And back to being tardy. Sorry guys, I suck. :(

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The billionaire's footsteps resonated in the empty hallway as he walked. Something wasn't right. The people he came across were familiar faces. The employees of his central saluted and congratulated him on his latest successful deal. Still something wasn't quite right. Like he'd forgotten something. Something really important. And that didn't sit right with him. Frustrated he shoved his hand in his pocket and pulled out his smartphone to check his schedule of the day. Though his memory was usually extremely reliable, he always took notes just in case. Everything for today had been checked out.

'Maybe I promised something to Mokuba and forgot?'

But that didn't feel right. Finally, he reached his office. Closing the door behind him, he sat down at his desk, and bringing his hands together, got to his thinking position. What was bugging him so much? Today was an average day, from the looks of it. He never forgot things, it was unfamiliar and unsettling to suddenly be bothered. He looked behind him. The sun was setting, he probably should head home. Suddenly his phone rang. It was his brother. It wasn't unusual for him to call whenever Seto failed to get home when he said.

"Don't worry, Mokuba. I'll be home soon. Whatever I forgot, you can remind me..."

A deep chuckle silenced him, and a modified voice responded. "Oh, you won't have to bother, Mr CEO. Your brother is much closer to you than you think."

Now this felt familiar. That anger rising inside him, like an electrical current rushing through his blood, made him him rise from his seat. Whoever had taken his brother this time was going to pay, like all the others before.

"Who the hell are you?"

"You'll find out very soon."

"I'm warning you, bastard. I don't give a rat's ass who you are, but if you do anything to my brother, I'm going to destroy you. Trust me, you're far from the first one who's pulled that stunt. And like all the others, you'll regret it for the rest of your life.I'll only ask this once. Where is Mokuba?"

The man on the other side chuckled again. "Right next to me, as you can probably hear." Indeed, the youngest Kaiba's voice could be heard in the background, protesting. "I have another guest waiting for you. Best not to keep them waiting."

"Another guest?"

"Hurry up to the roof, Seto. I'll give you five minutes before I order my guys to start breaking fingers."

The instant the call ended, his body hurried out of the office and to the elevators. But his mind was haunted by something else. Seto. The kidnapper had called him Seto. No one called him that aside from Mokuba. And Kisa occasionally. Who the the hell could this be? The hair on the back of his neck stood and he felt cold sweat in his back. The only other person in the world who could call him that was dead. It couldn't be him. The elevator stopped and the doors opened, leading to the roof where the choppers usually landed. But there was nothing there. Aside from three men dressed in black, all wearing ski masks to hide their faces. At their feet, on their knees, two figures. One with a thick black mane, and the other, a mess of tricolor hair. No. No! Why her? No!

"Seto!" shouted his little brother. "Help us!"

Reflexively, he took a step further, but the moment he did, two of the man pulled the hostages back to their feet, and pointed knives at each of their throats.

"Stay right where you are, boy," ordered the man in the middle, who's voice was familiar. "Try to behave if you don't want their blood to redecorate your landing platform.

"What do you want, you bastard? Who the hell are you?"

"Come now, son. You know exactly who I am." When he removed his mask, Seto's eyes widened in shock.

"How are you here? You're dead!" he shouted, losing it.

This wasn't logical. This wasn't possible! You can't come back from the dead! And yet, he stood in front of him, exactly how he last saw him. Gozaburo Kaiba. His adoptive father who'd made their life a living hell.

"Have you learned nothing from what I taught you Seto? Never trust anything other than your own two eyes. You heard about me committing suicide in the papers and your associates. But you didn't even bother to check. And that was your greatest mistake. Didn't you find it odd that there was no body?"

Yes it had. In the back of his mind, always, was this shadow of a threat still bothering him. He blocked out with his work. But it had always been there. Why hadn't he made sure that this threat had been taken down for good, like he did with all the others? Why was the one he apprehended the most, the one he let slide? He clenched his fists trying to contain the rising frustration. Damn it.

"I took you in. I raised you, fed you, put a roof over your head, payed for your education, and you repaid me by stealing my company."

"Don't make me laugh, old man!" he shouted, gritting his teeth. "You treated me like your own personal slave, to replace the son you lost and make a puppet out of me to carry out your filthy legacy. You used my brother as bait to make me do your dirty work. You manufactured and sold weapons of mass destruction to countries at war and profited off of that! You are and always have been a deluded psychopath."

"And today is the day you're going to pay for that, you little ingrate." A smirk stretched out across Gozaburo's face. "Today, I'm taking something from you."

This was bad. It was clear the old man wasn't here to negotiate or discuss anything. No. He wanted revenge, pure and simple. And with Moki and Yugi in his grasp, he held all the cards. For the first time in a long, long time, Seto felt helpless. No. There had to be something he could do. His pride would take a blow, but nothing was worth risking either of them getting hurt.

"You want the company back?"

"I don't give a damn about this company anymore, Seto. It was my pride and my biggest achievement. After you stole it from me, you changed it entirely. It means nothing to me now. What I want is for you to suffer, and feel what I felt when I lost everything."

Gozaburo stepped closed to Yugi and grabbed her chin roughly, getting a frightened whimper out of her.

"I hear from this one that you like games, son. So let's play a little."

With a snap of a finger, the two men pushed Yugi and Mokuba to the ground on their backs, holding them by the throat. The two grunted in pain, making Seto's eyes darken in purge rage. Yugi looked at him from the ground. She said nothing but her eyes begged. Begged for help, as tears streamed down her face.

"Here's the deal, Seto," continued Gozaburo, pulling a handgun out of his jacket. His mirk widened, resembling the fangs of a wolf. "Pick one."

"What?"

"Pick one," repeated his adoptive father. "I'll shoot whichever you pick in the head, giving them a painless death. The other, will be tortured until their body gives in. Or their mind, whichever breaks first. And of course, I want you to watch the whole thing."

"YOU SICK SON OF A BITCH!"

"Choose Seto. If you don't, no shortcut to the other side for either of them. You have three minutes."

Yes, Seto choose. Choose quickly.

"W-Where the hell are we?" asked Tristan, with reason.

They were standing on what seemed to be a path made of rock. They couldn't see the end of it on either side, but it was pretty thin. And all around them, everything was infested with purple shadows. When they tries looking over the edge, there was nothing but purple down there as well.

"Screams Shadow Realm to me alright..." said Tea, shivering. "Ugh, this place gives me the creeps."

"Why are we here again?"

She threw him a bewildered look. "Are you serious? We have to get through this place to get to Yugi remember, numb-skull?"

"Oh right, yeah. Sorry," he replied rubbing the back of his head. "How did I forget that?"

"I have a better question," interrupted the brunette, looking around. "Where are all the others? Didn't they jump before us? They should be here."

"Actually, I think the weird part is us being together. Kisara told us that this place was going to test us, right? She didn't say anything about it being a collective test."

"Then, why did we end up together?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Maybe because you haven't let go of my hand since we landed."

Looking down, she saw that she was still hanging on to his arm. Her face reddened a little and she let go. "Sorry, I freaked out when we jumped."

"Wait, it might not be a bad idea. If we stick together, we might have a better chance at countering whatever's waiting for us. I don't know about you, but I'm not as confident at the two hot-heads."

Point taken, Tea grabbed the hand he was offering. Like hell she'd admit it, but she felt the same way. Kisa, Joey and Kaiba, they all had something about them that made them seem strong in a way. She didn't think she had that. And boy, was she grateful that her pointy-haired schoolmate was with her right now.

"So, which way?" he asked. "Both sides look identical."

"Why do you ask me?"

"Well, well, what do we have here?" suddenly echoed a clearly not human voice.

"Please tell me you heard that too," whispered Tea, digging her nails into his skin.

But Tristan was too busy staring to even notice the pain. Transparent, ghost-like figures moved around them, staring at them and whispering.

"A pair? It's been forever since the last ones," commented another.

"You're... you're the lost souls that haunt the realm..."

"Bingo. You're really not the first who thought they could escape the trials by staying together. It won't help you," said one.

"In case you forgot, you entered the realm with your bodies as well. It's boring when we can't play with your minds, but we're always ready for strays."

"What are you talking about?" asked Tea. "What do you want?"

Instead of replying, they giggled like little kids and backed up. Then a cracking sound was heard and the two teens, slowly turned around. Only for their eyes to widen in horror. Wolves. Not really, but wolf like creature with four red eyes each were staring and growling at them. They didn't have to imagine what was going to happen to them, if they didn't move.

"Better get running humans," the souls taunted, before chuckling again. "Let's see who survives the longest on our little race track."

"What's the matter Kisa?" asked Tea, as the two friends walked side by side to school. "You look distracted?"

"I don't know..." replied the class rep, staring into space. "I feel like I'm forgetting something important."

"You? Forget things? I don't think so. Your brain has the storage capacity of a satellite. That's why you're so good at everything school related. Do you have to go help out at the orphanage after school or something?"

"No, that's not it. It feels more important than that..."

The brunette shook her head and bumped into her friend's shoulder. "Come on, stop overthinking already. You're making my brain hurt and I feel like Joey when that happens. Ugh, not a good feeling."

Maybe Tea was right. Maybe she was just imagining things. After all, there was nothing more important to her than being there for the kids of the Yamato orphanage. And for her friends of course, and she was sure they would remind her if she'd forgotten something. And yet... Why did she feel like something big was missing. Shaking her head, she tried to chase away the strange impression. Once in the classroom, their classmates saluted her, smiling and welcoming. They asked how she was doing, if she needed help with anything and to each she smiled and replied. She really loved all of them. When she managed to get passed them and reach her desk, she was about to tend to her duties when one of the boys sitting on the edge of the window got everyone's attention.

"Check it out. Kaiba and Muto are at it again."

Yugi and Kaiba? That seemed to stir up the class, as almost everyone stood up to go to the window. Curious, she stood up as well and went to see. Outside, sitting at one of the picnic tables, were indeed the two game brains. On the table was a checker board. As they played, Kaiba smiled and that made something pinch her heart. It was that smile. The one he had one when she'd first seen him. Back then, when she didn't even know him or Yugi. That smile that had stayed with her since. The one she'd desperately wanted to put back on his face no matter what. But there he was, smiling at Yugi. Her heart hurt again, and she placed a hand on her chest. She knew. She already knew what she was to him. So why was she feeling like crying? She was used to it by now. As if the sight burned her eyes, she turned away. What was wrong with her?

"Disgusting, isn't it?" said one of the boys, shaking his head at them.

"Yeah, totally gross."

"If I have to keep watching, I'm gonna barf."

That was weird. They liked to gossip like every teenager, but why were they cynically smiling at those two like that? It was strange. Everyone liked Yugi, and everyone was scared of Kaiba. No one would dare talk like that, even behind his back. What was up with them?

"What are you guys talking about?" She asked, shocked by their behavior. "That's really rude. Not to mention, mean."

"Come on, Kisa," said Tea, having that same look on her face as the rest of them. "You don't have to do that anymore. You lost."

"What?"

Her friend turned to her, looking at her with those same resentful eyes. And yet she was still smiling. Miho, another of their classmate turned to her, an identical look on her face.

"You're always the nice one, the mature one, the responsible one. You take care of everything and everyone. You're so reliable, you're kind and you put everyone before yourself."

"And yet," said Joey, who was sitting on a desk nearby. "For all of that kindness, ya get nothin'. Ya always come second. Always the last serve, always the loser."

"All you've ever wanted was for everyone around you to be happy," continued Tea. "But then, you found something you really wanted. Oh, if only you could've had that one thing. The only thing you've desired for yourself. But it was taken from you. All your efforts, all that kindness, all that good behavior, for nothing..."

When had they all moved around her like that? She felt like the only sane person left in a zombie movie! "W-what are you guys saying? You're talking nonsense..."

"What was it all for, Class rep?" said a student.

"Yeah, Kisa," continued another. "What was it all for? You deserved what you wanted, but you just didn't get it because it was taken from you."

"Ya don't have to play good anymore. Ya have a right to be angry. Ya should be angry."

"You should take something from others for a change," said Miho. "You should try to take him back. He should be yours. You deserve it."

"We understand, class rep. We know you're angry, deep down. We know you're in pain."

"Why not make it go away? Let yourself be happy. We'll help."

"Yeah, we'll help. You deserve that much."

Their words struck her like lightening. Not so much from their harshness as from their accuracy. She had always been there for everyone. When anyone needed help she was the first to respond. And yet... she didn't get the one thing she'd been longing for. Even when she'd realized how much her short friend meant to Kaiba, she'd never said anything. Not even cry when she was alone. She'd done nothing. She looked out the window again, looking at her them. Something boiled in her veins. Why couldn't she get what she wanted? She was just as deserving as her friends, after all. What stopped her?

You're more deserving. You can have him. You can have everything.

You've given enough. Time to start taking.

All her muscles tensed. An emotions she'd buried deep deep in her heart were rising, and threatening to make her head explode. Sadness, anger, regret, jealousy... She was only human. She had a right to feel those. But she started shaking violently. The fear. The fear was there too. So the voices continued.

We understand. You're in pain. You don't want to hurt your friend.

But it takes sacrifices to get what you want. You know that better than anyone.

Just this once, don't be the sacrificed one. Be the winner.

Yeah, that sounded about right. It takes sacrifices to get things done. Two hands landed on each of her shoulders.

"It's okay Kisa," said Tea. "We'll help. All of us. We owe you."

"Don't sweat it," added Joey. "Just let us give ya a hand."

"Don't touch me, you fakes."

Everyone around backed away surprised, when she turned around and threw the most pissed off glare she had in store. She'd rarely felt this kind of anger. It was pure rage, infused with loathing and scorn.

"What's wrong, Kisa?" said the one looking like Tea. "We just want to help you. We're your friends."

"It's pointless playing dumb. I remember why I'm here," she said. "I'm in the Shadow Realm, and you are not my friends."

They all remained frozen for a moment, before they started laughing. But their laughter was nothing human. It sounded like the cry of a hyena mixed with the scream of a banshee. Their eyes turned black entirely and their teeth stretched to fangs.

"Impressive," hissed one, who seemed more irritated than surprised. "How did you escape the inner whispers? No one ever does."

"Kisara said you lost souls used our own weaknesses to mess with our heads. But you picked the wrong one to use against me."

"Impossible," snorted another, hissing as well. "That was the deepest regret in your heart. There's no way you could've tricked us when you didn't even remember you were in the Shadow Realm in the first place!"

"That was your mistake. I know how this place works, now. You lot prey on a person's regrets. Regrets are destructive and have a butterfly effect of affecting a person's choices forever. That's why it's so efficient. It gives you the opportunity to generate fear and terror in the heart of anyone who falls for your illusions. Except for me."

"And what makes you so special?"

"There is something much worse sleeping in me. Instead of taunting me with my regrets, you should've preyed on my fear. Compared to that silly regret, it could tear me apart. It controls me and everything I do. I could probably go crazy just thinking about it."

She shook as she said that, rage still shaking her. Thought she wasn't sure the lost souls wearing the faces of her friends and classmates. But they seemed confused. They weren't used to having someone passing the trials unmask them to easily and lecture them on how they should've done things. Kisa had never hated anyone before, but she was certain now that this was the angriest she'd ever been towards someone. She probably did hate those creatures, with all her heart for trying to make her fall prey to her own self. One by one, she eyed the creatures around who took steps back again. Ignorant beings. They knew nothing of her true pain.

"There is nothing I fear more than losing his happiness."

"Don't make me laugh. You'd sacrifice everything, just so that this guy gets what he wants? Do you have no consideration for yourself? Do you enjoy being always stepped on?"

"You told me I deserve what I want because I'm always selfless. But you're wrong. I'm much more selfish than I look. The reason I became friends with Yugi was to get close to him. I became the class representative to keep an eye on him." Tears streamed down her face but she kept her head high. "My friends, my classmates... they were my tools. What do you think of my selflessness now, monsters? "

She said all of that, as she realized it. How ironic. She'd always done her best to make everything work the best way possible. Only to see that in the end, it was for herself. She thought of her short friend. She'd save her, because that was the least she could do for her. Quickly, she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"I've had enough of this. Out of my way. There's someone I have to find."

Like walking on eggshells! Will they get out of their predicaments? Keep reading!

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