Chapter 32
"The Sword and The Hourglass: Pasts Revealed!"
As Vitani laughed triumphantly, Athena tore off the lower half of her sleeve and tied it around the wound with her free hand and her teeth. Cursing softly in Greek, she finished, managing to stem the blood flow, but knowing that now holding up her DD2 was going to be a real problem.
Not wanting to show weakness, she shouted over Vitani's laughter, "Your deck's just loaded with irony, isn't it? "Banner of Courage"?? What courage??" Vitani had been silenced and was glowering at Athena, but the Greek girl continued, the burning in her arm flaring up the fire in her eyes. "You hide behind your tricks and cheats and go running to your master when things get too dangerous, don't you?"
"Shut your mouth!" Vitani growled, "Take your turn before I lose my temper. You wouldn't want that."
"Really? Poor me," Athena smiled a bit, ignoring the pain that was causing her arm to throb and slipped her next card from her deck (Last Will), "First, I'll flip my face-down card into attack mode!," A shadowy, female figure in a dark robe appeared next to her magician.
Vitani gave the creature a confused look, "What is that thing?"
"It's my Gravekeeper's Spy (1700/2500), which allows me to search for another monster with Gravekeeper in its name!" She tried to search through her deck, but it was too difficult to do one handed. She had to try something else, but what? Abruptly, a thought struck her. Placing her good hand on her deck, she said in a clear voice, "I summon you forth in attack mode, Gravekeeper's Curse (1300/1300)!"
Much to Vitani's amazement, out of her deck came the monster that she had beckoned for. The black-robed, black-haired man appeared in front of the Greek, a spooky green aura surrounding him. Swiftly and without warning, the green energy began to engulf Vitani as well, causing her body to be overwhelmed with pain. He Duel Disk began to click and whirr as the score changed yet again: Vitani: 3500 – Athena: 1200.
"My Gravekeeper's Curse deals 500 points of direct damage whenever it is summoned to the field. And after all the things that you've done, I'd say that you deserve to be cursed!" Athena spat contemptuously in Vitani's direction before going on, "There's more where that came from!
Vitani was panting slightly, and sweat was beading on her forehead. "Like I care…" she said. The fact that she loathed the Greek could not block out the nagging feeling she had that her opponent had a point…but no! She couldn't allow herself to think like that! Not now of all times! She couldn't let herself be tricked by Athena's mind games.
"You should! The Hinotama Magic card deals 500 direct damage to your life points, but you deserve way more than that, which I'll be happy to give you!" A shower of meteors appeared and began to blast Vitani's side of the field. As the largest of the burning rocks drew towards the duelist, she whipped out the Millennium Sword and sliced the boulder in two. The pieces crashed around her and disappeared, than her life points lowered again: Vitani: 3000 – Athena: 1200.
The Grecian picked out another card from her hand and placed down on the mechanical dueling device, "Now, I sacrifice my Gravekeeper's Curse for the more powerful Gravekeeper's Chief (2400/1700)!" There was a flash of psycadelic, neon light and up from a swirling portal in the floor rose a tall, dark Egyptian man. He was wearing a white and green robe, with a matching headband and clutching a staff with a cobra head on the end in one hand. As the light dimmed and the portal began to fade, he nodded a curt greeting to Athena and then turned his brown eyes towards Vitani.
Before the portal closed completely Athena announced her next move, "I invoke the special effect of the Gravekeeper's Chief, taking one Gravekeeper back from the graveyard!"
Vitani's eyes widened and she put up a hand angrily, "Wait a minute! The Necrovalley has made both of our graveyards inaccessible! You can't-"
"Which is the other effect of my wonderful monster: making my graveyard immune to Necrovalley! Welcome back, Gravekeeper's Curse!" Once again, the spellcaster took his place in front of Athena and the green aura surrounded Vitani. Vitani: 2500 – Athena: 1200. The Egyptian woman fell to her knees, panting in pain. This was not going as planned. She was in the lead, but Athena was quickly gaining back her edge!
"Aww, poor Vitani…" Athena said mockingly, as the Chief waved his staff over her wounded arm, easing the pain a little, "You deserve every bit of that…you bitch. I'm gonna make sure you get back double what you let happen to the boy Jetsu nearly killed."
Vitani watched as her sweat made a small puddle beneath her, and soon found herself staring at her own skewed reflection in it. She then realized that tears had begun adding to the sweat as well and she wiped her eyes furiously. The blue-haired boy's face had entered her mind and she felt like she would be sick from the horrible lurching in her stomach. She felt strong hands grip her by one arm and the Marauding Captain lifted her to her feet.
"You mustn't let her get to you, m'lady," he told her gently.
Vitani seemed about to speak, but Athena cut in first, "My turn isn't quite finished yet! I'll play his magic card, Last Will! This allows me to summon a monster of 1500 ATK or less to the field if I lose a monster of mine! And since, technically, my reborn Gravekeeper's Curse had been tributed, I can bring my second of his kind to the field now in attack mode!"
A second Curse appeared beside its twin and this time, when the glowing green light engulfed Vitani, she clutched at the Marauding Captain, thankful for his physical-reality. He held her tight, and didn't let her fall to the ground, even though her legs gave out under her. The light faded and she fell against him, breathing heavily, feeling even more nauseous than before. The score was now: Vitani: 2000 – Athena: 1200.
Athena angrily pointed at Vitani, "Lastly, I'll use this De-Spell card on Heart of Clear Water. The effect will keep him alive until the end of this turn, but then he's unprotected. Everyone! Attack the bitch now!" Gravekeeper's Chief pointed his staff at her, but before the powerful magic could hit her, the Marauding Captain pushed her behind him and took the blast in the back. When the smoke cleared, the man was sweating and clenching his teeth in pain. There was a smoking hole in the back of his armor, where burnt flesh was showing. Vitani: 800 – Athena: 1200.
Both Gravekeeper's Curses rushed forward and bashed the bleeding Captain with their rods, one on each side. Vitani: 600 – Athena: 1200.
Lastly, the Spy rushed in and knocked the man to the ground with a swift chop of her arm to his head. Vitani: 100 – Athena: 1200.
As the beaten figure of the Captain vanished into dust, Vitani fell to her knees once again, landing in the blood he had left behind. She put her face in her hands to hide her tears. He wasn't even real…why did he bother to protect me…? I deserved that attack…not him… Then, it was as if a dam broke somewhere deep inside the Egyptian, and a flood of long-dormant emotions rushed through her. All the violence she had witnessed in her quest for power…only now did she realize that her goal had been unachievable from the start. Jetsu had used her, tapped into her thirst for greatness and exploited it. He had never intended to let her share in his glory…she should have known from the start. I've got to purge myself… she thought quickly, rid myself of his influence…
As Athena watched in silence, Vitani plunged her hands into the Captain's remaining blood and retraced her painted-on tattoos with sticky, dripping fingers. The honorable blood should cleanse me…I hope… The magic left in the blood sank deep into her pores and a golden light glowed in her icy blue eyes.
All at once, she was crying again, but no longer for her fallen servant. Now she was weeping at the feeling of freedom she felt. Athena cocked an eyebrow, thoroughly confused. Vitani picked herself up off the ground, and her eyes locked with Athena's, still glowing gold behind the blue. "You're right…" she said softly, "You're right…"
What happened to her…? Athena wondered, She's different now…is this some kind of trick?? "What are you talking about?" she demanded.
"Everything…" Vitani said, the tears still streaming down her face, as a small smile curled her lips, "I…I couldn't see it until just now…I have been a coward…and others have been hurt for it…" She hung her head and continued, "It's just like when we were kids, Athena…you were always the brave one…and self-less…do you remember…?"
Instinctively, the Greek found herself crossing the corridor and putting a hand on the Egyptian's shoulder. "I couldn't forget. Some of my fondest memories are of childhood. Before you ran off… Before Father died…" Athena's voice tapered off, and she too wiped a tear from her eye.
"Oh, Thena…what have I done??" Vitani cried suddenly, burying her face in Athena's chest, and gripping her arms tightly, to keep herself standing. "I…I've betrayed everyone…the whole family…Father's dead because of me…I've disgraced us all…"
Athena stood stiffly, listening to her adoptive sister's stifled sobs. How many years had it been since they'd been together without being at each other's throats? It must've been almost five years. Vitani had been brash and reckless in her teenage years, and Jetsu had tempted her. She had strayed…but now she had found her way back. As the feeling began to come back to her arms, she put them around Vitani, rubbing her back comfortingly. "It's okay, Tani…" she sighed, "I've missed you so much…"
"I am sorry…" Vitani said, looking up again. The magic glow had faded, but they now had their own shine. "…for everything, Thena…I-I know that doesn't count for much…not after all that I've done…"
"Maybe not," Athena said, smiling slightly, "But it's a good place to start." Then Vitani placed her hand over her deck, and the corridor returned to its original state, and the remaining monsters vanished.
"Surrendering, Vitani?" came a cold voice from the opposite end of the hallway. Out of the darkness came the black knight, Shield at the ready, "Pitiful. I did have higher expectations for you, but it would appear that your usefulness has expired." He gestured stiffly at the golden Sword that lay calmly at her side, "The Sword. Now."
Vitani turned abruptly, pulling herself out of Athena's arms and unsheathing the Sword in one swift movement. Her hands were shaking slightly, but her jaw was set. "For too long I've stood at your side…" she said slowly, directing the blade's tip at her former master, "…watching as you destroyed lives…helping you to do it. But I can't anymore…I won't shrink back into the shadows like I used to and turn away from what my heart tells me is right…no more…" She straightened up, gave Vitani a quick glance and then raised the blade level with her chest. "If you want this back…you'll have to take it from me."
Athena, knowing a split second ahead of time what her adoptive sister was planning, quickly pulled the Hourglass back out of her bag. Here was the moment she had been expecting – a Millennium Showdown between herself, Vitani and Jetsu. The only difference was, she hadn't expected the odds to be two to one in her favor.
For a second it seemed as if the evil lord was unable to speak. Then suddenly he threw back his head and laughed. The malicious cackling filled the deserted corridor, and Vitani felt a tiny drop of sweat dribble down the back of her neck.
Jetsu finally stopped laughing and straightened up to look down upon the two adoptive siblings, "Oh honestly, Vitani, when I selected you to be my assistant I was under the pretense that you had some amount of intelligence, but I see now that I was quite mistaken." With a snap of his fingers, the Millennium Key and Scale that had been floating directly behind him moved into view, glowing fiercely, "I've already collected three of the Millennium Items, including the Scales of the Queen. Three Items to two would give me the advantage wouldn't it?"
Vitani looked nervous for a second, but Athena cut in quickly. "If you could wield all three at once, yes!" Athena said, twirling the Hourglass, a confident smile spreading across her face, "But seeing as even the all-powerful Jetsu only has two hands, the odds can't be anything but even!"
Jetsu's shield stopped glowing golden and started to emit a luminosity of deep red. The rage once hidden beneath his calm outer mask rose to the surface in an instant, "Unlike you, you despicable little whelp, I possess magic of my own. The Shield has fed off of my influence, and it yearns for powers greater than any other Item! Now watch as I make three items into one!" The other Items circled around Jetsu and the Shield, mighty beams of gold being drawn like magnets to the defensive Item. There was a blinding flash, and both the Scale and the Key dropped like stones, landing on the floor with a resounding crash.
Athena tried her hardest not to show her surprise. She had known that Jetsu was powerful, but never had she dreamed that he had unlocked powers beyond that of a Millennium Item! His ancestors were sorcerers…I should have known…she thought bitterly. Then she felt Vitani's presence at her side, and her courage swelled. The odds were definitely against them now, but it didn't matter. Escape was unthinkable, so their only option was to go out fighting. With a twinge of sardonic humor, she thought it seemed a fitting end.
He pulled the Shield up and held it out in front of him, "Now it… begins." With a yell of rage from its master, the Shield let out a burst of wavy red energy towards the two females.
In perfect symmetry, the sisters leapt away from the blast. It hit the corridor wall and blew a hole clear through to the next chamber over. Dust and pieces of stone fell everywhere, pelting the girls without any reaction from either of them. Then, rebounding off opposite walls of the all-too-cramped area, they struck. Vitani let the Sword come down and it struck the Shield without leaving so much as a scratch. She was quickly pushed back as Athena pulled from her bag what looked like a thick scythe on a short stick.
With the flick of her wrist, the stick it was on was released, stretched to its full length of nearly six feet. Swinging it wide, she leapt at Jetsu from the opposite side Vitani had just attacked.
The evil master quickly pivoted on foot, turning 90 degrees. The scythe blade continued down hard and crashed into the stone floor. Its owner stunned, Jetsu threw a mighty punch that connected with the side of Athena's head and sent her sprawling.
Athena staggered across the floor, knocked off balance by the fact that her blade had lodged itself into the floor. Vitani came at him again, trying to give Athena time to recompose herself. The Greek pulled her father's spear free of the stone and raised it high, ignoring the throbbing pain in the side of her face. She could feel blood trickle into her eye and she shut it instinctively. Fighting with one-sided vision was going to be a definite disadvantage. As Vitani was flung backwards into the wall, she made another strike, this time jumping at his back, but swinging the spear around so that the scythe was on a direct root with Jetsu's neck.
Without even turning around, the man raised his right arm backward into the air and the scythe connected only with the juiced up Millennium Shield. Jetsu then raised his left leg and swirled around, intending to smash her with his pointed black boot.
As soon as she saw the glint of metal (indicating his intended action) she acted accordingly, pulling out the once-again stored away Hourglass and flipped it over. Everything around her froze, and as the sand quickly sifted through the glass, she darted around to the other side of Jetsu. She swung at him again just as the last grains of sand filtered through, bringing things back to normal.
The blade cracked his obsidian-colored armor but did not reach through to his pale skin. The hit overbalanced the warlord and he had to take several awkward steps to regain his footing.
Vitani took full advantage of her former master's never-before-seen brief moment of weakness, lunging at him with a fierce cry.
As rapidly as the moment of opportunity had opened, it closed, and Jetsu stepped forward and caught Vitani in mid-leap, holding her tightly by the neck and high in the air, "You should not have betrayed me!" he hissed at her, seething.
Athena's eyes widened as Vitani struggled, one hand still clutching the Sword, the other trying to pry Jetsu's fingers back. "Jetsu…" Athena growled, "Drop her!!" With that, she brought the scythe down swiftly on his arm.
He cringed in pain as it smashed his forearm and weakened his grip. Jetsu craned his head around to look at the Grecian, "You want her?" he asked through clenched teeth, "THEN HAVE HER!" He lashed out violently with a kick to Athena's stomach, also dislodging her grip on the scythe. Without the pressure on his arm, the man swung Vitani around and threw her at the other woman.
Athena hit the wall first, and the Vitani hit her square in the stomach, knocking the wind out of both of them as they slid to the floor, now weaponless. The sword and the spear were sprawled on the floor a few feet away. Both women groaned slightly, trying to pull themselves apart. Athena spat blood on the floor in front of them, and looked up through bleary eyes as Jetsu approached them.
"This is the end girls! You brought this upon yourselves!" The Shield began to glow once again.
Athena quickly fumbled for her Hourglass, turning it over and then scrambling out from under Vitani's frozen form. She grabbed up her spear and turned towards Jetsu, and made a swipe at him. But she found…that he had gone! Completely vanished from where he should have been frozen! "What the –??" she said, regaining her footing and taking a few steps backwards nervously. After only three steps, her back hit something hard and she knew what it was even before she turned around.
"Surprised?" a quiet voice asked her from behind. Lord Jetsu was standing with his back to the Greek, a full head taller than the girl. With a flick of his arm and a twist of his wrist he had grasped the end of the lance. She had been hovering it high in the air, not realizing it was right next to him. He tugged once, and the weapon was jerked out of her grasp.
The man gave it one disgusted look and turned around to face Athena, who was now slowly backing away from him, "You're so pathetic. You still cling to that weak old man even after his death? Pitiful. Yes, I remember this particular scythe. I think it was one of the two things of his I didn't manage to remove from his possession. This…" He snapped the spear over his plated knee and discarded the pieces behind him, "And that Hourglass."
At this, Athena instinctively glanced back at the Hourglass, which she had left on the floor by Vitani. She made a dash for it just as the sand finished sifting through to the bottom and everything returned to normal. Vitani fell flat on her stomach, no longer having Athena's lap there to support her and looked up quickly, knowing what must have happened. Athena had almost reached her when light exploded from Jetsu's Shield. Like a tidal wave, it passed over Athena and she collapsed on the ground. Seconds later, it was upon Vitani and before she could even cry out it had enveloped her.
"I must say," Jetsu mused aloud to himself, "They put up more of a fight than I imagined they would." He bent down and picked up the Hourglass, than walked slowly back over to the Sword and collected it up as well. One power transfer later, the Hourglass fell back to the ground, now nothing more than a normal bauble. The Sword now glowed red as well. Now, that leaves the Pharaoh… and the Thief. The Pharaoh will defeat the Thief, and I'll collect both the souls and the Items. Then the King is next… what a fine day this is turning out to be…