Disclaimer: You probably get enough of it already so I won't force it upon you again.
The Taur'i Pharaoh
~ * ~
Seto Kaiba glared at the two unwanted guests. Not many people had the patience to be happy after being awakened one or two hours after midnight and he was famous for his short fuse. "This had better be a life or death situation or you'll find yourself in one."
Bakura glared peevishly at the small Light's back, leaving Yugi to answer quietly but firmly. "We need to get to America."
"And that's a life or death situation?" was the sarcastic reply.
"It is, honest! Ryou's been kidnapped and the individuals that have him are deadly enough without adding the Shadow Powers."
"Well unless they're mind readers they're not going to learn anything, are they?" Seto moved back to the front door with the intention of throwing them back out.
The younger boy shook his head, his violet eyes flickered red as the Pharaoh took control. He was the one that replied in a chillingly serious tone. "They don't need to… they're parasites; they infest your body and enslave your mind. They don't have any morals, so it's second nature for them to hurt others and enjoy the fruits of their plunder…"
Bakura jumped in at this point, frustrated at the loss of time at trying to convince the young billionaire. "If you'll look back through your own memories of your Egyptian existence you'll agree. You abhorred them," he snorted. "Seeing as they took your family into their eternally damned existence and if it hadn't been for their lack of control over the baka-Pharaoh here, you, Priest, were to be next… now, are we leaving you here to cower, snivelling in behind your door? Showing your true colours of a coward..."
Yami nodded backing the Thief's words… at least up until the part of calling Kaiba a coward. He backed off slightly, tense with the knowledge of what was about to happen and ready to step in if it went too far.
Ryou's Dark other ducked around with lightning speed and a devilish smirk, as Seto's fist came out of nowhere, missing him by a hairsbreadth. Seto suddenly felt the prick of a dagger on the back of his neck where the Tomb Robber now rested his weapon. "Or are you going to fight back with your own power to keep the Goa'uld from taking away your beloved brother in this life and your precious world as you know it. You really should learn to control your temper, Priest. You'll get yourself killed for it one day and your Enemies would absolutely love that… one less, decidedly minor, irritation to worry about," Bakura hissed into Kaiba's ear.
Seto's body tensed. Rage and a deadly degree of Shadow Power began radiating from his form in waves. He struggled to get control of his emotions but he found that he was also combating his former memories as they rose to the surface and was unable to maintain a good grip. As the memories became sharper Kaiba found that he could not deny them or the pain they held. He remembered the pain of seeing his parents lose their very souls to the demons that claimed to be their Gods. The False Ones had believed that by giving them their definition of power and eternal life, Seto would join them in trying to corrupt and control the one he had sworn to protect and guide – the true Child of the Heavenly Ra: his Pharaoh – in the hope that he would get the same reward.
They had been very wrong. By doing so they only strengthened the hatred deep in the soul of the young Priest as he watched the monsters that his family were forced to become. Slowly Seto Kaiba swam out of his memories and back to the surroundings of his home. He pulled the Shadow power sharply in before he felt tempted to use it, once more hiding it deep within his spirit. Ignoring Bakura he turned a deadly gaze to his rival. "They're back? Is this absolutely certain?"
Yami nodded. "Yes, as I said they've taken Ryou unwilling into their fold and are very surely getting a grip on the Shadow power that he has control over. I know this because we've already faced them within the Realm itself and lost someone to them; Daniel Jackson, who Bakura here 'kidnapped' in order to use as a temporary host. We can only hope that they aren't able to learn all the secrets. I defeated them very easily last time because they had no awareness of the Shadow Realm but the tables have turned slightly. It may not be so easy this time… it won't be so easy this time. Who knows what else they've learnt over the five millennia."
"That still doesn't explain why you need to go to America."
"The only way we can get to where the False Ones' stronghold is is by going there. Somehow their military has found the Chappa'ai and learned to activate it without the controlling device. It's our best chance to travel there. We can't go via the Realm because we don't know the amount of control that they've gained over it but mostly we'll be unaware of the traps that they've set or if it will be flooded with their armies. At the moment we don't have the advantage… we need your help…" The Pharaoh said the last part softly, it wasn't often he had to ask for help, but he did know when he needed to use his allies' abilities.
The Tomb Robber left from his place behind the Priest and drifted to one side. They were getting nowhere. "Just give us an answer already," he grumbled.
Seto just looked at the pair for a while. There wasn't much to mull over, if there was a threat to his brother or his company he would deal with it very ruthlessly. He pulled out his cell phone that never left his person, and dialled a number. When it was answered he didn't even give the person a chance to speak. "You're to be here within five minutes or you're fired. I want you to keep an eye on Mokuba and don't let him out of your sight. If one hair on his head is damaged when I get back I'll see to it that your life will be a living hell." He snapped the connection abruptly.
Yugi switched with his other self and stared at him with a delighted grin on his face. "Thank you, Seto."
"You owe me a duel after this, Mutou."
"Of course… any venue of your choice, any time." Yugi promised vigorously. Yami was already putting his mind to battle tactics that might be useful to them against the System Lords, however a small part actually began coming up with strategies for their upcoming duel with the Priest as soon as his Hikari agreed to Seto's payment.
Bakura rolled his eyes at the smaller boy, both the Pharaoh's Hikari and the baka-Pharaoh himself were sometimes so predictable.
Seto turned his back on them and headed back up to his room whilst he called back over his shoulder, "Collect what you need and be back here by 6am tomorrow. Don't be late or I'll leave without you."
~ * ~
"Major Carter, have you been able to come up with anything that can explain Doctor Jackson's disappearance yet?"
Sam shook her head at the General's query. "There's not much I can do. All the tests that I've run have been unsuccessful in providing any information. All the artefacts the Daniel has in his office are unable to do anything remotely similar to teleportation." She sighed despairingly.
"General, you may want to check this out," Jack called from a nearby monitor. Hammond was quick to approach, the rest of SG1 and Jacob hot on his heals.
"What do you have?" The CO demanded.
"I've been checking out what the cameras around the 'Gate room got when we got back from Abydos. I was hoping to find anything out of the ordinary. This is what I came across." He hit the play switch.
The screen showed the SG team leaving the embarkation room. They watched as Daniel fell back rummaging through his backpack. He pulled something out of it, however all the General saw was a flash of gold and Daniel stiffening sharply before relaxing. The Doctor's face now wore a smug smirk that just wasn't… Daniel.
"Oh my God… they've found a new method of infesting their hosts…" Sam gasped as they all stared in horror at the now paused image on the monitor.
~ * ~
Ryou peaked out of his Soul Corridor and into the rest of his mind that the Goa'uld had infiltrated. Noting that it was distracted the Light quickly slipped out and became incorporeal in the real world. He couldn't stand being there any more; he just had to get out. He slipped out of the 'throne room' and into the rest of the building. He revelled in the feeling of his limited freedom
He strolled along slowly getting used to the fact that he was invisible and there was no need to jump every time he ran into someone. He turned his predicament over in his mind trying to find something that he could. The first thing to find out, he decided, was to see if he could use some of his Shadow powers while in this form.
Ryou's eyes narrowed as he concentrated upon his summoning, sweat forming on his brow. Slowly but surely a flicker of dark purple ran over his hands. He stared at them in glee before releasing his grip on the power. He was breathing heavily now. It had taken so much energy even for those few minutes. Not only that, it was a lot harder than normal. He shrugged, oh well… it's a lot better than nothing.
He rested for a few seconds before changing direction to go look for the Goa'uld's prisoner that had been with the Realm with Bakura and Yami. It didn't take him long to find the dungeons. He turned the last corner and came face to face with two imposing Jaffa. The Thief's Light slipped past/through them and proceeded through the closed doors and into the cell beyond.
The sight that met his gaze made him wince slightly. The man was sitting in a corner with his legs drawn up around his chest, head bowed over them. His body looked badly bruised and he was bleeding in several places, however there was thankfully no mortal danger to the man. As he came closer the prisoner jerked his head back and looked around the room as if sensing his presence. His face showed his weariness but none of the defiance had deserted him yet.
Bakura's Hikari came closer still and stopped just out of arms reach. The man stared straight at him, blinking as if trying to clear something from his vision and started violently. "What…?"
Ryou stared at him, astonished that he had been seen. "You can see me?! But no one should be able to see me when I'm like this."
Daniel stared harder at the figure in front of him, though it might have looked like the System Lord that held power over this world, there was an indescribably different feel about him. It was then he noticed telltale flickers of deep purple that constantly drifted over the boy… the same phenomena, he realised, had been around Yugi Mutou when he had shown himself like a ghost.
"Would you happen to be Ryou?"
Ryou nodded slowly still not sure as to how this was possible. "And you…?"
"Daniel."
Ryou bowed slightly in the Japanese fashion. "Hai, it's a pleasure to meet you… even under the present circumstances."
Jackson smiled slightly. "Agreed."
The Light glanced around the cell. "Perhaps there is a way to help each other," he mused.
"How?"
"I might be able to get us out of here. At least it's worth a try."
Daniel slid back up the wall and into a standing position. "What can I do?"
"Nothing at the moment." Ryou looked at the back wall and a plan formed. He drifted closer and then stuck his head through the wall checking to make sure that there was no one about to witness what he planned to do. "Just go through the portal as quick as you can after it opens. I'm not sure how long I'll be able to keep it that way."
His companion nodded coming closer to the youngster. Ryou turned his attention inward and called across his connection to his other. He hoped that distance wouldn't interfere with this ability. Bakura, I need your help…
He was shocked that the reply that he received was rather unstable… faint. Ryou, what are you up to?!
I need you to explain how I can create a small portal… through a wall into the next room.
The Light felt some amusement and surprise from his Dark radiating through their bond. So you want to learn the tricks of the trade, huh? Very well watch carefully.
A series of pictures flashed through his mind. Got it?
Yes… thank you.
Bakura growled back. And don't do anything stupid using to much power or you'll go straight into the Shadow Realm entirely instead of the Borderlands. Plus to much will drain you to the point of your soul's death and if that happens… I don't need to go into that do I?
Ryou shook his head, knowing that the Tomb Robber would feel it. Thanks again, Bakura. He blinked suddenly and found himself staring at the wall again. "Okay… here goes nothing…" he muttered.
He called up a little of his power and 'brushed' it on the wall. Immediately a small section disappeared in a rush of purple shadows. He nodded slightly to the Archaeologist behind him. Daniel immediately darted through paying no head to the pain that this movement brought. As soon as he was through the portal vanished and he stared down the corridor that he was now in.
Ryou slipped through the wall panting from the effort from opening the portal. He glanced around. "I'll scout ahead… please stay here, Daniel-san."
Daniel nodded and settled down into a niche hidden from the view of any passer-by.
~ * ~
They were all gathered back at Seto Kaiba's well before the clock even showed 5:30am. Seto gave last minute instructions and warnings to his people and brother. They then gathered into a small plane, earlier Kaiba had quickly pointed out to Yugi that a helicopter wasn't the best form of transport to cross the Pacific Ocean to get to their destination.
It was in the midst of the Priest's preparations for take off that something in Bakura's gaze made him pause. He wasn't the only one. Yugi voiced the question for the pair of them. "What's up, Bakura?"
It was several seconds before there was any answer. The Dark shook his had trying to clear it and looked back at the other's with a devilish expression on his face. "Ryou was just able to contact me. He wanted to know how to open a portal through a wall. By the looks of things his found a way to get out from the False One's gaze and will probably be trying to find a way to help us… not bad for my Hikari…"
Seto rolled his eyes and began the plane's engines. Yugi turned to Bakura. "I was thinking that we don't actually know where the Chappa'ai is. Is there anything you can tell us?"
The other frowned trying to recall what he could. "All I can gather is that it is a base. I get the impression that we were underground."
Yugi sighed, that didn't help them much. Yami decided now was the time to make a contribution and appeared in his spirit form, "There may be a way to find our destination…"
"How…?!" Bakura snapped.
The Pharaoh frowned at him but continued in the same tone of voice as before. "We'll use the power of the Ring and a map. All we need to do is get the Item to point out our desired destination on the map."
His Light grinned and was quick to reach for the map. He spread the map out in front of Bakura. The Tomb Robber didn't need to be told twice and was quick to concentrate. The Millennium Ring emitted a sharp golden glow and two of its pointers gravitated unerringly towards a tiny section of the map. Yugi bent closer.
"Well…?" Seto growled from the pilot's seat taking a quick glance back over his shoulders. "What does it say?"
The King of Games looked into his Dark's gaze and then into his companions'. "We're looking for Cheyenne Mountain…"
~ * ~
I thought I'd give you all an Easter gift!! Aren't I wonderful?? **gives herself a pat on the back & almost breaks her arm!!**
AMASING, HUH? THIS IS ACTUALLY AN UPDATE!!! Well that took forever… didn't it?? And that nasty writer's block is really beginning to loom on the horizon!!
I mean I know what's going to happen when they get to Stargate Command… but after that it's a mystery. How should the Tok'ra be involved… should I even get them involved and the Asguard???? What do you guys think?
Thanks to all who reviewed… to everyone that were so patient (and thanks to the not so patient for coming back)!! A few of you have actually suggested ideas to me that I was going to us anyway! AMASING, great minds DO think alike!!!
Tainted angel-ai ~ you know you're a bloody annoying sister… don't you?? Are you happy now? All I have to say is that you'd better update a certain one of your stories with Marius!!
jesphoenix05 ~ the thought just never occurred to me! As for Bakura not knowing himself… I think he had other things on his mind rather than shuffling through Daniel's thoughts.
Koriaena ~ the Goa'uld is in Ryou's body but Ryou himself can still appear in spirit form… as you probably noticed in this chapter!
JK Fie'r ~ well… it's always nice to see a familiar name!! You can annoy all you want… you'll probably be able to kick my but into gear ^ _ ~
rlenavampyre14; Namonaki Pharaoh; shadowwaker; yamiangie; Kyren ~ I'm glad you all enjoyed it!!
Jade Tatsu ~ thanks for the idea about the Pharoah and Thor!!! That isn't a bad idea… what do you suggest causes them to get involved??
**FireSenshi loves all your reviews and hopes that she didn't disappoint you all tooo much. ^ _ ^ **