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"You sure about that?!" Crow replied. Selena put a hand on his shoulder.
"Calm down before you get your ass fried." She typed. "What the heck did I just walk in on?" Neferhenta asked, blinking. At that moment, Melhana entered the waiting room with Jack on her heels. "What's going on here?" She asked. Selena was already typing. "Aki's been encased in a crystal," She was typing. "It's not permanent, but it's completely cut her off from the outside. She's in a coma right now." Jack was in shock. "What?! Who did it?!" He demanded. Crow and Selena looked at each other, the point getting accross from the looks they were giving each other. "Damn it!" Jack growled, punching the wall. "Okay, no putting holes in the wall." Melhana said calmly. |
"Kaimiri's the one to blame for all of what has happened: Yugi's kidnapping, Turning Ashleigh over, Yusei's turning, Ashleigh's kidnapping, and a lot more" Aka said.
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"You got that right," Crow said. "So, why'd you call Melhana here?"
"To try and help Aki snap out of it." Sakura typed. "Though, I am curious about why you dragged Jack along." "He knows Aki better than I do." Melhana explained. "If it weren't for the fact that Yusei was...well, possessed, then having Yusei help would be the best bet. But as he's indesposed at the moment....." Sakura nodded. "Now all we've got to do is wait for the OK to go in there." She typed. |
Aka walked over to Nefe.
"I know if I tell them, they won't believe me for one minute due to the enchantment" she said. |
"I wouldn't bet on that completely." Neferhenta replied. "Any kind of magic, no matter how subtle or powerful, will interact with an activated aura."
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"But our aura is connected with our Hikari's auras" Aka pointed out.
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"Yeah, that makes it weird." Nefe replied. "Well, we'll find out soon enough."
One of the paramedics emerged from the double-doors. "Well, she's stabilized and in fair condition. In fact, for all intents and purposes Miss Izayoi is in perfect health, apart from the fact that she's in a coma." "That's what we're here to help with." Melhana said. "Would it be all right if Mr. Atlas and myself saw Aki?" The paramedic peered at her. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but not this soon. We're still running tests to figure out what the source is--" He started, but Melhana cut him off. "And you won't find a source because it's not 'normal'." Melhana interrupted. "It's supernatural." She pulled her badge from the front pocket on her jacket. "I'm part of Omega, and Atlas here's my apprentice, of sorts." She added, causing Jack to start fuming. "I'm nobody's apprentice!" He protested. Melhana glared at him. "Yes, you are. You're far from a fully-fledged mage, and until you can completely control your power you're my apprentice. So. Shut. Up." Crow whistled. "Wow. The only person I've seen shut Jack like that was Martha back in the Sattilite." He said. "Shut it, Crow. Or I'll deck you." Jack grumbled back. Crow flipped him the bird, which Jack returned in kind. |
Aka was watching the drama unfold.
"Man, Jack needs an attitude check" she sighed. |
"Tell me something I don't already know. I didn't think it was possible for anyone to have an ego the size of Kaiba's. I was wrong." Melhana replied.
"What's that supposed to mean?!" Jack protested. "It means you've got an ego bigger than the Milky Way." Melhana deadpanned. She turned her attention back to the paramedic. "So, are you going to let us in to figure out what's wrong with Miss Izayoi?" The paramedic nodded nervously and led them through the double doors. "We've got her in one of the regular rooms, as her condition isn't severe at all. Like I said before, apart from the fact that she's in a coma she's in perfect health." "Right then. What're we supposed to do?" Jack asked. He was, at present, completelly clueless as to what his mentor was going to do. "I'll explain once we're in there." Melhana replied. |
Aka and Nefe followed.
"Can you figure out why Mai can see into people's hearts?" she asked. |
Melhana tapped a finger on her chin. "It could be a similar effect that Atem had on Yugi; she may have had some latent power that was activated somehow, when she would've normally remained a regular human."
"Like a catalyst." Neferhenta said. Melhana nodded. "How magic works in the human body is...odd." She said. "In theory, everyone's got some amount of magical power; it's how large those reserves are and if the person has the capacity to tap into them." "And you do, obviously." Jack said. "I know that you said you inherited the ability to control magic; is it possible for someone who wasn't born a mage to become one?" Melhana nodded. "Yes. Again, it depends on the size of their magical reserves, and how their mind works I guess. It's hard to explain, but the gist of it is that magic is ingrained in our DNA. Sometimes the capability to control it is in a person's genetic code, and other times it's not." "So...being a learned mage is the category I'd fall into, right?" Jack asked. Melhana shook her head. "No, you were born one." She answered. "It's because you're a Signer. Believe it or not, you were a Signer from birth, that power is in your genetic code." She thanked the paramedic as he let them into Aki's room, the girl's bed obscured by a curtain. "My guess is that it's one of those odd cases where someone with no magical lineage whatsoever ended up being a mage by blood rather than a mage by teaching." "Yugi's another odd case." Neferhenta said. "Melhana is descended from my father, Atem, which makes her a mage by blood. Yugi on the other hand, while he's from the same line, wouldn't have become a mage if he hadn't solved the Millennium Puzzle." She leaned up against the wall. "Yeah, he was most likely born with the ability to become a mage, but he's one of those rare cases where his power never manifested. My guess is it was sharing a body with my father that was the catalyst to his power manifesting." |
Aka nodded.
"But what about the two types of Yami's? does that count as like a mage or not?" she asked. |
Neferhenta crossed her arms and adopted a face that looked extremely like Melhana's when she was thinking. "That I'm not sure of, to be totally honest." She replied.
"But you're one. Shouldn't you know that sort of thing?" Jack asked. Neferhenta sighed. "Just because I'm a yami doesn't mean that I know everything about being a yami. Just because you're a Turbo Duelist doesn't mean you know everything there is to know about taking care of a motorcycle, right?" "Well, no..." Jack replied. "I rest my case." Neferhenta replied. "But Aka's right, there are two types of yamis: there's the type that come to inhabit your body by outside means, such as Melhana solving the Star's Puzzle or Ryo Bakura getting hold of the Millennium Ring, like I am. There's also yamis that are formed from a split in a person's soul, like Aka was." |
"Just like Yaya and Nana from the manga Othello plus Yugi and Atem for another example. Atem and Nana are Yamis but Atem was Yugi's Yami because of the Millennium Puzzle and in the manga, Nana is Yaya's Yami who made Yaya to have a split personality" Aka said, nodding, "I don't know about this Yami stuff either so that makes two of us Nefe."
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Jack was scratching his head at all these explanations. "Okay, I'm confused." He admitted finally.
"I'd be surprised if you weren't." Melhana replied. "Even I was confused when I first started learning all of this. But explanations aren't the reason we're here." She strode to Aki's bed and pulled the curtain back. Lying on the bed was Aki, her eyes closed and skin pale. Jack joined her next to the girl's bed. "What are you planning to do?" He asked quietly. "I'm going to attempt to enter Aki's soul, her 'soul's room'." Melhana replied. "To do that safely I'm going to need to form a link with you so I've got a ground in this world." |
"Uh oh....that's a mission and a half" Aka sighed.
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"It's still worth a shot." Melhana replied. "Now, I'm going to intiate that bond. Whatever you do, DON'T cut it off."
Jack nodded. He left his mental barriers (he'd become accostumed to having them up during his training) down for Melhana to intitiate the mental bond. Shortly after Melhana formed the bond. "I'm going in." She said as much with her mind as her voice. She placed her hand on Aki's forehead and closed her eyes. Her body became completely still, so much so that Jack was wondering if she was even breathing. I hope she can find out what's wrong with Aki. Jack thought, crossing his arms. |
"I just hope it works" Aka said, "it's nearly time for the final duel. Following that, it's my concert that Ashleigh promised the crowd."
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"Right," Nefe said, watching Melhana. As much as her yami and her ancestor, Nefe did not want to see Melhana hurt.
Melhana's mind seperated from her body to enter Aki's but she was immediately met with resistance. She's got her barriers up, with good reason. She thought. However, when she tried harder, she was met with even more of a counterstrike. |
Even if Aki was encased, she wasn't giving up without a fight. A blast hit Melhana. Then the barriers was strengthened by the Crimson Dragon's power, making it difficult for Melhana to get through.
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Melhana steeled herself and tried again, only to be pushed back by an assault, infuse with the power of the Crimson Dragon. It was so powerful that she was painfully forced back into her own body. "GAH!" She yelped as she was pushed back, a painful shockwave echoing throughout her soul and her body.
"Melhana! Are you all right? What happened?" Jack asked. Some of the shock had been transmitted to him through the bond, but he'd cut if off before any damage was done. Melhana nodded. "I'm fine." She replied. "Getting through to Aki is going to be hard." |
"Is everything alright there Jack?'' Aka asked with concern, ''And is Melhana ok?"
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"I'm all right, Aka." Melhana said before Jack could reply. She looked at Jack over her glasses. "Any ideas?"
Jack folded his arms, a brooding look on his face--not that he didn't always have one. He was silent for several moments before speaking. "Let me go in." He replied. Melhana's eyes widened in surprise. "Jack, you've got to be kidding!" She said. "You do realize how dangerous it is to enter someone else's mind, especially when they're in this kind of condition, right?" She faced him completely. "There's a reason that when someone enters another's mind they create a mental link with someone before the enter another'd mind. It's to keep themselves from getting completely lost. The second person is the mage's lifeline, quite literally, and even with the second mage there there's not guarentee that the one entering another mind will be all right when they get out of there. And that's with the most highly skilled mages! You're still learning to control your power--" "I also know her far better." Jack interrupted. "My guess is that she'll recognize me for who I am." He paused. "Though, it's only a guess." |
There was a long silence.
"I think Jack should go Mel" Aka said, "I mean, like he said, he knows her and vice versa. Plus he has a better chance of bringing Aki out of it." |
Melhana was silent for several moments before putting her arms on her hips and nodding. "All right, I'll let you go." She said. "But the moment something goes wrong, I'm pulling out of there."
Jack nodded. He stepped up to the side of Aki's bed, still nervous about her condition. "Well, here goes nothinG>" He said as he initiated the link with Melhana. 'Don't do anything rash, Jack. If you screw up, then we'll have two Signers in a coma.' Melhana told him via mindlink. 'And keep your act together; I don't want you to get lost in there. I wasn't kidding when I said that it was extremely dangerous for even a master mage to enter another mind.' 'I get it already,' Jack replied irritably. 'Sometimes I wonder.' Melhana said. Jack ignored that last comment as he placed a hand on Aki's cold forehead. There's no going back now. He thought as he delved into Aki's mind. |
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