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The Orichalcos Saga
Fanfic Chapter 229: To Light the Darkest Hour Pt 5: The Last Temptation of Yami
Episode Basis: A Duel with Dartz Pt 5
Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh! Though Kaiba was able to destroy the Mirror Knights using Yami's Mirror Force card and Critius, Dartz brought out not one but three more powerful monsters: Orichalcos Shunaros, with over 20,000 attack points, Orichalcos Dexia that attacks with 300 extra attack points than the monster its attacking and Orichalcos Aristeros which blocks all attacks with 300 extra defense points. Shunaros put an end to Kaiba but not before Kaiba was able to restore Yami's life points. After Kaiba was defeated, Dartz knocked out Amara, Tea, Tristan, and Mokuba. He then revealed that the Armlet was an Atlantian artifact that was sent to Egypt by a maiden to stop the power of the Shadow Games that, according to Dartz, was released by Yami. Dartz is quickly convincing Yami was evil and that everything that happened was his fault.
In a strange void, Joey Wheeler woke up. He was inside some kind of bubble. He looked around and noticed a giant eye that was sucking up orbs. He freaked, "I've had some freaky dreams but this one takes the cake." He thought back. "I remember being trapped in a duel but how did I end up in here?"
"Joey?"
"Yugi!" Yugi was floating nearby also in a bubble. "Boy, am I glad to see you."
"Same here."
"Yugi? Joey?" The two looked up to see Harold who was floating upside down above them "What are you guys doing upside down?"
"Hate to tell you, man, but you're the one upside down," Joey said.
"But why am I not falling? Oh man, all the blood's rushing to my head." Harold held his head in pain.
Yugi and Joey chuckled. "I'm glad you two are all right," he said.
"You call this all right?" The three of them turned and saw Pegasus in an orb.
"Pegasus, so this is where you've been hiding."
"Quite unintentionally, I assure you," Pegasus replied.
"I wonder who else is here." The four of them turned and saw the Warriors of Doma along with Kaiba, Mai, Weevil, and Rex. "Check it out, guys, this must be where the Orichalcos spits you out after you lose a duel." Joey freaked out again, "Okay, calm down, Joey, maybe I'm still dreaming."
"It's no dream, Joey," Yugi said. "And things are about to get worse." He pointed to the eye which was sucking up orbs like they were going out of style.
"What's with the giant eye?" Harold asked.
"That's the Great Leviathan," Pegasus explained. "And it's sucking up souls."
"I don't want to be turned into soul food!" Joey whined.
"We can still get out of this," Yugi assured the others. "If the Pharaoh defeats Dartz."
"I don't see how he can," Harold said. "Look up… er… I mean down." Yugi and Joey looked down and saw Kaiba in an orb. "If Kaiba's in here then that means the Pharaoh's dueling Dartz alone."
"He's not alone," Yugi revealed. "Even though we're not physically there, he still has us."
"Being apart has never stopped us before," Harold commented.
"But will it work this time?" Joey wondered. "I mean Dartz is playing by a whole different set of rules and nothing can beat that Orichalcos card."
"There is one thing that can," Pegasus can. "The card I made."
"The blank card?" Yugi asked.
When I was first developing Duel Monsters, I made frequent trips to Egypt to get ideas for the monsters. It was during one of these trips that I made a startling discovery. In a cave was a large mural that depicted four dragons. I didn't need my Millennium Eye to know that something was special about this. The dragons served as guardians to a dimension where Duel Monsters were real. I searched high and low for every sliver of information regarding them.
"What did you find?" Yugi asked.
I found out that the dragons weren't originally dragons. They were originally elite soldiers who served the king of Atlantis: Dartz! But when Dartz became corrupted by the Orichalcos, they left. Obviously Dartz didn't take too kindly to that. The soldiers fought in the Battle of Atlantis but Dartz was able to seal their souls in dragon form in an attempt to weaken them.
"Maybe if we could find a way to restore the dragons to their original forms, they can lay the smack-down on Dartz," Harold suggested.
"My boy, that's precisely why I created that card."
"But the card was blank," Joey pointed out.
"Don't forget, I originally hid the chant of the Winged Dragon of Ra so that only someone who possesses ties to the Millennium Items and Ancient Egypt could read it. It was a security measure to keep the wrong people from getting their hands on the Egyptian God Card. It's the same thing with that card, I made it blank so that if the Doma Group were to discover the secret room, they wouldn't realize the importance of the card and leave it alone."
Yugi stared off into the distance, "It's all up to the Pharaoh now."
"What's wrong, Pharaoh?" Dartz asked. "Is the truth too much for you to take? We needed to forge the Armlet to stop you from using the Shadow Games to subjugate your people."
"No, I won't listen to your lies!" Yami cried.
"You've been lying to the world for years, trying to convince others that you were sent back by fate to save the world from evil. When in fact, you are the very evil you claim to be fighting! You represent the darkness inside all humans! For your darkness to be purified, you must be sacrificed!"
"Never," Yami said but his voice wavered. "I won't let you start another war!"
"The war has already begun, with us."
"Then I'll end it right now. It's my move!" He drew a card. "I play Pot of Greed which allows me to draw two more times." He drew two additional cards. "I summon Obnoxious Celtic Guardian in defense mode." The only thing I can do now is try to block his attacks long enough for me to draw the right card. "I place one card face-down and that's all."
Dartz drew a card and gained 1500 life points.
(K: X)
(Y: 4300)
(D: 20,000)
"Orichalcos Dexia, attack his Celtic Guardian."
(OD: 1500)
"I activate my trap card Soul Shield paying half my life points to repel Dexia's attack!" A shield was set up sending the arm back to its original position.
(K: X)
(Y: 2150)
(D: 20,000)
(OS: 17,500)
The white orb was the only one of Yami's allies who was still conscious. It bounced around. It finally zoomed out of the room.
"Nice block," Dartz complimented. "But what's the point? Look around you, your friends are not in a position to support you, even your disembodied guardian has left you. Plus the odds don't look like they're in your favor. So why drag this out further when all you have to do is forfeit and join your friends on the other side."
Maybe Dartz is right, he does have 20,000 life points and three indestructible monsters. Maybe I can do more for them by surrendering.
The white orb had arrived at the entrance to the temple. It started shaking around. A wind swept up around it. All of a sudden it took off like a bullet inside the temple.
"That's right, Pharaoh," Dartz coaxed. "Listen to the voice of reason; it's the only way to repent for your sins. It's the only way you can rejoin your friends."
Yami raised his hand over his Duel Disk.
The white orb rocketed into the room and struck the shield. As hard as the white orb tried, it couldn't bust through.
"Not even that can help now," Dartz said. "It's time. Seal of Orichalcos, surround the Pharaoh and take his soul!" Green energy began swarming around Yami.
Suddenly a white beam of energy came out of the Avatar Armlet. It struck the shield as well. The beam cut through the wall of the Orichalcos and ensnared the white orb. The white orb flew through the three layers of the Seal of Orichalcos. When it reached the inner circle, it burst from the beam, did a U-turn and struck the Millennium Puzzle disappearing in the process.
He was falling into darkness. It felt cold, and lonely. Of course it felt lonely, he was alone because he was evil. And that was his mantra until a new voice cried out.
"PHARAOH!" Yami opened his eyes and lazily looked up. A white orb was descending towards him. Suddenly the orb transformed into a woman. She had tanned skin with dark hair that fell chin-length and doe-brown eyes. She was dressed similarly to Ishizu Ishtar when she participated in Battle City.
I know her… Tea? No, it's… the original Avatar. Yami knew she had a proper name but couldn't remember what it was. Then again, he had trouble remembering what he was.
The woman descended until she was eye-level with Yami and turned him right-side up. "Pharaoh, please do not give up, your friends are counting on you."
"But what can I do? I have nothing."
"Long ago, you saved the world by defeating a great evil!"
"Defeat? I WAS that evil."
"No you weren't!" Yami looked up at her shocked. "I was there, you put your own life at risk to save your people. And you saved my soul from being consumed by eternal darkness. Now I have traveled through time and space to repay the favor."
"But even if I wanted to…" Yami and the girl looked up. "My light is too insignificant to overcome the darkness."
"Alone, that may be true but together we can light even the darkest of hours. Please, take my light.'
"What?!"
"Long ago, you showed me the true light, now I will show you the true light." A circle of symbols appeared in front of them. Most were green but one was still white.
"The symbols on the Avatar Armlet," Yami recognized.
"Yes, all but one has turned into Atlantian symbols."
"What is the one that has not changed?"
She smiled at him, "The Egyptian character for love."
"Love… is that where the true light lies, in love, is that what I taught you so long ago?"
"Yes." She leaned in and kissed him gently on the lips. Her body started to glow and she became a golden ball of light which inserted into his naked body. He could still hear her voice, "Now my spirit will always be with you. Now go and light your darkest hour!" Yami's body started to glow.
All of a sudden the seal that was around Yami was pushed away as the Pharaoh's body was covered in a shaft of golden light. "Impossible, nothing can overpower the Seal of Orichalcos! What's going on?" Dartz asked shocked. Phantoms of Yugi, Joey, Kaiba, and Harold appeared. Soon more images joined them around Yami. Tea, Amara, Tristan, Ironheart, Chris, even the Warriors of Doma, all of them now seemed to be protecting the Pharaoh.
"You forced me to look inside my heart," Yami said eerily calmed. "You expected me to find only darkness but you are wrong!" He looked up at his opponent and stared defiantly into Dartz's eyes. "I found my light! It is the light of love, it is the light of friendship, it is the light… of justice!" The Millennium emblem appeared on his forehead. Familiar smoke began swirling around them.
"The Shadow Realm!" Dartz gasped.
"I should thank you, Dartz, you reminded me that my friends are always with me and that light and darkness are present in everybody! It is with the hearts of my friends, with the hearts of all of humanity, that I draw this card!" Even as he drew it, he felt a jolt and knew he got the card Pegasus gave him. The mist from the Shadow Realm engulfed the card and transformed it. The blank card now had a picture of the dragons interspaced by swords. The golden column dispersed. "I play Legend of Heart! To activate it, I must give up 1000 life points and sacrifice my Obnoxious Celtic Guardian." The guardian disappeared.
(K: X)
(Y: 1150)
(D: 20,000)
"Now I can summon Timaeus, Crtius, Solon, and Hermos in their original forms!" The four dragons appeared. Storm clouds gathered as the dragons flew up and disappeared into them.
A chorus of voices suddenly came from on high, "At last, after thousands of years we have been set free!" Four humanoid figures descended. They were dressed in armor with mantle capes. They were the same colors as the dragons and one of the knights, the one in green, had a scar across one eye. What was striking was that their faces were similar to Kaiba, Harold, Joey, and Yami.
The green knight drew his sword, "I am Sir Timaeus!"
The blue knight also drew his sword, "I am Sir Critius!"
The yellow knight followed suite, "I am Sir Solon!"
Finally the red knight drew his sword, "And I am Sir Hermos!"
They all held up their swords and announced, "In the name of Atlantis, we are reborn!" They slammed their swords on the ground and the three Orichalcos seals were destroyed.
(OS: 15,200)
(OD: 0)
Dartz took a step back in fear as Critius aimed his sword at the Doma Leader. "What's the matter, Dartz, did our attack catch you off guard?"
"Your seal is powerless before our power," Hermos declared.
"Have you forgotten our last encounter?" Solon asked.
"I certainly haven't," Timaeus said indicating his scarred eye. "And I have a score to settle with you, Dartz!"
"And settle it you shall," Yami said. "Timaeus, attack Orichalcos Aristeros!"
(OA: 0-3100)
Timaeus struck the arm with his sword but fell back.
(OS: 15,200-12,100)
"Hermos, Solon, attack together!" The red and yellow knights charged forward and each sliced the arm.
(OA: 0-3100)
(OS: 12,100-5900)
(K: X)
(Y: 250)
(D: 20,000)
"I end my turn."
Dartz drew a card, "Shunaros, attack Timaeus!"
"Your attack won't work," Yami said as Critius stepped in front of him. "Due to Critius's special ability, I can bring a trap card back from the graveyard and play it. The trap I choose is Mirror Force!" The card was sucked into Critius's sword. Critius held up his sword and a shield appeared around the knights and Yami. The attack was redirected back at Shunaros and its two components.
(K: X)
(Y: 250)
(D: 14,100)
Dartz coughed but smiled, "An excellent move, Pharaoh, but Shunaros has a special ability too." The monster started to crack. It burst into flames. Suddenly a vortex appeared and a large serpent appeared. "When he's destroyed, my Divine Serpent was born. But there's a price to pay. I must discard my entire hand and give up every one of my life points."
"That means you lose!"
"Under normal circumstances, yes, but as long as my Divine Serpent remains on the field, I remain in the game. But if it's destroyed, you win. Oh, and as for Divine Serpent's attack points… it's infinite!"
(DS: ∞)
"Infinite!" Yami gasped.
"Meaning there's not a monster in your deck that can stand up against it. And once it destroys your knight, the Orichalcos will take your soul."
Yami drew a card. It was Dark Magician Girl. I made you a promise and I won't go back on my word. "I'll set a card face-down and end my turn."
Dartz drew a card, "To have my Divine Serpent attack, I must discard the top ten cards from my deck." Dartz took a stack of cards and placed it in his graveyard. "Divine Serpent, attack Timaeus!" The serpent opened its mouth and released a shaft of energy which engulfed the green knight.
(K: X)
(Y: 0)
(D: X)
The seal started to enclose around Yami again. "The duel is over!" Suddenly the seal dispersed. Dark Magician Girl was revealed in defense mode. "What… how did you survive?"
"I activated my trap card Relay Soul which allows me to stay in the game when my life points reach 0 by summoning Dark Magician Girl and putting my life in her hands." Yami and Dark Magician Girl shared a look. "We're in the same situation, each with only one monster on the field. You have your Divine Serpent and I have my Dark Magician Girl. When one of these monsters is destroyed, the card holder will lose."
"You may have altered the rules of our battle but your chances of victory are just as slim."
"I have the spirits of my friends to aid me while you are alone."
"I don't need anybody, I have more power than you or your friends, observe! I play the magic card Impact Revive which lets me return a monster that was destroyed this turn to the field with 500 extra attack points!" Timaeus returned to the field on Yami's side.
"But why would you bring back my monster?"
"To prove how powerless you really are. Impact Revive also allows my monster to attack again." Dartz discarded another ten cards. "Divine Serpent, attack!"
Yami watched the blast head towards him. If she's destroyed, it's all over!
To Be Continued