A/n Boy was this hard to write. Also if you didn't read the edited chapter before this, I do recommend reading it! I did some minor changes, but it will alter the storyline I created a little bit. If you did read my edit, then you'll know I actually lost my progress due to connection issues (maybe the platform? Doubt it tho), and when I was all ready to publish it was gone. So I redid that second half because that was what was missing ;-;. If it seems incoherent, that may be why.

Still! I hope you enjoy!

PLEASE READ! Potential trigger warning!

This chapter may not bode well for everyone. While it may not have any explicit scenes, it's supposed to be a heavy chapter.

A distasteful taste of iron filled their senses. With the heavy air and the bloodstained ground, the only conclusion had to be blood. Blood filled the air, the dirt, and perhaps even the waters. It felt somewhat surreal, but they all managed to keep a sense of calm and stuck together instinctively.

Just moments ago, they stood in a field of grass, breathing in the cool sweet air and panicking over the dramatic sight of Suzuka losing control and Kasari doing her best to manage. But they were gone, along with the sweet air and the very lively grass.

Yami suddenly felt protective of the gang and held out his arms to shield them. While it was obvious they were in an unknown and possibly dangerous place, Yami felt there was something even more peculiar and dangerous being out there. Yugi stood directly behind Yami, Jounouchi directly to Yugi's left, Honda to the right, and Anzu in between Honda and Yugi.

It was strangely quiet. As he inspected their surroundings, he noticed Kasari was truly nowhere to be found. He couldn't find a single trace of her presence. What about Suzuka? As he took in a deep breath, he concentrated. Though it was short lived.

"Hey there," a sultry voice echoed. A woman appeared in front of them, holding herself rather seductively. Yami immediately recognized her immediately as her hand reached out to Jounouchi's. "Are you lost?" As the blond reached out, fully captivated by her presence, Yami knew what she was doing. She was baiting him and planned on killing him.

"GET AWAY FROM HER!" Yami shouted, gaining full attention from everyone. The woman quickly flipped her attention to Yami and raised both hands to the sides of his head. He could tell from the way she was applying pressure; she was going to snap his neck. He tensed and braced for pain and even death. When nothing came, he slowly opened his eyes and noticed a shocked face from the woman.

"You're... You're alive?" She whispered and inspected his face, arms, and hands. "You're alive? You're..." then a moment of clarity. "From the past..."

The woman in question was Suzuka.

She turned and faced the rest of the group. "Jounouchi, Honda, Anzu," she focused on each and every one of them. A small sad smile tugged the corners of her lips. "Yugi," she directed her attention to him. "It's been so long." Jounouchi, finally took a breath in as he realized what his fate would've been had it not been for Yami's intervention.

"What... what da hell?" He muttered. "What happened? Who are you?" Honda put a hand on Jounouchi's shoulders as an effort to calm him down, but he still felt a lingering feeling of uncertainty and perhaps even a chill representative of death. Anzu couldn't help but feel a hint of pity and Yugi a sense of familiarity.

"Suzuka?" Yugi asked. She smiled once more, confirming his sense of security. He knew they were still in unfamiliar territory and a seemingly horrible setting, but a familiar face of a fairly powerful witch, hopefully she is still a witch in the future-

Wait, future?

"How long has it been?" She couldn't help but chuckle. She looked so different. Well, not physically... her posture, her presence, and her lifeless eyes differed, but her overall appearance remained the same.

"Is this the future?" Yami, on the same wavelength as Yugi as always, asked.

"It certainly doesn't feel like the future," Suzuka chuckled. "But yes, for you all it is."

"How long has it been?" Anzu asked.

"About," the witch began counting. "One... two... three centuries?" As the answer sank in, everyone looked around and thought the same thing.

"Everything is barren and dead," Yami started. "Is this what the future is like three hundred years from our time?" She shook her head.

"Not exactly. I remember moving everyone to another realm. Everyone lives peacefully there." She adjusted her neck as if she were uncomfortable. "The only bodies that lie here are his men and the occasional demon."

"Who's?" Honda couldn't help but ask.

"His name is Seki." There was a pause before she let out a breath. "We used to be close; he was my partner in crime." A somber smile before, "but he decided to choose what was best for me. We disagreed heavily and thus created this war of ours," she looked up at them. "We agreed on a temporary truce between the two of us specifically. But many of my past enemies decided to make certain deals with him, gathering not only power but also information in order to stop or slow me down. He got what he wanted, information, weapons, and a chance to weaken me. He knew I couldn't die, so he didn't worry."

She perked up and panicked.

"You need to leave."

"...ka-" a voice yelled a bit loudly.

Yami and the gang were both confused, and a bit concerned.

"We don't know how. I mean Karu would work best but you have him, right?" Yami asked. She shook her head.

"Seki took them from me, it's sealed away but I can send you to them. I can't place you right next to them because the specific location is put under a barrier, but I can tell you the directions-"

"Suzuka!" She immediately waved her hands up briefly before turning to the man whose hair was ruffled but put up rather nicely as he walked with a subtle limp. He dressed in all black, presumably to hide any blood stains. "I felt the presence of some guests, and even heard some chatter," he paused. "But it disappeared when I arrived. Do you happen to know of anything?" The way he spoke indicated he knew, but it was also obvious he didn't know the exact details.

Anzu looked around, ensuring that yes, they were all definitely in front of the two of them. When everyone turned to Yami for some sort of explanation, he raised a finger to his lips, indicating silence. Be quiet and listen.

"Yes, a few stragglers who were looking for the familiars you stole from me," she elegantly explained. "I just dragged them down as I often do." The man cocked his head to the side, eyeing her and the ground.

"Bring them back up."

"And why should I? They don't need to be punished more than they already have." Suzuka looked up at him. "Stop being so paranoid Seki."

"I'm not paranoid, I just want to see the idiots who wanted to steal from us."

"You," she corrected. Seki raised a quick hand, a chain immediately rising from the ground, wrapping around her neck and he tugged.

"Us. You and me." When she didn't say anything, he continued. "Why do you insist on resisting each other's happiness Suzuka? Why can't we just be happy?" She tugged the chains, these abhorrent chains that do nothing but drain her energy.

"Because you insist on taking from me, constantly, consistently, and I am tired Seki. I just want my life back-"

"What life?!" He tugged again, bringing her face to his as he leaned in close. "You gave up your fucking freedom for someone stupid and pathetic who only used you for his own fucking ego. I saved you Suzuka, I did, only for you to do it all over again but for what? Humanity?! So, I ask you, what life?"

There was a heavy silence.

"I already dismembered them." She changed the subject, clearly not taking Seki's rant well. "Their parts have been spread out. It would take a few hours to put them back together." Seki let go and straightened up.

"Well," he huffed. "I'm surprised you even took initiative to get rid of them. It's not like they can figure out how to use them let alone get to them."

"Well, no one would have guessed to go past a dead end, let alone find a hidden key in the middle of the pillar and break it. It's so ridiculous it wouldn't have crossed the mind of any thief, don't you think?" Seki remained silent. "Plus, even if they did by some miracle figure that out, they wouldn't survive the traps you installed without magic."

Suddenly they were in a hallway that led to a dead end. Each of the members of the group looked around and inspected the area. They really did teleport, like how Suzuka mentioned earlier.

"It seems like we need to go through that way," Yugi spoke up.

"Yeah," Yami agreed. Anzu cleared her throat, trying to find her voice for a second before asking the obvious.

"So, were we like... Invisible?" Yami shrugged.

"It seemed like it, or something of the like. Maybe even a cloaking or a barrier like spell to hide our presence." It was an explanation they all accepted for the time being before venturing forward through the supposed dead end.

As they stepped forward, they felt a bit dumb approaching an obvious wall, but when they slowly went through and saw the other side of it, they all just felt stupid for not realizing that magic is weird and used in very obvious ways.

They all kept walking and following the path until they reached an odd place for a pillar. While their surroundings were dark and bleak, this pillar was radiant as it was carved out of white marble. As they grew closer, it became evident just how massive this pillar was. Yami then noticed two dark statues of a horned demon, probably guarding it. He then noticed how the ground around the three objects were all cracked.

"I knew it," a familiar voice boomed. They all turned to see Seki, grabbing Suzuka by her hair before throwing her on the ground. "You were hiding your little friends from the past. Trying to get them back?" It took a moment before he recognized someone. "Pharoah."

A simple word, a simple title, a simple name.

He grabbed a hold of her shoulders before he went on another crazed rant.

"Him?" He asked. "Why him? Why Suzuka? I love you. I love you so much. Does this mean nothing to you?! Do I mean nothing to you?! I gave you everything! So WHY?!"

"You don't love me," she muttered. "You're in love with a version of me that died all those years ago. You do not love me, and I do not love you." Feeling dissatisfied by her response, he kicked her down.

"I gave you my life." Suzuka panicked and tried to get up, only for him to push her down again, attempting to flip her over. "I did everything for you!" She tried again.

"Seki please," she pleaded. He forced her to face forward as he planted his foot onto her spine. "Seki?" As realization fully set in, she began to thrash and get out from under his weight, but he pushed his heel in even further, practically pinning her down. "Wait, Seki, stop."

He raised a quick hand.

"Seki, stop!" Jounouchi watched as she squirmed, instinct kicking in. He had to help her; he had to do something. Honda grabbed his friend's arms, holding him back knowing he would be dead if he interfered.

"You know better than to take me for a fool!"

"Seki, please I'm begging you!"

Her wings shot out.

They all watched in horror and felt a twinge of confusion. Why had her wings appeared? What was the point?

"Why do you insist on this endless banter! Why can't we just be happy!

Seki had a firm grasp on her left wing.

As the sudden realization sank in, everyone simply stared.

"I'm begging you please! Seki, stop!"

"I loved you!"

"Stop Seki! STOP! STOP!"

He ripped it clean.

A blood curdling scream shot through the room as the weight of everything blanketed the whole situation. The whole interaction happened almost in slow motion yet so quickly, they almost didn't process it. None of them had heard such a cry before, but she did mention it.

Breaking a witch's item is most similar to despair.

Jounouchi felt a pang of guilt and pure dread. How the hell was he supposed to help? Without Honda's help, would he have died? Made things worse? Honda felt like collapsing; in fact, he already did. His legs gave out at the shrill scream coming from Suzuka, the most powerful being he knew was going through a pain he never witnessed before. Anzu felt like vomiting at the sight, she felt no greater heartache and pain seeing this whole interaction. Yugi felt like crying, wanting nothing but the best for everyone, including Suzuka. He wanted to get rid of her pain.

Perhaps Yami and Yugi truly were two sides of the same coin, wanting nothing but to rid her of her pain.

When Seki reached for her right wing, Yami couldn't take it anymore.

"SEKI!" He called out. The man paused. He slowly raised his eyes and soon his head and body. Obviously, he was baffled at Yami's pure audacity.

"Pharoah." Yami could feel... something. Perhaps rage?

"Stop, please." He straightened his back as he stared.

"And why should I listen to you?" Yami felt angered by his nonchalant behavior, as if Suzuka had deserved such a cruel punishment. No one deserved this, no one.

"You love her." The sentence felt forced. Seki loved her, right? He said so himself, he loves her.

"I said why should I listen to what you have to say?" He rotated his hand a certain way before he shot a beam of what looked like light and shot right through Yami's heart. "You were always a pain."

As Yami's body hit the floor, a deafening silence overtook the room, save for Suzuka's cries. Yugi stared at the lifeless body that was his partner, and he too began to cry out in harmony to the witch's.

He soon dropped to his side, panicking, feeling a sense of dread as he confirmed that yes, the spirit of the puzzle was dead.

Anzu screamed, not knowing what to do. Yami was dead and she couldn't breathe. Honda and Jounouchi remained still as they eyed Yami's dead body and a sobbing Yugi.

It must've clicked for Suzuka because she paused before summoning a staff of winded branches and chanted a quick spell.

Skeletal hands erupted from the ground and reached for Seki's feet. He shot a look towards her and opened his mouth to say something, only for the hands to drag him down underground.

By the time the gang noticed, Seki was gone.

Suzuka stood up with the help of her staf, pained by her ripped wing and limped over towards Yami's body.

"Suzuka-san," Yugi sobbed, a hint of hope and a tone of begging. Maybe, just maybe Yami was still alive, and she could do something. It took a moment, but she managed to get there in a timely manner. She raised a hand and inspected his body. "Is he still alive?"

"No," she coughed out. "He's dead."

The room shifted. Oddly enough, she remained calm as she slit her hand and let her blood drip into his mouth.

"That'll help with the internal injuries," she whispered to herself. "Yugi," she looked at him with his eyes glazed. "I need your help." It took a moment, but he quickly realized what was asked of him.

"Of course! Yes, anything."

"I could do this myself, but it would take up too much time, something we don't exactly have right now. You have some of his soul embedded in you because of how long and how often you've been together." She took a breath in, losing energy as she spoke. "I just need, I just need you to hold a part of him. It could be his hand or shoulder, anything. And," she looked towards the rest of them. "I need your help as well."

When there was no response, she tried again.

"Hey!" They all gave her their attention. "The pillar there," she pointed, "has a button somewhere, it'll be closer to eye level, and press it. A key will pop out." Suzuka turned to the side and coughed up blood, feeling more out of it.

She turned her attention to Yami.

A deep breath in before she grabbed ahold of her staff and raised it over his body. Yugi grabbed ahold of Yami's right hand as he watched what she did. Everyone else focused on finding that key.

Similar skeletal hands grabbed onto Yami's body, presumably holding it in place. "Find his soul," she ordered the hands, though they didn't move. Perhaps it was another set of hands underground?

It took about a minute before-

"Found it!" Honda shouted.

Yami gasped rather loudly, taking in as much air as he could, sitting up quickly as though he had a bad dream.

Everyone focused their attention to the newly resurrected spirit and shouted with joy. Yugi smiled before pulling him in for a hug. "Other me!"

Yami looked over at Suzuka who smiled somberly before immediately asking for the key. It was a surprisingly small key, no bigger than a small hex key, and she stood up. "Go to where Yami is," she instructed them, and they obeyed quietly. "Turn away and close your eyes."

When they all turned, she disintegrated the key before summoning a bubble-like barrier to encase the impact of an explosion. She quickly teleported the impact and informed the group it was alright for them to look now.

Suzuka dropped down to her knees out of pure exhaustion. She was in so much agony.

Coming from the broken pillar was a bird on fire, a phoenix? Then came a pair of what looked to be angels, and an ominous looking dragon. As Yami saw the creatures, he realized what those two horned demons were.

The witch brought out her hand as she smiled. "Karu."

The phoenix landed on her hand before lowering its head.

"Now," she looked at them. "We must hurry, we're running out of-"

"Setsura...!" A quiet shout echoed. Suzuka froze before she recovered quickly. That familiar feeling of worthlessness and discomfort drowned her attempts to do what she needed to do.

"Hurry we need-"

"Setsura...!" A louder shout before she froze up again. This time, an added feeling of guilt and regret settled in. "Setsura, Setsura!" She immediately covered her ears as she grew afraid. "Setsura!" The name continued.

"Stop," she muttered. "Stop it Seki... I'm sorry, stop please."

Yami quickly noticed and sat by her side. "Suzuka," he called out, hoping to remind her that no such name can haunt her anymore, a curse at this point so old it no longer holds power over her. "Suzuka," he repeated, only for it to be drowned out by the incessant noise.

"No," she shook her head, not wanting to listen to anything anymore. Her grip covering her ears tightened, further quieting that helplessness. Yami gently cupped his hands around her ears for her and lifted her face.

"Suzuka," he whispered sweetly. Tears welled up in her eyes as Seki's voice echoed louder. She brought him into a tight embrace and squeezed tightly.

"I'm sorry..."

Suzuka pushed him and waved a quick hand. Karu knew what this meant.

"Karu, send them back to the past now!" The phoenix circled quickly before perching onto her shoulder.

"Safe travels!" She bid them a farewell with a grin as Seki crawled from under the ground with a twisted expression.

A/n This was a hard chapter to write... I hope it made a bit of sense! I hope everyone enjoyed and please let me know if you have any questions!