Chapter 19: The Search Begins
"Are you ready? For this duel, the priests will split into two teams of three! Each team will have three stones. You may summon one monster each. You may use the sealing stones to call monsters from the shrine, or use the spirits of your own ka. The team that defeats all of the opponents' monsters wins!" Priest Siamun said.
In the room used for duels against magic users stood the six priests in front of Priest Siamun who stood a level lower than the Pharaoh's throne. Juliana, Naru and Vash sat on the ledge by the Pharaoh awaiting their turn to duel. The two teams of the original six were Mahado, Isis and Karim versus Akunadin, Seto and Shada. The six faced each other on the dueling platform and began.
Vash yawned. "Why are we doing this again...?"
"Because with Bakura on the loose we have to train to make sure we're in top form," Naru said. "You understand?"
"Yeah yeah..." He looked over at Juliana and tilted his head. "Juliana? Are you alright?"
Juliana sighed and rubbed her eyes. "Yes...just...tired..."
Naru looked at her worringly. "That's not good...you sure you can duel?"
"I'll be fine, just pay attention to the ones dueling now. We'll probably have to go against the winners..."
The duel was over quickly with shocking results. Priest Seto's spirit monster Duos had cut Mahado's team into nothing, but at the price of sacrificing both Akunadin and Shada's creatures.
"Priest Seto!" the Pharaoh called.
"My lord?"
"A battle strategy that relies on strength sometimes reveals unforseen weaknesses...true power would never mean hurting your allies...your friends."
"Really. Then what is power? It may be presumptuous of me, but I would appreciate instruction from the Great Pharaoh! Would it be possible to duel right here and now?"
The three priests that sat now stood. "I don't think so! It's our turn, we'll show you what true power is!" Vash said. But the Pharaoh smiled and nodded, stepping down from the throne and onto the dueling platform.
The Pharaoh called up only one single stone slab and told Seto not to hold back. In a matter of seconds Seto had summoned Duos and attacked the Pharaoh's tablet that had just begun to form a monster. The tablet shattered into pieces.
"I did it!" Seto exclaimed.
"You think so...?" Soon on every piece of the stone appeared a small furball creature that was then summoned. Each creature then flew at Duos and enveloped its sword. "See! Power is a fragile thing."
Seto stared for a minute, then both creatures disappeared. "Alright...let's see how well the new priests fair against us."
"About time!" Vash, Juliana and Naru walked up to the dueling platform and stood in front of one stone tablet each.
Akunadin looked at them and smirked, looking over at Priest Siamun. "What say we change the rules a bit, seeing as we are dealing with new Millennium Items?"
Siamun looked at him curiously. "What do you suggest?"
"We each use three stones, and the team that runs out of monsters loses of course, but how about two monsters each? One from our spirits and one from the Shrine of Wedju?"
"Does the other team accept these conditions?"
Vash and Naru walked over to Juliana. "Two monsters? Juliana are you sure you can handle summoning just one? You really don't look well," Naru said.
"And I bet Priest Akunadin knows it..." Vash looked over at Akunadin. "He'll probably try to kill you in this duel. He'd get away with it too..."
"We accept the conditions." Juliana called to Priest Siamun.
"Juliana...are you sure?"
She looked at Naru. "Naru sometimes in life you have to take risks. I think it's about time to show these priests what we're really made of. Let's give them a lesson in true team work, what do you say Vash?"
"You mean..." He smirked. "Ooohh yeah! Just tell me when."
The two walked back to their places and stood in front of the team they were to go up against. All six shouted "Diaha!" and the duel began.
"You two do what you want...but Juliana is mine..." Akunadin said to Seto and Shada.
"Priest Akunadin, try not to over do it. Priestess Juliana isn't looking well..." Seto said.
"That's the point...I call upon a creature from the sacred shrine! The Invader of Darkness!" The stone behind Priest Akunadin rose a large fiend type creature surrounded in darkness.
Vash sighed. "They're really not going to take it easy are they? Too bad for them."
"I shall summon my spirit creature Duos and my servant beast Galestgoras!" Previous monsters Seto had summoned were called upon the field.
"And lastly I call upon the great dragon Des Volstgalph!" In front of Shada appeared a large red and blue dragon that roared at the three opponents.
"You call that a great dragon? We'll show you a great dragon...but first..." Vash said. The three held out their hands and the stones behind them shined brightly, but did not rise.
"Hm? That's it?" Seto asked.
"Not quite. I call upon the mirror of my soul! Airknight Parshath!" Naru called. A bright light filled the room as a half horse half human creature appeared in front of her. With it's blonde hair, blue and gold armor and white angel wings, it reminded Juliana a lot of Matt.
"Your move..." Juliana said. The three bowed.
"What are you three hiding in those tablets?" Seto asked.
Naru and Vash smirked. "That's for us to know...and you three to find out."
"Are you scared? You should be..." Juliana said.
Akunadin snickered. "We're not afraid of a bunch of wannabe priests like you three."
"Oh, but we are priests, Akunadin. Just as much as the rest of you, and we're prepared to prove that right here...right now..."
"Fine. Shada! Go!"
"Des Volstgalph! Strike at Vash's stone tablet!" The large dragon flew up and dove at the slab behind Vash.
"Not so fast! I call upon my spirit ka! Valkyrie of Mages!" Juliana shouted. There was a bright purple light as a creature similar to the Dark Magician Girl flew from the ceiling. (For those who don't know, in America this creature is known as Magician's Valkyrie. She wears blue, purple and gold clothing and wields a large purple, gold and green staff.) She flew down in front of Shada's dragon and pointed her staff at it, creating a shield.
"What's this? I called an attack on the tablet, not that magician."
"Do you remember what Bakura said? A person's ka is a mirror of themselves and posses abilities the host wishes. I wish to protect my friends...so my mage's special ability is that whenever you call an attack on any fellow spellcasters, you are forced to attack my mage instead."
Vash smirked as his stone tablet rose. In front of him appeared a normal looking man in Egyptian robes and some kind of stone plate in his hand. "The Gravekeeper's Watcher. He might not look it, but he's a spellcaster. Who else is better to protect the graves?"
"Mahado's team showed team work in their duel, but we'll show you team work with strategy," Naru said proudly.
"It's my turn. And if my eyes serve me well...your Airknight is not a spellcaster, Naru! I can atttack you without interference from Juliana's creature! Go Galestgoras!"
"You underestimate my strength. Show him my knight!" As Seto's beast charged at it, Naru's Airknight rose its sword and quickly brought it down, slicing Galestgoras in two.
Seto growled. "I'm not done yet! Duos! Attack her stone tablet!" Duos gripped its sword and ran at the stone tablet behind Naru, but Juliana's Magician appeared in front of it. "Again!"
Naru smiled as a similar man to Vash's creature appeared in front of her, this one carrying a long spear. "That's right. You attacked my Gravekeeper's Guard. And look." She pointed at Shada as his dragon disappeared.
"What's this!"
"My Guard's special ability. I can call back one of your monsters so that it is no longer in play, with no harm done to you of course."
"That's two stone tablets revealed, both being Gravekeeper's you have been unable to attack. Care to see what's behind door number three, Priest Akunadin?" Juliana said looking at him.
"Don't mock me, Juliana...have you failed to realize that protecting those pathetic ka is draining you of your ba? By the look in your eyes, your spirit may not last one more attack. But let's see, shall we? Go my dark beast!" The black fiend hissed and dashed at the stone tablet behind Juliana. But when the Valkyrie flew in the way, the fiend tackled her to the ground. The fiend tried to bite at the magician but she held her staff in the way.
Juliana was greatly feeling the strain of the attack, but she closed her eyes in attempt to focus the attack back. A dark purple aura flowed around her and her magician fired a blast that forced Akunadin's fiend back. Juliana's knees bent as she looked at Akunadin. "My mage remains...and you've opened your present..." Another Egyptian appeared in front of her, this one in long robes with a staff floating in front of him. "The Gravekeeper's Curse...now you'll feel how I feel for now his special ability activates!" The Gravekeeper put his hands up to the staff as he began to glow green. A green beam shot at Akunadin and he gripped his chest.
"Now, Juliana?" Vash said quickly looking at her.
She began to breathe heavily as the Valkyrie began blinking in and out of existance. "Now..."
Vash smirked and faced their opponents. "Alright! You've seen all of our monsters, but here comes a true dragon! I summon the ka within my body, mirror of my soul! The Black Dragon with Red Eyes!" The Red-Eyes Black Dragon appeared in front of Vash and roared loudly. "Take out Akunadin's fiend!"
As Vash carried out his attack, Juliana began swaying forward and backward. Soon the Valkyrie in front of her disappeared and she fell to the ground. "Juliana? Juliana!" She could hear Naru calling, but soon everything went dark and she fell unconscious.
"Well it's about time you showed up. Heh." a voice echoed in the darkness.
Juliana awoke in an area filled with broken down buildings and fire. The smell of smoke and rotting corpses filled the black sky. She could hear screams of agony and pain all around her. "Where am I...?"
"Your mind." The man with the amulet she had met before, Senshi, appeared in front of her out of a strange dark portal. "You're sleeping. Consider this a dream...or a nightmare. Heh."
"If I'm asleep, Naru should be chanting the spell to wake me."
"Don't count on it." He laughed and walked around her. "Something about your friend Naru that you don't know about. But I do."
She glared at him. "Naru is my best friend. She wouldn't hide anything from me."
"Oh but she would..." Senshi tapped his head. "I know. I know a lot of things."
"...like?"
"Like what Naru, Akunadin, even Atem are hiding from you. What really happened to Sethos. Why items like the one that thief Ishico disappeared with exist. What you and your mother really are. And the identity of the man in your visions..." As he spoke each name, their images appeared in front of them.
Juliana walked over to the image of the man and reached her hand out to touch him, but all the images disappeared. She sighed and looked at Senshi. "Do you really know all of these...?"
"I could...but I also couldn't. You have no way of knowing, unless you find me."
"Where?"
He smirked. "Well you'll just have to find out. I could be no where...or everywhere." He disappeared and the entire area went dark.
Juliana woke once more in the dueling arena with the priests and the Pharaoh standing over her.
"It looks like she's waking up..." Priestess Isis said.
"Juliana? How do you feel?" Atem asked.
She slowly sat up and rubbed her head. She then looked up and stared at Naru.
Naru blinked. "Something wrong, Juliana?"
"No, nothing. Is the duel over?"
Vash laughed. "Oh yeah. We won."
"Good..." She slowly stood and bowed to the Pharaoh. "If it is alright with you I would like to return to the palace, Pharaoh."
He nodded. "Of course. I believe we've done enough training for one day. Everyone may leave." Everyone grabbed their belongings and left the arena.
Later that night, as everyone in the palace slept, Juliana walked down the palace hallways dressed in a black cloak. She quietly walked out of the palace and into the stable house. She walked over to her horse and began untieing it. "We've got a long ride ahead of us..."
"Sounds good. We bringing anything to do?" Vash said, coming up behind her.
Juliana quickly turned around and looked at him. "I'm going alone, Vash."
"Yes...and I'm going with you."
Naru walked in smiling. "And don't think you're getting far without me."
"No," Juliana shook her head. "You two have to stay to watch over the Pharaoh."
"We would, if we weren't given orders to watch over you," Vash said.
"Look, Juliana. You're going out to find answers. Well, I have some questions of my own that have answers somewhere beyond these walls. We need to go out and search for them."
Juliana looked at both of them and sighed. "You two are stubborn."
Naru smiled. "We learn from each other."
"Fine. Get your horses."
The three gathered supplies, got on their horses, and rode off into the twilight.