One Swordsman down, two to go. But our road doesn't end there...there's still more drama and tension in the air.
And well...things aren't going to get easy.
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Between my Brother and Me
by Green Phantom Queen
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Chapter 24-Bedfellows, Company, Enemies, Adversaries
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Dartz snarled in fury. Using the power of the Orichalcos, he found that two of his Swordsmen were defeated. Valon was defeated by the wielder of Hermos, and Alister beaten by a mere child.
He needed a change of plan, and fast. Even with all of the souls that were being taken away, he still needed more powerful souls to complete the ceremony. Plus, the Winged Dragon of Ra would give the Great Leviathan the energy it needed to awaken. And the longer that this was delayed, the harder it was for Paradise to be reformed...and he couldn't let that happen.
"I must stall them somehow." Dartz murmured, staring at the stone panels. He soon eyed six specific panels and smirked.
"It's time for the return of some of my faithful followers, it seems. Now, I wonder who should go first?"
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"And that's what happened." said May once everyone was inside the RV. Téa and Yami stared in shock while Mokuba was sitting near Kaiba, staring at the crescent necklace around his neck. Alister's body was resting against one of the sofas, a blanket covering his unconscious figure. Professor Hawkins was keeping an eye on the evening news to see if there were any further developments (but he also needed some time alone to look after the unconscious bodies of Duke and Rebecca).
"Had it not been for Mokuba, then Alister still would've been crazy." May added. "But still...it was scary. Mokuba stood there as he took every single attack from that machine; every laser, every missile...and yet he was able to stand and defeat Alister in the end. Mokuba's victory is only telling us about the gravity of the situation; people are going to lose their souls, and we have to save them."
"You're right." said Yami. "But the question is, how exactly are we going to release those souls?"
"I was suggesting that we find someone with an Orichalcos stone willing to return them." May replied. "But of course, that's impossible at this point. And right now, the only thing we can do is get prepared for what happens next."
Meanwhile, Mokuba was having a mental conversation with Khonsu, the Moon God expressing concern over his Vessel. It was tough on the two, having to go through such a duel where he could've been destroyed had it not been for one single card.
You look tired, Mokuba. Khonsu echoed through the young boy's mind. Are you alright?
Yeah...I'm alright. Mokuba replied. I'm just thinking. If Alister escaped the Seal, how did he do so? Bandit Keith lost his soul to May, but came back to duel Max...something doesn't add up.
Kaiba noticed his brother lost in some sort of trance. He waved a hand in front of his fave, but it did nothing.
"Mokuba, are you all right?" asked the CEO. He gently nudged his brother by the shoulder, trying to wake him up. "Come on, wake up..."
Mokuba slowly stirred awake, his eyes blinking a bit as they began to shine like diamonds. He rubbed his eyes and soon let out a yawn.
"Sorry about that." Mokuba replied. "Were you saying something?"
"I'm just wondering if you're okay." Kaiba replied. "I mean...you did take a direct attack from a monster who had 11,000 Attack Points, after all."
"I'm fine, Seto!" said Mokuba. "What made you think that I was hurt?"
"I'm just concerned, that's all." Kaiba answered back, getting angry.. "You just survived a duel with one of the
"I said, I was fine." Mokuba repeated, staring at the CEO. "So please...don't worry about me. We have more important to worry about anyway."
"This Leviathan is growing stronger and stronger by the minute." said May. "Seeing its silhouette in the night sky just shows a fraction of its real power, and that means that we have to get moving."
"Yeah." Mokuba replied, agreeing to May's words. "Seto, I'll be alright! Don't worry about me! Right now, we've got two more Swordsmen to deal with, and about one more day before the world is plunged into chaos!"
Suddenly, there was something banging at the door. Everyone soon turned their attention to whomever was outside the RV.
"I got it." said May, standing up. She went to the door and opened it, being surprised when she found Max collapsing onto the floor of the RV, panting for breath.
"Max?" asked the Pokémon Coordinator. "What are you doing here?"
"I saw that giant beam of light and Jirachi told me Mokuba was gone!" Max exclaimed. "So after Joey defeated Valon, he and I took the motorcycle and Tristan took Absol to travel here and..."
"I'm all right, Max." said Mokuba, noticing the Prince of Wisdom's presence. "I'm just glad you're all right."
"Hello?" said a voice. "Did anyone forget about us?"
Everyone turned to see Joey and Tristan entering the RV, carrying Valon's unconscious body with an arm draped on each shoulder.
"Man, that was crazy." said Tristan. "The thing was a Duel Monsters Fist Fight. Valon and Joey duked it out with armor before Joey brought out one of the luckiest moves ever in his entire history of playing Duel Monsters and defeated him! Although...there was something strange about Valon after the duel..."
"How strange?" asked May. "Was it as bad as what happened to Alister? When he broke out of control of the Orichalcos and told Mokuba to attack directly after the guy was about to annihilate his opponent with a monster that had 11,000 attack Points?"
"Well, it wasn't exactly like you said, but it was sort of like that!" said Joey, lying the body of the spiky haired Swordsman on the spare couch. "Valon's eyes started losing that crazy green glow and he told me to end his suffering or whatever. Then he thanked me for what he did before that freaky Seal took his soul away. I still don't know about it; it might've been some trick."
"Valon telling you to free him from whatever spell that got cast on him wasn't a joke." said Khonsu with a solemn tone. "Because Alister somehow broke free and I could not sense any anger in him..."
"Anger or not, this is a serious matter." said Yami. "I can't imagine who else has also been taken by the Orichalcos and became brainwashed by it."
"I'm not waiting to find out, though." said May, standing up. "I'm heading off, and I won't let anyone stop me."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" asked Téa. "It might be a trap."
"Let her go." said Kaiba in reply to the dancer's question. "Out of the three Swordsmen, there is one May must confront head on. And he's the only obstacle that we have left before we reach Dartz."
"Leave this part to me." said May. "Raphael needs to know the truth; he needs to know everything."
"I'll go with you." said Joey. "We're going to get our friends back, and stopping that Dartz form destroying the world."
May nodded her head as Joey ran to the motorcycle, placing the helmet on. May soon sat down at the vehicle as Joey sat in front, turning the engine on.
"See you in a while!" said May, waving a hand to everyone else. That was the last thing they saw before she and Joey sped off.
"...Do you really think that she's going to be okay?" asked Téa, seeing the two disappear.
"She's got the determination to change her...'fate'." Kaiba replied. "If it was written that she was to be wounded and be in pain, then she'll find a way to get around it."
"What are we standing here for?" asked Max, getting out of the RV. "We're going to get to May before Raphael and those creepy soldiers get her!"
"Count me in, Max!" said Mokuba, walking toward the Prince of Wisdom, a look of determination on his face as he also left the RV. "It is time to fight this menace once and for all."
"Really? You and what pathetic little army?"
There was laughter as two figures soon appeared in a flash of green light. Then the light dimmed, revealing the figures to be Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood.
"We have no time to be dealing with you." said Mokuba, frowning at the duelists. "And even if we did, you shouldn't even be here, both of you were captured by the Orichalcos!"
"You should get your eyes checked kid, we're back." Rex said in reply. "And we've come back for one thing."
"Getting a chance to kick your butts!" Weevil replied, pointing a finger at them. "Once we defeat you, we're heading straight for Yugi and Joey for our revenge!"
"And no pip squeaks are going to stop us!" Rex added. "You two are done."
"So, you want to duel us huh?" asked Max, activating his Duel Disk. "Well, bring it on!"
"Count me in, Max." said Mokuba, activating his own Duel Disk. "Time to give these two a little reality check."
"Hold on!" said Yami as he, Téa, Tristan and Kaiba left the RV. "Are you sure you two want to do this?"
"We have no choice." said Mokuba. "We have to do something, or else all is lost."
"Oh something will be lost," said Rex as he and Weevil activated their Duel Disks. "And that something is your souls!"
"Souls will be taken, but not ours!" Max said in reply. "So now if you're done talking, let's duel!"
(Rex: 4,000)
(Weevil: 4,000)
(Max: 4,000)
(Mokuba: 4,000)
"Allow me to start." said Max, drawing a card. "And now I play Blind Seer Kuda in Defense Mode!"
The monster appeared, showing a guru dressed in a white turban and pants and a red bindi on his forehead. He was seated in a lotus position, his eyes covered by a blindfold. (1,500/2,000)
"Next, I play one card face down, and end my turn." Max ended, playing a card in the tray. "Who's next?"
"That'll be me!" Weevil replied, drawing a card. "I play Gokibore in Defense Mode!"
A silver pillbug with red eyes appeared, crouched in defense. (1,200/1,400)
"Then, I play Verdant Sanctuary!"
A Continuous Magic Card appeared, showing a swamp with many insects thriving in it.
"I'll explain what this card does later, but I'll end my turn with one card facedown." said Weevil. "Let's see what the brother of Seto Kaiba can do."
"Gladly." said Mokuba drawing a card. "And for my first move, I summon Celestial Spirit-Tucana in Defense Mode!"
In a puff of smoke, a toucan appeared. (800/200)
"Touci! Touci!" The bird cried.
"A toucan?" Tristan exclaimed. "What's that going to do?"
"If you would let me speak, then, I'll explain." said Mokuba. "With Tucana on the field, I discard one Magic or Trap Card from my hand to Special Summon one Winged Beast onto the field whose Defense is less than 1,000. So, I discard one Magic Card to Special Summon Celestial Spirit-Apus in Defense Mode!"
Discarding a card into the graveyard, everyone soon saw the small red and magenta bird appear next to Tucana. (200/400)
"I;m ending my turn and that." Mokuba ended. "It's your move now, Rex."
"Hmph." Rex grunted, drawing a card. "You call those monsters? Here's a monster! I summon Giant Rex in Attack Mode!"
Appearing on Rex's side of the field was a dinosaur that looked more like a Spinosaurus, then the infamous T. Rex. (2,000/1,200)
"And now, let's get rid of that little chick!" Rex continued, pointing at Apus. "Giant Rex, do the honors!"
Giant Rex roared and swiped its tail, destroying Apus in one blow, the bird becoming a puff of feathers.
"Thanks." said Mokuba. "When Apus is destroyed, I get to summon her big sister, Celestial Spirit-Pavo onto the field!"
Taking Apus's place was the blonde girl with the blue dress and peacock feather trail. She scowled at both Weevil and Rex, mostly angry that her sister had been destroyed. (1,600/0)
"That's the best that the brother of Seto Kaiba can do?" laughed Rex. "It's pathetic."
"Just end your turn." Khonsu replied, not wanting to make a remark.
"If you insist." said Rex, placing a Magic Card into his Duel Disk. "Now, I play Dino Blast. I choose one Dinosaur monster on my side of the field, take its level and multiply it by 300. That amount is then sent into my opponent's lifepoints. And I think I know who gets it!"
A Magic Card appeared, revealing a duelist taking a direct attack of a twister of wind. Giant Rex let out a roar and fired a blast of energy. Mokuba braced himself—expecting the attack to go to him...
When he heard Max scream in pain! Smoke was rising from the Prince of Wisdom's body as he placed a hand against his heart.
"HA HA HA!" Rex laughed. "Looks like the kiddy needs a bandage, doesn't he?"
"Knock it off!" Téa exclaimed. "Max is only a little kid!"
"Exactly." said Kaiba. "Both of those chumps know that, and are most likely going to center their attacks on him. But from what May told me, he's a pretty capable duelist."
"I'll just end my turn with one card face down." said Rex, as a face down card appeared behind Giant Rex. "Let's see how you measure up to the competition, boy."
(Rex: 4,000)
(Weevil: 4,000)
(Max: 2,800)
(Mokuba: 4,000)
"Then look out, because I draw!" Max cried, drawing a card. "And now, I activate Kuda's effect: once per turn, I can choose to read up to three cards in my opponent's hand. Since there are two of you, I think I'll split it into reading two card from Rex's, and one from Weevil's. Kuda, if you wouldn't mind."
Kuda began to chant as three card appeared in a holographic form. Max frowned, seeing the situation; the cards in Rex's hand were a Tail Swipe and Frostosaurus, and the cards in Weevil's hand was just a Leghul.
"Well," The Prince of Wisdom stated. "It looks pretty clean. But my turn's not over yet; I sacrifice Blind Seer Kuda for Shapeshifter Circe!"
Kuda disappeared as a new female Spellcaster took his place. She had green hair and was dressed in a blue robe with yellow lining, her eyes also a sparkling yellow. In her hand was a simple switch. (2,000/2,500)
"Circe has an intersting effect." Max added. "If I remove from play one Spellcaster in my Graveyard, I can increase her Attack Score by 400. So now, I remove Kuda, and then Circe will attack Gokibore!"
Circe began to glow as her Attack Score was raised to 2,400. Then she charged toward Gokibore, arms raised to bring down her switch...only for Gokibore to disappear!
"Huh?" asked Max, looking around. "Where did it go?"
Weevil laughed as his face down card was revealed: a green aura being wrapped around some sort of olive skinned monster.
"It went back to my hand, thanks to my Mimic Trap Card." Weevil replied. "And then, I get to Special Summon another Insect whose has a Level of four or less. So now, let me introduce you to Chainsaw Insect!"
With a roar, the insect appeared, revealing some sort of beetle with chainsaws as pincers. (2,400/0)
"Oh no." said Yami. "Now if Max attacks, he'll end up destroying his own monster!"
Circe scowled and soon returned to her side of the field, knowing that the battle would be a draw.
"Circe stops her attack for this round." said Max. "And as for me, I'll play one more card face down, and end my turn."
"Very well." Weevil replied, drawing a card. He looked at it...and then laughed.
"Oh no..." said Max, knowing where this would lead. "You wouldn't.."
"I activate the Seal of Orichalcos!" Weevil answered, placing the card into the Field Card Zone of his Duel Disk. There was a green glow as the runic Seal appeared beneath the competitors' feet.
"Oh no." Yami gasped out. "If Max or Mokuba's lifepoints drop to 0, then they lose their souls!"
"They'll be fine, Yugi." Kaiba answered back. "Mokuba defeated Alister head on, and from what I heard from May, Max took on two duelists who were more than three times his age. Those two have potential, and it's time that you see it for yourself."
Weevil cackled as he and Rex soon had the Orichalcos marked on their foreheads. At the same time, their monsters had their Attack Scores raised by 500.
"And I'm not done." Weevil added. "Next, I play Leghul in Attack Mode!"
A purple worm with a spikes going down its back appeared, its eyes glowing a shade of red. (300/350) -) (800/350)
"A worm?" asked Max, seeing the new monster. "That's your move? My sister's Wurmple could defeat it without batting an eyelash!"
"Really?" asked Weevil. "Maybe you should get your eyes checked; Leghul is one of many monsters that can attack directly!"
"But that means..." Max gasped. "Oh no..."
"And now..." said Weevil, pointing at the Prince of Wisdom. "ATTACK!"
Leghul slithered through Circe and Max's face down cards before tackling Max in the stomach. Then, Chainsaw Insect charged toward Circe.
"Not so fast!" said Max. "I activate Witch Hazel!"
A Trap Card appeared, revealing Witch's Apprentice clutching onto a green herb in her hand. Suddenly, a storm of leaves wrapped around Chainsaw Insect.
"W-what are you doing?" asked Weevil, noticing the situation. Meanwhile, Circe clutched her head as her eyes began to glow a dark red.
"I'm transferring the power boost that Chainsaw Insect gets from the Orichalcos!" Max explained. "With this Trap Card, any power boost that affects one of my opponent's monster gets transferred to one Spellcaster on my side of the field. So now Circe is the one with 2,900 Attack Points, and Chainsaw Insect is about to get squashed."
Circe brought down her switch at the beetle, slicing it in half. Meanwhile, Weevil's Verdant Sanctuary Card began to glow.
"Thanks for the help, kid." Weevil chuckled. "Whenever a face-up Insect monster is destroyed on the field, I can take one Insect type monster from my deck into my hand, provided that it has the same level as the card that was destroyed."
A card popped out of the Insect Duelist's deck as he placed it into his hand.
"And now, I'll play a card face down and end my turn." Weevil added. At the same time the red glow in Circe's eyes vanished as she turned to Max.
"Sorry about that, Circe." Max apologized to his monster. "I hope I didn't hurt you."
Do not try and do such a reckless move like that ever again. Circe replied to the Prince of Wisdom. Transferring the power to give your own monsters an Attack Boost is just as bad as playing the card to win...I cannot allow my master to do that.
"It won't happen again, I promise." said Max.
(Rex: 4,000)
(Weevil: 3,500)
(Max: 2,000)
(Mokuba: 4,000)
"Max's already lost half of his lifepoints!" Téa exclaimed. "At this rate, he'll lose his soul!"
"Not quite." said Yami. "Max is known to bounce back into action when it gets tough, and I'm guessing that he has a strategy in mind."
"My move." said Khonsu, drawing a card. "And now, I shall Special Summon my loyal soldier, Celestial Spirit-Triangulum!"
The green tunic wearing warrior appeared once more, blue shield in hand as he crouched in Defense. (1,000/3,000)
"Huh?" sakd Rex, noticing the strong defending monster. "How did you summon a monster that strong?"
"Celestial Spirit-Triangulum can be Special Summoned onto the field if I don't have a Magic or Trap card on the field." Khonsu explained. "But that was a Special Summon, so now I sacrifice my Tucana for Celestial Spirit-Cancer in Attack Mode!"
Tucana was soon replaced with a warrior dressed in red armor with the Zodiac Sign for Cancer on the breasplate. He also was wielding two hook swords as weapons while his head was covered by a red helm that had a white crab on its forehead. (1,800/1,300)
"And now, I activate Cancer's special ability." Mokuba continued. "If Cancer is Normal Summoned onto the field, then he can change the position of one monster into Defense Mode or Attack Mode, depending on the situation. So now, I let Cancer set your Giant Rex into Defense Mode, Rex Raptor."
Cancer rushed toward Giant Rex and soon swiped his hook swords under the dinosaur's foot. It then tripped and was soon crouched in Defense Mode.
"Not good..." said Rex, noticing the situation.
"Pavo, attack that reptile with Pavonis Feather Storm!" cried the Defender of the King.
Pavo nodded her head as she raised her hands into the air. Then, a fierce storm was whipped as peacock feathers flew at the dinosaur. It let out a roar as it was destroyed.
"And now, Cancer," Mokuba continued. "Attack directly with Beta Cancri slash!"
Cancer charged at Rex and soon slashed the Dino Duelist down with his hook swords. Rex fell onto his bottom with a thud.
"Now, I end my turn with a card face down." said Mokuba, placing a card into his Duel Disk. "And that's all."
(Rex: 2,200)
(Weevil: 3,500)
(Max: 2,000)
(Mokuba: 4,000)
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"This is crazy!" said Joey, taking a sharp left turn. "You're saying that this Raphael kook is literally off his gourd?"
"Off of it and more." May replied. "You saw how he acted back at the plane, and you noticed how he constantly called me the Guardian of the Sea. He honestly thinks that I was his Savior not only when he was a little boy, but also in a past life. I've tried to tell him that he was being delusional, and look where it got us into."
"That guy is literally a psycho! He should be punished and be given a life sentence for what he's done!" said Joey. "And I'll be the judge to see whether he gets parole or not."
"It's not his fault though, Joey." May reminded him. "Don't forget, if I didn't do my whole stunt back at Domino..."
"We can't think about what we've done in the past, May." said Joey, interrupting the girl. "All we can do is think about the present. And right now, we're currently on our way to getting to Dartz, destroying that monster of his, and saving our friends."
"Right." said May, nodding her head. "I just hope everyone else is doing fine. In fact...LOOK OUT!"
Joey turned to see a motorcycle coming toward them. Seeing this, the blonde duelist immediately pressed on the brakes of the scooter as May wrapped her arms around the blond duelist's stomach. The scooter screeched into a halt, until it eventually stopped moving. In front of them, the motorcycle had also stopped.
"What's the big idea, huh?" Joey exclaimed. "We've got a world to save!"
"Correction." The motorcyclist replied, getting off of his ride and grasping onto his helmet. "You have someone that I want, Joey Wheeler. The Guardian of the Sea has returned at long last!"
May gasped as the person removed his helmet; it was Raphael. His fierce grey eyes now the same color as the Orichalcos stone around his neck, and his grin...his grin was set into a maniacal sneer that looked similar to the one Shadow gave to her. May took in a deep breath as she stepped out of the scooter and walked toward Raphael.
"I'm not the Guardian of the Sea." She stated to Raphael, stopping once she and Raphael were in a three step distance between each other. "Now I ask that you leave."
"Oh, I'll leave all right." Raphael replied. "But I'll be taking you with me, my beloved."
"What are you talking about?" asked May. "I'm only ten, I can't be your 'beloved!'"
"Don't you remember what happened on the island?" asked Raphael in reply with a calm tone of voice. "You sang and danced for me, you talked to me...you made me happy, and you had that beautiful smile that told me that you were also happy. And doesn't love mean being with the person that makes you happy forever and ever?"
"To you that might be, but that's not me. And this isn't you; you just being controlled by the Orichalcos. You don't want this..."
"Stop trying to lie to me, Guardian of the Sea...you love that Atem person, don't you?"
"Atem?" asked Joey, getting into the conversation. "You mean that Duel Monsters Card? That's hilarious! May could never love a thing like that!"
"Back off, dog!" Raphael barked at Joey. "You're not needed."
"I...have feelings for Atem, Raphael." said May, trying to put it in a way for the Swordsman to understand. "But...it's not love, I just like him."
But really, Atem...the like is just a like. May thought to herself. I know you love me for being your savior who released you from your prison, but I'm glad that I could help you out. I just don't want this whole love and like thing to blow out of proportion. I just want to save Raphael from the Orichalcos; if I can just do that, then that's enough.
"Don't you mean that the other way?" Raphael hissed. "That you don't like him, you love him?"
"I didn't say that!" May exclaimed, her eyes slowly becoming a shade of pure crimson. "And as for you..."
"You have the same feelings that I have for you, right?" asked Raphael. "That you love me...just like a husband and wife would have for each other?"
"No." May replied, staring at Raphael straight in the eye. "I don't have any feelings for a manipulative, obsessed, stalker-like, stubborn, evil, malicious, cruel, and certainly psychotic, maniac like you!"
Raphael stepped back, not expecting that response. "What are you saying?" He asked.
"I...HATE YOU!" May screamed, eyes glowing with energy, activating her Duel Disk. "I utterly despise you with every fiber of my being. I despised you ever since you tried to take off with the Egyptian God Cards. My anger for you grew when you made Yami play the Orichalcos and when you took Yugi away...and then it exploded when you attacked me back at Paradius and when I unleashed Shadow at you. It quelled back at the lake...but that was because I was telling how much I've changed. But I still have hatred over you...and that's never going to change!"
Raphael's eyes widened as he placed a hand on his forehead. Those three words, they echoed in his mind as another memory appeared in his mind.
"Guardian of the Sea, please come back!"
"NO!" The young girl replied to Rael, running away from him. She tripped and fell onto the floor, hand grasping onto her sistrum. She turned around and began to tremble as she saw the older boy approach her.
"Why do you run away from me and not from that monster?" asked Rael. "I only want what's best for you."
"No you don't!" The Guardian of the Sea exclaimed. "You're a monster, Rael...I don't want to be near you anymore!"
"Guardian of the Sea..." Rael whispered, reaching out to place a hand on her shoulder. Hara saw this and whacked it away. Tears fell down her eyes as she exclaimed,
"Rael...I...I...I HATE YOU!"
The words soon began to fade away as Raphael looked on in shock. May gasped as what she had done, her eyes going back to a shade of blue. She tried to take a step toward the dazed Swordsman, but Joey stopped her by grasping onto her wrist.
"Let's get going." said Joey. "This guy's totally lost it."
"I can't." May answered. "I have to save him. It wasn't his fault."
"He was the one who took your arm and sliced it like it was cheese, right? You said it yourself, you hate him."
"I don't really hate him." May replied sadly. "I hate the thing that's on him...this Orichalcos stone, it's polluted his mind. He's been brainwashed just like everyone else who's been in contact with it: Mai, Bandit Keith, Arkana...they never saw it, and it'll probably too late for them tor ealize that they were hurt."
May then turned her gaze to Raphael, the older man just staring off into space. She placed a hand on her heart as she recalled what she said about him; she never meant any of those words. Shadow—her darker self—was trying to control her with anger and hatred...she would not let that happen.
The Guardian of the Sea...hates me? Raphael thought in his mind. No...NO!
The blonde Swordsman let out a terrible roar, his whole body highlighted by a green aura as Joey and May had to cover their eyes. When the light dimmed down, there was the feeling of a great and powerful aura
"You shall return to me, Guardian of the Sea..." said Raphael, activating his Duel Disk. "And my plan starts with this!"
"Bring it on!" May replied. "Your Guardians don't scare me!"
"May," said Joey, pushing May back. "Stand back, I'll take your place."
"What?" asked May. "Joey, are you nuts? This is my battle!"
"No, your battle's with Dartz." Joey replied. "But this psycho's all mine."
"Are you sure this is alright? I've caused enough trouble for you already."
"You didn't mean to. After all, it's your job as a 'Guardian of the Pharaoh' to save the world."
"Guardian of the WHAT?" Raphael screamed, hearing Joey's words. He grit his teeth, the green glow in his eyes starting to flicker into a red color. "That's it...this ends NOW!"
"I agree." said Joey, activating his own Duel Disk. "You and your friends are goin' to pay for everything you've done to us! This is for Yugi, for Mai, and for everyone you took with that freaky Orichalcos Seal!"
"And this is the end of the line for you!" said Raphael, drawing five cards from his deck. "You're going down."
Raphael's changed...May thought to herself. But why do I get the feeling that something is terribly wrong with him? And those words I said...I don't exactly hate him, but at the same time, I don't have any feelings of 'like' or whatever...
No, that can be thought of later. Right now, all I can do is watch...
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Mokuba was staring at his hand. The Celestial Spirits, belonging to Sothis, were talking to him, asking if he was okay. Each and every Monster, along with each card in the deck were consoling him in his trouble. This was serious; if he lost his soul to the Orichalcos, then the power of the Celestial Spirits would also be taken away, and he couldn't allow that.
"Hello!" said Rex, waking Mokuba out of his thoughts. "If you haven't been paying attention, it's my turn!"
"Sorry." Mokuba replied. "Make your move."
"With pleasure." said Rex, drawing a card. "And now, I summon Black Veloci onto the field in Attack Mode!"
A purple velociraptor appeared with spikes going down its neck and had a set of very sharp teeth. It also had purple bird feathers on its arms. (1,800/3,00) -) (2,300/3,00)
"And Black Veloci has a sweet effect!" Rex continued. "When he attacks my opponent's monster, he gains 400 extra Attack Points during the Damage Step! And he's hungry for that red warrior of yours, Mokuba..."
Black Veloci roared as its Attack Score was raised to 2,700. Then it charged toward Cancer, slicing the warrior into ribbons with its claws.
"Cancer may be gone, but his effect activates!" said Mokuba. "I can summon one Water monster from my deck that has the same level as my Celestial Spirit. Since Cancer had six levels, then I can summon Celestial Spirit-Delphinus onto the field in Attack mode!"
With a cry, a blue and white dolphin appeared. It let out a click of its teeth as it was poured with waves of water. (2,400/1,500)
Rex smirked.
"Sorry, but that fish is going to go bye-bye!" He announced. "I activate Hunting Instinct!"
Rex's Trap Card lifted, showing a giant dinosaur staring down at a snake and frog who were behind a couple of rocks.
"This little card lets me Special Summon a Dinosaur from my hand whenever you Special Summon a monster on your side of the field." Rex explained. "And here's the best part; I can summon a high level Monster without penalties!"
"That's not good." said Téa. "Rex must have something powerful that could wipe out Mokuba's lifepoints."
"Appear now Frostosaurus!" Rex cried. "And destroy that puny fish with your Black Ice Barrage!"
A cold wind soon blew onto the field as the dinosaur monster soon emerged. It looked like a Brontosaurus at first glance, but its whole body was made of ice, making it look like some sort of living iceberg. Its yellow eyes soon began to glow red. (2,600/1,700) -) (3,100/1,700)
Not good... Max thought to himself. Unless Mokuba has a very reliable Trap Card on hand, he'll lose 700 lifepoints!
Forgive me, Delphinus... said Mokuba to the Dolphin Constellation monster. The card I have in play cannot save you...
Frostosaurus roared and let out a barrage of black ice. Delphinus let out a cry as it was destroyed.
"And now that that's over," said Rex. "I'll just end my turn with two face down cards. And that's it."
"Those kids are getting their butts handed to them!" Tristan exclaimed. "There's no way that they're going to win."
"Oh ye of little faith." Kaiba replied sarcastically. "Stop being so pessimistic and try to look at it this way; they're lasting longer than you would ever do in a situation like this."
"Yeah, I guess you're r—HEY!" Tristan exclaimed. "That's not nice!"
"Well neither are your remarks about them losing." said Kaiba in response. "They may be behind in lifepoints, but I doubt that's going to stop them from pulling a victory. Or do you not recall May dueling Shadow?"
"Kaiba's right." said Yami. "This duel has only begun, and there is still a chance for Max and Mokuba to win the duel and escape the Orichalcos."
(Rex: 2,200)
(Weevil: 3,500)
(Max: 2,000
(Mokuba: 2,400)
"Then it's my move!" said Max, drawing a card. "And now, I sacrifice Circe for Blizzard Princess!"
Circe bowed gracefully before vanishing. In her place was a younger girl dressed in a white dress with blue lining, her hair set into four pigtails (the pigtails looking more like white diamonds than hair) and a crown on her head. In her hand was a giant blue crystal mace. (2,800/2,100)
"Hold on!" Rex exclaimed. "That's a level 7 monster! How could you summon her with just one card?"
"If I sacrifice a Spellcaster monster, than I can summon Blizzard Princess onto the field." Max explained. "And thanks to Blizzard Princess, neither of you can activate Magic or Trap Cards on the turn that she's summoned."
"WHAT?" Weevil screeched. "But that means..."
Blizzard Princess giggled and soon swung her mace at Weevil's Verdant Sanctuary, and the three face down cards. They soon became encased in ice.
"Sorry." said Max with a grin. "But I'm not done yet; I'll play Grief Tablet next!"
A Magic card appeared, showing a mirror with a spooky spirit escaping it. The spirit then latched onto Leghul.
"W-what are you doing to my beautiful Insect?" Weevil asked Max.
"Grief Tablet prevents Leghul from using its special ability, make it attack, AND change its attack position." Max explained. "But don't worry, I won't attack it...yet.
"Blizzard Princess, direct your sites to Black Veloci and attack with Snow Storm Pummel!"
Oh no! Rex thought to himself. If Black Veloci is attacked, then he loses 400 Attack Points during the Damage Step! I'm going to lose 900 lifepoints!
Blizzard Princess rushed toward the velociraptor and swung her mighty mace at the dinosaur. The two made contact as Black Veloci soon shattered into pieces.
"To end my turn, I'll be placing one card face down." said Max. "And that's it."
(Rex: 1,300)
(Weevil: 3,500)
(Max: 2,000)
(Mokuba: 2,400)
"Now that's a comeback!" said Tristan. "Rex is down to his last 1300 lifepoints!"
"But Max and Mokuba still have to contend with Weevil." Téa added. "And he won't be easy to beat."
Weevil drew a card, expanding his hand to only three cards.
"Hey Rex," The Insect duelist hissed to his partner. "Do you mind if I used one of your face down cards?"
"What for?" asked Rex. "Why not use your cards?"
"Because the strategy I have in my mind needs two face down cards, dummy!" Weevil snapped. "So give me the face down card you don't want and let me continue on with my turn!"
"Fine..." Rex muttered under his breath.
Okay... thought Max. Why would Weevil want a Magic/Trap Card used for Dinosaur monsters? Something doesn't add up...
"I send to the graveyard two face down cards." Weevil announced. "To summon Anteatereatingant in Attack Mode!"
"Anteater what?" asked the Prince of Wisdom. "That doesn't sound good..."
Once two of the face down cards vanished, there was a rumbling of the earth as a giant ant emerged onto the field! It had blue hungry eyes that were leering into the gazes of its opponent's monsters. (2,000/500) -) (2,500/500)
"Gross!" Téa exclaimed. "Someone get some bug spray quick!"
"Sorry, miss." Weevil replied. "But this insect isn't going anywhere. And if I can continue, once Anteatereatingant is Special Summoned onto the field, I can destroy one of my opponent's Magic or Trap cards! And I choose that one!"
He pointed to the face down card that was on Mokuba's side of the field. Anteatereatingant soon devoured the card and chomped it into pieces.
"Eww..." said Tristan.
"And I can still Normal Summon this turn." Weevil continued. "So I'll summon Insect Knight onto the field in Attack Mode!"
With a screech, a humanoid cicada rose onto the field, wielding a sword and shield. (1,900/800) -) (2,400/800)
"And now, Insect Knight." said Weevil. "Attack that bird with Katycid slash!"
Insect Knight flew toward Pavo and sliced her in half. Pavo let out a screech as she disappeared.
"Looks like it's bye bye birdy." Weevil snickered. "Now it's time to—AH!"
An astral form of Pavo rose onto Weevil's side of the field...and soon delivered a powerful kick to his groin! She let out a huff before she vanished.
"That had to hurt." said Tristan, seeing the Insect Duelist in pain.
Max snickered a bit. "Guess Weevil learned the hard way about Pavo's effect." He said to himself. "If she's destroyed in battle, Weevil has to lose lifepoints equal to her Attack Points."
"And I'm guessing by the silence, he's ending his turn." said Mokuba (Weevil quickly nodding his head in reply). "Figures."
(Rex: 1,300)
(Weevil: 1,900)
(Max: 2,000)
(Mokuba: 1,600)
Mokuba drew a card and eyed the field. Rex had Frostosaurus and one face down card, Weevil had Verdant Swamp, Anteatereatingant and Insect Knight, Max had Blizzard Princess and his face down card while he himself only had Celestial Spirit-Triangulum defending him. He only had three cards in his hand, but none of them were monsters. He needed a good draw.
I better get something good, or else this won't end well...Mokuba thought to himself, drawing a card. Wait...this might work...I hope...
"I now activate the Magic Card known as Zodiac Wheel." The Defender of the King announced. "And with this card, I draw four cards from my deck, but I can only keep the Monster cards I've drawn."
As he said this, his hand expanded to six cards, before sending two cards to the graveyard. He looked to his hand before letting a smile creep onto his lips.
"Why's Mokuba smiling like that?" asked Téa. "Did he draw something good?"
"Probably." answered Yami. "But is it enough to defeat Weevil and Rex?"
"My move!" said Mokuba. "I summon Celestial Spirit-Aries in Attack Mode!"
With a bleat, the bighorn sheep appeared, red eyes and nostrils flaring. (1,550/1,300)
"And with Aries Normal Summoned, I can now Special Summon a Beast or Beast-Warrior type monster from my hand onto the field, provided that its Attack is less than 1,700. So now, let's bring out Celestial Spirit-Lepus in Defense Mode!"
Emerging from a burrowed hole was a white rabbit with a star laced with a ribbon around its neck, and a black star patch on its head. Its ears twitched in anticipation. (700/700)
"That's your strategy?" asked Rex. "Bunny rabbits? My dinosaurs will devour it with one gulp!"
"Don't be so sure." said Mokuba. "If I sacrifice Lepus, I can draw three more cards and Special Summon any Celestial Spirits that were drawn from its effect. So Lepus, it's down the rabbit hole with you."
Lepus soon began to burrow underground as Mokuba drew three cards.
"All right," The Vessel cried. "I now Special Summon Celestial Spirit-Libra and Celestial Spirit-Cygnus onto the field in Defense Mode!"
Two more Celestial Spirits appeared. One was the balance scale with the two girls (700/0), the other was a beautiful white swan. (1,300/1,200)
"Those things are pathetic!" Rex exclaimed. "And you call yourself a duelist!"
"At least I was able to stand toe to toe with a Swordsman, which I doubt you two were able to do." Mokuba growled. "And the Celestial Spirits are loyal warriors to the Defender of the King...I suggest you keep your lips sewn shut before I do it for you!
"And because it's still my turn, I'll activate the Ritual Magic Card known as The 13th Symbol!"
A Magic Card was played, depicting Zodiac Wheel with some serpent coiled in the middle. Soon, both Cygnus and Aries were glowing with energy.
"Um, what's going on?" asked Weevil.
"With this Ritual Magic Card, I must sacrifice monsters from my field or hand monsters who have a combined level of 7 or higher." explained the younger Kaiba. "And by doing so, I can summon one of my favorite constellations!"
Cygnus and Aries soon disappeared as a new figure took their place. He had tan skin and white hair falling down to his shoulders and was dressed in a black cloak. Opening his closed eyes, the figure revealed yellow orbs with black slits, to resemble a serpent's. In his hands, was a staff with a silver serpent twisted around the wood.
"Allow me to introduce you to Ophiuchus, Serpent Holder." said Mokuba. "And witness, the monster that shall be your end."
Ophiuchus smirked, running a forked tongue through a pair of fangs. (2,600/1,300)
"That's your supposed monster?" asked Rex. "That thing will get..."
"Before you finish that statement, may I explain his special abilities?" asked Mokuba, interrupting the Dino Duelist. "With Ophiuchus on the field, I can Special Summon one Celestial Spirit-Serpens from my hand or deck onto the field."
With a loud hiss, a black serpent emerged onto the field, red eyes glaring at both Weevil and Rex. (1,500/0)
"Eww...I hate snakes!" Téa exclaimed.
"News flash, kid." said Weevil. "Your monsters don't stand a chance against ours; so why don't you..."
"I'M NOT FINISHED!" Mokuba screeched, his eyes glowing with intense fury. "If you dare try to say something like that again, I will personally send you to Ammit myself, so she can feed on your hearts! UNDERSTAND?"
"G-got it..." Weevil gulped. "Won't happen again."
"That didn't sound like Mokuba." said Tristan. "Since when does he threaten people about devouring people's hearts?"
Mokuba grasped his head in pain; there he went again with the threatening of killing people and devouring their organs. But he couldn't help it; those two were getting on his nerves and he was still feeling guilty of what happened to Alister.
"Can we get on with this duel?" Weevil exclaimed to Mokuba. "We don't have all evening."
"Then let's continue." said Mokuba, placing two cards into the Duel Disk. "Now I activate my Octo Mirror and Pump Up! Magic Cards to increase the attack strength of both Ophiuchus and Serpens. Octo Mirror will increase Ophiuchus's Attack Score by 800, and Pump Up! doubles the Attack Score of one 'Celestial Spirit' whose Attack Score is less than 1,500. Now my monsters are strong enough to destroy yours."
The octogon mirror soon strengthened the Serpent Holder, while a Magic Card depicting Celestial Spirit-Hercules lifting weights caused Serpens to double in size. Ophiuchus now had 3,400 Attack Points, while Serpens had 3,000.
"That can't be good..." said Rex, noticing the angry look in both of the monsters' eyes.
"Now I attack!" Mokuba cried. "Ophiuchus, destroy Frostosaurus with Oph Scepter Strike! Serpens, swallow that knight whole with Ser Swallow!"
Ophiuchus's staff grew bigger before the Serpent Holder swung it at Frostosaurus, destroying the behemoth as if it was nothing more than a glass vase. Meanwhile Serpens soon slithered across the field, staring at Insect Knight with hunger. It opened its mouth and swallowed the monster whole.
Weevil snarled as his Verdant Sanctuary Magic Card began to glow.
"You may have destroyed my Insect, but I'll get another one soon enough!" He hissed, taking a card form his Deck into his hand. "Now are you done?"
"Almost." answered Mokuba. "For now, I'll place one card face down and end my turn. And once my turn ends, so do the effects of my Magic Cards."
Ophiuchus frowned as his Attack Score went back to 2,600. Serpens, however, writhed in pain before being destroyed.
"What just happened?" asked Téa. "How did that snake get destroyed?"
"The Magic Card I used on Serpens has a nasty side effect." Mokuba explained. "At the end of the turn I use this effect, that monster is destroyed. However, Serpens is a special type of Monster; if he's destroyed by the effects of one of my one cards, then I can summon these two Monsters in his place."
Emerging from the field was Serpens—or rather, it was two halves of Serpens—one being the head, the other the tail. (500/0 x2)
"Okay...what are those supposed to be?" asked Rex.
"Ophiuchus was said to grasp both halves of Serpens." Mokuba answered back. "And when Serpens is sent to the graveyard, I can summon both Serpens Caput and Serpens Cauda onto the field. Then, I'll place one card face down and end my turn."
(Rex: 1,000)
(Weevil: 1,300)
(Max: 2,000)
(Mokuba: 1,600)
"So let me get this straight." said Tristan. "Mokuba can channel some sort of spirit through his body, but alongside delivering a beating to both of those dweebs, sometimes has an urge to spout threats about killing them."
"It seems that way from the looks of it." said Yami in response. "But make no mistake Tristan, Mokuba is an exceptional duelist."
"But the duel we saw was just a practice duel with Max, Pharaoh." said Téa. "And from what May said, she told us that he was nearly defeated by a humongous monster with lasers and missiles. He shouldn't be dueling right now in this condition."
"It's a little too late to state that." said Kaiba. "But I don't trust that spirit; even if he does resemble my little brother, I'd love to give him a beating once this duel is over."
"Can you at least give him the benefit of the doubt?" asked Mokuba, overhearing the spectators' comments about him. "Not only am I doing it for Khonsu's consent, but I'm doing it for Alister also; they would want this...they couldn't face another tragedy..." He closed his eyes. "That poor soul, Alister couldn't understand his own actions until the very end..."
"You're giving pity to a guy who was part of selling most of your brother's company, nearly tried to kill your brother in a plane crash and was partially responsible for most of this mess?" Tristan exclaimed. "How could you?"
"You try going through what I went through!" Mokuba snapped, balling a fist as he grit his teeth. "That explosion you must've seen...my whole speech to Alister...the act of seeing me attacked with those weapons while my family could only scream my name because they knew I wouldn't survive...I took it all with a smile on my face and declared for Alister to hit me with his best shot, and I still won. Had it not been for one card, I would've been done. If you're done complaining, I suggest you do something other than flapping your gums. Here's one: SHUT UP!"
Tristan stayed silent; everyone stayed silent after Mokuba screamed those two words. Rex then drew a card.
"Then...I guess it's my turn." He stated. "And now, I activate my face down card!"
His lone face down card flipped over, revealing an erupting volcano and meteorites falling onto the barren earth with some lizards looking on.
"It's called Survival Instinct, and this handy Trap Card allows me to remove from play as many Dinosaur monsters as I want in my graveyard. And for each one, I gain 400 lifepoints. So now, I'll remove all three monsters and gain an additional 1,200 lifepoints from it."
As three cards escaped his graveyard slot, Rex's lifepoint meter soon raised back to 2,200.
"And I'm not done." Rex added. "Next, I'll Special Summon Gilasaurus from my hand onto the field!"
A velociraptor soon charged onto the field, the Orichalcos appearing on its forehead. (1,400/400) -) (1,900/400)
"Since this was Special Summoned, my opponents can both bring back one monster from their graveyards." The Dino Duelist added. "So, what do you have?"
"This." Max replied, playing Shapeshifter Circe onto the field. "And that's all."
The Spellcaster appeared, brandishing her switch as she crouched in Defense Mode. (2,000/2,500)
"I choose not to activate the ability." said Mokuba. "After all, I already have five monsters."
"Suit yourself." said Rex. "And now, I play Big Evolution Pill!"
A Magic Card appeared, revealing a few dinosaurs staring at three pills on the ground. Gilasaurus then had one in its hand and swallowed it.
"What exactly does that card do?" asked Max.
"Well, I'm glad you asked." answered Rex. "If I sacrifice one Dinosaur Monster on my side of the field, then I can Normal and Set Summon any Dinosaur Monster from my hand without any tributes. Plus, this card lasts for my opponent's next three turns, so I can summon any type of Dinosaur Monster and squash you guys into paste!
"And without further ado, I summon my Ultimate Tyranno onto the field in Attack Mode!"
There was trembling of the earth as a huge dinosaur appeared, standing on two legs and completely black. It had yellow spikes on its head, fierce claws and teeth ready to tear all the monsters into pieces. (3,000/2,200) -) (3,500/2,200)
"This will be fun." Weevil grinned. "So now what?"
"This!" Rex answered, pointing to Celestial Spirit-Triangulum. "Attack!"
Ultimate Tyranno soon slashed its mighty claws at the shield-bearing warrior. Triangulum screamed as he vanished.
"And now let's do it again!" shouted Rex, pointing at both Serpens Caput and Serpens Cauda. "Double Tyranno Slash!"
"Wait a minute!" said Téa. "That monster's already attack once! How can it attack again?"
"Guess you haven't read up on my monster's special ability." Rex answered. "If this is summoned onto the field, I can—and must—attack each and every one of my opponent's monsters once. So I have six more monsters to destroy before my turn is done!"
Not good! Max thought to himself. That's why he wanted us to use Gilasaurus's effect; the more monsters we have, the more lifepoints we lose!
Both halves of Serpens were destroyed before Rex commanded his monster to destroy Ophiuchus. Ophiuchus soon brought out his staff, as if to defend himself from the colossal monster.
"Not so fast!" said Mokuba. "I play my Attack Guidance Armor! Now your attack is directed to Celestial Spirit-Libra!"
The armor soon split into two, now attached to both of the young girls sitting upon the scale pans. They looked at it with curiosity before laughing once more.
"Those two won't be laughing when I'm through with them!" said Rex. "Ultimate Tyranno, do it!"
Ultimate Tyranno charged toward Libra, while the young girls floated toward the monster and linked their pinkies together. Suddenly, Ultimate Tyranno froze.
"W-what?" Rex exclaimed. "What did you do to my monster?"
"Libra's effect." Mokuba replied with a wry smile. "If Libra is attacked while in Defense Mode, once per turn I can negate that attack and redirect it onto another monster on the field. And guess what? You haven't had a taste of my partner's monsters."
"ARE YOU CRAZY?" Tristan exclaimed. "If that monster attacks, then Max will be defenseless!"
Tristan's right...Max thought. But wait...maybe Mokuba wanted Ultimate Tyranno to attack my monsters because he knew that I had a card to stop him! And I do!
Ultimate Tyranno soon stomped toward both Circe and Blizzard Princess, the two Spellcasters looking scared. The dinosaur opened its mouth, ready to devour them...
When it disappeared in a puff of smoke!
"WHA-?" said Rex, noticing the monsters gone. "Where'd my monster go?"
"Ultimate Tyranno's out of play." Max answered, revealing his Trap Card. "Thanks to Magician's Trap Door, all I had to do was send the top card of my deck to the graveyard, and he disappears until the end of your turn. Cool, huh?"
Rex growled as he set two cards face down. Then, Ultimate Tyranno appeared on the field once more.
(Rex: 2,200)
(Weevil: 1,300)
(Max: 2,000)
(Mokuba: 2,400)
"All right then." said Max, drawing a card. "It's my move! And it's about time, because now I activate my newly drawn Sleight of Hand Magic Card!"
The Magic Card appeared, revealing Masked Enchanter revealing the four Aces and Joker card.
"With this card, I can sacrifice one Spellcaster on my field, and draw cards equal to the level of the sacrificed monster. And since Circe is a Level 5 Monster, that means I'll have six cards in my hand!"
Circe bowed before vanishing. Max then drew five more cards. He then placed one on his Duel Disk.
"Now I Special Summon Watapon onto the field in Defense Mode!"
To the right of Blizzard Princess, the white fuzzball with giant blue eyes and antennae appeared. (300/200) Seeing it, Blizzard Princess looked at it adoringly and placed a firm hand on its head, petting the Fairy-type Monster.
Using Magician's Trap Door was ingenious, but at the same time risky. Max thought to himself. I was assuming that he would use Celestial Spirit-Libra's effect to redirect the attack to Anteatereatingant. But why direct it to me? Was it because he knew that I had a powerful card that could stop it? Maybe...Hey! I have an awesome monster that might be able to stop that giant dinosaur from doing anymore damage to my lifepoints. But...it's kind of risky...Here goes...
"I activate the Ritual Magic Card Voudon Curse!"
A Magic Card appeared, showing a dark skinned woman with some sort of rag doll in hand, the doll having pins sticking on its forehead and chest. Suddenly Watapon was attacked by thousands and thousands of needles, causing Blizzard Princess to scream in terror.
"W-What the heck?" exclaimed Tristan. "What did you just do?"
"Voudon Curse is a Ritual Magic Card." Max explained. "And to summon its specific Ritual Monster onto the field, I'll have to sacrifice monsters that have a combined level of six. Watapon is a Level One Monster and my Immortal Alchemist Flamel is a Level Five Monster. Do the math: with my sacrifices, I can now summon one of my newest Monsters!"
Max tossed Immortal Alchemist Flammel into the air, thousands of needles piercing it. The two pierced monsters disappeared as the field soon became surrounded with fog.
"Weird effects." said Rex. "Now make them go away, this isn't Halloween you know."
At that cry, a figure began walking to the field. She had dark skin, dressed in a red and orange headband decorated with feathers, and an African inspired dress draping her body. Her brown eyes glared at both Rex and Weevil, a hand grasping onto a basket of herbs and other strange items and her right hand was grasping a voodoo doll. (2,300/1,400)
"Please welcome Voodoo Queen Laveau." said Max. "And although she's weak, she has a very dangerous effect. Laveau, if you please."
Laveau lifted the voodoo doll into the air, five nails pinning the head, arms and legs.
"Laveau gains five Spell Counters when she appears on the field." Max explained. "And by sacrificing one Spell Counter—out of the maximum five she can carry—she can decrease the Attack Score of one Monster on the field by 500 points. So let's see...I know!"
Three needles were removed and were thrown at the opponents' monsters. Two of them pierced through Ultimate Tyranno, the last one hit Anteatereatingant. Ultimate Tyranno had his Attack Score at 2500, and Anteatereatingant was now at a measly 2,000.
"Not good!" Rex and Weevil cried simultaneously.
I best destroy those two monsters now. Max thought to himself. Before Rex and Weevil find a way to power them up!
"All right!" The Prince of Wisdom announced. "Laveau, take care of Anteatereatingant, and Blizzard Princess, pummel Ultimate Tyranno!"
Both Spellcasters nodded their heads. Laveau chanted something under her breath as thousands of needles began to fly toward the giant ant while Blizzard Princess twirled her giant mace, ready to bash Ultimate Tyranno into pieces. But before the attacks could strike...
There was a sound of buzzing, before bees swarmed the field, blocking the view of both monsters from the two female magicians.
"What the heck did you just do, Weevil?" asked Max, shock on his face as his attack had been blocked.
Weevil just snickered as he brought out a Trap Card into his hand, a beehive where a Kuriboh—trying to get some sweet honey—was being swarmed by bees.
"It's just a little card called Hive Mind, kid." The Insect Duelist snickered. "When it's in my graveyard, I can remove it from play during my opponent's Battle Phase whenever I want to end it. Oh, and did I mention that after I activate this card's effect, I draw cards for every Insect Monster on my side of the field. And I have two of them."
As Weevil drew two cards, Max snarled as he placed one card face down. "That's it." He stated. "I'm done."
"Thanks for the save, Weevil." said Rex, staring at his partner. "One false move, and I would've been sent back to that place."
"Shut up, Rex." Weevil snapped at the Dino Duelist. "I didn't use my card to save you. I only used it so I didn't have to go back there."
"Well then, thanks a lot for worrying about me!" Rex said in a loud and sarcastic tone. "Now make your move!"
"Gladly." said Weevil, drawing a card. He then laughed when saw the card he had drawn.
"That can't be good." said Tristan.
"It's time to reveal my strongest monster!" said Weevil. "But first I'll activate Scarab's Revival!"
A Magic Card appeared, revealing a giant ball of dung with many scarabs chewing their way out of it. Then, scarabs flew out of the card.
"Beetles, yuck!" Téa exclaimed.
She may call them disgusting, but beetles were sacred during my time. Khonsu muttered under his breath. In fact, there was a god known as Khepri, the god of the scarab beetle who was known for his symbolism of the soul's revival. In fact, the Egyptians made amulets in the shape of scarabs and placed them upon a mummy's chest to give it rest during the afterlife.
Either way, we're in trouble. Mokuba replied. Weevil wasn't the Intercontinental Duel Monster's Champion for nothing. Plus, that laugh means either two things: either he's found something funny, or he's found a way to defeat us.
"Why the shocked faces?" Weevil asked mockingly. "Oh yeah, I forgot to mention my Magic Card's special ability: like my partner's Survival Instinct card, I gain lifepoints. But unlike my partner, I gain 300 lifepoints for every Insect Monster on the field and in my graveyard. Can you do the math? That's 1,200 lifepoints!"
Weevil began to glow as he felt his lifepoints return from 1,300 all the way to 2,500.
"And I'm not done," Underwood continued. "I sacrifice both Leghul and Anteatereatingant to summon my Queen Bee onto the field!"
Both insects vanished—along with Max's Grief Tablet—as a the sound of buzzing drew closer and closer. In the place of Weevil's monsters was a feminine monster with four translucent wings, an hourglass body with bee stripes, and six arms each brandishing a black dagger. She also had antenna, large black eyes and a crown on her head. She also had a very long tongue sticking out of her 'mouth'. (1,500/800) -) (2,000/800)
"Two monsters for that thing alone?" asked Max. "Why do I feel as if there's something...not right about this card?"
"You're right about that, kid." Weevil answered back. "My Queen Bee gains 400 Attack Points for every Insect Monster in the graveyard. I have four and that means my monster gains an extra 1,600 Attack Points!"
Queen Bee flapped her wings as her Attack Score was soon raised to 3600.
"Oh man, that's not good!" said Mokuba. "His monster's strong enough to destroy ours!"
"Queen Bee, destroy that Gypsy now!" cried Weevil, pointing at Voodoo Queen Laveau. "And make sure nothing's left of her!"
Queen Bee began to buzz and flew into the air. Then she swooped down, six stingers ready to stab into Laveau's heart.
"Not so fast!" Max cried, flipping his Trap Card. "You activated my Fire Eater Trap Card!"
A blaze of fire began to wrap around the giant Insect Monster, the monster screaming at the pain it was going into.
"Your Queen Bee has a different Attribute than my Voodoo Queen Laveau, Weevil." Max added. "And because of that, she's automatically destroy—what?"
Queen Bee flapped her wings at a tremendous rate, and the fire was soon snuffed. Then, she threw her six daggers at Laveau, stabbing her in the chest and stomach. The Spellcaster was destroyed as a result.
"No way!" Mokuba exclaimed. "How did you stop that attack?"
Weevil chuckled as Queen Bee flew back to his side. "Because my Queen Bee has an interesting ability." He answered. "If she's the target of an effect that destroys her, I can sacrifice one Insect Monster in from my hand and send it to the graveyard to negate the effect and destroy the card. Plus for every Insect in my graveyard, my Queen Bee gains an extra 400 Attack Points!"
Queen Bee grinned, her attack score now at 4,000.
"But that means Queen Bee was stronger when it attacked Max's monster." said Téa. "And Max is in a tough situation as it is."
"Perhaps that's why Weevil has Verdant Sanctuary on the field." Yami mused. "For every monster Max and Mokuba destroyed, Weevil can use that card to take another Insect into his hand. And should his Queen Bee be a target for the effect of a card that can destroy her, then Weevil can negate the effect and let his monster get stronger."
Not good...Max thought to himself. I don't have any card in my hand that can stop it...
"And now I'll end my turn at that." Weevil announced. "Let's see you try and stop me."
(Rex: 2,200)
(Weevil: 2,500)
(Max: 300)
(Mokuba: 2,400)
Mokuba drew a card, seeing the situation. Weevil's monster was already at the 4,000 Attack Point mark and it would get stronger by the minute, and Rex's monster could destroy every monster on the field and deplete their lifepoints. At this rate, only one Monster could save him...it was all about drawing it.
All right... Thought the Defender of the King. Here goes...
"My move!" Mokuba announced. "And now I play my Pot of Greed! So that means I gain two more cards!"
"Draw all the cards you want, it's not going to save you!" Rex remarked.
"Really?" asked Mokuba. "Then why not I just remove two from my graveyard—like Celestial Spirit-Cygnus and Celestial Spirit-Delphinus—to summon my most powerful Celestial Spirit! My Sky Emperor Polaris!
Astral projections of a swan and dolphin appeared before being transformed into orbs of light, flying into the sky. Then the Lord of the Celestial Spirits began to descend onto the field, hands gripping onto his staff, his face twisted with anger. (4,000/3,750)
Ophiuchus noticed the Spellcaster monster and bowed, showing his loyalty to the Lord. Needless to say, everyone else was confused.
"Okay..." said Rex. "That was weird."
"But a monster with 4,000 Attack Points, now that's amazing!" Tristan exclaimed. "Those two dweebs are going down!"
"You might want to look again." Kaiba remarked. "Weevil's monster has the same Attack Score as Mokuba's; if they attack, then they're both destroyed."
"Well...I'm sure Mokuba has a plan to kick their butts!"
"Your Spellcaster is strong, but it can only attack once per turn." said Weevil. "Your partner only has 300 lifepoints and if Rex manages to summon a monster stronger than that wimpy ice fairy on the field, then that's it! So attack, you're going to lose either way!"
Weevil began to laugh once more as Mokuba turned to Max. The Prince of Wisdom—despite the outward exterior of being confident—was actually worried. He hadn't been this close to a 0 ever since fighting Arkana yesterday. And with one more move, that was it.
"Max, don't worry." said Mokuba. "I've got a plan."
"I hope so." said Max. "But how are you going to destroy them?"
"With Gift of the Martyr!" Mokuba exclaimed, playing the Magic Card onto the field. "And with the sacrifice of one monster on the field, Sky Emperor Polaris gets stronger for this one turn! And because Ophiuchus has 2,600 Attack Points, then Sky Emperor Polaris now has 6,600 Attack Points!"
The Magic Card—depicting a ghostly form of Dunames Dark Witch hovering over a weakened warrior—soon sucked Serpent Wielder-Ophiuchus before the monster's spirit hovered above Ophiuchus. Sky Emperor Polaris gave a wicked smile at the power. (4,000/3,750) -) (6,600/3,750)
"Well, bye Weevil." said Rex. "Nice knowing you."
"What?" Weevil exclaimed. "I'm not going to be attacked, you are!"
"No, you are!"
"You are!"
"You are!"
"You are!"
"This is all of your fault!" Weevil remarked. "If you'd just been able to destroy that little runt's monsters earlier, then it would've been easier to destroy them!"
"Well if you were able to summon that giant Moth of yours, it would've been easier! But no, you had to go through some 'minor changes' for the deck!"
"Will you just SHUT UP?" Mokuba roared, causing the arguments to stop. "Now if you two can stop arguing, stop complaining, and just stop blaming each other for stuff, I think I can explain something here.
"When Sky Emperor Polaris is Special Summoned by his own effect of removing two Light monsters from play, he can attack twice during the Battle Phase! And with his Attack Score, I think it's best to say that it's 'Game Over' for the both of you!"
"But before you go, tell us one thing." said Max. "How the heck did you get out of the Seal? I thought your souls were captured!"
"It was easy..." Weevil remarked. "We..."
He paused.
"I mean...we...I'm sure it was...how did we..."
He began to grip his head in pain, obviously in pain. The Orichalcos Seal on his head beginning to dim slightly. This also happened to Rex, both of the Duel Champions sweating and squeezing their eyes shut, as if it could get rid of the pain.
"Get me out of here!" Weevil screamed. "I don't want...to do this!"
"Just finish it! End our suffering!" Rex added.
"I wasn't expecting that..." said Max. "But that means..."
"They've been brainwashed!" said Yami. "The Orichalcos must've tampered with their minds and make them act this way."
"But that doesn't explain how their souls returned, Pharaoh." noted Téa. "They got sealed away, so they shouldn't even be here."
"I have a feeling on who might've done this." said Kaiba. "And if I'm correct, then even if Mokuba and his friend beats those chumps, we're not going to be out of the woods yet."
"I'm sorry, Weevil, Rex." said Mokuba. "But we have to continue on our journey. I promise both of you that we'll get your souls back, though!
"Sky Emperor Polaris, attack both Ultimate Tyranno and Queen Bee with your Aurora Borealis attack!"
Sky Emperor Polaris raised his staff into the air, an orb of rainbow-colored magic forming. Then he brought the staff down, the orb obliterating both monsters, and dropping both of Rex and Weevil's lifepoints to 0.
(Rex: 0)
(Weevil: 0)
(Max: 300)
(Mokuba: 2,400)
"Thank you..." Rex whispered as the Seal began to appear beneath their feet. That was all that was said as both he and Weevil collapsed onto the ground.
"You're welcome." Mokuba replied quietly. He then began to walk back to the RV. But as he did, he suddenly got on his knees, hands on his forehead, as if being attacked by a migraine.
"Mokuba!" exclaimed Kaiba, running to his brother. "Are you alright?"
"I sense something bad, Seto." said Mokuba. "It's Hermos...he's been...no, it's not Hermos...it's Joey."
"What's happened to him?" asked Tristan. "Is he okay?"
"...His soul has been taken by the Orichalcos..." Mokuba whispered. "And May's still with him..."
"Those jerks!" Tristan exclaimed. "And that idiot! Joey, why did you have to go help that girl?"
"It's not like she could anything about it!" Mokuba snapped. "Because Joey was dueling Raphael, and if Raphael got his hands on May..."
There was silence as everyone took in the Defender of the King's words. They all recalled what happened back at the plane when May stood up against Raphael, and then subsequently broke down after that. Was May able to face off against him in her condition?
"We have to get going." said Kaiba, standing up. "If that creep lays a finger on her, then I promise there will be no mercy."
"I'm going with you!" said Max. "I don't want to sit around and do nothing while my sister is being hunted by a stalker!"
"We're all going." Yami corrected. "We don't have time to fight, and Dartz is going to pay for his crimes..."
"I just hope May is alright though." Téa noted. "Who knows what she's going through right now?"
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
May was running again. After Joey lost his soul to the Orichalcos, May quickly grabbed onto the Claw of Hermos in his hand—which had been drawn one turn too late—and ran as fast as she could from her attacker. Unfortunately, because she was wearing sandals, it made it harder for her to run. But she didn't let that stop her, as she hoped that Raphael wouldn't catch up to her.
"You're not getting away from me, Guardian of the Sea!" Raphael roared. "You will be MINE!"
May ran even faster, taking a sharp left turn, so Raphael would lose her trail. He stopped at the alley where May was hiding, staring at it for a few seconds, before heading off. The Goddess of Joy let out a sigh of relief.
I should've never returned Kaiba his cellphone. She thought to herself. Now I don't have a way of talking to him...I hope he's doing okay. I hope Mokuba and Max are doing okay also...but Joey...
She closed her eyes as she recalled the memory; seeing Joey standing defiant against Raphael's monsters—until Guardian Eatos appeared, white feathery wings now black and crimson eyes that depleted Joey's lifepoints to zero. Joey, as his soul was being taken away, whispered something to May's ear.
"The world needs you now, don't fail it May. I trust you..."
May nodded her head as took in a deep breath. She was seeing it; all of the pain and suffering that everyone was going through. It was killing her, and all of these sacrifices...were they worth it? These countless sacrifices of souls for who knows how long being used to destroy the world...and the Swordsmen being nothing more than scapegoats that would eventually be used to destroy the world. It wasn't fair; what did they do to deserve it? Nothing, that's what. No one deserved to be controlled by the Orichalcos, but it was like they couldn't help but be controlled by it. They couldn't help but being stuck being taken over by its power and using it to vent their rage on the world. It was as if they had no choice.
"Oh Joey..." She whispered, staring at his Legendadry Dragon. "I won't fail you now...I promise, I won't fail..."
"Oh, you won't fail, Guardian of the Sea. Not when I get to you."
May turned around, her left wrist immediately grabbed by Raphael, green eyes glowing with malicious intent of harming the young girl.
"You're coming with me!" said Raphael, pulling his knife from his boot. "Or I run this down your lovely ivory arms."
"No, I won't go with you!" May remarked. "Now let me go! You have to listen to me!"
Raphael snarled and brought his knife down on May. May closed her eyes as the blade made a thin line down her left cheek, blood trickling down the cut.
"I didn't want to do this, but you leave me no choice!" Raphael hissed, his blade going straight to her heart. "I'm going to chop you up until you have no choice but to be with me."
"Will you just wake up?" May exclaimed. "I'm not the Guardian of the Sea, and what you saw on that island must've been a mirage! There is no Guardian of the Sea, and there never was! It was just some make-believe story that a little girl made up 5,000 years a-"
SLAP!
Raphael slapped May across the face, her cheek becoming red from the attack. May's eyes were brimming with tears from the pain, but her teeth were bared and she was still angry, despite what had happened.
"Is that all you've got?" May hissed. "Because I have something to say..."
She lifted the card in her hand into the air and cried,
"I SUMMON THE CLAW OF HERMOS!"
Then there was bright light, and a roar of a mighty dragon...
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Blind Seer Kuda (Monster Card)
Type: Spellcaster/Effect
Attribute: Light
Level: 4
Attack: 1,500
Defense: 2,000
Description: During your Standby Phase, select up to three cards in your opponent's hand to be revealed. This monster cannot attack if you use this effect that turn.
Note: This monster is based on an Indian magician known as Kuda Bux (1906-1981) who was said to be able to see even when his eyes were covered with soft dough, was blindfolded and his whole face covered with strips of cloth.
0
0
Celestial Spirit-Tucana (Monster Card)
Type: Winged-Beast
Attribute: Wind
Level: 2
Attack: 800
Defense: 300
Description: Send one Magic or trap card in your hand to Special Summon a Winged Beast from your deck onto the field whose Defense is less than 1,000.
0
0
Shapeshifter Circe (Monster Card)
Type: Spellcaster
Attribute: Dark
Level: 6
Attack: 2,000
Defense: 2,500
Description: Remove from play one Spellcaster Monster in your graveyard to increase this monster's Attack score by 400.
Note: Circe was a shapeshifter mostly known for her role in Homer's 'The Odyssey'.
0
0
Witch Hazel (Trap Card)
Type: Trap/Counter
Attribute: -
Level: -
Attack: -
Defense: -
Image: Witch's Apprentice grasping onto the branch of an herb, the branch glowing with green energy.
Description: During you or your opponent's Battle Phase, transfer the effect of a Magic, Trap or monster that increases Attack or Defense to one Spellcaster on the field until the end of the turn.
Note: Witch Hazel is an herb that was said to have many supernatural powers around it.
0
0
Celestial Spirit-Cancer (Monster Card)
Type: Warrior/Effect
Attribute: Water
Level: 5
Attack: 1,800
Defense: 1,400
Description: On the turn that this monster is Normal Summoned, change the position of one monster on the field from Defense to Attack or vice versa.
0
0
Celestial Spirit-Delphinus (Monster Card)
Type: Aqua
Attribute: Water
Level: 6
Attack: 2,400
Defense: 1,600
Description: The saver of the nereid Amphitrite, he was sent to the heavens for his heroic deed.
0
0
Celestial Spirit-Cygnus (Monster Card)
Type: Winged-Beast
Attribute: Light
Level: 3
Attack: 1,300
Defense: 1,200
Description: A graceful bird in the night sky, it is said to have different origins as to how it arrived there.
0
0
The 13th Symbol (Magic Card)
Type: Magic/Ritual
Attribute: -
Level: -
Attack: -
Defense: -
Image: Zodiac Wheel with a serpent in the middle of the circle.
Description: This Magic card is used to Ritual Summon 'Ophiuchus-Serpent Wielder' onto the field. You must sacrifice monsters from your hand or field whose Level equals 7 or more.
0
0
Ophiuchus-Serpent Wielder (Monster Card)
Type: Warrior/Ritual/Effect
Attribute: Dark
Level: 7
Attack: 2,600
Defense: 1,300
Description: This monster cannot be Normal Summoned or Set Summoned. This monster can only be summoned by the means of 'The 13th Symbol'. When this monster is summoned onto the field, Special Summon one 'Celestial Spirit-Serpens' onto the field.
Note: Although not stated in the 'official' Zodiac, Ophiuchus is said to be the 13th symbol, and is placed inbetween Scorpio and Sagittarius by most astronomers.
0
0
Celestial Spirit-Serpens (Monster Card)
Type: Reptile/Effect
Attribute: Dark
Level: 4
Attack: 1,500
Defense: 0
Description: When this monster is destroyed by the effect of a Magic card and sent to the graveyard, Special Summon one 'Serpens Caput' and 'Serpens Cauda' onto the field in Defense Mode.
0
0
Pump Up! (Magic Card)
Type: Magic/Normal
Attribute: -
Level: -
Attack: -
Defense: -
Image: Celestial Spirit-Hercules lifting waits in an underground training room.
Description: Double the Attack Score of one 'Celestial Spirit' with less than 1,500 Attack Points. Destroy this monster at the end of your Battle Phase
Note: This card is based on constellation Antila, otherwise known as the Air Pump.
0
0
Serpens Caput (Monster Card)
Type: Reptile
Attribute: Dark
Level: 1
Attack: 500
Defense: 0
Description: The head of a mighty serpent that faces the west, but if joined by its tail, it becomes a formidable foe.
0
0
Serpens Cauda (Monster Card)
Type: Reptile
Attribute: Dark
Level: 1
Attack: 500
Defense: 0
Description: The tail of a serpent that faces the setting sun, it is said to be part of a mighty monster.
Note: The preceding two cards are technically one constellation, although some believe that they should be two.
0
0
Voudoun's Curse (Magic Card)
Type: Magic/Ritual
Attribute: -
Level: -
Attack: -
Defense: -
Image: A hand grasping onto a voodoo doll pinned with needles.
Description: This Magic Card is used to Ritual Summon 'Voodoo Queen Laveau' onto the field. You must sacrifce monsters from your hand or deck that have a combined level of 6 to activate it.
0
0
Voodoo Queen Laveau (Monster Card)
Type: Spellcaster/Ritual/Effect
Attribute: Dark
Level: 6
Attack: 2,300
Defense: 1,500
Description: This monster cannot be Normal Summoned or Set Summoned. This monster can only be summoned by the use of the Magic Card 'Voudoun's Curse'. When this monster is summoned onto the field, place 5 Spell Counters on it. (max. 5) Remove one Spell Counter to decrease the Attack score of a monster on the field by 500.
0
0
Hive Mind (Trap Card)
Type: Trap/Counter
Attribute: -
Level: -
Attack: -
Defense: -
Image: A Kuriboh being stung by honey bees while trying to get honey from a beehive.
Description: Remove this card in your graveyard from play to negate an attack as long as you have an Insect monster in play. For every Insect Monster you have on the field, draw one card.
0
0
Scarab's Revival (Magic Card)
Type: Magic/Normal
Attribute: -
Level: -
Attack: -
Defense: -
Image: Scarab Beetles devouring a giant ball of dung.
Description: Increase your lifepoints by 300 for every Insect Monster in your graveyard and field.
0
0
Queen Bee (Monster Card)
Type: Insect/Effect
Attribute: Wind
Level: 8
Attack: 1,500
Defense: 400
Description: Increase this monster's Attack Score by 400 for every Insect Monster in your graveyard. If this monster is the target of a card that destroys it, send one Insect Monster from your hand to the graveyard to negate the effect and destroy the card.
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
May: Hermos...I hope you can hear me, but I need your help.
Max: We need all the help we can at this point, but May be careful.
Mokuba: It's not like we can do anything at this point: souls get captured, souls return somehow, souls get brainwashed by the Orichalcos until we free them. This madness has to end soon.
May: I'm out of options; Raphael's after me, and I have to face him in the end. But now...now I'm just running.
Max: Next time, "Between my Brother and Me" chapter 25-The Curtain of Peril Rises
Mokuba: I don't know when this madness will end, but it better end soon.
May: Let's duel, and this time, I plan to win!