Note: This chappy is very crammed, so it may be a little confusing. Any questions, just leave 'em in a review XD
Ok! Ok! Hey people! Welcome to the long-awaited Chapter
Fourteen of Soul Destruction; Metempsychosis! Question,
has anyone looked up the word 'metempsychosis'? It was important to
the plot, ya know! XD
I hope you guys enjoy the chappy! You
finally get to see where the Soul Destruction name came from!
Well, actually, it came from a slightly different version of the
plot; but plots develop and stories change, so it's an ikkle
different. Mostly the same though.
30 views for a teaser! Thankies
peeps! -glomp-
No more babbling! You guys got a lot to read!
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!
"This is talking"
"These are thoughts and
mind-messages"
Chapter Fourteen - Soul Destruction
"My darkness is near," Yami called back to the group racing behind him, hearing the chirping of his Kuriboh-like voice in his own ears. Though English left his mouth, that was not what the others heard. He was about to stop and try to warn them when he heard Ryoura calling Yami's message to the others. "Of coarse, he can understand me!" He almost felt like hitting himself for forgetting.
At Yami's relayed words, the group slowed down to little faster then a jog, before slowing to a walk. They had all been racing as fast as their feet had been able to carry them, but not one of them knew what was going to happen once they reached Yami's darker side. Where they supposed to attack? Should they burst in to jump the dark spirit, or creep in and surprise him? Could they, even? The spirit now held six Millennium Items, the only one left being the Millennium Rod the Steve gripped tightly in his fist.
Ilia stepped a little closer to Steve as the rounded a corner, a square patch of light appearing at the opposite end of the corridor. Seeing this, Steve reached out and held her hand, squeezing it tightly. Joe and Ryoura glanced at each other, but quickly looked away. Neither teen wanted their friend to see they were scared. Bakura led the group silently, walking quickly, but just slow enough to show his mind was distracted. Like the rest of the group, he was wondering what was going to happen when they reached the chamber.
"Hmm... they are close..." the dark spirit of Yami whispered to himself, a smirk spreading across his face as he turned away from the entrance of the chamber to look to Yugi. The Puzzle-spirit was sitting on the steps of the alter, eyes cast to the floor and wrists pressed one on top of the other, resting on his knees and bound in a glowing red chain of magic.
Turning Yami made his way towards the younger boy, raising his hand and pointing towards him. With a flash of light, Yugi's wrists jumped up into the air and pulled him to his feet, gaining a yelp from the puzzle-spirit. Yami stopped where he was and flicked his hand as if beckoning Yugi to him, and the same force dragged Yugi quickly, wrists first and feet dragging along the floor, towards Yami. Throwing his hand up in the air as the puzzle-spirit nearly collided with him, Yugi was lifted a foot or so off the ground right in front of Yami, hanging painfully by his wrists. "We must prepare for them..." Yami hissed, smiling.
Yugi forced his eyes open and frowned, "Yami-"
"Shut up!" Yami yelled in a burst of anger, throwing his arm down. A force struck Yugi hard from above and crushed him against the floor until Yami lifted his hand, releasing the pressure off him. Yugi coughed and looked up at Yami with a mixture of fear and hatred, but Yami ignored him. Throwing his hand up again Yugi shot into the air and hung a few feet off the ground. Yami smirked and said, "There's no point in arguing with me Yugi... I have made my decision."
Yugi narrowed his eyes and swung his leg forward without a second thought, striking the dark spirit square the in chest. Yami stumbled back and gasp, the wind having been knocked out of him from the attack.
Yami raised his gaze to Yugi's and narrowed his eyes in anger. "You'll pay for that..." he hissed.
"I don't know who you are..." Yugi whispered, staring right back at the spirit without fear, "but you're not Yami... At least not anymore. I can see it in your eyes," the spirit blinked at this then scoffed and turned away, as if trying to hide his eyes from Yugi, "There's no life in you. The only reason you're here is because you stole someone else's life force. But that means nothing, does it? You're already dead..."
"What do you know of these things?" the darker Yami sighed, sounding bored, suddenly finding the cuff of his jacket very interesting.
"I..." Yugi looked down, "I know that your soul... your soul is Yami, there's no doubt about that..." The spirit smirked and began to examine his other sleeve, "But you are only a small part of him. Your soul is in pieces, pulled together by one powerful emotion, one I can only assume is anger or hate-"
Yami sighed dramatically, silencing Yugi. "Are you trying to comfort yourself, Yugi?" he asked, turning to face the younger spirit, "Are you trying to reassure yourself with lies so you don't have to feel guilty for making me this way? I suppose I can understand..." he smirked and took a step towards Yugi, who clearly would have stepped back had his feet been touching the ground, "After all, you've felt the guilt of letting your hikari get taken for months..."
Yugi frowned, refusing to break eye contact, "The rest of you felt the same way about me as I do for Yujhi; Yami would never let anything happen to me, not if he could help it."
The spirit's smirk faded slightly, "You say my name as if I'm not here."
"You're here," Yugi growled angrily, "but Yami's not."
Sighing heavily the spirit waved his hand dismissively, "Again with the denial."
"What denial?" Yugi asked, shifting slightly. He was obviously in much more pain then he was showing, hanging by his wrists. "You think that just because you're one of his emotions you represent Yami? You may be a piece of his soul, but your saturated with hate and loathing that's had millennia to grow and form it's own personality. You're just a creation of darkness and the Shadow Realm, just like Yami Marik was. And just like Yami Marik, I'm going to find a way to defeat you."
Yami chuckled and shook his head, "Oh... Poor Yugi... You have no idea what's going on, do you? Did five thousand years alone blur your mind to the difference between reality and imagination?" Yami stepped forward again and raised his hand beside Yugi's face. The younger spirit jerked away, but movement was restricted, so Yami merely smiled at his reaction. Placing his hand on the side of Yugi's face he forced the spirit to look at him, "I don't like your attitude, Yugi," he gripped the side of Yugi's face, digging his nails into the skin just under Yugi's eyes, earning a hiss of pain from the puzzle-spirit, "But murderers can't be choosers... I have a little task for you..."
"A task?" Yugi forced his open, just before Yami took his hand away from Yugi's face and held it before his eye. Yugi's eyes grew wide and he tried to yell.
The darkness claimed him before he could.
The tension was so deep the entire group jumped when the Kuriboh-chirp of Yami's voice spoke up, though much quieter then usual, "I must get to Yugi," he said, repeating himself from their earlier conversation.
"To summon more power, right?" Ryoura asked, as the only member of the group that had understood what Yami said.
"Exactly. I don't want any of you in any unnecessary danger, but I don't believe my darkness will attack you right away," Yami paused as he waited for Ryoura to relay the message, then said, "so I need you to go in first, so I can make my move and reach Yugi before my darkness knows what has happened."
Bakura frowned when Ryoura finished translating Yami's words. "Oh? And what if Yugi's already dead?"
The group visible flinched at Bakura's words. "Bakura don't say that!" Ilia gasped, holding Steve's hand tighter.
"Well Pharaoh?" Bakura looked up at the ball of light, "I want an answer. If we get in there and Yugi's dead, then you won't have a catalyst to summon any more of your powers. What then?" he shook his head, "I refuse to walk deliberately into a trap."
"Bakura!" Ryoura was shocked at his yami's harshness, but the spiritual form of Yami, visible to Ryoura as a human while to the others he was a mere ball of light, nodded in understanding, though he looked hurt. Frowning, Ryoura relayed Yami's words as he spoke, "He says that his darker side won't kill Yugi before... he kills us... He wants Yugi to suffer," Ryoura spoke with a dead tone; he didn't want to give life to these words anymore, "so he'll kill us first."
"And I can sense him..." Yami sighed, shutting his eyes momentarily. "A weak wave of repressed magic... but it's unmistakably Yugi's. I would recognise that soul signature anywhere."
"Me too," Yujhi nodded in agreement, his eyes also shut like Yami's. "Yugi's still alive, guys."
"Then we'll get him back," Joe tapped Yujhi on the shoulder to snap him out of his trance, giving his smaller friend a thumbs up, "don't worry about it!"
Bakura scoffed and looked back at the group, "Don't make promises you may not be able to keep."
"A little optimism never hurt, Bakura," Ryoura smiled, looking towards the door. They had come much closer to the door as they talked, and were now only a short distance from it. The light behind it seemed to have dimmed. Bakura stopped, and the group stopped behind him.
Yami fell back a little. "Whenever your ready."
"I'll never be ready..." Steve muttered, only loud enough for Ilia to hear. Lifting the Millennium Rod from his side and holding it in front of him he looked down into the eye of the item. "Don't mess us." he mentally ordered, glancing up when he saw the others moving. Taking a deep breath he followed. "Don't mess up Steve."
The room they entered flared to life the moment the ground entered. Two torches had been lit by the alter at the opposite side of the long chamber, the pathway to it lined with thick large columns painted with images of pharaohs and Egyptian gods, but it shed little light. As soon as Bakura's foot touched the floor, however, flames erupted from the torches embedded in each pillar, casting a fiery glow across the pillars and the floor between them.
Instantly Bakura's gaze shot to the areas behind the columns, still in darkness, a perfect place to hide. But he needn't have. Yami was in clear view when the lights came on, standing right beside the doorway they had just walked through, leaning against the wall. He smirked when the group spotted him and jumped back. "It's about time."
"Where's Yugi?" Yujhi demanded at once. He had been planning to keep calm and try to distract the spirit into a conversation of some sort, so his good side could find Yugi. One smirk had made him snap, though.
"Yugi?" Yami asked in fake confusion, looking to the ceiling. He wasn't worried about taking his eyes off his enemies, which unsettled them all. Smiling in an almost friendly fashion, he looked at the group and pointed behind them, "Why, he's right behind you!"
"Down!" Bakura yelled, the group obeying immediately. The blade of a sword swung right over their heads. While Bakura kept his eye on Yami, the rest of the group turned to Yugi, standing a few feet behind the group with the hilt of a sword gripped tightly in his hands. Surprising, the Puzzle still hung around his neck.
"Yugi!" Yujhi yelled, getting back to his feet, quickly followed by his friends.
"He's under a spell!" Ryoura grabbed Yujhi's arm in case he went to make a move towards his yami, whose normally violet eyes had darkened, almost black now. Before he could say anymore Yugi leapt forward again, swinging his sword in an arch towards the group. They managed to dodge it, but only narrowly.
"I believe he received his swordsmanship skill from me," Yami said, almost proudly, as Yugi managed to inflict a deep cut in Joe's arm, "from when I was Pharaoh. I was good at it. So good I was given my very own khepesh sword-"
"Are you so scared of us your going to make Yugi do all your fighting for you!" Bakura yelled angrily, and in a flash of green his Millennium Sabre appeared. It took much more effort then Bakura let on, his magic was weaker then any of the others right now. Yami glanced at the sword with little interest, then smiled at Bakura. This did nothing but infuriate the spirit more, "Come on and fight me Pharaoh! Or must I kill your hikari to get your attention?"
"You will do no such thing," Yami said calmly, a smile still on his face, "that's my job."
Bakura growled, "You call yourself a yami..."
"I used to, but not anymore," Yami looked over Bakura's shouldered and his eyebrow rose with interest, "Your friends don't seem to be holding up very well. If they don't stop using so much magic they'll run out."
"Don't think you can trick me into turning around," Bakura muttered, but he knew Yami was right. From where he was standing he could feel waves of magic in the air. The were using far to much. "Ryoura! Stop using so much magic!"
"We don't have a choice Bakura!" Ryoura's panicked voice echoed in his mind, "His attacks come too fast, we've no other way to defend ourselves!"
Yami wasn't going to attack, he was to busy enjoying his entertainment. "Do I attack him, or Yugi?" Bakura thought. If he attacked Yami, the spirit would surely be provoked into using at the power of his items, which may distract him long enough for his lighter side to get to Yugi. But a spontaneous attack from Yami could be more damaging then it was worth.
Steve yelled and swung the Millennium Rod upwards, blocking the sword attack from Yugi by catching the blade in the wing-like designs beside the eye. He stumbled back as Yugi swung the sword at him again, instinctively throwing up a barrier. The sword bounced off the barrier, but with that slight resistance Yugi turned on another member of the group.
"Yugi snap out of it!" Yujhi yelled as his yami dived at Ilia, and would have struck her had Joe not crashed into Yugi's side just in time.
He'd been standing around too long, he had to help. Turning away from Yami Bakura darted for Yugi, surprised the spirit didn't attack his at he ran, and thrust his blade in the path of Yugi's, stopping it from striking Ryoura. "Move!" he yelled at his hikari, striking Yugi's blade back and standing, sword ready, before Yugi.
"Could I break the spell?" Steve called, holding up the Millennium Rod.
"It's worth a shot!" Ilia said as she appeared at Steve's side. With Bakura as his main target now, Yujhi, Joe and Ryoura quickly joined Ilia and Steve, automatically reaching their hands out and placing them on Steve's arms and shoulders. He needed all the strength he could get.
"What do I do?" Steve asked, bewildered.
"Just focus your power, I'll do the rest," Ilia said, placing one hand on his shoulder and the other over his hand that held the Millennium Rod directly in front of him. Steve could feel the energies and magic from his friends mixing inside his body, making him feel sick, but Ilia was quick to manipulate the powers inside him and focus them in the Millennium Rod, muttering the words of a spell under her breath.
Bakura pressed his blade hard against Yugi's, holding it there. Yugi was surprisingly strong, but Bakura had the height advantage. Glancing sideways, Bakura's eyes grew wide. "Where's Yami gone!"
Steve yelled and threw his arms in the arm, before bringing the Millennium Rod down to strike the floor. An explosion of magic shot from the eye of the Rod, shining golden, and struck Yugi hard in the back between the shoulder blades. The force threw Yugi forward into Bakura, the sword slipping from his fingers and hitting the cold stone floor. Almost instantly his eyes shot open and looked up at Bakura, shock evident in his voice. "B-Bakura?"
The Ring-keeper shoved the confused Yugi roughly away from himself and turned to face the spot where Yami had once been. Where had he gone?
"Whoa..." Steve blinked a he opened his eyes, his vision swimming before him. "Th-that was hard..."
"I'll never get used to that energy sharing thing..." Joe sighed.
"Why not share some of that wonderful energy with me?"
A stream of red magic shot into the room from outside the doorway, whipping through the air like a vine and struck Steve square in the chest. An explosion of light threw the group apart, the red cord of magic wrapping quickly around the Millennium Rod in Steve's hand and tearing it from it's masters grip. "No!" Steve yelled, diving for the Rod, but it was pulled out of his reach and he crashed to the floor.
The red cord tossed the Millennium Rod back and faded away, sending the item spiralling towards the door, where Yami appeared, hand raised, to catch the Rod with little or no effort in the palm in his hand. He twirled it slightly before lowering his hand, looking at it with the same spark in his eyes as a child with a new toy. "Impressive spell." Yami complemented in Steve's direction, though the teen was clearly too dazed to hear, "Shame I predicted it."
"Bakura..." Ryoura's voice echoed, the teen pushing himself to his feet, "That red thing, it... drained my magic."
"What?" Bakura looked back at Ryoura as he pulled Ilia to her feet. Yugi and Yujhi ran to each other with the same questions of concern leaving their mouths, Steve and Joe pushing themselves off the floor, looking towards Yami. The level of magic radiating from the group had certainly decreased.
"Ah yes, the magic loss," Yami waved his hand through the air, uninterested. "Well, they were sharing their powers with Steve, why not me also?"
Bakura growled and looked back at Yugi, who had just turned his attention to Yami. "Where the hell is that stupid ball of-"
"Language, tomb-robber," Yami scolded in fake shock, "there's no need to get angry. This is what your looking for, isn't it?"
The entire group froze in shock as Yami held up his hand, a red glowing box of magic floating a few inches above his hand, a number of tread-like lines shooting through it.
And right in the centre was the lighter side of Yami's soul, imprisoned in crimson magic.
Yami smirked as the group stared at the box in shock, "You should not think your plans so loudly," he muttered, lowering his hand, the box staying floating in the air, and pulling the Millennium Eye out of his pocket, "Your minds can hide nothing once I'm searching for your thoughts..."
"Yugi was a distraction," Bakura thought, realisation hitting him, "So he could trap is lighter side!"
"What a sharp little tomb-robber you are," Yami smiled, and almost as soon as he did a pair of solid rock doorways shot out of the sides of the doorway and crashed together, blocking the only way out of the room. Yami pocketed the eye, "But not smart enough to stay out of here…"
A flash came from the red box, accompanied with a Kuriboh noise. But this was not a chirp like the others. It was an agonising screech. Chuckling Yami hit the box, forcing it to float a little further upwards. When Yugi looked more closely, he noticed the ball of light had shrunk. "My lighter side will not be able to help you now, not with my spell of Soul Destruction."
"Soul Destruction?" Yugi whispered, fear gripping him. No, he couldn't do that!
"Yes... quite a painful fate. Some say an eternity in the Shadow Realm is more desirably then the few minutes this spell lasts. I'm sure my light will enjoy it," Yami twirled the rod and smirked, "do you believe he is your other half?" he pointed towards the orb, "Then witness the death of your Yami!"
"No!" Yugi yelled helplessly. He would have charged to aid his yami, but the darker side pointed the Rod forward and sent a ball of magic towards the group. Grabbing Yujhi's hand Yugi darted left while Bakura and the others darted right, diving out of the line of fire.
Yami laughed loudly, his arms thrown out by his side. Behind him the box flashed again, and another cry of agony followed. "This is it, Yugi! I will finally have my revenge!"
Yugi pressed himself against the pillar halfway between the door and the alter, trying desperately to steady his breaths, as if not to alert Yami to his presence. Yujhi gripped the sleeve of Yugi's jacket, hands shivering in fear. The younger one yelped slightly when Yami's cold laugh sounded, but shut his mouth tightly afterwards.
"Oh Yugi... How long will you drag out this little game of ours?" Yami asked, his voice dropped drastically to a calm, icy cold. There was a ring of metal on metal through the air; the Millennium Rod had been unsheathed, revealing a golden blade. "You know neither you nor your friends will leave this temple alive... why prolong the torment?" Yujhi looked up at Yugi, half waiting for him to answer, but the spirit just narrowed his eyes and raised an arm in front of Yujhi protectively. They were trapped.
Ryoura and Bakura hid behind a pillar across the room from Yugi and Yujhi, Steve behind the next and Ilia and Joe behind the one next to him. There was a good ten feet between each pillar, and not one person dared move between them for fear of being struck down by the awaiting Yami.
Bakura cursed in his mind and peered around the pillar. Luckily, Yami's gaze was locked on the area where Yugi and Yujhi where, so he didn't see the tomb-robber. Forcing his glare away from the dark spirit laden with golden Millennium Items, Bakura's eyes travelled to the sealed doorway, and to the shrinking ball of light encased in the red box of magic floating before it. "Damn it Yami... What are we supposed to do?"
"Bakura, how're we supposed to stop him?" Steve's voice echoed in his mind, causing the thief to glance his way. He didn't know the Kaiba could already speak through mind. Ryoura, who was one one knee peering around the pillar, looked up at Bakura when he sensed the spirits surprise.
"I don't know..." Bakura admitted to Steve, and judging by the way the teen jerked Bakura assumed he hadn't thought his mind-message had worked. Yami was twirling the Rod in his hand idly and chuckling, still looking towards where the Puzzle guardians were. Bakura opened the message to Ryoura also before saying, "Yami told us himself if he could connect with Yugi he thought he could defeat his darker side, but that spectre locked him away."
Ryoura narrowed his eyes and cursed mentally, surprising Bakura. Looking to the alter he asked, "Is there a way we could break through it?"
Bakura thought for a moment, then said, "Possibly. If we could distract that spirit long enough, he may not be able to hold up the barrier if it's under attack." Bakura shook his head, "But we're so low on magic now... it would have to be a close-range attack."
"Then why couldn't we do that? Steve asked, a ripple of excitement moving through the mind-link.
"Because of Yami..." Ryoura answered for Bakura, "The second we move from here he's going to attack us. Bakura nodded in agreement and Steve's gaze dropped to the floor. Ryoura looked at the doorway thoughtfully. By the distance he was from it... he could probably...
"Bakura?" he asked, looking up, "I could get it."
Bakura's eyes grew wide. "What!"
"I'm the fastest of us, I could probably reach the good Yami if you and Steve could distract the bad Yami for me." Ryoura explained quickly.
"I won't let you do that," Bakura said sternly, shaking his head.
"That's insane!" Steve yelled through mind. His fear was clear, he had not yet learned how to hide his emotions. "You'll be killed!"
"I'm going to be killed anyway!" Ryoura yelled back through his mind link, silencing both his yami and Steve. "He's blocked the exit, he's draned our magic; there's no way out! This is our only chance to beat him, and I'm not throwing it away! Either you help me, or I go it alone." Bakura narrowed his eyes at Ryoura, but the teen matched his yami's glare and held his gaze. As much as he hated to admit it, Bakura knew Ryoura was right. This was quite possibly the only way that any of them could survive. But the tomb-robber just couldn't get rid of worry welling inside him; what if Ryoura didn't make it? What if the spirit was reading their thoughts right now, and knew what they were planning? None of them would stand a chance if that was the case. For the ten thousand years of his extended existence Bakura had never worried about anyone like this, but he and Ryoura had been through so much together that Bakura saw Ryoura just as the hikari had always seen him; a brother.
He couldn't let anything happen to Ryoura. He swore he never would.
But no matter what promises he made, to himself or to Ryoura, this spirit had disrupted it all. He had captured, tortured and killed Ryoura, and Bakura could do nothing to stop him. He had haunted his nightmares and trapped him in the Shadow Realm, all before Bakura even had a chance to do anything.
Could he protect his hikari?
"Bakura?" Ryoura frowned, his gaze softening. His yami had fallen oddly quite, and his gaze was not focussed anymore, as if he was lost in his thoughts. Sad thoughts. When his yami didn't respond, Ryoura took in a shaky breath and closed his eyes. The link with Steve was broken. "Bakura... Please don't let me do this alone."
Bakura blinked and looked down at Ryoura. What was wrong? Why was he shaking.
Keeping his eyes shut Ryoura leaned his shoulder against the pillar, still on one knee, listening intently as Yami's footsteps echoed of the floor as he through taunts in Yugi's direction. He was pacing. "I can't do this without you. He'll kill me on sight." "He's scared..." Bakura thought to himself, frowning. He felt slightly selfish now, thinking about himself when his hikari had clearly asked for his help. Ryoura wasn't putting himself in danger on purpose, he had weighed his options and picked the only one he could.
"Bakura, please," Ryoura opened his eyes and looked up at his yami, eyes full of determination, but also a spark of fear, "I need you for this."
Bakura nodded without a second thought. Reaching his hand down to Ryoura he pulled the teen to his feet, then turned to Steve. "Will you help too, Kaiba?"
Steve looked from Bakura to Ryoura in surprise, searching for some sign that they were joking. It was clear they weren't. Clenching his hands into fists and taking a deep breath, Steve nodded.
Bakura nodded, "Alright, I'll go first. Head for the doorway as soon as his attentions on me. Steve, as soon as Ryoura passes you, attack." Nodding to each other, Ryoura turned to the glowing red box and Steve to Yami. Standing up, Ryoura readied himself to run. "Will I have enough time?" he wondered, heart pounding now.
"Yugi..." Yami's voice called teasingly as he continued pacing. Playing with Yugi's mind like this was so much fun. "Come one, send out your little hikari first. I'll only cut him twice, I promise." he mocked, holding the blade of the Millennium Rod above his wrist. "Once on each wrist..."
Yujhi swallowed hard and looked at Yugi. The spirit was staring at the floor, the spark of hope in his eyes slowly suffocating in Yami's words. "Yugi, what do we do?" Yujhi whispered, his body shaking with fear along with his voice. This pillar offered no protection; four steps and a swipe was all that Yami needed to kill them both instantly. Yami knew that; that's why he was teasing them. The doorway was sealed, their magic depleted, and all Items but the Puzzle were in his possession. How were they supposed to defeat him?
"W-We'll think of something..." Yugi whispered, raising his gaze to meet Yujhi's. He couldn't let his hikari down, not after all this time, not after everything they'd been through.
Bakura, drained and exhausted, shut his eyes tight and pulled together all the magic he could muster - mostly his own, with some remnants of Millennium Magic - and the Millennium Sabre appeared in his hand, weak but still usable. A short gasp of pain escaped him, and Yami's footsteps stopped.
Bakura's eyes grew wide, "Yugi! To the alter; now!"
Yugi's heart skipped a beat, "Bakura?" He spun around to look out from beside the pillar, forgetting about Yami momentarily. The dark spirit blinked at his sudden appearance, but the racing footsteps behind him pulled his attention from Yugi. Bakura charged at Yami with the Millennium Sabre in his hands. "No!" What was he thinking!
Yami spun around as Bakura swung the sword down on Yami's head. He raised the Millennium Rod just in time, blocking Bakura's attack, but the Ring spirit quickly pulled his sword back and swung it sideways. Yami jumped back out of the way, the sword narrowly missing his abdomen. "Curse you tomb-robber, do you ever give up!" Yami yelled angrily.
"Yugi go! Don't stop!" Steve called as he jumped out from his hiding place also, charging at Yami. He didn't have a weapon, but his appearance was enough to surprise the spirit further. Yugi, dumbfounded, darted towards the alter without question. He had thought, or rather hoped, that Yujhi would follow, but he turned to help Bakura and Steve.
"What's going on?" Yami thought, pivoting on one foot and sending a strong wave of magic towards both Steve and Bakura. They were struck back, but ran forward again. "Why are they doing this?
"Steve!" Ilia called when her boyfriend was struck by the magic, shocked when he charged at Yami yet again. Further on she spotted Ryoura darting towards the doorway, and Yugi was heading for the alter. Realisation hit her. And either it hit Joe too, or he was just eager for a fight, because he ran past her towards the brawl as well. "I can't just stand here!" she yelled mentally at herself, then ran forward as well.
Attacked from all sides, Yami sent out another wave of magic, throwing them back again. "What are you planning Yugi?" He thought, eyes darting around for his once-hikari. But Yugi was moving towards the alter, away from the fight. "What will going to the alter do from him?"
Nothing.
Unless Yami's other soul was there also. His eyes grew wide and he spun around, looking towards the door. Ryoura was nearing the box, a ball of green magic forming in his hand. "No!"
Yugi looked back as they ran; just a few more metres to the alter.
Ryoura threw the ball of magic forward. It struck the red box. Yami was not focussing on the barrier around the orb; it shattered.
Bakura swung the sword again but Yami threw up an incredible barrier, repelling the sword and sending it soaring from Bakura's hands into the air, where it disappeared almost instantly. Expanding quickly the wall slammed into his five unprepared attackers, throwing each one of them back so hard their backs struck the pillars. A large ball of golden Millennium Magic sparked in Yami's hand.
The ball of light was small now, smaller then a golf ball.
Yami threw his hand forward, sending the orb of magic crackling through the air.
Ryoura reached the few steps leading to the orb. No time. He jumped forward and reached towards the orb of light, a green glow around his hand.
"Ryoura look out!"
A second too late; Yami's attack struck Ryoura in the back, seemed to pause time for a moment, then exploded...
... Just as Ryoura's fingers closed around the orb.
Thrown by the force of the attack, Ryoura forced out what little magic he had and swung his arm across his body, throwing the orb behind him. He struck the hard stone door and cried out in pain, collapsing at the foot of the door.
Yami gasped as the orb sped overhead, glowing brilliantly bright, as if it was suddenly brought to life. Ryoura's magic had shot it through the air like a bullet, it was too fast for him to react.
Yugi reached the top of the alter and spun around, throwing his hand in the air, the orb striking the centre of his palm.
A bright light erupted the instant Yugi's fingers closed around the tiny ball that was emitting such a powerful illumination. Yugi's entire body was consumed in a bright white light, paling his skin, hair and clothes so they glowed brightly in the darkened room. The floor of the alter Yugi stood on began to glow too, and it quickly became difficult to separate Yugi's body from the alter, as they both shone with the same blinding glow.
A line of light shot up the large stone tablet behind Yugi. Like two doors the stone split apart and a blast of wind erupted out of the glowing world beyond, throwing the unsuspecting dark spirit back a few paces, though he held his ground. Yugi seemed unaffected by the gale though, his eyes shut lightly in a relaxing way, fist held above him, where he held the ball of light.
Golden streams of magic drifted out of the new doorway behind him and curled over his shoulders, slithering to the Millennium Puzzle and disappearing as they touched it's surface. Through the white light the shape of the Millennium Puzzle appeared in a golden outline, though it was still difficult to distinguish from the alter and Yugi.
A few seconds more and the glow began to dim quickly, leaving Yugi standing in the centre of the alter in the same stance he had held when taking hold of the glowing ball. The wind still blew heavily, but now the force began to circle his form, lined with a thin strip of golden magic that seemed to come from the ground Yugi stood on. Slowly, Yugi lowered his fists to his side, eyes still closed and head lowered, as the glow of the Millennium Puzzle grew brighter.
The spirit watched, wondering what forces Yugi and his lighter half had called forth from the doorway behind him to empower his Puzzle. When Yugi clenched his fists he knew he was about to find out.
The power surging through Yugi was so intense, he first crossed his arms and pressed his fists to his shoulders, as if trying to contain it, when in truth he was relishing the familiar feeling before it overcame him. Throwing his arms out beside him and tossing his head back, he screamed a word of power that caused him to once again become engulfed in light.
"Yu-Gi-Oh!"
To Be Continued
Bwee! YU-GI-OH! The magical words that make us all go SQUEEEEE!
Sighsighsigh SUPER SIGH! This chapter took at minimum (yes MINIMUM) 12 hours to write, so I hope, as crammed and confusion as it is, you enjoyed it! I know I said this was the last or second last, and trust me it was gonna be, but I always forget how much I need to cram into the chapters! The next may be just as long as this one if it's gonna by the last.
If there's any mistakes, sorry! It's 12:30am and I'm tired. Hope you enjoy the extra long chappy, I sure enjoyed writing, as big of a pain as it was -sweatdrops- Please leave a review guys, coz I love 'em XD
Slán slán for now!
Bay Bay!
Bayleef
