This chapter starts diving into the past. Strap yourself in!
Usual reminders:
Italics are thoughts or word emphasis. Bold is Malekos' speech.
I don't claim to won Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters. I only own Jessica, Malekos, and Zahra.
When the duelists were called to the lounge for the next round announcement, Jessica insisted on coming with Yugi. He managed to have her agree to stay in the lounge while they went up to watch the duel firsthand, and she would watch from the lounge. But until then, she stuck close to Yugi's side. They walked hand in hand to the lounge area where everyone was already waiting for them. Gasps erupted among Yugi's friends as they ran up to the two, swarming around Jessica.
"Jessica, you're okay!" Joey grinned, relieved.
She grinned back, waving with her water bottle as she still held Yugi's hand with her other one. "You can't get rid of me that easily," she joked, earning a laugh out of the group. She felt a glare and knew exactly who it was without having to look, but she did anyway.
Téa was glaring at their clasped hands and crossed her arms, but she otherwise hid her distaste when her friends would look anywhere near her. She wasn't the only one who noticed their hands. The boys grinned mischievously as they teased them about it, earning blushes from both Yugi and Jessica. They knew then that it was official, the two were together. She was introduced to Joey's sister, Serenity, as well as Duke Devlin. Someone who created another game called Dungeon Dice Monsters.
A shiver crawled up Jessica's spine and she glanced around the room. She spotted two familiar figures standing away from everyone else and she tightened her grip on Yugi's hand. "Why is Marik here?" She growled under her breath, glaring at the platinum-blonde.
Everyone seemed confused at who her glare was directed at, but Yugi answered her question anyway. "Marik is one of the semi-finalists. The one over there is Namu." He explained briefly his involvement with helping Bakura, and she wondered how they had all been tricked.
She opened her mouth to tell them they were lied to, but was cut off by one of KaibaCorp's employees who stood beside a Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon themed lottery ball machine. "The second duel of the Battle City finals is about to begin!"
"That's right!" Mokuba spoke up from the other side of the machine. "And the selector will randomly pick the next two duelists." They started up the machine and the balls started floating around the inside.
"Remember your numbers," the employee said. "If you are selected you'll be participating in the second duel of the finals. And the first duelist chosen is…" One ball was swallowed by a head and spit out the bottom on a small platform. "Number two! Joey Wheeler!"
"Yeah! It's time to kick some major butt!" Joey exclaimed with an excited fist, grinning.
"And mister Wheeler's opponent in this duel is… number seven, Marik Ishtar!"
Everyone turned to glare at the cloaked man and Jessica bit her lip. She wanted to tell the truth but she didn't want to cause a scene. She caught the real Marik's gaze and he was smirking at her, knowing her dilemma. She glared at him in response and bit back the growl in her throat.
As everyone headed towards the elevator that would take them to the top of the blimp, Jessica held Yugi back to talk to him. "Yugi, you guys got the wrong Marik…"
"What? What do you mean?" Yugi stared at her in confused shock.
"The person who you think is Marik is just one of his Rare Hunters," she told him, watching as he gasped quietly. "The real Marik is the one you call 'Namu'."
"Are you sure?" He gripped her hand tighter as he furrowed his brows.
She nodded and squeezed his hand back. "Positive. I'd remember the person who tried to make me his mind slave."
He bit his lip and clenched his other fist. "Thank you for telling me, Jess."
Her face softened into a smile and she leaned forward to kiss his cheek. "Be careful up there, and give Joey my cheers."
He blushed at her kiss but managed to nod, "I will." He then slipped from her grasp and entered the elevator to join everyone else.
Left alone, Jessica let out a sigh and walked over to sit on a comfortable looking chair in the room. She was offered some food from the staff and she only accepted an apple. She knew it would fill her up despite it being small. She took a bite of it and found herself getting lost in thought.
Hey, Malekos? She waited for a few moments and then furrowed her brows. Usually she would feel his presence immediately, but she could barely feel it at the back of her mind. She decided to try again. Malekos!
Still nothing.
A frown set upon her face, she set her apple aside before getting comfortable in the chair. She pulled her legs up to sit criss-cross and then placed her hands in her lap while lacing her fingers, touching her thumbs together. She closed her eyes and began to focus her energy on finding Malekos. She wasn't sure how she'd be able to do it, but it was worth a shot anyway. She took in a deep breath and then let it out slowly.
She waited several moments as she focused on her breathing and the presence of Malekos in her mind, but still nothing happened. She was about to give up when suddenly she felt herself falling as if the chair was dropped right out from under her. She opened her eyes to see what was happening, but all she saw was darkness. She opened her mouth to let out a soundless scream before suddenly her body halted in the air, and a clear mirror appeared below her. She reached out with her feet to touch it and a ripple spread out from where she stepped, as if it were water. She stared down at herself in the mirror-like water before looking around.
The surrounding area was still black except the water-like surface she stood upon. She couldn't see anything else and she grew confused. "Malekos?" She tried to call out to the demon, but all she heard was her voice echoing endlessly. Her brows furrowed, wondering where he could be.
"Hello, dear."
The soft voice behind her made her whip around, only to freeze in shock by what she saw. It was a woman dressed in maroon robes, the hood shadowing her face. She reached up to pull the hood down around her neck and revealed her long black hair, with several long strands beaded with gold. Her green eyes were gentle and held much wisdom, but the most shocking was the familiar black tattoo near her right eye.
Jessica took a step back, feeling like she was looking at herself yet she knew this wasn't her. "Who are you?"
The woman smiled softly and it seemed to calm her nerves down immediately. "My name is Zahra, and I am you."
Jessica's eyes widened as she looked at this older woman up and down. "I'm pretty sure I would know if I was named 'Zahra'. Which I wasn't."
Zahra giggled and the warm smile never left her face. "Because you are my reincarnation. From five thousand years in the past." She folded her arms so that she hid her hands in her long sleeves.
Jessica held her head in her hand. "Wait, wait, wait… Don't tell me I'm part of the same destiny as Yami with the Millennium Items?"
Zahra laughed into her sleeve, her eyes closed. "Oh, not at all! Though I am from that same time period." She opened her eyes and lowered her arm again. "You must have many questions."
Jessica scrunched her face at the questions that swirled in her mind. "Well, yes, but I don't know where to start."
"How about we start with the one thing you've always wanted to know."
Jessica took a deep breath and straightened herself, fixing Zahra with a serious gaze. "Why do we have this curse?"
Zahra closed her eyes with a hum. "Ah, yes. The curse." She lifted her arm and her fingers poked out of her sleeve as she traced her own tattoos lightly. "It began during a time when monsters and demons alike ran rampant throughout the world. Let me show you."
With a sweep of her arm, they were suddenly floating high above the desert sands of ancient Egypt. The indicator was the pyramids that were several miles away. They stood tall and mighty against the dark, stormy sky. Among the sands and desert buildings of a town below were many different types of monsters and humans that ran screaming from them.
"This was the same time that the pharaoh used his power to save the world." Zahra spoke from beside Jessica, and then she pointed to a specific spot just outside the town.
Jessica squinted her eyes as she tried to see and suddenly they drifted closer. They stopped when they could see who she had been pointing to. Even though she was dressed in those same dark red robes, Jessica could easily make out the face of Zahra from underneath the hood. She blinked in surprise when she noticed that her face was clear of any tattoos. "Your tattoos are gone!"
"Watch."
Jessica watched as a tall red figure stepped in front of Zahra and she gasped, holding her hands to her mouth. She had never seen his true form before, but the familiar presence he gave off told her just who it was. Malekos. He stood much taller than the average human with dull red skin, a long tail with a knife-life tip at the end, large wings for flight, long dark hair that was pulled into a low ponytail, jagged horns that curled out from the top of his head, and red and black eyes. His eyes were full of anger and betrayal as he snarled at Zahra. He darted forward with claws extended, but a bright green flash caused him to halt in his tracks. Glowing green shackles shot out from Zahra's chest as she chanted a spell and latched onto Malekos' wrists and ankles, easily shackling him. He roared in anger as he tried to pry them off of him, but to no avail. He was slowly dragged forward and eventually pulled into Zahra's chest, successfully sealing him inside her as the familiar curse mark burned itself onto her face.
Jessica stumbled as she was suddenly pulled back into that empty space where she first met Zahra, bending forward to grab her knees and calm her stomach as it lurched from being thrown about. She took in a deep breath and then stood up straight, glaring at Zahra with confused green eyes. "Why would you do that to him?" She asked, breathless.
Zahra closed her eyes as a sad look crossed her face. "Before the war, we met by chance. We fell in love, but it wasn't to be. I was already arranged to marry another man by my father, and I couldn't refuse. Malekos grew angry and he joined the war. He alone had the power to destroy that town so I had to put a stop to it." She opened her eyes and a single tear slid down her cheek. "I couldn't bring myself to kill him, so I sealed him away instead. And he would continue to stay that way through the ages as I was reincarnated each time so that he may never hurt mankind."
Jessica's heart twisted as she listened, recalling Malekos' words about a woman he had his eyes on but wasn't reciprocated. "No wonder he's been so angry… He felt betrayed. He thought you betrayed him when you agreed to the marriage and sealed him away."
Zahra dipped her head down slightly. "I loved him until the end."
Jessica bit her lip and clenched her fists. "It's cruel… Making a child carry a curse."
Zahra frowned apologetically. "You were given my burden much too early. Normally the curse would appear at the age of ten, but you received it at six."
Oop, another cliffhanger! Don't worry, I'm much too nice to leave you with only this one so I'll upload the next one with it.