Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Back To Ancient Egypt ❯ The Traitors and The Bribes ( Chapter 13 )

Priestess Aishisu: On one of the sites which I already put this chapter up on, I got the most ridiculous review in the world saying that-had these things actually happened-the world as we know it would cease to exist. Duh. Were you not reading? This universe is completely separate from our universe, and the Yu-Gi-Oh universe. Universes, I should say.
I am aware that the Persians, Hittites, Libyans, Arabians, and a few hundred Egyptians did not unite simply because of one guy. I don't give a fuck! It's a fanfiction. Fan. Fic. Shun. Understand? Thank you, and on with the fanfiction.

***

"Pharaoh, you're here." Shaadi stated the obvious, his relief almost tangible.

"Of course I am," Atemu replied. "When will the first candidate be arriving?" he asked Aishisu, who was standing with Mariku and Seth. The three of them were always together nowadays, he was almost certain something was going on by now…

"Right…" Aishisu paused, and Atemu waited impatiently. Every second that ticked by felt like at least an hour to him. "Now."

"Excuse me, I'm here to try out for the role of High Priestess?"

They turned to see the new candidate-a curvaceous girl with golden skin and black (well, she is Egyptian) hair that was tied into many tiny braids that must have taken forever to do.

"My name is Kara," she greeted after bowing to the Pharaoh and performing the customary greetings. "I am a thread mage."

"A thread mage?" Aishisu repeated. "I've heard of them…I didn't realize they truly existed. What was the first act of magic you ever did?"

"We do exist, though we it is true that we are rare," Kara replied. "My first act of magic was calling light from an oil lamp to the thread I was weaving."

For a while Atemu and the Priest/esses questioned Kara, and she answered all of their questions with little or no signs of hesitating.

"All that is left is the test of your magic," Akunadin announced. Turning to Atemu, he added, "But you do, of course, realize that it would be wise to let future Priests or Priestesses understand the strangeness of some of the…" he pursed his lips. "…visitors…in the palace?"

"You mean Touzoku Ou," Atemu replied. It wasn't a question, not really. Looking at Kara, he said, "I know you've heard of him." The girl nodded. "Tell me you aren't one of those imbeciles who believe he is a god."

"Of course not," Kara replied tartly. "I stopped believing the legends after I heard that he ate a human man's thumb, though he must be something incredible."

"Hardly," Atemu snapped. "Just a bandit with a bad attitude and somewhat impressive skill. But he still tends to frighten people. Perhaps you should meet him. He's…sleeping," ("that means unconscious," muttered Mariku) "right now, but don't be fooled. He's very dangerous awake."

"I don't mind danger," Kara replied, lifting her chin. "I want to see him, to see if he's as beautiful or hideous as they claim."

***

"So, we're here. Now what?" Yu-Gi-Oh asked when Bakura appeared with a pile of clothes in his arms. He accepted some of the clothes (yes, Bakura stole from Atemu so Yu-Gi-Oh didn't have to wear black leather in the sweltering heat. What did you expect, that Yu-Gi-Oh would steal from himself?) and began undressing.

Bakura was dressed differently, in a long deep blue coat somewhat similar to Touzoku Ou's and a short dark blue skirt. His three necklaces-the Ring, the necklace both he and Atemu wore that their friends had made for them, and the dark blue amulet that had belonged to his mother.

"Well, we can't just walk up to them," Bakura stated the obvious. "We'll try to stay out of sight. If anybody does see us, we pretend to be our past selves. If somebody actually manages to see me in this-these-bodies, they'll think it was a trick of the light. And you…"

"I'm identical to the Pharaoh," Yu-Gi-Oh finished for him, struggling with unzipping his pants. Bakura reached out and helped. "I am the Pharaoh," Yu-Gi-Oh continued after the pants were off. "Just older."

"But just as stupid," Bakura added, earning a glare which made him chuckle. Then, in a low voice which always managed to send shivers up and down Yu-Gi-Oh's spine. "And just as sexy."

Yu-Gi-Oh turned bright red, especially when he seemed to remember that he was completely naked and Bakura's hands were still resting on his hips. "Horny little devil," he muttered. "Is this really the time or place for that sort of thing?"

"Place? No one is going to see us here. Time? You're already naked and we have nothing to do at the moment but wait. Consensus? Yes."

Yu-Gi-Oh tilted his head. It was impossible to ignore the logic in his words-and even more impossible to ignore the tiny wildfires his touch was igniting under his skin. "You have a point…"

"Of course I do. Now shut up and kiss me."

***

"You know, he looks almost human asleep," remarked Seth, tilting his head slightly. "Somehow I don't think this was a great example."

"He's beautiful," breathed Kara, eyes wide. "He really looks like a god…how could anybody think that he was a demon?"

Sparing a glance at the Pharaoh, Aishisu saw that the young monarch was clearly furious. His striking eyes were burning with rage, teeth gnashing in a way that made it seem as if he was trying to break them. Hiding a smile, she nudged Mariku and whispered in his ear. Mariku smirked and whispered something to Seth, who nodded.

"We should have the tests now," Mariku announced, which was good because Aishisu had the definite impression Atemu was ready to strangle the girl who was staring at Touzoku Ou as if he were the most beautiful thing on the planet (if you haven't noticed, I find Touzoku Ou hot ^_^)

They went to the gardens, and Kara pulled a bit of string from her pocket. Lifting her arms and shutting her eyes, she murmured a spell as she twined the threads between her fingers in a way that looked simple but was actually very complicated.

Aishisu noticed that the whirling funnel she raised seemed to be made out of many threads of dust, but doubted anyone else would-it wasn't as if any of them had the experience to tell the movements of the dust apart from the movements in a regular dust-funnel.

Lips moving rapidly, Kara tied a complex knot in the thread and the twister halted. As she lowered her arms, dust fell slowly down into a pile. She smiled and untied the knot, and the dust collapsed back into earth-you couldn't tell the ground where the twister had been apart from the ground around it.

"Humph," Seth remarked. He was impressed, but not about to show it-especially when he knew that Atemu wasn't about to let her live in the palace. "Not bad. We'll have to discuss this for a moment," he told Kara. Atemu, Aishisu, and the Priests formed a small circle, talking amongst themselves.

"A thread mage would certainly be useful to us," Akunadin remarked. "They are rare, all of them woman, and they possess great powers. A single thread mage with string in her hand can bring down an army with sufficient skill and strength of mind."

"Yes, but I believe it would be foolish to decide a new High Priestess on the first try," Aishisu replied.

"I don't like her," Seth announced. "Something about the way she was fawning over Touzoku Ou left a bad taste in my mouth."

"You don't like anybody," Mariku pointed out. "But I agree with him." And the Pharaoh isn't about to pick somebody who makes gaga eyes at a man that he's in love with, he added mentally, and both Seth and Aishisu hid knowing smiles.

"I agree with all four of you," Atemu announced. "I don't believe we should make a decision until we've seen more candidates. Shaadi, would you tell her that?"

Seth, Mariku, and Aishisu left as quickly as possible-the last thing they needed was to burst out laughing right then and there.

Mariku shut the door to the bedroom and burst out laughing, collapsing onto the bed. "I knew it!" he crowed, raising his arms triumphantly.

Aishisu sat down gracefully, smiling in spite of herself as Mariku pulled her into a hug. "We're never going to see her again."

Even Seth had to smile.

***

Lowering to his knees, Atemu clasped his hands imploringly. "Please father, help me," he pleaded, wondering if his father could really hear his prayers from Yaru.

"You told me to love the thief, and I thought it the most ridiculous thing in the world. My head still feels that way, but it seems my heart disagrees. I tried to deny it, tried to forget, truly I did, but…Seeing that girl stare at him made me want to murder her. I've never felt this way before!"

Inhaling, he admitted the secret he had hidden for so long, even from himself. "I love him, Father. I don't know how it started, but truly I love him. But how can I? How can I love one such as him? And how can he love me back? I must know!"

He sighed and his arms slumped to his side. "You're not here," he whispered. "You aren't going to answer me. I can see that I must find the answers for myself."

***

Touzoku Ou felt slightly ill as he watched.

It was a procession of traitors and thieves, a hundred of them at least, all in handcuffs and connected to one another, all seeming tired and drained.

One by one they trudged forward, being whipped and yelled at if they were too slow. Their torture sentence had already been carried out, any information that they could be persuaded to give up (little if not none) had been given up, and now there were only two things left for them.

The first was a test of their kaa, and the extraction of it if it was strong (for use in dueling). Then was, of course, death-not by regular execution, though, but rather by soldiers practicing their technique.

It was sickening to watch, a hundred exhausted men (and a few women, as well) trudging in a line, all chained to one another by their feet. If one collapsed, all of them went down, and it took a while to get them up-if they ever did get up. Already, nine were dead, among them a pregnant woman and a boy who looked barely in his teens.

One attack with their Monsters, and a hundred or more have to go through this, he thought with more than a little anger, glad none of them could see them-turning their heads meant being whipped. Crying meant being whipped. Stopping meant being whipped. Talking meant being whipped. Trying to escape meant being whipped.

It wasn't that he had never been whipped, but for some reason he highly doubted any of these people were as strong as he was.

Watching, a numb realization came to mind-that could have been me.

Well, yes, something similar had happened to him (and he had to go through every village in Egypt, except the villages that thought they would be cursed by seeing him or something ridiculous like that. That had been an absolute nightmare. And the rope around his neck was too tight!) but it had been different.

He hadn't been among a hundred other people suffering the same fate, and he hadn't been walking towards death-Atemu just wanted to give the people 'confidence' and show that his defeat wasn't just another rumor.

That's what I get for supposedly 'dying' so many times, he thought angrily, but the anger wasn't for him this time. It was for the men and woman who looked ready to die themselves, and die for real, too.

What makes me so different from them? he wondered. I know I did things that no other thief would dare to do, but if it weren't for everything that's happened to me I wouldn't have done them.

What have I done to suffer more than all of these people? And why am I sitting here eating while they walk to their deaths?

"Checking out what could have been your fate?"

Touzoku Ou jumped, dropping the onion in his hand, and whirled around to see one of the Priests. The blonde one who hung out with Seth and Aishisu all the time, the one who owned the Millennium Items and had given him that pomegranate for the painting…Mariku.

"What do you want?" Touzoku Ou spat. "And why didn't I sense you were there?"

Mariku shrugged. "Probably because I've been here longer than you have. I'm the Chief of Military and Master of Punishments. And don't glare at me like that, I have absolutely nothing against you. Anybody capable of getting Seth steamed up-let alone scared half do death-is a friend."

"I have no friends," he replied, then blinked. "Wait, if you're the Master of Punishments, then doesn't that mean that all of this"-he pointed to the procession of sufferers-"Is your doing?"

"Seth helped," Mariku replied nonchalantly, and blinked at the look in Touzoku Ou's eyes as the white-haired bandit stared at him. "What?"

"Has anyone ever told you two that you're cruel beasts?" Touzoku Ou asked, frowning, an unreadable emotion in his eyes.

"Well, of course, but we don't really give a damn."

Touzoku Ou shook his head and bent to pick up the onion, rubbing it clean with the deep red fabric of his sleeve. "Such a stupid war…" he muttered to himself. "What do they want, anyway?"

"I'm not allowed to tell you."

"Why?"

"Because the Pharaoh said so, duh," he replied with a roll of his eyes. "Not that I usually listen to him, anyway, but Seth and Aishisu said I had to obey him this time. And for an annoying prig and the gentlest woman on earth, they can sure be convincing."

Touzoku Ou lifted his eyebrows, peeling off the dirty layer of the onion and tossing it aside. "Is there something going on between you three?"

"I'll tell you if you answer one question of mine," Mariku replied, and Touzoku Ou sighed and took a large bite of the onion.

"Go ahead," he muttered, hoping that if it was a question he didn't want to answer the onion could be enough of a stall to give him time to think up a believable lie-he only needed a second or two.

"Do you love the Pharaoh?"

Touzoku Ou gasped and started to choke on the onion, coughing hard enough to draw the attention of some unfortunate prisoners who were whipped before they had the chance to see who it was.

"Do I what?!" he roared when he had managed to swallow, breathing hard. Mariku's question had caught him completely off-guard, and he had no idea what to do.

"You do, don't you?" Mariku asked.

"I do not," Touzoku Ou snarled, looking ready to murder him. If it weren't for the bracelet and Atemu's order, he probably would have.

"Of course you do," Mariku replied, infuriatingly blasé. "I've known that the Pharaoh loved you for a long time, it just took your reaction to prove that you felt the same."

"Why you-" Touzoku Ou began with obvious fury, but stopped when he caught the second part of what Mariku had said. Blinking, sure he hadn't heard right, he hissed, "no he doesn't. Anyway, you could get yourself killed for saying things like that."

"Oh, come now. Who's going to tell him? You?"

"I don't love him and he doesn't love me," Touzoku Ou snapped, getting to his feet and storming off while Mariku watched with an almost imperceptible smile.

You keep telling yourself that, Touzoku Ou, he thought. Soon Aishisu, Seth, and I will prove you wrong. Very soon…

***

"More?!" Atemu cried. "Haven't they learned to protect their ships better?"

"These were not stolen from Persia," Seth replied. "These were a gift. They wish to meet with you and your Priests in person."

"Are they surrendering?" Atemu asked, unable to keep a sneer out of his voice. "Is it because our monsters captured so many of them?"

"I don't know," Aishisu replied. "Though I doubt it."

"Well, you've never been wrong before," Atemu replied. He nodded to the servants carrying the gifts, and they brought them to his throne.

First were sacks of spices such as cinnamon, myrrh, and frankincense. He didn't touch them, though Aishisu announced that they weren't poisoned.

Next were parcels of silk so delicate he could see through them, similar to the translucent silk of Touzoku Ou's white skirt (they changed it in the anime…) When he was younger, he used to run back and forth through the halls with the it, weaving in and out through columns, watching the lovely material float through the air.

Now he unfolded them as though they were dirty linen, and tossed them aside. Then came a chest of beautifully embroidered sashes, then Persian slippers, then three chests of Persian clothing (though they were female clothing anyway), then ivory hair ornaments.

After that was a crate containing hundreds of tiny alabaster jars. He uncorked one and Aishisu smelled the almond oil, which she loved to rub into her skin after a bath. Atemu sniffed it, frowning for some reason. Then he uncorked other jars to reveal coconut oil and fine perfumes, and even balm of Gilead-a most prized item.

The last chest contained jewelry so exquisite Aishisu couldn't help but reach out and touch a ring with a blue pearl on it, and a smaller white pearl at either side. Such a lovely and rare thing was worth at least two silver cham.

Embarrassed, she quickly drew her hand away-though not quickly enough to not be noticed-and announced, "There is no poison or curse upon these items. They are safe, and all very valuable."

Watching her, Atemu felt the slightest smile curve his lips. "Aishisu, you are one of my most loyal friends-and you are certainly the kindest and most patient. If indeed these items are safe, then they are yours."

Aishisu's eyes widened at this generosity. "That…that is much too kind, Pharaoh. I could never accept…" she trailed off. The items were beautiful, and there was little he could do with them. Besides, had she not promised to be less selfless this time around?

"Nonsense," said Seth, picking up the ring Aishisu had touched and slipping it onto one of her fingers. "No one would look better in it."

Turning away from the blushing High Priestess to a half-amused half-bemused Pharaoh, he said, "For some reason this gift seems to displease you, yet a tribute of surrender would be less than this. Is there something the matter?"

"It isn't a gift, it's a bribe," Atemu snapped, frowning, any amusement from before gone. "You and I both know what they want from us, Seth. I'm not giving them what they want for a few treasures."

"Touzoku Ou," said Seth softly, and Aishisu-who had been carefully refolding the silk Atemu had flung to the ground-seemed immediately alert.

"They can't have him," Atemu hissed. "That would result in unmitigated disaster, you know it as well as I! Do they really think we will give him to them because of a few treasures?"

"Of course not," Seth replied. "But I am bewildered as to how they can have so much with everything they've stolen and everyone we've captures. It seems as if they must have a lot of allies."

Aishisu touched the Millennium Necklace. "The Hittites…the Libyans…the Arabians…the Greeks…every thief in Egypt…20% of the peasants…I think that's all."

"'All?!'" repeated Atemu. "How did they get so many supporters?"

"Well, it isn't really that they support Persia. More that they either oppose Egypt or worship Touzoku Ou-or both. Persia was just the first to attack, and they have the most power. So pretty much all of them have joined forces, and we just say 'Persia'. I can't tell who the true leader is. The ones we'll be meeting with are…" she took a long pause. "Greek."

"So all these countries have united just because of one man?" Atemu asked. "This is basically just the second half of the war against Touzoku Ou, except this time he's the prize instead of the enemy."

"To be as simple as possible, yes," Seth replied.

Atemu's eyes narrowed in a way familiar to them all. "Well, they can't have their prize. I beat Touzoku Ou, I can beat them." His teeth clenched. "It took a war to gain him, it will take much more than another war to make me give him up."