Chapter 30

The Darkness Returns: Part 3

"Gilford the Lightning"

"Make your move!" Yami Marik said, impatiently. "Oh, I will, so quit pressuring me." Joey replied. "This doesn't look too bad. Joey's got a monster with the same power as a Blue-Eyes White Dragon, so if he orders it to attack, he'll win." Tea said. "I wouldn't be so sure, Tea. Remember, Marik gave the Lava Golem to Joey, so it must mean he WANTS Joey to attack. Likely part of a strategy to win." Twilight replied.

'I can't let win and advance to the finals. If he does, I'll never save Mai from the Shadow Realm. In fact, I'll be trapped right there with her!' Joey thought, desperate to get out of his predicament. He then drew his next card. 'I can't use Gamble, so I have no choice but to attack.' he thought after looking at what he drew. 'Course, I can't use Lava Golem, that's what he likely wants me to do.' he continued as he remembered the moment Marik gave him the massive creature.

'All the same, I can't just let Lava Golem melt my life points away if I just hold on to it. So I'll have to use it against Marik.' he figured. "I think it's only fair to use the monster you gave me." he said aloud. "Excellent, that's the smartest thing you've said all game." Yami Marik replied. "No need for insults." Joey said. "I'm glad you finally came to your senses, or, perhaps you realize the truth. The truth that there's no way you can win this." Yami Marik said.

"After all, every pathway leads to the Shadow Realm." he added. "Sounds like psychology to me." Rainbow said. "I'm with you. Just like Mai said at Duelist Kingdom, its psyche out warfare." AJ concurred. 'Wheeler is in quite a predicament. If he attacks, Marik will strike back. But if he doesn't, he'll lose life points.' Seto thought as he watched.

"This duel's just about over!" Joey declared. "For once, you and I are in agreement, little Joey. The moment you attack me, it'll be all over for you!" Yami Marik replied. "Then I'll have to take my chances and attack!" Joey shouted. "What's that city slicker thinking?!" AJ asked. "That's what Marik WANTED him to do!" Twilight shouted. "I can't watch!" Pinkie said before hiding her face with her hair.

"Lava Golem, attack!" Joey commanded before the creature fired a giant blast of fire at Yami Marik. "Time to block your attack, with this!" the evil one declared before his trap sprung. "This trap card is known as Relieve Monster, and it allows me to return one of my own monsters from my field to my hand. Once that happens, I can replace it with any level four monster that's currently in my hand." he explained.

"Wait a minute, he doesn't have any level four monsters on the field." Spike said. "I wouldn't say that, he still has his Plasma Eel attached to Joey's Panther Warrior." Rarity pointed out. Right on cue, Yami Marik commanded his Plasma Eel to return to him. "Since Plasma Eel is a level four monster and the only one I have right now, I can bring it back to the field in defense mode!" he revealed before his creature reappeared and took the hit from Lava Golem as he laughed.

"Of course, you remember my Plasma Eel's special ability, don't you? It can't be destroyed in battle!" he added. "Your point?" Joey asked. "My point is that your monsters aren't so lucky, thanks to Helpoemer!" Yami Marik replied before the ghostly hand of Helpoemer appeared again. "Say goodbye to one of the cards in your hand." he added before laughing as one of Joey's cards got yanked into the graveyard.

"Are you done yet?" Joey asked. "Not quite. You should look up and behind you, because that Lava Golem is beginning to melt some more, causing you to lose 700 more life points!" Yami Marik replied before Joey looked up and tried to withstand the heat from his melting monster as his life points lowered to 2200 while the evil one just chuckled. "It's all over!" he declared.

Meanwhile, inside Kaiba Craft 3, Ishizu was looking out the window and saw the dark cloud covering the top of the Duel Tower. "Marik's dark side has called upon the shadows again. I fear this madness won't end, for with every soul and mind he feeds to the shadows, the evil within my brother grows stronger." she said.

Back up on the top of the Duel Tower, the game continued. "Get ready, it's my move." Yami Marik said before drawing. 'Machine Duplication. Just the card I need to finish this fool off.' he thought. "Hang in there, Joey! You still have more life points than this crazed lunatic!" Rarity shouted. "He may have the advantage in life points for the moment, but that won't last long." Yami Marik replied.

"How do you figure?" Joey asked. "Because I activate Machine Duplication, to turn my one Eel into three!" Yami Marik answered as two more Plasma Eels appeared on the field. "No! Now he can lower the attack points of all my monsters!" Joey shouted. "Now you're beginning to catch on, but instead of all of them, I'll only need to target two." Yami Marik replied. "Go, my two Plasma Eels, drain Rocket Warrior and Lava Golem of points, and his body of strength!" he commanded before they did their job, causing Joey a great deal of pain.

"Stay strong, Joey!" Yami Yugi called. "You remember the rule of our Shadow Game, don't you? When your monsters are damaged or destroyed, you lose energy. And before long, you'll be too weak to move, let alone duel!" Yami Marik stated before laughing. "Is that all you've got, Marik?" Joey asked after dropping to his hands and knees. "You forget, the real Winged Dragon of Ra struck me down with a bolt of lightning when I dueled Odion, so this is nothing!" he stated.

"Then I'll set a card face down and let you go, if you can stand, that is." Yami Marik replied as his turn ended. "Yami, things aren't looking well for Joey." Fluttershy said, worried. 'She's right. This Shadow Game is wearing Joey out. And if he loses, he goes straight to the Shadow Realm. But no matter what happens, Joey can't lose hope!' Yugi thought, worried but hopeful at the same time.

'I got to put out this flaming monster of mine before I lose more life points.' Joey thought as he stood up. 'I only have one card in my hand, and it can't help me now. If I don't do something soon, Marik will advance to the finals. I know Yugi can take him, but I promised him that I'd take out this whacko.' he continued. "If you think I'm gonna let you win this, you've got another thing coming. Now its time to turn this duel around." he said. 'Heart of the Cards, guide me to victory.' he thought before drawing.

'Whoa! Gilford the Lightning! This monster could really kick some Marik keister, but there's one problem; I have to sacrifice three monsters. But thanks to his two Plasma Eels, Rocket Warrior and Lava Golem are tied up at the moment, meaning I can't perform a tribute summon while they're on the field. But that gives me an idea!' he continued.

"I'm glad I'm not in your shoes, Marik, because you're in for some hurting, thanks to my magic card, Graceful Dice!" he shouted before his card activated. "As you know, Graceful Dice can increase the attack points of a monster, depending on the number that's rolled. And the monster I choose is your original Plasma Eel!" he exclaimed. "Once your magic card only works on Machine monsters with 500 attack points or less, once the attack points of your Eel goes over that, Machine Duplication is destroyed along with your other two eels." he added.

"Talk about brilliant!" Rarity said with a big smile on her face. "Excellent strategy, Joey!" Yami Yugi declared. Soon, the die started to roll. "Cross your fingers." Pinkie said before she did so with eight of her fingers, minus her thumbs, on both her hands. "If I roll a two or more, your extra eels are toast." Joey said. Finally, the die stopped on the highest number it had.

"Looks like six is higher than two, which means your prime Plasma Eel gets six times stronger!" Joey declared before Plasma Eel's attack points JUMP to 3000. "Jackpot!" Rainbow shouted. "And that means his Machine Duplication is shut down!" Twilight added as the card and the other two eels were destroyed. "And now that my Rocket Warrior and Lava Golem are free, I can sacrifice them and my Panther Warrior to bring out my ultimate fighting machine! Meet Gilford the Lightning!" Joey declared.

In no time, the mighty warrior, a level eight, Light attribute warrior/effect monster with 2800 attack points and 1400 defense points, appeared with multiple flashes of lightning and a cry of battle. "Now that Gilford's on the field, he's about to crush any hope you had of winning this duel, Marik. How does it feel to be staring into the face of defeat?" the empowered underdog asked. "Talk about the ultimate comeback!" Duke shouted.

"I didn't even KNOW Joey had a monster like THAT!" Rainbow shouted. But Yami Marik just laughed. "Did I miss the joke?" Joey asked. "The joke's on you, because when you used Graceful Dice on my Plasma Eel, you made it 200 points stronger than the monster you just summoned. Meaning all that trouble to summon Gilford the Lightning was for nothing!" Yami Marik answered before laughing again.

"Looks like your strategy backfired on you, little Joey." he added. "Wrong!" Joey retorted. "Do you think I'm dumb enough to let you have the advantage?" he asked. "What do you mean?" Yami Marik asked back. "Looks like Marik is in for a shocking surprise. I've read about Gilford the Lightning when me and Spike were reading through a copy of Duel Monsters Weekly." AJ said. "You're right, Gilford has a special ability that'll turn that Plasma Eel to dust!" Spike concurred.

"Gilford, show Marik why your nickname is Lightning and wipe out his Plasma Eel!" Joey commanded before Gilford unsheathed his sword and called down a lightning strike powerful enough to destroy the Plasma Eel and drain some of Yami Marik's strength. "But how?! My Plasma Eel's special ability prevents it from being destroyed in battle!" the evil one declared.

"Let me make it easy for you to understand, your Plasm Eel wasn't the only monster with a special ability. And Gilford's ability allows me to destroy every monster you have on the field!" Joey explained. "Well, I ain't no instructor at a Duelist academy, but you're now in the Wheeler School of Hard Knocks!" he declared. "Gilford, teach Marik a hard lesson and attack his life points directly!" he commanded before his warrior charged.

"You should've thought again, I reveal my face down card, Nightmare Mirror!" Yami Marik declared before his trap sprung. "My Nightmare Mirror does more than just block your attack, take a close look at the reflection in the mirror." he stated before Joey saw his own reflection. "That's right, my Nightmare Mirror redirects the attack at you!" he declared.

In no time, Gilford's sword struck and shattered the mirror completely. "And I escape without a scratch." Yami Marik added before laughing as Joey's life points decreased to 1200. "You, on the other hand, are 1000 life points weaker and mere steps away from the Shadow Realm!" he declared. "There's only one small price I have to pay, and that's to discard one card to the graveyard." he pointed out.

'And this is the perfect card for me to part with, for now.' he thought as he looked at his Egyptian God Card. "Did you honestly think you could take control of this duel away from me? This is a Shadow Game, you fool!" he shouted before chuckling. "Which means the one who invoked it makes the rules." he added. 'I don't like the sound of this at all. Marik must be up to something.' Yugi thought.

'Play your Egyptian God Card, Marik.' Seto thought, wanting to see The Winged Dragon of Ra in all its glory once again, unaware that Marik it was discarded. "I end my turn." Joey said at last. 'He doesn't have any monsters on the field or in his hand, so if I can get through this next turn, I've got it made.' he thought. "Are you ready? It's my move." Yami Marik said before drawing.

Upon seeing what he drew, he laughed maniacally. "Do you always have to laugh whenever you see what you drew? Why not just play it and move on?" Joey asked. "Why spoil the fun? But if you insist, you'll regret saying those words, you fool. For I'm about to eliminate you from this duel once and for all, with The Winged Dragon of Ra!" Yami Marik replied, bringing a collective gasp and look of horror from everyone but Seto Kaiba, who just smirked.

"How can Marik summon a monster as powerful as an Egyptian God Monster without making a sacrifice?!" Twilight asked. "Well, Seto, now's your chance to see if The Winged Dragon of Ra has any weaknesses." Mokuba said. 'Everything's working out just as I knew it would. Now that Wheeler served as my Guinea Pig, I can see The Winged Dragon of Ra in action and learn how to defeat it.' Seto thought. 'Sure, I was able to read the Egyptian-Arabic text on the card, but reading is one thing and witnessing is another.' he continued before remembering the moment he discovered Ra's secrets.

'When I saw the ancient writing and was somehow able to translate it without the need of my computers, I knew that The Winged Dragon of Ra was powerful. But seeing Marik summon it to the field through a chant during his duel against Mai was just as useful to me if not more so.' he continued as he remembered Yami Marik summoning the beast to defeat Mai. 'I need to see Marik's Egyptian God Monster one last time so that I can look for any weaknesses. That way, when I face him in the final round, I'll be prepared to crush it.' he concluded.

"I activate Monster Reborn, to bring back The Winged Dragon of Ra!" Yami Marik declared as his magic card did its thing. "Show yourself, my great beast of the sky!" he commanded before the strongest of all the Egyptian God Monsters appeared in all its golden glory with a great gust of wind. "This is the last monster you'll ever see, little Joey." he said.

"Wait, The Winged Dragon of Ra has no attack or defense points, so what kind of strategy is this?" Spike wondered. "I don't know. The Winged Dragon of Ra usually takes on the combined attack points of the monsters sacrificed in order to summon it." Twilight replied. "And since Marik didn't make any sacrifices, his monster doesn't have any attack strength." Yami Yugi pointed out.

"First I'll activate my beast's special ability known as Instant Attack so that it can attack now, but that's just the beginning of your troubles." Yami Marik said before The Winged Dragon of Ra started setting itself on fire. "What's going on with that thing?" Joey asked. "I think The Winged Dragon of Ra is, transforming itself!" Twilight shouted. "I thought it only had its sphere form and its main form, but now you're telling me it has a THIRD form?!" Rainbow asked. In moments, The Winged Dragon of Ra was covered from wings to talons in fire.

"Behold the true form of The Winged Dragon of Ra!" Yami Marik declared. "It's true form?! Where I come from, giant flaming birds aren't a good sign!" Joey said, shocked. "Maybe not for you, but for me its a sign of victory, because my Winged Dragon of Ra has taken a form that's known as Immortal Phoenix! In this form, The Winged Dragon of Ra is unstoppable!" Yami Marik replied.

"It's awesome." Mokuba said, amazed at the third and final form of The Winged Dragon of Ra. "Yes, and soon its power will belong to me." Seto replied. "Now my beast is ready, ready to feed you to the shadows!" Yami Marik declared before laughing as Joey stared at the Immortal Phoenix in worry and fear.

Back in Kaiba Craft 3, the waiting was getting to Serenity. 'I can't stand not knowing what's going on up there. Sure, Joey's a great Duelist, but Marik's making him play a Shadow Game. After all, Mai's an example of what happens when someone loses one.' she thought. Then, Ishizu entered the room. "Oh, hi, Ishizu." the girl said. "Serenity. Shouldn't you be up at the top of the Duel Tower with the others? I am certain your brother could use your support." the kind Egyptian asked.

"They'll be fine. Besides, someone needs to stay here and keep an eye on Mai." the girl replied. "After all, you know what happened after she dueled Marik." she added. "She hasn't said a word since last night. Poor Mai. My brother is trying to save her mind, he promised he wouldn't let anything happen to her. So he's dueling against Marik right now in a Shadow Game. He thinks that by winning, he'll bring her back." she continued, but her mention of a Shadow Game brought a gasp of shock to Ishizu.

"So now, both of our brothers are fighting for your brother would consider the ultimate stakes." the kind and wise woman said. "I guess that's true, but all I can do is stay strong for Joey and hope for the best. I'll never give up hope." Serenity replied. "I know just how you feel." Ishizu said, taking Serenity aback. "I know there's still good within Marik and he will be saved from the evil yami inside of him, only then can all of the wrongs he's committed under its influence will be undone, meaning everyone whose mind was sent to the Shadow Realm by him will return, saving them from death, including Mai." she explained.

"Now, then, why don't you head into the Duel Tower and support your brother?" she asked. "But what about Mai?" Serenity asked back. "I'll keep an eye on her for you. After all, why should we both stay?" Ishizu replied. "Well...I promised I would, that's all." Serenity said. "Well, I promise you shall be fine, Serenity. So, go. Be there for Joey." Ishizu said before the young girl nodded and stood up. "Thank you so much, Ishizu." Serenity said before heading to the door. "Of course. Stay strong, Serenity." Ishizu said as she watched her leave while she said she would stay strong and thanked Ishizu again on the way out.

'I understand their bond well, but its been so long since I felt that bond with my own brother. And without the power of my Millennium Necklace, I'm unsure what the future holds for us.' the wise Egyptian thought before sitting down. Meanwhile, Serenity was on her way to the Duel Tower. "I'm coming, Joey!" she shouted.

'I can only hope my brother's destiny is to be delivered from the darkness that now controls him. Otherwise, the world will be in a danger that it has never seen for 5 millennia.' Ishizu thought. Meanwhile, up at the top of the Duel Tower, the Shadow Game continued. 'Now that my beast has taken its strongest form, victory is mine!' Yami Marik thought.

'I don't get it. First Marik summoned The Winged Dragon of Ra without making a sacrifice, rendering it powerless. Then he transformed it into its Immortal Phoenix form, making it a completely different looking monster.' Yugi thought, puzzled. "Pharaoh! Kaiba! Take heed, for one of you will have to realize your darkest nightmare and face my Winged Dragon of Ra in the final round. Once little Joey has been disposed of, that is." Yami Marik stated.

"Hold on! Last time I checked, this duel was still on. I still have my Gilford the Lightning on the field and he's got 2800 attack points. Meanwhile, your oversized, flam broiled chicken has nothing." Joey pointed out, but the evil one chuckled. "You still don't get it, little Joey. Like I said, The Winged Dragon of Ra has powers beyond your understanding. And unfortunately for you, I'm about to activate yet another of my creature's special abilities!" Yami Marik said.

"Say what?! Not another one!" Joey shouted in shock. "Yes. In its Immortal Phoenix mode, The Winged Dragon of Ra can instantly disintegrate your monster, even though it has zero attack points. All I'm required to do is give up 1000 of my life points. Then my beast will be free to banish you to the darkness!" Yami Marik replied.

"So what if your monster has a special ability that can wipe out Gilford? It still has zero attack points, which means I'm not gonna lose any life points!" Joey retorted. "Shows what you know. Losing life points should be the least of your worries at this point. Look at your heart." Yami Marik replied before Joey did so. "Thanks to that energy stream, when The Winged Dragon of Ra attacks, you'll be drained of all your strength!" he said before chuckling.

Outside the Duel Tower, Serenity continued to run towards it as Yami Marik continued to gloat up in the shadowy cloud. "In mere moments, every ounce of energy in your body will be drained away for good. You'll be rendered completely helpless at the hands of The Winged Dragon of Ra! And that time has come, for I'm moments away from claiming my victory! The Immortal Phoenix is about to rise!" he declared before looking up at his mighty Egyptian God Monster.