Despite the ringing in her ear, Luna noticed the high pitched laughter.
"Luna! We have to go!" Marik yelled from beside her.
It wasn't like she hadn't heard him, but just then, a glare from Weevil's glasses had gotten her attention and made her look at the boy, laughing maniacally at the murder of his supposed best friend.
"Luna, snap-"
"Inferno Fire Blast!" Luna spat the words out with hatred.
Her dragons complied and shot the infernal fire balls towards the Insect Queen at incredible speed. Explosions ensued as soon as they made contact, obscuring Weevil from her sight.
Surely, that's not enough to kill an annoying insect.
"Forget him, we've got to fly up!" Marik yelled. "The monsters keep coming!"
Luna made her dragon slash through two monsters but stayed a second longer to see the smoke from the explosion dissipate. Noticing that the Insect Queen was no longer there, Luna pressed her heels against her dragon but it immediately moved backwards with the impulse of its mighty wings, just in time to see a giant green monster fly down past her. It was a moth.
Great Moth.
"Stand still!" Weevil yelled before letting out another shrill laughter.
"What the hell are you doing, Weevil?" Luna asked despite knowing that whatever Weevil did, was probably because he was gaining something out of it. "Wasn't Rex your friend?"
"I have no friends!" Weevil yelled back as he slowly flew back up to face Luna. "That fool followed me around like a puppy and I let him. But things are different now! Don't you know it is survival of the fittest?"
And before Luna could ask any more questions, Weevil's Great Moth lunged towards her once again. Marik, on his Humanoid Worm Drake, suddenly appeared beside Weevil and slashed at the green haired boy, but the Great Moth raised its wings to protect him from the attack.
"You think you can hurt me with such a pathetically weak monster?" Weevil screeched in anger.
But that momentary distraction was what Luna needed. She pressed her heels against her dragon as she willed it to blast that ugly green moth to kingdom come. Responding to her will, her Slash Dragon reared its head back before shooting three quick balls of fire towards Weevil's moth.
As she watched however, she saw his hand flick up before the explosions went off. She wasn't sure what had happened, but by instinct, she made her dragon back off just in time to see a huge yellowish green claw rip through the smoke of the explosions, just inches from her face. The sheer power of the attack had made her face sting despite there not actually being any real contact.
"Still got your head?" Weevil laughed as the smoke dissipated. "You are a slippery one, aren't ya?"
Touching her face with her fingers, she made sure there was no real damage. She figured that Weevil had summoned three smaller monsters to take the hit before the fire balls got to him.
Weevil really wasn't hesitating to take lives. For a split second, she wondered if he could have been mind controlled, but Marik hadn't really done anything to make her doubt him. And though Weevil was not right out murderous in the anime, he always was pretty dodgy.
"Now, Mr. Ishtar, hand over your god card, and I may let you guys live." Weevil screeched before letting out another high pitched laughter.
The look Marik gave Luna when their eyes met, was that of a confusion that reflected her own quite well.
How does he know about the Marik and the god cards? Could he be the one behind-
No way! Weevil?
"Who sent you?" Luna asked, feeling a little silly for having worded it like Weevil was some kind of hitman. "Who are you working for?"
"What makes you think I work for anyone?" Weevil yelled, seemingly upset. "With the monsters coming to life, I finally have the power! I am no longer just the brains, but I can now make the world kneel!"
"Don't make me laugh, peasant!" Marik barked back. "You think you can rule the world by just bullying others?"
Luna couldn't help but wonder if that wasn't exactly what Marik had been trying to do. But hypocrite or not, he was good at distracting Weevil. She quickly made her Retro Dragon with Brave Neos attack from one side while she attacked with her Slash Dragon from the opposite direction.
She was just about to make contact when something white enveloped the Great Moth creating a thick crust through which her attacks simply landed softly.
"Luna, get out of there!" She heard Marik yell just as the white cocoon exploded as quickly as it had formed. Her Slash dragon was able to move her away from any immediate danger, but she could see that the moth which Weevil now rode was different and much bigger.
Perfectly Ultimate Great Moth.
That was Weevil's ultimate monster with a monumental 3500 attack. But that's when she realized it was fitted with an armor and a cannon on its back.
Insect Armor with Laser Cannon. It was an equip card for Insect-Types which gave them 700 attack points.
4200 attack?
She was about to yell at Marik to watch out, when the monstrous moth suddenly advanced at her at unbelievable speed. Her dragon flew back but right before contact, the moth changed its direction at lightning speed and slashed at Marik's Humanoid Worm Drake instead with such strength that it practically exploded the monster as its claws shredded through it.
Luna's heart dropped as she imagined Marik being cut to ribbons, but she noticed something purple falling and realized Marik must have jumped at the last minute. She could tell he had his arms spread apart and some sort of light was coming out of his hands, she tried to get to him while distracting Weevil with her Brave Neos and Retro Dragon, but the huge moth ripped through both of her monsters with ease, sending a jolt of pain through her body. She winced and looked up just in time to see the gigantic moth coming straight at her.
She managed to just barely dodge its attack, but was worried for Marik. But to her surprise, she glanced towards him and found that he had stopped falling and was now simply standing in midair.
What?
Weevil seemed to also have noticed and was looking towards Marik, from whose feet a sort of metallic shadow started growing to an immense size.
Marik started to laugh maniacally, reminding Luna that he was still, in fact, a scary villain. The metallic shadow suddenly shaped into a gigantic being, making Luna feel a chill down her spine.
She had momentarily imagined it was Obelisk the Tormentor, but realized it was Marik's Egyptian God Slime. The lights in each of Marik's hand must have been Metal Reflect Slime and Revival Jam. He had fused them to summon his strongest monster, second only to his Ra.
"Crafty." Weevil scoffed, seemingly more serious. "Is that your god card? I must admit, I am kind of disappointed."
She wondered why Marik hadn't summoned that from the start, but quickly realized that its attack and defense are determined by Metal Reflect Slime's defense, which in turn was determined by the attack of an opponent's monster. Three fourths of 4200, was 3150. An impressive monster for sure, but it wouldn't be able to hold its own against Weevil's moth.
4200 seemed overwhelmingly high now that the monsters were real. Not to mention its incredible speed.
As if confirming her thought, Weevil's moth suddenly appeared in front of her. Despair gripped her mind as she knew she had no chance to dodge any attack from this distance. But the moth only seemed to twitch for a bit.
It was only when Weevil yelled out in frustration that she realized Marik's god slime was holding the moth back from behind.
"Now, Luna!" Marik yelled.
And it wasn't like Luna didn't know what he meant. But she had seen her dragon's Inferno Fire Blast simply go through all the other monsters she had attacked before. And though Marik was a villain, it was undeniable that his company had grown on her. She didn't want to harm him in the process.
"Your hesitation will be the death of you!" Weevil shrieked just before his moth spun around, ripping through the arms of the god slime.
Luna was about to slash at the moth when it suddenly flew up.
"You are too slow to act, are you still thinking this is a game?" Weevil asked. "Will you only realize what is truly at stake here when I kill-"
Suddenly the moth moved sideways, but not quick enough to completely dodge a giant ball of dark energy.
Luna's attention had first gone towards where the attack had come from, but Weevil let out a high pitched scream that was painful to hear, drawing her attention back to him.
It took her a second but she realized that the boy's leg was missing.
"Hey there, just Luna." The Brooklyn accent let her know exactly from whom the attack had come from. "Got yourself a pest problem?"
Despite the terrible time to joke, she was happy to see him again. But when she looked upon her friend, riding his Black Skull Dragon, she saw his eyes going from her to beyond her. And as recognition dawned on his face, his expression completely changed to a much fiercer one as the symbol of an eye appeared in rainbow colors on his forehead.
"I should have dealt with you when you threw my Exodia cards into the sea, Weevil!" Joey exclaimed in a much deeper voice, without his usual Brooklyn accent, sending chills down Luna's spine.
Atem?
"Black Skull Dragon!" Joey's face contorted to that of hatred, that of loathing. "Molten Fireballs!"
But he-
Luna remembered then, that the only thing that kept the Pharaoh from committing murder on multiple occasions, was Yugi Muto. Now that Joey was the vessel and Yugi was gone, so was that purity and innocence.
Somewhere in the back of her mind, Luna knew that letting the Pharaoh commit murder would probably lead to some unforeseen consequences. And yet, she couldn't help but remember Weevil's unbearable laughter as his Insect Queen ripped Rex Raptor's body in two.
The thought kept her immobile as she watched Joey's Black Skull Dragon shot balls of dark energy. Whether time had slowed or whether her mind was working overtime to find a reason to intervene, her eyes were somehow able to follow the balls of dark energy as they neared their target. But a split second thought invaded her mind.
Can Atem's spirit be corrupted?
Whatever the answer to that question might have been, it was too late, there was no way for her to intercept Joey's attack now.
And yet, she still raised a hand by instinct as she felt she shouldn't simply stand by and watch. And as if reacting to her thoughts, the balls of dark energy exploded before they reached Weevil.
She wondered if somehow she had willed the attack to stop.
"I gotta say, I'm slightly disappointed." A cheery voice came through the smoke of the explosions. "Were you really going to let the Pharaoh murder someone, Luna?"
As the smoke dissipated, she saw none other than her cheery neighbor Jaden, piggy backing on his Flare Neos. Despite the situation they were in, Luna was genuinely happy to see Jaden once again.
"The Pharaoh, huh?" Marik's sudden raspy comment, atop his fully recovered Egyptian God Slime, alarmed Luna as his voice was starting to deform. "You have something that belongs to me, old man."
"Hey, stop that! We had a deal!" Luna yelled, thinking it wouldn't be a good idea to yell out Marik's name. After all, Joey was probably still under the impression that Marik had something to do with all of this. "We get to the top and stop whatever is doing all this first!"
Even from this distance, she could see large protruding veins on Marik's face, but the leader of the rare hunters smiled and closed his eyes. The swollen veins subsided and his face was back to normal in just a few seconds.
"I know." Marik answered, his voice back to normal, as he opened his eyes and looked at Luna. "Was just happy to finally meet him in person, I guess.
"Who's he?" Jaden asked looking slightly creeped out.
She was considering explaining that Marik was a victim like the rest of them when a high pitched scream broke the silence.
"Do not ignore me!" Weevil voice came from behind them as the giant moth suddenly burst forth towards them.
In an instant, Flare Neos lunged and punched through the giant moth's body, making it glow red and disintegrate. Before Weevil could fall, Flare Neos grabbed him by the back of the collar.
"Unhand me!" the one legged Weevil screeched as he wailed his short limbs in a true anime fashion.
"What do we-" Jaden started to ask but Marik's god slime enveloped its massive metallic fist around Weevil and clenched it effortlessly.
It all happened so quick, there was no noise nor scream. And yet, from the silence that followed, it was evident that everyone knew what had just happened.
Luna stared at Marik, speechless.
"Oh, don't look at me like that! You were just about to kill him before these guys showed up!" Marik retorted.
He was right about that, but Weevil was already rendered powerless by Neos.
"That wasn't your call to make, pal." Jaden said, suddenly sounding more serious than she had ever heard him, as Flare Neos backed away from the god slime. "Luna, who is this guy?"
"Would you have preferred that the Pharaoh took the life of that scum?" Marik asked, looking at Luna, but seemingly asking the question to both her and Jaden. "Knowing who he is?"
"It would seem everyone here knows who I am." Joey stated, still with that deeper voice, facing Marik. "But I have only just met Jaden earlier today and Luna from Joey. Who are you and how do you know who I am?"
"I am," Marik said, bowing exaggeratedly as he laughed, towering over everyone on his god slime. "but a humble servant."
"You are not helping!" Luna yelled at him.
"Do you trust him, Luna?" Jaden asked, slowly positioning himself between Luna and Marik.
"I do." Luna stated, glancing towards Marik, hoping he wouldn't make her regret this.
"See? Nothing to worry about, helmet boy." Marik stated before sticking his tongue out and winking.
"Well, something feels off about you." Jaden stated before glancing towards Luna. "But if Luna is okay with you, then I guess I'm good too."
"Then I guess it's okay for you to come out, Mokuba." Joey stated, his voice also seemingly coming back to normal along with his Brooklyn accent.
Suddenly, one of the clouds nearby started to move.
"Hey, Luna!" Mokuba's head popped up from the cloud, which Luna realized was the Rabidragon that had been curled up. "I told these guys that I was strong enough to fight, but Joey said you would kill him if anything happened to me."
"Thank the heavens that you are okay, Mokuba!" Luna steered her dragon to be near Mokuba. "Seto and I were worried. He is coming soon, though."
"Enough chit chat, what's the plan?" Joey asked, making a fist with one hand. "We can't wait for Snooty McSnoot out here all day."
"Luna and I were making our way to the top." Marik explained, suddenly dropping his scornful tone. "There are duelists making their way up from the bottom. We were going to make our way down from the top until we found the source of the monsters."
"We were also making our way to the top!" Mokuba commented. "But we just assumed the source of the monsters would be at the top because of all the dragons and flying monsters coming down from there."
"Speaking of monsters, isn't it a little quiet here?" Jaden asked suddenly looking around.
Luna looked down and then up. It was clear of monsters. Things were almost, serene? She noticed that the skies were darkening towards the top of the building, which she still couldn't see clearly.
"Looks like something is happening up there." Marik stated as if thinking the same thing as her.
"Then let's go." Joey stated as he pointed up.
"Race you up there, Mokuba!" Jaden yelled as Flare Neos spread its beetle wings and flew up.
"You're on!" Mokuba yelled back as his dragon beat its mighty wings and flew after Jaden.
Luna was about to call out after them to not steer too far off alone.
"They'll be okay. I now know why you told me to look for Jaden. He is one of the strongest duelists I have ever seen. Though probably not better than me." Joey said beside her, offering her a soft smile. "Mokuba has also proven himself quite the little duelist."
"We should probably still stay near them." Luna insisted.
"I agree." Marik stated from beside them before showing her that wicked smile of his. "I can't have you and Joey dying or getting lost before you keep your promise, Ms. Luna."
Joey looked from Marik to Luna then back to Marik.
"You are Marik." Joey observed out loud. "The real one."