13. Gift of the Mystical Elf
Mai knew she'd done the right thing in letting Yugi go with Joey to search for an exit while she stayed behind to help Tristan and Serenity watch over Téa, but she regretted it all the same. She was a woman of action, and sitting around was making her restless. Seeing Téa lying so still, watching Serenity minister to her, only made it worse. It made her think too much of Battle City when she was the one lying still in a hospital bed, her mind trapped in the Shadow Realm. Serenity had cared for her, too, though Mai's only memory of that was seeing Serenity at her bedside when she woke up.
She was impressed with Serenity's patience, the way she would sit with Téa and talk with her like they were at a slumber party waiting for their nails to dry, occasionally checking her pulse or her eyes or propping her up to trickle water down her throat. Watching her, she couldn't help but wonder if that's what Serenity had been like with her. Well, probably not exactly like that. Mai had at least been in a place that had basic medical equipment like an IV to keep her hydrated. It both touched her and made her a little uncomfortable to imagine someone caring for her like that, and she'd really been little more than a stranger to Serenity at that point. This thought made her even more fidgety and she started pacing the cave just outside the little niche where Téa lay.
Tristan was also pacing back and forth, but whereas her movements were tense and nervous, he seemed calm and composed and had purpose. Mai had a feeling that like her, he preferred action, and she knew how much he cared for Téa and how much what had happened to her upset him, so she figured it was his army training that must have given him the discipline to hide it well. She found herself curious about him and what his actual job was, realizing that of all Joey's friends, she knew Tristan the least.
"So what's the Japanese army like anyway? I thought they didn't have a big military force."
"We don't. It's a peacekeeping force, the Japanese Self-Defense Force. Although there's been expansion recently."
"Just what do you do in the army anyway? What's your rank?" she asked.
"I'm a corporal in the MP," he told her without breaking his stride.
"Hmm," she nodded, "Military Police. That suits you. You like it?"
Now he stopped and looked at her, his hands folded behind his back in a typical military at ease position. "Yeah," he replied, "I do. I'm thinking of going into the civilian police when I get out."
"You'd be good at that. You really keep your head on straight in a crisis. You were great on the ship when we had to get Joey out of that gym."
He gave her a half smile. "Thanks. You too, by the way. I tell you what, though; right now I'm really missing my sidearm. You all have your weapons," he nodded his head toward the duel disk on her arm. "I feel naked without mine."
"I can understand that," she said, looking down at her duel disk. Then she looked up at him again, her eyebrow raised. "So how is it that you and Téa spend all this time around dueling competitions and don't play yourselves?"
"Téa plays, she just doesn't like to compete. She used to regularly thrash Joey until Yugi took pity on him and got his grandpa to teach him."
"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Mai grinned. "But what about you?"
"Me? Just not my thing. I play a little poker and I'm pretty good at mahjong, but RPGs and collectible card games give me a headache. Way too complicated."
Mai laughed. "So you spend your vacation time at a Duel Monsters tournament. Makes total sense."
He gave her a sheepish grin. "Yeah, I know. I just like being with my friends. And even if I don't wanna play myself, it's fun to watch other people play Duel Monsters." But then his face darkened. "At least when it isn't some creepy Shadow Game." He looked over his shoulder toward Téa and Serenity, shaking his head sadly. "Man, I can't believe this time it's Téa. I never thought…" He looked down. "I don't know, for some reason I never thought it could ever be her. Stupid, huh? We've all been in danger plenty of times, but she's never actually gotten hurt before. Not like this."
"She'll be okay," Mai assured him. "She's tougher than she looks. She manages to keep you three bozos in line after all."
He gave her a weak grin. "Good point."
"Hey, you hungry?"
"Nah. I think I'll hurl if I eat another MRE."
"Some soldier you are," she scoffed. "I still have some of the good stuff left in my bag." She leaned in toward him conspiratorially. "You know, I took a little trip to Ghirardelli Square before we left San Francisco. I may have just forgotten to mention I have some of their chocolate squirreled away in a side pocket."
He raised an eyebrow at her. "You been holding out on us, Mai?"
"Hey, it's every duelist for herself," she said with a wink. She got up and went over to where she'd left her backpack with their other supplies, Tristan following behind her. As she knelt down, digging through her pack for the zippered pocket where she'd stashed the good chocolate, Tristan bent down to pick up something off the floor of the cave.
"Man, does this bring back memories," he said, sounding wistful.
Mai found the Ghirardelli's and looked up to see what he was talking about. He was holding Yugi's gold puzzle box, turning it over in his hands. Standing up, she handed him a chocolate bar. "After all this weird Egyptian stuff down here, I have to say that thing gives me the creeps."
Tristan shook his head. "Nah, this box is special. You know, Joey and I became friends with Yugi because of this box. Well, Joey did anyway. I didn't really until a little later. But it all started with this box."
"Yeah, Joey told me the story," Mai said, biting into her candy bar. "We should see if Serenity wants some, too," she added, indicating the chocolate with a wave. "And maybe I'll take a turn sitting with Téa and give her a break."
"You can give Serenity the chocolate, but I bet she won't want a break. She's really focused on taking care of people who are hurt. I don't think she left your side the whole time in Battle City except to go see the very end of Joey's duel."
Mai shifted uncomfortably. "Well, let's bring her the chocolate and see how Téa's doing anyway."
Tristan nodded and they went over to the alcove to Serenity and Téa.
"How's she doing?" Tristan asked.
"Same," Serenity said. Mai offered her a chocolate bar and she took it with a smile of thanks, but set it down beside her instead of eating it. "I just wish I could do more."
"You do plenty, hon," Mai told her. "More than any of the rest of us." She and Tristan sat down around Téa. Tristan put Yugi's puzzle box down beside him and took Téa's hand.
"Hey Téa, hang in there. We're gonna get out of here soon."
Serenity shifted position so that she was sitting cross-legged, then stretched her arms.
"Hey kiddo, you look beat. You wanna take a break and let Tristan and me sit with her for a while?" Mai asked.
Serenity shook her head. "No, I'm fine, just a little stiff."
"You should get up and stretch at least."
"No, I'm good," Serenity insisted. She rested her elbows on her knees and leaned over, her chin in her hand. Then she spotted Yugi's puzzle box beside Tristan. "Oh, is that Yugi's box? Can I see it?" she asked.
"Sure," Tristan shrugged, still holding Téa's hand.
Serenity leaned over Téa and took the box. She turned it over in her hands and examined it much the way Tristan did, although where his expression had been nostalgic, hers was curious. "I wish I could've gone to Egypt with you guys," she said, looking at the box.
Tristan gave her a puzzled look. "Since when are you into Egyptian stuff?"
"Oh, I'm not. I just would have liked to have been there for Yugi." She opened the box and peered into it. "There's something really special about the Millennium Items, and this box, too. You can almost feel the power in it."
Tristan frowned. "Yeah, dark power."
"Oh, I don't know. Remember what Pegasus said about 'dark' not always being the same as 'evil.' Like Dark Magician." She closed the lid on the box again. "The Puzzle is what brought all of us together in some way or another. And this box has some of its power."
"What are you talking about?" Tristan asked, looking a little concerned. "The Puzzle's power came from the Pharaoh, and he's gone."
"I know, it's just…" She sighed and placed the box in her lap, resting her left hand on its lid. "I keep thinking about how much better things are since Joey met all of you. For him, for me. Even though I was only around for a little bit of everything that happened to all of you, I can't help but feel a sort of… connection to the Millennium Puzzle and this box and everything. It just seems so, I don't know, full of positive energy. Which is a nice change from all the negative energy from the Orichalcos stones." She looked over at Téa, a wistful look on her face. "I just wish it were enough for Téa. I wish… I wish I could do more to help her."
As she said this, she reached out with her right and touched Téa's shoulder. As soon as it made contact, the puzzle box began to glow. Mai gasped and Tristan turned toward them.
"Serenity!" he cried when he saw the box glowing. His hand moved toward her, but before he could even reach across Téa, a bright light flashed, blinding them. Mai turned away, reflexively putting her arm over her eyes.
"Serenity!" Tristan called again, and then the light started to die down again, so Mai tried squinting to see what was happening, if Serenity was okay. What she saw made her gasp again.
The light, which originally had come from the box, seemed to have enveloped Serenity until it was almost coming through her. Her head was thrown back and her eyes were closed, as if she were being possessed. Mai saw Tristan reach for Serenity, but the light was more than just light. There was a power to it, a physical presence that prevented them from moving.
As it started dimming, it resolved itself into a creature that stood behind Serenity, standing over them and filling the small alcove: a tall, slender, woman in a flowing green gown, with luminous blue skin and a white headdress over long, sleek blonde hair.
"Man, it's cold in here," Joey complained, rubbing his arms through his damp jacket.
Yugi just shook his head. "Should've thought of that before you went out into the rain."
"Hey, it's better than when we fell into that lake."
"That reminds me," Yugi said, his brow creasing. "Something's weird about the way that duel ended, too. I realized that I felt normal after I got knocked into you, but not when—" He stopped short as a chill went up his spine. "Whoa. Did you feel that?"
"Feel what?"
Yugi shook his head. "I'm not sure. Something weird."
"Yuge, we've been down in this cave with probably like a billion Orichalcos stones hidden in those stone tablets. I've been feeling something weird the entire time."
"No, but this is a different weirdness. Not like the Orichalcos. More like…" he paused, trying to place the vaguely familiar feeling. Something cold, and foreign yet not foreign at all. He frowned, an image of Pegasus on a videotape coming to mind. And then it hit him, and his eyes widened as he looked at Joey. "Joey, it feels like the Shadow Realm!"
"That can't be good," Joey groaned.
"No," Yugi agreed, and the two of them picked up their pace. By the time they reached the start of the tunnel fifteen minutes latter, they were running and out of breath. They exited out into the cavern where they'd camped the night before, then stopped short when they heard a duel disk activate.
"Who's there?" a tense voice asked, and Yugi realized it was Mai.
"It's us, Mai," Joey panted, and Mai stepped out from behind a large stalagmite, her face melting into relief.
"Yugi! Joey! Thank God you're here! Did Tristan find you?"
Yugi's heart jumped to his throat as he exchanged a worried glance with Joey. "No. Why, what's wrong?"
"Téa—" Mai began, and Yugi felt the blood drain from his face.
"What, is she okay?" he asked, panic rising in him. Joey put a hand on his shoulder to steady him.
"She's—" Mai tried again, but this time she was interrupted by a voice from behind her.
"Yugi?"
Yugi's head snapped from Mai to look beyond her. Standing by the alcove, half in shadows from the flickering torchlight, was Téa.
It took a moment for him to comprehend what he was seeing. Téa. Standing. Awake, alive, okay. "Téa!" he cried, relief flooding him, and for another moment he couldn't move, and then without even being sure exactly how he got there, he was across the cavern, sweeping her into his arms. Tears stung his eyes and choked his voice as he clung to her. "Téa, thank God! Are you okay? Are you…?"
"I'm okay," she confirmed over his shoulder, and he squeezed his eyes shut as another wave of relief and gratitude swept over him. "Not happy about the whole Orichalcos thing going on, though. Mai told me about that."
"Don't worry about that," he said. "Nothing matters right now except that you're okay." He buried his face against her shoulder, gripping her tightly. "You're okay," he repeated in a hoarse whisper. "I was so scared…."
"Normally I'd say you've got dibs, buddy," Joey said, arriving beside them, his voice also a little choked, "but in this case I'm gonna have to insist you share."
Yugi and Téa both laughed and let go of each other on one side so they could include Joey in their embrace. He threw his arms around both of them and the three held each other tightly, heads bowed together as if they were in football huddle. "Man, you had us worried," Joey said. "Don't do that again!"
"Now you know how it feels," she shot back. "You guys are always worrying me."
"Good point," Joey laughed. Yugi was still too overcome to do much more than hold her tightly. "I knew you could do it, Téa," Joey went on. "I knew you were too bossy even for the Shadow Realm."
"It wasn't me," Téa corrected him. "It was Serenity."
"Serenity?" Joey straightened up and let go of Yugi and Téa and looked around, frowning. "Where is Serenity anyway?"
"I'm here," she replied, her voice sounding weary. Yugi looked over Téa's shoulder and saw her leaning against the cave wall as if for support. She looked completely drained and Joey cried out when he saw her.
"Serenity! What happened? Are you okay?" He rushed over to his sister, gripping her shoulders.
"I'm fine," she assured him. "I… I'm not sure what happened," she said a bit shakily.
"She summoned Mystical Elf," Mai informed them, her own voice a bit bewildered.
"Say what?" Joey replied, confused, looking at Mai over his shoulder. "Whaddaya mean she summoned Mystical Elf? She doesn't have a duel disk! You were the only one here with a duel disk and your deck doesn't have Mystical Elf."
"It wasn't a duel disk," Mai said. "It was Yugi's puzzle box."
"What?" Yugi cried. He still had one arm tightly around Téa. "What do you mean?"
"I don't know," Mai said, sounding a little dazed herself. "She had the puzzle box in her lap and all of a sudden it started glowing and Mystical Elf appeared and started chanting, making this glowing ball appear in her hands. She sent it to hover over Téa, and then Téa woke up."
"That's not… it's…" Joey stammered, but couldn't finish.
"I wished that I could do something to help Téa and then all of a sudden it was like the box was pulling something out of me, and there was Mystical Elf," Serenity tried to explain.
"You wished on the box?" Yugi asked, amazed, remembering that he'd once made a wish on the Millennium Puzzle when it was still in the box, before he'd put it together. He'd wished for friends and his wish had come true.
"Not really. I was just holding it and I said that I wished I could do more to help her and then there was Mystical Elf. Except I had no idea that's who she was. Mai told me."
Yugi stared at Serenity, eyes wide. "When did this happen? How long ago?"
"I don't know, about fifteen or twenty minutes ago," Mai responded.
Yugi looked at Joey. "That's what I felt." Then he looked at Serenity. "I think you summoned her through the Shadow Realm, Serenity."
"But how?" Serenity asked. "I don't play Duel Monsters."
"No, but you've played a Shadow Game before. I… I think that Mystical Elf may be your special guardian monster. You may be bonded to her the way I am to Dark Magician or Joey to Red-Eyes or Mai to Harpie Lady or Kaiba to Blue-Eyes."
"But why? I don't even know who she is!"
"She's a magical creature with strong defensive power. The Gift of the Mystical Elf is healing. She restores Life Points," Yugi told her. "You're a healer, Serenity, that's why she's connected to you. I think maybe it has something to do with the way you can sense if someone is just unconscious or in the Shadow Realm. Somehow… somehow the puzzle box let you summon her."
Joey put his arm protectively around his sister. "I ain't all that thrilled about some monster coming out of the Shadow Realm through my sister."
"I didn't do it on purpose, Joey."
"Which is why it freaks me out," he insisted, his voice on edge. "First all that sixth sense stuff, and now this? I don't want you having anything to do with the Shadow Realm."
"Trust me, Joey, it was a good thing," Mai reassured him, coming over to stand beside him. "Well, it was scary at first when we didn't know what was happening, but she saved Téa, Joey."
Yugi tightened his arm around Téa. "Thank you, Serenity," he said with quiet emotion. She nodded at him in response and then he turned to Téa. "You sure you're okay?"
She nodded. "A little shaky, maybe." He realized then she was leaning very heavily on him. "I think I need to sit down."
Worried, he quickly helped her sit down on the ground, then sat beside her. She still looked a little pale, though nothing like before. Holding her face in his hands, he looked into her eyes and told her, "I've never been so scared in my whole life. When you collapsed…." He stopped, choking on the tears that were coming again. "I love you so much, Téa. I can't lose you," he whispered.
"You won't," she insisted, then kissed him.
He closed his eyes and let the reality of her kiss, of her being here alive flood him. When he pulled back, he rested his forehead against hers. "I need you. You have no idea how much. I can't do this without you. Without you, I lose myself."
"Hey!" Joey protested, giving Yugi a playful jab on the shoulder from behind. "I don't think I did such a bad job pinch-hitting."
Yugi couldn't help but laugh. Looking up from Téa to Joey standing above him, he wiped his eyes with the back of his hand then reached for Joey's arm, smiling. "You're right, Joey. You and Téa are both my touchstones. You both keep me grounded when—" He stopped short, his own words jarring him. "Wait a second, that's really true. It's always been you two more than anyone else that have kept me grounded, who've shaken me when I needed it." He stopped, his mind working furiously.
"Yuge?" Joey asked.
"That's it, Joey that's… but wait a second. When Kaiba knocked me out…"
"Yugi, what is it?" Téa asked.
"You wanna fill us in here?" Joey added.
"Téa, after my duel with Rebecca, were you with me when I first woke up after Kaiba knocked me out, or was I imagining things? I thought you were with me, but then when I opened my eyes you standing away from me."
"No, I was there. I was holding your hand while you were unconscious, but when you started waking up, Joey and Tristan pulled me away. They were afraid you wouldn't be back to normal."
"But I was back to normal. That's it!" He took her face in his hands again and pulled her into a jubilant kiss. "I do need you," he said when he broke away again. He looked up at Joey, Mai, and Serenity, who by now had all gathered around them. "I know how to beat the Orichalcos."