A/N: We now return to your previously scheduled reading. Oh, btw, I lied about Marik. :D
"Mokuba?" Kaiba asked incredulously. "What are you doing here?"
"Actually, I'm not." Mokuba took a step forward, and Kaiba was immediately reminded of how short he was now. "Mokuba is safely tucked away in the recesses of his mind, with no way to get to us here. I'll have no further use for him once we're through here, but don't worry, he'll be safe until then. Even I know better than to let my host come into harm's way." He grinned wickedly at Bakura. "Something I'm sure you can relate to, thief."
Bakura scowled, and Ryou looked between them. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Oh yes, he was always so very careful with you, Ryou," Mokuba said disdainfully. "At first I'll admit I wondered why, but I wasn't fully awake when he learned his lesson."
Bakura looked shaken, his breath seizing up as he remembered what Mokuba was talking about. "Never..." he said shakily, closing his eyes, "Never talk about that."
"Why?" Mokuba smirked insolently. "You can't honestly tell me that you regret it, considering what you think of the dear mortal-"
"I SAID NO!" Bakura screamed, throwing himself at the tiny boy. Mokuba held up a hand, and Bakura suddenly hung struggling in midair, reaching for Mokuba with possessed fury.
"You forget," Mokuba sighed, "That I am in control here."
"You're in control?" Amane snorted. "It's my brain, isn't it?"
"That's essentially saying that because you gave me the canvas, it's your painting," Mokuba explained calmly, ignoring Bakura's swiping hands. "I have the power of the Millennium Key at the disposal. Not only is this world subject to my whim, but so are you."
"He's bluffing," Ishizu announced. "Only the Rod can bend your will to his."
Marik stuck her tongue out, and Mokuba frowned at her. "Nevermind what I can and cannot do, that's not what we're here for. I am a fair entity, if nothing else, so I will give you the chance to fight for your pathetic existence."
"Who are you?" Amane asked uncertainly.
"Why don't you ask your dear friend," Mokuba suggested, floating Bakura back with the rest of his group and setting him down gently. "He's the most well acquainted with me, probably out of anyone on Earth."
Bakura looked like he wanted to try to tackle Mokuba again, but only clenched his fists. "He's the ultimate demon of the shadow realm, the driving force behind the Millennium Items' power, and the only reason I'm still alive in this era. That..." His voice was shaking, but his hand was steady as he raised it to point at Mokuba. "That is Zorc Necropha-"
"No, wait," Yami protested, "Here I draw the line, there are so many reasons that's not physically possible. Ultimate Asshole Necrophades was trapped in the Ring with Nutcase here-" he jerked his head at Bakura, "-but that's it, he can't be in two places at once! The catalyst in Amane's mind is the reason he's free, but in order to put it there he had to be free in the first place. QED, we have a catch 22, you're not Zorc, and we should kill Bakura."
"My, someone's cranky," Bakura muttered.
"Why yes," Yami seethed. "What the gave you the clue?
"Bravo, pharaoh," Mokuba clapped his hands gleefully. "You're completely wrong."
"No, I'm not. Stop lying and get the last challenge over with, I've had enough of this idiocy, and I know I'm not alone."
Everyone else nodded sympathetically, except for Bakura, who gave Mokuba a weary look. "Yeeeeah, they're not fast learners. That's how I survived this long. Probably easier to just explain, however you did it."
"Easier, definitely," Mokuba agreed, turning to Yami again. "That little insight as to my identity would be perfectly reasonable, were I working alone."
Everyone stared at him. For a long moment, the only sound anyone could hear was their own breathing.
"Ugh," Ryou groaned, clapping one hand over his face and gesturing vaguely at Bakura with the other. "I forgive you for all of it, even Monster World. This excuses pretty much anything."
"...are you gonna, I don't know, explain?" Marik prompted. He smirked and mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like "ultimate asshole".
"Why would I need to? It was you who helped me, after all."
Marik turned a sickly pale color as the blood drained from his face. "W-what?"
Mokuba seemed satisfied that he was being taken seriously again. "Oh, you won't remember of course, it was that handy spirit in the Millennium Rod. He set everything in motion for me without even knowing it, posing the catalyst as nothing more than a distraction as he prepared for his grand scheme. One which I ultimately overturned in favor of my own, once I was free of his cloying presence." Mokuba nodded at Bakura, who glared back even harder than before.
"If you do that long enough, your face will stick that way," Yami commented.
"Shut up," Bakura growled.
"Stop saying that, it wasn't intimidating the first twelve times. Now, assuming you aren't Mokuba-" he turned back to the child again, "What does he have to do with all this?"
"Chance," Mokuba shrugged. "I could have just as easily settled with Joey as Mokuba.
"Come to think of it, what do I have to do with all this?" Kaiba demanded.
"Oh, don't get me started on what you have to do with-" Bakura turned to him angrily, but Yami put a hand on his shoulder.
"Leave it, grudges can wait."
"Actually," Mokuba said quietly, "Now might be a good time to remember. You're going to need all the strength you can get for what comes next, and I've found that anger is a very efficient motivator."
"What does come next?" Ryou asked warily.
"Your chance-" As Mokuba spoke, he was suddenly shrouded in writhing shadows, as was everyone else. "-to save the world."