Part 2 of Arkana's duel.
Usual reminders:
Italics are thoughts. Bold is Malekos' speech.
I do not claim to own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I only own Jessica and Malekos.
Jessica crossed her arms as she listened to Arkana regain his composure and taunt about him being the star of the show. She bit her lip as Yami summoned a second monster, only to have it sacrificed along with Arkana's in order to summon his own Dark Magician. It appeared in red robes with that same wicked grin that Arkana wore, and she frowned. The monster fit his master, that's for sure.
She groaned as she watched Arkana match Yami move for move, placing the same amount of cards face-down on the field while neither made a move to attack with their Dark Magician. I'm gonna get a headache if he keeps repeating himself about all this 'illusionist' stuff.
You and me both. She heard Malekos growl. He seemed to be interested in how the duel would play out, so he was at the forefront of her mind as she watched the two duelists.
She tensed as Yami's Dark Magician was pulled onto a guillotine, but relaxed when he was saved by four floating hats that concealed him. Just in time too, because the hat that had been placed over the magician sliced in half and revealed nothing. The other three hats retreated to Yami's side of the field and she found herself wondering just which hat the magician was under. She stopped only when she was going to give herself a headache from too much thinking. That was a close one. Nice move, Yami.
She found herself rubbing her temples when the two resorted to destroying each other's magicians and then revived them both again. It was like looking in a mirror, a very bad mirror. She groaned quietly as Arkana stayed secretive, but then watched in horror as he removed his mask to reveal his scarred face. She stood frozen, her eyes wide in shock as one of her hands reached up to touch her own scar on the nape of her neck.
A bad mirror indeed.
She stayed silent as Arkana told his story about how he had it all, a show to his name and the love of his life who stayed loyal by his side. But something went wrong with one of his acts and he was burned, and his insanity for the loss of his face that earned him the fame drove his fiancé away from him. It was Marik who initially "saved" Arkana, and she watched as he placed his mask back onto his face.
"Sorry, little lady! That was a sight to behold, wasn't it?" Arkana laughed at her shocked expression, placing his free hand across his chest.
As Yami turned to look at her to see what was wrong, she scoffed and hugged herself. "I'm sick of all these memories surfacing around every corner," she growled quietly to herself, looking away briefly to avoid Yami's gaze. She didn't even pay attention as Arkana explained his motives, and Yami tried to tell him it wouldn't work.
When another light flicked on, she found herself looking over. The shadow behind the curtain looked like a woman sitting in a chair peacefully, as if asleep. But something about it sent a chill down her spine.
I sense no life in whatever he calls 'Catherine'. He's been lied to. Malekos growled in her mind, and she found herself agreeing. Marik has been showing his true colors lately and it wasn't hard to believe that he would trick a poor man in hysteria with a lie.
She looked back towards the duel as they started to make their next moves. Cards were flipped up and Yami's Dark Magician was soon chained to a wall, looking like one of those magic acts where someone would throw a knife at them. She could see the strain on the magician's face and she blinked in surprise. Why do they seem so real?
There seems to be more to this 'Duel Monsters' game than we know.
She gulped and continued watching, hoping that both the magician and Yami would be okay. And as Yami was attacked directly, she dug her nails into her arms as she watched the whirring saw grow closer to him. Her heart leaped into her throat and she watched as his magician looked worriedly at his master. It really was looking like the game was more than it seemed to be. She didn't know anything about this 'Heart of the Cards' that Yami and Yugi always spoke of, but she found herself wanting to understand it.
"Sorry, little lady, but your little Yugi will be sent to the Shadow Realm in the next turn!" Arkana announced and laughed.
Jessica bristled and growled, glaring daggers at the illusionist. She glanced at Yami and clenched her hands into fists. "Hang in there! I know you can get out of this!" He glanced at her and nodded in response.
"We'll see about that!" Arkana drew a card and played a monster. It was revealed that his plan was to turn one of his monsters on the field into a concentrated form of energy and fire it directly at Yami as a direct attack. His magician didn't like the idea as he stared back at his master at the betrayal.
As the soul of Arkana's puppet was drained and fired at Yami, Jessica couldn't help but reach out to him as the saw grew dangerously closer. "Yami!"
"Not so fast, little lady!" Arkana's voice stopped her in her tracks and she grit her teeth at his next words. "Your interference will be an immediate loss for Yugi!"
She growled and planted her feet, clenching and unclenching her fists over and over. Sweat formed along her jaw as she watched Arkana suck the soul out of his magician and fire it towards Yami. "No!" She gasped, covering her mouth as she feared what was about to transpire. Her green eyes flashed red briefly, causing an ache in her mind.
But just as she thought it was over, a blinding light enveloped the room and Yami's Dark Magician shielded the attack with his soul, causing her to sigh in relief and her knees grew weak. The saw echoed in her ears with a sickening sound but she stayed standing as she watched Yami summon a monster, only to have both of his monsters destroyed by a trap card. And Arkana's second Dark Magician entered the field with a wicked smirk. But before his magician could land an attack, Yami's Dark Magician Girl entered the field and destroyed him. And then she attacked Arkana directly, dropping his life points to zero.
Jessica let out the breath she had been holding and dropped to her knees, "Oh, thank goodness!" She felt her hands shaking but she clenched them into fists to hide that fact. She lifted her head and watched as Yami unlocked himself from the cuffs, and Arkana began to panic. She jolted in shock when a pounding sound caught her attention from the door behind her. She whipped around and saw the closed door they had come in through. Was someone behind that door?
"Jess, help me!" Yugi's voice caught her attention and she saw him running towards Arkana.
She sprung into action. She pushed onto her feet and darted into the field, reaching the two, she watched as Yugi was unlocking the illusionist's cuffs and her nerves spiked as she saw the saw blade get dangerously close to Yugi. Once she heard the second click of the cuff unlocking, her eyes flashed red and she snatched both males' jackets in her fists tightly and pulled with all her might. They ended up on the ground with her on her back and Yugi on top of her and she gasped for breath, ears ringing as she waited for the telltale sound of someone screaming in pain. But it never came. She relaxed against the floor and let out a sigh of relief, clutching her chest.
She felt Yugi get up and start talking, but Arkana didn't seem to hear him. She pushed herself up into a sitting position and watched as the illusionist ran towards the curtains concealing who he thought was the love of his life. But as the curtains fell, it was revealed that Catherine was really just a mannequin. She saw Yugi start to move towards Arkana but Malekos growled in her mind and it made her surge forward to grab his arm and stopped him from getting closer. "Yugi, no!"
"Arkana is gone!" It was Marik speaking through Arkana like a puppet, meaning the illusionist's mind was gone. "So we meet again, little Yugi. I'm sure I need no introduction."
Yugi glared at the glowing eye on Arkana's forehead, and Jessica could feel how tense he was as she gripped his jacket. "Show your face to me, Marik! You coward!"
"I'll reveal myself to you when the time is right and no sooner. Once I obtain what's mine, and you know exactly what I want. The unlimited power of the ancient pharaoh! The spirit that lives within your puzzle."
Jessica growled as she felt that ache in her mind. She had allowed her nerves to get a hold of her too much and it was starting to take a toll on her.
"No way, Marik!" Yugi grit his teeth.
"You can't stop me! Remember when I took control of Bandit Keith? I almost succeeded in separating you from the millennium puzzle forever! Unfortunately, you were able to put it back together before you and your spirit friend were destroyed." She bristled at his words, eyes flashing red as she remembered. It was the day Yugi was caught in the fire.
Calm down, little one… Malekos warned her as he growled quietly.
"Tell me why you want Yami's power. Answer me!" Yugi shouted, clenching his fists.
"Because that power is rightfully mine and once I have it I will be unstoppable. The world will belong to me! And no one will stand in the way of my destiny. Especially not you or that demon girl. I have big plans for her."
Jessica froze as Arkana turned towards her and she faintly heard Yugi gasp. How does he know?! She growled in response, baring her teeth in an animalistic snarl. "You don't even know what you'll be dealing with," she sneered, eyes flashing red. She felt Yugi's hands on her arm, but she was too focused on glaring at the puppet in front of them.
"Leave her alone!"
"Well, we'll just see about that." Arkana snickered, and then went on to explain his family tradition and what he learned through ancient scriptures. About the puzzle and the Egyptian God cards, which he can only win through duels.
Yugi clutched the chain that held his puzzle and then glared at Arkana. "Marik, you'll never defeat me in a duel so you'll never get your greedy hands on my puzzle!"
Arkana gave them a warning about who to expect a duel with, and that one of his puppet's held an Egyptian God card. "Beware the quiet one."
Yugi tried to ask more about it, but Arkana was released from the power of the rod and slumped forward. Jessica let go of him so he could catch the illusionist before he hit the ground, who was groaning. She jolted in shock as the door burst open behind them and she got into a fighting stance as she whipped around, only to relax as she saw Yugi's friends and Solomon run in. She breathed a sigh of relief and held a hand to her head, feeling the dull throb in her head as everyone swarmed in and made sure everything was okay.
You know you tap into my power each time you get upset like that. Malekos explained with a huff. It wasn't his fault she was feeling like crap. But don't worry. I won't let Marik touch you.
Jessica silently thanked him and then excused herself as she headed out the door, earning some confused stares that she didn't care about. She headed up the stairs to the outside and breathed in the fresh outside air, leaning against the wall of the building.
"Jess!" Yugi's voice called out to her as he ran out the doorway and spotted her immediately a few feet away. He walked over to her, reaching out to touch her shoulders. "Are you okay? You had me worried back there…"
She couldn't hold back anymore. Before he could touch her, she whipped around and threw her arms around him in a tight hug, making him gasp in surprise. "I was worried about you! That duel was a horrible game Marik created and I thought I was going to lose you… It was so hard for me to hold back." She buried her face into his shoulder as she clutched at his jacket on his back.
His arms found their way around her and rubbed soothing circles on her back. "I know… But I'm okay. I'm worried about you though." He managed to pull away from her tight embrace enough to look at her face with concerned violet orbs. "I saw what was going on. Was Malekos trying to take control?"
She shook her head. "No… He said that when I get upset like that, I unintentionally start to tap into his power."
"I see." He was silent for a moment, as if thinking, and then gave a reassuring smile. "Thank you for being there for both me and Yami. You don't know how much it means to us."
She found herself smiling back despite the dull ache in her head. "And I've decided to continue to be there for you, no matter what." They shared another hug and then decided to head back to the game shop to get some rest for the day. She blushed as they held hands while walking. She wasn't sure if it was because he was still worried about her well-being or because he simply wanted to, but she wasn't about to complain either way.
Uh oh, I wonder what Marik has planned for Jessica? In any case, he'll have to go through Malekos first.
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