The Bandit King Saved the Day? (Part 1)

DIMENSION: MANGA (The One That Saves the Day)

Outside Domino City

" . . . there was no way to keep it going like that," Kaiba said. "Eventually, I would run into a kid stronger than me. I was getting bruised, but I was hiding it." The wine was talking, he knew it, but he didn't care. "I don't regret what I did to give us the life we had. It did change us, but we got through it." His glass was almost dangling, considerably lower.

"Jounouchi gave everything he could to try and see me, and to keep me seeing," Shizuka said. "He is so headstrong and he accomplishes the impossible, but this time he couldn't help. That's what hurts too, hearing it in his voice. Hearing the disappointment. He feels like Duelist Kingdom when I was younger was just a waste now because I still ended up like this. It hurts. It hurts to talk to him that long, because I can always hear it lingering below. He can't get over the fact that it has to be this way."

"If Mokuba lost his vision, I'm sure I'd react the same way. You want your loved ones taken care of. Fixed to survive in the gruesome world we live in with the best senses and chances they can have." He poured himself more wine. He'd fucking regret it later, who cared, it was expensive and good wine. "People always regretted when they messed with Mokuba. If Pegasus had taken Mokuba sooner before Death-T, I wouldn't have left until I killed him. Whatever Pharaoh did, it put some . . . grace in me, but I will still kill without hesitation if I have to."

"I hope you don't have to," Shizuka said. "Let the dragon do it for you. It wants to be near you, I know it does. Let it do what it needs to." She was trying to pour more wine too. "How much longer until Set takes this whole world away?"

"I don't know his strategy. I have no idea." He reached for the champagne bottle now and poured it in another glass to look at the bubbles. "Bubbles, bubbles, bubbles. Eventually they'll all pop and this whole world will be sent to that hell." He took it and took a deep swig. "Dragon can't even take off the top. Can't do anything. Pierced it for two seconds and the aim fell off."

"It was just too far away from my eyes," she admitted. "I thought I could see. I hope I didn't hurt anybody with that blast."

"No." Kaiba cleared his throat. "I think you just brought some water. From the trajectory, I think we broke through enough to have started a small little 'Nile' off the side." He saw it in Mai's vision.

"Well, I have to get closer next time. Maybe it will work if I'm closer."

He reached for her hand as she tried to pour more wine again. "Not that way." He readjusted her hand. "There ya go." Like he was going to stop her? He could afford it. "Enjoy it all. Every shred. If Atem loses, this is the end of the world. Even if Atem doesn't lose, there's no telling when a bubble falls above us, blowing up sixty percent of the area."

"Every minute counts." Shizuka drank her wine again. "You're like a good present, triple wrapped in gruesome wrapping paper."

Seto Kaiba smirked. That was one way to describe him. He almost said thank you when he felt something pounce on him and bite him on the neck. "The fuck?!" He threw it down, and it ran away to the bathroom. "Was that a cat?" He went to the bathroom but couldn't find it. "You can bet I'll complain about this." He heard a sound of a cat, came out and watched his front door fly open. How did it open a damn locked door? ///Seto: This hotel sucks.///

Aah. A cat bite didn't sound like it'd be much. He was trying to walk it off. It wasn't just stinging, it was burning. ///Seto: That's no ordinary cat.///

"Kaiba are you okay?" Shizuka asked. "What happened?"

"I got mauled by a wild cat that snuck inside. It went out the door." Inside the nicest hotel in the city, way up there in the penthouse? It had to have been left by the last owner. ///Seto: Who the hell was up here before us?/// As he rubbed it, it started to feel better. He felt strange markings on it though. As he traced the strange burns, it felt familiar, the tracing of the shapes he made.

"Oh. You should get looked at, it could have something," she insisted.

Kaiba traced the symbols on his neck more. "Yeah, it does, but no doctor is going to help me. This is a hieroglyph." He didn't know what it meant, but they might have to go for another spin with the dragon again.

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A little riskier this time. They had no idea what the hieroglyph meant on Kaiba. They stayed far away from the edge as the dragon was called from Kaiba. When he called it, he felt a burning sensation even harder where he was just bitten. They were still going to go just from the top of the bubble. "I summon the Blue-Eyes White Dragon," Kaiba called out. As it arrived, he gave Shizuka a minute for her eyes to adjust, so she could see what the dragon saw.

But before he gave the command, the big man in charge showed up. At least Kaiba figured considering his style of clothing.

He held his finger toward Kaiba. "I need my wife."

Kaiba smirked. ///Seto: Wife? Yeah, right./// "Nobody's taking the dragon from me." He'd rather die than lose it. Set wasn't phased, and Shizuka wasn't looking so good. "Don't worry," he told her. "You'll be fine. He hasn't realized anything yet."

The enemy's eyebrow raised."What do you think you could actually do to me?"

Kaiba raised his arm. New strategy. "Blue-Eyes White Dragon, Attack the phoney Pharaoh!"

Set didn't move. He just waited for it to attack and then he would grab Shizuka. He didn't plan on anything happening, but as the dragon opened his mouth, he saw a familiar color inside of it.

He looked toward Kaiba and saw his eyes slightly glowing and a heiroglyphic on his neck glowing. Damn it, those goddesses again! He disappeared before the dragon made its final strike. "Damn it!" He appeared high above. "I can't believe they gave you such power too. Ridiculous. Fine, I'll deal with my two wives first, but I will be back."

"Sure you will," Kaiba egged him on as he disappeared. The Dragon did get stronger.

"Seto-"

Hm? Why the hell would she just call him Seto? He looked back and watched her start to tumble. He caught her. ///Seto: The dragon's stronger, but it's taking her out faster./// "We'll try it tomorrow." She needed rest.

"Sorry," she apologized, backing away. "I lost my balance. I'm ready."

"Liar. You're fine for a lot of things right now, but you are nowhere ready to control the dragon again." From her reaction, one a day, maybe two was probably all they would get. He would watch her though. Maybe she only needed a couple of hours to recharge.