Happy New Years, everybody! Time to start the second part of the Doma story arc.
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The Orichalcos Saga
Fanfic Chapter 213: Rise of the Blue-Eyes Tyrant Pt 1: Stakes on a Plane
Episode Basis: Flight of Fear Pt 1
Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh! Yami's new friends were no match for the Orichalcos Soldiers. First to be eliminated was Ironheart. Then Sky literally lost his head. Finally, even little Chris was hacked to death by them. It looked like hope was lost when the white orb, Yami's personal guardian angel, rescued the Eye of Timaeus from being destroyed. It brought the card to him and Yami was able to use Dark Magician Girl the Dragon Knight to win his duel. Leaving the valley, Yami and Tea boned up on their Atlantian knowledge when suddenly a dragon appeared and spirited them away. As if things couldn't get any worse.
The Kaiba Company jet cruised over the American skies. Inside the cabin, Mokuba Kaiba sat down, lost in his own thoughts. He couldn't believe that there was someone was strong enough to take down Yugi Moto. The only people who should be that strong were his own big brother, Seto, and perhaps Marik Ishtar. Mokuba was worried. If Yugi Moto could be taken down so easily, what hope did Seto have? When Mokuba mentioned it to his brother, Kaiba just dismissed it saying that it only meant that Yugi was no longer worth his time.
Mokuba took a look outside and noticed strange rainbow-colored lights around them. "I don't like the looks of this."
Kaiba followed his little brother's look, "I agree, flying into this light show isn't a wise course."
"But isn't it all just an illusion like you're always saying?"
"Maybe, but if it doesn't go away in the next two minutes, I'm ordering this plane turned around."
Suddenly the interior lights started to flicker.
"Maybe you should order the pilot to change course."
"Yeah, I think you're right." Kaiba touched his communicator pin. "Captain?" There was no answer. "Captain, do you read me?"
"I'll go check it out," Mokuba volunteered and started to run towards the cockpit when he skidded to a halt in the doorway. "Huh, there's no one here!"
The Kaiba Corp. jet is normally filled with secretaries, staff members, and sometimes reporters or the occasional VIP. But now the cabin was completely empty. "Where did our team go?" Mokuba asked.
A sinister laugh came over the intercom. "It's a private party now."
"I know that voice," Kaiba recognized.
Mokuba agreed, "Alister! He must be in the cockpit." The two ran upstairs to the cockpit.
But the cockpit was also empty; the autopilot function light was on.
"I'm not there," Alister's voice called out. The two went back downstairs and found Alister sitting at the head of a conference table. He was still wearing the tank top and elastic pants from before but now he was wearing a long black sleeveless jacket. "You found me, congratulations."
"Haven't I gotten rid of you already?" Kaiba asked irritated.
"Actually, it was I who got rid of you."
"What did you do with our crew?" Mokuba asked.
"Like I said, this is a private party, all your crew was pulled off vie the Doma Express." Alister chuckled. "I didn't want anyone to interfere as we settle our score."
That's right, Alister blames Seto because our step-father killed his brother and destroyed his homeland, Mokuba reminded himself. "What are you doing, Alister, Seto had nothing to do with what happened to you!"
"Try telling that to my brother. Oh wait, you can't, he's dead!"
"If I go through with this rematch, will you get out of my life for good?" Kaiba asked.
"Agreed."
"Seto please don't go through with this!" Mokuba pleaded.
Kaiba pressed a button on the wall and the chairs and table folded into the floor. "You want a duel, you got one!" The two activated their Duel Disks. "Let's duel!"
(A: 4000)
(K: 4000)
"Since I made the challenge, I'll start off," Alister voiced. "I summon Science Soldier (1) in defense mode." A man in combat armor appeared.
"You call that a monster?" Kaiba scoffed as he drew a card. "Now this is a monster, X-Head Cannon (2) in attack mode! Attack Science Soldier with double laser cannon!" The two barrels on the machine's shoulders fired.
"Okay then, try this, Cyber Soldier of Darkworld (3) in defense mode."
Alister better not play the Seal of Orichalcos, Mokuba thought.
"I summon Y-Dragon Head (4) in attack mode. Y-Dragon Head, attack his Cyber Soldier!" The mechanized dragon fired an energy blast. "Now, X-Head Cannon attack his life points directly!" The cannon blasted Alister directly.
(A: 2200)
(K: 4000)
Alister is making this too easy, Mokuba thought and from the dirty look Kaiba was giving his opponent, the older Kaiba was thinking the same thing.
"I think that's enough punishment for now," Kaiba said laying a face-down card. "So I'll lay this face-down and end my turn."
Alister smirked, "You've been too caught up with my monsters to pay attention to my deck." He drew a card. "I'm about to play a card that will change the entire playing field!"
Kaiba gasped, knowing what Alister was about to do. "Mokuba, get back," he warned.
"I play the Seal of Orichalcos!" The Seal appeared beneath Alister and slowly expanded. Mokuba was knocked back to the stair case as the sides of the plane and the roof over the Duelists faded away. Bolts of electricity blew out all the windows. In the cockpit, the autopilot suddenly turned off.
The Seal of Orichalcos rose above the floor. "What are you doing?" Kaiba demanded to know.
"I just needed some air, that's all," Alister said snidely.
Mokuba gasped at the elevated seal. Suddenly the plane started to nosedive. "Oh no, the autopilot must be turned off!" He ran to the cockpit and landed in the pilot seat. He pulled back on the yoke but the control stick wouldn't move. Mokuba grabbed a headset and turned on the radio. "Mayday, mayday, this is KC-1, we're going down, can anyone hear me?" But nobody answered him.
"It's time for you to feel the pain that I felt," Alister said as purples smoke filled the seal.
"What the…" Then Kaiba's vision was filled with purple smoke.
Joey, Tristan, and Amara exited the hospital in Pearsall. "Are you sure it was wise to lie to them like that?" Tristan asked.
"What, all I said was that we found Rex lying by the train tracks; that's kind of the truth. Besides, would you believe a Duel Monster card stole his soul?"
"Not if I didn't see it with my own eyes."
We need to find Tea and the Pharaoh, Amara thought. If they came this way, maybe one of the natives have… She looked down at the ground as a large shadow appeared under her. Amara looked up but saw nothing.
"Something wrong, Amara?" Joey asked.
"It's probably nothing," Amara said. "I just thought I saw something."
"Maybe it was that," Tristan said pointing to the sky. Joey and Amara looked up and saw the rainbow-colored lights. "This is just like back home."
"Yeah, that giant eye thing must be ready for a second appearance," Joey guessed.
"That means we need to find Tea and the Pharaoh fast!" The three took off again.
When Kaiba's vision cleared, he found himself in a strange bunker surrounded by crates. Something in that fog must be making me hallucinate.
"The tanks are coming back!"
"Quick, hide!" Kaiba heard voices from above. A trap door opened and three boys descend carrying a bag of canned goods and food.
Kaiba noticed one of the boys, the one that closed the trap door. He had slightly tanned skin, dark blue hair and gray eyes.
He looked like Mokuba.
Kaiba grumbled, "I know an illusion when I see it. This is all one big mind trick."
The boys spread their food out on a crate. The Mokuba look-a-like noticed Kaiba. "Sorry, but this hideout is taken."
"Yeah, and don't think we're going to share any food with you," another of the boys said harshly. "We only have enough food for three, you're going to have to go find your own."
And I thought I was a rude child, Kaiba thought.
"We had to trek three miles just to get this food," another boy said. "The tanks destroyed all the grocery stores close to the hideout."
"The hideout?" It was then that Kaiba took a closer look at the crates. They weren't empty, they were filled with guns and other munitions. "This looks more like an armory than a hideout."
"We heard there was some major weapons maker giving guns and tanks to the enemy," the boy who mentioned the destroyed grocery stores said. "So we go to the battlefield and take whatever weapons are left behind."
"We're going to give them to the people so they can fight the enemy," the first boy explained.
Kaiba Corp. was a weapons manufacturer back when my step-father ran it. So I bet that's who these boys are talking about. He noticed a chess board nestled within the munitions crates. "I have a chess board like that."
"Do you remember how to play?" The Mokuba look-a-like asked.
"Of course, I was the best," Kaiba boasted.
"Hey Juan," one of the other boys said to the Mokuba look-a-like. "Why don't you make yourself useful and go rustle us up some desert."
"Yeah and take your new friend with you."
"Are you boys always this polite?" Kaiba asked dryly.
"Only when we don't have our sugar," the boy cracked.
Up above, the city was in ruins. Blast debris was everywhere and there was no sign of life. Kaiba tried telling himself this was all an illusion but it was hard with one destroyed building after another popping up. "How long has this been going on?"
"Not sure, about a year I guess."
"And this 'weapons maker', what are they called?"
Juan had been tight-roping along a wall but he stopped and hopped down, "I don't know, but you can tell their work by the logo, the letters 'K' and 'C.'"
"K.C.," Kaiba muttered. "Kaiba Corp."
"Oh, is that what it's called? Do you work for them?"
"No." Kaiba pretended to look inside a destroyed building. "I work at a game company."
"Games are a luxury we can't afford any more," Juan said. "All money is used for the war effort. Most of the adults are either refugees or captured and forced to become soldiers."
"And yours?"
"My parents died when the army first invaded our town, but I'm not lonely. I have Tony and Dennis with me." He was suddenly up close in Kaiba's face. "Hey I know how about we play a game of chess."
"Here, now?"
"Sure, you said you were the best, I can't wait to see what moves you have."
"But we don't even have a board."
"That's okay." Juan took a stick and began drawing a grid in the dirt. He then reached into his pouch and took out a handful of empty ammo cartridges and bullet cases. "These can be the pieces."
I don't get it, Kaiba thought as Juan set up the pieces. What's Alister trying to show me? If he's trying to get sympathy from me, he's barking up the wrong tree. I've had a pretty tough life myself.
"Your move."
Kaiba looked down at Juan and briefly flashed back to when he and Mokuba used to play chess at the orphanage. Juan's opening move was similar to Mokuba's. Kaiba took one of his pieces and started to move it.
The two suddenly heard a loud explosion. They turned to look behind and saw a fire coming from where they came from. Juan stood up, "Oh no, that came from the hideout!" He started to run off, trampling the chess setup in the process.
"Stop!" Kaiba commanded grabbing Juan's arm. "It's too dangerous!"
"Let me go!" For a moment, Juan became Mokuba in look and voice. Kaiba slacked in his grip. "Let me go save my friends!" Juan broke free and ran off, Kaiba trailing him.
They didn't have far to run. Four tanks came around the bend. A painted K.C. could be seen on the side.
"That's them, that's the tanks belonging to the enemy."
"The ones supplied by Gozaburo," Kaiba said acidly.
"We have to run," Juan said. "But where?"
The lead tank had already caught up to them. It aimed its barrel at them.
Kaiba let out a scream of rage as he stood in front of Juan. "I've had enough! Come out and face me, Alister!"
The tank fired.
X-Head Cannon and Y-Dragon Head appeared. Y-Dragon Head was destroyed.
(A: 2200)
(K: 2000)
Alister appeared behind the tanks chuckling.
Kaiba noticed that the boy Juan had disappeared. He let out a harsh laugh, "Your trick is wearing off."
"That was no trick," Alister said. "Those three boys were my best friends growing up until they were killed by the tanks, the tanks supplied by Kaiba Corp.! And speaking of tanks, I activated my trap card Tank Corps which adds three tanks to my KC-1 Crayton (5), raising its attack points by 500 per tank."
(KC1C: 2000-3500)
Alister placed a card face-down. "Next turn, I'm going to destroy you just as your family destroyed mine!"
The boy Juan and his two friends still flashed in Kaiba's mind. "You're going down," he said grisly as he drew a card. "I play Monster Reborn to revive Y-Dragon Head and summon Z-Metal Tank (6) in attack mode. And now I'll combine them!" Electricity flashing, the ball end of X-Head Cannon inserted itself into a slot on Y-Dragon Head and then they landed on top of Z-Metal Tank. "To form the XYZ-Dragon Cannon (7)! Now I'll activate its special ability."
"What special ability?"
"By discarding one card, I can destroy one card on the field like your Tank Corps!" Lasers fired from every exit point on the Dragon Cannon and destroyed the three tanks surrounding the Crayton.
(KC1C: 3500-2000)
"Now, attack the KC-1 Crayton!" The cannon fired again and destroyed the lead tank.
(A: 1400)
(K: 2000)
The destroyed city landscape faded revealing their original location, on top of the airplane. Kaiba laid a face-down card.
"I should've expected such violence from the son of Gozaburo Kaiba!" Alister snapped.
"Don't you dare compare me with my step-father, I'm nothing like him!"
"You two are more alike than you know. And it's not just you, your brother Mokuba, your rival Yugi, all of mankind is just like him, they live only for violence and don't care who they trample to get what they want! But soon all that will change, thanks to my new family! We're going to do away with all of those who desire violence and bring paradise on Earth!" He drew a card and laid it face-down.
The plane started going down. Kaiba turned and looked towards the cockpit. "Oh no, Mokuba's inside there!"
"Hello, I'm not done with you yet!" Alister called. "Worry more about your soul and less about your airplane!"
"Mayday, mayday, can anyone hear me?" Mokuba called into the radio. He growled furiously, "Man, this is nuts, this plane's about to take a nosedive and I can't even call... call! My cell phone!" Mokuba took out his cell phone and started dialing as the plane plummeted towards a mountain.
To Be Continued
Duel Monster Database
(1)
Name: Science Soldier
Level: 3
Type: Machine
Attribute: Dark
ATK: 800
DEF: 800
(2)
Name: X-Head Cannon
Level: 4
Type: Machine
Attribute: Light
ATK: 1800
DEF: 1500
(3)
Name: Cyber Soldier of Dark World
Level: 4
Type: Machine
Attribute: Dark
ATK: 1400
DEF: 1200
(4)
Name: Y-Dragon Head
Level: 4
Type: Machine/Union
Attribute: Light
ATK: 1500
DEF: 1600
(5)
Name: KC-1 Crayton
Level: 4
Type: Machine/Effect
Attribute: Dark
ATK: 2000
DEF: 1800
(6)
Name: Z-Metal Tank
Level: 4
Type: Machine/Union
Attribute: Light
ATK: 1500
DEF: 1600
(7)
Name: XYZ-Dragon Cannon
Level: 8
Type: Machine/Fusion/Effect
Attribute: Light
ATK: 2800
DEF: 2600
A/N: In case you're wondering, I used the Japanese name of the boy, Juan, instead of the English version, Aaron, because Aaron was actually the name of one of Harold's opponents during Battle City (see: Yu-Gi-Oh! Avatar: The Battle City Chronicles) Here's to 2007, better than 2006. I can tell because it certainly can't get any worse.