Good Day Readers! I only own Kylie and Katherine Hope along with the unique cards within their decks and whatever other OCs decide to crop up. Also this was originally written in dubbed so some chapters may have some dubbed dialogue remaining because I like it. Also italics symbolise another language not Japanese, I'm follow the Manga's timeline year speaking because it's easier for me. Thank you to alexc1209 and The Jingo for your reviews.
I would appreciate any responses that you have, please enjoy
Chapter 37: - Soul Room
"Bakura woke up to watch over Mokuba's body for us so he's safe," Jounouchi reassured. I only nodded in response to those words, I was still rather worried about the dark energy that Bakura had been expelling earlier but chasing down Pegasus was much more important at the moment.
The six of us ran out of the castle onto a turret passageway with a tower standing off in the distance, which rose above much higher than any other part of the castle with Jounouchi reassuring Yugi that Pegasus couldn't have gotten far ahead of us.
"You sure this is the right way Kylie?" Honda asked. I was a little more focused on running towards the destination that Pegasus would have retreated to so it took a little while for the question to actually process through my brain but when it did I looked back at the brunette boy.
"Trust me it's right," I reassured. My head snapped back to the front however a sudden exclamation from Anzu caused all of us to stop and we all proceeded to glance back at the brunette girl who was still staring ahead of us. "What is it? We're running out of time!" I exclaimed. For the girl to stop so suddenly I really hoped that she had seen Pegasus or something else that was important like Seto's body.
"He's probably there…" Anzu spoke. The three boys were rather confused by what their friend had said as she gestured towards the tower that stood near us. "At the top of that tower, Pegasus' secret room. But my memory's not clear and I thought I was dreaming," Anzu admitted. She walked towards the edge of the passage we were running across with Honda coming to stand next to her.
The brunette boy admitted that he had been suffering from a similar thing as the girl but they ended up confusing us so Jounouchi demanded an answer although I settled a hand on his shoulder causing the blonde to calm down from his agitated state as they explained that they had sneaked inside along with Bakura and in there the evil spirit of the Millennium Ring appeared once more.
"That tower is a private room that only Pegasus is allowed to enter. It's also where we're going," I revealed. Turning around I began to continue on my way towards the tower however there weren't any other sounds of people following me but I kept walking hoping that they would come following after me.
"Hold it. How do you know so much about this place and Pegasus?" Jounouchi asked. His tone was rather accusatory but I could understand why, a deep breath was pulled into my lungs as I tipped my head backwards to look up at the sky.
"It's because Pegasus is mine and Katherine's half uncle. Our father had a… disagreement with his own so he took his mother's maiden name when he was eighteen as his legal surname," I admitted. It was probably best that I not turn around to look at their faces and instead I decided to continue on to make sure that Pegasus would release the three souls as he promised and then the sound of feet following after me came meaning that they were coming with me.
"If the spirit of the Ring is back then that's a problem we've got to deal with," Katherine admitted. My sister was correct, we couldn't leave such a dangerous being running around especially if he was using the body of one of our friends to do so, the only problem was how to deal with such a thing since I didn't know for sure.
"No, that evil spirit showed up and tried to take the important information that Mokuba had on Kaiba Corporation but I took the Ring and tossed it into the forest around the castle," Honda revealed. That would at least explain why the dark energy had been occurring rapidly since the spirit would probably have been fighting with its' powers in order to claim the boy for that information.
I had a problem with Honda's solution though, if that spirit was able to crawl its' way back from the graveyard that he had been banished to then I doubted simply throwing the Ring away would be able to solve the situation but unless something actually happened to confirm my suspicions about that Millennium Item then I couldn't do anything about that.
Silence stretched over us as we continued to run towards the tower which I was rather grateful for as I couldn't deal with the questions about our familial connection to Pegasus however, I most certainly did not approve of the tactics that my paternal uncle had used in this tournament and I was fully intent on getting answers from him even if I had to start punching the crazy card maker to get them.
A surge of magic washed over the castle but not enough to stop me from running only enough for me to confirm it was a Millennium Item but since all of them I had seen felt familiar then I couldn't tell exactly who it was but a quick glance denied that it was either of the bearers who were in my company causing a small frown to form on my face.
Unexpectedly a more powerful surge of magic shot across the castle making it feel like a punch had flown straight into my stomach resulted in me stumbling to my knees and scraping the palms of my hands with a small cry confirming that Katherine had also felt the magical surge of energy.
"Hey are you two ok?" Yugi asked. I shakily pushed myself up as I turned to see Katherine on her side also looking shaken by what we had just felt which caused my lips to twist into a snarl as I forced myself up fully onto my feet although I swayed slightly until Jounouchi clamped a hand onto my shoulder in order to keep myself from collapsing again.
"We're fine but we need to keep moving. Now," I snapped. That magical surge had been strong enough to knock me and Katherine to the ground, that mean whoever or whatever the source was, was very powerful; as if intent on making things worse for us a sharp masculine scream went up causing my dizziness to immediately drain away as I looked over towards the tower from where the scream had originated.
"Uncle Pegasus!" Katherine exclaimed. I shouldn't have been surprised by the term of endearment she used for the man despite everything, but knowing who the scream had come from only got me to start running even faster towards the tower with the others following after me rather quickly however by the time we got inside it was apparent that we were far too late to do any help.
Crocketts, the thug who kidnapped Mokuba and some more of Pegasus' goons were carrying the unconscious form of Pegasus down the steps with the others firing questions at Crocketts hoping for answers however Crocketts didn't give us any answers probably because he didn't know anything any way only that Pegasus had been attacked, so I glanced up at the stairs.
"His sanctuary might hold clues, let's go," I softly insisted. That scream and then seeing my uncle's unconscious state wasn't something I could cope with at the moment so I focused on something I could handle, like getting answers for Yugi about the trapped souls, without another word I started ascending the steps with the others following after me.
I guided them up to the top – only – floor which held a simply décor of a table, a painting with fabric draping around the room and a single window that was closed; the painting was of a beautiful blonde woman with gentle grey eyes, an equally gentle smile on her face as she sat on a chair staring out from the canvas, Katherine walked over and gently traced her hand over the impressive painting.
"That lady sure is pretty," Jounouchi commented. A small frown pulled at my lips as Katherine dropped her hand from the painting when Anzu called our attention over to a book that she identified as a diary although a card fell out which Yugi revealed to have a picture of the same woman on it as well.
"That's Aunt Cyndia, she i- was Uncle Pegasus' wife," Katherine revealed. The others proceeded to look at her as confusion swirled on their faces but Anzu admitted she couldn't read all of the diary because it was written in English since Pegasus was technically American so I held out my hand to the brunette girl.
"I'm family, so I should read it and I can translate for you guys," I insisted. Anzu's expression softened as she understood my reasons whilst everyone gathered around me to listen to the words that Pegasus had written with the hope that it would give us some insight into the inner working of the man's mind.
"To the one who defeats me and becomes the new Duelist King and my beloved nieces, why did I create Duel Monsters? In order to explain this mystery I must talk about this angelic woman… Pegasus must have written this just in case he lost and he knew I'd demand answers." I spoke. From the words that I had read it was clear that he was talking about Cyndia but how was she connected to all of this, she had died when Katherine was only nine before Duel Monsters was created.
"Cyndia, that was the name of this young woman, she was my lover and she passed away from this world when I was only seventeen. It had been fourteen years since I met her, my father was a wealthy man who managed casinos in Las Vegas. In the evening important people assembled for parties and at that time I met the daughter of my dad's friend, Cyndia, we were attracted to each other, my half-brother George would tease me merciless for my instant attraction to her," I read.
The mere mention of my father caused a small smile to quirk on my lips, it definitely seemed like something he would do, teasing his own brother relentless for something as simple as a crush on a pretty young girl, he did it to me enough even though he was my father.
"We have always talked about our dreams, I dreamed of becoming an artist and to travel to many countries. We swore the two of us would live together, soon after I turned seventeen Cyndia died of an illness. For months I stared at the blank canvas of my heart and pushed away the comfort of my brother and his own family," I read more.
Those days had to be to darkest ones I remembered, Pegasus would lash out at everyone who tried to comfort him and shut himself away, sometimes we though he was dead with how long he would be gone from our lives before miraculous coming back for a short time only to vanish again soon afterwards.
"At that time, I had heard about how according to Ancient Egyptian belief, souls lived on after death, perhaps I could meet Cyndia if I used the technique handed down in Ancient Egypt. I visited Egypt with that purpose in mind, in a certain village in Egypt I met a young man, this man knew why I had come to Egypt and told me to leave immediately as I wouldn't heal in that place. But I did not heed this man's words, for if he knew why I had come here, then surely he must know of a way for me to reunite with Cyndia… or so I thought," I read.
This man… I wondered if he was perhaps the one that had appeared in the painting that sat alongside Cyndia's in the dining room we had eaten within on the night before the final duels began, I was also curious as to how he knew about Pegasus' pain.
"I followed him to a passage that seemed to lead to the bowels of the earth, yet still I followed and my footsteps led me to a hidden crypt apparently buried beneath centuries of civilisation. It was then that I was dragged further in to the crypt and the man who revealed he guarded these Millennium Items forced me to undergo a trial to see if I was worthy to wield a Millennium Item or die as a result. He forced the Millennium Eye upon me and for a moment I saw her beautiful face only to learn it was an illusion granted to me by the Eye to see beyond this world; I should have once again been engulfed by despair but seeing Cyndia for that brief moment gave me more hope that I thought possible," I continued.
"It might have been lingering affection but I wanted to see Cyndia again, later I became aware of Kaiba Corporation's Virtual Simulation System, in order to materialise Cyndia's card Kaiba Corporation had to be mine, no matter what it took and to bring her back to me for good it would require the power of all Millennium Items," I finished. With that I proceeded to snap the dairy closed as my arms became lax forcing them to hang at my sides. "All this time… it was to get the love of his life back, I just thought he went crazy," I admitted. Reading this dairy had given me a severe shock at how blind I'd been to my uncle's pain and it really made me want to punch myself .
The others were contemplative probably realising Pegasus wasn't so different to Yugi, Seto or Jounouchi, his actions had been motivated by love just like theirs, Yugi then noticed three Soul Cards that happened to be empty implying that all three had bee set free thus there was no reason for us to remain, I set Pegasus' dairy back on the table whilst the others took off down the stairs so I moved over to catch up to them only to freeze in my tracks with Katherine before me and Yugi in front of her also stopped still.
The ground before Yugi began to ripple then a man rose up out of the ground, he had dark skin with a white turban wrapped around his head and gold earrings handing from his earlobes, he wore an outfit that was similar to something that I had seen an Egyptian national wear years ago, his eyes were closed but once opened they were a blueish shade with no pupils and around his neck was a golden key partially shaped like the Ankh, the Egyptian symbol of life… it was the man from the painting.
He looked at the three of us and his eyes widened upon seeing Yugi, he began to approach us and removed the key from around his neck and held it out towards Yugi yet none of us could move to do anything, almost ass if we'd been paralysed, when the key touched Yugi's forehead it was turned and the two became as still as statues yet me and Katherine were free to move.
"Damnit, this has to be a Millennium Item. If this guy is in his mind then I'm going in," I spoke. Katherine nodded too worried to speak so I raised my right hand and pointed it at Yugi's forehead, a silver aura surrounded me whilst my bracelet glowed slightly as my eyes drifted close.
*Yu-Gi-Oh*
When my eyes opened I saw that I was in a different area which was a corridor that had two doors, one on either side, the first was akin to Katherine's Soul Room but more masculine implying an innocent and kind soul dwelled here meaning that it had to be Yugi's room and I saw the purple door that connected him to my sister.
I turned around to see the other Soul Room which was ancient with a steel door that had the eye symbol on it that was a recurring theme on Millennium Items, I walked over to the door and seized the handle pushing it open, that man had to be in this room since I would have seen him in Yugi's room given its' small size and open door, he couldn't reach Katherine through the door that connected them since it was for Yugi alone.
The door swung open creakingly almost like something from an ancient tomb which sent my instincts on high alert as I cautiously stepped inside however there was nothing except shadows to greet me, then the door slammed shut causing me to be shrouded in darkness so I tensed up listening for any sound that echoed around me allowing me to hear footsteps approaching me from behind.
I snapped around and swung my leg out towards the person however it was seized and my body thrown onto the floor, then something crashing onto me pinning my arms above my head so I immediately began struggling against the person that dared to hold me captive but all I got was a husky chuckle right by my ear.
"You're a fascinating queen Kylie," Other Yugi spoke. I froze upon hearing his voice realising it wasn't someone dangerous so I relaxed as light suddenly seared into my eyes forcing them closed, whilst my eyesight adjusted I felt myself being pulled up. "I'll ask you later how you came to be in my heart, for now the man went that way but be warned, a Dark Game is afoot in my heart and I would hate for you to become harmed," Other Yugi spoke. My eyes fluttered open and I saw him pointing in a specific direction with a smirk on his face.
"Thanks, by the way my sixth sense is pretty sharp so I'll be fine," I commented. With that I took off up the steps however navigating this place wouldn't be easy, most time the Soul Room reflected an individual's personality, Yugi's and Katherine's displayed their innocence and kindness whilst mine showed the determination and nobility of my heart – as Kathie described.
Yet this place was a labyrinth almost as if the spirit that was represented by this chamber couldn't decide anything as if there were only questions where knowledge should be, I stepped towards a door and pushed it open only to jumped backwards as an axe nearly took my head off, thank Ra for my sixth sense.
I continued making my way through this mysterious place searching for the man in the hopes of getting answers from him about his purpose here however this resulted in me opening several more doors which resulted in me dodging more traps which ended up reminding me of those old tombs that my mother explores for her work.
Hieroglyphs were scattered across the surface of the stone yet I couldn't truly comprehend any meaning that they might have possessed due to my limited knowledge of the dead language so I kept moving onwards when a cry of shock went up so I began to run towards the source of the voice and found an open door with a fallen floor only a few steps within and someone hanging precariously form the edge.
"Your hand, give me your hand!" I called. As I did I reached down to the person, I saw it was the man I had chased after and his eyes widened upon seeing me no doubt confused by my presence but he did reach up to me so I took his hand and tried to pull him up but I didn't have enough strength and the other hand was too preoccupied at the moment to help me in that regard.
"Kylie-san let me help," Yugi insisted. The boy appeared at my side and wrapped his hands around mine and the man's thus allowing us to pull him out of the dangerous pitfall, Yugi glanced at me obviously curious about me but it was more important for us to get answers out of the man for the time being.
"I didn't think it would be you that saves me or how you came to be here young lady," The man commented. No doubt he had come across traps just as I had although I think even this man had no clue as to why this mysterious man's heart was in such a stumbled mess.
"Other Me this is enough, release him from the game," Yugi pleaded. I didn't see the spirit anywhere but then a light began to appear from within another room so we walked over to the room and saw stone tablets depicting duel monsters on their surface as the man explained that three thousand years ago in Ancient Egypt, these stone tablets were sealed under the control of the magicians resulting in the battle for the pharaoh's throne beginning with this, the magicians were destroyed as a result so the stone tablets and their powers went to sleep with these stone tablets actually being the origin of our card game.
Suddenly lightning lashed down before us causing all three of us to look up only to see that it was the Black Magician who was blocking our path and me without my deck, especially since he seemed to ready to annihilate all of us, the man found a way out by summoning a creature we were currently stood on to fight the Black Magician which ironically turned out to be Blue-Eyes White Dragon… I silently hoped that wasn't some kind of omen
"Stop!" Yugi insisted. The man was confused by this but I couldn't blame Yugi for not wanting to see his most precious card destroyed even if the Spellcaster did stand against us in this regard. "Black Magician is my card," Yugi explained. With that the brave young boy move in front of the Black Magician so I went with him. "Black Magician we aren't here in this room to cause chaos! Allow us to escape from this room!" Yugi pleaded.
"Please Black Magician, we mean your master no harm, he is someone we care about and wish to help," I added on. The magician stared at the two of us for a silent moment before lowering his sceptre and we turned to look at the man who was completely shocked by our accomplishment.
A bright light began to emanate from the Black Magician thus forcing me to throw my hands up in order to protect my eyes with the other two also following my example.
*Yu-Gi-Oh*
I felt my soul return to my body as my eyes fluttered open with both Yugi and the man also returning to the physical plane whilst Katherine looked between all three of us clearly unsure about what had happened as the man lowered his key from Yugi's forehead.
"Tell this to the 'Other You'. It was my mistake accusing him of being a criminal and stealing the Millennium Eye. In order to find the criminal I met something unexpected. From today you and the 'Other You' will unlock the true power hidden in the Millennium Puzzle and these two ladies will be at your side supporting both of you. For three thousand years you have kept the secret sealed away, that is the fate of the one who solved it," The man spoke as he saw my bracelet and the Gauntlet.
"Hang on, what do you mean? Who are you?" Katherine asked. The man walked down the steps obviously intent on leaving however he stopped and looked back at us.
"You have to watch out, another person looking for the Millennium Puzzle has come close, a Millennium Item possessor," The man warned. Those last three words were repeated by Yugi and my thoughts immediately snapped to the evil spirit that possessed Bakura. "As for my name it is Shadi," The man responded. With that the mysterious man proceeded to disappear just as he had appeared.
"Ok someone explain now?!" Katherine demanded. We had a lot to tell my little sister.