Okay it killed me to write this chapter. I was writing a thousand to two thousand words a day in forced bursts after eleven or twelve o'clock at night so it's full of feels. Hope you guys enjoy!
Content Warnings: Murder, death, implied suffocation, transphobia, homophobia, non-consensual, fire.
The world outside sat silent. Safely encased in his white office, perched on his leather chair by his oaken desk, Pegasus watched. He watched as the world tumbled into chaos.
And he watched with a smile.
Not even a smile. A smile implies joy.
Pegasus watched with a smirk. He had been right, and now, no one could mock him.
Not the republicans with their claims of 'fake news' and 'alternate facts' about global warming. Not the liberals with their protests about his methods of planning for the disaster. Not the group in the middle, unsure whether or not to believe in global warming, but certain that he was wrong.
No one could tell him he was wrong anymore.
"Sir?"
He turned. He had heard the doors open, but he hadn't acknowledged the person that had entered. "Yes, Zircon?" The man's eyes narrowed. "Apologies. Zorc."
"Should we tell the sections? Everyone's wondering."
Pegasus hummed and turned away from him. "No." He stared out the window. The mountain was glowing red – previously plain, and dark, and tall. It was just visible from his window, lava pouring down into the city. "Just update the syllabus. Slowly. Like we have been doing."
"It went bad really quickly." Zorc folded his arms. Pegasus heard the froosh of his sleeves brushing together.
"And we've been planning for downward spirals. Speed it up a little. Not enough to alarm them."
"I think the sound of lava pouring into their hometowns would alarm them, no matter what their age." He paused. "Sir."
"Don't mention specific towns. The north of Japan, west of France, etcetera, etcetera." Pegasus reclined in his chair. There was a dark cloud of ash settling over the glow and darkening the sky above mainland Japan. "We can't afford teeny-tots rebellion, Zorc. Don't panic them. Triple the planned speed. No more, no less."
"But that way, they'll only be learning about this in a year."
"I know. And it's been two years since they were brought in. Three years will seem more believable to them than two years." Pegasus turned away from the window. The beautiful golden-red was gone, smothered by a sickening black blanket. "Just get it done."
Zorc's eyes narrowed but he bowed. "Yes, sir."
"And Zorc?" Zorc looked up again. "Make sure your sister stays out of this. These children are in our care, and we don't want them 'liberated' into a dying world. Understood?"
"Understood, sir."
They crept out of the manhole like a pack of wolves. Silent, deadly, and desperate to escape the cage they had been trapped in for the last nine years.
The Artist flicked his fingers forward and they scattered to their cubes.
They already had everything they needed. Clothes, personal items, and one or two weapons. They didn't need food or water – they were getting out. Getting home.
And no electronic devices. The Artist had checked everyone's bags before they left. No electronic devices.
They could be tracked by the ICU if they brought them. No one had objected. They all had too much to lose. They couldn't afford to be brought back.
If they were, they all knew that they would never get out again.
Griffin was ready first. Black paint in a neat sprawl in front of his cube.
Happiness can be found in the darkest of times if only one remembers to turn on a light. – Yami Sennen, Griffin.
He stood back to admire it for a moment. Yami Sennen. The name washed over him with a warm sense of familiarity.
Well, it should feel familiar. It was his name. He felt stupid for even thinking it. But it was different.
Seeing it written – spelled out in front of him in unmissable writing after all these years under a different name. That was the cause of the longing, of the sense of sudden fulfilment.
Yami Sennen.
It wasn't long before everyone was ready. Notes – from them to the ones they were leaving behind. For now. Leaving behind for now.
Mementos, or something to give them so they would know what was happening. So they would know that they would be back.
So they would know they weren't being forgotten.
So they would know that they were being thought about.
So they would know they were never, ever alone. Not anymore.
It's okay to be a glow stick. Sometimes you have to break to shine. – Atem Sennen, Strix.
Do not judge a story by the chapter you walked in on. – Mazaki Anzu, Flamingo.
Life is like cards; a strong player can be dealt a weak hand, and still walk away with the game in their pocket. – Otogi Ryuji, Jaguar.
You were born to be real. Not to be perfect. – Kawai Shizuka, Princess.
There comes a time when you have to choose between turning the page or closing the book. This is that time. – Heru Tahan, Shrew.
We were quiet, but we were not blind. – Heba Mikhail, Lion.
I can't change you, and you can't change me. But we can change how we react. – Sid Jones, Koala.
The choices you make in life will make your life. – Bjørn 'Bonz' Larsen, Skele.
Visions are worth fighting for. Don't spend your life making someone else's dreams come true. – Honda Hiroto, Chimp.
You can't make a revolution in white gloves. – Jounouchi Katsuya.
Those who do not move do not notice their chains. – Mana Dagher, Meerkat.
Never love anyone who treats you like you're ordinary. – Miho Nosaka, Crystal.
Work on being in love with the person in the mirror who has been through so much but is still standing. – Marik Ishtar, Giraffe.
The time is always right to do what is right. – Akefia Touzoku, Diabound.
To ignore evil is to become an accomplice to it. – Bakura Touzoku, Necro.
Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. – Ryou Bakura, Dove.
We are not what other people say we are. We are who we know ourselves to be, and we are what we love. – Mehi Kosey, Phoenix.
Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever. – Mokuba Kaiba, Panther.
You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist. – Keith Howard, Lynx.
The future depends on what we do in the present. – Seto Kaiba, Blue.
People will stare. Make it worth their while. – Kujaku Mai, Polar.
The Artist was the last to finish. He stood back slowly and turned to look at everyone else's work before looking back at his own.
Faith is taking the first step, even when you can't see the whole staircase. And we have faith in you. – Yugi Mutou, Calico, the Artist.
"Let's light them up."
They all pulled the same cans of spray and lighters out of their bags. The glass coffins were still flammable. No one had changed that since Crystal's had been set on fire.
A mistake.
The glow was warm at first, soft in the dark.
Then it grew, and multiplied, until Zorc's was the only one still dim and not roaring in a blazing storm of anger and heat.
The Artist hesitated before he lit his. He had almost forgotten Rosa, but she was safe with a friend of Marik's. He swallowed as the flames began to rise from his coffin.
"Run."
They left the cans and lighters scattered on the floor. It didn't matter now. There was no going back.
If they were caught- no. They wouldn't be caught. They were escaping. They couldn't afford to be caught; to even think of it.
They were getting out.
They met Necro and Scooter on their way to the elevator – Diabound had written his brother's quote.
As instructed, the section was dark. Good. The Artist trusted them, but emotions were high and he wouldn't have been surprised to see Scooter's cube in flames.
"Where now?" Strix hissed.
The Artist beckoned them forwards and led them to the elevator. They could see the light shine from it as they hid behind the corner, and, as planned, Pegasus left.
They only waited a minute. "Run."
They heard him turn and shout. Shit. The Artist gritted his teeth as they sprinted for the narrow passage, squeezing in.
Yami slammed the close button as a shot sounded. Rally screamed as the doors sprung shut.
Bakura caught them as they fell. "Shit, Rally!"
"What happened?" Sid asked. The elevator jolted and began to rise. They could hear banging on the other side, growing fainter.
"They were shot." Bakura twisted, trying to find the wound.
"They'll be okay," Sid said, dropping down beside him.
Rally squeezed their eyes shut as Sid reached out and touched the wound. It stained his trousers, just to the left of his knee.
"Does that hurt?" Sid asked, stilling.
"No shit it hurts," Bakura snapped. "They were fucking shot."
"Yeah, I got that." Sid glared at him. "I meant does it run up their leg. If the bullet is still in there, we have a problem."
Rally shook their head. "I- Fuck – I-I don't think it is..." They gritted their teeth.
Sid nodded, pulling off his outermost jumper. "Hang on." He tore it into two strips and began binding the wound as best as possible. Rally yelled. "Bakura, hold them still."
"Stop hurting them and they won't fucking squirm," Bakura snapped.
Sid shot him a glare and tied the jumper strips together, using three knots. "I know it's tight, but we just need to leave it like this for a little bit," he told Rally. "Just until we're out. Can you stand?"
Bakura pushed himself up and helped carry Rally's weight as they staggered to their feet.
"Barely," they replied after a few seconds, clinging to Bakura's shoulder.
"I'll help you," Bakura assured them. "Don't worry. We'll get Seto's whatever to bring us to a hospital. Right?"
Seto nodded. "I'll get them to change their coordinates."
Bakura nodded and turned back to Rally. "See? You'll be fine, kid." He sounded like he was trying to convince himself more than Rally.
Rally forced a smile, their face white. "Y-Yeah. I'll be fine."
The elevator dinged as they reached the top floor, and the doors eased open.
No one moved for a moment. It was quiet. The white office was still – tense rather than tranquil.
Something was wrong.
Rally winced, and Yugi began ushering people out. "We need to move-"
Bang.
They didn't get time to scream. Bakura did. He dropped to the ground with them. "Rally! Damn it, Rally, get up!"
Others dropped with them, Yugi yelling orders to get out of the line of fire but Bakura just kept shaking Rally, as though to wake them.
But their eyes were open. There were no delusions of sleep, or unconsciousness.
And even if there were, the blood seeping from their head from the hole and the smell of shit in the air erased all hope.
"Bakura, fucking move!"
Bakura dove and covered Rally's body as another bang echoed through the room. He felt the bullet graze his shoulder, but it hit nothing but the wall.
He felt someone grab his shoulder and try to pull him up. He clung tighter to Rally.
"Bring them too, just move!" Mehi snapped at him.
Bakura nodded and wrapped his arms around Rally, hoisting them over his shoulder. He was shaking, and he stumbled as he followed the others out of the room. Atem stayed behind for a second, wrestling the assistant for the gun.
Bakura heard another bang, and Atem caught up to them. He was still holding the gun, and the assistant didn't follow them out.
"Where's the helicopter?" Jounouchi called to Seto.
Seto shook his head. "The runway. I don't know how to get out of the building."
"I saw it out the window," Mana yelled, taking the lead and turning left. "It should be this way."
"Be careful!" Yugi snapped, pulling her back. A shot sounded and they began running again.
They didn't have time for careful anymore. They needed to get out before someone else died.
They were lucky – for once, once in their lives, they got it right first time. The only door at the end of the hallway Mana had led them down had them crashing out into open air.
The sun blinded them, and though they kept running, they tripped over one another and nearly missed the three black helicopters waiting for them.
"Get in!" Someone screamed at them from the first. Someone from the third was firing at the doors behind them. Yugi turned to see others firing back. "Hurry up!"
Yugi reached up and scrambled in. He turned back and reached down to help Bakura with Rally.
The pilot shook her head. "No. Leave him – we're already nearly over capacity."
"I'm not leaving them behind!" Bakura yelled. He had to duck to avoid a shot. It ricocheted off the side of the helicopter.
The pilot cursed. "Get the fuck into the helicopter!"
"Not without Rally!"
"If you don't get in, we're leaving without you!"
Yugi glared at her. "We're not leaving either of them."
The first two helicopters were already taking off. The pilot pulled her eye guard down. "I'm not getting stuck here, and I'm the one flying." She shifted gears and the wings began turning.
Yugi turned back to Bakura. "Get in!"
"Leave the body!" The pilot roared.
"But-"
Mehi grabbed Bakura's arm and hauled him up as the helicopter left the ground. Rally slipped.
Bakura twisted free of Mehi's grip once he was safe and stared down. They were already forty feet up, but he could see Rally – sprawled on the ground, hair scattered, dead.
"Rally!"
Yugi groaned as he forced his eyes open. He frowned and blinked a few times. The roof above him was white, plaster, and crumbling.
That wasn't right. Where was he? Where was Yami?
He twisted, and a wooden bed creaked beneath him. The entire room was in the same state as the ceiling. Ten beds were shoved in together – emergency accommodations.
But where? This wasn't the ICU.
Yugi forced himself to his feet. They were bare, and the tiled floor sent cold tendrils rushing up his legs. He shivered and grabbed his boots from beside the top of the bed. He yanked them on, no socks.
No one else was in the room, but once he pulled open the door and left, he found himself in a large communal kitchen. Like the ones in the ICU.
Everyone was there, cramped together at one table. Eleven on either side. Yugi frowned. They were out. But those numbers didn't make sense. Him included, there was twenty-four.
Who was missing? He counted again, and an image flashed to the front of his head.
Rally. Little Rally, eagle-spread on the runway forty feet below them. A bullet in their leg and head.
He swallowed back the bile and walked over to the table. "Hey."
Yami looked up at him. He wasn't the only one to look, but he was the only one to try to smile. "Hey."
"What's-" His voice gave up on him. He tried again. "Is there a problem? Why are we here? Where is here?"
Seto cleared his throat. "They told us a little, but they wanted to speak to you directly, since you were kind of the leader of the whole group."
Yugi looked around. "Why didn't anyone wake me?"
"We thought you needed the sleep." Yami's voice was gentle, but it sounded loud even among the chatter at other tables.
Yugi's heart sank. "What happened?" Now, no one would look at him. "Tell me."
It was a few seconds before anyone spoke. "We were wrong."
Yugi's expression froze. He froze – somewhere between standing and sitting at the table with his friends. "What do you mean?" It came out sharp and fast.
Not many would meet his gaze. Ryou cleared his throat. "Take a look outside," he mumbled.
"No, don't do that," Marik protested.
"He's going to have to at some stage." Mehi glared at the table.
"But not yet!"
"What do you mean?" Yugi repeated, slower as he sank down beside Yami.
Yami wouldn't even look at him. Not directly. His spoon was clenched tightly in his hand, though it didn't look as though he had touched his bowl of whatever he was eating. "Everything they told us in the ICU was true."
He blamed himself. Yugi could see that in an instant. He had been one of the first to back the mythical Artist anyway. Why shouldn't he blame himself? It was his fault. He had convinced Yugi that- No. No, he didn't.
Yugi shook his head. Stop thinking like that. "That can't be true."
"They were a bit dramatic," Sid huffed, "what with the lakes of lava and all. But the world's been fucked."
"We're in Odaiba at the moment." Bonz shrugged. "This is about quarter the population."
Yugi looked around. "Of the whole city?" There was two hundred people in the canteen. Maximum.
"Maybe a few more. Some people are getting ready to go scavenging for things." Mana shook her head. "Food, water, supplies."
Yugi stared down at the table for a minute. He twisted and bolted for the door.
"Cal- Yugi!" Yami protested, following him.
Yugi pushed through the heavy barrier and stumbled to a halt at the top of a set of stairs. They were in a hotel. He and his Grandpa had stayed there once – he recognised the driveway that led up from the city centre.
He turned and looked up at the building. It was now three stories tall. Not twenty. Rubble had been cleared, but there was still a crater in the tarmac of the road.
He looked back out of the driveway.
The southern section of the city was empty. There were cars. And some buildings – one or two shops and a few smaller houses. But no people.
"Yugi?" Yami hesitated before taking his hand. "Yugi, what do we do?"
Yugi hesitated. "I-" Don't know. "We... We need to find the leader of the camp, or whoever's organising things. We need to figure out if we're staying here, or if we can reunite people with families, and also if there are better areas than here within travelling distance. We should also see if we can hold a memorial service for Rally. Talk to Bakura about that."
Yami nodded. "He'd like that."
"I think so." Yugi took a breath and walked back into the building. "Let's go."
It had been a week.
Yugi closed his laptop. They struggled for food and water, but electronics? Oh, yeah, no problem, mate. Here's the Wi-Fi password.
Not that he was complaining.
Well, no. He was. But not about having internet.
"Is everyone here?"
"Bakura's still at the grave," Ryou murmured. He had begun talking more, and Bakura was talking less. No one blamed him.
He woke up screaming some nights. No one but Ryou could calm him down.
"Should we just go?" Atem asked after a few seconds. "We don't know how long he'll be."
"Shut up." Akefia shot him a glare. "Rally was his friend. They were our friend. Bakura has a right to fucking mourn him- sorry, them – after their funeral."
Atem didn't engage the glare. "I just meant we should get this done with."
"Oh, did you have somewhere else to be?" Akefia sneered. "Forgive us for taking your precious time, Mr. King."
"Akefia." Heru elbowed him.
Akefia folded his arms and sat back in his seat. "We're waiting for him."
"You don't have to." Bakura trudged into the room. "I'm right here." He dropped into the seat beside Ryou. He looked like shit – hair matted to his head with rain and grease, clothes black and baggy and worn, face pale, eyes bloodshot, hands shaking.
Yugi quickly looked away. "You've all been raising some... concerns about where we're staying."
Anzu shrugged. "Seems good to me."
"Yeah, cause you're straight."
"No, I'm not."
"Or hetero-romantic, or whatever you call it." Marik rolled his eyes.
Anzu frowned at him. "I'm asexual and aromantic."
"Well whoopee for you."
"Marik." Yugi's tone was warning.
"What?" Marik scowled at him. "I'm just saying, they all think she's straight so they don't have a problem with her."
"Who's they?" Yugi sighed.
"The entire camp by the looks of it," Heba replied. "It was fine until they started realising most of us are LGBT."
"And?" Yugi prompted.
"And then it turned to shit." Mehi crossed her legs. "One guy tried to grab my crotch."
"Wait, what?"
She rolled her eyes. "I was making people feel uncomfortable-"
"Purposely," Sid cut in.
"That doesn't matter." She waved him off. "I was making people feel uncomfortable and one guy didn't believe that I was trans because 'I'm hot'. So he tried to grab my crotch and pull down my jeans for proof."
"I feel like that was taken out of context." Yugi pinched his nose.
"Hey-"
"I'm not excusing it. You know I wouldn't do that." Yugi shook his head. "But why were you even trying to make them uncomfortable?"
"They were being pricks." Mehi shrugged. "All I did was say I was trans while wearing a skirt. Not my fault if that makes them uncomfortable."
"Okay, just-" Yugi groaned. "Just try to stay away from that guy. I'll see if I can... Fuck, I don't know. Has everyone been getting similar reactions?"
"Like, they're not denying us anything we need." Jounouchi draped an arm over the edge of his chair. "But they sure as hell aren't being civil."
"One girl told me it was 'people like me' that did this to the world by angering the gods," Shizuka mumbled.
"But we're the ones that did this," Yugi protested. "People were saying this for years – even before we were taken into the ICU."
"You think we don't know that?" Mana scoffed. "Try telling that to these guys. They're still convinced the gods are controlling everything with divine intervention and this all happened because Japan is a sinful country, and Earth is a sinful world."
"We got unlucky." Seto was staring at the ground. "They were the only ones who responded to the email. And they're the only conservative group of survivors in Odaiba."
"Why did they say it wasn't the way it is?" Mokuba asked.
"Because they wanted more gatherers." Seto gritted his teeth. "Or people or medics or something. I don't know, Mokuba."
Yugi ran a hand through his hair. "Okay..." He took a breath. "Can you put up with it?"
"What?"
"You're fucking kidding me."
"They're assaulting us!"
"They're insane!"
"I'm not staying here!"
"They're not that bad."
"They are to us!"
"Just for a little bit more," Yugi insisted. "We have shelter, food, water, and connections. We need to find ways to communicate with family. We need to find family, and hometowns, and everything. And we need time. Just give it a week, and if it's still this unbearable, I promise you that we'll leave. Okay?" Everyone looked around. "Okay?" A few seconds later, nods of approval ran through the group. "Good." Yugi sighed and stood up. "I'm going to go talk to Akatsuki again." The unofficial leader. "I'll see if I can sort things out with him. After that, I'll do my best to find families and towns quickly." He walked out of the room. "Meeting adjourned."
Yugi sighed and crossed the last name off the list. "You're certain all of these towns are gone?"
Akatsuki nodded. "Yup. You can check Google maps if you don't believe me."
Yugi ran a hand through his hair. "No, I do. It's just..." He sighed. "It's just... really sudden. We emailed you thinking that everything was the same as it was when we left."
Akatsuki nodded. A grimace passed his face. "I know. And I'm sorry that we lied to you, but it was something we had to do. You understand. Right?"
Yugi stood. "I'm going to need transportation for these six." He didn't answer the question. He needed favours right now. Not enemies.
The leader hesitated. "Well..."
Yugi frowned. "What?"
"Transportation may be somewhat of an issue."
"How?"
"We told you everything was fine because we need more gatherers." Akatsuki bridged his fingers. "Other groups in Odaiba don't work with us because of our... ethics."
"Stop groping people and that might change," Yugi muttered under his breath.
"What was that?"
"I said I can't imagine why."
Akatsuki hummed. "Well, that means we can't get food and water very easily."
"And yet you have an abundance of computers and phones." Yugi raised an eyebrow. They weren't as good as the ICU ones, but they were good. Really good.
"Essential in this day and age." Akatsuki shrugged. "Some need them to contact family. Others need it for meditation music, prayers, groups-"
"Okay, but why does that influence these people getting home?" Yugi snapped. "We've been away for eight years, and most of their home towns are gone. We know for a fact that these families are still in their home towns, and we have their contact information. Why can't you lend us some of your six helicopters?"
"They're for emergencies."
"Like collecting us?" Yugi raised an eyebrow.
"Yes." Akatsuki held his gaze. "Would you rather we have left you with your friend? What was his name, Rally Dawson?"
"Not he. They."
"I'm not getting into this with you." Akatsuki folded his arms. "I understand that our groups have different ethical beliefs, but we need you."
"For food and water?" Yugi snorted. "Try trading for it. Your laptops. Phones."
"They're-"
"About as essential as the sixth emergency helicopter." Yugi stood up abruptly. "If you don't give us the transportation, you'll be losing a lot more than six."
"If we're not giving you transportation for six, what makes you think we're going to give you enough for all of you to leave?" Akatsuki stood to. He towered over Yugi.
But Yugi held his ground. "We can just go to another section of Odaiba. It's not that long of a journey considering we've been working towards this for eight years."
Akatsuki gritted his teeth. "We can't afford to waste the resources needed to drop your friends off to their families in France."
Yugi closed the laptop and stormed out of the meeting room, right back to the dorm that the group had been staying in.
Everyone was ready to go. He had asked them to be before going into the meeting – just in case things turned sour. "Are you ready to go?"
Nearly everyone nodded. Nearly.
He looked over Anzu, Honda, and Otogi. "Where are your bags?"
Honda and Otogi shared a look. Anzu swallowed. "Yugi... we're going to stay."
Yugi had to take a breath. "What?"
"We're out." Otogi shook his head. "This is what we wanted. We're free."
"And we're tired." Honda shrugged. "We're... I'm not as strong as you guys are. I'm not cut out for this kind of thing. I just... I just want to stay here."
Yugi took another breath. "And you two feel the same?"
Otogi nodded. Anzu looked away. "Sorry, Yugi."
"Don't be." Yugi couldn't look at her either. "If you want to stay, you want to stay. I'm not going to force you to come with us." He glanced around to the others. "Is everyone else ready?" This time, everyone did nod.
Anzu took a step forwards, her arms rising, and then falling. "Good luck," she mumbled.
Yugi closed the distance and wrapped his arms around her. "You too," he whispered. Her arms wound around him and squeezed him tightly. When they separated, Yugi's vision was blurring. "L-" He cleared his throat. He knew if he had kept talking, his voice would have cracked. "Let's go."
He looked back every few seconds as they left the old hotel. He could see Anzu, Otogi, and Honda waiting at the doors until they couldn't make the three out from the background behind them anymore.
The attendant frowned out at them. "Twenty-one?"
"Yeah, that's right." Yugi nodded. "Have you got accommodation?"
"I do." He scratched his stubbly chin with two fingers. "I have two rooms that should fit all of you. I'll need names though."
Yugi sighed. "Can you put them all under the same name?"
"No can do. Policy." The man gave them a brown-toothed smile. "Names please." He didn't come across a problem until he reached Mehi. "You'll be going into the boys' dorms then?"
Mehi hesitated. "Uh, no." Her voice was quiet. "The girls'."
He frowned. "What was your name again?"
"Mehi Kosey."
"What about your legal name?"
Mehi scowled at the dark, rotting check-in desk. "Mehi Kosey."
"Yes, but-"
"She'll be sleeping with the girls," Mana interrupted, though they weren't planning on splitting up based on gender. "Now, since she's the last, can we have our keys?"
The man seemed hesitant, but he handed over the keys. "If you're in any trouble, you can use the phone by the beds," he called after them.
"We won't," Mana called back. Mehi's teeth were gritted but she walked with her head high. "Prick," Mana muttered as she handed out the keys to the rooms. "Don't lose these. I don't want to have to deal with him again."
"Just don't lose them." Yugi shook his head. "We can't afford to draw any attention to ourselves. The ICU could come looking for us."
"None of the leaders took a day off in eight years," Akefia scoffed. "They're not going to come for us."
Yugi glanced at him. "No one escaped in eight years either." No one had a response. He pressed the elevator button. "I found some towns and city areas in the old camp that some people lived in, and I managed to locate a few families from surnames."
"Whose?" Heru asked, suddenly far more interested in the conversation than Yugi had ever seen him.
Yugi looked away. "Miho, Sid, Seto and Mokuba, Ryou, Jounouchi and Shizuka, and Marik." He paused. "And... and me."
Heru looked away again. He tried to feign boredom, but Akefia wrapped an arm around him and the other hid his face in his shoulder.
"We'll work to find everyone else's families too," Yugi assured him. "This was a first search based on areas more than names. Don't worry."
They should worry. Based on percentages alone, everyone's families being alive and well was practically impossible.
"So what do we do?" Ryou asked as the elevator doors opened. They all piled in. The elevator barely fit them, and they were just under capacity.
Yugi pressed the button for the sixth floor. The buildings in the south side were much taller and a bit more frequent than the east. "We have a phone, and I got contact numbers." He rifled through his pockets and pulled out the phone and a sheet of paper. "Who wants to go first?"
Jounouchi glanced at Shizuka, and back at Yugi. "I don't think we'll try," he murmured. "Our family..." He trailed off.
Yugi nodded. "That's okay." He looked at Seto.
The Russian boy shook his head. "Mokuba and I are fine on our own. I don't think we'd be welcome back anyway."
"Well if no one else wants to, I do." Sid held out his hand.
Yugi passed him the phone and the sheet. Everyone tried to watch subtly as he punched in the number next to his name and rang. The doors opened and they piled out as someone on the other end picked up.
Sid took a shaky breath. "Hello?"
"Hello? Who is this?" The other end was loud and clear. It was an old Nokia – indestructible, but useless when it came to volume and settings. They couldn't turn it down.
"It's... It's Sid."
"I don't know anyone called Sid."
"Mom, it's..." He tried to lower his voice, but everyone heard him. "It's Ella."
The woman on the other end paused. "Ella?" She sounded shaky.
"Well, yeah." Sid swallowed. "I... I'm in Japan."
"Ella, how did you get all of the way over there? Where have you been?"
"I... My name's Sid, mom."
"Never mind that, Ella; where have you been? That's more important to me! I want to know where my daughter has been!"
Sid swallowed hard. "I'm not your daughter." He stared at his feet. "You haven't had one. I'm Sid."
His mother paused. "Well I don't have a son either." A beep sounded.
Sid blinked a few times. Everyone suddenly seemed very busy trying to do anything but look at him. He thrust the phone at Yugi and turned away.
Mehi caught his arm. "She's a bitch. Don't do something stupid because of her," she muttered.
Sid snorted. "Why do you care?" He muttered. "I was an asshole to you. Thought you'd be glad to see me go."
Mehi shrugged. "We're all in this together."
Sid yanked his arm away but didn't try to leave. "That's cheesy as shit."
"Yeah, well what are you going to do?" Mehi raised an eyebrow. "C'mon."
After a moment, Sid turned back around and walked through the group to one of the doors. He opened it with his key, walked inside and left the door open. Yugi sighed and looked around. "Who's next?" His eyes landed on Miho as she tried to follow Sid into the room. "Miho?"
She paused and looked up at Mai. Mai smiled at her and squeezed her hand. After a second, Miho looked up at Yugi and shook her head. "M-Miho n-n't g'd wi'h phones," she mumbled, trying to force a smile. "'Nd mama no like Miho's talk. I stay wi'h Mai."
Yugi nodded. "That's okay, Miho." He turned to his two oldest friends from the ICU. The only ones left in the hallway with him. "Marik? Ryou?"
Ryou looked down. "I feel bad saying no," he mumbled. "So many people want to see their families again."
"But the ones who didn't happened to get the chance?" Yugi finished.
Ryou nodded. "I might call later, but..." He shook his head. "I don't know. My father and I didn't end on good terms before the ICU."
Yugi nodded. "That's understandable." He turned to Marik. "Do you?"
If he said no, Yugi could call his Grandpa. He had the number. He could do it.
And he knew Marik knew it too. But he could see the longing in the other's eyes, and he smiled softly as he handed him the phone. "Ring them."
"You sure?" Marik asked. "I can go after you."
Yugi shook his head. "It's okay. You go first."
Marik nodded and took the phone. He stared at the number for a few moments before punching it in. Mehi glanced out of the room. "You guys coming?"
Ryou nodded at Marik as he led Yugi into the room. Mehi followed his nod as the phone began to ring. She hesitated before stepping out into the hall, taking Marik's hand, and squeezing it.
Marik smiled slightly and returned the squeeze as someone picked up.
"Amasis, it's meant to be my day off. And why did you switch numbers again?" Marik froze. "Amasis?" He heard the girl huff. "Amasis, are you there?"
"I-Isis?" He choked out.
A pause. "Who is this?" Marik swallowed and opened his mouth, but nothing came out. "Hello? I'm an officer at Cairo police station, and if-"
"You're a police officer?" Marik laughed slightly. He released Mehi's hand, covering his mouth.
"Why is that funny to you?" She hissed. "Who is this?"
"Is-Isis, it's..." He swallowed, lowering his hand again. "It's Marik."
There was a pause. "Marik? As in... Marik Ishtar?" Her voice was shaking.
Marik squeezed his eyes shut and nodded. "Y-Yeah. We... I'm sorry, we just got out and Yugi found you and-"
"Where are you, Marik?"
"I-I'm in Odaiba in Japan. I'm... not really sure how far that is from Cairo, or-"
"It doesn't matter." Isis let out a breath. "Okay, Marik, we're going to find the nearest port to you. We're coming to get you, okay? Me and Rishid. Don't-don't you dare go missing again."
"I won't," Marik whispered. Mehi wrapped an arm around him. "Gods, Isis, I... I've missed you so, so much..."
"We've missed you too, Mar." He heard her clear her throat. When she spoke again, her voice was a little stronger. "Don't move from where you are. We'll be there by Friday. Okay? We'll take a helicopter and-"
"Okay." Marik nodded. "Okay, I just... Okay. I'll see you then." He heard rustling. "Were you in bed? Did I wake you?"
"I'm fine, I needed to get up soon anyway," Isis assured him. "I need to go – I'm going to call in a few favours at work. We're coming to get you."
No matter how many times she said it, it didn't seem real. "Thank you." Marik swallowed. "I love you."
"I love you too, Marik. I'm sorry I never said that to you before you left." A pause. "I'll ring you back when we're about to leave. I love you," she repeated.
"You too," Marik murmured. "I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?"
"Yeah. Tomorrow. I promise." Another pause. "Bye." She sounded hesitant, like she didn't want to hang up.
Marik did it for her. "Bye." He gripped the phone tightly as he hung up. "She's coming."
"I know." Mehi held him closer.
Marik looked up at her. "Would... Would you come with me?"
Mehi hesitated. "I don't want to find what's left of my family."
"That's okay, you don't need to," Marik assured her. "But... I-I can't... I can't just leave everyone after eight years. I can't leave you."
Mehi held him closer. "It's okay. I'll go with you as long as your family doesn't mind."
Marik looked up at her, hesitant now. "I... I don't want to force you into doing anything..."
"You're not," Mehi assured her. "I want to go with you. I don't know Japan, or anywhere but Egypt. Hell, I barely even know Egypt. I can't make a life here."
Marik smiled slightly and leaned up, pecking her lips. "I love you."
"You too," she murmured, "You nerd. Come on, we should give the phone to Yugi and find whatever port your sister was talking about."
Marik nodded in agreement and they made their way into one of the rooms.
The floors and walls were made of musty-smelling wood, and the beds were shoved up against the walls, five on either side. The window was narrow and covered by a ragged piece of cloth in lieu of a curtain, and the bathroom was right behind the main door. From its placing, they were sharing it with at least one other room.
Yugi looked up as Marik entered the room. "How'd it go?"
Marik cleared his throat. "My sister's coming to get me and Mehi at the closest port to where we are by Friday. I'm not really sure what time, but..." He couldn't hide his smile. "I'm going home."
Yugi grinned. "That's great, Mar." He looked at Mehi. "You're going with him?" Mehi nodded. "Perfect." He glanced around. "Atem, Yami, Heru, Heba, you're all from Egypt too. Do you want to go with them?"
Yami shook his head. "I think I'll stay."
Atem hesitated. "Yeah. Me too." He looked at Heba.
Heba refused to meet his gaze. "If it's okay," he spoke carefully, "I think I want to go home too. I miss my family and I want to find them."
Atem took his hand and gave it a squeeze. "That's fine," Yugi assured him. "Heru?"
"I'm not sure," Heru admitted after a minute. "I need to think about it."
"That's also fine. If you miss the boat and want to go, we'll arrange something." Yugi took the phone as Marik passed it to him. "I'm just-"
"Go ahead," Ryou assured him. "We're fine. Call him."
Yugi nodded and scurried out into the hall. He took a breath and checked the paper before dialling the number. It rang five times before someone picked up.
"Hello?"
Yugi swallowed. "Granpda?"
He heard a gasp. "Yugi? Yugi, is that you?"
"Yeah, it's... it's me." Yugi licked his lips. "I... I don't know what you know, but... I'll explain everything when I see you. I'm just... I'm back."
"Where are you?" Sugoroku Mutou asked. "I'll come and find you."
"I'm in southern Odaiba in a hostel. Where are you?"
"Tokyo, but it doesn't matter. I can come and get you once I get a car – or I can walk it. What street are you on?"
"We're... We're on the street where the Hilton used to be." Yugi gritted his teeth. "I miss you," he whispered.
"I miss you too, Yugi," Sugoroku murmured, "but we'll be together again soon, okay? I'm not going to leave you."
Yugi sniffed. "Thanks, Grandpa." He hesitated. "Can you talk or are you stuck for time?"
"I haven't heard from you in eight years," Sugoroku scoffed. "Anything else can wait."
Yugi smiled sheepishly. "There's someone I want you to meet at some stage."
"Bring them with you," Sugoroku laughed. "If they're your friend, I want to meet them. What's their name?"
"Yami," Yugi replied, "and he's... a bit more than a friend."
There was a pause. "Well? Don't leave me hanging here, Yugi, I want to know more about him!"
Yugi laughed. "He's really nice, and funny, and he loves games as much as we do, and-"
Ryou sat in the doctor's office, not looking at Bakura. "I'm fine," he mumbled. "We don't need to be here."
"Yes we fucking well do." Bakura folded his arms. "You collapsed."
"I didn't collapse. I tripped."
"You've been dizzy the past few days, you've been sick, you haven't been sleeping, and you had to stop three times when we climbed up two flights of stairs," Bakura listed. Ryou's shoulders hunched. Bakura squeezed the limp hand in his grip. "I'm not trying to make you feel bad-"
"Yeah, well you're succeeding." Ryou didn't pull his hand away, but he looked at the wall, turning the back of his head to Bakura.
Bakura gritted his teeth. "I just want to make sure you're okay," he muttered. "We've already lost enough people this week. I don't want to lose you too because we overlooked something stupid."
After a moment, Ryou turned back to him. "You're not going to lose me," he murmured. "I promise."
"You don't know that." Bakura swallowed. "That's why we're here."
Ryou squeezed his hand. "You're not going to lose me," he repeated.
Bakura didn't speak for a minute. "Yeah, well we didn't think that we'd lose Rally, Anzu, Honda, and Otogi in a week but look what fucking happened." He squeezed his eyes shut. "They're gone. And they're never coming back."
"We don't know that." Ryou reached over and cupped Bakura's cheek. "Anzu, Honda, and Otogi might come back. They just needed a break-"
"Yeah, but what about Rally?" Bakura snapped, looking up at him. "They're never coming back. And that's our fault."
"No, it's not." Ryou shook his head. "We couldn't stop them getting shot, Bakura." The other didn't reply. "You couldn't have stopped it."
Bakura sniffed. "Yeah, I guess." He let out a shaky breath. "Still. I'm not going to lose you like we lost them." Though he tried to mean all four, Ryou knew he only meant Rally.
And he couldn't bring himself to fight his partner anymore. "Okay."
A few minutes later, the doctor walked into the office. Dr. Sayuri. "Bakura Ryou?"
"That's him," Bakura replied, rubbing one eye.
Ryou nodded. He had his paper and pencil ready. He was getting better at talking around the others – he didn't have much of a choice. But he didn't like talking to strangers.
Dr. Sayuri sat behind his desk and set a manila file down in front of them. "I couldn't find any trace of your medical history prior to eight years ago."
Bakura scoffed. "Yeah, they were probably wiped." If they were even kept on a computer.
Dr. Sayuri hummed. "You were among the ones taken from the facility, yes?" Ryou nodded. "Did you have adequate medical care there?"
"We had free medical care most of the time," Bakura replied. "Ryou didn't want to go on chemo though."
"I can see that." He nodded. "I'm very sorry, but I'm going to need to keep this brief. I have to deal with a lot of cases every day, and today is worse than usual." This didn't sound good. "Bakura-san, I'm afraid the cancer has grown, multiplying at the top of your spine and in your brain."
Bakura gripped Ryou's hand tightly. "Without the medical bullshit, what does that mean?"
Dr. Sayuri took off his glasses, cleaned them, and put them back on before replying. "It means that Bakura-san only has a few weeks to live." He looked at Ryou. "At most. We could even be looking at a fortnight or less."
"What if he started chemo?" Bakura asked before Ryou could write anything.
Ryou tugged his hand slightly, and shook his head when he had Bakura's attention.
Dr. Sayuri sighed. "Without his consent, we can't administer any form of chemotherapy. And even with it, there would be no guarantee that he would live for much longer." He stood. "I'm very sorry, but I have another appointment."
When he left the room, Bakura turned to Ryou. "Why won't you just go on chemo?" He snapped.
"You heard what he said," Ryou mumbled. "There isn't even a guarantee that I'll live longer. And I don't want to spend my last few weeks drugged up and asleep more than I'm awake."
"But..." A tear dripped from Bakura's eye. "But I-I-I c-can't lose you, Ryou. I ca-can't..."
Ryou pulled him close, squeezing his eyes shut as Bakura sobbed into his shoulder. "You won't. You won't, I promise."
"But I-I fucking will," Bakura hissed, even as his body shook. "You-You're dying."
"I..." Ryou bit back a sob. "I know," he whispered.
"I can't lose you. I-I-I can't," Bakura repeated. "I can't, I can-an't, I-I c-can't."
Ryou could only hold him closer, tears sliding down his cheeks and falling onto Bakura's shoulder. "I'm sorry..." He choked out. "I don't know what to do..."
"G-Go on the f-fucking chemo," Bakura hissed, his hands winding around Ryou's waist and clinging to him. "Please. P-Please."
But Ryou shook his head. "I... I'm sorry," he repeated. "I'm so, so sorry." His arms tightened around Bakura. "But I won't leave you. I promise."
"Don't." Bakura shook his head. "D-Don't prom-omise that. Y-You wo-won't have a ch-cho-choice."
Marik looked up again, shuffling from foot to foot. He could see and hear the helicopter drawing closer, but his siblings were a few minutes away yet.
"What if they're not okay with... this?" He whispered.
Mehi raised an eyebrow. "With this?"
Marik gestured to himself. His dress was more formal than any Mehi had seen him in to date – they had picked it up at the market. It had two parts; one under the lace, strapless, dark purple, and one lace with swirling patterns, sleeves clinging to his skin and lighter than the inside. A dark purple ribbon wound around his waist, tied in a neat bow, and with the dress, he wore gold heels and his usual jewellery. "What if they're not okay with me?"
Mehi took his hand and squeezed it. "Then they don't deserve you in their lives."
"I'm serious, Mehi." Marik shook his head. "They're my siblings; I can't... I can't just cut them out. I've been missing for eight years."
"And in those eight years, you've grown into yourself." Mehi shook her head. "You're not the same person you used to be. You're not the brother that they lost eight years ago. But you're still their brother. And from what you've told me, they're not the kind of people to disregard that."
"I know, but..." Marik looked out at the helicopter again. It was closer. The wind was picking up as it began to land. "You know the kind of place we grew up in. What if- what if-" He looked around. Heru, Akefia, and Heba were a little way back. Atem and Heba had already said goodbye. Heru still wasn't certain if he wanted to go. "What if this was a mistake?"
"Even if this ends horrifically," Mehi began, "which it won't, it won't have been a mistake because at least you got to see them again and know that you didn't miss this chance."
After a minute, just as the helicopter touched the ground and the wings began to stop, Marik nodded. "I hope you're right."
Mehi smiled at him. "I am. Trust me."
Marik took a breath and nodded as the door opened two people stepped out.
The first was a man. Initially, he looked bald, but when he turned to help the second person out, a dark, long, and narrow ponytail hung from his head. He wore a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, which made his tattooed, strong-jawed face look odd. Like someone had taken the head off a Joker Lego figure and put it on a child figure's body. He scanned the pier, his eyes landing on Marik. He stared, a smile spreading across his features, giving him a less menacing appearance.
The second person that stepped off was a woman. She wore a black shirt-and-pants uniform, and her hair hung around her chin in a neat, dark bob with a braid on either side to keep her bangs back. An armband was stitched onto her left sleeve – Mehi recognised the uniform from the man that had brought her into the station and talked to her when she left the tomb. The Cairo Police Department. She walked with her back straight up the pier, the man behind her. Her shoes were black, flat, and polished, and though she didn't have any weapons, she had an aura that made it feel like she was pointing a gun directly between Mehi's eyes.
When she reached them, she stopped. She didn't even glance at Mehi. "Marik?"
Marik blinked a few times. "I-Isis?"
Isis brought up a hand, cautious, cupping Marik's cheek. A small smile crept over her face. "You look so much like our mother used to."
Marik swallowed and threw his arms around her. "Gods, I've missed you so much," he whispered, burying his face in her shoulder.
Isis' arms wound around him, holding him tight. She looked like she never planned to let go of him. "I've missed you too." She squeezed her eyes shut. "So, so much."
Marik looked up at the man, standing a little behind his sister. "Rishid?"
Rishid smiled at him, feeble. "What's green, fuzzy, and hurts if it falls on you?" Marik stared at him. "A pool table."
"For gods' sake, Rishid," Isis groaned, reluctantly releasing Marik. "You haven't seen him for eight years and the first thing you do is make one of your terrible jokes?"
"They're not terrible!" Both Marik and Rishid spoke, the former laughing as he ran up to his brother and hugged him just as fiercely as he had his sister.
As the two brothers hugged, Isis turned to Mehi, an eyebrow quirked. "And who's this?"
Marik pulled away from Rishid, though the taller man kept an arm around him. "Isis, Rishid, this is Mehi. She was in the same place I was."
"And you two are... friends?" There was a knowing smile on Rishid's lips.
Marik coughed. "We've been dating for... a few months now."
"And is she coming with us to Cairo?" Isis asked.
Marik looked at her. "We were hoping that she could stay with us? Even just for a while."
"If it's okay with you," Mehi hastened to add.
Isis moved slowly as though to gauge Mehi's reaction to her before pulling her into a hug. Not as tight as she had Marik, but just as warm. "Welcome to the family, Mehi." To Marik, seeing his five foot nothing sister pull his six foot something girlfriend into a hug was the best thing he had seen in his life. "You can stay as long as you want."
Mehi smiled as Isis pulled back. "Thank you so much."
Isis returned the smile and looked up as Akefia, Heru, and Heba walked onto the pier. "And I assume these are just along for the ride?"
"I definitely am," Heba confirmed.
Heru swallowed. "I'm not sure yet."
"Well we're going to need to go," Rishid replied. "We're meant to be back in Egypt by Sunday. Technically we're not even meant to be out this far, and we want to be as far as possible from here by sunset."
Ah, yes. At sunset, the water absorbed too much heat and could reach boiling temperatures. He and Akefia had found that out the hard way. It made him hide a giggle, though they had both been screaming at the scalding water at the time.
Heba nodded and walked towards the helicopter. The three siblings and Mehi began to follow him.
Heru hesitated and looked up at Akefia. "I'm sorry," he whispered.
Akefia shook his head. "Don't be." He wrapped his arms around him and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. "We might see each other again. I just need to stay with Bakura for now. He needs me."
Heru nodded. "I know." He rested his forehead against Akefia's. "Thank you. For everything."
"Thank you too." Akefia smiled softly and kissed him once more before releasing him. "Go on, get back to Cairo." Heru nodded and gripped his bag tightly as he walked away.
As the helicopter's engine started, he waved to Akefia.
"I love you!" He thought he saw the other mouth through the glass.
And even if he didn't say it, Heru responded. "I love you too!"
What Heru knew he didn't imagine was the smile on Akefia's face, and the tears falling down his cheeks. And pretty soon, tears were dripping from his own grinning features.
Yugi's eyes flashed open. He didn't move, but his eyes flickered from side to side. Something wasn't right.
He lay there in silence for a moment, trying to listen to the slightest sounds. He could hear the murmurs of the television blaring from one of the rooms downstairs, and Mana's snores.
They had shoved all of the beds into the one room when Marik, Mehi, Heru, and Heba had left for Egypt. The knowledge that they weren't going to be together for much longer was setting in.
Sid muttered something in his sleep and rolled onto his side. His bedsprings creaked under his weight.
There! What was that, a creak? Maybe someone was in the bathroom?
He sat up, rubbing one eye, and swung his legs over the side of the bed. It was better to check. They had lost a phone from carelessness. If it was just a petty thief, it was better to catch them and give them some loose change than lose something else.
He moved as quietly as possible. Some of the group were light sleepers – not as light as him, albeit – and a single floorboard creaking could wake them.
He reached the bathroom without incident and pushed the door open. The light was off. He frowned. Odd.
Oh, right. Marik and Mehi were gone – they were the only reason that the light was left on overnight. They both freaked if it was completely dark.
Yugi flicked on the switch. A tall figure stood only a few inches from him.
Pale skin. Crimson eyes. Pointed nails. Black hair. A smirk.
It's not just a dream.
"Hello, Yugi."
Yugi shrieked and everyone jolted awake.
Yami cursed and Atem reached for the gun under his pillow that wasn't there anymore – not since they left the ICU.
Yugi stumbled back as guards spread out from the bathroom. Zorc grabbed his wrist. "You're coming back with us."
Bakura grabbed the phone and punched in one one nine as Ryou scrambled out of his bed in time to avoid being grabbed.
"All of you are coming back with us," Zorc announced as the bleary-eyed and groggy teens struggled to fight off the invaders. One of the guards tried to snatch the phone from Bakura as he yelled their address to the operator.
This seemed to hit them harder than the sudden attack.
"Like fuck we're going back," Jounouchi snarled, lunging at the guard trying to push Shizuka to the ground.
"Get off of her!" Mai reached around a guard and scratched his face with one hand, pulling his hair with the other. Miho squirmed underneath him, struggling to break out of his grip.
A gunshot echoed through the air as sirens slowly became audible. Miho screamed, but the fighting and struggling continued. No one seemed injured – a warning shot.
Miho wrenched away from the guard as he turned on Mai, shoving the blonde into the crowd. She grunted as she landed on the corner of a bed, pain exploding in her chest.
The door crashed open and a few shots were fired. For a few seconds, everything went silent. Mai looked up to see Zorc, an arm wrapped around Yugi's throat with a gun to his head. "Horakhty."
"Zircon." The leader of the police force had her gun levelled at Zorc's head. Her white-gold hair was tied up into a tight ponytail, and her dark eyes were narrow. "Let him go."
"That's not my name anymore, sister," he sneered, "and he's coming with me. In fact, all of them are."
"You're not getting these children again."
Zorc laughed. "And who's going to stop me? You?"
"What would father say?" Horakhty shook her head. That made Zorc stop laughing. "He called you Zircon because you were his gem."
"And he called you Horakhty because you were his god," Zorc hissed. "No matter what way you look at it, gems never match up to gods."
"Just let him go, Zircon."
"Don't call me that!"
No one knew who fired, but the shot was like a signal for the fighting to start again. Mai jumped up to her feet and barrelled into one of the ICU guards trying to attack Jounouchi from behind.
Ryou stabbed his fingers behind another's ear and they crumpled to the ground. A shot rang through the air, and Ryou staggered. Blood stained his pyjama top, and when he coughed, more spurted from his mouth.
Bakura wailed wordlessly as Ryou followed the guard to the floor. Neither of them got back up again.
Akefia pulled his brother away from Ryou despite the other's struggling. "Ryou! Ryou, get up! Please, you promised!"
"Bakura, you need to get out of here!" Akefia had to speak with a raised voice, even right next to his brother's ear. He set him down at the door. "Run!" But Bakura could only sob as Akefia disappeared into the frenzy again. An ICU guard grabbed him and he didn't struggle as he was hauled out of the room.
Yugi wormed through the fighting and grabbed Mokuba. "Let go!" Mokuba yelled until he saw who it was.
Yugi pressed a finger to his lips and led him threw the battle. He pulled Atem with them on his way. "Go!" He muttered as they reached the door.
Atem glanced back at the fight. "Yami-"
"I'll send more out after you, just run!" Yugi snapped, darting back into the crowd.
Yugi grabbed Miho's hand and tried to pull her through the crowd next but she jerked back and shook her head. "M-M-Mai!"
"I'll get her next – come on, Miho!"
"N-Non!" She cried. "J-Je-Je v-veux at-ttendre pour-our Ma-Ma-ai!"
"Miho!"
A guard spotted them and ran towards them, baton in his hand. Yugi darted away, but Miho just shrank down as he swung. He misjudged the distance and didn't manage to stop in time. His baton hit the window, cracking it, and he slammed into Miho. They both crashed into the window and it shattered.
Miho shrieked as she fell. Yugi didn't hear her hit the ground. He hated himself for not even looking when the screaming stopped.
He knew Mai did too. She was crying, but she was still trying to pull guards away and fight.
Yugi gritted his teeth but ran back into the crowd and led Akefia, Yami and Shizuka to the door. "Run!"
Akefia nodded. Bakura was already out, so all he needed to do was find him. Yami glanced at Yugi, but followed Akefia. Yugi would get out. Yugi had to get out. Yugi was invincible – he had proven it time and time again.
But just in case, he ducked behind the bins outside the hotel. He didn't move when he found Miho's body behind the same one.
He swallowed, reached down, and closed her eyelids. She deserved at least to be able to sleep now.
At the door of their room, Shizuka hesitated, torn between wanting to wait for Jounouchi and get out. A guard grabbed her and she screamed as he tried to cover her mouth.
She bit his hand as hard as she could and he cursed. "Fucking brat." He jerked her up by her chin and dropped her. She was dead before her feet hit the ground again.
Yugi grabbed Mai's hand next and tried to lead her through the crowd, but someone stopped him.
Zorc. His arms wrapped around Yugi and picked the struggling teen up with little trouble. "You're coming with us."
Mai growled and kicked the back of his knees. He stumbled, losing his grip on Yugi. Yugi twisted, kneed him in the face, and landed hard on the ground again. He was shaking – adrenaline rushing through him.
He had always thought it made you better – faster, stronger. Now, it made him want to sprint for the exit and leave everyone behind. It made his vision blur. It made him want to just go with Zorc.
Zorc glared at him, and he matched it.
"The Draughtsmen will never return to the ICU," he roared over the mayhem. "No matter what you do to us, no matter how many lives you take, we won't submit to you! Not anymore!"
Zorc yanked out his gun and pointed it at Yugi. "You will come back with us." Yugi stared down the barrel as Zorc clicked off the safety. "You will come back with us! Now move!"
Yugi looked up at him. He smirked. "You're just a dream."
Bang.
Bakura was the last to open his eyes although he was the first to wake. He had tried to fight. Waking, that is. He had tried to fight waking.
But, just like in regular fights, he lost. He looked around.
Mana. Mai. Keith. Sid. Jounouchi. Seto. Bonz. Ryou. They were the only ones left.
He had heard one of the guards talking when he had been the only one awake.
Miho, and Shizuka were dead. So was Rally. And Zygor, and Ushio. That took five out of their original twenty-six.
Twenty-one.
Marik, Mehi, Heru, and Heba were safe in Cairo by that stage. And Anzu, Honda, and Otogi were still with that group. The guards were still looking for them. That took another seven.
Fourteen.
Then there was them. That took out nine.
Five.
And none of them knew what happened to Yugi.
Four.
Four were still free in Odaiba. Or, further away. Hopefully they had left – if they knew what was good for them.
That meant the four in Odaiba that they were uncertain of and the seven that they knew were safe made thirteen free.
Thirteen out of the promised twenty-six.
"Where's Shizuka?" Jounouchi asked as he looked around. Mana sobbed, her shoulders shaking.
No one replied, but he took his answer from their silence.
"Mokuba?" Seto didn't look at any of them.
After a minute, Sid spoke. "He got out. If they didn't catch him, he's still safe."
If. That was a pretty fucking big if.
"What's going to happen now?" Bonz whispered. It echoed loud in the cell.
Keith stared at his feet. "Well they're not going to just send us to the zoo and then let us make our merry way back to our cubes after what we did." He shook his head. "We broke out. We burned the cubes. They've been looking for us for months – they killed Ushio and Zygor."
"And the others," Ryou added. No one asked him for specification.
"We're not getting out of this easy," Bakura muttered. "If we even get out of it."
Seto leaned his head back against the wall. "We were so fucking stupid." No one objected. "If we had just stayed, we'd be fine."
"But we didn't." Keith leaned forward, arms on his knees. "And I don't know about you guys, but I don't regret it. Yeah, we fucked up. But at least we got out. We know what's out there. No more questions, no more mysteries."
"That's all well and easy to say when you didn't lose somebody," Jounouchi snarled.
"Hey, lay off him!" Bonz frowned. "We all lost friends. Yeah, you lost your sister. But you're not the only one who loved her." Mana curled up in a small ball on the bench she sat on.
Jounouchi huffed and closed his eyes. "Whatever. It doesn't matter what they do anyway. We're fucked."
No one spoke again.
The door opened a few minutes later – or maybe it was hours; who even knew anymore?
"Everyone up."
Slowly, the eight clambered to their feet. Keith already had his hands out.
"Hands out."
The others followed his example and the guards began to cuff their hands together.
"Where are we going?" Mana tried to ask. The guard just tightened her cuffs and led her out of the room.
They each had one guard, and they were led down different hallways. Bakura kept his gaze straight ahead as they walked, only stopping when he was pulled to a halt so someone could open a gate or a door for them.
"Inmate Necro," the guard said to another as a gate was opened.
The guard scoffed. "Good luck with him," she muttered.
He could hear the smirk in the guard's voice. "He's harmless."
"Don't count on it," the second guard warned as she closed the gate behind them.
The guard's hand on Bakura's arm tightened and he dragged him to a halt outside a heavy metal door.
Bakura stared at it as it was opened.
The guard unlocked his cuffs and pushed him.
He rubbed his wrists and slowly stepped through the doorway, despite the shove. The walls were white and sterile clean, but the toilet in the corner of the room was grubby and smelled horrible.
The bed was similar to the ones in the hostel that they had slept in. When they were in Odaiba. Outside.
Bakura turned. The room was no bigger than eight feet either way. He heard someone scream further down the hall.
"Enjoy your stay," his guard sneered. Bakura turned to him. "It's going to be a long one."
The metal door slammed shut and the lock clicked.
Bakura sank to the floor. He wanted to cry, but nothing was coming out. He squeezed his eyes shut. When he opened them again, he was smiling.
"How did you get in here, Ry?"
Ryou smiled at him. "I snuck in through the door. I didn't want to leave you."
"Yeah, I get that, but I'm pretty sure you're meant to be in your room." He stood up and made his way over to the bed.
"Still, it's lonely here. I wanted to be with you. I promised I'd stay, right?" Ryou pointed out.
"Yeah, I know you promised, but-"
"Tell you what. You see that bulb?" He pointed up to it. "Break it and hold some toilet paper to it – it's down by the toilet. It'll catch fire. If there's fire, they have to let you out. I can sneak out and they'll bring you to my room. That way, we'll be together and we won't get in trouble if we're caught."
Bakura looked at his blanket and up at the light. The bulb was caged in, but was still reachable. "I don't think this is a good idea."
"All of my ideas work out," Ryou insisted. "Come on; I've thought this through. They can't just leave someone in here when there's a fire. It's isolation – not execution."
"They really don't like us."
"Because we got out. They're not going to kill us," Ryou promised. "They want to use us as an example." Bakura looked over at him. "They'll keep us around as long as possible to punish us so others will see it's not a quick end, see?"
"I... I guess so." Bakura chewed his lip. "Still, it seems dangerous. What if you're caught sneaking out?"
"I won't be." Ryou held out his hand. Bakura took it, and Ryou dropped it again. "Trust me."
Bakura sighed. "Okay, fine." He grabbed some tissue paper and stood on the edge of his bed. It took some stretching, but he managed to reach the bulb. He crushed the glass between his fingers and shoved part of the tissue into it.
A fire burst out of the paper and he drew it back. "You're sure this'll work?"
"Of course." Ryou's smile grew.
He sighed and dropped the tissue onto the blanket. The flames caught. "If you say so, Ry."
"I do."
Bakura walked over to the door and hammered on it. "Hey! There's a fire! Let me out; there's a fire!" He glanced back. It was spreading. "Ry, I'm not so sure..."
"Trust me, Bakura."
He swallowed. "Okay." He began hammering again. "Fire! Guys, there's a fucking fire in here! Let me out!" He looked back. Ryou was gone. "Ryou? Ryou, where are you?" He coughed and kept hammering. "Help! Let me out! Ryou!"
The viewing plate slid open and Ryou peered in at him.
Bakura smiled. "Ryou, let me out!"
Ryou returned the smile. "Trust me, Bakura. I won't leave you." The plate slid closed again, but the door stayed locked.
Yugi's leg jumped up and down in the taxi as he stared out the window. Yami placed his hand on it. "Calm down," he murmured. "You're going to injure yourself."
"I'm fine," Yugi insisted.
"You were shot at point-blank range in the chest. That's not fine."
Yugi looked up at his boyfriend. "They discharged me, didn't they?"
Yami hummed. "I still think they let you out too early."
"I know you do." Yugi looked outside again. "Are we nearly there yet?"
"Just about," the taxi driver called back to him. "Where do you want me to drop you?"
"Where the old Telecom centre was," Yugi replied. His leg began to jump again.
"I don't know why you're so nervous," Yami chuckled.
"I haven't seen him in eight years." Yugi looked up at Yami again. "What if he doesn't recognise me?"
"Your hair is pretty hard to mistake."
"I'm serious, Yami! Besides, you have the same hair as me."
"Yugi, your grandfather isn't going to mistake me for you," Yami assured him. "Especially not after I speak. He recognised you from your voice alone."
"I guess..." Yugi swallowed as the car pulled to a halt.
"That'll be eight hundred and sixty-seven yen," the driver requested.
Yami dug around in his pocket. "I'm forty short. Can I give you something instead?"
The driver sucked his teeth. "Pass over those apples and you've got a deal."
Yami handed him the money and the apples they had brought with them for lunch. It was fine. This was more important than lunch anyway.
Yugi was shaking as he pushed the door open and climbed out of the car. He waited for Yami on the pavement, reluctant to go inside.
"I don't think I can do this," he mumbled once Yami was out of the car.
Yami closed the door and the car pulled away from the curb. "You can."
Yugi shook his head. "I can't. I can't. Let's just go back to the hostel with the others-"
"Trust me." Yami turned Yugi to face him. "It will be fine. You've been waiting for this for years. Believe in yourself – don't let your doubts screw it up for you."
"I-I-I can't breathe," Yugi wheezed.
"Calm down." Yami leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. "You're okay. Okay?"
Yugi took a shuddering breath and nodded. "O-Okay." He nodded again. "Okay. Okay, let's... Let's go in." Yami took his hand and they walked onto the green area where the old Telecom centre used to be.
It took him a few minutes to find him – the area was fairly big and overgrown, and they had never decided on an exact meeting spot.
Once he spotted him, he stopped and stared. Yami nearly crashed into him.
Sugoroku Mutou sat on the bench, a bag of bread crusts in hand which he threw to the ground a few feet away from him. Birds swam up to him and pecked up the bread.
He chuckled and threw another piece. The bread landed on one of the birds' backs, leading to a spat with another duck which had him laughing harder.
Yami squeezed his hand and released it. "Go."
Yugi stepped cautiously over to the bench. He waited a few moments before speaking. "Grandpa?"
Sugoroku looked up. He was still the same as he had been eight years ago.
Pepper grey hair splaying out into a star shape like Yugi's, warm grey eyes surrounded by wrinkles – laughter lines, he called them – and dimples at the corners of his mouth that appeared when he smiled.
Like he was smiling now. "Yugi?"
Yugi swallowed and nodded, returning the smile. "It's... it's me." Sugoroku abandoned the bag on the bench and stood – he was still the same height, just a little shorter than Yugi – opening his arms. Yugi ran into them, burying his face in his grandfather's shoulder and inhaling the warm, familiar smell of cinnamon, dust, and cough syrup. "I-I missed you," he whispered, his body shaking.
Sugoroku rubbed his back. "I know," he cooed. "I missed you too, my boy." He held Yugi closer. "But it's okay. You're home now. You're home, Yugi."
Hahaha oh what fun. Now who's ready for one last round of feels? That's right guys. This isn't the end. We're onto the last chapter of Glass Coffins! Please vote and review. See you next time, Murdering Majestors!