Chapter 39
Rise of the Great Beast: Part 1
"Battle of the God Monsters"
Down from the sky came the residents of the Dominion of the Beast, led by the Dark Magician Girl. "Monsters unite! Without us, all hope is lost! We must join forces with the humans, and together, we shall defeat the Great Beast!" she declared, to which the other creatures concurred. "Now go!" she commanded before they went on the attack. "I don't know who, I don't know how, but someone's helping us!" Twilight said in surprise as she and the others looked on.
"Alright, what say we join the fight, then?" Kaiba asked. "I thought you'd never say that." Joey replied before drawing. "Time to bring out some more warriors! Gearfried, Rocket Warrior and Gilford the Lightning!" he declared before his three warriors appeared. "I summon XYZ-Dragon Cannon, Blad Knight and Kaiser Sea Horse!" Seto declared before his creatures appeared. "I'll add these three warriors! Black Luster Soldier, Buster Blader and Valkyrion the Magna Warrior!" Yami added before his three warriors arrived. The legion of monsters leaped forward and went into battle.
"There's no way the Great Leviathan can survive this!" Rainbow shouted as the creatures went on the attack. However, Dartz laughed. "What's so funny?" Spike asked. "You'll have to do better than that!" Dartz replied before every single beast was destroyed. "I think we're gonna need a Plan B!" Pinkie shouted. "Until someone can think of one, the three Knights of Atlantis are all that stand against him." Twilight pointed out.
Soon, the Great Leviathan attacked them, too. "This is it!" Kaiba shouted. "Stay strong!" AJ called out. "You three are our last hope!" Yami added. But it was too little, too late, as the Knights of Atlantis were no more. "So much for your last line of defense." Dartz said. "We'll beat you yet, you mutant!" Joey shouted. Suddenly, the beast captured Yami, Joey and Kaiba in some sort of black gunk. "This is gross!" Joey shouted before he and the other two Duelists were pulled toward the beast.
"No! Pharaoh!" Dark Magician Girl shouted. "Not to worry, gentlemen, you're about to be reunited with those you promised to rescue. They're all waiting for you, inside the belly of the beast!" Dartz said with a laugh. "I'm afraid your resistance is futile. In just a few short moments, your energy will be absorbed by the Great Leviathan!" he continued. "But don't take it from me, take it from them!" he added. "What do you mean by 'them'?" Yami asked.
He soon got his answered when he, Joey and Kaiba heard voices. "Just listen." Dartz replied. "Dartz, what's going on?" Yami asked before he heard Raf's voice calling him. "Is that Rafael?" he wondered. Then Kaiba heard Alister's voice calling him for help, followed by Joey hearing Mai's voice. "Oh, no. What Dartz said was true! We're too late. Everyone he ever captured, its inside this monster." Joey said, solemnly.
"Well, I'm not about to let him do that to me without a fight!" Kaiba said before trying to struggle his way out. "I'd hate to point out the obvious, but you're waist-deep in the Leviathan's pit of despair, and sinking fast! So fighting back isn't exactly an option, gentlemen." Dartz stated before laughing. "If we don't think of something fast, he wins." Joey said. "We came too far to be stopped now! Got that?! We're not quitting!" he shouted before the Great Leviathan trapped him further. "Yugi, no matter what, we can't let them down! Everyone in there is counting on us to stop this guy! There's got to be SOMEWAY out of this!" he shouted.
"But the question is, what?" Kaiba asked before he got trapped further, too. "I'm sinking!" he shouted. "You know that you can make this unpleasant experience easier on yourselves by just giving in." Dartz pointed out. "Yugi! Help us!" Joey shouted as he was completely engulfed. "I will! I promise!" Yami replied. "It's too late!" Kaiba shouted before he, too, was engulfed. "Dartz, no!" Yami shouted as he tried to keep his Duel Disk arm free while the Dark Magician Girl called him by name.
"Yami! Yugi!" Fluttershy called with tears in her eyes. As Joey and Kaiba sank deeper into the beast, Yami continued to struggle. "I must, hold on!" he said. 'Yami, there may be a way to fight back.' Yugi said. 'But how? We're trapped.' Yami replied. 'Well, I was thinking, if we could hear the people trapped in here, maybe they can hear us.' Yugi suggested. Yami soon realized what Yugi meant and knew what he had to do. 'Everyone, listen. Each one of us is a glimmer of light in this sea of shadows. Alone, we may seem small and insignificant, but combined together, we radiate enough energy to conquer the darkness.' he called, mentally.
'Now, please, if you can hear me, focus on the light within your hearts! It's the only way to save ourselves! Remember those you care about...' he continued before Mai started shedding tears and remembering what Valon and Joey both said as an orb of light appeared from her chest. 'Remember those who helped you...' Yami said before Raf remembered how both Yami and AJ helped him when the Paradius building began to crumble and tried to get him into the chopper as an orb of light appeared from his chest, too.
'Remember what you fought for...' Yami said before Alister remembered the moments he shared with his little brother during the Bosnia War before an orb of light appeared from his chest, too. 'And remember why you never gave up!' Yami declared before Valon remembered the final moments of his duel against Joey before an orb of light appeared from his chest, as well.
"I've done it! I've amassed enough souls to destroy mankind and rebuild paradise on Earth!" Dartz declared, thinking he won. But then he noticed beams of light shooting out of the Great Leviathan. However, little did he know they were entering Yami's Duel Disk, but Dark Magician Girl took notice as the device glowed brightly. "Of course! The pharaoh is calling for the lights from the spirits within!" she said. "Let's go! We must lend our sparks to the pharaoh as well!" she stated to her fellow monsters before they, too, entered his Duel Disk.
"My strength, take it! Before I lose it all for good!" Joey called. "Take mine, too! And don't mess this up, Yugi!" Kaiba shouted. Down on the ground, Twilight and the others felt what was going on. "I think Yami's in need of a little magic." Rainbow suggested. Knowing what she meant, Twilight called the others together to unite hands and channel their own light into the Nameless Pharaoh's Duel Disk.
Right then and there, Dartz felt something happening. "What's going on? My control is slipping! NO!" he shouted. Within the Great Beast, the Millennium Puzzle glowed. 'It's working. I feel as if my spirit's been infused with the power of every soul that Dartz captured!' Yami thought before he felt his full power come to him. "In the name of the Great Pharaoh, awaken from your ancient slumber!" he commanded before three colored lights beamed from within the Great Beast.
"It can't be!" Dartz said in disbelief. "Now I call forth, the Egyptian God Monsters!" Yami declared before the force of the summoning shot Yami, Kaiba and Joey out of the Great Leviathan, while also ripping a hole in the creature's body. "No! They've been set free!" Dartz shouted, angrily as the three men landed on the ground below. "Wait, how'd you get us free?" Joey asked. "By summoning them." Yami replied before Obelisk the Tormentor, Slifer the Sky Dragon and The Winged Dragon of Ra descended from the sky.
"I thought they were gone forever!" Joey said in shock. "Just proves why they're called god monsters." Kaiba replied. "Impossible! How did he revive the Egyptian God Monsters?!" Dartz shouted in disbelief. The Great Leviathan attempted to flee, but the three Egyptian God Monsters pursued it, high into the sky. 'The God Monsters may need my help.' Yami thought before he left Yugi to follow behind them. "Good luck, Yami." Yugi said, quietly.
Soon, Yami and the three god monsters were staring down the Great Leviathan high above the clouds. "Your move." the ancient one simply said. "You dare to challenge the Great Leviathan?! You have a lot to learn, Pharaoh!" Dartz said, insulted. The monster let out a roar, but the three god monsters stood firm. "Stand your ground, and counterattack!" Yami commanded. Obelisk was the first to strike, but the Great Beast coiled around him as Dartz laughed.
"They're powerless!" he declared. Slifer and Ra went on the attack and their attacks landed. "It's three on one up there. Dartz and that Leviathan are goners!" Joey stated. "It may be a handicap battle, but unfortunately, numbers aren't everything." Kaiba pointed out. "You can do this, Yami." Twilight said, hopeful for her friend's success. Up in the clouds, the three Egyptian God Monsters regrouped. "My beast existed long before your so-called God Monsters were ever born, and it will rule the planet long after those pathetic creatures are gone!" Dartz declared. "Now, Leviathan, attack!" he commanded.
"Obelisk, counter with Fist of Fury!" Yami commanded before Obelisk readied his mighty fist. "Slifer, counter with Thunder Force!" he added before the beast prepared to fire. "Ra, ignite your mighty Blaze Cannon!" he continued before the ring in Ra's back started to emit a ball of fire, but the energy of which traveled into Ra. "Now ATTACK!" Yami shouted before all three of the Egyptian God Monsters counterattacked the Great Leviathan, causing a great explosion that lit up the sky, with the glow being visible from below the cloud cover, which everyone down below saw, including the crew aboard the USS Courage.
"My beast is fueled by the darkness of my prisoners!" Dartz declared. "Wrong, Dartz! I was able to transform the darkness in their hearts into light! A light that now fuels MY monsters!" Yami retorted before the three God Monsters overpowered the Great Leviathan and struck it. "NO! What have you done, Pharaoh?!" Dartz shouted, angrily. Suddenly, light began to escape from the beast before it imploded and fell from the heavens.
"Look! I guess the Egyptian God Monsters pulled through!" Spike shouted. "And I bet all the souls that Dartz captured hav been freed!" Pinkie added. Sure enough, she was right as souls began to leave the creature, DRASTICALLY weakening it as it fell to the sea. Up above, Valon's soul-self told Mai's to wake up, saying the whole thing was finally over. "Valon, what's going on?" she asked. "Dartz got his bum kicked, that's what. So now, we're free. Thanks to those blokes." Valon answered, pointing to the brave Duelists on the ground.
"Kaiba, Yugi and Joey? They did it?" Mai asked, surprised. "Don't forget those other seven down there. Those friends of yours are alright, Mai. Especially Joey, since I know you love him." Valon replied. "Come on, our bodies are waiting." he added. Mai agreed and headed off with Valon. Soon, Alister's soul-self and Raf's were united with those of their departed loved ones, Alister's brother Mikey and Raf's entire family, his parents, Julian and Sonia, who tell the two men they've always been and always will be by their sides before entering the hearts of the two former Swordsmen.
"Mom, dad, Julian, Sonia. Like Alister's brother Mikey will always be with him, I know that you'll always be with me." Raf said as the sky cleared away, along with the hurricane. Down on Soma Island, Mokuba and the others saw Raf's soul reenter his body. "I'm back." he said. "Are you alright, Rafael?" Mokuba asked. "Of course. I'm free, thanks to the three Chosen Duelists." Raf replied. "You mean, they beat Dartz?" Tea asked. "That explains all those lights in the sky and why the hurricane faded." she added.
Suddenly, a dark creature shot out of the water and headed toward the floating city of Atlantis, right as the city began to quake. "Now what?!" Rainbow shouted. Soon, Yami returned. "Yami, you did it." Yugi said. "Yes. Now, let's go." Yami replied before the two came together again. "No need to stand here! Run for your lives!" Pinkie shouted. "I'm with the party girl for once!" Kaiba concurred before they all made a run back to the portal.
"There's the portal that brought us here!" Yugi shouted. "Home sweet home, here we come!" Joey shouted as he and Kaiba jumped through the portal. But before Yugi and the Mane 7 could do the same, Yami told him to wait. "What is it, Yugi?" Twilight asked. "Can't you see this place is about to crumble into the ocean?" AJ asked. "I think Yami feels something's wrong." Yugi answered. "Now that you mentioned, I can sense something is off, as well." Twilight said, the others all agreed. "We can't leave yet." she added.
Suddenly, Dartz came up behind them, weakened. "How?! Weren't you destroyed?!" Spike said in shock. "I couldn't say goodbye just yet." Dartz replied before a dark and evil serpent emerged behind him. "Oh, no." Yugi said. "Alright, there's only one thing left to do, Yugi. Timaeus, attack!" Yami declared before Timaeus appeared and went on the attack. However, the snake proved too strong for him and struck back. "No! Timaeus!" Yugi shouted.
"Return to my deck, at once!" Yami commanded before the knight did so, just in time. "Now what are we gonna do?" Fluttershy asked. "Stand our ground and fight." Twilight replied. "But we tried everything, and nothing seemed to work!" Yugi pointed out. 'So you've come to your senses and given up?' Dartz asked. "Wrong, Dartz!" Yami replied. 'Haven't you figured it out, yet? All the monsters in the entire Dominion of the Beasts combined couldn't destroy the Great Leviathan!' Dartz stated. "Why's that?" AJ asked, suspiciously.
'Because this creature isn't one of your little Duel Monsters from your silly card game. It was born from the very darkness of the human soul!' Dartz replied. "Darkness of the human soul?" Spike asked, curiously. 'Yes, you curious little runt. The Great Leviathan was created by the hatred and rage oh humans! So as long as mankind exists, so does the Great Beast!' Dartz replied as he merged into the creature one more time.
"Yugi, run, and leave these two to the rest of us." Yami said. "There's no way I'm abandoning my friends!" Yugi replied. "Dartz, you're clearly mistaken. That creature was created by the Orichalcos Stone! You were lied to, brainwashed into believing humanity must be destroyed!" Twilight shouted. "But it's not humans that are the evil, it's just you!" Spike added. "Think about it, Dartz. When you ruled Atlantis, all of its people were generous and peaceful. But then the Orichalcos Stone arrived after that volcano erupted and everything changed." put in Rarity.
"Those stone fragments carried an evil force inside them that brought chaos and hatred to your paradise!" Yami added. "Face it, Dartz! The Orichalcos Stone is USING you to do its dirty work!" AJ shouted. "But you'll never see that come to pass. So if you want to wipe out humanity, you'll have to go through us!" Yami declared as he and the Mane 7 stood ready, side by side. Right at that moment, the monster devoured ALL of them. "Guys! No!" Yugi shouted. 'I'm going to enjoy this.' Dartz said as the snake became a whirlwind that rose toward the sky.
Down below at Doma Island, the others saw what was going on, unsure and worried. In the city, Yami and the Mane 7 struggled to stay standing as the Great Leviathan devoured them, overwhelming them with its dark magic. 'Farewell, fools!' Dartz declared.