Bakura took a step back. If anyone interpreted that as a sign of fear, so be it - he had other problems on his mind right now. He needed time to reform his strategy; facing off against two Priests and the Blue-Eyes White Dragon at the same time wasn't something he had planned. Sure, he had boasted about taking the Priests on all at once before, but Bakura had learned quite a few things ever since he had invaded the Royal Palace. All of the Priests possessed powerful kaa's and combined with their respective Item, they represented quite a tremendous force. Shaadah had been weakened due to the poison, and Aishizu had been overwhelmed when Bakura attacked her. Could he have handled the both of them at the same time, at full power? He grunted. He was the King of Thieves and Diabound was one of the most powerful monsters, equal to the Gods! Yet, there was a limit to everything and everyone. If he wanted to use all the special abilities of his Diabound, he had to take the blow first before he could dish it out again. Bakura's body started to protest; the cut ran much deeper than he thought, deepening the red color of his cloak at an alarming pace. He was going to die here if he didn't end this soon.
"My end?" he cackled as he looked at Mahaado, his eyes narrowing when he saw the Sennen Ring dangling from the Priest's neck, right in his view. As always when he was close to the Ring, Bakura's anger and hatred grew even stronger. It was his, not the Priest's! "I have four of your Items already, and I have Diabound by my side. Are you sure it's going to be my demise?"
"Stop talking, you foul thief!" Mahaado made a swiping movement with his arm, to which his Magus immediately reacted: it raised its staff, and the tip began to glow.
"Holy Priest, please, allow me." Kisara's voice was soft, yet determined. She stepped forward, her body enveloped in a bright, white light. Her eyes showed the same glow, matching the brightness of the Blue Eyes White Dragon.
"Kisara," Set said, breathlessly.
Mahaado nodded and stepped to the side, his Magus moving with him. The Blue Eyes opened its mouth and a large sphere of pure energy started to form between its jaws. Both Set and Mahaado braced themselves. Bakura took another step back, this time to brace himself as well. This was going to hurt, even more than the cut from the Sennen Rod. Faster than he counted on, the Blue Eyes attacked, and both Bakura and Diabound took the full hit. The blast was so intense that Bakura lost his footing and the thief tumbled through the hallway, only to slam into a wall, gasping when the wind was knocked out of him.
"I will finish you off, fiend!" Mahaado rose to the occasion, his Magus had gathered enough heka to launch an impressive attack on its own.
"No, wait!" Set cried out, but he was too late. The Magus of Fantasy Illusion unleashed a wide array of spheres, exploding on impact. Diabound let out a monstrous wail as he was bombarded. Bakura slid on the floor, throwing up blood as he felt every hit. His reserves depleted rapidly and his body couldn't withstand the onslaught much longer. His kaa might be equal to a god, his body wasn't. He had lost blood, the blast of the Blue Eyes had been disastrous, and now the Magus..! It couldn't end here, not after all the work he'd done! The revenge he was promised, the revenge he was executing... finally, the Magus' attack seemed to have stopped. Diabound leaned to the side, as if it was too weak to hold itself up.
"Set, call forth your Dios," Mahaado implored him. "That will finish him off!"
"No!" Set grabbed Mahaado at the shoulder. "Wait!"
"What do you mean?"
"Why is he taking the attacks? Why is he not dodging them?" Set almost shook his fellow Priest. "We do not know all of Diabound's abilities. What if..."
"Oh yes, what if..?" Bakura chuckled. With all his willpower, he ignored the physical pain and got back up on his feet again, albeit supporting himself against the wall. "What if Diabound has the power to copy every attack... and return it with even more force?"
Set snapped his head into Kisara's direction. "Kisara! Run!"
"Too late!" Diabound was quick to respond his master's orders. Set immediately turned around, wrapping his arms around Kisara to shield her from the incoming blast. The impact of the attack was so great that the both of them were thrown through the wall, taking brick and rubble with them as their bodies slammed to the ground. Kisara cried out as the Blue Eyes dissolved. Mahaado's Magus wasn't safe from the assault either; it was also thrown back, causing the magician-Priest to recoil in horror, feeling the same pain as his kaa. Sinking to his knees, Mahaado frantically searched his mind for spells, for something he could do to stop this. He was the strongest magician around, there had to be something he could do..! To protect his Pharaoh, he would gladly give his life. There was a spell, the ultimate spell... if he could perform this, and make sure that the Ring wouldn't fall into Bakura's hands!
"Set... Set!" Mahaado didn't dare to look over his shoulder. He knew that the High Priest and Kisara had taken the brunt of the attack, and he could only hope they had survived. He gritted his teeth. He knew who was coming. Albeit with wavering steps, Bakura approached him, determinedly. Shimon had been right. Only the Gods could defeat this horrible kaa, so strong, so foul, with abilities that surpassed every human's imagination. "Magus!" Mahaado called upon his kaa again. He wasn't defeated, not yet! The Magus raised its staff, gathering heka again. Bakura stopped in his tracks.
"You're so annoying," the thief said. "I'm going to enjoy killing you!"
Mahaado didn't deign to comment on that. He needed all his concentration for his Magus' next attack, similar to the previous one. Targeting the weakened Diabound, Bakura's eyes widened at the sheer boldness of the magician-Priest... only to grin. Just as the spheres were about to land and damage the kaa, Diabound simply turned itself invisible. The spheres hit the walls, exploding on impact, shaking the Royal Palace on its very foundations.
"You just don't get it, do you?" Bakura continued walking towards him, slowly but surely. The whole fight had excited him and seeing Mahaado on his knees, with the Ring almost in his grasp, made him ecstatic. "Diabound can return each and any attack it receives. All your attempts are pathetic and futile! Now, let me show you the full extent of the powers you're trifling with! Diabound!"
The kaa moved its monstrous claw-like hands apart, developing an orb of pure, devastating heka; Mahaado instantly recognized his own Magus' attack being executed. He tried to get up, but his body refused to respond. He wasn't going to survive this, let alone his Magus. Without his kaa, he wouldn't be able to live in this world... but there was a spell, his last refuge, his ultimate trump card. He was going to serve his Pharaoh, in life and in death. Just a few moments ago, he'd been so close to Atemu that he could kiss him. Something he always wanted to do, something he had always dreamed of doing... but it was too late now. He had to put his faith in Set, in Karim, in everyone else of the Court, to take care of and love his Pharaoh as much as he did. For even though he would always be Atemu's servant, there was a moment where he believed he could be his Pharaoh's lover. His lips, while curved in a smile, mumbled the words of the spell, surrounding his body with a golden glow. Bakura yelled at him as light engulfed them both, and everything became blurred.
In his private quarters, a paralyzed Atemu had no choice but to sit still on the sofa, as he waited for Mana to arrive. He was worried sick about Mahaado; what more had the Priest kept hidden from him? Mahaado had obvious knowledge about the Items that Atemu didn't. That determination in his eyes, his voice... I will make things right. What could he mean by that? What had happened? What things had gone wrong? He wanted to know! It saddened Atemu that Mahaado hadn't confided in him. He thought that they could tell each other everything and anything, yet Mahaado had chosen to withhold this from him. It hurt. It wasn't as much as the withheld knowledge, but the fact that Mahaado hadn't told him, that hurt so deeply. They had never kept secrets for each other. Mahaado was his friend, his teacher, his advisor, his Priest, his... everything. Atemu tried to fight the spell, but to no avail. He had never been strong in heka, and Mahaado was the most powerful magician-Priest ever. He would never be able to break this paralysis. Atemu had only his mind to keep his company, and his thoughts were racing a mile a minute. Mahaado... Karim... and why was he thinking so much about Karim's kiss, with so many more serious matters at hand?
After what seemed like ages, Atemu heard a knock on the door. Mana entered, her shy voice calling out to him. "Prince? Atemu?" He couldn't answer her, not even utter a sound. Mana scuffled through the room, searching for him until she noticed him on the sofa.
"M-Master did this?" She asked incredulously. The shock on her face was genuine; never had she thought that her own Master was capable of using his heka against Atemu, their Pharaoh! Waving her wand, Mana released some of the spell and Atemu heaved a sigh of relief as he could move his upper body and arms again, but his legs refused to budge. Wide-eyed, Mana conjured her spell book and frantically leafed through it. "Master made it a double spell," she talked to herself, "but I can undo it! Ah! Right here!" Another wave with her wand, and Atemu was completely released from the spell; due to the sudden disappearance of the spell, his body relaxed from the prolonged unnatural paralysis and he unceremoniously slid off of the sofa and bumped on the floor. Mana rushed over to help him get up on his feet again.
"Are you all right? Atemu?"
"Yes, I am, Mana. Mahaado... have you seen him? We have to find him!"
"Why did Master do this to you?"
"To prevent me from stopping him," Atemu said. "We have to find him, now!"
"We can..." Mana cried out as the entire Palace shook forcefully and she would've fallen on the floor if Atemu hadn't grabbed her. "What was that?"
"Warn the guards," Atemu said. "I am going to find Mahaado!" Another rumble, and this time furniture tipped over, carafes, vases and pottery crashing down.
"Atemu, I can't let you go alone!" Mana clutched at his shenti, desperate. If only she was strong enough to call forth her own kaa!
"Then we call for the guards together," Atemu said. "We have no moment to lose!"
"Tsk, tsk," Shimon Muran said as the Palace shook hard enough to cause the tiles on the floor to crack. "I told him to not overdo it. Well, you can't get everything you want, I guess. Maybe he finally got himself into a mess big enough he can't get out of."
"Why are you doing this?" The other man's voice was hoarse, barely audible in the noise.
Shimon looked dryly at Akunadin, strapped to the bed in his private quarters. The man needed medical attention, as he was missing an eye - the Sennen Eye, and the socket was bleeding profusely.
"Priest Akunadin, do you really need to ask that question?"
"Shimon, I'm begging you..."
"Begging me? Begging me to carry out your plans, the same plans you failed to execute?"
"Fool," Akunadin hissed. "I never thought you would give into the darkness. You..."
"Shut up about darkness!" Shimon punched him in the chest with an impressive force, foreign to the elderly, stocky man. Akunadin spit out blood, screaming as his body, while restrained, doubled over in pain. He almost lost consciousness, his eyesight darkened. His chest heaved; it felt like his lungs were trying to come out through his nose. It burned inside, and Akunadin was unable to deal with so much physical pain. Panting and sweating, he turned his head towards Shimon. He recognized what was going on with the vizier, he recognized all the signs. He'd been there. He already had made a deal with a devil once - he wouldn't make that mistake twice. His son was about to pay for it dearly, he was going to lose the woman he loved if everything went wrong. He couldn't let that happen to Set. Akunadin barely cared for himself, he didn't care if he was denied the afterlife. His heart would never pass Anubis' test, and for what he had done, Ammut would devour him. But his son...Set, and his woman, they deserved better. Akunadin had never felt any guilt, not even for abandoning his wife and son at such a young age and never looking back. He knew he was a sinner, and he wanted to make up for it, to Set, if that was still possible. He grunted again.
"Poor little Priest," Shimon sneered and kicked against his leg. Akunadin yelled out in pain once more. Impossible! The vizier couldn't be so strong as to shatter bones! Twitching and twisting grotesquely, Akunadin tried to steer his mind away from the pain, but he failed horribly. He wished he would pass out, but Shimon or the darkness surrounding him kept him on the edge of consciousness.
"You have a problem, Akunadin, a big problem." Shimon's voice was low and deep. It echoed hollowly through the room.
"No, please..!" the Priest cried out. He was backhanded brutally.
"You have a problem," Shimon repeated. "A very big problem. I should've known you would recognize me. You haven't forgotten, have you?"
"How could I?" Akunadin's breathing was labored. Blood caked at the corners of his mouth, and one side of his face was covered with heavy streaks of blood. "I created you!"
A hollow laughter. "That's too much honor for you, sad and pathetic Priest. Do you really think you have created darkness? It's everywhere, even in the hearts of the most righteous men!"
"My son... please!"
"Oh yes, your son," Shimon said. "It's a little too late to be thinking of him now, don't you think? You always had such a sharp mind, Akunadin. It seems that old age has clouded it! I've set my plans in motion, and there's nothing you can do about it."
"I won't tell anyone," Akunadin hissed. "You have my silence, isn't that enough?"
"Obviously, it isn't," Shimon answered, amused. "Do you really think I need your silence? I don't care for your silence; you were supposed to be silent anyway. My thief is wrecking havoc on the Priests. Soon I'll have all the Items. It's only a matter of question to maneuver the Pharaoh in the right position."
"You'll never get him to cooperate. He's not stupid!"
Shimon narrowed his eyes to mere slits. "He will cooperate, if he wants his Kingdom to live to see another day. You know what I'm capable of!"
"I know," Akunadin said, shivering. "But this son of the Gods will stop you, Zorc."
Chapter 11 | Chapter 13 |