(A/N) Sukara Nodori, thank you for reviewing. Welcome aboard and glad you're enjoying the story. And if you're out there and ya haven't reviewed, let us know you're out there. We need some support for this here ficcy and all that jazz.

Past the Point of No Return

Chapter 5: The Elementals

"And the files say he's a high-ranking duelist. Solar Flare Dragon isn't even a high-level monster! All it took was one swipe!" Raksha bragged to her companions as they headed down to the docks. The Dragon Rider would be arriving soon with all of the duelists for Dragon Country and Raksha and the rest of her team had to be there to greet them.

"We shouldn't have too tough a time taking him out. Alexandra will be pleased," a teenage boy with short, blonde hair said. He spoke with an Australian accent.

"But Raksha, why did you set him on fire? Don't we need him alive?"

"That's true, Taren. But Malik tried to run away and I couldn't let him escape. Besides, he's still alive…unlike his sister." Raksha said with a smirk. Her words were starting to slur together with the lilt of her Irish accent. It tended to show through more when she was very impatient or vamped up.

"Oooh, that's not very nice, Raksha." another girl with an Irish accent spoke from behind Taren and Raksha. This girl looked exactly like Raksha. Only her eyes were blue instead of green. This girl, Angelique, was actually Raksha's twin sister. Apart from the eyes, there were only two differences between these identical girls.

Raksha was always fiery and impatient, whereas Angelique was always bright and bubbly. Sometimes Raksha thought Angelique was too happy on purpose just to annoy her.

The other difference between the two was their abilities. Raksha was pyrokinetic; born with the innate ability to create and manipulate fire at will. And, as if to exist in opposition to Raksha, Angelique was hydrokinetic. She was born with the ability to summon and manipulate water. This was the reason why the twins worked for Nephthys Industries.

"Nice or not, it was necessary. Malik will not soon forget a beating from Raksha," the fourth member of the team said calmly. This was Zephyr. He was Greek and the exact opposite of Taren. Where Taren had wavy, blonde locks, Zephyr had close-cropped black hair. Where Taren had a charming personality and a winning smile, Zephyr had a permanent frown and an introspective nature. Taren was open and trusting. Zephyr was suspicious and sly. But the final trait that sealed the difference between these two boys was by far the strangest.

Unlike the twins, there was no name for the abilities these boys were gifted with. Taren had the ability to manipulate the very earth and the life that grew from it. Zephyr was born with the ability to summon and control the winds.

These gifts set these four teenagers apart from the world. They all seemed to exist in opposition to one another. None of them had ever known a home or family. Neither had any of them known real love. The only comfort any of them had was that they were not alone in being freaks of nature. Separately, each one of them was powerful, but together, they were an unstoppable force. This was why Nephthys Industries employed them.

"But are you sure he's duelist enough to show? Maybe he'll be too afraid to come." Taren said as they reached the end of the pier where Dragon Rider would make berth.

"Oh, he'll show. No doubt he and Odeon will want to avenge Ishizu's death. Well, I'll be ready for them," Raksha said smugly.

"I wouldn't be so cocky, Raksha. Malik has quite a reputation and he's rather good. He simply wasn't prepared for your style of dueling," Zephyr cautioned.

"Are you saying that I can't beat him!?" Raksha hissed dangerously.

Zephyr's eyes snapped wide open when he heard Raksha's tone. He really didn't like it when she used that tone of voice with him. When was she going to learn that it didn't frighten him as it did other people?

"No. Certainly not. I'm just saying that you shouldn't underestimate him. Your overconfidence is your weakness."

"Your belief in your own invincibility is yours." Raksha shot back.

"But isn't that the same thing?" Angelique wondered out loud.

XxX

"I've never seen anything like it." Serenity whispered. She and the rest of the gang were all gathered at the front of the ship with the rest of the duelists. Somehow they'd managed to secure a place right at the railing and they were now getting their first glance of Khemet…Dragon Country. Serenity gaped in awe at the pristine beach that greeted her sight. Beyond that lay a vast jungle that stretched as far as her eyes could see.

"You guys get to duel in there?" Serenity asked Malik, who stood next to her at the railing.

"Well…yes, I suppose so." Malik answered as he turned to look at Serenity.

Joey, who was standing just behind the two of them, glared at Malik. He didn't like the look that creep was giving his little sister. And why had she asked Malik and not him? He was her brother after all.

"Do you think I could come with you guys when you duel? I've always wanted to see a jungle." Serenity said excitedly.

"It's going to be dangerous, Serenity." Malik said seriously, taking her hand in his.

"I don't care. I want to see you duel." Serenity said with just as much sincerity.

Joey was on the verge of blowing his top. Now they were holding hands! What next!!?

Yugi noticed his friend's scowl and followed his gaze to Serenity and Malik. When he saw that the two were holding hands and standing mere inches apart, Yugi understood.

"Maybe there was a bit more to what happened in the living room than I thought." Yugi said to himself as Dragon Rider pulled into port and came to a stop.

Getting ashore was a bit hectic but the gang eventually made their way down the gangplank. That's when all the trouble started.

Malik and Serenity were the first of the group down the gangplank. Therefore, they were the first to see what awaited them. The arriving duelists were greeted by a group of four. The first was a blonde boy with white skin. He shook hands with each duelist that passed him. Many of the female duelists were taken in by his charming smile and Australian accent. He was wearing a brown, sleeveless shirt and black pants. The second was another boy with olive brown skin and black hair. His cold, brown eyes surveyed the new arrivals unfeelingly. He wore blue jeans that were rolled up to his knees and a dark blue, sleeveless shirt. The third was a girl who looked disturbingly familiar. She had pale skin and flaming red hair. Her hair was pulled up with a few strands hanging loose. She was dressed in a blue jean mini skirt and a sleeveless, green jersey that was tied up in the back. Where the number should have been, the word 'water' was printed on the jersey. She was also wearing knee-high stockings, green sandals, and a white armband that covered a portion of her right upper arm. When Malik looked into her eyes he expected them to be green, but they were blue instead. If the encounter with this girl didn't shake him up enough, then the next one would send him reeling. The fourth member of the greeting party was Raksha herself!

When Malik and Serenity approached her she flashed them a sickeningly sweet smile. She was decked in a pair of blue jeans with a flame pattern stitched across the bottoms. And instead of a black halter top she wore a bright red one. Malik also saw something that he hadn't noticed before. On her upper right arm, there was a black brand tattooed onto Raksha's skin. It was the word 'fire' in a fancy French script.

"Hello, Malik. So glad to see you alive," Raksha said silkily.

Malik didn't answer to this. He took a step back from Raksha, and ended up creating a bit of a traffic jam.

"I didn't realize you'd be here. By the way, how's your sister?" she asked, a mocking sneer sliding onto her face.

But Malik didn't seem to hear her. He was staring at her with utmost terror. To him, Raksha's face seemed to be surrounded by a ring of fire. And that fire engulfed everything. He was surrounded by fire. He could feel the flames licking at his skin once again. The fire was consuming him!

"Help me!" he tried to shout, but he couldn't make his mouth work. He was screaming inside his own head and no one could hear his pleas.

But this was what was happening on the inside. Outside, Malik was just standing, frozen, in front of Raksha. He was hyperventilating and his body was trembling. Ishizu broke through the crowd of duelists in order to come and stand beside her brother.

"His sister is fine."

When Raksha saw Ishizu alive, a scowl worked its way onto her face. But she didn't say anything. There were too many witnesses.

"Hey, come on! Lets get a move on! Can we get with the program!?" angry duelists shouted from their places in line. They were getting impatient.

Ishizu tried to get Malik to move but she had no luck. Serenity grabbed his hand and gently started to lead him down the gangplank. They had to get him to come to his senses.

As the rest of the gang made their way through the line, Serenity and Ishizu dragged Malik behind a few stacks of crates that were sitting out on the dock. Serenity leaned him against a crate and Ishizu tried her best to get through to him. But nothing worked. He was helpless in the grip of fear. Serenity stared worriedly into his unseeing eyes. They had to wake him up. They just had too!

But just then, Serenity heard someone screaming. She heard Malik screaming.

"Someone, help me! Please!"

Serenity looked up at Malik's face. He hadn't moved at all.

"Did you hear that, Ishizu?"

"Hear what, Serenity?" Ishizu asked, turning to face her.

Serenity glanced from Malik, to Ishizu, and back to Malik. What did it mean?

Without stopping to question her new resolve, Serenity took Malik's face in her hands and shook him gently.

"Malik, please wake up," she whispered softly to him.

Meanwhile, in the midst of his waking nightmare, Malik heard a voice. He felt a cooling pressure upon his face. As the flames began to recede the voice became clearer.

"Please Malik. Wake up. It's me, Serenity."

With that, the illusion shattered and Malik found himself leaning against a crate with Serenity's hands on his face. His vision grew hazy for a moment and he stumbled forward onto Serenity. And somehow, Serenity managed to hold him up.

"Malik, are you all right? You're shaking," Serenity said, not resisting the feel of his weight on her shoulder.

Malik slowly pulled himself up. Serenity allowed her hands to drop to his shoulders and he lifted his hand and rested it on her shoulder.

"I'm fine," he answered, a tinge of fear was still in his voice. "It- it must be the sun."

"No, Malik," Ishizu said worriedly. "You're still weak. We need to get you somewhere to rest."

"I'm fine, Ishizu," Malik insisted, though he still kept his hand on Serenity's shoulder for support. Malik gazed down into Serenity's eyes and saw worry there. For some reason he felt the need to sooth her worry.

"Really, Serenity. I'm ok. Don't worry."

Serenity nodded once. She wasn't sure if Malik was telling the truth so she was hesitant in removing her hands from his shoulders, but she finally allowed them to drop away. Malik also stepped away from her. He weaved on his feet for a moment but soon regained his balance. Ishizu watched this exchange with wonder in her eyes. The signs were subtle…barely there even. But it could be seen in the way they touched each other. The way Malik looked at Serenity. Ishizu had never seen such tenderness in his eyes before. Could it be that her brother had feelings for this girl!?

XxX

"This is so cool! It's exactly like a real African outpost." Amane squealed excitedly.

Once the entire gang had gotten off of the boat, they'd been directed to a wooden building. They were told it was where they could get supplies for the tournament. And indeed, now that they were all in this little trading post, they could see that it had a lot of camping equipment. Ryou was rushing around, gathering all sorts of cooking supplies. Unlike most of his fellow duelists, Ryou could cook after having lived on his own for so long. Jamil, Odeon, and Malik were working on camping gear. Serenity was giving them a hand and this pissed Joey off like none other. Why did Serenity insist on hanging out with Malik even after he'd told her not to? Serenity was never stubborn. It was like she was a whole different person these days. Joey continued to glare at the pair as they walked around the outpost, supposedly helping Odeon and Jamil but really just talking with each other. When did they become so close anyway?

"You know, maybe she sees something you don't," said a voice from directly behind him.

Joey jumped at least a foot in the air and begged for mercy before turning around and realizing that it was Mai who had spoken.

"What do you mean?" he asked, suddenly serious again.

"Joey Wheeler, are you blind!? Maybe if you'd just give Malik a chance you'd see what she sees in him."

"How can you say that, Mai!? That freak trapped you in the Shadow Realm! Don't you remember what he did at Yugi's house!?"

"I do remember, Joey. But I asked Serenity about it and got their side of the story. That's when I decided that the version I'd first heard was coming from a scared, jealous brother. Malik might actually be a nice guy. I realized what happened in the past wasn't all his fault."

"Scared!? What exactly am I scared of!?" Joey asked furiously.

"I know you're afraid your little sis is gonna get hurt, like any good brother would. But you're even more afraid of Serenity growing up. Scared that she won't need you anymore! You're afraid to let her move on!" Mai accused.

"That's ridiculous! Besides, she is too young and she does need me!" Joey said huffily.

"You're impossible, Joey!" Mai said angrily as she stalked away from Joey. Joey just turned back to stare at Serenity and Malik. They were holding hands again!

XxX

Once all of the duelists had gathered all of their supplies and checked in with one of the four greeters, they were told to gather out in front of the stage.

There was a crude, wooden platform raised a few hundred yards away from the outpost. Behind it was a giant screen. When everyone was finally gathered before it, Raksha, Angelique, Taren, and Zephyr took the stage. They stood silently before the screen in a straight line. None of them moved for a good five minutes.

Suddenly the screen blared to life. Hidden speakers surrounding it also crackled to life. On the screen was what seemed to be a young woman. She was dressed in a blue power suit and her hair was swept back. But her face was in shadow.

"Greetings, Duelists," her voice blared across the beach. "I am Alexandra Nephthys, your host. Welcome to Dragon Country!"

At these words of welcome many of the duelists started to cheer. And when they fell silent Alexandra continued her speech.

"I believe that it's only fair to warn each of you that the next month could very well be the hardest of your lives. In this tournament, you will not only duel against opponents for Key Stones, you will battle against the forces of nature for your very lives. But those who survive the trek through the jungle shall have the ultimate prize. You will spend the next month dueling for Key Stones. And if you survive you will make your way to the interior of the island. There awaits the White Dragon Temple. If you can make it through the temple in time then you will be eligible to compete in the Dragon Country Finals. You have until sunset to set up your camps. Then the duels will begin. But before I release you, I think that maybe a few introductions are in order."

As Alexandra finished speaking, Taren's eyes flashed for a brief instant.

Suddenly the ground began to rumble beneath them and three columns of earth shot up about five feet in the air. Three members of the crowd had just been raised.

"I believe everyone here will know Seto Kaiba. President of Kaiba Corp and former World Duel Monsters Champion. I am in his debt for allowing us to use the KC duel disk system for our tournament."

The crowd cheered and clapped for Kaiba. He was completely un-phased by the sudden change in elevation. He had a smug look on his face as the next introduction was made.

"I know that all of you will know Yugi Mutou. The current World Duel Monsters Champion. It is yet to be seen if he can be defeated."

Yugi got an even bigger ovation than Kaiba. But he was still flustered and un-composed from the sudden rise from the ground and all of the cheering didn't really help.

"And our third introduction, not as many of you will know, but we are expecting great things from her. The reigning African Duel Monsters Champion, hailing from South Africa, Taranee Konje, has joined the tournament. Or, as she prefers to be called, Taranee the Dragon Tamer."

Fewer in the crowd cheered this time. But those who did cheered loud and long. Yugi glanced over to the third pillar of earth and saw a girl standing on it. She was near on six feet tall and her skin was the color of milk chocolate. Her black hair fell to her waist and she was a bit on the heavyset side. Her build and the nonchalant way in which she held her arms crossed in front of her clearly said that she was not to be messed with. And like Kaiba, she seemed completely un-phased by the sudden rise. Taranee acknowledged the cheering crowd with a brief smile. It wasn't smug or anything, just brief and almost wistful.

Just then, with a small nod from Taren, the three columns sank quietly into the ground.

"And now, the final introduction. The four you see standing before you," Alexandra began. "Will also be competing in the tournament. You will come to know them as the Elementals. RAKSHA!"

As Alexandra said her name, Raksha stepped forward with a conceited smile, raised her right arm high in the air, exposing her Fire tattoo, and took a huge bow.

"ANGELIQUE!"

Then Angelique stepped forward, smiling and waving at the crowd.

"TAREN!"

Taren came to the front and jokingly flexed his muscles for the crowd while showing off his own element tattoo. The word 'Earth' on his left upper arm.

"AND ZEPHYR!"

Zephyr too, stood forward and nodded to the crowd. He turned to face the screen and the 'Air' tattoo on his left upper arm could clearly be seen.

"These four are powerful duelists. And should any of you come up against them…may God have mercy on your soul."

Then, with another flash from Taren, the ground directly beneath the stage opened up and seemingly swallowed the stage, the screen, and the four elementals whole.

Several duelists in the crowd screamed. As Yugi and the others jumped up they heard others screaming that the outpost had also vanished. There was a bit of a panic for a few moments before some of the less scatter-brained duelists managed to restore order. After all, they had no time for a panic. There were camps to be set up…decks to be prepared…duels to win!

The Dragon Country Tournament would begin in a few short hours.

XxX