As Jessica rolled her shoulder to get rid of that aching feeling from earlier, she watched Gansley draw a card and place it among his hand. He picked up another card and placed it on the field, and immediately ordered it to attack Yami's swordsman. She gasped as Yami groaned and fell to the ground, with a worried Kuriboh hovering above him.
"Yami!" She called out, rushing to his side and dropping down to her knees as she grasped his shoulders.
"Had enough, Yugi?" When Yami didn't respond to Gansley's question, she gently shook him. "What's that? I couldn't hear you. With your face in the dirt and all!" He laughed, "Looks like you're down for the count!"
Jessica growled as she glared at the businessman. She was relieved when she saw the rise and fall of Yami's back as he breathed. He groaned and opened one eye to glare at Gansley, "Never!"
"Pardon?"
"You heard me." With Jessica's help, he stood up back on his feet and faced Gansley with a serious face. "I'll never give up. As long as I have life points, it's on!" He took a step to stabilize himself, and he gently pushed her away so he could stand on his own. Although he looked like he was having a rough time.
"You're more foolish than I thought. Even the more experienced people in the business world know when it's time to close shop. Not that it matters that much to me. Your life pointer count will be empty soon enough, Yugi. Then I'll escape to the real world at last, once I take over your scrawny body. And it all happens when I launch my next attack!"
Jessica went back to her original position next to her Bujingi Wolf and watched as Yami started his turn at the urging of Gansley's smug words. He drew a card and seemed to stare at it, and she could see the gears turning as Gansley continued to taunt him. He placed it face-down on the field and then nodded to her, "It's your move."
She nodded and drew her card, hoping for something useful that could help them. At One with the Sword. She clicked her tongue as she set it among the cards in her hand. This won't help! I don't have an X-Saber on the field! She glanced briefly at the monsters on Gansley's side of the field. If I attack, he'll just send it right back at me.
Look more closely at the field. What differences do you see? Malekos growled in her mind, urging her to listen and focus.
Differences? She glanced at Gansley's monsters once more before looking at her own two monsters, at Yami's monsters, and the cards they both had face-down on the field. She furrowed her brows and she bit her lip to keep from gasping out loud. He doesn't have any spells or traps on the field!
Yes. He seems to rely mostly on his monsters and their own effects. You and that pharaoh have the advantage of the cards you placed on the field, Malekos explained to her. Unless he actually places something down, you may be able to win that way.
"What's taking so long, girl? Thinking about giving up already?" Gansley taunted as her silence drew on, and she scoffed in response.
"In your dreams!" Jessica straightened her back as she narrowed her eyes at him. She only hoped Yami had a plan, because she sure didn't yet. "Make your move."
Gansley laughed at her, "As you wish!" He drew a card and played it immediately. "I play my magic card, Offerings to the Doom!" It allows him to destroy any monster he wishes on his opponent's side of the field, and he chose Chimera. But when it was destroyed, Berfomet was able to be summoned in its place and Yami's defense was stable once more. "It makes no difference to me. The end result will be the same once I play this card!" He sacrificed his two monsters to summon a new monster. "Rainbow Snake Gangana! I know it's a bit too late, but here's some advice," he offered. "Next time you decide to swim with the big fish, pack a life jacket because you're sinking fast! Not that there's going to be a next time. Soon you'll be trapped here!" He ordered his snake to attack Berfomet and it was destroyed immediately, but the attack was still headed straight for Yami.
"Yami!" Jessica cried out and then gasped as an explosion happened, making her cover her face with her arms. She heard Bujingi Wolf howl next to her as she opened her eyes to see the smoke clear, and Yugi now stood where Yami had been, untouched. She smiled as she sighed in relief, "Yugi!"
"How are you still standing?!" Gansley exclaimed in disbelief at what he was seeing.
"My deck master saved me!" Yugi grinned and he gave Jessica a thumbs up, to which she returned with her own grin and a faint blush. A confident Yugi was always a pleasure to see. "Thanks to his special ability, Kuriboh formed a protective wall!"
Jessica could see him speaking to Yami in spectral form, when suddenly he began to collapse. "Yugi!" She reached out her hand, but faltered when Yami immediately switched places and caught Yugi's now spectral form in his arm. She waited with concerned green eyes as Yami talked to himself, and then turned to give her a nod. She only hoped that meant Yugi would be fine.
Yami turned back to Gansley. "Alright, Gansley, this duel's not done!" He growled, glaring at the businessman. He allowed Yugi to retreat to the safety of their mind to rest while Gansley talked, mocking him again. Now that Kuriboh's ability was activated to defend them, he was now on the field and open for an attack.
"Make your final pathetic move, Yugi," Gansley told him. "Not that you have any options. All you've got is your puny Kuriboh. And what can he do?"
"Wait and see!" Yami glanced at his deck master with a smirk before drawing a card. "You like to do a lot of talking, Gansley. Now it's my turn to give the advice. Misjudging the power of the small can be a big mistake in business and in Duel Monsters."
Jessica watched as he started to look confident, and not just the hopeful confidence. It was the kind of confidence that usually meant he had a fool-proof plan and that he was about to win. And it made her smile as she listened and watched.
"I guess they never taught you that on your way up the corporate ladder. So Kuriboh and I will just have to teach you this lesson the hard way, by eliminating you from this duel. And then, based on your own twisted rules, you'll be trapped in this world for eternity!"
"You're just bluffing!" Gansley scowled. "It doesn't matter what card you just drew."
"Really?" Yami held up his card for them to see and Jessica could see the shape of a purple horse with a swordsman on its back.
"Is that Swift Gaia the Fierce Knight?" Gansley laughed, "That's useless! Remember my special ability? Attack me with whatever monster you like and it still won't affect me. I'll just reflect the attack back to you! With only 1800 life points to spare, you'll wipe yourself out!"
"I wouldn't be so sure." Yami exchanged a glance with Kuriboh and then he activated his face-down card, Rainbow Blessing. It was combined with Kuriboh and the fluffball was showered in a rainbow light, changing the color of his fur exactly to the color of the rainbow. And at Yami's call, Kuriboh created a rainbow arch across to Gansley's side of the field. Then he summoned Swift Gaia in attack mode. "Your monsters are not my target. I'm aiming directly for your life points!" His horseman rode atop the rainbow bridge and stabbed Gansley in the chest and dropped his life points down to zero.
As Gansley cursed and disappeared, Jessica threw up her arms in a cheer, only to grimace when she felt her shoulder ache mildly. She faltered when Yami knelt down, taking a breather. "Yami! Are you alright?" She knelt down beside him and he nodded.
"I'm just glad that's over with," he told her. "At least for now. It's time to find our friends. There's no telling what danger Noah may have put them in." He glanced up and thanked Kuriboh, and all the monsters and cards on the field disappeared. He stood up, and Jessica stood up with him. "And thank you, Jessica."
She scrunched up her face in disbelief. "Me? All I had was a line of defense. I never drew a helpful card that entire time," she scoffed at herself. "I feel like I was just a sideline player the whole time."
"That's not true. You made a risky choice that could have cost us our bodies had I made the attack myself," Yami assured her, turning to face her. "For your first duel, you held your own decently."
"I can't tell if that was a compliment or a hidden critique…" She pursed her lips as he began to laugh at her words, but something behind him caught her attention. "What's that?"
Yami turned and followed her gaze, watching as a door suddenly materialized. And suddenly, Yugi appeared in spectral form beside them, looking as if he hadn't collapsed moments before. "Looks like a passageway," he announced.
Jessica felt her heart flutter and she couldn't help the relieved smile that spread across her face. "Yugi, you're okay!" She jumped to hug him without thinking, and her arms phased right through him as she attempted to wrap her arms around him. But she only succeeded in hugging herself. She stepped aside so she wasn't just standing in him and pouted, pointing a finger at his face. "I'm giving you the biggest hug when you switch places again."
You're ridiculous. Malekos shook his head within her mind, but she ignored him.
Yugi rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly and tried to change the subject away from his nearing demise in the disguise of a hug, "Let's check out that door. We might find the gang!"
"You're right," Yami spoke up, after watching their little exchange in silent amusement. "Hopefully, that's where it leads. Our friends could be in grave danger. Let's just hope we're not too late."
With Yami in the lead, they walked closer to the door and he reached out to grab the vertical handle. Pulling it open, they could see a darkness on the other side that revealed nothing to their eyes. All they could do was enter and hope for the best. Jessica gulped and snagged Yami's jacket in her grasp, making sure to keep close so they didn't get unexpectedly separated.
And here's where I leave off for tomorrow! Leave a review and let me know what you think~