What. The. Fuck.

Seto went through the files again meticulously, making sure that everything was in place. He had to brief his new help, but he really did not want to be thinking about that right now. Besides, it would take awhile to get to Egypt. A long, long while.

He was not bothered that Malik Ishtar was a psycho. He'd employed and dealt with psychos before, and he knew that he could handle them: that was what guns were made for. They did tend to be more troublesome, however, though they made up for it by being generally expendable. People rarely asked questions when crazy folk went missing. No, the fact that Malik Ishtar was a psycho wasn't what bothered him. It was that bloody doll.

He should have known something was up when he received the nameless profile. Things that appeared too good to be true often were exactly as they seemed: too good to be true. Now he was saddled with a psycho and a… a fucking sex doll dressed up like said psycho. And it was one of those realistic ones too, with articulate jointing, rooted hair and other things he refused to speculate on. It wouldn't have been so weird if Malik didn't insist on talking to it like it was a real person.

Scratch that. It would have been weird anyway, because that doll looked exactly like Malik, right down to the eye makeup. The only differences were the spiked-up hair and the slightly mischievous, malevolent expression on the doll's face. If it was even possible. Seto could swear that those lifeless violet eyes were following him.

Which was why he was currently holed up in his section of the jet, staring at the computer screen and trying to not speculate on what Malik did with that doll behind closed doors.

Or if he was doing it now.

Drawing in a sharp breath, Seto tried to focus on the words and images that made up the report. And the figures. Especially the figures. After Battle City, he'd been concentrating on building up KaibaLand theme parks around the world. While supervising the work in America, he'd received a message from his old associate about the Ghouls. He was cautious, naturally, considering that this was Pegasus he was dealing with, but his personal investigations turned up facts that tallied with what he'd been told.

Before that, he'd thought that the Ghouls had collapsed, seeing as he'd gotten rid of their leader during the Battle City tournament. Sure, it was technically Yugi who beat Malik, but he was the one who organized the tournament in the first place, so he could take some credit. However, it seemed that he had been misled, just like everyone else.

On hindsight, it should have been obvious. How could someone like Malik create an entire world-wide organization of card counterfeiters? Where could a former tomb-keeper have found the technology to replicate Duel Monster cards right down to the microchips that allowed them to be played on his Duel Disks? Why would he have cared when his thoughts were tied up with revenge? He really should have seen it the moment he saw the Ghouls duel, if only he hadn't been so caught up with his main agenda.

The past two years had been an arms race against the Ghouls. Working together with Industrial Illusions, on and off, they'd changed everything from software to hardware, from the form of encryption to the layers of security. For awhile, it seemed that they were winning the race, until the Ghouls staged their comeback.

He told Pegasus that the Ghouls were hacking the Duel Disks, because that was the conclusion he came to after reviewing the data. The last agent he sent to Egypt, however, presented him with more alarming information. The Ghouls weren't just hacking the Duel Disks, they were making them. That was the last communication he received from that particular guy.

He was Kaiba Seto. He had money, he had power, and he had the ruthlessness required to use them to their fullest extent. And he was still unable to dig the roots out from beneath the Ghouls' feet, a testament to the power held by the Ghouls. Now that they were a direct threat to KaibaCorp, he really had no choice but to step in.

The company was in a slightly precarious position for the moment because a considerable amount of its resources had been tied up with construction, mainly, that of KaibaLand's. It would be awhile before that particular investment would pay off, and Seto was more than confident that it would, but, in the meantime, it was the sale of Duel Disks that kept their shares afloat and their shareholders happy. If anything was to happen to that branch of business, the consequences would be devastating.

There was no more time to source for new agents. The Ghouls' Duel Disks had been around for barely two months, give or take, and he was already seeing the effects in his figures. They were still minor fluctuations for the moment, but he wasn't exactly optimistic about the outcome. People were idiots. They would buy just about anything, so long as it was cheap, even if they were losing the whole damned point of it and breaking intellectual property right laws along the way.

In a way, getting hold of Malik Ishtar was a very good thing. He'd seen the boy's records, from both before and during his tenure at Industrial Illusions, and they had been impressive, even to him. It helped, of course, that Malik had a personal interest in the matter. It made him less likely to take bribes and run away, like some of the previous agents did.

If he didn't think about that doll, Malik seemed almost normal. His eyes, at least, were not as clouded and crazed as they were three years ago. While there was still something obsessive in that violet gaze, it seemed more focused. And just a little jaded. He'd also toned down his dressing a lot since Battle City. The only gold jewelry he was wearing were those dangly earrings and his clothes were sensibly plain, not even the biker look Seto had once seen on him. It was a sign that Malik had been completely focused on his mission for the past three years.

Or it could have been that the weather at this time of year was too cold for flashy clothes, because that doll…

He really didn't want to think about the doll.

Picking up the intra-jet phone, he called Malik's room. Now would be a good time to do the briefing, probably, while his thoughts were still on the matter at hand and not dwelling on that fucking doll. With every ring of the phone, Seto felt his brain slipping toward the gutter. Alright, so, maybe it wasn't a good time for a briefing.

On the fifth ring, Malik picked up, sounding rather breathless. "Hello?"

Seto fought the urge to slam down the phone. What exactly was Malik doing in his room?

"Mr. Kaiba? Sorry it took so long to pick up, I couldn't find the" a cough that sounded like some stifled profanity "phone." Other than the slightly breathless tone, Malik sounded perfectly professional to the point of being sarcastic. "Is there something you need from me?"

"I would like to give you the briefing now," unless you are otherwise occupied.

"Ok, sure." The reply was prompt and careless, so it meant that Malik was really just looking for the phone, right?

Right?

Closing his eyes, Seto pinched the bridge of his nose. He didn't want to know.

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Notes:

I was thinking of how to answer to Aramis-chan's review, and I think I've got it:

Every character has their own biased point of view, and their views may or may not coincide with the author's.

Thank you once more to ALL my reviewers. This is the last chapter I have typed up for the moment, so future updates will probably take much longer than the one a day speed I've been posting at. I'll be glad to answer any questions or queries, unless it includes giving away vital plot elements (haha).