"Please do," Kaimiri replied, kneeling down in front of a now terrified Mokuba. "Now, young man," he told the boy, "I'm afraid there's something in your body I require." He slipped his now immaterial hand into Mokuba's chest and took hold of his crystal heart.

"Get....away...from him!" Kaiba managed out. The pain in his shoulder had immobilized his entire right side temporarily. What on Earth was in that bullet? He thought. A single shot to his shoulder shouldn't paralyze an entire side of his body.

Then Ashleigh turned around and looked at the pair. Then she aimed at Yugi....

.....right to his heart!!
"Any last requests?" she asked.

Yugi gulped. "Ashleigh," He said as he stared at his wife's blank face. "What's happened to you?"

"Anything else?" Ashleigh asked as she clicked the top part of the pistol and placing her finger on the trigger.

"Yes," Yugi replied. He hardened his aura around him, creating a breastplate across his chest. "You don't have to do this."

***

"Any last words, boy?" Kaimiri asked, grinning at the look of terror on Mokuba's face.

"Even if i die, you will go down Kaimiri, and everyone will make sure of that" Mokuba said.

---

"Yugi!" Aka cried, running, "she won't obey to anyone than Kaimiri!" That ended up as a great distraction. Ashleigh aimed at Melhana's halberd and shot it out of her hand. Before Melhana was able to speak, Ashleigh ran and stabbed Melhana with a seringe, causing her to fall asleep. Then she dragged Melhana to where Kaimiri was.

"MELHANA!" Yugi shouted, unwrapping the bundle he had. It was a sword, a Japanese katana, with a green-tinted blade. He advanced towards Kaimiri.

"Thank you, Ashleigh." Kaimiri said. Yugi was met with a barrier, the colors in it swirling like oil. "Ah-ah-ah, sorry. I came here to take care of a job, and I will." With that, he tore Mokuba's heart out of his chest.

Time seemed to freeze. The blood-red crystal, torn from the chest of the person it kept alive, was held gleaming in Kaimiri's hand. At the same time Mokuba's body fell back, blood streaming from the wound. Yugi and Kaiba watched in horror as the boy hit the ground. Yugi from his stance behind the shield, Kaiba from the ground.

Kaiba gritted his teeth and balled his hand into a fist. Damn it, he thought angrily. His gold aura flared up, staining the air with the scent of sandalwood. Without really remembering it, he launched himself past Yugi and at Kaimiri, anger evident in his eyes. "You. Die. Here." He snarled, the blade of the Millennium Rod unsheathed and at Kaimiri's throat.

"Should we go master?" Ashleigh asked.
"You stay where you are Hikairi!" Aka yelled.
"The one you knew is gone. I belong to Master Kaimiri now" the controlled girl replied.

Kaimiri smirked. "No, not yet." He said. He was glaring down at the enraged Kaiba. "I'm going to teach this one a lesson. Keep the others under control, will you?"

"Where should I put her until we leave master? And how should I battle them?" Ashleigh asked.
"You don't want to do this" Aka said in a warning tone.

"I don't care how you battle them, just keep them occupied while I take care of this one." Kaimiri replied, staring down Kaiba. This one has fire in his eyes...and anger at what I've done. He thought. And his soul's far older than his body.

Ashleigh placed Melhana on the ground and walked towards the two.
"You ready?" she asked the duo.

"I really don't want to have to do this, Ashleigh." Yugi said, lifting his sword in front of him and activating his aura, adding the scent of pine to the sandalwood of Kaiba's aura. Kaiba, don't do anything rash.

---

"Now, as for you." Kaimiri said. "You have no control of your aura. How do you expect to fight me?"

"Make a move and find out." Kaiba replied coldly.

"That show that you are weak" Ashleigh said and raised her hand up, "Anubis's darkness blast!" The blast flung the sword out of Yugi's hand.

"I said I didn't want to do it, not that I wasn't going to." Yugi replied. He murmured a spell, causing emerald chains to wrap around Ashleigh, immobilizing her.

---

"Then, by all means, enlighten me." Kaimiri said. Without touching him, Kaimiri used his power to send Kaiba flying accross the ground. Instead of slamming uncerimoniously into the concrete, however, Kaiba stopped his fall by putting out an arm and using the momentum to send himself into a roll. He made sure he landed on his feet, then used his own assault against Kaimiri.

He didn't know how he did it, but he activated his golden aura again. This time, with a direct purpose; floating around him in the air, several golden arrows formed, then shot themselves at Kaimiri. He dodged easily, smirking. "Is that the best you could do?" He asked.

"Who said that I was trying to hit you?" Kaiba countered. The arrows were hovering in an arc around Kaimiri, held in place by Kaiba's will. "Go ahead, give me another reason to do it."

"Is that all you got?" Ashleigh asked. The chain broke in the few seconds when the chains was secure. With another blast, it hit Yugi straight in the stomich.
"Ashleigh....." Aka silently said.

"HACK!!!" Yugi was blown back, coughing up blood from the impact. "Ashleigh....please, don't do this...." He struggled out.

---

"I killed your little brother, so you're killing me in return." Kaimiri said calmly. "Huh. You're overtaken by revenge. Cliche."

"An eye for an eye, Kaimiri." Kaiba said coldly. "Now, are you going to give me a reason for me to kill you?"

"I believe I already have." Kaimiri said. He held up the crystal that had until a few minutes ago been beating in Mokuba's chest. "Go ahead, satisfy your need for revenge."

"Why should I? Give me one good reason why I should not kill you here and now by your own sword" Ashleigh demanded, picking up the katana.
"Ashleigh, listen to yourself! Do you really want to kill your own husband?" Aka yelled.

"Because you're not yourself." Yugi replied. I wish I didn't have to do this. He thought, summoning mage's fire. He let the liquid flames flow around his hands and up to his elbows to form gauntlets, which guarded him when he stopped the sword with his hands. The fire flowed up and around the blade, but no further. "Don't make me Ashleigh, please. I'll do it if I have to, but please don't force my hand."

---

Seeing Kamiri hold up what had once been his baby brother's heart pissed Kaiba off even more. He gritted his teeth and balled his fists in rage. "Fine then! Die, Kaimiri!" He shouted. At that moment, the arrows shot at Kaimiri, who made no move to doge them this time.

Kaiba stared in shock as the arrows hit, spraying blood everywhere. His corpse fell to the ground as the arrows dissapeared into a golden mist. What...did I just do? he thought, his mind reeling. All of a sudden he felt bile rise in his throat. Shit....he's dead! By my hand he's dead!

For several moments he stood there, frozen. After what seemed like an eternity, Kaimiri started laughing. "Nice try, Seto Kaiba." He laughed, getting up. Even as Kaiba watched in a combination of horror, shock, and morbid fascination, Kaimiri's wounds were healing. "I should tell you, I'm the son of a god. Something as simple as that won't kill me." He stepped forward, so he was less than an arm's length away from the shocked Kaiba. He gripped the younger man by the throat and lifted him with one hand. "If you love your baby brother so much, then join him!"

Kaiba was struggling both against Kaimiri's grip and to draw breath. The more he struggled, the tighter Kaimri's grip became. I...can't...breathe. He thought. His right arm went limp once again, the Rod dropping noisily to the ground. I'm going to die.

Kaimiri grinned. "I can see it in your eyes. You believe you're about to die." He said as Kaiba choked. "How right you are." He raised his free hand and placed it close to Kaiba's midsection. An orb of deadly, dark power formed in his hand. "Good night, for good." He released the power right into Kaiba's solar plexus, the discharge emitting the sound of a loud gunshot. Kaiba went limp in his hand, his eyes vacant and blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. "Pathetic." Kaimiri spat, throwing the young man to the ground.

Just then, Ashleigh froze.
"I--I--I can't do it" she said, falling to her knees, "Go ahead and kill me."
"We can't. If you die, I can't exist" Aka said.

Yugi gripped the sword and gently pulled it from Ashleigh's hands. "I won't hurt you." He said, dispelling the flames along the sword's blade. "I just want you back."

---

"What are you saying, Ashleigh? Kill the both of them!" Kaimiri demanded.

"Yugi...." Ashleigh started to say then clutched her head screaming as the enchantment took hold of her once again.
"I'm your enemy now" she cried during it all, "I can't treat you as an ally!"

While Kaimiri was distracted with getting the spell to take hold again, Kaiba dragged himself, barely concious, to where the Rod had fallen. He managed to grab hold of it, and the touch ignited his aura and caused the eye on the object to glow. A creature was forming from his aura, though right now he couldn't see clearly as his vision was wavering. Then again, his head was a little foggy as well. How the hell he managed to summon...whatever he managed to summon, he didn't know.

However, for those watching, the creature Kaiba summoned was his ancient ka, Duos. The ka swung it's sword at Kaimiri, severing his arm. Kaimiri howled as his arm fell to the ground, trailing blood from the bleeding stump attached to his shoulder. "You...." He growled. From the burning at the wound, he could tell this wouldn't be something his god blood could heal on its own. "Ashleigh, we must leave. We have the Shard and the woman."

Whatever was said afterward was lost to Kaiba, as he blacked out entirely.

At that, Ashleigh stood up.
"We will meet again, but next time, you wont be so lucky" she said blankly and she lifted Melhana up.

"Damn it, I won't let you take Melhana--" Yugi started after them, but he was held back. "What?"