Spirits, Dragons, and a Partner

Disclaimer: Don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! GX.

Kilnorc: to those who know what this chapter is about...let the fangirls prepare for their screams and squeals.

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"So...remind me again, why we're going to the wading pool?"

Siho walked alongside Jaden, Syrus and Chumley, towel around his neck.

"Because," Syrus leaned in and lowered his voice, "Something happened with Jaden last night. He had a really bad dream and he's been moody ever since,"

Is that all? Geez, wish my nightmares could be washed away with a nice dip in a pool Siho thought bitterly as they passed through a drop-curtain labeled POOL ENTRANCE.

After changing and grabbing some pool gear, the four Slifers made their way towards the huge body of water, surrounded by potted trees, waterfalls, and large boulders that dotted the area.

Syrus placed a yellow innertube around his waist, then ran off a large rock, landing into the water, nothing but a towel around his waist. He sank, then surfaced, a smile on his face as he shook his head, enjoying the refreshing dip.

"Oh, yeah, this is the life!" he turned and looked up to see Jaden, Chumley and Siho looking down on him, smiling at his antics, "I mean, can it get any better than this?"

"Yeah...," Jaden grinned, "Like if you hadn't jumped in with your towel,"

Syrus turned back around to see his once fluffy towel floating in front of him, completely soaked. Now, save for his inner-tube, he was in his birthday suit.

"Aw man...that was dryer fresh!"

-----

"Hey, Jaden, c'mon over here, the water's really warm over by Syrus!"

"Uh...no thanks, Chumley. I'm fine over here,"

"Jaden, you finally over that bad dream of yours?" Syrus asked.

Jaden sighed and sat against a large rock while Chumley glared at Syrus.

"What, I only ask because I care!" the short Slifer said defensively, "Sorry, Jay...,"

"Yeah...," Jaden sighed again and sank beneath the water.

Syrus leaned forward a bit, "Jay?"

"Way to go, Syrus...," Chumley muttered before Syrus let out a surprised gasp.

A short distance behind them, Jaden resurfaced, holding up something.

"Hey, guys, look what I got...," he called out teasingly.

Syrus turned around and started doggie-paddling towards his roommate, "Gimme back my towel, Jaden!"

"Yours?" Jaden laughed as he backstroked away from his friend, "Naw, yours was dryer fresh, this one's a wet mess!"

"You'll be messing with me if you don't give it back!"

All of a sudden a wave of ice cold water hit Syrus in the face, causing the poor Slifer to stop chasing after his friend. He, Chumley and Jaden turned to see who it was.

Chazz sat on a nearby rock, small water bucket in his hand, legs crossed.

"Take a chill pill, shortstack," he snapped.

Jaden waved as he treaded water, "Hey, what's new...Chazz-a-roo?"

"Cute...," Chazz rolled his eyes as he set the bucket down next to him.

"Aw, thanks," Jaden rubbed the back of his head, "So why're you here, you come out to hang with us?"

Chazz scoffed and looked away, "Please, like I'd waste my time with you losers. I just came to relax,"

"Hey, guys!"

Jaden, Syrus, and Chumley looked up at the rock behind Chazz, who turned around at the voice. They all screamed at what they saw ontop of the rock.

Siho stood there, proudly, hands on his hips and towel over his shoulder, and a huge smile on his face.

"For the love of God, Zolaro, what are you doing up there?!" Chazz screamed, placing the bucket over his head for protection.

"I'm securing my place as the king!"

"King?" Jaden looked at Chumley who shrugged.

"I'm the King of the Rock, and to prove it, I'm showing off the courage to reveal my glorious god-like body to you all, not one part of it hidden by a damn thing!" Siho cried as he began to swerve his hips around and around.

SPLAT!

"OH GOD! I CAN'T SEE!" Siho clutched his face after a large wet towel smacked him in the face, "ASSASSIN!!! TOWELIE'S GETTING HIS VENGEANCE!"

Everyone remained silent as Siho fell into the pool in between Chazz and the rest of them, splashing them all.

Chazz shook his head, "Idiot...,"

-----

Jaden seperated himself from the others as Chazz and Chumley went after Syrus. Siho had decided to cover himself up and was now floating around lazily, taking in the soothing heat of the pool area.

Ever since last night, Jaden had been preoccupied with disturbing thoughts and memories of the last few duels against the Shadow Riders. Zane lost his soul and became a doll, Nightshroud became sealed within a card when he was beaten and Atticus was freed, and now Camula had her soul taken by her own Phantom Gate.

With all that's been happening lately, it's no wonder I had that dream... Jaden thought as he sank beneath the water, remembering the dream. He was in a duel against a dark figure and they were both low on points, his Wildheart on the field.

His Elemental Hero attacked his opponent, but he didn't win. A huge form appeared out of the darkness and fired off a blast of bright blue and white energy at Jaden, blasting his Life Points to nothing. To make it worse, he had seen Syrus, Chumley, Chrissy, Kairi and Siho taken into a blaze of blue fire before he himself was covered by a mass of living, black slime.

Jaden rose back to the surface and watched as Chumley, Syrus and Siho began to play three-way Keep Away from Chazz, tossing his own towel back and forth while the irritated Key-Keeper swam back and forth to get it.

"Dueling used to be about fun, but now it's all about winning, because if I lose, I'll be losing alot more than just a game...,"

A cooing made Jaden look over his shoulder. Through the steam of the water, he could swear he saw his spirit partner call out to him.

"Winged Kuriboh?"

Kuriboh hooted and flew out of sight, Jaden swimming after him, leaving his towel behind him.

-----

After sometime, Syrus and Chumley came to where they last saw Jaden while Siho continued to play Keep Away with Chazz.

"Jay?" Syrus looked at the towel, getting a bad feeling.

Chumley looked around, "Where'd he go?" he asked, before seeing something off to the side, "Huh?"

Like Jaden, Chumley swore that he saw a familiar Duel Monster, this one being a large Koala monster, running through the pool water.

Chumley rubbed his eyes and started to swim to where he last saw it, "Des Koala??"

"Hey...," Syrus turned as his friend swam away, "Chum...,"

-----

"Finally," Chazz wringed his towel a little after putting it back on, "This place should be a Kiddy Pool for those slackers...or at least wet 'em down with a hose,".

Siho shook his head as he climbed onto a rock, his towel around his waist, "Yeah...using a hose to wet people down...in a pool, yeah, that's not pointless," he laughed.

"Even though he has a point, I'm with ya boss!"

Chazz growled and batted away Ojama Yellow, "You're not with me!" he spat as the spirit landed in the water.

"You know, just because he's annoying, doesn't mean you should hit 'im,"

Chazz slowly turned and looked at Siho, then pointed to the dark blob underneath the water, "You tellin' me you can see...him?!"

Siho nodded before cracking his neck, "Oh yeah...plain as day. Does that surprise you? Jaden can see Winged Kuriboh, and you can see an Ojama...," he shrugged, "Not that big a deal,"

"Not that big a deal?!" Chazz shrieked, "It's a big deal if you can see things that most people can't?!" he looked around, "So where's yours?!"

Siho grinned, "If you're referring to a spirit partner, I don't have one...I just see the spirits is all,"

Ojama Yellow surfaced, water dripping from his eyestalks, "Feel better, Boss?"

"I'd feel better if you just left me alone!" Chazz snapped, turning away, irritated.

Ojama Yellow smiled widely, "Aw, it's ok. I gotta get goin' for the Spirit Festival anyway...,"

Both Siho and Chazz looked at the spirit, the same question in their minds.

Spirit Festival...?

"Hey, who's the guy in the cape?" Ojama asked, pointing behind Siho.

-----

Jaden, wearing a spare towel he had picked up from the banks, walked to a secluded part of the wading pool, an area that was almost surrounded by large walls. He looked around, having lost track of his buddy, "Kuriboh?"

He took a step forward, but just as his foot came down, he sank like a stone through the water. Whatever was happening to him, he was sinking into an area that was way deeper that any part of the pool should be.

For most of his descent, Jaden could only see the dark depths of the water until finally he landed on something hard. He yelled, then stopped, realizing that he actually could yell. If he was still under water, he couldn't or wouldn't be shouting at all.

He looked around to find that he was now in a large cave area.

"What the...who the...?" he checked himself and found that he wasn't in a towel anymore, but he wasn't naked. He was wearing his usual clothes with his Slifer Red blazer as well as an Academy duel disk on his arm.

He looked up and screamed at what he saw ahead of him. Duel Monsters, not cards nor holograms, were staring at him, scared half to death because of his scream.

"Uh...hey there," he waved a little at them, calming down a bit, "My name's Jaden. Sorry for dropping in...or dropping out, or whatever.

A high whistling sound made Jaden look up. Above him was a large hole, the obvious entrance that he fell through. He could see four dark shapes coming down fast upon him.

"Head's up!" Jaden scrambled out of the way just as four invisible things landed hard, sending up clouds of dirt into the air.

"What's goin' on here?!"

Jaden watched as the cloud cleared and saw that Chumely, Chazz, Siho and Syrus had joined him, fully dressed. But they weren't alone.

Chazz had his Ojama Yellow with him, this time, not see through.

A large Des Koala sat behind Syrus, munching on leaves from it's pouch, looking very real and solid.

Finally, a handsome pale man with blue hair, wearing dark clothes and a cape stood at Siho's side.

Syrus felt around the dirt, "My glasses...anyone seen my glasses, I can't see a thing without them!"

Hearing a grunt behind him, Syrus turned and saw a familiar, rounded blur hand him his glasses. Syrus smiled as he took them, placing them on his face as he turned, "Thanks Chumley...,"

"We're in some kind of spirit world!" Chumley said excitedly, looking at all the Duel Monsters.

Syrus blinked, "Wait a minute...if Chumley is there," he pointed to the Slifer, "Then who's...," he slowly turned around and yelped, "Des Koala?!"

Siho spat out the dirt he had taken in on the impact, "Dude...what da hell...,"

"Need help?" a smooth voice asked him.

Siho looked up and stared at the pale man in front of him, "Who...da...hell...,"

Chaaz, Syrus, Chumley and Jaden turned and yelped at the man in the cape.

"I don't believe it!"

"What's one of those things doing here?!"

Siho looked at them as the man pulled him to his feet, "What's up guys?"

Syrus raised a shaking finger to the stranger, "R-remember that duel Jaden had with Camula and she had those Vampire monsters?"

"Yeah...,"

"Well that's Vampire Lord...one of Camula's monsters!"

Siho snapped his head to the caped man, then backed away, "Oh, crap...,"

"Baa...,"

"Baa?" Siho looked down to see four differently colored lambs coming up to him.

One sheep was blue, another was orange, the third was red, and the fourth one was orange.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Siho screamed at the top of his lungs and sped off through the crowd of Duel Spirits, causing them to move away from fear.

Jaden stared at his friend as he ran off screaming, the four lambs following him, "What...just happened?"

Chazz shrugged and looked at the crowd of Spirits, "Looks like a ton of Duel Monster cards come alive...,"

"Cool huh?" Ojama Yellow asked, shaking his moneymaker again.

Jaden managed to tear himself from the screams of his friend and the constant 'baaing' of the Scapegoats and look at the other spirits, "This is bizarre...,"

"Who are you calling bizarre?" a new voice snapped.

Everyone looked to the side to see an impressive figure standing there, arms folded and a smug look on his face.

The figure was male, wore black pants and a shirt, along with a long, white, sleeveless trenchcoat, topped off with a strange, dragonhead-like mask, his long red hair flowing behind him.

(Author's Note: and let the fangirls scream...for this is close enough to one of their fave bishies)

"It's Kaibaman!" Ojama Yellow shouted happily.

"Kaibaman?" Jaden rose to his feet, "As in Kaibaman, the Duel Monster card? Wait, so are you the one who brought us all here, the one who's in charge of this place?" Jaden scowled, "Or is this all some Shadow Rider trick?!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Kaibaman didn't seem phased as Siho ran by them again, closely followed by the lambs.

"You ask a lot of questions," he noted, smiling, "but I'm afraid you won't be getting any answers...unless you take me on in a duel, that is," Kaibaman held up his left arm to show a strange disk attached to his arm. It wasn't like Camula's but the guys knew it looked custom made.

"WHY ARE YOU GUYS JUST STANDING THERE, HELP ME!"

Kaibaman growled and held out his arm just as Siho ran towards them. The arm connected with Siho's neck and the screaming Slifer's legs went up, shortly followed by the Slifer falling on his back, hard.

"Ow...,"

"Baa...baa...,"

Siho looked up to see the lambs coming back, then scampered over to his friends, not even taking notice of the Vampire Lord again, "Keep them away from me!"

While Siho was freaking out, Jaden held out his arm and his own disk whirred to life, the tray spreading outward.

"By the looks of you, I'd say you accept my challenge, but from what I sense, I'm not so sure...," Kaibaman grinned slightly, "I sense fear...,"

Syrus pointed to the freaking out Siho as he climbed onto Chumley's back, waving his arm at the lambs, "You sure that's not him, you're sensing?" he asked.

Kaibaman shook his head, then looked at Jaden, "The fear I sense comes from you, and it's deep fear. Fear that your friends will pay most dearly!"

"What's that guy-ow!" Chumley winced as Siho planted himself firmly above his head, "What's this guy talking about?"

"This isn't about your dream last night, is it, Jay?" Syrus asked in a whisper.

Chazz scoffed and rolled his eyes, "Look, if you're all scared, then I'll duel him,"

Jaden slowly shook his head, a look of determination plastered on his face.

Kaibaman chuckled, "Not backing down? Then, you can look forward to facing this card," the Spirit held up a card. The card in his showed a mighty dragon with white scales and azure-colored eyes.

Jaden's eyes widened at the card, "The...the Blue Eyes White Dragon!" he gasped.

Chazz frowned, "That's one powerful beast. On second thought, I think I'll sit this one out,"

"Oh man...," Syrus shook his head.

"Can we go back to the pool now?" Chumley whined.

"BLUE EYES?! MINE!" Siho rose to full height, putting more pressure on Chumley's back, and was about to jump for it, but noticed the lambs were between him and the card. He looked at the goats, then curled up into a ball again.

"Can't jump, goats will eat me. Can't jump, goats will eat me. Can't jump, goats will eat me,"

This guy keeps getting stranger and stranger... Chumley thought as his friends' nails dug into his blazer, Heavier too...

"What's wrong? You look like you've just seen a ghost, Jaden," Kaibaman taunted, waving the card around a little.

"Try a nightmare...," Jaden hissed through his teeth, "but still, I won't run!" he declared, holding up his disk.

Kaibaman smiled a bit at the Slifer while more and more Spirits surrounded them, sensing something big was going to happen.

"Now, Kaibaman," Jaden stepped forward, disk and deck at the ready, "Let's give these monsters a good show,"

"Let's duel!" they both shouted as they drew their hands.

K: 4000
J: 4000

(Author's Notes: K and J initials for duels...reminds me of Joey and Kaiba back in the good ol' days...oh well, back to the chapter)

"Alright then, here goes!" Jaden drew his sixth card, only to slap it onto his disk, "First, I summon the Elemental Hero Bubbleman (800/1200)!"

Jaden's white caped Hero appeared, posing heroically as he aimed his glove hose at Kaibaman.

"Oh, and if Bubbleman's summoned out, and he's the only monster I have on the field, I get to draw two more cards! Pretty sweet, huh?" Jaden asked s he took his new cards from the top of his deck. He looked at them, then slipped one into his disk, "Especially this one! I play the Equip Spell card Bubble Blaster!"

A large cannon with a big water tank on top appeared and landed on top of Bubbleman's shoulders, causing the Hero to kneel down.

"Lishus!" Chumley smiled, "That gives Bubbleman 800 extra attack points!"

E-Hero Bubbleman (1600/1200)

"I'll call it a turn with that," Jaden said with a slight grin.

Chazz folded his arms as he watched the duel, Rumors are that Kaibaman was created by Kaiba himself. This could be tough...

Talk about dreams coming true, Jaden thought as he stared down his opponent, Last night, I dreamt about a Blue Eyes, and now, he's got one! I just hope this doesn't end the same way my nightmare did... he glanced at his friends, imagining them in pain surrounded by blue flames, ...with my friends in deep trouble because I failed. I have to win!

"Wishing you could back out now? Too late. My move!" Kaibaman drew his card and smiled at what he just drew, "I summon forth, myself, Kaibaman (200/700)!!"

Syrus blinked and rubbed his eyes as a second Kaibaman appeared, "Whoa..I'm seeing double!"

"And trouble...," Chazz added.

"Now, I'll sacrifice him to bring out the one, the only...,"

Jaden gasped, knowing what was coming, "Not him...,"

"You better believe it's him!" Kaibaman laughed as he held up a card from his hand, "I summon the legendary Blue Eyes White Dragon (3000/2500)!!!"

Every monster took shelter behind rock formations as a fierce wind picked up just as the second Kaibaman disappeared.

"Feast your eyes on the beast that will feast on your soul!" Kaibaman screamed as the huge and powerful ivory dragon appeared above him, letting out an almighty bellow as it stretched it's wings to their full extent.

"Our souls?!" Jaden cried in disbelief.

"This could be a really short duel," Chazz murmured.

Syrus stared at the beast, "3000 attack points?!"

"Yes, and you'll see them all in action! Blue Eyes, destroy Bubbleman!" Kaibaman ordered, pointing to the Hero, "White Lightning.

Blue Eyes opened it's mouth and fired off it's signature attack, a stream of bluish-white electrical energy. The powerful blast engulfed Bubbleman completely, obscuring him from the other's sight.

"Hold it, Kaibaman!" Jaden yelled over the attack, "Since my Bubbleman is equipped with Bubble Blaster, the Blaster takes the hit and my Bubbleman is safe!"

"So Jaden doesn't take any damage," Syrus thought aloud.

Chumley nodded, "Yeah, but since the Equip Spell is gone, Bubbleman's attack points go back to normal. Which, isn't good when you're facing down a Blue Eyes White Dragon!"

E-Hero Bubbleman (800/1200)

"Alright, my turn again!" Jaden drew his card, "Now, I'll be turning two monsters into one. I play Polymerization to fuse my Bubbleman and my Elemental Hero Clayman (800/2000) to create the Elemental Hero Mudball Man (1900/3000) in defense mode!"

Jaden's round monster with the body of Clayman and the head of Bubbleman landed in front of him, kneeling and arms crossed protectively.

"Take that!" Jaden challenged.

"No, I'll take this!" Kaibaman drew his card, "I play the Spell card Pot of Greed! This let's me draw two more cards," he reached down and drew his new cards, "But, I'll only need one. I play the Spell card, Burst Stream of Destruction!"

Jaden blinked, confused, "Isn't that an attack that the Blue Eyes uses?" he asked slowly.

"Yeah," Chazz nodded, "But what's the deal with it being a card?"

"You're about to find out," Kaibaman smirked, "You see, I can only activate this card when a Blue Eyes is out, but since he is, I can use it to destroy all your monsters!"

"What?!"

"Go!" Kaibaman pointed ahead, "Destroy Mudball Man with Burst Stream of Destruction!"

Another orb of crackling energy appeared out of Kaibaman's Spell card and flew through the air, striking Mudball Man hard in the chest. The Fusion Hero screamed before exploding, creating a big cloud of smoke.

"No!" Chumley cried out.

"With that blast, Jaden doesn't have a monster and when Blue Eyes attacks...," Syrus grabbed his head, "Oh man...,"

Chazz scoffed, "Read the fine print, slackers. On the turn that Burst Stream of Destruction is played, Blue Eyes White Dragon can't attack,"

"It won't matter...," Kaibaman said as he slapped a card onto his field, "I summon Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands (1400/1000)!"

A horrifying, disfigured monster with countless limbs and hands appeared on the field, snarling at Jaden.

"Now, he'll lend me a hand," Kaibaman said jokingly, "Because when he's summoned, he allows me to take a Ritual Monster or a Ritual Spell card from my deck and add it to my hand...," he fanned out his deck and scanned through it until plucking one out, "But it won't stay in my hand for long, because I'll be playing it. I play the Ritual card known as White Dragon Ritual! I sacrifice my Manju to summon Paladin of White Dragon (1900/1200)!"

In Manju's place, hovering above Kaibaman, a man in white armor carrying a lance appeared, sitting on top of a small pale dragon, ready to battle.

"Like I said, it won't matter that Blue Eyes can't attack this turn, because with Paladin, he doesn't need to! He'll fill in for Blue Eyes just fine," Kaibaman shrugged slightly, "Sure, it's not a Dragon, but he's managed to tame one, and in my book that's tough enough!" he pointed to the exposed Slifer, "Now, Paladin of White Dragon, attack with Ionic Spear Burst!"

The smaller Dragon roared and flew at Jaden as the armored rider reared back it's lance while a small twisting aura appeared around it. Jaden yelled as the attack went right through him, knocking away his points.

K: 4000
J: 2100

"Jaden!" Syrus shouted.

"I'm not done yet," Kaibaman went on as his Paladin returned to him, "By sacrificing my Paladin of White Dragon, I can summon a monster from my hand or deck, and it's one you're already quite familiar with! Care to guess which, Jaden?" he taunted.

Jaden grit his teeth, "Actually...no,"

"Let me give you some hints then," Kaibaman said as his Paladin disappeared, "It's got blue eyes...white scales...," he grinned as another great Dragon appeared next to his first one, "The Blue Eyes White Dragon!"

"Another?!" Jaden looked up at the new arrival.

"This is bad!" Syrus yelped, "Dealing with one was bad enough! Now Jaden's gotta face two?!"

"That card created by Kaiba is a chip off the old block," Chazz muttered, "Jaden better hope that that deck of his isn't an exact copy, or else he's in for it!"

Kaibaman folded his arms as his second Dragon stopped flapping it's wings, "It's your move, Jaden...,"

"About time. Now," Jaden drew his card, "First, I'll play Monster Reincarnation!

"Lishus!" Chumley smiled, "By discarding a card from his hand, he can bring back a monster from the Grave!"

"Goodbye Elemental Hero Necroshade (1600/1800)...," Jaden slipped the card into his Graveayard, then pulled another one out, "...and hello Elemental Hero Clayman!"

"Going to try behind that puny monster again? Pathetic," Kaibaman scoffed.

"No way!" Jaden snapped, "I don't have to hide anymore! Even though I'm glad to have Clayman back, I'm even happier to see Necroshade in my Graveyard, because with him there, I can Special Summon a high-level monster without a sacrifice!" he slapped the card onto his disk, "And the one I choose is the Elemental Hero Bladedge (2600/2200)!"

Syrus frowned as Jaden's golden Hero appeared, "But as strong as Bladedge is, he's still no match for those Blue Eyes White Dragons!" he whimpered, turning to the beasts.

"Don't be so sure!" Jaden cried as his end tray popped open and he placed a card into it, "I play the Field Spell card Skyscraper!"

The ground shook violently as tall buildings popped out of the ground and surrounded the two duelists and their monsters.

"With this out, if Bladedge takes on a stronger monster, he gains an extra 1000 attack points!" Jaden explained, "That's just enough to edge out your Blue Eyes!"

E-Hero Bladedge (3600/2200)

"Now, Bladedge, attack with Slice 'n Dice Attack!"

The golden Hero soared past the first Blue Eyes, it's arm blade cutting deep into the Dragon's neck, letting a bright light pour out of the wound before the Dragon exploded. Kaibaman grunted as he was surrounded by the smoke of his fallen Dragon, his points wounded.

K: 3400
J: 2100

"Wow...Jaden actually did it...," Chazz stared at the Slifer, surprised.

Jaden slipped a card into his disk, "I'll throwdown a facedown and end my turn," he grinned as his Bladedge came back, "...and to think, I was worried I'd lose. Well, not anymore!"

Kaibaman smirked, "Is that so?"

"For sure!" Jaden nodded, "I'm so over my fear! The trick is to take what your fear does and not let it happen!"

"Not let it happen? Anything could happen...,"

"Huh?"

"You actually think because you beat one Blue Eyes, you've won this duel, you've avoided the defeat that you fear? Think again! You're a long way from winning this contest and Blue Eyes is a long way from being beat!"

"I don't believe you!"

"It's true, like it not. The fate of you and the fate of your friends still hang in the balance You have to accept that and face it head on!"

Jaden frowned, "What is this?"

"This is what dueling is all about! Not afraid of the thought of defeat, but to be always prepared to accept it. That is the nature of dueling, and it is high time that you learn it!" Kaibaman drew his card, "I play Silent Doom! With it, I can bring back a Blue Eyes from my Graveyard!" he explained as his Dragon returned by his side, "Next, I'll play Polymerization!"

"Uh oh...," Jaden gulped.

"It is the same!" Chazz gasped.

Siho stared on, now oblivious to the lambs jumping up and down around Chumley, This...is...awesome. The birth of the great Dragon that graced Duelist Kingdom and Battle CIty... he smiled, Oh man, I can't wait to tell Chrissy this!

"What's the same?" Syrus asked, turning to Chazz.

"Kaibaman's deck," his fellow Slifer explained, "It's the same deck as Seto Kaiba's,"

Jaden glanced at Chazz, then back at the duel, "Then that means...,"

"It means I have another Blue Eyes!" Kaibaman roared gleefully, "It also means I can fuse every single one of my three Blue Eyes White Dragons to call upon the almighty and the powerful, Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon (4500/3800)!!!"

Everyone gasped as the three Blue Eyes White Dragons swirled into a bright, glowing orb, only to emerge into a great three-headed behemoth.

"Allow me to introduce the most powerful, mighty and devastating Dragon of them all!" Kaibaman raised his arm to the sky, pointing to the newly born monster.

Jaden stared at the behemoth as images from the night before came back to him. The beast that fired blue flames at him from the shadowy recesses of the duel...it was this!

"The monster from my dream! It can't be!"

"It can be, and it is!" Kaibaman snapped at him, "And it gets even worse. That dream you dreamt? It will now become a reality!"

"Quick, Jaden!" Siho leaned forward, pushing down on Chumley's head, "Jump onto the Hydra's back!" (1)

"Now, go! Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon, attack with Neutron Blast!" Kaibaman ordered.

Jaden pressed a button on his disk, "Go, Trap card! Edge Hammer! By sacrificing Bladedge, I get to destroy one of your monsters, and you take damage equal to that monsters attack points!"

Bladedge flew into the three seperate torrents of energy from the Neutron Blast, blades glowing like no other.

"You said I should be afraid of losing?" Jaden shook his head as the three-headed monster was engulfed into a huge cloud of smoke, "I don't think so!"

The bystanders held up their arms to protect their eyes from the smoke and dust from the shockwave.

"He did it!" Syrus whooped.

"Way to go!" Chumley cheered.

"No way!" Chazz cried in disbelief.

"BOOYA!" Siho screamed, "Kaibaman, you got knocked the f-," he stopped in midsentence as Kaibaman's form appeared through the smoke, "Huh...?"

"If you won't accept defeat," Kaibaman held up the card he managed to play before the blast, "I guess I'll have to force it on you,"

Jaden's eyes went wide as he saw the image on the card, "De-Fusion?!"

"That's right. This reverts my Fusion monster back to it's normal pre-Fusion form, so welcome back the three Blue Eyes White Dragons!" Kaibaman smirked wider, "Since Edge Hammer's target wasn't there anymore, it swung and miss! Something that my Blue Eyes won't be doing! Go, my Dragons, attack with White Lightning!"

Jaden was hit dead on with three seperate White Lightning blasts. On contact, the field exploded, sending up a huge cloud of smoke as both Kaibaman laughed and Skyscraper disappeared.

"No!"

"Jaden!"

"What gives?!"

K: 3400
J: 0

-----

Jaden opened his eyes to find himself lying on the ground of the Spirit Cave, Winged Kuriboh hovering nearby.

"Syrus! Chumley! Siho!" Jaden scrambled to his feet, and looked around, only to find that his friends were just fine. They seemed nervous to be around the multiple Duel Monsters, except Chazz and Siho. Chazz seemed to be annoyed by them, while Siho was still freaking out about the Scapegoats, swinging his Slifer blazer at them, hoping to keep them at bay, Vampire Lord standing behind him.

Suddenly, pain shot through Jaden's chest and the Slifer winced, holding it, still feeling the damage from the combined power of the Blue Eyes. Kaibaman walked up to him, arms folded across his chest.

"Defeat is nothing to be scared of, Jaden," he grinned a little, "What matters is that you can get up after,"

Jaden looked up at him, "Wait, so you're telling me that this whole thing was just a test?!"

"Tell me, are you afraid now?"

"Actually...," Jaden stopped and thought about it for a few moments, "No, I'm really not,"

"Then, do you know why?" Kaibaman asked, "Because you faced it. You lost and you're okay,"

Jaden nodded, taking the words in, "Yeah...I am, huh?"

Kaibaman turned his head as Jaden's friends came running up to him, "So are your friends,"

Jaden turned to his posse, "Guys, I think I'm finally over my bad dream!" he said with a grin.

Chazz crossed his arms, "Yeah, well I'm over this place. Can we please get out of this Spirit Cave? It's way low-rent,"

"Yes, please!" Siho looked back at the lambs, pale as a ghost, "Vamanos, senor!"

"Uh...Kaibaman?" Jaden turned around, "Think you can help us out here...huh?"

Kaibaman wasn't there anymore.

Everyone looked around the cave.

"Where'd he go?" Chumley asked.

"There!" Siho pointed behind Jaden, towards a thick mist that seemed to fill the cave. Everyone watched as the fading form of Kaibaman walked away.

"If you want a way outta here, ask your friend Kuriboh," Kaibaman looked over his shoulder at them, "After all, he's the one that brought you here," he turned back and started walking away, "Goodbye, Jaden...,"

Kuriboh flew between the boys and hooted quickly and loudly.

Jaden stared at his partner, "Really, Kuriboh? Just close our eyes and wish for it?"

Kuriboh hooted again.

"Ok...," Jaden closed his eyes, and his friends followed suit.

"I really wanna go back home!" Syrus pleaded.

"There's no place like home, there's no place like home...," Siho whispered.

"I hope to God you're not clicking your heels together, Zolaro," Chazz snapped.

"Hey, you try outrunning four evil goats for awhile!" Siho shot back, "Besides, it worked for Dorothy in that movie!"

"Dork...,"

"Klatu, Verata, Nikto! Klatu, Verata, Nikto!"

"Now what are you doing?!"

"What, you've never seen Army of Darkness?"

-----

"This is the first time I've left the wading pool feeling more tense than I did when I came in!" Syrus laughed as he and the others crossed the bridge while the sun set, "It's good to be back where monsters like Des Koala and Winged Kuriboh are just cards, right guys?"

What Syrus didn't know was that Des Koala was walking behind Chumley, back in it's spirit form, while Kuriboh flapped it's small wings near Jaden's head.

"I know what I know, Kuriboh," Jaden turned to his friend, "I know who I owe a big fat thank you to...,"

Kuriboh hooted happily.

"Oh, by the way Sy," Jaden turned back to his friends, "I still got your towel!!"

"What?! Give it!"

"Sure!"

SNAP!

"OW! HEY!"

Siho smiled at his friends antics, "Well, at least I'm not with those murderous goats anymore. Though, I can't help but wonder...why was there a Vampire Lord in the cave?"

"It's simple...I'm your partner, just as Kuriboh is Jaden's and Ojama Yellow is Chazz's," a familiar voice whispered in his ear.

Siho, startled by the voice, almost jumped out of his skin, then turned to see Vampire Lord walking beside him, cape wrapped around him.

"Hey, aren't vampires supposed to burn in the sunlight?"

Vampire Lord shrugged as he hovered off of the ground, "I guess we Spirits have advantages...,"

Siho rolled his eyes, "Why are you here with me anyway? You guys were supposed to be gone when Jaden beat Camula,"

Vampire Lord nodded, "Normally, we would've disappeared with her, but we serve another master...another purpose,"

Siho stopped in his tracks and stared at the spirit, "Say...what?"

"Check your deck,"

Silent, Siho pulled out and fanned out his deck. His eyes widened to see some cards that was new to him.

"What gives?! I didn't have these before!"

Vampire Lord nodded, "Yes. Mistress Camula had a few copies, and gave them to power up your deck. I," he bowed his head, smiling, "am an added bonus,"

"Oh, c'mon!" Siho shoved his deck back into it's case, "This is gettin' ridiculous! First, I run into a weird chick who belonged to another group of Shadow Riders, then apparently, I get abducted and brainwashed by a hot vampire chick, now I have cards I've never seen before, as well as a Vampire Lord for a Spirit Partner!?"

"Yes,"

"WHY?!"

Vampire Lord chuckled before fading out of sight, "The answer will come in due time...it will come in due time,"

Siho looked around, not seeing a trace of the Vampire monster.

"Dude, this place is messed up...,"

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Kilnorc: WHEW! Uber duel ish done! i had fun with this...ok, few things.

(1) this line, is well-known for it's use in LittleKuriboh's Yu-Gi-Oh! The Abridged Series on Youtube. I put this in, because it's in honor of the genius, and because of some apparent violation, his videos are beginning to be deleted...let us hope and pray that our parody lord gets a new place for his vids!

Now, for those who are wondering WHY Siho was terrified of the cute little Scapegoat lambs...you'll see why in...oh...maybe a few chapters, I dunno. BTW, that scene used with him, was an idea from a good friend of mine. This friend also laughs everytime she hears Kaibaman's name...I won't say who, cuz I fear for my life, lol.

Ja ne, guys!

P.S. head's up...another Cocytus is next!