Marik's hands shook as they held onto the newspaper that he was reading. Of course, he had already known that it had happened. But reading about it like this… The article was yet another "dueling disease" coma victim hotspot story. And this time, his sister had taken the front page. According to it, Ishizu Ishtar had been found at the Domino City Airport in the same condition as the others were. The doctors at the hospital she had been taken to were just as puzzled with her condition as they were with the others. After the initial report, the article had then gone into Ishizu's background a little bit. Besides pointing out that she was also yet another participant in a past major Duel Monsters' tournament, it also noted her work as a curator at the Domino City Museum, along with the famous Egyptian exhibit that she had hosted. It even mentioned how Ishizu had organized a "Kids' Day" a few days of each month at the museum where she would take the time to teach children about Egyptian mythology and past historical discoveries. Marik remembered how much his sister had always enjoyed those days at work more than any others. But now she was gone… Aside from everything else, the article failed to make any mention whatsoever about Odion. For all he knew, he might not even be alive now. But it hadn't failed to mention that Marik himself was now missing.
Marik didn't want to think about just how much time Ishizu and the others might have left if they remained in their current state. He felt chilled to the bone whenever he recalled Yami Marik's taunt to him about wondering just how long Ishizu could survive on life support. Marik felt like he had to do something about all of this. He was sick of continually running and hiding. But the question was: what exactly could he do to stop all of this?
"Is that-?" Kelda's question trailed off mid-sentence. Even though she already knew that it was Marik's sister, she was not quite sure how to finish what she was saying.
"Yes…" Marik answered somberly.
"I'm sorry, Marik… Up until this point, I guess I just hadn't wanted to truly believe what was happening here. But after seeing this…" Kelda admitted.
"Back at the airport, Ishizu sacrificed herself so that I could get away. If it wasn't for her, I probably wouldn't be here right now. And yet I can't do a thing to help her. Some brother I am." Marik said frustratedly.
"Hey, we've been over this before. It wasn't your fault, Marik. Not anymore than it was for the others who are friends of the victims like Tea and Joey. And… I know that there probably wasn't much that I could have done for Grandma before they took her. You were the one who helped me to realize that. They wouldn't have wanted any of us to put ourselves in danger against whatever it is we are up against. It's nothing a children's card game can solve this time, that's for sure!" Kelda explained to make Marik feel better.
"Yeah, I guess you're right…" Marik agreed glumly.
Suddenly, an idea came to Marik. He wasn't sure how the exact idea had formed, but it was as if Kelda's mention of a "children's card game" had turned a light on in his head.
"That's it!" Marik said excitedly.
"What's it? What are you talking about?" Kelda asked in confusion. Yet at the same time, the sudden lift in Marik's mood was starting to bring back a trace of what they had not felt in almost a month now: hope.
"I have an idea. It might not be the solution that we are looking for, but it's a start. When you mentioned Duel Monsters, I realized what we may be able to use to our advantage." Marik explained determinedly.
"Um, okay. I think? But what do you mean?" Kelda asked curiously.
"You'll see. But we have to get going now. It's a store not too far from here." Marik said.
"Whatever you think can help us, I'm all for." Kelda agreed.
Xxx
After about ten minutes, Marik and Kelda had reached their destination: A small, shabby looking used bookstore shoved almost unnoticeably between the popular coffee shop and laundromat of the storefronts in downtown Domino. The slightly faded lettering built into the building above the doorway read, "Travis' Treasures to Trash".
"I'm afraid that I'm a bit confused…" Kelda trailed off skeptically.
"It's not what it looks like. I know the owner and let's just say that he specializes in things that are a bit…out of the ordinary, for lack of a better description. But before we go in, I just want to warn you that we may go over some things that will sound a bit perplexing to you. But it is nothing dangerous, I promise." Marik explained.
"Out of the ordinary? Please. You forget that you are talking to someone who has worked at a store where we claim to read people's futures and communicate with ghosts. I think I can handle this." Kelda said resolutely. Without another word, she proceeded to open the shop's front door.
Once they were inside, Kelda gazed around the shop's interior. From the inside, it looked like a perfectly normal used bookstore, just messier. Shelves were packed from floor-to-ceiling with old hardcovers with cracked and weathered spines, along with the careworn yellowing paperbacks. Whatever hadn't been able to fit onto the shelves was scattered around the store in piles on top of the tables or thrown loosely into overflowing cardboard boxes on the floor.
Behind the counter sat a short, plump bespectacled man with brown, balding hair. He had been busy jotting something down in a notebook, but he looked up when Marik and Kelda approached the counter.
"Marik! What a surprise to see you around these parts! What brings you here? This hardly seems the place you'd want to take a lady on for part of a date. Unless she's into old literature!" The store owner joked. Kelda felt herself redden at his words.
"Travis, good to see you again. I wish we were here for leisure, but I'm afraid that it couldn't be further from the case this time." Marik greeted Travis with a somewhat grim smile.
Travis' smile faltered at hearing Marik's words. "I take it this is serious. What happened to you? It said that you had gone missing in the news, and yet here you are right in town." He said.
"I'm afraid that I can't go into any details, but to make a long story short, let's just say that I am now the prime target of some very undesirable individuals, and I now require your assistance." Marik answered.
"So, all of that stuff I've been hearing is true… This wouldn't have anything to do with the Rar-" Travis started to say.
"No, no. It's not that. I'd be able to tell if it was. At least I'm pretty sure of that." Marik cut in quickly.
"Okay. Then what can I do for you, Marik?" Travis offered, suddenly all business.
"I'm going to need your best three fifty-four triple O. And two eight twenty-seven HRs, small size. Oh, and I guess a couple pairs of A-fits while you're at it. Do you happen to have any in stock right now?" Marik said quickly. It sounded as if he were a spy in some detective show speaking in code.
"I sure do. Wait just a minute." Travis said as he made his way to the small room behind the counter.
When he returned a few minutes later, Travis was carrying some small, unrecognizable electronic devices along with two ordinary pairs of black leather gloves.
"You're all set." Travis said.
"Good. Thanks, Travis. I hate to ask this, but would it be alright if I made out a temporary partial IOU for these items? We're running a bit low on cash right now and I wouldn't want anyone tracing my credit card information back to us through any transactions that I participate in. I'll pay you back the rest as soon as I can, I promise." Marik asked somewhat nervously as he started to take a few bills out of his pockets.
Travis shook his head. "You don't need to worry about that, Marik. This is on the house." He reassured him.
"Are you sure?" Marik asked in amazement.
"Look, we had an operation before, but this is different. You're in trouble, and I don't want to see everything get flushed down the toilet for you after you've finally managed to go straight. I mean look at you! Going to school, and you even have a girl now! Not many people are able to turn their lives around after they've gotten in as deep as you did, kid. I'd hate to see it all be for nothing." Travis insisted.
"It's not like that! But I appreciate this all the same. Thank you, Travis." Marik said shortly, feeling more than a little embarrassed by Travis' implications.
Xxx
Once they were outside, Kelda turned to Marik. "Okay, just what in the world was all that about?" She asked.
"What do you mean?" Marik stalled.
"What do you think I mean!? All of your secret code mumbo-jumbo spy talk! That and the things you got there make it look like you're either a secret government agent or in the mafia! And just what did he mean about you "going straight"? I'm sorry Marik, but you can't pretend that that whole exchange back there wasn't more than a little bit shady-looking." Kelda said.
"It's too long a story for right now and you wouldn't-" Marik started to say before Kelda interrupted him.
"No. I don't want to hear that this time, Marik. I can tell that there are things that you have not been telling me about yourself and I'm tired of it. I have already told you about me, so it's time that you did the same. We need to trust each other if we're going to get out of this mess." Kelda insisted.
Marik sighed inwardly. He had already known that he wouldn't be able to put this off forever with everything that was happening. But he had at least hoped that he could have had a little more time.
"If I tell you, you may not want to have anything to do with me anymore. Although that may be for the best in terms of your own safety, I will admit that it's also the reason why I've been afraid of telling you. Just know that I won't be angry with you whatever you decide to do, Kelda." Marik said.
"If you're afraid of me leaving, don't be. I'm your friend, and friends don't judge. They try to understand. So, whatever it is, don't worry." Kelda reassured Marik.
Marik couldn't stop himself from giving Kelda a small smile. He suddenly felt a little more hopeful.
"Alright. This is hard to explain, but I guess I'll start with something familiar. Remember when the Battle City tournament was first organized and the problems with it?" Marik asked.
"Yeah. You mean the Rare Hunters, right? They stole a lot of cards from duelists then. I remember how big a deal it was since they had managed to sneak in past Kaiba Corp." Kelda recalled.
"They didn't have to sneak in quite as hard as you think. Most people don't know this, but one of the reasons Battle City itself was started was to lure them out into the open. It was bait, and both heads on either side knew it." Marik explained.
"What!? You mean that Kaiba Corp. started it already knowing that they were putting duelists in danger like that!? But why!?" Kelda asked, horrified with this revelation.
"Because there were special cards at stake. Both Seto Kaiba and the Rare Hunters had possession of these cards, and they wanted a way to duel to regain the rest for themselves." Marik answered.
"I take it you are referring to the Egyptian god cards that were used during the finals. I remember that you had one during the finals. But if only Kaiba and the Rare Hunters owned them during the tournament, then how did you and Yugi even manage to get them? Did you both have to duel the Rare Hunters for them?" Kelda asked. She suddenly had a bad feeling about where this all was going.
"You're half right. Yugi won Slifer in a duel with one. But I already had mine from the start of the tournament." Marik said simply.
"From the start? Marik, are you saying that you were…a member of the Rare Hunters?" Kelda asked carefully.
"Close, but not quite. Think…bigger." Marik answered.
"Bigger? Marik, you don't mean…" Kelda trailed off, too shocked to finish her sentence.
"Yes. I was the leader of the Rare Hunters. I formed the organization to find the Egyptian god cards." Marik admitted.
"But that doesn't make any sense! How does a high school student end up being able to become the head of a major criminal organization!? And why did you do it in the first place!?" Kelda demanded, unable to wrap her mind around these impossible revelations.
"More long stories, I'm afraid. And they will sound even stranger to you than this. To answer your first question without going into details, let's just say that I could be very persuasive when I wanted to be. And as for why I did it? That goes back to a long time ago in my life. A time where I believed that there was no other way to free myself… I've done a lot of terrible things. Things you can't even begin to imagine. Stealing, counterfeiting, forgery, money laundering, kidnapping, probably even murder itself depending on how look at it… You name it, we did it. But please try to understand that I have been trying to make amends for what I've done since Battle City ended. I disbanded the Rare Hunters and returned or replaced all the cards that were stolen. I've been trying to make a fresh start ever since. Yugi and his friends forgave me, and that was more than I could ever hope for. And when I met you, it felt so good having someone who didn't know. It was like a chance to start over. But I should have known that I couldn't bury the past forever…" Marik explained.
For a few minutes, Kelda remained silent. It seemed inconceivable that someone as nice and caring as Marik had been to her could ever have been a criminal mastermind. She had read and heard enough stories about the Rare Hunters back then to know that they were no joke. But at the same time, she could not bring herself to hold any of it against him. Ever since she had first met him, it had always felt like he had been hiding more than a few secrets. And her suspicions had only grown stronger with the recent events they had gone through. She was sure there was more to find out than just this in time. Whenever Kelda had talked to Marik, she almost always felt a sense of fear and dread around him. As if he was always afraid that each conversation could be their last. It all seemed so desperately sad and lonely to her. Kelda knew that she could never hate anyone who lived like this.
"Marik, I'm not going to pretend that this doesn't sound bad. I can't imagine how anyone could justify doing the types of things that you must have done. But I also always had the feeling that something in your past was causing you to suffer. I've seen it in the way you've talked. How you always dodged so many questions or changed the subject. If you were truly a bad person, you wouldn't have been bothered by it at all. I don't know what happened to you back then or about everything you did in the Rare Hunters. But I do believe that you aren't the same as you were back then. It's just like Travis said: You've made a fresh start. And most of all, you've been my friend, and you still are. As far as I'm concerned, the past is past, and I don't have any reason to hate you for it." Kelda explained.
"Kelda… Thank you. I've been so afraid of telling you about any of this. But now I'm glad that I have. There's still a lot more, and it will still take a little more time to get to all of it. But now I know that I have someone I can trust about everything. A true friend." Marik said quietly. He felt as if a weight had been removed from his chest. For a moment, they both simply smiled at each other, enjoying the peace of the moment.
"Well, I'm afraid that we can't stay right here any longer. Thanks to Travis, I have what we need to start investigating this and hopefully buy us some time." Marik said resolutely.
"What exactly are we going to do?" Kelda asked seriously.
"You'll see, Come on. Follow me." Marik said.
xxx
In a dim room, a man wearing a long cloak sat in a room behind a wall of monitor screens, his eyes focused intently on various views of Domino City.
"Master Caleb." A voice behind the man interrupted the silence. He turned to face his underling, another cloaked man who bowed respectfully to him.
"What is it?" Caleb asked.
"Sir, please forgive my interruption. But as per your orders, we have been following Marik Ishtar around the city. However, I'm afraid to say that we have been unable to find the opportune time to make a move against him. He's always moving from place to place, and yet he stays here or close to the area." The underling reported.
"Not good enough! We need to find him!" Caleb said in frustration.
"But sir, are you sure that we don't already have enough to-" The underling started to say before he was cut off.
"No! I've told you a thousand times now, it won't work until we have the souls of all the item wielders! I need his soul, and I need it NOW!" Caleb ranted. He had started pacing back and forth frantically, wringing his hands in frustration.
"Understood, Sir. But your orders were also to make sure that the girl is kept out of harm's way. That may not be easy to accomplish since she's always with him. We're just trying to follow your orders…" The underling said uneasily.
"I know, I know… She changes everything. But it is also all the more reason why we can't continue to let Marik roam free! It's all the same. Just like back then. I can't let things go back to how they were all those years ago. It is just a horribly ironic coincidence that Marik is the last one that we need and the one who is evading us." Caleb fretted.
"Don't worry, Sir. We'll definitely try to-" The underling began.
"Don't just try! DO IT!" Caleb yelled suddenly.
Caleb pulled off his cloak, revealing his bare chest and arms. Every area of his bare skin on them was covered in stitches. The underling flinched a little at the sight.
"Look at me! LOOK AT ME! This is what I have had to suffer through because of Marik! It's all HIS fault that my life has turned out the way it has! Find a way to retrieve his soul and bring it to me so that we can start the ritual, or don't bother coming back at all! Do I make myself clear!?" Caleb demanded lividly.
"Yes, Sir!" The underling answered with a quick bow of his head before leaving through the doorway behind him.
Once he was alone again, Caleb gazed at the screens again. "Marik Ishtar… I won't let you take everything away from me again! You will pay for what you have done to me!" He vowed to himself.
AN: For all those who have been reading this story, I am REALLY sorry about the long wait here. Believe me, I didn't intend for this story to go on hiatus for practically two years. I was really busy with school and other life stuff. So, when I ended up getting inspiration for other stories, it just became easier to work on them since the ideas were flowing more easily. I also had a case of writer's block for this particular chapter, which ended up causing me to break it into two parts since it was so long. The other part will be next time. But I am happy to say that I am now able to start updating things a lot more evenly. So, you probably won't need to wait as long for updates on this. Once again, thank you for reading this if you are still taking the time to do so. Also, I sort of got the idea for Travis and store from the TV show, Fringe, if any of you have ever seen that back in the day years ago.