Atem had slowly fallen to the ocean floor, his eyes wide with horror as the mighty king shrank until he was reduced to a lowly minnow no bigger than a finger that slowly swam away. There was nothing left of the one who had raised them both since their younger years. He was powerless as tentacles once again wrapped around his figure and watched in shock when his timidly shy younger brother attempted to fight off Marik's hold when the fallen triton and crown were picked up. "You have my gratitude, if it's any consolation," Bakura's lips that had been in a sneer formed a grin. "I would never have accomplished my deepest desire of sucking every drop of power that geezer held if it hadn't been for you forming the Ainma Vinculum with that loathsome human girl. All I had to do was dangle her out like a worm on a hook and you fell right into my trap. The delicious conflict that brewed between you and your pathetic grandfather only made it that much more entertaining!" His hand grasped onto Atem's chin after placing the crown upon his own head and placing the tip of the triton against the young merman's abdomen, earning a flinch. "You have only yourself to blame for this." He suddenly roared, reeling back and writhing as black tendrils of blood ribboned through the water that sourced from a harpoon that had suddenly appeared within the Siren King's shoulder.
Amethyst met cold azure. What did he honestly think he, a human, hope to accomplish here in the water? "It's too dangerous!" Atem flinched as the tentacles confining him gave a hearty squeeze, causing spots to momentarily flash across his vision. "You're no match for him!"
"No truer words have ever been spoken!" The man held up the small canon, another harpoon at the ready as Bakura hissed while pulling the weapon from his flesh. "You're going to wish you had never done that, you pathetic land dweller!"
"Kaiba, look out!" The warning came too late as a tentacle lashed out and struck him across the stomach, sending him reeling up towards the surface. His eyes widened as Yugi was passed off to a few of the tentacles then Marik sped towards a boat that was nearly directly overhead.
. . . .
Anzu quickly grasped onto his shirt as he broke the surface with a deep inhale, quickly pulling him aboard when a shadow approached the boat. Her hands tore at his shirt, the buttons flying in every direction as she did, and gaped. A large angry bruise was already forming across his stomach as if he had been struck by something with great force. "What happened?!"
"I got one shot in," he grunted, waving her away as he sat upright, grimacing as pain flared throughout his body. "But the harpoon seemed to do little."
Their eyes widened in unison as the water beside them erupted, the boat nearly capsizing as a figure hauled itself inside. It appeared to be blind though, its eyes glazed over and darting every which way as its head tilted first to the left then the right. Whatever this thing was it was nearly the size of the boat and neither of them would fair well if it decided to attack. Seto placed a finger to his lips when she made to shift so that she wasn't as close to whatever this creature was. "The Ainma Vinculum betrays you, human female, the scent of the eldest prince covers you," a crack filled the air as his head tilted downward so that her view of Seto was obscured by a pair of pale eyes. "My master demands you be brought to him." Panic flooded her as cold water closed over her head, his arms unmovable despite her struggles that they may have been made of stone. Bubbles and salt burned her eyes, causing her vision to refuse to clear despite how furiously she blinked.
Atem's wide amethyst eyes were instantly honed upon the her as they came closer. Adrenaline pounded through his veins when she grimaced in pain, instincts demanding that the one causing her pain and daring to lay a hand upon her to bleed to pay, but he reined it with a violent struggle that was manifested in a tremor. Now was not the time to act hasty with emotion. One wrong move could end her life. "Anzu!"
Her motions instantly ceased, head swiveling. The haze was finally lifting as she squinted through the salty water and thought that this surely was some bad dream. He was looking up at her from where he was tangled within the tentacles of a now triton wielding octopus-man hybrid that had once been Dartz but there was a similar version of Atem looking up at her with frightened lavender hued eyes. That must be the one she encountered recently but they were twins?! A few bubbles slipped from between her lips as the burning need for oxygen forced her into the darkness that had been closing in on her vision and fell unconsciousness.
"You are not the one who shot the harpoon," Bakura hissed, twirling the triton above his head then readying it, the forked weapon pointed directly upon her as she grew limp with every passing second. "But your death will suffice enough! Farewell, human girl who formed a Ainma Vinculum with Prince Atem, eldest prince of the Kingdom of Atlantis!"
It was as if time slowed to a halt the siblings when they spotted the golden instrument of nobility being pointed at the lone human who had touched their lives. This girl, this human, had been so different than the ones they had been told stories about to deter them from ever going up to the surface when they went to live with their grandfather; she had saved Yugi, sacrificing herself so that he could be saved that night upon the beach. There had been many things about their marine home that Atem had once thought beautiful but now all of them were pale in comparison to her, the human who had moved with such grace and passion that his heart had formed the Ainma Vinculum. Never in his wildest dreams had he thought he would care for anyone like this, to the point where he was physically weak the longer they were apart, this dependency was alien to him but he wouldn't trade it for the world. Their time together had opened his eyes to whole new experiences that he would forever treasure and the love he had found himself harboring seemed to have grown. Seeing her slowly slip into unconsciousness, those cerulean pools that were her eyes drifting closed, caused his chest to sear with near unbearable heat and need to protect.
The Siren King tightened his hold upon the legendary weapon in his hands as the water vibrated. Hunting would thrill him but this power he now wielded, this pleasure shooting down his spine was incomparable. Nothing could come close to describing the elation coursing through his veins as he watched their purple hued eyes become shadowed with dark emotion! "First your grandfather, now this weak little human," His features became illuminated in malicious green light that sparked across the metal, gathering into a sphere upon the forked end. "Next is the rest of your pitiful race, then it will be the humans' turn!"
In unison, their magical pressure was so forceful that it freed them from their beings as they grasped handfuls of platinum hair, and gave fierce tugs that caused the sorcerer to howl with pain. The energy stream meant for her missed by a hair's length and instead impacted the one who held her. The explosion caused a shockwave that had for a moment made them afraid for her life but it was put to rest when they spotted Marik appearing as though he had just woken from a dream with her limp form in his arms. "I will hold him off to the best of my ability," he bowed his head, passing her off to Atem who had hurried to see for himself that she was unscathed. "Consider this my means of apologizing for putting your soulmate's life in danger." And then he was gone, slicing through the water towards the one who had enslaved him.
His hand cupped her cheek as her eyes cracked open. She was pale and the pulse he felt within her wrist was so faint that it was scaring him. He had to get her up to the surface. A throb of pain came from his tail as he forced it to move. The tentacles had been so tight that it would surely need a few healing spells before he was back to full strength but he was not about to let her drown. Her eyes drifted closed as he protectively wrapped his arms tighter around her form and gritted his teeth as he forced his throbbing tail to move. He startled when their speed suddenly increased and was filled with relief when he spotted Yugi. The boat came upon them quickly and Atem had timed the tilt of his fin just enough that they came to a stop beside it. Yugi, though, was not so lucky and ended up catapulting himself up into the lifeboat where he crashed into the recovering man. Atem's sole focus though was upon the young woman who remained unconscious. "Anzu?" Ice cold fear pierced his heart like a dagger when no response came, no matter how much he shouted or shook her shoulders. The crushing pressure grew with each passing second that she remained lifeless within his hold. In all of his life he'd had several crazy ideas but the one that came to mind, something that she herself had performed upon him when they had been in the loch, just might work. Embarrassment threatened to stop him but his head had already bent once his lungs were free of water and full of air.
The bickering that had been coming from the boat grew silent as Yugi, who had worriedly peeked over the boat's edge, ducked back down as his face burned a bright red. "I said I was okay with your being together, but that didn't mean that PDAs were okay!" His bronze tail instantly planted itself across the man who made to look. "Trust me, you don't want to see that!"
Each breath that he forced between her now blue lips caused her chest to rise ever so slightly but there was no other indication that the offered oxygen was being received. Third breath was passed, desperation sparking within his being when she grew slightly heavier…a quick fourth, his hands now trembling as he cupped her face so that their lips could better meet…the fifth was accompanied by hope as her body gave a collective jerk…It was on the sixth breath that her hands clung to his upper arms with sudden vigor, water spewing from between her lips as she fought to rid her body of the invasive salty ocean water.
Her limbs felt heavy and weak as she clung to the one who supported her with a gentle hold. The ache in her lungs ebbed with each deep and slightly wheezy breath she took. "I'm so dizzy," she groaned, head bending forward until it was resting upon a shoulder. "I want to get off this ride…"
Curiosity got the best of him, despite the flood of relief. "You are referring to the ones at the 'amusement park' you once mention, yes?"
Her arms, which had wrapped around his neck when his voice had tickled her ear, fell to his shoulders as she pulled away, her wide worried eyes meeting his own that shone with concern. "Atem! Are you okay?! That weird octopus dude had you and there were two of you…" Her hands patted his shoulders down his now bare chest, which caused her cheeks to flare brightly for a moment, then back up to cup his face, cerulean searching amethyst as her words faded to silence. He patiently waited, never looking away from those pools that were her eyes even as her hand rose and fingertips caressed his cheek. "I'm…I'm actually seeing your face. I mean I know I saw it on the ship and even during the last several days but…" He nodded, one of his hands rising to gently tuck a few strands of chocolate hair behind her ear. Warmth flooded her being when his lips met the sensitive space between her eyes. She flinched as her left leg protested, the place that the one who had grabbed her a bit too tight, and hummed softly when something cooler in temperature than the water brushed against her. It had only been a brief moment but she was already familiar with how the scales of his tail felt against her skin.
A geyser suddenly forced them away from the boat, Yugi calling out to them while clinging to the lifeboat's side as another carried them out of sight. They clung to each other as another wave threatened to split them and their eyes widened with horror as a large pillar rose from the water that carried them several feet into the air, their grip tightening when Bakura's enlarged form followed. What he had thought to be a pillar was actually one of the decorative spikes upon the crown and if the sorcerer continued to grow larger then they would surely lose the use of a limb or two unless they jumped now.
"Anzu!" Atem called, straining to see around the large obstacle.
Her hand appeared from around it. "H-here!" His own quickly gabbed hold of it, his fingers lacing with her own. She shook her head when his lips parted. "I can already tell what you're thinking over there and it is not happening! There's no way I'm jumping from this height!"
"Do you trust me?"
The fear that had taken root within her chest when they had been carried upward wavered ever so slightly, her fingers giving his a brief squeeze. His voice had softened, as if he were attempting to assure her, but even so she could hear the confidence behind his words. "I have since the beginning," she called, craning her neck so that their gazes could meet. "And you have yet to steer me wrong. I'll follow you anywhere but there has to be a better way to get us down?"
"I am open to any and all suggestions." He couldn't help but chuckle as her eyes frantically looked in every direction, practically seeing the wheels in her head turning in hopes that any other idea could be found, and bit back a smile as defeat crossed her features. "Ready?"
Her gaze returned to Atem's as she nodded, and a shrill scream slipped up her lips as they fell forward. Wind tore at her clothing as they fell then instinct took over as the water rushed to greet them, her body expertly arching so that she would enter the water with minimal impact, as if she were performing off a high dive. The colder temperature quickly chased away all confidence and skill as his hand, her anchor, pulled her towards the surface.
"So you survived." Their eyes widened as they looked up at the looming sorcerer towering above them laughing as though someone had told a joke as the triton he plunged into the ocean caused the water to swirl. "I believe my first act as the new King of the Seven Seas is to dispose of you personally!" A giant tentacle wrapped around each of them, one tossing Atem into a newly formed whirlpool that reached the bottom of the ocean floor and causing him to heavily impact with the sand that left him stunned.