Chapter 17
On the Wrong Track: Part 1
"Reasons for Revenge"
"Looks like the end of the line for you, Yami." Weevil said as the train sped along before laughing. "What's so funny?" Yami asked. "Take a look at your Obnoxious Celtic Guard, he's just not himself anymore." Weevil answered before the warrior turned into a chrysalis. 'This must be part of the transformation he mentioned. Yami's only monster became a cocoon. Who knows how many turns left until it becomes the Poison Butterfly.' Fluttershy thought.
"I play Polymerization to fuse my Curse of Dragon and Gaia the Fierce Knight together to fusion summon Gaia the Dragon Champion!" Yami declared before his fusion monster appeared. "Gaia, attack!" he commanded as his dragon champion darted forward. "Not so fast, you triggered my trap! DNA Surgery!" Weevil declared as his trap sprung. "What kind of trap is that?" Twilight asked.
"Just what I need to ensure that I win this duel. It allows me to change every monster on my opponent's side of the field into an insect, and that includes Yami's dragon champion!" Weevil answered before the creature sprouted insect legs across its body. "And, as you know, my Insect Barrier prevents any and all insect monsters from attacking." he added as the attack stopped. 'Weevil's got Yami trapped. Now every monster he summons will become a bug, and as long as the Insect Barrier is up, Yami can't even attack.' AJ thought.
"You beat this guy once, you can do it again!" Tea called. "But he's gotten stronger since I last dueled him." Yami replied. Meanwhile, Rex and Joey's duel continued. "I never thought that Rex would play dirty. He's already got three dinosaurs breathing down Joey's neck." Spike said. "You're in way over your head this time. Thanks to the Seal of Orichalcos, I'll never be defeated again. But enough talk, on with the duel." Rex said before drawing.
"Alright, then. First I'll use Polymerization to fuse one of my Gilasaurus with my Kaitoptera to fusion summon Horned Saurus!" he declared before his new dinosaur, a level six, Dark attribute dinosaur/fusion/effect monster with 2000 attack points and 1800 defense points, appeared. But its attack points quickly increased to 2500. "But you ain't seen nothing yet. Next I summon Giant Rex." he added before his new creature, a level four, Earth attribute dinosaur/effect monster with 2000 attack points and 1200 defense points, appeared.
"And just like before, the Seal of Orichalcos gives my Jurassic giants a 500 point power boost." he continued before his dinos' attack points each increased to 2500. "Time to give you a prehistoric pounding, Wheeler! My hungry carnivores are gonna feast on your life points! And my Horned Saurus is first to feed!" he continued. "Horned Saurus, attack Joey directly!" he commanded. "How can he attack Joey directly when he's got Panther Warrior on the field?" Rainbow asked. "Its the special ability of the Horned Saurus. It can bypass your opponent's monsters and go straight for their life points!" Spike answered before the pterosaur fired a blast of powerful sound down at Joey, GREATLY decreasing his life points to 1500.
"Is it me, or does Rex seem to be looking to permanently end Joey?" Pinkie asked. "You think that's brutal, watch as my Giant Rex turns Panther Warrior into a carcass!" Rex shouted before the mighty Spinosaurus-like monster charged and took the feline fighter down with one bite, lowering Joey's life points to 1000. "That was Joey's only chance!" Rarity said in shock. "You know it was, and now its time for my Gilasaurus to have something to munch!" Rex declared before his velociraptor-like monster darted at Joey with hunger in its eyes. "I activate Scapegoat!" Joey declared before his four Sheep Tokens appeared.
With one swipe of its claws, one Sheep Token was destroyed, leaving three. "I had a feeling those horned hair balls would be nothing but trouble ever since I saw you play them at Battle City when you dueled that psychic fraud, Espa Roba." Rex said. "They sure come through in a tight spot." Joey admitted. "My goodness, I thought Joseph was going to become extinct." Rarity said as she pulled out a fan to fan herself. Meanwhile, back on the train, the duel between Weevil and Yami continued.
"Weevil, incoming ledge! Look out!" the ancient one shouted before everyone ducked. "Thanks for the warning, your majesty. Now, back to the game!" Weevil declared as he drew his next card. "I activate the magic card known as Cell Division. And I'll use it to make a Cell Division Token, one that's a replica of Leghul!" he continued before the Cell Token appeared, with the same stats as Leghul. "As if two bugs weren't bad enough." AJ said. "Thanks to Cell Division, I turned my single leech into two." Weevil said. "If you think I'm frightened by a monster with 800 attack points, you're mistaken." Yami stated, bravely.
"I'm surprised at you, I thought that you of all people would recognize a good strategy when you see one. But I guess what I heard about you is true, Yami. Without Yugi's help, you're nothing but a pretender to the championship that should be his." Weevil replied. "But don't worry, once I win this duel, you and Yugi will be together again, your souls locked away forever." he added. "You don't stand a chance against him. Yami won more than just Duelist Kingdom, you know." Tea stated. "Oh, I'm aware. But the situation at Duelist Kingdom applies to Battle City as well. Both times Yami took the championship that should be Yugi's!" Weevil replied. "If you think I'm so undeserving of the titles that Yugi and I won together, then prove it!" Yami said, daringly.
"I'm with Yami. If you're think you're as strong as a cockroach, then show us instead of talking about it!" AJ concurred. "As you wish, cowgirl. I sacrifice my Pheromone Wasp and my Cell Division Token in order to summon the very monster Joey Wheeler won from me at Battle City, the Insect Queen!" Weevil replied before his new bug appeared. "Long live the queen!" he declared. "And as you can see, her crown is the Seal of Orichalcos!" he added before his Insect Queen's attack power increased to 2700.
"And I believe I should mention her majesty's special ability. She receives 200 attack points for every insect monster on the field! So my queen herself and my Leghul gives her 400, plus another 400 for the two insects on your side of the field, Yami! Giving her a grand total of 3500 attack points!" he declared as his queen gained power. "Now it's the strongest monster in play!" Twilight said in shock. "Yes, but before she attacks, I have a surprise for your friend! Leghul, sic him!" Weevil declared before the leech struck Yugi directly. "As you can see, Leghul has the ability to jump over my opponent's defenses and attack directly!" he said as Yami's life points decreased to 1900.
"Now that my leech has served its purpose, I'll sacrifice it to my Insect Queen so that she can attack!" he continued before the queen devoured the leech, losing 200 attack points in the process. "Now, my Insect Queen, attack the Dragon Champion!" he commanded before, with one blast, Gaia was reduced to bug juice, decreasing Yami's life points to 1200. "Since you mutated monster is gone, my queen loses attack points, but that's a small price to pay in order to gain something even more valuable." Weevil continued as his queen's attack power lowered to 3100. Then, she laid an egg, giving her the 200 points she previously lost.
"Talk about gross." Tea said in disgust. Meanwhile, at the rest of the train, the duel between Rex and Joey continued. "My prehistoric pets are gonna walk all over you, Wheeler." Rex claimed. "Save your breath, geekosaurus. I've got more talent in my left pinkie than you'll ever have. I was taught by Yugi's grandpa, so were my friends." Joey replied. "Oh, yeah? Well, compared to my power thanks to the Seal of Orichalcos, I've got a leg up on your and your teachings!" Rex retorted. "Whatever. My move." Joey said before drawing.
"I summon Rocket Warrior in defense mode." he added before his mechanical warrior appeared. "Next I'll set two cards face down and end my turn." he continued. "Rex, clear something up for me." Rarity said. "What is it?" Rex asked, impatiently. "Is this duel really worth that much to you? After all, you're risking your own soul just to have a rematch with Joey." Rarity said. "I know what I'm doing! I'm earning back the respect I deserve! After Wheeler took my Red-Eyes, I was knocked out of the Duelist Kingdom tournament! And since then I've been mocked, ridiculed and humiliated! But that's all gonna end here! I'm sick and tired of being a loser!" Rex shouted.
'Wait a sec. What Rex said sounds familiar.' Joey thought before remembering when he dueled Mai back at Industrial Illusions. 'Dartz must bring people into Doma by preying on their weaknesses and promising them power.' he continued. "Rex, this duel has to stop." he said aloud. "Zip it, Wheeler! You'll never stop this duel!" Rex replied before drawing. "Now, Horned Saurus, attack!" he commanded before the pterosaur zoomed toward Rocket Warrior. "You just triggered my trap, I activate Magic Arm Shield!" Joey declared before said shield appeared and tried to grab the Gilasaurus. "Guess again, Wheeler. I've got a trap of my own! Jurassic Heart!" Rex retorted before his own trap sprung.
Right away, the Magic Arm Shield was destroyed. "What kind of trap was that?!" Pinkie asked. "If I remember correctly, it cancels out any trap that targets a dinosaur." Spike answered. "Got that right, pipsqueak, meaning Joey's Rocket Warrior is history!" Rex concurred before, with one blast, Rocket Warrior was destroyed. "But that's not all I plan to do, now my Giant Rex will trample one of your puny Scapegoats!" he declared before the creature squashed one of the Sheep Tokens flat. "Now to feed my Gilasaurus!" he added before his dino ate the second to last Sheep Token whole. "Now I'll set one card face down and end my turn. Meaning your just one attack away from losing your soul forever!" he concluded.
"My move, Rex." Joey said before drawing. 'Its Red-Eyes, Rex claims after I won this card and Dragon Nails from him at Duelist Kingdom, his dueling career went down the drain. It could be just what I need.' he thought. "You won't be touching my last Sheep Token because I plan to sacrifice it. But first, I activate Star Blaster!" he declared before a little sprite appeared with a die in its hands. "Now all I have to do is add my Sheep Token's power level to the number I roll, so I can summon a monster with that specific power level." he explained before the sprite rolled the die.
The die was soon cast, it clattered, it spun and finally it landed on a six, the highest number possible. "Read it and weep, Rex!" Pinkie shouted. "Last I checked, one plus six equals seven, meaning I can summon a level seven monster!" Joey declared. "It's gonna take just more than the lucky roll of a die to win this duel." Rex stated. "Good point, Rex, but wait till you see what I have in mind! I sacrifice my Sheep Token to summon the Red-Eyes Black Dragon!" Joey replied before his best monster appeared. "Still look as fierce as when you last saw him?" he asked. "It can't be. The monster you won from me." Rex said in surprise.
"That's right, but he's gonna be stronger since last time, because I activate a trap card called Metalmorph!" Joey replied as he triggered his trap. "Now my Red-Eyes gets a 300 point boost, and whenever he attacks one of your monsters, he'll absorb half its strength!" he added as his dragon gained a new metallic coat while its attack points increased to 2700 and its defense points increased to 2300. "Now let me simplify the fun part for you. Before my dragon blasts your fossil back to the stone age, it'll gain half of your dino's attack points." he continued before his dragon's attack points greatly increased to 3950.
"Take it down, Red-Eyes, with Inferno Fire Blast!" he commanded before Horned Saurus became extinct. "Nice shot!" Rainbow shouted as Rex's life points greatly decreased to 2550. "Next I'll set one card face down and call it a turn for now." Joey concluded. Back on the train, the duel between Yami and Weevil kept going. "My insect army will slowly infest the playing field. Just a few more turns and you'll be bug bait!" the ex-regional champion stated.
"We'll see about that. You forget the reason you lost to me at Duelist Kingdom was because you tried to cheat, but I found you out quickly." Yami said. "And cheaters don't ever win." AJ added. "Is that so? Then care to explain how I managed to win the regional championship and get as far as I did in Battle City?" Weevil asked. "You likely used the same tactics. But you went from a cheater to a greedy, power-hungry worm." Yami answered. "What does that make you? Correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't you the one who wanted enough power to defeat Rafael? Need I remind you that you sold out your best friend just for a taste of the power I now possess?" Weevil replied.
"Watch what you say, bug boy." Tea snapped. "I'm only explaining what Rex and I saw at the duel between Yami and Rafael. You were determined to win at all costs, weren't you, Yami? So you activated the Seal of Orichalcos just to set your Dragon Knight free, even thought you knew you were endangering both yourself, Yugi and Rafael. That's what I would consider being power-hungry and greedy. But now the seal and all of its power belongs to me." Weevil replied before chuckling. "You're not scaring us." Fluttershy said, bravely.
"If you think you can win this duel by playing little head games, then you're sorely mistaken, Weevil. I'm too smart for that cheap trick." Yami stated. "What you consider head games, I call opening your mind to the truth. And whether you realize it or not, its causing you to doubt yourself. Just look at your left arm, its trembling. Not that I blame you. I'd be shaking in fear also if I were in your position and about to lose my soul." Weevil replied before laughing as Yami steadied his left arm.
Back at the rest of the train, Joey seemed more confident. "Now that my Red-Eyes is on the field, you and your dinos are considered endangered species." the underdog claimed. "You've got some nerve summoning Red-Eyes, Wheeler. That dragon was my best card until you took it away from me!" Rex said, angrily. "Joseph didn't take it, he won it and the Dragon Nails card from you fair and square." Rarity pointed out, remembering how Joey and Rex's battle at Duelist Kingdom ended. "You began the ruination of my life that evening, I used to be the regional Duel Monsters champion until Weevil beat me for the title. Then Mai beat me on the boat to Duelist Kingdom, then you came along and made things worse. At one time, Weevil and I were the most famous Duelists in Japan." Rex said before remembering how life used to be for himself and Weevil.
"We couldn't walk a single block without being recognized and approached by young Duelists who wanted to be like us." he said. Meanwhile, Weevil was ranting about his own life and how it got worse after Yami beat him. "Soon, everyone in the world will envy me like the once did after my regional championship victory. I'll be back on top, just like I was before you beat me at Duelist Kingdom. Everyone will soon know Weevil Underwood as the new King of Games! And you'll be forgotten about!" the ex-regional champion stated before remembering what life was like before his big defeat.
"I almost forgot what it was like to be honored, respected and adored." he said while also remembering how he would often trick young dueling admirers. Rex was remembering the same thing. "Unfortunately, my fame didn't last, even if I was the runner-up of the regional championship. After Duelist Kingdom, I became a joke! Everyone heard of how I lost to you, a nobody, an amateur!" he shouted. "You and Weevil took your losses THAT seriously?" Rainbow asked, surprised. "Of course we did! Both him and myself planned to win the world title at the most prestigious Duel Monsters tournament ever thrown, but instead, we were both defeated by newcomers, a couple of rookies! Weevil went in as a champion, I went in as a former champion, but we both came out as the laughing stocks of the entire dueling world!" Rex replied as he remembered when the mocking and humiliation began for him and Weevil after Duelist Kingdom ended.
"I was knocked out of the tournament the morning after you beat me! In fact, the same fans who admired us heard of our loss and disappeared before fawning to the likes of Yugi." he added while he remembered him and Weevil getting beat up for tricking a kid to give up his best card in exchange for an autograph. "It was the lowest point of both our lives. Since then it's been one bad day after another, and our losses at Battle City made it worse. Weevil and I were household names and now we're nothing. And we owe it all to you and Yugi!" he shouted.
"Are you finished venting yet? Your sob story isn't getting you anywhere." Joey replied. "You think we're supposed to feel bad for you and that cheater Weevil, just because you think its Joey and Yugi's fault that you two aren't popular anymore?!" Rainbow shouted. "Get a life, punkasaurus! You and that gnat, Weevil!" she snapped. "That's the point. WE HAD LIVES UNTIL YOU AND YUGI TOOK THEM AWAY FROM US! NOW WE'RE TAKING THEM BACK!" Rex bellowed.
"Rex, you and Weevil have no one to blame but yourselves. You're the ones who challenged Joey and Yugi, and as far as the here and now goes, you're both dueling for the wrong reasons." Rarity said. "Rarity's right. To me, Duel Monsters is about striving to be my best. I only entered Duelist Kingdom to save my sister from going blind, and even though I lost, Yugi did the honorable thing and gave me the prize money he won to do just that!" Joey stated. "Then he entered Battle City to keep a promise to Yugi, a promise to help him take down Marik and the Rare Hunters." Spike added.
"Like us, Duel Monsters taught Joey to trust in himself and his cards. In both Duelist Kingdom and Battle City and every duel before and after, Joey stood tall and kept fighting no matter how tough the duel got. And I'd be lying if I said it wasn't easy for him. But no matter what happened, he refused to quit." Rainbow stated before Rex lowered his beanie.
"What? Can't handle the truth? Can't handle the fact that Duel Monsters isn't about power, fame and fortune? Are you annoyed that you had the game all wrong?" Joey asked. "You're even lamer than I remember from our last duel. You give the term goody-two-shoes an entirely new meaning, Wheeler. I realized a long time ago that being a nice guy gets you next to nowhere. That's why I joined Dartz and Doma. They gave me something I could never get just by playing the game, the power to win back everything you took from me, Wheeler!" Rex replied.
"I guess your brain is as small as a dinosaur's." Rainbow said. "Let's just move on, shall we? So look out, it's party time!" Rex said before drawing. "I sacrifice Gilasaurus and Giant Rex so I can summon Tyrant Dragon!" he declared before his new beast, a level eight, Fire attribute dragon/effect monster with 2900 attack points and 2500 defense points, appeared. "I have that dragon!" Spike shouted. "Well, now you get to see its power. And thanks to the Seal of Orichalcos, it gets an extra 500 attack points!" Rex replied before the dragon's attack power increased to 3400.
"Look at that, we both have giant dragons now." he added. "But only one is gonna remain standing." Joey pointed out as the two dragons and their handlers stared each other down. Meanwhile, on the train, the battle between Yami and Weevil kept going. "What's wrong, Yami? Feel like your life is spinning out of control?" Weevil asked with a wicked laugh. "Maybe that's because it is, but it'll all be over soon." he added. "Enough! My move!" Yami declared before drawing. "But first, a friendly reminder. Two turns have past since that cocoon appeared on your half of the field. It won't be long until it hatches. And once it does, you'll meet the same fate as your little friend, Yugi." Weevil pointed out.
'I never meant for this to happen.' Yami thought. "I summon Kuriboh in defense mode." he said aloud before his iconic fur ball appeared, only turned part insect thanks to DNA Surgery. "That means my Insect Queen gains 200 extra attack points." Weevil pointed out before his queen's attack power increased to 3500. "As you can see, my DNA Surgery traps turns every monster you summon into a bug." he added. "I set one card face down." Yami said, seemingly ending his move. Back at the temple hideout of Doma, Dartz kept watch.
"Be patient, Great Leviathan. Soon the soul of the Nameless Pharaoh shall be yours." he said before laughing. Back on the train, Weevil was chuckling. "You're about to pay the ultimate price and I'll be known as the Duelist who dethroned the King of Games!" he declared.