Chapter 15
"So you're telling me that Sakura's in another world?" demanded Li. Currently, the three groups were gathered in Izzy's large apartment discussing everything that was going on for the past few days, while the Digimon (in their in-training forms) were asleep in the corner. Secret after secret was being pulled out of the teenagers, including the Clow Cards, the Millenium Puzzle, and the Digital World.
"I know it's hard to believe, but it's true," Izzy sighed. "Listen, if you don't believe me…"
"We believe you," Madison told him.
"So Yugi's there too?" asked Téa. Ken nodded.
"The way I see it, TK must have revealed our secret to Yugi and Sakura," Ken concluded. "He must have already told them about the Digital World and what happened there. That's why the three of them went to Domino City, and the three of them flew into the Digital rift together."
"And if TK revealed his secret, knowing Yugi, he probably told him about his secret," Tristan added.
"And I'm guessing that since Sakura was using the Fly Card, she revealed her secret as well!" Li agreed. "It all makes sense now!"
"Yeah, it all makes sense…sort of…" Joey was still taking all of this information into his brain. He didn't really get this whole "Digimon" and "Clow Cards" thing, but he didn't want to look stupid in front of everyone.
"Well, I guess it's up to those three to survive on their own for now," sighed Tai. "With the Digiports locked, they can't get out of the Digital World now. And we're stuck in the Real World."
While the others were in their discussion, Davis and Joe were in Izzy's bedroom tending to Meilin.
"It looks like you'll have to stay of that ankle for the day," Joe told the Chinese girl as he finished bandaging up her leg. "I'll see if I can find you some crutches. I'll have to get to my dorm room to find them, though, so I'll be back in about an hour. Don't get off that bed."
"Alright," she told the young doctor. Joe smiled and left, leaving only Davis and Meilin in the room.
"Are you okay?" the maroon-haired boy asked. Meilin nodded.
"I'm fine," she sighed. "I wish I could've been more helpful to you guys though."
"You were great," laughed Davis. "You're really good at fighting."
"Thanks," she replied. "That means a lot to me, goggle-boy."
Davis blushed. "Um…you're welcome…"
They were silent for a few seconds, when Davis spoke again. "Meilin, I was wondering if when this whole thing settles…do you want to go out with me before you leave?"
Meilin was in shock. Had Davis really just asked her out? Did he seriously develop feelings for her that fast? Meilin thought about it. This doofus was probably not the type to be the kind of guy who switches girlfriends every other week. He wouldn't take advantage of her, since he was very loyal. He was a strong person. Anyone could see that. And, Meilin had to admit, he was kind of cute. Meilin came to her conclusion after a few seconds of thought.
"Sure, Davis, I'd love to go out with you," she answered. This made Davis grin from ear to ear.
"This is the Digital World?" asked Yugi. "Incredible." TK, Yugi, and Sakura woke up in the middle of a jungle after being sucked into the Digital rift. Kero was back to his 'teddy bear' form, and Pegasusmon reverted back to Patamon.
"It's beautiful," Sakura whispered. "I can't believe that it took so much just to preserve this place."
"Believe me, it was not easy. There are some Digimon with powers beyond anything you could imagine," TK told them. "Of course, seeing what you guys have been through, you could probably get a glimpse of what we went through."
Suddenly, TK's D-Terminal began beeping. The Chosen of Hope quickly took it out and opened it.
Apparently, Izzy had sent an email to him:
TK,
The Digital World is in danger, and you and your friends
are the only ones who can stop it! If you remember where
Giga House used to be, head over in that direction. I can't
pinpoint where you are as of right now, so you guys are
on your own. I'll get back to you soon.
Izzy
"We're on our own," chuckled TK. "Very comforting choice of words, Izzy. Like I can remember where Giga House was when I don't even know where I am."
Just then, TK got another email:
TK,
Please help me! The place you're looking for is where
Giga House used to be, which is to the northwest of
where you landed if you went through that Digital Rift.
FYI,
Kari
"Kari?!" gasped TK. "No way!" This got Yugi and Sakura's attention.
"Let me see that," said Sakura. She took the boy's D-Terminal and read the email. "That's weird…"
"What is?" asked Yugi.
"How could she know where the Digital Rift was? She's been in captivity for about five days, hasn't she? And how was it possible for her to send an email in captivity?"
"I admit it's strange," Yugi thought aloud. "Hey, Kero! Think you can scout to the northwest a bit?"
"I'm tired, okay? You rode on my back from Domino City to Tokyo for crying out loud!" the yellow guardian shouted back.
"He's right," Sakura told him. "The two of them must be really tired out now. I am as well, because I used the Fly Card for such a long time."
"We can't stop now!" yelled TK. "We have to keep going! The Game Card and Kari are so close! If you guys want to stay, fine, but I'm going to go after the Game Card!" TK turned around and, following a compass on his D-3, proceeded to march toward the Game Card's lair. His two companions were shocked to see the usually cheerful boy shout at them.
Sakura sighed. She knew how TK must feel at this time. When Li was sucked into that dark void that had devoured all of her Clow Cards before she ever had a chance to tell him that she loved him, she was hurt as well. In those brief moments when she believed Li was gone, Sakura felt practically every negative emotion in existence. (A/N: Cardcaptor movie 2, in case you didn't know.) Most of all, she felt guilt. Guilt that she couldn't save her beloved before they had a chance to be together. And now, TK had endured these same feelings for almost a week. The blond boy had finally figured out how much the girl meant to him when she was taken away. And now was the only time he had ever let them loose.
'He's good at hiding his feelings,' Sakura thought sadly. 'Let them out, TK. It's best if you let out all of your feelings.'
While Sakura was comtemplating the Digidestined's feelings, Yugi ran after him, hoping to calm him down. And to do that, TK would need a more mature individual to talk to. And the only one available was his alter-ego, Yami.
"YU-GI-OH!"
"They don't understand! How could they?! They've never lost someone so close to them before! They've never had to go through what I had to go through!" TK was shouting angrily to himself, sobbing all along the way. "It's my fault that Kari's gone! I'm the one who should've been taken, not her!"
"And if you were kidnapped, I'll bet Kari would think the same thing," Yami spoke calmly from behind the blond boy.
"Listen, I know you're the King of Games, Yugi, but that doesn't mean that you know what I'm going through! It should've been me who was kidnapped! ME! And now I've lost her, and I have to get her back! I'll bet you've never lost someone close to you before!"
"On the contrary, Takeru, I have been through much more than you think," Yami stated, still maintaining his composure. "Do you why I entered the Duelist Kingdom tournament? Why I worked so hard to win against Pegasus?"
"You didn't enter to win the $30 million?" asked TK.
"No, far from it. In fact, I gave that money to Joey for his younger sister's eye operation," Yami told him. "A few weeks after I defeated Seto Kaiba, the world champion, I received a video and an invitation to Duelist Kingdom. The video was of Pegasus, but it was far from an ordinary screenplay. Pegasus used the magic of his Millenium item, the Millenium Eye, to control his image in the videotape. After sending me into the darkness known as the Shadow Realm, I dueled him, with only a limited time to face him. But his eye was more powerful than I thought. He could see the cards in my hand and figured out what strategy I had planned before I played it."
"Incredible," whispered TK. "How did you manage to play?"
"It was a difficult duel, but I almost won, thanks to the Heart of the Cards. My only hope was to put down a card from my deck and play it without seeing it. It worked, until the timer ran out right before Pegasus was defeated. As a result of that loss, TK, Pegasus sealed away my grandfather's soul, and unless I defeated him in Duelist Kingdom, his soul would be locked away for eternity and Pegasus would get my Millenium Puzzle. Thus began my journey."
"Wow," TK was still trying to take in what Yami had told him.
"You took the words right out of my mouth, TK," Sakura laughed as she emerged from the bushes, Kero and Patamon in her arms.
"So you see, TK, we're not all that different," Yami explained. "Don't think that you're the only one who has had problems like this before. And we're saying for your own good, don't let your feelings get in the way of your rational thinking. Right now, we can't risk anything. We're going to need a good night's rest now."
"Let's set up camp," suggested Sakura. "We'll tackle the Game Card first thing in the morning."
TK nodded in agreement. "I'll gather some firewood. Patamon, think you can round up some fish?"
"No need," smiled Sakura. "I'll catch some. Where's the nearest river?" Yugi pointed to the direction behind him. Sakura ran in the said direction, leaving the sleeping Kero and Patamon on some fallen leaves.
As TK left for firewood, Yugi/Yami lay back on a tree, having a conversation with his other self.
::What are you thinking about, aibou?:: Yami asked.
:Exactly why are we involved in this mess?: Yugi responded. :Sakura's in it for the Game Card, and TK's in it for Kari. What's our gain?:
::Do you remember what Ishizu talked to us about?::
:Not really. You're the one who talked with her.:
::Oh yeah. Well, anyway, she told me that we're going to have to lead those two into battle. She said that this is a test of our abilities, and if we don't pass, we won't even make it in Battle City.::
:What if we don't make it?:
::What if we never made it in Duelist Kingdom? Yugi, we are always facing high stakes. That's never stopped us before, and it won't stop us now. We have to win, for both worlds.::
"Yugi, we're back!" TK and Sakura called, interrupting Yugi's mind debate. "Let's get a fire started."
The next morning…
"This is where Giga House used to be," TK gasped. "Looks like they've done some renovations."
In front of the three teenagers was an enormous castle hovering about fifty feet above the ground. They had gotten enough sleep and food the night before, so this was not an illusion of fatigue, and they knew it.
"Awesome," whispered Sakura. "But it looks sort of familiar."
"Indeed," Yami smiled. "It's the Castle of Dark Illusions." TK took a closer look and realized his companion was right. It was the same castle.
"That Game Card must've figured out the game of Duel Monsters," Sakura concluded. "This isn't going to be an easy fight, you guys. We're going to need to outplay the ultimate winner."
"We'll need to believe in the Heart of the Cards for us to win," sighed Yami Yugi. "I pray that will be enough."
TK was silent. He wanted to believe very strongly in the Heart of the Cards, but ever since he dueled Sakura, he wasn't so sure anymore.
"Hey guys, are you ready to fly?" asked Keroberos. "Pegasusmon and I have been waiting. We're going to have to fly to even get into the castle!" The three looked at each other and nodded. Yami quickly jumped on Keroberos, and TK mounted Pegasusmon. After Sakura summoned the fly card, the three friends flew into the entrance of the castle, only to realize that they forgot one detail: the Castle was heavily guarded by Digimon.
Keroberos did his best to blow away some of the attacking Digimon with his fire breath, and Pegasusmon fired his Star Shower many times to stun several of the guards. However, it was Sakura who dealt the finishing blow to the guards. After the three landed, Sakura quickly released the Power Card and slammed the wand into the nearby wall, causing the wall and ceiling to collapse, crushing some guards and blocking others from getting through.
"Nice one," TK complimented her. Sakura only smiled.
"I guess we'll just have to figure out how to get out later," chuckled Yami Yugi. "Chances are that we're not even getting out."
"Thanks for the really positive attitude, Yugi," TK said sarcastically.
Yami smiled sheepishly and lead the three companions down the corridor, the only place for them to go. They finally reached a large iron door, and with all of their added strength, were able to open it. It lead the three teenagers into a large, dark room. All was quiet, until Keroberos and Pegasusmon's screams were heard. A spot light turned on and focused on the three duelists. TK and Sakura turned their heads around the room, trying to see where their friends were taken.
"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" an eerie, high-pitched voice sounded. Two cages lit up above the three. One contained Kero and the other contained Patamon.
"What have you done to them?" demanded Yami.
"They are not to interfere with our duel," another voice answered, this one much deeper.
"Duel? You're the ones holding Kari! Show yourself!" TK shouted angrily. "Face us, you creeps!"
"Very well then," the high pitched voice answered.
"I will go first," the lower voice boomed. It revealed itself as the Dark Magician. TK remembered him all too well. This Dark Magician was clad in pitch black, and he had the most evil looking yellow eyes.
Suddenly, TK realized something. "You can talk?!"
"Well, if all he said was 'Duel' then he wouldn't be much fun, now would he?"
"That voice," whispered TK. "Can it be?"
A figure floated down, yellow boots, green pants, red shirt, and the black and white mask. "PIEDMON!" cried TK. "But we defeated you! Seven years ago!"
Piedmon looked confused. "Defeated me? Do I know you?" Piedmon stared harder. "Ah! The little one! My, my, look who's all grown up! Yes I was defeated, but now, thanks to the Game Card, I'm revived! Enough Chit Chat. Time for our Duel!"
"Our Duel?" asked Sakura. "Wait, you want this to be a two on two duel?"
"Three on three," the Dark Magician corrected.
"I don't understand," Yugi told him. "Who's your third teammate?"
"Oh, how silly of us? We forgot to reveal our final duelist!" laughed Piedmon. He clapped his hands twice as if summoning a servant. The room finally lit up. The room was solid blue rock. Iron doors stood behind TK and co. and behind Piedmon and co. TK, Yugi, and Sakura were standing on a large circular floating platform in the center of a deep abyss. Stone bridges connected the doors to the central platform. Around the central circle were six smaller floating platforms, each equipped with its own dueling platform like at Kaiba Land and Duelist Kingdom. Three were red and the other three were blue. On the wall, about 30 feet above the central platform were five other cages, not including the two that Kero and Patamon were held.
The door opposite of the entrance suddenly swung open, revealing a figure engulfed in the light of the outside. The figure walked toward the three duelists. As the figure crossed the stone bridge, both began to crumble, leaving no escape from this room.
"Meet the third member of our troupe," Piedmon chuckled. "I'm sure you'll recognize her, little one." As the door closed and the light was dimming out, the figure could be made clear. TK gasped at what he saw. The third duelist, the final member of the group he was fighting against was none other than…
"Kari…" TK whispered to himself.
I'll end it there. I can't believe it's already been a year and 2 months since I began this story. Don't expect any more updates next month. I'll be in China again for a few weeks. I know you guys want to find out what happens. I'm sorry. But I have to end it here, and the final duel will be played out at last when I get back in August, okay?
For those of you who want an update on the Tenken and the Pirate, I'll be sure to update as soon as I can.
Well, I hope you like my little twists and turns in this story, but I'm not sure how many of you predicted that Kari would be dueling. Oh well. R&R!