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The Orichalcos Saga
Fanfic Chapter 223: Rematch with Raphael Pt 2: The Dark Guardian
Episode Basis: Grappling with a Guardian Pt 2
Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh! Disheartened at seeing Joey fall, Yami and Amara made their way to Doma Headquarters. There, they discovered that Mai had lost a duel and her soul to Raphael. Now Raphael was eager for a rematch with the Pharaoh. Seeing no other way, Yami agreed to it. Raphael was just as strong as ever, stopping all of Yami's attacks and summoning new guardian monsters. Then he did something horrible: he played the Seal of Orichalcos. Now, as Tea, Tristan, Amara, Kaiba, and Mokuba looked on, they have to wonder; will the seal corrupt him as it has others? Let's find out.
Yami looked around the Seal of Orichalcos that he and Raphael were now ensnared in. "Do you realize what you've done, Raphael? Now one of us will lose our soul to it."
"That's the idea, Pharaoh," Raphael was saying. "The Great Leviathan needs power and once I take you down, it will gain the strength it needs to rise up and destroy mankind!"
(R: 3500)
(Y: 2500)
"Tristan, check it out," Amara said.
Tristan knew what she was thinking, "Yeah, that's the guy who beat Yugi last time."
Kaiba turned towards him surprised. "What?"
"It's true," Amara confirmed.
"The power of the Orichalcos knows no equal," Raphael was saying. "You may have gotten a taste of it in our last duel but now I'll show you what it can really do." The eyes on all of Raphael's guardian monsters turned red and seals appeared on their foreheads.
(BG: 500-1000)
(GG: 2500-3000)
(GE: 1600-2100)
"Guardian Grarl, attack!" The enraged dinosaur lunged forward and slashed Kuribabylon separating it into the five Kuriboh Brothers before it was destroyed.
(R: 3500)
(Y: 1000)
"I activate my trap card Rope of Life," Yami shouted. "Now by discarding my entire hand I can bring back the monster that was just destroyed with 800 extra attack points." Kuribabylon reappeared.
(K: 1500-2300)
Raphael set a face-down card.
"Now what?" Tea asked.
"Yugi needs to do something fast," Mokuba commented. "He only has 1000 life points left."
"Yugi's won duels with much fewer life points," Tristan boasted.
"Yeah, but were the stakes ever this high?" Amara asked.
So this is the Duelist who took down the King of Games, Kaiba thought. This is Yugi's chance to get back his reputation and championship status.
Yami drew a card. "I'll start by transforming Kuribabylon back into the five Kuriboh Brothers." Five mini Kuriboh monsters reappeared. "Now it's time for them to take on a new form!" The blue one started getting rough and pushed the others around. Soon Kuriboh Brothers were flying all over the place, bouncing off the shield generated by the Orichalcos circle. "Now merge again, this time to form Kuribandit (1)!" The Kuriboh Brothers all plowed into one another and formed a new Kuriboh, a purple fanged one wearingn an eye patch and bandanna.
Raphael burst into laughter. "What's that thing suppose to do, make me die of laughter?"
"The last thing you should be doing is laughing. Now I play my Dark Magic Curtain trading in 500 life points to summon my Dark Magician!"
(R: 3500)
(Y: 500)
Tea and Amara cheered but Mokuba looked worried. "But that last move cost him half his life points."
Tristan gulped, "I'm sure it's all part of his strategy."
"Which is?" Amara asked.
"I'll get back to you on that."
"Dark Magician, attack Guardian Elma now, Dark Magic Attack!"
"I activate my trap card Guardian Force which switches my Elma to the back row." Elma did a back flip and landed behind Guardian Grarl. "Now Elma's protected by my other monsters."
"You wimp," Tristan insulted, "Why don't you try fighting back for once instead of hiding!"
It was an impressive move, Kaiba thought, Raphael knows how to tap into the seal's power.
"It's time to bring out my ultimate monster," Raphael announced. "I play Celestial Sword Eatos!" A beautiful sword came down from the sky and stuck into the ground.
This could mean only one thing, he's about to play Guardian Eatos.
"Now I summon Guardian Eatos in attack mode!"
I have to think quickly, because with 500 life points I don't have much time left.
Guardian Eatos appeared in the sky. As she landed inside the seal, she suddenly let out a scream and held her head. Her wings turned black, her eyes took on a red tint and the Seal of Orichalcos appeared on her forehead.
(GE: 2500-3000)
"Look at what you've done to her," Yami exclaimed. "She's been consumed by darkness!"
"That's right, she's more powerful now!" Eatos picked up the sword.
(GE: 3000-3300)
"I've heard of this monster," Kaiba said. "It gets stronger when there are monsters in the graveyard."
"That's how Yugi was done in last time," Tristan informed.
Yami held out his hand towards Kuribandit. "I sacrifice Kuribandit in order to draw a new hand of cards but I have to send all monsters I've drawn to the graveyard."
"Won't that make Eatos more powerful?" Mokuba asked.
"Maybe, but it might be worth the risk if Yugi can draw the right cards."
Yami drew six cards but sent 3 to the graveyard. All he had in his hand was two magic cards and Harold's dragon.
Harold, Yami mused as he stared at the dragon. I promise that I'll rescue you and Yugi and everyone else who's been trapped by the Orichalcos. But until then, lend me some of your power.
"Eatos, take up your sword and drain the souls of his monsters away!" The spirits of Yami's monsters came out of the graveyard.
(GE: 3300-7000)
"Such overwhelming power," Kaiba commented.
"You're about to become a two-time loser," Raphael snapped. "And this time you'll pay with your soul! Now attack his Dark Magician!" But as Eatos brought her sword down, it fell away and the Dark Magician remained. "What did you do?"
"I'll explain, one of the monsters I discarded was Electromagnetic Turtle (2). And when it's in the graveyard I can end my opponent's turn whenever I want. So I chose to stop your battle before the attack could reach my Dark Magician!"
"All right, he stopped the attack!" Tristan cheered.
"I knew he could," Tea said.
"That's not all he did," Amara said. The two non-Duelists looked at her. "You see the attack points of Electromagnetic Turtle are 0, and Eatos absorbs the attack points of all the monsters in the opponent's graveyard. Raphael thought he was getting a big boost from all of Yugi's monsters but when he absorbed Electromagnetic Turtle…"
"He absorbed nada," Tristan concluded.
"Yup, so not only did he save his Dark Magician, but he knocked Eatos down a peg as well."
"Plus since he ended Raphael's turn,' Kaiba took over. "The Guardian Eatos's attack points drop down to 3300 again."
(GE: 7000-3300)
"You'll pay for mocking the power of my Guardian Eatos!"
"You should've thought twice before poisoning your monsters with the dark power of the Orichalcos. Take it from someone with experience, betraying your monsters only backfire in the end."
"You play the Seal of Orichalcos once and that makes you an expert on the subject?"
Maybe not, Tea thought. But he's certainly an expert on having his monsters turned against him with good reason. Hey I know, maybe the same thing could happen to Raphael!
I hate seeing Eatos in so much pain, Yami thought. Eatos, I promise I'll set you free before this duel is done. Yami drew a card. "I summon Big Shield Gardna in defense mode and switch my Dark Magician to defense mode as well. Lastly, I set a card face-down and end my turn."
"You can't win a duel by defense alone," Raphael scolded as he drew two cards. "Eatos, attack Dark Magician again!"
"Go, Magical Hats!" Yami commanded. Dark Magician and Big Shield Gardna were shuffled underneath four giant top hats. Eatos's sword struck the one that Big Shield Gardna was hiding under.
"Awesome," Tristan said. "Raphael hit the wrong one."
"But he still has two attacks left,' Mokuba pointed out. "So Dark Magician is still in danger!"
"Guardian Elma, strike down one of his hats." Elma's dagger hit an empty hat. "Grarl, your turn!" Grarl slashed another empty hat.
"You failed," Yami said. "My Dark Magician is safe!"
"But my turn isn't over yet, I play the magic card Rod of Silence-Kay'est which lets me summon Guardian Kay'est in attack mode." A beautiful mermaid appeared. But as she fell under the spell of the Orichalcos, her face grew mean.
(GK: 1000-1500)
Raphael ended his turn. Tristan and Tea breathed a sigh of relief. Kaiba said, "There's only one thing that can save Yugi now."
Yami looked down at his deck. Please, Heart of the Cards, guide me! He drew a card. "All right, I have it! I play the Eye of Timaeus!" Timaeus appeared.
"Big deal," Raphael said dismissively. "I beat it once and I'll beat it again."
"Oh, you think so because I'm combining Timaeus with my Dark Magician to form Amulet Dragon (3)!" Amulet Dragon was basically Dark Magician perched on top of Timaeus. Timaeus was surrounded with runes. "But that's just for starters. You may have beaten one Legendary Dragon, but…" He held out the Wings of Solon. "Let's see how you stand up to two!"
"That's Harold's Legendary Dragon," Tea realized.
Solon appeared besides Amulet Dragon. "Solon, in Harold's memory combine, with Amulet Dragon!" The two monsters joined in a flash of light. At first it didn't seem like anything had changed. But then they saw that the wings of Amulet Dragon were yellow. The runes had changed to red and were now spinning around Amulet Dragon. "Since Solon is equipped to a wind attribute monster, I can take any number of magic cards from my deck and add them to my graveyard. So I choose to add 3!"
"What's the point in that?" Raphael asked.
"Because Amulet Dragon gains 300 attack points for every magic card in my graveyard and right now there are 8!"
(AD: 2900-5300)
Raphael audibly gasped.
"Now to teach you a lesson, Raphael, Amulet Dragon attack Guardian Eatos!" Timaeus opened his mouth and Dark Magician aimed his staff at Eatos. The two combined energies showered down on Eatos.
"EATOS, NO!" Raphael cried. Eatos turned to her master with a sad expression as she dissolved.
(R: 1500)
(Y: 500)
"You will pay, Pharaoh! Nobody sends Eatos to the graveyard!" In response, the seal started pulsating.
"Why's the seal doing that?" Tea wondered.
"It could be a glitch in the hologram," Kaiba theorized.
"But where's the glitch coming from?" Mokuba asked.
"What's going on?" Yami also asked.
The seal on Raphael's forehead was glowing green and red now. The lightning was now striking in intervals. "My Eatos is a creature of light and purity," he said. "And when she dies, she is replaced by a different creature: a creature of pure darkness!" A chasm opened up and a strange monster covered in bandages and had a mask on. "Say hello to Guardian Deathscythe (4)."
(GD: 2500-3000)
"Hello—and good-bye! It's still not as strong as my Amulet Dragon."
"It will be once I equip it with my Reaperscythe magic card. This increases its attack points by 500 for every monster in my graveyard!"
"But I thought you despised having monsters in your graveyard?"
"But I despise you even more! So what's if a few monsters in the graveyard if it means getting rid of you forever?"
"Okay, I'm no psychiatrist," Tristan said, "But in my opinion: this guy's gone batty."
"Is that a professional opinion?" Tea asked sarcastically.
"No, but it fits him."
"Next I'll sacrifice all my remaining monsters on the field."
"No, don't do it, Raphael!" Yami pleaded. "The Seal of Orichalcos is clouding your mind!"
"Get out of my sight," Raphael commanded as Elma, Grarl, Kay'est and Backup Gardna all disappeared.
(GD: 3000-5500)
"Okay, holograms or not, anybody who treats their monsters like that doesn't deserve them," Tea said.
"I think Yugi is right," Mokuba said. "The Seal of Orichalcos is clouding Raphael's mind just as it did Alister."
"Guardian Deathscythe, attack Amulet Dragon with Death Slash!" Deathscythe swung its weapon and sliced Amulet Dragon's head off.
(R: 1500)
(Y: 300)
As he slid Solon into his graveyard, he could feel some type of sadness emitting from the dragon. Do not worry, my friend, he thought. You did well, Solon, Harold would be proud. Now take a good long rest, you've earned it. His field now clear, Yami drew a card and smirked.
"The Pharaoh looks pretty confident," Tea observed.
"How is he going to win without his Legendary Dragon?" Kaiba asked.
Amara gasped as she recalled something Yami just said.
"But that's just for starters. You may have beaten one Legendary Dragon, but…" He held out the Wings of Solon. "Let's see how you stand up to two!"
Because he doesn't have just one Legendary Dragon, Amara realized.
"Go, Card of Sanctity," Yami commanded. "Now we can each draw from our decks until we're holding six cards!" Yami and Raphael filled their respective hands. "I summon Watapon and then sacrifice it to summon Dark Magician Girl in defense mode. Finally I set one card face-down."
"Time to put an end to this," Raphael said drawing a card. Now that there were guardian monsters in his graveyard, he was back to drawing one card. "I play Pot of Greed which lets me draw two extra cards." Looking at his two new cards, he said, "I play the magic card Obedience which forces your Dark Magician Girl into attack mode." Try as she might, Dark Magician Girl couldn't resist standing. "Deathscythe, attack her and end this duel right now!" As Deathscythe moved in to attack, Yami activated his face-down card. Dark Magician Girl was covered with a top hat. When Deathscythe sliced it, pigeons came out. "What was that?"
"Magical Pigeon is a magic card that can only be used with Dark Magician Girl. It protects her from attack by transforming her into a pigeon for one turn."
"You're just stalling," Raphael grumbled as he placed two cards face-down. A pigeon landed on the field and transformed into Dark Magician Girl. "You're out of options."
"I'm well aware that the odds are in your favor. You may have the power of the Orichalcos, but I have a power that's greater: a belief in myself and in the hearts of my friends who are with me in spirit even if not consciously."
"You were once ruled by darkness, and people ruled by darkness don't deserve any friends!" He spat the last word.
"True, I may have been ruled by darkness before but I was able to conquer it." He thought back to his duel against the shadow image of Yugi. Yugi helped me defeat the darkness in my heart so I must help Raphael defeat the darkness in his own heart. He drew a card, "This duel is far from over! I know first hand what the Orichalcos can do to a person. When Eatos was destroyed, you unleashed your anger on your other monsters. You let the Orichalcos feed on that rage. But this isn't who you really are. The darkness has taken control of you and the only way to conquer it is to face it head-on! It's the only way to save you!"
"You're the one who needs saving!"
Yami held up a card. "This will force you to take a good hard look at yourself. I play the magic card Underworld Circle!" The card was a strange circle with two skulls at the center. Raphael gasped as a feeling of déjà vu came over him.
The monsters started to disappear and the circle started to spin.
"What have you done?" Raphael asked.
"Now witness your true darkness!" The circle grew dark as purple smoke covered the dueling field blocking the spectators' view.
"Now we can't see what's going on," Mokuba complained.
"I just hope that when the smoke clears, it's the Pharaoh who's still standing," Tea said.
To Be Continued
Duel Monster Database
(1)
Name: Kuribandit
Level: 3
Type: Fiend/Fusion/Effect
Attribute: Dark
ATK: 300
DEF: 200
(2)
Name: Amulet Dragon
Level: 9
Type: Dragon/Hybrid/Effect
Attribute: Wind
ATK: 2900
DEF: 2600
(3)
Name: Guardian Deathscythe
Level: 8
Type: Zombie/Effect
Attribute: Dark
ATK: 2500
DEF: 2800