Disclaimer: Actually, I did own Yu-Gi-Oh in one of my dreams but then I woke up and everything was gone...

Author's Notes

Well...it seems like some people want Kaiba to stay alive, Tristan to drop dead, see the busts in action, Tea and Bakura kiss and...uhm...Yeah, I believe that was all. But, you'll have to read the chapter to see what happens, muaha!

Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially Mystic Dragon - you made my day! ÷beams÷

I'll just shut up now and let you read.


The Legend of the Three Souls

Chapter XXVI – Mind Body and Soul

by Alena S. Anigor


The gusty whirlwind was blowing wildly around them, tousling their bangs and ruffling their clothes, but all Yuugi and Bakura could do was to growl and groan angrily, trying to make their bodies move to no avail. No matter how much they willed their muscles to work and their legs to move, they were standing still, watching helplessly with wide eyes at Tea and Ishizu gasping for air across them, fastened to the walls of the ruins by monstrous bones of Amukh's minions.

Behind them, Kaiba was jerking and cursing out loud, trying to break free of the deadly grip the skeletal hands had on his limbs but that only seemed to drag him into the sand further. He stopped abruptly, and opened his eyes, crystal blue replaced by a deep, angry shade of indigo. He could feel the back of his head sinking lower, his hair half-covered with sand, fingers and feet concealed within the supple layer. He could only stare wrathfully at the dark sky and heavy clouds, towering over him, mixed with an occasional streak of lightening and a clapping sound of thunder.

Someone not too far from him screamed, and he recognized the voice of the auburn haired girl he was forced to run with down the streets of the city. He turned his head to the left for a few inches, spotting her, the guides and the blond journalist, trying to break loose. Then his eyes drifted upwards to see Shadi jerking violently, seemingly standing in the thin air like a puppet hanging off the invisible strings.

The Prophet was angry, his fists balled tightly by his sides, nails digging into the flesh of his palms painfully. He closed his eyes in deep concentration, trying to break free of the invisible hold Amukh had on him, but he knew very well that the ancient Priest was more powerful than he was; there was no point in denying that. And that was why Amukh was strolling nonchalantly down the sand covered path, making everything go sky-high around him, while he was hanging beneath the thundering sky, shaking with rage.

He took a deep breath, reprimanding himself for the lack of attention in that crucial moment, before he opened his eyes again. Looking down, his eyes widened when he spotted the guides, the two girls and the reincarnation of the Second Soul sinking slowly into the sand, the other two reincarnations struggling to move in vain a few feet away and Ishizu and Tea, pinned against the cold wall of the ruins, their faces turning red from the pressure around their necks. Shadi swallowed hard and urged his mind to work.

He glanced to the left, noticing Amukh walking effortlessly over the sand, sending the Jackals and even his own hooded creatures flying without a second glance. He gasped softly, spotting the retreating figure of the Jackal behind all that mess; the busts were still in his possession but Shadi knew that wouldn't last for long once Amukh found him.

He willed his eyes to close and his mind to concentrate. It took him a few moments to get used to the darkness in front of his eyes and to block the distracting sounds out of his ears. Taking deep, calm breaths, he forced his mind to slip into a meditative state and the darkness around him started to diminish slowly, replaced by a warm, white light, engulfing him securely.

Tentatively, he opened his eyes and looked around, the sky, the desert and the ruins below him looking different. He glanced at himself, noticing Amukh's mental, wormlike strings, tightened around him firmly, pulsating with a green color, moving and snaking around him vindictively. Gazing beneath, he could see the same thing happening to Bakura and Yuugi while others were jerking and trashing wildly – their auras were convulsing dangerously, colors fading away slowly. Shadi closed his eyes quickly in order to keep his spirit and his mind on the spiritual level. He didn't have much strength left; he had the use what remained of it wisely.

Concentrating on the strings around him, he forced his own aura to fight, white cloud of mist trapped beneath the poison green.

Distinctly, he could feel the leather handle of Marik's dagger in his hands, but the material could do nothing against spiritual. Gritting his teeth, he let out a growl, forcing his mind to go beyond his own boundaries. He had to hurry, there was almost no time left. If he could only find the weakest link in the jumble of strings and bonds...

Mai gulped, amethyst eyes wide in horror and fright. She had spent the last five minutes in screaming, cursing and pleading, but the skeletal hands kept on pulling her in hungrily. Left to her, Serenity was sobbing hysterically, making Joey growl and roar in anger and helplessness. He was only few feet away from his own sister, and he couldn't even budge. Tristan stopped struggling minutes ago, and was now only staring dully at the ominous sky, thinking of all the things he had done in his short life.

Bakura and Yuugi were still standing in the same spot, their muscles taut and sore. They wanted to collapse down, but they couldn't even do that – the strings were making it impossible. They could only stare powerlessly at Tea and Ishizu who were now coughing on the other side, their strength disappearing slowly. Ishizu managed to throw one last, tortured glance at Yuugi before she collapsed, her head falling and dark tresses pooling around her shoulders.

"Ishizu!" Yuugi screamed desperately, watching in horror how Tea's fists unclenched slowly and her body fell limply against the wall. Yuugi's eyes widened drastically.

"TEA!" He screamed in terror, Bakura's teeth gritted to the point where his gums hurt. He lowered his head, his whole body shaking, not being able to watch the only girl he really cared for dying away slowly. Not too far away from him, a body of his best friend was lying on the sand, as well. He wanted to howl.

Yuugi started to struggle again, jerking wildly, hoarse yells and cries mingled with sobs and tears falling down his cheeks. "Ishizu! Tea!"

÷

The swarm of Jackals and cloaked ogres was dissipating slowly, numerous bodies, cloaks and spears lying around, still and useless. A small portion of the Jackals was still capable of fighting the cloaked creatures; some of them running away, letting out shrill and ear piercing screams and some of them staggering around aimlessly through the sea of bodies. The Jackal with the busts took a step back each time he saw the Priest taking one forward. Amukh was grinning maliciously, satisfaction and triumph evident on every inch of his face. Emerald eyes were glistening with evil glee and drive; finally, he was just a few steps away from the desired victory.

One of the Jackals appeared in front of him quickly, ready to defend the busts, but he swept him away with one, single motion of his hand. It didn't matter how many of them came to stop him; nothing and no one would have the power to do that soon. Glancing back at the helpless figures of his victims, he chuckled in amusement, spotting Shadi, still hanging in the air and struggling against his mental barrier without success.

The Jackal swallowed and looked behind – nothing but pyramids and hills of sand greeting him in the distance and the ancient Priest was getting closer to him, deliberately toying with him and taking slow, purposeful steps. The creature looked at the busts abruptly when it thought something underneath pulsated but the busts were motionless in his embrace, rocking slightly against each other.

"Where are you going to go?" Amukh spoke in a sugary voice, sounding like he was talking to a small child of three years. The Jackal gulped inaudibly, tightening his hold on the busts. An order was given to him and he had to obey the Prophet, his ruler and the ancient Gods. Amukh stopped finally when the Jackal reached the end of the even ground, the only thing behind him being a high mountain of sand. The Jackal stopped as well, turning around to see the rising dune and red eyes widened with dread.

Amukh raised his hand slowly, summoning enough energy to make the creature let go of the busts. It let out a painful roar when emerald eyes flashed with something evil and merciless. It let the statues fall to the sand without thinking, raising its hands to clutch its head. The pain was excruciating. Amukh's voice was calm and leveled when he spoke, watching the Jackal toss and jerk over the sand with a bored expression.

"Now it's over." He whispered and with a final motion of his fingers, summoned the busts to his hands.

÷

"Tea..." Yuugi whispered croakily, now slightly bent from exertion to reach his childhood friend. Every single bone in his body ached and he finally gave in, realizing he couldn't do anything to help her, to help Ishizu, anyone. Bakura's eyes were shut tightly, his body trembling violently between the gasps for air. He wasn't sure himself what he was doing anymore so he settled for an odd mixture of anger, misery, crying and growling. The two figures pinned against the wall of the ruins were still and silent, hanging from the rocks like abandoned marionettes.

Joey and Serenity wanted to scream when their eyes suddenly filled with sand, the precious view at the sky obscured but they had to close their mouths when the sharp specks of sand threatened to choke them as well. Joey managed to call his sister's name just a second before he vanished completely underneath the sand, the skeletal hands disappearing together with him. Serenity only had a brief moment to see Mai's dead gaze looking at the sky before she sunk easily into the sandy grave and she couldn't even hear Tristan who went down silently as well. She did scream when one of the bones clamped over her mouth but her scream came out muffled. Within two seconds, she was underneath, together with the bones that held her body till the end.

Kaiba glanced to the side, suddenly hearing nothing – no screams, no curses, no protests, no pleas...just a deafening sound of a storm approaching and an occasional sob coming from someone in front of him he wasn't even entirely sure he wasn't just imagining.

An image of Mokuba came to his mind suddenly and he smiled a small smile, wondering for a brief moment if his little brother was all right...if he would manage after he was gone. His eyes closed and something stirred deep inside of him, making his heart clench.

"Mokuba..."

Yuugi was about to close his eyes and pretend how everything around him was just a bad, bad dream when a loud thump was heard, making Bakura open his eyes as well and glance to the right.

The two boys blinked oddly at Shadi who was lying on the sand, panting heavily and holding his robes tightly that were smeared with blood from Amukh's previous deed. He was breathing laboriously, gasping in large breaths for air after finally succeeding in breaking the ancient Priest's hold. He looked around him and stopped breathing for a moment. The guides, the blond journalist and the younger girl were gone; the two girls that were still fastened to the wall of the ruins were immobile and seemingly dead. Marik was still lying in his spot calmly; only the reincarnations of the Three Souls remained, although Kaiba was also on the verge of disappearing completely into the sand.

Shadi looked at his almost lost expression and quickly got up, limping all the way to Bakura who was the closest to him. Taking a deep breath, he put his hands in front of the white haired boy, not touching him, but feeling the restraints around him. Bakura looked at him strangely, thinking how the man had lost his mind and decided to pester him in the last moments of his life instead of just letting him die in peace. He gazed at the limp body of the brown haired girl and at the peaceful look on Marik's face, lowering his head slowly. He already lost what was most important to him...

Yuugi was staring at the Prophet, somewhat disturbed by his actions as well. But when Bakura's knees suddenly gave way and he plopped down onto the sand with a thud, he gasped. The thief gasped, too but from the pain when his body fell down and then sighed in relief when he could finally move with his arms and legs again. Shadi's face was ghostly white, beads of sweat trickling down his forehead under the large turban, stinging and burning in his eyes but he had enough energy left to release Yuugi. After all, he needed them now more than anyone.

He approached the bewildered boy who was still looking at the thief in disbelief. Bakura cracked the bones in his neck, then cracked his knuckles and then almost stumbled back when Shadi shoved the dagger into his hands.

"Help him!" He exclaimed breathlessly, pointing at the CEO whose face was now barely visible under the sand. Bakura gaped at the sight but managed to collect himself quickly enough to swing with his dagger and swat the skeletal hands away.

"How did you do that?" Yuugi asked him, perplexed by the sudden change of the situation, although Shadi could still hear the weariness in his voice.

He was quiet for a while, concentrating solely on the strings around him, before he pressed onto the right one and Yuugi let out a yelp, suddenly finding himself falling downwards. Shadi caught him quickly but fell down himself, the last bit of his spiritual energy spent. His eyes glazed over when he saw Yuugi's worried expression mingling with bright white and opened his mouth to whisper two last coherent words.

"Stop...him."

With that, his eyes rolled back and closed, leaving Yuugi to shake him vigorously.

"Shadi!"

"Hey!" Bakura exclaimed and not remembering his name, added, "You, spiky boy!" from behind and Yuugi turned around to look at the thief and at the half-pulled Kaiba out of the sand. "Some help here?"

Yuugi got up quickly and then instantly fell down on his knees, the muscles in his legs still not quite used to moving around freely.

"Argh!" He groaned and got up with a determined expression, glancing at Tea and Ishizu for only a second. The bony hands around their necks were gone but they were still holding them possessively against the wall. He turned around when Bakura whistled to him and grabbed Kaiba by the shins.

Together, they pulled him out, Bakura lifting him up in a sitting position and Yuugi waving with his hand in front of his face. He was mumbling something incoherent and Yuugi thought he heard his brother's name somewhere in between but he concentrated on trying to bring him back to life.

"Kaiba!" He yelled, shaking him gently. The CEO kept on staring through him with glassy eyes and Yuugi let out an exasperated sigh.

"Let me," Bakura said, leaning over him from behind to take a good look. A moment later, he slapped him sharply across the face, making Kaiba blink and look up. Yuugi was left to ogle at the thief in astonishment for the second time that day.

"Mokuba?" Kaiba asked, mistaking a mop of long, messy hair for his brother's. Bakura glared at him.

"No."

Yuugi got up, looking at a devastated desert and bodies lying scattered around. Then he looked down to search for Mai and the others, but they were hidden beneath the thick layer of sand. Yuugi flopped down and without a second thought, started digging through the sand, making it fly around him wildly. Bakura got up and ran off to the ruins, swinging with the dagger, careful not to hurt Tea in the process.

"Come on," Yuugi choked out, creating a small gap in the sand, but there was no trace of Mai, Joey, Tristan or Serenity. Kaiba glanced at his own hands and turned around to pick a spot to start digging at. He wondered if any one of them was still alive.

Bakura laid both girls down onto the sand carefully next to Marik, checking for their pulses. He let his fingers slide and press down Tea's neck and wrist numerous times, trying, wanting to feel anything at all, but her heart was mute as well as Ishizu's.

His fists clenched again and he let out a low growl, making Yuugi turn around. Next to him, Shadi was lying peacefully as well and he stopped, realizing he threw some sand over him.

Glancing at each other, Kaiba and Yuugi sighed, hands and legs tired, eyes lost and empty. Bakura lifted the lifeless body of the girl in his arms, rocking her with him back and forth. Kaiba stared helplessly at the hole he made with his hands, gazing at the sand miserably. Yuugi stood up with a painful grimace, looking at the Prophet numbly.

"We need to..." He stopped when his voice cracked and tried again. "We need to stop him."

Kaiba looked at him while Bakura's eyes remained on the girl in his arms. Tears were leaving light traces over his tanned and dirty face.

"Stop him?" He repeated in a low voice. "Stop him? Stop him why?" The last three words were yelled out. Bakura lowered Tea down onto the sand again and stood up, facing them. Kaiba diverted his eyes from his tear stricken face.

"Stop him HOW?" He roared and Yuugi flinched. "He killed her! He killed them all!"

Yuugi lowered his head and stared at his feet dully. He had a point – the busts were probably in Amukh's possession, his friends were dead and they were barely standing on their feet.

"So, there you are," a low voice coaxed from the near distance and the three of them looked at the ancient Priest, standing in front of them proudly with the busts resting neatly in his hands. Bakura's eyes flashed and he took one leap forward before he was stopped by him, those invisible strings enabling him to move again.

"Bakura!" Yuugi shouted, already moving to help him but was stopped in his attempts when he realized he couldn't move as well. "No..." he growled, "not again!"

Amukh let out a malevolent chuckle, forcing Kaiba to stand up with a snarl of protest and placed him right next to Yuugi like a doll in some shop window.

"You will pay for this!" Bakura roared, able only to threat him verbally, the handle of the dagger embedding into his palm. Yuugi's eyes were narrowed, once clear amethyst now a dark shade of purple. Kaiba was seemingly calm but that was just a poker face he kept for him to see.

Amukh glanced at Shadi who still lying serenely on the sand and with a motion of his hand, send him flying away effortlessly. There was a thumping sound which indicated that Shadi landed somewhere behind them. Yuugi and Bakura lowered their heads, grinding their teeth harder. Kaiba glared at him underneath brown, tousled bangs.

When Amukh spotted the two girls and a sandy haired boy, lying peacefully on the sand, he smiled evilly, making Yuugi and Bakura's eyes widen.

"We can't have them in our way, can we now?" He said, raising his hand in the air and making a swirl of emotions rise inside of the three of them.

Kaiba growled, something inside of him threatening to explode. Misery, helplessness, anger.

One of the busts in Amukh's hand trembled, a faint blue light emitting from it.

"No!" Yuugi screamed, a sudden wave of something powerful washing over him. Despair, fury, loss.

The second one moved visibly, making the ancient Priest look down to see the one that moved shining with a golden light.

"DON'T YOU DARE!" Bakura roared in sheer rage and the combination of everything the other two felt, making the third bust flash with a bright, red light that burned Amukh's fingers and made him drop them.

Instead of falling down to the sand, they floated in the air for a moment, before leaping to hover over the heads of the three figures in front of him.

"What?" The ancient Priest spat, closing his eyes to block out the sudden onslaught of light and opening them a moment later to see the three of them, standing calmly in front of him, the restricting strings gone and his mental barrier broken like a bubble of soap. The bright colors of blue, golden and red were the ones dancing around them furiously, making them look like they were standing amidst colorful flames.

Amukh looked up rapidly, feeling the wind blow more sharply, to the point of carrying all the bodies of the Jackals and cloaked creatures up. The clouds were spinning over the sky, mixed with the lightening, creating a whirlwind of gray, black and blue.

Shadi cracked one eye open, something inside of him stirring as if trying to tell him to wake up. He glanced at the chaos around him and already thought it was all over when he spotted three beams of glorious light, growing, rising, swirling up in a magnificent spiral where they pierced through the clouds and opened the sky. Shadi smiled then let out a yelp when he touched a sore spot on his forehead. He spotted the swooshing robes of Ishizu's and got up as fast as he could to reach her.

He managed to drag the three of them behind the wall of the ruins, glancing up to see the light taking forms.

"Just like then," he whispered. "They did it."

Yuugi, Bakura and Kaiba were still standing in their spots calmly, the busts now almost sitting on their heads. Their eyes were closed, their hands raised high above their heads, their lips parted and their minds, souls and bodies joined in one, colorful beam of light that dispersed high in the sky and divided into three brilliant figures – the falcon headed God Horus, the Jackal headed God Anubis and the crowned God of Underworld, Osiris.

Shadi waved at them happily, not paying attention to a petrified look on Amukh's face who shuddered again after so many years at the mention of his name that came out as a thundering voice of three, united in one.

"AMUKH."