Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Displacement ❯ Communication Gap ( Chapter 2 )

Here's Chapter Two of Displacement!! Please tell me what you think!!

 

I do not own Yugioh... just my own character, Jenna!!

 

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Jenna was first aware of the pain. Her body felt as if it was on fire, and the ache in her ribs was almost unbearable. She felt incredibly stiff and her head was simply pounding. She let out a moan, and immediately heard someone talking and a response, followed by the sound of a door closing. She sat up slowly, gritting her teeth against the pain, and trying to get her head to stop hammering, she rubbed her eyes.

Then all at once, she realized she was lying on an extravagant bed, and there were slow footsteps approaching her from her right. Her head whipped in that direction and her eyes went enormous upon seeing a dark skinned man in strange clothes, a sword in hand within arms reach of her. In that instant, everything that had happened returned to her in a confusing and horrifying rush, panick, terror and confusion rearing up in her mind. She let out a cry of alarm, rolling off the bed. Pain exploded through her side, but she didn't care. She just wanted to put as much distance between herself and this strange man as possible, and she barely took the time to notice that not only the bed, but the entire room was extravagant. This fact was put to the back of her mind the instant the man moved around the side of the bed, his sword coming up defensively, and his features set, sending another shockwave of fear through her.

Then he spoke to her, but the words were completely incomprehensible, only adding to her fear. She wanted to talk, but her mind went numb in that instant, trying to wrap itself around what was going on, and having a sinking feeling that if she couldn't understand what this man was saying, than he wouldn't understand HER either.

His features turned angry and he took some quick steps up to her, shouted something else she couldn't understand, before his hand smacked her hard across her face, and a screech escaped her lips... just as she heard the door open and she fell to the floor, her body screaming in pain and shock waves of absolute terror coursing throughout her entire being. Her face stung where he had hit her, and he rose his hand to strike her again when she heard a angry shout from the doorway leading into the room.

The man turned, and she saw eight others enter, all of them dark skinned and with clothing of a light material that was loosely fitted about their bodies. They all had either headdresses or hoods covering their heads, except for one man who simply had a golden headband and the strangest hair she had ever seen. There was a vague whisper in the corner of her mind that the style seemed vaguely familiar, but she was too terrified at the moment to even consider the possibility... and the appearance of these others only increased her fear all the more. What the hell was going on?

She took the moment of distraction to scramble backwards in terror, until she felt her back hit the wall. The ache in her ribs was almost unbearable now, between the quick shaky breaths she was taking, and how hard her heart was pounding. Then the men started to talk... all of it unintelligible.

Pharaoh glared at the guard. “What did you think you were doing?!”

The man stood at attention immediately. “Forgive me, Pharaoh! I was concerned she may be an enemy, since she appeared due to Bakura's Diabound. I asked her her name, and she didn't answer me... she tried to run away, and I assumed...”

Seto frowned at the guard. “We ascertained that she was not a threat to us physically or magically earlier! You fear her due to her odd appearance and nothing more!”

The guard blanched. “Please... forgive me... I let myself get carried away, and I promise I shall never do so again!”

Pharaoh frowned. “You are relieved of your duties until further notice and are forbidden to approach this girl until I say otherwise! Now leave us... both of you.” He said to the guards, although he directed no anger towards the second. They both nodded and exited the room.

Pharaoh and the six priests turned to regard the girl. She had pressed herself up against the wall and was trembling uncontrolably, watching them with wide eyes. Pharaoh turned to Akhenaden.

“What can you pick up from her?”

The old man focused a moment, the eye flashing briefly. “She is absolutely terrified... and extremely confused. I believe you were correct in your earlier observations, Pharaoh. She has even less of an idea of what happened than we do.”

The young King nodded... and then took a few steps toward the girl.

Her reaction was immediate. She scrambled back along the wall, obviously terrified, and tears started streaming down her face when she found she was backed into a corner.

Mahado stiffened slightly. “Please use caution, Pharaoh... sometimes the most dangerous animal is a scared one.”

Pharaoh regarded him. “I have a feeling this 'animal's' fear will not lead it to do anything that will threaten us. I will be all right. The rest of you stay there.” He turned back to the girl, holding his hands up to show he meant her no harm and stepped up to her slowly, and then he knelt down to her level. He touched her shoulder gently, which she cringed at, and he just hushed her quietly.

“It's all right, little one. We will not harm you. I promise you that. May I have your name?”

Jenna had no idea what to do. She wasn't sure what to think of the man in front of her right now, but her fear was still at its peak. And she still couldn't understand a single word anyone here said.

Seto frowned from across the room. “Answer the Pharaoh's question!!” he said in a commanding tone, making the girl cringe.

Pharaoh held his hand up. “Enough, Seto! Be still!” Then he regarded this strange girl a moment, his hand gently lifting her chin so she looked him in the eyes. The terror he saw in them was heartbreaking.

“Miss? Can you hear me?” he asked, thinking perhaps that she had been born deaf. Jenna's resolve caved. “I... I'm sorry!! I can't understand anything you're saying!” Then she simply broke right down.

Everyone in the room started when she spoke the incomprehensible words.

Isis sighed. “Well... that explains her terror... it'd be scary enough if she COULD understand us. But since she can't that fear must be magnified significantly.”

Pharaoh very gently cupped her face in his hands, and pulled her close, holding her and letting her sob in his chest. She was trembling uncontrolably, but seemed to relax slightly as he gently ran his hands up and down her back and comforted her. She gripped his tunic like a life line, taking in shaky breaths, and trembling like a leaf.

An idea formed in Pharaoh's mind. The only question was... would it work? The only way to know was to try. “Seto. Come here.”

His High Priest stepped forward. The girl cringed immediately upon seeing him approach, the Pharaoh hushing her gently. Seto crouched down at their side, noticing the girls eyes were now on him, full of fear and confusion. “Yes, Pharaoh?”

Yami regarded him. “Your Millennium Item allows you to enter another persons mind. Could you somehow utilize its ability to allow her to communicate with us?”

He looked thoughtful. “Possibly. I could try transferring knowledge on our language directly into her mind, but such a feat has never been attempted before. I can't guarantee it will work... and I can assure you that it will be incredibly painful for her as well.”

Pharaoh thought hard for a moment, and then sighed. “We have no choice but to try. If we are unnable to communicate with her effectively, her fear and confusion may only increase. We have no way of explaining to her what happened... or of hearing her side of the story.”

Seto looked at the girl a long moment, and then nodded. Her eyes hadn't left him for an instant while the conversation was going on... just as the Pharaoh had not pulled away from her. “All right. I suspect she will lose consciousness once I am done. All the new information may need time to sink in effectively and her mind will need to learn to recognize it for what it is. And remember, this may not work at all.”

Pharaoh nodded. “I understand.” He then gently disengaged from the girl, pulling her to her feet. Seto stood in front of her, making sure his Rod was in place at his belt, touching it briefly and then reached his hands out toward the girl. She cringed immediately, but the Pharaoh rubbed her shoulders reassuringly from behind as Seto indicated he meant her no harm, gently caressing the sides of her face, then bringing the palms of his hands to rest over her temples, when he closed his eyes, concentrating hard on the task at hand... and brought to life his Shadow Magic.

Jenna felt a pressure building up inside her skull... as if her brain were in a compression chamber, but that pressure soon turned into an intense pain that increased with each passing second. Her eyes shut tight as her fear increased once more... and she found somehow, she was unnable to think at all... just feel. Feel the pain, the fear, the confusion in all its glory as her mind was being crushed. “N...no.... please... s....stop... it....” she managed to gasp out. She wanted to pull away but the mans hold on her head was like iron... not giving an inch.

The Pharaoh heard the strange words she uttered, and although he couldn't understand them, he knew she was pleading with Seto to stop hurting her, unnable to understand what they were doing and why.

Then all at once, she let out an anguished scream filled with pain and fear, and her body simply went limp, just as Seto released his hold on her and wrapped his arms around her to stop her descent.

His High Priest was breathing heavily from the strain of the procedure and he looked at the now unconscious form. “She should get some rest now. It could be a while before we know if it worked or not.” he said as he scooped her tiny form into his arms and layed her down on the bed gently once more.

Pharaoh nodded. “Yes... but I wish to remain with her.”

Seto nodded. “Would you object to me staying as well, my Pharaoh?”

“Not at all.” He turned to the rest of the priests. “I want you to have the area searched for any signs of Bakura! He cannot be allowed to place any more innocents in danger.”

They all nodded and turned, leaving the two men alone with the unconscious stranger. They seated themselves at her bedside and simply gazed at her.

Pharaoh sighed. “She's... beautiful, isn't she?”

Seto nodded. “Yes. Looking at her now, she doesn't look strange so much as she looks... exotic. I have never seen such pure looking skin or golden hair. And did you notice her eyes?”

Pharaoh nodded. “Yes... a rarity once more... the color of the River Nile.”

“I wonder where she is from? The clothes, her physical features... they are alien.”

Pharaoh shook his head. “I am not certain. And I have a feeling we will not know the answers until we are able to communicate with her.”

Seto simply nodded at this, and the two of them sat in silence.

A few hours later, the young woman opened her eyes once more. Once she saw the men sitting at her bedside, her reaction was immediate. She rolled out of the bed in a panic, and quickly pressed herself against the wall once more, her eyes wide as they took in Seto.

Priest and Pharaoh were on their feet immediately, both holding their hands up, trying to show they meant no harm. “It's all right, Miss! We will not bring you harm!” Said the latter quickly. Then: “Can you understand us now?”

He sighed upon seeing her blank look and Seto frowned, shaking his head. “It looks like it didn't work. I put her through all that pain for nothing.”

Pharaoh nodded. “It would seem so. The only other option I can think of would be to try teaching her our language the hard way... which may very well take many months.”

Seto nodded. “And she seems to be as frightened as ever. Not that I can blame her, after what I did. The pain must have been excruciating. How can we gain her trust if we cannot communicate?”

Pharaoh frowned. “It seems it will take us much time to learn about her. We do not even know her name.”

Jenna's eyes went enormous with shock, realizing suddenly, that she had actually understood the last sentence that the tri colored haired man had said! Then her heartbeat picked up even more as she found herself knowing how to respond to his question... the words she needed.

“Jenna...” she said quietly, total and utter confusion on her features. The men blinked in surprise, and turned to regard her.

“Miss?” asked the tall one curiously.

She took several deep breaths, finding the words were there... but she had to think about them first... as if all the knowledge she needed were in a library that was completely unorganized.

“M... misu... haradi... shubara... Jenna...” she said quietly, her heart hammering in her chest. 'My name is Jenna' was what she had just said in their language, not having a clue how she had been able to find the words needed to tell them that information... but knowing it was somehow there.

The two men stared in amazement. “It... worked!” the shorter of the two said, smiling up at his companion... the one who had had her head in an iron hold hours before. “Excellent work, Seto!”

The other nodded. “The knowledge I gave her must just be coming to her now. Her mind is finally kicking in and processing it.”

The two men approached her. She immediately pressed herself against the wall once more, eyes going wide again. Then she shut her eyes tight, cringing as if expecting them to bring her more pain, knowing she had no means of escape.

She jumped as Seto put his hand on her shoulder. “Shhhh... It's all right.” He smirked. “I'm sorry about earlier, but it was the only way I could think of to get you to communicate with us quickly.” He lifted her chin so she was looking at him. “I am the High Priest, Seto. And this is the Great Pharaoh.”

Her eyes went huge once more and she turned to look at the other man in shock. “Pharaoh?! That's... a King of Egypt!!” she said, the fact that there had been NO Pharaoh's ruling Egypt for almost 1000 years searing through her mind... and fear returned again. Before either men could so much as blink, she raced to the window, looking out, and her eyes felt as if they were going to fall out of their sockets when she saw the Pyramids... not the ancient ruins she knew them to be, but looking new, standing tall in all their glory, no sign of wear caused by thousands of years of wind and rain erosion.

She let out a weak cry of alarm at this and stumbled back into the room, her body and mind suddenly numb from total shock. Her legs went out from beneath her, but the Pharaoh rushed forward, catching her before she hit the marble floor.

“MISS!!! What is it?! What's wrong?!”

Seto stared at her, bewildered. “How do you know about Egypt? I have seen noone here that looks like you before...”

She was struggling to keep herself from hyperventalating, her face gone white in the shock. She took in a deep breath and looked at the two men, who were now looking at her with mixed expressions of shock and concern. “Please.... I have to know... how... long have... the Pyramids... been standing?” she asked numbly, afraid of what the answer would be.

The Pharaoh and his Priest exchanged baffled looks, and looked at her once more. It was Seto who answered her question. “They have stood for just over 100 years. Why?”

Her knees buckled immediately upon hearing this, and she fell to her knees, her eyes blank and her entire being numb in shock. “Oh... my... God... ONLY a HUNDRED years?! Oh, GOD!! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING TO ME!!!!”

The two men were at her side in an instant. “Jenna! What is it?! TELL US WHAT'S WRONG!!” Pharaoh said, greatly concerned.

She gulped, praying that they wouldn't think she was insane. “Not only was I transported to the other side of the world... but I was pulled back in time as well...”

Seto stared at her. “Back in time?!”

She nodded. “Yes... the pyramids stand in my time as well... but no Pharaoh has ruled Egypt for quite some time... and what's worse... is in my timeline... the pyramids have stood for over five THOUSAND years... Oh... my... God.... I'm in Ancient Egypt!”

 

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Hehe!! Had to leave it off there! CLIFFY!!!! Please tell me what you think of my story!! Read and Review everyone!!!!