Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Gorgeous Carat (YGO version) ❯ The Dragon of Maghreb Part 8 ( Chapter 15 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

“I knew it!” cried the platinum blond as he paced anxiously through the tiny sitting room of the old man’s house. “Noir’s never this late!! Something must have happened!”
“Calm down, son,” Sugoroku said with a combination of pity and annoyance, “You’re making us all nervous with you pacing like that.”
“Easy old man,” Atem interjected, guiding him to a nearby chair. “You still haven’t recovered from that bullet in your arm.”
The old man scoffed indignantly, “I’m not that old, you whippersnapper! My arm’s just fine!”
“I can’t take this anymore! I’m going to see what’s taking him so long!” With that Malik stormed to the door.
“I’ll come too,” the detective said, just as worried for Yugi as the Egyptian was for the white haired thief.
“No way!” he protested, shoving the shorter man to the side, “Look,” he said in a much calmer voice in apology, “Someone’s gotta stay in case I wind up missing him on the way.”
“Malik…” he attempted.
“Go home kids,” interrupted Sugoroku, “There isn’t much you can do. Besides it’s up to the gods. Bakura’s strong, I’m sure he’ll be alright.”
“Old man…” Atem started, but nodded upon seeing the look on the man’s face. He had to have faith in the thief.

Meanwhile at Ezhdar's…
The white haired man hung loosely from the ceiling, his chest bare. The taller brunet smirked evilly as he brought the red hot brand close to the pale skin before him. Noir’s eyes flashed dangerously and he jerked back moments before the metal could burn him. He kicked at the man’s hand, missing it by inches, making his foot strike his forearm instead. Ezhdar dropped the brand and it hit the tiled floor with a loud clang that resounded throughout the remains of the mansion.
“Now look at what you made me do, Bakura,” the brunet scolded in a sickeningly sweet voice, “You made me drop the brand.”
“Only because you moved so fast,” quipped the thief. “Anyway, who says you have my permission to mark me?”
Ezhdar smirked. “Oh, but I thought you agreed to be mine,” he purred, “You don’t have any say in this, Bakura. Not anymore.” He then picked up the still smoldering brand.
“You’re worse than an animal trainer,” Noir spat, trembling.
“Am I now?” The taller man continued to smirk, clearly amused at the thief’s feeble attempts at stalling. “You know, I could use opium to make you my obedient doll. Just like I did…” he paused, letting the sudden silence eat at the captured man, “with Yugi.”
Noir’s eyes went wide in shock. “You did what… to Yugi?!”
Ezhdar made a tsking sound. “Don’t tell me you didn’t realize.”
“Ezhdar… you sick bastard!”
The brunet’s blue eye narrowed in anger, turning it into a chip of blue ice. “Don’t make me break you, Bakura,” he hissed after delivering a punch to the man’s gut and causing him to attempt curling up.
He brought the brand close to the thief’s chest again. Noir couldn’t stop the trembling as he felt the metal’s heat baking his skin and turning it to a bright pink. He continued to squirm as Ezhdar continued to hold the brand scant inches away from the flawless chest. “It’s time you realized your own helplessness, Bakura!” the brunet yelled, preparing to shove the red hot brand as deep into the flesh as he could.
“E-Ezh…dar…” Noir pleaded one last time. He gripped the chains binding him tightly enough for them to bite into his palms. Droplets of red to run down his uncomfortably stretched arms.

The blond Egyptian jumped at the loud explosion as he raced desperately through Ezhdar’s mansion. “W-What was that?!” he queried, fearing for the worst. “Noir! Yugi!” he called, ignoring the racing of his heartbeat.
’Gods, please let them be alive!’ he begged, ‘Please!’

Behind the two men stood a trembling, crazy eyed boy with spiky multicolored hair; a smoking gun clasped loosely in his petite hand.
“You little… $^*^!!” Ezhdar snarled, doubling over in pain and dropping the brand yet again.
The boy fired again, missing his target and causing the bullet to ricochet off the wall behind the brunet.
“Yugi!” shouted the white haired thief, “It’s alright now! You’ve got him!”
Yugi slumped to the floor, shaking from terror as well as the withdrawal symptoms. The gun clattered against the tile as it slid from the boy’s hand.
“Shh… it’s okay now,” Noir said, wishing he was able to gather the poor boy into his arms at that moment. He silently cursed Ezhdar for chaining him up. “It’s over Yugi… you saved us, I’m… proud of you.” Yugi grabbed his knees and began rocking back and forth, his mind too shocked to deal with anything right now.
“Noir!” Malik cried as he burst into the room, “Thank the gods you’re alive!” The frantic blond glomped the dangling thief, refusing to loosen the vise like grip he now had on him.
“Heh, you think they’d get rid of me that easily,” crowed Noir. “You’re just in time, Malik. How about getting me down from here?”
Malik laughed sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head. “Sorry, Noir!” He then immediately began working at the chains. “So um… is Yugi ok?”
The white haired man glanced over his shoulder and saw the boy was now lying flat on his back, obviously having passed out from the stress. “He’ll be alright,” he said nonchalantly, though inside he was deeply worried for the petit boy. Who knew how long he’d been under the influence of Ezhdar’s opium? “He just fainted.”
Malik looked at the boy in concern as Noir rolled his shoulders and rubbed his wrists. His lilac eyes drifted to the gun that lay scant feet from the prone boy. “So that’s what I heard just now. Those were gunshots. The poor kid.”
Noir frowned as he grabbed his jacket and began pulling it on. “No matter how hard I tried,” he spat bitterly, “I just couldn’t escape my past. It was Yugi who finally set me free of those chains. Now I owe him a debt.”
“Noir…” Malik whispered, touched by what had happened. He’d never expect the boy to actually save anyone, especially since he constantly voiced his hate of his master.
“Oi Malik!” Noir ordered as he slung one of Yugi’s arms over his shoulder. “Don’t just stand there like an idiot, help me with him!”
“Oh… right!” The blond then slung the boy’s other arm over his own shoulder and the two of them began to half carry, half drag Yugi from the mansion; both careful not to go anywhere near the brunet’s unconscious form.
‘The past is dead to me now,’ the thief thought to himself, ‘I can’t go back there anymore.’

A few moments later, Ezhdar groaned as he struggled to rise. His single visible eye burned furiously in the firelight upon seeing that his ‘pets’ had flown the coop. Letting out a snarl, he picked up the gun that had been carelessly discarded.
“Hmph!” he spat, looking at the offending weapon, “No wonder I still live. A .38 caliber couldn’t break a bone. Who knew the brat would be such a poor shot.” He ignored the pain from the still bleeding shots he’d received earlier and began to laugh maniacally. “You’ve gotten soft, Bakura!” he said laughing still, “You forgot to check to see if I was really dead this time. I’m going to make sure you’re going to regret falling for that little whore of yours! By the time I’m through with you, you’ll be begging for death!”
The man’s laughs continued to reverberate throughout the ruined building all through the night. Many passersby quickly hurried past the mansion fearing that the devil himself had come for them.

~TBC~