I read a while ago, that Kazuki Takahashi based Yugi's costume design on Edward Scissorhands. I could not resist giving that a mention in this chapter.

Warnings: Character death, violence and a little bit of swearing.

Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh or Edward Scissorhands.


Broken Dreams

Chapter 30 Hunted.

Hidden deep in an underground chamber beneath the library, sat thousands of ancient scrolls and documents, guarded by the tomb keepers. Many listed ancient ritualistic spells that were considered far too dangerous, and were therefore being kept secret so that they could never fall into the wrong hands - to be misused.

Ishizu had warned Shadi that they needed to be prepared for the worst case scenario, so Shadi had been working late into the evening researching demon ascension, and also looking for clues in the ancient text, as to how they might defeat Zorc and close the Shadow Realm – should the demon be successful in its quest to reap havoc upon mankind.

There was no phone signal underground and Shadi had not received the recent message Ishizu had left for him to contact her, or the messages her brothers had also left.

At around eight in the evening, Shadi had found the information he was looking for; on rituals to raise demons, rituals to destroy demons and rituals on demon ascension. He photographed them and then rushed upstairs so that he could mail the text to Ishizu. As soon as he reached ground level, his phone beeped with messages asking him to ring Ishizu urgently, ring Rishid, and the final message from Marik; to meet with him urgently at an inn called Desert Oasis, on the outskirts of Cairo, where they would stay until their flight to Japan, two days from now.

Shadi hurriedly forwarded the documents to Ishizu, before ringing Marik and confirming that he was on his way immediately.

He gathered up his papers and prepared to leave his office. He dare not go home first, just in case Seto Kaiba was waiting for him there. There were security guards and security cameras in the library, so he felt safe inside. However, once he was outside, he would feel vulnerable.

The main doors were closed at this time of night and Shadi's car was parked in the staff car park at the rear of the building, which meant he would need to use the rear fire exit.

Scurrying towards the exit, he saw a guard standing with his back to him. He felt a sense of relief at spotting another person.

As he reached the exit door, he caught a glimpse of the guard's hands and face. Unlike a native Egyptian, they were pale. Shadi was sure that there were no foreigners working as guards here!

Before he had time to work out that something was wrong, the guard pounced. Shadi felt strong hands around his throat as he was pushed backwards against the wall. Seto Kaiba's face was inches from his and Shadi very quickly realised that he was not staring at the face of a human, but was face to face with a monster.

"Where are the Scales," Demon Seto hissed. Shadi could smell blood on his breath – he must have killed the guard and taken his uniform. How did he not notice that the uniform was too short on Seto's gangly body?!

"I.. I.." Shadi coughed at the tight grip and could not answer, so Seto released his grip slightly. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Seto's eyes fell to the duffel bag hanging on Shadi's shoulder, causing Shadi to flinch. Seto smirked.

With one sharp twist, he snapped Shadi's neck and allowed his body to fall to the floor.

Bending down, Seto picked up the bag and opened it. Inside were the scales. He then spotted the mobile device that Shadi had been clutching in his hand but had dropped when he fell. Picking it up, Seto noticed it was security password protected. He shrugged, no big deal, it would not take him long to hack into it and find out who Shadi had been messaging.

Carefully supporting the body, Seto exited the building. Spotting a security camera surveying the parking area, he pulled out a jamming device and pointed it at the camera, rendering it useless for the next five minutes or so. He quickly found Shadi's car and placed the deceased man in the passenger seat. A quick search of Shadi's wallet revealed his address.

Upon arrival at Shadi's small two story home, in a quiet suburb of Alexandria, he parked under the car port. It was secluded and dark so there was no possibility of being spotted as he carried the body of Shadi inside the house.

Doubting the police would bother to investigate that fully, he laid the body down on the floor at the foot of the stairs to make it look like an accident. He had been wearing gloves throughout, so there was no possibility of leaving any prints as evidence. He then proceeded to hack into the mobile phone he had picked up earlier.

With the phone accessed, he quickly found what he was looking for: Marik was hiding out at an inn called Desert Oasis. He was glad that these humans were so stupid as to leave him a trail.

::::::::::::

Yugi shaved, cleaned his teeth and took a long hot shower when he arrived home from their failed attempt at capturing Anzu and Atem. He was feeling pretty wretched and his head ached from where he had banged it.

Once undressed, he also noticed the ugly bruising on his arms where his brother had grabbed him.

Getting the dried blood out of his hair was not an easy task. He had to take extra care around the small cut, and as he gently worked the shampoo in around it he could feel where a nasty bump had now formed. "Ouch" he hissed when he pressed a little too hard.

Exiting the shower, he dried off and dabbed his hair dry carefully. As he did so his tummy started rumbling with hunger.

He quickly dressed and went downstairs to where his mother was waiting to serve up the chicken soup she had saved from last night.

"You look tired sweetheart," Hana informed him as he sat down at the dining table.

"Yeah, I will feel better for something to eat." He smiled at her weakly as she placed the bowl of soup down in front of him. "Thanks Mum. Where's Grandpa?"

"He's gone to his room to rest. I'm afraid all the activity has left his back feeling a bit sore, so he decided not to open the shop today. Oh! And I have called the glazers to come and replace the broken window," she informed him.

Yugi devoured the first bowl of soup quickly and went back for seconds. His mother topped up his bowl with a slightly pained expression, which Yugi noticed.

"Are you okay Mum? I know it looks bad, but we will get them back, I promise." His mother looked close to tears.

"Yami's manager rang to find out why he wasn't at training today. He has an important game at the weekend and is likely to be dropped if he doesn't show up tomorrow. His place in the Japanese team, for the match against Australia, could also be at risk too. He has worked so hard for this and was so excited to be part of the national team. I didn't know what to say. I mean... how do you tell people about all this?!" his mother said tearfully. Yugi did not know what else he could do so he hugged her.

"I think I'm gonna go to my room and rest for a while. It might be a long night and I will need my strength if I'm to find Anzu and Yami."

"Are you sure you should be going back there tonight?" Hana was worried.

"We have to Mum, it's the only lead we've got."

"Take care Yugi. I don't want to lose both my boys." She lovingly stroked his cheek and kissed his it. He might be nineteen, but he was still her baby.

"It's going to be okay Mum." Placing his hand over hers, he smiled sadly. He hoped he was right.

Once in his room, he rang Jonouchi to tell him that Anzu was back in Domino, and that Yami was now with her. Jonouchi was horrified when he heard what had happened.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?! I would have helped ya!"

"We thought we had everything under control last night, but it all happened so fast. This is the first chance I've had to call you."

"We shouldn't be wastin time! We gotta go back now! We gotta find em Yuge?"

"I already have a plan for tonight, but... well, It's kind of sensitive, I don't really want to get anyone else involved."

"You kiddin me?! I ain't letting you put yourself in danger Yuge. I'm coming round right away to discuss this plan!" He did not see Yugi cringing on the other end of the phone.

Fifteen minutes later, Yugi heard the roar of Honda's motorcycle as it pulled up outside.

The plan Yugi had hatched, did not involve taking anyone else with him. He had not even told his grandfather or Mahado that he intended to go to the strip club tonight. He did not know exactly what Anzu's performance would entail, but he imagined it would involve nudity. And there was no way he wanted anyone close to them seeing Anzu dancing like that! Of course, it was a risk, but one he was prepared to take for the sake of Anzu's dignity. He knew Mahado would disapprove of his actions, but he reasoned that it would be worth it. He would tell them he was not feeling well enough to go with them to stake out Anzu's apartment. As soon as they had gone, he would sneak out to the club. Once there he would allow Anzu to take him somewhere private and use the Puzzle to capture her. Mahado could then free her from the demon's control. In his own mind, it was a great plan!

As soon as the trio sat down, Hana brought them tea and pastries, which Jonuchi and Honda devoured before Yugi could even get a look in!

"Okay Yugi, spill?! What's this plan you have hatched that doesn't involve anyone?" Jonouchi mumbled with his mouth full.

Yugi visibly cringed in response and his face flushed. He really did not want them to know what Anzu was doing at the club, but he knew they would wring it out of him anyway, so he might as well tell them.

Composing himself, Yugi explained to them that Anzu was working as a dancer at the Liquid and Envy. The club's reputation was well known locally and his two friends were shocked that Anzu was working there. Jonouchi almost spat his mouthful of pastry across the table.

"Geez Yuge! I can't believe Anzu would dance somewhere like that! She hates those sort of places! No way I'm letting you save her on your own, I'm coming with ya!"

"Of course he wants to go. He wants to leer at all the scantily clad waitresses and dancers?" Honda smirked.

"Meh, heh..." Jonouchi stopped laughing when he saw the pained look on Yugi's face.

Honda saw it too. "Sorry Yugi. I forgot about Anzu being a... a."

"Pole dancer! Lap dancer! Stripper! It's okay Honda, you can say it!" Yugi clenched his fists. "My girlfriend is being forced to dance in a strip club and gets leered at by men," he said, with disgust evident in his tone.

"Yugi, you don't have to do this! Why not let us rescue her for you? You can go with Mahado to find Yami," Jonouchi offered. Yugi shook his head.

"I didn't want to tell you guys because I don't want you to see her like that. Anzu will never get over the humiliation if she knew you had seen her.. you know.." he shivered at the thought. "But if I want to save her I have to put that aside. You guys can't fight a demon on your own and deep down, I know I can't either, but I have faith that inside her heart the real Anzu will not want to hurt me, so I at least have to try."

"Yeah, but what if she can't stop herself hurting you? You need us there to watch your back Yugi," Honda stated firmly. Yugi grimaced slightly as he thought about their offer.

"I suppose," he sighed. "But just promise me, that once we have saved her, you won't talk about it, ever again?" Yugi pleaded.

"You can trust us Yuge. We will spare Anzu's blushes," Jonouchi promised.

"Yeah, we won't judge Yugi, I promise. We are Anzu's friends and we want to help her," Honda reassured. Yugi heaved a sigh of relief.

"Thanks guys. It means a lot that you care." He still felt a knot in his chest, but felt better now that he had his friends watching his back.

Sugoroku came into the kitchen. "What are you boys chatting about?"

"Nothing much," Yugi tried to sound casual. "Has Mahado been in touch yet?"

"Hmm," Sugoroku eyed him suspiciously. If he were Yugi he would be planning to go to the club tonight. "Not yet." He scratched his beard. "I thought I might suggest to him that we focus our search on the club, tonight." He noticed Yugi cringe slightly. "Anzu works there so we stand a good chance of finding her there. And hopefully she can lead us to Yami."

"Y.. yes Grandpa, we were just saying that we should go there to find her," Yugi squirmed in his seat.

"Jolly good, because for one moment I was worried you three were planning to go without me." He picked up the remote control and turned the television on. "The news is about to start."

Yugi was not sure if he should be relived or annoyed that his grandfather wanted to go to the club with him. Yugi really could not stand the thought of his grandfather seeing his girlfriend like that! Yugi had watched a porn video called Dancing Girls, and some of the things they did in the video were really dirty! Yugi remembered how turned on he had been by it, and how mortified he was when his grandfather had found it and confiscated it – with a big smirk on his face! The thought of Anzu doing anything like and Grandpa seeing her filled him with utter horror.

Their bottom jaws nearly hit the floor when they saw the local news headline: Tetsu Ushio, the 21 year old son of Domino Police force's Chief Traffic Officer, Daisuke Ushio, has been found brutally murdered in the red light district, near the eastern dockland. His body was found by workmen, who had been called to clear out a blocked drain, earlier this afternoon. Police are not disclosing a possible motive at this stage, however there are indications that it could have been some sort of ritualistic gangland killing, since his body appears to have been drained of blood.

Police also say that Mr. Ushio is a very large, heavy individual and it would have taken two or more people to lift him and place him inside the drain, which is situated approximately fifty metres behind a club known as the Liquid and Envy. The police have closed the club along with the red light district tonight, while investigations are carried out. They are asking for anyone who was at the club, or in the vicinity the night before last and may have seen anything suspicious, to come forward. Your identity will not be made public and will be treated with the strictest confidence.

The colour drained from Yugi's face. Jonouchi was the first to notice. "You okay Yugi? Anzu might not be responsible!"

"Who else could it be? You heard the report. The demon in Anzu might pick up on her memories of him, and if Ushio tried anything..." He trailed off.

"So what do we do now?" Honda asked. "Club's closed tonight which means we need a new plan."

"We need to inform Mahado of this development." Sugoroku picked up the phone.

::::::::::::

"Can you smell the blood pumping through their human veins?" Anzu whispered over her milkshake. The pair were in a cafe inside the shopping mall.

"It's disturbing," Atem scowled, staring into his chocolate milk.

"You need to make a kill. It will not disturb you as much once you have," she hissed.

"I don't really feel like drinking this milk. Can we get our shopping done and go home?" The craving he was experiencing was making him feel nauseous.

"Come on?!" She grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet. "I know what would look good on you," she winked.

"I feel silly," he grumbled as he crept out from behind the curtain of the changing room. Anzu gasped appreciatively

"Yami! You look gorgeous," she purred at the sight of him in tight fitting leather trousers, black buckle up tank top, with studded boots and accessories of leather belts, wristbands and choker. "Here?! This jacket will go great with it." She handed him a studded leather bikers jacket.

"I look like Edward Scissorhands," he pouted sulkily, making Anzu giggle.

Armed with their shopping, they made their way back to the car.

"I'm thirsty," Anzu stated, winking at him.

"No! I won't do it, I can't," he replied.

"Don't be a wuss," she teased.

"We can't kill here! We're in a crowded mall, we would be seen!" He protested.

"You're scared!" She pulled him away from the car park, towards a building closed off to the public. They entered an abandoned office block, ignoring the sign warning of danger, following a recent earthquake.

"You're mad!" He really felt unsure about this.

They crept up the stairs to the first floor.

"I found a meal here the other day. Homeless people have been using it as a refuge. Shhh..." She pulled him behind the wall when she spotted two men sitting sharing a bottle of cheap vodka. Another person was wrapped up in a dirty sleeping bag and was laying down, possibly sleeping.

Moving with stealth, the pair of demons attacked. The men were too drunk to even react. The third man was already out cold and did not even feel a thing, when, with Anzu's encouragement, Yami snapped his neck.

The pair strolled back to the car as if nothing had happened and drove back to Anzu's apartment.

"Shit! What's going on here?" Atem was nervous when they turned the corner to see the police had cordoned off the area. Anzu calmly pulled over when an officer indicated them to stop.

"What's going on officer?!" She asked politely.

"I'm sorry Miss, but the area has been closed off due to an incident."

"What has happened?! I live here and I need to get into the car park underneath the apartment block!"

"Okay Miss. I can let you through in a moment. But I need to ask you one or two questions. There has been a body found in the drainage system behind the Liquid and Envy. Did you see anything suspicious in the last couple of days?"

"What?! Oh my god! No! I work at the club!" She gasped and placed her hand over her mouth in horror. Her acting was good.

The officer took her address and name – which she gave as Tea. Atem gave his name as Yugi. Since he was a local football hero, he was worried that the officer might recognise him, but the officer didn't seem to notice. He advised them that they may be asked to give a statement and allowed them through.

Once they were safely inside her apartment, Anzu slumped onto the sofa and sighed. "Shit! I was hoping they wouldn't find him so quickly."

"Find who? I'm guessing you killed whoever it was?" Atem sat down next to her and pulled off his new boots, which were rubbing his heels.

"Ushio," she replied. "I killed Ushio. Bastard asked for it."

"No way! Shit! You killed Ushio?!" Atem shook his head in disbelief. "Look! You shouldn't worry. There's no way they will suspect you. Ushio was over six feet and weighed half a ton!"

"Oh, I'm not worried. If anyone says they saw me leave the club with him, I will just say I told him to get lost and then went to the pizza bar. Paolo will vouch for me."

Since Anzu would not be going to work this evening, the pair settled down for an evening in.

::::::::::::

Leaving the house quietly, Seto went to the station and boarded a train to Cairo. It was going smoothly so far and he did not anticipate any problems obtaining the Rod. His only real concern was getting the two items he had liberated, out of Egypt. The Eye was easy to keep hidden, but the other two items were much larger and would be harder to conceal in his luggage. Because of his status, he was seldom subjected to security checks, but since he did not have his private jet and was having to travel on inferior 'public' transport, he would needed to be prepared, should they decide to check his luggage. Forged documents should be enough, failing that, a little mind control on whoever questioned his possession of the items, would have to be exercised.

Still, he would not allow that minor obstacle to deter him, the Rod was his for the taking.

Being cooped up in a room at the back of the pub was boring for Marik. It was clear to him that the landlord did not like him very much and was only letting him stay as a favour to his older sibling - whom he was friends with. Marik had been given the store room to hide out in, there was no window and it was dank. It also smelled of stale beer and cleaning fluid. The makeshift bed in the corner, comprised of three pallets pushed together, with a moth eaten camping mattress wrapped in a blanket, which was scratchy and uncomfortable. The pillow smelled so horrible that he chucked it across the room.

"It's only for two nights," Rishid had told him, but for Marik, it felt far longer and reminded him of when their father forced them to live secretively, in that god awful underground tomb!

His only company in his store cupboard, was his Harley Davidson Sportster, which he had insisted on bringing with him so that he could do some maintenance work on it. Rishid had agreed as it would keep him occupied.

He had been warned not to go outside on his own, but with temptation sitting there... Sod it! He had made up his mind that a little evening ride out into the desert would help stop him going stir crazy!

Seto Kaiba found the pub with ease. He went inside and settled down at the bar for a beer. The bar was fairly crowded, with people having an early evening drink and something to eat. He scanned the bar but there was no sign of his target. Seto drank his beer and then decided to check outside for any out buildings or easily accessible windows or doors. Marik was in here somewhere!

Ignoring Rishid's advice, Marik pushed open the fire escape and wheeled the Harley outside as quietly as he could.

Pulling on his helmet, he started the engine. It roared into life with a deep throaty rumble.

Across the street, Seto heard the familiar sound of the Harley Davidson engine and was instantly drawn to it. There was no mistaking that it was Marik. The flowing silver, blonde locks sticking out from under the helmet gave it away. He could not see the Rod, but presumed that Marik would keep it concealed.

With the Rod safely stowed inside the pannier, Marik revved the engine before riding off down the main street towards the motorway. Seto needed to think quickly before he lost him.

When he spotted two men standing at the side of the road arguing, he acted quickly. Following an altercation, one of the men had got out of his car and had left his engine running and drivers side door open while he angrily confronted the other man. Seizing his chance, Seto jumped into the car and drove off in hot pursuit of Marik. The pair were so deep in their argument that they did not notice until the car drove off.

Checking the rear view mirror, Seto smirked at the sight of the man running along the road shaking his fist and yelling.

Once out into the desert, Marik lost all sense of time – it was just him and the open road.

As the sun dropped lower and started to set, it cast a red glow across the desert. Marik loved this time of day; when the sun began to set and the air grew cooler. The roads were much quieter too, meaning he could open the throttle and enjoy the sense of freedom his spirit gained. He was not aware that he was being followed.

Turning off the main road, he decided to head towards an oasis, where the desert tribes would often gather at night.

It was only then that he noticed the dark blue Mitsubishi Lancer behind him. It seemed to want to overtake him. Driving in Egypt could often be dangerous and Marik was out for a nice relaxing ride and did not want to get into an argument with a motorist. He knew he was more vulnerable on a bike and did not wish to get side swiped by an impatient car driver, so he moved over slightly and waved the driver past.

This was better than Seto had hoped for. With a quick swerve, he clipped Marik's back wheel.

There was absolutely nothing Marik could do to stay upright and the impact came as a complete shock. The bike twitched violently and flipped, sending Marik crashing into the sand bank at the side of the road. He bounced a couple of times and saw stars as his head made impact with the ground. He groaned and tried to move. Luckily, he did not seem badly injured – although, his right arm felt as though it might be fractured.

To say he was furious was an understatement. The bike was about ten feet from him and he was so angry that he wanted to use the Rod on whoever it was that had just hit him. However, they were probably long gone.

Removing his helmet, he cursed and staggered to his feet, oblivious to the pain in his arm. As he ran over to his bike to check how badly damaged it was, he saw that the car had stopped. Fearing for his safety, he grappled with the lock on the pannier to retrieve the Rod so that he could protect himself.

He gasped when, in the rapidly fading light, the silhouette of a tall man appeared over him.

Grasping the Rod in his uninjured hand, he turned to look and let out a gasp when he saw that it was Seto Kaiba looming over him.

"Ah, so that is where you were hiding the Rod. Hand it over?"

"No! Get away from me beast. I won't hesitate to use it," Marik threatened, pointing the Rod at Seto, who just laughed.

"You can certainly try! It won't do you any good." Not giving him a chance to begin chanting a spell, to activate the Rod's ability of tearing the demon from its host, Seto lunged forward and swiped the Rod from marik's hand. This superhuman speed caught Marik off guard and he barely had time to even acknowledge what was happening let alone react. It did not help that he was still a bit dazed from the crash.

"What do you intend to do beast?" Marik hissed defiantly.

"First of all, I intend to steal your motorcycle. Then I will return to Japan to pay a visit to your sister."

Assuming he was a dead man anyway, Marik decided to fight back and lunged at Seto. Grabbing him by the collar, he tried to wrestle for control of the Rod. "There is no way I am letting you steal the Rod and my Harley... Demon!"

"Pitiful human!" Seto swatted him away, using the Rod as a weapon. The club end of the Rod caught Marik on the side of the head, stunning him momentarily and causing him to land painfully on his fractured arm when he fell.

Looming over him, Seto pulled the dagger from the sheath of the Rod. "I should kill you."

"Go on then, I dare you! It will be quicker than letting me starve to death in the desert or becoming food for the jackals and vultures." He hoped his bluff about a slow and painful death would appeal to the demon. Seto need not know that the desert was his home – he had grown up in the desert and knew how to survive here.

It seemed to work because Seto smiled evilly and re-sheathed dagger. Without saying anything, he turned and lifted the bike upright and examined it for damage. It appeared to be fine, apart from a slightly dented petrol tank and a few scrape marks. He put on Marik's helmet and climbed aboard.

"Don't think about following me." He held up the car keys and grinned. "If you can find the keys, you can get home." He pointed the key at the car and pressed the button to lock the doors, he then hurled the keys into the sand dunes. It was nearly dark now, leaving Marik almost no chance of finding the keys until morning.

"Fuck you Kaiba!" Marik shouted as kaiba rode off. The sound of the Harley's engine gradually faded, leaving Marik in total silence. Marik suddenly shivered and noticed that the temperature was starting to drop. Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he checked to see if there was any signal. As he expected, there was not. "Shit, shit, shit!" He kicked a stone angrily. Ishizu and Rishid be angry at him! And Mahado already thought he was a waste of space and would probably be completely unsurprised that he had lost the Rod and the motorcycle Ishizu had bought for him as a birthday present.

His only option was to find those keys, get back to civilisation and alert Rishid so that they could warn Ishizu. God was he in trouble!


I hope you liked this chapter. I was a bit disappointed that the previous chapter only got two reviews. I was pleased with the last chapter myself, but was a bit worried that no one else saw it the same way I did! Reviews also make me smile, give me encouragement and help me to make the story better.