This story was done in collaboration between me and Jriddle41 (Sodormatchmaker on DeviantART), and we both own the OCs that are used in the story. Everything else belongs to their respective owners:
Thomas and Friends (c) Hit Entertainment and Mattel
The Railway Series (c) Rev Wilbert Awdry
Yu-Gi-Oh! (c) Konami
WARNING: These stories are rated either T (13-plus) or M (currently) for moments of violence, bloody moments, frightening moments, and some suggestive themes. Viewer discretion may be (or strongly is) advised.
Title: The Final Battle of Darkness, Part 1
Atop the Duel Tower, the final duel of the Battle City tournament was about to commence…but there was a slight delay in it starting. What was the hold up, you ask? Because Spencer had shown up with a little something for Thomas, and it was a card… A Spell Card…
"'Fiend's Sanctuary'?" The voice of Thomas wondered, looking at the card ('Fiend's Sanctuary') that was given to him. He was curious to know why he was given it in the first place, "This card… Why on Earth would Spencer give me it?"
Below the platform with the rest of the crowd, they were just as confused as Thomas was over what was happening.
"What was that card Spencer gave Thomas?" asked Percy.
"No idea," answered Carlie.
"Hey, Thomas!" called James, obviously not trusting Spencer one little bit, "I think Spencer probably gave you a terrible card to use. Just throw it away!"
"That'd be a big mistake," interrupted Spencer, just before looking back up at Thomas with a very serious look on his face, "The Quick-Play Spell, 'Fiend's Sanctuary', is the only card capable of stopping Marik's 'One Turn Kill' strategy, which involves 'The Winged Dragon of Ra'!" He smiled humorlessly, "Of course, I won't stop you if you don't want to use it—it only gives you a 20% chance of victory."
"I don't understand. Why would you give me a powerful card like this?" frowned Thomas, sounding confused, "I thought you hated me…?"
"Well…" Spencer said softly, closing his eyes in shame, "You see, I…was wrong."
Everyone else, with an exception for Roland, Skiff, Mr. and Mrs. Gresley (Boxford), and Dark Marik, were just as surprised to hear that, and this allowed Spencer to continue speaking…
"You and Percy were both right about what you said about me in our respective duels," confessed Spencer, "I 'did' have nothing inside of my heart but anger and hate. After losing to Percy, and having a rather stern talking to by my family, I've learned that I was letting that anger turn me into someone I really don't want to become like. Now, I want to make up for it by helping you defeat Marik."
Discord smiled, "Attaboy, Spencer-boy," he thought to himself, "I've always known you had good in your heart."
"Don't believe him, Thomas!" dismissed James, still not trusting Spencer one bit, "He just wants sympathy for his attitude problem! Do me a favor and throw that card away!"
On the platform, Thomas was silent… but eventually added the 'Fiend's Sanctuary' Spell Card into his Deck, much to, below the platform, the red-haired boy's shock.
"Wh-What?!" stammered James, as he began to protest, "D-Did you seriously just add that-?"
Back on the platform…
"I'll trust in you and your card, Spencer," thought Thomas. He then looked below the platform and spoke aloud, "I'll successfully use your card to defeat Marik!"
Below the platform, Spencer merely watched on quietly, while, back on the platform, Dark Marik only chuckled to himself.
"The poor fool," thought Dark Marik, "He'll need all the help he can get to stop me!"
"Thank you, Spencer," praised Ishizu softly.
"I just hope this was the right choice," commented Spencer, "Even if it was, the duel won't be easy for Billinton to win."
"I know that…" The young Egyptian woman replied, "But even still, the duel must be won—or I'll never see my little brother again."
Over with the rest of the gang…
"Why hasn't Emily come back yet?" pressed Molly, getting a bit worried.
"She was pretty stressed out not long ago," James R. pointed out, "Maybe she decided to go and take a nap aboard the blimp?"
"But she'll miss out on the big duel!" objected Gordon.
Back on the platform…
"Thomas, I don't know what card Spencer gave you, but I'm afraid it's useless!" insisted Dark Marik madly, "It won't do anything against 'Ra'!"
"Marik, know this—I'm going to make you pay for all of the destruction you've caused throughout, and those you've hurt!" promised Thomas, pointing at his enemy, "I will save the real Marik from the darkness that is you!"
Dark Marik chuckled in response. Below the duel platform, Percy had a few words to say to his friends…
"This won't be easy," mumbled Percy.
"Yeah, we kinda knew that," retorted Gordon.
"I mean for Thomas to Summon his 'Egyptian God' monsters," corrected Percy.
"I think you're right about that," agreed Henry, "Now that Thomas has two of 'em, it might not be easy for them both to be Summoned."
"Yeah," put in James R., as transparent images of the 'Obelisk the Tormentor' Effect Monster Card and the 'Slifer the Sky Dragon' Effect Monster Card were superimposed over him, "As we all know, 'Obelisk the Tormentor' and 'Slifer the Sky Dragon' both need three Tributes to be Summoned…"
"But 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' could just be Special Summoned from the GY with a simple card like 'Monster Reborn'…" added Matt, as a transparent image of the 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' Effect Monster Card was superimposed over him, "Which also leads into a possible new strategy."
"Whatever the strategy could be," reminded Michael gruffly.
Before long, Roland, also standing on the platform, raised an arm into the air and made an announcement of some sort.
"And now, the final duel of the Battle City tournament will commence! The winner of the match shall be crowned the Duel King of the Island of Sodor!" boomed Roland, as focus went towards both duelists, "The players are Thomas Billinton and Marik Ishtar!" He then made a request, "Will both players approach and shuffle each other's Deck, please?"
Obeying the direct order from the referee, Thomas and Dark Marik walked and met up with each other in the middle of the field and began shuffling their Decks (Thomas shuffled Dark Marik's Deck, while Dark Marik shuffled Thomas's Deck).
"Shuffle well, and pray that 'Ra' sinks to the bottom of the Deck," teased Dark Marik.
Thomas ignored that remark and continued to shuffle. Below the platform…
"Spencer…" began Ishizu, looking to her ally.
"I did as you asked; I decided to help Billinton out," Spencer pointed out, looking over as Ishizu listened to him, "But even then, it will be very hard for him to perform a miracle against an opponent like Marik's dark half!" He frowned over the stone tablet, "That stone slab, while truthful, has nothing to do with me. To be frank, it's just a relic. Civilizations are built from time and the ashes of countless people… the millions of forgotten dead. I may have a connection to someone who lived 3000 years ago, but I have far better things to do."
"You're wrong," countered Ishizu, "They may have been destined for destruction, but the human spirit is eternal.
"Hmph! As intelligent and radiant as ever," huffed Spencer, "But you do know that if Billinton does lose, your brother can't be saved."
"I know," replied Ishizu calmly, "But I believe he will win. The power of friendship will defeat the 'God' wielded by a dark mind."
Spencer looked over again and, this time, studied Ishizu's face, mainly her eyes, very closely. Before long, he gasped in realization.
"If her brother can't be saved," thought Spencer, as focus went towards Ishizu, "she'll commit suicide!"
At last, on the platform, the two duelists finished shuffling their Decks.
"Here you are…" The voice of Dark Marik oozed, again teasingly, handing Thomas's Deck back. He then took his Deck back, "Do you suppose 'Ra' sank to the bottom?"
"Only the cards will tell how this duel will play out," said Thomas, placing his own Deck in his Duel Disk, "It has already shown me your defeat!"
"Blah blah blah!" cackled Dark Marik, "Keep talking so you won't have any regrets for leaving anything unsaid!"
Below the platform, Spencer watched on as his parents and brother joined him by his side.
"This is it," mused Skiff.
"The final battle," frowned Mrs. Gresley (Boxford).
Nearby with everyone else…
"Go, Thomas, go!" called Molly.
"'Ra' doesn't scare you!" encouraged James, "Kick Marik's ass!"
"You have to win this match!" requested Percy.
"The fate of Battle City… the fate of the Ishtar clan…" Ishizu thought to herself, "No… the fate of all of us now lies in your hands… my Pharaoh. Defeat the evil side of Marik… obtain the key to unlock your hidden memories! And…please save Marik… I beg of you!"
Back on the platform…
"Let the final duel commence!" announced Roland.
The two duelists activated their Duel Disks and drew their opening hands (LP: 4000) x2. With their hands drawn, Dark Marik was readying his Millennium Rod.
"And now for the moment I've been waiting for!" he said with evil glee, "Prepare yourself, Thomas Billinton, for the Ultimate Shadow Game! I go first!"
After licking the eye of his Millennium Item (much to the disgust of some of the spectators), the evil man held it out as it began glowing all gold-like. On cue, the familiar Shadow Realm fog covered the whole area.
"Again?!" cried Henry.
"A Shadow Game!" added Mavis.
"Thomas… stay strong," whispered Percy.
On the platform, Dark Marik was laughing wickedly, while Thomas scowled at the motion of taking part in a Shadow Game.
"These Shadow Games are really starting to tick me off," thought Thomas bitterly, before speaking aloud, "Why not quit hiding behind your shadows and fight like a True Duelist!"
"Oh, but you're forgetting one little thing, boy; I AM the shadows!" retorted Dark Marik. He then put on a very evil looking smile, "But I have to say… my battle with you will be the greatest Shadow Game the world will soon come to see and know! Darkness will cover the Earth, and the gate to Hell will open up!"
Dark Marik resumed his savage-sounding laughter, while Thomas stared on defiantly before he (Dark Marik) calmed himself slightly to speak some more…
"And now, for the surprises this duel has to offer," he continued, "But first, a little reminder of what you're fighting for."
(elsewhere…)
Back inside the medical room aboard the blimp, both Liz and Ryan returned to look after Lady and Duck… but their attention was mainly on Lady.
"Time is running out," remarked Liz unhappily.
"If Thomas either doesn't win within the remaining time, or if he loses," put in Ryan, "Lady will never wake up."
The couple looked out the window at the Duel Tower… but mainly the top (which had the orb of the Shadow Realm surrounding it).
"I hope he'll be alright," The voice of Liz pleaded, speaking about Thomas.
"Me too… me too…" agreed Ryan, embracing his wife
(elsewhere…)
Back inside the Shadow Realm atop the Duel Tower, Dark Marik was wagging his tongue about tauntingly.
"And now… my very first surprise!" began Dark Marik
He raised his Millennium Rod up, made it glow, and unveiled his first of many 'surprises' for the Shadow Game… In the sky above the middle part of the platform, a familiar hourglass filled with insects lowered down a bit.
"Lady!" cried Thomas.
"NO!" screamed Percy.
Dark Marik laughed madly, "Can you see the poor girl?" he pressed, as focus went towards Lady Stone, "The sacrificial offering to the darkness? The insects eating away at her are already at her chest level with just a mere two hours left until her life…ends!"
"Help me… Someone please…" echoed Lady weakly.
"You bastard!" snarled Thomas.
"Why, thank you," replied Dark Marik, acting like that insult was a mere compliment, "I guess you can say this whole Shadow Game is a festival of darkness. So, shouldn't we pile all of our offerings on the table for the shadows to feast?"
"What are you-?" started Thomas.
"I believe I've told you already; I already have the perfect Shadow Game in mind to not only kill you… but to torture you, also," recalled Dark Marik. He licked his lips with a crazed expression on his bulging face, "Now, I'll show you my next surprise!"
With the swing of his right arm while armed with the Millennium Rod, appearing from the shadows above Dark Marik was Light Marik. His arms and legs were bound with shackles, and the reformed Rare Hunter leader was barely conscious.
"That's Marik's good half!" gasped Thomas.
"Marik!" screamed Ishizu in horror.
"That's right," said Dark Marik snidely. His smile then grew crueler than ever before—the one thing that he (Dark Marik) knew would make Thomas crack, "And now, I've saved the best surprise for last!"
He held up his Millennium Rod up near Thomas. On cue, a familiar human body shape began to materialize above him. Below the platform, everyone watched carefully until a few of the spectators gave a barely audible gasp.
"I-It can't be!" came from Mavis.
Up on the platform, Thomas also let out a shocked gasp at who was his sacrifice.
"No! Not her!" he thought to himself.
It was none other than Emily Stirling. Slowly, she began to wake up.
"Wh-What happened?" pondered Emily groggily, "Where am I?"
Gazing around, she saw her friends below the platform looking at her with looks of horror.
"What's wrong with all of you? Is there something on my face…?" The voice of Emily quizzed.
No one spoke still, although Emily's answer came, anyway, when she saw that her arms and legs were shackled to an invisible wall of some sort.
"What the-?!" Emily cried out, now extremely panicked, "Where am I?! What's going on?!"
"Emily!" exclaimed Thomas, before he (Thomas) heard Dark Marik beginning to laugh, "You! What the hell did you do?!"
"It's a funny story actually…" Dark Marik commented, chuckling in sick amusement.
A flashback began.
FLASHBACK
Inside Flashback Thomas's room aboard the blimp, Flashback Emily finished filling a tall glass full of ice cold water.
"There we go," she sighed, relieved, "Some nice ice water."
Taking her glass, Flashback Emily knew she had to return to watch Percy's duel and began to approach the exit.
"I'd better go back to the duel," thought Flashback Emily, "Percy likely needs all the support he can get if he's facing a duelist like Spencer."
(outside…)
The door to the room opened, and Flashback Emily started to step outside of it, only to turn and bump into someone, knocking her over and spilling the glass of water onto her shirt.
"H-Hey! Watch it!" snapped Flashback Emily, "You made me spill my water!"
"My apologies, dear!" The voice of Flashback Dark Marik apologized remorselessly.
Flashback Emily started to gaze angrily at the person who bumped into her, but froze in immense fear at who it was.
"Y-You…!" spluttered Flashback Emily.
The person Emily Stirling bumped into was absolutely the worst one of them all; it was a smiling Flashback Dark Marik, indeed.
"What are you doing here?" demanded Flashback Emily, backing away while looking very frightened.
"I'm arranging a little 'surprise' for Thomas in our upcoming duel," remarked Flashback Dark Marik, beginning to slowly raise his glowing Millennium Rod up, "And it involves you, little lady!"
Too scared to move, poor Flashback Emily didn't even have any time to scream before she collapsed onto the ground with widened, yet dull, eyes.
END FLASHBACK
The flashback ended.
"Well now… what do you think of my surprise?" joked Dark Marik, "It was so hard for me to pick out a gift, after all!"
He resumed his sadistic laughter, while Thomas started shaking violently. This anger… he hadn't felt anything like it in months. Not like how Thomas felt that same anger when Sailor John had seemingly killed Emily in that duel in the San Francisco tournament. Now that anger was back, and with fiery vengeance.
"You've gone too far this time, Marik!" roared Thomas, just as a familiar dark aura began to resurface around him, "I WILL MAKE YOU PAY DEARLY FOR HURTING HER LIKE THIS!"
"Not far 'enough'!" denied Dark Marik, still smiling, "Out of all I've tortured throughout my release, I'll get the pleasure of torturing you the most—and what better way to get you to release all of your anger and hate other than to potentially harm or kill the one girl you love the most?!"
Thomas clenched his empty fist in great fury, but before he could say anything…
"Now, now, let's not be hasty!" Dark Marik cut in, "You'll understand in due time! Or, rather, I'll 'make you' understand…!" He then drew a card, "Now then, I'll take the first turn! Draw!"
Turn One: Dark Marik (LP: 4000)
Deck: 54
Current Hand (6): "Vampiric Leech", "The Winged Dragon of Ra", "Mind Drain", "Dark Spell Regeneration", "Juragedo", and "Zombie's Jewel"
Adding the drawn card to his hand, he then placed another card ('Vampiric Leech') onto a Monster Zone on his Duel Disk.
"I Summon 'Vampiric Leech'!" The voice of Dark Marik announced, as the mentioned Monster Card materialized face-up on the field, "Attack Position!"
Appearing from the face-up card and on the field, was a large leech with sharp teeth and red tentacles (Level: 4/ATK: 500/DEF: 1200).
"Attack the player!" commanded Dark Marik.
"What?!" exclaimed Thomas in surprise, hearing that his opponent declared an attack on the first turn.
Unfortunately, 'Vampiric Leech' obeyed without hesitation, striking Thomas with its tentacles, causing him to cry out slightly in pain (LP: 4000 → 3500).
"Thomas, no!" called Percy.
"That's illegal!" accused James R..
"I think not," retorted Dark Marik, "'Vampiric Leech's' second effect speaks for itself! This card can attack from the first turn!"
He then burst into evil laughter over his successful first attack. Thomas gave a grimace in response—not like Dark Marik really cared all that much (if at all).
"Both players will feel all of the attacks inflicted on the player," remarked Dark Marik coldly, just as his excitement then grew, "And, now, watch this!"
Suddenly, Emily screamed in pain as part of her arm was eaten away by the shadows.
"Emily!" shouted Thomas in shock.
Dark Marik cackled more, "Your precious sacrifice is devoured by the darkness based on the amount of LP you lose!"
"What did you say?" seethed Thomas.
"Every time one of us loses LP," Dark Marik was saying, going over the rules of the Shadow Game as Light Marik remained hung in midair, "our sacrifices lose parts of their body. When a duelist's LP hits 0, that sacrifice will die. And once YOUR sacrifice goes into the world of darkness, so do you! Those are the rules of this Shadow Game, Thomas!"
He then began to laugh like a psychopath yet again. Thomas felt more and more fear, helplessness, and anger sweeping through his body, right now.
"I… I'm fine," Emily winced, trying to reassure Thomas despite her lying, "Don't worry about me, and just focus on defeating this sick psycho!"
But Thomas could tell right away she was lying. She was in pain. And the worst part about it? Once again, there was 'nothing' he could do about it but 'let' her suffer.
"Not again… It's always the same," thought Thomas, "No matter what I say or do, Emily 'always' ends up being harmed."
A few flashbacks ensued.
FLASHBACK
The first was the time he held Young Emily close when they were both children, having finally worked up the courage to admit that she was being bullied.
"From the moment Emily confessed her troubles to me," narrated Thomas, "I made a promise that I would do whatever I could to ensure she would 'never' be hurt again."
(new scene…)
But alas, fate had 'other' plans in store for the two, as a new flashback showed Thomas's duel against Flashback Commander Laura and, despite his victory, she (Flashback Commander Laura) chose to try drowning Flashback Emily out of spite. Not willing to lose Flashback Emily, Flashback Thomas dove into the ocean after her.
"But then Laura kidnapped and tried to drown her," continued Thomas, as he remembered Flashback Emily seemingly dying in his arms during his (Flashback Thomas) duel against Flashback Sailor John after she was struck by 'Five-Headed Dragon's' attack, "Then Sailor John…"
END FLASHBACK
The flashback ended as tears of frustration seemed to trickle down Thomas's face.
"Dammit! Why must she 'always' be harmed whenever I try to protect her?" he thought to himself, "Why is this happening to 'her'?!"
"Ahhh… It's so nice," sighed Dark Marik emotionlessly, watching Thomas appearing distressed, "Keep squirming and shouting… Every time the poor girl does so, excitement and pleasure runs through my body!"
His face started stretching out grossly like bad animation as his voice grew more and more disoriented as he moaned suggestively—mainly just to taunt his opponent. It was then Thomas couldn't take it any longer.
"Never again! I will protect Emily!" yelled Thomas desperately.
Suddenly, his Millennium Puzzle began to glow all gold as, as if on command, the shadows that ate Emily's arm began to wince as if in pain!
"What is-?!" complained Dark Marik.
Within seconds, the lost section of Emily's arm was restored, as if the shadows were spitting it up.
"My arm!" cried Emily happily, "Thomas, look at…" Her excitement didn't last when she saw the shadows that tried to eat 'her' now turning their attention to Thomas, seeping through his chest as if to eat at his heart, "Thomas?"
"The p-pain…" coughed Thomas, clutching his chest and breathing hard.
With the rest of the gang down below…
"What just happened?" blinked James.
"Somehow Thomas's Millennium Puzzle activated on its own and restored the bit of the arm Emily lost," answered Edward.
"But upon doing so," put in Matt, "he suddenly is in pain."
At last, Thomas, back on the platform, got back up onto his feet…rather weakly.
"What… what happened to me?" The blue-haired boy groaned.
"Hmph! It would seem you activated another special power of your Millennium Puzzle," grunted Dark Marik, "It grants you a somewhat minor control over darkness. As such, you forced the shadows to spit out the piece of your little friend."
"Then I will use it to keep Emily safe from you," vowed Thomas firmly.
"However," Dark Marik went on, grinning maliciously, "the shadows do not take kindly to their feast being ruined—especially one so 'delicious' as your dearly beloved. So if they cannot feast upon the sacrifice, then they will make do with feasting on you instead."
"They will try to eat me?" repeated Thomas.
"Oh, for sure," smirked Dark Marik, looking at his beloved Millennium Rod, "The rules of the Shadow Games are just until the end. Anyone who chooses to defy them will suffer the consequences in a slow, deadly way," He (Dark Marik) looked back up at Thomas, with that smile growing more and more sadistic, "So let me ask you this; are you truly willing to let yourself be killed just to protect this pathetic, weak human you call a friend?"
There was a brief silence in the crowd. It would seem that Thomas was now being given a serious choice to make; risk sacrificing Emily to save the rest of the world from the darkness, or sacrifice himself to save 'Emily'. At long last, Thomas spoke up to answer Dark Marik's question.
"Yes," confirmed Thomas in defiance, "For far too long, I've stood idly by while people I care for were harmed. So if killing myself is the 'only' way to ensure Emily is never hurt again, so be it!" From there, he looked to the shadows above, "You hear that?! So long as I live, I will 'never' allow you to consume even a 'piece' of Emily!" He clenched his fist tightly, "If you wish for even a chance at it, then you will have to kill 'me' first!"
The shadows seemed to briefly pulse as if to accept the challenge of the fool who dared to oppose it. Dark Marik responded by giving a quiet snicker before erupting into more psychotic laughter.
"Then I will not hold anything back in this fight to the death!" promised Dark Marik excitedly, "And don't forget that when I lose LP, my own offering gets eaten by the shadows!" Light Marik was shown to be barely conscious, "That means if I lose, he will die."
"But then won't you fade away into darkness, too?" protested Thomas.
"Perhaps I will. After all, this happens to be a very fair fight between users of the Millennium Items," mused Dark Marik, but in his personal thoughts, "Just kidding… If I send your lovely little sacrifice to the underworld, you'll die alongside her, Thomas! As for me, if my handy 'host' goes to the underworld, I'll simply remain alive permanently!"
His quiet snickers could be heard by Thomas, and he was in his thoughts over the situation thus far.
"He must be lying through his teeth," thought Thomas, "Marik's dark side doesn't seem to have any care for what happens to his good half, and will stop at nothing to throw him away into the Shadow Realm. If so, that means he will stay even if I win the duel. And if I lose, then Emily and I will both be lost in the darkness forever. What can I do about it…?"
"You have to fight!" The voice of Emily spoke up.
Thomas blinked and looked up to his captured friend. Did Emily…just speak to him mentally?
"You have to fight him, Thomas. A True Duelist never gives up. If it were me who's dueling Marik's evil half and you were my sacrifice, I certainly wouldn't let him keep me down!" reminded Emily.
"Emily…" whispered Thomas.
"I don't approve of you willingly getting yourself killed just to protect me, but that's not the main issue right now," Emily continued, "Defeat Marik's evil heart! Find the light you're searching for!"
"You're right," agreed Thomas, nodding in agreement, "I'll find that light and keep fighting," He closed his eyes and went into his thoughts, "Marik… you…and those who had fallen to those Shadow Games! Lady… and Duck…" He opened his eyes fiercely and got into a dueling stance, "I will save them all no matter WHAT it takes!"
Dark Marik, upon seeing that Thomas was going to fight him, was very happy to see that. Even 'more' so by the fact that now 'Thomas' was going to be inflicted by the Shadow Game's penalty instead of Emily.
"I'm glad to see that it's not going to just be a simple death," praised Dark Marik, "I'm going to so enjoy torturing you and Emily both to the brink of death. But for now, I'll activate 'Vampiric Leech's' first effect!"
"It has 'another' effect?" Thomas asked.
"How observant!" teased Dark Marik, who then took a card from his hand, "But to answer your question, yes. During the turn this card battles: I can discard 1 card; I must change this card to Defense Position during the End Phase."
The card he took was the 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' Effect Monster Card (not seen), and immediately sent it to the GY.
"This card should be discarded due to how useless it is," Dark Marik said aloud, but in his unstable mind it was a different story entirely, "Can you not even sense the terror of 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' having entered my GY?"
'Vampiric Leech' went into a defensive stance (ATK: 500 → DEF: 1200).
"The moment that 'Monster Reborn' enters my hand, your death will be within the blink of an eye!" thought Dark Marik, as an image of the 'Monster Reborn' Spell Card was shown beside him, "This will be so much fun… Look forward to it!"
"What card did he place in his GY?" thought Thomas, "Could it already be 'Ra'…?"
Dark Marik then slotted two cards into his Duel Disk, causing two face-down cards to materialize on the field.
"Now, I'll Set two cards face-down and end my turn!" concluded Dark Marik.
Back below the platform, Spencer had his arms folded and scowled a bit from watching Dark Marik's first turn play.
"Damn that Marik! If that card he discarded is what I think it is," thought Spencer, "then all Marik needs now is 'Monster Reborn'. From there, Billinton will be in big trouble if he doesn't have 'Fiend's Sanctuary' in play."
Back on the platform…
"It's my turn!" exclaimed Thomas, drawing a card, "Draw!"
Turn Two: Thomas Billinton (LP: 3500)
Deck: 54
Current Hand (6): "Queen's Knight", "King's Knight", "Kuriboh", "Ragnarok", "Token Gesture"(!), and "Exchange"
His drawn card was the 'Exchange' Spell Card.
"This could help me out, soon," thought Thomas, who then took two cards from his hand, "I Set two cards face-down…" He slotted both cards into separate Spell & Trap Zones on his Duel Disk, then placed another card ('Queen's Knight') onto a Monster Zone, "I also Summon 'Queen's Knight' in Attack Position!"
Two face-down cards materialized on the field, followed by the female 'Poker Knight' monster also appearing on the field, readying herself for battle (Level: 4/ATK: 1500/DEF: 1600).
"'King's Knight'… 'Queen's Knight'… 'Jack's Knight'…" Dark Marik told himself, full of excitement, "The Three Musketeers of Face Cards! They can help you Summon an 'Egyptian God' monster much more easily… but I'm afraid they won't help you, this time!"
"'Queen's Knight'," commanded Thomas, having entered the Battle Phase, "destroy 'Vampiric Leech'!" From there, 'Queen's Knight' charged into battle, aiming to bring down 'Vampiric Leech', "Queen's Saber Crash!"
'Queen's Knight' brought down her sword and slashed at Dark Marik's monster while giving out an almighty yell, easily destroying 'Vampiric Leech' while causing a large cloud of purple smoke to erupt all around the arena. Dark Marik, however, just grinned in response. All of a sudden, the silhouette of another monster began to appear in the purple smoke
"What the-?!" gawked Thomas.
Even 'Queen's Knight' was surprised by the new monster showing itself.
"'Vampiric Leech' is killed," snickered Dark Marik, gaining some major LP (LP: 4000 → 5000), "However, that allows me to activate the effect of 'Juragedo'!"
"'Juragedo'?" repeated Thomas.
A blue demonic-like monster revealed itself from the clearing smoke, taking the place of the previous monster (Level: 4/ATK: 1700/DEF: 1300).
"During the Battle Step (Quick Effect): I can Special Summon this card from my hand, and if I do, gain 1000 LP," explained Dark Marik, "I should thank you for attacking my weaker monster without thinking!"
He broke into maniacal laughter. Below the platform, the spectators were dismayed.
"Well, $*#^," mumbled James unhappily.
"Thomas stepped right into that one!" complained Toby.
"And I think I'll put those LP you gave me to good use!" bragged Dark Marik, before holding his right hand out, "I pay 1000 LP as a cost to activate my Continuous Trap, 'Mind Drain'!" His first Set card flipped face-up and revealed itself, "Neither player can activate the effects of monsters in the hand!"
Once again, even as he lost LP from his own card, he laughed madly (LP: 5000 → 4000). Below the platform…
"So broken…" muttered James R. bitterly.
Back on the platform, Thomas looked at his hand, knowing one of the cards there was the 'Kuriboh' Effect Monster Card, who's effect was rendered useless thanks to Dark Marik's 'Mind Drain' Trap Card—at the very least, Dark Marik was also affected his own Trap Card.
"I end my turn," scowled Thomas.
Dark Marik wagged his tongue about some more before drawing his card.
"It's my turn!" he remarked, drawing a card, "Draw!"
Turn Three: Dark Marik (LP: 4000)
Deck: 53
Current Hand (2): "Zombie's Jewel" and "Pot of Greed"
On cue, the 'Pot of Greed' Spell Card flipped face-up and revealed itself.
"Spell Card, 'Pot of Greed'!" The voice of Dark Marik proclaimed, as he was shown drawing two cards, "I must draw 2 cards!" He saw the two cards ('Left Arm Offering' and 'Vengeful Bog Spirit') and smiled insanely, "I drew a great card with this! But I think I'll hold off on using it for now."
Thomas winced, as Dark Marik added the cards to his hand, and the Battle Phase began.
"And finally, I'll strike back!" hollered Dark Marik, entering his Battle Phase as 'Juragedo' rushed forward, "'Juragedo', kill 'Queen's Knight'!"
'Juragedo' obeyed, slashing 'Queen's Knight' across the chest with its claws. 'Queen's Knight' screamed as she fell down and shattered into pieces of glass.
"'Queen's Knight'!" cried Thomas.
"'Queen's Knight' has been beheaded!" laughed Dark Marik, "And now, since you take damage, your special someone will suffer as a result!"
Thomas merely lost LP from the attack (LP: 3500 → 3300), but that brief moment was interrupted as he gave a cry of pain as the shadows seemed through his heart, attempting to punish him for protecting Emily.
"Thomas!" Emily shrieked.
"And this is what you get as a result!" cackled Dark Marik, "Using your powers to protect others instead of using them to get your way!"
"I…won't let Emily be hurt!" countered Thomas weakly, "Not even if my own life depended on it!"
Just then, two more face-down cards materialized on Dark Marik's field near his feet.
"I Set two cards face-down!" concluded Dark Marik, "I end my turn!"
Down in the crowd, some of the spectators were giving their comments on the battle so far, and not many of them sounded positive about the whole thing.
"This Shadow Game has got to be by far the most dangerous we've ever seen," figured Matt, "Each time a duelist takes damage, their sacrifices get eaten by the shadows."
"But thanks to Thomas's own power," added Carlie, "'Emily' won't be affected by it. The downside is that the shadows will start eating away at 'Thomas' instead."
"As noble as his intentions are," Ishizu interrupted, getting the attention of the two members of Team 4D's, "I fear this could lead to the boy's own downfall if he continues to defy the forces of darkness."
Back on the platform…
"It's my turn!" yelled Thomas determinedly, "Draw!"
Turn Four: Thomas Billinton (LP: 3300)
Deck: 53
Current Hand (4): "King's Knight", "Kuriboh", "Ragnarok", and "De-Fusion"
He had a small smirk as he added his drawn card into his hand, but Dark Marik began to laugh at that exact point…
"I activate a Trap Card!" interrupted Dark Marik, pressing a button on his Duel Disk, "'Left Arm Offering'!"
His first face-down card (the left one) flipped up and revealed itself.
"Not that card!" flinched Thomas in shock.
"I must send all cards from my hand to the GY; I must add 1 Spell from my Deck to my hand," explained Dark Marik, as focus went towards the face-up 'Left Arm Offering', "This is one of my favorite cards!" He then held up his hand and sent it to the GY, "Now I'll discard my hand and add a Spell Card from my Deck into my hand," After adding a card, he snickered quietly, "And I bet you know which one I want, right? 'Monster Reborn'!"
Just then…
"Face-down card, open!" announced Thomas, as one of his two face-down cards flipped up and revealed itself, "'Exchange'!"
"No!" bellowed Dark Marik crossly.
"Both players reveal their hands and add 1 card from each other's hand to their hand," reminded Thomas. He then held his hand out (without showing what the cards were), "So… come over and choose a card!"
Cursing loudly, Dark Marik reluctantly walked over to the blue-haired boy's field.
"Alright, fine!" he muttered.
Once both duelists met face-to-face, Thomas took the 'Monster Reborn' Spell Card and Dark Marik surprisingly took the 'De-Fusion' Spell Card. Below the platform…
"Well, Marik, you've lost 'Monster Reborn' so easily…" Spencer chuckled to himself, "I should almost feel sorry for you!"
"Good strategy, Thomas!" called James.
"Now Marik won't be able to Summon 'Ra' from the GY!" cheered Mavis.
"That's our boy!" added Gordon.
Back on the platform, as Dark Marik walked back to his spot on the platform, he began to laugh to himself as though he was anticipating such a counter and was prepared with his own if necessary.
"Enjoy that 'Monster Reborn' to the fullest," thought Dark Marik, just as he gazed at one of his other two face-down cards ('Dark Spell Regeneration'), "Because it may come back to haunt you in the end."
"I activate the Spell Card, 'Monster Reborn'!" declared Thomas, holding up the 'just' obtained 'Monster Reborn' Spell Card, "I must target 1 monster in either GY; I must Special Summon it!" He slotted it into a Spell & Trap Zone on his Duel Disk, "Resurrect, 'Queen's Knight'!"
'Queen's Knight' reappeared on the field like nothing had happened to her (Level: 4/ATK: 1500/DEF: 1600).
"Next, I'll Summon 'King's Knight'!" The voice of Thomas went on, placing a card ('King's Knight') onto a Monster Zone on his Duel Disk. The device immediately lit up, "Attack Position!"
The male 'Poker Knight' monster appeared on the field (Level: 4/ATK: 1600/DEF: 1400).
"When this card is Normal or Special Summoned while I control 'Queen's Knight': I can Special Summon 1 'Jack's Knight' from my Deck," stated Thomas, going over his monster's sole effect before holding up a card ('Jack's Knight') taken from his Deck and placing it onto his Duel Disk, "Come, 'Jack's Knight'!"
Dark Marik growled to himself, watching as the taller, male 'Poker Knight' monster appeared on the field (Level: 5/ATK: 1900/DEF: 1000).
"'King's Knight'! 'Queen's Knight'! 'Jack's Knight'!" The voice of Thomas bragged, as focus went towards 'King's Knight', 'Queen's Knight', and 'Jack's Knight' in that order, "Possessing the maximum speed Summon ability, the 'Three Musketeers of Face Cards' have gathered!"
Below the platform…
"Alright!" cheered Percy, "Now he's got enough monsters to deal some serious damage to Marik!"
Back on the platform, Dark Marik let out a low laugh, almost like he (Dark Marik) had been expecting Thomas to call out the three 'Poker Knight' monsters.
"Nice job in using my 'Monster Reborn' to the fullest," Dark Marik complimented sarcastically, "Does this mean you will strike me down with your newly Summoned 'Poker Knights'?"
Thomas was considering it, but then a nasty thought came to him…
"What if he's trying to bait me into a trap?" thought Thomas, "I think I'm better off waiting until I draw one of my two 'Egyptian God' Cards."
"You don't even have a 'God' in your hand, Thomas," thought Dark Marik. He then licked his lips again and spoke aloud, "What's the matter, you coward?! Are you afraid of my Set cards? Attack me, now! Don't be such a big baby!"
The evil man let out another loud, long maniacal laugh as the veins on his vein-exposed face bulged insanely. Thomas stared on defiantly, but didn't say anything back.
"It doesn't even matter what you do! You can't beat me, anyway!" mocked Dark Marik.
"His face-down cards must be terrifying Trap Cards," thought Thomas, before casting a quick glance towards Emily to see what she thought of the situation, "What do you think, Emily?"
"We can't take a chance in attacking, right now! We could potentially lose our only monsters if the card really is a Trap…" replied Emily.
"I see," assumed Thomas, before addressing Dark Marik, "I end my turn."
Below the platform, much of the gang was disappointed from Thomas deciding to not attack his opponent directly.
"He didn't attack," worried Carlie.
"I think it was a good thing Thomas-boy didn't attack," assured Discord wisely.
"Yeah," agreed Matt, "Those face-down cards could be a big threat to Thomas's three monsters—a 'God' will be better suited to attack Marik."
Back on the platform…
"Your cowardness bought you another turn," Dark Marik thought to himself, "But mark my words, you will burn to death by the flames of 'Egyptian God Phoenix'!" He spoke aloud before drawing a card, "It's my turn! Draw!"
Turn Five: Dark Marik (LP: 4000)
Deck: 50
Current Hand (2): "De-Fusion" and "Card of Sanctity"
Immediately, Dark Marik slotted one of the two cards from his hand into his Duel Disk.
"I Set one card face-down!" declared Dark Marik.
A third face-down card materialized on the field beside the other two Set cards.
"Thomas, I know you don't have a 'God' Card in your hand…" accused Dark Marik, "To be honest, I think it's pitiful to see you struggling to draw one during your Draw Phase…" While he rambled on, Thomas and Emily both listened, "Especially if it happens to be one called 'Slifer the Sky Dragon'… That 'God' gets weaker the less cards you have in your hand!" He readied his drawn card, "So, allow me to give you a present!"
From there, Dark Marik bit into the card in-question for a second before holding it out to show Thomas.
"I activate the Spell Card, 'Card of Sanctity'!" started Dark Marik.
The mentioned Spell Card materialized face-up on the field, much to Thomas's surprise.
"Each player draws until they have 6 cards in their hand," explained Dark Marik, "Now then… draw cards until you have a 'God' in your hand!"
"He's letting me fill up my hand," thought Thomas, "He must want me to have drawn 'Slifer'!"
Both duelists drew their cards and refreshed their hands:
-Thomas: Four cards
-Dark Marik: Six cards
"I think you're gonna regret doing that, Marik!" grinned Thomas, while adding his four drawn cards to his hand. He then grimaced when he saw that he didn't draw what he needed, "On second thought…"
"So, did you draw a 'God' Card?" pressed Dark Marik, before smiling wickedly, "Don't answer that, because I know you didn't!" He then placed two fingers on the 'Juragedo' Effect Monster Card on his Duel Disk and switched it sideways, "Now, I'll switch 'Juragedo' into Defense Position!" 'Juragedo' knelt into a defensive stance (ATK: 1700 DEF: → 1300), and he entered his End Phase, "I end my turn!"
"Here I go, Marik!" announce Thomas, drawing a card, "Draw!"
Turn Six: Thomas Billinton (LP: 3300)
Deck: 50
Current Hand (7): "Ragnarok", "Kuriboh", "Dark Magician Girl", "Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts", "Magical Dimension", "Dark Magician", and "Slifer the Sky Dragon"
Although he didn't look at it, Thomas sensed he had drawn 'that' card.
"I've drawn it, now," thought Thomas, adding his drawn card to his hand. Currently, his hand consisted of 'Ragnarok', 'Kuriboh', 'Dark Magician Girl', 'Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts', 'Magical Dimension', 'Dark Magician', and the drawn 'Slifer the Sky Dragon', "If I Summon 'Slifer' now, it will have 6000 ATK. The 'God' will then be able to deal near fatal damage to Marik."
"Will he do it?" Dark Marik asked himself, mentally, "I'm hoping he does Summon it."
To answer his question, he watched as Thomas took his drawn card into the air before making the big move.
"I Tribute my three 'Poker Knights'!" The voice of Thomas thundered, as focus went towards 'Queen's Knight', 'King's Knight', and 'Jack's Knight' and they each faded away in red, yellow, and blue streaks respectively. He placed his card ('Slifer the Sky Dragon') onto a Monster Zone on his Duel Disk, "I Tribute Summon 'Slifer the Sky Dragon'!"
In a powerful blast of red energy, the huge red serpent-like Dragon God lowered itself from the dark storm clouds until it was on the field behind Thomas while roaring into the face of a very excited-looking Dark Marik.
"So, you've shown yourself at last, 'Slifer'!" beamed Dark Marik, "How remarkable!"
Below the platform, the spectators were overjoyed to see 'Slifer the Sky Dragon'.
"Alright, Thomas Summoned his first 'Egyptian God' monster before Marik could Summon 'Ra'!" rejoiced Mavis.
"That's what I'm talking about!" came from Michael.
"Damn right!" added James, giving a fist pump "'Slifer' even has 6000 ATK!"
"Marik has no chance now that Thomas has 'Slifer' on the field!" mused Percy, "Thomas can win the duel with just one attack!"
There was only one spectator who was, however, unsure if Thomas could even pull off a win with 'Slifer the Sky Dragon', and it was Spencer.
"Billinton has 'Slifer' out, yet Marik isn't worried about it," Spencer thought to himself, "Hmm… I'm beginning to think Marik wanted it to happen."
Nearby, Ishizu was thinking the exact same thing. Meanwhile, back on the platform, 'Slifer the Sky Dragon' once again roared in the face of Dark Marik.
"It's time!" boomed Thomas, "'Slifer the Sky Dragon'," As he announced the attack name, 'Slifer the Sky Dragon' opened its mouth and charged a blast, "Thunder Force!"
Dark Marik then started to cackle a bit, causing Thomas to wince from declaring an attack just now.
"The time is now right…" exclaimed Dark Marik, pressing a button on his Duel Disk, "The time for the phoenix to rise, that is!" On cue, one of his face-down cards (the center one) flipped up and revealed itself, "I activate a Quick-Play Spell, 'Dark Spell Regeneration'!"
"What?!" panicked Emily.
With the crowd below the platform…
"'Dark Spell Regeneration'?" stammered Skiff.
"It's a very rare and powerful card," explained Spencer, "When an opponent's monster declares an attack: Target 1 Spell in your GY; activate it, then after this card resolves, send that card to your opponent's GY."
"One Spell?!" cried Skiff, as his eyes widened.
"Marik will activate 'Monster Reborn'!" confirmed Spencer.
Back on the duel platform, Dark Marik snickered wickedly.
"Thomas, I'm going to activate the card you took from me!" gloated Dark Marik, having overheard Skiff and Spencer talking, "O great 'Ra' who sleeps in the Earth! Be reborn in the form of a mighty phoenix!"
A large purple 'Monster Reborn'-like symbol rose into the sky. Just before 'Slifer the Sky Dragon's' blast of thunder could destroy 'Juregado', a wall of flames suddenly erupted from Dark Marik's GY and shielded him and his entire field.
"Now, 'Ra'!" The voice of Dark Marik roared, as the 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' Effect Monster Card was slowly placed onto a Monster Zone on his Duel Disk, "Rise from the Earth and dance over the heavens! Become and bear the name of the phoenix!"
Feathers rose from the card. Before long, the wall of fire became 'Egyptian God Phoenix'! Dark Marik was laughing insanely over the fact he had Summoned 'The Winged Dragon of Ra', after all.
"'Slifer's' Thunder Force was absorbed by 'Egyptian God Phoenix'!" realized Thomas in shock.
"On the turn the phoenix rises," raged Dark Marik, possessing a look of pure insanity on his face, "it possesses immortality powers! No attack will work against it!"
He resumed laughing like a madman. Below the platform, Percy and the others all couldn't do anything but watched in horror at what was about to happen.
"'Egyptian God Phoenix'!" remembered Percy, "The same monster Marik used to beat me!"
"Poor Thomas!" whimpered Molly, terrified.
"And poor Emily!" added Mavis.
Back on the platform…
"Prepare yourself, Thomas!" cackled Dark Marik, "I will incinerate you and your poor girlfriend with 'Ra's' holy flames! It's all over for the both of you!"
Thomas and Emily both looked on in horror as the evil man started to laugh maniacally at the impending doom his opponents were about to face. Below the platform, everyone was gazing at both Summoned 'Egyptian God' monsters on the platform—but mainly 'Egyptian God Phoenix'.
"Thanks to 'Egyptian God Phoenix'," Percy was saying, "Marik can spend 1000 LP to completely storm the field and destroy any monster on his opponent's side."
"Thomas's in big trouble," came from Molly worriedly, "If possible, 'Ra' could even destroy 'Slifer' without any problems!"
"That, I'm not very sure of, Molly," cut in Percy, shaking his head, "Mainly from the fact that I know all three of the 'Egyptian God' monsters are supposed to be immune to all kinds of monster destruction cards, effects, and all of that junk… But it looks like 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' seems much more powerful than even I'm aware of."
"What's got me worried," Edward spoke up, "is the damage. Thomas won't lose any LP right now, but how about when that phoenix decides to strike him AND Emily?"
"They could both be killed!" protested Toby.
"And I've barely managed to survive and wake up from that coma the 'God' put me in!" recalled Percy.
Back on the platform, Thomas began to speak to Dark Marik…
"Marik! I'm not done with using 'Slifer just' yet!" he rebutted.
Dark Marik frowned, but said nothing in response…yet.
"I activate 'Slifer's' twelfth effect!" continued Thomas, "If a monster(s) is Summoned to my opponent's field: I must target that monster(s); it loses 2000 ATK/DEF, depending on its battle position, then, if its ATK/DEF became 0 by this effect, I must destroy it!"
"That's right!" acknowledged Emily, "'Ra' was Special Summoned from the GY, making it targetable for the effect!"
Suddenly, 'Slifer the Sky Dragon' opened its second mouth.
"Even 'Ra' can't protect itself from this!" assumed Thomas, "Summon Thunder Bullet!"
'Slifer the Sky Dragon' obeyed and fired three balls of thunder towards 'Egyptian God Phoenix'. Dark Marik only put a cruel smile onto his face as Summon Thunder Bullet struck the fiery phoenix form of 'The Winged Dragon of Ra', but the three balls of lightning all got deflected away in an instant. Where they went? Nobody bothered to question it, mainly because of one thing…
"What?!" gasped Thomas in surprise, "Summon Thunder Bullet didn't work?!"
"Why didn't 'Slifer's' attack destroy 'Ra'?" asked Emily.
Everyone else down below the platform watched with worried expressions on their faces, while, on the platform, Dark Marik merely laughed at both Thomas and Emily's naivety.
"Did you both honestly believe your attacks could ever hope to break through the holy flames of 'Egyptian God Phoenix'?" The voice of Dark Marik mocked, much to Thomas's dismay. He was shown smiling madly, "Because if you were thinking of doing something like that, it was a complete waste of an attack!"
He then resumed his maniacal laughter, while Thomas and Emily both grimaced in response.
"Now, be prepared to pay for your poor judgment!" said Dark Marik, upon ceasing his laughter, "I give up 1000 LP to activate 'Ra's' phoenix ability!"
He crossed his arms and began to chant in an ancient language. Below the platform over with Spencer, Skiff, and Ishizu…
"Here it comes…" Spencer thought to himself, "The third and most powerful effect of 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' according to the Hieratic Text! When the means of resurrection are granted to it, 'Ra' shall come forth from the earth and those who face the God in war shall be incinerated in flames. In an instant, 'Ra' shall become a phoenix, and the enemies of 'Ra' shall return to the earth. Will that effect work on another 'God', as well?"
Back on the platform…
"(Quick Effect): I can pay 1000 LP, then target 1 monster my opponent controls; I must destroy it," stated Dark Marik (LP: 4000 → 3000), "The offering has been met! But that is nothing my 'host' can't handle, right?!"
A small part of Light Marik's body faded away. Thomas glared hatefully at his monstrous opponent—although he didn't say anything back.
"On this turn," Dark Marik snickered wickedly, "you, 'Slifer', AND the girl will literally feel the burn!"
'Egyptian God Phoenix' gave an almighty screech before taking to the skies in preparation to attack. Thomas, meanwhile, held a hand to his Millennium Puzzle, knowing what was about to come their way.
"And now, my phoenix… Go now, and consume those who stand in your way—'Slifer the Sky Dragon', Thomas Billinton, and Emily Stirling!" roared Dark Marik.
'The Winged Dragon of Ra's' Phoenix form screeched loudly once more before swooping down towards Thomas's field and causing an explosion of fire upon collision. 'Slifer the Sky Dragon' gave a roar of agony from the flames of rage from the Phoenix, but that wasn't even the 'worst' part… Thomas screamed out in agonizing pain. Due to his puzzle's power, Emily was only partially spared from the flames. Unfortunately, now Thomas was taking 'twice' the damage from the blaze, just as much as Percy sustained the last time 'Egyptian God Phoenix' was used. The whole platform was surrounded by the flames of the phoenix's bombarding attack.
"THOMAS! EMILY!" panicked Percy.
"We have to get them both out of there, now!" exclaimed Gordon.
"Good luck trying to do just that," Spencer called out, "We all know that madman will immediately stop you if you attempt to interrupt the duel!"
Finally, the flames started to fade away… Once the fire and smoke did finish clearing away, 'Slifer the Sky Dragon' was shown to be gone.
"'Slifer the Sky Dragon' has been destroyed!" shouted Dark Marik.
He then started laughing psychotically once more. Thomas was breathing heavily from the damage he took from that blast of fire… but he was still alive regardless. He was so busy trying to catch his breath he couldn't see the look of heartbreak and concern on Emily's face.
"Good, very good…" whispered Dark Marik pleasantly, "I want you both to live a bit longer… just so I can make you suffer more and more… After all, if you die this early into the match, this Shadow Game just wouldn't be any fun at all!"
Once again, the evil man began to laugh (mainly to mock his enemies). Thomas ignored the laughter and looked up towards the captive Emily with concern.
"Emily… Emily, are you alright?" Thomas asked, coughing a little bit.
"I'm the one who should be asking 'you' that," countered Emily, "You're lucky to still be standing at this point," She then became very worried, "Unfortunately, it took several of our best resources to try and bring 'Slifer' straight out… and it's been destroyed just like that!"
"I know…" frowned Thomas, looking at his Duel Disk, "The only 'God' Card we have left is 'Obelisk'…"
But that was the 'least' of Thomas's concerns, right now…
"'Ra'! You've done well this turn!" praised Dark Marik, addressing his 'Egyptian God' monster, "Return to sleep in the GY until your next outing!" He looked up at his opponent, "'Ra's' sixteenth effect! Once per turn, during the End Phase, if this card was Special Summoned from the GY, or if this banished card was Special Summoned, this turn: I must send this card to the GY if it was Special Summoned from the GY, or banish it if this banished card was Special Summoned."
'Egyptian God Phoenix', while screeching loudly, obeyed the command and started to vanish, descending into its master's GY. Below the platform…
"What a relief," groaned Percy, "'Monster Reborn' only lasts a single turn for a 'God' like 'Ra'!"
"That mean they're safe again!" sighed Henry in relief.
"But for how much longer?" asked Molly in concern.
Unfortunately, there was worse news to come… On the platform, Dark Marik was ready to retrieve his 'Monster Reborn' Spell Card—so he could Summon 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' for the second time.
"But this isn't the last you've seen of the infamous third 'God'," announced Dark Marik, "And I will retrieve 'Monster Reborn' here!" As soon as that was said, he pressed a button on his Duel Disk, "Trap Card, 'Zombie's Jewel', activate!"
Dark Marik's second face-down card flipped up and revealed itself.
"That card can only activate if a Spell Card has been sent to my GY!" argued Thomas, "But I've never even used a Spell Card this turn!"
"Oh, but you did play one, just now!" laughed Dark Marik, "Remember my Quick-Play Spell, 'Dark Spell Regeneration'? Once a Spell Card is used due to my card's effect, that Spell Card in question is placed in YOUR GY!" He then explained how his 'Zombie's Jewel' worked, "When a Spell is placed in my opponent's GY: I must add it to my hand, and if I do, my opponent draws 1 card."
True to his word, automatically coming out of Thomas's GY was the 'Monster Reborn' Spell Card.
"I'll be taking it back, now!" Dark Marik grinned, taking hold of the card as it soared over to him.
Below the platform…
"'Monster Reborn'!" realized Discord, "That psychopath knows that a duelist can only have one copy of 'Monster Reborn' in any given Deck, so he's added a wide variety of cards into his Deck that would allow him to get it right back!"
"Just to be able to Summon 'Ra' once more!" added Edward.
Back on the dueling platform, Dark Marik was busy gloating to his hated enemy…
"Do you hear that?" bragged Dark Marik mockingly, pressing a hand towards his ear, "It's the cry of 'The Winged Dragon of Ra', and it's waiting to rise again and finish you off!" Thomas scowled, but said nothing back, allowing him (Dark Marik) to keep going, "That's right! Next turn, I will commence the devastating One Turn Kill strategy! You and the girl will be hit so hard by it that you'll never even live to see me win!"
Dark Marik resumed his sadistic laughter, all-while Thomas continued to stare defiantly. Dark Marik then looked at his hand and stroked his beloved 'Monster Reborn' Spell Card lovingly.
"I can't wait to unleash the kill on you both…!" threatened Dark Marik.
Below the platform…
"Oh no…" said Ben worriedly, "That means Marik WILL be able to use 'Ra' again on his next turn!"
"But there is some good news," Edward pointed out.
"How so?" asked Henry.
"Remember? Now Thomas gets to draw another card."
Back on the platform…
"That's right! Due to the effect 'Zombie's Jewel', you, the opponent, get to draw a card," continued Dark Marik, "Will it be the one that will save your life? Or will it only serve to hasten your fate in eternal darkness?"
"My fate is sleeping within the cards," thought Thomas, looking at his Deck.
"If it's 'that' card," Emily spoke up, getting Thomas's attention, "it may just be our only hope!"
Thomas nodded and reached for his Deck.
"Alright, boy!" called Dark Marik, "Draw your card!"
Back below the platform, Mr Gresley (Boxford) looked to his elder son…
"Spencer… Do you think Thomas will draw that card?" he asked.
"Who knows?" shrugged Spencer, "We'll see if he does or not," In his thoughts, however, it was a different story, "But unless Billinton draws the card right now, he won't be able to stop the One Turn Kill strategy!"
"Thomas doesn't have any more monsters on his field," Carlie remembered.
"He'll be wide open unless he pulls a miracle, right now!" objected James R..
"You can do it, Thomas!" called Percy encouragingly.
"This is nothing!" assumed James.
Back on the platform…
"Thomas, because I feel sorry for you right now," commented Dark Marik mockingly, "I'm going to show you something interesting…" He reached under his shirt and pulled out the Millennium Ring, "Here it is… A prize I won last night!"
"The Millennium Ring?" gasped Thomas, "You've been wearing it all this time?!"
"That's Duck's Millennium Item!" shouted Henry.
"How right you are!" laughed Dark Marik, "After I defeated him in that Shadow Game last night, I've claimed the Millennium Ring as my prize! Not only that, but I did away with the spirit, Montague, as well."
"You 'what'?!" recoiled Thomas.
"It was too bad also… he was even easier to beat than my defeat of that poor Polly Stone…" sighed Dark Marik unhappily. He then resumed his evil look, "Oh well! Those duels were both mere warm ups to me, anyway!"
Thomas growled in response.
"Oh, don't fret… you'll be seeing both Duck and Polly again real soon!" taunted Dark Marik, "Once you feel the fiery power of One Turn Kill, that is!"
He resumed his sadistic laughter yet again. By this point, however, Thomas had reached his breaking point…
"MARIK!" shouted Thomas, with his tone full of hatred and rage, "This is all completely unforgivable! Lady, Duck, Percy, and everyone else you've hurt throughout… 'We' will stop you, here and now!"
"Yes…" whispered Dark Marik, overhearing Thomas use the term "we" instead of "I" while watching excitedly, "I can feel your anger… It gives you focus, makes you stronger…" He stuck his tongue out and swirled it around, "…while making me even stronger!" The veins on his (Dark Marik) face intensified, watching as an aura of darkness formed around Thomas, "I've been waiting to fight 'you', the 'Supreme King', for over 1000 years!" The evil man's face started stretching out like bad animation, "Let your anger reach out and touch my own!"
The darkness all-around Thomas began to take effect in response to his growing anger and hatred as Dark Marik broke into maddening laughter again as he waited for the final outcome with nothing but joy and satisfaction. Emily, meanwhile, was frightened over seeing the same angry expression Thomas had back when he (Thomas) and Spencer had a rematch in San Francisco.
"No… No, no, not again!" thought Emily, sounding very panicked before speaking up, "Please don't listen to him, Thomas!"
Thomas gasped and looked up, noticing how distressed Emily was over seeing him in such a rage.
"You have to stay calm and not lose focus on what's important; saving good Marik and winning the duel," begged Emily, "Don't 'ever' give in to the urge to kill directly!"
"Emily…!" mumbled Thomas, turning to face Dark Marik, "I understand."
The dark aura around Thomas faded away as he calmed himself down, much to Dark Marik's great disappointment.
"Tch! How damn annoying…" Dark Marik grumbled irritably, speaking directly to Emily, "You just had to go and spoil all of the fun… MY fun!" He (Dark Marik) addressed Thomas, once again smiling, "But whatever! Just hurry up and draw your final card, boy, before I lose any more of my patience."
Thomas quietly obeyed the command by his opponent, preparing to draw a card from his Deck, knowing that he needed the card given to him.
"This is it," Thomas thought to himself, closing his eyes tightly, "I have to draw the card Spencer gave me, or it will be all over for me, Emily, and everyone else on Earth. Please, Heart of the Cards, guide me…!"
The Millennium Puzzle began glowing all gold in response to Thomas's inner prayer. Below the platform, Ishizu, despite not having the Millennium Necklace anymore, could still sense the power coming from the boy.
"Thomas's faith in Spencer is invoking the energies of Ancient Egypt," thought Ishizu, "His Deck is the place where the spirits meet!"
On the platform, Thomas finally drew his card while slashing a wave of color from his Deck in the process (Destiny Draw, that is)… but it happened not once, not twice, but THRICE!
"I've drawn it…" thought Thomas.
Suddenly, without even looking at the drawn card, Thomas slotted it into a Spell & Trap Zone on his Duel Disk and opened his eyes.
"I Set one card face-down and end my turn!" announced Thomas.
Even Dark Marik was extremely surprised to say the least. Below the platform, everyone else recoiled from seeing what their friend just did.
"He didn't even look at it," gawked James in shock, "What if he had drawn a Monster Card instead?"
"Then that'd be an illegal play," answered Gordon.
"What was he even thinking?" frowned Mavis.
Discord, however, had a personal feeling about the card Thomas Set despite being just as surprised as everyone else…
"Perhaps he drew the one card he needed," The jolly man suggested aloud.
"It can't be! How could he know what card he drew without even looking at it?!" thought Spencer, stunned.
He changed his tune upon looking at Ishizu, who was staring in shock like she KNEW Thomas drew that one card.
"He DID draw it?!" thought Spencer, "Did… did Billinton really pull off such a life changing miracle?!"
Back atop the duel platform, Thomas was smiling in triumph. His tune changed, however, when the referee spoke to him…
"Thomas Billinton!" scolded Roland, "It is against the rules to go and set a card face-down without even looking at it. If your face-down card happens to be a Monster Card, then it's in the wrong place and considered an illegal play!"
"Let the duel continue," The voice of Spencer cut in, getting Roland's attention. Below the platform, he was now smiling even while scolding the employee, "I'm interested in seeing what will happen. Do anything else to interrupt it, and rest assured you WILL be dealt with by me!"
Back on the platform…
"Y-Yes, sir!" obeyed Roland.
Dark Marik chuckled darkly, "Is the pressure of your impending death getting to you, Thomas?" he cracked, "That's great! Maybe it means you're too scared to continue?! That was the last card you'll ever draw!"
"Marik…" returned Thomas, ignoring Dark Marik's nonsense, "It's your turn, now!"
"Very well," sighed Dark Marik emotionlessly, getting ready to draw, "I'll be sure to wear something nice to your funeral," He drew a card, "Draw!"
Turn Seven: Dark Marik (LP: 4000)
Deck: 43
Current Hand (8): "Jam Defender", "Polymerization", "Granadora", "Protection of Arthenée", "Sinister Serpent", "Revenge Rally", "Monster Reborn", and "Metal Reflect Slime"
Dark Marik added his drawn card to his hand and looked up with a deadly smile.
"I'm not gonna let you go out with a rule violation…" thought Dark Marik, "I will kill you both, plus Emily, and send each of your remains to Hell one way or another!" He held his right hand out, "Here I go!" Fire started surrounding the arena as the familiar 'Monster Reborn' Spell Card materialized face-up on the field "Resurrect, 'The Winged Dragon of Ra'!"
Dark Marik's GY glowed with golden light as 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' returned to the field. The 'Egyptian God' monster let out an almighty mighty roar in the face of both Thomas and Emily.
"And now… it's time for the One Turn Kill strategy!" grinned Dark Marik, folding his arms and beginning to chant an ancient language.
"One Turn Kill…" thought Spencer, "One of 'Ra's' most powerful and dangerous abilities."
Slowly, purple fog covered Dark Marik from head-to-toe as he began to vanish right into the darkness until the top part of his body was sticking out of The 'Winged Dragon of Ra's' forehead. The other thing missing, other than his lower half, was his right eye.
"Behold!" declared Dark Marik, with a look of pure insanity on his already deranged face, "My true form! This is the power granted to me by the ancient scriptures on 'The Winged Dragon of Ra'! I'll be sure to burn it straight into your memory, provided you live long enough to see me kill the both of you!"
He resumed his cackling laughter while on top of 'The Winged Dragon of Ra's' head. Below the duel platform…
"He… he merged with 'Ra'?" blinked Molly, looking every bit as terrified.
"How did Marik do that?" stammered Gordon, petrified.
"I…don't know," Edward admitted.
Back on top of 'The Winged Dragon of Ra's' head, Dark Marik was laughing harder and harder than ever before.
"Are all of you watching?!" Dark Marik called out to everyone who was atop the Duel Tower, "THIS is 'Ra's' twelfth effect! I can pay LP so that I have 1 LP left and…" Focus briefly went towards 'Juragedo', "…Tribute all other monsters I control; this card…" The explanation was nearing its conclusion, "…gains ATK/DEF equal to the LP paid and the Tributed monsters' combined ATK/DEF on the field!" His LP dropped to almost nothing (LP: 3000 → 1), "And now take a good look at my weaker self!"
Light Marik's body faded away until all that was left was an eye. 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' also got a power boost (ATK: 0 → 2999).
"Then, to boost 'Ra's' power even more," continued Dark Marik, as 'Juragedo' was engulfed by fire and 'The 'Winged Dragon of Ra' began to absorb all of the flames, "I also Tribute 'Juragedo'!"
The 'Winged Dragon of Ra' grew even more powerful (ATK: 2999 → 4699).
"4699 ATK!" Thomas winced (LP: 3300).
Below the platform…
"Holy crap!" wailed James, "That's more than enough to finish off Thomas AND Emily!"
Back on the platform…
"THIS is the power of One Turn Kill! Thomas and Emily… you both are dead, right now!" howled Dark Marik.
He began to cackle madly yet again. From there, 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' began to charge up its signature attack.
"Prepare yourselves! I'll boil your blood until it turns to steam!" screeched Dark Marik, and then gave the attack command as his Battle Phase began, "'The Winged Dragon of Ra', burn both of my opponents into ash!"
Just then…
"Face-down card, open!" interrupted Thomas.
"What?!" Dark Marik cringed in response.
Thomas's face-down card flipped up and revealed itself to be…
"The Quick-Play Spell, 'Fiend's Sanctuary'!" revealed Thomas.
Below the platform, the entire audience gasped in complete surprise. It WAS the card Spencer gave Thomas before the match.
"Billinton, how on Earth did you draw that card…?!" thought Spencer, "Cornered as he was in this situation, he drew that card?! Is this the power of a friend?! Is this a miracle!?"
On the platform…
"'F-Fiend's Sanctuary'?!" spluttered Dark Marik.
"That's right!" replied Thomas, entering his thoughts, "I felt it the moment I touched the top of the card! Spencer, I felt the pulse of your soul!" He spoke aloud one more time, "Now, behold its power…!"
A magic circle then appeared on the field as purple smoke billowed from it.
"A magical circle has appeared on the boy's field?" wondered Dark Marik, watching as more and more smoke came from the circle, "And now something's appearing!"
Rising from the smoke and onto the field, was a round, silver head.
"This is 'Metal Fiend Token'!" introduced Thomas.
Below the platform…
"During your opponent's Battle Phase, when an opponent's monster declares an attack: Special Summon 1 'Metal Fiend Token'. It cannot attack, also your opponent takes any battle damage you would have taken from battles involving it," Spencer was saying to Skiff, Mr. Gresley (Boxford), and Mrs. Gresley (Boxford), "This is the card capable of defeating 'Ra'!"
Back atop the platform, the token made a reflection… showing the image of Dark Marik's remaining eye.
"That's me being displayed!" he gasped.
"Once again, you're correct," smirked Thomas, "When the 'Metal Fiend Token' is attacked, you take all the battle damage instead of me! Prepare to be destroyed by your own monster!"
"What…?!" Dark Marik recoiled hard.
"For example; 'Ra' currently has about 4699 ATK," Thomas went on, "My 'Metal Fiend Token' has only 1 ATK. That means I would take 4698 points of damage… BUT! Because of my Spell Card's effect, it is YOU who will take the damage instead of me!"
"This can't be!" freaked out Dark Marik.
"Yes! As soon as 'Ra' attacks me directly, YOU will lose the duel!" Thomas confirmed ruthlessly.
Dark Marik was absolutely horrified to hear this. Back below the platform…
"Thomas wins!" cheered Molly.
"I guess Spencer's card really was a big help, after all!" smiled Percy.
"Hey, I knew it all this time!" lied James.
"That's our Thomas!" came from Gordon.
On the platform, 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' was charging its attack up still, and Dark Marik was still atop his monster's head while swearing up a storm over his situation.
"Oh damn!" The evil man thought to himself, "I've already declared an attack…" He then spoke aloud in a panic, "No! Stop! Stop your attack! Your master commands it!"
But it was no use. Out of surprising defiance, 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' fired off its God Blaze Cannon towards 'Metal Fiend Token'.
"Alright!" cheered Percy, "It's all over for Marik, now!"
The blast of fire struck 'Metal Fiend Token', causing a massive explosion to cloud the entire platform as Dark Marik screamed in agony.
"Marik!" raged Thomas defiantly, "YOU LOSE!"
There was a long silence in the area. The smoke on Thomas's field soon faded away—only to reveal that 'Metal Fiend Token' was still standing.
"Huh?! My Token is still alive?!" cried Thomas.
But that wasn't the worst of it… Suddenly, they heard an evil laugh coming from the other side of the platform. As the smoke lifted, almost everyone gasped at what they saw. There, standing perfectly safe behind his 'Egyptian God' monster, was Dark Marik (LP: 4700)!
"Hello," Dark Marik greeted, speaking in barely a whisper.
Below the platform, everyone else (even Spencer) gasped in horror at what they had just seen. Back on the platform, Dark Marik then chuckled calmly at first… but then he erupted into incredibly maniacal laughter. Below the platform…
"Marik is still standing!" exclaimed Percy.
"And his LP shot up to 4700!" added Zack.
Back on the platform…
"Marik, explain yourself!" demanded Thomas.
Dark Marik silently pressed a button on his Duel Disk, causing his face-down card to flip up and reveal itself to be…
"'De-Fusion'?!" winced Thomas.
"Yes, that's correct," confirmed Dark Marik slowly, "The moment 'Ra' attacked the 'Metal Fiend Token', I activated its fourteenth effect. Remember when you used 'Exchange' earlier?"
Thomas frowned as a flashback came to his mind.
FLASHBACK
It was a few turns earlier…
"Face-down card, open!" announced Flashback Thomas, as one of his two face-down cards flipped up and revealed itself, "'Exchange'!"
"No!" bellowed Flashback Dark Marik crossly.
"Both players reveal their hands and add 1 card from each other's hand to their hand," reminded Flashback Thomas. He then held his hand out (without showing what the cards were), "So… come over and choose a card!"
Cursing loudly, Flashback Dark Marik reluctantly walked over to the blue-haired boy's field.
"Alright, fine!" he muttered.
Once both duelists met face-to-face, Flashback Thomas took the 'Monster Reborn' Spell Card and Flashback Dark Marik surprisingly took the 'De-Fusion' Spell Card.
END FLASHBACK
The flashback ended.
"(Quick Effect): I can send 1 'De-Fusion' from my hand or field to the GY; this card's ATK becomes 0, and if it does, I must gain LP equal to that lost ATK," revealed Dark Marik.
"I…guess you did take a good card after all," admitted Thomas in defeat.
"Very observant!" taunted Dark Marik, "'Exchange' helped 'both' of us!"
"I never knew 'De-Fusion' could be used in a situation like 'that'," The captive Emily thought to herself, "I'll admit it was clever of Marik to use it…"
Below the platform…
"Dammit!" grumbled James unhappily, "Thomas was so close!"
"That's not all," Discord spoke up, "because 'Ra's' attack got drained by the use of 'De-Fusion', it also raised Marik's LP."
He was right… Back on the platform, thanks to the 'De-Fusion' Spell Card, Light Marik's body was fully restored as well.
"Well, how do you like that?" teased Dark Marik sadistically, "My 'host' has been restored to his full form… I really should thank you for allowing me to take that card!"
"Odion…" muttered Light Marik weakly.
Back below the platform, Ishizu watched her younger brother with a mixed look of worry and horror. Back on the duel platform, 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' began to fade away.
"Return to the GY, 'Ra'!" ordered Dark Marik at once.
'The Winged Dragon of Ra' obeyed and disappeared fully. Dark Marik then took and held out his 'Monster Reborn' Spell Card.
"With 'Monster Reborn's' effect over and done with," continued Dark Marik, discarding the 'Monster Reborn' Spell Card, "I will send the card back to the GY," He took another card from his hand to slot it into a Spell & Trap Zone on his Duel Disk, "I Set one card face-down!" A face-down card appeared on the field, near his feet, "I end my turn!"
Below the platform…
"He's wide open for an attack!" said Henry, "Thomas has a chance to get at his LP!"
"But what if he's doing this 'deliberately'?" Edward pointed out, "Remember when Montague purposely dueled poorly at first in his match against Thomas?"
"I remember," recalled Carlie.
"Same here," agreed Michael.
"He was luring Thomas into a trap, such as destroying three monsters to Special Summon 'Dark Necrofear'," recalled Edward, as faded stills of Thomas VS. Montague was superimposed over him—one image at a time, "So, who's to say that Marik's not doing the same with Thomas?"
"He'd better think through his actions more carefully then," advised Toby, "Otherwise, he could lose more ground."
Back atop the platform, Thomas drew his next card and began his turn.
Turn Eight: Thomas Billinton (LP: 3300)
Deck: 49
Current Hand (7): "Ragnarok", "Kuriboh", "Dark Magician Girl", "Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts", "Magical Dimension", "Dark Magician", and "Obelisk the Tormentor"
Just then, he remembered something important…
"To keep the 'Metal Fiend Token' on my field, I must lose 1000 LP on each my Standby Phases," thought Thomas unhappily, "Otherwise, the Token will be destroyed automatically," He then looked up at the captured Emily, "I'm sorry, Emily… but I must do this."
"Thomas…" Emily murmured sadly.
While she didn't mind that Thomas 'had' to do this, what she 'did' mind was what would follow after… Thomas, meanwhile, looked back towards Dark Marik.
"I give up 1000 LP in order to keep my 'Metal Fiend Token' on the field!" announced Thomas, taking some damage (LP: 3300 → 2300). Suddenly, he yelled in agony as he felt the shadows attack him once again from the inside, collapsing to one knee. Below the platform…
"Don't strain yourself, Thomas!" called Matt.
Meanwhile, Spencer was shown to be staring at the 'Metal Fiend Token'.
"That's not 'all' that 'Fiend's Sanctuary' can do, Billinton. Can you figure out what its other special power is?" thought Spencer.
Back on the platform, Dark Marik cackled at the situation Thomas was currently in.
"Are you stupid? Your 'Metal Fiend Token' has just 1 ATK…!" insulted Dark Marik ruthlessly, "What's the point of maintaining a Token that can't attack or defend itself?"
Thomas weakly looked down off the platform towards Spencer and gave him (Spencer) a nod and slight smile, causing Spencer to gasp in realization.
"Does he already…know?" thought Spencer in shock.
Only one way to find out… Back on the platform…
"Marik," began Thomas, getting back to his feet, "the card I've used to stop your 'God' from defeating us…will be used to Summon forth 'another' 'God'!"
Dark Marik was displeased, "But how? You need to Tribute three monsters to call on another 'God'!"
"You'd like to think that, wouldn't you?" frowned Thomas, before holding his right hand out, "I activate a Trap Card, 'Token Gesture'!"
The mentioned Trap Card flipped face-up and revealed itself.
"'Token Gesture'?" asked Ben, looking puzzled.
"I must target 1 face-up Level 4 or lower Normal Monster I control; I must Special Summon up to 2 'Gesture Mirror Tokens' in Defense Position with the same Type, Attribute, Level, ATK and DEF as that target, also I cannot Special Summon monsters from the Extra Deck for the rest of this turn!" explained Thomas, "I target 'Metal Fiend Token' for this effect!"
The 'Metal Fiend Token' increased from one Token… into 'three' Tokens.
"No!" fretted Dark Marik, now realizing what Thomas's plan was, "You're gonna Tribute those weak Tokens!"
Below the platform, Spencer smiled with satisfaction.
"Well done, Billinton. You've figured out the second use of 'Fiend's Sanctuary'," thought Spencer, smiling with approval, "It is also a magic circle used to Summon a 'God'—like 'Obelisk the Tormentor', for instance!"
"The Pharaoh is about to Summon his second 'Egyptian God' monster…" thought Ishizu.
Back on the platform…
"Here it comes!" shouted Thomas, holding up a card ('Obelisk the Tormentor'), "I Tribute my three 'Tokens'!" The single 'Metal Fiend Token' and two 'Gesture Mirror Tokens' faded away in streaks of blue, "Descend, 'Obelisk the Tormentor'!"
A pink tornado ensued. Down below, everyone watched in both amazement and shock.
"What power!" cried Mavis.
Back on the platform, the tornado then formed a large thunder storm that struck the field as 'Obelisk the Tormentor' finally showed itself (Level: 10/ATK: 4000/DEF: 4000).
"N-No! He actually did it…!" panicked Dark Marik, taking a step back.
'Obelisk the Tormentor' let loose a booming roar. Below the platform, Gordon practically had James in a headlock from excitement.
"Oh yeah, that's our boy!" he whooped.
"Nice one, man!" winced James happily.
"'Obelisk' to the rescue!" cheered Molly.
"Hey, look at Marik! He's looking so scared that his hair is standing on ends!" joked Percy, while, on the platform, Dark Marik looked frightened, "Oh, wait! It always looks like that!"
The Battle Phase commenced…
"'Obelisk the Tormentor', attack Marik directly!" commanded Thomas, "It's time to launch our counterattack!" His eyes flashed red briefly, "God Hand Crusher!"
'Obelisk the Tormentor' was more than happy to obey, as it let out an angry roar and hurled a huge punch right at Dark Marik.
"No… NO!" uttered Dark Marik, raising his voice in sheer horror. The fist then connected, causing him to scream in agonizing pain and fury overy it, "I WILL NOT BE DEFEATED BY THIS WORM!"
(elsewhere…)
Inside Lady's room, Liz looked up in surprise, causing Ryan to look over. Liz sighed, believing she was hearing things.
(elsewhere…)
Back on top of the Duel Tower, Dark Marik, while screaming in rage, terror, and agony from taking that direct blow from 'Obelisk the Tormentor', was thrown back towards the railing of the platform. He crashed into them (and didn't fall off the edge of the tower) and collapsed onto the ground motionlessly.
"From the direct attack by 'Obelisk', Marik," sneered Thomas, "you've taken 4000 damage!"
Dark Marik laid on the ground weakly while seething at both Thomas and 'Obelisk the Tormentor' with hatred written all over that freaky, veiny face (LP: 4700 → 700). Below the platform, the spectators were greatly overjoyed with Thomas's big comeback attack.
"Yes! Marik's nearly beaten!" rejoiced Henry, "Just one more attack like that…"
"…and Thomas will win and save Emily's life!" added Mavis.
"Kick that creep's butt, Thomas!" called Percy encouragingly.
"Did you see the way Marik was sent flying after being struck by Obelisk's fist?" joked Gordon, "He was all like 'WAAAAAHHHHH! HELP ME!'."
"Good one, Gordon!" came from James, laughing at his friend's joke.
"Thomas is about to win the duel, Spencer!" proclaimed Skiff happily, but immediately got a look of surprise when he saw that his older brother was not smiling at all, "Umm, is something the matter, Big Brother?"
"Something seems off," thought Spencer, "It's like Marik WANTED Billinton to attack him with 'Obelisk'. Otherwise, he would have used his face-down card to try and stop the attack."
Back atop the platform, Dark Marik was still lying on the ground while badly injured from being hit by God Hand Crusher. Below the platform, Ishizu, unfortunately, sensed something was wrong, too.
"The face-down card on Marik's field… Could it be that one?" thought Ishizu.
On the platform, Dark Marik, groaning in pain, soon slowly started to get back up after taking the direct attack.
"It hurts… it hurts… it hurts…" he mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck.
Below the platform…
"Yes, it is!" Ishizu gasped, still in her thoughts, "Marik purposely took that direct attack for two reasons, Thomas… One; to cause emotional damage by tricking you into thinking you have backed him into a corner. And the other; to Summon a monster that is even more powerful than your 'Egyptian God' monster!"
"H-Hey!" froze Carlie, "Take a look at Thomas."
"Is something the matter?" Ben asked his sister, before looking up at the platform and towards Thomas, "Huh?"
Back on the platform, Thomas was looking worried about something. Below the platform, the confusion continued to cloud the rest of the group.
"Why's he looking worried?" James R. wondered curiously, "He's this close to winning the duel, and even has Obelisk the Tormentor out on his field!"
"Perhaps he senses something's wrong?" suggested Matt.
Back on the platform, Dark Marik continued to slowly get back onto his feet…and started cackling quietly.
"Oh yesssss… That was one damn good move, Thomas…" he encouraged sarcastically, just before sticking his tongue out with a very demented look on his warped, vein-exposed face, "That one hurt a lot… It was beyond PAINFUL!"
Dark Marik then started to laugh psychotically. The sound of the laughter, plus the knowledge that he enjoyed the pain, was actually enough to frighten most of the spectators watching the match. On the platform, Thomas merely growled instead. Oh, but if only Dark Marik even stopped right there…
"And besides; it's my other self who really suffers whenever I lose LP!" reminded Dark Marik, as focus went towards Light Marik being eaten away by the darkness, "Thanks to that direct attack, his body is being slowly eaten by the darkness, as you can see."
"Marik!" winced Thomas in shock.
"Oh no, we forgot all about him!" grimaced Emily.
"How ironic…" taunted Dark Marik, "My weaker half is so pitiful… He had spent almost his whole life dedicated to serving the Pharaoh as a Tomb Keeper, but will now die by the hands of the Pharaoh's chosen descendant—I could just laugh!"
"If I keep dueling, then Marik will be killed," Thomas thought to himself, "But…if I'm defeated, then Emily and I will both die. What should I do?"
"Thomas, you have to keep fighting!" Emily advised carefully, "Our true enemy is Marik's dark half. We have to find a way to defeat him and 'only' him!"
"But 'how'?" questioned Thomas, "Even if we win the duel, Marik's dark side will still win the Shadow Game and live on forever!"
"This is it, Thomas!" spoke up Dark Marik, "I will devour your spirit… and feed its scraps to the darkness!"
Thomas narrowed his eyes in response, but said nothing as he watched his opponent lick his lips again.
"Now then… I'll repay you for the pain 'Obelisk' gave me…and give it back to you twice as hard!" threatened Dark Marik.
Below the platform, Ishizu could be seen gazing at Dark Marik's face-down card with stoic concern.
"I thought as much…" thought Ishizu, "Marik's dark half ALLOWED Thomas to Summon 'Obelisk' on purpose—because he has another strategy all ready to be played."
Back with Dark Marik…
"I'm going to show you," The evil man thought to himself, "that I let you Summon 'Obelisk the Tormentor' in order to trigger my ultimate card…"
While he chuckled to himself, the remains of Light Marik were unconscious… But within his mind…
"Od-ion…" The reformed Rare Hunter leader groaned mentally. He then regained consciousness briefly… "Odion!"
(elsewhere…)
While all of what was going on was occuring, something else was about to happen… Back inside the blimp and within Ishizu's room, Odion was still asleep in the bed. All was quiet there… Well, at least until…
"Odion… Odion…" A familiar voice (male) echoed.
Suddenly, appearing and standing by the bed came…an image of Light Marik (or rather what was left of him).
"Odion… Soon, I'll be gone into the world of darkness," admitted Light Marik.
The coma-induced Odion didn't respond… not that it stopped Light Marik from speaking to his adopted brother some more…
"But before I go, however, I have something very important to tell you…" The reformed Rare Hunter leader continued, going into his speech, "I've broken the rules of my tribe and committed many horrible crimes in retribution for our Father's murder. Even if I have to suffer punishment forever, I can never be forgiven for any of my actions."
A flashback began.
FLASHBACK
Young Dark Marik snickered before turning his (Young Dark Marik) attention back to Flashback Mr. Ishtar, knowing the perfect way to kill the old fool.
"And now, Father, it's time for you to meet your fate," grinned Young Dark Marik.
Suddenly, he removed the handle of the Millennium Rod and revealed a terrible secret about the item. The Millennium Rod was actually half rod—half dagger. Young Dark Marik advanced sinisterly towards Flashback Mr. Ishtar and readied the weapon.
"No! Stop!" cried Flashback Mr. Ishtar.
Despite his horrified pleas, they were all in vain.
(outside…)
Outside the tomb, Flashback Mr. Ishtar's screams echoed followed by Young Dark Marik's insane laughter.
(inside…)
Back inside, Flashback Mr. Ishtar was now lying in a pool of blood (some blood could also be seen on the walls). The scariest bit was the old man's back was completely skinned; mutilated so badly that it was enough to make anyone who saw the final result feel very sick. In Young Dark Marik's bloodied hands was a rectangle of skin that he (Young Dark Marik) removed from Flashback Mr. Ishtar's back.
"So much for him," Young Dark Marik chuckled sadistically, briefly approaching the seemingly lifeless body of Flashback Odion, "Say, Odion, you wanted proof of belonging to the Ishtar clan, didn't you?" He (Young Dark Marik) held up and dropped the rectangle-shaped skin, showing the markings that Flashback Mr. Ishtar had gotten many years ago, "Then here, take this with you to the netherworld," With that done, he decided to kill the immobile Flashback Ishizu next, "Now for you, Honorable Big Sister!"
END FLASHBACK
The flashback ended, but Odion still laid asleep… yet Light Marik didn't stop there…
"It was really the dark side I was unaware of that committed the murderous deed," realized Light Marik, "But it was my own heart that gave birth to that dark personality, all because of my hatred of fate… my hatred of the Pharaoh… it was the perfect creation for someone with such a crude heart like mine," After taking a few seconds to take a few deep breaths while trying his hardest to not burst into tears, the reformed Rare Hunter leader continued speaking some more, "Odion, when I went through the ritual of the Tomb Keepers, you've endured the exact same pain that I did…"
A flashback began.
FLASHBACK
Finally, the big day had come. Two men wearing robes were carrying a screaming and wailing Young Marik away to have the carvings carved into his back.
"No, please!" he cried, "I don't want to be a Tomb Keeper!"
Young Marik then saw Flashback Odion standing nearby with his (Flashback Odion) head bowed in shame.
"Odion, please help me!" begged Young Marik, but knew there was nothing Flashback Odion could do to stop it, "Odion… ODION!"
(elsewhere…)
Alas, there was nothing Flashback Ishizu could do, either, except pray inside her room for Young Marik's safety.
(elsewhere…)
Young Marik was chained onto a table while lying on his stomach while his own Father heated a dagger over a burning candle.
"The time has come for you, my son," The voice of Flashback Mr. Ishtar said calmly, as the dagger heated to a really high temperature. He held it up with a small, cruel smile on his face before he faced his chained son, "Today you shall bear the honor every Ishtar has held of guarding the Pharaoh's Tomb until the arrival of his chosen descendant."
There was a sinister gleam in his eyes. With that said, a remorseless Flashback Mr Ishtar began carving the symbols into Young Marik's back, all while the poor boy screamed in agonizing pain through the gag on his mouth.
(elsewhere…)
Hours later, Young Marik was lying on his bed by his stomach with bloodied bandages around his burnt torso. He was in a very bitter mood when Flashback Odion arrived to change the bandages. The whole room was in a mess.
"My life is over…" Young Marik muttered bitterly.
"Fear not, master. You're a Tomb Keeper now," Flashback Odion replied, walking into the room.
"DON'T TOUCH ME!" snapped Young Marik, just before grimacing in pain, "Ouch… It hurts…"
"I'm sorry," apologized Flashback Odion.
"What do you have to be sorry for?" asked Young Marik angrily, "You didn't force my family to live underground. I was the one who was chosen to bear the pain. I feel so alone… Tell me, Odion… Why should I have to devote my life just to serve some stupid Pharaoh?!"
As Young Marik said the last part of his sentence, his voice sounded like there were two people speaking at once—along with the image of a darker version of the boy briefly appearing while smirking evilly. Suddenly, Young Marik saw that Flashback Odion had his (Flashback Odion) face all bandaged up.
"Odion, what's with your face?" he asked curiously.
"I performed my own ritual since your Father would not allow me into the clan," said Flashback Odion, just as he undid the bandages to show his new markings, "You will never be alone again, Master Marik."
The sight of the markings on Flashback Odion's face seemed to have calmed Young Marik down.
END FLASHBACK
The flashback ended.
"You made a choice to live with me in the darkness… sharing my sin, sharing my destiny… However, you don't have to do that anymore, Odion," encouraged Light Marik, "I don't know where you are wandering right now, but there's no need for you to suffer anymore… Life or death, whichever it is, you should head towards the light…" He started fading away around here, "Thank you for being there for me… brother."
The image faded away into the shadows, but Odion would STILL not wake up from his coma…
(elsewhere…)
Back atop the Duel Tower and inside the Shadow Realm, Thomas (LP: 2300) and Dark Marik (LP: 700) both gazed at each other hatefully, while the latter also snickered to himself in triumph.
"Thomas… by attacking me directly with your almighty 'Egyptian God' monster, you've knocked off nearly all of my LP," Dark Marik admitted, but then chuckled again, "But there's something I'd like to tell you right now—it was all for 'nothing' on your part!" Suddenly, his face grew more and more disoriented and insane, "You fool! I WANTED you to Summon 'Obelisk the Tormentor'! It was all part of my Immortality Trap strategy!"
Below the platform, everyone (except both Spencer and Ishizu) gasped upon hearing that.
"Immortality Trap?" repeated Henry, just before shivering nervously, "I don't like the sound of that."
Back on the platform…
"Yes, you hurt me, Thomas… you really took a lot of my LP away," Dark Marik went on, "But in addition to that, you've activated one of the most powerful Trap Cards in the whole game!"
"A Trap Card?!" Thomas gasped.
"Wait a second, I thought Trap Cards don't work on 'Egyptian God' monsters?!" Percy protested.
"I'm afraid you are correct, Percy," confirmed Dark Marik, frowning a bit, "'Egyptian Gods' can't trigger monster destruction Traps…" He then had an evil smirk on his face, "But this one card actually activates if I take a massive amount of battle damage!" He pushed a button on his Duel Disk and motioned his right hand to his final face-down card, causing said Set card to flip face-up and reveal itself, "Face-down card, open! Continuous Trap, 'Metal Reflect Slime', activate!"
Below the platform, many of the spectators gasped in horror.
"Not 'that' card!" cried Discord, taking a step back.
"'Metal Reflect Slime' is one of the most powerful Trap Cards in the whole game!" added Matt, having heard about it one time, "It's so rare that there could be only a single copy of it in the whole game!"
Back on the platform, out of the face-up Trap Card, and onto the field, came a large metallic object made entirely out of slime.
"'Metal Reflect Slime'…" uttered Thomas.
"'Metal Reflect Slime' is something you'd call a Trap Monster," explained Dark Marik, "When I take 2000 or more battle damage: I must Special Summon 1 'Slime Token' with DEF equal to 3/4 of the opponent monster's ATK in Defense Position. It cannot attack!"
"3/4?" Thomas blinked, "'Obelisk' has 4000 ATK…" He then gasped in realization, "That would give your monster exactly 3000 DEF!"
"How right you are, boy!" laughed Dark Marik, before holding both his hands out, "And now, 'Metal Reflect Slime', use your reflection ability and take the form of the very monster that has attacked us!"
'Metal Reflect Slime' started molding itself into, much to the horror of the audience, Thomas, and Emily, a duplicate of 'Obelisk the Tormentor'.
"It's…" thought Thomas, horrified.
"Behold the instrument of your impending destruction! 'Egyptian God Slime'!" boomed Dark Marik.
Below the platform, every living person in the Shadow Realm gazed upon the new monster with fear in their eyes (even Spencer and Ishizu were both gawking at the sight). Meanwhile, both the new 'Metal Reflect Slime' monster and an outraged 'Obelisk the Tormentor' gazed at each other while ready for battle.
"'Metal Reflect Slime'…!" whispered Michael.
"It's another 'Obelisk'!" cringed Ben.
"PAH! That's just a fake!" scoffed James, "The real 'Obelisk' will splatter that thing all the way to kingdom come!"
On the platform, Dark Marik, knowing he had the advantage now, could only chuckle evilly as his new monster loomed behind him. Below the platform, Spencer was not happy to see Dark Marik creating a copy of 'Obelisk the Tormentor'.
"Ngh… I can't believe Marik would copy 'Obelisk' like that!" thought Spencer angrily, "How dare he disrespect the power of 'Obelisk the Tormentor'!"
"Thomas can still take that imposter down with no trouble; right, Spencer?" asked Skiff hopefully, trying to snap his (Skiff) older brother out of his (Spencer) thoughts.
To the younger boy's surprise, however, Spencer remained silent on the situation. So, Skiff looked over to Ishizu for a possible answer—unfortunately, she was looking just as worried about the new monster. Back atop the platform…
"Take a good look, Thomas!" snickered Dark Marik, "I am about to make the ultimate defensive monster!"
"A copy of an 'Egyptian God' monster…" Thomas thought to himself, "I don't know how Marik plans on making it an unstoppable defensive monster, but I need to be ready for it just incase it does happen," With that thought on hand, he took another card from his hand, "I Set one card face-down and end my turn!"
He slotted the card into a Spell & Trap Zone on his Duel Disk, which caused a face-down card ('Magical Dimension') to materialize on the field right behind the real 'Obelisk the Tormentor'. Meanwhile, Dark Marik was very pleased to hear that it was his turn, now.
"It's my turn!" exclaimed Dark Marik, drawing a card, "Draw!"
Turn Nine: Dark Marik (LP: 700)
Deck: 42
Current Hand (7): "Jam Defender", "Polymerization", "Granadora", "Protection of Arthenée", "Sinister Serpent", "Revenge Rally", and "Revival Jam"
Dark Marik's hand now consisted of 'Jam Defender', 'Polymerization', 'Granadora', 'Protection of Arthenée', 'Sinister Serpent', 'Revenge Rally', and the recently drawn 'Revival Jam'. The sight of the drawn card brought another wicked smile to his already deranged face.
"I might not have anything to bring 'Monster Reborn' back to my hand for the time being, but I now have all the cards I need to successfully complete my unstoppable Immortality Trap strategy!" thought Dark Marik, just before speaking aloud, "Get ready, 'Your Highness'! My 'Metal Reflect Slime' monster is about to become truly invincible to even the attacks of 'Obelisk'!"
Thomas merely stood in his spot, watching as Dark Marik took a new card from his hand.
"First, I'll Summon 'Revival Jam' in Defense Position!" began Dark Marik, placing the card ('Revival Jam') onto his Duel Disk (sideways).
A blue blob of a monster appeared on the field (Level: 4/ATK: 1500/DEF: 500). Thomas was not looking too thrilled at seeing that monster once more…
"You remember facing this monster once before, right?" teased Dark Marik, "Against Strings, if I'm not mistaken?"
"Yes…" scowled Thomas irritably, "That 'Slime' monster gave me quite the annoyance when I dueled that mind puppet."
A flashback began.
FLASHBACK
During Flashback Thomas's duel with Flashback Strings…
"But a word of caution," advised Flashback Thomas, "You Summon your 'Slime Tokens' in Attack Position, and they have only 500 ATK," Focus went towards 'Slime Token (ATK: 500) and 'Buster Blader' (ATK: 2600), "If I use 'Buster Blader' to attack, you'll lose your monster and take 2100 damage."
"Dammit! I didn't think of that!" panicked Flashback Strings.
"You say I only have a few turns left to live, but, in actuality, 'you' only have that long to live!" threatened Flashback Thomas, as focus went towards 'Buster Blader' and the Battle Phase began, "'Buster Blader', attack 'Slime Token'! Destruction Sword Flash!"
'Buster Blader' leaped into the sky and brought his huge sword down towards the 'Slime Token' in an effort to slay it—but suddenly, 'Revival Jam' appeared and took the blow instead, splattering into goo before gathering together to reform.
"Huh?!" gawked Flashback Thomas.
"Hmhmhm… Actually, I expected you to try that," smirked Flashback Strings, as he motioned his right arm to a face-up Trap Card ('Jam Defender') on his field, "That's why I activated the Continuous Trap, 'Jam Defender'! When an opponent's monster declares an attack on a monster I control: I can target 1 'Revival Jam' I control; I must switch the attack target to that target."
'Revival Jam' was soon whole again, much to Thomas's dismay.
"You thought by destroying my 'Slime Tokens' you can get at my LP, but you thought wrong," tittered Flashback Strings, as an image of Marik appeared again, "Hehehe… I can see you're getting frustrated by your lack of progress."
"How am I going to get to Marik's LP?" Flashback Thomas thought to himself.
END FLASHBACK
The flashback ended, and Dark Marik was busy snickering with dark amusement.
"Well, I'm afraid it's about to get a whole lot worse for you, my poor, pathetic friend!" remarked Dark Marik.
Below the platform, everyone was confused as to what the evil man had planned in using that monster.
"What does he mean by that?" asked Zack.
"Your guess is as good as mine," answered Ben.
"Something tells me it has something to do with that 'Revival Jam' monster though," Michael guessed, still uncertain.
Back on the platform…
"Now, I'll activate the Spell Card, 'Polymerization'!" chuckled Dark Marik, taking and holding another card ('Polymerization') out, "I must Fusion Summon 1 Fusion Monster from my Extra Deck, using monsters from my hand or field as Fusion Material!"
The mentioned Spell Card then materialized face-up on the field and immediately activated.
"Now, observe as I fuse my 'Revival Jam'…with my 'Metal Reflect Slime'!" shrieked Dark Marik madly.
'Revival Jam' and 'Metal Reflect Slime' were both pulled into the face-up 'Polymerization' Spell Card for the Fusion Summon.
"Is that even legal?" asked Henry.
"If you mean fusing a 'Slime' monster with a Trap Monster," commented James in a deadpan tone, "then I don't know what the heck you're talking about."
Once the Fusion Summon sequence was complete, a blast of slime exploded out of the face-up 'Polymerization' Spell Card. However…
"Hey, that 'Metal Reflect Slime' is still standing!" announced Ben, "Nothing's changed about it."
"Maybe it really was an illegal play?" frowned Michael.
Back on the platform…
"Nothing has changed with your 'Metal Reflect Slime'!" accused Thomas.
It was true; 'Revival Jam' was now gone, but 'Metal Reflect Slime' was still on the field.
"Oh, you believe so?" shrugged Dark Marik, before bowing in a taunting sort of way, "Well then, why don't you try attacking it and make certain?"
Much of the audience was worried, but mainly…
"Don't attack, Thomas!" called Edward, "He's trying to lure you into another trap! You might take big damage this time around or something far 'worse'!"
Edward was absolutely right; Taking all the pain from the Shadow Game in Emily's place was taking its toll on Thomas. His skin was as pale as a ghost, his breathing was harder, and he was feeling a little lightheaded. Regardless of that disadvantage, Thomas kept his determined stance and managed to draw a card.
"It's my turn! Draw!" croaked Thomas.
Turn Ten: Thomas Billinton (LP: 2300)
Deck: 48
Current Hand (6): "Ragnarok", "Kuriboh", "Dark Magician Girl", "Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts", "Dark Magician", and "Big Shield Gardna"
Then…
"I Summon 'Big Shield Gardna'…" continued Thomas, placing his drawn card ('Big Shield Gardna') onto his Duel Disk (sideways), "…in Defense Position!"
The warrior wielding the big shield appeared on the field in a defensive stance (Level: 4/ATK: 100/DEF: 2600).
"Marik's monster is still much weaker than 'Obelisk'," thought Thomas, "Although, I could have Summoned 'Gazelle' in Attack Position instead, and then perform a direct attack on his LP once that 'Metal Reflect Slime' was out of the way. But then 'good' Marik's body would be sacrificed into the darkness… But, I guess for right now, there isn't any other choice on the matter," Sighing unhappily, he made his battle plan known to the public, "You want an attack, Marik? You've asked for it!"
"Oh? So you're gonna attack my 'weaker' monster with the great 'Obelisk the Tormentor'?" urged Dark Marik, sounding rather pleased, "You're either very brave to do it—or very foolish!"
Below the platform…
"Thomas is gonna take a chance?" assumed Toby, surprised.
"It looks like it," Zack confirmed grimly.
"I know I would," suggested James.
And taking the chance, Thomas, on the platform, did as his Battle Phase began.
"'Obelisk the Tormentor', attack the slime copy!" commanded Thomas, "God Hand Crusher!"
'Obelisk the Tormentor', bellowing angrily, obeyed and attacked the copy, slugging it real hard and causing it to splatter into liquid blobs all around the platform. Below the platform…
"All right!" Percy and James cheered in unison.
"Thomas destroyed that fake!" came from Gordon.
Back on the duel platform…
"Did I get it?" Thomas asked himself.
Dark Marik smirked to himself. Suddenly, the splattered pools of liquid slithered about on the ground and combined right back into 'Egyptian God Slime', causing Thomas and Emily to both gasp.
"'Metal Reflect Slime' is rebuilding itself!" thought Thomas, before narrowing his eyes in realization, "I should have known…"
Once the 'Metal Reflect Slime' was rebuilt, Dark Marik chuckled real softly.
"Your attack was completely useless, I'm afraid," confessed Dark Marik, "The second effect of 'Egyptian God Slime'… When this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the GY: I must Special Summon it in face-up Defense Position. My monster is now truly an indestructible defensive monster in battle! But, to be more specific, it has another name! What is it, you ask? It's also known as…" His smirk widened and eyes bulged insanely, "…'Immortal God Slime'!"
"'Immortal God Slime'?!" repeated Thomas.
"There's no way to get through that thing!" exclaimed Emily.
Below the platform, the rest of the gang was dismayed by this new development, but mostly…
"Are you kidding me?! Now 'Obelisk' can't even get at Marik's LP!" complained Percy.
"How's Thomas supposed to beat him, now?" growled James, "Its effect is way too broken for anyone to get through!"
"Broken, indeed!" huffed Gordon, all in complete agreement.
Nearby, Spencer was in his thoughts over the situation which included recalling 'Obelisk the Tormentor' first attacking 'Egyptian God Slime'.
"It was as if Marik knew Billinton would Summon the second 'Egyptian God' monster," thought Spencer, "Taking a direct attack like that was all a ploy to Summon that 'Immortal God Slime' monster onto the field," He then envisioned 'Obelisk the Tormentor' first destroying the 'Egyptian God Slime', only for the copy to immediately reform completely, "Marik's new monster has rendered 'Obelisk' completely powerless…!" The silver-haired boy eyed Thomas on the platform, "Is there even a way for Billinton to turn this situation around?"
Back on the platform, there was nothing more for Thomas to do at the moment…
"My turn has ended!" he finished.
"It's my turn," gloated Dark Marik, wagging his tongue about once again while drawing a card, "Draw!"
"Marik must be using his new monster as a wall to hold out until he can add 'Monster Reborn' back into his hand," thought Thomas, "If Marik does manage to Summon 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' again, 'Obelisk' will surely be defeated!" He, as well as Emily, looked up to where Light Marik was (just above Dark Marik), and he (Light Marik) didn't look all that good, "And even if I do manage to defeat the 'Slime' monster permanently, it won't hurt that dark half at all. What's more, if I do manage to hurt his LP, I'd risk killing good Marik. What can I even do, now?"
After finishing with going over his thoughts, a small bread of sweat trickled down Thomas's face.
Turn Eleven: Dark Marik (LP: 700)
Deck: 41
Current Hand (6): "Jam Defender", "Granadora", "Protection of Arthenée", "Sinister Serpent", "Revenge Rally", and "Bowganian"
"Ah, Thomas," Dark Marik spoke up, "The darkness hungers for both you along with your little girlfriend up there."
Meanwhile, near above the evil man, Light Marik just continued to lay motionless while barely conscious once more. Dark Marik then went and took a new card from his hand.
"Now for the torture session to continue!" offered Dark Marik, by taking and slotting two cards into separate Spell & Trap Zones on his Duel Disk, and then placed a third card onto a Monster Zone (sideways), "I Set two cards face-down, and Summon 'Bowganian' in Defense Position!"
An eye-like monster wearing armor and wielding a crossbow appeared onto the field (Level: 4/ATK: 1300/DEF: 1000).
"'Bowganian'?" pondered Thomas, before remembering something about it—while gazing long and at it, "Once per turn, during your Standby Phase: Inflict 300 damage to your opponent."
"That's right," confirmed Dark Marik, who loved 'Bowganian's' only effect, "That means you and poor Emily will both lose sooner than you think—or should I say…'die' much sooner," From there, he took another card ('Protection of Arthenée') from his hand and held it out, "Equip Spell, 'Protection of Arthenée', activate!"
The mentioned Spell Card materialized face-up on the field.
"'Protection of Arthenée'?" gasped Thomas, while Emily didn't look any better.
"In order to activate this card, I need to shuffle a monster from my GY into my Deck!" As Dark Marik explained his Equip Spell's activation requirements, he took and shuffled a Monster Card ('Vampiric Leech') from his GY into the Deck. Once he was done, he then revealed his card's primary effect, "The equipped monster cannot be destroyed by my opponent's card effects, also if I have an Equip Spell in my GY, the equipped monster gains 300 ATK."
Thomas scowled in frustration. Not only was 'Egyptian God Slime' now immune to both destruction by battle or card effects, but he would lose even faster thanks to 'Bowganian', and it also meant the shadows would be more determined in eating away at his spirit in an attempt to force him to let 'Emily' be devoured by the darkness…
"Now then, how about giving up? Do so, and I'll promise you that death will 'hopefully' go soft on the both of you…" dared Dark Marik, "I end my turn!"
"Not a chance!" refused Thomas, drawing a card, "It's my turn!"
Turn Twelve: Thomas Billinton (LP: 2300)
Deck: 47
Current Hand (6): "Ragnarok", "Kuriboh", "Dark Magician Girl", "Gazelle the King of Mythical Beasts", "Dark Magician", and "Soul Taker"
Adding his drawn card to his hand, Thomas then prepared to take the 'Big Shield Gardna' Effect Monster Card off of the Monster Zone on his Duel Disk, when…
"Stop right there!" interrupted Dark Marik, holding his right hand out, "Trap Card, 'Revenge Rally'!" His second Set card flipped face-up and revealed itself, "I must target 1 face-up monster my opponent controls; I must equip this card to that target. It gains 500 ATK/DEF!"
'Big Shield Gardna' received a boost to both its ATK and DEF (ATK: 100 → 600/DEF: 2600 → 3100). Thomas, not trusting this strange play for even a second, immediately continued with his original plan; he replaced the 'Big Shield Gardna' Effect Monster Card with another Monster Card ('Dark Magician Girl').
"I Tribute 'Big Shield Gardna' to Summon 'Dark Magician Girl' in Attack Position!" The voice of Thomas was saying, as the above scenario played out.
'Big Shield Gardna' vanished in a blue streak… and appearing on the field in his place was Thomas's secondary ace monster, who immediately struck a pose upon appearing on the field (Level: 6/ATK: 2000/DEF: 1700). Dark Marik merely cackled over the poor move made by Thomas.
"Fool! You did exactly what I wanted!" accused Dark Marik, "I activate the second effect of 'Revenge Rally'! If this card is sent to the GY because the equipped monster has left the field: I must draw 1 card, or if I activated this card this turn, draw 2 cards then discard 1 card, instead."
As such, Dark Marik promptly drew two cards ('Class System' and 'Bait Doll'), and then discarded 1 ('Sinister Serpent'). That move was followed by a face-down card ('Soul Taker') materializing on Thomas's field.
"I Set one more card face-down on the field!" Thomas went on, having slotted a card into his Duel Disk before falling into his thoughts, "If I don't destroy that 'Bowganian' immediately, Marik's dark half may find a way to inflict pain from this Shadow Game to Emily that not even 'I' can protect her from," He then pointed forth and entered the Battle Phase, "Go, 'Dark Magician Girl' Hurry and destroy 'Bowganian'!"
'Dark Magician Girl' was more than happy to obey. She pointed her wand forth and started charging up a blast. The blast was then fired towards the enemy monster, but Dark Marik's face grew maniacal with triumph.
"Not so fast!" he cried, "That's as far as you'll go!"
Thomas grimaced upon hearing that. Below the platform, everyone else knew that what Dark Marik was about to do was goning to be terrifying.
"Face-down card, open!" announced Dark Marik, holding his right hand out and causing his final face-down card to flip up and reveal itself, "Continuous Trap, 'Jam Defender', activate!"
'Dark Magician Girl's' attack was immediately caught by 'Egyptian God Slime'.
"You remember this card's effect, don't you, Thomas?" reminded Dark Marik, "When an opponent's monster declares an attack on a monster I control: I can target 1 'Revival Jam' I control; I must switch the attack target to that target!"
"Yes," grunted Thomas, clearly displeased, "I remember it all too well."
"And my 'Egyptian God Slime's' first effect! This card's name becomes 'Revival Jam' while it is on the field or in the GY!" laughed Dark Marik, "That means your attack goes right back towards you!"
'Egyptian God Slime' immediately hurled the blast right at a bewildered 'Dark Magician Girl', striking and throwing her to the ground right near her master's feet.
"'Dark Magician Girl'!" cried Thomas, "Are you alright?"
'Dark Magician Girl' got back to her feet without saying a word.
"If I were you, I'd worry less about your silly monster, and worry more about your dwindling health," teased Dark Marik, "Especially since you know what happens next now that you've lost more LP!"
Thomas grunted a little bit as he lost 1000 LP (LP: 2300 → 1300). And, as Dark Marik had so 'kindly' pointed out, Thomas cried out in pain as the shadows struck his heart.
"Thomas!" wailed Emily helplessly as a thought came to her, "He's putting himself through this unbearable pain… Pain that was supposed to be inflicted upon 'me'!"
"Heh heh heh…" Dark Marik chuckled sadistically, "If I were you, now would be as good a time as any to let the shadows eat your 'precious' Emily when you take the damage she was 'meant' to take, and save 'yourself'."
Thomas growled at this. Below the platform, however…
"He's getting closer and closer to the brink of death," Henry gasped quietly.
"As long as Thomas keeps Emily from being harmed in the Shadow Game, he'll just keep getting weaker and sicklier," figured Gordon.
"It is his fear for Emily's safety that is controlling his actions," revealed Ishizu, which resulted in everyone looking to her, "Thomas's concern for Emily's wellbeing is so strong, that he has allowed his fear of losing her to blind him from the reality of the situation. If he does not conquer this fear, and 'allow' Emily to be harmed so he may protect her, it could lead to more tragic outcomes in his future.
"That would imply he would make it to 'see' that future," added Discord, "At the rate Thomas-boy's taking damage, even if he wins and frees your brother from his dark personality's control…" His face became grim, "This could end up being his 'final' duel ever!"
No one in the audience liked the sound of that. Not even Spencer was pleased at this possibility of his rival dying. Back on the platform…
"I…end my turn!" finished Thomas reluctantly.
"Oh? Is that all?" spat Dark Marik, "Besides… it's now your End Phase, and that also means Bowganian will deal 300 damage!" As he announced the effect name, 'Bowganian' raised its weapon, "Bowgun of Hell Send!"
'Bowganian' opened fire from its weapon. The bolt went and struck Thomas in the chest, making him yell in pain (LP: 1300 → 1000). Alas, that mildly pained yell turned into a more painful shriek when he felt the shadows once again eating away at his heart and soul, causing him to stumble weakly.
"Oh, how I 'enjoy' seeing innocent people suffer!" Dark Marik proclaimed excitedly, "If you keep putting the girl's safety ahead of your own, you'll eventually die and make me the winner by default!"
"I don't care what happens to me!" argued Thomas, "I promised I wouldn't let Emily be hurt again, and I will keep it no matter what cost I have to pay!"
"Thomas, stop!" Emily pleaded in desperation, "Please stop torturing yourself like this!"
"I would rather die than lose you, Emily!" objected Thomas, "I won't let you be consumed by the shadows!"
"Stop saying that and please listen!" begged Emily, "The more you put yourself through this, the weaker you'll become! Soon you won't be strong enough to keep fighting, and Marik's dark half will succeed in engulfing our whole world in shadows! Please, save yourself, and just 'let' the shadows consume me! I 'deserve' it!"
"No, you don't!" Thomas countered, coughing slightly, "I couldn't protect you before, but now I 'can'! I can 'finally' see to it that you are never-" Before he could finish his sentence, he coughed again, and noticed a few small drops of blood on his hand, "B-Blood?!"
Dark Marik boomed with laughter, "Now do you see what you're doing to yourself?" he taunted, "You're doing all of the work for me!"
"He's right, Thomas!" admitted Emily, "As much as I hate to admit it…"
"I don't care!" snapped Thomas stubbornly, "Losing you is the one thing I would never forgive myself for!"
Below the platform…
"Try and listen to reason, Thomas!" Edward called out, "We know how much Emily means to you, but killing yourself just to protect her is not the right thing to do!"
"None of us want Emily to get hurt," insisted Percy, "But we don't want 'you' to get hurt either!"
"As much as we hate to admit it, the best course of action is to just do as Emily says, and just 'let' her face the Shadow Game penalty so you can save your strength to fight Marik at 100% strength!" requested James.
Back on the platform…
"I will not sacrifice Emily just for my own benefits!" refused Thomas in outrage, nearly stumbling over from hearing such an idea, "For too long, I've had to stand by and do 'nothing' while the people I care for are endangered. After all this time, I have been 'finally' granted the power to prevent that from 'ever' happening again! And yet you all want me to 'ignore' this new power and 'allow' Emily to be undeservingly tortured?!"
Back on the platform, as Thomas argued with his friends, Light Marik, unknowingly to anyone at the time, managed to regain some form of consciousness (once more), knowing that he had to do something to help both of his former enemies out of their situation. Below the platform, Mavis continued to watch the duel with much worry for her friends' safety… All of a sudden, she felt someone taking over her mind as her eyes closed… and a male voice speaking from her own mouth…
"Don't hesitate, Thomas," offered Mavis (possessed), speaking in Light Marik's voice, "I'm already prepared to die…!"
Percy, Gordon, and Toby were each the first to notice this.
"Mavis?" peeped Percy, "You okay?"
When Mavis opened her eyes, they were dull and expressionless.
"It's not Mavis," she suddenly said in a mixture of two voices, "It's Marik."
Everyone in the audience recoiled in shock by this new bit of info.
"MARIK?!" Percy and the likes realized.
"The real Marik," Mavis (possessed) corrected, "The one Thomas is facing is my dark side."
"We rather figured that," mused Henry.
Back on the platform, Dark Marik scowled at Light Marik for interrupting. Back on the platform, Light Marik continued to speak through Mavis.
"I want you to defeat my dark half," informed Mavis (possessed), "It's the only way to put an end to this tragic duel."
Back on the platform…
"So, you've kept a piece of yourself inside Mavis all this time?" asked Thomas, turning around before collapsing onto a knee weakly.
"Yes. I wanted an extra precaution in case my dark half would find a way out," The voice of Mavis (possessed) confirmed.
"So you did," huffed Dark Marik, "I guess I didn't banish you long enough from that pitiful girl."
"So says the guy who tried to rape her afterward!" shouted Matt, "An act like that is absolutely despicable!"
"You stay out of this!" raged Dark Marik, pointing the Millennium Rod at the leader of Team 4D's and firing a blast at him (Matt).
Below the platform, the hidden birthmark on Matt's clothed right forearm started to glow and respond to the danger as the blast started to reach him, but suddenly the attack was deflected into the sky.
"What?!" winced Dark Marik.
"That's too bad," berated Matt, "But we of Team 4D's are fully protected from your powers by the Crimson Dragon. You can try using the Millennium Rod on us all you want, but it will never work."
Dark Marik cursed in response. Either way, below the platform, Mavis (possessed) resumed speaking to Thomas…
"Thomas, I swore I'd get revenge on you and your bloodline for killing my Father," remembered Mavis (possessed), "I formed the Rare Hunter group to try and kill you… but I didn't know the truth."
Percy ran over to Mavis (possessed), but then got pushed out of the way by her/him. Percy was caught by Toby while staring at his (Percy) possessed friend, who then proceeded to point towards Dark Marik atop the platform.
"The one who killed my Father was the darkness spawned in my heart!" accused Mavis (possessed), "That's right… it was YOU who did the deed!"
Back on the platform…
"Well now, Mr. Dominant Personality…" Dark Marik laughed slightly in response, "In my opinion, you really should have realized that detail before this body became all mine for the taking. Now all you can do is gather up all of that guilt inside yourself…and take it with you to your grave!"
"The only thing I plan to take with me to the grave…" retorted Light Marik acidly, "…is YOU! I will make you pay for what you have done to my Father, and my whole life!"
"Right…" smirked Dark Marik, "I'm afraid that's currently impossible to do," He then turned his attention to Thomas, "Let me tell you a little secret about my Deck… Its theme, as you likely know by now, is a little something called 'Immortality'! This means it's designed to protect my LP and give me brand new ways to revive 'The Winged Dragon of Ra' over and over again until the enemy is crushed into oblivion! And my 'Egyptian God Slime' here is my key defensive monster!" He looked back at Mavis (possessed), as focus went to Spencer, then Percy, and, back on the platform, Thomas, "So, you see, I'm invincible! NO ONE can ever hope to destroy me. Not Spencer Gresley, not Percy Avonside, not Polly Stone, and certainly not some descendant of a lousy Pharaoh!"
Light Marik scowled upon hearing the cackling laughter from Dark Marik with what little of his face remained. Below the platform, the rest of the gang tried their absolute best to keep their spirits up over the fact that their enemy was right.
"Big Sister…" Mavis (possessed) spoke up once more, this time looking at Ishizu.
"Marik?" pondered Ishizu
"Again, I'm so sorry for everything. At this point, this is all I can do," sighed Mavis (possessed) then spoke up to Thomas and Emily on the platform, "Thomas! Emily! You both must banish the evil in my heart into the darkness! And Thomas, this is one of your tests to prove yourself!"
"Marik!" murmured Thomas.
"This is getting absurd!" sighed Dark Marik irritably, digging into his ear with the index finger of his right hand, "Just go and die in a ditch somewhere, my weaker half! There is no way in hell that Thomas can ever beat me in a situation like this."
Thomas was breathing hard from the great pain he was in (blood was even dripping from his mouth). Dark Marik licked his lips once more in excitement.
"Now then… shall we continue with our 'friendly' duel?" suggested Dark Marik, "It's my turn!" He drew a card, "Draw!"
Turn Thirteen: Dark Marik (LP: 700)
Deck: 40
Current Hand (4): "Granadora", "Class System", "Bait Doll", and "Magical Stone Excavation"
As soon as his eyes noticed the drawn card, the veins on his deteriorating face bulged with anticipation.
"Here it is!" thought Dark Marik, "The card that will put 'Monster Reborn' back into my hand!"
Thomas and Emily both watched as Dark Marik gleefully added his drawn card to his hand, then he then took a card from his GY ('Sinister Serpent') and added it into his hand.
"I activate the effect of 'Sinister Serpent'!" explained Dark Marik, "During my Standby Phase, if this card is in my GY: I can return it to my hand!"
Once again, he looked over to his opponent's field with a very sadistic snicker. Thomas was feeling so poorly right now that his hands trembled as he almost dropped his hand onto the ground. 'Dark Magician Girl' nearly started to cry at seeing her master/friend's terrible condition.
"Such pain…" thought Dark Marik wickedly, smiling more sinisterly, "Such suffering… I 'love' it!" The veins on his face further bulged insanely, "But enough of that… It's time for me to regain 'Monster Reborn' and win!" The evil man slotted a card into a Spell & Trap Zone on his Duel Disk, causing it to materialize face-up on the field, "I activate the Spell Card, 'Magical Stone Excavation'!"
"'Magical Stone Excavation'?" asked Thomas.
"Yes, 'Magical Stone Excavation'," confirmed Dark Marik, taking and discarding two cards ('Bait Doll' and 'Sinister Serpent') from his hand, "I must discard 2 cards; I must add 1 Normal Spell from my GY to my hand, but I cannot activate that Spell Card this turn," A card emerged from his GY, which he took and held up, "Without a doubt, the one I pick…" He turned it ('Monster Reborn') over and showed off, "…is 'Monster Reborn'!"
"No!" cried Emily.
Dark Marik wagged his tongue about again, pleased that his favorite card was back in his hand, ready to be used next turn.
"On my next turn, I'll Special Summon 'Ra', and it will be the end of both of you!" bragged Dark Marik.
Thomas and Emily both watched on in complete shock.
"Thomas, there has to be something you can do!" worried Emily.
"I know that, Emily," acknowledged Thomas weakly, "This will be my final gamble!"
"Well, Thomas…" began Dark Marik, rather calmly—but then gave the most demented face ever seen by anyone, "ARE YOU PREPARED YET?! The darkness of death is right in front of both of you and your girlfriend!"
Dark Marik cackled wildly as Thomas bravely (but weakly) stood his ground.
(elsewhere…)
Back aboard the blimp and inside Ishizu's room, everything was still and quiet there, and poor Odion was still sound asleep in the bed. It looked like hope for him was all but lost… All of a sudden, however, his eyes…snapped open!
"Master Marik!" breathed Odion.
Wow… Odion was finally awake from his coma. What did that even mean?
Due to some recent severe problems with trying to edit the full chapter, I had to split it in two for the time being.