Yu-Gi-Oh!, October, part 26
Title: October
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Pairings: implied Yami no Marik & Yami no Bakura, Yami no Marik & Ryou, Yami no Yuugi & Yami no Bakura, established Jounouchi & Mai, Yuugi & Anzu, forthcoming Yami no Marik & Yami no Bakura & Yami no Yuugi
Warnings: foul language, violence, shounen ai
Genre: AU, sci-fi
Summary: They’re not from this world, and have lived through time, space and universes to fulfill their goals- the ones called Shadow Born, Thief King, and Pharaoh. With their own reasons and motives, what happens to the ones they inevitable drag into their lives?
Author’s notes: Everybody is around 18-20 of age, except Yami no Marik, Yami no Bakura and Yami no Yuugi. Gratuitous use of artistic license and a whole lot of made up crap. Feedback greatly appreciated.
Key: --------- = scene change
“Those are not answers!” Kaiba looked sternly at Ishizu and Rishid, their faces schooled into a perfect, neutral expression. He was aggravated; the Ishtars barely showed any emotion, leaving him with very little options to gain information. “What do you mean, ‘gambled away the world’? You’re talking about a game?”
Ishizu turned her head towards his desk, with Kaiba’s Duel Monsters deck on top. Somehow, the CEO felt like he was caught in the act, but he didn’t comment.
“You are already preparing for the upcoming fight,” she said. “Which one did you see, Kaiba?”
“Which one what?” he asked, even though he knew what she was referring to. She turned her head towards him again, eyes narrowed. “The Sun of God Dragon,” he admitted.
A moment of silence. “That is strange,” Ishizu finally said.
“Why?”
“Osiris is his signature God,” the woman said, pensively. “A very fierce and dedicated divine dragon, a saint beast, though I do not know why sa-Atem deserves the loyalty of such a wonderful creature.”
“I get it that the Pharaoh isn’t your friend. I put a price on his head out of personal interest.” Kaiba could be wrong, but he thought she was smiling under her veil - not in amusement, but in disdain.
“You will never get your hands on him,” she said. “sa-Atem, or Atemu as he is known now, is extremely powerful. He commands the Gods and mystical Ancient Egyptian powers. You will lose everything to him if you do not prepare well, Set.”
“My name is Seto Kaiba,” he reacted, irritably. “Don’t think anything you say will change my mind. Threatening me won’t help you, Ishizu.”
“Do you truly believe I am threatening you?” She shook her head. “Despite what you think, I am not lying or trying to manipulate you. I tell the truth as it is. You may not like it, but it still is the truth. The past is gaining on you, and you will lose everything you hold dear if you do not acknowledge what is going to happen.”
Another moment of silence. “Then teach me how to prepare well,” Kaiba said. “I’ll reward you handsomely.”
“My brother will be my reward,” Ishizu said. “I want to hold Malik and be a family again. I do not care for the Pharaoh, even if I owe him my allegiance, as head of our clan. Many scriptures and stories have been lost throughout the ages. What we know, must be enough to bring this all to an end.”
“Fine, your brother,” Kaiba said, impatiently. “What about the game? How can I assure my victory?”
“You have one great advantage,” Rishid spoke. His deep voice was an enormous contrast to Ishizu’s soft, melodious one. “sa-Atem will approach you friendly as soon as he sees you, as he will think you are the incarnation of his High Priest, Set.”
“The Priest on the tablet.” Kaiba’s thoughts went a mile a minute. Ryou Bakura had been right after all and he, Kaiba, had been wrong to regard the aspiring Earth Studies student as collateral damage. He had to get him back, and soon!
“Exactly.” Ishizu unfolded her hands. “We do not know the exact details, as the Ceremonial Tablet is not complete. From the hieroglyphs we deciphered, we gathered it is a honorable mention of a friendly duel, not a war. Unfortunately, the outcome of the duel is unknown… the hieroglyphs speak with great respect of both Priest and Pharaoh, and that is why it is so strange that sa-Atem’s name has been removed. To have one’s name removed, especially as a Pharaoh, was a terrible, drastic punishment.”
“You mentioned he gambled away his life,” Kaiba reminded her. “And the entire world?”
Ishizu ignored his question. “sa-Atem has done something that warranted the removal of his name, preventing him from entering the Afterlife.”
“Bullshit,” Kaiba said crudely. “That’s just ancient superstition!”
Without another word, Ishizu lifted up her arm and pointed at the vidscreen with the frozen image of Atemu, staring directly into the camera. Kaiba pursed his lips.
“The dead should not linger among the living,” she said. “And that is exactly what sa-Atem does. He might be looking for redemption, salvation, or total destruction. I do not know his motives.”
Kaiba laced his fingers together. He had seen the God of Sun Dragon in all its blazing glory, protecting the October and launching an attack forceful enough to blow up the gates and the entire dock of Yllsen Volta V, resulting in the planet’s demise. A God. His heart beat faster and his eyes darted to his deck on the desk. If he could get his hands on this Pharaoh, he could get his hands on the God Cards. Osiris, Obelisk, Ra… they had to be in the Pharaoh’s possession.
“Fine. Let’s assume we have a dead guy roaming around in this time and era and commanding the Gods, and we don’t know what he wants. Where do I fit in as his ‘friend’ and Priest, and what about the others?”
Rishid put his large hands on Ishizu’s shoulders, as if he wanted to take her into a protective embrace. She closed her eyes, waiting an agonizing long minute before she answered.
“Our clan was tasked with guarding the tombs of the Pharaohs,” she said. “We were the Tomb Keepers. We served without questioning our task, we worked hard and served the Pharaoh and his Court. But where are guardians, there are thieves. A certain man robbed the royal tombs without ever getting caught. He claimed himself to be the King of Thieves. His most striking feature was his bone-white hair.”
“Bakura,” Kaiba said.
Ishizu nodded. “The Pharaoh and the King of Thieves are connected, but once again, I do not know the exact details. Perhaps they do not even know it themselves. Ancient Egyptians strongly believed in kaa and baa, in reincarnation of the soul. I personally believe that the Pharaoh and the King of Thieves, for whatever reason, got split up in a dark half and a light half. Call it an intervention of the Gods, destiny, fate or bad luck. The dark halves continue to exist while the light half reincarnates again and again, until they are strong enough to support the dark half and become one again.”
“You’ve lost me.” Kaiba grumpily shifted in his seat. “This is mumbo-jumbo, ridiculous.”
“I am not asking you to believe me. You asked for answers and I am giving them to you.”
“So you’re telling me that I’m supposed to fight a dead guy who’s a dark half... whatever that means?”
“Why else do you think he is so close to Yuugi Mutou? sa-Atem needs him to survive, Yuugi is the reason that he is alive. He will continue to use Yuugi until he is extinguished.”
“That is his only weak spot,” Rishid commented. “The Other one, his light half. For the rest, sa-Atem is nigh invulnerable.”
“Bakura?”
“The same. As long as they are in the vicinity of their light halves, they will continue to exist until they have taken what they wanted. They are embodiments of their own hatred, anger, arrogance and fears.”
“Fears?”
“Of dying, of course.” Ishizu exchanged a glance with Rishid and he tightened his grip on her, but she didn’t budge. “If anything, sa-Atem clings to life, using his light half to extend his own life, and he does not care what happens to said light half. He will manipulate his Other to believe in him, to trust him, to love him.”
“And you know this because…”
“Because of Marik.” A violent shiver went through her. “He was born from the shadows, of ultimate hatred and anger, due to what the Pharaoh did to our clan: he cursed us, causing us to flee and disperse. Marik knows of this… life cycle of the Pharaoh, because he does the same, as does Bakura.”
“Clinging onto life and use his light half,” Kaiba said, stupefied.
“It is a parasitic symbiosis,” Rishid spoke up. “It is a bond we cannot comprehend, a connection that transcends human comprehension. They are keeping each other alive while killing each other. They attract each other and repel each other. It goes back to the time of the ancient pyramids and it is extremely toxic in nature. It will cost innocent lives again and again, until we find a way to stop the cycle before it is too late.”
“Before another world will be destroyed,” Ishizu added.
------------------------------------
Malik was bored. The computer systems were all in test mode and it was his job to keep an eye on it, to see if every program was working according to its specifications. The damage assessment report had been daunting, but Marik steadily fixed one thing after another, even the damage they had sustained at Billun. It was actually too much work for one man only, but Marik refused to have any outsider touch his ship and help out with the repairs. Malik couldn’t care less. He enjoyed some time to himself and he had visited the black market, spending some genz on clothes just like Yuugi, a few personal items and a boatload of books. Besides bored, he was also annoyed. He had thought he had finally found people to talk to, people who were in the same situation like him, but Marik had been right: he should never have dreamt of having friends or family. Yuugi was joined at the hip with the Pharaoh and Ryou was constantly hanging around Marik, for whatever crazy reason. Malik felt alone, and everyone he knew or could talk to were occupied…which left him only one other person to interact with, someone he disliked just because of who he was: Bakura.
“So, you went shopping?” The thief in question opened one of the boxes and pulled out a book. “Nice. Education or entertainment?”
“Entertainment,” Malik said. “You can read, can’t you?”
“My my, are we touchy again?” Bakura squinted at the book cover though, as if he couldn’t make out the words. He flipped through the pages and all but tossed the book back inside the box. “You’re not the happiest person around here, are you?”
“You have a perfect eye for the obvious.” Malik reminded himself to stay calm, but he couldn’t help himself. It was so hard to keep his emotions under control from the continuous anger and irritation raging through him.
“All right, we’re not the best of friends,” Bakura said. “Which is also stating the obvious.” He raised his hands in defense. He approached Malik, closing the distance between them. “We don’t have to be friends. We only need to collaborate.”
“Says a thief no one can trust,” Malik shot back. “Why should I ever collaborate with you, after what you did?”
“Once a thief, always a thief,” Bakura said. “I admit, I really dislike being last in the game. It’s getting annoying. I’ve always had a natural disadvantage, so you can’t blame a guy like me for trying to get the upper hand.”
Malik mulled over his words. “You don’t have a god,” he said.
“Osiris belongs to the Pharaoh,” Bakura said, “Ra belongs to the Ishtar clan, Obelisk belongs to the High Priest.”
“But…”
“Everyone knows that all three Gods belong to the Pharaoh, that was why he was able to summon Ra during our escape at Yllsen Volta V,” Bakura said. “Just think, Malik, that the God you worship and protect isn’t even yours, but belongs to that asshole by default.”
“He hasn’t been an asshole to me,” Malik said.
“He hasn’t been a friend to you either,” Bakura pointed out. “He’s ignoring you, his loyal subject. Oh yes, he’ll call upon your allegiance when he needs you, and then he’ll usurp your devotion and strength, and tosses you aside. But in the meantime, has he ever paid attention to you?”
“No,” Malik said.
“Does he talk to you?”
“No.”
“Does he care for you?”
“He cares for Yuugi.”
“Of course he does. His Other is his lifeline, just like Ryou is to me and you are to Marik.”
“Marik doesn’t need me.” Malik clenched his fists.
Bakura sat down and crossed his arms in front of his chest. “He does, Malik. He needs your constant hatred and anger to live. That’s what we do: we bring darkness and chaos to your lives, to your light and innocence.”
Malik made a noncommittal sound. “You thought you were going to have friends in the other two, didn’t you?” Bakura was merciless. “But Yuugi is totally absorbed with the Pharaoh and my Other seems to like Marik. And guess what? You’re here, still alone, still in the dark, with all that anger and rage, and you have no idea how to channel it.”
“And you do?” Malik sneered.
“Exactly.” Bakura showed him a pleasant smile, not realizing how predatory it looked. “Fuck them all over, Malik. You’re stronger than you think. The others think themselves pretty much invulnerable, but they’re not invincible. It all has to do with the God Cards, and who’s able to summon them first.”
“The Pharaoh,” Malik immediately answered.
“Exactly,” Bakura repeated. “He’s ahead in the game, so he gets the first turn. Did you know that the Pharaoh doesn’t need to draw from his deck? He summons straight from his deck, calling forward the cards he needs.”
“So…” Malik was a bit overwhelmed by this information.
“He’ll call God on his first turn,” Bakura said. “Always. You’ll always lose, Malik. Even with Ra on your side.”
“That’s not fair,” Malik said, clenching his teeth.
“Not fair indeed.” Bakura lifted up his finger. “This is where our collaboration comes in. I’ll get back to you what I stole from you.”
“You should’ve done that in the first place!”
“Yeah yeah, water under the bridge. I had to hand it over in exchange for my protection. Do you really think I like to be in his debt? To know that the man I hate the most, is my protector?”
“Quit being such a martyr, Bakura.”
“I like your big mouth.” Bakura grinned. “We shouldn’t squabble, Malik. We’re much better for each other than we’d think. Now that our… other halves are too occupied with each other, we can take control of the situation, by working together.”
“So far, I’ve heard nothing but hollow words,” Malik said. “You owe it to us to bring back what you stole from us. You can’t call that a stipend in our ‘collaboration’.”
“I wasn’t finished,” Bakura said, but he tilted his head and put up his hand when Malik wanted to speak again. Not a second later, Ryou stuck his head around the door.
“Hey guys,” he said, holding up the holodisk. “I’m looking for Yuugi? I’ve got a holomessage for him.”
“For Yuugi?” Malik looked at Bakura and brusquely moved away from him. He grabbed the disk from Ryou’s hands. “I’ll take it to him.”
Ryou hadn’t expected that reaction, and with Malik’s sudden disappearance from the room, he was left alone with his… look-alike. He hadn’t really thought of how he should call Bakura other than ‘Bakura’, and it was still weird to use his own surname like that.
“Having fun out there?” Bakura asked.
“We’re making great progress with the repairs,” Ryou answered, not realizing he was using ‘we’. “The October is a fascinating ship. I’m not technical at all but its build, its mechanics and its architecture are just amazing.”
Bakura narrowed his eyes slightly. “Is that why you like being around him? Because of the ship?”
“No. I… I’m not sure, really.” Ryou tried to smile, albeit sheepishly. Why did he like to be around Marik, indeed? The other did nothing but sneer at him, rebuking and belittling him… but on the other hand, Marik hadn’t objected to Ryou being around him and always answered his questions. “He doesn’t like you at all, though.”
“He hates me,” Bakura stated simply.
“It must be terrible, knowing that someone hates you.”
“Listen, kid, you get used to it. I fail to see how ‘terrible’ it is. In Marik’s case, he hates everything and everyone. The anger is what he thrives on.”
Ryou didn’t know what to say. “What’s going to happen to us?”
“I don’t know,” Bakura shrugged. “It’s been so long since all six of us have been together, every Other and every Alternate in one place. Usually, something happens before we can all be together, so we disband, and search for our Others anew.”
“Something happens?” Ryou asked sharply.
“Not every Other is strong enough to support or to sustain his dark half,” Bakura said. “We’re the darkness and the chaos, remember? It takes quite some strength to… put a counterweight on us.”
“So you think we’re weak,” Ryou said, offended.
“One of you is,” Bakura said, undisturbed in the least. “There’s always a weakest link. I don’t have to tell you who, because you know it yourself.”
“It’s not his fault,” Ryou protested.
“If he’s not strong enough to withstand what’s being done to him, he’s nothing but the weakest link,” Bakura repeated. “Which means that we’ll soon part again and the whole cycle starts anew. Don’t look so upset, it’s not that bad. It’s hard to win anyway.”
“What do you mean by that?” Ryou asked. Bakura grinned.
“The Darkness is always strong and always in everyone’s heart,” he said and then started laughing. “Whatever you’ll do, you’ll never be able to conquer or abolish the darkness. And as long as darkness exist, we exist!”
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Kaiba stared at the Duel Monsters deck on his desk. He had retrieved it from its vault immediately after he had reached Altana again, and was safe in his headquarters. The three cards on the top were the Blue Eyes White Dragon, the only three existing in the known universe. They still paled in comparison to the God Cards. With the lightest of touches, Kaiba touched the vidscreen with Atemu’s picture and closed it. He knew his face now, the face of the man he was going to ‘fight’. Ishizu hadn’t shone much light on the matter at hand, but Kaiba was determined to find all the answers to the questions he still had. He touched the vidscreen again, calling up the information Otogi had provided him. The strategy master would soon rejoin Jounouchi’s team, but so far it had been quite handy to have him around.
Otogi had studied Ryou’s notes extensively, researching the God Cards, the Pharaoh and the Ishtars. He laced his fingers together again, a habit he wasn’t aware of. Kaiba sank into thoughts. He’d been too hasty to brand Ryou and Yuugi as collateral damage. If it weren’t for Otogi, he hadn’t known that this Yuugi Mutou was the owner of a Game Shop on Vertregg 12, a planet known for its illegal Duel Monsters tournaments. The Game Shop itself wasn’t involved in any of such activities; it was as clean as a whistle. Otogi had lifted the financial data and reported that the Game Shop made very little money, but managed to stay afloat due to the revenues of popular hologames rentals. Kaiba wasn’t convinced of Yuugi’s innocence. He was linked to the Pharaoh, Ishizu all but confirming that he was his ‘light half’ and important to him. Yuugi had left Vertregg 12 with the Pharaoh and the others without leaving a message; his fiancée, Anzu Mazaki, had filed a missing persons report. Otogi had given Kaiba a copy of the report; she had spoken ill of Atemu, even calling him a ruthless kidnapper. He doubted that the Pharaoh was one, but judging from the footage retrieved from Yllsen Volta V, Kaiba wasn’t so sure if Yuugi was following Atemu on his own volition. Who was this man, this Pharaoh? How could he command the Gods in a time where technology prevailed? How could he even be alive? A slow smile spread across his lips. The God Cards. Duel Monsters. The fight. Kaiba had taught himself to duel, along with Mokuba, and both had enjoyed the game in the privacy of this office. The King who gambled away the world. Atemu wouldn’t refuse a duel with him, and he could test his veritable power. The smile turned into a wide grin. He knew it. For such a great Pharaoh, he certainly was very obvious.
“I know what you’re going to do,” Kaiba said out loud and he pressed a button on his desk. Rebecca was still at work, despite the late hour.
“Yes?”
“Prepare a flight to Vertregg 12,” he said. “I’m leaving in two days.”
“Yes, right away.” Of course she never asked questions, she wasn’t his secretary for nothing.
Now he only had to find a way to bring the news to Mokuba. His younger brother wasn’t going to accompany him in a long, long time, and he wasn’t going to be happy about it. Kaiba was prepared to lie to him in order to keep him safe. Where he was going to, was no place for Mokuba. Vertregg 12, the most boring, bureaucratic planet in existence, was the hotbed of illegal Duel Monsters tournaments and it was going to see the Gods being summoned. The Pharaoh had located its new Kingdom and he, Kaiba, was a fool if he passed up on the opportunity to challenge the most powerful duelist in the galaxy.
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Previous chapters: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
This entry was originally posted at http://the-goldenpath.dreamwidth.org/68617.html. Please comment there using OpenID.
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Pairings: implied Yami no Marik & Yami no Bakura, Yami no Marik & Ryou, Yami no Yuugi & Yami no Bakura, established Jounouchi & Mai, Yuugi & Anzu, forthcoming Yami no Marik & Yami no Bakura & Yami no Yuugi
Warnings: foul language, violence, shounen ai
Genre: AU, sci-fi
Summary: They’re not from this world, and have lived through time, space and universes to fulfill their goals- the ones called Shadow Born, Thief King, and Pharaoh. With their own reasons and motives, what happens to the ones they inevitable drag into their lives?
Author’s notes: Everybody is around 18-20 of age, except Yami no Marik, Yami no Bakura and Yami no Yuugi. Gratuitous use of artistic license and a whole lot of made up crap. Feedback greatly appreciated.
Key: --------- = scene change
“Those are not answers!” Kaiba looked sternly at Ishizu and Rishid, their faces schooled into a perfect, neutral expression. He was aggravated; the Ishtars barely showed any emotion, leaving him with very little options to gain information. “What do you mean, ‘gambled away the world’? You’re talking about a game?”
Ishizu turned her head towards his desk, with Kaiba’s Duel Monsters deck on top. Somehow, the CEO felt like he was caught in the act, but he didn’t comment.
“You are already preparing for the upcoming fight,” she said. “Which one did you see, Kaiba?”
“Which one what?” he asked, even though he knew what she was referring to. She turned her head towards him again, eyes narrowed. “The Sun of God Dragon,” he admitted.
A moment of silence. “That is strange,” Ishizu finally said.
“Why?”
“Osiris is his signature God,” the woman said, pensively. “A very fierce and dedicated divine dragon, a saint beast, though I do not know why sa-Atem deserves the loyalty of such a wonderful creature.”
“I get it that the Pharaoh isn’t your friend. I put a price on his head out of personal interest.” Kaiba could be wrong, but he thought she was smiling under her veil - not in amusement, but in disdain.
“You will never get your hands on him,” she said. “sa-Atem, or Atemu as he is known now, is extremely powerful. He commands the Gods and mystical Ancient Egyptian powers. You will lose everything to him if you do not prepare well, Set.”
“My name is Seto Kaiba,” he reacted, irritably. “Don’t think anything you say will change my mind. Threatening me won’t help you, Ishizu.”
“Do you truly believe I am threatening you?” She shook her head. “Despite what you think, I am not lying or trying to manipulate you. I tell the truth as it is. You may not like it, but it still is the truth. The past is gaining on you, and you will lose everything you hold dear if you do not acknowledge what is going to happen.”
Another moment of silence. “Then teach me how to prepare well,” Kaiba said. “I’ll reward you handsomely.”
“My brother will be my reward,” Ishizu said. “I want to hold Malik and be a family again. I do not care for the Pharaoh, even if I owe him my allegiance, as head of our clan. Many scriptures and stories have been lost throughout the ages. What we know, must be enough to bring this all to an end.”
“Fine, your brother,” Kaiba said, impatiently. “What about the game? How can I assure my victory?”
“You have one great advantage,” Rishid spoke. His deep voice was an enormous contrast to Ishizu’s soft, melodious one. “sa-Atem will approach you friendly as soon as he sees you, as he will think you are the incarnation of his High Priest, Set.”
“The Priest on the tablet.” Kaiba’s thoughts went a mile a minute. Ryou Bakura had been right after all and he, Kaiba, had been wrong to regard the aspiring Earth Studies student as collateral damage. He had to get him back, and soon!
“Exactly.” Ishizu unfolded her hands. “We do not know the exact details, as the Ceremonial Tablet is not complete. From the hieroglyphs we deciphered, we gathered it is a honorable mention of a friendly duel, not a war. Unfortunately, the outcome of the duel is unknown… the hieroglyphs speak with great respect of both Priest and Pharaoh, and that is why it is so strange that sa-Atem’s name has been removed. To have one’s name removed, especially as a Pharaoh, was a terrible, drastic punishment.”
“You mentioned he gambled away his life,” Kaiba reminded her. “And the entire world?”
Ishizu ignored his question. “sa-Atem has done something that warranted the removal of his name, preventing him from entering the Afterlife.”
“Bullshit,” Kaiba said crudely. “That’s just ancient superstition!”
Without another word, Ishizu lifted up her arm and pointed at the vidscreen with the frozen image of Atemu, staring directly into the camera. Kaiba pursed his lips.
“The dead should not linger among the living,” she said. “And that is exactly what sa-Atem does. He might be looking for redemption, salvation, or total destruction. I do not know his motives.”
Kaiba laced his fingers together. He had seen the God of Sun Dragon in all its blazing glory, protecting the October and launching an attack forceful enough to blow up the gates and the entire dock of Yllsen Volta V, resulting in the planet’s demise. A God. His heart beat faster and his eyes darted to his deck on the desk. If he could get his hands on this Pharaoh, he could get his hands on the God Cards. Osiris, Obelisk, Ra… they had to be in the Pharaoh’s possession.
“Fine. Let’s assume we have a dead guy roaming around in this time and era and commanding the Gods, and we don’t know what he wants. Where do I fit in as his ‘friend’ and Priest, and what about the others?”
Rishid put his large hands on Ishizu’s shoulders, as if he wanted to take her into a protective embrace. She closed her eyes, waiting an agonizing long minute before she answered.
“Our clan was tasked with guarding the tombs of the Pharaohs,” she said. “We were the Tomb Keepers. We served without questioning our task, we worked hard and served the Pharaoh and his Court. But where are guardians, there are thieves. A certain man robbed the royal tombs without ever getting caught. He claimed himself to be the King of Thieves. His most striking feature was his bone-white hair.”
“Bakura,” Kaiba said.
Ishizu nodded. “The Pharaoh and the King of Thieves are connected, but once again, I do not know the exact details. Perhaps they do not even know it themselves. Ancient Egyptians strongly believed in kaa and baa, in reincarnation of the soul. I personally believe that the Pharaoh and the King of Thieves, for whatever reason, got split up in a dark half and a light half. Call it an intervention of the Gods, destiny, fate or bad luck. The dark halves continue to exist while the light half reincarnates again and again, until they are strong enough to support the dark half and become one again.”
“You’ve lost me.” Kaiba grumpily shifted in his seat. “This is mumbo-jumbo, ridiculous.”
“I am not asking you to believe me. You asked for answers and I am giving them to you.”
“So you’re telling me that I’m supposed to fight a dead guy who’s a dark half... whatever that means?”
“Why else do you think he is so close to Yuugi Mutou? sa-Atem needs him to survive, Yuugi is the reason that he is alive. He will continue to use Yuugi until he is extinguished.”
“That is his only weak spot,” Rishid commented. “The Other one, his light half. For the rest, sa-Atem is nigh invulnerable.”
“Bakura?”
“The same. As long as they are in the vicinity of their light halves, they will continue to exist until they have taken what they wanted. They are embodiments of their own hatred, anger, arrogance and fears.”
“Fears?”
“Of dying, of course.” Ishizu exchanged a glance with Rishid and he tightened his grip on her, but she didn’t budge. “If anything, sa-Atem clings to life, using his light half to extend his own life, and he does not care what happens to said light half. He will manipulate his Other to believe in him, to trust him, to love him.”
“And you know this because…”
“Because of Marik.” A violent shiver went through her. “He was born from the shadows, of ultimate hatred and anger, due to what the Pharaoh did to our clan: he cursed us, causing us to flee and disperse. Marik knows of this… life cycle of the Pharaoh, because he does the same, as does Bakura.”
“Clinging onto life and use his light half,” Kaiba said, stupefied.
“It is a parasitic symbiosis,” Rishid spoke up. “It is a bond we cannot comprehend, a connection that transcends human comprehension. They are keeping each other alive while killing each other. They attract each other and repel each other. It goes back to the time of the ancient pyramids and it is extremely toxic in nature. It will cost innocent lives again and again, until we find a way to stop the cycle before it is too late.”
“Before another world will be destroyed,” Ishizu added.
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Malik was bored. The computer systems were all in test mode and it was his job to keep an eye on it, to see if every program was working according to its specifications. The damage assessment report had been daunting, but Marik steadily fixed one thing after another, even the damage they had sustained at Billun. It was actually too much work for one man only, but Marik refused to have any outsider touch his ship and help out with the repairs. Malik couldn’t care less. He enjoyed some time to himself and he had visited the black market, spending some genz on clothes just like Yuugi, a few personal items and a boatload of books. Besides bored, he was also annoyed. He had thought he had finally found people to talk to, people who were in the same situation like him, but Marik had been right: he should never have dreamt of having friends or family. Yuugi was joined at the hip with the Pharaoh and Ryou was constantly hanging around Marik, for whatever crazy reason. Malik felt alone, and everyone he knew or could talk to were occupied…which left him only one other person to interact with, someone he disliked just because of who he was: Bakura.
“So, you went shopping?” The thief in question opened one of the boxes and pulled out a book. “Nice. Education or entertainment?”
“Entertainment,” Malik said. “You can read, can’t you?”
“My my, are we touchy again?” Bakura squinted at the book cover though, as if he couldn’t make out the words. He flipped through the pages and all but tossed the book back inside the box. “You’re not the happiest person around here, are you?”
“You have a perfect eye for the obvious.” Malik reminded himself to stay calm, but he couldn’t help himself. It was so hard to keep his emotions under control from the continuous anger and irritation raging through him.
“All right, we’re not the best of friends,” Bakura said. “Which is also stating the obvious.” He raised his hands in defense. He approached Malik, closing the distance between them. “We don’t have to be friends. We only need to collaborate.”
“Says a thief no one can trust,” Malik shot back. “Why should I ever collaborate with you, after what you did?”
“Once a thief, always a thief,” Bakura said. “I admit, I really dislike being last in the game. It’s getting annoying. I’ve always had a natural disadvantage, so you can’t blame a guy like me for trying to get the upper hand.”
Malik mulled over his words. “You don’t have a god,” he said.
“Osiris belongs to the Pharaoh,” Bakura said, “Ra belongs to the Ishtar clan, Obelisk belongs to the High Priest.”
“But…”
“Everyone knows that all three Gods belong to the Pharaoh, that was why he was able to summon Ra during our escape at Yllsen Volta V,” Bakura said. “Just think, Malik, that the God you worship and protect isn’t even yours, but belongs to that asshole by default.”
“He hasn’t been an asshole to me,” Malik said.
“He hasn’t been a friend to you either,” Bakura pointed out. “He’s ignoring you, his loyal subject. Oh yes, he’ll call upon your allegiance when he needs you, and then he’ll usurp your devotion and strength, and tosses you aside. But in the meantime, has he ever paid attention to you?”
“No,” Malik said.
“Does he talk to you?”
“No.”
“Does he care for you?”
“He cares for Yuugi.”
“Of course he does. His Other is his lifeline, just like Ryou is to me and you are to Marik.”
“Marik doesn’t need me.” Malik clenched his fists.
Bakura sat down and crossed his arms in front of his chest. “He does, Malik. He needs your constant hatred and anger to live. That’s what we do: we bring darkness and chaos to your lives, to your light and innocence.”
Malik made a noncommittal sound. “You thought you were going to have friends in the other two, didn’t you?” Bakura was merciless. “But Yuugi is totally absorbed with the Pharaoh and my Other seems to like Marik. And guess what? You’re here, still alone, still in the dark, with all that anger and rage, and you have no idea how to channel it.”
“And you do?” Malik sneered.
“Exactly.” Bakura showed him a pleasant smile, not realizing how predatory it looked. “Fuck them all over, Malik. You’re stronger than you think. The others think themselves pretty much invulnerable, but they’re not invincible. It all has to do with the God Cards, and who’s able to summon them first.”
“The Pharaoh,” Malik immediately answered.
“Exactly,” Bakura repeated. “He’s ahead in the game, so he gets the first turn. Did you know that the Pharaoh doesn’t need to draw from his deck? He summons straight from his deck, calling forward the cards he needs.”
“So…” Malik was a bit overwhelmed by this information.
“He’ll call God on his first turn,” Bakura said. “Always. You’ll always lose, Malik. Even with Ra on your side.”
“That’s not fair,” Malik said, clenching his teeth.
“Not fair indeed.” Bakura lifted up his finger. “This is where our collaboration comes in. I’ll get back to you what I stole from you.”
“You should’ve done that in the first place!”
“Yeah yeah, water under the bridge. I had to hand it over in exchange for my protection. Do you really think I like to be in his debt? To know that the man I hate the most, is my protector?”
“Quit being such a martyr, Bakura.”
“I like your big mouth.” Bakura grinned. “We shouldn’t squabble, Malik. We’re much better for each other than we’d think. Now that our… other halves are too occupied with each other, we can take control of the situation, by working together.”
“So far, I’ve heard nothing but hollow words,” Malik said. “You owe it to us to bring back what you stole from us. You can’t call that a stipend in our ‘collaboration’.”
“I wasn’t finished,” Bakura said, but he tilted his head and put up his hand when Malik wanted to speak again. Not a second later, Ryou stuck his head around the door.
“Hey guys,” he said, holding up the holodisk. “I’m looking for Yuugi? I’ve got a holomessage for him.”
“For Yuugi?” Malik looked at Bakura and brusquely moved away from him. He grabbed the disk from Ryou’s hands. “I’ll take it to him.”
Ryou hadn’t expected that reaction, and with Malik’s sudden disappearance from the room, he was left alone with his… look-alike. He hadn’t really thought of how he should call Bakura other than ‘Bakura’, and it was still weird to use his own surname like that.
“Having fun out there?” Bakura asked.
“We’re making great progress with the repairs,” Ryou answered, not realizing he was using ‘we’. “The October is a fascinating ship. I’m not technical at all but its build, its mechanics and its architecture are just amazing.”
Bakura narrowed his eyes slightly. “Is that why you like being around him? Because of the ship?”
“No. I… I’m not sure, really.” Ryou tried to smile, albeit sheepishly. Why did he like to be around Marik, indeed? The other did nothing but sneer at him, rebuking and belittling him… but on the other hand, Marik hadn’t objected to Ryou being around him and always answered his questions. “He doesn’t like you at all, though.”
“He hates me,” Bakura stated simply.
“It must be terrible, knowing that someone hates you.”
“Listen, kid, you get used to it. I fail to see how ‘terrible’ it is. In Marik’s case, he hates everything and everyone. The anger is what he thrives on.”
Ryou didn’t know what to say. “What’s going to happen to us?”
“I don’t know,” Bakura shrugged. “It’s been so long since all six of us have been together, every Other and every Alternate in one place. Usually, something happens before we can all be together, so we disband, and search for our Others anew.”
“Something happens?” Ryou asked sharply.
“Not every Other is strong enough to support or to sustain his dark half,” Bakura said. “We’re the darkness and the chaos, remember? It takes quite some strength to… put a counterweight on us.”
“So you think we’re weak,” Ryou said, offended.
“One of you is,” Bakura said, undisturbed in the least. “There’s always a weakest link. I don’t have to tell you who, because you know it yourself.”
“It’s not his fault,” Ryou protested.
“If he’s not strong enough to withstand what’s being done to him, he’s nothing but the weakest link,” Bakura repeated. “Which means that we’ll soon part again and the whole cycle starts anew. Don’t look so upset, it’s not that bad. It’s hard to win anyway.”
“What do you mean by that?” Ryou asked. Bakura grinned.
“The Darkness is always strong and always in everyone’s heart,” he said and then started laughing. “Whatever you’ll do, you’ll never be able to conquer or abolish the darkness. And as long as darkness exist, we exist!”
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Kaiba stared at the Duel Monsters deck on his desk. He had retrieved it from its vault immediately after he had reached Altana again, and was safe in his headquarters. The three cards on the top were the Blue Eyes White Dragon, the only three existing in the known universe. They still paled in comparison to the God Cards. With the lightest of touches, Kaiba touched the vidscreen with Atemu’s picture and closed it. He knew his face now, the face of the man he was going to ‘fight’. Ishizu hadn’t shone much light on the matter at hand, but Kaiba was determined to find all the answers to the questions he still had. He touched the vidscreen again, calling up the information Otogi had provided him. The strategy master would soon rejoin Jounouchi’s team, but so far it had been quite handy to have him around.
Otogi had studied Ryou’s notes extensively, researching the God Cards, the Pharaoh and the Ishtars. He laced his fingers together again, a habit he wasn’t aware of. Kaiba sank into thoughts. He’d been too hasty to brand Ryou and Yuugi as collateral damage. If it weren’t for Otogi, he hadn’t known that this Yuugi Mutou was the owner of a Game Shop on Vertregg 12, a planet known for its illegal Duel Monsters tournaments. The Game Shop itself wasn’t involved in any of such activities; it was as clean as a whistle. Otogi had lifted the financial data and reported that the Game Shop made very little money, but managed to stay afloat due to the revenues of popular hologames rentals. Kaiba wasn’t convinced of Yuugi’s innocence. He was linked to the Pharaoh, Ishizu all but confirming that he was his ‘light half’ and important to him. Yuugi had left Vertregg 12 with the Pharaoh and the others without leaving a message; his fiancée, Anzu Mazaki, had filed a missing persons report. Otogi had given Kaiba a copy of the report; she had spoken ill of Atemu, even calling him a ruthless kidnapper. He doubted that the Pharaoh was one, but judging from the footage retrieved from Yllsen Volta V, Kaiba wasn’t so sure if Yuugi was following Atemu on his own volition. Who was this man, this Pharaoh? How could he command the Gods in a time where technology prevailed? How could he even be alive? A slow smile spread across his lips. The God Cards. Duel Monsters. The fight. Kaiba had taught himself to duel, along with Mokuba, and both had enjoyed the game in the privacy of this office. The King who gambled away the world. Atemu wouldn’t refuse a duel with him, and he could test his veritable power. The smile turned into a wide grin. He knew it. For such a great Pharaoh, he certainly was very obvious.
“I know what you’re going to do,” Kaiba said out loud and he pressed a button on his desk. Rebecca was still at work, despite the late hour.
“Yes?”
“Prepare a flight to Vertregg 12,” he said. “I’m leaving in two days.”
“Yes, right away.” Of course she never asked questions, she wasn’t his secretary for nothing.
Now he only had to find a way to bring the news to Mokuba. His younger brother wasn’t going to accompany him in a long, long time, and he wasn’t going to be happy about it. Kaiba was prepared to lie to him in order to keep him safe. Where he was going to, was no place for Mokuba. Vertregg 12, the most boring, bureaucratic planet in existence, was the hotbed of illegal Duel Monsters tournaments and it was going to see the Gods being summoned. The Pharaoh had located its new Kingdom and he, Kaiba, was a fool if he passed up on the opportunity to challenge the most powerful duelist in the galaxy.
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