Chapter 3: Nothing

Paranoia had set in. Ever since his yami had been banished, Malik could feel them watching him. He tried to pretend that the only reason for that was because he had run amuck in Battle City, but what his yami had told him just before he vanished stayed stuck in his mind. "Whatever you do, don't delude yourself that they actually care about you. First chance they get they'll erase your mind and all of your memories. Don't fall into their trap." He tried to ignore it, he really did, but it didn't let him go. He noticed how no matter where he went, either Rishid or Isis always contrived to be somewhere near. He could always feel their eyes on him, following his every movement.

Now, he was sitting crouched in his room, after announcing he was going to sleep. His bedroom door was double locked, as it had been every night ever since the end of Battle City, and his window was open to enable a quick getaway. His ear was pressed against the door, and he could hear footsteps coming closer. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, as the person –Isis, he could tell, stopped in front of the door. His breath practically froze in his lungs as she silently twisted the handle and tried to open the door, only to find it locked. Now she stepped away slightly, and he could hear her murmuring, and being answered by Rishid. Malik slumped against the door, panting slightly, as he waited for his heart-rate to slow back to normal. It had been like this every night since Battle City, and each time he became more afraid. He desperately wanted to ask them why they tried to get into his room every night, to hear what they would say, but he was also afraid of the answer. And he was afraid to let them know that he knew about their nightly visits. He pulled his knees up to his chest, and wondered how long this would go on.

His grades started dropping. How could he possibly work hard in school, if what his 'yami' had said was true? Every minute of the day the knowledge burned at him, that he wasn't like other people. They were all real, they had their lives and purposes ahead of them. He was nothing but a parasite with borrowed intelligence. It ate away at him, until some nights he would toss and turn in bed, tears streaming down his face and wishing he dared commit suicide. But it wasn't even his body! What right did he have to decide whether to live or die?

All I want is to live my life, my own life! he thought angrily. What did I do to deserve this sucky existence? What am I? Who am I?

Even now that he had the illusion of autonomy and normalcy, any enjoyment of it he might have had was ruined by the horrible self knowledge that he was nothing, and would always be nothing, living on borrowed time.

No! I refuse to live with that! I will be myself, even if I don't know who that is. I will find myself a purpose. My yami believed in me, he even respected me! He tried to get rid of me, but didn't manage. I will –I must, live on.

"I'm home!" Malik called routinely, as he dropped his backpack in the living room and went into the kitchen. He entered, then stopped short, as he saw Shadi sitting at the table. His breath caught in his throat, and he took an involuntary step back. He could feel an aura of menace in the room, even as Isis smiled at him and told him that it was only Shadi, there was nothing to be afraid of.

Shadi stood up, watching him with the same blank expression he always wore. "Malik, this situation has gone on long enough. It is time to bring it to an end."

Shadi began advancing on him, along with Isis, making an ever-shrinking triangle with Malik at the last point. Malik stepped back, all the warning signals in his head blaring at once, as he prepared to make a break for it. A steely hand on his shoulder prevented him from moving, and he stared up into Rishid's impassive eyes.

"Rishid! What are you doing?" Malik cried, as he was immobilized by Rishid's strong hands on his upper arms. "Isis! Please, don't do this to me!" Where was his loving older sister, the one who he always remembered comforting him? What happened to the loyal brother who had stayed by his side?

"As you can see," Isis said, "he is completely out of control." Malik's eyes widened at her. He had never heard her use such a cold, uncompassionate tone before, and she was talking about him! As Shadi raised the glowing Millennium Ankh, the bitter taste of betrayal filled Malik's mouth, as he knew for certain that the things his yami had told him were true. He wasn't real. He didn't exist. Rishid and Isis cared nothing for him; his only purpose was to keep his yami –the true Malik- in check. All his thoughts and wishes were for nothing, for he all he was was a meaningless bit of consciousness in a body where none should be.

As the Millennium Ankh neared his forehead, he retreated into his mind, attempting to evade its magic, even as questions raced through his head. If he was really nothing, how did he have self-awareness? Why was he feeling such a sense of pain and betrayal? Why was it so hard to believe that this was actually happening to him?

Malik had expected the inside of his mind to be dark, maybe a 'soul room' and corridor like he had heard Yugi tell of. Instead, he found himself outdoors, under a pale blue sky. All around him he could see strange, slightly round structures bulging upwards, among ruins and strange, dead plant life. In the distance there was a huge building, which he instinctively knew to be a palace. The architecture was slightly reminiscent of Ancient Egypt, with large square shapes and pillars, windows and arches, reaching to the sky. On the wall of the palace was a huge symbol of three eyes in a pyramidal order. The complete silence of the place was unnerving. No other living thing existed here, giving the landscape an old, dead feel.

Right in front of him, though, was an irregularity in this dead world, which he immediately recognized. He ran toward the only other living thing in this place –his yami. As he ran forward, he saw his yami raise his head in surprise for a minute, then his expression settled into one of sad resignation.

The Sanjiyan was sitting slumped in the middle of a slightly glowing circle, arcane designs all around him, with chains on his arms, legs and neck. He sadly focused his three eyes on the other him, who had come to a stop just outside his circle.

"Please, help me!" the lighter one begged, knowing that before him was the only person in the world who had never lied to him.

The Sanjiyan sighed. "So they got you too, eh? If I had any power at all, I wouldn't be sitting chained up in my own mind. Sorry, kid."

Kid- that was what he was: a small, frightened child, with no identity. He fell to his knees. "I'm going to fade."

"You'll be free," the Sanjiyan answered. "Something I've wanted to be for three thousand years."

"Better be an eternal slave, than vanish into oblivion!" the kid cried hotly, tears on his cheeks. The only things that made him who he was were his memories; he had no soul, for how could a construct like him possibly have a soul? With his memories gone, the person he was would simply cease to exist –eternally.

Malik, the Sanjiyan, watched Malik, the child, sadly. In a strange way, he had become attached to this jailer of his, this jailer who was as much a victim as he himself was. He had hoped that maybe this one would manage to survive, but- "Come here," he said quietly. The little one came towards him, and he managed to wrap his chained arms around him, pulling him close. The kid was shaking as he clung to him, and he could hear him whispering, "I don't want to disappear!"

"Shhhh," the darker Malik said quietly. "You won't disappear. You're real, you hear me?! I'll always remember you, no matter what happens. If I remember you, it means you'll live forever, because I'm immortal." He held onto the lighter one, as if trying to convey his feeling through their very bodies. The Sanjiyan wasn't one to get emotional; indeed, the last time he had actually worried about someone other than himself had been so long ago he wasn't sure if it had ever happened. But just this once, to comfort this person who would never exist again…"I'll never forget you."

"Really?" the lighter Malik breathed, even as his body began to disappear into nothing.

"I swear it!" the Sanjiyan looked into the kid's dulling eyes, knowing himself to be the only person to promise the kid something with the intention of keeping it. "You won't disappear, not ever. A person only truly dies when he is forgotten."

The lighter half's mouth moved, but no words were heard as the last silhouette of his body faded into nothingness.

Once again, the only Malik left was alone in his Konron, the land of his destroyed and forgotten race. Slowly, lethargy came over him, as he felt his energy draining. His eyes closed, and he felt himself fading once more into darkness.

In the real world, Isis heaved a sigh of relief as Shadi put the Millennium Ankh back into his robes. Rishid held Malik, who had collapsed limply, though his chest still rose and fell steadily. His lavender eyes were empty and glassy, staring at nothing.

Ended, but not completed

So, is this the end? For those of you familiar with 3x3 Eyes, you know that they're still searching for the third Sanjiyan, so there's definitely a possibility for a continuation. And as long as they're alive, there's always some kind of continuation, even if I don't write it. So there's still hope for Malik.

Comments and reactions are welcome (even if you just want to yell at me for being so nasty to them).

-Tramontana Keeper