The phone was ringing. Pegasus ignored it; he didn't like telephones, and besides, he had people who were supposed to do things like answering phones for him. He was enjoying the video he was watching, and he wasn't sure where he'd last left the remote control to pause the recording. However, the phone continued to ring, and ring, and ring, with the insistence of someone who knows someone is there and knows they are perfectly capable of getting up and answering the telephone if they feel like it. Pegasus finally got up, pushed the pause button on the DVD player, and answered the phone just as it was finishing its sixth repetition of the Funny Rabbit theme song.
"What is it now?" he said petulantly. "Don't you realize I'm a very busy man?"
"Sir, our operatives just reported from Egypt." That was Crocketts's no-nonsense voice. He was possibly the only person in Pegasus's employment, if not in the world, who didn't care whether he interrupted what Pegasus was doing or not. "They found the man you were looking for."
"Oh, really? How delightful!" said Pegasus. "You are forgiven for annoying me. Tell me, what have they found? Don't tell me we've hit another dead end."
There was a brief pause. "Not exactly."
"Not exactly," Pegasus repeated. "Do you want to tell me what that means? Either you found it or you didn't."
There was another moment of hesitation, and Pegasus stifled a sigh and reminded himself to be patient. The trouble was that he didn't feel like being patient. He had spent the last few years being patient already, and his supply of patience was beginning to run dangerously thin.
Not that his endeavors had been wasted - far from it. Ever since his encounter with that infuriating Egyptian who had given him his Millennium Eye, Pegasus had been working diligently to complete his collection. He had already made a fair amount of progress, having assembled more than half of the seven Items. Aside from his Eye, there were also the Key and the Scales, and it made him smile to think of how he had been able to fulfill his promise at last. The look on the man's face when he had been overcome by a "young fool" was worth more than all of his considerable fortune. But more than that, he cherished the memory of the day when he had acquired the Rod and the Necklace. He had gotten them both with the help of a young woman he had met in Egypt, one Isis Ishtar by name. She had simply looked at him and handed over her Item without a fight. It was, she said, his destiny to someday hold all seven, and she was not one to fight the forces of destiny.
Destiny, he reminded himself. It is my fate to accomplish this task, and I will do it no matter how long it takes! I only need two more Items, and I will find them and I will get them.
Of course, it would help a great deal if he could figure out where they were.
"We found the shop owner," said Crocketts at last, "who was rumored to have the Millennium Ring. My men raided his shop, but the Ring was not there. When they accosted the man and pressed him for information, he admitted that he sold it some time ago to an Egyptologist who was passing through the area, as a gift for his son. He believed the man to be Japanese, but he didn't know his name."
"You're speaking in the past tense."
"Yes, sir. It seems his health was not the best, and the men pressured him a bit more than was good for him."
"So I take it we will not be getting any more information out of him?"
"No, sir, I'm afraid not. We did take care to clarify with the local authorities that his death was a natural one."
"A pity," said Pegasus. "Still, there's nothing to be done about it now. As long as this isn't going to present any complications, I'm not going to worry about it. You're quite sure everything has been cleaned up sufficiently?"
"Yes, sir."
"Then there's nothing to do but move onward! So, the Ring has left Egypt. Hmm..." Pegasus pondered a moment. "Bring me a list of all the Egyptologists in Japan. There can't be that many of them. Specifically, I want to know how many of them have sons they might be inclined to bring home gifts to."
"I'll see to it right away," said Crocketts.
"Good, good," Pegasus replied. "And while you're at it, get someone to find my remote control for me. I seem to have mislaid it."
There was a faint sound that was probably that of someone sighing in resignation. "Are you quite certain you didn't leave it in the refrigerator again?"
"I suppose it's possible I might have."
"Someone will take care of it," said Crocketts.
"Don't make it your top priority," Pegasus replied. "What I want first and foremost is that list!"
A short while later, someone turned up at the door to Pegasus's television room to seek out the missing machinery, only to find that Pegasus was gone and the video had been turned off. Pegasus had lost interest in it. He had gone to his office to pore over a computer printout that someone had delivered to him, containing the names and family histories of a number of Japanese people with a more than casual interest in ancient Egypt. The servant looked around the room. It was a pleasant room, with a top-of-the-line widescreen television and an impressive collection of video and audio equipment. There were also a number of comfortable chairs for relaxing, a vast collection of VHS tapes and DVDs (most of them with pictures of cartoon characters on their boxes), and a small refrigeration unit suitable for keeping drinks and snacks. The servant looked in the fridge, found the remote, and put it next to Pegasus's favorite chair, where the man would hopefully notice it later. Then he walked off.
Meanwhile, Pegasus was reading a list. It hadn't taken very long to get, but then, he had an excellent system of references, and it was also a very short list. As he'd guessed, Egyptology was not a profession that was teeming with practitioners, and there were naturally only a handful of them in Japan. A few of these enlightened people were women, and therefore didn't count for this project. A few more were unmarried and childless. Some of those who did have children had only produced females, or the children were too young or too old to merit bringing home ancient relics as gifts. In the end, Pegasus narrowed down the field to two likely candidates. One was a boy named Ryou Bakura. He was the most likely prospect, Pegasus decided, based on the information he had available. However, his records had also turned up a retired Egyptologist by the name of Sugoroku Mutou, who was currently living in Domino City. His own son was long grown, but it seemed he was currently raising a grandson, and he also had a history of collecting odd and occasionally valuable artifacts, from Egypt and everywhere else on the globe. The man had permits to buy and sell things Pegasus hadn't known existed, before now. If the old man really was raising the boy as his son, it was just possible that he might be inclined to call him such, and to buy interesting things for him while traveling abroad.
"I will have to look into both of them," Pegasus decided. "In person, if I can. And I will need a chance to play against them if they turn out to be what I'm looking for..."
He gazed off into space a for a moment. Then his expression slowly cleared. One of his hands reached out to a deck of cards, something that was never very far away from him in this place. He smiled.
"I've been here alone for a very long time," he decided. "It's time to invite over some company."
There were very few things that could make Kaiba nervous. For example, finding himself trapped in the path of an oncoming bullet train might have made him sweat for a few seconds, but he wouldn't have had the chance to worry about such a problem for very long. The thought of someone threatening Mokuba had the potential to make him mildly concerned for a little while, but then he would just contact the correct authorities (which, in his mind, were dangerous men with large guns) and have them go deal with the problem. Once in a while, he would have a nightmare that his father was not really dead and had come to take back his company, and he would wake in a sweat, but then he would calm down and remind himself that even if such a thing could happen, there was no way anyone could get Kaiba Corporation away from him now. On the other hand, a private meeting with the leader of his rival company had the potential to make his nerves tighten in an unaccustomed manner, and he was not enjoying the sensation.
"Mr. Crawford will see you now," said one of the many suited men who had been monitoring the area.
Kaiba got up from the chair where he'd been waiting and allowed himself to be ushered into a sitting room. It was a very nice sitting room, with lots of chintzy furniture topped with the occasional antimacassars, and a couple of fluffy ottomans drawn up next to matching wing chairs. There was a little artificial fireplace with some gas logs in it (turned off), and the walls were adorned with pastoral paintings, plus one of a woman in a lacy dress given pride of place. A little table held a silver platter of what appeared to be meringues, and also a fat silver teapot and some teacups with pink roses painted on them. The whole thing struck Kaiba as being a silly thing to find inside the main office building of Industrial Illusions. Kaiba had heard that Pegasus J. Crawford was a lot of things, many of them unpleasant, but he wished that someone would have found it in their heart to warn him that the man was exceptionally silly as well.
"Ahh, if it isn't young Mr. Kaiba! Come in, come in, Kaiba-boy. Have a seat! Have a cookie! You do like dacquoise, don't you? Of course you do!"
Kaiba sat down, but he didn't so much as glance at the plate of sweets or the tea. He kept his eyes fixed on Pegasus, who was being stubbornly opaque. He was relaxing in one of the chintzy chairs, his long legs crossed casually, holding his fingers steepled before him. His expression was fixed in one of calculated innocence - or would have been if the effect hadn't been spoiled by a look of malice in his eyes. Eye? Kaiba supposed he must have another one hidden under all that hair, but he couldn't actually see one.
"What did you want to talk to me about?" Kaiba demanded. "You got the Battle Boxes you ordered already. If you don't like them, we have a complaints department. You didn't need to call me all the way out here for that."
"No, no, you're jumping to conclusions!" said Pegasus, looking wounded at the very idea. "I just wanted to talk to you in private. Is there something wrong with two equals wanting to meet each other socially?"
"I don't want to meet you socially."
"You're so prickly, Kaiba-boy. You'd think I'd said something insulting to you. I just wanted to see you in person. I've missed you!"
"How could you miss me? We barely know each other."
"Ah, but I've missed seeing you in competitions! The dueling circuit just hasn't been the same without you. Your commanding presence, your phenomenal skill, your dazzling wit!" Pegasus made an expansive gesture, his expression rapt. "Why, next to you, all others look... well, a trifle dull, to tell the truth. There's really no one else of your caliber, and quite frankly, I've gotten a bit spoiled. All the duelists these days have no panache."
Kaiba listened to this monologue with tight-lipped apprehension. He hoped this was not leading where he suspected it might be leading. Kaiba didn't know much about Pegasus - nobody seemed to, really - but one thing he did know was the man's reputation as a duelist. Word had it that Pegasus was absolutely invincible. There was no record of anyone ever beating him, ever since the game had begun. Kaiba had never had occasion to play against him himself, but he had seen him on television a few times, and had been able to witness his defeat of Keith Howard firsthand, and had no reason to doubt the claims. The man had an uncanny knack for guessing exactly what was in his opponent's hand, and what said opponent was going to do with those cards now that he had them. There was also the small matter of Pegasus being able to acquire, or make, any card he wanted, and then use it on whoever his unsuspecting victim might be. The thought that Pegasus might be planning to do that to him was enough to make his skin crawl. Bad enough that he'd been beaten by Yugi...
No! He did not beat me. He must have cheated, somehow. No one in all Japan is better than me... certainly not some little boy who had barely heard of the game before he met me...
"You're afraid I'm going to ask you to duel me," said Pegasus, smiling smugly. "Afraid I'm going to besmirch your sterling reputation? I'm flattered. Put your mind at rest, dear boy. I don't want to duel you, nor do I want you to duel me."
Kaiba raised an eyebrow. "And just what is that supposed to mean?"
"I mean, I want you to do me a favor," Pegasus replied. "A small favor. Just the tiniest, most minute of favors. You'll hardly even know it's there."
"I think you protest too much," said Kaiba dryly.
"Not at all," Pegasus replied. "All I want you to do is come to a little event I'm going to be hosting in the very near future. Just a little soiree, a few other highly qualified duelists getting together for a bit of competition. It will be fun!"
"I'm not interested in any competitions."
"Oh, I don't want you to compete. Not exactly," Pegasus replied. "You see... I am setting up a tournament. I will be, as I said, inviting a number of highly qualified duelists. All of them will be competing for a prize. Now, naturally, as there is only one prize, only one of them is going to win. Are you with me so far?"
"That was so complicated I couldn't possibly follow it if you drew me a map," Kaiba said coolly.
"Ooh, that was uncalled for," said Pegasus, looking hurt. "I was merely being rhetorical. You see, the point I was getting to is this: I have already decided who I want to win."
"So what's the point in having a contest? Just give whoever-it-is the prize and be done with it," Kaiba snapped.
"Ah, but it's not that easy! It's not enough that I decide a player is worthy; he must prove himself before others, or seem to do so. I want him to have a resounding victory! To that end, I will be hiring various people to take out any troublesome players that might pose a threat to our young contestant." He gave Kaiba a piercing look. "There are few, if any, in the world who can stand against you. Or so I am told."
"So you're saying you want me to go around picking off players so your little darling can win the tournament," said Kaiba. "No deal. I don't help weak players. If he's going to win, he can win by himself."
"I'll pay you."
"Money is not the issue here," said Kaiba. He was beginning to feel annoyed. That was one thing he didn't share with so many of his colleagues: he didn't love money for money's sake. Kaiba loved power, and money was just something you had to have if you wanted to keep it. Pegasus was obviously cut from a whole different cloth. His dress and manner showed him as one who was born to wealth and was at home in luxury like a fish was at home in water - take him out of it, and he'd likely die.
"I won't be paying you in money," said Pegasus. The wicked glint was back in his eye again. "I have something much better in mind. Something you'd do anything to have."
"There's nothing like that in the world," Kaiba snapped, "and if there was, you couldn't get it for me. Or figure out what it is, for that matter."
"I don't need to figure it out. I know." He sat back and smiled, savoring the moment like an oenophile savoring fine wine. "I'll give you a victory over Yugi Mutou."
Kaiba twitched. "What makes you think that's what I want?"
"I'm a mind reader," said Pegasus. He waved at the teapot. "If you like, I'll read your tea leaves next."
"Ha, ha. Very cute," said Kaiba. "Fine. I won't deny it. I'd love a chance to teach that Mutou a lesson, but I don't see how you can help. I want a fair victory over him, and that means I don't want anyone's help."
"The concept of a fair victory and the concept of needing help are not mutually exclusive," answered Pegasus mildly. "When Yugi beat you, both those times, he was not playing fairly."
Kaiba's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean, both those times? He only beat me once, at Death-T."
"And that private little scuffle you had, concerning the ownership of a certain Blue-Eyes White Dragon. That's why you had to build a whole elaborate deathtrap just to get even with him. My, you are a vindictive little boy, aren't you?"
Kaiba felt his skin flushing. How could Pegasus possibly know about that? No one knew about that match except for Yugi and Kaiba himself! Kaiba had never even told Mokuba the full details of that disastrous day. For a brief, crazy moment, he found himself thinking that maybe Pegasus really could read minds, and quickly dismissed it as absurd. He seized on something safer and forced himself to forget that anything out of the ordinary had been said.
"You say Yugi wasn't playing fair," he said instead. "Explain to me what he was doing and how I could have missed it."
"Oh, it would have been something very, very subtle," said Pegasus vaguely. "Something that wouldn't be visible except to the trained professional - that's me, by the way. I am of the impression that this Yugi Mutou has come into the possession of a particular item, one which would allow him to subtly manipulate the cards in his deck to allow the optimal cards to surface at optimal times. In other words, he will always draw exactly the card he needs, exactly when he needs it. Does that sound familiar?"
Kaiba thought back to his last duel with Yugi. Things had fallen out so neatly for Yugi - every time he was in a pinch, he would draw some spectacular card that would keep him in the game just a little longer... and then, at the end, drawing that most miraculous card of all, the only one in the world that could have saved him. Of course he should have suspected something! His mind seized on this piece of information and wrapped itself around it. He was not second best, after all, and he had not been defeated. He had been had by that cheating piece of scum, Yugi Mutou...
"Vaguely," said Kaiba. "So what do you propose to do about this?"
"Why, relieve him of it, of course!" Pegasus replied. "I am interested in such items - in a purely academic way, I assure you. I have made an extensive study of them, and I am eager to add another to my collection. So, what I propose is this: Yugi will come to my castle, and I will meet him privately and negotiate for this little trinket. When I am done, I will turn him over to you, and you will be free to defeat him in front of the assembled company, proving once and for all who the ultimate duelist is. I don't think you'll turn this deal down. Your stock hasn't been doing so well since Death-T, has it? People have lost faith in your company now that you've lost your status as undefeated gamer. For your company and your pride, you can't refuse this offer."
Kaiba hesitated a moment, scowling. He didn't like thinking he'd been manipulated. On the other hand...
On the other hand, he'd get to thoroughly trounce a few people, just to remind them who was boss. Then Pegasus could take this item, whatever it was, and Kaiba could show the world what Yugi really was.
Besides, it's better to have this guy as an ally than as an enemy, he decided, giving Pegasus an evaluating look. Obviously his silliness was a front; the man wasn't just eccentric, he was something like an insane genius. You wanted a man like that close by, where you could see what he was doing.
"Fine," said Kaiba. "I've got nothing better to do, anyway."
"Wonderful!" Pegasus gushed. "I'm just so thrilled. I'm sure we'll both be very pleased by the outcome of all this."
"Whatever," said Kaiba. He stood up. "Can I get out of here now?"
"And I was hoping you'd stay and take tea with me," said Pegasus, pouting. "But I'm sure you're a busy man - things to do, people to see, all that kind of thing. I'll have someone escort you."
"I can find my own way out," said Kaiba. He smirked. "It's a pleasure doing business with you, I suppose."
He turned and swept out of the room, studiously avoiding tripping over any stray ottomans.
This might just be entertaining, he mused. He hadn't dueled anyone since he'd dealt with Yugi last. He'd have to brush up on his skills. I ought to thank you, Pegasus. It's about time I stopped feeling sorry for myself and did something.
He found himself smiling a bit, as he felt his world settling back into the shape it once had held before Yugi had come along to rearrange his life. He would set things right again, and prove once and for all who was the best.
Once Yugi was dealt with, he decided, as an encore, the next invincible duelist he took on might just be Pegasus.
The atmosphere in the Kame Game Shop was relaxed that afternoon, as it usually was on a Monday after school. Occasionally, someone would wander into the shop to pick up something, but mostly, it was quiet. Quiet, that is, unless one counted the noise made by five assorted teenagers huddled in the back corner. They were crouched around a folding card table, sitting on whatever Grandpa Mutou had been able to find in closets and back rooms: a folding chair, a pair of stools from the kitchen, a chair borrowed from Yugi's desk upstairs, and one overturned trash can. It didn't matter. Everyone was having too much fun to care about the accommodations.
"Okay, let me see... Aha! This one!" Bakura put a card down on the table, and Honda winced.
"Aw, man, not again! I'm no good at this game!"
"You need to practice more!" said Jonouchi.
"You're one to talk," Anzu said, shooting him a look. "You only came in eighth in the regionals."
"Yeah, well, that's better than you did," Jonouchi replied. "Hey, Bakura, why weren't you in the regional tournament? You mighta done better than I did."
"Oh, I don't know about that," said Bakura, lowering his eyes modestly. "I suppose I should have. I'm still getting used to the idea that I can play all I want and nothing bad will happen."
Everyone nodded knowingly. They all still remembered what had happened when a simple game of Monster World had gone out of control, thanks to the evil spirit of the Ring. Of course, no one had heard anything out of that particular spirit for months, and Bakura had carefully hidden his Ring away in a safe place so he wouldn't be tempted to put it on again. Now the only game-related thing he had to worry about was being beaten by Yugi at cards.
"Well, maybe you can be in the next one," said Anzu encouragingly. "I might enter, too, just for fun. You'll have to give me some pointers, Yugi. You and your grandpa made such big improvements on Jonouchi, I'll bet you could turn me into a world champion." She playfully stuck her tongue out at Jonouchi.
"Ha! Dream on," he said. "I'll win the next one! You'll see! If Yugi doesn't beat me. Hey, Yugi, why didn't you enter the championships? I'll bet you could have cleaned up!"
"Maybe," said Yugi doubtfully. "I didn't really want to, though. There's only one person I want to duel with, and I knew he wouldn't be there."
"You mean Kaiba?" asked Jonouchi. "Man, I wouldn't want anything else to do with him after what he put us through last time! He nearly killed us!"
"I know," said Yugi. "That's why I want to duel him again. Now that he's come out of his coma, I want to see if he's changed. I want to see if he's learned anything. The only way to do that is to fight him again."
"Well, good luck with that," said Anzu, in a tone that said exactly what she thought of Seto Kaiba. "He hasn't wanted anything to do with any of us lately. I'm surprised he hasn't transferred to another school just to get away from us."
"Wish he would," Honda muttered.
What might have turned out to be a fascinating discussion on Seto Kaiba's personal idiosyncracies was derailed by the arrival of a customer. Normally, this wouldn't have bothered anyone - their afternoon gaming sessions were frequently interrupted by people wandering in and out of the store and occasionally coming over to observe the game. Grandpa Mutou never minded them playing their games in sight of customers, claiming it was good for business to let everyone see how much fun the cards and toys were. Sometimes Yugi would be called over to assist with something, but most of the time, he was allowed to play without being bothered. This customer, however, was so unusual that everyone stopped what they were doing to look up at him.
It was a young man, perhaps in his early to mid-twenties, with a slender build and regal bearing. His hair was an unusual silvery color, and long enough to brush his shoulders. It hung across one side of his face, giving him a peculiar unbalanced look. What made everyone sit up and stare, however, were his clothes, which were unlike anything they had ever seen within these four humble walls. He was wearing a three-piece suit, which wouldn't have been strange except that it was purple, and the shirt he was wearing had ruffles down the front, accented by a gaudy pin. To top the look off, a short cape hung from his shoulders, and he was wearing white gloves. He should have been the silliest looking thing Yugi had seen in quite a while, but somehow, the stranger had the confidence to carry it off.
"What a quaint little shop!" the man was saying. He was looking around eagerly, as if he'd never seen the inside of a toy store in his life. "It has such an inviting feel to it. Light and airy, but cozy, too."
"Can I help you, sir?" asked Grandpa Mutou, eyeing the stranger dubiously.
"Please, don't be disturbed on my account!" the man replied. "I simply saw this lovely little building and just had to come in and have a look. Would you, by any chance, be the owner of this fine establishment?"
"That would be me."
"Charming! Superb. I must commend you on a well-run business. Hmm..." Once again, his gaze roved around the room, flicking briefly over the teenagers in the corner who were still staring at him unashamedly. "I simply couldn't leave without buying something. Here, this will do."
He plucked a model kit from a shelf and carried it to the checkout counter, where Grandpa Mutou took it from him with a faint look of relief. It was plain that he did not know what to make of this flamboyant person and wanted him to go away. He began to ring up the sale.
"Do you take checks?" the man asked.
"As long as you provide an address and two phone numbers."
"Oh, I don't think that will be a problem," said the man, with a faint smirk.
He wrote out a check, signing it with a flourish and handing it to the shopkeeper. Grandpa Mutou took the check, gave it a cursory glance, and then did a double-take. Yugi thought he saw his grandfather go slightly pale.
"I'm going to have to see some identification with this," said the old man at last.
"I thought you might."
He fished in his pocket and handed over an identification card. Yugi watched as his grandfather went over it carefully, as if determined to find some evidence of forgery. The old man's eyes went wide, and he looked up with an expression of awe.
"Are you really...?"
"You seem to recognize my name," the man replied. "Yes indeed. Pegasus J. Crawford, at your service." He gave a sweeping bow.
Grandpa didn't seem to know quite how to handle that. Yugi was boggling a little himself.
"Psst!" said Jonouchi. "Who the heck is Pegasus J. Crawford?"
Yugi tapped his deck. "He's the one who invented this. He's a genius game designer from America. Nobody seems to know much about him... he's kind of a mystery man."
"A mystery, huh?" said Honda, looking at him critically. "That's one way to put it."
Yugi didn't say anything, but he was silently agreeing. Pegasus didn't look like his idea of a businessman. He didn't look like anything Yugi had ever seen before.
Perhaps their whispering caught Pegasus's attention, because he turned and looked at the group in the corner as if seeing them for the first time.
"What's this?" he said. "Having a game, are we?"
Yugi nodded mutely, still staring.
"Well, don't let me disturb you! By all means, continue playing! Do you mind if I watch?"
What could anyone say? Not a lot, when the multi-billionaire creator of the game they were playing was standing beside them with a look of childlike eagerness on his face. Yugi politely offered his chair, the best of the lot, so that Pegasus could sit down.
"No, no, don't go through any trouble on my account," said Pegasus. "I've been sitting in meetings all day, and I'm fed up with sitting. I'll just stand to the side and watch. What a wonderfully polite boy you are! No one back home has good manners like this anymore. It's a lost art. What is your name, young man?"
"Yugi! Yugi Mutou."
"Ahh! So you're the one!" said Pegasus. "Imagine that! Meeting the very boy who defeated Seto Kaiba! I am truly honored! You are obviously a gem among duelists."
"It wasn't much, really," said Yugi, coloring a little. It would be hard to explain that it wasn't really him who had won that game, but his other self. "It was just a lucky draw."
"Nonsense! Luck is all part of the game. It takes courage to face down someone like Kaiba in a situation like that. I salute you for it." Pegasus turned his attention to the rest of the group. "And are all these your friends? I'm sure they're top-notch duelists as well."
"We all play a little," said Anzu, who was not easily awed by anyone. "Yugi is the best, but Bakura and Jonouchi are both good, too."
"Bakura? Bakura... It seems to me I've heard that name before," answered Pegasus, looking thoughtful.
"I can't imagine why," said Bakura. "I've never done anything important, and I don't think any of my family has been to America..."
"Hm," said Pegasus. "Perhaps... is your father, by any chance, an archeologist?"
"Yes, sir. He - he specializes in ancient Egypt."
"Aha! That's where I've heard the name! I've dabbled in Egyptology myself. I'm really quite fascinated by it," Pegasus replied. "This really must be my lucky day! I do so love meeting talented young duelists. Truly, it warms the cockles of my heart to see my game being enjoyed by people all over the world. Tell me, do you five play in competitions at all?"
"I have!" Jonouchi exclaimed, eager for a share of the attention. "I was in the nationals last week!"
"Were you? How wonderful! I'm sure you did very well," said Pegasus, causing Jonouchi to puff up with pride. "And what of the rest of you? Surely you were there along with your friend?"
Everyone else shook their heads.
"I've never been in a competition," said Bakura.
"Me either," said Anzu.
"Heck, I can barely hold my own against these guys," said Honda.
"I see," Pegasus replied. "And what about you, Yugi-boy? Don't you play in tournaments?"
"Not really," he said. After all, his games with Kaiba could hardly be called a tournament - more like a grudge match gone completely haywire.
"Well, that won't do at all! I won't stand idly by and watch such bright young people languish in obscurity! You absolutely must come to the tournament I'm hosting. It's exclusive - invitation only! You're sure to enjoy it. You'll see things there that you've never seen in any duel before. It's quite a privilege."
"I'll go!" said Jonouchi.
"Well... I don't know..." said Bakura slowly.
"Ah, ah! I insist! Won't take no for an answer," said Pegasus.
"I wish I could accept," said Yugi, "but I really can't. Don't be insulted, but there's something I have to do before I can enter any tournaments. Otherwise, I just won't feel right."
"Oh?" For a moment, Yugi thought he saw Pegasus's eyes gleam oddly. "And what might that be?"
"I want to duel Seto Kaiba again," said Yugi.
Pegasus laughed. "Well, if you want to do that, you're going to have to come to my tournament. He's going to be there. I invited him myself just yesterday. Actually, he mentioned you - says he's quite eager to see you again, as a matter of fact. Wouldn't agree to come unless I promised to invite you, too. I think he really wants a chance to prove how much you taught him with that last duel. I do hate to think of disappointing him... and to be thoroughly selfish, I'm eager to see a rematch between you two. I'm afraid I didn't get to observe your last duel, and the thought of seeing two of the greatest duelists on the planet doing battle together excites me no end. You wouldn't disappoint the two of us, would you?"
"Well, when you put it that way..." said Yugi. "Hey, Grandpa! Is it all right if I go?"
"I don't suppose it could hurt," his grandfather replied. "Just don't let that Kaiba cause you any more trouble!"
"Oh, you can lay your mind at rest. I will be personally monitoring all the duels very closely," said Pegasus. "Nothing is going to happen without my approval... and I wouldn't want to have something nasty happen to such a promising young man."
"Then I'll do it!" Yugi decided.
"Me too," said Bakura.
"I guess I'll come too, then," said Anzu.
"I'm not getting left behind," Honda said.
"Marvelous! Simply splendid. If you will all give me your names and addresses, I'll send you everything you'll need to enter."
He took a small notepad out of his pocket, flipped it to a blank sheet, and passed it around the table. Yugi took the pen he was handed and filled out the required information in brilliant purple ink. The rest of the group did likewise. Pegasus took his pen and notepad back, inspected what was written on it, and then slipped the pad back into his pocket with a satisfied chuckle. He produced an elaborate pocketwatch from somewhere within his jacket and opened it with a flick of the wrist.
"Would you look at the time?" he exclaimed. "I'm late already. I really only meant to stay for a moment. Forgive me, but I must dash. I'll see you all at the tournament!"
He gave a theatric bow and made his exit. For a moment, the only sound in the building was the soft chime of the bells over the door as they settled down.
"That," said Honda, "was one of the weirder experiences of my life. And that includes being turned into a game piece."
"That was something, all right," Anzu agreed.
"I don't care if he's weird," said Jonouchi. "I don't care if he turns into a dragon every Tuesday! We're going to an exclusive, invitation-only tournament hosted by the founder of the game! It doesn't get any cooler than that!"
"I'm looking forward to it," said Yugi quietly. "A chance to duel Kaiba again..."
"Man, you have a one-track mind," said Honda, cuffing him lightly. "Me, I'll be lucky if I can win against anybody in this thing."
"There's still time for some pointers," said Yugi.
"Yeah, we can help you get ready," Bakura said. "This is all for fun, anyway."
"Just for fun," Yugi agreed. "I think I'll enjoy seeing all the other duelists battling each other. It will be nice, to be in a real tournament with nothing serious riding on it if we lose."
A strange feeling ran over him, and he shivered briefly.
"What's wrong?" Anzu asked.
"Nothing," said Yugi. "I mean, I don't know... Something is upsetting my other self."
"You can talk to him now?" asked Jonouchi, curious.
"Well, not exactly. More like... I know what he's feeling. Right now, something is making him uneasy. I don't think he trusts Pegasus very much."
"Well, I don't trust Seto Kaiba," said Honda, "but it looks like you're going to duel him anyway."
"True," said Yugi. "And it's not that he's afraid of him. I don't think my other self is afraid of anything."
"I'm sure there's nothing to worry about," said Anzu. "Now, come on! Let's lighten up and finish our game! We need lots of practice if we're going to be in that tournament."
Yugi nodded and turned his attention to his deck, doing his best to ignore the flickers of unease coming from the dark corners of his mind.
A sleek white limousine stopped at the front of a hotel, and a chauffeur bounded out to open the door.
"Thank you," said Pegasus politely, and pressed a handful of bills into the driver's hand. He could be generous to hotel employees, when it suited him. He'd been known to pass hundred- dollar bills to the gentlemen who held doors for him, or give expensive jewelry to waitresses as tips. Then again, he'd also been known to tip with chewing gum (usually unused) or handfuls of stickers or mutli-colored play money. It all depended on what he felt like doing at the moment. After all, he had a reputation to keep up - that of an eccentric billionaire who would do absolutely anything, someone you wanted to keep an eye on. The one thing the head of an entertainment industry could not afford to be was boring. Luckily for the hotel's limousine driver, Pegasus was in a generous mood today.
This trip couldn't have worked out any better if I'd scripted it all myself, he thought smugly. Everyone played right into my hands. You would think they wanted to give up their Millennium Items!
At least now he knew where they were. It was worth coming to Japan, just for that. He had seen the Millennium Puzzle, rumored to be the greatest of the seven Items - seen it first in Kaiba's mind, and again hanging around the neck of that boy, Yugi. The delightful part was that he hadn't even been looking for it. It had just appeared in front of him without his having to search at all.
I really am going to have to do something nice for that boy Kaiba, when this is over, he thought. He's already been quite useful to me, and he doesn't even think he's done anything for me, yet!
The irony of the situation made him laugh aloud. If he had learned one thing about Kaiba from looking around in his mind, it was that the boy hated the idea of helping anyone that he didn't feel deserved it - not unless he was going to get a hefty return on his investment. The idea that he had helped Pegasus tremendously and not yet gotten anything out of the deal was one that delighted him. Just imagining the look on Kaiba's face if the boy knew how useful he had been made Pegasus burst out laughing again, drawing curious stares from passers-by. He ignored them all.
Oh, poor boy. If only you could see yourself through my eyes! Now you know why I am as invincible in business as I am over the card table. You might look calm on the outside, but on the inside, you were practically salivating over the idea of humiliating Yugi... and practically wetting yourself when you found out I knew about him.
That was his big advantage anywhere, of course: that he could look into the mind of anyone he chose to deal with and root out their fondest desires and their darkest fears. All he had to do was offer one and threaten the other, and he could manipulate anyone he dealt with as easily as he did his armies of card monsters. Still, it was remarkably convenient that what Pegasus wanted, what Kaiba wanted, and what Yugi wanted all coincided so neatly.
Then there had come one more surprise. As soon as Pegasus had learned that the boy Yugi was definitely the owner of the Puzzle, he had made a point of finding out where he lived and going to meet him in person. All he had been intending to do was to double-check what he had seen, to make sure Kaiba's memories hadn't been false, and to make sure the boy would be attending the tournament. It had been just another twist of fate that the other boy, Bakura, had been sitting there waiting to be found. Pegasus hadn't seen him carrying an Item, and had not seen fit to test him too closely in case he had some magical means of detecting it, as Isis Ishtar had, but he had nevertheless sensed an air of guardedness about him. His mind was not an open book, even for someone like Pegasus, and that fact was enough to make him sure that this boy was the final one he was searching for.
It's all too easy. I go to talk to Kaiba about one little thing, barely even related to the Millennium Items, and it leads to me finding two of them without even trying very hard. True, finding and getting were two entirely different things, but for things to suddenly come together like this over a few months, after years of fruitless searching... It must be fate. It's exactly as she said - I am destined to have the seven Items as my own.
"Wait just a little longer, Cyndia," he said aloud. "It will just be a few more weeks, and we'll be together again. This time, I won't let anything come between us. You'll see. I promise."
He began to laugh again, or maybe he was crying. Even he wasn't quite sure. Either way, when he got onto the elevator to his hotel room, no one dared to get on with him.
The moonlight looked thin and shivery as it fell onto the water that lapped around Domino Pier. Yugi and his friends hadn't quite reached the docks yet, but they were close enough that they could see flashes of water ahead of them, and smell the tang of sea salt on the air. Yugi shivered a little as a cool breeze off the ocean was funneled down the narrow alley, cutting even through his jacket.
"What's the matter, nervous?" Jonouchi. "Man, you're the last person here who needs to be worried!"
"I'm not nervous," said Yugi, tugging his backpack more securely over his shoulder. "Well, maybe a little nervous, but not much. Mostly I'm just cold. It's freezing out here!"
"We'll be on the boat pretty soon," said Honda. "It's probably warmer up there. Personally, I think you're pretty lucky if all you've got to worry about is the weather! I'm starting to have second thoughts about this."
"Aw, you'll be okay," Jonouchi said, clapping his friend on the shoulder. "There's gotta be someone out there who plays cards worse than you do!"
"Thanks a lot," Honda muttered. "So, you think you're ready to take on a bunch of world class duelists, huh?"
"Sure," said Jonouchi brightly. "Why not?"
"Well, considering how you did last time..." said Anzu.
Jonouchi shrugged. "I was just... getting warmed up. That's right! I was just finding my stride. I'll come out on top this time for sure!"
Yugi laughed, encouraged by his friend's bravado.
"That's right," he said. "We'll all do our best."
"Between the five of us, one of us is bound to at least place," said Bakura.
Honda nudged Jonouchi with his elbow. "Check it out - there's the competition!"
The group had come within sight of the docks at last, and could now look down at the crowd gathered there. Yugi made a quick mental estimate and figured there were about three dozen people wandering around, chatting with each other and comparing their decks. Most of them seemed to be of about the same age as Yugi and his friends, though a few looked to be older. All of them were giving off an air of excitement. Yugi made a quick scan of them, searching for familiar faces, then shook himself.
Well, of course Kaiba isn't down there! He wouldn't be down there mixing with everyone else...
They went down to join the party. The crowd welcomed them, parting easily so they could move in and mingle with everyone else, and Yugi had the feeling that he had been granted admission to some kind of secret society. There was something almost magical about slipping away into the night with a few friends and joining this festive group of pilgrims on a journey into the unknown.
"Has everyone got their things ready?" asked Anzu.
"Got mine," said Jonouchi. He held up a small box, which had arrived in the mail a few days ago. He flipped the lid up for a moment, revealing its contents: a glove, five cards, and a pair of star-shaped chips. Each member of the group had received a package just like that one, bearing the impressive stamp of Industrial Illusions Inc. on the front. Everyone else nodded as they double-checked to make sure none of these tokens had been forgotten.
"Looks like we're all set," Bakura declared. "I think this is going to be fun!"
"It's really exciting!" Anzu said. "Would you look at that ship? I've never been on a boat like that before."
"You're going to be on one soon," said Honda. "It can't be much longer before it's time to leave. Hey, Yugi, do you know what time it is?"
He shook his head. "Sorry, no."
"That's okay," said Bakura. "I remembered to wear my - watch it!"
That last remark was addressed to a boy who had come up behind him and rudely shoved him out of the way. He was accompanied by a second boy, who assisted him in shouldering everyone out of their path. Yugi found himself staring into the eyes of a pair of boys about his own height - a rare occurrence - both of whom were fixing him with calculating expressions.
"Did I hear right?" said one. He had a dome of bluish hair and wore spectacles that gave him a bug-eyed appearance. "Did they just call you Yugi?"
"Um... yeah, that's my name," said Yugi.
"Yugi as in Yugi Mutou?" said the second boy. He was slightly taller, and wore his brown hair under a stocking cap.
His companion prodded him. "Of course! How many people do you know named Yugi?"
"Hey, I know you!" said Yugi, as reality caught up to him. "You're Insector Haga and Dinosaur Ryuzaki!"
"Of course you know us," said Ryuzaki, puffing out his chest. "Everyone knows us."
"Everyone who follows the dueling circuit, anyway," Haga added.
"Well, it's an honor to meet both of you," said Yugi.
"We're very interested to meet you, too," Haga replied, giving him another cunning look.
"I heard you beat Kaiba in an all-or-nothing death match," said Ryuzaki. "You against the legendary Blue-Eyes White Dragons."
"Something like that," Yugi admitted.
"Humph," said Haga. "I find it hard to believe that a master like Kaiba could be defeated by a wide-eyed little boy. He must have been blinded by your hair."
"Watch the personal remarks, you little bug-eyed freak," Jonouchi said. "Keep talking to Yugi like that, and I'll pick you up and see how far out to sea I can throw you!"
"That's no way to talk to a champion," Haga answered coolly.
"Don't mind my friend," said Yugi, hastily putting himself between Jonouchi and the other two duelists before a fight could break out. "Jonouchi is a little hot-headed sometimes, but he's all talk, really!"
"I am not," Jonouchi muttered. "I really would throw him out in the ocean. See if he can walk on water like a water-strider."
"We don't mind his talk," said Ryuzaki. He shot Jonouchi a flinty look. "Threats of violence are for people who aren't smart enough settle disputes any other way. He can't be much of a duelist."
Jonouchi growled. "I'll show you what kind of duelist I am! Soon as we get to that island, you're mine!"
"Are you that good?" Haga asked. "The two of us are the best in all Japan. We got our invitations directly from the hand of Pegasus J. Crawford himself!"
There was a pause.
"You don't look impressed," said Ryuzaki.
"We're not," said Anzu. "We got ours from Pegasus, too."
"You're lying," said Haga.
"She is not," said Bakura. "We all got our invitations from him. He came to Yugi's store looking for him, because he'd heard about him beating Kaiba, and he asked all of us to come along."
The boys took a moment to digest that information.
"Humph," said Ryuzaki at last. "I'd heard the man was eccentric, so I suppose I shouldn't be surprised he'd do something like this. Just keep in mind - just because you're friends with someone who can duel doesn't mean you're good at it yourself."
Shooting final glares at Yugi and his companions, the two of them stalked off.
"Well," said Anzu, "I guess some people just aren't good sports!"
"That's the truth," Honda said. "Hey, Yugi, when you win this tournament, don't you dare get all bigheaded like those two."
Yugi laughed. "I won't, I promise."
"I guess that's what happens to you when you get so worried about winning, you can't think of anything else," said Bakura, a bit sadly. Yugi gave him a sympathetic look. Bakura was one of the few people he knew who loved gaming as much as he did, and the boy was obviously saddened at how two such talented people could get by without taking joy from anything but winning.
"The important thing is that we all have fun," Yugi declared.
"Well, yeah," said Jonouchi, "but I'd still like to show those two snobs a thing or two!"
"Who says we can't do both?" said Anzu. "We can be competitive and still have fun. Let's make a promise: let's promise that one of us will win this tournament - and whatever happens, the rest of us will cheer that person on until the end."
Her proposal was greeted by laughter - not from her friends, but from a woman nearby, who was watching them and chuckling softly.
"How naive," she said, realizing that she had their attention. "If you lose, you've lost. What good does it do anyone to watch someone else win? Only weak people have to get their kicks by cheering for someone else - as if just watching that person win makes them a winner too, somehow. How pathetic."
"Obviously you've never cheered on a friend before," said Anzu.
"I don't have to," said the woman. "I never lose. My name is Mai Kujaku. If you have to cheer for someone, you can cheer for me. At least then you won't be disappointed."
She sauntered off. Yugi, Honda, and Jonouchi kept their eyes fastened to her for as long as they could see her. Anzu gave a soft snort of contempt.
"Obviously she doesn't think it's cold out here," she muttered. "Why doesn't she just strut around naked?"
"That would be nice," said Jonouchi dreamily.
Anzu gave him a backhanded slap.
"Ow! What'd you do that for?" he complained.
She ignored him.
"Boys," she muttered. "Hey, Bakura, let's go pick out a place in line. It looks like they're getting ready to get on the ship."
"Huh?" said Yugi, rousing himself from his daze. "What about the rest of us?"
"You can catch up when you're done drooling over that perambulating perfume sample," Anzu said. "I don't know how she can still breathe, wearing all of that, much less why you guys would find it attractive. At least Bakura here keeps his eyes in his head."
Bakura gave her a small smile. "I try to stay uninvolved. Girls are trouble, too, you know."
She paused a moment, then laughed.
"All right, all right," she said. "You win. We'll all go together."
Yugi grinned at her. "That's how it should be. Come on, everyone - let's head for the ship!"