Chapter Thirteen

Neither Seto nor Lector was very happy by Duke's phone calls. And even Atem, when he was contacted, found himself feeling quite perturbed.

"So Shadi won't come to me to take a message to my priest Seto about Khu, but he'll talk to Duke?" Atem exclaimed to Yugi after hanging up. "And about the current mystery?! Duke isn't even one of the main people affected by this madness!"

"Well, maybe Duke's more affected than anyone thought," Yugi said. "It can't be easy watching all of this stuff happen, even if it's not happening directly to you." He sighed. "We're not directly involved either, for that matter, except that so many of the people who are being hurt are our friends. And . . ." He looked down, tears pricking his eyes. "I know I'm affected. . . ."

Atem paused in his frustrated and hurt tirade and instead really took in the sight of Yugi's sorrow. "Yugi, I'm sorry," he said quietly. "I should have thought about how upset you'd be. I'm upset too, of course. And I don't mean any disrespect to Duke. I'm glad that he's being included. Shadi contacting him shows that he thinks Duke is important. It's just . . . well . . ." He sighed. "I feel like Shadi has been avoiding me since I came back. I haven't seen or heard from him at all, and ever since Khu reappeared, I've really needed to talk to him."

Yugi gave him a compassionate look. "I can't believe Shadi has been deliberately avoiding you, Atem," he insisted. "Think about what he said to Duke. Maybe you don't need him as much as you think you do. Maybe your priest Seto wouldn't be able to tell you much more about Khu than we already know. Maybe we know everything we need to in order to deal with him when he comes back."

Atem sighed. "It's a nice thought, at least. I'll try to see it that way."

"Meanwhile, Kaiba's called another meeting at his house," Yugi announced. "Mokuba's texting me about it now. We'd better grab breakfast and head over there."

"Yes," Atem agreed. "We should." He hesitated, then smiled and said, "Thank you, Yugi."

Yugi beamed. "I'm just telling it like I see it."

xxxx

After making all the necessary phone calls, Duke got a quick breakfast as well and prepared to head out for the meeting. He sighed, hesitating as he looked at his phone. He hadn't called David. Last night David had been taking care of the store and hadn't been available to participate in the madness. Today, especially with the deja vu memories swirling through his mind, Duke couldn't bring himself to call David even though part of him wanted to talk about everything. This was just like the past, with a dangerous case they were trying to solve on their own. He couldn't involve David. Something might go wrong again. David might . . .

Duke drew a shaking breath and shoved the phone back in his pocket. David would be upset later that he hadn't been told, but there was nothing for it. Duke just couldn't make himself do it.

He was just opening the door when he discovered Serenity on his doorstep, about to ring the doorbell. He stopped, blinking in utter surprise. "Serenity . . ."

"Hi, Duke," Serenity said softly. "Are you okay today? I got thinking about everything that happened last night, and . . . well, I realized you might be going through a lot of bad memories right now."

Duke heaved a sigh. Serenity already knew about things and would likely be attending the meeting. There was no point trying to keep anything from her, and Duke found himself genuinely relieved that here was someone he felt he could talk to without running the risk of further endangering her.

"You're right, I am," he said. "I've got that meeting at Kaiba's I'm running off to, and I'm not sure I slept much last night. And . . . I . . . couldn't tell David. . . ."

"I know," Serenity said, taking his arm. "I mean, I was afraid that's how you'd feel."

"It's too much like the past," Duke said. He pulled the door shut and walked back up the hall with her. "I just can't risk losing David again. . . . I can't. . . ."

"I'm sure you won't," Serenity soothed. "He's not even a target."

"But something could go wrong," Duke pointed out. "The wrong person could get hurt if a bullet ricochets or a car swerves and hits someone else or . . ."

"Duke." Serenity stopped walking and turned to face him head-on. "This is different from the past. You and David were fighting alone then, and then I found out your secret by accident. But just think of all of our loved ones who are involved now! You're not alone anymore. No one involved in this case is alone."

Duke considered that and finally, slowly nodded. "You've got a point. But I still don't know if I can call him."

"Well . . . you don't have to," Serenity said. She started walking again. When they reached the elevator, the doors opened and David stepped out.

Duke stared. "David?!"

"How do you think Serenity got here, my friend?" David smirked a bit but then sobered. "Oh Duke. . . . I would have come last night if I'd known."

"You were too busy with the Christmas shopping season," Duke said. "Then the shooting happened and everybody went their separate ways for the night. . . ." He got into the elevator with Serenity and David pressed the button for the ground floor.

"And you probably either had nightmares all night or didn't sleep at all because of thinking about it," David said.

"You two both know me so well," Duke grunted.

"I just wish I'd thought about it last night," Serenity said quietly.

"Hey, it was a long day and you were probably pretty shaken up too," Duke said.

"I was," Serenity said, looking down.

"But we're both here for you now, Duke," David said. "And at least we're not trying to solve something all on our own again."

Duke slowly looked up. "That's true." In that respect, it certainly couldn't be like the past. He had felt so alone and so afraid so many times back then, knowing that he and David were in over their heads. But now there were so many others to help out as well, even two magical item holders. Maybe everything would be okay.

"So we'll be fine," David soothed.

Duke wasn't as sure he could say that, but it did help. "David, I . . . I really wanted to call you," he said. "But I was too scared. I couldn't do it."

"That's what Serenity figured when she started thinking about everything this morning," David said. "And I was sure she was right."

"I'm . . ." Duke's voice caught in his throat. "I'm really glad you're here."

David laid a hand on Duke's shoulder. "Me too, Dukey-Boy."

Duke managed a smile. Even though he was still worried, he couldn't deny how comforting this was.

xxxx

Johnson was feeling somewhat better when he woke up that morning. He was, however, surprised to see Lector already awake and going over the list of their servants made the previous night.

"Good morning," he greeted. "Are you feeling better after yesterday?"

"Good morning," Lector replied, sounding distracted. "Yes, I am." But whether that was true was anyone's guess.

"What about Nesbitt? Do you know?"

Lector paused, frowning. "I believe he took a couple of sleeping pills last night in order to get to sleep. He didn't want to end up being up all night or waking up repeatedly from bad dreams."

Johnson frowned too. "Are you sure it was just a couple?"

Lector stared at him. "You don't really think . . ."

"I guess not," Johnson relented. "But I can't help worrying a little. . . . Nesbitt was so upset. . . ." He grabbed for his glasses on the nightstand between the two beds in the hotel room and got up, crossing to the door. To his relief, when he looked out, the daybed was empty. Nesbitt was awake.

"Well?" Lector demanded.

"He's up," Johnson said.

Lector relaxed. "Good." He had to admit he was chilled by Johnson's insinuation. He had never once thought Nesbitt would be so distraught about yesterday that he might try to kill himself. What if he had, and none of them had realized until it was too late? Badly troubled, he looked back to the list.

Johnson turned back to face Lector, seemingly unaware of how much he had shaken him up. "So, what are you doing?"

"I'm just looking this over to see if there's anything we've forgotten," Lector said. "That boy Duke Devlin called me on my cellphone a few minutes ago. He said something about being contacted by the guardian of those Infinity Items and that he was told Mr. Kaiba and I already know the solution to this mystery, even though we don't know we know it."

"Well, that sounds like fancy courtroom double-talk," Johnson grunted. "What could you possibly know without knowing you know it?"

"Obviously that's what I'm trying to figure out," Lector retorted. "But what would Mr. Kaiba know about any of the servants?"

"Maybe it's not about the servants," Johnson suggested. "If that angle isn't working, why not try something else?"

"I suppose I should," Lector said. "But that narrows down the field a good bit. Of the people we both know, there's Hobson and Dr. Portman and Yami Marik. . . ." His visage darkened. "And I'd still like to see him pay for what he did to Nesbitt yesterday. But I imagine it will be hard to find him unless he wants to be found."

"No doubt," Johnson said. "But don't forget that you were hurt yesterday as well."

"Oh, I can't forget that," Lector said. "That demon made sure to hurt Nesbitt by making him hurt me. I won't forgive that."

"You're angrier that Nesbitt was hurt than yourself?" Johnson wasn't really surprised, he supposed. As angry as Lector had been with Seto for taking away the position he thought he would have of running KaibaCorp, it had always seemed to Johnson that what made Lector the angriest of all was Seto betraying Mokuba and Gozaburo.

"Of course I am," Lector said with a frown and a raised eyebrow. He looked back to the list.

Johnson came over to Lector's bed. "So, do you have any other suspects?"

"Not really," Lector said. "Except for the possibility of Scott Irvine or Scarlet. . . . But it all seems too cut-and-dry, too simple. We're definitely missing a key piece. You know how Gozaburo always used to say . . ." But he trailed off, the sentence forgotten.

Johnson had never seen anyone turn so pale if they weren't near-death. "Lector?! What on Earth?!" he exclaimed.

"It can't be," Lector gasped. "It just can't be!" He looked through the list and then turned his attention to the last page, where Crump had listed every terrible thing that had happened during this madness. He seemed to be focusing on the account of the terrible feelings in both Gozaburo's room and Scarlet's house.

"Lector, what are you putting together?" Johnson demanded.

"Maybe nothing," Lector said. "I don't even like to say it at this point; it sounds so outlandish." He reached for his phone. "But I think I'll find out whether Mr. Kaiba has had any new thoughts."

xxxx

Seto was getting ready for everyone to arrive and pondering on the bizarre series of events that had made up this preposterous case. He frowned as he dressed, pausing to examine one of the scars Gozaburo had left on his arm. Even as a child he had preferred wearing long-sleeved shirts, but after Gozaburo had scarred him, that decision had become absolute. He would not display the physical reminders of what that man had done.

Going in that bedroom was still badly shaking him up. Spending the night with Mokuba had quelled the nightmares he had feared might come, and Mokuba had seemed to sleep well too, but now the dark feelings were coming back again.

It was strange that they had encountered two locations with ominous feelings last night. Scarlet's house had felt far worse than Gozaburo's room, but there had been the same sense of hatred, just more recent and more overpowering.

The same? . . .

No, it couldn't really be. . . . That was impossible.

Horror and fear crashed over Seto and he grabbed for the phone just as it rang. "Lector!" he burst out. "What did you feel at Scarlet's house?"

Momentarily taken aback, Lector quickly snapped to and replied, "I felt an extreme sense of hatred, Mr. Kaiba."

"Did it feel familiar?" Seto demanded.

"I suppose all hatred feels familiar to some extent, if you've personally experienced what it is to hate or be hated," Lector said. "But if you're asking what I think you're asking, yes, it did."

Seto snarled. "I felt it at the time, but I couldn't really believe it. How could it be true?"

"I don't know, Mr. Kaiba, but since we're both thinking it is, we'd better do something about it before anything else goes wrong."

"I'll tell everyone to meet me at Scarlet's house instead of here," Seto said. "Especially the Pharaoh and Yami Bakura." He scowled. "We're probably going to need their powers."

As he hung up and emerged from the bedroom, Mokuba was waiting in the hall. "Hi, Seto," he greeted. "Is everyone going to be here soon?"

"Change of plans," Seto replied. "They're not coming here. I have to go out to meet them somewhere else. And Mokuba, you are not to leave this house. Do you understand me?"

Mokuba stared at him. "What?! Why?!"

"I'll explain later." Seto hurried down the stairs and out the door without another word.

Mokuba stared after him. "Seto . . ." He clenched his fists. "I want to help. . . . And something must have gone wrong for you to change all the plans like this. . . ."

A flash of light and Yami Marik was standing before him. "Yes, and I don't want you to miss a moment of it," he sneered.

Mokuba gasped. "You!" He took a step back. "I'm not going anywhere with you!"

"Oh, but you will!" Yami Marik lunged and grabbed the child before he could run. Then, even as Mokuba kicked and screamed, they vanished.

xxxx

Everyone was bewildered by the changed instructions for the meeting, and bowled over by Seto emphatically insisting on Atem's and Yami Bakura's presence.

"Something is seriously up," Joey exclaimed. "Since when does Kaiba want magic around?"

"Kaiba knows more than he's saying," Atem said grimly. "Or at least, he's very afraid of something that he doesn't want to say out loud."

Roland's car was still parked on the street when all the cars started to pull up. But Roland was not watching Scarlet's house. Instead, he was slumped against the inside of the car door.

"What the heck?" Joey frowned. "He's usually so annoyingly efficient, but he's sleeping on the job?"

Atem stiffened. "Oh no. . . ."

Seto immediately knew something was wrong. As soon as the limousine stopped, he leaped out and ran over. "Roland?!" He shook the door handle and it opened. Roland slumped into Seto's arms with a groan.

"What happened to him?!" Téa cried as she got out of Solomon's truck.

Seto felt across the man's head. "He was struck. There's a bump here." His fingers ran over a sore spot under Roland's hair.

"Oh, poor Roland," Serenity gasped.

"I'll stay with him," Solomon volunteered. "The rest of you try to get to the bottom of this mystery. But be careful!"

"We will be, Grampa," Yugi promised.

They turned to face Scarlet's house.

"Uh . . . what's with all the fireworks?" Joey blinked. What looked like blue and purple lights were flashing and flickering at the front window.

"Christmas lights?" Crump suggested.

"Those don't look like Christmas lights," Téa moaned.

Seto didn't think so either. He ran up to the window, trying to peer through the half-open blind slats for some indication of what was happening. And though he couldn't see, he could hear.

"Everything's in motion, Sir," Scarlet was exclaiming. "All those I could find who have turned against KaibaCorp or tried to harm the Kaiba family are in the process of being punished. And thanks to Dr. Portman offering her services, along with that strange person she had with her, people such as Alister Mackenzie and Robert Nesbitt have been suffering through mind-control! Not to mention the butler Mr. Hobson. I wish I hadn't had to do that to him, but he wouldn't go along with our plans in his right mind. He said we were all insane. Can you imagine?"

The next voice they heard left them thunderstruck.

"Hmm, yes. Geniuses are always thought of as insane at first."

Seto went completely sheet-white. Lector, too, was turning pale. Even though they had suspected, it was too horrible to find it was real.

"It can't really be," he whispered.

The second voice continued. "Now it's time for the final part of my plan. Tonight, Seto and Mokuba will both die."

"What?!" Scarlet shrieked. "B-But Sir . . . !"

"You really are naive, if you thought I'd leave them out. Seto betrayed me and KaibaCorp both! Mokuba will die in front of his eyes while he's helpless to do a thing about it. Then, he will die as well. And with both of them gone, I will assume control of KaibaCorp once again . . . in your body!"

"No!" Scarlet screamed. "I didn't want any of this! I wanted to avenge all those who have hurt Mr. Kaiba! I . . ."

Seto ran up to the front door and kicked it in for the second time in twenty-four hours. Everyone else chased after him. Scarlet was cowering in the middle of the living room. In front of her was a spectral form, crackling with dark spirit energy.

"Forget it," Seto snarled. "None of your plans are going to work . . . Stepfather."

Gozaburo Kaiba stood and glowered at the adopted son he had badly mistreated and outright abused. "So, you found out, eh? I was sure you would. Scarlet left a clue to her identity when she kicked off this plot by targeting the Big Five. But you weren't expecting this twist, were you?"

"Not until this morning," Seto said darkly. "I should have known you'd be back, but I foolishly believed you were out of my life for good once Noa's virtual world blew up."

Lector stared at Gozaburo, completely shaken. He had never ever known Gozaburo was involved in Noa's plans until after the fact. This was the first time he had seen the man since that horrible day at KaibaCorp when Seto had assumed control. "Sir . . ."

Gozaburo looked to him, unimpressed and cruel. "You and all your friends won't survive this either, Lector," he vowed. "You all betrayed me and I won't stand for it. I always planned to get back at you someday. I just never thought it would be like this."

"Sir, I am so sorry for what I did," Lector stammered. "I know it doesn't take away any of what happened, but I wanted you to know I regret it most deeply. I never thought you would take it so hard."

"I don't care," Gozaburo retorted. "You know I never forgave any mistakes. I certainly haven't changed on that now."

"But . . ." Gansley came forward, gripping his cane. "Aren't you dead now? Surely you don't have a body to return to. . . ."

"So what if I am?" Gozaburo snapped. "Do you think people change upon dying? They're still the same as they were in life."

"I think what Gansley means is wondering why you haven't been shown the truth that he apparently assumes everyone learns when they die," Seto said. "Some meaningful thing that makes people want to be their best self or have a change of heart, so to speak. But that wouldn't work on you, would it, Stepfather? You're too filled with hate to listen to something like that, even if God Himself told you."

The Big Five exchanged troubled looks. Indeed, Gozaburo certainly wasn't in any state to move on. He was stuck in the same rut that they had been in, and he was getting worse. He was what they could have been.

"I don't care about anything like that!" Gozaburo snapped. "Yes, you're right. Noa repented and moved on into the light. But I didn't, and I have more important things to think about, like taking revenge!"

Scarlet screamed as the hate-filled man began to transform to his flaming demon form. So did Téa, Serenity, and Joey.

"What the heck is that thing?!" the Brooklyn boy screeched, his knees knocking.

Mai could only stare. Gozaburo was hideous, as ugly outside as he was on the inside. And he was lunging directly towards Seto.

"No!" Mokuba dashed out in front of Seto, desperately pushing him aside.

"Mokuba?!" Seto stared. "Where did you come from?!"

"That creep Yami Marik dumped me here," Mokuba told him. "But now I'm glad he did!"

"So am I!" Gozaburo sneered, reaching to claw Mokuba.

Yami Bakura snarled, running out in front of Mokuba. "Be gone!" he ordered. The Infinity Ring started to glow.

But Gozaburo simply leaped out of the way, letting the beam harmlessly strike the opposite wall. "You'll have to do better than that, Thief King." He let a flame form in his hand and threw it at Yami Bakura, who could only leap aside while blasting at the supernatural fire.

Seto grabbed Mokuba, pulling him towards the door. "Get out of here, Mokuba! And don't argue with me!" he ordered.

"Seto, no!" Mokuba protested. "I can't leave you here with him! I can't!"

"We have to do something!" Yugi cried.

"We will," Atem said. He stepped forward, eyes narrowed in determination, and joined the fight along with Yami Bakura. To their alarm, Gozaburo found it very easy to throw flames at both of them, forcing them to put all their energy into putting out the fires.

Lector looked to the other members of the Big Five. "We have to do something too," he said. "This is a disaster we can't allow to happen."

He wasn't sure what kind of reception he would get, but they all nodded.

"I never thought I would say something like this, but Gozaburo is so poisoned by hate that he's practically lost all sense of being human," Gansley said.

"He's not human anymore at all," Nesbitt said.

"And we probably would've ended up like that if you hadn't really made us start to see what was happening to us," Crump said.

"We'll all help to bring him down," Johnson vowed.

Relieved, Lector looked back to the fight. "This is partially our fault for what we did to him those years ago," he said.

"Perhaps that's true, but don't forget that he made his own choices about how to react," Yami Bakura said as he somersaulted past, blasting another flame. "He could have chosen differently than he did, just as all of you could have when you were betrayed in turn."

"Well, we're going to now," Gansley said. "Although I don't know exactly what we can do to help out. . . ."

At that moment Mokuba screamed, bringing all of their attention up. He had tripped while dodging a fireball and Gozaburo was swinging his clawed hands directly at him. Marik grabbed him by one arm, pulling him to the side, but it didn't help. Gozaburo threw a fireball at Atem to keep him back and came closer.

"Now, Seto," he sneered, "witness the destruction of your younger brother and his best friend!"

"Over my dead body!" Seto roared. Everyone had scattered while the flames flew, but now he did an impressive martial arts flip to land in front of Mokuba and Marik. "You have no grudge against Mokuba, Gozaburo! Leave him alone!"

"You're right, I don't. But his death would be the best way to get revenge on you!" Still, Gozaburo studied the current scene and amended his plans. He would have to try another angle. But as long as he got what he wanted in the end, he didn't care how he achieved it. Seto wasn't going to move, which meant that there was only one thing to do. Without warning Gozaburo raked his claws across Seto's chest.

Seto couldn't refrain from screaming. When Gozaburo wasn't mortal, it wasn't the pain of physical wounds, but emotional and spiritual, that were digging deeply into his very heart and soul. The sudden act sent Seto flying across the room to crash on the floor near the wall.

Several screams went up then.

"No!" Scarlet cried in horror. "I didn't want this!"

"Kaiba!" Yugi, Atem, and Téa shouted.

"SETO!" Mokuba's agonized wail cut everyone except Gozaburo to the core. He struggled, desperate to free himself and run over to his fallen brother, but Marik held fast.

"Mokuba, you can't go over there!" he exclaimed. "Gozaburo will just do the same thing to you!"

"No!" Mokuba continued to struggle. "I have to get to him! I have to! Maybe he's still alive!"

Lector looked to Gozaburo in stunned shock. "Sir, what did you do to Mr. Kaiba?!"

"Not nearly enough, but it's a start." Gozaburo threw a fireball at Yami Bakura and started to advance on Seto. "I've trapped him in every painful memory he has about me. While he's defenseless, desperately fighting against the past, I have only to deliver the finishing blow and he will die! Then it will be you fools' turns!" Without warning he turned, throwing multiple fireballs across the room at nearly everyone. It was all they could do to duck or dodge or run. Many of the flames hit the carpet or the walls or furniture. Instantly the room was ablaze.

Lector stared at the scene. There was no time to really decide what to do or how to act; Gozaburo was preparing to strike right now and no one else was close enough. He was still angry at Seto, but . . . but . . .

"Gentlemen, we really have no choice in this matter," he said. Without waiting for their reply he ran forward, positioning himself in front of Seto.

"Lector!" Gansley cried.

Gozaburo growled, actually surprised by this barrier. "You, Lector? You're going to protect the one you wanted so badly to take vengeance on?"

"I am," Lector said. "My anger at Mr. Kaiba hasn't faded, but . . . Sir, I don't want to ever become like you. We were all on a path of destruction, heading down the same road you took. I didn't want that and I tried to turn my life around. The others were willing to try it with me. I never thought it would come to this, but you've forced my hand. I won't be like you. I won't stand by and watch you destroy Seto Kaiba. I'll protect him first, in spite of my anger."

Gozaburo sneered. "You're a bigger fool than I thought. All I have to do is take care of you first instead of after Seto. You haven't solved anything."

"Maybe he has." Gansley came over now, standing next to Lector and placing both hands on his cane. "I will stand by him, even in this."

"Me too!" Crump ran over now.

"This isn't quite what you were expecting, is it, Gozaburo?" Johnson said smoothly as he followed suit.

Nesbitt stood, staring at them, clenching and unclenching his fists. Could he really join them? His anger at Seto ran very deep and very violent. And yet . . . he too was badly shaken by the sight of Gozaburo and what dwelling on anger and hatred had done to him. Anyway, could he let his friends take a dangerous stand like this and not join with them?

"Well, Nesbitt?" Gozaburo glowered at him. "Are you really going to be as idiotic as the rest of the Big Five? Why not join forces with me instead? I know you still hate Seto."

The others looked to Gozaburo in shock, then over at Nesbitt. None of them had expected that offer, but . . . surely Nesbitt wouldn't give in. . . .

Nesbitt started, looking at Gozaburo with outrage. "Join you? Kill my family, just because they've decided to take up with someone I still don't like?!"

"Crime families turn against each other all the time for reasons like that," Gozaburo sneered. "Anyway, you consider them your family? That pathetic group?"

"Hey!" Crump snapped.

"You could do so much better," Gozaburo continued.

Nesbitt narrowed his eyes. "No," he retorted. "I couldn't." He walked over and stood by Lector. "And even I won't be like you, Gozaburo."

Gozaburo glared at them all with hatred. "Then I will kill you all." He started to raise a hand.

The Big Five braced themselves.

"Stay strong," Gansley encouraged. "If Seto Kaiba can survive such an attack, there's always a chance. If we don't let ourselves fall into despair, we may survive as well."

"And if we don't . . . at least we're all going together this time," Crump said. He hesitated, then slowly reached for Johnson's hand.

Johnson started, but took hold of Crump's hand. The others, warming to the idea, grasped each other's hands. Gansley let his cane fall to the floor. He didn't need it right now.

The clawed hand never fell. Another, gruff voice rang out before it could.

"Chain Energy!"

The Big Five, and most others in the room, stared in shock. Gozaburo roared as heavy golden chains appeared and bound his arms to his sides. With his concentration broken, the demon form faded as he returned to human shape. He stood there, shaking in rage, as Yami Bakura and Atem came up next to him.

"What did you do?!" Gozaburo snarled. "How?!"

"It's a little trick I used to know," Yami Bakura sneered at him. "The act of turning cards real for a short amount of time. It's never worked with the Infinity Ring before, but I was desperate and decided to see again if it would cooperate. And what do you know, it did."

"Alright!" Joey cheered. "I never thought I'd be grateful for a creepy power like that!"

"Now, Gozaburo, we have no choice but to send you away," Atem said. "Perhaps someday you will have the change of heart that your son Noa had and that the Big Five have had. But for now, you are far too dangerous to be allowed to roam free in this realm."

Yami Bakura nodded in agreement. "Be consigned to the shadows for as long as your soul hungers for the darkness."

The Ring and the Puzzle both glowed. Even as Gozaburo yelled curses at them and Seto and the Big Five, he vanished into the purple fog. When he did, the magical fires vanished as well.

Everyone started to relax. "Is it over?" Serenity trembled.

"For now," Duke said, putting an arm around her. "But I wouldn't count out the idea that we'll see him again someday."

Mokuba ran to Seto and crashed to his knees next to him. "Seto!"

Seto was still very motionless. But . . . Gozaburo had said he was still alive, so . . . he surely was, wasn't he?

Lector knelt down next to Mokuba and reached to check for a pulse. Yes, it was there, and it was racing. Seto was still trapped in his memories.

"He's alive, Mokuba," he said. "But I'm not sure how to wake him up. . . ."

"Kaiba must find the way to do that himself," Atem said. "But you can help him, Mokuba. We can all help him. We must pool our energy and give him strength. He likely feels all alone right now. We'll shine our light and let him know he isn't!"

Mokuba nodded in determination. "Okay!" He gripped Seto's hand with both of his. "Come on, big brother. . . ."

One by one, the others bowed their heads, concentrating on Seto and trying to send their energy to him. Téa laced her fingers and looked at Seto. "You can do it, Kaiba," she whispered.

At last there was success. Seto stirred, slowly opening his eyes. "Mokuba?" he mumbled.

"Seto! Oh Seto . . ." Mokuba exclaimed for joy and leaped into Seto's arms.

Seto held him close. "You're alright, Mokuba?"

"Of course!" Mokuba said. "It's you we've been worried about!"

"I'm alright," Seto said. He sounded and looked amazed and in awe by that fact.

"Thank goodness," Serenity beamed.

"Gozaburo said he trapped you in your memories," Mokuba said softly.

"He did. I was lost in a world where Gozaburo ruled," Seto said, his voice darkening. "No matter how I fought, I couldn't break free. Then I felt something. I felt strength from you, Mokuba, and from everyone else in this room. Even . . ." He looked to the Big Five in shock.

"They tried to protect you from Gozaburo, Seto!" Mokuba told him.

"What?!" Seto stared.

Lector nodded. "Yes, Mr. Kaiba, we did. Now, I can't say that any of us aren't still angry with you for certain things you've done, but we all want to move on. We don't want to be held hostage by our anger and let it consume us as it has with Gozaburo."

Gansley nodded as well. "Let's consider this an official burying of the hatchet, shall we?"

Seto looked from them to the others. They all showed the same feelings, even Nesbitt.

"Yes," he said at last. "Let's. But don't think that means I'll rehire any of you."

"No need for that discussion," Gansley said. "We have our own plans going forward. Isn't that right, gentlemen?" He looked to the others, particularly Nesbitt. Was he going to stay with them, even on a project he wasn't so thrilled about?

"Yes," Nesbitt said. "I'll find a way to make it work for me. I'm staying."

"Great!" Crump cheered.

The others smiled. They had all survived, and they would all be staying together, forging a new future for them. It was the best outcome for all of them.

Mokuba beamed. "We're all really okay," he whispered in amazement.

"Even the house is okay," Serenity said.

"A little charred, but it'll live," Joey interjected.

"Too bad it's not as easy to put out the fire in Gozaburo's soul," Tristan frowned. "He's really lost it."

"He was that bad in Noa's world," Seto said. "Clearly he's even worse now."

"He really looked like some kind of demon," Lector said. He was clearly still haunted by the sight.

"Honestly? He probably is," Tristan said.

Yami Bakura nodded. "He gave up whatever was left of his humanity for the power of Hell. Just remember that it isn't all your fault that it happened," he added gruffly. "He made his own choice to become that."

"Logically, I may know that," Lector acknowledged, "but it may take a while for it to actually sink in." He heaved a sigh. "After all, I was never good at handling my responsibility for this mess."

"You went overboard not acknowledging it," Seto said. "It's also possible to go overboard the other way and acknowledge it too much."

"I suppose," Lector said.

"And Yami, that was wonderful, what you were able to do!" Bakura exclaimed.

Yami Bakura studied his deck. "I never thought it would work," he mused. "So such a power can be used for good."

"Yes," Bakura smiled.

"But you won't ever bring out Man-Eater Bugs or Headless Knights, will you?" Joey gulped.

Yami Bakura paused and looked up at him. "Oh, I don't know." He smirked. "It might be fun."

"Gah!" Joey wailed.

"Relax. I won't do it unless I need to." Yami Bakura stuck his deck back in his pocket. "I doubt the Ring would appreciate my using it for something frivolous."

"You're gonna give me a heart attack one of these days!" Joey yelled.

Yugi, Téa, and Bakura laughed.

Scarlet slowly got to her feet. "Mr. Kaiba, I'm so sorry," she trembled. "I never meant for things to go this far. Gozaburo came to me the other night and suggested getting back at all your enemies. I thought they should be taught a lesson, so I agreed. He never mentioned killing you and Mokuba was part of his plan. I guess I should have known, but . . . I didn't. . . ."

Seto glowered at her. "I don't know what I'm going to do with you now. But answer me a couple of questions. Where's Hobson now?"

"I don't know," Scarlet said honestly. "He really didn't want to be part of our plot. When he realized he was being mind-controlled by that Yami Marik person, he ran away to try to get away from him and the control and everything."

"Hmm," Seto frowned.

"That's the honest truth, Mr. Kaiba," Scarlet said. "Maybe if Yami Marik's lost interest in him, he'll come back."

"Hopefully," Seto said coolly. "Meanwhile, will you cooperate and tell us all of the people mixed up in your little plot?"

"I . . . I'll try," Scarlet said haltingly. "But the servant who masterminded the Big Fives' servants' plans . . . I'm not sure who that is myself."

"Well . . ." Crump sighed and stepped forward. "If you still want me to be a decoy, I'll do it to try to catch them. . . ."

"I have a different idea now," Seto said. "But yes, Crump, I'll use you for it. All of you, if you're willing to do a little play-acting." He looked to each of the Big Five. "It might hurt you a bit, but in the end it might keep you all safer than my original plan."

They exchanged uncertain looks. "Tell us what you want, Mr. Kaiba, and then we'll decide," Lector said at last.