This Chapter Contains . . .
Violence: Blood
Language: None
Drugs: None
Nudity: None
Sexual Content: None
Edit Update: 10/12/2015
Re-uploaded.
I changed the scene with Bakura a bit.
"Well?" Honda asked when his friends ran back to their meeting spot.
"I didn't see anyone from where I was standin'" Jonouchi said after he ran back to their hiding spot.
"Yeah." Anzu added. "There aren't any guards on the north side either."
"Weird." Honda wrinkled his brow. "You would think that with them expecting Yugi, they would have somebody watching out for him."
Jonouchi's eyelids lowered. "Unless they already have 'em."
While Anzu hated the idea of her friend being held against his will, she secretly hoped that he had been captured. Because if he hadn't, his whereabouts would remain unknown to them. If he was inside that mansion, they could rescue him.
"Let's not waste anymore time." Honda said, grabbing a stick and drawing a circle in the dirt. "This is the mansion."
"Looks more like a crummy drawin' of a ball ta me."
Honda hit his blond friend over the head with his stick before continuing, drawing arrows pointing at three sides of the circle. "We'll each look for an opening on the sides and back. If you find one, go right in."
"But if we all find a way in, won't that split us up?" Anzu asked.
"Splitting up will increase our chances of finding him." Honda pointed out. "If we stayed together, it would only make us one big target."
"So, what? We're going to be three small defenseless targets instead?"
Jonouchi placed his hands on Anzu's shoulders. "Look, I know this doesn't seem like the best plan, but he's right. We all hope it won't happen, but if one of use gets caught, there'll be two more of us still lookin' for 'em."
"But-"
"Trust us, Anzu."
Anzu lowered her head. She knew that this was a bad idea, but it was obvious that they wouldn't listen to reason. What was smart about going into the enemy's hideout alone? It was like a knight charging into the dragon's lair without a sword or shield. It was foolish. And most of all, she didn't want to lose anymore of her friends. What if she did find Grandpa, maybe even Yugi, only to find Jonouchi and Honda bleeding on the floor, shot by Pegasus' men. There had to be another way, right? There was always another option. But none came to mind. Or at least, none that Honda and Jonouchi would approve of.
She gently pushed Jonouchi's hands off of her shoulders and stormed towards the mansion. "Let's just get this over with!"
Bakura stumbled as he tried to turn around to look at his attacker. Did one of the security guards find them? Maybe they had even used the same knife that they had taken away from him. Every step made the pain intensify as blood began to create a red puddle at his feet. His vision began to flicker, and when he finally faced the one who had stabbed him, he could only see a blur of colors. He blinked and everything began to come back into focus. The Millennium Rod had been unsheathed, and now the dagger was red with Bakura's blood. His assailant walked towards him and grabbed Bakura by the hair, his tongue slipping out of his mouth.
"How does it feel, Bakura?" Marik asked. But it wasn't Marik. Something was different now. All innocence was gone, leaving behind only pure darkness. Marik let out a small chuckle as he held up the blade and plunged it into Bakura's eye. He let go as the white haired boy covered his face, red liquid seeping through his fingers and running down his face.
Bakura talked through clenched teeth as he tried to push the pain aside. "You must be Marik's Past Life."
"That's right." He pointed at himself with a his thumb. "Don't wait for him. I plan on staying in control of his body from now on."
Bakura tried to laugh, but instead he coughed out blood. "I didn't like him anyway." He glanced at Yugi. "Did you come out to finish him off yourself?"
"No." Marik walked towards the boy and knelt down beside him.
Yugi's vision had cleared enough for him to know that it was Marik, and that something was different about him. Something bad. He tried push himself up, but his arms felt like all of the bones had been removed, leaving him with useless limbs. After some effort, he managed to lift himself off the ground by a few inches, but Marik grabbed his hair, giving him the same treatment as Bakura just moments ago, and pushed him back down, slamming the boy's head against the stone floor in the process. Everything in front of Yugi began to spin. A whirlpool of muddled colors and shapes.
"It's no fun killing someone who is already half dead. Right now he is a calf, growing and growing before he is slaughtered." He turned his head, looking at Bakura with wide eyes as he licked his lips. "It is unfortunate that I have to wait. But you will help me pass the time until then."
Normally Bakura would be able to dodge any attack and end the fight with a knife in his opponent's stomach, but the wound in his back and his missing eye slowed his movements when he tried to avoid Marik's hand that reached for his throat, and he soon found himself pinned against the wall as the Egyptian's fingers squeezed. When he tried to kick Marik and pry his hand away, it only made his attacker laugh, which annoyed Bakura more than anything.
"Squirm, Bakura." With his other hand, Marik pressed the Millennium Rod against Bakura's neck, letting it slide against his fair skin and create a swallow cut. "Your struggle only fills me with more pleasure."
Bakura stopped trying to escape Marik's clutches and stood perfectly still, making Marik raise an eyebrow in confusion, and then the wounded boy threw his head back and laughed. Now it was Marik's turn to feel annoyed.
Bakura held up his hand, as if he were holding an invisible ball. "I don't think you know who you are dealing with."
Marik knew what was happening and jumped back, just barely avoiding being cut in half by a long cutlass. The one holding the lethal weapon was a man - if you could even call him one - whose shriveled skin was a dark blue color. One of his eyes was a slit, the pupil rolled back into his head, while the other remained wide open, as if he didn't have lids for it anymore. His teeth were bared, and his jaw looked broken. The creature held up his sword, ready to attack again when commanded. But instead of being frightened by the Monster's appearance, Marik chuckled before turning on his heel and he began to walk away from the creature and its owner.
Bakura crossed his arms, causing more pain to shoot through his spine. "Are you afraid of facing my Earl of Demise?"
Marik turned his head towards him, and the grin on his deranged face made Bakura flinch. "If I attack you now with my Monsters, I know you won't survive. I don't want you to die just yet. I'll wait until I can make you suffer the ultimate pain and fill the night with your screams."
Bakura wanted to throw an insult or a smart remark at him, to have the last word, but all he could do was watch as Marik made his way to Yugi. Or at least, he would have if Yugi had still been there. Marik looked at the floor where Yugi had been only moments ago and let out a growl. While they had been busy, Yugi had somehow found the strength to make his escape.
Marik ran off to find the boy, and as he did, Bakura clenched his fist, making his Monster go back to its own world. He let silence fill the room before he punched the wall. He had wanted to attack, to watch Marik's blood flow, but he had been right. Bakura would have surely been defeated. Normally he would have not cared and laughed as Marik wiped him off the face of the earth, making sure to destroy his enemy along with him, but he had to live. He couldn't end the Pharaoh's life if he was dead. But telling himself this didn't fix his shattered pride. He felt disgusted with himself, like a mongrel who limped away with his tail between his legs as the other dog walked off with the bone. Hatred filled his entire being, numbing the pain.
He tried to walk to the open doorway, hoping to find Yugi and kill him before Marik, but then the world seemed to shift around him and he began to lose his footing. Had he lost too much blood? Or had he used up what little energy he had had left to summon his Monster? He felt his legs give out from under him and felt something warm and sticky travel up his throat. Bakura coughed and blood poured out of his mouth, which hit the stone floor and created a red puddle. Realization struck him. Marik must have hit a vital organ.
Bakura collapsed on the floor and blinked, in an attempt to clear his vision as everything around him became muddled. He let out a small chuckle, allowing more blood to escape his body. He had failed again. Oh well.
The dying boy raised a hand at the open door where the source of his hatred had made his escape. "Just you wait, Pharaoh." He smiled, his teeth, lips, and chin now crimson. "I'll k-" He tried to finish, but the words refused to come out. It was difficult enough just to breathe, which sounded more like wheezing now.
He didn't remember closing his eyes, but everything around him suddenly went black.
Ishizu stepped out of the room she had just finished searching and looked both ways to make sure the coast was clear before she sped off to continue looking for Rishid. She turned a corner and stopped, almost running right into a security guard. Ishizu prepared herself for a fight, but instead of grabbing his gun, he simply stared at her with unblinking eyes before walking in the opposite direction. Ishizu watched him leave. Had Marik used the power of the Millennium Rod on that man? But he had told her once before that he would never use it, because he didn't believe in anyone being in control of another's fate; the way that the Pharaoh's existence controlled his. The fact that he had used it . . .
A low moan made her gasp as she quickly turned around. Leaning against the wall, a trail of drying blood traveling down his head, was Rishid. She quickly ran to her brother's side and put his arm around her shoulders to support him up.
"Are you all right?" She asked. "Who did this to you?" It didn't look like a bullet wound, and she doubted that the guards here would have used any other weapon.
"I," He groaned. "I think it was Marik."
"Marik?" Realization washed over her and she covered her mouth. "I left him with the Pharaoh."
She silently cursed herself. Why had she agreed to leave the Pharaoh when he was so helpless? No, she knew why. She had hoped that she could trust her brother. That leaving him with his enemy would be a test that he would pass, and she would return to find him fulfilling his duties as a Tomb Keeper. It was wishful thinking, and now the Pharaoh might die because of her foolishness. She hung her head in shame and instinctually placed the tips of her fingers on the Millennium Tauk. She had relied on it for so long that she had forgotten what it felt like to make the wrong choice.
"Was there a boy with white hair with him?" Rishid asked.
"Yes, there was."
"We have to hurry. If Marik doesn't kill the Pharaoh, that boy will."
