A Note From the Authors: We just received our longest review ever and he addressed a few issues that we felt needed explaining once and for all. First of all: the age issue. Personally, we don't care what the anime or manga says, Yugi is just too damn short to be the same age as everybody else. Some people may argue that it's in his genes to be short, like his Grandpa, but that's crap. Old people shrink - that's why Grandpa's short. So, in our version of the story, Yugi will remain younger than all his friends, except perhaps Tsuki, who is a completely original character by the way.

Second: that whole angsty Yugi/Yami scene was written before we'd seen the "Joey's Betrayal" episodes on TV. And in our opinion, dueling Pegasus couldn't have been that scary - the dude's a fruitcake.

Third: as far as characters saying things that don't seem in-character go, I (Invader Sam) will only have a character say something if I can hear their English voice actor saying it. If I can't than it doesn't go in. That's the best I can do for you.

Finally: I know a lot of people were confused by Void's calling Dedi "Mother" right before he passed out, so I might as well take the opportunity to explain that now while we're explaining things. Void walking the fine line between consciousness and unconsciousness, and overwhelmed by heat and exhaustion he was starting to hallucinate. Dedi was the only person who had ever showed him true kindness, and therefore, in his unstable condition, he imagined her as what a mother-figure might be.

Shaun: ::raps Sam on the head with a short stick:: Bad writer! Bad symbolistic writer!!

Sam: Ow! ::rubs head:: Anyway, that's all for now. If you have anymore questions, feel free to ask in your review of this chapter!

Chapter 30

"Duel Montage: The Best of the Best (The Final Six)"

"Honestly, the shit they expect us to put up with!" Jeffrey Daniels, 17-year-old American duelist extraordinaire muttered to himself. It was ridiculous; absurd even! Having to waste his time with the rest of the filth in this tournament just to get a chance (a chance, mind you!) to collect his prize money. Ridiculous!

As he rounded yet another bend in this complex madhouse, the young man suddenly stopped dead in his tracks, listening carefully. It had been quite boring so far, so the sound of rapid footsteps was rather inviting. After waiting for just a moment, there soon came a shadow and eager thoughts began to creep into the boy's head: Ahhhh… my first opponent… good! I could use a warm up before the final bout…

Vitani stepped out into the circular room, and was surprised to see the tall, lanky teen standing there, as if waiting for her. She'd never realized hunting out the scum would be so simple! "Well, well, well," she said, stopping a few feet in front of the boy, hands on her hips, "What do we have here? Another challenge, I suppose? That is what you want, isn't it, boy?"

The teen glared back at the new arrival, "You? A challenge for me? I should hardly think that a simple tournament coordinator would be much of a duelist, let alone a challenge for me. Why don't you just go and tell your… what was it: Master? That Jeffrey Daniels is coming for him! I'm going to win this tournament!"

Vitani threw back her head and laughed. "You?? My Master will not have to be bothered with the likes of you. I will make sure of that. Because in order to gain an audience with him, you have to get through me!" She pulled the Millennium Sword out of its hilt and swung it lazily in front of her. Its gold blade sparkled in the torchlight, "And something tells me you will be more than glad to accept my challenge."

He gulped nervously and nearly tripped trying to back away, his courage lost, "What kind of duelist has to threaten their superiors just for a chance to duel?" Jeffrey murmured to himself, but he had already started to activate his Duel Disk 2.

"You feel you're my superior?" Vitani asked, sheathing the blade, "Prove it. If you really have that much confidence in your skills, then why turn me down? I should be easy prey for someone with your…skills." She said the last word almost mockingly, brushing her hair out of her face as she spoke.

"Fine. Let's duel!"

* * *

Dedi had been walking for what seemed like forever. She rubbed the back of her neck boredly, wishing she had a better grasp on the present situation. After the small earthquake, she had continued on her way, hoping to find some sign of activity in the oversized tomb, but to no avail. She was beginning to worry that she'd be lost in the maze of tunnels forever when she heard someone cry out in a sort of surprised triumph, and she looked up.

A boy with black hair and freckles was standing in front of her, smirking slightly. "At last," he said, "Someone to duel!"

Dedi sighed, a mix of relief and disappointment flooding over her. This was not who she'd been hoping to find, but at least it was someone. And dueling would take her mind off of worrying about the others. "A duel, huh? Sure, I'm game," she said, "What's your name, kid?"

"Alex McGinnis," the boy said, jutting out his chin, the lenses of his glasses flashing, "And yours?"

"You can call me Dedi," the Queen of Egypt replied, "Just Dedi. Shall we begin?"

"I'd be happy to defeat you!" Alex said, "This should be all too easy!"

Dedi said nothing, and just smiled. A new sort of confidence had come over her since Yugi had remodeled Tsuki's deck. This kid was going to get more of a challenge than he bargained for.

* * *

Yami eyed Bakura's double suspiciously but continued on, "Very well then, now I will replace my lost Gazelle with the Illusory Gentleman (1500/1600) in attack mode!"

Out of a black void that had formed on the stone floor rose a tall man dressed in oranges and reds, holding a thin, spiked staff in one gloved hand and hiding his face behind a purple, bug-like helmet. He turned his one eye towards Yami and blinked. "So you are who I serve today," he said, his voice clear despite his lack of visible mouth, "Very well."

The Pharaoh pointed his finger over at Bakura, "I don't know what you were thinking in attacking my Gazelle with your trap, but it's going to cost you dearly! Dark Magician, destroy his monster!" Without thinking twice the mighty mage raised his hand and blasted a wave of invisible magical energies at the face-down monster. A small, purple-robed decaying creature holding a giant scythe appeared and took the blast full force. A large explosion followed as the blast broke apart and the chamber was filled with dust for a moment.

Yami smiled to himself and turned to his favorite monster, "Excellent work."

The Dark Magician bowed respectfully, "Thank you master."

Yami Bakura grinned nastily and waited for the smoke and dust to clear. The Pharaoh would be in for a bit of a surprise…

The forceful ruler didn't wait before announcing his next move, "Now, Illusory Gentleman, attack him directly!"

The cyclops-spellcaster took several steps forward, as if to attack, but suddenly slowed down and halted. Surprisingly, the monster walked back to Yami and looked down upon the duelist, "I cannot, sir."

Yugi and Yami both nearly fell over in surprise. Yami angrily addressed his subordinate again, "And why not?"
The being showed no sign of recognizing that hostile feelings were directed at him and continued, "The white-haired duelist is still defended, sir."

The Dark Magician scoffed, "Surely you jest! I have eliminated his defense, I assure you!"

The Illusory Gentleman simply pointed towards Bakura's side of the field, where the other duelist had begun to chuckle softly, "Your monster is more intelligent than you are, my liege! HA HA HA!" The purple-cloaked monster had reappeared on Bakura's side of the field, once again using the large scythe to defend itself. The evil spirit of the Ring beamed, obviously pleased that he had been able to surprise Yami, "Welcome back, Spirit Reaper!"

Yugi looked over at Yami Bakura, confused, "But the Dark Magician destroyed that monster! It should be in the graveyard!"

The Illusory Gentleman turned its quizzical eye towards the King of Games, "Shall I attempt to destroy that creature, sir? Its stats appear to be lower than my own."

Yami shook his head, "No, we will wait for an explanation."

The thief sighed, "How typical. King Yami is out of the loop as usual," the soul stealer ran a hand through his long, crazy hair, and then continued, "The Spirit Reaper cannot be destroyed in battle, no matter how many attacks are directed at him!"

Yami and Yugi cast wary glances at each other. If they couldn't destroy the Spirit Reaper, Yami Bakura had the ability to drag the duel on and deck them out! It was the perfect defense.

* * *

With a final cry, Mai crumbled to the floor, her long blonde hair pooling out around her. The once pearly locks were now tinted with blood and matted with sweat. A shining, scuff-less black boot nudged her. She did not stir.

Behind his mask, Jetsu smirked. She had fought resiliently, but like all others before her, she had fallen. He turned abruptly, his cape billowing out behind him as he left the chamber. He had more important victims to deal with before the day was through…

As Jetsu made his way through the corridors, a cry much like his previous victims' echoed off the walls. Another duel had just been brought to a conclusion. Perhaps the victor would be one of the few he sought. He followed the fading echo until he came upon another chamber, where he beheld a most amusing sight.

The Pharaoh's loyal lover was standing over a teenage boy with dark hair who had just recently had his soul removed in shock. Her hands were shaking and from the way her ebony hair was glistening, he could tell she was sweating. "Well, what a coincidence this is…" he said, startling her.

She turned to face him, her brown eyes wide, "Jetsu!"

"At your service, your highness," he said mockingly, bowing low, his cape brushing the floor, "I must say," he said as he straightened, "You've saved me a lot a trouble by being so close at hand. It will make things much easier for me."

"I suppose you plan to do to me what I…" Dedi paused to glance warily at her fallen previous opponent, "…did to him…His soul has been stripped away, right?"

"Very good," Jetsu nodded, "Separated from the body and transported to my Dungeon of Souls…where you will soon be joining him." He activated his DD2 and Dedi reloaded hers, preparing for the worst.

* * *

"Stupid boy," Vitani murmured quietly to herself as she stepped over her latest victim. There couldn't be many left now. Soon the real challenges would begin. Soon…

* * *

Athena was tearing down the corridors at break-neck speed, her boots pounding on the torch-lit stone floors, her heart racing. At the moment, she was feeling the scene of her duel. She'd known Jetsu would have some punishment in store for those defeated in the finals, but she'd never witnessed a person have their soul forced out of their body. And to think that she was somewhat responsible! Surely it was Jetsu and his magic that were mostly to blame, but if she had only allowed the girl to go free without a duel…

She'd made up her mind not to duel any other innocent competitors if she could help it. Her soul objective now was to track down Jetsu. What she did after that…well, she was still working that part of the plan out in her head.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the Dungeon of Souls, the number of prisoners was slowly rising. The pile of unconscious bodies was growing, and Shadi warned those that were conscious not to disturb them. They were probably all better off not knowing what was going on. The Egyptian was still seated Indian-style on the floor, eyes closed in meditation most of the time. Weevil had moved himself to a corner, where a large amount of spiders were gathering around him. Kaiba was pacing across the floor, hands behind his back, growing more frustrated with the situation with every step, but trying to remain composed.

Joey was sitting a little ways off by himself, worrying much more about the welfare of his friends than his own. He flicked a small rock across the floor, watching it skid in and out of the light of the blue-flame torches. At that moment, the now-familiar sound of a new soul entering the dimension rumbled in the distance. He glanced up anxiously, as he did every time, trying to see if it was a familiar figure falling down from the blackness above them. As the body fell towards them, he recognized the long blonde hair and jumped to his feet. "Mai!!" he cried, rushing past Kaiba to where she would fall.

"Your what??" Kaiba asked indignantly.

Joey ignored him and held out his arms. At the speed she was falling, he was nearly knocked off his feet when she landed in his arms. He felt his knees buckle with the force, but he determinedly stayed on his feet. Shakily, he lowered himself to the ground, holding her limp form close to him. She was out cold, and he brushed a hand against her cheek gently.

"You should not wake her," Shadi said and Joey twisted around to see that the Egyptian had opened one eye to gaze at him, "Put her in the pile with the others."

"What?? No way!!" Joey cried, clutching her more tightly. She moaned softly and all his attention was reverted back to her. "Mai…can ya hear me…? Come on…wake up…"

Mai's big purple eyes fluttered open and she smiled weakly up at him, "Joey…?" she asked, reaching up and touching his face, as if making sure he was real, "What happened…where am I…?"

"It's kind of a long story…" Joey said as he helped her into a sitting position.

"But, of course," Kaiba said, resuming his pacing, "we've got nothing but time. So please Wheeler, enlighten us with what your tiny brain managed to comprehend of the situation."

Joey shot Kaiba a nasty look and then began.

* * *

Athena's Hourglass was glowing brightly now, which caused her to slow her pace for an instant. Another Millennium Item was close now… Maybe it was Jetsu! As she hurriedly turned a corner to continue her search for her nemesis, there was a flash of movement and suddenly she felt the cold touch of sharp metal just slightly pressed against her throat.

"Going somewhere, Athena?" a cold voice asked. The Greek's pale blue eyes darted to her right and met another pair of the same color. Vitani was standing beside her, holding the Millennium Sword at arms length. It was the gold blade of the Sword that was only centimeters from slashing her throat.

"Vitani…" Athena said through gritted teeth, "How did you get a hold of the Sword?"

"Lord Jetsu felt that I was able to serve him better with use of one of his Millennium Items." She responded informatively, "He really has surpassed you and yours now. And that is exactly why he need not be bothered by the likes of you."

Vitani sheathed the blade just as quickly as she had drawn it and took several steps back, "We will duel. Now."

"Duel?" Athena echoed. This was certainly not what she had been expecting. A Millennium battle is what she'd figured would follow, but a duel was perhaps easier. "Very well…Do the stakes remain the same? The loser loses their soul?"

"Not in this case," Vitani said, "You see, only those who have the Millennium charm necklaces are vulnerable to instant-soul-deprivation."

"So Jetsu set his magic on the charms…" Athena said, as she activated her DD2, "A clever trick, getting the contestants to complete the puzzle that would be their demise…"

"Lord Jetsu is far more then clever," Vitani said, doing the same, "Though you won't have the honor of witnessing his genius."

Athena selected her six cards and watched as her Duel Disk shot out the holo-projectors around the crowded corridor, not bothering to ask Vitani if it was okay to go first. She was the challenged after all (De-Spell, Gravekeeper's Spy, Gravekeeper's Curse, Gravekeeper's Chief, Necrovalley, Hinotama), "For my first move, I'll place one monster in defense mode (Gravekeeper's Spy (1200/2000)) and place the field card Necrovalley down!"

As soon as the card was placed on the Duel Disk, the stone walls began morphing into jagged canyon walls. The ceiling dissolved and was replaced by a red-orange sky, with a golden sunset in the distance. "Now, I'll end my turn," Athena finished, trying to hide her astonishment at the transformation the corridor had gone through.

* * *

Yami crossed his arms, "Then I end my turn. Don't think that that monstrosity of yours will protect you from me forever. I will find a way to destroy it and take you down!"

Bakura drew his card quickly (Opticlops) and placed it on the field, "I summon Opticlops (1800/1700) in attack mode!" A large, muscular, brown one-eyed creature appeared, hunched over but standing before its master. The dark spirit of the Ring patted the horned creature fondly, "Now, Opticlops, attack the Pharaoh's Illusory Gentleman and take a bite out of his life points!"

The creature lumbered forwards, and crashed into the surprised spellcaster head-first. The horn struck the monster right through and the point speared Yami slightly. He gasped and put both hands on the horn, then pushed, and the tip came out of him. Dark red drips began to stain the surrounding fabric of his shirt and the ground.

Yugi watched in horror as the monster fell to the floor, gushing blood. He lingered only for a moment before fading away. The boy put a hand over his mouth, looking like he might be sick as the Gentleman's left over blood seeped across the floor towards them.

The Dark Magician waved his hand and the blood vanished, and then the purple clad young man bowed his head in honor of the Gentleman's sacrifice. Yami: 3700 – Bakura: 4000.

* * *

Jetsu slowly walked over to the unconscious women lying on the floor across from him, the Millennium Scale still clutched loosely in her hand, "Won't the Pharaoh be disappointed when I tell him that you're no longer with us." The Shield glowed at his side and Dedi disappeared, leaving little Tsuki in her place. The girl sat up, throbbing all over, and the minute she spotted Jetsu, began trembling.

His voice feigned warmth as he reached out to her, "Now, little girl…you just hand over the Scale and no one gets hurt…"

There were silent tears streaming down Tsuki's cheeks as she let the Scale fall out of her hands. I'm letting you down, Dedi…I…I can't stand up to him…I'm too afraid…

"Poor child…" Jetsu said, putting a hand on her head as she continued to cry, "Don't worry…this won't hurt…too much…" The Shield glowed and Tsuki's pupils vanished from her wet, gray eyes. Then she fell over sideways, hitting the stone floor with a soft 'thud'.

Jetsu picked up the shining Scale, and left her there, his metal boots clanking softly and echoing through the corridor.