By: Virtual Maiden and Ruriko Minamino
Ruriko: Hey all!!!! We're back! Sorry took long! I just got V.M. here out of the hospital - You know, because of the Seto incident.
V. Maiden: Don't remind me… I'm still trying to erase the memory! I've never seen Seto that angry before! And just because I sent the picture of Joey in his birthday suit to Joey himself!
Ruriko: Baka (stupid)…… At least today's muse doesn't bite - I think.
Ryuuji: Dude, I don't do biting. I'd rather read this - or play with my dice. Wanna see a trick? (winks)
Ruriko: (starry-eyed, adoring Ryuuji) Sure…. Anything….
V. Maiden: (smacks Ruriko and Ryuuji with a Tea plushie) Snap out of it! We've got a story to do! (stares at evil plushie) Eeeeeep!!! Why am I holding this?! (throws devil-incarnate 50 feet in the air and gets out of range) Besides, aren't you with Tristan?
Ryuuji: He won't mind. (crosses fingers)
V. Maiden: Somehow, I doubt that….
Ruriko: Um… Let's go answer reviews, shall we?
Osiris Lee = R.M.: Thanks! Took a ton of editing and sugar rushes to do this! V.M.: Thanks for reviewing! (glomps)
Sakurai No Yuki = R.M.: Wonder a bit more… We'll get to that… Some day… V.M.: And remember, they killed their light but wait and find out what will happen to the hikaris… We love you too!!!! Ryuuji: And you're one bad ass chick too!
Immortal Memories = Ryuuji: Hey dude, it's part of the plot. V.M.: Hey, why are you answering our reviews?! R.M.: -_-;;
crazyrabidfangurl01 = R.M.: But what about Yugi? Don't you like those cute, super-huge puppy-dog eyes? Oh, but I agree - Ryou and Malik are hot (but not as hot as the three yamis!!!!) V.M.:I also think those two are hot. They will be back. We love them too much!
AmenOsiriu = R.M.: Please don't say that about Yami (makes big puppy-dog eyes). All will be explained in due time… Details in later chapters! V.M.: It's all part of the plot. It had to happen.
Disclaimer = In short, we don't own YGO!
Full Summary = Yami, Bakura, and Marik have achieved their goal - world domination. But at what price? The death of the three most important people in the world to them. Will they see the error of their ways? Or will their lives forever loose their light?
Warning = reference to sexual situations (Ruriko: bad, if you blush real easy!)
R&R!!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
Chapter 2: The Hanged Man
That Friday…
Chief Advisor Seto Kaiba stomped angrily through the corridors off the embassy in the Red Square in Moscow, Russia. Joey Wheeler, his lover and one of the world's Royal Navy Commanders, could have sworn saw steam coming out of Seto's head. But the seething mad advisor seemed to calm down a little bit when they arrived at the huge double doors that led to the main council room's antechamber. The doors opened to reveal a round-shaped room, which, to Joey's perspective, must have been a lounge room because of its many armchairs and sofas and blazing fireplace.
"Argh…I'm getting a head ache," the Chief Advisor moaned, rubbing his temples and causing him to almost drop his laptop before collapsing in one of the armchairs. Taking a seat himself, Joey started to ask a question, the answer of which he already knew.
"What's th' prob - " Seto cut him off.
"WHAT'S THE PROBLEM!? Those LUNATICS decided to take over the world then don't do their responsibility and I'm here working my ass off everyday to get things running in this world and when the paperwork gets to their desks, what happens? NOTHING!!!" He said it all in one breath, before burying his head in Joey's shoulder, an act he almost never carried out. "I think the only reason I put up with them is because the Kaiba Corporation is still in existence."
"Sheesh! Cool off, why don't ya," Joey said in a half-soothing, half-exasperated manner, rubbing his lover's back. The Kaiba Corporation was still very important to Seto, although he was training Mokuba to take his place as CEO in a few years.
"But still… Something's wrong," Seto stated, suddenly sitting up straight and looking at Joey seriously.
Joey was taken aback by the sudden mood change but manage to blurt out a question. "What's wrong, Seto?" Before Seto could reply, the door burst open to reveal a jet-black haired Royal Air Force Commander and his brunette lover.
"Well, Ryuuji, love, I'm not that sure…" the brown-haired Tristan Tailor, Field Marshal and member of the Royal Army, said doubtfully as he walked into the room, hand in hand with his emerald-eyed lover.
"Dude, we really need to get somethin' out of them. They've been acting waaay to weird, Tris," Ryuuji Otogi argued, before his eyes landed on Seto and Joey. He nudged his lover and they both stopped in their tracks and smiled. "Hey, when'd you guys get here?"
"Joey! Seto! Great ta see ya!!!!" Tristan cried out, leaving Ryuuji's side and grabbing Joey in a bear hug. He released the blonde and turned to glomp Seto, but froze when he saw the advisor's face.
"Hey, did we miss anything?" asked Ryuuji, also noticing Seto's serious expression.
"Um… Not really - if you don't count Seto's screaming bloody murder a few minutes ago," Joey said, smiling innocently at the grim-faced CEO.
"Honestly, Seto, your mood-swings are getting wilder by the day!" Tristan commented, rolling his eyes and sinking down onto a loveseat, pulling Ryuuji beside him.
"An' he used ta be sooo calm an' composed," Joey said teasingly.
"And quiet," Ryuuji added with a smirk.
Seto grumbled something that sounded remarkably like 'fuck off'.
"What?" Joey raised one hand near his ear playfully.
The Chief Advisor just changed the subject. "Has anyone, aside form me, noticed that our three 'Masters' are acting more insane and weird than usual?"
At this Joey scratched his head but then something hit him. "Come ta think of it…Yami was actin' kinda funny; he seems ta stare off inta space most o' th' time. An' 'e almost lost yesterday in one o' 'is games an' instead o' bein' amused, he called ou' Feral Imp an' set it against the competitor - " Joey scowled in annoyance as Tristan interrupted.
"That was nothing! Bakura seems to be more jumpy than usual. Heck! A maid dropped a glass yesterday and startled him. He sent her to the Shadow Realm on the spot! Too bad. She was a pretty one." Ryuuji glared and Tristan hurried to finish his story. "He keeps trying to send everyone to the Shadow Realm with little or no reason at all!" He shuddered. Then, he, Joey, and Seto looked at Ryuuji expectantly.
"What? Why are you all staring at me…" the former DDM Player asked.
"Ryuuji, what about Marik?" Seto said slowly, as if he was talking to a three-year-old.
Ryuuji blinked, then caught on. "Oh yeah, right! But I think you don't want to know, dudes… Marik's gone off the deep end… He isn't taking as many of his girl to bed as usual. But that's normal, I guess. Most guys would have lost interest way before Marik. It's his thing with squirrels that's creepy… Just yesterday, when he was trying to talk me into going down to the casinos with him, I saw a squirrel and it sat for five whole seconds in front of Marik then strode away UNHARMED!"
"Okay, now there's reeeaaalllyyy somethin' wrong with that," Joey said, eyes wide in disbelief, thinking back a few years ago, when almost the entire gang had to restrain the psychotic Spirit when a squirrel walked across the group's path. Marik had been yelling something about wanting to kill the furry little thing for stopping him from taking over the world or some other nonsense.
"Yeah, I get you. But what could be bothering them so much?" Tristan rubbed his chin, emphasizing that he was thinking hard.
"Must be serious, dudes, cause' Marik letting a squirrel go or specifically ignoring it is a big deal," Ryuuji agreed, leaning back and pulling Tristan to him.
"Do you think hell has frozen?" Tristan said sarcastically, intertwining his fingers with Ryuuji's.
"Maybe," Joey said, glancing at the silent, brooding Seto.
"Dude, stop that. You sound like the world's ending," Ryuuji commented waspishly. He didn't like all the serious talk - especially if it was Tristan and Joey doing the talking. In his opinion, Tristan was a silly person - even if he was his lover - and Joey was too dumb to think of very much.
"Well sorry for putting things into perspective, Ryuuji!" Tristan snapped.
"Well you're freaking me out - " Ryuuji retorted.
"Shut up for and listen, both of you!" The brooding CEO finally snapped. The two nodded and gave a last glare at each other before listening to what Seto has to say. The brunette advisor looked at all his companions in turn, brows furrowed in thought. When he spoke, Joey, Tristan, and Ryuuji did a double take. "Someone has to ask those maniacs what's the matter. Now, who's going to ask who?"
Tristan and Ryuuji looked at each other. "Are you crazy!? Count us out, dude! It's like committing suicide, talking to Bakura or Marik!" Ryuuji said, edging away.
"Maybe we can ask Yami," Seto suggested. They all stared at Joey, who gulped, knowing what was coming.
"Why me?!" the blonde asked no one in particular, looking up at the ceiling.
"You know the answer to that," Tristan said, crossing his arms.
"Yeah but…I don't know, I-I don't know how ta ask 'im! An' besides, I don't want Silver Fang's teeth on my throat!" Joey practically pleaded, making puppy-dog eyes to boot. Tristan and Ryuuji had to look away. Seto found it so adorable that he started to pat Joey's head. The blonde quickly slapped his hand away.
"Sorry, Joe-pup. For a moment there, you reminded me of Yugi."
An ominous silence filled the room. Hardly anyone ever spoke that name anymore.
In their silence contemplation they didn't notice the Egyptian man and woman who walked silently into the room.
"May I be the one to ask the Pharaoh about his problems?" the dark-hair woman asked, making the foursome jump.
Joey, Tristan, and Ryuuji half-bowed to Isis and Shadi as Seto took the former seeress' hand in his and kissed it lightly. Even though Shadi no longer possessed the Scales and Ankh, and Isis could no longer see into the future, they still commanded a lot of respect. The three yamis, though they were the ones who held all the power, were all somehow apprehensive of the two, and treated them cautiously. Isis and Shadi never abused their positions, and often helped Yami and his two co-rulers make their more difficult decisions (the ones not involving who to send to the Shadow Realm and what to wear. Hey, Seto couldn't do all the work, now could he?). Even though Marik had murdered Isis' brother, she treated him with not the least trace of (visible) anger.
"Thanks Isis. We owe you one!" Joey said happily, breathing a sigh of relief.
"It was nothing and I have yet to accomplish the deed, therefore thanks are not yet necessary," Isis said in her mysterious voice.
"Shall we now enter the council chamber?" Shadi motioned towards the door at the opposite end of the room. "Though it might be a while before our three 'masters' arrive". They walked up to the doorway, chatting casually but the six of them froze as the doors opened. Before them was a sight they'd never thought possible; the three yamis - the three INSANE, world dominating, torture loving, power hungry, whoremonger yamis - were sitting in the center of the room staring at each others' faces with blank eyes. There was no broken furniture; there was no smell of sex, no one was swearing - nothing but pure silence.
"Did I say hell has frozen? I meant the WHOLE damnable universe has frozen!" Tristan said in wonder, blinking and rubbing his eyes furiously.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
One hour ago, in the council chamber itself….
"Well, look who decided to show up!" Yami said in an exasperated voice as he strode across the council room. "You two Ra-damned idiots are late."
Bakura and Marik were just sauntering in, both obviously drunk as lords.
"Pharaoh! Looks like you, as always, are on time," Bakura said with a smirk, flopping onto the carpeted floor in the center of the room. "Shouldn't have had too much vodka this morning…"
Yami sat down in front of the former Tomb Robber and smirked. "That's your own fault, Thief. You should know better than to drink so much early in the day."
"I do what I please. Besides I'm better at torturing people when I've had a good drink!" Bakura said, then smirked back. "Besides, you smell like you've been drinking a bit too." The Pharaoh just looked at the floor guiltily.
Marik swept down on the two of them and pulled them into a bone-crushing hug. "So we're all drunk! Who's up for a bit of a fuck?"
Yami and Bakura hastily pulled out of the large blonde's grasp.
"Is that all you ever think about, you sexually-deprived psycho?!" Bakura snarled, then gripped the dagger at his hip.
"Passes the time till the casinos open," the psychotic Egyptian assassin shrugged. "I don't like wasting my energy in the morning."
Yami snorted. "You're missing a lot, though." He looked pointedly at Marik. "You still owe me a duel for the last time I agreed to spend the night with you."
"I'll give you one, one of these days. It's about time I paid a visit to Bakura. He's a much rougher fucking partner. You're too soft and weak in bed. I'll fight you on the way back."
"Count me in! I haven't had a good battle in a while," Bakura said, slamming his palm onto the floor. "Tristan can get his lazy ass moving and come along."
"I'll bet Joey and Ryuuji could use a bit of exercise anyway," Yami conceded. "Alright! We can have a Duel - maybe as soon as we finish with this 'meeting'."
Marik scratched his head. "What were we supposed to talk about anyway?"
The silver-haired Emperor waved a hand as if to dismiss the subject. "Some stupid uprising somewhere… One of us can just go over and send the whole lot of them to the Shadow Realm."
"We'll need some of those men sooner or later. I'd say we just make an example of one of their leaders and be done with it," Yami shrugged.
"As long as I get to do the torturing!" Marik said wit a maniacal laugh.
Bakura pulled out a small key and tossed it at the blonde. "Do it at my place. I just had a new torture chamber constructed."
Yami leaned back and chuckled softly. He didn't care for torture chambers at all. He preferred just sending the unfortunate souls who crossed his path to the Shadow Realm, where they could die in agony without bothering anyone.
For a while, the three just sat there smirking at each other in satisfaction. They had to admit, ever since they'd agreed to take over the world, they'd begun to get along better. There was an unspoken agreement between them that they wouldn't attack each other or fight over the Items. They'd long discovered that there was a limit to exactly how much power one of them could hold. Besides, they - strangely - became good enough friends and had learned to come to each other if they wanted anything in particular (including a good fuck).
"Ya know…. I had a really weird dream a few nights back," Marik said, breaking the silence. A frown formed on his brow.
Yami and Bakura looked at each other in amusement. If the stupid, psychotic Marik was frowning, it was bound to be interesting.
The blonde continued. "I dreamt that the little minx was talking to me - asking me why I got rid of him."
Yami's smirk faded and Bakura snarled. "Alright. What the fucking hell have you been doing with the Tauk?! Why'd you pry into my dreams?"
Marik grabbed the chocolate-brown-eyed Spirit by the collar of his shirt. "I didn't do anything to you! I was - "
"Talking about your own dream…" Yami said in a low voice. He looked at the two dead seriously. "I've been dreaming about him as well."
Marik lay back down on the floor, covering his eyes. For a moment, he seemed to feel the touch of soft skin on his chest, coupled with the cold shiver given off by many golden bracelets.
"Well? Is there a connection? Someone's fucking with us, that's all, right?" Bakura said, but his voice was less slurred and rough. The sound of a familiar silvery laugh seemed to fill his ears.
"I… don't know," Yami said softly, images of large, innocent amethyst eyes flashing through his brain.
Marik sat up, and the three of them just stared at one another in silence.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
Back at the present…
The three world rulers blinked and looked their way and the group filed into the room, murmuring their greetings. It was Yami who first spoke.
"Isis, Shadi, everyone," Yami said cordially. "Finally, you're all here."
"It's about TIME you got here," Bakura half snarled, however, his voice lacked it's usual edge.
Marik just grunted and nodded his head.
Seto didn't have to look at his companions to know they were thinking the exact same thing: 'WHAT IN THE NAME OF ALL THE EGYPTIAN GODS IN EXISTENCE HAPPENED HERE!?'
Wordlessly they all moved to their seats - except Isis and Shadi. The two Egyptians walked towards the world leaders. The three Spirits looked at them warily, their hands going protectively to their respective Items.
"Rest assured my lords," Isis said I soothing tones. "Shadi and I have no intention of taking what is yours."
"I could've told you that," Marik said scathingly. "The Tauk didn't show me anything."
"Why wouldn't it show you anything, baka?! You probably can't even use it properly!" Bakura snorted. Marik drew out the sharp edge of the Millennium Rod.
"Say that again and I'll slit your throat!" the psycho spat out angrily, about to raise the Rod, but Yami intervened, using the Millennium Scales to block the Rod's path.
"This is no time to be fighting!" the Pharaoh said coldly to the Emperor and the King.
Bakura raised his hand to strike Yami. "Stay out this, meddling Pharaoh!"
The three of them promptly started fighting and rolling around on the floor, yelling out curses and swear-words in Egyptian.
"WAIT! You shouldn't be fighting," Isis's interfered anxiously, feeling the Shadow Magic building up in the room. "The power of the Shadow Realm is becoming strong! You will destroy the world if you continue on like this!" But her words landed on deaf ears.
It was Shadi spoke next. "Will you stop if we told you we could solve your problem? Your problem… about your hikaris…"
That was the magic word. The three yamis sprang to their feet and turned to face Shadi with agate-hard eyes.
Yami and his two co-rulers exchanged a glance before all three returned their gazes to the turbaned Egyptian. The Pharaoh spoke.
"Go on."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`
TBC…
Ruriko: Cliffhanger!!!!!! I love cliffies!!!!!! (hugs Yami, Bakura, and Marik plushies)
V. Maiden: Don't worry… We'll update soon - to end the confusion.
Ruriko: A bit, that is… More confusion to come!!!!!!! Oh, by the way, Ryuuji will keep saying dude coz I've been totally engrossed in the English version on Cartoon Network!
V. Maiden: That and the fact that when you write your own stories, you call him Duke Devlin.
Ryuuji: Did you two forget I'm still here?
Ruriko: Stop that! Oh, readers, we forgot to tell you; update days are usually on Fridays.
R.M. & V.M.: Ja ne!
P.S. Ryuuji: Ruriko has two new Yu-Gi-Oh fics out, dudes,
Twisted Utopia - That Isis chick died and a year later, we all get sent back in time to Ancient Egypt - way back when Yami was Pharaoh, Bakura was a Tomb Robber, and Marik was an Assassin. The problem with that is those three don't remember anything but their 'jobs'. It's up to Yugi, Ryou, and the mini-psycho Malik to set things straight before someone steals all the Millennium Items!
Off Limits to Yamis - Dudes, what happens when you leave a 5000-year-old Egyptian guy alone in the modern world? You don't want to know... Ruriko's making it a four chapter disaster fic; first three chapters for a certain yami dude each, and the last one, when you put them all together...
