A note: Atem's dreams are in italics and switched to the 1st person

Atem took the time to survey his surroundings, leaning against Yugi as they walked through town, though it was more of a limp for him. Each time he had to put weight on his injured leg, he had to grit his teeth in order to keep quiet. The town looked peaceful enough. It was a small fishing village that looked the same as any other on the coast. Atem recalled the times his father had told him about the lands of Canaan and the Levant. It was a plentiful land in the midst of arid deserts. He could imagine they were sought after by many. He knew to the east was Assyria and to the north were the Hittites. North would be the best direction to stay away from, though he had not doubt that the word of the missing pharaoh was already spreading through the lands and seas. He couldn't be at ease even in a seemly safe village like this. The fishermen may have saved him, but he couldn't let his guard down for a second. He had let his guard down back in Egypt and look where that got him. If anything, he thought it would be the sorcerers who liked to summon monsters.

"Figures our mysterious foes from the sea would be my undoing," he said to himself in his Egyptian dialect.

"What was that?" Yugi asked. "What language was that?"

"Uh, n-nothing. I was just talking to myself," Atem said quickly back in Aramaic. It wasn't his most proficient language, but he at least knew enough to converse. If it came to slang or local words, he'd be at a complete loss.

As they kept walking, the town and market soon grew smaller and smaller behind them as they neared a cliff that dropped off to the sea below. Usually, the sea would bring feelings of wonder, amazement, and possibility, but now, it just reminded him of all the pain and turmoil he'd been through so far. His skin still stung lightly from the salt water, especially on the wound on his thigh. Once they reached the small house, Yugi led him to a modest back room with a window that overlooked the sea. Thankfully, a shade was drawn over it. The light from the sun shone in in long blocks from the openings in the shades. There wasn't a bed of any sort, but a mattress had been laid in the middle of the room along with two pillows.

"Sorry, I know it isn't much, but we'll try to make you as comfortable as possible. The second pillow is to help prop your injured leg up. It'll help alleviate some of the pain." Yugi helped him ease onto the mattress, placing the second pillow underneath his thigh with the gentlest touch.

"Thank you. It's perfect. I hope that I can recover quickly so I don't hinder you and your grandfather," Atem said politely with a slight bow.

Oh, don't worry about that. You won't be a burden. You've arrived at a special time. Our village is having a celebration. There will be a festival with lights, food, and more. It's in a few days, so I hope you'll feel a bit better by then. For now, we'll take care of you. It would be our pleasure. I'm sure my grandpa won't mind as long as it won't do anything to our business," Yugi chuckled and applied a cool, damp cloth to Atem's forehead, having him lie down. "You have a slight fever, though that's no surprise from what you've been through. Oh, say, I didn't catch your name or where you're from. I noticed you have a slight accent when you speak, but I didn't want to be rude and bring it up."

Atem felt himself instantly tense up at the question. He knew he couldn't say his actual name. It was too huge of a risk. The two fishermen might not know it, but if they start spreading it around their town, it might spread to someone that does know of the name. He couldn't really hide the fact that he was Egyptian. He could stick with that but make himself out to be more of a commoner

"My name is..Aut. I'm Egyptian. That's where the accent comes from. I've travelled around, so I know a few other languages," Atem said, hoping he didn't say it too quickly. The name had come from one of his childhood friends, and now it would help cover his true identity.

"Oh, that's a great name, Aut. I've heard stories from people around here who have travelled to Egypt. It sounds like an amazing place. I wonder if I'll ever get the chance to go."

"It really is. I miss it, but the..ship I was on had crashed in a storm, and I drifted out to sea. That's when you two found me just in time." Atem wasn't exactly a fan of blatant lying, but this time he had to to survive. He couldn't just tell him that he was attacked by mysterious warriors from the sea and nearly captured, having to jump into the sea to escape. Perhaps if he came to trust them, but for now, he couldn't trust anyone.

"How terrifying, but you're safe now. Now, Aut, you should get some rest. You've been through a lot today." Yugi took the cloth to dampen it again and replaced it on his forehead.

"Yes, thank you..for everything."

Soon, he was left alone in the small room with the setting sun casting its crimson rays through the blinds. It was the last thing he saw before falling asleep. Lying down made him realize just how exhausted he was. His eyelids felt heavy as they slowly closed and soon lulled himself into a deep sleep.

As I trudged through the Egyptian sands, the pyramids lay in the distance just as I remembered them. Gazing up towards the sky, my eyes widened as a bloody red replaced the usual light blue of the desert sky. Something was very wrong. I could feel it in the wind that picked up the sand around me. When I looked back to the pyramids, they had disappeared without a trace. Waves were washing towards me, and I was soon engulfed by the sea. I couldn't see any chains or bounds of any sort but something was tugging me down underwater. It was the same terror I felt when I was sinking deeper into the abyss of the sea. The last thing I saw before being engulfed by the cold darkness was a giant hand that seemed to form from the abyss itself like a colossal beast. Being underwater, I was unable to cry out as terror overtook me. The grip of the shadowy hand began suffocating me while it pulled me in deeper and deeper until I couldn't even tell which way was up or down anymore.

"It's easier if you don't fight back, Pharaoh. Succumb to the abyss of darkness."

Atem woke up violently, instantly gasping and sitting up as if he had held his breath too long. His chest heaved up and down as he tried to calm himself down. That had been one of the most realistic and terrifying dreams he had ever had. He recalled having a few similar ones when he was younger, but they seemed to stop once he became pharaoh. It seemed they were back once again. But what could it mean? Perhaps it had something to do with the attack. There must have been some motive behind it whether it was someone in Egypt or the work of one of their enemies. He had to figure it out before it was too late.

"Ah, you're finally awake." Solomon walked into the room with a small box in his hand.

Atem looked to the window to see the sun was still high in the sky. It must've been the early afternoon.

"Shouldn't you be out on your boat fishing? I would think you'd need to fish nearly every day for a living." Atem adjusted himself into a more comfortable position, trying not to move his leg.

"No worries. I have my grandson out doing that. I figured you'd want your wound stitched up so that leg of yours can stop bothering you." Solomon hummed to himself, kneeling by Atem and looking through the box.

"Wait, you sent Yugi out on your boat on his own?" Atem asked. Yugi seemed rather young and small to be manning a fishing boat on his own.

"Heh, he's stronger than he looks. Trust me."

He soon held a needle and thread in his hands. "I spent a good amount of my money on this, so you'd better be grateful."

Atem recognized the bottle he brought out as a salve used to treat open wounds. The stuff stunk, but it did the job of preventing infection.

"You have my greatest thanks. I promise I'll pay you back for what you had to spend."

"Eh, think nothing of it. I'm just doing what's right."

"True kindness. It is a rare thing to find. I'm sure the blessings of the gods are with you," Atem said, mostly out of respect.

"Gods, huh? Yugi was right. You must be from Egypt." Solomon chuckled to himself at the look on Atem's face. "Don't worry. That's all I need to know about you. I'm fine with you just being a stranger that I'm helping."

A more determined look crossed Solomon's face once everything was ready. He started by applying the salve to the open wound with the most careful touch. Atem flinched but only slightly. There was a slight sting at first, but that only meant that the salve was doing its job.

"This next part won't be as painless. The wound is wide, so I'll have to stitch it closed so it can heal properly. I have an herbal mix to numb the area a bit, but I can't guarantee it'll be pleasant. Are you ready?"

"Yes, let's get this over with." Atem nodded. He clenched his fists in preparation with the cloth in one hand. He placed it into his mouth to bite down on just in case.

With a nod back, Solomon began the short procedure. He held the needle over an open flame for a few seconds to disinfect it before going to work. Atem grunted slightly and bit down on the cloth at the bit of searing pain. The numbing herbal blend helped somewhat but couldn't completely block out the pain. Each new puncture from the needle brought on a fresh pinpoint of pain. Solomon worked as quickly yet carefully as he could. Once finished, he tightened the thread to close up the wound and tied it up. A cool, damp cloth was placed over to ease the pain.

"Finished. How are you holding up?" he asked, putting away the supplies.

"I'm managing. It wasn't as bad as I thought, but the puncturing from the needle was particularly unpleasant," Atem muttered. His leg shook slightly as he recovered, trying to take deep breaths. "Thank you. Hopefully this will help it heal quickly."

"I'll bring in food to you once it's done. What you should do now is rest and eat to regain your strength." Solomon left shortly after before Atem could say anything else.

He supposed the older man wasn't used to helping someone who was so polite. Atem really was grateful. After all, he was going out of his way to help him. Atem may have been a pharaoh, but he was always polite and respectful to anyone that showed him kindness. With a sigh, he lied back down, staring up at the ceiling as his leg twitched every now and then. It pained him to be stuck here, but he could trust these two at least. He hoped the kindness they have showed him so far was genuine.