Fountain Plaza was full of Duelists bearing Duel Disks as Meisa entered, and the windows of the skyscrapers that surrounded it were full of spectators and decorations alike, as a great deal of Domino's businesses were taking the citywide tournament as a chance to reap the benefits of the tourism it was bringing in.

The Pharaoh had no heart for it though. Not with what was on the line. She ignored those who stared at her in favour of scanning the crowds.

Her eyes brushed over Mai and Rebecca and she nodded to them both before continuing her search. When she did not spot Katsuya amongst the crowd, she let out a sigh and checked her phone in case Ishizu had sent any more clues to her lesson plan.

The screens surrounding the plaza lit up as her phone revealed nothing to her and the plaza erupted in nervous chatter as a countdown started, ticking down the final seconds until Battle City's start.

The Pharaoh's stomach churned as she watched the numbers tumble away.

This was it.

For months, everything had been forced to go on hold. There had been nothing they could do to move anything forward until they had the chance to win the God cards from the ones who now held them.

With Battle City finally starting, they could finally fight for their future and seize control of their lives again. Everything they had trained for, everything they had done for the last few months, had all been for the coming battles.

And as the screens ticked from one to the KC logo, Meisa could sense her sister was just as nervous and excited as she was.

When the KC logo gave way to what was most likely a pre-recorded video of Kaiba, Meisa didn'teven bother waiting. Instead, she left the plaza and headed for her first location. She'd only headed for the plaza in the first place because she'd been hoping to catch up with Katsuya and talk to him.

As he'd not been there, she decided not to waste her time any further. She knew where she had to be if she wanted to avoid something unfortunate happening and Fountain Plaza wasn't one of those places.

As she headed down the road towards the park, the pavements were lined with spectators and press who tried to get her attention. Thankfully her phone ringing gave her an excuse to wave but keep moving.

"Moshi moshi?" The Pharaoh asked as she palmed the phone, accepted the call and brought it up to her ear with an ease she would have struggled with a few weeks back, before Yugi had insisted she practice functioning in the living world.

"Yugi. Hi." Meisa grimaced at the frustration in Mokuba's tone. "You were supposed to ring this morning for final check in before the tournament kicked off. I AM your handler, remember?"

"I was a little distracted, give me a…" The Pharaoh grimaced as she tried to work out how to take a screenshot of her phone screen, gave up, and let Imoto borrow the body for a moment so she could do it. Her sister quickly screenshotted the messages that they had been sent, passed the images to the mobile number they had for Mokuba and then relinquished control again. "There we go."

There was a brief pause as the teen read through what he had been sent and then he let out a low hiss. "I would complain about a lack of warning, but…"

"We only got the threat half an hour ago." Meisa agreed, "We're heading to the park now, but…"

"As your handler, I MUST advise you not to go." Mokuba sounded resigned, "Since I know you're not going to listen to me, and part of your contract says we're supposed to look after your safety, I'll send a member of security and a medical team member over in about twenty minutes."

"Actually… could you get them looking for Shizuka?" An idea hit the Pharaoh. "I mean don't get me wrong, the idea of backup is nice, but if she's safe, then that's one point of pressure off my back and frees up Katsuya to help me if I need it."

"One?" Mokuba pressed, noting the wording.

The Pharaoh grimaced as her twin flinched.

'You probably should tell him.' Yugi sighed, 'I don't want to worry anyone, but tournament rules means that if Kaiba challenges us, we must accept, or it counts as a forfeit. I have faith in you and we've both beaten him before, but if there's ANYONE I'm worried about beating us, it's him. Mokuba might be able to keep Kaiba off our back.'

Meisa's pride was piqued by her sister's comment, but she could see the logic in it. Even if she did not believe that she could ever lose a duel.

"She's not the only blackmail that Ishizu has on us." Meisa admitted to their Handler, "We're trapped in her Shadow Game right now. If we lose a duel, we're dead."

There was a pause. Then, "What's the victory conditions?"

"Beat the Duelists she throws at us and get to Hekigan."

"And do your friends know?"

"Not yet."

"But you're going to tell them?"

"I…"

As she trailed off, there was a low hiss from the phone. "Right. So, here's my plan. Most of KC's resources are being pooled into competitor safety right now, including yours. However, we have security spread out across the city. I can ask them to keep an eye out for Jonouchi's sister and the rest of your friends, and step in if they get attacked. I'll even try and have them get that brute off the streets before he can get to you."

"Thank…"

"In exchange," Mokuba cut in before Meisa could thank him, "You need to promise me you're not going to get killed and waste the money we've invested in you. And that if you're too hurt, get sick, or burn too much magic, you'll retreat to a café or somewhere safe and call me. If you're not warning your friends, then someone has to keep an eye on you."

"I promise." The Pharaoh relaxed slightly. Knowing Mokuba had their back, and they weren't completely alone helped a lot.

"Good, since I'd already made most of that part of the security briefing after you said you hadn't managed to get Ishizu to back down anyway. I'll just add Shizuka to their 'protected' list and add that guy…"

"Hirutani."

"Like the gang leader?"

"Same guy." Meisa couldn't help but wonder how Mokuba knew that but didn't ask for now.

"Brilliant." The sarcasm was strong. "I'll add Hirutani to the blacklist."

'Mokuba is awesome.' Yugi's voice echoed Meisa's feelings as she realised she had been pushed into a deal where Mokuba had to do very little in exchange for her being more cautious with her life.

"Thank you." The Pharaoh breathed.

There was a pause as Mokuba took in the gratitude from a young woman who would not normally declare it, then said, "Just keep me updated and don't die before Niisan gets to duel you. He would be most displeased and so would I."

"I'd have to lose for that, and I don't lose." Meisa promised, feeling a little better than she had when she left the house. "Wish me luck?"

"I would but you don't need it." With that the call was cut off.

'That's a vote of confidence at least.' Yugi offered.

'It is.' The Pharaoh allowed, 'And Mokuba is trying to help…'

Yugi hesitated to reply as her Anesan paused and then sent a text message to Katsuya.

"Please be careful. Mokuba is keeping security on alert for Hirutani but I know he hates you as much as he hates me. I am sorry for dragging you and Shizuka into this and I understand if you want to scream at me." She hesitated before adding, "I hope that we can talk it out later. I'm sorry."

Her twin let out a sigh as Meisa put the phone back in her pocket. 'I just hope he's okay.'

'We'll find out if we do our part and win.'

'Yes, yes we will.'

With that, the Spirit of the Puzzle took a deep breath and stepped through the arch, expecting something to happen right away. When nothing did, she headed further in, reaching out with her magical senses to try and understand what, exactly, she was supposed to do.

She caught sight of her target before her magic tagged it. A familiar teal haired teen, with gold framed glasses that she had hoped to never see again after he had torn her Ojiisan's Exodia cards apart. His hand slipped into the pocket of his green jacket, causing the black beetle on it to shift slightly as the dark magic she had been trying to sense suddenly flared up.

Meisa tried to conceal the concern that arose at the knowledge that Ishizu had given Insector Haga a Memento, but she knew her Imoto could sense it. After Ishizu's Wrath had poisoned her sister's soul, Meisa had expected mostly throwaway minions, ones who would give her a challenge but not be dangerous. Ones without real skill and a grudge who would be more than happy to get revenge.

This changed everything, and it meant that Imoto's life was actually at risk. It made her wonder who else the other item holder had dragged out of her past. After all, it was not like she'd been reluctant to throw her magic around. She'd made many enemies and Ishizu could have picked from any of them…

Haga's blue eyes narrowed when they caught her red ones and he gestured toward the treeline. Meisa followed, hesitant but knowing she had no choice but to follow Ishizu's game plan if she wanted her sister to survive the tournament.

The moment she was within the shelter of the branches and out of both the bright summer sun and the view of the general public, the Insect Duelist turned back to look at her, his eyes narrowed and his hand drawing a small plastic figure out of his pocket that Meisa recognised from the superhero comics that Imoto's classmate, Hanasaki, was fond of. A red and blue figure with a spider emblazoned on its chest.

In one swift movement, Haga ripped the head off.

Instantly, the Shadows trapped within the toy flooded out, consuming the area and climbing the trees, trapping both Duelists in a game that could only end with one person's victory.

The sun's rays faded away, leaving behind an eerie glow that appeared to come from everywhere at once. The trees warped into demented, twisted forms. The branches grew laden with shimmering webs that draped low to the ground, cutting off Meisa's view of the world around her.

That was not the worst of it though.

The worst were the webs that crawled along the floor and wrapped around the Pharaoh's ankles, holding her firmly in place as a spider with a yellow glowing orb upon its spindly body crawled up and rested upon her foot, causing her sister to internally shudder as its single yellow eye gazed up at her.

"You took everything from me, Yugi!" Haga accused, his nasally voice taking on the tone of one using a swear word when he said her name and pointed at her with the hand on the Duel Disk laden arm.

The broken toy fell to the ground next to the spider on Haga's own foot, forgotten and unneeded. "I was the Japanese champion! Not you! You stole my glory! My publicity!"

"You stole from me." The Pharaoh countered, pulling out her deck and shuffling it before inserting it in her Duel Disk, "I wouldn't have done anything to you if you hadn't taken my Exodia cards."

"I took cards! You took everything! I couldn't escape my own mind, let alone compete or go to school! My life was ruined!" The Insect Duelist and Japanese's former National Champion snapped, slamming his own deck into the Duel Disk, before activating the technology. The projectors shot out from his Duel Disk and barely missed the trees, instead planting themselves in the webbing and glowing with a rainbow light that should have been reassuring, but only served to remind Meisa of what she needed to do to get out of her predicament.

"But now," Haga smirked as he drew his first hand of cards, "I've been given the power to take everything from you. You're going to pay for what you did to me."

"What I did was give you a lesson to learn." The Pharaoh's eyes narrowed as she activated her own Duel Disk, whose projectors landed on the heavily webbed floor and became just as stuck as she was. "That you refused to learn it is on you. Not me. Considering you cheated, the lesson I DID give you was light compared to what could have befallen you."

She paused as she felt her twin squirm uncomfortably and mentally winced as she remembered that not only did Imoto not entirely approve of Penalties, but Ishizu was framing the nightmare they were trapped in as a 'lesson'.

Haga let out a derisive snort as he drew his opening hand, "I wasn't in the wrong. You needed to learn your place… but my Flying Kamakiri 2 will help me teach you where you belong!"

As he slammed the card onto the Duel Disk, a huge praying mantis with a brown carapace emerged with a swirl of sickly green-brown light, the webs clung to it for a moment before falling away, allowing it to let out an infuriated chittering and clank its blades together.

Meisa, who'd been expecting Haga to struggle the moment his first monster hit the field, since he had almost no prior Shadow experience, was surprised to see his face light up instead. The ability to behold his insect creature in the flesh seemed to strengthen his resolve, rather than drain it.

The mantis, who the projectors briefly allowed Meisa to see had 1500 Attack points, nodded to its summoner, then turned back to its adversary and raised its blades, the mandibles shivering as it chittered what the Pharaoh could only imagine was an insult. The actions confirmed in Meisa's mind that the Shadows had brought the creature to life, just like they had against Crawford and warned her that if the mantis hit her directly, it would hurt.

Still, it could not attack on Haga's first turn and as she drew her own opening hand, she let out a sigh of relief.

"One card face down." She called, playing the trap card in the correct slot. "And a card in face down defence mode."

"What's the matter, Yugi? Afraid to face me head on?" The Insect Duelist taunted as the two cards appeared on the field, "My insects have been starving themselves in preparation to tear your monsters apart and eat them!"

"I'm not a fool, Haga." The Pharaoh shot back, "I know how you duel; I had a lot of respect for you before you showed yourself to be a thief. Attacking head on without preparation is a recipe for failure and I don't plan on losing."

The Insect Duelist's eyebrow rose as he drew. With that in mind, he needed to be more cautious. At least for a little longer. Once his plan fell into place, she would be able to do nothing but suffer.

Until then…

"I set a monster in defence mode and a card face down." He called, slipping one monster and one spell or trap on the field, both of which stayed under the webs for now. He'd done his own research on his opponent before he had agreed to be the first to take the 'Queen' on, so he was fully aware that Mirror Force and Magic Cylinder were favored traps. Having a card in defence mode would ensure she could not attack if his next move backfired. "Now, Kamikiri, time to feast!"

"Not today!" The facedown monster flipped up, revealing itself to be Meisa's Mystical Elf. Unhindered by the webbing that clung to her dress, the elf's 2000 defence points allowed her to chant a shield spell that forced the mantis back.

The pleased surprise that struck the Pharaoh at the massively reduced magical drain from summoning her monster was swiftly cut short. The spider that had previously rested on Haga's foot suddenly let out a loud hiss that called others like it towards the Insect Duelist. They swarmed Haga as his life points dropped by 500 and encased his lower legs in webbing, right up to the knee, though it was barely visible through the sheer volume of spiders skittering across his form.

The delighted cackle that Haga let out was drowned out by the sudden fear that tried to consume Meisa.

"You see now, Yugi?" Haga crowed as he tried and failed to move his legs, showing her how trapped he was. "Every time one of us loses life points, we'll be mummified in spider silk by my wonderful pets! The winner will walk away while the loser will be trapped here until the spiders decide it's dinner time!"

The Pharaoh did not respond, other than to draw her next card. While her twin was not a huge fan of spiders, she could handle the insects. That was not what bothered her.

No, what bothered her more than anything else was the idea of ending up mummified in spider silk. Unless the spiders decided to be merciful and devour her, she would have no way to escape. She would be trapped forever while her sister died from the venom in her soul and the world burned.

She swallowed hard as she considered her hand. Being imprisoned in the darkness was one of her worst fears, losing her twin was another and the combined thoughts made her hand shake slightly.

'You've got this, Anesan. I believe in you.' Her Imoto's voice came on a wave of reassurance and faith that swept away the nerves trying to distract her.

'You're right. I won't lose to a cheat, I promise.' The trembling stopped as she narrowed her eyes at her opponent.

"Do you have any idea what you've summoned?" The Pharaoh demanded of Haga, as she picked a card from her hand. "You're in just as much danger as I am."

"Not when my insects are at my side." Haga cackled, "They're going to tear you limb from limb!"

"No. They're not. Not when I have my own allies. I tribute Mystical Elf to summon the Dark Magician Girl!" The elf waved cheekily at Haga before vanishing in a burst of light which faded from white to pink and shifted form before erupting in a burst of stars and hearts, leaving behind the younger of the two magicians.

The Spellcaster took one look at her surroundings then sat on her staff so she could hover above the webbing on the ground and the spiders that chittered irritably at her. Once securely in place, she glanced over her shoulder and grinned at her summoner before turning back to Haga and pursing her lips.

Meisa's mood improved at the sight of her old friend joining her on the field. Ishizu might have tried to force her to fight alone by poisoning Imoto and kidnapping Shizuka, but there were friends Ishizu could not separate her from: Mahad and Mana, the Dark Magician and his apprentice, were two of those friends.

"Ma… Dark Magician Girl, destroy his Flying Kamakiri!"

The hand of the 2000 attack point monster rose as Mana's eyes narrowed at the bug. It chittered and backed up, only to be consumed by a burst of pink-purple light that disintegrated the creature and ripped another 500 life points from Haga.

The spiders crawling up him screeched again and skittered around, leaving webbing behind that reached his hips as his life points hit 3000. The snickering that drew out of Haga seemed like it was the wrong reaction to Meisa, but she just gestured for him to make his move, wondering what she'd missed.

"I set a card in defence mode and end my turn." Haga sneered at the Pharaoh, who frowned, unsure what he was up to and why he was so unconcerned as a second card appeared face down beneath the webs.

"I summon my Queen's Knight." The red armoured Warrior appeared on the field, her 1500 attack points helping her push her way through the webbing on the ground before raising an eyebrow at the Dark Magician Girl.

The Spellcaster chuckled and waved, before gesturing to the enemy monsters hiding beneath the sticky floor.

"Queen's Knight! Attack the left card!"

The Warrior let out a roar and launched herself forward and drove her sword down. It stabbed into the card in question, which lit up, revealing a pink wormlike creature with one red glowing eye.

It wrapped itself around the card suit decorated knight who tried to remove it, only for it to wriggle into all the gaps in her armour. When Queen's Knight found it was firmly stuck, she returned to her place on Meisa's side of the field, looking highly unamused.

"What does that do?" The Pharaoh demanded as Haga's smirk widened.

"You'll see in a bit, but this is more important." The Insect Duelist sneered, "I activate DNA Surgery, turning all your monsters into insects, just like mine!"

As his trap card flipped face up, Dark Magician Girl and Queen's Knight shuddered and cried out as their forms warped and changed. Their eyes shifted into more insectoid forms, their armour became more like carapaces. Queen's Knight's sword became a blade like appendage on her arm, not unlike a praying mantis, while the Dark Magician Girl gained butterflylike wings, which kept her off the ground.

"Why would you…?"

"Do you end your turn?" Haga interrupted her.

"No. Dark Magician Girl, attack his other card!" At her order, a trembling Dark Magician Girl launched a magical blast that blew away the black ball like beetle underneath the card. "Now it's your turn."

As Haga drew, Meisa wanted to feel confident, but she knew he was up to something and it put her on edge as he laughed and pushed his glasses up his nose.

"I activate Insect Barrier!" He cackled, slamming the continuous magic card into his Duel Disk. Meisa's eyes widened as a golden net appeared between the two sides of the field. "Now none of your Insect monsters can attack!"

"And all my monsters are Insects…" The Pharaoh breathed, realising the genius of his card combination.

"That's right, Yugi! And my bugs are bigger and better than yours!" The former Japanese Champion cackled, "And they're going to eat everything! I summon Jurai Gumo and he attacks your Dark Magician Girl!"

As he played the card, a deep chittering emerged from the treeline. The Pharaoh would have taken a step back if she could, as a huge brown and black spider erupted onto the field. Briefly the spider's stats flashed, revealing 2200 attack points and 100 def, before it lunged forward and froze in mid-air.

At Haga's side appeared a coin, which he tossed skyward. Meisa watched as it flipped in the air and landed, heavily, on heads.

As Jurai Gumo unfroze, the Dark Magician Girl attempted to dart skywards, only for the spider to shoot webbing around her ankle and drag her back down. Meisa flinched as her former Spellcaster was dragged back into the creature's mouth and devoured, costing her summoner 200 life points.

"You got unlucky." Haga snickered as the Pharaoh's life points dropped to 3800 and the spiders swarmed her, encasing half of her lower legs in webs. "A tails would have cost me half my life points."

"Your luck won't last forever." Meisa promised as she drew, only to hesitate when her Queen's Knight was suddenly bitten by the parasite attached to her. As it glowed pink and grew in size, Haga lit up in the same colour and some of the webs surrounding him fell away. "What?"

"During your standby phase, my Kiseitai restores my life points by half of the monster it's attached to." The Insect Duelist explained with a smirk, his life points climbing to 3750, "So I'll keep gaining strength while you lose it."

"I switch Queen's Knight to defence mode." The Pharaoh responded, suddenly aware that she needed to end this quickly, before Haga's life points got too high to counter. "And summon King's Knight in attack mode."

The older male knight appeared on the field, dressed in bronze armour, carrying a huge sword. His blue cape got caught in the webs that surrounded the field of battle.

"When King's and Queen's Knight are on the field." Meisa continued as the system flashed that the male Knight had 1600 attack and 1400 defence, "I can summon Jack's Knight to the field."

A second male knight took the field, this one younger with blonde hair and blue armour, his stats coming up as 1900 attack and 1000 defence.

Within seconds of taking the field, their armour warped and shifted into similar carapaces to the Queen's Knight and their eyes took on faceted appearances as they turned from Warriors to Insects.

"That ends my turn."

"It doesn't matter how many monsters you summon, Yugi. They still can't attack!" Haga crowed as he drew, "Whereas I can destroy you at any moment!"

"You have to get through my monsters first." The Pharaoh pointed out, certain her three monsters would keep her life points safe for now.

"Not when I can get around them. I summon Legul!" Meisa felt a moment of fear pulse from her twin as the purple and yellow caterpillar-like creature took the field, its mandibles snapping back and forth as the system revealed its 300 attack points. "My Legul can attack you directly, and while it doesn't look threatening now, these will make it much more impressive!"

With that he activated two equip spells, Insect Armor with Laser Canon and Laser Canon Armor, which increased Legul's attack by would make it much more dangerous to Meisa's life points.

"Legul! Attack!" At Haga's command, the insect unleashed twin bursts of laser light that struck Meisa in the chest and burned, causing the Pharaoh to cry out as her life points dropped to 2500 and the spiders spun their web, encasing her body right up to her waist.

Her hands balled into fists and trembled violently as she tried to hide the terror that coursed through her when she realised she could not move her lower body at all.

'Anesan, hang in there.' Imoto's call and the comfort and calm that pulsed down the bond helped the Pharaoh settle down, 'I know you can do this.'

'Y…you're right… thank you.' She took a deep breath, preparing for the second attack.

Which never came.

"With Legul on the field, I don't need to take the risk of attacking with Jurai Gumo." Haga explained, "It's much more fun picking you off directly than destroying your worthless monsters anyway. Your move."

As Meisa drew, Haga's life points climbed again, taking him to 4500. Not that the Pharaoh was worried as she beheld the card she'd drawn.

She would have to take another attack, since she could not activate traps the same turn she set them, but the Dust Tornado trap she'd pulled would allow her to start turning the duel around, especially when combined with another trap she held in her hand.

"I set one card face down. Since I can't attack, it's your turn."

"You're making this too easy! I knew you were weak, but I expected a little fight!" Haga complained as he drew and summoned his Pinch Hopper, which only had 1000 attack and 1200 defence. The giant grasshopper appeared on the field with an odd squeal.

"Legul! Attack her again!"

"I activate Dust Tornado!" Meisa had just enough time to activate her trap before she was struck in the chest by the twin lasers, burning away another 1200 life points and reducing them to 1200 in total.

The Dust Tornado burst through the golden net, stopping her monsters from attacking, destroying it and allowing her to declare an attack on her turn, much to Haga's horror. The Insect Duelist let out a startled and unamused noise as Meisa finished up Dust Tornado's effect by setting a card face down.

"Is it my move?" She gasped out as the spiders wrapped their silk tightly around her wounded chest, making it hard to breathe or move at all.

Haga considered his options carefully. He could attack with Jurai Gumo, but he did not know what her new face down card was. Plus, taking the risk of losing half of his life points when Legul and Pinch Hopper were now vulnerable was a bad idea. Her Knights would ruin him if he made an error now.

"Go ahead."

Meisa's draw added another 750 to Haga's total, raising him up to 5250, but also made her grin with relief.

"What?" Haga's confidence suddenly dropped, "Why are you smiling? I'm going to win next turn!"

"No, you're not. I play Monster Reborn to bring back my Dark Magician Girl!" As she played the magic card in question, she was happy to see the Duel Disk spit out the card she wanted automatically. "And activate Sage's Stone!"

Within milliseconds of the student appearing on the field and regaining her butterfly wings, her teacher joined her. Mahad, the Dark Magician, gazed around at the field, his eyes briefly widening as he took in Meisa's condition, before he nodded to Mana, and turned to glower at Haga. The Duel Disk flashed up his 2500 attack and 2100 defence as he gained mandibles and claws. Haga's face paled at the sight.

"Dark Magician, destroy his spider!" The now insectoid magician did not hesitate to blast Jurai Gumo away, taking 300 life points from Haga. "Dark Magician Girl! Attack Legul, and Jack's Knight, destroy his Pinch Hopper!"

The pair attacked in synch, ruining another 1600 of Haga's life points, taking him down to 3350.

"Queen's Knight, King's Knight, attack him directly!" The pair launched themselves forward, only to be interrupted by Haga's cackling as he slammed something onto his Duel Disk and a huge black and red spider with golden legs and antennae appeared on the field, its attack points starting at 2200 and increasing to 3200 upon its summoning as its shockingly humanoid face let out a roar.

Meisa's knights stopped mid-attack and returned to her side of the field, waiting for her orders as she tried to work out what was going on.

"Meet my Insect Queen, Special Summoned by Pinch Hopper's effect!" The Insect Duelist introduced his beast, "She gains 200 attack points for each Insect on either side of the field!"

And right now, Meisa had five monsters on the field. All of whom were affected by DNA Surgery, making them insects…

The Pharaoh swallowed hard, realising she was in deep trouble.

"I summon another Pinch Hopper!" Haga did not wait for her to officially end her turn, since there wasn't another move she could make, "And immediately tribute it so my Insect Queen can destroy you!"

The grasshopper wasn't on the field for but a moment, but its replacement, summoned by its effect stuck around, increased the giant Insect Queen's attack by another 200, to 3400.

"Send Dark Magician Girl back to the graveyard and erase Yugi's life points!"

The Pharaoh had just enough time to activate her face down card, Nutrient Z, before the spider had gotten its mandibles on her infected Magician Girl and devoured her. The trap saved her from defeat, as it increased her life points by 4000 before the 1400 were ripped away from her in Dark Magician Girl's destruction.

"I'm not dead yet, Haga." Meisa's voice was firm, but the relief Yugi could sense across the bond as the webs dropped away was obvious. "My trap card saved me."

"It won't save you forever." The Insect Duelist's eyes narrowed as Meisa's life points settled at 3800 after the Duel Disk finished its calculation and his Insect Queen's effect summoned an Insect Token, keeping its attack at 3400. "My Queen will rip through your forces one by one until you have nothing left! Not even your Blue Eyes White Dragon can destroy her!"

Meisa internally grimaced. The dragon in question was not in her deck but Haga was not wrong. She didn't have enough cards in her hand for Osiris to be strong enough to win either, so the God card wasn't the answer.

But there was one way she could win.

She took a deep breath and drew, praying for the one card she needed as her Puzzle glowed, bringing light to the dark, shadow infested forest.

And as Haga's lifepoints grew to 4100, her prayer was answered with Polymerisation.

"I activate my spell card, Polymerisation!" She crowed, relief and delight blinding her to the light show. "And use it to fuse my three knights together to form the Arcana Knight Joker!"

The Fusion summoning sent Kiseitai to the graveyard, preventing it from ever increasing Haga's lifepoints again as the Knights were tributed and merged. Their light warped and merged before reforming into a black and gold armoured figure with 3800 attack points whose insectoid transformation did not bother it in the slightest.

Insect Queen's attack dropped sharply, losing 400 attack points from the loss of two extra monsters, taking it down to 3000, far less than it needed to survive the brutal slash the warrior unleashed upon Meisa's command.

Haga was horrified as his Queen exploded, taking 800 of his lifepoints with it and his final Pinch Hopper followed behind, destroyed by the Dark Magician, taking another 1500 with it, especially when he did not have an insect in his hand to replace it with.

"This duel is over." Meisa warned as Haga's lifepoints dropped to 1800. "Make your final move."

Haga's breath came in short, panicked gasps as the spiders he had planned to trap his enemy with started to swarm him, encasing him so tightly that he could not reach the Monster Reborn card he had pocketed in case he needed it.

He… he had lost?

He couldn't lose…

If he could just destroy her monsters…

He drew.

And then started laughing.

"Your creatures mean nothing, Yugi!" The hysteria in his voice made both girls wince as he played his spell card, "My Eradicating Aerosol will…"

"Do nothing. Thanks to Arcana Knight Joker's effect, I can discard this spell," She showed and discarded Thousand Knives, "To negate your spell."

"No… no no no no." Haga struggled violently but could not break free of his own trap as his spell card shattered without taking effect, "Not now! Not like this!"

"End your turn, Haga." Meisa's tone was not proud. She did not take pleasure in his defeat. Not when she knew the cost he was about to pay.

"No no no." Haga shook his head, still trying to break free of the webs, coherency lost in his complete and total panic, "This can't be it… it can't, it can't, it…"

Suddenly he slumped, like a marionette with the strings cut.

"Haga?"

As her opponent's head came up, Meisa let out a soft breath. His blank eyes and warped smile told her something was very wrong.

"Congratulations on passing your first lesson, Pharaoh." Ishizu's voice overlayed Haga's, creating an uncomfortable sound. "His turn is over and I have no more use for him other than to pass on your second riddle."

"How are you…?"

"The Millennium Rod allows me to control the minds of others. I can take over anyone I like." Ishizu explained, "And this one belonged to me already so I can do it from anywhere I like."

"What's the riddle?" Meisa's mental shudder coincided with her twin's at the thought of controlling the mind of another.

"Finish the Duel first."

Meisa let out a huff but nodded. "Dark Magician, destroy his Insect Token! Arcana Joker, attack him directly!"

With little fanfare, the attacks collided and the shadow encrusted forest faded away as Haga's soul was fully swarmed by the very spiders he had called up, trapping him with the darkness for good.

"Check your phone, Pharaoh." Ishizu's voice came from Haga's now soulless shell as the daylight sun hit them, "But the words are this… 'You know this place, it's in your heart. Lesson two will tear it apart. The teacher is here to settle a score, can you save your own precious…?'"

Without giving the final word, Ishizu released her puppet, which dropped to the ground silently.

Shaking, Meisa stared at Haga's vessel for a moment, then pulled out her phone and rang Mokuba, fully aware that she couldn't leave a soulless body lying around for someone to find.

"H…Hi. I need medical at the park."

"Are you okay?"

"It's not for me…"


Author Note: Absolutely wonderful artwork for Meisa done by ZackPyo on tumblr. I am sharing it over on the Ennead tumblr, since we can't put images into FFN. The link for that is enneadau . tumblr . com (please remove the spaces between the words for the link)