DISCLAIMER: If you recognise it from somewhere else, it isn't mine.

Friends Til the End Part III

Kaiba watched Yugi cross back over to his side of the field. The timer was down to twenty minutes. Wheeler was climbing to his feet. Glancing over at Sharee, he wondered what she meant. Use déjà vu as a weapon. How did one use déjà vu as a weapon? The only way to know was to watch.

'Joey?' Yugi called. 'Are you in there?'

Wheeler ground his teeth. No doubt Marik was in his head again. Wheeler's hand wrapped around the chain of the Puzzle. He seemed to be fighting as his lips were tugged into a smirk. He repeated what had been chanted into his head. 'Destroy…Yugi.' Wheeler pulled the Puzzle from around his neck. He took one piece of the Puzzle out and wrapped his fist around it. He turned like he was going to pitch it into the ocean. Kaiba found himself tensing.

'He won't do it,' Sharee said.

'Huh?' Kaiba and Mokuba both looked at her.

Sharee was watching this with the kind of smirk you'd give someone who you knew couldn't do what they were trying to do. Kaiba turned his head. 'What do you mean by that?'

'What Marik obviously doesn't realise is that Yugi and Joey's friendship started with Joey throwing one piece of the Puzzle away.'

Suddenly her earlier comment made perfect sense. This had happened before so with the effects of déjà vu, Yugi would release Wheeler from Marik's control. The more that guy tried to push the dork to throw the Puzzle piece, the less control he'd have over him. And it was something Marik would do.

'Please stop!' Yugi called.

Wheeler froze. His entire body shook in strain. He collapsed to his knees again. On one hand, Marik was pushing him to throw the Puzzle piece. On the other, Wheeler was unfailingly loyal to Yugi – a trait all his friends possessed. His free will was attempting to break through and it was succeeding.

Even if he had nothing else going for him, Wheeler still had his willpower.

YGO

Sharee wasn't really surprised when Joey, even brainwashed, "changed his mind". He stood up, put the Puzzle piece back and replaced and mystical artefact around his neck. To be fair, Sharee had warned Marik. People with strong wills could not be controlled for very long. It was clear Joey was already breaking through.

Marik seemed to regain some control of him though. 'Your little friendship plan won't work, Yugi. Your friend's mind belongs to me. You hear me?' It also sounded like Marik was getting frustrated. 'Prepare for defeat!' He used Joey to point at him. 'Yugi, get on with the duel. The sooner you make your move, the sooner I can eliminate your life points, and you'd better act quickly because you only have fourteen minutes before that anchor pulls you and your best friend into the ocean's depths. You'll be out of my way once and for all!'

Sharee's eyes narrowed. Don't you wish.

YGO

Yugi stared across the field at Joey.

'Make your move, little Yugi!' Marik demanded through his best friend.

Yugi drew. 'Fine. Since your turn is over, Red Eyes regains 500 of the attack points it lost last turn, Marik.' The Dragon lifted his head with a low growl as its attack went back up to 900. 'Get ready.' He looked at the card he'd drawn. Beta the Magnet Warrior could help. I need to free Joey's mind from Marik's control. Last turn, when Marik made him attack the Red Eyes Black Dragon, the real Joey broke through. I've got to make that happen again if I'm going to save him and get us out of this mess. But Red Eyes is weak and, if it does get attacked, I could lose this duel to Marik and put the whole world in danger. Yugi took the cards from his hand. 'I place two cards face-down…' They appeared in front of him. '…and then I summon Beta the Magnet Warrior in attack mode!' The card appeared on the field and Beta emerged. 'And that will end my turn.'

'How foolish,' Marik said. He had Joey draw. 'It's time to end this.' He looked at his card. 'Destroy…Yugi…' The statement sounded monotone. Joey's eyes met his. 'All right, little Yugi, time to wipe out your Red Eyes and your life points.'

The Pharaoh's voice somehow reached him. Yugi, you're losing him. Marik's hold on Joey is getting stronger.

Yugi tensed at the warning.

Joey's card was set on the duel disk. 'I play Panther Warrior.' The card appeared on the field in attack mode and the monster emerged from it. 'You're done!' The Panther Warrior roared. 'But first…before I strike, I'll transform Rocket Warrior into its invincible mode.' Just that happened and the monster in question shot towards Yugi's side of the field again. 'I'll attack with Rocket Warrior!' The point turned. 'And the target shall be Yugi's Magnet Warrior.' The Rocket monster sailed across the battlefield.

'Not so fast.' Yugi activated one of his down cards. 'I reveal my face-down trap! Activate Magic Armshield!' The card flipped up and glowed brightly.

The smirk fell off of Joey's face. 'Huh?'

The Armshield attached itself to Beta's arm. The mechanism came out and caught Rocket Warrior, turning it around. 'I'll intercept your Rocket Warrior and redirect the rocket attack…' That thing didn't want to turn, but the Armshield forced it. '…towards your Panther Warrior!' The Armshield got the Rocket Warrior turned around and let it go. It sailed back the way it came and punched through its ally. 'And thanks to your Attrition magic card Panther Warrior loses 1500 attack points, bringing its strength all of the way down to 500.'

An irritated growl came from Joey.

'Also, because Rocket Warrior was in its invincible mode, your monster loses 500 extra attack points, leaving it with zero.' I think my plan worked. Marik would have attacked my Red Eyes to win the duel, but Joey must've stopped him.

This could be done.

YGO

'Make your pathetic move, little Yugi,' Marik said.

'Fine, Marik.'

'And since Rocket Warrior's effect is over, my Panther Warrior regains the 500 it lost.' The attack points flew up.

'Big deal!' Yugi drew. 'My move. I sacrifice Beta the Magnet Warrior…' It happened as he spoke. '…so I can summon my Beast of Gilfer!' The monster appeared on the field. 'I'll save you yet, Joey!'

Marik growled through Joey.

Yugi called the attack. 'Now, my mighty Beast, attack his Rocket Warrior!' With a roar, the Beast of Gilfer gathered the energy for his blast and released it in a stream of fire. It washed over the Rocket Warrior and then nothing of Joey's monster remained.

Joey's arm had gone up when the attack hit. His life points dropped down to 1700.

Yugi tried again. 'You there, Joey?'

Joey's arm was lowered. 'No. Joey's gone. You see, unlike your Dragon, I've got plenty of strength left.'

Yugi looked over. He's right. Thanks to Marik's magic card, Red Eyes is down to a measly 900 attack points – and I can't let it get destroyed. He looked back up. It may be my only hope to save Joey and the entire world from Marik.

'I'm afraid it's only a matter of time before you and your pathetic friend are out of my way for good,' Marik said. He was right.

There was barely more than ten minutes remaining.

YGO

Mokuba stood next to his big brother, watching the duel. Apparently, Marik had decided it was time to remind his other hostage that he hadn't forgotten her existence. 'I hope you're comfortable, little Téa, getting a front-row seat to your friend's last duel. As long as no one interferes, you'll be fine, but I can't say the same for Yugi.'

This was several types of bad. The worst thing of it was that they couldn't do anything about it. They were only able to stand and watch as it unfolded in front of them. There'd been a few moments when it looked like Joey might break free but those had gone as quickly as they'd come.

'You won't get away with this, Marik!' Yugi yelled at him.

'That's where you're wrong, little Yugi. In less than ten minutes the anchor hanging above you will drop into the ocean, taking you and your friend, Joey, with it.'

YGO

Mai hadn't been expecting to run into Tristan or Joey's sister. She had to be fourteen or fifteen. No wonder Joey had been so desperate to save her eyesight. That was far too young to go blind. The third guy was Duke Devlin. He was another friend of theirs, a game inventor like Pegasus – except Mai had barely heard of his game. As she drove them to the pier, she listened to what'd happened.

'All right, Tristan,' Mai said. 'Based on your description of those creeps, they sound like these Rare Hunters I've been hearing about lately.'

'And what's a Rare Hunter?' Tristan asked.

'They're underground duellists that lie, cheat and steal. Their goal is collecting rare cards and that's probably why they kidnapped your friends.'

In fact, Mai was sure of it.

'This isn't the way!' Tristan suddenly insisted. 'Turn around!'

'Sure it is.' Mai held up her locator cards. 'See?' She put them down again. 'I won six locator cards. I know where they are.'

'They're not there, Mai,' Tristan said. 'I spoke to Sharee before. That's why we tried to take cover in that arcade. They're at a pier on the other end of the city.'

Mai glanced back at him. 'Are you sure, Tristan?'

'That's what Sharee said. Let's go!'

'Right.' She spun a sharp u-turn, causing cries to come out of the boys. 'Hold on tight!' She got to the other side of the road. 'Do not try this at home! We're coming to get you, guys.'

Mai headed for the pier.

YGO

'I can barely contain my excitement, little Yugi,' Marik said through Joey. 'Say goodbye to the rest of your life points.' He drew and looked at the card. 'Ready to lose everything?'

Yugi tried again. 'Come on, Joey! You gotta break free! Snap out of it, Joey! Time is running out!' If I bring up more old stories, maybe he'll remember something. 'Come on, Joey. Don't you remember Duellist Kingdom? You gotta try. Think back. Remember how you wanted to win so you could pay for your sister's operation? Serenity was your inspiration, and thanks to you she'll see again.'

Something seemed to be getting through. 'Se…ren…i…ty…'

'You kept your promise to her, Joey,' Yugi said. 'And don't forget the pledge you made to me.'

Joey lifted his head slightly. 'I…promised…'

'That's right!' Yugi nodded. 'And you've never broken a promise.'

Marik seized control again. 'Then I promise to annihilate you, little Yugi. He played two cards. 'So I place two cards face-down on the field.' They appeared in front of him. 'And end my turn. So try and attack my Panther Warrior, if you dare.'

'Please, wake up!' Yugi called to Joey.

'Haven't you realised that your friend isn't coming back?' Marik demanded. 'You're dealing with me now, and I'm about to take everything away from you.'

There was only five minutes left. 'You've gotta snap out of this, Joey! Time's running out.' Yugi drew. 'This trap card may help.'

'Nothing can save you,' Marik insisted.

'Well, I'll place one card face-down.' Yugi set it and the card appeared in front of him. Time to spring his trap. Yugi had a good idea of what those two cards were. 'And now, Beast of Gilfer, attack his Panther Warrior!' Beast of Gilfer roared and attacked, charging across the field. 'This is for your own good, Joey!'

Marik chuckled. 'You've fallen right into my trap, little Yugi, and your foolish mistake will cost you dearly. As soon as your Beast attacks, you're done.'

'Don't be so sure about that!' Yugi called the attack. 'Gilfer, roast his Panther with your flame attack!' The fire streamed out of Gilfer and crossed the field.

'Wrong! Reveal my Skull Dice.' Marik flipped the first card up, then the second. 'And just to make sure my move works, I'll add this card: my Graceful Dice. Stop his attack, now!' The cards lit up as they activated. The dice-carrying sprites emerged. 'Graceful Dice will increase my monster's attack points according to the role of the die. While Skull Dice reduces your monster's strength.' He smirked. 'And I'm feeling very lucky today.'

'Guess again.'

'What?'

Yugi activated his down card and it flipped up. 'Now I reveal my magic card, De-Spell! I'll use it to destroy your Graceful Dice!' A beam of light shot out of the card and hit the sprite in question. When the light faded, it was gone.

Marik growled.

'Sorry to disappoint you, Marik, but now you can't raise the attack points of your Panther Warrior.'

'But I can still weaken your monster,' Marik said. 'Go Skull Dice!' The sprite released the die and it tumbled to the ground. It landed. 'A two?' he demanded.

The attack streamed out of Gilfer as his attack points cut in half. 'Sorry, that only cuts my monster's attack strength in half.'

'My Panther's doomed!'

The blast hit. The flames wrapped around the Panther Warrior. He was destroyed. Joey's voice growled in irritation as his arms were used to protect his face. His life points dropped to 1100.

'You may have destroyed my Panther Warrior,' Marik said. 'But you're about to lose this duel, little Yugi! In just over five minutes, you'll sink to the bottom of the sea while I acquire your Egyptian God card and your Millennium Puzzle.'

This is my last chance to get through to Joey and save us both!

YGO

'Yugi only has 1000 life points left,' Mokuba said. 'One more major attack by Joey and that anchor's going to take him down, Seto.'

'But if that timer runs out first, Yugi and Wheeler will both be fish food.'

Sharee considered the timer hanging over their heads. It was ticking its way towards the five minute mark. Chewing her lower lip, Sharee considered their options. She glanced at the crane operator. He seemed to be absolutely convinced that they weren't going to try anything. What a moronic thing to think – her not trying anything. Sharee was abruptly torn out of her thoughts.

A car horn beeped. Sharee and the Kaiba brothers looked in the direction it came from. There was a blue convertible driving along the pier. The driver parked it. There were four very familiar people in it. Sharee turned more fully than Kaiba did and headed over to them.

'Hey, Joey!' Tristan called, standing up.

Duke stood up too. 'Yugi!'

'Nice to see you guys got away,' Sharee said to Tristan.

'Yeah, Mai picked us up.' Tristan's eyes flickered past her. 'So what's the deal there?'

'Help us, guys!' The voice came from behind her again.

'Téa?' Tristan looked to where she was.

'Oh, for the love of God!' Sharee spun around. 'Do you want to be a pancake?' She winced when Tristan and Duke shot past her, heading for her.

Mokuba quickly ran over and cut them off. 'Don't get any closer!'

'What do you talking about?' Tristan demanded as he and Duke stopped.

Mokuba looked back at the crane operator, who was now watching the new arrivals. He pointed at him. 'Check it out. If we try to save Téa, that Rare Hunter will release the crate hanging over her head. It's too dangerous to risk, Tristan.'

'Why would they want to do that?' Tristan asked as Mai led Serenity over.

'So we don't break up Yugi and Joey's duel.'

'That's just sick!' Tristan insisted.

Mokuba turned first, and the others did as well as he explained. 'If you think that's sick, Tristan, just look at the duelling setup these guys put together.'

All of their friends made sounds of disgust.

'These guys don't mess around,' Mai remarked.

'Man, what's the deal with the anchor and the chains?' Duke asked.

Tristan leaned forward. 'And how come Yugi and Joey are duelling in the first place? Come on! Will someone please tell me what's going on?'

'Marik's el loco,' Sharee said before Kaiba could give any pessimistic pains.

'Marik?' Mai asked.

'Marik Ishtar is the one in charge of the Rare Hunters,' Sharee said. 'He's…' She paused. 'Well, for lack of a better term, they've hypnotised Joey.' She gestured. 'Look at his face.' There was a silence. Sharee knew they were seeing the blank look on Joey's face – all except Serenity.

'Wait a minute,' Mai said. 'Isn't hypnotism short term?'

'Certain types, yes.' Sharee scowled. 'This is different. This particular hypnotism is done from another location and controls the victim's words and actions. As Yugi's discovered, it can be broken by tapping into emotional sensitivities. That's why the Red Eyes is out and why he's wearing Yugi's Puzzle.'

Mokuba picked up the explanation. 'Whoever loses gets pulled to the bottom of the sea.'

'That's insane!' Tristan insisted.

Duke agreed with him. 'We gotta stop this!'

'But we can't,' Mai said.

Serenity may not have been able to see but she could still work out what was going on from their commentary. 'My brother!' She reached for her bandages.

Sharee, understanding the trauma that would happen if Serenity saw what was happening, stepped over and reached up. She stopped the younger girl's hands. 'Trust me, you don't want to see what's going on right now.'

'But…' Serenity stammered.

'I know,' Sharee said. 'I know you think you do now. I'd feel the same way if it was me, and I've got a twin sister, but some things, once seen, cannot be unseen. There are some things you just don't want to look at. This will be one of them. I'll tell you when you can take your bandages off.'

Serenity hesitated for a moment before she lowered her hands and nodded.

Sharee turned her attention back to the duel as Marik spoke through Joey again. 'The end is near, Yugi. I could just let the timer run out, destroying you and Joey, but out-duelling you will be so much more fun. And now all of your little friends are here to witness you demise! So, here goes.' He drew. 'One more move and you'll be gone for good while I rule the world!'

'I got a feeling the Reign of Marik would be very short-lived,' Sharee muttered. She turned her head and looked over. It had occurred to her before. Taking more note, she lifted her hand. Extending her thumb, she examined the Rare Hunter. She turned her thumb horizontal, and then vertical again. She repeated the action a few times, making sure she was absolutely right.

'What are you doing?' Duke asked. Sharee looked over and noticed that everyone was looking at her curiously, except Serenity of course.

Sharee smiled. 'You know what? He happens to be in a very good spot.'