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Fanfic Chapter 28: Dueling Identities Pt 1: Mai's Perfect Strategy
Episode Basis: Dual Identities Pt 1

Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh! The night before the finals was anything but restful. Mai contemplated her strategy to use against Yugi knowing well that Yugi has seen all the cards in her deck. Harold was trying to understand what was in a strange package he found in his backpack. Bandit Keith snuck into Joey's room and took his entry card. Yugi received a frightening vision in his sleep in which his Grandpa told him that Pegasus' shadow power increases with every soul he sends to the Shadow Realm and that the only way to stop him was to discover the secret of Yugi's Millennium Puzzle. But it was Tea, Tristan, and Bakura that had the most interesting night. While trying to find proof that Pegasus cheated in his duel against Kaiba, they penetrated Pegasus' secret sanctuary. However, they were caught by Pegasus. Pegasus sent them to a strange chamber where they saw him playing an ancient form of Duel Monsters. Pegasus was ready to use their souls to increase his power when a mysterious cloaked figure stopped him and Bakura's Millennium Ring activated and the dark spirit inside erased the experience from everyone's memory. The good news: it's the day of the finals. The bad news: that's the only good news.


Morning has arrived, yet I haven't slept a wink last night, Yugi thought as he dressed. I sure hope I'm doing the right thing in choosing to duel again. But with Grandpa's soul at stake, I have to. Grandpa told me to trust the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle but how can I? It was willing to do anything to beat Kaiba. The door knocked and his friends entered. "What's up, Tea? How you doing, guys?"

"You ready to kick some butt, Yug?" Joey asked.

"I am if you are."

"Then let's do it to it," Harold said.

Yugi and the gang walked to a intersection. "We'll have to cheer you from the balcony, Yugi, only Duelists are allowed on the arena floor."

"I'm so proud of both of you," Tea said. "Do your best!"

"We intend to," Yugi said. The group separated. Yugi and Joey went into the antechamber where Mai and Bandit Keith were waiting.

"Well, look who's finally awake," Mai said. "I was beginning to wonder if you were even going to show up." Yugi just nodded.

"Hey there, Dweeb," Bandit Keith called. "You ready to get your butt kicked across the arena and back again?"

"Dream on, at least I didn't have to steal star chips to make it this far. And I won't have to cheat to beat you, Keith."

You're such a hopeless case, you don't even realize I swiped your card, Keith thought.

"Attention, attention, the Duel Monster Championships are about to start," a voice over a PA said. All finalists will now enter the arena." The far wall parted and the finalists stepped to the ground floor where the arena was. "And now, may I present your host: the creator of the Duel Monster card game, Mister Maxamillian Pegasus!"

Pegasus entered from the other side where a throne was set up. He was flanked by Croquet and another of his guards. "Yugi, Joey, Mai, and Bandit Keith, I welcome you to the playoff arena. Here is where the last great Duel Monster battles will take place to decide who will become the champion of the Duelist Kingdom. Only one of you will emerge victorious. Only one of you will earn the 3,000,000 dollar prize."

That's got to be me, Joey thought. I need that money to pay for my sister's operation.

"And of course, the victor shall earn the right to challenge me in a final match."

"Gee, isn't that special?" Tristan asked sarcastically. "And what does the player get if he beats you in the final duel?"

"The player will get bragging rights, and be declared the Duel Monster Champion of the World! They will also get one request of any type that they so desire. If it's within my vast power and if they win, I shall grant it."

"The Champion of the World," Harold gasped.

"And boys, that'll be me," Mai said. There were skeptic grunts all around.

"Now to make this exciting, I have… shall we say… tighten the rules here. There shall be no Field Power Bonus here. Any changes in a monster's attack and defense points will come from the cards you have in your decks. Attacking a player directly is not allowed. And any influence from the outside will result in that player's disqualification." Pegasus scanned those gathered on the balcony. "Follow these rules ritualistically. Remember, I will be watching. Now shuffle your decks and let the duels commence!"

"The first match shall be Mai Valentine versus Yugi Moto," Croquet announced. "Will the Duelists please proceed to the arena?"

No matter what happens, I can't let the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle take control. I don't want him hurting Mai or worse.

"Before we begin, each of you must show the entry card required for your participation," Croquet declared. Mai revealed Glory of the King's Hand and Yugi the Glory of the King's Opposite Hand. "Both qualify, the duel may proceed."

"Oh man, this will be intense," Harold commented. "Almost makes me wish I had a camera with…" Joey wedged himself between Harold and Tea.

"Joey, what are you doing here?" Bakura asked.

"I wanted a good view of the action."

Yugi tried psyching himself up for the match. I have to be at my best if I'm going to make it through these playoffs. But I also have to keep the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle in check. If the Spirit of the Ring was willing to do anything to win, who knows what the Spirit of the Puzzle will do to win against Mai?

I used to think the only person a Duelist can rely on is herself, Mai thought. Everyone else was just an opponent. Then I met Yugi Moto and I learned that Duelists can be opponents on the field and friends off the field. If he hadn't loaned me his star chips, I wouldn't have made it to the next round. I owe him a very great debt. I promised I would give him an honorable duel and that's what I'm going to give him. But if he thinks I'm not going to battle all-out, he's got another thing coming. I'm going to give this match everything I got. So when Yugi goes down, it will be a victory I can be proud of. As much as I like him, I plan to duel hard and I plan to win! I promised him an honorable duel, not an easy one.

"Let the first round of the Duelist Kingdom Playoffs begin!" Croquet announced.

"Let's duel!"

(Y: 2000)
(M: 2000)

As Mai drew her sixth card, she heard Yugi chuckled. "If you think you can try your psychic act on me like you did on Joey, you'll find that I'm not so easily convinced."

"Uh-uh, no tricks this time, kiddo."

You know, I believe her.

"I'm not all smoke and mirrors. Even without my psychic act, I can duel with the best of them. I summon Harpie Lady in attack mode!"

"That's seems to be Mai's standard opening move," Harold guessed.

"Yugi better be careful," Tea said.

"Don't worry about it, Tea, Yugi knows what's coming. He's seen Mai's routine before."

"And I'll lay one card face-down and end my turn."

I better finish Mai off fast. The sooner I can do that, the less chance of interference from the Spirit of my Millennium Puzzle. "Gaia, the Fierce Knight, attack Harpie Lady!" Gaia charged forward.

Gotcha. "Thanks, Yugi, I wanted you to attack, it'll set off my trap: Mirror Wall!" A glass wall rose up around Harpie Lady and Gaia ended up stabbing… itself? "Your knight ran smack into my Mirror Wall, which cuts any attacking monster's attack points in half."

(GFK: 2300-1150)

"My turn, I see, and I think I'll fashion Harpie Lady up with Cyber Shield."

(HL: 1300-1800)

"Harpie, attack Gaia with Cyber-Slash!" Harpie Lady scratched Gaia with her claws and destroyed him. "Well, like they say, nice Gaias finish last."

"Great, all of a sudden, everyone's a comedian," Harold groaned.

(Y: 1350)
(M: 2000)

Mai laughed, "I'm surprise you fell for such an obvious trap, Yugi. Don't tell me you're losing your edge in a championship match. If I didn't know better, I could've sworn you're holding back."

I am holding back, Yugi thought as he drew a card: Summoned Skull. But maybe this can help. If I can keep drawing powerful cards like this one, I can end the match quickly and I can stop worrying about the Spirit of the Millennium Puzzle. "I'll lay a card face-down and attack with Summoned Skull." Yugi's demon monster stood tall as it began to gather lightning. "Summoned Skull, electrify that Harpie with Lightning Strike!"

"You're really off your game today, Yugi."

"Huh?"

"You fell for the same trap twice."

"Mirror Wall?"

"Yup, it's back!" Summoned Skull's attack doubled-back on it reducing its attack points.

(SS: 2500-1250)

"You mean it's a permanent trap?"

"Very perceptive, Yugi, you're a couple of turns too late but at least you're starting to catch on. Better hurry and get that little brain of yours in gear, Yugi."

"Most of the trap cards I've encountered before are used only once after they're activated. So your Mirror Wall took me by surprise. It's the exception to the rule."

"Oh yeah, it's exceptional all right, like me, and it will employ the same exceptional ability every time you attack. Let's face it; you're going to have to bring your game up a few notches to even keep me interested, Yugi."

"Mai's right," Bakura agreed. "Yugi won't win by simply attacking."

"I don't get it, why isn't he thinking through his moves like he usually tells me?" Joey asked.

"Yugi, what's wrong?" Tea muttered.

"Yugi, let me help you!" The Spirit called out.

"No, I can't take that risk!"

"What is with you today, Yugi?" Mai asked. "I expected a tough battle from you and all I get is this lame frontal assault. The only reason I duel, Yugi, aside from the mucho prize money, is to receive the pleasure of trouncing a worthy opponent."

"Are you saying I'm not worthy?" Yugi asked.

"Not today, kiddo, your body may be in the right place but your head and heart have split for parts unknown. It's really a let down."

"You're questioning my dueling spirit?"

"Bingo, it seems that you're still shell-shocked from your loss against Kaiba. Well get over it, I'm your opponent now and I want to be battling someone at his best, not some Duelist who's scared of his own shadow! You got to shape up and get in gear, Yugi, or I'm going to knock you out of this tournament!"

"You don't understand; it's not about Kaiba!"

Pegasus chuckled. Ah, Yugi, I can sense your fear. For some reason, you're afraid to tap the power of your Millennium Puzzle, a fear I plan to cure you of, when I make your puzzle mine!

"Well whatever's going on, it's boring," Mai complained.

"I can't let you win."

"Let me win? Listen, Hun, with the way you've been dueling today, I don't think there's a single thing you can do to stop me. I promised you an honorable duel, Yugi, and I thought you'd do the same. What a let down. Are you going to get it together or are you going lay down and play dead like an old dog?"

"Mai's even more obnoxious when she's winning," Tristan complained.

"Don't let her psyche you out!"

"I don't think Mai's trying to do that," Tea said.

"I think you're right, Tea, it seems like Mai's trying to actually help Yugi."

"Yeah, by coaxing him out of his funk, Mai's trying to restore Yugi's dueling spirit."

"Believe me, Mai," Yugi said. "I'm giving it all I got."

I want to believe him, but I just don't know… he seems distracted by something, is it Pegasus? No, I don't think it's that, it's something inside of him, something that he can only fight inside his own heart.

"I promise you, Mai, I'm not going to lose. Make your next move."

Maybe I'm just making too much out of this. I really do hope that's the case, Yugi, or defeating you will be no fun at all. She drew a card. Yugi thinks I'm going to send Harpie Lady to attack Summoned Skull, that's why he played that card face-down. It has to be a trap! "No attack this time, instead I'm going to sweep your trap away with Harpie's Feather Duster!" Harpie Lady grew extra sets of wings as she destroyed Yugi's trap card, Spellbinding Circle.

"Very clever of you, Mai."

"I do appreciate the compliment. Keep your eyes on me, Yugi, I might teach you a thing or two."

Mai still has that Mirror Wall in play, Yugi noted. I can't attack without having my monster's attack power cut in half. I need to alter my strategy. I switch Summoned Skull to defense mode." Summoned Skull's wings folded up around it. "And I'll also play a monster card face-down and in defensive mode."

"Not much else you can do, is there, Yugi? Since I've left you no way to attack, it's my turn now and I'll play Rose Whip to raise my monster's attack power!"

(HL: 1800-2100)

She keeps powering up her Harpie Lady and hiding behind that mirror wall.

"Let me help you, Yugi, we can beat her together," the Spirit argued.

"Now your monster's going to feel my Harpie's sting. Whiplash Attack!" Yugi's Feral Imp was destroyed. "That's nothing, Yugi, stick around, the fun's just beginning."

"Am I seeing this?" Harold asked. "I expected the duels to be intense but this one's been one-sided."

"She's probably going to try to multiply her Harpie Lady next," Joey predicted.

"I have to find a way to turn this around." But how, Mai's playing brilliantly while my attention is still divided.

"You promised you would try harder, Yugi, I now see that isn't the case." Mai drew a card. "Well, what do we have here? With this card, my Harpie combo won't be quite complete but it'll give me more than enough power to vaporize that grungy old skull of yours. Allow me to introduce the ever-faithful servant of Harpie Lady!" A large pink dragon appeared in a burst of flame. "Say hello to Harpie's Pet Dragon (1)! Isn't he cuddly? And he gets 300 extra attack points just for being next to her mistress."

(HPD: 2000-2300)

"Now, blast that skull to atoms! Fearsome Fire Blast!" Harpie's Pet Dragon wound up and released a devastating fireball to Summoned Skull. "I told you that you need to concentrate if you're going to beat me. Why are you playing so poorly, Yugi? I've got you on the ropes and you're barely putting up a fight. I want to duel you at your best but there's only so far I'm willing to go. You know, I seem to remember a question that Joey asked me. 'Why do you duel?' Sound familiar? The answer I gave him may have been frivolous, but honest. Well now I'm posing the same question to you: why do you duel?"

"I'm dueling for my Grandfather, Mai," Yugi admitted flat-out.

"Hey, watch it, Mai, Yugi and I aren't just dueling for ourselves, you know."

Mai gave him a small smile. "Well that's what you say, but tell me, could it be that your motives aren't entirely unselfish?"

"What, you think we should be more like you?"

Harold stopped Joey before he could continue with his tirade. "What do you mean, Mai?" He asked.

Joey, on the other hand, wouldn't back down. "Bah, she's just trying to mess with his head! Listen, if you think you can pull that whole mental hocus-pocus to throw us off-kilter!"

"I don't need to mess with Yugi's head; he's doing a pretty darn good job of doing that on his own. And you're off-kilter enough without my aid."

"You still didn't answer my question, Mai, what did you mean by not entirely unselfish reasons?" Harold asked.

"I'm not saying that Joey's and Yugi's reasons for dueling are wrong, but think about it. Yugi's dueling for HIS Grandfather and Joey's dueling for HIS sister. No matter how many degrees you have to separate it, it all comes back to one's self."

I hate to admit it, but Mai's logic makes sense, Harold thought. But that doesn't make them poor Duelists; it just makes them what we already know them to be: human.

Mai's right about one thing, Yugi thought. I can't afford to be distracted now. Yugi drew a card which turned out to be the Dark Magician. But he knew that as long as her Mirror Wall was in play, he couldn't attack, not without seriously damaging the Dark Magician's attack points. I need to find another tactic to beat Mai's Mirror Wallwait a second; that may be it, I'll match her mirror trap for mirror trap. "I'll lay one card face-down and then throw Dark Magician in defense mode. That ends my turn."

Mai drew a card. This will nearly complete my Harpie Combo. Whatever trap you set for me, Yugi, just became worthless! "I play this accessory magic card: Shadow of Eyes!"

"The Shadow of Eyes?"

"Watch the arena, Yugi; you're definitely not going to like this at all." To Yugi's surprise, the Dark Magician stood up, shifting into attack position.

"What's going on?"

"That's the power of the Shadow of Eyes. It exerts an irresistible force that can lure even the most powerful monsters into battle!"

"That means that throwing monsters in defense mode is useless too," Tristan realized.

Harold nodded. "Because Mai can just get them to attack."

"What are you waiting for, Dark Magician? Attack Harpie Lady!" The Dark Magician fired a blast of dark magic which only ended up reflecting off the Mirror Wall.

(DM: 2500-1250)

"And since I know you laid a trap… Harpie's Feather Duster will clean up your side of the field." A fierce wind destroyed Yugi's Mirror Force trap card. "Now to blow some extra smoke your way. Dragon, Fearsome Fire Blast!" The Dark Magician was destroyed.

(Y: 300)
(M: 2000)

"Harold told me that Dark Magician, Summoned Skull, and Gaia the Fierce Knight are the three strongest monsters you have. With them all destroyed, you have nothing left that can stand against me."

"Come on, Yugi, don't give up, you can still make a comeback," Harold encouraged.

"Yes, but without his three strongest monsters, what can he do to trigger that comeback?" Bakura asked.

"Yugi, let me help you," the Spirit pleaded again. "If you continue to hold me back, everyone loses!"

To Be Continued


Monster Glossary

(1)
Name: Harpie's Pet Dragon
Level: 7
Type: Dragon/Effect
Attribute: Wind
ATK: 2000
DEF: 2500