Chapter 13- Protective Puppet
Luanne got out of the taxi after sneaking out alone to Queens Hospital where children with disability have their annual event. Although she wondered if Marik had read past her lie in sneaking out but she isn't one to be controlled. The boy she met five years ago is not in the position to determine where she goes. Besides she only got back from 'errands', finding the next Egyptian God Card by this mysterious lady over the Internet is indicative of her loyalty to the contract. The event was a quiet gathering and children with disability enjoyed her company.
The sky is dark and the streets are clearing from the day's hard work. It is still unknown why Odion of all people chose her to be part of this supernatural phenomenon.
A nurse came to Luanne, she smiled and handed her a note. "Luanne Khait, this is a note from a lady from the museum."
"Sorry, I don't think I have time for a lady to meet me up."
Back in the Khait Manor, Marik used his Millennium Rod to control a paramedic that was nearby. He could see Luanne was not confortable with meeting whoever she was talking to. Although Marik did not like following Luanne to this place, hopefully she wasn't here to escape him. His Mind servant ran to the nurse and said, "The lady she was meant to acquaint will endanger Luanne." Luanne furrowed her brow and gave the note back to the nurse. Marik watched triumphantly as the nurse excused them. He was lying on the bed with white wine for him to relax.
"Thanks Namuel Tahmoor, I appreciate that because I'm late for the event." Luanne said and a slight guilt as he remembered that that name was used to disguise Marik. Marik check the name on the servant and he burst out laughing. What a coincidence!
Luanne looked at the man, there was something peculiar about this man, and he looks lifeless this time, like he's sleepy or dazed and a gleam on his forehead of the oculus shape. "Well I better go now." Marik smirked inwardly as he followed her though the host's vessel.
"Erm Namu, don't you have a patient to attend to?" Luanne felt uneasy. Marik sighed and said decided to reveal himself though the man.
"Aren't you supposed to be asleep, otherwise going to Luxor will prove to be a difficult task." The voice of Namu has another sinister layer, sounded more like a sneer than an instruction. The host tilted his head and smirked suddenly grabbing her arm as the host dragged her.
She was about to scream until Namuel's hand muffled her mouth. "Seriously girl, you're going to wake the whole hospital."
"So you're still at the house?" Luanne was utterly confused.
"Yes, still in your home. I was meant to sleep until Odion asked me about your whereabouts. Just so you know, I can use my Millennium Rod to track your mind." Marik said through Namuel.
She growled, "Could you stop stalking me, what's wrong with attending a Christmas event?" Marik ignored her. "Let go of me!" Marik then saw some of his goons near at the hospital though Namuel's eyes.
"Shhh, if you want my lackey to take an advantage of you, I could arrange that. This way. Don't say a word, let me eavesdrop on them." Namuel covered Luanne's mouth once again. Marik was curious why they were there too. Luanne glanced at the group of Rare Hunters.
The boy with the dark robe started to speak in Arabic to another taller one. "I'm sure Master Marik will be pleased if we end the Khaits. Especially the girl with puffy locks, I plan to spoon her." Luanne was shocked and gasped."
"Master Marik will be pleased if we take the hospital she goes every year to attend." The taller one said holding a lady's hand. Her figure looks familiar. It was a high school popular chick cuddling the purple hooded figure.
"I hope your employer knows what he is doing. I want revenge on the Khait family." The other girl said seductively to the Rare Hunter. She kissed the tall one goodbye. Marik then tapped into the group of Rare Hunters minds and Luanne's. mind.
||"I think I will not be pleased about your pathetic suggestions, Harvey… I may be away but Odion is still in command, you fool! Unless you have forgotten my orders."||
"No M-Master."
||"Silence! You will not meddle with any of the Khait affairs and the hospital or else you all will be sent to the Shadow Realm. Have you all managed to obtain the Lava Golem?"||
"Y-yes, Master w-we have."
All of them could hear Marik's ascending chuckle, echoing in their minds. ||"Excellent! Now make sure you don't take another hostage from the museum when I return to the Valley of the Kings As it is not needed. I expect full cooperation in this task. In fact Ibrahim Feisal is still in our custody, until I obtain what is rightfully mine."||
Marik inside Namuel 's mind took Luanne's hand away from the crowd. He could see her tremble.
"Luanne, I really mean you no harm. Please stay here in the event until I come to get you. Now they have my word, they will not dare trifle with me" Marik communicated to her though Namuel.
"No please stay, I'm afraid…" Luanne embarrassedly admitted. Even though it wasn't really Namuel she wanted to be with someone.
Marik furrowed his brow through the controlled one, "So you like me as this host? You desire for me to control this body so that I many accompany you?"
"I don't need you here and I don't intend to follow you to Luxor…" Luanne bit her bottom lip as she told Marik though Namuel's soul window. Then Namuel's hand gripped on Luanne's chin tightly. She could tell Marik was angry.
"It wouldn't be prudent of you to turn back on your word, you're lucky I'm not here physically yet, or else I will drag you back and have you suffer the consequence." Marik threatened her.
Luanne pushed Namuel and saw a trolley with blankets and covered Namuel. That was enough to distract Marik. She ran through the hall way and to the crowd where the event was held.
Moments later, Luanne was talking to patients and the staff workers. They had the Christmas Carols playing most of the event and Luanne was helping with the cuisine. Marik was just at the entrance, this time unamused at Luanne last disclosed of her plan. He glared at her, as she was caring for another patient. Most of them were elderly, mentally disabled people and orphaned children. The girl with his Rare Hunter earlier, Nubit he remembers was there too. Nubit Khait who is Luanne's irresponsible sister sitting alone. His Rare Hunters are amongst the crowd.
His main focus was girl he had been spending most times with. A man bump into Marik, a man who many would consider an outcast to society giggled until Marik used his Millennium Rod by recalling an unpleasant memory. Suddenly grieving he fled and Marik was amused by how easy it was for him to manipulate a simpleton's mind. He strolled towards Luanne until a boy greeted her. He was mixed Asian with an Egyptian He was about their age as well. He decided to eavesdrop on their conversation as he used another mind slave of an elderly man to sit close to them.
"Hey Luanne, I heard you have been at the Government hearing and just came back."
"Yes I have, not the best trip… Listen could you contact any Authority if I'm not here tomorrow to know where I am?" Luanne said to the boy.
"Are you in trouble Luanne?" the boy was concerned with her.
"Eohan, my identity may have been leaked as I have spoken to an anonymous lady on the Internet. Other than that, the long story is like making a deal with a devil." She said it, she disclosed a rather cryptic deal.
"I guess that is part of Journalism right? You're on the right track." Eohan laughed.
"Yeah, anyway Merry Christmas." She smiled sadly still thinking about her encounter with Marik. Finding cards for him was never the best decision but she is more or less the bait for Marik's sister.
"Luanne, you look very beautiful tonight and Merry Christmas. Really appreciate you coming here" Eohan said and hugged her.
"Do you have any plans tomorrow Luanne?" Eohan asked.
Luanne was thinking about whether this was her childhood friend asking her out for once.
"Yeah I do have to travel again as a research assignment. It's part of the quirks of being a journalist and an editor after all. I am free if you rescue me." Luanne laughed.
"Sure how about the Giza Zoo? Not tomorrow but… ugh yeah, you do need to take your mind of work sometime next week to avoid any clash." Eohan suggested as he pulled out two tickets.
"Lock me in for this time next week." She smiled and checked the time. It was a little past midnight. She should leave and just as she was at the exit, she heard the familiar voice.
"So you have decided to come to Luxor?" The blonde boy she was talking to earlier sound more menacing. "I thought you have refused, after your blatant attempt on ditching my mind slave earlier and exchanging information with the boy about our little affair."
"Namu…" Luanne was rather confused until she realised the old man beside them was Marik. "…Or Eohan?"
"I said both! According to your brother you may have a thing for Seto Kaiba too. He is all the way in Japan and I doubt he is interested in an Egyptian child. Really my dear, my misrepresentation or the time we met isn't resolved." He restrained her to the wall.
"You look tired… perhaps, just perhaps your pinion on me right now isn't going to make our next journey easier." She leaned forward and spat on him. Marik pulled out and wiped his mouth vigorously. "You picked the wrong girl to mess with and yes we are both misrepresented from the first time we have met and it will only be resolved until we both go through hell with one another Joker… Namu." This could just be the beginning of her repartee.
Marik's face twisted at the mention of hell. At least the people he had ever encounter hell with were his siblings and soon he will bring hell to the one that initiated such terror upon the Ishtar Clan. "How well could you handle a 'hell-bent-life' situation if I inflict terror to you like ones to my Rare Hunters?"
"Like… levelling me with my failures are intolerable…? Well, since you have eavesdropped on my conversation with Eohan and you haven't sent me to the dimension you rave about yet… I don't know what your plans are for me."
"Just… don't disappoint me again. We are still going to Luxor-" Marik glanced at Luanne and saw a vehicle coming their way as he caught glimpses of them through her eyes.
"Marik, we have come to ask for Luanne's aid once more." He heard Odion.
"Why do you keep interrupting, you fool!" Marik screamed at the tattooed face servant. She ran to Odion as though he was the solution who was on a motorcycle with a sidecar.
"How may I help Rishid?" The vehicle was with another team of Rare Hunters she is not familiar with. Odion pulled out his phone and showed him the message an anonymous lady sent.
"'16MOTTE22' could you look up the security coding using this password?" Luanne looked at Marik who was already preoccupied with the rest of his Rare Hunters cowering before him. He was currently showing his dominance or rather 'hussy' as she like to put it.
"The lady did not send this password Odion, nor do I think any one knows about… unless Mr Feisal's message was an anonymous default and he was trying to find out who you guys are. May I take a moment…"? Luanne was starting to get stressed. She didn't have her laptop with her but miraculously, Odion pulled out a spare.
"…I said Luxor will be where it houses the next Egyptian God Card, if you fools make another error, I won't tolerate your incompetence." She could hear Marik hissing towards his Rare Hunters.
Coding was something she learnt in advance and a different kind of coding. Luanne realised this isn't just a complicated password. She knew it as though she knows how to hack systems. Odion was with her at the bonnet of the sidecar. The code only keyed in the date from the password. From 1622 to 26th 12= December. She tried again but nothing came up.
"Bison, you'll be the one to eradicate the Supreme Council of Antiquities. I trust you know how to enter the Luxor museum."
"Yes Master. We know ways of breaking in to the facilities."
"This will pull into place and-"
"Uhm- Marik?" Luanne asked
"What is it!?" Marik spun his heels and glared at Luanne.
"What is the other card called with the letters MOTTE? Might have to figure this out manually," Luanne asked
With the corner of his lavender eyes hesitated and said "Obelisk The Tormentor, I think we were leaked so I expect wherever the card is, were are not able to infiltrate smoothly." Marik scowled at Luanne, it was the girl that facing Ishizu this time will leave more traces on his next move. Perhaps she will follow him to Luxor. He smirked at how he is chasing her for the cards and she is chasing him back to stop him retrieving them. The Cat and Mouse game is most amusing to him
"I'm sorry…" Luanne said genuinely as she remembers she let her firewall of the computer unsecured as the entered Zifta. Odion then smiled at Luanne as she went back to work. Marik sighed as he watched his group of Ghouls wandering what they were meant to do.
Then Luanne verified a clear access as she entered into the Supreme Council of Antiquities Academic files. The code became "On the 26th of December will house Obelisk the Tormentor in Egyptian Museum…"
"Sir, we do not know any other places that will receive false CCTV signals. Lux-" One of his Ghouls said.
"Did I ask you to speak fondly about your incompetence, Sheik. Perhaps your foolish mother must have raised you in a sty of Cairo have made you accept rudimentary achievements." Marik fired back at the older man as his subject.
"I-it's not my place to speak, I'm s-sorry Master Marik.
"I can't believe these guys don't even know White op Methbot from Russia." Luanne mumbled cynically.
"I do Miss Khait." Odion said smiling again. Luanne showed Odion the information.
"Done!" Luanne kneeled next to Sheik. "Tell your Master that liaising with White op is the way." She nudged the acquainted Rare Hunter. Marik crossed his arms in amusement. His Rare Hunter was confused and despite Luanne's attempt to save his ass, he could feel the embarrassment escalating. "The reason why Russia will not share the security secrets is interesting as well. The police were scammed by the company last year… just play along man…"
"Now Sheik, I would like to hear your solution to our little problem. I this girl have outsmarted you in your resourcefulness? Perhaps I shall arrange a new department in the Shadows for you if you keep silent." The Egyptian blonde's voice was laced with ridicule.
"We will find assistance with the White op, sir… a-a simple way of preparing a footage that isn't real…" Sheik was failing his explanation too. Marik gave a death glare at him.
"I shall promote you to the Shadow-" Marik was indignant enough until Luanne said…
"Could I come too? Is it a department that I could learn more about your organisation?" She's now the centre of the joke.
"The Shadow Realm is not to be trifled with." He chuckled, being that she was the one that came over to talk to his subjects inappropriately. "Nor am I joking when I was 'Namuel' about arranging your demise."
"You have to stop treating women like objects, meaning I have a personal bubble." His hand curled in a fist as he grabbed hold of Luanne's elbow.
"Our little misrepresentation remains unresolved, if you want to save humanity… frankly this is the last place to be in my dear. I think I might meddle with you more not you have mentioned personal bubble." He laughed as she glared at him
Odion quickly showed his brother the newfound information before they are both in the subject of Marik's wrath, which will happen soon.
"So this is what Luanne found…? He said nonchalantly. Meeting his sister in a three-day-span isn't he enjoys.
"Duh.. I'm just gonna stay in the hospital until you finish your errands." Luanne rolled her eyes as she said it. She is acting more edgy because she wants to go home as soon as possible to sleep.
Odion on the other hand invited her into the sidecar. Reluctantly she hopped in while Marik kept his unwavering smirk."We don't have an appointment at home though my dear Luanne now do we?" Marik chuckled. She chose to ignore Marik. Luanne decided to ignore the twerp.
