Absolute Betrayal (Part 1)

Seto Kaiba held the money he had kept in the bank on his side. He had to make a small fuss to make sure he could withdraw all of it. They were scared they couldn't fund anyone else but the meager amount he held in that bank was only for emergencies. He kept something in nearly every bank in Domino City, just in case he ended up in serious trouble.

"Seto Kaiba, are we done going everywhere?" Shizuka Kawa had been worn out from the dragon and the bite. "I'm losing it again."

Seto Kaiba hated to baby anyone. When he had used the dragon and she could see, he didn't hold her hand. She stayed close enough behind him, he didn't need to worry. When she lost her eyesight though, he was learning how to do both. In the endless spots of nothing between, he was watching around her more, but not holding her hand. There was nothing to trip on in those endless voids, only people to watch out for that might try to take her.

When they moved into civilized places again, then he'd hold her hand. "We could go for clothes, but I want to try something else first." Kaiba had never been in the twisted Land of Memories the former Pharaoh had spoken of, but reading into all the information he had, he knew enough that the right kind of magic could make any game look real.

The world going overnight was possible. He had lived it that way yesterday, only focusing on survival and getting back to Mokuba. Now that he knew Mokuba was safe, he had to explore in a deeper way. He stood on the brink of the nuisance pier, near where he had to deal with saving Jounouchi's life one time. ///Seto: Way out there./// He looked outward.

It looked like endless desert with no kind of hills between that could be seen. The large gap to go down was nearly ten times the appearance of what it had been in other locations. In other words, if he fell, he was done for. Kaiba held one of the old phones he kept. As long as he kept one, he could use it for his test. He tossed it down lightly on the side, watching it fall. Getting banged up, hitting the sides until . . . nothing. He grabbed his second phone. His last phone to try, and pitched it further outward.

It disappeared too.

"I heard a splash," Shizuka Kawai said. "Are we near water?"

"I have no more phones to test this, and I'm not going to get more accurate readings." Changing what he threw wouldn't help. ///Seto: There isn't water way up here, it receded, but it's down there and farther away. If I run off this pier. It might get us out of here. But to where? Is this bubble to keep us safe from other intruders trying to come in on a given area, or is there civilization outside?/// "Shizuka Kawai, I need to ask you something."

"Yes?"

"Are you ready to die to test a theory?" Kaiba asked. "I think the water's receded, and there is a barrier on the other side of here we can cross. I don't know what's on the other side. Maybe it's nothing. Maybe we both are just going to die, but I want to leap off this pier and find out." He took his rod and carved a frown face into the ground. The former Pharaoh Atem and his little friendly gang would find their way there one day. At least, he'd have a temporary mark of what he'd done.

Whether it led to freedom, or a death by crushing heights.

"I'm ready," Shizuka Kawai answered. "If there's a real life out there still besides this, then I'll risk my life to get to it. What about Mokuba?"

"I already said goodbye." Mokuba would find it too one day. ///Seto: I refuse to live like this, if there's a chance at something else. Mokuba. If there's a way to get you out, I promise I'll find it./// He took Shizuka Kawai's hand and stared off the pier. "I'll tell you when to run. I'll tell you when to jump. We'll most likely die, but we might be freed. Are you ready?"

"Yes."

"Good. Then. Run!" He ran off the pier, holding her hand tightly and then, "Jump!" They both jumped together.

---

There was a splash. Shizuka tried to hold her breath and find her way. They were in water somehow. Where had Kaiba gone? She stretched her arms out, trying to make it to some kind of surface, but she didn't know if Kaiba was there.

She felt a hand grab her arm. He was there. She kept paddling herself to the top until they broke the surface. They each gasped for air, trying to steady themselves. "Where are we?"

"Water." She felt herself getting pulled to the left.

"Lots of water," Kaiba clarified. "Great. We're out but now what?" She heard a helicopter. "We got a ride."

---

Outside Last Chance

It wasn't isolated, and very few people so far had made it out. Five impenetrable bubbles had appeared mid day yesterday. They were looming over individual cities. Nobody could see what was going on inside, or get inside. It was definitely some sort of magic.

Countries were blaming other countries, but it was the major cities in several of the huge countries that were being hit the hardest as more seemed to pop up hour by hour. It was hard for anyone to pin blame, they were all affected. Rescue teams were all over the place, trying to find anyone who escaped. Scientists were trying to determine how or why they were popping up, and how people were surviving in them. Everyone had hoped that an answer could be found to not only get inside to any potential survivors of those hot, white and massive bubbles, but also to predict where they would come.

As for survivors, Kaiba and her had been the first ones to make it out. Somehow, also getting out of the spotlight of that. Shizuka didn't know how, but Kaiba wasn't someone who liked others interfering with his own affairs. She knew that very well.

It didn't take long for Kaiba to get himself settled out. Even with no ID's, his genius still memorized important numbers that got his accounts back. When he was settled back out, he got a car and headed away. "The Blue-Eyes White Dragon might be able to take that massive bubble down," he told her, "but there are way too many authorities watching everything. Sneaking back in won't be fun and it's guarded all the way around. There is also the potential for backfire. I could stir up a hornet's nest, people might flood in and start being massacred the same way. They might think airstrikes are the only thing left, getting rid of all the survivors to try and defeat the foe."

"That's pointless. The one in charge, I don't think he's even there. He knows how to leave, doesn't he?" Shizuka asked.

"I think anyone with an Ankh can probably leave, so yeah, it's safe to say Set could. No, it's a bad idea to bring it out yet," Kaiba said, "so we're doing the next best thing. Finding Set out here. He has to have some kind of trail. He's also going to be looking for the 'lighted ones' and anything having to do with the first human tear. Everything of the former Pharaoh was erased, but there's bound to be something on the first human tear."

"Do you know much about it?" She asked Kaiba.

"No. I just know the prophecy of the light goddess," Seto Kabai said. "I guess it's light goddesses now. Or is it still one? Who knows what happens at birth. Glad I'm not involved in that mess. All I need to concentrate on is who is looking up that information and where it's going to."

Outreach headquarters. Kaiba's allies? Shizuka didn't know but she didn't need to.

"I know Mokuba is safe. Yuugi and the others will be watching him, and I have to find out more about Set. They can all survive in there a little longer."

"Do you think Mai was brought out here? Honda, do you think he made it out here somehow?" she asked. "If things got rough, maybe he jumped out and just left without being found." Too hopeful?

"Mai was dealt with, with gods," Kaiba reminded her. "It doesn't matter that these are pockets of magic, it doesn't change the actual game of saving humanity. Except for the fact that a large sum of humanity still exists. For now."