Yami shot up the moment he had awoken, beads of sweat ran down his brow as he remembered what he had dreamed about- Marium's state after he came back to see her the moment he asked someone to bring him. He remembered how tired, bloody and injured she was but still kept standing on shaky legs until someone intimidating appeared behind her. Just seeing the faceless person made him want to scream and pull her away from the person but ended up waking up before he could do anything.
Biting his bottom lip Yami sighed while placing a hand to his face, his mind soon caught up with what had happened the day before leaving him sick causing him to look where Marium had been sleeping or at least-had?
Panic filled him as he got out of the makeshift bed and grabbed his jacket, Yami pulled back the blanket covering his tent and looked around.
"Marium? Marium? Marium where are you?" he called but heard nothing which made him panic even more, seeing smoke nearby he rushed towards it.
"I see… so you're trying to find out what happened to your mother, it must be hard not knowing where you came from my dear" Yami heard the old man speak which caused him to quicken his pace.
"Aye, but to hear that you knew one of my relatives. I'm relieved that someone knew something about them, I've tried all that I could to find out but I keep being blacked from finding out. Almost as if someone doesn't want me to know" Marium explained with a heavy sigh, now hearing her voice Yami's pace slowed until he approached the group which consisted of a small girl with a hat and cloak over her pink dress, a wolf, an old man and Marium who turned to look at him with a raised brow.
"S-Sorry I thought that you were missing" Yami stammered weakly as he looked away.
"Worry not pharaoh she is safe with us" the old man said before standing up.
"Yami, this is Ironheart, Chris and Sky. They've been here for a long time" Marium explained in a neutral tone before looking away from him "They were just explaining to me on how they knew Marina" Yami winced at the cold shoulder she was giving him but went to sit with her regardless.
"Hello pharaoh" Chris greeted with a smile to which he nodded shyly in reply.
"H-Hello" he said softly before the wolf greeted him by nuzzling him, Yami slowly scratched Sky in an absentminded manner while looking at Marium to which Ironheart noticed.
"We really appreciate your help Ironheart, Chris" Yami commented before being handed a bowl of broth.
"An ally of Timaeus and Marina is an ally to us" Chris said brightly surprising Yami who then paused from drinking.
"To be honest… I don't think I deserve to have Timaeus" Yami said softly as he took out a card containing the blue dragon. "I did a wicked thing and send someone close to us away, even now he would not help me"
"Maybe we should take him to the circle?" Chris suggested piping their interest.
"The circle?" Marium asked with a baffled look.
"The circle is where a war took place, spirits of old are trapped there but it allows one to face their inner darkness" Ironheart said wisely.
"I see… so if I go there, could I try to contact my ancestor?" this earned her a chuckle from Ironheart.
"Marina did not die during the war, if anything she died after so she should be at peace. Her daughter Alanine however went missing causing her parents, aunt and uncles to worry frantically even as time went on. Even as I lived through the years, no one had even seen a hair or peep from her or any children if she chose to settle. Whether it was because of her power that helped her vanish we still do not know, but what we do know is-"
"Marina's aura existed five thousand years later but in Egypt" Chris interrupted with glee surprising the pair.
"You mean my mother?" Marium asked in surprise.
"Yup! Although her spirit seemed odd, like there was some fog surrounding her… in fact you have the same fog as well-"
"I'm sure it's just the hardships of whatever Alanine went through" Marium waved it off to Yami's confusion. Startled Chris looked at Ironheart who had a hard look in his eyes but did not comment about it. "Not a big deal"
"I see…" Ironheart said softly before getting up "Pharaoh would you like to head to the circle?"
"I think I need-"
"Go on, you need to hash out some things anyways. You've been a little destructive lately so it's about time you deal with it" Marium shoved Yami towards Ironheart shocking Yami enough to look back at her.
"I have to check on Weevil's body, you know that body's decay after a certain amount of time" she added knowing that it would bother him. Clenching his fist tightly he followed Ironheart.
"Are you sure it's okay to push him away?" Chris asked Marium once they were alone.
"Quite frankly if divorces were allowed for spirits, I'd gladly boot him away from me" Marium said dryly before looking at Chris "I'm sorry you have to witness this…" she said before patting the girl's head lightly.
"I may not completely understand, however I want to know what you're hiding? Why did you cut me off when I spoke about the fog?" Chris asked with a sad look.
"I… didn't tell him about the curse that I have been inflicted with" Marium said with a pained look, Chris hearing 'curse' felt her eyes go wide in horror.
"Curse?! What happened?" she cried now feeling upset for what was going on.
"I don't know, that's why I'm trying to find out" Marium said with a pained look "if Marina wasn't cursed or her daughter then something happened and I'm still in the dark. You said my mother had the fog then that means the curse happened around or before my mother's time, there's no cure either and how can one cure when we don't know where to begin or how it started?" Marium said as she gripped her arms tightly, she paused when she felt Chris' hand on hers.
"What does the curse involve?" Chris asked causing Marium to choke on a sob, placing a hand to her face Marium looked at Chris weakly.
"It involves dying, the curse involves living up to the age of twenty four for girls but we're lucky if we reach that mark. For boys it's twenty six but they're to suffer losing the one they love and there is no way around it for either of us" Marium explained to Chris who was stunned.
"I see… so that's why you've been secretive around the pharaoh" Ironheart said as he approached the pair. "Does the girl who carries your blood suffer the same?" to their dismay she nodded earning her a low whine from Sky who stood near her.
"Where there is a curse there is a cure, it can be a temporary relief or a permanent one depends on what is done. You should tell him he has a right to know" Ironheart said softly.
"Would you?" Marium asked sharply "would you tell your spouse 'hey darling guess what?' 'What darling? What is it?' 'I'm cursed and I'm going to die soon isn't that great?'" Marium acted while forcing a peppy smile while pretending to be two people.
"It's not going to work the way you expect Ironheart, he lost his mother early. His father died and I was the only one left, my death destroyed him and ruined his chance to even want anything to do with our children. If he knew he would be too focused on me and my safety to actually hear ME and his people who need his help" Marium explained sternly.
"And what about now? Does he know his daughter's descendants are suffering from the curse?" Ironheart asked somberly only to hear her scoff.
"He doesn't remember having children, he only knows snippets and has a brief idea. Do you think he would be the same when he finds out Myra- our descendent is going to die?! I don't think so-!" Marium felt her breathing stop as the news finally hit her once more. "She's going to die…" looking down tears welled up in her eyes before feeling Chris hug her and Ironheart's hand on her shoulder.
"There is always away, sometimes we need to turn our way of thinking around. Just like Alanine did when she sent the people to the sky for safety, we chose to stay to stop Darts. She chose to protect those in need" Ironheart said softly before leading her to the circle, sounds of swords clashing to battle roars entered her ears.
"Marina and her siblings fought well with their friends" Ironheart said softly "Each one carried the power of an element and even those who found themselves scared of their powers for reasons that are justified they still used it to help. A lone boy who wielded the power of darkness took a stand against the evil who tried to destroy us before he was turned into a dark monster. However his line remained strong and good, willing to help those in need by expelling the darkness from the hearts of others in order to give them a new chance in life" Marium turned to look at Ironheart.
"Abbas' ancestor was here?" he smiled.
"Yes, it's strange that after all this you twelve would always find away to find each other. Even if some chose to break away for good reasons. You never chose to be part of the royal courts but you would never hesitate to tell us what you all felt, because it was in your blood to keep things in order. Some have led lives that not even we would expect but some remained rooted to the old ideals- making the world better and balanced. Something Marina's teachings rooted firmly into your line I'm sure" Ironheart said with a smile that left Marium beaming at him.
"Right" Marium agreed softly before looking at Yami who was in a the Seal of Orichalcos with none other than Yugi to her surprise, however even she knew that this had to be done.
"There was a sword Marina entrusted to her daughter, if it is on the floating land in the sky. It could be used to help stop the beast who took my son away" Ironheart confessed, looking at him in surprise Marium's mouth parted.
"Your son?" she heard him make a 'hmm' sound.
"Darts has been possessed and turned into a puppet of the Leviathan, even after ten thousand years he remains captive. We however will not rest until he is safe once more" Marium stared at the pair before nodding.
"When it's time, the sword should find you. Even it can sense pending doom" Chris commented before hearing Yami crying out in anguish.
"Yugi lost" Marium said softly before watching the seal vanish. "I should go to him"
"Let him be for a minute, after this he will be healed but that is entirely up to him" Ironheart said causing her to stay put. Seeing Yami look at her despite being far away left Marium upset.
"I want to tell him… I always did, but seeing my father torn up inside after she told him she was fated to die. I could never do that to him" Marium admitted softly to which Ironheart smiled faintly.
"Sky's line lasted longer than we expected, did you know what his power symbolized?" Marium looked at him oddly.
"Sky?" Marium looked at the wolf causing them to laugh.
"The one who fought beside us years ago" Ironheart laughed causing her to smile weakly.
"I was going to say… something was really wrong there" she commented weakly.
"No no… Sky was known to have the power of 'Eternal life' which in itself is a red herring as what we mean by eternal life is that it connects to term spirit. Our spirits no matter what are eternal, the spirit can never die or fade as the years go by. Nor can they be destroyed as some easily believe" Ironheart instructed "Sky's power could purge the spirit from things that could ruin it, yes some curses could not be undone but he can provide relief to those who are suffering. He helps ease their souls from past problems, his powers are not so strong as you would imagine but it was enough to help those who needed it. Those who do not have proper souls like the solders we face however were erased, yes the Leviathan had the power to make copies of the solders but they could not touch Sky because of the light he held- hope. As much as Darts wanted all twelve of you to scatter in order to win, it was hard when you all remained close. Brother and sisterhood kept you all together. Some even married in the group allowing stronger bonds to be formed which placed a dent in his plans"
"Because how can you separate those who are loyal to the end?" Marium asked before looking at Yami.
"Exactly, now as for why I mentioned Sky… his line lasted past five thousand years like the others and settled into an area that only a few end up staying with him" Ironheart said before whispering something that left her eyes going wide, looking at him in shock she then looked at Yami and bit her lip.
"I'm not saying Sky could help you with your curse, but knowing that if he could help ease your suffering just a bit would be better than standing around and watching out knowing what was going on. Sadly I can only imagine however the power had not awakened itself when it needed to, but in a way it was good as it prevented unwanted attention" Ironheart commented.
"If that is true however… then my family has condemned someone close to my ancestors without meaning to" Marium said bitterly as she gnawed on the bottom of her lip.
"Do you think that he would care?" Marium bit her lip as she looked at Yami.
"Maybe?" she said before sighing only to gasp as lightning filled the area followed by a large green circle.
"On no! Yami!" Marium screamed before being pulled back.
"No Marium, it's too dangerous" Ironheart said causing her to look at him in shock.
"But?" Marium looked at Yami with worry.
"If anything happens we will give him Timaeus" Ironheart vowed which allowed her relax somewhat, the trio continued to watch Yami fight until Ironheart leapt in down the Cliffside to help. Marium gripped her shirt as she watched the scene now wanting to be involved. But she couldn't enter the seal.
"GRANDPA!" Chris cried before getting on Sky and rushed towards her grandfather.
"Chris!" Marium screamed as she watched the girl avoid the lightning until one finally was almost inches from her. "CHRIS!" Marium screamed before a barrier surrounded the girl, startled Marium looked around for the source.
"TRAP CARD MIRROR FORCE!" said a voice that caught Marium's attention, to the west something flew towards the Chris and landed beside her.
"Are you okay?" a female asked as she helped Chris and Sky, Chris released a gasp of surprise while Sky perked up in surprise.
"Miss Marium" the female smiled at patted her head lightly.
"Hand me Timeous, I'll deliver it to Yami" the female said with a smile that made Chris feel reassured that everything will be okay.
"Thank you, now stay with Marium and don't get hurt" the female said before teleporting Chris and Sky back to Marium who immediately pulled Chris into a hug.
"Thank goodness you're safe" Marium said in a breathless voice.
"Miss Marium, if you are here then who is that?" Chris asked as she watched the female get on a board.
"Someone who is a friend apparently" Marium said while holding Chris close, questions filled Marium but she waited until it was safe.
"Hey Yami! Forget anything?" the female smiled as she handed him Timaeus.
"Who are you? How do you know where we are?" Yami looking confused the female grinned before glaring at the solder, releasing a spin kick after jumping off a hover board she shattered the seal to Yami, Marium, Chris and Darts' shock.
"Trap activate Quaking Mirror Force!" the female said before the monster was forced into being a face down card.
"H-How?"
"Well it ya can't kill them through battle, flip 'em" the person grinned before flipping black hair from her face.
"Alright you if you want a fight that badly bring it on" the female said before looking at a startled but concerned Yami.
"If you're wondering, I'm looking for my cat" she added with mirth in her eyes. Seeing a new Orichalcos Gigas her eyes twinkled taking him by surprise.
"My go? Don't mind if I do" the female said before drawing, seeing her hand she raised a brow.
"To start with I summon Trickstar Candina in attack mode" the female sent the card onto a blue duel disk that was different to Yami's. Soon a girl with a yellow and white dress, on her back were 4 white wings while she held a loudhailer in her right hand. "Once summoned I can bring a Trickstar card from my deck to my hand, sadly for me thanks to the seal which is still in effect I can't use my field spell. What I can do however is summon another friend of hers who in fact has an ability of her own. By taking out Candina I summon in her place Trickstar Lycoris" the female added before putting in a spell "I may not be able to use field spells but that doesn't mean normal spells are banned. So I activate double summon to normal summon Candina back and one again activate her effect" the girl drew a card that came out slightly.
"Now I tag Candina for two more Lycoris and lastly I place two cards face down and that's it, your move ugly" the female grinned while the monster growled darkly causing her to rise a brow.
"Oh… scary" she said before watching the monster release a jolt of pain. "Surprise!" the female grinned.
"What happened?" Yami asked not knowing what was going on.
"Trickstar Lycoris' effect, when you draw a card you take two hundred points of damage and since there's three- oh dear! Oh and before you think you're out the woods I activate my trap Trickstar Reincarnation!" the female said before showing them a card involving a female laying in a field of flowers.
"This trap allows me to banish your hand and you have to draw the exact amount of cards you lost, so might want to get started" the girl said before folding her arms, the monster just did as instructed before screaming as it suffered damage.
"Oh and since you already lost points with Yami, you lose" the girl said with a wide grin before it vanished, once he was gone did the girl look at him.
"I'm actually glad you're on our side" Yami admitted causing her to laugh.
"Yami you crack me up! Were you always this funny?" she asked while tilting her head, blinking he shook his head.
"I'm glad you're all okay… well at least Chris and Sky are" the female said softly before sighing. "I wasn't sure to help or not… it's a tricky thing what I do" the female said while Yami looked at Chris who was crying in Marium's arms.
"What is it that you do?" Yami asked but the female didn't answer.
"Let's go, Marium will scream at us if we don't and last thing I want is another one of those solders showing up. I've had enough of dealing with twenty of those nightmares" the female said with a heavy sigh.
"T-Twenty?!" Yami exclaimed causing her to smirk.
"You have no idea…" she said before she got onto her hoverboard. "Going up?" Grabbing her hand he stood on the board shakily before they flew towards Marium who gave them a stern look.
"You young lady! That is reckless!" Marium said sternly causing the girl to laugh.
"Oh Marium, it is good to see you after all this time. I miss hearing you" the girl admitted while helping Yami off. The board immediately vanished while the girl's clothes changed into a blue shirt and black trousers that were baggy at the bottom, her hair was now in a messy bun. Only seeing the girl's look shocked and confused the group.
"Unfortunately I couldn't help with Yugi, sorry… you know how things run" the girl shrugged weakly.
"Wait… you could have helped?" Yami asked before the female glared at him.
"Oh trust me I would like to rip you a new one for the stunt you pulled" she said sharply causing him to gulp. "Fortunately you've learned your lesson given that Timaeus is slowly beginning to trust you again" she added.
"Who are you?" Yami asked not beating round the bush, something that made her grin.
"Can't tell you" she said causing him to look at Marium for help, that and hearing this made him remember how Marium refused to give him her true name. "Before you ask, I CAN'T tell you otherwise things will change compared to how they are now. I interfered enough so let's not add irreversible damage, I'm only here because I was asked to help with your endeavor with Darts" the female explained.
"What do you mean damage?" Yami asked while Chris looked at her, Marium meanwhile raised a brow.
"Well… you see I am as what some would call an Interceptor, whenever there is a problem I intercept and fix it. Some things I can help with, some things I cannot it's part of my job. Recently I had no need to do anything except stay where I was until someone asked me to help" the female replied.
"Who asked you to come?" Marium asked as she held Chris, the female giggled.
"Why Mr. Butterfly himself" the female explained as if she was talking about the weather, blinking Marium touched her the butterfly on her head. "Originally this all was not meant to happen, Téa for example was suppose to be with Yami here, Chris and Sky were suppose to be hit by lightning but I got here too late to save Ironheart because I was dueling a few solders of my own. Rex however was suppose to be taken but I took care of that" the female explained while the group looked the other with mixed emotions.
"Rex is safe?!" Marium cried in alarm.
"Yup! He's planning to clean up his act… shame about Weevil but he'll set him straight given that they're friends after all" the female said softly before smiling. "Well I have to go now, got to stop a few more solders and all that. Stay safe and follow the tracks, you'll find the others" the girl waved before vanishing.
"But wait!" Yami's hand phased right through the girl causing him to gasp. "She's gone"
"Yeah… but she helped, she knows what she's doing" Marium said softly feeling a smile form on her face, there was no way she was telling Myra about this… at least not yet.
"Do you know who she is?" Chris asked while Marium grinned which reminded them of the girl.
"Oh I know… I'm not just some seer, I know when someone travels here. Just like how I knew someone from here visited me five thousand years ago" Marium explained in a sly tone that left Yami shocked.
"Who was it?" Yami asked now wanting to know.
"Someone we both know well, but she was called there" Marium explained before getting up.
"Well Chris let's get going, we have to save your father right?" Marium said to a shy Chris, before something appeared in her mind's eye causing her to go still.
"Marium?" Yami asked before seeing her pick up something.
"You were here Chris, actually here when the war broke out weren't you?" Marium asked in a far away voice.
"Yes Miss Marium" Chris replied while noticing a faint light in Marium's eye.
"What is it Marium?" Yami asked before she looked at him with a smile that left his heart twisting in fear. "No… no please"
"I have to find the sword, it's calling me Yami" Marium said before placing Chris down.
"I don't want you to go" Yami said as she pulled his head close to hers and kissed him.
"Ever want to hear how we met?" Marium asked softly as she pecked his lips lightly. "Wait for me, just like how I waited for you… can you do that?" Marium asked with a soft chuckle in her voice, Yami sighed heavily as he looked at her weakly.
"Marium… I don't want to lose you"
"You're not, I'm just going to where I need to be. There are some answers I hope to find up there, if there are survivors they'll want to help stop Darts and I would rather we all work together than cower in fear. The Leviathan's stolen so much from us, now is the time for everyone to finally push past the shadows of the past and start a new. I lived in fear myself, fear of not knowing what will happen despite being a seer. Now like you I have a role to fulfill but promise me you'll keep everyone safe and work with Timaeus, he means so much to Marina and is her right hand. He was sent to you for a reason, now you need to push past the fear and save not just Yugi but everyone who has been captured" Marium said before releasing him.
"What if we never see each other again?" Yami asked as he grabbed her hand, turning she smiled at him.
"With her about it's possible. She'll be with you all when needed, for now she's taking care of the riff raff" Marium had Yami release her before she went to take Chris and Sky.
"If there are survivors you'll want to see them again no?" Chris nodded with a shaky smile, nodding at Yami Marium smiled as she teleported them the moment a faint bright light surrounded her.
Once the trio arrived Marium helped Chris down and held her hand.
"This must be the place-oh no…" Marium felt her stomach drop at the state of the area.
"WHAT HAPPENED?!" Chris cried as her heart began to cry in anguish.
"I… I don't know" Marium placed a hand to her mouth as she looked around to see broken pillars and ruined houses, there in front were a set of stairs that led up to a high part of the area. An area that contained a castle like building which looked as if had been in ruins for years.
Yes I know I went there with the Trickstars ^ ^ However if one notices, there is a theme with Marium, Myra and the girl's deck. Something fishy there? XD