Chapter 4 - I Can Help
"Is that Kaiba?" Téa asked worriedly.
"Yeah," Tristan said, "and some of Pegasus's goons!" Crimson tried to shut off the feeling inside her. It didn't work. Every single muscle, every single drop of blood within her, ached to destroy. Bakura noticed her Dark energy first; he shot a glance in her direction and down at her ankle. Yugi fingered his Puzzle. He felt something strange in the air, like a dark force.
Yugi. Yugi was startled at first, but then realized his Yami was speaking to him.
"Yami? What is it?"
I sense something coming from Crimson's direction. I feel this presence that I've never felt before. I have a feeling it connects to the Millennium Items. I know it does.
"You think?"
Yes. And, I have this strange feeling I've seen that Crimson before. She looks so familiar; I know I've seen her. And the name she gave, Bianca? I've heard that too.
"Well, it blows my mind!" Yugi turned back to Crimson. She looked like she was about to burst.
"Give up Kaiba," one of the guards shouted, making a move to show that he obviously had a gun.
"What do you want?" Kaiba demanded.
"We have what we want," the other guard sneered. "We have the heir to the Kaiba family that is required to run Kaiba Corporation. Now you're just a third wheel."
"Pegasus stated that his best interest was to get rid of you as quickly as possible." The man with the gun raised his hand. "I figured I'd do the honors. I mean, how many people get to do what I'm doing?" Kaiba made an attempt to get to his feet but they were numb with the blow he had received earlier.
"You don't scare me," he said. "Try your tricks." The gunman sneered and readied his weapon. He slid his index finger on top of the trigger.
"Oh my gosh!" Mai cried. "That guy is going to shoot Kaiba!"
"What can we do?" Téa asked.
"I have an idea!" Crimson said. She hurried toward the scene. Her friends were shocked at first and then suddenly snapped to their senses. I have to save Kaiba. Besides, that's the only way I can let my Dark energy lose without hurting my friends.
"Come back!" Yugi yelled. It was too late. Crimson had already reached Kaiba and was trying to help him. Thrusting his hand out, he sent Crimson sprawling to the ground. Yugi and the gang looked on worriedly as the gunman aimed at Crimson. There was nothing they could do.
"Leave him alone!" ordered Crimson. She hurried to Kaiba's side. "Are you okay?" She crouched down and tried to help him up.
"I can take care of myself, you know," he muttered back, thrusting out his hand and pushing her away. Unbalanced, she fell back to the ground. She felt a searing pain rip through her cheek.
"This is none of your business, girl!" the unarmed man shouted. The other man directed his gun at her.
"Get away before it's too late!" the man barked. "I will shoot if need be!" Crimson shot a helpless glance at Kaiba.
"Go! I can handle this," he said. Crimson looked back at the two men. No you can't. Don't be an idiot
"I won't go away!" Crimson settled her hands on her hips. "You'll have to make me." The man with the gun smirked, and pulled the trigger.
The gang watched as Crimson got up, rubbing her cheek. The gunman was still holding the gun pointed at her, and he showed no sign of moving it.
"Let's go down there and help!" Yugi said.
"Are you crazy?" Mai asked. "They'll shoot us!"
"Crimson's down there!" Yugi said. "I don't know why, but something tells me she is about to get shot. We've got to help her."
"You know," Tristan said. "If we go as a group, maybe we can look like we're more threatening then we are."
"Tristan," Joey sighed. "Five teenagers aren't gonna look threatening to two whacked out guys with those guns!"
"Stop arguing and let's go!" Yugi yelled. He was almost to the scene. He halted in his tracks when he saw the man with the gun was about to hurt Crimson, badly.
The bullet caught Crimson right in the shoulder. She screamed and fell to her knees. She faintly heard Yugi calling but it was hard to tell. The pain was starting to travel up her arm and down through the rest of her body. Blood trickled down from the wound, seeping through her yellow sleeve. Crimson gripped her arm tightly. The pain had reached an unbearable measure, and she felt very light headed. The world spun around.
Suddenly, she felt this force from her Millennium Anklet. She felt Dark waves dance around. The trees around her burst into flame as they had done before on many occasions. With looks of horror, the two men tried to run but it was too late. The Dark energy gripped them with its corrupted hand, squeezing the life and soul out of them. Their bodies melted and disappeared in a cloud of dark smoke. When everything cleared, Crimson was lying on the ground in a pool of blood and two Crystals lay where the men had stood.
"Crimson!" Yugi shrieked as the bullet made contact with her right shoulder. She screamed and fell to the ground. Blood had started seeping down her sleeve in a river of red.
"Oh no!" Mai cried.
"She's shot!" Téa said.
"Let's go!" Joey said. One thing's for sure, when a girl was hurt, he had to be on the scene.
"Wait up!" The friends raced toward Crimson. Yugi had almost reached her when he felt something that made him stop in his tracks.
Yugi! Go back! Stay far away! Yugi obeyed, immediately backtracking. His friends, confused, repeated his motions. Right then, a huge blast erupted from the place where Crimson lay. Dark, sickly strands of light poured out, making trees burst into flame right where they stood. The same fate met the two men, and they disappeared. Just as the explosion started, it stopped. When the smoke cleared. They saw two Crystals and Crimson lying on the ground. Kaiba was huddled near a tree that was miraculously untouched. He, on the other hand, had quite a few bruises and minor burns.
Kaiba watched as the two gunmen prepared to shoot him. He wasn't afraid. It was better than facing a world without his little brother.
"Leave him alone!" Kaiba turned around, surprised. He saw the new girl he had just talked to a while ago was running up to him. Strange, she looked even more familiar. She crouched by Kaiba's face. "Are you okay?" She put her hand on his shoulder and tried to help him up. He had a sudden urge to touch her strands of smooth black hair. In an effort to stop himself, he pushed her away.
"I can take care of myself, you know," he muttered. Crimson fell backwards, unable to stop herself. For that moment, he felt something sear across his cheek. He felt it, but no injury was evident. When he looked at Crimson, he saw that on her cheek was a scrape that was starting to bleed. I must be losing it, again.
"This is none of your business, girl!" the unarmed man shouted. The other man directed his gun at her.
"Get away before it's too late!" the man barked. "I will shoot if need be!" Crimson shot a helpless glance at Kaiba. Kaiba had one of those strange familiarity feelings again. Where had he seen this girl before?
"Go! I can handle this," Kaiba said. Crimson looked back at the two men. Her expression seemed to say, "No you can't."
"I won't go away!" Crimson settled her hands on her hips. "You'll have to make me." Kaiba mentally sighed. This girl was stubborn, for sure. The man with the gun smirked, and pulled the trigger. The bullet flew and made contact with Crimson's right shoulder. Right at that moment, Kaiba felt his own arm go up in pain. He gripped his arm but nothing was wrong with it. He saw Crimson kneeling on the ground, her arm pouring blood. He couldn't just let her die there.
"Crimson!" Kaiba turned to see Yugi running up. Behind him was the rest of the gang. Kaiba knew Crimson would be okay. Suddenly, Yugi stopped. He back up almost as quickly as he came, and his friends followed suit. Kaiba turned his attention to Crimson just as a blast from her direction sent him sprawling back into a tree. He fell unconscious immediately.
Bianca found herself in a field of flowers. She had no idea how she got there, but knew it was a place she had often visited. The flowers tilted and swayed with the peaceful wind that blew across, lightly sweeping Bianca's hair back. Butterflies flew around and birds chirped from an unknown location. Bianca lay back down in the field and laughed. Hearing soft footsteps, she turned her head. She saw Seth and almost jumped up.
"Bianca!" he gasped. "You scared me!" Bianca giggled as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
"I was waiting,..." she whispered in his ear. Seth smiled and stroked her hair. Bianca couldn't have been happier. But moments like this were easily spoiled. She felt Seth being dragged out of her arms.
"Seth?" He seemed just as surprised. Suddenly he vanished. Just like that, he was gone. Bianca looked around her. "Seth?" She ran everywhere. The grass was tall. He could be hiding anywhere, or he could be gone! Erased from this world like countless other occasions.
"NO!"
Seth found himself wandering through a field of flowers high as his waist. One second he was in his chamber, the next he was here in the middle of nowhere. His feet began to move on their own. It led him to a place where butterflies floated and wind blew. It seemed like a totally different world. In the middle was a small clearing barely big enough for a person to lie down in. As Seth walked toward it, a girl almost jumped right into him. It took a few seconds for him to find his breath.
"Bianca! You scared me!" Bianca only giggled as she wrapped her arms around him.
"I was waiting,..." she whispered right into his ear. Seth stroked her hair and settled his hand back down on her shoulder. Time passed slowly as the two of them just stood there. Suddenly, Seth felt himself being dragged somewhere. He looked around. Bianca tightened her grip but he still felt himself slipping.
"Seth?" The world around him vanished into darkness.
"Kaiba? Kaiba? SETO!" Seto Kaiba opened his eyes to find himself staring at a girl he knew all too well.
"What is it, Téa?" he asked. She sighed.
"Good, you're alive!" Kaiba groaned as he sat up. His face hurt really bad, bad enough that he could have expressed it in words if it didn't hurt to move his mouth so much. "Don't move. You have several bruises. We'll try to help you."
"No thanks," he replied, brushing her hand off his sleeve. It hurt to say every word. "I can carry my own weight." He looked over at Crimson. Yugi was wrapping a cloth around her arm, but she was still unconscious. Mai walked over to Téa.
"She's still in critical condition," she said. "She's lost so much blood and there's no way we can replace it!" Téa gasped. "We don't know how we can get her to the hospital."
"How 'bout on Kaiba's copter?" Joey suggested. Everyone turned hopefully toward Kaiba. He shook his head.
"Does it look like I'm in a condition to pilot it, Wheeler?"
"Kaiba!" Mai protested. "Crimson could die!! We have to help!"
"It's not my problem she went and got herself shot!" Every word stung him with pain as much as it hurt everyone's heart to hear.
"Seto Kaiba!" Téa said. "She tried to defend you and you're not willing to lend even a caring heart. What kind of human being are you?"
"Téa's right, Kaiba," Yugi said. "There's no other way. We have to keep her alive!" Seto Kaiba smirked, and the pain almost made him swear out loud.
"Look," Tristan said. "She's waking up!" Everyone, even Kaiba, turned their attention to Crimson as she moaned and slowly opened her eyes.
"Are okay?" Joey queried. Crimson winced.
"I'm on the ground, bleeding, with a bullet in my arm! NO! I'M NOT OKAY! IT HURTS LIKE CRAP! EVEN MORE THAN CRAP!"
"We thought as much," Téa mumbled.
"Don't worry, we'll help somehow!" Yugi said. "I promise!" Crimson smiled.
"I've got an idea. Do you have any Spellcaster cards? Female preferably; men are a pain in the ass to work with. I mean, they act as if they're the kings of the world. The female Duel Monsters also have a good name, but they never listen." Everyone looked at her questionably.
"What?"
"Forget it. Just get me a female Spellcaster card. Oh yeah, I want a Light card, mind you." Yugi searched through his deck.
"Would the Mystical Elf be good?" He held up the card.
"I've used her in practice Duels too many times, but she'll have to do. Put it in my hand." Yugi slipped it into the closest hand, the right one. "Um...the other one." Yugi switched the card to the other hand. "Okay, just a minute." Everyone waited. And waited. And waited.
"What taking so long?" Mai asked. Before anyone could give her a reply, beams of light shot up from the Duel Monster card. A swirl of sparkle dust rose up and formed the shape of a woman, and the Mystical Elf appeared. She blinked a couple of times.
"Where am I?" She spotted Crimson on floor scowling up at her. "Got yourself hurt again? For Ra's sake, can't you just be a normal teenager?"
"Okay, I've only Dueled with you. Never asked you to heal me! How do you know how many times I've been hurt?"
"You get hurt using your Item. Energy from that is easy to trace."
"It's not my fault!"
"Whatever."
"Just heal me!"
"Heal you?"
"YES!" The Mystical Elf sighed.
"Alright!" She clasped her hands together. As she chanted an ancient hymn, a cloud of sparkly smoke surrounded Crimson. It soaked up the blood and made the bullet turn to dust, which was carried along with the sparkles. A cool breeze blew everything away. Mystical Elf lowered her hands.
"HAPPY?" In another small flash, she reappeared on the card. Crimson sat up and rubbed her arm.
"I'm alive!" she cried. She picked up the card and gave it to Yugi.
"Thank you. Next time, I've got to ask some other Monster. That one knows me too well from seeing me Duel with her so many times."
"Is she in your deck?" Yugi asked. He was surprised he could even phrase a question. The appearance of the Duel Monster was enough to shock everyone, including him, into silence.
"Well, I don't really have a deck. Mystical Elf is actually in my best friend's deck, which I use a lot."
"Well, it's a relief to see you alright. We were quite worried," Bakura said. The others nodded.
"Where's Kaiba?" Crimson asked. The others motioned behind her. He stood there with his arms crossed.
"Well, at least you're alive." He turned around and started walking away. Crimson ran up and faced him.
"How about you?" she asked. She ran a finger down his cheek, touching his bruises. Kaiba clenched his teeth to keep from moving away. Her finger felt amazing warm and comforting.
"What do you mean?"
"Don't you want it healed?" Kaiba looked at her.
"I told you once, I'll say it again. I can look after myself!" He glared at her. She calmly stepped up to him. The top of her head barely touched his chin.
"I thought it once, now I'll say it out loud. No you can't!" She had to look quite a ways up and it was hurting her neck. The other friends watched in amusement.
"Get out of my way."
"Let me heal you."
"Fat chance."
"Kaiba!"
"Crimson!"
"Kaiba!"
"Crimson!"
"Kaiba! Okay, that's it! I will heal you now! I got myself shot, unless you didn't notice, so you could stay alive. You will cooperate!" Kaiba, amazingly, didn't object.
"Kaiba's getting yelled at by a girl and he can't fight her?" Joey whispered to the gang. Meanwhile, Crimson put a hand up to his cheek. Kaiba felt a cool wave go through his body, wiping the pain away from every limb. His face felt amazingly warm and relaxed. Crimson withdrew her arm and shivered.
"Something strange," she said. "It feels like I've done that before." Kaiba shook his head.
"Enough stalling, I've got to go! I've got a company to run!" Kaiba walked away. The rest of gang tried to swallow their laughter and caught up to Crimson.
"What do you say we get into the castle?" Joey asked.
"Yeah," Crimson said, her voice sounding very far away. She kept on watching Kaiba as he walked away. Mai looked in the direction she was walking.
"If I didn't know better," she said. Crimson barely listened, still watching Kaiba. "I say you fancy him." The words hit Crimson like a boulder over her head.
"I do not!" she yelled, loud enough for the whole island to hear. She peeled her eyes away from him. "Let's go!" She raced to the castle.
"Hey wait up!" her friends cried as they ran after her.