Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh! Or Nick who belongs to Phoenix727 or DJ and Darien whom belong to DJ Rodriguez. Here's Chapter 29.
Chapter 29: Return To The Place Where It All Began!
The sun moved upwards in the sky as afternoon approached. The beams of light illuminated the huge body of Ra while it looked out into the horizon to guard us from intruders. Mesenet and Ammon were still weary from their previous fight. Artemis tended to her Ka, her eyes filled with anguish, and she glanced at Ra. I had no idea what my Ka was looking at, but I could not worry about this now. Joey and Kaiba were both lying on the smooth grass to regain their strength before we moved on.
I watched Atem and Forseti speaking with Nick, DJ, Tea and Darien about the battle they fought against Pluto. I sat down on the grass and felt the breeze sway my hair. Then I sensed someone approaching me.
I arched my head to find Apollo in front of me, eyes glaring with anger. "What's wrong?" I asked.
Apollo knelt down beside me. He looked towards his sister, then faced me. "Yugi, I know what you did with Artemis last night." His tone sounded dark.
I blinked in confusion. "I have no idea what you are talking about."
"You cannot deny the truth!" Apollo spat. He clutched his fists tightly. "I read Orpheus' mind since he was unable to hide what he and Nidoki witnessed."
I sighed in defeat. "Apollo, please don't tell anyone!"
"I won't, but promise me something," he said. "Whatever happens to me, please take care of my sister. She must not perish or else we will face the consequences."
"What consequences?" I questioned. Apollo stood up and walked away.
Artemis came over and she stared at her brother with a puzzled look. She immediately sat down and turned to me. "What was Apollo talking to you about?"
I lowered my eyes. "Just nothing..."
Artemis gave me an unusual look. She seemed to have not believed me, and she lifted her knees up as she placed her chin on them. Her moon amulet dangled in the air beside her chest.
"Artemis, why did you make a promise with Yukai?" I inquired. She nodded her head.
"Well, recall when Erebus appeared and I tried to defeat him," she said. "He was the reason Yukai almost destroyed Animus."
"I know that part, but how did Erebus come into existence?"
"Yukai's rage..." she muttered resentfully. "It created a monster to be born within Yukai..."
I pondered over the response Artemis gave me. Something about the word "monster" left me with an awful thought in my mind. It was like Yukai really became a blood-thirsty beast who wanted nothing more but to cause chaos. Even Erebus sounded psychotic when I first saw him with my own eyes.
In addition, Apollo did not seem right by the way he spoke to me. He could have foreseen the future, but why had he told me instead of Artemis? Apollo was probably worried she would not believe him, especially since he knew what we did last night.
"Then my twin brother knows." Artemis said, snapping me out of my thoughts. She glowered at Apollo angrily.
"Don't be mad at him!" I pleaded. "He promised to not tell anyone!"
Artemis rested her back on the grass. She took the Millennium Rod out, curling her fingers around where the knife was hidden. A sly smile appeared on her face. "There's more to his promise, isn't it?" she said coldly.
Meanwhile in the farther regions of Animus, Seiryu ordered the Galactic Dragon to destroy another defenseless city. The entire area was turned to rubble the instant the Galactic Dragon attacked. Seiryu was extremely pleased about the destruction and he glanced at two figures appearing in the distance.
Seiryu noticed Yukai and Pluto coming closer and he told the Galactic Dragon to cease. The two Guardians managed to reach him, restless from their battle, and they were surprised to see the city totally annihilated.
"I assume that the rest of the Millennium Guardians and the mortals have not been eliminated yet." Seiryu replied.
Yukai nodded his head. "Just a minor setback," He said. "Yugi has learned to activate one of Ra's abilities."
"Unity." Seiryu mused. He smirked at the two Guardians, grasping the hilt of his sword and drawing it from its sheath. "I want the both of you to head to Gold City. I want it destroyed!"
"But what if they come to stop us?" Pluto argued.
Suddenly the Winged Dragon of Ra appeared, descending from the sky and radiating a golden light. The monster roared which sent Yukai and Pluto falling on their backs from the sound. They stood up, giving Seiryu baffled looks.
"This time you will be taking my Ka and make sure those Phoenix Dragons are gone for good!" Seiryu commanded. Yukai and Pluto left immediately with the Winged Dragon of Ra following them. Seiryu raised his sword towards his face, looking at his reflection on the blade. "Yugi and his horde of pests have gotten on my last nerve, and if I succeed in crushing him, his friends will go down with him." Then Seiryu resumed ordering the Galactic Dragon to destroy Animus.
The whole day seemed to pass by us quickly and nightfall came. The stars shined brightly in the sky as the moon appeared through the horizon. The moon began its waning process, but I noticed something strange in the sky. I tried to clear my vision as I stared directly at two moons. The two objects were in the phase of waning, and I did not understand what was going on.
"Uh, Artemis..." I said. I turned to her and she had dozed off into slumber. I nudged her as her eyes snapped open.
Artemis rubbed her eyes and looked at me puzzled. "What's wrong?" I pointed to the two moons in the sky. "Oh, that..."
"There's gotta be an explanation for that!" Joey said to Kaiba as they came towards us. The rest of our friends were as confused as I was.
Artemis rolled her eyes and then sighed. She realized Apollo and Forseti had a complicated time answering their questions and she stood up to confront them. "Of course, there is a logical reason for this."
"There is?" Joey responded.
"One of the moons is of Earth's and the other is of Animus," Artemis explained. "There is even a chance to see all the planets in the solar system if you know where to look."
Everyone stared at her perplexed. They probably thought she was kidding around, but I believed her. Although I wondered if there were mysteries within this vast universe that the Guardians might know. It was like I had this feeling that told me that there might be more than we know, and I wanted to know if this was true.
"Tell me, do the two moons ever align?" I asked Artemis. She looked down at the ground for a moment before answering.
"Well, on rare occasions they do but -" She was interrupted by the dim glow of her mirror. She took it out as the mirror revealed images of Gold City.
Slifer and Obelisk appeared and began destroying the city. Yukai and Pluto were there, but along with them was the Winged Dragon of Ra. The Egyptian God wiped out many ancient-looking structures, and its shrill cries echoed in the sky. Flames burned, buildings were left in ruin and bloodshed was everywhere. The citizens were running for their lives and they were shocked to see that their ruler had turned against them. Yukai showed no mercy towards them as he killed many innocent lives. He was indeed a murderous being, just like his older brother, Pluto, had been.
The mirror's glow disappeared, and the owner clenched her teeth. Artemis gripped the item tightly, glaring at Apollo and Forseti and her eyes quivered. She was in no position to speak as she moved everyone aside, and called on Mesenet to follow her. I went after her and grabbed her arm.
"Artemis, what are we going to do?" I queried her. She stared back down towards the ground, mumbling a few words under her breath. "Well?"
"Apollo, Forseti, alert Nidoki and Orpheus that we will be going to Gold City." Artemis ordered.
"Should we come, too?" Forseti asked.
Artemis shook her head in disagreement. "No, you and the rest of our brethren will be back-up just in case something goes wrong." She explained. Both Apollo and Forseti headed back to the temple as Artemis faced us. "This time we will be encountering the Winged Dragon of Ra, but our first priority is stopping Yukai and Pluto."
"Ingenious plan, and how do you expect us not to be destroyed by the Winged Dragon of Ra?" Kaiba interrupted.
"Even though the three Egyptian Gods are formidable, they still have their weaknesses," Artemis said. "Slifer and Obelisk can be dealt with by anyone, but the Winged Dragon of Ra is our main concern. Luckily DJ and Darien can take care of it easily."
"What do you mean?" Tea questioned.
"Remember when Yukai showed us how we can combine the strength of the Ka with the use of this Spell card," DJ reminded as he took out the United We Stand card. "Since we have more Ka, I can activate this card to eliminate the Winged Dragon of Ra like I did with Slifer."
"But first we must attack it in order to weaken it." Darien added.
"Then the rest of us will be fighting Slifer and Obelisk." Nick replied. "What about Yukai and Pluto?"
Artemis turned away. "Joey, Kaiba, Yugi and I will be facing them." She said. The Millennium Rod rested in her hands, and suddenly the Millennium Ring materialized in front of her. She gave the item to Joey and nodded.
"So, then we will be busy wipin' the floor with Pluto!" Joey hollered excitably. Kaiba snorted at him and walked away.
"Well, let's not wait any longer." Atem said.
The warp tunnel appeared beside us as Ammon, Mesenet and Ra disappeared. We jumped in and were instantly transported to Gold City. We came out and collapsed on to the ground. The area was completely barren and there were no visible signs of life. It felt desolate, and the sky was covered in a shade of bloody-red.
I took a step back, pushing into Artemis who stared blankly at the city. She watched as fire rained down from the sky, the earth quaked and lightning flashed. The Winged Dragon of Ra appeared and began to send out a blast of yellow light. Artemis's eyes glowed, and we were taken to a safer place before the Egyptian God attacked. Everyone fell to the ground, and I glanced back at where the Winged Dragon of Ra was. A huge hole emerged from where we were standing and I was thankful that was not us.
"Come on, Darien," DJ said to him. "We have a certain dragon to slay. We'll call you all when we are ready to commence the plan!" The two left and they were more than eager to fight the Winged Dragon of Ra.
"I guess we face Slifer and Obelisk." Nick said as he turned to Artemis. Luna appeared in her spirit form, the Soul Sphere in her hands.
"Neko shall assist you, Tea and Atem." Artemis replied.
Luna sighed. "This is what I get for remaining a sorceress..."
"Quit complaining." Nick responded. "We can take care of Slifer, then that weak god, Obelisk."
Luna rolled her eyes. "Mortal, even though we are working together, that doesn't mean I will take orders from you!"
"Luna, I'd listen to him if I were you." Artemis said.
"Darn..." Luna groaned. "I have to work with -"
"Luna!" Artemis scolded. She probably knew Luna was about to insult Nick, Tea and Atem with her harsh comments. Luna complied to her plans, and the four went off on their own to confront Slifer and Obelisk. "Kaiba, Joey, I believe you two know what you will do."
"Of course." Kaiba responded as he walked away, his trench coat billowing as he moved. Joey raced after him with the Millennium Ring in his hand.
"Yugi, let's go." She said.
We approached the deserted city, passing by the empty streets and seeing blood and dead bodies everywhere. The smell of burning flesh resided in the area. The scent wafted around me, making me feel ill and giving me an uncomfortable feeling. Artemis did not seem bothered by this, like she was used to it. She had witnessed the suffering of millions in the last two centuries, so it would not surprise me if she was not familiar at all. Maybe this was how it was like during the Final Battle. I could not imagine what had gone on, but I guessed whatever caused the Guardians to disappear might still be around.
"If it isn't the Guardian of Wind and the Pharaoh's pathetic vessel." A voice said in the distance. Yukai appeared through the thick smoke and he wielded no weapon.
"Yukai..." Artemis muttered.
"You two cannot possibly think you can defeat me," Yukai taunted. "Besides, Artemis knows more about me than you do, Yugi."
"I don't care!" I roared. "This insanity must end here and now!"
"How can you betray your own people for this madness?" Artemis spat. She grasped the Millennium Rod in her hands firmly and her moon amulet glowed. "Yukai, please, remember you vowed to prevent any evil from plaguing our world!"
Yukai fell silent. Rain began falling and we were drenched from the water drops. Lightning continued to flare as Yukai remained in his spot, his eyes glaring at us. "Artemis, you may think I am on your side, but I would not count on that!"
"We have no choice..." she whispered. "Hand him his sword."
"What?" I bickered.
"Just do it!" she yelled. I gave Yukai's sword back by sliding it towards him. He picked it up as the blade gleamed from the lightning.
"Mind telling me what is going through your head?" I asked.
"Yugi, this time we are fighting to the finish." Artemis replied. She produced her staff and watched Yukai. He was surprised as I was by Artemis's decision. "Yukai, I will free you from the darkness that has consumed your soul!"
"Then you and Yugi should give me all you got!" Yukai shouted as he lifted his sword into the air. He tried to strike Artemis, but she managed to escape in time.
She and I summoned our Ka, and we were prepared to fight him. I knew Artemis and Yukai had been friends for a very long time, and I knew nothing could tear them apart, making them fight like this. There had to be a way to prevent either of them to die, or the consequences would be severe.
Author's Notes: Now about what Apollo spoke to Yugi. He did foresee the future since he is related to Artemis and what Apollo said is a warning he is giving because there is a possibility something wrong may happen once Struggle of Chaos starts.
Yugi and Artemis have no choice but to fight Yukai, and the Guardian of the Sky has a few tricks up his sleeve. Yukai is nearly invulnerable by their attacks, and the duo better come up with a way to defeat him. Yet visions appear in Yukai's mind that show his past with Artemis many centuries ago. Next time on Dark Crisis - Chapter 30: Memories of the Forgotten Past Life