Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Look!” Joey yelled, which made the others look up with him. “The sky’s turning black!”

The once clear sky above them has now turned into a looming dark thundercloud with lightning threatening to hit the world below and all the frozen people on the ground.

“You think that’s an omen of something?” Tristan asked tensely. His attention was mainly on the lightning.

They all jumped and yelled when a bolt of lightning hit something on the road on the other side of the house they stood near. The crack was so loud that Yugi’s ears were still ringing afterward.

“Yeah, this place is beginning to get more dangerous by the second!” Joey yelled, scared.

“I fear you’re right. I don’t like that everyone around is still frozen, and we’re the only ones who can move.” Téa said, looking around at the people around them. They were still the only ones who were moving.

Yugi looked at the black sky above them again. He was hoping to see something beyond the clouds.
If this is a game world… then there must be some important meaning in the task we were given.
My other self’s true name… we have to find it before something terrible happens.

“Okay. Let me think about all of this.” Tristan said, beginning to walk forth and back with his hand thoughtfully under his jaw.

“You can do that?” Joey joked lightly, which earned him a smack over the shoulder by Téa.

Tristan either ignored him or didn’t hear him.
“All this time, we have been running around with our only clue that Yami might have known something. But he did tell us that not even people in this world knew his name. Why is that?” he asked nobody in particular; he stopped up and looked concerned at Yugi, “Did we overlook something?”

“Overlook something?” Yugi asked tensely.

“Now you’re just talking out of your ass, T,” Joey mumbled.

This time, Tristan glared offended at him before turning to Yugi and Téa.
“Now hear me out. What if Yami erases his own memories for some reason? We never really question why he never had any memories since it sounds like what Yami told us, evil Bakura still remembers his past.”

“Are you saying he erased his own memories?” Yugi asked sternly.

Tristan right away threw his hands up in surrender
“Don’t bite the theorizer!”

“No, it actually makes sense. I can’t believe I never thought about that before,” Yugi said, upset, not at Tristan, but at himself. Erasing his own memories sounded just like something Yami would do if that meant saving everything he loved. Yugi groaned, frustrated at himself,  “It was right in front of our faces, and we missed it! Yami’s true name must mean more than we realized!”

“Can you slow down?” Joey said and leaned down to Yugi’s height. He only has to lean now since Yugi’s surprisingly late growth spurt. “I’m totally lost. What do you mean it means more than just being a name?”

“Yami didn’t just forget his past. He also destroyed the Millennium pendant, so it was turned into a puzzle.” Yugi explained to his friend. He shakes his head, frustrated. Not at Joey, though, “don’t you see? He wiped his memory clean so the evil he trapped with him inside the Millennium puzzle could never get free! We saw that thing. It took shape after Bakura! That is why his name is so important! His name was the key to trapping this evil forever!”

Joey gaped at that revelation.

“But if Yami wanted this evil to be trapped forever, why did he leave clues to himself that he needed to find his own name?” Téa asked.

Yugi has to think about that for a second.
“I don’t think Yami did that. His purpose was  never to let himself or the evil out. His past self never wanted the puzzle to be completed nor his memories to be found.” Yugi felt a little upset to know that he might have triggered all of this by completing the puzzle. Still, he also knew that even if Yami’s past self never wanted to be free, completing the puzzle and going through all of this to free him… it was worth it. He didn’t deserve that fate. Yugi looked at his friends. “You remember the tablet of memories? It also has a picture of another Kaiba; I think it was he who had that stone created with Yami’s memories inside. I think it was he who had the Millennium puzzle hidden in another place so Yami’s true name could be found—” Yugi froze when a thought hit him like lightning had struck him.

“Yugi?” Joey asked, concerned.

“Of course…” Yugi said slowly. He realized he had just figured out where to go. His grandfather’s tale rang in his ears. “The puzzle wasn’t with the other items… it was in his tomb.”

“In his tomb?! But he’s still alive!” Joey yelled, upset at hearing this.

“In ancient Egypt, the Pharaohs built their tombs while they were still on the throne,” Téa explained.

“Nerd-Ow!” Joey winced when he earned another slap from an insulted Téa. 

“His tomb lay in the Valley of the Kings. That must be where we have to go.” Yugi said and turned to Bobasa. He hoped he had something to help them get there faster. “Babosa, can you—”  He froze when he saw that their honorary member was glowing. It looked like it ripped him apart from the inside out.

“Why are you glowing, man?” Joey asked, shocked.

“Because this is where my mission ends. It is time for me to go.” Bobasa said with a solemn smile. His skin had begun to disappear, as if he were burning.

“WHAT?!” the gang yelled in unison.

“You’re… dying?” Yugi asked, upset.

“My friends. I was never alive to begin with.” Babosa chuckled, amused. The gang was shocked to hear this: “I was given life by my master’s will to help you, even when he was trapped in the darkness by the entity who possesses his body.”

“Ryou…” Yugi realized. That is why Bobasa sounded like a game character. It is because he was one.

“Yes. Like you, I wasn’t supposed to be here, but only by the will of my master and the Pharaoh that I am.” Bobasa said, looking at his arm, which was not completely gone; he didn’t have much time left, “Before I leave, I will give you the warning: Zorc has been reborn from the shadows. He will now do anything he can to win so he can pull himself out of this shadow game and enter your world.” He then pulled out a large carpet from the remains of his vest and dropped it on the ground when his last hand also disappeared,  “With this warning, I will give you one last of my power because, like my master and the Pharaoh, I want to see you succeed.”

“Babosa…” Téa said quietly.

Bobasa smiled at him.
“Goodbye, my friends. Good Luck!” and with that… he was gone in the last ember of the light that destroyed him.

Yugi took a second to mourn Bobasa and be grateful that Ryou sent him to help them. He then walked over to the carpet, folded it out, and it began right away to float a few feet over the ground.

“A flying carpet?” Tristan asked, surprised. 

“I probably knew all the animals in this place were also frozen,” Joey said.

Yugi jumped up on the carpet and sat down.
“We'd better hurry! With Zorc in this world, who knows how much time we have left!”

The others nodded and jumped on the flying carpet too. The carpet took off with the gang making a surprised yell with how fast it took off. 

Pharaoh Yami watches the Dark Priest in his newly stolen body pick up the Millennium Eye and put it back inside his socket.

“Lord Zorc used his power to stop time with my help.” He said to Yami like they were talking about the weather and not the death of the entire world any ancient Egyptian has ever known, “The millennium eye will soon watch your death throes.”

A massive, clawed hand lands beside the Dark Priest. He doesn’t flinch.
“MOVE ASIDE, MY PRIEST,” Zorc said with his face looming just above the Dark Priest. His three glowing eyes stood out in the dark room. The Dark Priest stepped back and moved behind Zorc’s massive arm. Zorc couldn’t stand uprise inside the temple but his dragon-headed trail could still move closer to Yami. “PHARAOH, HOW I HAVE WAITED FOR THIS MOMENT FROM THE DAY YOU SEALED ME. NOW… I’LL BURN YOU TO ASHES!”
The dragon’s tail opened its mouth, and molten lava began to flow inside. It was ready to fire against Yami and his frozen priests behind him.

How can I dodge Zorc’s attack? Yami thought desperately. He couldn’t move; only his eyes were still able to move, and he tried to look behind him . The priests are too close! They are also in danger.

“You can’t even open your mouth to beg for mercy.” The dark priest chuckled at the desperation he saw in Yami’s eyes. “This is the end.”

“NOW, PHARAOH. YOU WILL DIE”

“Game over, Pharaoh.” Bakura laughed darkly, “The dark inferno will strike in one round, but the Pharaoh can’t move! It’s over!”

“No! I’ll stake everything on that one round!” Yami hit the table with his fist. Because of the potent magic flowing around in this room, his fist makes an impact on the sandstone table.

“What do you hope to do? Your soul piece cannot move. You haven’t any moves left.”

“Did you know the Japanese term for traditional RPGs is ¨table talk¨?” Yami asked him. This Bakura only gave him a bored look in return, but that didn’t stop Yami from continuing, “In other words, the players can use their words as weapons.” He pointed determinedly at him, “You said that that mummy, whose soul is now inside the Dark priest, is involved in this game.”

This Bakura glanced at the screaming mummy behind him before he smiled.
“Correct. Aknadin’s soul is animating the high priest of darkness. With me as his player—” he froze when he realized what Yami meant when he helped up his Seti card. This Bakura chuckled, amused. “So, you’re going to use that card as a shield against Zorc? I see. As players, we both know the ‘backstories’ of all the characters in this game. Your knowledge of their backstory does come in pieces because of what you did to yourself.”

“I know. But I know enough of Seti’s and Aknadin’s backstory to know about their relationship. ” Yami said with his own smirk, “My father had a brother. A brother who had a single son. That son is Priest Seti. If Zorc attacks now, Zorc will take Seti ’ ’s life as well, and his wish of being a Pharaoh will never come true. ” Bakura has stopped smiling. Yami knew he had something he could hold on to. “If you’re a real role-player, the high priest of darkness should stop Zorc from attacking. After all, he’s Seti’s father. ”

This Bakura chuckled and leaned a little forward.
“If he chose not to attack… would you give me that card?”

“I don’t think so, ” Yami smirked and held out the Seti card. “Priest Seti is part of my team.

Bakura is not smiling anymore. The mummy breathes, which makes This Bakura look at him before he closes his eyes and chuckles.
“Nice try… but my Dark priest is aware that this Seti is only a pawn. He is nothing more than a living object controlled by all of us. Why would he try to save a son who has been dead for 3000 years? ”

Yami growled tensely. It has been his only leisure…

Zorc glances down at his Dark Priest.
“MY HIGH PRIEST.  YOU HAVE NO USE FOR YOUR PARENTAL EMOTIONS TOWARDS THIS MAN. HE IS A MERE MIRAGE. ”  

The high priest looked at Priest Seti for a second before he looked away.
“This world is made of memories, Pharaoh, ” he said just high enough for Yami to hear him, “not just yours, but also mine and the lord of darkness. Even the former Thief king. All of us are the last remains of that time. Our battle of 3000 years ago isn’t over yet. ” He turned his head to look at Yami. Even with the dreadful mask on, it was clear he was scowling at the Pharaoh, “As long as our desire to finish it lingers in this world, your soul will never be at rest, and I cannot be reborn in the modern world where I will find my son’s soul, and I will make him a king!”

Seto… Yami through terrified. He is going to find Seto Kaiba and ruin his life…

“NOW… WE WILL KILL THE PHARAOH ALONG WITH HIS PRIESTS. ” Zorc said and readied his attack once again. Yami watched in horror as the fire grew bigger and bigger.

“In this world, death leads to a void of shadows. ” The Dark Priest said quietly, “Not to the modern world or the afterlife… no heaven, no hell… nothing but eternal darkness.”

Zorc's fire attack was shot toward Yami and his priest, just as it looked like it was going to kill all of them instantly; something, or rather someone, repelled the attack.

“What?! Who is interfering?! Who is protecting the Pharaoh?! ” This, Bakura yelled, shocked, and got up from his chair to look down at the diorama.

Yami’s chuckle made him look at the other player.
“Did you forget two people are playing this game? ” he smirked and lifted a small death mask up so Bakura could see it, “and I have a token myself.”

“Where did you get that?” Bakura demanded.

“You don’t remember?” Yami smirked. Bakura glared when his own words were thrown towards him. “You discarded objects inside this room. Objects I took as my tokens. Tokens from my friend you hold prisoner!” Bakura slowly sat down again. He looked neutral, but his eyes shot lightning. Yami holds the small death mask between two of his fingers to show it better to his enemy. “And this token helps me to get in contact with a soul that is kept inside the Millennium stone…a soul who was in pact with my father.”

Zorc stopped the attack. He growled, and his eyes glowed angrily at the man wearing a deathmask floating in front of him.
“WHO ARE YOU?”

“I am Hasan. I am the guardian of the stone tablet and come to protect the Pharaoh,” the man’s deep voice rang inside the mask.

Hasan, Yami thought wide-eyed.
He’s… the man from back then!

“THE GUARDIAN OF THE STONE TABLET,” Zorc stated, surprised.

“Zorc. You and I are two sides of the same coin. The light and darkness of the world beyond.” Hasan said sternly, “When you, the God of darkness and destruction, awakens, then I appear as well because it is my destiny to protect the Pharaoh.”

Zorc laughed. The ground shook with each laugh.
“OH NO, I KNOW WHO YOU REALLY ARE. YOU ARE A SOUL FRAGMENT, CREATED BY A BROKEN, DEAD PHARAOH,” he leaned forward. Hasan was almost as tall as this monster’s entire face, “YOU THINK A MERE SPIRIT CAN STAND AGAINST ME? THE RULER OF THE SHADOW REALM?”

“You are the ruler of nothing.” Hasan retorted.
Zorc’s blood-red eyes widened in anger, and he roared. Hellfire spewed out of his mouth, and it was so intense that Yami could feel the hair on his cheeks and arms being burned off. “Pharaoh, you must endure.” Hasan said just high enough for Yami to hear it, “When Zorc’s attack ends, his heka will be lowered, and he will no longer be able to stop time.”

Yami felt that he was right. He could feel part of his body being able to move again. He could blink with his eyes. he could move his face. He could speak.
“But Hasan… even if time starts to move again, I and all my priests are badly wounded.”  He said the first thing there concerned him, “he’s so strong. Is there any way to defeat him?”

“There is still hope,” Hasan said so confidently that it made Yami look at him, surprised. “You still have your friends.”

My friends.

Yami glances at the four coffins inside the dusty room. They were still in a coma, they were unable to wake from. The potent magic inside them made it impossible for their souls to go back to their bodies.

My partner. All of you.

He glances at the large diorama in front of him. He sees the hard work you have done in the hope it will be used as a future game with friends. But like so many other things, the spirit of the ring has stolen Ryou’s object and turned it into his own twisted games where the stakes were between life and death. 

Even now, my friends’ souls are wandering lost in the game world. Searching for the name I had when I was the Pharaoh… when I was alive.

He hoped the Gods he once prayed to could still hear him, that they somehow were still around even if their time of worship was long over. He hoped them still being remembered made them able to hear him.
He prayed for them. Prayed for them to save Yugi and his friends. To ensure they were safe.

Bakura watched him. he seemed gleeful over the despair and sliver of hope he still held on to.

“Can’t this carpet fly faster?”

“Just be grateful it can fly!”

Yugi and Téa ignored Joey and Tristan’s arguing. They were pretty used to it by now.

Yugi looked over the edge of the carpet and saw they were now flying over what he meant was the Valley of the Kings.
“Look! That much be it!” he said to the others and pointed at a still tomb entrance. It was the only entrance with guards around it, “that’s where Yami’s real name is hidden. That must be the place!”

The carpet lands, and all jump off. They quickly ran over to the entrance of their friend’s future tomb.

Tristan walked over to one of the guards and waved his hand in front of his face.
“The guards are frozen, too.”

“Whatever is happening is still happening,” Téa said while walking past the guard. She still looked at them like she expected them to stop her and the boys from entering the tomb.

“Okay, guys, let’s go!” Yugi said he would encourage his friends to enter the pretty dark entrance.

“Right behind ya, pal,” Joey said with a fist in the air. He and Yugi were the first to walk into the tunnel. Everything still looked so new; some of the wall paintings were clearly still worked on, with most of them looking half-finished or with nothing on the walls.

Joey quickly lost all of his bravado,

“This place is creepy. It’s all dark. Téa, you can go ahead of me. Ladies first and all of that.”

“Oh, so now you’re trying to be a gentleman.”  She deadpanned and stepped in front of him with a huff. “Give me a break, you scaredy-cat.”

“At least there are touches so we can see where we are going,” Tristan said and looked at one of the torches set inside the tunnel. The fire didn’t move, but it still gave off light so they could see where they were going.

They entered the first room, and Yugi looked up at the images around him.

This is my other me’s… no, the Pharaoh’s tomb.
He was here all alone after he died… he must have been very lonely.

Tristan touched the pillar nearest him.
“You can tell this is a king’s tomb. Look at all the statues and pillars.” Joey looked uncomfortable beside him, and Téa looked curiously around. Tristan looked at Yugi with concern written in his eyes, “Yugi, are we going in blind, or do you have just a little idea what we’re going into?”

“My grandpa has been here before,” Yugi told his friends.

“He was here?” Joey asked, surprised. He has forgotten his discomfort for a moment.

“Did he say what was inside?” Téa asked and glanced at the open room in front of them… and the two massive snakes guarding the entrance.

“Yeah… he did,” Yugi said, looking concerned at the two snake statues.

It was the year 1960, and the tension between Japan and the U.S. was high. This didn’t mean a lot for the Japanese-born man Solomon Mutou because he wasn’t in either country at the moment. He was in Egypt, where the Mummy frenzy died down a long time ago, yet tourism was still commonplace for these ancient ruins that this country contained.

Solomon wasn’t in Egypt for typical tourism. No, he came here for another reason. Those reasons were also why he sought out non-common guides and was currently riding a camel instead of a car. They wanted to avoid the roads since they were well aware they were trespassing and doing something illegal in an area in which many secrets had already been dug out and removed from a once-holy place.

“We’re finally here,” Solomon said with a silent breath. The trip felt longer on animal backs, and the camels didn’t have pleasant smells either.  “The valley of the king.”

“It’s your last chance to turn around,” one of his guides quivered. His name was Mushara, and he was at least 15 years younger than Solomon. He looked older than he was due to his hard life and living in an unforgiving sun.

Solomon tipped his favorite fedora further up so his hidden eyes shimmered under it. He smirked lightly at the fear he heard in his younger guide’s voice.

The older of his two guides looked at Solomon. He was only a few years older than Mushara. Still, his eyes were hardened and reminded Solomon of granite at the time. His name was Ahmet, and he was the older brother of Mushara. He has mostly talked with Solomon.
“From here on, it is the territory of the dead. When the sun sets, darkness devours all, including the souls of the living.”

“Sounds like fun.” Solomon hummed sarcastically.

“Over 60 tombs have been discovered in that valley, but the Pharaoh's tomb that you seek. Well… let’s just say that nobody has ever come out alive.” Mushara said. His camel could feel his tension, and it began to make a noise of discomfort. 

“There was one. A British man who came here before the Great War.” Ahmet said bluntly, “But he was driven mad. Now he wanders our village, repeating the same word over and over… the shadow games.” 

Solomon didn’t meet that man when he sought out his two guides. He would have loved this information before they took this trip. He would have loved to have gotten more information about the tomb and the wonders it contained.
“Shadow game, eh? That’s exactly what I’m looking for.” Solomon smirked, confident. He pushed his camel to walk, and his two guides glanced at each other before following him.

“Just so you know. Only the one who wins the games can get to the treasure hidden beyond.” Mushara warned him. Solomon ignored the gleam in his eyes.

“There are traps inside that tomb that no one has been able to solve. So great riches must still be inside.” Ahmet pointed out. Solomon ignored the richest part. He didn’t care about that. Ahmet took his silence as agreement and warned him firmly, “Remember, we’re just guides. We can only lead you to the entrance of the tomb. Once we get inside, it is you who must lead us. Unlike you, we’re not willing to sacrifice our lives to the tomb. “

“Yeah, we’re not fools like you who would throw our lives away for a game. You put your neck on the line to lead us to the treasure.” Mushara agreed quickly.

“I know,” Solomon said. He let go of the reins of his camel so he could light up a cigarette. The smoke made his animal make a funny noise of disgust. Solomon pushed his camel to follow the two others, and he looked sternly at his guides the moment he was beside them again, “But you are mistaken. It is not riches I’m after. I’m after something much greater than that.”

“I’m not sure I understand,” Ahmet said quietly.

“I wouldn’t expect you to,” Solomon said. Mushara pointed out the tomb’s entrance around a strong stone cast away from them, and Solomon stopped his camel and told it to lie down. It took skills and strong arm and leg muscles not to make a fool of himself for tumbling off the animal. He got off stretches and smiled carelessly at the two Egyptians,  “Let’s take a break and eat. Grave robbing is something best done at night.”

-

There was a full moon that night. Not a perfect condition for Mister Mutou’s group, but they were already here, so there was no turning back. They stayed away from the light set up for tourists, and Solomon told his two guides not to set up a fire for extra light; it was simply too risky for them to be seen at this time of the night.

“It’s time,” Solomon said with a lit cigarette in his mouth. He rested on his backpack with food, clothing, and items needed for this journey.

“Y-yeah,” Mushara said, scared. He kept looking at the security guards who patrolled the areas. They haven’t seen the group, luckily.

Ahmet got up and looked Solomon up and down with a raised eyebrow.
“Before we go. I do have a question for you, Mr. Mutou. What’s up with the strange outfit? A grave robber in a tuxedo? Are you planning a marriage proposal inside the tomb?”

“You’re not too far off,” Solomon said, amused, and he, too, got up. He has noted Ahmet eyeing him ever since he changed into his suit at the end of their journey. He fixed his black tuxedo and dusted the dirt and sand off it, “gaming is my only purpose in life. Cards, chess, gambling. I’ve spent my life in gambling dens and casino cruises, and I’ve played every type of game and won  them all.” he fixed his hat as the last part, “So I always show respect to my opponents.” Ahmet and Mushara gave each other a look, which made Solomon grin, amused, “In fact, if I ever lose a game, I’ll change my tuxedo into denim overalls and collect years instead of chips.” He chuckled at his own dumb bet, but a bet he would keep if that ever happened. 

“If you lose tonight’s game. It could cost you more than the clothes on your back.” Ahmet smiled with his teeth dangerously shown, “Just be careful not to join the mummies.”

Solomon said nothing. He watched them pull out antique flashlights since that was all they could afford with their current lifestyle. Solomon pulled out his own flashlight, which was the newest model at the time.

They don’t understand. Don’t they? Solomon thought to himself while his two guides walked in front of him. I’ve traveled the world, defeating every opponent in any game I played. Lately, the opponent pool has been… lacking.

He warned them not to turn on the light just yet because the guards around them still have eyes. They had to wait until they were inside the tomb, and also because he was sure their antic ran on oil, and he doubted they took extra oil with them. 

That is when I heard that the world’s most dangerous game exists in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings. Rumors said that untold honor awaits the one who conquers the most dangerous tomb in all of history.

He smirked to himself. He wasn’t a spring chicken anymore, but any type of new game always made his blood rush and his excitement tingle his skin. Games were part of his blood.

 A game that no one has solved! A challenge of honor! This challenge will test my entire gaming career.

-

“Here it is,” Ahmet said, gesturing to an entrance with large warning signs that said no trespassing and skulls. Mushara was currently moving a wooden plank away from the entrance pathway. It was clear that this tomb was deadly, with all the warnings set up. “You lead the way from now on, Mr. Mutou.”

Solomon didn’t expect anything less. He would have told his guides to wait for him to come back, but it was clear that they didn’t trust his promises. He was a foreign tomb raider, and this country has dealt with those for decades now. They were smart at not trusting Solomon, even if Solomon was going to keep his word. The Japanese man didn’t mind them going with him; he never knew if some of the traps were set up, so only team effort could save them.

The passage stretches 30 meters underground. There are no traps… yet. When they were far enough away from the entrance, and their eyes couldn’t adjust to the darkness anymore, Solomon told the two others to pull out their lights. They finally came to the end of the pathway but saw something at the entrance to the first room.

“Something is written on the door.” he walks over to read the hieroglyphs. It took him a few seconds to translate it to English, “beyond this point… rests the great pharaoh. Beware of you who would disturb him… the Gods shall punish you… Your body will rot, and your soul will be cursed to eternal darkness in Duat.” He stood up straight, “Hmm. Clearly a warning.”

“You can interpret hieroglyphs? ” Ahmet asked, surprised.

“Some of them, yeah,” Solomon said humbly. At first, he just did it as a bragging right around his archaeologist friends, but after he realized learning this dead language came naturally to him, he decided to study it better, and now it came as a third language for him.
It was a massive advantage for him at times like these.

They walk into the first room. It was big but not as big as some other tombs Solomon had been inside; he would say around ten people could easily stand in this room without feeling claustrophobic. Solomon was busy looking at the beautiful wall paintings and pillars when Mushara’s yell of a fight made him look at his younger guide.

“Who are they? ” Mushara quivered and pointed at the floor further away.

Solomon felt a bit stupid; he hadn’t noticed that the floor was covered in bodies. Some of them lay on top of each other, but there was one thing clear to him when he examined them from a safe distance.

“Probably graverobbers, by the ones who lost the game, ” he said while he let his flashlight run over them, “they look older than expected. Probably over 1000 years old at this point. But what killed them? ” Solomon could see what looked like spears sticking out from most of the bodies. He was sure those were the traps set up for them. But where did they come from?

Mushara suddenly gasped and pointed at the two snake statues in front of them. “Ahmet. Look at that!”
The two snake statues were made out of some metal alloy, but the eyes were made of the four biggest and reddest rubies Solomon had ever seen.

“Over there too, ” Ahmet said and pointed at four other, yet smaller snake heads on the walls, on the other side of the two bigger ones. He looked smugly at Solomon, “We already found treasure. Bet you haven’t seen snake-eye like those in any of your games, Mr. Mutou. ”

“ And ours for the taking, ” Mushara said eagerly and began to walk over to them.

Solomon stops him with an arm, blocking him.
“Don’t move. ”

“Why? We found them first! Those jewels are ours. ” Mushara said, clearly offended.

Solomon didn’t trust any of this. He noted almost right away that all the bodies lay just inside an invisible circle, and all the snake mouths were opened towards this invisible circle. He just knew those snakes were the traps, and those rubies were the obvious bait. He takes out his cigarette and flicks it into the invisible circle. It happened so fast that he almost missed it, but now his thrown cigarette was cut in two, and a single spear was not embedded into the floor. 

His two guides gasped in shock.

“Well, it seems like the game has already begun, ” Solomon smirked. He didn’t see which of the snake heads shot that small spear, but he was sure all the snakes could do it. He pointed at the two biggest snakes out to the two others, “Those statues are of Apep, the God of everything evil. He lures people with darkness to him, and in return—” he nodded to the bodies in front of them. “he kills them.”

“ So, how do we get past them? ” Ahmet asked and eyed the area around the bodies like he thought he could sneak past the trap. Solomon doubted he could. 

“Like the ancient Egyptians did, ” Solomon said, taking out his water to take a large gulp before spitting towards the biggest snake. Hard to do that with a dry throat. “You show him you don’t respect him. ” He looked up at the snake statue he spit at and saw the glow in the ruby eyes dimmed, he knew it worked.

Mushara and Ahmet looked at each other before they followed his example. They were not happy about leaving the soccer-sized ruby behind since Solomon was sure that taking them meant they paid attention to Apep.

“We can touch the walls here. ” Téa realized when he placed her hand on one of the half-finished walls inside the room they found themselves in, “That must mean we can’t pass them either. No more cheating. ”

“Who’s cheating… ” Joey grumbled somewhere behind her. She knew he was thinking differently about it.

“I’m not surprised, Téa, ” Yugi said, looking at the two massive snake statues at the end of the room. “From what Grandpa told me, this place is well protected. ”

“Don’t worry, they can’t have set up the traps yet. Let’s hurry. ” Joey grinned and began running. 

“Joey! Wait! ” Yugi yelled and tried to stop him.  Joey did stop up, but not before his foot was almost hit by two spears from the mouth of one of the snakes. He froze, horrified, and jumped back with a noise of fright. Yugi sighed in relief and scratched his hair, embarrassed. “Did I mention that this place is loaded with traps to keep out intruders? ”

Joey swirled around and yelled,
“YA COULDA TOLD ME SOONER! ” he jumped over to the others when another spear nearly hit him. It took part of the back of his flowing jacket.

“So… how do we get past the spear-spitting snakes? ” Tristan asked while Joey used him as a meat shield. 

“Grandpa’s tale said you should… spit on them? ” Yugi said, a little unsure.

“What? ” all asked, surprised.

“It is because they look like an evil snake god, so you should show him disrespect or something like that, ” Yugi explained.

“Is this disrespect enough?! ” Joey yelled at the snake statues and flipped them the bird with both of his hands while he jumped around.

The others watched him making a fool out of himself.

“Okay then, one massive spitball coming up, ” Tristan said and stepped forward while he made the wettest clearing of his throat.

“Disgusting… ” Téa mumbled flatly.

Yugi chuckled low beside her.

“Huh, there is nothing in this room, ” Mushara said when they stepped into the next room.

Solomon looked slowly around the room. He saw no bodies in there, and for some reason, his flashlight had a hard time illuminating the entire room, like a black mist lay around the room.
Something wasn’t right.

“Besides junk. These things are worthless. ” Ahmet said and kicked out what looked like an old drinking bottle.

Solomon picked up the bottle. It was in pretty good condition. There was still water inside it when he shook it. He put it down again and also saw what looked like a camera, a forgotten safari hat, a pair of binoculars, and a book. He slowly walked over to pick up the book. It was written in English, and the last date was only three years later. He also took the binoculars since he never knew if he was going to need them.

“Looks like this is the room the Brits failed. ” Solomon hummed more to himself and went back to the two others. They all jumped when they heard something crack under Solomon’s foot. He raised his shoe and saw he had stepped on a pair of glasses. He felt a chill run up his spine, and he used his flashlight to really look at the items around them. He saw human clothing, old and new.

But no remains. Where were the remains?

What happened here?

Solomon suddenly felt like he was being watched. He swiped around, and his flashlight hit the odd mist. It slowly disappeared when the light hit it. He turned around again and swore he saw something move behind one of the stone pillars inside the room.
“Something is in this room. ” He said to the two others. He needed to figure out how to beat this room fast. He didn’t want to end up as discarded items on the ground as those before him. he ordered the two others to keep their lights towards the odd mist since he got the feeling it might have been what caused this.

They soon found the door to the next room, but it was locked. He could see scratch marks on the door and knew those before him had tried to claw their way out. He also noted that when he looked towards the entrance they came from, he had a statue guarding it. He hadn’t noticed the statue. The entrance was carved from the chair of the sitting statue. It depicted a man with the head of a Falcon.  He smiled when he saw it. “Gentlemen. Meet Horus. The Egyptian God of the sun, sky, and order.”

“ Yeah, so what? ” Mushara asked, apprehensive. Solomon looked insulted at him for caring so little about his own history, but kept his mouth shut. The younger man jumped and looked wildly around when they heard… something. “Wha-what was that?”

It was rhythmic grunting. Solomon couldn’t say if it sounded more like a bird or a mammal, but it was disturbing to hear more and more… things began making that sound. Mushara yelled, scared, and pointed at the eyes in the black mist. First, they only saw one pair of yellow eyes, then two, then six pairs of eyes surrounding they surrounded.

The creatures stepping out of the mist were of the same size as a wolf but short-haired as a dog. It has a long, dog-like snout, but its mouth has no lips, so all the razor-sharp teeth are visible. It had long, pointy ears, almost like those of a rabbit, and the tail was long like that of a short-haired cat. Legs were long like those of a cheetah, but the entire body was just as black as a bottomless pit. It was only the eyes and teeth that stood out in the darkness, and the rest of the shape could only be seen outside of the mist.

“What is that?! ” Ahmet yelled and stepped away, so he stood with his back to the wall.

Solomon recognizes it even if he has never seen anything like it. The faces of these… things looked a lot like the God Set. The God of chaos.

The first Set animal attacked and went after Mushara’s antic light. He yelled and dropped the light when oil shattered everywhere, and the remains of the fire inside ignited it. The set animals chirped angrily and stepped away from the accidental fire.

“They are scared of the light! ” Ahmet yelled and tried to use his light to push them away. The Set animals clearly also knew their weakness, and they jumped around the fire, blew out the fire, or tossed sand at it until it was out. Then, they turned their attention to Ahmet and Solomon’s light. “Do something, Motou! ”

Solomon’s light was slightly better than Ahmet’s, and he wildly turned it toward the recent animals of shadows. He knew the moment the last light was out… it was over for them. One of them snapped its jaws around Solomon’s arm, there, holding the light, and he yelled in pain. He dropped the light, and the Set animals right away took the light and destroyed it.

Solomon looked down at his arm and was surprised that it had no bite marks. It still hurt like a bitch, but that was about it. He hated to figure out how they killed people like that. He looked desperately around for something to make the attack stop. To save them from the fate of the others who entered this room. They could run for it since the existence was still open. He was sure that was how the survivor got out, by leaving his team to die while saving his own skin.

But Solomon was determined to win this game. There must be a way to—
His eyes land on the statue of Horus. The sun god Horus symbolizes the one who defeated chaos and became the new sun god and father to all the pharaohs.

I know what I have to do,
“Raise your light to Horus!”

“ What?! ” Ahmet yelled, and he nearly dropped his light when one of the Set Animals bit his ankle. Mushara managed to save the light since he took cover behind his brother.

“Do it! ” Solomon snapped at him just as he was pinned down by one of the Set animals. He used his arm again to keep it from going around his neck, and it hurt! He looked right into the yellow glowing eyes where no soul resided.

Then… something odd happened. It let go of him and smiled .

Before Solomon could comprehend what had just happened, Ahmet raised his light towards Horus, and the sun God’s eyes began to glow. Just as the room was lit up, every Set of animals disappeared like they were nothing more than a mere shadow, and the door to the next room opened up for them.

All three men panted in shock and fear at what they had just survived.

"That was too close." Ahmet sighed and rested his hands on his knees. Sweat was running down his face. He wiped sweat off his face, raised up, and looked towards Solomon, "How did you know that would work?"

"Because Horus is the sun god. And those creatures looked like Set, his mortal enemy. " Solomon said while he got up. He checked his arm, and there was still no sign of a bite mark…

Ahmet nodded and looked around.
"Let's go before they come back."

The two others agreed and moved towards the next door.

Solomon hesitated and looked at the room, which was still illuminated by the Horus statue.
Why didn't it kill me…?

The gang walked into the next room, which was pretty dark compared to the first room. It has some odd mist inside of it.

"That is one big statue, " Joey said when he was in the middle of the room and looked back at the Horus statue. He has to lean his head, uncomfortably, back to see all of it.

"It is Horus. The second God of the sun. " Téa said.

"The first God was Ra," Yugi said quietly while he too watched the statue. He swiped his head around when they heard the eerie chirping. "Be careful, this place is filled with shadow monsters. "

" Is that why you said we should take these touches? " Joey asked and held his torch. Yugi told his friends to take torches down from the walls of the previous room, and the fire began moving the moment they had them in their hands.

"Yup. Whatever happens. Don't let go of them. " Yugi warned them sternly. 

Just as he said, the first pair of eyes appeared. More and more, they came out of the darkness. The weird-looking dogs weren't the worst the gang had ever seen, but their toothy jaws made all of them tense up.

"Should we attack? " Tristan asked while he held his touch towards one of them, who had moved uncomfortably close to them.

All of them have moved into a circle with their backs turned towards each other to keep the Set animals away from them.

"Wait, " Yugi said. Joey looked between him and the just-watching monsters. Yugi tipped his head, confused. "Why are you not attacking us?"

The Set animal eyes were glued to Yugi, and they completely ignored the rest of the gang. Then they all smiled a smile no animal should ever have, and they disappeared like they had been made out of mist. The door behind them opened.

"Huh… " Joey said with a slightly shaken voice. That smile they all got gave him nightmares, "Whatever they saw in you, Yugi, glad they did. I wasn't ready to turn into their next meal."

" What do you think they saw in you, Yugi? " Téa asked Yugi while they turned to the next room.

Yugi shrugged and looked back.
"Maybe Yami? We do look like each other."

Joey turned to see what Yugi was looking at. There sat a single one of those Set monsters, and I watched them leave. This one had gold around the neck and forefeet, and it looked like it had white eye makeup like Joey had seen Yami had too.
He shivered and moved quickly into the next room.

"Maybe they felt you were like them? " Tristan said while he, too, watched the bigger Set. Yugi frowned at him, and he quickly said, "I mean, you control shadows, too."

" It doesn't matter why they didn't attack. All I care about is that we can move on. " Joey called after them to move their asses quicker before those things decided to eat them after all.

"What is this place? " Mushara asked when they entered the next room

Solomon examines this room. It was far bigger than the two other rooms combined. He could see pathways like that of a maze, but what concerned him the most was those statues around the room. That kopesh weapon looked very real.
"This must be the game's main arena."

He took out the goggles he had snatched from the other room and examined the pathways closely.
Those huddles on the paths. I'm sure those are not just dirt and dust. Surely, even older challengers. He packed his binoculars away again and walked over to one of the skeletons near them. he kicked the sword in its hand over to the edge of the entire area below the pathway. He waited, and only five seconds later, he heard it hit the bottom. There was no way any human could survive a fall like that, "we can't climb down. We have to take the path." 

"There are so many dead here! " Mushara said, utterly scared. He began backing away and moved toward the way they came from, "I-I don't want to do this anymore. I don't want to die here. I'm heading back."

Ahmet grabbed him by the shoulder and dragged him closer to his face,
"Be quiet! We've come too far! We can't leave now! "

Solomon could hear Ahmet hiss something to his younger brother. Probably to convince him to stay with the group. He ignored their argument and took his time to figure out what the rules of this game were.
What kind of game is this? Think! It's fatal just to walk ahead.

"Hurry up! " Ahmet snapped impatiently at him. He steps on something, and the door behind them closes with a loud 'THUD. ' Spikes come out of the wall where more corpses have been stuck for centuries.  The worst part was the wall was moving towards them, forcing them to either be another body inside the wall, drop to their death, or…

Enter the deathly maze.

"We're going to die! " Mushara yelled in a panic.

"Do something!" Ahmet shouted to Solomon. He couldn't hide. He was scared, too.

Solomon knew the only option they had left was to walk into the maze. He didn't know what traps lay ahead, but what choice did he have other than to run into the maze?
He froze when one of the statues moved and blocked his path.  It nearly cleaved him in half when his arms began moving. He jumped back in shock to stay alive. The statue moves closer while swinging wildly with its arms.

I can't dodge them all!
Sweating bullets, Solomon knew it. He had to get past it somehow before he was pushed into that spike wall. This is a shadow game; there must be an answer to this riddle!

"Hey! Do something! We're running out of room!" Ahmet shouted at him. he and Mushara were pushed closer to the edge since they didn't dare to enter the maze.

Think Solomon! He shouted to himself and stepped back before he lost part of his skull. Suddenly, the statue stopped swinging swords but kept moving towards him. Solomon frowned and stepped back again, and the statue began swinging its swords around again.

It paused for a moment. He looked down at his own shoes and thought it was him. It couldn't be.
He moved so his left foot was in front of the right, and the statue stopped swinging its sword.
It is!
He quickly turned to yell at the two others.
"I figured it out! Walk with your left foot forward! We must pay respect to the Pharaoh!"

" Left foot?"
"Why? "

" Just do it ! " Solomon snapped impatiently at them. He begins the awkward shuffle with his left foot always forward. The statue doesn't attack and allows him to pass it, but it still slowly moves after him until he is out of its path. Solomon could hear his two guides move into the maze, too. He couldn't hear the wall moving anymore, so he guessed it only pushed people into the maze from the first platform.

"How did you know? " Ahmet called after him while Solomon scouted which path to take next.

"In ancient Egypt, the Pharaoh was a God, and statues dedicated to the Pharaoh always have their left foot forward. " He explained and took the path to the right. He has to step over dust and bones from another unfortunate victim. "It symbolizes taking your heart from your left chest and presenting it to your God, the pharaoh, as a token of absolute loyalty. " He carefully moves under a kopesh of a third statue. He really didn't like how they were following them, like they were just waiting for them to make a fatal mistake. "The Pharaoh's tomb is a place of the Gods. All people must show humility. But ordinary people walk without thinking. Those who forget to respect the Pharaoh are punished with death."

He finally got over to the platform where the next door was, and he sighed with relief. He could feel his leg shaking and his body relaxing after being tense the whole journey through that deathly maze. He turned to look at the two others who were still inside the maze.

"Just a little further! Be careful! "

Ahmet was the second to get through the maze, and he turned around right away to yell at his brother to get over to them. Mushara was slow due to how scared he was. He kept stopping up, looking at the statues, and looked ready to faint. Solomon tried to calm him down, but the younger man began to panic when two of the statues were blocking his path, and he made the fatal mistake of stepping back. Both statues begin swinging their kopeshes wildly, and Mushara screams and avoids the one in front of him. Still, he forgets the one behind him, and the sword is thrust right into his back and out of his chest.

"MUSHARA! " Ahmet screamed when he saw his little brother being impaled by the sword. He tried to run back, but Solomon forced him to stay.

There was nothing they could do for Mushara. He made a single noise in his last attempt to scream, but only blood gushed out of his mouth, back, and chest. His head fell, and soon, he hung limp on the statue's kopesh. The statue went into its default stance with the sword hanging over its head. Mushara's body was flung off the sword in the move, and it fell into the pit below them.

Ahmet looked ready to throw up when they heard the wet thud when Mushara's body hit the bottom. Ahmet fell to the ground in grief and shock at how he had lost his little brother. He shook violently. 

"Unfortunately... these are the rules of the shadow game, " Solomon said a bit harshly. He knew no words could sugar-coat what just happened.

Ahmet got up quickly and grabbed Solomon by the front of his tuxedo. Pulled out a hidden gun and pointed it right at the older man's head.
"It's your fault my little brother died! "   he yelled hatefully. Solomon tried to calm him down, but Ahmet was too scared, grief-stricken, and angry at Solomon's harsh words to listen, "I'm not going to die here! Keep moving!"

Solomon had no choice but to do as he was told.

"What with those creepy statues? " Joey asked when he looked over the maze.

"It's the maze, " Yugi said quietly. None of his friends liked how he said that. Yugi examined the statue close to him, and he shivered. It looks like that sword could drop at any moment.

"So, what did your gramps say about this maze? " Joey asked. He stood very still with the rest of the gang because Yugi had told them to.

"You see those statues? " Yugi pointed at the nearest statue, "They can somehow move… like a robot. "

" Greeeaaat… giant Egyptian robots. I should have known… " Joey deadpanned and grumbled under his breath.

Yugi understood his apprehension. There wasn't a lot of room to move past them, and he didn't like the dead drop either.
"He also said that when walking through the maze, they should show their respect to the Pharaoh. Take a look at how each statue is standing." Yugi points at the feet of the statue, "See how their left feet are moving? In Yami's days, pointing your left foot forward was a show of respect to the Pharaoh. Something about the heart being shown or something."

"So… how exactly are we going through that deathtrap? " Tristan asked.

"Guess that means we should move with our left feet forward, " Téa said.

"I get it; just walk like an Egyptian. " Joey grinned confidently. His eyes betrayed how tense he really was.

"Yeah, if you end up cut in half, " Tristan said flatly while he eyed the sword raised above them all.

Joey lost his confident smile.

"It's okay. Even if the statues are dangerous, they shouldn't be able to move even if we do make mistakes. " Yugi said and slowly walked into the maze. He and his friends held their breath when he stood right in front of the looming statue. They all took a breath of relief when nothing happened.

Joey, Téa, and Tristan soon followed him. 

"Watch your step. " Joey said to Téa and Tristan, who were behind him, "If you fall, it's all over. "

" Thank you, Captain Obvious. " Téa snarked.

Yugi had just passed a second statue when he noted something on the pathway. It was… a duel monster card. Confused and curious, he picked it up to see what was on the front
this is…

"What is it, Yugi? " Joey asked and came over to look over his shoulder.

"This was on the ground, " Yugi told him and showed him the card. It is the Destiny board card.

"Isn't that a Duel Monster card? " Téa asked when she and Tristan had also come over to where they stood.

"Isn't that Ryou's card? " Joey asked and took the card.

Yugi nodded. He has no idea why one of Ryou's cards was doing here. He looked towards the entrance and felt as if he was being watched.
"Someone is in here. "

The others followed his look, and they felt it, too.

Inside the other room was another person. They sat in the darkness on a pedestal, and he raised his head as if he heard Yugi. His eyes were the only thing visible in the darkness.
They glowed an unnatural red…

"Hurry up… my friends. " Other Bakura chuckled to himself, "It's time to play."

This Bakura glanced at the playing field and tsked,
“It seems they’re smarter than I thought they would be, but at least that is also helping me at the last end.” Yami looked at him, confused. He wasn’t sure who he referred to, “with your little non-player character running around and figuring out where your name is, which you ensure that no one alive today would ever find.”

“What?! You mean they’ve found where my name is?!” Yami asked, shocked, and got up on his feet.

“Yeah… they should be getting there about now,” Bakura smirked.

That sentence made Yami suspicious.
“How do you know what my friends are doing?!” he demanded to know, “even I didn’t know that! That’s out-of-character information!”

“Because I sent a spy. a piece of my soul to stalk them. he’s gone to prepare your friends’ graves.” Bakura smirked. Yami sneered. He didn’t like how unfair all of this was; Bakura surely made this game this unfair because he wanted to win. He was just playing with him like a cat did with a bird. He wanted to see Yami despair before killing him and everyone else he ever cared for. “don’t worry Pharaoh. You can join them when Zorc destroys the Pharaoh. this soul of yours cannot survive when the other half of your soul is destroyed.” He laughed evilly at Yami’s look, “All I have to do now is get rid of that masked man. I don’t care whose soul he is originally part of or why he vehemently protected the tablet and the Pharaoh for 3000 years,” he clenches his fist to ready himself for a bloodbath, “but I’ll destroy anything that stands in Zorc’s way!”

My partner… my friends.
Yami closed his eyes.
Be careful. You have to survive!

Hasan just barely held out the second attack. He is smoking because of the heat of the attack; it is a miracle that he is even standing.

“Hasan!” Yami yelled, scared. He didn’t want him to die, not because he was the only shield between him and his priest against Zorc, but also because he didn’t want him to die!

“Any moment now… time… will resume…”   Hasan panted. He sounded in pain, “I… will protect you… till the end… that… is the duty… I took from a former Pharaoh.” Yami stared shocked at him. “at his will… the will… of your father… the Pharaoh Aknamkanon.”

“My father?!”

“On his deathbed, the former Pharaoh worried that the Millennium items might bring disaster to this world… in the afterlife… in Aaru, he wanted to save you one last time… so he gave up part of his soul to me, and his Gods sealed me inside the stone tablet to one day aid you.” Hasan told him. “that stone tablet… it the one you call the tablet of the Pharaoh’s memories.”

My father gave his life to protect the kingdom… and to protect me.
Oh, father… was it all for nothing. In spite of everything that you did… the evil God Zorc has been reborn.

“YOU WHO GUARD THE PHARAOH,” Zorc growled and leaned closer to Zorc, “TO LIVE THROUGH MY INFERNO, YOU MUST BE A VERY POWERFUL SPIRIT… EVEN AS A FRACMENTED ONE.”

“As long as there is light in the afterworld, even you will cast a shadow.” Husan told the dark God sternly, “And I am that shadow,”

Zorc laughed
“IF YOU’RE NOTHING BUT A SHADOW, THEN YOU WILL BE EASY TO CRUSH.”

“A shadow disappears only when its owner is destroyed.”

“A shadow.” The dark priest laughed with his God, and he raised his claw-like fingers, “Having gained the almighty Zorc’s powers, I have become his avatar. His reflections as a human.” Yami has heard about that concept before. People who weren’t reincarnated but still shared similarities. People like him and Yugi. They were not connected by reincarnation. It was impossible with Yami still being here. No, their bond was different; their appearance to each other was different. They were a chance of 1 to a billion. It have been fate who set them together. The Dark Priest mocked what Hasan said even further, “Isn’t a reflection greater than a shadow?”   he looked up at Zorc, “My lord. Allow me to kill the Pharaoh.”

Zorc looked down at him before he said, without moving.
“YOU HAVE MY BLESSING.”

“Aknadin!” Yami yelled. He was angry, betrayed, and upset, “why did you betray us?! Why did you sell your soul to Zorc?!”

“Because of my son.” The dark priest said like it explained everything, “Yes, I learned to live with my title as the guardian of Wedju shrine and advisor for my brother. I was devastated when he lost everything… except for you.” Yami blinked. Did that mean… he once had a sibling? “but… there has always been that whisper in the back of my mind. A what if… what if my brother had no heir? What if I was chosen as a Pharaoh? What if my son was the Pharaoh instead of you?” The dark priest glanced at the unmoving Seti behind Yami. It was impossible to see what he thought with that mask, “after Bakhura’s attack. The what if grew stronger. I wouldn’t allow my son, a better man, to live in the shadows anymore. When you are dead, he will become king!” he raised his hands and fire began cracking at his fingertips, “now! Bow to me as you fall in death, Pharaoh!”

He shoots the attack towards Yami, but once again, Hasan takes the attack. Yami could feel it. There was such an incredible power of hatred inside of that attack. There was no life left for a Pharaoh who was also his nephew. A son to a brother he once loved.    Hasan yelled in pain and threw the hellfire attack upwards. It burst through the ceiling of the underground temple, through the air, and into the sky above them.

Bakura and Yami looked up when they saw Dark Priest’s attack appear outside the diorama and above their heads. It was only when it hit the ceiling of the room they sat in that the attack itself shattered, and small balls of fire hit the sand around them. Yami yelled, scared for the safety of his friends. If one of those fireballs hit them right, they would suffer a painful death. They were lucky that none of them hit them. But one of the fireballs did hit something significant. It hit Bakura’s second hourglass, and it shattered with sand and glass everywhere.

“No!” This Bakura yelled when the magic the hourglass held evaporated.

“Now your ability to stop time is over!” Yami yelled while pointing confidently at him. “and it’s my turn!”

Yami and his priests could move again, and they were utterly shocked to see Zorc and the Dark priest in front of them.

“YOU ARE FOOLS TO STAND AGAINST ME,” Zorc growled angrily and used his clawed wings to crack the remains of the ceiling open. It wasn’t hard for him to do it with the damage done by Dark Magician.  Yami and his people quickly got out, too; once again, it wasn’t hard to get with walls making crooked stairs to get up to the surface again. Zorc raised up in full height and roared,  “AT THE END OF TIME, ALL THAT REMAINS IS THE DARKNESS OF DEATH.”

“You’re wrong!” Yami yelled the moment all of them once again stood outside in the ruins of Kul Elna, “Our spirits will light the ends of time!”

“Impossible. You can’t stand against the power of a God.” The Dark Priest sneered at them. He has taken cheap shots towards th em, but Hasan has kept them safe.

Seti was looking at the Dark Priest. He was startled to see the Millennium eye embedded in his socket. He knew… they all knew who he was and what he had done. Yami knew it hit Seti the hardest; even if Seti didn’t know his relationship with the older man, he was still close to him.

“The evil one’s power is almost infinite.” Hasan warned the others, “Great Pharaoh, there is only one way to stand against it.”

“You mean… the thing my friends are looking for…” Yami said quietly, “My lost name.” he glanced down at the bottom of the temple where Karim’s body still lay. They couldn’t take it with them because of the continuing assault from the Dark Priest. He looked at his priest; Shada was severely wounded, Isis had lost a lot of her Ba, and Seti looked conflicted about attacking the Dark Priest. Yami knew what he had to do. “retreat! We must regroup! We must ready our army!”

His remaining priest and soldiers did what he ordered. They jumped up on the still-alive horses or carts to get out of the village as fast as possible. They ran as fast as they could, with Zorc and the dark priest watching them flee.

“YOU CAN RUN AS MUCH AS YOU WANT, PHARAOH.” Zorc roared, amused after them, “I CONTROL THIS WORLD. YOU CANNOT AVOID YOUR DEATH. YOU CANNOT SEAL ME AGAIN!”

Meanwhile, Yugi and his friends are running for their lives. They all have gotten so comfortable with time being frozen that they forgot the one rule in the maze. Now, Joey, Yug, and Tristan were running for their lives, and Téa was already in the safety zone.

“Help!” Joey yelped when he was nearly cut in half by one of the statues. “the statues started attacking!”  he practically jumped the last part over to Téa and nearly ran face-first into the wall behind them.

“It’s like time started back up all of a sudden!” Yugi yelled since he was also running away from a statue. It was times like these he was happy about being shorter than his friends. A lot of the swing missed him, but his hair suffered greatly from it.

Tristan is, unfortunately, further behind than the others.
“Look out! They’re trying to kill us! I don’t wanna find out if they can!”

Yugi sees most of the statues put their attention on Tristan. With him being further away, it was fatal.
“Tristan! Left foot forward!” he yelled at him, and he quickly did the same when a statue turned towards him.

Tristan did what he was told, and all the attacks stopped. The two last teenage boys slowly and steadily began to shuffle out of the maze. 

“That’s it… nice and slow, you two.” Joey called to them. He looked like he wanted to run back to help his friends, but he knew he couldn’t. “Don’t panic, or they will chomp you up.”

“Shut up, Joey! You’re not helping!” Tristan snapped tensely at him. he awkwardly moved around one of the statues with a sword terrifying close to his face.

Yugi stood at the last edge of the maze and shuffled faster until he was close enough to Joey and Téa that they pulled him the last part over to them. Yugi sank down to the floor, panting in fright. When Tristan stood at the previous path to freedom, he decided to run for it, and he yelped loudly when a sword swung way too close to him. he barreled into Joey to get away,

“That was too close…” Tristan gasped while he pulled himself up from nearly sitting on Joey.

“We can’t stop now,” Yugi said, determined, and got up from the ground. “Come on, guys.”

“I bet there are more traps in the next room,” Joey mumbled while wiping sweat away from his face.

The silence from the others told everything he didn’t want to know. 

“Read it!” Ahmet demanded the moment he and Solomon saw another hieroglyphic warning inside the room they found themselves in.

Solomon read it a few times and translated it into legitimate English.
“Thee shall now be judges by the Ka of the stones. Only the pure of heart shall pass. The Ka will devour the souls of the unfaithful.”

“Ancient gibberish.”

“That way of thinking in here will get you killed.”

“Then I just use you as a meat shield. ” Ahmet pushed the gun into Solomon’s cheek. The cold metal and knowing what damage a gunshot to the face could do make the older man tense up. Ahmet examines the stone bridge slightly before his attention is caught by what is on the other side. It was something there slightly glowed. Like it was begging them to come to it. See light. “Light? Aha! It’s the shine of gold! The treasure is over there!” he waved his gun at Solomon almost fanatically. “Go! Hurry up and take it!”

Solomon didn’t run and jump as Ahmet demanded. He examined the stone bridge or rather the carvings on them. One of the words on the warning had stumped him. he knew a Ka was a word used toward parts of a soul. Ancient Egyptian believe a soul was separated into eight parts. Ka was the name used to describe the ‘double’ or ‘vital essence’ of the body. In other belief, this essence was also called a spirit animal.

If he translated correctly, these carvings should be part of someone’s soul, but who… and why?
These are no fancy walkways. I have to be careful.

“What are you waiting for?! GO! Show me where it’s safe to step!”

Solomon got a firm push in the back by the muzzle of the gun, and he walked out on the stone bridge. He was careful not to step on the face of each monster. If these truly were part of someone’s soul, he felt it was best to show them as much respect as he could.
With nothing happening, his confidence began to grow; a few more steps. A few more steps and I’ll conquer the shadow game—
A gunshot ran out in the room, and Solomon felt a sheeting pain in his right shoulder. The pain and the impact made him stumble and fall. he just barely managed to hold on to the edge with his healthy arm. He really did try to use his injured arm, but the pain was unbearable, so he couldn’t use it even if he wanted to. 

Ahmet walked casually over to him and grinned maliciously at him.

“You solved the shadow games for me. Now, you can die in peace.“

“You… ” Solomon growls in anger and pain.

“Goodbye, dead man, ” Ahmet said and walked away. Leaving Solomon to his own fate: “The treasure is mine. ” Solomon wasn’t sure if he heard things because of the pain he was in or because something made that sound. “w-what?! ” he heard Ahmet say, scared, and then… he heard a blood-curdling scream, something being crunched, and then… silence.

Solomon has absolutely no idea what just happened. His current objective was to stay alive, but his hand… it was slipping.

I’ve come this far… is this the end…?

Then, the room began to turn brighter. Solomon was sure he saw things because the pain made him blind. He wasn’t sure what he saw, but it looked like a person… maybe a ghost? The same that made Ahmet scream like that?

“I’ve been waiting for you, Shimon.”

Solomon felt his hand slip, but he was caught by something.

Or someone…

-

“Wake up”

Solomon forced himself to walk up. His shoulder hurt terribly. He didn’t remember getting up from the edge he hung over.

 He remembers seeing a shadow- or a light of someone.

He was not sure if it was real or not.

Near blinded by pain, he got up and staggered over to the solid ground of the tomb.

He closed his eyes for a second. The box with the Millennium Puzzle glowed. When he opened them again. It looked like an innocent golden box…

“This must be the final room where my grandpa found the Millennium puzzle, ” Yugi told his friend while he looked at the bridge, which was made from stone tablets.

“What happens in this room, Yuug? ” Joey asked tensely. He eyed the bridge nervously.

“If I remember the story right, each one of these stone tablets has a monster living inside, and they will judge anyone who walks on this bridge, and if they see you as unworthy… they eat you. ”  

“What?! ” Joey yelled, scared, and stepped away from the bridge, “Did Gramps mention a shortcut? ”

“Yeah, and preferably one without hungry monsters? ” Téa said. Her voice shakes sli gh tly. “I mean, what do these monsters see as unworthy? Scared? Are we just being here? This is really risky. ”

Yugi looks at the stone tablet for a second before he begins walking determinedly.

“Yugi! ” Téa called, scared after him.

“Careful, ” Joey calls.

“Yami’s real name is here. We have to find it to save him. ” Yugi told the others and didn’t break his strides, “These monsters will not attack us. I’m sure they know we are his friends. ”

“This is nuts, but I really hope you’re right, buddy, ” Tristan said. He still hesitated to follow.

“Okay, we are right behind ya, ” Joey said with a smile and walked after Yugi.

“That’s right. We’re here for Yami. ” Téa said and followed.

Tristan took a calming breath before he followed the others. The walk over the bridge goes smoothly.

“This must be where Grandpa found the Millennium puzzle, ” Yugi said while he looked at the pedestal on the other side of the bridge.

“But there is nothing here, pal, ” Joey said while he looked around it. He expected the puzzle to be hidden away like some prank.

Yugi knew it wouldn’t be here. Yami still had it and would only be placed her after his death.

“Can’t see any writing on the pedestal either. don’t think this is the place where his name is. ” Tristan said.

“So where is Yami’s name then? ” Joey asked and began looking around.

“Maybe that writing on the wall have some clues. ” Téa suggested and  walked over to the wall behind the pedestal to examine it. it was the only wall with paintings on it. Joey walked over to it to look with Téa “no… there’s nothing resembling a name on the wall. No sign of a cartouche. ” She turns to Yugi with concern written in her blue eyes, “Yugi… ”

“ Maybe there is another room… grandpa was injured when he left this place. He didn’t have the energy to look. ” Yugi said and began looking for something resembling a door. He seriously doubted it was the open entrance he could see hidden on the other side since he was sure that was the exit his grandpa had taken. “There must be a room ahead that even my grandpa couldn’t find. ”

“Yeah, but where? ” Joey asked and leaned against one of the pillars. Part of it moved like a switch, and a hidden door suddenly opened with Joey and the other gaping at what Joey accidentally activated. “what? No way!”

“ This is it, guys, ” Yugi said with a fast-beating heart. He was the first one to step inside. The room was big but also very empty. He didn’t trust it one bit, “Be careful; this room might also have some traps. ”

“ This room looks more like it was built with nothing. ” Joey said and tapped on the floor in front of him as if he hoped it would activate something, he learned his lesson in the first room.

“Is Yami’s name really here? ” Téa asked and looked around the empty walls.

“Don’t think so. Unlike the entrance and where the Millennium puzzle should be, there are no paintings in this room. ” Tristan said. He then looked down and gasped, “Wait a minute. Guys, look down at the floor! ”

They all looked down to see something looking like glasses with eyes. The parts between the eyes have something written on it.

“Yeah, but once again, it’s written in chicken scratch, ” Joey said, scratching his head . “Any wild guess what it says? ”

“ Allow me to translate it. ” the gang jumped and twirled around to see Other Bakura lean against a wall near the entrance they had just passed. They hadn’t seen him outside the other room, but they didn’t really look for someone there either. He walked past them and looked at the text, “it says ¨give back what you acquired of your search of the treasure you seek¨. So quite simple.” He turned to smirk at Yugi with something that should look like an amused smile, but it came off wrong,  “This place’s magic wants you to give it back what you wished for on the Millennium puzzle.”

“What are you doing here?! ” Joey snapped at him and looked ready to deck him.

Bakura ignored him and began to circle Yugi.
“Everyone wants something from the treasure of the items. Pegasus J. Crawford wanted his beloved, so he saw her one more time. Malik Ishtar wanted to be rid of the Pharaoh, so he was given a stronger will to do what he could not. Ishizu Ishtar wanted her brother back, which she got even if he ripped half of his soul out. ” Bakura looked warningly at Joey, who wanted to push him away from Yugi. Joey growled in return and stepped in between the white-haired teenager and Yugi. Bakura ignored Joey’s silent threat and looked at Yugi almost mockingly,  “So tell me, little Yugi. What did you wish on the Millennium puzzle? What do you need to sacrifice for this trade?”

“ I… ” Yugi hesitated.

“Tell us! ” Bakura snarled. It made all of the teenagers jump since that did not sound human at all. Bakura demanded with a quieter voice, “What did you get when you solved the Millennium puzzle? Tell the world if you want to find the name of the Pharaoh!”

“It’s… ” Yugi hesitated again. He promised himself to never tell his wish. He was scared, but he also wanted to do anything to help his other self. He still remembered his wish. He wanted friends. And he truly got that.

He remembers playing games in school with all of his friends. Playing duel monster with Ryou and Joey. Dice and cards with Duke and some board games with Téa and Tristan. he remembers how he was protected by Joey and Tristan as much as he protected them from trouble when it finally found them. He remember how happy each of them was when they walked with each other to their different house to hang out. He has always just wanted one friend… but he got so many more. He got his old childhood friend back, and now his love for her was returned. He had a best friend and many allies, and sometimes, it felt like a dream. He didn’t have one friend… he has so many now.

A single tear ran down his face.
“It’s you… I just wanted friends…friends I can count on… friends who can count on me.”

Joey, Téa, and Tristan froze when they heard this.

“Yugi… ” Téa said quietly. There were tears in her eyes, too.

“You mean… we’re you wish? ” Tristan said, baffled.

“You never told us that, ” Joey said. His voice was quiet.

Yugi didn’t know how to take his friends’ reactions. He—

“How precious, ” Bakura said in a mocking tone.

Then, out of nowhere, the room began to shake. Tiles fall down into a misty pit below them. Joey, Téa, and Tristan yelled in shock when the tiles under tier feet began to loosen.

“Anyone! ” Yugi cried out. The floor under his and Bakura’s didn’t move since they stood on the painted area.

“Run for it! ” Joey yelled and pulled Téa with him when she nearly fell into the pit under the floor. He pushed Tristan hard, which made him fall into the previous room, but at least he was safe. Joey and Téa jumped, and they got into safety, too.

“Yugi! ” Téa cried when either she or the two others could not get to Yugi anymore. He was now trapped with Bakura on the eye motive platform.

“Anyone! Are you alright?! ” Yugi yelled after them.

They all nodded. Yugi could breathe again.

“This room demand a sacrifice. Give up your friends, and the room will turn to normal.” Bakura said while he glanced at Yugi’s friends before giving Yugi a bored look, “All of this would have been easier if you had wished for wealth, power, or revenge.”

“You forget something, Spirit. You are trapped , too. ” Yugi retorted back. He would never sacrifice his friends! He will find another way to get to Yami’s true name.

“I am… because of your wish. ” Bakura smirked, “after all, I do have the shape of a person you consider as a friend.”

Yugi didn’t like that. He knew the Spirt was right, but still…
So I have to sacrifice you… He closed his eyes before opening them with a harsh look in his amethyst eyes . Forgive me, Ryou. I know you want to see the good in him, but I have to defeat him to save Yami and you from his games.

Bakura grinned when he saw the determined look in his eyes, and he nodded to the door behind him.
“The name of the Pharaoh is right on the other side of this room, and I can sense it. but I can’t let you find it, so this is as far you will go. ” He lifts his arm to show his duel disk. He had it on all the time he talked with Yugi and the others, “if you want to get past me, you’ll have to defeat me first. This time, for real. Remember what I said last time before we were interrupted? We each have 4000 life points—”

“ And when you run out of life points, you die, ” Yugi interjected him tensely. He felt a little offended that Bakura thought he would forget something like that so quickly. He raised his arms, and a duel disk appeared. “This is a shadow game. ”

“That’s right, ” Bakura smirked, predatory.

“Yugi! ”
“Don’t do it, Yugi! ”
“It’s too dangerous! ”

“It’s okay. I have to accept this fight! ” Yugi called out to his friends behind him. he glared at the Spirit of the Millennium ring, “To help you, guys, to release Ryou from the grasp of Spirit… to help Yami. I must find his true name. ”

“Always so noble. ” Bakura said mockingly and gestured to his duel disk, “You’ll find your deck contains exactly the 40 cards that you imagined. So we each have our ideal decks, but you won’t know the order until you draw. ” He drew his five cards, “Let’s go, little Yugi.”

“ Duel! ” both of them yelled at the same time. The room itself was filled with magic, and it reacted strongly to an unnatural wind.

-

Yugi began. He sets the monster and a spell card face down before he ends his turn.

Bakura mocked him for playing passive before he summoned Doomcaliber Knight and attacked his face-down monster. It was a monster named Marshmallon and it was cut in half right away due to it being so weak. But its effect stepped in right away, and its two halves merged together again. By Bakura attacking Marshmellon, he will take 1000 damage since Yugi’s monster can’t be destroyed in battle.

Annoyed. Bakura set the card face down and ended his turn.

Yugi knew this was a test for him, not even Yami knew about the deck he played with. He set another card face down and summoned his Silent Swordsman LV0 in attack position, and he flipped over his spell card Marshmallon Glasses, which he added to Doomcaliber Knight so Bakura’s monster could only attack Marshmallon since his Silent Swordsman only has 1000 attack points.

For now.

Bakura activated a spell card called Negate defense, and it switched Marshmallon to attack, which meant Yugi now took battle damage even if Marshmallon could not get destroyed.

When it was Yugi’s turn, his silent swordsman grew to level 1 and became a little stronger with 1500 attack points. It was still not strong enough to destroy Bakura’s monster.

Bakura activated his trap card before Yugi could end his turn. It was a card called Call of the Earthbound, and it forced Silent Swordsman to attack a monster of Bakura’s choosing. He also added a monster trap card called Death Spirit Zoma. The same monster that nearly killed Joey the last time they saw him. With the Call of the Earthbound, Silent Swordsman was forced to attack Zoma, and now its special effect steps in. It will kill Yugi instantly.

But Yugi was prepared for this, and with one swipe of his arm, he activated his own spell card, Turn Jump, which skips three battle phases, so now Zoma was gone for good, Yugi was safe, and his Silent Swordsman was now level 4. Yugi has a monster with 3000 attack points on his side of the field. He attacked Doomcaliber Knight, and  Marshmallon attacked Bakura directly, so now he only has 1600 life points left.

Bakura winched in pain. Yugi hoped he regretted making this a shadow game, and his last attack hurt.
“For a mere vessel, you’re putting up quite a fight...”

“Way to go, Yugi!”
“You’re tearing that jerk apart! ”
“ Yugi! You can do this!”

Yugi said nothing. He did not like the smirk Bakura had.

“I see. You are really determined to defeat me. But…”  Bakura grinned. It reminded Yugi of a crocodile, “Zorc Necrophages is resurrected. While you and your small friends have been running around this tomb, the Pharaoh and his priest are standing their last stand against the mighty dark God.”

“What? ” Yugi said tensely. If Bakura had said that, it meant they had less time than he thought they would. How long could Yami keep himself alive against a murderous god?

“Luckily for you, I wanted to kill all of you, so there is no need for Zorc to destroy this tomb. ” Bakura grinned wider and drew another card, “I will enjoy watching all of you bleed to death. ”

-

Bakura activates the spell card Spirit Sword of Sealing. It removes one monster from the field, and no spells, traps, or monster effects could negate the sealing. Silent Swordsman was impaled by the sword, and now his card hung above Yugi’s friend’s heads, and as long it hung there, its own effect was also useless.

Bakura then summoned Disgraced Mage in attack position, and he attacked Marshmallon. Yugi lost life points, but his monster stayed on the field. Bakura said if Yugi’s Marshmallon went from the field to the graveyard, the sealed monster could return to the field. He mocked Yugi, saying that his own monster effect had ruined his chance of getting his strongest monster back.

Yugi just sneered at him but kept his cool. As long he has life points, he will not give up.

Téa had seen Yugi duel multiple times, but she knew this one was more than a game of duel monster.

Yugi has fought his own battles, but this one feels different. This time, he is fighting with his own monsters; this time, he is fighting for Yami. She clenched her hands tightly together close to her chest; she could feel her own heart beating fast. She was good at hiding it, but she was scared. Scared that Yugi was going to die, scared about the idea that they could reach Yami in time. H e must be thinking, “I have to be strong… I have to help Yami go back to the place where he belongs.”

This battle is different… because of what it means for our future. For Yugi’s future,

Bakura laughed
“Perhaps you could have used the Pharaoh’s help after all. You pathetic mortals. ”

Téa feels a chill down her spine, and she is getting goosebumps. She put her hands down to rub her arms.
“Something is just not right about him… ”  

Joey looks at her like she has just said something wild.
“And this is something you’ve only noticed now? he’s been not right from the start. ” He raised his fist towards the white-haired teenager, “I just wish he had stopped blabbing so we could find Yami’s name and get out of here! ”

“You’re right, but… ” Téa hesitated.

“He called us mortals, ” Tristan said quietly.

“Yes… he seems different than the one who’s inside the Millennium ring, ” Téa said with a scared look at Yugi’s opponent. She has been unsure about the second Spirit from the start due to him either being murderous, helpful, or pretty much ignoring the gang. Téa never mentioned Spirit or talked about him unless one of the boys brought him up. Should she have done more to make Ryou stop wearing the ring? Should she mention more about how it hurt him instead of allowing him to sort out his own feelings? She felt bad that she thought that Yugi holding the ring would ensure Ryou had room to reflect on what abuse he had endured. But now… she realized that maybe she and the others didn’t try hard enough to keep him out of danger.

But this Spirit of the ring. He was cruel, he was mocking, and there was no sight of the helpfulness she had seen before. This one wanted them dead. This one has been the one who hurt Ryou just because he could or to teach him a lesson. This was the one who tried to kill them. 
“He feels much colder than before…”

“Less… human. ” Tristan agreed.

It is Yugi’s turn, and he summons Blocken into the defense position, and he also switches Marshmallon into defense. The little humanoid block has the effect that forces the opponent to attack it, so Bakura’s monster has to attack Blocken, and just as his friend cheered that now Silent Swordsman was going to be released, Bakura told them that Disgraced Mage’s effect does not allow that. When it destroys a monster, that monster will return to the deck. Yugi activates Blocken’s second effect. When Blocken leaves the field, it special summons Lengard from Yugi’s deck in attack position.

It’s Bakura’s turn, and he sets four cards face down and ends his turn. Yugi put Mashmallon in an attack position and attacked. Because Lengard was on the field, it takes the battle damage Marshmallon got and gets destroyed, but Yugi will not lose life points either due to the effect of his wall monster.

With a monster in his graveyard, Spirit Sword of Sealing’s effect is over, and Silent Swordsman is once again by his side.

Yugi has his Swordsman attack Disgraced Mage, but Bakura activates his trap Negate Attack, and Yugi’s battle phase is over.

It was Bakura’s turn, and he flipped Disgraced Mage to defense and then activated a spell card called Cursed Twin Doll.

Joey jumped away, scared
“What with those creepy dolls?! ”

“As you can see, each of them holds a gift box, a red one, and a black one. One of them contains a curse and the other a blessing. ” Bakura smirked while he gestured to his twin dolls, “Now, little Yugi, choose a box.”

One box is cursed, and the other contains a blessing. Yugi thought to himself while he examined both of them carefully. I get a 50/50 shot of picking right .
“I’ll pick the red one. ” He pointed at the doll to the right.

“Then I will get the black box, ” Bakura said. Both of them watched the red box open and mist circle around a tense Yugi. “it appears you’ve chosen wisely. Now, every time a card is sent to the graveyard, no matter if it is yours or mine, you will receive 200 extra life points.”

“Nice! He picked the blessed one!”
“Yay! Way to pick them, Yugi!”
Joey and Tristan cheered.

“Spirit. What is the black box’s effect? ” Yugi asked with narrow eyes.

Bakura chuckled
“I told you… it’s a curse. ” The black box opens, and black mist circles a smirking Bakura. “the one who is cursed will have their graveyard destroyed.”

His graveyard is destroyed? But how can he duel with no graveyard? Just as he thought that all the monsters Yugi destroyed reappeared on Bakura’s side of the field. Monsters now float around in a green mist together with all the spell and trap cards Bakura has played.

“Well, well… without a graveyard, my dead monsters have returned as ghosts. ” Bakura hummed and looked up at his destroyed monsters and discarded cards.  

“Don’t let them get me! ” Joey yelled while he hid behind Téa.

Téa glared, insulted at him.
“Hey! Do I look like a human shield to you?! ”

“Not gonna lie to you, Téa, yes you do! ”

“Pull yourself together, Joey. ” Tristan sighed.

“But I hate those things! ”

“Don’t be scared… they’re not dangerous. The ghosts are here, yes, but they can’t attack or defend. ” Bakura chuckled over the fear and discomfort he had created.

Yugi eyed the floating monsters.
I have a bad feeling about this…

-

Bakura summons Necro Soldier in defense position, and when Yugi draws a card, its special effect allows Bakura to special summon another one. Yugi’s Silent Swordsman rises to level 5, and he summons Silent Magician LV0 in attack position; he also puts his Mashmellon in attack, and he attack Bakura’s monsters. He has all monsters destroyed… except for the last Necro Soldier. His attack was somehow stopped.

Bakura has activated a continuous trap card called Narrow Corridor. Now, no matter how many monsters Yugi had, he could only attack two times before his battle phase was over. Also, the two monsters Yugi had just destroyed had joined the other ghosts; Yugi was still unsure what type of trouble that would give him.

Yugi’s Silent Magician also rises to level 1 when Bakura draws a new card.

But Bakura just smiled; he activated a continuous spell card called Counterbalance. When this card is on the field, at the end of a player’s turn, he has to send a card in his deck to the graveyard for every monster on the field… including the ghosts. With Bakura having no graveyard, only Yugi was affected by this trap card.

He was destroying Yugi’s deck!

Bakura summoned Necro Mannequin to the defense position, and he activated yet another continuous trap card called Necro Circle. As long as Necro Mannequin is on Bakura’s side of the field, he can special summon another Necro Mannequin once per turn.

It was Yugi’s turn again, and his Silent Swordsman raised to level 6. Still, he also had to discard 9 cards because of Bakura’s trap compo.  The only thing Yugi could do right now was to destroy two of Bakura’s monsters.

Even if, for each turn, Yugi’s monster grew stronger, it didn’t matter because Bakura just got more and more monsters on his side of the field with the help of the monster effect and his Necro Circle. Yugi will also lose more and more of his deck for each turn, and if he ends up with no cards left… he will lose automatically and then…

Yugi drew a spell card called Magic Barrier. This card could save one monster from any trap, spell, or monster effect for one turn. He placed it facedown, but he was going to save it for later.

Soon… Yugi only has one card left in his deck.

“Poor little Yugi, always trying to be the hero. ” Bakura chuckled darkly. He enjoyed Yugi’s desperation, “but if the Millennium puzzle was never reassembled, none of this would have happened. People wouldn’t have died or gotten hurt. You and your friends would have been normal high schoolers… Thanks to you, I was able to resurrect.”

“What do you mean? ” Yugi asked, surprised.

“This world was created by the Pharaoh’s forgotten memories. The epic battle over the Millennium items is replaying before our eyes. Well… not entirely after what happened. The last conflict happened over three years ago; I don’t have time to replay that again. ” Bakura grinned. The gang gasped and stared, shocked. “two souls were sealed into the Millennium puzzle 3000 years ago.. a Pharaoh whose name has been forgotten and a Dark God called Zorc Necrophages. Only the soul that wins this battle can return to the modern world. ” He crossed his arms, annoyed, and glared at all of them , “But you see, little Yugi… when the Pharaoh gained you as a vessel, he made friends with people from the modern world. Friends are strong enough to make an imprint in his eternal memories. I never expected that his pathetic friends would know how to infiltrate this world.”

Yugi looked at Bakura. No, he was really looking at him. Something about him has nagged him for a while. You have chestnut-colored eyes, not red ones like this person’s. He also swore they looked like the ones of a snake. His body was almost always cast in shadows like they crawled on him.
“Bakura… who in the world… are you?”
This was not the same Bakura who sometimes helped him. This was the same one who tried to kill them when they first got to know Ryou.

Bakura chuckled and touched the ring around his neck. His face was cast in shadow, with only his unnatural glowing red eyes and predatory grin visible,
“What if, 3000 years ago, Zorc Necrophades sealed part of his soul into this Millennium ring? What if he merged with the soul of the Thief King? a mere mortal who wanted revenge? ” he growled, and Yugi took an unconscious step back. Every warning bell and instinct he possessed was screaming at him to get away. That he was in danger, “what if Zorc hid behind the eyes of the one you called friend? ”

“Bakura… ” Yugi whispered. He knew! He knew who this… creature in front of him was. “are you…?”

Bakura laughed and looked up. He barely looked human anymore, and now Yugi and his friends could clearly see the demonic eyes of this monster. He has twisted everything on Ryou’s body into something evil… something dangerous.
“That’s right, I am ZORC! I am a fragment of the soul of Zorc Necrophades. A God of Shadows and darkness!”

Zorc! Yugi’s mind screamed. It was the exact name of the evil Yami was fighting against! Zorc used our friend to try to steal the Millennium items and our lives!

“I don’t need to do anything to win… just wait. ” The fragment of Zorc grinned a smile no human was able to do , “but I want to drive my sword even deeper into your heart… deeper and deeper.  Admit it, vessel. You are NOTHING more than a scared little child. Someone who thinks he has friends even if his selfish little wish forced them to cry, bleed, and die for you.”

Yugi stood frozen. He voiced his worst fear.

“That’s not true! ” Téa shouted angrily at Bakura, “Even without the wish, we would still be his friends! ”

“ The puzzle might have been what connected us, but it was Yugi himself who bonded us together! ” Joey snarled, offended, with his fist raised angrily over his head.

“He is our friend, no matter what you say! ” Tristan yelled and looked ready to deck Bakura for even saying that.

Bakura only chuckles at their anger.

Yugi shook his head. He couldn’t let Bakura’s word get to him.
If I lose this Shadow game, I’ll disappear from this world. I won’t be able to help my other self… he isn’t with me. I am fighting alone.

He closed his eyes to concentrate. To keep his mind in the battle. This calms his beating heart down.

I realize… I have always been chasing after you. You have been my confidence, my hope, my driving force for so long. What am I without you?

Yugi didn’t know the answer to that. A large part of him didn’t want to know. He didn’t know what would happen to him when Yami was gone. When he was alone. The thought scared him. A future without Yami frightened him. But he needed to cast that fear aside and live in the present. To follow the promise he told Yami he would do.

He opened his eyes. Gone was the fear, and gone was the doubt. Only determination was left.

I am not going to give up. Like you, no matter what happens, I’m not going to give up till the very end.

I made a promise to you. I swore I would find your true name, and right now, it’s right in front of me.

Just hold on a little longer… I’ll defeat any enemy that stands in my way to save you!
“Spirit! You think you know me, but you don’t! ” Yugi yelled at him and stood taller than he ever had done. He wasn’t scared anymore. “I will NEVER GIVE UP! I have one card left, and that’s all I need! ” he drew his last card, and he smirked when he saw what it was. “I tribute Marshmallon and Silent Magician so I can summon… Gandora, the Dragon of Destruction! ”

“What?! ” Bakura yelled and looked scared when a massive black armored dragon with red spheres all over its body was summoned. Gandora roared so loud that it makes the room shake.

“Spirit… Zorc, whatever your name is! I have now a monster that can break your Zombie lockdown deck!” Yugi yelled at him. Bakura stared, shocked, at him. “Gandora! Activate your special ability! Destroy Gigarays!”

The orbs on Gandora begin to glow a brilliant red color. It was the only warning Bakura got before Laser shot out of every single one of those orbs and destroyed every single monster on the field. Bakura and Yugi’s friends yell at the sheer intensity of the dragon’s power. Gandora growled one last time at Bakura before it disappeared. Gandora will destroy itself after its all-destroying attack. Yugi knew this, but his dragon did what he needed to win this duel.

“My monsters! All of my monsters are gone!” Bakura shouted in shock and looked wildly around on his now empty field.

“Even the ghost ones are gone.” Téa gasped.

“Was Yugi’s monster destroyed, too?!” Joey looked concerned at Yugi’s side of the field. Gadora’s attack will wipe out both sides of the field.

“No… look!” Tristan gasped and pointed at a shadow in the mist.

Silent Swordsman is still on the field, and he is protected by Yugi’s activated spell card, Magic Barrier. It is the last monster on the field.

Yugi didn’t wait for Zorc’s fragment that he had lost. He didn’t give him time to realize Yugi had already won.
“Attack!”

Silent Swordsman moves quickly and silently. He hit Bakura right in the chest with one single swipe, and the fragment of Zorc’s life points hit zero.

The fake Bakura spews blood right away.
“Wh... why is your monster…?”

“I used a spell card, Magic Barrier, ” Yugi told him to calm yet harshly. “I win. ”

Zorc’s fragment glared at him before he disappeared from the shadows he was born from.  

Because he lost the duel… he is banished to the shadows. Yugi thought to himself while the floor around the large room began to repair itself until there was once again solid ground for his friends to stand on and for Yugi to move.   I don’t think that would affect Zorc that much… with him only being a fragment.

Yami, in the real world, raised an eyebrow when he noticed the Bakura he was fighting against, making a face of pain.
Bakura grimaced just now. What happened? With how pissed he looked, Yami knew something didn’t go as he planned. Could it be?

This Bakura looked at Yami, huffed, and said, annoyed,
“Your friends are getting closer to where your true name is hidden in this world. I can’t believe the shadow I sent into this world was defeated by a mere vessel. ”

“ You underestimated him. Yugi is far stronger than any of your minions.”

“It doesn’t matter. It did what I needed it to do. ” He said. For once, he didn’t have a confident smile. “The Pharaoh’s lost name is tied to a secret, even if you don’t know it.”

“ Let me guess; it’s the key to winning this game. ”

“ Oh yes. I’ll be in trouble if you learn it. I’ve had the advantage so far, but that might just turn the tables. Because it was your true name that locked me away with your soul. ”

Yami watched him for a second. He crossed his arms and said, as a matter of fact,
“You’re Zorc. ”

“ You have probably known that for a while now, haven’t you? ” Bakura said and grinned. The brown eyes Ryou had turned red reminded Yami of a snake. “Your name is the key. In fact, this shadow game is nothing less than a fight over your true name. After 3000 years… the Millennium puzzle has led us to this last battle just for that purpose! ”

“The Millennium puzzle led us to this battle? ” Yami demanded to know with a tense, angry grimace.

“Of course. ”  Bakura grinned at him. “3000 years ago, the battle with the great evil God ended when the Pharaoh sealed his soul into the Millennium pendant. The pendant broke into 100 pieces and was renamed the Millennium puzzle. When it broke apart, your SOUL and MEMORIES were broken with the pendent, and your TRUE NAME was erased by your last command. But… ” he glanced at the four people he had placed inside the coffins. He wasn’t smiling anymore , “someone appeared who could rebuild the puzzle? That’s right… your PARTNER, ” Yami sneered when he mentioned Yugi. It delighted Zorc in the human body that he got a rise out of his enemy, “It just too bad for you… but I won’t let your friends give you your true name. I’ll slaughter them first. ” He pulled the last hourglass over to him , “Now, I activate my third power. ” He flipped it so the sand rand down at the bottom. Yami got up on his feet in shock and horror when the diorama began to break “natural catastrophe. ”

The ground! It’s breaking!

Bakura chuckled at his panic.
“The diorama in this game world is built on top of a table of sand, dust, and remains… the same sand I’ve added to this hourglass. Magic is such a dangerous thing to control in the wrong hands . ” he leans forward while a large part of the miniature desert is swallowed up. A large part of the palace was now in ruins. The Valley of the Kings was barely holding on, “In moments, your friends will be SWALLOWED along with the Valley of the Kings! They’ll sink into the sand, and their SOULS will be LOST forever to the shadows! ”

My partner! My friends!

Run!

The gang opened the door to the last room, and they all gasped in awe at how everything inside the room was covered in cold and white sandstone. It made the entire room glow like they were outside in the sun. There was nothing inside the small room… except for one thing.

“It’s my other self’s… ” Yugi whispered while he walked closer to a large cartouche. It was almost as tall as him and rested on a pedestal.

“Real name, ” Téa whispered and walked over beside him.

“Yeah, but what does it say? ” Tristan asked. It was written in hieroglyphs.

“It says ¨, Bird, rock, lambchop, bird and a bigger bird¨. ” Joey joked lightly.

“But what does that spell in Ancient Egyptian? ” Tristan asked him flatly.

“No idea, but I’ve memorized it, ” Joey said and gave the rest of the gang a thumbs up.

Yugi believe him. It was pretty much his ability to remember certain things that made him able to remember all his card abilities. It’s just too bad it kinda slipped away with things he didn’t care about or bored him. Yugi also took his time to remember every carving of his Other’s name. he needed to remember it so he could spell it to Yami.

And then they could finally know what his real name is.

“Guys, look! ” Téa yelled to them. She stood further away from the boys and waved them over. “I found a way out.”
The boys walked over and saw stairs going down. They were pretty dark, but they also looked safe.

“Great, that means we don’t have to go past all those traps again, ” Tristan said.

“Now, let’s go and find Yami! ” Yugi said and jumped down the stairs. His friends followed him. They barely got down when the ground began to shake, and the loud crack was heard above them. Part of the tunnel was showing signs of collapsing. “RUN! ” Yugi screamed, and they all bolted as fast as they could through the tunnel and under all the traps they had gone through.

A few times, they have to duck, jump, or dodge stones falling around them. The fear of being crushed by rocks made all of them run faster. They all wanted out of this place before it ended up being their graves, too. They finally saw the end of the tunnel. Still, they quickly realized when Joey nearly fell that the earthquake had created a vertical drop that no human could survive.

“We’re trapped! ” Téa yelled, scared, and looked behind to see the tunnel collapsing behind them.

“No! We are not limited in this world! ” Yugi yelled and readied himself. “All we have to do is believe in it!” he jumped.

“Yugi! ” Tristan yelled, shocked when Yugi stayed in the air.

“Wait… you fly?! ” Joey asked, shocked.

With one look back, the three others jumped, too.

“We fly too?! ” Joey and Tristan gasped in disbelief.

“We’re really flying! ” Téa said between relieved and shocked.

They all looked down to see the entire Valley of the Kings being swallowed up by the ground. No person there was still in the valley could survive that.

“Let’s go! ” Yugi said to his friends and began flying toward the black cloud they could see on the horizon.

Towards the massive monster they knew was Zorc. Where they knew Yami would be.

All they have to hope for now is that they weren’t too late…