Notes: XD I can't take complete credit for Rhea. She really mostly belongs to RC-neechan!
Still Bakura stared in shock as Yami Bakura approached. The thief was bleeding from several wounds, not just the one on his arm. His cheek was scratched in much the same way it had been in ancient Egypt and his shirt was torn in several places, revealing more bloodied flesh. The chocolate eyes were cold and dark, more so than normal. A chill went up Bakura's spine as he saw. His Yami looked as if he wouldn't care if someone dropped dead in front of him—including Bakura.
"Yami, I . . . I was worried about you," Bakura managed to say finally. "You've been gone for so long! And . . . and Oreo went after you!" He wanted to run forward and embrace the thief, or try to tend to his wounds, but he was frozen to the spot.
"I know." The sharp tones pierced Bakura's heart like a poison-tipped arrow. "She's vanished." Yami Bakura clenched his fist, ignoring the blood that dripped down between his fingers.
"Vanished?!" Bakura screamed in disbelief. He started to feel numb. "Yami . . . h-how?" Oreo had been with them ever since San Francisco. To Bakura it was impossible to imagine her not being around. When Yami Bakura said "vanished," he made it sound so permanent. There had to be some mistake!
Mai raised an eyebrow, coming over a bit closer. She wasn't extremely familiar with the name "Oreo," but somewhere in the back of her mind she seemed to remember being told that Bakura had a pet cat named that.
"There are many ugly creatures that prowl through this God-forsaken town," Yami Bakura hissed in reply, wanting only to block the memories out of his mind. "And I don't necessarily mean ugly in appearance." He meant ugly in personality and heart. The beast that had attacked him had been treacherous. Yami Bakura still remembered how it had come out of nowhere, materializing into something consisting mostly of claws and teeth and dragging him to the floor. It had been trying to slit his throat. And the way it had held him down there hadn't even been a chance for him to get his deck. He had been about to die. But Oreo had had something to say about that. She had bitten the beast, forcing it to release Yami Bakura from its grasp. But then it had turned its attention to her small, furry form. Again and again Yami Bakura could see the scene replayed in his mind—Oreo clinging to the thing's back for dear life and it throwing her against the wall and then leaning over her, sinking its claws into her body. She had yowled in pain and hissed before going still. Then the creature had vanished with her. Yami Bakura couldn't even get the Ring to track them down. He had failed. And he couldn't forgive himself. He had loved that cat. Now he didn't know how to get her back.
Bakura felt tears coming to his eyes as he looked deep into his Yami's. It was easy to see the pain and anguish there. He knew Yami Bakura spoke the truth. The boy opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
Yami Bakura shook his head, limping to a tree stump and sinking down onto it. His silvery hair fell into his eyes and concealed his face, but it couldn't conceal his muttered curses directed at Khu. Yami Bakura needed someone to blame for this and he didn't want to blame himself. Khu was the logical solution. If it wasn't for Khu, Yami Bakura wouldn't have stormed out of the house in a rage and Oreo wouldn't have followed after him.
"Yami?"
The thief looked up as Bakura sat down on the edge of the stump, but he did nothing. Encouraged that he wasn't being routed away, Bakura gave a soft, sad smile. "I'm glad you're still here, Yami," he said. Of course he was upset about what happened to Oreo, but at least his Yami was still here. Maybe they could figure something out about how to find the cat.
Yami Bakura growled but otherwise made no reply.
In the meantime, the rest of our friends were climbing out of the cellar and into the falling snow outside. Marik, who was still very weak—understandably—was being carried up on Rishid's back. Though the teen protested, Rishid was firm in not letting go. After all, the poor boy's heart had been stopped. He needed rest now, not more excursions. If Rishid had his way, they would all leave right now. There wasn't any point in staying!
That was when Yugi noticed their missing comrades. "Guys!" he cried, watching as the final person climbed out of the hole. "Bakura and Mai aren't here!" Fear immediately grabbed at his heart. How long had they been gone? Why hadn't he noticed before? Were they hurt . . . or . . . or dead?
"Mai's gone?!" Joey burst out. The Brooklyn boy peered back into the darkness, trying to see if the woman (and Bakura, too) were still down there, but he saw nothing.
Seto just looked irritated. As long as people kept disappearing, they couldn't leave. And he wanted to get Mokuba away from here. With their luck, he was certain that something terrible would happen to his brother before long.
"Hey . . . what's that thing?" Joey spoke up, pointing at a light that had seemed to suddenly appear.
Seto glared ahead. "It looks like it's coming from that house on the corner. Maybe it's your little friends." Never mind that Mai was hardly "little"; Seto used the term anyway.
"We have to find out!" Yugi said firmly. "Come on!" With that he ran ahead, leaving the others no choice but to follow.
Marik kept his arms weakly around Rishid's neck as they began to move forward. "You can put me down," he said uncomfortably, but not unkindly. He loved his brother dearly, but he felt a bit self-conscious in this situation. He was certain that he could walk on his own.
Rishid smiled, sensing this. Though it was exasperating when Marik overestimated his strength, the man was glad Marik was well enough already to do so. Rishid hated it when Marik was so injured that he couldn't even protest, because it meant the boy was very hurt. "You don't know your own strength, Marik," he replied aloud, his voice growing serious. "I don't know if you realize, but your heart wasn't beating for some time." His expression darkened as memories of holding Marik's lifeless body returned to him.
Marik started. He hadn't known, not completely. He thought he had just blacked out, though in the back of his mind he knew he had been fighting for his life.
Rishid frowned at the silence. "Marik?" he asked worriedly.
Marik's grip tightened. "It's beating now," he said quietly.
Now Rishid's eyes softened again. "Yes," he smiled. "And I am so very thankful."
Marik smiled as well, resigning himself to being carried. If for no other reason, he would allow it because it gave Rishid peace. And Rishid deserved peace.
Mai had seen the glow as well. The woman narrowed her eyes, trying to get the attention of Bakura and his Yami. "There's a light over there!" she cried, grabbing at the boy's arm. "Let's go! I want to get out of this disgusting rat hole!"
Bakura looked up, mixed emotions in his eyes. But he knew Mai was right. Maybe the others were with the light. They had to go before anyone else was hurt. "Come, Yami," he said softly. "We have to leave." Seeing that the thief's wounds were still bleeding, he took out a handkerchief and gently dabbed over them, removing the blood. As the substance came away, he saw to his surprise that there was only one slash on Yami Bakura's cheek instead of three. The blood had made it appear worse than it was. Due to a strange experience Bakura had had a while back, he knew what the old tomb raider had looked like back in ancient Egypt—including the scars he had borne on his right cheek. Now he wondered if this wound would remain and scar, as those in Egypt had.
Yami Bakura seemed to barely notice Bakura's actions. He stood up without saying anything, looking around the strange grounds with angry eyes. He still blamed himself. Why had he come to Cooperstown anyway? If he had gone somewhere else, perhaps this wouldn't have happened.
Abruptly the Ring started to glow, startling both him and Bakura. The pointers slowly raised up, all turning to face one direction. Obviously it wanted Yami Bakura to travel that path. But the Ring had seemed dead to all commands for some time. Now it was suddenly going to guide them on its own?
"What is it, Yami?" Bakura gasped in shock. "Is it picking up on other Millennium Items?!" He didn't know the Ring ever revealed the location of anything else unless Yami Bakura gave it specific instructions to do so. So now all he could assume was that it was indicating other Items, which must mean the others were close!
"I don't know, fool," Yami Bakura growled, moving down the directed path. He didn't know what he would find at all. But he didn't object when Bakura and Mai followed him. What did he care if they came along. He only cared about finding out what the Ring wanted him to see.
A slight hissing sound of pain immediately brought him to attention as they passed an unfamiliar cluster of buildings. Oreo? he had to wonder. It had sounded like a cat. Could it have been Oreo?! Ignoring all logic Yami Bakura dashed around a corner and found. . . .
A strange girl knelt on the ground, wrapping a piece of cloth around her arm. Her long, slightly curly black hair fell around her shoulders and down her back. There were streaks of white throughout it, but it didn't make her look like a vampyre. In fact she looked as if she couldn't be further from being such a thing. She was wearing a pretty yellow dress, which seemed out of place for such a deadly town. When she looked up at Yami Bakura with big, innocent, golden eyes, he took a step back in disbelief. "Hi!" she chirped then.
Yami Bakura kept staring. By the time Bakura and Mai caught up with him, he was shaking his head and turning to walk away. This was absurd. What was this girl doing there? And who the blazes was she?! Slowly he turned back. "Who are you?" he demanded. It was so absurd, perhaps he should find out why she was there. And, he noticed, the Ring had stopped glowing.
"Me?" She struggled to stand, swaying a bit. "I'm . . . Rhea," she said after a short pause. She blinked and looked down at her shaking legs, almost as if she were unfamiliar with walking.
Bakura ran forward to her. "My goodness!" he gasped. "You're wounded! What happened?!" Things were happening too fast. He had found Yami Bakura, lost Oreo, and now had found this strange girl! What was going on?!
"This town isn't a place for females!" Yami Bakura growled.
"Yeah, I guess I kinda found that out," Rhea remarked, not seeming too upset. "Wow, this place is so weird!" She took a few tentative steps forward and swayed again, grabbing at Yami Bakura's shoulder to steady herself.
"What's the matter with you, woman?!" Yami Bakura snapped. "You act as if you can't seem to figure out how to walk. But your legs aren't wounded."
Rhea blushed. "I'm just kinda . . . well, nevermind." She smiled brightly. "Why don't we all get out of here and go home? I live in Domino City."
"Why, so do we," Bakura exclaimed. He wanted to ask how she wound up here in Cooperstown, but before he could say anything there was a loud clap of thunder.
"The weather here defies logic," Mai frowned. "First it's snowing and now there's going to be a thunderstorm?!" She shook her head in disbelief. "Anyway, there's the house up there. Let's just go to it now and chat when we're inside."
And so the group of four resumed walking toward the lighted home. Rhea, Bakura noticed, never strayed far from Yami Bakura and seemed to be trying to help him with a few wounds Bakura had missed. The boy blinked at the strange sight but tried not to stare. It almost seemed that this Rhea had a crush on the thief.
The rest of our friends were approaching the house from the back. The door was wide open, seeming inviting, but Yami Yugi wasn't certain he liked the sort of energies he felt emanating from the abode. It all seemed too easy, as if the spirits were leading them into a trap. But, if they were leading all of them into it, possibly their missing friends were already inside. Therefore, Yami Yugi agreed for them to go in.
Duke, who had been mostly silent and trying to recover, frowned as they stepped over the threshold and entered a spacious back hall. It was a nice enough home, decorated in the furnishings of the late nineteenth century and even seeming to sport some electricity, and it seemed different from the other places they had been in, but it was that difference that made him uneasy. All the other homes looked more simple, fitting for a small mining town, but then right here in the center of town was this mansion, enormous by comparison. For Duke, it didn't make a lot of sense.
"Man, this place is ritzy," Tristan remarked, peeking into a room that appeared to be a formal dining hall. The long, elegant table was set at all places and the crystal chandelier glimmered overhead, sending sparkles down onto the drinking glasses and china plates.
"It looks like a nice enough place," Joey said, "but why the heck is the table set for all those people?!" He counted swiftly, blinked, and then tried again, getting the same result. This was too eerie! "There's just enough places for all of us!" he burst out then.
Seto frowned. "Someone knew we were coming," he said, pulling Mokuba closer to him. And, in spite of everything that had happened, Seto did not want to believe the table had been set by spirits. There had to be someone else around, someone mortal.
"Yeah? Well, I don't wanna stay for dinner!" Joey growled. "Everything'd probably be poisoned!"
Marik slowly climbed down from Rishid's back and frowned, doing his own count of the plates. "There's enough for all of us and for Bakura and Mai," he concluded, but then paused. No, that wasn't quite right either. He counted again, finally finding what he and Joey both had been forgetting. "And then there's two other places, the ones at the ends."
"Maybe that's for the hosts," Tristan suggested.
"This is way creepy, guys," Téa spoke up, arms akimbo. "Let's just move on for now." She didn't know who had set the table, but she did know that what she wanted was to find Bakura and Mai and then get out of this house. Under normal circumstances, she would've been fascinated by the one hundred and twenty-year-old furniture—but these were decidedly not normal circumstances. Anyone could be lurking around, just waiting for the perfect opportunity to . . .
"Mokuba!"
Seto's exclamation of alarm brought everyone to attention. The businessman glared at each one of them in turn, as if he found them responsible for . . .
"My brother is missing!" Seto clenched his fists in anger. He knew something like this would happen if they lingered in this town. And now there was no telling where Mokuba might be found, if he were found. What if something horrible happened to him like what had happened to Duke or Marik? The boy pushed past his companions and into the dining room, but Mokuba was not in there. He had simply disappeared.
Marik's expression became one of horror and then of anger. He had had enough of this! He was so infuriated that they were all being toyed with in this manner. Instinctively the boy reached for the Millennium Rod. If he had to use it, he swore he would.
It was then that Rishid noticed the figure fleeing down the hall that up ahead connected with the one they were in. Narrowing his eyes coldly, the fierce man ran after the dark form. That person could be responsible for much of what had happened and now be going to bring more harm to all of them. Rishid was tired of horrible things happening to his siblings and now a child had disappeared! He wanted to catch that person and make him talk if he were mixed up with everything.
"Rishid?! Rishid, wait!"
The man could hear Marik and the others running after him, but he didn't slow down until he had reached the place where the halls connected. There was no one in sight. The person had escaped. Rishid clenched his fists angrily, his eyes icy and dangerous. Those who knew Rishid of course realized that he was actually a very gentle person, but even he could become incensed if the situation was grim enough. He was not the sort of person one would want to make angry.
Without warning Rishid felt something slam into him from behind. It wasn't Marik or any of the others. . . . The touch was eerie and evil, causing him to lose his balance. Then Rishid was falling . . . rolling down a long, curved staircase. He let out a cry of shock and then of pain as he struck his head against something hard, perhaps the stairs themselves or even the bars of the railing. Then he was at the bottom, hitting his head again on the cold floor. The man winced, struggling to get up but finding it impossible.
He lay on his back and gazed at the ceiling, watching everything start to uncontrollably fade to black. He heard footsteps running down the stairs . . . he felt someone kneel next to him . . . he heard Marik's panicked voice . . . and briefly he saw the boy's frightened eyes before the darkness claimed him.
Still Bakura stared in shock as Yami Bakura approached. The thief was bleeding from several wounds, not just the one on his arm. His cheek was scratched in much the same way it had been in ancient Egypt and his shirt was torn in several places, revealing more bloodied flesh. The chocolate eyes were cold and dark, more so than normal. A chill went up Bakura's spine as he saw. His Yami looked as if he wouldn't care if someone dropped dead in front of him—including Bakura.
"Yami, I . . . I was worried about you," Bakura managed to say finally. "You've been gone for so long! And . . . and Oreo went after you!" He wanted to run forward and embrace the thief, or try to tend to his wounds, but he was frozen to the spot.
"I know." The sharp tones pierced Bakura's heart like a poison-tipped arrow. "She's vanished." Yami Bakura clenched his fist, ignoring the blood that dripped down between his fingers.
"Vanished?!" Bakura screamed in disbelief. He started to feel numb. "Yami . . . h-how?" Oreo had been with them ever since San Francisco. To Bakura it was impossible to imagine her not being around. When Yami Bakura said "vanished," he made it sound so permanent. There had to be some mistake!
Mai raised an eyebrow, coming over a bit closer. She wasn't extremely familiar with the name "Oreo," but somewhere in the back of her mind she seemed to remember being told that Bakura had a pet cat named that.
"There are many ugly creatures that prowl through this God-forsaken town," Yami Bakura hissed in reply, wanting only to block the memories out of his mind. "And I don't necessarily mean ugly in appearance." He meant ugly in personality and heart. The beast that had attacked him had been treacherous. Yami Bakura still remembered how it had come out of nowhere, materializing into something consisting mostly of claws and teeth and dragging him to the floor. It had been trying to slit his throat. And the way it had held him down there hadn't even been a chance for him to get his deck. He had been about to die. But Oreo had had something to say about that. She had bitten the beast, forcing it to release Yami Bakura from its grasp. But then it had turned its attention to her small, furry form. Again and again Yami Bakura could see the scene replayed in his mind—Oreo clinging to the thing's back for dear life and it throwing her against the wall and then leaning over her, sinking its claws into her body. She had yowled in pain and hissed before going still. Then the creature had vanished with her. Yami Bakura couldn't even get the Ring to track them down. He had failed. And he couldn't forgive himself. He had loved that cat. Now he didn't know how to get her back.
Bakura felt tears coming to his eyes as he looked deep into his Yami's. It was easy to see the pain and anguish there. He knew Yami Bakura spoke the truth. The boy opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.
Yami Bakura shook his head, limping to a tree stump and sinking down onto it. His silvery hair fell into his eyes and concealed his face, but it couldn't conceal his muttered curses directed at Khu. Yami Bakura needed someone to blame for this and he didn't want to blame himself. Khu was the logical solution. If it wasn't for Khu, Yami Bakura wouldn't have stormed out of the house in a rage and Oreo wouldn't have followed after him.
"Yami?"
The thief looked up as Bakura sat down on the edge of the stump, but he did nothing. Encouraged that he wasn't being routed away, Bakura gave a soft, sad smile. "I'm glad you're still here, Yami," he said. Of course he was upset about what happened to Oreo, but at least his Yami was still here. Maybe they could figure something out about how to find the cat.
Yami Bakura growled but otherwise made no reply.
In the meantime, the rest of our friends were climbing out of the cellar and into the falling snow outside. Marik, who was still very weak—understandably—was being carried up on Rishid's back. Though the teen protested, Rishid was firm in not letting go. After all, the poor boy's heart had been stopped. He needed rest now, not more excursions. If Rishid had his way, they would all leave right now. There wasn't any point in staying!
That was when Yugi noticed their missing comrades. "Guys!" he cried, watching as the final person climbed out of the hole. "Bakura and Mai aren't here!" Fear immediately grabbed at his heart. How long had they been gone? Why hadn't he noticed before? Were they hurt . . . or . . . or dead?
"Mai's gone?!" Joey burst out. The Brooklyn boy peered back into the darkness, trying to see if the woman (and Bakura, too) were still down there, but he saw nothing.
Seto just looked irritated. As long as people kept disappearing, they couldn't leave. And he wanted to get Mokuba away from here. With their luck, he was certain that something terrible would happen to his brother before long.
"Hey . . . what's that thing?" Joey spoke up, pointing at a light that had seemed to suddenly appear.
Seto glared ahead. "It looks like it's coming from that house on the corner. Maybe it's your little friends." Never mind that Mai was hardly "little"; Seto used the term anyway.
"We have to find out!" Yugi said firmly. "Come on!" With that he ran ahead, leaving the others no choice but to follow.
Marik kept his arms weakly around Rishid's neck as they began to move forward. "You can put me down," he said uncomfortably, but not unkindly. He loved his brother dearly, but he felt a bit self-conscious in this situation. He was certain that he could walk on his own.
Rishid smiled, sensing this. Though it was exasperating when Marik overestimated his strength, the man was glad Marik was well enough already to do so. Rishid hated it when Marik was so injured that he couldn't even protest, because it meant the boy was very hurt. "You don't know your own strength, Marik," he replied aloud, his voice growing serious. "I don't know if you realize, but your heart wasn't beating for some time." His expression darkened as memories of holding Marik's lifeless body returned to him.
Marik started. He hadn't known, not completely. He thought he had just blacked out, though in the back of his mind he knew he had been fighting for his life.
Rishid frowned at the silence. "Marik?" he asked worriedly.
Marik's grip tightened. "It's beating now," he said quietly.
Now Rishid's eyes softened again. "Yes," he smiled. "And I am so very thankful."
Marik smiled as well, resigning himself to being carried. If for no other reason, he would allow it because it gave Rishid peace. And Rishid deserved peace.
Mai had seen the glow as well. The woman narrowed her eyes, trying to get the attention of Bakura and his Yami. "There's a light over there!" she cried, grabbing at the boy's arm. "Let's go! I want to get out of this disgusting rat hole!"
Bakura looked up, mixed emotions in his eyes. But he knew Mai was right. Maybe the others were with the light. They had to go before anyone else was hurt. "Come, Yami," he said softly. "We have to leave." Seeing that the thief's wounds were still bleeding, he took out a handkerchief and gently dabbed over them, removing the blood. As the substance came away, he saw to his surprise that there was only one slash on Yami Bakura's cheek instead of three. The blood had made it appear worse than it was. Due to a strange experience Bakura had had a while back, he knew what the old tomb raider had looked like back in ancient Egypt—including the scars he had borne on his right cheek. Now he wondered if this wound would remain and scar, as those in Egypt had.
Yami Bakura seemed to barely notice Bakura's actions. He stood up without saying anything, looking around the strange grounds with angry eyes. He still blamed himself. Why had he come to Cooperstown anyway? If he had gone somewhere else, perhaps this wouldn't have happened.
Abruptly the Ring started to glow, startling both him and Bakura. The pointers slowly raised up, all turning to face one direction. Obviously it wanted Yami Bakura to travel that path. But the Ring had seemed dead to all commands for some time. Now it was suddenly going to guide them on its own?
"What is it, Yami?" Bakura gasped in shock. "Is it picking up on other Millennium Items?!" He didn't know the Ring ever revealed the location of anything else unless Yami Bakura gave it specific instructions to do so. So now all he could assume was that it was indicating other Items, which must mean the others were close!
"I don't know, fool," Yami Bakura growled, moving down the directed path. He didn't know what he would find at all. But he didn't object when Bakura and Mai followed him. What did he care if they came along. He only cared about finding out what the Ring wanted him to see.
A slight hissing sound of pain immediately brought him to attention as they passed an unfamiliar cluster of buildings. Oreo? he had to wonder. It had sounded like a cat. Could it have been Oreo?! Ignoring all logic Yami Bakura dashed around a corner and found. . . .
A strange girl knelt on the ground, wrapping a piece of cloth around her arm. Her long, slightly curly black hair fell around her shoulders and down her back. There were streaks of white throughout it, but it didn't make her look like a vampyre. In fact she looked as if she couldn't be further from being such a thing. She was wearing a pretty yellow dress, which seemed out of place for such a deadly town. When she looked up at Yami Bakura with big, innocent, golden eyes, he took a step back in disbelief. "Hi!" she chirped then.
Yami Bakura kept staring. By the time Bakura and Mai caught up with him, he was shaking his head and turning to walk away. This was absurd. What was this girl doing there? And who the blazes was she?! Slowly he turned back. "Who are you?" he demanded. It was so absurd, perhaps he should find out why she was there. And, he noticed, the Ring had stopped glowing.
"Me?" She struggled to stand, swaying a bit. "I'm . . . Rhea," she said after a short pause. She blinked and looked down at her shaking legs, almost as if she were unfamiliar with walking.
Bakura ran forward to her. "My goodness!" he gasped. "You're wounded! What happened?!" Things were happening too fast. He had found Yami Bakura, lost Oreo, and now had found this strange girl! What was going on?!
"This town isn't a place for females!" Yami Bakura growled.
"Yeah, I guess I kinda found that out," Rhea remarked, not seeming too upset. "Wow, this place is so weird!" She took a few tentative steps forward and swayed again, grabbing at Yami Bakura's shoulder to steady herself.
"What's the matter with you, woman?!" Yami Bakura snapped. "You act as if you can't seem to figure out how to walk. But your legs aren't wounded."
Rhea blushed. "I'm just kinda . . . well, nevermind." She smiled brightly. "Why don't we all get out of here and go home? I live in Domino City."
"Why, so do we," Bakura exclaimed. He wanted to ask how she wound up here in Cooperstown, but before he could say anything there was a loud clap of thunder.
"The weather here defies logic," Mai frowned. "First it's snowing and now there's going to be a thunderstorm?!" She shook her head in disbelief. "Anyway, there's the house up there. Let's just go to it now and chat when we're inside."
And so the group of four resumed walking toward the lighted home. Rhea, Bakura noticed, never strayed far from Yami Bakura and seemed to be trying to help him with a few wounds Bakura had missed. The boy blinked at the strange sight but tried not to stare. It almost seemed that this Rhea had a crush on the thief.
The rest of our friends were approaching the house from the back. The door was wide open, seeming inviting, but Yami Yugi wasn't certain he liked the sort of energies he felt emanating from the abode. It all seemed too easy, as if the spirits were leading them into a trap. But, if they were leading all of them into it, possibly their missing friends were already inside. Therefore, Yami Yugi agreed for them to go in.
Duke, who had been mostly silent and trying to recover, frowned as they stepped over the threshold and entered a spacious back hall. It was a nice enough home, decorated in the furnishings of the late nineteenth century and even seeming to sport some electricity, and it seemed different from the other places they had been in, but it was that difference that made him uneasy. All the other homes looked more simple, fitting for a small mining town, but then right here in the center of town was this mansion, enormous by comparison. For Duke, it didn't make a lot of sense.
"Man, this place is ritzy," Tristan remarked, peeking into a room that appeared to be a formal dining hall. The long, elegant table was set at all places and the crystal chandelier glimmered overhead, sending sparkles down onto the drinking glasses and china plates.
"It looks like a nice enough place," Joey said, "but why the heck is the table set for all those people?!" He counted swiftly, blinked, and then tried again, getting the same result. This was too eerie! "There's just enough places for all of us!" he burst out then.
Seto frowned. "Someone knew we were coming," he said, pulling Mokuba closer to him. And, in spite of everything that had happened, Seto did not want to believe the table had been set by spirits. There had to be someone else around, someone mortal.
"Yeah? Well, I don't wanna stay for dinner!" Joey growled. "Everything'd probably be poisoned!"
Marik slowly climbed down from Rishid's back and frowned, doing his own count of the plates. "There's enough for all of us and for Bakura and Mai," he concluded, but then paused. No, that wasn't quite right either. He counted again, finally finding what he and Joey both had been forgetting. "And then there's two other places, the ones at the ends."
"Maybe that's for the hosts," Tristan suggested.
"This is way creepy, guys," Téa spoke up, arms akimbo. "Let's just move on for now." She didn't know who had set the table, but she did know that what she wanted was to find Bakura and Mai and then get out of this house. Under normal circumstances, she would've been fascinated by the one hundred and twenty-year-old furniture—but these were decidedly not normal circumstances. Anyone could be lurking around, just waiting for the perfect opportunity to . . .
"Mokuba!"
Seto's exclamation of alarm brought everyone to attention. The businessman glared at each one of them in turn, as if he found them responsible for . . .
"My brother is missing!" Seto clenched his fists in anger. He knew something like this would happen if they lingered in this town. And now there was no telling where Mokuba might be found, if he were found. What if something horrible happened to him like what had happened to Duke or Marik? The boy pushed past his companions and into the dining room, but Mokuba was not in there. He had simply disappeared.
Marik's expression became one of horror and then of anger. He had had enough of this! He was so infuriated that they were all being toyed with in this manner. Instinctively the boy reached for the Millennium Rod. If he had to use it, he swore he would.
It was then that Rishid noticed the figure fleeing down the hall that up ahead connected with the one they were in. Narrowing his eyes coldly, the fierce man ran after the dark form. That person could be responsible for much of what had happened and now be going to bring more harm to all of them. Rishid was tired of horrible things happening to his siblings and now a child had disappeared! He wanted to catch that person and make him talk if he were mixed up with everything.
"Rishid?! Rishid, wait!"
The man could hear Marik and the others running after him, but he didn't slow down until he had reached the place where the halls connected. There was no one in sight. The person had escaped. Rishid clenched his fists angrily, his eyes icy and dangerous. Those who knew Rishid of course realized that he was actually a very gentle person, but even he could become incensed if the situation was grim enough. He was not the sort of person one would want to make angry.
Without warning Rishid felt something slam into him from behind. It wasn't Marik or any of the others. . . . The touch was eerie and evil, causing him to lose his balance. Then Rishid was falling . . . rolling down a long, curved staircase. He let out a cry of shock and then of pain as he struck his head against something hard, perhaps the stairs themselves or even the bars of the railing. Then he was at the bottom, hitting his head again on the cold floor. The man winced, struggling to get up but finding it impossible.
He lay on his back and gazed at the ceiling, watching everything start to uncontrollably fade to black. He heard footsteps running down the stairs . . . he felt someone kneel next to him . . . he heard Marik's panicked voice . . . and briefly he saw the boy's frightened eyes before the darkness claimed him.