Yay, chapter 3! I also want to thank my reveiwers. I always love having motivation when I'm writing. I also want to thank my lovley beta cause she's awesome enough to beta this chapter while she's on vacation :) I luv you! *hug*

Anyways, I seriously hope that this duel will be over soon so I can get to the good parts of this fic. I just re-watched the Virtual World segment and figured out that this story is going to be around 21 chapters long...which is as long as the first story I ever wrote! :)

I own nothing...it's really sad :(

"I knew a rookie like you wouldn't be able to keep up with our deck master system." Gansley taunted as Yami clutched his shoulder, his amethyst eyes narrowed.

"I'm a fast learner and I wouldn't be celebrating so quickly; you haven't won your freedom from this world yet." the ex-pharaoh ground out.

"Don't you dare threaten me, you fool. You're weak…I can see it in your eyes. You'll never make it in the dueling business." the business man snarled, watching with amusement as the former monarch's eyes narrowed even more in anger.

Marik looked angry as well. "Don't listen to him, pharaoh!"

Gansley growled in annoyance at the tanner yami's interruption. "I believe Yugi is the one dueling now, you fool. I suggest you zip that flying mouth of yours before I zip it myself."

The younger yami rolled his eyes, his expression one of mock fear. "Oh no, some washed out old wanna-be just threatened me! Whatever shall I do?"

"Marik…" Yami ground out again and the lilac-eyed immortal once again closed his mouth, his heated glare still focused on the Big Five member.

"Oh, why are we dragging this out? Why don't you just give up now and let me have control of your body?" Gansley asked mockingly, tilting his duel disk up. "If you do, I will finally be able to escape from this virtual nightmare."

The former pharaoh shook his head slightly. "Not if you lose."

"Do explain."

"You talk a big game but you have no monsters on the field to protect you, leaving you wide open for an attack." Yami said, his Celtic Guardian and Chimera ready to pounce on his opponent.

"Obnoxious Celtic Guardian, attack his life points now!" the ex-pharaoh shouted. Almost at once, the elf-like solider sprang across the water and slashed his sword across Gansley's body. The Big Five member's life points harshly fell from 4000 to 2600 in an instant.

Marik let out an evil laugh of triumph. "Not so tough now, are you?"

Gansley straightened up, glaring once at the tan yami before turning back to Yami. "Not a bad move, kid."

"You claim to be a man of business, yet you allowed your competition to get the best of you." the ex-pharaoh stated.

The businessman chuckled. "Well not quite. In fact, I led you to do exactly what I wanted you to do! Now I summon Ruclomba the Spirit King!" he said, slapping the card down on the duel disk. A green lizard-like creature soon appeared on the field, crouched like a praying mantis beside its master.

Yami's eyes widened slightly. "But how can you summon a monster when my turn isn't even over yet?"

"Simple, Ruclomba is one of my more profitable investments. With this card in my deck, I can summon it anytime I lose more than 1000 life points, strengthening my staff of workers." Gansley stated.

"It's not about how many monsters you have, it's about how skillfully you use them in battle," the ex-pharaoh ground out in annoyance.

"Well, I've been in business for a long time and have always had a larger labor force. The reason being there was always an extra worker to pick up the slack of another. This is how I duel; if one monster becomes too weak, I have another one to take its place." the businessman said harshly.

"That's just sad." Yami growled.

"That's only your opinion, little Yugi. For me, it's a way of life." Gansley shot back.

The ex-pharaoh was so concentrated on his opponent; he failed to sense Marik's presence until he was right next to him. "You know, I don't agree with the pharaoh on a lot of things, but I do agree with how sad it is that you think a monster can be replaced so easily."

The Big Five member returned his attention back to the taller yami, his face drawn back into an unpleasant expression. "I thought I told you to keep quiet, fool!"

Malik's yami could only stare in disbelief before the glowing eye on his forehead began to shine brilliantly. The essence of darkness growled before moving towards the water. He probably would have swam, (if he could swim), over to the Big Five member and knocked some sense into the old fool but Yami's hand tightly grasped his shoulder, causing him to stop and stand next to the ex-pharaoh again.

"Do not mock him, Gansley. This duel is between you and me." the former pharaoh growled out, his amethyst eyes burning.

"Then I suggest you put your little boyfriend on a leash and tell him that his master is in a meeting right now." Gansley taunted.

Marik's eyes widened while Yami inwardly gagged at the thought of dating Marik.

The aforementioned tan yami was once again making his way towards the floating man. "I take orders from no one!" he snarled out.

"Marik, back off! You're only making it worse!" the ex-pharaoh said, placing both hands on his golden shoulders to stop the psychopath from advancing any further. The younger yami took one look at Gansley before he roughly shrugged off the former monarch's hands and moved back behind him, a scowl on his face.

"You'll never get away with this Gansley!" the ex-pharaoh said.

"Oh just watch me." his opponent shot back, drawing his card swiftly from his deck. Chuckling, a smile formed on his face before he placed the card on the duel disk. "I summon Youi in attack mode."

A card was reveled and a monster that looked like a mix between some sort of lizard and a spider crawled out, snarling at his master's opponent.

"Youi's arrival to this game forbids you from drawing a card next turn, making him a valuable asset." Gansley said.

Yami narrowed his eyes.

"But I'm not done yet. Now I play the magic card Premature Burial! All I have to do is invest a mere 800 lifepoints and I may now revive one of my former monsters. So return to the field, Ipiria!" the larger man shouted, his silver lizard once appearing back in front of him.

Both the ex-pharaoh and tomb keeper seemed to think the exact same thing at the same time; Gansley's monsters out-numbered Yami's three to two.

The Big Five member seemed to realize this too. "As you can see Yugi, I have created a large variety of investments and it will only keep growing. So, why don't you launch an attack? With my three monsters on the front line, you'll never get to me."

The former monarch growled. "We'll see about that."

"Yes we will."

Yami thought it over quickly. 'I can't use Chimera again; he'll just sacrifice two monsters to bring out Reflector Hole again, which will cause my monster to attack me instead of him. Also, even if I did destroy all of his monsters and attacked his life points, he would just summon another Ruclomba…"

The buissnessman chuckled. "What's the hold up? Have you finally realized that I'm unbeatable?"

"You should know that a good strategy takes time." The ex-pharaoh defended.

"Nonsense; stalling for time is a clear sign of weakness." Gansley shot back; fixing the spirit was a knowing look.

"That's pathetic."

"No, what's pathetic is the monster you've chosen as your deck master. That floating hairball does nothing but spout gibberish." The Big Five member taunted.

Kuriboh looked hurt, eyeing the floor in shame. Yami glared at his opponent before turning to the duel monster. "Don't worry Kuriboh, I believe in you. We can defeat him together."

"Then make your move, Yugi!"

The ex-pharaoh sighed before remembering the tan yami that should be behind him. He had been unusually quiet…

"Marik, are you still there?"

"Yeah…I'm still here, pharaoh."

It shocked the older yami to think of it but the confirmation that Marik was behind him was somewhat of a relief. Not just because he could keep an eye on the unstable yami but…

…he needed someone that he knew that was on his side, at least for the time being.

"Now get ready!" Yami shouted, moving his hand to draw another card. However, he stopped midway when he remembered Youi's special ability; he couldn't draw another card this turn.

"It's hopeless Yugi; you're dealing with a born strategist." Gansley boasted.

"Well you're dealing with an ancient ruler so I wouldn't be too cocky there, you old lemon." The youngest yami said sharply.

For once, Yami didn't reprimand his traveling partner. The fact that Marik was defending him was extremely odd, yet strangely comforting.

Thoughts of what to do again plagued the ex-ruler's mind. 'I can't attack with my Celtic Guardian because he'll just activate his Reflector Hole again. But he has to sacrifice two monsters to summon it, which will weaken his defense. I have not other choice; it may cost me some lifepoints, but it's a risk I'm going to have to take!'

"Now my Obnoxious Celtic Guardian, attack his Youi!" Yami shouted, his solider getting ready to attack.

Gansley smirked. "Looks like you're more foolish than I thought. For now I sacrifice Ipiria and Youi to activate Reflector Hole! Counter-attack!"

Almost at once, Yami's monster disappeared into the black and purple abyss before said abyss appeared in front of the former pharaoh and his monster shot out of it, slashing his sword across his own master's body. Yami cried out in agony before his knees began to shake and he clutched his shoulder in a death grip.

"Pharaoh!" the darker yami exclaimed, quite shocked that the tri-haired duelist had made such a move. He was also quite shocked when Yami didn't answer him, merely continued to groan in pain.

"You're lifepoints are falling faster than the stock market of 1929, Yugi." Gansley taunted as the ex-pharaoh's lifepoints went down from 1900 to 500. "That makes two direct hits; three strikes and you're out. Are you surprised how real this feels? It may be virtual but it takes more of a toll than the duels you're used to, right?"

Yami nearly whimpered in agony. He would have fallen back if Marik hadn't caught him, holding him upright so he didn't meet the grassy floor. "Come on pharaoh, you have to win this. I'm not letting some old coot destroy you before I get my chance to."

The ex-pharaoh took in one deep, fortifying breath before he spoke. "At least he's down to one monster now."

"Uhh, pharaoh? I really think you need to look again." The tan yami said, looking out over the field. Yami stared at the younger yami in confusion before he noticed that Marik was right; there were two monsters now.

"Explain yourself, Gansley!"

"Well, while you were busy recovering from my direct attack, I took the opportunity to sacrifice my Ruclomba to summon Wall of Illusion. Plus, another Ruclomba…I find it necessary to strike while your opponent is weak."

"You had that move planned all along, didn't you?" Marik snarled out.

"For once you are correct, my dense victim."

The tan yami was getting pretty tired of the inane insults he was receiving. The glowing eye of Wdjat on his forehead was shining brilliantly now, his whole body nearly shaking with rage.

However, Gansley seemed blissfully unaware as looked back at his opponent that was still awkwardly lying against the tan yami's chest. "Now Yugi, let me introduce you to the newest member of my staff; Wall of Illusion. Any monster that tries to attack it are removed from the field immediately and sent back to the player's hand. I may consider resigning now, Yugi."

Yami sighed. "What am I going to do, Marik? Every move I make will just be used against me or strengthen his defense."

The younger yami stared at the ex-pharaoh before lightly pushing him away. "You can't give up pharaoh. If you do, I'll never be able to destroy you and gain the power I want from you."

"I won't give up…it just seems so hopeless."

"That's because it is." Gansley said.

Marik glared at him. "Oh, go stick that fat head of yours up someone's rectum!"

"You know, your attitude hasn't improved once during this duel and frankly, you're starting to annoy me. I believe it's time to…remove you from the game." The buissnessman said harshly.

Both Marik and Yami exchanged glances but that didn't last long as a surprised yelp was drawn out of the tan yami as he was suddenly levitating and thrown back into the shade of the forest trees. Sitting up, he tried to make his way back to the pharaoh, only to discover that some sort of force field was keeping him out.

"What the hell? Let me back in!"

"I can't do that, you fool. This duel does not concern you, so I suggest you wait there and once I've gained your friend's body, I can focus on destroying you next."

Marik growled before stepping back. What was he suppose to do now? He couldn't be near the pharaoh to make sure nothing was happening…so that just left him to move back to his original plan; picking off Yami's friends one by one.

That friendship bitch seemed like the perfect start.

"I'll be back, pharaoh." The tan yami said and with a swish of his purple cape, he vanished into the forest of virtual trees.

"Good riddance." Gansley muttered and Yami narrowed his eyes.

"Well, you gave it your best shot, my young friend. However, big business always wins in the end. Besides, I've been roaming this world for too long and you're my ticket out." The Big Five member said.

"It's not over yet Gansley, so don't make your travel plans yet." Yami ground out.

Gansley smirked. "Keep your false hope. You'll be that much more disappointed when you suffer defeat. You, your rude friend and your pitiful deck master. That pathetic pom-pom is useless!"

Kuriboh stared at his master's opponent in shock for a moment before his fur puffed out sharply in anger, his dark purple eyes narrowed.

"I'm afraid you were doomed from the start."

"You can taunt me all you want Gansley, but I'll never give up hope. I trust in my deck." Yami said.

"And I trust my skills." The businessman shot back. Taking a look at his cards, the lifeless eyes met the crimson ones again.

"I have developed an arsenal of monsters at my disposal…not that it matter now anyways. I've rendered you so weak that you'll be out of lifepoints by the end of my next turn." The Big Five member said.

Yami could only glare, still clutching his shoulder in pain. Kuriboh was doing his best to also glare at the opponent, his fur puffed up and his green claws clenched in something that looked like fist.

"I will finally be allowed to return to civilization, while your mind is virtually scattered thought-out cyberspace!" Gansley shouted.

The ex-pharaoh could only stare. His opponent was right; if he didn't do something his next turn, he would be done and his body would be lost forever.

He couldn't lose…he just couldn't.