DISCLAIMER: This is a work of fanfiction produced for entertainment purposes only. Yu-Gi-Oh! and all related characters are the creations of Kazuki Takahashi.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: My humblest apologies for not updating this story in so long. Real life went crazy on both myself and my beta reader. To make up for it, here's a little status update on the progress of this story: This update contains chapters 9-10 and I've already started work on chapter 11. I also have the remainder of this whole story roughly planned out. So it's getting there, I just need time to work on it. For those who are still reading after all this time, I thank you for your patience and hope you continue to enjoy it.

Tournament of Shadows
Chapter 8: Sharing Information
By Shadow's Mirror

Yami frowned slightly as he studied Bakura. The other dark spirit was sipping his glass of water slowly and looked far more tired than he should have looked. That wasn't surprising, though. For a few weeks, the Shadow Magic had been getting progressively harder to control. Just making a simple shadow portal now took the same effort as playing an intense shadow game.

What was surprising was what Bakura had just told Yami and Yugi.

"If, as you say, every answer you found led you to two more questions" He paused and his gaze was suddenly very intent. "That means you actually found some answers."

Bakura nodded. "A few. Not many, but more than I expected." He sipped his water again and then slowly lowered the glass, a troubled look on his face. "It was easier than I thought it would be." He lifted his eyes to look at the other two boys.

Yugi spoke softly. "Tell us. Perhaps something you found out will help to make some sense of all this."

"I doubt it but worth a shot." Bakura frowned as he thought for a moment. "I guess I'll start with the girls. All three of them were injured, but not badly. Enough to knock them out for the night, and out of the running for the final round of the contest, too. I overhead a doctor speaking with a cop about it. It seems they're working under the assumption that the girls were walking through the alley where they were found when someone jumped them and pushed them into the wall. All three were knocked out by the impact. It's a good theory, but it has a few practicality issues."

Yami scowled as he nodded. "Like how one person would have been able to push three people into a wall at once. It must have been done that way or else the two not being pushed would surely have run for help."

"Or jumped in to help their friend. Those three are close. I can see them leaping to each other's defence. Literally. No, I don't think one person could have done it. That leaves two possibilities. Either it was more than one person, or" He tailed off, frowning.

"Or it was not a person who did that to them." Yami softly completed Bakura's sentence.

Yugi gasped. "You don't mean? A Shadow Monster? But how? Who? I mean Surely we would have known if one had been summoned for that." He looked shocked.

"I would have said that too. In fact, my first instinct was to discount the Monster idea entirely." Bakura's frown deepened. "But it makes a bit too much sense. A group would have been noticed. Someone would have seen or heard something. One person could just slip in, get the deed done and then slip away again. I know that better than anyone." He didn't look proud of that fact. Much. "On the other hand, there's the little matter of ability."

Yami nodded. "To control a Monster capable of doing this would require considerable Shadow Magic. More than Joey, Kaiba or anyone without a Millennium Item has. There are seven Items and five bearers, not counting you, Marik or myself. With us, that makes eight possible culprits."

"Six bearers." Bakura looked a little sheepish. "I returned the Eye to Pegasus a while back."

He winced slightly as Yami arched an eyebrow in silent query. "Even though it was never really meant to be his, he did have the ability to use it and I learned from Dark Witch that it was because of the Eye that he was able to make the Duel Monster cards in the first place. I figured it could be useful for him to keep that power. Besides Ryou hated that thing. Having it in the house was giving him nightmares. So that makes nine of us in all."

"This isn't really Pegasus's way of doing things, though. Also I don't think he's actually able to summon the Monsters into the world, is he?" Yugi looked from Yami to Bakura and back again. "I don't think Isis can do that, either."

Bakura thoughtfully nodded. "Now there's a point. I've never seen either of them do it, no. Doesn't mean they can't, but that aside, it doesn't fit with either of them, anyway. Of the others it also doesn't fit with Ryou or you, Yugi. I can't see Malik doing it, either. Marik" He paused for a moment to consider that further. "No. Not deliberately, at least."

"On that, we are agreed. He has changed considerably since his time in the Void." Yami frowned slightly. "However, I would not discount Marik entirely, at this point. He does not always consider the consequences of his actions."

"Yeah. But that said if he had done it, even by accident, he'd have already admitted it. He'd also have called for help for them." Bakura's voice was very soft. "The doctor told that cop they'd been there for at least half an hour before they were spotted by a passer-by."

"It seems that we are disqualifying everyone except for the two of us and" Yami trailed off, a very thoughtful look on his face. Whatever he was thinking, it didn't seem to be very pleasant.

"I don't act without good reason and those girls did nothing to either me or Ryou. I didn't do it and I don't believe you would. That just leaves Shadi. The one person we haven't seen hide nor hair of through all this and also the one we know the least about." Bakura scowled heavily, then arched an eyebrow at Yugi. "Why are you shaking your head?"

Yugi blushed a little. "Because I know it's not him. Isis told me a few weeks ago that Shadi is currently in Egypt, working as a translator for some archaeologists connected to the museum. He isn't due to finish that for some months yet." He looked worried. "But that puts us right back where we started. With no idea about who or what we're dealing with."

"Perhaps not." Yami looked troubled. Very troubled.

Bakura nodded and frowned. "There is one other possibility. It could always be a rogue Shadow Monster. One acting on his own. I know some of them have the power to get to our world without being summoned. Dark Witch has done it a few times. But why target those three girls? That doesn't add up."

"Agreed. This has all the markings of being planned by someone for a specific reason." Yami did not look like a happy former-Pharaoh. "Which leaves us with just one solution to the mystery."

Yugi looked even more worried but it was Bakura who groaned out loud. "Please don't say that it could be someone teamed up with a rogue Shadow Monster. That's well yeah it's possible to do it, sure. But then it would be impossible to narrow down the suspects! It could be anyone!"

The faintest ghost of a smile flickered across Yami's face as he nodded. "I know. However that is the only remaining possibility."

"I told you not to say that." Bakura scowled at Yami and had another sip of his water.

Yugi bit his lip and spoke very softly and with considerable hesitation. "What about the Shadow Magic itself?"

"Huh?" Bakura's reply was rather more inelegant than Yami's.

"What do you mean, Aibou?" Yami looked curious.

Yugi blushed a little at the term and looked at his dark half as he replied. "The Shadow Magic has been strange lately. Difficult to use. You and Bakura have both said so. Things in the Shadow Realm have been strange, too, right? Could that have any connection to what's happening here?"

Yami and Bakura looked at each other before they both looked at Yugi and nodded.

"It could." Bakura spoke quietly. "There's a strong link between the two worlds. But if that's the case then it would mean that whatever's happening here isn't a new situation. It's been building up until it's finally at the point where it's noticeable. Just like how things have been gradually worsening in the Shadow Realm over the past" He thought for a moment. "I'd say a few months."

"I would have to agree. If not longer." Yami looked at Bakura. "It would explain why the Shadow Monsters seem to not perceive it as a new threat."

Bakura nodded. "They definitely know more about it then they're saying. It wasn't an issue before but now" He scowled. "Maybe it's time to ask a few direct questions there."

"Possibly." Yami smiled a little. "But perhaps first you should continue to tell us what you learned tonight? We got a little sidetracked."

"Oh. Right." Bakura looked thoughtful. "Although, it might have been a good thing we did. Yugi's got a point. The Shadow Magic seems to be the only connection between the girls and the other kids found unconscious in the city." He glanced at Yugi before settling his gaze steadily on Yami. "Because whatever happened to them It was definitely Shadow Magic that did it."

Yami's eyes narrowed at the serious tone in Bakura's voice. "You are sure?"

Bakura nods. "Yeah. But I'd been thinking it wasn't one of us who'd done it, too. No" He held up a hand before Yami could interrupt. "That's not quite right. Better to say that, as far as I know, none of the Millennium Items have the power to do what was done to those kids."

"Which was?" Yami was frowning slightly.

It took Bakura a few moments to answer, as if he was making sure that he worded his reply so that it made sense. Or perhaps he was just thinking through the problem before voicing his thoughts. "Their bodies are fine, but they'll never wake up. Their souls have been taken. Not trapped, like what was done to" He glanced at Yugi, who had gone pale at the reminder of what Pegasus had once done to his Grandpa, then back at Yami. His voice was very soft when he spoke again.

"It's more than being soulless. A soulless body can still move and function. The soulroom carries a sort of echo of the soul that dwells within it. When a soul is trapped, or lost, that echo is left behind and it's just enough to keep things together. At least for a while. This is different. It's not just that there's no echo. There's not even a trace that there was ever a soul inside any of those kids' bodies. None of them have a soulroom."

A long moment of silence passed, in which Yugi and Yami could do nothing more than just stare at Bakura with twin looks of shock and horror dawning on their faces.

Another moment passed as Yugi made an odd squeaking sound and Yami instinctively put his hand on his shoulder in an attempt to reassure his Light. Yugi barely leaned into it, too horrified at what he'd just heard to really notice the touch.

A third moment passed as Yami took a deep breath to steady himself before fixing Bakura with a steady gaze that was pure Pharaoh. If the look alone wasn't enough to command Bakura's attention and immediate response, his voice when he spoke was.

"Explain."

It was a sign of how shocked Bakura himself was that he didn't react at all negatively to the commanding tone in Yami's voice. He just shrugged. "I wish I could."

He ran a hand distractedly through his hair, his frown deepening into a glare of pure frustration. "I've never seen this before. I didn't even know it was possible."

Yami frowned and eased his instinctive commanding tone back a fraction. "It is not the same as what you do. I am not incorrect in thinking that?"

"No." Bakura's reply was immediate and accompanied by a slight shake of his head. "Pegasus too." He sighed deeply and looked like he really didn't want to explain more, but knew that he had no choice in the matter.

"There are four parts to a person's essence. To put it as simply as I can The core of a person's consciousness and being is their actual soul. The echo of it is the instincts the person has, the things they can do without being entirely conscious, or aware of doing them. The soulroom is where the soul resides inside the body, but it's more than that. It's where a soul is safe. A place of retreat where it can block anything else out. Where it finds peace. A sanctuary but also protection. If the soul is a core, then the soulroom is the outer shell."

Bakura looked at the other two boys, clearly not at all happy. "Pegasus can steal a soul, but only if he can get to it. If they're caught off-guard or don't know they need to be wary of him or his power. Otherwise, their knowledge locks him out of their soulroom. I can steal both the soul and the echo, to seal them inside something else and I can do it even if they know I can. Think of it as me having the ability to pick the soulroom door's lock and slip inside." He glanced sharply at Yami as if expecting him to have some comment to make on the thief analogy, but the former-Pharaoh merely nodded once in a silent gesture for him to continue.

"This I'll admit it. This goes far beyond what I can do. No, more than that. It goes beyond what I thought was even possible to do. Whoever, or whatever, is doing this They're not only taking the soul itself but the whole soulroom. Which makes them impossible to find." Bakura almost growled the last bit out.

Yugi blinked and looked surprised. "You mean if it wasn't for that, you'd be able to find out who was doing this?"

Bakura nodded. "I could track the souls. It's not easy to do, but I can do it if I have to."

"How?" Yami's voice was very soft.

"Remember I said there were four parts to a soul? Well, the fourth part is a link between a soul and its soulroom. Like a thin thread that connects the two. It's there so a soul can always find its way back to where it belongs. When Pegasus or I seal a soul, the thread stretches from the soulroom to whatever the soul's been sealed in. When the soul's released, it's that thread that guides the soul back to its body. But because the whole room's been taken" He sighed again and scowled.

"I see. So by doing this, the culprit has effectively covered his tracks. Is that what you are saying?"

Bakura nodded. "Pretty much."

Yugi looked more than a little dazed and bewildered. "But Bakura if it isn't possible for you to steal a whole soulroom then who could do it? I mean" He coloured as he glanced at his darker half. "I'm sorry, Yami, but I'm right, aren't I? The Ring is stronger at soul stealing than the Puzzle?"

Yami smiled a little to reassure his Light as he nodded. "Yes. The Puzzle is stronger in general, however Bakura's extensive use of the Ring has made him more adept in this particular area." He paused to reconsider his words. "Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that the Puzzle's particular strengths lie in other areas while this is the Ring's speciality?" He glanced at Bakura for confirmation, receiving it in the form of a silent nod, his smile fading as he considered the implications of that. "Which means that my Light"

"Is absolutely right. Yeah. If I can't do it with the Ring, then none of us with Millennium Items could do it." Bakura scowled even more heavily. "Which brings us back to what we were saying before. If this couldn't have been done by any of us, that only leaves one of the Shadow Monsters."

Bakura gulped down the last of his glass of water before adding very quietly, "But working out which one it is and who they're working with, if that's what's going on here, won't be easy."

Even as Yami and Yugi nodded in agreement, Bakura began to get to his feet. Yami arched an eyebrow at him. "You are going? That was all you learned?"

"Ryou will be wondering where I am." Bakura managed a wry smile for Yugi's benefit as he handed the smaller boy his glass. "Thanks for the water."

Yugi smiled back and took the glass. "You're welcome, Bakura. See you tomorrow." He headed out of the room.

Yami fixed Bakura with his usual steady gaze. "It did not escape me that you did not answer my second question. Nor that you managed to get Yugi to leave the room before he realised the same."

Bakura wasn't smiling anymore as he looked at the other dark spirit. "If those four children don't get their soulrooms back soon they'll die."

Yami closed his eyes briefly, clearly struggling to maintain his composure. When he opened his eyes again, they were flickering red in their depths. He was furious, but remained outwardly calm as he softly spoke. "How long?"

"A few days at most. The sooner we get them back, the better."

"'We'? You said they could not be tracked. Do you have another plan?"

Bakura arched an eyebrow at Yami, his lip curling up into a slight smirk. "I don't plan. I scheme."

On the other side of the city, a door slid open. The one who had opened it paused, listening. The water was still running in the next room. Good. There'd be enough time. The figure slipped through the door, onto the small balcony beyond.

A shadow stirred at the end of the balcony and a soft voice came out of the darkness there. "Is it safe?"

"She's in the shower and always takes a while. There's time. How about you?"

"He's asleep. Worn out from his rampage." There was a hint of amusement in the tone.

"Ah. He saw the recap show." Satisfaction filled the second speaker's voice.

"Yes. He's not at all happy. But are you sure that's a good thing?" The voice sounded worried. Or perhaps a little afraid.

"In this case, yes. Nothing more will happen. Well nothing like today, at least. Esper will withdraw from the contest tomorrow. Leaving the way clear." A soft sigh. "It's a pity. He's a good duelist. I would have liked to duel him in the final stage. But it's better this way."

"I suppose so." The first voice didn't sound at all sure of that. "I hope it all goes according to plan."

"Don't worry. It will. I've made sure of it." The second voice was as reassuring as possible. "Now we don't have much time. Do you have them?"

"Yes." A small, pale hand, attached to a wrist so slender that it looked as if a gust of strong wind could break it, reached out of the shadows.

The other accepted what the shadowy figure handed over and studied the items for a moment before nodding. "Good work. Are you sure it won't be a problem?"

"I've replaced them. The spell will last a couple of days. That should be enough time."

Another nod. "Yes. It's almost over, now."

"Yes. Ah the water has stopped." The shadowy figure sounded a little sad.

"I'd better go back in. Don't worry. Everything will work out. And when this is all over" There was a hint of shyness in the voice. A hint of promise.

"Then we'll be together." No mere hint, it was a firm promise. A vow. An oath. A pledge.

"Yes. Goodnight." The other turned and headed back inside.

"Goodnight." For a few moments more the shadows at the end of the balcony seemed to be deeper than usual, but then with a soft sigh like a gentle breeze, they returned to normal.

Mai came into the bedroom, towelling her hair dry. "Bathroom's free, Hun. Brrr it's cold in here. Is a window open?" She looked around.

Nyc shook her head. "Sorry. I stepped out on the balcony for some fresh air. It was a little fresher than I thought it would be." She smiled as Mai laughed. "When I come out, want to play cards? Not duel, just cards." She grinned at the pout Mai sent her way at the clarification.

"Fine. But if we play poker again, this time we're playing for something other than potato chips. You lost so much last night, I'm sure I gained five pounds."

Nyc shook her head as she gathered up her things and headed for the bathroom. "You didn't have to eat your winnings, you know."

"Well what's the point in winning if you don't make use of what you win?" Mai smirked and sat down on the bed to finish drying her hair.

Nyc's laughter trailed off as soon as she was alone in the bathroom. She opened her toiletries case and took out a small velvet pouch, then reached into her pocket and pulled out her treasures. She smiled slightly as she looked at the four small orbs, all softly gleaming with an inner radiance. "Not bad at all for a day's work." As she softly spoke, she slipped the four orbs into the velvet pouch and tucked it away inside the larger case again.

In another part of the city, another balcony door slid silently open and another figure stole into the room beyond it. A quick check of the bed caused the figure to go still.

It was empty.

"About time you got back." The voice that came out of the darkness on the far side of the room was as far from warm and welcoming as it was possible to get. "Where were you?"

"I... I just went out to get some air."

"Why don't I believe you? Where were you? The truth, this time." It was part snarl and part command.

The recipient of the order trembled slightly. "It is the truth. I went to the park. Sat on a swing. I have not done that for so long"

The harsh voice cut him off. "Were you seen?"

"I..."

Movement in the darkness. Evien emerged from the shadows, his eyes narrowed in a fierce glare as he grabbed the slender shoulders of the other and shook them hard. "I said, were you seen?"

"Ow. There was no one at the park. It was empty." There was a sob of pain in the voice.

Evien smirked as he released his grasp with a small shove that sent the other stumbling back a few steps. "Good. Keep it that way. I don't want anyone else to know about you. You're my secret weapon. My servant and my slave. Never forget that." He turned and strode off to the bathroom.

The other, trembling, slumped down onto the floor. "For now. Only for now." The words were spoken on a mere whisper of breath, too soft for any human ear to hear.

To be continued