Chapter Six: The Deal
By Lasafara Fett
Pegasus stood on his side of the dueling platform a wreck. He hadn't found Cecelia, didn't know where she was, and was only hoping that she was safely tucked away in the library with her favorite novel.
He looked like a tornado had hit him. His normally spotless red jacket was unbuttoned, the shirt underneath showing more than its share of wrinkles. His necktie was untied, and his face was red and shiny, from running as hard as he could. The hurried attempt to find Cecelia had failed.
When the group walked in, sans Joey and Tristan, Pegasus scanned the crowd. He didn't see Cecelia, and allowed himself a quick sigh of relief. There was no way they could have gotten her past the guards.
His eyes widened when Joey walked in. Behind him walked Cecelia, hands behind her back, linked to Joey by a rope. The rope stretched from a loop around Joey's hand to the beautiful woman's neck.
Cecelia looked up at Pegasus, her large eyes watering at the humiliation. She was scared, unsure of what was happening.
Pegasus's heart almost collapsed at the sight of his love in the hands of this boy. Joey wasn't playing fair. He wasn't. Pegasus didn't know what to do. That was when his darker side took over. He looked up, the malice in his eye palpable.
"What. Have. You. Done. To. Her?"
"Nothing. Or, at least, not yet." Joey motioned for Cecelia to come forward and stand with him on the platform.
"What do you mean by that, Joey?"
"Well, here's the deal. You tried to kill four people, four of our friends—"
Cecelia gasped, and looked at Pegasus for a denial. Joey pressed on, ignoring her.
"Now, we want them back. Right now."
Pegasus looked at Cecelia. She was desperately asking him to deny it, to scream, to accuse Joey of lying, anything but the guarded acceptance of Joey's words she saw. He was scared, frightened really. What would she say? Mentally, he tried to brace himself for the blow to come. Emotionally, he was ready to curl up and die.
Tristan, on the other hand, had found his way down to the dungeons again. Once more, he was looking for soulless bodies. This time, however, he hoped to free them by the time Joey gained their souls back. If need be, the others were standing by.
In fact, he had let the other four in with him, to help him in his search. At the far end, one of them called out.
"Hey, Tristan! We found Yugi!"
Tristan could have cheered. He ran over, and began working at unlocking the door.
Cecelia didn't understand why Pegasus wasn't denying it, wasn't calling Joey's bluff. But no, he just stood there, nodding to Joey's words.
"So, what you're saying is, if I release the Mutoh's and the Kaiba's souls, you will return Cecelia unharmed?"
"Exactly."
"And how do I know you will do what you have promised?" Pegasus wasn't going to take any chances. He couldn't afford to. Not with Cecelia's life on the line.
"Well, uh," Joey paused. "You can trust me!"
"I don't think so. And you obviously won't trust me. I am a man of my word, but I understand your disbelief. Why don't I release the Mutohs now? Then, you return Cecelia to me, and I'll release the Kaibas. Will that suffice, Joey-kun?"
Joey looked over at the group on the platform. They conferred for a moment, then nodded. Tea motioned to one of the members of the group, the man carrying the walkie-talkie. Joey nodded.
"Okay, we accept."
Pegasus nodded, and pulled out two soul cards. With a flash, he released both souls.
Yami Yugi suddenly sensed Yugi's presence. Though the puzzle was not directly attached to Yugi, it was not directly attached to anything but a desk drawer either. Since the drawer had no hold on Yami, he quickly traveled to the source of the presence.
Yugi had a total of three seconds in his body before Yami took over. Tristan had just managed to get the door unlocked, when Yami came charging out, eyes blazing. Someone had attempted harm to his lighter self, and that someone was going to pay