Chapter 13
"The Dark Magician Girl"
"The duel is almost over. Your Dark Magician is gone and your life points are almost at 0. One more attack and that buzz saw will sever your ankles and its dark energy will send your mind to the Shadow Realm forever!" Arkana stated. "Never. You've already lost by putting your trust in a power-hungry scoundrel like Marik. You actually believe if you beat me, he'll reunite you with your former fiancé? If so, then you're more than a fool than I thought. All Marik wants from me is the Millennium Puzzle, and the power it possesses." Yami retorted.
"Pay no attention to him, my sweet. We'll be together soon." Arkana called to his 'fiancé'. 'Marik will be most pleased once I send Yugi on a two-stop trip, to death's door and to the Shadow Realm. And since he cut my deck but seems completely unaware of my strategy, which is to counteract the cards in his own deck, I can't lose!' he thought. "Arkana, why don't you save yourself by setting both of us free? Is this duel really losing your ankles for?" Yami asked, but Arkana just scoffed. "And ruin the fun? I'll set one card face down and end my turn. Remember, Yugi, this is my show. And the grand finale is so close I can practically taste it! Don't forget that I'm a master of magic, the king of all Dark Magicians!" the mad magician responded.
"You're not even close, Arkana. What kind of king would extract the soul of his own subject? You disrespect your cards and rely on trickery to win. But I'll make sure you lose!" Yami retorted. "What's that, Yugi? You'll have to speak up, I'm afraid I can't quite hear you, over the hum of that dark energy infused buzz saw, waiting to slice your ankles and send your mind to the Shadow Realm! Be prepared to kiss your Dark Magician, your life and your mind goodbye, Yugi! This duel is about to be over, now watch closely as I prepare to pull a stunning and upsetting victory out of my hat! Upsetting for you, that is." Arkana responded with a laugh.
"Sorry, your tricks will have to wait until your next turn. It's time for me to take control of this duel!" Yami retorted before drawing. "Oh, really?" Arkana asked. "Yes, especially since you have no monsters left to defend you." Yami responded. "So what if your life points are higher? I still have plenty of tricks up my sleeve." Arkana pointed out. "Not for long, Arkana! Now, I summon Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts!" Yami declared as his next monster appeared. 'He fell right into my trap!' Arkana thought with wicked glee. "I activate Shadow Balance!" he shouted aloud as his trap sprung. "This card makes the number of monsters you have on the field equal to my own. And since I don't have any monsters on the field at the moment, that means, neither do you!" he explained before laughing as his monstrous balancing scale appeared. "Then that would remove my only defense against an attack, which means..." Yami began to say. "When they're gone, I'll wipe out your life points!" Arkana finished, knowing exactly what his plan was all along.
In moments, both Gazelle and Big Shield Gardna were destroyed. "Now what are you going to do? Your Dark Magician is destroyed and you've got no monsters on the field. Nothing can save you now! So just what do you plan to do now?" Arkana asked before laughing. "It's over." he added before drawing. 'Exactly what I needed!' he thought with a giggle and a grin. "I hold in my hand the winning card! The key to sending your body to the morgue, your mind to the Shadow Realm and getting my sweet Catherine back. I told you I was the true master of the Dark Magician. And what kind of master would have only one Dark Magician in his deck? My first one may be gone, but I have another Dark Magician and he's waiting to destroy you, Yugi! Plus, I can summon him without sacrificing a weaker monster or two, thanks to this, the Dark Magic Curtain! Watch this performance!" he declared before activating said card.
"The Dark Magic Curtain allows me to summon forth the Dark Magician without a sacrifice, in exchange for half of my total life points. You're on, Dark Magician!" he continued before his monster appeared as his life points dropped to 750, causing the buzz saw to move. "Yugi, there's no way you can win. After all, my dueling deck was put together specifically to counter your strengths. Its mix of power and magic makes for an unbeatable show, don't you think? Marik will reward me when I hand him both your Dark Magician and your Millennium Puzzle and tell him that your body is in a morgue and your mind is in the Shadow Realm! Pay attention as my Dark Magician wipes away the last of your life points and ends both your life and your dueling career forever! If you thought the show was good before, you won't want to miss the ending, Yugi! It's a real killer!" he continued.
"This is it, the final performance of Yugi Muto, King of Games and Duel Monsters world champion! Your life points are almost gone and you have no monsters left to hide behind. As soon as my Dark Magician attacks, your finished! But first, just in case you're counting on your two face down cards to rescue you from having to lose your life and your mind to the Shadow Realm, I will take the liberty of wiping them out! And I'll do the job with my magic card, Twin Twisters!" he continued before revealing the card. "Say goodbye to your last hope! I discard one card to destroy your two facedowns!" he added as he activated his card upon discarding, wiping out Yami's final defense.
"Looks like I've got you completely pinned down, now, Yugi! The show is over! Dark Magician, attack his life points directly!" he declared before his magician moved in to attack. But suddenly, the Dark Magic Curtain appeared, shocking Arkana. "Not so fast, Arkana." Yami said. "What's going on?! You had your own Dark Magic Curtain in your hand?!" Arkana asked. "Yes. You see, every Duelist who has a Dark Magician should know that it always helps to have a Dark Magic Curtain in their deck, including me. So that means I can trade half of my life points for a Dark Magician, as well." Yami answered as his life points dropped to 850, allowing the buzz saw to get closer. "But, wait! I was told you only have one Dark Magician in your deck!" Arkana pointed out. "Well, you're partially right, but mostly misinformed." Yami responded. "Stop speaking in riddles!" Arkana demanded. "The card I now hold in my hand is a different variety of Dark Magician, Arkana. And it is even more powerful than yours is!" Yami stated.
"You lie! I'd know if a player had more than one Dark Magician! It can't be!" Arkana retorted, thinking Yami was lying. "It is! Say hello to, the Dark Magician Girl!" Yami declared as his new monster, a level six, Dark attribute spellcaster/effect monster with 2000 attack points and 1700 defense points, appeared. "The rumors are true! There really is a female Dark Magician!" Arkana said, completely dumbfounded. "But you're wrong about one thing, your girlfriend's attack points are less than my Dark Magician's! In a head to head battle, my monster will wipe her out! The duel's over!" he added, thinking that Yami made a mistake. "Dark Magician, attack Dark Magician Girl!" he ordered. But when both monsters engaged in battle, an explosion occurred, causing Arkana to assume he won. "Finally, Yugi's defeated!" he declared. But Yami just grinned.
"I don't think so. Take another look, Arkana!" the ancient king retorted. "No! My Dark Magician's been beaten?! But how?! This was supposed to be MY grand finale! It can't be! He had 500 more attack points than she did!" Arkana declared, shocked at the outcome. "Wrong again. Dark Magician Girl gains 300 extra attack points for every Dark Magician that's been sent to the graveyard throughout the duel, Arkana. Making her strong enough to defeat your Dark Magician." Yami responded, pointing out Dark Magician Girl's special ability. "It still doesn't add up! There's only one Dark Magician in your graveyard. Even with the extra 300 points, her total would only be 2300. That means my Dark Magician still outranked her by 200 points!" Arkana stated. "Open your eyes. If you truly were a master of the Dark Magician, you would've seen the answer in front of you!" Yami responded. "WHAT?!" Arkana asked.
It was at that moment Arkana realized, he messed up. Bad. Because he realized that when Yami said the Dark Magician Girl gained 300 attack points for every Dark Magician in the graveyard, that meant HIS OWN graveyard. "NO! It can't be! Does that mean...the power of my Dark Magician has been reborn in your monster?!" he asked, shocked. "Like you figured, the Dark Magician Girl inherits 300 attack points from EVERY Dark Magician, no matter how many there are or from who's graveyard they come from. So when you destroyed your first magician, you helped give my Dark Magician Girl the power she needed to destroy your second." Yami responded, revealing that the Dark Magician Girl's attack points were 2600.
"And now, Arkana, prepare for my grand finale, as I wipe out the last of your life points!" he added as his monster prepared to attack. "No! I need to get out of here!" Arkana shouted as he tried in vain to get out of his restraints. "Dark Magician Girl, attack his life points directly!" Yami commanded as the young female mage wiped out Arkana's remaining life points, stopping the buzz saw on Yami's end. "When you mistreat your cards, you pay a high price. You lose!" he concluded. Meanwhile, out on the streets, the rescue party was had arrived at Yugi's location. "Seto said Yugi's in here." Mokuba said just as Tristan pulled up on his bike.
"Hey! Is everything alright, guys?!" he called. "No, Tristan! Yugi's been kidnapped!" Tea called. "We tracked him down to this location!" Fluttershy added. "Kidnapped?" Tristan asked. "He walked into a tent near the park and disappeared." Tea explained. "And my brother traced him to the basement of this building." Mokuba added. "He may be trapped!" put in Sol. "Then let's bust in there and rescue him!" Tristan suggested. Down in the basement, the holograms were just fading. "You call yourself a Dark Magician master? It was your disrespect and misuse of your own Dark Magician that caused you to lose this duel, Arkana!" Yami stated. "That, can't be! There's no way you could've defeated me, Yugi! I am the greatest magician the world has ever known! You're nothing but a Duel Monsters player!" Arkana responded. "What I am is very sorry for you. It looks like you led me all the way down here, for the sole purpose of losing at your own demented game, Arkana! You relied on trickery to win, instead of trusting and respecting, the Heart of the Cards." Yami retorted.
Arkana then realized what was about to happen. "The buzz saw! No, this can't be happening! I can't lose or I'll never get back my sweet Catherine. Help me!" the demented magician said as Yami's hope chest opened to reveal the contents. "The key and a locator card!" he declared. Meanwhile, the rescue team was in the building and heading down to the basement. "Yugi!" Sol called. "We're coming, buddy!" Tristan added before they came to the door. "This is it, Seto detected he's in here." Mokuba said before trying to open the door, but to no avail. "Oh, no! It's bolted shut!" Fluttershy said in worry. "Wait, guys. You hear that humming?" Tea asked. Inside, Arkana was worried, until he remembered something.
'A real magician always has one more trick up his sleeve, like a spare key! Which means I will, indeed, make my great escape after all!' he thought before taking the key out of his sleeve. However, Marik interrupted with his Millennial powers. 'My hand! It's frozen! I can't move my hand! I can't move my hand!' Arkana thought. 'Arkana.' Marik said within Arkana's mind. 'Master Marik!' the mad magician said in shock within his mental space. 'You didn't hold up your end of the bargain, so prepare for your punishment.' Marik stated. "Please, just give me another chance! Spare me from death and the Shadow Realm! Please don't send me to the Shadow Realm and to death's door at the same time!" Arkana pleaded. 'No! And Yugi will soon follow you.' Marik responded before laughing wickedly. 'Tell me, where's your magic now, Arkana?' he asked before the key vanished from Arkana's hand.
"The key! Where'd it go? I just had it and not it's gone! I'm losing my mind!" Arkana said, though to Yami/Yugi, the key was still in Arkana's right hand. "Is your brain playing tricks on you, Arkana? Or have you lost control of what remains of your fractured and feeble little mind? The key in your hand never really existed!" Marik declared, causing Arkana to drop the key he had while Yami freed himself. He soon saw Arkana flailing around before he heard a knock on the door behind him. "Hey, Yugi! It's Tristan! And Tea, Fluttershy, Mokuba and your grandpa are with me!" Tristan called. "Are you in there?!" Fluttershy shouted. "Hold on, Yugi, we'll get you out of there!" Sol called out. But right then and there, Yugi took over. "Hold on!" the boy shouted as he ran and grabbed the key that Arkana dropped and used it to free the crazed magician before it was too late.
"Not even a cheat like you deserves to go to either the morgue or the Shadow Realm." he said as Arkana got up and backed up. "What have I done? Catherine... That's right! You're here! I'm coming!" said the crazed man as he ran towards the curtain that hid his 'fiancé'. "Catherine, please don't go. Let me make it up to you. Please." he said, trying to make amends, but found that all that was behind the curtain was a mannequin. "What? What's going on? I HAVE been tricked! Or could it be that Marik hid the real Catherine away to surprise me with later? Please, Catherine, I beg you. I need you. We can get married and forget all this ever happened." he said, confused as to what was really going on before he began to shed tears.
"Arkana, are you gonna be alright? Is there anything I can do to help you?" Yugi asked. "Arkana is gone!" the crazed magician said as he turned to reveal the Eye of Anubis on his forehead, revealing he had become Marik's puppet. "So we meet again, little Yugi. I'm sure I need no introduction." the madman said. "Show your face to me, Marik, you coward." Yugi demanded. "I'll reveal myself to you when the time is right and no sooner, once I obtain what's mine. And you know exactly what I want; the unlimited power of the Nameless Pharaoh, the spirit that lives within your Puzzle." Marik responded. "No way, Marik!" Yugi replied, defiant. "You cannot stop me! Remember when I took control of Bandit Keith? I almost succeeded in separating you from the Millennium Puzzle forever! Unfortunately, you were able to put it back together before both you and Yami were destroyed." Marik responded, causing Yugi to remember that fire that nearly did both himself and Yami in.
"Tell me why you want Yami's power! Answer me!" Yugi demanded. "Because that power is rightfully mine! And once I have it, I will be unstoppable. The world will belong to me. And no one will stand in the way of my destiny, especially not you." Marik responded. "Oh, yeah? Just watch me, Marik." Yugi said, defiant. "Listen, little Yugi, my family has slaved for centuries. Protecting the tomb of the Nameless Pharaoh until his return, and for what?! I should be the ruler of Egypt and the entire world surrounding it!" Marik stated. "Never. You won't get the power of the Nameless Pharaoh and I'll make sure of it! That power belongs to Yami, not you." Yugi responded. But Marik just scoffed. "Well, we'll just see about that, little Yugi. You're nothing but a vessel for the Pharaoh's spirit. You could never comprehend his strength from when he was alive, nor could you stand in my way of getting it. We've given up to much to let someone else claim the throne. I was raised on the ancient scriptures, learning everything there is to know about King Yami, the Nameless Pharaoh and the Shadow Games. The key to his power is your puzzle and the three Egyptian God Cards! But I can't just take the Millennium Puzzle from you. According to the ancient scriptures, I have to defeat you first, then I can banish you to the Shadow Realm." the power-hungry man stated.
"But why would you do that?" Yugi asked. "To make sure you stay out of my way! Once I gain control of the Millennium Puzzle and obtain all three Egyptian God Cards, I'll be king of not just Egypt, but the entire world! And a much more worthy king than your counterpart, Yami. He doesn't even know how to harness the great powers that lie dormant within him. Pegasus invited you to Duelist Kingdom, no doubt to try to take the Puzzle for his own reasons, but he didn't know about Yami's powers. I, on the other hand, know full well how to take them from him. And my Millennium Rod will ensure that I get everything I need!" Marik answered.
"Who has the cards?" Yugi asked. "I already possess two of the Egyptian God Cards and I know where to find the third one. Soon enough, my loyal team of Rare Hunters will bring the final card to me. It's only a matter of time, you see. That is until I take what is rightfully mine and banish you and the former Pharaoh to the Shadow Realm, where you will spend all of eternity while the rest of the world is kneeling before King Marik, the new Pharaoh!" Marik answered before laughing with wicked glee. "You're powerless against me, little Yugi. My destiny can't be stopped. Don't you see it's only a matter of time? The three Egyptian God Cards, along with your Millennium Puzzle, will belong to me! Then I will strip the Nameless Pharaoh of his ancient powers and infuse them within myself!" he added. 'I have to keep Marik from getting all this power. I wish I knew more about Yami's ancient past, because history is repeating itself and I feel its my destiny to help him save the world again. I do know that Marik can't succeed without the Millennium Puzzle and in order to get it from me, he has to defeat me in a duel. So as long as I believe in the Heart of the Cards and stay connected to Yami, I can stop him.' Yugi thought, knowing what he had to do.
"Marik, you'll never defeat me in a duel, so you'll never get your greedy hands on my Puzzle." he stated aloud. "I promise you by the sands of Egypt, the Nameless Pharaoh's power will be mine! Another of my mind-slaves is already in Battle City, waiting to defeat you and take your puzzle. And he holds an Egyptian God Card!" Marik responded. "And what's the name of this card?" Yugi asked. "You'll find out soon enough, little Yugi. Till then, beware the quiet one." Marik answered. "What do you mean by the quiet one, Marik? Who is he?" Yugi asked. "We'll meet again, Yugi." Marik responded before releasing Arkana from his control, prompting Yugi to catch him as he fell. "I'm not afraid of you! Next time, show me your face, you coward!" Yugi shouted just as Tristan and the others broke in.
"Yugi! You alright, buddy?" Tristan asked. "Are you okay, Yugi?" Fluttershy asked. "Hey, guys. I'm fine." Yugi responded. "Thank goodness." Fluttershy said, relieved that her lover was in one piece. "What happened here?" Sol asked. Meanwhile, as Yugi explained what happened, Marik contemplated his next move. "Soon we will have Yugi's Millennium Puzzle and the three Egyptian God Cards." he said. "And how will you get Obelisk from Kaiba?" asked one of his followers. "That's a simple task. I'm not concerned. Once Yugi is taken care of, I'll strip Kaiba of his Egyptian God Card." Marik responded. "So you're going to duel Kaiba yourself, I assume." said the follower. "If it comes to that, yes. But like I said, my first concern is Yugi and his Millennium Puzzle. And keep an eye on those friends of his, both those who are enforcers and those who are not." Marik confirmed, to which the follower agreed.
"I don't want them getting in my way. Actually, Odion, they may prove to be quite useful to me. I could always use more servants to do my bidding, particularly if Princess Twilight has magic of her own, if the rumors are true. In the meantime, I'll use the quiet one to crush Yugi Muto in a duel and bring his Millennium Puzzle to me." he added before laughing and leaving his throne. He soon approaches a case that contains his Egyptian God Card, the Winged Dragon of Ra. 'It's only a matter of time before I possess the Millennium Puzzle, within which lies the spirit of the Nameless Pharaoh. Then I'll combine the strength of the Winged Dragon of Ra, Slifer the Sky Dragon and the soon-to-be-mine Obelisk the Tormentor. And in accordance with the ancient scriptures, the unlimited power of the Nameless Pharaoh himself will belong to me! The entire world will kneel at my feet and no one will be able to stop me!' he thought as he took the Winged Dragon of Ra out of the case and revealed that he had the very hieroglyphics from the tablet at the Domino Museum permanently tattooed into his back, reminding him of his determination to do exactly as the scriptures said.
Which was that in order for one to take the power of Yami, one had to defeat the vessel that housed his spirit in a duel, take the Millennium Puzzle and combine it with the strength of the three Egyptian God Monsters, thus granting the winner the unlimited power of the Nameless Pharaoh.