Here's chapter eight, another one of my favorites, I might add. Some of the cards in this chapter are based more on the show than in real life, but nothing that will ruin the flow of the duel.

Disclaimer: I wish I owned Yu-gi-oh or any of its characters. That way, I'd be obscenely rich. But I'm not obscenely rich, which means I don't own Yu-gi-oh in any way.

Chapter 8: Shadow Duel's End! Joey's Dark Fate

"I can't believe that my very soul is on the line for this duel," Joey said. "This is the greatest challenge of my dueling career."

He looked to Yugi for support, but almost couldn't see him through the shadow fog. Joey looked at his hand and realized that he was at a severe disadvantage.

"I'll place one monster in defense mode. That will end my turn."

Yami Bakura drew, and added the card to his hand without giving it a second thought.

"Ha Des, destroy his face down monster!" he commanded.

The demon raised its hand, and incinerated Joey's face down defense monster with intense flames. Yami Bakura, satisfied with this. Ended his turn. Joey drew, looking for anything that could turn the tide of the duel.

'This might help,' he thought. 'But summoning it will be tricky.' He thought for a second, then, remembered one of his face down cards. "Alright! God help me on this one. I'll summon Baby Dragon (1200/800), in attack mode!" Joey said out loud.

A small orange winged dragon appeared on the field and loosed a feeble roar. Yami Bakura threw his head back and laughed.

"How pathetic. You trust your fate to a little baby."

"Now I'll activate the face down card: Roulette Summoning!" Joey continued as one hologram activated. "When Roulette Summoning is activated, a die is rolled. If the number rolled is even, I can summon another monster from my hand. If the number is odd, I lose half my Life Points. So go dice roll!"

A holographic die appeared and rolled. It tumbled for a few seconds before landing on a four.

"All right, I can summon again!" Joey exclaimed. "And the extra monster will be Time Wizard (500/400)."

Next to Baby Dragon, a large clock-looking spellcaster appeared, holding a scepter in its hand. A strange counter rested on top of the scepter.

"Now things get interesting. Time Roulette, go!"

An arrow on Time Wizard's counter scepter began to spin.

"If that arrows lands on a time machine, the entire setting of this duel will be warped by 1000 years, aging both of our monsters. But if it lands on a skull...Time Wizard and Baby Dragon will be destroyed and I'll lose life points equal to half of both their attack powers. So come on Time Wizard, don't let me down," Joey said.

The arrow slowly crawled towards a skull, but then jerked and stopped on a time machine. Yami Bakura said nothing as Joey smiled from ear to ear.

"All right, here we go!" Joey yelled out.

"Time Magic," Time Wizard said.

A large vortex opened on the field and engulfed both Baby Dragon and Ha Des. When the vortex cleared, a much older, bigger dragon replaced Joey's Baby Dragon.

"Say hello to Thousand Dragon (2400/2000)," Joey said. "And now Ha Des is a pile of bones and- wait. No, it can't be!"

Yami Bakura's monster stood calmly on the field, swirling his glass of blood, just as he was before, as if nothing even happened.

"You should know better than that, mortal," Yami Bakura said with a smirk. "Demons live forever, so don't be surprised that a few thousand years don't matter to mine."

"Oh no, that was all I had." Joey said. "I'll end my turn."

Yami Bakura drew, then, took a second to listen to the wailing of the lost souls with a twisted delight before giving the order to strike.

"Now Ha Des, destroy his dragon with your unholy flame!"

Yami Bakura's monster did just that, and in an instant, Thousand Dragon joined the ranks of Joey's other monsters in the graveyard.

(Joey: 3200) (Yami Bakura: 7000)

"I'll end my turn. You are one step closer to the shadows," Yami Bakura said.

Joey drew, looked at his hand, and smiled, feeling hope return to him.

"I'll play Flame Swordsman (1800/1500) in attack mode," Joey said.

A tall warrior wielding a large flame-red sword appeared on Joey's side of the field.

"Next, I'll activate Salamandra, which increases my Swordsman's attack power by 700."

Flame Swordsman grunted as his sword began to burn with an intense flame that raised his power.

"That's the way to do it, Joey!" came Yugi's encouraging voice from somewhere within the shadows.

Joey smiled as he remembered that shadows or no shadows, Yugi always had his back.

"Now for my last face down card, go Monster Reborn, to bring back Jinzo!"

Joey's android rose from the ground and, once again, laid waste to Yami Bakura's traps.

"Now, Flame Swordsman (2500/1500), attack Dark Ruler Ha Des with Flaming Sword of Battle!" Joey commanded.

His monster leaped up and delivered a flaming blow to the demon menace, shattering it into holographic particles.

(Joey: 3200) (Yami Bakura: 6850)

"And Jinzo will hit your Life Points directly!"

Joey's machine fired a sonic wave at Yami Bakura, sending the soul stealer to the ground.

(Joey: 3200) (Yami Bakura: 4450)

"I'll end my turn," Joey said with a smile.

Yami Bakura got up and drew without even so much as an inch of concern of his face.

"Now it is time for you to face the ultimate fiend. I'll remove three fiends from my graveyard to summon Dark Necrofear (2200/2800), in attack mode!" Yami Bakura said.

His Earl of Demise, Legion Goblin, and Headless Knight appeared on the field, then exploded in a shower of purple shards. These shards then came together to form a tall, blue creature, almost female in appearance, which cradled a broken doll in one arm.

"Next, I'll activate Dark Core, which allows me to discard one card from my hand to the card graveyard, in order to remove one monster from play. So say goodbye to Jinzo!"

A black hole appeared above Jinzo's head, absorbing the monster.

"No, not Jinzo!" Joey yelled.

"Yes, Jinzo," Yami Bakura said mockingly. "I'll end my turn."

Joey drew as Yugi continued to look on with growing concern for his friend's safety.

'Come on fool. Take my bait,' Yami Bakura thought.

"I'll throw down Alligator Sword (1500/1200), in attack mode," Joey said.

A large alligator appeared on the field, wearing thick armor and holding a long sword.

"Now Flame Swordsman, attack and destroy his Necrofear!"

Joey's monster charged forward with a fierce battle cry and raised its sword above its head.

'Just what I needed,' Yami Bakura thought as his Dark Necrofear was sliced in half.

(Joey: 3200) (Yami Bakura: 4150)

"Alligator Sword, attack him directly," Joey ordered.

His monster leaped up and slashed Yami Bakura's chest with its long sword.

(Joey: 3200) (Yami Bakura: 2650)

"Now, who's closer to the darkness?" Joey asked, as the shadows around Yami Bakura got even thicker.

"You fool. I am the darkness," Yami Bakura said.

"Whatever. I'll end my turn," Joey responded.

Just then, a strange purple ball of energy rose from the ground, floated over to Joey's Flame Swordsman, and implanted itself into the monster's back.

"What was that thing?" Joey asked.

Suddenly, his Swordsman's eyes rolled into the back of his skull as he blindly marched over to Bakura's side of the field.

"Hey, get back over here!" Joey yelled.

"Yell all you want, but it's hopeless. Your Swordsman is mine," Yami Bakura said with a laugh.

"How?" Joey asked.

"It's simple. When you attacked my Dark Necrofear, you activated her special effect. When she is destroyed, my Necrofear comes back as magic card. Using this magical effect, I can take control of one of your monsters, hence, your Flame Swordsman fights for me now."

"Now he tells me," Joey said.

Yami Bakura drew and immediately played the monster.

"I summon Opticlops (1800/1700), in attack mode."

A huge, one-eyed demon appeared on Bakura's side of the field.

"Opticlops, attack his Alligator Sword!"

Bakura's monster leaped up and slammed into Joey's monster with its muscular body, shattering it.

(Joey: 2900) (Yami Bakura: 2650)

"And now, I'll use the Flame Swordsman, that you were so quick to give away, to attack your Life Points!"

The Flame Swordsman charged forward, almost in a zombie-like trance, and slashed Joey with his flaming sword.

(Joey: 300) (Yami Bakura: 2650)

The Shadow fog thickened around Joey's body as he attempted to recover from the attack.

"The Shadows are hungry. I'll end my turn," Yami Bakura said.

Joey drew. 'This card will definitely help me,' he thought. 'Penguin Soldier. If he attacks it, I'll be able to send two monsters back to their owners' hands.' "Alright, I'll set one monster in defense mode and end my turn," Joey said out loud.

Yami Bakura thought for second before he drew.

'That card could be a trap. He looks too confident. I'd better play it safe.' "I'll activate the magic card: Ectoplasmer!"

"What is that?" Joey asked.

"I'm glad you asked. Ectoplasmer allows me to drain the soul of one of my monsters, and fire it at you in the form of pure energy. And since your monster's weakness sickens me, I'll choose it."

Joey's Swordsman began to fade away, until there was nothing left but a glowing sphere. Suddenly, the sphere launched itself, striking Joey in the chest with a ghastly moan.

(Joey: 0) (Yami Bakura: 2650)

"No. How could I lose this duel?" Joey asked.

"Forget the duel. You've lost something much more important, or have you forgotten that this was a Shadow game?" Yami Bakura asked as he walked closer to Joey.

"Wait, please. Don't send me to the Shadow Realm. Bakura, if you're in there, now's a good time to remember who your friend is," Joey said frantically.

"Stop your sniveling, mortal. The shadows await."

The Millennium Ring began to glow brightly as Bakura laughed wickedly.

"No, stop!" cried a voice from the edge of the shadows. Yami Yugi ran over to them, his Millennium Puzzle glowing to light the way through the fog. "That's enough! He already lost this duel."

"Yes, he did," Yami Bakura said. "And it was a Shadow duel, therefore..." Yami Bakura turned around to face Joey. "...It's time to face your own personal slice of hell's torture."

The Millennium Ring glowed even brighter. "Yugi, help me, please!" Joey cried out before the shadows around him rose up and engulfed the blonde duelist. Yami Bakura laughed maniacally as little Yugi's transparent form sank to his knees.

"No. This can't be. My best friend is gone." Tears began to roll down his face.

"Don't feel sad, little one," Yami Bakura said. "You'll by trapped in the shadows mind, body, and soul for all of eternity just like Joey soon enough."

"How dare you!" Yami said, practically dripping with rage. "Bring him back, right now!"

"Sorry, but I can't do that. You know as well as I do that there is only one way he's coming back," Yami Bakura said.

"Defeat you in a duel, right?" Yami Yugi asked.

"Wrong. I want the Egyptian god card that your friend possesses. Give it to me, and then, I'll consider bringing that fool back."

'How does he know about the god card?' Yugi thought.

"Bring the card to the warehouse at the southern edge of the island by noon. I'll be waiting."

Yami Bakura's wicked laughter could be heard as the fog lifted and disappeared, along with the dark spirit. Jason got up from the ground and looked around.

"What happened? Did Joey win? I couldn't see because of the fog."

"No. Joey lost. And now, Bakura wants your Egyptian god card in exchange for Joey's soul," Yami Yugi said.

"He wants my what in exchange for Joey's what?!" Jason exclaimed.

"Listen, because this is going to be a long explanation," Yugi said.

"I've got nothing but time on my hands."

"Do you remember that strange card that you showed me?"

"Yes, I do," Jason replied, sticking his hand in his pocket to check on the card.

"That card is part of a mystical group of duel monsters known as the Egyptian gods. These monsters have enough power to wipe out the entire world."

"The whole world?! And I'm holding one? This is way too much for me to take. I figured that I was going to help bring this planet down, but not like this."

"Don't worry. Only those who possess a Millennium Item and have a connection to the ancient past may properly wield a god card," Yugi said reassuringly.

"A Millennium Item? You mean like that thing around your neck?"

"Yes. This is just one of seven magical artifacts that grant their user special powers. The object around Bakura's neck was also a Millennium Item. I know that this all sounds absurd, but it's the truth."

"Yugi, after seeing the things that I saw, trust me, I believe you. Besides, the way I was brought up, there's a lot of things that I would believe. So, tell me. Who is that Bakura kid that beat Joey?"

"He is a very evil spirit that dwells within the Millennium Ring, which is the object around Bakura's neck," Yugi replied.

"Let me guess: he wants to take over the world using my god card."

"Yes. He also wants my Millennium Puzzle and the power that lies within it. But right now, that isn't the most important thing. What is important is that we get Joey back. But the question is how do we do that, without losing your god card?"

"There's only one way, Yugi. There's only one way."

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Well, that's the end of that chapter. If you're a fan of Joey, I'm sorry that my chapter ended that way. If you're a fan of Bakura, I'm glad you enjoyed watching him stomp that boy into the ground. Looking forward to your reviews. Peace.