Dealing with Demons

x.x.x

"This isn't right," Gin whispered in the darkness. The light from the mirror-window made his scales gleam like silver, his blue eyes like piercing gems. "We have to do something."

"We can't do something," Gin's twin, Kin murmured. "It's a Game. It's not allowed. We can't… disrupt a Game." He lowered his head, gazing at the mirror's reflection. "As much as I would like to."

"We must," a new voice whispered. The twin dragons turned, blinking at their younger brother Shiroi.

"You're suggesting we break the rules?" Gin asked. "We could lose our jobs for that. And then who would protect our charges?"

"If it comes to that, Midori and Hansha will watch over them," Shiroi whispered. "But this Game must end. Look at them! If this continues, Yami will die. Even now he's faltering, weakening. This is no fair Game. Yugi is in the Graveyard. Seto and Mokuba are being forced to play against their friends. Please. Tell me you'll help."

Kin sighed, looking down at the scene unfolding on the mirror's gleaming surface. "Yes. You're right. The Game is declared unfair. We'll need a lot of power though, and a conduit for that power…"

"No sweat," Shiroi murmured. "Exodia will help." He turned to look at the golden behemoth that had followed him in. "You could be the conduit for our power, couldn't you? Hansha seems to think that you're strong enough…"

Exodia's eyes widened, and he shook his head, taking a step back. He'd promised his help to Shiroi, but channeling so much power! That was a job for someone like Hansha… Exodia was sure he didn't have the strength for such a task. Even Hansha had trouble with it. It hurt to see the disappointment in Shiroi's eyes, but… he just couldn't do it. Not even for him.

Shiroi sighed. He was still sure Exodia could do it, but Exodia would never try… "Nevermind. I'll do it then."

"Don't be stupid," Gin said. "It will kill you."

"It'll be worth it," Shiroi replied. "But what of Yugi? Who will go get him?"

Exodia stepped forward, laying a hand on Shiroi's shoulder. This, at least, he could do. Shiroi nodded, and Exodia called up a swirl of Shadow Realm energy to transport him into the graveyard.

Left alone in the darkened room, the three dragons turned back to the mirror, their energies glowing off their scales like a soft, glowing mist. This Game would end, even if it meant standing up to the might of the Millennium Items.

x.x.x

Yugi hid behind a tall grave marker, trying really hard to be quiet. A silent creature, styled like the Grim Reaper, had been stalking him ever since he'd got here. He still wasn't sure HOW he had gotten here, but he didn't want that crazy Reaper of the Cards to catch up to him!

The ghostly apparition floated past his hiding place, clutching its scythe eagerly. Yugi breathed a sigh of relief when it seemed the specter would pass him by.

At that breathy noise, the Reaper of the Cards whirled, its scythe raised high to attack. Yugi let out a squeak of alarm, stumbling backward over graves, trying to escape-

A swirl of darkness and sapphire light swirled up, and a massive golden hand reached out, snatching the Reaper out of the air. The Duel Monster struggled violently against its captor. Yugi gawked as the strange swirling darkness faded, and one of the most legendary of all Duel Monsters, the great Exodia the Forbidden One, stood before him.

Holding on to the Reaper of the Cards' long robe, Exodia twirled the creature above his head, then let fly. The Reaper sailed off into the distance, until it was barely more than a dark spot on the horizon.

"You saved me," Yugi whispered, as Exodia turned to him. He hesitantly approached, looking way, way, way up to the massive creature's face. "Thank you."

Exodia inclined his head in acceptance of Yugi's thanks. He crouched, holding out a large hand for Yugi to climb onto. Yugi scrambled into the beast's palm, clutching onto Exodia's thumb for lack of anything better to hold on to.

"Please tell me we're going home now. This place is creepy," Yugi said.

Exodia just gave him an equally creepy grin, and another dizzying swirl of blackness rose up to envelope them.

x.x.x

Seto felt like hell. Yes, it was very cool that he and Mokuba were Blue Eyes White Dragons. But it was decidedly less appealing to be forced into destroying Yugi, and every other monster Yami happened to put out on the field. Additionally, Yami wasn't looking so great either. He looked… kind of ill, actually.

Seto really tried not to attack him, he really did. But for some reason, when Bakura ordered an attack… Seto just couldn't help it. Every burst of white lightning burned his throat and brought tears to his eyes. The one bright spot in this whole mess was that he was the one being forced to attack most of the time; Bakura seemed to be sparing Mokuba. Bakura seemed to find it a lot more amusing to watch Seto try to resist his commands.

Bakura really was enjoying this duel. The look of agony that the Pharaoh tried so hard to hide was truly delicious. Even more amusing was the little mortal's attempts to defy him. The tinier Blue Eyes was no challenge at all, but the other one… the one called Seto. Now that one was funny. He had enough willpower to almost resist Bakura's commands. Of course, he could never succeed… but it was fun to watch him try. So much fun, Bakura didn't mind prolonging this duel a little bit. Victory was assured, what difference would a few minutes make compared to the centuries the fiend had already waited?

When the disruptions began, a slight vibration of energies at the edges of his vision, Bakura ignored them. The Pharaoh didn't even seem to notice them. But when it persisted, even Bakura had to acknowledge that something was wrong. The mists of the Shadow Realm were turning back on themselves, illuminated by darting streaks of silver light. Someone was trying to interfere with him!

That was all the warning he got, before the explosion. It was if all the Shadow Realm began to spin and pitch wildly. Flashes of light exploded on all sides of them, and Bakura could feel all the magic he had invoked suddenly come unraveled. Yami gave a soft cry as the Millennium Puzzle began to glow brightly, returning Yugi to their soul fusion.

Seto felt as though rough winds were buffeting him from all sides. The whole world seemed to be spinning, he could hardly tell which way was up, or which way was down. He did finally find the floor, however, when he collapsed on it. It was almost a relief.

One of the Blue Eyes White Dragon cards was blown off the table, gliding easily away and slipping itself neatly into Seto's deck of cards, as Seto the Dragon similarly vanished from the game. Mokuba too was vanishing; something was trying to return all of Bakura's stolen souls back to their rightful places.

"Oh no you don't…" Bakura growled. Whoever was causing this was going to ruin everything! But Bakura wasn't going to leave this empty handed…

Bakura grabbed the remaining Blue Eyes White Dragon card off the table, keeping a firm grasp on Mokuba's soul and holding it to the card. This would be… something of a consolation prize. Now all he had to do was get out of here before he ended up trapped within the folds of the collapsing pocket of Shadow Realm. With a slight application of power from the Millennium Ring, Bakura dissipated enough of the Shadow Realm magic to slip out into the real world.

x.x.x

"The fiend escapes," Kin whispered softly, his gaze on the shadow realm mirror. "And he takes Mokuba."

"Enough," Shiroi groaned, before his brother suggested they fix 'that' as well. Channeling the powers of other Duel Monsters hurt more than he had expected. Collapsing Bakura's web of magics had exhausting him. "We've done enough. They'll have to… deal with the rest on their own."

"I agree…" Gin murmured. "But good job, Shiroi. A little worse for wear, but you're not dead. Congrats."

"Just help me get to my room," Shiroi muttered. He wasn't at all sure he could walk right now. As Kin and Gin helped him back to his room, Shiroi fell asleep before they even got there.

x.x.x

Seto was glad when the world stopped shaking and the darkness lifted. He felt groggy, as if waking from an exceptionally deep sleep. Pieces of memory flashes within his mind, and it took him a while before he could actually believe them. It all seemed too fantastic to be real, the odd game he had just been a part of.

But the room itself was a mess, Seto noted as he sat up. Duel Monsters cards had been blown everywhere. Yugi was laying slumped over the table, and Mokuba was laying a little farther away. Seto rose unsteadily, moving to pick up his little brother. Mokuba didn't wake, even when Seto shook him gently. He wouldn't respond to anything.

Yugi groaned softly, sitting up and rubbing his head. "Seto?" he whispered. "What happened?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," Seto murmured. "There was… a duel? And we were… Duel Monsters… or something… And then everything just started shaking and crumbling…" He looked up from trying to revive Mokuba. "How's Yami doing?"

"Mrph," Yugi murmured. "Not happy, but too tired to do anything about it right now. What's with Mokuba?"

"I don't know, I can't wake him up…" Seto frowned worriedly at his brother, then looked around the room. "Where'd Ryou go?"

"I don't- oh, hold on a sec…" Yugi closed his eyes; it was hard holding mental conversations with Yami when trying to talk with Seto. Finally, Yugi opened his eyes. "Yami says that wherever that- err… well, I couldn't understand all of the names that he called Ryou, but he says that wherever Ryou went, he must have taken Mokuba's soul with him. Yami wants to go after him."

"I don't think Yami could even hold himself upright at the moment," Seto muttered, laying Mokuba down on the couch, in what he hoped would be a comfortable position. "And you look pretty wiped out too. Stay here and watch over Mokuba, will you? And keep the door locked until I come back."

"Where are you going?"

"To save Mokuba, where else?" Seto collected the mess of his Duel Monster's cards, then went to find the fiend that had dared to try and steal Mokuba's soul.

x.x.x

Bakura held up the Blue Eyes White Dragon card, examining it a little closer. It was a rather nice card, certainly worth enough, considering it was one of only four in the world. He ought to sell it, with Mokuba's soul still trapped inside. It would be amusing watching Seto try to track it down then.

He was feeling perhaps just a touch vindictive after having his Game ruined. But there would be other Games, other chances to snatch the Millennium Puzzle. And when he'd left, the Pharaoh was in terrible shape… he ought to find whoever had wounded him and congratulate them. Or maybe he wouldn't… After all, why not take credit for that as well?

But it was going to be hard avoiding the Pharaoh and his little mortal pals now. He'd have to find a way off this boat before someone came looking for him…

The thought came a moment too late, as the door was forcefully shoved open, and Seto Nishimura stood in the doorway, looking pissed. But no Pharaoh, so Bakura didn't see a need to get worried about it. After all, what danger was a mortal to him?

"What do you want?" Bakura muttered, slipping the card away into a safe place with an easy sleight of hand.

"You did something to Mokuba," Seto accused. "And I want you to fix it. Now."

Amusing as ever, Seto was. Bakura gave him a cheerfully vicious grin. "Yeah? Make me."

"I want a duel," Seto told him, holding out his deck of cards. "I win, you give back Mokuba." Surely with his remaining Blue Eyes, he would be able to beat Bakura-

"No."

Seto blinked at him, taken by surprise. "No? What do you mean, NO? I thought that's how this whole thing worked, an honorable duel-"

Bakura laughed. "Whatever gave you the impression that I cared about honor? No, I don't think so. I'm not going to duel, and I'm not going to give back your card, or your brother. And unless you've got a Millennium Item hidden away somewhere, there's nothing you can do about it."

Well. That put Seto at something of a loss. He thought that Bakura would have to accept a challenge to duel… but that seemed to not be the case. He couldn't just physically take the card from someone with the power to steal souls, now could he? And even if he did, what if Yami didn't have the power to restore Mokuba, and only Bakura could do it?

Bakura was having fun watching fury and determination war across Seto's expression. He thought about the card, and Mokuba's soul trapped within it. Valuable, to be sure, but Bakura could think of something worth more…

"Tell you what," Bakura said. "I'm willing to trade."

Seto blinked at him, his eyes narrowing. "Trade? What do you want for it?"

"I keep the card," Bakura said. "But I'll give back your brother's soul… in exchange for yours."

"What?!"

Bakura smirked. "Well, if you don't want your brother back-"

Seto glared at him. "Why the hell would you want mine in return?"

"You're more entertaining," Bakura said with a shrug. "You did come here to save the little dragon, didn't you? I'm willing to give him back. One time only, so hurry it up. I've got things to do."

"Alright, alright!" Seto snapped. If it cost his soul to save his brother… well, it was just worth it. He'd sworn to protect Mokuba from soul stealing freaks, and that's exactly what he planned to do.

Bakura grinned. Now this was going to be fun. "Good choice." He pulled out the Blue Eyes White Dragon card. Bakura's Millennium Ring glowed brightly as he raised its powers, and the card glowed faintly in return, as Mokuba's soul was released from it.

Seto took a deep breath, trying to prepare himself for having his soul ripped forcibly from his body. It wasn't really something he thought he'd ever have to prepare for. But when Bakura turned the power of the Millennium Ring on him, all he felt was a slight shiver. When the Ring's glow faded, all he felt was a little colder than before.

Seto blinked at Bakura. "That's it?"

"What'd you want me to do, slice you open or something? I could, if you'd prefer…"

"No! What I meant, is…" Seto took stock of himself. He seemed to be whole. "I'm still awake. When you took Mokuba's soul, he was unconscious."

"Picky, picky." Bakura held up the card, which still glowed faintly. "I have taken your soul, in case you're wondering. I just enjoy watching you fight back. You're a more amusing puppet than your little brother is. Don't get too comfortable. You're mine now."