The desert winds whipped against three figures moving against the sands. Kaiba looked miserable and Yugi looked tired, but Marik moved on like it was nothing. Kaiba looked down at his jacket. It was the same one he wore to Battle City but it was dirt ridden now and a soot color. Yugi wore the clothes from Battle City to but he didn't seem to care what was happening to his shirt. Marik wore his cape and hood and his eyes didn't even squint against the rushing sands.
"I still don't see why we couldn't have used my chopper all of the way."
Marik looked a bit flustered when he went to answer the question. It was obvious Kaiba had asked it a few times.
"The Darkness would disrupt your electronics. Besides it is not much further."
Yugi giggled into his arm he was using to shield his eyes. Kaiba sneered at Yugi and marched on. Yugi moved forward to talk to Marik.
"Does everyone have a Dark side?"
"Yes. Well almost all I guess. When a person is in tune with the Shadow Realm, a person's dark side strengthens to a dangerous level. In ancient times it was customary to weed out leader's dark sides so they would not influence their decisions. People with a ritual done to them are released of the dark shadow of themselves. However, this shadow is now solid and dangerously evil. When they could, the ritual mages would banish the darkness. However, many times the dark spirit would be uncontrollably evil, or still connected to its host body. In cases like this the spirit is banished into an object or the skin of the host body. The host would no longer have a mind connection with the shadow except in extreme leaps. In these cases the leaders were supposed to hold off the spirits. But these rituals rarely happen anymore."
"Rarely?"
"A few groups in Egypt still practice it."
"Did you?"
Marik sighed when he looked into Yugi's eyes. Yugi saw the answer right away.
"The evil that overtook you at Battle City! The was your Dark Spirit?"
"Yes. I was to young when the ritual was done to me. Father believed that I could handle the spirit by myself. But soon he learned better. He was killed and Odeon was used as a tool to hold off my Dark Spirit. Odeon helped but my Dark Spirit was very powerful. He seeped through holes in Odeon's protective wall. He poisoned my mind with evil plots. I was foolish. I bought into it. But thanks to you Yugi I am free of him for good."
"It wasn't really me it was Yami."
Marik stopped in the desert sands.
"I owe the pharaoh my life. It must be repaid."
He pointed to a shadowy area in the East.
"We are here."
A apologies for the wait.