Suddenly, the wounded spellcaster opened his eyes. Choking on his own feeble breath, he struggled to move. Mystic Elf cautiously lifted his back, though she feared she knew exactly what he was thinking.
"No!" she shouted, ready to force him back down should he actually try. "I can't have you moving any more than this. Dark Magician Girl, fetch me another pillow. It might help him breathe a little better."
Dark Magician glanced weakly up at the healer. His eyes struggled to focus. He could make out maybe two or three duel monsters standing above him, but everything else was a dizzying blur. Even opening his eyes made his head throb.
"You are far too weak. And moving will only aggravate your injuries."
"… place… in Deck…" he whispered, blood running from his open mouth as he coughed hoarsely through the words.
"Your place in the Deck is right here. In bed!" Mystic Elf eased the magician's battered body onto the pillows. She touched her hand on his chest. It rose and fell irregularly under her fingertips. She could even feel his heart bleed. "If you go… you will not return from the duel alive."
"I… will be… summoned… soon…" he gasped again, still coughing. He could barely speak. "App..rentice… my armor…"
Dark Magician Girl fought back tears.
"You mean he's just going to fight!" Yugi shouted, taking another step back. "He can't be serious!"
The other duel monsters in the Graveyard just looked at him.
"He can't even sit up, how can he fight!"
Dark Magician Girl knew it was pointless to resist. If her master was summoned, he was summoned. And that was the final word.
"…He doesn't have a choice…"
"Wh..what do you mean, he doesn't have a choice?" Yugi gasped.
"Armor…" Dark Magician weakly whispered, painfully stretching out his hand before it fell limp on the cot again.
"None of us have a choice." She replied sadly, picking up the violet shoulder plates. Her eyes cast defeated shadows on the floor. "If the Lord summons us, we… we go… That's what we do…"
Yugi gasped.
… If the pharaoh draws and plays that card… his mind raced. It's all over… Dark Magician will… die…
He turned around quickly, and sprinted out of the tent.
"Wait! Where are you going!" Dark Magician Girl screamed.
"To stop this…" he cried as he ran, leaving the young spellcaster standing in the tent. "If I still can…"