[OPEN] Mission 156

[soul_mods]

Characters: Open to participants who signed up here.
Location: Lake Tahoe, CA
Rating: Various.
Time: March 27th, late morning.
Description: The second of the three Madness emitters outside Death City is the target for this mission. Bundle up, everyone -- it's gonna be a cold one.

The mission begins late in the morning, to allow the mission-goers as much sunlight as possible in the warmest part of the day. Not that it'll help much… Temperatures are well below freezing already -- unnatural even for early Spring in the mountains -- and a howling snowstorm threatens to blot out the sun, beginning up the mountain where the slope just begins to rise sharply.

The slopes themselves are fairly barren: a windswept-looking tree here, a cabin that may have once belonged to the snow patrol there, maybe a Madness-crazed bear or mountain lion. Those braving the storm are lucky enough to see five feet in front of their face in these conditions!

Those brave few who manage to make it to the top (enduring falling temperatures and defeating the corrupted fauna and hulking kishin yeti along the way) may come across their goal at the very summit of the half-mile-high mountain: the Madness emitter itself, in the eye of the storm… And one last obstacle: the Witch guarding it.



OOC NOTES.
- The event summary post containing all relevant links is located here.
- Make your own threads, but please indicate in your subject line [CHARACTER(S) | LOCATION | OPEN/CLOSED]
- If you have any further questions, the mod thread on the coordination post is here!

Comments

[shiromadoushi]

As if it would...

Never before had Bakura been so glad to be a Weapon. If the idiot Voice crashed (which Bakura was sure he would,) at least he could transform and bounce away unharmed...

That thought was the only reason he even at all got onto the snowmobile at all.

....he really hoped that he was right in that the Spirit only had a copy of his body. It would be real trouble if it was just his from later...

[feelsgoodinyou]

Once they were both (more or less) safely seated on the vehicle, Bakura mentally went once again through the notes he had made when he had had one of Shibusen's local agents explain the way it had worked to a who he had assumed to be his curious host.

First, feet in the stirrups - check. Lever on the right for speed, working. Left, brakes, also working, more or less. Good, time to get going!

Slamming the engine into full speed, he had the motor of the snowmobile howl up as they started with a jerk. Less than a minute later they were dashing uphill, moving at a breakneck speed for such an unsecured terrain in a harsh ride. Realizing all this, Bakura felt a rush of giddiness flow through him. The risk, the danger, the lack of knowing of how things were going to end paired with this simple display of power reminded him of days and nights spent back in Egypt and the raids he had made there. Ignoring his host, he laughed headily as he dodged a Weapon-Meister pair that had decided to tackle the mountain by foot.

Let the hunt begin!

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura gave a shriek, clinging tightly to his double as the snow machine lurched to life, propelling them suddenly forward at far too fast of a speed. "What are you doing?!" he yelled over the rush of wind, adrenaline rushing through him in utter terror for his life.

[feelsgoodinyou]

"Bringing us to where the souls are!" He still sounded amused as he leaned into a curve that saved a young tree's life. At this rate they wouldn't take long until they arrived at the worst fray - if they didn't break their necks before that.

"Last time we got two-" Out of which Ryou still owed him one for just eating it,"so this time I want to get at least three of them!"

[shiromadoushi]

"You're going to get us killed before you get there you idiot, slow down!" Bakura exclaimed, grip getting painfully tight as his crazy counter part rounded the curve.

[feelsgoodinyou]

He didn't only slow down the snowmobile but stopped it completely by taking his thumb from the engine button and letting them slide to a stop. By now they had not only crossed a remarkable distance upward the mountain, but they had also stealthily moved more and more out of the sphere of any other group until they were out of any possibility of supervision.

Pulling his neck gaiter down, he turned to give his double an unreadable look. His mouth was still smirking but his eyes were not. "Just like you slowed down when you found out that Yuugi and the Pharaoh are here?"

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura gave a relieved exhale as they came to a stop, pulling back and putting a hand over his rapidly beating heart, almost missing his double's question.

"What does Yuugi-kun have to do with anything?"

[feelsgoodinyou]

"That's what I want to know from you. Before he arrived you didn't want to have anything to do with me and now you don't only start talking back and cussing me out, you even insisted on us doing this little 'adventure' together."

[shiromadoushi]

"One thing has nothing to do with the other!" Bakura pointed out. "You were the one who came over saying you were going to work with Yako-chan or Ryuzaki-kun...!"

He paused, blinking in belated realization. "...Cussing you out?" He repeated, unable to keep from making a face. "By calling you an idiot for driving like that?"

[feelsgoodinyou]

"Considering who it's coming from, yes. It's not like you."

There was still suspicion in his eyes, accompanied by a slowly growing flame of rage. Even if it was to expected he wasn't going to let himself be used as a bargaining chip or step-stone for getting closer to them like that!

[shiromadoushi]

"I thought you were going to get us both killed..." Bakura sighed. "There's no way that riding a horse would be anything like driving something like that!"

...even if it had actually been a bit fun minus the whole feeling like he was going to die thing. Sort of like a roller coaster! ... only one with no safety mechanism....

[feelsgoodinyou]

He shrugged his shoulders. "It's pretty much like riding a bike just without having to worry over keeling to the side. The rest is just gauging how close you are to falling."

It also took more than a sane amount of willingness to take a risk.

[shiromadoushi]

"Bikes don't go that fast..." Bakura pointed out, sounding almost tired before he shook his head. "Never mind... I don't want to argue. Especially not in a place like this...."

[feelsgoodinyou]

"That's why they aren't as fun!" For a moment an impish grin appeared on his face before his eyes widened and he jerked his head to the side with a cuss.

Pretending to stare intently at the snow a bit ahead and up of them, Bakura cussed at himself. Way to go, in a situation like that! he was going to ruin his plans without any help from others, if he let things like that become a habit! Worrying, feeling happy over such little things.... None of that was necessary! He didn't need such emotions anymore!

Turning back to his host with a dismissive grunt, he gave him a low-intensity glare. "If you want to our connection to get closer to them you'd better come out and say it right now. I react badly to fools trying to use me." Knowing that Zorc had done it was bad enough to live with.

[shiromadoushi]

"...Say what?" Bakura blinked, a little taken back, wondering a bit at the sudden change of expression. For a moment, the Voice had seemed... well...

Human.

[feelsgoodinyou]

Hmmnph. He really looked like he hadn't clued on about it at all. Gods, how he hated that!

Folding his arms in front of his body, he gave him a hard look. "You're dropping me for your friends. Maybe not yesterday or the day after tomorrow, but you already decided on that the moment you arrived, didn't you? 'With Yuugi-kun and the other Yuugi here I don't have to worry about that jerk anymore!'" He almost spat out. "Don't lead me on!"

[shiromadoushi]

...wait. Was...

"...You're mad that I didn't want Yuugi-kun to know you were at the door?" Bakura realized with utter disbelief. Was the Voice seriously jealous? Bad enough he had Ryuzaki making a fuss, was this jerk also going to start acting like that...?!

"Yuugi-kun's a Weapon, and even if the other Yuugi-kun's a Meister, he'll be working with Yuugi-kun, not me..." Never mind the fact that the Ring seemed to be using him as a 'until something better comes along' to start with...

[feelsgoodinyou]

He snorted. Yuugi would have to be not only deaf but also more stupid than his hair was ridiculous to not have at least a good idea of who Ryou had been trying to hide. There weren't exactly many people who he would try and hide having interacted with.

"I'm not talking about just some fucking mission, you dolt!" His voice dropped into a lower, more normal speaking volume that was alarmingly calm. "Is that all our truce means to you?"

[shiromadoushi]

"I thought it was so we'd stop fighting!" Bakura protested unhappily. "What are you so upset about?! I texted you back like I said I would, I haven't broken any promise or lied to you!"

It was frustrating, like he was dealing with something where the rules constantly changed.

[feelsgoodinyou]

He tensed at those words, shoulders suddenly square and his frame straight as a rod. Without a word he turned away from him, showing his back.

"You said it. You said that you wouldn't toss me away the moment one of your friends appeared. Now they are here and I'm just a problem again."

[shiromadoushi]

First Ryuzaki. Now this. Was there something in the water again? What was it about Yuugi being there that made people act this way...?!

"Did you want me to tell Yuugi-kun that I'm not avoiding you like I told him I was? I didn't want him worrying about things like that when he's just arrived!"

[feelsgoodinyou]

He snorted, not turning around because otherwise the smirk on his lips would be too obvious. This little act was really all too ridiculous, but he wanted to keep lowering his host's wariness of him a little more before it was time for him to find the bomb.

"For what? The little runt already knows that I'm here anyway."

[shiromadoushi]

Bakura was quiet a long moment. "There's a difference between knowing that and knowing we're working together. He thinks you're a danger to me... there's no way I can keep my promise to you if he knows about it...."

[feelsgoodinyou]

Ah, that made it easier to keep a straight face.

Turning back around, he regarded him with a solemn look. "We aren't working together. This is merely an attempt for a second chance, maybe as allies rather than enemies. I've made another truce with him."

[shiromadoushi]

"Isn't that what we're doing here? Even if we might not have the same goals... we're both here to fight the Kishin together," Bakura pointed out, voice quiet as if somehow, he thought that he might be overheard. "This whole thing... it was complicated before, and now with Yuugi-kun being here..." he trailed off, not looking over at his double. "I don't want to have to try and explain it just yet. I don't know how I even would..."