In the Eye of the Beholder
Chapter Five:
Goodbye, My Sweet Ktara!
By: fairysphinxfairysphinx: Hi!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am sososososososososososososososososososo sorry for the slow updates! First it was school, then it was Writer's Blocks! But, I'm back writing! And I hope I can get some story chapters done before I get another! * looks at list and checks off apology * Okay, next, I present a Yami Bakura plushie to seashell * hands seashell the plushie *. And to SnowTiger, this is NOT going to be a short story. Sure, it probably won't be as long as An Unknown Card, but it's still going to be long. Um, I think that's all that I wanted to cover. So, please read and enjoy! Oh! And please review! Thanks! ^_~
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Yu-Gi-Oh, although I do own Ktara and Yata.
/Yugi talking to Yami/
//Yami talking to Yugi//
!Bakura talking to Y. Bakura/Yaku!
!!Y. Bakura/Yaku talking to Bakura!!
{Ktara talking to Y. Ktara/Yata}
[Y. Ktara/Yata talking to Ktara]
+Malik talking to Y. Malik/Yaro+
=Y. Malik/Yaro talking to Malik=
* indicates action taking place *
indicates a passage in time
"I'm beginning to worry for the young ones," Kendra, the Dark Magician Girl, asked Black. "We've been here a long time." Black grunted at her. "I am! And you should be, too! There's no telling what those evil men will do to them!"
"Will you just knock it off?! Those two have sensors on them, that would tell us if anything was wrong!" The cards were quiet for a while, before Kendra spoke up.
"Where are you taking us?"
"To see Angelo."
"Who?"
"You know! Angelo!" Kendra looked at the Black Luster Soldier in confusion for a moment, before a light flickered in her eyes.
"Oh! Him! Now I get it!" It became quiet once again on the disk that they were riding. Black looked over at the girl, slightly red in the heat. Her blue eyes were looking up at the sky expectantly. The wind ruffled her golden hair under her pointed blue hat. She seemed to sparkle.
Kendra, feeling Black's eyes upon her, turned her sights on him. "What?" she asked. Black shook his head clear of any emotions that had clouded his head.
"Nothing," he said, grumpily, turning his back to her. "So, how do you like your new deck? Although I would have thought you'd go for a stronger duelist! That girl is weak! She probably couldn't even beat a beginner!" Fire licked at the pupils of Kendra's eyes.
"This time," she said quietly, "You've got too far! You have done nothing nice ever since that day! You have been an all out jerk to me, to other cards! That was bad enough! But to insult my beloved duelist as well?!?! That's just too far, Black! Too far! I may be by far weaker than you, but, I don't care! Ktara has been nothing but kind to all of us in her deck! She's even joined us before! She knows what it's like to be a card, and she respects us! So what if she's not a top-ranked duelist like Yugi, or, Joey, or Kaiba! But she's kind and considerate! She cares for us! And that's more than I can say for most duelists! So you just BACK OFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Rage blazed inside of Kendra. And Black could feel it. But, he, too, was full of rage.
"If your Ktara is so kind hearted, then why is she and her yami breaking my masters' hearts?!?! They were so completely in love with them, and they thought that the feeling was mutual! But then those girls took all of the feelings that they had achieved, and ripped it to shreds! What do you say to that?!?!?! Hm?!?!?!" Kendra's face had fallen. She turned her face away from the angered soldier.
"Like you would understand! Nobody would, who doesn't have such a deep connection to Ktara and Yata as us cards do. All of the cards in her deck!"
"Try me!"
"No, thank you."
"Why not?"
"Because…."
"They don't have reasons for their actions! Just for no reason, they up and left Yugi and Yami, leaving them heartbroken!"
"It's not like that!"
"Really? Huh. Looks like the monster doesn't fall far from the duelist, doesn't it?"
"That has nothing to do with this, and you know it!"
"Oh, do I? Tell me, Kendra, why did you leave me, hm? Why? Or, don't you have a reason, like your pathetic masters?"
"Just- just stop it!" she cried, covering her ears and falling to her knees. "Just stop it!" Black pulled her back up, holding tightly onto her upper arms, and shaking her back and forth.
"I don't care what it takes, Kendra!" He said, looking deeply into her eyes. "I want answers, and I intend to get them!"
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"And, how do you plan to storm the castle?" Yaro asked. I bet it's crawling with soldiers and defenses!" Yata snorted.
"Defenses? Here? That's a joke! You have GOT to be kidding me! The lord of this realm is power hungry, yes, but he is his own defense!" * all sweatdrops *
"And we're supposed to defeat him how?"
"Be optimistic, Malik, not pessimistic!" The group was standing not far from the dark castle. The five monsters were with them- Jurai Gumo (Silas), Dark Elf (Kali), Mystical Elf (Misty), Neo the Magic Swordsman (Neo), and Dark Magician (Dark). They stood alert, in case of a trap, or an ambush. "We're going to enter from an underground passage that I found when I accidentally visited here before." Everyone looked at her as if she had three heads.
"You actually came here before?"
"What?! I got lost!" Yata turned from the group, to cover up her embarrassment. She cleared her throat. "Anyhow, follow me. It should be around here somewhere."
an hour later
"I thought you knew where it was!" Yaku said, becoming irritated.
"Well, I did! But, heh, that was a long time ago. Nearly, eight years?" * all but Yata facefault *
'Why us?!' Yami thought.
'Why did I even think of coming?!' Yaku and Bakura thought together.
'Uh, maybe this wasn't such a good idea,' Yaro and Malik thought.
'Oh, Ra! Please show me the way to the hidden passage!' Yata thought. Yami sighed and leaned against a wall of the castle. The wall, however, gave way, and Yami was thrown back into a hole, pitch black, close to a twenty-foot drop.
"Thank you!" Yata called out.
After tethering a rope to a tree, the rest of the group climbed down into the darkness. Yami was lying on his back, knocked out. "* sigh * WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"What?!?! Where's the fire?!?! Oh. It's you, Yata." He scowled.
"Quit day dreaming, and get your head out of the clouds! Come on! Let's go! We have to get to Yugi and Ktara!" Yami grumbled as Bakura and Malik helped him up. "We have lots of ground to cover. Let's get moving."
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Ktara looked at the page. It was smudged and faded, and hard to make out. This was the page she needed to save Yugi. "No matter what, I have to make this out. For Yugi's sake. I'd better get started." She was no longer in the tower. It was just a tower in her soul room. Nothing more.
The next hours were brutal. The light failed, and she had to work by the light of a firefly, in which she had found in her pocket. Many times, she had to replace the ink, and the pen, as well. The guardians were gone. She hadn't the slightest idea where to. But she kept working.
Much of the incantation was in many strange languages, and that added extra time to translate it. Sweat and dirt covered her face and skin. Her fingers were splotched with the ink, blue, black, and the red of her blood from where the quill pricked her skin. But Ktara wouldn't quit. She kept working, through night, and into the early morning, doing her best not to disturb the sleeping boy near her.
Many times, she had stopped, quill in mid word, as she heard Yugi turn in his sleep, afraid he might wake up. Sweet Yugi, dreaming of better times, times with his friends, old and new, times where he could feel safe going to school, not afraid of being abducted into some evil world, with a girl that used to be called his girlfriend, who now he hatred, distrusted. He had every right to hate her. She didn't blame him…not in the slightest. It was her own fault, not his. And she deserved the treatment.
"Oh, Yugi," she whispered, in a voice so small, that you could hear a pin drop over it. "If only you knew." She smiled, thinking of the times they had shared. Of the first time he had played Harbinger. Of the journey to find all of the Millennium Items. "I'll miss you, dear, sweet Yugi." With a flip of her hair, Ktara continued with the laborious translating.
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"Fighting as usual?" The two guardians looked up as they heard a voice. "Just as I thought. You're looking ravishing, as usual, Kendra."
"Thank you, Angelo," Kendra said to the angel standing in front of them. Angelo, as the cards called the Shining Angel, was emitting a small glow from his body. He looked from face to face. Black's was hard, yet disgruntled. Kendra's was relieved at the distraction.
"Angelo. I know it was you. Why did you do it?" The angel looked at Black, surprised.
"Why did I do what?"
"Don't hand me that! I know it was you!"
"Why don't you tell me what I did?"
"You're the one that saved that measly human Ktara, and her yami, Yata!"
"Yes, that was I. And I did it because they had an important duty to do before they entered into the world of the dead."
"And what would that be?" Black was annoying Kendra.
"Beep beep! Beep beep! Beep beep!"
"What the-."
"It's Ktara's alarm! Something's happened to Ktara!" Kendra said, panicking. "I knew we shouldn't have left them alone! I knew it!" Without waiting for Black, Kendra sped back to the castle, Black following reluctantly.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Hurry! The cell that they are being held captive in is this way!" Dark exclaimed. Something bad had happened in there. He could just feel it. Darkness loomed over the cell, where the two lights were being held captive.
As they had entered the castle, Bakura and Malik and Yami had tripped an alarm (Yata: -_-U Typical. Just so typical), and now all of the workers of the castle were after them. For close to a fourth of an hour, they had been chased all through the twisted mazes of the castle, finding dead ends, and traps before finding the best route. And then, they were so worn out that they had to recall most of the monsters, save for Dark and Kali, the Dark Elf.
"I see it!" Kali yelled back to the group. She had scouted ahead, taking note of traps so that no one would fall into them. "Five hundred yards! Hurry now! Once inside, we will be safe from all harm! Hurry!"
Turning the corner, the rest of the group saw the cell as well. However, they weren't sure how to get across. There was at least a hundred foot jump to the center of an abyss, and you couldn't see the bottom of it. "Oh, great! How are we going to cross? And they're gaining on us!" Yata rolled her eyes at the boys, who were looking rather frightened.
"You are apparently oblivious to the fact that I KNOW HOW TO TELEPORT PEOPLE FROM ONE PLACE TO THE NEXT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" (All: O_OUUUUUUUU) "Okay, form a chain. As long as you are all touching me in some way, directly or indirectly, we can teleport to the other side. Now, hurry!" Once the chain was formed, Yata murmured something, and they were in a black vortex. They soon emerged in the cell. Dark and Kali immediately put a spell on the door, to hold off anyone trying to enter.
The group looked around the cell. It was rather large, full of dark corners. Near the door, they spotted a dried red substance on the floor, concluded to be blood. "Where are they?" Yami said in alarm. He scanned the area. There was nothing but darkness. But, was there?
"I feel an exertion of power," Dark stated. "Ktara might have formed a bubble around them, to confuse the Dark Lord for a while. She covered her tracks well, though. I can just barely sense the two. What about you two?"
"Near the back."
"In the far left corner."
"Thanks." As they neared the far back corner of the cell, Dark felt the power of the two lights increase.
'Weird. Even though we're close to their position, their power levels shouldn't have gone up this much. Something's definatly wrong.' And it was. All of the sudden, there was a flash of light, and Yugi appeared on the floor, fast asleep. However, he stirred as the workers of the castle began to push against the door.
"Yugi!" Yami ran to his aibou and embraced him. Yugi just looked around, confused.
"Where did you all came from?" he asked, still tired.
"Earth, same as you." Yugi rolled his eyes at Yata's answer. "Where's Ktara?" Yugi just stared at her.
"I haven't seen her since I fell asleep." He put his hand on the floor, but immediately pulled it back up. "What the-." He looked at his palm. It was covered in a substance. A red substance.
"Oh, no," Dark muttered. His eyes gleamed in the weak light. "Yata-." But it was Malik who reached him first. His eyes widened, and he covered his mouth. One by one, the group formed around Dark, and the scene before him. They watched, in pity and horror, as Yata walked forward. She slowly made her way to the front of the group, and stopped. A small scream escaped her lips. Ktara lay face down, brown hair scattered around her head, in a pool of her own blood.
"Ktara." That was the only word that escaped her lips before she burst out crying, and threw herself into Yami's arms. "My Ktara, my Light! Why have you left me?"
"A good question, indeed!" Even after all of the barricades that Dark and Kali had put up, the door to the cell burst wide open. In the frame stood a tall and bulky figure, in purple robes and a black cape. He had green skin, and purple hair. "She left. She may have held up to her end of the deal, little Yata, but she left before I could use her for what I needed." Yata looked up from Yami's shoulder, and, with hatred in her eyes, said:
"What do you care? You may have lost her, but you've succeeded in ripping us apart from everything that we ever held dear! What do you care?!" The figure took a few steps closer.
"Oh, she may have been the key to world domination. But, now that she's gone, guess what?"
"I despise your mind games." The figure just smirked.
"I no longer have use of the little one, now that Ktara's gone! Say goodbye, little Yugi!" There was no time to react. The figure shot a beam out of his fingers, headed directly to Yugi. They all watched in horror, as it neared, unable to do a thing. The figure's eyes widened. "What-." The beam had been absorbed. Yugi was being protected.
"So that's what it was," Yata said quietly.
"What do you mean, Yata?" Malik and Bakura asked.
"Ktara killed herself. Not really to get out of the pain and suffering. To-. To save him." Yata looked off into the air. Then, her eyes became dangerous. "And you know what, Gerzone? Ktara's gone now. Yugi's protected. And I know the others can pretty much fend for themselves. And you know what that means? I am no longer under your control, Dark Lord of Kontop!" The Sienen (??spell check??) Eye glowed on her forehead, and she placed her hand out in front of her. "Feel the wrath of an ancient spirit, Gerzone! Go to Hell!!!!!!!!!!" She shot a blast out of her palm to the figure, who tried to escape, however, was overcome by the power. He disintegrated in the blast.
Everyone stood behind her, wide-eyed. They were all speechless. Yata fell to her knees, exhausted, next to Yugi, who had shrunk to the size he was when he first met Ktara, as his Yami had done. "You destroyed our lives, Gerzone. Mine and Ktara's. It was time you ate what you dished out." She began to shake in silent sobs, as the ceiling opened, and the two guardians, along with Angelo, entered. Dark turned on them.
"You were supposed to be watching them! Making sure that they were safe! And now look!" He pointed at Ktara, at Yata, one covered in blood, the other crying furiously. "Where were you?!?!" Kendra hung her head. Black looked away. Only Angelo stood confidently in front of him.
"Excuse them, Dark. They had good intentions."
"Really? And what would those be?"
"To get me. For the reason I saved Ktara and Yata from dying. And I'm the only one who can tell about the actions of the two…since one of the two is dead, and the other is in uncontrollable crying." The room quieted down, as Angelo, the Shining Angel, began his story.
"Everyone knows that Ktara and Yata have secrets. Over ten lifetimes you couldn't learn them all. But Ktara's best kept secret is the fact that she is a key. Pretty ironic, since she is the owner of the Millennium Key. Anyhow, she is the key to an awesome power, that is said to rival that of the Egyptian gods. Few know about this. But, apparently, Gerzone, the figure that you just saw, knew. He is one the most powerful forces…but still no match for the Millennium Items.
"Knowing that he couldn't get the awesome power himself, he talked to Ktara and Yata. In exchange for the lives of their friends and loved ones, they would act as if they no longer loved Yami and Yugi. They would be cold, and heartless beasts. Then, Gerzone kidnapped Ktara. To ensure her cooperation with him, he also kidnapped Yugi. If she resisted him in the slightest, Yugi would be beaten. And, she couldn't bear that.
"And, it appears that she got tired of the suffering of little Yugi, and the way he was using her, for she preformed a protection spell. She sacrificed herself, to keep Yugi protected, no matter what. However, that wasn't in the plan. I had saved the two, so that they could abolish this force, so that it could never be used for evil. Unfortunately, our only key to it is Ktara…and she's dead. But, others set on having that power for themselves will find a way in. So, we must get her back…even if it isn't for good. Somehow…." Angelo finished his speech. Yata was stifling her sobs. But now, it was Yugi's turn to cry.
"But I thought," he whispered to himself. The last words that anyone had said to her- the last real sentence-was his own.
Flashback
"Yugi?"
"What is it?"
"Our guardians are gone."
"Oh, sure, they up and leave! I'm sure that Black has a reasonable excuse. But I'm not sure about Kendra. She's your monster, and that means that she has to be like you-heartless and cruel! For everyone knows that the monsters take on aspects of their duelist!"
End Flashback
"The last words that she heard were full of hatred. And she'll never know-." Yugi closed his mouth, choking back sobs. What had he done? "I never even got to say goodbye. And she'll never know-." Salty tears spilled down his cheeks. "Oh, Ktara! Ktara! My Ktara!" Angelo shook his head, pitying the poor boy.
"Now is no time for grieving. We have to find a way to bring her back…even if it's for a day. We have to get the gates opened, and abolish that power!" Yugi rubbed his arm across his eyes, and nodded. He looked back at Ktara's body, being carefully preserved in a special coffin by Dark and Kali. He looked from one pair of red eyes to the next, and back to the coffin as it was sent to a safe place. As everyone filed out the door, himself last in line, Yugi turned back to the place Ktara's body had once been, before being sent to the safe haven.
"Goodbye, my sweet Ktara."
END OF CHAPTER FIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
fairysphinx: So sorry for that, but this chapter is getting very long, and my hand is practically dead! …and besides, it sounded like a good place to stop. Anyhow, I really hoped you enjoyed this story. And please, in the name of Ra, please review! Oh, and before I forget, I'm going to be putting up a new Yu-Gi-Oh story, if anyone's interested. It won't be as good as this one, but it's pretty good. It will be called, 'Sea Dahlia,' so check that out, please. Well, it's late, and I need to be signing out. Ja ne!