Sakakku
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Chapter 6
xXx
Yugi wandered through the streets, completely bored. No one was outside! He'd seen some people rush into houses, apparently scared out of their wits, but he had no idea what could be spooking them so badly. The fact that he was the only one outside, however, made him stick out all the more, and he wondered if he should be searching for a place to hide.
"Hello?" a voice called. Yugi jumped, nearly falling to the ground. "Hello?" the voice continued. "I'm sorry; I heard your footsteps. Do you mind telling me what's going on? You're the only one out there, aren't you? Where did everyone go? What's wrong? Is Mai safe?"
Yugi stared at the girl leaning out of a nearby window. She had red hair falling past her shoulders. And a white bandage over her eyes.
"Serenity!" he cried in glee, rushing forward. The girl gasped and withdrew quickly, ducking out of sight. He stopped short, wondering what was the matter, and realized that she didn't know if he was an enemy. "Serenity! It's me! It's Yugi!"
Across the street, a piece of cloth covering the window rustled, and he cringed, realizing that the fact that he was Marik and Bakura's number-one target was something he shouldn't be broadcasting. He rushed up to the window instead, stuck his head in, and whisper-shouted "Serenity! It's Yugi Moto!" He'd seen her only briefly, but recognized her from pictures. And she should recognize his name.
She had been crouching below the window, and now she drew back with a gasp. "Yugi? Really?" The boy she had known only by name… except recently. When he and his twin- no, his yami, had begun to appear in her dreams… and a desert, the oasis in the desert… Serenity stretched out her hands for him to take, and he did so.
"It's me," he assured her, beaming. "Hold on- let me crawl through the window. Keep holding onto my hands." She obliged, tugging on his arms until he scrambled through and landed heavily on the floor. But in the next second, he was up, hugging her tightly. "I'm so glad to see a familiar face!" he exclaimed, then clapped a hand to his mouth. "Oh, no," he apologize ruefully. See. "Are… are you still blind?"
She hesitated. "I don't know," she said softly. "I haven't tried to take the bandages off yet."
Yugi nodded, remembered she couldn't see him, then said "Okay," deciding not to press the matter further. Instead, he asked happily, "You asked me if Mai was okay. Have you seen her at all? Is she the one you live with?"
"Yes!" Serenity said, just as excitedly, groping around until she found Yugi's hand to squeeze in glee. "She went out for a walk a while ago. I was a little worried, since I didn't hear anyone outside on the streets, and that's a bit weird. But I'm sure she's okay. And how are you? Where have you been? Do you know where my brother is?"
xXx
Across the street, behind the curtains that Yugi had noticed rustling, a boy sat in his house. He peered across the street: Yugi and Serenity were still hovering in front of the window, the fools, where anyone could see them. Yugi had already screamed his name for the whole village to hear.
He'd talked to Serenity before; it was the first time they'd met, but he'd made a point to stay out of the way of Mai. Somehow, he didn't think she'd be thrilled to see him- there was no doubt that she would remember him.
The boy watched Serenity and Yugi's joyful reunion with a mixture of jealously, contempt, and sorrow. But most of all: confusion. What should he do now? What was the right next step?
Should he try to help Yugi? He and Yugi were enemies, always had been. Would Yugi accept his help? Did he even want to offer his help? Maybe he should go right to Bakura and Marik.
The boy exhaled, thinking. What a miserable existence this was- not that he'd always enjoyed his life, but still. He'd heard rumors that Yugi would try to end Bakura and Marik's dominion. Didn't he owe it to the world to try and help Yugi and his allies, then?
Maybe he'd go see his friend. Yes, he would do that. The two of them could figure out what to do and where to go… and who to side with.
xXx
The balance of power finally shifted, and when it did so Yami could hardly believe it. Curse of Dragon hit Grand Tiki Elder with a blow of its powerful tail. Grand Tiki Elder disappeared in defeat, and Curse of Dragon headed over to help out Amazoness Paladin.
But in the next second, Amazoness Swords Woman finally fell. Her sword dropped, and Zombyra the Dark attacked her and defeated her a moment later. However, Zombyra was weakened from the long battle, and Amazon Archer was finally given a clear shot at the Monster. The arrows were shot, and in the same moment Zombyra gave off a final blow of dark magic. The two Monsters were wiped out instantly.
That left three Monsters in battle: Curse of Dragon and Amazoness Paladin against The Immortal of Thunder. But Amazoness Paladin had lost the source of her power boost, the other two Amazons. She raised her staff high above her head, and brought it clashing down against The Immortal of Thunder's staff. The two Monsters stayed poised like that, the Amazoness Paladin quickly losing her strength.
In swooped Curse of Dragon, brandishing the sharp teeth in its mouth. One swift bite followed by a lash of its tail brought The Immortal of Thunder down at last. But the effort of holding The Immortal of Thunder at bay had exhausted Amazoness Paladin, and she let herself disappear as well.
Curse of Dragon, the last Monster in battle, landed on the ground, breathing heavily. Yami was exhausted, but smiled nevertheless. "We've won," he announced, glaring at Umbra and Lumos. "All your monsters have gone, and the disappearance of The Immortal of Thunder has drained your Shadow Magic."
To his surprise, Lumos cackled. "Well, not quite," he responded, sneering at Yami and Mai. "Defeating The Immortal of Thunder may have exhausted our powers, but we don't need much Shadow Magic to summon our final, unstoppable Monster! You see, you've beaten two Light Monsters: Shining Abyss and The Immortal of Thunder. Thanks to my Monster's special ability, I can call it forth! Meet Soul of Purity and Light!" As the Monster formed in front of him, Lumos continued: "Not only is my Monster immensely strong, it weakens your Monster! As if it weren't exhausted enough…" he snickered, but it was weak. He was tired.
Curse of Dragon never had time to react, let alone fly up, before Soul of Purity and Light attacked. With a final, weak cry, it disappeared.
Yami was so tired… glancing over at Mai, he saw that she was exhausted as well. "We can't give in now," he whispered. "Can you last one more Summoning?"
"How do you know we'll only need one more?" she asked back, her voice a bit harsh.
"I don't… Summon your best Monster."
"All right…" Mai closed her eyes and plunged blindly into her deck. She held the next card in front of her, almost defensively, and her ever-faithful Harpie Lady plunged out of it, screeching menacingly. "Harpie Lady!" Mai called, almost startled.
Yami reached for the card on top, feeling the great magic of the Heart of the Cards swelling around him. "My Monster will be the Dark Magician," Yami said strongly, not even needing to glance at the card. After he said it, his loyal servant emerged solemnly, arms folded, staring coolly at his opponent.
In tandem, almost as if they had planned, the four humans fell to the ground. Lumos and Mai went first, and as Umbra and Yami bent to grab them, they too sunk.
So as the four people lay, good as dead on the ground, the three Monsters began battling for so much more than a single Duel should ever be worth.
xXx
The Dark Magician felt his throat tighten when his master sunk to the ground. He would fight for Yami, he would win for Yami.
Beside him crouched the Harpie Lady, her beautiful but dangerous face twisted in a display of utter fury. She too was angry about the harming of her mistress. She spread her wings, intending to fly forward, but the Dark Magician placed a slender hand on the tip of her wing. Harpie Lady turned to face him with a shriek that didn't faze him.
The physical contact allowed them to communicate. We must work together to overcome Soul of Purity and Light, he told her calmly. You cannot rush into attack. It is a strong enemy and haste will only make our situation worse.
Mistress is dead! There will be punishment!
Not dead, only weakened. We can save the two by victory. But do not rush: Soul of Purity and Light wants you to attack. Look at it. It is ready and you will not be prepared.
What do you suggest, then, Magician?
Fly in the air. Pick three points in a triangle and move between them. Claw and slash at Soul of Purity and Light as often as you can. I shall battle with magic.
With great speed that came natural to her kind, Harpie Lady shot into the sky with her deadly battle screech. Soul of Purity and Light appeared to be waiting for her to make a move like this- Dark Magician had been right- and it shot a bolt of magic into the air that Harpie Lady narrowly avoided. Soul of Purity and Light shot a second bolt that came even closer to singeing her, and might have brought her down the next time had not Dark Magician blasted it with a ball of black energy from his staff.
Thus began the exhausting battle. Harpie Lady dashed back and forth between three points, changing her destination often enough to keep Soul of Purity and Light guessing. Dark Magician launched attack after attack of dark magic, most of which Soul of Purity and Light blocked. Soul of Purity and Light was a deceptively peaceful looking monster, a young man with an angel floating overhead. This angel was the force blocking the magic attacks, while the young man hit away Harpie Lady's clawed feet.
This went on for an eternity. Dark Magician felt his magic draining, and began using a combination of magic and physical assaults with his staff. He twirled it, twining strands of Dark Magic around the end, and brought it crashing down on Soul of Purity and Light's shoulder.
The Monster screeched, feeling the damage worse than perhaps any other assault so far. Harpie Lady took advantage of the apparent lapse of concentration to fly down, striking Soul of Purity and Light with a wing. She followed through with the blow by raking a claw tip across its face, and Soul of Purity and Light bellowed.
The Light Monster backed quickly away from Dark Magician, just long enough to unleash a strong golden beam of magic. The angel perched above the man moved into the beam, grinning widely as she struck Harpie Lady. Harpie Lady screeched as the beam shoved her backwards and she was carried high into the sky. It looked for a moment that the attack would carry her away and she would be lost, but she recovered by flapping her powerful wings once, twice. The angel floated, dizzy, and Harpie Lady entrapped it in a whirlwind.
Thus Soul of Purity and Light was left defenseless against magic attacks. Dark Magician summoned every last drop of energy into a final black ball of dense power. Soul of Purity and Light struggled for an instant, and vanished, carrying the angel away with it. Harpie Lady floated to the ground slowly, exhausted, and sunk into it, heading back to the Shadow Realm. Dark Magician paused a moment to check on his master and Mai, then let a dark aura surround him. He was preparing to travel back to the Shadow Realm as well when he heard a low moan: Umbra was stirring. With a grim smile, Dark Magician strode over, and purposefully smashed Umbra and Lumos over the head with his staff. They wouldn't wake up before his master, that was for sure.
Dark Magician allowed himself to travel back to the Shadow Realm quietly, ready to rest, moments before Yami woke up.
xXx
"Dark Magician…" Yami whispered under his breath. He slowly opened his eyes, staring up at blue sky. "What happened?" He sat up: "Who won?" Glancing around, his breath caught in his throat as he noticed Mai lying face-down, but in the next sweep of the area he noticed Umbra and Lumos.
He put his hands on Mai's shoulders and brought her up: "Are you okay?"
She blinked wearily. "What… oh! What happened to Harpie Lady?"
"All the Duel Monsters are gone," Yami told her. "But I think we won."
"How do you know?"
He motioned to Umbra and Lumos. Umbra had blood leaking out of his temple, and Lumos had a red mark across his eye. Mai gasped.
"What happened to them?"
Yami shrugged, rising slowly and helping her to stand. "I think we won," he simply said again. Mai bowed her head and touched her deck with respect. Yami too thought with great gratitude, Thank you, Dark Magician.
"What do we do with them?" Mai asked, quite practically. Yami heaved a sigh.
"Marik and Bakura may already have sensed our Shadow Dueling. In fact, I'm sure of it; we used powerful magic. Even so, we can't afford to leave Umbra and Lumos with what they know: it may put you in danger."
"Or Serenity," Mai added.
Yami glanced at her. "Serenity's here?" His voice was glad. "She's safe?"
"Safe enough," Mai said softly. "She's worried about her brother. She's worried about everyone."
Yami nodded grimly. "Yes…" they were silent a moment, and then he continued. "I can erase the memories of Umbra and Lumos, I think."
"Will it hurt them?" Mai asked uncertainly.
"No."
"All right." She glanced nervously over her shoulder. "Can you make it fast? We should get home- I mean, back to my house."
Yami closed his eyes briefly, and three golden eyes appeared on his forehead as well as Umbra and Lumos's. "Done," he said after a moment, rushing over to where he'd discarded his cloak and scooped it up, hiding his face in its folds once more. "I'll come back to your house with you for a while, but as soon as the sun goes down I have to meet Yugi. I'll bring him back to your place too."
"Yugi?" Mai asked, startled. "He's not…" Her gaze traveled down to where his Puzzle lay hidden under his cloak.
"No," Yami answered, looking to her for directions. They started moving swiftly out of the plaza. "We learned to separate bodies."
"Oh my god…" Mai breathed. Catching something else in her tone, Yami glanced at her again. "I dreamed that…"
xXx
Serenity recognized Mai's footsteps when the blonde was still down the street, and she could also tell that someone was with her. "Hide," she whispered to Yugi, "in case her companion sees you when Mai comes inside. Or through the window." A terrible thought struck her as Yugi scurried to the back room of the small house: they'd been talking in front of the window. What if someone had seen Yugi? He'd told her that he was taking his dark cloak off a while ago. Had he been noticed?
Her thoughts were disrupted when Mai opened the door, still with the stranger at her side. "Serenity!" she said, rushing over and grabbing the girl's hands.
"Hello, Mai," Serenity greeted her calmly, though her heart was pounding and she wondered if Yugi was hidden well. "Who's your friend?" She gestured over where she presumed the other to be.
"It's me," a deep voice sounded. "Yami."
"Yugi's Other Half," Mai informed her excitedly. "You might not understand, Serenity, but-"
She was cut off by a running blur: "Yami!" Yugi squealed excitedly, and launched himself at his yami. The Pharaoh nearly fell over backwards with surprise, but hugged his light affectionately. Then he seemed to remember that Mai and Serenity were in the room, and let go quickly. "Mai!" Yugi said happily, bounding over to give the girl a hug. "I'm so glad you're here!"
Serenity stretched out her hands to grasp both Yugi and Yami's hands, remembering everything the young boy had told her while they waited for Mai to return. And what she had learned from her dreams… "Hello," she greeted Yami cordially.
Mai suddenly appeared over the backs of Yugi and Yami, pushing them into Serenity and one big group hug. "We're all here," she said, hugging everyone she could reach affectionately. Yugi and Yami exchanged grins- the joy of finally being with friends was affecting them all.
Later that night, they began discussing the next step. "If we need more allies-" Mai began hesitantly.
"We do," Yami said immediately. "This will be a hard journey." Yugi gulped loudly.
"I think I know where Duke Devlin is," she continued. "A month ago, a recently married couple was traveling through here. I talked with them a bit, and they happened to mention that they'd passed through a town where a celebrity lived. Of course, that's just about the biggest news you'll hear," she said bitterly. "And a 'celebrity' has become anyone who is in the upper-class, because there are so few of them. I might have been one," she said softly, placing a hand on Serenity's shoulder, "but she needed to be hidden."
"She's a target," Yugi breathed.
Serenity stiffened and murmured, "Because of my big brother."
Mai bit her lip and resumed explaining. "So of course I asked who, and they said Duke Devlin. And also? They mentioned that he'd taken another boy to live with him." She allowed herself a grin: "Tristan Taylor."
"Duke and Tristan!" Yugi said, his large eyes glistening. "Oh, we should go find them! They can help us!"
"They're far away," Mai grumbled. "I could make the journey in a few hours in a car, but it'll take us a few days."
"We'll be okay," Serenity spoke up cheerfully. Everyone turned to look at her.
"We?" Yugi asked. "Are you sure you can come along, Serenity?"
"I'm sure," she said firmly. "I'm not being left behind. And who knows? Maybe we'll find Joey."
Yami took a deep breath. "Can we be ready to leave in the morning?" he asked Mai.
"Yes."