As the darkness surrounded her in her dreams, Chance again felt the solid liquid quality of the shadows that threatened to pull her under. This time however, the terror that she felt as she tried to escape the slow suction of the black forms was not enough to waken her form the nightmare.
Not one to go down with out a fight she struggled to find a way out of the mess she was in. Independent. Alone. Lonely, yet proud and defiant. Chance gathered her focus and started the slow process of getting herself moved in the direction she felt a solid surface in. She didn't know why she felt the direction she was going in was the right one. She just knew with out a doubt.
Slow wasn't the word for the speed she was going. Chance felt like she was moving through Molasses in the middle of December. Tar would have been easier to move through. Unable to see anything around her, Chance started to shift her focus on her senses hearing, smelling, feeling everything around her she found that all but touch was useless. There was nothing to smell, nothing to taste, nothing to hear in this black hole.
Starting to get unnerved Chance finally made her way to the more solid section of wherever she was in her mind. The pit of whatever she was in gave way and allowed her to climb out. As she sat in the dream to regain her sense of perspective she found that she could see a small point of light.
Looking toward it she saw two other points of light. Slightly above and to the sides of the white point of light, these were smaller and blue. The positioning reminded her of eyes when she realized that the white point of light was getting bigger. Along with the increase in size came the increase in the sense of danger that she felt herself to be in as she realized that there was now the smell of ozone in the air and no place for her to go to in order to avoid whatever the white light was.
Taking a big risk, Chance stood up and faced the direction she felt the danger coming from. As she focused more and more on what she could see, she felt a presence start to take hold in her dream. Cocking her head to one side she spoke up. "Who are you?"
Though the owner of the voice was a good distance away, it seemed as if the voice that replied to her was right there inside her own mind. "I guard the High Priest from the Shadow Realm. You, as his most trusted Lieutenant will soon come to know me. You have passed my test. You had difficulty, but you passed."
The voice was dual toned, but dominantly feminine in tone, volume, and feel. Chance was still straining to see who owned the eyes that now looked at her with out malice. "You will not be able to see me unless I choose to present myself. Sleep Lieutenant, for I will guard your dreams this night."
Chance found she had no choice in the matter as the scenery blacked out around her and she once again fell into a deeper unconsciousness.
If Chance dreamed anymore that evening she did not remember them when she awoke the next morning more refreshed than she had been the last few weeks. Looking over at her clock she realized that she had slept through her alarm. Panicking mildly she checked her cell phone for messages and was relieved that she had an unexpected day off. The Flu season had broken out unusually early and unusually virulent this year. Mokuba had been one of those that had gotten the flu shot and still came down with a full bout of the virus. He'd be home for at least the next two days if not longer.
Looking at the clock and then at her schedule she figured that she could use the rest of the day to look over some records that she had gotten behind on and finish up a couple of reports on her last training class. She was grateful that she had picked up a laptop computer as she made herself a cup of tea and then with her work in hand, crawled back into bed to relax as she worked. If she had her way, Chance wasn't going to be leaving this room for the day.
Hooking up her ear piece she tapped into Seto's com system and let him know that she had received the message and would be in if not that afternoon then the next day with a verbal report as well as the written reports that he always insisted that she write up about the various classes she taught and of course the daily run around with Mokuba. She knew that he wasn't making her do it out of spite. There was a lot that happened and the only way to spot a pattern was to write it out and keep records most of the time. Hopefully, there would be no real need for all of this, but life seldom played fair and with the history behind the Kaiba brothers she would not be surprised if something happened again soon. Especially after the mess that night a couple months back with the thief.
She had been cleared for full active duty less than a month after she had been shot. Mostly because she pushed herself harder than the physical therapists pushed her. That and her near constant complaints filed with the various doctors all added up to her getting released sooner than normal to get her back into a routine that was familiar to her, and get her off their backs.
Still. She was much quieter, and the normally easy going demeanor that had been an integral part of Chance's personality had all but disappeared. When it did surface, it was forced, usually at the order of Mokuba when she overstepped her own bounds with the young man. Looking around the room Chance decided that with the world calming down after the last flare up over Kaiba Corp's acquisition of another major technological firm, she too could relax some. She would be of no use to either of the Kaiba's if she worked herself into the ground now.
Yet her dreams and general uneasiness still bothered her. Something was coming. And now there was the added mystery of who it was that was "protecting" Seto Kaiba from this "Shadow Realm". Chance wasn't certain that she believed all the magical mumbo jumbo that was constantly batted about over that topic. But she could not deny that there was a severe change in the young Mouto's mannerisms and speech when the "Yami" spirit took over. Still. Until she had incontrovertible proof that all of that was real, she was more inclined to believe that young Yugi had Multiple personality disorder.
The only thing that she had any assurance about was that the "Yami" personality was even more protective of Mokuba than the Yugi personality. That was hard to believe considering how much Yugi and Mokuba acted like brothers. There wasn't much of a height difference between the two boys even if there was an age difference. If Yugi was going to hit his growth spurt, he'd better do it soon or he'd be a "shrimp" forever.
Not that Yugi being a shrimp ever had much to do with any situation when the Yami personality came to the fore. At that the personality was a protectorate. Chance could see it. It usually only came out when Yugi was in distress or one of the group of friends he hung out with was in trouble. What Chance couldn't figure out was how a boy so young had the past that would be required to trigger the Multiple Personality Symptoms to manifest. That and his ability to somewhat control when the personality manifested was also a mystery that she was certain several psychiatric doctors in the lab settings would love to study.
Shaking her head at her latest side tracking of her mind, Chance went and started into several reports. By this time she had a Format form that she liked to use when she was reporting on the classes that she taught with the security staff of Kaiba Corp. It made her notes easy to decipher and it made it easier to pick out the important details.
Working with her focus now in place, she made her way through several short reports before her body betrayed her with a loud growl of hunger. Rolling her eyes and saving her work she moved to make some lunch. As she worked in the kitchen the phone rang. Turning down the heat under her soup she answered, holding back the note of impatience in her voice as she failed to recognize the caller ID. "Yes?"
"Omae o Korosu." Came the not so thinly veiled threat of death.
Chance laughed. "Jamok you nut ball, where are you? Last I heard you had been shipped off to the states to go train with the American military and CIA."
The male voice that had now been identified came back. "I just got back to this side of the pacific yesterday. I went to look you up but your folks told me that you moved. Something to do with a job as a bodyguard to one of the Kaiba Brothers?"
"Yeah yeah. It's not all been a bed of roses either. I'm surprised that you didn't hear about the fiasco resulting in one of my more public representations." Chance managed to make her job sound absolutely painful even though she was grinning.
"That was you?!" Came the surprised response. It was quite easy at this time to visualize him with his jaw resting comfortably by his feet. "I heard that some woman had "snagged" Seto Kaiba when the news came out that he was attending the tech conference in the states. He apparently put the kibosh on that story right quick. Knowing who the 'other woman' was, I can see why. If you are anything like you were when we were playing Duel Monsters against each other, you definitely had words to say about your abilities to focus on your work."
Chance was laughing again and nodding even though she knew that Jamok couldn't hear it. "Got it in one. Tell you one thing. Seto Kaiba doesn't mess around when it comes to home security. And when it's threatened from the direction of his little brother he goes into overdrive to get it taken care of."
"I've got to get going," Chance continued after a few more minutes of inane conversation. "I have food on the stove and reports to write up after lunch."
"Well maybe we can get together some evening and catch up on what all I've missed from being State side for a year?" Jamok put on his 'puppy-eyes' tone of voice and was rewarded with a laughing reassurance that they would get together soon.
Hanging up the phone, Chance smiled to herself before going back to the stove to finish heating the soup. It looked like this week would be looking up after all.
Not one to go down with out a fight she struggled to find a way out of the mess she was in. Independent. Alone. Lonely, yet proud and defiant. Chance gathered her focus and started the slow process of getting herself moved in the direction she felt a solid surface in. She didn't know why she felt the direction she was going in was the right one. She just knew with out a doubt.
Slow wasn't the word for the speed she was going. Chance felt like she was moving through Molasses in the middle of December. Tar would have been easier to move through. Unable to see anything around her, Chance started to shift her focus on her senses hearing, smelling, feeling everything around her she found that all but touch was useless. There was nothing to smell, nothing to taste, nothing to hear in this black hole.
Starting to get unnerved Chance finally made her way to the more solid section of wherever she was in her mind. The pit of whatever she was in gave way and allowed her to climb out. As she sat in the dream to regain her sense of perspective she found that she could see a small point of light.
Looking toward it she saw two other points of light. Slightly above and to the sides of the white point of light, these were smaller and blue. The positioning reminded her of eyes when she realized that the white point of light was getting bigger. Along with the increase in size came the increase in the sense of danger that she felt herself to be in as she realized that there was now the smell of ozone in the air and no place for her to go to in order to avoid whatever the white light was.
Taking a big risk, Chance stood up and faced the direction she felt the danger coming from. As she focused more and more on what she could see, she felt a presence start to take hold in her dream. Cocking her head to one side she spoke up. "Who are you?"
Though the owner of the voice was a good distance away, it seemed as if the voice that replied to her was right there inside her own mind. "I guard the High Priest from the Shadow Realm. You, as his most trusted Lieutenant will soon come to know me. You have passed my test. You had difficulty, but you passed."
The voice was dual toned, but dominantly feminine in tone, volume, and feel. Chance was still straining to see who owned the eyes that now looked at her with out malice. "You will not be able to see me unless I choose to present myself. Sleep Lieutenant, for I will guard your dreams this night."
Chance found she had no choice in the matter as the scenery blacked out around her and she once again fell into a deeper unconsciousness.
If Chance dreamed anymore that evening she did not remember them when she awoke the next morning more refreshed than she had been the last few weeks. Looking over at her clock she realized that she had slept through her alarm. Panicking mildly she checked her cell phone for messages and was relieved that she had an unexpected day off. The Flu season had broken out unusually early and unusually virulent this year. Mokuba had been one of those that had gotten the flu shot and still came down with a full bout of the virus. He'd be home for at least the next two days if not longer.
Looking at the clock and then at her schedule she figured that she could use the rest of the day to look over some records that she had gotten behind on and finish up a couple of reports on her last training class. She was grateful that she had picked up a laptop computer as she made herself a cup of tea and then with her work in hand, crawled back into bed to relax as she worked. If she had her way, Chance wasn't going to be leaving this room for the day.
Hooking up her ear piece she tapped into Seto's com system and let him know that she had received the message and would be in if not that afternoon then the next day with a verbal report as well as the written reports that he always insisted that she write up about the various classes she taught and of course the daily run around with Mokuba. She knew that he wasn't making her do it out of spite. There was a lot that happened and the only way to spot a pattern was to write it out and keep records most of the time. Hopefully, there would be no real need for all of this, but life seldom played fair and with the history behind the Kaiba brothers she would not be surprised if something happened again soon. Especially after the mess that night a couple months back with the thief.
She had been cleared for full active duty less than a month after she had been shot. Mostly because she pushed herself harder than the physical therapists pushed her. That and her near constant complaints filed with the various doctors all added up to her getting released sooner than normal to get her back into a routine that was familiar to her, and get her off their backs.
Still. She was much quieter, and the normally easy going demeanor that had been an integral part of Chance's personality had all but disappeared. When it did surface, it was forced, usually at the order of Mokuba when she overstepped her own bounds with the young man. Looking around the room Chance decided that with the world calming down after the last flare up over Kaiba Corp's acquisition of another major technological firm, she too could relax some. She would be of no use to either of the Kaiba's if she worked herself into the ground now.
Yet her dreams and general uneasiness still bothered her. Something was coming. And now there was the added mystery of who it was that was "protecting" Seto Kaiba from this "Shadow Realm". Chance wasn't certain that she believed all the magical mumbo jumbo that was constantly batted about over that topic. But she could not deny that there was a severe change in the young Mouto's mannerisms and speech when the "Yami" spirit took over. Still. Until she had incontrovertible proof that all of that was real, she was more inclined to believe that young Yugi had Multiple personality disorder.
The only thing that she had any assurance about was that the "Yami" personality was even more protective of Mokuba than the Yugi personality. That was hard to believe considering how much Yugi and Mokuba acted like brothers. There wasn't much of a height difference between the two boys even if there was an age difference. If Yugi was going to hit his growth spurt, he'd better do it soon or he'd be a "shrimp" forever.
Not that Yugi being a shrimp ever had much to do with any situation when the Yami personality came to the fore. At that the personality was a protectorate. Chance could see it. It usually only came out when Yugi was in distress or one of the group of friends he hung out with was in trouble. What Chance couldn't figure out was how a boy so young had the past that would be required to trigger the Multiple Personality Symptoms to manifest. That and his ability to somewhat control when the personality manifested was also a mystery that she was certain several psychiatric doctors in the lab settings would love to study.
Shaking her head at her latest side tracking of her mind, Chance went and started into several reports. By this time she had a Format form that she liked to use when she was reporting on the classes that she taught with the security staff of Kaiba Corp. It made her notes easy to decipher and it made it easier to pick out the important details.
Working with her focus now in place, she made her way through several short reports before her body betrayed her with a loud growl of hunger. Rolling her eyes and saving her work she moved to make some lunch. As she worked in the kitchen the phone rang. Turning down the heat under her soup she answered, holding back the note of impatience in her voice as she failed to recognize the caller ID. "Yes?"
"Omae o Korosu." Came the not so thinly veiled threat of death.
Chance laughed. "Jamok you nut ball, where are you? Last I heard you had been shipped off to the states to go train with the American military and CIA."
The male voice that had now been identified came back. "I just got back to this side of the pacific yesterday. I went to look you up but your folks told me that you moved. Something to do with a job as a bodyguard to one of the Kaiba Brothers?"
"Yeah yeah. It's not all been a bed of roses either. I'm surprised that you didn't hear about the fiasco resulting in one of my more public representations." Chance managed to make her job sound absolutely painful even though she was grinning.
"That was you?!" Came the surprised response. It was quite easy at this time to visualize him with his jaw resting comfortably by his feet. "I heard that some woman had "snagged" Seto Kaiba when the news came out that he was attending the tech conference in the states. He apparently put the kibosh on that story right quick. Knowing who the 'other woman' was, I can see why. If you are anything like you were when we were playing Duel Monsters against each other, you definitely had words to say about your abilities to focus on your work."
Chance was laughing again and nodding even though she knew that Jamok couldn't hear it. "Got it in one. Tell you one thing. Seto Kaiba doesn't mess around when it comes to home security. And when it's threatened from the direction of his little brother he goes into overdrive to get it taken care of."
"I've got to get going," Chance continued after a few more minutes of inane conversation. "I have food on the stove and reports to write up after lunch."
"Well maybe we can get together some evening and catch up on what all I've missed from being State side for a year?" Jamok put on his 'puppy-eyes' tone of voice and was rewarded with a laughing reassurance that they would get together soon.
Hanging up the phone, Chance smiled to herself before going back to the stove to finish heating the soup. It looked like this week would be looking up after all.