The cry of fireworks cracked in the distance, startling Yugi as he looked up at the mirror in his old room. The start of the tournament, he realized, as he got back to getting ready. He'd better hurry.
Humming in thought as he buttoned his shirt up, Yugi's mind began to drift to the coming day. The start of a whole new tournament, his return to dueling in the public light, new God Cards and—
Pausing, Yugi took a deep breath and looked at his reflection once again.
"Stop worrying," he said to himself, pushing out a small snort. "Nothing's at stake. There's no prize money to win, no world to save, no friends in danger. Just a tournament. This is exactly what dueling should be. This is perfect."
Perfect. Felt different when it came from the man in the mirror.
Yugi stared at the image of himself in silence, waiting a moment for his mind to believe its own words. What a mess he was, sitting there in the dark, nervous of all things. Well, no more, he thought, standing up and approaching the mirror. He wasn't a little boy anymore.
A smile crossed Yugi's face as he touched his reflection.
All these years and he almost looked like Atem now.
Almost. But not perfect.
"Alright, let's do this," he said aloud, grabbing his old duel disk from the bed and putting it on. In no time at all, he popped out of his room and rushed down the stairs, arriving at the front door of the game shop with a wide smile. With a hand gripping the door handle, Yugi took one last deep breath. "Alright, Domino City, Duelist Ultimatum—"
He threw the door open.
"It's time to duel!"
Unfortunately for Yugi, his proud declaration was shouted down almost immediately. The absolutely ear-shattering cry of the unruly mob surrounding the shop was just too strong.
"Oh jeeze, I forgot about you guys," Yugi muttered, slouching as the crowd cheered him on regardless. "Well, let's, uh, try this."
Walking up to the gate that separated him and the ravenous people, Yugi readied himself for the worst.
"Hello, everyone!" he called out, trying his best to seem approachable as he put his hand on the gate's lock. "I'm really excited to be here too, ahah."
His fake laughter couldn't even fool himself. With nothing else, he moved to open the gate.
"So why don't you let me through so I can—" Yugi put too much faith in the masses, unfortunately. For the moment the gate became unlocked, they were upon him, throwing the metal barrier open and dragging him through. "Hey, hey, hey!"
"I love you, Yugi!"
"Sign my deck, please! Every card!"
"A duel! Can we duel Mr. King of Games!?"
Yugi was absolutely overwhelmed as hands jerked him around, pulling him in every direction, tugging at his clothes, his limbs, his hair. He could barely resist screaming in frustration, until—
A bag went over his head.
"Hey, what's—!" Yugi couldn't finish his sentence before he was shoved forward, down through the crowd of people. The worst immediately came to mind. "Help! I'm being kid—!"
"Shhhhh! You want out of this mob, or not?" A familiar voice spoke through gritted teeth, silencing Yugi as the person in question forcibly led him away. Realizing he was being saved, not stolen, Yugi let out a sigh of relief.
"Thank you…" he said, his voice quiet with exasperation.
A few moments later and the two were free of the congregation, finally given the literal room to breathe a sigh of relief. Free of the masses, Yugi pulled the bag from his head and reoriented himself. They were in an alleyway, just a hop and a skip from the game shop and the crowd surrounding it. Grimacing, Yugi took a step back behind the corner to avoid being spotted.
"Thanks a ton for your help back there, whoever you are," Yugi said aloud, stepping back from the corner and beginning to turn.
"Ah come on, don't tell me you've forgotten me already," the person in question said with a chuckle, as Yugi faced them fully. His eyes widened, as a memory over a decade old came by and said— "Heya! Jaden Yuki's the name and saying hello is my game!"
Jaden gave Yugi a wide smile as he offered him a handshake, one Yugi readily accepted with both hands.
"Jaden! It's so great to see you again!" he said then, pulling away after a moment. "After Kaiba's announcement, I've been thinking of ways to contact you, but I realized we never exchanged numbers!"
A grin crossed Jaden's face.
"Ah shucks, the King of Games wanted my number? That's like a dream come true," he joked, scratching his cheek as he took a step deeper into the alleyway. Straightening up, he continued. "But yeah, I've been meaning to talk to you too, since we're the only ones who know about you-know-what."
Yugi nodded, glancing over his shoulder and following behind as Jaden began to walk.
"Yeah, it's kinda crazy, huh?" he asked, as the two made their way through the alley. Jaden walked nonchalantly up front, hands in his pockets and posture relaxed. Yugi, meanwhile, trailed behind somewhat. Confident, but less interested in standing ahead. He continued. "I always knew Synchro Monsters were coming eventually, but not this soon."
"Yeah, who knows? Maybe we'll run into Yusei soon enough," Jaden paused as the alley came to an end, peeking just a glimpse into the next street before turning back to Yugi. "Anyways, hey! Why don't we keep talking somewhere besides a dingy old alleyway? I know just the place."
Smiling, Yugi nodded, more than happy to take the detour from actually finding opponents to duel.
"Lead the way."
"Your mini-corn dogs, sir," the waitress said in a mostly neutral tone, bordering on suspicion as she gave Jaden a look.
"Thank you kindly!" Jaden's obviously fake voice didn't help clear her suspicion. Thankfully for him, however, she had other things to attend to. So, with a moment of apprehension, she stepped away, leaving Yugi and Jaden to return to their conversation. Or really, leaving Jaden to begin chowing down. Three servings of mini-corn dogs in three weeks? It was like Christmas every day!
Yugi snorted as he watched Jaden go to town on his food, while he himself just kept to the water he ordered.
"What's with these costumes again?" he asked then, looking up and scratching the side of his head. Jaden had insisted they only go in wearing disguises, even having appropriate outfits at hand. Though, Yugi was beginning to doubt how 'appropriate' this itchy Kuriboh hat was.
Pausing mid-bite, Jaden pushed up his ill-fitting wig of Yugi's hair and looked up at the man in question.
"Uhhh, well we're trying to talk in private right? Last thing we want is to attract attention, ya know?" His hasty explanation honestly came out better than he expected, which is why he proceeded to stuff his mouth with more corn dogs to avoid ruining it with more talking.
"Gotcha. You must have a lot of fans too, huh?" Yugi asked, bearing a warm smile as Jaden began to sweat under the questioning. "They really are rabid, huh?"
"You could say that," he answered, almost under his breath. "They're tearing up the city looking for me, gotta keep my guard up."
Of course, while Yugi was thinking of scores of fans and admirers with no concept of personal space, the people looking for Jaden were burly officers of the law. There were two ways to get really famous: Become a world dueling champion or take down a building trying.
Silence took the two for a moment as they consumed their respective refreshments. That quiet was soon broken, however.
"Kuri?"
"Kuri!"
The two looked up in unison, as not just one but two ethereal fuzzballs floated into view from behind their shoulders— Kuriboh and Winged Kuriboh. Yugi laughed as he saw the two circle each other in mid-air.
"I see you've been taking good care of my friend," he said, watching as Kuriboh and Winged Kuriboh quite literally butted heads.
"Of course!" Jaden replied, mouth full of corn dogs, as he dug into his jacket and pulled out his deck box. With one hand he pulled out the Winged Kuriboh card and showed it off. Swallowing, he continued. "This little buddy's gotten me outta more jams than I can count, heh."
"Glad to hear it. I'm happy Winged Kuriboh found a partner who appreciates them," Yugi replied, chuckling as the two Kuribohs went from butting heads to swiping at each other in the most adorable sort of way. "Especially since they never got along so well in my deck."
A thought occurred to Jaden then, as he watched his partner quarrel with Yugi's.
"Hey, since we've been meeting each other all out of order, mind if I ask you a question?" he asked, pausing before taking another bite of his food. Yugi nodded, so Jaden continued. "When's the last time we've met? For you I mean. For me, the whole incident with Paradox was less than a year ago."
Yugi blinked as the question registered for him.
"Oh, uh. Well besides just now, the last time we met was when I gave you Winged Kuriboh," he explained, making Jaden pause and chew on that.
"Uh, huh." In Jaden's head, memories of him encountering Yugi on the day of the Duel Academy graduation played. Yugi surely had to remember that, right? When Yugi remained silent, however, Jaden realized he didn't. "Man, time travel is such a headache."
"Heh, you said it," Yugi replied, agreeing. The two shared another quiet moment as they watched their Kuribohs tussle. "You know, I think these two are going to want to fight it out eventually."
"Oh, they will."
That answer made Yugi look up, right as Jaden held up his shiny red Egyptian God Locator Card.
"I've never gotten a chance to tell you this, but I've got a dream you see," Jaden explained, turning the metal card back and forth. "I grew up watching you and Kaiba dueling on TV. You guys made me fall in love with Duel Monsters. And there ain't nothing better to honour that love than kicking both your butts."
Smiling, Jaden leaned back.
"I'm gonna be the next King of Games," he declared.
A stark silence took the two of them, as Yugi's warm smile flattened and his face grew a strong look of determination. He nodded.
"So, you want to take this outside then?" he said plainly, lifting his duel disk and resting it on the table. His voice was clear— Yugi was dead serious.
All at once, Jaden rocketed from his relaxed pose, throwing his arms up in complete surrender.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold up!" he immediately said, shaking his head back and forth and making Yugi pause in confusion. "I don't mean right now, ahaha. I'm definitely not ready to face off against you yet, I couldn't even beat Kaiba a few months ago!"
Yugi wanted to ask where Jaden had dueled Kaiba, but his challenger just kept talking.
"Besides, a match between me and you? That can't just be on some street corner by an admittedly very nice diner," he explained, leaning forward and resting his elbows on the table as he looked out the window. "Nah. We gotta wait till the finals."
"Well, alright then," Yugi replied, snorting a bit as Jaden finished. All that talk for such an anti-climactic ending. "So I guess that leaves just one last question then."
"Oh?"
"Who will I be facing for my first match of the tournament?" he said with a laugh, one Jaden joined in with.
The laughter stopped when a hand slammed against their table.
"That would be me!"
The whole diner went quiet as the declaration echoed throughout it, attracting every head in the room to turn and look. Screaming lunatics were, at the very least, some entertainment to go with their meals.
But those words didn't just come from some screaming lunatic. No, it came from the screaming lunatic.
"Marik?" Yugi said, standing up as he said it, pulling a smile from the man in question.
"The one and only!" Marik said with a laugh, as he reached for a handshake. "How fate brings us together— Not a word in thirteen years, then I see you twice in one week!"
"Careful, you're beginning to sound like your sister," Yugi said with a laugh, accepting Marik's hand and giving it a firm shake. "How'd you find me?"
"I could recognize that voice anywhere," Marik replied, giving Yugi a once over. "What is with this look, I will say."
"Whoa, hey, you're Marik Ishtar!" Jaden rose from his seat, eyes glinting at the sight of yet another of his childhood icons. "Aw man, I've probably watched your duel against Yugi enough times to break the VHS! It's an honor meeting you. Name's Jaden!"
"Hah, I'll admit, I've never met a fan before," Marik confessed, shaking Jaden's hand and staring at the wig on his head. "Especially for what wasn't one of my proudest moments."
"Hey, you're all good now right?" Jaden said, reassuring him with a nod. "Besides, who doesn't go a bit nuts with a card like Ra."
"Well, let's hope no one else," Marik said under his breath, as he patted Jaden's shoulder and turned back to Yugi. "So, our match?"
"Oh, you were— You were serious about that?" Yugi blinked for a moment, caught off guard.
"Of course! What better a way to kick off this new tournament than with a shot of how the last one ended," Marik explained, laying his hand flat on the table. "There's not a problem, is there?"
"Oh no, of course not," Yugi reassured, raising his hands up defensively. "It's just, I'd feel bad knocking you out of the tournament so soon."
"Oh, how you doubt me, Yugi." Reaching into his vest pocket, Marik pulled out a shiny cobalt blue card, before flicking out a similarly metallic red one from behind it. "I've already won my second locator card. So I'll still be in the running when you win."
"Well… I guess that's fine then," Yugi acquiesced, standing up from his seat. "Marik, let's duel."
"Splendid! Let's take this outside," Marik said with a flick of his wrist as he turned and began to walk out. At that, Yugi paused.
"Oh, wait, let me pay—"
"Don't worry yourself, Yugi. I got it," Jaden said immediately, patting Yugi's back in the direction of Marik. "You gotta concentrate on this duel!"
"Are you sure?"
"I'm getting a front-row seat to a match between two legendary duelists, dude," Jaden explained. "The least I can do is cover the tab."
Yugi smiled, nodding once before stepping away.
"Ahhh, feels good to do something nice," Jaden said to himself as he watched Yugi and Marik walk off. A moment of quiet passed before Yubel joined him, leaning her head on his shoulder.
"We're skipping out without paying again, right?"
"Ooooh, yes."
Yugi deposited the Kuriboh hat Jaden had given him onto the ground, before activating his duel disk and giving his opponent a confident nod. Across from him, Marik gave a thumbs up, activating his own duel disk in turn. A crowd was beginning to form around them, as the people soon realized a duel was about to happen.
"Excuse me, moving through!" a voice called out as the crowd parted. It was Jaden, making his way to his front-row seat with a surprising figure in tow. It took Yugi a minute to recall, but he believed her name was Yubel. Despite her somewhat off-putting appearance, she had a confident aura that was almost comforting. It reminded Yugi of Atem.
Unfortunately, not everyone felt the same way.
Marik stared directly at where Yubel stood, eyes wide as he blinked.
"Uh, Yugi, Jaden, are you—!" he said, pointing in her direction and making her take a step back
"Can— Can he see me?!" she said, as Jaden shrugged.
"Guess so," he answered, cupping his hands. "She's a friend, dude, don't worry!"
Giving an apprehensive nod, Marik averted his eyes from where Yubel stood. It had been many years since he'd seen a spirit partner, and his reintroduction to them somehow looked more disturbing than his own. This Jaden character was more than he appeared to be, Marik realized
"So, I guess it's time we begin?" Marik asked, as the crowd around them had formed into a solid wall. He smiled. This was perfect. "I think it's only fair to give you the starting turn, Yugi, since I am the challenger."
"Heh, we'll see if you regret that, Marik," Yugi declared with a smile as he drew his opening hand, Marik doing the same. "So, this is it—"
"Let's duel!" the two cried in unison.
Yugi / Marik
4000 LP / 4000 LP
The excitement was high as Yugi poured over his hand, looking back and forth between all his options. Jaden himself was practically jumping in place as he skipped from one leg to the other.
"Excited?" Yubel asked him.
"Of course I am!" he answered, a bright glint in his eyes as he saw Yugi pull a card from his hand. "This is Yugi's first duel in years. Who knows what amazing new cards and strats he's come up with?"
"I call upon the Giant Soldier of Stone, in defense mode!" Yugi declared, as an appropriately gigantic warrior formed on his field, taking a defensive stance almost immediately. "And with that, I end my turn!"
2000 DEF
Cheers took the crowd at the sight of the King of Games' play, loud hollering and screams of praise making Yugi smile awkwardly at it all. He'd forgotten just how much people were impressed by the smallest things he did.
There were, however, those who were less impressed.
"That, was it?" Yubel said, underwhelmed being the kindest word to describe her voice. "You're telling me this was what you spent years watching as a child?"
"Are you kidding me? That's Giant Soldier of Stone! One of Yugi's classic monsters!" Jaden explained, almost offended at Yubel's doubt. "Besides, he's got a reason for just putting it down. Like, luring Marik into a false sense of security!"
Marik snorted as he drew a card for his first turn.
"Hm, I see the years haven't changed you, Yugi," he said, pulling a card from his hand. "But you're going to find, this game has very much changed! Watch now, as I Normal Summon Aleister the Invoker!"
Forming from a pool of light, an arcane magician stood tall at Marik's side, carrying in one hand a thick tome with an intricate cover and in the other hand a staff made of silver and gold. His hooded cloak billowed in the wind as he readied himself for what was to come next.
1000 ATK
"When this master of the forbidden arts is called forth, he brings with him the most powerful spell in his arsenal, Invocation!" Marik called out then, reaching into his deck and pulling out the card in question.
"A spellcaster that can search out its own spells just like that?" Yugi gave a wide smile at the sight, as Marik resolved his monster's effect. "Impressive!"
Yubel gave Jaden a side-eye as they heard that remark, one he could somehow feel and grimace at.
"Hmph, if you think that's impressive, Yugi, watch what comes next!" Marik lifted the card he searched for into the air. "I now activate Invocation!"
Wind swept the entire battlefield as Aleister stepped forward, raising his staff high up. Opening his tome, he began chanting out words and sutras in a tongue Yugi couldn't follow, before lines of light began to form in the air.
"The invoker calls upon beasts from another world! Using his own body as tribute!" Marik called out. The lines of lights formed a spell circle then, not unlike that of Yugi's Dark Magician, with a six-pointed star in the center. Then, with a grin bordering on madness, Aleister stepped into the circle, disappearing in a flash of light. Marik continued. "This fuses the Aleister on my field with the Lava Golem in my hand! Forming—"
The whole spell circle erupted with a blinding blue light, turning blood red in the next moment. When vision returned to Yugi and the whole surrounding crowd, they confusingly found nothing had changed.
Then, Marik grinned.
"Invoked Purgatrio."
With that whisper under his breath, his monster began to form. A fat head peaked through the crimson spell circle, ruby red eyes and a toothy grin gazing out at Yugi as the demon stepped out. Then, another one followed, this one tall, thin, and lanky, with humongous hands and its eyes covered by a metal blindfold. Finally, a third stumbled out, the fattest and slowest of the three. It had a single lazy eye in its skull-like head, with pitch black empty holes covering its whole body.
As the third of the trio of demons stepped onto the battlefield, Aleister's spell circle disappeared, reappearing thrice on each of the monster's skin and burning into them, forcing them to obey.
Marik's monsters were here, and they were hungry.
2500 ATK
"And now, I'll attack with my great beast! Purgatrio, lay waste to Yugi's monster!" With that command, Marik's monsters shot forward at shocking speeds, rushing towards their adversary and striking. In a flash, the three demons tore Giant Soldier of Stone apart, leaving rubble in its place.
Yugi could only stare in shock as they turned to him next.
"And don't think you're safe yet," Marik explained. "Because even if your monster was in defense mode, you still take the damage thanks to Purgatrio's effect!"
The fattest demon wrenched forward, opening its mouth wide and vomiting a torrent of flames that blew Yugi back a solid foot as he raised his arms in defense.
3500 LP / 4000 LP
"And with that, I end my turn!" Marik smiled as he watched Yugi recover, staring at Purgatrio with a look that was halfway between amazement and shock. "I understand you haven't been keeping up with the game in a good few years, Yugi. So consider this a catch-up— Duel Monsters has advanced greatly since you last played!"
"I can see that," Yugi replied with a smile, as he drew his card for turn. "Even so, the fundamentals of the game haven't changed. Any card can be beaten, and no strategy is perfect!"
A realization hit Yugi, as he looked upon the field.
"And I think I just found the fatal flaw in yours!" he said, standing tall and pointing towards Marik's monster. "Your creature, it gets weaker with the fewer cards I have on my field!"
The audience drew a sharp breath at Yugi's declaration, as they turned to Marik and his monster. Was it true? Had the King of Games cracked it that fast?
Chuckling, Marik threw his arms up.
"You've caught me. Purgatrio only has 2300 attack points if you control no monsters, Yugi," he explained, pulling back and putting a foot forward. "But now that you know that, what are you going to do about it!"
"Watch!" Pulling a card from his hand, Yugi slammed it onto his duel disk. "I summon Big Shield Gardna in defense mode!"
Forming in a flash of sparkling light, a burly warrior with long hair appeared, carrying with them a gigantic shield made of strong metal. With a battle cry, it crouched down, setting up its mighty defense and hunkering down for the battle to come.
2600 DEF
In time with Yugi's monster arriving, Marik's monster began to hum with excitement and malicious delight, as their own attack points began to rise.
2300 ATK → 2500 ATK
"Now with only one card on my field, your monster has been completely walled off!" Yugi declared then, standing straight and grinning. "It's your move, Marik."
"Alright, Yugi!" Jaden cheered from the sidelines, attracting odd looks from even the most excited of fans. He just couldn't help himself. "See, I told you he knew what he was doing, Yubel!"
"And I'm starting to doubt you know what you're doing." Yubel folded her arms as Jaden looked up at her.
"Huh? Watcha mean?" he asked, turning back to look at the field.
"It's not well known, but Big Shield Gardna has its own weakness, which I believe you're about to see." The ethereal voice of Banner made Jaden turn in surprise, as he joined the party to watch the duel take place.
"My turn, I draw!" Marik declared, as the duel continued. Without a moment of hesitation, he reached towards his duel disk. "I activate the second effect of the Invocation in my Graveyard!"
"A Spell with an effect that activates in the grave!?" Yugi called out in surprise, as Marik raised the card in question into the air.
"By shuffling Invocation into my deck, I can add the Aleister the Invoker I used to search it back to my hand!" he explained, doing just that. "And now I'll summon my Aleister, back to the field!"
Just like before, Marik's monster arrived on the field, raising his staff into the air as Marik made his next move.
"And now, I can once again search for my Invocation!" Marik was on a roll, moving through his cards, searching his deck. Everything about what he was doing spoke of momentum. "Say hello now, to my second great beast!"
Marik activated Invocation once more, forming another spell circle of light in the air with his magician. Before Yugi could say another word, another Fusion was underway.
"I fuse the Aleister the Invoker on my field with the Magical Merchant in my hand, forming—" With a burst of light, the spell circle and Aleister disappeared, leaving in its place a new creature. "Invoked Mechaba!"
Purgatrio was hellish and disconcerting, a trio of beings that couldn't sit still as they waited for a chance to rend one of Yugi's monsters apart. This new being, however, was completely different.
Invoked Mechaba, a humongous warrior covered from head to toe in silver armour, stood tall and steady from its silver chariot, unmoving as it rolled onto the battlefield. The unidentifiable beast pulling the chariot was no different— Quiet, steady, covered completely in a layer of silver. The whole thing was unnerving in its silence, even as the mark of Aleister burned into it.
2500 ATK
Yugi was off-put by the creature, but he wouldn't let it distract him from the game at hand.
"Your monster may be powerful, Marik, but it's still too weak to get past my Big Shield Gardna!" Yugi declared, as Marik continued his turn.
"You may be right, but I don't need him to be stronger than your monster, I just need him to be able to attack it!" Throwing his arm forward, Marik made a fist. "Mechaba, attack Yugi's Big Shield Gardna!"
"Darn it, he called my bluff!" Yugi shouted under his breath.
Marik's monster rushed forward, the armoured beast dragging the silver chariot as the warrior riding it reared back. With a mighty heave, it drove its lance into the shield of Yugi's monster, blowing out shockwaves as the two forces clashed.
In the end though, it really was an impenetrable shield.
Mechaba was repelled, toppling backward and falling onto its own master: Marik. Yugi's challenger could only grimace as he saw his Life Points tick down, his monster stumbling to its feet.
3500 LP / 3900 LP
Despite that, it was all worth the cost.
"Now, since your Big Shield Gardna has been attacked, it goes into attack mode!" Marik declared, a smile breaking through his grimace. Frowning, Yugi could do nothing but nod as his monster stood firm, putting his shield aside and facing Marik's field head-on.
100 ATK
"Now, Purgatrio! It's your turn!" Marik's command barely left his lips before his monster shot forward, descending upon Yugi's monster and ripping it apart in a horrid display. Yugi could barely look away before he was caught up in the carnage, holding on by a thread as he took the damage to his Life Points.
1300 LP / 3900 LP
"And with that, I'll end my turn." Grinning from ear to ear, Marik put his hands at his hips as he passed turn to Yugi. His opponent was beginning to sweat and he was revelling in it.
It was all coming together.
"My turn!" Yugi called out as he drew. A quick glance over his cards was all he needed before he made his next move. "I activate my Spell Card, Dark Hole! Wiping your monsters away in one blow!"
A black void suddenly formed on the field, sucking in a vortex of air as it pulled Marik's monsters into the center. Marik was quick to act, however, as he pulled a card out from his hand.
"Not so fast, Yugi! I activate the effect of my Invoked Mechaba!" he called out, discarding the card in his hand. "Once per turn, I can negate your Spell Cards by discarding a Spell Card of my own, and save my monsters!"
Yugi's eyes widened in surprise as Mechaba threw its weapon into the black hole, causing it to shatter into pixels just seconds before it would've consumed Marik's field. Suddenly, it dawned on Yugi, the challenge he faced.
Looking over the rest of the cards in his hand, that realization began to grow.
"This wasn't actually just a friendly duel to open the tournament on, was it, Marik?" he asked, looking up at his opponent. He watched Marik's smile disappear, as he broke from his confident stance. "You were serious about what you said at the airport, about wanting my title?"
Straightening up, Marik snorted.
"I'll admit it was just a joke at first," he said, resting his hands behind his neck. "But after what you said about being rusty, about not playing the game for so long—"
Marik grinned, as he stood straight again and faced Yugi down.
"I thought maybe there was a shot! That if I faced you first, before anyone else, that I could knock you out before you could get back into it," he explained, causing murmurs to travel across the audience. "I have a lot of regrets from the last time we dueled, Yugi. But not now. I'm at the top of my game, and that's going to be enough to defeat you!"
A look of shock took Yugi at Marik's declaration, the sheer audaciousness hitting him fully. And yet, with that, came a steady amount of respect. The whole world wanted Yugi's title, and Marik may just be the one to get it.
"We'll just have to see about that!" Yugi declared, slamming a card onto his duel disk. "Because now I call upon the magic of Swords of Revealing Light!"
Marik looked up in horror as a dozen swords of blinding light shot down from the sky, sealing his monsters behind an impenetrable barrier.
"With that, I'll summon my Gazelle, the King of Mythical Beasts, and set one card face down." Yugi looked over his hand one last time before nodding. "It's your move, Marik."
1200 DEF
"He misplayed that." Yubel's voice was halfway contemptuous, almost offended at what she was looking at.
"What're you talking about, it's Yugi," Jaden reassured with a wave of his hand. "He doesn't misplay."
"She's right, Jaden," Banner argued. "If he led with the Swords of Revealing Light, he could've made Marik destroy that with his Mechaba, and then wipe the field with Dark Hole afterward."
"Yeah, but how would he have known that Marik's monster could even do that?" Jaden broke from his excited stance, as a thought began creeping into his mind.
"Maybe by reading the card?"
"My go then!" Marik called, drawing his card for turn. Not even pausing to see what he drew, Marik immediately reached for his graveyard. "Now, return to me once again, Aleister the Invoker!"
In quick succession, Marik shuffled Invocation back into his deck, before recovering his Aleister and lifting it high into the air.
"And now I'll—"
"Not so fast, Marik! I activate my Trap Card, Lightforce Sword!" Yugi called out. A flash of light shot across the field, skewering the card Marik held aloft and tearing it away.
"No!" Marik whipped around to find his Aleister embedded into the ground behind him, the eponymous Lightforce Sword making a kebab out of his most important card.
"Now you won't be fusing until the magic of my card wears away," Yugi explained, as Marik turned back to the battle at hand.
Looking over his own hand, he huffed in frustration. Nothing.
"Your move," he said, ending his turn as fast as he began it.
"I draw!" Doing just that, Yugi jumped into his next turn without a moment to pause, immediately trying to find a way out of this situation. In just two more turns, the swords holding Marik back would disappear, and Yugi would be done. "But these cards can't do anything. Not yet."
"Just you watch guys," Jaden said aloud to the spirits at his side. "Yugi's about to jump back into this right now. He's called the King of Comebacks for a reason!"
"I summon Alpha, the Magnet Warrior, in defense mode!" Yugi's declaration deflated Jaden's confidence somewhat, as the steely grey warrior in question formed on Yugi's field. It took as best of a defensive stance as it could, up against the beasts it was facing down.
1700 DEF
"You were saying?"
Jaden remained silent as Yugi ended his turn, passing it back to Marik without anything to follow it up. As he watched the duel go on, that nagging thought from before returned, incessantly calling on his train of thought, demanding it to stop and pick it up. And well, all he could do was oblige.
"I don't get it," Jaden said, as Marik drew and began to look over his hand. The ethereal forms of Banner and Yubel looked at one another before coming back to him. "It's cool seeing all of Yugi's classic cards and stuff, but—"
"I end my turn, Yugi," Marik called out, returning the play to his opponent.
"Where's all the new stuff?" he said with an exasperated sigh. "He can't just be using his same deck from almost fifteen years ago, right?"
"Then I'll summon my King's Knight!" Yugi declared in turn, making Jaden groan in frustration.
1400 DEF
"He hasn't dueled in years, Jaden," Banner said. "Perhaps he really has been enjoying his retirement."
"But if Yugi's playing a deck older than I am, and Marik's playing something almost outta the future, doesn't that mean—" Jaden's eyes widened as he turned to look at the dueling field once more.
Yubel nodded.
"Your precious Yugi might lose, right here, right now."
End of Chapter 12