A/N: this chapter might sound really wrong cuz I don't know anything about Isis and Marik. Like do they ever see each other seeing how they're siblings? Did/do they guard the God cards or like the Pharaoh's grave or whatever? If I've got facts wrong, pleez tell me!!!
Mokuba was trapped in an array of flames. He felt the fire lick his bare skin and cried out in pain. He felt like he was trapped in an airless bubble; he could barely suck enough air into his tiny lungs to feel normal. His eyes began to blur and he felt very lightheaded, as if he were about to pass out. It was torture.
"It's OK, my little Mokuba," sneered Marik in an extremely snobbish voice. He petted his Millennium Rod like a puppy and stared at Mokuba, running frantically in the ball of the Rod, now as tiny as a paperclip. Marik now had Mokuba's soul in his possession and had used his ancient powers to reconstruct a miniature duplicate of Mokuba's body. Today, he wanted to expose the young Kaiba brother to some painful torture, as he thought of it.
"This is called torture, Mokuba. It hurts, doesn't it? Hurts like crazy, like your lungs are being ripped out. Well, that's how powerful and uncontrollable my desire for power is. I want to rule the world. I want the power of the seven Millennium Items, a power beyond what the Pharaoh had." He snickered. "I want to be as big as a mountain, look over all the little people and be able to look at them, knowing that I rule them. You hurt right now, don't you? Well, that's how I feel. I need power. Without it, it's like my lungs and heart are being sliced open and having their blood drained from them. Ugh, how visual."
Suddenly, Mokuba's eyes rolled over and he toppled in the Rod's ball. Marik looked at the boy's body in disgust and mock sadness. He shook his Rod a bit, bouncing Mokuba back and forth. "Whoops, there goes another one. Sorry I keep bouncing you around in there. I hope you don't get too many bruises. Anyway, back to my desire for power. I need power, like you need to breathe. I want to rule the world. I NEED POWER!" Marik, caught up in his frenzy, accidentally dropped his Rod, causing Mokuba's fragile body to bang forcefully against the edge of it. "Did that hurt, my little one? Oh, daddy Marik is deeply sorry." Mokuba's nose began spurting out blood.
"Yugi," Marik continued. "Now there's a distasteful name. That boy…he's got a mind and a body as weak as a lamb…but that damn spirit of his. The Pharaoh. I was supposed to guard his soul. For a thousand years, I was trying to steal it and get power beyond power. But no. Yugi got it. He will pay. I will get revenge." Marik did not notice one of his Rare Hunters walking up to him.
"Sir," spoke the Rare Hunter. "Your sister is here to speak with you."
Marik jumped in shock. He then took into account the Rare Hunter's words. "My sister? Isis? In the Shadow Realm?"
"Yes, she just came. She said it was urgent."
"Tell her to come in. Hah, my sister. Coming to visit…me?"
A moment later, Isis walked into Marik's chamber. The first thing either of them caught sight of was the other's Millennium Item. Marik's eyes widened at the golden beauty of his sister's Necklace. Isis, on the other hand, paid no attention to his Rod and, when she found her brother staring at her necklace, raised her eyebrow in disbelief that he was still the power-craving brother she had always known.
"How goes it, my dear sister?" he asked, recovering.
"Not so well." There was a pause as Isis thought up her next words. "What did you do, Marik? To Kaiba's brother?"
Marik's previous pleasantness turned sour as he scrunched up his face in perplexity.
"How do you know about this?" he barked.
"Kaiba came to see me. For help. He wanted me to help him get his brother back."
"And why did he go to you? How does he know you?"
Isis's face went blank as she realized the true answer of that question. As memories trickled back into her mind, she realized that Kaiba wanted her help because she had offered him so much the last time they had met. She had given him one of the three God cards and showed him into the past to aid his future.
"Well, what's your answer?"
Isis could only lie. "I work at a museum. The Ancient Egypt section, actually. He came to the museum one day and I showed him…the tablets."
"You lie. Why would he ask a museum guide for help?"
Isis stepped back in fear that her brother was going to strike her or do something crazy.
"I guess he saw my Millennium Necklace. He knows Yugi has an Item, does he not? He knows how much power it provides, so – "
"I'm going to ask you one more time!" Marik's temper was on the edge of exploding. "What did you tell him? What did you do for him?"
"Nothing!" Isis's eyes widened in horror.
"Well then, you better not help him! This is between him and I, you hear? Don't you go meddling in other people's business. If you do…never mind."
Isis, relieved that her brother's anger had subsided, thought of the best way to put the many questions she wanted to ask him. She had to know exactly what Marik had done and why. She had to get the facts straight before she left.
"Brother…what exactly did you do to the boy?" she asked in the sweetest, softest, most polite voice she could muster.
Marik's eyes shot up and stared into Isis's. "That is my business, sister. I don't want you to help that man. I could, and probably would, kill you for it."
Isis furrowed her eyebrows and continued to stare at her brother. He seemed calm like never before. Was this the side of him she had always craved for? All their lives, she had been beaten and berated with derogatory comments from her lunatic brother. She'd always wanted someone who could provide her with a sense of security, someone who she could dare to sit next to and have a quiet conversation with.
"What are you still doing here? You got all the information you're going to get out of me."
Isis could only stand rooted to the ground. Her brother was actually not screaming at her to get out. He was calmly talking to her. She decided to take another step towards him.
"If you're not going to tell me what you did to the boy, at least tell me why. What is your purpose? Your plan?"
"So you can go help that man? Why don't you go! I'm busy!"
Realizing Marik's attitude could not be changed, she took another approach.
"Why do you have to be so evil? You used to be a good little boy - "
"Do not talk to me about that! You've made me mad all my damn life. Never have you taken a risk, never have you dared to go on an adventure. I wanted to be someone great, someone who had power! And I'm doing fine, so don't you come in here and tell me about the past! I hate the past! The present and the future is all I care about!"
"But you used to be good! You sure as hell aren't going to get anywhere in life with that attitude of yours! Why did you have to turn to the evil side, brother? Why?"
Marik panted hard. He took deep breaths to control himself.
"Why do you care? You've ignored me ever since the Items were released, and – "
"But that's because you made me so mad! You made fun of me and you even hit me for the fun of it! I hated you! I – " Isis was on the brim of tears.
"And I HATED YOU!!" With a sweep of his legs, Marik took three giant steps and was out of his chamber before Isis could respond. She was left all alone in the dark and mysterious room. She sobbed uncontrollably, but remembered that many decades ago, she had once sworn never to cry because of her brother's meanness. She certainly would not break that promise now.
Isis glanced around the room. It was dusty and mystifying, as if there were strange presences hovering in the air. Something moved in the corner of the room. Isis heard a noise. She spotted a small ball that had obviously moved a few inches. Puzzled, she walked cautiously towards it.
"What in the world…?"
There was a small boy inside the ball. Wide-eyed, the boy stared longingly at Isis, his eyes watering. There were small spots of blood on his face and body. Isis instantly knew who this was. She could see the resemblance between Kaiba and this boy.
But then, as she reached her hand out, she knew she couldn't take the boy and give him back to Kaiba. Her heart thumped; her throat contracted oddly as she was faced with a crucial decision. She realized she did not have the heart to do what was right. Marik would kill her, or maybe he would just torture her for eternity. He would definitely kill Kaiba, somehow, if he got his brother back. At the thought of this, Isis quickly looked away and stood up.
"So, sister, you've seen the boy, eh?"
Isis froze. She felt like she had just been caught in the middle of a crime.
"And yet, you somehow don't have the heart to take him. I see you're not all good, then? I mean, he was right there, was he not? You could've could taken him and be done with your task."
Isis only smiled and nodded in a defeated motion. She had thought that after screaming in each other's faces for so long, he'd at least have thought about her words and come out…different. But he was still the same. He would never change.
"No, you know what, I really don't have the heart. It's been nice talking to you though, brother. I see you've got yourself a prisoner and a whole world of haters. We shall meet again, soon, hopefully."
She walked out. For the first time in an eternity, she felt defeated. She was right in between the deadly conflict between two men: one, his hated brother, and the other, a man who obviously had affections for her. She did not want to be in that position. She wanted to live a normal life. She knew she was blessed to have her Necklace and to have a history so closely associated with important events of the past. But sometimes, it was too much. Sometimes, she didn't want to take it any longer. She longed to live in the old days, when her she and her brother were young and callow. Her brother was as sweet and kind and cute as one could ask for.
Isis had a memory…
It was a bright, sunny day out on the playgrounds. Young Isis and Marik were playing gleefully with a bunch of their friends. It was scorching hot, but the kids barely noticed the extremely high temperatures while they were having the time of their lives. Isis's favorite place to be in the playground was on the swings. Sometimes, she longed to be a bird and soar up into the sky. On the swings, she could somehow close her eyes and imagine what it would be like to be a bird.
"Isis! Isis! Look at me!" Marik shouted across the playground. He was fooling around with a group of his friends on the slide. "Watch! I can slide down backwards!" He did indeed, and by doing so, toppled over the other boys' heads. Collapsing onto the dirt, he giggled deliriously.
Isis giggled too. Her brother was hilarious, at times. He'd do crazy things just to impress her and make her laugh. That was one thing she loved about him. As if in return, Isis decided to show off some of her skills and please her brother.
"Marik! Look what I can do!"
Isis began swinging. She grunted in the effort. Up, down, and back up she went. She pumped her legs back and forth, trying to get the maximum air. She grew dizzy and closed her eyes as she realized how high she was getting. Suddenly, one of her hands slipped. The slide began tilting uncontrollably this way and that. Isis screamed. She was scared as the ground rolled over under her. In a flash, she dropped. It wasn't too far since she was only a few feet from the ground when it happened, but she began sobbing with shock. Her arm ached where she had fallen on it. Tears rolled down her cheeks.
Only a moment after it happened, Marik was there, helping her up. He looked at her with concern in his eyes. He wasn't smiling, but Isis knew it was going to be OK. Her brother took her in his arms and hugged her fiercely. He rested her chin on top of her head and rocked her back and forth. In an instant, Isis was OK. She embarrassingly rubbed away her tears and laughed at what happened.
"See, Marik? I went up so high! All da way till da sky!" The two siblings giggled in each other's arms.
Isis sighed with joy and remorse. This was the brother she had once had. But it was so long ago. It seemed as if with the draw of the curtains, Marik was transformed into such an evil and disgusting man. He was the opposite of good, the opposite of kindness, of care, of love. It seemed as if in a flash, the good Marik was just a memory, and was gone forever.