"Wake up. Hey, wake up," a familiar voice says as he tries to shake the child awake.
Her eyelids flutter open, meeting the eyes of none other than her father who hovers over her in a crouched down position. His navy blue cape drapes on the floor and the amount of gold jewelry that he wears on his arms, wrists, and other areas on his body is nearly enough to blind her along with the sun beaming high in the sky.
"Huh...?" Cairo says with a slow blink as she tries to register what's happening.
"You dozed off again," he tells her with an amused smirk. The green grass tickles her exposed arms and the tree they are under offers little relief from the sun's rays.
"What's going on…?" she asks as she groggily looks from left to right. Strong, sturdy walls surround them on all sides as well as statues of various gods. Is she back in Egypt? Her father is back in his royal attire and so is she. But how did they end up back at home? The last thing she remembers is going against Yami Marik in the present world. "What's happening?"
"Hurry now," Atem continues to her confusion. "Otherwise, you'll be late to your important training session with your mother."
"Wait, what? What training session?"
"This is a dream," he replies bluntly, helping her to her feet and leading her down the courtyard. "So not much makes sense right now."
"A dream?" She blinks before looking up at him. "Hold on, are you allowed to reveal that?"
"Just go along with it. Besides, you have an important battle with Yami Marik coming up and it's up to you to stop him."
"That's right…" As far as she remembers, she is a goner. Her mother and father are out of commission in the present world and Arcana sacrificed himself to save her.
She stops walking. "Arcana…"
Atem turns around and there is a long pause. Her head is bowed and she fights the urge to cry. She feels very much at fault for the events that occurred in the present world. And now, it looks like they might lose the fight against Yami Marik.
"There you two are," Mana's voice comes from the distance. Her face beams with a smile as she trots over to them. "I figured I'd come to you since you were taking so long."
Atem looks over to his wife as she joins them. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting."
"No worries!" She looks to her daughter whose head is still bowed and she cocks her head to the side. "Hey, what's wrong? That's not the right attitude to have when you have a big battle coming up."
"This is all my fault. If I actually faced my problems instead of running away or burying them, none of this would have happened," Cairo replies.
"Now is not the time to start beating yourself up," Atem says, crossing his arms. "Remember to give yourself grace."
"Your dad's right," Mana agrees.
"I can't do this," Cairo tells her. "Not when my powers are all out of whack."
"You have to get out of your own way, Cairo," her mother says, walking over and placing a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Don't overthink it and trust yourself."
"I…"
Mana takes a step back and outstretches her hand, forming a ball of energy at her palm. Her facial expression grows serious and her aquamarine eyes begin to glow pink. Cairo gasps and takes a step back, seeing the magical orb that her mother is forming growing stronger. This clearly isn't a typical lesson.
"M-Mom?"
"What are you going to do?" Mana asks her.
"But I can't—"
"That's enough!" Mana shouts suddenly, causing Cairo to flinch. "You have to be strong! If you let him win, the world will be in danger, understand?"
"But he was able to defeat you! And you're way stronger than me! Besides…our plan failed."
"If I had given up when Mahad died, I wouldn't be the powerful sorcerer that I am today," Mana says. "And had your father given up during the battle with Zorc, when all the odds were against him, the whole would would have been enshrouded in darkness for all eternity."
"Mom…"
The magical sphere becomes even bigger until Mana finally launches it. Cairo lets out a gasp, covering her eyes with her hands.
"There's still a way to beat him," her mother tells her, causing Cairo to peek through her finger tips, being partially blinded by the pink hue coming from the blast headed her way. "So what will you do?"
Cairo inhales deeply and then exhales. Her mother poses a very important question. What will she do? Will she crumble under pressure and fear? Or will she finally snap out of it for good and fight?
Slowly straightening out her posture, she lowers her hands and faces the blast head on. Her mother is depending on her. Her father is depending on her. The whole world is.
And she can't let them down.
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Yami Marik laughs loudly, feeling victorious as his massive blast of energy begins to conclude, leaving no signs of Arcana or Cairo. Not to mention the pharaoh and Mana are currently down for the count, leaving them completely defenseless. His plan was practically seamless. And although the pharaoh and Cairo had their suspicions, they were unable to fully act on it due to the decoys and distractions he threw their way.
He looks to the pharaoh and queen as Ishizu tries to tend to them, kneeling by their side and calling the pharaoh's name. But he shows no signs of movement, making Yami Marik grin even more.
Ishizu glares up at him. "You monster! What have you done?!"
"I'm just picking up from where I left off, sister," Yami Marik says as he approaches her. She narrows her eyes. The man walking toward her is not her brother and she refuses to refer to him as such. "If you truly thought you could lock me away in the Shadow Realm for all eternity, then you're sadly mistaken."
"Release my brother at once!"
"I will do no such thing. Besides, it's time I finish the job!" he exclaims, aiming his hand at her and the fallen pharaoh.
Knowing she will be no match for him, she shuts her eyes, waiting for the inventible. Never would she have thought it would end like this. She watched as the pharaoh defeated him the first time, banishing him into the Shadow Realm. After that, she was sure he was gone forever, allowing her family to complete their duties and finally move on. The pharaoh should be in his next stage of life, resting in the afterlife. Instead, he is unconscious with no signs of help anywhere. Is this really how it's going to end?
"NO!" a child's voice yells from above.
Upon hearing the familiar voice, Yami Marik slowly looks up, only to see Cairo coming right at him. Her palms are pressed together with her fingers interlocked, winding it back behind her head until she brings it forward with as much force as she can muster, striking him directly on the top of his head. Feeling the impact, Yami Marik's head jolts abruptly and he briefly loses his balance.
Growling, he brings his arm up to protect himself from a winding kick that she tries to land in mid air, but she follows up with her other leg, managing to hit him and send him back.
At the last possible minute, she manages to narrowly avoid Yami Marik's blast altogether with a teleportation spell. It initially shocks her that it worked, but it only confirms for her to get out of her head. She glances to her parents that lay on the ground and grits her teeth angrily at Yami Marik who comes back for more.
"It's going to take more than those fists of yours to defeat me, child!" Yami Marik yells, aiming a punch that makes contact with her face. Grimacing, Cairo swings her fist back, only for it to be caught by her foe. "Did you not hear what I just said you fool? You—"
Cairo lets out a battle cry as her eyes glow purple to Yami Marik's shock and she uses her free hand to shoot a magical blast. As he's sent flying backwards, she fires off a barrage of magical blasts, each making contact with him. In the midst of this, she finds herself surprised that she is even doing this. Sure, her attacks aren't as strong as they would be in her shadow state, but she's doing it. Her doubts really were holding her back. And for a moment, she believes she will be victorious.
Yami Marik begins to grow annoyed, letting out an agitated scream that dissipates the remaining blasts. He tries to levitate in the air to give himself room, but to his shock, Cairo manages to fly up and meet him at his level as well.
"Whoa! I'm doing it!" she says to herself, peering over to the ground below before getting serious.
"You're full of surprises, I'll give you that," Yami Marik says. "But after all your efforts, you've barely managed to hurt me."
Cairo grits her teeth. 'He's right. He doesn't seem affected at all. But…I have to keep going!'
A clash ensures in the air as Ishizu looks on with worry for a moment. Then she looks down to Atem. "Oh, pharaoh…Cairo needs you…"
"Ishizu!"
Ishizu turns around at the sound of her name being called to see Yugi, Téa, Joey and Tristan running toward her. But what they see next as they get closer shocks them all.
On the ground in front of her lies Atem and Mana, seemingly unconscious. Mana has scratches and bruises on her arms, legs and face, indicating she must have taken a bad hit. And because of the pain inflicted on her, Atem felt it as well, leaving him in a similar state.
"Pharaoh!" Yugi cries out, immediately running ahead to be by his side. He then looks at Mana and gasps. "No…not you too!"
"Are they gonna be alright?" Téa asks fearfully, kneeling down beside Yugi.
Ishizu gives them a sad gaze. "I'm not sure…"
"What happened?" Joey asks, just before they hear a loud boom.
Their eyes go up to the sky, seeing a big cloud of smoke. At first, they don't know the cause. But seconds later, Cairo goes plummeting to the ground, knocked out and leaving her unable to stop her fall.
"Cairo!" Yugi yells fearfully.
"I've got her!" Tristan yells, holding his arms out and running to catch her. Although she is small, the impact from catching her still brings Tristan to the ground with a huge thud. "Cairo!" He gives a small shake to wake her up to no avail.
Seeing Yami Marik floating above, Joey growls. "It's him! He did this!"
"But how?" Téa asks.
"He absorbed Cairo's dark abilities," Yugi concludes.
"And my brother," Ishizu reveals, earning shocked reactions.
Joey's mouth goes agape. "Wait, you mean to tell me…?"
"Why would he do such a thing?" Téa asks, her eyes beginning to water up.
"He apparently needed my brother in order to harness the dark energy. I assume if he were on his won, they would cease to exist."
Cairo groans as she sits up, holding her head. Then she looks over to Tristan, who she isn't expecting to be there in the first place. Looking over her shoulder, she notices Yugi and the others as well. "What are you going here? It's dangerous."
"When I woke up, you and Atem weren't there. And I had a feeling that something awful had happened," Yugi explains "Guess I was right."
"And it's about to get worse," Téa predicts as Yami Marik descends to the ground.
"Well isn't this nice? You've all gathered so I can finish you in one setting," Yami Marik says grinning.
"What are we gonna do?" Tristan asks as Cairo stands to her feet.
"Yeah, with him and the other Marik combined, he's not gonna run out of steam any time soon," Joey says.
An idea comes to Yugi when Joey says that. "That's it!" he exclaims, standing up and clenching his fists with determination.
Cairo tilts her head. "What's 'it'?"
"In the Memory World, when you were about to be fully consumed by the darkness, your mother tried one last attempt to set you free by entering your mind."
Cairo's eyes widen. "I vaguely remember that!"
"Ah, I get it," Joey says. "If she can somehow separate the two Marik's, we might be able to beat him!"
Cairo looks over to her mom who lays motionless on her side next to Atem. Perhaps that was what Mana was referring to in her weird dream. But will she be able to do it?
She turns to face Yami Marik who is slowly approaching. "Guess it's worth a shot," she remarks to herself, going into a defensive stance.
"You can do this Cairo!" Téa cheers her on.
"Yeah, you got this!" Tristan encourages.
"You might as well accept your fate. You may have brushed up on your abilities, but you're still no match for me!" Yami Marik declares confidently.
Cairo closes her eyes and takes a deep breath. This is her one and only shot. If she frees the good Marik, then Yami Marik will be weakened. And with him using the full power of the darkness, she is certain he will share the same fate as Mimic.
Seeing Cairo's silence as an admittance of defeat, Yami Marik grins. "That's right. Accept the inevitable. You can't win."
Cairo chuckles to his surprise. "You're right. I can't win. Not like this."
"Then what's so funny?"
Cairo suddenly charges at him, only confusing him even more. Has she lost her mind? If she knows she won't win, why is she coming right at him so aggressively? She lets out a battle cry as she brings her fist back to punch him, but her timing is way too slow and instead, he lands a hard punch to her stomach, causing her to gasp for air.
"Fool. What do you think you're doing?"
Smirking, she quickly grabs his wrist. "Got you."
"What are you planning?" he growls, lifting her up as she clings onto him and slamming her into the ground. But he plays right into her trap. Towering over her, her eyes close and then reopen, glowing purple and causing a bright aura to appear around them as he cries out and shields his eyes.
Yugi uses his arm to cover his eyes. "Good luck Cairo…"
Ishizu turns her head, shutting her eyes to block out the bright light. 'Please…save my brother…'
YGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGO
The atmosphere has changed drastically and almost reminiscent of the Shadow Realm. The darkness, the cold and overall emptiness makes Cairo hold her arms. Taking in her surroundings, she makes the conclusion that she has been successful. And now, to search for any signs of the good Marik. But where should she even start? There is no clear way to go.
"Now what?" she asks out loud. Hearing a light grunting noise she whips around and gasps, seeing the good Marik pinned against a dark, shadowy wall. His eyes are partially open and he appears to be in a daze. She quickly runs over to him to help him out. "Marik!"
He lets out a light groan and fully opens his eyes to her relief. "C-Cairo?"
She smiles. "Let's get you out of here, shall we?"
On the outside, Yami Marik suddenly hunches over, holding onto his sides for dear life. A shift has happened from within and he is sure it has something to do with Cairo intruding. Sweat begins to form all over and this burning sensation within his chest and stomach makes him want to puke.
"You guys, look!" Téa exclaims pointing at him. "Something's happening!"
Yugi looks on while tending to the pharaoh at the same time. "Come on Cairo. You can do this…"
Atem grimaces and his eyes slowly open. "Yugi…" he murmurs, seeing him hovering over him. "What are you doing here?"
Yugi looks down, seeing the pharaoh awake and he breathes a sigh of relief. "You're okay!" he exclaims as Atem sits up, holding onto his head.
"What's happening?" His question is answered when he hears Yami Marik screaming in pain and agony, dropping to his knees. But what puzzles him even more is there is no signs of Cairo anywhere. When he looks over to his left, he sees Mana still out of commission and being watched over by Ishizu. He gets up briefly to go over to them and then drops to his knees, taking her in his arms.
"My pharaoh," Ishizu says to him with a concerned look.
"I'm fine. But…how long was I down for?"
"After you passed out, Yami Marik went after Cairo. She was initially saved by Arcana, who unfortunately perished…"
Atem's eyes widen. "What?"
Ishizu nods sadly. "And for a moment, I thought she had met the same fate as him…but it appears a spark has ignited within her and she is fighting back."
"But where is she?"
She points to Yami Marik who continues to writhe in pain and he puts two and two together. His mouth goes agape, shocked and also fearful for her safety.
"Can you walk?" Cairo asks Marik who is initially hunched over and breathing heavily after she managed to free him from his prison using her magic. He slowly nods before standing up straight.
"Thank you," he says to her.
She taps her finger on her chin. "Well…don't thank me just yet. We need to find an exit."
Marik points ahead to a door that has seemingly appeared out of nowhere with an illuminated green exit sign. "I assume that's it."
Cairo blinks. "That's…extremely convenient," she says, dumbfounded that it would be that easy. "I guess Yami Marik didn't expect anyone to be able to infiltrate this place so he is lacking severely in security."
As they make a run for it, the atmosphere around them begins to change. It is becoming increasingly hot to the point where steam is rising in some areas and it is making it hard for them to breathe. Cairo starts to wonder if this is the process of Yami Marik succumbing to the darkness just like Mimic. Or is it something else?
Right before they reach the door, something flashing from the corner of her eye catches her attention and she stops, causing Marik to stop as well.
"What's wrong?" he asks.
"You go ahead," she tells him. "I'll be right behind you."
"But—"
"I'm not getting stuck in here, I'm promise," she assures him with a smile.
He nods and reluctantly gets out, making the atmosphere change again. She knows she doesn't have a lot of time left and she has to leave soon, but that flashing light from the distance is calling out to her and she intends on finding out what it is. It is purple in color and as she runs deeper into the darkness, turning a corner, she gasps.
Right there in front of her is the purple orb containing her dark abilities on a pedestal. She approaches it slowly and with caution, her mouth partially open. Using the back of her arm, she wipes the sweat off her brow and takes a deep breath. There really is no time for her to mentally prepare herself to reverting back to her shadow self.
When she begins the process of taking back her dark power, there will be no turning back. Because she has no intention of letting this dark and dangerous power out of her grasp ever again. Apart of her doesn't want it back. She wishes she can stay her original self. When she returns to the afterlife, she'll still be seen as a monster.
She shakes that thought out of her head. There's no time to be thinking like this. Everyone has to go through a healing process. Including the villagers. She just has to believe in her mind that things will work itself out in the end. And to remember not to be so hard on herself.
Placing her hands on the orb, her head jerks back as she begins to absorb the dark energy back inside her. At first, it seems like it will be a seamless process, just like with her saving Marik. But then, she feels a rumbling and senses a familiar presence that she hasn't sensed in centuries.
"You think I'll let you take it back that easily…?" the voice asks.
Cairo gasps audibly. That voice. That deep, monstrous voice.
No. It can't be.
She looks back to the orb that is halfway empty. She has to keep going. "Come on…" she says to herself. "I'm almost—"
A shockwave suddenly crashes down on her, blowing her back and toppling over the orb. Sitting up, she watches as it rolls further back into the shadows. "No!"
"I may have not been able to conquer the world in Ancient Egypt," the voice continues. "But this time, you shall all die!"
YGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGO
As Yami Marik clenches his head, a blinding light appears around him, causing everyone to shield their eyes. "What's going on?" Téa asks.
"Does this mean Cairo has succeeded?" Tristan asks.
"I think we're about to find out," says Joey as the light begins to fade.
Standing side by side are Marik and Cairo, causing tears to well up in Ishizu eyes while Joey and Tristan give out a cheer. She stands up as her brother walks over to her and she embraces him tightly. "Marik! I'm so glad you're okay!"
"Yes, I'm fine sister," he tells her. "But I wouldn't be here if it weren't for Cairo."
"Cairo!" Atem calls out to her as he cradles Mana in his arms. She slowly turns around, but immediately he can tell something is different about her. While her hair is still long, her eyes are back to its naturally narrowed state and her stoic gaze has returned. "Cairo?"
She silently walks over to them and crouches down, extending her hand to her mother and father. Normally she would be able to chant a silent spell in her shadow form, but she cannot for a very important reason. "As we approach our darkest hour…please restore my parents' power," she chants.
Atem's eyes widen as he feels his strength returning to him. Then he looks down to Mana who grimaces a little before opening her eyes. Her gaze immediately goes to Atem who nods slightly, and then to Cairo. "You're safe…" she says, glad to see her daughter still standing.
"Something seems different about you," Joey points out as Cairo stands up straight and crosses her arms, looking down in deep thought.
Yugi looks toward Yami Marik who lies motionless on the ground. "Does this mean…we've won? And you have your dark powers back?"
"Only a portion," Mana replies for her as Atem helps her to her feet. She can sense the dark powers within her daughter, but it isn't at it's normal level. "Am I right?"
"Yes. In the midst of saving the good Marik, I was able to obtain a chunk of my dark abilities," Cairo tells them, her eyes scrolling up to look at them. "But…I'm afraid we have bigger problems."
"What do you mean?" Atem asks. "What did you see?"
"Yeah, Yami Marik seems pretty toast to me," Tristan says with a shrug.
But Cairo knows better. The voice she heard within Yami Marik sounded awfully a lot like a dark, evil being that she'd hope they'd never see again. And even though Yami Marik appears to be defeated, it's only a matter of time before that darkness re-emerges. She looks over to Yami Marik's body. At first he appears to be lifeless, but as time goes by, she can see subtle movement. First it begins with his chest moving up in down, signaling he is breathing. Then it morphs into twitches here and there.
Narrowing her eyes, she whips out her wand and goes on the defense. Mana studies Yami Marik's body as well before gasping. "No…not good," Mana whispers.
"I sense the presence of pure evil emerging within him," Atem observes, clenching one of his fists.
Yugi and the others exchange nervous glances. "Pharaoh? What's happening?" Yugi asks.
"All of you should get to a safe place," Atem says as a dark cloud of aura begins to emit from Yami Marik, followed by a loud roar.
Joey gulps. "W-What was that?"
"Uh…you guys?" Téa says, watching the darkness beginning to take form. "Maybe we should take the pharaoh's advice."
Cairo grits her teeth. Though she doesn't want to admit, she is extremely on edge. It's getting so bad, her body is beginning to ache from being so tense. But an reassuring hand is placed on her shoulder and she quickly looks up to see her mother standing beside her. "Mom…?"
"We're all in this together," Mana says, her eyes staring forward.
The roar rings out again and Yami Marik's twitching becomes more violent until he sprouts up to his feet, revealing two large horns on his forehead and glowing red eyes. Soon, the darkness envelops his entire body and he begins to grow in size as his body morphs into a very familiar monster.
Atem growls inwardly. Going up against this evil being took everything out of him last time, including having to ultimately seal himself away in the Millennium Puzzle. He thought he would never see him again after regaining his memories and fulfilling his destiny. But there they are, having to face off against him once more.
"Is that…?" Yugi starts off, his mouth going agape.
"But…I thought the pharaoh defeated him for good," Téa says, quivering.
"I guess not," Tristan says, sweat going down the side of his face.
The large monster looks down to the pharaoh, Mana and Cairo and grins. "So…we meet again."
"Zorc…" Atem says between clenched teeth, hardly able to contain the anger building up within him as he stares face to face with his greatest enemy.
YGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGOYGO
AN: This story is about to conclude! I put a Yu-Gi-Oh dubbed reference in there as far as the dream. They used to make comments like "it's a dream, so it's not supposed to make sense" and that would always make me chuckle. So I thought it would be fun to add that lol. What do you think will happen next? Leave a review!