It was over. The duel was finished, and he had won. He had won back not only his hard earned title, but a chance to rescue his cherished little brother... so why didn't he feel happy about it?
Frowning, Seto Kaiba stepped down off the precipice of the castle tower with his dueling disk. If he could have won this game without resorting to risking his own safety and playing on Yugi Moto's conscience, or whoever Yugi became when he was dueling, he would have done it. but Mokuba's soul and life were at take!. That senile old fool, Solomon Moto,
had already been around a good long time and had his best years behind him, but
his little brother had only just barely begun to live!. He wasn't going to let
anyone take away Mokuba's future!. And he wasn't going to let anyone take him
away from him!. There would be no regrets!.
Seto glared across the tower
at Yugi who was now on his hands and knees, tears streaming down his cheeks,
sobbing uncontrollably about how he couldn't control that other presence inside
of him and that he was so afraid of it that he was going to give up dueling
forever. Unbelievable!. In spite of all that confidence and big talk about the
Heart of the Cards, the porcupine headed midget was a spineless quitter, even
when it came to his own family!. Didn't he care about his precious grandfather
at all?.
Naturally, the runt's little fan club was gathered around him,
trying to soothe his broken ego
"I'm sorry... sorry about your grandpa,"
Tea said, her own eyes rimming with tears. "But you did the right thing. You
couldn't hurt another person, even to save him. He wouldn't want to be saved
that way."
Disgusted, Kaiba picked up his briefcase containing the
dueling disks. "Then I guess he got what he wanted. If Yugi had done what needed
to be done, he would be entering the
castle, not me. But he was to weak to follow through on his play."
"He
spared you!," Tea snapped, standing up and turning to face him. "Kaiba, he
showed you compassion, which is more then you deserve!."
Seto blinked,
but made no other sign to show his surprise at the girl's outburst. "He lost the
game," he stated. In truth, it was the only thing he could think of to say to
that.
"The game?!." Gardener
cried out in disbelief. "Yugi may have lost one lousy Duel Monsters game, but at
least he hasn't lost his heart!. Not
like you, Seto Kaiba!. You spend so
much time with your machines you've forgotten what being human is
about!."
Seto just glared back at Tea in anger!. He wanted to slap her
face!. To shake her and scream "Shut up!.
You're wrong!. I'm not doing this for myself!. I'm doing this for Mokuba!. Don't
you understand?!. I can't lose him like I lost my parents!. I just can't!."
Instead, he bit his lip and braced himself for what he knew would be another one
of her unbearably mind- numbing friendship rants
The brown haired girl
passionately put a hand to her heart. "Yugi has a heart, Kaiba!. Yugi has us!.
Friends who'll stand by him no matter weather he wins or loses some lousy game!.
And what do you have, Seto Kaiba?.
What do you have at the end of the day?. Tell me!," she challenged. "Tell me!."
Kaiba gritted his
teeth, eyes narrowing dangerously. How dare she?!. Didn't she know that was the
whole damned point?!. Even if Yugi
Moto lost his grandfather, he would still have his heart, his parents, his
family
He would still have his friends and his faithful little fan club... Yugi
would carry on... But
Mokuba
He was all Seto really had
and without him, he
wasn't sure he himself could go on living
The young CEO clenched the
handle of his briefcase in silent fury. "I have all that I need!," he growled,
snatching the gold colored star chips from the air with his free hand. Then,
without so much as a glance at Yugi and the others, he spun around and headed
towards the gateway that led inside the castle
"I won't listen to them. It's not
true..." He told himself, breathing heavily. "I wasn't wrong to do what I did... They
don't know anything about me or my brother... They don't know what we've been
through..."
Even though Seto tried his best to block it out as he
drew farther away from the group, he could hear that mutt, Joey Wheeler's voice
following him... "Yeah, keep foolin' yourself, Kaiba!. Yugi's twice the man
you'll ever be!."
Alone in his
castle room, Maxamillion Pegasus stared brokenheartedly at the portrait of the
beautiful woman on his wall... It was so unfair
Yugi Moto would get his
grandfather back, and the Kaiba brothers would be together again
but Cecilia
he had not even gotten to spend one year of marriage with her before she was
taken from him
"Forgive me, my love," Pegasus whispered as he lowered
his eyes to the three cards on the table. the cards that held the souls of
Solomon Moto, Mokuba and Seto Kaiba. "I have failed you. "
He would have
been willing to do anything to bring his beloved wife back, but he was a man of
his word
After freeing the souls of both Solomon Moto and Seto Kaiba, his hands
clenched the edge of the table in frustration as he looked once again at
Cecilia's portrait, then back at the last remaining soul card
Mokuba's
Everyone else would be reunited with their loved ones, but he could never see
Cecilia again
Wait
Only Yugi had
won the duel, correct?. Only Yugi was
now the King of Games, not Kaiba!. A
cold smile spread across the white haired man's face
He may be honor bound to
release little Yugi's grandfather, but what right did Seto Kaiba of all people have to be
happy while he himself suffered from grief?
Pegasus's eyes narrowed and his
smile widened. If he couldn't have Cecilia, then why should Kaiba have his
precious little brother back?
Chuckling cruelly to himself, Pegasus took the
card that held the soul of young Mokuba Kaiba
"I told you, Kaiba boy."
he leered. "I told you what would happen if you lost the duel. Yugi and that
strange alter-ego of his may have the soul of his grandfather back, they've
earned it."
He then approached the opened tower window
"But you, you've lost so much more then just
this duel."
With those words, Pegasus gleefully tore apart Mokuba's soul card,
piece by piece, letting the strips flutter out the window, carried away by the
wind
"Your baby brother is gone forever now, Kaiba boy," he taunted. "He's the
only reason you fought to keep Kaiba Corporation anyway, isn't he?."
It
was then that his heart leapt happily with a sudden realization!. With Mokuba
gone, Seto Kaiba would be completely broken!. He would have no other reason to
fight for the company!. It would be all to easy to take over Kaiba Corporation
and dispose of him!.
Lost in the joy of this idea, the Duel Monsters
creator never noticed the slight figure, with hair as white as his own, that had
been watching him all along
"Not such a man of your word after all, are
you, Pegasus?," came a dangerously soft voice from behind him
Startled,
Pegasus spun around to see Yugi's young friend, Bakura, standing in the doorway
to the tower room, with a chilling expression in his eyes and a menacing smile
The millennium ring he wore around his neck shone as it caught in the late
afternoon sun
At first
there was only silence
darkness... a cold kind of stillness... Then the world
around him grew steadily brighter.... He felt a heeling warmth run through
him...
Slowly, Seto Kaiba opened his eyes
He let out a soft moan and
blinked as he realized where he was.... back in Pegasus's underground dungeon...
He remembered... He'd lost the duel to that egomaniac who'd practically murdered
his little brother right in front of his eyes... He remembered Pegasus's
taunting voice as he took his own soul from him
But he was alive now
He was back in his body
Somehow, Yugi must have defeated Pegasus and won back all the souls he'd taken
and if his soul had been restored,
then that
that must mean
"Mokuba." Seto whispered... Despite the fact
that it had obviously been that spiky haired runt, Yugi Moto, and his self
righteous little fan club who'd won this battle and not him, a smile of both
relief and hope spread across his face... If he was alive again, then his beloved
little brother must be too!. And that was all that mattered right now!. Slowly
and painfully, he rose to his feet and staggered out of the opened cell door
"Gotta'
find... Mokuba
"
If only Seto Kaiba had known... If only he had
seen the younger, ten year old version of himself, still sitting dejectedly
against the stone wall of the jail cell, his arms around his legs, shivering
with both cold and unbearable grief
If only he had heard the younger version of
himself, crying and sobbing as if he were lost, and all alone in the
world(1)
"How is
he?." Tea asked in concern as she studied Mokuba's unresponsive face...
Something was wrong, she could feel it
Bakura, back to his normal state,
felt the neck and wrist of the little boy in his arms... He then looked back up
at Tea, Yugi, Joey and Tristin and shook his head
"He's not coming
to."
Tea covered her mouth with her hand and Joey bit his lip while
Tristin bowed his head... Yugi shook his head vigorously in denial. "No, this
isn't right. He can't be. Pegasus promised to restore those souls." Tears
threatened to form in his eyes. What if the Duel Monsters creator had gone back
on his word after all?. What if his Grandpa was in this same state?
Joey
knelt down by Bakura and Mokuba and gently shook the little one's shoulder.
"Mokuba, come on, kid. You gotta' wake up. Your brother's waiting for
ya'."
"He was ready to die for you." Tea whispered, brushing a tear from
her cheek. "Please, Mokuba. You can't leave him."
But it was of no use...
In spite of everyone's efforts, the child remained lifeless
Tears
streaming down his cheeks, Bakura gently leaned the boy against the balcony
railing
"I... I don't understand..." he whispered. "Pegasus... he
promised..."
"Hey," Joey said suddenly, turning to Yugi, Tea and Tristin.
"Didn't we see just two empty soul
cards in Pegasus's room?."
Yugi nodded slowly. "Yes, but Pegasus took three souls. Grandpa's, Kaiba's and
"
His eyes widened as he put the pieces together.
"He wouldn't!" Tea cried
in disbelief, choking back a sob. "He promised to restore all those souls if Yugi won, not just two!."
Joey clenched his hands
tightly. "Guess he wasn't as good a loser as he said he'd be." For the first
time, he actually sympathized with Seto Kaiba. He knew what it was like to love
a younger sibling so much you'd do anything for them. He didn't know what he'd
do if he ever lost his Serenity in this way.(2)
Just then, there came the
sound of footsteps from a nearby hallway, and a familiar, husky voice calling
"Mokuba?. Mokuba, it's Seto!. Where are you, little brother?."
Kaiba soon
approached the balcony overlooking Pegasus's dueling arena
Yugi, Joey, Tristin
and Bakura were gathered together in a cluster, as if trying to hide
something
"Yugi," Seto coolly studied the smaller boy in front of him.
"I take it you're the new champion now?." Not that it made a difference now
anyway. Just as long as Mokuba was alright.
Yugi and Joey looked at each
other. "Yeah," Wheeler answered quietly. "Yug' beat Pegasus
but..."
Seto
crossed his arms with a tight smirk. "As much as I would have liked to have
crushed the moron myself, it doesn't matter as long as Mokuba is restored. Now
where is he?."
"Kaiba," Yugi said gently. "There's something you should
know
Pegasus... He..."
"Moto!.
Where's my little brother?!." Seto snapped.
For a moment everyone was
silent... then Yugi, Joey, Tristin and Bakura all stepped away to reveal Tea,
holding a still form in her arms...
Kaiba's eyes widened. "Mokuba
No..."
"I'm so sorry
" she whispered, her eyes glistening with tears.
"He... He never came to
"
Seto reached out and gently took the limp,
feather-light body from Tea... "Mokuba
No..." He sank to his knees, cradling
his little brother in his arms... "No... You can't leave me like this
Please...
wake up... Please..."
But the child's eyes remained closed... His body
lifeless and cold to the touch...
"Don't leave me... Please... I need
you..." Kaiba continued to plead, his voice shaking
but his heart sunk as he
realized it was useless
Swallowing back a grief-stricken sob, he held Mokuba
closer and tenderly brushed a few stray black bangs away from his pale face...
"I'm so sorry, kiddo. I just keep on failing you... Please, forgive me
" It was
true!. This was all his fault!. If he
hadn't left Mokuba alone... If he had been a better duelist
If he had been a
better brother!.
"But there's
nothing to forgive," Bakura said softly. "It isn't your fault,
Kaiba."
"Yeah," Joey added. "It's that cheater, Pegasus!. He's the one
who broke his word!."
Yugi, Tea and Tristin all nodded slowly in
agreement
But Seto neither listened nor cared what any of them had to
say... He shut his eyes, trying to force back the tears, and rested Mokuba's
head against his own heart
"Kaiba," Yugi said gently, putting a hand on
the taller boy's shoulder. "You tried your very best
You were willing to risk
everything to save him... I'm sure your brother knows that."
The young
CEO didn't even acknowledge the newly appointed King of Games. Instead, lowering
his head, he buried his face in Mokuba's hair so that Yugi and the others would
not see the tears he had proved to weak to keep from streaming down his face...
"Go away," he whispered harshly, without even bothering to shake Yugi's hand
off. "Just... Just go away
"
Yugi drew his hand away, eyes wide.
"Kaiba
"
But Tea gently touched his arm and shook her
head
"Maybe
Maybe we should leave him for a while
" Joey said
Tristin
and Bakura nodded in agreement
Reluctantly,
Yugi followed his friends out of Pegasus's castle, leaving Seto, still cradling
Mokuba in his arms, alone with his grief
He remained
there for several more moments
Unable to stay, but unwilling to leave
Finally,
he gently laid the child down
Tenderly, he reached out to touch his little
brother's soft, peaceful face one last time before taking off his dark blue coat
and carefully placing it over him
"So he
hasn't been to school all week, huh?," Joey asked as he, Yugi, Tea and the
others made their way home from school.
The smaller boy shook his head
sadly. "No, he's been taking Mokuba's death pretty hard." Yugi had been trying
his best to get back into his old routine after returning from Pegasus's
island... been trying his best to be happy now that he had his grandpa back and
Joey's sister would be able to see perfectly again
but...
"That poor
little boy," Tea sighed, running her fingers through her brown hair. "He loved
his big brother so much."
"And Kaiba loved him too," Bakura added. "You
could tell. Why else would he be so desperate as to risk getting thrown off the
castle tower?."
Tristin nodded sadly. He had done his best to protect
Mokuba from being taken over by the evil spirit within Bakura so that his soul
might be restored to him
but it had all been in vain
Wheeler bit his
lip as he adjusted his school bag. "I hate to say this, but as much as I enjoyed
watching Kaiba get his butt kicked that time he took Yug's grandpa, I kinda'
feel sorry for him now... I mean... I think that kid was the only family he
really had, ya' know?."
"The only friend too," Tea added softly
Though
she detested having to admit it to herself, a small part of her actually
regretted what she'd said to Kaiba on the castle tower
Joey, Tristin,
Tea and Bakura each arrived at their homes along the way until Yugi was the only
one left
As he continued on his way home, the small boy fingered the
puzzle around his neck... He hadn't heard from the ancient spirit who called
himself Yami since they'd left the island
Every time he tried to call on the
spirit of the Millennium Puzzle to talk about what had happened with Kaiba and
Mokuba he would not answer
Was it him, or the subject of the Kaiba brothers he
was avoiding?
"Yami?," Yugi
tried again, calling out in his mind. "Yami, are you there?. Please answer
me?."
He was so used to being ignored by now that he was almost
startled at the deep voice
which
answered... "Yugi, you've been calling
for me every day for the past week. You know I want nothing more to do with Seto
Kaiba."(3)
"I know," Yugi answered. "But Yami, please, I have to talk to
you."
"Yugi, your grandfather
is restored, your friend's sister will have her sight rectified. Even Kaiba
himself has his soul back. Can you not be satisfied with that?."
The
smaller boy's eyes widened. For the second time since that duel on the castle
tower he was shocked by the spirit's callousness!. "But Mokuba was just a little boy!. Only ten
years old!. He was all Kaiba had in the world!. Kaiba was willing to risk
getting hurt or even killed for him!. Doesn't that entitle them to some
compassion?."
"Compassion?.
And what 'compassion' did they show your grandfather, Yugi?. Tell me that!. If
Kaiba is senseless and foolish enough to risk his own death, it is no fault of
ours!."
Yugi lowered his head sadly. "But it wasn't Mokuba's fault what Kaiba did
to Grandpa."
"Yugi,"
Yami's voice came again. "I understand
you feel pity for your enemies, even people like Pegasus and Kaiba, but you must
not let that get in the way of your destiny!. Remember what Shadi said?. You are
the chosen one!. The fate of the entire world may be in your hands!. You cannot
let the death of one child get in the way of that."
Yugi brushed a
tear from his cheek. As much as he cared about his companion spirit of the
puzzle, he sometimes found it difficult to understand
him.
"You have
the most courageous and noble soul of anyone Ive ever seen," the spirit
continued before disappearing back into the millenium puzzle. "Why, in another time you could have been
Pharaoh, for you have the heart of a Pharaoh. Never forget that,
Yugi."
The small boy sighed sadly and continued to walk towards the
street that lead to his neighborhood
The Domino city cemetery had always
been an unhappy place for Yugi, as it reminded him of the day his grandmother
had died... He had always made sure to walk by it as fast as he could on his way
home
But this time, he recognized a familiar vehicle outside the
cemetery gates
Kaiba's limousine
Taking a deep breath, Yugi self-consciously
entered the cemetery
As there was noone else there today, Yugi could
easily pick out the tall, lone figure in the dark blue coat
Slowly, he
approached him
"Kaiba?
"
The taller boy did not even turn his head to
look at him... "What are you doing here, Yugi?."
"I saw your limo out in
front
and... I thought
" Here his voice trailed off as he noticed the small
headstone in front of them
Mokuba
Nozomi(4)
1993
2003
Also, there
were two older headstones next to it
Ichiro
Nozomi
1958 1998
Adina
Nozomi(5)
1963 1998
"Nozomi?,"
Yugi whispered in surprise.
Seto knelt down by the small headstone and
placed a delicate looking bouquet of white roses beside it
"It was our last
name before that tyrant, Gozaburo Kaiba, adopted us." He then got to his feet,
fingering the card- shaped locket he wore around his neck... "I think my little
brother would have liked to have kept it."
The smaller boy studied Kaiba
for a moment
"I'm sure he would have too... I... I'm sorry..."
At this,
Seto gave a bitter kind of laugh and shook his head in disbelief. "Oh, you're
sorry, are you?. What for?. You have your grandfather back, you're the new King
of Games, and, from what I've heard, you've got some kind of special destiny in
store for you, not that I believe in that garbage anyway."
"Kaiba," Yugi
put a hand on the taller boy's shoulder again. "You can't just give up on
everything just because I
"
But Seto roughly shook his hand off and spun
around angrily. "Don't you understand, Moto?!," he snapped. "You've won, alright?!. Go!. Take your title and go back to your
grandpa and your fan club!. Just leave me be!." His face hardened, his eyes
narrowed and Yugi could see his shoulders trembling in grief and anger. "I've got nothing more for you or Pegasus to
take!."
"But that's not true!," Yugi protested. "You haven't lost everything!. You haven't!."
Kaiba scoffed at that.
In response, he brought his hand back to the opened locket
With one sharp tug,
he tore it off, not even wincing from the pain...
Wide eyed, Yugi blinked
in disbelief
"Kaiba
You
You can't
"
Ignoring him, the young man tossed
the locket onto his little brother's grave. "It's like what your friend, Tea,
said, Yugi. You have a heart. You have friends... and I... I have nothing at the
end of the day
" He gave another half-hearted, bitter laugh. He never thought
he'd end up agreeing with Tea
Gardener of all people!.
Yugi knelt by the head stone and gazed down
at the sweet, innocent face in the locket
A dark haired child with a big,
hopeful smile and pair of bright, blue-gray eyes looked back at him
The
small boy then turned to watch the departing form of Seto Kaiba as he walked
away and exited the cemetery
"Kaiba," Yugi thought sadly as he
watched the limo drive away. "Tea was
wrong. You did have something at the end of the day... You had Mokuba
You still
do."