A/N: Posting this at 2:30am and I'm too tired to edit. I'll do that tomorrow. In the meantime, enjoy~

EDIT 3-26-17: I corrected as many errors as I could find. I'm so sorry about the number of them. I must've been much more tired than I thought I was.

Chapter summary: In which Marik intrudes, Pwyll explains the rules, and connections from the ancient past are made in the present.

2: Godly Rules

Yami frowned, his carmine eyes narrowing in confusion. "Ryou? Bakura? What do you mean 'where are they'?" he said. "They were with you last I saw."

"Yes," Marik hissed. "Well they're not there now. And before you ask, no they did not just go out for the evening without me. I looked for them." Lilac eyes darkened with fury. "I looked everywhere for them. Even my Shadows couldn't find them. They're gone."

Stunned, the Pharaoh turned to Yugi who looked equally surprised. The young King shook his head slowly. "I-I'm sorry," Yugi said. "I have no idea where they went. But we can help you look for them."

"Yes, after you tell me how you got here in the first place," Arawn said, eyeing the Dark Priest distrustfully.

Marik smirked. "Simple," he said. "I went up." He winked at the Unseelie King's confusion then glanced at the person standing awkwardly behind Yugi. Rolling his eyes, he said, "You do realize I can see you, right?" he drawled lazily.

"Yeah," Jounouchi said. "But I also know you wouldn't hurt Yugi."

"Who said anything about going through Yugi?" Marik scoffed. He grinned and Jounouchi squawked, leaping a full two feet in the air and flailing.

"That," the Knight cried, pointing a finger accusingly at the Priest, "was not okay."

"Oh, boo-hoo. Hold on, I think I feel a tear coming," he said, holding up a hand to stop and interruptions. "Wait. Wait! Nope. Just another round of annoyance. False alarm." Jounouchi snarled to which Marik grinned.

"You," Jounouchi said slowly, "are a jerk."

"Guilty," Marik said proudly, not a hint of regret in his demeanor.

Yugi sighed and looked back over his shoulder at Blue Eyes who remained where she was, resting on the patio. Her glittering blue eyes watched the proceedings with interest even though her wing did not move from its position. Yugi doubted she would lift her wing and wake her sleeping charges until she was good and ready or until they woke on their own.

That could cause a few problems. First, although Yugi and Yami managed to travel between realities on their own, they suspected Kaiba had a better handle on it. He nibbled his lip in growing concern. Kaiba had been absent from KaibaCorp for several days now and Yugi doubted the explosion at the Regent's home had gone unnoticed by the media or law enforcement. The Japanese people as well as the employees of KaibaCorp and the enemies of the game mega-corporation needed to see Seto alive and well and continuing to forge ahead. Otherwise, confidence in KaibaCorp would begin to drop followed by stock prices and business deals.

There was also the matter of Helios. Yugi winced. The Titan of the sun had been harmed while under the Shadow Court's protection which meant his care was their responsibility. Yugi did not have the financial facilities to support Helios in the condition he was in. Kaiba did, however. The only other option was to leave Helios here in the Otherworld, but doing so would probably put the Court further in debt to the Fae. Neither the King nor the Pharaoh were willing to do that. They would bet their favorite card Kaiba would be against it too.

Last, but most certainly not least, was the whole debacle at Set's tomb. J'onn already inform them of the media frenzy that resulted from that fiasco. Someone would have to deal with the fallout of that and Yugi selfishly did not want to be the one to do it. He wanted to see his mother and Grandpa. He wanted to tell them he was alright. He wanted them to know he was safe. He wanted them to know he didn't run from the hospital for no reason. He wanted his family. He wanted to hug them, however childish that may sound.

:Aibou,: Yami whispered in his mind. :That is not childish. That is a natural desire.:

Yugi hung his head wearily. He was just so tired. He cared about Ryou and Bakura. He truly did. Be he was tired. He just wanted to rest like Kaiba and Mokuba were doing now.

:We need to find them, Yami,: Yugi said with a sigh. :I know we do. I'm just… Is it wrong to feel tired?:

:No, it isn't,: Yami said gently, sending a pulse of comforting emotion to Yugi's mind. :I too feel drained. But perhaps that makes finding our friends that much more important,: he said. :We're vulnerable right now.:

:What about Kaiba and Mokuba?: Yugi asked, turning his gaze to the Blue Eyes White Dragon.

:Kisara will protect them,: the Pharaoh said, following his partner's gaze. :Nothing will ever stop her from do that, I don't think.:

Yugi smiled. :Much like Mahaad.:

:Hm, yes. I suppose so,: Yami said.

Finally, Yugi hummed. "We'll help, Marik," he said, returning his gaze to the Priest. "But I..." He bit his lip, "We'll help," he said at last.

Marik studied his monarchy closely, reaching out and brushing their Shadows with his own. The response was immediate but told him everything that the King and Pharaoh would not say out loud. They were exhausted. Although their Shadows responded immediately to stimulation, it was clear they lacked their usual power. It irked the Priest to no end, but he knew the need to rest and recuperate. He of all people knew the consequences of overextending himself when using the Shadows. It was dangerous and threatened to dislodge the user's consciousness and, if they continued, their soul.

Reluctantly, Marik sighed. "Not right now, you won't," he said.

"What?" Yami gasped. "Marik what-?"

The Priest crossed his arms and leveled the Pharaoh with one of his best flat stares. "I'm not an idiot, Pharaoh," he said. "I'm not blind either. You two look like you're about to fall asleep on your feet." He took a deep breath, counted to three, and let it all out through his nose. "Look," he said after a moment, "get some sleep. I'll call my sister and the Lights and have them keep an eye out for Ryou and Bakura."

"But Marik," Yugi started, his heartfelt eyes wide with obvious concern, "it's okay. We want to help!"

Marik lifted a hand and held it, palm out so it practically pressed against Yugi's nose startling the King silent. "I know you want to help," he said, "but quite frankly I doubt you'll stay awake long enough to do anything useful."

"Oi!" Yami cried, affronted.

"Hush up, Pharaoh," Marik said dismissively. "Or I'll sic Ishizu on your ass."

Immediately, Yami shut his mouth and Yugi blinked, his shoulders drooping dejectedly.

"I'm sorry, Marik," Yugi said.

Marik eyed the young King before patting the boy's head fondly. "Just get some sleep, you two," he said. "I'm not the de fact leader of the Dark for nothing. Besides now that I know how to get here," he said, shooting the Fae watching him a smirk, "I'll be back. In the meantime, I'll wrangle the others into a search party. If we can't find either of my two favorite boy in twelve hours, then I'll call you."

Reluctantly, Yugi nodded. "Alright."

"I'll ask Ishizu to be the mediator between us and the Justice League as well," Marik added, crossing his arms thoughtfully. "I bet our resident Sleeping Beauty over there," he ignored the warning growl from Blue Eyes, "would be interested in knowing his precious kohai made it back to Starling City safe and sound."

Yugi smiled sheepishly. "He would."

Marik rolled his shoulders and lifted his eyebrows to his hairline briefly. "You three are the most baggage-heavy royalty I've ever had to deal with, you know that?" he grumbled.

"Well," Yami said, a cheeky smirk on his face, "consider the number of royal people you've had to deal with in the past added to a total of zero before me, I won't take offense to those words."

"Whatever," Marik drawled, rolling his eyes. "This gives me an excuse to keep Shaadi's hands off my sister so I'm not complaining. Yet," he added. "See you shortly, Yugi, Pharaoh."

Without another word, the Priest vanished in a whirl of Shadows.

"Dude could give Kaiba a run for his money in a game of who's-the-most-obnoxious," Jounouchi grumbled, crossing his arms in a huff.

Pwyll stepped away from Primula's support when he felt strong enough. He could feel Arawn's gaze on him but he paid it no heed. Honestly, Pwyll felt almost normal now. The weakness that had assaulted him earlier was gone. With the return of his strength, came the return of his power until he felt every inch the Seelie King he was once again.

"You're welcome to stay in Avalon," he said to the three Shadow Courtiers still standing before him, "but only until your Regent awakens. You must understand, the Otherworld is not known for being friendly to non-Fae."

"We understand," Yugi said, bowing to the Seelie King respectfully. "I apologize for the inconvenience."

"On the contrary," Pwyll said. "If Arawn has declared your Regent as his guest then I declare you as mine. Light, Dark, and Balance. A careful balance between the Seelie and Unseelie. Despite our differences, our two pantheons function in a similar manner; so you see why we find you fascinating."

"That being said," he continued grimly, "I would ask that your pantheon not intrude here at will. We choose not to take offense this time, but I doubt our people will be merciful should it happen again."

Both the King and the Pharaoh's expressions darkened.

"Pwyll's right, of course," declared Arawn. "You're here unmolested because we brought you here and gave you permission to remain. Consider it thanks for stopping the end of the world, although I still want to know the truth behind that and how your Priest made it here unaided."

Yugi's lips quirked upwards at the corners. "Would you consider that payment for our debt to you?" he asked shrewdly.

The Unseelie King started, then grinned hungrily. "Sneaky little King, aren't you," he said.

Yugi chuckled, taking no offense. "I've been told that on occasion," he chirped cheerfully. Behind him, Jounouchi snorted in amusement.

Arawn hummed. "Oh, very well," he said finally. "I suppose I'll consider your debt repaid in full. I'm sure we won't be seeing the last of each other any time soon, after all."

"No, I suppose not," Yami agreed.

Primula, slipped her arm around her husband's and tugged him back to the Avalon tower. "Come dearest," she said in a tone that made it clear no argument would be tolerated. "It's about time you checked on our people. Pwyll can handle it from here."

Arawn visibly sulked, but followed his wife willingly. He patted the Seelie King's shoulder companionably as he passed earning him a reassuring smile. Then he left without looking back.

"My word stands," Pwyll said, returning his gaze to Yugi. "You are welcome here, but do not stray out of Avalon and do not let anyone else from your pantheon come here. Your pantheon is young so I'll forgive the slight this time and explain the rules of non-interference."

"I'm sorry," Yugi said quickly. "We didn't know allowing Marik to come here was considered offensive."

"Indeed," Yami said, nodding his head. "I'll make sure it doesn't happen again."

"Thank you," Pwyll said, accepting the apology with grace. "Come. This is something you should all hear."

Pwyll strode confidently up to the beautiful white dragon and said, "Can you hear me?"

:I can,: she replied.

"Then pass my words along to your charges when they wake," Pwyll said. He waited for the white dragon to nod before turning to face the others. "The rules of non-interference between pantheons are simple," he said seriously. "Never enter the sacred home of another pantheon without permission. Never set foot on another pantheon's sacred ground unless you seek to speak to them. Do not attack anyone under another pantheon's protection unless they attack first. Respect the boundaries of another pantheon and do your best not to interfere with them."

"That being said," the Seelie King said, narrowing his eyes, "if you are attacked by another pantheon or anyone under the protection of another pantheon, you are well within your rights to strike back. Self-defense is not considered an offense. In the old days, humans declaring allegiance to one pantheon would often try to bring down a god from another pantheon. The god under attack was allowed to defend themselves without fear of retribution from that human's preferred pantheon."

"Also, as gods yourselves, try not to actively convert humans from another pantheon to your own," Pwyll said. "That's something only humans can do. It's your job to protect, not to convert. If something you do or say causes a human to convert to your pantheon and a member of the former pantheon decides to take it personally, they have that right. Unless, the conversion was unintentional."

"What would be considered unintentional?" Yugi asked, listening to the Seelie King in rapt interest.

"Yes, and if the conversion was unintentional, how would that be proven?" Yami added.

Pwyll tilted his head slightly, considering the question carefully before answering. "In that case," he said slowly, "someone from another, neutral pantheon would act as a mediator between the accuser and the accused. The mediator would then determine whether intention was deliberate or not."

"And if the accused is found innocent?" Yugi asked.

"If the accused is found innocent, then the accuser must step down or risk causing a war which none of us want," Pwyll answer. "If the accused is found guilty, then the accuser has the right to exact a fitting punishment on the guilty party."

"And how will the punishment be decided?" Yami pressed.

The Fae shrugged. "That is usually up to accuser's pantheon," he said. "Together they will determine a punishment that is considered equal to the crime. That punishment will need to be approved by the mediator before it's handed down, but it usually passes." The Seelie's violet eyes darkened. "No one wants to cause an inter-pantheon war. We… They learned their lesson many years ago," he said, bowing his head.

"What happened?" Jounouchi asked.

Pwyll frowned. "I… It was before my time," he said hesitantly. "There are few people still alive who remember what happened." He glanced surreptitiously at the two Greek Titans. "Arawn knows the story better than I do," he said, changing the subject. "He doesn't like to talk about it, though. I had to get him drunk before he told me what he knew." He closed his eyes. "It was dishonorable of me," he admitted.

After a moment of silence, Pwyll took a deep breath, letting it out slowly through his nose before speaking again.

"Arawn said it started when a meteor fell from the sky," Pwyll began. "It fell on a small continent that no longer exists. The city-state of that continent was already formidable in regards to naval might. But after the meteor fell, they advanced in technology much faster than what was considered natural even by our standards. The people suddenly had powers they never had before, they could do things no living mortal should be capable of, and they decided to wage war on anyone they deemed lesser beings."

"The pantheons did not get involved at first," Pwyll said. "Humans fighting humans is not our concern. But then the humans of that place began seeking out and killing gods inciting tensions between pantheons. It wasn't until later that the pantheons of the time realized the meteor that fell to Earth had created a god who was directly behind the madness. By the time the pantheons did realize the war wasn't just humans against humans but a god against gods, it was too late. They were overpowered. Some escaped unscathed, some were decimated but had enough of their infrastructure left intact for them to survive, while others were completely wiped out."

"Gods?" Yami breathed, his wine red eyes wide in horror. "Whole pantheons wiped out?"

Pwyll nodded. "The stone that served as that beast-god's power source had a debilitating effect on gods. It negated much of their power and rendered them essentially mortal. Those who survived the massacre wrote books on those events, but they are kept under strict lock and key," he said. "No human has ever read them. I'll see if I can have a copy made and sent to you."

"That would mean a lot," Yugi said gratefully. "What happened to the pantheons that survived? How did they stop the god of that city-state?"

"They didn't," Pwyll said simply. "It was the humans who stopped the war and ultimately the beast-god behind everything. The beast-god's defeat caused that accursed continent to sink into the depths of the ocean. However, although the beast-god was weakened after its defeat, it did not die or go down with its host continent. It hid in the sea, attacking ships and anyone who got too close to it. For some reason, the pantheons of the era couldn't track its movements or find and destroy the despicable stone that was its power source. It took another human to finally finish the job a century or so later."

"Or so we thought," he continued, his shoulders drooping. "When that despicable continent reappeared and the beast-god was seen in the skies several years ago, many pantheons feared the worst. Mine was one of them. Arawn wouldn't sleep until the continent disappeared. I… I've never seen his eyes so haunted before."

"Wait a second," Jounouchi whispered, his mind beginning to piece the event the Seelie King described with his own experiences. "This…beast-god thing… Was it, a giant snake?" he asked. "Like, a friggin' huge, water snake that can fly?"

Pwyll lifted his head and stared at Jounouchi oddly. "What makes you say that?" he said cautiously.

"It was, wasn't it?" the Knight demanded. "Holy shit."

"Jounouchi?" Yugi asked, staring at his friend in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"The Great Leviathan," Jounouchi said grimly, his eyes dull. "The meteor that fell t' Earth 'n gave those people all tha' power? The continent that vanished int' the sea? The beast-god-thing that was behind the attacks on th' pantheons?" Jounouchi snarled. "How much you wanna bet that was the Orichalcos of Atlantis and the beast-god was the Great Leviathan?"

"What?" Yami cried.

Pwyll frowned, his eyes widening in shock. He watch the Pharaoh reach out and grab Yugi's wrist, pulling the King close as if to reassure himself that Yugi was still there. The Shadow Courtiers' faces were positively gray with fright.

"How do you know that?" the Seelie King demanded.

It was the Pharaoh who eventually broke the ensuing silence. "Suffice it to say, we have a… history with the Leviathan and the Orichalcos."

Pwyll noticed the way the Pharaoh's grip on the King tightened and something dark and inherently dangerous gleamed in his eyes.

"How is that possible?" the Seelie King demanded insistently. "Your pantheon is young. It didn't exist that long ago. Even Arawn wasn't alive yet when the war began."

"No," Jounouchi said, his eyes cast down as his body trembled in what Pwyll knew to be fear. "But we know three people who were."

The Knight glanced at the Pharaoh. When Pwyll followed Jounouchi's gaze, he saw Yami shake his head subtly and the Knight refused to speak further. This wasn't something the Seelie could have ever imagined. Either the Shadow Court was lying, although they had no reason to do, or they were telling the truth. Pwyll was leaning towards the latter, and that was what terrified him.

He would have to talk to Arawn about this.