Lu: I'm back. I have been desperate to update this thing, but I haven't got time. A bit of TeaxYami in here, but Tea isn't in the chapter, it's just him thinking about her a lot.
Yami Lu: Why? What is it with the couples? Why don't you write something normal? Please? Please?
Chapter 21 – The Millennium Necklace
Outside, in the real world, Kaiba awoke.
"Seto, what happened?" said Mokuba, running over to him.
"Mai was unplugged. Joey was stressed, so I came back to override the system," said Kaiba.
"I know. Some robed guys tied me up, and started unplugging all of those pods over there. Tea and Tristan came in and knocked them out. They're over there. We were hoping one of you would come back soon, especially you. We wanted to know how Mai was, and get you to help her," said Mokuba.
"Well, Mai isn't too good. She hasn't moved or spoken since she was unplugged. Joey has had to carry her. He's really stressed. He doesn't like seeing Mai like this," said Kaiba.
"Well, you can fix that," said Mokuba. Kaiba walked over to the main control panel. He pressed some buttons.
"Mokuba, can you plug the pods in again?" said Kaiba. Mokuba did so. Kaiba pressed a few more, and finally a big red button. A/N: Yeah, I know that's really typical. A big red button.
"I think that's done. I'll go back in the game. You keep an eye out for any more creeps, and keep an eye on us in the game," said Kaiba, and he walked over to the pod.
When he was back in the game, he had to find the rest of the group. He was pretty sure Bakura and Marik would still be duelling.
"Yugi! Joey! Duke! Mai! Ryou!" he shouted. He heard somebody shouting back. He followed the sound. He found Bakura and Malik still duelling, Joey and Mai hugging, and Duke and Yami standing near Joey and Mai laughing. Joey spotted Kaiba.
"Kaiba!" he said, and launched himself at Kaiba in a brotherly hug. Mai started laughing. Kaiba was startled. He had never had such a friendly action directed towards him. Joey released Kaiba. "You did it!" he said in a joyful voice.
"Yeah. It turns out some robed creeps started unplugging the pods after tying Mokuba up. Tea and Tristan knocked them out after they unplugged Mai. You would have been next, Joey. I don't know who they were, I was keen to get back to you guys," Kaiba said.
"Thanks Kaiba," said Mai. Joey got her in a hug again. Everyone was laughing. Kaiba looked at Bakura and Malik, who seemed to have finished their duel.
"I win!" said Marik. He held out his hand. Bakura scowled, and held his Millennium Ring.
"I'm not going to give it to you," he said. Malik shrugged, and turned to Yami.
"Hand over your Millennium items," said Malik. Yami shook his head.
"I'm not giving them to you," he said. Then he froze.
Yami felt something strange. He felt like he was being pulled through a pitch black vortex, which was all he could see. Then, a bright light appeared. He was pulled towards it and came out the other side.
He was floating in the air, maybe 4 or 5 metres above the ground. He surveyed the scene below, and his eyes widened in horror. Tea was lying on the ground. Her arms and legs were jutting out at different angles, and her face was pale.
Yami then felt the pull again, and he returned to reality.
"Yami, are you OK? Yami?" said Joey's voice. Yami opened his eyes. The concerned faces of his friends surrounded his view. Joey, Mai, Duke, Ryou and Kaiba were standing over him.
"Yami, what happened?" asked Duke. Yami was speechless. He had just seen one of his friends near death, and he didn't like it one bit. Especially because it was her.
"It was the Millennium Necklace. It activated and I saw Tea looking like she was almost dead," he said hoarsely. Mai gasped.
"Tea? What happened?" asked Ryou. Yami gulped. He was panting.
"Her limbs were all at different angles. Her face was really pale," he said.
"Not paler dan yours is now, mate," said Joey.
"What happened with Malik?" asked Yami.
"He's still waiting impatiently for your items," said Kaiba. They all stood back. Joey helped Yami up. He supported Yami, who seemed too shocked to move.
'No, not Tea. Don't take Tea. Tea's more than a friend to me,' Yami thought.
/Is that really how you feel about her/ asked Yugi from the soul room. Yami looked around and saw his Hikari.
/Yes/ said Yami without hesitation.
/My alter ego, liking my oldest friend/ said Yugi, smiling and shaking his head.
/Yugi! This is serious! Tea is going to die if we don't do something/ said Yami. Yugi's face fell.
/I'm sorry, Yami, you're right/ he said.
"Yami, what are we goin' to do?" said Joey, breaking the spirit's conversation.
"We've got to get back to Tea and warn her," said Yami.
"How do you think we're going to do that?" asked Ryou. Kaiba checked his watch.
"The stimulation ends in half an hour, so we can tell her when we get back," he said.
"But by then, it might be too late," said Yami.
"I can't do anything about that. No one except me can get back by using the voice activated commands. It really will not be long before we are back there with Tea, and Mokuba and Tristan," said Kaiba.
"Yami, I know what it's like to have de loss of someone close to you at hand," said Joey, glancing at Mai. "But, as you said, we've always got through everything. We've been through tough times before, but we always manage. I'm not being unsympathetic or anythin', but I'm tryin' to calm you down, just like you did with me while Mai was in trouble. And if she does get in trouble, she knows dat you'd do anythin' for her. Dat would be enough to keep her goin', knowin' dat you were gonna come and get her, like I did with Mai." Yami looked at Joey, and saw his brown eyes staring steadily at him. Yami drew a deep breath, and sighed.
"Of course, you're right. I shouldn't have broken down like that," he said. Joey clapped Yami on the back.
"Dat's my man. Now, let's make de most of de time we got left here and try and locate de next map," he said.
"We've gotta go this way," said Kaiba pointing up a path. Malik cleared his throat.
"I may remind you that I could do anything to any one of you at any moment," he said in an annoyed tone. Yami turned to him.
"Marik, if you hurt even the hair on the heads of my friends, I swear that I will personally take you down. In a duel, in a Shadow Game, I don't care where, but you will go down," he said in a quavering voice.
"And I'll be right dere with him," said Joey, stepping forward.
"And me," said Mai, following Joey.
"And me," said Ryou, stepping to the other side of Yami.
"And me, I suppose," said Kaiba. Malik looked at all of them, and started laughing.
"Do you really think that your threats matter to me? And who from? A CEO of a company, someone who can't even control their Millennium item, some guy and his girlfriend and an ancient Pharaoh. Really threatening," he said, an evil grin back on his face.
"Malik, I challenge you to a Shadow Game. If I win, you leave my friends alone," shouted Yami.
"And if I win, you give me the Millennium Necklace," said Malik. Yami hesitated and then nodded. His Millennium Puzzle and Necklace flashed, and the golden beams from both of them combined to make a white light. Malik's Rod flashed golden, and the two beams of light clashed. They began struggling against each other. One minute, the golden light was subsiding, the next it was pushing the white light towards Yami. Yami braced himself as the golden light hit him.
"I won, Bel um Fal," said Malik triumphantly. Yami growled, but began to remove his Millennium Necklace. He handed it to Malik. Malik lifted up in the air, probably to admire his prize. Yami held out his hand for a handshake. Malik ignored him. Yami sighed.
"Let's go," he said.
"This way," said Kaiba. They started to walk away.
"Yami, are you OK?" said Joey once they were out of earshot.
"I suppose. I feel a bit guilty. That was given to me by Ishizu Ishtar, to help me defeat her brother. And I give it to him on a platter," said Yami.
"Look!" said Mai, running over to a tree. She pointed up it. A map was glowing in one of the braches.
"Allow me," said Joey, and he gave her a boost. She took the map from the branches.
"All right!" said Joey. Everyone looked over Mai's shoulder. The star on this map seemed to be in the middle of the desert. Kaiba checked his watch.
"Only thirty seconds until we have to go back," he said. Everyone stood there blankly, waiting for the time to return.
"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one," said Kaiba, keeping his eyes on the watch. A black light surrounded them, and they disappeared.
Lu: Here's to the end of another chapter and the beginning of some YamixTea. But Seto and Serenity get together before there is much more. But there's lots! Coming up!
Yami Lu: Well, I'm tired. Nighties! snore
Lu: Riiight... that's weird... oh well! Review!