Wings of Time

Meddler Destiny

Seto wasn't entirely sure why Shadi was back in his break room. After having lost his temper at a small-end, third grade game store again, and all because of this blue eyed turban wearing freak, he couldn't be less happy to see him. Annoyed beyond belief, he sipped his coffee, letting one of his most poisonous glares be enough for the man.

Not to mention he was fairly unnerved by the crazed look in the Egyptian's usually blank face.

He swirled the creamer floating across the dark liquid as he waited.

"She's gone," said Shadi, his voice flat.

"Whoopty," said Seto across the brim of his mug.

The building shivered and the coffee machine burst into a large pedestal and stone mortar with residue of what looked like flour still in it. Then it flashed back into a coffee machine and the lights flickered between firelight and artificial light.

Unfazed, Seto continued to sip his coffee. He couldn't work like this, so at least he could enjoy his drink. Shame on anyone who ruined that last bit of pleasure for him.

Shadi, on the other hand, looked wide-eyed at his shifting surroundings. Sweat trickled past his turban and onto his chin.

"Please, is there anything you can do to help me? How did you find her last time?"

"No can do," said Seto, "with your luck my computer will turn into a rosetta stone again the moment I try looking." Man, irish cream. Good stuff

Shadi clutched his key, lips pale. "Can you find Mutou then? Perhaps with that device you used to locate the duel disks."

"Creepy how you know that, but I sincerely doubt Mutou is nerdy enough to carry that with him outside of a tournament. Are you done yet?"

The floor shook again. This time when the light flickered it wasn't to candle light, but to darkness. The red emergency light was left to light the room alone. Seto finished the last of his coffee in one gulp and it burned all the way down to his stomach. He smacked his lips.

"Well, world's going to hell. Might as well get Mokuba and go home." He set his mug onto a table and made his way to the door, walking past the panicking Egyptian.

"Kaiba-!"

"Don't care."

"But we must find her, or the world-"

"World will end, everyone will die, because that's what evil Egyptian bastards like doing, yes, I know."

"Will you humble your arrogant heart and listen to me for once!"

Kaiba paused for only a second. In that second several things went through his mind. First the usual thoughts of how he really didn't care (he did tell the truth there, for despite his flaws he prided himself for his honesty), but behind that all was a smaller voice, a much older voice, which had prodded him through doing anything for the dweeb squad and their Egyptian fairy tales. It whispered they might be telling the truth. It whispered so softly he only moved on it by instinct, not by thought, word, or even emotion.

It was this voice that made him turn, but it was it's small prominence in his mind that made him snarl.

"Why can't you freaks just leave me be?" he said, "I am one of the most powerful men in the world, but I'm not a philanthropist, and for god's sake, I'm not a magician. Now thanks to you my life's work is turning into rocks and we all might be back in the bronze age tomorrow."

Shadi's eyes had turned cold. "But it's worse than that."

"Oh really? Let me guess, everyone dies."

Shadi said nothing, but his silence spoke a lot more than Seto wanted to hear. Cursing loudly, he kicked a trash can by the door and turned back around. The small voice was whispering again, and like always, he simply moved.

"Let's go find your damn girl."

The other man stiffened, stunned, and it took him a moment to follow the CEO.

"But how?" he asked, "you already told me your technology won't work in all this."

"Destiny," said Seto bitterly, "it hasn't failed yet to throw me in the middle of the crap, and where the middle of the crap is where she and Motou would be."

"I thought you didn't believe in destiny?"

"I don't."

And with that the two left down the stairs through the haze of red emergency lights.