Not dead! Not dead! Completely and utterly NOT DEAD!
I'm sorry for not updating this thing since March. DAMN YOU WRITER'S BLOCK!
If you like GX and 5Ds, I posted a oneshot about them.
And onto the fic!
The Enemy Has The Move
Chapter 3: Crossing Paths
"Attention, citizens of Kobe. This city is being evacuated. Please make your way to the docks, for ships that shall transport you to Shikoku. Proceed in an orderly manner. Attention, citizens of Kobe…"
The message was repeated on screens all around the city. Everyone saw it. It had hijacked the local broadcasting signal, and those who, for whatever reason, did not hear it, were soon told by their frightened neighbours.
Seto slammed his fists into his desk, before closing the programs on his laptop. If Mokuba was in Kobe, he'd be with the refugees. He turned on the intercom, and let the message speak for itself, before getting ready to search for his brother at the docks.
Shizuka climbed off the table in Kajiki's grotty flat, to the sound of the radio. Must be a disaster movie. She flipped the channel. In growing horror, she realised that it wasn't, and she yelled to the rest of the group.
Anzu rubbed sleep out of her eyes, and pushed herself out of the saggy couch. It took a moment for what Shizuka was shouting to register. Then she ran into the kitchen, where Shizuka was shuddering, Jounouchi was trying to comfort her, and Kajiki was swearing like he was competing for it.
Mokuba stared at the signal. Gallagher was translating rapidly for the other man. Hopkins sighed. "Call your brother," she advised. "He might know what to do."
A black-haired boy with earring dice watched the message. He swore, and turned to the door of the hotel room to pack his bag.
In the ruins of Domino City, a brown haired boy watched the second blast in less than a week. He turned to the buried bodies of his parents, before biting his lip, clutching a puzzle piece and grabbing his motorcycle helmet.
In a port city in the south, a woman in white heard the news. She nodded, and headed west.
-0-0-0-
Beep. Beep.
Seto snapped open his phone. "What?"
A rush of breath down the line. Then…
"Seto?"
"Mokuba!" Seto stopped in his tracks. "Where are you?"
"In a van on the way into Kobe, with two rescue workers and the American Junior Champion. Where are you?"
"Outside KaibaCorp's Kobe branch, about to head to the docks. Meet me there, okay?"
He ended the call. Almost immediately, the phone rang again.
"What?" He growled his usual greeting down the line.
"Seto, it's Mokuba. Gallagher – that's one of the rescue workers - said that we won't be able to go that far into the city."
"Why?"
"Convenience, basically. They don't want to be caught in the inevitable traffic jam."
"Oh, really. Pass the phone over."
There came various crackles and fizzes. Finally, another voice spoke on the phone. "Mr Kaiba, is that you? I'm…"
"Why are you refusing to deliver my brother to me?"
The man stuttered. "Mr Kaiba, if we go into Kobe, we probably won't be able to make it…"
"If my brother is not at the front door within the hour, you will have a lot more to worry about than traffic jams. For example, having your credit card cancelled, getting a heavy income tax, gaining a criminal record…"
"All right. We'll deliver your brother." Seto shut the phone with a smirk.
-0-0-0-
It seemed like the entire city was trying to push its way through the streets.
Of course, mused Shizuka, it probably was.
They were four in a million, Kajiki pushing them through because he knew the way, Katsuya behind him semi-supporting his backpack, Shizuka behind him with her eyes shut against the various things that were flying around, Anzu last and squeezing her arm incredibly hard, as Shizuka squeezed back with equal force.
Noise and smells from the city bombarded them. People screamed, shouted, laughed and prophesised doom. Over it all were police announcements, barely audible but still there.
Shizuka ignored them all, and let herself be dragged on through the crushing darkness.
Suddenly, they stopped. Confused, she let herself out of the darkness.
They stood at the docks. Across a mass of people were several large tankers. A queue was forming, slowly but surely.
"C'mon." Kajiki dragged them as far forward in the line as he could get them.
The queue was long. People kept pushing at them, and so they didn't drop their hands. Shizuka shut her eyes again, to try and catch up on her sleep. It didn't work. Katsuya made sure of that.
She stared down the length of the queue. It took them fifteen minutes to move ten metres. She sighed. It was going to be a long day.
-0-0-0-
Mokuba charged out of the car.
"Seto!" He slammed right into his big brother, who smiled and patted him on the head before glaring at Gallagher. Gallagher drove away as fast as he could.
"Goodbye, Mokuba!" called Hopkins, who waved out of the back of the van.
"Bye, Hopkins!" Mokuba waved back. For all her annoyingness, he kind of liked her. He turned to his big brother. "So, Seto, what's the plan?"
"We're going to take a helicopter out. There should be one on the helipad. Come on."
Mokuba nodded, and walked with Seto to the helipad on top of the building. While they walked, Mokuba told Seto about his wilderness adventure.
"And then Hopkins found some insects, and then she said we could eat them, and then I went "No way!", and then she called me a coward, and then…" Mokuba continued chattering as Seto punched in the security code.
"And then I found a millipede, and Hopkins made me eat it. It was vile." He could still taste it. Why, why, WHY couldn't he have found a less insane travelling partner? He kept thinking about this as Seto led him onto the helipad. A small helicopter was there, large enough for two people.
"C'mon." Seto pushed a button on his keys, and the helicopter door opened. He took the pilot's seat, and Mokuba took co-pilot.
After they had both buckled themselves in, Seto made a quick systems check, before pushing down the control stick.
The helicopter rose into the sky, before veering off to the north-east. Mokuba looked down at the wreckage of Osaka and Kyoto.
I hope Hopkins gets out before the fires reach Kobe.
-0-0-0-
Anzu silently thanked the inventor of the portable CD player.
Okay, it was Shizuka's. But the girl did have some good songs on there, even if they were mostly in English. She trilled along to the lyrics, twisting her mouth around the foreign words. Shizuka was humming beside her. On the other side of her, Jounouchi was whistling something that sounded like rock.
Kajiki alone wasn't listening to anything. He was looking out for the group, as they pushed their way through the crowd. He dragged them forward suddenly, yanking the earbud out of Anzu's left ear.
Frick. She groped for the earbud, and shunted it back into her ear. Doing so, she caught sight of a splodge of white in a forest of colour.
Ishizu?
She blinked, and the white was gone.
Must be seeing things.
A few songs later, she heard Kajiki speak.
"The four of us." He motioned to the rest to take out their earbuds. The woman handing out tickets looked at them while not really seeing anything.
"You, Blondie, Lifejacket and Tube Top?" she asked, pointing to each of them. Kajiki nodded, and the woman gave them tickets.
Anzu read hers. 46595-4. Then some legal blather.
Then Shizuka grabbed her arm, and led her into the mass of people trying to get onto the ships.
The next hour or so passed in a frenzy of pushing and shoving and the sensation of Jounouchi's arm on one arm and Shizuka's arm on the other, as they forged through the writhing sea of people.
Twice she saw a flash of white.
Finally, she and Jounouchi dragged Kajiki and Shizuka into one of the smaller ships, and into darkness that contrasted so hard with the light outside.
The noise was just as loud, though, and the smell grew exponentially. The group pushed through the lower decks and up, and up, until they reached the second-to-highest deck.
There they stopped. Kajiki kicked back against a wall. This high up, the ship had quite a few people in it but wasn't crowded. It seemed like a good place to stop.
It was still dark, and still smelly, though. Anzu checked her phone, and found that it had lost the signal. Just fricking peachy.
Jounouchi peeked over her shoulder and swore. She punched him.
"Sorry. Sorry." He held his hands up in surrender, before sitting next to Kajiki. "So," he took a finger toy out of his pocket, "what do we do now?"
Anzu flopped down next to him, and Shizuka sat between them. They answered him simultaneously. "We wait."
-0-0-0-
The helicopter flew out of Kobe, rising as it did so. Seto had plotted out a route that would take them to his main base on Shikoku. Soon a panicked cityscape gave way to docks, and then to sea, as far below, the smaller ships set off.
Everyone in the little group, from Shizuka, who had never left Honshu before, to Kajiki, who had – apparently – sailed across the Pacific, went up onto the deck to watch the city slip away.
There were many sighs of relief in a boardroom in Tokyo.
And in the ashes of Osaka…
A ring twitched, and twin streaks of red and gold blazed across the noon sky.
-0-0-0-
Early afternoon, and the Kaiba brothers touched down in Tokushima.
The city didn't have a KaibaCorp tower, for reasons that Mokuba had never understood, but Seto did rent an office block there. On top of the office block was a semi-legal helipad that was really just an H in a circle of chalk.
The workers of the Kobe tower hadn't really taken the escape helicopter plan seriously, meaning that this was as far as it could go before it ran out of fuel. This, Seto claimed, was the only reason that they weren't going further inland.
A flood of workers poured onto the roof, all seeking answers about what had happened in Domino and Kobe and saying that it was so good to see them alive…
Seto glared at them. Mokuba could have sworn that the temperature dropped. Most of the workers stopped talking and shuffled back into the building. The only one who didn't was the one who managed this branch, who was braver than her subordinates and walked across to greet them.
Mokuba unbuckled himself, threw his emergency briefcase out and jumped out. On the other side, Seto stepped out and grabbed his briefcase. The manager stepped in his way.
"Mr Kaiba, Mr Kaiba. To what to we owe the pleasure of this vis-"
Seto cut her off. "My brother and I are leaving this helicopter here. Do what you want with it. Should the police come knocking, it's your problem." He sidestepped the manager and swooped into the building.
Mokuba followed, holding his briefcase over his shoulder. He marched past the manager and followed Seto, keeping as much of a cool image as was possible, given that he'd been living rough for four days.
He hurried through the office building. As he ran, he worried. Where would they go now? What would they do? The mansion was destroyed. There was no reliable way to get food to the Duel Tower. He had a brief vision of himself and Seto on the city streets, as dirty as the average Domino City hobo.
Seto was waiting in the lobby. When he saw Mokuba, he beckoned him close.
"We're going to get a hotel room and see how this unfolds. We will also book a flight to the States."
"America?"
Seto glowered at him. "Mokuba, that was an asinine thing to say. Firstly, I just told you we were going to the States. Secondly, America is the continent, not the country."
"Sorry, big brother."
Seto's expression softened slightly. "We'll go to our home in New York, and help promote KaibaCorp technology. Once this all cools down, we will return to Japan."
He turned and Mokuba followed him out of the building. What had he been worried about, anyway? Seto knew what to do. Seto always knew what to do.
-0-0-0-
It turned out that there was very little to do on the boat. One could do what Kajiki did, which was curl up in a raincoat and doze. One could do what Jounouchi did, which was challenge various people to Duel Monsters. One could do what Shizuka did, which was cluster around a small radio one woman had brought on board and listen for news of one's mother and one's big brother's friends.
Or one could do what Anzu did, which was search for Ishizu in the bowels of the ship.
Not that Anzu knew her that well, but it would be good to find someone else who'd fallen from that blimp.
"Miss Mazaki?"
Oh, not again.
"You are Miss Mazaki, right?" The speaker was a small boy, who must have come from Domino. Nowhere else would he be let out in public with his bright green hair.
"Yes." Fricking fanboys.
"Do you know Mutou Yugi?"
"Yes." She'd learnt by hard experience that shrugging them off by lying just didn't work.
"Is he still alive?"
If Anzu had not been extremely busy, or had it not hit a very sore subject, or had she had some proper sleep for the last few days, or had she not already been asked the same question more times than she could count, she probably wouldn't have given the answer she did.
"No," she hissed under her breath.
"Pardon me?"
"I SAID NO!" she shouted at him. "HE'S DEAD! WE THREW HIS BODY IN THE SEA! GO AND TELL THE REST OF THE FANBOYS THAT! YOUR IDOL'S DEAD!"
The instant she finished, she regretted saying it. With nothing else to do and the glares of everyone else on that particular deck on her back, she turned around and marched up onto the next deck.
The thing was, she didn't believe Yugi really was dead. Sure, she knew all about the five stages of grief, denial and all that.
But there was something in her, something that said, loud and clear, that Yugi was still alive. The fact that the Puzzle piece she held was still warm didn't help.
Come on, brain, she half-growled. Move on to anger already! Yet it stubbornly didn't.
She did miss him though, him and Honda, and her parents – don't think about that – and even the Kaibas and Ryuji. She missed all her friends from Domino, Miyuki and Takeda and…
"Anzu?"
Hopkins Rebecca (sans teddy bear) tapped her shoulder. Anzu blinked.
"Rebecca? What are you doing here?"
"Same thing as you. I escaped from Battle City."
"I mean, how did you get out of Domino?"
"I walked." She bit her lip. "I've got some sad news though."
"Oh." Anzu sized up the girl. "Tell it to everyone."
"Everyone?"
"Me and Jounouchi and his little sister and someone else we've met." She started to lead the way back to the top deck, before stopping abruptly. How do I break this to her?
"It's alright." She must have seen her indecision. "I know about Yugi."
"Okay." Anzu started walking up the stairs again. "Who told you?"
"Kaiba Mokuba."
"Really?"
And they headed up to the top deck, swapping stories and chatting about nothing in particular.
-0-0-0-
Seto tapped his foot as he waited outside a men's bathroom in Tokushima Airport.
Twenty minutes previously, he had thrown Mokuba in there, with instructions to clean up and change into his spare outfit. Twenty minutes before that, the brothers had arrived at the airport in the city manager's 'borrowed' company car. Twenty minutes before that, Seto had bribed, threatened and bullied his way to two first-class tickets on the next flight to New York City.
Mokuba stepped back out in the kind of clothes an ordinary boy would wear, topped with his bandana. His face was much cleaner, and he'd managed to get most of the twigs out of his hair.
Seto sighed, checked his ticket, and set off to find their gate. Mokuba trailed him, dragging his emergency briefcase behind him.
Everywhere the two of them went, people gave them wide berths. This was partly due to their being a ridiculously tall teenager in a gravity-defying blue trenchcoat and a boy with twigs in his hair dragging an authentic business briefcase, and partly due to the whispers of "Kaiba," that preceded them. Because of this, they made their way to the business lounge without incident.
A crowd of noisy teenagers, most of them female, were being pushed away from the lounge's doors by security. Brilliant. Just brilliant. There must be a pop star or something here.
Seto had his own share of fangirls, and, as he pushed, shoved and kicked a path through, resolved to never go anywhere without a bodyguard again.
Upon reaching the other side of the scrum, one of the security guards came up to them. "I'm sorry, but the band are very busy and are not to be disturbed."
Seto said nothing, but produced the tickets. The man examined them, before handing them back and letting them through.
Inside, the lounge was pristine and modern. A tinted window filled one wall and overlooked the runways. Mokuba chose seats near the window, before he yawned and dozed off.
That's right; you've been sleeping rough for two nights now, haven't you, little brother? Ignoring the stares from all around him, he took off his trenchcoat and draped it over Mokuba.
Then he took out his laptop. Might as well take care of business while they ready the plane.
-0-0-0-
The first sign that they were getting close was the greeting party for their seagulls.
An escort of seagulls had surrounded the top deck since they'd left Kobe, and Shizuka, for lack of anything better to do, had named them all. The sight put her in high spirits.
It was too bad she was the only one in them.
Katsuya and Anzu were still reeling from the blow Rebecca had dealt. Shizuka herself had felt sad, but she hadn't really known Grandpa Mutou. Rebecca herself had wandered off to listen to the radio. Ten minutes earlier, she'd brought back the news that Kobe had been destroyed, and that the army hadn't been able to stop it. She'd wandered off after that. Kajiki was now listlessly fiddling with Katsuya's finger toy.
The second sign that they were near a port was the cry of "THE PHONE SIGNAL'S BACK ON!"
Instantly they were rushed by everyone else on the top deck, as they all moved to the side that had the signal. Katsuya had fallen over and Anzu was helping him up, and Kajiki was hitting the speed dial repeatedly.
Shizuka tested her own phone, and speed dialled her mother. Nothing. Just before she switched her phone off, it went to voicemail. It wasn't, however, her regular one.
"Kawai Rumiko here, currently, that is, afternoon of the second of June 2000, stuck on a train halfway between Tokyo and Osaka while the country goes to heck. Shizuka, Katsuya, if that's you, record a message. I'll be updating this every evening at seven." The message repeated.
Shizuka babbled their current situation into the phone before turning off. Katsuya patted her shoulder; he was smiling.
Crackling white noise sounded across the deck, and everyone turned to look at the bridge, where a man in uniform spoke into a microphone.
"…Ushima in ten minutes, repeat, we'll be docking in Tokushima in ten minutes…" The rest of the speech was drowned out by cheering.
Anzu danced a victory dance, and Katsuya joined in. Kajiki did freestyle, and Shizuka spun to a fast-paced tune playing on and on in her heart.
The next ten minutes passed in a flurry of packing, and then they stood, ready to greet the world, bags together, Anzu and Katsuya and Shizuka and Kajiki. Together they stepped off the boat.
And then the explosions came.
Over the hordes of screaming people, Shizuka looked to the rest of the fleet and the red hoops and golden bird who were destroying them.
For a moment she locked eyes with the Sky Dragon.
Then it screamed, and every window in the city shattered.
-0-0-0-
Seto brushing glass off his arms, checking to see if Mokuba was all right.
How dare you hurt what is close to me.
Katsuya flinching from the blast, checking his group to see that everyone was in one piece.
How dare you destroy what I hold dear.
Looking across a stormy sea, to the creature who had destroyed his life.
How dare you!
Anger boiling up in his body, mixed with denial and the urge to protect, but mostly anger, anger at having been chased for so long, anger at the loss of the Duelist King, anger for the sake of it, anger for the sake of defiance.
HOW DARE YOU!
Rage striking down to his core.
Smooth white metal.
Deep black fire.
And it all fell into place.
He whipped a card out of his deck. He didn't check which one it was, after all, how could it not be the right one?
He lifted it up to the sky, right in the face of Marik's destruction.
"Redo Aizu."
"Blue Eyes."
Vaguely, he was aware of people staring at him. But that didn't matter. He needed to defend. He needed vengeance.
"Buraku Doragon."
"White Dragon."
He quickly breathed in, ready to give the final surge of power to bring his dragon into the world.
"ARISE!"
-End Chapter-
Cliffhanger!
Aah, Rebecca Hopkins. You're so much fun to write.
Next chapter, the good guys utilise the magic system, and the flight arc ends!
I'd also like to take this opportunity to plug ZeXal. It's not as horrible as everyone's claiming it is. Really. It isn't.
R&R!