Author's notes:
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-gi-oh. If I did, you would probably see one episode per year ^^;;;
Yay! The final end! Some of your were right in the aspect that I had written parts of chapter 9 before I posted chapter 8. Thus, I could get it out faster (and unfortunately without PH-san editing it)
Eevee muse: And _who_ was it that gave you the inspiration?
Zoo: -_-;; Must you always rub it into my face?
~*~ Flashback/reminiscing ~*~
***************************
Last time:
"A flash of gold and glistening chrome echoed in the Game King's memory. Yami narrowed his eyes. He would finally encounter this God that had been chasing him in the horrendous scene after his duel with Seto. He would face the beast without the distractions of the ascotti. This was _Its_ secret weapon and he would destroy it.
.. With his own God."
**************************
".Rain dancer, the secret is not within your eyes But within my yearning and soulless husk."
Section 0.9.
The ground vibrated uncontrollably. It began to shake and clamour like an enraged beast, expanding outwards in dark waves.
Yami swayed uneasily against the onslaught. Several times he faltered, dropping to his knees before forcing himself upright to brace against the buckling ground once more.
His Red Eyes Black Dragon circled in terse arcs around him, wings snapped at odd angles by an invisible current. The ebony Dragon's red eyes were narrowed in anticipation and fear.
The God was coming. _It's_ God was coming.
The Game King felt his fists involuntarily clench together. He forced his head against the roaring gales of chaos and planted his feet firmly into the shuddering ground. He would not succumb to _It's_ fear.
Everything was suddenly bleached of colour.
It was as if a gigantic switch had been turned on, bathing the darkness in a flash of blinding light. Trickles of gold and dull copper danced in the stark-white air. They began to merge at a point, binding and shaping together until they formed a gigantic, coiled up ball of a pure golden-copper sheen.
Yami brought a hand to his eyes to shade them from the intense glare. He could see the sphere of steel gold growing in the midst of the harsh light. It continued to expand and accumulate without ever loosing its perfect shape.
The glare escaped back into the shadows with a soft sigh. Only the glistening copper-gold sphere was left. Invisible droplets of light bounced and reflected in facets off the sphere's geometric surface.
That was it. No horrendous roar, flashing ruby eyes, or flexing of glistening wings. Just a round sphere of archaic-designed gold. It hovered like an ominous harbinger of destruction. The darkness flanking it only to emphasized its solitude.
_It_ threw back his head and laughed at the sheer confusion written on the Game King's face. He continue to bark hysterically, tongue lolling out from one side of his mouth to taste his lips. At last he stopped. His burning violet-red eyes mocked Yami. "Come. There is nothing to fear." There was an unregistered amount of sadistic glee in his statement.
The Game King veered away from _Its_ beckoning stance. Something was amiss. He could taste the terror lingering within this God, but it seemed unreal; hidden underneath its placate golden shell.
It was all about illusions. Just like how the globular Revive Mud protecting _It_ had seemed harmless, this sphere was meant to deceive. This was a test to observe the Game King's judgement.
Two could play at that game. Yami forced his muscles to relax, moulding his expression into one of regal confidence. He forced out a bark of derision. "So, this is your feared God? This punitive sphere of gold? You dare call yourself the master of the Game when your famed God is nothing but a round lump?"
_It_ laughed. For a moment his face lost its solidity, lips and eyes stretching eerily into the darkness. "Yes, Game King. You are more powerful. Surely this shell of gold means nothing to you." _It_ raised his arms out in a sweeping motion towards his God. "Attack my God. That is, if you wish to win this Game."
Yami hesitated. Sending his Red Eyes against a God would be sheer suicide. Somehow he had to continue his over-confident façade without risking any damage. "Red Eyes Black Dragon, attack the God from a distance."
The ebony dragon arched its thin neck, tilting its head backwards. A sizeable ball of flame began to accumulate within his jaws. With a deft shake of its head, the dragon spat the fireball straight towards the God's spherical shape. The meteor-like projectile splattered harmlessly off the golden shell.
"You'll have to get closer than that to do any damage." _It's_ voice was deadly calm. "In this form, my God's shell can only be penetrated by physical attacks."
Yami caught _It's_ slight slip-up. _It_ has clearly said 'in this form', which meant that this spherical God hovering in the air was simply a cocoon in the stage of metamorphosis. The Game King clenched his fists. How long did he have before _It's_ God revealed its most powerful form?
.How long could Yuugi stay with Jounochi before his friend parted for the last time? Just like how Yuugi had been the last human, Jounochi was the last Hybrid.
The Red Eyes Black Dragon broke the hesitation. In a furious screech and sweep of its glistening ebony wings, the Game King's monster flew at point-blank range towards the spherical God. The dragon did not bother slowing his flight before ramming straight into the God and latching its thick claws onto the impenetrable golden shell. Eyes whirling with vehemence, the Red Eyes wrapped its entire frame around the spherical shape in attempt squeeze the God out from its hiding form. Upon seeing that this action was futile, it proceeded to gouge and dent the shell with its head and claws. Again and again it rammed the God, stirring a continuous barrage of grating screeches and dull-red sparks as metal clashed against metal.
"Red Eyes Black Dragon." Yami tried to make himself heard amidst the noise.
The dragon was too engrossed in his task to stop. The clamouring and furious banging continued.
A small pit was working in the Game King's stomach as he noticed _It's_ triumphant expression from the corner of his eye. This was exactly what _It_ wanted.
"Jounochi!" This time, Yami shouted both physically and mentally, exerting all power possible into this one command. "Stop it!"
Immediately the Game King's monster stopped. It twisted its thin neck to stare at Yami. Comprehension flickered just momentarily through the dragon's eyes.
And then it _hissed_ at Yami. The Red Eyes Black Dragon bristled its coiled body, claws and legs still entwined possessively around its spherical target. Its wings opened and furiously embraced the God's golden shell, as if hiding a treasure away from the Game King.
Yami - no, Yuugi - was taken aback. This was not the Jounochi he had known. The true Jounochi was gentle, kind, and a loyal friend. This enraged, snapping, aggressive beast could not be Jounochi.
Just like how the Game had changed Yuugi, it also infected Jounochi's mind. All of them, monsters, players, manipulators, were no more than puppets of the Game.
The Red Eyes Black Dragon screeched yet another shrill feral cry before attempting to dig its rows of serrated ebony teeth into the God's metallic surface. It struggled with such power and beauty that for a moment the dragon seemed the victor.
Dragons were only whimsical beasts of the imagination. They were no match for Gods.
_It_ suddenly began to chant. The words were incoherent, a string of nonsensical, low syllables. Though the sound was barely above the level of silence, its haunting words seemed to reverberate throughout the entire expanse of the Game.
The Red Eyes Black Dragon shrieked in blinded triumph as it saw the once impenetrable sphere part open. It paid no heed to the flowing words beckoning the God.
The dragon scrabbled and pried at the shell, serpentine form clutching the statue of a leviathan. The Game King's monster shoved its eager claws into one of the many cracks forming on the sphere.
Pure gold rays of light spilt from every crack. They merged into a slab of molten fire before engulfing the dragon's entire form, bathing its ebony armour pure white until it seemed void of shade and colour.
The Dragon ceased to exist. Nothing was left of it save a wisp of defeat escaping from the flare of light. And that too disappeared.
Yet instead of diminishing, the light grew in strength and intensity. Now the expanding, contorting sphere was alight with flames. They flickered in every shade of gold and white. Some danced erratically around the God's emerging, changing form.
The Game King was forced to cover his eyes yet again. He knew he was vulnerable and exposed, but his reaction to the glare was involuntary. It was as if he was staring at the very face of the sun.
More mechanical clicking and whirring was heard before the noise and light finally died down. Yami dared himself to look up at this God once more.
The first thing the Game King saw were the eyes. They burned an uncontested red not with rage but with sheer energy. This newly emerged God raised its beak-like head, shaking its mane comprised only of metallic gold shingles. Its entire body was covered in them, making it seem more a contraption than a creation. Symmetric wings splayed out from either side of its golden-chrome shoulders.
Yami stared at this golden beast. He forced himself to analyze it while his mind quavered in apprehension. True, his own God had uncontested power but not such limitless energy.
"In the Game there are three uncontested Gods." _It_ spoke, body unmoving as his God descended beside him. The golden beast waited obediently for its master to finish talking. "Saint Dragon, the God of Osiris, ruler of power and ambition. The God of Obelisk, dominated by strength. And at last, my God of limitless energy, the God of Ra." The very manipulator of the Game locked eyes with Yami. "Come. Let us fight. This is a battle between Gods."
The Game King staggered. So _It_ already knew about the Saint Dragon. His element of surprise had been turned to a disadvantage. Yet it only made sense. _It_ knew everything there was to know about the Game.
The Game between him and _It_ was far from over, but Yami was already beginning to despair. Pitching two Gods blindly against each other relied purely on luck and chance. It was a gamble of stakes in which _It_ remained the more favourable. And did he dare put his faith in his own God? Or would Yami's God of Osiris disobey him like the Red Eyes Black Dragon?
Better to try and fail than to do nothing at all. Gathering up the final dregs of his determination, the Game King glared squarely back into _It's_ malevolent eyes. "Of course."
Yami felt it vibrating around him. The Saint Dragon was impatient, buckling in its dark confines in eagerness to lash out and destroy with its power. At last the Game King released this power, letting it flow into its true shape, letting the Millennium Puzzle solidify his God.
The darkness poured and merged into grey mist. It formed a shadow of translucent pearl-white. With alarming brevity, its faint outline solidified and grew into massive red platelets. They travelled like water down its misty form to colour the entire beast in a uniform ruby and black shade.
The newly summoned Saint Dragon, God of Osiris, stretched its coiled serpentine head and roared. Its jagged teeth quivered in anticipation as it turned its crimson eyes towards its opponent. _It's_ God, the God of Ra, was easily shrouded by the massive bulk of Osiris. That did nothing to ease the Game King's tension.
The power of energy lay in potential. Even in its true form, the God of Ra seemed like a deceptive puppet. The puppeteer was still hiding something.
The God of Osiris acted immediately. It cut through the stillness like lightning; massive bulk hurtling with unexpected agility straight towards its opponent. At the very last moment, the Dragon God sharply banked its wings upwards. Its body shot at a wicked angle up past the God of Ra, fathoms of coiled tail whipping dutifully behind it.
Hovering in the still air with a power beyond flight, the God of Osiris positioned itself to attack. From its larger lower jaw grew a crackling orb of electric-yellow. Small lancelets of energy escaped from its mouth to tickle the darkness outside of it. Entire body outstretched and dangerously still, the Dragon God launched its attack, spewing out the concentrated energy in a whirr of static sound. The electric-yellow orb expanded into a meteor of lightning, an arc of jagged golden-yellow tailing its motion.
The attack hit the God of Ra in a splendour of sound and light. Electric sparks sprayed and arched at all angles, dancing erratically in the darkness. Everything within a ten-metre radius of Ra was shrouded in a thick grey cloud. Even the darkness underneath where _It's_ God had been standing was cracked and parched, revealing some of the Ascotti hiding underneath. They gleamed luridly through the cracks, making the blemishes appear to glow.
The Game King held his breath. Even with the evidence in front of his eyes, he dared not celebrate. The victory was too easy.
The God of Osiris too sensed something wrong. It began to fly in agitated circles around the site of devastation, several coils of tail lashing back and forth with a life of its own. Unlike the Red Eyes Black Dragon, its eyes still gleamed with shrewd rage and intelligence akin to its soul.
The final wisps of smoke parted to reveal nothing. Absolutely nothing save the serrated ground and vast black expanse. The God of Ra had disappeared.
_It_ calmly watched the Revive Mud protecting him piece itself back together. His lips were twisted in an expression of either hatred, or amusement, or both. The manipulator of the Game spoke.
It took the Game King a while to realize that _It_ was not addressing him. Instead, his opponent seemed to be talking to the still darkness around him. Unlike the first time he had beckoned his God, his voice now spat out sharp, guttural barks. They seemed to take a life of their own as they travelled throughout the expanse of the Game to whisper its secrets.
Silence. Perfected stillness. Even the Ascotti leaking beneath the cracks were still.
The entire sky of the Game suddenly turned blood-red. It was the perfected red of _It's_ eyes; an unrivalled deep crimson. From the canvas of pure scarlet emerged two golden slits. They whirled insatiably in a mixture of orange and gold.
The Game King's lips were parted in awe. He felt himself unable to do anything but gape at this pure manifestation of terror. Despair began pumping tenfold in his heart. The God of Osiris looked like a sparrow lost in this sky of deathly crimson.
_It's_ ruby-amethyst eyes were half-closed in glee. Though he still had a brilliant smile plastered on his face, it seemed mutated and twisted until his lips resembled a melted collage. _It's_ entire body was contorted at odd angles and had lost the human-like appearance. The manipulator of the Game opened what had been his mouth. "God of Ra. Destroy. Seek the Darkness. Bring the Darkness. Feed the Darkness."
Yet the sound did not escape from _It_. Instead, the noise echoed from all corners of the Game, as if _It_ had become the Game itself.
A sudden grating roar tore Yami's gaze away from _It's_ dilapidated form.
The crimson sky began to bulge and contort. The area closest to Osiris suddenly protruded outwards to form a sharp, triangular shaped beak. Etched lines of red and black took a feather-like gradient as the golden- yellow slits served as eyes.
This was the God of Ra. This was the God of Ra's final form.
_It_ laughed, the surge of triumph everywhere at once. "Yes, Game King. Have you figured it out? Just like how my guise has fooled you, the God of Ra's second form was able to deceive your God of Osiris. This is-"
Yami heard the words long before _It_ said them. He had known it all along. It was a losing battle; a hopeless Game from the start.
Now, more than anything, he feared this end. He feared for the pain of his Light and of his own Dark existence.
/We'll be okay./ Yuugi's sudden statement denied apprehension. It was resolute and strangely reassuring. /Keep on fighting, mou hitori no boku [1]. Let's fight until this end. You said it had to come./
Was it really Yuugi's thoughts or an extension of his own? Yami's mind was clouded with uncertainly. In front of his eyes lay the God of Osiris, form easily shrouded by the true God of Ra. In front of his startling ruby eyes lay despair.
A single tear trickled down the Game King's stoic expression. //No regrets, Aibou [2]? Not a single moment of fear, or hate, or longing?//
It truly was Yuugi then. For there was a prolonged paused indicating self-thought and reflection. /You asked me the same thing when we faced the God of Osiris. We had been lucky then, and under the same circumstances. That experience has only made me bolder./ Another pause. /I would be lying if I said that I didn't hate, or fear, or long for something else. But everyone else is gone. I'm the only one left. The only _anything_, the only free soul left. So no, I do not regret being the last./
The God of Ra spread its unending fiery wings, lighting the last dregs of darkness aflame with light. It's emblazoned head and was bared in a silent screech. With a deafening whoosh, it collected its entire form, burning light and crimson expanse, into a waterfall of sparkling energy. The flames poured straight into the God of Osiris's hapless figure.
True to his soul, the Saint Dragon remained impassive. Even when the God of Ra had burned its armour pure-black and crackled its shells of skin, it did not back down or cringe in pain. More human than beast, the God of Osiris parted its jaws wide open. It seemed to be laughing wildly. The fabled Dragon God of power continued to stay on that position until the flames ate it whole.
Something streaked through the darkness, barely visible under the gigantic God of Ra's bulk.
The Seraph had died with power.
Yami held in his breath, waiting for the fear-inflicting God to turn its fiery gaze towards him.
It never happened. The God of Ra suddenly arched its titanic form so that the entire 'sky' of the Game bristled in anger.
Was there something else hiding in the darkness of the Game? Yami forced his eyes to continue searching.
Like a lumbering behemoth, yet another figure emerged from the vague shadowy distance. Its figure had been shrouded by both the brilliance of the God of Ra and the humble darkness of the Game 'ground'.
Stoic and statuesque. That was the only way to describe this ground- based monster. It stood on twin legs, back upright and head implanted close to its stocky shoulders. The creature's entire frame was enveloped in a suit of rich peacock-blue. A single glimmer of red was etched in the center of its forehead.
"And so, the last God joins the fight." _It's_ omniscient voice was crackled and blurred, sounding barely discernable. The noise was everywhere at once. "The God of Obelisk, God of strength, without the potential or power to succeed."
The sky-incarnation of Ra began to swirl and distort, center of its bulky mass moving straight towards the God of Obelisk before reforming the eyes, beak, and feathers.
Yami stared at this new arrival. There were no more souls left that he knew. Not unless. Could this be.?
"You're too late." A pregnant pause ensued from the disembodied, choppy voice. "Cyber-droid."
Obelisk seemed unfazed. It looked dully at the God of Ra quivering with rage and energy above it and gave a passive shake of its head.
Enraged, the fiery God attacked, aflame once more in a glory of crimson and blood orange; massive figure burning brighter than the mid-day sun. Its head alone easily outsized the God of Obelisk.
The Game King knew that size meant nothing. At least, that was his last insight on hope. It was childish really, how strongly he clung to winning, to being the victor in the most unfavourable situations. Surely defeat could not be that bad. Even Yuugi had said it was okay.
But what drove him? What set Yami apart from his Light? What made the Game King want to overcome this Game, defeat _It_ once and for all, and dance glorious over his reputation? Yami sought above all else the thrill and emergence of the victorious.
Because he too was no more than a projection of the Game. He had never desired anything else. Just like the Seraph, he too could not see anything else.
The attack had died down. The God of Obelisk was still standing, as unfazed and as stoic as before. The only signs of the attack lay in the wisps of flame disappearing from the ground and shooting back into the burning sky. Ra shook its many-feathered wings in outrage.
Yami felt what he had thought was his heart drop. He was only an illusion; a creation; a puppet. He wasn't really made to feel or think or exist. His only purpose was for the Game.
It hurt so badly. To know that he wasn't really _human_. To know that those feelings and emotions roiling inside him were only a vague mimicry of memory's taken from his Light. Yes, his Light, his Aibou, his Mou Hitori no Ore [3], was the only reason he had become what he was.
The two Gods were fighting. They were not Gods but merely toys of the Game that _It_ bought for entertainment. And _It_ too was just part of the Game.
As he looked upon this battle and saw the Gods so obstinately attacking and shredding each other apart, the Game King lost the will to fight.
His mind was still formulating. Yami clearly saw how Obelisk could win the Game. The God of Obelisk had a special strength, able to absorb the attack of allied monsters to add to its own. Yami speculated on how Ra could win. With _It's_ added influence, Ra could gain enough energy and momentum to overpower Obelisk.
No more fighting. He was going to step out of this Game. He was no longer going to be a shadow pitching his existence on such shallow stakes. He would not let the Game manipulate him anymore.
There was liberty, there was freedom, there was hope.
And love. He could feel the love from vague recollections in Yuugi's mind. Yami longed to touch it as a tangible substance and proudly announce it as his own.
The two Gods were still madly thrashing for dominance. It looked like Ra was winning now.
/Yami?/ The innocent voice carried with it confusion. /Why are you not fighting?/
Yami hesitated. The entire revelation had disappeared. The spectacular empires and kingdoms of wishes and desires had faded back into darkness. Only the hulking, leery face of the Game remained. This was his oppressor.
//Nothing, little light. I am just merely contemplating.//
Clash, roar. More fighting and show of dominance. Yami dared himself to ignore it.
/About what?/
The Game King hesitated. Truly about what? Did it really matter? Did his existence even matter? Oh, it did. To the Game it did. //Yuugi.// Hesitation. //Do you. love. me?//
It sounded so silly and wrong coming from him, the Darkness's, mouth.
All Yuugi did was laugh it away. It was so eloquently done too. /Of course! I love you more than anything! You are my other./
Yes of course. Yami should have seen it before. The problem was that he didn't and hadn't. He wouldn't play this folly now.
Not when the Game was waiting for him.
There was no exchange of good-byes. Yami knew that his destiny had been set by the Game.
Yuugi suddenly felt as if his entire body, once suspended in a hallway of two souls, being torn brutally back into solidity. He found himself staring through his own eyes at the Game. He moved backwards in shock. His arms and legs complied.
/Yami?/ Yuugi clutched his chest. It was as if someone had tore a chunk of his essence apart from him. It hurt - it hurt so badly. He gasped, dropping to his knees. /YAMI!/
The trusting crimson eyes stared back. They looked at Yuugi full of joy and longing.
Never once did Yuugi see him as something else. Not even when Yami, this soul of Yami seated in a shell of a monster garbed in pure black, raised its scythe defensively against Ra, did Yuugi view him as otherwise. The boy's mind refused to.
The God of Obelisk turned his weary body towards this last non-God monster. The monster Yami assumed, a stronger version of the Dark Magician titled the 'Dark Paladin', nodded briefly in consent. No words were exchanged between the two _creatures_ of the Game.
With every beginning comes an end. It was such a bad cliché, used and overused again and again. But the worn clichés were the ones that contained the most wisdom.
The Dark Paladin disappeared, merging its power, energy, and strength into that of Obelisk's. With a final raise of its fist like a tribute to an unknown presence, the God of Obelisk lifted its head to stare squarely into Ra's golden ones. The gargantuan blue-tinged God raised its fist backwards, aiming slightly, before shooting them forwards in a crushing blow.
Yuugi once had thought that his budding relationship with Yami was just the beginning of something great. But now all that lay in front of him was a wreck of chaos and blackened ooze of the Game's worn walls. Ascotti glimmered weakly in the background.
Carnage and ruin everywhere. Destruction as far as the eye could see. This was the Game. This was all that the Game was about. Everything was expendable. Even the defeated _It_ was expendable.
With a howl full of rage and denial, _Its_ crackling voice broke into millions of fragments of sound. _It_ had poured all its energy and existence into the God of Ra, and now paid the price.
The Game, though favourable to certain conditions, knew no true allies. The Game was just. the Game.
Yuugi had won. He had only sacrificed part of himself and the souls of others to win. Why _It_ had not drawn on more souls remained a mystery to Yuugi. Perhaps _It_ made mistakes too.
And suddenly _It_ did not seem so all-powerful to the small boy.
Yes boy. Yuugi was still a boy. He was still as human, as weak and as vulnerable as before. The Millennium Puzzle glimmered. It seemed to dig into his chest.
With lacklustre violet eyes, Yuugi looked into the caving pits of Ascotti leaking like lava around him. They greedily ate up the Darkness of the Game and dared to consume him whole.
And even when Yuugi dropped like a wounded bird into the pools of glowing "1's" and "0's" and felt it stinging his skin in acidic ferver, he came to one fleeting conclusion.
He had won.
*****************************************
A small boy bearing a crown of scarlet, gold, and ebony stood in a labyrinth filled with wires and chrome contraptions. He was staring confused at a single screen in the center. The screen stared back.
He blankly placed a hand on one of the many buttons situated by the screen. Some of the wires began to hum and the screen suddenly lit up.
~*~ "Dark Games, created by a warped reality, luring its contestants into false security and consuming them one by one. Shadow Games, which promised desires beyond imagination, in exchange for a human soul." ~*~
There was a nearby chair. The boy neatly set the body lying limply on the chair to one side before seating himself on it and staring at the screen.
~*~ "You are still young." Grandpa avoided the question altogether. "Too young to understand the reality of the Game." His solemn, pale lavender eyes continued to bear onto Yuugi's dark violet ones. "You cannot escape the Game, Yuugi. It surrounds you, even as we speak. But, you can win. Only by winning can you survive." ~*~
His other hand went to the keyboard.
*****************************************
My name is Yuugi.
I once thought I was the last human. But there are still others out there. Many others; others I can't see or comprehend or understand. They are scattered in cities unable to contact each other. Their lairs are called Sectors. It could be Sector 01 or Sector 302. Mine was assigned to be Sector 09.
The double X before the code word '09' describes the state of my city. 'Busy' cities have one X. Abandoned ones had three.
This is what Grandpa wanted to show me before I lost my memory. I have regained it now. I know this is what he wanted.
It took me a while to be in the coming. It took me longer to learn when I had no clue.
Was it a fluke? No. We, us humans, are all destined to come here. We are the chosen ones.
My name is Yuugi Mutou, and I reside in sector XX09.
Some of you may know me as _It_.
~~ Owari~~~
*********************************************
End notes:
[1] "Mou hitori no boku" - 'my other self'. Yuugi uses it to address Yami in Battle City episodes.
[2] "Aibou" - 'partner'. Yami uses it to address Yuugi.
[3] "Mou hitori no ore" - another 'my other self' reference, just written differently ^^;
*giggles madly* I got it done! I got it done! IgotitdoneIgotitdone! Whee! I love the creation of caffeine!
An attached "end notes" section has been added for your convenience. Flames will be used to light up the God of Ra
. anyone want to play the Game?
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-gi-oh. If I did, you would probably see one episode per year ^^;;;
Yay! The final end! Some of your were right in the aspect that I had written parts of chapter 9 before I posted chapter 8. Thus, I could get it out faster (and unfortunately without PH-san editing it)
Eevee muse: And _who_ was it that gave you the inspiration?
Zoo: -_-;; Must you always rub it into my face?
~*~ Flashback/reminiscing ~*~
***************************
Last time:
"A flash of gold and glistening chrome echoed in the Game King's memory. Yami narrowed his eyes. He would finally encounter this God that had been chasing him in the horrendous scene after his duel with Seto. He would face the beast without the distractions of the ascotti. This was _Its_ secret weapon and he would destroy it.
.. With his own God."
**************************
".Rain dancer, the secret is not within your eyes But within my yearning and soulless husk."
Section 0.9.
The ground vibrated uncontrollably. It began to shake and clamour like an enraged beast, expanding outwards in dark waves.
Yami swayed uneasily against the onslaught. Several times he faltered, dropping to his knees before forcing himself upright to brace against the buckling ground once more.
His Red Eyes Black Dragon circled in terse arcs around him, wings snapped at odd angles by an invisible current. The ebony Dragon's red eyes were narrowed in anticipation and fear.
The God was coming. _It's_ God was coming.
The Game King felt his fists involuntarily clench together. He forced his head against the roaring gales of chaos and planted his feet firmly into the shuddering ground. He would not succumb to _It's_ fear.
Everything was suddenly bleached of colour.
It was as if a gigantic switch had been turned on, bathing the darkness in a flash of blinding light. Trickles of gold and dull copper danced in the stark-white air. They began to merge at a point, binding and shaping together until they formed a gigantic, coiled up ball of a pure golden-copper sheen.
Yami brought a hand to his eyes to shade them from the intense glare. He could see the sphere of steel gold growing in the midst of the harsh light. It continued to expand and accumulate without ever loosing its perfect shape.
The glare escaped back into the shadows with a soft sigh. Only the glistening copper-gold sphere was left. Invisible droplets of light bounced and reflected in facets off the sphere's geometric surface.
That was it. No horrendous roar, flashing ruby eyes, or flexing of glistening wings. Just a round sphere of archaic-designed gold. It hovered like an ominous harbinger of destruction. The darkness flanking it only to emphasized its solitude.
_It_ threw back his head and laughed at the sheer confusion written on the Game King's face. He continue to bark hysterically, tongue lolling out from one side of his mouth to taste his lips. At last he stopped. His burning violet-red eyes mocked Yami. "Come. There is nothing to fear." There was an unregistered amount of sadistic glee in his statement.
The Game King veered away from _Its_ beckoning stance. Something was amiss. He could taste the terror lingering within this God, but it seemed unreal; hidden underneath its placate golden shell.
It was all about illusions. Just like how the globular Revive Mud protecting _It_ had seemed harmless, this sphere was meant to deceive. This was a test to observe the Game King's judgement.
Two could play at that game. Yami forced his muscles to relax, moulding his expression into one of regal confidence. He forced out a bark of derision. "So, this is your feared God? This punitive sphere of gold? You dare call yourself the master of the Game when your famed God is nothing but a round lump?"
_It_ laughed. For a moment his face lost its solidity, lips and eyes stretching eerily into the darkness. "Yes, Game King. You are more powerful. Surely this shell of gold means nothing to you." _It_ raised his arms out in a sweeping motion towards his God. "Attack my God. That is, if you wish to win this Game."
Yami hesitated. Sending his Red Eyes against a God would be sheer suicide. Somehow he had to continue his over-confident façade without risking any damage. "Red Eyes Black Dragon, attack the God from a distance."
The ebony dragon arched its thin neck, tilting its head backwards. A sizeable ball of flame began to accumulate within his jaws. With a deft shake of its head, the dragon spat the fireball straight towards the God's spherical shape. The meteor-like projectile splattered harmlessly off the golden shell.
"You'll have to get closer than that to do any damage." _It's_ voice was deadly calm. "In this form, my God's shell can only be penetrated by physical attacks."
Yami caught _It's_ slight slip-up. _It_ has clearly said 'in this form', which meant that this spherical God hovering in the air was simply a cocoon in the stage of metamorphosis. The Game King clenched his fists. How long did he have before _It's_ God revealed its most powerful form?
.How long could Yuugi stay with Jounochi before his friend parted for the last time? Just like how Yuugi had been the last human, Jounochi was the last Hybrid.
The Red Eyes Black Dragon broke the hesitation. In a furious screech and sweep of its glistening ebony wings, the Game King's monster flew at point-blank range towards the spherical God. The dragon did not bother slowing his flight before ramming straight into the God and latching its thick claws onto the impenetrable golden shell. Eyes whirling with vehemence, the Red Eyes wrapped its entire frame around the spherical shape in attempt squeeze the God out from its hiding form. Upon seeing that this action was futile, it proceeded to gouge and dent the shell with its head and claws. Again and again it rammed the God, stirring a continuous barrage of grating screeches and dull-red sparks as metal clashed against metal.
"Red Eyes Black Dragon." Yami tried to make himself heard amidst the noise.
The dragon was too engrossed in his task to stop. The clamouring and furious banging continued.
A small pit was working in the Game King's stomach as he noticed _It's_ triumphant expression from the corner of his eye. This was exactly what _It_ wanted.
"Jounochi!" This time, Yami shouted both physically and mentally, exerting all power possible into this one command. "Stop it!"
Immediately the Game King's monster stopped. It twisted its thin neck to stare at Yami. Comprehension flickered just momentarily through the dragon's eyes.
And then it _hissed_ at Yami. The Red Eyes Black Dragon bristled its coiled body, claws and legs still entwined possessively around its spherical target. Its wings opened and furiously embraced the God's golden shell, as if hiding a treasure away from the Game King.
Yami - no, Yuugi - was taken aback. This was not the Jounochi he had known. The true Jounochi was gentle, kind, and a loyal friend. This enraged, snapping, aggressive beast could not be Jounochi.
Just like how the Game had changed Yuugi, it also infected Jounochi's mind. All of them, monsters, players, manipulators, were no more than puppets of the Game.
The Red Eyes Black Dragon screeched yet another shrill feral cry before attempting to dig its rows of serrated ebony teeth into the God's metallic surface. It struggled with such power and beauty that for a moment the dragon seemed the victor.
Dragons were only whimsical beasts of the imagination. They were no match for Gods.
_It_ suddenly began to chant. The words were incoherent, a string of nonsensical, low syllables. Though the sound was barely above the level of silence, its haunting words seemed to reverberate throughout the entire expanse of the Game.
The Red Eyes Black Dragon shrieked in blinded triumph as it saw the once impenetrable sphere part open. It paid no heed to the flowing words beckoning the God.
The dragon scrabbled and pried at the shell, serpentine form clutching the statue of a leviathan. The Game King's monster shoved its eager claws into one of the many cracks forming on the sphere.
Pure gold rays of light spilt from every crack. They merged into a slab of molten fire before engulfing the dragon's entire form, bathing its ebony armour pure white until it seemed void of shade and colour.
The Dragon ceased to exist. Nothing was left of it save a wisp of defeat escaping from the flare of light. And that too disappeared.
Yet instead of diminishing, the light grew in strength and intensity. Now the expanding, contorting sphere was alight with flames. They flickered in every shade of gold and white. Some danced erratically around the God's emerging, changing form.
The Game King was forced to cover his eyes yet again. He knew he was vulnerable and exposed, but his reaction to the glare was involuntary. It was as if he was staring at the very face of the sun.
More mechanical clicking and whirring was heard before the noise and light finally died down. Yami dared himself to look up at this God once more.
The first thing the Game King saw were the eyes. They burned an uncontested red not with rage but with sheer energy. This newly emerged God raised its beak-like head, shaking its mane comprised only of metallic gold shingles. Its entire body was covered in them, making it seem more a contraption than a creation. Symmetric wings splayed out from either side of its golden-chrome shoulders.
Yami stared at this golden beast. He forced himself to analyze it while his mind quavered in apprehension. True, his own God had uncontested power but not such limitless energy.
"In the Game there are three uncontested Gods." _It_ spoke, body unmoving as his God descended beside him. The golden beast waited obediently for its master to finish talking. "Saint Dragon, the God of Osiris, ruler of power and ambition. The God of Obelisk, dominated by strength. And at last, my God of limitless energy, the God of Ra." The very manipulator of the Game locked eyes with Yami. "Come. Let us fight. This is a battle between Gods."
The Game King staggered. So _It_ already knew about the Saint Dragon. His element of surprise had been turned to a disadvantage. Yet it only made sense. _It_ knew everything there was to know about the Game.
The Game between him and _It_ was far from over, but Yami was already beginning to despair. Pitching two Gods blindly against each other relied purely on luck and chance. It was a gamble of stakes in which _It_ remained the more favourable. And did he dare put his faith in his own God? Or would Yami's God of Osiris disobey him like the Red Eyes Black Dragon?
Better to try and fail than to do nothing at all. Gathering up the final dregs of his determination, the Game King glared squarely back into _It's_ malevolent eyes. "Of course."
Yami felt it vibrating around him. The Saint Dragon was impatient, buckling in its dark confines in eagerness to lash out and destroy with its power. At last the Game King released this power, letting it flow into its true shape, letting the Millennium Puzzle solidify his God.
The darkness poured and merged into grey mist. It formed a shadow of translucent pearl-white. With alarming brevity, its faint outline solidified and grew into massive red platelets. They travelled like water down its misty form to colour the entire beast in a uniform ruby and black shade.
The newly summoned Saint Dragon, God of Osiris, stretched its coiled serpentine head and roared. Its jagged teeth quivered in anticipation as it turned its crimson eyes towards its opponent. _It's_ God, the God of Ra, was easily shrouded by the massive bulk of Osiris. That did nothing to ease the Game King's tension.
The power of energy lay in potential. Even in its true form, the God of Ra seemed like a deceptive puppet. The puppeteer was still hiding something.
The God of Osiris acted immediately. It cut through the stillness like lightning; massive bulk hurtling with unexpected agility straight towards its opponent. At the very last moment, the Dragon God sharply banked its wings upwards. Its body shot at a wicked angle up past the God of Ra, fathoms of coiled tail whipping dutifully behind it.
Hovering in the still air with a power beyond flight, the God of Osiris positioned itself to attack. From its larger lower jaw grew a crackling orb of electric-yellow. Small lancelets of energy escaped from its mouth to tickle the darkness outside of it. Entire body outstretched and dangerously still, the Dragon God launched its attack, spewing out the concentrated energy in a whirr of static sound. The electric-yellow orb expanded into a meteor of lightning, an arc of jagged golden-yellow tailing its motion.
The attack hit the God of Ra in a splendour of sound and light. Electric sparks sprayed and arched at all angles, dancing erratically in the darkness. Everything within a ten-metre radius of Ra was shrouded in a thick grey cloud. Even the darkness underneath where _It's_ God had been standing was cracked and parched, revealing some of the Ascotti hiding underneath. They gleamed luridly through the cracks, making the blemishes appear to glow.
The Game King held his breath. Even with the evidence in front of his eyes, he dared not celebrate. The victory was too easy.
The God of Osiris too sensed something wrong. It began to fly in agitated circles around the site of devastation, several coils of tail lashing back and forth with a life of its own. Unlike the Red Eyes Black Dragon, its eyes still gleamed with shrewd rage and intelligence akin to its soul.
The final wisps of smoke parted to reveal nothing. Absolutely nothing save the serrated ground and vast black expanse. The God of Ra had disappeared.
_It_ calmly watched the Revive Mud protecting him piece itself back together. His lips were twisted in an expression of either hatred, or amusement, or both. The manipulator of the Game spoke.
It took the Game King a while to realize that _It_ was not addressing him. Instead, his opponent seemed to be talking to the still darkness around him. Unlike the first time he had beckoned his God, his voice now spat out sharp, guttural barks. They seemed to take a life of their own as they travelled throughout the expanse of the Game to whisper its secrets.
Silence. Perfected stillness. Even the Ascotti leaking beneath the cracks were still.
The entire sky of the Game suddenly turned blood-red. It was the perfected red of _It's_ eyes; an unrivalled deep crimson. From the canvas of pure scarlet emerged two golden slits. They whirled insatiably in a mixture of orange and gold.
The Game King's lips were parted in awe. He felt himself unable to do anything but gape at this pure manifestation of terror. Despair began pumping tenfold in his heart. The God of Osiris looked like a sparrow lost in this sky of deathly crimson.
_It's_ ruby-amethyst eyes were half-closed in glee. Though he still had a brilliant smile plastered on his face, it seemed mutated and twisted until his lips resembled a melted collage. _It's_ entire body was contorted at odd angles and had lost the human-like appearance. The manipulator of the Game opened what had been his mouth. "God of Ra. Destroy. Seek the Darkness. Bring the Darkness. Feed the Darkness."
Yet the sound did not escape from _It_. Instead, the noise echoed from all corners of the Game, as if _It_ had become the Game itself.
A sudden grating roar tore Yami's gaze away from _It's_ dilapidated form.
The crimson sky began to bulge and contort. The area closest to Osiris suddenly protruded outwards to form a sharp, triangular shaped beak. Etched lines of red and black took a feather-like gradient as the golden- yellow slits served as eyes.
This was the God of Ra. This was the God of Ra's final form.
_It_ laughed, the surge of triumph everywhere at once. "Yes, Game King. Have you figured it out? Just like how my guise has fooled you, the God of Ra's second form was able to deceive your God of Osiris. This is-"
Yami heard the words long before _It_ said them. He had known it all along. It was a losing battle; a hopeless Game from the start.
Now, more than anything, he feared this end. He feared for the pain of his Light and of his own Dark existence.
/We'll be okay./ Yuugi's sudden statement denied apprehension. It was resolute and strangely reassuring. /Keep on fighting, mou hitori no boku [1]. Let's fight until this end. You said it had to come./
Was it really Yuugi's thoughts or an extension of his own? Yami's mind was clouded with uncertainly. In front of his eyes lay the God of Osiris, form easily shrouded by the true God of Ra. In front of his startling ruby eyes lay despair.
A single tear trickled down the Game King's stoic expression. //No regrets, Aibou [2]? Not a single moment of fear, or hate, or longing?//
It truly was Yuugi then. For there was a prolonged paused indicating self-thought and reflection. /You asked me the same thing when we faced the God of Osiris. We had been lucky then, and under the same circumstances. That experience has only made me bolder./ Another pause. /I would be lying if I said that I didn't hate, or fear, or long for something else. But everyone else is gone. I'm the only one left. The only _anything_, the only free soul left. So no, I do not regret being the last./
The God of Ra spread its unending fiery wings, lighting the last dregs of darkness aflame with light. It's emblazoned head and was bared in a silent screech. With a deafening whoosh, it collected its entire form, burning light and crimson expanse, into a waterfall of sparkling energy. The flames poured straight into the God of Osiris's hapless figure.
True to his soul, the Saint Dragon remained impassive. Even when the God of Ra had burned its armour pure-black and crackled its shells of skin, it did not back down or cringe in pain. More human than beast, the God of Osiris parted its jaws wide open. It seemed to be laughing wildly. The fabled Dragon God of power continued to stay on that position until the flames ate it whole.
Something streaked through the darkness, barely visible under the gigantic God of Ra's bulk.
The Seraph had died with power.
Yami held in his breath, waiting for the fear-inflicting God to turn its fiery gaze towards him.
It never happened. The God of Ra suddenly arched its titanic form so that the entire 'sky' of the Game bristled in anger.
Was there something else hiding in the darkness of the Game? Yami forced his eyes to continue searching.
Like a lumbering behemoth, yet another figure emerged from the vague shadowy distance. Its figure had been shrouded by both the brilliance of the God of Ra and the humble darkness of the Game 'ground'.
Stoic and statuesque. That was the only way to describe this ground- based monster. It stood on twin legs, back upright and head implanted close to its stocky shoulders. The creature's entire frame was enveloped in a suit of rich peacock-blue. A single glimmer of red was etched in the center of its forehead.
"And so, the last God joins the fight." _It's_ omniscient voice was crackled and blurred, sounding barely discernable. The noise was everywhere at once. "The God of Obelisk, God of strength, without the potential or power to succeed."
The sky-incarnation of Ra began to swirl and distort, center of its bulky mass moving straight towards the God of Obelisk before reforming the eyes, beak, and feathers.
Yami stared at this new arrival. There were no more souls left that he knew. Not unless. Could this be.?
"You're too late." A pregnant pause ensued from the disembodied, choppy voice. "Cyber-droid."
Obelisk seemed unfazed. It looked dully at the God of Ra quivering with rage and energy above it and gave a passive shake of its head.
Enraged, the fiery God attacked, aflame once more in a glory of crimson and blood orange; massive figure burning brighter than the mid-day sun. Its head alone easily outsized the God of Obelisk.
The Game King knew that size meant nothing. At least, that was his last insight on hope. It was childish really, how strongly he clung to winning, to being the victor in the most unfavourable situations. Surely defeat could not be that bad. Even Yuugi had said it was okay.
But what drove him? What set Yami apart from his Light? What made the Game King want to overcome this Game, defeat _It_ once and for all, and dance glorious over his reputation? Yami sought above all else the thrill and emergence of the victorious.
Because he too was no more than a projection of the Game. He had never desired anything else. Just like the Seraph, he too could not see anything else.
The attack had died down. The God of Obelisk was still standing, as unfazed and as stoic as before. The only signs of the attack lay in the wisps of flame disappearing from the ground and shooting back into the burning sky. Ra shook its many-feathered wings in outrage.
Yami felt what he had thought was his heart drop. He was only an illusion; a creation; a puppet. He wasn't really made to feel or think or exist. His only purpose was for the Game.
It hurt so badly. To know that he wasn't really _human_. To know that those feelings and emotions roiling inside him were only a vague mimicry of memory's taken from his Light. Yes, his Light, his Aibou, his Mou Hitori no Ore [3], was the only reason he had become what he was.
The two Gods were fighting. They were not Gods but merely toys of the Game that _It_ bought for entertainment. And _It_ too was just part of the Game.
As he looked upon this battle and saw the Gods so obstinately attacking and shredding each other apart, the Game King lost the will to fight.
His mind was still formulating. Yami clearly saw how Obelisk could win the Game. The God of Obelisk had a special strength, able to absorb the attack of allied monsters to add to its own. Yami speculated on how Ra could win. With _It's_ added influence, Ra could gain enough energy and momentum to overpower Obelisk.
No more fighting. He was going to step out of this Game. He was no longer going to be a shadow pitching his existence on such shallow stakes. He would not let the Game manipulate him anymore.
There was liberty, there was freedom, there was hope.
And love. He could feel the love from vague recollections in Yuugi's mind. Yami longed to touch it as a tangible substance and proudly announce it as his own.
The two Gods were still madly thrashing for dominance. It looked like Ra was winning now.
/Yami?/ The innocent voice carried with it confusion. /Why are you not fighting?/
Yami hesitated. The entire revelation had disappeared. The spectacular empires and kingdoms of wishes and desires had faded back into darkness. Only the hulking, leery face of the Game remained. This was his oppressor.
//Nothing, little light. I am just merely contemplating.//
Clash, roar. More fighting and show of dominance. Yami dared himself to ignore it.
/About what?/
The Game King hesitated. Truly about what? Did it really matter? Did his existence even matter? Oh, it did. To the Game it did. //Yuugi.// Hesitation. //Do you. love. me?//
It sounded so silly and wrong coming from him, the Darkness's, mouth.
All Yuugi did was laugh it away. It was so eloquently done too. /Of course! I love you more than anything! You are my other./
Yes of course. Yami should have seen it before. The problem was that he didn't and hadn't. He wouldn't play this folly now.
Not when the Game was waiting for him.
There was no exchange of good-byes. Yami knew that his destiny had been set by the Game.
Yuugi suddenly felt as if his entire body, once suspended in a hallway of two souls, being torn brutally back into solidity. He found himself staring through his own eyes at the Game. He moved backwards in shock. His arms and legs complied.
/Yami?/ Yuugi clutched his chest. It was as if someone had tore a chunk of his essence apart from him. It hurt - it hurt so badly. He gasped, dropping to his knees. /YAMI!/
The trusting crimson eyes stared back. They looked at Yuugi full of joy and longing.
Never once did Yuugi see him as something else. Not even when Yami, this soul of Yami seated in a shell of a monster garbed in pure black, raised its scythe defensively against Ra, did Yuugi view him as otherwise. The boy's mind refused to.
The God of Obelisk turned his weary body towards this last non-God monster. The monster Yami assumed, a stronger version of the Dark Magician titled the 'Dark Paladin', nodded briefly in consent. No words were exchanged between the two _creatures_ of the Game.
With every beginning comes an end. It was such a bad cliché, used and overused again and again. But the worn clichés were the ones that contained the most wisdom.
The Dark Paladin disappeared, merging its power, energy, and strength into that of Obelisk's. With a final raise of its fist like a tribute to an unknown presence, the God of Obelisk lifted its head to stare squarely into Ra's golden ones. The gargantuan blue-tinged God raised its fist backwards, aiming slightly, before shooting them forwards in a crushing blow.
Yuugi once had thought that his budding relationship with Yami was just the beginning of something great. But now all that lay in front of him was a wreck of chaos and blackened ooze of the Game's worn walls. Ascotti glimmered weakly in the background.
Carnage and ruin everywhere. Destruction as far as the eye could see. This was the Game. This was all that the Game was about. Everything was expendable. Even the defeated _It_ was expendable.
With a howl full of rage and denial, _Its_ crackling voice broke into millions of fragments of sound. _It_ had poured all its energy and existence into the God of Ra, and now paid the price.
The Game, though favourable to certain conditions, knew no true allies. The Game was just. the Game.
Yuugi had won. He had only sacrificed part of himself and the souls of others to win. Why _It_ had not drawn on more souls remained a mystery to Yuugi. Perhaps _It_ made mistakes too.
And suddenly _It_ did not seem so all-powerful to the small boy.
Yes boy. Yuugi was still a boy. He was still as human, as weak and as vulnerable as before. The Millennium Puzzle glimmered. It seemed to dig into his chest.
With lacklustre violet eyes, Yuugi looked into the caving pits of Ascotti leaking like lava around him. They greedily ate up the Darkness of the Game and dared to consume him whole.
And even when Yuugi dropped like a wounded bird into the pools of glowing "1's" and "0's" and felt it stinging his skin in acidic ferver, he came to one fleeting conclusion.
He had won.
*****************************************
A small boy bearing a crown of scarlet, gold, and ebony stood in a labyrinth filled with wires and chrome contraptions. He was staring confused at a single screen in the center. The screen stared back.
He blankly placed a hand on one of the many buttons situated by the screen. Some of the wires began to hum and the screen suddenly lit up.
~*~ "Dark Games, created by a warped reality, luring its contestants into false security and consuming them one by one. Shadow Games, which promised desires beyond imagination, in exchange for a human soul." ~*~
There was a nearby chair. The boy neatly set the body lying limply on the chair to one side before seating himself on it and staring at the screen.
~*~ "You are still young." Grandpa avoided the question altogether. "Too young to understand the reality of the Game." His solemn, pale lavender eyes continued to bear onto Yuugi's dark violet ones. "You cannot escape the Game, Yuugi. It surrounds you, even as we speak. But, you can win. Only by winning can you survive." ~*~
His other hand went to the keyboard.
*****************************************
My name is Yuugi.
I once thought I was the last human. But there are still others out there. Many others; others I can't see or comprehend or understand. They are scattered in cities unable to contact each other. Their lairs are called Sectors. It could be Sector 01 or Sector 302. Mine was assigned to be Sector 09.
The double X before the code word '09' describes the state of my city. 'Busy' cities have one X. Abandoned ones had three.
This is what Grandpa wanted to show me before I lost my memory. I have regained it now. I know this is what he wanted.
It took me a while to be in the coming. It took me longer to learn when I had no clue.
Was it a fluke? No. We, us humans, are all destined to come here. We are the chosen ones.
My name is Yuugi Mutou, and I reside in sector XX09.
Some of you may know me as _It_.
~~ Owari~~~
*********************************************
End notes:
[1] "Mou hitori no boku" - 'my other self'. Yuugi uses it to address Yami in Battle City episodes.
[2] "Aibou" - 'partner'. Yami uses it to address Yuugi.
[3] "Mou hitori no ore" - another 'my other self' reference, just written differently ^^;
*giggles madly* I got it done! I got it done! IgotitdoneIgotitdone! Whee! I love the creation of caffeine!
An attached "end notes" section has been added for your convenience. Flames will be used to light up the God of Ra
. anyone want to play the Game?