Yu-Gi-Oh! Avatar

Fanfic Chapter 110: Kaiba vs. The Future Pt 1: The Tenth Duelist Revealed
Episode Basis: A Duel with Destiny: Kaiba vs. Ishizu Pt 1

Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh! Even though she was given the ability to summon and control an Egyptian God Card by Yami-Yugi, Mai was unable to read the ancient text on the card. Only people who had ties to Ancient Egypt could read the card. Marik's family was descended from one of the priests during the ancient Shadow Wars. Yami-Yugi could definitely read it, and Yami-Marik even hinted that Seto Kaiba could read it (why, don't ask me). Mai was defeated as Yami-Marik tied her up with two of his real monsters and recited an ancient chant that awoken the Winged Dragon of Ra and allowed him to control it. Since this was a Shadow Duel, everything was real and Ra's attack would seriously hurt Mai at least. Risking disqualification, Harold leapt into action and blocked the blast from reaching Joey and Mai. Together with Yami-Yugi, they were able to stop Ra from killing Mai, but they were unable to prevent Yami-Marik from winning the Shadow Game. Yami-Marik slapped the guys around like they were lightweights and trapped Mai in a penalty game all in front of her cousin and only remaining living relative: Kevin. Mai definitely got the short end of the stick. But you know what's worse? Kaiba's dueling next. Get ready for ego stroking on a massive scale.


Yami-Yugi and his friends had gathered around Mai's bedside.

"Mai, please, wake up," Kevin pleaded. "Mai, speak to me!"

"It's no use," Tea said calmly. "Her mind's been banished to the Shadow Realm."

Kevin turned furiously to Harold, "Why didn't you try to stop this? Why didn't you do something?"

"Hello, what do you call jumping in front of a huge energy blast?" Harold retorted.

"All right, calm down, everybody," Yami-Yugi said. "Throwing around blame won't help things."

"Well not to throw around blame or anything, but don't forget there's still a mind-controlling psycho on board and we still don't know who Kaiba's dueling," Amara pointed out.

"Great, why don't you bring the mood down a little more, Amara," Tristan said sarcastically.

"Hey, don't shoot the messenger!"

"How about kicking the messenger into next week?"

"Stop arguing, you two!" Tea ordered.

"It's my fault." Everyone turned to look at Joey. "I thought Mai could handle herself, even though everything inside me was telling me she wasn't. Perhaps if I tried to step in more like Yugi and Harold…"

"All right, enough moping," Harold said. "The word 'if' has got to be the most useless word in existence because it won't change what has already happened or what will happen. The best we can do now is play out this tournament and try to keep any more minds from ending up like Mai and Bakura!"

"Harold's right," Serenity affirmed. "If there's one thing I've learned from watching you all duel, it's that no matter how bad it may seem, hope must be kept alive. Please, let me be that hope. I'll watch over Mai for you. I know it won't make her wake up any quicker, but at least there will be some hope for her… some light in the darkness."

"I couldn't have said it any better myself," Harold said. "Let's go, guys."

"Let me tell you, I am so NOT looking forward to see Kaiba duel," Joey complained as they left.

"Me too," Harold agreed. "It'll probably feel like pulling teeth."

"I'll stay behind too," Kevin volunteered. "Mai's my only living relative, I need… no, have to be by her side."

"It's okay, guys, I won't mind," Serenity said. The others left.

Kevin leaned against the wall. "All I wanted to do was cheer on Mai in the finals; I never realized it would turn out like this."

"I didn't either," Serenity agreed.

A hand was laid on Kevin's shoulder. "Never fret, Kevin," the Tenth Duelist said. "There is hope."

"Hope? How?"

"It lies within the Pharaoh."

"The who?"

"Hey, Marik kept calling Yugi the Pharaoh," Serenity realized.

"That's right," the Tenth Duelist agreed and went away.

"Who was that?" Serenity wondered.

Despite himself, Kevin smiled, "An old friend," he said cryptically.


Up above, Kaiba had already taken his place on the dueling platform. The gang took their usual spot.

"So, anybody for Texas Hold Up?" Harold asked.

"Is it going to be better than watching this duel?" Amara asked back.

"A normal card game, now there's something I'd never thought I'd see," Tristan cracked.

Yami-Yugi, Tea, and Joey had more pressing concerns: Kaiba's opponent. "Who do you think Kaiba's opponent is?" Tea asked.

"Let's just hope whoever it is doesn't work for Marik."

"I'll drink to that," Joey agreed.

It doesn't matter who my opponent is, Kaiba thought. My Egyptian God Card will crush him… which reminds me. Kaiba touched his lapel radio, "Mokuba, what's the status on translating that God Card?"

"I did what you said and used the satellites to scan the God Card image. It's now uploaded into our computer but it's having trouble translating it. Marik was right about one thing, only those with an understanding of Egypt can translate it. I'll hack into Industrial Illusions' network and see if Pegasus has any info."

"Good, do that."

"Kaiba, I have to speak to you right away," Yami-Yugi called.

"Save it, Yugi," Kaiba dismissed.

"But Kaiba…"

"I already know what you're going to say, you want me to land the blimp so Mai could get to the hospital. Well save it, this blimp stops for no one!"

"Whatever happened to 'even the dead must be carried off the battlefield?" Harold asked.

"Do you see Mai anywhere on the dueling field?"

"If the tenth Duelist doesn't arrive in the next five minutes, you're awarded an automatic victory, sir," Roland said.

"Boy, talk about kissing up," Amara grumbled.

"Maybe my opponent backed out at the last minute, a wise move."

The ring of the elevator put a stop on Kaiba's theory as the Tenth Duelist arrived.

"You have a lot of nerve showing up late to our duel," Kaiba scolded.

"The last match of the quarter-finals will now begin," Roland announced. "Seto Kaiba will duel… uh… yikes, I don't know her name."

"Neither do I," Kaiba said and pointed squarely at her. "All right, no more mysteries, reveal your self now!"

"Why should I when you already know me," she said in a smooth, velvety voice. She reached up and removed her veil.

Kaiba, Harold, Tea, and Yami-Yugi all gasped.

It was Ishizu!

Placing her veil down her blouse, she went up to Roland.

"Uh… your name, Miss?" Roland requested.

"You may put me down as… Ishizu Ishtar."

Everyone gasped. "Did I hear her right?" Amara asked. "Did she just say her last name was Ishtar?" She cast a side-glance at Yami-Marik, the only one who didn't look surprised to see her. "I don't see the resemblance."

"Well this is quite a surprise," Kaiba grumbled.

"I told you we would meet again," Ishizu said. "And my prediction came true."

"Well good for you," Kaiba said sarcastically. "But why are you here? Do you want Obelisk back? Don't expect me to just hand it over to you."

"I am here to save my brother," Ishizu said. For thousands of years, an Ishtar has stood watch over the Pharaoh's Tomb waiting for him to return. Since Marik has turned his back on his duty, he has thrown the future of the world into jeopardy! I must enter this tournament to save him.

"One of these Ishtars was bad enough," Joey complained. "But two of them…"

"She can't be any worse than Marik," Tristan said.

"For once, I'm inclined to agree with you, Tristan," Duke said.

"Uh… I lost my program, anyone want to fill me in on what's going on?" Amara asked.

"Once I figure it out, you'll be the first to know," Tristan cracked.

"Have you forgotten about my ability?" Ishizu asked Kaiba.

"What ability?"

"My Millennium Necklace." Ishizu touched her necklace. "It gives me the power to see into the future, and through it I have seen your defeat."

"Bull," Kaiba spat. "I don't appreciate you using my tournament to solve your family problems. I planned it with one thing in mind: to reclaim my status as the Number One Duelist in the land!"

"Have you also forgotten that it was I who gave you the idea to hold this tournament?"

"Ishizu and Kaiba planned this together?" Joey gasped.

"Still lost here," Amara spoke up.

"I knew it," Harold muttered.

"Harold, have you met her before?"

Harold nodded, "When you and Joey went to register for the tournament, I went to see her as Avatar. I had a feeling that there was more to this than meets the eye. At the time, she told me…"


Ishizu sighed and stood up. "Kaiba wishes to regain his title as the Number One Duelist in the Land."

"Thought so," Avatar mumbled.

"But there's another reason, one that I did not tell him."

"And that is?"

"Just like the Pharaoh, the one you call Yugi Moto, Seto Kaiba will receive memories of his past. A past which is intertwined with that of…"

"Of what?"

"The Blue-Eyes White Dragon."

Avatar gasped, "What does the Blue-Eyes White Dragon have to do with all this?"

"That, I'm afraid, is information only Seto Kaiba can receive by himself. Not even my Millennium Necklace can show him the truth."

"I see."


"Ishizu has motives that not even Kaiba knows. One thing's for sure: she's not just in it to save her brother, and she's definitely not in it for the glory like Kaiba."

"You are correct, Harold Kumara," Ishizu said. Harold jumped, he hadn't been aware that she was listening in. "My motives go far beyond what normal people could imagine."

"Still lost," Amara said again.

"You've made two mistakes in your planning, Ishizu," Kaiba said, angry at all the superstitious nonsense being dispersed here. "One was giving me Obelisk, and the other was expecting it back."

"I won't deny that your skills with Obelisk have grown in a short amount of time and that is commendable. But don't forget, I know all about Obelisk, and it does have weaknesses. And my Millennium Necklace has shown me that although you possess it now, but when the end of days comes, you will not be in possession of it."

"Be silent! I will not hear any more of your nonsense! I will win this duel despite your phony fortune telling! Roland, start the duel, so I can crush this upstart once and for all!"

Roland cleared his throat, "The last match of the Battle City Quarter Finals will now begin, Seto Kaiba will duel Ishizu Ishtar. Raise the platform!" The platform was elevated. "Duelists, let the match begin!"

"Time to duel!" Kaiba and Ishizu announced.

(K: 4000)
(I: 4000)

"So… who do you want to bet on?" Harold asked conversely.

"As much as I want to see Kaiba beat," Joey said. "Ishizu won't stand a chance against Obelisk."

Obelisk is the most cursed of all the Egyptian God Cards, Ishizu thought. Any hands holding Obelisk who are not tied to Ancient Egypt and the Shadow Wars would result in catastrophe for whoever holds it.


"So wait, you're saying you've seen this Ishizu person before?" Serenity asked.

"Not exactly, I didn't recognize her at first, but then…"


"Greetings."

He gasped in his hurry to escape he failed to ascertain whether or not the room was occupied. He looked at the strange woman sitting in the chair.

"I…"

"I know who you are," the woman interrupted. "We have a mutual acquaintance."

"We do? But I've never seen you before."

"Yes, but I have seen you many times, Kevin Hunter."

"How do you know me?"

She lifted up her veils, "I am Ishizu Ishtar."

"No way, you took over my Dad's job after he died." Kevin recalled a moment long ago, his father was at a ceremony commemorating the opening of a new exhibit at the National Museum for Archaeology in Egypt. He and his mother were along. Kevin remembered glancing across the stage and noticed the young dark-skinned woman standing behind and to the right of his father on the stage.

"Yes, I donned the burden originally presented by the late Doctor Adam Hunter. In a way, it is a fitting punishment for me."

"Punishment, for what?"

"Because… in a way, I killed your father."

"No, that's impossible! He was run over by a car in Domino!"

"True, I was not driving the car, nor in the area, but I am still the cause. I asked your father to guard something for me, something very valuable."

"What?"

"The Egyptian God Card: Obelisk the Tormentor."

"I've heard about them, they're supposed to be only three ever made."

"You are correct, there were only three ever made and two fell into possession of my brother Marik and the Rare Hunters. I asked your father to guard the third one until I could make arrangements to return it to Egypt where it belonged. But tragedy befalls anyone whom the Gods find unworthy to possess the Egyptian God Cards. I realized this too late. I called your father and asked for the God Card back, to protect him from the curse. Alas, I could not."

"Finally, I understand," Kevin mumbled. "I always wanted to know why my Dad was killed and now I know."

"I have used others as my brother had, and now both of us will pay. You probably do not wish to forgive me for tearing your family apart, I understand. Rest assured, the gods will see that I am severely punished for my crimes."


"Do you… hate her…?" Serenity asked.

"I… I don't know," Kevin admitted. "I know I should hate her, I want to hate her she caused my father to leave in the middle of the night which led to his death. But for some reason, I can't"


"I'll start off," Kaiba volunteered. "I summon Vorse Raider in attack mode!"

Next, he'll set a card face-down, Ishizu predicted.

"Next, I'll set a card face-down and end my turn."

Just as my Millennium Necklace had predicted, I will know Kaiba's every move and he will lose!

Kaiba's good, Yami-Yugi thought. But there's no way he can stand up to the power of a Millennium Item, at least not without a magical artifact of his own. There's no way he can win.


Meanwhile, Mokuba had broken through the last firewall on the Industrial Illusions mainframe. "Good, now to download their language database and translate the language on the card," he said.


Ishizu's eyes were closed as she called for her first monster, "I summon Keldo (1) in defense mode!"

"Did you see that?" Joey asked. "She just played that card without looking."

"I see it but I don't believe it," Amara threw in.

"Ishizu's necklace enables her to see events before they happen."

"Sounds like the trick Espa Roba played on me."

"I assure you, Ishizu's premonition powers are very real."

What they don't realize is that my sister's power has limits.

"Next I'll play a magic card called Michizure of Doom! This let's me select two cards from your hand and send them to the graveyard, then you do the same to me."

"Fine," Kaiba grumbled as he prepared to show her his hand.

"The cards I choose are Polymerization and Kaiser Glider (2)."

Kaiba gasped how could she have known those cards were in my hand without seeing them? Is she cheating somehow? He looked at Yami-Marik, I don't think her brother's in on it, even if he was, he wouldn't be able to see my hand from where he was standing. Nevertheless, Kaiba discarded said cards.

"Now you can choose two cards from my hand to discard," she said showing him her hand.

Kaiba didn't like Ishizu's patronizing tone, "Time for you to discard Monster Reborn and Revival Magic."

"As you wish," Ishizu said like it didn't matter.

I remember Ishizu's dueling tactics all too well, Yami-Marik mused. She may have defeated me numerous times when I was a child, but now I'm unstoppable. She'll never turn me back into that pathetic whelp.

As usual, Ishizu knew what he was thinking, He's wrong, I will return my brother to normal.

But so was Yami-Marik, "Your brother's been getting in my way for the last time, it's time to put him out of his misery!"

"I'm sick of hearing about you and your demented family!" Kaiba said angrily.

"How dare you talk about my family that way!" Ishizu said.

I don't blame Kaiba for getting upset; I'm getting sick of Ishizu's speeches too.

"Let's see which is stronger then, your tricks or my skills. Vorse Raider, attack her Keldo now!" The beast-warrior charged ahead and sliced at the owl-like creature.

"It doesn't matter I can still predict your every move."

"Hah, your magic tricks won't work on me." With this magic card and my face-down card, I'll devastate her. "I'll place one card face-down and that ends my turn."

Ishizu started her turn by drawing a trap card, This card will come in handy later. "I summon Mudora (3) in attack mode along with the magic card Sword of Dogra which increases its attack points by 500!"

(M: 1500-2000)

"Mudora, attack his Vorse Raider!"

"Thank you, you activated my trap! Reveal face-down cards!" Kaiba commanded as his two face-down cards flipped up. "First up is the magic card Shrink which cuts my Vorse Raider's attack points in half!"

(VR: 1900-950)

(K: 2950)
(I: 4000)

"This makes it the perfect carrier for my Crush Card virus!" Ishizu let out a little gasp as the purple smoke went into her deck. "Now you have to send every monster with higher than 1500 attack points straight to the graveyard!" Mudora was destroyed.

"Ouch," Amara winced.

"Kaiba's move was brutal," Joey critiqued. "If I were Ishizu, I'd trade in that necklace for a crystal ball or something."

Joey's right, Yami-Yugi thought. If she can see into the future, why didn't she see that coming?

"My Millennium Necklace tells me I don't need powerful monsters to defeat you, I play Swords of Revealing Light, now all your monsters are helpless for three turns!"

Kaiba chuckled, "If my future's so bleak, why are you the one who's stalling?"

"I'm not stalling, our moves are dictated by fate and it is your destiny to lose!"

"Well I have a prediction of my own, as soon as Swords of Revealing Light are gone, I'll crush you with my Egyptian God Card!"

Ishizu just placed a card face-down, "I end my turn."

Kaiba drew a magic card called Virus Cannon, This is perfect she may have prevented my monsters from attacking, but I can still summon and set cards.

It's quite amusing to see Ishizu toy with Kaiba like this.

"I summon Dark Gremlin (4) in attack mode! And next I'll place this face-down. I end my turn."

"I draw one card," Ishizu said. "I won't play this card just yet, so I'll end my turn."

"How sad, you stopped me from attacking yet you hadn't destroyed me."

"I will destroy you; you will draw the card that will lead you to your defeat in just two turns."


"Okay," Mokuba said to himself. "I downloaded the Egyptian language database from Industrial Illusions, now I'll work on translating the card. Soon we'll know all the secrets of the Winged Dragon of Ra and then my big brother will be unstoppable."


"I pass again."

"For all your talk, Ishizu, you've done nothing to win this duel! On the next turn, the Swords of Revealing Light will be gone allowing me to attack!"

"He'll pass this turn," Ishizu said matter-of-factly.

"You're right," Kaiba grumbled.

Ishizu drew a trap card called Blast Held by a Tribute, Excellent, this will allow me to seal his fate in the next turn. "It's time for you to make your final move, Kaiba."

The golden swords vanished. Finally, it's time to destroy Ishizu with the very same God Card she gave to me. She may have given it to me but if she thinks she can take it back, she's sadly mistaken. Kaiba drew a card.

It was Obelisk the Tormentor. But before he could summon it, he had to bring her life points down a notch, just to be on the safe side. "Dark Gremlin, attack her life points directly!" The demon slashed its monstrous claws at Ishizu's Duel Disk.

(K: 2950)
(I: 2400)

"Now I'll use Obelisk the Tormentor to destroy you!"

"But if you use Obelisk, you'll be destroyed!"

"You can't win; nothing can save you from Obelisk's wraith!" Kaiba let out a menacing laugh.

To Be Continued


Duel Monster Database

(1)
Name: Keldo
Level: 4
Type: Fairy/Effect
Attribute: Earth
ATK: 1200
DEF: 1600

(2)
Name: Kaiser Glider
Level: 6
Type: Dragon/Effect
Attribute: Light
ATK: 2400
DEF: 2200

(3)
Name: Mudora
Level: 4
Type: Fairy/Effect
Attribute: Earth
ATK: 1500
DEF: 1800

(4)
Name: Dark Gremlin
Level: 4
Type: Fiend
Attribute; Dark
ATK: 1800
DEF: 1600