Shadows swirled around the snow field, drowning out all forms of light and plunging the field into complete darkness. No sound was clearly audible, except of the faint whistling of the winter wind, uprooting small flurries of white from the alabaster ground.

Then, suddenly, the shadows coalesced into the figure of a man, trailing out from his back like two expansive ebony wings, resembling those of a fallen angel.

Hands deep in his pockets, the man loped to the center of the snow field with all the grace of a predator, opening his twin bloody crimson orbs, he declared lowly, "We are all tainted, but only some are truly pure. And now it is time to paint the town black and red with their blood."

"The show begins."

Despite that stranger's reassurance that once he'd convinced the Panther to join him, all the others would follow, Kai had still endeavored to formulate a plan to recruit them all; he wasn't one to leave things to chance.

And apparently, someone else knew his plan, and had decided to help it along.

The double doors of Seto Kaiba's office swung inward as he approached them, though no one had visibly opened them, and he strode inside, white trenchcoat billowing out behind him even though there was no wind.

He knew he should be getting home-it was long past midnight-but he still had some work to take care of. Running a multibillion dollar company, and a secret criminal empire wasn't exactly a nine-to-five job.

As he entered his office, he felt a strange chill, like someone was watching him, and he stopped in his tracks, casting his gaze around carefully for the source of the feeling. He wasn't the type to scare easily, but he also wasn't the type to leave himself vulnerable, either. There were several weapons concealed beneath his coat; if there was someone spying on him, they were going to be very sorry.

After several in-depth sweeps of the wide, unlit space, however, he could detect no signs of anyone else besides himself. The feeling remained, but he dismissed it and resumed his previous activity, heading over to his desk and pulling out his laptop.

He tried to ignore the slight prickling at the back of his neck while he switched on his computer and began typing, and for a few moments, he was successful.

Then, he heard it.

"Seto Kaiba."

When Kai returned to his, for lack of a better word, hideout with Kanda in tow, one of the men he'd been planning to approach next was waiting for him by the entrance.

"Are you Kai Hiwatari?" the unexpected visitor asked when he caught sight of the incendus and his companion.

"That depends," Kai responded evasively, his ivory features inscrutable as he met the intruder's gaze without blinking. He knew he needed this man's help with his crusade-but he didn't want to get into that right away, and he didn't know if the other was here to help or had come for some other more nefarious purpose. "What is it you want with a dead man, Mr. Kaiba?"

Seto uncharacteristically froze in his chair. He knew that voice; but he'd never thought he'd hear it again.

"You-what do you want?" he called out in a tone of forced calm, looking around the room to find the speaker, and pretending he wasn't shaken by his unseen presence.

"It is time for your debt to me to be paid, white dragon," that deep, velvet-like baritone responded, seeming to come from all around him, reverberating within his ears.

"There is a new player making moves against the Eidolons, a fledgling vampire, Kai Hiwatari, who is bent on revenge for his turning-and he needs a very specific list of people in order to get it."

A frown creased Seto's forehead as he contemplated that statement, momentarily forgetting about the mystery of the speaker's location.

"And what does that have to do with me?" he retorted shrewdly, crossing his arms over his chest.

As if reading Kai's mind, Seto answered truthfully. "I know what the Eidolons did to you, and I know you're planning to go after them. And I know you need me, and some of my employees in order to do so, so I'm here to offer our services."

There was a low, rumbling sound, almost like a laugh.

"You are going to summon the Legacies and order them to join you in aiding with this vampire's crusade," the voice intoned, making it clear that this wasn't a request.

But Seto wasn't going to just capitulate-he didn't take orders from anyone.

"And what if I refuse? There is nothing in this for me, after all," he retorted defiantly, lifting his chin and leaning back in his chair.

Kai's red-rimmed amethysts narrowed. That didn't track at all with what he knew of the man standing before him; the white dragon was one of the most notorious crime lords in Japan, and, from what he'd heard, had had a long-standing relationship with the Eidolons. So, why would he want to help destroy them now?

He opened his mouth to ask that very question, but Kanda beat him to it.

"I thought Kaibacorp was a part of the Eidolons' empire. Why would you want to help bring them down?" the panther asked, subtly shifting his hand to rest on the pommel of his sword-just in case he didn't like Kaiba's answer.

A yell involuntarily tore itself out of his throat as he pitched forward again, a sudden savage burning ripping though his back.

"This is the favour you owe me, Master Kaiba," that sibilant, disembodied voice echoed through his office, invading his mind and commanding all of his faculties. "And, now that you bear my mark, there is no refusing."

Seto hunched his shoulders, clutching at the edge of his desk as sweat broke out on his forehead because of the pain. He could feel the 'mark' on his back taking control, and he knew he had no choice except to do as he was bidden.

Gritting his teeth, he slowly reached into his pocket for the burner phone he kept to contact his more covert employees, and hit the redial button.

"Truesdale," he said once the line picked up, fingers flexing in his lap as he tried to suppress another pained hiss. "You and the other Legacies have a new mission."

The brunette's gaze shifted, a strange flash going through his frigid steel-blue eyes.

"You must be the one they call the Panther," he observed, sounding as if he were speaking more to himself than to the younger. He raised his voice. "To answer your question, the Eidolons and I have an arrangement-that doesn't make me one of them. And, as it happens they broke our arrangement before it even began, so, as the white dragon, it is my personal obligation to make them pay for that mistake."

Kanda turned to Kai with his brows furrowed, wondering if the incendus was buying Kaiba's story.

Kai's expression was unreadable, but his eyes darkened as they met the brunette's ice slivers, searching them for any traces of deception.

When Kaiba didn't blink, the vampire decided to believe him for now.

"What about these employees of yours? Will they be so willing to put their lives on the line in order to help you settle a score?" he queried, arching a single slate eyebrow.

Unexpectedly, the white dragon nodded without hesitation.

"I've already contacted them, and they're on board," he answered truthfully. "The Legacies are my strongest-and most loyal-contractors, and, apparently, they have their own reasons for wanting to bring down the ghosts."

Again, Kanda looked reluctant to believe that; but Kai seemed to know something he didn't because he tilted his head forward slightly.

"Well then, I guess you're all in luck," Kai commented without emotion, pale features still carefully blank. He tilted his head in Kanda's direction, introducing both of them. "I am Kai Hiwatari, that's Kanda, and we are the ones who can help you get your revenge."

Something that might have been a smile touched Kaiba's thin lips at that proclamation-and the confidence behind it. Strangely, despite the circumstances, he did think that these two might actually have a chance at doing what they said.

"Excellent," he declared, his features arranged into something like satisfaction; but there was a sort of forcedness to it, like he was putting on a show, and both Kai and Kanda picked up on it. However, neither of them brought it up; Kanda because he didn't really care, and Kai because he knew they needed Kaiba, whether he was actually here of his own volition or not.

And, now that they had him, that was two people he could cross off his list.

The next person wasn't hard to track down since Kai knew him personally. He wasn't a necessity, but Kai did think he would be an asset-and he did have some pretty good motivation for wanting to go after the Eidolons as well.

The only reason Kai hadn't gone to him first was because he also happened to be one of them.

He used his powers to break into his target's cabin on the outskirts of Tokyo, where he found the man in his bedroom, polishing his weapons.

"Long time no see, Tala," Kai greeted his friend in Russian, standing in the shadows so he was just barely visible.

The redhead whipped around in his chair at the other side side of the room, violet eyes narrowing as they searched for the source of the voice.

"Feniks," Tala stated with a mix of disbelief and what sounded almost like consolation when his gaze found Kai. "I thought you were dead. The Snake said he was going to have you killed."

"Well, apparently he changed his mind," Kai corrected flatly, tone utterly void of emotion. He stepped forward into the light so Tala could see him more clearly. "He had me turned into a vampire instead."

Tala's forehead crinkled as his violet eyes raked over the other carefully.

"Let me guess: you want revenge," he guessed with a slight sigh, getting to his feet so he could face Kai fully; looking at him a second longer, he put together the reason Kai was here. "And you want my help to get it."

When Kai said nothing, instead simply boring holes into his face with those simmering eyes of his, Tala couldn't suppress another heavy breath.

"You do realize that we wouldn't stand a chance against the rest of the Eidolons and would most likely end up being killed for real?"

"We wouldn't be alone," Kai pointed out, making Tala's frown deepen. "I've already gotten the Panther, Seto Kaiba, and the Legacies to agree to help me. So, I can do this without you-but I know you also would like a chance to make the Eidolons pay. Well, here it is."

The redhead's lips thinned, consternation marring his stark white features. He did want to hurt his bosses like they'd hurt him in order to get him to join; but he hadn't wanted to risk his life to do it. However, if the Panther-who had arguably been the most powerful Eidolon since the Reaper-was already on a mission to do just that…

"You were really able to locate the Panther and convince him to join you?" Tala quipped sceptically, not really believing it.

Kai didn't blink.

"You know I wouldn't lie about something like this, wolf," he stated firmly.

Tala was silent for another moment. It was true-he'd known Kai almost his entire life and the other man had never once lied to him-at least, not about anything as serious as this. And, now that Kai was a vampire, if there was anyone he could trust to keep him alive in a fight against the Eidolons, it was him.

He let out a soft, soundless breath.

"All right," he finally conceded, inclining his head. "I'm at your disposal-whatever you need."

The corners of Kai's pale mouth twitched, and he took another step forward, touching Tala's shoulder in an uncharacteristic gesture of solidarity.

"Glad to hear it," he commented lowly, a hint of what could almost have been satisfaction entering his Russian accent. "Perhaps, as a first task, you could find out if your boss knows of anyone who could tell me how to find the Reaper."

Tala blinked; he wasn't really surprised by that request, but he was rather daunted by it. After all, Orochimaru had been trying to find the Reaper for the last two and a half years, and had had little to no success.

However, there was every possibility that he might at least know of an old associate or something who could help.

"I can try," he lifted one of his shoulders in a non-committal shrug.

By way of a thank you, Kai simply gave Tala's arm a light squeeze. Then, with that, he turned around and exited the cabin the same way he'd come in.

As he left, a very slight smile creased his bloodless lips. That had been easier than he thought; but he wasn't going to get complacent. After all, recruiting the last few people on his list was probably going to be a hell of a lot more challenging.

Especially since one of them was someone whose actual name he didn't know.

They move now, the shadows who walk in the light. They will amass, and their numbers may even match those of the evil assailing their world.

But this isn't about numbers.

It's about strength.

When he returned to his bedroom on his yacht, he found a familiar cloaked, muscular form waiting for him, angled against the edge of his desk.

"Zane," Aster greeted the unexpected-but not unwelcome-guest, raising a single silver eyebrow as he set his briefcase down and closed the door behind him. "To what do I owe this visit?"

The cloaked man looked up, sharp features unreadable beneath his navy hood.

"We're being called in, Aster," he stated flatly, eyes blazing cold fire as he surveyed the younger man. "Kaiba has a new mission for you, me, and Princeton."

Aster sat down, and folded his arms over his chest before responding. "Which is what?"

"Apparently, in addition to our other calling, we are also needed to fight the Eidolons," Zane stated in his usual cool, bland baritone-that never quite matched his bright, almost electric-looking turquoise eyes.

Aster stared back at his elder companion as he pondered that revelation. He supposed it made sense; after all, the Legacies were given power to defeat great evil, and the Eidolons definitely fit into that category.

What he was curious about, though, was how Kaiba suddenly knew about this supplemental destiny of theirs.

"Did Kaiba happen to say why he wants to take on the Eidolons all of a sudden?" he wondered, his other eyebrow rising to join the first.

"He didn't," Zane said," But he isn't the one leading this fight. Some fledgling vampire named Kai Hiwatari is."

Aster frowned: that name sounded familiar.

"The CEO of Hiwatari Enterprises? I thought he was dead," he quipped when he realized where he knew the name from.

Zane's expression didn't change. "Evidently, he's now a member of the undead."

Aster's lips pressed together, silver brows arching up higher; now that was something he didn't expect. The recently-appointed head of a big company now a vampire. Interesting.

"Have you briefed Chazz on this already?" he questioned. When Zane nodded, he let out a short, silent breath. "Very well, then. I guess I'm in."

Zane inclined his head a second time.

"We leave for Tokyo in the morning, then," he informed the younger shortly, pale features remaining expressionless as he departed the cabin.