Author's note: if you don't understand all the weird objects they pick up, don't worry. It's not essential to the Chaos War; in fact, it concerns the Apocalypse War, which is a completely different story and is not elaborated on in this fanfic. However, because both Mike and Benjamin play a role in both wars, and because this happens during their Key quest, I felt I should put it in. If it gets too crazy for you, ignore it. ;;
Chapter 21--Apocalypse Junk
When Yuugi woke up the next morning, he did a double take. Next to him was a small, wooden toy figure. He stared at it for a moment before realizing that it was impossible and sitting up, screaming. Benjamin and Mike both woke instantly, drawing their swords, before realizing that there was no visible threat. Mike looked at Yuugi, who was in a state of shock.
Holding up the toy man, he gasped, "Look...it's...it's..."
Mike stared at him. "It's a toy man. So what?"
Yuugi stared back at him, looking slightly insane. "IT'S IMPOSSIBLE! HOW CAN IT BE HERE!?"
Mike was still confused, and becoming unnerved by Yuugi's strange behavior. "What...isn't it yours?"
"NO IT'S NOT MINE! IT JUST APPEARED FOR NO REASON!" Yuugi shouted at him.
Benjamin intervened before the conversation became too bizarre. Picking up the toy man, he almost dropped it in surprise. "It's important!"
Seeing the blank (although slightly calmer, in Yuugi's case) looks that the others gave him, he said, "I don't know why, but it feels very important. I'll keep it in my backpack; we may need it." He took off his backpack, one of his few possessions and a gift from the Digidestineds, and placed the toy man carefully inside.
With that, they continued on, reaching Zephryville by nightfall. They decided to sleep at the Pokemon Center that night. Mike and Benjamin both stayed awake; Mike didn't want to sleep and Benjamin wanted to look at the stars, so scarce in his own World. Yuugi, however, fell asleep, and promptly had the most bizarre dream he had ever experienced.
Benjamin's backpack opened up, and the toy man walked out. Yuugi watched this uncomprehendingly until the toy man nudged him, saying, "Hey-- wake up!"
Yuugi sat up, speaking incoherently. "You're...you're....you can't be alive....you're a toy man....this is impossible..."
The toy man looked disgruntled. "I'm not a toy man, I'm the voice of destiny." Turning to Yami, who was also wide awake and staring at the toy man in shock, he said, "Can't you calm him down or something?"
Yami, however, was as incoherent as Yuugi. "But...but....you're....you can't..."
Yuugi stared at the toy man, then looked at Yami. "You can see him too?" Yami nodded, and Yuugi smiled in relief. "Great! That means I'm not crazy. So, what did you want to tell me, toy man?"
The exasperated toy man, seeing that his audience was finally listening to him, cleared his throat and began. "There are important things beginning--your quest for this Key isn't all that's going on here. You're going to find other things, things that will look like ordinary junk, but you have to keep them. Look for anything out of place, anything at all that seems strange. And be warned--some of the things you'll find will be incredibly evil. When you wake up, there will be a broken clock next to you. Keep it. Oh, and tell the others what I said--I've caused them all to be asleep, they won't wake up until I'm gone. When they do, they won't realize that any time has passed. Don't forget, I'm not the toy man--the toy man isn't alive yet. I'm the voice of destiny, and don't ask me why or how. Got it? Good. Now go back to sleep."
He turned and retreated into Benjamin's backpack, where he became a lifeless toy man once more. Yuugi shrugged and complied with the toy man's last command. "Maybe when I wake up, there won't be a clock. Maybe this is all just a bad dream..."
Yuugi woke up the next morning. Before opening his eyes, he whispered, "Please don't let there be a clock." He rolled over.
A small, black clock stood beside him. It was broken.
Yuugi groaned. The toy man really had spoken; now he had to convince Mike and Benjamin that it was more than a crazy dream.
Mike looked at the clock. "Yuugi, why do you have a broken clock?"
In a rush, Yuugi explained his not-quite-dream. As he did so, he noticed that something seemed strange about Mike. His eyes...they were somehow wrong. This became more obvious in the next few minutes. No one was ready for what happened that day. Benjamin believed Yuugi at once. Mike, however, was uncharacteristically cynical about the entire thing. When they stepped outside, they saw a small, silver ball bearing. It was oddly flawless.
Yuugi immediately picked it up. "It must be another one of the special objects!"
Mike, his eyes more wrong than ever, knocked it out of his hand. "I don't believe this whole thing with the toy man. If it's really important, this won't do anything to it."
He grabbed the toy man and lit it on fire, ignoring Yuugi's nonsensical cry of, "No! You'll hurt the toy man!" The toy man was burned to cinders before anyone could stop Mike.
Benjamin, who was busy chasing the ball bearing, did not see that Mike, his eyes now entirely black, without any visible pupils, turned on Yuugi. Taking out his crystals, he raised one that Yuugi knew he could not normally operate.
Yuugi, do something! This isn't Mike! Yami said, trying not to sound panicked.
Yuugi, however, was helpless. "I can't! I would hurt Mike!"
Yuugi, he is trying to kill you! the spirit shouted in frustration; this wasn't the first time Yuugi had put himself in danger through nonviolence.
Yami was correct; the not-Mike person said, in a voice that eliminated any fleeting thought that he was still Mike from Yuugi's mind, "Death Stroke."
Only the loyalty of Yuugi's deck saved his life. Yuugi's monsters saw him as their friend, not their master, and they reacted strongly when he was threatened. Silverfang appeared, slamming Yuugi backwards, which bought time if it did not solve the problem.
Yuugi, shaken out of his shock at Mike trying to kill him, shouted, "Mirror Force!" without thinking. It didn't even occur to him that he wasn't holding the card. Mirror Force sprang into being from Yuugi's outstretched hand, deflecting Death Stroke back at Mike. He collapsed, vomiting thick, black ooze.
Yuugi ran forward, praying that Death Stroke had killed whatever had possessed Mike but not harmed him. He noticed a strange, metallic object stuck underneath Mike's chin. Pulling it free, he saw that it was a fly made out of black metal. His hand hurt as though it were on fire as he held it, and he knew at once that it was totally, powerfully evil. He realized that this was what the toy man had meant--they must keep the fly.
While Yuugi was trying to force himself to put the fly in his pocket, and not throw it away as he dearly wished to do, Mike sat up. He was in perfect health, except for being covered in black ooze and having no memory of what had just happened. All he saw was Yuugi, his hand closed tightly around some object, eyes shut in pain as he whispered over and over, "We have to keep it. We have to keep it."
He stood up, very concerned (and with good reason), but was shoved backwards by an unseen force--specifically, a very angry, worried spirit.
He stumbled, saying, "Hey, chill out, Yami! What's going on?"
Yuugi looked up, opening his hand. Mike picked up the fly at once, ignoring Yuugi's shout of, "No! Don't touch it!" Its possessive power, however, was gone.
Benjamin returned at this point. He too sensed the evil from the fly, but after the situation was explained, realized that they must keep it. He quickly unpacked his well-cared for backpack to put all of the objects away.
Out came a pair of shoes, the toy man, apparently unharmed (they all gasped in shock), a bunch of weeds, and several odd packages wrapped in what looked horribly like the hide of a reptilian creature. He put the objects away.
Mike, however, was curious. "Ben, what is all that stuff?" He gestured to the packages and the weeds.
Benjamin, repacking the hide-wrapped packages, said, "They are from an enemy. In Dark World, we do not waste food. Most are too scrawny to make a meal, but the liver is always good."
Yuugi whispered to Mike, "You try explaining to the neighbors why there's a kid sitting in your yard hunting and eating squirrels. Or try explaining why he's pulling weeds out of the lawn and eating those too! My grandpa and I gave him those shoes so he could look normal. He's been saving them all this time, but he doesn't wear them. It's bizarre!"
Mike looked at Benjamin's feet. For the first time, he realized that Benjamin was barefoot; the Darkling had so much presence that most people never even looked at his feet. "Okay, my weird-crap-o-meter is maxed out for the day."
Benjamin smiled slightly. "In that case, let's head to the Gym."
Chapter 21--Apocalypse Junk
When Yuugi woke up the next morning, he did a double take. Next to him was a small, wooden toy figure. He stared at it for a moment before realizing that it was impossible and sitting up, screaming. Benjamin and Mike both woke instantly, drawing their swords, before realizing that there was no visible threat. Mike looked at Yuugi, who was in a state of shock.
Holding up the toy man, he gasped, "Look...it's...it's..."
Mike stared at him. "It's a toy man. So what?"
Yuugi stared back at him, looking slightly insane. "IT'S IMPOSSIBLE! HOW CAN IT BE HERE!?"
Mike was still confused, and becoming unnerved by Yuugi's strange behavior. "What...isn't it yours?"
"NO IT'S NOT MINE! IT JUST APPEARED FOR NO REASON!" Yuugi shouted at him.
Benjamin intervened before the conversation became too bizarre. Picking up the toy man, he almost dropped it in surprise. "It's important!"
Seeing the blank (although slightly calmer, in Yuugi's case) looks that the others gave him, he said, "I don't know why, but it feels very important. I'll keep it in my backpack; we may need it." He took off his backpack, one of his few possessions and a gift from the Digidestineds, and placed the toy man carefully inside.
With that, they continued on, reaching Zephryville by nightfall. They decided to sleep at the Pokemon Center that night. Mike and Benjamin both stayed awake; Mike didn't want to sleep and Benjamin wanted to look at the stars, so scarce in his own World. Yuugi, however, fell asleep, and promptly had the most bizarre dream he had ever experienced.
Benjamin's backpack opened up, and the toy man walked out. Yuugi watched this uncomprehendingly until the toy man nudged him, saying, "Hey-- wake up!"
Yuugi sat up, speaking incoherently. "You're...you're....you can't be alive....you're a toy man....this is impossible..."
The toy man looked disgruntled. "I'm not a toy man, I'm the voice of destiny." Turning to Yami, who was also wide awake and staring at the toy man in shock, he said, "Can't you calm him down or something?"
Yami, however, was as incoherent as Yuugi. "But...but....you're....you can't..."
Yuugi stared at the toy man, then looked at Yami. "You can see him too?" Yami nodded, and Yuugi smiled in relief. "Great! That means I'm not crazy. So, what did you want to tell me, toy man?"
The exasperated toy man, seeing that his audience was finally listening to him, cleared his throat and began. "There are important things beginning--your quest for this Key isn't all that's going on here. You're going to find other things, things that will look like ordinary junk, but you have to keep them. Look for anything out of place, anything at all that seems strange. And be warned--some of the things you'll find will be incredibly evil. When you wake up, there will be a broken clock next to you. Keep it. Oh, and tell the others what I said--I've caused them all to be asleep, they won't wake up until I'm gone. When they do, they won't realize that any time has passed. Don't forget, I'm not the toy man--the toy man isn't alive yet. I'm the voice of destiny, and don't ask me why or how. Got it? Good. Now go back to sleep."
He turned and retreated into Benjamin's backpack, where he became a lifeless toy man once more. Yuugi shrugged and complied with the toy man's last command. "Maybe when I wake up, there won't be a clock. Maybe this is all just a bad dream..."
Yuugi woke up the next morning. Before opening his eyes, he whispered, "Please don't let there be a clock." He rolled over.
A small, black clock stood beside him. It was broken.
Yuugi groaned. The toy man really had spoken; now he had to convince Mike and Benjamin that it was more than a crazy dream.
Mike looked at the clock. "Yuugi, why do you have a broken clock?"
In a rush, Yuugi explained his not-quite-dream. As he did so, he noticed that something seemed strange about Mike. His eyes...they were somehow wrong. This became more obvious in the next few minutes. No one was ready for what happened that day. Benjamin believed Yuugi at once. Mike, however, was uncharacteristically cynical about the entire thing. When they stepped outside, they saw a small, silver ball bearing. It was oddly flawless.
Yuugi immediately picked it up. "It must be another one of the special objects!"
Mike, his eyes more wrong than ever, knocked it out of his hand. "I don't believe this whole thing with the toy man. If it's really important, this won't do anything to it."
He grabbed the toy man and lit it on fire, ignoring Yuugi's nonsensical cry of, "No! You'll hurt the toy man!" The toy man was burned to cinders before anyone could stop Mike.
Benjamin, who was busy chasing the ball bearing, did not see that Mike, his eyes now entirely black, without any visible pupils, turned on Yuugi. Taking out his crystals, he raised one that Yuugi knew he could not normally operate.
Yuugi, do something! This isn't Mike! Yami said, trying not to sound panicked.
Yuugi, however, was helpless. "I can't! I would hurt Mike!"
Yuugi, he is trying to kill you! the spirit shouted in frustration; this wasn't the first time Yuugi had put himself in danger through nonviolence.
Yami was correct; the not-Mike person said, in a voice that eliminated any fleeting thought that he was still Mike from Yuugi's mind, "Death Stroke."
Only the loyalty of Yuugi's deck saved his life. Yuugi's monsters saw him as their friend, not their master, and they reacted strongly when he was threatened. Silverfang appeared, slamming Yuugi backwards, which bought time if it did not solve the problem.
Yuugi, shaken out of his shock at Mike trying to kill him, shouted, "Mirror Force!" without thinking. It didn't even occur to him that he wasn't holding the card. Mirror Force sprang into being from Yuugi's outstretched hand, deflecting Death Stroke back at Mike. He collapsed, vomiting thick, black ooze.
Yuugi ran forward, praying that Death Stroke had killed whatever had possessed Mike but not harmed him. He noticed a strange, metallic object stuck underneath Mike's chin. Pulling it free, he saw that it was a fly made out of black metal. His hand hurt as though it were on fire as he held it, and he knew at once that it was totally, powerfully evil. He realized that this was what the toy man had meant--they must keep the fly.
While Yuugi was trying to force himself to put the fly in his pocket, and not throw it away as he dearly wished to do, Mike sat up. He was in perfect health, except for being covered in black ooze and having no memory of what had just happened. All he saw was Yuugi, his hand closed tightly around some object, eyes shut in pain as he whispered over and over, "We have to keep it. We have to keep it."
He stood up, very concerned (and with good reason), but was shoved backwards by an unseen force--specifically, a very angry, worried spirit.
He stumbled, saying, "Hey, chill out, Yami! What's going on?"
Yuugi looked up, opening his hand. Mike picked up the fly at once, ignoring Yuugi's shout of, "No! Don't touch it!" Its possessive power, however, was gone.
Benjamin returned at this point. He too sensed the evil from the fly, but after the situation was explained, realized that they must keep it. He quickly unpacked his well-cared for backpack to put all of the objects away.
Out came a pair of shoes, the toy man, apparently unharmed (they all gasped in shock), a bunch of weeds, and several odd packages wrapped in what looked horribly like the hide of a reptilian creature. He put the objects away.
Mike, however, was curious. "Ben, what is all that stuff?" He gestured to the packages and the weeds.
Benjamin, repacking the hide-wrapped packages, said, "They are from an enemy. In Dark World, we do not waste food. Most are too scrawny to make a meal, but the liver is always good."
Yuugi whispered to Mike, "You try explaining to the neighbors why there's a kid sitting in your yard hunting and eating squirrels. Or try explaining why he's pulling weeds out of the lawn and eating those too! My grandpa and I gave him those shoes so he could look normal. He's been saving them all this time, but he doesn't wear them. It's bizarre!"
Mike looked at Benjamin's feet. For the first time, he realized that Benjamin was barefoot; the Darkling had so much presence that most people never even looked at his feet. "Okay, my weird-crap-o-meter is maxed out for the day."
Benjamin smiled slightly. "In that case, let's head to the Gym."
