"I am sorry, but your lessons are going to have to wait today," Ishizu said
to Shayla.
"What do you mean?" asked Shayla.
"Soon the last round of the finals will begin," answered Ishizu. "And then I must duel Seto Kaiba."
"Oh, yeah," said Shayla, completely forgetting about the finals. "A-Are you sure this is..safe?"
"I appreciate your concern," said Ishizu. "But I will not be harmed. I have foreseen every move in this duel."
"Wow," commented Shayla. "That really is amazing."
"I will win this duel," said Ishizu. "I must. I have to save my brother."
"You know you are going to win?" asked Shayla, though she realized it was a stupid question.
"Yes, and Kaiba's god card will be his downfall," answered Ishizu.
"I...that's...wow," commented Shayla. The Millennial Necklace's power was disturbing, but not in the same way as the Rod or the Ring. For some reason, the Necklace didn't make her worry.
"Will the remaining duelists report to the arena for the final round," announced the PA.
"Come, we must be leaving," said Ishizu as she stood up. She calmly walked over and put her duel disk on her arm, then, gesturing for Shayla to follow her, left the room. Shayla followed, although she didn't need a gesture to tell her so.
Ishizu did not seem in any hurry to be getting to the dueling arena, and so the two of them were the last ones there. Seto Kaiba had already taken his place at the platform and was glaring at the elevator with impatience. The other duelists were talking among themselves, trying to figure out who the eighth finalist was. They all seemed surprised to see Shayla enter with her. The rest of the group called for her to join them as Kaiba bit his lower lip. This had been a twist he hadn't expected.
"Shayla, you made it!" exclaimed Téa.
"I didn't think you would," said Yu-Gi. "I know how hard the last duel was for you."
"Thanks for the concern," replied Shayla with a thin smile.
"Where have you been all this time?" asked Tristan. "You keep disappearing."
"I've been around," answered Shayla, shortly.
"This blimp is so large it doesn't surprise me that we can lose track of each other," said Serenity.
"So, who is she?" asked Duke as he looked over the last finalist.
"I don't know, but she looks familiar," answered Yu-Gi.
"You're right," agreed Téa.
"I don't know, but she'd better be careful," said Joe. "These duels haven't been kind to people."
"Perhaps the last one would have been different if you wouldn't have lied to her," said Shayla, bitterly. She surprised everyone, including herself, by her tone.
"Everything will work out," said Duke, a little carelessly.
"This duel will now commence," said the official, bringing them back on topic. "Seto Kaiba will duel...will duel...." He searched for a name, but there was none.
"Show yourself," demanded Kaiba in a voice like ice.
"You already know me, Seto Kaiba," said Ishizu as she removed the veil from her face.
"Ishizu?!" gasped Téa, Yu-Gi, and Kaiba.
"Isn't she the one at the museum?" asked Joe.
"Yeah, that's her," said Yu-Gi.
"Seto Kaiba versus Ishizu Ishtar," finished the official.
"Ishtar?!" gasped the group.
"Does that mean..?"
"Yes, Marik is my brother," answered Ishizu.
"Sister! Help!" Shayla heard a faint voice plead. It sounded lost, and trapped. When she realized that was the real Marik, she gasped and shuddered. She could sense the magic around the Millennial Rod holding him prisoner within his own mind. She shook her head sadly.
"She must be here to try to save him," said Yu-Gi.
"Yeah, he needs help," replied a wide-eyed Joe.
"How ironic," said Kaiba with a mischievous grin, "that you are to lose against the very same god card you gave me."
"It is you who will be surprised," countered Ishizu. "Because that god card will be your downfall."
"My downfall?" laughed Kaiba.
"I have seen the future with my Millennial Necklace. I know what the outcome of this duel will be, and you will lose," responded Ishizu, calmly.
"Save your children's stories!" snapped Seto. "I am sick of hearing about all this magic non-sense."
"Gee, you'd think he'd get a clue sometime," muttered Joe. Louder, he said, "What is your problem?! With all that's been going on, you'd get it through your thick head that something's up!" Kaiba glared at him.
"Joe, calm down," said Serenity.
"I really hope Ishizu wins this," said Téa. "We could use her help."
"Yeah, but don't forget, Kaiba's one of the world's top duelists," reminded Duke.
"But Ishizu seems pretty confident," said Tristan.
"If she really can see the future...this duel is already over," added Téa.
"Let's get this over with," snapped Seto. "I have more important things to worry about."
"This will be your last duel in the finals," stated Ishizu.
"I'll crush you with the very same card you gave me!"
"I was the keeper of the three Egyptian god cards. Do you think I don't know their weakness?" asked Ishizu.
"We'll just see who's standing at the end of this," snapped Kaiba.
"I have already seen the future. You will lose."
"Save it!"
"You cannot hope to win. I will win to save my brother."
"Please! Sister! Help me!" Marik called again. He was silent save to those who were in tune to him, namely Yami Marik, Ishizu, and Shayla.
"I am getting sick of hearing about your family," said Kaiba, annoyance rising in his voice. "You're brother needs more than your help, he needs a psychologist!"
"That was low, Kaiba! Have you no respect!?" yelled Joe.
"Calm down, Joe!" exclaimed Tristan. "Why are you so worked up?"
"That jerk really burns me," growled Joe.
"Any more outbursts like that and we may have to get you a muzzle," said Duke.
"Hey!"
"Ishizu, please beat him, if for no other reason than to cut his ego down!" called Shayla. Ishizu nodded.
Kaiba jerked his head back as if he had been stung. He hadn't expected her to be on Ishizu's side. Secretly, he wanted Shayla to be there as he crushed his opponent. His head dropped a few hairs.
"I will forget about her," he told himself. "Emotions are for the weak. They only lead to pain. I will forget about her, that way I won't get hurt."
"Let's duel!" he said, out-loud. "I summon Vorse Raider in attack mode and play one card face down." His warrior appeared with stats of 1900 and 1200.
(AN/ You'll have to excuse my spelling on Ishizu's cards.)
"Then I summon Keldo," said Ishizu. Her monster looked vaguely like a pixie magician. Its attack was only 1200 and its defense 1600.
"That's it?" asked Kaiba, skeptically.
"Then I activate the magic card Mitizuri of Doom," said Ishizu. "Now we each have to select two of each other's cards. Those cards are discarded." They quickly did so.
"What can Ishizu be planning?" asked Joe. "That doesn't make any sense."
"She stills seems pretty calm," Yu-Gi pointed out.
On the other side of the field the spirit who had taken over Marik was smirking. He knew Ishizu's strategy all too well.
"This will be over quickly," said Kaiba. "Vorse Raider attack Keldo!" His monster charged forward and slashed Keldo to ribbons. "Then I play one more face down card."
"For my turn, I summon Mudora in attack mode," announced Ishizu. Her monster looked like an Egyptian warrior. "Then I activate the Sword of Dorsa, which raises its attack to 2000! Now, Mudora, attack his Vorse Raider!"
"Ha!" exclaimed Kaiba. "You have walked right into my trap! I activate Shrink, which reduces Vorse Raider's attack so that it can now carry the Crush Card virus! Your entire deck is infected, and now any monster you have with an attack of over 1500 must be sent to the graveyard!"
"Ishizu is in trouble!" exclaimed Duke. "I don't see how she can recover."
"You can't possibly hope to win now," said Kaiba.
"I don't need strong monsters to win," said Ishizu.
"You're a poor duelist if you think that the puny things you have left will overcome me," snapped Kaiba.
Shayla shook her head in disgust.
"What is it?" asked Téa.
"There's two things I can't stand," answered Shayla. "Arrogance and lying..unfortunately I am surrounded by both."
"Lay off," muttered Joe.
On the field, the holograms showed Mudora dissolving as it, too, was affected by the Crush Card.
"As I have foreseen," muttered Ishizu. Then, louder, she said, "My turn is not let over. I activate Swords of Revealing Light, which freezes you for three turns!"
"What a desperate move," said Kaiba as the glowing swords fell in place around him.
"I play one more card face down and that ends my turn," stated Ishizu.
"I play one card face down as well," said Seto. "Then I summon Dark Gremlin!" His monster looked like a type of green reptile that walked upright. Its claws were wicked. Its stats were 1600 and 1800. "I can't attack, so it is your turn."
Ishizu drew a card. "I pass."
Then Kaiba did the same. "I pass as well."
"Wow, that was fascinating," muttered Joe.
"Ishizu had better do something while Kaiba is paralyzed, or else he'll cream her!" said Tristan.
"Guys, she isn't worried, at all," Téa pointed out.
"I pass this turn as well," stated Ishizu.
"Come on!" thought Shayla. "You can do this!" She was keeping her fingers crossed that no one else would end up in the hospital wing.
Kaiba drew his next card and smiled broadly. "This duel won't last much longer. You have no monsters on the field, which means my Dark Gremlin can attack you directly! Go!" Ishizu shielded her eyes as the dark Gremlin attacked, bring her down to 2400 life points. Kaiba was at 2950 from losing his Vorse Raider.
"Then I activate my face down card, Virus Cannon!" continued Seto. "It takes ten magic cards from your deck and sends them to the graveyard!"
"Most of her deck is in the graveyard!" exclaimed Joe.
"I have yet to be impressed by your dueling skills," said Kaiba, snidely. "And as soon as I summon my god card, this is over."
"That god card will be your downfall. The future has been set. I have seen it," replied Ishizu, as calm as ever.
"How can you expect to beat me?" asked Kaiba, arrogantly. "You deck is wasted. Give up now."
"I still have my trap cards," reminded Ishizu. "Now, I activate Exchange of the Spirits!"
"What?!" gasped Kaiba.
"What does that do?" asked Serenity.
"It forces each duelist to change his or her graveyard with his or her deck," answered Shayla. "Of course, it costs Ishizu 1000 life points to play."
"But, most of Ishizu's deck is in the graveyard!" exclaimed Joe.
"She's been stringing Kaiba along this whole time!" said Duke.
"And Kaiba only has six cards in his!" added Yu-Gi.
"Ha! Look at him squirm!" said Joe, gleefully.
"Now, I summon Kelbank in attack mode," announced Ishizu as her next monster appeared. It had an attack of 1500 and a defense of 1800. "Then I play one more face down card and end my turn."
Before Kaiba could begin his next turn, the elevators opened and Mokuba ran out. "We did it Seto! We translated the Wing Dragon of Ra!"
"Thank you, Mokuba," replied Kaiba. He drew his next card.
"I activate Virus Cannon!" he said as he set the card on his duel disk for the second time that game.
"Then I activate the trap card I just played, which sends it back to the graveyard," countered Ishizu. "And now, for my turn, I play Zorga!" Her newest monster had an attack of 1700. (AN/ I am sorry I forgot what these looked like).
"Now, Zorga, attack his Dark Gremlin with Cape of Destruction!" ordered Ishizu. This attack brought Kaiba down to 2850 life points. "And Kelbak attack his life points directly!" Now Kaiba only had 1350 life points left. He seemed to be very nervous, unlike Ishizu, who had not lost her cool once the entire duel. "Then I play one more card face down and end my turn."
"My turn then," said Kaiba with a glare. "I play one card face down as well."
"Now I activate my trap card, Muko," announced Ishizu. "It allows me to retrieve two cards from my graveyard."
"This duel is going to be over soon," said Joe. "Even if Ishizu doesn't cream him, Kaiba's almost out of cards to draw."
"I end my turn," stated Kaiba.
"He left himself wide open for a direct attack!" exclaimed Duke.
"That card he played must be a trap card," said Tristan.
"Hurry up and finish this, Ishizu!" called Shayla.
"I play one card face down to start my turn," said Ishizu. That one card was the core to her strategy. It implant a virus inside Zorga, that, if Zorga was tributed, it would destroy the high level monster when it tried to attack.
"Now I summon one more monster to the field..." started Ishizu.
"And you have fallen for my trap!" exclaimed Kaiba. Shayla thought he almost sounded relieved. "I activate Soul Exchange, which tributes your three monsters for Obelisk the Tormentor!"
"Oh no!" gasped Duke.
"And Ishizu has no more defenses!" added Joe.
"She still doesn't seem worried to me," said Téa.
"I hope your plan works...." thought Shayla.
"So much for your fortune-telling abilities!" said Kaiba. "Those Millennial Items are nothing. And now I will prove it by crushing you with your own god card!"
"If you are so confident, then, by all means, go ahead," dared Ishizu.
"This has been fun," thought Yami Marik. "But it has started to bore me." He turned to leave.
"Go Obelisk! Att..!" Kaiba started to order, but his command got cut off by a massive surge from the Millennial Rod.
"Agh! What's that light?!" gasped Duke.
"What is going on?" wondered Shayla as she felt power flooding from the rod towards Kaiba. The rod was out of control of Marik (both of them). Something didn't seem right, at the same time, it did. It brought something to the surface of Shayla's mind that she couldn't grasp.
One the dueling arena Kaiba seemed to have spaced. His eyes were wide open but glazed over as he was lost in the images that the Millennial Rod was showing him. Memories that were his, and yet not his, were surfacing. The Blue-Eyes White Dragon appeared in stone in front of him.
"I-I..." stammered Kaiba. "I activate Silent Doom, which lets me bring one monster back from the graveyard."
"What?!" gasped Ishizu, for the first time looking unnerved. She hadn't seen this.
"See, I need to tribute two monsters to summon my Blue-Eyes White Dragon," said Kaiba. His left eye was twitching a bit. Magic like that was overwhelming. "I will not be controlled! I control my own future! I tribute Obelisk the Tormentor and my other monster and summon my Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
"He tributed his god card for his dragon..before it was the other way around," said Shayla. "This is way too bizarre."
"Now attack, Blue-Eyes!" ordered Kaiba. It did and took the remaining bit of Ishizu's life points. Nonetheless, she was smiling.
"I win, your predictions were all wrong," said Kaiba.
"Thank you," replied Ishizu. "You have shown me there is still hope for my brother." She looked at the door that he had left through.
"What are you talking about?" he asked, huffily.
"I had only seen shadows in his future," answered Ishizu. "But you have proven the future can be changed. You have given me hope, and I thank you for that." Well, there wasn't much Kaiba could say when she was being nice.
"I feel like I just missed something," commented Joe.
"Well, at least no one is going to the hospital wing," said Tristan.
"Thank the Lord," agreed Shayla, and she genuinely meant that.
"Hey! What's that?" asked Mokuba as he pointed at something coming towards the airship.
"I-it sounds like a helicopter," stammered Shayla, who suddenly went stiff.
"It is!" exclaimed Yu-Gi.
"And it's heading our way," said Serenity.
"What's wrong, Shayla?" asked Téa when she noticed how tense she had gotten all of a sudden.
"I don't like helicopters much," groaned Shayla.
"I think it's going to land!" yelled Tristan, who had to yell to be heard over the blades. Sure enough, the copter was hovering over the dueling arena. Kaiba was glaring at it, but there was little else he could do to stop it.
"That's one of Industrial Illusion's helicopters!" exclaimed Yu-Gi.
"What is it doing here?" asked Joe.
The helicopter landed expertly on the middle of the duel arena. It didn't bother to park there, though. Two people got off of it, then the helicopter took off again.
"It's Drake and Lara!" exclaimed Yu-Gi.
"What are they doing here?" asked Tristan.
"I could ask the same thing," said Kaiba, venomously as he glared at the two new comers.
"Why else do you think I would have come?" asked Drake. He raised his right hand and spread six locator cards.
"Woah! Drake's a finalist, too!" exclaimed Joe.
"That hardly gives you the right to come crashing into the middle of my tournament," snapped Seto.
"Listen here, Mr. Hotshot," snapped Drake, "just because you're so obsessed about winning this thing doesn't give you the right to leave qualified finalists behind!" Lara took him by the arm, probably foreseeing the problem of an all out fight between the two.
"Calm down, Drake," she said. "He's not worth it." That earned her a glare for Kaiba.
"Drake! We're glad you're here!" called Joe. The rest of the group nodded.
"You have some nerve, Pegasus," said Seto, angrily. "I don't have time to waste on a poor excuse of a dragon duelist like you. So you can just high- tail it out of here the same way you came."
"What did you say!?" demanded Drake, enraged.
"Uh-oh," said Tristan. "Looks like dragon-breaths are at it."
"If those two start going at it, someone might end up in the hospital wing yet," commented Duke.
"Great, just what we need..." remarked Shayla.
"Now get out of my way," said Kaiba. "I have a tournament to run."
"Sure! Run from me, Kaiba!" spat Drake. Kaiba turned and gave him a nasty look. "I challenge you to a duel, right here, right now!"
Kaiba actually chuckled.
"What is your problem!?" demanded Lara, who was feeling angry on behalf of her boyfriend.
"You wouldn't last five moves against me," replied Kaiba with a malicious smirk. "Now get out of my way." With that he flounced off, Mokuba following.
"That arrogant,..." started Drake but he was too mad to continue.
"Drake! Don't let him get to you!" called Yu-Gi.
"Yeah, we're glad you made it," added Joe.
"Thanks," said Drake and Lara as they walked off of the platform and over to the group.
"I should have known you'd all be here," said Drake. "But I didn't know you entered, Duke."
"I didn't," answered Duke. "I'm just a spectator here."
"That's still cool," said Lara.
"You know each other?" asked Tristan.
"Drake has been the mastermind in getting my Dungeons Dice Monsters on the market," answered Duke.
"That's so cool!" exclaimed Serenity.
"Oh, you guys haven't met my little sister. This is Serenity," introduced Joe.
"You're the one he was dueling so hard for in the Duelist Kingdom? It's great to finally meet you," said Lara.
"Thanks," said Serenity as they shook hands.
"So what has been going on here so far?" asked Drake.
"That's a long story," sighed Téa.
"And most of it isn't good," added Shayla.
"What do you mean?" asked Lara.
"Come with us," sighed Yu-Gi. He lead them to the hospital wing
************************************************************************
"Oh my gosh! What happened?!" gasped Lara.
"The duels have been rough," answered Joe.
"That's an understatement," muttered Shayla.
"Sit down, this could take some time to explain," said Téa as she filled them in, with help from the rest of the group.
"And this Marik has been behind all of this?" asked Lara, sounding worried.
"And those god cards would explain why Kaiba was being even more arrogant than usual," added Drake. "And I didn't think that was possible."
"You're telling me," agreed Joe.
"But, who is Marik?" asked Lara.
"Perhaps I can help," said Ishizu as she entered the room.
"Hello Ishizu," greeted the group.
"Hello, and welcome Drake Pegasus and Lara Justina. I am afraid you did not get a proper welcome before," said Ishizu.
"How do you know us?" asked Lara.
"She's like that..." muttered Shayla.
"Marik is my brother, and I can tell you how he started down this dark path," said Ishizu.
"Would you, please?" asked Téa.
"It started with my family," said Ishizu. "We are tomb-keepers. For generations my family had guarded the pharaoh's tomb and waited for his arrival. But Marik wanted nothing of it. It was the day after he received the initiation that it all started."
*Flashback*
"I don't want to be a tomb keeper!" sobbed a younger Marik, still lying in bed from the tattoo he had been forced to receive the previous day.
"Please, calm down brother," pleaded Ishizu. "Father will hear you."
"We aren't even aloud to see the light of day!" he continued. "We're prisoners here. I just want to be normal!"
"Perhaps.." muttered Ishizu as she shared a look with Odion. He nodded.
"What, sister?" asked Marik with big eyes.
"Its still early, father is asleep...we..we could sneak out for an hour," she answered, very nervously.
"We could?!" exclaimed Marik, hopefully.
"Not so loud! Please!" insisted Ishizu.
"We have to sister!" said Marik, who was getting very excited. "If only for a moment!"
"Okay! We will! But you have to promise never to speak of it again!" said Ishizu.
"Thank you!" said Marik, hopping out of bed.
"I will remain here and cover for you," said Odion.
"Thank you," said Ishizu as she lead Marik to the exit of their underground home.
She pulled open the trapdoor and Marik stepped into the sunlight for the first time. The early streaks of dawn were spreading across the horizon.
"Wow!" exclaimed Marik.
"Come with me," said Ishizu as she lead him to the bazaar.
"I never imagined there was so many other people," said Marik. His eyes darted everywhere, taking in everything with a child-like eagerness.
"Marik, come on!" said Ishizu as she urged him along.
"What's this?" asked Marik as he spotted something in the ground. It was a magazine. "People shouldn't through books in the dirt." He picked it up and began to flip through it. "Wow! This is so different from the ancient writings!"
A TV in a nearby stall caught his eye. Marik did a double take between the TV and the magazine. The same image was on both, a motorcycle.
"What is that thing?" asked Marik.
"It's a TV," said Ishizu, who was starting to sound a little impatient.
"And what is that thing in the colored box?"
"A motorcycle."
"What's with you kids, haven't you ever seen a TV before?" asked the vendor.
"Um..." stammered Marik.
"Come on Marik, we're leaving!" said Ishizu as she took his hand and pulled him away.
"But sister!" he protested.
"No buts! You agreed when we left!" she reminded. Marik sighed.
A stranger wearing a white turban and robe appeared in front of them. Ishizu gasped and pulled her brother behind her.
"You've been warned Marik," he said. "Today you have taken your first steps down the path of darkness. You must change your course while there is still hope."
"Shadi?!" gasped Ishizu.
"Who is he?" asked Marik, nervously. "What is he talking about?"
"We must leave! We've been here too long!" said Ishizu, panicking. "We never should have come!" She started to pull Marik back to their home.
"But sister!" he whined.
"No buts!" she said, sharp enough that he didn't say another word until they had reached the trapdoor.
"Just one more moment sister, please?" begged Marik.
"Okay!" she exclaimed exasperated. "But please, hurry!"
Marik had walked over and sat on a pile of stones, pretending they were a motorcycle.
"Sister, can I take the picture?" he asked, pointing to the magazine that was still in his hands.
"Alright!" she caved again. "Just don't let father see it!" She pulled open the trapdoor and something in the corner caught her eyes. It was a rope system that led into the darkness that she had not seen before.
"An alarm!?" she cried. "Marik! We're in trouble!" With that both Ishtars raced inside, running straight to Marik's room. Odion wasn't there.
"Odion?!" gasped Marik. The room looked like it had been ransacked.
"Oh no!" gasped Ishizu.
They tore through the house and finally found Odion and their father in an unused back room. Odion had collapsed to the ground. He was bleeding and bruised from their father's 'questioning.'
"Oh no!" gasped Ishizu again.
"There you are!" growled their father. "Look at what you have done?! Now Odion will have to leave us! You know the rules!" he raised his hand to strike Odion again.
He never did, though, because something about Marik had changed. He chuckled, walked over, and picked up the Millennial Rod.
"Marik?! What are you doing?!" gasped their father. "You know you can't touch those!"
"This Millennial Item is now mine," said the evil spirit inside of him, which was created that day. "And there will be new rules."
"Marik! Put that down!" pleaded Ishizu.
"Silence!" snapped Marik. He used the rod and paralyzed her against the wall.
"Stop this now!" ordered their dad.
"No," he answered, then he did the same to his own father while Ishizu and Odion watched, helpless. "Good bye, father." With that he used the Millennial Rod and sealed his father's mind in the Shadow Realm.
The accomplished, he began to look around for another victim.
Odion had struggled to his knees and limped over to Marik, embracing him with his bound hands. The real Marik snapped back. He dropped the Millennial Rod and looked around in shock, not remembering what had just happened.
"Odion?! What's going on!?" he cried, terrified, frantically looking at his sister, who was still stunned, to his dad, who wasn't moving.
"You've been warned," came Shadi's voice. "Today you have taken your first steps down the path of darkness. You must change your course while there is still hope."
Marik started screaming in fear from the stranger's voice, thinking he was behind what had happened that morning.
*End Flashback*
When Ishizu finished silence fell over the hospital wing for several moments. Shayla was the one who finally broke it.
"And I thought my family situation was bad..."
"I-I-I'm sorry..." stammered Téa. "That's awful."
"That is why I have come. I have a request of you, Yu-Gi," said Ishizu.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Please, find a way to save my brother," she answered. "I have something for you that will help you."
"What?"
She unclasped her Millennial Necklace. "It is time I gave this to you. I can no longer use its magic."
"What?!" came the gasps from several people around the room.
"I know you will use it wisely," she said. Then she left.
"I don't believe it," gasped Joe, peering at the necklace to get a better look.
"Looks like we're right in the middle of the action," said Drake.
Shayla slipped out too, unnoticed by the rest of the group. She ran and caught up with Ishizu.
"Hello, Shayla. Shouldn't you be with your friends?" asked Ishizu. "Or are you worried that I will no longer be able to teach you? That is not the case."
"It's not that," said Shayla. "I just don't understand how the Millennial Necklace just stopped working."
"It was time for me to give it to the pharaoh. When I lost to Seto Kaiba, I lost my powers to use it."
"But...the Millennial Rod interfered then. And isn't it true that the Millennial Items have no power over each other..?"
"You are very perceptive," commented Ishizu. "But do not worry yourself. Your tasks are different from mine. Please, get some rest today. I can tell that you will need it."
"Um..sure..." stammered Shayla. "Bye." She turned down the hall that led to her room.
************************************************************************
Shayla couldn't sleep that night. She tossed and turned in bed before finally giving up and taking a walk. She once again found herself in the open air walkway. That place was probably the most relaxing for her in the entire ship. But it did little to calm her down tonight.
There was some sort of power flowing through the Millennial Items. She did not know exactly what it was, but it was evil. Something bad was going on at that very moment concerning the Millennial Items, and it made her shudder.
About half an hour later the power flow suddenly stopped. But that was far from reassuring. The regular patterns of the Millennial Items had been disrupted. Something had changed for the worst. Shayla didn't know what it was, but it was enough to keep her up half the night.
She finally went to sleep at about three in the morning. Unfortunately, that morning would hold its own nightmares.
To be continued in: Shayla's Story 3: Into the Virtual World
AN/ YAY!!!!! I finally finished one!!!!! Of course, I'm starting another in its place.. Well, thanks to everyone who's stuck around this far. I hope to see y'all in the sequel. And, as always, please read, review, and enjoy! (
"What do you mean?" asked Shayla.
"Soon the last round of the finals will begin," answered Ishizu. "And then I must duel Seto Kaiba."
"Oh, yeah," said Shayla, completely forgetting about the finals. "A-Are you sure this is..safe?"
"I appreciate your concern," said Ishizu. "But I will not be harmed. I have foreseen every move in this duel."
"Wow," commented Shayla. "That really is amazing."
"I will win this duel," said Ishizu. "I must. I have to save my brother."
"You know you are going to win?" asked Shayla, though she realized it was a stupid question.
"Yes, and Kaiba's god card will be his downfall," answered Ishizu.
"I...that's...wow," commented Shayla. The Millennial Necklace's power was disturbing, but not in the same way as the Rod or the Ring. For some reason, the Necklace didn't make her worry.
"Will the remaining duelists report to the arena for the final round," announced the PA.
"Come, we must be leaving," said Ishizu as she stood up. She calmly walked over and put her duel disk on her arm, then, gesturing for Shayla to follow her, left the room. Shayla followed, although she didn't need a gesture to tell her so.
Ishizu did not seem in any hurry to be getting to the dueling arena, and so the two of them were the last ones there. Seto Kaiba had already taken his place at the platform and was glaring at the elevator with impatience. The other duelists were talking among themselves, trying to figure out who the eighth finalist was. They all seemed surprised to see Shayla enter with her. The rest of the group called for her to join them as Kaiba bit his lower lip. This had been a twist he hadn't expected.
"Shayla, you made it!" exclaimed Téa.
"I didn't think you would," said Yu-Gi. "I know how hard the last duel was for you."
"Thanks for the concern," replied Shayla with a thin smile.
"Where have you been all this time?" asked Tristan. "You keep disappearing."
"I've been around," answered Shayla, shortly.
"This blimp is so large it doesn't surprise me that we can lose track of each other," said Serenity.
"So, who is she?" asked Duke as he looked over the last finalist.
"I don't know, but she looks familiar," answered Yu-Gi.
"You're right," agreed Téa.
"I don't know, but she'd better be careful," said Joe. "These duels haven't been kind to people."
"Perhaps the last one would have been different if you wouldn't have lied to her," said Shayla, bitterly. She surprised everyone, including herself, by her tone.
"Everything will work out," said Duke, a little carelessly.
"This duel will now commence," said the official, bringing them back on topic. "Seto Kaiba will duel...will duel...." He searched for a name, but there was none.
"Show yourself," demanded Kaiba in a voice like ice.
"You already know me, Seto Kaiba," said Ishizu as she removed the veil from her face.
"Ishizu?!" gasped Téa, Yu-Gi, and Kaiba.
"Isn't she the one at the museum?" asked Joe.
"Yeah, that's her," said Yu-Gi.
"Seto Kaiba versus Ishizu Ishtar," finished the official.
"Ishtar?!" gasped the group.
"Does that mean..?"
"Yes, Marik is my brother," answered Ishizu.
"Sister! Help!" Shayla heard a faint voice plead. It sounded lost, and trapped. When she realized that was the real Marik, she gasped and shuddered. She could sense the magic around the Millennial Rod holding him prisoner within his own mind. She shook her head sadly.
"She must be here to try to save him," said Yu-Gi.
"Yeah, he needs help," replied a wide-eyed Joe.
"How ironic," said Kaiba with a mischievous grin, "that you are to lose against the very same god card you gave me."
"It is you who will be surprised," countered Ishizu. "Because that god card will be your downfall."
"My downfall?" laughed Kaiba.
"I have seen the future with my Millennial Necklace. I know what the outcome of this duel will be, and you will lose," responded Ishizu, calmly.
"Save your children's stories!" snapped Seto. "I am sick of hearing about all this magic non-sense."
"Gee, you'd think he'd get a clue sometime," muttered Joe. Louder, he said, "What is your problem?! With all that's been going on, you'd get it through your thick head that something's up!" Kaiba glared at him.
"Joe, calm down," said Serenity.
"I really hope Ishizu wins this," said Téa. "We could use her help."
"Yeah, but don't forget, Kaiba's one of the world's top duelists," reminded Duke.
"But Ishizu seems pretty confident," said Tristan.
"If she really can see the future...this duel is already over," added Téa.
"Let's get this over with," snapped Seto. "I have more important things to worry about."
"This will be your last duel in the finals," stated Ishizu.
"I'll crush you with the very same card you gave me!"
"I was the keeper of the three Egyptian god cards. Do you think I don't know their weakness?" asked Ishizu.
"We'll just see who's standing at the end of this," snapped Kaiba.
"I have already seen the future. You will lose."
"Save it!"
"You cannot hope to win. I will win to save my brother."
"Please! Sister! Help me!" Marik called again. He was silent save to those who were in tune to him, namely Yami Marik, Ishizu, and Shayla.
"I am getting sick of hearing about your family," said Kaiba, annoyance rising in his voice. "You're brother needs more than your help, he needs a psychologist!"
"That was low, Kaiba! Have you no respect!?" yelled Joe.
"Calm down, Joe!" exclaimed Tristan. "Why are you so worked up?"
"That jerk really burns me," growled Joe.
"Any more outbursts like that and we may have to get you a muzzle," said Duke.
"Hey!"
"Ishizu, please beat him, if for no other reason than to cut his ego down!" called Shayla. Ishizu nodded.
Kaiba jerked his head back as if he had been stung. He hadn't expected her to be on Ishizu's side. Secretly, he wanted Shayla to be there as he crushed his opponent. His head dropped a few hairs.
"I will forget about her," he told himself. "Emotions are for the weak. They only lead to pain. I will forget about her, that way I won't get hurt."
"Let's duel!" he said, out-loud. "I summon Vorse Raider in attack mode and play one card face down." His warrior appeared with stats of 1900 and 1200.
(AN/ You'll have to excuse my spelling on Ishizu's cards.)
"Then I summon Keldo," said Ishizu. Her monster looked vaguely like a pixie magician. Its attack was only 1200 and its defense 1600.
"That's it?" asked Kaiba, skeptically.
"Then I activate the magic card Mitizuri of Doom," said Ishizu. "Now we each have to select two of each other's cards. Those cards are discarded." They quickly did so.
"What can Ishizu be planning?" asked Joe. "That doesn't make any sense."
"She stills seems pretty calm," Yu-Gi pointed out.
On the other side of the field the spirit who had taken over Marik was smirking. He knew Ishizu's strategy all too well.
"This will be over quickly," said Kaiba. "Vorse Raider attack Keldo!" His monster charged forward and slashed Keldo to ribbons. "Then I play one more face down card."
"For my turn, I summon Mudora in attack mode," announced Ishizu. Her monster looked like an Egyptian warrior. "Then I activate the Sword of Dorsa, which raises its attack to 2000! Now, Mudora, attack his Vorse Raider!"
"Ha!" exclaimed Kaiba. "You have walked right into my trap! I activate Shrink, which reduces Vorse Raider's attack so that it can now carry the Crush Card virus! Your entire deck is infected, and now any monster you have with an attack of over 1500 must be sent to the graveyard!"
"Ishizu is in trouble!" exclaimed Duke. "I don't see how she can recover."
"You can't possibly hope to win now," said Kaiba.
"I don't need strong monsters to win," said Ishizu.
"You're a poor duelist if you think that the puny things you have left will overcome me," snapped Kaiba.
Shayla shook her head in disgust.
"What is it?" asked Téa.
"There's two things I can't stand," answered Shayla. "Arrogance and lying..unfortunately I am surrounded by both."
"Lay off," muttered Joe.
On the field, the holograms showed Mudora dissolving as it, too, was affected by the Crush Card.
"As I have foreseen," muttered Ishizu. Then, louder, she said, "My turn is not let over. I activate Swords of Revealing Light, which freezes you for three turns!"
"What a desperate move," said Kaiba as the glowing swords fell in place around him.
"I play one more card face down and that ends my turn," stated Ishizu.
"I play one card face down as well," said Seto. "Then I summon Dark Gremlin!" His monster looked like a type of green reptile that walked upright. Its claws were wicked. Its stats were 1600 and 1800. "I can't attack, so it is your turn."
Ishizu drew a card. "I pass."
Then Kaiba did the same. "I pass as well."
"Wow, that was fascinating," muttered Joe.
"Ishizu had better do something while Kaiba is paralyzed, or else he'll cream her!" said Tristan.
"Guys, she isn't worried, at all," Téa pointed out.
"I pass this turn as well," stated Ishizu.
"Come on!" thought Shayla. "You can do this!" She was keeping her fingers crossed that no one else would end up in the hospital wing.
Kaiba drew his next card and smiled broadly. "This duel won't last much longer. You have no monsters on the field, which means my Dark Gremlin can attack you directly! Go!" Ishizu shielded her eyes as the dark Gremlin attacked, bring her down to 2400 life points. Kaiba was at 2950 from losing his Vorse Raider.
"Then I activate my face down card, Virus Cannon!" continued Seto. "It takes ten magic cards from your deck and sends them to the graveyard!"
"Most of her deck is in the graveyard!" exclaimed Joe.
"I have yet to be impressed by your dueling skills," said Kaiba, snidely. "And as soon as I summon my god card, this is over."
"That god card will be your downfall. The future has been set. I have seen it," replied Ishizu, as calm as ever.
"How can you expect to beat me?" asked Kaiba, arrogantly. "You deck is wasted. Give up now."
"I still have my trap cards," reminded Ishizu. "Now, I activate Exchange of the Spirits!"
"What?!" gasped Kaiba.
"What does that do?" asked Serenity.
"It forces each duelist to change his or her graveyard with his or her deck," answered Shayla. "Of course, it costs Ishizu 1000 life points to play."
"But, most of Ishizu's deck is in the graveyard!" exclaimed Joe.
"She's been stringing Kaiba along this whole time!" said Duke.
"And Kaiba only has six cards in his!" added Yu-Gi.
"Ha! Look at him squirm!" said Joe, gleefully.
"Now, I summon Kelbank in attack mode," announced Ishizu as her next monster appeared. It had an attack of 1500 and a defense of 1800. "Then I play one more face down card and end my turn."
Before Kaiba could begin his next turn, the elevators opened and Mokuba ran out. "We did it Seto! We translated the Wing Dragon of Ra!"
"Thank you, Mokuba," replied Kaiba. He drew his next card.
"I activate Virus Cannon!" he said as he set the card on his duel disk for the second time that game.
"Then I activate the trap card I just played, which sends it back to the graveyard," countered Ishizu. "And now, for my turn, I play Zorga!" Her newest monster had an attack of 1700. (AN/ I am sorry I forgot what these looked like).
"Now, Zorga, attack his Dark Gremlin with Cape of Destruction!" ordered Ishizu. This attack brought Kaiba down to 2850 life points. "And Kelbak attack his life points directly!" Now Kaiba only had 1350 life points left. He seemed to be very nervous, unlike Ishizu, who had not lost her cool once the entire duel. "Then I play one more card face down and end my turn."
"My turn then," said Kaiba with a glare. "I play one card face down as well."
"Now I activate my trap card, Muko," announced Ishizu. "It allows me to retrieve two cards from my graveyard."
"This duel is going to be over soon," said Joe. "Even if Ishizu doesn't cream him, Kaiba's almost out of cards to draw."
"I end my turn," stated Kaiba.
"He left himself wide open for a direct attack!" exclaimed Duke.
"That card he played must be a trap card," said Tristan.
"Hurry up and finish this, Ishizu!" called Shayla.
"I play one card face down to start my turn," said Ishizu. That one card was the core to her strategy. It implant a virus inside Zorga, that, if Zorga was tributed, it would destroy the high level monster when it tried to attack.
"Now I summon one more monster to the field..." started Ishizu.
"And you have fallen for my trap!" exclaimed Kaiba. Shayla thought he almost sounded relieved. "I activate Soul Exchange, which tributes your three monsters for Obelisk the Tormentor!"
"Oh no!" gasped Duke.
"And Ishizu has no more defenses!" added Joe.
"She still doesn't seem worried to me," said Téa.
"I hope your plan works...." thought Shayla.
"So much for your fortune-telling abilities!" said Kaiba. "Those Millennial Items are nothing. And now I will prove it by crushing you with your own god card!"
"If you are so confident, then, by all means, go ahead," dared Ishizu.
"This has been fun," thought Yami Marik. "But it has started to bore me." He turned to leave.
"Go Obelisk! Att..!" Kaiba started to order, but his command got cut off by a massive surge from the Millennial Rod.
"Agh! What's that light?!" gasped Duke.
"What is going on?" wondered Shayla as she felt power flooding from the rod towards Kaiba. The rod was out of control of Marik (both of them). Something didn't seem right, at the same time, it did. It brought something to the surface of Shayla's mind that she couldn't grasp.
One the dueling arena Kaiba seemed to have spaced. His eyes were wide open but glazed over as he was lost in the images that the Millennial Rod was showing him. Memories that were his, and yet not his, were surfacing. The Blue-Eyes White Dragon appeared in stone in front of him.
"I-I..." stammered Kaiba. "I activate Silent Doom, which lets me bring one monster back from the graveyard."
"What?!" gasped Ishizu, for the first time looking unnerved. She hadn't seen this.
"See, I need to tribute two monsters to summon my Blue-Eyes White Dragon," said Kaiba. His left eye was twitching a bit. Magic like that was overwhelming. "I will not be controlled! I control my own future! I tribute Obelisk the Tormentor and my other monster and summon my Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"
"He tributed his god card for his dragon..before it was the other way around," said Shayla. "This is way too bizarre."
"Now attack, Blue-Eyes!" ordered Kaiba. It did and took the remaining bit of Ishizu's life points. Nonetheless, she was smiling.
"I win, your predictions were all wrong," said Kaiba.
"Thank you," replied Ishizu. "You have shown me there is still hope for my brother." She looked at the door that he had left through.
"What are you talking about?" he asked, huffily.
"I had only seen shadows in his future," answered Ishizu. "But you have proven the future can be changed. You have given me hope, and I thank you for that." Well, there wasn't much Kaiba could say when she was being nice.
"I feel like I just missed something," commented Joe.
"Well, at least no one is going to the hospital wing," said Tristan.
"Thank the Lord," agreed Shayla, and she genuinely meant that.
"Hey! What's that?" asked Mokuba as he pointed at something coming towards the airship.
"I-it sounds like a helicopter," stammered Shayla, who suddenly went stiff.
"It is!" exclaimed Yu-Gi.
"And it's heading our way," said Serenity.
"What's wrong, Shayla?" asked Téa when she noticed how tense she had gotten all of a sudden.
"I don't like helicopters much," groaned Shayla.
"I think it's going to land!" yelled Tristan, who had to yell to be heard over the blades. Sure enough, the copter was hovering over the dueling arena. Kaiba was glaring at it, but there was little else he could do to stop it.
"That's one of Industrial Illusion's helicopters!" exclaimed Yu-Gi.
"What is it doing here?" asked Joe.
The helicopter landed expertly on the middle of the duel arena. It didn't bother to park there, though. Two people got off of it, then the helicopter took off again.
"It's Drake and Lara!" exclaimed Yu-Gi.
"What are they doing here?" asked Tristan.
"I could ask the same thing," said Kaiba, venomously as he glared at the two new comers.
"Why else do you think I would have come?" asked Drake. He raised his right hand and spread six locator cards.
"Woah! Drake's a finalist, too!" exclaimed Joe.
"That hardly gives you the right to come crashing into the middle of my tournament," snapped Seto.
"Listen here, Mr. Hotshot," snapped Drake, "just because you're so obsessed about winning this thing doesn't give you the right to leave qualified finalists behind!" Lara took him by the arm, probably foreseeing the problem of an all out fight between the two.
"Calm down, Drake," she said. "He's not worth it." That earned her a glare for Kaiba.
"Drake! We're glad you're here!" called Joe. The rest of the group nodded.
"You have some nerve, Pegasus," said Seto, angrily. "I don't have time to waste on a poor excuse of a dragon duelist like you. So you can just high- tail it out of here the same way you came."
"What did you say!?" demanded Drake, enraged.
"Uh-oh," said Tristan. "Looks like dragon-breaths are at it."
"If those two start going at it, someone might end up in the hospital wing yet," commented Duke.
"Great, just what we need..." remarked Shayla.
"Now get out of my way," said Kaiba. "I have a tournament to run."
"Sure! Run from me, Kaiba!" spat Drake. Kaiba turned and gave him a nasty look. "I challenge you to a duel, right here, right now!"
Kaiba actually chuckled.
"What is your problem!?" demanded Lara, who was feeling angry on behalf of her boyfriend.
"You wouldn't last five moves against me," replied Kaiba with a malicious smirk. "Now get out of my way." With that he flounced off, Mokuba following.
"That arrogant,..." started Drake but he was too mad to continue.
"Drake! Don't let him get to you!" called Yu-Gi.
"Yeah, we're glad you made it," added Joe.
"Thanks," said Drake and Lara as they walked off of the platform and over to the group.
"I should have known you'd all be here," said Drake. "But I didn't know you entered, Duke."
"I didn't," answered Duke. "I'm just a spectator here."
"That's still cool," said Lara.
"You know each other?" asked Tristan.
"Drake has been the mastermind in getting my Dungeons Dice Monsters on the market," answered Duke.
"That's so cool!" exclaimed Serenity.
"Oh, you guys haven't met my little sister. This is Serenity," introduced Joe.
"You're the one he was dueling so hard for in the Duelist Kingdom? It's great to finally meet you," said Lara.
"Thanks," said Serenity as they shook hands.
"So what has been going on here so far?" asked Drake.
"That's a long story," sighed Téa.
"And most of it isn't good," added Shayla.
"What do you mean?" asked Lara.
"Come with us," sighed Yu-Gi. He lead them to the hospital wing
************************************************************************
"Oh my gosh! What happened?!" gasped Lara.
"The duels have been rough," answered Joe.
"That's an understatement," muttered Shayla.
"Sit down, this could take some time to explain," said Téa as she filled them in, with help from the rest of the group.
"And this Marik has been behind all of this?" asked Lara, sounding worried.
"And those god cards would explain why Kaiba was being even more arrogant than usual," added Drake. "And I didn't think that was possible."
"You're telling me," agreed Joe.
"But, who is Marik?" asked Lara.
"Perhaps I can help," said Ishizu as she entered the room.
"Hello Ishizu," greeted the group.
"Hello, and welcome Drake Pegasus and Lara Justina. I am afraid you did not get a proper welcome before," said Ishizu.
"How do you know us?" asked Lara.
"She's like that..." muttered Shayla.
"Marik is my brother, and I can tell you how he started down this dark path," said Ishizu.
"Would you, please?" asked Téa.
"It started with my family," said Ishizu. "We are tomb-keepers. For generations my family had guarded the pharaoh's tomb and waited for his arrival. But Marik wanted nothing of it. It was the day after he received the initiation that it all started."
*Flashback*
"I don't want to be a tomb keeper!" sobbed a younger Marik, still lying in bed from the tattoo he had been forced to receive the previous day.
"Please, calm down brother," pleaded Ishizu. "Father will hear you."
"We aren't even aloud to see the light of day!" he continued. "We're prisoners here. I just want to be normal!"
"Perhaps.." muttered Ishizu as she shared a look with Odion. He nodded.
"What, sister?" asked Marik with big eyes.
"Its still early, father is asleep...we..we could sneak out for an hour," she answered, very nervously.
"We could?!" exclaimed Marik, hopefully.
"Not so loud! Please!" insisted Ishizu.
"We have to sister!" said Marik, who was getting very excited. "If only for a moment!"
"Okay! We will! But you have to promise never to speak of it again!" said Ishizu.
"Thank you!" said Marik, hopping out of bed.
"I will remain here and cover for you," said Odion.
"Thank you," said Ishizu as she lead Marik to the exit of their underground home.
She pulled open the trapdoor and Marik stepped into the sunlight for the first time. The early streaks of dawn were spreading across the horizon.
"Wow!" exclaimed Marik.
"Come with me," said Ishizu as she lead him to the bazaar.
"I never imagined there was so many other people," said Marik. His eyes darted everywhere, taking in everything with a child-like eagerness.
"Marik, come on!" said Ishizu as she urged him along.
"What's this?" asked Marik as he spotted something in the ground. It was a magazine. "People shouldn't through books in the dirt." He picked it up and began to flip through it. "Wow! This is so different from the ancient writings!"
A TV in a nearby stall caught his eye. Marik did a double take between the TV and the magazine. The same image was on both, a motorcycle.
"What is that thing?" asked Marik.
"It's a TV," said Ishizu, who was starting to sound a little impatient.
"And what is that thing in the colored box?"
"A motorcycle."
"What's with you kids, haven't you ever seen a TV before?" asked the vendor.
"Um..." stammered Marik.
"Come on Marik, we're leaving!" said Ishizu as she took his hand and pulled him away.
"But sister!" he protested.
"No buts! You agreed when we left!" she reminded. Marik sighed.
A stranger wearing a white turban and robe appeared in front of them. Ishizu gasped and pulled her brother behind her.
"You've been warned Marik," he said. "Today you have taken your first steps down the path of darkness. You must change your course while there is still hope."
"Shadi?!" gasped Ishizu.
"Who is he?" asked Marik, nervously. "What is he talking about?"
"We must leave! We've been here too long!" said Ishizu, panicking. "We never should have come!" She started to pull Marik back to their home.
"But sister!" he whined.
"No buts!" she said, sharp enough that he didn't say another word until they had reached the trapdoor.
"Just one more moment sister, please?" begged Marik.
"Okay!" she exclaimed exasperated. "But please, hurry!"
Marik had walked over and sat on a pile of stones, pretending they were a motorcycle.
"Sister, can I take the picture?" he asked, pointing to the magazine that was still in his hands.
"Alright!" she caved again. "Just don't let father see it!" She pulled open the trapdoor and something in the corner caught her eyes. It was a rope system that led into the darkness that she had not seen before.
"An alarm!?" she cried. "Marik! We're in trouble!" With that both Ishtars raced inside, running straight to Marik's room. Odion wasn't there.
"Odion?!" gasped Marik. The room looked like it had been ransacked.
"Oh no!" gasped Ishizu.
They tore through the house and finally found Odion and their father in an unused back room. Odion had collapsed to the ground. He was bleeding and bruised from their father's 'questioning.'
"Oh no!" gasped Ishizu again.
"There you are!" growled their father. "Look at what you have done?! Now Odion will have to leave us! You know the rules!" he raised his hand to strike Odion again.
He never did, though, because something about Marik had changed. He chuckled, walked over, and picked up the Millennial Rod.
"Marik?! What are you doing?!" gasped their father. "You know you can't touch those!"
"This Millennial Item is now mine," said the evil spirit inside of him, which was created that day. "And there will be new rules."
"Marik! Put that down!" pleaded Ishizu.
"Silence!" snapped Marik. He used the rod and paralyzed her against the wall.
"Stop this now!" ordered their dad.
"No," he answered, then he did the same to his own father while Ishizu and Odion watched, helpless. "Good bye, father." With that he used the Millennial Rod and sealed his father's mind in the Shadow Realm.
The accomplished, he began to look around for another victim.
Odion had struggled to his knees and limped over to Marik, embracing him with his bound hands. The real Marik snapped back. He dropped the Millennial Rod and looked around in shock, not remembering what had just happened.
"Odion?! What's going on!?" he cried, terrified, frantically looking at his sister, who was still stunned, to his dad, who wasn't moving.
"You've been warned," came Shadi's voice. "Today you have taken your first steps down the path of darkness. You must change your course while there is still hope."
Marik started screaming in fear from the stranger's voice, thinking he was behind what had happened that morning.
*End Flashback*
When Ishizu finished silence fell over the hospital wing for several moments. Shayla was the one who finally broke it.
"And I thought my family situation was bad..."
"I-I-I'm sorry..." stammered Téa. "That's awful."
"That is why I have come. I have a request of you, Yu-Gi," said Ishizu.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Please, find a way to save my brother," she answered. "I have something for you that will help you."
"What?"
She unclasped her Millennial Necklace. "It is time I gave this to you. I can no longer use its magic."
"What?!" came the gasps from several people around the room.
"I know you will use it wisely," she said. Then she left.
"I don't believe it," gasped Joe, peering at the necklace to get a better look.
"Looks like we're right in the middle of the action," said Drake.
Shayla slipped out too, unnoticed by the rest of the group. She ran and caught up with Ishizu.
"Hello, Shayla. Shouldn't you be with your friends?" asked Ishizu. "Or are you worried that I will no longer be able to teach you? That is not the case."
"It's not that," said Shayla. "I just don't understand how the Millennial Necklace just stopped working."
"It was time for me to give it to the pharaoh. When I lost to Seto Kaiba, I lost my powers to use it."
"But...the Millennial Rod interfered then. And isn't it true that the Millennial Items have no power over each other..?"
"You are very perceptive," commented Ishizu. "But do not worry yourself. Your tasks are different from mine. Please, get some rest today. I can tell that you will need it."
"Um..sure..." stammered Shayla. "Bye." She turned down the hall that led to her room.
************************************************************************
Shayla couldn't sleep that night. She tossed and turned in bed before finally giving up and taking a walk. She once again found herself in the open air walkway. That place was probably the most relaxing for her in the entire ship. But it did little to calm her down tonight.
There was some sort of power flowing through the Millennial Items. She did not know exactly what it was, but it was evil. Something bad was going on at that very moment concerning the Millennial Items, and it made her shudder.
About half an hour later the power flow suddenly stopped. But that was far from reassuring. The regular patterns of the Millennial Items had been disrupted. Something had changed for the worst. Shayla didn't know what it was, but it was enough to keep her up half the night.
She finally went to sleep at about three in the morning. Unfortunately, that morning would hold its own nightmares.
To be continued in: Shayla's Story 3: Into the Virtual World
AN/ YAY!!!!! I finally finished one!!!!! Of course, I'm starting another in its place.. Well, thanks to everyone who's stuck around this far. I hope to see y'all in the sequel. And, as always, please read, review, and enjoy! (