Author's Note: Yes, I know canon gives Yami's original timeframe as being during the Eighteenth Dynasty, but there are reasons I take it as the 21st for my fanon. Too many reasons here to explain but drop me an email sometime you want to know why.
Disclaimer – Yu Yu Hakusho, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Ronin Warriors (a.k.a. Yoroiden: Samurai Troopers) and all related characters, events, and concepts belong to their respective owners. I get no monetary benefit from this. My benefit is the enjoyment of dealing with beloved characters. If you recognize him/her/it, I don't own him/her/it. If you don't recognize, I might still not be the owner but it'd be best to ask. I'd appreciate it, anyway. ((grin))
"The Spellfire Saga – 1: Shards"
by DragonDancer5150
Chapter 11 – Round Two
The scent of breakfast would surely wake the last of Nasutei's guests who had not already wandered into the kitchen or one of the bathrooms up- or downstairs in her secluded manor home. She had invited everyone to stay the night after the trip to the Spirit Realm so that they could remain together for safety and to work out the final details. Kuwabara was the only one who had needed to go home first to check on his lady, Yukina, whom he had left with his sister when Botan called him to duty.
The Elemental Ronins were regular guests in her home, and the Seasonals visited quite frequently as well. Shuten especially came as often as his duties would allow, as he and Nasutei were unofficially – by any Human Realm legality – married. The wedding had taken place at the castle in the City of Desire a number of months ago. Everyone had been there and was very supportive – including Ryo although, to this day, she knew that he still had feelings for her. Shuten and the others, they discovered, had to live in the Nether – 'Demon' Realm, she reminded herself. If they were in the Human Realm for too long, their true ages would begin to catch up with them. Something about the Demon Realm and the powers of their Armors sustained them but only for so long as they remained within those supporting ambient energies. A week away was about all that their bodies could afford.
She glanced over with a smile at Shin as he helped cook for fifteen people. The two together had often cooked for all nine Armor-bearers, plus herself and Jun, so four more were little trouble – though she wondered if the short, standoff-ish youkai, Hiei, would be eating with them. Maybe he doesn't eat 'food' like we do, Nasutei mused. Like the youja. To her knowledge, he had not even slept indoors. Yusuke had laughed that he would likely find a tree to camp in, and Nasutei got the impression that he was not really joking. Yusuke and his two friends had themselves "camped" on futons in the living room, as the six bedrooms upstairs were already spoken for. Nasutei and Shuten had taken over the master bedroom after the death of her grandfather during the war with Arago, Professor Yagyu having been the previous owner of the Yagyu manor. The room next to that had long before been turned into an office and library, housing Nasutei's computer and all of hers and her grandfather's research as well as his museum-quality collection of armor, weapons, and other Japanese artifacts. The other three Seasonals had thrown down futons in there. Ryo had the bedroom in the opposite corner of the house, Byakuen reclining on a rug on the floor. Jun slept in there, too, on a futon when he was over. Shin and Shu shared one of the other rooms, Touma and Seiji another. The last room had already been prepared for an old friend of Nasutei's whom she would be picking up from the airport in a few days – she was coming to live with Nasutei at least until she got herself on her own feet again – so Nasutei had asked that the room be left alone.
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Kurama wandered into the kitchen for the second time that morning, still toweling his long hair dry. He had been among the first up and had offered to help with the meal, but Nasutei had assured him that she and Shin had things under control, instead offering to get him supplies to take a bath, which he had accepted with gratitude. He slid into a chair at the table next to Rajura, joining Seiji, Jun, Ryo, Shuten, and Naaza. Seiji had Nasutei's laptop computer on the table and was checking Duel Monsters game sites on the Internet for information on a so-called "god" card named Obelisk, if only to kill time until everyone was up and moving.
"Hey, Seiji-Big-Brother, what's that mean?"
Kurama leaned over to see what it was at which Jun was pointing. "It looks like an invitation for the current tournament."
Seiji's brow furrowed. "This is interesting. It talks about, 'Gather where ancient duelists and card engravings are.' There are two links at the bottom of the page. One takes you to the official Battle City website. The other looks like . . ." He rolled the mouse over the link and clicked.
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"Heh-heh. Hey, Torrent, how do you share quarters with that rumbling-thunderstorm of a roommate?" Anubisu stepped off the bottom of the stairs just then and glanced to his left in the direction of the living room. "Ppfft! And I thought HardRock was loud, but you can hear that Kuwabara guy snoring from here!" Kurama only gave an apologetic grin and shrugged. "What're you looking at, Halo?" Anubisu leaned over Seiji's shoulder.
Following a few steps behind, Shu grunted in mock annoyance at his fellow's first comment. "Hey, I'm not that loud."
Seiji glanced up at his one-time nemesis. "It's the website for the Domino City Museum, though I don't know what it has to do with Duel Monsters." He was over halfway down a very long homepage.
Anubisu nodded. Last night, the Elementals had explained all about the card game and the tournament taking place at the moment, which everyone agreed had to be the "grand competition" part of Rajura's dream. He recalled the account of Kurama's cover for the fight with the possessed armor right before everyone had met up in the Spirit Realm.
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Shu, also, had been looking at the computer screen as Seiji searched the site for a clue as to its connection with Battle City. Seiji had reached the bottom, and was scrolling back up, glancing the site over again before moving on. "Hey, wait! Seiji, go back down a little. There!"
"What? The Egypt Exhibit? 'A presentation of murals documenting the Twenty-First Dynasty of Egypt's pharaohs'."
"Yeah. Click on that. . . . I just got a feelin' about it, okay?" Shu persisted in spite of the dubious looks he was getting. On the new page, he pointed emphatically at a photo of one of the artifacts on display. "I knew it! I was right. Look at the eye-thing in that carving."
Nasutei glanced at the screen as she set a bowl of fruit on the table. "Interesting. I would say that's the Eye of Horus except that it's facing the wrong way, if I remember correctly. I wonder if they flipped the image by accident somehow before posting it on the website."
Kurama shook his head, musing softly, "There are two Eyes of Horus, if I'm not mistaken, right and left - "
If Shu heard him, he gave no indication, speaking up at the same time to answer Nasutei's last comment. "Nah, I doubt it, 'cuz the eye on Mutou-san's puzzle thing faces the same way."
"Mutou-san? Mutou Yugi-san, from school?" Ryo queried.
"Mm-hm."
"He had disappeared last we knew, remember? Yesterday afternoon," Shin put in, his tone worried. "I wonder if Kaiba-san ever found him."
"Friend of yours, HardRock?" Rajura commented at the same time.
"Yeah, sorta, I guess. He's two years ahead of me, but we have a class together." Shu explained in summary the encounter of two days prior, focusing on the sensations he had gotten when he handled the heavy gold pendant.
Kurama released a long, weighted breath. "I . . . may have some insight on that."
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Kurama had hoped not to draw undue attention to the youth, especially with Hiei not having brought it up himself in conversation last night. Still, if there were any correlation between this boy's secret, the possessed armor, the tournament, the spy concerning whom Koenma had dragged the company back to his office before releasing them for good, and the mysterious power Hiei seemed to have attracted to himself . . . Kurama sighed. If there were any connections at all, he owed it to the group to lay them on the table. "Let us wait until everyone is assembled. I . . . must admit that even my friends Yusuke and Kuwabara are unaware of this information as of yet."
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By the time an hour had passed, the rest of the occupants were awake and gathered in the kitchen/dining room. The makeshift extra table and added chairs Nasutei had produced for last night's late dinner were again utilized as the combined company sat down together, Kurama even having managed to talk Hiei into joining them. The anti-social youkai compromised by standing apart, leaned against the wall with his arms crossed and a mug of hot tea in hand. The requisite phrase of "We humbly partake" echoed around the table – Nasutei and Shin responding, "Think nothing of it" – and the company dug in. Kurama insisted that everyone eat at least a little before he started his report. Then, with care, he explained all that he and Hiei knew of the seven Items and the mysterious human spirits possessing at least two – with a possible third entity of unknown species attracted to Hiei as evidenced by the matching energy signature to those of the Millennium Items. It had taken action three times now and all in one day – twice in the fight at the castle in the City of Desire and once on the street here in Domino, when Hiei had been blasted into the building. Anubisu frowned but did not comment.
In spite of what Lord Koenma thought, the company agreed with Hiei's assessment – this boy warranted watching. The possessing shard of Arago's incorrigible Armor had chosen now to play its card, so to speak, during this specific tournament, and one of the few seriously favored to win was also the possessor of a very powerful relic. Perhaps there was no correlation, but no one wanted to take chances. Besides, as Touma had pointed out, Mutou himself – or his friend, Bakura, who possessed two of the Items – might be in danger from the company's foe.
"We don't know what the powers of these things are," the Warrior of Wisdom had pointed out, "but if I was a villain and I was aware of these magic items, I'd try to claim them myself to use against my enemies."
"Yeah," Shu breathed. He met Shin's eye, recalling his friend's earlier comment. "Sorry I forgot to mention, but . . . actually, I checked on Mutou-san right before dinner last night. I thought I remembered hearing once that his grandfather owns a store called the Kame Game Shop. I looked up the number, and I was right. Mutou's grandfather – or that might have been his dad – said that he had gotten home okay. Still . . . "
No debate was needed to reach a consensus on the next course of action. The company would return to downtown Domino, the heart of Battle City, keeping a discreet eye on Mutou and his friends until the shard of Arago made its next move, one way or another. As Koenma had opined, it was unlikely they would have to wait long.
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"That slacker should have been here ten minutes ago. I've got Duels to win."
Yugi grinned at Mai's mock complaint as he glanced up at the clock on the pole behind them. The truth was, she was rooting for Jonouchi's success in this tournament as much as he was. Still, she was right. The two had met in the town square as promised. The only one missing now was Jonouchi. He turned back, beginning to worry, when he spotted a figure with a thick mop of sandy blond hair jogging down the street. "Here comes Jou-kun now."
"Hey, guys! Long time, no see," Jonouchi called.
Mai turned as Jonouchi pulled up to them. "Hey." She held up a hand, and he high-fived her. "Still in the tournament, Jonouchi-kun?"
"You bet!" Jonouchi replied, excited. "I'm already the proud owner of two puzzle cards."
"Then I guess I'm twice as good." Mai held up four clear plastic cards.
"WHAT? You got four puzzle cards?" Jonouchi demanded in utter shock.
For a moment, Yugi feared Jonouchi would collapse to the pavement following his dropped jaw. "Awesome job, Mai-san! I've got three so far." Yugi decided not to mention the other two cards of Mai's that he was holding for her, the ones Shu had left behind, as each held out his and her cards for inspection.
"Aw, man! I got the least!" Jonouchi groaned, almost collapsing under his own melodrama. "How'm I ever gonna make it to the Battle City Finals!"
Yugi encouraged him. "Don't worry, Jou-kun. There's still plenty of time, and I know you can do it! At least it's not like Duelist Kingdom where we needed ten counters to get to the finals. This time we only need six."
"Well, none of us are going to get to the finals if we're standing around here," Mai pointed out.
"Mai's right." Ever the first to bounce right up from any setback, Jonouchi turned to head out, full of confidence. "Watch out, 'cause I'm about to do some serious catchin' up!"
"Good luck and miss me, boys!" Taking a different direction, Mai hesitated just long enough to blow them both an audible kiss over her shoulder.
"See ya!" Yugi called after her.
Jonouchi shrugged. "Yeah, we'll see if the Goddess of Victory's in a generous mood today, eh? Later, Yug!" He jogged off.
Yugi paused to put his hand on the Deck box on his hip, anger welling as he recalled the warning he had received the previous afternoon through mind-controlled Pandora – beware the Silent Puppet. He swore aloud both to himself and to the spirit of the Puzzle currently withdrawn in the room of his soul, conserving his energies, "I know one of Malik's Hunters is after us, but I'll be ready for him."
Heading off as well, he recalled other new things he had learned within the past twenty-four hours. He had witnessed schoolmates exhibit possession of strange armors and stranger powers. He and the spirit had spent some time last night discussing what they had seen and what it could portend, and if it had anything to do with the Millennium Items. If nothing else, the debate kept both their minds off the possible consequences of the end of this tournament, if only for a time. However – he sighed heavily to himself – whatever was up with his friend Shu-kun and the companions with whom he had stood yesterday evening, Yugi needed to forget about all of that for now. He and the spirit had too much at stake in this tournament to let outside things distract them and keep them from Dueling at their very best. Shu would just have to handle things on his own for now.
Still, Yugi really hoped that Shu and his friends would be all right.
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"Aah!" Shin retreated on instinct even as Shuten's and Kurama's quick reflexes had them hauling back on his windbreaker. He had been the first around a corner where the company could hear a great commotion, only to find himself gaping up at a nightmarish wall some fifteen feet high and stretching all the way across the street. Dominating the center of the wall was a female face with inhuman green eyes, fangs peeking out from beneath her upper lip. Violent red hair flared out to merge into the blood-red, fleshy substance of the wall itself, the support structure of which appeared to be formed of jointed bones, each "pole" tipped with a sharp talon the length of a man's arm. Before it stood a tall, purple-skinned demon with a flaring red cloak, great red-and-purple wings, and a wicked sword of yellow alloy. Facing these so that their backs were to the companions stood two equally bizarre and out-of-place monsters. One was a muscular dragon whose mauve scales were fine enough to make the creature's skin seem silky smooth, while powerful limbs rising off the backs of its shoulders supported wing-leathers of sea-green. The rough scales of its companion matched the purple demon in hue, with spreading leather wings and lots of spikes – including one between its shoulders where its neck should have been! The creature did have a head – two, in fact . . . one on the end of each arm. A rolling darkness roofed the field on the side of the wall and demon.
"What in the names of the gods . . . ?" Naaza breathed.
Rajura was shaking his head. "They're illusions."
"Uh . . . are you sure?" Kuwabara muttered. They looked real enough to him, though he did not sense either Yoki or Reiki from any of them. Come to think of it – he did not sense anything at all from them.
Ryo shook his head with a rueful chuckle. "He should be. His Armor, AridSand, specializes in mirages and illusions of all kinds."
Yusuke matched his sardonic grin. "Sounds like you speak from experience, Sanada."
"There's our illusionist right there." Seiji pointed to a preteen girl standing behind the dragons and apart from the gathered crowd, sporting a Duel Disk on her left arm. "Guess we can't see her opponent because he's behind that nightmare wall."
"Wall of Illusion."
"Hm?"
"Oh, heh . . . sorry." Shu shrugged with a sheepish glance around at his companions. "That's the name of the Monster. The other three are Swordstalker, Element Dragon, and Twin-Headed Behemoth. Looks like the other duelist has a field magic card in play, too, called Yami, the Darkness."
"Ah, man!" Kuwabara marveled. "The stuff me an' Yukina-san an' my sister watched yesterday was chump-change compared to this."
Kurama nodded. "The participants playing today are the survivors of yesterday's rounds, so naturally they will be quite strong."
"Yusuke!"
"Kazuma-san!"
"S'up, guys?"
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The company turned at the sounds of female voices. Kuwabara was the first to voice a reaction, much to Yusuke's and Kurama's chagrin. "Yukina-san!" He all but danced over to meet Keiko, Yukina, and Shizuru.
"Dude!" Shu marveled, leaning over to Yusuke. "Didn't know Kuwabara-kun's voice could pitch that high." Yusuke only groaned in response, planting his face into one hand.
Keiko offered Touma a warm grin. "Hi, Hashiba-kun. I didn't know you and Yusuke know each other."
"Actually, Keiko-chan, we kinda stumbled across each other yesterday."
Yusuke bristled a bit that this guy should know his girlfriend, but Keiko recognized the brewing bluster and cut it off with a wave of her hand. "Yusuke, don't. Hashiba-kun's in my Calculus class at school."
That deflated the balloon. "Oh . . . right. Yeah, whatever."
Shizuru cocked her head at Kuwabara. "Well, little bro? You gonna acquaint us with your new buddies?"
Introductions were made all around, followed by a synoptic debriefing of the current string of events. Then, Kuwabara asked, "Hey, sis, you remember the guy that won the Duelist Kingdom tournament? Have you seen him around today?"
Shizuru shrugged as she took a long pull on her cigarette. "Mutou-kun? Yeah, caught a brief glimpse of him with his friend and that Barbie-doll from the semi-finals in the town square about an hour ago, but they split up and left before we got there."
"Do you think he might be in danger, too?" Yukina asked, worried.
"Well," Nasutei reasoned, "he has already disappeared once, though that may or may not have anything to do with this armor we're looking for."
"Let's split up," Ryo suggested. "We can cover more ground that way."
The company separated into three groups. Ryo led a group that consisted of Kuwabara, Yukina, Seiji, Shuten, and Nasutei. Touma took Yusuke and Keiko, Anubisu, Shu and Jun, while Rajura, Shin, Naaza, and Shizuru followed Kurama. Due to the telepathic mindlinks afforded to the Ronins through their Armors, the three groups would be able to contact one another with ease and keep each other abreast of their findings. No one was surprised to note that, by the time the company shuffled into subdivisions, Hiei had disappeared.
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Hm . . . as usual, you separate yourself from the rest, swordsman. It is a dangerous habit that you practice. And you seek the Puzzle Master, do you not? All right – I will let you do my legwork for me.
Author's Note: Please be sure to check my bio page for any updates, etc. Thanks!
"Itadakimasu" – "I/We humbly partake" is one rough translation of the phrase. Survival Japanese from Tuttle Publishing explains it this way: it is a "set, institutionalized phrase used when accepting food, drink, etc. Japanese mention this just before starting a meal even when it is not someone's treat; in a sense it is the Japanese way of saying grace."
"Doo itashimashite" – "Think nothing of it" is a response to the above if it /is/ someone's treat. Also translated as "Don't mention it" or "You're welcome."