Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Duellist League ❯ Battle Stage 5; Confrontation! The Blade of the Horseman ( Chapter 5 )

Battle Stage 5: Confrontation! The Blade of the Horseman

 

Location: Haven City, Shuba Region Date: 29 April 2005

 

“Jyoonouchi, do you have any idea where you're going?”

 

“Of course I do Anzu, trust me.” Jou called out pouring over the map he'd gotten with his package.

 

Yuugi hung at the back of the group taking in the twilight view, the city looked a lot like Domino, high rise buildings dominated the skyline. In the dying light the buildings were casting huge shadows that made everything cooler. Yuugi couldn't help fight off the feeling that something bad was coming, he could sense it, he just didn't know if the feeling was from within or without.

 

`I did the right thing, I know I did, everyone's a lot happier. They just can't know…' Yuugi thought staring up at the sky.

 

“Penny for your thoughts Yuugi?” A voice from what felt like far away asked.

 

“Hm, oh, I'm just, thinking about stuff.” Yuugi replied to Anzu's question.

 

“Anything you want to talk about?” She pressed gently.

 

Yuugi didn't say anything; he simply shook his head and walked quicker to catch up with Jyoonouchi. Anzu walked very slowly watching Yuugi intently, `You can't hide anything from me Yuugi Mutou, we've known each other to long for that.'

 

After walking a little further Jyoonouchi announced, “We're approaching the city limits.”

 

He stopped for a moment looking around, “So where's the transport?”

 

Yuugi stopped and looked up at him blinking slightly, “Ah, Jyoonochi what are you talking about?”

 

“Well they don't expect us to walk to Erebus do they?” Jou asked with a slight laugh.

 

“Well…” Yuugi's voice trailed off as he looked away from his best friend.

 

Jyoonouchi blinked slowly looking his best friend dressed in a grey shirt, dark grey vest and black leather pants with a black deck belt around his hips, up and down. “Yuug, you, are, NOT, serious!” Jyoonouchi exclaimed loudly.

 

“Jyoonouchi…” Anzu said placing a hand on his arm.

 

“They, DON'T expect us to WALK!” Jou bellowed.

 

“That's the general idea I think Jou, how did you expect us to get to the next city?” Yugi asked.

 

“Car of course.” Jyoonouchi responded as if it were the most obvious thing on earth, the other three anime fell.

 

“A mutt like you would like that wouldn't you; you could stick your head out the window while Yuugi drove.” An arrogant voice sauntered.

 

“KAIBA! For the last time I am NOT a mutt!” Jyoonouchi yelled furiously turning towards the source of the voice.

 

“Hn, could have fooled me.” Kaiba muttered casting half a glance to Serenity, she smiled back subtlety.

 

“Hey Kaiba, since we're all going in the same direction, do you want to hang out with us?” Yuugi asked calmly.

 

“WHAT! No way Yuug, I'm travelling no where with that creep!” Jyoonouchi proclaimed angrily throwing dirty looks Kaiba's way.

 

“Come on Jou we're all going the same way, it wouldn't be that bad, would it Kaiba?” Anzu assured Jyoonouchi glancing at Kaiba.

 

Kaiba rolled his eyes, “I haven't even agreed, besides why would I want to hang around with you losers?”

 

“KAIBA!” Jou growled advancing on the CEO, but Yuugi held up his hand and Joey desisted for a moment.

 

Yuugi a fixed his eyes on Kaiba, “Kaiba, I'm trying very hard to be nice, what has happened in the past is in the past, we should leave it there. I would like it if you hung with us, but if you don't want to that's your choice. But you will not insult my friends again; if you do, we will have it out Seto.”

 

Kaiba raised his eyebrow; he'd never heard Yuugi speak like that before to anyone. He grunted and muttered, “Whatever.” Walking away.

 

“So, are you coming with us or not Seto?” Yuugi questioned.

 

“I said whatever.” Kaiba grumbled shaking his head.

 

“Oh, that's a joy.” Jyoonouchi muttered throwing more dirty looks Kaiba's way.

 

Yuugi forced a smile on his face and said loudly, “Let's get going.”

 

The group walked forward, Anzu smiled proudly at Yuugi walking beside him; Kaiba was in the middle with Serenity and Joey bringing up the rear. Serenity tried to sooth her big brother as he glowered at Kaiba's back. Anzu intertwined her fingers with Yuugi's, Yuugi felt his cheeks warm as he looked up at her. She smiled and said nothing letting them continue. Serenity was the first person to speak after an hour of walking through the tree lined path.

 

“Kaiba, where's Mokuba, didn't he come?”

 

Kaiba turned his face towards her, “Mokuba stayed in Domino, someone has to run Kaiba Corporation in my absence.”

 

“Hn, I bet you just dropped him off at some home and abandoned him.” Jyoonouchi sneered.

 

Kaiba spun around on the spot his eye full of anger, “HOW DARE YOU IMPLY I WOULD EVER ABANDON MY BROTHER MUTT!!!”

 

“WELL YOU DON'T SEEM TO CARE MUCH ABOUT HIM, AND STOP CALLING ME MUTT!!” Joey yelled in response.

 

“Hey guys enough!” Yuugi said.

 

Both threw out their arms, “Stay out of this Yuugi.” They said in unison.

 

“So you want to end this do you mutt?” Kaiba sneered.

 

“Yeah, scared Kaiba?” Jyoonouchi asked activating his duel disk.

 

“Hn, yeah right mutt.” Kaiba said smirking loading up his own duel disk.

 

The area was quiet as the stare off began; neither man was going to back down from this, they all new it had to come sometime. Suddenly, a loud animalistic scream was emitted from deep inside the forest; it was so loud that Jyoonouchi almost fell back out of fright.

 

“What the heck was that?” Jyoonouchi exclaimed.

 

Yuugi looked up and around as Anzu edged closer to him, “I, uh, dunno Joey.”

 

A crash made Yuugi, Anzu and Kaiba spin around, from out the forest had sprung a beast, and this was not just any forest dwelling creature. This beast made Anzu cower behind Yuugi for the simple fact of her last experience with them.

 

“No way, a Hitotsu-Me Giant (Earth/Beast-Warrior/4 ATK/1200 DEF/1000)!” Yuugi exclaimed his eyes slowly examining its body; its green skin was tainted with the crimson colour of blood. A large gash ran in a right-to-left diagonal across its body, its single eye was open, but to Yuugi.

 

“It appears dead.” Yuugi observed walking towards slowly Anzu lagging behind him.

 

“But what the heck is a, YUUGI WATCH OUT!!!” Anzu began to ask, her question suddenly interrupted by the arrival of another monster. It leaped from the forest with more grace than the dead Hitotsu-Me Giant had. Its red eyes gazed at them with a bestial hunger, Yuugi stared at it fearfully still crouching in front of the fallen Giant. Yuugi could smell the earthy mixture of manure and dirty that covered its hovers, the dirty matted hair on its body was intermixed with the occasional battle wound or healed scar. The beast's upper torso was ripped, but scarred as was its bluish purple chest plate and red shoulder plates, the pickaxe in its hand still dripped with the blood of its victim and it looked ready to slay another.

 

“A Rabid Horseman (Earth/Beast-Warrior/Fusion/5 ATK/2000 DEF/1700), how is this possible?” Kaiba growled in shock and anger quietly.

 

“It must be a hologram.” Anzu observed still wary of the dead Giant.

 

Jyoonouchi smiled, “Then we don't have anything to worry about, come on Yuug lets get going.”

 

Jyoonouchi swaggered forward, in the last moment Yuugi saw the look in the eyes of the Rabid Horseman and quickly worked out that it was nothing good.

 

“JYOONOUCHI!!” Yuugi yelled leaping up and tackling Jou, the Rabid Horseman in the same moment flung his axe at the unsuspecting Katsuya, the blade glanced Yuugi's back sending a spray of blood onto a near by tree, Anzu screamed as both boys collapsed to the ground. Kaiba growled and activated his duel disk.

 

1. “GO DARK BLADE (Dark/Warrior/4 ATK/1800 DEF/1500);

 

2. EQUIPPED WITH FUSION SWORD MURASAME BLADE (Equip/Spell) TO INCREASE ITS ATTACK 800 POINTS (ATK/2600);

 

3. ATTACK!”

 

Kaiba slammed the cards into place on his duel disk and the monster sprang from the card following its owner's orders it quickly disposed of the Rabid Horseman the hologram evaporating on the spot. In its place a small silver coloured metallic ball hovered, a ring of blue lights shone from the middle as it floated over to Kaiba.

 

“Congratulations, you've captured a Rabid Horseman card.” A metallized female voice reported as a card slot appeared ejecting the Rabid Horseman card. As soon as Kaiba had taken the card from the slot it closed, the metallic card giving ball zooming off into the distance.

 

Anzu knelt beside Yuugi who was lying on the ground, she gingerly peered at the wound, “That's the most real hologram I've ever seen in the real world, and I don't like it one bit.” Anzu said bitterly eyeing the Hitotsu-Me Giant as the hologram disappeared and the projector ball zoomed off in a different direction.

 

“This is a little more dangerous then I'd imagined it would be.” Jou agreed staring at the twenty centimetre long cut into Yuugi's back knowing it could very well have been him if Yuugi hadn't tackled him.

 

Yuugi groaned loudly, “Damn it.” He swore his Amethyst eyes half open.

 

“Yuugi what's wrong, what hurts?” Anzu questioned quickly placing a hand on his shoulder gently leaning down to look at him in the eyes.

 

“My bank account, I just bought these clothes.” Yuugi moaned everyone sweat dropped.

 

Anzu sighed, “It's nice to know you're not in to much pain.” She said as she helped him up, Yuugi winced as she pulled on his left shoulder.

 

“Come on guys, we should find a place to camp.” Serenity urged.

 

The group walked cautiously through the forest for another twenty minutes before finally stopping at a promising looking inlet. The group settled in as Anzu grabbed a bandage from the first aid kit she'd brought with her; Yuugi removed his tattered shirt and vest tossing them in his bag leaving him shirtless while Anzu cleaned the blood from his wound. Once the bandage had been applied Yuugi changed into his usual black sleeveless shirt and black duelling jacket. This was when Kaiba noticed.

 

“Yuugi, where's the Millennium Puzzle?” He asked.

 

“Oh, I left it with Atem; I didn't see the point of wearing it now since he has his own body.” Yuugi explained. Kaiba watched him carefully, he knew there was something wrong, all his instincts screamed at him, they had ever since the Ceremonial battle, that something had gone awry.

 

“Yuugi, there's something I want to know about the Ceremonial Battle?” Kaiba began but Yuugi spoke over him.

 

“We should take shifts to make sure we're not attacked in the middle of the night by any monsters.”

 

“That's a good idea Yuug; I'll take the first watch.” Jyoonouchi agreed ignoring Kaiba's irritated look.

 

Yuugi nodded, “Ok then, well I'm going to bed, night.” Yuugi said quickly before anyone else could speak quickly climbing into his sleeping bag.

 

Later as Kaiba took his watch he stared from Yuugi into the burning embers of the campfire quietly, `Secrets only begat secrets Yuugi, and whatever it is you're keeping secret,” Kaiba thought looking back at Yuugi.

 

`Will not stay that way for very long, no matter how much you may want.'

 

To Be Continued…