Trapped!

When the helicopter landed out in the pier, Yami immediately jumped outside and stopped in front of Joey, unaware that he wasn't exactly himself. "Welcome," Joey greeted in an unfriendly manner.

"Joey," Yami cried.

"Not exactly. Joey is not present. He's gone away."

"Marik," Yami growled, realizing that his enemy was speaking through his friend.

"That's correct, and if you want your friends back, you will listen to me."

But Yami tried breaking through to his friend. "Joey, you've got to be in there."

"It's pointless," said Marik. "Now you listen to me. We will be playing by my regulations. I'll release your pathetic friends as soon as I get what I want. Since I want your Millennium Puzzle and Egyptian God card, there's only one way to do this: you and I are going to duel!"

"You're insane!"

"Refuse and your friends are mine forever!"

"Release Joey from your control, Marik," Yami demanded.

Watching what's going on, Mokuba could see that this wasn't Joey. Kaiba actually found it interesting that Joey would turn against his friend and want to duel him. That made Kaiba wonder if Joey was in possession of the third Egyptian God card.

Yami tries again. "Joey, I know you can hear me. Your mind is under Marik's control and you must break free. The same Marik you vowed to help me and Emily stop. Think, Joey, you've got to remember your promise to us when you gave me your Red-Eyes. Marik couldn't defeat me in a duel, so he decided to turn you against me in order to win my Puzzle and Egyptian God card. I know you're in there and I'm going to set you free. Marik's power is feeble compared to the strength of our friendship. Please say something, Joey."

But Joey wouldn't. Marik continued to speak through him. "You'll never set him free unless you follow me, Yami." Then he turned around and began walking. Yami feared that if he followed, he would become a victim to another one of Marik's traps. But if he didn't follow, Joey would remain under Marik's control.

It wasn't just Joey he had to worry about. He heard Téa's voice and realized that Marik was speaking through her as well. "You'd better do as I say, Yami," Marik warned. "This may come as an unpleasant surprise, but like your friend Joey, Téa is also under my control. Surprised?"

Yami growled. "Marik, leave her alone! She's done nothing to you!"

"You're at my mercy now, Yami," Marik tormented. "I've turned your closest friends into your greatest enemies." Téa starts walking on the same path Joey did, causing Yami to follow her.

They come to a dock set up like an arena. The dock is outlined like a square built for both opponents to stand across from each other. Above the dock was an anchor and Yami saw Emily bound to it. "Oh, no! Emily!" he called. "Emily, are you all right?"

Emily stirred and opened her eyes. "Yami?" she asked. "Yami, is that you?"

"Marik, let her go!"

Speaking through Joey, Marik laughed once again. "Don't worry, Yami, Emily is perfectly safe. Because she holds the Millennium Star, I can't possibly control her mind. But I have other plans in store for her. Now then, look around at the field. Should you accept, you'll be battling in a duel like none you've ever experienced for the highest stakes imaginable."

Yami positioned himself on the other side of the dock across from Joey. "If it means saving my friends, then let's duel."

Téa held two shackles in her hands. "Let's begin," Marik said, speaking through her. "Try these on for size." And she locks the shackles around Yami's ankle and Joey's, trapping them to the anchor as well. "Notice that you've become secured to the anchor I've bound Emily to. Thirty seconds after a player's life points reach zero, the anchor will drop to the bottom of the sea!"

Marik begins speaking through Joey now. "Look at the small box at your feet. It displays your life points. It also contains the key to your survival. When one player's life points reach zero, the other player's box will open, revealing a key that will unlock his shackles. And remember, you'll have thirty seconds to free yourself before the anchor drops."

"So the winner of the duel will be dragged to the bottom of the ocean while the winner frees himself at the last minute," Yami said, understanding the matter.

"That's right," said Marik. "Quite ingenious, isn't it?"

"Wait a minute," Emily was saying. "If Yami wins, will you free Joey and Téa from your control?"

"You and Joey will have to be fished out of the sea first," Marik answered. "But before I get to you and Téa, I have something else to mention. In case Yami has any ideas on refusing to duel, he'd better think again. If there's no winner within the hour of the duel, the anchor will automatically drop, taking you and your friends down."

Marik speaks through Téa and positions her to a seat on another dock. It was the same mechanical chair she was bound to back in the warehouse. "But you will lose, Yami, and your Egyptian God card and Millennium Puzzle will be in my hands." He turns his attention to Kaiba and tells him, "And Seto Kaiba, don't think you're merely a spectator in all of this. As soon as I'm through with Yugi and his friends, I'll be setting my sights on your Egyptian God card Obelisk the Tormentor."

Mokuba had enough. "This is getting way out of hand, Seto. You've got to stop it before someone gets hurt. Marik may even try something like this on us next."

But Marik wouldn't allow it. "Sorry, but the duel will proceed as planned. And speaking of plans, here's another piece of my plot." A Rare Hunter drives a crane and hangs a metal crate above Tea.

That was enough to make Emily scream. "Marik, stop this!"

"No. I've taken extra measures to make sure no one interferes. So don't try anything. If anyone attempts to stop me, the crate you see hanging above Téa will fall and crush her. You wouldn't risk your poor friend's life, would you?"

The Rare Hunter holds a remote in his hand and warns them, "Make one false move and I push the button, releasing the crate above the girl."

Marik speaks through Joey once again. "And Princess Emily, I'm aware that you've been discovering many new powers offered by the Millennium Star. I'm sure you know by now that your Millennium Star overpowers my Millennium Rod. Because of that, you can easily stop me and free your friends from my control. Why am I telling you this? I didn't want you to discover that on your own. But now that you know, here's my last warning. If you try to use your magic to free yourself and your friends, I'll immediately drop the anchor and the crate above Téa. So I suggest you control your emotions and allow everything to proceed as I want it to."

"So do you understand, Princess?" Marik asked, speaking through Téa. "Try anything funny, and I'll crush all of you."

Looking at Téa with tears, Emily answers, "I understand, Marik. I'll do as you say. Just please don't hurt my friends!"

"Well then, now that everything seems to be in place and everybody understands the rules, why don't we start the show? Oh, wait, I almost forgot. I wouldn't want Téa to miss all the fun." So Marik frees her from his control.

"Téa!" Emily cried.

Téa starts coming back to her senses. "Where am I? What's going on?" She tries to get up, but sees that she's trapped.

"Now then, there's one last matter," Marik says, speaking through Joey. "Your Egyptian God card is prohibited in this duel. Remove it from your deck so that I may claim it when I win."

Yami agreed to Marik's condition. He had no intention of using Slifer the Sky Dragon anyway. After witnessing its destructive power, Yami knew it was too dangerous. He removed the belt containing the pocket keeping his valuable cards. Then he saw the Red-Eyes Black Dragon and figured it could help him instead. Joey promised that it would come in handy in a tight spot and now was the time. Yami placed Red-Eyes in his deck and tossed his belt aside.

"Very good," said Marik. "Now we can begin this duel."

"Yugi versus Joey?" Téa asks, wondering what's going on.

"Are you ready to duel, Yami?" Marik asked.

"I am," he answered.

"Prepare to lose, fool!"