Please read and review! In addition to just plain loving reviews, I find them helpful in terms of structuring the rest of the story.

IMPORTANT! SENNEN ITEMS/MANGA NOTE: Shadi's Sennen Key allows him to enter people's soul rooms. He can examine them as a spectator – but he also has the power to put people under his control by "re-arranging" their soul rooms – and has never been shy about using this power. In the manga he tries to enter Yami's soul room to determine if he is the pharaoh. When this fails, he "tests" him by turning Anzu into a soulless puppet and challenging Yami to a duel for her life.

NAME REMINDER: Shadi uses "Seto" to refer to the 18 year-old Seto Kaiba. The 13 year-old Seto Kaiba does not appear in this chapter.

CHAPTER 16: INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS

SHADI'S POV

We needed to gauge Seto's soul – and, if necessary – to rearrange it to our liking. The Sennen Key gave me the power to do both.

I had thought long and hard about how to capture my quarry. Seto was not a man to be caught easily off guard. His reflexes were even faster than when I had known him, so a frontal attack was out. I had planned to wait until he was asleep… only to find that as far as I could tell, he slept rarely, if ever. I had finally fallen back on the two things I was sure of about this new incarnation of my old friend – his arrogance, and his disdain for all things relating to Ancient Egypt. I was not sure he even knew what powers my Key held. And I was hoping he still had a sense of honor, whereas mine was submerged in my mission.

I had decided to approach him in his office at the mansion, where he would feel most comfortable. He looked up as I entered, a residual anger in his eyes. "Not walking through walls, these days?" he asked.

"I am here on behalf of the pharaoh," I replied. It was not a lie, although it was not true, in the way that he would take it.

"Last time I checked, it's the 21st century. There are no pharaohs any more." But my mention of his prince had relaxed him… as I intended.

"He is still your ruler," I rebuked him, mildly.

"I have no ruler. Didn't you catch my duel with Isis? No one is in control of my destiny – but me."

"He is still the pharaoh. All the ages of the world can not change that."

"Whatever. Look, if all you came here to do is to give me a lesson on how to address royalty, you can save your breath. If Yami has some message he couldn't be bothered bringing himself – spill it," he said, deliberately emphasizing the pharaoh's modern name. So even after 3,000 years, he was still jealous of the pharaoh's regard; still resentful of any that would claim it. "Otherwise there's the door. I'm busy."

With studied insult, he turned his back on me, faced his computer monitor once more. It seems there were some things that even time could not change. It was the opening I had been waiting for; my chance to use my Key: the Sennen Item, in whose power he did not believe.

I looked at his unconscious form with some satisfaction, as I prepared to enter his soul room. I found myself in the Shadow Realm instead. Facing me were all the monsters of Seto and Yami's deck. There was no retreat. I should have felt nothing but fear as they advanced, but disorientingly, disturbingly, what I felt instead was a pure jolt of adrenalized joy… a maniacal glee at my impending doom. I was prepared to fight. Now that I knew it was over, I was bound to sell my life dearly, even as I felt relief at its ending.

Before I could sort out these alien feelings, the first of the monsters reached me. My body reacted instinctively, forcing the Battle Ox's Axe back against it's jugular, spraying us with his dying blood. I wrenched the axe from his lifeless hands, swung it at the Hitosame Giant, severing his head as he leaned in to grab me. Two, I thought with satisfaction, as I whirled the axe into the Mystical Elf, halving her as she chanted. Then the Luster Dragon reached me, claws raking me from chest to torso. The next stroke laid open the hand holding the axe, and I dropped it from my nerveless fingers. They had finally broken through, and my relief was lost as my world turned to pain. It seemed to go on forever. I fell under Gaia, The Fierce Knight's stallion; stood up only to have my ribs crushed in Summon Skull's grip. Gasping for breath, spitting up blood, I finally stumbled into the Wicked Worm Beast's tentacles, which slithered out to slowly cut off the air. Mercifully, I lost consciousness…

But beyond hope, beyond expectation… I was alive. I found myself back in Seto's office, staring at his still closed eyes. What had happened? My mind cautiously approached his soul room, once more. Immediately, I felt a tentacle reach out to drag me back in. I sat down, and let out a breath. It was ingenious, I thought with grudging admiration. Anyone wishing to reach his soul room would have to wade through his nightmares first. And even from where I stood, I could sense not just the familiar monsters, but other, worse nightmares crowding behind… ready to grab me if I survived this first attack. I could possibly break through his defense – but it would prove to be a phyrrhic victory – I wasn't sure how much would be left of either of us by the time I was through. And we needed Seto more or less whole.

And so, I would have to confess my trespass and my failure to my pharaoh.

He was angry… no furious. And I soon realized that it was my trespass rather than my failure that had stirred his ire. Once I had invaded my pharaoh's soul room. Then, he had been contemptuously amused. Now he could barely control his rage. It was… interesting. The priest had been his kinsman and confidant. Yet the pharaoh had never hesitated to push Seto into danger; to use him as this modern day Seto would use a pawn… or a knight. (Not that Seto had ever needed much encouragement, being usually all too eager to leap into peril himself.)

"You will explain to me why you violated him this way," my pharaoh said slowly, dangerously.

"Because we don't know what this Seto will do. Can you swear that he will not join Akunadin? Or that he'll send his younger self back? Even if we manage to defeat Akunadin, the boys must go back to restore the timeline. Otherwise all our efforts will have been in vain. Yet, why would Seto send his younger self back to the hell he has just managed to escape from, when every instinct must be screaming at him to let them stay?"

"If they stay in this lifetime, can you guarantee Mokuba's safety? If they stay here… if they change time… then anything could happen – including Mokuba's death," Yugi said firmly. I tended to ignore my pharaoh's former host until he spoke. Then I was forced to concede that his wisdom equaled my prince's.

"If they go back, Mokuba's safety and happiness are assured," Yugi continued. "No other timeline guarantees that. Kaiba-kun has never made his decisions based on his own welfare. So he will make the same decision now, as he did when he was ten. He will put Mokuba first."

"I had forgotten about the boy… I wonder if Akunadin will make the same mistake. You seem certain about the older Seto. Are you as sure of the younger one? He betrayed his brother once before."

"I will be certain before we move to retrieve the items that you hold in trust. If Akunadin had been able to gain them through theft, he would have done so, long ago. But he must win or be given the items. You know this to be true. That means he must wait upon us, " my prince concluded.

"My way is quicker," I pointed out.

"You will not touch either of them," the pharaoh commanded. He looked at me curiously. "How did he defeat you?"

"It was clever," I admitted. "He took his every waking nightmare – and believe me pharaoh – they are many and profound – and set them as a barrier between an intruder and his soul room. Anyone wishing to uncover his heart, would have to live through every one of his nightmares first. He no longer has the rod to protect himself. He should not have been able to stop me."

"He shouldn't be able to do many things… make Duel Monsters come alive, defeat destiny… beat an International Grand Master at Chess when he was 10 years old. It hasn't stopped him yet. He is… resourceful." But my pharaoh was smiling as he said it.

"Did you think so when you gave him that nightmare?" I asked, startling him for the first time.

"That wasn't supposed to last! Why was it still there?"

"Who knows? Maybe he found it useful."

We were interrupted by the object of our discussion. I thought Seto was going to strike me again, but he contented himself with asking, "Did you think I wouldn't know?"

"It seemed a possibility," I answered, but he had already turned from me to glare at our pharaoh.

"I should have known better than to think I could trust you. After all, it wouldn't be the first time you've invaded my mind, would it? But I would have thought you'd do it yourself – not send a flunkey." Seto's anger was familiar. But I had never before heard the child-like note of hurt that now colored his voice, as he added, "You had my word. Did that mean so little to you?"

Yugi surprised me by speaking first, "Would you believe us, if Yami and I swore that we hadn't known – and that we would have stopped it?"

Seto stopped, looked puzzled. "I would," he finally said with dawning wonder. "As far as I can tell, neither of you have ever lied to me."

But my pharaoh was still responding to the pain in Seto's voice. He went up to his servant; cupped Seto's long face in his hands. Seto leaned into that touch, He gazed at his prince as though they were still the lovers they had been in the past; although if that had been the truth, I would never have dared to enter his mind unbidden. Seto breathed deeply, as though running a race, although his body was still, as if afraid that the slightest movement would cause the pharaoh to break contact.

"We have fought each other. We have hurt each other. But I would never use you, nor violate you, nor try to destroy your spirit. Believe me," my pharaoh beseeched his high priest.

"I do," Seto answered instantly, with unconscious promise.

I had never seen such passion in them, even when they had been newly risen from a tryst, as I now saw in that single unbroken gaze. They were guided by the same gentle breeze that slowly, inevitably, reshapes the desert sands; unconsciously moving closer to each other, leaning into each other… until their lips were a breath apart. It was as if the embers of their love had slumbered for 3,000 years, only to now flame into an even more intense life.

Seto's eyes widened; his lids no longer masking them from the pharaoh's gaze. They stayed frozen for a moment. Then Seto whirled from the room, and was gone.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I've always thought that Seto Kaiba and Shadi had some interesting things in common. They both are driven by external promises, or goals – Kaiba's to protect Mokuba and to change the nature of Kaiba Corporation from an armaments manufacturer to a gaming enterprise, and Shadi to find and protect the pharaoh. There's a sense that both of them will do literally anything in the service of these goals, and it's this extremism that makes them dangerous and somewhat unpredictable. For example, in the early manga Shadi has no qualms about rearranging Anzu's soul room to turn her into his puppet, or risking her and Jounouchi's lives – if it helps him to get the answers he's seeking. Also, Kaiba and Shadi are the two characters to whom the concepts of friendship seem the most alien. And I think they are the two who are the least given to revealing their thoughts or feelings. They were also the friends or at least allies in the Ancient Egypt arc, at least partly because they both had the same no-holds-barred approach to protecting the pharaoh.

One thing that struck me in the Ancient Egypt arc, was that almost all of Priest Seto's conflicts with Atemu were because Seto was going overboard trying to protect him, or trying too hard to prove his worth to the pharaoh or earn his regard. Like they have this team duel, where Seto sacrifices his teammates to win. It's sort of typical Seto ruthlessness – but what can easily get overlooked is that Seto is fighting for the honor of defending Atemu against Bakura – and is quite well aware that he will probably lose his life in the encounter. Yet he is furious at anyone who tries to usurp this honor, and even angrier when the pharaoh chooses Maahado instead of him. It struck me that Shadi might well remember this trait and use it against him.

RESPONSES TO REVIEWS:

Seto and Akunadin: (Desidera, samurai-ashes) I've tried to make Seto's tone that of a kind of smart-ass 13 year-old. I think life with Gozaburo would have exaggerated what was probably a naturally cocky cynicism. I can see him being especially disdainful of the respect with which Gozaburo is viewed by the public at large. And I can see him enjoying his exchanges with Akunadin – because they fit his view of how people treat each other in a way that Yugi and his friends do not. I can also see him understanding that Akunadin is evil – and then discounting that, if he has information that Seto wants. There's a directness to Seto Kaiba, a way of focusing on his goals to the exclusion of all else – even things that are glaringly obvious to everyone else – that I think is part of his character.

Seto and Kaiba: (AmunRa, Desidera, laura m, QueenOfGames2, samurai-ashes) I think they would tend to analyze each other pretty dispassionately, when, of course, what they're really doing is looking at themselves. And this distance makes it easier for them to see each other's (or their own) vulnerabilities. Kaiba can look at Seto and see that he is confused, suddenly thrown into a new world, and not as in control – of either himself or his environment – as he'd like to think. And Seto can look at Kaiba and see someone who wants and needs to let Yami closer --- a desire Kaiba hasn't begun to recognize. I think it's a sign of Kaiba's greater maturity that he can look at Seto, see him as being part of himself, and understand him. In contrast, I think Seto can't imagine a future where he is more open to friendship or desire – I think he would have an easier time recognizing the Kaiba from Death-T than the one who emerged from Alcatraz.

Nightmare: (AmunRa, EcoGoth, samurai-ashes, Siiarrei) I was implying that Kaiba had gone in to Seto. As often as he tells himself that he doesn't like Seto (and it's partly true) I don't think he'd be able to sit there and listen to him stifle a sob, without reacting, especially since he understands what he's going through. At the same time, he's not offering sympathy – but a fact Seto can use.

Friendship: (Amarin Rose, Carthage, Desidera, Jess, QueenOfGames2) One thing that struck me after Kaiba's duel with Jounouchi at Alcatraz is how stunned he is when Mokuba tells him that Yugi's friends feel the same way about each other that Seto and Mokuba do. You can see that this is the first time this has ever really registered with Seto, the first time friendship has become a little more than an abstract concept. Earlier, I had Seto say that Mokuba was the exception to all the rules. I think he meant that literally (actually I think he means most of what he says literally – it's part of what makes his observations so funny). After all, between his relatives, the orphanage and Gozaburo – it's possible that not only has he never experienced friendship or people truly caring for each other – but that he might not have observed much of it either. Especially considering the pack of wolves he was raised with at the mansion and at Kaiba Corporation, he might very well think that his bond with Mokuba is something unique. This is a running thread through all his relations with Yugi and his friends – from Death-T through Alcatraz – Kaiba (very) gradually opening his mind to the idea that caring and friendship are not some sort of con game but a reality.

But I think a lot of the nuances of friendship would escape both Seto and Kaiba's notice. And I think play fighting would be the hardest for them to grasp, because their instincts would lead them to see any fight as a life or death situation. Kaiba would have enough life experience to have learned to hold back – although he would be just as clueless as to why this was fun – but Seto would be another story.

Kaiba: (AmunRa, EcoGoth, laura m) I find Kaiba an interesting mix – when he does something he's both logical and efficient in his actions. But what he does, and why is often strikingly non-linear. It's often about his relationship with Mokuba or his past as much as what's going on in front of him. I also see him as being very logical in some things, but as having these very intense emotions that he has a hard time controlling – especially as he doesn't even want to acknowledge their existence.

"I guess he was used to seeing me beat up on myself" I'm glad people noticed that line! It really describes a lot of Kaiba's actions to me. He sets these ridiculously high standards, doesn't accept that he might not succeed at everything he sets out to do, cuts himself no slack, and then berates himself when he falls short of his own unrealistic goals.

Yugi and Kaiba: (Carthage, samurai-ashes, Skecchi) In both the manga and the anime (as opposed to the dub – but let's not go there) is that Kaiba and Yugi have surprisingly little interaction. Kaiba's appearance usually triggers a shift from Yugi to Yami. And, unlike the dub, where Yugi keeps trying to befriend a clearly reluctant Kaiba, in the manga and anime he is far more reserved. For example, when Kaiba first arrives at Duelist's Kingdom, in the dub Yugi asks Kaiba to join them. In the anime, he asks Kaiba if he has found the heart of the cards – which indicates a concern Kaiba's welfare, but not necessarily a strong desire for friendship. Kaiba tells him that he can't answer that yet, but promises to duel fairly – showing that he respects Yugi enough to take his question seriously – which for Kaiba is quite a step forward. This exchange, for me, illustrates the pattern of their relationship. I think Kaiba respects Yugi, but I think of all the characters he is the one most alien to him, the one he understands the least. Similarly, at Alcatraz, when Kaiba tells them about how he designed weapons for Gozaburo and how he was determined to change, Yugi cradles his duel disk, looking shocked and disturbed, and thinks how he never imagined that his duel disk had such an ugly and violent history. I think that also sums up how he feels about Kaiba. I think in this story he would be willing to encourage Yami to get to know Kaiba partly because he's honest enough to realize that Kaiba can offer Yami a kind of help in dealing with his guilt over DOOM that he can't – and also – this is one of the first independent desires Yami has expressed – so I think he would want to help him in any way he could.

But I do think that there are parallels between Yugi and Yami and between K and Mokuba. And I think if Yugi came to close to describing his bond, he'd take refuge in silence.

Death-T: (QueenOfGames2) Death-T isn't really in the anime. The first episode basically just takes the duel with Sugoroku from the beginning of Death-T and the Exodia duel between Y and Kaiba from the end. In the manga, Kaiba builds this insane theme park of death. Y and company have to complete levels, just like in a video game – except here losing your life is for real. Mokuba challenges Y to play Capsule Monster Chess in Level 4. He is following up on two earlier games he has played and lost, and is doing so against Kaiba's wishes. Mokuba is trying to prove his worth to his brother. But Kaiba is so far gone, he believes that Mokuba is planning to turn against him. When Mokuba loses to Y, Kaiba forces him to go through this Death Simulation chamber, knowing it will probably kill him. Yami rescues Mokuba, and faces Kaiba in the Exodia Duel. When he wins, he 'shatters' Kaiba's heart – sending him into a prolonged coma, and giving him the opportunity to rebuild his heart, without the evil that has crept into it. Interestingly, the anime gives the sense that something momentous has occurred – Yami says that he's crushing Kaiba's mind (and those images of Kaiba shattering are meant to reflect the heart shattering motif from the manga) and that Kaiba has been shaken to his soul by the duel, while omitting the coma.

Mokuba: (Jess) That's an interesting question – would Mokuba feel guilty for being brainwashed by Noa? I had actually never considered that, before. I think that he feels somewhat guilty for, by his existence, forcing some pretty horrific choices on Seto. But I also think, he feels so totally loved and valued by Seto that that offers its own protection. As far as the Noa situation, Seto never blames him – if anything, Seto blames himself – and I think that would help Mokuba forgive himself. I guess I'm trying to say that because of Seto's love, Mokuba doesn't put the same kind of unreasonable expectations on himself that Seto does.

POV changes: (Desidera, Mistal: The Poisoned One)Thanks. One thing I do like about shifting the POVs is that in addition to getting to look through events through a variety of eyes, each character does have his or her own wisdom, and this lets that be expressed.