Chapter 17: On the Eve of Battle
The tenth day of the tournament had come to an end. Everyone had since gone to bed, though it was a restless night. Those who had made it into the finals found it hard to get to sleep because of the anticipation of the duels to come. Meanwhile, those who were not so lucky stayed up reflecting on why they lost. Such was the case with both Mika and Hiyori. That night they were lying in their beds wide-awake.
“Hey Hiyori,” Mika said suddenly breaking the silence, “do you think that Jaden Yuki was right about me being weak?”
“…Of course not.” Hiyori said as she turned on her side to face the wall. “Your record of victories proves that you’re a strong duelist. You should not let one lose make you think otherwise.”
“I don’t know… I keep thinking back to that duel.” Mika replied. “Minamoto was just about to give up, I could see it in her eyes. But then Tomori showed up and she suddenly got back her fighting spirit and beat me.”
“She just happened to draw the right card at the right time.” Hiyori told her, though Mika felt that she sounded a little unsure of what she was saying.
“I think it’s more than that.” Mika disagreed. “She may have had a lucky draw, but her friends being there seemed to give her a strength that I’ve never seen before. Or maybe I’ve just never noticed it… Maybe the both of us have been wrong about emotions making people weak.”
“…Don’t be ridiculous.” Hiyori denied. “You should get some sleep. We may not be in the finals, but Lady Tamao still may need our help.”
“…Yeah, okay.” Mika replied, and with that she turned to face the wall and closed her eyes.
* * *
In another room at the Strawberry Dorms, Jane and Tomoyo were also having a hard time getting to sleep. Though it was not because they were anxious about the finals. They had stayed up most of the night making sure their decks were ready. The two had only recently finished and gotten into bed. Both of them were confident that they were prepared.
“Just so you know Tomoyo, there is a chance we may have to face each other in the finals.” Jane suddenly pointed out. “Know that if that happens I will show you no mercy.”
“I’m aware of that, and I will do my best to defeat you too if that happens.” Tomoyo told her. “And… I want you to know that whatever dangers that may happen in this tournament I will protect you, even if it means my life.”
“Hmph, whatever.” Jane replied coldly as she turned on her side to face the wall. Tomoyo sighed in response to this and attempted to go to sleep.
* * *
Back at the student council room of Miator Tamao was still wide-awake. She had a lot of things on her mind that night and decided to ponder them while checking on The Great Leviathan. Tamao was pleased that her plans seemed to be going well, even though both Mika and Hiyori were both knocked out of the tournament. But there was one thing on the back of her mind that was nagging at her, and that was Jaden Yuki. He seemed to be the only person who could derail Tamao’s plans.
Tamao kept thinking about the last time that Jaden was on the island. She knew that it wasn’t Jaden’s fault that Nagisa had left her for Shizuma. That was just the way things were, but it seemed to Tamao that Jaden helped them along a bit. And when Tamao thought back on that year she remembered how Jaden seemed to be against her and Nagisa entering the Etoile Tournament. Then there was that story of how Jaden used a card awakened by Shizuma and Nagisa’s love to destroy a demon that was plaguing the island.
The Tamao had thought about that story the more she wondered if it was actually true. The past couple of days she had been asking around Miator and had found that several students had actually witnessed that so-called duel. Tamao had realized at that point that the story was true and that she didn’t want to believe it. Acknowledging that the story was true meant acknowledging that Shizuma and Nagisa’s love was very real, and that was something that Tamao didn’t want to accept. But Tamao could see that denying that fact was pointless, as she had realized long ago that she and Nagisa never had a chance.
However, none of that mattered anymore, not Shizuma and Nagisa, and not Jaden. Even though Jaden had the power of the three Legendary Knights and his own powers, nothing he had done so far had damaged her plans. The Great Leviathan was on its way to being fully resurrected. Once the tournament was over she would use the Leviathan to destroy the world of unfairness that existed and create a new and perfect world with the power of the Orichalcos. It was only a matter of time, and nothing could stop it.
* * *
At the same time, Jaden was still wide-awake in his room at the guesthouse. He kept tossing and turning trying to figure out why Tamao was trying to resurrect The Great Leviathan. He of course figured out that the Orichalcos was bringing out Tamao’s dark side, but there still had to be a reason. But no matter how hard he thought about it, Jaden could not figure out why a girl like Tamao would want to destroy the world. Was she mad at the world for some reason? Jaden felt he needed to know the answer.
“You should get some rest.” Yubel told him, as she appeared leaning against the nearby wall with her arms crossed. “After all, we have a big day tomorrow.”
“I just can’t figure out why Tamao is doing all of this.” Jaden said as he sat up.
“You don’t want to fight her, do you?” Yubel guessed.
“Tamao was one of the friends I made on this island when I was here last.” Jaden told her. “It bothered me the way she obsessed over Nagisa, but she was still a nice girl… Yubel, can you figure out why Tamao would want to destroy the world?”
“I have a few theories.” Yubel answered. “I think the main reason might be that she’s still heartbroken over losing Nagisa.”
“And for that she wants to destroy the world?” Jaden asked sounding surprised.
“Hey, people can do some destructive things when they’re rejected. Especially when they’re being corrupted by a dark force like the Orichalcos.” Yubel pointed out. “Look at what I did after I was corrupted by The Light of Destruction.”
“That’s true.” Jaden agreed. “But if you’re right, what can we do to help her?”
“Who knows?” Yubel shrugged. “All we can do is try to defeat her and hope for the best.”
“I guess you’re right.” Jaden relented. At that point, Pharaoh yawned at the foot of the bed, releasing the spirit of Lyman Banner.
“What’s with all the racket?” Banner asked with a yawn. “It’s hard for me to get a good night’s sleep with the two of you talking.”
“You know, you could get all the rest you want if crossed over to the other side.” Yubel commented sarcastically.
“As if I’d miss out on all the adventures you and Jaden would get yourselves into.” Banner retorted. “So what is it you two have been talking about?”
“We’ve been trying to figure out why Tamao has been trying to resurrect The Great Leviathan.” Jaden told him. “Yubel thinks it’s because she’s heartbroken over losing Nagisa.”
“That could be the reason.” Banner said as he put his hand to his chin in thought. “But then again it could be more complicated than that.”
“What do you mean?” Jaden asked.
“I’ve been thinking about this for awhile now, and it occurs to me that Tamao may have a greater plan in mind.” Banner theorized. “Look at the four girls who have been helping Tamao, the Four Witches. They could be helping Tamao because they want the same thing she does.”
“But then Tamao could be lying to them about what her real plan is.” Yubel pointed out.
“Maybe, but then maybe not.” Banner responded. “I’ve also been thinking about the reasons why Dartz, the original wielder of the Orichalcos, wanted to destroy the world. He wanted to create a new world pure of evil. What if Tamao is after a similar goal?”
“Well, we’re not going to figure this out tonight.” Yubel pointed out. “Let’s all just go back to bed and try and figure this out during the tournament.”
“You’re right.” Jaden agreed. “Goodnight guys.”
With that, Yubel vanished. Meanwhile, Banner turned back into a ball of gold light, which Pharaoh jumped up and ate in one bite before lying back down. Jaden then tried to get to sleep so that he would be ready to fight the next day.
