Of Mages and Elves: The Tower Falls
Author's notes: Well, it's finally happened… I've finally had the nerve to write a Yu-Gi-Oh fanfic… A warning to all, this is not for the kiddies, this includes YAOI, and probably lots of it, don't like it, don't read. And for all those who don't mind, this fic does contain a little OOCness on the parts of some of the characters, it's an AU fic, go figure. *sighs* Alright, enough of me ranting, on with the fic ^_^
PS: Pairings: Yami Yugi/ Yugi, Bakura (Yami Bakura)/Ryou, Seto/Joey (sorry, can't spell his Japanese name ) Ishtal (Yami Malik)/ Malik, possible Honda/Anzu
Disclaimer: I don't own it get it? I'm too broke to own it!
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For time beyond imagining, elves and men have always lived side by side, each dwelling in their own society, mostly ignoring each other. In fact, for all anyone knew, the only true alliance the two worlds possessed lay in the formation of the most prominent school of magic in the world, the Tower of Illusions. Both elves and men left each other to their own affairs, rarely crossing and rarely conversing, for it was thought that a bridge between the two races would contaminate them all.
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Malik sat at his worn desk, sucking on the tip of his quill in deep thought. His ancient desk was a disaster, to say the least, with scrolls strewn everywhere and various stains of ink on the old wood. His master had asked him to copy down all the spells he could find concerning fire, and he was as bored as they came. Not that this wasn't normal; the only reason the masters of the Tower of Illusions put up with his antics was because his sister had been one of the greatest mages the Tower had ever produced and many of the elder mages had hoped that her brother could be molded into a powerful, if not more powerful mage.
Malik set his quill down as he heard the slight click of the door. A turbaned head poked in.
"Master Shadi?" Malik asked. Shadi smiled slightly at his young apprentice. While the boy had begun his studies as a promising student, his eccentric and somewhat demanding nature had made many of the master mages unwilling to take him as an apprentice. Shadi, however, found the boy to be quite clever. Peculiar yes, but clever.
"Have you finished your spells?" he asked smoothly. Malik nodded, covering half the page with his arm. Shadi smirked inwardly. "Very well, keep working, I'll be back later," he said, and left. Malik frowned, violet eyes narrowed in frustration. Why did that damn mage always know when he was lying? The boy continued to rant inwardly, while searching his desk for one of the scrolls buried under the heaps of papers. Shadi was a good master, Malik admitted, but the man could be incredibly aggravating sometimes. Little did Malik know, that that would be the last time he ever saw his master.
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A blaring alarm sounded in the courtyard of the Tower of Illusions. Mages ran to and fro as great clouds of darkness settled over the Tower. Ishtal smirked. Now was the time, the time for the Tower to fall. The dark mage made his way through the twisting halls, with only his memory to guide him. Turing a corner, he nearly ran into a young man, dashing down the halls. The mage's smirk darkened as he followed the boy. The young one looked remarkably like him.
They finally came to a dead end, the boy glancing almost frantically around him. He turned abruptly, coming face to face with a near mirror image.
"Who are you," Malik demanded. Ishtal just smirked at him.
"No one you need to know, little one," he said, voice tinged with malice.
"What's going on," Malik asked him. Ishtal smiled darkly and stepped forward, nearly pinning the smaller boy to the wall.
"Nothing you need to concern yourself with," he said, and pressed his finger to the boy's temple. Malik's eyes fluttered shut and he slumped to the floor. Ishtal's smirk only increased. Master Pegasus my have the tower, but this boy, this one was his prize.
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"Your highness! Your highness!" Yami glanced up from his desk, cat slit crimson eyes focusing on the gasping messenger before him.
"What?" he asked shortly, annoyed at being interrupted. The messenger gasped for breath, chest heaving as he fought to explain.
"Your highness, the Tower of Illusions has been attacked!" he exclaimed. Yami jumped up from his desk, eyes wide.
"WHAT?!" he shrieked. The messenger nodded, continuing.
"A messenger pigeon just came in. A group of rouge mages has taken the tower," he said, more calmly. Yami nodded to him.
"Thank you, you're dismissed," he said, turning towards the opposite wall, trying to collect his thoughts. His spiky, multi-colored hair brushed against the bookcase leaning against the nearest wall.
"Yami-san?" a quiet, calm voice asked. Yami turned to see a snowy haired young elf, gazing at him with worried chocolate eyes. "Is it true?" the boy asked. Yami nodded to him.
"I'm afraid it is Ryou. The Tower has fallen, I just received word," he told the younger elf. Ryou's cat-like mahogany eyes fell, a saddened look crossing his face. The boy had an incredibly gentle heart, one of the gentlest Yami had ever known, which was why he trusted Ryou so much. As the palace healer and the son of one of the elven kingdom's more prominent nobles, he was often found around the palace, looking after this and that.
"Who would do such a thing?" Ryou wondered, voice as sad as his eyes. "The Tower was the only link between the two kingdoms that stood firm." Yami nodded, slumping back into his backless wooden chair.
"I know, but don't worry Ryou, I intend to get to the bottom of this," he said.
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Two large, black clad men dragged a struggling bundle of white and black through the darkened halls of the Tower of Illusions and into the main reception room. Seated atop the head mage's chair, Pegasus smirked, watching the struggling figure with interest. He waved to his men, who dropped the figure, retreating into the shadows, leaving just the white haired figure and the silver haired mage.
"So they did manage to find you after all. With your reputation I would have expected them to take longer Bakura," Pegasus jibed.
"Fuck off, what the hell do you want!" Bakura snapped, brown eyes hard as daggers and flaring with anger. Amusement filled Pegasus' reddish eyes.
"I have a job for you, little half blood, and if you fulfill it correctly, I can promise you a place at my side when this world falls to my feet," he told the half-elven thief. Bakura's eyes narrowed at the insult, just being a half-blood in this era was a slur unto itself.
"Ya? What kind of job requires kidnapping a half-blood thief off the street?" he snapped. Pegasus chuckled.
"Because my dear boy, no mere human could do what I'm asking. I need you to infiltrate the elven court and disrupt it in any way possible," he told the glaring brown-eyed thief.
"And what's in it for me?" Bakura asked calmly, not bothering to show interest one way or another.
"For you, dear boy, more power than you ever dreamed."
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Far in the distance, in the palace of the king of the human kingdom, Dmark, Yugi sat quietly, watching out the window of his room. After hearing of the Tower's fall, his grandfather had been called to the council of seven, and the elderly man had taken his young grandson with him. A firm knock at the door caused the boy to turn.
"Come in," he called. A tall boy, with wild blond hair falling into his warm honey brown eyes entered carrying a tray of snacks. The boy grinned widely and set the tray down on a small table in the corner.
"Yugi-san, your grandfather asked me to bring you something to eat," he said, still grinning. Yugi smiled up at him.
"Thank you," he said happily. "What's your name?" The blond gave him a strange look, then shrugged.
"Joey," he said. "I work here at the palace." Yugi smiled again, walking over to the tray, picking up two sandwiches and holding one out to Joey.
"Here, have some. I won't be able to eat all of this," he told the surprised boy, smiling warmly. Joey gave him a confused look, then took the sandwich hesitantly.
"Thanks… Yugi-san," he said. Yugi glanced up at him.
"Just Yugi, please," he said as Joey made for the door. "I guess you have to get back to your duties, but I hope I can see you again." Joey smiled, hand on the doorknob.
"Alright… Yugi," he said, and left the room. Yugi smiled and returned to his perch next to the window. He had never visited the palace before, this was his first time, but so far, it seemed like a very pleasant place to be.
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Joey wandered through the halls of the palace, lost in thought. He was confused, very confused. Most nobles would have nodded to him, or ignored him completely, not give him a portion of what he brought and ask his name. Just who was that boy anyway?
Joey knew that Yugi's grandfather was considered a bit eccentric by his fellow council members, it was something Joey had noticed when he elderly man had asked him to bring his grandson something to eat. But Yugi, Yugi was more eccentric by a long shot. Eccentric, or just down right impossibly innocent.
Joey glanced up at the sky outside as he passed an open window. He would go see the young noble again, if only to prove he had been hallucinating.
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Sleepy violet eyes drifted open, groggily taking in their surroundings. Malik sat up, glancing around. He was slightly unnerved to find that he didn't recognize the room at all. The cot beneath him, the dark pictures decorating the walls, filled with demons and fallen angels battling in detailed conflict. A small desk and a simple, unoccupied bed were the only other objects in the room. Malik stood, walking up to one of the paintings, tanned fingers gliding lightly over the surface.
The click of the door caused him to jump and turn, finding himself staring into a mirror, a mirror with impossibly hard eyes and bleach blond hair that stood on end like an angry cat's fur. Malik took a step back, warily, not knowing what to expect as the slightly taller man advanced on him, a cruel smirk on his lips.
"Who the hell are you?" Malik asked, bluntly. The man smirked.
"You may call me Ishtal, you're my prisoner boy," he said, voice calm and cold. Malik's violet eyes widened.
"Prisoner?" Ishtal smirked.
"The Tower has fallen boy, but don't worry, I won't let my master lay a hand on you," his smirk widened. "Not when I'd prefer to keep someone so beautiful to my self." Malik stopped dead, a distant memory awakening in his mind. Ishtal, Master Mage Ishtal…. No, things couldn't possibly get any worse.
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Yami sat hunched forward, elbows on his desk and head in his hands.
"I'm going to have a pounding headache," he murmured quietly.
"Yami-sama?" as soft voice asked. Yami looked up to see Anzu standing in the doorway. Her brilliant blue eyes were creased with worry.
"Yes Anzu?" Yami asked, slightly annoyed by the interruption.
"What are you going to do?" she asked. Yami buried his head back in his hands.
"I don't know," he admitted.
"Speak to the human court in Dmark," Anzu urged him. Yami glanced at her.
"What?" he asked.
"You should speak with the human court. As powerful as our kingdom is, holding out against someone who can destroy the Tower of Illusions in a mere day, let alone defeating them…" Yami nodded to her.
"You're right, thank you Anzu," he said. Anzu smiled.
"Any time, Yami-sama," she replied, turning to leave.
"And Anzu?" Yami asked.
"Yes?"
"Please ask the staff to prepare for my departure," Yami told her. Anzu smiled.
"Of course."
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Dark eyes glittered with malicious amusement as the shadowed figure quietly watched the young elven prince and the noblewoman. So, Prince Yami was leaving for Dmark. This would make things interesting, especially if those idiotic humans decided to get involved.
Bakura smirked, blending with the shadows and moving out into the hallway. *So, how best to throw the elven kingdom into complete and utter chaos?* he thought. A glint of silver at the other end of the hall caught his eye. A frail looking elven boy was walking towards him, gentle brown eyes gazing calmly ahead.
Bakura's eyes narrowed. How dare such a frail looking boy look so much like him! The boy glanced up, a surprised look on his face.
"Who…"
*Damn it! How can he see me?* Bakura's mind snapped. He stepped towards the boy, eyes menacing. The boy stepped, fear in his expressive eyes.
"What's your name boy?" Bakura asked him, voice dangerously soft.
"R- Ryou," the boy stammered. Bakura smirked, coming closer. He reached out and grabbed the boy's wrist. Ryou shrunk back against the wall. He didn't know what to do. Should he call someone? Would anyone even hear him? Wait, Yami was still in his office. If he could just… Bakura ran his fingers up the fae boy's jaw line, following it up to his delicately pointed ears. He smirked and slapped the boy to the ground. Ryou let out a sharp, pained yelp. Bakura grabbed him by the collar of his thin white robe, forcing him to his knees and glaring angrily at him.
"You boy, are coming with me."
"YAMI!"
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Yami jumped when he heard the scream. Making his way swiftly to the door, he looked out into the dimly lit hallway. At the other end, a white haired figure stood, his back to Yami, with an unidentifiable bundle in his arms.
"Ryou?" The figure turned, harsh eyes boring into the prince. In the figure's arms, Ryou lay limp and unconscious, a dark bruise forming on his pale cheek. Yami glared at the sliver haired man. "Let him go!" he yelled. The being just smirked, shadows gathering around him like dark clouds.
"It's time you knew what it was to suffer, Prince," the figure's cold voice stated, before vanishing, with Ryou, into the shadows.
"RYOU!"
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Author's notes: Yay, the first chapter is done ^_^ I hope you people enjoyed!
Bakura: I can't believe she's doing this -.-
Arien (one of my muses): *cackles* Why? Because it means I get to torment you too?
Yami: Partially…
*smile* Hehehe… anyway, hope you enjoyed and see you later ^_^