The gang drifted silently through the forest. There were no sounds except for the crunch of their feet on the foliage. They said nothing, partially so that they would be able to hear if one of the creatures was sneaking up to them. But each of them believed that their silence was a small homage to Atem's true soul, which had passed away.
Yugi wasn't exactly sure what had happened. Perhaps Atem's mind and body had been infected when that creature had bitten him. Yugi was sure that the person in the cave was not Atem, and he was absolutely certain that the person in the swamp was not Atem. It couldn't be. The real Atem would never betray him like that.
Yugi occasionally dared to hope that this was all a dream, that he had fallen asleep in the little cabin on the ship. He imagined that he would wake up soon with Atem smiling at him, and they would go to France and eat baguettes and play Duel Monsters with the local competition. But it wasn't a dream. This—all of this—was horribly real.
"Hey, guys, look at that!" Tristan exclaimed. He was pointing to a small building in the distance. The gang walked up to it and peeked inside the windows. It was devoid of life, except for a few rats and snails. They opened the vine-covered door.
"It looks like someone else was here before us," Tea observed. Yugi opened up a metal locker in the corner and nosed around in it.
"Looks like they were doing something besides vacationing," Yugi said. The cabinet was filled with weapons, flashlights, ammo, and…
"Food!" Joey yelled. He pulled out handfuls of protein bars and canned fruit. He tore them open and shoved them into his mouth hastily. Yugi was hungry too. Everyone dug into the stash and gorged themselves on it.
By the time they had filled their bellies to the brim, there was still plenty of food left for future feasts. Yugi stashed it back in the cabinet and then delicately slid out the weapons. "I guess that this could be a little useful," he said. "Does anybody know how to use one of these?"
"I do," Tristan said. "My dad used to take me out to a shooting range when I was a kid." He gave them a quick tutorial about how to load and fire their new pistols. Each one of them received a gun for their own protection, but Yugi and Tea quickly put theirs to the side. The pistols didn't feel right in their hands.
"We're gonna hafta get some sleep if we wanna outrun more o' those creatures tomorrow," Joey said wisely. "How 'bout we take turns watching outside? I'll go first."
Joey took his pistol and a flashlight and sat outside the cabin. Every two hours or so, they decided, they would cycle through to the next person. First Joey, then Tristan, then Yugi, then Tea. They would yell if they saw anything out of the ordinary.
Yugi huddled in the corner, tucking a blanket close around him for warmth. They were lucky to have found this place. Now he could actually get a good night's sleep…
Almost immediately, Yugi was being shaken awake by Tristan. "Hey, Yugi, it's time to wake up," Tristan said softly. Yugi mentally grumbled. It couldn't have been four hours. It had felt like only a second. He dragged his tired body out of the little nest he had made for himself and stumbled outside.
As soon as he left the safety of four walls, he felt panic rise up in him again. He was beginning to feel grateful for the weapon in his hand, although he wasn't exactly sure that he remembered the key parts of Tristan's instructions.
It wasn't very cold, but Yugi shivered. He missed the emptiness of sleep. In the waking world, he was confronted with the harsh reality of his situation. They were alone, surrounded by enemies, and Atem was gone. Atem was gone. It was as if the news had just sunk in, tearing a fresh wound in Yugi's heart. Atem was gone. Yugi's friend would never come back.
Tears streamed down Yugi's face, and he shook silently. His best friend in the world was gone. It was as if even the dim light of the moon had disappeared, and he was surrounded by total, suffocating darkness.
"Don't cry, Yugi," a voice said softly. Yugi stopped crying immediately and shined his flashlight into the darkness. The beam of light illuminated Atem, who winced at the sudden brightness.
"Y-you shouldn't have come back here," Yugi said. Atem's eyes drifted down to the pistol at Yugi's side, and Yugi suddenly remembered that he had it. He pointed it threateningly at Atem, but his hand was shaking violently.
Atem raised his hands in a gesture of peace. "I promise you, Yugi, I am not here to hurt you," he said. He dared to step a little towards Yugi. "Please…"
"Don't come any closer!" Yugi yelled. Atem stopped in his tracks. "If… if you do, I'll wake the others up, and they'll kill you."
"Won't you do that anyway?" Atem asked. "Or would you rather that I return to my people and alert them to your location?"
Yugi bit his lip in frustration. "What do you want?" he asked softly.
"I want a chance to explain myself," Atem answered. "I need to tell you what really happened out in that swamp." Yugi didn't budge or say a word. Atem took that as permission to begin his story.
"When I first came to this island," Atem began, "I was as alone as you were. I wandered into the swamp, looking for you and the others. Instead, I found one of those creatures."
"Creatures like you?" Yugi interrupted.
Atem sighed. "I am getting there, Yugi," Atem said. "It caught me off guard. I wasn't able to escape it like you. As I told you earlier, it bit me. I felt delirious. I heard… a voice inside my head. The voice told me that it was the grandmaster, the ruler of these monsters, and now it ruled me also. It said that it had recruited me into its forces. I passed out.
"When I awoke, I found that I…" Atem took a deep breath that shook in his throat. Apparently this memory was a painful one. "I was not myself. My body had changed dramatically. I panicked, to say the least. So I was utterly relieved when I found that I could take my human form again. I vowed that I would never tell anyone about what had happened to me, not ever. But I couldn't let my pride and selfishness endanger your well-being. When I found that we could not escape the other creature, I made my choice."
Yugi peered at him. "If you're really Atem," he said hesitantly, "how did you know how to speak their language? How did you know that you could?"
"I… I don't know," Atem admitted. "I can only assume that it was some new instinct." Atem realized that this was a major hole in his story, one that could jeopardize his entire plea of innocence.
"Why should I trust you?" Yugi asked. "Why should I believe your story? You could have made this whole thing up!"
"There is no way for me to prove the legitimacy of my story," Atem said. "But I'm begging you, give me a chance to prove that I don't want to hurt you."
Yugi stared into Atem's eyes. Finally, he lowered his pistol and tossed it into the bushes(1). "Then prove it," he said. He was completely vulnerable now. He knew it, and Atem knew it too. Even if he did call for help, Atem could have easily killed him, captured him, or bitten him before the others could rescue him.
Atem walked forward slowly, as if he was approaching a shy puppy. He came so close that Yugi could feel his breath. Atem cupped Yugi's face with his hand and put their foreheads together. Yugi closed his eyes. This was Atem. No one else could be so gentle and so strong at the same time.
Yugi's shoulders began to shake, and Atem held him comfortingly. "I-I thought you were dead!" Yugi wailed. He pressed his face into Atem's chest and drenched it with his tears. The real Atem was back. Everything in the world seemed to brighten, and suddenly their situation didn't seem nearly as bad.
Tea opened her eyes slowly. Why hadn't anybody woken her up? Was Yugi still out there? Or… Tea shuddered. No, she couldn't lose another friend on this island. Yugi had just decided to be a gentleman and let her sleep.
She looked up and froze. Atem was leaning against the side of the shack. Yugi was asleep on Atem's chest, and Atem was stroking Yugi's hair pensively. His eyes were far away, and his face was very sad.
A million thoughts poured through Tea's mind. Yugi must have fallen asleep accidentally—how else would Atem have gotten inside the cabin undetected? But why hadn't Atem tried to kill them already? Had he noticed their weapons and called for assistance? And how was Tea supposed to kill Atem before he killed Yugi, when Yugi was in such a vulnerable position?
It was as if Atem could hear every one of Tea's loud and panicked thoughts. His eyes drifted toward her slowly. She scrambled to pick up her gun and pointed it at Atem with both hands. "Let him go!" she yelled. Her exclamation woke everyone in the house. Joey and Tristan grabbed their pistols also and aimed them at Atem.
Yugi awoke with sleepy eyes to see what the commotion was about. "Hey!" he yelled. "Hey, hey, stop it!" He stood in front of Atem protectively. "Guys, stop. It's okay."
"Okay?" Tea demanded. "You were the one who told us that Atem was evil!"
"I was wrong," Yugi admitted. "Atem's still himself—only his body was transformed when he was bitten."
They looked between Yugi and Atem. Yugi nodded, and they lowered their guns. Joey walked up and looked Atem fiercely in the eye. "Don't—ever—do that ta us again, ya hear me?" Joey asked.
Atem smiled softly. "I'll do my best."
(1) Yugi's pretty freakin' lucky that gun didn't go off, wouldn't you say?
