Solstice
The air at the top of the duel tower was cold and stagnant, filled with the scent of corroded metal and dusted concrete. Ruined buildings littered the ground in scraps and pieces, creating nothing but homes for whatever seagull hoped to make a temporary nest in the rubble. As the current competitors for the duel, he and Malik were currently the only ones standing on the tower top. The lifts locked into place, and as he stepped out of his own Malik did the same, the former wiping a last bit of blood from his nose before looking around. The sky was clear of any and all clouds by now, despite the weather earlier on. Moreover, the ocean surrounding the island was oddly calm he noted... A smooth sheet of water, resembling an all expansive mirror. And with nothing but rubble surrounding an otherwise wonderful sight he was still frowning, looking to the ruins in distaste.
"Really," Katsuya muttered as he looked over the side, a slight breeze beginning to pass over the heavy air. "What a waste 'f scenery..."
"Hnhnhnhnhn..." The blond turned, narrowing his eyes as Malik grinned from the other end of the field. "In a few moments it'll look just fine," he chuckled, eyes narrowing in sadistic mirth as he fingered the end of the millennium rod. "Provided I add the right... Accessories..." Accessories? Ughh.. Given the look he got...
Yea... Like hell that was happening. The sound of the other lifts coming up arrived, along with footsteps as the rest of the crowd followed from the staircase below. "If the duelists could stand on the arena now," Isono's voice called out, the others having no time to do anything other than give Katsuya an encouraging stare and a shout of victory as the pair did just that. "We will now begin the first battle of the Semi-Final Rounds! ISHTAR MALIK VS JONOUCHI KATSUYA!"
The arena 'clicked' somewhat with those words, and briefly as they stepped on the lift he heard Malik say something. "Hnhnhnhnhn... Are you ready to fight, 'alarraf'?" Hnn..? Seer..? Wait...
Did that mean he'd taken him seriously back there? As the arena rose up high from the ground Katsuya narrowed his eyes, those around either staring in well hidden expectation or giving shouts of encouragement. Everything was riding on this battle after all... Everything. But that word... Well, he decided. Even if Malik decided to believe him, it wasn't as though anything could really come by it right? ...(Oh who was he kidding.) "Tch... I'm sendin' y' straight t' hell," he hissed, disk locking into position as he looked forward and took his 'dueling stance'. "Got tha' Malik?"
His only answer for the first few moments was laughter, and seconds later the arena locked into place with a short set of stairs at the side in case the referee was needed. 'You can do this,' they were shouting below, Katsuya swallowing somewhat nervously as he looked forward. 'You can beat him..! You can...'
'You're going to die.'
Seto's words came to the back of his mind as darkness filled the air and blocked out the sun, Malik holding out the millennium rod as those below began to stiffen. "Hnhnhnhnhnh... I certainly doubt that you'll be doing as you say..." Shadows seemed to spiral out from the single blot blocking the light above them... Swirling, slowly sinking to the ground to cover the entire arena... "The game of darkness has already begun," Malik continued with a hissing grin, the blond before him biting his tongue as shouts and screams filled the air again. "You want revenge so badly," he sneered. "Here's your chance... I'm trembling with anticipation now... Now that I have the chance to test these claims of yours... Why do you bleed in battle," he asked somewhat louder, eyes widening with his insanity. "Why do you choke on the poisons of the duel monster's game! I'm so close to finding the answer that I can barely contain myself, thinking of the endless possibilities of torture..! HAHAHAHAHA!" Oh... So was that all then?
Gh... Damn it... The blond across from him merely narrowed his eyes with a scowl as questioned mutterings came from the sides, drawing his hand of cards and not once looking away from the Egyptian. The duel was about to begin; technically, it already had. No one would pull him out, no one could pull him out, so for now he had a bit of comfort in that fact despite the possibility he could die. "Tch... Let's just fight," he snarled, his opponent holding his disk ready with a short nod. "DUEL! And if you think your 'shadow game' scares me you can think again," Katsuya continued, slipping his two cards of choice on the field as the familiar smell of arid sands and dust arose beside him. "Set one card," he began, the blank tablet coming up from the side as a suctioning sensation came through his body. "An' summon th' Panther Warrior in attack mode..! Th's game 'f darkness," he hissed, the feeling that came over him increasing in pressure as his shadow stretched and rose up ahead of him into the shape of his summoned monster. "I'll take yer challenge... An' I'll beat you..!"
"You keep saying that," Malik chuckled, drawing a card to take his turn as the shadows converged and thundered amid the ever constant screams around them. "But I wonder... Did you predict that," he asked with a grin, "Or is it all just a bluff..?" No response. The blond gave no response and soon enough the grin grew, his opponent taking a pair of cards from his hand to set them on the disk. "My turn," he snarled, those below again muttering questions of foresight among the oddly persistent question to the 'real Malik' on 'what he was saying'. "I summon Helpoemer in attack mode," Malik began, his shadow stretching forward with the words to slowly form a stone bound zombie. "Next," he shouted clearly, "I place one card facedown on the field... End turn..!" The Egyptian's shadow taken even more definition as he said this, a blank stone tablet arising at the same moment. The stone cross with its bound victim stood before him in perfect detail just seconds later, and just as his monsters had warned him there was nothing but silence. The bottoms of each monster seemed to melt into each duelist's shadow, and as a cold wind blew and as screams filled the air there was nothing else but silence. This battle... "You don't seem very surprised 'alarraf'," the blond sneered, Katsuya narrowing his eyes further. "In fact, I'm surprised you understand me at all... But I digress," he laughed, the blond's eyes narrowing further at the comment. "It's not as though you have any real idea as to what you're doing..! And it's your turn now," he continued with a glasgowian grin. "So why not do what you promised and give me as much pain as I gave your friend..." Hn..! That..!
...Mai... "Gladly," he snarled, drawing his next card with a growl. "Like I told you b'fore... I ain't afraid 'f you..!" Not in the slightest, and-
'How can he tell what he's saying', he thought he heard below as he prepared his move. What did they mean 'how', he was speaking perfect Japanese..! Not even an accent! And yet still the questions filled the air. 'How can he tell...' But the voices at the side were faded by the curtain of shadows, and by the screams of passing spirits as elongated faces wept and cried.
'REDEEM US,' they roared, seeming to bounce off an invisible barrier between the arena limits and the shadows before wisping back in a wave of smoke. 'YOU PROMISED US!'
'It hurts... It hurts,' he could hear a child whimper, 'So hurry..!'
'REDEEM US... AVENGE US,' the louder ones screeched, 'NOW..!'
"Gh..." Shut up... Just shut up damn it, stop it..! "Summon th' Rocket Warrior," he shouted, shadow seeming to split in two as the needle-headed soldier sprung up from its form. Rocket Warrior couldn't speak... He'd never spoken in fact, as he had no mouth, but even without that it was obvious that the shadow was only that. Each one was directly connected to his own... Each one held a battle ready stance more suited for a fist fight...
And each one was mirroring his voice, a somewhat dead gleam in their eyes as they partially copied his own position.
"Hnhnhnhnhn... Activate trap," Malik countered with a sneer, the tablet at his side carving forth before vanishing into the Egyptian's shadow in a wave of almost rotten smelling dust. "Ambush!" Ambush..! "Summoning Viser Death from my hand..!" Viser-
Oh FUCK. Katsuya froze as the shadow shot forward, latching onto his Panther Warrior's skull like some monstrous snake and seeming to duplicate to do the same on his own. The points were just barely latching on as they formed from the black substance... Just barely he noted as he continued to tense in his dread. But all the same... The 'Viser Death' clamped upon his head and that of the Panther from his shadow, and while it did that his head was slowly beginning to throb with pain. The drills were ready to spin... "Hg..." And regardless of shadow games, this wasn't good..!
"Thanks to the use of this trap," Malik was sneering, a sudden groan coming from the creaking metal of the machine on his head, "I can activate this monster's effect right now..." Shit. "And following that, at the end of each turn," he continued with a sneer, "Your monster will lose 500 attack points until death..." SHIIIT. "SO, JONOUCHI," Malik cackled, eyes wide with expectation as the drills clicked on. "Can you withstand THIS pain!" Gh... SHIIIIIIIIT..! SHIT!
-RRRRRHHHHHNNNNNNNHHHHHHHHH-
Drills began to spin with those words and the moment they viced into his head his hands flung to the metal, cards falling to the ground as he ducked in pain. "G-GHHRRAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" The sound of the drill filled his head, and amid still constant screams he could hear the shouts of the crowd.
'JONOUCHI,' some shouted. 'JONOUCHI!'
The drills continued to spin, moving slowly, at scarcely a snails pace against his head as he attempted to pull the vice away. "RRRG... RRRAAAAAAAAAAAGGGHHHH!" They were still shouting... They were still shouthing..!
'What's going on,' Mokuba cried out in worry. 'He's... I think he's BLEEDING..!'
There was a small bit of blood coming from the vice but it had only barely pierced the skin, nothing more, nothing more than that he assured himself as he gasped for air. The pain came from the pressure behind it... A constant throbbing pain but even so he did not move an inch further than he already had, instead opening his eyes as low and growling breaths escaped him. He held a steady glare across the field, stood against the pain, unshaking... Watching as his opponent laughed through the sounds of the roaring drill. "Hnhnhahaha... HAHAHAHA! Don't fight it Jonouchi," Malik cackled, eyes wide as his opponent pulled at the device only to shave his palms. "No matter how loud you scream, how much you struggle," the blond howled, "You can't avoid death..!" Hah... Try him, he wanted to say. Try him..! "Increase your hate," the Egyptian sneered, Katsuya gasping for air amid the struggle against his pain. "Fuel your anger, your rage," Malik hissed, "So you can fall even further into darkness..!" Further eh..?
"Hahh... Hahhh..." No, he snarled mentally, still holding the vice around his head as he looked forward. No... Like hell he was giving in just like that..! This was what Mai went through, maybe not in the same way but... Her mind had told her she was going through it. And that alone was enough..! And with that in mind he continued to stand, even as the pain reverberated through his skull. Malik's face went pale for a brief moment. Just a brief one... But even so Katsuya held his gaze, eyes wide with a stubborn will to continue on. "Too weak," he hissed through grit teeth, hands bleeding somewhat as the drill finally came to a stop. "Yer gonna have t' try harder than tha'..."
Malik's eyes widened, the Egyptian swallowing as he looked across the field. "But how... You shouldn't be standing with this kind of pain," he hissed, shaking his head. "HOW..."
Katsuya brought his hands down from the drills, taking in a shaking breath as he slowly gathered his fallen cards from the ground. Blood... He was getting blood on them. Sorry about that... As for this asshole... "Who knows," he snarled, sounding far more grim than his usual self. "I'm jus' tha' 'special'... I activate th' Rocket Warrior's special ability," he continued with a roar, the shadow before him doing exactly that as the sensations of movement rushed across from it. "Attacking Helpoemer! Yer gonna r'gret givin' me free range 'f attack," the blond snarled, watching the monster alter its shape into the familiar 'missile'. "Trus' me on tha'..!"
The rocket shot forward in a blast of shadows, ripping through the midsection of the monster before flying back to his side of the field and leaving a trail of smoke behind it. And in a similar instant a hole appeared through Malik's own midsection, the blond snarling as he gripped and clawed at where the hole was. Or where he knew it 'would' be, and where his mind had told him it 'wasn't'. Because though Katsuya could see that his opponent's innards had more or less been forced to the side, now spilling forth from the gaping wound, Malik's mind had more than been able to handle blocking out the physical portion of this dangerous game. Despite this however the cheers from the side had began once again, and as he pushed through the headache the blond continued on with his move.
"Th's attack ain't over yet," he hissed, throwing a hand forward in 'gesture' as the order to attack shot through his shadow and pulled it to life. "Th's is f'r everything you've done t' us..!" To Mai, to Bakura, to Ryuzaki... And as a side effect to his sister, his friends... "Panther Warrior," Katsuya commanded, the blade wielding monster charging his opponent. "Finish 'm off..!"
"GLKACK-!" One slash and Helpoemer was down for the count, his arm movement mirroring the blade's fall as the monster's corpse smoked back into Malik's shadow, not even leaving time for the wound to take much more effect than a partial slice on his opponent. The Egyptian held a hand to his mouth as bits of bile escaped his throat in the shock of the pain, blood still spilling from the wounds on his chest. "Kgh..." The shock, however, was evidently not enough to phase his opponent for too long. "Hehehehe..." Awww crap. "Hehehhahaha!" AWWWW crap. He was laughing. Damn it. "That..." Laughing far too loudly than could be safe... "That felt GREAT," Malik roared, his opponent swallowing in unease as the Egyptian grinned. "And it's all going just as planned... Hnhnhnhn..."
Dust and smoke arose from the ground, and as it seeped into his duel disk the blond tensed, watching the white mist curl around the sides. Shit..!
He knew what this meant..! "Helpoemer's ability activates," Malik sneered, holding the card in his hands as the smoke continued to sink through his opponent's duel disk, cackling echoing through the air as it did so. "In death he becomes buried in the enemy's grave... Forever to sing his 'perish song'... Can you hear it," he chuckled, eyes narrowing as the screams around them suddenly cut short to watch in 'curiosity'. "I wonder what will happen now..." What would happen...
He didn't need Malik to explain that! The dust converged from within the disk, shooting forth as a song resembling nails on a chalkboard screeched through the air. As mad cackling pierced his ears, a ghostly wail behind it. "Hnhnhnhn... Hnhnhahaha! A TITHE FROM THEE..!" CRAP. A hand formed from the air, boned and clawed, wide and outstretched as he held his arm back from himself. "S-SHIT-!"
"Hnhnhnhnhn... Here we go..!"
"Crap-!" A slit appeared on his palm as a card was ripped from his hand, the ghostly shade pulling it deep into the graveyard as it continued to chuckle faintly. Card was gone... The crowd probably noticed that, but for the moment, did that really matter? "Gh... One per turn," he muttered, apparently loud enough for his opponent to hear.
"Ohohoh... So you know that then 'alarraf'..?" Bastard... Of course he did..! "How interesting," the Egyptian hissed with amusement. "That just makes me want to know even more... What do you see," he chuckled, eyes widening in his excitement. "Monsters, holograms..? The damage is real for you, more than even a shadow game isn't it," he laughed, crazed expression growing still maddening if it was possible. Don't answer, Katsuya told himself, even as mutterings came from the side. "Well? Am I wrong?" Don't answer..!
The clouded finger just flipped him off from inside the duel disk, he noted idly. Should probably ignore that. Even so, the cut from the card stung, and briefly switching his hand to the 'draw' one he brought the wound to his mouth and scowled. Ow ow ow... "Sfffff..." Damn that stung...
Stupid fucking 'hell poet'. And to top that off it was Malik's turn now... Wasn't it? Katsuya looked to his opponent with narrowed eyes as the teen chuckled, drawing his card from across him. "Hnhnhnhnhn... I set a card face down," he sneered, the tablet rising tall behind him as dust and stone flitted about the air. "Next," he announced, shadow splitting and stretching in the fashion needed to bring about a second monster, "I summon Gil Garth in attack mode, and end my turn!" End-
End turn? For a moment he was confused. Gil Garth was more powerful than all of his current monsters, a goliath of steel with a spear twice his size in his hands. But in the end, it was his turn after all... And the card he'd drawn just now, having moved his hand back, was Psycho Shocker. More than powerful enough to destroy the ones before him, particularly before his opponent summoned another monster as tribute for Ra..! He couldn't tribute Panther Warrior because of that brace of course he reminded himself, blood still trickling down his head in a single thin line. But next turn... "I summon th' Baby Dragon in d'fense mode," he announced, a third shadow stretching forward into the shape of a crouching dragon. "Switchin' Rocket Warrior t' d'fense mode as well... An' now-"
"Hnhnhn... Forgetting something," Malik hissed, a wide grin on his face as Katsuya stiffened, a sudden clack of gears taking his attention as a whirring sound filled the air. "It's your battle phase now..! So lets see if your monster's brains or your own spill to the ground," he cackled, blood draining from his opponent's face. Sh... Shi-
SHIT! "GH-GHHAAAAAAAHHCK... AAAAHHHHHHHGGGGG!" The vice was squeezing tighter against his skull, the slow drone meeting his ears amid screams. The drills were spinning, grinding away at bone, at skin, at hair, and he was bleeding... If they went too far he'd die, he'd die and there'd be no going back, there'd be no reason for what he'd tried to do, nothing..! 'Jonouchi,' they were shouting from the side. 'Katsuya-nii!' 'JONOUCHI-KUN!' He pulled frantically at the spinning drills, cards again fluttering to the ground. He pulled at the bonds holding them to his head, and at the steel controlling the piece, anything, anything to just take away this PAIN! "GHHAAAAAAAAAHHH! AHHHHH... HHAaaaah... Ahhhhh..!" Breathe... Breathe, he told himself as the drills finally slowed to a stop, hands falling to his sides to let him pick his cards back up from the ground. Breathe, just breathe...
"I'm not done yet..." Shit..!
"Hnhnhnhn... HnhnaHAHA!" The ghost hand pulled another card free as Katsuya brought them up from the ground, re-opening the slit in his palm as he grimaced. But even as Psycho Shocker was taken, that wasn't why he'd grown so pale, nor was the look on Malik's face. "That expression... That card must have been important," Malik chuckled, receiving a short tempered growl in response. The drills had stopped... The drills had stopped but the vice hadn't, and it was pounding pounding pounding...
It was a constant pounding at his head and, "SHUT UP," he snarled, eyes wide as he gasped for air. Blood was running down the sides of his head, the weight of the head brace was unbearable, he wasn't even sure how he could 'carry' it...
"Your suffering isn't over yet," Malik sneered, grin wide and frightening. "I activate 'Coffin Seller'... Every time one of your cards is discarded," he continued with narrowed eyes, "You'll lose a little more of your life..." A little more...
The ghost hands returned, and Katsuya grew white, a face following the arms and claws with a nasty and haunting grin as the screams of the spirits to the side picked up once more. Shit. Not good. "Hnhnhnhnhnh... It's been a while since we've toyed with your folk," the shade chuckled, Katsuya barely preventing himself from taking a step back as the ghost's words sent a shudder down his back. "Let's have some fun..." Shiiiiit...
Clawed hands reached forward with gaping mouths and idly he found it strange that the only words coming to mind weren't curses.
Not good.
When the shadows appeared he had a feeling he knew what to expect. Jonouchi had mentioned being able to see the violence as though it were real after all; so at first, despite the worried screams of himself and the others as Malik's 'attacks' struck, he had passed the blood off as nothing. Something that they could see because of that strange 'hypersensitivity' the blond carried with him.
But then... Other things happened. Something ripped Jonouchi's card from his hands, resulting in a cut. And when he attacked, it almost seemed as though he had to move to make his monster do the same. Soon enough it became more than obvious; something was wrong, he thought to himself. Something was very, very wrong, and not only were these injuries not illusions Yugi realized...
And the others were noticing as well. "What's going on," Mokuba whispered fearfully, shaking his head as he stared at the scene. As he watched blood covered hands picking up the cards again... And again... As holograms fizzled and cracked, blood interfering with the sensors on the paper... "What's happening..!"
"He's... Bleeding," Anzu continued with a swallow. "Look at his head, look at his hands," she whispered in horror, "He's bleeding..!" Being able to voice such things was an impressive feat for the moment.
Most were completely lost for words. "Is... What is..."
Sounding just as coherent as their friend on the stage. "Ghah... Ahhh..." Jonouchi was still standing somehow, and again a card was ripped from his palms as he regathered the small 'hand' together. As Marik activated his trap however, the hologram of the Coffin Seller meeting the air, and things got even worse. "GHAH! SHIT- Get-! GET OFF! GET-" Get off?
But who... What was he shouting to?
Cuts were appearing they noticed. As Malik explained the effect of the Coffin Seller cuts were appearing on his arms, small ones, some longer than others and each of them appearing almost as though inflicted by a series of nail like claws... "Where are those cuts coming from," Otogi muttered, the crowd rendered silent with shock as they remained immobile. "That... That didn't happen in the last fight Malik had so how..."
At those words most turned to the 'real Malik' in confusion, watching as Anzu seemed to tense. Watching as Anzu's eyes turned gold and as the 'woman' shook her head in shock. "This can't be possible," Malik muttered, shaking 'his' head with wide eyes. "It's not possible, shadow games can't..! They can't do this sort of thing..!"
"N-Nee-sama," Mokuba whispered from beside his sister, those on the field unable to hear and those around already aware of identities that would ordinarily be hidden completely. "Nee-sama... What's going to happen to him," he cried, eyes filled with fear. "Will he... Will he be alright..? Will he..."
They didn't know... No one knew, but... "...I hope so," the woman muttered, the words bringing no surprise to the crowd for some reason. After all... Above anything...
That was everyone's hope. No one wanted him to die, wanted him to lose, not at all. But the fact was, now that it was only the darkness of the shadows causing this 'light' around them, they could see everything clearly, even without the light of the sun. They could see Jonouchi's fingers shredding themselves on some unseen surface, his opponent even frowning for brief moments before resuming his sadistic grin in regards to the pain before him. They could see the cuts appearing from no visible target and before them they could see that even Malik, the 'dark' Malik, was confused. He was confused. Everyone was confused. But more importantly...
"Why does he keep calling him an 'alarraf'..?" Alarraf? That was right, the one word that was standing out Yugi noted. 'Alarraf'... "That..." The woman beside him frowned, arms crossed. "That's what seers were called in the past right," Anzu asked. "Alarraf..?"
"That's right," Malik answered, the resulting appearance giving the impression that Anzu was speaking to herself. "Things such as Seers and Oracles were fairly common during the times before and after the Millennium Items," he explained plainly, "Though after they were scattered they slowly faded into obscurity, rather than flourishing as they had before. It was said," the teen went on, "That a seer could never choose their vision... And that for a seer to break their own prediction would bring misfortune to all involved... But that doesn't explain any of this," he continued, shaking his head as he stared at the field. "And furthermore, there were no seers mentioned in the records of those times, so..."
"So then why does he keep calling him that," Anzu finished for him, the gold fading as she swallowed.
"Forget about why, how is he understanding him," Otogi muttered, his eyes widening. "There's a difference between guessing and understanding... Jonouchi should be clueless right now," he continued as he stared at the field. "I mean this... This is..." Neither Japanese nor Arabic...
Egyptian.
As storm clouds of shadows continued to converge those on the crowd swallowed, a few of them shuddering under the cold. "Isn't there... Anything," Honda asked as he watched their friend fight, "Anything that can help to..." To do anything..?
"No," Yugi answered almost bitterly, the boy's eyes still staring fearfully at the field. "There isn't."
They just had to hope that no matter what Malik's darker half did... It didn't kill Jonouchi in the process.
He was having trouble hearing.
He was fairly certain that the drills hadn't broken through his skull of course (he was... pretty sure he'd die then..!), but the constant pounding and rumbling it made was giving him a headache. It was pounding an endless drone through his head and it was making it impossible to hear past the arena limits. Moreover...
The blond frowned as his opponent began taking his turn, taking a pair of cards from his hand. A flash had come to mind. On the card to the right but not to the left. But why...
Why could he see what he was playing..?
This ability normally stayed out of the duels. Completely in fact, as though to realize he'd never pick up another card if that were to happen. He understood it coming in play at the last match, where the result would alter match ups rather than 'rank' but now! "I play two face down cards," Malik shouted, the two blank tablets rising to his side. The one on the left... He still didn't know what it was, but the one on the right was revealing itself clearly in his mind despite the blank face looking toward him. 'Malevolent Catastrophe'... Destroying all monsters on the field and inflicting damage while it was at it. If he attacked it'd be over for him of course, but why could he see what the card- "Next," his opponent announced, shadow shifting and melting as it twisted into a fiendish monster from the formerly metalloid shape it held, "I sacrifice Gil Garth to summon the Legend Devil!" Ah- Legend-
"Gh... Yer kiddin' me," he hissed, taking a step back as he looked over the monster, twisted limbs and shark-like teeth meeting his gaze. 1800 attack points... But more importantly its effect..! "700 attack points per turn... What th' hell..!" If he didn't deal with this thing fast enough he was screwed!
His opponent merely laughed, a vicious grin over his face. "Hnhnhnhnhn... You can blame the designers for that," the Egyptian chuckled, "But it doesn't change a thing; if you don't defeat it now it'll get stronger and stronger and then you'll die..." No...
"'F I attack period I die," he growled under his breath, opponent muttering an 'End Turn' as he drew his next card. Not that he was supposed to know that of course, he added idly. The blond nonetheless smirked, straightening himself out as he looked toward his opponent. "Hehehehehe... Y' know what though," he decided, "I could careless abou' th' trap y' got on yer field... I got a trap 'f my own," he continued as he grin, his own blank tablet beginning to carve out as he slammed his hand back upon it. The bloodstained hand stained the stone, and the carved rock began to change in colour. Shadowed tendrils oozed from within it, emanating from the bloodied focal point... "Looks like y' played right int' my hands," Katsuya laughed, his opponent tensing in response as the tablet continued to bleed red. "R'veal trap..! QUESTION! We have t' guess th' monster card on th' top of each other's graveyard," the blond explained, pulling his hand back from the stone. "Guess right, an' nothin' happens," he continued with a smirk. "Monster stays dead. Guess wrong..." Katsuya trailed off, leaving that part of the trap to the imagination. "Hehehe... Now th'n," he continued, Malik's expression of shock increasing, "I'll guess first! You jus' sacrificed a monster after all... Tha' means yours 's Gil Garth," he said clearly, the scowl his opponent gave in response quite unnecessary to know he was right. His grin widened as the Egyptian continued to growl, eyes narrowing in mirth. "Hehehehe... Don' need t' be an 'alarraf' t' know tha'... So tell me," the blond shouted, raising his voice and gesturing around him. "How abou' mine- got an idea on what's in my graveyard?"
The look on Malik's face was absolutely priceless. Rage... Shock... After all...
"Would y' look at tha'," Katsuya taunted, smirking darkly as he was responded with a desperate growl. "Y' can't can' y'? B'cause you don't know what card was d'scarded... Not like I know what tha' trap on yer righ' is," he sneered, pointing almost accusingly forward as his opponent again stiffened. "Y' got five seconds t' guess," he continued loudly, his shadow already stretching forth to form a monster as the tablet at his side crumbled into dust. "Five..." Nothing. "Four..." Still nothing. "Three..." The shadow rose taller. "Two..." Arms defined themselves along with a mouth-like respirator mask. "One! Times up," the blond announced, the fourth shadow-monster taking colour as he spoke. "You couldn' guess... So your monster won' be summoned! But mine on th' other hand..." Low rumbling filled the air and the Psycho Shocker cracked its neck and knuckles, preparing to fight in a manner quite unlike the ordinarily stoic monster. "I summon th' Psycho Shocker," Katsuya roared, glare intensifying as the monster's laser and effect activated. "An' not only tha'," the blond continued, a glint appearing from behind him, "But his effect kicks in... Blowin' up all 'f y'r traps! So much f'r tha' plan t' make me attack," he continued with a grin, his opponent ignoring the direct jab at the apparently unhidden trap.
"Rgggh..! You..!" The lasers connected instantly. "You pathetic-!" Stones blasted from the field, scratching the sides of the arena as Malik's words were cut in the crossfire. The tablets on the field, save one, were now in pieces. Dust flew through his opponent's wounds and while there was still that blank stone tablet remaining he continued to grin.
Hehehehehe... "How's it feel," he 'asked', crossing his arms. "Yer shadow game backfirin' in yer face I mean?" There were cheers from the side again, he realized. They were confused as hell, but there were still cheers. And that... That was the point. Because no matter what they were seeing of this match he wasn't stopping; no matter what. No matter what... And as long as they realized that and supported him on that, he'd pull through. That's what he told himself, at least. "Lets bring th's battle t' th' next level," Katsuya shouted, hands spread outward in apparent gesture as the Psycho Shocker did the same. "Here I come Malik..! PSYCHO SHOCKER ATTACKS," he and the shadow snarled, glowing energy developing around the latter's hands, "LASER ENERGY CANNON! D'STROY TH' DEMON!"
The blast of charged electricity shot forward as both voices rang across the air, the momentary thought of how odd it sounded to hear Psycho Shocker speak not coming to mind as he watched the sparks fly. As he watched them connect with the shadow before his opponent, sending crackling light off both the demon and its summoner as Malik momentarily tensed and jerked with a stiffened pain. "G-GHHHAAH! HNNGGG... You... Dare..." Yea.
He 'dared'. Katsuya merely held a look that said 'of course' in response to the words, raising a hand in 'gesture' as the rest of his monsters entered attack mode. As the field cleared of monsters at his opponent's disposal, leaving him with nothing but the spell and the brace that was viced across his head and that of one of his monsters. This was still his move after all... And with that in mind... "Alrigh'..!" It was time to finish this. "Rocket Warrior, Baby Dragon, Panther Warrior... All three 'f y'," he announced, the shadows responding to his mental commands and movements. "ATTACK D'RECTLY!" In hindsight...
He probably should have figured that wouldn't work.
When Psycho Shocker was summoned to the field, there were nothing but cheers all around from those who bothered to 'speak'. Cheers to hide the fear of loss. Cheers to hide the fear of Malik succeeding. Cheers to hide the confusion in regards to what could very well happen to their friend, to hide the horror of what was occurring on the field right before them. Because with what they could see now there were scratches over his body and two tiny, tiny holes revealing bone on his head, as though drills were piercing it as they spoke.
Something that should never have happened, never in a thousand years of holographic advancements, but despite this they could not cancel the battle. That much was clear... Katsuya didn't want to stop, Malik didn't want to stop... And in the end, despite all thoughts of fear and worry they were held frozen in place, as though glued to the spot by their own cowardice.
But Katsuya had to win, Mokuba told himself. He had to, above everything..! Even though his hands only touched the duel disk to set a card and nothing else. Even though his eyes only passed over his hand when he was moving the cards off the ground after dropping the,. Even though he never once looked at his draw, or at the position of the cards, even though his hands shouldn't have been functioning properly...
And even when, to activate a trap, he slammed his hand on some invisible surface while somehow making it through regardless. Even Isono was frozen in shock, unable to shout out the number of rules it seemed he was breaking. Unable to shout at him to use the disk controls, or to look at what he was putting on the field. And besides... Katsuya's action to summon Psycho Shocker was only logical for getting a more powerful monster on the field; so what if he knew the severity of the trap before him while he summoned it? True, they hadn't heard him say anything that would prove this but...
Somehow, amid the shouts of 'alarraf', and among the inexplicably understood words from Malik on the field, he had a feeling that Katsuya really had known. That he'd not only known the card was a trap, but exactly what it would do and what was needed to trigger it. And now, as each of the holographic monsters at his side moved to strike in the form of rocket, dragon, and injured panther, Mokuba had to shudder. Malik was grinning...
And that was never good. "Hnhnhnhnhn... Spell card activates," Malik cackled, a wave of shadows whirling around him as a holographic spell lifted upward. "DARK AURA SHIELD! You dare to even think you can scratch me," he chuckled, narrowing his eyes as he continued to shout in the foreign language that was for some reason becoming understandable by the shadows around him. "Hnhnhnhn... When this game ends," he taunted from behind his ashen shield, "I'll leave you in the ultimate state of suffering for this pain you've inflicted on me... But first," he shouted with a grin. "It's the end of your turn..!" The end..! "You know what happens next..!"
"GH-" The sound of drills entered the air. "HGGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGHH!" For the third time that match Katsuya's hand of cards fell to the ground, drops of blood following as the blond's fingers were shredded, pulling at nothing. More blood was being spilt, more screams filling the air... "GHHHAAAAAAAAGGGHH!"
"J-JONOUCHI," Yugi and most of the others shouted, Seto visibly stiffening as palms were shredded and screams slowly quieted. " JONOUCHI, HANG IN THERE!" Hanging in there was one thing...
But how was he supposed to live, when all they could do was shout! "KATSUYA-NII," Mokuba screamed, eyes wide with terror as he shouted at the field. "KATSUYA-NII!" Dying, the boy thought to himself through his tears. He was dying and bleeding and screaming and there was nothing they could do about it except watch and wait and cheer as though this was just some rut in a match that could be pushed to the side with ease..! Katsuya only had two cards left from what they could tell, two cards which he gathered up from the ground just now as one mysteriously shot into his duel disk's graveyard. Worse, as the blond looked forward with rage filled eyes, it was Malik's turn now.
Which meant the opportunity for even more pain to arise. "I draw," the Egyptian said calmly, a low smirk coming over his face as he did so. "You've survived this long... I'd have to say I'm even surprised. You're actually bleeding aren't you," he asked, grin widening to a frightening extent as he voiced the very horrific truths they so wanted to ignore. "Well... Lets test your stamina shall we," Malik cackled, his opponent stiffening as a hologram destroyed two of his monsters in familiar tribute styled pillars of light. "I summon the LAVA GOLEM... Using your monster's as sacrifice and allowing your control of the monster..!" La-Lava...
As molten rock arose above the ground behind their friend, encasing the blond in a cage, he paled. "But that monster has 3000 attack points," Mokuba whispered, eyes wide as he stared toward the beast. "Why would Malik give him such a powerful monster..?" Why would he do something like that..?
His only response was the stiffness of his sister at the side as the crowd grew even more white, and as Katsuya reacted to apparently hot steel, shifting his feet to avoid something that left his shirt smoking and sweat dripping from his body the group fell silent once more. Please, he whispered to himself, unaware that everyone around him was doing the same either in their minds or under their breaths.
Please, don't die..!
He probably should have realized what kind of hell he was in for when his shadow caught on fire and glowed a brilliant orange and gold rather than black. When, as Malik summoned the monster 'Lava Golem' to his side of the field, two other monsters from his shadow became bathed in flames, crumbling into ash... And from the dust below a cage surrounded his form, rising upward and locking over itself to pin him into the cramped place. His shadow twisted around him, grew hotter and hotter... It rose far above him, and seared his still stinging wounds. And even worse...
No one could see what it was doing to him. No one could see the lava pouring off the sides of the cage, a single drop sweeping by to set his shirt sleeve aflame before he hurriedly put it out. And no one could see the monsters and shadows he fought with... Not like this. And in this heat... In this incredible heat that was already blanketing him in sweat... "HaaaahH... HaaaaahH..."
"Hang in there chabar," the spirit in the back of his mind was shouting faintly, crying out as the voices of shadows and ghostly hands alike taunted him. "Hang in there.."
"REDEEM US," the spirits roared,
"Are we having fun yet~," the hands chimed in,
"YOU PROMISED US," they cried, "WHY HAVEN'T YOU HELPED US?"
The hands again... "To see an ancient after all these years... Hnhnhn, so delightful..."
And the spirits. "SAVE US! SAVE US!"
And the drill continued to vice his head amid all of this chaos, causing a burning pain to reverberate through his skull as he ground his teeth. As the soles of his shoes slowly began to melt against the heating metal of the cage, melted rubber sticking to the bottom of the steel prison. He couldn't touch it... If he touched it he'd burn his hands, burn anything it touched...
"Being granted a monster with so much power..." That voice... Who- "You should be grateful," Malik taunted, sweat already pouring down the sides of Katsuya's bloodied face and body as he looked forward with half dead eyes. Psycho Shocker was gone... His Baby Dragon was gone... He was left with the two monster's he'd had at the start and a pile of molten lava that caused more harm than good. "That expression," Malik continued, sneering even further as he laughed. "Perhaps you know of this monster's power," he 'asked' with narrowed eyes. Yea... Maybe he did. Each turn... Each turn the monster's rolls of lava would slide off and burn the cage with him inside, and besides causing damage to himself this meant that if he stopped moving his feet and got himself stuck...
Well.
There was really no reason to think of that right? "Now that your troublesome monster is gone I'll set a card face down," Malik decided, pointing his hand toward where the hologram would appear as a tablet rose at his side. "So Jonouchi... What will you do now..? You could attack me and win the match," his opponent 'offered', ignoring the constant shifting feet the blond was moving, "Or you could wait and let the flames of your newest 'ally' burn you to ash... It's your choice," he added with a sneering grin, his opponent merely shifting his feet as the rubber soles of his shoes continued to melt down.
His lifepoints were keeping him alive, he knew that much. He'd have already died breathing in 'boiled air' otherwise, but given that the worst he got was the reaction he'd have to the worst sauna on earth he was still alive. Games had to finish 'fairly' after all, no matter how close to death and beyond it he came. And now... 'It's YOUR TURN, alarraf!' Heh.
Now it was his turn... If he could get the Hurricane card the blond told himself, he'd fix this easily. But the fact was, that thing was so far into his deck that there was no point waiting on it, and he knew that. Lava Golem was right here after all, and his mind told him Hurricane wasn't coming out this match, not from the bottom of the deck. So if the Lava Golem's effect wasn't going to wait...
He wasn't waiting either. Even so however, as he placed his next card in his hand he closed his eyes to think, desperately searching his mind for a way out. Not a single monster in his hand... Viser Death was still attached to him- Er, his monster he corrected as he and the panther both shook their heads at the moment, and moreover there was a trap beside his opponent. Attacking now would be suicide. Not doing anything would be the same though he reminded himself, wiping a thick sheet of sweat from his face as he gasped for air and steeled his resolve. And damn it...
Fine! "MALIK," the blond finally shouted, pointing forward and between the bars with a shout as the golem at his side raised his arm. "You'll get your wish..! I ATTACK!"
"You attack, do you," Malik chuckled, eyes widening briefly with mirth. "And here I thought you were afraid..!" HAH!
"WHO'S AFRAID," he snarled in response, throwing in a taunt while he was at it. "I'm not hidin' b'hind a trap that'll only last one turn!" He at least knew that much of the tablet behind the blond...
Right? "Hnhnhn..." Right. "Your foresight still hasn't abandoned you... You're right," the Egyptian said with a grin, "This trap will only be in effect for one turn... But that's all it needs! So go ahead and shout your attack to the world," he cackled at the top of his lungs, "The name of the Lava Golem is called 'GOLEM VOLCANO'... SO ATTACK!" Giving him the attack was he?
Smug fucking prick... "I'll do more than tha'," he snarled, throwing his arm forward as a blast of molten rock shot forth from the arm of his monster. "I name my own attacks..." And a good name for this one was... Was... ...Oh! "JONOUCHI FIRE," he roared, the lava blasting over the top of the cage.
"J-Jonouchi fire," the spirit in his mind muttered incredulously, momentarily pulled out of the mix between worried shouts and complete silence as he blinked. Yea... He have a problem with that? "N-No..." The ghost seemed to stare out from his mind, before repeating himself. "No... It's... It's a good name," he coughed, shaking his head.
Exactly. It was perfect. And of course, as expected, the attack didn't make it through anyways... "Activate trap," Malik said flatly, the lava charging toward him and swirling about his form as the tablet ground into a repellant dust against the attack. "Monster Relief... Returning one monster from the field to my hand to special summon another in its place..." And as to that monster... Katsuya swallowed, biting his lip. There it went... "Viser Death returns to my hand," Malik announced, his shadow reeling back to his feet like a high-powered yo-yo as the clamping pain retreated along with it. "And is re-summoned on my side of the field! And now, thanks to your golem's attack," he bragged, the lava honing in on the 'monster' immediately as it rebounded against the metal shield, "I have an indestructible shield..!" Gh... Damn it he growled mentally.
He'd fallen for this trap completely..! How could he fall for something so easily just because he wasn't 'warned' about it! The growling continued, only for it to cut short as a flash came to mind. And what was worse... It was the end of his turn. "H-HHAAAHH!" Crap! "HOT HOT HOT HOT HOT!" Lava began to pour into the cage from aboce, his shadow melting as fires leaped from the ground around him. With nowhere else to go he hurriedly locked his duel disk around the corner of one of the cage rungs, jumping up to position his legs on a higher bar while the lava sat beneath him and boiled away at quickly heating metal. "Hihhhhh..." The vice was gone, but the Lava Golem was still there... But along with all that...
The hands returned as well. "We're BAAAAACK," they cheered amid the screams of the dead, Katsuya grinding his teeth.
The screams were getting louder... "YOU PROMISED!"
"Which one," the hands pondered, "Which one..."
"REDEEM US! SAVE US! AVENGE US," they cried,
"HnhnHAHAHA!"
"MY TURN," Malik roared over the screams and cackles, Katsuya barely holding himself up in the cage with his duel disk. "I play one card face down," he announced, the blank tablet appearing at the cloaked Egyptian's side in a swirl of dust, "And then, I play this... The spell 'Machine Duplication'!" Machi- Crap. "Summoning three more Viser Deaths... And do you know what I'm going to do with them," he continued with a sneer, shadow splitting at the center as they shot forward. Each shadow swarmed the head of one of his monsters, another appearing on his own once more to begin the crushing sensation of pain across his skull. He knew what Malik was going to do... "I'm going to lock all three on your monster's heads..!" ...But he didn't have to repeat it..! G-Ghhhh-!
Rocket Warrior, Lava Golem, Panther Warrior... His head had already begun to heal over with the absence of the brace, but now that it was back the mere thought of all three transferring to his skull was horrific. Worried shouts came from the sides and the cackling continued on, with Katsuya left standing awkwardly in the top of a cage..
"Your turn now Jonouchi," Malik was chuckling, the shadowed grin growing still darker. "Hurry up... I want to hear your screams, I want to watch you bleed... Show me," the Egyptian cackled madly, "SHOW ME! Show me the pain and screams of fool at his deathbed! HAHAHAHAHA!" Shut up... "HAHAHAHAHA!"
Shut up...! He couldn't tribute summon with the braces there... And the card in his hands wasn't Hurricane either he thought with a grimace, bowing his head as he attempted to keep his balance. But... And it was a big 'but'...
The blond drew his card, shirt soaked in sweat and sticking to his body as he tried as best he could to hold his grip on the paper with slippery fingers. He made a promise, he reminded himself through labored breathing. A promise to fight Yugi, and a promise to defeat the monster standing before him. He'd seen bits and pieces of the one who really owned this body. During the rush of data in the computer, he'd seen flashes, snippets of memory that wasn't meant for his eyes... And despite all that happened, and all he'd done, the 'light' Malik could be forgiven. It would take a hell of a long time before he trusted him, but he'd forgive him nonetheless. Besides.
'Malik' hadn't done these things to Mai, to Bakura, and to Ryuzaki. The other one had. The one standing before him.
The one he had to defeat. The card in his hands was strong, he told himself weakly. A new one as well, one he'd only recently managed to save up for and purchase in the recent weeks. He'd forgotten about it... It was a powerful card, but because he'd received it only recently there'd been no record of it being his most powerful card. It was stronger than even his red eyes but...
"Yo," he heard, the blond's eyes dimly looking at the card as the image of the monster smirking in the back of his mind came to his thoughts. "Nice to meet you." This monster...
"...Gilford th' Lightnin'..."
In his minds eye he could see the monster nod with that continued smirk, and adding the card to his hand a strategy formed. The Viser Death's 'metal replicator' only worked on weak monsters, monsters with 500 or less attack power. While on his side of the field he continued mentally with narrowed eyes, he could use his spells to affect them. After that, after freeing his monsters he told himself, he would have three tributes. And with three tributes, Gilford would...
"Hehehehehe..." Malik appeared to freeze somewhat as he began to chuckle, the blond across from him still balancing oddly in a metal cage. "Act'vate spell card 'Angel Dice'," he announced, the tablet appearing tall at his side as the imp flew forth. Snow white wings carried the small being into the air, and as the die fell Katsuya grinned. "Yer monster's... How much power will they take b'fore d'stroyin' th'mselves..? Five hundred..? Two thousan'..? The dice rolls SIX," he shouted with a grin, hopping down from the cage walls as the shadows and lava already began to melt with the move he was preparing. "Yer Viser Death's 'r d'stroyed," the blond continued, all three of the head-shaped vices melting into a corroded ash on the ground around them. "An' now," he went on with a dark smirk, "Since I have three monsters on my field, how 'bout I show y' somethin' good... I'm comin for y' Malik- I told y' b'fore I'd send y' t' hell an' I'm keepin my word," the blond snarled, thunder cracking above them as the trio of monsters in his shadow fused and merged behind him. "I sacr'fice all three 'f my monsters t' summon my most powerful monster," he announced, the shadow behind him stretching into darkened and armored skin under deep red robes and silver armor. A massive claymore sword sat on his back... And with the monster's summoning he narrowed his eyes even further. Gilford's power was running through him now, still working at healing his bleeding head... And right now he was going to use that power to win. "This is th' end Malik... Meet th' Legendary Warrior who controls th' storm," Katsuya announced, "Th' monster wieldin' th' blade 'Odinson'... Have a taste of 's power," he roared, holding his hands out as the monster pulled out his sword in a similar gesture, "THUND'RING LIGHTNIN'!"
The bolt of lightning flew from the tip of the blade as the attack was called, striking Malik's apparently invincible shield and blowing it into pieces as its summoner screamed. "GH- WHAT!" Metal scattered across the field and Malik snarled with rage, sparks bouncing off his own body as his fingers twitched in the aftermath of the shock. "Im... Impossible," he growled, shaking his head in shock. "Viser Death is invincible..! This can't be..!"
"Then think again," Katsuya shouted with a grin, wiping a bit of sweat-soaked hair from his eyes and still lightly bleeding head. "When summoned w' three sacrifices, Gilford d'stroys all monsters on th' field... R'gardless of effect! An' wi' that outta th' way," he continued, pointing his hand forward as the bleeding wounds from the Viser Death reached an almost completely healed state, "I attack! LIGHTNIN' CRASH SWOR-" Wait-!
As the smoke from the Viser Death's destruction cleared he froze, his 'shadow's blade already plunging forward in a stabbing action. A flash came to mind and the stone before him began to crumble. The tablet, he thought to himself in horror as the dust shifted to re-form the 'wall' before him. The tablet, the tablet, the-
"Shit," he shouted, arms still held somewhat forward as he stared. "Trap..!" Trap..!
"Hnhnhnhnhn..." Damn it..! "You deserve a round of applause for lasting this long 'alarraf'," Malik chuckled, the blade crashing through stone as it slowly tumbled away from the tablet's form. He couldn't see the image on the stone... But it was flaking away, piece by piece and the blade was digging deeper without any sign of stopping... "It's been fun... But play time is over," his opponent roared, "Because this trap card is-"
The nightmare mirror!
Shouts dimmed before Malik's words even finished, and before Katsuya could even take in the detail of the object uncovered by the tablet. As he stumbled back with a choke all he could see was Malik's mouth moving, and the enormous mirror that had appeared before him. The mirror his shadow had run into, blade first, with one half on one side and the other seemingly vanished. Well... Mostly. "GH-OH... Hhhaa-AAHH..." It was hard to ignore the fact that it had wound up embedded in the side of his chest, pushing him back with all the force behind it. "Ghahh... Hahh... D... Don' move," he rasped, cards falling from his hands as he hurriedly grabbed the blade in his chest to continue choking. Just his lung and organs pieced, his heart was fine thank god, but if the blade moved even slightly then the sutured burn from the electricity that was now sealing the wound would mean nothing and- "Don' move," he repeated, voice weak with the useless position his lung was in as he choked on his own words. "Don' move th' blade..!"
This time, the crowd had fallen deathly silent in response to what was happening on the field, those on the sides unable to even scream. 'What's he holding?' They couldn't see the blade in his hands. 'What's he doing?' The only blood on the sword had already fallen, there was nothing else so long as the sword didn't move- they couldn't see him cutting his palms trying to clutch his wound out of reflex. But even amid the pain and shock of injury, he could still hear.
'What's happening to him..!'
"Haagh... Ghaaagh..." He was scaring them he realized coldly, choking on his breaths as he attempted to continue to stand. Scaring them all... He wanted this over as quick as possible, and he knew he had the power to do so, he would in next turn, that was certain even without a vision but... Even with this...
That bastard continued to laugh... "Hnhnhnhnhn..." He could barely breath... And he laughed... "How does it feel," Malik shouted with a grin, responded to with a murderous glare. "To be impaled upon by your own sword?" Shut up, he wanted to shout, finding nothing but blood clogging his throat. Shut up... Shut up..! "Now you've lost 1000 lifepoints," Malik was continuing with a cackle. "And of course... The price to pay for this 'mirror' trick is discarding one card..." One card..?
An image came to mind. The image of a single move, and of Bakura's shouting form as the flames of the sun eradicated him into nothing but dust in the wind, the ring clattering to the ground. As Ra became coated in flames, risen without a single sacrifice and... ...Shit.
"RA," he spat, hands bleeding as they clutched the blade. "An' how's tha' gonna help you..?" The monster would have no attack power... It could get rid of his monster but he'd still have a chance to win so long as he drew another monster on his turn- Malik's attack would be for nothing..!
But Katsuya's questioning growls seemed to only further excite his opponent. It was almost strange actually... He'd spent this long keeping his mouth shut on anything to do with the duels, and with what he saw, and yet from the start of this match he'd tossed everything to the wind... 'Because it won't matter after this match,' he found himself thinking, breathing still ragged and weak as he held his determined gaze across the field. Because all along he'd known the end result hadn't he..? He'd known...
That in the end... "I have to say," Malik chuckled, his opponent's turn ending as the blond slouched somewhat on the sword still jutting through his side, "I underestimated you, Jonouchi... I should have realized I wasn't going to be able to end this without bringing forth GOD..!" He really should have, hadn't he..? "To think... You knew this too," he laughed, shaking his head almost in incredulity as his opponent kept silent. "This ability of yours... It's been a pleasure to toy with it," the Egyptian laughed, "But it all ends now..! BEHOLD GOD," Malik cackled, his opponent weakly bringing a free hand up to his head and biting his lip as a raging headache began to strike with the words. "I use the spell Monster Reborn to revive him." he continued. "Now COWER from the God of the SUN, THE FORM OF RA, AND-"
And nothing else mattered any more as Malik taunted him from across the field, the Egyptian's voice fading into a mere echo at the back of his mind. His thoughts went completely blank and his breathing calmed despite the crippling pain through his side. The ankh's light had filled the arena for only a moment before 'God' was summoned as Malik had said. But 'God' was not one to be copied with a mere 'shadow'. With dull eyes he looked up toward the enormous and majestic being of gold that hovered behind the tower's edge, the nearly blinding monster before him 'standing' on its hind legs and spreading his wings to completely block out Malik's 'half' of the sky. All he could see was the top half of this being, see the wings, fore-arms, and head. The rest was resting on the ground of the isle itself, scarcely able to fit within the boundaries of the island. This was 'Ra'. This...
As flames began to lick the monster's sides, seemingly taking the metal with it, Malik was not the only one speaking. "Great God of all he travels," Katsuya began under his breath, "Who creates all he sees, whose eye is the warrior Sehkmet, whose knowledge is unsurpassed," he whispered among Malik's shouts, the oddly familiar chant passing through his lips with blank eyes and monotone words. "Who sails on the evening barge of a million years, who is accompanied by Command, Perception, and Magic," they 'chorused', "Whose Father is Nun, who passes life and death each day... Who battles with the dark serpent along side the God of Storms," the blond went on, the closest to his sides slowly turning with wide and likely terrified eyes as his words mirrored Malik's own, those same words rising in volume. "I ask that you arise to my side," they boy continued, "That you illuminate my path with your LIGHT..."
And suddenly without warning the chant changed, as Malik continued to shout and as Katsuya's words rose to a standard speaking level rather than the whisper it was, neither one slipping in their pace. "I ask that you guide me in the form of the great bennu bird," the continued, "That you accept this tribute of my very soul and eradicate all those before me. That you cleanse the souls of those who oppose me, and shield me from all harm in these moments... I ask," Malik finished, just a millisecond faster than his opponent as he looked to the blond teen in mixed curiosity and fear,
"AND YOU ARE ANSWERED!"
Flames roared and rose above the tower, illuminating the shadows around them and creating a 'sun' above them in the sky as the metal 'griffin' that had been Ra melting into the air with the fluidity of the wind itself. Ra had risen, his mind told him dimly, senses returning as he gripped the blade in his side and looked upward. Ra, in the form of the burning phoenix, having abandoned the metal, golden shell he'd worn. Ra, the Sun...
And amidst it all it seemed the power was enough for his opponent to forget that he had only barely retained control of the God he so favoured. "You should be honoured," Malik shouted amid the crackling flames, laughing madly as the phoenix burned above and behind him. "To set your eyes on God's form... His TRUE form," the Egyptian added, cackling despite the blank stare he received from his opponent. "HnhnhahahaHAHAHA... THIS IS THE END," he laughed, arms held out as he gestured to where he likely perceived Ra's form to be. "THE END..!"
He wasn't listening. Malik had turned to taunt those in the crowd for the moment shortly after those taunts, and as he did so Kastuya looked up from his already weakened form to grit his teeth. Ra was looking down on him, the flames licking the sides of the arena as he stared. But he'd said nothing so far. He knew that it was really him... But he had still said nothing. "Gh... Hgh... Ra," the blond spat, biting on his lip as he fought to continue speaking. "...You gonna kill me then," he 'whispered', voice held low in fatigue. "Gonna take tha' sacrifice..?" That sacrifice of 1000 life points... "An' burn me outta existence..?" Like the monster on the field..?
Ra merely beat his wings a moment, the fires slamming against the sides of the steel tower as his toothy beak opened wide to chuckle. For a moment, Katsuya had to stare at the bird in confusion because of that. And then as he spoke his gaze reverted to a slightly agitated expression, eyes narrowing as Ra spoke. "You have done WELL to travel this FAR, young ANCIENT... VERY well..." To do... ...What..?
"...You..." The blond choked, shuffling forward somewhat and again choking over his words. "Khg... ...You thought I wouldn' make it," he asked somewhat loudly, Malik turning with narrowed eyes in the middle of his conversation as he studied his opponent incredulously.
"You... What did you just say..?"
The enormous 'God' above him held the same stern 'expression' he'd appeared with, lowering his head toward the boy to give his response. "You have been through MANY trials, ANCIENT... Some DESTINED... Others chosen by CHANCE," the God told him, fires creating a constantly shifting form outside the monster's face and piercing glare. "But regardless of the DIFFICULTY," Ra praised, "You have SUCCEEDED... You surpassed my FIRST test," he continued, seeming to bare his flaming fangs with narrowed eyes. "So TELL ME... BOY who knows our NAMES... Do you FEAR this POWER that now stands BEFORE YOU?"
The answer was swift, and short, and to those around more than likely confusing. They could see Ra, that was true. See the enormous beast illuminate the air, but they couldn't see it in its full power nor could they hear its words. Well...
Most of them couldn't at least. The expressions on both Seto and the 'other Yugi's face told him otherwise after all, and as Malik himself looked across the field with wide eyes it seemed that he'd realized just what his opponent was doing. But his answer...
"No."
"Not even in the SLIGHTEST," the God questioned, seeming to growl as his opponent slowly forced himself to stand straighter than he had been, even as the blade threw his balance off completely and caused him to stumble. And again...
"...No," he repeated, gritting his teeth, looking up with wide eyes. "I need to win this fight..."
"You... Impossible... ORACLE!"
They still couldn't see. Or hear. Malik was confused, staring in a mix of rage, fear, and hate... Disbelief as well, the teen clearly forcing the idea that his opponent could possibly see 'God's full form out of his mind. And like that thought the other feelings were quickly replaced with a maddening confidence as he began to laugh. It went without saying after all; this was a shadow game. Whatever Ra dealt out he would feel in full and even if he didn't he'd have felt it anyways. So... "You... I'm tired of you," Malik snarled, eyes wide with insanity. "Of your 'ability', and of your persistence... I'll let God's Judgement burn you to the ground... Turning your mind to ash and destroying every bit of your soul..! WATCH, JONOUCHI," he laughed, eyes wide as the fires increased in intensity. "WATCH, AS THE GREAT GOD RA RISES FOR YOU, AND PULLS YOU INTO AN ENDLESS DARKNESS..! AHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA!" As the cackling continued to fill the air he could only dimly hear the cries of the others. Of Mokuba... Of Yugi... Of Otogi, Anzu, Honda..
Of her...
"No..."
"NO! JONOUCHI-KUN!"
"JONOUCHI!"
"YOU CAN'T LOSE, YOU CAN'T..!"
"This light," he could hear her whisper, "It can't..." How could something so magnificent...
Bring...
Death. "You claim to hold no FEAR of my FLAMES," Katsuya heard his executor announce, the blond forcing himself to breathe as he stared upward. "Yet it is not with BRAVADO you stand before me with. I SEE before me TRUE COURAGE," Ra applauded as he rose further into the air, "A TRAIT which is often LOST to TIME... KNOW THIS," he boomed, converging into a single point in the air and launching forward as a single flaming 'bolt' from the heavens. "It is not the FIRES you must surpass... It is the CHALLENGE you face AFTER- FOR HERE IS YOUR TEST," God roared. "HERE is your TRUE challenge... BOY WHO KNOWS OUR NAMES," he announced, mouth wide as he came closer to the boy below, "THIS IS BUT A TASTE OF OUR POWER!"
And all at once the flames struck down, and everything else around didn't matter. "GHHH- GHHHRAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Fire... His shadow was melting and he heard nothing but laughter, the smoke and flames entering his lungs and searing at his insides without leaving a mark. The scream was mirrored by his slowly melting monster and amidst it all there was laughter, screams, screams from ghosts, screams from the crowd... From himself. "RHAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH! HHHGAAAAAAAAAA!"
His shadow had long since been melted away by this point and at the sides he could hear the cries of his friends growing faint from behind the curtain of flames. The face of Ra looked at him from all sides, staring, almost taunting him it felt, and the sword in his chest crumbled to his shadow as the fires continued to burn. Nothing but fire... Fire... Fire... But it wasn't burning his skin or clothes, not physically at least. It was just burning him... Bringing pain, pain, and nothing but more pain, while slowly re-opening the wound that he'd received from his own monster as he screamed.
But no matter what... He could... Not... Fail..! "That's enough," a cold chuckling voice chuckled as the sword in his side vanished completely, not a single trace of the 'shadow game' remaining at his side of the field outside his injuries. "Return..."
The flames tore upward, and flew away in an instant, leaving nothing but smoke on the side of the field where he stood. The entity of his surroundings were blocked from view, and the field was silent in anticipation, waiting, waiting to see if he'd died, if he'd lived... But even with this, he stood. On both feet, both melted and torn shoes he stood, hands abruptly clutching his side as he choked and grasped at a now opened wound through his chest. "Gllll... Kllkkk... Hhah... Ahhh..." His lung was collapsing, he realized dimly, the organ finding itself unable to properly hold air all too quickly. And he was bleeding... It took four minutes for the blood to drain to the point of unconsciousness if the carotid artery was cut, he remembered that from some show he'd caught while flipping channels. So...
Now that this sword was gone from his side... How long did he have with this..?
The smoke began to clear, and in the aftermath Malik stumbled backward in shock and terror both, eyes wide as he took in the shape of the shadow before him. "No," he whispered, sudden relieved shouts coming from the side as the smoke continued to clear. "No, no, no! IMPOSSIBLE," he snarled. "IMPOSSIBLE, this..!"
"Is that... All you have," he wheezed, taking a trembling step forward as a round of cheers came from the side. Ra was gone, evaporated... And his next card... The one in his hand... "My 'own sword'... Did... Better th'n tha'," he taunted, before biting his tongue to hold back a wash of blood from his bleeding lung. "GL- Lkhhh... Ahhh... Hahhh... It's... It's my turn," he pressed on, taking another step forward as Malik stiffened and paled. "D... Draw," he rasped, pulling a card and setting it on the disk, holding his steady and murderous . "Summon... Gearfried," he continued, taking still another step as he held his still bleeding wound with his free hand, the blood spilling from between his fingers. "And I... ATTACK..!" His shadow stretched forward... His hand pointed forward to move with the blade as he took one third and final step, and as he fell the last thing he saw was Gearfried's blade coming just millimetres from Malik's terrified face, a drop of blood forming across the Egyptian's brow. And he heard, as he landed on the ground...
A scream...
"JONOUCHI!"
Bleeding.
Bleeding, he was bleeding he realized dimly, the shadows vanishing from the sky as his eyes stared off to the side while he breathed raggedly. How much time was passing he asked himself. It seemed almost slow... And for a moment, he could see...
A vision...
'You won that match,' Yugi told him sternly, his usual smile on his face while the blond continued to stare off, eyes moving rapidly and in no particular pattern as he choked. 'So... How about we fulfil that promise we made..?'
The 'him' of the vision nodded, a grin on his face. 'RIGHT! Let's duel..!'
Duel...
D...
Heh...
I win, Malik.
He still couldn't hear properly. "JONOUCHI," Honda was shouting, the blond's eyes staring off into space as he was rolled over onto his back, looking at nothing. The voice sounded faint... Garbled, as though underwater... His friends were nothing but blurred bits of colour against the sky, and his white shirt was stained red. Blood was coming through his mouth, bubbling at the corners and out of his side as he attempted to breathe...
"Glk... Kh...Gkh... Kg..."
"Oh my god..." Honda raised his hands upward for just a moment as he looked over the blood that was staining them, fingers and palms twitching violently as he attempted to comprehend what he was looking at. "Oh my... BLOOD," the teen screamed, frantically pressing on the wound, "BLOOD! HE'S BLEEDING," he screamed in panic, "Get the doctor!"
"Glk... Lkh... Kh..."
"Get Kuzushi here STAT," he thought he heard Seto shout,
"Jonouchi," the others were crying, "JONOUCHI!"
And far at the side Malik was holding a hand to his mouth, bile dripping through his fingers as he heaved in shock and horror both. "Hahh... To think... To think I almost lost to..." To..?
Honda was still screaming. "JONOUCHI..!" Loud, but it still sounded strained and distant and he couldn't hear a thing. "DON'T YOU DARE DIE," he roared, having pulled off his jacket to push on the wound and hold the bleeding back. "Don't you DARE FUCKING DIE!" Still shouting...
"Jonouchi..!"
"JONOUCHI-KUN!"
"CHABAR!"
Stop screaming... Stop screaming... "Gkl... I... Saw..."
"Don't die damn it," Honda cried, Yugi's spirit curled up on the side in tears as his other stared in shock at the edge of the arena. "DON'T DIE..!" He wasn't... He wasn't going to... He wouldn't...
"STAND ASIDE, NOW," an authoritative voice snarled, the shadows above shifting around. White... White coats... So... Doctors..?
His vision was fading. Shadows were becoming more blurred, and he was still choking on his breath, staring up at nothingness. Honda was gone but he was still screaming. Everyone was screaming. But he didn't know what they were saying, and he... He...
He was so tired...
If he just... Closed his eyes...
"JONOUCHI-KUN!"
"Jonouchi-kun... Hey, Jonouchi-kun," he could hear Yugi calling, a blinding light meeting his eyes as he blearily attempted to see.
Owww... The blond brought a hand to his head, grimacing. "Nnggghh... M' head..." Hurt... Like hell...
A chorus of small giggles floated through the air. Another few shouts, dotted around aimlessly. "Jonouchi-kun," Yugi repeated, somewhat louder this time as his friend opened his eyes. "Jonouchi-kun, class is about to start!" Hnnnggg... He'd sleep through it then, he hated most of his first period classes any... Ways... Uh...
Wait. Wait what...
Class?
The blond's head jerked upward as he forced himself to wake up, neck cracking almost painfully as the blond winced. He sat up straighter, blinking almost blearily as he looked around the room. The classroom... Just the classroom but... "Gh... Ahhhhhgggg, my head..." The blond rubbed it over with a hiss, those around his desk looking to him with somewhat wry smirks as they sighed.
"Hahhhh... It's what you get for deciding to face plant into your desk," Anzu said somewhat dryly, crossing her arms and shaking her head. "Really... How tired are you anyways," she asked almost worriedly, receiving nothing more than a groan in response.
"Nggh... Don' talk," he muttered, "Headache..."
The group traded knowing smirks, chuckling somewhat under their breath. "Heh... Guess that answers the question," Honda muttered, shaking his head. "So... Yugi," he continued, "You see that poster for the tournament," he began, quickly hooking the boy in another conversation as Bakura also joined in with the two. Hnn... Tournament..? What tournament?
While the trio began speaking about this Katsuya shook his head, rubbing it with another wince as he attempted to regather his thoughts. Alright, hang on... What was going on here, he asked himself with a frown. The last thing he remembered he was facing Malik in a duel... He'd attacked with Gearfried he'd-
Hell, he'd won! (Last he checked any ways...) But was that... Well... That couldn't be a dream right, he thought, staring at the desk with a frown. Hell, this was...
Suddenly, the conversation at the side was coming to mind, and he realized what they were saying. "Oh that's right," Bakura was saying, "That tournament... It starts after Marine Day doesn't it..?"
"Yep. One week," Yugi said with a smile, bowing his head somewhat. A... A week..?
But that was... Katsuya shook his head again, biting his lip in confusion as he narrowed his eyes. Impossible. Impossible, he was just on the ship moments before, the tournament hadn't been mentioned until about three days before, and it couldn't be possible unless...
Unless...
He frowned, crossing his arms. The Virtual World, the ghost in his mind, the shadow games, Malik, Malik, MALIK... Everything that happened, in all its impossibility... "Dream," he muttered, shaking his head with a grimace. "W's all... Jus' a dream..." That had to be it, his mind told him. It had to. It...
Hell it was the only thing that made sense... "It sounds like it would be fun," Yugi was saying in regards to the tournament. "I'll have to look over my deck," the boy added as Bakura nodded in agreement. "Oh-" Yugi paused, smiling. "Hey, Jonouchi-kun," he continued, looking to his friend with a grin. "The city-wide duel monsters tournament... Are you planning on entering?" Eh? Well... Of course he was, he'd mentioned it earlier that year hadn't he!
...Right..? (He didn't remember...) Nonetheless the blond nodded, a grin on his face. "Heh... 'F course," he said with a grin, giving his friend a thumb's up. "Wouldn' miss it f'r th' world!"
"I don't know," Anzu muttered with a dry look on her face, "When it takes one turn for me to defeat you..." Ah-
She was still going on about that! "O-OIII!"
"Hnn... Class starts in two minutes," Otogi muttered, speaking for the first time since the blond woke up and pulling all attention to him as a result. "Does anyone find this odd..?" Hn? Find what odd?
Evidently, they found 'this' odd though... Whatever 'this' was. "That's right," Anzu was muttering, "She'd normally be here by now..." She..?
But besides Seto, who didn't even go to school, who the hell would they be waiting for that was a 'she'? "Er... No 'ffense guys, but... Who're you talkin' abou'," Katsuya laughed, the others turning to stare with wide eyes.
Crap. That wasn't what he expected. "Wow... Jonouchi, how hard did you hit your head," Honda asked 'worriedly', "I mean... There's no way you forgot her..!" Well... Yes, yes there was. And who was 'her'! Stop not using names!
"Jonouchi-kun," Yugi asked, "Do you maybe need to see the nurse..?" NO. He- AUGH, stop this!
"Sheesh... Forgetting Souryuu-chan," Anzu muttered, shaking her head with a frown. "How could you-"
Katsuya sputtered at that, shaking his head. N-Now way... That name was... "...S... Souryuu..."
The next few moments told him quite clearly what was a dream and what was reality, and even if they hadn't, he'd have found out rather quickly following that. Because as a tall young woman with blue eyes and brown hair walked into the room, there was one glaring fact that assured him what he saw now wasn't real. The name was one thing after all.
But Seto Kaiba would never have allowed herself to be caught in the school uniform, apologizing to the class for her lateness using 'watashi'.
AN: You are traveling through another dimension~
A dimension not only of sight and sound but of mind~
A journey into a wondrous land of imagination~
Next stop, TWILIGHT ZONE! (-cue creepy theme-)
But seriously, given that little sneak peek at mind screw, you can probably guess why I hinted that the next duel would possibly be split in two.
On another note, I know! Seto's reaction, we didn't see it..! The fact is, I originally planned to have the scene where Jonouchi is rushed to the medical room of the airship here (Though in this case they likely stuck him in another room entirely), but in the end decided it wouldn't flow properly.
Which means I just broke my word AWWWWWWWWWWW...! CRAP.
Any ways, no art for this chapter which, while admittedly very fun to write, took a very frightening and depressing turn when suddenly the last two moves did their thing. This 'reveal', while very very VERY traumatic, was actually something I specifically looked into; I researched all of the duels Jonouchi had prior this, and looked for the severity of any and all direct attacks made.
...
Tadaaaaaaah...?
No art today, and no music either oddly enough...
Anyways. Very interesting reaction I got from a few of you last chapter. Hopefully that was a good interesting. It was hard to tell; a lot of you were on the edge of your seats, but a few of you ended up with broken brains from what I can tell, and I really hope this chapter snaps you guys out of that stupor... Because I appreciate your thoughts a lot, and it kinda scares me when I can't tell if the reaction is good or bad.
Course I'm a paranoid little twit, but whatever.
ONWARD!
Anonymous Review Responses
Cy-Cynical Gamer..? Are... Are you okay..?
AHHH! I'm sorry I broke your brain! Please get better! And... Here, have some seizure pills.
In the meantime, hey there Iona!
Lots and lots of misery souvenirs! And oooooh…
Don't get me started on problems. But yes, Kaiba is admitting to feeling close to the idiot. She doesn't plan on saying friend out loud of course, but like I said; she's close. Kaiba can be fairly caring at the core; just really untrusting and cautious as well… Jonouchi's done enough that he's earned her trust though however, which is not something to be taken lightly. Of course, this means that Jou's subject to a fair bit of stubborn 'YOU WILL NOT DIE' will…
So yes. Yes he IS going to get it. Lots of misery pie though, and now that Jou's out cold it looks like everyone else gets their share… And don't worry, he'll be alright~ …AFTER this is over.
I should hope 'brave' has his picture after the above..! The words definitely said more than the action though, you're right; actions don't always say more than words, and this was definitely one of those cases… I hope you enjoyed this chapter now! This should be the last one for until my move is over… Of course, with luck, I'll have internet during the move so…
Well, until next time!
Usagi's Manga & Japan Guide/Corner
The section that's currently crying at Jou's bedside. Go away!
The Solstice, while the point in time of the longest night as well as the longest day, refers to both in this case of chapter titles. Granted, the actual term only refers to the longest day part (as while we have the darkness on one half of the world, the southern half gets the opposite.), but in this case, think. The sunny part is Ra.
The dark part is the shadows.
A lot of the conversation that originally took place on this tower was cut; this is because it was re-scripted for the scenes at the end of the last chapter.
In the original, it took until Jou's second turn to realize that he was connected to his monster by a life line. That's just a little upsetting.
Sooooo… As a re-cap on our Arabic, since I have no access to the Ancient Egyptian translation, 'alaraff' is a rough 'trans-vocalation' of 'seer'. In other words, I can't read Arabic, so I'm going by what it sounds like. Oracle however was… Much longer, and I didn't want to end up botching it completely. Ehhh...
Hnnnn... ANY WAYS. Although it's in arabic in terms of the typing, it's supposed to be implied that Malik is actually using Egyptian; hence Katsuya understanding it.
In the manga, that hand actually did flip Jou off. I had to laugh.
Honda's comment refers to the fairly hilarious sight of two people arguing in separate languages. They somehow manage to figure out what the other person is saying, and are able to give an answer in response...
In the original, Marik says 'activate trap'. But Psycho Shocker is there. Traps… Plus… Psycho shocker…
You can see why it's become a 'counter spell'.
How can Mokuba understand what Marik is saying? It's partially Seto's fault actually; because she can understand it clearly herself. The shadows are helping though… Of course, Mokuba's been around a heck of a lot more creepy shadow business in terms of being a victim compared to most of Yugi's friends… (Anzu has both this AND the excuse that Malik is in her head, Otogi can catch snippets, and Honda's clueless. Now count which ones were directly involved in shadow games outside the Monster World.)
Supposedly, Marik only summons two new Viser Deaths with this card (Machine Duplication). But he has one on each of Jonouchi's THREE MONSTERS, and another defending him. Last I checked, that's four.
So yea. Technically, Machine Duplication only summons two more monsters. But it looked as though it summoned three in the manga. Weird. Oh well.
That sword really is called 'Odinson'! COOL huh?
The 'bennu bird' is the closest thing to a phoenix that Egypt has as far as I recall, and is pictured as a heron of sorts with a two feathered crest, or occasionally an eagle with feathers of red and gold. It's considered the soul of Atum (-coughAtem'snamecough-), Ra, or Osiris depending on the context.
Originally I was planning on using the anime duel, to emphasis Jonouchi 'dragging' the duel out, along with the damage he's taking.
But quite frankly, the anime duel really would have killed him using that logic, so I stuck with the short, manga version.
Also, Jonouchi's wound was, while technically fatal, somewhat slow on the bleed thanks to Ra's attack. While it was opened with the lack of sword, a lot of it was actually sutured shut by his flames. Which is REALLY good, given that… Uh. He would have been dead otherwise.
Interesting thing here; in Egypt, the Gods were not considered 'all knowing'; they came into knowledge as things happened. Therefore, they themselves were not considered clairvoyant… Merely wise enough to figure out what would happen next if you did something.
For that reason, oracles weren't so much prophets as those who would converse with the gods. This is why Malik only says 'Oracle' near the end.
Right when he realizes just who Jonouchi is talking to.
And seriously, if he was scared enough in the manga to puke afterward, when Jou was literally playing on his knees, think about what watching him stumble toward him, bleeding profusely while mirroring his monster's actions did… Right after he spoke with his 'GOD'.
That's fucking scary right there.
In any case, we'll touch on Oracles again later on… But in Egypt's standards, 'PastJou' was a 'Seer', not an 'Oracle'.
So why did everyone wait until the end to get Jou? It's an effect of the shadows, or at least that's how I see it. Marik doesn't want the duel interrupted. Neither does Jonouchi. Therefore, between the shock of what's going on and the mental prodding from the shadows, no one can do more than watch.
This scene was very… Very hard not to cry during. Honda really did run up in the manga to find that Jonouchi wasn't breathing (in the anime it was Mokuba), and at the side, you really do see Yugi essentially curled into an egg, crying as Yami stares in complete shock.
Any ways, that's all for this chapter... The next update won't likely be until after I move, in other words, after May the 22nd. Unfortunately.
HOPEFULLY I can find a way around this though. So...
Until then enjoy, and don't throw any tomatoes about not getting Seto's response to that kiss..! (Because as I said; it was supposed to happen in the scene at the airship..!)
It's... Really shocking, actually.