Disclaimers: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!. I'd be rich if I did. :) Oh, and no Hellsing, either. And no Metropolis. ):
So there.
Back again~! :D
So... this time, More interesting stuff, I hope. : )
And if it's not, bear with me, I apologize.
"Die Werheit" means "The Truth," By the way. :D
[Die Wahrheit]
Kaiba walked into the lab. He expected to see... well, he didn't really know what. "Something really bad" seemed to be a gross understatement. He expected to see someone trashing the place. Or something like that. Instead there was... nothing. Just nothing. The lab, with the terminals up against one wall, the steel table at the end, with glass beakers, tubes, and benson burners. One turned up to the 'High' setting, a vial of oddly colored liquid boiling over, and a beaker of viscous blue fluid, some of it dried dripping down the sides, some of it sloshed over a few papers. He guessed that was part of the medicine. That was more or less Franz's pet project, and he would never spill a formula or leave a mess if he could help it. Obviously, something had happened. Something big.
"And you're looking for Franz, ja, Herr kaiba?"
Rotwang stood in the doorway, looking like he might chuckle at what happened, at the situation.
"Yes. Do you know where he is?"
The scientist shrugged.
"No. Wherever he went, whatever he's doing, I have no knowledge of it."
All this was hidden behind a betraying smile.
He knew.
"Tell me. I do not have time for your games. The security has been compromised, and I don't know where one of my two top scientists is. I cannot afford to be distracted by your games. Either tell me, or I pull the plug."
Rotwang's face fell.
"You have no sense of humor, Herr Kaiba. I honestly do not know where he went. But I did see him walk through here with someone. They are somewhere here in the complex."
"What did the other person look like?"
"A German officer, in a Totenkapfverbände uniform."
His security had been compromised... by a Nazi? That hardly made sense. Unless it was a fake, and they hardly subscribed to things of the past. But he didn't know of any Neo-Nazi's in Japan, and ones who wore old uniforms at that (Although they were probably out there somewhere).
"An SS officer?"
"Ja."
Kaiba put a hand over his mouth. It couldn't be Erich, he was dead. But that seemed to be the only possibility.
"It was probably Herr Alder. That would have been the only person; the only Nazi," Rotwang spat out the word as though tasted bitter in his mouth "That Franz ever spoke of. The only person he was ever sentimental about."
"But he was killed. He was executed at Nuremberg. I did my best to keep Franz alive, and I did. It was regretful that Erich died, but it happened. He can't be alive now."
"And yet, here you are," Rotwang spread his hands, lifting his arms and smiling. "Here I am, still alive long after we should be dead. You know as well as I; Everything is possible in this world! I created a maschinemench, an artificial being! The penultimate being, far beyond what has been seen today! And nature created you, since it seems so intent on defying itself, along with mankind. Is it really so impossible that a man we believed dead shows himself now, of all times?"
He was right. There were vampires, fakes, androids, AI's; it was all possible.
"I don't have time to discuss this with you. I need to find Franz."
He walked past the scientist, down the hallway. Franz's room. He would check there first. He placed a hand to the door and one hand on the door knob, almost going to open it when he heard him- them- talking. It sounded like a one-sided argument. It didn't sound like Franz was winning.
While Kaiba did respect others privacy, he wasn't one who was polite. Especially not during what one might consider a security crisis.
He opened the door.
Franz was sitting on his bed, his shirt loose, with Erich standing over him. And this was indeed Erich.
"What are you doing here?"
The question was directed at Erich. Very cold, and very direct.
The two looked at him, Franz in surprise and embarrassment, Erich in what looked like cold amusement.
"Talking to him," Erich answered, green eyes narrowing. "Is that so wrong, Kaiba?"
"It is when you've bypassed the security system to a complex that a very exclusive number of people know about and an even more exclusive number have access to."
Franz stood up, buttoning his shirt, messily tying his tie.
"M-mr. Kaiba, please-"
"You need to get out."
"Listen, Mr. Kaiba, he's not-"
"I don't think I should. I haven't seen Franz in what...? Fifty years?"
"Leave. Or I will make you leave."
"Listen, Mr. Kaiba, Erich's not harming anything, he's just here to see me-"
"But why did he know you were here," Kaiba yelled, turning to him. "How did he know? You are officially dead! So is he! Nobody knows about this lab, this complex, or you! How could he have possibly gotten the information, especially if he's been dead!"
The scientist was silent.
"...I know it sounds... ridiculous. But please, just... just let him stay. He won't hurt anything! He won't do anything!"
"It sounds outrageous."
"Yes, but-"
"I won't touch anything," Erich put his hands up in a mock-convict fashion. "Except maybe him." One arm around Franz's waist.
"Doesn't mean you can stay."
Awkward silence pervaded then. Nobody would budge. Not now or for however long. Erich either dies or he stayed. If he died yet again, Franz wouldn't stay and he couldn't keep up the daytime facade. He would have to tear everything down and build it all back up again, and he couldn't afford to do that. Not in todays world, anyway. He needed Franz here. Which meant-
"Fine. Fine, okay. Erich is your responsibility," he pointed at Franz. "He touches nothing, he hacks nothing, and has access to nothing. Observer status only, verstehen Sie?"
"You're to kind, Herr Kaiba," Erich bowed.
"You don't get off scot-free," Kaiba pointed at him. "You tell us who sent you and how you got down here. This is a place that doesn't exist. And you've been officially dead for over half a century. There is no way you just stumbled down here. You either had a lot of luck or someone backing you up, and I'm guessing it's the second."
He turned around to leave.
"You can talk to me when you decide to tell me how you got down here."
And he left.
[Rome, Italy]
The Romanarium sat at her computer terminal. Three large computer monitors stretched out before her, interconnected by messy sets of wires and cords. Lightning tubes crackled behind them, and a messy landscape of wires and film conduits and fiber-optix clusters stretched out to a cobbled mainframe of cleverly pieced together computer towers, whirring through a homemade cooling system. Two speakers were situated between the screens, producing a constant stream of orchestra and soundtrack.
She typed in "Jonouchi Katsuya" on a virtual touch keyboard (Yet another screen stretched out before her).
Nothing.
She opened up the data charge Kaiba sent her. There was a picture, probably from the school's mainframe. That was perfect. She entered the picture in a search program. The whirring got louder as the towers scraped through the internet, searching down every last bit they could find. A notice finally appeared on the screen.
Ricerca Completa
The Romanarium smiled grimly, looking through the files before putting them on another data charge.
This... This was interesting.
She sent the data charge.
[Domino High School]
Jonouchi sat in class the next day, tired, looking out the third story window to the outside. He wanted to be out there so bad. School just wasn't for him, he decided.
But _ _ _ _ _ _ said that since he was so instrumental in their plans, he had to go to school. He had to exist. They planted records, she said. He was real. But he didn't feel like it right now.
He turned and looked at Kaiba, sitting and looking at the front desk, watching the teacher, not really noticing her. Not really paying attention.
They were talking about civil rights in America.
He wasn't really paying attention either.
Kaiba struck him in a different way then anyone else really did. He wanted to be close to him, kind of like a friend... but not really. Closer.
But he didn't feel like he had the courage to do much about it.
It's an infatuation. It's nothing, you'll get over it!
He started to get lost in his own thoughts again. Remembering things, he thought it was.
"She's pretty, though."
"Well, maybe you can ask her to eat lunch with you."
A woman put a hand on his shoulder. He was just up to her elbow.
"What if she says no?"
"They're are other girls, kiddo."
A man sitting at the kitchen table, reading a paper.
"Yeah, but she's her."
He put the paper down, smiling at him.
"Don't be afraid to ask her, then. Y'know, I asked a girl to eat lunch with me when I was your age."
"What did she do?"
"...Laughed at me and then said no way. But that's not the point! I asked your _ _ _ _ _ _ the same thing in High school, and you know what she said?"
"Yes?"
"And that's the point!"
"...wait until I get old?"
"No. Keep trying. She may be her, but there'll be other people. So ask her."
Maybe he should just ask him, then. Not to eat lunch together or anything, they ate lunch in the classroom and sat next to each other, anyway. Maybe he should... talk to him.
He checked the clock. It was almost twelve. He could wait.
"Jonouchi, can you answer the question?"
"Excuse me...?"
The teacher sighed.
"How did the civil rights acts affect American society?"
"...Well, it changed it..."
"Obviously. Can you elaborate?"
"...Integration?"
"Yes. Keep going."
"People didn't feel... comfortable with it. They had the government telling them that they had to peacefully coexist with the people they didn't like."
"Yes! Now, what might have led to that?"
"... I'm not sure..."
"The practice of slavery and the American Civil War." Kaiba spoke beside him, still not really paying attention.
"Very good, Kaiba. Yes, the practice of slavery and theAmerican Civil war made conditions very hard for the African American population years after..."
Jonouchi zoned out again, focusing back on Kaiba. He leaned over a bit.
"Thanks," he said.
"Hm."
Well, that could have gone better.
The bell rang for lunch a bit later.
"So, did you get my application processed," Jonouchi asked, eating a sandwich.
"Not yet. And the phone number you wrote down seems to be faulty."
"Why?"
"Because the secretary dialed it and it turned out to be a bank. I need a real phone number."
"Oh... okay."
He went back to eating for a little bit.
"You never seem to eat."
An annoyed look crossed Kaiba's face.
"That isn't really healthy for you, y'know?"
Kaiba pulled out a book.
"Here. Eat it."
He held out half of his sandwich.
Kaiba still ignored him, handing it back.
"I don't want your food."
"I don't care. Eat it anyway. You'll starve if you don't eat anything."
"I don't eat a lot anyway."
"Still don't care. Eat it or I'll make you."
The book snapped shut.
"Take your food and leave me alone. Whatever is making you do this, stop it."
And with that, Kaiba grabbed his school bag, got up and walked out of the classroom, leaving Jonouchi frowning.
He walked outside, pulling out a cellphone as it vibrated in his pocket, the ringer put on silent for school. He looked at the caller I.D.
Unidentified Number.
It was probably the Romanarium. He flipped the device open.
"Yes?"
"Hey, capo!"
"No Italian. Not today."
"Understood. I got what you wanted, Kaiba."
"It must be good if you haven't given me any Italian sarcasm yet."
"Oh, it's good. You'll think I'm God after this, Kaiba."
"Then what is it?"
"He's dead."
Kaiba stopped for a moment.
"Dead? How can he be dead? He walks, he talks, he's human. He's alive."
"He seems human. He's not."
"Well then what is he? He doesn't seem like a fake, e can't be a zombie, and nobody can pull off a full reanimate. Not even necromancers."
"Then let me clarify- He's not Katsuya Jonouchi."
"Who is he?"
"His real name is Joey Wheeler. He's from the Brooklyn area."
"Then how is he in Domino Japan?"
"Just let me finish, you twit! He was declared missing, presumed dead not to long ago over there. A few weeks after that, they found his corpse. The coroner's report put him as dead for a few hours. Long enough for the fist stage of rigor mortis to set in. It also determined he was killed by a neurotoxin of unknown makeup and origin, since his central nervous system looked worse than Hiroshima and Nagasaki combined. We'll need to confirm it of course, you'll need to get his medical files."
"So somebody snatched his body and brought it over here."
"And you'll get the medical files?"
"Yes. Sure."
"Good man. After the funeral service and after they buried him, it was reported that somebody dug up his grave. There's still an arrest warrant for whomever did it."
"...It's the Mausoleum."
"We can't be sure."
"Yes, we can!"
"Kaiba, there's no conclusive evidence, you twit!"
"It's logic, not just evidence! We know that the Mausoleum is somewhere here in Japan, in close proximity to Domino, and we know they've been working on something new."
"But we don't know what 'something new' is, twit! He may or may not be what we're looking for!"
"And how could anyone but them put this together? Necromancers can't do this! Nobody but them can!"
"Then get close to him!"
The voice that emanated out of the tiny speaker startled him.
"Get close to him?"
"Yes! Get close to him, find out all you can! That is what will get us the information."
"... Fine. Very well."
"Good. You'll find a data charge with more info in your personal mainframe at Kaibacorp."
"Thank you."
"So, are you going to say it?"
"Say what?"
"That I'm God."
Kaiba shut the phone and called up a company car. It was in front of the school in just a few minutes.
Ende Ch. 7
Chapter 6 finished. Some things are coming to light. : )
I've still got quite a few plans for this story. :3