[IC - PG13] Yu-Gi-Oh! The Witches' Wrath [Yami & Celeste]

[Lady Celeste]

Mokuba didn't have enough time to be able to think things through, so he ran to where Roland and Yugi were as Luke instructed. It had all happened so fast, and the impact of the energy blast felt like a bomb had just gone off. What on Earth was going on?!

The mysterious assailant emerged from the shadows, and Mokuba's eyes widened as he recognized yet another Duel Monster: the Silent Magician LV8. This had to be either another one of those spirits Luke had just been talking about, or a psycho with a Duel Monsters obsession who was armed with some kind of explosives. Mokuba didn't like either possibility one bit.

Maintaining his composure as much as possible, Mokuba could only watch at first as Luke confronted the Silent Magician, but then Mokuba remembered the two-way radio.

"Seto, can you hear me?" Mokuba said quickly, this time speaking directly into the radio. "We're inside a building close to the store Yugi works at; there's a fight going on in here, and I think a bomb just went off!"

Mokuba didn't think to mention what Luke had just explained to them or the fact that the attacker looked just like the Silent Magician, instead focusing on the more immediate threat, but this was the only thing that Mokuba could really do. And wizard or not, Seto was still his big brother, and Mokuba trusted that he would know what to do in a situation like this.

[Yamimoon]

Luke was glad that Mokuba didn’t fight back when he told him to go and join Yugi. This was going to be a difficult fight since he would need to prioritize the Pharaoh’s, and Mokuba’s safety over everything else. He watched as the Silent Magician LV8 readied to attack once more. The building was abandoned, by the first attack had caused some structural damage, and there was no way it could take much more stress. He opened a telepathic connection to his spirit and spoke to him.

‘I know that we can win this fight, but I fear for the safety of the others. I can get them out of here, but it will take some time to cast the spell. Can you hold him off on your own till I can get us out of here?’

The Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning nodded his head as he charged at the spell caster. The fight was going to be difficult without support, but he would do his best to make sure he gave his partner enough time. He just needed to keep the spell caster busy till he was done. It wasn’t like the building collapsing would hurt him since he knew Luke would cancel his materialization as soon as he got the others out of here.

Charging at the mage he slashed his sword down as soon as he got close enough to the Silent Magician LV8. Causing the mage to stop his spell cast, and use his scepter to block the warrior's sword. “Do you really think you can beat me? I a stronger than you.” The Silent Magician LV8 said as he pushed the warrior back. “Power doesn't always account for everything.” Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning said as he dug his feet into the ground to stop his backwards movement.

In the meantime Luke ran to where Mokuba and the others were, and closed his eyes as he began to cast his spell. He didn't have time to waste on watching the battle or answering anymore question at the moment. He needed to have complete concentration for this spell. He blocked out everything as he began the chant.

Those that live in shadows allow us safe passage.
Through the gates of the underworld.
Along the chosen path of the God's.

The spell was about half way done when Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning flew past them and slammed into the wall. The spirit was in bad shape, but none the less he quickly got back on his feet, and ran back into the fight. He wouldn't allow anyone here to die. He would protect them.as long as he could.

Luke's skin began to darken s he continued the incantation. Passing through the shadow realm was a difficult task with how many people he will be bringing along. The strain on his body and his magical energies would be immense, but it needed to be done. There were other spells he could use if he had the time, but alas he didn't and this was the quickest spell to cast.

May the shadows part and except us
Walking the path of light through the shadows
Shatter the shadows and open a path

Silent Magician LV8 only looked the desperation of the Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the beginning as he tried his darndest to keep him from reaching his master. He had gathered his energy to attack once more this time he will make sure to hit his target. Pointing his staff at Luke he let the energy loose. Black Luster Soldier - Envoy of the Beginning jumped in front of the energy. Blocking it once more. The warrior fell to his knees as he was no longer able to stand, and the magician smiled as he let off another attack right at Luke and company.

An energy surrounded him and his companions his eyes turned white and his shin when even blacker. Luke could feel his energy being drained from his body. Reaching his hands out he grabbed ahold of yugi and Mokuba, and brought Yugi's hand down to rest on Roland.

Gather around and open the path oh shadows
Shatter the barriers that bind
Bring us to the location in my mind

Suddenly Luke and the others were enveloped in a mixture of light and shadow and disappeared. Just as the attack hit where they once were. Sending a shockwave through the building, and demolishing it around the two spirits.

The shadow and light sphere appeared in a apartment and dissipated leaving Mokuba, Yugi, Roland, and Luke in the building. Luke freed the twos hands as he fell backwards. He was breathing a little hard, and his skin was peaked. He knew his bonded spirit would make his way to him in time so would the Blue Eyes White Dragon. It was impossible to teleport a spirit. “Well I guess you will have to belive me know.” Luke said as he stood up. His legs were a little shaky, but he would live. “Shale we continue our conversation?” He asked moving over to the couch.

[Lady Celeste]

Mokuba had shut his eyes and braced for impact as the Silent Magician's attack flew straight at them, but the attack never reached its target, and suddenly the sounds of battle had stopped altogether. As Mokuba opened his eyes again and took in his new surroundings, it was immediately clear that they were no longer in the abandoned building that Yugi had led them to. Now they were in someone's apartment, but Mokuba had no idea where this apartment was or how they even got here.

And to make matters worse, now Seto wasn't answering his radio. The radio was working fine on Mokuba's end, and there was no static or any other interference, so Mokuba's message should have gotten through just fine. And Seto would never just ignore him like that!

Unless...

A million different possibilities raced through Mokuba's mind, none of them good. His panicked mind could already imagine his brother trapped somewhere, alone and worried... Mokuba tried to dismiss these thoughts; Seto was perfectly capable of defending himself, and would never let anyone or anything intimidate him that easily. But somehow Mokuba just couldn't shake this growing fear for his brother.

"I..." Mokuba started to respond to Luke, but hesitated. In any other circumstance, Mokuba would never even think about talking about Seto behind his back, but now his instincts were telling him that there was no other choice. Something was very wrong, and he would need whatever help he could get. Deactivating his two-way radio in case someone else was listening in on the other end, Mokuba then took a deep breath to prepare himself for what he was about to say.

"Wait; there's something I need to talk about first. Yugi, this involves what I wanted to talk to you about earlier." With that out of the way, Mokuba braced himself.

"My brother went to a late business meeting last week. I don't know what happened, but it didn't go well; Seto was pretty upset when he got back." Mokuba sighed. "Ever since that meeting, Seto hasn't been himself. He's been spending more and more time at work, but he won't tell me or anyone else what it is he's working on. And I tried to radio him just now while those two were fighting, but he's not answering."

With all of that finally out in the open, Mokuba turned to Luke next. "When you were talking about Seto being a mage and the Blue Eyes White Dragon being a real spirit, I thought maybe it might have had something to do with that. Seto never believed in any of that stuff, but maybe that had something to do with whatever happened at that meeting?" Mokuba asked, knowing how far-fetched that must have sounded, but he couldn't stand to keep quiet about this any longer.

[Yamimoon]

As Luke sat on the couch and took in a deep breath he looked to Mokuba and Yugi. Which the latter looked in like he was as confused now as he was when the witches sent their lackeys after him. He was about to say something when Mokuba began to speak. He just sat there and listened till the end before he would say anything. He could also see that Yugi was a little apprehensive about this whole situation. So he would stay quiet for a bit. The two needed to talk more than he needed to explain things.

Yugi looked at Mokuba a little confused. The way he was describing his older brother it was as if he was talking about two different people all together. Never in all the time he has known Kaiba he has never once seen him act the way Mokuba was describing. “Mokuba, What are you talking about? Kaiba would never let something like that bother him. Something doesn't seem right with the way he is acting. So this is what you wanted to talk about. I can understand your frustration on the matter.” Yugi said as he looked to Mokuba. He could tell this was bothering the younger Kaiba.

Luke got a serious look on his face as he listened to what was being said, and something was not adding up right. If Kaiba was acting strangely after a business meeting something must have really bothered him. When Mokuba addressed him he just smiled as he sat forward on the couch. He was still exhausted after his spell cast, but his fatigue was slowly going away. “Yes your brother has to have magical power to have a spirit to bond with him, and my Master has told me that Blue Eyes White Dragon is a picky spirit. Though he has never told me why.” Luke said with a sight as he closed his eyes, and motioned for the two to take a seat. He needed to tell them a couple of things. He opened his eyes, and once they took their seats he began to speak once more.

“My master is the founder of the Children of Shadow. He has hand picked each eber of our order, and we learn magic from him. I am his most powerful apprentice, and thus it is my duty to protect the Pharaoh as all of my predecessors have been assigned. This is our sacred duty, and I will not relent in my duty to the Pharaoh. With that in mind that doesn't mean that I am the only one in the world that can use magic. The forces that are after the Pharaoh are witches from the past that want revenge against him.” Luke said as he then turned his attention sole to Mokuba.

“These witches have spies everywhere, and they use all means of magic to get what they want. Maybe the meeting your brother had was with one of them, and they used a spell on him to get what they want from him I can’t say that is the truth, or if it is just your brother taking the business deal too personally. We would have to conduct an investigation into why he is acting this way. Most spell caster don’t use their power for personal gain, but then there are others that do.” Luke said as he rested himself back. He was tired from the spell, and it was taking everything he had to stay awake.

He wanted to know what Mokuba thought about his brother, with the information that he provided. If one of the witches minions were responsible for Kaiba's actions it would explain why Blue Eyes was following the young man. “I would like to know why you now decided to tell this information? Was it because you seen that I am not a crackpot? Or is there a gut feeling that persuaded you to speak? I need all of the information I can get to help you with your answer.”

[Lady Celeste]

Mokuba nodded gratefully to Yugi, and then took a seat to listen attentively to Luke's explanation, especially as the conversation shifted toward Seto and what might have happened to make him act so strangely. A small part of Mokuba could already imagine Seto laughing in Luke's face at the thought of anyone - let alone a witch - manipulating him to any degree, but somehow Mokuba couldn't help but hang on to every word. Despite how strange it all sounded, Mokuba could somehow feel that Luke was right, though he couldn't understand why.

Then Luke directly asked why Mokuba had just now decided to come forward, snapping Mokuba out of his thoughts if only for just a moment.

"I don't like talking about my brother behind his back, especially to people I don't really know. That's why I planned on only telling Yugi at first..." Mokuba started to explain. "But like Yugi said, Seto would never let one bad deal get to him this much. And now he's not even answering his radio... there's more to all of this than just one bad business meeting; I just know it!"

Even as he spoke, however, Mokuba's mind was still thinking over everything that Luke was saying. Luke's theory about these witches somehow getting to Seto sounded far-fetched, but somehow Mokuba could sense that maybe he was right. But what did these witches want with his brother, and what had they done to him now? And more importantly, was he still alright? Then Mokuba recalled Luke's mention of an investigation into Seto's unusual behavior, putting Mokuba slightly on edge again.

"What kind of investigation?" Mokuba asked. Mokuba strongly wanted to find out whatever had happened to Seto to affect him like this, but on the other hand, Mokuba also knew better than to jeopardize his brother or the company by giving anyone too much access too easily. But perhaps there might be a way to help with such an investigation without compromising any sensitive information on Seto or KaibaCorp.

"I can find whatever information you might need, but anything that might compromise my brother or his work is off-limits. Understand?" Mokuba said firmly, resolving to clarify that much right away. He was far from thrilled at the prospect of having to spy on his brother like this, but taking control of this 'investigation' - at least in terms of collecting info - was the only way he could think of to try to help his brother without the risk of letting any sensitive info leak to the wrong people.

[Yamimoon]

“I can understand your plight. You want to know what has happened to your brother, but have a hard time doing anything that would sully his name. You are a good brother, and you have my respect in that matter. However, you will be putting yourself in danger doing this. Are you certain that you want to help with this investigation? If anyone in the building is a member of the witches many followers, you might not be able to escape them. They will not let you go if they deem you as a threat to their masters.” Luke said as he knew Mokuba would do anything to keep his brother safe. Both physically and his reputation. He is a good brother indeed.

However, would he be willing to risk his life in the process. He knew firsthand how cruel the servants of the witches are. Especially the ones that know of their past, and the plans they have for the pharaoh as well that the two priest. He has had several of his friends suffer under their wrath, and not survive the encounter. “I want to make sure that you are willing to do anything to protect your brother. Because if you aren't there is no reason to put your life on the line.”

Yugi looked to Luke with a puzzled look on his face. What did he mean by he was supposed to be the Pharaoh’s protector like his predecessors? Had his other self-had one of the mages as his bodyguard when he was alive? A sudden glow from the millennium puzzle was the only indication that Yugi and Yami changed places. The Pharaoh looked at the man as soon as Mokuba was done speaking, and he answered the younger Kaiba's question.

“You said that your predecessors have been assigned to protect the Pharaoh’s of the past. If that is the case, then do you happen to know anything about my past? Also if what you say is correct your master is the founder of your sect then what is he immortal? There is no way a person can live that long.” Yami said in his confident tone as he waited for the answer that was more than likely to follow.

Luke’s attention turned to Yugi when he began to speak, however Luke knew right away that Yugi was not the one speaking. He bowed his head in respect. That is all he could do at the moment hoping the Pharaoh would understand his condition. “My Pharaoh. I am sorry to say I am not completely sure what your name is, nor anything to do with your past. My master has told me that this information in the wrong hands would be detrimental, and he decided it would be best if I didn’t know. As for your other question I can tell you that my master is immortal. He has lived through the ages serving the Pharaohs of old, and awaiting the day of you rebirth.”

[Lady Celeste]

Mokuba listened intently as Luke asked if he was sure about helping them. Luke spoke very frankly to him about the risks involved, and Mokuba had expected nothing less. Still, there was no denying how dangerous it could be if he got caught, and a subconscious dread crept into the back of Mokuba's mind as Luke's words truly began to sink in. Mokuba didn't know much about the supernatural aside from what he'd occasionally witnessed and overheard during the Battle City tournament, and he certainly didn't doubt that these witches and their followers were dangerous enemies.

But at the same time, that thought also strengthened Mokuba's resolve even more. The more Mokuba heard about these witches and how ruthless they were, the more he fully realized how much trouble Seto might be in, maybe even at this very moment. That thought alone was unbearable, overriding whatever instinctive fear Mokuba might have felt as he answered Luke's question.

"I'm sure. I owe it to my brother." Mokuba said, showing the same stoic determination that his brother was famous for. "Besides, KaibaCorp's security is completely airtight, especially after what happened at the KC Grand Championship. You won't get anywhere without inside help."

[Yamimoon]

Yami was a little taken back by Luke’s explanation, and the fact that he was bowing to him. Why would he do such a thing? He was not used to this action and it made him a little uncomfortable. Yet at the same time it almost seemed familiar to him. He did wonder why everything seemed to be happening revolved around him and his partener. Was this some kind of omen that was to follow him as long as he was with Yugi? “So you have no answers for me. Very well, but you say your master knew me. So maybe he will be able to give me the answers that I seek.” Yami said as he leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes. This was getting more complicated the longer it went on. He just hoped that this will all make sense soon.

The puzzle flashed again and Yugi was now looking at Luke with an embarrassed look on his face. “You don’t need to do that.” he said as he stood up real quick, and waved his hands across his chest. “Please get back up.” Yugi said as his voice got a little high.

Luke looked up upon those words, and smiled at Yugi. “Don’t worry about it. You will get used to that in time young one.” He said with a smile as Yugi sat back down with his hands in his lap. Then Mokuba spoke once again, and Luke’s attention returned to him. “You are a brave youngman, and a loyal brother. Kaiba is sure lucky to have someone like you as his sibling. With your determination I am sue that you will be able to find out what has happened to your brother.” Luke said as he cleared his throat. “So Mokuba will investigate within the company, and relay the information to Yugi. Then Yugi can get the information to me. Will this work as a good communication method?” He asked as he looked at the tow for their approval. Once this was settled then everything will begin, and he would need to contact his Master, and fill him in on what was going on.

[Lady Celeste]

Mokuba smiled in spite of himself as a visibly embarrassed Yugi asked Luke to stop bowing to him. Yugi was the reigning Duel Monsters world champion and the only truly worthy opponent Seto had ever had, and yet Yugi was always so shy and modest that he could easily be mistaken for a novice.

Then Luke went over his plan. Mokuba would be their eyes and ears within KaibaCorp, gathering whatever info he could on what was happening to his brother and then passing it on to Yugi, who would in turn relay it to Luke, and then Luke and his mysterious 'master' could figure things out from there. It sounded reasonable enough. Mokuba had more than enough security clearance at KaibaCorp to find whatever they might need, but also knew Seto and the company well enough to avoid giving Luke anything other than what they might need. And with Yugi helping out too, after everything Yugi and Seto had been through so far, it reassured Mokuba to have at least one person he knew he could trust on the case.

"Fine by me. Yugi?" Mokuba said, waiting to hear Yugi's thoughts on the matter. Mokuba wanted to ask more about these witches and their followers so that he would know what to watch out for, but first he would have to wait until they had all agreed on a plan.

[Yamimoon]

Luke though it was funny that the Pharaoh didn’t mind yet the young man that was his vessel was embarrassed. He shook his head and listened to Mokuba once more. It seemed the young man was onboard with his plan, and that would make things a lot easier on not only himself, but Mokuba. Now the only thing left was for Yugi to agree to the terms.

Yugi looked at Mokuba with a concerned look on his face. He didn’t know if this was going to be a good idea. Kaiba wouldn’t be to thrilled to find out his brother was spying on him behind his back because he was acting a little off. However, for Mokuba to actually agree to this meant something had to be wrong, and no matter if he was against this or not he had no right to disregard Mokuba's suspicions.

“Mokuba I have no problems helping out. If you are wanting to do this I will help as much as I can. You have only ever asked for help when you knew something was wrong, and I believe you when you say Kaib is not acting right. So What will you need me to do?” Yugi said a determined look on his face. He would help Mokuba get to the bottom of this whole mess, and hopefully nothing has happened to Kaiba.

Luke only smiled as each of the yongmen wanted to help Kaiba. Standing up on shaky legs luke walked over to a desk, and opened a drawer pulling out a small rose colored crystal. He then returned to where he was sitting. He knew this was going to drain him further, but he needed to do it. Holding the crystal tightly in his closed fits, he began chanting a spell under his breath, and his hand started to glow with a light purple light. Once he finished the incantation he opened his hand, and the rose crystal had a black crescent in the center of the stone.

Tossing the crystal at Yugi he leaned back into the couch once more. His energy spent even more now. “Yugi with that crystal you should be able to contact me all you have to do is call my name.” Luke said without mentioning that Yugi had magic of his own thanks the the Pharaoh. He then looked to Mokuba. “So any ideas where you would like to start?” Luke said doing his best to keep himself awake.