Yami Yugi

Bakura’s sacrifice eliminated the only thing that was holding me back. That one selfless act would change the tides of this game.

“What is that you were saying about emotions being useless?” I told the soul stealer. “What you just saw was an action of emotions, and it will bring about your downfall!”

“I don’t see what you are so high and mighty about,” he replied. “This does not change the game at all. The fool wasted his life. That is all. Once I have your puzzle, it will not even matter…”

That wasn’t going to happen. What Bakura had done to help us had inspired me. I had a new fire burning inside. Bakura’s suffering would be avenged. I would see to that…
 
 

Ryou

I discovered myself in a strange place. Every direction stretched out into oblivion, seeming to have no end. The sky was black and starless. A grey mist floated over the ground so that I couldn’t see what I was standing on. In fact, I couldn’t feel what I was standing on. A wind swirled the mist around and I could not feel that either. I touched my hand, my chest, my face. I felt none of this. I looked at myself. I seemed to be whole, but it was strange. Where was I?

A booming, echoing voice answered my unspoken question. “YOU ARE ON THE PLAIN BETWEEN LIFE AND DEATH.”

“Why can’t I feel anything?” I asked the faceless voice.

“A BODY IS REQUIRED FOR MANY OF THE SENSES. YOU HAVE NONE.”

“Then why can I see?”

The voice answered me with patience that I had never been shown before. THE EYES ARE THE WINDOW TO THE SOUL, SO AS A SOUL, THEY CAN STILL BE USED. WHETHER THEY WERE WHOLE IN LIFE, OR NOT.

At his mention of this, I realized that my vision was complete. On instinct, I reached up to feel if the millennium eye was there. Then I remember, no feeling. I felt like an idiot. I guessed that it didn’t really matter.

“What happens to me now?” I asked the voice.

“WAIT…”

Well, if this was death, it wasn’t so bad. I was in no pain. I was at peace.
 
 

Yami Bakura

Yami Yugi was making an amazing comeback. He had found a new passion, and it was quite alarming. The game had come down to one final match. Yugi was cowering in the center of his cage and Ryou’s body was mere inches away from touching the walls. Not that it mattered in his case…

This was my last chance, but I refused to give Yami Yugi the satisfaction of knowing he had rattled me, so I continued with my attitude. “Quite a comeback, Yami Yugi…” I said. “Too bad I’m going to win anyway.”

“Talk all you want. Evil like you cannot win.”

“What do you think this is, a fairy tale? Don’t be stupid.” He was back to his preachings again.

“Enough talk,” he said. He drew his card and played it. I held my breath, waiting to see what this card would reveal. It was…a Karibo! Hah! He had pulled the most pathetic card in his deck. The game was mine.

“I don’t even need to draw. Anything could beat that. It’s a shame that a gamer of your status would lose with such a pathetic card.”

“Please…humor me. Play the game.”

“As you wish…”

I gave him one last smirk and pulled my card and played it. It was…The Change of Heart! A magic card!

“Hmmm…” Yami Yugi said with a smile. “An automatic loss, by your own rules. Ironic that it is Bakura’s favorite card that brought you down. One last bit of help from our friend…”

“NO! IT’S NOT POSSIBLE! I CANNOT LOSE!” I screamed, enraged. The cage containing Ryou quickly shrank, sending its shock waves through his body and causing it to spasm before returning to its motionless state. I was beginning to fade away as the shadow realm began claiming me. I was fading out, my body becoming as a mist and being blown away as the shadow realm pulled me deeper in. I turned back to Yami Yugi.

“KNOW THIS, YAMI!” I yelled at the top of my lungs, my final promise to him. “HEAR MY WORDS! EVEN THE BRIGHTEST LIGHT ONLY TEMPORARALY HIDES THE DARKNESS! THE DARK IS ALWAYS THERE, WAITING FOR AN OPPORTUNITY TO ENVELOPE EVERYTHING IN ITS PATH! TO CONSUME ALL! THIS IS THE SAME! I WILL BE BACK! YOU CANNOT HIDE ME FOREVER! DARKNESS IS ETERNAL, AND I AM THE DARKNESS!
 
 

Ryou

After what seemed like an eternity of nothingness, the voice returned and spoke to me again.

“YOUR TIME IS NOT NOW…”

“What?”

“YOU MUST RETURN…”

The next thing I knew I was falling. I took a painful breath. Pain? Breath? I was back. I was alive. But why…?

Each breath was like my lungs were on fire, but with each new breath, the pain dulled slightly. The rest of my body was numb, but feeling was returning. My struggled breathing resulted in a fit of coughing, but I was not yet strong enough to react to it. Someone rolled me onto my side. I tried to look and see who it was, but I could not lift my head. I opened my eye, revealing that my vision was blurred and once again, I only had vision in one eye. I continued to cough.

When I was able to relax again, the person rolled me back onto my back. Then he spoke and my muddy hearing could just make out the voice of Yugi. “You’ll be okay now…It’s over”

My senses were returning to me. Was what Yugi said true? Was it really over?
 
 

Yugi

As Bakura’s cage closed around him, mine disappeared. I was free to move. Yami Bakura screamed as his body vanished. It was probably better that I could not make out what he was saying. Besides, I was preoccupied. I ran to Bakura’s side, looking for some signs of life. He wasn’t moving. He didn’t seem to be breathing, and then all of a sudden, he gasped. Oh, my God, he was alive! How?

I didn’t worry about it long. After a few harsh breaths, he began to choke. I rolled him onto his side. He relaxed again after a while, and I put him flat again. His eye watered from the coughing. Or maybe he was in pain. I had no way of knowing. But now, I could comfort him. “You’ll be okay now,” I told him. “It’s over…”

Yami Yugi approached, looking equaling baffled at Bakura’s being alive. “It…It must have been the second shock. The second wave of energy must have restarted his heart. That is the only explanation.”

“Yugi…” came the voice of Bakura.

“You feeling alright?” I asked him.

“Is it really over?” he asked.

“Yeah,” I replied. “It’s really over.” He smiled, weakly.

“Let’s get out of here.” said Yami Yugi.

We left the shadow realm behind, and returned to the school. It had been as if no time had passed at all. The assembly was still going on, but we would not be returning to it. It was the last thing of the day, and no one would notice if we left a little early.

Yami was tired and returned to me. Bakura was able to stand, but he had to lean on me. He was not yet stable enough to walk on his own. Grampa’s game shop was closer than Bakura’s house was, so we went there to gather our wits. Grampa was picking up a shipment, so he wasn’t there to question me about being home early. I walked Bakura to the back, where our living areas were. I helped him over to the couch in our living room and he sat down. I offered him a glass of water and he accepted, but when I got back from the kitchen with his drink, he was already asleep.

<Let him sleep,> Yami said. <He is exhausted, and with good reason. He needs the rest.> I agreed. He was finally free. Let him celebrate by having the first peaceful rest that he has had in a long time.
 
 
 
 
 
 

The light only masks the darkness. Darkness is ever present, watching, waiting, planning. Darkness is vengeance. Always eager to smother the light which locked it away. No matter how strong the light that hides it is, the darkness eventually returns, stronger than ever. And once the darkness is there, the chances of sending it back are slim, because the darkness grows wiser with each time it is banished. That is why, when I return, there will be absolute hell to pay, for I AM THE DARKNESS…