"He'll be strong, won't he?"
Rishid is told from the beginning that he's nothing. Father tells him that he will be nothing more than a servant to the Tombkeepers, that he is no son of his, and that he'll never be strong. Rishid disagrees on some of these points. For one, he is strong. He is stronger than any boy or girl that he has ever met. When Father took him outside, he saw that everyone else was smaller than him – even Father and Mother are smaller than him. Another point is that he will be nothing more than a servant to the Tombkeepers. Father may shout that as he whips him across the face, but Rishid knows that Mother loves him and that Ishizu, his sister, loves him.
Yet he is no son of the Tombkeepers, and this is a problem. There is a millennia-old tradition that calls for the first-born son of a Tombkeeper to be branded across the back with the secrets of a Nameless Pharaoh. While the initiation frightens Rishid, he is resolute in his decision to become a Tombkeeper. He pleads to Mother and Father to initiate him. He is merely five years old the first time he asks.
"Mother, why can't I be a Tombkeeper?" he asks.
She smiles sweetly at him, running a hand through his ponytailed hair. "Because of the tradition," she explains. "Your father and I must bear the next Tombkeeper."
He frowns. "Aren't I your son?"
The question shocks Mother. Her eyes widen and her bottom lip quivers. They've never talked about it before, but Rishid knows that he is not the legitimate child of his parents. He knows that Mother found him outside of their home when he was a baby, and that she took him as her own because there was no one else around to care for him. The differences in appearance are enough to guess. He looks nothing like either of them. Mother has a soft, gentle face, with almond-shaped eyes that bleed love. Father has strong features and blond hair. Rishid, conversely, has dark hair and a face that betrays his young age.
"Aren't I your son?" he repeats.
"Of course you are," Mother says. "Rishid, you are my child. Don't you ever forget that. But… Tradition calls for a child born from two Tombkeepers. I'm sorry."
"Can I be a Tombkeeper?"
She smiles. "Someday."
Rishid smiles as well. Father says he can't smile right, but Mother chastises him and always tells Rishid he has a beautiful smile. "Can I be strong?"
"You already are."
Rishid believes he is strong when he is strapped to a stone table and Father stands over him with a heated knife, expression unknown in the dark. He screams loudly when the knife rips through his skin; he bites hard on the gag in his mouth, but his tongue still bleeds. Now there's blood on his back and in his mouth. He cries for Ishizu. He cries for Mother and Malik, even though they are both dead and cannot hear him. Somewhere in the back of his mind, hidden behind the agony, is the thought that if Malik had survived childbirth, Rishid would not be the one strapped to the table with blood on his back. He was not supposed to be a Tombkeeper...and yet now he is.
For the rest of the night Father cuts open Rishid's back. The hieroglyphs that are painstakingly etched into his skin tell the secrets of a nameless Pharaoh who died in the eighteenth dynasty. Rishid knows some of these secrets, as he's snooped on Ishizu's lessons a few times, but he can't read all of the writing and therefore isn't even sure what secret he'll be guarding. He knows it's important, though. This is the greatest honor of a Tombkeeper. This is what he wants to be.
When it's over, Father bandages his back with little remorse of his actions. His hands are bloodstained, but they don't shake. Rishid wonders if Father was ready for the initiation – if Father was prepared to do the deed. Father has the same scars on his back, so did he relive his initiation as he cut into the skin of his child's? Or did Father feel angry that he was initiating Rishid and not Malik?
Rishid mulls this over for the rest of the night, as he lies in his bed on his stomach since his back is too sore. He wonders how Malik, his baby brother, would've handled the initiation. Then Rishid thinks of his responsibilities and it makes him smile. He is a Tombkeeper. He will now live in the tomb for the rest of his life with Ishizu and Father, never to see the surface again. When the Nameless Pharaoh returns (not if, because Rishid is certain that the Pharaoh will return), Rishid will reveal to him the secrets guarded by his clan for three millennia.
He'll be a savior to the Pharaoh. He'll wait, eternally faithful, for his return.
And Rishid does. Over the next few years, Rishid waits for the Pharaoh. He breaks all of his Father's rules and escapes the tomb late at night so he can walk the streets of Egypt. To find the Pharaoh, one must first know of his general location. Rishid doesn't know what the Nameless Pharaoh even looks like, but he guesses that he'll be wearing the Millennium Puzzle. The Millennium Items must be somewhere in the world, too, as Rishid's family guards two of them: the Torque and the Rod. Rishid has used both of them. He is not supposed to, but if he is to find the Nameless Pharaoh then he must start somewhere.
Between the TV in the market and the power of the Torque, Rishid learns that there is a boy named Mutou Yuugi who holds the Puzzle and that this boy lives in Domino, Japan. The Torque tells him that the boy goes to Domino High School and that he lives in the Kame Game Shop. This information is confusing for Rishid at the moment, but he is sure that it will make sense when he gets to Japan. For now, he needs to pack his bag for his trip. He doesn't have many changes of clothes or food, but he's shamefully stolen money on his trips out of the tomb so that he can buy a plane ticket and food.
"How will you know when you've found the Nameless Pharaoh?" Ishizu asks as he packs his bag. She sits on the edge of his bed, braiding her long, dark hair.
"When I've found the Puzzle," Rishid replies.
Ishizu frowns and her eyes narrow. "That doesn't mean you'll find the Nameless Pharaoh. What if he's not with the Puzzle?"
"The Torque said that I must find Mutou Yuugi. This boy carries the Millennium Puzzle with him." Rishid smiles slightly. "I think it's safe to assume that the Nameless Pharaoh lives within the Puzzle."
"Well… You better be careful," Ishizu blurts out. She wrings her hands in her lap like an infant. Ishizu is twenty years old, no longer a child, but she worries for him, even though he is five years older and has been outside more often than she has. "Be safe while you're out there. Japan is not like Egypt."
"No, it's not." Rishid pauses. "I think it is nicer. Ishizu-sama, I will return when I find the Nameless Pharaoh. I'm sure it will not be a difficult quest." Rishid embraces her tightly, wrapping his large arms around his sister's shoulders. He notices how they shake and he squeezes her tighter. "Do not worry, Ishizu-sama. I will return when I find the Nameless Pharaoh."
He thinks he hears her say 'OK', but that may have been his imagination. Shortly afterward, Rishid leaves. It's the dead of night and nothing else is around him. Their tomb is far away from civilization; it takes an hour to get to the nearest village where he can purchase food, or where he goes to watch TV and look for Mutou Yuugi and the Puzzle. His feet sink into the cold sand and he shivers in the chilly air. He's started his quest for the Nameless Pharaoh and now, all alone in the desert, he questions whether he will succeed. Mother said he was strong and Rishid used to be strong, but is he strong now? Was Malik supposed to die with Mother, or was it his baby brother who would guard the secrets? Was Rishid, an orphan boy with scars on his back, the one to deliver the secrets to the Pharaoh? Was he the savior?
Instead of taking an hour to walk to the village, it takes Rishid half an hour. He leaps and bounds across the sand, running faster than he's ever run before. It's not that he wants to get away, as he loves his family very much and will miss them, but he is excited. He's out of the tomb and free. He wants to do something silly, like jump in the air of laugh, but he's never done those things before and the actions sounds alien to him. He lets out a quiet, hollow laugh to the empty sky. No one will hear him. Father won't beat him for making noise. Father can't do anything. Father is gone.
For the first time in his life, Rishid is not shadowed by Father. He is his own light, no longer corrupted and hidden by his Father, and his light is going to Japan to find the Nameless Pharaoh. Rishid is sure of that.
He hurries to the village in record time. The streets are not warm and he stays in the moonlit patches of ground as he searches for someone to take him to the big city. This village has been his haven ever since he first left the tomb, but it is too small and crowded. There isn't much in the village besides food and houses, and neither of those are things Rishid needs to find the Nameless Pharaoh.
Quickly, Rishid hurries down the street and into the nearest shop. At the counter sits a man with a beard, a pipe, and wise eyes.
"Please take me to the airport, sir," Rishid says, and he holds out a handful of coins. Guiltily, he realizes that it is not a lot of money to give the man, but he knows that he will need most of his money for the plane ticket.
The man's eyes widen in shock, but a tired smile peels back his lips to reveal his yellow teeth. "Sure," he says. "What a fine, young man." He takes the coins from Rishid, and then leads him outside to a rusty truck. Rishid takes the passenger seat, ignoring how a spring pokes him in the back and how it's cold enough in the truck to cause his breath to mist. The truck takes a few tries to start, but soon they are cruising through the deserted, dusty streets and on their way to the airport.
To pass the time, Rishid looks out the window and thinks about Mutou Yuugi and the Millennium Puzzle. He's seen Mutou on the TV before. He is a famous duelist and the winner at Duelist Kingdom, a tournament hosted by the creator, Pegasus J. Crawford. Rishid almost smiles when he thinks of Mutou's ridiculous hairstyle. Will all Japanese boys have exotic hairstyles? This is not to say that Rishid's hairstyle is normal, but… At least his hair is one color and sits close to his head. Then there is the Millennium Puzzle. He wonders if he'll feel the same power when he touches the Puzzle as when he touched the Torque. It fascinates Rishid that the Millennium Items are over 3,000 years old, and yet they look brand new. How could the metal be preserved for three millennia? Furthermore, how could each Item possess such distinct powers?
Rishid is too busy thinking that he barely hears the man ask him a question. Quickly, Rishid bows his head and apologizes.
"No problem," the man says. "What I was saying was where are you going?"
"To the airport."
"No, where are you taking a plane to."
Rishid bows his head again. "To Japan."
"Ah." The man falls silent and Rishid leaves him be. He looks out the window and watches the sunrise until the big city is within eyesight. Rishid's eyes light up with excitement, though he assumes the expression is hardly visible to the man. Father always says that he has the most stoic expression.
The buildings in the distance are taller than the pyramids, which seems impossible to him. They scrape the firmament with their pointed roofs and their mirrored walls reflect the morning glow. There are people walking the streets, but there are also lots of cars on the road.
They descend into the heart of the city, where the streets are crammed with old and new cars. Rishid has never seen so many vehicles in his life. His heart races in his chest as he looks up and sees how the buildings stretch to the sky like hands. They make him feel small and he subconsciously wraps his arms around his chest. His fingers brush the scars on his back and he shivers harder. He doesn't like to feel the scars on his back, even though he's had them for years and they're healed. They remind him of what he endured…what hundreds of first-born boys have endured… And it was all for the Nameless Pharaoh.
When they reach the airport, Rishid thanks the man profusely. He bows deep and the man jokes that Rishid should get used to bowing if he's visiting Japan. "It's a Japanese custom," the man tells him. "You do it out of politeness."
Rishid nods his head. He shoulders his bag, bows to the man once more, and then departs without a second glance. By now, Rishid is used to the enormity of the buildings in this city and how they tower over him. The pyramids are nothing compared to the colossal, metallic buildings that stand before him. Just then, a plane flies overheard and startles Rishid. He swallows fearfully at the thought of being inside that machine, yet he knows that there is no other way to get to Japan. He must meet Mutou Yuugi and the Nameless Pharaoh.
He hurries inside and pays for the plane ticket. The lady up front is unexpressive and impolite, and she gives him an odd look when he nearly pulls all of his money out of his bag to pay for the ticket. Rishid feels her eyes on him, but he doesn't say anything. He tries not to say much to her, except which seat he'd like and a brief 'thank you' for the ticket. All the while a man with a gun stands nearby, searching for any miscreants in the airport.
With his ticket in hand, Rishid hurries through security and settles down on the other side. He nearly has a heart attack when the guard patted down his back to search for concealed weapons. The feeling of fingers on his scars makes him cringe and he nearly gasps out. He is glad when it is over. He doesn't want to have to remove his shirt and show them the scars. He has never shown anyone but Ishizu and Father the scars, and they were both there when he received them.
In a whirlwind of noise, clatter, and disaster, Rishid makes it onto the plane and is in the air. It is a bigger than the one he's seen in the sky, but not as noisy inside as he's expected. He settles down in his cozy seat and picks up the brochure. It turns out that it's in Japanese – a language of which he doesn't understand a word – but he still flips through the pages, if only to pass the time. It seems that the city he'll be visiting, Domino, is famous for two things: Mutou Yuugi, the gaming genius who won Duelist Kingdom; and Kaiba Seto, the gaming genius who built the Battle Boxes used in Duelist Kingdom. Both, surprisingly, are the same age, and, according to the article on their rivalry, attend the same high school. Rishid wonders if Kaiba will come to Mutou's aid should he steal the Puzzle. He hopes not.
As it is, Rishid's plan on getting the Puzzle is sketchy. He will steal it on a school night, when he knows Yuugi will be in bed and his friends will not be around. Since he is certain the Nameless Pharaoh resides in the Puzzle and may attack him for stealing the Puzzle, Rishid will put the Puzzle in his bag and carry it away. He will find a quiet, secluded place where he can stay, and then he will talk to the Puzzle and awaken the Nameless Pharaoh from his millennia-long slumber.
It isn't the strongest plan, but it is the best he can come up with. If Kaiba is to come to Mutou's rescue, Rishid will already be out of view with the Puzzle by the time the two can communicate. Any of Mutou's friends will not be able to find him if he hides well enough, and it isn't as though Mutou will even be able to recognize him. He'll make sure the boy never sees his face.
For the rest of the trip, he sleeps, holding the brochure tight in his hands. He will fulfill his destiny and reveal his scars to the Nameless Pharaoh. Then he, Rishid Ishtar, will be the last Tombkeeper.
Rishid wakes with a start as a woman's gentle hand touches his shoulder. It goes dangerously close to his scars and he gasps as the hand rests on his upper arm. Looking up, he catches the eye of the woman who'd sat next to him on the plane. He'd barely taken note of her when he'd boarded, but now that she is inches from his face, he can see that she is of Japanese descent. She smiles gently at him and brushes her red hair behind her ear, blushing. "Sorry I startled you. I just wanted to tell you that we've landed," she says in shaky Arabic.
Rishid is shocked when he hears his own language being spoken to him. "Oh… Thank you." Remembering what the man had told him, Rishid bows his head. It makes the woman laugh, but she sobers when she sees what he's holding.
"Do you game?" she suddenly asks.
"Pardon me?"
She points to the brochure he's holding. He still has it flipped to the article on Mutou and Kaiba's rivalry. "My son is Mutou Yuugi."
Rishid is glad that emotion hardly shows on his face, as he suddenly gets very excited. He's found the mother of Mutou! As friendly as possible, he says, "I game a bit. I am actually here to attend Domino High. I am a transfer student from Egypt."
"Ah, that's exciting. You must meet my son, then." She reaches into her purse and pulls out a pen and paper. She writes something down in symbols that Rishid recognizes as the same symbols in the brochure and hands it to him. "This is my address. I… Sorry this sounds forward, but my father would love to meet an Egyptian boy, and I think Yuugi would like you. Please come for dinner sometime."
Rishid puts on an earnest smile, but there's also a dark pit in his stomach. This woman is pure and innocent. She only wants the best for her family. Rishid feels guilty accepting her hospitality when he will soon be stealing from her son. Yet, he keeps his mouth quiet and bows to her again, thanking her and telling her that he will come visit in a few days, once he has settled down in his aunt's house.
"Please do!" she returns. She waves goodbye to him and hurries out of the plane. There are but a few people inside the plane. Rishid quickly gets up, takes his bag from the overheard bins, and exits the plane with a slight bow to the flight attendants.
Japan is nothing like Egypt, Rishid discovers, as he looks out the window and glances around the airport. First, everyone is shorter than him. Rishid feels like a giant as he lumbers down the hallways to the exit. The signs that he passes by are neon and flashy and in odd symbols that Rishid can hardly read. There isn't a single hieroglyph or Arabic letter to be seen. All around him he can hear the sounds of the Japanese language, but without a legend he cannot connect the sounds to the symbols. Nothing looks like Egypt – not even when he steps outside and is greeted by taller buildings, brighter colors, and busier streets. Rishid swallows. How is he supposed to find the Nameless Pharaoh in this city?
The first thing he does is pay for a taxi to take him to a hotel. He cannot say a single word to the taxi driver, but he points to the picture of a hotel in a brochure he picked up inside the airport and the man seems to understand. He nods, smiles, and tells Rishid something in Japanese. Rishid doesn't understand what he's been told, but he bows his head and hopes the action will convey his gratitude to the driver.
They take off down the streets of Japan at a brisk pace, slowing down only twice at a busy intersection. There are so many cars that they make Rishid's head spin, and yet there are even more people walking down the streets or rushing to train terminals. Rishid makes notes of the train stations, as this will be his mode of transportation when he steals the Puzzle. First, he must find a place to wait for the night.
It takes nearly an hour to get to the hotel, but the building at which the driver stops is nice and inviting. It's fixed up with a nice, blue trim, and the man standing outside gives Rishid a warm smile before coming over and helping him with his bag. He talks to Rishid in Japanese for a few moments, until the taxi driver says something to him and he stops talking. Rishid pays the taxi fare and nearly uses all of his money. He doesn't have enough to pay for the hotel room, but he keeps a nonchalant look as he walks into the hotel with the other man. Just as he passes by a wealthy couple leaving, Rishid dips his fingers into the woman's purse, pulls out her wallet, and tucks it into his pocket. When the man isn't looking, Rishid empties the contents of the wallet before chucking it in the garbage. The guilty feeling returns, but Rishid is resolute in his quest to find the Nameless Pharaoh. He will end the Tombkeeper tragedy, even if it means breaking hundreds of rules and disgracing his own name.
He pays with the woman's money and chooses a room with a view of the city. Using gestures and pictures, he learns the location of the nearest train station and how to purchase a ticket. Rishid thanks both men before taking his luggage (he interjects when the friendly man tries to carry it for him) and heading to the elevator. Rishid has never seen an elevator before he'd gone to the airport, but now that he's been on a few of them, they no longer make his stomach flip-flop inside of him.
The room is lavish to Rishid: dark, silk bed sheets on a bed bigger than Father's; a TV on an entertainment system of cherry wood; a writing desk and armoire tucked into the corner. There is a room off to the side that leads to a closet and his bathroom, both which are bigger than his room in the tomb. Everything in this room, despite the dark colors, is bright and lively. Through the window Rishid sees the sun and his voice catches in his throat. It descends beneath the mountains, buildings, and the water. The beauty of the sunset is the colors: pinks, yellows, and oranges blend into each other like a watercolor painting. It's the most exquisite view he's ever seen.
"Ishizu, I wish you could see this," he whispers. He presses his fingers to the window; a childish act, as he knows he cannot capture the sun in his giant palm and bring it to her. Yet, he wishes he could capture his shot and bring it to her. She loves the sun and the feeling of light on her face. Father forbade them from ever visiting the surface. Rishid escaped to watch the TV for Mutou Yuugi and the Millennium Puzzle, but some days it was too dangerous to bring her along. If Father ever found out that they escaped, he'd be whipped until he could barely move.
That pain alone would've been enough for him to see Ishizu's smile, but Father would hurt Ishizu, too, if she went outside of the tomb. Rishid could never allow that.
"I'll bring you to the surface. I'll bring you out to the light. I promise, Ishizu. I promise we'll be free. And I… I will be strong."
That night, Rishid heads out of his hotel room and down to the lobby. It's nightfall, but there are still families in the lobby who are returning from the day's activities. Avoiding their stares at his foreign appearance, he slips outside and heads down the street towards the train station. More stares from the locals follow him down the road. In a way, they remind him of Father's stares. Father always told him that he looks funny, that he doesn't look like a Tombkeeper. Rishid supposes that he doesn't. Malik was supposed to be the Tombkeeper. It was always supposed to be about Malik. He was just the orphan that was meant to protect Malik…and what good did he do. All he did was take the initiation instead of Malik, but only because he was dead.
Suddenly, Rishid wonders if the Nameless Pharaoh will accept him. Will he know that Rishid is not supposed to be a Tombkeeper, and that his blood is not of the Tombkeeper bloodline? Will he shun Rishid away? A tight feeling builds up in Rishid's chest at the idea of the Nameless Pharaoh turning away from him. He's never thought about it before, but maybe he cannot help the Pharaoh find his memories. What if his goal as a Tombkeeper was ruined because of his ancestry?
Disheartened, Rishid stops in the middle of the sidewalk. Should he try to find the Pharaoh? Should he steal from Yuugi and his family who want to help him?
Can I be strong? he asks himself.
And, somewhere deep inside a voice replies, You already are.
Rishid feels something in his heart. The wind blows past him, rustling his hair and touching his scars. Yes, he is a Tombkeeper, and he is strong. He will fulfill his destiny by showing the Pharaoh his scars and helping him recover his memories, even if he may not be the chosen one. He trusts himself. He must be strong.
"I am the Nameless Savior," he says softly.
He hurries to the train station and purchases a ticket with minor fuss. The note Mutou's mother had given him is tight in his palm. He doesn't know what it says, but when he shows it to a lady at the station she tells him which train to take to get there. He thanks her, although she seems shocked by his towering presence. Rishid assumes that he probably doesn't look the most genial of people. Nevertheless, he tries.
The train ride is wholly boring compared to the plane ride. In fact, the train ride is detestable. Rishid has been in many crammed streets, but none of those experiences are similar to being packed like a sardine in the train. There is hardly any place for him to stand, and each time the train jolts he stumbles forward and bumps into another stranger. He doesn't bow his head, as it is already bowed due to the low roof. The worst part of the ride is the people who press against his back. Rishid prays the entire time that no one will be able to feel his scars through his clothing.
Once he exits the train, Rishid takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. Claustrophobia has never affected him before, even when he was locked in a room for hours as punishment, but being in that train forced a dark feeling in his stomach and in his mind. It reminded him of Father's fingers on his skin before he was initiated. Father had run his fingers on his skin to mark where the symbols would go. Then, when a briefcase would touch his back, it would spark the memory of a knife digging into his skin.
Rishid is surprised he did not suffer a panic attack in the train.
The train drops him off eight blocks away from Mutou's house. The neighborhood is quaint, as is the Mutou household. It is on the corner on a road without a single house. There are buildings, naturally, but they are stores. The Mutou house is similar. It has a large sign in the front that reads 'Kame Game Shop'. The entire house is brightly painted to attract customers and includes posters on the front of newly released or upcoming games. The store is located on the main floor; there are no stairs on the side of the house for the second floor, so Rishid assumes one must enter the house through the shop door.
Rishid had expected to enter the house through the front door, but, as he examines the house from afar, he notices that there is a skylight on the second floor that is open. Rishid quickly climbs up the side of the house, careful to make his footfalls silent and hide his face in the shadows. His dark attire and skin help him blend into the night.
When he reaches the skylight, he pulls himself up and peers inside. He has to catch himself as he gasps. He is inches from Mutou. The boy sleeps soundly in his bed, dressed in simple blue pyjamas. He looks far younger than the picture in the magazine depicts him as. Rishid almost wonders if he's seeing the same boy…
There's no time to contemplate that thought, though, as Rishid spots the Puzzle lying on his desk. It's inches away from Yuugi, so he can reach for it if he senses danger. Not sure how to reach for it, Rishid leans down through the skylight and sticks his long arms out. He's thankful for his tall stature when his body is only halfway through the window and he's already able to grasp the chain of the Puzzle. His fingers brush the chain – not the gold of Puzzle, because Rishid is worried that his touch might awaken the Nameless Pharaoh – for a moment, before he yanks the Item up, shoves it into his bag, and takes off. He nearly falls to the ground in his excitement, but manages to grasp the gutter and keeping himself from swaying for a moment.
As he runs down the road and back onto the cramped train, Rishid feels his heart palpitate inside of him. He has the Puzzle! He yearns to peek inside and examine the Puzzle, except if he does then he will alert the Nameless Pharaoh of his presence, and he cannot risk that here. First he must get back to his hotel room, far away from Mutou and Kaiba and anyone else that can harm him.
The trip is far longer than before. Maybe it's because his excitement has reached a climax, or maybe it's because time has slowed down for him. Maybe it's because he'll be killed before he makes it back to the hotel, and the Gods are giving him more time to live. How nice of them. Nonetheless, Rishid does make it back to his hotel room without a single incident of murder – in fact, not a single bizarre event happened. No one talks to him, or questions him, or gives him a look that isn't the same weird look all the locals here give him. Nothing out-of-the-ordinary happens.
Once Rishid is safely inside his hotel room, with the door locked tight and the blinds shut, he opens up his bag and peers inside. The Puzzle is lying towards the back, shadowed by the darkness. Rishid cautiously puts his hand inside to pull it out.
The instant his fingers touch the golden Puzzle, he feels a stinging pain shoot up his arm. Rishid winces. He reaches in with his other hand to grab its chain, and he pulls it out of the bag. The Puzzle is glowing and shining, getting brighter. It has been completed, something that Rishid has never clued into until now, and this means that someone has solved the Puzzle…
Suddenly, Rishid gets an awful feeling inside his stomach. Did Mutou solve the Millennium Puzzle? Did Rishid steal the Puzzle from the vessel of the Puzzle?
Without thinking, Rishid slips the chain of the Puzzle over his head and settles it on his chest. The pain he'd felt on his hand shoots through his body when the Puzzle touches his chest. It spreads like wildfire through his veins, pulsing in the spot on his chest where the Puzzle sits, and singeing his fingers and toes. Rishid cannot help but groan from the pain, especially when the pain tears across his back. It feels like he is burning from the inside, only there is no fire!
It stops within seconds of commencing. Rishid pants and gasps, falling forward onto his bed and cradling the Puzzle in one of his hands. He lets loose a shaky breath, but is cut short when he hears an imposing voice say, "Who are you?"
Rishid stiffens. He sits up slightly to peer around the room. No one else is there.
"Don't keep me waiting," the voice says, and while it is regal, it is also twisted and sarcastic. "I asked for your name."
"Rishid Ishtar," he replies. "Am I talking to the Nameless Pharaoh?"
"You know who I am," the Pharaoh says. "This is certainly a surprise. How do you know who I am?"
Rishid now sits fully upright and holds the Puzzle in his hands. "I am a Tombkeeper, Your Majesty. My family has served you for thousands of years."
"Is that so? Well, if you have served me for thousands of years, I can't imagine why you would need to steal the Puzzle. Shouldn't you have been protecting it?" Rishid feels as though the Pharaoh is put out. He can sense the hurt in his tone, but everything is slightly darker. Rishid knows he ought to be careful when talking to Nameless Pharaoh, else he feel a pain worse than the wildfire burn he'd experienced earlier.
"I'm sorry, my Pharaoh. The Puzzle was lost –"
"‒ And it was not found by you," the Pharaoh snaps. "How am I supposed to trust you, Tombkeeper, if you could never find me? I have been imprisoned for three thousand years. It is destiny that brought me to Mutou Yuugi, the destined vessel of the Millennium Puzzle. If you have been serving me for three thousand years, why did you never find me?"
"The Tombkeepers were never supposed to find you. We were to wait for your return. Then, we were to show you the secrets that we have guarded for three thousand years."
Even though Rishid is talking to the Puzzle and he cannot see the Pharaoh, he can tell that the Pharaoh is curious. The anger is still there from taking him from Mutou, but at the mention of 'secrets', the Nameless Pharaoh is interested.
"What secrets are you talking about?" the Pharaoh asks.
"The secrets to take you back home," Rishid responds. He clenches the Puzzle tighter in his hands. "Can you come out so I can show you?"
"Why can't you tell them to me? Do not test me, Tombkeeper, or I will not hesitate to hurt you. You have taken me from Yuugi and my patience wears thin."
Rishid flinches at the thought of the Pharaoh punishing him. "Your Majesty, your secrets were guarded through an initiation ceremony. Your secrets are etched into our backs and protected with our lives. I cannot read the hieroglyphs carved into my skin, so you must read them yourself. Please excuse my incompetence."
"Incompetence is a thing for the poor. I doubt your words. Aren't my people intelligent?"
Rishid realizes that the Pharaoh may kill him right now. He is not trusted. Pleadingly, Rishid implores, "I have your secrets, my King. Please come and read them. You can go home."
The Pharaoh does not answer immediately. When he does reply, it is reluctant and, if Rishid is to be quite frank, childish. "Fine."
The room explodes with a bright light. Rishid can hardly see in front of him. He grasps the Puzzle tightly and presses it to his chest. He cannot lose the Puzzle!
When the light clears, the Nameless Pharaoh stands before him. He looks much like Mutou Yuugi, only his regality pours out of him: his presence, his face, his aura all betray his appearance as a common schoolboy. No, this is not Mutou Yuugi, who attends Domino High and enjoys play Magic & Wizards with his classmates. This is the Pharaoh, who sealed himself and the darkness inside of the Millennium Puzzle for three thousand years to prevent the destruction of the world. Without hesitation, Rishid falls to his knees on the bed and bows.
"Your Majesty."
The Pharaoh seems unaware of his gracious action. "Get up. I want those secrets first, and then you will take me back to Yuugi."
Rishid sits up quickly. "Of course, my Pharaoh." He wraps his fingers around his shirt, ready to lift it up – and he can't. He pauses, fingers clenched in the fabric. Why can't he lift up his shirt? Modesty is unknown to him. If anything, he should be throwing up his shirt, spinning around, and revealing the Pharaoh his scarred back. That is his destiny, after all. That is why he exists: to protect the secrets of the Nameless Pharaoh until his return. So why can't he show him now?
"Well?" the Pharaoh drawls. He's settled down on the bed next to Rishid, inches from his face. The madness in his eyes reminds Rishid, once again, of the pain.
"I –" Rishid lifts his shirt up slightly, but his scars are still hidden.
"Are they on your back?" the Pharaoh asks.
Rishid nods.
"Incompetence must be your strong suit," the Pharaoh mumbles, but it's more playful than before. He leans in closer to Rishid, until they are almost touching, and sets his arms on Rishid's shoulders. "Show me my secrets or I will kill you in a Dark Game. You took me from Yuugi and that is unacceptable. The only reason why you are alive is because of what you've told me. I may be lighter because of Yuugi's soul, but I can still kill you. Now, let me see what's on your back. Or are you not strong?"
Those words are the shocks that Rishid needs to lift his shirt up. He does the action in one smooth, fluid movement, all fear gone. The fabric rubs the raised skin of his back, but what makes him shiver are the fingers that touch the scars. He shouldn't be able to feel them since the Pharaoh is a ghost in this form, but there is something that touches his back and it makes him gasp and shiver.
"You are strong to have sustained these. I…apologize," the Pharaoh mumbles.
"No need, my King," Rishid says quickly. "I am not the only one to bear these scars."
"I see." The fingers continue to trail down his back. They start at the top of his shoulder blades, where the wings of Isis stretch across like a gorgeous, grotesque painting. The three god cards come next, encircling an ankh. There is writing above and below the god cards, but Rishid does not know what it says. Father never told him. He said that Rishid would never find the Pharaoh, anyways. Now, Rishid is sitting on the bed of a hotel room while the Pharaoh traces his fingers over Rishid's back. Strange.
When the Pharaoh is done, he settles back on his heels and asks Rishid to turn around. Rishid does. The Pharaoh looks slightly disgusted by the scars. "Tombkeeper, you say your clan has watched over me for three thousand years. Will you be the last?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"You are strong for what you have done."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
There is a moment between them where Rishid feels the Puzzle pulse with a warm, tender heat. The Pharaoh reaches his hand out to grasp Rishid's chin. "You are strong, Tombkeeper. Thank you. Your quest is done. Now, please return me to Yuugi."
And Rishid does. That night, he takes the train back to Mutou's house. It's slightly less busy and therefore Rishid appreciates the convenience more. He and the Pharaoh speak no more, but Rishid feels as though all the words between them were already said. He sneaks up to the skylight in the Mutou house, leans into the boy's room, and places the Puzzle on his desk, exactly where he'd found it. As he leans back out, he touches the Puzzle once more and feels the warmth beneath his hand.
You are strong, Tombkeeper, the Pharaoh whispers.
Rishid leaves the house without a backwards glance.
The quest is complete. The Pharaoh now knows how to get home, and he and Mutou will start searching for the god cards tomorrow. As for Rishid, he is free. He is free to live however he wants and do whatever he wishes.
He knows what he will do first. He'll find Ishizu and take her outside. After all, the light he's brought to this world must be shared.