Word Count: 8,114/38,274||Chapters: 2/8

He breathed. Slowly. Painfully. Something hard had crashed into him and the idea of breathing without pain was one he couldn't understand right now.

But at least he breathed. He could hear the breath of others around him, and murmured words that he could make no sense of. Whether this was because the words themselves lacked sense or because he just couldn't understand them, he didn't know.

But then a rough hand smacked his shoulder and a far too familiar voice snapped out words that he did understand.

"Wake up, idiot," Guardian Baou demanded. "Did you intend to stay unconscious forever?"

Skull Bishop drew in a greater, somewhat steadier breath, opened his eyes, and jerked his head so that the points of his helmet horns slashed toward Guardian Baou. The other moved out of the way, but not fast enough, a streak of red appearing.

Drawing even that little bit of blood was enough for Skull Bishop. He started to work himself to a more upright position, looking around to see what was going on.

A cell. One he didn't recognize, but he'd never spent much time in Haou-sama's dungeons regardless. It was a bit larger than most, with room enough for five, if they cared little for the comfort of those five.

Apparently their captor did care little, for his cellmates were Guardian Baou, Chaos Sorcerer, and the Magician twins. Those two stared intently at the door, while Guardian Baou's attention remained on his wounded hand. Chaos Sorcerer sat cross-legged, his eyes closed, quietly breathing.

"What happened?" Skull Bishop demanded, pulling himself as upright as he could get. All five of them were manacled, Chaos Sorcerer and Skull Bishop himself with their hands chained behind their back and the other three with theirs in front. He recognized the chains' effects: so long as they were bound by them, their powers wouldn't work. No one he knew had the strength to break these bonds, either.

"We were invaded," Guardian Baou replied, lip curled. "I don't know where Haou-sama is but what I heard was that they took him down first."

Skull Bishop snorted. As much as he hated the thought, it made strategic sense. Deprive them of their leader and the strongest warrior they had and the takeover stood a far better chance of sticking.

"Who was it?"

"Belial – Marquis of Darkness." Chaos Sorcerer answered, not opening his eyes. "Can't you feel it?"

Skull Bishop raised his head, paying brief attention to the world outside of his skin. It wasn't a skill he practiced often, but he knew how it was done. It took only a few breaths to understand what the other meant.

Under normal circumstances, the atmosphere of Dark World breathed more or less easy. This was a world where only the strong survived and the weak perished. That was the way it had always been. Haou's rule only strengthened the darkness here. Skull Bishop didn't know why; so far as he knew, no one did. They only embraced it.

But now, a difference hung in the air. Something strange, something tense and taut and at the same time soft.

No. Not soft. Alluring.

Seductive.

As befit the demon of lust.

Skull Bishop shuddered. He'd never been interested in

intimate matters; battle and conquest alone were his choices. To feel that now… he wanted nothing more than to get rid of it.

"How do we kill him?" Preferably with Haou-sama and Super Fusion near them. As much as Belial revolted him, a soul that strong would give Super Fusion a huge boost.

Guardian Baou snorted. "Do you really think that we can, without Haou-sama?"

"Then we find him!" Skull Bishop snapped. "There is a way to get out of here and set things right."

"What is it, then?" Baou countered. "I want Haou-sama back on his throne as much as you do, but how?"

Skull Bishop stared at the cell door. He could hear vague noises beyond it, but nothing more. It wasn't enough to presume that they were being approached. Guards of some kind.

He didn't have an answer to Baou's question. But he wanted it at least as much as Baou did: for their own self-preservation if nothing else. Their loyalty to Haou-sama hadn't changed. That alone meant in a new regime, they would be sentenced to death, or worse.

And with Belial – Marquis of Darkness around, he didn't want to imagine what could be worse.

Belial lounged back in his new throne. He'd made a point of gathering the softest cushions that he could find and made a nest out of them, one large enough for him to spread his wings and get comfortable.

Music hummed from the singers in the corner and the scent of deliciously prepared meals floated through the air. He'd brought his own chefs with him once he'd made certain to clear out all of Yuuki Juudai's servants.

He didn't really intend to stay here all that long. His own castle would be far more comfortable and was already three times the size of this place. But here he would stay until he'd disposed of all the remnants of Yuuki's brief reign.

There were other tasks that he needed to accomplish as well. Disposing of the brat's mortal servants wouldn't be much more than entertainment. Taking care of the brat himself… that would be far more difficult.

That ran a risk that he didn't want to run, all things considered.

The Herald of the Gentle Darkness.

Belial, in all honesty, couldn't believe that the being who held that power was currently incarnated as a teenage human. He would have been far more inclined to believe that Haou incarnated as something with genuine power, not this foolish soft vessel.

But regardless of how soft and useless the incarnated vessel was, he would have to handle it with care. The guardian existed somewhere in the cosmos. He didn't know where, but they couldn't be all that far from where the herald was.

They should be together. They always have been, or so the stories say. He mused on that for a few moments. Slaying the herald outright would – sadly – do little and might do worse. He would incarnate again. Or worse, he would not bother with another incarnation and would simply manifest to deal out vengeance.

But what he had in mind so far would do just fine.

Belial leaned back, wings spread and a glass of the finest wine available in one hand. He took a long sip, watching as some of his favorite dancers spun for his entertainment.

He had death and destruction to deal out later, but until then, this was a time of celebration.

Flame Snake stirred, lifting his head. A cold wind blew, urging him to get back inside, to find a warm place to rest and stay there for as long as he could. He'd started to wriggle in, wondering why he was even out there in the first place, when memory crashed in on him.

The invasion. The castle falling. Haou-sama captured somewhere. Anyone who wasn't dead was captured. The only one he knew had escaped one of those fates was… himself.

Carefully he wiggled inside, keeping himself away from the biting cold. He needed to get something to eat, but with the chaos the castle was in – at least for him, he knew all of the usual servants he could cadge food off of wouldn't be there – he would have to find another way to get a meal.

For the moment, he found a small crevice he could fit himself into that would do for warmth. His stomach growled but he told it to remain quiet and not give him away. He needed to think, and if he were to be honest with himself, he knew he wasn't very good at that.

I should find Skull Bishop-sama. He knew his master ranked among those captured. He'd seen him being taken away, unconscious and in power-nullifying chains. But he didn't know where he was. He'd fled away before he could be seen and captured himself.

A soft noise caught his attention. Flame Snake raised his head, eye turning in all directions. Was that one of the Marquis's servants, seeking out stragglers? Or another straggler, someone like him who had been able to flee the devastation?

There couldn't be many of those. Not with the searching that Belial's servants did. They'd gone to such trouble to clear through every room and wreck it to the point that no one could hide there.

Another noise, a bit quieter than the first, but now Flame Snake knew for certain that he'd heard it. He raised himself up and hissed in his very best threatening manner.

"Who's there?" He bared his fangs as he spoke. He couldn't do all that much damage, but he would at least try. Perhaps biting whoever it was would give him time enough to flee afterward.

Something else moved in the shadows of the ceiling. Flame Snake peered closer, the tip of his tail shaking, even as he tried to figure out which way would be the best to flee by.

Then he saw it: brown skin, tiny wings, and holding a spear tightly. Flame Snake relaxed.

"Dark Familiar," he murmured. He'd seen the little pest before. Dark Familiar served the same purpose that he did, spying and bringing information back to his master. The difference between them was that Flame Snake served Skull Bishop while Dark Familiar served Guardian Baou.

That didn't mean in any way that he liked Dark Familiar. But at least this wasn't an enemy.

Dark Familiar settled down in front of him, tip of his spear raised up. He wasn't being violent, at least not right now.

"Where is master?" He hissed. There weren't many who heard him speak, but now wasn't a time for silence.

Flame Snake ducked his head down, tucking his tail in closer to himself. "I don't know. Your master and mine were both taken captive." He tilted his head ever so slightly. "Where have you been?"

"Out. Searching."

Oh. That made sense, when someone's abilities included them being able to fly. Flame Snake tightened into curls.

"We were invaded by Belial, the Marquis of Darkness," he said, quickly filling in the other on all the gory details. Then he raised his head, a sudden spark of hope filling him. "If we can free our masters, then they can find Haou-sama, and he can finish this!" Haou-sama's powers were without measure. If he were free, then he would end all of this!

Dark Familiar fingered his spear, not saying anything. Flame Snake continued, eager to persuade his only ally.

"They have to be around here somewhere. They would be so pleased with us if we set them free."

Slowly Dark Familiar nodded, a quick sly smile making its way over his features. Then he turned to look behind him, then back.

"Not alone," he said in that soft voice of his. "Found someone else."

Someone else? Flame Snake wondered who else had made it through with their freedom intact.

At first he thought that somehow, a small cloud had drifted into the castle. That wasn't a usual thing. But then the cloud opened its eyes and stared down at him and he recognized who this ways.

"Violent Rain?" He knew the cloud's given name, of course, but it wasn't something he would speak without permission.

The cloud rumbled at him, then turned to look behind. A second cloud ghosted up, small lightning bolts flickering in its gray mass. This was Violent Rain's cousin, La Li-Oon.

And like Dark Familiar and Flame Snake, Violent Rain and La Li-Oon served two of the Death Duelists: Skilled White Magician and Skilled Dark Magician.

Flame Snake pulled himself out of his curl and then tucked himself back in, a sudden thrill coursing through him. Could it be? Really, could it be?

"Where is..."

"Me?"

The voice was soft and almost unheard, too quiet to be more than the soft whisper on the wind. Flame Snake jerked his head around trying to find out where it came from, but saw nothing else.

Not until a hand came to rest on the back of his head, followed a breath later by the click of a cane on the cold stone floor.

He twined around to see the phantom standing there, taking a step back even as Flame Snake turned. He didn't touch often, nor did he speak often. But he did look concerned.

The five of them stared at one another. Each of them held the same position as spy and information gatherer for one of the Death Duelists. If anyone could have escaped, Flame Snake wasn't surprised that they had. The twin clouds could just hide up in the skies, while he and Dark Familiar were too small and quick to be seen by most people. As for the phantom…

Well, even in this world of monsters, magic, and spirits, not everyone could see a ghost when the ghost didn't want them to.

It wasn't much of a rescue party, especially one to go up against the likes of the Marquis of Darkness, but Flame Snake didn't think they were going to do any better.

Yubel passed through the marketplace, listening to rumors and keeping their head tucked down. That wasn't such a strange sight; there were plenty of people in this world who would prefer their faces not to be seen.

But Yubel had their own reasons for that, and if anyone had seen them, then they would ensure no tales spread. It wasn't time yet. Their beloved hadn't learned enough yet.

But until that time, there were matters that Yubel needed to take care of. Not always ones that they liked, but when dealing with a thief and the love of one's life, certain sacrifices had to be made.

So for now, when Yubel would far more prefer to have Johan Andersen's guts hanging from the most convenient hook, they searched for suitable food instead.

They were using his body, after all. Food was an annoying requirement.

Yubel could feel his presence, fully aware in the back of their currently shared mind. He'd ceased shouting and demanding to be freed some time ago. He wanted it still; Yubel could sense that. But making all that fuss did nothing at all.

They turned their attention to the food stalls, examining them carefully. This body wasn't their own, but they intended to take good care of it for now. Strength would be needed until the time came to face their beloved Juudai once again.

Yubel.

Yubel turned a mental frown toward Johan. What could he want? If he intended to start up that fuss again, then they would just go on and put him out of the body until waiting for a later point.

That's not it. Listen. Over there.

He sounded worried. Yubel cared little for human concerns, especially humans who weren't Juudai, but if it worried him enough to talk to them, then they could spare a few seconds.

They turned their attention the way he indicated, seeing a couple of folk chatting in front of a different food stall. Yubel quietly wandered that way, more interest caught when they heard Haou being mentioned.

Whatever was their beloved up to now?

"They're all supposed to be put into combat eventually," one of them said, all of his focus on his companion. Yubel disapproved of that; one should always keep an eye on one's surroundings. "Except him, of course."

"Of course." The stranger's companion nodded, eyes flicking around worriedly. Yubel examined the food offerings, doing a marvelous job of pretending not to pay attention. "But what are they going to do with him?"

"I guess kill him, sooner or later." The first gave a careless shrug. "If they haven't already. The guy I talked to was a little vague on what actually happened."

With every word a slow rage ignited and bubbled up within Yubel. Those words were few indeed, but they could gather the gist easily enough. But Yubel wanted more than gist.

Keeping themselves under a tight wrap of control – which wasn't easy but needed to be done – they turned toward the two gossipers as if this were only of mild concern.

"What is it you're talking about?"

Yubel could feel Johan's tension in the back of the mind as well. Regardless of their disagreements – of Yubel naming him as the thief that he was – they had to admit that he cared about Juudai too. Not as much as they did, of course, but they wanted no harm to come to him.

How foolish that was would be an argument for another time.

"Didn't you hear?" The first one asked. He was a spellcaster of some sort. Yubel didn't recognize him immediately, nor cared to. "The Marquis of Darkness overthrew Haou during the dark of the comet. He's the new ruler of this world."

Yubel ground their teeth together before hiding it behind a false smile. "Is that so? I didn't think Haou-sama was so weak." Because he wasn't. Not in the slightest. Something wasn't right here.

The second one nodded. "Neither did I. I mean, I've never met him, but he's the same one who took down Brron-sama, isn't he? That's pretty strong. How did it happen?"

"I wasn't exactly part of it, you know," the first one said, snorting. "But ever since, people from the Marquis' army have been going out and about spreading the news."

Yubel very seldom could hear Johan cursing, at least not at them. But now words that they'd never heard before hissed between teeth that he didn't have possession of at the moment. Yubel had to agree.

"Are they at his castle still?" Yubel wanted to know, fighting to keep themselves under control when what they really wanted to do was tear everything around them into shreds.

Juudai could not be gone. They would know if he were gone.

Which meant that he lived still, likely a captive, in some condition where he could not fight back.

Yubel needed to know more. Much more.

"I think so. Probably going to be there a while." The spellcaster shrugged before turning to stare at the food on display again. "Can't say it makes much of a difference to me. As long as they don't kill me, what do I care who runs things?"

Yubel memorized his features. They would make certain that he fell during Haou's restored reign.

But in order to restore that reign, a great deal of work needed to be done.

You'll need my help.

No, they wouldn't. This was something that Yubel could do without them.

You're being stubborn.

Yubel mentally snorted as they picked out their own food choices, exchanged a few innocuous words, and then departed. The marketplace slowly began to buzz with the news of the coup, but no one knew anything else. This wasn't a place Yubel needed to be right now.

They needed to be with their beloved Juudai, celebrating the death of the foolish demon who thought they could defeat Haou.

Jim offered the sausage to Karen, who snapped it up quickly. While she was busy with that, he took a couple of bites of his own dinner. On the other side of the fire sat O'Brien, plowing his way through his sandwich.

Getting food in Dark World wasn't easy. Most of it was made and sold like on Earth, but finding the money to pay for it or something to barter for it wasn't the easiest. This time they'd been lucky. They could never be certain next time would be the same.

"Did you hear anything?" Jim asked, reaching for another sausage. Trading two spare cards had given them what could be enough for tonight and at least two or three days ahead. Beyond that they couldn't yet plan. Too much traveling to do.

And the rumors that he'd heard made planning ahead something to be wary of.

O'Brien set his dinner aside long enough to take his cup of water, turning the question over in his mind.

"There's been a coup." They'd both heard of the rising warlord Haou, though exactly who he was – he apparently wore armor that concealed his features on a regular basis – no one knew. But now someone else made a move against him.

Jim nodded. "Belial, the Marquis of Darkness." He'd owned the card once, when he was twelve, having found it in a booster pack. He'd given it to a friend. But he had no idea of what a genuine Belial would be like, as opposed to a simple card.

"But nothing about Juudai." O'Brien pointed out. The two of them weren't all that interested in the politics of this world, except as how it related to finding out where their friend was.

"Nothing." Jim finished the last of his food and gave Karen her last sausage for the meal. "Should we try and talk to him? See if he's seen Juudai?"

O'Brien took small sips of his water. Neither of them fully trusted any liquids that were for sale around this place. Finding clean water meant stocking up as much as they could. It also gave a splendid excuse to think about the answer to a question.

"We should," he said at last. "But carefully."

Jim nodded; what little they'd heard of Belial made it plain he was at least as ruthless as Brron had been or what Haou tried to be. They would have to watch their words.

But it was likely the only chance they had to find Juudai. That didn't mean Jim liked it. Just the thought of entering a place ruled by a creature patterned after a high ranking demon prince sent chills down his spine.

It would be better if we had more allies. But no one had seen Shou since he'd fled Brron's castle, all of their other friends were dead, and Juudai had vanished quite nearly as thoroughly as Shou had. The last time Jim had seen him, he hadn't even looked in any condition to defend himself.

Jim didn't want to find out that somehow, Juudai had died in this world. But the longer they went on without finding him, the more likely such a fate became. He'd been shattered by whatever it was that happened in Brron's arena. If Johan really was dead – and Jim wasn't ready to believe it just because Brron said so – then Juudai might never recover.

Talking to Belial might put them at more risk, but Jim couldn't see any other way to go right now. They had to do something.

"There's a village to the west," O'Brien said after a few more silent moments between them. "We should get some more information there."

Jim nodded; he'd heard about that one when they'd been bartering for food. Rumor had it that it had been a center of growing resistance against Haou's regime. What it would be now was anyone's guess.

Karen curled up against Jim's legs, rumbling deep in her throat. She'd heard or seen or smelt nothing that would disturb her, which told Jim that it would be safe to rest here, at least for now.

He didn't know how long they'd been in this world or how long it would take them to find Shou and Juudai and figure out what to do from there. Finding out the truth about Johan seemed the most likely option, but how to do that eluded him. The only ones who knew for certain would be those who'd served Brron and he didn't know where they were now, nor if their word could be trusted.

There would always be too much that they didn't know, it seemed. And until they figured out how to address that, there was very little that they could do in the first place.

Jim set his cup aside and rested one hand on Karen's head for a few moments. His Eye had told him little since Brron's arena. He would have to go on his heart. That hadn't guided him wrong either.

"Get some rest," he advised O'Brien. "I'll take the first watch."

It was the least he could do. O'Brien had insisted on taking the first one for several days in a row. Jim turned his attention back to the fire flickering between the two of them. Nights here – or whatever to call it when the comet's light guttered – could get very cold.

He hoped Shou and Juudai were warm and fed, wherever they were.

To Be Continued

Notes: Yes, Shou will appear later. He isn't the only one, either. I have Plans. Also, just a reminder, I will update this fic every day for WIP Week, until it's finished.