victory_road | ANOMALY DETECTED

Or at least you wouldn't have been sacrificed to a dark God.

[He knows why, understands why as much as he hates it. Marik was just hoping for some snide remark on Bakura's part to make him feel a bit better about everything but instead he just gives him that response.

He also knows he shouldn't be betraying the Pharaoh yet again but it's so engraved into him at this point. Atem has been nothing but cordial with him. That shouldn't warrant a kneejerk reaction from him but Marik finds himself wanting to stir up drama. Bakura always gets his scheming gears going anyways and it's been far too long.

Chen frowns as he looks at his trainer, Marik's expression having darkened and his lips twisted into a smirk.]

... He's here, you know. The Pharaoh. He's back at Kaiba and my place, relaxing, completely unaware of what's going on.

[He steps closer to the Spirit.]

He knows his name but still hasn't gone to the Afterlife. His powers have probably been reactivated but so have yours. I can feel it again... That darkness.

[He shudders. No matter how much he heals, how much he tries to distance himself, that power is intoxicating and he finds himself wanting to crawl back for more.]

I could turn a blind eye, if you wanted. Conveniently leave the door unlocked. Make sure no one else is there.

His friends aren't here to save him either.

[Joey's here but... he's busy with other things. He's not even sure the other knows Atem is in the world with them.]

Consider it... payment for everything you've done for me, since I've failed in my mission.

[He merely shrugs his shoulders in response. That part had never been too important to him, ironically. One didn't become a tomb robber expecting to find a good end, in this life or the next. Especially not if one's as notorious and prolific as Bakura was.

Bakura stands still and watches Marik as something seems to shift in the tomb keeper, like an old flame awakening again. 'Ah. Seems like the welp still has some of his teeth after all.' His expression betrays nothing as he listens to Marik go on. The blond had already mentioned the Pharaoh being here, so that's no surprise. Neither are Marik's ....brutal tendencies.]

So you want me to go there - and do what? Kill him?

[The Yamask pulls back slightly at Bakura's words, understanding what the two are discussing. He mutters at Marik, pleading to him to stop but the teen just hisses a quiet and gentle "shhh" at him, not taking his eyes off of the thief.]

Entirely up to you, now isn't it? I'm just giving you information for you to use at your leisure.

And since I don't have the Rod anymore the next best thing I can give you is the Pharaoh himself, right?

Ha! HaHAHAHAhahahaaa!

[Straightening his back, Bakura keeps barking his nasty laughter for a little longer before he relaxes and gives Marik an amused look.]

Do you seriously think that if I'd wanted the Pharaoh merely dead, I couldn't have done that already several times before, Ishtar? You're trying to use me to do your dirty work, now that you've lost your Rod!

[Marik immediately bristles and Chenzira slinks further back behind his trainer's shoulder.

Guilty as charged but he'll still try to play it to Bakura's interests.]

You could challenge him to a Shadow Game then! He has his deck and the Puzzle! Little Yugi isn't here to offer him advice or save his physical form if you were to win...!

And what would I do with that, pray tell?! I need all seven of the Items, not just two of them! Getting the Puzzle before I have the rest will just put a target on my back while I get the rest!

[Besides, he wants Atem to be the last one. He wants him to see what's going to happen once he's lost, be aware of just how bad he's failed, know who it is that's once again coming for him after he's torn through all of his precious allies before-! Vengeance is a dish best served cold, and Bakura is going to enjoy every last bit of it. It's something he owes as much to Atem as he does to his precious royal uncle and father.

Bakura's Zoroark is watching their exchange with renewed interest, although it's obvious that it considers its topic a lot less offensive than Chen does.]

[... He is getting rusty and desperate at this. Wanting to stay in Bakura's good graces. This strange sense of loyalty to him. Marik purses his lips and looks away.

He doesn't know how death works in the pokémon world. The blonde is just assuming it's like everywhere else. The items would still be with Yugi back in their world but if the Ring Spirit took care of Atem here, the Puzzle would be powerless, making Yugi just that much easier to take the items from, wouldn't it?]

It would just be you, Yugi, and Shadi with the items then. You already took care of the latter so what could he actually do to you? Little Yugi's weak without Atem's influence on him. Wouldn't that make things easier on you in the long run? Perhaps not as... grandiose as you'd like but it's a decent enough backup plan.

[A pause for dramatic effect because it's Marik.]

I suppose if you've already waited this long though, waiting a few more won't kill you.

[Bakura's eyes narrow at being called out like that.]

A backup, maybe! But it's not material for the main one!

[and oh, now he's angry

He crowds in on Marik, daring him to do or say anything more that Bakura doesn't like.]

You are right, a little more won't kill me. But I'll do something else, something that I should have done a long time ago already! I'll tell you something!

[The tomb keeper puffs up, hands on his hips, and looks down his nose at Bakura. Seems he's set off the thief. About time he took him a bit more seriously! (His curiosity and pride are getting the better of him though.)

Chen yelps and hides beneath Marik's hair.]

Oh? The "stage" is all yours. Please, enlighten me, Thief King.

Then listen well, Tomb Keeper~

[Pushing his hand against his hips, Bakura puffs up to the most imposing that Ryou's body is capable of.

He takes a deep breath, and- ]

Do your own dirty work, Marik Ishtar!!

...

[Marik stares absolutely stunned because the idiot was expecting a compliment or something. Surely his little scheme merits some praise!]

Edited 2022-12-07 23:43 (UTC)

[And then his right mind catches up to his deflating ego and posture, enough to make Chen peek out.

... THAT'S IT? THAT'S WHAT HE WANTED TO SAY?]

I... But you...

[And his face turns red from embarrassment because he's never been so called out before. Or not recently at least.]

I was j-just trying to help you! T-that's all! If you don't want my advice then fine! I'll...

[Hfff! Marik crosses his arms and looks off to the side.]

Edited 2022-12-07 23:55 (UTC)

I'll...

[He'll... what? He has no idea. But he can't just let Bakura get away with insulting him!]

... Nnhhggahhh! Just forget it! Don't say I didn't try though!

[The look on Marik's face is almost comical enough to make him laugh out loud. Bakura watches the blond struggle through what he's just heard, arms already crossed again challengingly and head held high.]

You'll what?! For somebody so adamant about it, you're ridiculously bad at being evil, Marik. Can you really get so little done without the Rod?!

Hhgkk...

[Marik grinds his teeth. Bakura's right again. He really can't get anything done without the Rod. He abused its power and learned to dependant on it too much. Having Odion and the Rare Hunters do everything for him didn't help either.

Not like he can ridicule Bakura about not being capable without the Ring. He got plenty done before he ever got any of the items.]

... I can't.

[He turns away slightly. Chenzira purposely moves to be the farthest away from Bakura as possible while hanging off of Marik.]

I can't do anything in this world we've been brought to. Weapons are useless, the law is incredibly active, and... I wouldn't be surprised if the Gods here know what I've done.

It would be obvious if something happened to Atem that it was me. Joey and Kaiba would know instantly. I'd... have no where to run or hide.

So that's it!? You know that there's a very easy solution to that, don't you?

[He suspects that the tomb keeper doesn't, dumb as he can be, but luckily for Marik there's a cure to being a fatalistic idiot. His eyes catch those of that ridiculous little pokemon and he wonders again why Marik bothers with it. It doesn't matter, though, because this little runt will give Bakura all the leverage he needs to sway the tomb keeper into the way he wants him to go.]

[The fatalistic idiot doesn't know what he could be referring to, at least not until he follows Bakura's gaze to his slightly shivering Yamask. Marik immediately puffs himself up again, keeping Chenzira away from the Spirit.

For as terrible of a person as he may be, Chen has been with him through this new journey, heard all of his dark secrets, and has never once left his side. His conscience, a shoulder angel. The tomb keeper is extremely protective of him.

Still, he decides to ask:]

And what is that?

Change your circumstances, you idiot! There is absolutely nothing holding you back from changing the playing field if the stakes are all stacked against you!

Like, that thing on your shoulder? How many would call it weak or useless against the monster that jumped us just earlier?

[Oh, look how he cares about that little thing! So much attachment, so many new levers to exploit! All Bakura needs to do is to make Marik think that he wants what actually the spirit does.

Love and pride are wonderful tools for that.]

[He's right about changing up his team but... it's the same problem as in Duel Monsters. Atem, Kaiba, Joey, even Ryou are all better players than him. He's been the slowest (discounting Atem) out of them to get the hang of pokémon battles and even then... Marik's confidence isn't great. He believes in his team, absolutely. Himself, not so much.]

Normally Chenzira wouldn't have had a problem with it. He might be unevolved but he's max level and has plenty of battle experience. I don't know why that particular Runerigus was so resilient...

[Marik clicks his tongue and looks away again.]

... And I wouldn't be where I am today if it hadn't been for Kaiba. I... can't bring myself to betray him. He's all I had here for the longest time.

As for Joey. Joey's... He's bigger. Older. He'd forgo the pokémon fight and kick my ass himself if I did anything foolish. He's made that very clear without even saying anything.

It wasn't resilient when I hit its eye.

[Which is also absolutely not how things are supposed to work, but the Items and those too seeped in them have a bad habit of bending the ways the world should actually work.

He listens to Marik lament his lot and clicks his tongue impatiently.]

So? What keeps you from working on yourself until you've got either the technique or the muscles to beat him? Blondie's also an idiot who both falls for every little provocation and scares easily, why not build on and exploit that? Set him up for a fight against somebody he can't win that easily against! Send him away on an errand for some of his friends! Get him into an interesting quarrel with the police and distract two birds with one stone!

Your Chenzira looked for a way and tossed me that ball when it saw that it couldn't fight and keep you safe at the same time. Isn't that already the best proof that if one path is blocked, that doesn't mean that all the others are?

And it normally doesn't work like that. You just got lucky.

[It's Marik's turn to listen, taking the suggestions to heart. He's been beyond lazy since arriving here. The teen's barely had to walk outside of when they got whisked away to Hisui. Once they were back in modern times, he rode Usi and Bahiti everywhere. And as soon as the snow hit, he's pretty much been locked up in the apartment doing nothing but perhaps gaining the bad kind of weight and letting his mind rot away.

It's not good.]

Bakura... He joked about being my mind slave. That's how he revealed himself to me the other day. You have to... be a madman or insanely confident in your own skill to joke about something like that...! That would be like if Ryou made a casual joke about being your landlord.

[He shudders.]

I don't think he's the same guy you last dealt with. He isn't for me, that's for damn sure. He drove and handled his bike like a gods damned motorcycle...! Even if I were to start working out or something, he'll always be leagues ahead of me. They all are...

[It wasn't an unpleasant experience meeting up with Joey but it made him keenly aware of the ever growing gap between the crew from a couple years in the future compared to him. Still only sixteen, fresh from Battle City, unaware and an outsider to the many events that happen to Yugi and the gang.

Just like he's always been.

Chenzira peeks a bit around Marik's shoulder. What he's telling him isn't incorrect but... big brother should better himself for good things...! Not for wronging others.

The blonde sighs and runs his hand through his hair.]

But... I should... work on making myself better. Stronger. Sharper. I'm getting dull. I've been dulling for months now... I'll have a flare up where I improve for a bit but then I fall right back into doing nothing.

[He closes the distance between them and gently attempts to poke Bakura in the chest.]

... Perhaps your arrival here, temporary or not, is the Gods' way of kicking my butt into gear yet again. Or a cruel joke to rub in my face at just how far I've fallen.

[Bakura raises an eyebrow as things just keep spilling forth from Marik.]

Replace 'casual' with 'snarky' and yeah, he does that sometimes. He's been talking to the Ring long before he even knew I was there.

[He shrugs.]

Talking like that comes with familiarity.

[He is about to say something else when Marik interrupts him before he can even begin by stepping close and poking him. A second pulled-up brow joins the first at that attitude of ~familiarity~ ]

It's definitely the latter. I and the gods don't work together. ....So, what are you going to do now?

Just how familiar do I get with him then...

[It sucks being the only one from the earliest point in the timeline. He both does and doesn't want to know how things go. Marik hasn't bothered asking any of them about the exact details of when the Pharaoh goes to regain his memories. It doesn't feel right to know.]

... Tch. Of course it is. I wanted a new beginning and the Gods continue to bring people in to remind me of where I stand in all of this...

[Chen's at least relaxed a bit. If Bakura isn't being a complete bad influence on him, he's alright... but he's got his eye on the Spirit despite his current exhaustion.]

I... I don't know. I have the resources, I just... need the drive. It's so freaking cold out now though that I don't want to do anything. I hate winter.

[Really, the only thing he's been mildly focused on as of late is his Love(?) Quest. How to ask Fluttershy out on a date. Hnn. Maybe if he starts getting in better shape, she'll be more impressed....

This boy and his flights of fancy. He isn't about to discuss that with the Ring Spirit though.

Marik fiddles with one of his arm cuffs.]

.... I suppose working out wouldn't be a bad start. It'll get me out of the house more. Gyms are usually warm, right? And I can continue volunteering at the Tower... then... I'll be in shape come the springtime and resume the Pokémon Gym challenge with my team.

[A pause as he looks up to meet Bakura's gaze with an expectant expression. The snark will come. He knows it.]

Not exactly "bad guy" stuff but I'll work into that.

What an amazing New Year's Resolution.

[He couldn't sound any more dry if he tried. Bakura ruffles a hand through the hair on his head and sighs.]

I should've known better than to expect more than that. Zoroark! Come! We're going!

[He doesn't know why he wants Bakura's approval as much as he does. Hearing that dry remark despite expecting it still hits him hard and Marik feels his heart sink.

Chen seems relieved at least.]

Bakura...!

[What can he say? What can he do? Has he really just settled into a life of mediocrity? Or is Bakura just expecting too much of him? The blonde swallows, feeling like despite the fact that he's been given some guidance on what to do, it's not enough to keep the thief interested in some form of... friendship between them.

Maybe he was a fool to think they were more than "partners in crime." They were just using each other during the entirety of Battle City but with the Duel against his darker self, he'd grown a certain fondness for Bakura.

But he's out of ideas. Deep down, despite how much of a terrible child, Marik doesn't actively want to ruin what he's got going on in this world. He does want to better himself though more that Bakura's pointed it out.

The teen lets out another sigh. One last pathetic attempt to keep him around.]

... Are you taking Runerigus with you?

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