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It was nearly a week after the event with the assassin that the same group was relaxing in a large room of the Kaiba mansion: built like a movie theatre, but with several sofas instead of seats, and it was actually a TV in front of them.
While the others slouched comfortably in their individual couches, the only clue that Seto Kaiba was relaxed was that his eyes weren't as steely or intimidating. The rest of him was at attention as usual, and his mouth was in its usual frown (what Drake called his 'second' emotion).
Also subtracting from his imposing look was the insanely haired adolescent sitting by his side, one arm in a sling and the other holding what appeared to be a plush doll of his brother's favorite monster. Mokuba Kaiba was younger than his brother by five years, and his eyes usually shone with innocence, but at times they were quick and calculating, proving that he was more intelligent than your average pre-teen.
"You know, Seto, you didn't have to miss this tournament because of me," he said, his injured arm slightly motioning toward the screen. "I could've managed easily enough this past week without being in a five foot radiu-"
"He would've struck me, and not you, had I been there earlier," the elder Kaiba said, missing the groan his brother released at having heard this a thousand times. "At least until that arm's fully healed, I'm not leaving your side when I'm home, and the bodyguards won't leave till then."
"5 minutes, 23 seconds...." Drake said suddenly, stopping his watch. He scowled at a curtain, which seemed to sneeze thanks to the person behind it. "A new record for feeling at ease in Kaiba's house."
"It isn't that bad," Ishizu said dryly. She too had someone beside her who took away from her image, which was normally cheerful or quiet.
Marik Ishtar had shorter hair than Mokuba, but it was barely less spiky. He was about as tall as his sister, and had the same tanned skin, but his accent lacked as much of an Egyptian tone in favor of a much harsher pitch. Currently dressed in a misleading pink sleeveless shirt and light black jeans, his violet eyes shattered his interested image. Kaiba could have grinned, being the only one to realize that the tapping of Marik's fingers was 'B.O.R.E.D.' in Morse Code.
"Can it, Red Eyes, at least you didn't have the humiliation of getting an invite to this tournament," the millionaire said tauntingly, his face returning to the 'first' emotion: arrogance. Drake reluctantly gave Kaiba another mental point; his lack of any mode of transportation was annoying.
Glad to hear silence at last, Kaiba wondered why he cared to hear the event before him. The regional Duel Monsters tournament had narrowed down to two finalists: both using theme decks, but only one with any real sort of strategy in them. In any event, they were novices compared to him, especially Rex Raptor. Kaiba didn't care for Weevil, either; there was just an untrustworthy feeling he felt at seeing him.
He dazed off, looking wide awake, and his mind went over the recent events. Anyone with enough money to hire a trained killer in today's world would have to be rich, and in a position to be richer. Also, there were only a few people in that genre who could be connected to him. 5 of them were his own employees, as skilled in doing things themselves as they were social. The other, well... was childish, confusing, enigmatic, annoying, and... suddenly on-screen.
Again giving no sign of change in consciousness, Kaiba watched as Maximillian Pegasus handed Weevil Underwood the trophy. An unconvincing look of embarassment was on the short tactician's face as the very maker of the game handed him a trophy, and said something that made Kaiba more than angry.
"I would like to personally invite you to my tournamen-" blip
Un-embarrassed by his sudden rashness, the brown-topped CEO flung the remote behind him, which Marik caught on impulse, being the only one not affected by his actions.
"And exactly WHAT was that?" Drake asked cautiously. The last time his friendly rival had done something like this, well, someone became blind in one eye. In a literal sense, I mean.
"Is there something wrong?" Ishizu asked politely.
Mokuba groaned deeply, understanding perfectly what the others missed.
"He's always like this when he hears someone else was invited to something first. "
"But he wasn't," the sneezing curtain said, stopping Kaiba with a box as he neared it. "This arrived while you were watching, sir, but I couldn't pass it on earlier."
Scowling at his watchman's lack of hiding skill, he grabbed the box labeled 'I2', and returned to his original seat, receiving sweatdrops from his friends.
"Sis, you have the strangest tastes, but if it gets us this much cash- thwack" Marik said, wincing at his blushing sibling's slap.
Seto ignored the remark as he shred the cardboard covering, revealing several cards, a strange kind of gauntlet, two small star-shaped magnets, and a video tape. Chucking the tape to the seats closest to the screen, which was caught by a hand from one of them, he leaned back as the tape slid into the slot, and the screen shifted.
The small audience jumped back as one; the eight-foot high face of Maximillian Pegasus was enough to cause that amount of shock. "Greetings, Seto Kaiba, it certainly has been awhile."
"He probably expected this..idiot." The present millionaire scoffed, a hand ready on the remote.
"As you may know, I'm planning a large tournament on my little island, which I affectionately call Duelist Kingdom! You're invited, of course, but I felt the need for a more...personal form of invitation than the other participents get. After all, what are buisiness parters for?"
"Kissing up and following orders?" Mokuba suggested, chuckling at the coughing from random areas in the room.
"I heard that, Moki-boy."
Kaiba was the only one to remain calm, based on the gasps he heard behind him. "Don't let it get to you; he's eccentric in ways unstudied by humans."
"Thanks for the compliment, Kaiba-boy." The red tux-wearer grinned. "Now, as I was saying, this tournament will be starting soon, and you'll want to hold on to the cards, gauntlet, and Star Chips within that package. Not that you need it, but the prizes for this tournament will be astounding by normal standards...and, by yours, too."
Appearing almost bored, the sharply-toned eyes glanced to the card Pegasus lifted, which was entirely blank.
"As you also know, I possess the Millenium Eye, one of several magical items similar to your Millenium Rod. And yes, I know your thoughts on this, so put that remote down. In any case, I've planned this tournament with a special goal in mind... one that involved owning all seven of the original Millenium Items!"
Taking the rod from his duster, Kaiba looked it over. "This? Why would you need to make a tournament for this?"
"When combined, the seven Millenium Items have incredible power, possibly enough to rule the world! However, while I can't promise that doesn't sound appealing, I have something else in mind...something that you could profit from, as well."
Drake narrowed his eyes. "For some reason, this doesn't sound very good."
"What are you talking about? What harm comes from a little domination?" Marik asked, earning an annoyed glare from his sister.
"A lot, Mr. Ishtar."
Before the gasps could even finish, Pegasus continued." This is only one thing my Millenium Eye can do, Kaiba-boy. And I KNOW you have something you want...something that I want....but to do that, I'm going to take your Millenium Rod!" The normal eye narrowed, and suddenly a dark look came on the face of the card-game maker. "And I will win, even if I have to resort to more...desperate methods."
It was brief, but Seto noticed the fast glance the real eye made in his brother's direction. "What are you talking about?"
The last line of the video seemed to echo in Kaiba's mind, as Pegasus's mouth did not move. The others didn't react to it, so only he must've heard it. Yet, to the blue-eyed CEO, it was loud and clear...
Tell me, Kaiba; is there anyone you wish you could see? Anyone not of this world, someone you truly wished to walk amongst the living again? If you can take my Eye, you just might be able to...
The screen zipped off. Several startled glances turned to the brown-haired one's back. Ishizu coughed, then uttered," What did he say?"
Seto stood up, not facing them, but glaring determinedly at the box he had dropped on the floor, as if it were something golden, surrounded by mud-covered spikes.
"....he mentioned my parents."
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Several days later, Drake walked toward the door to his apartment, his mind as confused as his friends' were, even after days that had passed. Seto was even less talkative than before, didn't bother dishing out insults, and never showed up in his usual hangouts. He was pried out of his thoughts by something solid coming into contact with his foot.
He blanched as the brown package entered his sights, but eased considerably as the address was noticed. With a grin he hadn't had for days, he rushed into his home, opened the box, and nearly slammed the tape into the VCR.
The face on the screen was beautiful, though a bit gaunt, with bright green eyes and long, purple hair. The eyes of the girl, however seemed a bit sad from this angle, and with a start he noticed the pink hospital garb and the bed she was sitting in.
"Hiya, Drake!" She said softly, her voice matching her face's emotion." Long time, no see..."
"Lara..." He breathed out, confusion and worry mixing with the air.
"Yeah, I know, it's pretty weird to see me in a hospital....I was lucky enough to find someone to help me out. It was stupid...just a streetfight...but, well, here I am!"
It was strange; years had passed since he'd seen the girl talking with him, yet all he could think of was how she'd ended up where she was, and why she was talking over a video rather than a phone. And if she'd found a good family, why couldn't she come overseas, or arranged for him to come to her?
"Well, actually, it's kinda...more serious than it looks." She said slowly, not knowing that her boyfriend flinched at every word. "I'm pretty much okay..but I'm... the doctors say that the last punch I had shook something in my skull... I have trouble tasting food, and my skin..."
She rubbed a hand across her sheet for emphasis. "It's slowly getting harder for me to feel things. You can't see it, but my hands are covered in a plactic substance, so I won't "chew them off." I just wanted you to know...I'm sorry for all the jokes and flirting, I know it made you embarassed...but it can't really happen anymore. There's an operation that can help, but it's way too much for either of us to afford."
Drake stood up, his head feeling empty save for one idea. He moved to turn of the tape- "Please, Drake, don't do anything dangerous for me. I want to be better, I really do...and I want to see you again, but not if you get hurt. I'm sorry..."
The screen faded, and he ejected the tape. Slowly wiping salty tears from his eyes, he turned to his only window, glancing out at the setting sun's orange glare.
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"Seto, are you alright?" Mokuba asked again of his brother, timidly peeking through the door. His brother was still staring at the same point on his desk, like he had done every day since the tape's arrivail. The spiky-haired brother quietly walked in, shutting the door behind him. "You really need to get out of this room, Seto.... I know you haven't been eating...and by that, I mean eating even less than before. It's not safe for you to keep act-"
"I'm going to that tournament, Mokuba." The youth was startled at the sudden statement, relief shining from the first words he'd heard him say in days. "And I'm going to win......... but it isn't for some stupid idea that the dead can come back."
'Harsh tone of voice when speaking comfortingly...yup, he's back to normal.' Mokuba thought, a sad smile on his face.
The CEO stood from his desk, closing the briefcase at his side and pulling it from the floor. "Tell Roland to get ready to drive me to Domino pier..." He started to leave the room, but halted as he neared his brother. An uncharacteristically squimish look on his face. " ...........and tell him to pick up from a drive through. Large; meat-filled."
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A short few hours later found Kaiba standing in line, next to a very nervous-looking, exclusively dragon duelist.
"Maybe it'd be easier to just take one of your copters-"
"We'd be shot down before we could land."
"Then I could just stow away in the hold-"
"Pegasus makes it a habit to have his supplies in either near-burning or freezing temperatures, to keep stowaways from making it to the island."
"How do you KNOW all of this, anyway?"
The blue-duster wearer scowled at his friend. "Listen, if you're having second thoughts, give me back that Star Chip I lent you and go home. I don't need someone slowing me down for indecisiveness."
Drake scowled back. "Fine, I'll shut up. And DON'T make that suggestion again; I'm not backing down for this."
The guards seemed to have a problem with the two sharing Star Chips, but backed out under Kaiba's glare. No one seemed to notice the sounds of someone beating at a wooden crate as it was lowered into the storage room.
"S..ss.s.s..so cold...." Marik muttered between punches. He finally stopped, his sister's hand pulling his suddenly stiff ear.
"You'll have to put up with it." Ishizu whispered. "I don't think there's any other way to avoid the guards, and I'm not just staying behind. Ever since we saw that video, I've had this strange feeling... like something bad's going to happen on that island. And since warning Seto about it would be equally helpful as warning a trash can, the only other way is to be there when it happens."
"We co-couldn't warn D-dd-drake instead?"
The younger sibling let out a long, shuddering groan as his sister glared at him, the usual way of saying she had forgetten something, but he needed to drop it.
And so, in one way or another, all four of the group were coldly focused in the night-long cruise.
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A/N: My brain's fried from having to think up things on the spot for practically this whole chapter, but I guess it's worth it. Next chapter, whenever that is, the duels start, so be prepared. Until next time, cya!