Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!
All right, I've got something to say to a few people!
Asiera: (Grins) I didn't tell you this in response to your review, but I've actually been planning something for the Thief King for a little while now. I just thought I'd surprise you instead. (Becomes serious) But make sure that the Thief King NEVER reads this chapter.
Millenniumthief: (Winks and gives a "thumbs up") Thanks!
To Everyone: I've made a few minor changes to the flashback in Chapter 1, so you might want to check on that.
Chapter 2
Tear of a Thief
Mana shivered on the cold floor of the cave, her knees drawn to her chest. She glared miserably at the shadow bonds around her wrists and ankles.
The day after the next would be the day when Bakura would drain all of her magic out of her. What had he said he was going to do with it?
Oh, yes—he was going to combine her magical soul with the power of the Millennium Eye. The female magician shuddered at the thought of such formidable power in the thief's hands.
What else had he said? Yes, of course—he was going to fulfill his original purpose.
He was going to destroy the kingdom. The King of Thieves was going to destroy the whole kingdom!
Mana sniffed, and a tear rolled down her cheek. Some magician I am, she thought miserably. He's going to use me and my own magic to destroy the Pharaoh, Master Mahad, and my friends. I've let them down.
Tears began to fall fluently down her face as she whispered into the blackness, "I've let them all down."
Mana looked up through her tears at the cage which held the two captives. Akhunadin was sleeping in one corner, his face contorted in discomfort.
She scanned the cage for the other boy, Ryou, and found him curled up in the corner closest to her. He wasn't sleeping—on the contrary, his dark brown eyes were wide open and full of worry.
Mana sighed and turned over, away from the cage. The Thief King had conjured up the shadow bars which once again trapped her and the caged captives on one side of the cavern. He lay sleeping on the other side, his harsh breathing echoing off of the rough, rocky walls.
The young magician girl was about to drift off to sleep when a low moan echoed throughout the cave.
Mana bolted upright; she looked worriedly at Ryou, who merely stared back at her. He looked just as alarmed and bewildered as she was! Clearly, the sound had not come from him.
Mana inched closer to the cage to check on Akhunadin. The ex-High Priest was still sleeping. Another moan sounded, but Akhunadin's lips hadn't moved!
Mana squinted at their surroundings, trying to find another person, maybe another hostage, who could have made the sound.
Finally, she turned towards the King of Thieves. He was the only other person in the cave besides the three of them, but for the life of her she couldn't figure out why he would moan!
Slowly and quietly, Mana began to slide towards Bakura. She was at least six inches away from the shadow bars that separated him from the rest of them when he turned over.
Mana froze, terror and dread pulsing through her, when she realized with relief that his eyes were still closed.
Sure enough, the Thief King's lips parted as another low moan sounded. He sounded like he was in pain, but there was no gash, no blood, no visible injury, not as far as the young woman could see.
Mana stared at him, puzzled; she was just about to crawl away to go back to sleep when a voice whispered, "No."
She whipped around, but he was still asleep. Mana looked at Ryou, who stared back at her, his eyes wide in surprise. She gave him a questioning look; he shook his head and nodded at the Thief King.
Mana stared at the Thief King, her curiosity getting the better of her. Forgetting her anger and dislike towards the man, she slid back towards him. What could cause him to behave like this? Moan? Talk in his sleep? Her brow furrowed—she wanted so badly to know the answers.
Mana thought for a moment—"Aha," she whispered to herself, remembering a spell Mahad had once taught her.
The spell to see into people's minds, know their thoughts and memories—it was one of the more advanced spells. Mana was delighted when Mahad decided to teach her this particular piece of magic. Here was a perfect opportunity to test it. All she needed was—
"— my wand." Mana felt deflated, remembering her lack of magical tools. She glared at the Thief King's sleeping form, fury overcoming her curiosity.
Bakura shifted, and one arm fell limply onto the cold, rocky floor. Unseen by Mana, his hand slipped through the shadow bars.
The disappointed young woman started to crawl away when her hand brushed Bakura's.
SUDDENLY, hundreds of scenes played through Mana's mind. Thoughts, memories, none of which were her own, flashed before her eyes! She didn't know why, or how, this was happening—all she could feel was terror, rage, sadness, and confusion.
(SNATCHES OF SCENES)
"NO!"
"Bakura, go! NOW! SAVE YOURSELF!" A white-haired woman's small hands pushed a young boy out of the back door of a modest mud and stone house.
Enormous columns of smoke spiraled towards the sky, and giant, hungry flames devoured houses and market stands as a terrified and confused Bakura ran through the burning streets of his home, running blindly from an unknown enemy, searching desperately for another familiar, friendly face.
Everywhere he looked, he saw people running. Husbands shouted to their wives, wives shouted to their children, sisters called to their brothers, and brothers called back to their sisters. Suddenly, he saw them.
Strange, uniformed men wielding spears and flaming torches were stampeding through the chaotic streets, shouting fiercely to each other.
The men, women, and children of Kul Elna ran wildly about, some yelling in anger, some screaming in terror, some crying out of misery. However, many had already been captured. It was only a matter of time before... before...
Bakura looked up and yelled out in shock—he jumped out of the way as a burning wall crashed down on the place where he had been standing seconds ago! He continued to glance wildly about, searching for a familiar face.
"NO!" He cried out as he came upon a familiar house--his own. He had come full circle. The structure looked like it was on the verge of collapsing into itself. "NO! NO! NO! MOTHER! FATHER!" No reply was heard.
Bakura was about to turn away and keep running when the sound of a shriek reached his ears. Hearing more screams, he scrambled desperately up the front steps.
Before he could reach the doorway, the burning wood began to snap. The sound of splintering wood grew louder and louder until the house collapsed! A huge roar accompanied a waterfall of burning wood which cascaded down towards Bakura!
His eyes widened in terror, and he threw himself out of the way, narrowly avoiding being crushed by the downpour of flaming timber.
Bakura's breathing became shallower and his dark eyes widened as he surveyed the wreckage. Shadowy figures writhed, twisted, and fought on the other side of what was once a house.
"THERE'S ANOTHER!"
Bakura's head snapped up in alarm, and he hurriedly pushed himself to his feet as six uniformed men rushed toward him, their eyes blank and merciless.
The little boy tore madly through the blighted streets and threw himself behind the remains of a giant stone wall. A few minutes later, he peeped out, his heart pounding.
What he saw made his blood run cold.
The people of the village, looking quite scared and miserable, were being herded away by the uniformed men. Bakura's eyes widened even more, and his mouth opened in a silent scream. He gripped the wall tightly before sliding to his knees again.
"No... DON'T LEAVE! NOOO! Come back! Come back!" Tears streamed down the boy's face as he smashed his fist into the ground.
Bakura edged towards the side of the wall and peeked out again.
"Come back…" he whispered.
(END SCENE)
A sharp gasp escaped Mana's lips as she tore her hand away. It was a few seconds before she realized that she was crying too. She brushed the tears away, but more tears came streaming down to replace them.
She looked down at the Thief King. A confusing array of emotions swirled around inside of her; however, hatred, dislike, and anger were not among them.
Mana shivered—what was she thinking? This was the man who had fought against her Pharaoh and the High Priests/Priestess during her lifetime, the man who was responsible for her and the Pharaoh losing Mahad, the man who had brought back Zorc the Dark One, the man who had tried to steal the Millennium Items to…
To what? Why had he done all those things? Bakura had wanted to defeat her Pharaoh and destroy the kingdom in return for the destruction of his village. He had made it quite clear that he wanted revenge, but still…
She had never really understood.
Mana had never given much thought to his story before. To her, he was just a psychotic, vengeful thief who had wanted to spread darkness throughout the world. He was the enemy; he was just another evil human being who wanted revenge, who wanted everyone she cared about to suffer… wasn't he?
Suffering.
The word rang through Mana's mind as clearly as if someone had spoken it. She closed her eyes and recalled her vision; it replayed itself in her mind with surprising clarity. Mana opened her eyes, shuddering at the memory.
He, Bakura, the King of Thieves, had suffered. He knew pain, he knew misery… he knew it all.
That which she had seen was just one piece of his experience. But it was enough to understand why he had done what he did.
He, too, had once been an innocent young boy with his own life. Bakura had simply been cursed with a fate he didn't deserve.
Mana gazed down at the snowy-haired thief with new eyes and new understanding. Try as she might, she just couldn't bring herself to be angry with him, to hate him.
The Thief King's face was contorted in pain, rage—Mana sighed sadly. He, unlike her, was still trapped in his nightmare. Suddenly, something about his face caught her attention. She leaned down to get a better look.
A single tear rolled down his cheek and fell onto the cave floor.
A lump formed in Mana's throat and she quickly looked away. She caught Ryou staring meaningfully at her. He nodded for her to come closer.
The young magician crawled awkwardly back towards the boy in the cage. To her surprise, he was crying as well. He smiled sadly at her.
"You knew… you knew about… him?" Mana asked him breathlessly. Ryou nodded. "Yes."
"He's suffered a lot," Ryou said, looking sadly at his Yami side.
"Did you see… what I just saw?"
"Yes," Ryou said, and a pained expression crossed his face. "We have a mind connection. I saw everything." He sighed sadly, and then looked down at her.
"I wish all this would stop. This revenge, this fight, all of it…"
Mana glanced back at the Thief King and sighed again. "I do too…"
I got a bit teary-eyed writing this too. Justice has to be done to the King of Thieves, you know.
Ya didn't think I'd forget this part of the story, did ya? (Cough cough Asiera Cough cough)
