The Seventh Element

Chapter 10

Mr. Rhod

The Japan Spaceport orbited Earth several miles above ground in the atmosphere. It chartered flights to distant planets and around the Earth. Right now, due to a lack of space in the Mars Disposal Platform, shiploads of garbage were being dumped in the Spaceport's main chamber. In a corner huddled down were Malik, Ishizu and Yami.

"The shuttle to Duelist Kingdom is boarding now." Malik said. He handed a ticket to Yami and Ishizu. Yami frowned.

"Why not you come?" He asked. Malik chuckled.

"Me? Oh no, I can't be your wife, I'm a man. But Ishizu is…less so. Now, use these to get on, and make sure no one questions your identities! Remember, you're Tea and Yami Gardner, okay?" Yami nodded. "Good. Now, go to Duelist Kingdom, retrieve the Items, and hurry back. Evil will arrive in less than a day, we have little time!" Yami nodded and grabbed Ishizu's arm, pulling her to the Duelist Kingdom boarding terminal.

"Last call for Duelist Kingdom!" The officer in charge of boarding called. Yami ran up to him and pushed Ishizu forward. Ishizu gulped and handed her ticket to the guard. He took it and ran it through a ticket scanner.

"Tea Gardner?" she asked. Ishizu nodded. "Good to see you made it, congratulations on the contest." The guard said, smiling. Ishizu nodded and took a breath. Yami looked over his shoulder and gasped.

"Tea!" He yelled, waving. Tea glanced around the terminal and spotted him, growling and marching up to them. Ishizu looked and swallowed.

"Okay, so we can just go on?" Ishizu said, moving to go past him. But she wasn't quick enough.

"Whoa, made it!" Tea laughed, slinging an arm around Ishizu's shoulder. "I had a business meeting, and I was worried I wasn't gonna make it! So I sent my good friend…what's your name?" She asked Ishizu.

"Ishizu." The woman replied.

"Right, I sent Ishizu here to make take my place if I didn't make it. But I did, so now Ishizu has to go!" Tea shoved Ishizu aside and smiled at the guard. "I'm Tea Gardner." She said. The guard glared and took out a DNA scanner.

"Ma'am, that woman just claimed she was Tea Gardner. Can I get a thumbprint?" Tea shrugged and pressed her thumb on the scanner. A few seconds later, her profile popped up. The guard shrugged. "Okay, your DNA checks out. Welcome aboard." He looked up at Yami. "And you are?" Yami reached over and swiped his ticket.

"Yami Gardner, husband." He said. Tea looked at him, confused. Yami looked back at her and smiled.

"Okay, the ticket says Yami Gardner. Welcome aboard. Just this way." The guard stepped aside and let the two pass.

- - - - - - - - - -

"I fell kind of bad for him." Malik said, sipping his scotch. The priest was sitting at a minibar not too far away, confiding in the bartender. "I mean, yah he's here to save the world and stop evil, but…what is he supposed to do when he does? Does he just go back to sleep for another 5 millennia? It's a little sad…you know what I mean?" The robotic bartender blinked a virtual eye and shook its head. Malik finished his scotch and smirked. "Of course not, you don't know anything." The bartender nodded.

"Want more?" He asked, pointing a metal finger at Malik's cup. Malik nodded, and the finger opened into a nozzle, spraying a refill. Malik went to pick up the glass when another hand swooped in and grabbed it.

"I'll take a double." Ishizu panted. Malik smiled.

"Oh good, Ishizu's here." Then he did a double take and spun around. "Wait a minute, Ishizu's here! Ishizu, what are you doing here, where's Yami?" Ishizu gulped down the drink and sighed.

"He's on the shuttle with Tea."

"What?" Malik hissed, jumping to his feet. He cursed and bit his lip. "Damn it…I should have gone, not you! I'm the heir, it's my responsibility."

"I know." Ishizu groaned. Malik thought, then reached into his pocket and produced a Millennium Symbol in the shape of a key.

"Here is the key, go to the temple." He said. "Prepare for our arrival." Ishizu took the key and stared as her brother ran down the terminal.

"Load it up, the shuttle is leaving in 5 minutes!" A guard yelled. Malik peeked around a corridor and spied a truck towing several carts of luggage. The words 'Duelist Kingdom' were on the back of the last cart. The driver got off to scan his ID through a security checkpoint, and Malik made his move. He ran forward and dove into the last cart. The driver got back on his truck and continued into the loading bay.

- - - - - - - - - -

"Scan your ticket." The boarding guard ordered. Lilox nodded and swiped her ticket. The guard frowned. "Tea Gardner?" He asked. Lilox nodded. "And this is?" The guard trailed off, looking at the man next to Lilox. Darek swallowed. Human forms were hard to hold for long. Couldn't this guy just let them on board?

"I'm her husband." Darek croaked. The man nodded.

"Um, okay. Can I get thumbprint?" He asked, holding out the scanner. Darek growled and pressed his thumb down. A second later, his true Mangalore face popped up on the scanner. The guard smiled at Darek nervously. "Just a minute sir." He said. He ducked behind the desk and hit the Security Call button. Darek narrowed his eyes.

"Abort." He snarled, turning and running. Lilox spun around and followed. Armed guards around the terminal received the call and homed in on Darek.

"Mangalores, shoot to kill!" One of them shout. Three opened fire on Darek's left. Darek doubled back and grabbed Lilox by the throat, using her as a shield as he made his way to a pile of trash. With a snarl, Darek dove in.

"Find him, surround the perimeter!" A guard ordered. Out of sight, near an exit, Darek emerged and shook himself off as he reverted to his true Mangalore self. He smashed a fist into the exit controls, stopping it from closing, and swept out.

- - - - - - - - - -

"Scan the ticket, we're taking off soon." The guard order. Drake scanned his ticket and waited. The guard looked up and raised an eyebrow. "Tea Gardner?" He asked skeptically. Drake shrugged.

"My parents wanted a girl." He explained sheepishly.

"Look, I've met 4 Tea Gardners today pal. Only one of them was actually on the manifold, and she's checked in. Beat it, we're taking off." The guard turned and walked into the passage that led to the shuttle. Drake growled and ran after him, screeching to a halt as the door slid closed. Drake cursed.

"Dammit, I have to get on board!" He protested. He slammed a fist in his palm and stomped away.

- - - - - - - - - -

"Welcome aboard Miss…." The stewardess aboard the shuttle gasped as Tea and Yami flashed their tickets. "Thank god Miss. Gardner, we really need you." The stewardess grabbed her hand and pulled her down a corridor. "Maxie Rhod goes on the air in 30 seconds, and you have to be with him."

"Wait, my husband!" Tea protested.

"He'll be escorted to your cell, don't worry." The stewardess assured her. She stopped and faced Tea. "Okay, just talk when Maxie holds out the mike, and you'll be fine."

"Hold on!" Tea shouted. "Look, I just want some peace and quiet here, so I'm not doing this. I'm just going to go to my cell and…" Tea was cut off as fanfare blared from the door at the end of the hall. The doors swung open, and Tea's jaw dropped. "Aw hell no, not him." She whispered. It was the fruitcake from the commercials! Maxie Rhod grinned and flung his hands to the side.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, Maxie Rhod is in the house!" Maxie cheered into the headset he was wearing. The infamous popstar was clad in a skin-tight red Spandex bodysuit that covered his feet and hands. Maxie had a long 4-foot red staff with a microphone at the tip. His hair was platinum blonde and hung straight down to his shoulders.

"And people, I'm here lookin' at the one and only Tea Gardner, lucky winner of the contest, and my personal escort for the next week!" Maxie cheered, clapping his hands together. He walked down the hall, looking Tea up and down as a trio of groupies followed him. "Oooo, I like her! Red hot body, ice blue eyes! Fire and ice is a lethal combination peoples, I guess this little hottie is gonna knock 'em dead!" Maxie shouted the last three words in Tea's face before spinning and marching down a side hall. Tea grunted as the three groupies came up behind her and made her follow.

"I'm not one to blow my own horn, but what the hell, let's flatter ourselves!" Maxie shouted, twirling his microphone-staff like a baton. "I myself always enjoy the company of a young lady, and I'm sure a young woman like T-Girl here frequently has company herself!" Maxie spun around and grinned. "So tell T-Girl, ya'll urgin' for a virgin, or ya'll nervous in the service?" Maxie spun his mike and pointed it in Tea's face, grinning from ear to ear. Tea gulped.

"Uh…not really." She said. Maxie pumped his fist and withdrew the mike.

"Yeah, now that's what I'm talking about peoples!" He shouted, making his way back down the hall. A door opened as he passed, and Malik peeked his head out. He spied Tea, who gapped at him, and quickly shut the door.

"I'll tell ya T-Girl, I'm sure men would just line up at your door, but ya'll gonna have to keep those ragin' hormones in check this week, Maxie doesn't do the deed with peoples on the air, ya hear? But hey, maybe off the air we can hook up, whadda ya say?" Maxie laughed at his own joke and grabbed a gin and tonic off a passing waiter's tray.

"T-Girl is my personal escort and co-host this week, having won 2 tickets to the marvelous paradise owned by me, the lovely Duelist Kingdom! Home of follies, dollies, lick-em-lollies, Hollies, Mollies, hell, anyone of any name is there! Wine, women, worlds of fun, and after midnight, a little coochie-coochie coo! Yeah, we're all adults here, and this is an R-rated network, so what the hell? I'm talking about sex peoples, and sex all night long!" Maxie strutted out into the hall and started to moonwalk to the left.

"Sex, all night long! All night long, all night long, oh yeah!" Maxie sang. He spun and pointed to a stunned stewardess. "Oh my….." Maxie grinned and slid up behind her. "You know honey I think you and I could be a great couple. I gotta be on air from 7pm to 10 pm tomorrow, but from 10 pm on I'm all yours." He whispered in her ear. The stewardess moaned slightly. "Most people say I'm the man, but from 10 pm on…I'll be….your man." The stewardess groaned again and slumped to the floor.

"And we're done." A voice from the microphone said. "Good show Maxie, see you tomorrow." Maxie cracked his neck and tossed his headset away. The three groupies behind Tea rushed forward. One caught the headset, another set a cigarette in Maxie's mouth, the third lit in. Maxie puffed and looked at his fans.

"How was it?" He asked, annoyed.

"It was…."

"Wow! In a word, wow!"

"I swear, it was so red, it was just…"

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa!" Maxie said, holding up his hands. "Red? What kinda red?"

"Well, I thought scarlet."

"No no no, it was a poppy red!"

"Crimson, really…crimson!" The groupies continued to yammer as Maxie tuned them out and looked past them to Tea. He took out his cigarette and put it out on the ground.

"Buzz off." Maxie muttered. "Go, buzz! Bz, bz! Bzzzzz!" Maxie slapped the groupies in the chest, and they quickly hurried away. Maxie stared at Tea before twirling the mike and sauntering up to her. He took a breath and stared at her.

"I meant what I said, you're hot. But too young for me. I know girls like you probably fantasize about me day after day, but face it, it won't happen." Maxie started. "As for your little vocab prob, looks won't do it for ya in radio T-Girl! You have to have energy, fire, charisma! I know that can be hard around someone like me, but try! So tonight, what say you find a dictionary so tomorrow your have more than a 2-word vocabulary! Okay, can we do that?" Maxie asked. Tea pursed her lip.

"Hey, can I talk to you?" She asked, backing Maxie to the wall. Tea wrapped a hand around Maxie's throat and lifted him up on the wall. "I wouldn't want you if you were the last man on Earth, so get that through your fruity little head. Second, I have no interest in being your sidekick for a week, so tomorrow you're going to buzz off and leave me alone. Are we red?"

"We're red, we're super red." Maxie gasped. Tea smiled and let go, Maxie slumping to the floor.

"See ya around Maxie." Tea said sweetly, walking down the hall. Maxie grabbed his throat and glared at her back.

"That's Maximillion Pegasus to you, bitch!"