C.N. April 2014: Digital Distraction Part 23

Yugi’s words seeped into his mind as he looked around for the mook to hand the phone back to, or Shadow Game, whichever came first. He paused as he realised what he had actually said. That it wasn’t him they wanted, indicating that though the note had said Yugi’s name on it, it was Yami they were after.

In which case they had grabbed the right Yugi after all.

It made sense that he was the Yugi they wanted to sacrifice. He was the one who was known to have powers and was the one who competed in all the tournaments. Yugi always took a back seat once the duelling started so people didn’t know just how skilled Yugi really was. Pegasus was the only person outside their group of friends who had ever had a taste of Yugi’s ability to duel.

If anything he was relieved that it was him they wanted to sacrifice, rather than his lighter half. While it meant that Yugi was expendable in their eyes, which was a dangerous situation for his light to be in, it meant that they wouldn’t start their ritual the moment the players got on the island because for some reason they needed to catch him first.

Yami couldn’t help but wonder why. He knew that they had modified their ritual this time. That was if D.M.G. was to be trusted and she was normally, at least online, a reliable source of information.

That still didn’t explain why they weren’t just going to use their ritual to kill all the players straight away. He had a funny feeling that they were going to wait until they had all gathered in the castle where the so-say, ‘Final Boss’ would be waiting for them.

He still had too little information to be able to really work out their plans. Whatever they had in mind, it was obvious that they wanted him out of the way for them.

The frustrating thing was there was no guarantee that if he handed himself over, they were going to release Yugi. It was much more likely, if they were waiting till they had all the players in one place, that they would continue to hold Yugi hostage to force him to behave until the time was right.

The only plus side was that if he could break out without alerting anyone, there was a chance he could get Yugi and get out.

He stalked along to Kari’s room and knocked on the door. He must have tapped harder then he realised because when Kari opened the door, she sounded cross. “You don’t have to break the door...” She paused, noting the look on his face. “What’s happened?”

“I got instructions.” Yami replied as he entered the room, noting that neither Ombre or the Millennium Orb were in the room, “And Yugi’s hurt.”

“But he’s alive, right?” Kari asked, the relief that Yami had been feeling earlier obvious on her face as she shut the door. When Yami nodded, she grinned, “That’s good, right?”

Yami nodded, letting out a huff. “It is but I think they’re planning on splitting us up.”

“What do you mean?” Kari looked confused. “I thought we were all being dropped off in the same place?”

“No.” Yami shook his head, “There’s different ‘start points.’ I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t let us keep the gang together. It would be a tactical error on their part.”

“Divide and conquer.” Kari nodded, understanding even as she disliked the thought. “But that means you and Tea are going to be on your own.”

“We’ll be fine.” Yami waved it off, confident that no matter how bad it got he would be able to handle the situation. “You said you thought it might be possible for me to contact Yugi, even without the Puzzle?”

Kari nodded. “It was you eating like a horse that got me thinking about it.” She explained, sitting on the bed and patting it, indicating he should sit down too. “You know my theory, that you and Yugi are still bonded and that a lot of your power still comes from him?” Yami nodded. “Because normally Yugi eats like a horse and you don’t have to, right? But Yugi gets exhausted when you do and when he’s sick, your powers are weaker.”

Yami nodded. The theory was relatively sound, especially considering that while their bodies acted like normal human bodies, they had no idea how they had come to be. Plus the yamis could go for days without eating and live off of their magic alone, but the hikaris swiftly fell ill if they did that so it was better for everyone if the darks ate when everyone else did.

“Well D.M.G. told us that the guys who have Yugi don’t feed their captives, or give them anything to drink, so Yugi’s not getting any fuel to give you. He’s not even getting any for himself.” Kari continued, “So his body should be shutting down.” Yami nodded again, though he didn’t like it. “Except I think he’s pulling from you. There’s no way it’s a long term solution, no matter how much you eat or drink. Yugi’s still in a mortal body that will require sustenance but...”

“If he’s drawing from me then the link’s still there, it’s just strained to the point we can’t communicate.” Yami nodded, getting it.

“Yugi told me once that he could still hear you when he wasn’t wearing the Puzzle, back before the fire in the warehouse, but you were quiet and it was hard for him to get through to you.” Kari continued, giving Yami a sympathetic look when he winced, aware that Yami didn’t like to be reminded of the times he had nearly lost his other self. “Which gives me further reason to think the bond doesn’t snap when Yugi’s not wearing the Puzzle.”

“Which means I should, in theory, be able to reach Yugi even now.” Yami smiled slightly.

“Don’t get too excited.” Kari held up a hand, “I don’t know the range on it, or how hard it’s going to be. I can just about hear Ombre while she’s three corridors over, but it took a lot of work AND she’s considerably closer than Yugi is.”

“But it’s still viable.” Yami was pleased by that idea. “I just need to be close enough to Yugi for it to work.”

“Just be careful.” Kari worried at him, “If they are going to split us up, you’re gonna be without any brute strength. I mean I know Tea has a mean right hook, but you’re not exactly built for a brawl, no offence.”

Yami frowned but had to nod. She was right, even if he didn’t like it. In the past he had probably had self defence lessons to balance out his small frame, but in the modern age he didn’t remember those lessons and Yugi was a pacifist. He didn’t like fighting and as such had never learned how.

“I’ll be careful.” Yami promised Kari, “I’ll have to be. I’ll have Tea with me and I can’t risk Yugi’s safety.”

“We’ll come and find you as soon as we get dropped off.” Kari promised, “Just try not to get murdered horribly until we can reach you.”