Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Ryou Bakura: Game Master! ❯ Bannon's idea of 'help' ( Chapter 6 )

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh or Final Fantasy 6. Takahashi owns Yu-Gi-Oh, and he doesn't think Bakura should be helping Sith play video games. SquareSoft owns Final Fantasy, and they don't care, because Sith already spent money on the game.

 

Sith expected there to be some level of difficulty when she started playing this game; difficulty was inherent in any standard role-playing game of the century. She had expected a challenge, expected maybe to have to redo a battle or two if things went right to hell. But she didn't expect what she faced when they found a new cave to go through. Mt. Koltz had been corrupted, but to have the entire cavern ready to kill you was a feat not even Sith seemed able to anticipate, and when the walls began to crumble, releasing a giant boulder that gave chase to Ryou and his sparse team, the only thing Sith could do was run away. Not personally, of course, but she had to make Ryou run through the rest of the cavern. And considering Ryou's normal stamina, she felt her worry was warranted. Even as she pressed O to make them dash, the boulder seemed to gain on them with every second.

 

“I really hate this game!” Malik yelled, as they ran through the caverns, down narrow walkways where a simple boulder shouldn't have been able to navigate on, “Sith, how the hell can you play these death traps!?” Sith would've responded with an equally annoyed remark, but the dire circumstances seemed to have softened her a bit. Her brows lowered in concentration as she tried to figure out what to do to avoid seeing them killed.

 

“Most of the shit I've played wasn't corrupted,” she finally ended up growling, wishing she could just turn the game off and walk away, “This is worse than playing Aqutallion.” Malik didn't know what Aqutallion was, but he didn't question. They had to keep their eyes on the road, which was slowly beginning to disappear as a cavern wall sprang up, ending their path abruptly. Ryou skidded to a stop, and turned to see the boulder coming toward them. His eyes widened in terror. Ten seconds and they'd be dead.

 

“Oh, this is just wonderful!” Malik screamed, as Yugi shrieked, “SITH!” Sith said nothing, but slammed the right directional button as Ryou swerved into a small nook just beside the wall. The boulder slammed into the wall… and kept going as the wall subsequently crumbled into dust. They heard a heavy crash and then a thud below; the boulder was no more. Ryou waited for a few seconds, and when no sound came from either direction, he stepped out of the nook, looked over the cliff, and wiped his forehead.

 

“That was close…” he sighed with relief, “Well, now what?” He looked up at Sith. She definitely looked shaken up, but she shook her head and frowned. `Now what' was a good question.

 

“Now we have to get out of here,” she said simply, wiping her forehead. It felt slick with perspiration; she was actually mortally terrified now. Taking a few deep breaths, she moved Ryou from the cliff. She didn't know where to go, but they had to escape. If anything else came after them, they wouldn't be so lucky.

 

“Quite frankly, the fact that you haven't died yet is amazing, if you ask me,” Ishtar commented slyly, watching as Sith guided Ryou down the new path. It was dark; the torches in the cavern didn't reach far into the new area. But something about it felt right. Hana looked over at him squarely.

 

“She almost did,” she reminded the spirit, “Remember Yaten?”

 

“I wish I didn't,” Sith grumbled, and then abruptly stopped when Ryou entered a new room. To Ryou, it was a dark, deep cavern with high walls and lots of gorges for them to blindly fall into. But what really caught him was the smell; it was a thick smell of decay, of death. And when he stepped into a puddle, he looked down and saw to his horror that it wasn't water. He had just stepped into a pool of blood. He risked a look ahead. Monsters lay beyond, scattered, broken, and murdered. To him, it was the most vicious scene he had ever witnessed. Unfortunately, to Sith and the others, it looked pixilated.

 

“What happened!?” Sephira asked in shock, knowing that it was probably much scarier to Ryou than to herself. Sith's frown grew worse, her look grew more grim.

 

“Falnika decided to entertain herself, it looks like,” she growled, “She's going to destroy everything in the entire world!” Malik's lips thinned. Sith was furious, and for once, he wanted to help her. She knew much more about the other worlds surrounding theirs than he did; if she was sure the world was in danger, he knew it was.

 

“Come on, then. Let's go on before that happens,” he told the older woman. She nodded, and wasted little time walking them through the cave. It was a short walk. The cavern ended abruptly, and took them outside, through the back of the mountain passage. The tension in the air had lessened as Ryou's team walked outside, but it didn't stop Yugi from glancing upward. They were right underneath the summit now.

 

“Think Falnika will come back?” Yugi whispered in worry. Sith's grim visage softened. She didn't like the terror in the young boy's voice. Bakura, however, shook his head. He knew evil far better than that.

 

“No. She's having way too much fun taunting Sith,” the old thief said darkly, “If anything, she's probably not going to show for a while.” He didn't say the next part, but Sith knew it: she wouldn't be back until she had gotten something from Aeon.

 

The exit was in clear view, but Sith didn't leave the mountain straight away. Malik had seen something glimmer in a faint crevice, and after some pleading, finally got Sith to let them see what it was. They weren't disappointed. It was a sparkling, red box, locked at the front with a sparkle of gold coming from within. Worldwide, it was known well for what it was: a treasure chest. Sith looked mildly intrigued. She had never seen one out in the open before. Malik merely grinned when he saw it.

 

“Is that… treasure!?” he asked excitedly, eyes shining as he tried to break the box open, “Oh, holy Ra! Treasure!!! What is it?! The Scales of Anubis, maybe!?” Everyone looked at him flatly as Ryou opened the box up. The light brightened for a second, and then disappeared as the treasure hovered over the box. It was… a bastard sword? Ryou frowned. That wasn't good. He could only use a gun, and Malik his fists. Only Yugi could use a sword, and only a one-handed one, at that. Sith perked an amused brow as she opened the menu.

 

“None of you can use it,” she stated flatly. Malik's mouth dropped. A useless sword! He had never heard of such a thing!

 

“This day really sucks!” he yelled, kicking the box again, “I hate this! I hate this world, I hate this game, I hate this Mystic, and I hate my life!” Sith was glad he wasn't next to her or she'd have hit him. To her, he was being absolutely ridiculous. The sword wasn't entirely useless. Almost every weapon meant something. She just had to understand its meaning.

 

“Did it ever occur to you that you might get another ally?” she asked him calmly, almost sarcastically. Malik stopped screaming and looked up at her. Honestly, he didn't think there were allies on that godforsaken world; the people back in South Figaro had said many warriors had already died. He shrugged.

 

“They'd better be a strong ally or someone gets to die,” he mumbled, stuffing his hands in his pockets as Ryou and Yugi went to leave. Taking just one more look at the mountain, Ryou had a feeling what Sith just said held more value than Malik was taking. Another ally… but who could help them now?

 

“So, where do we go after we blow this craphole to hell?” Malik asked, as they stopped again for Sith to get her bearings straight. The fields beyond stretched for some time, but the ranges blocked them in on nearly all sides. And the storm had only abated temporarily; it was still quite dark out, and the clouds looked ominous above. Ryou looked up at Sith. She looked worried now.

 

“Sith, do you remember?” he asked her. She nodded.

 

“There's a secret hideout among these fields,” she said, “We're not the only ones fighting against Kefka, or whoever took his place. There's a secret liberation called the Returners, and they…”

 

“Returners!? Are you kidding me!?” Malik cut her off abruptly, brows creased, “Like I'm going to trust in a group called the Returners.” Sith's look turned flat. She wanted nothing more than to smack his face off right then. Only the fact that he was in a different world kept her from doing so. Shaking her head, she put a hand to her throbbing temples.

 

“Either you trust them or I'll kill you and keep you dead until you're safe,” she told him sternly, and sighed as the screen flashed, “I'm not in the mood for…”

 

“Why won't these fucking birds LEAVE US ALONE!?” Bakura screamed, suddenly cutting Sith off. She jumped and realized that as she spoke, her team had gotten into a battle again. And almost unbelievably ironic, the monsters were giant hawks from the summit beyond. Her eyes widened in absolute disbelief. Someone somewhere was just laughing at her.

 

“This has got to be the worst… Bakura, what are you DOING!?” Bakura had grabbed the second controller before she even had a chance to react, and forced Yugi to burn everything with fire. If he hoped to achieve a DOA, he was sadly disappointed. Yugi barely did fifty damages a piece.

 

“DAMN IT ALL TO HELL! THEY'RE INVINCIBLE!” Bakura screamed again. This time, Sith lunged and bowled him to the ground, pinning him as she had Ryou unleash a Bolt spell. That did the trick. In about one minute, they gained another level. Malik could only grin as he learned a new Blitz technique, courtesy of Sabin's lesson.

 

“Oh yeah! Let's see those sons of bitches stop us now!” he declared, flexing his muscles. Hana and Sephira whistled with admiration, but Sith wasn't impressed. All she had to do was kick him and he'd crumble to the ground like the sack of crap she thought he was. She laughed. It was mocking.

 

“Be careful what you say, or you'll find a spear wedged up your ass,” she warned, but said nothing more, even as Malik returned her words with a very obscene hand gesture. She chose to ignore him; at that moment, an opening to another cave was coming into view, and she was sure that meant one of two things: they'd advance the game or they might find some treasure in a cave. Whichever it was, it'd help them.

 

By the time they reached the cave entrance, the rain started again, albeit very, very lightly. And they found that there was someone outside of the cave, guarding their entrance. He was an old man, somewhere in his late fifties, wearing a red robe over a green tunic and gold breeches. His hair looked not unlike a lion's mane; if Malik hadn't known better, he'd guess the man looked insane. He stared distantly toward the ranges around them, but Ryou noticed he wasn't even looking at them specifically. Malik intended to fix that as he strode up toward the man, clearing his throat.

 

“Excuse us, good sir. We're looking to enter your cave and escape the rain. May we?” he asked in what Sith was sure was false politeness, and when the man didn't answer, he continued, “…sir? Can you move, please?” The man made no reply. Malik blinked, and the three of them waited for something to happen. Even Sith looked moderately confused now; obviously this wasn't supposed to happen, either. Finally, though, Malik lost his temper as he screamed, “WHAT THE HELL'S WRONG, OLD FART!? MOVE IT ALREADY!”

 

“If you are true allies, then do proceed,” the man finally answered slowly, “Otherwise… leave.” He looked directly at Ryou this time, and the boy's face blanched. Allies? Allies of what, he wondered. Knowing Malik would only make the situation worse, he took over and pushed Malik aside.

 

“Sir, we're searching for the Returners,” Ryou explained, “Do you… know…” He stopped when he saw the old man's eyes gleam in sudden anger, and he took out an old, pewter rod. He aimed for Ryou, but didn't strike. Yet.

 

“And why would you be looking for that!?” he suddenly demanded harshly, “Be you from the Empire!?” Ryou yelped and stepped away as the rod was swung, but Malik caught it and promptly smashed it into two, throwing the pieces on the ground. Then he glared at the old man.

 

“Do we LOOK like we're in the Empire!?” he yelled, throwing his arms up, “We don't even know what the Ra-damned empire is let along being part of it! But, hey, if you want to kill us, get in line!” The old man seemed relatively shaken, and this time Sith forced Malik to stop before he gave the man a heart attack. Her voice was a force Malik didn't want to push.

 

“Stop it! That's the leader of the Returners!” she cried out, and when Malik stopped mid-rush, looking up at her, she continued to the old man, “Bannon, we're not part of the Empire. We need your help!” The old man, Bannon, looked up into the screen as well, and his eyes widened. He had never seen a screen like that before; his world had no electricity. But more importantly, he had never seen an Esper, either. Not the monsters native to his world, but an actual, living, breathing Esper standing before him. Or above him, to be technical.

 

“An… a… you… Esper,” he gasped, now visibly shaking with fear, “My… my goodness! I… I had heard rumors… of another race known as Espers… but you…”

 

“You know about Espers, too?” Ryou inquired, and began to understand why Falnika may have chosen this world to conquer, “And Mystics?”

 

“Yes. We know of both races, though many scarcely believe it to be more than myth,” Bannon said, and shook his head, “But enough on that. Come. There is much to speak of. We can help you.” Ryou blinked. That was an awfully quick and convenient change of heart, but he didn't complain. They followed Bannon into the cave, and he led them through a winding passage into a chamber that served as his parlor. There, they sat in oak chairs as he took a pot of tea off of a spit, pouring himself a cup. When he sat, he remained silent for several minutes.

 

“As you can see, a Mystic has terrorized our world and thrown open a gate into yours,” he finally said darkly, sipping his tea, “Not only our world. Multiple worlds connected thinly by magical traces to ours are being affected as well, and many important figures are disappearing at an alarming rate… even Kefka could not have survived the evil we've encountered.” Sith's eyes widened. It was no wonder, then, that they couldn't find the fool before.

 

“Kefka is… gone?” she asked, her voice soft and terrified. Bannon nodded.

 

“We believe so, and aside from him, many others from these other worlds have disappeared in an attempt to stop her,” he replied, and added, “Sith Winchester, we need you as much as you need us.” Sith frowned, and quickly told him how she couldn't enter his world even if she had the choice. She no longer had magic. He listened patiently, but said nothing on the matter. Something told her he knew more than he let on. When she finished, Sith gave him a suspicious look.

 

“As you hear, I'm also affected by these Mystics… but that begs the question,” she began slowly, “How do you know of me?” Bannon slipped her a sly smile beneath his tea cup.

 

“You are well known by all of Oblivion,” he told her, “The Espers on this world know of you, and have spoken of you as being the `one who created this.' Many eagerly await the day you come to aid them in escaping from this world, back to a world called Nesce.” Sith looked chagrinned now, and furiously, she shook her head. There was nothing she could do for them, and quite honestly, she wasn't sure she wanted to do anything for them. She had no magic because of their laws, and had been hunted as a criminal by them as well. Malik risked a glance toward her, and felt sympathy for the older woman. He turned back to Bannon.

 

“There's the problem with getting to these Espers,” he said simply, shrugging, “All passage is blocked by Falnika's men. We can't get back or go forward.” Bannon, however, wasn't convinced of that. He sly smile never faded. Sith dreaded it, knowing what was coming next. He didn't even need to speak. Already, she was shaking her head.

 

“They're not going through that, Bannon,” she said firmly, unyieldingly, “Not now. Not without help.” Malik raised a brow. For once, he had no idea what the hell she was even speaking of. He looked from her, to Ryou, and to Bannon. Bannon knew, as expected.

 

“What can't we handle!?” Malik demanded impatiently, and Bannon chuckled.

 

“Our secret weapon against the Empire,” the old man replied, and got out of his seat slowly, “The Lete River. It's a rapid that winds all through the Serpent Trench and dumps east of Narshe in the Narshe Bay.” Sith tried to protest, but Bannon held up a hand and simply said, “If you want them out, you have no choice.” Sith promptly shut her mouth, silently cursing the man to death. Ishtar looked at her, raising a worried brow. She was beyond angry again.

 

“Tell me he's the ally you were mentioning,” the spirit said, and Bannon laughed hysterically. In a normal game, he might have been, but this was no game. Not any longer. He shook his mane of hair.

 

“No. In my old age, it's best I do not attempt this,” he replied calmly, “If I were to die, the Returners would crumble. Our last defenses against the Empire would be lost.”

 

“WHAT EMPIRE ARE YOU EVEN TALKING ABOUT!?” Malik yelled furiously, standing up so suddenly that he pushed his chair back, “Your world's going to die! There is no fucking empire anymore! Why are you even worried about them when a Mystic is trashing the place!” Sith glared furiously at Malik, and he realized he stepped too far. He clamped his mouth, and Sith turned quickly to Bannon. There was a level of pleading to her Ryou had never heard before. And hoped he'd never hear again.

 

“Bannon, I beg of you, help us!” she exclaimed, “I can do nothing. I'm an Esper with no magic! Surely, you must be able to help us!” Bannon's expression softened. He knew her pain. He had once been a magician himself, and in his elder age, had begun to lose the remnants of his spells. He smiled gently.

 

“I can help you,” he told her, and walked toward the back room, turning on a bright light, “Come. I know who your next ally is, Ryou Bakura.” Ryou's eyes widened. A new ally! He, Malik, and Yugi wasted no time. They followed Bannon into the back room. It was a large, dark chamber with bookcases on the far north wall, and a single chair to the right. There was a seal in the center; inactive for now, but Bannon knew how to get it working and summon their ally from the nether planes. He lit a candle, shedding a paltry light in the center of the room. It cast long, intimidating shadows on the craggy walls.

 

“Who will their next ally be!?” Hana whispered, as Sephira saw her phone go off. She looked at the caller ID. And frowned.

 

“Someone strong, hopefully,” the younger girl said, and cursed, “Hana, that's my mom. We have to go.” Hana cursed, too. She wanted to see this out, but both knew better than to stay past curfew. They both stood, and bid Sith a farewell. But when they reached the door, Yami stopped them.

 

“Sith, Bakura, Ishtar, and I will escort them,” he said to the older woman, “With gates to that other world open, who knows what could be waiting here. It's not safe.” Sith glanced back and nodded gravely. She couldn't deny the truth of his statement, as much as she hated admitting it. She turned back to the television screen.

 

“Good luck out there,” she said to Yami, and when she heard the door close, she said to Bannon, “Get on with it.” Ryou snorted. That was rude. But Bannon didn't object. He lit two more candles, fully illuminating the seal. There was a sword across a shield. It looked… vaguely familiar, but Ryou didn't know where. Bannon knelt down.

 

“Be patient, Sith Winchester,” he murmured, but she couldn't hear him. Her eyes focused instead on the seal. And they glowed. Ryou looked up and gulped, seeing the intensity in the older woman's eyes. She recognized the seal!

 

“S-Sith!?” Ryou called, but she didn't speak. Malik nudged him and pointed to Bannon, who was lighting another candle in the center of the seal. It glowed golden now; the sword was erupting into purple.

 

“Look familiar?” the blonde boy whispered, and Ryou couldn't deny the statement. The sword in the seal looked like Zealacht. He began to understand now just what Bannon was getting to. No wonder Sith was so angry.

 

“Sword and shield, work thy power. Bring your master to this hour. Sword and shield, work thy power. Bring your master to this hour,” Bannon chanted, his voice throwing itself all around the chamber. Ryou shivered. There should have been no echo within the room, but the old man's voice seemed to be radiating from unseen figures all around them. Wind rippled; the flames of the candles danced melodically, casting long shadows over the walls.

 

“Nice effects,” Malik said, looking around as the wind slowly calmed, “Did it do anything?” Ryou's lips thinned. The wind died… but only for a minute. It whirled up again, this time blowing out every candle in the room, throwing it into darkness. Ryou heard the crashing of thunder, heard things crashing and slamming into the ground, but dared not look to see what was going on in his world. Was it his world? He could no longer tell where the noises came from; they seemed to come from every direction at once.

 

“SITH!!” Yugi screamed, realizing at once that, paling to the thunder, was the older woman's shriek of agony as a blast hit her. It was a blast so luminous, it brightened the room instantly, the roar of the storm blocking all other sounds out. But Sith was there. Sith was there, with all of them. And she looked as she had, in the many dreams Ryou saw her in: Blue buttoned overcoat, with black pants ending at the knees in armored shins that not quite hid her boots. A yellow cape adorned her shoulders, and on her hip was Zealacht. She looked, quite frankly, terrified. Then, of course, she looked around and saw Ryou and Malik were by her side, holding her up.

 

“What the…” she began, and then glared at Bannon, “Whoa. Wait a minute! I am not becoming involved like this! You helped no one! This is what they wanted!” She pushed Malik and Ryou aside, grabbing the old man by the collar, her eyes flashing red, “Why in hell would you do this!?” Bannon chuckled, and with a whack of his staff, removed Sith as she stumbled back.

 

“Because you can mend the gateway and save us,” he said simply, and walked toward the door back to the parlor, “I've done what I can. The rest is up to you.” Then, he closed the door. Sith's mouth dropped. That was it. That was it? Now she was stuck in this world, too, with no idea what she could do. She shook her head. This couldn't have been happening. Yet, when she looked again, she was still beside Ryou.

 

“Damn it. I didn't think he'd summon Sith to help us,” Malik said, after a moment of utter silence. Sith just hung her head. She knew what Malik was actually saying. He glanced at her sympathetically and said, “There's got to be something we can do, right?”

 

“Getting home sounds good, but can we even move if you're here?” Yugi asked her worriedly, looking up at the older woman. She closed her eyes again. To her, this couldn't be worse. Without her magic, stuck in a corrupt world, there wasn't much she could do to help anyone. But she had one thing she did need to do, at the very least: find Aeon. He was in this world.

 

“…yes,” she said, realizing she had just walked forward of her own volition, “We need to get you three back home. No doubt that your families are indeed worried, and this is a war you shouldn't be involved in. Not like this.”

 

“What of you?” Ryou asked her, not missing that she had said nothing of returning herself. She looked at him squarely. Then she unsheathed Zealacht.

 

“I have to find Aeon,” she replied quietly, and looked away, “I have to. He's not only my friend, he is one of my closest companions, Ryou. I can't leave him here, not if I've been sent here myself.” Ryou nodded. He understood that, and as much as he hated Aeon and the blonde man, he knew he couldn't stop Sith if she went to find them. He turned to Malik.

 

“In the normal flow of this game… what used to be a game, the Lete River would lead us to the next stage. We have to go there,” he said, and Malik agreed, “It's going to be tough. Malik, are you up to it?” Malik snorted, and then laughed. That seemed like such a redundant thing to ask. What choice did he have? He could either go on or die in this cavern with a cantankerous old man. He'd rather die alongside his friends. He slapped his fists together.

 

“I'm up to some ass-kicking, if that's what you're asking,” he replied excitedly, and then clapped Sith on the back, “Don't worry, Sith. We'll take care of everything.” She grumbled. She didn't like being reminded of her semi-permanent handicap. Huffing, she sheathed Zealacht and strode forward, toward a far exit near the southern wall. It was lit just barely by a torch, and they could hear rushing water. The Lete River was behind there.

 

“I'm not powerless,” she told them bluntly, “I'm over three thousand. I know how to defend myself. Just do your best to protect yourselves, and we'll be fine.” Then she slipped through the exit and beyond the range of the torch, leaving the three in silence. They stared at each other, each trying to guess exactly what Sith might've been feeling. Yugi gave up first; he took to following her instead. But Malik and Ryou weren't as excited to move forward yet.

 

“What do you think?” Ryou asked his friend, as they stood in the dark chamber, the single candle in the center casting dim glows around them. Malik shrugged.

 

“I think she's close to losing it, buddy,” he replied seriously, and frowned, “Think about it. She's lost her magic, she's losing her sister to me, and now she's lost her best friend. How'd you feel?” Ryou looked away. He would have gone mad at that. On top of that, she was about to lose herself by marrying him, however far away that was. And he didn't miss that she didn't appear in the least excited for it. She barely smiled at the mention of it. But he pushed that aside, and told himself it was just stress. She'd be better when things calmed down… wouldn't she?

 

“I don't want her losing her mind,” Ryou stated after a minute, “Come on. Let's go and help her find Aeon.” Malik gave a firm nod. Together, they left the chamber and headed through the tunnel. The Lete River was a stone's throw away.

 

-----------------------------(End Chapter)

 

After surviving Mt. Koltz, Ryou and his team find the Returners Hideout and receive less than satisfactory aid from its leader. And that aid comes from Sith herself. But with that aid comes new problems, for she still has no magic. Can she help them defeat the Mystic without so much as a single lightning bolt? Can she find Aeon? Can they survive the Lete River? Find out next chapter, so click that Review button!