Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Silenced Legacy ❯ Bowler's Vengeance: Shadow Game, Part 3 ( Chapter 22 )

Episode #22- Bowler's Vengeance, Part 3

"This is it, guys. Ashley had this Duel from the start." Mai commented as she gazed on to Bolban's readied stance, "Kaiba's only chance is that card he put on the field. If it isn't a trap, this Duel will be over."

"Bolban, ready fire, lock the target." Ashley commanded. Both cannons drew inward slightly, aiming for Kaiba himself.

"Reveal faced-down card, Revival of Dragon!" Kaiba declared and activated his trap.

"What kind of trap is that?" Ashley questioned as Bolban continued its charge.

"Revival of Dragon allows me to summon back a dragon from my Graveyard lost in this Duel." Kaiba explained and his Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon reappeared on the field, half its regular size, "However, it's attack power is halved, so my Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon will return with an attack of 2250, just enough to shield my Life Points from Bolban."

'Aw no!' Ashley thought and jumped back. Bolban saw its chance and fired both shots towards Kaiba's new monster. The Dragon was destroyed the moment it was brought to the field, Kaiba's Life Points decreased to 300.

"It doesn't matter; I will not lose this Duel." Kaiba stated, "I will not lose this Duel to a mere fluke. I will win this tournament to show the world that I am indeed more powerful than my stepfather, Gursaburo Kaiba!"

'Gursaburo Kaiba? That name is familiar.' Ashley thought, 'Of course, his name appeared in the newspaper a week after Ed was killed by some freak accident.' Ashley was hesitant to make her next move, 'That was no accident. Gursaburo took a trip to America. In that week, Ed's death made headline news. But, Uncle Ed can't remember who his murderer looked like. All he told me was that he was a man in which anyone can sense a dark heart from. Gursaburo Kaiba killed him; that can be the only explanation.'

"Hurry up and make your move." Kaiba called out.

"Kaiba..." Ashley spoke softly, but loud enough for everyone to hear. Her right hand clenched tightly into a fist above her Duel Disc, "You will pay..."

"Huh?" Joey questioned, "What is Ashley talking about?"

"I'm not sure, Joey." Yami answered.

"You will pay for what happened seven years ago..." Ashley continued her soft voice, hinted with a sense of long-held anger.

"The only thing that happened seven years ago was my stepfather's disappearance!" Kaiba barked, "Now move already!"

"That's not the only thing Kaiba..." Ashley's black bangs shadowed her face, "Gursaburo took a trip to America. In that week, Ed 'the Bowler' was killed in a freak accident. Now I know why we were to Duel, Kaiba." Ashley brought her head up, her eyes welling with tears.

"Stop making an act of yourself." Kaiba chilled out, "What makes you draw to the conclusion that my stepfather killed your uncle?"

"All except his rivals loved Ed for his dedication in the sport of bowling." Ashley tried to pull back the tears, "The year he turned Pro was the year everyone took interest in bowling. All looked to him as a role model, a hero. Even my cuz and me, we looked to him as our idol. He had the business in America like Gursaburo had business in Domino and its surrounding areas.

"And Uncle Ed is still with me. He can only tell me that someone whom all sought to be a terrorist pushed him through that elevator shaft. That was a grave day then, Kaiba. That was the day that all whose saw him as a hero fell to their instincts for revenge against anyone who would commit such an act." Ashley told her back-story.

"Touching, however, anyone can be a terrorist and smash an idol." Kaiba responded in disbelief.

"That is why I am on a quest to avenge my uncle's spirit." Ashley reinstated, "My uncle will know when he had his revenge. I will convict anyone that seems the murderer until that revenge is met."

"Well? Are you quite done?" Kaiba asked impatiently, "I'm waiting to end this Duel now."

"I didn't think Ashley was this much attached to Ed the Bowler." Tristan commented.

"What can you expect? Ed is both Ashley's uncle AND Miranda's father. If Ashley is this bitter about Ed's death, imagine how Miranda must feel..." Mai answered.

"That's right..." Yami gazed towards Mai.

* * * *

Marik watched out the window of Room 7, staring deeply into the passing clouds and the stars in the clear skies. Behind him, she slept with no movement since the second round of the Finals. Raikoukou still accompanied them in its spiritual form.

'Marik, maybe you should go back and finish watching the third round.' Raikoukou advised, 'Chances are Miranda won't be waking up until the semifinals.'

Marik sighed and turned around, seeing Raikoukou on the opposite side of the bed. "You're probably right. It's pointless for me to stick around here if there's nothing I can do."

'I'll let you know if anything comes up.' Raikoukou nodded. Marik walked around the bed and past Raikoukou.

The door slid shut behind him. He approached the elevator only to feel a chilly sweep from behind his back. "You!" Marik swiftly turned around with the Millennium Rod tight in his grip and ready to strike. He turned to an empty all, void of anything or anyone. Marik withdrew himself from his stance, 'Maybe I'm just being edgy.' He thought and the elevator doors opened in front of him. He waited as the elevator began its ascend to the roof, his eyes expressing deep thought.

Undetectable by the Millennium Rod, another presence stirred in the elevator. Yami Marik stood in his ex-host's height, grinning fiendishly as his Millennium Rod began to merge with Marik.

"Huh?" Marik felt the shock when the Rod's met and he spun around. He soon saw his demon beginning to take hold of the Rod, "You, I thought you were within Miranda." Marik pointed out.

Yami Marik gave a sneer in return, "Fool, I've gotten used to going from one body to another, like from you to Miranda. But she needs a demonstration of Ra's true power to know what Yin-Yang is up against." He answered in his demonic voice, "And as for that, I need to take hold of my previous host. You and I weren't separated for that long so there shouldn't be a problem." Yami Marik brimmed with a dark aura and seeped through Marik's skin entirely.

"No! AAAAAHHHHHH!" Yami Marik screamed before his soul was blasted from his body. He dropped to both knees with his head clutched in his hands.

'There's no point in resisting Marik, I'm simply "borrowing" your body for the time being. After the Duel, I'll be more than happy to break away and return back to Miranda.' said Yami Marik, already taking occupation in his body. A black cloak flew over Marik's body and draped past his back. His hair began to stand on end, electrical with Shadow Magic and his clothes varied their color. "Yes, now this is more like it." Yami Marik commented and recovered to his new form. "Now to uphold my part. Miranda..."

__________

I came to back on the Kaiba Craft. Lying on the bed, just how I left myself before I let Yami Marik consume my soul to the Shadow Realm. 'Master Miranda?' I heard a voice in my mind, but it wasn't Yami Marik's, 'Are you awake?' it asked. I tossed to the other side and saw an animal staring at me straight in the face with curious silver eyes.

I jumped back and fell over on the other side of the bed head-first. My legs were still on the bed but my hand caught on to the cape and choked me down. 'Great, Yami Marik has hung around for too long and now I'm being delirious.' I thought with a wheeze in my breath.

The animal, which now I've seen in wolf or fox features, paced around the foot of the bed to my side. It fanned out a set of nine tails behind it and looked at me with the same wondering gaze. 'Master Miranda?' I heard again. I looked at the beast that seemed mythical to my eye.

"What the heck are you?" I whispered behind clenched teeth.

'Miranda, I am Raikoukou of the Blue Lightning. A demon who once served both Mirandragon and Kikaita.' It replied.

"Wait." I breathed and got myself out of that position to a cross-legged sit, "You knew my mother?" Raikoukou nodded.

'I waited to see if you would wake up soon. I didn't expect this soon.' I figured Raikoukou was speaking to me telepathically, 'Both Marik and I knew about how the Demon works. He seems to keep his tools safe until they're of no use and discards them.' Raikoukou metaphor a situation with my own.

"So why am I awake? He said that I'd be awake after the fourth..." I trailed off, soon remembering what we bargained in the Shadow Realm, "Is Marik already on topside?"

'Yes.' Raikoukou answered. Instantly I shot off of the side of the bed and the door opened in front of me, 'Master Miranda, wait.' Raikoukou tried my attention but I ignored it. I was already out the door and saw the elevator was still making its ascend to the roof.

Ashley still glared at Kaiba in a vengeful manner that seemed Yami Marik was attracted to. "It's your move Kaiba, but what chance do you have now?" Ashley stated, "I've restricted Obelisk, destroyed two of your Blue-Eyes White Dragons, and your Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon is of no use to you."

"I'll place one monster in defense mode and end my turn." Kaiba stated and a card appeared in front of him.

"Weak." Ashley whispered under her breath and drew her next card, "This ends now. Bolban, attack with Cannon Fire!" She declared and Bolban launched another assault, destroying Kaiba's Dark Zebra. Kaiba took no Life Point damage and Bolban returned to its defensive position.

The elevator behind Ashley opened up, instantly Ashley was struck by an icy draft. Everyone drew their attention to the elevator doors as the slid open, all were standing in silence. Yami Marik appeared in flesh and blood from behind the doors.

'Marik? His darker half must have repossessed him.' Yugi pondered in the Millennium Puzzle. Yami Marik looked to the crowd in return and cut himself a smile on his face.

"Demon, where's Miranda!?" Miran demanded.

"Does it look like I'm in control of her now?" Yami Marik answered with his question and stepped out of the elevator, "She should be fully recovered by now and on her way up." Yami Marik stated and the doors closed behind him.

"Marik..." Yami growled behind clenched teeth.

"Relax, Pharaoh, I'm only here for the entertainment. And I guess I've missed most of it, such a pity. Kaiba's down to his last 300 while Ashley has her score of 4600." Yami Marik commented, "Honestly Kaiba, I thought you used to be the champion, but losing to this mortal is tarnishing your name." He paced to one of the sidelines, away from Yami and the others.

"You be quiet! I'll handle myself and I will win this Duel!" Kaiba barked.

"If you say so, but I think this Duel could get a little bit more interesting..." Yami Marik replied and held out the Millennium Rod. The skies clouded over into a dense, violet fog, "Welcome to the Shadow Realm, mortals; may those who lose be marooned in the abyss of total darkness." He declared.

"What? What's going on?" Serenity panicked.

"Marik has summoned the dark powers of the Shadow Realm." Yami replied.

"And it is pointless to resist." Yami Marik commented, "As this is a Shadow Game, the loser must forfeit their mind."

"This isn't right!" Ashley argued.

"What's wrong, my dear, the stakes to high for you?" Yami Marik taunted her.

"That's enough!" Yami said bravely from the other side.

Yami Marik returned the glare, "Hmp, I don't need you ruining my fun." He said and continued watching the Duel above him.

"My turn." Kaiba declared, and I'll place one card faced down and a Maha Vailo in attack mode with Axe of Despair." His next monster was a female, dressed in a blue gown and the chest and head covered with an assortment of gold and beads with two blue wings on the back and wielding a lethal axe in her right hand.

"That'll increase your monster's attack to 2550!" Ashley cried in some panic.

"Actually, it's going to be more than that." Kaiba replied, "See, Maha Vailo's special ability includes gaining more power for every equip card I play to it. So, instead of 2550, my monster's attack has increased to 3050, more than enough to destroy Bolban."

"This is gonna hurt!" Duke commented.

"Maha Vailo, attack with the Axe of Despair, now!" Kaiba commanded. Maha's axe glowed with a dark energy and sliced through Bolban in a clean sweep.

"Alright Kaiba, I'll discard another piece to bring Bolban back in defense mode." Ashley announced as she slid another card into her Graveyard and Bolban reappeared on the field.

"Ashley, stop the Duel now!" Yami called.

"If she stops the Duel, she'll forfeit the match and her mind. And if this game doesn't end quickly, both of them will be lost in the Shadow Realm for eternity." Yami Marik informed.

__________

I escalated to the roof alone on the elevator, getting the feeling the Shadow Realm has reached the threshold of the real world. The elevator nearly reached the roof when it jolted and began descending. 'What the?' I thought as the elevator dropped to the first floor. Still, the feeling of darkness kept a tight grip on my heart, as if trying to stop its beating.

The doors in front of me opened and Mokuba stood behind them, "Miranda, you're finally up? I thought you were put out for the night." He commented and stepped in.

"The Dueling upstairs kept me awake." I fibbed. The doors closed and we began our ride to the top. We stayed silent after our greeting until the elevator stopped on the roof.

A smog of dark clouds entered into the elevator just as they began to slide open. Already I felt the tingling effect of the Shadow Realm, every ounce of its magic took full into my being.

"What's going on?" Mokuba asked and walked out first into the thick air. I followed in step behind him.

The groups on the sidelines took notice to the elevator, even Yami Marik.

"Well, you've decided to show up. And just in time as well." He side-commented; I grimace in his response.

"It's still my turn." Ashley ignored most of the outside events, "And I'll place one card faced down and end my turn." She declared.

"Fine then." Kaiba sighed, "First I'll play this magic card, Stop Defense. This will force your Bolban to attack mode." He captioned as Bolban drew into attack.

'Crud!' Ashley thought.

"Now I'll activate United We Stand to Maha Vailo and summon Wall of Illusion. By this combo, Maha will gain another 500 attack points for its power boost and adds on another 1600. United We Stand will increase a monster's attack by 800 times how ever many monsters I control." Kaiba explained.

"So that means Maha Vailo's attack is now..." Ashley counted to herself, "5150?!"

'With Bolban in attack mode, Ashley will soon feel how powerful the Shadow Realm can be.' Yami Marik thought in satisfaction.

"Maha Vailo, attack Bolban again!" Kaiba commanded. This monster lunged for Bolban once more with nearly twice the attack power it had one turn ago. It struck down hard on Bolban and Ashley at the same time.

"YE-AH!" Ashley screamed in pain and dropped to her knees, clutching desperately at her left shoulder with her right hand. Her Life Points dropped dramatically to 1950. 'What in the world?! I've never felt this type of pain before, it's like a sword just sliced through me...and I'm still alive.'

'I can hear your thoughts, Bowler. You're confused, yet you've known that your cousin was with me all along.' Yami Marik thought, 'Not to worry, you will soon understand the real pain and despair of the Shadow Realm if you lose this game.'

"Wall of Illusion, attack her Life Points directly!" Kaiba called and a blast of dark energy shot through Ashley, dropping her Life Points to a mere 950. Ashley felt the pain again, striking her heart but still barely conscious.

"Ashley..." I murmurred under my breath.

"Had enough, Bowler?" Kaiba asked with a shade of taunt in it, "It's your decision to forfeit this Duel."

"I will not lose... I will not give up..." Ashley slowly recovered to her feet. She stood wearily in front of Kaiba with both arms hanging like deadweights and most of her hair messed up and in front of her scratched-up face, "Even with that high powered monster on the field...I'll find a way to beat it." She wheezed out.

'That's it, both of you play your hardest. One of you is bound to fall; therefore, your dedication into this Duel will soon be meaningless.' Yami Marik continued hoping this Duel to end soon.

"It's...my turn." Ashley continued to breathe laboriously from the sudden decrease of Life Points, "I'll activate...Monster Reborn...to summon back...Excalibur Dragon." Ashley stated her move in breaths as her card revealed itself and showed the Dragon reappearing with a full 2400, "Next, I'll activate Bolban's revival ability...and play this magic card..." Ashley stressed herself to make her play. Bolban reappeared on the field along side Excalibur Dragon, "Bolban Petri-roar. Remember this card?" Ashley's voice was nearly inaudible.

"This card again?!" Kaiba questioned.

"This will turn all of your monsters to stone and knocking off 600 attack points." Ashley gasped in a raspy voice. Maha Vailo and Wall of Illusion began to turn to a shade of gray and their attack points lowered, "Next, I'm going to finish this Duel once and for all." She wheezed.

"Yugi, what's going on? What's with the fog?" Mokuba questioned Yami.

"Ashley and Kaiba are in what's called a Shadow Game. In this Duel, there's more at stake than the advancement to the Finals." Yami replied.

'A Shadow Game?' I thought and gazed towards Ashley, "Ashley, just forfeit!"

"Not a chance!" Ashley managed to cry out, "I'm not quitting this Duel until Uncle Ed's death had been avenged." She gagged after her cry.

"Forget it, my dear." Yami Marik folded his arms and looked to me with his dark gaze, "Both of them are in this, and if one of them loses, their mind will be sent to the Shadow Realm. Just enjoy the Duel while you're still out of the Shadow Realm."

"Excalibur Dragon...attack the United We Stand equip magic card." Ashley wheezed out. Her green dragon breathed fire past Kaiba's monsters and torched one of his remaining magic cards, 'This is good, Kaiba has forgotten the Royal Oppression can work for both players. However, he doesn't have enough Life Points to trigger its effect and keep Bolban from resurrecting itself.' She thought and a tinged of pain jolted her left shoulder, her face cringed in answer. "Now Bolban...finish this Duel...attack the Wall of Illusion with Cannon Fire." Bolban readied itself and fired simultaneously. The stoned Wall of Illusion was shattered and Kaiba's Life Points dropped to 0.

"Seto!" Mokuba cried.

"Heh, this job was almost too easy." Yami Marik mumbled and the Shadow Realm dissipated.

"The winner of this Duel is Ashley Guinaldo." Roland declared. Again, no response came from the crowd below. The platform lowered itself back to ground level and the Shadow Realm withdrew.

Kaiba dropped to his knees in disbelief, "No. How could I lose to this...this riffraff?" He muttered.

"This Duel is over; the price needs to be paid." Yami Marik commented and made his way to the platform, "Well, isn't this delicious? The great Seto Kaiba lost to a rookie. But this is when I send your mind to the Shadow Realm."

"Get away from him, you creep!" Mokuba ordered.

"You want to go with him, too, little boy? I suggest you stand down before you suffer the same fate." Yami Marik threatened. He pulled out the Millennium Rod from back behind him, "Now then, it's time...to send your mind to the Shadow Realm!" He declared and flashed the Rod in front of Kaiba. In seconds of the last action, Kaiba fell to the ground unconscious.

"Big Brother!" Mokuba rushed up to Kaiba's side.

Ashley recovered gradually and saw Kaiba lying in front of Yami Marik. "What did you do, Marik?" She demanded her answer.

Yami Marik turned around towards her. "Well, it looks like you've got a taste of my magic as well. Though I must admit your endurance is worth admiring. You have my satisfaction and I hope greatly of a good match in the semifinals." He commented.

"You freak!" Ashley began to charge forward with her right fist clenched.

"Ashley, just let it go!" I cried just as Ashley was near an arm's length of Yami Marik. She stopped suddenly and dropped her fist. Yami Marik glance back at me beyond Kaiba.

"Still protecting them, I see." Yami Marik grinned, "This calls for a little intermission." He turned the Rod back behind him and stepped down form the platform. Everyone else stampeded to the arena and surrounded Kaiba's fallen body.

"Come on, Big Bro, snap out of it." Mokuba began to show signs to crying.

"This guy's a nut." Joey commented, "I mean I despise Kaiba as much as the next person, but not even him deserved this."

Yami Marik breezed past me with a smile of accomplishment, "I'll be waiting for you downstairs." He said under his breath and walked towards the elevator.

To be continued...

* * * * * * * * * * * *

New cards played

Revival of Dragon: Trap Card. Only activate this card during your opponent's Battle Phase when your opponent declares an attack. Select one Dragon-type monster from your Graveyard and Special Summon it to the field in face-up attack mode with half of its original ATK. If the selected monster is destroyed, this card is also destroyed, and vice-versa.

Bolban's Petri-Roar: Magic Card. You can only play this card when a "Bolban" is present on your side of the field. For one turn, all monsters are Rock-class and have their original attack strength decreased by 600.

Bolban: Rock/Earth. Monster/Effect, 6/2500/1200. When this monster attacks, it is sent to defense mode after the Battle Phase. When this monster is sent to the Graveyard, discard one monster card from your hand to Special Summon this creature in face-up attack or defense position.