Shadows of Guilt (Rei no Kaado)

[mugenginga]

Yuugi's eyes widened as Souji and Minato spoke. That was possible but... if the Ring worked like the Puzzle, and it had shown signs of it by what Anpu had said, all tha would do was give Anpu full ownership of his body! He shook his head and Anzu looked towards him with extreme concern. Yuugi was almost to the point of panicking.

"He thinks that if he dies, it'll do something to Anpu! That's gotta be it! He's tried to sacrifice himself twice before, both because of Dark Games started by Zorc!"

"I don't get this very much, but are you saying it won't?"

"If Bakura-kun dies here, and what we think is right, it'll be completely pointless!"

Teddie had gone back to concentrating as Yuugi and Anzu spoke. There did seem to be a general direction... "Like I said, I think its this way! But this isn't a good place to just wander around in!"

"We can't just stand here, either!" Anzu stated.

"Teddie, we have to try. You can get us out from anywhere, right?"

"Sure..." Teddie seemed to shiver, "But the Shadows are really agitated..."

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Souji didn't like the sound of that at all. And for how self sacrificing he was... Bakura was an idiot. It was obvious he hadn't intended to end up in here, but the fact that he was actively trying to get himself killed like that was just absolutely stupid in his opinion. He looked back toward Teddie as the bear started concentrating again. Once Teddie spoke, Souji shook his head.

"We've got to do something. If it rains heavily enough tonight that the fog sets in, Bakura's as good as dead," Souji said. "We should at least look around first. If we can't find it today, we'll have to come back tomorrow."

Minato looked nervous. "Man, I really hate this place... uh, no offense Teddie."

[mugenginga]

Teddie nodded in a rather animated fashion (not that his construct meant it was possible to do much but) in regards to Souji's comments. Anzu looked rather pained and Yuugi seemed to be determined. They had to rescue Bakura, he didn't understand that all his death would likely do is get him killed. Teddie looked up in confusion as Minato apologized, and looked depressed.

"I don't like it like this either. Its much better without the fog..."

"If these Shadow things are what kills people, and they come with the rain, then we have to go whether they're upset or not!" Anzu said.

Teddie nodded, "I really think its that way."

----------

With as close to a confirmation as it had seemed they would get, Teddie headed out first. The layout was similar to before. Yuugi would have taken second to last to Saint Magician, but Anzu seemed insistant on walking next to him. He really wasn't in the mood to argue, and if it made her feel better it was probably okay. Minato was behind Souji, who was behind Teddie as the bear was the only one with any idea where they were going.

Anzu had reacted with surprise as they seemed to pass through a heat shimmer. Yuugi actually jerked a bit at it too. Saint Magician had tensed up, proving that while she seemed to have non-human abilities within the TV World, she wasn't a Shadow or any variation there of. The unique layout of the TV World meant that due to Teddie's fix, the next area they came into was the area they'd aimed for... an apartment hallway?

That was exactly what it looked like, though. A simple hallway that could have existed in any apartment complex in Japan. It was completely average, neither expensive or poor. Doors lined the hall in a normal distance from each other. The name plates were empty, and any attempt to open the doors would reveal them locked. If someone got the bright idea to try and kick them down, the doors would break to reveal walls behind them.

As would be expected of an apartment building, there was a single door at the end of the hall. This one was quite different from the others. For one, the nameplate was there, and there looked to be attempts to scratch the name out. Attempts that appeared to have been done with fingernails to the point of bleeding, if only in slight smears. The name contained the kanji for the surname Bakura. Over the door were various blockages. Chains, a few planks of wood, rope. They looked weak enough, even the chains seemed possible to remove if the rest got removed. It was a clear attempt to prevent anyone from getting in, but it seemed... lacking, almost. Like a solid attempt had been made, but it had fallen short in many ways.

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Once Teddie started leading the way, both Souji and Minato followed behind the bear, with Souji in front of Minato. As they approached what looked like a heat shimmer, Minato mused that it was probably the boundary between realities, which was confirmed as they passed through it. Minato jerked as well as the others did when they passed through the boundary, but Souji didn't visibly react.

The group continued following Teddie until they reached the hallway like area. Souji gave a wince as he saw everything covering the door.

"...That confirms it. He doesn't want us in," Souji said. He looked at the nameplate. "Even tried to scratch off the name on the nameplate so we couldn't tell whose apartment this was." And on that note, he got to work trying to tear off the wood planks.

"This would be easier if Kanji was here...." Souji groaned as he pulled off one of the planks. He placed it to the side and got to work on another one.

"I think him and Naoto had work today anyways," Minato said. "Need any help with that?"

"Nah, I've got it," Souji said as he pulled the second one off. Minato shrugged. The outside of this reality seemed normal, but then again...

[mugenginga]

"I don't think he wants anyone in..." Yuugi said. He walked foward, slipping past Minato and leaving Anzu where she was, "He tried to keep people away when he first showed up at my school, eventually to the point of dropping out..."

"Are you sure you don't need help?" Anzu said, cupping her hands a bit due to the person between her and the others.

The last plank hit the floor at that point, and if Souji looked closely he'd realize the rest could just be removed by lifting the rope and chains off various locations. Actually, if he looked at the rope and chains he'd realize something. The chain looked like a much larger version of what Yuugi kept the Pendant on, and the rope was of the same sort that the Ring was kept on...

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Souji tossed the last plank to the side and wiped away a bead of sweat as he examined the rope and chains. They both looked rather worn... he gave a side glance at Yuugi's puzzle. Same kind of chain that Yuugi had on his Puzzle. He got to work lifting the rope and chains away from the door, and placed it to the side.

"Right... let's go," Souji said. He opened the door and headed on in. Minato followed after him, taking out Messiah's card as he did so. He wanted to be careful, just in case.

[mugenginga]

The inside of the apartment wasn't all that different from the outside, actually. Yuugi found himself on edge upon entering, and as Anzu stepped in she rubbed her eyes. It looked... like Bakura's apartment, actually. She'd only been there once, as had most of the group, but it really did look like it. The first room was simply a walk in-area, as to be expected. And then she noticed the differences, and they came to her quickly from then on.

The area with shoes was the first thing she noticed. One shoe by itself looked to belong to an adult, and while Anzu could tell it was of a male brand, the others could miss it. It looked like it belonged to a businessman, except it was in horrible condition. Over used, broken and a bit sore. There were two other pairs, both feminine, that were... Anzu found her hand going to her mouth. They were horribly battered and there was clearly blood on on them and pooling beneath them. A final pair, oddly seperated far from the others, was absolutely pristine. Masculine, and they looked like they'd never been worn.

Yuugi had stopped and turned towards Anzu as she gasped. He looked down where she was looking and his eyes widened. He hadn't even seen the shoes, just stepping over them. From where they were standing, there were other things that could be seen about the apartment.

The kitchen looked well used, and there were dishes in the sink. Not clean, but not horribly messy either. The dining room was set for a dinner for four, but the seeting at one head of the table was over turned, and two of them were pretty much shattered... again with the blood. The living room had two pictures. One showed Bakura by himself, looking mildly depressed. The other image had four people. The tallest one was faded and hard to see, but clearly a male with blond hair.

There appeared to have once been two other people, both shorter, in the image. A cut-out that if looked at closely would reveal itself to be shaped like the Millenium Ring was over both of them, concealing their faces and with blood around the edges. The glass of the image was broken centered roughly around the cut out was, and some of the blood had seeped out and trailed down the edge of the glass. What was visible of the bodies would reveal both concealed people were female, and one looked to simply be in a feminine version of what Bakura was wearing. Bakura actually looked happy in the image, a stark contrast to the rest of it.

Yuugi found himself swallowing hard. The place at first glance was so normal, but there were all these disturbing details. Anzu was still just standing there, her hands covering her mouth. It was different than Yuugi's world, for sure, but there were aspects of it... what was the blood all about? Why were there these references to four people? SHe knew Bakura's father was always away on business, but what about the blood?

"We... should check the bedroom..." Yuugi pointed towards a closed door in the back. Attempts to open it would find it locked.

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Souji had gone past the shoes and made it to the dining room by the time he heard Anzu gasp. He'd been examining the chairs. One was overturned, two others looked like someone had taken a sledgehammer to them. The blood covering them was more than a bit unsettling, too. He walked over to where the shoes were and grimaced.

"Just like the chairs... one that's not quite right, two covered in blood," Souji said. "...but why just one of these?" He picked up the single businessman's shoe.

Minato had noticed the pictures on his way to the locked bedroom, actually. He was looking at both, and grimaced as he saw the cutout Rings covering two of the faces in the group picture.

"...Bakura," Minato mumbled. "I knew things were bad for him, but I never thought..." He looked up as Yuugi mentioned the bedroom. "Yeah, that's probably where he is, if this is his reality..." He moved to the bedroom door, and tried to turn the handle. He frowned. It was locked. "Hey! Bakura! Open up!"

[mugenginga]

Anzu had looked up as Yuugi timidly suggested they check the bedroom. She focused in time to see Souji pick up the single shoe, and found herself taking a step foward to stop him. However, he managed to do so with no more of the shoe touching the blood than before. Just a slight edge, and only a single drop of blood fell from it. She covered one hand, this time like she was about to get sick, but shook her head. She chose to pass the entry way on the side of the unworn shoes. Saint Magician did the same.

"I never met his mother, and his dad's always on business..." Yuugi said as he noticed the damaged family image, "But... does that mean...?"

Anzu shook her head and grabbed it, "No! I can't accept Dark Bakura would have killed his family! Besides, why would he? Didn't he just seal everyone else in those figures?"

Yuugi said nothing. It did seem out of character for Dark Bakura. Not Anpu, but Dark Bakura... then again, if they were creating issues... and wouldn't play one of those games... but Dark Bakura could seal people outside of the Dark Games. One of the powers of the Ring, right? So why...?

"I don't know, but we have to help him now," Yuugi said. Anzu looked sad but nodded.

Yuugi looked up towards the door as Minato yelled. Why was he trying so hard to keep them out!? He looked towards Souji, "Souji-kun, do Shadows know when someone enters their reality? I mean, Atem's spoke when we were in his..."

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Souji thought back to the other Shadows he'd encountered before, and nodded. "Yeah, I think they can tell when someone enters it. I think they have some degree of control over their worlds too..." His eyes widened and he turned toward Minato, who was still trying to open the door.

"Dammit! Bakura, we're trying to help you!" Minato yelled. He stepped back. "Gah! If you won't open up for us, then let's try the other tried and true method method of opening doors!" He held up Messiah's card and crushed it in his hand. There was a flash of light, and the shining white figure appeared in front of Minato. It held out one hand, and a large, golden arm appeared around that hand.

"Minato, don't!" Souji yelled. He yelled it a bit too late, though, as the golden hand smashed into the door. Nothing happened to the door, though, and instead Minato got sent flying, Messiah dissipating as he got thrown into a wall on the opposite side of the room.

"Ow..." Minato winced as he tried to stand up again.

[mugenginga]

Anzu's eyes had widened as the large white thing materialized in front of Minato. She found herself taking a step back, and her first thought went straight to the god cards Atem had often summoned. It wasn't anywhere near as big, but there was a similar feel from it. The summoned entity's arm seemed to cover itself in something golden and it punched at the door just as Souji shouted at him not to. Yuugi was able to duck down out of the way, but Anzu wasn't. Saint Magician's eyes widened and she shoved Anzu out of the way, the action making her unable to save herself. Minato ran into her, but the intertia meant they both flew into the opposite wall. Anzu hissed and grabbed her upper body in a pained hug as Saint Magician vanished.

"Anzu!"

"I'm fine..." she lied. She forced herself to stand up straight, "...what happened?"

"Saint Magician got hurt, and Ka are connected to their summoner! Its like Life Points!" Yuugi said, "Are you sure you're okay?"

Anzu gave a sincere and yet pained smile, "I'm fine, Yuugi."

Yuugi nodded, unconvinced, and walked over to the door. He looked over to make sure Minato was okay, but the teenager seemed to be. A little banged up, but able to recover. Yuugi put his hand on the door and thought for a moment, before deciding to knock.

"Bakura-kun, if you die it won't do any good! Anpu's in control of your body! He'll keep pretending to be you, using your body! You can't just give up! There won't be any way to stop him if you do!"

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Souji winced in sympathy as he looked over at Minato. He'd left a rather sizable dent in the wall. Minato finally managed to get to his feet again before heading back down the hallway again. Okay, he wasn't going to try that again. Which meant the only option they had left was trying to convince him through the door.

"Bakura, if you die here, it's not going to change anything. If anything, things are just going to get worse. I don't think Adachi even knows Anpu's pretending to be you, but I know that once he finds out, he'll probably kill Anpu," Souji said. "I know that might sound like a good thing to you, but it's not." He paused as Minato pushed past.

"Adachi really cares about you, Bakura! Enough that he'd go to these kind of lengths to save you from Anpu! If you die here, everything he's done for you will be for nothing!" Minato yelled. "You can't honestly want to die this badly!"

[mugenginga]

There was silence, as if they were talking to a wall. Anzu watched as the other three tried to convince Bakura to open the door. Or his Shadow. With all the talk, she wasn't sure where the difference lay. Teddie was in another room, having been distracted by something. He'd sensed a Shadow when Yuugi had yelled, but it had gone away again. He wasn't sure what to make of that when the feeling spiked again. He jerked his head up just as the door to Bakura's room clicked and slowly opened.

Yuugi had jerked his head up as the door pulled away from him. Anzu, still a little sore from the unexpected pain, gasped and jerked her head up as well. Standing about two feet back from the open bedroom door was what seemed to be Bakura. He was dressed in a bright orange jumpsuit that looked like what a prisoner might wear. It wasn't the most disturbing part. The most disturbing part was the large almost black area on his chest, the extent of it reaching to his knees and elbows. The edges and various splatters beyond the main area were of a lighter shade, and it was clear it was blood. It was even more clear what the substance was by the hands, which were smeared with blood as well. "Bakura" was breathing heavily, and his bangs concealed his face with shadows due to his hanging head.

What appeared to be the Millenium Ring was hanging from his neck, but in a manner unlike Bakura had ever worn it. There was a black choker around "Bakura's" neck, and it looked just a bit too tight. A thin seeming gold chain hung down from a loop at the front of the choker, and attached to it at the bottom what appeared to be the Ring hung at its usual level. It seemed a bit lower only because of "Bakura's" position.

Yuugi's eyes widened as he took in the site. This had to be Bakura's shadow. It had to be, but Yuugi would have never guessed Bakura to create such a Shadow. His had been terrifying, but wearing his school form and somewhat... well, more normal looking. Atem's had been the same way, just more dressed up than he was sure Atem had ever been. This... Bakura's Shadow was covered in blood. Why...?

"Sooner or later..." The voice was distorted like a Shadow's was known to be, "Sooner or later, if I don't die, someone I care about will. Someone already has... a little girl. All because of me."

The Shadow lifted is head, and if there was a mascot for kicked puppies Shadow Bakura would have managed it. He looked about ready to cry, which made the already creepy yellow eyes even worse. He took a step back and continued to glare at the group.

"Someone already has! Its my fault my sister died, and it'll be my fault if you die! Let me die so you won't!" And then the expression changed to something... angry. Angry... and psychotic, "While you can... GET OUT!"

A huge force shot back from Shadow Bakura, and Yuugi grabbed for the inside door handle. He managed to grab it just as the force hit, but it was up in the air if the others would be as lucky...

[Firebreath Fishslap]

Even with how many shadows Souji had encountered like this, Bakura's shadow still shocked him. It wasn't just the blood, or the way the ring was being worn, or just how plain depressed even his shadow seemed. It was the jumpsuit that had really sent it home. Bakura had long been a prisoner to this Ring. No wonder he was so withdrawn. That thing had been the cause of everything that had gone wrong with his life.

Minato had a pained look at Shadow Bakura's expression. Somehow that look managed to surpass some of Ryoji's kicked puppy looks, which only made things worse. This was what lurked in Bakura's head...?

However, neither Souji nor Minato had expected the force to shoot out from Shadow Bakura, and both of them were sent flying. Minato managed to land up against the same spot he'd landed before, while Souji ended up being thrown into a chair.

"....Damn," Souji said. That was all he said.

"...That's Bakura's shadow...? No wonder he didn't want us here," Minato said. "...That comment about his sister, do you think...?"

"Yeah. At the very least, he blames himself for her death," Souji said. "I don't remember ever hearing about him having a sister, though..."

"I think I remember hearing about her once," Minato said, thinking back. "I remember hearing she was dead, too... didn't think that the Ring caused it then."

Souji was silent after that. That certainly explained the pools of blood, and the smashed chairs. And the faces blotted out by the cutouts of the Ring...

[mugenginga]

Anzu hadn't fared any better. She was flung in the same general direction Souji was due to her position in the apartment. She hadn't even managed a gasp of surprise. In any case, she hit the leg of a table next to the chair Souji had hit. The table leg gave out and the what was on top managed to crash all around her. It avoided doing more than a slight hit on her, but it still added insult to injury. Yuugi, while he had managed to grab the door, was still forced back quite a bit. His wrist twisted at an unnatural angle as the force died down, leaving Shadow Bakura gasping.

Yuugi's wrist now hurt like hell, and he was quite sure he'd managed to sprain it, but he was more concerned with Bakura's shadow. If his memory served, they couldn't just tell it that it was wrong. While Shadows reacted most negatively to being denied by themselves, they didn't appreciate being denied by friends. He straightened up and let his hand drop to his side. He was really concerned about the others, but...

"I'm telling you to leave..."

Yuugi opened his mouth to say something to the Shadow, but it vanished. Yuugi stared for a few minutes, not entirely sure what to do with that. It couldn't be gone, right? He took a step away from the door to check on the others, but a thought suddenly occured to him. He spun around on one foot and managed to get into the doorway just as the door slammed. Instead of slamming shut, which had likely been the intentions, it slammed onto the short teenager. Yuugi let out a shout and the door immediately popped back open. However, Yuugi fell to his knees and was holding his chest. Why did it hurt to breath so much...?

"YUUGI!"

Anzu was on her feet with surprising swiftness. For the hit she'd taken, it seemed a little unwise. She'd heard what Souji and Minato had said, and had planned on responding, but then Yuugi had let out that shout. Stumbling, and almost tripping over her arms for her unbalance, Anzu ran towards the door again. Yuugi winced as she touched his shoulder. She looked ready to completely flip for a moment before she yanked out her cards and began flipping through them.

"I know I have one in here..." she said in a panicked whisper.

Yuugi wasn't completely unable to defend himself, though. As Anzu was digging through her cards, a blue card materialized in his hand with a blue flame. He was aware of Anzu, and worried about her reaction, but he was pretty sure something was broken now. He crushed the card and behind him (the position making it in Bakura's room), Nefertum materialized. Anzu stopped her shuffling and looked up, her eyes widening. THat didn't look like any Duel Monster she'd ever seen...

"Nefertum... Diarama..."

Anzu had stopped shuffling and was now just staring at the rather Egyptian... thing, that Yuugi had summoned. The large looped cross staff it had began to levitate as the creature pulled out both its hands, its palms facing inwards. Light spiralled up the staff and shot out from the top, before spiralling around Yuugi. His breathing became easier as soon as it hit, and the Persona vanished. Anzu looked down at Yuugi.

"Yuugi...?"

"Are Souji-kun and Minato-kun okay!?" He winced as he spoke. Yeah, one Diarama wasn't really cutting it but at least he could talk better now.

Anzu blinked and looked towards where the two had gone. As all this had occurred, Teddie had jumped back. His position in the other room meant Shadow Bakura's attempt to send the others away hadn't done more than ruffled his fur. He had winced as Souji and Minato hit, and run over to them. He'd reached Souji's side just as Anzu had forced herself to her feet.

"Sensei! Minato-kun! Are you alright? Do you need me to heal you?"

Actually, Minato was the best choice for healing. But its not like anyone present had ever seen Messiah in action.