"You five are pathetic!" yelled Noah. He had drawn all five of them, Nesbit included, into an area that was void of everything but themselves and shadows.
"Please Noah! Try to understand our position!" begged Johnson. He was on his knees, they all were, which would have seemed highly unusual in reality, but this wasn't.
"I've seen enough!" spat Noah. "You had your chance! You've had two chances!"
"But Noah! We won't let you down this time! We have a fool-proof plan!" exclaimed Lector.
"Oh?" asked Noah.
"You know how much we want to make those brats suffer for humiliating us before," said Gamesly. "This time we will not lose!"
"Speak for yourself," said Nesbit. "I want to leave, I already have the body I need."
Noah glared at them a moment, then smirked. Shayla had been right in assuming he would never let the Big 5 escape. "You're right, you do have one body. I'll give you one more chance to get the bodies you need, but remember, three strikes and you're out gentlemen."
"Thank you Noah!" they groveled.
"The five of you will share Tristan's body and use it to take down Yu-Gi Motou in a duel," said Noah.
"What?!" gasped Nesbit.
"You heard him," said Gamesly, giving Nesbit a stern look.
"Win and I'll give you all the bodies you need, lose…" he left the threat hanging in the air.
"We won't let you down!" promised Lector.
"Good, now get to work," said Noah. They vanished with a wave of his hand. "Well, Mokuba, looks like the rest of Kaiba's friends are about to lose their bodies." He looked at the boy behind him. Mokuba's eyes flashed red briefly, but that was the only response.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"We've been walking in this desert for hours," complained Joe.
"It could be worse," said Drake. "It could be a swamp." Lara nodded.
"Well, there's no use stopping," said Duke. "I haven't seen any sign of civilization in the past two hours."
"Yeah! And we need to find my body!" exclaimed monkey Tristan.
"The less I hear from you, robo-wonder, the better," snapped Joe.
"You're not still thinking he's the spy, are you?" asked Kevin.
"Of course!" exclaimed Joe. "I don't trust it."
"Calm down guys, fighting isn't going to help," said Yu-Gi.
"He's right," agreed Serenity.
The group had stopped walking so they could talk. That is, everyone stopped but one. Kaiba had kept on walking, focused solely on one thing, finding his brother.
"Kaiba! Wait up!" called Yu-Gi.
"Save it Yu-Gi, this is family business, so just leave me alone," shot Kaiba without even looking back.
"You heard him, leave him alone," said Joe, instantly ready to get rid of the CEO at any chance he got.
Téa didn't listen. She hurried forward and jumped in front of Kaiba, blocking his path.
"Get out of my way, Gardener," growled Kaiba in a low voice.
"Save your attitude!" she countered. "We know you're worried about Mokuba, but you're wrong if you think you're the only one worried about him! Mokuba is our friend too and we want to help! That's what friends do for each other! So forget that attitude!"
"Get. Out. Of. My. Way." growled Kaiba, furious. "This is family business! So just stay out of it!"
"In case you haven't noticed, it's your 'family business' that got all of us into this mess in the first place," said Drake. "We're involved, whether you want us to be or not."
"Pegasus, don't push me or…" threatened Kaiba, but he never got to finish it.
"Guys! Look!" exclaimed Serenity. "There's Tristan's body!"
"Huh?"
They all looked where she was pointing. Up on a cliff, 'Tristan' was glaring down at them.
"That's Nesbit, remember," said Duke.
"It's still Tristan's body," reminded Yu-Gi.
"Yeah! And I want it back!" exclaimed Tristan, following it up with a series of monkey noises.
"Get down here, you corporate scum and give Tristan his body back!" yelled Joe.
Unnoticed by the group, who had been distracted, Kaiba walked away.
"As you wish," laughed 'Tristan.' He then stepped off of the cliff.
There was a whole lot of gasping, but he floated safely down to their level.
"Give Tristan's body back, Nesbit!" ordered Duke.
Nesbit laughed, but it wasn't only his voice laughing.
"What's going on?!" gasped Lara.
"I'm not alone in here," laughed Nesbit.
"What?"
"All five of us are sharing Tristan's body for one purpose," said Lector. He pointed at Yu-Gi. "To bring you down in a duel!"
"Get a life!" snapped Lara. "We kicked your butts twice already, don't you know you don't stand a chance?"
"Just let us out of here," added Kevin.
"Hey! I don't want to be a toy monkey forever!" protested Tristan.
"Which is why we have a deal we know you won't be able to refuse," said Gamesly from Tristan's body. "If Yu-Gi can duel us and win, we'll give you Tristan's body back."
"What's the catch?" asked Yami, who had taken over.
Gamesly laughed, "You don't miss a beat, do you Mr. Motou? If we win, we get all of your bodies!"
"What?!"
"What will it be, Mr. Motou?" asked Gamesly.
"This might be our only chance to get his body back…" said Téa, hesitantly.
"But, the stakes are so high," said Lara.
"We have to help Tristan," said Serenity, vehemently.
"I think Yu-Gi is the only one who can make that decision," said Drake.
"Yu-Gi, you're the best at Duel Monsters, I don't think you'll lose," said Duke.
"Make that two of us," agreed Kevin.
"Are you willing to let me risk your bodies to save Tristan?" asked Yami.
"There's no risk, you won't lose Yug," said Joe.
"I believe in you," said Téa. "We're friends, and our friendship has gotten us through tougher times." Yami nodded.
"One moment," cautioned Drake. "I want to make sure they're not trying to pull anything." He turned back to the Big 5. "How will this duel work?"
"A very wise question, Mr. Pegasus," said Lector now. "We will take turns dueling, using Tristan's body, so Mr. Motou will only face one of us at a time, though he will face all of us within this duel. The Deck Master rules will apply as usual."
"Hey! Five on one doesn't sound fair to me!" said Joe and Kevin at the same time. They looked at each other in surprise.
"A agree," said Drake, his eyes narrowing.
"If you want to duel Yug, you can face me too!" said Joe.
"I want a piece of you losers," said Kevin. "It appears I haven't creamed you enough if you still think you can duel."
"Well…erm…" stammered Lector. They hadn't expected this.
"That still doesn't make it even," said Drake. "Three on five, and after all the crap you freaks tried to pull with Industrial Illusions, I'm dueling too."
"If they want all our bodies, then I'm not giving up mine without a fight," said Duke, stepping forward. "And that makes it even, five on five."
"Ha! Now I know we won't lose!" cheered Lara.
"Hear that Tristan, you're going to get your body back," said Serenity.
"Yes!" exclaimed Tristan.
'Tristan' seemed to have spaced out, as all the Big 5 argued amongst themselves within him.
"This wasn't part of the plan!" exclaimed Johnson.
"We can't let all of them duel!" protested Crum. "It significantly drops our odds of victory."
"Yu-Gi is the one we want," said Nesbit. "If we beat him, we all get out of here."
"Mr. Wheeler is a poor duelist to begin with, it wouldn't matter if he dueled or not," said Lector.
"Yes, he would hold Yu-Gi back," agreed Johnson. "Duke Deblin as well. All he can do is roll dice."
"Mr. Pegasus is a threat," said Gamesly.
"He can't be any better than Mr. Motou, and we know we can take him down," Lector pointed-out.
"And the last one?" asked Johnson.
"That mouse has beaten all of us before, in case you've forgotten," said Gamesly.
"This time, the outcome will be different," said Nesbit.
"Bottom line, what do we do with all of the challenges?" asked Lector.
"Why don't we have them play the same way we are?" asked Gamesly. "Since they are determined to make it fair, then let them eat those words!"
"Have them trade off? I like it," said Johnson.
Crum was calculating away, "Taking in consideration the differences of their decks, their dueling skills, and their strategies…The odds have doubled in our favor!"
"They'll only be able to do pieces of their strategy, and they'll be at the mercy of the cards their 'friends' play," added Nesbit.
"It's decided then," said Gamesly. "We will have them duel tag team."
"Court is adjourned," said Johnson.
"What's wrong with him?" asked Lara on the outside.
"Maybe the heat snapped their brains?" shrugged Joe. "Then again, there wasn't much there to snap in the first place."
"It's been decided," said Gamesly, snapping Tristan's body out of a trace. "You five will duel us tag team style."
"Tag team style?" asked Kevin.
"Correct," said Gamesly. "One of you will start, then you will trade off to another, so only one of you will duel at a time. You are forbidden to discuss your strategies. If you do you will automatically lose."
"You pulled that rule before," commented Duke.
"This changes things," said Yami. "Are you four still sure you want to duel?"
"Of course!"
"Yes!"
"Absolutely!"
"I'm not backing down."
"Thank you," said Yami.
"Hey, we're here for you bro, that's what friends are for," said Joe. "We're gonna stick together no matter what. And as soon as we pound these creeps into the ground and get Tristan's body back, we're going to leave this freaky place together."
"Right," agreed Drake. "I've seen how the power of your friendship pulled you through Duelist Kingdom, and I'm glad to be part of it. You can sure bet I'm not going to let any of you down."
"We've made it this far," said Duke. "One duel shouldn't be too hard. I know if we stick together we'll win this. When you beat me at my own Dungeon, Dice Monsters game, you showed me how strong friendship can really be."
"I know I'm new here, but you have to be the great group of people I've met," said Kevin. "Well, with one exception…Anyways, you guys have something that I want to be part of, and I think this duel will do that for me."
"And we'll be here cheering you on," added Téa.
"You're the best duelists I know," said Serenity. "So crush them!"
"Don't worry, this one is already in the bag," said Lara. "They're biggest mistake was letting you work together." She walked over and gave Drake a quick peck on the cheek. "For luck." She winked, and Drake tried to swallow his blushing. He was getting better at that.
"Thank you guys," said Yami. "I'll never forget how strong our friendship will be. This means a lot to me." He turned to Gamesly. "We accept your challenge."
"It's settled then," said Gamesly. "Decide which one of you will go first. I will be the first representative of the Big 5."
The other five looked amongst themselves, not sure who should be the first to go.
Finally, Kevin spoke, "I've had the most experience against these guys, I'll go first."
"Sure," shrugged Joe.
"Don't worry, if there's any trouble, one of us will bail you out," said Drake.
"I don't think the over sized fish-stick will be too much trouble," smirked Kevin, stepping forward. "You'll duel me first, Gamesly. I just hope there'll be enough left for everyone else to have a chance."
"Don't get cocky yet, mouse," said Gamesly.
"What did you call me?!" growled Kevin.
"Calm down Kevin, he's just trying to keep you off balance," said Téa. "If you guys need us, Serenity, Lara, Tristan, and I will be up there." She pointed to a small hill behind them. It would give them an eagle-view of the duel.
"Wish me luck, ladies," winked Kevin. Their wish looked more like eye-rolling.
"To start this duel, you need to select your Deck Master," said Gamesly in Tristan's body.
"That's easy, Buster Blader!" exclaimed Kevin. His Deck Master stepped out of his deck and stood solidly behind the smaller duelist.
"You already know my Deck Master, too," said Gamesly. "Deepsea Warrior." His Deck Master appeared behind him.
"Let's duel!" said Kevin.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxNoah had returned to his surveillance room, bring Mokuba with him. Shayla was still caged above him. She frowned from listening to the conversation as the duel started.
"The Big 5 are lying. They're not planning one giving Tristan his body back when they lose," Shayla said.
"Prove it," challenged Noah, who had stopped typing and was just watching.
"The very fact that you are telling me there is something to prove implies there is something for me to prove in the first place," replied Shayla. "You know I will always know when someone is lying. I think you'd be interested in knowing that they're planning on breaking their deal."
Noah shrugged. "It doesn't matter."
"I forgot, you lie worse than the rest of them," Shayla sighed. Lying was her number one pet peeve, followed closely by arrogance. This kid had so much of both it was making her nauseous.
"I'm not lying!" protested Noah. "I really am Gozaburo's only son."
"That's true enough, but you're not telling the whole story," said Shayla.
Noah seemed surprised, "You actually believe me?"
"The Millennial Scales always know what's true and not," answered Shayla. "Regardless of if I like it or not." She paused. "How old are you Noah?"
Noah didn't reply immediately. "That's a complicated question."
"I'm not going anywhere," Shayla said, dryly. She waited, but Noah did not continue. "Are you going to answer my question?"
Noah dodged it. "You know, as much as your friends talk about friendship, they don't seem to care about you at all." He glanced up at the blind girl. "They haven't once asked where you are or called you by name. I'd say that doesn't qualify for a very strong friendship.
Shayla bit her lip. She couldn't say anything to that, because she had been wondering the same thing herself. Shayla thought she was close enough with them that they would at least worry about her, though she knew she wasn't the best of friends with them. Mai was her best friend, and Mai was comatose. She didn't want to admit it, but she was under the impression that they had completely forgotten about her.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"I'll start this duel," said Gamesly. "I activate the magic card A Legendary Ocean. This turns the field into a water field, and reduces the level of all water type monsters by one."
"Big deal," shrugged Kevin as a large puddle formed over the desert floor.
"It's a bigger deal than you realize," said Gamesly. "It means that I can summon a five star monster like Legendary Fisherman without tributing any monsters!"
"That's Mako's favorite monster!" exclaimed Joe.
The Legendary Fisherman had wild navy hair. It carried a spear and wore a green kilt. Wild body pain and arm bangles decorated its body. It rode on the back of an orca whale, which was hidden beneath the water. Its stats were 1850 and 1600.
"Okay, now I have two fish to fry," said Kevin as he drew a card. "I play Skilled Dark Magician in attack mode!" In a flash of light his monster materialized directly in front of him. It's stats were the opposite of the Skilled White Magician, at 1900 and 1700.
/We never asked him if there was a connection between his magicians and our Dark Magician,/ Yu-Gi commented to Yami.
/That answer might be revealed to us in this duel,/ said Yami.
"My monster is more than strong enough to destroy yours," said Kevin. "But before I turn you into lunch, I set this card face down." A card hologram appeared behind his Skilled Dark Magician. "Now, attack!"
His Skilled Dark Magician jumped into the air and formed a powerful ball of dark energy in its hands. It aimed this at the Legendary Fisherman and blew it to digital atoms.
"All right!" cheered Téa.
"We've already taken the lead!" smirked Joe as the Big 5 lost 50 life points, bring them down to 3950.
"This will be the only time you're ahead, so enjoy it while you can," said Gamesly. "A Legendary Ocean is still in play, so I can summon my Rainbow Snake and Ganna without a sacrifice." His rainbow colored serpent appeared in place of his destroyed Legendary Fisherman. It had 2200 attack points, making it stronger than Kevin's only monster.
"That could be trouble…" said Duke.
"A Legendary Ocean is a very profitable investment for me, and you're about to watch as it pays off," gloated Gamesly. "Rainbow Snake and Ganna, attack and destroy his Skilled Dark Magician!" The snake shot forward, ready to crush Kevin's monster in its coils.
Kevin chuckled, "You should have learned by now to watch your opposition's investments! Negate Attack!"
The snake was thrown back when it hit an invisible wall, though it was unharmed.
"Ha! Showed him!" laughed Joe.
"I summoned Koumori Dragon in defense mode.!" announced Kevin. His dragon looked like a typical dragon, being colored dark violet. It was rather small in size compared to the favorites of the dragon duelists who had been stuck in the virtual world. Its stats were only 1500 and 1200. "Then I set this card."
"I could use it now, but I can wait until I have another monster on the field and its even more effective!" thought Kevin. "Besides, it will give that fish-stick a big surprise."
"Gamesly!" called Crum from within Tristan's body. "My Deck Master's special ability will be invaluable with the cards you have played. Let me take over."
"What's wrong with Gamesly?" asked Lara. "He's not moving."
"Sorry for the delay," said Crum, who was now in charge of Tristan's body. "But I am taking over this duel."
"His voice changed!" exclaimed Duke.
"Allow me to reintroduce myself. I'm Crum, the accountant of the Big 5," said Crum.
"Who could forget?" asked Téa, shuddering from the memory of the cold he had made her experience.
"First order of business, to change this Deck Master," said Crum. Deepsea Warrior vanished and Nightmare Penguin stood in its place.
"You can change your Deck Master?" asked Joe. "Glad I know this now."
"I think they just made that rule up," said Drake, crossing his arms. "They wouldn't let Lara change her Deck Master when she accidentally dropped her Witch's Apprentice."
"It appears they do that a lot," agreed Yami. "This whole world seems to operate on the rules being changed at Noah's and their whim."
"Don't let they're tricks throw you off!" called Lara.
"You have more to worry about than just my Deck Master," said Crum. "Though it has increased the attack of Rainbow Snake and Ganna by 200 points." Kevin shrugged. "Then, thanks to A Legendary Ocean, I summon Catapult Turtle to the field!" His monster looked like a super-sized sea turtle. A large mechanical catapult had been strapped to its back. But on closer inspection, the catapult was actually part of its anatomy. It was empty, because it launched other Duel Monsters. Its stats would normally be 1200 and 2000, but Crum's Deck Master increased those to 1400 and 2200.
"Rainbow Snake and Ganna! Attack his Skilled Dark Magician!" ordered Crum. "Ha! You forgot to switch it to defense mode!"
"No, I deliberately left it in attack mode so I could do this," said Kevin with a smile. "I activate United We Stand, which increase my Skilled Dark Magician's attack points by 800 for everyone monster on my side of the field, and there's two!" His magician's attack strength rose all the way to 3500. By then it was too late for Crum to stop the attack. The Skilled Dark Magician blew the snake to dust.
"Hey Kevin, I still want a piece of them you know," called Joe, laughing. The Big 5 were already down to 2850 life points.
"And they were bragging about how hard they would be," laughed Lara.
"Yes! We're going to get my body back!" cheered Tristan, waving his monkey paws around.
"I play this face down and end my turn," said Crum, setting a card.
"Hey, Kevin," called Drake. "My deck is designed for dragons, why don't you let me take over?"
"Well…sure…" agreed Kevin, stepping aside.
"Crush that penguin flat!" called Lara.
"Hey, that's my body you're crushing!" protested Tristan.
"Are you going to change your Deck Master?" asked Joe.
"Erm…" hesitated Drake. "I can't let them all know that I choose the same Deck Master as Kaiba!"
"Nope, Buster Blader will do fine," said Drake. "I'll start by summoning Spirit Ryu to the field in defense mode." His first dragon appeared with an attack and defense of 1000. "Then I play this card face down." He slid Dragon's Bead into one of the slots on his duel disk.
"That card won't be much use, because I activate Cold Wave," said Crum. "That freezes all your magic and trap cards for one turn! That means your United We Stand and your face down card are useless."
Drake frowned slightly, but he noticed as the Skilled Dark Magician pulsed slightly when Crum used the magic card. "I move Skilled Dark Magician to defense mode and end my turn," said Drake.
"It's just a minor setback," said Téa.
"Don't worry about Drake," said Lara. "He's got a plan."
"Crum, you have failed to prove your case," said Johnson to Crum within Tristan's head.
"What?!" snapped Crum.
"Your move cost us too many life points! Step aside! I'm taking over now!" snapped Johnson, pushing him aside.
"Now what?" asked Duke when he noticed 'Tristan' has spaced again.
"I'm taking over this duel," said Johnson. "The name's Johnson, former chief attorney for Kaiba Corp.."
"His voice changed again," said Duke. "And I thought Tristan was weird to begin with."
"I heard that dice-boy!" snapped monkey Tristan on the hill above him.
"I can't believe that all the Big 5 are all in Tristan's body right now," said Téa, sounding slightly sickened by that idea.
"They're sharing me like I'm a corporate condo," said Tristan, waving his arms around madly.
"Someone should call an exorcist," said Lara. "Because of those five aren't evil spirits, I don't know what is."
"I'm going to prosecute all your monsters to the full extent of the law," said Johnson to Drake.
"Just try," glowered Drake.
"For my first exhibit, I would like to change my Deck Master into something more appropriate," said Johnson. In a flash Nightmare Penguin vanished and Judgeman took its place. "Much better. Now to summon Hysteric Fairy to the stand!" His school girl turned fairy appeared besides Crum's Catapult Turtle. Her stats were 1800 and 500.
"You know, you could surprise us and do something new," said Kevin, who sounded bored.
Johnson ignored him. "I then activate Premature Burial to revive Rainbow Snake and Ganna." Rainbow Snake and Ganna materialized on the other side of his Hysteric Fairy and Skilled Dark Magician pulsed, a bit brighter this time. "Now, I can make up for Crum's poor argument."
"And how are you going to do that?" asked Drake, who sounded like he didn't care what the answer was.
"I activate Hysteric Fairy's special ability. By tributing Catapult Turtle and Rainbow Snake and Ganna, I can increase my own life points by 1000," said Johnson. His two monsters disappeared from the field and Hysteric Fairy glowed for a moment, increasing his life points back to 3850.
"Those monsters would have been more valuable than a few life points," said Drake.
"The verdict is what matters in court," said Johnson. "And yours is almost here! Hysteric Fairy, attack his Koumori Dragon with Frantic Beam!"
Hysteric Fairy giggled and put her free hand into the air, collecting energy. A split second later the orb of energy shot forward and struck the Komouri Dragon. With a bellow is disintegrated. Since it was in defense mode, the Good 5 lost no life points.
"You should have attacked my Spirit Ryu," said Drake. "That mistake is going to cost you. I summon my Warrior Dai Grepher to the field!" This monster wasn't a dragon, but a human warrior. Its layers of muscle could be seen under the simple armor it wore. Its stats were 1700 and 1600.
"It's too weak to challenge my fairy," said Johnson.
"I'm not done yet," said Drake. "I use Polymerization to fuse my Spirit Ryu and my Warrior Dai Grepher into Ryu Senshi!" The two monsters blurred together. When the magic stopped, it looked like someone had turned to Spirit Ryu into armor for the Warrior Dai Grepher. Its stats were now 2000 and 1200.
"Way to go Drake!" cheered Lara.
"The Big 5 are in over their head," said Kevin. "Way over."
"Maybe I should step in now," said Joe. "If I wait I might not get a chance at all."
"Patience Joe," said Yami.
"Then, I move the Skilled Dark Magician to attack mode," said Drake. "Cold Wave wore off at the end of your last turn, so now United We Stand raises his attack by 1600 points."
"You're argument has one hole, Mr. Pegasus," said Johnson. "Your fusion monster cannot attack on the turn it was created, and your magician cannot attack because it just changed battle positions."
"You'll survive this turn, even with your lousy court talk," said Drake. "I'll set this card and end my turn." He slid Dragon's Rage into an empty slot.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxKaiba had managed to put considerable distance between himself and the duel. The desert had suddenly ended and a city rose. At least, it looked like a small city, but it wasn't. Kaiba knew what it was instantly and couldn't help but gasp. It was a place he had imagined of enough but had never seen because it did not exist. It was a large amusement park decorated with Duel Monsters. It was one of his own design. Seto entered it, looking around amazed and confused.
"This doesn't make any sense!" he thought. "This is a virtual copy of the Duel Monsters theme park I designed! There's no way Noah could have known about this. The blueprints for Kaibaland are top secret. Construction is scheduled to begin for another four years. But it's all right here!"
This was further proof of what Noah had managed to find while browsing through Kaiba's memories. Kaiba walked through the desert streets, heading right for the staff area.
"Every detail," said Kaiba as he walked to a door. There was a chessboard in front of it. "Even my backstage security system." He moved one of the pieces across the board.
"Checkmate, access to restricted area granted," said a computer voice. The door slid open.
"Maybe I'll get some answers in here," thought Kaiba. "Mokuba has to be around here somewhere, and when I find him, Noah is going to pay!"
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"Time for me to present my case," said Johnson. "First, I play one card face down. Then, I activate Magic Void to destroy your United We Stand."
"That's not good…" said Joe.
"Looks like you might get in on this duel after all," said Kevin.
"First, I play one card face down. Now, I activate Polymerization to fuse the monsters in my hand to create Dragoness the Wicked Knight!" announced Johnson. In a swirling vortex his fusion monster appeared in front of him. Its attack was 1200.
"Is that supposed to scare me?" asked Drake, skeptically.
As he spoke, Skilled Dark Magician pulsed brightly.
"What did you do?!" gasped Johnson.
"Me? I did nothing," said Drake. "All my magic cards have not been touched."
"What was that light?" demanded Johnson.
"Skilled Dark Magician is powering up to cream you!" exclaimed Kevin.
"What is going on?" asked Duke.
"You'll see," said Kevin.
"Since your monster is a fusion, it can't attack this turn," said Drake. "So I'll start mine by having my Ryu Senshi attack it!" His monster charged forward, ready to destroy Johnson's knight.
"I activate Leading Question, which allows me to increase a fusion monster's attack by 800!" announced Johnson as Dragoness the Wicked Knight shot up to 2000 attack points. It leapt forward to meet the incoming attack.
"But their attacks are identical!" exclaimed Yami.
"Both monsters will be destroyed, right?" asked Serenity, nervously.
"Looks that way," said Lara as both monsters disappeared in a blinding flash of light.
"My turn's not done yet," said Drake. "Skilled Dark Magician, attack the Hysteric Fairy!" The magician cast a spell the obliterated Johnson's remaining monster. The Big 5's life points dropped to 3750.
"You're useless Johnson!" snapped Nesbit to Johnson from within Tristan. "You have no monsters on the field!"
"It's merely a minor objection," objected Jonhson.
"You're done!" snapped Nesbit, shoving him aside. Then, to everyone, "It's about time I stepped in to rewire this duel. I'm Nesbit, the ex-head of technology at Kaiba Corp.."
"They switched again?!" gasped Duke.
"It seems like they're playing Survivor or Weakest Link to me, not Duel Monsters," commented Kevin.
"'You are the weakest link, good-bye, Johnson,'" chuckled Drake.
"'You've been voted off the island,'" added Joe with a chuckle.
"Now, to get a Deck Master worthy of this duel," said Nesbit. Robotic Knight appeared in place of Judgeman.
"All this changing is giving me a headache," groaned Tristan.
"I've known girls who've changed their shoes more times a day than that," said Téa.
"Now, to clear the field of all this junk," said Nesbit.
"You want junk, look in a mirror," shot Drake.
"I activate Heavy Storm, which blows away all the magic cards on the field," announced Nesbit.
"Oh no!" gasped Drake as his Dragon's Bead and Dragon's Rage were destroyed.
"You also destroyed you're A Legendary Ocean," Yami pointed out.
"It had to go," said Nesbit. "Water flaws the beauty of us machines."
"You really think you're a robot? You need to see a shrink," said Joe.
"You'll remember this," said Nesbit, focusing on Drake. "It's my Deck Master's special ability, Final Artillery!"
"I'm trying to forget," said Drake, dryly.
"I'm discarding three machine type monsters from my hand, that means you take 1500 damage!" declared Nesbit, sliding the cards into his graveyard. Robotic Knight's chest opened and a series of missiles flew out.
"Drake!" cried Lara as the missiles struck her boyfriend directly.
Drake gasped in pain, but managed to stay standing. His life points dropped to 3250.
"What happened?! You should have lost more life points!" exclaimed Nesbit.
"You forgot about my Deck Master," said Drake. "Buster Blader cuts direct attacks in half." He looked over his shoulder. "Thanks Kevin."
"Don't mention it," replied Kevin.
"I'm not through with you yet," said Nesbit. "I summon Cyber Falcon to the field." With a gust of wind, the Cyber Falcon appeared. It looked like a bird that had silver feathers. Its stats were 1400 and 1200.
"You're going to have to do better than that," called Joe. "I think you're hard drive has been outdated! You'll never beat the Skilled Dark Magician with that!"
"You are correct," said Nesbit, pulled a card from his hand.
"You mean your hard drive really is outdate?" asked Kevin, causing everyone to laugh.
"No," said Nesbit, annoyed. "I activate Pot of Greed to draw two more cards, then I activate 7 Completed!"
"What does that do?" asked Serenity.
"It allows him to increase either the attack or defense of his Cyber Falcon by 700," answered Lara.
"I choose to increase the attack points of my monster," announced Nesbit.
"Now it's stronger than the Skilled Dark Magician!" exclaimed Duke.
"Oh, no!" gasped Joe. "And Drake doesn't have any magic or trap cards on the field!"
"Attack, Cyber Falcon!" ordered Nesbit. His mechanical bird took to the skies, ready to dive bomb Drake's monster.
Just as the Cyber Falcon got close, there was a vortex of light that swirled around the Skilled Dark Magician. It disappeared before the attack could be completed. In its place stood the Dark Magician. With a wave of its staff, the more powerful Dark Magician blasted the Cyber Falcon out of the sky.
"How did he do that?!" gasped Yami.
"That's Skilled Dark Magician's special ability," said Kevin. "If the opponent activates three magic cards, Skilled Dark Magician can be tributed for the Dark Magician. Drake just held off until the opportune moment." (AN/ That one's for you Akhana!)
"I see…and the Skilled White Magician?" asked Yami.
"The same, but for the Buster Blader," answered Kevin.
The failed attack cost the Big 5 400 life points. They were now down to 3350, 100 ahead of the Good 5.
"You're out of monsters," said Drake. "Since you did discard three to use your Deck Master's special ability."
"I set my last two cards and end my turn," said Nesbit.
Duke eyed them suspiciously before speaking up. "Drake, my dice skills might come in handy here."
Drake looked back at him and caught the look in his eye. "It's all yours then." Drake backed down and Duke stepped forward.
"Hey! How come you get to go before me?!" asked Joe.
"Because I asked," replied Duke. He looked up at the Buster Blader. "This might be a good Deck Master, but I'm going to need my Strike Ninja." Their first Deck Master vanished and Duke's ninja took its place.
"Good luck Duke!" called Serenity.
Duke smiled back at her as he began his turn. "I summon Yaranzo to the field." His monster in a box appeared in front of him. It had an attack of 1300 and a defense of 1200.
"Halt! Before you go any further, I activate Block Attack," said Nesbit. "That forces one of your monsters into defense mode, and I choose your Dark Magician."
"I knew you'd try something like that, so I play this face down," said Duke, sliding a magic card into place. "I'm sorry Tristan, but I'm going to have to attack directly."
"Do what you have to do…just try not to mess up the hair," whined monkey Tristan, burying his face into Serenity.
"It's going to be fine, Tristan," soothed Serenity.
"So does that mean you're out of the 'monkey-is-a-spy' club, Duke?" asked Kevin. Duke ignored him.
"Yarnzo, attack his life points directly!" ordered Duke. His monster jumped forward with surprising speed for not having any legs. It slashed across Tristan's chest, forcing Nesbit to take a step backwards. The Big 5 dropped down to 2050 life points.
"How could you allow that to happen, Nesbit? Explain yourself!" demanded Lector to Nesbit.
"Explain what?" glowered Nesbit.
"You're poor dueling will not be tolerated!" snapped Lector, pushing him away.
"I think they're switching again," commented Drake. "I don't think they're too happy with their own dueling skills."
"They have dueling skills?" asked Joe.
"I'll be controlling this body for the remainder of the duel," announced Lector.
"He's the last one! If they can finish him, Tristan will get his body back!" cheered Téa. "You can do it!"
"Yes! No more bananas!" cheered Tristan, following it up with monkey chattering.
"I won't be so easy to beat," said Lector from behind Tristan's eyes. "First, to change my Deck Master." Jinzo replaced Robotic Knight.
"Great, they're goes all the trap cards," groaned Joe.
"Don't worry, I know Duke's plan," said Drake. "He'll be using magic cards and dice."
"That doesn't mean it's going to be easy," said Yami. "Lector managed to give Kaiba trouble."
"You're right, Yu-Gi," agreed Kevin. "Lector was the hardest one I faced."
"I start by activating Life Absorbing Machine," announced Lector. "This increase my life points by half of what I lost the last turn." Now the Big 5 had 2700 life points. "I'll also activate Solemn Wishes, which gives me 500 life points each time I draw a card."
"What are you trying to pull!" yelled Joe. "Those are trap cards! And Jinzo is on the field!"
"Jinzo is the Deck Master, and it will only effect my opponents," explained Lector, contemptuously.
"That just means I need to beat you quick," said Duke, brushing a few strands of dark hair out of his eyes.
"Now, I summon Injection Fairy Lily!" announced Lector. His nurse-like Duel Monster appeared. Her stats were 400 and 1500.
"She could be trouble," commented Drake.
"Now, to activate Lily's special ability! I will give up 2000 of my life points to increase her attack my 3000!" Lily looked surprised as the syringe in her hand tripled in size. "Now, Lily, eliminate the Dark Magician!"
Lily jumped onto her needle and flew forward. She hit the Dark Magician directly and destroyed it, but thanks the Nesbit's Block Attack, it was in defense mode. Duke shielded his eyes from the wind, but got no damage. The Big 5 now only had 700 life points.
"I set one card down and end my turn," announced Lector. "Enchanted Javelin will win this duel for me. Mr. Deblin may think I don't have enough life points to increase Lily's attack. He'll foolishly attack me, and that will be the end of this duel."
"Now the fun begins," smirked Duke as he drew his next card. "First, I'll activate my Deck Master's special ability. I have to discard two cards in my hand, but then I can use any face down magic or trap card on the field as my own, and I choose the card that Nesbit played!"
"Oh no," groaned Lector.
Strike Ninja put its hands together and in a series of swift motions the aforementioned card was in Duke's possession.
"Cost Down, this is even better than I thought," said Duke with a smirk.
"Yes!" cheered his friends.
"What luck!" added Joe. "Now he can summon a high level monster for one less tribute!"
"I'm going to put this to good use. I activate Cost Down, then I tribute my Yaranzo to bring Orgoth the Relentless to the field!" announced Duke. His powerhouse appeared directly in front of him, sword ready. Orgoth's attack was 2500 and its defense was 2400.
"Yeah! That monster is strong enough to wipe the floor with that wimpy fairy!" exclaimed Joe. "Lector doesn't have enough life points to increase her strength!"
"Look at Lector, he doesn't seem concerned," Yami said. "He's planning something, and I bet it's that face down card of his."
"Duke has a plan too," Drake said. "And that's his face down card."
"Your monster is strong, I'll give you credit," said Lector. "But brute strength won't win this duel for you."
"I haven't forgotten," replied Duke, calmly. "That's why I activate my face down card Dice Dungeon and Demented Dice from my hand!" His two magic cards flipped up and a grid formed over the battlefield.
"What is this?!" gasped Lector.
"I just made this duel a bit more like my Dungeon, Dice Monsters game," answered Duke, coolly. "The rules are easy enough, we both select one monster and take turns rolling the die to see what their attack points will be."
"Where on earth did he get those cards from?" Téa asked. "I've never heard of them before."
"Drake gave them to him," answered Lara. "He really likes Duke's Dungeon, Dice Monsters game."
"My monster will be Orgoth the Relentless," said Duke. "And since you only have one monster, you have to bring Lily to the field."
Lector said nothing as Lily floated forward to one of the squares on the grid.
"Now our dice game begins," said Duke. "I'll roll first." A die formed in mid-air in front of him. Duke picked it up and threw it into the air. "Go, dice roll!" After tumbling a bit it stopped on 3. Duke frowned for a moment. "Well, a 3 is neutral. Orgoth's stats remain unaltered. Your turn to roll."
"Fine," snapped Lector, snatching the die. He slammed it to the ground. "A two?"
"That would have been more helpful if your monster was strong," said Duke. "A two increases your monsters attack by 2000, but decreases its defense by 1000." Lily again looked shocked as her syringe double in size. Her attack was now 2400 and her defense was only 500. "And I hate to break it to you." Duke didn't sound to disappointed. "But Lily's special effect won't work in this dice game."
"That can't be right!" protested Lector.
"Check the rule book if you don't believe me," shrugged Duke.
"Those five wouldn't know what following the rules meant if it slapped them across the face," commented Kevin.
"They also don't know when to call it quits," added Joe.
"Right," agreed Drake. "Lily has 100 less attack points than Orgoth, you know what that means."
"Orgoth, attack his fairy with Diamond Blade Thrust!" ordered Duke. His monster charged forward and slashed once, slicing Lily in two. She burst into data particles.
"Enchanted Javelin!" announced Lector.
"What?!" gasped Duke.
"That raise my life points by the amount of attack points of your monster," said Lector. He gained 2500 life points, but lost 100 in his battle against Orgoth. At length the numbers on his duel disk stopped moving at 3100.
"If they keep this up, I'll never get my body back," groaned Tristan.
"Don't worry, they'll win," said Serenity. "My brother and Yu-Gi haven't even gone yet."
"If you are done playing with your dice, then I will start my next turn," growled Lector. "Since I drew a card, I gain 500 life points from Solemn Wishes. I also gain back half of what I lost last turn from Life Absorbing Machine." His life points rose to 4650.
"Great…" groaned Duke.
"My life points should be the least of your concern," said Lector, narrowing Tristan's eyes. "Because now I activate the card that will win your bodies for us! I activate Altar of Mist!"
"What does that do?" asked Duke, surprised.
"It's very bad news," said Yami. "In three turns he'll be able to select any ritual magic card in his entire deck! It means he'll easily be able to summon a powerful monster!"
"That means we have to win this within the next three turns," said Kevin.
"I'll give you time to think about that, so I play one monster face down in defense mode and set one magic card," said Lector as two card holograms appeared in front of him.
"Duke, I think it's time I stepped in," called Joe. "My dueling experience will be very helpful, and I have good luck with the dice too."
"Yeah, thanks," agreed Duke, stepping aside. Altar of Mist had made him a bit uneasy.
"Go Joe! I know you can win this for us!" cheered Serenity.
"Just don't do anything stupid!" called Téa.
"Hey!" protested Joe.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxKaiba was walking through a large, empty room in virtual Kaibaland. This was the room he had planned to make the headquarters of the park. He looked around and frowned.
"Looks like Noah didn't have enough imagination to fill this place with anything.."
"Huh?!" gasped Kaiba. He looked to his left. A large, virtual oak doorway was hovering in mid-air. He was sure it had not been there a moment ago. "It's another one of the twerp's virtual doorways!" He walked over to it and put a hand on the doorknob.
"If I had to guess, I'd say it leads to more imagines of my past…" Kaiba thought as he opened the door. He opened it to a small room with an old film projector and a screen. There was nothing else in the room. The projector was loaded and ready to go. "What's this? A cheap, old movie projector?" He flipped it on.
"Get with the times Noah…"
It didn't show any scenes the Seto was familiar with. However, he was very familiar with the people in the show. It was a younger version of Noah, playing around with Gozaburo. There were brief glimpses of birthday parties, days at the beach, and horse-playing around the house.
"I bet you can't catch me dad!" laughed young Noah, looking back at Gozaburo.
"It's Noah…nice outfit dork…" thought Kaiba, commenting on the school boy's outfit Noah was wearing. The reel continued to roll. "How sad, that little twerp is still trying to convince me that he's Gozaburo's son. I'm afraid it's going to take more than a few fake home movies to do that." The happy scenes stopped. Now the film was showing a solemn scene at a church. "What's this?"
"How could this have happened?" sobbed a lady Kaiba recognized from pictures as Gozaburo's ex-wife.
"Don't worry. Noah can still be saved. I'll find away," said Gozaburo.
"But how?" she asked, hopelessly.
"There's nothing I can't do," answered Gozaburo.
"What is all this supposed to mean? Noah was in some sort of accident?" Kaiba asked no one in particular."If these images are real, that would mean something devastating happened to Noah right before Gozaburo adopted me and Mokuba. But why would Noah want me to know all this information about his past? …Unless someone else is behind all this!"
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"What did happen to you?" Shayla asked Noah. "I can tell you are telling the truth about being Gozaburo's son, but what happened? Why didn't Kaiba know you before today?"
Noah chuckled, "Of all of you that I trapped in here, I must admit I'm surprised that you're the first to believe me."
"What happened? And is Kaiba right in assuming there is someone else here? Are you taking orders from someone?" Shayla asked, again resuming her calm front.
"What happened to me?" echoed Noah. "I died."
Shayla jerked up straighter. "You have got to be joking."
"No, I'm not," replied Noah. He figured the truth would be so absurd even she wouldn't believe it.
"Oh shoot…." moaned Shayla, her scales not sensing even the hint of a lie. "This can't be happening…it's impossible." Her front was crumbling fast.
Noah ignored her and returned to watching the other duelists, "Looks like Lector is going to come through this time, right Mokuba?"
Shayla's head jerked so she could hear him better. "Mokuba's here too?!"
"Of course," laughed Noah. "He's my brother now. I'm surprised it took you so long to realize we'd be together. Then again, you're as blind as a bat."
"Whatever jokes you come up with, I can guarantee you that I have heard them all and then some a hundred times before," retorted Shayla. She then turned to the right, where she had heard a faint shuffle. "Mokuba! Listen to me! I know what Noah did to you, but you have to fight it. I know Kaiba would do anything for you. I was there when he risked everything in a duel against Pegasus to save you. I heard you admit yourself that Kaiba had always been there for you, that you two are a team, that you'd never turn your back on him!"
Mokuba's eyes pulsed slightly red, but he made no other movement.
"Dang it all!" thought Shayla, gripping her backpack. "I have the Millennial Scales, which contain the power of truth! I should be able to shatter all those lies somehow! I don't know how to, though. I don't know how to properly use these things…Ishizu, I wish you were here now…but I'm on my own, everyone has forgotten about me. But I have to try. I have to do my best to reach Mokuba."
"Mokuba, listen to me," Shayla called again.
"Save your breath, he has clearly made his choice," replied Noah. "The again, I guess things aren't ever very clear to you."
Shayla ignored him, though her lips thinned in a flare of anger at his comment. She had forgotten how bad her temper could be when she was provoked, because she hadn't been provoked since she entered the Duelist Kingdom.
"Mokuba, you must remember your real brother," said Shayla. "He's out there now trying to find you. Remember all the times you spent together, how he stood by you every day since your parents' deaths, when he wouldn't let anyone adopt him unless they adopted you too, how you gave him the picture of the Blue-Eyes, White Dragon to cheer him up…"
Mokuba winced slightly and shook his head a hair.
"Come on Mokuba, let's go to a less noisy place," said Noah. They vanished from the room. Shayla could hear them reappear in the living room where they watched the duel between Kaiba and Lector.
"How was that possible?!" thought Noah. "She actually managed to avert a portion of my control on Mokuba! That won't happen again! It's about time for her part in this plan."
Shayla sighed and leaned back against the bars of the cage that held her. "I feel so useless. I'm the bearer of a Millennial Item and I can't even get it to work when and how I want it to…I…I've blown it, haven't I? I can hear everyone, together, supporting each other. I should have tried to find them. I made a huge mistake by just sitting there…But we are friends…aren't we? I can't expect them to come after me when I didn't go after them, I guess. It hurts that they forgot me, but I can't say I've been a better friend. That needs to change. I made a promise to Mai that I wouldn't leave her alone…and I shouldn't leave my other friends either, even if their all together, I still need to act like their friend. I don't know what I was thinking, just sitting there. I've spent too much time alone…I never, never want to go back to that………"
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"No offense Duke, but I'm changing the Deck Master," said Joe. "I'm bringing out my Flame Swordsman!" The ninja vanished and Joe's favorite monster stood behind him, right where it had when he faced Johnson.
"It doesn't matter what monster you choose for your Deck Master, you will not win this duel," said Lector. "Then all your bodies will be ours and we will finally escape this virtual nightmare while your minds wander cyber space for all eternity!"
"Whatever, less talking more dueling," said Joe. "I summon Alligator Sword to the field!" His alligator warrior appeared next to Duke's Orgoth the Relentless. The Alligator Sword had an attack of 1500. "I want to attack his face down monster, but Duke's dice cards are still in play, looks like I'm going to have to play Duke's game…no biggie…"
"I'm waiting Mr. Wheeler," said Lector, impatiently.
"That eager to lose?" asked Joe. "Well, time to play a dice game! So bring your monster to the dice field and I'll choose mine!"
"Sorry, but there won't be a dice game," smirked Lector. "Because to move my monster to the field, I first have to flip it over, and that activates its effect! Meet my Cyber Jar!" The card hologram flipped over, forming a 3D metal vase.
"Not that thing!" groaned Joe.
"I should have known that was coming," muttered Drake.
The Cyber Jar inhaled Orgoth and Alligator Sword before self-destructing and destroying itself with them. Those present had to shield their eyes from the blast.
"Now, we both pick up five cards and immediately summon any monster with four stars or less," explained Lector, reaching for his deck.
"Wait! Does that mean he gains 500 points for each card he draws?!" gasped Duke.
"No," answered Drake. "It's the small print of the card. Cyber Jar says to pick up, not draw, and Lector's Solemn Wishes only work on the word 'draw'."
"Saved by a technicality," commented Kevin.
"I summon Swordsman of Landstar and Cyber Harpy!" announced Joe. "That's for you Mai!" The Swordsman of Landstar looked like a pink bubble of a marshmallow that had been shoved into violet armor. It even had a tiny shield and a short sword. Somehow, it managed to float slightly higher than the other holograms, which might have something to do with its weight. Its stats were 500 and 1200. Both of his monsters were in attack mode. The Cyber Harpy looked like Mai's favorite monster, Harpy Lady. The only difference was the high tech armor she wore. But she still had the same red hair, talons, claws, and wings. Her stats were 1800 and 1300.
"And I summon Dreamsprite and Cure Mermaid," said Lector. Dreamsprite was a rather small, blue fairy with stats of only 300 and 200. Cure Mermaid had a bright red tail and wavy blonde hair. She wore a pink blouse with the sleeves feathered to resemble fins and matching gloves. She wore a golden tiara on her golden locks. Her ears looked like fins, the same color as her tail. A teardrop pendant hung around her neck. Her stats were 1500 and 800. The Dreamsprite was in defense mode while the Cure Mermaid was in attack mode.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"It seems that I'm not the only one worried about Mai," thought Shayla. "I once teased her about Joe liking her, but I don't think it's a joke any more. I definitely have to get out of her so I can tell her, as soon as she wakes up…So those guys had better win. I don't think I could stand for them to lose with Lector touching my cards."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"Cyber Harpy, attack his Cure Mermaid!" ordered Joe.
"Reveal Mask of Perplexity!" announced Lector.
"What's going on!?" exclaimed Joe, rubbing his eyes frantically as a yellowish haze settled over them. "I can't see a darn thing!"
"That cheater!" growled Kevin. "That card should be banned!"
"It wasn't intended to be real," said Drake.
"Those Big 5 will do anything to win! That's cowardly!" snapped Duke.
"Joe! Are you okay?!" called Serenity.
"Sure sis," said Joe, waving at her. But he couldn't see and he ended up waving at a cactus fifty feet to the side of the hill Serenity was standing on.
"Choose your target," said Lector.
"I…erm…" stammered Joe, trying to peer through the haze. "That one!" He pointed to a card. "Cyber Harpy! Destroy it!"
There was a flash of a light and a cry from a monster as it was vaporized. The haze vanished from Joe's eyes.
"Thank the lord," he muttered. "Hey! How come you still have two monsters?!" He looked over at Lector, who had his Dreamsprite and Cure Mermaid still in tack.
"Look at your side of the field Mr. Wheeler," said Lector in a condescending tone.
Joe looked in front of him. His Cyber Harpy was still standing, but his Swordsman of Landstar was nowhere to be seen.
"No! I destroyed my own monster!" protested Joe.
"Yes you did," gloated Lector. "And since you foolishly played it in attack mode, you have also lost a significant portion of your remaining life points." The Good 5 now had slightly less than half of their life points at 1950.
"That was a dirty trick!" growled Joe. "And I won't let you forget it, because I'm going to pay you back double!"
"You'll do nothing, because it's my turn," said Lector, Tristan's eyes narrowing a bit. "And first, I'll increase my life points. I gain 500 by drawing a card with Solemn Wishes in play, then I gain 800 from my Cure Mermaid." This brought the Big 5 all the way up to 5950 life points.
"How are we going to bring them down now?" asked Kevin. "They've got more life points than ever before!"
"Joe will find a way to win this," said Yami.
"He'd better, I'm sick of this video game," muttered Drake. "Leave to Kaiba to get us all into a mess like this and bail."
"Now, I tribute my two monsters and summon my Barrel Dragon!" declared Lector. Barrel Dragon was a blue, crystalline, mechanical dragon. Its front arms as well as the top of its head were large cannons. Thunder occasionally sparked from one of the cannons. Its attack was 2600 and its defense was 2200. It was large, but by dragon standards, it was nothing special.
"This doesn't look good," muttered Duke.
"That's a really powerful monster!" exclaimed Téa.
"Yeah, but Joe is actually keeping his cool," commented Lara.
"Maybe Joe has an idea," suggested Serenity.
"Or maybe he's just lost his mind," replied Tristan.
"Now, Barrel Dragon, attack his Cyber Harpy!" ordered Lector, pointing. The Barrel Dragon bellowed and charged up its cannons. It fired three powerful blasts of thunder at Joe's monster.
"Not so fast! I activate my Deck Master's special ability!" yelled Joe. "I transfer some of the attack points of my Deck Master to my Cyber Harpy!"
"Oh no!" cried Lector.
"Oh yes!" cheered everyone else.
Joe transferred 900 of his Flame Swordsman's attack points to his Cyber Harpy. That left his Flame Swordsman with 900 attack points, and increased Cyber Harpy to 2700. The Cyber Harpy slashed at the incoming attack, deflecting it right back where it came from. The Barrel Dragon bellowed in pain as it was destroyed by its own attack. The Big 5 lost 100 life points, bringing them down to 5850.
"So much for your monster," smirked Joe. "Now you have nothing guarding your life points, and it's my turn!"
"Finish him off this turn! I want my body back!" yelled Tristan, half in monkey.
"First, I play my Scapegoat magic card," said Joe. Four fluffy pink cartoony sheep appeared in front of him.
"Those pathetic creatures are no threat to me," glared Lector.
"Then watch and learn as I activate my Shepherd magic card!" replied Joe. (AN/ Authoress license taken). "That allows me to use my Scapegoats as tributes for a monsters! So I tribute two of my Scapegoats and summon Jinzo!" His android appeared in place of two of his sheep, glaring across the field at Lector's identical Deck Master. Its stats were 2400 and 1500. "Your Jinzo might be a bit to cooperating for you, but mine won't show you any mercy! Jinzo, destroy all of his trap cards!"
"No!" shouted Lector as Jinzo blasted his Solemn Wishes and Life Absorbing Machine right to the graveyard.
"Yes! Now Lector cannot raise his life points any more!" cheered Yami. "Great move Joe!"
"Thanks pal," replied Joe. "Now, I have two powerful monsters on the field! Say good-bye to most of you life points! Jinzo! Cyber Harpy! Attack him directly!"
"I can't watch…" moaned Tristan, burying his face into Serenity again.
Joe's two monsters attacked at the same moment, covering the field in bright light through with a gasp of surprise and pain could be heard from Lector in Tristan. When the light faded he was standing, though Tristan's jacket was smoldering. His life points had dropped all the way to 750.
"You will regret that Mr. Wheeler as soon as I win this duel and escape to the real world in your body!" growled Lector as he drew his next card. "Gravity Bind! This card would be very useful if it wasn't for his Jinzo!"
"I play Magic Watch Tranquilizer!" announced Lector. He held out his arm without the duel disk on it and a high tech watch formed on it. "Now, to test it out! And I'm aiming for your Jinzo!" He held his arm out and a dart shot out of the watch, striking Jinzo in the neck. Joe's monster moaned as it lost attack points equal to 100 times its level. Jinzo now had an attack of 1800. Joe bit his lip, but said nothing.
"That's not all," said Lector. "I activate this magic card, which lets me bring back any magic card in my graveyard! And I chose A Legendary Ocean!"
"A Legendary Ocean?" echoed Joe, who sounded confused.
"You heard me correctly, Mr. Wheeler," replied Lector. The desert land between them flooded once more. "Then, I summon Amphibious Bugroth MK-3!" This monster looked like a submarine combined with a hovercraft and painted red. Over the cockpit was a blue glass doom, making the machine look like it had bug eyes. It floated easily on the water. Its stats were 1500 and 1300.
"It's not even strong enough to take out my Jinzo!" laughed Joe.
"I'm not aiming for your Jinzo, I'm aiming for you!" snapped Lector. "Since we are now playing on a water field, Amphibious Bugroth can attack your life points directly! Attack!"
"It can do that?!" gasped Joe as Lector's monster disappeared beneath the water. "Where did it go? AGH!" Amphibious Bugroth surfaced right in front of him, behind his monsters. It fired a blast of solid energy at Joe from point blank range. Joe gasped in pain and slid to his knees.
"Joe!" cried Serenity.
"If he gets attacked like that again, it's all over!" gasped Lara.
"I'm fine…ugh…really," he groaned, struggling to his feet. The Good 5's life points dropped to 650. He glared at Lector. "Your monster is scrap metal at the start of my next turn!"
"I doubt that, Mr. Wheeler, because now I activate my magic card Curse of Fiend! That changes the battle positions of all the monsters on the field!" announced Lector. "That means all of our monsters are switched to defense mode!"
"Aw man," groaned Kevin. "He's so close to crushing them!"
Joe drew his next card. "I'm not going to let you get away with another attack like that! I play Harpy's Feather Duster, in honor of Mai!" His Cyber Harpy's wings lengthened. She flew into the sky creating a powerful tornado, which blew A Legendary Ocean off of the field. The holograms showed her blowing away all of the water, thoroughly drenching Lector in Tristan's body in the process. His other magic card remained untouched because it was not specifically targeted by Harpy's Feather Duster, which it needed to be to be destroyed according to the card's description.
"Now, I summon Panther Warrior to the field!" declared Joe. His black cat wearing armor appeared in front of him. Its attack was 2000. "First, I sacrifice one of my remaining Scapegoats so that Panther Warrior can attack!" One of the fluffy sheep vanished and Panther Warrior pulsed for a moment, before it jumped into the air and slashed through Amphibious Bugroth with its sword. The machine split in two.
"Yes! That's Lector's last monster!" cheered Drake.
"I'm going to get my body back!" cheered Tristan, leaping to the ground and waving his paws in the air.
"I'll play these two cards face down and end my turn," said Joe, sliding two cards home.
Lector started laughing, and laughing hard.
"What's so funny?!" demanded Joe.
"This duel is over!" laughed Lector.
"No it ain't! So quick acting like a clown and duel!" snapped Joe.
"Altar of Mists!" gasped Drake.
Yami gasped too, "It's been three turns!"
"Your friends are correct Mr. Wheeler," said Lector. "Now it is time to reveal the Big 5's ultimate creature. Altar of Mists lets me select one ritual card from my entire deck, and I choose Dragon Revival Ritual!"
"You're forgetting one thing Lector," Drake interrupted. "You have to have enough monsters to tribute to use your ritual card, and I don't see any on your side of the field, unless you want to count your Deck Master."
"That's right," agreed Yami. "And to use Dragon Revival Ritual you have to have five different monsters on the field, all with a different attribute."
"Looks like Joe's neck is saved for a while now," said Duke.
"On the contrary, you'll be meeting our ultimate monster on this turn," said Lector.
"Well I must be missing something, because I only see one monster on your side of the field," replied Joe.
"Correct, you are missing something," replied Lector, "because Jinzo isn't my only Deck Master, remember?"
"The other members of the Big 5's Deck Masters count too!?" gasped Drake.
"That doesn't sound fair at all!" protested Kevin.
"Look, these guys will do anything to win. Who said they were fair?" asked Duke, sounding very unhappy.
"Those five disgrace the game of Duel Monsters," growled Lara.
"Joe will be able to stop them," said Serenity, with complete faith in her brother.
"Now, to bring out all our Deck Masters!" said Lector. "First, the unstoppable Jinzo." His Deck Master stepped onto the field.
"Then the refined Deepsea Warrior," said Gamesly from Tristan, his monster appearing behind Jinzo and standing to its left.
"The cool Nightmare Penguin," added Crum, his Deck Master standing to the right of Jinzo.
"The perfect Robotic Knight," said Nesbit, his monster standing next to Deepsea Warrior.
"And finally the mighty Judgeman," finished Johnson, his monster taking the remaining place on the field.
"Now to activate Dragon Revival Ritual!" announced Lector.
The five Deck Masters formed a circle. A bright red glowing line darted and weaved between them, forming a star. The star flashed to blinding levels and an enormous creature stepped out of it. It was a five headed dragon, one head was a burning flame, the second was crystalline ice, the third was sleek darkness, the fourth hard earth, and the last was pale as wind. The five heads were mounted on one shoulder. The main body was pale yellow and very well built. Its attack was 5000.
"Not that thing!" gasped Joe.
"Meet our Mythic Dragon!" laughed Lector. (AN/ I chose to use this name for that monster, please no comments.)
"Woah!" exclaimed Drake, looking at it in awe. Yami had to poke him to snap him back into reality.
"I remember the last time we went up against that monster," groaned Joe, wincing at the memory.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"I remember too," thought Shayla, holding her stomach. She had taken a direct attack from that creature. "Good luck guys, I'm cheering for you too."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"Time to introduce you to Mythic Dragon's special abilities," smirked Lector. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! There was many explosions from all over the field.
"What's going on?!" demanded Joe.
"Mythic Dragon destroys all magic, trap, and monster cards on the field when summoned," replied Lector. "You'll never recover from that, let alone stop our mighty dragon! Your bodies are all ours!"
"Not so fast," said Joe. "I activate Fake Trap, which saves all my magic and trap cards from being destroyed by your monster."
Lector narrowed Tristan's eyes. "You have one remaining magic card, I don't know what you plan on doing with it, but I can guarantee you, it won't be enough."
"This duel isn't over yet!" replied Joe.
Drake chuckled. "I think you'd have to kill Joe before he ever gave up."
"I don't know," replied Kevin. "I think he'd still keep going after that."
"He'll need to in order to beat that monster," said Duke.
"Hang in there Joe!" called Serenity.
"My sister's right," Joe said to Lector. "We beat that dragon once before and we'll do it again!"
"Ha! Last time you only one because you summoned Dragon Master Knight!" laughed Lector. "You don't have the cards to do that again!"
"Dang it, he's right," groaned Joe. "And I've only got one trap card and virtual no hand!"
"There's one other detail I'd like to mention," said Lector. "Just to drive all thoughts of victory out of your head."
"What's that?" asked Joe, coldly.
"Mythic Dragon cannot be destroyed by monsters of earth, fire, wind, water, or darkness," replied Lector.
"That only leaves one monster! Creatures of light!" gasped Duke.
"Your chances of rescuing Tristan just got thinner, and I think you all know what that means! It means all of you will soon join him as the Big 5 newest corporate take over!" taunted Lector.
"Drop dead!" spat Lara.
"That just means your going to feel really stupid when we beat that thing," said Drake. "Duelists like the five of you don't deserve to control a dragon that magnificent."
"Well, at least Jinzo is no longer their Deck Master, so Joe can use traps again," said Kevin.
"I play one card face down. Your move, Mr. Wheeler," said Lector, "since Mythic Dragon cannot attack in the turn it is summoned. But mind you, this will be your last turn."
"Maybe dueling every member of the Big 5 at the same time wasn't such a good idea. Cause if I lose, they'll get all our bodies," thought Joe, hesitating.
"Joe, I think it is time I step in," said Yami, walking up besides him.
"Thanks man," replied Joe, stepping aside.
"Good, I get to crush the King of Games at his own game!" laughed Lector.
"Your taunts do not threaten me," said Yami. "If you were a true duelist you wouldn't need to intimidate your opponent with words."
"Fine, I'll let my ultimate creature speak for me! And you'll taste its strength when I finish you next turn!" snapped Lector.
"I promise you this, you will not win this duel!" replied Yami. "You will not be able to break the power of our friendship that we have dueled with. Our combined strength will take you and your dragon down! And as proof of my faith in my friends, I will not change my Deck Master."
"Woah…thanks Yug, I hope you know what you're doing," said Joe.
"I hate to see that dragon destroyed, I have a feeling it's going to be worth it to see what moves Yu-Gi pulls out of the hat," commented Drake.
Yami examined his hand, " I need to summon Desboltsga to the field, but in order to do that, I need to sacrifice another monster…" (AN/ If anyone knows how to spell that monster's name, please tell me, because I am completely stumped.)
Yami selected another card, "I summon Rock Spirit to the field by removing Orgoth the Relentless from play." His first monster was a warrior wearing semi-ancient armor. It had an attack of 1700, but it didn't stay on the field for too long. "Then, I tribute my Rock Spirit for Desboltsga!" This monster was a small dragon by dragon standards. It looked a bit like the Lesser Dragon, though it was red. It stood on its hide legs. Silver tipped the edges of its scales. Its attack was 2300. (AN/ Authoress license used with the attack points.)
"Now I play two cards face down," said Yami.
"He played his monster in attack mode!" exclaimed Kevin.
"What is he thinking?" asked Duke.
"He's on to Yu-Gi's trap, that move was too obvious," thought Joe, twisting to try to get Yami's attention. "He's planning on having Lector attack him, so that he can activate a trap card! It will never work!" He continued to twitch, trying to warn Yami. Those close to him gave him a weird look and took a few steps back.
"Don't you think Joe's acting a little weird?" asked Téa.
"Weirder than normal you mean," said Tristan.
"Maybe a bumblebee flew down his pants?" suggested Serenity.
"He's trying to warn Yu-Gi about something," said Lara. "See, Yu-Gi played a weaker monster, then he played cards face down. It's a really predictable move. He wants Lector to attack him."
"Really? That doesn't sound like something Yu-Gi would do," said Téa, thoughtfully.
"Yu-Gi might as well be wearing a sign that says 'I set a trap so come on and attack me'," thought Joe.
"I don't know what game you are playing, Mr. Motou, but after a move like that, you won't be playing it long!" snapped Lector. "I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to eliminate one of your face down cards!"
"Oh no!" Yami gasped, lightly. One of his trap cards flipped up to reveal itself as Mirror Force before it broke to digital particles.
"I see, you were planning on reflecting Mythic Dragon's attack back at me!" said Lector.
"Y-Yes…" admitted Yami.
"Come on Yug! That's the oldest trick in the duel book!" protested Yami.
"It was worth a try," Yami shrugged.
"Worth a try?! There's too much at stake to try a lame move like that!" yelled Joe.
Drake muttered something under his breath that sounded like, "…plan B…"
"Let's finish this. Mythic…" started Lector. Then he stopped.
"What's wrong? Malfunction or something?" taunted Kevin.
"You don't seem too concerned for someone who's about to lose his body, Mr. Motou," said Lector, his eyes narrowing at Yami. "So I'll activate Raigeki and rid the field of your monster!"
"Oh no!" gasped, surprisingly, Drake.
"What's the matter?" asked Joe as a huge blast of thunder blasted Desboltsga to the graveyard.
"Yu-Gi's real plan just shattered," said Drake.
"Real plan?" asked Duke.
Drake nodded, "Desboltsga has a special ability too. It gains 200 attack points for each magic card Yu-Gi opponent plays. I bet his face down card is a card to weaken the Mythic Dragon. He was also planning to blow Mythic Dragon away with Mirror Force if his other card got destroyed."
"I see, he had two plans," said Joe.
"Yeah, but now he's wide open for a direct attack!" protested Kevin.
"His turn's not over yet," said Joe. "Yug will think of something."
Yami frowned. Joe's acting had been perfect, and he almost had Lector fall for the trap. "I activate Monster Reborn to bring back my Dark Magician!" His favorite monster appeared in front of him, crouched down in defense mode.
"Even playing a monster in defense mode will not save you now!" said Lector. "Because I equip Mythic Dragon with Fairy Meteor Crush!"
"Oh no!" gasped Yami, who now truly seemed frightened.
"Now what does that card do?" asked Duke.
"It allows the Mythic Dragon to do battle damage to Yu-Gi's life points even if his monsters are in defense mode," explained Drake.
"But, he doesn't have enough life points to survive an attack from that dragon!" protested Kevin.
"Yu-Gi! We believe in you!" called Téa from the hilltop. "Don't quit!"
"You can beat it! I know you can!" added Serenity. "Please win this for Tristan!"
"Yeah…" said Tristan. He tried to say more, but it came out as pure monkey chatter.
"I don't care how much your friends disillusion themselves into thinking you're going to win, Mr. Motou, because this duel is over," said Lector. "I play this card face down to ensure my victory. Now, Mythic Dragon, attack his Dark Magician and finish this duel!"
"I'm not out of this yet!" said Yami. "I activate my face down card, reveal Mirror Wall!"
"Ha! I put that card in the deck too, for Mai!" cheered Joe.
"You seemed to put a lot of her cards in the deck," commented Duke.
"Well, she's a friend, and she should be here, if it wasn't for that creep Marik," sighed Joe.
"Mai? Who's Mai?" asked Kevin, eagerly. The others rolled their eyes and ignored him.
"Funny, Bakura should be here too, yet I didn't see any of his cards in the deck," said Drake, giving Joe an amused look.
"Well…erm…I…" stammered Joe.
"I counter with Trap Jammer!" shouted Lector.
Yami looked completely frozen. That was his last defense. "I'm going to lose this duel! There's nothing else I can do! I did my best…"
The Mythic Dragon's five heads leaned back, charging their attack.
"Yu-Gi! Do something!" cried Duke as the Mythic Dragon attacked.
"There's nothing he can do!" exclaimed Kevin.
"There has to be something…" said Joe. He looked frantically around and his eyes rested on his Deck Master. "Flame Swordsman! Take the attack!"
"What are you thinking?! If the Deck Master is destroyed the duel is over anyways!" exclaimed Duke.
"Not again, not again," moaned Serenity.
"I don't think I can watch this," groaned Téa.
BOOM! There was a loud explosion as the attack connected. The force of it covered the entire area in smoke. The duelists were gagging and coughing for a full minute before the field cleared enough for them to see what had happened.
"Is everyone okay?" asked Drake.
"I'm still here," said Joe.
"Yeah…" coughed Duke.
"You girls okay?" Kevin called up the hill.
"We're all fine," Serenity called back.
"Drake! You had better be okay!" called Lara, her voice filled with concern.
"I'm fine," Drake shouted up.
"Yu-Gi!" cried Téa.
"I'm here Téa," replied Yami.
"How can that be?!" demanded Lector, who was just becoming visible on the other side of the field from behind his dragon. He surveyed Yami's side of the field. "How can both your Dark Magician and your Flame Swordsman still be here and your life points unharmed?!"
"That's the powerful of our friendship," said Yami. "Joe left one trap card on the field, Silver Dollar."
"But that card only protects weak monsters, ones with less than 1000 attack points from destruction," said Drake.
"Yeah, but my Flame Swordsman only had 900 attack points after I gave 900 of them to Cyber Harpy," said Joe.
"And you had it stand in front of the Dark Magician, protecting them both!" exclaimed Duke.
"That was way too close, though," said Kevin.
"You might have bought yourself one turn, but that's all!" snapped Lector. "I play one card face down. Take your last turn."
"Your right, it will be my last turn," said Yami. "Because I intend on winning this duel now!"
"You're bluffing," accused Lector.
"It's time to bring down your ultimate creature," said Yami. "I use the magic card Polymerization to fuse my Dark Magician with my Flame Swordsman to create the Dark Flare Knight!" Dark Flare Knight had a face that looked like a cross between the two monsters that created it. It had a black version of the Dark Magician's armor, modified only a bit to make it more like a warrior. It wore a dark cape and carried a sword like the Flame Swordsman. It also carried a dark shield with a red crest. Its stats were 2200 and 800.
"You fool, not only is that monster too weak, it is a creature of darkness and our monster can only be destroyed by a creature of light!" snapped Lector.
Yami smirked, "Dark Flare Knight, attack his Mythic Dragon!"
Everyone's eyes went wide has the Dark Flare Knight charged the Mythic Dragon. It raised its sword and waves of fire and darkness flowed up and down it. The Mythic Dragon countered with a blast from each head. The attacks collided in mid-air. For a moment they were balanced against each other. Then the Mythic Dragon overpowered the Dark Flare Knight. The knight's attack disintegrated and the dragon's attack blasted it to atoms.
"Ha! This duel is over!" laughed Lector.
"No, it isn't," said Yami.
"How come you are still standing there?! You had not magic or trap cards to activate!" snapped Lector.
"Thanks to Dark Flare Knight's special ability," explained Yami. "Dark Flare Knight prevents me from losing life points when it is involved in a battle. You'll notice my Deck Master is gone but I'm still in this duel. That's because of its second effect. Whenever Dark Flare Knight is destroyed a Mirage Knight is then summoned to take its place."
As he finished speaking a new knight formed in front of him. This one had frost blue hair in the same style as the Dark Magician. Its armor was the same as the Dark Flare Knight, except it was pure white. Its cape was frost blue, like its hair. It still carried the sword and shield, though those were white as well. Its stats were 2800 and 2000.
"It's still too weak. Why did you go through all that trouble to summon it?" asked Lector. Then Tristan's eyes went wide. "Unless Mirage Knight has a special ability as well!
Yami nodded, "he may look weak, but first impressions can be deceiving, now look closely Lector. Mirage Knight's special ability is about to seal our victory." Mirage Knight's attack points were growing and growing.
"How can is that possible?!" gasped Lector.
"Mirage Knight adds the attack points of the opposing monster to its own," said Yami, smirking. "That means it now has an attack of 7800!"
"That has got to be the strongest I have ever seen any monster!" gasped Drake.
"Cream him!" cheered Téa.
"Yes! I get my…" started Tristan, but he said 'body back' in chimp.
"There's one thing I forgot to mention, Lector," said Yami. "Mirage Knight is a creature of light! Now, Mirage Knight, destroy the Mythic Dragon!"
Mirage Knight rushed forward and leapt into the air, sword raise. It sliced the Mythic Dragon clean in half. The dragon burst into bits.
"This reminds me of a fairy tale," commented Lara. "Where the brave knight beats an evil dragon to save the beautiful princess."
"It does seem a bit like that," agreed Téa. She paused. "But wouldn't that make Tristan the princess?"
"Hey!" protested Tristan, making angry monkey noises. The girls giggled.
They weren't the only ones laughing. When the last bit of the Big 5's dragon vanished, Lector burst into laughter like a madman.
"I think this duel has fried his brain," said Joe.
"He had a brain to begin with?" asked Kevin.
"Guys, something's wrong," said Drake. "He should have lost all his life points and his Deck Master, but he's still standing there."
"What's going on?" asked Duke.
"Explain yourself Lector!" snapped Yami.
"I activated A Deal With Dark Ruler," laughed Lector. "It cost me half of my life points, but it saved the other half from your attack." He now had a slim 275 life points.
"A Deal With Dark Ruler?" asked Yami.
"Guys, this is major trouble," said Drake.
A dark violet dragon rose out of the ground. Its scales and armor was thin and jagged so much that they looked like bones. It had dead white hair, black eyes, and crude teeth. Its attack was 3500 though its defense was 0, like most zombies.
"What is that thing?!" gasped Joe.
"How could he do that?" asked Serenity.
"A Deal With Dark Ruler also allows me to summon Berserk Dragon is an eight star or more monster is destroyed," smirked Lector.
"That makes Berserk Dragon his new Deck Master," commented Lara.
"Mirage Knight can handle it," said Duke.
Those words were barely out of his mouth when Mirage Knight glowed and broke back into the Flame Swordsman and Dark Magician.
"Now what happened?" asked Téa.
"Mirage Knight can only stay on the field for one turn," sighed Yami. "Then it changes back into the original monsters the fused it."
"This doesn't look good at all," said Duke.
"Well, at least destroying the Mythic Dragon got rid of Fairy Meteor Crush," sighed Joe.
"I play these two cards face down and end my turn," said Yami, sliding two cards into his duel disk.
"You won't survive this next attack! Both of your monsters are in attack mode, and my Berserk Dragon has more than enough attack points to destroy them and your remaining life points!" laughed Lector.
"You'll have to find them first!" said Yami. "I activate Magical Hats!" Four magician's top hats appeared on the field. One covered the Dark Magician, the other the Flame Swordsman.
"We might not be out of this yet," said Duke. "Lector has a one in two chance of finding a monster."
"I wish it was that easy," said Drake, who looked worried.
Lector was laughing again.
"Who slipped him the laughing gas?" asked Kevin, who was sounding a bit annoyed.
"You've forgotten, Berserk Dragon had a special ability too," laughed Lector.
"And what is that?" asked Yami.
"It can attack four times in the same turn!"
"But…that means he'll find the Flame Swordsman and the Dark Magician no matter what!" gasped Duke.
"This is bad! And I'm all out of ideas!" exclaimed Joe.
"We can't lose this, we just can't," said Lara.
"It's impolite to wear a hat in a place of business. Berserk Dragon! Attack!" ordered Lector. The zombie dragon pulled its head back and fired four balls of energy, aiming at all four of the Magical Hats.
"No! Yu-Gi!" cried Téa.
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! Before the attacks could hit the hats, four beams of light appeared in front of the hats, each one taking a hit. The moment before they were destroyed, the light faded enough to reveal them as Kevin's Buster Blader, Drake's Ryu Senshi, Duke's Strike Ninja, and Joe's Cyber Harpy.
"What the heck was that?!" gasped Tristan.
Yami was standing with a smug look on his face, his last face down card flipped up in front of him. "I told you that our friendship would win this duel for us, and now I have proven it!"
"What. Did. You. Do?!" growled Lector.
"That was a very rare magic card known as the Ties of Friendship," answered Yami.
"No way!" exclaimed Joe and Drake.
"What?" asked Duke and Kevin.
"That's the card he won in the Duelist Kingdom!" gasped Téa.
"Yeah, but he gave it to that teddy-bear girl Rebecca," said Tristan.
"They're using a card database, so Ties of Friendship would be programmed into it," commented Lara.
"Ties of Friendship is a card that can only be used in a multi-player duel," explained Yami. "It summons one monster that each of my friends had used before in this duel. Though it costs me half of my life points." They were now at a shallow 325.
"Awesome!" cheered Joe and Kevin, high-fiving each other.
"I wish dad could see that card in use," commented Drake, softly.
"You see, we are friends, and we stand by each other no matter what. There is power in our unity, and it will get us through anything that comes our way, whether it's a duel or not. We are always there to help each other along, because where we are weak our friends are strong. Someone like you and the other Big 5, after using people like pawns, could never truly learn the power that comes from trust, respect, and caring. However, I hope I have at least opened your eyes to the power that exists between friends," said Yami.
"You all sound like pages out of a self-help book," retorted Lector, narrowing Tristan's eyes just again.
"That's just sad if your heart is still so hard," said Yami, shaking his head.
"Hey! Look at his dragon!" exclaimed Joe.
"Huh?" asked Serenity. "It got weaker!" Berserk Dragon, indeed, has lost 500 attack points, bring it down to 3000 attack points.
"That's the clause of Berserk Dragon," said Drake. "It loses 500 attack points at the end of every turn."
"Awesome!" cheered Kevin.
"There's no way the Big 5 can pull out any more good moves!" added Duke.
"Now to finish you corporate traitors once for all!" said Yami. "I activate Knight's Title to transform my Dark Magician into the Dark Magician Knight!" The armor on the Dark Magician warped to make it more like knight's armor, more practical for battle combat. However, its attack was still the same at 2500.
"Cool!" was the murmur from the spectators.
"I'll activate my Deck Master's special ability and transfer 800 attack points from my Flame Swordsman and transfer them to the Dark Magician Knight," declared Yami as his Dark Magician Knight's attack increased to 3300.
"Yes! Now it's more than strong enough to take out Lector's life points and Deck Master!" exclaimed Duke.
"And he has no magic or trap cards to protect himself!" added Kevin.
"And he's out of special abilities too," smirked Drake.
"And he knows it!" laughed Joe. "Look at him squirm!"
"Dark Flare Knight! Attack with Dark Magic Sword!" ordered Yami. His newest knight charged forward. In a series of strokes too fast for the eye to follow, it shredded the Berserk Dragon.
"NOOO!" cried Lector as his Deck Master was destroyed and his life points hit 0.
"Yes! We did it!" cheered those on the ground.
"I get my body back!" cheered Tristan, who was on cloud nine.
"Thank you," said Yami, looking back at his friends. "I never could have done it without all of you."
"Hey, don't sell yourself shorter than you already are," laughed Joe. "You did awesome bro."
"I was completely impressed," added Kevin. "I can see why they call you the King of Games."
"That duel was rather fun," agreed Drake.
Yami turned back to Lector. "Now return Tristan's body like you promised and run back to Noah. We've all had enough of you." He smiled. "It was a pleasure doing business with you gentlemen."
"Hey Tristan, I guess your days of living like a chimp are over," called Duke up the cliff.
"Too bad I can't say the same for you Duke," said Tristan. If Duke would have heard him, he would have removed a few gears out of friendship.
The Big 5 had not moved from within Tristan's body.
"Well? Now it's time for you five to give Tristan his body back," said Yami.
"I believe you've mistaken me for someone who believes in playing fair," said Nesbit.
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! All five Deck Masters, now controlled by their respective member of the Big 5 jumped out of Tristan's body and charged the teens.
"What?! It's go time!" shouted Joe, raising his fists.
"Lousy cheaters! You won't get away with this!" growled Drake, taking a battle stance.
"Don't you five know when you've lost?" asked Duke, who sounded highly annoyed.
"Girls, run for it!" called Kevin, raising his duel disk. "We'll hold them!"
"You won't get away with this!" said Yami, already drawing on the power of his Millennial Puzzle.
"We already have!" said Gamesly.
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! FLASH! The five Duel Monsters were suddenly thrown back into Tristan's body with such force that he went flying back several yards.
"Hey! What's going on?!" demanded Nesbit.
"Trying to break the rules again? Are we?" said Noah's voice from somewhere in the sky. He sounded furious.
"Noah!" gasped everyone present.
"You five fools have failed me for the last time!" yelled Noah.
"NOOOOOOO!!!" screamed the Big 5 as Noah pulled them into a vortex and they vanished completely.
"Oh no! They took Tristan's body away with them!" gasped Téa.
"I don't believe it," moaned Tristan, who sounded like Christmas had been cancelled (or that Gema had planned another hot cocoa fic.) "I'll be stuck in this monkey suit for the rest of my life! And I'm feeling more like a monkey and less like me every second." He looked down sadly.
Serenity bent down and picked him up, holding him close like a stuffed animal. "I'm here for you, Tristan."
Tristan tried not to look too happy.
"I guess we have to get going again," said Joe.
"Yeah, we have to find Tristan's body and get out of here," said Téa.
"We also have to help Kaiba find and save Mokuba," reminded Serenity.
"How could we forget?" asked Drake, dryly.
"Don't be upset, you did great love!" said Lara, wrapping her arms around his neck.
"Eh-hem!" coughed Joe, rather loudly.
"No point in staying here," said Kevin as they started walking down the road again.
"Yeah…" sighed Tristan.
"Don't feel too bad," said Duke. "Even if we did get your body back, we wouldn't know how to get your mind back into your body."
"Duke, do me a favor," said Tristan. "Next time you want to cheer me up, don't."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx"I have had it!" screamed Noah in the nothingness area.
The Big 5 cowered.
"Please sir, give us one more chance!" begged Johnson.
"Not only did you lose, you broke my rules!" snapped Noah.
"We are sorry, sir," pleaded Lector.
"It will never happen again, never," added Crum, crossing his fingers behind his back.
"Please Master Noah, I have already won my body out of this place!" groveled Nesbit.
"Silence! All of you!" snapped Noah.
"B-but…Noah," stammered Gamesly.
"There's no buts!" yelled Noah. "I told you that this was strike three! You struck out! Now you have to pay the consequences! I won't handle disobedience from my employees!"
"Noah! No!" begged the Big 5. It would have been rather humorous to see five grown men in suits on their knees in front of a schoolboy. But the situation was too serious for laughter, and none present knew how serious it was.
"There are no more chance for you five!" said Noah in a final tone. "I think I will imprison you all in a different location in the virtual world for all eternity!"
"NO!" they screamed as Noah raised a hand to banish them.
He never got that far.
At that moment an enormous creature appeared from the shadows. She was a hybrid; half crocodile, half lion, half hippopotamus. Her huge maw was open and she was salivating. She had finally found her prey, though the chance had made her more than ravenous.
"What is this thing?!" gasped Noah, backing up. True fear showed on his face.
The Big 5 all turned around to see what had petrified them. When they saw Ammit, they all screamed.
Ammit's head shot forward and she devoured the all of Big 5 in one motion. They didn't even have proper time to scream before The Devourer consumed them.
Noah watched with wide eyes, paralyzed by fear. He could only stare at the creature, hoping she didn't come after him next. She turned a beady eye on him. Time froze for what seemed like eternity.
Then, as fast as she came, Ammit vanished. Her task was done and she had destroyed the evil she had been summoned to destroy.
It was still several long moments before Noah could move again. Then, thousands of questions filled his mind about what that creature was and how it had gotten into his universe. None of them were very reassuring. Noah didn't like it. Not only did he have no answers, but he was afraid.