasn't Janeiro's.

Akefia looked around to find the one who had summoned this monster, hate in his eyes. His expression changed completely, however, when he saw a woman with light blue hair standing not too far away from the scene. Standing in her black dress, she stared right at him.

Nefertari.

The thief's eyes were wide. Nefertari was here. Now what was he supposed to do?

...This wasn't the real Egypt. He knew that he could not achieve his goal here; most of these people were just shadows, and even if he did find and eliminate everyone he saw as a foe, Apophis would still be summoned by the queen of this world. There was truly nothing for him to gain here, and there was nothing for him to lose.

So he called off his Diabound and allowed his shocked gaze to soften. He turned slightly and took one small and hesitant step in Nefertari's direction, freezing again out of pure surprise. This was a woman he hadn't seen in five thousand years. Her expression was so hard; he had to let her know that he was still himself. He wasn't Zorc's mind slave anymore; he had just been damaged by the dark ruler.

He finally allowed his guard to drop. The corners of his lips twitched awkwardly as he was about to let himself smile...

But something suddenly pierced the skin of his back.

A restrained choke came from within Akefia's throat as his eyes widened.

He fell to his knees.

Then, he fell onto his front.

Both Ryo and Nefertari were horrified at the sight, seeing that an arrow had pierced Akefia's flesh deeply. And after Akefia had fallen, Nefertari could see who it was who had shot him. Her look of pure horror turned to one of anger as she locked eyes with the man who returned her gaze with one of a challenger. He lowered his bow but it was clear that he knew the fight was not over, for Nefertari took out her spear. This was going to be a battle settled without monsters.

And so, Nefertari prepared herself to charge while Mahad prepared his bow with another arrow.

~End of Chapter~