Friends 'Till the End

Out in the city, Duke, Tristan, and Serenity continued to avoid being captured by the Rare Hunters. They lowered themselves in the back of a truck to keep hidden. Seeing that they weren't being noticed, they figured they were safe. Looking outside, the coast was clear, so they decided to catch up. The last time Tristan remembered seeing Duke was when he opened his new game shop and was showing off Dungeon Dice Monsters. Duke heard about the Battle City tournament and thought it would be fun to check out.

"I was hoping to run into Yugi, but I guess you'll do," Duke admitted. He turns his attention to Serenity and asks Tristan, "Who is this?"

"To you, she's off-limits," Tristan warned, remembering that Duke had a thing for wooing girls and trying to get them to like him. "This is Serenity. She's Joey's little sister."

Duke remembered Joey. "Wasn't he the guy I made dress up in the doggie costume?"

"Don't bring that up," Tristan hissed. "You'll upset Serenity."

"Fine," Duke whispered. "Now that that's taken care of, who were those guys back there?"

"I have no idea," Tristan answered. "But I sure didn't like the look of those punks. I wonder why they were after us anyway."

"Who knows?" Duke asked. "But I can tell they weren't very fond of your guys."

"Wow, Sherlock, you're very smart," Tristan sarcastically remarked. "Did you figure that out all by yourself or did someone help you?"

"Very funny," Duke retorted. "Someone's after you and you need to figure out why."

Serenity speaks up and asks, "Hey, guys, if those jerks are after us, then does that mean-?"

Tristan knew what she was talking about. "They're after the others too." Realizing that everyone else may be in even more trouble, they all get out of the truck and head out to find the rest of their friends.

Back at the pier, tensions were beginning to mount for everybody. "I want you to keep my Millennium Puzzle, Joey," Yugi said, walking back to his side of the arena. He also gave it to Joey in hopes that it would free him from Marik's control. Marik forbade Emily from using her own Millennium powers to help Joey. He never said Yugi couldn't use his. But they had to end this fast. The anchor would fall in the next twenty minutes and Emily would be going down with either one of them, or both of them.

Looking down, Joey sees the Millennium Puzzle hanging around his neck. Marik tries to maintain his control by persuading Joey to fight back. "He's trying to bribe you with the Puzzle. Yugi is your enemy and I am your master, so listen to me." Marik didn't change his mind. He still wanted the Millennium Puzzle, but he wouldn't be able to use its powers until he had officially won it from Yugi. "Yugi wants to hurt you, so get rid of the Millennium Puzzle. Hurl it into the ocean so Yugi can't weaken us. And once we win this duel, I'll send my Rare Hunters into the sea to retrieve it."

Under Marik's control, Joey removes the chain from around his neck. He removes a piece and grasps it in one hand. "No, Joey!" Yugi cries. "Please stop!"

Joey stops himself and one of his memories plays before his eyes. He remembers doing this before, taking a piece of the Millennium Puzzle and throwing it in the water. Remembering what happened, Joey gets on his knees and grabs his wrist to stop himself from doing the same thing again. "I can't do it," he groans, putting the piece back in place. "Yugi's my friend."

Marik still couldn't stand his control over Joey slipping, but he decided to accept it this once. "All right, keep the Puzzle if you wish."

"Yes, sir," Joey said obediently. "Keep the Puzzle."

"Puzzle or no Puzzle, you will destroy Yugi." Joey puts the chain around his neck and picks up his cards. "Your friendship won't work, Yugi," Marik tells him. "Joey's mind belongs to me. Now make your move so I can end this. And you'd better act quickly because you've got less than fifteen minutes before the anchor pulls you and two of your best friends into the ocean's depths."

Since Marik's turn was over, Red-Eyes got back the 500 attack points it lost from Rocket Warrior's effect. But it was still too weak to fight. Yugi needed the Dragon's help so Joey could break free again, but losing the Dragon to another attack would also mean losing his only chance of saving his best friend. So right now, Yugi had to protect the monster that was special to Joey. He placed two cards face down and summoned Beta the Magnet Warrior in attack mode.

Marik wondered why Yugi didn't attack, but it actually didn't really matter. Destroying Red-Eyes would gain him victory. The card Joey drew was Panther Warrior and he summoned it to the field. The Panther couldn't attack without a sacrifice, so Rocket Warrior transformed into its invincible mode. Against Marik's orders, Joey declared an attack on the Magnet Warrior. It was like Joey didn't want to continue hurting the monster that meant so much to him. He had a feeling that doing so would cause him to hurt someone he loved. When he saw that girl from his vision, he didn't know who she was, but Joey knew that she was special to him. But Yugi was ready. He revealed Magical Arm Shield and redirected Rocket Warrior's attack to Panther Warrior. And because Attricion was still in play and since Rocket Warrior was in its invincible mode, the feline warrior lost all 2000 of its attack points.

Marik wasn't going to continue to stand for it. He could sense that Joey had a tendency for certain disregards and needed to be severely punished. The powers of a great deity are not to be taken lightly and anyone with a Millennium Item would know just as much.

It was Yugi's turn again. He sacrificed his Magnet Warrior and summoned the Archfiend of Gilfer, a fiend with 2200 attack points. Plus, Panther Warrior got back the 500 attack points it lost from Rocket Warrior. The fiend attacked Rocket Warrior and dropped Joey's life points down to 1700.

In the city, Duke, Serenity, and Tristan looked around for the rest of their friends. They wondered if perhaps everyone was on their way to the finals. They ran into some duelists and asked them if they had any knowledge on how to get to the finals, but to no avail. Just then, they saw the same Rare Hunters from before coming their way. Tristan told Duke to take Serenity and keep running. He figured that maybe he could get some information from them on where he could find his friends.

Duke helped Serenity to cross the street, unaware that a car was coming their way. Driving the car was Mai and she stopped in front of them. "Watch it," she scolded. "Cross on the green, not in between!"

"Please help us," Serenity begged.

"We're being chased by a gang of robed weirdos," Duke finished. Mai had a feeling she knew what they were talking about and told them to hop in the car.

Tristan managed to take down all three of the Rare Hunters. He was exhausted, but wouldn't go down without getting any answers. "If you goons haven't had enough, there's plenty more where that came from." One Rare Hunter fell back and cowered. Tristan picked him up by the neckpiece of his cloak. "Where are my friends, you freak? Spill it!"

"The Domino pier," he weakly answered.

"They'd better be," Tristan growled.

"I swear!"

Then Tristan heard a car and saw it stopping in front of him. In the driver's seat, he saw Mai. He also saw Duke and Serenity in the passenger's seats. "Hey, Tristan, need a lift?" Mai asked. Tristan decided to ask questions later and jump in the car now. As she was driving, Tristan and Duke explained to her what was going on.

"All right, Tristan, based on your description of these punks, they sound an awful lot like these Rare Hunters I've been hearing about. Underground duelists who lie, cheat, and steal. Their goal is to get a bunch of cards and I'm guessing that's why they kidnapped your friends."

"This isn't the way," Tristan told Mai. "Turn around."

"Sure it is," Mai argued, showing six locator cards. "I know where they are."

"They're not there," said Tristan. "They're at the pier on the other side of the city."

"Are you sure?" Mai asked.

Tristan nodded. "I got it straight from those creeps, so let's go!" Hearing that, Mai turns the car around at the next stoplight and Tristan tells her where she needs to go.

"I hope you and Téa are comfortable, Princess," Marik told Emily, "in the front row seats watching your friends' last duel! Remember, Téa will be fine, but only if you don't use any of your own magic. Still, I can't say the same for you, Yugi, or Joey. In less than ten minutes, the anchor I've bound you to will drop into the ocean, taking you and one of your friends down."

Emily could sense Marik's hold on Joey getting stronger. She had to continue doing her part to help her friends any way that she could. She decided to bring up some more old stories starting with their first adventure together. "Joey, do you remember competing in the Duelist Kingdom tournament? You wanted to win so you could earn the prize money and pay for Serenity's operation. She was your inspiration. And thanks to you, your sister will be able to see again."

"Se… re… ni… ty…" Joey says slowly, remembering being there for her on the day of her surgery.

"You kept your promise, Joey," continued Emily. "And don't forget the pledge you made to Yugi."

"I… promised."

"That's right, Joey. And you've never broken a promise."

"Then I promise you that I will defeat Yugi," Marik tells Emily. He draws his card. It's Skull Dice. He places it face down on the field along with Graceful Dice. "Emily, haven't you and Yugi realized by now that Joey isn't coming back? You're dealing with me now and I plan to take everything from you."

Emily wouldn't give up. "Please wake up!" she cried to Joey. "You've got to snap out of it! Time is running out!"

"That's enough!" Marik shouted.

Yugi draws his card and plays it face down. Next, he attacks Panther Warrior with his Archfiend of Gilfer. Marik reveals his two Dice cards, but Yugi cancels Graceful Dice out by playing De-Spell. Skull Dice's result comes out as a two, dropping the fiend's attack points to 1100 and dropping Marik's life points to 600.

Mai finally brought everyone to the pier. Seeing them get out of the car, Téa cries, "They found us! Help us, guys!"

Tristan tries running to her, but Mokuba stops him. "Don't come any closer! If we try to help Téa, the Rare Hunter will release the crate hanging above her! It's too dangerous!"

Seeing the crate, Tristan backs away. "Why would they want to do that?"

"So we don't stop Joey and Yugi's duel," Mokuba answered.

"That's just sick!"

"If you think that's sick, Tristan, just look at the dueling setup these guys put together."

"These guys don't mess around," Mai said, looking at the arena.

"What's the deal with the anchor and the chains?" Tristan asked. "And why the hell is Emily strapped to the anchor? And why the hell are Yugi and Joey dueling in the first place?"

"Your friend Wheeler is on their side," Kaiba answered.

To elaborate, Mokuba explains, "Somehow, Joey lost his mind and now he's dueling for the Rare Hunters. Whoever loses gets pulled to the bottom of the sea."

"That's insane!" Tristan cried.

Duke agreed. "We've got to stop this!"

Serenity places her hands close to her bandages, but Téa stops her. She knew that if the first thing Serenity saw was her brother under the control of a madman, she would be crushed. "Serenity, please don't take your bandages off! You have to trust me!" Serenity didn't know what was going on. As much as she wanted to know, she agreed that she may not like what she would see, so she removed her hands from her bandages.

To put her at ease, Mai places her arm over Serenity to console her. "Don't worry, if anybody can save Joey, Yugi can."

Marik was having too much fun. Now everyone was here to witness the grand finale. The card he drew was Meteor of Destruction. By playing it, Yugi would receive 1000 points of damage, ending the duel. "The card I hold in my hand is the key to my victory. Once I play it, your world will crumble as you sink to your doom!"

"Not if I can set Joey free for your control first, Marik!" Yugi argued.

But Marik promised Yugi that as long as he held the Millennium Rod, Joey would remain his mind slave. As Joey continues to stare at the card, Marik continues demanding him to play it.

Yugi's friends couldn't stand what was going on, but as much as they wanted to help, they remembered that doing so meant getting Téa killed. But Téa didn't want them to worry about her. "Come on, you guys," she cried. "Time is almost up! You have to stop this duel now! Forget about me! Just save Yugi and Joey! Emily, you've got to use your powers to free yourself and help them! If you don't, you'll all be in major trouble! Please, just do it! I'll be fine!"

The Rare Hunter got out of the crane. "I wouldn't listen to her," he warned, holding the remote.

"I won't risk it, Téa!" Emily calls to her. "As selfish as this may sound, I would rather die than let that Rare Hunter kill you because you're my best friend!"

"Come on, Seto," Mokuba begged. "We have to help Téa and Emily! They saved my life!"

There may be a way to help the girls without endangering them, Kaiba thought. Quietly, he speaks through his receiver and contacts headquarters.

I'm not willing to risk Téa's life, Emily thought. But I am willing to continue helping the rest of my friends. "Time is almost up, Joey," she cries out. "You have to remember who you are now!"

"I… am… Joey," he weakly responds and all of his memories start coming into mind. He places his hand on his head as he watches every scene being played out. "It's faint, but I also remember my friends. I remember going to Duelist Kingdom and fighting my hardest to get to the top." He remembers his duels against Mai, Rex, the Paradox brothers, Max, and even Yami. He also recalls his victories in the Battle City competition and the promise he made to his friends. "My past," he groans, "it's real."

"You have no past," Marik told him. "Now do as I command and destroy Yugi!"

Feeling Marik trying to maintain control over his mind, Joey continues trying to resist. "No!" he yells. "Get out of my head!"

"Your feeble brain is no match against my powers. You belong to me, so play Meteor of Destruction and vanquish Yugi!"

"I can't!" Joey screams. "He's my best friend! I won't destroy Yugi!"

"Silence!" Marik commands. "Obey me at once or face severe consequences!"

"Fight him, Joey!" Yugi encouraged. "I know you can do it! Just be strong!" Joey's going to do it. Our friendship is strong and so is his will. Marik's Millennium Rod has nothing on that. Joey's just got to keep fighting before the anchor falls and takes us into the ocean with it.

Agreeing with Yugi's thoughts and having had enough of Marik's head games, Emily decides to speak to him. She may be bound to an anchor and Marik may not be in her presence, but she knows he can hear her. "Marik!" she cries. "You hide like a coward, but wherever you are, I know you can hear me! And I've got some news for you: there will be a loser in this duel, but it won't be Yugi or Joey. It'll be you! You will lose this duel, Marik!"

Marik could hear her and felt like she was in his presence. "What!?"

"You thought you could force Joey into destroying Yugi by taking over his mind, but there's something you didn't take into account. The strength of Joey's will, his heart, and his bond with his friends! Time may be running out, but Joey's back, meaning you are no longer in control of this duel. Your power over Joey has been removed and I say that means you lose!"

"Emily's right," Yugi tells Marik. "The timer may be running out, but now that Joey's free, you can't be considered the winner of this duel because you're not dueling anymore."

Marik snarled as he was listening to what Yugi and Emily were telling him. "You'll pay for this!"

"What are you going to do now, Marik?" Emily taunted. "Just wait in your little hideaway until the duel's over? This is your last chance for victory! But now you know that Joey can't be controlled, so it's up to you!"

Everyone can be controlled, and once I force Joey to play Meteor of Destruction, you and Yugi will be finished! Marik yelled in his mind. No one can resist the sacred powers of the Great Goddess Millennia! Behold the full potential of my Millennium Rod!

Joey continued to cry out in pain, but was lost again as Marik regained control. "It's over! I play Meteor of Destruction!" You dare disrespect my power? Your friend is weak, just like I thought! But as Joey saw the Meteor coming down on Yugi, he screamed for help. As if Millennia herself could hear Joey's cries, it was like she freed him from Marik's control.

"What!? No!" Marik yelled. "Yugi and Emily were right! Wheeler's will and heart were too powerful to overcome! No!" he screamed, feeling his control over Joey was completely gone.

Yugi smiled for their triumph over Marik's power. There was one thing left to do and that was to end the duel. He revealed his trap card Mystical Rift Panel. The trap absorbed the power of the Meteor, but now Yugi had the choice to redirect the Meteor back at Joey or let it come down on him instead. As difficult as the choice was, Yugi already made up his mind and knew what he was going to do; the right thing. Not for himself, but for the people he loved. But he wouldn't make his move yet. A few affairs had to be settled.

Joey looks down. "Why am I wearing your Millennium Puzzle?"

"Yugi gave it to you," Emily answered. "He wanted to help you remember your friendship."

"I'm confused," Joey confessed.

Yugi explains and tells him, "Marik tried to turn you against me, but our friendship proved to be stronger than his powers. And giving you my Puzzle helped you to break free. You're my best friend, Joey, and no evil magic can take that away. Now it's time to put an end to this duel. But remember, we defeated Marik together."

Just then, one of Kaiba's helicopters came flying in. Seeing it in the sky, the Rare Hunter gets ready to push the button on the remote. Kaiba tosses one of his cards, striking the Rare Hunter's hand and making him lose his grip. The Rare Hunter tries to get the remote back, but Kaiba charges towards him and shoves him off the dock. The helicopter tips the crane over, causing it to fall in the water. Mokuba runs to the chair and frees Téa. "I guess we're even now," he says, pushing the buttons and unlocking her shackles.

"Emily, I'm free," Téa tells her, "You can use your powers now! Save Yugi and Joey!" Then she and the others head for the arena.

Emily nods and begins casting magic. Fire catches on her hands and she burns the ropes around her wrists. Next she burns the ropes around her waist and ankles, freeing her. Now she had to help Yugi and Joey. "You don't have much time," she tells them. "In less than a minute, you'll both be pulled under."

"And there's no way I'm letting that happen," says Yugi. "So I've decided to save you, Joey. There's no point in both of us going down and if I lose, you're safe."

Listening to his words, Joey refuses. "I can't let you do this."

Yugi releases his tears and sobs, "It's my decision, so now, take care of my Millennium Puzzle." And he declares the Rift Panel to direct the Meteor of Destruction down at him. The timer resets itself for thirty seconds and Joey's box opens up. The holograms are still projected, meaning the duel isn't over yet.

Joey remembers Meteor of Destruction's second effect. Since Yugi has a monster on the field, Joey can force it to attack him. He calls out for Red-Eyes Black Dragon to take out his life points and open Yugi's key box. The Dragon carries out Joey's wish and attacks. As its Inferno Fire Blast engulfs him, Joey sees the same black-haired girl from his vision. She stops in front of him and looks at him with red eyes. She smiles, moves her face close to him, and whispers, "You're free now," and kisses his cheek. "All is forgiven and I promise, I'll always protect you and your friends," she says and disappears. Joey had no idea what that was about, but he smiled at his Dragon. Good ol' Red-Eyes.

Emily jumps from the anchor and flies in the air. "Both of your boxes are open! You need to free yourselves now before the time elapses! You've got less than thirty seconds!"

Joey was amazed to see Emily flying with wings, but he had no time. He wouldn't save himself, though. Yugi was out of it from the attack and needed help more than Joey did. "Yugi, you save my hide more times than I can even count. Well, this time, I'm going to save you! You taught me about courage and never giving up!" A yellow light glows on Joey's forehead, revealing a different kind of insignia. It was the Egyptian symbol for friendship.

Hearing her brother's words, Serenity removes her bandages and slowly opens her eyes. At last, for the first time, her vision is clear. "I can see."

"Hang in there, Yugi!" Joey cries. He removes the Puzzle and his duel disk and uses his chain to swing to the other end of the arena. Emily flies down to get Joey's key. She manages to get it, but feels something trying to pull her back. She had a shackle to her ankle as well. Marik spared no expense trying to have her and her friends killed. She uses a fire spell to burn the chain around her ankle. The fire doesn't hurt her, so she's all right. Joey makes it and gets Yugi's key in time. The timer runs out and the anchor falls to the sea.

"The anchor's going to drag them all down!" Téa shouts, and everyone's chains get pulled in the water.

Emily stops casting magic and heads for her friends. "Joey, grab my hand!" she cries, holding one hand out to him and his key in the other. He grasps Yugi's key in one hand and grabs Emily's hand.

As they all get pulled under, Téa lets out what sounds like a gasping scream. "Yugi! Joey! Emily!"

As they get pulled deeper into the ocean, Emily hurries to unlock Joey's chain while he sets Yugi free from his. The water cools Emily's chain enough to rust, making it easily breakable. She puts Yugi and Joey's arms over her shoulders and carries them up to the surface. She comes up like a flying fish and flaps her wings.

"She did it!" Téa cries. "She saved them both!"

Joey finishes coughing the water out of the system. "Emily, but how?"

She gently sets her friends down. "Why is more important. And the reason is because you're my friends and friends stay together until the end. I meant what I said. I'd rather die than let my friends be killed."

Then everyone surrounds the three to hug them. "You did it," Téa cheers. "You used your powers and saved Yugi and Joey!"

"Powers?" Tristan asked. He notices Emily's wings and lets out a startled gasp. "Whoa! You have wings!"

"Are these real?" Duke asked. "I've never seen anything like this!"

Serenity moves closer to Emily. "Wow," she says gently. "You look just like an angel! You must be! How else could you have been able to save Yugi and Joey?"

Joey notices his sister and asks, "Serenity, how did you get here?"

"Tristan and Mai brought me here after we tracked you guys down," she answered.

Kaiba is still baffled by Emily's powers, but he just watches the reunion in disgust. How cute. The geeks are back together again. Now that I've set things straight by saving Mokuba's friends, I can get back to Battle City and prepare for my victory in the finals.