Susan, still out cold, dangled above the tank inhabited by two starving bull sharks. Next to the tank sat Jacob and Scott, tangled in a fish net with Rare Hunters armed with tasers guarding them. Several meters away from them, Yugi Moto and the Rare Hunter named Seeker had begun their duel. Behind Yugi was his group of friends: Joey Wheeler, Tristan Taylor, Tea Gardner, and Jericho Dudley. If anybody tried to interfere in the duel or rescue Susan, she'd be dropped into the tank and Jacob and Scott would be killed thereafter.
The situation was dire, and each move required extreme caution and thought put into it. Yugi knew he couldn't make one slip-up, or they'd all be done for. He didn't know why this was happening, though. Did it have to do with Seto Kaiba's new Battle City Tournament? Or did it run much deeper than that? These were all things he preferred to figure out sooner rather than later, and to do that, he needed to defeat this Rare Hunter.
"I'll start this duel by activating Graceful Charity!" Seeker proclaimed as a card came to the field. It depicted an angel with sandy blond hair cupping her hands under a glowing card that was floating above them. "This lets me draw three cards as long as I discard two." He peaked at his hand. Ah, another piece of Exodia! Now I have both legs and the right arm. Yugi will be finished before he even gets started.
"Yugi, watch out! He's got something terrible planned for you!" Joey blurted out.
"Quiet, you fool! Your precious Red-Eyes Black Dragon depends on you keeping your big mouth shut, Wheeler!" ordered Seeker as he put a card onto one of the five spaces on top of the Duel Disk. "I place one monster face-down and end my turn, Yugi!" With my face-down Stone Statue of the Aztecs' special ability, any damage he receives by attacking it will be doubled! I won't even have to get my hands dirty in this duel. I was expecting a little more from the King of Games.
Yugi drew his card. OK, it's my move. What should I start with? He used Graceful Charity last turn, allowing him to gain one extra card overall, but the only thing he did was summon that face-down monster. Does he just have a really bad hand, or is he planning something that could destroy me if I'm not careful? I'll just have to play it safe and trust in my deck. Even without my Dark Magician, I know I can win this.
"Are you going to make your move or not, Yugi? Or have you already figured out that it's pointless without your Dark Magician?"
"I can win this without my Dark Magician!" Yugi fired back. "Just watch. I summon Beta the Magnet Warrior (1700/1600) in Attack Mode, and use him to attack your face-down monster!"
Out of its card came a giant yellow magnet with arms and legs, charging up a ball of electricity. The electrified orb jetted into Seeker's face-down monster, flipping it face-up.
"Stone Statue of the Aztecs (300/2000)!" Disappointed by the newly revealed monster, Yugi could do nothing but watch as Beta's attack dissipated on contact with the giant wall of green and blue bricks.
"Yes, and due to my monster's special ability, any damage you receive from attacking it is doubled, so you lose 600 Life Points, little Yugi!"
[Yugi: (8000 = 7400) / Seeker: (8000)]
Yugi remained calm as his Life Points went down. That didn't go too well, but this duel is far from over. "I set two cards face-down and end my turn."
Without warning, the chain holding Susan clinked as it was lowered slightly, alarming the protagonists.
"Yugi, the girl!" Jericho shouted. It took all of his might to stay back and not interfere in the scheme of the Rare Hunters.
"What's going on, Rare Hunter?" Yugi asked angrily.
"Oh, I forgot to mention that every time you lose Life Points, the girl is lowered closer and closer to the tank. It'd be wise to not make foolish moves like that again, Yugi." Seeker snickered.
Yugi looked sorrowfully at Jacob. The stakes were at an all-time high, and he just made them that much worse. His eyes sent a silent apology to Jacob.
"Let's see what fate has in store for me this round," Seeker said boringly, picking up a card from his deck.
"Hold on, Seeker! I activate my trap – Light of Intervention! With this on the field, you can no longer summon your monsters in face-down Defense Position!"
From the sidelines, Tristan and Tea cheered together. "That's the way, Yugi! No more surprises from that scumbag!"
Joey wasn't as convinced as his friends. Yugi was focusing on the wrong part of the duel, and there was nothing he could do to help him.
"It doesn't matter to me," Seeker said. "You still can't get past the monster I already have on the field, so make your move." All I need is two more pieces to complete the puzzle.
"My pleasure. I sacrifice my Beta the Magnet Warrior to summon Berfomet (1400/1800)! And with Berfomet comes the ability to add Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts from my deck to my hand! But that's not all. I'll now fuse them together using my Polymerization card!"
Yugi's monsters scrambled to the field but were quickly sucked into a swirling portal. Soon after, the portal spat back out a more ferocious looking beast with two horned lion heads and the wings of Berfomet. It growled softly as it pawed at the ground, its claws scratching at the tiles.
"Meet Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast (2100/1800)! He's more than enough to dispose of your monster, but according to the new Battle City rules, he can't attack the same turn he's summoned. It's your move."
Seeker seemed a bit unnerved by Yugi's fused monster, but he knew what his plan was and all he had to do to win was stick to it. Even with his monster gone, he had a stronger one to replace it. He was prepared for this. "Your new monster may be more powerful than mine, but it won't matter when I activate another Graceful Charity!" After he discarded his two required cards, he pulled another from his hand and showed it to Yugi. "I now activate Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two more cards!"
All he's done so far is draw cards and play defensively. He must be planning something big. Yugi waited for Seeker's move to progress.
The old man looked at his hand, which totaled nine cards. Four pieces of Exodia! One more and I win automatically! I think I'll have a little fun now before my inevitable victory. "I summon The Trojan Horse (1600/1200) in Attack Mode."
Resembling the horse used to smuggle the Greeks into the city of Troy, a large wooden horse galloped onto the field, taking its place beside Stone Statue of the Aztecs.
"But that monster is too weak to destroy my Chimera. What are you planning, Seeker?"
Seeker removed two cards from his hand, sliding them into two Spell and Trap slots in his Duel Disk. "First I activate Axe of Despair, equipping it to my Horse and giving it 1,000 more attack points (1600 = 2600)!" He laughed maliciously as Yugi's eyes showed his frustration. "But that's not all. My second Equip Spell goes to my Stone Statue of the Aztecs, raising its defense by 800 points (2000 = 2800)! You'll never get past my monsters now. Your Chimera was a waste of cards!"
Yugi stared at the two empowered monsters before him. He had to figure out a way to get past them before it was too late. His monsters are too powerful. What am I gonna do? He looked over to Joey, remembering he had given him his Dark Magician before the duel had started. If I had my Dark Magician I know exactly what I'd do…but I don't, so I've got to come up with a strategy quickly!
Seeker threw out his arms. "Go, Trojan Horse, and destroy his Chimera with Stampeding Smash!"
The wooden horse whinnied before charging straight at Chimera at full speed. The horse's hooves sent vibrations throughout the floor. As it neared the flying beast, it reared up onto its hind legs. The flying beast extended its wings in an attempt to escape, but the horse was too quick and had slammed its two front hooves down onto each head of the mythical creature, going right through its skulls and destroying it.
[Yugi: (7400 = 6900) / Seeker: (8000)]
The horse whinnied again and returned to Seeker's side, who was rejoicing under his toothy grin. "You lose more Life Points, which means the girl is lowered even more."
Indeed, Susan was lowered closer to the tank. This time the sound of the machine winch activating woke her up. As soon as she saw the tank below with the fins circling, she let out a scream, but it was muffled by the rope tied around her mouth.
Seeing his sister screaming for her life, Jacob pushed through the pain of his earlier tasering and got to his feet. Scott did the same, and both of them began pulling at the net as a team. Jacob managed to free his legs, moving to free the rest of his body when four Rare Hunters halted his progress with crowbars. Scott was brought down immediately afterward.
Through the net, Yugi could see Jacob's face. The look on it made Yugi feel uneasy. He knew he was failing his new friend, but he was trying his best. He wouldn't give up, though. He never broke a promise before and he wasn't going to start now. "Jacob, don't move! Stay calm! I promised you I would win this duel and I don't plan to break that promise. I need you to trust me, please!"
"Aw, how heartwarming," spoke Seeker, aggravating Yugi. "Face it, Yugi – there's no way you can win this without your Dark Magician. You're helpless against my powerful beasts. You can't get past their attack or defense. This was easier than I thought it would be. My master will be extremely pleased when I take your Millennium Puzzle to him."
This caught Yugi's attention. He remembered his last duel with Bandit Keith, who wanted the same thing. But who was this man pulling the strings, and what did he want with his puzzle?
"Rare Hunter, who are you working for? What does this person want with my Millennium Puzzle? Tell me!" he demanded, clenching his fist.
Seeker giggled at the thought of revealing such sensitive information. "You're not in a position to ask those questions, little Yugi. You're about to lose this duel."
Yugi scowled. He figured he wouldn't get any answers. "Fine. In that case, I'll activate Chimera's special ability. When it's destroyed, I can Special Summon either of the two monsters used to Fusion Summon it. I choose Berfomet!"
The winged creature with deep red skin returned to the field, kneeling down. Its birdlike wings folded inward in front of it, acting as one big shield.
"That pathetic thing again?" The old man checked his hand. There was nothing more he could do this turn. "I end. Let's see you get out of this one, Yugi."
The King of Games peered down at his hand after drawing. He only had three cards, two of which were monsters that required a tribute to be summoned to the field; even then, neither of them were strong enough to bring down Seeker's Trojan Horse. I have to figure this out. The fate of my friends depends on it.