Yami


Castle Takahashi is the ancient stronghold of Yugi Muto. Once he became King of Games Yugi was given land in the northernmost region of Thara and a castle that towered over a small town called Gold Clock known for its beautiful tower of brick and gold in the central plaza.

With the Church allied with the High King, they began a religious crusade against the peace-loving people of Termnnia. The had only but two choices. Convert or be destroyed.

Since hearing the news, Yami transformed Gold Clock into a safe haven for refugees seeking aid from the Church. But the town grew so full that tent cities began to form outside the city walls. Then, there were protests going on down below outside the silver gates that led up the mountain path to Castle Takahashi. There were people demanding that Lord Yugi open the gates and let them take refuge in his halls, for the castle was the tenth largest stronghold in Termnnia. The castle alone could hold more than twenty-thousand people and that did not include the countless passageways leading to smaller castles and forts that were built along the mountainside. There was a small town inside the heart of the mountain, but that was already filled with mages who escaped the massacre of the Citadel. And with assassinations from sleeper agents from the Church increasing in the town below Yami and his friends could take no chance.

"He has plenty of room for us!" shouted a merchant. "Please, my family needs aid."

"Me children are starvin'!"

"No one is allowed inside the stronghold!" shouted a Black Luster Soldier. Gold Clock was swarmed by many battalions who abandoned the rule of High King Hector. Even a score of Buster Bladers left their High King to serve alongside Yugi and his companions.

"Only very important persons are allowed here!" shouted a Buster Blader donned in white armor. "There is food, clean water, and shelter for everyone."

"But there are more people coming!" shouted a refugee. "There won't be enough food to go around."

"Then you will have to grow your own crops!" said the Black Luster Soldier.

"I thought Lord Yugi said he was leading us to safety!"

"He has," snapped the Buster Blader. "If you do not like what he has to offer, please, pack your belongings and go. Go take your chances with the Church elsewhere!"

The people began to shout. The rocks around the gate suddenly morphed into one of Yugi's Duel Monsters called Sentry Soldier of Stone (ATK/1300 DEF/2000). He raised his two axes and that was enough to cause the people to run away.

The skies were patrolled by Lord Gaia the Fierce Knight (ATK/2300 DEF/2100) another monster from Yugi's deck. His dragon mount roared as he soared over Gold Clock.

"This is worse than I thought," Yami said, stroking his chin while looking down at the town from his balcony on the highest tower of the castle.

"So many people just kicked out of their homes," Yugi said, standing next to Yami in his ghostly form. "I can't believe how much Yuri kept this place together. Now that he's gone, the Church does whatever it wants and we have the youngest and most tyrannical High King in history on the Diamond Throne."

Yami slammed his fist on the limestone rail of the balcony. He growled ferociously. His purple eyes glistening with rage. The pale skin on his face began to turn bright red, the color brightened with the setting sun.

"All those years I spent trying to protect him!" he said. His voice was quaking. "All the people that died keeping his whereabouts a secret. All the effort. All the suffering. FOR NOTHING!"

"What's the plan now, Yami?"

"There is no plan anymore, Yugi. Yuri was supposed to be the light to clear away the darkness. Now he's dead! The God Cards leave this world. They abandoned us; I felt it. So great was the treachery that killed Yuri that they break their contract with the High King and leave!"

"I wouldn't want to serve a brat like Hector either," said Yugi. "I thought they would have killed him by now."

"It seems they lack the power to do so," Kaiba said coming out of the banquet hall into the balcony to join Yami. "The God Cards have always turned false kings into ash. But with that monstrosity, Ancalagon protecting Rassay and Hector, they could not kill the false king."

"Man, did they have a rumble," Joey said coming into to join them too. "A battle of gods. I hoid half'a Rassay was destroyed in da battle last night."

"The word wouldn't happen to come from our mole, would it?" Yami asked.

Kaiba snorted. "You have a mole in Rassay watching the High King?"

"We had one," said Joey. "Afta da battle, we lost contact wit 'im."

"Well, that's just great," Kaiba grumbled. "Pegasus is dead. Yuri is dead. Your princes for the alliance have vanished, and one of them have turned tail am I correct?"

"Yes, Prince Ryon Balor," said Yami. "It still stings my heart to know he was working against us this whole time."

Joey shook his head and ran his hand down his messy blond hair. "I don't usually say, dis, Yug, but we are fucked."

"No!" said Yami. "There is still one who can help us."

"I'm all ears," said Kaiba. He turned and leaned against the railing then crossed his arms over his chest. "We are running out of allies, Yugi. Who is your plan B now that Yuri is gone?"

"Yuri told me before the Battle of Gray Hills to keep Avellana safe. That if anything should happen to him we care for Avi as we cared for him."

"If anythin' should happen to 'im," Joey puffed anxiously and he, too, crossed his arms over his chest. The ruby eyes of his Red-Eyes Black Dragon-themed Duel Disk glimmered in the setting sun. The wind made his hair sway as he smirked. "Man O' man, it sounds like Yuri was anticipating somethin' bad happenin' to 'im. Poor Serenity. And Mai and Téa. I don't think anybody loved that kid more den day did."

"Well, then, if Lady Avi is our new hero, then I gladly await her return from the Elven City. I heard my daughter is with her."

"Cora?" said Yami. "I heard some interesting rumors from the East. A Blue-Eyes destroyed an army of Church Militant soldiers near the border of Domino City."

"They are more than just rumors," said Kaiba. "It's the truth. He held up his Duel Disk and began typing on a holographic keyboard.

A castle guard standing by the entrance wrinkled his nose. He had never seen advanced technology before.

"Look at this," said Kaiba, using his finger to slide holographic windows around until he found the one he desired. "This is security cam footage from Dueling Highway."

"Hey, dat's Cora!" said Joey.

Yami nodded, seeing the girl attempting to find shelter from the hail of bullets of the Church Militant.

"It gets better," said Kaiba.

He pressed his finger on the bottom of the window and slid it down to fast forward the footage. Yami grimaced seeing the death of Kaiba's former secretary Barbra Goldwine.

"Oh man," said Joey. "Dat's gruesome."

"Wait," said Kaiba.

Yami, Yugi, and Joey let out cries of shock when Cora summoned the Blue-Eyes Chaos MAX Dragon. The beast then decimated the enemy forces.

After the scene with the dragon, a Duel Runner came into view.

"That's Aldara, one of Lady Avi's guardians!" said Yami. "Ser Yusei told me she does Black Operations for Lady Avi now."

"Black Ops?" said Joey. "You mean dirty errands. Blackmail. Assassinations and such?"

"So it would seem," said Kaiba with a nasty chuckle. "A badass woman with dragons with her own assassin. My kind of girl."

"Who woulda thought someone so gentle like Avi would be capable of such a thing."

"She got tired of being used," said Kaiba.

"Man, I already feel sorry for da next asshole who wants to fuck with Avi," said Joey. "If her assassins don't get ya, her dragons will. Or her beast-warrior, Ser Gerhalos."

"Hold on," said Yami. "Rewind and pause at 13:22."

"So you saw it, too?" Kaiba smiled.

He rewound the image.

"What in the hell is that behind Cora?" Joey burst out his question. "Nyeh! It looks like a fuckin' ghost!"

"Kaiba, do you think that's her?" Yami asked.

"The woman from my dreams," Kaiba answered with a quick nod. "The woman I saw when we had our duel in the Battle City finals. If that woman is who I think it is, then I want Cora back more than ever."

"She'd still be here if ya didn't lose yer marbles cuz she lost one duel!" said Joey.

"She wanted to be my daughter!" said Kaiba. "And if truly did, she wouldn't have lost that match. Especially against a third-rate duelist like Ethan Morris. Even after all the training I put her through. The countless hours she spent perfecting her deck. The hundreds of opponents I had her face while she was at the Academy; she still lost. That is unacceptable."

"Oh, and like you've never lost before hotshot!" said Joey.

"The only person I lost to was this man!" said Kaiba, dramatically pointing his long finger at Yami. "The only duelist worthy of being my nemesis. Ethan was a nobody!"

"Well, dat nobody is now da King of Elleria."

"He shouldn't be king of anything," said Yami.

"Ahem!" someone said sternly.

The three men turned to see that it was Téa. She impatiently tapped her foot on the ground while wearing a white apron.

"Hey, if you fellas want dinner, you're going to have to help out."

"The lady is right!" Mai Valentine snapped at them, also donning an apron of her elegant garments. "Joey, you help with skin the potatoes."

"Yugi! You help me cut the carrots. Kaiba…"

"Leave me out of it," said Seto. He walked away.

"No soup for you!" barked Mai.

"I'm not hungry," Kaiba said going into the banquet hall. Besides, there's a Burger World in the town at the heart of the mountain. I'll go there instead."

"A Burger World?" said Joey. "Here in da West?"

"Don't look at me," said Yami. "Yugi can't live without his hamburgers."

"Uh," Yugi groaned bashfully, scratching his cheek.

"Well, go ahead," said Téa. "You're only going to get a heart attack eating that garbage."

"Hump!" Kaiba puffed and went inside.

"All right you two," said Mai. "You don't help out with the grub, you don't get a bite to eat."

"We have servants you know," said Yami.

"We sent them all to cook for the refugees," Serenity said coming out from the banquet hall. Her hand was stuffed into a goose already crusted with herbs.

"Serenity, what are you doing?" Mai asked.

"I tried filling it with stuffing, but my hand got stuck," Serenity said bashfully.

"Come on you silly goose," Mai said leading her away. "Let me show you how it's done."

"You would send the servants away!" snapped Joey. "Man, now we gotta cook our own grub. I'm da head of my own House for the sake of the Goddesses!"

"That's no excuse," said Téa. "In the Waltz of Kings, Lord Brock of Kaavich fed his entire army all by himself."

"Lord Brock was a gourmet chef in his free time, Téa," said Yami.

"He was still a lord who could cook. Now come on you two, up-and-at' em."

An exotic horn blew down below. Yami smiled and said: "Can it be!?"


Avi


"Ah, there it is!" Ser Gerhalos said happily riding a giant saber cat mount armored in platinum chased with gold.

He raised his arm while looking up at Castle Takahashi.

"After a long ride from the Elven Realm, I long for the rock under my boots, the smell of fresh meat on the fire, and a good stiff drink."

"It's gigantic!" said Avi. She rode on the back of a beautiful stag with gold antlers and snowy white fur and hooves of silver. It had heterochromia; one eye teal and the other glowing silver.

"How is this the tenth-largest castle in Termnnia?" Avi said, bewildered. "The mountains that shield the city are also honeycombed with chambers and fortifications and smaller castles that are part of Master Yu-Gi-Oh's stronghold."

"Aye, My Lady," said Ser Gerhalos. "There is no place safer than Gold Clock. The mountains as you said, form a shield around the town and they too have their own castles dotting them as extra defensive lines. And it seems Master Yu-Gi-Oh was quick in summoning his monsters, for I see many guarding the land and air."

"Don't suppose we'll see the Knights of the Crimson Dragon again, do you?"

"Mayhaps," said Ser Gerhalos. "But Termnnia is in dire need of heroes right now. Ser Yusei and his friends are needed."

They road to the gate of the town wall nestled in a barbican where two Giant Soldier of Stone (ATK/1300 DEF/2000) stood guard.

A soldier, a sellsword by the custom decals on his armor and shield, held up his hand and ordered them to halt.

"The town is full, travelers," he said. "I'm afraid you have to make do with the land outside of the wall. All the inns and all the shelters are full."

"I must see Master Yu-Gi-Oh," said Avi. "Please, could you tell…"

"I'm afraid no one is allowed to see Master Yugi," said the guard. "Only very important persons are permitted entry into the castle."

"Then you must know all about the Summoner of Dragons," said Ser Gerhalos.

"Aye, that I do beast man."

"Well, if you must know, this woman is Lady Avellana Lofnmagni Ethelfleda."

The guard face-palmed himself.

"You do stand out from the other travelers," he said. His mustache shivered. "But, if I had a gold Star Chip for every Avi that came here, I'd be rich enough to buy the castle from Lord Yugi."

"What?" said Avi. "Honest and truly I am Lady Avi!"

"Well then, I don't suppose you'd mind taking the test."

"Go on," said Avi.

"Prove to me you're Lady Avi."

Avi smiled and held out her arm. Her staff magically appeared in her grasp.

"Fancy," said the guard, "but entry is permitted for the Summoner of Dragons not the Summoner of Staves."

Avi gave her staff a spin and held it up high. Then, Arvas flew out of an arcane circle and landed behind Avi and her company.

He snarled at the guard.

"Is this proof enough for you?" he said, followed by a growl.

The guard bowed.

"My Lady," he said slamming his fist on his chest causing his steel breastplate to jingle. "Open the gates! Let them pass! Let them pass!"

The iron gates rose to let Avi and her friends into town. The ride up the mountain would be rough on their mounts, so they left them in a stable on the castle's farmyard.

They walked up towering stone steps surrounded by hills with small pine trees and past two Giant Soldier of Steel (ATK/1300 DEF/2000) who stood guard at the main gate which creaked open revealing Yami standing at the entrance.

"AVI!" he shouted.

"Master Yugi!" Avi cried out happily. She hitched up her dress and ran to him for a warm hug.

"Oh, I've been worried sick!" Yami said, squeezing her hard. When he released her from his embrace he stood back, hands placed on her shoulders, so he could get a good look at her.

"What have they done to your beautiful hair?"

He was shocked, for the last time he saw her, Avi's hair went down all the way down to her buttocks. Now, it was short, but it grew long enough for her to tie a small ponytail with a silk ribbon that had an enchanted gem to boost her mana.

A parting gift from the Elven King.

"It was sheared off by ugly priestesses who were jealous of my beauty," said Avi.

"Is this all that remains of your company, my dear?"

"It is so, My Lord," said Ser Gerhalos. "Many members of our noble company slain to betrayal and greed. Fira, the soldier whom Prince Michael recommended join out adventure, was working for the Church."

"Oh no!" said Yami. "And what of Diva?"

"Diva?" Ser Gerhalos asked.

"That's Master Aigami's real name, Ser," said Avi. "Before the Elves let us go, Diva took a cloak and left earlier than we did. He claimed he had some business to take care of. We never saw him again."

"AVI!" Téa shouted from the top of the stairs of the atrium of glass and stone. There was an aquatic garden with a waterfall in the center. Massive banners of Yugi's House hung from the ceiling and were illuminated by wall lights.

"Avi!" cried Serenity. "Joey! Bakura! Duke! Tristan! Everyone! Avi's back!"

"Lady Téa," Avi said with joy. She held out her arms and braced for impact, for Téa's hugs were bone-cracking but full of love and warmth. Soon, all of Yugi's friends joined her in a massive group hug.

"Did you have dinner, hon?" Mai asked.

"Not yet, but that would be amazing. I'm starving."

"Is there meat?" Ser Gerhalos asked.

"Joey and Tristan are here," said Bakura. "When they're around, our feasts are never complete without meat."

Yami led her to the banquet hall in the higher levels of the castle. On the left side of the fifty-yard-long dinner table was a thundering waterfall that fell into a pool which became a river that flowed along the bottom of the walls throughout the castle. The pathways were all narrow bridges with red carpeting and decorated iron railings with lamp posts every ten feet.

On the right side of the table, a fireplace fifty feet wide warmed them. There were stone statues of Dark Magician standing guard on either side of the fireplace.

As they ate, Yami explained the situation to Avi, filling her in on all the events that took place as she hid with the Elves.

Then Avi told her story of her two months in the hands of the Church and how Solomon pushed her to stay strong.

Needless to say, tears fell out of everyone's eyes. Kaiba, though he played it tough, was disturbed by her story, and he got up from the table to walk it off and process what he just heard. Aldara excused herself from the table and followed him so she could explain why Cora was not with them.

"Oh, Avi," Serenity said, wiping her eye with a pink handkerchief. "I'm so sorry."

"Dreadful," said Bakura. "Truly dreadful. A thousand apologies we could not be around to help you, Lady Avi."

"If there was some way could have helped you," said Mai. "I feel bad. But at the same time, I've got to tip my hat off to you, Avi. You're one tough baby."

"Thank you," said Avi.

"We can't let them get away with this!" said Tristan. "There has to be a way to get back at the Church!"

"There's only one way we can," said Joey. "We gotta head straight for da source!"

"And who or what is that?" said Duke.

"King Stefan."

"Joey, you can't be serious," said Tristan. "We can't just assassinate a king!"

"Yes, we can!" Joey said furiously. His eyes glimmering with an unbearable rage. He pumped up his fist until the knuckles cracked. "We kill their king, just like they killed ours!"

"Joey, we can't do that," said Téa. "We're better people than this."

Joey slammed his fist on the table. The silverware and plates sprang up and a few glasses of champagne spilled onto the embroidered placemat.

"DAMN IT!" he shouted. "YURI WAS MY FRIEND! We can't just let the Church of Yeyu get away with moider! They've bullied our people fer long enough. It's high time we take 'em down once and fer all!"

"My Lord!" a Buster Blader came sprinted into the room with urgency in his steps. "Dire news from Dr. Crowler in Duel Island. Chancellor Sheppard, the headmaster of Duelist Academy has been killed by soldiers of the Church Militant."

"What!" said Yami. "When?"

"He was leading former students to safety when the Church's mothership La Purga took them down."

"Great Scott!" said Bakura. "All those kids. Their lives ended for nothing. Who's going to run Duelist Academy now? The school and the island it rests upon is serving as a refuge for duelists everywhere."

"And without a head of government on the island, the school will turn into total anarchy!" said Mai.

"What if Yugi could be the new Chancellor of Duelist Academy?" Avi suggested. "The King of Games would be an honorable candidate."

"I appreciate the gesture, Avi, but I am needed here," said Yami.

"See what I mean?" said Joey. "Guys, we've gotta take action."

"But Joey," said Serenity. "We're going to need an army larger than that of the Old Alliance to even hope of marching against Naralia."

"Then we build one!" shouted Joey. "We take back Rassay! Assemble a fighting force large enough to march on Naralia and give 'em hell!"

"How, pray tell, are we going to do that?" asked Bakura.

"We've got Avi!" said Joey.

"My dragons are not going to be enough," said Avi. "The Church has started using advanced weaponry. My dragons won't stand a chance."

"You still have a pilgrimage don't ya?" said Joey. "Come on, Avi, out of ten dragons ya only found four! Maybe with all ten of them…"

"But Lord Wheeler…" Avi began.

Joey interrupted her.

"Come on, Avi, we need ya!"

"But…"

"Say but one more time and I'm kickin' yers!"

"You will die before you can lay a finger on her!" snarled Ser Gerhalos, rising up from his seat and stepping in front of Avi.

"ENOUGH!" shouted Yami. "Joey! Cease this foolishness now!"

"I can't work with this miserable crew!" Joey furiously got up from the table and left the banquet hall.

"Let him cool off," said Serenity. "Avi. He didn't mean what he said."

"I know, I know," said Avi. "We're all angered and seeking revenge against Hector and his new friends, the Church of Yeyu. But if we resort to violence and start yelling at one another, we will wind up killing ourselves."

"We are angry because we have no options," said Bakura. "Yuri was our last hope to keep Termnnia in perfect balance and now he's dead. Granted we have you, Lady Avi, but as Yugi said, your dragons will not be enough to combat our enemies."

"No," said Yami. "But Avi is still the last beacon of hope in Termnnia. If she can lead our remaining forces, it could be enough to motivate other kingdoms and lorddoms and counties and Houses great and small to join us so as to safeguard the southern kingdoms like Lorin, Thara, Mondé, and Aquarius. Perhaps, it could be enough to protect duelists as they take safe passage into Duel Island to learn their craft and be safe and hold back the armies of the Church while we establish a candidate for a new High King."

"That's going to be hard to do, Yugi," said Tristan. "The God Cards took a one-way ticket out of Termnnia, so the only source of power that keeps Hector's scrawny ass on the Diamond Throne is that Ancient Beast, Ancalagon."

"He's right," said Mai. "And thanks to that traitor Prince Ryon, Hector has the maps to get to them first. If he finds them, Avi or no Avi, we're all dead."

"I beg your pardon, but we can get to them before he can," said Avi.

"How?" asked Téa.

"Ser Gerhalos,"

Ser Gerhalos nodded with compliance. He raised his cloak and took out a long tube of brown leather.

He handed the tube to Avi.

She opened the top of the tube and shook out a roll of parchment. She laid it out on the table and showed them what the parchment contained.

"What's this?" asked Joey.

"Avi!" Yami said with joy. "This is the map to the Ancient Beasts. This map was made by my grandpa. I can tell because all the side notes are written in his hand."

"How did you come across this, Avi?" asked Mai.

"One rainy night while we were on the road," Avi explained, "we encountered a man, hooded and cloaked, standing at the side of the path. He was waiting for us. Ser Gerhalos was quick to try and kill him, but it was a good thing he showed self-restraint. The man handed us the maps and then delved into the darkness of the forest."

"What did this man say to you?" Serenity asked.

"He said, 'Tell them I'm sorry,' before he vanished."

"So mysterious," said Yami. "I hope we find whoever this man is and reward him. I believe he just gave us the fighting chance we needed!"

"Oh, Yugi," sighed Téa, "I think things are finally turning around."

The Buster Blader returned and bowed apologetically. "My Lord," he said, "forgive me for the constant intrusion, but there is a man at the entrance of the castle who demands to see you and Lady Avi."

"The castle entrance?" Yami asked. "Who gave him permission to enter?"

"No one wanted to, My Lord, but he bears an urgent message."

He took out a leather strap with iron chains that were attached to multiple deck boxes.

"What are those?" asked Serenity.

Yami took the strap and opened one of the deck boxes. "These are the decks the princes used," he said.

He and the others hurried downstairs to the atrium where a Gold Priest from the Church awaited them, admiring the aquatic garden.

He bowed and said: "Lord Yu-Gi-Oh. Stefan of the House of Ungard and King of the North Lands demands that you surrender Lady Avi immediately. She is overdue for a wedding."

"I will never marry him!" barked Avi. "Leave this place now. You are not welcome here!"

The Gold Priest grinned. "Be that as it may My Lady, this is not a request," he shook his head slowly as he said this. "As I stated before, King Stefan demands that you return to Naralia at once to exchange your vows. You may deny his request, but if you do, that wedding will turn into an execution."

"Who?" said Bakura.

"Oh, my gosh!" Mai said, clasping her hands over her mouth, remembering the decks. "The princes!"

"He wouldn't dare!" said Avi, stomping the ground with her left foot.

"He would," said the Gold Priest. "Tonight, I come to you with their decks. Next time, it will be their heads. Do you really wish for them to die, Avi?"

"I fear I have no choice," said Avi. "Master Yu-Gi-Oh, I must go."

"Avi, no!" said Ser Gerhalos. "I'll go with you!"

"The beast stays!" said the Gold Priest. "Avi is to come alone. If Stefan sees that she brings so much as a mouse with her, the princes will die."

"That is not going to happen!" said Ser Gerhalos. His whiskers quivered with anger. "I go with her!"

"You will remain here, Ser Gerhalos," said Avi. "I can handle this."

"You can't!"

"I will not condemn Jon and the others to death."

"I will not lose you again!" shouted Ser Gerhalos.

"Do this…for me," Avi said softly, rubbing his cheek with her hand. "I will be fine. I promise."

"Excellent," said the Gold Priest. "We leave on the morrow. I will meet you at the front gates. Good eve, everyone."

He turned arrogantly and elegantly then strolled out the door feeling like he was king of the world, making Avi accept the terms of King Stefan.

"Avi," said Yami. "If something happens to you, I fear we cannot help you. There will be anti-magic machinery."

"Leave those to me," Kaiba said at the top of the stairs.

"Kaiba!" said Yami.

"You have a plan, Seto?" Avi asked.

"I'll spare you the details," said Kaiba. "You just worry about getting out heroes back."