THE DARK PRIEST
Night fell quickly on the land of the Pyramids. The heat of the day was soon replaced with the coolness of the night as the first stars appeared overhead. As the stars began to shine and the air cooled down from the day, the Pharaoh could only stand and watch as his subjects returned to their homes for the night.
Life hadn't been the same for Atem since the day he was named Pharaoh. It was a gift from the gods, sure, but Atem knew next to nothing about being a leader, and wasn't that what a Pharaoh was supposed to do – lead his subjects? He had been studying with his mentor, Simon Muran, since he was a young boy, but ever since he had inherited the throne six months ago, Atem was beginning to feel shut in. At just seventeen years old, he wanted to be out among the masses and explore the city. There was so much he wanted to see, so much he wanted to do! He missed his childhood friends, whom he was sure he may never be allowed to see again thanks to his new responsibilities, but above all else, he wanted to go to the dueling grounds.
By rights, the dueling grounds were forbidden from the citizens of the city, but now that he was Pharaoh, Atem knew that those restrictions did not extend to him. He could go to the dueling grounds at any time he wished, and watch as the priests dueled each other. Often, the duels were for the enjoyment of the priests, but on occasion, the duels could be for something more. Atem knew that the previous Pharaoh used the duels as a substitute for war, challenging other lords and priests in what the priests called "Shadow Games". Atem had never witnessed a Shadow Game before, so he figured that tonight would be his best chance.
Besides, he was Pharaoh, a king chosen by the gods, so he could do whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. So after checking to make sure Simon had gone to bed for the night, Atem slipped out, leaving through an open window.
It had been so long since Atem had just wandered the streets of the city. He had almost forgotten how the gravel sounded under his sandals, or the sweet smell of the papyrus being wafted over the city from the air coming off of the Nile. Ever since he had been named Pharaoh and moved to the palace, he hadn't been able to just mingle amongst the citizens, and since there were very few people on the streets – at least, not outside of the bazaar – he could move in relative ease without having to deal with the wandering eyes of the citizens.
Even from here, he could hear the voices coming from the bazaar. But while he would have liked to have stayed to socialize, there was only one place he wanted to go.
The dueling grounds weren't far from here.
Sneaking through the alleys to avoid the bazaar – Atem still felt uncomfortable whenever anyone spoke to him in a regal manner; he was sure he would soon grow out of that at some time in the future – he soon found himself at the dueling grounds. The stairs leading up to the dueling grounds were steep, and Atem would have been lying to himself if he thought that this wasn't even a little bit intimidating. He had never been here before, had never been allowed here before – he heard a story of a fisherman who once wandered onto the dueling grounds by mistake and was punished by being stoned to death. But Atem was Pharaoh; there was no way he would suffer the same fate.
After all, he mentally told himself, if you think about it, the priests who duel here technically work for me.
Taking a deep breath, Atem began to climb the stairs.
After what felt like an eternity, he finally reached the top, and was rewarded with a spectacular sight.
There were two priests, currently in the middle of a duel. He recognized the both of them from his coronation six months ago – the one on the left of the field, commanding a grand white dragon, was named Seto; the other priest, the one on the right of the field, commanding a grotesque beast with more eyes than Atem had thought possible on any creature outside of a god, was named Heishin. He had met the both of them on the day he was named Pharaoh, and while both spoke to him with the respect and reverence that came with Atem's title, both priests struck him as a little….What was the word? High strung? At least, that was the impression he got from Seto; Heishin was more difficult for him to read.
Atem watched with baited breath as the two priests dueled.
"Your Thousand-Eyes Restrict is a powerful beast, true," Seto was saying. "But given that its attack power is at zero, it is still weaker than my Blue Eyes White Dragon. End this Shadow Game, my great beast."
Atem watched, wide eyed, as the great white dragon's mouth opened, and out shot a beam of pure white light. The beam of light enveloped Heishin's monster, reducing it to dust.
"You are now without any monsters on your side of the field, Heishin, and you are also down three thousand life. The next attack will end it," Seto boasted.
Heishin bared his teeth, growling like a beast. "You forget, Seto, that it was I who taught you to play these Shadow Games."
"I haven't forgotten," Seto replied. "But there comes a time when the student must surpass the teacher, and this is that time. Make your move, Heishin." He glanced over at Atem, who was now sitting on one of the steps leading into the dueling field, watching intently. "After all, you would not wish to disappoint our young Pharaoh now, would you?"
Heishin only now noticed Atem sitting there, watching them. "Pharaoh?" he repeated. "Forgive me, My King. I didn't notice you there."
"It's okay, Heishin," Atem said. "I would have spoken up, but I didn't want to interrupt your duel. Please, continue. I believe it was Heishin's turn."
"Yes," Heishin agreed. "Yes, it was. Seto, you may be right about the student surpassing the teacher, but I do not believe that this will be that day. For now I summon the Dark Ruler Ha Des." A stone tablet rose from the ground, depicting a horribly disfigured man, horned, tall and rotten, dressed in ornate robes. A second later, the carving on the tablet became a tangible being. "He may only have an attack power of 2450, but that is about to change, for I give him the power of the Horn of the Unicorn, increasing his attack power by 700, for a total attack power of 3150, more than enough to slay your dragon. I command you, Ha Des!"
Both Seto and Atem gasped as the Blue Eyes White Dragon was enveloped in a dark cloud coming from the Dark Ruler Ha Des's mouth. The skin melted off, revealing the skeleton underneath, and with nothing to support the bones, the skeleton collapsed at its master's feet.
Seto growled in frustration; the Blue Eyes White Dragon was the most powerful monster he commanded, and without it, he was defenseless against Heishin's more powerful monster. He winced as the Dark Ruler Ha Des laughed at him.
"Do you wish to continue, Seto?" Heishin taunted.
Seto clenched a fist and closed his eyes. "I have nothing left with which to combat you, Heishin. Once again, you win, my teacher."
Atem stood and applauded. "Impressive. I only wish I had come here earlier to see the duel in full. And if it's not too much to ask of the both of you – I would like to know how to play these games. If what my predecessor said is true, then it would be a decent alternative to going to war with other nations."
"Perhaps some other time, My Pharaoh," Heishin said politely. "It seems Seto still needs some lessons first."
"I don't need any more lessons, Heishin," Seto shot back. "What I need is to command stronger beasts."
"Stronger beasts do not replace skill, Seto," Heishin responded. He turned to Atem. "If you wish, Pharaoh, consider that your first lesson. But perhaps, My King, if you wish to come by tomorrow when you are able, we can begin your lessons there."
"I would love to, Heishin," Atem said. "You have my thanks. And congratulations on the win."
Some short time later, Atem was on his way back to the palace. Seto and Heishin had gone off, though they refused to say where, and Atem didn't want to press the issue. Fortunately for him, the return trip was just as quiet as his initial trip to the dueling grounds. The palace was just as quiet as it was when he left earlier, and as he climbed through the window, he found himself ready to get to bed.
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The sound of screaming woke Atem from his sleep. He quickly climbed up from his bed and, without even bothering with his sandals, hurried out of his room.
It was chaos. There were servants running throughout the halls, some leaping over the bodies of the guards and other servants. Atem could smell smoke and hear more screaming coming from down the once pristine halls. Blood splattered the floors and walls, along with plaster from the broken walls and pillars.
Atem hurried down the hall, reaching Simon's room. "Simon!"
"Atem! Over here!"
Simon was hiding behind one of the curtains near the window. Atem hurried over to him. Simon was holding a sword in one hand; his other arm was hanging limply at his side, a large gash torn into it and bleeding profusely.
"Simon! What's happening?" Atem asked desperately.
"It was Heishin," Simon answered.
"Heishin?" Atem repeated. "I don't understand."
"He's leading a coup against the Pharaoh," Simon said. He winced as blood oozed from his wound. "That means he seeks to end your life, Atem!"
"But – I still do not understand."
"I may be able to help you with that," a voice said.
Atem turned to the door to the room. Standing there, his broad frame taking up most of the doorway, was Heishin. Atem stood up from where Simon had kneeled down and glared at the priest.
"You dare to revolt against your king?" he growled.
"You are no king, Atem," Heishin replied. "You are a simple commoner who stumbled into the role of Pharaoh. By rights, the title of Pharaoh should belong to me!"
"Unfortunately for you, Heishin," Simon said, "it doesn't work like that."
"Perhaps not, old fool," Heishin responded, "but once all seven Millennium Items are within my possession –"
"You seek the Millennium Items?" Atem gasped. "Those seven mystical items were designed to keep the dark powers of the Shadow Games in check! If you gather them all, you could bring Armageddon down upon this world!"
"Yes, I shall," Heishin said. "And upon the ruins of the world, I shall rebuild it in my own image!"
"You're mad," Simon growled. He climbed to his feet and charged for Heishin, sword raised. Atem could only watch as his mentor charged for the traitorous priest –
Only to drop as an arrow struck him in the neck.
Something clattered on the floor as Simon fell, and a small, gold pyramid fell out of his robes.
"The Millennium Puzzle," Heishin said with glee. "That is the last one I require."
Atem lunged for the Millennium Puzzle and snatched it from the floor. "I will never allow you to release those dark powers upon the world. If you truly want this Millennium Puzzle, then you will have to defeat me. High Priest Heishin, I challenge you to a Shadow Game!"
Heishin couldn't help but laugh. "You, duel me? You admitted last night that you have little to no grasp of the Shadow Games. I, on the other hand, have been well-versed in the Shadow Games since I was your age. And besides, didn't you just say that the Millennium Items were created to keep those dark powers in check? How can you possibly hope to defeat me, Pharaoh?"
"The Millennium Items were created to house the dark powers of the Shadow Games, yes, but by tapping into one Millennium Item, I can channel just a little bit of those dark powers." He held the Millennium Puzzle tightly within his hands. "Forbidden powers, I summon thee – guide me in this dark time! Help me win this Shadow Game!"
Atem could feel the power coursing through his body as the Millennium Puzzle glowed with a brilliant light. As the light faded, Atem could still feel the powers of the Millennium Puzzle flowing through him. He felt as though he had become a completely different person, as five stone tablets appeared in front of him, and within his mind, he knew that his total life counter was up to 8000.
Five stone tablets had appeared before Heishin, and his own life counter was up to 8000.
"Since this Shadow Game was your idea, Pharaoh, you may start this game," Heishin offered.
"Very well, I shall," Atem said. "I suppose I will begin by hiding one magical spell from your sight, before bringing forth the Winged Dragon, Guardian of the Fortress, with an attack power of 1400." Out of one of the stone tablets came a small, blue dragon. It snarled at Heishin.
"I would expect nothing less from a novice such as yourself," Heishin laughed. "But unfortunately for you, the powers granted by the Millennium Puzzle will not be enough to protect you from the destructive powers of the forbidden one himself." Atem gasped, knowing well what Heishin meant, as even those who never played the Shadow Games before knew of the mightiest monster of them all.
Heishin revealed his five stone tablets, each one marked with a piece of a human body – two arms, two legs, and a head with a torso.
"I call upon the powers of Exodia, The Forbidden One!"
Atem could only watch as a tall, muscular beast emerged from the stone tablets and raised a hand at his Winged Dragon. Fire shot out of one of Exodia's hands, reducing the dragon to nothing but dust, and knocking Atem to his knees in shock and defeat.
"Of course, it is mostly the luck of the draw,"Heishin said as he stepped towards the young Pharaoh, Simon's sword in his hand. "And now, Pharaoh, your title – and the final Millennium Item – belongs to me."
"I think not," Atem said. He clutched the Millennium Puzzle in his hands and raised it above his head. "You may destroy my body, but my soul will live on within this Puzzle, and I know that you will not be able to rebuild it." With a grunt, he heaved the Millennium Puzzle to the floor –
Shattering it into hundreds of pieces!
"No!" Heishin cried, and he thrust his sword into Atem's heart.