Disclaimer: Same as before

Crystal Edge

Chapter 2

He Who's Aura Burns

Yuugi felt like his was on a cloud. It was warm and soft and he found himself burrowing deeper into it. Something in the back of his mind told him to open his eyes, but he found he was unable to do so. Struggling to lift his eyes, Yuugi realized he stopped breathing. The teen began to thrash about in his mind, trying to breath through the haze that kept him under. Breathing a deep breath, Yuugi continued to struggle. His plight only half rewarded as he felt himself begin to breathe once again. But for some reason, he couldn't open his eyes.

"When will you wake?"

A voice?

Yuugi tried calling out to whoever it was who spoke. /Help!/

"Why do you still sleep?"

The voice sounded almost broken. Yuugi tried to pinpoint the location, but it seemed to be coming from all around him. /Who are you? Can you hear me?!/ The young king was frantic, trying anything to figure out what was going on. He no longer knew if his eyes were open or not. He saw nothing, felt nothing.

Through the vast nothingness, the voice called again, Yuugi's only beacon to reality.

"Wake for me Little King! PLEASE!"

Yuugi struggled more, thrashing about as though his life depended on it. Somehow he got the feeling it did depend on it. For a moment, Yuugi felt as though he would wake, but that moment was gone almost as soon as it came. /Help me wake up! I cannot do it alone!/

Yuugi let out a sob, the tears spilling from his eyes, even as he slept.

O-o-O-o-O-o-O

Atemu slumped. No matter how many weeks passed, the king slept on. He was on the verge of giving up all together and returning the comatose king to his people. Looking up a little to see the Sea King's face. Tears spilled forth from his closed eyes. "Little king? Wake up..." Slowly, the Pharaoh gripped hold of the boy's hand, vainly trying to become an anchor. "Wake up... please..."

It was strange that Atemu had to go until the moment he was ready to give up before the first sign of life in his ward. Tears slipped from his eyes as he called out to the sleeping light.

"Pharaoh!" Seth's voice called from the other side of the door. He didn't think anything he could say would sway the high priest from coming within his temple this time. Ambassadors from Atlantis were said to have arrived with the morning star and Atemu had not gone to greet them.

"What do you will of me?" He asked the gods in a whisper before letting go of the hand he'd held so dearly.

"Open this door." Seth sounded furious. "You had better have an excuse for not showing up. Do you wish to damn your people Atemu!"

The Pharaoh pulled back the latch on his temple door, cracking it open before he retreated into the shadows of the room.

When Seth entered the sacred temple of Ra himself, he was shocked to note that none of the lights were on. He waved his hand and lit the torches with his shadow magic. What surprised him was that as soon as the flames flickered on, they had been snuffed out.

"Cousin?" He asked, fumbling through the dark. He tried again to light the torches, but once more, they were put out.

"Stop waisting your energy." Atemu insisted from somewhere to Seth's left. "I don't want them lit. They produce an ash-like air."

"Well why don't you say something then? We can get something else to light your temple." Seth formed a ball of white lightning in his hand, but Atemu would have none of that. Shadows instantly blanketed the light.

"No light cousin." Atemu sounded further away than before.

"Then how am I to find my way in the dark." The high priest huffed in frustration.

"Bats and other creatures of the night can get along just fine in the absence of light." Atemu had to be someplace directly in front of him now. Slowly, Seth began to move towards the voice, his arms raised to keep from walking into anything.

"Seth?"

The high priest frowned. "What?"

"Can you make him wake up?" Atemu's voice was breathless as he lit a scented candle.

"Atemu? H-have you been... crying?" Seth couldn't bring himself to believe it. Atemu didn't cry. He had no emotions to do so. Never had he shed a tear for anything, not for pain or loss. Nothing made the Morning Star tear.

"Oh the irony Seth." The young living god sighed deeply, setting the candle down before the alter. "You would never understand. Your not the king of a dying country."

Keeping his eyes on the Pharaoh, Seth walked forward. "Have you set up your room in here?" He asked, noticing that a bed had been erected on the alter.

"Not on the bed..." Atemu sighed deeply, standing over the beautiful creature. "He sleeps... still he sleeps." his breath caught in his throat as he choked back a sob. "Wake him up Seth."

Seth always knew his cousin would go crazy one day. But in all his eighteen years of life, he did not think it would happen like this. Only sixteen floods and already--

It was then that Seth noticed they were not alone in the room. "Who is that?" He asked, taking a step closer to the sleeping King. He wasn't sure if it was an apparition he had been seeing or if the fair skinned creature on the bed was real. "Atemu?"

"He's mine..."

"A son?" Seth asked shocked. If he was the god king's son then he would be well cared for... but the boy seemed too old to be Atemu's son.

"Nay. Not a son." Atemu took hold of the hand once more. "He's more than that... He's a king..." The pharaoh shook. "Lost and far from home."

Seth took a step closer, getting a good look at the pale creature. He could have passed off as the Pharaoh's twin, even though his skin was pale and his features not as sharp as Atemu's, it was still a shell shock. "Ra... Atemu..." The high priest didn't know what to say or how to help.

"Just leave me." Atemu growled, clasping hold of the hand even tighter. "Please, just go and leave me be."

Bowing out gracefully for a lack of anything else to do, Seth turned heel and retired to his own chambers. The changes that had been wrought about by that nymph were astounding. Never had he seen Atemu like that, and he doubted that out of that temple he would see it again... at least not anytime soon.

Atemu slumped forward on top of the boy once Seth had left. Sure, he cared for Seth more than any other Egyptian, but Kemet be damned if he wanted to speak about the weakness he had just shown. Slowly, he slipped into a deep sleep, his hand still gripped in that of the King from across the sea.

O-o-O-o-O-o-O

Yuugi felt something warm tingling in his hand. /Is that you? Are you there?/ He looked down at where he thought his hand to be, but saw nothing.

"He's more than that... He's a king... Lost and far from home."

Yuugi froze. Was he far from home? How was that possible.

"Ra... Atemu..." Another voice, this time it was hesitant and almost frightened.

Ra? Ra was the sun god of Egypt. /Am I in Egypt?/ The irony would just about kill him. He struggled again, all the while letting himself focus on the warmth in his hand. Slowly, he felt the warmth from the cloud he 'woke' from return. There was a pressure on his chest as well as something gripping his hand.

Slowly, Yuugi's eyes fluttered open. The first thing he noticed was that he hadn't been flooded by light. Next he took note of the body draped over him. If it hadn't been for the form's gentle rise and fall, Yuugi would have cried out from fright. After all, it wasn't every day he saw a dead man. Needless to say, the Atlantian king was grateful that the body draped over him was alive.

He tried to speak, but found his voice was too raw from not being used. How long had he been out? Where was he? There wasn't anything familiar. Violet eyes looked up. It was the only comfortable position for him to be in with the larger male on top of him.

The figure shifted and Yuugi squeaked, feeling the weight shift. He tried to speak, but still no words came forth. Lifting his hand took great effort it seemed. Taking in a deep breath, he hoisted his arm up, only to have it fall back down, this time on top of the slumbering male.

Instantly awake, Atemu snapped to attention, grabbing hold of the arm that 'attacked' him. He pulled it tightly, his eyes fierce and bloodthirsty. He didn't even notice who's hand he held until he heard the soft gasp.

Yuugi had no been expecting anything so violent. His free hand instantly went up, a burning aura surrounding him.

Atemu let go when he felt the burn of his hand. He could already see the red flesh begin to blister. He hissed, blinking a few times.

There, on the bed, was the creature that plagued his dreams as well as his wakefulness. His dreams never did those eyes justice. They stared forward, filled with terror. They were the color of amethysts, but far more beautiful than any priceless gem. He felt his own body relax as the burning aura of gold vanished withing the torque on the king's neck.

"Little king?" He whispered the name he had given the boy, for he looked no more than twelve floodings of the Nile. He saw the confused look he received, but knew he could not be too far off from the truth.

'I'm no little king.' was what Yuugi wanted to say, but it came out as a choked gasp. He coughed, his small body shuddering under the weight of the pharaoh.

Atemu jumped back as though he had been burned again. "Ah!" He flew to the back of the temple, returning moments later with a chalice of cool water. " Drink it slowly." He whispered, placing a hand under the boy's head and lifting it off the pillow so he could drink.

Yuugi didn't protest, but it was clear the arrangement displeased him. When he had finished sipping the water he took a shuddering breath before he began to finally speak.

"I am no 'little king'." His voice was small, not very loud, though that could have been from not having used it in two months. "I'm the Atlantian King, Yuugi." He tried to hold himself in a proud and haunting manner, but found himself far to weak to do so.

Atemu smiled, though no one would ever know outside the temple. "Little Yuugi."

"I'm not little." Yuugi quipped quickly, though his size and stature contradicted him. "I'm sixteen planetary cycles."

That caught Atemu off guard. "Sixteen?" There was no way Yuugi looked sixteen, but he wasn't about to call the king of the Tyrant Nation a lier.

Yuugi smiled at the look that crossed the Pharaoh's face. "Atemu?" He asked, wondering if this was the voice he had heard; if this was the man who had pulled him out of his mind.

The shock showed plainly in the Pharaoh's face. "I... Yes." It was strange how that little creature demanded attention.

"So I'm in Egypt."

"No... Kemet." Atemu frowned at the king. Kemet was not called Egypt. That was just what the Atlantian's called it.

Yuugi didn't question how he got there or why, he simply smiled and nodded. "I'm glad." He whispered, reaching his hand out to clasp hold of Atemu's. A soft glow pulsed from the torque on Yuugi's neck, going to his fingertips. No sooner had the light come, did it vanish.

Atemu looked down at his hand, feeling nothing for a moment. Then the feeling came back. In place of the blisters on his hand was fresh pink skin. "Don't grab me next time." The smaller teen smiled from down on the bed, his eyes fluttering closed.

A deep blush found it's way to Atemu's face. He wanted to say something more to Yuugi, but found the king asleep instantly. Blinking and standing in the middle of the temple for a few minutes, Atemu finally decided it was time to turn heel and return to his court. He didn't think he would be able to breath in that temple just yet.

O-o-O-o-O-o-O

Katsuya stood, glaring at the Egyptian hight priest. "I Demand to see your Pharaoh!" He snapped, his hand on the sword at his belt. "Who are you to deny Atlantis?!"

Seth smirked. "What are you, a dog? Keep howling like a puppy, perhaps someone will take pity on you and give you a treat." His arms were crossed and his cobalt eyes stared calmly at the 'mutt'. "As I have told you, the Morning Star is indisposed."

Ryou frowned, fingering his golden chained crystal. "High Priest, we are searching for our lost King. His ferry went missing two months ago. We have search your coast, and found nothing, now we beseech you to aid us in our plight." A projection of the Atlantian King showed in the room. "His name is Yuugi." The projection began to change, and was given a voice.

The opaque Yuugi sat up in a fig tree, one leg dangling off the side. "Ryou? What are you doing?" The teen looked down from the tree, as though he was looking at whatever captured the moment.

Ryou's own voice heard answering. "My King, you shouldn't play in that tree."

"Stop worrying Ryou. I'm fine. Don't worry about a thing. It's not like I'd die if I fell. Come on, you know the Council would never let it happen." He pointed to the crystals on his wrists. "Never ever..."

Ryou tapped the crystal once more and the projection vanished. "Have you seen him?"

"I see someone like him every day, but..." Seth didn't know what to say. If things had been a little brighter in the room he'd be able to have said something for certain. "I don't know if I've seen him." He spoke his words carefully.

"I ask you to wait here until our king feels up to conversations. I shall have someone provide rooms for you, though I would rather see the mutt to the kennels." Seth smirked at the string of cursing that got from the blond. "As it were, we have no room there, so I'll be obligated to give you both rooms."

Ryou chuckled. They had spent the better part of a month looking for Yuugi. It seemed that no one was having any luck. They would have to report back in once they were given rooms. So, with his head held hight, and his partner's bruised pride, Ryou pulled Katsuya behind him and started to follow the high priest to their rooms.

O-o-O-o-O-o-O

TBC

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