Chapter 17: Revelation and Return

"Asaila, huh?"

"Indeed."

"Then it's just as I feared."

Matt looked over the report once again as Joey, Andrew, Izzy, Creighton, and Shannon all looked at him. The rest of the control booth struggled to bring the equipment back up and running. In the meantime, the group had relocated into a small conference room of sorts nearby.

Matt stood, walked over to the window nearby, and looked outside it. "Asaila," he said, "is a name I only know of through delving into supernatural phenomenon. I hadn't thought I would hear the name again so soon."

"You saying you know who this person is?" Andrew asked curiously.

"Only by name, and even then that's not much," Matt answered. "There's little to know about the name except for the tragedy that befell them some years ago."

"Tragedy?" Shannon asked timidly.

"The mansion where the Asaila family used to live burned down due to unknown causes," Matt explained. "The entire family supposedly perished in the fire as well. However, rumor has it one of the daughters managed to escape the fire, something widely speculated on when firefighters only found the remains of the parents and ten of eleven children."

"Eleven children?!" Joey yelped.

"Dang, that's impressive," Creighton whistled.

"Regardless," Matt continued, "if it's to be believed that this person is in fact the missing daughter of the Asaila - the last of the line, as it were - then we may have a large danger here on the airship."

"How do ya figure?" Joey asked.

"Oh, ya know, no reason, except she blew up the entrance to where she and Yugi are now trapped, not to mention she hacked the system and scrambled everything to bits!" Creighton remarked.

"That would be the least of our concerns," Matt said, drawing the attention back to him. "I've only heard through word of mouth such things, but it may be the case that she is a dueling assassin."

"Assassin?!" Joey yelped again.

"Calm down," Andrew said, "I'm sure Yugi's doing just fine. Okay, so he's trapped in a mountain with an assassin, but in these kinds of cases, there's always a motive of sorts behind it."

"Exactly," Matt nodded. "The question then is what's her motive?"

"It's clear that her target was Yugi Muto," Izzy remarked. "Knocking out our equipment in order that we couldn't monitor them, blocking off the only easy access we have to them, disguising herself as ten different duelists in order to guarantee that at least one would win their way up. It may even be just the purpose of the Monica identity."

"Creating a unique set of rules that most duelists wouldn't be familiar with would give her an extreme advantage," Andrew added.

"But even knowing all of that, we still don't have a motive," Shannon objected.

"Well, we're only holding the most powerful cards in the world as a tournament prize," Creighton said.

"Somehow, I doubt she's after them," Matt said.

"It would seem to be far more trouble to go through all of this if she only wanted to get the God Cards," Izzy added.

"So why target Yugi?" Andrew asked again. A long moment of silence drew out in the room, with only the audible sounds of the workers over in the control booth working as hard as they could.


"It's good to meet you then, Kari."

"Likewise. I wasn't sure if I would be able to get the chance to confront you like this. Perhaps I should be thankful for that much."

Yugi and Kari stood there in the darkness of the mountain, looking at each other. It wasn't that long ago that Yugi was dueling Monica Toronto, but now the two stood face-to-face, an entirely new persona having taken Monica's place. A moment of silence seemed to pervade between the two. Eventually, Kari broke the silence with a laugh.

"Regardless of how I feel, though," she said, "it still has only gotten me so much closer to discovering who I am."

"How come you don't remember very well?" Yugi asked.

Kari shrugged. "To be honest, even I don't really know," she replied. "Perhaps it is the curse of wearing so many masks for so long."

"You mean the identities..."

"Yes. I guess that when you wear a mask for so long, you forget who you were beneath it. Having worn so many masks in my life, I haven't been able to recall myself in quite sometime."

"You seemed to at least remember your name," Yugi noted.

"If it's even my name," Kari pointed out. "I'm not even sure if this Kari Asaila is a real person anymore. But somehow I guess that's where you come in. Leila trusted you enough, it seems. Maybe she knew something I didn't? What was it that she knew that I don't?"

Yugi...

Just then, Yami appeared again by Yugi's side. I think I know what we can do, Yami said to Yugi. Let me take over the duel from now on.

Alright, I'll trust you, Yugi said.

With that, the Millenium Puzzle began to glow as the swap between spirits occurred. Kari watched on in great fascination as Yugi switched places with Yami, the Nameless Pharaoh.

"Of course," Kari murmured. Then she asked, "So you can switch between personalities too?"

"In a sense," Yami replied. "I suspect it is the reason that Leila suggested I help you."

"Perhaps so," Kari said. "I hope then that you can help me. But where are my manners?"

Kari walked over to her Duel Runner and detached her Duel Disk from the contraption. She turned and walked over to Yami's Duel Runner and detached his Duel Disk as well. Handing it over to Yami, she said, "We still have a Duel that we're in the middle of, don't we?"

"Are you sure we should duel like this?" Yami asked.

"It's alright," Kari said. "Aside from my name, dueling's all I really remember. Perhaps I'll be able to recall a few more things and be able to help you help me through dueling each other."

"Perhaps," Yami said.

"It seems you were dueling Monica a while ago," Kari said, walking back near her own Duel Runner. "In that case, I think it's only fair that we resume the duel from where we were before all of this."

"If that's what you wish," Yami said, reactivating the Duel Disk. With it, his Dark Magician, King's Knight, and Jack's Knight reappeared on his field.

Yami: 7200
Kari: 200

"Oh dear," Kari said, "she wasn't doing very well at all, was she? I suppose that's what happens when you face the King of Games. It seems to have been your turn though?"

"It was, but I think I'll end my turn," Yami said.

(Time Limit: 14 turns)

"So that means it's my turn then," Kari said, drawing a card. "Oh what luck! I activate the Card of Sanctity, giving us each up to six cards. I needed that for sure!"

The two duelists then drew their cards. Kari looked over her cards and said, "I think I'll play this, Fiend General's Arrival. It's a Continuous Spell which will allow me to summon out a Fiend General each time I Normal Summon a Shadow Khan monster. So for instance, if I were to summon Shadow Khan - Squid (3/1300/1200) to the field, I can Special Summon the Fiend General Acedia (4/1500/1200) as well."

With these new cards, Kari brought out a cloaked grotesque creature wielding four tentacles on its slug-like body, as well as a tall muscular creature with a great amount of black armor. Its most prominent feature was its orange face, a twisted grin upon it sharp and pointed looks.

"Shadow Khan?" Yami observed.

"I suppose I was closest in dueling to Jade," Kari shrugged. "You may not be familiar with the Fiend Generals though. They are the leaders of the Shadow Khan, and as such they give my Shadow Khan more powers. For instance, Fiend General Acedia allows my Shadow Khan - Squid to attack all of your monsters as opposed to just attacking twice. Now let's see what else I can do..."

Her eyes caught a card in her hand, which she gazed at for a long while. Then she gripped it.

"...this card..."

Yami looked at her for a moment. I'm getting that bad feeling again, Yami thought.

Me too, Yugi said. But why does it feel so familiar?

"I will now activate this card!" Kari announced, and as she raised the card above her head, her green eye flashed brightly. "I'll now activate The Seal of Orichalcos!"

Yami and Yugi were both shocked as the ominous seal of doom surrounded the two duelists, trapping them within the circle. The ancient runes then swirled around as the lines of the seal's inner design formed itself. The green light flashed as the seal finished its formation, and Yami turned to see the Seal take its place on Kari's forehead.

"This power...it's so intense," she said. "Yet...with all this power...how am I controlling it? Am I controlling it?"

Yami then looked down and saw another seal flashing through Kari's clothes. Kari looked down at the glow coming out from her clothes and reached inside to retrieve the object. She pulled out a large medallion, the Orichalcos symbol upon it glowing brightly.

"I see," Kari said. "Perhaps this is some sort of medallion that helps me control the power."

"Kari, stop!" Yami called out. "Do you realize what you've done?"

Kari looked up at Yami with a confused look on her face. "What I've done?" she asked. "What would that be?"

"This Seal of Orichalcos is a dangerous card," Yami explained. "With it active, whoever loses this Duel will lose their soul!"

Kari gasped. "It does that?" She looked down and attempted to remove the card from the field card zone, but the mechanism sealed itself, preventing the Seal's removal. "I can't remove it!" she said.

You don't need to remove the card.

Kari turned pale at the sound of a voice in her head. The voice whispered again, That card is meant to help you. Surely you want help, don't you?

"Who's there?!" Kari cried out. "Who are you?!"

Me? I'm you.

All around Kari, the area turned dark, save for the illumination from the Seal of Orichalcos. Even Yami disappeared from view despite being inside the boundaries of the Seal. In his place, another figure appeared, one that looked identical to Kari. Kari looked at this figure with terror.

"How can you be me?" she asked.

I'm the real you, the one you've searched for all this time, the figure answered. Don't you remember me?

"I...I can't," Kari murmured. "I can't remember who I'm supposed to be."

Let me in, Kari, the figure cooed. Let me in and help you.

The figure's eyes glowed with the bright green of the Orichalcos and got brighter and brighter until Kari had to shield her eyes from the light. And then-

Kari opened her eyes and found herself back on the field with Yami. "I'm back?" she asked, confused.

Of course. But you see, that boy over there wants to tear us apart, destroy us. You don't want to let him do that, do you?

"Destroy us? I...I don't want to be destroyed..."

Then duel him, and defeat him! He'll lose his soul, and then you won't ever have to worry about him ever again!

"Yes... yes, I must destroy him!" Kari said, a dark look crossing her face. "I must destroy you, Yugi Muto!"

Yami and Yugi were both shocked as Kari continued, "Now go, my Fiend General Acedia! Destroy his Jack's Knight!"

The orange-faced general charged its fist with dark energy and attacked the blue knight!

"Thanks to the power of the Seal of Orichalcos," Kari explained, "All my monsters gain 500 Atk points!"

Kari's monsters soon had smaller versions of the Seal imprinted on their foreheads, and their eyes glowed even redder than before as the Seal powered them up.

Shadow Khan - Squid (4/1300/1200 - 4/1800/1200)
Fiend General Acedia (4/1500/1200 - 4/2000/1200)

After her declaration, the general punched Jack's Knight and destroyed him easily!

Yami: 7100
Kari: 200

"And now, Shadow Khan - Squid! Eliminate the King's Knight!"

The tentacled shrouded creature lashed out against the yellow knight, thrashing and destroying it with ease!

Yami: 6900
Kari: 200

"I'm not done yet," Kari said, "because my Shadow Khan - Squid can attack twice each turn, and he can even attack your Life Points directly! So now, Shadow Khan - Squid, attack him directly!"

The creature then lashed out its tentacles, stretching them out to bypass the Dark Magician and struck Yami's body!

Yami: 5100
Kari: 200

"And now I will Set this card face-down and end my turn," Kari said.

(Time Limit: 13 turns)

Yami looked at Kari in disbelief. "Kari, look at yourself," he said. "This isn't you! This can't be you!"

For a moment, the dark look on Kari's face disappeared as she came to her senses. "That wasn't...me?" she asked.

He lies! the voice echoed in her head. He seeks only to destroy us, to separate us!

Suddenly Kari screamed as the darkness took hold of her again. Yami continued to shout, "I don't know what it is that's attacking you, but you have to fight it, Kari! You can't let it win! And I will help you fight this inner enemy and get us both out of this Seal!"

With that said, Yami drew his next card. "Now I summon the Obnoxious Celtic Guardian (4/1400/1200) to my field in Attack mode!"

An elvish swordsman dressed in green appeared on his field, drawing out its blade readily.

"Now go, Dark Magician! Attack her Fiend General with your Dark Magic Attack!"

The magician raised its staff and prepared to unleash its powerful attack! At that moment, Kari looked back up with a grimace on her face.

"You think I'll let you get away with that?!" she called out. "I'm just getting started with you! I activate my Shadowboxing Trap card!"

Suddenly, the Dark Magician turned to face the Obnoxious Celtic Guardian and fired off its Dark Magic Attack at the swordsman!

"My Shadowboxing Trap card can force one of your monsters to battle with another one of your monsters, thus saving mine from their wrath," Kari explained. "Fortunately, you'll take no Battle Damage during this battle, but at least your Guardian will be out of my way!"

The attack connected and exploded, leaving nothing but smoke to billow about. When it finally cleared, though, the Obnoxious Celtic Guardian stood where it was, unharmed.

"Sorry to disappoint you," Yami said, "but my Obnoxious Celtic Guardian can't be destroyed in battle with a monster with more than 1900 Atk points!"

Kari glowered at this minor setback. "It won't matter," she said, "because soon I'll be rid of you forever!"

"Not if I activate my Magical Dimension magic card!" Yami declared. "With this card and my Dark Magician, I can sacrifice my Obnoxious Celtic Guardian to bring out another Spellcaster from my hand! And I choose my Dark Magician Girl (6/2000/1700)!"

With that, a strange mystical coffin appeared, consuming the Obnoxious Celtic Guardian inside it before sealing itself. A moment later, the coffin reopened and revealed a lovely younger feminine version of the Dark Magician, clothed in blue and pink and wielding a small staff resembling her master's staff.

"It doesn't matter how many magicians you summon," Kari said, "I'll still defeat you!"

"I didn't say that was the end of my Spell's effect," Yami continued. "After I'm done summoning my Dark Magician Girl, my Magical Dimension is also able to destroy a monster on your side of the field. And the monster I choose is your Shadow Khan - Squid!"

With that said, the Dark Magician Girl fired off a blast of energy at the shadowy squid creature, destroying it in a powerful explosion!

"And now I'll Set three cards on the field and end my turn," Yami concluded, finishing his move.

(Time Limit: 12 turns)

Kari looked back up at Yugi, the dark look in her eyes pervading. "Don't think you've gained the upper hand just because you destroyed my monster," she said as she drew her card. "I have only just begun to bring out the power of my deck!"

Looking over her hand, Kari said, "I switch the Fiend General Acedia to Defense mode and move him into my back row with the Seal of Orichalcos' power!"

Fiend General Acedia (4/2000/1200 - 4/2000/1200)

"And then I'll summon forth Shadow Khan - Crab (4/1900/1100) from my hand, triggering my Fiend General's Arrival and bringing forth Fiend General Tristitia (4/1700/900) to my field as well!" she continued, bringing forth the familiar shadowy claw-armed creature and another armored archfiend with a blackened face and glowing red eyes. The two monsters then had smaller Seals placed on their heads and gained more power!

Shadow Khan - Crab (4/1900/1100 - 4/2400/1100)
Fiend General Tristitia (4/1700/900 - 4/2200/900)

With that kind of strength, our monsters won't stand a chance! Yugi thought.

"Now for my next move, Fiend General Tristitia, attack the Dark Magician Girl! Wipe her out!"

The black-faced general charged at the Dark Magician Girl, his fist charged with dark energies as he prepared to land a punishing blow to-

"Sorry Kari, but you've activated my Trap card!" Yami declared. "Go, Magician's Selection!"

"What?!"

As his Trap card absorbed the dark energy from Fiend General Tristitia, Yami explained, "With this card, when you declare an attack while I control a Spellcaster on my field, I can negate your attack and destroy the monster on your field with the lowest Atk, namely your Fiend General Acedia!"

The Trap then unleashed the energy it had absorbed and fired off past the two monsters out front and landed a blow on Fiend General Acedia, his orange face twisted into a tragic smile as he was destroyed! Kari grimaced as her monster was destroyed, but then suddenly her expression changed back to her normal one.

"What...what's going on?" Kari asked. Yami recognized her confusion and took the opportunity to talk.

"Kari, I don't know what's happening to you, but I need you to tell me everything you know," Yami said. "Why do you have the Seal of Orichalcos? How are you controlling it?"

"I...I don't know," Kari answered. "Maybe...Yugi, I need you to look inside my mind! Find me there and bring me back!"

At that moment, Kari screamed and was taken over again by whatever was controlling her. The seal on her forehead glowed brighter, and then she resumed her grimacing.

"I'm not done with you yet, Yugi," she said. "You may have stopped my attack, but my Shadow Khan - Crab still has his effect. Since he hasn't attacked this turn, I can destroy one of your monsters! So now say goodbye to your Dark Magician!"

The sinister crab reached out and snagged the Dark Magician within its claw, cutting right through and destroying him!

"You may have destroyed my Dark Magician," Yami said, "but you've only made my Dark Magician Girl stronger! For each Dark Magician in the Graveyard, she gains 300 Atk points!"

Dark Magician Girl (6/2000/1700 - 6/2300/1700)

"She may be strong, but she's still not strong enough to defeat my monsters," Kari said. "Now I play one card face-down and end my turn!"

(Time Limit: 11 turns)

"Then it's my move," Yami said drawing a card. Then he called out, Yugi, I need you to help Kari. I'm going to try and send you into her mind. Find Leila, and let her use her power to bring us into Kari's mind as well.

What about you? Yugi asked.

I'll hold off Kari here. Now go! Before it's too late!

With that, Yami activated the power of the Millenium Puzzle.

"What are you doing?" Kari demanded to know, but just then Yami fired Yugi's soul out of the puzzle and into Kari's mind! Yugi worked his way past the Seal's magic with great difficulty but finally entered into Kari's mind, finding himself in the middle of the crystal field.

"Wow, I didn't even know he could do that," Yugi said, dusting himself off.

"Good to see you've returned."

Yugi turned around and found himself face-to-face with Leila.

"I knew you would return," she said.

"I imagine so," Yugi said. "Have you kept up with the duel going on?"

"For a while at least," Leila answered. "Then something came and blocked off the connection we normally would have."

"The Seal of Orichalcos..."

"She's played that card? Then it's worse than I feared..."

"Yeah, the...other me's in a tight situation right now. He has the advantage, but Kari's turning the tide."

"With the Seal of Orichalcos though...it means that her evil impulses have come back. Your other half is in more danger than before."

"Then we've gotta do everything we can to help him out!"

"Right. And the first thing would be to transport them here."

Leila closed her eyes and concentrated her power. Meanwhile in the midst of the battlefield, the surrounding cavern of the mountain slowly dissolved and transformed into the crystal maze that represented Kari's mind.

"What the...where are you taking us?!" Kari demanded.

"We're going inside your mind!" Yami answered just as the field finished transforming. Now the two duelists were surrounded entirely by a crystal maze.

"How? How could you do this?" Kari asked, looking around her. "This place...this place..."

Suddenly, Kari broke out of her state of evil and became herself once again. She looked around at the maze of her mind, something that had long plagued her with its twists and turns.

"This place..." was all she could say.

Yugi returned to Yami's side, now that his task was complete. Alright, Pharaoh, we're in her mind, he said. Now what?

Now we can work together to help Kari remember who she is, Yami replied. I'll continue the duel from here, you help guide her to where she needs to go.

But how will I know where she needs to go? The only mental maze we've dealt with is yours, and we haven't been able to solve that!

Trust your heart, and remember, you have the courage to brave through this maze and find Kari's true self. You must have faith in yourself like I have faith in you.

Alright then. I'll do it!

And with that, Yugi disappeared again back into Kari's mind.

"Now then, I believe it's my turn," Yami continued, "and I'll start by playing the Monster Reborn spell card, reviving my Dark Magician!"

With the power of his Spell card, the ace of Yami's deck once again appeared on the battlefield, ready for action.

"And now I'll combine my magician with my Buster Blader using the power of my Polymerization spell!" Yami continued. "Together, they will become one, bringing forth my Dark Paladin (8/2900/2400)!"

The iconic Dark Magician then fused with the dragon-slaying warrior from Yami's hand and combined themselves into a bold new monster. Its armor was similar to the Dark Magician's but black with gold trimming around. Its blue face accented its long gray hair, and it wielded its mighty staff now adorned with the blade of its warrior counterpart. It stood ready and waiting as it looked down upon Kari's monsters, now looking up at it with awe and fear.

"Now my Dark Paladin's ability takes effect," Yami said. "For each Dragon that is on the field or either player's Graveyard, my Dark Paladin will gain 500 Atk points!"

Kari looked on curiously before being overtaken by the evil again. The darker side appeared and chuckled.

"You forget," she cackled, "there aren't any Dragons that have been played. You'll have to do better than that if you think you can defeat me!"

"I'm not the one forgetting what's been played," Yami said smiling. "Remember, the cards from our Turbo Duel have been in play as well, and that means I can utilize any of the cards played then right now!"

"But then that means-!"

"That's right. You may not have played any Dragons, but Monica managed to bring in a whole family of Dragons!" Yami finished, revealing the aura surrounding the Dark Paladin to show Speedy Dragon, Turbo Dragon, and Nitros Dragon giving him power.

Dark Paladin (8/2900/2400 - 8/4400/2400)

"And because my Dark Magician is still in my Graveyard, my Dark Magician Girl maintains her power," Yami added. "Now to end this duel! Go, Dark Paladin! Attack her Fiend General Tristitia!"

The warrior-magician charged up its dark magic into the blade-staff and slashed at the Fiend General, destroying it and causing a powerful explosion! Yami shielded himself from the blast before looking back, only to hear Kari laughing as the score revealed her unchanged Life Points.

Yami: 5100
Kari: 200

"But how? My attack should have reduced your Life Points to 0! Unless..."

"Unless my Trap card negates all the Battle Damage and keeps me safe," Kari finished as a yellow bubble surrounding her began to dissipate. "And since my Trap card is Spirit Barrier, I'm able to negate all the Battle Damage so long as I have a monster in play. I think you know what that means."

As long as her Shadow Khan are in play, I can't attack them or deal any damage to her Life Points, Yami thought. The only way to beat her now is to either destroy her Spirit Barrier or destroy her Shadow Khan. But with no cards in my hand, that's going to be tricky...

"What's wrong? Didn't you expect that I would find a way to stick around?" Kari taunted. "You can't get rid of me that easily."

"I'll switch my Dark Magician Girl to Defense mode and end my turn," Yami said, with the apprentice magician shielding herself from oncoming attacks.

(Time Limit: 10 turns)

"Good, now it's my turn again," Kari said, drawing her next card. "I hope you're ready for what I've got in store for you. I sacrifice my Shadow Khan-Crab in order to summon Shadow Khan - Sumo (5/2200/300) to the field!"

The crab-like shadow creature was then replaced with a far larger shadow creature, towering at a colossal height over Yami's monsters.

"And as you should be familiar with by now," Kari continued, "whenever a Shadow Khan creature is played, Fiend General's Arrival allows me to summon out a Fiend General, so now I summon Fiend General Gula (3/1400/1300) in Attack mode!"

At that moment, a large green-faced fiend in blackened armor appeared, growling angrily.

"And thanks to the power of the Seal of Orichalcos, my monsters get even stronger!"

Shadow Khan - Sumo (5/2200/300 - 5/2700/300)
Fiend General Gula (3/1400/1300 - 3/1900/1300)

"Now then, it's time to attack!" Kari called out. "Go, Shadow Khan-Sumo! Destroy his Dark Paladin!"

The shadow sumo lunged forward at the Dark Paladin, ready to pound it into the ground!

"Trap card activate! Go, Dark Magic Retribution!"

"What?!"

Suddenly, the Dark Magician reappeared on the field and intercepted the Shadow Khan's attack, defending the Dark Paladin from harm!

"But your Dark Magician is supposed to be in your Graveyard!" Kari said. "How did you..."

"With the power of my Dark Magic Retribution card," Yami explained, "I'm able to summon a Spellcaster from my Graveyard when your monster declares an attack, making it the new target and protecting my Dark Paladin from its blow."

Kari grimaced. "You may have delayed your monster's destruction," she said, "but you have yet to defeat me! Now I end my turn!"

(Time Limit: 9 turns)

She's starting to slip up, Yami thought. If she had used her Shadow Khan-Crab's effect before sacrificing it, my Dark Paladin wouldn't be here to protect me. It may be...


Meanwhile deep in Kari's mind maze, Yugi wandered around looking for Kari.

"Hey! I know you're here!" he called out. "I'm here to help!"

"You won't find her like that."

Yugi turned to see Leila standing there.

"Isn't there a way to find her?" Yugi asked.

"There is," Leila said. "All you need do is think of where you would be."

"Where I would be..." Yugi mused over this remark for a moment. If I was Kari, where would I be...

Yugi closed his eyes and thought for a moment before opening them again. Now he was in another part of the maze, a small corner covered in darkness. And sure enough, there was Kari.

"Kari!" he said, running over to her. The girl jumped and skittered away.

"Get away!" she cried out, forcing Yugi to stop. She was terrified, lost and afraid. But she was Kari, there was no doubt.

"It's okay, I'm here to help," Yugi said. Kari looked up at him as he extended a helping hand towards her.

"You came...to help me?" she asked. Yugi nodded as a response. Kari looked at him and then down to his hand.

"It's alright," Yugi said. Kari then took his hand, and he helped stand her up.

"You've been stuck in here for a while, haven't you?" he asked.

"It's been so long," Kari answered. "I've tried getting out so many times before, but it's hopeless. My memories are no closer now than when I started."

"Then we'll just have to work our way through this maze and find them again," Yugi said.

"Your determination is admirable, but it's not that simple," Kari said. "This maze changes constantly, rerouting the way to the end each time. There's no neutral point in this maze except for the start."

"Then we just go back to the start," Yugi said, closing his eyes. Kari watched him for a moment before closing her eyes too. And just like that, the two had arrived at the beginning of the maze: the center.

There were paths on all sides extending outwards from the center, and from here the shifting walls could be seen more clearly. The crystals glowed around the two as they looked around themselves. The maze seemed much larger in the center than it did in any other part, but Yugi knew this was only a small part of the maze. He then grabbed Kari's hand and led her down a path out of the center, a start on their journey.


"Hey, what's going on?"

"We came to see a duel, not watch a flatscreen!"

"Will you get serious? They could be trapped in that tunnel."

"Somebody help them!"

The crowd had been in a state of panic for some time. After the cave-in, no one was sure of what to do. Matt had personally come over the speaker several times in order to maintain order in the crowd, but there was no response.

Matt himself was busy looking into Kari's past again. Creighton, Izzy, and Shannon were all also researching on Kari's past, everyone trying to figure out who she was and why she would target Yugi. Creighton leaned back in his chair.

"Man, this is ridiculous," he said. "You'd think it wouldn't be so hard to find out something about someone, but with so many names and identities, it's hard to tell what we'd even look for!"

"We're working on her motive for targeting Yugi," Izzy answered. "Something in her past must link her to this motivation, and so we have to find out what that is."

"Yeah? Which one do you suggest?" Creighton retorted. "We already know she's got at least ten other identities she's been using!"

"Relax, you two," Matt interjected. "We have an important goal right now, so let's just stick to that."

Creighton moaned as he turned back to his computer. "All I've been getting is a bunch of news sources reporting on the mysterious circumstances under which people were defeated," he said. "People remarked on it as eerie, as though their souls had been sucked out of their bodies. Not alive, but not quite dead."

"I've been pulling up similar sources," Izzy said. "It seems that Kari's abilities as an assassin were to render her victims unable to live. That would be a dangerous thing, except that her victims all recovered on the same day at the exact same time."

"That's kinda freaky," Creighton commented.

"I've found some sources on her identities," Shannon said quietly, "but I don't think they're of much help."

"Keep looking," Matt ordered. "There must be something that explains what all of this is about and what her motive is to target Yugi."

Meanwhile, out on the dueling track, Andrew had led a team of rescue workers to the cave-in site to dig up some of the rocks blocking the entrance. Joey and Tristan were there as well, digging up the rocks while Tea stood by at a safe distance.

"Ready, and, heave!"

The two shoved over another boulder, only to reveal another pile beneath it.

"Man, one rock down, and den a hundred more to go!" Joey said. "We'll never get to em at dis rate."

Tristan turned to Andrew and asked, "Don't you guys have a crane or something for this kind of thing?"

"Hey, when your engines are trying to transport several hundred tons of dirt around in the air along with a bunch of people, you don't exactly have the weight leniency to add a giant crane on-board," Andrew retorted.

"Well excuse me for thinking there was an easy way about it!" Tristan snorted before turning back to work.

Hang in dere, Yug, Joey thought. We're coming for ya!


On the field of combat, Yami drew his next card. "It's my turn now," he said, "and I activate the Card of Sanctity, allowing us both to draw until we have 6 cards in our hands!"

"You're only delaying the inevitable," Kari said, drawing five new cards from her deck.

"We'll see," Yami said, looking at his new hand. "Now I'll switch my Dark Magician Girl to Attack mode and equip her with the Magic Formula spell, raising her attack by 700 points!"

Dark Magician Girl (6/2300/1700 - 6/3000/1700)

"And I will also summon my Electromagnetic Turtle (4/0/1800) in Defense mode!" Yami continued, bringing out a metallic armored turtle to his field. "Now let's see if we can't take out that Fiend General! Go, Dark Magician Girl! Dark Burning attack!"

With the declaration, the Dark Magician Girl charged a pink orb of dark energy and fired it off at Fiend General Gula, annihilating him in an explosive force of dark magic.

"It doesn't matter what you do to my monsters," Kari sneered. "So long as my Spirit Barrier remains in play, I'll walk away unharmed every time."

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Yami said, setting a card face-down. "This duel's far from over."

(Time Limit: 8 turns)

"Keep telling yourself that," Kari said, drawing her next card. "I activate the Shadow Khan Assembly spell, which allows me to summon all the Shadow Khan I have in my hand! And look at that, I've got three. So come out Shadow Khan - Samurai (4/1600/1400), Shadow Khan - Mantis (4/1400/1300), and Shadow Khan - Mini (1/100/200)!"

With the aid of her magic card, the familiar shadow-armored ninja appeared alongside an insectoid shadow creature and a tiny four-legged shadow creature. Each was instantly infused with the power of the Seal of Orichalcos, increasing their strength even further.

Shadow Khan - Samurai (4/1600/1400 - 4/2100/1400)
Shadow Khan - Mantis (4/1400/1300 - 4/1900/1300)
Shadow Khan - Mini (1/100/200 - 1/600/200)

"And I'll also summon my Fiend General Ira (4/1800/600) in the back row to keep you on your toes!" Kari continued, bringing out a blue-faced demon general which flexed its muscles and cackled as it got stronger with the Seal of Orichalcos.

Fiend General Ira (4/1800/600 - 4/2300/600)

"Fortunately for you, I'm unable to attack in the turn I use Shadow Khan Assembly," Kari continued, "so I will Set 1 last card and end my turn here."

(Time Limit: 7 turns)

"Then it's my turn," Yami said drawing his next card. I'm going to have to end this duel soon unless that Time Limit goes off. I hope Yugi's doing well inside her mind.


Yugi wandered down the path with Kari at his side, the maze expanding out ever further. At a particular turn, the two came face-to-face with not another passage as they had for a long time but an image Yugi was surprised to find he was familiar with. There in front of the two was a lone girl, sitting by herself surrounded by small wooden toys that took various forms. There was a toy soldier, a train set, a horse, a car, and beyond that were more objects. Shelves lined with books, pens, drawings of cartoons, assorted coins - a gallery of objects all compiled into a single space. And there was that one girl, crying to herself, holding something against her chest.

Yugi looked down at Kari, who had her head held low. "Do you know what this is?" he asked her.

Kari nodded. "I've been here before," she said. "It's me when I was younger, as a kid. After my house burned down..."

Yugi was stunned, but Kari continued, "It happened so long ago, but I can still see it as though it had only happened yesterday. And I can see all of my siblings and my parents standing in the living room just as easily too."

Suddenly, the image in front of them changed into an extravagant living room. There was lavish furnishings surrounding a marble fireplace with a variety of expensive objects that most people would not have seen outside of a museum. And there was an elderly gentleman, a wonderful mustache gleaming his face as the light reflected off his monocle. And there was his wife, an elegant lady dressed as though she were to attend a ballroom dance hosted by a king rather than for mere comfort and relaxation.

All across the floor were children of various sizes, each one reminding Yugi of one of the identities he'd seen in the tournament. There was the girl in rather dirty clothes with a posh girl laughing at her and making fun of her clothes. Between them was a boy dressed and ready to fight, as though he was to defend the poor girl's honor, and another boy dressed as though he were going to be participating in a baseball game was coming over. Over by a bookshelf there was one girl wearing glasses reading a children's storybook to a small boy, who was bouncing up and down as though he were ready for anything, and another girl who was performing to herself. There was one girl meditating around a crystal ball while a young boy looked curiously at the ball, measuring it and tinkering with it much to the young girl's chagrin. And then there was Kari, playing with a young boy with little toy cars, zooming around on an imaginary highway.

Yugi looked at across the scene with much amazement. "This was your home?" he asked.

Kari nodded sadly. "It was..."

Then suddenly a flash of fire sparked in the middle of the room, and like a photograph it burned out onto the sad scene with the young Kari kneeling at a bookshelf, surrounded by toys. The young Kari was crying and held something close to herself. Kari closed her eyes at this scene and looked away.


"I summon Big Shield Gardna (4/100/2600) to the field in Defense mode!" Yami declared, bringing out a long-haired warrior with a very large shield to defend itself. "And that will end my turn."

(Time Limit: 6 turns)

"You continue to play out as if you stand a chance," Kari sneered, drawing her next card. "And yet you have no idea of the power my deck has yet to offer! I activate the Dark Spirit Art - Greed, which allows me to sacrifice my Fiend General Ira in order to draw 2 cards from my deck!"

Yami was stunned for a moment and watched as the blue-faced fiend was quickly sacrificed to give Kari two more cards.

"You would sacrifice your own monster for your own personal gain?" he asked.

"Victory always comes with a sacrifice," Kari said. "Now I summon Shadow Khan - Ninja (4/1500/1200) to my field, and with the power of Fiend General's Arrival, I summon Fiend General Vanagloria (4/1600/1000) to my field as well!"

The shadowy ninja appeared once again, now accompanied by a maroon-faced demon with long dark green hair and two yellow horns. Each gained the power of the Seal of Orichalcos and powered up even further!

Shadow Khan - Ninja (4/1500/1200 - 4/2000/1200)
Fiend General Vanagloria (4/1600/1000 - 4/2100/1000)

"But don't worry about my Fiend General," Kari said, "because he won't be around for long. I activate the spell card By Order of Superbia! With it, I can send a Fiend General I control to the Graveyard to bring out a Shadow Khan creature from my hand, Deck, or Graveyard to the field. And I have just the one in mind! Come forth, Shadow Khan - Razor (4/1600/1300)!"

The demon general disappeared with the power of the spell card, and in its place arose a long-limbed shadow creature with large claw-like fingers. The power of the Seal increased its strength even further!

Shadow Khan - Razor (4/1600/1300 - 4/2100/1300)

"And now I'll attack your Dark Magician Girl with my Shadow Khan - Sumo! Go, Shadow Smash!"

The largest of the Shadow Khans charged at and rammed the Dark Magician Girl, destroying her easily with its ability.

"When you destroyed my Dark Magician Girl," Yami said, "you activated my Magic Formula's effect, allowing me to gain 1000 Life Points!"

Yami: 6100
Kari: 200

"Not that it will do much good," Kari said. "I'm not done with you yet! Go, Shadow Khan - Razor! Slash through his Electromagnetic Turtle!"

The bladed shadow creature dashed with great speed and sliced through the turtle, destroying it in an instant!

"And thanks to Razor's abilities, you take damage equal to the difference in strength with our monsters," Kari explained, "and when you take damage from a battle with Razor, I draw 1 card from my deck."

Yami: 5800
Kari: 200

Kari drew her new card and then declared, "And now it's time to attack! Go, Shadow Khan - Mini! Attack his Life Points directly!"

The small creature skittered across the battlefield and leapt into the air, lunging forth at Yami with a hungry bite!

"I activate the effect of my Electromagnetic Turtle!" Yami said. "When it gets destroyed and sent to the Graveyard during your turn, I can choose to end the Battle Phase at any point!"

Suddenly a large turtle shell marked with N and S appeared in front of Yami, deflecting the attack of the small shadow creature and sending it back to Kari's field. Kari glowered at this defense.

"You continue to delay the inevitable," she said. "I end my turn."

(Time Limit: 5 turns)

"It's my turn now," Yami announced, drawing his next card. "I'll set one card face-down and tribute my Big Shield Gardna for the Summoned Skull (6/2500/1200) in Attack mode!"

The massive-shield-bearing warrior disappeared and was replaced with a large skeletal fiend, its wings spread out in preparation for its fight to come.

"And that ends my turn," Yami said. I'm ready for you now.

(Time Limit: 4 turns)

"Such a short turn," Kari said, drawing her next card. "A shame that I will be rid of you so quickly. I activate Shadow Khan Army Strike to give my Shadow Khans an additional 500 Atk points!"

Shadow Khan - Sumo (5/2700/300 - 5/3200/300)
Shadow Khan - Samurai (4/2100/1400 - 4/2600/1400)
Shadow Khan - Mantis (4/1900/1300 - 4/2400/1300)
Shadow Khan - Mini (1/600/200 - 1/1100/200)
Shadow Khan - Ninja (4/2000/1200 - 4/2500/1200)
Shadow Khan - Razor (4/2100/1300 - 4/2600/1300)

"Now it's time to be rid of you and all your monsters!" Kari said. "Go, Shadow Khan - Sumo! Finish off his Dark Paladin with Shadow Smash!"

The massive Shadow Khan lunged forward at the Dark Paladin, preparing to crush it beneath its girth! But then Yami smiled.

"Seems you're still falling for the same tricks as last time," Yami said. "I activate my face-down Trap card!"

"No!"

"Go, Mirror Force! Destroy all of her Shadow Khan!"

The Trap flipped over and created a barrier that protected the Dark Paladin as Shadow Khan - Sumo came plummeting down on top of it! The barrier bounced the large creature back, sending its shadows all across Kari's field and wiping out her entire army of Shadow Khan creatures!


Kari opened her eyes widely. "I remember," she whispered.

Yugi looked over at her confused. "Remember what?" he asked, but he received no reply as Kari walked over to the little girl and knelt down beside her. Kari reached out her hand, and the girl took notice and looked up at her.

"You came...to help me?" the girl asked. Kari nodded, and the girl slowly handed over the very thing she was carrying. Kari looked down and saw the picture frame of her family. Tears began to well up in her eyes.

"This was all I had left of them," she said. "This picture was all I had. And that's when he came."

Yugi walked up to Kari and asked, "Who came?"

Kari looked up at Yugi, the tears in her eyes now slowly dripping down her face. "Dartz."


AUTHOR'S NOTES

Yeesh, Dartz's legacy continues. And man was that a lot of transitions! Course, there's also a lot of cards too:

Fiend General's Arrival (Continuous Spell)
Effect: When you Normal Summon a "Shadow Khan" monster: you can Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower "Fiend General" monster from your hand or Deck.

Shadow Khan - Squid (Effect Monster)
Level 3, 1300 Atk, 1200 Def, Fiend, DARK
Effect: Cannot be targeted for attacks, but does not prevent your opponent from attacking you directly. This card can attack directly, also it can attack twice during each Battle Phase.

Fiend General Acedia(Effect Monster)
Level 4, 1500 Atk, 1200 Def, Fiend, DARK
Effect: "Shadow Khan - Squid" you control can attack each of your opponent's monsters once each.

The Seal of Orichalcos (Field Spell)
Effect: Your monsters gain 500 Atk. This card cannot be destroyed or negated by card effects. You can use your Spell and Trap Card Zones as Monster Card Zones. Monsters in your Spell and Trap Card Zones cannot be attacked unless your original Monster Card Zones are empty. During your Main Phase, you can move monsters from your Monster Card Zone to your Spell and Trap Card Zone and vice-versa. If a player loses the Duel, they lose their soul.
NOTE: The only effect not listed here is in regards to the Legendary Dragons Timaeus, Critias, and Hermos, and since they don't show up at this point, it's not necessary to bring them up again in the card effect.

Obnoxious Celtic Guardian (Effect Monster)
Level 4, 1400 Atk, 1200 Def, Warrior, EARTH
Effect: Cannot be destroyed by battle with a monster that has 1900 or more Atk.
NOTE: In the real TCG, this card is called "Obnoxious Celtic Guard".

Shadowboxing (Normal Trap)
Effect: When your opponent's monster declares an attack: target 1 other monster on your opponent's field; change the attack target to that monster, also your opponent takes no battle damage from that battle.

Magical Dimension (Quick-Play Spell)
Effect: If you control a Spellcaster monster: Target 1 monster you control; Tribute that target, then Special Summon 1 Spellcaster monster from your hand, then you can destroy 1 monster on the field.

Dark Magician Girl (Effect Monster)
Level 6, 2000 Atk, 1700 Def, Spellcaster, DARK
Effect: Gains 300 Atk for every "Dark Magician" and "Magician of Black Chaos" in your GY.

Shadow Khan - Crab (Effect Monster)
Level 4, 1900 Atk, 1100 Def, Fiend, DARK
Effect: Cannot be targeted for attacks, but does not prevent your opponent from attacking you directly. Once per turn: you can destroy one of your opponent's monsters, and if you do, this card cannot attack this turn.

Fiend General Tristitia (Effect Monster)
Level 4, 1700 Atk, 900 Def, Fiend, DARK
Effect: If "Shadow Khan - Crab" you control attacks a Defense Position monster, inflict piercing Battle Damage.

Buster Blader (Effect Monster)
Level 7, 2600 Atk, 2300 Def, Warrior, EARTH
Effect: Gains 500 ATk for every Dragon monster your opponent controls or is in their GY.

Polymerization (Normal Spell)
Effect: Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand or field as Fusion Material.

Dark Paladin (Fusion Monster)
Level 8, 2900 Atk, 2400 Def, Spellcaster, DARK
"Dark Magician" + "Buster Blader"
Effect: Must be Fusion Summoned. When a Spell Card is activated (Quick Effect): you can discard 1 card; negate the activation, and if you do, destroy it. Gains 500 Atk for every Dragon monster on the field and in the GY.

Spirit Barrier (Continuous Trap)
Effect: You take no Battle Damage as long as you control a monster.

Fiend General Gula (Effect Monster)
Level 3, 1400 Atk, 1300 Def, Fiend, DARK
Effect: Each time "Shadow Khan - Sumo" you control destroys a monster with their effect, it gains 300 ATK.

Dark Magic Retribution (Normal Trap)
Effect: When your opponent's monster declares an attack: Target 1 Spellcaster monster in your GY that was destroyed in the previous turn; Special Summon it, and if you do, redirect your opponent's monster's attack to that monster, also destroy it at the end of the Battle Phase.
NOTE: This card again works the same way it did in its first appearance in chapter 9.

Shadow Khan - Mantis (Effect Monster)
Level 4, 1400 Atk, 1300 Def, Fiend, DARK
Effect: Cannot be targeted for attacks, but does not prevent your opponent from attacking you directly. This card can attack directly. If this card is destroyed: you can Special Summon 1 "Shadow Khan" monster from your hand or Deck.

Shadow Khan - Mini (Effect Monster)
Level 1, 100 Atk, 200 Def, Fiend, DARK
Effect: Cannot be targeted for attacks, but does not prevent your opponent from attacking you directly. This card can attack directly. If a DARK monster is sent to the GY: gain 500 Atk.

Fiend General Ira (Effect Monster)
Level 4, 1800 Atk, 600 Def, Fiend, DARK
Effect: "Shadow Khan - Samurai" you control are unaffected by the effects of your opponent's Spell/Trap cards.

Big Shield Gardna (Effect Monster)
Level 4, 100 Atk, 2600 Def, Warrior, EARTH
Effect: When a Spell Card is activated that targets this face-down card (and no other cards) (Quick Effect): Change this card to face-up Defense Position, and if you do, negate the activation. If this card is attacked, change it to Attack Position at the end of the Damage Step.

Dark Spirit Art - Greed (Normal Trap)
Effect: Tribute 1 DARK monster. Draw 2 cards. Your opponent can negate this effect by revealing 1 Spell card in their hand.

Fiend General Vanagloria (Effect Monster)
Level 4, 1600 Atk, 1000 Def, Fiend, DARK
Effect: "Shadow Khan - Ninja" you control are unaffected by your opponent's Traps.

By Order of Superbia (Normal Spell)
Effect: Send 1 "Fiend General" you control to the GY; Special Summon 1 "Shadow Khan" monster from your hand, Deck, or GY.

Mirror Force (Normal Trap)
Effect: When an opponent's monster declares an attack: destroy all your opponent's Attack Position monsters.

Now that the tides have turned again, will Yami be able to win the Duel? Or does Kari have something else up her sleeve? Find out in the next chapter!