Okay, this is the last chapter of Brothers in Time. I have to warn you though, it's super long again. Read, Enjoy, and Review!

Brothers In Time, a YuGiOh! fanfic by Tsunami Storm

Chapter 9: Crazy


-Elsewhere in Sodom-

Marik approached his captives with an interested expression on his face. He had never seen such technology as was used to return Noah Kaiba to the physical world, and the White Dragon vessel was an enigma as well. Never had he seen an individual with such fair skin as hers. Her long hair looked like a silver river, and her eyes- though closed at the moment- reminded him of the sea on a cloudless day. She really is beautiful- He mused. I can see why that fool Seth is attracted to her. Then he shook his head. Am I going soft?! This girl is my prey now. I can torture her as much as I want after I take care of my useless hikari and his family for good. And those other meddling kids- He stalked off then, embarrassed with himself for even thinking such weak thoughts.


Gozaburo Kaiba sat in a marble chair that hadn't been destroyed with the city and thought to himself, So it has finally begun. Mokuba, Seto, you will finally pay for what you did to me, the man who raised you! Soon, Kaibacorp. will be under my control once again, and my real son will be my second-in-command, the man your friends call 'Dark' Seto. Seto! Mokuba! I will destroy you! As well as your twin, your sister, and my former son!


Yugi and the others raced through the ancient metropolis, searching for Marik or Gozaburo, hoping to find where the demons were holding Noah and Kisara prisoner. As they were running from building to building, a black portal opened up beside them. Out of it climbed the last person they were expecting to see: Seth. He looked around for a moment in confusion, but recovered when he spotted his cousin and his friends.

"Seth! You're all right! I'm so glad to see you!" Atem rejoiced, embracing his cousin warmly as the still slightly surprised noble returned the gesture. "I have missed you too, my k- cousin. And you, my friends. It is good to see you again." He stated, bowing to each person in turn. When his eyes fell on the Ishtars, Yugi explained, "These are some of our friends from modern-day Egypt: Odion, Ishizu and Malik Ishtar." Each one nodded as Yugi introduced them, and Seth bowed in greeting.

"Ah, so you are Malik. Seto spoke with you the night that all of this started. I must say, I particularly enjoyed your comment about the gods messing with my hikari." Seth chuckled. "Our circumstances certainly seem to suggest that they have a sense of humor."

Malik looked confused for a moment, but then remembered his conversation with Kaiba and snickered as well. "I was just trying to get him to lighten up. Even over the phone, I could tell he was on his last nerve. I didn't want him to have a mental breakdown on top of everything else. The gods know he has enough stress in his life as it is."

"Speaking of Kaiba, where is he?" Yugi asked suddenly, looking around for his friend. "I'd have thought he'd be with you, Seth."

Seth suddenly looked worried. "I do not know. We walked through the portal at the same time, so he should be here. I hope that he is not stuck in the space between dimensions!" He answered, wide-eyed.

"Nyeh, don' sweat it, pal. He prob'ly wanted ta come back where Mokuba is. Y'know, bein' dat dey're brothers an' all. Mokuba's been real worried 'bout 'im. He's been worried 'bout both a' ya, come ta tink of it." Joey reassured, putting a comradely arm around his friend's shoulder and giving him a gentle side-hug. "Now c'mon. Let's find yer other brother an' dat fiancee a' yers."


-Meanwhile-

Mokuba's 'Blue-Eyes White Dragon' [3000/2500] was the sole pillar of strength in that twisted landscape of chaos. With the simple trick of using his 'Angel's Dice' once again, Mokuba had managed to defeat his opponent's Blue-Eyes by using his own, and yet it had been a hard fight. By constantly making use of his Field card 'Oneiros', Dark Seto had managed to deal copious amounts of harsh blows to his young opponent. And because they were dueling in a realm similar to Duat, all of the monsters and their attacks were real. All Mokuba had managed to keep in play was his Blue-Eyes White Dragon and one face-down card. At 300 Life Points each, the end of their duel seemed near.

"And now Mokuba, it's over!" The villain cried at the top of his lungs. "I activate 'Call of the Living Dead' in order to once again revive my Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"

Out of the scorched earth, Dark Seto's copy of the Blue-Eyes rose up in front of him, clawing its way out of the ground. Both dragons growled at each other from opposite sides of the field, yet neither moved a muscle while they awaited the order to attack from their respective masters.

"This is madness!" gasped Mokuba. "If you make them fight now, they'll destroy one another!"

"It seems you have forgotten about my Field spell! By removing my formerly destroyed 'Dark-Sleep-Inviting Lucifer' [1500/1800] from my Graveyard, I can have this wicked sorcerer's ghost seize control of my dragon- thereby filling it with the supreme power of darkness!"

The destroyed monster's form (A man dressed in a fashion similar to the Black Magician, only in slightly darker fabrics and with a third eye on his forehead) manifested itself above the revived dragon, where it hovered in the poisoned air of Oneiros for a few seconds before hurling itself into the Blue-Eyes' head.

"And that was your final mistake, fiend!" Mokuba established with a grim expression.

His opponent did quite a bad job at hiding his anger at the young man's confidence. "What d'you mean by that, brat?"

"That your disregard for your monsters' free will has doomed you. Once its soul has been purged of the demon, it'll turn on you!" Mokuba stated.

"Purge its soul? Here, in the realm of Oneiros?! HA! Show me how you would purge it, then!" Dark Seto challenged.

"Gladly! I activate my face-down card 'Stagnation of the World'!" yelled Mokuba.

The playing field responded almost immediately to Mokuba's trap card- the menacing red clouds of Oneiros torn asunder by a veritable explosion of golden light- and in every spot that the sun's rays connected to the ground, the dark and barren grass immediately regained its color, straightened up and grew. More important, however, was the possessed Blue-Eyes White Dragon's reaction to the sudden change in scenery. The red glow in its eyes disappeared just as its ATK dropped back to 3000.

"And- as it's no longer bound to that awful spell of yours- the dragon will regain its true, pure self and won't be yours to command anymore!" The boy announced triumphantly.

As if to prove Mokuba's words true, the dragon hesitated in its attack and instead- slowly at first, but picking up pace rapidly- turned its enormous head toward its former master. The youngest Kaiba barely spotted the dark silhouette of the demonic sorcerer that had taken control of the dragon's form as it was driven out of the latter's skull. The sinister apparition convulsed in the gleaming sunlight for a few seconds before fading from existence with an ear-piercing shriek. The righteous anger that burned in the dragon's eyes was beyond description.

"No! NO! I cannot lose! I cannot lose like this!" screamed Dark Seto in a strangled voice, his confidence faltering as he stood eye-to-eye with the creature he had forced to give up its free will and dignity.

"Without Oneiros-" Mokuba explained coldly, his voice conveying contempt with every syllable, "-without the possession, it should be clear that you are not a real Kaiba and do not deserve to call yourself such. Only a real Kaiba is capable of retaining control of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. You are not."

The dragon's jaws were radiating a cold white light, which tore through the last remaining red clouds of Oneiros in the same way that the sun's rays did. Unlike Mokuba, Dark Seto could not stand the gleaming light, but there was nowhere to back off to- and before he could say one more word, Seto Kaiba's evil half had been engulfed in the searing stream of White Lightning from the dragon's maw. Just before he was completely vaporized however, he smirked and silently turned over one of his set cards.

When the light from Blue-Eyes' attack had faded, Mokuba looked over at the opposite side of the field in triumph. He had single-handedly defeated Seto's dark side! His Nii-sama would be so proud of him! As the dust cleared, however, his grin was slowly replaced by a look of shocked horror. On the opposite side of the dueling field stood his opponent, still alive and grinning evilly.

"No way! How could you survive? It's not possible, unless you cheated!" Mokuba cried, thunderstruck.

Dark Seto merely continued to smirk and held up his trap card, which he had flipped right before the attack landed. "Oh, don't tell me you've never heard of 'Strength Enhancement Drug- Super Z'! It increases my Life Points by 4000 when I'm in a pinch, and thanks to that, your pathetic lizard's attack was useless!" He laughed as his Life Points increased to 1300.

Oh great. Now what? Mokuba thought as his crazed opponent continued to gloat. Meanwhile, the Blue-Eyes White Dragon that Dark Seto had commanded flew over to Mokuba's side of the field, eager to serve the one who had liberated it. Mokuba looked at the dragon in interest. It somehow didn't seem like the usual Blue-Eyes. As he stared at the dragon's large blue eye, it winked at him. Mokuba thought, Seto?! Is that you? The Blue-Eyes silently stared back at him, but Mokuba could now see love and loyalty reflected in the dragon's gaze.

"HA! I see that Seto has chosen to join us in this fight! Perfect! Now I can kill two Kaibas for the price of one!" Dark Seto laughed maniacally, drawing his next card. "This just isn't your day, Mokuba." Dark Seto laughed. "I summon 'Lord of Dragons' [1200/1100] to the field!" He placed the card, and a man clad in dragon-bone armor appeared on his side of the field. "But that's not all-" He gloated, "-because now I'll equip him with 'A Whistle Calling the Dragon'! You already know what this does, so- come on out, my final Blue-Eyes White Dragon!"

A portal opened behind Dark Seto and the white dragon flew out and landed in front of him, seeming to shield its master from the other two Blue-Eyes. "And now, my Oneiros card returns to power up my beast, increasing my creature's ATK by 500!" His Blue-Eyes roared in agony as its strength increased as it was possessed, then it grinned threateningly over at Mokuba, who could only watch in sadness for the creature.

"You know how they say that 'Love conquers all', Mokuba?" Dark Seto asked, looking honestly curious for once. Confused, Mokuba nodded- wondering where the fiend was going with this. "Well, they were wrong! Blue-Eyes, attack! Destroy the dragon on your right and break the bond between these brothers!" he cried triumphantly, grinning evilly over at his opponent.

Mokuba gasped in horror and looked at his field once more, but there was nothing he could do to stop the attack. The burst of White Lightning surged toward the dragon and struck it in the chest. Blue-Eyes roared in pain, and Mokuba could almost hear his brother's voice mixed in with the dragon's. Blue-Eyes tried to resist the attack, but to no avail. In its last few seconds on this Earth, it looked back at Mokuba with a sad expression, as if it were saying, "Goodbye-" Then the dragon was destroyed and shattered into a million shards of light.

Mokuba couldn't believe it. Just like that, his Nii-sama was gone. He would never see him again. He gasped slowly in disbelief, his gray-blue eyes wide with shock and denial. It can't be. Seto can't be- gone- Mokuba thought to himself. No- No- NO!

"And with that, I end my turn." Dark Seto stated calmly with a yawn, acting as though nothing had happened. "Your move." He laughed, teasing the stricken boy. When no reply came, Dark Seto sighed, "Oh well, I guess you pass your turn then. My turn again!" He laughed with mocking, child-like glee. "I guess I could show you mercy. You are my little brother in a way. So I won't attack with Blue-Eyes this turn-" Suddenly he grinned evilly and laughed, "Not! I always hated you anyway, you sniveling brat! Blue-Eyes, attack! Destroy his pathetic lizard and the rest of his Life Points!"

Mokuba barely even felt the blast as his Life Points dropped to zero, still devastated from what Dark Seto had done. The dueling ring disappeared- the monsters along with it- and Mokuba fell ten feet to the ground and landed on his backside, barely even reacting to the pain that lanced up his spine from his abused tailbone.

Dark Seto had jumped off the platform and landed catlike on his feet. "This was a Shadow Game, Mokie, and you lost." He spat, using Seto's nickname to further torment the stricken youth. "However, since you're already suffering, I see no point in a Penalty Game." He mused, walking off to find someone else to torture and destroy. As he left the room, he whispered with an odd expression on his face, "Like I said, you are my brother."


-Sodom, a few minutes later-

Yugi and the others came running when they heard the unmistakable roar of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. They found Mokuba on the ground, holding his legs in a tight fetal position and rocking back and forth. When Joey asked him what was the matter and where the bad guy had run off to, Mokuba couldn't answer. He only kept repeating random words in no perceivable order. "Seto- Blue-Eyes- gone- shattered- no- monster- Seto- gone- no-"

"Aw man! What'd dat creep do ta him? He's like catatonic! 'Ey Yuge- I mean- Atem, can ya get 'im outta dis Penalty Game?" He asked, looking at his friend.

"I'm afraid he's not in a Penalty Game, Joey." Atem sighed, looking down at his young friend. "Something else has caused this, brought this state upon him. I will do what I can, but I fear that the only cure is a miracle." He stated sadly, touching the boy's forehead gently. Memories of the recent duel flooded before the former pharaoh's eyes, and he gasped in horror. "My friends, I have terrible news. Kaiba- is gone. Destroyed by his dark half. For good."

"No way!" Tristan shouted, causing everyone but Mokuba to jump. "Kaiba wouldn't go out so easily. If there's one thing I know- and admire about him- it's that he's a survivor. He's alive, I know it."

At this, Mokuba regained a bit of life in his blank eyes, but remained motionless and silent. "Well then! What're we waiting for, guys?" Téa stated with a determined glare. "Let's go find those creeps and give them a world-class butt-kicking!"


-Meanwhile, somewhere else in Sodom-

"Well? I trust that you 'took care' of things with our guests. Right, son?" A smiling Gozaburo asked Dark Seto when he walked into the room, still wearing that odd expression on his face. The young man merely nodded at his father and sat down next to the wall. "Now that Seto's gone, we only need to wait for our friend Marik to take care of the others: his hikari and the rest of the family." He stated calmly.

"WHAT?! I thought I told you specifically to leave those two alive! It was meant to be me that eliminated my stepsons! Can you do nothing right?!" Gozaburo bellowed, causing Dark Seto to frown in irritation. First Marik had resurrected this man to make up for his previous attempt to destroy Kaiba, and now this old man was ordering him around?! Not a chance. This was the last straw.

"He decided to join that loser of a brother of his in our duel. My Oneiros-powered Blue-Eyes took him out of the game. What was I supposed to do? Let that sniveling brat win?! If you wanted revenge, you should've gotten it a long time ago!" He roared back, causing Gozaburo to step back a few inches. This young man was very intimidating when provoked, not to mention he was at least a head taller than his stepfather.

Dark Seto silently created a volleyball-sized orb of 'Darkness Energy' in his palm, then started tossing it up and down like a baseball. He'd had enough of this old man giving him orders, and he almost felt the same about Marik as well. Were it not for the rule that only a dark side's creator could destroy it permanently, he would have eliminated both of his partners a long time ago. He preferred to work alone, and performed better when he didn't have someone else on his team. Backing away slowly, Gozaburo warned, "Don't take another step, son. If it wasn't for me, you wouldn't even have come into existence!" He ended up shouting with every last ounce of authority he was able to muster in the face of his insane creation.

"You act as if you have a say in the matter-" Dark Seto chuckled before he raised one finger, freezing Gozaburo right where he stood. "Which you don't." He smirked, shoving the 'Darkness Energy' ball into Gozaburo's stomach.

It took a full two minutes for the former tycoon to die, and Dark Seto stood by and calmly watched every second of it. With a final gasp, Gozaburo Kaiba breathed his last, and his associate commented dryly, "Well, I guess the Vice-President has now become President. Farewell, 'father'. I hope you find solace in the clarity of Hell." Then he walked off to find where Marik had gotten to.


-Elsewhere-

"Kisara! Noah!" Seth called as the group desperately searched through the maze of houses and various other destroyed buildings, looking for the other two members of his family. "If you can hear me, say something!" Suddenly they heard a weak groan coming from a second mine that delved deeper into the earth. "Kisara!" Joey shouted, then everyone ran toward where the sound had come from. The White Dragon Ba was chained to the wall with rusty manacles, and- even from a distance- Seth could see the extensive injuries on his fiancee's legs and arms. He ran over to where Kisara was held captive and carefully cut the shackles with his magic.

The barely-conscious Kisara fell to the floor on her hands and knees, trying to regain her breath after being suspended by her wrists for so long. She looked gratefully at her saviors and tried to stand up, but then remembered her broken leg too late and fell back with a cry of pain. Seth knelt next to the young woman and picked her up bridal style as Joey and the others looked around for the other member of the Kaiba family. The group left the torture chamber and returned to the main square where Téa had stayed with Mokuba- who was still shattered from what had happened in his duel with Dark Seto.

Seth gently set Kisara on the ground and retrieved the Millennium Rod from behind his back. Silently reciting a simple healing spell in his mind, he restored Kisara's leg with hardly any effort at all. Then he helped her to stand up. She walked over to Mokuba and put a hand on his shoulder. "I am sorry, Mokuba. My Ka was not enough to aid you in your battle. I am sorry for the confusion that I caused."

Slowly, Mokuba looked up, hardly daring to believe his ears. Wait, Kisara was the Blue-Eyes? Not Seto? He whispered, "Nii-sama is still alive? He- he wasn't destroyed?"

Kisara nodded. "I only tried to encourage you in that duel. I did not think that you would mistake my Ka for Seto. Sorry about that."

"Hey, Kisara?" Joey began. "Wat happened ta Noah? Wasn' he wid you?" He asked, looking around for the young green-haired boy.

"He was, but then Marik took him away. I do not know where, but I can still faintly sense him. He is somewhere in this city. We must find him!" Kisara replied, walking off to the entrance determinedly, but then collapsed to her knees, breathing heavily. Seth ran over to her and cautioned, "Take it easy, Kisara. You are still very weak from what that monster did to you. Here, let me help." He offered, supporting the young woman with his right arm. Kisara gratefully put her left arm over Seth's shoulders and together the two exited the room, their friends following close behind.

Suddenly they heard maniacal laughter coming from a cavern near the south end of the city. "Marik." Seth breathed, hatred and loathing burning in his eyes like the flames of Hell. As they were running, the group met up with the Ishtars- who had heard the laughter as well and were preparing themselves for the battle. Together the group of friends ran to the dark cavern where their friend and brother was being held captive.

As they ran to the area where they would face Marik, a tall shadowy figure blocked their path. The eleven heroes froze as Dark Seto stepped out of the darkness between them and their destination. He wore a patronizing smirk on his gaunt face, and a foreboding gleam in his eye showed that he would not back down without a fight- to the death. Seth whispered to his comrades, "Stay behind me, my friends. I can handle this foe."

"No you can't, Seth!" Mokuba whispered back in warning. "Only the original creator can destroy their dark side! And that's Seto! Please, I don't want you to get hurt!"

Seth smiled back at his younger brother in an encouraging way and answered, "I am Seto's other half. His true 'yami'. Just as Atem was to Yugi when he lived among you before. I will be fine." After he said this, he bravely stepped forward toward the enemy, who was still grinning evilly. I think. He thought nervously to himself.

"I see that the whelp has recovered. Guess he didn't care about his 'Nii-sama' that much after all." Dark Seto laughed, mockingly imitating the way Mokuba referred to his older brother. Mokuba silently glared at Seto's evil half with hatred as Seth walked over to the fiend and prepared for a battle of spells. "Honestly. Is this the best you can do? Sending in a weak spellcaster who just happens to resemble my weaker half, and hoping that he just might be able to defeat me? HA! Pathetic!" Then he turned and addressed Seth directly. "Your 'hikari' already tried this and failed as one of the most powerful Duel Monsters! What d'you think you could possibly do against me?"

"Quite a bit." Seth answered calmly, then gathered his energy for his most powerful offensive spell. However, he was not able to cast it, for just then something occurred that no one had expected. A strong, powerful voice filled the room- encouraging the group of eleven friends and striking fear into the heart of their opponent. "You should have known- that it is not so easy to destroy the Blue-Eyes White Dragon."

A portal opened in the roof of the cavern as a shining form descended slowly to the ground. As the being came closer to the floor, Téa gasped, "I- I can't believe it. It's Kaiba!"

The dragon warrior landed gently next to his twin, who smiled and nodded solemnly in welcome. Seto would have returned the gesture, but he was completely focused on his dark half, who couldn't believe his eyes. "It- it can't be! I destroyed you!" He roared in disbelief and anger, glaring at his good side with loathing. Seto silently returned the glare, azure flames of righteous anger burning in his blue eyes.

"You will pay for hurting my little brother, demon." Seto vowed, venom dripping from his every word. He silently drew his sword of White Lightning, and the blade crackled with ten thousand volts of pure-white electricity. Seth smiled grimly and followed suit, retrieving the Millennium Rod from behind his back and advancing on his foe.

Dark Seto started to feel a twinge of fear as the two warriors approached, and he abruptly changed tack. "Wait, Seto! You don't understand. This was all Marik's idea- yeah! He was the one who told me to duel the kid in a Shadow Game! And- and I spared Mokuba from enduring a Penalty Game! I- I can help you, Seto!" The fiend begged, looking absolutely pitiful as he did so. Inwardly though, he seethed with disgust and hatred for his good side. He had no intention of actually aiding these pathetic fools. This was all an elaborate trick to get Seto to drop his guard.

Seto scoffed. "Tch. Not a chance, you monster. I haven't forgotten about the incident where you almost killed Seth- and me- a few months ago. Prepare to return to the pits of Hell from whence you came." He threatened, stepping closer to the seemingly struggling doppelganger.

"Wait!" Dark Seto cried, now appearing to be grasping at straws. "Remember how it was when I was a part of you?" He grimaced in revulsion, but thankfully his face was still partially hidden in shadow so Seto didn't see it. "We were completely in control of everything! We were the undisputed champion of Duel Monsters! The day that that starfish-headed brat came along and separated us was when everything started to fall apart!" He stated desperately. "Join with me again, Seto, and regain the power and control we once possessed!"

At this, Seto stopped for a moment, considering what his dark side had said. "No, Seto! Don't listen to him!" Mokuba cried. "He's just trying to trick you! Seto!" The young boy pleaded, immediately seeing through the evil clone's ruse. Seto looked down at the floor and closed his eyes for a long moment, appearing to think about the past that his dark side had described. Eventually he returned his gaze to his doppelganger and replied, "You're right. I did have everything. But I wasn't in control. I could see what you were doing, yet I was powerless to do anything about it. You almost killed Mokuba because he lost to Yugi! [See the manga of Death-T or Season 0] That day that Atem defeated me- sure he stole my title, but he gave me something better. Freedom." At this, he turned back to smile at Atem and Yugi, who grinned back. "For the first time in years, I saw the light and what I had become. My loss in that duel was probably the best thing that's ever happened to me." He stated with a grim smile, causing his dark side to back up a few paces more in fear. "You've just given me one more reason to destroy you. Thanks."

Dark Seto was backed up against the cavern wall now, honestly terrified and gibbering in panic as the dragon warrior lifted high his blade and cried, "Now come forth, Blue-Eyes, and judge this dark soul with your divine power!" A second portal opened high above and behind him, out of which the white dragon soared and hovered above its summoner. Rearing back its head, the legendary beast unleashed an enormous burst of White Lightning at the being of shadows, and- with an ear-piercing, wraith-like shriek- Seto Kaiba's dark side was banished to oblivion, never to walk this Earth again.

Its task completed, the white dragon with blue eyes turned to its Ba, and he nodded once in thanks. The dragon roared happily, then flew back through the portal to its home and disappeared from sight. Seto watched the dragon go with a solemn smile on his face, then turned his gaze downward to look at his friends. All but Seth were staring at him with their mouths open, as they had never seen him in his dragon armor until now. "Nii-sama?" Mokuba whispered roughly, trying to recognize his brother behind the powerful warrior that stood before him. Seto smiled wider and removed his helmet, then knelt down on one knee as his beloved little brother ran up to him and nearly tackled him in a hug. "Mokuba." Seto breathed softly. "You don't know how much I've missed you, how long I've yearned to embrace you as a human again. I'm so glad you're all right."

"Same here, Seto! You're finally home." Mokuba answered, tears of joy running down his face. Finally, after months of worry and fear, the young boy's family was together again! Well, mostly. They still had to rescue Noah from that deranged psycho. Apparently, Seto was thinking the same thing, because he then said, "Come on, kiddo. Let's save our other brother from that freak. Malik, Odion, Ishizu-" He addressed, looking at the Ishtars, "Good luck. You're gonna need it."

Malik grinned and nodded. "Thanks, Kaiba." Then the twelve heroes ran through the dark tunnel to where Noah was imprisoned by Marik.


Upon entering the next cavern, everyone gasped in horror. This new cavern was five times the size of any of the ones that they'd seen so far, and in the center of the room stood an ancient ritual pyramid that resembled the ones that the Mayans had used in their day. On the very top of the altar stood Marik, grinning evilly and holding a length of rope in his right hand. The rope twisted itself through a series of pulleys and was tied to a wooden stake that was braced against a giant, spiked wheel. Seth gasped in dismay when he saw that Noah had been bound to the wheel of torture with thick leather bands, his head resting limply on his bare chest.

"Ahh, Fate has finally delivered to me the final piece of this wonderful game that I designed. Welcome, my guests! I have been waiting for you to arrive- and so has your precious brother!" He laughed, giving the rope in his hand a yank, removing the brace from the wheel to which Noah Kaiba was bound. With a squeaky, grinding noise that reverberated through flesh and bone, the wheel began to spin slowly, and with each turn, the bound body of the young boy was torn by a set of sharp blades that were protruding from the ceiling above the wheel itself and below it on the bricks.

"That's Sanguimancy, Malik-sama." Odion explained grimly. "Instead of using his own strength for his spells, this deranged monster uses the blood of others as the source of his power. As long as the young Kaiba is bound to that wheel and his blood flows, our enemy will be almost invincible. Ishizu and I will try to buy you some time, but our powers are not limitless- you must go up there and free this poor victim from that demented fiend!"

Malik nodded grimly, then backed up and silently returned to the shadows while his dark half was concentrating on his siblings and friends. Suddenly Marik snapped his fingers and caused the hundreds of torches to light themselves with yellow-orange tongues of flame. Immediately the room was lit up, and the newcomers were able to see the ornate carvings and reliefs that adorned the walls of the perverted temple. The scenes depicted the ancient denizens of Sodom in the act of doing unspeakable things to other humans- to their sacrifices- which they sent to their god Baal. [I made this one up too. I dunno who the ancient Sodomites worshiped, but it definitely wasn't God.]

"Stop this right now, you creature!" Ishizu shouted, turning Marik's attention to her. "Why do you do this? You have so much power already, why torture others to gain more?" She cried, staring in horror at the young son of Gozaburo Kaiba.

"Why? Because it's fun!" Marik crowed. "You're right, I don't need any more power, but the sweet music of my victims' cries and the heavenly scent of their blood is like none other to me. Would you care to join him?" He asked gleefully, creating an orange ball of flame in his right hand.

Ishizu wordlessly created her own orb of fire, this one burning with a royal purple light. Does this answer your question, savage? Ishizu thought angrily, sending her ball of flame rocketing toward her brother's dark side. Marik also commanded his fire sphere to counter Ishizu's, and so the battle began.

-Some time later-

The different parts of the chamber were alternately set aflame in flickering shades of orange or purple whenever one of the circling flames was directed there by its controller. Both Ishizu and Marik were concentrating absolutely on their respective fireballs. They chased their trajectories with their eyes and controlled their course by moving their hands in strange and artful gestures, similar to the way a master puppeteer brings his puppets to life. Each time the orbs of flames crashed into each other, a bright white flash lit the ceiling, pillars and walls, and a shower of sparks fell to the ground.

Meanwhile, Malik was making his way carefully to the wheel where young Noah was bound. On his way, he grabbed a long wooden beam and braced it over his shoulders. He needed something to stop the spinning wheel with. Looking back for a moment, his heart sank at what his saw.

His sister's powers were fading, Malik could feel it. He redoubled his efforts to get to the top, using trims and even the crumbly reliefs that displayed scenes of unparalleled perversion as his footholds. Although his movements were catlike, more than once he would have fallen had it not been for his grim determination to free Noah and end his dark doppelganger's atrocities once and for all. Frescoes broke off under his feet and his shirt was sliced apart by a sharp metal spike, which left a long- but thankfully not deep- scratch across his muscular chest. And yet Malik did not even notice the pain, so focused was he on his destination.

On at least one occasion, the two fighting flames came dangerously close to him. As he felt their heat on his back, he came into the sight-line of his nemesis for a short moment and was afraid of Marik noticing him as he dangled from the wall. Thankfully the latter was obviously too absorbed by his magical battle with Ishizu, who was- despite her limited amount of strength- still more than a match for her opponent.

Finally he leaped onto the top of the wall right next to the spinning, rattling wheel. From this distance, he could hear the heart-wrenching, weak moaning of Kaiba's tortured stepbrother. The blood from his back and front was dripping into a groove just underneath the torture wheel. This groove lead all the way to the platform's edge, from which the crimson liquid dripped down onto his dark half, who apparently had no problems with showering in blood.

Quickly, Malik used the log he had grabbed before and jammed it into the rotating wheel. For a moment he was afraid it would be crushed, yet the torture wheel was a primitive mechanism which was only set in motion by the victim's weight. Using his pocket knife, he cut through the leather straps that had bound Noah's wrists and ankles to the contraption in order to free him- and not a second too soon. From the corner of his eye, he could see that his sister had collapsed onto her knees and that her movements- just as those of her fireball- were strikingly slow and aimless in comparison to his demon's.

While he climbed down the wall with Noah on his bare shoulders, he glanced up to the fighting fires. Obviously, Marik could sense Ishizu's weakness as well, for he had just steered his missile into a sharp turn so that it was charging Ishizu's fire head-on. The two balls of flames clashed in the middle of the room- red-orange and purple lights flashing and sparks raining down- but after the gleaming light was gone, only one fireball remained circling through the room- Ishizu's.

Ishizu immediately took to the offensive. Accompanied by a howling noise that echoed through the empty halls of Sodom, her magic flame drove downward, leaving its target with no time to react or counter the approaching missile. The blast knocked Marik over and he crashed with a sickening crunching noise against the ornamented wall behind him.

"Argh. Pests!" Marik growled as he struggled to get to his feet again. His clothes were darkened with ash, but apart from that he appeared to be unharmed. Odion took no risks and maintained the shield around his family and Noah while he shouted: "Give up, fiend! Without the blood of a victim, you're powerless!"

"Are you sure about that?" Marik's eyes were gleaming with madness- even more so than they usually did- and his grin broadened until it almost stretched from one ear to the other as he drew out a long curved dagger from his belt.

"No illumination without pain." He hissed, then he drew the dagger across his own right palm. Red lifeblood gushed out of the wound and Marik moaned with pleasure as he dug his nails into the lesion, immersing his fingertips in the garnet liquid. To the obvious disgust of his opponents, he licked off a portion of the blood from his index finger, then conjured a new fireball with his left hand, this one twice as big as the one before. Sensing that Ishizu was too weakened to battle any longer, Odion stepped forward to face the monster that he had bravely suppressed for most of his younger brother's life. He quickly nodded to Seth, who immediately understood the unspoken request and created another shield around his family and the others.

Odion approached the twisted doppelganger and conjured his own fire-sphere- this one a bright green- and directed it at Marik's head, intending to defeat him once and for all. Marik merely smirked and bent himself backward, easily dodging the missile. Flipping back and onto his feet again, he directed his fireball to counter each one of Odion's movements. The blazing orbs crashed into each other at such velocity that it was hard for the others to track them with their eyes. Seth and Atem- having experienced this kind of battle before- watched the match with interest mixed with trepidation. He knew that Marik was their foe, but Seth couldn't help but admire the skill with which he commanded his projectile.

After what seemed like hours, both spellcasters were beginning to grow fatigued. Odion was breathing heavily and beads of sweat were running down his face, so great was his concentration. Marik gave no outward sign of his condition, but he grudgingly had to admit that his arms were getting tired from commanding his fireball without rest for two matches. Suddenly he grinned and only commanded his orb with his left hand, creating another fireball with his still-bleeding right hand. He shot it like a bullet at the rest of the group, momentarily forgetting about Seth's shield. Once he remembered, he growled in frustration and commanded the fire-sphere to change direction and attack Odion from behind.

Unfortunately, Odion hadn't noticed when Marik had created his second fireball, as he was concentrating on the first. Because of this, he didn't sense the second until it was too late. The ball of flames struck him in the back and he was thrown forward and fell onto the hard bricks of the altar floor, a large burn mark marring the middle of his spine.

"Odion! NO!" Malik cried, leaving the safety of Seth's shield and running at his dark side, hatred and anger burning in his eyes. He whipped out his pocket knife and charged the fiend, cleverly and carefully deflecting the huge circling fireballs with his small blade. While he was concentrating on the missiles, he didn't notice that Marik was quietly chanting a freezing spell. Suddenly he found that he was frozen in place, as were the rest of his family and friends. When its creator had been immobilized, the shield that Seth had conjured to protect his friends dissipated, unable to draw any more energy to maintain itself.

Marik smirked as he approached his light. "A valiant effort, hikari, but a vain attempt nonetheless. Thanks to the young Kaiba brat, I have more power than ever before! Did you honestly believe that you could defeat me with a simple paring knife?" He threw back his head and howled with laughter, spraying half-dried blood everywhere. He advanced on the helpless young man, gloating in his victory. "You were never a match for me, you pathetic fools! I only allowed you to progress this far for my own amusement. Now let me show you how these good people of Sodom used to entertain themselves-" Drawing his curved dagger again, he prepared to plunge the blade into his frozen good side's back.

But then something happened that no one saw coming. A harlequin-masked man dove out of the shadows behind Marik and caught the fiend in a headlock. As soon as the demon had been trapped from behind, the freezing spell was lifted from the heroes and Yugi gasped, "I don't believe it- it's Arkana, the Dark Magician user!"

Arkana looked up in curiosity when he heard his name, but then returned his gaze to his captive, who struggled fruitlessly against the former magician's hold. "You promised me, you fiend. And you broke that promise! Catherine was never there, waiting for me to defeat Yugi and the pharaoh! I searched for years but could never find her! What have you done with her, you monster?!" Arkana cried, practically strangling his former master. Hoarsely, Marik laughed, "I never had anything to do with your 'Catherine'. She's still living somewhere in France, unaware that you- her only love- are still alive. HA! If I were her, I'd have abandoned you long ago."

"She's alive?" Arkana breathed slowly, hardly daring to believe it. Meanwhile, Malik had grabbed his dark side's arms and tied them together behind his back with the leather straps that had bound Noah. As soon as Marik's arms were restricted, the cursed fireballs burned themselves out, unable to draw more energy from their creator. He then pulled the rope from its system of pulleys and bound his dark side so that he could not move. Preparing to send his doppelganger back to Duat permanently, Malik took a deep breath and concentrated.

"Wait, Malik! I- I can help you! I was the one who got you all the way to the Battle City finals! I was the one who commanded the Rare Hunters! When I was a part of you, we had everything! And we can have it again!" The demon begged, seeing no mercy in his 'weak' side's eyes.

"Not a chance, you monster. I haven't forgotten. You nearly killed my sister! Not to mention all the innocent people you hurt in Kaiba's tournament: My brother, Mai, Ryou, Joey. And you hurt Yugi when you dueled the Pharaoh!" He turned back to his friends, and addressed the former Bearer of the Millennium Rod. "Seth? May I borrow the Millennium Rod for a moment? I know that it belongs to Kaiba now, but it accepted me as its master before. It might work for this one last time." Seth nodded, then walked over to the other Egyptian and handed over the sacred Item. The Eye of Wdjat glowed when it passed to the young man, and Malik muttered, "I know that I am not your Bearer, but please lend me your power once more so that we may defeat this evil once and for all."

"Hurry, Malik-sama! We cannot hold him much longer!" Odion groaned. Indeed, Marik was already cursing wildly and trying to break loose from the siblings' grip. Suddenly Marik stopped squirming, his face grinning with sheer malice. "They deceived you. Both of them." He said with bared teeth. "Your sister and the idiot you call 'brother', they never forgave you for what you did! Isn't that right?" He asked, turning to Ishizu.

"Ignore him." Odion said with disgust. "He speaks nothing but lies, and he's not even bothering to make them original."

But Malik didn't answer. He simply looked his darker half in the eye, standing at arm's length from him- the hand with the Millennium Rod hanging at his side. Taking the young man's silence as encouragement, Marik went on. "Original? How's this for original: Destroy me, and you destroy your own soul!"

"You- filthy- liar."

The words had escaped Malik's mouth without him moving his lips, but everyone turned their gaze toward the young man.

"Was it a lie when I told you I would give you power? Wealth? Glory? When we led the Rare Hunters in Battle City, we were the most feared man of the city, remember? That which has been can repeat itself, if you once again show the courage to embrace me as a part of you! Let us work together! You and me, Malik! Just think of what we could achieve!"

"Being the most feared man alive? That's one life I do not want to live." The young Tomb Keeper said while taking another step toward his enemy. "I refuse what you offer!"

"You didn't refuse my help back then when you were a child. Remember? I was the one who murdered your fa- OOF!"

Malik's punch had been swift and hard, and Marik was caught completely off-guard when his hikari's clenched fist connected with his chin.

"You're right, you killed my father. But I am no longer the same person as I was back then. When I was a child, I had no choice in accepting you, but today things are different. Today, the decision lies with me and me alone. And I refuse you, Marik!" The young Tomb Keeper had tears in his eyes as he spoke, yet his voice was calm and clear. A familiar sound filled the air as he removed the Millennium Rod's lower handle, revealing the sharp dagger inside.

Marik's eyes widened in shock at the sight of his hikari's determination, and the tone of his voice became high-pitched and pleading as he spoke. "PLEASE! PLEASE! STOP IT, YOU IDIOT!"

Ignoring the madman's pleas, Malik forcefully drove the blade deep into his dark half's throat. Ishizu and Odion had already let go of their captured foe by now, and they silently watched as the cruelest person either of them had ever encountered collapsed onto his knees and pressed his hands against his throat in a vain attempt to stop the blood from gushing out of the gaping wound.

One last time the fiend moved his mouth as if trying to speak, but the only sound that came from his lips was convulsive gasping. Marik's bloodshot violet eyes then lost focus as he finally fell over and crashed face-first onto the unforgiving stone floor.

The ensuing silence was only broken by the distant sound of dripping water in one of the mine's tunnels. The conquering heroes had formed a vaguely defined circle around their enemy's motionless body and looked on as the darkness around the corpse seemingly came to life, engulfing and consuming Marik for all eternity. As the fiend's remains were engulfed by the dark clouds of Duat, Malik, Odion and the rest of the gang relaxed. It was finally over. The Ishtar brothers and sister returned to the rest of the group, who sighed with relief at Marik's long-awaited demise. Seth handed the Millennium Rod back to its rightful wielder, and Seto knelt down next to his stepbrother and wordlessly healed the boy's wounds with his power.

Seth raised an eyebrow at his hikari's actions, but Seto just shrugged and picked up the unconscious Noah and carried him fireman-style- that is, over his shoulder. Then the group slowly made their way out of the mines, making sure to remove any evidence that trespassers were ever there. Arkana quietly followed at a distance, not sure if his new allies completely trusted him yet. Suddenly, Yugi stopped his pace for a few moments to walk beside the former magician, encouraging, "If you want, we could help you find Catherine. I can see how much she means to you. I'm sure that Kaiba can find her somehow, with all the gadgets he's got." Seto looked back and nodded, saying, "It's the least I could do to thank you for helping us. I don't think we could've succeeded without you."

"Hey, guys? How are we gonna get back to the airport? We only have two Jeeps, which will only hold ten people. What are we gonna do about the extras? We don't have enough fuel for two trips, either." Mokuba said, worried.

"Easy. I can carry a few people on my back as a dragon. Blue-Eyes is strong enough to carry at least four full-grown people without breaking a sweat. Anyone who doesn't want to drive in the vehicles can ride on my back." Seto offered.

"Hikari." Seth addressed. "You will not need to worry about me, Kisara and Atem. We can simply use our Shadow powers to transport anywhere. We will meet you at home in Domino. I wish you all safe travels, and hope to see you soon, my friends." He said, addressing Yugi and the gang as he, Atem and Kisara walked into a portal and disappeared.

"I'm riding with Nii-sama!" Mokuba called, sitting by the still-unconscious Noah as Seto began to transform. His cape changed to snow-white wings, and his helmet morphed into the real dragon's head. His body and legs grew in size and a tail spread from the end of his spine. Unlike the first and second transformations- which were unbearably painful- this change felt completely natural, just as natural as switching one's clothes when the weather changed. No pain at all came from this admittedly intriguing morph- in fact, the sensation felt almost pleasant.

When Seto had fully assumed the form of a dragon, he lay down on his belly so that his passengers could get on. He picked up Noah by the back of his collar with his mouth and carefully placed him on his back. Mokuba then climbed on behind his stepbrother, then Arkana followed- not completely sure that Seto wouldn't make him fall off right in the middle of the desert. Seto sensed his thought, then shook his head to himself. He didn't particularly like the Dark Magician duelist, but he wouldn't do something like that. When everyone had climbed into the vehicles and the three people on Seto's back were ready, the white dragon took off into the sky as the two Jeeps started their four-hour drive back to Cairo airport.

-Hours later-

Upon arrival, Seto flew into an empty hangar and transformed back, then quickly removed his armor and stuffed it into a backpack that Mokuba had brought for him, revealing a black turtleneck and black pants beneath. Slinging the bag over his shoulder, he slipped on his sandals and left the building before some workers found them in a restricted area. Walking to the parking lot, the brothers and Arkana met up with the others- who were just getting out of the rented Jeeps. It was there that the team split up and said their goodbyes. The Ishtars were going to return home to the apartment in which they lived, and they wished their friends a safe journey back home. The group of seven people nodded- not including the still-unconscious Noah, who was on Joey's back. Then the party entered the main airport building to book a flight back home.

While they were waiting in the lobby for their plane, Noah woke up in the slightly uncomfortable airport chair and looked around in confusion. On either side of him sat his brothers, Seto and Mokuba. Seto smiled at his stepbrother and muttered, "It's all right. We beat those creeps that kidnapped you and Kisara. You can relax now. It's all over."

Noah sighed with relief and leaned back in his chair, still exhausted from that traumatic experience that he'd endured. After about two hours of waiting, the flight attendant announced that their plane was ready for boarding and the eight people turned in their tickets and boarded the aircraft bound for Domino, Japan. When the Kaiba brothers had found their assigned seats, Mokuba claimed the window seat, Noah sat in the middle and Seto was left with the aisle-seat. The CEO then reclined his chair back as far as it could go without bothering the passengers behind him and fell asleep immediately- having not realized how tired he was after the confrontation and the following trip to the airport.

-Hours later-

As the plane was flying over North America, Mokuba looked over at his brothers. Noah was sleeping soundly, his head leaning on Seto's shoulder and a smile gracing his young face. Mokuba grinned and shifted his gaze to his Nii-sama, who was also fast asleep. Seto was leaning his head against Noah's, looking so peaceful and cute that Mokuba had to whisper quietly, "Aww." Next to them and across the aisle was Joey, leaning back in his seat and snoring quietly with his mouth wide open. Yugi sat next to him, his head resting on his collarbone as he dreamed. Téa sat on Yugi's other side, wide awake and smiling at her three sleeping friends, Tristan snoring gently next to her. When Téa noticed Mokuba looking at her, she smiled and nodded to the black-haired boy. Mokuba waved quietly, then pointed with a grin at his two brothers. Téa snickered quietly when she saw the sight, then echoed Mokuba's comment, mouthing, "Aww." Then returned to her original position in her seat.

-The next day-

When their plane landed in Domino airport, everyone was glad to be home, finally free of the threat that had been hanging over their heads for weeks. Every one of their friends and family members was waiting to greet them at the airport, and- as they embraced their friends- Yugi sighed, "There's no place like home."


The End

*Sigh*Finally done with this chapter! That took forever!

HUGE thank you to Araghast for helping me with Mokie's duel and with Dark Seto!

When Seto said that his dark side had almost killed Mokuba, I was referring to the manga/Season 0, where Mokuba and Yami battle in Death-T 4, the Capumon level. The room was designed to trap the loser in their worst nightmares, but Yami pulled Mokuba out at the last second. Aww, he does care!

Thanks to all of you who reviewed, Favorited or alerted this story! Cookies for everybody!

Well, see you next time!

God Bless!

Tsunami Storm