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Yugi nodded. "So that's two casualties now," he said. The sound of footsteps came down the hall, closely followed by the one who was making them; Crow.
"What were you doing back there?" Yugi asked. Crow looked up and grinned. "I used a bit of a trick there; I liquified the ground and let them sink in--up to their necks." He replied. "I'm not sure exactly how powerful they are though, so we'd better get out of here, ASAP." Yugi nodded in agreement. "Selena, you take Kaiba out first. Aoi, follow with Yusei." He said. "Everyone, put your hands in the center and pool your power. Aoi, do what you can to stay in physical contact so that this spell can draw from you too." Aoi nodded. Yugi put his hand out, and the rest of the group placed their hands on top of his. Their auras once again blazed to life, only now Yugi's was twice as bright because he was drawing more of his power to make up for Kaiba's. The portal opened. "Go, now!" Yugi ordered. |
"WAIT!!!!!" Everyone turned to see Ashleigh running towards them.
"Ashleigh! What are you doing here?" Ruby asked. "I will explain after we get out of here" Ashleigh replied, and dived into the portal. The others followed. |
Once they were through, Selena called for two teams of medics; both Yusei and Kaiba needed medical attention, and fast.
Yugi was the last one through. He arrived right as Kaiba and Yusei were being taken away on stretchers--Aki hadn't left Yusei's side. "You think we'd better let Max know what happened?" Selena asked. Yugi nodded, but had something on his mind. "But before we do that, I want to know why Ashleigh changed her mind and came with us like that." He replied. |
"Either Free Will or she struck a deal to come back when the time is right' Ruby said, looking at the girl in question on the floor.
"Bad idea to jump and land on the floor" Ashleigh grumbled. |
"I could've told you that," Selena said with a laugh. She held out a hand to help the girl up. "So, what made you make the decision to come back with us?"
Yusei drifted back to conciousness by the urgent shouting around him. He could feel Aki's hand on his own. "Aki...." He whispered to the girl. |
"I thought about it and I decide to break for it before Kaimiri came to" Ashleigh replied.
"But we have to get rid of the necklace though, fake or not" Atem replied. "Yusei! You're awake" Aki said, smiling as Ruby came in with a mixture both in a bowl and a cup. "While you are in surgery, I will be making up your treatment" she said, "it will sting a bit since the stitches are new but believe me, it will help." |
Yugi nodded. "Agreed." He replied. "And I think I know how." He placed his hands on either side of the necklace. "Hold still, and I'm sorry if this stings," he let a trickle of power into the necklace, before sending a sharp jolt of explosive energy into it. The necklace around Ashleigh's neck disintigrated into dust.
Yusei nodded in aknowledgement. He squeezed Aki's hand with all the strength he had left. "Aki...I promise you, that I'll make it through this." he gave her a weak smile. "Believe me?" |
"I believe you' Aki replied.
Ashleigh rubbed her neck. "That's better" she said. "Well, at least that you're back. That's what counts" Max said. |
"Yeah," Selena replied, agreeing with Max for once. She turned to Max. "So, I take it you know what happened to Yusei and Kaiba?"
Yusei squeezed her hand a bit tighter. "Good," He replied in a whisper. "And if...I can't keep that promise...." He trailed off as his vision wavered again. "I love you....." He whispered quietly before falling back into unconciousness. "We have to get him into surgery, ma'am." The doctor said. "I'm sorry, but you'll have to wait until he's out to see him." |
"I noticed about Kaiba since I created the hole in the rubble, but Yusei, no" Ashleigh replied.
"While you wait, you can help me with this remedy" Ruby added. Aki nodded and let go of Yusei's hand. |
"He..." Selena hesitated. "He's in pretty bad shape. He's been stabbed through the abdomen."
The doctors rushed Yusei off into Operating Room 2, as Kaiba was already undergoing surgery in OR 1. |
"Ouch! At least he's back to normal, that's for sure" Ashleigh said, "and scanning the damage, it will give us 3 more weeks of training, 4 weeks at max."
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"Nice!" Yugi replied. "I saw that Kaiba did a lot of damage to Kaimiri...I just didn't think it would buy us that much time."
"Neither did I," Selena said. "I just wish that he hadn't done something so rash." |
"And what kind of spell did Kaiba used?" Atem asked.
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"Shakahou," Yugi replied. "It's a high-powered spell, and it's supposed to be used at range." He motioned to the direction Kaiba had been taken for surgery. "He used it close-in."
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"That idiot! I told him not to use it at close range since it might cost him either a arm, a leg or both!" Atem sighed, "he should know better than that!"
"So what are we suppose to do now?" Ashleigh asked. |
Max coughed to clear her throat. "I was afraid this would happen, actually." She replied. "I think it's about time that I explain to you all why I've been hiding out in my office all this time, now."
"That would be rather helpful," Selena said. Max motioned with her finger. "I've got something to show you all." |
"Oh? What is it aunty?" Ashleigh asked.
"Yeah. What have you been hiding?" Atem agreed. |
Max went to her desk and opened a drawer down at the bottom, and then opened it. She took out a heavy wooden box and placed it on the desk, before opening it. "This," she replied, showing them the unfinished artificial arm. "All I need to finish is the outer covering for it."
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Ashleigh looked at it.
"It's look like a robotic arm" she said. |
"It is," Max replied. "How I got the measurements for it was a bit on the...covert side, but they were accurate, down to the last millimeter." She indicated the circuitry of the arm. "These are going to be connected to the outer covering, which will act jsut like skin. There's circuitry in the 'skin' of this arm as well that'll allow Kaiba to feel normally with it, rather than being stuck with one arm that's essentially sensationless."
"Looks like Pegasus passed a lot of his technical knowledge on to you." Selena said. Max shrugged. "That, and a PhD in engineering helps." |
"So when are you going to give it to the surgents?" Atem asked, "and will it connect to Kaiba's power?"
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Max nodded. "He won't be able to be fitted with the port for this though," she replied. "It will have to be later, when he's recovered from that stunt he pulled. As for connecting to his power, it will."
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"That's a relief, that's for sure" Atem said.
"Yeah. At least Kaiba's going to get an moveable arm" Ashleigh agreed. |
"It sounds like it'll be more than just moveable." Selena replied. "More like fully functional."
Yugi nodded. "Max, how long until Kaiba's well enough to have that fitted to him?" he asked. "A few days, three at max." Max replied. "I still need to finish the outer covering, and then make sure it's properly attached to the rest of the arm." "So within the week Kaiba will have both arms again," Selena said. Max nodded. |
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