Disclaimer: When you think about it, can anyone seriously believe I own this?

Ok, in our last venture into this fic, Yami and Kachikachi entered the homestretch of their greatest duel yet, while Yusuke began his third match with Zeru. At the same time, Tea and Inuyasha came to grips with Kikyo, Roger and Angel discussed Seebach's idea of the truth, Joey finally shattered Chu's Captain lock, and Kaiba and Botan got ever closer.

Chapter 34 will officially start Yusuke's next duel, as Kaiba discovers what he's been missing, as well as some rather vital information. Yami and Kachikachi will bring their duel to it's final levels, while another old friend of Roger's shows up. Raphael considers his attack plan, and Kagome at long last decides to find the Pharaoh.

And here is an original card from Matrixfighter3, along with another card I designed

Suicide Detonator:

Dark/Machine/Effect

Effect: FLIP: Destroy one monster on your opponent's side of the field, regardless of position, and inflict damage equal to half of that monster's attack strength on both duelist's life points. During the end phase of your next turn after this effect is activated, Special Summon a monster whose level stars are equal to the monster destroyed from your deck in face-up attack position. The monster cannot attack on the turn it is summoned, and is a Machine-type in addition to it's other types.

Stars: 3

Atk:.1200 Def:.100

Spirit Gun

Quick-Play Magic

This card can only be activated by discarding one card from your hand. Select one Spirit monster on your side of the field and increase it's attack strength by 500 points for as long as it remains on the field or in your hand. Also, during the turn in which this card is activated, you may discard one card from your opponent's hand when the selected Spirit monster attacks.

Let's start the show!

Chapter 33: The Knights of Orichalcos and A Priestess's Love

New Paradigm Corporation Headquarters

It had been about 20 years since he had witnessed such chaos.

Several hundred phones were ringing, all at the same time. Desperate secretaries, hands loaded down with data collections, had started running about the place as though the world's first corporate marathon was happening all around them. About 200 yards ahead, the main supervisor could be seen, belting out commands to the few lackeys paying attention to his gruff orders. Profit lines on just about every graph operating were plunging faster than the armies of Troy.

No one paid much attention, therefore, to the powerful blonde figure loitering beneath the shade of one of the support pillars, nor did they take heed that he was using his Duel Gauntlet to hack into the place's mainframe.

It was often an astounding phenomenon to Raphael, the random occurrence that was total anarchy. He had watched such catastrophic breakdowns of human society since the age of twelve, making careful note of how such chaotic happenstances actually were achieved. It was not until much later that he would realize a very important truth about life: anarchy is nothing more than a reaction to stimuli, and each reaction is based not on the incentive, but rather on the people that are reacting to it.

These idiots. Even as I watch they are flitting around like a pack of frightened turkeys, running away from enemies that are as of nothing compared to the fury that they are about to face. It's obvious that they have grown soft due to their years of affluent and sluggish living, without any real threat to keep their abilities sharp, so unless they have some kind of militia I do not know about this will be the easiest conflict I have ever settled.

His grim smile widened as the data scrolled like credits behind his eyes, an aftereffect of using a system so closely connected to the nervous system. What could once have been accomplished in three years was now being completed in a matter of minutes.

It won't be long now, Pharaoh, before I finally exact justice upon you and the Priestess. You may have been able to defeat me before, but this time you will not be so fortunate.

The sadistic grin that Raphael once sported was now replaced with a look of anger at the humiliation he had endured at Atem's hands. He had trounced that stupid son of a bitch in their first duel, and this time it would be a spectacular reenactment.

Of course, the DOOM Soldier had other matters to contend with, mostly related to the mysterious reemergence of the Hell Demon Naraku. In his opinion, that creature was little more than a slight obstacle.

And another, much more important matter was at hand, for Hiei had obviously heard by now what Raphael's master had done, not to mention the mysterious burglar and that grating kitsune that Amelda had so desperately wanted to kill. But Lord Dartz was right in one respect: if that fox demon was as cowardly and possessive as their sources believed, then he would go running to Kagome. As for Kaiba and that girlfriend of his, that he would leave for Hiei to sort out.

But from this point of view, it seemed to Raphael that whatever information his sire was looking for was not in this databank, making the call that came in at that moment that much more irritating. And despite the priority of his assignment, the once-affluent son of aristocrats picked it up anyway.

"Yeah?"

On the other end of the line crackled a slightly effeminate voice, and he recognized the character all too well.

"Raphael, we've picked up a lead on a couple of the Pharaoh's allies, in particular the dog demon with that tooth on a stick. I also got some data on Hiei's organization."

"What's your point, Amelda? We already know that Inuyasha is of no threat to us, and Lord Dartz has already figured out just about everything on the demon god..."

"It's Kachikachi. He's working for Hiei."

"Damn it. Does the Master know about this?"

"Not yet, and I'm afraid the situation only gets worse. It seems that one of the priests from Atlantis was a double agent. He'd been feeding our activities back to Naraku from the beginning. We dealt with the matter accordingly, but the damage was done. So we're going to have to enact some kind of attack to keep the others in line."

"Don't worry, I'm on it. It would probably be best to attack the lower tiers of their organization first, so I'll start on that dog demon Inuyasha. Deal with the others as you see fit, and Dartz can go after Hiei himself."

"Suit yourself." And with that, the receiver on Amelda's line ended.

Another smirk crossed Raphael's face, as he activated a small sack of explosives that he had attached to the computer; they were set to go off in about five minutes.

Let's see those sons of bitches handle this...Now satisfied, he turned his back on the blissfully ignorant and stepped out into the streets. His target was ready, and soon enough, the Pharaoh and his girlfriend would be getting a most unwelcome surprise...

Kaiba's Hotel Suite

"Mmm... You still awake, Seto?"

"Why shouldn't I be? It's only five o'clock."

"Well, most guys usually fall asleep after sex. But then, you're no ordinary guy, are you?"

It was not the first time that the legendary Seto Kaiba had been called this, but never once had it been under these circumstances. His Duel Gauntlet was deactivated for the first time since the tournament began, his clothes were scattered in a strangely organized path from the couch to the bedroom, there was a pile of half-melted ice and an empty bottle of champagne at the foot of the bed itself, and of course, Botan and Kaiba were holding onto each other's bare forms, the events of the past two hours having exhausted the two young lovers completely.

"Well, I have been known to stay up pretty late working, so I guess I'm kind of used to it. Anyway, I suppose this is a weird question, but how was it?"

With a coy smile, Botan arched her body against his, moaning with a combination of pleasure and exhaustion mixed as one. Having done so, she started to run her soft hands across his chest, almost painful in how slow they worked.

"It was...wow. You did things that I didn't know were possible."

"Don't sell yourself short. You were the better one here today...neko-chan."

Now, to just about anyone watching, that last comment would not have made any sense, had it not been for an old trademark of the ex-official from Spirit World.

"It's funny..." So saying, Kaiba's new lover reformatted her facial structure for a second or so into that of a humanoid kitten. "Usually, Yusuke was annoyed like the dickens whenever I made that face. Who would've guessed it would make you all the more horny?"

"You know, it gives you this feral kind of appeal. But what I don't get is why Urameshi wasn't interested in you earlier. Sure, he had a girlfriend, but he'd have to be a complete asshole not to get at least a little flustered whenever you stepped into the room."

As he said this, Kaiba started to move in again, nuzzling her neck which still tasted like peppermint. This, in turn, caused Botan to shudder in delight, while at the same time causing her to crawl into his lap for the second time, legs splayed across his waist at the same moment.

"Well, Seto, I guess you do have a pretty good eye. Of course, you also have a dirty little mouth, don't ya? Creative, bawdy, and hot as hell."

"Kind of like you, my sexy little lollipop."

To understand Botan's following reaction, one really would have had to know the exact history of the words that incited it. Earlier, in the grip of fiery passions, Kaiba broke open the bottle of champagne he had spent so much on, and drenched Botan's naked body in it, at which point he started to lick the alcoholic luxury off of her. The rest is pretty much self-explanatory.

As for Botan...well, to her just hearing that single line of words and syllables was enough stimuli for her to drag Kaiba into another kiss, and unlike previous ones the two held it for a long, long while, allowing their tongues to become wrapped about one another like a tightly wound knot and curling their lips around the other's mouth.

"I love you, Seto Kaiba."

The two lowered themselves down onto the bed mattress. At the same time Kaiba started to swivel Botan's hips with his splayed palms, gradually allowing himself to creep down her upper torso as her passionate groans reached an octave usually reserved for opera musicians. And as it was her nature not to be outdone, the Earth-bound Styx ferrywoman wrapped her arms around his neck and simply started biting there, not dissimilar to the way he had done. But just as they were about to start up for about the eighth time yet, Botan decided to regain control of the situation.

"Not right now, love; the night hasn't even started. But tell you what; odds are I'm gonna take a shower later on, and maybe...well, it's kind of embarrassing."

"What? You've had quite a few good ideas already, why should this be any less inspired?"

Having been complimented more in the course of a day than any of her so-called friends had offered to her in a year, the blood in Botan's face took on a much sharper concentration as she averted his gaze.

"Well, I was kind of hoping you'd like to join me. Ok, I know that's kind of gross, and it was really disrespectful to ask for already. But it's just that I haven't had anyone get this close to me in so long, and I've always had a weird little fantasy about that..."

It would take exactly five seconds for this information to register in Seto Kaiba's cerebrum: the one second it took for the electrical nerve impulses to go into effect, and the four seconds it would take before the shock wore off. The next few seconds were, of course, reserved to his response, coupled with a silent prayer to whatever god was looking out for him right then.

"Botan, if I ever, and I mean ever, turn an offer like that down, I will personally let you beat me."

With a wicked little smirk, she winked at Kaiba, and started to wrap one of the Turkish robes that the hotel had provided around herself. But, as was her intent, Botan performed this act in gradual levels, for the sole purpose of letting her new lover trace his eyes along every luscious curve of her body.

"Ok, Seto, I'll be right back. I'm just going to get something from room service, so don't get any ideas I wouldn't think of first."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

But as she walked away, into the large outer sitting area that corresponded with the luxury bedroom, Kaiba was overwhelmed with an emotion he had never felt before. Not in an undignified manner, of course; no, the years of hardship that he had undergone had all but disabled his excess tear ducts. But it was strange, for normally he would be hatching another scheme to topple Yugi, or in these circumstances locating that "demon god". Yet now, all he could think of was her. He would give up everything, all his possessions, even one of his Blue Eyes, just to see another smile on her face.

It's all starting to come into perspective, for the first time in my life. Maybe I've spent so much time tracking down my enemies and keeping tabs on the company that it became an unmatched business. But lying here, with the one woman who has been able to give me happiness, makes all of that seem unimportant. I don't care what it takes, I just want her with me; Mokuba needs somebody besides his big brother to look up to, so what better way than to introduce a sister? He has been bugging me about getting a girlfriend...

While these radical thoughts were moving through his mind, however, Kaiba still knew about his ultimate enemy, and the grim realism of his new scenario was enough to shock him back into reality. If he had a chance at all of bringing Botan back to Domino with him, he would need to take down Hiei, and quite possibly Naraku, if it ever came to that. But that was not his only incentive; the businessman had seen what horrible acts of violence Hiei had accomplished, and the fear he inspired in the hearts of men and women. If this tournament was to end with any level of solitude, that bastard would have to die.

You may have been able to intimidate a universe of pathetic imps and ogres, but never once have you ever had to face the full wrath of the mighty Seto Kaiba. And as if that was not enough, you also had a massive lapse in judgment when you challenged me to a Duel Monsters tournament; your head is mine, Jagenshi, and I will personally detach it using my bare hands...

The sweet merlot of inspiration has been spawned from the grapes of wrath in times past, but in all seriousness, it was a shoddy drink at best. However, when fermented and controlled in just the right way, it can indeed be a delectable torrent of textures and flavors that most could not begin to comprehend. Kaiba was one of a select few that actually had control of these skills, so it was not too far fetched an idea for one such as himself. Keeping this in mind, he also donned one of the bathrobes given him, and strode out into the main room.

Now, Kaiba had always had a deep, solid love for Botan, but in his mind he had also been under the impression that she was not in possession of too powerful an intellect. Well, he was obviously rather perceptive in that regard, but as he himself had claimed, the power of the mind can only be really unlocked in times of adversity. So the viewpoint of the beautiful lady scrambling through a hill of blueprints, city plans, legal precedents, and economic ledgers was a sight that only confirmed his theory.

However, she was not of the impression that Kaiba was pleasantly surprised by this show of knowledge.

"Seto, I'm sorry, I really am! I just needed to go through some of your papers, and I swear it will never happen again!"

"Don't worry about it. At a time like this, I could certainly use a few cool heads."

"Thanks. Now, I've been mapping out some of that data you got before your duel with Sango, and I still have no lead on where exactly Hiei's compound is."

"That makes sense. I've looked over city records; as far as anyone knows, that place doesn't exist."

"Bingo. You know as well as I do that Hiei isn't stupid, but at the same time we also know he has a gigantic egotistical streak. So he obviously thought that no one could track him to that point. However, he also was pretty adamant of protecting his interests enough so that even if we could follow his organization, we couldn't determine anything."

"But we have one major advantage; Schwarzvald took you to that compound, correct?"

"No, he isn't that much of an idiot. My guess is that he transported me to that Des Volstgulph he has docked. It's certainly big enough, isn't it?"

"Yeah. Several hundred miles in length, large enough...to hide just about anything..."

Another type of inspiration slammed into the duelist, and in that moment it became quite clear that the answers had been under their noses the entire time.

"OF COURSE! It all makes sense now! Botan, exactly on what level was that prison chamber you escaped from?"

"Must have been below the tenth basement. Why? You don't think that his ship is the base, do you?"

Madness seemed to grip Kaiba as he shuffled through all of the papers, eyes alight as all the answers came tumbling into place, every statistic becoming one more piece in the grand puzzle.

"Not necessarily. He couldn't use the cruiser as his stronghold; it's just not stable enough. No, he's not holding council in the ship, he's holding it underneath the ship! Consider it; his vessel has more than enough firepower to topple any invading attackers, so his stronghold has to be near one of those docks!"

"But the Des Volstgulph is massive, Seto! There's no way we'll be able to find the base in time."

"Don't worry, Botan, I'll think of something..."

There was a noticeable level of silence in that moment, and for that time neither person was able to look each other in the eye, until finally, Kaiba's hand traced downwards towards her knee.

"I have thought of one solution to a problem we face. I don't think it will stop that monster, but I have to say this before anything else happens."

"Seto, come on, any idea you have will obviously help the greater good."

"Then I guess you won't mind it too much." With a smile, Kaiba reached down beneath the cushions with his free hand, searching for whatever he had lost. "Botan, for the past two days, I haven't been able to think about anyone except for you. Every card I've played, every chump I sent into the dust, it was all for you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"Wait. Seto, are you saying...what I think you're saying?'

"Yes." And in one fluid motion, Kaiba extracted the ring he had spent so much on.

"Botan, I humbly request your hand...in marriage."

Yusuke vs. Zeru

"Ok, Urameshi, I'll start this match, and take consolation in the fact that you did not have to face me before this." The six card group that he now held in his hand was exactly the set he needed to throw Yusuke off balance. "I will start by placing one card face down, and then I'll summon my Blazing Inpachi in attack position!" The first of Zeru's incandescent warriors was not exactly a normal monster by any contortion of the imagination, for it was what appeared to be an enormous mechanical tree with arms and legs that seemed to be alight with a never ceasing inferno. (1850/0) "Next, I will activate this Magic card, Burning Spear, to increase my Inpachi's attack strength by 400 points. That will end my turn." As his Main Phase came to a close, Zeru's monster gained a long pike which seemed also to burn indefinitely. (2250/0)

"Okay, then it's my move. I will start by placing two cards face down, and then I will place one monster into defense mode. That shall end my turn." Urameshi's relatively unexciting plan assimilated onto the playing field. If luck is with me, Zeru will be stupid enough to attack my face down monster. And if not, I'll still have a decent defense for the time being..."Playing defensive on the first turn, are we, Yusuke? Well, I am afraid that your new plan shall not work as planned, for now I shall activate the card I played face down on my last turn, Solemn Wishes, along with the Hinotama Magic card! When activated, Hinotama allows me to subtract 500 life points from you without having to mount an attack, while Solemn Wishes grants me 500 extra life points with every card I draw!" As Yusuke had no current options of negating Zeru's burn attack, all he could really do was watch as the blazing orb of pure fire crashed into his heart with burning velocity. (3500/4000) "And just to make sure you don't try to regain those points, I will summon my Fire Princess to the field in attack position." The pyrotechnic duelist's latest monster was a squatting woman with blazing red hair and similar robes, in her hands was held a long, swirling stave. (1300/1500) "In case you haven't figured it out, my Princess allows me to subtract 500 of your life points every time I gain life points, and in combination with my Solemn Wishes card, you will lose 500 life points every time I draw, while I gain those life points. In which case, I shall end my turn by placing one card face down."

"Alright, and it is back to me." Ok, there has to be a way out of this situation, but right now I can't think of anything that would handle the whole thing. So far the only idea I can really think of is to simply destroy his Fire Princess, but I can't do that without leaving me open to his Inpachi. However, I might have one way to find a new plan.

"I'll start this turn by summoning Yohkai to the field in attack mode, followed by the activation of Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two more cards from my deck." As stated, Yusuke's next monster, a black coated wolf with blood-soaked fangs and psychotic yellow eyes stepped out onto the field, howling to the sky as it's own effect boosted it's strength by 700 points for both categories. (2000/900) "Next..."

"Not so fast, Yusuke! I activate my face down card, Appropriate! When it is triggered by an opponents drawing card, Appropriate allows me to draw two new cards for myself as well, and since I drew two cards, Solemn Wishes grants me 1000 life points, while inflicting 1000 life points damage onto you!"

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that! I activate my face down card, Trap of Board Eraser! When it's activated, I can automatically negate any damage inflicted to me by an effect of yours, excluding damage from battle, and then you must randomly discard one card from your hand!" Just as Yusuke had claimed, the effect of his Board Eraser prevented the blast of fire from the princess's staff from inflicting damage, and at the same time knocking one of Zeru's monsters out of his hand and into the graveyard. (3500/5000)

"Not too shabby. However, that attack was only part one of my blitzkrieg. Reveal the face down card, Secret Barrel! When it is triggered, my Secret Barrel will automatically deduct 200 life points from you for every monster on the field and in your hand, and since you have six cards in total, you will lose 1200 life points!" From the depths of Zeru's magic and trap card zone emerged a gigantic psychedelic cannon with two barrels, and as commanded, this piece of artillery hooked up it's turbines to level six and launched it's heavy attack shells. However, as soon as this ammunition came within thirty yards of Yusuke's life points, a glistening barrier of holy light, triggered by a set of priestesses, shattered the attack.

"You forgot about my other face down card, known as Holy Life Barrier. By simply discarding one card from my hand, I'm allowed to knock back all damage done to me during this turn. The only reason I didn't use it earlier was because I wanted to force the discard of one of your cards."

"Damn you, Urameshi."

"But remember, it's still my turn, Zeru, so I think I'll activate this Magic card, Spirit Gun!"

"WHAT?! That's impossible; you can't have a card like that in your deck! Only Spirit Detectives know about that technique, so it can't be a card!"

"Well, it seems that Pegasus knew a bit more about the world than some rabbit cartoon. At any rate, when it's activated, Spirit Gun allows me to discard one card from my hand and increase the attack strength of any Spirit monster on the field by 500 points for the remainder of the duel, even if it is summoned again. But that's not the only effect; when the selected monster attacks during this turn, it can automatically allow me to discard one card from your hand!" As Yusuke ditched one of his less useful cards, Yohkai began to hum with untapped spiritual power. (2500/900) "Now, Yohkai, attack Zeru's Fire Princess with Spirit Gun Technique!" The mighty wolf, as commanded, began to charge up an orb of sprit energy between his savage maws, not quite unlike Yusuke's own trademark technique, and using this the Spirit launched a smaller version of Yusuke's Spirit Gun right into the heart of the Princess, and by this one action dissolved her completely. (3500/3800) But this was not the end; the ammunition zipped deep into Zeru's hand and blasted away yet another card. "Ok, I'll end my turn by placing one more card face down. Let's see you recover from that." And once Yusuke's turn ended, the foul looking wolf collapsed into it's sphere-like ghost form and sailed into the safety of Yusuke's hand.

"As you wish. It's a whole new turn, meaning I can use another Pyro monster to destroy your life points. Also, recall my Solemn Wishes card, which grants me an extra 500 life points during this turn." (3500/4300) "Now, I think it's high time you witness yet another one of my more powerful creatures, in this case the mighty Balrog!" With a sadistic grimace, the fire demon slammed one of his key cards onto the Duel Gauntlet card reader, and once this happened, one of the ugliest creatures Yusuke had ever seen assimilated onto the field.

The satanic fire devil was itself about ten feet in height and was armored in dark purple skin that was as thick as an elephant's. In the manner of combat movement the beast had the aid of two bat wings whose combined spans reached to about twenty feet, and the entire form of the beast was engulfed in the fires of Hell. And weaponry? The vile chimera held at the ready a blazing scimitar hewn from the azure inferno of the netherworld. (1000/1000)

"I see my creature's initial weakness surprises you, detective. Well, such weakness is not to last for much longer, due to my creature's special effect, or one of them, at least. As you very well may not know, the "Element" of Fire was, according to Greek myth, brought to Earth by Prometheus. But when he was brutally punished for his crimes by what should have been an eternity chained to a cliff, Hades, the hateful brother of Zeus, rearranged a part of this fire until the Fires of Anguish were spawned, upon which is built the premise of Hellfire and the Darkness Flame. And it was said by those who believed this alternative version of the myth knew that the Balrog was the core of this shadow inferno. And so, the card form of the Balrog is in fact empowered by the presence of fire, bestowing upon it an extra 500 attack points for each monster of that breed on the field. From my perspective, I count two, granting the Balrog an extra 1000 attack points. And just to ensure that my plan does not fail, I shall activate the Field Magic card, Molten Destruction, to increase the attack strengths of all Fire monsters on the field by an extra 500 points, although such a card reduces their defensive power by 400." As he claimed, the fire demon started to absorb the power of the Inpachi that currently existed on the field, (2000/1000) while the arena itself started to writhe and twist as a roaring volcano tore open the field and became it, and soon afterwards everything up to the magic and trap card zone became engulfed in lava flow. As expected, the immense heat of this new environment proved quite inhabitable for the fire monsters. (2500/600) (2750/0) "And now, Balrog, demolish his final pathetic defense and clear the field for a direct attack!" The Balrog, as ordered, leapt into the sky and brought his iridescent blade deep into the core of the face down monster, which was in this case his Giant Soldier of Stone (1300/2000), resulting in the mineral swordsman melting away into the lava pool. "Now, Blazing Inpachi, attack Yusuke's life points directly with Conflagration Lance!" But just as the walking forest fire was about to fling his spear deep into Yusuke's heart, a chasm opened up before it. Strangely enough, the abyssal breach was sloped upward near the edges, preventing any magma from seeping into it.

From this pit was emerging the scorched hand of the Stone Soldier

"I activate the Trap card, Michizure! By simply destroying one of my monsters, you let me destroy another monster on the field to join him on the other side! So in this case, say goodbye to your Blazing Inpachi!" As promised, the mechanical log was clenched in the mighty hand of the earthen warrior, and dragged towards it's edge. It was really a pathetic sight; watching the towering flame beast beating the ground and clawing at whatever it could hold onto until it let loose a shrill, sparrow-like yelp as it plunged with the Balrog's victim into oblivion.

"Hm. In that one move you have sealed your fate, Yusuke. As far as I am concerned, you should have gone for my Balrog on that strategy; the Inpachi was powerful, but did not have the effects of my fiend. Take this effect, for instance! Balrog, return the Giant Soldier of Stone that you destroyed from the land of the dead!"

Without warning, a flash of jet black flame shot up from one of the monster zones, and in turn began to undulate and spin about until it formed the mirror image of the Stone Soldier, with the exception of the curling wreath of lava about it's head. (1800/1600)

"What? How did you revive my defense monster?"

"It's really quite simple. As long as there are usable monster card zones on my field, any monster that is destroyed by the Balrog is special summoned onto my side of the field at battle phase's end. However, in order for this effect to work, two conditions must be met beforehand: any effect the monster might have is negated from it's return by the Balrog up until it is destroyed again, and it is considered to be a Fire-type monster, bringing my demon back to it's power from the start of this turn. So for now, I shall end my turn. Let us see what your deck can produce."

"You asked for it, Zeru! I'll start by activating this Magic card, Reincarnation, and by it's effect I am allowed to special summon one Spirit Token to the field in defense mode." Once the magic card had fully resolved, a new ghostly monster was called upon, a child-like spirit dressed in cherubic clothing and armed with a glowing olive branch. (1000/1000) "Next, I will summon my Raicho to the field in attack mode, and by his ability enact another normal summon, that of my Susa Soldier!" From the card zone emerged two more warriors, the lightning warrior Raicho (1900/1400), and a powerful, slightly Polynesian swordsman whose blade roared with barely controlled thunder. (2000/1600) "Now, I think it's time we send the Balrog back to the hell from where it came, and it'll start by Raicho destroying your Stone Soldier, or rather, my Stone Soldier! Raicho, do what you have to do!" Within seconds of the declared attack the mighty granite combatant charged his new enemy, but was unable to land any punches or cuts, until he was finally disintegrated by a flash of lightning. (3500/4200) As if that was not enough, the once mighty demon was reduced back to 2000 attack points. "And now, to get rid of that monstrosity once and for all! Susa Soldier, carve his Balrog to pieces with Thunderous Blade Swing!" Without truly understanding that he was getting into a battle he could not win, the thunder footman leapt into the sky and brought his devastating blade deep into the heart of his enemy, which in it's fate started to pump out black ichor that left horrific burns on the soldier. This injury was exactly what the Balrog had been waiting for, and in the grip of final desperation dug his claws as far as could possibly be done before the Soldier himself fell. "But that is not the end of this turn, Zeru; thanks to my Reincarnation magic card, I am allowed to summon two more Spirit Tokens to boost my defensive wall!" From the sky, hovering upon cumulostratus clouds, emerged two more heavenly spirits, except this time they were armed with a slightly thicker branch made of hickory. (1000/1000)x2 "That will end my turn." And as by it's effect, Raicho leapt back into Yusuke's hand.

"Perfect; that means it is my time to return from this slump." As Zeru drew his next card and increased his life points by 500 once again, (3500/4700) his eyes lit up with wicked glee, as he realized he had drawn one of his most powerful monsters, and one he would use soon enough.

Zeru had drawn the Hino-Kagu Tsuchi, his rarest card.

Outside of Roger's Apartment

"So let me get this straight. The memories of Paradigm City, the actual memories that Seebach has been hunting for, they have been in the controls of Hiei and his organization of thugs from the very beginning?"

"Apparently so. I don't really have all the information on what his archives contain, but I do know for a fact that everything that happened in Paradigm up to the Event. What I find bizarre is not so much that he was able to locate that data, but rather that he was able to coherently understand and interpret it. So far all of my memories have been vastly cryptic at best, so even if he could access Spirit World archives, it would take time to fully translate the fine print, something that he does not have a lot of."

As Roger and Angel finally stepped out of the elevator and into the oak hallway, the full weight of what he had heard was channeled into his legs, and underneath this influence he was brought to the floor, his grip on reality drifting hither and yon.

"Got anything to drink?"

"What, you think I carry a flask of hard liquor on me everywhere I go? I'm not like that, negotiator."

"Fine. If you're going to do that..." It really didn't matter, though. No level of alcohol would be able to numb the blow he had just been dealt, nor would it grant him any specific ability to wrap his head around it either.

Wait. One more thing doesn't add up; if Hiei had access to these memories, Seebach would obviously know about it, seeing as he is the demon's second in command. And if Hiei intended to keep this data secret from him, how could someone like Angel, who has no connections with Spirit World that I know of, how could she get knowledge that the memories exist?

Now able to bring himself up to a certain degree, Roger grasped the wall and faced his shady counterpart. "Listen. How did you get that information on the memories? More importantly, why doesn't Schwarzvald have it?"

"I think you should have figured that out by now, Roger. If Hiei was to surrender the truth of 47 years ago, then his prime lieutenant would simply have left the Black Shadow without a second thought. You have to keep this in mind when you're fighting such a mob; Hiei is drunk with power, but he knows exactly what to give out and what procedures by which to do it. He's a man of deranged brilliance, and he knows how to prey on the weaknesses and desires of everyone around him, ally or foe. No one knows what that monster is capable of, least of all his inner circle."

"So essentially, this guy is dangling the proverbial carrot in the noses of his workhorses?"

"Exactly so. And that is not all he is famous for. If God is with us, we won't have to face him in his citadel."

But as Roger and Angel strode carefully down the corridor, passing by the redwood doors in various states of disrepair which lessened as they moved forward, the thoughts of both began to wander in various directions. For her, the main theme was rather simple: exactly how could she get into that fortress without entering the finals. But for the peacekeeper, the train of consideration had suddenly taken a much less traveled road.

This could be the moment he had waited for. It had been so long since Roger had been able to find any level of true inner peace, and maybe by finally learning the truth of his old city he could put the skeletons in his closet to rest forever. He knew, deep down, that it may very well cost him his sanity or his life, but at the same time he no longer gave a damn. Sooner or later he would have to face his inner demons, and now seemed like the best time to do so. And all he had to accomplish was to get inside the fortress. All he really needed to do to find some closure was to win his way into the finals. It seemed too good to be true, and yet he wanted to believe it so much that it started to hurt.

But what if I fail? I've suffered so much already, I've lost just about everything, so if I lose this, my last opportunity at inner salvation, the odds are the madness that results will lead me to suicide. I have to get in there; I JUST HAVE TO!!!

"We're here."

And as expected, the two stood before the best-kept passageway on the entire floor, the apartment number glistening even in the cheap fluorescent light. It had been over seven years since he had seen a door like this, and for the first instance in that time period he felt anxious. What would be different beyond this threshold? Was his life about to return to the relative calm to which he had become accustomed, or would the passage of years have corroded the only slight connection he had to his years in Paradigm?

His calloused hand wrapped firmly about the chilled metal of the doorknob, eyes abuzz with trepidation and anxiety, unsure of whether he was ready. But he realized, for the very first time, what the real meaning of courage was: not lacking fear, but doing something even during fear. And with that he pushed open the door...

...And what he saw would change his life forever.

It was not so much the entrance hallway that shocked him, although it was pleasing to see that very little had changed. No, the walls were still properly covered, with various antique pieces and paintings. To the left could be seen a small library, along with a collection of vintage scotch that had somehow survived the journey. On every wall was an old picture, including one he normally hid. It was a black and white photo of the Military Police, the only surviving one that included Roger, before he had fled the force in disillusionment.

No, it was the person that was standing in that doorway, a relatively petite lady who could not have been much older than 20. Unlike Angel, she was not really dressed in a manner of self-exposure, being clothed in an old-fashioned black dress with an aquamarine broach at the collar. This girl's auburn hair was fashioned in a short-cut bob, and unlike the eyes of her look-alike, Red Destiny, her eyes were totally blank. "D...D...Dorothy?"

No emotion at all appeared on her face, which makes sense seeing as she was actually an advanced form of android, but her monotone voice held enough barb to unveil a superior artificial intelligence than most of her kind.

"It's been a long time, you louse."

Yami's Hotel Room

It was over, plain and simple.

For the 17 years in which Kagome had been damned to walk this Earth, everything she had ever come close to, humans and circumstances alike, had fallen to pieces before her very eyes. Not once had she been able to find a permanent semblance of happiness during that time, and it had always been a constant in these events for her to blame someone, with varying levels of accuracy in that guilt. For a long while, up until about two years ago, her scapegoat had been the mobster Danny Pavarati and his gang of hired goons. Then of course, she had found a whipping boy in the demon lord Naraku, which had been a plausible assumption. Yet for a long while afterwards, Kikyo had been the basis of her blame, coupled with Inuyasha, and it was not until her hatred of Atem, the only true love that had really seemed like love at first sight, that she began to understand her personal maxim.

She could never blame herself.

I was horrible to them. Every time that something went wrong in my life, I would lash out at just about everybody I cared about. It was almost like I was trying to smother myself with blind hatred, and to do that I needed somebody for a scratching post! But this time...this time I went too far...

Kagome did not want to end up like her mother at that age. She knew everything about that part of her life; how she would cut herself in the dead of night and would allow the blood to wash away in the burning salt water of the nearby ocean, how she would break into other people's houses just for some money, how she would use that money to buy acid from some punk near the sleaziest parts of Tokyo. The only reason that she had even survived was that she had met a kind-hearted optimist named Aeyasu, who nursed her back to health and fell in love with her.

Just like Yami did.

With barely enough will power to drag herself onto the floor, Kagome reached shakily for her deck. No, their deck; it had never been hers until the Pharaoh had started teaching her to play. With this conglomeration of cards clasped like the Ten Commandments in her hand, she continued to drag herself along the chafing carpet, the reek of blood and a trace of miasma wafting up from the ground and into her nostrils. But here is the ultimate question: where did the tears from aggravation end, and where did those of a crumpled heart begin?

Such a question, to her at least, was of little significance to her anymore, nor was anything else save the spirit of the Puzzle and clawing her way into an upright position, pressed up against the wall. Also of modest connotation was the fact that tiny bits of stucco, and perhaps an old tack, were digging into her flesh and drawing forth tiny droplets of her life force. It was this feeling that most closely resembled what she felt like at that moment, every hope and dream falling away from her outstretched hand and into a swirling nothingness, along with what little remained of her soul.

Who am I trying to fool? I don't deserve him; I don't deserve anything anymore! What am I even doing here?!

It was with a tread of saddened heart that Kagome placed the deck back onto the coffee table and staggered, almost drunkenly, towards the closet where remained what few items she had been able to take from Hiei and his thugs. Among these articles was not included the locket her father had given; it now held one horrific memory too many.

What was she going to do? That question has a relatively simple answer: she was going to leave the hotel, board the first cruiser out of this city, and try to reconnect the shattered fragments of her life. How it would end was a thought not yet fully activated, but she knew how it would begin. The reincarnated priestess would let the Pharaoh move on with his life, and the two could forget any of this ever happened.

As she sifted through what little remained of her earthly possessions, however, Kagome could feel a strange presence near her heart, not quite anger, but annoyance. And at this same moment could be sensed a kind and gentle aura, the epitome of innocence.

Yugi?

And quite as predicted, the shorter version of the ancient ruler, the real incarnation, was standing there, looking slightly depressed.

Hey, Kagome.

Nothing much had changed about the diminutive duelist since the first time Kagome had seen him, accepting his prize officially for the Battle City tournament. What she had heard was true; Yugi seemed to have a constantly merciful, charitable, and yet indomitable look upon him.

Listen, I'm really sorry for dragging you into this mess. If I hadn't been such a possessive bitch, you and Yami wouldn't have run into so much trouble...

Don't worry about it. Dealing with Joey taught me enough about accepting somebody's shortcomings, no pun intended. Yugi gave a slight chuckle beneath his breath, and allowed her to do the same, as she started cheering up.

Thanks, Yugi, I needed that. But I really don't understand why you're here. I mean, after what I just did, I'm not sure how you could look me in the eye.

Well, that's why I'm here; you really need to go back to Yami.

A combination of horror and ecstasy flashed over the miko's face in little over a second. But this was soon replaced by an expression of final defeat.

I...I can't.

WHAT?! Come on, you love him more than anything; only a moron couldn't figure out that much...

It's not that. I DO want him, I want him more than anything else in the world! It was all I could to leave him behind, and since then every thought I've had was devoted to him! I'd give up every shard of the Jewel to Hiei, if it meant spending just five minutes with Yami! He fulfills everything I have ever desired, and if I hadn't run into him, my life would have been the lesser for it.

So just go back to him! What's the problem?

It was at this point that a truly wrathful look came upon her face, and tears had once again starting flowing like the coldest of falls.

BECAUSE I KNOW HE HATES ME!!! AFTER WHAT I SAID TO HIM, HE WILL NEVER FORGIVE ME, AND I CAN'T KEEP ON THINKING HE CAN!!!

Yugi, the voice of reason so far, placed his spectral hand upon Kagome's shoulder, and could do little but watch as she was reduced to broken sobbing, unable to speak coherently. This kept on for several more minutes, until he finally decided to present her with the facts.

Kagome...Yami still wants you back. He never stopped thinking about you, and frankly I can't blame him for that. But eventually one of you will have to swallow their pride and see the other. If you don't, I have a feeling the two of you will be miserable for the rest of your lives. He's been going crazy without you at his side, and if you don't see him...he might not be able to win.

Let's hope that's not the case. But thanks for the pep talk, Yugi; it took somebody like you to break me out of that suicidal phase.

Hey, what are friends for? And with that, Yugi simply faded away into whatever realm he entered when Yami took control of the body.

Now inspired, Kagome stood to her full height, and in the same motion picked up her deck. She certainly had been callous, and perhaps just a little evil, but maybe the two of them really were destined to be together. After all, if what Yugi said was true, then the Pharaoh was still crazy about her, and it was time to return the favor.

Ok, Kachikachi, I hope you weren't too bent on winning this duel, because with me at his side, you have no hope of winning...

Yami vs. Kachikachi

"Well, Pharaoh, this is certainly a rather serendipitous moment for the two of us. Here we stand once again, like two gods of Olympus, ready to do battle for the throne of Zeus himself, and the only thing that stands between either of us and that might are the monsters and the life points of the other. And isn't it fitting that you have decided to duel me under the exact same circumstances as our last match..."

The samurai began to drum his fingers on the hilt of the Mugen-Dai, eyes burning with a fire that neither Atem nor Sesshomaru had ever seen before. What once had been a soul as mysterious as night itself was now becoming all too clear. With each vibration that his digits caused, Kachikachi's blade rang ever louder, as though it had been drawn fresh from the kiln, and with each strangely harmonious resonation could be heard a scream, a desire for fresh blood to coat the Orichalcos alloy. And at that moment, the Infinity cared little about who's blood it tasted.

"Just move, samurai."

For only an instant, the two duelists locked these selfsame eyes, and between them was reached an understanding. There would be no quarter asked, and no quarter given. Both of them now knew what was to happen on this day, and neither would be able to avoid that truth.

Whether by the Shadow Game or the Seal of Orichalcos, one of the duelists was about to fall.

"Well, my Pharaoh, the time has come to settle this conflict between us for the last time, and rest assured in the fact that before this duel is over your soul shall become infused within the might of Orichalcos. NOW, ALL OF MY MONSTERS, ATTACK THE PHARAOH'S LIFE POINTS DIRECTLY AND END THIS DUEL!!!"

Every creature that Kachikachi had possessed now charged unabated at Yami, fully prepared to tear away what precious few life points he had left, but without warning, one of the Pharaoh's face down cards, one of his most powerful cards, was about to be activated.

"I reveal the face down card, The Fickle Magician! When this trap card is activated, I am allowed to pay half of my current life points, upon which I can convert the type of magic or trap that any other card I possess falls under!"

"What are you talking about?"

"It's quite simple." As the Trap card fully resolved, a shifty yet seemingly omnipotent sage began to spread dust hewn from the bones of various traitors throughout the years, and focused much of this bizarre ritual on Yami's face down card. (735/2800) "The basic premise of my card is this: when activated, The Fickle Magician allows me to change how another Magic or Trap card activates. For instance, if I used the effect on a Mirror Force, I could convert it into a continuous Trap card, whose effect would remain on the field so long as my Fickle Magician remains. However, what I just did was used on a Magic card, meaning that I can change that into a Quick-Play Magic card, and what I have selected..."

The face down magic, now capable of being used in Kachikachi's turn, flipped up.

"...is the Swords of Revealing Light!"

For the second time in this tournament, the swords hewn by the hand of God floated down from the sky, driving themselves into the ethereal ground of the Shadow Realm and illuminating the Seal of Orichalcos in a divine light, while at the same time freezing the onslaught of its minions.

"Most impressive, Pharaoh. I must say, you've definitely become a much stronger duelist than I originally thought you to be, but I am afraid that my turn is not yet done."

"Very well, make whatever move you have left."

"As you wish, Yami. I was planning on saving this for later, but now I think it's time I use it. Now I shall activate the Orichalcos Crucifix!"

The new magic card that the shadow warrior had activated was easily one of his deadliest, as well as one of his darkest. What emerged from the magic card zone was quite literally a black iron cross, upon which was depicted thousands of various scenes from the history of Atlantis. Running the foreground of this crucifix was a line of razor-sharp spines that seemed to be laced in the venom of an Orichalcos serpent, and as implied it's name, the tope most decoration of this brutal execution device was a glowing Orichalcos emblem.

"I can tell by the blank look on your face that you have never seen this card before, and if you had the odds are you would have surrendered by this point. At any point during this duel, I shall be allowed to place one monster on it, either yours or mine, and I think it would be best to use it on my creature, seeing as you cannot sacrifice any of my monsters. At any rate, three turns after I place a monster on the cross it shall die, and half of the attack power of the selected monster will be deducted from both of our life points. But no matter what you do, the Crucifix will deplete what few life points that you so desperately hold onto. Now, I shall crucify my Orichalcos Titan, to defeat you for all eternity!"

The Titan, however, was not so willing to be executed, and once again tried to flee. But the Orichalcos Seal upon the cross called to it's nature of Atlantis, and the beast willing placed itself before the crucifix. And at that moment, three barbed wire chains lashed outward and curled about the arms and legs of this beast, and in one swift moment drove it onto the spikes. Now, under normal circumstances, a goliath hewn of stone could not feel pain, but the jagged spikes digging into it were enough to cause the beast to screech in agony.

"Very well, Yami, I shall end my turn with two cards face down. And now, the countdown begins. Let us see if you can do what thousands have been unable to accomplish. You see, whenever I have activated the Orichalcos Crucifix, it usually ends with the enemy losing, and with the Seal of Orichalcos surrounding us, failure is no option. So go ahead and draw your next card, if you think it will help." And as his turn ended, Kachikachi's spell over the Pharaoh's monster came to a close as well.

"Alright, Kachikachi, this next move shall prove quite interesting." But as the Pharaoh looked at his cards, it was becoming all too clear that the samurai had him backed into a corner. The Swords of Revealing Light only had two more turns of effectiveness, and the Orichalcos Crucifix would demolish his life points long before that point. So what he needed was some kind of miracle card that would get him out of the mess he found himself in, and as he drew his next card he realized that it might just be on it's way.

"This next move shall bring us into the final stages of the game, for now I shall sacrifice my Dark Magician Girl and my Chaos Black Magician! By making this otherwise crippling tribute, I am allowed to summon the monster known as the Sorcerer of Black Magic to the playing field!" As stated, the two mages locked staves together, knowing full well that their forfeiture of life was indeed for the greater cause, and thus allowed themselves to be absorbed by the pool of shadows that now erupted. But as they were assimilated, both monsters started hatefully at Kachikachi, knowing that he was indeed a creature of true darkness, and just as swiftly as this glance was passed their spirits were infused within another spell caster, whose imposing form now emerged from the depths.

The sage that now stood forth was about ten feet in height, and armed with a mystic's staff in which was set a crystal hewn from the crown of Makai. The armor which this creature bore was not unlike that of the Dark Magician's, save that it was jet black and was more focused on the upper torso. But unlike the younger mage's garb, this veteran magician wass draped in a cowl of deepest night. (3200/2500)

"Keep this in mind, Kachikachi, as you stare at my greatest sorceror. As long as this card remains face up on the field, I may negate any activated trap I choose, and can even alow my own to activate. But I am afraid that is not all my move has accomplished, for now I have a monster capable of devastating all of your creatures, including the Titan that stands undefended upon the cross. Sorceror of Black Magic, attack!"

"I'm afraid that shall not work this time, for now I activate the Quick-Play Magic card, Shrink! This shall automatically slice the attack power of your sage in half, making all of my monsters unassailable!" Just as predicted, the spell caster was instantly shrunken to half of his former stature, and his attack totals met the same fate. (1600/2500)

"Fine. I will place one card face down, to end my turn." And since the turn was over, Yami's monster returned to it's original power.

"HA! There is little more that you can do, Atem! Now, seeing as this is my last turn before my Orichalcos Crucifix can kick in, and turn two of your Swords, I think that this would be an appropriate card to play! I activate Level Limit Type-B!" At the center of the impenetrable Seal of Orichalcos emerged a gigantic force field machine that seemed to have arrived from Spirit World, and once it hit the field, all of the monsters that were currently in play were switched into a crouched position.

"What just happened?!"

"I see you are not familiar with this card, Pharaoh. When it is activated, Level Limit Type-B automatically switches all monsters of Level 3 or higher into defense position, and must remain in that position for as long as this card remains on the field! Of course, it will not matter by my next turn, for by that point the Orichalcos Crucifix shall have taken the last of your life points. Of course, since your Swords are still in effect, I shall end this turn without an attack. But when your turn ends, so does this duel! Any last requests, Atem?"

As Yami drew what could have been his final card, he yet again locked eyes with his oldest enemy.

"No need. I do not care what you say, for I shall not lose."

"Really? Then by all means, make your move."

It took only an instant for Yami to make his choice of moves, and he could only hope it worked.

"There is nothing I can do. My turn is over."

To Be Continued

And there you have it.

Ok, pretty big chapter next time. Botan reacts to Kaiba's proposal, the final moves of the Yami and Kachikachi duel are played, and Kagome is unexpectedly forced into the Tournament. Inuyasha and Tea run into Raphael, Joey ends his duel, and Roger talks over with Dorothy.

Remember, READ AND REVIEW!!!