Yami no Game: Dark Saga

Chapter 30

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After learning of the new evil that was upon them, things were starting to get back to the way they were. Yugi was enjoying himself in the park with Yami and Aqua, Aqua quite a children magnet and was soon up and playing their little games. Yugi chuckled as he watched them play before looking up as Yami came back over, holding two popsicles and held one out to Yugi. "Here you are." he said and Yugi thanked him as he took the frozen treat and took a bite. "So Yami...did you ever wondered about your past?" he asked as he looked up to him. Yami hummed softly as he thought it over. "I have but I never pondered over it much nowadays since I'm making new memories and those are perfectly fine." he said, smiling to him. Yugi smiled as well before looking up to see Aqua running over, a newspaper in hand.

"Something wrong?"

"No, nothing at all but I got a glimpse of this." he spoke, showing Yugi the article. The boy took a glance to it before his eyes widened when he saw the familiar wadjet eye upon the neck of the woman in the photo. "Another Sennen item?" Yami looked at the page as well before nodding. "Looks that way. And it looks like we're getting another Ancient Egyptian artifacts exhibit here." he murmured, pointing out the bold font mentioning such. 'Something's about to happen...I can just feel it...' Yugi thought.

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Later that night, a limo was making its way to the museum and stopped once it got there. "We're here, sir." The chauffeur murmured and the figure in the back nodded before stepping out, revealing Seto. "So late, and at a museum of all places? What does this man want?" One of his bodyguards asked and he shook his head. "It's not a man, it's a woman and she's part of the Egyptian Government, quite an important figure." The brunet answered before making his way inside. The two guards followed and soon met up with the woman in question. She smiled just a bit as she greeted Seto. "Welcome, it's an honor to meet you, Kaiba-san. I'm aware of KaibaCorp's remarkable strides in high-tech gaming. I'm Ishizu Ishtar. I came from Egypt to oversee the exhibit that will be held here." she greeted before leading him inside. "Please come in." Seto shrugged before following. "The supreme council of antiques is a government agency formed in 1859 to protect artifacts from grave robbers. We have been observing excavation in Egypt and around the world." she spoke and Seto huffed. "If you're trying to find someone to look for mummies, you're looking at the wrong person." he muttered as he looked over to Ishizu. "My focus is technology, high performance silicon chips for electronic games and the like. I don't have the least bit of interest of old statues and stones from thousands of years ago." Ishizu chuckled softly and shook her head. "No, not at all. I wasn't planning to keep you here all night to lecture you on ancient culture. I understand that you play Duel Monsters. Would you be interested if I told you that it originated in Ancient Egypt?" she spoke and he looked to her, a curious gleam in his eyes. "What?"

"Yes. I'm sure you remember Maximillion Pegasus, correct? The designer that created the Duel Monster franchise. But a little known fact about him is that he came up with the card game after a little trip to Egypt." she spoke with an all knowing air as she walked past him. "What I'm about to show you is a tablet from the mortuary temple of a pharaoh and sovereign from the 18th dynasty. Perhaps once you see this, it will clear your thoughts of such confusion of what I speak of." she spoke as she walked off and Seto had no other choice but to follow. "Here in this room...after you..." she whispered and Seto walked inside, the room dark until a light came on. "Behold the origin of Duel Monsters." His eyes widened as his gaze landed on the tablet before him. 'The rectangular shapes etched in this tablet...they're like Duel Monster cards!'

"The ancient Egyptians, like most cultures, thought misfortunes were caused by evil spirits. These spirits of evil, fear and suffering were believed to be in people's hearts. To bring peace to the people, the royals of that time requested of their magicians to tame the spirits. They gave them names and physical forms, trapping them in stone slabs on the walls. But as they rested in stone, they grew in power. In time, a group of priests acted against the pharaoh and sovereign, unleashing the evil power of the stone slabs, starting a conflict that shattered the kingdom and changed the most powerful leaders into creatures of immense power." Ishizu explained as she walked past him to another mounted tablet. "This is what I want you to see." she whispered and Seto looked to her before walking over and looked through the glass, seeing a very familiar image.

'That...looks like Yami!'

"The young king wields the Black Magician...while the white beast handler confronts him." she murmured and Seto looked to her in shock. 'The white beast...does she mean the Blue-Eyes White Dragon?'

"This tablet depicts diaha—the duelist battle—as it was known in ancient times. But as you know for yourself, these battles go on today." Ishizu spoke as she looked to Seto. "But why is Yami on this stone tablet?! I know what he is so was he really some pharaoh from decades ago?!" he demanded. "I don't know of this Yami you speak of. I only know of the pharaoh and the priest-magician but...I know for sure that battles like the one in these 3000 year old carving lives on today in some form." she spoke. "The age of the pharaoh ended after the royals were sealed away and with the Greek and Roman conquests. But before all of this my country, Egypt, was ruled by a line of dynasties for more than 3000 years. The figure here is of the pharaoh of the 18th dynasty, the only dynasty known to be ruled under two instead of one." she explained, touching the glass tenderly. "The cartouche...this nameplate...indicate that he is a pharaoh. But the name was defaced. Of all pharaohs that ruled, he and his companion that ruled alongside him were never found by their true name nor were they on the king-list in the temples. As if the priests of the past tried to erase their mistake." Ishizu murmured before Seto finally let out the outburst that festered within him. "How can you not know of the man named Yami?! He's a demon and clearly this tablet proves that he must be your precious nameless pharaoh! Chances are his little pet Aqua was the long lost sovereign as well! Unless you are trying to trick me with a fake tablet to make me believe more nonsense, then I shall just leave!" he growled. "Seto, do not let your heart waver with various complications. Face this tablet and tell me that it doesn't speak to you as well." she insisted as he looked back to it before noticing the other figure more. "The young priest that fought with the pharaoh...the beast he has summoned...is it not..."

"Shut up! I had enough of this foolishness! Apparently you don't believe me and therefore, I won't waste more of my time here with ancient tablets and nonsense of the past! What matters now is the present!" he hissed. "But apparently you believe this history that I speak of which is what I wish to succeed with. Just like the famous Western magician Aleister Crowley is said to have used icons from the Book of Thoth to create his Thoth tarots, Pegasus was led by fate to create Duel Monsters cards once more to bring back this ancient game." she spoke. "And the pharaoh and priest souls are still led by fate to continue this ancient battle even now after 3000 years..."

"Ishizu, if you are here to lecture me on things that is useless to me, I am taking my leave, no questions asked." Seto growled and began to leave. "I have the next gaming platform that needs to be completed and the time I waste here is only hindering the project." Ishizu turned to him. "I know. In that case, let me move onto my main subject. Do you know of the legendary rare cards Pegasus left behind?" she questioned. This caused Seto to stop and turned back to her. "What are you talking about?" She pointed to the tablet once more, aiming further up over the etching of the age old battle where three cards that surrounded the Sennen Puzzle were etched. "Do you see the three palettes carved into the tablet above the heads of the king and priest? They depict the three gods hidden within Egypt with a purpose to the Sennen Puzzle." she explained as she looked to him. "Pegasus created three unique cards based on these carvings. From right to left they are the god of the Obelisk, also called the Tormentor. Slifer the Sky Dragon, also known as Osiris and lastly, the sun dragon Ra. These three god beasts are believed to represent the polarities of the universe. Obelisk...light and dark. Osiris...good and evil. Ra...heaven and earth. It is said he who acquires all three of these cards, the supreme and victorious one, the duelist of duelists will reign over the world of cards and be titled Duelist King."

Seto listened in silence, taking in all the information being told to him. So much to think about as well as much planning. The brunet didn't care about a 3000 year old battle or the history of the nameless pharaoh whom he still considered to be the demon he still harbored a grudge with. The likeness was too rare to be considered a fluke even by him. However he did care about these cards that would make him the Duelist King and gain him a title that he could never lose. "Where are these cards you speak of? Who has them?" he questioned. "That is why I need you to find out." she answered. "Pegasus eventually realized his mistake of bringing such power to life in the form of cards that could be use horribly in the wrong hands. He repented for this mistake, saying that these cards were like using the very gods themselves. For a good reason, these cards were forbidden to be used. If used by an evil heart, it could take the opponent's life. They are considered the ultimate weapon in Duel Monsters." she explained once more as she turned to Seto. 'Ultimate weapon? Could they be used to actually deal damage directly to the player...?'Seto wondered. "Pegasus himself tried to eliminate these cards but in the end, he couldn't. Then he thought of placing them in an eternal sleep in the Valley of the Kings, the place they originally came from. At his request, Egypt's supreme council of antiques sealed them away in three different locations in the Valley of the Kings. But someone found and stole them." she spoke and Seto gave a slight nod. "Who else would know about them other than Pegasus and the council? Who could have...?"

"The Ghouls." she finished before he could end the question. "You've heard of the before, I'm sure." Seto growled. "The rare card hunters who operate behind the scenes all over the world. So it was them?" he whispered. "Stealing cards by stealth or by force only to sell them on the black market for profit. Despicable. I heard of rumors from Ruby that they are making bootleg copies to sell." The woman nodded before looking to him. "We need your help, Seto. For the honor of the Egyptian government and to carry out Pegasus' wishes, we want you to get these cards back as soon as possible before a catastrophe can occur." The brunet was silent as he thought over the choices. "We brought the Egyptian exhibit here to display the origin of the cards. It seems to attract duelists to it." she spoke and he smirked. "I see...so you want me to organize a battle royale to bring out the Ghouls from hiding, right?" he questioned and she nodded. "A large gathering will definitely bring them out for more rare cards...and my Blue-Eyes will also be on that list." he murmured. 'Along with Katsuya's Red-Eyes. I can't allow him to lose that card. It may not be powerful when challenging me but to give him a fighting chance for the future, he doesn't need to be dragged into this tournament.' he thought and made sure to specifically appoint him away from this royale. "One more thing..." Ishizu called before he could think of leaving as she pulled out a card from her pocket to reveal to him. His eyes widened as his eyes landed on the card presented to him. "The God of Obelisk!"

"Yes, that is for you. We were able to keep this card from being stolen. To retrieve the other two, I'm entrusting you with this card." she affirmed and he smirked. "I see. This will be the bait to lure the Ghouls...and you trust me so easily, hmm? What if I retrieve all three but refuse to let them go?"

"I trust you and your judgment, Seto. You would want to keep them but know where they rightfully belong." The brunet only chuckled before leaving and once he was in the car, he gazed down at the god card he had. "The three Egyptian God cards...unlimited power beyond duelist comprehension and one was given to me without a fight. The other two will be easy pickings then I will be the ultimate duel king." he commented with a laugh as the chauffeur drove off. He picked up his cell and called Ruby. "What is it, Seto? It's late." he grumbled over the phone. "Ruby, get up. We have a tournament to organize and I need you to do me a kind favor for my pup."

"Sure..."kind", what is it?" Seto told him what he needed to know and with a sleepy confirmation, Ruby hung up and got to work. Seto is going to owe him big time for ruining his good dream. A nice beach house off the coast of the Caribbean with shared company in a certain silky blonde.

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In his bedroom, Yugi was lying in bed, looking over to Yami who was sitting within the patch of moonlight that shone through the skylight. "Yami, something's bothering you. I can tell. What is it?" he asked. Yami turned to him and sighed. "Just being reminded of something." Yugi got up and walked over to him, sitting beside him. "What is it?" he asked as Yami turned to him. "Somewhere in my soul room, there were hieroglyphics that Aqua and I deciphered long before you freed us. We don't know why there were there but they told us that the one who solves the Sennen Puzzle will be the one to awaken the royal memories." he spoke and Yugi nodded. "So are you saying that you and Aqua are tied to that?" he asked. "I don't know for sure. I have a feeling we are but any memories that spoke of such are filled by the memories we made with you and your friends." he replied as he looked down to him with a smile. Yugi smiled back. "You know, they're not just my friends. They're your friends too." he murmured and Yami chuckled. "Yes, yes, I can't forget that since they stuck with me through so much." Yami whispered before looking up. "But there isn't much I can remember, not even my real name." he continued softly before looking down. 'The only thing I know is that Aqua and I only existed because we were sealed in the puzzle after we became what we are. In the Valley of the Kings, there's a stone tablet that can be fitted with the Sennen items that I remember. Maybe if we go there...' Yugi nudged him, jerking him from his thoughts. "Enough of that, Yami. I want to help you two find your true memories cause I'm sure there are many things you wish to remember...but I also want you to stay with me. Forever if possible." Yugi whispered as tears started to brim. "If you want, please, take my memories if it will make you happy. Now that you both are free from the chains that kept you in the puzzle, you can live."

Yami smiled as he wrapped his tail around him, bring him into his lap. "I wouldn't ask for that but I do want to continue making new memories with you. I don't care if we never find my true memories. Living in this life with you is so much better." he whispered as he leaned down to kiss him softly and Yugi returned the kiss, tears spilling down his cheeks. "Never leave me, Yami. Please don't leave me again." Yugi whispered. "I won't, Yugi. I never want to leave your embrace." Yami murmured, wiping the tears away with his thumb before standing with his little one in his arms. Moving to the bed, the demon laid with Yugi in his arms and and drifted into a peaceful slumber. Aqua came in later that night after getting a quick meal and took a spot on the bed to rest as well. All were unaware of what was to come soon enough.

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Zypher: And another chapter done and probably many questions about what the heck went on to answer so let have Q&A fun. One, yes Seto was in denial about the history of Egypt, the duel monster cards and all that good stuff in both the manga and anime but seeing as this is completely AU and the fact that he already knows that Yami and Aqua are demons as well as separate entities, he made to take a wild guess that Yami and Aqua are indeed the twin rulers based off the tablet on the concept that demons can live forever. Mind you, even with that thought in my mind actually made that part so much harder to write.

Two...transitions killed me. Originally, since I was doing transition from anime version of DDM to manga version of Battle City, that nearly killed me that I was going to kick out the whole Bandit Keith nonsense since a totally different DDM match went on in the manga with the same 'shatter the puzzle, light room on fire' action but then I realized 'hey, what about Bakura [and Crimson in my case] sealing their soul into the puzzle?' So yeah, this chapter, which was originally going to be next, was bumped back cause we need that part, since it's very vital towards the end, and the fact I was going to go insane with that thought in mind. But any who, enough of my problems. Hope you enjoyed [and devout fans don't come at me about butchering the plot cause its AU therefore this was never matching from the beginning at the behest of requesting specific versions between show and manga] and I'll see you soon with another chapter.