A/N: This chapter is a bit on the short side and I apologize for that but it's been a long day and I'll be working 10-5 or so every weekday from now on if I can. So I'll be writing and updating this fic in the evenings as usual. My goal is to return to my one chapter a day or two pattern it was in Fall last year but we'll. The title is a play on the phrase "mano e mano" meaning "man to man." I'll edit this tomorrow before or after work. In the meantime, goodnight and enjoy~

Chapter summary: In which Team Stop-the-Dig finds out their Regent is back and the Regent gets a most unexpected visitor who may or may not be friendly.

Monarch e Monarch

"He's back!"

"I beg your pardon?" Marik exclaimed, startled awake from his Spellcasting trance.

He and Ryou turned around to see Ishizu's frazzled appearance as she burst into their tent. Her hair was frizzed and flying in every which way, her clothes were rumpled, and her eyes were wide.

"He's back," she said more calmly. She quickly began straightening herself up. "The Regent," she clarified. "He's back."

"Shit," Marik huffed, gathering up his things. He pushed passed his sister and raced outside to get a clear look at the archeological dig in the valley. They had decided to set up a separate camp overlooking the dig to show their separation, keep an eye on the progress, and intercept any potentially damning information from getting in or out of the dig's camp.

"Where?" Ryou asked more politely.

"I'm not sure," Ishizu answered, pushing her long black hair back over her shoulders. "I felt him come back and he has Mokuba But I'm not exactly sure where he is."

Ryou sighed in relief, a bright smile on his face. "Oh good." He blushed and scratched his head awkwardly. "I don't know why I'm relieved," he said. "I knew Mokuba would be okay."

"Because that idiot was involved," Bakura said, materializing next to Ryou. "Our monarchy have a habit of attracting the weird, dangerous, and insane." He looped an arm around Ryou and sighed. "That's why they need us to pull them out of the holes they dig."

"Always," Ryou groaned good naturedly.

"But now that the King and Pharaoh are off gallivanting in another reality as well," Bakura said sarcastically, "dear, oh dear, whatever shall we do?"

"I'll try to contact him," Ishizu said. "Carter thinks he's helping Kaiba by unearthing Set's tomb. It's a twisted form of worship. Maybe that means he'll listen to Kaiba if we bring him here."

"You think that's a good idea?" Shayera asked, stepping into the tent behind the Priestess. "Wouldn't that make his condition worse?"

"Maybe, maybe not," Bakura replied. "If the spirit or spirits inside the tomb are restless, than yes, disturbing them could get deadly fast. But since the spirit in question is Set who is currently both Kaiba and Seth, I'd say death is imminent."

"Who's death?" Hawkgirl asked hesitantly knowing she would not like the answer.

Bakura grinned viciously and surprisingly, even Ryou's smile looked malicious, but maybe it was just the light casting creepy shadows across his face. "Why Carter Hall's, of course," Bakura purred.

Shayera was very careful to control her reaction to the news. Even though she suspected it and she had no true connection to Carter Hall, her memories of her previous incarnation still had feelings for Katar Hol. As she was now, Shayera wanted to keep Kaiba safe but she also wanted to keep Carter alive.

"Will that really be necessary?" she asked keeping her voice calm and even.

Bakura shrugged casually. "If nothing happens to the Regent and the Shadows allow it, I suppose we'll let him live."

Shayera sent up a quick prayer for nothing else to happen.

Faster than Kaiba could react, Roland had positioned himself between the intruder and the young CEO and Fuguta had stepped in front of Mokuba who inched closer to his big brother's side. Both bodyguards had their weapons drawn and stood ready to defend their charges. Oliver had an arrow knocked on his bowstring, the tip trained at the intruder. Green Lantern and Flash both whirled and took up similar attack positions. Mai rested a hand over her Deck and crouched, ready to defend herself and her Regent. Shaadi, Mai noticed with interest, actually looked surprised.

Instead of attacking, however, the intruder laughed. He threw back his head so his moon white hair hung back off his forehead from the confines of an intricately twisted holly coronet and laughed merrily. His black clothes stood in stark contrast to the newcomer's pale skin and hair. He wore a long, black, long-sleeved coat with white piping and a white lining on the inside. The white lining showed in the glimpses of the tails of his coat and the folded over style of the coat collar. Gold chains hung from gold buttons on the collar around the black coat shoulders and chains hung from the man's waist. Black pants and boots were just visible beneath the coat.

"That was hilarious," he crowed in his accented voice. "You should have seen yourselves. You all jumped and spun faster than a squirrel." His 'r's' rolled and his voice flowed up and down, accenting syllables in a pattern reminiscent of rolling hills.

"Who the hell are you," Kaiba demanded coldly, placing a firm hand on his little brother's shoulder. "And what do you think you're doing in my office?"

"What?" the person asked playfully, his crimson eyes studying the group. "Not going to ask how I got in here?" He waited for a moment in silence before shrugging. "You could have at least played along." Kaiba narrowed his eyes dangerously and the newcomer sighed gustily in resignation. "Fine. Be boring."

"Who are you?" Lantern demanded.

The person waved his hand dismissively. "Boring," he said. "But, if you insist," he grinned in much the same way a predator would to its cornered prey and said, "you can call me Holly King, King of the Unseelie Court in the East. It's my title. I don't know you well enough to give you my name, let alone my true name."

"Holly King?" Flash repeated incredulously. "What? You mean my 'Deck the Halls with boughs of holly' Holly King?"

The Holly King actually looked offended. "I predate that song," he said almost petulantly. "At least the song's origin is the same as mine."

"And that would be?"

"Welsh," the Holly King said, his teasing smile returned. "Now, while this may be vastly interesting to you, I'm afraid I'm not here for you." He looked directly at Kaiba and smirked. "Set, I believe."

"Who's asking?" Kaiba said curtly.

"You must be deaf," the man said. "I did say I'm the Holly King."

"That title means nothing to me," Kaiba shot back, glacial eyes cold.

The Holly King sighed. "Honestly, I expected more from you," he said sadly. "Are you really going to spend your precious time asking my name or do you want the good stuff?"

"Good stuff?" Flash muttered.

Kaiba stepped around Roland and strode to the front of his group ignoring the warning stares of his bodyguards. He planted his feet shoulder width apart, crossed his arms over his chest, and leveled an icy glare at the impertinent intruder. "I'm listening," he said curtly.

The Holly King grinned. "Now you are," he purred. "You're interesting, Set."

"I'm not Set."

The Holly King blinked in surprise. "You're not?" He tilted his head in confusion. "I thought Helios was under your protection. He is, isn't he? That's what the Tsukuyomi told us."

"The who?" Arrow asked.

"Tsukuyomi," Mokuba said, stepping out from behind Fuguta to watch his brother. "The Shinto god of the moon."

"Yes, him," the Holly King said. "Someone under my protection went to ask him for assistance with a little," he tilted his head to the side with a sneaky sparkle in his eye, "game we're playing."

"I have no interest in games with other gods," Kaiba said dismissively.

"Aw, don't be like that," the Unseelie King said. "Did I mention the person seeking the Tsukuyomi's help was a woman named Selene?" Kaiba stilled, his eyes widening with interest and the Holly King preened. "Perhaps I should've said that earlier." He hummed. "Selene has been under both my and my fellow Oak King's protection for about a year now. She decided to take a stand for herself after the sun began misbehaving. Apparently even the Shinto Amaterasu has noticed it."

"The sun?" Kaiba echoed in confusion.

"What do you mean 'misbehaving'?" Mai asked suspiciously.

"There've been sunspots out of season," Flash said, "numerous solar outbursts, many stronger than average, for the past couple days now." He turned to Kaiba. "Since Helios and Mokuba vanished."

"Vanished, you say?" the Holly King asked. "Well, well, now that's interesting tidbit of information there. I'm sure Selene would like to know that little something."

"He was taken by Ares," Kaiba said, a cold, furious fire burning in his eyes.

"Yes, I figured," the Unseelie said. "What with the sudden burst of excitement on Olympus. So," he said loudly after a moment of considering silence, "what do you plan to do about it?"

"What do you mean?" Kaiba said suspiciously.

"Well, Helios was under your protection," the Unseelie said, shrugging, "and he was stolen from you. Don't you want him back?" he asked slyly.

"What are you offering?" the CEO demanded.

"My help," the Holly King said. "and that of my Court as well as the Seelie Court, the Japanese pantheon, and, if they decide to join in on the action, the Norse pantheon. Not to mention Selene's help. Titans are so few and far between these days. I hear the humans consider it cruel to let an endangered species go extinct."

"Why has Selene suddenly decided to take action?" Oliver asked, intrigued. "It's been year since she went into hiding."

"She's pregnant," was the simply reply.

Kaiba's eyes grew round but it was Mai who spoke. "Pregnant?" she whispered.

"Yes," the Holly King said seriously. "It was a surprise to her as well, but she intends to anything and everything possible to ensure this child's survival."

"Good," Mai said. "She's got my support."

"Mine as well," Shaadi said suddenly. "I respect her bravery and her brother is a fascinating companion. I would not mind meeting her as well."

"Since when do you go making decisions like that without my permission?" Kaiba hissed.

"Since I had free will," Mai replied. "Besides, you were already planning on fighting Ares to get Helios back anyway. Why say no to back?"

"So you were planning something that foolhardy!" the Holly King cheered in gleeful surprise. "I guess I won that bet."

"What bet?" Lantern asked.

"The Oak King and I had a bet that you were planning something stupid involving the Olympians," the Unseelie said smugly. "I bet you were, he bet you weren't."

"Pity," Kaiba said. The Unseelie hummed in question and the Regent smirked. "I would've enjoyed seeing that face wiped clean."

Instead of taking offense like others expected, the Holly King cackled. "I stand corrected," he said proudly. "You are amusing. You could keep me from boredom for a good long while."

"You call his plan stupid and foolhardy," Shaadi said calmly, "and yet you also with to storm Olympus."

"Not storm, no," the white haired Unseelie corrected. "Selene has asked us a favor and I and my people seek to fulfill it. If I get to enjoy making that fat ass Zeus squirm, then by all means. I look forward to it."

"What do the Japanese have to do with any of this?" Oliver asked, his arrow back in his quiver and his bow hanging ready at his side just in case.

The Unseelie preened. "Now we get to the exciting part," he said. "I know you're fairly new to all of this," he said, approaching Kaiba at a steady pace, "but you are aware pantheons tend to keep to themselves."

"I am," the Regent replied.

"And you know it's considered an act of war for a pantheon to deliberately attack someone of something under the explicit protection of another pantheon," he pressed, moving closer.

"Yes," Kaiba said, not intimidated by the Unseelie's approach.

"Then think carefully," the Holly King said, stopping just a foot from the Regent. "You are the Egyptian god Set and yet you were reborn as a Japanese citizen, trained in both the modern and traditional ways of life. You respect and honor your heritage and all that comes with it. You firmly think of yourself as Japanese, not Egyptian despite being who you are."

"Set was Egyptian," Kaiba said. "I'm his-"

"Reincarnation," the Holly King said. "You are and are not Set. Because of that, you and your brother," he added, glancing briefly at Mokuba, "are under the protection of the Japanese pantheon." Kaiba's eyes bulged. "As long as you aren't acting for you Egyptian pantheon but as Seto Kaiba, the CEO of Kaiba Corporations, you are protected by the Japanese." A sly grin split his face with glee. "And while the first time Ares attacked you, you were conducting formal Egyptian pantheon business," the smile now showed a row of sharp, white teeth, "the second time, you were acting as Seto Kaiba. That means Ares declared war on the Japnanese pantheon by attacking you personally."

"My god," Lantern breathed.

"Thank you, Set, Seto, or whatever name you currently prefer," the Unseelie King said in dark glee. "You have given me chaos and in return I'm offering you my gratitude and assistance. For someone who's both immortal and invulnerable like me, life can to often become dull and monotonous. But your appearance has definitely brought some much meed spice. The world of pantheons has stagnated. You've stirred the pot like a master chef and left it to recover on its own."

His smile softened as he leaned away from Kaiba and sighed. "Believe me when I say, I look forward to working with you," he said, sweeping an elegant bow. Kaiba barely had time to acknowledge the bow before the Unseelie vanished, reappearing pressed to his chest, much too close for comfort, and whispered directly in his ear, "Arawn of Annwn. That is my name."

Then he was truly gone.

"Well," Flash said to the stunned Regent, "I'll give ya this. There're no shortage of surprises around you."