Have the next chapter. I got stuck on how to proceed with this chapter (and stupid personal problems haven't helped), but I hope it'll be an entertaining read, regardless. Constructive feedback would be great, and let me know if there's anything in this chapter that doesn't make sense. ^^
Chapter 58
Andy narrowed his eyes and replied, "I have no idea what you're talking about, but I'll indulge you. However, we must continue our duel."
Sherlock replied, "Of course, young man."
He paused for a moment before continuing, "Allow me to make a starting point. You know about the miss' original mission."
Andy nodded and replied, "Yes. What of it?"
Sherlock replied, "Despite what you may believe, the miss didn't abandon it simply because of her feelings. That may have been a part of it, but there's evidence to prove that the alleged perpetrator isn't responsible."
He looked at Alex, and taking it as her cue, Alex said,
"Yes, he's correct. I do admit that before I agreed to take on this mission, I had reservations about it. But I was still going to go through with it, and that was my mindset for a while. However, after I changed my mind, I had Cas look into some discrepancies, and later, I got her report from Max."
Alex took a breath and then she told Andy all the information Cas had sent to her on the USB. Once she was finished, Andy replied,
"Assuming that what you're telling me is true, you still should have had Kaiba eliminated. You know how much trouble he causes?"
Kaiba heard Andy's comment and couldn't help but reply, "I don't care if you're her brother, but I can do what I want."
Andy snorted and replied, "Yeah, yeah."
Joey added, "Wait, wait, wait. Alex was supposed to eliminate Kaiba?"
He looked at Kaiba and commented, "I think the world would have been better off."
Kaiba gave a death glare towards Joey, while Alex shook her head and said,
"Stop, everyone."
She glared at Kaiba and Joey, which made them stop their bickering. Once it was quiet, she looked at Andy and said,
"I admit that possible future actions that Seto may commit won't help with things, but I've learned a lot from the missions I've taken."
She took a breath and then continued, "Things are never as black and white as they appear. It's easy to look at problems through a child's eyes and assume that there are simple solutions. If you try to solve a problem through simple means, it may inadvertently cause another problem. Even if we put that aside, though, as much as it pains me to admit it, sometimes bad things have to happen in order for there to be good. As people, we need to overcome adversity in order to become stronger. Otherwise, we would just grow complacent."
Andy rolled his eyes and replied, "You're so philosophical, sister."
Alex shrugged and replied, "I'm simply making my POV known."
Meanwhile, the hooded figure watched on and commented, "This is quite amusing. I haven't been entertained in so long."
Alex looked at him and smiling, she replied, "I'm glad we could indulge you."
She looked back at Andy and sadly said, "I can only imagine how much you've been through. I would have gladly taken your place all those years ago. I never wanted you to suffer like this."
Andy looked at Alex in disbelief and replied, "Whatever you say."
Kaiba added, "It's true. Even after she changed her mind, she was going to surrender herself and go back to you. But I stopped her."
For a few moments, there were hints of sadness in Andy's eyes, and he looked at Alex in confirmation. Alex nodded although she didn't say anything. He then looked at the hooded figure and said,
"That's not what you told me."
The hooded figure shrugged and replied, "It was easier to leave out that particular detail. But it's not like I lied to you."
Max replied, "But you withheld information from him, which is just as bad as lying."
The hooded figure shook his head and muttered, "You humans…"
Alex looked at Andy, and although Andy didn't say anything, Alex could tell by his actions that his resolve was starting to waver just a bit. She quietly said,
"I never stopped loving you, and I've always wanted you back. I hope you realize that."
Andy snapped out of his hesitant state and replied, "If that's true, you took your sweet time. Meanwhile, the master got to me quickly although I dislike that he held certain facts from me."
Alex sadly replied, "I'm sorry. I've had a lot of things to juggle with-"
Andy interrupted, "Oh, I bet."
He looked between Alex and Kaiba, implying that he knew how deep their connection was. Alex blushed although it wasn't from embarrassment but rather, from annoyance. She looked at Andy and said,
"Despite what you're thinking, I'm not that kind of person. I guess you really don't know me as well as you think you do. But that happens when you get information from a second hand source."
Andy was about to reply when Sherlock said, "We are getting off topic, so I must steer the conversation back."
Alex replied, "You're right, sir. My apologies."
Sherlock replied, "It's perfectly all right, miss."
He then turned to Andy and said, "Sir, you now know that Mr. Kaiba isn't responsible for the eventual tragedy that falls upon you and your sister. So wouldn't it make you curious to find out who is?"
Andy replied, "Yes, so would you get to the point?"
Sherlock replied, "All in good time. Your patience will be rewarded."
He paused for a few moments and then said, "In order to make Mr. Kaiba look like the perpetrator, someone planted a computer virus into the next generation of duel disks here. The actual perpetrator would have gotten away with it, had Mr. Kaiba not requested the miss to eliminate it. Originally, the perpetrator was supposed to get away it, which would have resulted in him easily kidnapping Yugi, Jaden, Yusei, Yuma, Yuya, and Yusaku. They would have appeared to have died accidentally once they used their duel disks, as the virus would have activated in the presence of certain duelists. However, because the miss was able to stop the virus, the perpetrator had to come up with another plan. You see where I'm going with this, don't you?"
Alex understood Sherlock's line of thinking, and she couldn't help commenting, "If you're saying what I think you are, this does make sense, but then it raises other questions."
Sherlock nodded and replied, "I understand, miss. Only the actual perpetrator can answer them. It's beyond what I know."
Andy looked at the hooded figure and asked, "Did you plan all this?"
The hooded figure smirked and replied, "There's no point in hiding it any longer. I set off the events that led to where we are all now, with assistance from my many helpers."
Andy looked like he was trying to hold back his anger, as the hooded figure was the one who rescued him. He didn't want to make any quick judgments, but he had to know. So he asked,
"Why?"
The hooded figure replied, "I guess you won't believe me if I said it was to reunite you with your sister."
Andy gave a death glare towards the hooded figure, which wiped off the smirk from the latter's face. He turned serious and said,
"It was all to execute my plan. I needed all those idiots to gather their dueling energy. Of course, I couldn't do this by myself, so I had to get many assistants. You have no idea how many people were willing to help."
Andy replied, "But why take me?"
The hooded figure replied, "To be honest, I learned a long time ago that the descendant of that woman," jerking his head towards Alexa before continuing,
"would be the cause of my downfall. Now I could have eliminated you, but I thought it would be more interesting and entertaining to recruit you to my cause instead and make you think that your sister abandoned you."
Andy replied, "But why didn't you take Alex? Was she not a threat?"
The hooded figure scoffed and replied, "Of course she was. However, I couldn't get to her."
Alex thought about the hooded figure's words and what happened shortly after Andy disappeared into that void. She looked at the hooded figure and said,
"It's because Cas got to me, so I was out of your reach."
The hooded figure replied, "Yeah, that's basically correct. I couldn't find a way to get to you, and you always seem to be protected, even more so now."
Alex nodded, quietly taking in the hooded figure's words. Andy looked like he was about to explode and replied, "How could you? How could you do this to us?"
The hooded figure replied, "I am an omniscient being and a selfish one, at that. Does that mean you're going back to your sister now?"
Andy exclaimed, "Of course I am! I'm going to stop you-"
Before Andy could say anything more, though, he felt his body suddenly constrict in pain, and he fell to his knees. Alex was scared to see Andy like that, and turning to the hooded figure, she said,
"What did you do?!"
The hooded figure smirked and replied, "Nothing much. I predicted this might happen although part of me was hoping he would stay loyal to me. He seemed like the type, but who knew his connection with you is stronger?"
He paused for dramatic effect and then continued, "As entertaining as this all has been, it's time for me to resume this duel. But I wonder if you can."
Using another of his powers, the hooded figure engulfed Andy's body in black smoke, and then he merged his form with Andy's body. It took a minute for the merge to complete and once the merge was complete, Alex and the others could see that Andy and the hooded figure were now one being. As the hooded figure was the one who was in control, he looked straight at Alex and asked,
"Now, are you willing to kill your own brother?"
