Chapter XCVI: Fate
"Jaden…"
He didn't look over, but his head did tip in her direction. He kept staring at Sartorius, as if the hatchling were the most disgusting creature he'd ever laid eyes on. It wasn't hard to understand why, nor to comprehend the hatred she read in his expression as they stared at one another. The things he'd done were unforgivable even if she wished somehow otherwise. But she wondered then how much he'd blame on her, what she'd be punished for in turn.
She opened and closed her mouth, then managed a pathetic, "I'm sorry" as if it meant something. Sartorius scoffed and snickered and Jaden curled his lips back further with absolute outrage. She couldn't decide if it was aimed at her or him, and she was too afraid to ask.
"Make yourself useful, why don't you, Mother?" Sartorius spat. "Kill yourself to rid me the burden."
Jaden twitched, a flinch he couldn't suppress, and then sprang forward. The Divine grinned and raced forward to meet him. A split second before they made contact the Prime Material Dragon burst into flame. Sartorius snarled with annoyance as Jaden hit him directly under the belly and sent him flying backward. The hatchling hit the ground sizzling, streaks of black marring his dark scales. A burn wound oozed pus and the flesh hissed as it began to char. Jaden stood a few paces away, stepping back and forth restlessly as he considered his son.
Sartorius got up immediately, shaking himself out, but the wounds didn't heal and Yubel wondered if he hadn't inherited the trait from Jaden. That would have explained why he was so quick to inflict the kill blow rather than attempt to keep a fight going despite his bloodthirsty nature.
He hummed but didn't look over, eyes locked on Jaden as the God Dragon paced back and forth in front of him. His tail lashed as they considered each other. Steam billowed from the stone beneath the paws, the water almost completely gone despite the river that had once surged through the stone face.
Jaden tackled him full force a moment later. They collided with claws in each other's shoulders and Sartorius twisted to throw Jaden to the ground. His claws were posed to eviscerate again just as Jaden caught flame once more. Sartorius snarled with annoyance and sprang away again, hissing as his flesh sizzled. Jaden was on his paws immediately, watching him intently.
Yubel wondered if he'd noticed yet.
When they collided again, Jaden surged for the ground. He let Sartorius keep his grip, slamming a paw into his face, claws striking for his eyes. His son took the blow to his right eye, snarling, and blood leaked from the organ though he failed to blink. The blow he returned Jaden would have decapitated had he not twisted just in time to avoid it. He dodged aside and stepped away, clawing his left cheek and barely missing his eye. Sartorius snapped his teeth barely an inch from Jaden's beak, and the Prime Material Dragon paused for only a moment to consider him.
He dodged aside again and Sartorius spun on him. Blood dripped from his eye in a waterfall, the organ oozing, and the burned flesh along his underside wept with pus. Jaden's paws were soaked in blood almost to his shoulder where a small series of scratches began to rapidly disappear.
Sartorius watched him indifferently, obviously noticing the lack of scratches any longer but without even a hint of care toward the display. He didn't seem to even think of Jaden more than a fly, despite the fact his entirely upper body was covered in charred flesh and his eye looked as if it were a blink from falling out.
"Do you think you'll manage to heal so quickly when I eviscerate you again?" he asked softly. He flicked his tongue over the blood marring his face and purred as if it were the most delicious thing he'd ever tasted. He smirked and came forward even as Jaden snarled and prepared himself to spring again. "Where is your protector? Did Yusei choose to abandon you here?"
He bristled and snapped, "I don't need him to—"
"You did," he cut in sharply. "You did need him to save you, because I would have done to you what I did to Shadi otherwise. Had he not interfered—"
"You're afraid of an Ice Dragon?" Jaden sneered.
Sartorius laughed softly. "Should I fear him? I know what he was doing. He came only to distract me and—Gods damn it." He pawed at his face in agony, snarling with anger, and Jaden halted feet away, startled. A sharp, disgusted breath was exhaled as he snarled, "Oh. That's what this was. That's what he led me here for."
Jaden blinked, bewildered, and glanced sideways at Yubel. He didn't seem to think she'd have an answer, but looked as if he meant to check on her. She blinked, met his eye for a moment, and then looked back to Sartorius just as quickly. The shame that swept through her was overwhelming.
Jaden turned back just as fast, watching in bewilderment as Sartorius pawed his face again. He spared a glance at Shadi's corpse, eyes widening with guilt, and turned back.
And then he sprang forward.
In the split second it took for him to aim for Sartorius's throat, his scales catching fire again, a million images bled once more into Yubel's head.
The Knight Dragon was smiling at the Uria hatchling.
The Slifer and Gandora watched the Uria darting about the undergrowth.
The Lightning hybrid watched his siblings play about, almost as if studying them and searching for something.
Jaden and the Slifer collided at full speed, blood and flame crackling about in the air.
The Gandora and Jaden sized each other up, and the hybrid launched himself for his throat.
Yubel and the Uria watched each other with glittering eyes.
Yubel stood before the Slifer, speaking so quietly the words seemed to dissipate in the air even as the deity faced her with sharp eyes.
The Slifer launched the Leviathan through the air with a simple movement of his paws, tail clicking as the blades unsheathed.
The Lightning hybrid watched his father dote on his sibling, grooming and speaking to his lookalike of a hatchling.
The Lightning hybrid launched another hatchling off the ledges lining the camp walls.
The Uria jumped away from a rabbit as it squealed in pain.
Yusei stood covered in blood, staring at the broken body of a Gandora feet away.
Jaden looked away from the remains of a bloodied and destroyed nest, turning from the broken eggs to the bodies of the parents.
Yusei and Jaden locked in combat, blood and scales and magic flying as ice and fire collided.
The moon was a sliver thin of full as an egg hatched in the mountainside.
The Slifer stood covered from head to paw in blood, snarling and launching himself at the other three deities.
The Gandora watched an unusually small God Dragon dart about the trees, climbing and then twisting to land on his paws when he jumped away.
The Gandora set a net in the trees, with small stones to weight the ends and metal laced throughout the strands to keep it firm.
Yusei peered into the water where he was soaked in blood, watching as the surface rippled and changed and the shape of a Gandora with eyes like gemstones appeared.
Jaden and a Tyrant Dragon bore teeth and snarled at one another as the other three deities watched expressionlessly.
Yusei and Aki snarled at each other bitterly and the Ice Dragon whispered a farewell before departing.
Yubel saw this all in the flash of an eye, just as Jaden collided with Sartorius. Their son twisted at the last second, slamming Jaden to the ground and baring his teeth. He managed to grab the God Dragon by the skull but released immediately after when his mouth caught fire. He slung Jaden aside with a single quick slash of his paws and Jaden twisted rapidly in the air to land upright. He was healed before Sartorius could blink.
They stared at each other, resentful and angry, and Yubel watched them pace.
They circled, scowling and baring their teeth in the most furious of snarls.
"Even if you kill me here, I'll continue to ruin you," Sartorius snarled softly, chuckling when Jaden slammed his tail into the stone. He raised his head and purred at the aggressive stance. "I'll make your life miserable even as my body rots in the ground. Do you think killing me ends my reign? I am eternal, Jaden."
"Then I'll kill you when I enter the afterlife. I'll rip you to pieces there as I do here."
He hummed and smirked. "You're so certain you can kill me here and now?" he scoffed, though he considered him for a moment as if he were weighing the odds. Sartorius tilted his head and Yubel saw a flash of the dark blue hybrid as he latched onto Jaden's throat and crushed his windpipe. The Prime Material Dragon flailed, trying desperately and failing to kick him off. The hatchling refused to release even as another heart kicked in and Jaden flailed desperately once more. Two more times the God Dragon revived and then he failed to move, eyes wide open and peering blankly into the afternoon light. Sartorius was silent for a moment as the vision faded, shaking himself out.
"Should I die here, you'll still suffer later. I suppose it doesn't matter much now that I preserve my life rather than allow you to take it." He tilted his head and bore his teeth. "Mother won't help you."
Jaden blinked and turned his head just enough to look at Yubel in his peripheral. She shivered, refusing to speak, and wondered once again just how disgusting she was to have laid this monster's egg. It had to have been her genetics. It wouldn't have made sense otherwise for him to have turned out so wrong.
Sartorius snorted. "Do you truly think him such a saint, Yubel? He abandoned you despite knowing you would lay my egg. And then he knew I existed and yet never came to visit. Isn't that right, Jaden?"
"It doesn't matter." The God Dragon lashed his tail. "What matters is that you die here."
Sartorius hummed again and launched himself. Jaden braced his muscles and readied himself, but the Divine merely dodged aside at the last second. He landed beside Yubel, peering at her and baring his teeth. "I should still kill you," he hissed, "but I think I'd like you to suffer more."
She barely had time to react when he clamped his teeth on her skull. The images that flooded through her head threatened to make it burst. She screamed. Jaden cursed and raced forward where she could see him just past her son's shoulder. The Divine dropped her and spun around.
Jaden slammed into him, throwing him back a few feet. He turned to her immediately, eyes wide and dilated, but she could barely see him around all the visions that seemed to explode in her head. Her eyes shot to Sartorius just as the hatchling burst out laughing.
"Do you not enjoy my gift?" he asked. "I thought you'd rather like it, considering how you trailed after me for every morsel of vision I saw in the water."
She panted and risked a glance at Jaden. The God Dragon blinked and looked between them, seeming confused for only a moment. "You can project images to others," he muttered, staring blankly. And then he huffed and shook himself. "It doesn't matter."
Sartorius purred. "No, it doesn't. It no longer holds any importance," he agreed. "Because I know what I needed to do, and it's done."
Jaden launched himself at him again. Sartorius purred and reared up on his back legs, slashing with his paw. He struck him in the jaw and the bone cracked, but Jaden didn't react but for twisting to keep his balance as he landed. The momentum knocked Sartorius back a few inches and Jaden hit him immediately, mouth opened wide to clamp upon his cheek. He knocked him into the ground, pinning him on his side.
Sartorius clawed at his shoulder and the back of his head, laughing with delight. After a moment he slashed hard enough the shoulder jolted beneath the blow and Jaden sprang away with a snarl. He healed as he landed, the wounds disappearing, and lashed his tail. Sartorius rolled immediately to his paws, laughing again. He watched Jaden with a delighted expression, as if he were waiting for the moment to tell him the best joke he'd ever heard.
Jaden sprang forward and jumped upwards, both forepaws posed to cling to his cheeks and rip him to shreds. Sartorius narrowed his eyes and shot forward as well, paw posed to eviscerate him as he made contact. Jaden caught fire just as they collided, but the trick didn't startle or hurt as much as it had the first time. Sartorius slashed upwards, gutting him, but Jaden caught his face with his paws and dug his teeth deep into his skull. The impact stopped them both short for a moment, though Jaden healed almost instantaneously even as he forced Sartorius backwards.
The Divine fell to the ground beneath his father, who crunched his skull beneath his jaw harder than before. Blood gushed and his left eye crunched into nothing, a hideous black and red mess of organ. Yubel stood trembling as the resounding snap of bone came through the air. Jaden didn't release for a few seconds longer, as if afraid the blow hadn't killed their son. For a long handful of minutes he hovered, staring down at the body with an expectant look.
But Yubel wasn't sure if even Jaden could have come back from that blow. Sartorius's head was almost crushed into a misshapen boulder of gray, red, and charred black flesh. Yubel had not seen where Jaden had dug his claws into his neck and torn downward during the attack. His head was almost decapitated where his neck hung limp from the break.
Jaden stared down at the body a moment longer, then looked to Yubel slowly. "What did he do to you?" he snapped. There was no affection in his tone, only cold concern and anger. She blinked up at him, amazed she had not fallen over with relief upon remembering how to use her own legs again.
She opened her mouth but failed to speak. After a moment she closed her mouth, watching him, and whispered, "I told you this would be a mistake."
He blinked once, long and slow, and hissed, "You never even did love me, did you? You insisted we shouldn't have done this, and yet you buckled because you didn't want to argue with me any longer. Is that it?"
Yubel felt sick for a moment, the desire to argue surging forth to argue that she had cared and loved him. But the thought died. A cold numbness swept over her and she bristled as they considered each other. She blinked, considering him, and then growled, "I warned you. I told you not to persist but you did it anyways. The fact you got hurt… That's not my fault."
Jaden stared at her for so long she wanted to collapse, eyes wide with despair before narrowing with rage. He nodded slowly, furiously, and turned away with a snarl. "No, I guess it wasn't," he muttered, glancing at her sideways and exhaling slowly.
She wanted to say she was lying, to tell him she loved him as much as he did her. But it felt wrong now. After Sartorius had been born, everything had seemed wrong. Now that he was dead, it only seemed worse. Yubel didn't know what to say or how to say it. And maybe it was better that it dissolved like this.
Maybe Jaden would find someone else eventually and everything would turn out for the best after.
"Did he actually hurt you?"
She blinked, a million words coming to the surface. Yes, he'd hurt her. He'd hurt her a million times. But Jaden didn't know that. And she didn't plan to tell him. She shook her head. "He…put thoughts in my head, but it didn't hurt."
"Then why scream?"
She shook her head, huffing. "Attention," she spat bitterly. "I wanted attention."
Jaden scoffed and stared at her a moment, studying her face, and then slowly turned away. "Right." He stepped toward her then, pausing after a moment, and let out an exhausted sigh. "I'll leave you after this…seeing as that's what you've always wanted."
No… She nodded. "Good."
He watched her, then shook his head and came forward. He touched her forehead with his, as if he were greeting her, and Yubel felt him there, scrabbling at her thoughts and memories. He seemed to drawing them away, as if somehow absorbing them, and she noted as the seconds passed a lot of the pain from the last few moons had seemingly dissipated. It was as if they'd evaporated like the water Jaden had scorched away with his abilities during the fight.
Memories seemed to dance away, and the thoughts Sartorius had planted in her head vanished. The pain disappeared and the anger was smothered, the bitterness and resentment swallowed. Even the sorrow and tired acceptance she'd come to harbor growing up seemed to no longer exist.
She jerked back. "What did you do?"
Jaden blinked his eyes open slowly, peering at her from beneath his brows. They were darker than before, tempered with anger and ferocity she'd never seen in them before. He raised his head slightly, watching her a moment, and growled, "I healed you."
Yubel stared blankly. The numbness had fled her as well. She didn't even know if she felt anything anymore. "What?"
He narrowed his eyes. "I healed you." After a moment he chuckled and shook his head, tilting it and eyeing her coldly. "You really lied to me."
"What?"
"You said you'd never loved me."
"I…"
"It doesn't matter. Not after everything that happened. You and I… This will never happen again. I can't let something like this ever happen again." His eyes flickered toward the Clan briefly and back, burning into hers. "He was a monster and he deserved worse than I gave him. But you… Maybe you deserved just as much as he did. You watched him eat his siblings and you encouraged it."
Yubel bristled, stiffening faintly. He hadn't seen the memories accurately enough. He must have been smothered beneath all the guilt and anger, the resentment and bitterness she'd always suffered. He had taken her blame and…
But hadn't she? She'd never done anything to punish him and she'd barely spoken against him. Maybe she had encouraged it.
"I also told him to do it," she said quietly, finally, challenging him. Jaden peered at her in confusion for a single moment, processing the words and likely sorting through the various things he'd taken when he'd healed her. "And I watched him do it. I told him how to make the kill blow. I taught him everything he needed to know."
He stared blankly for a moment, then shook his head slowly. "A Slifer, a Gandora, and a Uria."
She blinked, confused. "What?"
Jaden nodded slowly and looked over at Sartorius's broken body. He lashed his tail and considered for a moment before turning abruptly back to her. "I'll rid the world of all three," he hissed. "And the Felgrands. They'll die alongside them. I'll rid the world of four species. All of them will rot and wither. I will not allow another Divine to exist. I will not let them do what he did."
Yubel bristled fearfully. "Jaden, don't—"
"If I even see a Fire Dragon and Wind Dragon look toward each other during the mating cycles, I'll kill them as well. The Gandora species as a whole is a monstrosity—you proved that."
She flinched. "Jaden—"
"Any second generation Gandora will be struck from existence. I'll use their bones to sharpen my teeth," he hissed, stepping closer and raising his head. His teeth were bared in a furious snarl. "You will return to our territory and I will see to it that you are taken care of later. I don't plan to see you dead. Not after I just saved you from…that thing. So mind yourself and go. I will see to you after I dispose of this."
Yami blinked as the vision cut abruptly away. He considered the stone walls and the sound of wind whistling through the cave. His eyes flickered about the shadows for a moment before he looked to Yubel again. The female had lain her head on her paws, facing away from him. The stench of misery met his tongue as he drew a deep breath.
"He changed when he healed you. Why?"
She was silent for a moment, then chuckled. "Didn't you know? He doesn't heal properly. He didn't know how to do as Shadi or you can. He only knows how to take someone else's pain, be it physical or emotional or mental. Those wounds fester inside of him and mark his body, cloud his judgment and rot his mind." She hummed softly. "That's where his powers are weak. He can't differentiate later where his own thoughts merge with those he once took."
Yami considered her for a long moment. "How many times has he healed someone like he did you?"
"At least four times. But I don't know that they hurt or damaged him as much. I just know one of them he healed their temper and became increasingly aggravated and turned to bloodshed far more easily than he did even with the edicts." She shook her head. "He was mad for a short period of time, but from what I understand, Yusei brought him back. I have no idea what he did or how, but he managed to help him some. And then from there he struggled on his own for the most part. Whatever Yusei did for him before no longer seems to work. I assume Jesse doesn't hold the same sway over him that Yusei did."
He blinked, startled. "But Jesse is his mate now. What could Yusei possibly do or have that Jesse doesn'tt?"
"He's not a God Dragon." Yubel chuckled. "And that silly little Ice Dragon loves Jaden. Yusei doesn't. He never did."
Yami bristled, eyes widening. "What?"
"Yusei was never in love with Jaden. Their entire mating bond was borne of convenience. Fire Dragons respond well to mounting and being mounted. It alleviated the stress for a long time, until Yusei couldn't stand it anymore. That's what their relationship was."
He grimaced. Yusei had done what he could, where he knew it would be effective. Obviously even he could not stand it forever. Just as he'd put an end to the edicts despite following at first, he'd severed their relationship. He blinked and looked at her curiously.
"Atem's memories… When he came to see whether I existed, they all claimed you were the reason Sartorius lost his mind—that you starved and killed Syrus and Zane."
Yubel nodded slightly.
"But you didn't…do any of that. You were cold and despondent and didn't know how to shake that enough to be with them how they might have needed, but you never laid a claw on them," he whispered, tilting his head. "So, why…?"
Yubel chuckled and got up, shaking herself out. "Because, Yami, sometimes you have to sacrifice what you want to protect those who matter most." She huffed and sighed softly. "I loved Jaden. I did. I know I did, even if I didn't realize it at the time. Even if the emotion was tainted the entire time."
Yami shivered. Had she placed so much blame on herself that the memories had morphed? Or had Jaden chosen to blame it on her instead? Was it to justify the bloodshed later as he killed so many during the edicts? Or was Jaden's scope of ability limited to emotions and Sartorius had been the reason he'd even known to hunt the Uria, Slifer, Gandora and Felgrand species? Was that what Sartorius had meant when he'd said he was eternal and had done what he needed to?
"It hurt more than losing a heart to lie to him later, but it saved his life. And he…left me. I needed him to go, to choose someone else. Because he wouldn't have survived it if he didn't. He wouldn't have been able to deal with everything and accept it wasn't his fault if I did not force him to believe I was the reason."
"But… you let him rampage! You let him enforce the edicts!"
Yubel hummed and flicked her tail. "I wanted him to kill me, and he didn't. He didn't kill me, because he was still in love with me. He still loves me, even if he does not bother to visit as he did before." She shook her head, voice bitter. "Jesse doesn't have the whole of his heart because of me, because of what I did and what I allowed Sartorius to do. But Jaden survived and he has someone to blame, even if it did hurt him as much as it has."
"The Slifer edict… And the Felgrand…"
"He saw those flashes of the future when he healed me. He saw Atem, though Jaden didn't expect him to be a God Dragon, nor did he assume it would come so much later. He almost annihilated the Urias in completion, and Yusei stopped him. He did everything he thought would restore the balance. He did everything to prevent what he feared would mean absolute destruction." She fell quiet a moment. "But he never saw Keith and you… Atem, Yugi, Seto… Dimitri… You would all come to exist one way or another, now or later when Jaden was too old to fight. It was always to happen. Sartorius saw fate as a whole, even if his focus was on the smallest bits."
He saw Atem. He saw me. He saw Yugi… "Yugi isn't a God Dragon," he blurted, almost laughing with relief even as he felt a shiver race down his spine. "Your son was wrong."
Yubel didn't answer immediately. "Then I suppose something changed."
Yami bristled, shame coursing through him for a split second. But what was so wrong with wanting Sartorius to be wrong? Was there something so terrible in wanting his omens to be wrong?
"Thank you," he whispered, rising to a stand. "I…I owe you."
"You owe it to me to kill Dimitri," she hissed, spinning on him. "That is what you owe me. Put an end to Sartorius and his legacy. Let Jaden rest and heal from all the things done to him."
Yami shook his head. "I don't know that Jaden will ever heal the way you want," he murmured, studying her. "He's been in the dark for so long."
"He can step into the sun again," she answered coldly, turning and wandering away to lap at the water. "He can step into the sunlight and he'll be fine. Jesse can help him, if he'll only let him."