Yami no Game: Dark Saga

Chapter 24

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"The great heroes! They were right in the middle of that!" Adena cried as she and the rest of the villagers looked on. Soon, through the dust, a great structure could be seen rising up from the ground. Adena smiled brightly when she saw what it was. "They did it! Their magic revived the great flying machine!" she said in happiness. Yugi and the others sat up and looked around. "Hey, looks like the Time Wizard did his job!" Jou said triumphantly. "You did it!" Mai cheered, giving the other teen a hug. "Get offa me!" he hissed before they heard cheering from below and they stood to look over the side, seeing Adena and the rest of her kingdom cheering them on. "Man, talk 'bout a bon voyage..." Jou murmured as they waved to the people. "Alright! Let's get this show on the road! I called it! I'm drivin'!" Jou said as he ran up to the steering wheel and steered them towards the castle. Earu came flying up and fluttered before Yugi, making him chuckle. "I guess you're coming along with us, aren't you?" She nodded and he smiled as she rested in his hair as they started on their way to the castle.

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Back outside, Kaiser and Honda were still holding the door close to prevent them from coming in. Honda's grip on the pole that was keeping the door shut loosened just a little, enabling one to nearly get his arm through. Kaiser growled before lunging forward, biting his hand. The guy on the other side howled in pain then went silent when Kaiser jerked his head back, making him collide with the door and was knocked unconscious. He released the hand with a grin as Honda closed the door again. Saruwatari only smirked. "We're going to get in there whether you like it or not!"

"Not on my watch! They're on a rescue mission and we're not letting you get through to stop them!" Honda growled.

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"This is your captain speaking. If you look to our left, you'll see a creepy looking castle, some clouds and a whole horde of monsters out and ready ta devour us!" Jou joked for the time being until the appearance of monsters came into sight when they passed through the clouds. "Look out cause here they come!" Once the ship was in sight, the monsters came flying at them, ready to stop their mission here and now. "Go, Harpie Lady!" Mai called as she summoned her monster along with using Elegant Egotist to tear through the horde. "Giltia, let show them whose boss!" Jou said as he summoned the warrior who joined in the fray. "Black Magician, go!" The magician appeared as well, destroying chunks of monsters easily with Black Magic. "Yeah! Our monsters are kicking butt!" Jou cheered happily before wincing as the whole ship shook with a bombardment from Mega Thunderball to the hull. "Ugh! We're getting hit bad!" Jou kept his hands on the wheel while Mai held on. Yugi wasn't as lucky as he hit the ground when he lost his balance. A Whip-Tailed Crow came after him while he was defenseless as Black Magician was still handling monsters so he couldn't make it back in time to save his master. But a miracle was nestled right in Yugi's hair as Earu came out to use her magic to stop the crow but it wasn't enough as she was batted away like an annoying fly. "Earu, no!" Yugi cried. When things were cleared, Black Magician came down to save Yugi, destroying the monster. "That's it!" Yugi growled as he drew a card. "Swords of Revealing Light!" The swords appeared, trapping the monsters in place. Once that was done, Yugi ran over to where Earu had fallen. "Earu...are you ok..." he whispered. The tiny fairy smiled softly, raising a small hand up to him but soon disappeared right from the palm of his hands. Yugi clenched his hands as he looked down.

/Yami, Aqua...I need you now. Show those bastards that I've had enough with their evil game.../ he whispered through the link. Shadows misted up from the ground and Mai just so happened to have turned to look to Yugi to see this occur. "W-what's going on?"

"Yami and Aqua are mad, that's what's goin' on. Ya never saw 'em pissed so be ready for a shocker." Jou commented as he drove the ship up towards the castle. The pristine white armor grew darker as the shadows grew before a hiss erupted from Yami's throat as he looked up, cerise eyes glowing dangerously, long tail slamming onto the floorboards of the ship. Another pool of shadows grew behind him as Aqua rose up from it, also growling. Mai stepped back just a little as she saw them in their full demon glory. 'I never saw them like this before. The papers didn't lie…they are demons…' she thought as Yami walked over to Jou's side. "Let's go, Jounouchi. Tear through that magical barrier." Jou nodded as he continued driving the ship until they reached the barrier where they were halted for a moment. "Come on, ship! Ya made it through once now don't fail us 'gain!" Jou growled as the ship pierced through and made its way past the barrier. He and Mai gave a sigh of relief. "Well, we're past one obstacle now. And we're almost to the castle." he said. "Not yet. Move, Jounouchi!" Aqua called as a wave of fire shot out from the depths of the castle. Jou's quick maneuvering prevented them from taking the blast head on but the wing of the ship was nicked from the blast. Darkfire Dragon appeared from within, ready to shoot another blast at them. "No! Harpie Lady, take out that dragon!" Harpie Lady rose up from the clouds, rose whip at the ready as she easily defeated the dragon with one swipe. Aqua examined the damage and saw the fire reaching the engine. "It doesn't look good. Grab on!" he called, holding out a hand. Jou grabbed onto him just as the engine went down, a propeller blade coming right at them. Aqua took to the skies as Yami grabbed hold of Mai, doing the same. Harpie Lady, accompanied with her sisters, came to follow behind them, Giltia and Black Magician hanging onto two of them.

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Witty Phantom came walking back in, smirking all the while as he came up to the slab where Kaiba was still tied. "Wake up, Kaiba. You programmed me to torment my captives, not let them get a beauty nap." he spoke as Kaiba growled. "Hmph...maybe I should've programmed you to be silent." he hissed. "Come now. Don't be that way. Besides, look who we captured." he announced as he pointed over to the side where a figure appeared. "His disguise wasn't going to fool anyone." Mokuba stood, taking of the dress as he looked up to his brother. "Mokuba! What are you doing here?!"

"What else, nii-sama? I'm here to save you." he replied. "You're not in any position to be saving anyone. Now when you're both are about to take a dip in the Lava Pool of Atonement. And once the ritual has been complete, the Mythic Dragon will be revived and wreak havoc upon this land." the phantom spoke. "Not on your life!" Mokuba growled. "I call upon you, Swordstalker! Free nii-sama!" he called as the monster appeared, slashing away the binds holding Kaiba. Mokuba slipped off the deck holder and handed it to Kaiba. "Here's your deck, nii-sama." He nodded his thanks as he slipped the holder onto his wrist. "Alright, time for a little payback." he murmured, making the monster panic. "I summon the Blue Eyes White Dragon! Take out that phantom!" The brunet commanded as the dragon appeared behind him. Witty Phantom tried to run but didn't get far as the blast hit him, destroying him. With that obstacle out of the way, both brothers ran out, now looking for the nearest way out. Armed Ninjas came flying out from hidden burrows, one tossing out the Dragon Capture Jar, ready to claim Kaiba's second Blue Eyes. "Not this time! I summon you, Trap Master!" he called as he summoned the monster and said monster grinned as it slashed the jar to pieces, freeing the other Blue Eyes and Kaiba smirked. "There, now that I have my other Blue Eyes, it's time to do some pest control. Blue Eyes, White Lightning!" Both dragons roared as they took out the monsters in their way with ease. When the way was cleared, Kaiba looked down to Mokuba. "Now, Mokuba, tell me. How were you able to get here?"

"Don't get mad...but I asked Yugi and his friends for help." he whispered. "What?! I still have my feelings about those demons of his..."

"But Jounouchi is with them and he willing to give ya a chance so please, don't appear mean to him." Kaiba looked down to him before giving a nod. "Let's just see what happens." he murmured as they ran off to look for a way out.

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"Huh, a floatin' castle with its own forest. Now that's what I call bizarre." Jou murmured as the group ran through the forest. "Hey, look up there. Cocoons of Evolution." Mai called as she pointed to where the horde of them were. "Really? Then why are they buzzing?"

"I don't think it's them that's buzzing, Jou-kun." Aqua whispered as Hercules Beetles and Killer Bees rose up from the forest. "Looks like we got a bug problem! Go Giltia!" Jou called and his monster shot forward, destroying the bugs. But before he could react, he was downed by a Man-Eater Bug. "Shit, looks like we really have ourselves a bug nest." Yami whispered as more bugs swarmed from the forest at them. He quickly drew a card and glanced to it. "Let's go, Mirror Force!" The invisible barrier appeared and like a moth to flame, the bug monsters hit the barrier, falling to the ground in a fiery mass. "This is great and all but the fire is disturbing the cocoons!" Mai exclaimed as Great Moths hatched from their cocoons. "Oh man! We can't handle all them bugs!"

"Oh yes we can." Yami drew two more cards and summon the monsters. Kuriboh and Catapult Turtle appeared. "Kuriboh?! How is he gonna handle this?"

"It's not just him but multiples of him." Yami answered as he used the Multiply card before the turtle shot the tiny puffball towards the moths and on contact, they exploded, taking the moths down in a blaze. Mai and Jou cheered and from outside the game, the Big Five watched the victory before one growled. "It's time to end this rescue and take this game to the final level." he spoke as they all stood. "From creepy forest to creepy cavern. How are we ever going to find those brothers?" Jou muttered as they walked inside. They heard the sound of a roar and looked around. "Did'ya hear that?" Aqua listened closely as another roar was heard. "Yeah, sounds like the Blue-Eyes. They're close." he whispered as a vortex opened up from the top and the Blue-Eyes' head appeared. Kaiba and Mokuba slid off and landed before them. "Nice to see you two aren't trapped anymore." Aqua spoke. "Yeah, despite the unrequited help." Kaiba murmured before looking over to Jou. Said teen crossed his arms, eyes narrowed. "Jounouchi I..." he started but was halted as a maniacal laughter rung through the cavern. "Congratulations, gamers! You've reached the final level."

"On the contrary, we've beaten the game. Now end it!" Kaiba snarled. "Oh, is that what you really think, Kaiba?"

"Yes I've escaped the lava pool, therefore the Mythic Dragon wasn't revived. This game is over." A chuckle was heard. "Of course but the game's not over. Not what we have control!" he said as the area shifted around them. "Hey! What going on here?!"

"They still have control over the game so they're summoning the Mythic Dragon themselves!" Kaiba answered as the large five-headed dragon appeared. "How are we supposed to beat that thing?!" Mai exclaimed. "I don't know but standin' here gawkin' isn't gonna help." Jou exclaimed. "Alright then. Let's get this final battle started, I call on the Harpie Lady Sisters!" The three harpies appeared but no longer after they did, they gave a cry of pain. "What's going on?!"

"Just a little extra programming we did." The voice spoke as a seal appeared beneath them. "We call it the dragon seal which makes this place a sacred location where only dragon type monsters can fight."

"A battle of dragons, huh? You five are fools to think you'll win against me. Come forth, Blue-Eyes!"

"Yeah! We'll kick yer Mythic Dragon butt to the trash heap! Red-Eyes, come on out!"

"Harpie's Pet Dragon, let's go!"

"And I call on you, Curse of Dragon!" The four dragons appeared before each launching their attacks but the Mythic Dragon easily countered it with four of its own. "Tch! They all cancelled out." Aqua whispered. "Indeed, but one of you doesn't have a dragon to attack or defend with." Kaiba's eyes widened as he looked to Mokuba. "No!" The middle head charged its attack before unleashing it towards Mokuba. "Block it, Red-Eyes!" The dragon flew in front of Mokuba, blocking him from the blast. The Blue-Eyes, on the other hand, saw this and gave a cry. "Jounouchi!" Kaiba called as Jou's life points hit zero and he collapsed. The brunet ran forwards and knelt down beside him. "Jounouchi..." The blonde glanced up to Kaiba and smiled a little. "So...ya have a heart after all. Maybe ya still have a chance..." he whispered. "No...don't go..." The blonde laughed a little as he started to disappear. "Win this game, guys..." he whispered before he was gone completely. "Jounouchi..." Kaiba whispered again as Mai looked back to the dragon, tears in her eyes. "What kind of sick, twisted game did you turn this into?!"

"Game? This was a game long ago." Kaiba growled as he stood. "We're going to stop you here and now! And when I'm through with you all, you're going to wish you never pissed me off." he sneered. "We're going to need a new tactic then. Aqua, watch over Mokuba." Aqua nodded and moved over to Mokuba's side, letting the younger climb onto his back. "So, what are we going to do?"

"That dragon is powerful but only one monster came match up to it." Yami said as he drew two cards. "Black Luster Soldier, I summon you by sacrificing Gaia and Curse of Dragon!" The ritual appeared before them and the two sacrificial monsters were sacrificed. Soon enough, the ultimate warrior appeared but was weakened by the seal. "Guess you're foolhardier than we thought. Only dragons can attack so he is rendered useless. On the other hand, we can attack him and be rid of you!"

"Not if I can help it! Go!" Mai called and Harpie's Pet Dragon moved in to attack. "Worthless!" The dragon attacked again, overpowering Mai's dragon and destroyed it, taking her out in the process. "Mai!" She looked to them weakly. "Looks like I won't be here long enough to see how this ends but I know you can do it..." Mai whispered before she was gone as well. Yami growled deeply as he glared up at the dragon god. "This...ends...now..." he hissed before looking to Kaiba. "I'm going to need your cooperation. Create the Blue-Eyes Ultimate."

"No way. This is personal now. I'll kill that dragon on my own!"

"How, Kaiba? You already lost two of your crew but now, we're going to make it three." The dragon charged for another attack before unleashing it. Aqua spotted the attack not aiming for the Blue-Eyes and gasped. Mokuba saw this as well and urged Aqua forward. "Nii-sama! It's not your dragon they're attacking!" he called as they slammed him out of the way but Aqua couldn't react in time to move from the blast himself. A terrible roar left him as the two collapsed.

"Mokuba..."

"I'm ok..." he murmured before both started to disappear. "Mokuba!"

/Aqua!/ Yami gave a roar, eyes flashing before looking to Kaiba. "Don't let this sacrifice be in vain, Kaiba! Get off your pompous ass and summon that dragon! I have a plan but it'll be for nothing if one of us is defeated!" he snapped. Kaiba looked to the other, wide-eyed before nodding as he brought out the cards needed, summoning his other two dragons and combined them with Polymerization. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"I do." The Five gave a laugh. "Sure, that dragon is powerful but we are the ultimate! You will not win!"

"You talk big but that's where you're wrong. Apparently you never heard of one creature that can take down a god." Yami spoke as he brought out the final card needed. "I use Polymerization! Go Black Luster Knight!"

"You too, Blue-Eyes!"

"We won't let you!" They said as the Mythic Dragon unleashed all five attacks at the monster but they were all neutralized. "What?! Nothing happened!"

"Oh, something did happen." Yami whispered as the reformed monster appeared. "Meet the supreme Dragon Master Knight! Now, unleash your power!" The knight raised his sword as Red-Eyes and Harpie's Pet Dragon appeared. "Why have they returned? We destroyed them!"

"Yes, but Dragon Master Knight gains attack from every dragon here, even ones that died in battle!" The Mythic Dragon roared in anguish as its power was being taken along with that of the Red-Eyes, Curse of Dragon and Pet Dragon. "Now, time for this game to be truly finished. Dragon Master Knight, finish off the Mythic Dragon with Dragon Saber Blast!" Both monsters unleashed their attacks, both combining into one great blast that destroyed the Mythic Dragon. "Game over." Yami sneered as the terrain disappeared and both Kaiba and Yami fell into an abyss before blacking out.

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Yami groaned as he awoke to the sounds of cheering and looked up just as Kaiba was getting up to see the townspeople before them, cheering. "Great heroes, you have slain the dragon and brought our kingdom peace." Adena spoke as she walked up to them. "Yes but we have suffered a great loss." Yami murmured. She smiled a little. "Even for heroes, no matter how strong, shouldn't have to bear such a terrible loss." she whispered as she shone with a holy light, becoming the Mystical Elf. "Look at that. She going to revive everyone." A pillar of light came down from the heavens and brought back everyone, including Earu. Yami smiled as he walked over to them. "Good to have you all back safe and sound." Aqua looked up to him and smiled. "Glad to be back."

"Mokuba!"

"Nii-sama!" Mokuba stood and ran over to Kaiba and hugged him. The brunet smiled as he returned the gesture before looking up as Jou walked over to him. "So, what was it that you were tryin' ta tell me?" he questioned. Kaiba was silent for a moment before Mokuba nudged him. "Well, even after all I've put you and your friends through over the course of time, I came to really like you, Jounouchi. I want you to give me a chance to prove myself to you."

"Hmm, I dunno...ya really put us through shit on countless occasions, not ta mention the insults." Aqua walked over to him and patted his shoulder. "Try it out, even if it's just for a little while, Jou-kun." he offered as Jou looked to him before looking back to Kaiba. "Alright then. But you're still on thin ice, Kaiba."

"Please, call me Seto." Mokuba grinned happily that his brother finally got the chance he was waiting for before looking to see a large vortex open up. "Nii-sama! The exit portal is open!" he chirped and he nodded. "Let's go." he murmured before looking to the others. "At first, I was going to say that your help wasn't really needed but if anything, I never would've gotten out alive without it so I guess some thanks are in order here. As for you Yami, we do make a good team but I still have a score to settle with you. Don't expect another chance at a partnership like this so easily in the near future." He chuckled as he crossed his arms, nodding. "I'm sure that the grudge you hold is still there but don't make a promise that might be your downfall." he murmured. "Whatever you say. Let's go. I have some executives to fry." Seto murmured as he walked through the portal with Mokuba.

"Great heroes, we will never forget your deeds for the kingdom and the people!"

"And we will never forget you guys either!" Jou said before they all walked out, waving to the people before they walked through the portal.

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"We're in!" One of the goons thundered as they charged in. "Bring it on, you lousy suits!" Honda growled as he blocked them from getting further in with the pipe. Ruby was about to jump in and offer help when the pods opened and Aqua growled as he leapt out first, scaring the guards as he bared teeth and claws. The others climbed out and Kaiser smiled. "It's good to see you all made it!" he said cheerfully. "No..." Saruwatari whispered. "Yeah! And nii-sama out too and without you lug heads to watch your bosses, he's going to be kicking some major executive asses!" Mokuba hissed. "Oh no! He's right! Retreat!" Saruwatari called and they all filed out in hopes to reach the Big Five before Seto. "Good riddance." Ruby murmured before looking to them. "So, how did it go?"

"A major pain but we made it through." Jou hummed. "Not that." he teased, smirking. "Oh…Oh! Yeah, I gave ya bro a chance. He's still on thin ice, though. Just one wrong move and it's over." Jou huffed. Ruby chuckled along with Mokuba before he looked to them. "Thanks you guys. I don't know what I would do without you to help." Aqua smiled. "It's nothing, kiddo. Now go on. I'm sure your brother doesn't want you out of his sight again." The raven-haired boy nodded as he took Ruby's hand and ran off, waving back to them. They watched him go before hearing a yawn and looked around for a moment before spotting Mai coming out from the back room. "So she was here all along?"

"Yep, in the flesh. So how'd it go?"

"Seto's safe and sound and the executives that caused this mess is about to get a rude awakening, Kaiba style." Yugi said. She chuckled and nodded. "That's good. Dorks like them shouldn't be allowed to get their hands in technology again."

"Yeah..." Yugi looked over to Aqua and ran over to hug him. "You really scared me, you know."

"I'm sure but I can't be rid of that easily."

"That's a good thing." he whispered as he kissed his snout. "Now let's get out of here."

"Yeah, I'm bushed." Jou yawned before they all left the building and headed off on their separate ways.

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Zypher: And there you have it. The end of Legendary Heroes. And yep, mucho love development between Jou and Seto. Cheer for less pompous Seto, people! -throw confetti- Any who, hope you all enjoy the chapter. Now time for the voting poll news. Looks like Noah's Virtual World has won by a landslide so that shall be placed into the story once we get to that point. So now I'm ending that poll early and putting up the next one which is Grand Championship. So place in your votes now! And now, time for my favorite past time with this story, a little Duel Monster story for you all from Seto's deck.

-Shadow Realm: Kaiba's Deck-

Yikido stomped around, angrier than before after what happened. Virtual reality or not, he still had his mind intact there and he didn't like the Mythic Dragon in the slightest. /"That bastard dragon! How dare he attack the little one?!"/ he growled. /"And my precious Red-Eyes was hurt! I'll never forgive it or those executives! I oughta tear them to pieces if I had the chance to!"/ he raved. Aoi watched from where he sat before giving a sigh. /"Yikido. Enough stomping around. You really don't want to catch Torone's attention again, now do you?"/ The other stopped and knew the eldest was right. He still remembered the threat the other made to him. He would rub it in his face that he'll never get the chance to meet the Red-Eyes face to face but he didn't feel like picking a fight with him. /"It's so annoying to know I'll never see that Red-Eyes except for in battle..."/ he murmured. "You may be lucky this time around though." An unknown voice spoke and he turned quickly to see Dragon Master Knight standing there. /"How'd you get here?"/

"I'm a combined monster of both Kaiba and Master Yami so I can travel through either realm of either deck." Luster spoke as the middle head lowered. "But like I said, you're lucky. Kaiba was able to get through to Jounouchi and now they're together. It's still a rocky start after all Kaiba put him through but it's still something and with Master Jounouchi a little accepting, the monsters here have a chance to explore around his deck realm."

/"Really? That mean I can finally meet my Red-Eyes!"/ Yikido chirped, happy with the news. Luster chuckled. "I can lead the way. I go by there often to see the warriors and give them a lesson or two." Luster spoke. /"Of course!"/ Luster stroked Ulhar's head before hopping off and landed on Yikido. "Let's go." Yikido nodded as he spread his wings and flew out of the realm. Aoi chuckled as he watched before walking with Ulhar, talking with him. When both dragons were gone did Torone show himself, eyes narrowed as he watched Yikido leave. 'You think you're so lucky. That you always get picked every time Master Kaiba goes into battle. You got to see the Red-Eyes twice but I'm going to end it here.' he thought as he followed behind them.

-TBC-

Zypher: Well looky there, I have a mini story going on! -chuckles- Yep, Jou's acceptance of Seto has now opened a way for his monsters to his deck but looks like Torone isn't a happy camper with Yikido out to see Akai. We shall see what happens soon enough. Anyways, hoped you enjoy this little story and will be awaiting more. And if you have any suggestion for a name for Black Luster Soldier, please shout 'em out. I wanted to think of something better but nothing has come to mind yet. See ya soon!

Ulhar [draconian/name for Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon]: Blue