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-Several months after 'Empire of Shadows'-“See you tomorrow, Mokuba!” One of the young teenager's classmates called as he left the school building.“Yeah, see you tomorrow, Takahashi-san!” The boy waved back as he walked along the sidewalk away from the institution known as high school. Walking along the edge of the road, he was looking at his feet and thus didn't notice the man standing right in front of him until he'd almost smacked into him.“Oops! Sorry, I didn't see-” Mokuba began, but then broke off when he recognized the man. “Seth?!”“Greetings, Mokuba.” Seth answered, rewarding the teen with a warm smile.“How come you're here? Seto was supposed to pick me up from school today.” Mokuba asked, confused.“Seto instructed me to escort you home this afternoon, as he is mired in unavoidable complications at Kaibacorp.- ones that demand his immediate attention and which just arose this morning. He sends his sincerest apologies. Hopefully, I will serve as a suitable replacement.” Seth answered, joking a little bit at the end to brighten his little brother's mood.“Seth.” Mokuba chided- making a face at his oldest brother- and the man in question laughed.“Plus, this gives me another opportunity to explore the city.” Seth continued in interest. “There are things in this world that still fascinate me to no end. For example-” He mused, “-what exactly is an 'autograph'? I have been asked for one of these many times by many groups of people, and am at a loss as to what to do in these situations.”Mokuba laughed. “It's simple really. An 'autograph' is just your signature. It's usually written on a piece of paper by someone famous. All those people that asked for one mistook you for Seto. He's the one that's famous around here.”Seth nodded in comprehension. “And what is done with these pieces of paper?”“Who knows? Some people put them in picture frames, some people tape them on their wall, put them in a scrapbook- y’know, that kinda thing.” Mokuba shrugged. He didn’t really know.*
[Nor do I, Mokie. 😉 Never really had one.]
“So basically, it is a form of worship in your culture.” Seth surmised, and Mokuba raised his eyebrows. That could be true. He'd never thought about it that way, but it certainly was possible.“I guess you could look at it that way.” Mokuba nodded.“It was much the same in Egypt. The people would plead to the gods for aid- blessings, health, and so on- and they would give it, if they saw fit. Though their gifts were a little bit more long-lived than scraps of paper with a bit of ink on them.” Seth commented, recalling his days in Egypt when he'd reigned as pharaoh- as Horus-incarnate- a living god among his people.-A bit later-As they walked back to the Kaiba mansion, they passed through the park, and Mokuba walked to the center of the lawn. “This is where it all began.” He muttered, only loud enough for Seth to hear.“I do not understand.” Seth stated, confusion rising in his blue eyes once again.“This is where Seto was- where he almost died, when Horakhty's prophecy was fulfilled.” Mokuba explained and Seth nodded, remembering the events that he had witnessed. This incident had occurred over a year ago in the spring, and it was now nearly the middle of summer. In fact, the Solstice was not too far away according to the calendar back home.“I can't believe everything that's happened since then.” Mokuba breathed in disbelief. “But I guess I should expect the strange and unexpected by now, after hanging out with Yugi and those guys for so long.”“Well, my cousin always did have a- shall we say, 'talent for trouble'.” Seth joked as they continued their trek home. “He and Mana would often cause Mahaad a lot of grief, albeit unintentionally. Mostly. I think they just enjoyed seeing him flustered.” He laughed, his mind thousands of years and miles away in the ancient past when Atem was still a child.“I can't imagine Atem being a troublemaker.” Mokuba laughed. “He's always so serious and stoic. Always acting like a noble king.”“Yes, but that was after he had grown out of his childish pranks and antics. When he was younger, he was like you after an overdose of sugar.” Seth explained, poking his little brother playfully in the arm when he'd said 'you'. Mokuba flushed in bashfulness, and Seth smiled wider. “Only, he did not calm down after a few hours. Let us just say it kept things- interesting around the palace.” He laughed.“No kidding.” Mokuba laughed too, feeling slightly better about himself every time that he'd had too many sweets. Seto would often refer to him as 'Mokie-zilla'- giving him this nickname as a joke- but Mokuba would prove it to be quite apt and appropriate. As they continued their journey home, both Mokuba and Seth were stopped several times by groups of boys, girls or both begging for more autographs. Mokuba signed a few, but Seth explained that he wasn't the person they thought and weaved his way out of the crowds whenever this happened.After they had fought their way out of the most recent 'mob', Seth turned to his kid brother, panting, “Is it always like this for you and Seto? I cannot imagine going through this every single day!” He breathed, trying to regain his strength.“Actually, today was pretty mild. But that's the other reason we usually take the limo. It's faster, and it offers protection from the screaming fangirls. And boys. But unfortunately it was our chauffeur's day off, so we're just gonna hafta grin and bear it.” Mokuba explained, smiling apologetically at his brother, who looked skeptical at his brother's first statement. If this was mild, he shuddered to think what a bad day would be like.Avoiding most of the squealing crowds, the two brothers managed to make it back home with only minor scratches. Mokuba armed the front gate and- as an extra precaution- locked the front doors. He smiled at his oldest brother, who smiled back. Then they walked up the staircase to the second floor to their bedrooms, but before Mokuba entered his own, Seth gestured for him to follow him into his study and the room he shared with Kisara. Mokuba cocked his head in confusion- having never been invited into the former pharaoh's chambers- but followed excitedly anyway.“I think it is time I showed you our room, as I have been invited into yours many times.” Seth explained, opening the door wider so that his brother could enter. Mokuba gasped when he'd entered, having not expected the sight before him. The entire room was papered with drawings of hieroglyphs, and Mokuba could tell that Seth had drawn all of them himself. He touched the nearest one and discovered- to his surprise- that it was drawn on papyrus and not paper. Bookshelves and scroll-shelves lined one wall, filled with all manner of books, from fiction stories to magic books to the history of Egypt. Above the large bed hung an enormous picture of the genealogy of the pharaohs, with a few hieroglyphs painted in colors other than black. Mokuba looked at his brother quizzically when he noticed this, and Seth smiled. “The ones that are colored represent my immediate family. My father, my uncle, my cousin, myself of course- and my little sister.” He grinned, his thoughts on the princess of Egypt.“I didn't know you had a sister.” Mokuba gasped, looking back at the genealogy.“Not by blood- in that respect, she's actually my first cousin- but I always thought of Hana as a little sister. Even as Atem saw her as his older sister.” Seth explained, and Mokuba nodded. He continued to look around the room in interest, smiling at the various pictures and drawings of dragons and other Ka. He recognized Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Elf Swordsman, Critias, Curse of Dragon, Duos, Exodia, Fortress-Protecting Winged Dragon, Holy Elf, Kentauros, Minotaurus, Obelisk, Osiris, Ra, Spiria, and Souto no Jackal Senshi among the drawings, and he thought he saw Shadow Magus and Black Magician Girl in there as well. Above the writing desk across from the bed hung a large picture of the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, hovering in the sky above a burning village. Mokuba once again adopted a confused expression and asked, “I thought Blue-Eyes was righteous in her judgment. Why is she destroying that village in this painting?”“That is not it.” Seth answered. “That painting is of my first memory of the White Dragon, when she saved my life.” He explained. “This was the village where I was born and raised. I rescued Kisara from a slave-traders' camp, and they retaliated by destroying my home. No one survived that massacre but me, and that was only thanks to the White Dragon, who- as I would later learn- dwelt within the girl I had saved, the only woman I have ever truly loved with all my heart.”“So the bandits set the town on fire, and Blue-Eyes saved you by destroying them?” Mokuba asked, and Seth nodded. “After that I made my way to the palace city, and soon became a scribe of the court- working my way up to becoming one of the pharaoh's most powerful royal priests and Bearers.”“And after that, you became pharaoh yourself.” Mokuba finished, awed that this powerful king was the same man who stood next to him in companionable silence.“Yes. I discovered that I had not lost all of my family when I was a child, and that I was of royal blood- cousin to the previous pharaoh- and thus worthy of being his successor.” Seth summarized, smiling down at his youngest sibling.Mokuba was quiet for a moment, then walked back over to the large portrait of Egypt's royal genealogy. He traced the lines between the pharaohs that he knew, but then stopped when he came to Seth's. “You had no children?” He asked, and Seth bowed his head.“I did, but they were taken from Our world before their time- that is, before they were old enough to assume the throne.” He whispered. Even after all these years, the subject was still too painful to discuss. He continued solemnly, speaking so quietly that Mokuba could barely hear him, “Of course, after Kisara gave her life for me, I knew that I could never truly love anyone as much as I had loved her, ever again. I did love my queen, and we loved our child- but it was not the same.”Mokuba fell silent again, saddened at the fate of his older 'brother'. Hang on a minute! “If you're our distant ancestor, then how does that work if none of your children survived?” He asked, confusion taking hold once again.“I said they were taken from Our world, not that they died.” Seth explained. “I guess that part was not clear. I apologize for misleading you.”“Oh. Never mind. That makes sense then.” Mokuba nodded, but then he frowned. “When you say 'taken from your world', what do you mean?” He asked, but Seth didn't answer. “They weren't kidnapped, were they?” He gasped in horror.Seth remained silent, but something in his expression told Mokuba that he'd hit the mark. Mokuba put a gentle hand on his brother's back and both of them sat down on the bed in silence, the younger comforting the elder.-Meanwhile-“It's not really fair, when ya tink about it.” Joey commented suddenly as he, Atem, Yugi and Téa enjoyed their lunches at Burger World. The first time they had met there, Téa had been a waitress and had been held at gunpoint in a madman's twisted game. Atem- then known as the 'other Yugi'- had saved his friend by defeating the criminal in a Shadow Game*. Ironically, Burger World had since become the gang's favorite restaurant to get together and hang out.
[S0 E2]
“What's not really fair, Joey?” Atem asked, confused and intrigued by his friend's statement.“Well, listen fer a minute.” Joey stated, and his three friends leaned forward intently. “I mean, Yugi's got you, an' Kaiba's got Seth. My point is, how come I didn' get a double/look-alike from da ancient past like you two did? I got Hermos, but you guys each have two 'brothers in time'.”“Ah. I see what the problem is.” Yugi nodded in understanding and grinned.“You're just jealous.” Téa teased, elbowing him playfully in the arm.“Am not!” Joey argued, glaring at her, but she knew that he didn't really mean the glare.“I believe that Seth asked this question of Sirs Timaeus and Hermos when he and Seto traveled to the Dominion to return Seto to his human form*. You may indeed have had a double from my time, Joey, but they would not necessarily have lived in Egypt.” Atem answered, giving Joey something to think about. Suddenly the blond bent down and retrieved something from his book bag, setting it on the table and plugging a cord into the wall socket next to him under the table.
[See 'Brothers in Time', ch. 7.]
“I got my family's entire genealogy recorded on my laptop.” Joey explained to his friends, who were now looking impressed. “I got everybody from Hermos' older identical brother- whose name wasn' recorded- all da way ta right now. It took a long time ta track down all da info, but I finally got it.” He stated proudly.“Funny, Joey. I've never seen you even set foot in a library before. Doesn't that violate the 'tough-guy' code?” Téa teased again. Joey made a face at her, but then shook his head and turned his computer so that they all could see.“Here's Hermos.” He pointed to the very top of the genealogy. “An’ here's da line dat extends from his brother's family all da way down ta me.” He explained. There were thousands of names listed, but Joey had apparently painstakingly pieced together his connections to the bloodline of the Legendary Knight.“Now Egypt was united aroun’ 3000 B.C., an’ dat was roughly five-thousand years ago- if we're talkin' about da twenty-first century.” Joey summed up, once again surprising his friends with his knowledge of ancient history. “I had ta look up a bunch of stuff ta fill in dis genealogy. Ya tend ta pick up a few tings.” Everyone nodded, and he continued. “I asked a bunch a' historians an' professionals in da field if dere were any people dat were a descendant of Hermos' brother and bore a strong resemblance to ‘im- dat lived around dat time period. No one I asked could find anytin’, so I about gave up hope. But den dere was dis one guy dat found sometin' promising. He lives on practically da other side a' da world, but we talked via e-mail an' Spacebook.” He explained under his breath, as if he didn't want anyone else to hear. Unnecessary- as they were the only customers present at the time- but Joey had always been a little paranoid.“What did he find, Joey?” Yugi asked in interest and excitement.“Dat's da ting.” Joey answered. “He found dis guy named Josephus. He looked exactly like Hermos, 'cept he had black hair an' red eyes. I know, I thought it sounded creepy too. Da problem is, he lived in ancient Rome, not Egypt. An' Rome was founded barely two thousand years ago. Not five.”“So, in the case of your family tree, the traits laid dormant in your bloodline for three thousand years longer than they should have. I wonder why.” Atem mused, deep in thought about this conundrum.“It's an atavism.” Téa realized. Everyone looked at her, and she elaborated. “Tanaka-sensei taught us about that when we were studying genetics in Biology. Remember?” She asked her friends, but they all shook their heads.“I tink I might'a been asleep durin’ dat one.” Joey answered with a sheepish smile, remembering his bad habit of sleeping through boring classes.“I think I might've zoned out too.” Yugi confessed, turning a little red in the cheeks. “That was in freshman year*, wasn't it? I was a little preoccupied with the fact that another personality existed within me. Alongside my own soul.” He glanced at Atem, who had the good grace to look slightly abashed.
[Likely right after 'Duelist Kingdom' and 'Adventure Land']
“I think I remember hearing about that.” Atem answered, surprising the group. The 'other Yugi' rarely ever took over in the early days, unless something either caught his fancy or one of his friends was in danger. But most of the time it was both.“An atavism is 'a reversion to something ancient or ancestral'.” Atem explained, and everyone listened intently. “It is possible that a certain gene or multiple genes of an ancestor can change themselves when they are passed on to descendants. A trait can lie dormant for thousands of years, never surfacing in a child until one strong enough comes along in the line. Then the trait or traits become active in that person, changing their appearance or genetic makeup during development or even later. Most times it’s harmless, but I have heard of a rare case where the personality of an ancestor was passed down to a descendant as well, and this individual acted just the same way as his distant ancestor had*.”
[Yu Yu Hakusho reference! W00t!]
“Really?” Joey breathed, and Yugi laughed nervously. “It's a good thing that both my 'chosen' ancestors were noble at heart, then. A valiant knight- and a wise king.” He grinned at Atem- who made a face at him- but then smiled back.“Wat happened ta Kaiba, den?” Joey joked. “I mean, Critias is about as noble as ya could get, an' Seth is one a’ da nicest people I know. How come Kaiba ended up bein' such a- y’know?”“Another word for 'donkey'?” Téa asked between giggles. “Exactly.” Joey laughed, feeling that the word described the gaming mogul perfectly- at least whenever they saw their friend in public.“That would be due to his foster father, Gozaburo Kaiba.” Atem growled, and Joey remembered the tycoon from their little run-in with him in the VR world. They had only been 'under his thumb' for a few hours. Joey couldn't imagine being raised by such a monster.“From what Mokuba has told me over the years, Gozaburo took everything that was good and pure in young Seto's life and twisted it, shaping him into the man that he was when we'd first known him*: Cold and heartless. However, because of what I did for him after our duel**, and the love that Mokuba has for him, Seto has finally begun to regain his true spirit- his compassionate heart- as he has always had from when he was a small boy. You have seen it for yourselves when we are out of the public eye.” Atem explained.*[aka Season 0.]**[the 'Mind Crush']“Well said, Ouji.” Mana nodded, walking over with a small notebook in hand and a pen in the other. “Can I interest any of you in a dessert, or are you too full from lunch?” She asked, and Atem's jaw dropped in surprise.Téa gasped, “Mana! I didn't know you were working here!” and the teenaged spellcaster rolled her eyes. “Apparently Onii-san thinks I need a few lessons in responsibility, so he is testing me for a week to see if I can manage to hold a job.” She made a face at nothing in particular, then restated her question. “So, does anything on the menu catch your eye?”“Now dat ya mention it, I tink I'll have a banana split*- extra hot fudge an' whipped cream on top.” Joey requested, and Mana grinned as she scratched it down on her notepad. “And what about you guys? Anything look good?”
[Y’know, as I was writing this paragraph, I just realized that I (the author) have never had a banana split before. I'll have to go remedy that ASAP!]
“Everything looks good, Mana, but the rest of us are too full.” Atem laughed. “Joey's famous for being a 'bottomless pit' when it comes to food. Or should I say 'infamous'.” He grinned at his friend, who scowled at the ribbing.“Ha ha.” He answered sarcastically, and Mana skipped away back to the counter to make the dessert. Bringing the subject back to their blue-eyed friend, Joey conceded, “I guess yer right ‘bout Kaiba. He sure was a hero in dat craziness wid Keith an' dat 'Empire of Shadows'. Maybe I'm bein' a little too hard on 'im.”Just then Joey's laptop beeped, reminding him of what he had been doing with it. “Oh yeah! I fergot about da genealogy!” He turned back to his laptop and pressed a button to wake it up, as it had gone into 'Sleep' mode. “Like I said, I dunno why my look-alike came three thousand years after you an' Seth, but I'd be really interested in findin’ out more about dis guy. I checked everywhere, but I can't find another mention of ‘im. It's like all other records of 'im were destroyed fer some reason.”Atem cocked his head at this, feeling an odd sense of déjà vu. The exact same thing had happened to him. What could this 'Josephus' possibly have done that his name would be almost erased from history?“Hey Seth?” Mokuba asked what seemed like an eternity later, but in reality was only a couple hours. Seto had come home from Kaibacorp. and was currently holed up in his study across the hall. The older man looked over at him with a kind smile, and the boy knew that Seth was no longer upset by the topic of their discussion earlier. “Can I ask you a personal question?”Seth cocked his head for a moment, but then nodded. “Of course. What do you wish to know?” He asked, inviting the boy to speak any time that he was ready.“I know this is gonna sound weird, but I'm curious.” Mokuba began, and Seth waited. “How did you die?”The former pharaoh raised both his eyebrows, having not expected that question. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He sighed and shut it again, giving his words careful thought. Finally he decided to avoid the question entirely. “Mokuba, have you ever heard the expression, 'Curiosity killed the cat'?” He smiled, but his eyes conveyed a silent warning.“Yeah, but I'm not a cat.” The boy retaliated with a grin, for a moment confusing Seth with his other brother. Seto would use that expression on him all the time, and he would always respond with the same answer.Seth sighed again. “Remember when you and the other new Bearers returned us to this world?” He asked, trying to dodge the subject again. Mokuba nodded, confused but interested. “Hana said that we were not to speak of anything that happened on the other side. This is a commandment given to us by Lady Horakhty herself. I cannot disobey.”“I know that, but that's not what I was asking.” Mokuba pressed. “I don't want to know what happened afterwards-” Then it dawned on him. “Oh. This question is too personal. I shouldn't have asked. Forget I said anything.” He looked down at his lap in embarrassment and twiddled his thumbs.Seth sighed a third time, a sad smile on his face. “No. You should know. Perhaps it will help you in the future.” He mused thoughtfully. “The whole point of history is so that people can learn from the mistakes of the past, so they can make the future a better place.”Mokuba waited patiently and silently, knowing that this was hard for his brother. Why did I ask such a stupid question? It won't help anything, it'll only cause him more pain. Stupid, stupid, STUPID!“I- I was-” Seth began, not able to find the right words. Finally he nodded, and Mokuba tensed. “I was murdered. By a man I called my friend, and by the woman I thought could replace my queen.”Just then a cry of pain echoed from the room across the hall, and Seth and Mokuba sprang from the bed and rushed to their brother and hikari's study. Bursting into the room, they found Seto lying on his back on the floor- his face distorted in agony, breathing wildly erratic- and his hand gripping his chest so tightly that it looked like he was trying to tear out his own heart.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“Seto! Wha-what's wrong?” Mokuba cried, falling to his knees next to his brother- who was now on his own hands and knees, gasping for breath and gripping his heart.Seto tried to answer, but the only sound that came was a cry of pain. Seth put a gentle hand on his hikari's shoulder and used his power to determine the source of the problem. He gasped and staggered back, his face a mask of horror.“What is it, Seth? What's happening to him?!” Mokuba cried, fearing the worst.The former pharaoh could not answer right away, his disbelief blocking his vocal cords. Finally he gasped, “Oh gods. It is Soul Rot.”“Soul rot?” Mokuba breathed in confusion. He didn't know what that was, but it sounded bad. “What's that?”Seth closed his eyes and bowed his head. “It is the worst form of torture devised by the ancient Shadow mages. The soul of the victim will slowly disintegrate until there is nothing left, and the person to whom the soul belongs will experience nothing but unimaginable pain until nothing remains of them.”“You mean he's- he's dying?” Mokuba gasped, turning back to his other brother.“No. It is worse, much worse. Death would almost be preferable to this. Soul Rot does nothing to the physical body. It eats away at the soul- causing unbearable pain and suffering- until nothing remains of the victim but a shell. I suppose in this modern world you would call it 'brain death'. The victim would still live- his heart would still beat and his brain would still perform some of the basic functions- but he would not be there. He would be an empty vessel.” Seth explained, his countenance downcast. “Sleep provides no reprieve either. Soul Rot plagues the victim with the worst night terrors conceivable. He will be forced to relive his worst fears and nightmares, and find no rest nor respite from sundown to sunrise.” Seth continued, his eyes fixed on the floor.“Who? Who could’ve done this?” Mokuba breathed, but Seth shook his head.“No one that we know. As you probably already know, Shadow magic passed from this world long ago, and only a select few are still able to practice it. Myself for instance.” Seth explained, giving a small smile to his little brother. Mokuba looked up at his oldest brother in shock, and even Seto looked at his yami in surprise from his position on the floor.“I am a Shadow mage, after all.” Seth elaborated, looking down at his distant descendants. There was a glimmer of regret and guilt behind his sapphire eyes, but Mokuba didn't notice and Seto was in too much pain to comment on it at the moment.Suddenly Mokuba had an idea. “Hey, if there were sorcerers back in your time that could cast Soul Rot, wouldn't there be some kind of counter-curse or something? Maybe something that could reverse it?” The boy asked hopefully.Seth closed his eyes and shook his head sadly. “I wish that were the case, Mokuba. But there is no way to reverse the curse when it has already begun to take effect. And the only way to stop it is to find and destroy the Shadow mage that is casting it. Only then will we be able to reverse the damage that has been done.” He put a gentle hand on his hikari's shoulder for a second time and willed a good portion of his energy to transfer to his double. Mokuba looked at him in confusion and Seth explained, “I have transferred a portion of my spiritual power to him in an effort to buy some time. We must get to the bottom of this crisis as soon as possible, or Seto will be doomed.”-The next morning-“A’ight. Get ready ta lose, my friend!” Joey called out as he took one of his cards off the playing field. “I sacrifice 'Masaki the Legendary Swordsmaster' [1100/1100] an’ summon my 'Red-Eyes Black Dragon' [2400/2000] in Attack mode!” He crowed, slapping down the card and watching in fascination as a miniature dragon materialized on his side of the field. Quickly regaining his strategy, he slapped another card down next to his dragon. “An' just in case, I'm equippin' him wid 'Dragon’s Hidden Treasure'. It boosts his Attack an' Defense by 300!”Mahaad smiled, a challenge glimmering in his dark blue eyes. “In that case, I shall call my 'Shadow Ghoul' [1600/1300] in Defense mode, and equip my 'Shadow Magus' [2500/2100] with 'Book of Arcane'. I think it is fairly safe to assume that you know what this does, so- go, my Shadow Magus, and destroy his Red-Eyes Black Dragon! Madoha!”The tiny version of the purple-armored spellcaster twirled his staff behind his back before pointing it at the dragon, sending a burst of Black Magic at it and smirking triumphantly as the Red-Eyes blasted apart into thousands of tiny shards. As an added bonus, Joey's Life Point counter ticked down to zero, ending the game between the two friends.“Wat was dat?” Joey asked as the miniature Ka vanished from Mahaad's side of the playing field, unfamiliar with the term his friend had used. “I thought it was called 'Black Magic'?” He looked at the former Bearer of the Millennium Ring, and the man smiled. “My mistake. That is the Egyptian word for that attack. For a moment, I thought we were dueling at the palace of Thebes. My apologies for causing confusion.”Joey shrugged. “Nah. It’s aight. I got da gist of it anyway from wat yer Ka did. Nice duel, Mahaad! Yer really good!” He congratulated, offering his hand to the magician, who smiled and shook it. “Thank you. You did very well yourself, Joseph- considering this was one of your first 'friendly' Shadow Games where you summoned all of your Ka by your own power. I am impressed.”Joey beamed at the praise, then picked up his Graveyard pile and reshuffled it into the rest of his deck. Across the table, Mahaad did the same. Joey looked up at his opponent again. “I don' tink I'll ever get da hang a' dis ting.” He muttered, holding up the Millennium Key that was hanging around his neck from a thick chain.Mahaad laughed. “Believe me, Shada had the same problem when the Item first chose him. You just have to get used to it, that is all. The gods know I had troubles with the Millennium Ring.”“Really?” Joey asked, genuinely surprised. “But yer one a da most powerful magicians I know!”Mahaad smiled. “Thank you for the compliment, but it is true. The Ring was especially- dark. It contained quite a bit more of the Shadows than some of the other Items, second only to Seth's Rod. It takes a strong heart to command the Items. I was fortunate enough to possess a heart such as this, or the Shadows would have controlled me and not the other way around. As with my predecessor.”Joey looked down at his Millennium Item warily, and Mahaad laughed again. “You need not fear the Shadows now, Joseph. The Items have lost their power to steal souls, though they can still judge them.” Joey looked alarmed at this, and Mahaad continued. “Yes. The Key judged your soul when you first received it. The fact that you stand here today is testament to the strength of your heart. The Key deemed you worthy, and that is why you are able to use it.” He told the young man, a glimmer of pride in his sapphire eyes.Joey exhaled in relief. Then a thought occurred to him. “Hey, if da Items're s’posed ta judge souls, den how come Bakura- er, Akefia was able ta use ‘em? I mean, he stole da Ring from you.” He stated, and Mahaad turned pensive, looking down at the ground.“I do not have an answer to that, Joseph.” The spellcaster replied after a moment. “It is a mystery that confounds me to this day. Though I do have a theory.” He supplied, and Joey waited patiently. “It may not have been Akefia that was wielding the Items themselves, but Zorc manipulating the Items through him. The young man was just a vessel for the darkness. An unwilling pawn.”Joey nodded. That made sense- in an odd, roundabout way.“Seto?” Seth asked quietly as he knocked politely on his hikari’s bedroom door before quietly pushing it open to let himself in. “How are you feeling today?”Seto glanced over at his yami weakly from his position on his bed. “Like I got torched by a flamethrower, dunked in acid, then run over by a bus. How do you think I feel?” He grumbled, but there was a twinkle of amusement in his eyes behind the pain.Seth laughed. He still has the energy to jest. That is good. There may yet be hope for him. “Yeah, I thought so. Though I have never experienced it myself, I am told that wine helps to lessen the symptoms you are experiencing, so Noah helped me raid your cellar.” He admitted, not ashamed of his 'snooping' in the slightest. He took a bottle of red wine from somewhere behind his back and two wine glasses, pouring the drink into both before offering one to his double.Seto smirked. “No hint of an apology in that confession, I see.” He teased, and his yami shrugged, still smiling. “Believe it or not, those were almost all gifts. We never use them, given the fact that I don't drink and Mokuba's underage.”“Well, so are you, according to the laws of this time.* You are not even in your twenties yet.” Seth reminded him, and Seto shrugged. “That's the other reason.” But he accepted a flute of the red liquid from his yami anyway, taking a small sip. “I expect you're used to it, since you grew up with it.” Seto commented when he grimaced at the taste and caused his yami to snicker.
[This is going by the legal drinking age of 21 in America, which is where I live. I'm sure in Japan the drinking age is probably different.]
“My apologies, Seto. I merely found your expression amusing.” Seth answered, attempting to straighten his face. Then abruptly his expression sobered. “I was mistaken yesterday. It is not Soul Rot that you are experiencing, but it might as well be. Almost all of the signs are the same.”“I know.” Seto agreed. “I'm being erased from existence because of something that happened to you in the past. Or one of our other ancestors . But I don't blame you for not recognizing it. You're not a doctor or an expert on the space-time continuum.” He confirmed, taking another sip of the wine. Seth looked alarmed at his statement. “I overheard you and Mokuba talking about it yesterday.”“Ah yes. Your exceptionally keen hearing. I had forgotten.” Seth laughed, relaxing again.“I wonder why it's slower, though.” Seto commented, and Seth raised an eyebrow. “Mokuba loves the 'Back to the Future' movies, and in the first one the main character gets erased from existence because he accidentally interfered with his parents' first meeting. With him, the symptoms seemed much quicker and more severe.*” He looked at his hand. “I mean, I don't even look transparent yet.”
[Ah, a kid after my own heart. I love the 'BttF' trilogy too!]
“Well- as you probably already know- Hollywood's version does not get much right.” Seth laughed, sitting on the edge of his hikari’s bed. “They probably sped it up a bit so that the audience would notice the change. Also, the time frame in between the 'interference' and the present is different. The situation in that film was only a generation apart. What we are talking about could have happened five millennia ago-” Suddenly he gasped. “That is it! It has to be!” He shouted, startling Seto and making him jump, then wince.“What is?” Seto asked, not liking being left in the dark.“That has to be the connection! I cannot believe I did not see it before!” Seth continued, berating himself as if Seto had not spoken.“Didn't see what?” Seto asked again, a bit irritated now.“Yesterday Mokuba asked me about my reign in Egypt, after seeing the genealogy of the pharaohs that I reconstructed. He was confused as to why the line stopped with me, and I told him of my child's fate. They were taken from Our world.” He explained, bowing his head.Seto gasped, horrified. “Seth- I'm so sorry.”The former pharaoh raised his head, wiping away his tears. “That must be the cause of what is happening to you. Somehow we must find a way to restore the bloodline that connects you and Mokuba to me.” He pulled out his new cell phone and dialed a quick number. “And there is only one person I know that is sufficiently skilled in the art of time-travel that can accomplish this.”Dr. Itonami's cell phone beeped in her pocket, and she answered it on the second ring. “Hello? Oh, Seth! Hey!” She greeted. “What? Oh no, that's terrible! You should've called me sooner!” Pause. “What? What does time-travel have to do with any of this?” Pause. “Oh. Well you still should've called. I'll be there as soon as I can, I think this qualifies as an emergency. See you soon, and keep- him- warm. I don't care what he says. I'm the doctor here, and I know what the symptoms can be like. How? A magician never reveals her secrets, Seth. You should know that by now!” She teased and hung up, looking over to the receptionist. “Sakura*, can you clear my schedule for the rest of the day? Something's just come up.”
[Same Sakura from 'Flower of Life'. Strongly based on the Naruto character of the same name.]
The pink-haired woman nodded. “Of course. Good luck!”“Thanks!” Hana called back, already running out the door. “I owe you one!” And with that she bolted out of the clinic doors and down a narrow alleyway, disappearing into a Shadow portal just as a young man with wild white hair ran up. “Huh. Thought I'd felt the Shadows for a second.” He mused, then shrugged and grinned smugly back at his pursuer. “You're going to have to do better than that to catch me, hikari!” He laughed as he dashed off up the sidewalk, leaving a panting Ryou in his wake.“No fair, yami! You've been running for endurance ever since you were little! And gimme back the Ring already!” He demanded, showing a surprising amount of backbone against his ‘dark’ twin.Not in five thousand years. Akefia thought teasingly as he ran, occasionally glancing back at his hikari. The teen was too soft for his own good sometimes. He needed to get stronger- physically and emotionally- hence the cat-and-mouse chase all over Domino. Akefia would never admit it aloud, but he was worried. Almost like a premonition, he felt that something bad was going to happen to one or more of his friends, and he didn't want his gentle 'light' to get hurt too. Plus he still enjoyed sneaking people's items right from under their noses. Nowadays he would return the items- eventually- but it was always worth it to see the flabbergasted looks on people's faces when they realized their stuff was missing.'Take what ya can, give nothin' back.' Akefia quoted mentally as he ran up and down the streets of Domino, occasionally ducking into a dark alleyway in an attempt to test his twin's intuition. I love that phrase. He laughed to himself, jumping up onto an awning and from there wall-kicked onto a flagpole- on which he perched like the smug bird that got the juiciest worm.“No fair!” The hikari puffed again, glaring up at his double. “You win again, 'Thief King'.” He conceded, bending down and putting his hands on his knees.“What? Giving up already, Ryou? Aw, but I was just starting to have fun.” He whined, but dropped the Millennium Ring to its rightful owner anyway. To his amusement, it dropped right onto the boy's neck and hung there as if it had never left. “You'll never get stronger at this rate, hikari.”Ryou looked up. “Is that what this is about? Training me? You could've just told me!” He huffed, exhausted and exasperated now that he'd found out what the point of the chase was.Akefia laughed. “Yeah, I suppose so. But where's the fun in that?*”
[Oh Kefi. Quit teasing your hikari. I know it's fun, but that doesn't mean it's nice! Well, 'once a thief, always a thief' I guess.]
“I'm here!” Hana breathed as she stepped out of a Shadow portal in Seto's room, making the young man jump and wince again. “What can I do?” She asked, looking to her cousin. Seth explained the entire situation to her and she nodded, a plan already forming in her mind.“Well, it's obvious that I'll need help on this quest. I'm not strong enough to go alone. No one is. The question is, who will my team be?” She asked, cupping her chin.“I know I'm going.” A young voice came from the doorway, and everyone turned to see Mokuba standing there, determination burning in his eyes like a dragon's unquenchable fire. “I know what you're gonna say: That I'm 'too young', 'too small' or 'too weak' for this. But that's where you're wrong. I wanna save Seto just as much as anyone here.”“I wasn't gonna say that, kiddo. More like 'Welcome aboard'. I'll need all the help I can get.” Hana smiled, grateful for the boy's help.Seto coughed a weak laugh from his bed behind them. “You'd- go even if I forbade it, Mokie.”The raven-haired boy giggled. “Yeah, probably.”Seto turned to Hana then. “I'm s-sure I don't have to tell you to take care of m-my little brother on your journey, but take c-care of yourself too. Y-you mean a lot to me, Hana.” He breathed weakly, spasms of pain punctuating his words so they came out in a jagged fashion.“Careful Seto, you're sounding dangerously close to affectionate. You have a crush on me or something?*” She teased before opening another portal and disappearing through it, Mokuba right on her heels.
[I was just teasing Seto about the 'crush' thing. I don't think he cares for anyone that way, and neither do I. I mean, I did- but he's long gone. 😢 I miss you, Akhen.]
Seth chuckled and shook his head. “That Hana. She will never change.”Seto- meanwhile- was pensive. Do I have a crush on her?- No, it's just very strong feelings of gratitude for all the times she's saved my life and Mokuba's. I owe her a lot, a debt I hope to repay one day-Hana walked to the end of the hallway and knocked on the appropriate apartment door. She heard a crash of glass against wood and an angry voice yell, “We don' want any a' th' crap yer sellin', so scram!”Despite the rude answer, Hana knocked again, not to be dissuaded by something as little as that. She rearranged her face from a disapproving scowl to a friendly smile as the locks clicked and the door opened ever so slightly- wide enough for someone to peek out, but not enough to let a thrown bottle through.“Hana?!” Joey breathed in surprise, unlocking the chain and stepping out into the hall to greet his friend- but not before closing the door. “Wha- wat brings you here?” He asked, turning a bit pink in embarrassment.“Does a girl need an excuse to visit a good friend?” She teased coyly, but then grew serious. This wasn't the time for jokes. Seto's very existence hung in the balance. “I need your help. You're one of the top three duelists in the world, and your skills will definitely be needed in this venture. I can feel it.”Joey nodded, completely serious. “Anythin' ta help out a friend. Wat should I bring?”“As much as you can fit into one knapsack, including your deck and the Millennium Key. You won't need your Duel Disk, though. It won't work where we're going. Pack for warm-to-hot weather mostly, but bring some heavy clothing just in case. I'm not sure what to expect.”Joey nodded again. “Who else is comin'?”“Well, you and I, obviously. I already asked Téa and she said she'd help. I left Mokuba at Yugi's house to ask him, but I doubt he'll take much convincing. And that's it. I think we can take on just about anything with a kick-butt team like this, right?”Joey grinned. “Ya got dat right!” Then a shout came from the other side of the doorway. “Hey, boy! If yer goin' out, make yaself useful fer once an' get some sake on yer way back!”Joey scowled back at the door, his good mood forgotten. “I ain't goin' out. If yer too drunk ta buy yer own booze, den sleep it off. I ain't gonna let ya drink yaself ta ya grave, old man!*” He yelled back through the door.
[Aww, Joey actually cares about his loser dad. He's such a good son! (sort of)]
“Lazy, good-fer-nothin' brat!” The voice growled loudly, but then fell silent as its owner passed out.Joey shook his head. “Wish ya didn' hafta hear dat. Pathetic drunkard.” He frowned, embarrassed. “Weren't fer him, I'd invite ya in like a decent host, but-”“Don't worry about it, Joey. It's fine. We'll just meet up at the Game Shop later to hash out the details.” She waved off his apology. When he still looked upset, she put a gentle hand on his shoulder. “I've known my share of drunks, too. It was always a madhouse in the taverns back in Egypt, believe me. I'm used to it.”That surprised him. “But- I thought ya lived in da palace!” He spluttered.“I did. Doesn't mean I couldn't sneak out to see my friends.” She winked mysteriously.Joey laughed. “Yer sometin' else, Hana.” He shook his head. Then another thought occurred to him. “Hey, how'd ya know where I live? Nobody knows ‘cept Tristan!”Hana smirked as she approached the corner of the apartment building. “Easy. I followed your aura.*” Then just like that, she disappeared into another Shadow portal.
[Hana, you liar. You used to live right next to him in ‘Flower of Life’, and you know it. 😉]
After everyone had gathered at Yugi's house, Hana explained in more detail what they were attempting to do. Joey was once again flabbergasted by his friend.“You can TIME-TRAVEL?!” He shouted in disbelief, and everyone had to cover their ears at his volume.“Jeez, Joey, yell a little louder next time, why don'cha? My ears are ringing!” Téa complained. He grinned sheepishly. “Did ya try answerin' dem? Might be sometin' important.” He joked, and received a response in the form of a playful slap upside the head.Atem rolled his eyes at the blond, then interjected. “Indeed. Hana was always quite skilled in passive forms of magic. As I recall, at the peak of her training she could journey as far as a week up or down the time-stream.” He smiled proudly at his sister, who blushed.“Thanks for the praise, otouto-sama, but the fact remains that I'm not skilled enough to travel back any further than a week. And our destination is five thousand years into the past. No mortal is powerful enough to do that.” Hana answered. Then she looked back up. “That's why we have to go to the Domino Museum tonight and appeal to the divine ones who do possess the ability.” She answered cryptically.-Hours later, Domino Museum basement-“This statue is supposed to go on display tomorrow as part of the Egyptology exhibit anyway, so I'm sure no one will mind if I take the covering off a few hours early.” Hana muttered mostly to herself, but her friends still heard it. She grasped the bottom of the enormous sheet and pulled, unveiling a titanic statue of a man with the head of an ibis (crane). It was carved from a stone that looked blue in color, and sat on a throne of the same material.Hana knelt down on her right knee before the figure and instructed her friends to do the same. Then she looked up and nodded to her brother beside the statue. He nodded as well, then held aloft a blue-colored Duel Monsters card [Giant Divine Soldier of Obelisk] and invoked the power of the Shadows. Everyone but the siblings reacted in shock as the statue came to life and looked down on them all with a kindly, somewhat amused regard*.
[I guess it’s a good thing for the structure of the building that Thoth was merely amused by my little stunt. Well, I had to talk to him somehow, didn’t I?]
“My Lord Thoth-” Hana began.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
-The next day-“Now remember, you guys-” Hana warned the group of friends before she cast the time-warp spell. “-we're going back to ancient Egypt, so we might bump into at least a few people who look familiar. But they are not the same as the people you know. They are most likely distant ancestors of the people in our time. Conversely, if someone recognizes you, explain to them that you are not the person they are thinking of. Actually, let me do most of the explaining, since I'm the only one going along that speaks both languages- at least until I can whip up a Translation spell.”Yugi, Joey, Téa and Mokuba nodded in understanding, then Hana turned her attention to the raven-haired boy, speaking to him alone. “Mokuba, I need you to listen carefully to this, because it's very important: I can almost guarantee we'll be meeting with Pharaoh at some point, and that pharaoh is Seth. I know he's your brother in this era, but the past Seth won't know that. You can't give away any indication that you know him or of what might happen in the future. No one should know too much about their own destiny.”Mokuba nodded, and Hana continued. “Whatever our Seth might have told you- whatever you might have learned about his rule- you cannot reveal. It might not have happened yet, and we can't risk a paradox. I'm already pushing it by coming back with you guys, 'cuz I'm not supposed to be there either. That's why none of the other Bearers or Atem is coming. We shouldn't be messing with the space-time continuum. We're only doing this because someone else already messed with it, and we have to fix it.”This she addressed to the entire group, and everyone nodded. Then she brightened up, glad that they were off this particularly gloomy topic. “I think you're really gonna like the palace city. I know some of you have been there before, but you didn't see the whole palace. Take it from someone who grew up there: It's truly a sight to behold.”The rest of the group smiled in anticipation, eager to see the city for themselves. Hana summoned up the energy for the time-warping portal she was about to cast, but then turned about and faced the group once more. “Almost forgot. When you are in the presence of the pharaoh, it's imperative that you keep your left foot toward the pharaoh at all times. In Egypt, we believed that the heart was the center of all thought, not the brain. It's a sign of respect, as if you're saying that the pharaoh is at the forefront of your thoughts. That's why most statues and artifacts from Egypt have the left foot forward.” She imparted, sneaking in a bit of an archaeology lesson for her friends. Everyone nodded, and the former princess of Egypt turned away from them and summoned the portal- using the same spell as 'Toki no Majutsushi' whenever a 'Time Warp' was called in battle.“Everyone ready?” Hana asked, and the four friends nodded again. She held out both her hands. “Hold onto each other and don't let go. It's gonna be a bumpy ride.”Everyone linked arms- Mokuba between Hana and Téa, and Yugi between Téa and Joey. Then the five friends jumped through the portal to the past. “My pharaoh, a company of nomads approaches from the north!” A scout cried as he ran into the throne room unannounced - an unheard-of act during the time of the kings. The pharaoh stood up from his throne at once, casting his gaze on the man who had brought the news. “How many were they? Could you tell? Or was their number too great to count?” The man bowed as low as possible. “Five, my pharaoh.” He reported dutifully, keeping his eyes on the floor.“Five thousand men?” Seth mused to himself and aloud. “An army that size would be gathered for one purpose only: The destruction of Egypt and her people.”“F-forgive me, my pharaoh, but- there are only five. Five persons on foot.” The scout clarified, and Seth was taken aback. “Only five?” He repeated, and the scout nodded again. Then their purpose is not war- He thought. “Did you recognize anything about this group? Were they carrying any banners signifying from which country they came?” He asked the scout, who had fallen prostrate on the ground in respect. After all, he was in the presence of a living god. And he'd just had the audacity to actually correct him. Good thing this pharaoh was not easily angered. “No, my pharaoh.” The scout reported. “The only banner that I could see was pure white. No symbol or anything marked the flag, no identification whatsoever.” He answered, and a look of confusion crossed his face. “Actually, their 'banner' looked more like the top half of a man's clothing, but made in a different style.*”
[Hana: Yes, we used one of Joey's white t-shirts for the white flag. I forgot to bring a traditional one. 😅]
“Then We know not if this is friend or foe.” The pharaoh mused to himself, raising an eyebrow at the description of the flag. He bowed his head in thought for a long moment, then looked up. “We have decided. A small band of Our finest horsemen and warriors will ride out to meet this new arrival. If they are friend, they will be welcomed to Our city. If they are foe, We will slay them on sight.” “A wise decision, my liege.” The pharaoh's High Priest commented with a bow and sweep of his elaborate black robes. His raiment was in complete contrast to his predecessor- who had worn robes of royal blue and white linen, adorned with gold shoulder plates and an impressive headdress. “But my Lord, you used the royal 'We'. Surely you do not intend to join the group to meet this strange company?”“We do indeed.” The pharaoh answered, his piercing blue eyes narrowing slightly. “We wish to see these travelers for Ourselves, and judge personally whether they be friend or foe.” He announced, stepping down from the dais and walking proudly through the large room.“But my king-” The High Priest protested. “Suppose you are injured or killed-”“You doubt Our strength and ability in combat, Imhotep? Clearly We need to remind you that We once held your position as High Priest when Our predecessor reigned- in the age of the Shadows. There is a reason that We were the sole survivor of the previous pharaoh's court.” Seth interrupted his head magician, reminding the vassal of exactly who his pharaoh was. Turning again for the doors to the courtyard, the pharaoh did not see the flash of anger in his High Priest's eyes as he backed away into the shadows- seemingly humbled and respectful.-Outside the palace, a few minutes later- “My pharaoh?” One of the guards greeted, but his confusion made the greeting a question. Why would the king be outside?“Ready Our horse for battle. And alert the King's Guard.” Seth commanded, and the sentry started. “The- the King's Guard? Are we being attacked?”“Not yet, but like a close friend of Ours always said: 'One can never be too cautious.'* We must be prepared for anything.” Seth stated, and the sentry bowed. “Wisely spoken, my liege.” Then he called to his fellow guardsmen. Within minutes the King's Guard was mustered and ready for battle- the pharaoh's steed standing at the head of the company. Seth mounted the magnificent beast and called for the main gates to be opened, speaking words of warning to his warriors. “We may be riding to battle today. Be prepared for the worst.” He ordered.
[Seth: I was referring to Mahaad when I spoke with the palace guards. He was always saying that 'One can never be too cautious' phrase.]
“As you command, Pharaoh.” The Guard answered in unison, and the eleven riders thundered out of the palace gates and through the city- riding to the north and to the unknown.-Meanwhile- “Jeez, it's hot!” Joey complained. “I don' remember it bein' dis scorchin’ when we were here las’ time.” He stated, reaching for a flask of water at his hip and taking a short swig.“Don't drink it all, Joey. There's no guarantee when we'll find more.” Yugi cautioned his friend, then wiped an arm across his brow. “It is hot, though. You're right about that.”“You guys probably didn't feel it last time because you were only here in spirit, kinda like how Atem existed in the future when he lived within the Puzzle. He could see and hear stuff on his own, but he didn't have his own body to feel the temperature or the weather.” Hana guessed, looking at her tall blond friend and smiling. “I'm used to it because I grew up here, but you’ll just have to grin and bear it. Sorry.”Mokuba and Téa sighed heavily, but then nodded as they continued their weary trek to where Hana insisted that the palace of Thebes was located. Somehow they had landed miles off-course when they had created the portal and got dropped off far to the north of their destination. They had intended to arrive right outside the walls of the city, but apparently the gods had other plans.“Hey guys, look at that!” Mokuba called suddenly, pointing directly ahead of them. “Isn't that the palace city up ahead?”“You're right, Mokuba, it is.” Hana answered. “That means we're nearly there!”“Yeah, but wat's dat cloud a' dust comin' from it? Don' tell me it's a sandstorm!” Joey complained as he braced himself.Hana squinted ahead. “It's not a sandstorm, Joey. It's worse. They're riders, and they already have their swords drawn. I should've expected something like this. Seth always was a little paranoid.” She sighed, summoning her magic and casting a 'Absolute Nonaggression Area' trap shield around herself and her friends just as the riders surrounded them.“Reveal yourselves, in the name of the pharaoh.” Seth commanded regally, and- although he didn't understand a word that was just spoken- Joey was the first to remove his hood from his face. A few of the King's Guard gasped in surprise, having never seen blond hair before. “That man, his hair is like the sun-” One whispered.“Could he be blessed of the sun god Ra?” Another asked in a hushed voice. “Look at their pale skin. Is it possible that these beings have come from the netherworld?” Yet another guard observed under his breath, just loud enough so that only his nearest companions could hear. By now, all five travelers had removed their hoods and stood facing the pharaoh. Seth glanced at each in turn, but froze when he spotted a familiar sight of tri-colored spikes- “A-Atem?!” He gasped, disbelief and shock coloring his voice and alerting his guard as if he'd shouted the name. The teenager in question slowly shook his head, then bowed respectfully to the pharaoh- putting his left foot forward, as was the custom. “Sorry, but I'm not who you think I am. My name is Yugi. I guess you could say I'm a very distant relative of his. These are my friends: Téa, Mokuba, Joey and Hana.” He introduced, pointing to each of his companions in turn as he said their names, and each bowed respectfully when their name was called. Though he did not understand the language, Seth could guess at what Yugi was saying by his actions. At the mention of the last name, Seth received another shock, another blast from the past.“Hana?!” He cried- not even bothering to keep his voice down anymore- for he knew this woman to be dead! He'd seen Zorc throw her over his shoulder like a discarded toy and through some kind of magical portal. How then could she be here?The woman in question looked up and grinned sheepishly. “Heh. Hey Seth. Long time no see.” She greeted, then she put a hand to her mouth when she realized her mistake. “Oops! I meant 'Pharaoh'. Long time no see, Pharaoh!” She corrected, also putting her left foot forward and kneeling on her right knee. Following her example, the rest of the group knelt on one knee as well- showing their respect to the powerful king before them. Though right now he didn't look very impressive, as he was mouthing soundlessly like a fish out of water. “How-?” He gasped, finally finding the words.“It's a long story.” Hana explained quickly, standing up and smiling at her old friend. “I don't have time to explain the details here.”As if in answer, Mokuba sat down hard on his backside, then fell onto his side as the sun's heat became too much for him. Hana immediately knelt next to him and gave him some of her own water, reviving him and helping him back to his feet. Seth seemed to come back to his senses then, because he barked a few quick orders to his guard- who sheathed their weapons and stood at attention, four riders dismounting so that the newcomers could get on first.“Our sincerest apologies for the hostile reception. We did not recognize you. You will all be welcomed at the palace as honored guests.” Seth apologized and offered, which the visitors- after a translation from Hana- accepted gratefully. Then Seth did something that no one present was expecting. He dismounted from his own steed and offered the reins to Hana, who looked at him with a confused expression. “Another old friend would like to greet you, princess.” He whispered as he winked, keeping the young woman's identity between just the two of them.“I can't believe it!” Hana gasped, approaching her mare and stroking her silky black neck affectionately. “Nut*! I haven't seen you since the battle against Zorc!” She exclaimed softly, hugging the horse around the neck. The aged mare responded by blowing into her hair; a sign of love, trust and affection. “You've gotten a lot bigger and stronger since the last time I saw you!” She continued, rubbing her fingers in small circles on the horse's neck in a gentle massage.
[pronounced ‘Noot’]
“Yes. After your 'disappearance', she was inconsolable for weeks. I was the only one who could approach her, who could calm her down. Eventually she grew to trust me enough to let me ride her. She has been my faithful steed ever since. But in recent years I have been riding her foal, as she is getting too old for the long journeys.” Seth explained, stroking the mare's neck affectionately as well. He then bent down and folded his hands into a cradle to give Hana a leg-up so that she could get on the horse's back, then took the reins near the bridle and led the horse and princess on foot. One of his guard protested- that the pharaoh shouldn't be walking- but Seth waved it off. It wasn't that far to the palace from here.-Half an hour later-So they journeyed to the palace, the pharaoh walking and the five guests plus the King's Guard riding on horseback. Needless to say, it was a strange sight for the common people of Thebes to behold. As the royal procession moved on to the palace, Hana leaned down on Nut's back to whisper something to her old friend. “Hey Seth? You're the only one who knows who I was, right? Can we- y’know- keep my identity a secret? I don't want a big fanfare or anything. Egypt's lost princess hasn't returned, not for that reason. And I'm sure the same goes for Yugi. I know he looks almost exactly like Atem, but they are not the same person. So, no lavish parties for us heralding our 'return', because we haven't returned. Not really.”“You mean- you are not staying? You have to return to the other world?” Seth asked, his face falling as he realized the implications of Hana's words.“That's right.” Hana answered. She was disappointed too, but she knew that staying in this world for too long could cause irreparable damage to the space-time continuum. “You see the young boy behind us? The one with the long dark hair?” Hana asked, and Seth looked back at Mokuba, who waved shyly. “Something is happening in our world, and we've come back to Egypt to fix it. I can't tell you all the details- because it might cause a paradox- but we have to stop whatever is causing the problem, or Mokuba's older brother Seto will be erased from existence. And if we don't act quickly, Mokuba will follow.” She explained.“You have come to right the wrongs of the past to save the future?” Seth asked, guessing their purpose faster than Hana would've expected. He's quick. I'm gonna have to watch what I say around here, otherwise the future might be in more jeopardy than it already is.“I'm not really supposed to be here either, but these guys don't know their way around and they don't speak the language. I might be able to whip up a Translation spell, but the ingredients can only be found here. That's why I came. I know I'm risking a paradox, but it was worth it. There's too much at stake.” Hana continued, making a guilty face and looking down at her horse's saddle as she rode to the palace- the place she once called home. As they passed through the familiar outer gates, Hana couldn't help but feel a sense of homecoming- even though she knew that the only person here that knew her was Seth.-Minutes later-“It is a blessing from the gods that you have come.” Seth said to the former princess and the four other guests when they had entered the throne room. “Something terrible has happened, and We feel that you five are the only ones who can help Us.” The four Japanese guests looked confused, so Hana translated for them. Then she asked, “What has happened, Pharaoh? How can we help?”“It happened in the night, a week before this day.” Seth answered, looking at Hana and the rest of her companions. As he continued, Hana noticed that tears were forming at the corners of his eyes and running together on his lower eyelids. “The princess of Egypt was stolen away from her chambers and taken to a land unknown. We have sent dozens of search parties, but none have returned. As you well know, Atem sealed away the Shadow Games when he defeated Zorc, but We can tell that the princess was taken by magic- and Shadow Magic at that. The power We once wielded as a Bearer is now lost. We beseech you and your companions to find her and bring her back to Us. She is Our only daughter, and the heir to the throne!” He explained and pleaded, shocking Hana with this revelation. Seth has a daughter?! When did that happen?! More time has passed than I thought, it seems.“Eh, not ta be rude or anythin’, but I didn' understand a word a' dat.” Joey said, once again confused. Hana translated for him and the others, and when she'd finished they were as shocked as she'd been.“What is your daughter's name, Pharaoh Seth?” Téa asked, and Hana translated her Japanese into ancient Egyptian, wishing that everyone present could understand everyone else. That would be so much easier and convenient!“Nefertiri.” Seth answered with a slight smile. This subject was fairly easy to discuss. Her mother's name was Nephthys- after the goddess- but she died shortly after Nefertiri was born. This is Our second wife, Ankh-Su-Namun.” He explained, gesturing with his open palm to the other woman in the court- an exceedingly beautiful woman with nut-brown skin and long, smooth, ebony hair. She was arrayed in gold from head to toe- from her headdress and necklace to her dress- even her sandals were woven with gold. She nodded regally to the visitors, who bowed back respectfully. Hana translated for them again and the names struck a memory within Téa's subconscious, though she couldn't quite place where she'd heard them before.“Wow. She's gorgeous!” Téa breathed to herself, but Yugi overheard her quiet exclamation and nodded mutely, his mouth slightly open in awe. As everyone in the group of visitors was captivated by the queen of Egypt, no one noticed Hana slinking over to one of the servants present and whispering something to him. The young man listened for a moment, then nodded and rushed off into a hallway. Hana silently melted back into the group with no one the wiser. Seth raised a questioning eyebrow at his old friend, but she just smiled mysteriously.Within about five minutes, the servant had returned- carrying a jar filled with an assorted amount of crushed herbs and other substances. Hana looked into the container, sniffed gently, then nodded her thanks- accepting the jar from the servant and walking back to the group. Then without warning, she threw the contents over her four friends. “ATCHOOOO!” Joey sneezed. Apparently he was allergic to one or more of the ingredients. “Wat was dat for?”“It's a Translation spell. Now you won't need me to interpret for you every time that anyone says something. It also works when you speak. You'll be speaking Japanese, but everyone will hear ancient Egyptian.” Hana explained, and Joey's annoyance dimmed somewhat. “Ya coulda given us a li’l warnin’!” He hissed, and Hana grinned sheepishly. “Sorry.”“Now that we are able to understand one another, this will go far more smoothly.” Seth commented, and everyone nodded in agreement. “You have traveled far, despite your lack of adequate supplies for your long journey. You shall be welcomed in Our palace as honored guests.” He reiterated, alerting the palace staff to the newcomers' status. “While you are here, you will not want for anything, this We promise you.” Then he added in a whisper and a small smile, “It is the least I can do, for Egypt's past saviors.” He winked, and Joey, Yugi, Téa and Hana gasped.“You- you saw us? During the battle with Zorc?” Téa gasped, and Seth grinned mischievously, stepping down from his throne to personally show them to their rooms. “And my double, though we never spoke. I knew that young Mokuba had seemed familiar. He resembles his brother.” He smiled at the boy, whose mouth dropped open. “I had wanted to thank you all back then, but you had to return to your world, and Atem left with you. You saved my people, and Egypt is in your debt.”Hana smiled. Seth hadn't changed a bit from when she'd known him as a Bearer. He led them to Hana's old rooms and everyone thanked him, bowing as low as their muscles would allow. After all, the pharaoh was considered to be a living god among his people. Seth nodded and smiled- put a friendly hand on Hana's shoulder for a moment- then returned to the throne room to resume his duties.-Later that day-“Wow. Poor Seth.” Téa commented when she'd taken a seat on the divan in the room, sitting next to her friend Hana. “His only daughter was kidnapped by magic a whole week ago. He must be worried sick, but he can't show any sign of weakness as the pharaoh.”“It's tough to be a god.” Hana agreed. “I remember some of the things Atem had to go through. I definitely didn't envy him.”“You'd tink it'd be great- gettin' da royal treatment ev’ry single day- but in reality it's a whole lotta work ta rule a country. 'Specially one as powerful as Egypt.” Joey put in, and everyone else nodded.“Like a wise man I know once said, 'With great power comes great responsibility. It's not all fun and games, cake and ice cream'.” Mokuba added, looking around at his four friends from his perch on the room's solitary chair. Joey was standing near the doorway and leaning against the wall, the girls were seated on the divan, and Yugi sat cross-legged on the marble floor.“Who said that, Mokuba?” Yugi asked out of curiosity, though he had a feeling that he already knew who it was.Mokuba smiled sadly. “Seto.” was his only answer, and Yugi nodded. He should’ve known.-After a minute or two of quiet, awkward staring-Téa stated, “Well, I think it's obvious why the Kaiba family is slowly being erased. Nefertiri's been kidnapped, and she's Seth's only descendant- the only connection so far between him and you two brothers.” She looked at Mokuba, who looked back at her with sad, storm-gray eyes and nodded.“We should set out as soon as we're ready.” Mokuba announced. “Who knows what'll happen if we don't rescue the princess soon.” He actually did know what would happen, but he was trying with all his might to keep that thought from his mind. Somehow, dwelling on the subject seemed to make time speed up- shortening the time that his brother had left in the world.“But we dunno where she's been taken.” Joey argued. “How're we s'posed ta find her when we dunno where to even start lookin'?”“That part's actually pretty easy.” Hana answered, and everyone looked at her. “My magic isn't what it used to be, but I can still track the spiritual energy of someone. Kinda like a magical bloodhound in a way. But don't even think of cracking one of Kaiba's 'mutt' jokes, Joey, otherwise I'll let ya have it.” She warned, balling her hand into a fist and raising it so that Joey could see it.The blond snorted in disbelief. “I wasn't gonna, but since ya already brought it up-” He began suggestively. Hana's eyes narrowed in a suspicious frown. “I'm warning you.”Joey burst out laughing. “Relax, I'm jus' kiddin’! I've seen whatcha can do wid magic. I ain't takin' any chances.” He waved his hands in an 'I surrender' gesture, and Hana loosened her fist.“Good.” She nodded, lowering the magical aura around her and gathering it back into the well of magic in her heart.“As I was saying before, I can still easily track spiritual energies, so finding the princess won't be a problem. It's rescuing her that's gonna be the real issue here.” Hana continued as if nothing had happened. She glanced briefly at Joey and silently imparted a mental message meant only for him. “I wasn't really gonna hit you just there, but I meant what I said. No 'mutt' jokes!”Joey nodded with a smile, indicating that he understood. Then he registered what was just said. “Wait a minute! Are you sayin' ya already know where she is?” He asked, honestly shocked that it had happened so quickly.“I'm not sure of the area exactly, but I can feel a dark presence all around her. It's somewhat familiar, but at the same time- not. I can feel its power from here, which is a testament to this being's strength. It could be hundreds of miles away.” She explained worriedly, her eyebrows raising.“Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get our supplies and go!” Mokuba interjected impatiently, desperate to try to save his brother as soon as possible.“It's gonna be dangerous, Mokuba.” Hana warned. “It won't be like your other adventures. The enemies that we encounter won't exercise restraint because you're young. They- will- kill- you- if they get the chance. Do not give them that chance.”Téa interrupted. “Hold on. You're sounding like you're not gonna be with us the whole time.”Hana looked down at her feet. “I can't guarantee that we'll always stay together. I'll try my best, but the gods may have other plans. That's why I'm warning you now to be prepared for anything.” She insisted, silently pleading with her friends to be careful.“Hey, c'mon. We're da heroes. Wat could happen?” Joey shrugged, setting off out of the door where Hana had been looking.Famous last words.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“May the gods be with you on your journey.” Seth prayed as he helped Hana pack a few last-minute supplies into her bag, and Hana smiled. “And also with you, Seth.” She answered. She tied her knapsack to Nut's saddle, then climbed up onto the mare's back- taking up the reins- and faced toward the northwest where she could sense the energy trail of her quarry: the young princess of Egypt.Seth stepped back from his oldest friend, a few tears budding in his eyes. He wished that he could've spent more time with his 'little sister', but he also knew that time was of the essence. Every minute that they delayed the search took another minute from the time that Mokuba's brother had left. Every second that they spent in each other's company could be the vital second that Nefertiri remained unharmed. Who knew what her unknown captors were subjecting her to? Seth didn't even want to think about it.The pharaoh gave Hana one last heartfelt hug as he blinked away his tears. “Bring her home safely, Hana. And you come back safely too.” He commanded, and Hana nodded. “I'll do everything in my power, Seth. You have my word.”Seth nodded, backing away slowly. “I just have this awful feeling that I will never see you again.” Hana smiled mischievously. “Did Isis rub off on you or something?” She teased, and Seth smiled softly when he remembered the Bearer of the Millennium Necklace, their mutual friend, Isis. The Millennium Necklace would give the young woman glimpses of future events, most often grim.Seth chuckled to himself. “Maybe. Or perhaps it is just my worry overreacting. You know how it is.” Hana smiled again, remembering how she'd worried about Atem all the time. That's just how families were. She then turned to address the entire 'farewell party' that had gathered to see them off. “I don't know exactly how long we'll be gone, but- if worst comes to worst- I'll send Nefertiri home by any means necessary. I'll find her and free her no matter what it takes. You have my word, Egypt will have her princess once again.” And with those dramatic words, she cued her horse into a hand gallop through the sand- her four companions racing off behind her. Just as they almost passed out of sight, Hana opened another space-time portal before them and the five heroes charged through the vortex and into the unknown.-In twenty-first century Japan-“Seto?” Kisara called softly as she knocked on her brother's bedroom door, holding a tray with a bowl of fresh fruit, a bowl of water and a washcloth to help him feel better. She received no answer, but the door swung open seemingly of its own accord. It seemed that Seto could still access his magic in his weakened state. Kisara didn't know how much longer it would last, though.The young woman tiptoed over to his bed, setting her tray on the nightstand as she sat on the edge of the mattress. She smiled sadly as she looked at the exhausted young man. His eyes were closed and his breathing was shallow and even. It appeared that he had just fallen into a light dose just before she'd entered. Due to his condition, he needed all the rest he could get.Kisara carefully reached over the covers of the bed and stroked her brother-in-law's brow gently, moving some of his bangs out of his eyes as he slept. She frowned in concern when she felt moisture on the tips of her fingers. Seto's brow was drenched with perspiration, which could only mean one thing: he was running a fever. She picked the thermometer off the tray she had brought and turned it on, putting the end with the sensor under the young man's arm when it was ready. It beep ed quietly after a minute and Kisara read the numbers, gasping when she saw the temperature. 104.7?! She exclaimed mentally. No wonder he is drenched with sweat! I have got to cool him down before he gets worse! She dropped the washcloth into the bowl of cold water, then wrung it out and placed it carefully on his forehead. To her surprise, this didn't wake him up. He had always been a very light sleeper. He must’ve been exhausted.Taking his right hand in both of hers, Kisara stroked the top of it softly as he slept- remembering that his real mother used to do this when he was young. Kisara- as her Ka- had been watching over Seto since he was born, and had been keeping an eye on his own Ka, Ryushiro. The young Blue-Eyes White Dragon had been like a son to her and Reseph-Ari, even though he was not their real offspring. Unbidden, a song came to Kisara's mind, and she sang it softly as her young duelist slept.“Baby mine, don't you cry.Baby mine, dry your eyes.Rest your head close to my heart,Never to part, baby of mine. Little one, when you play,Don't you mind what they say.Let those eyes sparkle and shine,Never a tear, baby of mine.
[No lyrics for the third verse, but Kisara hums the tune.]
From your head to your toes, baby mine.You're so sweet, goodness knows, baby mine. You are so precious to me,Cute as can be, baby of mine.Baby mine, baby mine-”She smiled as the last note lingered in the air for a moment before fading away, replacing his hand where he'd laid it when he dozed off. As she tiptoed to the bedroom door, a weak voice made her stop in her tracks.“Mom?” The voice breathed, almost too quiet to be heard. Kisara bit her lip guiltily. She hadn't meant to deceive him, just to calm him and ease some of his pain. She walked back over to the edge of his bed and sat down.“No, Kisara.” She explained, and Seto opened his eyes to look at her.“My mother used to sing that to me before bed.” He told her, a fond smile on his face. Then his smile turned down to a look of confusion. “How do you know it?”Kisara smiled bashfully. “I used to watch over you from the Dominion. You were my Chosen Duelist. I guess I learned it from her.”Rather than be angry with her, Seto smiled. “You sound just like her. That song takes me back-” He trailed off- a smile on his face as he closed his eyes- his mind in the past, in a happier time.“I did not mean to awaken you.” Kisara whispered, still feeling guilty.Seto turned to her again, but kept his eyes closed. “I wasn't really asleep. Just resting my eyes. If I sleep I'll have nightmares.” He reminded her, and she smiled at him sadly.“You carry so much weight, for one so young.” She sighed, stroking his hair again in a motherly way, even though she had never been a mother before. Or at least, not yet. “Raising your brother at eight, heading a major corporation at twelve, saving the world at sixteen- [aka, the Orichalcos incident] and now this? I do not know anyone who has had it harder than you have.”Seto smiled wryly. “It's just like what Malik said last year when we had to deal with our dark sides. The gods really love messing with me.*”
[Brothers in Time, ch. 1]
Kisara giggled at that, and Seto's grin grew wider. Ishtar certainly had a way with words. He looked around and spotted the tray on his nightstand, then smiled at his sister-in-law's thoughtfulness. How had she known that he'd been craving a bowl of fresh fruit all day today? As if reading his mind, Kisara lifted the bowl off the tray and handed it to him- helping him to sit up so that he could eat it more easily. He sighed contentedly as the liquid from the juicy strawberries ran down his throat, and he savored the taste for as long as he could before helping himself to another spoonful.Kisara smiled. It was rare that Seto let down his barriers that he'd built around himself and let his true self shine through. She knew that he'd erected those walls to protect himself, but he'd built them so strong that almost nothing could penetrate them. Not even people who had wanted to be his friends. Only the ever-present love that Mokuba had for his brother could gradually seep through the cracks and touch his heart- something no one else had ever been able to do. Ever since Seto's life-changing 'accident' last year*, those barriers had begun gradually dissolving, and more and more people had been able to see his true heart- to see the hero he really was inside.
[Another Chance ch. 1]
He'd really had to grow up too fast. Losing his mother when he was only five, and then his father a mere three years later, with a three-year-old brother to look after and raise. That was a lot to put on any eight-year-old's shoulders- much less one that was abandoned by his extended family and left at an orphanage. Young Seto didn't have hardly any time to be a regular kid. He’d had to become more of a father to Mokuba than a brother, giving up his own freedom of childhood to raise his little sibling. And Kisara didn't want to even think of that demon that had adopted the boys. She shuddered silently and shook her head, turning back to Seto and taking the now-empty bowl from his hands and returning it to the tray. He smiled gratefully at her, then laid back down on his pillow and closed his eyes- dozing off within a minute.Kisara rinsed out the washcloth one more time and replaced it on the young man's forehead, then took the tray off the nightstand and silently left the room- her bare feet making no sound on the soft, carpeted floor. She carefully closed Seto's bedroom door, then returned to the kitchen to take care of the tray.Oh, Seto- Kisara prayed. I hope Princess Hana and the others find a way to save you soon. I do not want to think about- If they fail, then all hope is lost.“Eh, hey Hana?” Joey called up to the head of the group. “Was dere s’posed ta be a sixth member of our li’l group here?”Hana looked back at her blond friend incredulously. “No. Why?”“Jus’ askin'.” The duelist answered. “Seems like we got somebody followin' us.”Hana frowned in concern as she looked past her friend to the road behind them, and- sure enough- she just barely spotted a dark figure jump behind a tree to keep themselves hidden from view. As if he or she knew that they'd been discovered.“You're right, Joey. Good eye.” Hana confirmed, but her eyes were narrowed in a worried frown. Nobody here was supposed to know about their quest. The only ones that were supposed to know were hundreds of miles away back in Egypt.Suddenly an idea came to her and she smiled mischievously to herself. “You guys keep following this trail for a sec’. I wanna try something. And don't worry when I suddenly slump over in the saddle. It'll just be my shadow-clone on Nut's back.”Everyone nodded, but that didn't stop some of them from being surprised when their friend suddenly lurched forward, looking for all the world like she had just passed out on her horse's back. The real Hana- meanwhile- had cast a Concealing spell on herself and had doubled back to the tree where their 'stalker' was hiding themselves. However, when she caught a glimpse of the mystery figure's face, she almost fainted just like her shadow-clone.“AKHEN?!” She gasped loudly, nearly shouting due to the magnitude of her shock. Her exclamation alerted her four friends immediately, and they quickly backtracked to surround the newcomer with their horses. An impressive feat, considering none of them had ever taken riding lessons before. The newcomer paled and gulped silently, not knowing what to expect from the four on horseback.When he saw that an attack was not forthcoming, Akhen- for it was indeed he- sighed quietly and removed his hood, revealing the kind face of a young man in his early twenties*. Téa thought he looked a lot like the Ka 'Silent Swordsman', except with black hair instead of teal and brown eyes instead of gold.
[24, actually.]
Hana was gaping at her long-lost friend like a fish out of water. She'd never expected to see him again- not in this life, anyway. She was almost certain his spirit would go to Aaru when the time came- and that she'd see him there when she finally went- but she hadn't thought that their reunion would come this soon!Akhen smiled gently at his oldest friend, and that somehow brought her out of her reverie. Tears came to her emerald-green eyes as she repeated breathlessly, “Akhen? Is- is it really you?”The young man nodded silently, as always.“What are you doing here? You didn't- did you follow us through the portal?” Hana asked, her confusion turning to a conspiratorial grin. Instead of answering her, Akhen only blushed and looked at his feet. Everyone giggled at that, making the young man turn redder.“Oh, I don't care how you got here. It's wonderful to see you again!” Hana laughed and cried at the same time, hugging her best friend with all of her strength. Akhen gasped in surprise, not expecting the embrace. Then he returned it, putting his chin on the top of the former princess' head just like he used to.After breaking away from the embrace, Hana turned to her friends with a beaming smile. “I don't believe I've properly introduced my friend. Guys, this is Akhen- my best friend outside of the palace when I was a princess. Akhen, this is Joseph, the blond young man; Yugi, the one who looks like my brother; Mokuba, the boy with dark hair; and Téa, the young woman with short brown hair. They're a few of my friends from the future.”Akhen bowed humbly to each of them as they were introduced, and all of them nodded back, smiling. Then he turned to his closest friend and signed something to her, which she observed and answered after a minute. “Are you sure? That's kinda personal, isn't it?” She asked, and Akhen nodded. “Okay.” She turned back to her other friends. “Akhen wanted me to tell you that he's mute, just for future reference. If you need to ask him something, I'll interpret his sign language for you.”Everyone raised their eyebrows in surprise, but then nodded, glad for any form of help they could get. Akhen signed something else to the former princess, and she nodded and smiled after he'd finished. “Of course you're welcome to come along, silly! We might need all the help we can get.” She laughed, and her companions laughed too, still able to understand the ancient Egyptian language.-After a minute-“So does anybody recognize our surroundings? Or did I just teleport us to the middle of nowhere?” Hana asked, and her five companions looked around for any recognizable landmarks. Suddenly Mokuba pointed to a structure in the distance that looked to be under construction. “I'm not exactly sure, but that looks like the Colosseum over there!” He announced, and everyone turned to look in that direction and gasped when they saw that the teenager was right. The world-famous Roman Colosseum stood before their eyes, only half-completed at this point.“We're in ancient Rome?!” Joey breathed incredulously, once again flummoxed by his friend's amazing magical abilities.Hana grinned. “Well, y’know what they say: 'When in Rome, do as the Romans do'. We're probably gonna have to get some different clothes. Blend in, y’know.” The others nodded- except for Akhen, whose attire wouldn't stick out nearly as much as what the other five were wearing. Their plans made, the six headed toward the incomplete Colosseum and the thriving city of Rome- hoping to find a good place to buy more appropriate garments.Eventually the travelers found a suitable stall in the outdoor market that was selling inexpensive togas for both men and women, and Hana purchased a set each for four of her companions and a set for herself. Akhen shook his head when she offered to get him some, signing that his own clothes would suffice. Hana shrugged and smiled, pulling her new toga on over her other clothes- taking them off under her new attire once she'd adjusted it. The others did the same with little difficulty, although Joey seemed to be having some trouble deciding which shoulder to rest his toga on. He finally settled with his left shoulder and muttered to himself, “It's jus' like dat 'Hero' get-up from dat Adventure Land game a’ Kaiba's. Felt silly den, an' I feel silly now too.”Hana had heard his grumbling, and she grinned. “Aw, it doesn't look bad, Joey. In fact, I kinda like it.” She complimented. Meanwhile, her inner-self drooled. “Hel-loh Muscles! Dang, Joey!” Noting the look on her friend's face, Téa snorted quietly. “Enjoying the view, Hana?” She snickered.Both of her friends turned beet-red at that and hastily looked in opposite directions while everyone else laughed. Even Akhen had to hide his smile behind his hand.While the friends were enjoying their amusement at their other friends' expense, suddenly the enormous shadow of an unidentified flying mass passed over them and everyone was buffeted by gale-force gusts of wind from its giant wings. Everyone looked skyward and gasped as the unmistakable roar of a dragon echoed all around them as the mighty beast soared over their heads, screaming its challenge to the skies. Joey was the one most taken by surprise, because he knew that roar better than anyone else among them. Indeed, how could he ever forget it? It was the call of the most powerful Ka in his deck, none other than the Red-Eyes Black Dragon.“No way- ” The blond duelist breathed, shocked to his very core to see one of his signature Ka flying over the city. He could tell that this was the real dragon too, not just some illusory image conjured by magic. This was the real, flesh-and-blood dragon summoned directly from the Dominion of the Beasts. But how was that possible? Atem had sealed the Shadow Games long ago in Egypt. How could Red-Eyes be here- three-thousand years later- in ancient Rome?“Guys, look up there on the dragon's back.” Mokuba whispered as he pointed, and everyone turned and squinted to see what the teen was pointing out.“Red-Eyes has a rider.” Hana stated in surprise, not expecting the sight. She'd seen people ride on dragons before in the Dominion, but not in the human world. She hadn't thought it was possible here.“Can you see who it is?” Yugi asked, also watching the dark dragon as he wheeled about in the skies, almost as if he were looking for something.“Nope, but have you guys noticed that we're alone? There's nobody on the streets anymore. Where'd everybody go?” Hana observed and asked, looking around for any signs of life in the now-deserted marketplace.“Are you mad? Quickly, come inside and take cover! Hurry!” A hushed voice hissed at them from the nearest doorway, and Mokuba turned to see a young man in a full mask beckoning to them urgently from the shadows. Recognizing his language as Latin, Mokuba quickly signaled his companions and everyone rushed inside, bringing their horses too. Once everyone was inside, the mysterious man quickly closed the door of his house and bolted it, then ran to the window and drew the shades.“That was too close! Thank the gods that he did not see you! The Emperor does not take kindly to strangers.” The man breathed, and Mokuba looked at him quizzically- being the only one present able to understand him. The others caught bits and pieces, but they were not familiar with the language.“That was the Emperor?!” Mokuba breathed incredulously, and the man nodded. Hana stuck a hand in her saddlebag and pulled out a handful of her Translation spell, which she blew on the rest of her friends and sprinkled a little on herself. Now they would be able to understand and speak this new language that apparently Mokuba was fluent in.“Emperor Josephus Nihilus Maximus I, also known as the Dark Dragon Emperor. He rules his people with an iron fist, quite literally. His natural right hand was taken long ago in battle, so he wears a magical gauntlet that affords him control of his most deadly servant: the Red-Eyes Black Dragon.” The man explained, looking down at his sandaled feet as he did so- almost as if in regret. But then that moment passed, and he looked up again to face the newcomers. “My name is Jono. What are your names, and what is your business in Rome- if you do not mind my asking?”Hana answered first, introducing her companions first. “This is Akhen, Joseph, Mokuba, Téa and Yugi. My name’s Hana.” She answered, each of her friends nodding when their name was uttered, so Jono would know who was who. “We came from a very distant land, and we're looking for someone. A young woman by the name of Nefertiri.”Jono gasped. “The Egyptian princess?” He ran to the window and carefully peeked out of the curtains, looking for any sign of the black dragon or its dark rider. Seeing nothing, he drew the curtains closed again, making sure that not even a sliver of light could penetrate through the gap between them. Returning to the group and their quizzical looks, he explained. “No one outside of the palace is supposed to know about her. To even speak of her is a crime punishable by death. How came you by this information?” He asked sharply, and everyone involuntarily shrank back a step at his sudden near-hostility.Hana answered bravely. “We were sent by her father, the pharaoh, to rescue her. She was kidnapped from her home, and we have to bring her back. Otherwise Mokuba's brother- and eventually he himself- will be erased from existence. I can't really explain all the details.” She added to Jono's look of confusion. Surprisingly, he only nodded in understanding. “Magic. Right.” He sighed.It was then that everyone noticed that Joey still had his hood up, obscuring most of his face and all of his hair from view. Téa poked him in the arm to get his attention, then motioned for him to remove it, which he did with a sheepish grin on his face. “Heh. Fergot I had it on.” He chuckled by way of an explanation.Jono gasped again, though this time the intake of breath was filled with horror. “My Lord?! Oh, please forgive your humble servant for not recognizing you! I-”“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Slow down dere, man!” Joey backpedaled, surprised at the man's reaction. “I tink dere's been a bit of a misunderstandin' here! I'm not da Emperor. My name's Joey. Jo-ey.”Jono was still confused, though he didn't look as horrified as before. “But- your friend introduced you as ‘Joseph’, and you look exactly like our Ruler! How is this possible?” He spluttered, and Joey smiled. “Coincidence.” was his only reply. However, Jono wasn't convinced and he raised a disbelieving eyebrow. Not that anyone could see it underneath his mask.“Did anyone else see your face before we met? Please tell me that I am the only one.” Jono asked quickly, looking terrified again. What sort of man was this Emperor, that merely the sight of him could instill such panic in his subjects?“Well, dere was dat one lady dat was sellin’ togas in da marketplace. I tink she mighta seen me.” Joey answered, a tad unsure. He hadn't removed his hood or cloak when he'd changed, but it might have slipped a bit on his head during the process.Jono looked at him carefully. “Older woman? Short, dark hair, slightly milky eyes?” He queried. Joey nodded, and Jono heaved a sigh of relief. “You are fortunate that she is nearly blind. If anyone else were to see you in the streets, it would cause a panic.”“Why? Just 'cuz I look a lot like yer Emperor? How bad is dis guy, dat even da sight of his face can cause a riot?” Joey asked, a little fearful himself now.Jono looked down. “It is not my place to say, what sort of man he is. I just- I did not want you to end up like me.” He put a hand to where his cheek would be, but retracted it slightly when the skin of his hand encountered the cold, hard iron of his mask.“End up like you?” Joey asked, confused again. Jono nodded sadly.“Among other things, the Supreme One is a jealous man. He does not like the thought of anyone in his empire sharing his face. That is why I wear this mask. Or- more accurately- why he forced this mask upon me.” The young man answered, showing them the padlock on the back of his neck that kept his mask in place.Joey looked horrified, and Téa whispered to herself, “Jeez. It's like that story from France with King Louis XIV and his identical twin. But that doesn't happen for another seventeen hundred years. I guess history does repeat itself from time to time.”“So, you look jus’ like da Emperor?” Joey asked for clarification, and Jono nodded sadly. “Identical, down to even our heights and the color of our eyes. Why do you ask?” He queried, but Joey just shrugged. “Jus’ curious.” He answered, trying not to think of the young man's tragic fate. He seemed to be no older than Joey himself, and yet he was forced to hide his face behind a mask of iron, just because of the vanity of his Ruler. “An’ since ya said I look like da Emperor too, it stands ta reason dat ya look a li’l like me, too.” Joey surmised.Jono smiled a bit behind his mask, the first time any of them had seen him do so. “I suppose.” He lifted his head a bit to look into the blond's face for a bit, then nodded. “In fact, had you black hair and crimson eyes, the three of us could pass for triplets- were we in the same room with each other.” He chuckled, and Joey smiled in response. This young man was certainly mysterious, but the young duelist had taken a liking to him despite that. Even though they had only just met, Joey felt a connection to this young man- almost like the connection between himself and his ancestral relative, Sir Hermos.Mokuba had been quiet for quite a while, thinking about something Jono had said. When Joey finished with his question, Mokuba spoke up. “Hey, Jono? I thought you said that no one’s supposed to know about Nefertiri, and that having that information means death. So how do you know about her?” He asked, and Jono started, suddenly looking guilty that he'd been found out.“I-” He began, but then fell silent for a moment. Finally nodding, he resumed his tale. “Let us just say I know a thing or two about the goings-on of the palace.” He explained cryptically. “But that does not matter right now. You six need to get into the palace without getting caught . I- I may be able to help you there.” He offered shyly, and Hana raised her eyebrows. This young man was indeed brave, if he were willing to risk his life to aid total strangers like themselves.“How?” Hana asked, curious. She'd thought this man was merely an ordinary citizen, but apparently he had connections in high places.Jono grinned mischievously. “The Chief of Staff in the palace is a good friend of mine, and has hired servants for the palace before based on my recommendation. Five of you could easily pass for servants or maids in the palace, there would be no problem there.” He looked at Joey then, his grin turning to a concerned frown. “You, however, may present a bit of a problem. Should the Emperor even see you, he would have you killed- as he would have done with me had it not been vital that I-” He broke off, unwilling to voice what he had been about to say. Joey looked at him in confusion, but Jono shook his head, changing the subject. “I could probably get you a position in the royal stables, but that is as close as you would safely be to the palace.” He suggested, looking down in shame, sorry that he wasn't able to help more.But Joey just shrugged his shoulders noncommittally and patted their newest friend's shoulder. “Dat's fine. I'm happy wid however close ya can get me. If it means workin' in da stables, den so be it. Who knows, we might need ta make a quick getaway wid a few a’ da palace horses. Ya never know, right?”Jono's smile returned, surprised that his newest friend took the news so well. After all, a stable hand wasn't the most glamorous job in the world.“At the very least, most of you will be able to blend in.” Jono continued. “Servants are supposed to be invisible. Other than your fellow staff members and your immediate supervisors, no one should really notice you much in the palace.” He turned to Yugi then. “If you do not draw attention to yourself, that is.” He told him, raising an eyebrow.Yugi grinned sheepishly. “I'll think of something. Maybe I could wear a nondescript helmet.”Jono nodded in agreement. That seemed like a good idea. Then he turned to Akhen, his expression once again displaying innocent curiosity. “You have not said a word since we met, young man. You are fairly shy.”Hana smiled. “He gets that a lot. He hasn't said anything because he can't. He's a mute from birth. He knows a lot of languages, and can read and write in many of them, but his normal means of communication is Egyptian sign language.” She explained for her best friend, who nodded in agreement and blushed at the indirect praise.Jono, however, looked worried now. “This is a problem. The Emperor wishes his domain to be a utopia, free of all impairments or physical handicaps. It would probably be best if you do not enter the palace either. His Eminence never enters the stables- preferring to use his dragon as his transportation- so the two of you would be relatively safe there. If he were to discover your- 'imperfection', you would be immediately banished in the best-case scenario. Worst? Well, you can probably guess what that is.”Akhen nodded somberly. He found a tablet and a piece of charcoal, inscribing one word onto it in Jono's language. 'Mortem' was all the tablet said. Jono nodded grimly. Then he brightened up and steered the subject away from this morbid path.“Like I said, most of you should be able to blend in fairly easily. It will be getting the princess out of the palace that is going to be the hard part. I hope you have a good plan in place.” He stated worriedly, fearful for his newest companions.Hana nodded confidently. “Don't worry. I'm working on it.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Josephus and his dark mount circled the city carefully, both of them keeping their eyes peeled for the newcomers they had spotted earlier. They were bound to emerge some time, and when they did, he would be ready.The dragon growled in impatience, visibly itching to sink his claws and teeth into something- preferably any enemy of his master, the Dark Dragon Emperor. Josephus put a hand on his dragon's neck, instantly calming him with simply his touch. “Peace, my faithful servant. We shall find them, make no mistake about that.”The dragon nodded grudgingly, then winged back toward the palace at his liege's signal- calling off the search for now. As Josephus left his dragon in the care of some of his more trusted servants in the palace to be cleaned off and his saddle and bridle removed, he strode through the halls of his palace to a particular room that looked out over the city. Summoning his dark magic from within his heart, the man cast a spell on himself so that his voice could be heard in every corner of his palace city.Not bothering with formalities, Josephus announced, “Anyone who is found harbouring foreigners shall face dire consequences. These trespassers are to be brought to the palace immediately. Disobedience or attempts to aid them shall be treated as treason and punished accordingly.” There. That should get his subjects to do what he wanted. Now all he had to do was wait for the 'guests' to arrive at his palace. He hated waiting.I shall find them. Josephus vowed. I shall find them if I have to burn down all of Rome!“Jeez. Dat guy means business, don't he?” Joey asked partly to himself and partly aloud after hearing the Emperor's threat.“I will say this for our Emperor: he does not take anything lightly.” Jono growled in agreement under his breath, but everyone still heard him. “He is so obsessed that he is willing to sacrifice hundreds of innocent lives. Just to capture six foreigners.”“Talk about paranoid.” Hana agreed, shaking her head in disappointment. If her hunch was correct and the Emperor was Joey's distant ancestor- his second 'Brother in Time'- then Fate sure picked a winner this time. She wished that Jono was Joey's ancestor instead, but that didn't seem likely. Jono didn't have magic- as far as she was able to tell- or a connection to Egypt. He just happened to look a lot like her friend.“Well, now we are in a bit of a jam.” Jono muttered to his newest companions, who nodded wryly. “I do not wish to put any of you in danger, but I also cannot let thousands of people get hurt- or worse- by the wrath of our Emperor.”Yugi surprised everyone then by smiling at Jono, who wore a tortured and conflicted expression under his mask. “Don't worry about it. We've dealt with our fair share of corrupt rulers in our time. I'm sure one more won't be much of a problem.” He told their new friend, thinking of Dartz and how he was corrupted by the evil magic of the Orichalcos, and of Bandit Keith who had subjugated the entire Dominion of the Beasts under his dark hand*. He supposed that Noah and Gozaburo also counted- as they had trapped them in the VR world- but they weren't exactly rulers of that realm. In fact- now that he thought about it- Pegasus had sort of been the 'ruler' of Duelist Kingdom as well, so they had plenty of experience dealing with deviant despots.
[Empire of Shadows]
“Now dat ya mention it, Yuge, we have taken down quite a few twisted tyrants, haven' we?” Joey grinned at his best friend, who grinned back sheepishly.Though he had no idea what his double and friend were talking about, Jono was slightly reassured by the looks of supreme confidence on the visitors' faces when they recalled their previous triumphs. He sent a silent prayer to the ancient gods of Rome to be with his companions in their quest, that they would return to their own land safely and successfully- hopefully with the princess. An unlikely scenario, but Jono had learned never to question the gods when their minds were made up.Just then, Akhen looked up from watching his sandals and signed something to his closest friend. Hana nodded after a minute, then turned to Jono. “What’d you mean earlier when you said why the Emperor left you alive? If he's so vain as you claim, I’d have thought you'd be one of the first he- um- y’know.” She faltered, not wanting to say it out loud.Jono looked down at that, ruby eyes darkened with sadness and something that looked like regret. He didn't answer right away, and everyone turned to him in concern. Jono sighed. “The most faithful servant of the Emperor, the dark dragon-” He began, trailing off for a moment but then nodding when he regained his resolve. “The dragon- is my own spirit creature. And his, at the same time. It is difficult to explain.”Hana gasped. “You and the Emperor share a Ka? But that's impossible! The only way that could be possible is if you were-”“Twins.” Jono interrupted, nodding. “Twin brothers, born less than a minute apart. And we share one spirit beast- or Ka, as you of Egypt call it.”Joey's jaw practically hit the floor. “You two're twin brothers?! Den how come yer not in da palace?”“Because my brother banished me from his kingdom some time ago. After he forced this mask upon me. Had it not been for the dragon, he would have killed me long ago. But we discovered that if one of us should die, our dragon would die too.” Jono explained heavily, looking down again. Then he amended his statement slightly. “Well, he tested it, but I have not. I am guessing it works both ways, though. We are both bonded to the Red-Eyes Black Dragon, so- when one of us dies- he falls with us.”“If he banished you, then why are you still here?” Téa asked with a mischievous look on her face, and Jono looked down with something of a sheepish smile. “I do not really have anywhere else to go. That and it is quite painful to be separated from one's 'Ka', as you call them. Even living this close to the palace is taxing. The pain only lessens somewhat whenever our Emperor makes his daily rounds of the city on the back of our dragon. I get to see him, but- that is about it.”Everyone felt pity for the mysterious masked prince when they heard his tale, and Akhen felt that he could sympathize with him. He had been through the exact same experience years ago, when his Ka was unjustly removed by the first Bearers and he had been sentenced to Duat*. His imprisonment had only lasted three years as opposed to the usual eternity, but still, three years was a long time to be separated from the other half of one's soul.
[See 'Flower of Life' ch. 2, 3+5]
Just then, Mokuba spoke up. “Hey, does anybody else smell smoke?”As one, the rest of the group’s eyes widened and they ran to the window, peeking out enough to see out but not enough to be seen. As everyone had feared, the dark dragon was flying over the city, firing 'Black Flare Blasts' at random houses and setting the whole city ablaze. Clearly it intended to drive the foreigners out of the houses so it could capture them and take them to the palace.“Not good.” Jono gasped. “We have no choice. I was planning on sneaking you into the palace as servants, but the only way to placate the dragon now is to have him see you and capture you. I am truly sorry about this.” He bowed his head, contrite.Mokuba looked nervous at this new development, afraid that the dragon would blast a fireball at them as soon as he spotted them. Reading his expression, Jono smiled slightly in encouragement. “Take heart, young man. Hellfire will not kill you. The Emperor will almost assuredly take you alive- if only to see your faces before he passes judgment. The situation is grim, I agree, but not as grim as it could be.”“Uh, ‘Hellfire’?” Yugi asked with a raised eyebrow, and Jono looked down again. “Yes. My brother is responsible for that name. It is not the one I would have chosen for our dragon. He is a righteous creature, but his Master is using him for great evil. It saddens both of us. Myself and the dragon.”Yugi looked resolute. “Don't worry, Jono. We'll find a way to defeat your brother and save Rome, along with Nefertiri and your Ka. We can't allow this injustice to continue any longer.” And with that bold declaration, he walked right out the door and stood in the street- waving his arms and signaling to the dragon. The others followed him, but not before Hana cast a 'Magical Drizzle' spell over the city- bringing a healing rain over the burning houses. Then she allowed the dragon to scoop her up in its giant talons as it grabbed her other four friends and took them to the palace.“Can you sing, My delicate desert flower?” Josephus drawled lazily as he flopped onto his divan in his chambers and looked over at his captive- who was chained to a nearby pillar.“Not when I have chains around my torso and cannot breathe.” Nefertiri snapped back flippantly. That defiance was something she’d inherited from her father, Seth.Josephus merely smirked and snapped his fingers, and three servants came rushing in to adjust her bindings to allow breathing room. When they bowed low and left, only the princess’ ankle was left shackled to the pillar, leaving her free to move ten feet in any direction from the column.Josephus grinned menacingly. “I shall pose My question again. Can you sing, My favourite pet?” He purred, and- at his side- ‘Hellfire’ growled in jealousy. “Do not be offended, dear one. I see you as so much more than a mere pet. Were you human, you would be My second-in-command.” He soothed, and the dragon appeared mollified. Then he glared at his captive. “Well?” He demanded.“To answer your question, I can indeed sing.” Nefertiri sighed softly. “At least, well enough for my own people.” She paused, looking down. “But we have no songs that you would know. They are all in the language of Egypt.” She answered.“Bah! I care not. Why should your songs be unfit for My halls?” He asked, not waiting for an answer. “Come, sing Me a song. Soothe My spirit with the tones of a nightingale. It matters not that I know not your words. After all, ‘music hath charms to soothe the savage breast’.”Nefertiri looked down sadly, an image of her beloved father and her home floating to the surface of her mind. She closed her eyes and began to sing as a single tear dropped from her lashes.
“Home is behind,
The world ahead,
And there are many paths to tread.
Through shadow,
To the edge of night,
Until the stars are all alight.
Mist and shadow, Cloud and shade, All shall fade, All shall fade-” “Oh come now. You can do better than that.” Josephus growled. “I want something that will lift My spirits, not a funeral dirge.”Nefertiri didn’t even look up. “I am sorry, milord, but I cannot sing of happiness and gaiety when my own heart is heavy with sorrow. I was taken from my home to a strange world, and I miss my father terribly. I cannot be your songbird today.”Josephus rose from his divan and walked over to the foreign princess, striking her across the face with the back of his hand. His multiple rings on each finger left small scrapes on her cheek, and the force was enough to knock her to the ground.“You are Mine now, slave!” Josephus snarled. “You will do what I say, when I say it. If I ask you to sing, you will sing. If I tell you to dance, you will dance. And if I tell you to take your life, you will throw yourself before the lions in My Colosseum like the common dog you are. Or should I say *. Am I clear?” He finished in a deadly whisper.Nefertiri looked down, then knelt before the Emperor. “Of course, milord. I do not know what I was thinking. I shall not disobey you again.”“See that you do not.” Josephus growled. “You would not like Me when I am angry.”Just then, one of the Emperor’s personal servants appeared at the doorway and bowed low before his liege. “What is it?” The ruler snapped, still incensed.“Forgive me, Your Eminence, but your new ‘guests’ await your verdict.” The servant informed him, shaking like an autumn leaf. “They are in the main audience chamber, being held under guard.”“Very good, Tacticus.” Josephus smirked, his mood brightening at the prospect of fresh meat for either his staff or his dragon. It mattered not to him. It was a ‘win-win’ either way.“Why do I get da feelin’ dis ain’t gonna work?” Joey muttered to himself as he adjusted his hood to more obscure his face.“Well, we didn’t have much time to prepare. Red-Eyes kinda forced our hands.” Téa reminded him, also nervous about meeting this Dark Emperor. She’d always heard not to judge people before she got to know them, but this guy seemed to be the baddest of the bad from Jono’s description. Although apparently he was quite handsome, if he looked just like one of her best friends.“Steady, guys. It’ll all work out. Somehow.” Hana reassured them, though inside she was just as nervous as they were. She just had more practice with hiding it.“I hope you’re right, Hana.” Yugi answered; nervous, but not willing to show any sign of weakness before the Emperor. Even if he did look like one of his best friends, that didn’t mean that their personalities were the same. In fact, he knew they weren’t, because he could tell that Jono had been truthful with them earlier when he was reluctantly telling them about his ruler. He just had this sixth sense about people, and he could tell that Jono had a good heart.“Ah, you have finally arrived!” Josephus declared loudly to announce his presence in the room. “I always enjoy having guests, especially ones that pique My interest. And you- dears- have certainly done so!” He glanced meaningfully at the girls, who scowled slightly at the underlying meaning. Oh great. Not only is this guy the most evil man in ancient Rome, he’s also a lecher. Wonderful. Hana thought to herself, but kept her face emotionless at least.“Aw, you have cut Me to the heart, honoured guests.” Josephus pouted, feigning hurt. “I know not what you have been told about Me by those you met in My city when you first arrived, but I assure you that it was nothing but slander. I treat My guests with nothing but respect and kindness, and any of My staff will corroborate that when asked.” He lied smoothly, putting a hand over his heart area to emphasize his supposed ‘sincerity’. But the only reaction he got from the group was a round of raised eyebrows.“I see that time will be the only thing to convince you of My honourable intentions.” Josephus frowned, seeing that he would have to try harder to pull the wool over the eyes of these guests. “I hope that we can learn to trust one another over the course of your stay in My empire.”Yeah right. Téa and Hana thought to themselves in unison, and the boys were thinking similar thoughts.“The first step in establishing a relationship is introductions, so I shall start.” Josephus smiled in anticipation, his curiosity nearly consuming him as he looked at his guests, trying in vain to figure out their identities by magical means, but somehow failing. He frowned inwardly at this. Normally these spells worked like a charm, but these visitors seemed to be skilled in the art of magically concealing their identities. “You stand before Josephus Nihilus Maximus the Dragon Lord, Emperor of Rome and the two-hundred fiftieth generational descendant* of the Legendary Knight Hermos of Atlantis. I am honoured to make your acquaintance.” He smiled as he bowed, complete with an elaborate flourish.
[This is assuming that one generation is twenty years]
Hana sighed. “Might as well get this over with.” She whispered under her breath, and all of her companions heard her and agreed with resignation. One by one they removed their hoods from their faces, causing Josephus’ eyebrows to disappear into his bangs at the sight of Joey’s countenance.“Are- are you also a descendant of the Crimson Knight of Atlantis, My young friend?” Josephus asked his identical guest, and Joey shrugged. “I guess ya could say dat.” He answered. “Dat’s da only way ta explain our own resemblance ta one another.” He half-fibbed, keeping the whole truth to himself for the moment. It was too unbelievable, plus he didn’t want this dark man to have any information about the future. That kind of information in the wrong hands could be disastrous. “Name’s Joseph.” He added as an afterthought, causing the Emperor to look even more surprised. Not only did this young man share his face, but he also had a similar name!Yugi was the next to remove his hood, earning another raised eyebrow from their host. “Yugi.” He quavered shyly.“That is a very distinctive hairstyle, young man.” Josephus observed wryly, and Yugi blushed slightly. “Believe it or not, it’s natural. I got it from my grandpa, and my older brother Atem has the same hair as well.” He explained, his mind two thousand years in the future with his family. Hana smiled at the relationship he described, knowing that Yugi and Atem were far closer than brothers. But that relationship described them fairly well. Calling him the ‘other half of his soul’ would sound a bit odd in this conversation.“Mokuba.” The young teen answered next, keeping his eyes downcast to avoid glaring daggers at their host. He knew without a doubt that this man was responsible for kidnapping Seth’s daughter, and thus nearly severing the link between the pharaoh and the brothers. Josephus raised an eyebrow for a third time, but this time only slightly. The boy bore a passing resemblance to his other captive, with the same dark hair and a similar facial structure.“My name’s Téa.” The first girl began, adding a slight curtsey to her introduction to show her respect.“Hana.” The former princess of Egypt nodded, then gestured to her final companion . “And this is my best friend, Akhen. He’s really shy and doesn’t say much. I’ve known him for years and even I can’t get more than a few words out of him.” She smiled wryly, shooting a playful wink at the young man, who looked at her quizzically. Then he shrugged and nodded, bowing to their host respectfully.“Good, good! I am glad we got that out of the way.” Josephus grinned, clapping his hands twice in quick succession, causing a group of servants to come rushing in and standing at attention slightly in front of the new guests.“Prepare the ‘Chamber’ for My male guests, and escort the women to My rooms. I will deal with the men shortly.” He ordered his servants, who immediately bowed and split down the middle- half of them escorting the guys to the aforementioned ‘Chamber’ and the other half taking the girls to the Emperor’s quarters. Josephus smirked as he watched the females leave, watching his prospects brighten for selecting an Empress to rule by his side. And to provide him an heir, of course. Above all else, he wanted his line to continue and would not allow the throne to fall into the hands of those of lesser blood. His twin brother, for instance. Josephus scowled when he was forced to think of the exiled traitor- as the very mention of his name was a crime punishable by death from torture.“I will never relinquish my power.” Josephus vowed. “Nothing but death will cause me to abandon my throne, for I have been divinely ordained by the gods themselves to rule over this empire of Rome. They have decreed that my family’s reign will continue for a thousand years! Nothing will stand in my way of complete domination of the entire world!”“So now what do we do?” Mokuba asked his companions as they entered the ‘Chamber’, which should have been renamed as a prison or dungeon cell. Various instruments of torture hung from the ceiling, and Mokuba didn’t even want to think about all the gunk that covered the stone floor in grime. It reminded him of Chopman’s room in Death-T Stage One back when Seto was- not the nicest guy in the world*.
[This was in the manga, but I forget which chapter. twenty-something, I think. Apparently it was too dark for Season Zero.]
“Least da floor isn’t covered in oil.” Joey muttered, clearly thinking along the same lines. “We don’ hafta worry ‘bout a bonfire in dis room if one a’ dose torches falls.” He shot a teasing look at Mokuba as he said this, his memory in the past.Mokuba grimaced. “That wasn’t my idea. That was Seto’s dark side. I did come up with Death-T Four, but the other rooms were his doing. I’m just glad that creep is no more. He was a real jerk.”“Well, you weren’t exactly a picture of innocence either, Mokuba.” Yugi grinned mischievously. “That Capsule Monsters chess game was tough! I was hard-pressed to find a solution to that clearly one-sided match.”“I couldn’t just give you an easy win, now could I?” Mokuba grinned back, though his looked rather sheepish. “I wanted to prove myself to my brother- that I was just as good at games as he was- and that I was worthy to stand by his side. When he would’ve left me in that chamber and subjected me to the ‘Experience of Death’ Penalty Game for losing, my heart just about broke in half. I knew then that there was something seriously wrong with Seto.”Yugi nodded, remembering the incident. At that time, the ‘other Yugi’ had pulled Mokuba out at the last second, surprising his hikari with his snap decision. He didn’t think the ‘darker’ half of his soul would be merciful toward the boy after he’d been rather unfair in their Capsule Monsters battle. But Yami proved to everyone that- even though he’d forgotten everything about his past life- he still had a good heart.“Who- who are you?” A shy female voice quavered as the two new girls were ushered into the Emperor’s rooms in the company of some servants. The speaker was chained to one of the columns in the room by a thick chain, and wore a long black skirt and top that exposed her midriff and arms*. Her long hair was black, but her eyes were as blue as the ocean waves. Seth’s eyes.
[If you’ve ever played the Final Fantasy games or Kingdom Hearts II, just picture what Tifa wears for Nefertiri’s apparel. Physically, she looks a lot like Serenity.]
Hana inhaled sharply at the sight of the Egyptian princess, and she bowed low before the royal daughter of the pharaoh. “My name is Hana. And this is my friend, Téa.” She explained, gesturing to her companion, who bowed as well. The young princess nodded in welcome, smiling at the fact that she finally had some female company. She looked to Hana. “You share a name with one of my father’s closest friends.” She observed, and Hana raised an eyebrow. “Could you be the same ‘Hana’?” She mused aloud, and Hana smiled rather sheepishly. “Heh. Guilty.”Nefertiri gasped. “Wait- how is that possible? According to Father, you died long ago. How are you now here?” She asked, and Hana looked down and shuffled her feet. “It’s a really long story.” She answered simply. “Let’s just say that we’re here to bring you home.” The princess gasped again. “Truly? I cannot thank you enough, friends, even though I have only just met you! But how am I to escape? I am bound by these shackles at all times, and only the Emperor has the key and wears it about his neck.” She pointed out, and Hana frowned.“That might be a problem.” Hana agreed. “Are there any other keys that’ll work, or does he wear the only one?” She asked.Nefertiri shook her head. “There is only one.” Hana sighed in defeat, but then was struck with an idea. “Hey, Téa, you wouldn’t happen to have any hairpins, would you?” She asked. Téa looked surprised but nodded, reaching into her backpack and pulling the small accessory out of a pocket. “Perfect! Now if only I knew how to pick a lock with one of these.” She grimaced wryly.Téa snickered. “No worries, Hana. I know how to do it. I’ve picked plenty of locks in my day.” She winked, and Hana smiled back at her. A few feet away from them, Nefertiri just looked confused as to why her two newest friends just started speaking in a strange language.Hana noticed her confusion and smiled encouragingly. “Sorry about that, princess. We were just trying to figure out how to release you from those chains. My friend had something that might be able to pick the lock, but we’ll have to wait until cover of nightfall, when the Emperor is asleep. We can’t sneak out of the palace in broad daylight. Besides, he’s probably on his way here right now.” She added, and Nefertiri nodded. That made sense.“Ah, I see you have become acquainted with one another already. Good! That will save Me the introductions.” A familiar voice sounded behind the two new girls, and they whirled to face their captor- quickly clearing the hope from their expressions. It wouldn’t do to make the Emperor suspicious right from the start.Josephus strode over to his divan and flopped down onto the comfy pillows, scattering about half of them on the ground and just leaving them there. He lazily raised a hand and snapped his fingers, and two female servants came rushing in, each holding an expensive-looking outfit.“I can see that you have already adapted to our culture and attired yourselves accordingly in order to blend in, but I do not think those togas really suit you. They are just what the common people wear, not elegant at all for My palace. I have selected some- shall we say- more ‘appropriate’ garments for you to wear. Ones that better reflect your country of origin.” He smirked, waving the servants forward impatiently. The two servants stood before Hana and Téa, holding out the garments for them to change into.Hana raised an eyebrow at the scanty attire, already feeling humiliated that she’d have to wear something so revealing. It was basically just a fancy brassier and loincloth made from blue fabric and adorned with sapphires and lapis lazuli. Téa’s new clothes were similar, though her ‘shirt’ looked more like a purple tube-top than a bra. The dancer’s new attire was also decorated with purple gemstones carefully sewn into the fabric.“Oh wow. These are beautiful!” Téa breathed, looking over at Hana with a smile. But that smile faded when she noticed her friend’s beet-red- yet still somehow green- face and realized the implications. “You mean- we have to change in front of him?” She asked incredulously in her native language, and Hana grimaced and nodded sourly. “We can probably manage changing with our togas still on, kinda like we did when we bought these. It’s still gonna be embarrassing, though. I’ve never worn so little, even during the celebrations and feasts back home when I had to perform rituals.” She answered in Egyptian so only Téa and Nefertiri would understand her.“I guess you were pretty modest, huh?” Téa smiled sympathetically, trying to remember some of the outfits the hieroglyphs had depicted her friend in. Indeed, she couldn’t remember ever seeing the elder princess of Egypt wearing anything resembling these clothes.Hana sighed heavily. “Let’s just get this over with. The faster we change, the less embarrassed we’ll be. Hopefully.” She stated with another grimace, shooting their captor a look that clearly stated ‘You can’t be serious’. In answer to her glare, Josephus merely smirked and waggled his eyebrows once.However, two minutes later he was feeling very disappointed. The new girls must have guessed his intentions when they were presented with their new attire, as they donned the clothing in a way that didn’t expose them even the slightest bit. He sighed at the missed opportunity, but then shrugged and dismissed the servants with an impatient wave.“So, what can you two do?” He asked Hana and Téa in a bored voice. “I already have a beautiful songbird, but none of her melodies are in a language I understand. I suppose that is to be expected, as she is not native to My empire.” He mused thoughtfully.Hana frowned, but decided to answer him. Like she’d said earlier, it wouldn’t do to make their captor suspicious. “I’m also a singer, and my friend is a dancer.” She stated calmly, just giving him the facts without the details.“Wonderful!” Josephus clapped delightedly. “My court has not had a dancer since My last one angered Me and was removed from service. Hopefully you will prove to be a better replacement, woman.” He smirked. Beside him, ‘Hellfire’ purred with a draconic grin and flicked his tongue out. Hana guessed the fate of the previous dancer from that action, and she grimaced. Téa realized the hidden meaning a minute later, and she gulped audibly.Josephus laughed, sounding almost reassuring. “There is no need to fear him, as long as you stay on his good side. And it is likewise with Me. Just do everything I ask of you, and we shall get along famously. He is actually quite docile most of the time, if he knows you are not a threat.” He admitted with something akin to fondness in his voice.Hana glanced at the dragon with an inquisitive expression, and the dragon met her gaze with a raised, scaly eyebrow. “He- wouldn’t allow me to- pet him, would he?” She asked of his rider, who raised both eyebrows in surprise. “You know, I do not really know what he would do. No one has ever tried before. Most are too afraid of him to even attempt it.”Hana approached the black dragon cautiously, always staying in his line of sight to show that she was a friend. The dragon’s eyes narrowed in suspicion, but he stayed put- not even growling in discomfort. She reached out with her right hand- palm up- so that the dragon could sniff it. ‘Hellfire’ obliged, then rumbled something akin to a purr to show that he would allow her to pet his nose. All four of the room’s human occupants looked surprised at this, and Hana smiled. The big guy wasn’t nearly as fearsome as his reputation made him out to be. She was pleasantly surprised to feel how soft the dragon’s snout actually was, despite its rough appearance. Good boy. She smiled and thought at the dragon, knowing that he could hear and understand her. In answer, Hellfire merely purred louder.*
[Aww, he’s just like Toothless in HTTYD. Cute!]
“I am impressed with your bravery, woman. Not many would do what you have just done.” Josephus remarked as Hana continued to stroke the dragon’s head. She noticed something odd about him, but she couldn’t place it at the moment.“I’ve always been fascinated with mythological creatures, dragons in particular.” Hana shrugged. “This big guy is an impressive example of the mighty Red-Eyes Black Dragon that I’ve studied in my younger days.” Hellfire’s eyes widened and he looked right into Hana’s emerald orbs. ‘You know my race?’ He seemed to ask her. Hana nodded in answer to the dragon’s mental query, but not enough to be noticed by the Emperor. “If I may be so bold as to ask, how is ‘Hellfire’ in this world? I thought dragons like him were extremely rare, nearly extinct.” She asked of the young ruler, and he smirked triumphantly.“I discovered a way of bringing him from his world into our own by means of the Dark Arts, what those of Egypt would call Shadow magic.” He answered smugly- causing Nefertiri and Téa to gasp aloud- but Hana didn’t so much as bat an eyelash. She’d suspected that dark magic was behind this whole situation. “Hellfire- or as you call him- the Red-Eyes Black Dragon, is quite special to Me. He is the all-powerful beast that represents My very soul- My Ka, as those in Egypt call it.”“So, somehow you got hold of Shadow magic, and used that to summon Red-Eyes to this world without a shield device- something to measure your Ba and make the summoning easier. You do realize how dangerous that is, right?” Hana summarized for him, raising an eyebrow at the end of her inquiry.Josephus smirked. “That is merely a testament to how powerful My spirit is. I can keep ‘Hellfire’ by My side and in this world forever, and I do not feel the slightest bit weakened because of it. Not even the great pharaohs of Egypt can hold a candle to My power! She is proof of that!” He gloated, gesturing grandly to the enchained princess- who merely scowled at her captor with pure hatred burning in her blue eyes.Hana scowled too. “Pharaoh gave up that power when his predecessor sealed away the Shadows for good. His predecessor gave his life to protect his people, and many of his court did as well. How dare you tarnish their sacrifices by boasting in your stolen power!” She snarled, then realized she’d said too much and cleared her expression, though anger still shone behind her eyes. A short distance away, Nefertiri looked at her newest friend in surprise- shocked that she knew of the fate of the Nameless Pharaoh. Hadn’t she supposedly died before his sacrifice?Josephus’ gloating smirk switched to a furious glare so fast that it looked like someone had flipped a switch in his brain. He calmly marched right up to the former princess and struck her across the face, his many rings cutting her cheek in jagged lines and drawing blood. The force of the strike sent her sprawling on the floor, and she sat there stunned for a moment and put a hand to her bleeding cheek to assess the damage.“I am beginning to see a pattern here.” Josephus mused aloud, cleaning the blood from Hana’s wounds from his various rings. “What is it with Egyptian royalty and their defiant attitudes?” He growled, and Téa gasped. Hana and Nefertiri merely scowled at him. “Yes, woman, I can tell you are of royal blood. I noticed it when ‘Hellfire’ first brought you here. You carry yourself differently than your companions, and it was more like My songbird than your friends. You two have more in common than you had led Me to believe, it seems.”You don’t know the half of it, bub. Hana thought wryly, but she kept her expression neutral. She and Nefertiri had more in common than just their vocal skills and their titles. Seth was Hana’s first cousin on her mother’s side, being that his mother and hers had been sisters.“Even if you were royalty in the past in Egypt, it does not mean a thing here in My domain. You are all My slaves now, and you will do whatever I say, whenever I say it. I take you into My home, I give you a venerated position as My royal courtesans, and this is how you repay Me? By slandering My name? I will not stand for that. Perhaps a night in the ‘Chamber’ will soften your attitude.” He mused, snapping his fingers again. Two servants rushed into the room- male this time- and restrained Hana by the arms and lifted her off the ground by her underarms. She didn’t resist, but she glared daggers at the Emperor until the three disappeared from sight.As they left, Josephus sighed smugly, savoring his ultimate power. He looked over at his two remaining captives and smirked. “Why do you two not soothe My spirit by performing your craft for Me? You dance, and you sing. It should provide Me with adequate entertainment. And after all, it is the least you could do after all that I have done for you.”Téa and Nefertiri shared a resigned glance, then the dancer smiled wryly at the princess as they both began to display their respective talents, forced to perform for their cruel captor. In both of their minds- and in Hana’s as well- was a single thought. Will I ever see my home again?
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“Okay, here’s the plan:” Hana whispered to her friends in the ‘Chamber’ once she was sure that the guards were asleep. And even if they were awake, they wouldn’t be able to discern anything from the language they were using. “Téa’s gonna pick Nefertiri’s chains with one of her hairpins, then they’re gonna sneak out of Josephus’ chambers and meet up with us in the main audience chamber. I’ve taken the liberty of casting an invisibility spell on all of you, and I gave some to Téa to use on Nefertiri. But be careful. Those kind of spells don’t last long, and they only make you invisible- they don’t block out sound or anything else.”Joey and the other boys nodded grimly, knowing full well the consequences should they be discovered. They had no other choice. This was the only way to free Nefertiri and save their friend and brother from a fate worse than death. And if they didn’t hurry, both Kaiba brothers could be permanently erased from existence.“How’re we gonna get out of here though, Hana? We’re locked in.” Mokuba asked worriedly, and Hana winked at him. As if in answer, the door to the ‘Chamber’ opened of its own accord and swung open noiselessly on its hinges. “You were saying?” She grinned slyly, and Mokuba grinned back in answer. Yugi and Joey snickered at their friend’s mischievous streak, and Akhen merely smirked and rolled his eyes. Princess Hana hadn’t changed one bit. The only thing that had was that she was much more pale than he’d remembered.Is she so pale because she has returned from death? Akhen wondered. Her friends seem to have strange abilities as well. Could these people have come from the Netherworld and the domain of Osiris? Then he shook his head. There was no way to tell for sure. Whatever the case may be, I am glad for their help, and I am sure the young princess is as well. The dead have returned to us to right the wrongs in the world of the living. The gods’ designs are truly unfathomable by mere mortals such as I. I am honored to simply play a part in their plans.“Let’s get out of this pit.” Hana gestured, waving for the boys to follow her lead as they made their way up through the dungeons of the palace to the main foyer. To everyone’s relief, Nefertiri and Téa approached from the other direction, running down the stairs and clasping hand in hand. Nefertiri reacted in shock and fear upon spotting Joey, but recovered quickly when Hana explained the situation. She bowed to her saviors in the style of her homeland and they nodded back, all with wide grins on their faces. Seth had certainly raised his daughter well.Just as they were about to leave the palace and Rome behind, a chilling voice rang out from behind the group and all looked up the main staircase in fear. “Leaving so soon?” Josephus smirked, twirling some kind of torture device around one finger of his natural hand. “But we were just starting to have fun.” He mock-pouted, grinning devilishly as he grasped the tool in his hand and started down the steps.“Nefertiri doesn’t belong here and you know it!” Mokuba snarled, surprising everyone by whipping out a rather large knife that he’d apparently brought along. “You kidnapped her! You took her from her home and thus put my family in danger! You’re gonna pay!” He cried, running at the smirking Emperor, who stood his ground and didn’t so much as flinch. Before he could attack Josephus though, Hana and Joey held their young friend back. As much as they hated to admit it, Josephus had to be left alive. Like it or not, he was Joey’s ancestor.* Mokuba relented grudgingly, lowering his weapon with a growl.
[No he’s not, Jono is.]
“I admire your bravery, boy.” Josephus mused. “Most your age would run crying back to their mothers in such a situation. However, bravery is not going to do you much good here.” He snapped his fingers, and a dark form snaked its way out of the darkness and a crimson eye glared at them from behind the Emperor’s back. “For what is bravery when faced with the almighty power of a dragon?” He laughed.“You have heard of dragonslayers, right?” Yugi called back, making ‘Hellfire’ shrink back a bit in sudden fear at the term. “If you know about the Dominion of the Beasts, you must’ve heard about ‘Buster Blader’. He’s the most famous dragonslayer in that whole world.”Josephus’ triumphant smirk faltered a little, his confidence starting to slip. But there was no way for these aliens to call those creatures to this world. They didn’t possess the supreme magic that he did!- Or did they? “You are merely trying to unsettle Me in a futile effort to buy time. I see through your pathetic ruse! There is no way that you possess the same power as the Dark Dragon Emperor!”Joey grinned at his best friend, and the King of Games smiled back. “Wanna bet?” The shorter smirked, retrieving his deck from his pocket and pulling a card out. “Mahaad! Help us out here!” He cried in his native language, and the card glowed with a bright purple light. Out of that brilliance jumped everyone’s favorite Black Magician, his signature teal staff already pointed at their adversary. “You called?” The spellcaster grinned.What am I to do? What can I do? I’m just sitting here uselessly while my dearest friend and her companions are risking their lives to save my daughter. Seth agonized as he paced restlessly before his throne. Oh that the sealing of Zorc had not sealed our abilities as well, cousin! If I still had my power, I would send Kisara’s light to guide your twin and the others in their quest. I am certain beyond a doubt that she could help them immensely. He thought as he continued to wheel about in a fit of worry.“My Pharaoh, what is it that ails you?” Imhotep asked humbly, but- though his words and tone seemed concerned- his heart was not behind the question. Seth gave his High Priest one weary look, and the man understood without need for words. “I understand completely, Majesty. You are worried for the princess. But you must not let your worry drive you to illness. Egypt needs her King, and- for the moment- that is you. I shudder to think what would become of this land if we would lose both our princess and our Pharaoh all at once.” He cautioned, seemingly worried for his Pharaoh’s health.After a moment, Seth nodded, seeing the wisdom in the man’s words. He gave his advisor one half-hearted, somewhat sour glare, then all but flopped down on his throne and put his head in his hands. “You are right as usual, Imhotep. But can you blame Us? Our only daughter is in grave danger and there is nothing We can do about it. We can feel it in Our heart.” He added softly to himself, putting a hand over the aforementioned organ.“You and your daughter certainly share a unique connection.” Imhotep observed thoughtfully. “Somehow you are both able to sense when the other is in trouble. That connection confounds me. You appointed me as your High Priest and Head of your Royal Magicians, but I cannot manage to explain that bond between the two of you. In this aspect, I have failed you, my King.” He growled, frustrated.Seth looked up from his hands and gave his Vizier a wry smile. “We think it is more of an instinct. Like how a parent in the animal kingdom somehow knows when their young are in danger. We suppose it works that way for Nefertiri because we are so close. We may be father and daughter, but we are also the closest of friends. Either that or We still have some lingering powers of the Shadows.” He joked lightly to ease the tension in the room. He knew that was impossible.Imhotep chuckled as well, amused by his liege’s wit and sense of humor.Seth smiled at the older man again, this time looking almost guilty, or at least regretting something. “We apologize for snapping at you the other day, friend. When you questioned the wisdom of accompanying Our riders to meet Our guests. We know you were only trying to protect Us. It is just, We were- are- so worried for Nefertiri. We have always had problems with Our pride.” He sighed, his small smile turning just a little bit abashed.Imhotep looked shocked that Pharaoh- Horus-incarnate- would actually apologize to a mere mortal and admit that he’d been wrong. Briefly he doubted his ultimate scheme that he and his love had been plotting for years. Underneath it all, there was no doubt that Seth was a good man- and a great Pharaoh. But then he remembered his reasons. There was one thing for which Imhotep would never forgive him, would never let go unpunished. And that act was enough to drive the Pharaoh’s most trusted servant to the ultimate betrayal.Burying these machinations beneath layers upon layers of lies and false humility, Imhotep bowed low to his liege and answered, “You are truly wise and honorable, O mighty Pharaoh. It was my transgression to doubt your supreme power. Forgive this mortal servant that he forgot your divinity and confused you for a mere man. To dishonor a god deserves the ultimate retribution, and I will accept my punishment without protest, my King.” He stated, sounding completely contrite.Seth, however, merely waved him off. “Like you said, you are only human. It is natural to make mistakes. We are not so proud that We would destroy one of Our closest allies for one small offense. We may be Horus-incarnate, but We are human too. Even We are not above mistakes. It seems that We have to keep both Our pride and Our temper in check.” He mused with a chuckle.Imhotep smiled, having mixed feelings of both relief and biding his time. It was an odd feeling, but Imhotep knew that someday soon, Pharaoh Seth would get what was coming to him. And he would make certain that he would be the one to do it.As Imhotep plotted his vengeance and Seth worried for his daughter, a strange occurrence was playing out in the marketplace. The people of Thebes had seen quite a few unusual things in their day, but this one was definitely near the top of the list. A young man- possibly in his late teens- walked briskly toward the palace with a kind of purpose. What that purpose was, only he knew, but that didn’t stop bazaar-goers and shopkeepers alike from stopping to stare at the young man as he passed by them- nodding in a friendly manner and greeting them with a cordial “Good day.” in their language.The first thing about him that drew attention was the way he was dressed. It was not any clothing that was familiar to this desert country, that was certain. He wore strange, dark-gray leg coverings that stretched all the way from his waist to his ankles and were somehow sewn together in the middle, (pants) and a belt of black leather with a silver buckle securing them. His upper clothing was made of white linen or something very similar, and the collar rose all the way up to the young man’s chin, obscuring almost all of his neck. The man also wore a strange cloak of royal blue that flared out dramatically at his calves, seeming to be suspended by nothing but air. (long-sleeved trenchcoat) His sandals were also of a strange make and design. For one thing, they did not look like sandals at all- as they showed not the tiniest bit of skin underneath the dark material. (dress shoes) Strange, small leg coverings that seemed to be woven from wool also shielded his ankles from view. (socks)
[I have a picture and profile of this young man up on my Deviantart page.]
The boy’s attire may have initially caught the bystanders’ attention, but what held it was his odd hair color. Some of the people of Thebes had seen such hair only twice before: the wild mane of the Thief King Bakura, and the long silken waterfall of the young woman whom their Pharaoh had loved and lost- the White Dragon caller, Kisara. Those who had known Pharaoh Seth during his predecessor’s reign couldn’t help but compare this boy’s appearance to that of the former High Priest. Indeed- but for the skin and hair color- it was as if Pharaoh himself was walking among his people in some elaborate disguise. Yet this boy was not dark with the sun like most residents of Egypt, but bore pale skin just like the young woman that had given her life to save their current Pharaoh from darkness.
[Technically he’s just a few shades darker than Kisara, but not as tan as- say, Yugi for instance.]
One man, however, was new to the palace city and had not heard of the Lady Kisara. However, he had heard of the King of Thieves. When the enigmatic young man passed by him, the man whispered to his neighbor, “A demon-child?” looking at the young man the whole time.The boy must have been very keen of hearing, because he wheeled about suddenly on his heel and made a hurt face at the man. “Now that’s just rude.” He frowned, but then brightened up immediately. “So my hair’s white. Doesn’t mean I’m a demon.” He remarked with a slight growl, although it didn’t sound malicious. In fact, it almost sounded like he was feigning hurt feelings. To corroborate this theory, his azure eyes were bright with the light of laughter and just the barest hint of mischief.Without warning, he looked up and around at his surroundings, then at the sleeve of his jacket. “Gee. I kinda stick out like a sore thumb with this get-up, don’t I? Maybe I should’ve given a bit more thought to this.” He commented to himself, then looked around at the bazaar again. He smiled when he spotted a stall selling linen garments, and bought an outfit suited for a rather tall individual. “Perfect.” He smiled, ducking into a dark alleyway and emerging less than five seconds later, already changed.This earned more than a few raised eyebrows, and a young woman asked him curiously, “Who are you, young man?” The teenager turned to her and smiled disarmingly, flipping his hair out of his eyes. “You can call me ‘Kai’.” “Seriously, who are you people?” Nefertiri gasped in amazement. Joey, Mokuba and Téa had summoned their main Ka, and Horus [Horus’ Black Flame Dragon] and Valkyrie were helping Mahaad fend off ‘Hellfire’. Hono no Kenshi stood between the heroes and the servants of the Roman Emperor, protecting them from harm. Hana, meanwhile, had cast a ‘Absolute Nonaggression Area’ trap shield over the group, and was maintaining the shield with all her strength.After winking mysteriously at Nefertiri, Hana growled to her friends, “We’re not getting very far like this, are we?”“We gotta figure out a way ta break away from dat dragon.” Joey growled back, relieving a palace guard of his sword and dispatching its owner with a blow to the stomach with the hilt. “He’s da real problem ‘ere.” He glared up at Hellfire, who was wrestling with Black Magician. From the ground it looked like the dragon was attempting to break the magician’s staff, but wasn’t having much luck. It must’ve been made from something akin to diamond to withstand the strength of a dragon.*[Look up ‘Dark Magician and Red Eyes BD’ by ‘Dark-Sephy’ on dA.]“Well, as long as Josephus is controlling him with that gauntlet, he’s not gonna let up.” Hana growled to her friend.“He’s controllin’ da dragon? How can ya tell?” Joey asked, and he followed his friend’s finger as she pointed to his prosthetic hand. “See that yellow-green glow?” A nod. “Classic mind-control spell*. Poor thing still knows what he’s doing, but he’s powerless to resist.” She frowned up at the dragon, and now Joey could see tears forming in the wyvern’s crimson eyes.
[Likely 'Brainwashing - Brain Control'.]
“How dare he make Red-Eyes cry!” Joey snarled, but only Hana heard it. She grimaced in answer, feeling pity for the noble dragon. It wasn’t his fault at all!“I’d thought I’d noticed something off about the big guy, and I finally put my finger on it. Usually a Ka has the same ‘presence’- or magical force- as its Ba, but I didn’t sense the same energy from Josephus that I did from the dragon. He’s been lying to us from the start. He’s not Red-Eyes’ Ba. The dragon belongs to Jono and him alone.” Hana growled as she glared daggers at Josephus, who merely smirked and waggled his eyebrows once.“Figures. I kinda sensed he was a creep ever since I firs’ saw ‘im. Sometin ‘bout da eyes, an’ I’m not talkin’ ‘bout da color either.” He growled. “Da eyes are da windows ta da soul, y’know.”“Yup.” Hana suddenly grinned mischievously. “And yours are brown ‘cause you’re sweet as chocolate.” She winked, making her blond friend blush. “I walked inta dat one, didn’ I?” He asked with a face as red as a cherry.The other heroes all either grinned or snorted in agreement, not even bothering to hide the fact that they’d been eavesdropping.“You are only partially right, woman.” Josephus purred. “I won this dragon from that traitor in fair and square combat. He may not have been Mine originally, but he obeys Me and only Me, to a fault.”“That’s because you’re forcing him to!” Hana yelled, growing more incensed by the second. “You’re making him do terrible things against his will, and you’re keeping him in this world 24/7! I’m sure you’ve noticed by now that he’s weaker than when he started out, right? Ka can’t survive very long in the human world. You have to let them return home periodically, and quickly! If you don’t, they can die!” She cried, tears in her emerald eyes for the possessed dragon’s sake.Clearly this thought had never crossed the Emperor’s mind, because he looked up at his airborne servant with something akin to worry in his eyes. But then his expression morphed back to a smirk, and he shook his head. “You are attempting to deceive Me, but your lies will not work! I am the most powerful Emperor that Rome has ever seen, and My dragon shall continue by My side into eternity! There is nothing you can do to stop Me!” He threw back his head and laughed, his gales echoing around the room.“I think not!” came a muffled, yet nearly identical voice from somewhere behind the heroes. Everyone wheeled about, and there stood Jono- armed with only a double-edged sword in his left hand and a simple wooden shield in his right.“You?!” Josephus cried in outrage, pointing his own blade at his twin. “I exiled you from My city long ago! You were never to return here, on pain of death!”“That is exactly why I am here!” Jono shouted back, glaring at his brother with nothing but contempt in his ruby eyes. “Your reign of terror has gone on long enough, and it should not have even begun in the first place! I am the elder of us, brother!” He growled, causing the other heroes to raise their eyebrows.“Pah! Like forty-five mere seconds make any difference.” Josephus scoffed, waving a hand dismissively.“It does in my book! Jono’s da rightful king a’ dis country! You usurped his rightful place on da throne!” Joey snarled, and Hono no Kenshi turned away from his now unconscious opponent and stood between his duelist and the new threat, silently vowing to protect him at all costs. “An’ den ya locked dat mask on ‘im. How could ya do dat? He’s yer twin brother!”“So what if I did?” Josephus smirked. “He was always weak, believing in kindness and compassion instead of complete and total domination! That is the only way to get people to obey you. You have to beat them into the ground and break their spirit!”“Complete and utter darkness.” Jono growled so that only his friends could hear, though the Ka heard as well. “It is as if all of the darkness in the world possessed my brother in the moment of his birth. That is how he got his dark magic. That and his own dragon.”“Wait. You said that he and you shared a Ka.” Hana asked, confused. “Now you’re saying that he has a dragon too?”Jono looked down, a somewhat sheepish smile on the little of his face they could see. “What I told you was not a lie, instead a portion of the whole story. We were born with identical Ka, two of the being that you call the Red-Eyes Black Dragon. Unfortunately my brother’s darkness corrupted his dragon, causing it to take a completely different shape than mine. That and he tried to keep it in this world for too long.” He looked down again in sorrow and pity at the memory. “Now, that being is nothing more than bones, though it is stronger than it had been. I suppose that is because of the darkness that infected its mind. Now it is known in the world of your Ka as ‘Berserk Dead Dragon’ [3500/0].”Hana gasped in horror and quite a few of the others did too, all except for Mokuba and Akhen- who had never before witnessed that terrible creature. That thing had been almost impossible to defeat in Noah’s VR world. The only thing that would be powerful enough to defeat it would be a LIGHT-attribute Ka like Blue-Eyes, only 500 points stronger. Unfortunately, they didn’t have an ally like that.Or so Hana thought. Just when all hope seemed lost, a miracle appeared before the heroes. The silhouette of Blue-Eyes appeared before them and roared angrily at Josephus, causing him to step backward in sudden fear. The translucent dragon flew into the Emperor’s face, and- with a single crunch of its mighty jaws- snapped off the wicked ruler’s false hand and destroyed it, subsequently freeing the Red-Eyes Black Dragon from its mind control.That’s when all chaos broke loose. Josephus was howling in rage that he’d once again lost his right arm, and with it control of Red-Eyes- the dragon was roaring its jubilation at its freedom and spewing molten fireballs everywhere in the palace, setting fire to everything flammable- and the spirit of Blue-Eyes cried out one final time before vanishing into thin air. It was strange, but that didn’t look like the usual Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Instead it had a more futuristic look to it. Hana smiled. Blue-Eyes Shining Dragon somehow came to aid us in our hour of need. Thank you, my friend.“AARGH! That- is- IT!” Josephus bellowed in denial that he’d lost this battle. “You have crossed Me for the last time, you hellspawn! You have destroyed My glorious empire, so now I shall destroy you! I may not be able to summon My own dragon, but that matters not. For I shall curse you, you and all of your friends, with a terrible curse! You will never see your families again, you who belong to Egypt! I curse you to reside in Rome until the day you die and return to your dark master in Tartaros!” He roared with laughter, confident that his curse would devastate them. Then without warning, he charged up a tongue of black fire and shot it at an unsuspecting Joey, who was preoccupied with watching for attacks from the palace guards. The cursed fire caught him in the chest and he gasped in shock and pain, collapsing to the ground and spasming as if he were experiencing a massive seizure. With that, the Dark Emperor threw back his head and laughed like a man possessed, crimson eyes literally glowing with the depth of his hatred. “This will show you to defy Me!” He laughed uproariously, grinning like a madman as he pointed to them with all that remained of his gauntleted right arm.As one, everyone gasped in horror as a wave of dark energy slowly seeped from Josephus’ hand-less right arm, frozen with shock as it crept steadily nearer to doom them all.But then something unexpected happened. Hana folded her arms across her chest and crouched down to the ground, gathering her magical energy for a massive spell. With a piercing cry, she suddenly straightened up and threw her arms out from her center- pushing a titanic wave of light from her being that quickly overtook Josephus’ curse and enveloped her friends from the modern world and Nefertiri- sending them all from the Roman palace to another realm entirely- knowing they would be safe there. Somehow Jono was also swept up in the wave of magical energy, and he gasped in surprise as he blinked out of sight just like the rest of the heroes. With a roar of surprise, the same fate befell Red-Eyes and the other Ka, and they too disappeared from the human world in a burst of light.“WHAT?! NO!” Josephus cried as he glared at the magician princess, who now seemed to be reciting another mental spell. Be safe, my friends. She prayed, then thought: And to you, Akhen, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I didn’t act fast enough, and now I’ve doomed you to my fate.Somehow Akhen must have heard Hana’s mental apology, because he smiled at her and nodded in calm acceptance. Hana suddenly remembered that he hadn’t had any family in Egypt to go home to, that the only person he’d ever wanted to be with was the princess who’d touched his heart.“This cannot be happening! What did you do, you witch?!” Josephus screamed, and Hana fell to her knees, utterly drained of power. She didn’t even bother looking up to meet his eyes as she spoke in a voice barely above a whisper. “I sent them far away from your reach. You won’t be able to harm any more of my friends.” She vowed.Josephus, instead of exploding with rage, suddenly and inexplicably grinned at Hana. “Big mistake, woman. I will teach you just how stupid you were to defy Me and leave yourself behind. When you reach your twenty-first year, you will return to Me- whether you like it or not. Then I shall teach you the true meaning of suffering.”Hana frowned, but then closed her eyes and bowed her head, and she and Akhen disappeared from the burning palace- one bound for home, the other to the modern era.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“Joey? Joey! Can you hear me? Speak to me!” Yugi cried as he knelt over his friend, who was still gripped by the curse that Josephus had cast on him. The blond hero tried to answer, but all that came out of his mouth was cries of pain. Jono and Nefertiri stood off to the side of the young heroes from the future, feeling quite out-of-place and awkward as a result.Suddenly Mokuba doubled over in pain and wrapped his arms around his abdomen, gasping for breath and clenching his eyes shut. “Aagh!” He cried.“Mokuba!” Yugi gasped, looking up at his youngest friend as he continued to grimace and wince in pain. “What’s- what’s happening?!” He cried.Mokuba wrenched his eyes open with herculean effort and held out his right hand. To everyone’s horror, it was starting to look transparent- as if it were slowly fading from this world.“You- you guys- realize what this- means, right?” Mokuba gasped out between spasms of pain from his chest-area. Quite a few of the friends gasped, but Joey just looked confused. “I’m- starting to- disappear. That- means that Seto is- already-” He broke off, unable to get the words out- large tears forming in his stormy eyes.“It’s still not too late, Mokuba.” Yugi whispered. “As long as we get Nefertiri home okay, you guys are gonna be fine.” He promised, smiling sympathetically at the teenager.Mokuba nodded, though the tears were still pouring down his face. “I can’t believe- how strong Seto is. How was- he able to hold in- this much- agony?” He gasped weakly, beads of sweat mixing in with his tears.“What is going on?” A new voice asked sharply as he approached the group. He gasped when he saw two of his family’s descendants among the group, and he quickly rushed over to the newcomers. “What brings you guys here?” He asked in surprise.“Oh, Critias!” Yugi gasped. “Maybe you can help us. Nefertiri needs to get home to Egypt because we gotta save Seto and Mokuba, Jono needs to get back home to his own world eventually too- plus he’s got that awful iron mask on and we can’t get it off- and Joey’s been cursed by Josephus and we can’t figure out what’s wrong or how to help him!”“A daunting conundrum indeed.” Critias nodded grimly, removing his helmet. Nefertiri gasped when she saw the Legendary Knight’s face, for a moment thinking that her beloved father was standing before her. The resemblance between them was uncanny. Shifting his gaze to Jono, Critias swiftly drew his blade and broke the lock of the mask with one powerful stroke, actually breaking the mask off as well but not harming a single hair of the young royal’s person. Nefertiri gasped again when the young man’s face was revealed- looking quite pale, but still an identical reflection of the Dark Emperor Josephus- albeit with significantly longer hair. He looked up and met her sapphire eyes with his own rubies, and an inexplicable spark jumped between the two royals.* Mokuba looked up at the two who had gasped, and the boy was suddenly struck with an epiphany. Do Nefertiri and Jono end up together? Is he connected to our family too?! He gasped mentally.
[How romantic. Love at first sight. 😁]
“Now it is time to send the two of you home to where you belong.” Critias smiled at the young princess, who was still staring at Jono and he at her. The knight of Atlantis raised his eyebrows at their sudden connection, then amended his statement. “Or perhaps one of you doesn’t want to return to his home?” He grinned knowingly.Jono finally broke their staring contest to beam at the blond dragon knight. Critias chuckled and nodded. He knew that look. The true joy on one’s face when they finally found their soulmate, the one person they were destined to be with. He himself had felt that bond back in Atlantis, with the young woman to whom he’d been betrothed. But that was a long time ago.“Before that, I must see to my own brother in time.” The Roman prince answered, looking over to his blond look-alike with a worried grimace. “I may not have magic of my own, but I might be able to tell you- my friends- how to help him.” He knelt beside Yugi- who was holding his best friend’s hand in both his own- and put a gentle hand over the young duelist’s heart. “This is ancient sorcery.” Jono gasped after he recognized the symptoms. “My twin really outdid himself on this one. The magic is older than Rome, older than Egypt- older than even Atlantis.”Téa gasped. “But- there is a cure- right?”Jono bowed his head. “There was, long ago. This curse can only be broken with the blood of a Dragonborn, but that race disappeared with the Great Flood that destroyed Atlantis.”“A 'Dragonborn'? What's that?” Yugi asked in confusion as Critias gasped. Everyone turned to him, and the Legendary Knight answered Yugi's question.“A child marked from birth with the symbol of a dragon.” He explained. “It is like a birthmark, but it is big. And instead of having an excess of pigment at the site, there is an absence.” He continued. “I knew of a few who lived in Atlantis, but they were very rare. And that was ten thousand years ago.” He bowed his head, his stormy blue-gray eyes downcast with sadness.“Put simply, they no longer exist.” Jono explained, his head still bowed. “And neither does the cure.”“So- he's doomed?” Téa gasped, tears in her blue eyes.No one present had the heart to answer her inquiry, and Critias wordlessly cast a portal spell that would transport Nefertiri home. Deciding on the spot to follow his soulmate and live the rest of his life in Egypt, Jono stood to his feet and followed after the princess- sparing one last hope-filled glance for his distant relatives. He gave them a grateful smile and an acknowledging nod of farewell, then walked through the portal with Nefertiri- his hand gently encompassing hers. Just before the portal closed, Nefertiri stuck her head back out and whispered, “Thank you.” Then the two lovers disappeared from sight as the swirling vortex closed behind them.Worlds and centuries away, a certain CEO rolled over onto his stomach as he slept soundly for the first time in what felt like weeks, unwittingly exposing his bare back. Under all of his scars, a large symbol on the skin glowed white, marking the young man as a member of a race that had been lost for millennia:The last Dragonborn.Just as the young princess of Egypt appeared in her chambers after Critias sent them both to the human world, she could sense that something was terribly wrong. She bolted out the door of her chambers, leaving a stunned and very confused Jono standing frozen in the middle of her room. She raced to the main audience chamber of the palace- looking for her beloved father- but found it empty. Racking her brain for another possible place he might be, Nefertiri ran from the room and down a different hallway, the one that led to Pharaoh’s chambers. Sliding on the sandstone, Nefertiri stopped in front of Seth’s doorway and froze at the nightmarish sight.Her father’s most trusted High Priest- Imhotep- was holding onto the handle of an ornate silver dagger, which he’d plunged into the middle of Seth’s back, while his queen- Nefertiri’s stepmother Ankh-Su-Namun- held her Pharaoh in place so that he couldn’t move away.“FATHER!” Nefertiri cried as Seth collapsed and both assailants turned their gazes toward her. “NO!”“So, you have returned, princess.” Imhotep hissed silkily, exactly like a cobra enticing its prey with honeyed words from fangs dripping with poison. “Just in time to hear your precious Pharaoh’s final gasps.” He laughed nastily.“He deserved to die, for what he did.” The queen snarled, not even sparing a glance for her dying King. “He took me from my true love and bound me to a marriage that I never wanted, just because he thought his hellspawn of a daughter needed a mother figure.” She spat, glaring daggers at the young princess- whose eyes were overflowing with tears.Alerted by Nefertiri’s cry, no less than twenty palace guards burst into Pharaoh’s chambers, all gasping as one in horror at the sight before their eyes. Without even a word from their new Ruler, they seized both the queen and the High Priest, binding them with thick ropes and shackling their hands behind them. Nefertiri ran to her father’s side, calling his name as two of the guards followed her- dropping to their knees to try to save their beloved King.“They shall both die for what they have done.” Nefertiri wailed as burning tears dropped from her face. “See to it that they are executed immediately. Ankh-Su-Namun shall be cast in gold as the Golden Queen, and Imhotep shall be given to Anubis, Ammit and Osiris alive. May their black souls burn in Duat for all eternity!” She vowed, and the guards hastened to obey their newest Pharaoh. They knew without a doubt that there was not a chance to save Seth. It was too late. When everyone had left the room, Nefertiri collapsed over her father’s chest, weeping as if her own heart had burst in the same way that his had.“I did not even get to say goodbye, dear Father.” Nefertiri wailed as she lay over Seth’s body. “Josephus was right. I did not get to see my family again. Oh, Father!” She sobbed over his still form. “Why, Lord Osiris? Why?!” She howled her grief to the heavens as a young man walked into the room, knelt down and placed a gentle pair of hands on her shoulders- embracing her tenderly as she cried over Pharaoh’s body. Jono didn’t need to say anything, he simply offered unspoken comfort as her father’s spirit left this world for the Elysian Fields, or Aaru as his true love believed.After what seemed like an eternity, Nefertiri finally looked up from her grieving at an inexplicable glow that was shining gently just in front of her. She wiped the water from her eyes and turned her gaze to the window in the room, gasping in shock and fright when she saw an inhuman being standing between it and her father’s body. There was no possible way that this being was mortal, and absolutely no doubt in her mind that she was gazing upon her father’s spirit. He’d wanted to say goodbye to her before he left for the Netherworld and Aaru. Nefertiri’s shock slowly morphed into a tearful smile as she gazed up at the younger form of her father, his hair now white as snow.*
[This is actually Kai by the way, but she doesn’t know that. Seth’s spirit did stay for a moment, but he can’t appear to anyone on the mortal plane at this point.]
“Nefertiri.” The spirit smiled, love shining in his sapphire eyes- the same shade as her own. “I am joyed beyond words that you are safe. You have no idea how much I have missed you.” The being breathed, his own eyes getting a bit teary. “Father?” The princess gasped, disbelief stealing her breath so that her words came out as more of a squeak.The spirit smiled sadly. “It was never my intention to step down before you were ready, but I know that you will rule our land with all the wisdom and grace that our Predecessors did before us. May your reign lead Egypt into a Golden Age of splendor, so much that she will forever be remembered in history as a shining beacon of peace and prosperity. I may not be with you to guide you, but always know that I will be watching over you from Aaru.” He smiled, his eyes sparkling with pride and love.Nefertiri nodded tearfully, and the spirit stepped forward and knelt down before her on his right knee, on the opposite side of his body from the princess. He placed a gentle, glowing hand to her cheek, and Nefertiri gasped at how warm and soft it seemed. She didn’t think spirits could touch things on the human plane. “I am so proud of you, Nefertiri, and I know that your mother is too.” He smiled softly as the young woman closed her eyes and echoed his expression, relaxing into the familiar touch of her father’s hand on her face. “I will always love you, my little princess. Always and forever.” He breathed as he faded into the warm night air. Just before he disappeared completely, the spirit leaned forward and kissed her forehead in the most gentle way possible. Then he was gone.“Oh, Father.” Nefertiri breathed, her tears flowing again, but this time her heart was lighter with the light of love. “I promise you. I will rule this land as justly as you strove to do.” She vowed, planting a kiss of her own on her predecessor’s cheek. “I will always love you too.” She smiled sadly. “Dad.”Back in the Dominion of the Beasts- just after Critias sent Nefertiri and Jono back to Egypt to her rightful home and time- and after Erysipelas* flew home to his own secluded mountain cave, everyone agreed that it was high time they returned home as well. Timaeus and Hermos had joined the group, and they greeted their mortal friends with warm smiles. Just as they were preparing to leave the Dominion to return to their own time and place, Critias put a gentle hand on Mokuba's shoulder.
[Hellfire was renamed ‘holy fire’]
The boy turned to the Legendary Knight, confused, and Critias smiled and handed him a Duel Monsters card. Mokuba flipped it face-up and gasped at the sight of the orange border and picture of the knight himself.“Give this to your brother when you return home.” The knight requested. “And when his strength returns, ask him to summon me.”“Critias-” Timaeus frowned. “It is a whisper of a rumor. An impossible dream. Your hope is a fool's hope.”“Then I am a fool!” Critias shot back testily, surprising Mokuba. He'd never known the knight to act so flippantly. He'd always been even-tempered. “You may have given up on our home, but I have not. So help me, I am going to prove you wrong, Timaeus.”“Eesh. An’ I thought I was th’ impulsive one.” Hermos muttered aside to Yugi, who snorted quietly.“Your home? What do you mean?” Mokuba asked, now even more confused.Critias looked down for a long moment, then slowly lifted his head to look into Mokuba's face, blue-gray eyes shining with hope and excitement. “I have reason to believe that not all of our home was destroyed with the Great Flood. Our people- the people of Atlantis- may yet live on.”“BP 70 over 50, pulse is 53.” A nurse called as she ran alongside the gurney on which lay Joey Wheeler as he was wheeled to the OR. Yugi was holding his best friend's right hand as if Joey's life depended on it, wishing that there was more he could do.“He's lost a lot of blood. Do a blood-type test, see if he needs a transfusion.” Hana ordered, and another nurse answered, “We've got him in the system, doctor. He's blood-type B.”“Oh great. We don't have any B or O-negative blood on standby. Is anybody here a B or O-negative? Other than me?”* Hana asked, tone jocular but words deadly serious.
[Yes, Hana’s O-negative. 😉]
“Seto's O-negative.”* Mokuba answered quickly. “I think he's the only other person in Domino who is."
[That’s actually not accurate according to YuGiOh! Wiki, but just go with it for the sake of this story. He’s actually Type A. I needed the blood of a ‘Dragonborn’, and he’s the only one left. At this point in time, anyway. 😏]
“Nice. Call Seth and Kisara, Mokuba. See if they can bring him in.” Hana asked the boy, and Mokuba immediately pulled out his cell phone and dialed his home number. To his shock, it was his Nii-sama that answered. He’s okay! He’s back! We did it! The boy mentally rejoiced. After a minute, Mokuba put his phone away. “He said he'll be here in five minutes.” He told Hana, who nodded. Then he took Joey's left hand and told the blond, “Don't worry, Joey. Help is on the way.” Further surprising the boy, Joey actually squeezed the younger teen's hand once, a signal that he had heard him. Then the team moved him into the OR.-Some time later-When Joey opened his eyes, he was surprised to find himself in a white hospital room instead of ancient Rome or the Dominion. He winced as the IV in his arm brushed against his side and moved the needle a bit, then he took a look around. To his continued surprise, he discovered that he wasn't the only occupant of the room. None other than Seto Kaiba himself was laying in the other bed, left arm held straight up and a piece of gauze taped to the inside of his elbow. The young man turned his head to look at his fellow duelist and friend.“So, you've finally decided to join us in the World of the Living.” Seto grinned, looking tired but pleased to see Joey alive. “I was worried I'd have to write your eulogy. They usually don't do those for mutts.”“Oh, real nice, Kaiba. Makin' fun of a guy who's lyin' in a hospital bed.” Joey shot back with a scowl, but then he noticed the other teen's expression, looking like he was on the verge of laughter. When their gazes met it actually erupted, and the world-famous CEO of Kaibacorp. laughed until his sides hurt.“Ah, that never gets old.” Seto sighed when he'd composed himself. “When are you finally gonna realize that I'm just messin’ with you? You're way too easy to rile up.”Joey gaped at him for a solid minute. “Y’mean dat all dis time- ev’ry time ya called me a mutt or a dog- you were teasin' ? Oh, dat's real funny, Kaiba. Yer a regular riot.” He scowled.Seto chuckled again. “Like I said, it never gets old.” He smirked, then carefully sat up from the bed and swung his legs over the side, standing up as smoothly and fluidly as ever. Just like always.But then something out of the ordinary happened. The teen genius started to sway on his feet, then his legs gave out from under him and he fell to the ground in a faint, landing on his backside first and then falling over sideways.“Kaiba?!” Joey gasped, quickly pushing the alarm button next to his bed. Luckily Hana happened to be passing by, and she quickly ran to her friend's side and checked him for any injuries. Smiling when she saw he wasn't hurt, she propped him up against the wall and elevated his feet, using her healing power to wake him.“Wha-?” He gasped. “What happened?”“You passed out. It happens to a lot of people after donating blood. Just take it easy and put your head between your knees if you're dizzy. I'll go get you some orange juice.” Hana instructed as she stood up, walking over to Joey and checking on him.“Well, you look like you're feeling better, Joey.” She smiled at the young man, who was grinning from ear-to-ear. He knew a payback opportunity when he saw one!“Ha! Kaiba fainted! Oh, dis'll be hauntin' ya fer months!” The blond crowed, and Seto groaned. He was never going to be able to live this down. Joey would see to that.Hana smirked and rolled her eyes at her exultant friend. “Don't tease him about it too much, Joey. After all, he did save your life.”Joey nodded, still beaming. “Yeah, yeah. I tink a li’l payback is just recompense, tho. Don' you? Fer all th' times he's made me feel worthless an' called me a mutt?”“Oh, quit with the guilt trip. I feel terrible already.” Seto growled as he sat down in one of the chairs, still dizzy.“I'll get you a snack with your orange juice. You look really pale.” Hana stated with a worried expression, leaving the room to get the aforementioned snack and beverage. Upon her return and after handing the snack and juice to her friend, Hana checked some things on Joey's chart and sighed lightly. “Well, good news. You'll be able to go home tonight, Joey.” Then she added in a whisper, “-And don't worry about the medical bill. Just think of it as my 'thank-you' for helping me save a friend.”Joey beamed at his newest friend, gratitude shining in his chocolate-brown eyes. Hana then turned to Seto. “You can head home when you feel better, Seto. And make sure to drink lots of water in the next few days so you can replenish your red blood cells.” She instructed, and Seto nodded. Then she left to tend to her other patients.-Around 10:00 pm-Joey was released from the hospital that night, precisely as planned. His father knew nothing of what had transpired with their ancestor, so he was very confused when Joey returned home looking a bit stronger than when he'd left. Joey didn't tell him any of the specifics- as they would be too unbelievable- but he did tell him that he'd gone to save his friend's life.“So while ya were out playin' hero, didja pick up some sake like I told ya to?”Joey shook his head in exasperation. John Wheeler would never change.As expected of him by now, Seto Kaiba recovered from his ordeal in record time and returned to work a mere three days after donating some of his blood to save Joey. Mokuba wasn't too happy about it- thinking that his Nii-sama should be taking it easy after nearly losing his soul for the nth time- but Seto was stubborn. It was a hard-learned lesson that Gozaburo pounded into him. A Kaiba bowed to no one, and nothing but death could ever keep them down. In Noah’s and my cases, not even death worked. Seto chuckled to himself, thinking about his recent out-of-body experience in the ‘Empire of Shadows’ a few months ago. Then the bad car accident over Christmas before that, then the incident with his dark side when he’d transformed into Blue-Eyes before that, and then the incident where he’d been shot and the ‘near-death’ experience with Horakhty’s prophecy when this whole mess had started. Not to mention all those ‘events’ in high school. He really needed to take it easier from now on. I seriously doubt that will happen anytime soon, though. He thought wryly. Not with my crazy life.True to his word, Mokuba relayed Critias' request and card to his older brother about a week after they had returned to Domino City. Seto was surprised but nodded anyway, summoning his brother-in-time from the Dominion of the Beasts.The blond knight appeared at Seto's side, clad- not in his usual armor- but in a pair of regular beige slacks, a dark-blue t-shirt and sandals. Seto raised an eyebrow at his attire, but then shrugged. It didn't matter what he was wearing, and his armor would have made him stand out.“Can I borrow the KC submarine you kept from the old Kaibacorp.?” The older man asked after nodding to his Chosen Duelist in greeting. Seto was surprised that Critias would even know about that.“Sure, but it's all the way over by our European branch in Sicily.”“I know. And that's a perfect starting point. Atlantis was smack in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.* That's the best place to start looking.”
[Just my theory. I have no idea where it was supposed to be.]
“Looking for what?” Seto asked.“A system of old caves and tunnels where Dr. Hawkins found those shards of Orichalcum. I think some of our people may be sealed there, frozen in crystal and time just as I and my brother Knights were.” Critias explained, hope once again shining in his eyes. Seto gasped at this revelation, shocked speechless. Could Atlantis still exist?“But you three were sealed as dragons, and they're practically immortal. Does the crystal sealing process work the same way for mortal humans?” Seto asked, doubtful.“It should.” Critias nodded. “The magic within the crystal is what keeps its 'prisoners' alive. Until the right person comes along to break the seal.” At this he winked at his brother, who smirked back- both remembering when Seto had freed Critias by removing the sword from the dragon's imprisoned form.With that, Critias turned on his heel and faced toward the west, then rose up into the sky and began his journey- turning a somersault when Seto called, “Be careful!”Seto watched the Knight until he disappeared from sight, adding quietly to himself, “I wish you success, Onii-sama.”After about thirteen hours of constant flying, Critias sighed as he finally touched down behind a building in a deserted alleyway. Looking around for a moment, he sighed with relief when he discovered he was completely alone. No one had seen him airborne. He stepped out from behind the building and into a crowded street, shops and restaurants placed side-by-side on both sides of the road, continuing for miles in both directions.Reacting to all the delectable aromas, the Knight's stomach growled loudly and he chuckled to himself. I guess a little lunch wouldn't hurt. And with that he walked into the nearest restaurant and purchased a take-out meal of their famous spaghetti and meat sauce. He'd paid for the meal with some coins that Mokuba had given him a few days ago for this very purpose. Not bad. He thought to himself as he left the establishment, looking for someone to ask for directions to the KC submarine bay. Thanks to his magic, understanding the native language was no problem for Critias, and he arrived at the bay within twenty minutes of asking a helpful vendor.A technician looked up as Critias entered the building, walking up and shaking the Knight's hand. “You must be Critias. We received word from the President of your arrival, and we've prepared the submarine for immediate departure. We're ready when you are, sir.”Critias was a bit surprised by this, but then nodded in gratitude. He'd have to remember to thank Seto when he next saw him.“Do you have scuba gear on board?” Critias asked, and the man nodded. “Yessir. Everything is set for an undersea expedition. The only thing we need is the coordinates.”“Good.” Critias answered, climbing onto the sub and opening the hatch. “Take us down, Captain. Our destination is Atlantis- 40º60' South and 34º01' East.”*
[Just made that up. I have no clue what may be at that location.]
-Hours later-The submarine broke the surface with a splash, and Critias opened the hatch and climbed out into the underwater cave. Though it was miles below sea level, the cavern was still filled with air and not submerged as he had feared. Smiling at the stroke of luck, Critias switched on his flashlight and walked through the ruins of his ancient home. He had found Atlantis.Frowning at the shards and fragments of Orichalcum as he passed them, Critias searched for any sign of a hidden tunnel where his people might be sealed and preserved in crystal. Though he'd been walking for a while, all he had found was the scattered and destroyed remains of the most advanced civilization of its day.Finally he reached the central portion of the city- the place where the palace once stood. He smiled at the nostalgia. He and his elder sister Cristina had lived not far from here. Were he not on a mission, he would have tried to find their old house. But there was no time for that.-Half an hour later-Critias uncovered a tunnel that he remembered led down beneath the castle to the royal tomb. His instinct told him that if he was to find any trace of his quarry, it would be down there.Coming to the end of the tunnel, Critias gasped. A pair of life-sized statues barred his advance, and their likeness was so detailed and accurate that it sent a pang of loss through the Knight's heartstrings. For the statues that stood before him were none other than King Ironheart and his young granddaughter, the princess Kris. An inscription plate was engraved on the king's breastplate, and Critias read it with tears in his eyes. “When proof is shown that the three Heroes of Our land live, then shall Atlantis rise again.” Critias nodded, instinctively knowing what to do. Kneeling before the statue of his former liege, he kissed the statue's ring reverently, knowing that there had to be some type of sensor in the stone that would respond to body heat. Standing to his feet, Critias then turned to the statue of the princess, smiling gently as he put his left hand on the top of her head like he always used to. He and Kris had been very close, despite the fact that she was royalty and thus outranked him. He'd even considered her his younger cousin who just happened to be the princess.That was the key. An act of reverence and an act of familiarity were the key that opened the lock. The rock wall behind the statues split in half, and slid apart to reveal-“You were wrong, Timaeus.” Critias crowed, triumphant. “Our people do live!”