Lion Heart

DragonLady222: Well y’know me, I fuck up everyone’s lives and then put it all right again XD fucking with lives is so much fun! Wow, I think I now know what feeling politicians get… scary O.o;;

EvilPharaohAtem: Personally I don’t see Seto confessing his love to Jou with flowers and a box of chocolates *chuckles* so yeah, this is usually what it turns into instead. Seems to fit them anyway *grins* Hope you like the upcoming chapter as well!

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Ugh, this particular chapter, and the upcoming ones for that matter, gave me a freaking headache as I was writing them. This one and the next were a bitch… so you need to go and love me for putting myself through that. Bleh, I hope you all enjoy and R&R!

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--: 14 :--
Hidden Truths

“I blame you for this!” Malik dropped to the ground as a spear rushed over his head, swallowing thickly as he noted how close it had gotten to hitting him. He glanced over to Ryou to make sure the other was still alright, seeing that the other was nervously glancing around rapidly to make sure nothing was coming his way.

The white-haired teen looked back at his friend after making sure he was fine for the next few moments, “How is this my fault?! You were the one who practically trampled that guy with the horse by scaring it so we could escape!” He again looked around him, panic clearly visible in his eyes.

Malik got back to his feet, looking around and trying to find the spear that had just barely missed him. His hands were still tied and he desperately needed the ropes to be cut. If he could only find that spear, Ryou could try and cut his binds with it. “I only did it because you were so worried about Bakura.” He grinned as he spotted the spear and rushed over to it as quickly as he could, “Bingo! Cut these damned ropes and I’ll cut yours. My wrists feel like they’re on fire.”

Ryou bit his lip but made his way over nonetheless, turning around and picking up the spear. “You shouldn’t have struggled so much then.” He focused on cutting Malik’s ropes instead of arguing with the other. Arguing wasn’t particularly useful right now, getting out of the ropes was.

After they’d gotten to the battlefield, they’d both been put on one horse and had been left out of sight with one guard. The man hadn’t seemed that happy about being left behind to ‘babysit’ them, and had therefore not been paying to much attention to them. He’d apparently found the battle much more fun to watch.

And leaving Malik unsupervised was never a good idea.

It had cost Malik several minutes of wriggling around to get into a proper position, which had already made the horse restless. After that he’d plainly kicked the horse so hard it had staggered – almost throwing them off in the process – and had then taken off. Their guard was thrown to the side and had he fallen the wrong way, the horse would’ve surely trampled him to death. As it was, he’d get away with some bruises.

It had taken the horse several more minutes before it finally manage to throw them off not too far away from the edge of the battlefield. The guard that had of course been trying to follow them continued to chase the horse, apparently not noticing that it had dumped its load already.

Idiot.

Oh well, their luck. Of course Malik had insisted they go try and find Mariku and Bakura to kick that shadow being out of Bakura. Apparently Malik was conveniently forgetting that it was because of that they’d just almost been hit by a spear.

And several other weapons, for that matter.

Ryou finally managed to cut through the rope and Malik let out a relieved sigh as he blew on his wrists in an attempt to stop the burning feeling. Not succeeding, Malik scowled at them but ignored the feeling for now as he picked up the spear and quickly cut through Ryou’s ropes.

“There, now let’s go find those two idiots.” Malik had already risen, looking around the battlefield to try and find their look-alikes. Ryou gave one glace at the multitude of weapons that were being used and knew they’d never survive if they went into the mass of fighting people.

“You’re insane. We’d be killed before we’d even see them!” he got to his feet as well, “We’ve already been dodging weapons here and nobody’s fighting here yet!”

Malik scowled again, “Well we need to get to them! I don’t know about you but I’d prefer it if that thing controlling your boyfriend was killed instead of those two idiots.”

Ryou flushed several shades of red, “He’s not my boyfriend… and of course I don’t want them to die! I’d just like to stay alive myself too!”

Malik opened his mouth to argue once more, before closing it again as another spear passed them. It wasn’t anywhere near them but still, he had to admit that if they’d go in there, the chances of being killed were rather high.

“Fine, what’s your plan then?” Malik sighed in defeat.

Ryou glanced at the fighting soldiers and thieves once more. “When Atemu and Hikari get here, they’re bound to start fighting with Bakura and Mariku. We might not to able to sense that magic they use, but things being blown up is bound to draw attention. Then at least we’ll know where they are.”

“So what, we’re going to stand around doing nothing until we see or hear something getting blown up?”

“It better then getting killed out there.”

“Touché.”

They looked around for a hiding place for the time being, hiding behind a rock formation close-by as they kept a close eye on the fighting going on. It wasn’t until quite a bit later that they finally saw signs of a fight using shadow magic. Both instantly started looking for a way to get to the fight, knowing that if they were too late and either side won, it would be too late. They didn’t want Mariku or Bakura to get killed, but Yuugi getting killed wasn’t exactly a happy thought either.

It didn’t really take long before anyone fighting close to Bakura, Mariku, Hikari and Atemu moved away. There were only a few people now fighting between them and the people they were trying to reach. Malik grinned, “I’d say our chances just improved greatly, wouldn’t you say?”

Ryou nodded, still a bit unsure but knowing it wasn’t going to get much better than this, “I guess…”

With a few more glances to make sure the coast as relatively clear, Ryou and Malik quickly bolted forward, managing to get around the fighting people without getting too hurt. Ryou was cut slightly by a sword lying around when he tripped, and Malik was thrown to the ground when one of Atemu’s soldiers dropped to the ground, but that was less than they’d expected to get. Just as they came close enough to see what was going on, they saw Hikari tackle Mariku to the ground, before both Hikari and Atemu fired large blasts at Bakura. Shields rose to protect Bakura, holding the attacks back, but Hikari jumping at Bakura only seconds later and slashing the other threw the King of Thieves to the ground.

“They’re going to finish it off!” Malik’s eyes widened as he saw Hikari jump back to Atemu’s side, both preparing a large blast that was quite obviously meant to finish off the fight.

“No!” Ryou quickly rushed forward, Malik following right after him at top speed. “We need to stop them! Yuugi!”

They saw Hikari and Atemu glancing up at the sound of their voices, both yelling loudly for the two to not kill Bakura and Mariku off. Mariku looked up from his position on the ground with a dazed look, though he grinned and waved at them as soon as he saw Malik, apparently temporarily forgetting all his wounds, “Malik-pretty!”

Hikari, deciding to for the moment ignore the fact that Mariku had just called one of his friends ‘pretty’ , instantly rushed towards them to protect them in case Mariku or Bakura had recovered enough to attack, // You two need to get out of here now. // Of course he was relieved to see that his two friends really were okay, but if they stayed there they could easily get hurt anyway. They needed to leave, fast.

Ryou shook his head frantically, “No! You can’t kill those two! Please Yuugi!”

Hikari glanced back in question for a moment, before seeing that Bakura had gotten back to his feet and focused back on the thief, // I don’t know what those two did to you but I’m going to make them pay. // Malik and Ryou actually shivered at the dangerous tone Hikari’s voice carried with it. Malik scowled at his friend, annoyed that he wouldn’t listen to them. Of course there was a large battle going on so he could understand it, but this was important.

“Damnit! Bakura’s being possessed! There’s some kind of shadow thing that’s been influencing those two for all this time and now it’s actually taken control of Bakura! Listen to us!”

Hikari gave a shocked glance back; Atemu looked over with a look of disbelief as well before looking back at Bakura. Mariku blinked and cocked his head to the side; “Mariku is being influenced?” he blinked again.

Bakura was the only one who didn’t respond to the statement. A smirk crept up on his face as he straightened completely, looking at where Hikari was standing in front of Malik and Ryou, “Well, I see you two found out a lot more than I wanted you to. I knew that idiot should’ve killed the runt when he heard me but of course he had to disobey me.” He gave a humourless laugh, “Oh well, can’t do much about that now.”

Atemu narrowed his eyes at the white-haired man before him, “Who are you exactly if you’re not Bakura? And why have you been influencing him and Mariku all this time?!”

“Me?” Bakura grinned maliciously, “I’m here to take over your puny world, and this idiot was nothing but a tool I could use. Your father destroyed his village, leaving him as the only survivor. He was so easy to manipulate and he believed anything I said.” He chuckled, “Sadly he wouldn’t follow my orders anymore so I had to take control of him. He would’ve never been able to beat you and I knew it.”

Hikari growled, // Well apparently you couldn’t either! Crawl back into the hole you came from and leave us alone! //

Bakura merely smirked, “I might not be able to win like this, but this fool has been giving me power all these years. His hatred has given me so much power I don’t need him anymore!”

There was a brief moment where Bakura’s eyes glowed an intense red before they closed and the white-haired thief fell limply to the ground. Ryou rushed past Hikari, kneeling down next to his look-alike to check if he was okay. Hikari looked on in confusion, completely blank on why Ryou would be this worried for someone who had kidnapped him, influenced or not.

Hesitantly shaking off his confusion for the time being and glancing at Atemu, he focused back on the last words the being had said, // What do you think he meant? //

Atemu frowned, “I’m not sure, but I think we’ll find out soon enough.” He glanced at Mariku, instantly assuming a battle ready position again as the blonde got to his feet and started walking over with a grin on his face. Malik quickly rushed to block any attack Atemu might throw at Mariku, a sheepish look on his face, “He won’t do anything… except maybe try to molest me again,” he threw a brief glare over his shoulder that Mariku pointedly ignored as he just continued to grin happily.

“But Malik-pretty likes it when Mariku chases after him.” Malik opened his mouth to argue before closing it again and rubbing his temple.

“Is there even any point in arguing with you since you won’t listen anyway?” Mariku shook his head, somehow managing to pull off a somewhat innocent look.

Atemu and Hikari threw a confused and questioning look at each other before Hikari looked back at his friends, // Will one of you please explain why you’re protecting the two guys who kidnapped you? // He gave them a quizzical look.

“Well Ryou’s in love with Bakura,” Ryou flushed instantly at Malik’s completely blunt spoken words, but stayed quiet nonetheless. Unlike Malik, he had given up on denying that he really did feel more for Bakura. “And he’ll probably get upset if Mariku gets killed too.” Malik grinned sheepishly once more, before snickering at the utterly shocked and bewildered looks both Atemu and Hikari gave them.

// In… love? // Ryou gave a reluctant nod, before looking up at his friend in a slightly defensive manner, “He’s different when he’s not being controlled!” Hr looked back at Bakura in worry, “Is he… okay?”

// You get kidnapped by the guy and you fall in love with him?! I don’t care if he was being controlled by whatever just left him; you have to be kidding me! // Hikari gave his friend an incredulous look, before looking at Malik, // don’t tell me you fell in love with Mariku? Please? //

Malik opened his mouth to say he hadn’t but Mariku spoke up first, “Of course Malik-pretty likes Mariku!” He pouted like Hikari had said something insulting. Malik twitched slightly.

“Don’t try to argue with him, it’s pointless.” He shook his head, quickly trying to find a way to change the subject. It wasn’t that he hadn’t realized by now that he might like Mariku more than he had been telling himself, but this really wasn’t the time to say something like that. For one, Yuugi would most likely explode. For two, Mariku would never leave him alone again. “So uhm… before either of you get angry for one reason or another, shouldn’t you be focusing on what that thing possessing Bakura said?”

Atemu, who had stayed silent for the time being because he had thought it better to let Hikari yell at his friends – it really wasn’t any of his business – now spoke up again, “He’s right. That thing said he didn’t need Bakura anymore and I doubt it’s because it gave up on trying to kill us. For all we know it found a way into this world without using Bakura.”

// Assuming that it really came from a different world. // Hikari reluctantly dropped the issues his friends so obviously had, knowing this was far more important.

“It said it wanted to take over our world.” Atemu frowned, “So apparently it does. I doubt anyone would phrase it that way if they didn’t.”

// I guess... though it’s a weird thought that there are actually other worlds then. // Hikari sighed. // So if it found a way here… what’s it waiting for? //

Mariku, apparently deciding that it would probably be best for now to work with Atemu and Hikari since whatever had been controlling Bakura obviously wasn’t someone he wanted around, gained a thoughtful look for a moment, before glancing around him at everyone still fighting, “Bakura said something about wanting a lot of bloodshed so there’d be a lot of hatred when he was acting all weird.”

Atemu gave him a suspicious look, “And you’re telling us this because…?”

Mariku pouted again, “Because Mariku doesn’t like that thing. It took over Bakura and wanted to use Malik-pretty!”

// Well that thing did say something about Bakura’s hatred giving him power so… is it just waiting to get more power from the people around to become stronger? // Hikari looked around for a moment as well, // Because I’d say there’s a lot of hatred going on around us right now. //

“Has anyone else noticed that it’s getting darker too?” Malik looked around him for a moment to make sure he wasn’t just seeing things. Shadows seemed to have grown darker and a thin veil of black fog had started to gather. Everyone followed his example, frowning as they saw Malik was right.

“It seems we’ll be facing whatever it is that possessed Bakura soon enough then.” Atemu looked around carefully, trying to find out if their new enemy was maybe already there but just hiding, “I suggest your friends find a safe spot to hide.” He looked at Hikari.

Hikari nodded, // He’s right guys if that thing could possess Bakura, it has to be strong. You should all get as far away from here as possible. //

“What about Bakura?” Ryou looked up at his friend, “We can’t just leave him here like this. He needs help.”

Atemu crouched down next to the white-haired teen and checked Bakura over quickly, mostly because he wanted both of Hikari’s friends to leave as soon as possible so they wouldn’t get caught in the fight that was no doubt coming. “He’s fine, just unconscious. He’ll wake up soon enough.” He straightened again, “I doubt you’ll be able to get away while carrying him though.”

Ryou was about to protest again because he didn’t want to leave before being interrupted by several people rushing towards Atemu. One female and five males dressed in the robes the High Priests wore quickly joined the small group. A brown-haired, blue-eyed male who couldn’t be much older than Atemu was spoke first, “We felt an enormous amount of shadow magic gathering here. What’s going on, Atemu?”

Before Atemu could answer, the black fog that had been slowly blocking out the light thickened to let almost no light pass through. A feeling of oppression flooded everyone and even the men still fighting stiffened and stopped in their tracks, looking around them in confusion. Hikari and Atemu braced themselves, looking around them and trying to find out where the source of this all was coming from, and where the being behind it was.

Out of the shadows appeared a form that looked more like a demon than anything else. It had completely blue skin and blazing red eyes that seemed to shine with malice. The head of a dragon came from the creature’s crotch, seeming as ready to attack as the monster itself. The creature was so big, it could easily overshadow many of the pyramids build in the deserts of Egypt, seeming strong enough to crush those same pyramids with ease.

Everyone’s eyes widened as they stared at the being before them, all wondering the same thing.

‘How are we going to beat that?’

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Short, yes. Deal with it °sweatdrops° Like I said, this chapter gave me a headache and I wanted another cliffie so the end is staying right there XD Yes, I have the title of ‘Cliffhanger Queen’ now don’t I? ^^ Hope you all enjoyed nonetheless and get ready for the actual fight! Btw, who DIDN’T see Zorc coming by now? Cuz those who didn’t so need a brain transplant *nods* well Review folks!

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Preview:

“Bakura,” Atemu called out, the white-haired thief turning his furious gaze on the him, “I suggest a truce until we deal with this.”

There was a long pause where Bakura merely stared, before getting up, ignoring Ryou’s protest, “I don’t like you, and I doubt I ever will.” He spoke, his voice level and not betraying any of the anger he was so obviously feeling, “But I loathe that thing at the moment, so for now I’ll agree to that.” He gave one glance at Mariku, who grinned and nodded in agreement as well.

Atemu nodded once before turning back to Zorc, “Then I suggest we all work together.”

Zorc, obviously having heard them, laughed at their futile attempt to destroy him, “You puny mortals are no match for me! Die!”