Sakakku
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Notes: The city Marik and Bakura live in is called Akuma. I know I haven't mentioned that yet because I only decided it last week. (Akuma = Devil, once again courtesy of Dragon's 1 Girl)
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Chapter 9
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"Wow… it was never this hot in Marik and Bakura's dungeons…" Joey mumbled. "Well, duh, right? This is Egypt… most of it is a desert… just because Marik and Bakura go out of their way to make the palace dungeons as cold and miserable as possible doesn't mean the rest of the country is…" He wiped the sweat off his face with the back of his hand. His shirt had been discarded long ago, although he'd regretted that the first night he'd been out in the desert. Nights were his favorite times, even so; their climate was what he was most accustomed to. Daytimes…
Well, they were brutal. Simple modesty training left his loose shorts on, although he didn't know why he bothered; there was no one out here. Good thing, too, because he couldn't afford to be recognized, and therefore couldn't go into any towns. And that's why he hadn't eaten in the last three days. "Good thing I'm used to small rations from prison," Joey muttered. But thirst was another matter entirely; he'd managed to lift a bottle of what he thought was water from another guard on his way out. It had turned out to be wine, which he wasn't entirely fond of, but it had lasted until last night.
Heat and thirst would kill him before long. He needed to find shelter quickly…
But he saw nothing as he stumbled on; only a rock somewhere off to the left, a gray lizard lazing on it. He wondered if he should head over there: if nothing else, it was shade, but… he wasn't sure he had the strength anymore.
Joey Wheeler never admitted defeat. I'm not giving up… just resting, he thought, even as he sank to the ground. On his knees, he lifted his head for what could be his last time and peered straight ahead, into the sun.
A blonde woman slowly came into focus. She was wearing a simple blue dress but she was outlined in silver and gold… and she was floating, high in the sky. Her head was turned back, and the one eye Joey could see was staring at something anxiously. Then she turned her head forward again- she was familiar, so familiar. Joey had seen this woman before… but from where?
It wasn't… could it be Mai?
"Mai," he tried to whisper, but his mouth was too dry. He closed his eyes and rested his head in the sand.
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Joey woke up slowly. The air was dank and cool, and he could tell it was dark. He groaned silently: he recognized this place. He was back in Marik and Bakura's dungeons.
But as he sniffed the air, and cracked an eye, something was off. The shape wasn't quite right… There weren't any bars… And that man standing over there definitely was not a Rare Hunter.
"Are you awake?" the stranger asked in an elegant accent.
"Uhh…" Joey groaned, putting a hand on his head. He had a headache bordering on migraine, but he noticed that his throat was moist and his belly was full. "How long have I been here?" he asked first, immediately wondering: Where is 'here'?
"Only a few hours, maybe half a day," the stranger answered. "We found you outside and brought you here. I fed you and gave you water in your sleep; you will be fine." He then hesitated: "I must admit, you were not the one we expected."
"You were expecting someone?" Joey asked. "Eh, where are we?"
"You are in my underground home," the man told him. "It is hidden from Marik and Bakura."
"Oh. Well, that's good," Joey said, blinking. "And… you are…"
"I am Shadi," the man said simply.
"Hey!" Joey said, sitting up fully. "I recognize your name. I heard it in the palace… and then Yugi told me a story about you a long time ago…"
"Yes," Shadi said, nodding. "I don't doubt that."
Joey paused a moment to glance around. "So, who were you expecting here?"
"Ishizu is outside waiting for them," Shadi said slowly.
"Ishizu?" Joey's brow crinkled. Of course; whenever the Rare Hunters talked about Shadi, they'd mentioned a woman. And once again, Yugi had told him something about her… He opened his mouth to ask another question about what they were doing here, but something unexpected slipped out. "I saw a woman outside."
"A woman?" Shadi mulled the idea over, frowning cautiously. "I do not think it was Ishizu. She and I went out together, and you were already unconscious…"
"I don't think it was her either," Joey announced. "Not unless she looks like Mai and can fly."
Shadi's brows raised. "Describe this woman, please?"
Joey had barely started when Shadi held up a hand. "I know who this is you speak of," he said, eyeing Joey, "but it is amazing that you were able to see her, if only in a vision. She is dead."
The proclamation was so sudden it took a while to sink in. "Eh? Dead?" Joey asked dazedly.
"Yes," Shadi intoned. "She died years ago, but has now come in spirit form to aid her living husband. Her husband and his two allies are the visitors Ishizu is awaiting outside."
"Who?" Joey asked blankly.
"The woman's name is Cecilia…" Shadi murmured, his thoughts trailing away.
Hold it. Back up. Joey gulped: another name he recognized. Cecilia Pegasus, Mai Valentine look-alike, deceased for years, accompanying her husband, who was…
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"Maximillion Pegasus," Ishizu greeted the man, who did not look surprised to see her. His companions, on the other hand, were gaping at her.
"I know you!" Mokuba blurted out. "You're the woman from the museum! You gave Seto Obeli-" he stopped abruptly, breath catching in his throat.
"Hello, Mokuba… Kimo," she said, dipping her head. As the three of them watched her in confusion, she lifted her gaze to the air and put her hand to her heart. "Come in," she said finally, leading them inside the house.
"Oh, good, Joey, you are awake," she said calmly, waving her hands at the kitchen tables. Her three companions hesitantly took seats, except for Mokuba. "Oh, Joey!" he burst out, unable to hide his childish euphoria and flinging his arms around the blonde. "I'm so happy to see you! But- Seto was looking for you-"
"Sit, everyone," Ishizu said firmly. "Shadi and I will explain everything… except, perhaps, the appearance of Joey… which I did not expect," she said, almost plaintively, touching her Millennium Necklace gently.
Ishizu began: "I shall begin by describing what all of us have been up to the last year. Joey, you were a prisoner in Marik and Bakura's palace in the city Akuma, and I assume you escaped recently… Mokuba lived safely with Seto, and Pegasus was also a member of the upper-class, and I take it Kimo lived with him, continuing to serve him? Yes. Shadi and I have lived here, hiding from Marik and Bakura, studying scriptures and searching desperately for… anything. It was only recently that we discovered why Marik and Bakura are acting the way they are, and we will inform you of that in a minute. There is… a powerful magic at work."
Shadi took over. "Let us make something clear now: The Pharaoh is alive."
"Yeah, the Rare Hunters were talking about that!" Joey said excitedly.
"Seto was talking about that…" Mokuba said slowly. Everyone turned to look at him and the boy blushed. "He was talking about how he thought Yami was alive… and then I started having dreams…"
"Dreams?" Joey and Pegasus exclaimed in unison, and Shadi held up a hand.
"Hear me. You all…" he shot a glance at a confused-looking Kimo- "Most of you have been having dreams about Yami. About Yami and Yugi Moto, two separate bodies, and their secret life in the desert, how they survive in an oasis. Many friends and allies of the Pharaoh will have had these dreams. Ishizu and I have come up with an explanation for this."
Ishizu took a deep breath and stared Pegasus in the eye. The real one, for she could tell the eye on the left was glass, to replace the stolen Millennium Eye. "Marik and Bakura are the victims of a dark magic. It is said that the person; or, in this case, group of people; who hold all three Egyptian God Cards will be motivated and ruled by greed, the desire for power, and evil will live in them.
"The only other people to hold all three Egyptian God Cards were myself, but for too short a period, and I had not had any previous desire to obtain their power. And you, Maximillion Pegasus."
Everyone's eyes slowly swerved to him; the man was looking fairly sick.
"But you were protected from the dark force," Ishizu said, taking a deep breath. She did not know if he would be able to handle this. "You and your wife were so close when she died that her spirit lingered close to you. And when you gained the Millennium Eye, you bound her spirit to this plane. A spirit living here attracts power… and when you tapped into the curse, Cecilia tried to protect you, and all the dark magic went into her spirit. Something so pure cannot be touched by evil, and this magic served only to enrich her.
"She is now quite powerful unto herself, but her magic here, in this plane, is limited. She follows you always, Maximillion Pegasus, unable to communicate with you, but doing her best to help you out. I believe it was Cecilia who sent the dreams of the Pharaoh to all his allies… and she has been guiding you through your desert trip."
"I could feel something…" Pegasus murmured. He closed his eyes and a tear slid down his right cheek. "Did I feel her?"
"I believe so," Shadi said. Kimo put a hand on his employer's- no, his friend's shoulder. "Joey saw her."
All eyes turned to the blonde boy, who grinned weakly and waved. "She was, uh… beautiful," he said awkwardly, trying to ease the moment. He was feeling pity for Pegasus… who would have thought?
"Cecilia's power must be growing if Joey had a vision of her," Ishizu said softly.
"It seems as if she was visiting Joey," Shadi offered. "Perhaps she wanted to help him."
"She's not strong enough yet to help a being physically," Ishizu murmured. "Perhaps she wanted to offer Joey reassurance?"
"How would she reassure me?" Joey wondered aloud.
"I remember a duelist at Duelist Kingdom that reminded me of Cecilia," Pegasus mused aloud. "In looks only, of course. Mai Valentine was an extrovert, quite the opposite of my former wife. If I recall correctly, Joey was quite fond of Mai. Perhaps Cecilia thought the resemblance would help? Much the way a baby would be calmed by the presence of its mother or a close relative."
Joey wasn't sure whether to be highly insulted or extremely embarrassed. "I was not fond of Mai!" he protested.
Of course, this attracted even more attention to him, and he blushed. Pegasus allowed himself a grin: "Joey, while I was in possession of the Millennium Eye, I could look inside your mind. I read all your thoughts!"
"Hey!" Joey yelped, folding his arms and glaring at Pegasus.
"What?" Mokuba asked curiously, looking around the room. "Did Joey have a crush on her or something?"
"No," he pouted, feeling rather immature.
"Oh, Mokuba," Ishizu said, changing the topic and making Joey very grateful, "I nearly forgot you were there. Are you okay? How much of the conversation did you understand?"
"Most of it," Mokuba admitted, "But I guess I'm a little confused…"
"That's all right," Shadi said, smiling fondly, "I suppose all that we've said here was just a guess anyway. I imagine that you're all tired from your journey; we have plenty of room for you to rest." Pegasus and Kimo obligingly stood up, and followed Shadi from the room. Mokuba trailed after, but Joey hesitated to follow.
"So what are we gonna do?" he asked Ishizu.
She shrugged, too worn out to answer. "Bob snuck in," she pointed out instead. She bent down and scooped up the gray lizard. "I've told you not to come in," she told the lizard, bringing him over to the door. Surprised, Joey trailed after her. "I bring him in from time to time for water, but he's happier outside," she told Joey as she cracked open the door and placed Bob in the sand. He ambled away.
"Bob, huh?" Joey asked, craning his neck to look at Bob before Ishizu shut the door. When it closed, however, he seemed to remember what he'd wanted to talk to her. "We can't just stay here and do nothing!" Joey said heatedly. "We have to go searching for Yugi! And Yami! And… and all our friends!"
"Joey, please. I understand as well as you. Shadi and I will discuss this tonight, but you need to sleep."
He hesitated, but finally trotted down the hallway. "We'd better be doing something worthwhile by tomorrow," he muttered as he chased after Shadi and the others.
Ishizu tiredly got herself a cup of wine and drank it slowly; it probably wasn't wise, as she and Shadi would no doubt stay up and plot half the night. Her eyes fluttered as she made her way to her bedroom.
Shadi was waiting for her, sitting solemnly on the floor. "I believe Cecelia may be the reason so many of the Pharaoh's friends and allies ended up here, in Egypt," he announced as she passed through the doorway. "When Domino fell first, everyone fled to this area. After all the world was razed, it no longer mattered where everyone ended up. By some coincidence, they all arrived here."
Ishizu forced her head to move up and down in a nod. She was tired, so tired… she tried to sit down, but her knees gave way and she fell on them.
"Ishizu?" Shadi asked, looking up in concern. She gave a half-hearted moan and pitched to the side, her Millennium Necklace glowing gold:
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It was Yami; that was the first thing Ishizu noticed. All she could see at first was a pair of glowing, dangerous crimson eyes peeking out from under the hood, but with the sixth sense that came with her visions she knew it was the Pharaoh. Walking timidly beside him was Yugi; he was clutching a girl's hand. This was Serenity, Joey's sister. She wore white bandages over her eyes, and was holding onto both Yugi and Mai's hands. While one hand clutched Serenity, helping to guide her, Mai used the other hand to brush damp curls off her face; she was tired.
Images flashed by Ishizu's eyes, and after a moment she was inside a house. It was tidy and well-kept, but there were shouts coming from a room to the left. One by one, identical-looking boys poured out, looking refreshed. They headed to the kitchen table, glancing around curiously, as if they expected to see someone. But the youngest centered in on a letter lying in the middle of the table, and read it aloud to his brothers. They all nodded, looking vaguely concerned.
As she continued to watch, a knock sounded at the door, and one of the brothers went to answer it. He came back in a few seconds later, followed by Mai.
She was looking extremely confused, and asked the boys a few questions. They nodded, and talked to her, and the youngest boy handed her the note. She read it quickly, eyes widening, and then asked them something else.
They were still talking as Ishizu's vision faded, but she saw dim flashes of the boys leaving the house, waving good-bye, and heading to the next town to perform their circus acts. Mai and Serenity and Yugi and Yami gathered in the empty house for an hour, talked briefly, and headed out of the town again.
Ishizu tried to hold onto the vision a moment longer, and was rewarded with a glimpse of the desert. Seto and Duke were headed one way, and Tristan and Espa the other. Yami and his friends were headed in the opposite direction of Seto and Duke… Ishizu wished she could cry out to them…
But the path they seemed to be taking would catch them up to Tristan and Espa in three days, if they moved fast.
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Notes: In a few chapters, I'll probably start introducing OC's. Oh, come on, saving the world is a big job. I'm running low on cast members, not to mention Rare Hunters. ::shrug:: If you're worried about OCs taking over the story, well, they will have large roles depending on which OC. It's kind of unlikely that the YuGiOh characters would just keep running into each other this whole time, right? Odds are that they'd meet other people, good and bad, who would help them in some way. But by the end of the story the focus will be primarily on the existing YuGiOh cast.