Honestly, he had expected finding Wraith would be a good deal harder than it had been, even for someone like him. That he had found Bakura Ryou in just under a fortnight almost disappointed him. How had the boy hidden from him this long if he was this easy to locate? Granted, now he knew just who at least half of Wraith was, so that might have helped a bit.

That this was the first time he had left the Kaiba Corp building in over two months might have also had something to do with it.

It had been over thirteen months since he had seeen his former classmate and fellow duelist. The time since Zork arose had been kind to no one, and Bakura Ryou was no exception: he seemed haggard, yet buzzing with nervous energy; like everyone else in Domino, he was far from well nourished, but he wasn't anything like the scarecrows that he had sent on to Kaiba Corp and Kaiba Land; and there was a wariness in his eyes that hadn't been there before, not even during the strange duels on top of his Battle Ship.

To his surprise, Bakura Ryou spoke first, his voice little more than a harsh whisper. "So now you've found me. What was it you wanted from me?"

With half of Wraith before him, there were a million and a half questions he wanted to ask; with Bakura Ryou in front of him, there were twice again as many bubbling through h is mind. The first one that came out, though, was none of the ones he'd intended to ever ask. "Are any of the others still around?"

Slowly, the white-haired man shook his head. "Kawai Shizuka was the first we've found in over a year, and she wasn't even actually there. I've heard rumors of Honda and Otogi being out by the docks, but I haven't been able to confirm any of that. As for the others, from what I hear, Zork still has them captive in his fortress."

"The museum," he finished. In a way, it made sense: why kill your enemies, the only ones who stood a chance of defeating you, when you could just as easily hold them hostage and do whatever you wanted with them in revenge?

The other man nodded once solemnly. "I know that that is definitely where Mutou Yuugi and the Nameless Pharaoh are being held."

"So they are still alive." He hadn't really meant for that to come out either, but nonetheless, there it stood. No, there was something else he needed to ask, something much more important. "Have you heard of any way of destroying Zork?"

"If I had, we would have done something by now," Bakura Ryou stated plainly as if it were just a simple fact. And there was that 'we' again. Curiosity was driving him crazy, as to who was the other half of Wraith, but he couldn't ask, not now, not while the other was still speaking. "If anyone knows, it would be the Nameless Pharaoh or maybe, just maybe, Yuugi."

"Of course." Wasn't that always how it went: things always came down to Mutou Yuugi and everyone else was left with the clean-up? Perhaps it was a bit bitter, but he earned it.

He turned to start to leave, the other questions still unasked, when the white-haired man's voice cut through his thoughts. "If you're planning on taking Zork down, we'll help you in any way that we can."

It was as good an opening as any. "You and who else?"

The other laughed suddenly, the sound like razor blades and broken glass. "You already know him. He'll find you as soon as he's ready to start." He paused, completely silent as if listening to someone else speak in the utter quiet. "He'll meet you at Kaiba Corp tonight at midnight, on the roof. Oh, and Kaiba? Don't be late. Wraith can't afford to wait for anyone, even you."

04 January 2009

I'm really so sorry at how long it has been taking me to get these chapters out; it's embarrassing when they are all so short that it is taking me forever. Obviously, the novels are keeping me busy, but there is also the full-time job and the complete revamp of my main website, , that had to happen before I went nuts. With that behind me, work, the novels, and school will be my only distractions: I'm taking grad classes starting this week.

I should be getting started on my next fan fiction project soon. It will probably either be the next chapter of Belladonna or the next part of Endless Loop: Route 666. Trust me: I would never leave you guys with where that story is as an ending. We haven't even finished Season One of Endless Loop yet.

I did also want to give a big shout-out to dragonlady222. Thank you, sweetie, for being one of my best reviewers ever -- and for pre-ordering the books. You're so completely awesome! Many thanks!

Much love to all,
Apollymi