AN: I will repeat: I am not accepting requests for artworks or comic adaptions based on this series at this time.

Back to Battle City Part II

Mayet stood with their friends, looking up.

'This four-way duel is nuts!' Tristan declared. 'Each duellist can attack any of the other three!'

'True,' Duke said. 'But each duellist can also defend any of the other three. That's how Yugi saved Joey from Kaiba's attack.'

And Kaiba wasn't happy about it. 'Hey, Wheeler! Next time you won't be so lucky!'

YGO

'Thanks for the help, Yugi,' Joey said.

'Hm.' The Pharaoh nodded. I can't let Joey lose. If he does, he may have to face Marik in the semi-finals. At the same time, the Pharaoh had already considered Joey may want that. According to Mayet, who he considered the most reliable judge of such things, Joey was in love with Mai and given what Marik had done to her...

And so far all of Marik's opponents have ended up in pretty bad shape.

And that may have been a risk they had to take.

YGO

Mayet's eyes were drawn to Joey as she felt the rage growing in his heart – rage at Marik for what he'd done to Mai.

'Wake up, Wheeler,' Kaiba suddenly said. 'An amateur duellist like you can't afford to be daydreaming.'

'I was strategising!' Joey snapped.

'But to do that you have to understand how to play the game, Wheeler,' Kaiba said.

'Oh, yeah?' Joey snapped. 'Well, I got a game for you right here!'

'When are you going to realise that you don't have what it takes to compete in my tournament and you never will?' Kaiba sneered. 'And there's only one reason that you made it this far. And that's because your little friend, Yugi, keeps bailing you out.'

'Huh?' Joey asked.

'You're hopeless,' Kaiba said. 'And if you ask me, I'd say that Yugi knows that as well!'

'What?' Joey snapped.

'Think about it,' Kaiba had a wide smirk on his face. 'Why else would Yugi waste his trap card to protect you, Wheeler? Because he doesn't believe you can protect yourself! And he's right. Not only don't you have the skills to get through this, you'll also the only finalist without an Egyptian God Card!'

Joey growled.

'And Yugi knows that the only way you'll ever make it past the semi-finals is if he duels for you,' Kaiba said. 'Or perhaps he wants to duel against you next round because he knows it's an easy victory.'

'That's a lie!' the Pharaoh snapped.

'I think Yugi's just afraid to admit that he hasn't believed in you from the start. And I don't blame him.'

'Kaiba,' the Pharaoh growled. 'This time your taunting has gone way over the line!'

Kaiba smirked at him. 'Is that so? If you really want to prove me wrong, then why don't you stop protecting your friend and let him finish this duel using his own pathetic skills for a change?'

The Pharaoh glared at him. 'Kaiba!'

'Wait a second, Yug,' Joey said.

The Pharaoh looked at him. 'What's wrong, Joey?'

He didn't look happy even as he said it. 'Thanks for trying to help me out, but Kaiba's right. I gotta prove I can take care of myself. If I'm gonna win this tournament and help you save the world, I gotta do it on my own.'

The Pharaoh nodded. 'Just be careful.'

'Right. Are you finished, Kaiba?' Mayet snapped. 'Can you lay off on the mocking and let the duel get on already? I'm about to break out in hives down here.'

YGO

Serenity at by Mai's bedside, holding her hand. 'Hang in there, Mai. You're one of the strongest people I know and you'll get through this.'

She's been an inspiration to me since the day I met her.

'Joey's out there in the Battle City Finals dulling with all his heart, just like he did at Duellist Kingdom, Mai,' Serenity told her. 'Only this time, he's doing it to bring you back from the Shadow Realm.'

YGO

Meanwhile, Ishizu stood over Odion's side.

You're safe now, Odion, thanks to Marik's good side. He'd used Téa as a vessel and had come to her in the night, warning her of what his evil side had been about to do. The two of them had hurried to move Odion, hiding him first in Ishizu's room before Ishizu went looking for Sharee to get help. After all, her room was the first place the evil inside of her brother's body would look.

My brother was right. As his sworn protector, Odion was able to contain the darkness deep within Marik. But when the Winged Dragon of Ra knocked Odion unconscious, Marik's evil side completely took over...just as it did so many years ago.

Back when they were children...

On the night my father punished Odion for disobeying his order.

After they'd returned, they'd found their father had beaten Odion to within an inch of his life – an action Mayet would later condemn. Marik had stumbled forward and then the first stages of the takeover of his body had begun. Their father, however, had remained ignorant and had stepped forward to punish Marik too.

That was the first time I witnessed my brother's dark side.

He had not only blown their father back against the wall, but he had then proceeded to stab him to death with the blade concealed within the Millennium Rod – a blade none of them had been aware existed until that very moment. In her quieter moments, Ishizu had wondered if that meant there was something ancient there...something that had seen the blade of the Millennium Rod used and thus already knew it had a concealed weapon as part of its design. It would make sense given that the Pharaoh was supposed to have trapped the Ancient Evil within all seven Millennium Items.

When he'd woken up, Marik had no idea what'd happened and Odion had quickly moved to shield him from the sight of their father's body.

Odion held the Darkness back, but not before Marik killed our father – forcing me to inherit the Millennium Necklace before my time had come.

And when she put it on, she had felt a faint sense of darkness. But she had not suffered as her brother had, so it was a simple matter to push it aside, to ignore it. Instead, she focused on the plethora of visions that had washed over her mind's eye. There had been too many visions to see clearly, but she knew that the day they were waiting for...the day the Pharaoh returned, it was fast approaching.

At that moment, the doors to the future were opened up to me and I saw Marik's destiny unfold. And my vision was correct. Marik rejected his duties as a Tomb Keeper and attempted to steal all three Egyptian God Cards. It was all part of his plan to seize the power of the Pharaoh. First, Marik took the Winged Dragon of Ra from its hiding place, then he stole Slifer the Sky Dragon. All he needed was Obelisk the Tormentor.

Fortunately, Ishizu had managed to claim that one before Marik could get there and she'd confronted him in the place where it had once rested.

'Open the vault!' Marik had ordered. 'It's time to acquire the third Egyptian God Card.'

They had opened the vault, but Ishizu had been waiting inside. 'You have arrived too late, my brother.' The lights had all flicked on. 'The card you seek is no longer in this vault.' She had stepped out of the vault.

Armed guards had rushed out and surrounded Marik and his Rare Hunters.

'Well,' Marik had remarked. 'If it isn't my sister.' He'd pulled his hood off. 'What an unexpected surprise. Now, tell me, what have you done with Obelisk?'

'Marik, the Egyptian God Cards don't belong to you,' Ishizu said, 'nor does the sacred power of the Pharaoh.'

'The Pharaoh?' Marik had demanded. 'I refuse to waste my life away waiting for him! It's time for me to take my destiny in my own hands, Ishizu! So hand the card over to me, right now!'

'That's enough, Marik!' Ishizu had snapped. 'You're a Tomb Keeper, remember?'

'Of course!' Marik had grabbed at his cloak and tore it aside, revealing the scars on his back. 'How can I forget the day I was initiated, I was charged with carrying the secret to the Pharaoh's power on my back! As our father did before me. Well, that tradition ends here!'

'Marik!'

'It's no use opposing me, sister.' Marik had pulled the cloak back on. 'The power of my Millennium Rod always gets me what I want! So I'll only ask you nicely one more time: what have you done with the last remaining Egyptian God Card, my dear sister?'

'Brother, I shall never reveal that.'

Marik had growled. With a flash of his Millennium Rod, the guards all dropped. Then there was an explosion. Ishizu had raised her arms to shield her face. She didn't see her brother when he declared that he'd find the card. When the dust settled, she found the Rare Hunters and her brother had escaped through a hole in the wall. She rushed over to it.

Odion had been sitting out there with a motorbike and a sidecar. Marik climbed into the sidecar and Odion had taken off, the Rare Hunters following after.

Now, Ishizu looked down at Odion's slack face. 'You know as well as I do that Marik has an even stronger evil deep within him. And only you could keep it from surfacing, Odion.'

But when Odion lost consciousness, my brother was consumed by that evil. However, now I understand that these events were destined to occur. Just as Yugi was destined to complete the Millennium Puzzle, and Pegasus was destined to create the game of Duel Monsters, and Seto Kaiba was destined to receive Obelisk the Tormentor, and I was destined to give my Necklace away. I can only hope that it's my brother, Marik's, destiny to be saved from the Darkness that now controls his body.

YGO

The Pharaoh and Kaiba were having a stare-off.

Malik, apparently, got sick of it, and called their attention. 'All right, you two, it's time for me to take charge of this duel.' He smirked. 'It's my move.' He drew. Then he added the card to his hand and took another out of his hand. He set it. 'I place one card face down.' It appeared on the field. He took another card and played it. 'Then I'll summon Lord Poison in attack mode.' The monster appeared on the field. 'And now I'll attack you, Kaiba! So prepare to be the first unfortunate soul to feel the wrath of my deck. Are you ready?' He called the attack. 'Newdoria, attack his Vorce Raider now!'

The monster he'd summoned his last turn charged.

Kaiba looked exactly as confused as the Pharaoh felt. Vorce Raider had greater attack strength than Newdoria. It made no sense to attack him. Unless...

Malik's monster must have some kind of a special ability.

Kaiba clearly didn't think of that. 'Nice try, fool! Vorce Raider, counterattack!'

The Vorce Raider broke out from Yugi's chains and struck down Newdoria with his axe.

But Malik smirked. 'You fell into my trap. When Newdoria goes to my graveyard, I can destroy any monster on the field.' He slid the Newdoria card into his graveyard. 'So say goodbye to your Vorce Raider.' His duel disk flashed brightly.

Vorce Raider was destroyed with a bright explosion. Kaiba grunted as he covered his face.

'I'm not done yet,' Malik said. He looked down at his hand. 'Now, which one of my cards should I unleash first?' He took one from his hand and held it up.

The Pharaoh tensed as he recognised it.

'I activate Spell of Pain,' Malik said. 'But who should I direct it towards? Let's see...' He eyes skated over each of the other three. 'Ah. I think I'll use my card on little Joey!'

'Aiyyyee!' Joey jumped.

'Now you lose the points I would have lost when my monster was destroyed.' Malik played the card.

Joey's life points dropped to 3300. His platform, and his played cards, rose up, causing him to yell out in alarm.

'Joey, no!' the Pharaoh called.

Down below, their friends expressed their own concern.

'Hang in there!' Tristan called.

'I'll try,' Joey said. 'But I'm not exactly a fan of high places.'

'Come on, man!' Duke called. 'You've been in much scarier spots than this one.'

'Stay strong, Joey!' Téa coached. 'It's only a 600 foot drop.'

'Gee, thanks,' Joey muttered.

'Your move, Pharaoh,' Malik said.

'I know!' The Pharaoh drew. Kaiba has no monsters defending him. This is the perfect chance to attack his life points. 'And now, behold, Kaiba!' He set a card on the field. 'I sacrifice Big Shield Gardna to summon my Beast of Gilfer!' The monster appeared on the field with a roar. 'And now, my Beast, prepare yourself for an assault.'

Kaiba ground his teeth.

'Beast of Gilfer, attack Kaiba's life points directly!' The Beast let loose a stream of fire towards Kaiba.

'Seto, no!' Mokuba called from below.

'Guess again! Your tactics are obvious! Observe!' Kaiba flipped up his face-down card. 'You triggered my trap!' The card lit up as it activated. 'And thanks to my card, Attack Guidance Armour, I'll redirect your attack to any monster on the playing field.'

The Pharaoh ground his teeth.

'Now, of course, I could easily target your Beast of Gilfer, Yugi, or not.' Kaiba turned his gaze across the field. 'Now, let's see.'

Joey jerked back. 'Wait. Kaiba's trap card can only target monsters which means I'm safe.'

The smirk didn't move from Kaiba's face. 'Obviously my target is going to be,' he pointed across the field, 'Lord Poison! Marik's only monster!'

Malik scowled at that.

'All right, Marik,' Kaiba said, 'I aim Yugi's attack at you!'

The stream of fire from the Beast of Gilfer diverted off of Kaiba and headed for Lord Poison.

Malik smirked. 'Really?' He flipped up his own trap card. 'Not if I activate this: Mirror Force!' The card's effect took form in front of Malik's corner of the field.

Kaiba drew back. 'What?! No way!'

'Yes,' Malik said. 'So I'm able to reflect the attack back at Yugi, so your monster's destroyed.'

Now it was the Pharaoh's turn to smirk. 'Are you sure?'

Malik's eyes widened. 'What?!'

'Now, I activate my trap!' The Pharaoh's final face-down card flipped up. 'Seven Tools of the Bandit! My card deactivates your Mirror Force. Nice try, Malik, but your trap didn't work.'

Malik looked at him like he was in the middle of some unbelievable nightmare. 'Oh, no!' And the reflective barrier in front of him cracked and shattered. It fell from the field just in time for Lord Poison to catch the blast from the Beast of Gilfer. Malik covered his face and growl as his life point dropped to 3300.

His platform rose up to the same level as Joey.

'I'm not the only one who loses life points,' Malik said, looking down at the Pharaoh. 'You played Seven Tools of the Bandit, Pharaoh. That card costs you 1000 life points, so your chair rises as well.'

'I'm aware of that,' the Pharaoh said as his life points dropped to 3000 and he was raised up above both Joey and Malik.

'What's this?' Kaiba demanded, watching him go.

YGO

'Yugi's in last place now,' Téa remarked.

'I know,' Tristan said, 'but I think he lost those life points on purpose, Téa. Remember, the first two duellists to lose face each other in the semi-finals.'

Mayet nodded. 'He's aiming to be pitted against Marik.'

YGO

Yugi's still trying to protect Wheeler from duelling against Marik, Kaiba thought angrily.

Think of the devil, and he shall speak. 'My move!'

YGO

Joey looked at the cards in his hand. If I don't draw a monster now, this turn is gonna be my last. Come on, I need a winner. 'Here goes!' He drew. Awesome! He immediately played the card he'd pulled. 'I summon Gearfried the Iron Knight in attack mode!' The card appeared on the field and the monster emerged from within.

'About time he got a monster on the field!' Tristan remarked from below.

'Joey, way to go!' Téa cheered.

Now that I got a monster, it's time to do a little damage! Now, let's see...all three of them blew their face-down cards last turn. And those two have no monsters on the field. I could blast Marik. Nah! I got a better idea! He focused in on Kaiba. I'm going for Rich Boy!

'Take this, Kaiba!' Joey ordered the attack. 'Now, Gearfried, attack! Go straight for his life points!'

Gearfried charged. Kaiba's eyes widened. He had nothing to defend himself with. The attack hit. Kaiba grunted in pain.

'Big brother!' Mokuba called.

'Yeah!' Joey cheered. 'All right!' He laughed.

Kaiba looked up in disdain as his life points dropped to 2200. 'Wheeler, I assure you, you won't be laughing much longer.' His platform rose up.

'What's wrong?' Joey asked gleefully. 'Last I checked, you wanted to go to the top of your Duel Tower, Kaiba.'

YGO

Why did Joey attack Kaiba? Yugi wondered. Now Kaiba and I are closest to the top and Joey and Marik are closest to the bottom! It finally hit him. Oh, no! Joey must want to face Marik in the semi-finals!

YGO

You're mine, Marik, Joey thought. It's time for you to pay for what you did to Mai. All he could think of was her, locked away in a specially tailored nightmare in the Shadow Realm. Don't worry, Mai. As soon as I crush Marik, I'll get your mind back from the Shadow Realm, just like I promised you.

'For my last move, I'll place one card face-down and end my turn.' Joey set the card.

It appeared on the field in front of him.

YGO

'About time.' Kaiba drew. 'My move.' He looked at his card and then he looked down. If I wanna face Yugi in the semi-finals, all I have to do is make sure that he and I both lose this four-way duel. He ground his teeth in irritation. But I can't let myself lose a duel, even on purpose.

Kaiba made his move. 'I'll place three cards face-down on the field.' All three cards appeared in front of him as he set them. 'And then I'll summon the mighty Blade Knight in attack mode!' He played the card and it appeared on the field too, the monster emerging from within.

I won't throw this duel!

'Time to lose more life points, Marik!' Kaiba barked.

Marik growled in confusion.

'Now, Blade Knight, attack Marik directly!' At Kaiba's order, Blade Knight charged and attacked.

Blade Knight slashed across the Egyptian madman. Marik growled in pain. His life points dropped to 1700.

'Going up,' Kaiba jeered.

Marik's platform rose up higher than his.

Kaiba sneered. 'I hope you're not afraid of heights, Marik, because it's a long way to the top.'

Marik just glared down at him.

Kaiba smirked and looked down again. I'll make sure Marik and Wheeler lose this duel, so I face Yugi in the semi-finals. Then I'll prove once and for all that I am a far better duellist than he'll ever be. I'll pit my Obelisk the Tormentor against his Slifer the Sky Dragon! And when these two Egyptian Gods clash, Yugi will learn what "torment" is all about!