Chapter 6: The Ties of Family

The holographic projectors turned off and the images disappeared. Maximus scooped his deck back into his box and hopped down to the floor. Joey gathered up his deck and slowly began to descend the platform. He was still hurting from the duel. Maximus walked up to Joey and offered a handshake. Joey reached out and accepted the gesture.

"You made a very worthy effort up there." Maximus said. I've played people who couldn't stand up to my Swordsmen half as well as you did. You got guts!!"

Joey's eyes brightened at the sound of this. Some of the pain felt less intense as well.

"Thanks Maximus, You're all right."

"Glad to hear it! You're not so bad yourself." Maximus replied

"Tell me," Joey said. "Is there a story behind those Swordsmen guys you have?" It's like you have the same kind of bond with them that Horus has with his dragons."

Maximus turned his head upwards to the ceiling for a few moments before looking back at the crowd around him. He then began to speak.

'While I haven't noticed any strange powers or mysterious past behind the Mystic Swordsmen cards, I do in fact feel a bond with them. The only other times I've felt a bond like this are with Matt and Sean, and my sister Mary."

"You have a sister?" Yugi asked. Maximus paused for a moment before letting out a sigh. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. Inside was a small black-and white photograph of him standing in front of a Christmas tree standing next to a young woman. She was a slender, muscular woman. Her physique was similar to one of a runner or a swimmer. Her skin was clear just like his was, although it looked like she had some red in her cheeks. Her hair was slightly brighter than his was. She few inches taller than he was as well. Both were wearing dark T-shirts and an early version of running pants. Both of them had their arms around each other and had bright smiles across their faces. On the back of the photo was a hand-written message

Dan,

No matter how far away we may be, we'll always be together.
Your loving sister,

Mary

December 17, 1921

Maximus showed this picture to Yugi, Tea, Joey and Tristan. When they passed it back to him, he carefully placed it back in his wallet. He then put his wallet away and began to speak.

"As Horus already stated, my real name is Daniel Clay." He began "That woman in the picture was my big sister, Mary. She was the only woman I've ever been close to in my life. I was born in 1901, she was born in 1899. Our mother died in 1908. We had no other siblings and our father worked as pharmacist so he was working all sorts of crazy hours. He provided for us a decent living but for the most part, the only family I had was Horus, Shinobi, and Mary. Whenever I couldn't be with either of them, I was with Mary. Between the four of us, we had plenty of good times, and were like one big happy family. At least until 1919, when the three of us were called to Ireland to receive the Philosopher's Stone fragments. It broke my heart that we three were chosen but they couldn't give a piece to Mary. They said that it was because since ancient times, only men could use the power of the Philosopher's stone. I accepted my fate as a keeper of the stone but with some sadness in my heart, because I knew that it would mean that I would have to leave my friends. And I would have to leave Mary."

"Judging from that picture, I'd say you and Mary were really close." Joey said.

"Yeah, we were." Maximus said. His speech became quite emotional and he began to cry from all the emotion. "That Christmas was the last one I spent with her before I left the area. We had that picture taken together as a reminder that we would always be there for each other. Early in '22 I left and went down to Hollywood and took up a job as a writer for several film companies. I bounced around from Warner Brothers, to Colombia to 20th Century Fox for quite some time. I couldn't complain about my paychecks, but the main suits, the presidents of the companies, they were real jerks. It was really difficult to write scripts the way I wanted to write them. I, along with lots of other writers, felt that our creativity was being stifled. Nevertheless I persevered through it. I must admit though it would have been nice to have one chance to just tell one of those creeps off."

That's corporate America for you." Tristan replied

"Was that the last time you ever saw your sister?" Joey asked "I have a sister myself and it would really stink to never see Serenity again."

Maximus continued. "Fortunately for Mary and me, we did see each other again. She and I would write letters to each other at least once a week. If one of us thought of it, we would place a phone call from time to time but it was mainly letters. The next time I saw Mary was April of 1927 at her wedding. She was the most beautiful bride I've ever seen in my life. The depression did a number on the film industry but I managed to keep a steady job over at Colombia Pictures. I was working primarily with the Short Subject department writing scripts for two-reeler films that they'd show before showing the movie until 1936. I got a letter from Mary saying that dad had died. I went home for the funeral and there Mary told me she was going to take over running the family Pharmacy. She said that she would have really loved it if I came back and ran the place with her. It was sad for me to leave Hollywood, but I wanted to see Mary again, so I did it. By this time, Mary had two sons, ages 5 and 2. They were absolutely adorable, so she and I would take turns running the place, you know filling prescriptions and stuff like that while the other played with the kids. Her husband was manager of a bank on the other side of town between the three of us money wasn't an issue for much of the time."

"That was really kind of your sister to ask you to come back and help her." Tea remarked.

"I was truly happy for years." Maximus began. "I had a job that I enjoyed doing and provided a good income. I had my health, I had friends, and I had my sister. Things got kind of complicated starting around 1960. Mary's husband had a heart attack and died that year. She began to slowly turn over the place to her sons. She and I both wanted to keep the store in the family. At that same time we realized another problem. Because of my Philosopher's Stone, I was not aging at all while everyone around me was getting older. This began to pose more of a problem as the years went on. We figured out a way around it by making it so that I would just work in the back room of the place preparing medications. This worked for a number of years, but my nephews began to wonder about me. Yes, they knew about the stone. In 1967, they actually wanted me to leave the pharmacy, but Mary stopped them. She said that she would not let me go anywhere because I was still her brother and she loved me. It was the single nicest thing I think Mary ever did for me, sticking up for me right there."

Maximus paused for another moment while a tear ran down his cheek. The group just stood back and waited for him.

When he regained his composure Yugi asked a question: "I bet it must have been hard on you when she died. "

Maximus continued: 'Yeah, it was really bad. As the years went on, Mary retired and turned over the store to her sons. They still run it to this day but are preparing their own children to take over. I give Mary credit on one thing. She taught them the value of keeping things in the family. But anyway, in 1973, Mary got sick. I guess at age 74 her health just began to deteriorate. She knew that her time was nearly up so she asked me to care for her. I spent nearly all my free time with her and I asked her something I'd wondered about for over 50 years. 'Did it ever bother you that you could not receive a piece of the stone like I did?'

'No, Dan' she said 'I understood that you were chosen and not I. I understood that it was your destiny and not mine. I know it hurts you to think about this, but I'll be fine. God will take care of me and I will have my own form of life Eternal

I knew she was comfortable with the decisions the monks had made, but I couldn't help but wonder what if she could have a piece as well.

"But Mary, in years to come, you will be gone. I on the other hand will still be here. What will I do when that time comes? You're the only person that has ever loved me."

She then pulled out her wallet and showed me the very same picture that I showed you all. I wrote a message to her on the back. She showed it to me.

Mary,

You've been there for me since the beginning. I will always be there for you.
I love you!

Your brother

Daniel

December 17, 1921

"Dan, I couldn't have asked for a better brother than you.' She said 'Don't worry about me. I'll always be with you, even after I am gone. I love you!"

Seeing that picture and hearing her say that to me was like a beacon of hope to me. To know that my sister still remembered what I wrote so many years earlier. Ii gave me hope that I would be able to go on after she died. Sure enough, Mary passed away on August 19, 1975. Two days later she was laid to rest. That was the single worst day of my life. My sister was gone.

"So what did you do?" Joey asked

"Once she died, I left the pharmacy and moved to New Jersey. I took a job there at a publishing company just outside of Trenton. Not a bad job, but my life was kind of in disarray. Without Mary I just felt like I had no sense of direction. Sure she was with me in spirit if not in body, but I didn't know how to connect with that spirit. Fortunately for me however I found an unusual solution to my troubles: games. I began to learn how to play different kinds of games. Board games, video games, even card games. It was weird. It was like by playing games I felt young again and I was playing with Horus, Shinobi, and Mary again. It made me feel like I was young again, so I played games with some friends as often as I could. The 1990's saw the rise of trading card games. Duel Monsters was the one that intrigued me the most. I guess it was all those monsters and the stories behind them. I took to Duel Monsters like a duck to water. Trouble with me was that I started off too fast for my own good. I went to local tournaments with very basic cards and got whooped pretty badly. As time progressed however I developed some skill, but it was at a regional tournament in 1998 that got me on the right path."

"What happened there?" Tea asked

"I was studying the decks and playing styles of all the participants." Maximus said "Sure these guys were good, but something was strange. It seemed like all of them were focused on one basic strategy, summon out the powerful monsters and pound your opponent into dust. I felt like I was watching an Episode of Star Trek and all these people were assimilated by The Borg. There was one exception. The guy who eventually won the tournament ran a deck that had everyone stunned. He called it "The Solar Eclipse." His name was Reese Silver. After the tournament I went up to him and stared to ask him how he built that deck. I asked him if he would help me out with my deck and he not only agreed to help me, but he was willing to teach me as well. He lived just outside of New York City so we could get together and train. Reese taught me most of what he knew about Duel Monsters and my skills developed sharply under his tutelage. But then one day he said to me: 'Dan, you're good, but if you really want to get good, you need to see Master Raigia. He's the man who taught me how to duel.'

"Did you do that?" Yugi asked.

Maximus continued "Reese took me up into the mountains to some cabin on a lake in northern New Jersey. Master Raigia was a recluse who was a master of nearly every card game you could imagine. He had been known to train people on occasion and Reese was one of his students. After a long talk with Reese, Master Raigia agreed to take me as a student. As a going away present Reese gave me my first Mystic Swordsman card. It was a Level 2 Swordsman. I accepted this card and quickly decided that I would use it as a way of honoring Reese. Training with Master Raigia was pretty intense. In addition to dueling I also trained my body as well. I had to hunt for game animals, fish, chop wood, among other things. He said that if my body was strong it would keep my mind alert. This was also followed by extreme training through dueling. This guy was GOOD!! He could easily duel circles around me without breaking a sweat half the time. As the months went on he definitely began to warm up to me. He saw how I had embraced the Level 2 Swordsman Reese gave me and helped me acquire two more of them. He even gave me a Level 4 Mystic Swordsman."

"So is this when you put that deck together?" Joey asked

"Actually no." Maximus answered. "I had a few Swordsmen, but not enough to create a deck focused on them. My deck at this point was an Earth based beat down deck. I was focused on ways to power up Earth based monsters so I could do some real damage. Master Raigia taught me that the secret to a good deck is that all the cards must work together. He also taught me the value of versatility. Most of his cards could be used in so many different decks that it looked like his deck was truly 'The Well Balanced Deck" as he described it. If it needed to attack it could, if it wanted to whittle away at someone's hand it could, if it wanted to stall it could. The man sure knew how to play the game.
Eventually after about 10 months he told me my training was done. He called up Reese to come pick me up. As a gift to me for completing my training, Master Raigia gave me a Mystic Swordsman Level 6. I was ecstatic. I now had a full set of the Mystic Swordsmen cards. I set out to find two more Level 4's and one more Level 6. It took me quite a bit of trading and some cash but in early 2000 I finally found them. I was now ready to build my Swordsman deck. Reese said to me that he was really honored that I was using the card he gave me. I told him that he was a good man and I admired him for the fact that he dueled his way and dueled with honor and virtue."

"Do you still talk to Reese?" Tea said

"Occasionally." Maximus said "He's still living up by New York, but he doesn't do big tournaments like he used to. He's become more of a teacher these days. In fact one of his students won the New York City championship back in March. I owe a great deal to the man He helped me develop my skills and introduced me to a man who developed them even further. I built my deck using everything they taught me and I've been using it ever since. Most people pass up Mystic Swordsman because they don't understand what he can do, but I learned to understand the value of every card so I chose to embrace the Swordsman. I must say it's like we're connected or something. I feel as if with this deck I have done something that Mary would be proud of. She's become the main reason I duel. Because I love Mary and I feel as though her spirit flows through my cards and aides me in battle."

"That is really sweet. It's kind of how I feel about Serenity. I feel like she's with me and my deck." Joey said

'I guess you and I are more alike than I thought" Maximus said. "That's why I chose to duel you. Because you share a bond with your sister similar to the one I have with my sister but moving on with my tale. In May of 2001 I was at a Regional Tournament out near Philadelphia and after one of my matches was over I looked a few tables down and lo and behold it was none other that Shinobi. I couldn't believe it. I hadn't seen him in over 80 years and here he was at a Duel Monsters Tournament. I ran over to him and we embraced each other. Not too long after that, we ran into Horus, and what was a good day then turned into a great day turned into the best day ever. The three of us were back together. It was Horus's idea that we stick together and try to start up a game shop and he knew just the place to do it. A few days later we bought this place, gutted it out and turned it into Game Sanctuary. I think you know the rest from there. We went to Ireland, received our items and thus "The Saints" were born. After our return Horus suggested that since we are Saints that we should make Game Sanctuary a true Sanctuary. Hence we began the "No Ante-Dueling" rule and we began to take in and train people."

"Just out of curiosity what was your favorite moment as a Saint?" Tristan asked 'Surely you've crushed someone like Horus did to Kaiba."

Maximus smiled, then he began "That would have to be the time when right before Duelist Kingdom when I played Weevil Underwood."

"You actually dueled that little grub." Joey interrupted

"Yeah, I dueled him." Maximus resumed "He'll never admit to it since I told him never to speak of the duel to anyone except the 5 or so people who watched it, but I made him literally wet his pants when he saw my Swordsmen take out his Ultimate Moth.

Afterwards he threw himself at my feet and begged 'Please Maximus, don't tell anyone about this. I'll be humiliated.' I told him I had no intention of humiliating him by telling people about this duel, but if he were to tell anyone about the duel I would be forced to subject him to fire and torment the likes he could only imagine. Oh man that was a fun duel. I know it's cruel to torment people like that but let's face it. They have it coming. People like Weevil and Kaiba always run their mouths about being the best. Someone has to put them in their places. We at times enjoy being those some bodies."

After several moments of silence Maximus asked the group "Is there anything else you were interested in knowing about me?"

"Nope, I guess that's it then." Yugi said "I guess now we'll hear from Shinobi."