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Fanfic Chapter 42: Duel Monsters Quest Pt 1: The Final Fantasy
Episode Basis: Legendary Heroes Pt 1
Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh! Solomon told the children the story of how he met Rebecca's Grandfather, Professor Arthur Hopkins, and how they, under the supervision of Dr. Adam Hunter, began to investigate an Egyptian Archives that told about Shadow Games, contests that, according to Prof. Hopkins, are very similar to Duel Monsters. He ended with them trapped in the Archives and having a duel for the last bit of water. Back in present time, the duel continued with Yugi getting rid of Rebecca's Millennium Shield and bringing her down to 200 life points. Then Rebecca turned the tables by summoning the Shadow Ghoul, a creature that gets a 100 point power boost for every monster in the graveyard. Yugi was outraged not at the monster, but that Rebecca was willing to throw away eleven monster cards just to power up her one Shadow Ghoul. Rebecca got that stuck-up attitude, dismissing it as the ramblings of a family of thieves. Just when it seemed like Yugi would win, he forfeited. Rebecca was happy, but then threw a tantrum when she saw that her Grandfather's Blue-Eyes White Dragon had been torn up and wouldn't listen to reason. Suddenly Arthur Hopkins himself appeared. He revealed that during the duel, he collapsed. Solomon chose to forfeit because Arthur needed the water more. As it turned out, Yugi could've won, but forfeited to teach Rebecca about respecting her cards and her opponent. Everyone made up and Yugi gave Rebecca the Ties of Friendship that he won at Duelist Kingdom.
It was a dark and stormy night in Domino. It was the type of night for something to go wrong. And for someone at Kaiba Corporation, it was about to go wrong.
Seto and Mokuba Kaiba had confronted the Kaiba Corporation Board of Directors on recent events.
"Mister Kaiba, we can explain…" Gansley began.
"Save it," Kaiba snapped. "I know what you did."
"But Mister Kaiba, we had a good reason," Johnson protested.
"Oh really, Johnson, well since you're the lawyer, maybe you won't mind hearing evidence to the contrary. First, you hired Kimo, an employee of this very company, to kidnap my brother and hold him hostage at Duelist Kingdom. Next, you try to off me not once, not twice, but three times: at my Mountain Estate, in my own house, and at Duelist Kingdom. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't throw all of you out into the street?"
"Sir, the reason we made a pact with Master… excuse me, Mister Pegasus, was to get revenge on the boy who humiliated you: Yugi Moto."
"Pegasus wanted to beat Yugi Moto for his own reasons," Gansley continued where Johnson left off. "So it was only logical that we pool our efforts and try to beat him for you."
"Look, when I have a rematch with Yugi Moto, it will be on my terms! I don't need anyone's help, especially not some old fogies who don't know a Duel Monster card from a hole in the head!"
"Forgive us, Mister Kaiba, we only wanted what's best for you. In fact, we've been hoping you would pay us a visit, we wanted your stamp of approval on our latest invention… it's your Virtual Duel Monsters Quest game. It's all set; we already have a test subject trying the game out right now."
"Impressive, but don't forget who's in charge here, I'll decide when it's ready for distribution."
"Why don't you try the game out for yourself, Seto," Gansley suggested. "That way, you can determine for yourself if it's fit for distribution."
"I will, but I don't want to see any of you crones here when I come back, otherwise it's more than your jobs that you will lose." Without waiting for a reply, Kaiba turned and exited the room, Mokuba following him like a faithful terrier.
"Seto, are you sure this is wise?" Mokuba asked as they descended in an elevator. "It's obviously a trap!"
"You're probably right, Mokuba, but I'm not afraid of anything those old farts can come up with. I've programmed every microchip of the game myself, so no matter what they try, I'll always beat the system." They came to the testing lab. A large capsule-shape container was at the center near a control panel. A chair was set up. Kaiba sat down in the chair as ear phones pressed into their assigned spots on his head and a visor lowered down over his head.
"Insert dueling deck into drive recognizer," the computer instructed. Kaiba took his Duel Monsters Deck and placed it inside a compartment that slid out from the arm rest. "All systems are go. Closing virtual screen." A glass panel lowered swallowing Kaiba into the pod. "Preparing virtual uplink."
"Seto, are you sure you want to go through with this?" Mokuba checked as he manned a control panel."
"Absolutely, now start it up." Seeing Mokuba's worried face, Kaiba reassured him, "I won't be long."
I hope Seto knows what he's doing, Mokuba thought as he pulled a handle all the way down. "Establishing virtual portal, opening pathways, generating entrance tunnel. Beginning virtual uplink!"
Kaiba could see a tunnel surrounded by beams of light. The transport portal has really been smoothed out; I can't even feel my mind separating from my body. Now, let's see how the virtual world itself is.
When Kaiba opened his eyes, he found himself in a dense forest. He assessed his surroundings. Looks like audio and visual are working okay. Kaiba looked down at his left arm. He had the wrist holder that his portable holographic generators had, with his deck inserted into the slot. Life points set at 2000. Looks like the transfer went smoothly.
(K: 2000)
"Maybe I was wrong," Mokuba said as he studied a 64 bit representation of his brother. "He's okay… so far."
As Kaiba went through the forest, he came upon his first obstacle: a giant two-headed dragon that Kaiba recognized as the Two-Headed King Rex. The attack points of the monster, 1600, were displayed in the air behind it.
"Just as I programmed," Kaiba said as he drew a card. "I summon the Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Holding the card up made it glow and soon, Kaiba's favorite dragon made an appearance in a flash of light. "White Lightning Attack!" The Two-Headed King Rex was destroyed.
Suddenly a humanoid figure appeared. It was the Armed Ninja (1). Kaiba was confused, when he originally programmed it, he didn't include the Armed Ninja. And he definitely didn't program what came next.
The Armed Ninja threw a Duel Monster trap card which turned into a Dragon Capture Jar. Kaiba quickly ordered his Blue-Eyes to attack but it was too late, as Kaiba's dragon was sucked into the jar.
"No, I didn't program this; somebody must've reprogrammed the game's combat protocol!"
The Armed Ninja was suddenly right besides him. The stereotype ninja threw a net over Kaiba.
In the real world, Kaiba's virtual pod sparked with electricity. Mokuba could hear his brother scream out.
"Big Brother," Mokuba cried opening the screen. "Are you okay? Say something!" But it was no use, Kaiba was knocked out.
The doors closed and the blast shield lowered into place trapping Mokuba in the room.
"Your brother's fondness for technology has always been his weakness," Gansley said appearing on a monitor.
"What did you do?" Mokuba demanded to know.
"Seto should've heeded your warning, Little Mokuba, but now it's too late. His mind is imprisoned in his own game, thanks to some modifications that we made."
"Sabotage!" Mokuba realized.
"And now, you're our prisoner again and soon, nothing will stop us from seizing full control of Kaiba Corporation."
Mokuba knew he had to do something. He quickly ejected his brother's deck from the scanner.
When the guards entered the room, they found Kaiba's the only body there. Mokuba had escaped into the ventilation system.
"What, Mokuba escaped?" Gansley asked bewildered. "Well find him, idiot!"
"Relax," Johnson assured his partner. "We don't have to search for Mokuba, he'll come back to us soon enough."
"Why is that?"
"Because we have his brother and if Mokuba wants to save him, the only way is to enter the game and beat it, a scenario which, I can assure you, is quite impossible."
Mokuba ran through the raining streets. Crossing the street, Mokuba jumped back as he was almost ran over by a car. But he still fell into a puddle. Mokuba was wet and cold, and just a little bit scared. He had to find help, and Mokuba knew of only one person who could help in a situation like this. Seto may not like it, but it was the only choice he had left.
"I have a new card to show you," Solomon Moto told his grandson Yugi and his friends. He showed them a trap card. "It's a very powerful card called Trap Hole."
"Oooh, powerful trap card," Joey said. "I'll take it. Just put it on my tab, Gramps."
"Your tab's past due," Solomon retorted.
"Then put it on Tristan's."
"Hey!"
"Help me, someone help me." Mokuba burst into the game shop, drenched. "Please… you have to… help…" Mokuba collapsed.
"Mokuba!" Yugi cried.
Minutes later, Mokuba was dry again and was nursing some hot tea. He just finished telling Yugi and the others what happened.
Yugi recapped Mokuba's story. "So you're saying that the only way to free Kaiba is to win the game?"
"But how is it possible to reprogram an entire game?" Tea asked.
"They must've done it during Kaiba's little hiatus on Duelist Kingdom," Harold guessed.
"I don't know how they did it, but I… I thought you could help."
"Calm down, Mokuba, we will, we will," Solomon assured him. "Now tell us some more about this virtual pod your brother was working on."
"It's always been our dream to open up a theme park around the world. The Kaiba Land that you guys were at during Yugi's duel with Rebecca was supposed to be a prototype, and the arenas were only supposed to be a side attraction. Duel Monsters Quest was suppose to be the star of Kaiba Land, a fully interactive environment that would put the players right in the middle of a fantasy world where they would have to overcome challenges to complete the game and win. Obviously, it was a very timing task, and my brother had spent nights doing it. He started working on it about seven years ago."
That's about the time I started putting together the Millennium Puzzle, Yugi thought.
"He completed construction on the prototypes before you guys had your first duel."
"So there're more of them?" Joey asked.
Mokuba nodded. "Duel Monsters Quest was supposed to be the ultimate game; it was his dream and mine as well. But those corporate jerks turned it into a nightmare!"
"Stupid suits," Joey grumbled. "We'll beat them just like we did Pegasus!"
"That's right, we'll use the prototypes to enter the virtual world and rescue Kaiba," Yugi said.
"Thanks, guys."
Yugi and the gang left with Mokuba. Solomon watched them depart. "Just when I didn't think I could be more proud of those kids," he said.
Mokuba took Yugi and the others to a building that was still under construction. "This was supposed to be the flagship park of Kaiba Land," he explained. "But it's not scheduled for completion for another few months. I used to sneak in every now and then and watch them build it." Mokuba climbed the gate and opened it for the older children.
"Mokuba, what's with your brother and these dragons?" Harold asked as they passed a giant-size statue of a Blue-Eyes White Dragon. "No offense, but it looks like he's obsessed with them!"
"It's a long story," Mokuba said. "But you're right; sometimes he can get a little carried away with his Blue-Eyes White Dragons, especially when people use them without his permission like Pegasus."
Man, what is it about this particular dragon that makes Kaiba so infatuated with them? I mean he treats them like he does his girlfriend or something.
"Here we are." Mokuba turned on the lights revealing three pods much like the one Kaiba was in. "Harold, can you help me flip on the main power?"
"Sure."
"Three pods," Joey observed. "I guess someone's staying behind. I nominate Tristan."
"And I nominate you," Tristan said getting Joey into a headlock.
"I know I'm going," Mokuba said.
"But Mokuba, you're the only one who knows how to work this thing," Joey pointed out.
"But I also know a lot about where we're going," Mokuba argued.
"Mokuba, show me how to operate it," Harold volunteered. "I'll volunteer to monitor you guys."
"Thanks, Harold."
"So I'm guessing it'll be me, Yug, and Mokuba," Joey said. He slapped Tristan on the shoulder. "Take care of my gorgeous bod, pal!"
"Gorgeous?"
"I really wish we could all join you guys there," Tea said.
"Thanks, Tea, but you also have an important assignment. Like Joey said, someone needs to look after things here," Yugi said. "Don't worry, we'll have Kaiba rescued and be back before no time."
"Yugi," Tea muttered.
"This is it," Harold announced as he manned the control panel. "Everyone, put your seats in their upright position and fasten your safety belts, you're about to take a vacation from reality. Closing virtual screens." The hatches closed. "Establishing connection…" The visors and shoulder harnesses lowered over each of the occupants. "Opening pathways… generating entrance tunnel… virtual uplink in five… four… three… two… one… beginning uplink!" The pods started to glow as Harold pulled the lever. Then they stopped. Tea watched Yugi's sleeping form.
"Be careful," she muttered.
The surge of power triggered an alarm at Kaiba Corporation.
"See, I told you," Johnson said. "Mokuba came back just like I predicted."
"Yes but he brought Yugi Moto and those other brats with him," Gansley pointed out.
"Not to worry, once Kimo goes down there and gets rid of them, our take over of Kaiba Corporation will be certain," Johnson said.
"With pleasure," Kimo said, the scar he got from being knocked down the steps of Pegasus's castle by Harold throbbing. "I'll take great satisfaction in destroying each and very life in that building." Especially that foolish boy who knocked me down in the first place, that Watcher.
"I'm glad I've got my deck with me," Yugi said. "But this life point counter makes me a little uneasy."
(Y: 2000)
(J: 2000)
(M: 2000)
"I mean in a normal video game, if you lose your life, its game over. What could happen here?"
"Seto originally planned that when life points are lost; the player gets ejected from the virtual world. But since those Executive goons reprogrammed it, it might be wise if we don't find out."
Soon, they came to a cemetery. "Man, that's scary," Mokuba commented.
"Yeah, its hard to believe that all this is virtual," Yugi said.
Joey heard a sound behind him and stopped. Slowly, he turned around…
"Aaaaah! Zombie!" Joey cried. Standing before him was Armored Zombie (2). Two more zombies joined him: Dragon Zombie and Clown Zombie. Their attack points and defense points were displayed over them. "Wait a second; what do we have to worry about? Even though they're zombies, they're also Duel Monsters. Which means, all I have to do is draw a card…?" Joey drew a card from his deck. "And… uh… I'm not really sure what to do next." Yugi and Mokuba face-faulted.
"Let me show you how it's done," Mokuba said drawing a card and holding it up. "I summon the Rude Kaiser!"
Yugi copied Mokuba's movements. "And I summon the Dark Magician!"
"Attack!" Both Yugi and Mokuba shouted. The Rude Kaiser slashed Dragon Zombie while the Dark Magician blasted the other two.
Suddenly the zombies reappeared.
"No, they're back again!" Mokuba cried.
"I got it," Joey called as he drew a card. "I summon the Flame Swordsman! Flaming Sword of Battle!"
But as the Flame Swordsman struck down the Dragon Zombie, Yugi called, "Joey, cancel your attack!"
It was too late, as the dragon reformed stronger and destroyed the Flame Swordsman.
(DZ: 1920)
(Y: 2000)
(J: 1820)
(M: 2000)
"Zombie monsters are immortal in the graveyard," Yugi explained. "But think about it, zombie monsters do have one weakness. Just think, Joey, you defeated them before, and you can defeat them again."
Joey gasped as he recalled his duel with Bonz at Duelist Kingdom. "That's right, zombies have 0 defense points! So if I use the Shield and Sword card…" Joey held up the card.
(AZ: 1650-0, 0-1650)
(CZ: 1450-0, 0-1450)
(DZ: 1920-0, 0-1920)
"Their attack power becomes 0 and they can't attack! All right, it's all yours, Yugi!"
"Right; go, Dark Magician, Dark Magic Attack!" The Dark Magician destroyed all three of them with one shot.
The others cheered as a card with money on it appeared. "Look at this, Mokuba," Yugi said. "It looks like some sort of virtual money."
"I wonder if it's worth anything," Mokuba said.
"Hey, my life points aren't going back up!" Joey complained.
"That can't be good," Mokuba commented.
"I guess these virtual monsters are playing for keeps." Joey then noticed something. A tiny face hiding behind a grave stone. "A fairy?"
"Hey, I recognize it," Yugi said. "It's a Key Mace (3)! But I wonder what it's doing here."
"Hey, I bet it's here to help the players out. In video games, fairies are always placed there to help the players."
"You might be right, Joey," Yugi said as the Key mace took off. It then doubled back towards them and moved off again. "I think it wants us to follow." The three humans took off but soon lost it near a cliff side.
"Nuts, lost it, that slippery little sprite," Joey said.
"Guys, take a look at this!" Mokuba called.
"Did you find it?" Yugi asked.
"No, but I think I found what it was trying to show us."
Yugi, Joey, and Mokuba came to an entire virtual town. The layout looked vaguely Middle-Eastern, even Egyptian to Yugi's eyes.
"In RPGs, towns are a perfect place to gather stuff and info," Joey said.
"I'll say, take a look at this," Yugi said showing them a stand with fusion Duel Monster cards.
"Oh yeah, now this I like," Joey said. "We'll take it."
"I'm not sure it works that way, Joey," Yugi said.
Joey then noticed the price of the card: 2000 coins.
"You've got to be kidding me! We must've got at least that much fighting those zombies," Joey said checking the treasure card he received.
The number on it was 5.
"Guys, let's focus here," Mokuba said. "We're here to rescue my brother."
"So let's split up and search for anyone who has seen him or knows something about what happened. We'll meet back at the water fountain."
Ten minutes later, Yugi arrived at the water fountain, still sore from a bouncer throwing him out of an eatery (that turned out to be an over 21 bar, who knew?).
"Yug," Joey called.
"Hey, Joey, did you find anything?" Yugi then noticed that Joey wasn't alone, he had a tag along: a dog.
"Yeah, I found out that I hate virtual dogs," Joey said trying to dislodge the dog from his coat tail.
"Guys, I found something," Mokuba said. He showed them a large mountain on the other side of the desert. "An old woman who I was talking to said that she saw a man with a prisoner heading in that direction. Apparently, there's some sort of ancient temple there. And the only way to get there is to cross this desert."
"Great, so let's hop the next train out and…" Mokuba was already running into the desert. Yugi and Joey gave chase.
"I've got to hand it to your brother," Joey said to Mokuba as they trekked through a sand storm. "This virtual sand tastes just like the real thing."
"Maybe we should go back," Yugi suggested.
"No, we have to keep going," Mokuba urged. "We have to find Seto!"
Suddenly the wind started to get fiercer. A tornado was blasting right towards them and it swept them up.
When Yugi awoke next, he was back in the town, Joey and Mokuba too. They figured that the twister blew them back. Mokuba was shaken, but all right. Suddenly they heard an old man's laughter. "That ain't no way to be crossing a desert."
Yugi and Joey ran up to him. "Are you saying you know a way to cross it?" Joey asked.
"No, not me, them darn desert-crossing Niwatori chickens can cross it with ease."
"Oh, I see," Joey said. "The Niwatori (4) monster card!"
"Thanks, Mister," Yugi said. "Do you know where we can get one?"
"They can't be got, they can only be won."
"Just talk straight, you old bird!" Joey snapped.
"'Prized bird?' You bet'cha, especially in these parts." The man laughed.
Yugi and Joey cringed.
"Maybe one of the card stands has one," Mokuba suggested.
"It's worth a try," Yugi said.
Back in reality, Kimo and over a dozen henchmen pulled up to the Kaiba Land building. "This is it men," Kimo said putting on a set of spiked knuckles. "Soon, we'll teach those scrawny runts not to mess with the big boys."
Inside, Tea, Tristan, and Harold watched over the bodies of their friends. "They've been gone an awfully long time," Tea said.
"The computer's says their vitals are strong and steady," Harold reported. "Nothing to worry about."
"Yeah, I once saw Joey play a video game for three days straight without even blinking. And Yugi's the King of Games, and Mokuba's the brother of Seto Kaiba, if anyone can get through this, I'm sure they can."
"But it's just boring waiting around here," Tea complained.
"Hey, I know something we can do to pass the time," Tristan said. "A game, it's called Guess My Facial Hair."
Tea looked at him sourly. "I think I'll pass."
"Me too," Harold agreed.
"Okay, then, how about a story: about my first crush."
"No," Tea and Harold both said.
"Well, do you want to hear about my dream?"
"NO!" They both shouted.
"Why don't you just go take a nap in the corner," Tea suggested.
A loud banging sound came from outside. "What was that?"
"Hold on, I'll pull up a surveillance camera," Harold said. On one of the monitors, a live feed of Kimo and his team trying to break down the outer gate. "It's Kimo!"
"You mean that muscle-bound moron who works for Pegasus?" Tea asked.
"The one and only, and I'm guessing those Kaiba Corp. guys are paying him now."
"One thing's for sure, they're not here for a friendly chat," Tristan said.
Yugi, Joey, and Mokuba slumped on the side of the water fountain. Not one of the card stands in the town had that Niwatori card.
"I can't believe nobody has that Niwatori card," Mokuba complained.
"No wonder it's such a prized bird around here," Joey cracked.
Yugi gasped as an idea came to him. He ran off. "That's what the old man meant!" Joey and Mokuba found Yugi staring at a sign with a picture of the Niwatori card on it. Yugi read the sign, "fame, glory, and the prized Niwatori card await the warrior who can challenge our champion. All those interested should come to Shadow Coliseum.'"
"Yes, this could be the key," Joey cried happily. "Let's sign up; I always wanted to be a warrior." He and Mokuba headed off but Yugi stared suspiciously at the sign. In addition to the picture of the Niwatori card, there was also the picture of a woman in a mask and cape. "Hey Yug, something wrong?"
"No, I don't think so; she just looks familiar, like I've seen her before."
"Yeah, in your dreams," Joey said grabbing Yugi by the collar. "Come on, besides, you already have someone waiting for you at home."
"Huh, what? Hey, Joey, I can walk by myself, you know."
Tea sneezed. "Man, my ears feel like they're burning up."
"Forget about your ears, we have a serious problem," Tristan said. "Kimo and his goons just broke through the front gate and it looks like they're ready to cause trouble!"
Harold stood. "I'll hold them off."
"Harold, are you nuts? You'd be outnumbered 13 to 1!"
"They probably won't think twice about hurting you or worse!"
"Maybe they will get me, but at least I'll buy Yugi and the others some time to rescue Kaiba." He got up. "Tea, barricade the door with anything and everything you can find! Tristan, continue to monitor Yugi, Joey, and Mokuba, we have to back them up in any way we can."
"Good luck," Tristan said.
"Please come back alive," Tea pleaded.
"Don't worry, I will," Harold said. But as he left the room, he thought, at least I hope I will.
The Shadow Coliseum looked more like Wrigley Field than an actual Roman coliseum. But its architecture was worn but sturdy. The Grand Battle-Master man, if one could call him that, was a green pudgy individual with warts on his head and a long tongue, as the kids found out the hard way as he snatched up a fly that was buzzing around him.
"So one of you wants to be a coliseum warrior? I don't know, we take our gladiator matches very seriously, but if it's a shot at the champion you desire... one moment…" the Battle-Master sucked up another fly much to the disgust of the others. "Far be it for me to stand in your way." He handed Yugi a pig mask and a green cloak. "Here, your battle mask and combat cape."
"Is all this stuff really necessary?" Yugi asked.
"Yes, if you're going to lose all of your life points, you may as well look like a hero."
"All of my life points?"
"Give that stuff to me, Yug."
"But why, Joey?"
"I'm not going to let you risk all your life points. You and Mokuba are the key in rescuing Kaiba. Besides, if I lose all my life points, I'll just be ejected from the game. No biggie."
"You're going to have to be extra careful, Joey," Yugi pointed out.
"Yup, but so will the Champion once he sees the skills that I have."
"Thanks, Joey," Mokuba said.
"Forget about it."
The crowd, while small, was getting impatient for the battle to start. The Battle Master took his spot in the viewing box. "Ladies and gentlemen, we've finally found a soul brave enough to challenge our champion! I present to you the purveyor of poundings, the picture of pugnacity, the pig who packs a punch, I present to you… Senor Porky!"
Joey walked out wearing the cloak and pig mask. The crowd jeered him with pig names and cries of "fry his bacon!"
Could be worse, Joey thought. I could be called a lap dog.
"Come on, Joey, you can do it!" Yugi cheered from the stands.
The Battle Master waved his hand towards the other side of the ring. "Now, introducing our undefeated champ: the monarch of mayhem, the queen of mean, Madam Butterfly!" A woman was carried out on a chair escorted by six strong men. She wore a butterfly mask and red cape. Her long blonde hair fell down behind her back.
Whoa, the champ's a girl, Joey realized as Madam Butterfly leaped off her chair. And from the look of things, she's ready to rumble!
To Be Continued
Duel Monster Database
(1)
Name: Armed Ninja
Level: 1
Type: Warrior/Effect
Attribute: Earth
ATK: 300
DEF: 300
(2)
Name: Armored Zombie
Level: 3
Type: Zombie
Attribute: Dark
ATK: 1500
DEF: 0
(3)
Name: Key Mace #2
Level: 2
Type: Fairy/Effect
Attribute: Wind
ATK: 800
DEF: 600
(4)
Name: Niwatori
Level: 3
Type: Winged Beast
Attribute: Earth
ATK: 900
DEF: 800
