Chapter Seventeen: The Ancient Ritual
As the blast died down, Yugi saw that the left hat had been destroyed, but the others remained. But that wasn't his main concern.
"Drat! I was sure you hid your magician was in that hat!" Florensia said angrily. Yami merely waved a finger at her.
"Then you thought wrong! But here's something I do know! Serenity and Saria are in deep trouble!" Yami replied. Everyone looked at him weird.
"You sure about that man?" Tristan asked. Yami nodded.
"Yes, I heard Saria call out to me when that attack connected. Joey! Tristan! I fear the worst! They've been gone far too long!" Yami replied.
"You're right. The ritual doesn't take long and the walk back would be even shorter," Saria noted.
"Then lets go!" Joey demanded and he, Tristan and Saria rushed down the trail.
"I want to go with them, but we have to stay or we'll be disqualified," Teran said, slightly discouraged.
"Don't worry Teran. If something is wrong, Tristan and Joey can handle it. Now lets continue this duel," Yami declared as he drew from his deck, "For this turn, I'll place this new card in my hats." As Teran drew, he couldn't help wondering how Yugi heard Saria. But he couldn't wonder about it now. He had work to do.
"You should have attacked my facedown monster. But now, I'll have to make you pay. I'll reveal my monster, Arsenal Summoner (1600/1600)," Teran began, a blue cloaked human appearing in front of him.
"Now, I'll use its special ability to draw this monster to my hand," Teran continued, reaching into his deck to pull a monster.
"Now, I'll sacrifice my summoner in order to bust out King's Guardian (2200/1500) in attack mode!" Teran said, summoning a knight dressed in red armor with white accenting. He held a sword and shield in his hands that matched the armor.
"Not bad Teran, but it's not strong enough to defeat my Child of Winds," Florensia pointed out.
"Maybe, but that might change. I'll place one more card down on the field and I'll let you try again on the Magical Hats," Teran grinned.

MEANWHILE AT THE SHRINE...

"Oh man! This might be it," Saria thought hopelessly. In the past several minutes, the girls had sunk down to their necks, but both had raised their arms over their heads in case someone did come along. But their hope had diminished. Again, they heard a sucking sound from around them. It was the same sound they heard each time they sunk a bit.
"I have a feeling we're going down," Serenity said sadly.
"Not if we can help it!" Said two male voices. The girls craned their heads to see Tristan and Joey with the Sage of Forest at their heels.
"Joey! Tristan! Help!" Serenity cried as her head sunk further. Her face and arms were the only things sticking out of the mud.
"Joey! Look in my side pouch for a rope and hook!" Saria shouted. Joey quickly knelt down near Saria's clothes and pulled a rope out of Saria's pack. He grabbed a nearby stone and tied the rope tightly around it. Tristan then took the tied up rock.
"Serenity! Saria! Catch!" Tristan called, hurling the rock towards the girls. Serenity reached for the rope and caught it as her face sunk below. Saria grabbed it, but she too sank below.
"Pull!" Tristan commanded and the two boys pulled with everything they had. But they weighed quite a lot.
"I'll help!" Saria declared. She knelt near the mud and placed her hands on the ground. The boys continued to pull as Saria glowed a soft green. Saria then raised her hands to the sky and the two boys watched as a large root, holding the girls rose out of the mud. The girls were coughing but they seemed OK. Saria then made the large root turn into a bridge by sprouting small branches to form railings. Tristan and Joey rushed onto the bridge and knelt near the girls. Serenity quickly clambered up to Joey and hugged him, clutching his jacket tightly. Joey promptly hugged her, tears in his eyes.
"It's OK Serenity. It's over now," Joey said soothingly.

MEANWHILE AT THE DEKU TREE...

"Child of Winds! Attack the middle hat!" Florensia commanded. Yami grinned as the attack hit another empty hat.
"Deku Nuts! I missed again! But this attack won't miss! Silpheed, attack the hat on the right! Wind scepter blast!" Florensia shouted. Yami grinned as the razor wind blasts hit the hat. In the hat's place was a glowing circle of energy.
"Now you've done it! You activated my Spellbinding Circle! It'll ensnare a monster and reduce its attack by 700 points! Go Spellbinding Circle! Trap Florensia's Child of Winds!" Yami taunted. The energy ring promptly quickly attached itself to Florensia's monster. The ring shot our sparks as it drained the monster's attack power.
"No! My Child! He's vulnerable!" Florensia screamed.
"Yes, and now. I'll draw a card then strike down your Child of Winds!" Yami declared. Florensia watched, wide-eyed as the Dark Magician Girl shot out a blast of pink energy at the Child of Winds, destroying it.
"Now I'll place one monster in defense mode and one more card facedown and end my turn," Yugi said, placing his new cards in his duel disk.
"OK! Now, I'll first reveal my facedown Big Bang Shot! It will increase my guard attack by 400 points, making it stronger than your Silpheed! Then I'll summon the Dark Blade (1800/1500) in attack mode!" Teran said, his black armored knight appearing on the field.
"King's Guardian! Attack Silpheed with your mighty blade!" Teran commanded, thrusting a hand forward. The knight leapt at the wind spirit and all Florensia could do was watch as it vanished in a cloud of dust.
"Now Dark Blade! Follow up with a direct attack!" Teran added. Florensia gritted her teeth as she was hit with Dark Blade's mighty sword. Florensia glanced down and saw that her life points stood at 4900.
"Excellent work Teran! That was exceptional dueling!" The Deku Tree praised. Yugi nodded.
"Yeah, that was stellar work Teran. Good move!"
"Don't celebrate just yet! I still have plenty of power left!" Florensia warned.
"Bring it on! We can take whatever you can dish out!" Teran replied as Florensia drew from her deck.

MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE SHRINE...

"Are you sure you still want to do this?" Tristan asked. Saria nodded.
"Yeah, I have to do it. It's tradition," young Saria replied. Still covered in mud, she stepped onto the stone platform and lifted her head high, eyes closed, totally focused on her task. She reached for the rusty amulet and everyone watched as her body began to glow a soft golden color. That light then was sucked up into the medallion. When the last speck of light was absorbed, there was a fierce explosion, sending smoke everywhere.
"Saria!" The boys cried. When the smoke cleared, Saria emerged clean and unharmed. Around her neck was the amulet now shiny and new. The rust was completely gone revealing the shiny gold frame and the three triangular holes were now filled with a ruby in the top triangle, an emerald in the right-hand hole, and a sapphire in the left-hand hole. The center was set with silver and it shined under the starlight.
"Whoa!" the boys said awed.
"It's done," Elder Saria sighed.
"Yeah. Lets get Serenity under the water, then head back to the duel site," young Saria replied. Everyone nodded as Serenity stepped into the natural shower. As Serenity let the water rush over her, Elder Saria couldn't help looking down at the remains of the holes.
There is no way that those two could have been trapped accidentally. Those holes were dug and the mud set just to trap Saria. The princess' prophecy was correct. The wheels of fate are turning once again for this family. But the question is who dug the trap? Are they the reason fate has conspired against Saria and her new friends? I hope not. The Sage of Forest thought as her namesake pulled on her clothes. Serenity stepped out of the shower and everyone left the shrine.
"We have to hurry! There's no telling what has happened since we left Yugi and Teran!" Saria urged. It was then Serenity pulled out her digital camera.
"Can I take a quick picture of the shrine?" Serenity asked. She didn't wait for an answer as she snapped a quick shot.
"Happy now sis? Then lets go!" Joey replied. Everyone then put on a double time pace.

BACK AT THE DEKU TREE...

"I'll begin with Pot of Greed! It lets me draw two new cards to build my hand up," Florensia began. She studied her new hand and grinned.
"Just play whatever you drew so we can win this duel," Teran said, boredom in his voice.
"As you wish. I'll first play this monster in defensive mode, then activate the magic card, Tribute Doll!" Florensia shouted. Yami gasped.
"Tribute Doll!" He gasped. Teran just stood there speechless.
"Confused? With this, I can sacrifice one monster in order to special summon a level seven monster. I'll sacrifice that Harpie Lady I hid in order to bust out my King of Red Lions (1500/2400) in defense mode!" Florensia explained.
"Florensia, your ship can not withstand an attack from my King's Guardian. Your move was in vain!" Teran said. Florensia shook her head in disagreement.
"You amateur! My King of Red Lions has a special ability that might shake you up a little. It first lets me summon back my Child of Winds then it lets me pay 1000 life points in order to search for any magic card I desire and play it without fear of it being negated," Florensia shot back.
Oh no! She's going to summon her Hero of Winds! We have to stop her, but the Magic Jammer I set down won't work! What are we going to do? Yugi thought frantically.
Stay calm Yugi! If Joey and Saria can defeat it, then so can we! Yami replied.
Speaking of which, where are...? Yugi began when Joey, Tristan, Serenity, and the two Sarias came into view.
"Hey Yugi! You were right! Saria and Serenity were in danger," Joey called.
"Are you alright?" The two girls nodded.
"Why are you two all wet?" Teran asked.
"We got trapped in a sinkhole," Serenity replied, "When we escaped, we were pretty dirty. So after Saria performed her ritual, we showered underneath the shrine's shower."
"We'll give you details later. Just wrap this up, OK?" Saria finished. Teran and Yugi nodded and averted their gazes towards Florensia.
"As I was saying, first my Child of Winds returns to the field in attack mode. Then I search my deck for a magic card and use it immediately. And don't bother activating a trap to negate my magic card. It won't work. I'll fuse together my child and my boat to form Link, the Hero of Winds (3100/2450)!" Florensia explained, her most powerful monster appearing on the field.
"That's the same monster that almost defeated Saria and Joey," Teran gasped.
"Well, thanks to the rules, I have to wait one turn in order to attack so use this turn well because next turn, the fun begins," Florensia said.
"Lets see what I can do," Yugi mumbled as he drew, "For this turn, I'll place one monster in defense mode and switch my Dark Magician Girl to defense mode." Everyone watched as Yugi's magician crouched down next to the two hidden monsters.
"OK, I'll put a defensive monster on the field and end my turn," Teran declared.
"Teran! Your other monsters! They're still in attack mode!" Tristan shouted. Teran ignored him.
"You idiot! If you're trying to bluff me, it won't work," Florensia said, glancing at a new card and grinning in the process.
"Guess what? You're both about to lose this duel! I'm activating the all-powerful Seismic Force magic card! With this, I can crush any two monsters you have on the field and take half of their attack points and deduct them from the owner's life points!" Florensia explained.
"Not with my Magic Jammer ready to intercept!" Yami shouted, revealing a down card. Florensia laughed.
"You idiot! My Hero of Winds allows me to play magic cards without fear of them being negated! You wasted your trap! And now, I'll waste your Dark Magician Girl and Teran's King's Guardian! Be gone from the field and take some of your masters' life points!" Yugi and Teran watched helplessly as their two monsters fell into abysses that appeared beneath them. They then watched as their life points dropped, Yugi's to 2200 and Teran's to 2300.
"Now for my attack! I'll beat you both by attacking Teran's Dark Blade!" Florensia said finally.
"Oh no! If that attack connects, Yugi and Teran will lose the duel!" Tristan realized.
"Do something! Quick!" Saria shouted as the ship's cannon fired a cannonball towards the warrior. But Yugi was ready with his trap.
"I'll intercept your attack with my Shift card! Your attack will now be drawn to my defensive Mystical Elf (800/2000), leaving us both unharmed," Yami declared, his elf appearing in front of the knight in time to take the attack.
"That was a waste of both your monster and trap! You're going to lose anyway so why did you protect Teran?" Florensia said, disgusted.
"Because he is my friend and we will win this duel despite your hero and his powers. Now I'll take my turn if you don't mind," Yami replied, drawing from his deck.
OK, that Hero of Winds monster is her strongest card so maybe if we beat it, we can win this duel. But right now, it has 3600 attack points. We're going to need something powerful to beat it. Yugi surmised.
"For this turn, I'll place one card facedown and end my turn," Yami said, a new card appearing in front of him.
"Now, lets see what I can come up with," Teran mumbled as he drew from his deck. He gasped at the card he drew and smiled.
"Florensia. You're done! I'm activating the Black Luster Ritual magic card!" Teran said, flashing his card.
"Not Black Luster Ritual!"
"Yes, it lets me sacrifice all of the monsters I've placed on the field in order to summon a warrior with unparalleled power! I'll sacrifice my Dark Blade and facedown Crimson Sentry in order to summon my all- powerful Black Luster Soldier (3000/2500)!" Teran explained, his monsters vanishing into a portal only to reappear as the infamous soldier. Florensia however wasn't scared.
"Your monster is impressive, but its attack points are still lower than mine. In a head to head battle, my hero has you beaten by 600 points," Florensia pointed out.
"Not if Yugi and I play this combo!" Teran replied, glancing over at Yugi.
"Right! I reveal my facedown card, Card of Sanctity! We all draw cards until our hands are maxed out at six cards," Yugi said, drawing a new hand.
"Big deal! You just gave me a free hand! Why do that?"
"So I can play my Energy Drain trap card!" Teran replied, revealing his down card.
"This trap lets me increase my soldier's attack power by 200 points for every card in your hand! That makes it stronger than your Hero of Winds!" Teran pointed out. Florensia gasped.
"Now watch the power of teamwork at work! Black Luster Soldier! Attack with all of your might! Destroy Florensia's Hero of Winds!" Teran commanded. Florensia watched as her warrior was cleaved into two with the Black Luster Soldier's mighty sword.
"And that puts an end to your Hero of Winds," Teran smirked as Florensia's life points went down to 3300.
"I'll let you go but the way I see it, this is over," Teran said, glancing at Florensia's hand. It was poised over her deck but it wasn't reaching for a card. It was then Florensia yanked the remains of her deck out of the slot.
"Does this mean you surrender?" Yami asked.
"What's going on?" Serenity wondered.
"In this tournament, when a duelist pulls their deck out of the disk, it means they give up," Joey replied.
"I would rather not be attacked on my next turn. The duel is yours," Florensia said, defeated. Teran let out a sigh of relief as he fell down to his butt. The duel had taken a toll on him.
"Well, take the medals and your prize: the boosters I promised," Florensia said, handing over the items. Yugi and Teran pocketed the prizes.
"Well, now that we've got the Life Medals, should we go back and get some sleep?" Saria asked. Everyone nodded. After a grueling hike and a change of clothes, the team fell asleep.