Ri'Shah
There was no light in the room that he stood in right now. He'd taken to leaving them off, sitting on his own and simply allowing time to pass by without consideration. His brother had been worried of course- hell everyone had been worried, but they'd worried about the wrong thing entirely in his opinion. After the funeral, their attentions had turned to him.
They should have turned to the cause of the funeral.
He could remember the last time he'd seen him, his mentor and guardian. The one that had taken he and his brother in, despite such a seemingly small gap in age. The morning before the tournament that he had prepared in his agreement with KaibaCorp's board of directors, when they'd sat down for tea after lunch. His brother was gone during that time; dealing with some company matters in Europe as he recalled, and quietly explaining that his 'father' would not be coming. And while he wished that he was asked to do those things more often, he'd welcomed for a moment to sit with his teacher.
'Duelist Kingdom begins tomorrow, doesn't it,' he asked, a wide smile on his face. Pegasus had held a card in his hands with an almost distant stare when he said that, his teacup sitting untouched on the table.
'That's right,' Pegasus had said quietly, looking to the card with a nostalgic gaze. 'And after that,' he continued absently, 'Kaiba Corporation's technology will be in our hands...'
'For Cynthia,' he responded, smile unwavering.
'Yes... For Cynthia.' They'd left it at that, his smile slowly vanishing until finally they took their separate ways.
Everything had gone wrong that day. The moment he'd seen the bullet impressions in the hall he'd known. When he'd seen the glass on the floor and the blood that had dried black in the carpet he'd known. When he saw the long, jagged line left by a knife on the wall... When he found Keith Howard's unmoving body at the side, caught somewhere between a coma and death.
And when he'd finally come downstairs to where the arena sat... Only to find himself too late.
'Pegasus,' he screamed, hurriedly running to the body that lay slumped in its seat, unmoving. 'Pegasus... PEGASUS!' Blood had long since pooled around the left side of his face and neck, staining the white shirt he'd worn... His face was frozen in exhaustion and defeat, as though he'd stared death in the face and simply given in. As though he'd had no will to live any more. And to add yet another sting to the pain he felt, the golden Millennium Eye he'd once held in his head was gone, desecrating the body further.
He was dead. He was gone. He was dead. He was... He was...
"...Sempai," he whispered mournfully, holding a card in his hands with a bit lip. In the USA, one of his staff would be delivering an 'apologetic' message to Seto Kaiba detailing his reasons for canceling the meeting between he and his brother. They would then tell him, if only to hold him there for a while longer, that there was at least a local tournament that would eventually lead into another Professor-League match which he'd like them to watch. He doubted that either of the siblings would really want to go, but there was no doubt in his mind that they would at least do so to uphold a bit of civility. Elsewhere in the city, his 'hired help' would be preparing their decks and tasks. They'd be taking their positions, and from there on would wait until needed.
On the television screen before him was the information on one boy, one ordinarily unnoticeable boy despite all appearances. Despite multi-coloured hair, despite leather clothes, despite violet eyes and a golden puzzle chained around his neck. The 'king'. The one who had defeated his 'father'.
The one that he would finally strike down after all these months and weeks spent placing the proper pieces. "It begins at last," the young man hissed, fingering the edges of a card in his hand. "The price he pays will be high Sempai... The one who stole everything from me, and from you... We're going to get revenge," he 'told' it, holding the card close. "Just watch... You'll see soon enough," he continued, before a knock came on the door. The teen turned, frowning. "...Who is it," he asked stiffly, pocketing the card.
"We've completed the final preparations," came a voice in return, no other answer or acknowledgment to the earlier question being given. "We're ready when you are." The final step had been taken had it? Well.
Who was he to hold it back then? A sinister grin came over his face, eyes widening as he moved over to a device on the side. This device... This device that he'd spent months developing, researching and snatching at every little thing he could glean from meetings with KaibaCorp's CEO... This device that if released to the world would change communication completely if not for the possible risk to the mind...
The release of the duel disk had been the final step in its creation. And more importantly, the final step before the plan could be set into motion. On the screens of the company he was already located near there were already nothing but 'error' symbols and strings of unmovable code. Shouts of panic filled the rooms of KaibaCorp's building, and shut down codes were being entered in a clear sign of 'worst case scenario' action with as much speed as humanly and perhaps even in-humanly possible.
But it was all too late in the end. And as he flipped the switch controlling the machine that now covered most of his head and face, he could almost feel his body vanish despite it never leaving the room. "I... I can't cut it," a panicked technician cried his supervisor just as pale faced as they stared at the screens, the sight of them all appearing clearly before him as he formed the hologram for his mind. "I can't cut the power, something's jammed the system-" Yes...
"That would be me," he hissed, leaning by the supervisor's shoulder as he moved his false body behind the man.
"H-HHHAH!"
A dark smirk graced his face as the man jumped, and with expert control he pulled the hologram into the air to look down upon all in the room. "This is a takeover, as I'm sure you can see," he began flatly. "From this moment on, KaibaCorp's main office belongs to me... Along with the entirety of Industrial Illusions' Asian Branch." The center of the company's technology, the home to the database of every single card the dueldisk could read, including duplicates... It was all his, if at least for as long as he required. "I'll have to ask you to clear this building of all personnel for the next twenty four hours," he said darkly, 'walking' toward the computer in admiration. "...Unless you wish to argue," he added.
The looks on the technician's faces told him everything he needed to know, and as a number of them stood to leave the chairs his almost insane smirk grew.
There would be no argument.
He was used to dreams now. He'd have been surprised not to be after all that happened. He wouldn't lie to himself of course- after Battle City he'd hoped the dreams would stop. It was over wasn't it? The Gods were done with their challenges, and the other Yugi had his next lead to identity. He could go back to being a normal (or at least mostly normal) person who just happened to be able to see monsters from another world or something like that.
But then again, taking that into consideration, it wasn't over. Not really at least. Even the Gods had said this during Yugi's final match with the Other Malik. There would be 'more' sooner or later... There would be other challenges, other obstacles to surpass, and the most they could do was wait and see what they were. He'd hoped that he would get a heads up on what those were granted, particularly once he'd given up on hoping to not have that kind of foresight on things. Maybe a glimpse of a tournament, or a rival's face.
Yet he hadn't had a single premonition of the sort all summer. In fact, the only dream he had was another 'flash' sort of dream, where Ryuzaki finally opened his eyes and regained consciousness. A 'dream' where the tubes, machinery, and bandages had at last been removed, leaving only scars in their place. Scars that would never be able to fade, but were at least easier to look at now that the bandages were gone. Ryuzaki would, with a few slight changes of appearance from all that happened, be going to school with everyone else in his class in Osaka come the first day...
That day hadn't come yet though. He didn't want to say anything for fear he'd somehow alter it in fact; if Shizuka went to see Ryuzaki for the day he woke up, well... Who knew what could occur. 'Fate' certainly decided the last time that it would be best to react harshly whenever he tried it after all, and really, in the end...
The look on his sister's face when Ryuzaki showed up for class at their school would be worth it, even if he didn't recognize the glasses wearing transfer from the shadows he stood in during that flash. The boy that would be greeted somewhat stiffly by his sister and friend, before sitting next to the pair with a similar feeling about him. For a moment, he almost wondered if it was someone he knew...
But given that Shizuka's first day would be spent banding together with this other boy to shout at Ryuzaki for not paying attention in class before spending lunch with the pair, he figured it'd be alright.
This dream was the first one he'd had since then, and where he stood within it was not a room. It was not a desert from what he could tell, as there was no sand beneath his feet. It wasn't even the darkness he'd become so used to floating within during these dreams. Perhaps it was because he was sleeping more often; it wasn't as though there was much else to do other than eat and wander the house when all the exits had been blocked off half the time.
He'd even sat around the library for a bit. And read something there. Given the kinds of books sitting around in there, he'd found himself holding his head in slight shock afterward. Yikes.
As these thoughts ran through his head however the fact was, it really didn't matter. Where he stood had no solid ground beneath his feet after all; the ground was below, hidden in darkness at the moment.
It looked almost as though he was watching a shadow play. In fact, in the back of his mind it felt almost like the term 'shadow play' was all too fitting, as he was pretty sure that whatever was making these puppets were actual shadows controlled by actual hands...
But really, that was beside the point. The shadows were being controlled by an old man he realized, the blond slowly coming to rest in an almost ghostly state at the side. An old, white bearded man with almost deceptively kind eyes. He was in the village he'd seen in Noa's world again it seemed- this time however, there were no ruins. In fact, not only was the well completely intact it seemed the entire village was bustling with life despite the late hour. People trading goods moved to and fro from opposite ends of the village, and crowded around the well to watch as the old man controlled shadows in an almost liquid like state with his hands, were numerous children staring in awe.
The fact that he recognized one of the children as some discolored version of himself didn't put as much unease in his mind as he expected though really, and as he stood behind the boy he decided to push it as much from his mind as possible. "Are you going to tell us a story," one of the children asked the old man, the elder chuckling as numerous requests began to fly.
"Tell us the one about Behemoth," the first asked, "And how the old ones sealed him away."
"Or the Three Treasures," another asked with a grin. "Tell us a story!"
The old one continued to laugh, shaking his head. "Alright, alright, calm down now," the man responded, shadows bending to his will as they set the scene. "Very well, I will tell you a story... How about-"
"Do you know the one about the great serpent," the little him asked, the children and elder each turning in confusion as Katsuya looked down.
The elder's shadow froze, melting as it reformed into a small wooden figure of sorts at his side. "The 'Great Serpent'," he repeated, tilting his head somewhat in an attempt to hear otherwise.
'Katsuya' nodded, grin never fading. "Yea. And the 'Nameless' shadow, what about that one? Oh, or maybe the Dragon Warriors," he went on, eyes widening with anticipation. "I really liked that one!"
The children continued to stare in silence, confused frowns gracing their faces as the elder stood. "I... Have never told such a tale before child..." At these words the other children began to pale, muttering fearfully amongst themselves before the old man continued. "Where did you hear of such things?"
He blinked, showing no fear, nor any sign of something other than innocent confusion. "The shadows did," he said plainly, almost looking toward the entrance of the catacombs before deciding otherwise. "I didn't say you told me. I just wanted to know if you knew the same stories. I thought the others would like them."
Again the elder stiffened, the other children turning for his reaction. It seemed that despite curiosity, they themselves weren't completely sure how safe it would be to ask as well. "The 'shadows'," he repeated slowly, expression giving away little in regard to emotion.
"Yes. The shadows," 'Katsuya' explained. "I met them before, in the desert. They like to tell stories."
The elder fell silent. And then he laughed. Quietly at first. And then a little louder, with the rest of the children nervously joining in as 'Katsuya' frowned. It didn't feel like a very humorous event, and as he looked to the shadow at the elder's side it put him at even more unease. The wooden monster wasn't like the other shadows, that was what the dragon said. But it wasn't until now that he really noticed. It looked man-made, with odd metal disks in its joints, and eyes that gleamed like jewels rather than real ones.
Glass, the real Katsuya told himself. The monster was made of wood, gears, and glass... A 'robot'.
The laughter died down, and the elder gestured to his staff-wielding shadow as it stood in silence. "Does my shadow speak," he asked with an almost menacing laugh. "Does it move on it's own, does it laugh? The shadows are the tools of the chosen," he pressed, expression becoming stern. "They are pulled from their souls and used for the purposes of the People! They do not have souls of their own!"
"But that's not what Tanniyn said," the boy protested, only to be cut off just as quickly as he'd spoken.
"They do not SPEAK," he roared, expression twisting to rage. About now Katsuya realized that the scene had changed. That the children were gone and that the boy and the elder were now alone at the well, with any kindness he'd seen before now absent from the old man's eyes. "Understand boy? Now come with me," he continued, pulling him away by the arm as his shadow melted into the ground. "We are going to have a little talk about these stories you're 'hearing'..."
"Ah- Ow, let go..! I'm telling the truth," he screamed, pulling back and scraping his feet across the ground. "Hey..! Let go! Let go," the boy cried, "Let-"
The next thing Katsuya knew he was opening his eyes to the wall and floor of his room, his left arm tangled horribly in his blanket as what looked to be the Little Winguard stood before him. Gold 'eyes' stared back at brown ones, the gold ones eventually being the first to blink. "Good morning," the soldier said somewhat blankly, Katsuya staring back with a similar 'expression' for a moment. It was really hard to tell with the Little Winguard, what with most of the face being hidden behind the armor.
Nonetheless he got up, wincing as he unwrapped his arm from the blanket and rubbed what was going to develop into a fairly painful 'sunburn' in a few hours. "Gh... Ow... Shit. Wh't happened," he muttered, voice somewhat hoarse from whatever he'd done in his sleep.
The Winguard shrugged, standing up a little straighter before speaking. "I'm not really sure," he admitted. "One minute I was sleeping in the other realm... You know, where the other duel monsters live," he added almost as an after thought, "And the next, I was out here. Panther Warrior mentioned that you summoned him in your sleep before Battle City once," the soldier continued with crossed arms, "But I didn't think much of it until now."
Oh. The blond stared a few moments more, blinking as he absorbed the information. Uh... "Y-Yea," he coughed, pulling himself up. "Neither did I..." The blond shook himself, frowning. So he managed to summon the Winguard in his sleep.. Somehow, it seemed nothing was surprising anymore. "Well... Leas' yer more civil abou' it."
At this the Winguard seemed to jump, before shrugging. "I don't know about that... Panther Warrior was stuck in this world for a number of hours- he's not the greatest guy, but even I'd be irritated after that long. But the clock beside your bed said 'seven' when I was summoned, so..." Seven? Katsuya looked over to the clock in question, blinking.
"Huh." 7:10. "Ten minutes then..."
The monster nodded. "Yep. I'm going to go back inside now," Winguard continued, giving a slight yawn. "I was supposed to meet with someone today... I mind as well get ready." He gave another wave, eyes shimmering with what was probably cheer. "Bye-bye now Katsuya~!" Before Katsuya could even ask how that sort of thing worked the monster tapped his deck on the table, vanishing in a flurry of smoke and mist. Well.
That was a little anti-climactic, but...
"Shit," he muttered, scratching his head as he collapsed back on the bed. Even the thought of what the 'other realms' even looked like couldn't distract him from this particular bomb... "I didn' even know it w's possible t' summon outta a duel," the blond groaned, staring at the ceiling as he sighed. Heck, he didn't even know if that was something that was controllable.
Though he certainly wouldn't be trying it any time soon.
The weeks that followed after the start of summer passed by almost unbearably slow for Katsuya, outside of that particular set of dreams he'd had. He supposed a lot of that had to do with being stuck inside the entirety of it... But then again, the other half could have been attributed to having night-shift for the entire month as he paid off his Duel Disk and thereby leaving him either in a deep sleep or completely lethargic. Thinking about Seto seemed to pass time a little quicker granted, but...
Well, thinking about her when he couldn't even call Mokuba just started getting depressing after a while. So he decided not to bother trying to figure out what the rift in communication meant for a bit, if only to somewhat console himself.
If Shizuka was there, she would probably say that Seto needed time for something. If Anzu was there, she'd tell him to leave it be.
Unfortunately, he didn't have those two there, or even much of anyone he actually knew given that Kyouko had taken a vacation and everyone else was simply nowhere to be found. No... He just had his deck, which came with a crowd of monsters all ready to prove how little they actually knew of the real world outside of whatever he'd told them so far.
Which was probably why the first thing he did when the school year started again was rush out the door carrying his bag with a cheer.
"HAHAHAH!" The sun was shining brightly despite the early hour of the morning, and if not for the clock at the side he'd have thought he was late for school. "FINALLLY," he shouted with a grin. "FRESH AIR~! An' people..!"
'And what's wrong with us,' a dull voice from the deck in his bag growled, only to be silenced by the constant jostling of the cards. Absolutely nothing of course he thought to himself, the grin not fading in the slightest as he ran towards his school. But if he heard one more word from Selket about how incredible it was for him to face off against Ra and survive in one piece, he'd probably hang himself.
The scorpion god/lady/thing should probably have been sitting in her actual deck anyways, though he had a nasty feeling that she wouldn't. If anything, she was far more determined to take advantage of her connection with Rishid's own to pass along small messages such as Malik being cleared of all charges concerning the Rare hunters due to 'lack of evidence', or the fact that he'd be heading to school soon enough himself. Regardless of creepy spying scorpions sitting in his bag however, it was good to be out.
Even if it meant he seemed just a little too excitable for his own good when compared to his behavior a few weeks ago. "Ah- Jonouchi-kun," Yugi shouted from the school entrance, his other half misting to his side with a large smile himself.
"Jonouchi..!"
"Hahaha! Guys!" Man it was good to be back! High-fives were traded and quickly enough the three were walking into the building, the more ghostly of the two Yugis opting to not bother with pretending to walk. "So, how'd the summer go?"
For the most part, reactions among his friends were relatively the same, not that he really got too many before actually getting in the classroom. "Boring," was the other Yugi's answer, the three boys making their way down the hall and into the room. "I feel I might have been taking your ability to see and hear me for granted."
This had received an indignant 'hey!' from Yugi as the boy asked if it was really so bad, before Anzu continued the conversation with a mention of seeing Malik at a marketplace store. For a moment, he found himself unable to visualize that particular thing...
This was very quickly fixed however, and he found himself turning to the woman with an almost blankly confused stare. "...Er..." This image of Malik using a nabe in a boat kitchen... It was a little weird. To say the least. "What w's Malik doin' makin' sukiyaki?"
Their friend shrugged. "I think he managed to trigger some memories of the taste from a year or so ba- Hey wait a minute," Anzu muttered half way through, "How did you know..."
There was a short span of silence at that, Honda eventually shrugging it off and grinning. "We should probably just not even ask," he said with a short laugh. "Pretty sure that by now whatever needs to be filled in just will. But damn it," he added loudly, smacking his friend on the back of the shoulder, "If you get a shot at what's on the next test, you better say something, got it?"
"G-" He snorted, crossing his arms as he laughed. "Pffff, d'pends on how I feel!"
"What!" Katsuya ducked a swipe, laughing and skipping back behind another desk as his friend lunged. "Get back here you!"
"Hey! Honda, Jonouchi," Anzu protested, "Class starts in five minutes! HONDA! JONOUCHI!"
As it turned out from what was muttered or spoken throughout the day, he wasn't the only one with an uneventful summer. Aside from a few trips to the museum, Anzu's was spent with her part-time job selling engraved jewelry, while running the occasional line of Egyptian or Arabic through her head to keep herself from falling asleep from boredom. Honda's was more or less spent moving furniture in and out of an apartment with Otogi, before the both of them essentially collapsed and spent the rest of it wandering the area to figure out decent enough routes to take where-ever. Yugi and his other half visited with their friends occasionally (though the mansion itself had mysteriously given no answer), finding Honda and Otogi in the aforementioned state of lethargy before managing to even run into Malik and his siblings once or twice in the days that followed. It was about there that Katsuya had decided to mention what Selket had told him actually; though he decided to leave it as a 'dream' thing rather than a 'my monsters like to move between decks' thing.
Shortly after this Bakura had come over from whatever he'd been doing to share his own stories. During his summer, Bakura had apparently gone right home after all was said and done. And following that had... Somehow proceeded to forget what he'd spent the summer doing outside of any moments of Monster World Campaigning and model making. There was a part of him that wondered if he'd somehow gotten the ring back, but when the other Yugi had shaken his head and gestured to the bag that his lighter half was keeping with him at all times, they decided to chalk it up to getting distracted by the campaigning that their friend was currently gushing about.
He might have been quiet after all, but that didn't mean Bakura could get just as sucked into something he enjoyed as the rest of them.
As it was, he was probably the only one who'd really done 'something' in the end, even if that 'something' was nothing but games. Especially since the most he could say was that he'd gotten a call half way through summer from his mom asking what had happened at Battle City since, as she put it, 'While I'm grateful that she's taken the bandages off, it seems like there's more than just Ryuzaki-kun's accident causing this silence.' And then later, when Ryuzaki actually did wake up and go home (which came complete with an angered 'why didn't you tell me' once Shizuka guessed what his lack of surprise ment), this message turned into 'are you SURE you don't know what's wrong?'
Well... He'd... Say something about dueling scars and the like but...
Well as it was, he was having enough issues changing for Gym class without anyone spotting the fairly large one that was over his chest. "You are so lucky," Honda muttered dryly, "That this thing is only visible from the front."
Katsuya threw his shirt back on, sending a somewhat cautious look over his shoulder before patting the fabric down over the scar. "Heh. Yea, tell me about it," the blond responded, scratching his head with a somewhat pained grin. "Least I don' have t' worry about it any more."
"What?" A few of the others turned, blinking. "So you really don't plan on doing any dueling from now on then," Otogi asked, the topic itself coming up around the end of the last period class as they packed up.
The look Katsuya gained seemed almost akin to horror, even with the obviously humored undertone. "AH- S-Stop..!"
Bakura didn't apparently catch it (though he was behind him), instead nodding with worried agreement. "Well... Given the consequences," he began, "It seems to be the smarter solution-"
"Doesn' mean I'm takin' it!" Wait, that came out wrong... Ah well. "Really," he muttered almost incredulously. "Take a hell 'f a lot more than 'this' t' stop me!"
"Didn't 'that' put you in a state of clinical death for half an hour..?"
Katsuya chose not to address Otogi's remark, instead heading back to the classroom with a grin still on his face. "Maybe I c'n duel Yugi after school," he was saying, already certain that the cards in his bag would be rumbling with anticipation. "Didn' bring my duel-disk, but there's always table-top..."
"Erm... Does anyone want to remind him he's supposed to go home," Bakura asked nervously.
"Don't bother," came a 'doubled' answer from the other two, Katsuya still ignoring them both.
"Ehhh..." The albino sighed, shaking his head. "Right well... If you do end up dueling, let me know how it turns out alright," he asked, gesturing to the buckets at the side of their door. "Otogi and I have to clean the classroom today."
At this Otogi jumped, having apparently forgotten about this. "Nh- That's right..." He winced, looking back down the hall. "...Our class has the Library and nurses' room as well this week, doesn't it..." Bakura nodded, the others merely snickering in response. Ooooh... Sucked that.
"Hehehe... Too bad Otogi," Katsuya said with a grin. "Looks like yer stuck inside..."
The teen merely smirked at that, recovering from his momentary despair almost immediately. "Hn! For twenty minutes maybe! Not like you, mister 'house-arrest'!"
"GH- THA'-"
"Hey Yugi, you alright in there?"
The boys turned, following Honda's gaze into the classroom. He seemed almost frozen for the moment- he was standing by the window, looking up and out through it with a rather blank stare, as though something in the clouds just happened to be more important than anything else. "Hn..?" Anzu came over from behind the group herself, looking in with the others. "...Isn't that normally your thing Jonouchi..?"
For a brief moment the blond scowled, before looking back in and shaking it off. Oh what the hell, it wasn't like he could well deny it in this case. Not to mention the looks they had seemed to point toward Yugi possibly being stuck in that very same sort of trance. "Ahhh c'mon," Katsuya groaned, "I ain't contagious! Hey Otogi, Bakura," he added, looking back as the two again sent a glance toward the library with an identical sigh. "We'll meet y' at Burger World after, alrigh'?"
"Burger World," Bakura repeated, Otogi frowning at the plan.
"You know, you might not care now," he muttered almost darkly, "But I'm pretty sure that if someone actually bothers giving a call you'll regret it both as a relationship 'victim' and an employee..."
Katsuya chose to ignore that, though a somewhat broken smile had given Otogi enough response that his next words were 'see you then,' as he bolted off with Bakura.
Heh. He had to say, he liked that a hell of a lot more than thinking of what Seto's reaction to anything involving him would be right now. (Don't think about it don't think about it...!) Regardless, Yugi was still looking out the window... And it was starting to worry him as well. "Oi! Yugi," he shouted out, the boy jumping as his other half appeared to the side and snapped out of a similar state. Katsuya grinned, waving his friend over toward the door. "Yugi, what're y' doin' man? Class 's over, c'mon, lets head out!"
Yugi nodded, shaking himself was he walked over. "Ah- Right," he laughed, "Coming..!"
"Hnnn... Hah..." The spirit at his side stretched, having likely forgotten just momentarily that being behind Yugi didn't shield him from Katsuya's eyes, and therefore from the risk of being laughed at. "That was a nice sleep," he muttered with a yawn, before shaking off any further drowsiness. Nice- No wonder he complained about staying up all night..! (Wait how the hell did that-)
"So, Burger World right," Anzu asked conversationally, the others turning as she continued. "Alright then," she went on with a smile, "But my shift starts in a few hours so-"
'Mutou Yugi...'
The group stiffened, turning back to the classroom as what seemed almost like the sound of wind blew through. "Tha'..." Katsuya frowned, narrowing his eyes. "W's tha' one jus' me..?" A number of shaken heads were his response, and Yugi stared at the desk he'd passed. By all accounts it seemed nothing was wrong but...
Since when did everyone hear voices that weren't there? "Who was that," Yugi asked somewhat fearfully, his other half inspecting the desk with a suspicious frown. "Show yourself!"
"H-Hihhh... Tha' really th' best thing t' do w' phantom voices..?" He knew that he could hear weird crap, but things that they could all hear could never be good- A head slowly rose through the desk, Katsuya falling backward in shock as a single wide and mad eye looked directly toward him from behind the hair that covered its duplicate. "H-H-HHHHAAHHH!"
"What the hell..!"
The head was quickly followed by shoulders. Followed by a torso, arms, and soon enough a full body, coming to rest atop the table with an expression almost akin to the now lost 'other Malik'. The appearance of the man quite obviously told them otherwise however. If not for the fact that this man was pale skinned with mid-back length hair going anywhere but up, then the way he dressed was already a dead giveaway. No... From the looks of things, whoever this was he was clearly Japanese himself.
As to who he was however, there was still that to answer, particularly since he was currently looking at them all as though they were something he was about to squish under his shoe in sadistic glee. "Hnhnhnhnhn... So this is the 'Duel King'," the 'ghost' applauded, Katsuya swallowing as he pulled himself back up with a bit of help from the 'other Yugi'. "I have to say, I have very much looked forward to this meeting..." Yea because that was always good to hear...
Shuddering was put aside as the group stared, Yugi being the first to speak. "You... Who are you," Yugi asked, before Katsuya's own voice over powered it.
"What are you..!" Hell, looking at this guy now he was pretty much emanating smoke! That or some other black, misty substance that reminded him of his father's cooking. And if everyone could see him... Well.
To his surprise, even with a part of him knowing what the answer was, it caught him completely off guard. In fact...
For once it felt like he hadn't seen what he was supposed to this time. "Who am I," the 'ghost' asked with a smirk, hands still held out and opened before him. "CEO of Industrial Illusions 'Asia'... Tenma Yakou." Ten...
"Tenma," he repeated, stepping back somewhat. Seto mentioned that name in passing once. 'Tenma', that was...
"That... 'Pegasus'," Anzu repeated, shaking her head and frowning. "In English, that would be Pegasus, but..."
"What exactly happened to Pegasus any way," Honda muttered, Katsuya growing pale.
"Errrrr..." That. Yes, well... "He uh..." The blond coughed. "Eh... 'Parently he died," he manged to force out, "So..."
"Wait, Pegasus is DEAD-"
"Not important right now," Anzu hissed, Yugi nodding despite his obvious discomfort.
"Why would someone from I2 appear before us," the other Yugi whispered, partner frowning as he voiced his similar worries.
"What does 'I2' want from me?"
It was probably a testament to how often this kind of thing happened that their only reaction to the chuckling this guy gave in response was to frown. "Hnhnhnhnhn... It's obvious isn't it," the teen chuckled, eyes wide with disturbed cheer. "When a duelist stands before the king, it's the start of a battle. And I am, in all truth, a duelist. Fight with me Yugi," he laughed, pulling an arm and duel disk out from the cloak around his shoulders and clicking it into place. "And when you're defeated," he continued, slowly floating up toward the roof, "Accept the punishment of the Gods. You cannot avoid me," Tenma sneered as he passed through it, looks of somewhat disgusted confusion being made in response. "I'll be waiting on the rooftop..." Eh...
E-Ehhh... Ghooooooosts..! "Does... Anyone else wonder what that was," 'Yugi' eventually asked, both Katsuya and the lighter Yugi turning toward him as they slowly closed their mouths.
"It... Vanished into the ceiling..."
"Maybe it really was a ghost," Honda muttered, a hurried yelp of 'don't say that' coming from Katsuya.
"N-NHHHHHH! Don' even' mention th' word," he moaned, holding his head. "'S gonna keep me up all night..!"
"Should... Um..." The others blinked, turning as Anzu coughed and pointed toward the door. "Should we at least check the roof you think..?" Ah...
Oh. "T-Tha's righ'," he shouted, running past the others and toward the hall. "If he's waitin' up there, we mind as well check..!"
"Yea," Honda muttered, racing out behind him and up the stairs, "But who the hell IS he?"
"I dunno, someone Seto-chan hates?"
"Your girlfriend hates everyone," he responded flatly.
"SHE AIN'T-"
"Is there really any point in denying it..?" There was right now! He still didn't have his answer, and he-
...Don't think about that damn it! The door to the roof was violently flung open, the wide fenced top coming into view. Sure enough Tenma was still standing there, cloak flapping in the wind along with his hair. "You came," he said calmly, holding his hands out with the closest thing they could see as a smile on his face. The teen chuckled, eyes narrowing with expectancy and mirth both. "Good... It's time to duel," he continued, bringing a foot back in a 'welcoming' gesture. It was, but...
"You... You're not really here, are you," Yugi said almost bluntly, a bit of a nervous sweat breaking over his forehead.
"Ah-" The other Yugi turned at that, as did Katsuya. "But that can't be right," he muttered, blinking a few times. "That would mean-"
"He... It's really a ghost then," Katsuya squeaked out, shuddering somewhat as his face continued to grow white. "Y'... Y' got a dead duelist who wants t' duel w'th y..!"
Despite apparently agreeing with him, even the other Yugi had to give Katsuya a look with the last comment. "Nn... I don't think it's quite like that," he coughed, rubbing his head.
"He's probably using solid vision," Yugi continued, biting his lip. "I don't know how but..."
"As one would expect from the King of Duelists," Tenma announced, clapping his hands together. "Quick to see the truth! You're right... This is a hologram, a projection of my real body. But... Should you battle me," he continued nastily, "It will be impossible to hold that title for long... This card I hold here," he continued, the object in question seemingly appearing from thin air in his hand, "Will leave you no chance... Of course," the madman laughed, "If you like, you could back down..!"
The two Yugis immediately tensed at the idea of 'giving in', the more violent of the pair growing somewhat red in the face. "What-!"
"WHAT DID YOU JUS' SAY," Katsuya snarled, moving to charge forward. "Y' F- ...Ah-!"
A blast of wind roared against the field, Yugi's arm snapping in front of his friend's as the two spirits switched. "I'm not backing down," the other Yugi snarled, his lighter half momentarily absent from the field from the sudden switch. The boy brought his arm back, eyes narrowed to an almost standardized and battle-ready glare. "I accept your challenge!"
"Hnn..?"
That look... Katsuya swallowed, looking back from the hologram and swallowing. "Yugi... I wish I could tell y' more abou' this guy," he muttered, silently cursing the fact that the dreams didn't listen,"But other than th' obvious..."
"Don't worry," he said calmly, pulling his duel disk from his back and loading the deck. "It'll be fine." Right. Fine. Dreams came for a reason after all... "Alright Tenma," the boy called out, disk clicking into place as he stepped forward. "I'm ready any time... DUEL!"
That was about the last thing he saw before the smoke from around Tenma's form decided to almost completely cut off any of the five senses his body had at his disposal.
He was in the desert again. That much he knew, but when he dreamed it had never been like this. Even the 'flashes' had never been like this.
It felt almost as though his 'dreams' were superimposed over reality. That the dream he was having now was a mere after image, with the duel happening clearly before his eyes and cheers coming from his lips even as sand blew it all from sight and silenced him by way of confusion.
Cards were being drawn were being read, were being played, were becoming stone on a field becoming a wall of rocks shaped almost like dragons. Growing into the walls of a cavern lit through well placed mirrors and lamps, with numerous carvings covering the walls around him. He could hear a voice, the voice of a child...
But as it registered in his mind he realized that it was far more familiar than that. 'I don't understand,' he could hear 'himself' mutter, rubbing a scrap of rough cloth over a bleeding bruise. One of the other kids had chucked a rock at him- how he knew this was likely another of those 'just because' sorts of things. 'The elders all have shadows,' 'he' grumbled, crossing his arms in annoyance. 'But why can't they speak? Why aren't they like you?'
As usual, most of the shadows in the room didn't answer. They traded odd looks, sinking into the corners of the room to whisper to each other in a language he couldn't quite understand for the moment. The one that did speak, the dragon, merely gave a low and agitated growl. 'The times of shadows have changed young one... It would not surprise me if those with your sight were gone in a matter of years from now,' he added, lowering his head to the boy's side.
The boy frowned, turning toward it. 'But why?'
'Again with the questions,' the dragon chuckled, shaking its head. 'I will tell you another time. Your questions to your people's 'elders' have gotten you in a great deal of trouble boy... With both them and the children of your age,' he added dryly, tail flicking up from the darkness to bring the cloth back to his charge's face.
'Katsuya' shrugged, despite never once moving from his place on the highschool roof or even flinching under the sting of the cloth as the boy of his illusion did. 'Not like it matters,' he said almost proudly. 'I can throw off as many of them that come at me! I'd like to see them try and take me down!'
'Hahhh...' This gained yet another sigh from the dragon, the black monster shaking his head. 'And just what have I said about fighting little one...'
'...Not to?'
The dragon lowered its face to 'Katsuya', chuckling almost wryly. 'Not completely sure why I bother any more... But for now, how about I tell you another story,' he continued, the boy at his side perking up considerably. 'Listen close... This is the tale of-'
The sand vanished in a fierce gale at that moment, a single card picked up from the deck into Yugi's hands. The clouds above had thickened somewhat and with the over all mood in the air it was almost obvious what was about to happen. "Aw hell," he muttered, grimacing as a trio of sacrifices were prepared on the boy's side of the field for the 'next step'. "Not this again..."
"Want me to cover your mouth for you," Anzu offered almost sarcastically, the blond merely grimacing at the thought.
"Nah... I think I-"
"I SACRIFICE THREE MONSTERS," Yugi roared, Katsuya's voice cutting short. His eyes squeezed shut and he bit his lip, waiting for the words to come. Shit. Shit here it came... Here- "SAINT DRAGON OF THE SKIES," he announced, crimson scales breaking through the clouds with a violent roar. "THE GOD OSIRIS!" Wait...
Wait what. "I..." Osiris was there but...
"You... You didn't say anything," Honda muttered, looking to him in apparent shock. After so many other times... Hell, during the fight against the other Malik he counted at least four shots at calling Ra... "But..." But he hadn't said anything this time. "Why..."
The storm above was being hindered as well Katsuya realized, though at least Osiris himself wasn't having troubles with the summoning. The dragon coiled through the sky to rest just above the group, great and seemingly sightless eyes turned down toward them as its twin mouths grinned. "I GREET you Little KING," he announced, low growling almost sounding like chuckles on the air. "It would seem your NEXT challenge has JUST BEGUN!"
"NEXT challenge," the light Yugi protested, looking up to the dragon as his other frowned. "But what does that-"
"Look at Tenma's face," Honda muttered under his breath, Yugi attempting to ignore it for the moment to launch his monster's special ability as his partner paled. "Look at his eye..!" His eye?
Oh. That eye. "ATTACK," Yugi was snarling, oblivious to the mad stare he was standing under. "THUNDER FORCE!"
"RRRRAAAAAOOOOOOOOO!"
The smoke and flames that struck the field completely encompassed their opponent, obscuring him from view. Yet despite this Katsuya couldn't help feel that something wasn't right. The ashes had singed the sides of the roof fence, going so far as to leave scorch marks on the ground but something just wasn't right. Yet although every single one of them knew this there was nothing they could do.
Nothing except continue to stiffen in unease as Tenma gave another of his frightening smiles, and as a pressuring feeling that had slowly been growing since his arrival continued to push at Katsuya's head. "So THIS is Osiris," the teen laughed, his image slowly becoming clear from behind the fading smoke. His wide eyes seemed to trace the dragon's entire form, Tenma shaking his head slowly as he muttered under his breath. "Amazing...!"
"...Tenma..." The dragon's low growling did nothing to hide comments from those on the roof, the apparent CEO's opponent clenching his free fist. "Stop holding back," Yugi hissed, narrowing his eyes. "Show me your true power..!"
"My true power," he asked, a blank tablet slowly appearing to his side with his armored and demonic looking monsters. The hologram chuckled as the monsters did the same, each one appearing to look to their opponent with the same mad incredulity as their master. "Well then... I'll show you power alright..." Kay. He said power but... Not his?
Ohhh, he didn't like this feeling...
Not at all...
"My turn," Tenma announced, eyes again widening in crazed excitement. "I activate the magic card Silent Deceased," he began, the tablet that arose now carving itself with the image of the monster that had died just moments before. "The monster you defeated returns to my field to become my third sacrifice," he continued, winged arms breaking free as a leathery black dragon tore from the stone and into the air. UH... Third..! But the only time they needed three was when- "And by sacrificing these three monsters, I summon..-"
He could hear words on the air but for once they were not his own. He barely recognized the speaker as it was. 'Long ago when Darkness and Light were young, their battles took less subtle means,' a dragon whispered, all three of the monsters across him on the field slowly collapsing in a rotted heap as their bodies evaporated into a blackened mush. 'There was no time for temptations and guilt in those days... Nay, those days were filled with blades and bloodshed. And while Light created children she protected,' the beast went on, 'Darkness formed but three beings to further spread his influence. The Behemoth,' he began, \Great in power and horrific in appearance. The Leviathan, the serpent of shadows, the weaver of tongues... More powerful than both of these by far however was the pride and joy of the darkness,' the dragon hissed, the weakness and strain pushing down even further as clouds seemed to converge only where the black muck formed of sacrificed monsters dripped. 'A creature designed to counter Light in all her defenses... The shape-changer,' he whispered, Katsuya's eyes widening as the black sludge slowly rose. 'He who is the dark to all lights...'
"THE DEVIL'S AVATAR," Tenma cackled, the ooze floating upward into a perfect sphere. A single and enormous 'sun', blacker than the deepest end of space and smoothed over completely now sat before them. An anti-thesis to 'Ra'... A 'god'. "A GOD that FAR surpasses your own," the teen sneered, as though to correct Katsuya's thoughts.
The monster before them had no voice, and resembled naught but a blackened sphere, a cheap duplicate of the sun. From within however a form could scarcely be seen... A skeletal figure of sorts, with leering eyes and blood stained claws. But just as soon as he'd been able to spot this, the monster's shape began to change. The sphere stretched, pulled forward and loosely took a new shape. 'The Devil's Avatar,' Tenma was shouting, Katsuya simply wondering how he hadn't lost his lunch yet. 'A counterpart to God, a monster of pure shadows... Now WATCH,' the teen called out, voice just as distant as the dreams Katsuya was having, 'As the demon changes shape... INTO A BEING THAT SURPASSES OSIRIS COMPLETLY..!' The third 'child'...
The 'shape changer'. There was no doubt as to what stood before them now he thought with a swallow. Osiris himself drew back with wide eyes as a being matching his form in all but colour appeared, red scales dyed black in a manner matching the air that hung around it. "What... IS this HERESY," the God hissed, 'Avatar' merely grinning as wickedly as its 'master' while further revealing blackened teeth. "What IS THIS..!" Even Osiris didn't know? Oh well wasn't that just LOVELY..!
Even so, what they did know was still enough to pin them down with yet more fear and anxiety for the situation. "A black Osiris," Anzu was muttering, eyes growing somewhat misted as she looked over the beast. The look was almost similar to what she tended to take when pulling up some of Malik's memories actually... But all the same, with this monster... "This..." With exactly one attack point more than Osiris, barely surpassing it...
"Gh... You trigger Osiris' effect," Yugi announced almost hesitantly, attempting to steel his resolve under the pressure of the second God. "By summoning a new monster to the field," he forced out, "Osiris' first mouth opens..! NOW! ATTAC-" Yugi's words were cut short by the thundering force that escaped the God's upper maw, the lightning and electricity merely sinking into Avatar's body as though it were made of the same substance. There was no effect from the attack... Nothing to even show it happened outside the ash on the cement and fence. And as Tenma's grin grew, Yugi muttering curses under his breath, the teen explained.
"Hnhnhnhn.. You know full well there's a 'system' to these things don't you," he hissed, all eyes turning to him from the monster with fear. "Among the three Gods a pyramid of power is formed," Tenma sneered, "With the Sun God Ra at the top. The Devil's Avatar is a God with similar ranking," he continued, mad grin widening. "In fact... You could say that he's 'equal' with your 'RA'!" Wh-
"E...Equal with..."
"The same as RA..?"
"Blasphemy... BLASPHAMEY!" What he said. "WE DESTROYED YOU," Osiris snarled, shaking his head in disbelief. "SEALED YOU TO THE PITS OF THE ENDS OF TIME!"
At this it was not merely Tenma who was chuckling. In fact, it seemed that as Katsuya took a step back the 'second Osiris' voice spoke with him, not that anyone else could hear that. "Hnhnhnhnhn... There is NOTHING that surpasses THIS power," the monster sneered, eyes narrowing in superior mirth. "FOOLS... I am the CARRIER of MISFORTUNE, the HERALD of DEATH... Face my ATTACK," he cackled, "You who carry LIGHT'S blood... HHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!"
"Darkness..." Dark...
"DARKNESS SHOURAIDAN!" Shit.
"Y-YUGI," Katsuya shouted, the black flames ahead of them barreling forward as Yugi looked upward. "YU-"
"RRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Through the sounds of the monster's roar the fires seared the roof completely, and for a moment they could see nothing. Like Yugi, and like the other Yugi they found themselves shielding their eyes, arms held above their faces as a shield against the black 'light'. Just what was this card, he wanted to scream, slowly opening his eyes to a field shrouded by the Avatar's power. What was this thing, what was this monster..? The thing in his 'dream' perhaps? If it was a counter to the Gods, that made sense...
But it didn't feel right. And the words it had said... Those words...
"Osiris," Anzu whispered in shock, the wind slowly dying down. The great and red-scaled dragon was gone, all trace of it destroyed. The only visible remains of the ashes were fading away with it... And all that was left was a sneering 'Avatar'. "In one hit," she whispered, eyes wide. "One... And it was destroyed... This monster..." This...
This GOD... The Avatar's black form was again melting they realized with disgust. Melting back into a perfect sphere that caught their attention completely, forming a single black sun once more. The counterpart to Ra, right down to the skeletal 'griffin' inside...
The 'Shape Changer'... The 'Avatar' of the Darkness.
"The 'Ja-Shin'," Tenma sneered, pulling his card free from the duel disk. Immediately thereafter the monster sank into a black puddle again, its ooze seeping into its owner's duel disk. Forfeiture. Tie. Tenma had the advantage but he'd ended the duel regardless- an act that was probably even worse than simply going through to the end. But whatever reason he was doing it for didn't matter right now..! The 'Ja-Shin', the 'Evil Gods'... "The counterparts to the Gods..." This...
"Bastard," Katsuya snarled, the 'field' that had been held vanishing in an instant with fragments of the pressure he'd felt. "Pegasus dies an you decide t' make yer own game breakin' cards!" Mirroring a monster with one extra point? What the hell was that! "THIS IS BULLSHIT," he snarled louder, nonetheless remaining where he stood. "WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU!"
"Oh no... Don't misunderstand," the hologram whispered. He brushed a bit of hair back, before holding the card forward and smirking. "This card was designed long ago... A god formed out of hesitation and fear. You might think the God Cards were his greatest mistake," he went on almost bemusedly. "But Pegasus-sama's image of the Ja-Shin was so fearful that he hesitated to even touch them... That's beside the point," he continued, dread rising still further into the air as his tone darkened. "You've taken everything from me Yugi... My teacher," Tenma whispered, "My family... So I'm going to take something from you..."
What..?
"What..." ...Why did it suddenly feel like things had just gotten worse again..? "What is this," Anzu suddenly whispered, the others turning back in horror. She was holding her hand before her with wide eyes, stepping back from the others and looking back to her body as some... Thing began to eat away at it. As her hand slowly burned from the palm out, the burn traveling up her arm...
Smoke. Her body was smoking, misting away...
"Anzu-" Within seconds her arms were gone, the woman looking over herself in panic.
"ANZU!" Her legs had misted into nothing, and as Yugi reached out toward her the woman turned her head back and-
"Yug-"
Smoke. Smoke and air. That was all that was left in a matter of seconds, leaving the three boys frozen on the rooftop with nothing but their friend's horrified face burned into their minds. "She... She vanished," Honda finally said, shaking his head in disbelief. "She... She..."
"TENMA," Yugi snarled, his lighter half staring at where his friend had been in shock. "WHAT DID YOU DO WITH HER!"
"HHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA! It hurts doesn't it," the teen cackled in response, ignoring the screamed threats before him. "To lose something you love..? I've had Mazaki Anzu's body for the last number of hours," he continued with a sneer, "Right where it needs to be for my 'project'..."
"Project," Katsuya repeated incredulously. "What th' hell are you-"
"'R.A.'," Tenma chuckled, seemingly hovering in the air. "That girl is the sacrifice that will set my goal in motion, the penance for your crimes... But you know," he continued, the three that had prepared to charge him stopping abruptly, "You want a chance to save her as well, right..?"
"A chance to- Then she's safe," Yugi asked, teeth grinding at the expression their friend's captor had. "She's alright..!"
"Well..." 'Well'? "For the moment," he 'admitted', giving a subtle careless shrug. "But even right now, before the project is even finished I can't guarantee that..."
"What..." Even now..?
It already started..! "The project has just completed PHASE TWO," Tenma announced, gesturing far off to the distant edge of Domino. "With Phase One a complete success; complete control over Kaiba Corporation's main office and systems!" What what wh-
"K- YOU TOOK OVER TH' COMPANY," Katsuya shouted incredulously, only to be cut off by Yugi.
"You kidnapped Anzu," he hissed, eyes shadowed as he stepped forward. "And now you're talking about sacrifice... This... What are you planning," he roared, expression almost desperate. "WHAT ARE YOU-"
"Revenge."
The boys froze yet again, eyes momentarily widening. The tone that Tenma had taken was lucid, and frighteningly so. There were no mad games surrounding this, no desires for some ancient item. Yet the voice did not instil the same fear that the other Malik had. With him it was simple; he existed to kill.
But Tenma's desires... "...R... Revenge," Honda repeated, their target's expression cold as he began to smoke from the air. Revenge for what..!
"Mazaki Anzu and myself are currently located in Kaiba Corporation's building," Tenma told them. "Where the third phase of the project has begun. If you wish to save her," he continued with a sneering grin, "Then by all means try... Come, and find me, and try and stop me... I have placed many obstacles in your path," the teen chuckled, seeming to flame as he gave a mocking bow. "But regardless of how many you defeat in the end, you WILL face punishment at the hands of the Ja-Shin... SO," he laughed, crackling from existence with one word. "I'll see you then..." W- No...
No... "Come back here," Katsuya muttered, shaking his head before charging the smoking mess. "GET BACK HERE! TENMA!"
Nothing but smoke met with his fists at those shouts, and with pale skin and wide eyes the trio found themselves standing in silence. "What..." Yugi swallowed, looking back to the other two with an expression of confusion that his friends never expected to see from the former 'Pharaoh'. "...What have we gotten ourselves into now..?"
AN: I don't know Yugi, but holy shit you guys are problem magnets. (And that expression is actually canon too. It's REALY upsetting.)
Poor Anzu though; wake up, get kidnapped, get hooked up to a hologram machine, 'apparently' wake up at your house again to run late for class...
Then you find out that kidnapping wasn't really a dream... Though that'll all be covered in a later chapter really.
In any case, if this chapter seems short, it's because I REALLY underestimated this arc's skill in keeping Duels short. Yu-Gi-Oh R was REALLY good with that... To the point that they didn't even bother showing the entire duel above. WHOOOOPS.
In any case, there's art today! YAYYYYYY. Also, for those wondering what's been sapping my time away, I finally bothered making a separate area to put my portfolio art until I feel like going on something like Deviant Art again. (I think my user page links out to my old one...) It's located here: http : / / s5. photobucket. com/ albums/ y153/ natasha_unos_1/ Portfolio/ #!cpZZ1Q QtppZZ20
Anything I didn't put in there that I used in the portfolio was fanart for Skin, hahaha.
SPEAKING of the PORTFOLIO...
IGOTINIGOTINIGOTINIGOTIN- I got into the program I applied to! Starting September, I'm a University Student!
. . .
This actually won't likely affect my updating schedule as much as thought, as everyone will stop pestering me to draw outside of class after that, which means I'll be drawing on my own time, which means I'll still be spending just as much/little time on this as before. (Really, depending on the day I can spend HOURS typing or no more than 15 minutes. It all depends on mood, and if I'm not in the mood to write, then I don't bother; it WILL NOT SOUND GOOD otherwise.)
Now then, Contest info! The entries, this time SEPARATED BY A LINE will be at the bottom. This is because many readers were unable to distinguish the separate entries, and incorrectly assumed a number of them to be from one single 'set' as opposed to being many separate options. Results will not be posted this week, as we'll be stopping the polls next chapter to enter the next round of the contest!
In any case...
Anonymous Review Responses
Anzu was coping quite well until this chapter Iona. I'm a bit of a prick when it comes to things like that really. Oh well!
Haga's fate is a little 'ambiguous' at the moment, though he's at least in a less antagonistic light. Heck, Jou catching even a glimpse of him cooperating with Shizuka proves this (though we're still going ShizukaxRyuzaki for the fanfic.).
And as a matter of fact, there was some melancholy, but not concerning herself... At least not in regard to any emotional attachments. More about what might have happened... As it's likely that it was the Pharaoh's death which caused the dedication. (And as a matter of fact it was, but Anzu doesn't really know that.)
Any ways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Now onto the next one!
And once again Imadork, I thank you for the congratulations! I suppose that my attention to the side characters is an off shoot of my tendency to over think things; actually, this fanfic is one of the few times I've ever been able to run with it without things getting out of hand. It's quite nice.
As to how Jonouchi 'handled it', you can find out now. It's a good thing he never found out how to summon properly though; spending the summer with duel monsters would have made for an interesting return to school to say the least.
In any case, I wouldn't quite say crazy so much as bored. He actually read a book, how HORRIBLE. (Ahahahah...) Back to serious business and no, no that's quite alright... I get quite a bit of fun out of it myself sometimes...
By this point though, you should probably assume anything that comes out of my mouth is foreshadowing, unless you're easily disappointed. Then, just assume the opposite, and be pleasantly surprised when it turns out it was foreshadowing rather than be disappointed when it doesn't.
And hahaha, yea, when I was writing that scene I had an image of her in my mind... And quickly realized how well that line would fit.
In any case, your votes have been recorded! Until then, enjoy this chapter, and I'll see you next time!
Usagi's Manga & Japan Guide/Corner
The section that's still wondering how Anzu never realized she was a hologram. WHAT, WHAT!
This chapter title comes from that handy Hebrew dictionary I've been using; 'ri'shah' means 'beginning', or rather 'beginning time' or 'early time'. Suits the start of an arc that's going to mess with all of the Egypt memories Jou has... Given that most of whatever 'Past-Jou' says is in Hebrew.
The shadow the elder has, rather, his 'Ka', is based on the monster 'Karakuri Soldier Nisamu'. This is because, to stick with the theme that the elders shadows lack personalities, I'm using robotic types of duel monsters. However, to keep with a village-y theme, I stuck with Karakuri... They're more I dunno... 'Wood-punk'? What would you call that!
Speaking of the shadow, the reason why people can see it is because the sight isn't completely gone yet. Also, the shadows of the elders are more 'forced'; he's making it visible. There is, however, a reason why kids like Saraph don't know about this later on, and you'll see it soon enough.
The stories mentioned will all tie in eventually, if you didn't guess from the Dragon's mention of the 'Behemoth'. The 'Three Treasures' in particular are something you'll need to watch for though.
By the way, 'Tanniyn' is Dragon in Hebrew. Or one of the ways to say it at least. Remember, if I'm wrong, correct me!
The 'Sempai/Kohai' thing comes from the fact that, well... That's what Tenma is. He and a few members of the Card Professors (mentioned in Rebecca's debut) were taken in by Pegasus a few years prior the fanfic. This is a little weird given that Tenma is the same age as Kaiba though... (16) In any case, they're essentially Pegasus' proteges.
Oh hey, o-soji! (Big clean!) I think I mentioned this before but the fact is, the students cleaning tend to have more than just their classroom. Also, this gives me a good reason for Otogi and Bakura to not be present during 'R', other than 'well they just happened to have a cold.'
A side note on o-soji though, this doesn't mean they don't have janitors there. Actually, they do; it's just that the janitorial staff double as the staff for everything outside of teaching it seems...
It's a good thing they do have janitors though, as a lot of students don't really do a good job/care too much about whether or not they're cleaning properly.
Jou's inner mantra of 'don't think about it' has returned, but more out of worry than fear. Since he isn't completely sure of Seto's reasoning for most of what concerns him (All he knows is that she left with an honest smile), he's fighting back the nice feeling of dread that comes with asking someone out. Do they like you back? Well... Normally you get a fast answer.
Jou's been waiting over a month.
In the manga, Jonouchi initially says that he's never heard of 'I2'. This is about where Anzu and Honda correct him, allowing for exposition on what the company is.
It's also where we get our first hint at Pegasus' death for the team, outside that one comment from Roba in the original. Of course... All of this is made moot in the fanfic, so it's been changed accordingly.
There are lots of advantages to being a hologram, but Jonouchi gets bonus points in dealing with it on the opposite end; he gets to see a few things influencing the hologram form of Yakou. Moreover, it's that very influence that's preventing his 'sight' from doing too much of anything...
And you'll see why soon enough.
Now, Yugi's guess is interesting here, because in the fanfic the solid vision holograms have already proven themselves incapable of doing more than causing a small bit of force. The idea of someone communicating through one, or even dueling AS one is completely out of the question to most.
But there's another reason why Yami Yugi was siding with Jonouchi on the ghost theory; and it's precisely because Yakou runs I2. The idea that Kaiba would lend him the technology to do something this stalkerish is absolutely astounding, even if the idea of wandering around as a hologram was possible.
Of course, Jonouchi's own sense doesn't help things... But that's Jou, not Yami.
Normally, I'd include the entire duel, but get this! This duel doesn't show you the beginning! It cuts right to summoning Osiris! Even the translator was confused.
Some of you may wonder why Avatar didn't originally speak. There's a reason for it, but mostly it has to do with Avatar's purpose; he essentially mirrors the most powerful thing on the field. The thing is, he's supposed to mirror their hate as well...
But since Osiris' hate is being reserved for the thing that copied his face at that moment, he's keeping his trap shut at the start, since he's not a very self-deprecating monster.
In other news, Avatar's mention of 'Light's Blood' ties into the belief among Ancient Egyptians that the Pharaoh was descended from the God Ra.
'Shouraidan' is the Japanese name for Osiris' attack, 'Thunder Force'. It's just... 'Darkness Thunderforce' doesn't sound nearly as cool.
Originally, this chapter was only supposed to have manga content in it, with a little bit of introduction. There was just one problem with that.
Thanks to the manga's REALLY compressed duels (Most of them last one chapter... INCLUDING the set up into it!), I had to add a LOT of bonus content. The story the dragon tells is a big one; that was supposed to be much much much more divided across this arc, and while I managed to keep it that way there's still a lot of talking.
Another thing however is the scene with Pegasus and Tenma. It really happened, but only in a flashback... For that reason, I put it wayyyy at the top...
Mostly because this arc is FULL of Jonouchi's ability going haywire, which is going to be around the top of each chapter from here on out... As it is, it's still up there! Just not as haywire. (Don't worry, the haywire-ness will be explained.)
Musical Notes
Shameless music time!
Got a few new ones going, but here's an interesting change; this time it's all vocaloid originals!
To go along with last chapter's 'For a Sick Boy', there's From a Dead Girl' by Megurine Luka... Though the acoustic with Miku is quite nice as well. There's also THE DYING MESSAGE from Kagamine Rin, along with a few songs that would likely more suit something with Kaiba during the summer weeks... Namely the duo songs 'Error' and 'Reverse' both of which are sung by the vocaloid 'Lily'.
ALSO 'GURIRI'S' COVER OF 'SHURA NO NIWA' (Garden of Berserker) IS AMAZING.
Sadly, I've yet to find a translation.
(Actually, Guriri in general does rather nice covers...)
Contest Entries
Remember; when you vote, vote for THREE ENTRIES, in order of Preference! For example...
'1) Entry 1, 2) Entry 3 3) Entry 2'
Voting will be held for TWO UPDATES; in other words, you have until the update after the next! Good luck to all those competing!
From MaggieMay:
Jounouchi sees Seto NAKED! And that's only the beginning in this fantastically twisted retelling of the Yu-Gi-Oh! Saga. A completely IC Kaiba Seto that is totally different than what you've ever seen before.
The story of Yu-gi-oh! with an X twist. One little letter - X instead of Y - and you have a whole new game. Yugi may still be king but Seto is definitely queen, with Jounouchi as her court (and courting) jester and jack of all trades.
Ever wonder why Seto acts like he has constant PMS? There is an explanation. Jounouchi and the gang learn that gender really doesn't matter. Or does it? Retelling of the Yu-gi-oh! Series – with one little difference that changes everything.
Think you know Yu-gi-oh! and Puppyshipping? Think again. This is the story retold with a small adjustment that changes everything. You don't know Yu-gi-oh! like this. Strap in 'cause it's gonna be a bumpy ride.
From Imadork:
Jounouchi Katsuya will always look out for his friends, no matter how weird things get. That means he will keep on fighting, whether facing maniacs with freaky powers, monsters from a childrens game, or the fact that Kaiba's a girl. Wait, what?
From Jadej.J:
Seto Kaiba has secrets that run skin deep but when Jou gets drawn in all bets are off. Both teens' dark secrets come to the surface & life changing experiences that will take them into dark secrets of Duel Monsters that no one knows.
From Sora Kohaku:
Being a teenager is hard. Especially when your friend may have split personalities and your father is an alcoholic. And, maybe, just maybe you're going crazy.
Being a teenager is hard. There's part-time jobs, school work, friends, first crushes, and of course the possibility of going insane. Oh, that's not suppose to happen? Poor Jonouchi.
After a extra credit project goes almost too well Jonouchi finds himself getting closer to his classmate Kaiba. Too close. Living in the same house too close. For every thing that starts going right for him there's another going wrong.
Who would have thought getting caught breaking and entering would turn out so well? Not Jonouchi for sure. Though for every thing going right for him there's another two or twenty going south.
If there was a certain point that things started changing Jonouchi was pretty sure this was it. This was undeniable proof that it doesn't pay to slack off.
Curiosity couldn't possibly kill him, though Jonouchi doesn't doubt that given the chance Seto Kaiba would. It's just his luck that Mokuba Kaiba likes him so much.
There are secrets...and then are SECRETS. Secrets that can change the very nature of the game. Jonouchi is finding himself in possession of a lot of these as of late. So it's no wonder that he finds himself wondering if he'll survive them all.
Smoking kills, alcohol kills, and even children's card games kill—wait, what! Jonouchi knows his life has never been very normal, but this is insane! Or, quite possibly he's the one that's insane.
Rewards are very fickle business. In comparison to how the universe decides to award Jou, Kaiba is pretty straight forward.
Jonouchi Katsuya was the exception to the 'no jobs' rule at school. Jonouchi Katsuya also happened to be the great exception to the 'normal' rule when it came to children's card games.
Jou had a hunch- just a hunch nothing else- that Seto Kaiba was hiding something. It's just his luck that he was right.
In any case, that's all for this week... Enjoy, Vote, and I'll see you soon! Hopefully with some art!