Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Children of Destiny ❯ A Power of Untold Ages ( Chapter 8 )

A Power of Untold Ages

LS: Madyamisam does not own any Yu-gi-oh characters…

Mai: ^________^ I WOVE YOU JOEY!!!! *glomps him and kisses him*

Joey: ^_______________^

Seto: HEY!!!! I'M YOU'RE BOYFRIEND HERE YOU TWO TIMING B*TCH!!!!

Joey: *releases kiss* I know… *glomps and kisses Mai back*

Seto: O.O… T_______T *runs away crying like a baby*

Joey and Mai: *release kiss and look at Seto*

Sam: That didn't take very much to break him did it?

Joey: Nope…

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The life points dwindled down to nothing as it closed in on zero to mark the end…

3…

2…

1…

The demon cackled hard as he saw the life point drop to 1 point before he snapped at the image with his forked tongue making it disappear before Seto's eyes who stared blankly in shock. A forked tongue snaked it's way up from the nape of his neck to his ear. This made him snap. "YOU MONSTER!!!!" he punched at the scaly armoured body so hard his hands became bloody but he was stopped, his wrists grasped gently yet firmly by two hands. The scaly body that had been wrapped around him had disappeared leaving his naked form exposed to everything around him. In place of the serpent was the form of a man, whose face was still shadowed by the darkness, dressed in a black velvet robe with gold oriental trimmings and decorations. The robe seemed to be as if in water that floated, dancing with a powerful energy pulsating from the being dressed in them. Seto glared gritting his teeth at the flourescent eyes. The demon chuckled as he gently caressed his hands and licking the blood away.

"I'm a monster?" the demon whispered. "How can I be a monster if…" The shadowed face finally came into full view. Seto's eyes widened with shock "I only killed… myself?". There with the same wild blonde tresses, the same trademark smirk, the softly tanned skin.

"Joey…" he whispered. He couldn't believe that it was Joey. The same boy whom he had just witnessed being crushed to death with the exception that the Joey before him had jade green eyes opposed to the honey brown he was used to seeing. A darker and more sinister Joey than he had ever encountered. He had seen a time when Joey had been controlled by Malik with his Millennium Rod. His eyes were blank and in a trance like state but this… the boy that stood before him was fully in control of himself… he was pure evil.

"You… you planned this all along?" Dark Joey frowned as if pondering the question.

"In a way I did but then again… in a way I didn't" he answered with a sadistic grin carved upon his face. Seto growled clenching his fists.

"TALK STRAIGHT!!!" he yelled at the `puppy'.

"Why should I? It's so much more fun to screw your brain around with riddles…" Dark Joey retorted and chuckled a bit. "Besides you're the prodigy here… you're smart enough to put the pieces of the puzzle together" Seto merely glared in his answer.

"I've had enough of your games… I know your not really Joey… He wouldn't be `that' stupid to try and kill my brother…" he growled. Dark Joey merely smiled in response. `Or is he?' Seto added to doubt on his statement.

"Hmm… I wonder… how well do you know me?… How do you know that I don't hate you to such an extent to be able to plan all this…?" Seto's blinked to show his confusion as he narrowed his eyes.

"Joey and I aren't exactly friends but we don't have a reason to hate each other…"

"What about all the insults… the dog jokes…?" the demon queried.

"I highly doubt that the puppy would be `that' offended with the insults to hate me so much that he was going to kill my brother to get to me"

"True… I'm not actually the type to hold a grudge for something so trivial…"

"Tell me the truth… Who are you?" Seto rasped his anger seething.

"I'm Joey… the boy that sits two seats from you in school…" the demon sniggered at the fury on the CEO's eyes. "Alright… alright… I'll give you a couple of clues… You and Joey have met before… you knew each other very well but it was in a different lifetime… with a different name… in a different era… and that particular time was when Joey had a hate for you so passionate, so intense…" Dark Joey spat out as the words rolled on his tongue as he smiled blissfully from the sound. "… that it had become an obsession" The smile immediately turned into a sneer. "An obsession that he had supressed and then eventually evicted from his very soul" Seto turned away from the haunting jade eyes. "… and through that eviction… I was created… a separate being spawned and nurtured from the hate…"

"And I guess your goal for your existence is to kill me right?" Seto spat back at him.

"It was… but… I would eventually fade away if that had been the only reason… that was what `she' had expected when `she' drove me… Katsuya Jounouchi away from her… just to fade away" Seto stared in confusion… `Katsuya…?'.

"So Katsuya's your real name" Seto mused to himself.

"However she could have never known that I had found a purpose beyond revenge… that I had still clung on taking on whatever from her mortal body took…" Katsuya mused to himself.

Seto put two and two together and smirked in his usual cold way. "So I guess in one of your past lives you were once a dog?" he asked with amusement… Katsuya glared at him.

"It depends… `you' could have once had a incarnation as a cockroach for all we know…" Seto's smiled dropped to a glare.

"Stop trying to confuse me `Katsuya'… I guess this girl your talkin' about must have chosen me over you right? Probably why you were so pissed off…" Katsuya's glare turned into a laugh.

"Heh… brilliant deduction… still some holes but I'm sure you can fill the rest by yourself"

"Your not Joey… that's for certain" Seto hissed.

"Well I suppose… I do have a longer vocabulary for one…" Katsuya retorted smugly. "…but right now I don't really wanna dwell on memories and inferiorities" Katsuya grabbed Seto and shoved him hard against a wall making him grunt as Seto felt his rib cage shake violently from the impact. "This puppy dog wants to play…"

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3…

2…

1…

……………

`NO!!!!!' Yami bellowed down at the screen as an agonising moment stopped all time and space around them and it seemed to take eternity when Yami blinked snapping out of the faze as he saw that the life point count had stopped at 1. (A/N: This sounds like those bomb scenarios in action films) Slowly ever so slowly it went up. 2… 3… then 4 points. Sparkles shimmered around the passed out Joey as a mystical magic fog swirled around the cracked ground, which gave way to little shoots coming from it. The shoots grew turning brown and wrinkled and taller and burly ripping open the ground whilst hoisting the limp body into the air. Before long it branched off again and again whilst leaves sprouted all around shading him from the sun. The tree finally stopped growing but had cradled Joey gently within it's boughs like a mother to her sleeping child. As for his life points, the sparkles and swirling fog like magic restored the count …5… 6… 7… 8… 9… 10… 11… The blood had dried up on his clothes but the wounds underneath had slowly closed.

/Joey…/ the voice whispered in his mind. /Joey… Joey… Joey…/ The many voices followed echoing around him like ghosts in the wind. A gentle breeze stroked his gold tresses as he slept. /Joey… Joey… Joey… Joey/ the voices buzzed, he ignored the calls and continued to sleep.

"Katsuya…" a wise female voice rang aloud exceeding the rest of the voices. Joey immediately responded as his mind started to focus again. He slowly opened his eyes to a blurred figure staring down at him, concentrating the image came into focus of a woman in Chinese robes decorated with needle designs of golden dragons. Her face was blessed by the moonlight whilst her hair black as the night that had scorched by the flames of the phoenix. Wise violet eyes blinked down upon him with a compassion that betrayed her straight face. A small hand stroked his silky gold tresses as a humble smile crept across her mouth. "This Tree of Life will restore you but only the power in your heart can guide you and help you defeat the evil that holds over the High Priest" the woman sighed. "5000 years… 5000 long years of countless lifetimes you've lived through. I am joyful to see that your heart has become strong again Katsuya… perhaps stronger than it once was…" the woman bent over and kissed his forehead. "… but now you must resume to your destiny… and be prepared to face the past that you have forgotten. Yin… my sister has awoken. She needs your strength Katsuya… as does the High Priest…. Be brave Joey…" Joey who was fully conscious now stared confused as he heaved himself up.

"Who… who are you?" he whispered. The woman smiled.

"All will be revealed in due time Joey… for now your quest to save the High Priest is your first priority" she replied as she disappeared. Joey groaned as he sunk back into the arms of the tree letting the magic do it's work on restoring his life points.

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"KEEP AWAY FROM ME!!!" Seto yelled as Katsuya slithered towards him with a primal lust and launching himself on top of him. Seto shoved him away hard and threw him over his shoulder like he had trained himself to do however Katsuya landed stealthily on his two feet before springing forward again and pinning Seto down. Such a situation would have been quite ironic that he the CEO of a huge business was being pushed around by a beggar like Joey however he knew that he was in over his head with this demon and he was prepared to abandon all moral of his opinions on the puppy dog lookalike and tried to picture him as a formidable foe like Pegasus and Yami in Duel Monsters. Seto rolled to the side knocking Katsuya over who only rolled back and shoved him hard against a wall. Seto shoved him back and steadied himself in his fighting stance awaiting his first attack. Katsuya stepped back staring at the near naked body admiring it before he ran towards him with unnatural speed. In a blur Seto tried to take a swing at the supernatural being but found a air knocked out of him as he was sent flying towards another wall where Katsuya pinned him once again. He growled before slapping the arms away but was shoved hard again against the wall. Katsuya laughed at the proud CEO as he sucked his fingers before digging deep into the cuts that had been formed on Seto's face. Seto winced.

"All these cuts… and bruises…" Katsuya rasped gazing upon the mutilated flesh. "… it's making me go maternal…" he gently brushed Seto's lips with his own. Once. Twice before he pulled him into a bruising kiss his tongue running along the line where Seto's mouth parted to gain entry. Seto thrashed about trying to break from his hold as he bit down on the lower lip. The Joey lookalike gasped, though not sounding in pain, more like pleasure as he bit on Seto's upper lip drawing blood. Seto drew back allowing Katsuya's window of opportunity of delving his tongue into the entrance raiding the caverns inside whilst assaulting Seto's senses. The strength to fight on ebbed away after countless struggles before and he fell limp leaning against the wall whilst the shorter boy continued to attack. Katsuya finally broke the kiss and smiled as Seto stared back dazed and exhausted. Just the way he liked it… "Do you know what happened to your parents? How were they murdered?"

"Their deaths were an accident. Don't try to twist things around" Seto rasped

"I'm not… cos I'm telling you this… Your parents death was part of a curse that Joey's past life had put upon you… to make you suffer…"

Katsuya's body glowed as scene at a hospital of the operating table where Seto's mother was giving birth to Mokuba. A shadow hung over her as she was giving birth wrapping itself around her and suffocating her as the baby was born, it flashed five years forward when father was driving along the road to pick young 10 year old Seto up from school. A dark shadow with flourescent eyes followed the car as young Seto's smile dropped as he saw the creature. His eyes widened as a boy of Seto's age with messy blond hair and a deep honey brown eyes manifested from the shadow and stood at the middle of the road. Mr Yamagi seeing this made the car swerve out of the way crashing against the oncoming traffic and summarsault in the air before slamming into pieces against the floor.

Screams were heard as blood trickled down towards young Seto's feet before the car was engulfed in flames. The people didn't notice the young man that Seto saw who turned and grinned sadistically and disappeared "You saw that shadow Seto… you saw me kill them… You saw Joey kill them" He grinned as Seto growled.

"BASTARD!!!" he spat. Katsuya cackled before going to attack again when his minions interrupted him.

"Ssssseeee ssssssssnnnnnnnnn" the serpent man hissed. Katsuya narrowed his eyes.

"That's impossible…" the serpent man retorted desperately wishing his master believed him. He let out a frustrated sigh before he dumped Seto on the floor and marched off to gaze at the scene. He drew a huge handful of cards and let the monsters loose.

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Joey opened his eyes and blinked, he stretched a little and glanced at the life point count that had been fully restored to the 2000 points he started with. All his wounds were healed, in fact the only reminder that he was hurt were all the blood stains upon his ripped jacket and jeans. He suddenly felt a great surge and he shuddered when he noticed a bright glint among the branches of the magic tree. There entwined among the leaves was the Dragon Scepter. "How did that get here?" he mused as he grabbed the staff. "Yam…"

`Joey.. your ok?" Yami asked in confusion.

"Yeah fine and dandy… did you see a lady talk to me?"

`No it just suddenly went all cloudy on us on the screen but when we looked your life point count it was restored…" Mokuba replied. Where that tree come from?' Joey stared at the tree he was in.

"No idea… Yami did you send this scepter down to me or somethin'"

`The scepter!?' he heard Yami yell in disbelief and heard a rustling of clothes as if Yami was searching for something. `How did the scepter get in there?'

Joey shrugged… "I don't know, I woke up in this tree and there it was beside me…" he sighed. "I doubt this thing just appeared in coincidence so I might as well take it with me" he said as he leapt out of the tree. The minute his foot touched the ground, the tree had shrunk away and disappeared back into the earth leaving him alone but back to the confines of the great buildings of Seto's twisted version of Domino City. He walked down the streets again and passing the Pizza Plaza about a dozen times already when he heard a huge commotion from the twisted townspeople. There they stood holding their disarranged arms out in horror at the monster rampaging down the road. "Oh great…" Joey moaned as he stared at the huge scaly terror. "Another Blue Eyes" he dashed away in hopes of avoiding it rather than having to fight it again when he skidded to halt to stare up upon another Blue Eyes. "I THOUGHT I GOT RID OF YOU!!!" he yelled as he ran back before the Blue Eyes launched his White Lightening Attack at him. Along the road the other Blue Eyes was stampeding towards him as he ducked into the buildings. The two dragons sniffed around as they clawed their way around the buildings shattering glass, ignoring the screaming civilians inside. Joey managed to get out through the back door but was blocked by another duel monster. Judge Man. Joey got ready to draw a card when a burst of lightening blew the Judge Man away. He gasped in disbelief before he craned his neck to look upon another Blue Eyes White Dragon. "EEEEEEEEEIIIIIII!!!!!!" he screamed like a girl as he ran away through back through the door. "THAT'S IT MOKUBA I'M REFERRING YOUR BROTHER TO A PSYCHIATRIST!!!!" he yelled at the young Kaiba whilst he ran with three Blue Eyes on his tail. `Ok… I destroyed two but now moneybags has three again… I suppose one of them may have been revived from Kaiba's Monster Reborn but… what about that third one?'

`Turn left!!!' yelled Yami. Joey did so as he ran down a endless alleyway hearing hisses and noises creeping behind the canopy of darkness. A putrid smell of acrid air flared in his nose as his footsteps echoed in wet slimy slaps across the pathway as Joey's breath was deep, his lips dry and the pounding of his beating heart thumped like a drum threatening to burst out of his chest. He finally reached the otherside of the spooky alleyway towards the lighter area of the city where he skidded to the floor and landing on his bum staring at the huge figure before him. Blue Eyes.

"Oh, give me a break man!!!" he whined at the menacing creature but as soon as it was said two more Blue Eyes appeared behind him. He looked up narrowing his eyes at them. "I really hate you guys…"

One of the two from behind stepped up to power his attack as his blue eyes narrowed at his target. The Dragon opened wide his jaws of sharp teeth as a ball of lightening began to increase in size. Joey shut his eyes awaiting impact as the attack was released. `This is it…' he thought. He waited as a huge explosion of energy was ready to blow him up. Nothing. "Huh?" Joey grunted as he opened his eyes. He looked up as a cloud of dust had formed where a huge explosion had erupted above him but he was left unharmed. The Blue Eyes roared furiously as the third Blue Eyes stepped up to face the two shielding Joey with his body.

{Leave him alone!!!} he heard the dragon say. Joey widened his eyes of what was happening.

{{Stay out of this}} Joey heard one of the other two say.

"Oh my God…" Joey whispered. One of the Blue Eyes had protecting him but the most astonishing thing was that he could hear them talking.

`What just happened? Did Joey just play a Monster Reborn Card or something?' Mokuba asked clearly confused.

`I don't know… I didn't see him draw any cards out' Yami answered. `Joey? Are you alright'

"No… no I'm not…" Joey rasped his eyes as wide as saucers.

`I can't see any physical wounds on you though…' Yami replied.

`Joey, stop playing about… and no more insults about my brother needing a psychiatrist and all that' Mokuba scowled.

"SCREW KAIBA!!!! `I'M' THE ONE WHO NEEDS A FUCKING PSYCHIATRIST!!!!" Joey screamed in horror.

`…………………'

`What are you talkin' about?' Yami said.

"Those… dragons… ARE TALKING!!!" Yami and Mokuba glanced at the dragons and hear the dragons merely roaring at each other. They looked at each other incredulously. "Can't you guys hear them? Oh please say you do…"

`Sorry, Joe but… their just roaring at each other…' Mokuba replied.

"Tsssh… that can't be… One on the left is telling the other two ta leave me alone… whilst the other that went to fire at me told him to stay out of it…" Yami and Mokuba didn't answer this.

{What's wrong with you both!?!?!? This is a friend of your master!!!} the `traitor' roared.

{{He is an enemy}}

"There they go again!!!" Joey cried.

`Maybe the scepter in your hand must allow you to be able to hear their thoughts' Yami deducted. Joey looked at the Dragon Scepter. `Well it is called the Dragon Scepter… yeah it must be that…' Joey concluded. `We'll talk about that later. What I don't get is why that Blue Eyes saved your life. Did you play Monster Reborn or something?'

"No…" Joey replied when he looked at the Blue Eyes that had defended him. He remembered when he ran into Judge Man another of Seto's monsters, now he thought about it the Blue Eyes had destroyed Judge Man before his eyes. He looked at the monster before him scanning his very features and noticed the tear straight across his scaly belly. A scar… `Could that be?' Joey thought… "Yami I think that might be the `fourth' Blue Eyes White Dragon that Kaiba tore up… See the scar?" He pointed directing the gaze of the two onlookers to the distorted dragon.

`Ah that must be it… Back then Kaiba did win it from Grandpa so techniquely it belongs to him…' Yami said.

`So why is it helping Joey?' Mokuba asked. There was a moment of silence before Yami's answer.

`Because he never allowed the fourth Blue Eyes to bond with his heart. The moment he won the card, he had ripped it in half thus voiding the chance for the Blue Eyes that resided in the card to duel for him and pledge his allegience. That Blue Eyes is a rogue duel monster roaming around aimlessly in Kaiba's mind without a purpose… without command. It's a free spirit'

"Which means Kaiba has no control over it and if Kaiba has no control over it neither does evil demon dude" Joey finished as he looked towards the ensuing fight among the three dragons.

{{You runt… outsider}} The biggest of the three Blue Eyes hissed at his youngest brother.

{I will not let you hurt this human} the `runt' replied defiantly as the two bigger dragons lunged themselves at him pinning him down.

{{{You will pay for your treachery!!!}}}

{{Your pathetic… do you really expect one of you to be able to destroy two of us?}}

"Maybe not but lets see what happens when I even the score!!!" Joey yelled as he pulled out a card. "MONSTER REBORN!!! BRING BACK BLUE EYES WHITE DRAGON!!!!" A shimmer of light rained down on the town as the body of the last of the four Blue Eyes White Dragon appeared and immediately launched it's attack on one of the two brothers. Two against two.

{{Come to fight on the enemies side traitor?}} retorted to his newly revived brother.

{{{{I have returned with a clear mind of who my true enemy is… our master is being controlled… help us to defeat the being that has him under his spell…}}}}

{{LIAR!!!}} roared Kaiba's dragon as he launched his attack which was blocked by the equally strong force of Joey's new ally.

{What do we do?} the youngest Blue Eyes said whilst facing off to one of his siblings that was under the demon's influence.

{{{{Take the boy to save my master young one… It is the only way to end this madness}}}} his older sibling answered. {{{{I will stay to hold your brothers off}}}}

{But…}

{{{{GO!!!}}}} he roared as the scarred Blue Eyes swept Joey away leaving the other Blue Eyes to face his other brothers. With this the three fought violently as the scarred Blue Eyes took flight with a heavy heart at the onslaught of the attacks among his three siblings. Joey stared as his revived dragon fought bravely against Kaiba's other two Blue Eyes. Scrapes of claw marks raked across it's chest as blood started to trickled down his front. The scarred Blue Eyes closed his eyes as he flew fast ahead ignoring the roars of agony. Resting the scarred Blue Eyes landed in a soft meadow just beyond it a castle. Pegasus's castle.

"This must be Kaiba's version of Duellist Kingdom…" Joey mused. "Why'd ya bring me here?"

{I saw through my wanderings around this world the fortresses guarded by many of those serpent creatures… I figured it would be a suitable start in search of my brothers' master}

"Isn't Kaiba `your' master too? I mean techniquely he did win you from Gramps"

{He is no master of mine!!!} the scarred Blue Eyes growled making Joey cringe. {He never even gave me a chance to prove myself before he devoided my chance to ever fight again in a duel. He didn't treat me as if I was there so none of his other monsters held respect for me with the exception of my third brother whom you just witnessed being destoryed by my fellow siblings} he replied more softly as the Blue Eyes went into his own little world. Joey felt a incredible sadness as the Blue Eyes reminisced on his time with Grandpa and Yugi. {Why did he had to take me away? I lived happily with the old man and his grandson, they were never ever going to use me against anybody. But still he just had to tear us apart. Tear me apart and make me stay in this wretched Hell where just about all the monsters here treated you like an outsider and spitted at you as if you were diseased Kuriboh} he hissed seethingly.

"Well moneybags is like isn't he?"

`My brother is like what? What are you two talking about?' Mokuba interrupted suspiciously.

"Nothing!!!" Joey called out. He motioned for the Blue Eyes to listen to him whisper. "Look… I know Kaiba's like that. He dun't give me any respect either… but don't let that get you down. You're strong."

{You think I'm strong?} the Blue Eyes asked incredulously.

"Sure!!! It takes a lot more guts to stand up for yourself against your two older brothers than what all the monsters here give you credit for" The Blue Eyes was silent as he stared at the scar across his body before staring at the castle up ahead.

{Thank you little fella}

"Right back at cha Big fella" (A/N: I took the little fella/big fella thing from Dark Angel. I think it's so kawaii) Joey replied as he got on the huge dragon and they flew towards the castle.

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Katsuya smiled as he watched the two friends glide towards the castle. "You have quite few miracles up your sleeve bitch… but I wonder if you'll have enough once you've reached the castle…" The sadistic grin grew wider as his oblivious counterpart flew deeper towards the castle. The many serpent men went on the attack at full force at the two comrades as the scarred Blue Eyes twisted and turned in the air avoiding the wave of arrows that came by. As they approached the fortress spikes of rock shot out of the walls. Everywhere they turned the rocks shot narrowly missing them as they dodged being impaled. Every entrance to them was suddenly blocked.

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{The force controlling this castle knows our every move!!!} the Blue Eyes cried as he skilfully dodged another spike rock. {Oh no… Incoming!!!} Joey ducked the tips of his hair singed slightly from the white hot blast of a White Lightening attack. There in the distance was the two older Blue Eyes earlier. `This is screwy… it's like the demon dude has eyes everywhere. He seems to know where I'd be hiding and stuff and stick one of his lackeys to that exact place. Waitaminute… maybe this `whole' world is a setup where he can keep tabs on me where ever I go… It's one big trap'

"Blue Eyes pull back from the castle… it doesn't feel right…" the Blue Eyes did so as they flew dodging his brothers.

{You got a plan?}

"Sort of…" Joey replied as he concentrated. `It's worked before… I think if I concentrate it might again' Closing his eyes neither noticed a faint golden glow from the Dragon Scepter that had been sheathed inside Joey's jacket. "I know this is gonna be strange Big Fella but trust me…" The scarred Blue Eyes nodded as he dodged another White Lightening attack.

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"He'll never find us" Katsuya whispered to himself but his eyes widened when Joey's head snapped staring straight at him.

"BLUE EYES!!! 3 o'clock!!!" On his command the scarred Blue Eyes charged towards Katsuya's window view. "WHITE LIGHTENING ATTACK!!!" Jaws were open as the ball of eletrical energy powered up and aimed straight ahead. There was a shatter like glass as a huge hole had been penetrated through the very sky itself as the Blue Eyes flew inside circled around before landing, he lowered his head letting Joey slide off whilst he prepared to face his brothers again who had also followed them. Joey noticed the shadow of Katsuya break away to a one of the dozens of corridors and followed him.

{{You dare enter our master's chamber!!!}} the oldest of the Blue Eyes bellowed down at his youngest brother.

{Your master is under someone elses control!!!}

{{{Ridiculous!!!}}} the second Blue Eyes schreeched. {{{Our master is all powerful as we are all powerful!!!}}} With that an onslaught from the two dragons against their brother followed. The young Blue Eyes dodged skilfully under their wrath and soon escaped to the world pursued by his brothers. He was smaller but definitely the faster and soon had lost them in admist the vast lands of Seto's mind. He sighed with hope in his heart that Joey would succeed.

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Twisting into the medieval corridors of gargoyles and as such staring down at his intrusion accusingly. Joey let out a rasped breath as he calmed himself to concentrate in finding the CEO. He came upon the huge chamber at the end of the long tunnels and came upon huge intertwining vines curled over each other in a huge mass column and at the centre of if all was Seto tied up among them. Joey ignored the fact that the guy was completely naked before his eyes and walked cautiously towards him weary of any traps that might be there. Seto opened his eyes as his bruised body had been awoken to Joey's presence. Joey went to pull at the vines that held him.

"Keep away from me!!!" Seto rasped struggling weakly from his bonds.

"Chill man… I'm here to get ya outta dis mess!!!" Seto stopped struggling and shook himself out of his haze and stared at the blond particularly at getting a close look at his eyes.

"What are you up to now Katsuya?"

"Oh so that's demon dude's names" Joey commented ignoring the rantings and freeing one arm. Seeing this opportunity Seto made a grab for his throat.

"Stop playing games with me" he hissed at `Katsuya' who punched him hard on the face.

`JOEY!!!!' Mokuba's shrill cried echoed in the area. `Big brother are you ok? Why did you have to do that Joey!?!?'

"KID!!!" Joey yelled but tried to remain calm with the raven headed boy whlist the billionnaire stared in astonishment. "Look… Kaiba's insulted me, beaten me up, humilated me and has attempted to kill me half a dozen times. THERE'S ONLY SO MUCH A GUY COULD TAKE!!!!" he turned to the CEO and pushed him hard against the wall of vines, his honey brown eyes glaring down at the cold colbalt ones. "AND WHAT THE HELL IS YOUR PROBLEM!?!?!?"

"Joey? Is that really you?" Seto whispered not believing it.

"Who else could it be!?!? The fucking toothfairy!?!?!?" Joey yelled. "Jeez…" he brushed his sweaty tresses with his his hand back before continuing to cut through the vines.

"Your alive…" Seto said. Joey just ignored him and finally his arms were freed. Heaving a little he was helped down to the ground where Joey took off his bloody jacket and wrapped it around Seto's naked form and unknowing that a shadowy figure was right behind him. Seto stared at the floor gathering thoughts about the events. He had just witness Joey die yet here he was alive and well. There had to be more to how he survived as if Katsuya might have prevented it the last second. He had witnessed many strange things heck, his own soul had been stuck in a card for crying out loud. At the moment in his state of mind he was now prepared to take anything into account. `Could what Katsuya told me be true? That Joey caused the accident?'

"KAIBA!!!" Seto looked up at Joey. "Let's go!!!" he shouted irritantly while helping him up. It had been a stressful night. Seto's eyes widened as a glint of metal smiled at the two of them whilst aiming it's deadly kill on the blond. "LOOK OUT!!!" he yelled. With a snap of a rope and before he knew it he saw that Joey had turned around, an deadly arrow head inches from his chest as his hand had gripped tightly on the pale wood with a black feather for the end.

"Whoa… getting sharper than ever Joey" The dark figure emerged from the shadows to face Joey. Joey's eyes' widened. "Surprised…?" Katsuya said.

"Your…" but Joey couldn't finished his sentence.

"I'm you… so you shouldn't be so hard that moneybags was a little… judgemental… about you back there" the green eyed blond continued. Seto glared at him intensively. Katsuya smiled before he waved a hand sending him flying to the far corner behind him near the entrance. He got up again.

"GO!!!" Joey yelled to him as he stared at his double not taking his eyes off him.

"YES RUN SETO!!!" Katsuya mocked. "I'll just catch him again in a minute…" Seto ignored Joey and stayed where he was. The two twin's circled around ready to do battle with each other.

"You must be really shocked that the one that planned all this was you…"

"Well I'd admit I was expecting a big huge snake towering above me but I'm kinda grateful that I got a quite handsome chap instead…" Joey said with a sly grin.

"Why thank you… at least `someone' around here has a sense of humour" Katsuya commented eyeing at Seto before he threw an energy ball at Joey which he dodged leaving a crater on the floor. "I never wanted to hurt you, you know… but you just had to be there didn't you? Like all the other lifetimes you were in my way… and every time I've had to kill you to get to him but… you've always managed to get the High Priest far away from my reach. We've always worked well together when we were one, it was just that one incident…" Joey stared deep into the emerald eyes.

"I don't know what your talkin' about…" Joey said simply. Katsuya merely smiled, though this time it was forlorn and unlike the usual sneer that Seto had seen…

"Of course you don't… you get to forget" he whispered as he threw another firey ball at him. It went on like this until Joey had been exhausted and finally a energy ball had struck him down against a wall Seto dove to knock Katsuya away but was held back by a scaly hands of Katsuya's serpent servants. Joey got up as to face his counterpart again who threw a sword his way… He looked confused at the weapon when Katsuya charged thrusting it towards him. Unused to such a combat style he attempted avoiding the swipes of his opponents swords and received several beatings and cuts across his arm as Katsuya's blade nipped at him like a snake again and again until he couldn't stand any longer. Kicked to the side he grunted and then yelped as he impacted against a nearby lamp stand and lay on the floor. Weak and wounded his whole body shook as he tried to get up. Katsuya paused before he struck again. "Move on now Joey… Just let me do what I had set out to do…" he hissed as he raised his sword high for the final blow. The second Joey blocked the attack with his weapon, it was as if something in his mind clicked. He flipped up in a summarsault kicking Katsuya in the chin and making him fall back and landed stealthly like a cat. Katsuya rubbed his jaw as Joey rounded himself up gripping the sword in his hand holding suspended high, an intense fiery golden gaze from his brown eyes seemed to have come a light. Neither two spoke and for a moment only the sound of the imaginery winds of Seto's mind was heard. Seto stared in disbelief at the two of them. Both defiant to each other and determined to achieve the goal they had set out to do. One to destroy and kill, the other protect and preserve. Seto saw the flourescent green eyes flared angrily at his rival in a deep hatred anger and resent Katsuya had felt whilst for Joey he noticed the a deep strength within him, a unknown power that had been dormant for many ages burn brilliantly in the golden brown fires of his eyes. Hope. In a flash the swords were clashing in a rhythmic pattern as they twisted and turned dodging the thrusts of the impaling blades. An insane dance pursued like an ancient duel that they had longed waited for as Joey leapt up high slashing across the air with huge ferocity, energies pulsated from him as the blades connected the energy snapped sending his awesome power down the connection and slamming Katsuya hard against the wall. Katsuya lay there before he got up and felt himself choke upon his own blood in his lungs which spurted out across the floor. He chuckled. "I could never be a match to you… Joey… even with the tricks…" Katsuya glared at the CEO. Seto stepped forward glaring back at him. "Perhaps… High Priest… before you consider killing me… you might want to know more about the origin of those dreams you've been having…" Seto blinked, his attention aroused. "The dreams you've had all your life… Have you ever wondered why you've had them...? How they connect to your parents?"

"You trying to stall your time…" Seto replied bluntly.

"Perhaps… of perhaps I maybe telling the truth and as for the dreams? Well the reason you were having them more than usual lately wasn't because of Yugi but because of Joey." Joey stared incredulously at Katsuya whilst Seto turned his gaze on him. He noticed the intense gaze of the colbalt eyes and glanced at the artic coldness. "I'll give you one last bit of information High Priest to look for the origin of these dreams. Head for the high home of the Xia Lung monks of China. Hidden in their sacred grounds temple there is a hidden passage way which leads to underground catecoumbes. There you shall find more light to shedding this mystery and why you saw Joey the day you witness your parents' death. That is if you have the courage to seek it" Katsuya informed as he disappeared. The world went white as the Joey and Seto were found back in Seto's room.

"BIG BROTHER!!!" Mokuba cried hugging his brother tightly. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine Mokuba"

"What did that thing do to you?" Mokuba rasped angrily at the demon.

"Why does the demon look like me"

"Why don't you ask yourself that Joey" Seto growled as suspisions about the blond had been aroused by his counterpart. The others stepped back in surprise.

"You think I had something to do with that thing?"

"He is a part of you!!! He showed me my memory that I saw someone like you cause the accident that killed our parents" Seto accused. Mokuba's eyes widened not believing this. Joey didn't even know his and Seto's real parents until just a moment ago. Joey curled his lips in a mixture of confusion and fury.

"You can't go on such accusations Kaiba" Yami replied putting himself between the CEO and his friend.

"Can't I? You've seen a dark side part of me when you duelled Yami…What makes you think that Joey doesn't have one?" Joey narrowed his eyes in disgust. He had put his life on the line for the guy and yet he's accusing him of a horrific crime he never commited.

"Because Joey's a good and honourable ally and our friend. He just risked his life for you… I can't believe you would make such ridiculous claims like that. Clearly that demon has messed with your mind worse than I thought" argued Yami. Seto was about to snap back with more about his parents when his little brother interrupted

"Joey's not like that!!! Big brother you gotta belive me…" he pleaded. Seto looked at his brother's eyes, he knew that Mokuba had always been a good judge of character but too much has happened and he found himself not trusting anybody, not even family.

"I don't know what to believe anymore…"

"Seto…"

"Enough kid…" Joey spoke up for the first time. "I doubt rich boy is botherin' to listen…" he turned to Seto. "I didn't know your parents until I saw them just a moment ago so I got nothing to do with how they died. Believe me or not… I… just… don't care anymore…" The door had caved in as a whole bunch of people toppled over each other inside the room.

"The seals been broken!!!" Malik gasped delightedly. He stared confused as the solemn faces." Whoa somebody die or something?"

"JOEY!!!" a shrill cry burst through as Joey suddenly put on a perfect smiling mask for his little sister who wrapped her arms around him. "Oh Joey I was so worried!!!" Serenity let go and scowled. "Joey Wheeler don't you ever do that to me again!!!"

"Hey… I'm here ain't I… I've kept my promise and all… I haven't got myself killed" Serenity's pout turned into a smile as she hugged him…

"Well… ok I forgive you…" she giggled.

"It's way past your bedtime you know…?" Joey said as she dragged her giggling back to bed. Yami stared sympathetically at Joey before glaring at the CEO. He went out of the room leaving the group confused. There at the end of the hallway Yugi stood there waiting patiently for him.

"Took you long enough…" he said. Yami smiled as he picked up the angel and carried him to bed.

"I'm sorry…" Yami whispered as he cuddled the boy close and the two fell asleep.

----------------------------------------------------

Sam: That… was… the… crappiest… chapter I have ever done…

Yami: That's because you had lack of motivation for the last chapter… 3 reviews!?!?!? Come on people you can do better than that!!!!

Joey: Wehey I bet they never expected that I'm both the hero AND the bad guy!!!

Seto: I hate you Wheeler…

Joey: Ok…

Seto: O.O… T_______T I didn't mean…

Joey: Ok…

Sam: T_______T IIE I worked so hard on that last chapter!!!! I was crying for days when my review box kept coming up empty…!!!!! It was the lime wasn't it? It threw you all off didn't it? IIIIIIEEEE!!!!!!

Yami: Or it could be because everybody was going off to the movies to see The Matrix Reloaded.

Sam: *stops crying* o_0? Oh… fair enough… I forgive you…

Ryou: Look up in the sky!!!

Serenity: It's a bird!!!

Mokuba: No it's a plane

Yugi: No it's Keanu Reeves!!!!

Sam: REVIEW ME!!!! I want 7 more reviews at least to continue updating…

Mokuba: Why not at least 10…

Sam: 7's a lucky number…

Mokuba: Oh…