Yu-Gi-Oh!, Darkest Powers, chapter 19
Title: Darkest Powers
Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters
Pairings: Mahaado x Atemu, Yuugi x Atemu, Anzu x Otogi
Genre: supernatural elements, action/adventure, romance
Warnings: shounen ai, foul language, character death (will be warned for in the respective chapter)
Summary: (AU) When two CEOs end up dead in Domino City, detectives Jounouchi Katsuya and Honda Hiroto are put on the case. The investigation goes south when their best friend, Mutou Yuugi, is accused of the murders. Jounouchi goes into the city’s underbelly to clear his friend’s name, only to find out that the stage has been taken over by a master criminal known as The Pharaoh, and his mysterious bodyguard Mahaado…
Author’s note: Butchering of canon events to fit the story. Everyone is at least ten years older. Liberal use of the Japanese police procedure and legal system. Feedback is a great thing.
Key: ----- = scene change
“You do? How? What?” Mokuba froze mid-movement, his curiosity getting the better of him. Even Jounouchi halted, unable to ignore his best friend’s words.
“It was quite simple, actually,” Yuugi smiled and yawned again, this time his eyes sliding close. It took him visible effort to keep them open, and he had difficulties pronouncing his words.
“What did the Pharaoh do to you, Yuugi?” Jounouchi grabbed him at the shoulders and shook him. Yuugi’s head lolled from side to side, with still that satisfied, silly smile on his face.
“I know his name,” he repeated. “Take me to him, Jounouchi-kun. He must know.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” Jounouchi said sternly. “I don’t know what happened, but since you returned from the garden, you’re exhausted. You’re going to stay here, and that’s final!”
“No, Jounouchi-kun.” Yuugi sounded fatigued, but determined. “I need to see him. I need to tell him his name. Now.”
Jounouchi and Mokuba exchanged a glance. The younger Kaiba hopped from one foot to the other. “We need to do something, Jounouchi!”
“Fine. Get in the car, the both of you,” he said. “We’ll stop by my place first. I need to pick up a piece.” He wasn’t going to venture into KaibaCorp. HQ without a gun, dark powers, magic and Gods be damned. It was a daunting risk to take, but he simply had to; he wanted something to defend himself and the others with, come hell or high water. Neither Mokuba nor Yuugi objected and they left the mansion. It was hard to pull the door close behind him; Jounouchi had always felt welcomed here, and no matter how strange it sounded, it felt almost like the dwelling was sad to see them leave.
He was relieved to see that no one had meddled with the car. Jounouchi was ready to believe anything at this point, and Mahaado sabotaging the car so no one could follow him and his precious ass of a Pharaoh wasn’t that much of a farfetched thought. He started the car and drove off, grumbling nonsensical words. Goddamn Pharaoh and goddamn Mahaado, and goddamn Ishizu for good measure! How dare they sneak off like that! Do not underestimate the Great Pharaoh. He holds you in high regard, Jounouchi. He will protect you like you were one of his people. And by ‘protect’, he meant ‘leave you behind so I can take care of this shit on my own’. Jounouchi hated being babied! He was a goddamn detective, he didn’t need protection; he protected people, for crying out loud! He stepped on the gas. The streets were completely empty, and it was darker than usual for this time of the evening. Jounouchi was sure the others noticed it too, but he didn’t bring it up.
“Can’t you whisper it into my ear, Yuugi?” Mokuba asked for the umpteenth time.
Yuugi shook his head. “No, I promised not to tell anyone,” he said while trying his best to keep his eyes open. “Jounouchi-kun, please drive faster!”
“I’m already speeding,” Jounouchi grunted.
“Where is everyone?” Mokuba said. “There’s not a soul out on the streets!”
Not even the street lanterns were working. Jounouchi gritted his teeth. This is it. The battle between dark and light. Now he really, really wanted to have a gun in his hands.
The apartment building he lived in, was deserted. Jounouchi summoned Mokuba and Yuugi to stay in the car and keep the doors locked. He ventured inside the building and avoided the elevator; the electricity wasn’t working. It was simply abnormal to not see anyone around; Jounouchi would always run into a neighbor or a few kids playing tag. He ignored the eerie feeling settling in his body and hurried to his apartment. It was against the law, but Jounouchi didn’t know a cop who didn’t have an extra, back-up piece somewhere hidden in his house. He had bought a small safe especially for that purpose, and he also ignored his trembling fingers as he keyed in the code.
With a huge sigh of relief, Jounouchi took out his spare gun and a couple of clips. He smashed the safe close again and waited for a brief moment. No sound. Deadly silence. What the fuck was Bakura doing? Had he turned everyone into mind slaves? Maybe one day he’d be able to look back and understand it all, really understand it. A Pharaoh, a magician, weird Items, dark sides, light sides… for now, he couldn’t afford to linger and with his gun tucked in the waistband of his pants, Jounouchi raced back to the car.
“Did you get it?” Mokuba asked. Yuugi leaned comfortably against him, eyes half-lidded. “Can we go to KaibaCorp. now?”
“Yes, yes,” Jounouchi said as he settled into the driver’s seat. He started the car and drove off.
“Yuugi was just telling me how he found the Pharaoh’s name,” Mokuba said in an attempt to alleviate the tension, but his voice was strained as he couldn’t mask his increasing worries.
“It wasn’t that difficult,” Yuugi said, sounding like a zombie, his words slow and elongated. “My grandfather had written down sets of coordinates. I figured it was the location of the Pharaoh’s tomb, but when I Googled them on Mokuba-kun’s laptop, they didn’t point to Egypt at all. Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Teheran, Iran. Completely random, but I knew my grandfather wouldn’t mention these coordinates without a purpose. It was just a matter of putting the pieces together, in the right sequence-” His sentence was cut short as a massive earthquake rocked the ground. Asphalt erupted around the car, lifting up the vehicle and rolling it to the side. A lantern post fell upon the hood and Yuugi and Mokuba screamed, whereas Jounouchi frantically tugged at the wheel - to no avail of course, but it was better than doing nothing. Within seconds, it was over.
“Are you all right?” Jounouchi looked over his shoulder. Yuugi and Mokuba clung to each other like two deer caught in headlights. “No one injured?”
“N-no,” Mokuba said. “What happened?”
“Earthquake,” Jounouchi said. “We...”
“No,” Yuugi panted, “it wasn’t an earthquake. He summoned a God. We have to hurry, Jounouchi-kun!”
He didn’t question Yuugi’s words and he shifted the gear into reverse. The tires spun around and slowly the car drove backwards, the lantern post sliding off the hood. He had to drive carefully to avoid all the cracks and tears in the road. The darkness intensified and Jounouchi had nothing but the two headlights of the car to orientate himself with. His speed dropped down to an absolute minimum; it felt like slugging through an oily swamp, covered by a heavy fog.
“There it is!” Mokuba’s voice was shrill. KaibaCorp. showed up in front of them, like a beacon in the mist. The large KC logo was burning brightly; of course Bakura had the electricity running. Jounouchi could almost appreciate the irony of someone being called ‘Dark’ Bakura, bathing in light so exuberantly. He drove up to the building; to his dismay, both the entrance doors were wide open. Before he could park the car, Mokuba opened the door, jumped out and ran through the doors.
“Mokuba-kun! Wait!”
“We’ll follow him.” Jounouchi turned off the engine, exited the car and helped Yuugi to get out as well. “Can you walk?”
“Jounouchi-kun, he didn’t do anything to me.”
“What? What are you talking about?”
“My energy,” Yuugi said. “The Pharaoh didn’t take it from me. He asked if I wanted to give it to him willingly, and I did.”
“You did? But why…”
“He didn’t tell me that he was going to leave me at the mansion,” Yuugi said, showing a weary smile. “I’ll have to give him a stern lecture about that later.”
“Let’s just go,” Jounouchi said, not even trying to understand his friend’s actions. It was typically Yuugi to selflessly give and give, and not asking for anything in return. He dragged him along through the lobby, towards the elevators. The left one indicated it had gone down to the basement; Jounouchi decided to follow Mokuba’s example and pressed the button for the right elevator. Soon enough, it announced its arrival with a ‘ding’ and Jounouchi and Yuugi got in.
Yuugi leaned heavily against him while Jounouchi took out his gun, taking the safety pal off. Bullets wouldn’t help him much when Gods and magic were concerned, but still… he dumped his jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, ready to fight street-style in case it was necessary.
“Bakura will have lots of robots, siphoning off of Kaiba’s technology,” Jounouchi said. “He’ll use them to defend himself and to help him with whatever plans he has.”
“We’re going to save our friends,” Yuugi said. “Robots or no robots.”
“You must teach me your always-optimistic-outlook.” Jounouchi grunted as the elevator came to a halt. The doors slid open and both Yuugi and Jounouchi squinted at the influx of bright light. It wasn’t a natural light source, though. It came from a glow, surrounding a giant blue-colored… monster, smashing and destroying wave after wave of robots with its mighty fists. No doubt it was one of the Gods the Pharaoh was able to summon. Jounouchi quickly took stock of the situation. The battle wasn’t going in the favor of the light side. Ishizu was struggling against the bonds of a small robot, its mechanical arms pinning her in place. Her Tauk was missing.
Mahaado had his Magus of Fantasy Illusion flying around, fighting off more robots with powerful, magic blasts. The Pharaoh was protected by the tall, towering God, but his cape and the rest of his clothes were torn, and he wasn’t wearing his Puzzle. The lack of the familiar golden object resting against his chest made Jounouchi cringe. He spotted Marik and Dark Bakura on the other side, the basement too large and too wide to get a good, solid view. Marik was watching the ongoing battle while Bakura stood in front of a huge, stone slab. He was hovering over the slab, holding the Sennen Items and putting them into the carved-out slots for each corresponding Item.
“Yuugi…” Jounouchi said breathlessly.
“I see it,” Yuugi said, almost as breathless. “Bakura has all the Items.”
Bakura put the Rod in place, under Marik’s watchful eyes; he was obviously not happy to be separated from his beloved Item. Yuugi nudged Jounouchi. In the furthest corner sat Malik, next to Kaiba and Mokuba, all caught in mechanical arms; the robots restricted their every movement. Jounouchi pulled Yuugi back, to keep them out of sight; he assumed that Mokuba had run into the basement to search for his brother, which had made it extremely easy for Bakura to grab him. From the way Mokuba was leaning contently against Kaiba despite being bound, he didn’t care at all, as long as he was with his brother.
“We should…” Jounouchi’s suggestion was crudely interrupted as something hit him in the back with such force that he went flying through the air, and ended up sprawled in front of Marik. From the corners of his eyes he could see Yuugi, sliding painfully over the floor, cast aside like a rag doll. A low, menacing growl rolled over him and Jounouchi turned around to look at what hit him. Towering over him, a monster with a half-human body and a demonic head, mouth agape and showing off impressive fangs, its fingers encased in claw-like armor, had been the one to strike him. Jounouchi couldn’t believe that he hadn’t noticed this monster, even if it had approached him from behind; it was freakin’ huge! His hand went to his gun nonetheless. This had to be Bakura’s Kaa monster, Diabound - Mahaado had mentioned that it was filled with and grown from Bakura’s hatred, right?
“So glad you can join us, Jounouchi-daimyo!” Marik grabbed Jounouchi at the collar and put him to his feet, shaking him like a wet puppy. He was very strong and Jounouchi quickly gave up fighting; not that he wasn’t strong, but to conserve his energy.
“Just put him with the others,” Bakura said, absent-minded. He hadn’t put his Ring into its appropriate slot in the stone yet. Marik grinned and dragged Jounouchi with him. As soon as Kaiba saw him, he scowled.
“I should’ve known it was you,” he said. “Where’s your backup? Where’s the entire police force?”
“Well, excuse me for trying to save your ass,” Jounouchi said. Marik dumped him unceremoniously on the floor and immediately his arms were pressed against his back, immobilizing him, by those weird robots. Was this Kaiba Gozaburo’s old war material?
“Saving my ass? Mokuba told me your ‘friends’ are very powerful, and they haven’t been able to put a dent in this fight!” Kaiba spat.
“He’s a goddamn Pharaoh,” Jounouchi spat right back. “And he called out a goddamn God to save you from being killed. Now shut the fuck up, Kaiba!”
“God is not a match for Diabound,” Marik said as he pressed his foot against Jounouchi’s chest and applied pressure. “The Giant God Soldier of Obelisk is just a dumb force, swatting at flies. Soon, pretty Pharaoh can’t sustain him anymore and he’ll disappear.”
“He knows better than to fall for such a simple strategy,” Jounouchi said, but he wasn’t so sure about that. The Pharaoh and Mahaado were constantly battling the robotic forces, tiring the both of them out. Bakura was exhausting their energy before the real battle was even going to start. He tried to ignore the increasing pain on his chest, as Marik kept pushing. “How in the hell did you get his Puzzle anyway?”
“Diabound is a thief, just like pretty thief,” Marik answered. “You never saw him coming either. He has the power of invisibility, thanks to Zorc.”
“Zorc isn’t pretty?” Jounouchi asked sarcastically.
“Ugly as fuck,” Marik scrunched up his face. He pressed even harder. Jounouchi was afraid he was going to break his ribs. “Pretty thief takes care of everything. I get you to play with.”
“Get your foot off of me, asshole,” Jounouchi said, but with a loud cackle, Marik pressed harder and harder.
“Marik, please, stop,” Ishizu pleaded from her precarious position. “Remember what we talked about! How we took our vows again! You are a part of the Tomb Keeper clan! You are one of the sacred guardians!”
It was impossible to imagine Marik as a sacred guardian, but her words had the slightest bit of effect on him. He seemed to hesitate, then he grinned; he removed his foot from Jounouchi’s chest, who wheezed excessively.
“You’re not important,” he said. “Besides, I get to play with the Pharaoh’s light half, and when Bakura is done, I get the Pharaoh himself to play with.”
“I doubt that,” Jounouchi said, still wheezing. “Bakura is never going to give him to a second-rate flunky like you.”
Marik didn’t understand the word ‘flunky’ and tilted his head curiously. Right at that moment, Malik moved. Jounouchi had been convinced the other had been unconscious, and it took Malik great effort to prop himself up on his elbows, and moved to look up at his dark half. Jounouchi was shocked when he saw his face. Apart from all the dark bruises, there was more hatred in Malik’s eyes than he had ever seen on Bakura’s face. Marik was merely amused.
“He’s going to kill you,” Malik snarled. “And I’ll be looking forward to see you dead, you son of a bitch!”
Marik crouched down and Malik flinched visibly. He grabbed his chin, forcing Malik to look at him. “So deliciously cruel, shujinkaku-sama. So, so cruel. You’re the reason why I even exist!” He licked his lips. “Your generous hatred for the pretty Pharaoh brought me to life, and now you hope he kills me? Such a bad brother you are. Tsk, tsk!”
“Marik, are you done?” Bakura sounded annoyed. Jounouchi looked over at him and saw to his relief that he hadn’t harmed Yuugi. More so, he wasn’t even bound by those robot things. “Come over here.”
Marik showed Malik another diabolical grin and trotted over to Bakura. He put his Ring in the stone tablet and turned around to face the battleground. With a mighty roar, Obelisk disappeared. Jounouchi held his breath when he saw Mahaado rushing to keep the Pharaoh from falling over. Bakura was obviously pleased with himself, a wicked grin visible.
“Always send your cannon fodder first. Our poor Pharaoh’s getting tired already. Now it’s time to really put the nail in his coffin!”
“Bastard!” Jounouchi yelled at him. The arrogant prick! He knew very well that the Pharaoh had summoned his God to protect everyone, helplessly and defenselessly bound and shackled. Yuugi tried to get up and run away, but Bakura kicked him without much of an effort and he curled up into a ball, wincing in pain. Jounouchi growled and struggled against his bonds. He couldn’t reach his gun, he couldn’t move, there was nothing he could do! Frustrated, he scanned the area in the faint hope to find something he could use. His eyes fell upon a human-sized shape lying next to the stone tablet, covered with a black cloth. It wasn’t moving, and if it was truly a human body underneath the fabric… Human sacrifice. Fuck!
“Jounouchi? Do you know what’s going on?” Mokuba sounded scared and despite Kaiba putting on a brave face, like it was absolutely normal to sit here with his hands tied behind his back, Jounouchi could see past his exterior. Heck, he was scared out of his mind himself.
“Bakura is going to get himself a body,” he said. He didn’t know what the consequences were for Bakura Ryou, if he was still alive. The thief stood in front of the stone slab with the Sennen Items, and spread his arms dramatically. He started chanting. An ominous dark, purplish glow enveloped the huge artifact. The same glow covered the lifeless body next to the stone slab, and it was so creepy that Jounouchi wanted to scream like a little girl. He’d never been fond of anything supernatural, and this was just… too whacked out, too unreal, yet it was happening right in front of his eyes. He couldn’t stop watching, just like the others, gasping and shuddering.
The chant didn’t take too long. Bakura cackled. He stepped forward, literally stepping out of his body, and changed on the spot. He grew taller, his skin darkening, his bone-white hair roughly chopped and a large scar over his right cheek appeared. He was solid, like a real human being, flesh and bones. His original body, pale, skinny and unconscious, slumped to the ground. Marik caught him before he could hit the floor. The new Bakura shook his hands towards the ceiling and laughed out loud.
“So you must be Touzokou-oh,” Marik said calmly. “I thought you were just a figment of Bakura’s imagination.”
“Don’t be a fool,” Bakura said. His voice hadn’t changed in pitch, but the tone was a hundredfold times more menacing. “Take that body to the Pharaoh’s light half and leave him there. Watch them! They can’t interfere with my plans, not now.”
Marik carried the body to Yuugi and dumped him just as unceremoniously on the floor as he had done with Jounouchi. It had to be the original Bakura, Ryou, the delivery boy who liked to collect RPG figurines. Jounouchi couldn’t imagine what he had been through.
“Coward!”
Bakura discarded Malik, as he was addressing his darker half, not him.
“Look at you! A lapdog follow orders! You betray everything we stand for! Murderer! Why do you do everything this… this bastard tells you to do?”
“Enough, Malik,” Ishizu said. She sounded defeated. “Forgive him, my brother.”
“Shut up, the both of you!” Bakura’s annoyed grunt dissolved into an evil pleasant smile; the kind that gave you chills running down your spine. “The second one will appear,” he said and before Jounouchi could wonder what he was talking about, bright light washed all over the basement, blinding everyone. When Jounouchi opened his eyes again, he was stunned at the sight of the two-mouthed, red dragon-like God, opening its upper mouth to form an energetic blast.
“Yes, show me the power of God!” Bakura cried out.
Jounouchi didn’t understand. Was Bakura that eager to battle? His Diabound was idling in one of the corners, not actively participating. Why would Bakura take an incoming blast head-on? Kaiba leaned into him, struggling to make himself heard.
“Don’t allow the Pharaoh to attack!” he said. “That stone slab… it has been rigged with technology! Bakura had me adjust it, all of it - I don’t know what it does, but stop him! Do something!”
Jounouchi didn’t doubt Kaiba’s words. He worked himself up on his knees, and screamed at the top of his lungs.
“Don’t attack! Stop! Hold your attack! Stop!”
Bakura, taller than his former host, closed the distance between him and Jounouchi with just a few strides and backhanded him. It didn’t make much difference. Jounouchi voice got lost in the cacophony of sounds anyway and the God unleashed its attack, aimed straight at the stone slab. It crackled with energy, undamaged.
“Your screaming won’t help,” Bakura said, hissing. “Squirm and scream all you want! This world’s going to hell. It won’t be long before I obtain the Eighth Key, and then Zorc will be resurrected!”
“And then what?” Jounouchi ignored the tangy taste of blood in his mouth. He was dangling just above the floor, Bakura holding him up at his throat, all but crushing his windpipe. How come all these fucking Egyptians were so strong?
“Darkness of course, you fool.” Bakura wasn’t perturbed in the least. “Zorc will rule the world, and all will perish. Civilizations will crumble, people will die, and no more light. Darkness will reign forever.”
“It must be so nice to rule an empty world,” Jounouchi said, between gasps and pants. “And what will your position be, Bakura? A lackey? A flunky? Carrying out orders for your beloved Zorc? ‘Here’s your tea, master Zorc’, ‘Here’s your newspaper, master Zorc’?”
Bakura’s lips curled up in a snarl. “Orders? Lackey? Not at all, Jounouchi. You see, I don’t give a damn about any kind of civilization or population. I only want to see the Pharaoh dead. I’m going to kill him, very slowly. I’ll drive him mad with anger and grief, and I’ll send him over the edge so that even the deepest darkness can’t find him.”
“You’re sick!”
“Not as sick as he is,” the thief said. “You think he’s all golden and wonderful sunshine? Do you think he’s the righteous ruler of the world?”
“He can be an ass,” Jounouchi tried to shrug, “but he’s not a killer.”
This time Bakura’s cackle took on a hysterical tone. “He’s not a killer? Do you even know how these Items were made?”
Jounouchi shook his head. Mahaado had called it ‘complicated’. He was getting light-headed. The thief’s grip was powerful, and it took him more and more strength each time to draw breath.
“My entire family was killed, my entire town was slaughtered,” Bakura hissed, biting off every word. “Flesh, blood and bones were used to create the Items - all from my city, my family, those I cared for! This is the Pharaoh’s fault, and he’ll pay for it with his own life, a thousand times over! I’m going to tear out his soul and shred it over every plane of existence!”
Previous chapters: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |10 |11 |12 |13 |14 |15 |16 |17 |18 |
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Fandom: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters
Pairings: Mahaado x Atemu, Yuugi x Atemu, Anzu x Otogi
Genre: supernatural elements, action/adventure, romance
Warnings: shounen ai, foul language, character death (will be warned for in the respective chapter)
Summary: (AU) When two CEOs end up dead in Domino City, detectives Jounouchi Katsuya and Honda Hiroto are put on the case. The investigation goes south when their best friend, Mutou Yuugi, is accused of the murders. Jounouchi goes into the city’s underbelly to clear his friend’s name, only to find out that the stage has been taken over by a master criminal known as The Pharaoh, and his mysterious bodyguard Mahaado…
Author’s note: Butchering of canon events to fit the story. Everyone is at least ten years older. Liberal use of the Japanese police procedure and legal system. Feedback is a great thing.
Key: ----- = scene change
“You do? How? What?” Mokuba froze mid-movement, his curiosity getting the better of him. Even Jounouchi halted, unable to ignore his best friend’s words.
“It was quite simple, actually,” Yuugi smiled and yawned again, this time his eyes sliding close. It took him visible effort to keep them open, and he had difficulties pronouncing his words.
“What did the Pharaoh do to you, Yuugi?” Jounouchi grabbed him at the shoulders and shook him. Yuugi’s head lolled from side to side, with still that satisfied, silly smile on his face.
“I know his name,” he repeated. “Take me to him, Jounouchi-kun. He must know.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” Jounouchi said sternly. “I don’t know what happened, but since you returned from the garden, you’re exhausted. You’re going to stay here, and that’s final!”
“No, Jounouchi-kun.” Yuugi sounded fatigued, but determined. “I need to see him. I need to tell him his name. Now.”
Jounouchi and Mokuba exchanged a glance. The younger Kaiba hopped from one foot to the other. “We need to do something, Jounouchi!”
“Fine. Get in the car, the both of you,” he said. “We’ll stop by my place first. I need to pick up a piece.” He wasn’t going to venture into KaibaCorp. HQ without a gun, dark powers, magic and Gods be damned. It was a daunting risk to take, but he simply had to; he wanted something to defend himself and the others with, come hell or high water. Neither Mokuba nor Yuugi objected and they left the mansion. It was hard to pull the door close behind him; Jounouchi had always felt welcomed here, and no matter how strange it sounded, it felt almost like the dwelling was sad to see them leave.
He was relieved to see that no one had meddled with the car. Jounouchi was ready to believe anything at this point, and Mahaado sabotaging the car so no one could follow him and his precious ass of a Pharaoh wasn’t that much of a farfetched thought. He started the car and drove off, grumbling nonsensical words. Goddamn Pharaoh and goddamn Mahaado, and goddamn Ishizu for good measure! How dare they sneak off like that! Do not underestimate the Great Pharaoh. He holds you in high regard, Jounouchi. He will protect you like you were one of his people. And by ‘protect’, he meant ‘leave you behind so I can take care of this shit on my own’. Jounouchi hated being babied! He was a goddamn detective, he didn’t need protection; he protected people, for crying out loud! He stepped on the gas. The streets were completely empty, and it was darker than usual for this time of the evening. Jounouchi was sure the others noticed it too, but he didn’t bring it up.
“Can’t you whisper it into my ear, Yuugi?” Mokuba asked for the umpteenth time.
Yuugi shook his head. “No, I promised not to tell anyone,” he said while trying his best to keep his eyes open. “Jounouchi-kun, please drive faster!”
“I’m already speeding,” Jounouchi grunted.
“Where is everyone?” Mokuba said. “There’s not a soul out on the streets!”
Not even the street lanterns were working. Jounouchi gritted his teeth. This is it. The battle between dark and light. Now he really, really wanted to have a gun in his hands.
The apartment building he lived in, was deserted. Jounouchi summoned Mokuba and Yuugi to stay in the car and keep the doors locked. He ventured inside the building and avoided the elevator; the electricity wasn’t working. It was simply abnormal to not see anyone around; Jounouchi would always run into a neighbor or a few kids playing tag. He ignored the eerie feeling settling in his body and hurried to his apartment. It was against the law, but Jounouchi didn’t know a cop who didn’t have an extra, back-up piece somewhere hidden in his house. He had bought a small safe especially for that purpose, and he also ignored his trembling fingers as he keyed in the code.
With a huge sigh of relief, Jounouchi took out his spare gun and a couple of clips. He smashed the safe close again and waited for a brief moment. No sound. Deadly silence. What the fuck was Bakura doing? Had he turned everyone into mind slaves? Maybe one day he’d be able to look back and understand it all, really understand it. A Pharaoh, a magician, weird Items, dark sides, light sides… for now, he couldn’t afford to linger and with his gun tucked in the waistband of his pants, Jounouchi raced back to the car.
“Did you get it?” Mokuba asked. Yuugi leaned comfortably against him, eyes half-lidded. “Can we go to KaibaCorp. now?”
“Yes, yes,” Jounouchi said as he settled into the driver’s seat. He started the car and drove off.
“Yuugi was just telling me how he found the Pharaoh’s name,” Mokuba said in an attempt to alleviate the tension, but his voice was strained as he couldn’t mask his increasing worries.
“It wasn’t that difficult,” Yuugi said, sounding like a zombie, his words slow and elongated. “My grandfather had written down sets of coordinates. I figured it was the location of the Pharaoh’s tomb, but when I Googled them on Mokuba-kun’s laptop, they didn’t point to Egypt at all. Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Teheran, Iran. Completely random, but I knew my grandfather wouldn’t mention these coordinates without a purpose. It was just a matter of putting the pieces together, in the right sequence-” His sentence was cut short as a massive earthquake rocked the ground. Asphalt erupted around the car, lifting up the vehicle and rolling it to the side. A lantern post fell upon the hood and Yuugi and Mokuba screamed, whereas Jounouchi frantically tugged at the wheel - to no avail of course, but it was better than doing nothing. Within seconds, it was over.
“Are you all right?” Jounouchi looked over his shoulder. Yuugi and Mokuba clung to each other like two deer caught in headlights. “No one injured?”
“N-no,” Mokuba said. “What happened?”
“Earthquake,” Jounouchi said. “We...”
“No,” Yuugi panted, “it wasn’t an earthquake. He summoned a God. We have to hurry, Jounouchi-kun!”
He didn’t question Yuugi’s words and he shifted the gear into reverse. The tires spun around and slowly the car drove backwards, the lantern post sliding off the hood. He had to drive carefully to avoid all the cracks and tears in the road. The darkness intensified and Jounouchi had nothing but the two headlights of the car to orientate himself with. His speed dropped down to an absolute minimum; it felt like slugging through an oily swamp, covered by a heavy fog.
“There it is!” Mokuba’s voice was shrill. KaibaCorp. showed up in front of them, like a beacon in the mist. The large KC logo was burning brightly; of course Bakura had the electricity running. Jounouchi could almost appreciate the irony of someone being called ‘Dark’ Bakura, bathing in light so exuberantly. He drove up to the building; to his dismay, both the entrance doors were wide open. Before he could park the car, Mokuba opened the door, jumped out and ran through the doors.
“Mokuba-kun! Wait!”
“We’ll follow him.” Jounouchi turned off the engine, exited the car and helped Yuugi to get out as well. “Can you walk?”
“Jounouchi-kun, he didn’t do anything to me.”
“What? What are you talking about?”
“My energy,” Yuugi said. “The Pharaoh didn’t take it from me. He asked if I wanted to give it to him willingly, and I did.”
“You did? But why…”
“He didn’t tell me that he was going to leave me at the mansion,” Yuugi said, showing a weary smile. “I’ll have to give him a stern lecture about that later.”
“Let’s just go,” Jounouchi said, not even trying to understand his friend’s actions. It was typically Yuugi to selflessly give and give, and not asking for anything in return. He dragged him along through the lobby, towards the elevators. The left one indicated it had gone down to the basement; Jounouchi decided to follow Mokuba’s example and pressed the button for the right elevator. Soon enough, it announced its arrival with a ‘ding’ and Jounouchi and Yuugi got in.
Yuugi leaned heavily against him while Jounouchi took out his gun, taking the safety pal off. Bullets wouldn’t help him much when Gods and magic were concerned, but still… he dumped his jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, ready to fight street-style in case it was necessary.
“Bakura will have lots of robots, siphoning off of Kaiba’s technology,” Jounouchi said. “He’ll use them to defend himself and to help him with whatever plans he has.”
“We’re going to save our friends,” Yuugi said. “Robots or no robots.”
“You must teach me your always-optimistic-outlook.” Jounouchi grunted as the elevator came to a halt. The doors slid open and both Yuugi and Jounouchi squinted at the influx of bright light. It wasn’t a natural light source, though. It came from a glow, surrounding a giant blue-colored… monster, smashing and destroying wave after wave of robots with its mighty fists. No doubt it was one of the Gods the Pharaoh was able to summon. Jounouchi quickly took stock of the situation. The battle wasn’t going in the favor of the light side. Ishizu was struggling against the bonds of a small robot, its mechanical arms pinning her in place. Her Tauk was missing.
Mahaado had his Magus of Fantasy Illusion flying around, fighting off more robots with powerful, magic blasts. The Pharaoh was protected by the tall, towering God, but his cape and the rest of his clothes were torn, and he wasn’t wearing his Puzzle. The lack of the familiar golden object resting against his chest made Jounouchi cringe. He spotted Marik and Dark Bakura on the other side, the basement too large and too wide to get a good, solid view. Marik was watching the ongoing battle while Bakura stood in front of a huge, stone slab. He was hovering over the slab, holding the Sennen Items and putting them into the carved-out slots for each corresponding Item.
“Yuugi…” Jounouchi said breathlessly.
“I see it,” Yuugi said, almost as breathless. “Bakura has all the Items.”
Bakura put the Rod in place, under Marik’s watchful eyes; he was obviously not happy to be separated from his beloved Item. Yuugi nudged Jounouchi. In the furthest corner sat Malik, next to Kaiba and Mokuba, all caught in mechanical arms; the robots restricted their every movement. Jounouchi pulled Yuugi back, to keep them out of sight; he assumed that Mokuba had run into the basement to search for his brother, which had made it extremely easy for Bakura to grab him. From the way Mokuba was leaning contently against Kaiba despite being bound, he didn’t care at all, as long as he was with his brother.
“We should…” Jounouchi’s suggestion was crudely interrupted as something hit him in the back with such force that he went flying through the air, and ended up sprawled in front of Marik. From the corners of his eyes he could see Yuugi, sliding painfully over the floor, cast aside like a rag doll. A low, menacing growl rolled over him and Jounouchi turned around to look at what hit him. Towering over him, a monster with a half-human body and a demonic head, mouth agape and showing off impressive fangs, its fingers encased in claw-like armor, had been the one to strike him. Jounouchi couldn’t believe that he hadn’t noticed this monster, even if it had approached him from behind; it was freakin’ huge! His hand went to his gun nonetheless. This had to be Bakura’s Kaa monster, Diabound - Mahaado had mentioned that it was filled with and grown from Bakura’s hatred, right?
“So glad you can join us, Jounouchi-daimyo!” Marik grabbed Jounouchi at the collar and put him to his feet, shaking him like a wet puppy. He was very strong and Jounouchi quickly gave up fighting; not that he wasn’t strong, but to conserve his energy.
“Just put him with the others,” Bakura said, absent-minded. He hadn’t put his Ring into its appropriate slot in the stone yet. Marik grinned and dragged Jounouchi with him. As soon as Kaiba saw him, he scowled.
“I should’ve known it was you,” he said. “Where’s your backup? Where’s the entire police force?”
“Well, excuse me for trying to save your ass,” Jounouchi said. Marik dumped him unceremoniously on the floor and immediately his arms were pressed against his back, immobilizing him, by those weird robots. Was this Kaiba Gozaburo’s old war material?
“Saving my ass? Mokuba told me your ‘friends’ are very powerful, and they haven’t been able to put a dent in this fight!” Kaiba spat.
“He’s a goddamn Pharaoh,” Jounouchi spat right back. “And he called out a goddamn God to save you from being killed. Now shut the fuck up, Kaiba!”
“God is not a match for Diabound,” Marik said as he pressed his foot against Jounouchi’s chest and applied pressure. “The Giant God Soldier of Obelisk is just a dumb force, swatting at flies. Soon, pretty Pharaoh can’t sustain him anymore and he’ll disappear.”
“He knows better than to fall for such a simple strategy,” Jounouchi said, but he wasn’t so sure about that. The Pharaoh and Mahaado were constantly battling the robotic forces, tiring the both of them out. Bakura was exhausting their energy before the real battle was even going to start. He tried to ignore the increasing pain on his chest, as Marik kept pushing. “How in the hell did you get his Puzzle anyway?”
“Diabound is a thief, just like pretty thief,” Marik answered. “You never saw him coming either. He has the power of invisibility, thanks to Zorc.”
“Zorc isn’t pretty?” Jounouchi asked sarcastically.
“Ugly as fuck,” Marik scrunched up his face. He pressed even harder. Jounouchi was afraid he was going to break his ribs. “Pretty thief takes care of everything. I get you to play with.”
“Get your foot off of me, asshole,” Jounouchi said, but with a loud cackle, Marik pressed harder and harder.
“Marik, please, stop,” Ishizu pleaded from her precarious position. “Remember what we talked about! How we took our vows again! You are a part of the Tomb Keeper clan! You are one of the sacred guardians!”
It was impossible to imagine Marik as a sacred guardian, but her words had the slightest bit of effect on him. He seemed to hesitate, then he grinned; he removed his foot from Jounouchi’s chest, who wheezed excessively.
“You’re not important,” he said. “Besides, I get to play with the Pharaoh’s light half, and when Bakura is done, I get the Pharaoh himself to play with.”
“I doubt that,” Jounouchi said, still wheezing. “Bakura is never going to give him to a second-rate flunky like you.”
Marik didn’t understand the word ‘flunky’ and tilted his head curiously. Right at that moment, Malik moved. Jounouchi had been convinced the other had been unconscious, and it took Malik great effort to prop himself up on his elbows, and moved to look up at his dark half. Jounouchi was shocked when he saw his face. Apart from all the dark bruises, there was more hatred in Malik’s eyes than he had ever seen on Bakura’s face. Marik was merely amused.
“He’s going to kill you,” Malik snarled. “And I’ll be looking forward to see you dead, you son of a bitch!”
Marik crouched down and Malik flinched visibly. He grabbed his chin, forcing Malik to look at him. “So deliciously cruel, shujinkaku-sama. So, so cruel. You’re the reason why I even exist!” He licked his lips. “Your generous hatred for the pretty Pharaoh brought me to life, and now you hope he kills me? Such a bad brother you are. Tsk, tsk!”
“Marik, are you done?” Bakura sounded annoyed. Jounouchi looked over at him and saw to his relief that he hadn’t harmed Yuugi. More so, he wasn’t even bound by those robot things. “Come over here.”
Marik showed Malik another diabolical grin and trotted over to Bakura. He put his Ring in the stone tablet and turned around to face the battleground. With a mighty roar, Obelisk disappeared. Jounouchi held his breath when he saw Mahaado rushing to keep the Pharaoh from falling over. Bakura was obviously pleased with himself, a wicked grin visible.
“Always send your cannon fodder first. Our poor Pharaoh’s getting tired already. Now it’s time to really put the nail in his coffin!”
“Bastard!” Jounouchi yelled at him. The arrogant prick! He knew very well that the Pharaoh had summoned his God to protect everyone, helplessly and defenselessly bound and shackled. Yuugi tried to get up and run away, but Bakura kicked him without much of an effort and he curled up into a ball, wincing in pain. Jounouchi growled and struggled against his bonds. He couldn’t reach his gun, he couldn’t move, there was nothing he could do! Frustrated, he scanned the area in the faint hope to find something he could use. His eyes fell upon a human-sized shape lying next to the stone tablet, covered with a black cloth. It wasn’t moving, and if it was truly a human body underneath the fabric… Human sacrifice. Fuck!
“Jounouchi? Do you know what’s going on?” Mokuba sounded scared and despite Kaiba putting on a brave face, like it was absolutely normal to sit here with his hands tied behind his back, Jounouchi could see past his exterior. Heck, he was scared out of his mind himself.
“Bakura is going to get himself a body,” he said. He didn’t know what the consequences were for Bakura Ryou, if he was still alive. The thief stood in front of the stone slab with the Sennen Items, and spread his arms dramatically. He started chanting. An ominous dark, purplish glow enveloped the huge artifact. The same glow covered the lifeless body next to the stone slab, and it was so creepy that Jounouchi wanted to scream like a little girl. He’d never been fond of anything supernatural, and this was just… too whacked out, too unreal, yet it was happening right in front of his eyes. He couldn’t stop watching, just like the others, gasping and shuddering.
The chant didn’t take too long. Bakura cackled. He stepped forward, literally stepping out of his body, and changed on the spot. He grew taller, his skin darkening, his bone-white hair roughly chopped and a large scar over his right cheek appeared. He was solid, like a real human being, flesh and bones. His original body, pale, skinny and unconscious, slumped to the ground. Marik caught him before he could hit the floor. The new Bakura shook his hands towards the ceiling and laughed out loud.
“So you must be Touzokou-oh,” Marik said calmly. “I thought you were just a figment of Bakura’s imagination.”
“Don’t be a fool,” Bakura said. His voice hadn’t changed in pitch, but the tone was a hundredfold times more menacing. “Take that body to the Pharaoh’s light half and leave him there. Watch them! They can’t interfere with my plans, not now.”
Marik carried the body to Yuugi and dumped him just as unceremoniously on the floor as he had done with Jounouchi. It had to be the original Bakura, Ryou, the delivery boy who liked to collect RPG figurines. Jounouchi couldn’t imagine what he had been through.
“Coward!”
Bakura discarded Malik, as he was addressing his darker half, not him.
“Look at you! A lapdog follow orders! You betray everything we stand for! Murderer! Why do you do everything this… this bastard tells you to do?”
“Enough, Malik,” Ishizu said. She sounded defeated. “Forgive him, my brother.”
“Shut up, the both of you!” Bakura’s annoyed grunt dissolved into an evil pleasant smile; the kind that gave you chills running down your spine. “The second one will appear,” he said and before Jounouchi could wonder what he was talking about, bright light washed all over the basement, blinding everyone. When Jounouchi opened his eyes again, he was stunned at the sight of the two-mouthed, red dragon-like God, opening its upper mouth to form an energetic blast.
“Yes, show me the power of God!” Bakura cried out.
Jounouchi didn’t understand. Was Bakura that eager to battle? His Diabound was idling in one of the corners, not actively participating. Why would Bakura take an incoming blast head-on? Kaiba leaned into him, struggling to make himself heard.
“Don’t allow the Pharaoh to attack!” he said. “That stone slab… it has been rigged with technology! Bakura had me adjust it, all of it - I don’t know what it does, but stop him! Do something!”
Jounouchi didn’t doubt Kaiba’s words. He worked himself up on his knees, and screamed at the top of his lungs.
“Don’t attack! Stop! Hold your attack! Stop!”
Bakura, taller than his former host, closed the distance between him and Jounouchi with just a few strides and backhanded him. It didn’t make much difference. Jounouchi voice got lost in the cacophony of sounds anyway and the God unleashed its attack, aimed straight at the stone slab. It crackled with energy, undamaged.
“Your screaming won’t help,” Bakura said, hissing. “Squirm and scream all you want! This world’s going to hell. It won’t be long before I obtain the Eighth Key, and then Zorc will be resurrected!”
“And then what?” Jounouchi ignored the tangy taste of blood in his mouth. He was dangling just above the floor, Bakura holding him up at his throat, all but crushing his windpipe. How come all these fucking Egyptians were so strong?
“Darkness of course, you fool.” Bakura wasn’t perturbed in the least. “Zorc will rule the world, and all will perish. Civilizations will crumble, people will die, and no more light. Darkness will reign forever.”
“It must be so nice to rule an empty world,” Jounouchi said, between gasps and pants. “And what will your position be, Bakura? A lackey? A flunky? Carrying out orders for your beloved Zorc? ‘Here’s your tea, master Zorc’, ‘Here’s your newspaper, master Zorc’?”
Bakura’s lips curled up in a snarl. “Orders? Lackey? Not at all, Jounouchi. You see, I don’t give a damn about any kind of civilization or population. I only want to see the Pharaoh dead. I’m going to kill him, very slowly. I’ll drive him mad with anger and grief, and I’ll send him over the edge so that even the deepest darkness can’t find him.”
“You’re sick!”
“Not as sick as he is,” the thief said. “You think he’s all golden and wonderful sunshine? Do you think he’s the righteous ruler of the world?”
“He can be an ass,” Jounouchi tried to shrug, “but he’s not a killer.”
This time Bakura’s cackle took on a hysterical tone. “He’s not a killer? Do you even know how these Items were made?”
Jounouchi shook his head. Mahaado had called it ‘complicated’. He was getting light-headed. The thief’s grip was powerful, and it took him more and more strength each time to draw breath.
“My entire family was killed, my entire town was slaughtered,” Bakura hissed, biting off every word. “Flesh, blood and bones were used to create the Items - all from my city, my family, those I cared for! This is the Pharaoh’s fault, and he’ll pay for it with his own life, a thousand times over! I’m going to tear out his soul and shred it over every plane of existence!”
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