And because I just can't help it, things get super serious again in the very last chapter of Book Five. Also, exposition.
Chapter SixteenThe Looming Threat;
A King’s Advice
The duel stage lowered to the ground and I stepped off of my end in a stupor. Tucker ran out of the competitors’ box and almost bowled me over. He clapped me on the shoulder, “You did it! You won!”
The others followed, spouting congratulations. I didn’t really hear them. I was completely out of it. I felt Hiro there at my side in his spirit form.
We won, I told him.
Yes, we did.
I couldn’t have done it without you, I said.
I don’t know, Hiro replied. You’ve handled a lot of tough duels on your own, and you still doubt yourself. You should really work on that.
I looked around at my friends. I looked over my shoulder and saw that even Max and Lawrence were there. Lawrence seemed indifferent, crossing his arms and rolling his eyes, but Max was actually smiling. It was quite an improvement over the usual look of boredom, or the occasional scowl.
“I really didn’t think you could do it!” said Tucker, punching my shoulder playfully.
And then I remembered what had happened at the end of the duel, something that my initial excitement had blinded me to until that moment. I spun around to face my most recent opponent. He was standing beside the duel stage, waiting for me. He knew that our business wasn’t yet finished.
“It should have been a tie,” I said under my breath. Then to my friends I said, “You guys go and wait for me back at the box. I have one thing left to take care of.”
Tucker didn’t get it, but the others did. They knew that I wanted to talk to Yugi, even if they didn’t know why. So Karen led the others away, and I walked over to face the former King.
“It should have been a tie,” I said.
Yugi looked up at me, his face unreadable.
“And I’m pretty sure that you would have beaten me in your next turn.”
“Yeah,” he said.
“Then what happened?” I asked.
He ignored me. Instead he asked, “What’s that crystal around your neck?”
I smiled. He was aware of more than I’d realized. “It’s called a Duelists Soul,” I told him. “If you can believe it, it lets me control darkness in order to fight evil.”
“I believe it,” said Yugi. “I used to possess a powerful Egyptian artifact called the Millennium Puzzle. It had some pretty impressive powers of its own.”
“I remember Pegasus mentioning something about the Millennium Items when he told us about the Souls." I told Yugi, not quite willing to reveal the full extent of what I knew about him, not yet. "I didn’t know what he was talking about at the time.”
Yugi laughed, “Maxamillion Pegasus’ ability to involve himself in ancient magical affairs will never cease to amaze me.”
“So you used to fight evil forces and crap too?” I asked.
“In a way,” Yugi replied, “though my fight had a more specific overall goal. I used to fight to help a friend recover his memory and find his way home. Saving the world was just a side effect.”
“What happened to your friend?”
“He found his memories and went home,” Yugi answered, “but I lost him in the process.”
“That’s good,” I said, “that he found what he wanted. But you know, you still didn’t answer my first question. What happened during our duel today? If I won because of some accident or some technical glitch, then I want a rematch.”
“You didn’t win because of an accident or a glitch," Yugi replied. "You won because my Knights wanted you to. The cards I used, the ones with no text, they’re called Legendary Dragons. They appeared once a few years ago, from another dimension, to fight an evil force in this dimension that only their power could stop. In fact, they only appear when the world needs them, and when their purpose is served, they disappear. The Legendary Dragons can only be passed to a new bearer after the current bearer is defeated in a duel. Fate used this tournament to pass possession of the Dragons to you,” he handed me the three cards, as well as ‘Legend of Heart’, “because only you can defeat whatever it is that’s coming next.”
I took the cards, “What can I do with these? I don’t even know how they work.”
“You will when the time comes,” Yugi told me, “just like I did, and Seto Kaiba, and my friend Jonouchi.”
Realization hit, “Wait, if one of these dragons is Kaiba’s, then that’s why he added the ante rule to the tournament. He saw his card reappear and reasoned that the other two had as well. He wanted the Dragons, and he never knew I had the God cards.”
“Kaiba is an ambitious person,” Yugi said as way of an answer.
“So, aren’t you mad that I beat you?” I asked.
“Never,” said Yugi, smiling wide. “That was an amazing duel, and it was a lot of fun. I really thought you had me a couple of times, even before you summoned the Gods. I don’t play games to win, I play them to have fun and to fight challenging opponents. You deserve the title of King, at least until I get a chance to take it back from you.”
I couldn’t help but smile at that.
Then Yugi’s face turned serious. “You’re the reason why that Exodus guy disappeared, aren’t you?”
“No,” I answered purposefully, “he chose his own fate when he threatened peoples’ lives. I was only the instrument of that fate. And if you don’t mind, can we leave it at that?”
Yugi nodded and turned toward the competitors’ box, “Trust me, I understand. I’ve done some things I’m not proud of to make the world better.”
He smiled, “Anyway, I need to be going, and you have your friends to get back to. Good luck and remember, whatever’s coming, trust your instincts and you’ll know what to do. As strong as you are, and with so many good friends at your side, you’ll be alright.”
He walked away, leaving me there, lost in my own thoughts.
After a few minutes I headed back toward the competitors’ box, only to be stopped by the tournament announcer.
“It’s time to accept your prize,” he said. He led me back to the center of the stadium, and the two of us stepped back up onto the duel stage. The holographic screens appeared again, showing off my face for the coming reaction shot.
“Introducing,” said the announcer, “the new King of Games, John Sieger, leader of the Duel Force!”
The crowd cheered wildly. It was several minutes before the cheering died down enough for the announcer to continue. He turned to me and said, “Now, on behalf of Kaiba Corporation, I hereby present you with the prize of two hundred thousand dollars!”
The cheering flared up again. I couldn’t help but smile as I took the check from the man’s hand.
Two hundred thousand dollars, I thought. That’s a lot of money. I guess I know how I’m going to fund my career. But first I have to deal with whatever threat is coming. Now that Yugi’s said it, I can admit to myself that I’ve known about it too. I’ve seen it coming, creeping up on me in my nightmares, and...
I hadn’t thought about it since my duel against the Millennium Keeper, That darkness that I felt in the shadows of my own mind, different from the darkness that I usually sense there, could it be the threat that I’m supposed to face? If it is, we could be in trouble. I sensed more power in that darkness than I’ve ever felt before.
I pocketed my check, shook hands with the announcer, posed a bit for the cameras, and finally put my hands in my pockets and started back toward the place where my friends waited. I looked up into the darkening evening sky. Even if I’m right and that darkness is the looming threat, it won’t stand a chance, because I have the entire Duel Force and Yugi Muto's cards behind me, and that gives me the greatest power of all. No darkness can compete with that.
I rejoined my friends, and we made our way back to the resort, and then back home, with the help, of course, of Kaiba Corp. Airlines. And I have to admit, it was one of the happiest times of my life, despite what I knew was looming on the horizon.
Continue to Special #2 >>
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