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Fanfic Chapter 142: A Family Affair Pt 2: Past Reckonings
Episode Basis: So Close Yet So Far
Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh! No sooner had the duel between Yugi and Noah ended, then the real mastermind behind the Virtual Wars was revealed Gozaburo Kaiba! The tyrannical despot digitized his own mind after Kaiba stole Kaiba Corp. away from him. In true villain fashion, Gozaburo revealed his sinister plan to the heroes: to assimilate everyone into the virtual world then destroy the real world. That way, he could rule over humanity as a god. Noah took them underground where they searched for a route back to the real world. They found one, but (not surprisingly) Noah tricked them, isolating Mokuba and trapping the others in their own memories.
Cirrus just kept cackling as he and his Rare Hunters closed in on Tristan, Serenity, and Duke. "No place to run, my little morsels, why don't you just give yourselves up willingly. Master Marik will control you one way or another, so it's easier to just give up."
"Duke, take Serenity some place safe," Tristan instructed.
"What about you?" Duke asked.
"I'll try to hold them off."
"Tristan, no," Serenity pleaded.
"Go," Tristan said.
"Foolish mistake, boy," Cirrus said. "We have you surrounded."
Tristan got ready for what might be his final fight.
A burly figure slammed into one of Cirrus's servants sending him into the wall of a building. Tristan and Duke saw that it was a heavyset boy with short red hair.
"Who's that?" Another Rare Hunter asked as a stick knocked his feet out from under him. A girl with dark hair and eyes wielded it like a quarterstaff.
"Go, get out of here," the girl said. "Leave them to us."
Wait a second, Tristan thought. This looks familiar. Sure, that's Harold's friend Katy, the one who gave him Serapheem. But how did I…
"Tristan, come on!" Duke called. He was escorting Serenity by the arm even though she wasn't blindfolded.
"Uh… right, coming!" Tristan called forgetting that he was still in monkey mode.
Tea was still sitting on the park bench. Yugi has been acting very strange lately, she mused. First it seems like he distanced himself from everyone since that fire, and then he sets me up on that weird date with the spirit of the puzzle. And then there's that dream I've been having. I can't believe that Yugi's going to leave me, it's just not possible. We've been friends for a long time, we've done almost everything together. We laughed, cried, and were even afraid together. But why is it I'm feeling that Yugi will leave soon? Why…
"Guess who," a voice said as a pair of hands reached out and covered her eyes. Tea instinctively lashed out and elbowed whoever was behind her.
As it turned out, it was only Yugi's Grandpa.
"You shouldn't scare me like that," Tea said. "Wait, didn't this already happen?"
"Looks like I win," Kevin said as he drew a card. "Hey, nothing personal, but I was taught by the best Duelist I know, she has been in several Duel Monster Championships and I've learned everything she has, perhaps more."
"Wow, I'd love to meet this mentor of yours, but in the mean time, if you think you can win then attack." This feels like déjà vu all over again. Wait a second, he's going to summon Skilled White Magician and then equip Megamorph to his Maju Garzett.
"With pleasure, but first I summon Skilled White Magician in attack mode and finally, I reveal the card that will defeat you, Fairy Meteor Crush! This magic card will let me inflict damage even if your monster's in defense mode. Since your Maiden has 2000 defense points that means that you'll lose 1400 life points. And when I order Skilled White Magician to attack, that will take away the rest of your life points."
"I knew it!"
"We're even in life points," Amara said. "But I can guarantee my victory."
"What makes you say that?"
"Because at least I concentrate on winning and don't get so emotional over a measly card like it's my best friend."
"Shut your trap!" Harold snapped making Amara visibly recoil. "You're right, I am fretting over a card, but it's because of what it represents."
"What it represents?" Oh yeah, that's right, Serapheem was given to him by a friend and he thinks that since I put it down, it's like he's putting the friendship between him and the original owner down. Wait, how do I know that?
"That card was given to me by my very best friend, who taught me of courage and conviction. I wasn't just upset that you destroyed Serapheem, but you treated it like it was nothing when in fact it represents more to me than anything in the world!"
Amara looked down at her feet and saw a purple line running the length of the field. "Wait, that wasn't there before."
"Slifer, attack his Dark Magician Girl now!"
Yami-Yugi frantically looked through his hand. Oh no, there isn't anything in my hand that can save my Dark Magician Girl from Slifer's attack. Both Yami-Yugi and the Dark Magician Girl watched in horror as the blast hit its mark. "I'm sorry," Yami-Yugi whispered as the Dark Magician Girl disintegrated.
"I hold the ultimate five-card combination," Marik announced. "I'm invincible! There's nothing anyone can do to stop me!"
Yami-Yugi collapsed to his knees. "I… I can't…"
"Get on your feet, Yugi!" Yami-Yugi looked up to see Kaiba standing on the ledge above them. "Since when do you bow to your rivals?"
"Never!" Yami-Yugi declared. "Huh, didn't this duel already happen? Yeah, I think it did. I used Brain Control to take charge of his Revival Jam and set up that loop combo."
On top of the bank, Kaiba was thinking the same thing. Something's not right, we shouldn't be here.
Noah brought Mokuba into the arcade. "The exit is inside here… though… I kind of forgot where it was." He scratched his head embarrassingly.
"No biggie," Mokuba said. "We'll just try all the games until we find the right one." He sat at the first video game. "I hope it won't be long, I'm eager to get home."
Sorry, Mokuba, but you won't be going home, Noah thought.
Serenity, Tristan, and Duke ran down the street. Tristan rolled around and faced Cirrus. "Duke, take Serenity someplace safe."
"But what are you going to do?" Duke asked.
"I need to find something out. Don't worry, I'll be with you guys soon."
"Okay, let's go, Serenity."
"Be careful, Tristan," Serenity called back.
"I will."
"It doesn't matter, I'll capture your friends soon enough after I deal with you," Cirrus said.
"I don't think so, short, greasy, and ugly."
Duke led Serenity out of an alleyway and across the street where they were almost ran over by a woman in a pink convertible. Joey was besides her.
"Hey, drivers have road privileges too," the driver commented.
"Duke, Serenity," Joey called.
"Joey, what are you doing there?"
What am I doing here? Joey wondered as he stared at Mai. He briefly had a flash of Marik zapping Mai with the Millennium Rod.
"Stay away," Joey commanded standing between the evil Marik and Mai.
"I think you need some punishment too," Yami-Marik said as he used the ball end of the Rod to bat Joey off the platform.
"Joey!"
"Now for you, my dear, I'll be taking my card back. Penalty Game: Darkness Consumption!" Mai collapsed.
That's right, Marik trapped her mind in the Shadow Realm… but she's standing right before me.
Mai was literally standing before him. Without Joey knowing, they were now on a cliff-side looking over the beach and a setting sun. "I could've sworn Mai was in a coma," Joey said to himself. "But she looks fine now."
Mai turned around and stared at him. "Joey, have you ever thought about giving up dueling and just settling down?"
"Now I know something's screwed up," Joey said taking a step back. "The Mai I know would never say anything like that. Something's up."
"Looks like the playing field is truly even," Harold said.
"Man, is your deck a light deck or a yo-yo deck?" Kevin cracked. "Every time I lower your life points, you find some way to bring it back up."
"Fortunately for you, playing Even Ground requires me to end my turn now." Wait a second, now I know this has happened before. Sure, I'm going to summon my Gold Chronos Warrior in attack mode and attack his Harpie. But he'll have a Negate Attack trap ready for me. "I sacrifice my Mystical Elf to summon Gold Chronos Warrior in attack mode. Gold Chronos Warrior, attack his Harpie!"
"Reveal trap card: Negate Attack!"
"Something is seriously wrong," Harold said out loud. "Somehow I'm living past events. I know this is all an illusion but how do I…" Harold looked down at his Armlet. "I don't think my Armlet alone will be powerful enough to pierce this illusion." There was a flash of light and Harold had suddenly jumped forward to the end of the duel. Kevin had just given him his three Knight cards. "You're giving me your Knight cards?" Kevin nodded. "All three of them?"
"I know how much you like light monsters and they do work better as a set."
"Thank you," Harold said.
"Good luck in the finals," Kevin said.
"Thank you, I'll think of you whenever I play these cards." The two shook hands.
Suddenly Harold's Armlet started to glow. Kevin noticed it, "What the heck is that?"
"The only thing that can save us," Harold said cryptically. "Actually, that's not true, it's one of them." He held it up.
"I've done it," Yami-Yugi declared. "I've locked you into an infinite loop from which there is no escape!" Slifer kept attacking Revival Jam, which kept reforming on Yami-Yugi's side of the field, and Strings kept drawing three cards.
Yugi was about to walk away from Strings when he heard a strange voice, "Yugi!"
"Harold?"
"Yeah, it's me, listen, something's not right, we're trapped in the past."
"I know, but how do we…?"
"How could I have lost? I have one of the most powerful cards in Duel Monsters! You'll pay for this, Pharaoh! I still have one more Egyptian God Card at my disposal and this one is more powerful than Slifer and Obelisk put together!"
"But how do we break free?" Yugi asked again wishing Marik would just shut up.
"We must do what we did on the blimp, combine our powers so that we can pierce the illusion and bring us all back together!" The Armlet and the Millennium Puzzle glowed as one.
"Hey Duke, what's that?" Serenity asked. Duke looked up and saw a giant eye shining from the distance.
"I don't know," Duke replied.
"Whoa!" Tristan gasped as Cirrus held him up by the tail. For a second, he saw computer chips but then was blinded.
Tea, now walking with Yugi's Grandpa, also saw the eye. "Hey, what's that?" She turned and saw that Yugi's Grandpa had vanished. And she soon followed.
Amara gasped as the blimp's floor faded out from under her. She screamed as she fell, the sky becoming a giant computer chip. Suddenly she was spirited away by a flash of light.
Joey saw the strange eye and a searchlight heading towards him. He took one look at Mai, telling himself that it wasn't Mai, just a phantom. And then the light took him away.
Yugi, Joey, Tea, Tristan, Harold, Amara, Duke, and Serenity found themselves in a plaza in Virtual-Domino.
"Thank goodness we're all back together," Tea said.
"Somehow Noah tricked us," Yugi said. "Fortunately Harold and I were able to break the illusion."
"That's right," Harold confirmed. It's strange, it seems like my Armlet and Yugi's Millennium Puzzle get more powerful when they work together. I wonder why that is?
"Has anyone seen Kaiba?" Amara asked looking around.
The others also looked around but couldn't find him. "Mokuba's gone too," Serenity noted.
Joey cursed, "Just when things were looking up, that sleaze Noah pulls a fast one on us!"
"Come on, let's find him," Duke said. And they all took off.
Mokuba was on his seventh video game machine when he said, "There must be hundreds of different games here; the exit could be in any one of them."
"I'm sure you're getting close," Noah said and started to reach for him.
"I just realized something," Mokuba said. "You can't escape with us because you don't have a body." Noah paused. Mokuba was obviously smarter than he was at his age. "But I bet Seto could make you a body."
"Make me a body? You would… do that?"
"Yeah, Kaiba Corp. has all kinds of technology experts, so something like that should be an ease. Besides, we're family and family has to look out for one another no matter what."
For a moment, Noah felt a pang of guilt. Mokuba still trusts me after everything I did to him. I almost feel guilty. "I remember now," he said. "I remember where the exit precisely is."
"You do, where?" Mokuba asked.
"Over there." Noah pointed to a dance stage like the one where Tea battled Johnny Step. "Just stand on the stage and you'll wake up in your body."
"Finally, home-sweet-home, here I come."
"Yes," Noah muttered. "Here I come." He ran forward and dove straight into Mokuba's back, disappearing inside his body.
The room wasn't very wide but it was long. A row of virtual pods covered one side of the room. A small control panel stood off to the side.
One of the pods opened and Mokuba climbed out. But there was something different about his eyes. When he spoke, he spoke with a different voice, with Noah's voice. "Finally, after all these years, I'm alive again and free from that virtual prison." He looked at the empty pod. "Thank you, Mokuba, I'll use your body wisely." He let out a hysterical laughter and left the room leaving the other nine trapped inside.
The End