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The Orichalcos Saga

Fanfic Chapter 199: Guardian of the Cards Pt 2: Heart of Darkness
Episode Basis: Fate of the Pharaoh Pt 2

Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh! Yami arrived at Death Valley for his duel with Raphael. Raphael was once a rich kid before a freakish storm capsized his boat and killed his family. Since then, Raphael has had a morbid outlook on life (to say the least). But Raphael's Guardian deck was more than a match for Yami's. But is Raphael right and Yami is really evil?

Raphael's Guardian Grarl rushed towards one of the Kuriboh Brothers.

"Kuriboh Brothers, initiate Starlight Defense!" Yami commanded. The Kuriboh Brothers came together and push Guardian Grarl back. "When one of my Kuriboh Brothers is targeted for an attack, the others come to protect it forcing back your attack."

"Oh well," Raphael said nonchalant while the Kuriboh Brothers celebrated their successful defense. "I'm not worried, if your defense is just a pack of gerbils."

"The match looks pretty much even," Weevil observed. "So it doesn't look like we missed anything too exciting."

"I want to move closer," Rex whined.

"Go ahead, it's only a two hundred foot drop," Weevil said sarcastically. "Now sit down and behave yourself."

Duke, Joey, Tristan, and Amara were still driving towards Death Valley. "This map is all wrong," Tristan complained. "There's no bridge."

"Forget the map and use your eyes, Tristan," Duke said. Up ahead was a rickety old bridge.

"Nobody breath," Amara said as Duke carefully drove the car. Half-way across, the rope anchoring the bridge started to break.

"Gun it, Duke!" Tristan cried. Duke slammed the pedal and was able to drive to the other side just as the bridge fell apart.

As the boys caught their breath, Amara saw something to her left. "Uh… guys, whatever you do, don't look to your left."

And of course, like Lot's wife, they had to look. A couple of hundred yards to the left was a large and stable suspension bridge. As one, the boys slapped their foreheads and said, "D'oh!"

Back at the motor home, Tea and Rebecca sat on the steps chatting.

"So wait, there's still something I don't understand," Rebecca said. "You said there are two Yugis?"

Tea chuckled, "There's only one Yugi, but he kind of has this other side to him. And this other side takes over when things get rough."

"Well I'm sure the Yugi I dueled was the actual Yugi." Rebecca sighed affectionately, "I remember the day we first met, he willingly forfeited a duel just to teach me something and then he gave me the Ties of Friendship." She cast a side glance at Tea. "I think that's why you like him."

"What?!" Tea was actually surprised by Rebecca's comment.

"Don't deny it, I can see it in the way you look at him."

"It's not like you have a crush on him or anything."

Tea gasped as she recalled Harold's comment. Did she…?

"It's okay," Rebecca said. "I don't blame you for liking him. Anybody can be brave but it takes a real man to be kind." She gave the older girl a sly smile. "But if you think that means I'm going to give him up without a fight, think again, he's mine, buster."

Tea let out a nervous chuckle then faced the turbines in the horizon. "Well, brave or kind, they're probably kicking Orichalcos butt right now."

"Yeah," Rebecca said. "I'm sure when the two sides work together, Yugi's unstoppable."

But it certainly didn't seem that way as the duel continued. Purity of the Cemetery kicked in lowering Yami's life points by 300, 100 points for each monster in his graveyard.

(Y: 2700)
(R: 4000)

"This is better than The Revenge of the Mummy Part 4," Rex commented.

"Shut up, I'm trying to watch," Weevil spat.

"What are we going to do?" Yugi asked. "Raphael's monsters are more powerful than any of ours."

"I have a plan," Yami informed. "I play Pot of Greed which lets me draw two extra cards." We have a card that can help us out, but we need to draw it now. He drew his two cards and smiled. It was precisely the two cards he needed. "I call upon the Kuriboh Brothers once again to combine their selves into Kuribabylon!" The monstrous Kuriboh reappeared.

"He can't do anything," Raphael said.

"I'm not done yet. I'm sacrificing Kuribabylon to summon Dark Magician Girl!" As the Dark Magician Girl appeared, Yami thought back to when the Dark Magician Girl appeared to them in Domino after they first released Timaeus. She told them that the Great Leviathan had to be stopped before he could be fully resurrected. We owe it to the Dark Magician Girl and the world to win this battle. "I play the Eye of Timaeus!" The green dragon sprouted from the card.

"Finally, a true test of strength."

Timaeus and Dark Magician Girl ascended into the air and transformed. Now the Dark Magician Girl was dressed in knight's armor and carrying a sword. "Say hello to Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight (1)!"

"Yugi always seems to draw the card he needs at the last moment," Rex commented. "How come that never works for guys like you and me, Weevil?"

"I thought I told you to shut it," Weevil said.

"Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight attack Guardian Grarl!" The Dark Magician Girl aimed her sword at Guardian Grarl. "Even though my monster's weaker than yours, I can discard one card to destroy one of your monsters."

"I'll protect my monster with my magic card Self Tribute giving up 1000 life points to protect my monster."

(Y: 2700)
(R: 3000)

"You really meant it when you said you would do anything to protect your monsters." Guardian Grarl, which had been struck by Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight's attack, reappeared axe and all.

"Unlike you, I actually care about my cards. You discard yours as soon as a better card comes along."

"I value all of my cards!"

"You're as disrespectful as everyone else."

"What are they saying?" Rex asked. "I can't hear a thing."

"Everyone has darkness in their heart," Raphael was saying. "You're just afraid to admit it. Deep down, you're evil! Ten thousand years ago, people lived in paradise. Then the stone appeared: the Stone of the Orichalcos." He gripped his amulet. "The stone unlocked the darkness that was in people's hearts. Only a few were pure. A battle broke out between good and evil and in the end, the evil side won."

"Whoever told you that lied to you! The only evil is the stone around your neck!"

Raphael laughed, "The stone just shows me the truth. It shows me who the truly evil are, like you!"

"You're wrong!"

"And how do you know? I heard you lost your memories. How do we know you weren't an evil Pharaoh?"

That was a low blow. "I may not remember my time as the Pharaoh, but I know that I once saved mankind!"

"The people you saved were evil so that makes you evil."

Thousands of years before you ruled, the Orichalcos Stone appeared, dividing the world into two sides: those who were pure, and those who were ruled by darkness. The two sides faced off in the most devastating battle the world had ever seen! You and I are here to continue the fight, but even though my side is outnumbered, we have two things your side doesn't: the Great Leviathan and the Orichalcos. We can capture the souls of man and offer it them to the most powerful beast that ever lived. The world will return to what it once was: a peaceful place untouched by the likes of you!

"You've been brainwashed," Yami cried.

"Look around you, if things continue as they are the entire planet will end up like this desert. You did come back after 3000 years to save the world: by surrendering your soul!"

"I'm sick of hearing about your evil plan!"

"I'm just following the wishes of my master, who told me all about your history as the King of Egypt, an evil dictator who used the power of the Shadow Realm to control your subjects."

This didn't make any sense. If Raphael's master (who Yami assumed was Dartz) was telling the truth, it would negate everything Ishizu and Shadi told him during Battle City. "But I was the one who locked the dark magic away!"

"Your heart is dark and I'm about to prove it!" He drew two cards. "I set one card face-down and activate the magic card Exchange. Normally each of us gets to pick a card from the other's hand. But since we each only have one card, let's cut to the chase." The two met at the center of the field. "Now what card do you have for me?" Yami showed him the Necromancy magic card. "Necromancy, this card wouldn't help you anyway, since I have no cards in my graveyard, it's pretty much worthless. I think this card will benefit you more." He handed Yami the card and walked away laughing.

As Yami went back to his side of the field, he suddenly grounded to a halt, his whole body shaking.

The card Raphael had given him was the Seal of Orichalcos!

"I can't use this!" Yami protested.

"The stone around your neck is already beginning to reveal your dark side!" Yami looked down and saw that the Orichalcos stone he got from Rebecca was glowing. He moved to rip it off his neck but for some reason he couldn't.

Up above, the white orb floated towards the cliff edge, like it was almost scared of what was happening.

"No matter what happens, you can't use that card," Yugi told Yami firmly.

Yami nodded. "I draw."

"Don't forget Purity of the Cemetery. Now that you have five monsters in your graveyard, you lose 500 life points." Yami grunted from the shock his Duel Disk produced.

(Y: 2200)
(R: 3000)

"I use Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight to destroy Guardian Grarl again."

"Not this time, I activate my face-down card Crystal Seal!" Dark Magician Girl and Timaeus were enclosed in crystal. "Looks like I sent that dragon back to where it belongs, in crystal. But there is one card that can save it."

"What do you mean?"

"The only way Crystal Seal can be broken is if the attack points of the monster enclosed in it changes. As you have already seen, the Seal of Orichalcos can do that."

"Pharaoh, don't play that Seal, I mean it," Yugi said firmly.

"I know, but it may be the only way to save Dark Magician Girl. I'll set a monster in defense mode and end my turn."

"I play Rod of Silence with my Backup Gardna raising its defense points."

(BG: 2200-2700)

"And it allows me to summon Guardian Kay'est (2) in attack mode." A mermaid with aquamarine-colored hair and eyes appeared. "Guardian Grarl, take out that face-down monster of his." The Guardian swung his axe and Yami's Big Shield Gardna (3) was destroyed. "Guardian Kay'est, attack him directly!" The mermaid fired a water blast at Yami.

(Y: 1200)
(R: 3000)

"There is one card that can save you but are you man enough to play it?"

Yami drew his card and Purity of the Cemetery kicked in causing him to lose 600 life points.

(Y: 600)
(R: 3000)

Up above, the white orb sunk deeper and deeper until it was almost on the ground.

"Play the card," Raphael bullied.

"There must be another way!" Yugi protested.

"If I lose, two worlds will be destroyed! I must not lose! I play Card of Sanctity which causes us to draw from our decks until we're holding six cards." But to Yami's dismay, none of the cards he drew could help him. It looks like I have no choice, I have to play the Seal of Orichalcos.

"NO!" Yugi had got the arm that held the Seal of Orichalcos into a sleeper hold.

"Let go, we're going to lose the duel! Trust me, it's the only way!"

"Pharaoh, please, don't play that card!"

The field magic card slot opened out. Yami slid the card into it and the slot closed. "I play the Seal of Orichalcos!"

The green stone around his neck started to glow and shake rapidly!" The Seal of Orichalcos appeared underneath his feet but rapidly expanded to cover the entire mesa.

"No," Yugi cried as his spirit dissolved.

The Pharaoh didn't seem to notice.

"It's the Seal of Orichalcos!" Rex cried.

"Something about this I don't like," Weevil commented.

"Guys, look up!"

"Why, is there an airplane flying overhead or some…?" Joey and Tristan looked up to see a large green light coming from the distance. "Oh no," Joey said solemnly, "we're too late."

The white orb had sunk all the way down the cliff edge to Rex and Weevil's perch. Its glow faded just a little bit.

"Now we'll see if your soul is truly good or evil," Raphael said.

The Seal of Orichalcos appeared on Yami's head as the Pharaoh stared at his opponent, a look of anger on his face.

To Be Continued

Duel Monster Database

(1)
Name: Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight
Level: 7
Type: Warrior/Hybrid/Effect
Attribute: Dark
ATK: 2600
DEF: 2100

(2)
Name: Guardian Kay'est
Level: 4
Type: Sea Serpent/Effect
Attribute: Water
ATK: 1000
DEF: 1000

(3)
Name: Big Shield Gardna
Level: 4
Type: Warrior/Effect
Attribute: Earth
ATK: 100
DEF: 2600

A/N: Try to guess where the inspiration for the bridge scene came from.