~Ari~
"So, will he be alright doc?" Joey asks.
"So far Odion's heart rate seems fine. His tests also seem pretty normal. But that mental stress and the lightning have left him in a coma." The doctor says.
The doctor then leaves the room, leaving the gang and I standing here. "Man, I'm surprised that Sabrina wasn't in the same state he's in." Duke says.
"Yeah, I'm still not sure how I was even able to stand up." I say.
"But are you sure you're alright?" Yami asks.
"I'll be fine. At least I'm not in as bad a shape as Odion. But I wish he would wake up so we can learn more about him." I say.
"Yes, but we do know that he would do anything to protect Marik." Yami says.
"But for what! Odion's lying here practically dead, and Marik isn't doing a thing about it!" Joey yells.
"Yeah, but remember, Marik has that darker self controlling him. Didn't he say something about Odion keeping him under wraps?" I say.
"I think he did. But we can't do anything about it now. We mind as well go see who's dueling next." Yami says.
We all nod and walk out of the room. We go to the main hall where Kaiba, Mokuba, and Roland are waiting. The eighth duelist still hasn't showed up, and I don't see Marik either. The selector starts up and the balls jumble around. Two of them come out and Roland picks up the first one, "The first duelist is duelist number 4; Mai Valentine!" he says.
Mai doesn't seem excited or disappointed though. It's like she doesn't even care. "I'll see you guys by the field." Mai says walking away.
"Don't you want to see who you're going to duel?" I ask.
She shakes her head 'no'. "Well, okay, then we'll be cheering for you!" Joey says.
"Don't bother. I was a great duelist before I met all of you. I don't need friends to win a duel, I need power. See ya." Mai says walking away.
"Geez, what got into her?" I say.
Everyone just shrugs. "And the next duelist is…. Duelist number 5; Marik Ishtar!" Roland announces.
"Whoa! Mai's gonna face Marik!" Joey says.
"I hope she wins." Tea adds.
All of us go up to the dueling field to find Mai already there. We all stand around for a few minutes, due to waiting on Marik. "Where's that clown Marik? That announcement was broadcasted in every room." Kaiba says.
Almost on cue, the elevator door opens and Marik walks in. Only this time, he wears a black shirt, blue cape, and has the Eye of Wdjat on his forehead. "It's about time." Mai says as Marik steps onto the field.
"Don't worry, this won't take long. So prepare to be cast into the shadows." Marik says.
The duel starts with Mai going first. "I play Dunames Dark Witch in attack mode." She says.
"I'll summon my Revival Jam in defense mode. And I also activate Jam Breeding Machine; this card will give me one Slime Token each turn." Marik says.
Yami's eyes widen, "That's the same card that Marik used against me. He was trying to summon his Egyptian God card with that combo. Mai! Revival-!" he says.
"I don't need your help Yugi! So just keep your mouth shut!" Mai says, "Now my Witch, destroy his Revival Jam! That's it for Revival Jam."
"No it isn't, look again. Revival Jam is able to regenerate itself after its attacked. I'll play Pot of Greed, so I may draw two cards. Now my Jam Breeding Machine will create a Slime Token. And I'll set one card face-down."
"Then I'll play Harpie's Feather Duster, which will destroy every spell and trap on your side of the field. Now my Witch, destroy his Slime Token! I'll also set one card face-down."
Marik is down to 2700 Life Points. "I summon Melchid the Four-Face Beast in attack mode! Now I'll sacrifice my two monsters to summon Masked Beast Des Gardius! Now my Masked Beast, destroy her Witch!"
"No, I activate Mirror Wall! This destroys your Masked Beast and your Life Points are down to 2550!"
"But when my Masked Beast is destroyed, my Mask of Remnants attaches to your monster and allows me to take control of it. I also activate Remove Trap to destroy that Mirror Wall of yours."
Marik then grabs the Millennium Rod, "Listen up, practice time is over. It's time to take this duel to the original realm of Duel Monsters; the Shadow Realm! Let the Shadow Game begin!" he says.
"Oh no." Yami says. The sky darkens even more than it was and turns slightly purple. There's also a purple fog that covers the area, making breathing somewhat difficult.
"I wonder how Mai is going to stand up to this." I say.
"She won't last long. Mai! Listen to me! Forfeit now!" Yami says.
"It's going to take more than fog to stop me Yugi. I'm staying in this game until the very end!" she says.
"That's just stupid." I mutter.
Mai sets one card and plays the Unfriendly Amazon in attack mode. An aura then surrounds her monster, "What's going on?" Mai asks.
"Confused? The aura around your Amazon represents you, or your mind to be exact. If it's destroyed, then so will a portion of your mind. Don't worry, you'll see soon enough."
Unfriendly Amazon then destroys Dunames Dark Witch, bringing Marik to 2350 Life Points. "Nice attack, you were able to bring down my Life Points. But since that monster was originally yours, it will wipe out a portion of your memory." Marik says.
"What are you babbling on about?" Mai says.
"See Mai, each monster you play represents someone from your memory. So when it's destroyed, the memory of someone you know will be destroyed with it. And it looks like Tea will be the first victim to leave your mind. Now she's nothing more than a faceless phantom to you."
Mai now looks like she's in a daze. "Don't give up Mai!" Tea shouts.
Mai doesn't do anything. She just stares blankly forward. She looks like she hears Tea, but can't see her. "Alright, I set one card face-down and then summon Makyura the Destructor in attack mode." Marik says. "Next, I'll play this magic card; the Black Pendant to raise its attack power. Now Makyura, destroy her Unfriendly Amazon!"
"Activate trap; Amazon Archers! This card lowers Makyura's attack points, making my Amazon able to destroy it. Now this will erase someone from your mind." Mai says. Marik is down to 1950 Life Points.
"Why thank you. There's no one in my mind worth remembering. So go ahead, destroy all of my monsters, along with the memories of my pathetic servants. But there's also a catch to the Black Pendant, whenever its destroyed, my opponent loses 500 Life Points, bringing you to 3500. And when Makyura is sent to the Graveyard, it allows me to play any trap card from my hand. So I activate Rope of Life, bringing Makyura back from the Graveyard with more attack points. Now Makyura, attack!"
Mai is down to 3100 Life Points. "No Joey! Don't leave!" Mai shouts. She must have lost the memory of Joey now.
"Mai, are you alright?" Joey asks. Mai doesn't say anything, "Why is she ignoring us?"
"She's not ignoring you Joey, this Shadow Game is making her forget about us." Yami says.
"I wish we could help her somehow." I say.
"Maybe there is a way. By using the Millennium Puzzle, I may be able to bring some of her memories back." Yami says. I nod. The Eye of Wdjat appears on his forehead, as he starts searching through the shadows of Mai's mind.
Yami's forehead stops glowing and Mai seems a bit more alert and confident. "Okay I play Amazon Chain Master in attack mode, and then play one card face-down." Mai says.
"If you insist on playing weak monsters, then allow me to stop them. I play Holding Arms! Even with its low attack points, it will still stop your monster. Holding Arms has the ability to prevent your monster from attacking for three turns, which will be plenty of time to end this duel."
"Then I activate Grave Arm! This card can destroy one monster on the field, and I choose my Amazon Chain Master! This will activate my Amazon's effect. By bringing my Life Points to 2100, I can take one card from your deck, and I choose your Egyptian God card; the Winged Dragon of Ra!"
"You have it, but let's see if you can use it."
"Well it's my move. First I summon two cards face-down. And then I'll summon Amazon Fighter in attack mode!"
"Makyura, attack her Amazon Fighter now!"
"Hold on Marik, I activate Amazon Magician! This card swaps the attack points of my Amazon with Makyura. Amazon Fighter, destroy his Makyura!"
Marik is down to 1050 Life Points. "I never liked that fool Arkana. But now, I activate Card of Last Will! This card allows me to draw five cards. And since Makyura was destroyed, I can play a trap from my hand, and I choose Nightmare Wheel. This card will inflict 500 points of damage for each turn your Amazon Fighter is on the field."
"I expected a move like that, so I play Rescue Operation! This card returns Amazon Fighter to my hand and I can summon another monster from my deck. And the card I'll play is my Cyber Harpie! So now I play Graceful Charity, allowing me to draw three cards. Then I play Elegant Egotist to multiply my Harpie's by three! Now I'll sacrifice them to summon the Winged Dragon of Ra!"
A huge gust of wind shows up and then a white light appears in the sky. A golden sphere then appears. Is that supposed to be the Winged Dragon of Ra? It looks nothing like the one I faced when I was dueling Odion. "What in the world?" Mai says.
"The Winged Dragon of Ra is locked within that sphere. And you won't be able to use it in that form! I'm the only one who knows how to unlock it. And only those who follow the ancient scriptures can release Ra."
"Give me a break! You're just jealous that you lost your Egyptian God card to me!"
"Then why don't you try to read the ancient text written on the card? That's the ancient chant used to summon the Winged Dragon of Ra."
Mai stays silent as she looks at the card. "Well, why don't I read the chant and take control of my beast? And when it's back in my control, the attack from Ra will most certainly kill you." Marik says.
"What!?" Everyone says.
Marik continues to talk, "The words written on the card is a special form of hieroglyphics only known to my family. But I bet even Kaiba could read it. In fact, several people on this vessel would be able to read it, due to their ties with the ancient past where King's played Shadow Games as we're doing right now. So I'll ask you again, are you going to read the ancient text?"
Mai stays silent as she keeps looking at the card. She sets one card face-down and then ends her turn. Marik then plays Holding Legs. Its effect returns Mai's face-down to her hand. And its other effect summons the Sacred Stone of Ojhat. Holding Arms and Legs then grab control of Mai and chain her to the Sacred Stone. "Hey, I can't move, what kind of hologram is this?" Mai says.
"I didn't say this was a hologram. Since we're in the Shadow Realm, everything here is real."
"Marik, stop this now! This is going too far!" I yell.
"But things are just starting to get interesting! And besides, the time has come to awaken the Winged Dragon of Ra!" Marik says. He crosses his arms over his chest and starts saying the chant, "Great beast of the sky please hear my cry. Transform thyself from orb of light and bring me victory in this fight." The orb begins to glow and transform, "Envelop the deserts with your glow and cast your rage upon my foe. Unlock your powers from deep within so that together we may win. Appear in the shadows as I call your name; Winged Dragon of Ra!"
The Winged Dragon of Ra appears on the field and roars loudly. "Behold, my great beast! It's now time to end this duel!" Marik says. Ra has 5400 attack points, which is more than enough to destroy Mai.
"Marik! This has gone far enough! You don't have to end it this way! Mai doesn't deserve any of this!" I shout.
"That's true, but I'm just having a little fun up here! And there's nothing I like more than ending someone's life in the Shadow Realm." Marik says.
Joey then runs toward the dueling field, "Joey, what are you doing!?" Yami calls.
He goes up to Mai and tries to free her, but it doesn't work. "Now Winged Dragon of Ra, destroy them both!" Marik commands.
Joey refuses to leave though. The blast charges up in Ra's mouth and then fires. Yami runs toward the blast, "Yami, no!" I shout.
"That's enough!" he says. The blast hits him on his back, but Yami keeps blocking it. I'm afraid to even look, no matter how well he's able to stay standing. The blast stops firing and Yami falls over unconscious. I run up to him to see if he's alright, "Yami? Yami wake up!" I say.
"The winner of this duel is Marik Ishtar!" Roland announces.
The Shadow Realm disappears and we're back at the night sky. Yami still won't wake up though, "Get up, please!" I say.
"Well, what do we have here?" Marik says. He grabs the Millennium Rod and pulls the bottom part off to reveal a dagger.
"Get away from him!" I shout at him.
"I should just kill him now, but what's the fun in that? For now, let's make sure you don't interfere." All of the sudden Joey and I can't move. Marik places the bottom of the Millennium Rod back on and walks over to Mai, "I'm afraid you still have to live up to your end of the bargain my dear. We had an agreement, if I won then you'd go to the Shadow Realm, because that's how these games work right?" he says.
Joey and I are released from Marik's control and Mai collapses to the ground. "What did you do to Mai?" Joey says.
"Your friend is taking a visit to the Shadow Realm, but don't worry, as soon as I win this tournament and gain what I need, she won't be alone." Marik says.
Marik walks away from the dueling field and disappears inside the elevator. The gang comes over to us and tries to wake up Mai. Yami grunts and I notice that he's waking up. "Yami!" I say hugging him, "Are you alright?"
"I'll be fine, what about you guys? Are you all okay?" he says.
"Everyone except Mai. Marik took her to the Shadow Realm." I say.
Yami cringes. Kaiba then takes a step toward us, "Alright geeks, clear the field for the next duel! Because now it's my turn! And you'll really see how to duel!" he says.
I'm trying to lean more toward the Japanese version due to 4Kids being a bunch of wimps. And I finally drew the cover image for this story, yay!