15. Final Confrontation

"I don't like this," Joey said after Yugi and Tristan had dragged him away from Mai and Serenity. "What if Mai loses and Serenity's left alone with Pegasus with that freaky mind control thing going on? What if he controls Mai's mind?"

Yugi put a hand on his friend's shoulder as they walked back toward the Chamber of Wedju. "It'll be okay, Joey."

"Yeah, dude, she won't lose," Tristan insisted. "Trust her."

"Since when are you Mai's cheerleader?"

"Dude, she shared her Ghirardelli's with me. You don't forget a thing like that," Tristan quipped.

"What the hell does that mean?" Joey asked.

"Never mind. You had to be there."

"If you preschoolers are done with recess, the grownups need to figure out a strategy," Kaiba cut in impatiently. "If Evan went to all the trouble of bringing Pegasus out here to try and split us up, you can bet he's got more of his little helpers waiting."

"Rex and Weevil," Yugi agreed. "He's obviously the reason they disappeared while we were busy with the Millennium Stone."

"I think we can expect to run into them somewhere along the way," Kaiba said.

"If that's the case, Joey and I can duel them," Rebecca said.

"No way, I'm sick of those two. I want a piece of Evan," Joey protested.

"Becky's right, Joey," Duke said. "From even before this trip started Evan and this Ramesses guy have been trying to keep Yugi and Kaiba away. They're the one's he's afraid of so they need to be the ones to duel him."

Joey looked at Yugi for backup, but Yugi wasn't sure what to say. More than any other duelist he knew, Yugi liked to have Joey at his side, but Duke had a good point. Before he could answer, however, Joey let him off the hook.

"Never mind, Yuge. Duke and Rebecca are right."

Yugi looked at his friend. "Joey, this has nothing to do with… all that stuff from the last duel. You know that, right? I would never hesitate to duel anyone with you."

"I know, buddy, we're cool."

As they walked on, Yugi noticed that Kaiba kept giving Yugi a pensive look, as if weighing something. "Is something wrong, Kaiba?" he asked.

Kaiba took a moment to respond. "When we were looking for a way out earlier, I found something in the hieroglyphics that might help us beat Evan. Not that I believe all these fairy tales his boss inscribed in the walls here, but if they believe them, that's information we can use against them."

"What did you find? The stuff about the 'Dark Power' that Rebecca was talking about?"

"No. It was the story of Reshef the Dark Being," Kaiba replied. "Apparently he was the god of war and Ramesses was quite a devotee."

"Yes, although Reshef is usually depicted in Egyptian art quite differently than the monster we saw. He looks like a man with a spear wearing a white turban with a gazelle on it. He was co-opted from the Syrians and is also associated with thunder and with plagues, particularly the plagues from the Exodus story. Which not coincidentally is also associated with Ramesses the Great."

"Sounds like a fun guy," Joey said dryly.

Ignoring Joey, Kaiba mused, "Evan mentioned plagues when he said how Reshef attacks."

"Yes," Yugi said, unable to resist a glance at Téa as he tried to shut out the mental image of her collapsing. "He said Reshef destroys opponents from the inside out."

"And, of course, he controls opposing monsters for one turn if the duelist controlling him discards a magic card, which is a different kind of plague," Kaiba said.

"Was that in the hieroglyphics you read? I'd never read anything in Egyptian mythology that linked the god of war to the duel monster version of Reshef."

"That's exactly what the hieroglyphics detailed," Kaiba nodded. "Reshef the Dark Being is the Ka form of the god."

Yugi's eyes widened. "Ka form of a god? But I thought the only god Kas were Obelisk the Tormentor, Slifer the Sky Dragon, and the Winged Dragon of Ra!"

"Wait a second," Téa cut in, "are you saying that we're dealing with another Egyptian God card?"

"Not in terms of the game as we know it, no," Kaiba replied. "Reshef is a Ritual Monster, like Paladin of White Dragon or Black Luster Soldier. He's not even one of the most powerful Ritual Monsters. His attack is only twenty-five hundred."

"Only?" Joey said.

"To an amateur like you, that might seem high, but as someone with three Blue-Eyes White Dragons in his deck, I'm not impressed."

"But his true power is in the ability to control other monsters," Yugi said quickly before Joey could respond to Kaiba's slight.

"And that's also what was in the hieroglyphics I found," Kaiba agreed. "Reshef the Dark Being was the personal guardian monster of Ramesses the Great. He revered Reshef for his dominion over war, which he saw as the ultimate means of control. The Millennium Items were another form of control, too."

He looked at Yugi. "Don't you think it's odd that a monster with the title 'Dark Being' in its name would be a Light Attribute? That a monster based on the god of war and associated with plagues would be a Light monster?"

Yugi frowned. "It is odd, but what's your point?"

"That's part of the control aspect. Reshef is supposed to encompass all things. Light and Dark. Good and Evil. Matter and Anti-Matter. Blessings and Curses. You said he's associated with thunder—hence the sonic blast—but his attack is carried out through the total absence of sound."

"Encompassing opposite extremes implies complete control of everything in between," Yugi nodded. "So Ramesses is a control freak."

"And he believed his connection to Reshef allowed him that control. He believes that when Reshef is present, so is Ramesses."

"That's why Evan was so quick to summon him. He can commune with Ramesses in some form through Reshef."

"At least he thinks he can," Kaiba sniffed.

"He's a vizier, empowered to act alone, but ultimately looking to the pharaoh for guidance," Yugi pondered. "Having Reshef on the field is a major psychological advantage to him."

"And keeping Reshef off the field is a major psychological advantage to us," Kaiba pointed out. "And I have a few ideas about how to deal with Reshef if he does get summoned."

"Yes, we can use this," Yugi nodded. "We need to set the terms of the duel to make sure that he can't treat this like another all-out war and summon Reshef at will. And," he added, looking to Téa, "we need to make sure that he can't attack Téa or Mokuba."

"I take it you already have a plan?"

"Yes," Yugi replied, and they discussed the rest of their strategy until they reached the point just before where the tunnel ended in another cavern.

"This is the last cavern before we're back at the Chamber of Wedju," Rebecca informed them, and Yugi thought he dimly remembered it through the fog that was the immediate aftermath of the attack on Téa.

"Well, if Rex and Weevil are gonna show, it's gonna either be here or by the ravine," Joey said. He crept forward to the end of the tunnel cautiously peered around the corner into the chamber, Yugi behind him. As Joey had predicted, Rex and Weevil were there waiting for them.

"Well, here goes nothing," Joey whispered, then turned to Yugi. "Kick Evan's ass a few extra times for me, will ya pal?"

"You got it," Yugi agreed with a nod and he and Joey bumped fists then clasped hands before Yugi turned to Rebecca and gave her a hug. "Be careful, Imouto-chan."

"You, too, Onii-chan."

Joey looked at Tristan. "So here's where we see just how good you are at keeping me out of trouble."

"I've always got your back, you know that," Tristan nodded.

"Let's go, Short Stuff," Joey said to Rebecca as they walked into the cavern, their duel disks raised, and challenged Rex and Weevil with Tristan and Duke at their sides.

"I wanna duel Yugi!" Weevil protested.

"He's got better things to do than kick your sorry butt again," Rebecca shot back. "Or are you afraid of a little schoolgirl?" she added in her best childish voice.

This got Weevil right in his ego and the duel was on.

Yugi, Kaiba, Téa, and Mokuba edged their way past Rex and Weevil and through the short stretch of tunnel that brought them to the large cavern across the ravine from the Chamber of Wedju. Once again they stopped just short of the end of the tunnel and flattened themselves against the wall before peering cautiously around the corner. There was no sign of Evan.

"Hiding by that altar of his, no doubt," Kaiba scoffed. "That's where he said we were supposed to duel."

Yugi nodded vaguely, distracted both by the weird energy from the Orichalcos and the memory of what happened when they were last here. His eyes were drawn as if of their own volition to the edge of the drawbridge where his mind couldn't help but replay the attack on Téa. Then there was a squeeze of his hand and the real Téa, flesh and blood—and fine—was beside him.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

He blinked, swallowing hard over a lump in his throat. "For what? I didn't do anything. It was Kaiba. He's the one who—" He stopped abruptly, swallowing again. "I wasn't there. I couldn't help you."

"I don't mean that, Yugi. That could have been anyone. Kaiba was just in the right place at the right time, just like I was when that boulder almost fell on Mokuba. I'm talking about this, me being here with you. Thank you for not pushing me away to try and protect me. I need to be here."

He looked down at the ground. "Don't thank me," he said. "I hate this, Téa. This is the hardest thing I've ever had to do." He looked back up at her. "Yesterday… what happened… that was the worst moment of my life and I'm so afraid of losing you again."

She smiled at him, squeezing his hand again. "I know. That's why I'm thanking you."

He nodded. "Just promise me you'll be careful. If… if this doesn't work… if I can't get out from under the Orichalcos, promise me you and Mokuba will get out. Don't be where I can hurt you."

"It'll work," Téa assured him, but he shook his head.

"Promise me. Just in case it doesn't."

"Yugi, I can't promise to leave you."

"You have to if you can't do anything. Please," he pleaded with her.

She returned his gaze for a moment before relenting with a nod and he relaxed slightly. He looked from her to Mokuba. "You both know what to do?"

"We're good to go," Mokuba said, sounding determined.

Kaiba put his hand on his brother's shoulder. "What Yugi said goes for you, too. If anything goes wrong, if it gets dicey, don't worry about us, just get out of there, okay?"

"We'll be fine, Seto."

"I mean it," Kaiba insisted, then he turned to Téa. "Look out for him."

She nodded again, but Mokuba rolled his eyes. "Geez, Seto, I'm almost fifteen. You were plotting the takeover of Kaiba Corp when you were my age!"

"Which I did so you could have a decent life and wouldn't have to spend your childhood dealing with the twisted schemes of megalomaniacs like Gozaburo Kaiba!" Kaiba snapped in an uncharacteristic display of emotion. Yugi and Téa exchanged surprised glances as he continued. "But it's all kind of pointless if you end up at the wrong end of Reshef's next sonic blast because of the latest twisted megalomaniac du jour, so please stop being such a know-it-all and listen for once. Be careful. Stay hidden until we're ready. Got it?"

"Okay, I get it," Mokuba nodded. "I'll be fine, Seto, really."

Kaiba gave his brother's shoulder a squeeze then turned to Yugi. "Ready?"

"Ready," Yugi nodded, but Téa grasped his arm.

"Wait," she said, and he turned back toward her. She pulled him into a slow, heated kiss. He closed his eyes, letting himself get lost in her for a moment.

"Oh please, you two are worse than a shoujo anime," Kaiba scoffed impatiently.

Yugi pulled back from Téa, abashed, but she gave Kaiba an unruffled glance. "We didn't interrupt your touching moment, now did we?"

Kaiba snorted. "Can we just get on with this please?"

"Okay, keep your shirt on," Téa shot back. To Yugi, she said, "Don't lose."

Buoyed by her kiss, he felt a surge of the Pharaoh's cockiness. "I never do."

She smiled a moment, but her eyes were still full of worry. "I love you, you know."

"I know," he said solemnly, then he turned back to Kaiba. "Let's do this."

"About time."

Leaving Téa and Mokuba behind in the tunnel, they made their way carefully out into the cavern toward the ravine and the drawbridge. "I don't like being so exposed out here," Yugi muttered to Kaiba.

"I don't care as long as Evan's paying attention to us when Mokuba and Téa come across," Kaiba replied.

"I'm with you there," Yugi agreed.

They made it across the drawbridge and headed toward the maze of stone tablets. The closer they got, the more Yugi's head started swimming, making him wonder if it had been a good idea for him and Kaiba to start out alone. "Can you feel the Orichalcos stones?" Yugi asked.

"Whatever," Kaiba answered dismissively, but Yugi could see that he was a little sluggish. "Let's just get on with this quickly."

The two duelists crept quietly through the stone tablets. By the time they reached the Dark Magician and Blue-Eyes White Dragon tablets at the edge of the amphitheater-like area surrounding the altar to Reshef, Yugi's head was already throbbing and he was starting to feel random bursts of anger. The effect was stronger than he'd remembered from the day before and he hoped that they hadn't seriously miscalculated how long he and Kaiba could hold out without Téa and Mokuba.

"If it isn't the two duelists formerly known as—well, I was going to say 'dead pharaohs,' but your dead pharaohs weren't known at all, where they?" a voice greeted them from behind. Yugi and Kaiba whirled around to see Evan making his way through the tablets a few rows over. He was circling around them toward the steps of the altar. "Looking for me?"

"I believe we have a duel to finish," Kaiba said as they watched him warily.

"I'm not the one who cut and run," Evan pointed out.

"And we're not the ones who attacked an innocent bystander," Yugi snapped, a burst of rage rising in him. Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm himself. He had to hold out, just a few minutes….

"Let's not rehash that argument," Evan said conversationally. "How is your little girlfriend, by the way? Enjoying the Shadow Realm?"

Once again Yugi quashed the fury in him, swallowing hard as bile rose up in his throat. This was actually good news, he told himself. It meant he didn't know Téa was all right. It meant they had a momentary advantage. "You can find out for yourself when you go there," he taunted.

"Yeah, no. I really don't think so," Evan shook his head. "I'd have to lose a battle with you first, and given how seasick the two of you look right now, I'm not exactly worried."

"If it's a battle you want, it's a battle you'll get," Kaiba challenged, "but this time there will be a few rules."

"Why Kaiba, don't you know, all's fair in love and war?"

"This is no war," Yugi asserted. "You duel on our terms or Kaiba and I walk away."

Evan laughed. "What makes you think you can walk away? I'm holding all the cards, so to speak."

"Not quite," Yugi argued. "You wouldn't have gone to such an effort to bring us down to this chamber unless you needed to duel us here, so you can posture all you want, but if you want a duel you will have to play by the rules."

"Which are?"

"Kaiba and I duel as a team against you."

"Two against one? That hardly seems fair."

"What's the problem, Evan?" Kaiba sneered. "Are we more intimidating now that you can't threaten our family and friends?"

"There is nothing the least bit intimidating about either of you," Evan shot back. "You are a pompous pampered billionaire who's never had to do an honest day's work in his life and you," he said, turning to Yugi, "are a scrawny rat of a college kid who made a name for himself because of someone else's skills. He nodded to Kaiba and Yugi respectively, "Without your sycophants and your dead pharaoh's spirit, you are nothing."

Yugi took another breath, battling down both the wooziness and the resentment. "If we're nothing, then dueling the both of us together shouldn't be a problem. We'll play by Asian rules, where if one of us loses all our Life Points, the team loses."

Evan considered this, then nodded. "Fine."

"We also cannot just summon any monster we choose, even our personal guardians. We have to draw them from our decks first, or some other way of summoning monsters within the confines of the standard rules of the game."

"Shadow Games have their own rules," Evan asserted.

"And that will be one of the rules of this Shadow Game. If you want to summon Reshef, you must draw him and his ritual card from your deck. And absolutely no attacks outside the bounds of the duel," Yugi went on. "Anyone who makes an illegal attack automatically forfeits the duel."

"Oh, but it was such a nice little touch when you and Joey dueled," Evan complained with mock disappointment. "And of course the little ballerina princess. She even falls gracefully, doesn't she? Such a pretty image she made—"

"Evan!" Yugi growled, but Kaiba cut him off.

"I'm getting bored, Evan. Are you in or out?"

"What makes you think you can hold me to your terms?"

"You're not the only one who knows how to call a Shadow Game," Yugi retorted. "We are setting the rules for this engagement and you will follow them or forfeit your mind to the Shadows."

Evan laughed again. "Do you really think you can scare me? I live for Shadow Games. They're the only kind worth playing."

"You're stalling," Kaiba said, tapping his foot impatiently. "These are very basic regulations of tournament play. If you're as good as you say you are, you should have no trouble operating under basic tournament guidelines."

"And we have one more condition," Yugi added. "When you lose, all your mind slaves must be set free from the Shadow Realm."

"Ah, so that's the real purpose here. Trying to save your girlfriend from the horrors of the Shadow Realm. How heroic."

"Still bored," Kaiba yawned. "Do you accept our terms or don't you?"

Evan smiled. "Of course I accept your terms. I have nothing to lose."

"We'll see," Yugi said.