Title: Chronograph

Genres: Adventure/Romance

Rating : T

Summary: An expedition to survey a remote island proves complicated when it is discovered that the island is not as uninhabited as they think. How many have gotten this chance? And how many would have taken it? / AU, Xenoshipping, Ishizu x Rishid

A/N: Written for the YGO Fanfiction Contest Season 8, Round 6. The pairing is Xenoshipping (Ishizu x Rishid), although the story also includes trace amounts of Marik x Rebecca. This story is a total AU – none of the events in canon have any bearing here (no Items, no reincarnation, no AE, and therefore no tomb-keeper tradition, etc). Ishizu is working for the Domino Museum, along with a few other characters you might recognize, on an expedition to an entirely fictional Indonesian island. Just about everything written here is entirely fictionalized.

A chronograph is a timepiece that, in addition to keeping time, also has a stopwatch function. I'm using it here for the metaphorical association of a global time continuing in a linear fashion and a time 'stopped' in the sense of the atmosphere of the island and the expedition.

I hope you enjoy!

Chronograph

Field Journal, May 20

The cave system here is extensive. I don't think there are any mineral deposits, although I'm sure our museum's benefactors would love to assume otherwise. Marik believes the caves flood seasonally, so we won't find our temples here. The aerial shots we gathered before the trip indicate that the structures are totally recessed and set into the sides of the mountains—we probably won't find them until we're literally on-top of them.

The survey work is simple and has been progressing without any problems. Volcanic activity and the many cave formations make traversing the island difficult, but our maps should make things easy for any future explorations.

It's surprising how much wildlife is active on this island—I have been trying to take pictures for the museum's naturalist to analyze, but it seems strange for such an isolated island to be able to support such biodiversity. The kingfishers, especially, are prominent.

It is irritating to have to write by flashlight. I hope by the next entry we are out of this cave.

The strap of Ishizu's pack was cutting into her left shoulder. She rolled her shoulder back to try and loosen it, but it refused to budge, likely plastered to her skin from sweat. It was humid outside, even in the dry season, and the group kept a strong pace. It never failed to amuse her that it was Arthur who set their pace—the same Arthur she had considered until only recently to be more the museum's fossil than its field man—but here he was. He had jumped on the chance to lead one last expedition before his retirement, traveling deep into the interior of the island after they had learned about an unusual and widespread temple structure from an ancient civilization. It was the perfect site, Arthur said, with no bandits, no established inhabitants, and no competition.

"How are you holding up?" The question was directed at Arthur's granddaughter, who trudged along beside Ishizu.

Rebecca smiled grimly at Arthur before hefting her own pack. "I've got the computer, the radio, and the survey equipment! How do you think I'm holding up?"

"If you don't want to carry it, give it to someone else," Ishizu told her.

"Like I trust any of you to carry my precious equipment!" She coughed, before quickly amending, "No offense meant, of course."

"Then don't complain about it." Marik always hiked last in the group, except when they were in the caves. Ishizu's brother had been brought onto the expedition for his expertise in that particular area, and to his credit they had not gotten lost once.

"Look at the land," Arthur continued, spreading one hand out to point towards the mountain range in the future. "Isn't it beautiful? That's where we'll be in a few days."

Rebecca gave Ishizu a look and mouthed the words 'a few days?' Ishizu smiled to herself—the undergraduate had been loud-mouthed and brash, but she'd proven to be a solid companion in the few weeks it had taken the group to journey south to Indonesia and then charter a boat to take them and their supplies to this island.

"Hmm. It's still nothing like Egypt." It had been Marik's answer to just about any question, and Ishizu supposed that if he had it his way he would never leave the country of their birth. He had only come at her request and the opportunity to survey a previously-unexplored area of the world; they had no maps other than the findings from aerial photography and the photography from their own eyes and memory. The museum had provided them with expensive mapping equipment, but they had barely covered ten percent of the island's total landmass—there were so many more caves, rivers, and mountains left to explore. They still had the temple sites to locate, and any artifacts to uncover and bring back to the museum for curation.

And it would be her exhibit, her chance at a position within the museum's higher staff. It was so close she thought that if she reached out she would feel it. It was just barely out of her reach.

As she continued to walk up their improvised path up the slowly sloping mountainside, she struggled to remember the distance, in miles, between Domino and Indonesia.

May 25

We found several fragments of pottery today. It is of such fine detail, black with engraved sides, and I wish I had the resources here to examine them properly. I hope this means we are on the right path, for certainly these remains of this civilization must not be far from the central complex. Arthur has a greater knowledge than I on the subject of Melanesian pottery, and finds it odd that such an advanced style is present here, and that all probability suggested that we should have found greater examples of more poorly-made pottery. Perhaps it was brought to the island from elsewhere, rather than made here by whoever left it?

I wish I could see a completed specimen. It is beautiful—finding it has put the group in a good mood. I hope this is only the first of our discoveries.

Marik leaned closer to the fire, holding out his hands to get warm. Against Ishizu's advice, he had gone swimming in a lake they had discovered close to their camp, conspicuously absent while the others made dinner.

Outside of the circle of the fire, Rebecca had turned on the computer system and was struggling to set up her tent, a compact construction of silver mesh and coated canvas intended less for comfort or space and more for waterproofing and to keep the bugs at a distance.

After the structure folded for the second time, Marik approached her, bending down to straighten out the pieces of fabric-covered tubing.

"Have you ever gone camping before?" he asked. "Before this trip, I mean."

Rebecca scowled, dropping the piece of canvas she held. "Not if I can help it."

"It would probably help if you weren't trying to assemble it upside-down." He grinned as he quickly set up the framework before securing all of the pieces to the ground and the tubing that held it upright.

"I can program our computers," she said irritably. "You'd think I would be able to set up a damn tent!"

"It takes years of experience," he continued. "In fact, I got my degree in tent-assembly. It's framed. On the wall of my tent, of course. You should come and see it sometime. "

Ishizu approached the two, settling herself next to the computer. "Since you are so competent at it, Marik, and enjoy it so much, would you mind also setting up my tent while I go over some data with Rebecca?"

Marik reluctantly agreed, and Rebecca's fingers moved swiftly over the keyboard as she pulled up the data Ishizu wanted. Rebecca had managed to construct a 3-D representation of the island, with all of the geographic features they had explored.

"What's over here?" Ishizu tapped the screen at a dark spot on the map.

"We don't know," she answered. "The entire back half of the island is dark—the coast is really rocky, as you know, so we couldn't land on that side. I don't know if we'll be able to get up there, but I don't think it matters much—why would a civilization live up there when they could live by the coast?" She shrugged. "I mean, in the event of a volcanic eruption they're pretty much screwed regardless, but at least down here they have the caves and the mountainside—fairly easily defendable and traversable."

She paused while Arthur handed them each a bowl of rice. "I don't think we'll have to go that far, but I'm pretty sure your temple is on the other side of the mountain we're on now." She pointed to another spot on the map. "Right about here."

It was odd to see a spinning, digital representation of the land on which they sat together in a circle around a small but sufficient fire. On the computer the mountain was green, like it was in real life, yet the color was saturated and bright, with web-like curves representing the topography.

They ate in silence for a few minutes, with Ishizu staring solemnly into the fire and Rebecca staring at Marik. Ishizu hardly even noticed when her spoon scraped the bottom of the empty dish.

"You both should get some sleep—to reach the ridge of this mountain we'll need to have an early start," Arthur instructed from across the fire, a metal spoon submerged in a half-full bowl of rice. "Tomorrow, we're leaving at daybreak."

May 27

Nothing new to report—the geography of the island at this point is unchanging, and there have been no new finds of any significance.

We realize that there is a dearth of research on this island and the surrounding civilizations in general—that is why our report and this exhibit are so important. What we find will augment the information available in this field of study. Our findings are so unexpected—we find the strangest things in the strangest places.

Yesterday Marik and I uncovered some fish bones and teeth—the largest bone was around three inches long! Possibly from a barracuda, although further study will tell us which specific kind of fish it came from. They are remarkably well-preserved, despite the varying climate of the island, but I am not convinced by this find as the others are. My confusion stems from the obvious—what are fish bones doing out here, so far from any source of water? How did they get here? I do not believe they are as old as the others believe, who treat them as an ecofact in their own right. I think they are a much more recent addition to the landscape of this mountain. I believe they were left here by something…or someone. I have not shared by new hypothesis with anyone else in the group, for it does not even make sense to me.

The temple construct was everything that Ishizu had hoped it would be. The columns and walls of the structure were built out of a light gray stone, probably limestone, and stretched far above Ishizu's head. Vines and grasses had sprung up around the building, encasing it in a shroud of light green. It had rained the previous day, so the sky was light but covered with clouds and mist, and as Ishizu lightly pressed her hand against a wall of rock she wondered who had been there before her, and what they might have done in this space.

Totems and statues were arranged in what might have been a ritualistic display, and Ishizu's notes were meticulous as she documented the exact placement and description of every single item in the temple. Several of the rooms were sunken or had caved in, but it was incredibly well preserved.

With that thought in mind, Ishizu observed a length of vine that curled around the base of a column. Even without dating the structure or its remains she knew it had to be from around 1000AD at the latest, and there was no way that this was the only extent that the structure had been taken over by the natural environment. They had hacked their way through a growth of these same vines the previous day, and by all reason the same should have happened here.

She walked outside, almost automatically following a depression in the grass to where Marik and Rebecca stood with Arthur, assisting him in packing up several of the smaller statuettes and carved totems.

"We have several samples of the columns and more pottery fragments," Marik told her. "I found more fish bones as well, over there." He gestured off to the side with one arm, and Ishizu left to investigate. Just as before, the bones she found were well-preserved and clustered together with remnants of decayed seeds and gourds.

It was a midden, a glorified garbage pile. She recognized it instantly, and it only made her more confused. Of course it would be set aside from the rest of the temple structure, but why would everything be so well preserved, unless the temple site was still actively in-use?

She shook her head, banishing the thoughts. The island was uninhabited; who would be around to use the temple? It was more likely, that due to the odd configuration of this mountain, it was sheltered from the heavy rain of the wet season or any other degenerative natural effect. She cast a wistful glance at the temple structure and the looming mountain above it—all of the islands in the western Pacific were volcanic, and it was little more than luck that had kept this site and the island free from any eruptions severe enough to cover all evidence of this past civilization.

Rebecca and Marik hardly mirrored the enthusiasm of the other two, but they assisted in cataloguing and photographing items before Arthur and Ishizu selected the best representations of the cultural history there to return to the museum with them.

"This exhibit will be phenomenal, Ishizu," Arthur told her. "It will be your crowning achievement within the museum. Your lack of field experience and research was the only thing preventing you from promotion, and I have no doubt the museum's board will recommend you for a position once the exhibit ends. These artifacts will be beautifully displayed."

"I was thinking of re-creating the temple, actually," she said. "With the individual rooms and the arrangement of the sculptures and columns. I only wish we could carry more with us."

"We hardly expected to find this much, did we?" Arthur lovingly touched a foam-wrapped carving. "Did you see the figurine in the main room? It had such peculiar ornamentation…it's these mysteries that draw us to the field, right, Ishizu?"

"Of course," she answered automatically, holding back her more elaborate answer. Ishizu preferred what went on in the museum behind its countless doors and displays. It was the education of the visitors to the museum and the presentation of the artifacts that drew her interest more than the discovery of the objects themselves, although she supposed that each was rewarding in their own way.

"If a further team of researchers is ever sent to this island, they'll be sure to stop by here and retrieve more of the artifacts that we cannot bring," Arthur said. "Other museums could surely benefit from this collection. But now I'm getting too far ahead of myself, I'm afraid."

"No, it's fine," she responded. "We'll complete as much of the survey as we can before we meet the boat to pick us up again in a week. I suppose that's all we can do."

"Did you see any of the medallions?" Arthur continued. "Incredibly well-preserved, and if they weren't so heavy I'd feel offended that we're leaving them."

"I saw them," she said. "They were beautiful."

"Well, take lots of pictures," Arthur suggested. "You can always incorporate those into the exhibit as well, hmm?"

"Of course." She turned her gaze back on the impressive remains of the temple, unable to shake the feeling that she was missing something important, only she couldn't quite figure out what it was.

May 30

There is something peculiar about the path we are taking to go down and around this mountain—in a sense, it is peculiar that there is a path to begin with. Depressions in the grass; mosses and trees that have 'grown back' into what seems like such a natural configuration…there's the possibility that I am seeing far too much into these little things, but they are starting to add up.

I feel like we are following someone else's trail—the trails of the old civilization, perhaps, or of something much newer. It is anyone's guess where the trail will lead.

We have stopped for the night before another cave—Marik wishes to wait because it is raining, and the path will likely be slippery. We're each carrying relics from the site, and I believe such a small object carries more weight when the object itself is weighty in its significance, no matter its physical mass.

I wish my brother and our computer expert would stop flirting with one another. On second thought, this is an inappropriate thing to write in a field journal, and will be erased shortly.

"Whoa, get a look at this!"

Rebecca's voice seemed to echo even more than was normal inside the caves, and for a moment Ishizu wondered why until she cleared the narrow passageway and joined the others on a small ledge that opened up into a giant cavern of dark rock that seemed to go on indefinitely in either direction. Rebecca whistled, leaning over to get a better look at the deep crevice below the ledge. While the enormity of the cavern kept her attention, it was the rickety-looking bridge of wood and cords or vines that drew Ishizu's immediate interest.

Rebecca stepped back and kicked a small pebble over the edge. It disappeared from sight within a second. "Hey, did you hear it fall?"

"Rebecca, that doesn't mean anything," Marik told her. "There's no telling how deep this thing goes."

"Dr. Hawkins," Ishizu asked slowly, "what do you make of this construction?"

Arthur paused, approaching the edge of the bridge. He kneeled, testing the strength of the planks first with one hand before assessing the cords.

"How remarkable," he said. "This bridge is old, but not ancient. The cords are still strong. I believe this could support our weight with little difficulty."

"Why are we ignoring the obvious?" Rebecca interjected, gesturing at the bridge with one hand. "Who exactly was—or is—here to make this bridge and use it? Can you answer that?"

"I believe this island is not as uninhabited as we think," Ishizu began slowly. "Whatever people used to live here must have a fraction remaining—that's what I think, anyway."

"So I'm not the only one?" Marik replied. "Good. I thought I was seeing things that didn't quite add up—the trails I've been following in this cave seem too well-formed to have been made and used so long ago." He paused. "What do we do about it?"

"Is there another way through the cave?" Arthur asked.

"I can't say for sure," Marik said. "This cavern is huge—this could very well be the only access point to the other side of the cave in this entire place. I'm sure we could go around the mountain the hard way, but this is still the most direct route and I don't think we'd make it in time to be able to complete the survey and return to the bay to be picked up."

"Then we cross this bridge."

Ishizu was sure everyone's thoughts were on the immeasurable drop to the floor of the cavern, but Arthur removed his pack and walked towards the bridge. Holding the strap lightly, he placed it on the second plank.

Everyone collectively held their breath, but nothing happened. The wood did not creak, and Arthur looked satisfied. "If this can hold our supplies, there's a pretty good chance it can hold us."

"This is insane." Rebecca's contribution echoed in the vast cavern. "Statistically, logically, and personally, that bridge is not safe. I'm not crossing that thing, and I can't see why any of you want to, either."

Arthur turned to face his granddaughter. "We have evidence that there may be not only the structural remains of an ancient civilization, but the living remains of its people. I do not wish to give up that chance, however slim, to at least see what is on the other side of this bridge. I have no trouble crossing first—"

"There's no way." Rebecca gritted her teeth before dropping her shoulders in exaggerated defeat. "I'm the lightest, so I'll be crossing first."

"I must insist—"

"—Too late," Rebecca interrupted, moving past Arthur and dropping her pack to the ground by her side. "Just in case, I'll cross without carrying all of our data—if we lost it, wouldn't that be hilarious?"

"How is that hilarious?" Marik echoed all of their worry, but Rebecca stepped onto the bridge, taking slow, measured steps.

"See!" she called. "There's nothing to it!"

"I'll take Rebecca's pack with mine and go next," Ishizu volunteered. "Dr. Hawkins can go third, and Marik can go last." She gathered the remaining pack, took a deep breath, and began the crossing.

She tried to distract herself, but her adrenaline was running freely and her attention could not be moved from her surroundings. She tried to focus on them—how had the cavern been constructed? What was its purpose? Did the channel fill with water? Magma? The thought was as dizzying as the height of the small bridge of rope and wood that linked the two sides of the cavern. Before she knew it, she was over.

Arthur and Marik crossed quickly, and they all breathed a sigh of relief, laughing weakly together as Ishizu returned Rebecca's pack and Marik once again led the way into another narrow passageway that seemed to be naturally formed from the rock, but now they wondered just who, if anyone, had taken these steps before them.

The pathway they were following was surrounded by other offshoots and crevices in the rock, and was so narrow that they had to walk single-file. Ishizu could barely see in front of her save for the thin beam of light in the distance that was Marik's flashlight. A few feet ahead, Rebecca stumbled over a protruding rock, and Arthur reached back to help her steady herself.

"My flashlight's dimming," Marik called. "Could someone open theirs?"

"I've got it," Ishizu called back, rummaging in her pack. "Just keep going."

Her fingers closed around the metal base of the flashlight just as Marik's went out, and in the dark Ishizu froze, stumbling blindly even though she knew that nothing more had changed but the disorienting absence of light. Her thumb found the button and she pressed it, and the light was almost startling in its suddenness and strength.

"Ishizu?" Rebecca was barely a few feet in front of her, but Ishizu still couldn't see very far; the dark rock seemed to swallow up all of the light.

"Arthur?" she called in response, and Arthur's form appeared next to Rebecca's in another second.

"Marik?"

They all turned towards the open pathway, waiting for him to reveal himself, but there was no response. "Marik?" Ishizu tried again, but after another moment of waiting nothing had changed.

"Marik!" Rebecca cupped her hands around her mouth as she shouted, and Ishizu winced at the effect in the enclosed space.

"The radios don't work in the cave." Arthur had retrieved his from his pack, and only the loud sound of static greeted him when he turned the radio on.

"Oh, this is just great," Rebecca said, but Ishizu could sense the worry in her voice, and she knew that they all felt the same—Marik was lost within the cave, and they had no idea where he was.

"He's the one who knows where he's going," Arthur reasoned. "We're the ones who would get lost instantly if we tried to search for him. No arguing," he added, anticipating the others' reactions.

"I don't want to leave him here." Ishizu's voice was strong and clear. "I want to go out and find him. He can't have gone far—maybe he walked into one of the adjoining passages, or found something interesting and he'll be back in a moment."

"Then we will wait for a moment, but not for too much longer," Arthur compromised, checking the glowing dial on his watch. "Marik made sure to mark our path with chalk for the time that we would have to retrace our steps—we shall call for him, and wait, but it has been a long time since we have last eaten, and we cannot start a fire or camp in here. We will retrace our steps until we get to the entrance of the cave, and we will set up camp there."

"He must know by now that we've been separated," Ishizu said. "Our radios will work again once we get out of these caverns. I've got chalk—we'll leave him a message."

"His flashlight went out," Rebecca reminded her. "What about that?"

"We all have extra batteries in our packs," Arthur said. "He knows that, and he'll take the time to use them. Let's call for him again, but the longer we stay in here without a guide the better chance we have of straying from the path. We need to get above ground."

"I agree." Ishizu didn't like it, but she scrawled a message on the cavern wall with chalk while Rebecca shouted his name, and after another ten minutes the trio solemnly turned and re-traced their steps along the pathway.

"I know how much you were looking forward to crossing that bridge on the return journey, but I guess we'll have to add two more to that list," Ishizu told Rebecca, offering the other girl whatever smile she could.

"That's absolutely hilarious," Rebecca deadpanned. "It's almost as funny as Marik getting lost in this cave."

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Ishizu assured her. "And he's not lost—Marik doesn't get lost. He's just lost us."

June 1

We lost Marik inside the cave at around 4:50pm, according to Dr. Hawkins. One second he was in front of us, and the next it was as though he had disappeared. I know he's fine, but I still can't help but worry about him. I hope he's written about what he's doing and what he's seen in his own field journal, but I think that's a little too optimistic.

Marik would know more about the giant cavern we crossed and what caused it. I believe it's likely a pathway to the temple site we visited previously—but what it's leading from, I do not know.

Our camp site from yesterday was the same as we had left it. I keep expecting to look over and see him sitting next to me, but the space is always empty when I turn. The others are sleeping, but I cannot bring myself to sleep when Marik could be coming back at any moment. I tried to eat something but my stomach feels hollow, although that could just be due to our camp food.

I think I see something—

Ishizu set the pencil down and folded it into her notebook, stuffing it back inside her jacket pocket to free her hands. She had set up her tent but she hadn't bothered trying to sleep, and sat by the fire with the radio, waiting for any sign or communication from Marik.

It was a shadow—Ishizu strained to see, but it was difficult in the darkness. The shadow moved.

It was a human-looking shadow. Marik!

Ishizu stood instantly, her pace quickening as she walked around the low fire and jogged towards the grove of trees and ferns in front of her, pushing them out of the way with her hands as she followed the shape.

"Marik!" she called, smiling as she saw him standing beside a tree, shadowed in darkness. He hadn't moved.

"What are you doing? It's me—" She reached out before pulling back with a gasp as she saw clearly that the person before her was not Marik.

The man took a step towards her, and Ishizu remained immobile, still shocked to see another human being on the island, filled with a kind of astonished satisfaction that she was right, that there were inhabitants here, she finally realized with an acute clarity that if Marik had made it to the other side, her brother may have encountered people like this man. There were so many unknowns—how many were there, where were they living, what language did they speak—and the greatest of them all. Ishizu swallowed. She had no idea if this man or his people were hostile or not.

She kept her face neutral and even, and nodded her head slightly towards him. "Hello."

The man was silent, and Ishizu took a moment to observe him—he wore a strange robe of thick cloth, undyed, and he was clearly much taller than her. He took another step closer, seemingly just as curious about her as she was about him, and the moonlight suddenly threw his features into sharp exposure.

His face was distinctive in a way that was both fascinating and repelling. His head was shaved except for a neat ponytail at the base of his skull, but it was his tattoos that drew her attention. The left side of his face was covered in rows of lines and squiggles, from his temple to his chin, all the way back to his ear. She winced, and he frowned, but still never said a word.

"Hello," she tried again, trying to keep her voice as neutral and relaxed as possible. "I'm Ishizu Ishtar, and I'm looking for my brother, Marik…"

No response, although he tilted his head at her words, as if trying to process them.

"Marik? Ishtar?" she tried again, her disappointment at his lack of response fading as she remembered that she had a picture of him in a pocket of her cargo-styled trousers, and reached for the pocket.

Quickly, the man snatched her wrist, and Ishizu froze in surprise as they stood together, each watching the other with suspicious eyes. She tried to tug her arm from his grasp, but he kept a light but firm hold on her wrist. She could feel the calluses on his fingers.

Do not appear aggressive—Ishizu repeated it like a mantra to herself twice, but he would not release her.

"Let me go!" As if sensing the angry tone in her voice, he released her, and she slowly moved her hand back to the pocket, removing a thin photo of the two of them. The man watched her every move, but curiously looked at the photo when she held it out to him.

"This is me," she said, pointing to the image of herself. "This is my brother, Marik." She pointed towards his image in the photograph.

She couldn't help the grin that rose on her face when the man's eyes lit up in understanding, and he pointed at the image of Ishizu before gesturing towards her, then pointing at the image of Marik and gesturing off into the forest.

"Take me to him," she insisted, grasping his sleeve with one hand. He glanced down at her arm, the same arm he had grabbed earlier, and Ishizu drew back, apologizing quietly as she held the photo gently in her other hand. He pointed at the photograph, and she held it out to him again.

He pointed at her brother's face. "Mar-ek."

Ishizu grinned and nodded. "Marik."

He frowned, and pointed towards her image before pointing towards herself, before speaking a few words in a low, soft tone that was unfamiliar to her. She pointed towards herself. "Ishizu."

"Is-is…?"

"Ishizu," she repeated.

He gestured towards his chest. "Rishid."

She mimicked the word. "Rishid." It sounded cleaner, better, when he said it, yet he seemed to radiate pride as she said his name. "I like it."

He said something else, waving an arm as he turned and walked further into the jungle. Suddenly worried, Ishizu felt the radio in her pocket and paused for only a moment to think about it before following Rishid.

How many have gotten this chance? And how many would have taken it? Ishizu could hardly keep her excitement steady as she followed him, walking away from the mountain and yet towards it at the same time. They were heading down in elevation, she noticed—according to Rebecca's digital map, they would be approaching a river shortly.

She was right, and within a few minutes of steady walking she could hear the sound of water, and only a few minutes more could she see the river—it was wide and glassy, with a few rocks interspersed by the water's edge. The water looked as black as ink in the darkness, with only a half-moon to illuminate it, but Rishid quickly moved to a canoe that had been pulled to the shore, pushing it back towards the water.

"Let me help you," she said, moving to join him. Rishid pulled back, staring at her crossly as though offended, and he gently removed her hands from the edge of the canoe and gestured towards its interior. She stared at him blankly and he gestured with more force, and Ishizu understood, gingerly stepping into the canoe and sitting down near the back, keeping a grin in check at his mannerisms; some things, it seemed, were the same in any language.

She grasped the edges of the canoe as he pushed it fully into the water before leaping swiftly into it, settling himself facing her before reaching for a paddle resting at the canoe's floor, paddling them down the river.

"How much farther is it?" she asked, more for the sake of conversation than an expectation of an understandable response.

When he finally did speak, it was in words and sounds that were completely foreign to her, but his voice was low and rhythmic. She responded, thanking him for his assistance, and hoping what he said was something good. It was so strange, she realized; they probably had no idea what the other was talking about, yet they were still having a conversation as if they were speaking to someone who did.

He continued to paddle, moving the canoe through the water with an expediency and efficiency of movement brought by experience and strength. Ishizu alternated between watching the scenery and watching Rishid, and wondering about the state of her brother.

"Marik…is he alright?" she asked, leaning forward. "I need to know."

He responded with a string of words included both of their names, but she linked her fingers over her knees. It wouldn't be daybreak for another few hours at least, but Ishizu wondered if she had done the right thing by leaving without waking either Arthur or Rebecca, but she knew that if either of the others were in her position, they would do anything for their family. She needed to be there for her brother.

As if sensing her worry, Rishid set the paddle flat against the top of the canoe before reaching out and grasping one of her hands with his, closing his fingers over her knuckles. She had no idea what he was saying, but she knew he was trying to comfort her in whatever way he could, without knowing the source of her anxiety or its resolution. She smiled weakly. "Thank you."

He gave her a knowledgeable smile in return, and said something that included her brother's name. Satisfied, he withdrew his hands from hers and resumed paddling the canoe. Ishizu linked her own hands once more, imagining the way his fingers felt on her skin long after the sensation had left.

I think I see something—

Rishid stares at me as I write, but I need to document what I am seeing and I have no other way. The coastline is uneven and rough, so it would be difficult to simply walk along the river until you reach their village. I have seen a few people, fishing by the river's edge—I believe Rishid may be some sort of a scout or soldier, for what else would have sent him out that far? What little I can see of the village is breathtaking in its simplicity—like the temple, the village is built into the surrounding nature, and I could not see it until we were practically already here.

The canoe is landing.

Rishid graciously helped Ishizu out of the canoe before once again leading the way through a well-traversed dirt path up a slight hill. It was still dark, but Ishizu wondered what the village, and its people, would be like in the daytime. There weren't many buildings, and she didn't know which were dwellings and which might be communal or public buildings, but Rishid headed towards one that was set away from the main street, through a curtain of thin reeds.

Against the back wall of the building, she could see her brother sitting on a thin pallet. She ran to him and he jumped up, throwing his arms around his sister.

"Marik! I'm so glad you're alright." She stepped back, and critically observed him—except for a lot of dirt smudging his face and clothes, he looked much the same as he did when she had last seen him.

"How did you get here?" he asked. "Not that I'm not happy to see you, but this place isn't exactly easy to get to." He noticed Rishid standing behind Ishizu, glancing between the two of them whenever they spoke.

"I see you met that guy," Marik said.

"Rishid?"

"What's that?" Marik asked.

"That's his name, Marik."

At the mention of his name, Rishid glanced at her, and Ishizu turned back towards Marik. "How do you know him?"

"I think I stumbled into a side passageway, couldn't see a thing, and replaced my flashlight batteries. I look around—totally unfamiliar, but I manage to find…Rishid? Is that it? I find him, and he led me out of the cave—confiscated my bag, too, and my radio was inside it. He took the statue I was carrying—wasn't happy about that at all."

"Let's contact Rebecca," she said, reaching into her jacket pocket for her own radio.

"Can I?" Marik asked, and she nodded, handing it to him.

Marik switched the radio on, and at the squeal of static that issued from the speakers, Rishid grasped Ishizu's arm and pulled her away from Marik and the radio, eyeing it warily.

At his reaction, Marik turned a laugh into a cough while Ishizu did her best to reassure Rishid that the radio was in no way dangerous to any of them.

"Ishizu, what was that?" Marik asked, glancing between the two of them. "You're blushing. Is there something I need to be aware of?"

"Just contact Rebecca, already," she replied, "unless there's something about your relationship you want to tell me."

"Nope, nothing at all," he said with a grin, pressing the button on the radio to page the identical version in Rebecca's possession. After a few seconds of static, her voice responded.

"Who is this?"

"It's Marik and Ishizu," he replied. "We're together and safe. Over."

"Ishizu! Do you have any idea how worried you made us? We woke up and you were gone, too! Just where are you? And you don't need to say 'over.' Over." Rebecca's voice over the radio was full of static, but Ishizu could hear every word and the emotion behind each.

"We're—"

"Don't tell her," Ishizu interrupted him quietly. "This place doesn't go on the map. It's preserved itself for so long…it doesn't need our help. No one else needs to know."

He paused. "It's your decision."

Marik raised the radio transmitter back to his lips and spoke, "We'll fill you in when we get back. We just wanted to let you both know that we're okay, and that we'll be back soon. Over."

"You should probably conserve the radio battery in case you need to contact us again, for anything. I'm glad you're safe. Over and out."

Marik slowly switched off the radio, and the three stood in silence for a moment.

"What are we going to do now?" Marik asked.

"I meant what I said," Ishizu replied. "No documentation. This place…and its people…are special, and don't deserve to be exploited. That's exactly what would happen if we went public with their existence. The artifacts we have are enough. Our knowledge is enough."

"How are we going to get back? And how did you get up here in the first place?"

"Canoe," Ishizu answered.

"How romantic," Marik teased.

"I will not dignify that with a response."

"But you're not denying it, either," Marik said with a grin.

Ishizu crossed her arms and turned away from him, her eyes catching sight of a very ornate vase on a shelf against the opposite wall. Ishizu inhaled sharply, crossing the room without a second thought to observe the vase, so similar in style and craftsmanship to the pottery fragments she had seen earlier, but this…this was the real thing.

"Marik, look," she whispered. "Black, engraved pottery…it's perfect. I've never seen such a flawless example." She reached out one hand, letting her fingertips lightly brush the engravings.

Ishizu felt a tug on her sleeve and turned, seeing Rishid standing beside her. He picked up the vase, turning it over in his hands before holding it out to her.

"For…me?" Ishizu felt completely speechless, unable to do anything more than accept his gift, taking the vase into her own hands. With sudden inspiration, she shifted the vase to one hand and removed the photograph with the other. With a smile, she presented it to Rishid.

"Thank you."

Rishid answered in his own language, and reverently took the photograph, staring at it for a few moments before placing it on the shelf in the exact spot the vase once stood.

"I don't want to interrupt this moment," Marik said, "but you should probably figure out a way to ask him to take us back, because the rest of the village wasn't too keen on letting the statue-stealer go unpunished, and I don't think I'd be too keen on what they had in mind."

June 1

– –

Marik had been handed another paddle within seconds after he had settled himself in the canoe. He paddled at Rishid's instruction, and without hesitation Ishizu ripped the most recent page from her field journal and tore it into tiny pieces before throwing them into the water.

"You shouldn't litter," Marik commented.

"This isn't littering," Ishizu replied. "It's…liberation."

The sky was growing lighter with each passing second, and Ishizu felt that the more she thought about it, the more she didn't want to leave—this boat, this island, it was all the same, completely isolated in both space and time—and that each passing second meant one less second here, and one less second with Rishid.

Before she knew it, the canoe was brushing up against the rim of the shore, and Ishizu allowed herself to leave it, looking back only once as the two followed Rishid's directional gestures. She turned away once he was no longer in her vision, but she kept the vase firmly clasped in both hands, unwilling to let it go for even a moment.

"This will look great in your exhibit," Marik said.

"It's not for my exhibit," Ishizu said. "It's for me."

She paused. "And it will look great in my office."

Field Journal, June 3

All artifacts have been cataloged, packaged, and shipped, with the exception of a small statue that has somehow gone missing. A report has already been filed. The exhibit date has been set at July 15—that gives us hardly more than a month, but that is enough time—the hardest work has already been completed.

My official report has already been compiled and sent to the museum board. The complete survey of the island has been finished, and all intact and representative artifacts from the site we discovered have been collected. It is my recommendation that there is no immediate need to return.

Ishizu Ishtar entered the museum on Monday morning, briskly walking through the brightly-lit atrium, greeting staff and visitors alike. Her exhibit was given an extended run, but she barely gave the bright banners and signs over the entrance any attention. Not today—this day, her attention was devoted to something far more important.

She had insisted upon retaining the same office. Moving was such a hassle, after all.

She paused in front of the door. Gleaming brightly, affixed to the wooden surface, was a gold nameplate. It contained only three words.

Ishizu Ishtar, Director

End.

Notes:

1) The 'temple' described is a reference to the card "Temple of the Kings" that Rishid uses.

2) When Rishid refers to Ishizu as 'Isis,' it is a reference not only to her AE persona but also to the Indonesian language pattern of reduplication.

3) I'm not trying to make any statements here with this story; I know very little about this particular subject so much of what was written was fictionalized. Note #2 was about the extent of my research xD

4) I appreciate and value your reviews. Thank you so much for reading!

~Jess