Chapter 35
Clash in the Colosseum: Part 4
"The Duel of Destiny"
"The power of our monsters is equal! But neither one will give up this fight!" Yami shouted. "You're right! It must be a holographic malfunction!" Kaiba replied. "Seto! Are you okay?!" Mokuba called. 'It's the ultimate power struggle. These two Egyptian God Monsters have been pushed to their limits!' Yami Marik thought. Soon the light got stronger.
'What's going on? That light is stronger than anything my holographic machinery can produce!' Seto thought. "Kaiba! I don't think that this is part of your hologram projectors!" Twilight shouted as the light got more intense. Inside Kaiba Craft 3, everyone continued to watch. "Whoa! If this is a clash between Slifer and Obelisk, it's way too intense!" Rainbow shouted.
Up in the Colosseum, Yami Marik noticed his Millennium Rod was activating by itself. 'My Millennium Rod! Its powers just went beyond my control! This is exactly what happened during Kaiba's last duel!' he thought. At the same time, Twilight and Fluttershy noticed their cutie marks were lighting up. "Fluttershy, look!" Twilight shouted. "The clash between Slifer and Obelisk must be triggering our magic!" she exclaimed. Soon, the light got even stronger.
"The light! It's too strong!" Yami Yugi shouted before it engulfed both of them and Twilight and Fluttershy's cutie marks glowed just as bright at the same time. The four suddenly found themselves falling through a portal right as the Millennium Puzzle started to light up in the center just like Yami Marik's Millennium Rod. 'What's up with the Millennium Puzzle?' Yugi wondered. 'The struggle between Slifer and Obelisk must've triggered something inside! But where is it taking us?' he continued.
"This can't be real!" Kaiba shouted. "If we're experiencing it, I'd say it's VERY real!" Twilight shouted. They all soon came out of the portal and found themselves in a ruined Giza. "It looks like some kind of ancient city." Yami said. "Not just any ancient city, there's the pyramids! This must be Giza, in the days of ancient Egypt!" Twilight pointed out. "But it's completely destroyed!" Kaiba added.
"Why did the clash between those two Egyptian God Monsters send us here? And what could've happened?" Fluttershy asked. "A better question is, how are you two here?" Kaiba asked back. "I wish I knew, Kaiba." Twilight replied. "Wait, your right hands! Why are they glowing?" Kaiba asked, shocked. "I don't think you'd believe me if I told you." Twilight answered.
"This doesn't make any sense. We're supposed to be on top of my Duel Tower." Kaiba said. "And yet somehow the clash between your two Egyptian God Monsters sent us here." Twilight added. "Everyone, I don't think this is a hologram projection. I think we've been transported not just to another place, but to another time! The pyramids look younger than they do in our day and age." Yami suggested. "But that's impossible! Holograms can't do this!" Kaiba replied. 'Or can they?' he wondered, starting to second guess himself.
'Maybe this is a vision that my Puzzle is showing us. But how are Kaiba, Twilight and Fluttershy seeing it? They never possessed a Millennium Item before in their lives.' Yugi thought. They all soon saw something up ahead and flew towards it. "I think that's Obelisk the Tormentor and Slifer the Sky Dragon!" Fluttershy said as they got close enough. "But they're made of stone! And there aren't any statues of the Egyptian God Monsters in Egypt." Twilight pointed out.
"Unbelievable! The detail is incredible, they look exactly like Slifer and Obelisk! Perhaps they did once stand, but centuries of erosion turned them into dust." Kaiba said. 'Or maybe it's because it is them! But how did they turn to stone?' Yugi wondered. "Look at the condition of this city. I'd say that no one's lived here in ages." Kaiba suggested. "Yes, and the entire city looks like its shrouded in a dark cloud." Yami pointed out. Twilight and Fluttershy, however, had their attention focused somewhere else. They saw a hooded figure running through the city streets.
"Fluttershy, who's that?" Twilight asked. "I don't know." Fluttershy replied. Suddenly the figure started to fly upwards. For a brief moment, the light of their cutie marks showed he, too, had a mark on his hand, indicating that he was from Equestria, like they were. He wasn't clearly visible, but his skin color was tan and his mark was that of a pyramid, indicating that he must've come from Somnambula. But before they could go after him, he went up through a portal and disappeared.
"Who was that?" Flutershy wondered. "I don't know, but we better ask Princess Celestia and Princess Luna about this. And maybe the library in my castle back home has a possible answer." Twilight replied. "Kaiba, Twilight, Fluttershy, the dark cloud seems to be coming from that palace." Yami said after looking behind him. "But what's inside?" Fluttershy asked. They suddenly got their answer when they were teleported inside the palace, though they were upside down, looking down at something below them. A Shadow Game, similar to the one Kaiba saw that night at the Domino Museum when he met Ishizu and obtained Obelisk.
And they were right, it was the traitorous sorcerer facing against The Nameless Pharaoh while laughing at his king. "Look at the mighty pharaoh now. It appears your once prosperous kingdom has crumbled under your feet and is now in the merciless grip of The Dark One. How does it feel to be virtually powerless?" he taunted. "Kaiba, I may be wrong, but this looks like the ancient conflict depicted on the tablet at the Domino Museum, when the Nameless Pharaoh faced off against a traitorous sorcerer!" Twilight said in shock.
"That can't be!" Kaiba replied. "Oh, it can! Look, around the neck of the pharaoh, it's the Millennium Puzzle! And only the Nameless Pharaoh himself ever wore it until Yugi reassembled it 5000 years later!" Fluttershy replied. "Why have you chosen his side over mine?" the Nameless Pharaoh asked. "That's where you're wrong, my pharaoh. My followers and I have no allegiance to The Dark One, but we have no allegiance to you, either." the sorcerer replied.
"I am here to finish our battle and prove that no one can overpower my Millennium Rod!" he declared as he pointed the Millennium Rod at the pharaoh. "The Millennium Rod?" Kaiba said, perplexed. "But Marik is the one who wields it!" Fluttershy stated. "Maybe he wasn't the first to hold it, because it appears that this sorcerer was the true first wielder of the Millennium Rod." Twilight replied. "Even in my darkest hour, I shall defeat you!" the pharaoh declared.
"Then let our Shadow Game begin, pharaoh!" the sorcerer replied. "The moment I've been waiting for is here! I will finally take you down!" he declared. "Really?" the pharaoh asked. "Yes, I shall be forever remembered as 'he who defeated the pharaoh'! Now prepare yourself, for it's time to meet my ultimate beast! It will show you no mercy!" the sorcerer replied before a tablet rose up behind him, as did a tablet behind the pharaoh.
And so, with an equally determined 'Let's duel!' from both participants, the battle began. "Behold my dragon!" the sorcerer declared before the creature appeared, and Kaiba quickly recognized it. "The Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" he shouted. "Now, you shall meet my loyal servant! Show yourself!" the pharaoh declared before his creature appeared, one that Twilight recognized. "No way! That's the Dark Magician!" she exclaimed.
"This must be the same ancient conflict that Ishizu showed us and spoke about at the museum!" Yami said, realizing they were looking at the most dangerous conflict in the history of the ancient Shadow Games. "And according to Ishizu, those two are your ancestors!" Twilight added. "So that means, Yugi is related to ancient Egyptian royalty!" Fluttershy exclaimed. 'This whole thing can't be one of Marik's hocus pocus mind tricks, I didn't even see him near the battlefield!' Kaiba thought, still in shock.
"I'm afraid you don't stand a chance, pharaoh!" the sorcerer claimed. Soon, all four of them saw the same tablet that was at the museum. 'Wait, that's the same ancient stone tablet at the museum!' Twilight thought. 'How can any of this be real?!' Kaiba thought, still in disbelief. 'I guess this means Yugi and Kaiba WERE destined to fight, just as their ancestors did!' Fluttershy figured. The four soon found themselves flung back into a portal like the one that brought them to ancient Egypt.
Back in the present, Yami Marik was still unsure why his Millennium Rod was activating without his command. 'Who would be able to invoke the power of my Millennium Item?!' he wondered. Meanwhile, aboard Kaiba Craft 3, everyone noticed the light starting to fade. "Look, yawl, that light is starting to get dim!" AJ said. "But the question is why?" Spike asked. Meanwhile, inside the colosseum, Yami Yugi, Kaiba, Twilight and Fluttershy were back in their own time.
"Kaiba, are you alright?" Yami asked. "I'm fine." Kaiba replied. "What just happened?" he asked. "I think, we were shown, a vision of your ancestors." Twilight answered. "Seto!" Mokuba shouted. "Wait a minute, what happened to Slifer and Obelisk?" he asked. "I think they were destroyed in a double knockout." Fluttershy replied. "Well, Kaiba, now do you believe, we have Egyptian heritage?" Yami Yugi asked.
"What just happened?" Yami Marik asked. 'It appears that Kaiba's ancient past intersects with that of the Millennium Rod. But he'll never get his hands on my birthright!' he thought as he looked at his Millennium Item. 'I know who I am, Seto Kaiba, president of the KaibaCorp gaming corporation. But I can't seem to get those images out of my head. It seems that, no matter what I do, this ancient legend keeps coming back to haunt me! It all started when Ishizu told me that Yugi and I had Egyptian ancestors.' Kaiba thought as his thoughts returned to that fateful night at the museum.
'Ever since then, my mind has either been showing me things or playing tricks on me. It happened during my duel with Ishizu, and again when I was able to read the ancient text on The Winged Dragon of Ra.' he continued as he remembered both moments. 'But today's visions were the most intense so far. I felt as though my body was transported to another place and time, but what doesn't make sense is how Yugi, Twilight and Fluttershy were able to see it! Are we all losing our grip on reality?!' he continued as he remembered what just happened.
"Do you understand the significance of this duel?" Yami asked as they both stood up. "I understand that I need to win, Yugi, so that I can put you behind me forever!" Kaiba replied. "You cannot deny what we saw, Kaiba!" Twilight stated. "Don't be a fool, princess. That was nothing more than an illusion!" Kaiba retorted. "It was NOT an illusion! Four people can't share the same illusion at the same time!" Twilight snapped.
"She's right, Kaiba. Acknowledge the truth! We have ancestors who competed against each other 5000 years ago, and now, like our ancestors before us, we're destined to continue what they started!" Yami shouted. "If you truly believe that, then I think you mean finish what they started." Kaiba replied. "I'm dueling for so much more than a mere tournament victory and to defend some trivial world title. Is that clear? I joined this to help save mankind from being ruled by a madman and nothing or no one will stand in my way! That includes you, Kaiba!" Yami stated.
"Believe whatever you want, Yugi, this will all be over soon." Kaiba replied. "Yes, everything will soon be over." Yami Marik said. 'I just have to ensure that Kaiba's link to the Millennium Rod doesn't interfere with my plans. I must win this tournament to gain infinite power.' he thought as he looked at his artifact. "Last I checked, it was still your turn, Kaiba." Yami Yugi said. "Now you're starting to make some sense. Let's move on so I can end this and claim the victory I deserve.' Kaiba replied. "I hope you're ready." he added before his rival nodded.
"Alright, I'll set one card face down on the field to end my turn." he continued before doing so. "I don't need an Egyptian God Card to defeat you." he claimed. 'I have a couple more reliable cards in my hand, now. Two of my Blue-Eyes.' he thought. "It's my turn, now!" Yami declared as he drew. 'Gazelle? I can't wipe out Kaiba's life points with him, its not strong enough.' Yugi thought. All the while, Yami Marik chuckled. 'Kaiba has no monsters on the field to protect himself. His life points are wide open for the pharaoh to attack, but the same could be said for the pharaoh.' he thought.
"Alright, I summon Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts in defense mode." Yami Yugi said before his creature appeared, but Kaiba chuckled. "If that's all you've got, you're done! I activate my Cloning trap!" he declared before, to Yami Yugi's surprise and that of his two friends, a Clone Token appeared in the form of Gazelle, complete with the same attribute, power level, type, attack and defense points.
"Did you say Cloning?" Yami Yugi asked. "Yes, it's a trap that brings a Cloning Token to the field, which can transform into a single monster on my opponent's side of the field. In this case, your King of Mythical Beasts, Yugi." Kaiba explained. "Too bad. Looks like we're tied again." he added, mockingly. "Then I shall set one card face down. That ends my turn." Yami replied.
"Sorry, Yugi. But you just made your final move, for the monster I now hold in my hand is the key to your ultimate demise." Kaiba said. "All I need to do is sacrifice the Clone Token on my side of the field and I can summon it to the field." he continued. 'Oh, my. I think I know what monster he's talking about.' Fluttershy thought. "So prepare to feel the wrath of my Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Kaiba declared. "Blue-Eyes? But how?" Yami Yugi asked.
"How can he summon the Blue-Eyes White Dragon? Two monsters have to be sacrifice first." Twilight wondered. "So you think, but you should know that things aren't always what they seem, princess." Kaiba said. "Enough talk, Kaiba. Just make your move so we can get on with this duel." Yami Yugi said, seemingly impatient. "Yes, and ending this duel is what I plan on doing, thanks to this magic card." Kaiba replied before he readied it.
"Yugi, your royal friend is correct. A Blue-Eyes White Dragon requires two sacrifices to summon, but thanks to this magic card, that rule doesn't hold any truth for this turn. It's the key to bringing forth my great beast and wiping you out!" he continued. "It's called, Cost Down!" he said before revealing his card. "This means my dragon's power level can be instantly lowered from eight to six." he explained.
'Oh, no. That means Kaiba only has to sacrifice his Clone Token in order to summon it.' Yugi thought, worried. "The time has come! And mark my words, this is won't end like the battle between our Egyptian God Monsters, you fool! I sacrifice my Clone Token, to summon the Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Kaiba declared before his ace monster appeared. "Yeah! Seto's gonna take it to the hoop! Nothing can stop him now!" Mokuba shouted with a smile.
'Well, perhaps I'll be facing Kaiba in the finals after all.' Yami Marik thought. "It's time for me to finally put an end to our rivalry right now! I've been waiting almost a year for this!" Kaiba declared. "Blue-Eyes White Dragon, attack his Gazelle with White Lightning!" he commanded before the King of Mythical Beasts was wiped out with just one breath from the dragon before its master laughed. "You may as well throw in the towel, Yugi. Your only monster is gone, and unless you can summon something with over 3000 attack points, this duel is over!" he stated.
'I've only got one chance to beat Kaiba's Blue-Eyes White Dragon, but it's a long shot. If the images of the past that we saw are true, and history is repeating itself, in order to take down Kaiba's Blue-Eyes, I have to summon my Dark Magician and this is my last chance. If I don't draw the card I need now, Kaiba wins the duel and I'm out of the tournament.' Yugi thought before tapping into the Heart of the Cards.
"Stand back, Kaiba!" Yami declared as he drew. "Alright, then. I know you saw the same visions me, Fluttershy and Twilight did, Kaiba, and I'm about to prove what we saw was a real vision of the ancient past during the reign of the Nameless Pharaoh!" he declared. "Your ancestor battled mine 5000 years ago in the city of Giza, and now time and destiny have brought us to where we are now to finish what they started." he continued.
"And I'll begin with Monster Reborn to bring back a monster from my graveyard. The servant of the Nameless Pharaoh, the Dark Magician!" he continued, brining a look of shock to Kaiba's face before the mighty mage appeared. 'When Kaiba played that Life Shaver trap, he forced Yugi to discard two cards from his hand. One of them must've been the Dark Magician!' Twilight thought. 'This is just like in the vision! Yugi and Kaiba are finishing what their ancestors started in ancient Egypt!' Fluttershy thought, amazed.
"Yugi, your move doesn't prove much of anything." Kaiba stated. "Kaiba, how can you continue to deny your ancient lineage? Just look at the field! Blue-Eyes White Dragon vs Dark Magician, just like what was seen on that tablet in the Domino Museum and in our shared vision!" Yami replied. "The time has come to accept your ancient Egyptian blood, Kaiba! Time and fate have led us to finish the battle our ancestors started!" he declared.
'There's still so much about this rivalry between Yugi and Kaiba's ancestors that's still a mystery. Who was this dark one the sorcerer spoke of? Was it the reason why they battled in a Shadow Game? Who won the battle? And what does that stranger me and Fluttershy saw have to do with it?' Twilight wondered. 'It's time for Yugi to learn the hard way that real Duelists make their own destiny.' Kaiba thought. "Now, I'll set one card face down to end my turn." Yami said before wrapping up his move.
'I hope this works. Because if it doesn't, Kaiba's dragon will crush my Dark Magician. They have a 500 point difference between them, so that means one attack from Kaiba means my magician is a goner. So it's up to my set cards to help me. Luckily, one of them is Magic Formula, it can raise my Dark Magician's attack power by 500, making it a match for the Blue-Eyes White Dragon and causing a double knockout. It's all up to destiny, now.' Yugi thought.
"Your move, Kaiba." Yami said at last. "You disappoint me, Yugi. You're willing to believe that we have heritage to Egypt after hearing an ancient legend. How pathetic. At least you don't actually believe that you're the reincarnation of the so-called Nameless Pharaoh." Kaiba replied. "It may be carved in everlasting stone, but I won't let the story depicted on it dictate my life, and neither should you. After all, you may resemble the Nameless Pharaoh, but you aren't him." he continued.
"You're concentrating on the past when you should be focusing on what's happening right now, and that will be your downfall!" he concluded. "We shall see." Yami replied. "Yes, as soon as you're knocked out of the tournament. Then I'll move on to the final round and cement myself as world champion, once I take away your title. Now it's my move!" Kaiba said before drawing.
"First I'll set one card face down, and then I'll activate Card of Demise!" he declared. "This magic card allows me to draw until I'm holding five cards, as long as I discard my entire hand after five turns have passed." he explained. "Is that all you've got?" Yami asked. 'I've observed Yugi's past duels very carefully, and I know what he's up to. One of his set cards will make his Dark Magician stronger, and the other one will stop my Blue-Eyes from attacking.' Kaiba thought.
"Sorry, Yugi, but this little strategy of yours is no secret to me, so I'm afraid it's not going to work. You're planning to take me down with your two set cards. Well, think again, because I have a plan, too. Now watch, as I summon a monster that will seal your fate!" he said aloud. "What does he mean?" Fluttershy asked, worried. "I summon Lord of Dragons!" Kaiba declared before said monster appeared. "As long as Lord of Dragons is on the field, my Blue-Eyes is safe from all magic and trap cards." he explained.
"That may be the case, Kaiba, but my Dark Magician is more powerful than your Lord of Dragons." Yami said. "Then go ahead and attack it, Yugi. I end my turn." Kaiba dared. 'Kaiba may have a plan to stop my attack, but in order to win, I'll have to try.' Yugi thought. "Alright, my move!" Yami said as he drew. "I summon Beta the Magnet Warrior in defense mode." he added before said monster appeared. 'Come on, Yugi. Attack me with your Dark Magician.' Kaiba thought, hoping his rival would choose to attack.
"Dark Magician, attack his Lord of Dragons, now!" Yami commanded before his mage charged. "Too bad, Yugi! I reveal my trap card!" Kaiba declared before his trap sprung. "It's called Magical Trick Mirror, and it allows me to take one magic card from your graveyard and use it as my own for a turn." he explained. "And I know exactly which magic card I want to get my hands on...Monster Reborn!" he added. 'Why would he want Monster Reborn? Is he going to bring back his XYZ-Dragon Cannon?' Fluttershy wondered.
"Now I can bring back an old friend. Behold, the rebirth of my Egyptian God Monster!" Kaiba declared as Obelisk rose up from behind him. "Obelisk! But Egyptian God Monsters can only be on the field once revived for one turn." Yami stated. "True, but one turn is all I need to block your Dark Magician's attack!" Kaiba replied. "Dark Magician, hold on!" Yami shouted. "Too late! It's time for Obelisk to take the blow from your attack." Kaiba retorted as Obelisk lowered a hand in front of Lord of Dragons, protecting it.
"This can't be!" Twilight shouted. "Say goodbye to 1500 life points!" Kaiba said before the attack backfired and and Yami's life points greatly decreased to the amount that he lost, 1500. "It looks to me that you're out of options." the multi-millionaire added as he looked at his rival, who was on one knee after the attack hit him. "It's over!" he declared before laughing.