Chapter 11
Alex woke up with a throbbing headache.
Looking around she attempted to try and get her bearings. She was tied securely to a sturdy chair in the middle of a large, dim, empty room. A warehouse. How cliché, she thought to herself.
"Well, look who decided to join the land of the living. Again," came a voice out of the darkness.
"My mother always told me growing up I was like a cat with nine lives," Alex remarked distractedly trying to pinpoint the voice.
Booming laughter filled the space. "No matter how many lives you lead, you continue to amaze me with your wit."
Alex's face scrunched up in confusion. Huh? Lives I lead…?
"You seem confused. Perhaps I should backtrack. Allow me to introduce myself." A dark shape dropped from the ceiling to land a few feet in front of her. It stalked forward slowly until she was able to see a man. He was tall, with a long black trench coat making him look taller and more ominous. Wild, pale hair that stuck out in all directions and eyes that held pure evil. He was completely black and white, the only trace of colour was a golden necklace. It was shaped like a ring, with a triangle and the Eye of Horus inside.
"My name is Bakura, King of Thieves. At your service Your Highness," he said giving Alex a mock bow.
Alex paled considerably. She'd heard about Ryou Bakura and his evil side from her friends. He was a vampire trapped in the Millennium Ring. Oh shit.
A few hours later, Yami finally found the warehouse he was looking for. Once inside, he began to carefully search for Alex, dispatching any vampires that came his way. Finally, finally, he caught her scent and he had to stop himself from breaking into a full on run. A few more turns and he found himself in the large main room and his heart stopped.
Oh my Ra, Alex. Yugi breathed sadly in his head. Yami was frozen with fury and shock.
She sat tall on the chair she was tied to, like it was a throne instead of a prison, and the gag in her mouth did nothing to hide the fierce glare on her face that quickly morphed into surprise and relief when she caught sight of him. Her normally tanned face was marred with black and blue bruises and she was covered in gashes. There were small puddles of blood under her chair, some dried, some fresh. Yami snarled in rage though when he saw that her neck was littered with puncture marks.
A deep chuckle filled with malice came from the darkness. "Always so possessive Pharoah."
"Release Alex NOW! Your feud is with me!" Yami roared.
"Ah but that's where you're wrong you see. While you were wallowing in the pieces of your precious puzzle for five thousand years, Alex and I have been playing a most delightful game of cat and mouse. Unfortunately for her, she seems to lose every round." The dark chuckle came again and Alex shivered. A figure started to materialize behind her. "You look confused Pharaoh. Perhaps I should shed some light on the subject." The figure stepped fully into the light behind Alex and placed his hands lightly on her shoulders.
Yami's eyes narrowed. "Bakura," he spat.
"Pharaoh," Bakura smirked before looking down at Alex. "You know she was doing quite well this time. Eluded me for years. But then, I suppose, I was distracted by you this time around."
"What are you talking about?" Yami demanded.
"Do you believe in reincarnation Pharaoh?" Yami was silent. "You should. Your little friend Alex here has been reincarnated dozens of times over the last five thousand years. Isn't that right Alex?"
Alex rolled her eyes. Bakura chuckled, "Forgive me I forgot about that," he said taking off the gag.
"You're insane," Alex spat over her shoulder.
"I can see you don't believe me," Bakura smirked as he bent down close to her ear and mock whispered. "But tell me, if you aren't a reincarnation, then how do you explain your dreams?"
Alex stiffened. "What do you know about my dreams?"
"I know that they aren't dreams at all. They're memories of your past lives. Constantly running, hiding, searching. Searching desperately for something you can't find. And while you search you're hunted. By me," Bakura grinned flashing his fangs. "Of course, some lives were more memorable than others. Paris, during the French revolution was fun. You were the daughter of a duke. You managed to escape me for about a year before my mob and I caught you."
Alex paled as her dreams and more complete visions raced before her eyes. She actually remembered what he was saying.
"The Salem witch trials were interesting too, if much faster. The village believed the most mudane things to be proof of witchery, it was almost too easy to find something to incriminate you. I didn't even have to do anything in the Russian revolution when your poor family was attacked. Nor when a German plane bombed your flat in London during World War II."
Yami thought he was going to be sick. If what Bakura was saying was true…
"In fact, I believe this is the longest life you lived. To be fair to myself though, I thought I had killed you in that fire when you were fifteen."
Alex, who had become glassy eyed with memories up until that point, took a moment to take in what Bakura had just said.
"You set that fire on Christmas Eve," Alex breathed.
"Yep," said Bakura checking his nails.
"You killed everyone I loved, left me all alone, at fifteen years old, and for what? Some sort of SICK GAME?!" Alex was screaming by the end and thrashing against her restraints. "You bas-"
"Ah, ah, ah," Bakura tutted. He fisted his hand in Alex's hair and yanked her head back to make her look him in the eye. "Now that's not the kind of language a lady uses."
Alex snarled at him.
Bakura just carried on conversationally in response. "Did you know when a vampire bites a human the vampire can make the human feel whatever they want? So far when I or my comrades have bitten you, you felt only numbness. But I could make you feel intense pleasure… or pain," he hissed tightening his grip in her hair. Alex couldn't stop the whimper that escaped her.
Yami growled and took a step forward. Bakura's eyes immediately focused on him. "Not another step Pharaoh. You know I can tear her throat out before you can make it halfway across the room."
Yami froze. "Don't you dare lay a fang on her Bakura," he hissed.
"I think that sounds like a challenge," Bakura grinned at Alex. She didn't even have time to blink before her world exploded in pain.
Yami saw red when he heard Alex screamed in agony. Before he could take more than a few steps though four vampires jumped out the shadows and pinned him down. Bakura stood up from Alex's neck, "I thought I told you not to move." Yami was vibrating with rage. Bakura looked back down at Alex. "You always did have the prettiest screams." Alex's eyes blazed with fury while she panted. He chuckled, "And always a spitfire. All the way back to your first life."
"Oh yeah? You gonna gloat about how you killed me that time too?" she rasped.
Bakura sighed, "Sadly that was the one lifetime where I didn't have the joy of killing you."
"Oh I suppose I got to die of old age that time then," Alex said sarcastically.
"Oh no, you were killed. Brutally too. Covered in a pool of your own blood and your beloved Horus necklace smashed to smithereens beside you," Bakura said conversationally while Alex frowned. Visions of her original and most recurring dream floating through her mind. "But it wasn't me that did it. It was him." Bakura smirked at Yami.
Yami inhaled sharply at the accusation.
"No," Alex said confidently. "Yami wouldn't."
"But he did!" Bakura laughed loudly. "He drained you nearly bone dry!"
Alex tried to shake her head, it was difficult with Bakura's hand still tangled in her hair, as visions slowly overcame her. Crimson eyes swam in front of her. "What have I done?" A voice echoed from far away. "No please! Please don't leave me! I love you!" He sounded like he was in so much pain. She tried to reach up a hand to comfort him but couldn't find the strength to do so. He was calling her name…
"Alex! ALEX!" Yami screamed hysterically trying to get away from his captors. Then he turned to Bakura and snarled, "What did you do to her you bastard?"
"She's merely remembering fragments of the past. Must've been more than her poor, fragile human mind could handle," Bakura said smugly.
"I'm going to tear your throat out," Yami swore.
"I'm tired of listening to this right now. Drake? If you please?" Bakura said turning away.
Yami felt something connect with the back of his head, and then unconsciousness claimed him.
Yami came to quickly.
Aibou! Are you alright?
Yeah, I'm ok, Yugi said a little more groggily.
Alex. Where is Alex? He asked opening his eyes with some difficulty.
She was across from him. She looked the same as he'd last seen her, which still made him furious, but at least she didn't have any additional injuries.
They were in a different room with no windows and only one heavy door. And they were both in chains on the far side of the room from the door. Alex's was around her ankle and she only had about a foot of chain connecting her to the wall. Yami's was locked around his ankle as well, but his was longer, just enough so he could sit by Alex.
"Alex! Alex, can you hear me?" Yami asked quietly gently shaking her shoulders.
Alex groaned as her eyes fluttered open. "Yami?" she breathed brushing his cheek with her fingertips. "Is it really you?"
"Yes Alex," he whispered brokenly. Ra, it killed him to see her like this.
"Oh Yami," she sobbed reaching up to wrap her arms around him.
He quickly pulled her into his lap and held her to him as closely and gently as possible. "I'm so sorry Alex."
"No," she pulling away from him abruptly. "Don't you dare apologize for this. This is not your fault, do you understand Yami?"
Before he had a chance to answer though the door creaked open. "Well isn't this scene touching."
Both their heads shot up. Yami couldn't help but notice though, that while Alex bravely glared at their captor, she was shivering in fear.
"What do you want with us Bakura?" Yami spat.
"To break you," Bakura said simply. "I want you to feel the worst pain imaginable."
"Well you have me now. You have no need for Alex. Set her free," Yami demanded. Alex whipped her head to look at him with wide eyes.
"Sorry, no dice," Bakura said smirking before Alex could protest. "You see Yami, she is your biggest weakness. Your Achilles heel. Her pain and suffering is your worst nightmare."
Yami grit his teeth. It was true unfortunately.
"Did you just come here to gloat or is there an actual reason for your visit?" Alex asked throwing as much sarcasm as she could into it.
"There is actually," Bakura said coming a little further into the room. For the first time Alex and Yami noticed he was holding a silver tray in one hand. Alex trembled and Yami pulled her closer. Bakura stopped just out of reach of Yami's chain and put the tray down on the floor. Rather than an assortment of knives like Alex feared though, it held food. Granted not very much, a couple crusts of bread, a small cup of water, and a bruised apple were hardly a gourmet feast, but after what she'd been through it looked like heaven to Alex.
"Why are you feeding me?" Alex asked suspiciously. "It's not poisoned is it?"
Bakura grinned, "No. There'd be no point to that anyway, Yami'd be able to smell it. I'm giving you food because I'd prefer you not die of starvation. That would be so boring."
"Then what are you going to do?" Yami asked.
"I'm not going to do anything," Bakura said grin widening. "You on the other hand…"
"I would never hurt Alex," Yami said.
"Oh of course you say that now," Bakura waved him off. "But notice there's only human food on that tray. Your precious Alex won't starve. But you will. And what will the animal in you do as it slowly gets hungrier and the only food is sitting in your lap?"
At Yami's look of dawning horror Bakura laughed manically. "Well enjoy you meals!" he called over his shoulder as he left, slamming the door behind him closed.
Yami and Alex sat in silence for a moment processing.
"Yami? When was the last time you fed?" Alex asked quietly.
"Five days ago," Yami replied equally as quiet.
"Shit."