Chapter 26: Taken
Summer arrived in a burst of humid heat and cicada song. Yugi alternated his time between working in the shop and being outside as much as possible with his friends; summer had always been the Pharaoh's favorite season of the year. Perhaps sharing a mind with the Pharaoh rubbed off on him, because as time had passed Yugi grew to find he loved summer best as well.
Though some days were too warm to Duel with a Disk, they got along perfectly well with table-top matches or finding a nice shady grove in which to hang out. When they weren't Dueling they would sit along the edges of rivers or on benches in the park, or go to an arcade so Téa could show off her dancing and Tristan and Joey could argue about who could win more in a racing game.
And as the weeks rolled by, Yugi found it was easier and easier to forget all that had transpired with Professor Keichi.
He knew his grandfather worried about his friend and colleague, of course, so Keichi never truly left the back of Yugi's mind. Especially recently, when Grandpa Muto's attempts to call the professor often went unanswered, and even when not, never by the man himself. It seemed Keichi, despite losing the main focus of his research, was nevertheless quite busy, according to his assistants. Yugi hoped he had somehow managed to move on from what had happened and found a new subject. One less perilous to human life.
At the end of the day, Yugi did still pity the man, never believing him or his intentions to be truly malicious. But he and the Pharaoh both agreed that they would be that much more comfortable if Keichi never approached either of them again.
"Man, isn't it nice ta have a normal summer for a change?" Joey seemed to echo Yugi's sentiments one day. "No crazy bad guys, no soul-stealin', no monsters tryin' ta crawl outta the cards and kill us…"
"No end of the world." Yugi grinned in agreement. All four lay about a grassy hill, listening to the buzz of insects and watching the clouds pass overhead.
"Be nice if it could stay this way from now on," Tristan quipped. "But, who are we kiddin', some maniac'll probably try to take over the world again sooner or later."
"Come on, don't joke like that," Téa chided. "I want us all to stay together like this too."
"At least till we graduate."
"Even after we graduate. I mean, sure, we'll probably go our separate ways for a little bit. Like I've always said, I'm gonna be in New York someday. But we'll always stay in touch at the very least, right?"
"'Course we will!" Joey sat up "After all we been through? No way am I lettin' you guys drift away from me!"
"Dream on. Soon as I graduate you'll be the first thing I get away from." Tristan yelped when Joey punched him in the arm. "Ow! Joey!"
"Serves ya right, loser! I'll make sure I'm always the last thing you'll ever see! I'll be harder ta get rid of than a beer stain in a carpet!"
"Wow, what an accurate self-description."
"Why you—!"
"Come on guys, break it up," Téa sighed, but made no movement to actually involve herself in the scuffle between the two boys as they rolled down the hill. "By the way, Yugi…"
"Yeah?" Yugi chuckled as he sat up to face Téa.
"When I said 'all', I meant all," she said, smiling gently. "That means the Pharaoh too. I just wanted to make sure he knew that."
"Thanks, Téa. I'm sure he does." Yugi looked down at the Puzzle fondly.
Unnoticed to either of them, Tristan adopted a strange look. He flopped on his back away from the scuffle, surprising Joey. "That's gonna be kinda hard, won't it?"
Tristan's voice was uncharacteristically serious, and they all frowned at him.
"Whatt'ya mean, Tristan?" Téa asked.
"Well, I mean, what about his destiny and all that? Won't he still go on a journey to find his memories?"
"Well, yeah, of course he's gotta do that," Yugi said. "And we'll be helping him every step of the way."
"Yeah, but I mean, what about after?"
A pit was growing in Yugi's stomach, for a reason he couldn't fathom. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, once he gets his memories back, what happens next? Is he still going to stay with us?"
"Of course he is!" Téa sounded shocked. "Why would he leave? Where would he go?"
"Hey, I want him to stick around as much as you guys!" Tristan, sensing the hostility in her tone, raised his hands placatingly. "I'm not saying he's gotta leave. But if I'm to be honest, I've been thinking a lot about this."
His gaze turned to the sky. "He's a 3,000 year old spirit here to—what, stop the ultimate evil? Assuming he even succeeds with that—" "Of course he's gonna, ya nimrod!" "—what kind of life is he gonna have after that?"
"But didn't we spend the last year answering exactly that?" Téa exclaimed. "If it weren't for what happened…he would have been fine! He would have been normal."
"But that's my point. That's him as he is now. If all this goes to plan—whatever plan that is—his head's gonna be filled with everything from 3,000 years ago. Who knows what kind of person he was back then?"
"A great one," Téa said firmly.
"I don't mean bad. I mean different." Tristan's voice stayed level the entire time he spoke. "He's built himself pretty much from the ground up since he woke up, but if he gets all of his memories back, this whole entire side of him that we've probably never seen is gonna show up, won't it? That kind of duality's gotta drive a man crazy."
Yugi suddenly stood up, his eyes shadowed. Without a word he walked down the hill to the river below. Téa turned to glare at Tristan, who finally started to look guilty.
"Even if he were a completely different person back then, it wouldn't matter to us," she hissed. "Because that's what friends do."
She stalked off after Yugi, her gait slowing only when she neared him.
Joey smacked Tristan upside the head. "Nice going, Aristotle."
Tristan didn't even hit back.
Even before he reached the water's edge, Yugi had retreated to the confines of his mind.
He said nothing, though, and simply lingered in the labyrinthine walls of the Puzzle for a time. He knew the Pharaoh was close by simply by his nearby presence, though neither presented themselves to the other. The Pharaoh seemed to sense he wanted to be hidden for the moment.
Yugi…I am not angry.
Nevertheless, the Pharaoh's warm tone reached him. We knew the question would arise one day. And while I may not have been the tyrant Dartz tried to make us believe I was…there is every possibility that I was not the person I am now.
Yugi didn't reply. In one blink to the next, he was in his soul room, and he sat on the bed. He picked up a block and began to toy with it, though his actions were listless.
"Aibou?" The Pharaoh's voice was outside his door this time.
Yugi tilted back until he landed against the covers, the block still in his hands.
"Say, Other me…wouldn't it be nice to just stay here, forever?"
As soon as the words left him he realized their meaning, and sprang back up, mortified. "I-I mean…I'm sorry, Pharaoh, I didn't think…"
"It's all right." The Pharaoh sounded amused, oddly enough. "I think I can understand the sentiment. Even if I do know what it's like to stay here forever. Or what feels like, it anyways."
Yugi groaned. I'm never gonna live this down…
But before he could apologize further, the Pharaoh continued, "It's tempting to want to shut yourself away and feel safe. But even in here, where the rest of my mind eludes me…I find it difficult to escape my own thoughts."
Yugi gripped the toy block harder.
"I find I can never truly find peace about what is troubling me, until I've actually confronted it. And to do that, I must always leave here, and face the outside world. Embrace it, for all its beauty…and bitterness."
Yugi heaved a heavy sigh. It had been tempting…but of course he knew it would never be the answer.
"Yugi?"
Téa was calling him from outside. Yugi let the door to his soul room swing open, and met the Pharaoh's gaze evenly on the other side of the threshold. They shared a moment of understanding, their thoughts flickering between one another without words, before Yugi pulled away and met Téa's blue eyes, large and worried. He offered her a smile, and she seemed to grow relieved at that.
"I'm fine, Téa, don't worry. I'm not really upset, I just…"
When he didn't finish, Téa nodded understandingly. "Don't worry about what that idiot was saying. Even if the Pharaoh turns out to be a totally different person, we'll still get to know him again, and we'll never stop being his friend. No way are we abandoning anyone."
Yugi nodded. Then, he surprised them both when he leaned forward and drew her close for a hug. Thankfully, she reciprocated easily, even as he fought hard against the blush blooming across his cheeks.
Clear skies eventually gave way to rain; by the time night had fallen, it was storming loudly.
Grandpa Muto was settling into bed when thunder crashed loudly, and he jumped.
"Come on, Solomon," he grumbled. "You used to dive into mummy tombs with abandon; a little lightning's not gonna getcha."
But as he was going to sleep, he frowned. He had a strange feeling that something was amiss.
He tossed and turned; the feeling wouldn't go away. Finally he got up again.
Might just do a quick check…
He went to Yugi's room first, and paused. Was it him, or did the rain sound unusually loud?
The uneasy feeling grew stronger. He slowly creaked the door open.
That door flew all the way into the wall in a panic when he saw what was within. Yugi's room was in disarray; the skylight was open, sending rain pouring in all over his desk.
Yugi was gone.
Joey yawned widely in front of his computer. He was up well into the wee hours of the morning. For most people, this would ruin their internal clock, but not Joey. He'd set up the perfect schedule. His dad would come home drunk late at night and snore his way into the next afternoon, whereupon he'd finally wake up and bang on Joey's door to demand breakfast. This meant Joey had at least an extra five hours of snooze time before he'd be forced to get up for anything.
But right now, his cell phone had been ringing nonstop. He'd shut it off after the first few times, too cranky to bother answering it. But after opening it up again and seeing fifteen missed calls, he figured that anybody that persistent probably had something worth hearing.
He scratched his head and opened his phone. "Yeah?"
"Finally, you stupid idiot!"
It was Téa. Normally, Joey would have snapped back a reply…but her voice stopped him. She sounded teary, choked up…and afraid.
Instantly he was alert. "Téa? What's the matter?"
"Have you seen Yugi?"
"Not since this mornin'…why, did somethin' happen?"
"I don't know…His grandpa phoned me in a panic. Yugi's bed was empty when his grandpa went to check on him. Both his deck and his Puzzle are gone. The front and back doors were locked, but his window was wide open. Oh, Joey…"
Something about the way she spoke made the hairs on the back of Joey's neck stand up. "Téa…what're you saying?"
"I have an awful feeling. I think…Joey, I think Yugi might have been kidnapped!"
Joey ran to the Game Shop in record time. Téa and Tristan were already there, the former comforting a distraught Grandpa Muto, the latter pacing the floor agitatedly. He rushed to let Joey in when he banged on the door.
"Did we call the police?" Joey asked as soon as he was inside.
"Grandpa called them, they should be here soon. But Tristan doesn't think they're going to be any help."
"They're gonna take too long! I'm telling you, they're not who we should be asking!" Tristan said hotly.
"Then who should we call?!" Joey demanded.
"Kaiba, of course! He's the only one with the technology and the motivation to help us find Yugi in time."
"In time for what?" Joey felt his insides grow cold. "What's gonna happen to him?"
"That's not…Tristan didn't mean that," Téa tried to sound soothing.
"Tristan, what did you mean?" Joey was one inch away from grabbing Tristan by the front and shaking him.
Then something reached him through the haze of panic. Something about the way Tristan and Téa were looking at each other with grim faces.
"It was him…It was that damn scientist, wasn't it?!"
"We're not sure," Téa said immediately
"Who else could it be?!"
"That's what I'm saying!" Tristan curled his hand into a fist. "He probably took Yugi so that he could do his little experiment again!"
"Well then what are we waiting for? We know where they are, let's go get Yugi back!"
"Yeah!"
"Guys, we can't rush into this!" Téa left Grandpa's side. "What exactly would be your plan? It would be three against one, and you saw how hard it was to get into his lab!"
"Who cares? We'll break in there and beat up anybody we see!" Tristan pounded his fist into his palm.
"Boys…" A weak voice made them turn to see Grandpa getting up from where he had been sitting behind the counter. "I know you want to rush off. And believe me, if I were younger, I would be right there ahead of you. But Téa is right. We can't risk Yugi's safety by being reckless."
Joey growled and stalked off for the door. Just before reaching it, he stopped. His shoulders hunched, and he gave a sigh.
"I know," he said. "I know we gotta use our heads."
He whipped around and placed a hand on his chest. "But my heart is tellin' me I'm right! We shouldn'ta trusted that guy from the start! I'm sorry Gramps, I know he's your friend. But he's behind this, I know he is! At the very least, his goons were probably the ones ta take our Yug. I gotta do everything I can to get him back!"
Grandpa's eyes shone with tears. Téa had found him near-collapsed with worry when she and Tristan had arrived. It was clear it was taking everything in him to remain strong.
Finally, he nodded. "Just be careful, the pair of you. Those assistants of his…there must be something about them. Be on your guard for anything."
Joey and Tristan nodded. "We'll be back soon, with Yugi. We promise."
Joey looked to Téa. "Stay here for the police. And see if you can get Kaiba on the line. He's gotta help us, one way or another."
Joey and Tristan ran out the door. Téa went for the phone. "Please…" she whispered.
It took far too long to reach the lab. When Joey and Tristan arrived, it was approaching dawn, and the sky was lightening.
As they approached warehouse 631, they saw the shutters had been closed and locked. Joey rattled it and then kicked it for good measure, but the door wouldn't budge.
"Dammit…Now what do we do?"
Tristan thought for a moment. "There's gotta be a back door, right? I mean, even secret labs need a fire exit."
"That's why we keep ya around, smartie!" Joey gripped Tristan in a headlock and rubbed his knuckles over his head in a noogie. "Come on, let's go find it."
They searched the back of the warehouse, which was stationed in front of some trees. They scoured the bushes behind. Eventually they happened upon a manhole cover.
They looked at each other, and shrugged. "Can't hurt."
It took some lifting, but they were able to get it off and to the side. Joey went down first, with Tristan right behind him.
It soon became clear that this was no sewage pipe. The air was dusty and stale, but free of the stench of sewage. In fact, there even seemed to be a slight breeze blowing through. As dark as it was, small lights every now and then illuminated their descent.
They soon found themselves in a hallway. At the end was a single door. Without hesitation, they charged it.
Under their combined strength, they burst through easily. A cloud of dust went up, obscuring their view. They coughed and waited for the air to clear.
Joey blinked his eyes open. "Wait…what the hell?!"
This was indeed Keichi's lab. But the entire space was dark and devoid of any machinery. Not a soul was there, only scattered papers and boxes.
"This can't be…" Tristan's fist clenched.
"Where the hell are they?!"
Yugi stirred.
Wakefulness came slowly, with difficulty. He opened his eyes in slits, only to close them again in exhaustion. It was still dark out. That meant he could sleep a little longer…
Only…something wasn't quite right. He felt…odd. He wasn't lying down. At least, not completely. The more he came to realize that, the more he felt himself jar awake.
AIBOU!
His eyes flew open.
Yugi's breaths came in short gasps. He wasn't in his bed. He wasn't even in his home.
He was sitting in a chair in a darkened room. His wrists were bound behind him by what felt like rope, and his middle was strapped to the chair back by the same material. He immediately felt his breath quicken in terror.
Then he noticed what was in front of him, and dread pooled in his stomach.
Because before him sat two large, very familiar-looking pods.
In one of them, his own sleeping face lay there.
No…it can't be…
"Ah, you're awake."
Yugi whipped around. "Professor…Keichi…?" he whispered.
Professor Keichi smiled at him. It was a chilling smile, devoid of the warmth and cheerfulness it usually held. On either side of him stood his assistants, their faces blank and expressionless.
"I had hoped you would remain asleep for this…but it is no matter. You are exactly where I want you to be, and the procedure may commence."
"What is this…You can't do this! Let me go, please!"
"Why would I do that?"
There was a flash of golden light, and the Pharaoh threw himself against his bonds. "Keichi!" he roared. "Have you lost your senses? Release me at once!"
"There he is." Keichi's eyes glittered with excitement. "The one I've been waiting for. At last…Pharaoh, how I've longed to see you again."
Something about the way he spoke…the Pharaoh stilled. The same dreadful feeling from before overcame him.
"Who are you?" he demanded.
"Only a year since we parted, and you've forgotten me already? For shame…And here I thought the mark I left on you would never fade."
Keichi's eyes flashed gold.
The Pharaoh felt a chill run down his spine. It couldn't be…
"The Leviathan…" he whispered.
The Leviathan laughed in Keichi's voice. "In the flesh, as you might say. Or I will be soon enough. All I need, of course, is a soul to feed upon."
He nodded to his assistants. One of them, Yamamoto, approached him.
"What are you doing? No…stop!"
In a flash, Yugi suddenly found himself back in control. He cried out when he saw the Puzzle in Yamamoto's hands.
"No, don't take him! Please!"
The Puzzle was placed inside the empty pod. As the lid came down, Yugi desperately reached out with his link. Other me!
Aibou!
The pod closed, and the link was sealed off.
"Start the procedure."
The other assistant went to a consol. He flicked some levers, and lights flickered on as the pods powered up.
Yugi wrestled against the rope, but it was tied too expertly.
"Don't do this! You can't!"
There was a bright flash of light. A rushing noise built up, and Yugi closed his eyes tight.
Then everything faded.
The machines powered down. Yamamoto opened the pod with the Puzzle in it, and took it out. She went to Yugi and dropped it in his lap.
Yugi immediately reached out. Other me? he pleaded.
There was no response.
Across the room, the body in the second pod gave a great heaving gasp.
"Aibou…" it rasped.
"I'm here," Yugi said immediately.
Slowly, the Pharaoh opened his eyes to the world a second time.
The Leviathan stepped forward. "Perfect," he said, his voice like oil on water. "Take them to their room. We'll let them have a day of rest."
His golden gaze slipped down to Yugi, and he gave another smile.
"Preparations begin tomorrow."
RN: Surprise, bitch! Bet you thought you'd seen the last of me!
DISCLAIMER: I don't own that reference