I don't like how long this story has been left to languish. I don't like how limited my ability to work on my various projects has been over the past few years. I can only hope that you understand. It isn't out of malice that I've left you waiting. It's just that, the older I get, the more dramatic and intense the "distractions" that impede my creativity end up becoming.
Money problems, medical problems, cancer—multiple times—in the family, the death of a close friend. I've just. I've been struggling.
But I don't give up.
That's just not me.
I have the rest of this story drafted, and I'm going to keep it going no matter what the universe has to say about it. I hope you enjoy the ride. For those who have been waiting, I'm sorry I took so long. Thank you for hanging in there.
And for those who have only found this story recently, I hope you enjoy your time with it.
Let's get going, shall we?
.
Days passed in silence.
For the Yagamis, this meant spending their mornings at the Kaiba Estate, where their old friend Valery had effectively taken charge of the house staff. They spent their evenings at the hospital, surrounded by security operatives swathed in black, waiting for news.
Roland, for his part, spent his time glued to young Mokuba's side, which meant he was most often found at Kaiba-Corp HQ. He didn't particularly enjoy this fact—he would have much preferred it if Mokuba were at home, or the hospital, or basically anywhere else—but what was there to do about it?
Nobody had any rightful clue where Yugi Mutou was.
When Detective Darren McKinley strode into the ground floor lobby at Kaiba-Corp, he was surprised to find Roland right there, speaking to the women at the front desk. He'd been quite sure he would have to cajole and beg and bribe at least six different people before anyone could lead him to somebody who knew something.
Roland, ever the observant and considerate man, saved Darren the trouble of approaching him. "Good morning, Detective," he said as he approached, offering a curt nod.
"Mister Ackerman," said Darren. "How's things? Holding the fort well enough?"
"Well enough," Roland agreed, though he looked grim. He gestured with his head as he stepped in the direction of a nearby elevator. "Walk with me." Darren did so. "I might have thought you would be busy. Since you aren't displaying your badge, I can't help but assume you aren't here in any official capacity."
Darren grunted. "I'm on leave," he said shortly. "Captain doesn't want me within a ten-foot pole of this case. Can't see the forest for the trees, I guess." He offered an embarrassed little grin. "I've got vacation time saved up."
Roland didn't seem surprised. He stepped into the elevator and waited for his companion to join him. As the doors whispered shut, he said: "One of these days, I'm going to have to sit the both of you down, possibly three of you, and we're going to have a long talk about work-life balance."
"I look forward to it," said Darren. "But then, you and I are both on the same tack, aren't we? Looking out for the kid. We both have a responsibility to him, don't we?"
Roland sighed. "I suppose we do."
"Speaking of. How's the hatchling holding up?"
Roland barked out a sudden laugh. "The young master is coping so well that I worry, if I can be honest with you. I don't think it's a good sign." He fished his phone out of a pocket and glanced at it. "He's insisted I find something else to do for the time being. He wants me out of his hair. He's in the middle of handling . . . delicate work today and believes it would be best if he stands on his own."
"You think that's wise?"
"Not at all. But I do think he's right. I don't like it, but the people at Kaiba-Corp respond best to the strength of conviction. We need a Kaiba helming this ship, and right now he's the only one we have."
They exited onto the third floor. Roland led Darren down several hallways and several sharp turns, dead silent, until they found themselves in a spacious corner office. Roland locked the door behind him when they entered.
Darren sat on the edge of a sleek grey sofa and clasped his hands between his knees. "All right. Look." He eyed Roland with no idea what expression he was wearing; too many emotions were making a battlefield out of his head. "I'm not going to pretend I understand a goddamn thing. This city's always been wild. One of those Gotham sorts of places, where shit just happens and you have to roll with it because, otherwise, you're going to crack in half."
Roland slipped his hands into the pockets of his crisp pinstriped slacks and waited. He had a tiny smile on his face. One eyebrow lifted over his ever-present shades as he welcomed the rest of the detective's thesis.
"But I know what I saw." Darren's eyes flared. "Mokuba's shown me photos of his brother when he was little. Seto's shown me that painting of his mother. I saw the family outside this building. The one Seto protected with his body. I saw them."
"Mm," offered Roland, expectantly.
"If I was a normal man," Darren continued, "then I'd say they were cousins or something. An aunt? Uncle? Who knows. But I'm not a normal man. I'm a Domino City police officer. I'm a superstitious idiot who lives in Domino fucking City. Okay, fine, I wasn't born here. But my folks moved here when I was too young to walk. I know how this city works. I know the kind of shit that happens here."
"Mm," Roland said again.
"Is this what it looks like?" Darren asked. "Is that kid John Connor? Are y'all fighting Skynet?"
Roland laughed again. "Not quite," he said, "but close enough."
"Jesus Christ." Darren shook his head. "Does this involve Yugi Mutou?"
"You're not the first person to ask me that."
Darren rolled his eyes. "Magic follows that kid so often he might as well wear a top hat and start carrying rabbits around."
"Yes," said Roland. "Yugi Mutou is involved here. And to put a finer pin on things, yes again. The boy you saw? His name is Seto Yagami. The two others with him are Yuki and Kohaku Yagami. His mother and father."
Darren leaned back and blew out a breath. "Good lord," he said. "I'm gonna wake up. This is too much even for this fuckin' place, isn't it? I mean, come on. There's no way this is happening. But it is, isn't it?"
"As you said," Roland murmured, "Domino City is . . . wild."
Darren wiped a hand over his face. Gathered himself. "How is he?"
"Still under. We've been assured he will recover, but he remains unconscious. All that's left now is to prepare for when he wakes. We have to ensure he allows himself to recover, and I don't think I need to tell you how difficult that promises to be. I don't want to spend too much time thinking about it. I have enough grey hair as it is." Roland rolled his eyes. "That boy is stubborn enough to give classes to bricks."
"What's all this mean? Is there a threat—" Darren stopped himself. "Obviously, there's a fucking threat. What kind of question—what kind of threat are we talking about here? More magic shit?"
"Yes." Roland cleared his throat. "As I am sure you can guess, we are on the back foot. This isn't a situation where we can rely on outside help. No one would believe us. Everyone knows this city is full of ghosts and fairies and dragons, but precious few are willing to admit it. We can't contain the firestorm if we try to lie. Try to claim Gozaburo Kaiba faked his death and is now determined to reclaim his empire."
Darren went pale, but he didn't speak.
Roland went on: "I dare not imagine. Even if that was a containable cover, for all we know we're going to be dealing with a stronger threat now that conventional methods have failed them. I don't think he was aiming to remove the Yagamis from the picture. I think he was counting on Master Kaiba to do precisely as he did. I think he wanted his biggest competition off the playing field."
"Seto can't go back onto the battlefield like this," Darren murmured. "That's what you're saying, yeah? He was hit, square. I'll be surprised if he still has a right shoulder when he wakes up. He's not at the level he'd need to be, if we're dealing with trained killers."
Roland nodded. "Precisely. I wish I could say that my team and I are prepared to pull up the slack, but the fact of the matter is: Master Kaiba and Yugi Mutou have always been the only ones who've ever faced threats like this and lived to talk about them. This isn't just a man with money and guns. That would be hard enough. This is magic. And now Yugi Mutou is alone."
"That . . . isn't quite true."
Roland had his sidearm in hand before he'd even halfway turned toward the voice. Darren was on his feet; he'd left his own weapon at home, and cursed himself for his arrogance. He wasn't sure just how relieved he was when he saw Yugi Mutou lounging in Roland's chair, heeled boots resting on the edge of Roland's desk.
Roland let out a breath and lowered his pistol. "You just can't help but make a spectacle out of yourself, can you?"
Yugi offered a lopsided little grin. Darren wasn't especially familiar with Seto's associates, as he tended to call the people he didn't want to call friends, but he thought he knew Yugi Mutou's face well enough by now. The boy was a local celebrity, and he'd been on enough screens that even tourists recognized him on sight.
This face belonged to Yugi Mutou, but all the same it didn't.
Rumors and speculations that he'd heard about this young gamer's mental health, dissociative disorders, plastic surgery, and a thousand other ridiculous things, ran through Darren's mind as he looked into the wine-colored eyes of Yugi's alter-ego for the first time.
"What do you mean?" Roland demanded.
"I mean," said Yugi, "that I am not alone. Not quite."
Roland's brow creased. "You cannot mean to drag your friends into this."
Yugi shook his head. "No. That isn't what I'm talking about." He kicked against the desk, slid backward, and hopped to his feet. He held out his hands as though presenting Roland's office to him. "The answer is simple, gentlemen. All we need to do, in order to protect Seto and everyone else who's been roped into this little competition, is track down someone capable of fighting Gozaburo Kaiba on even footing."
Yugi's voice was pleasant enough, almost gentle, but Roland felt like he was being condescended to.
"Specifically," Yugi continued, "someone who can convince Seto that they are capable of fighting Gozaburo Kaiba on even footing. Someone with whom Seto will be comfortable taking his place on the game board." He chuckled as if amused by his own genius. "If we can do that, then he will rest easy." Yugi frowned, then waved a dismissive hand. "As easily as he ever rests, anyway."
Roland scowled thunderously. "There is not a single human being on this green earth who Master Kaiba would trust to take his place against his father."
"Human being?" Yugi blinked. "No. I suppose not."
"What are you driving at?" Darren asked. "You have an idea. That's what this is about. It's why you waited for the right moment to inject yourself into this conversation. Why you're leading us. You're trying to be dramatic about it, but you have an idea. You know who to ask. Don't you?"
Yugi grinned devilishly.
"I do. Indeed, I do."
