Miko followed Marik into the desert. The going was slow since she wasn't used to walking on such loose sand. Marik would laugh when she would trip on the way up a sand dune and wind up sliding back down it. Marik would slide down the dune on his butt, laughing like a manic the entire way. He would take Miko by the arm and help her to the top. Marik led them to some ruins about a mile and a half outside of the city. The weather was a bit chilly today in the early spring morning. Miko was happy she brought her jacket but Kaiba was going to have a fit when he saw the little scratches in the fabric from her falling so much. Miko didn't care though; she was having the time of her life. Egypt was better than she could have ever imagined. She didn't expect to be able to make friends, let alone be on the way to see the lizard she had been looking for. Marik talked the entire way there. He was so curious about her life. When they finally stopped inside the center of the ruins, Marik stopped.

Miko looked around nervously. 'Why did he take me to the middle of nowhere? Oh no, he isn't one of those murderers that befriends their victim then leads them out into the middle of nowhere to kill them, is he? No, that's crazy. Marik doesn't seem like that type of guy but neither did a handful of serial killers I've heard about.'

Marik smiled and stretched his arms out above his head. "Well we're here; remember that when you go in to be as quiet as possible. I don't want my sister or brother to catch us."

Miko looked at Marik like he was an alien. "Uh, Marik? There is nothing here. I thought you said you were taking me to where you live." Miko started to back away from Marik. She looked back in the direction they came from, considering if she should start running to the city.

Marik furrowed his brows and started laughing. "I probably should've explained on the way here." He walked over to the left a little and sat down on what appeared to be the remains of a wall.

Miko sat beside him; she at least wanted to hear him out. "Yeah, for a second there I was thinking you were some sort of serial killer." Miko started laughing nervously.

Marik blinked at her, his face expressionless. "Darn, you found out my plan looks like I'm going to have to kill you now." When Miko's face fell, Marik started laughing. "I'm only joking with you. I would never be able to kill….I would never hurt a friend." Marik said, his eyes glazing over as he was recalling a distant memory.

"Well that certainly is a relief." She looked around the ruins again. "So, where do you live then? I don't see any house out here, just sand ruins."

Marik pointed to a spot in the center. "There's a door over there. My family has lived out here for centuries. We are a secret from most society so if you ask just anyone on the outside, they won't be able to tell you about us."

Miko nodded and relaxed. "That's really cool. So there's a house underground huh?"

Marik laughed again and shook his head. "Not a house. We are tomb keepers. My family was charged to protect the Pharaoh Atem's final resting place. Ever since then, generations have grown up and died in that place. "

Miko furrowed her brows again. "That's incredible! So you guys just live under ground in a tomb? It must be nice to come up into the city every now and then huh?"

Marik's face fell and Miko could see fear in his eyes. "The truth is: I'm not supposed to leave the tomb. My sister only leaves to go to work and even that is only for a few hours. My brother only leaves when there is something that we need. I'm would get in a lot of trouble for going into the city."

"So, I'm guessing that you're not allowed to have friends come over?" Miko said. She nervously looked around the ruins for anyone.

He nodded and then sighed. "Yeah, Odion would probably chain me up and never let me see the light of day ever again." Marik laughed to try to lighten up the mood.

Miko leaned back on her arms and looked up at the cloudy sky. "Then why did you bring me here? I really don't want to get anyone in trouble."

Marik jumped up and smiled wide. "It's no fun to follow the rules all the time you know. You have to break a few rules to really start living. Now come on, my sister will be at the museum for a few more hours and my brother should be still in the city getting groceries. If we only spend an hour down there we shouldn't have a problem."

Marik grabbed Miko by the hand and sprinted to the trapdoor. He carefully opened it. Miko started descending down the stairs, careful to hold onto the wall. The last thing she wanted was to fall and break her leg. Her boss would kill her if she didn't get to that meeting tomorrow evening. Marik followed her in, closing the door behind them. He picked up an already lit torch from the wall and motioned for her to still be quiet. Miko wondered why they even needed to be silent if his family was out at the moment. 'Well he did say that only his brother and sister were out; maybe that means his father and mother are still here.'

Marik led her through three or four corridors before they started passing entryways into large rooms. Marik pointed to one room off to the left. "That's my room." He whispered. Miko looked into the room. A moderate bed sat in one corner covered with white blankets. There was a small dark desk stacked with books. In the other corner sat a trophy case with a golden rod inside that looked extremely old. Miko was fascinated by the item and made a mental note to ask about it later. There were a few posters on the walls with Duel Monster players and their favorite cards. She even saw a poster of her boss and his infamous Blue Eyes White Dragon. There was also one of Yugi Muto and his Dark Magician. She could tell that someone had written a message on it as well. She gave Marik a smile and thumbs up sign. He motioned for her to keep following him. They traveled deeper into the caverns. The further in they got, the colder it became. Miko was happy that she did take her KC jacket with her. She wondered if Marik was cold considering he only wore a purple vest but he didn't even make a notion that he was.

'He must be so used to these temperatures from having lived down here for his whole life. This is a nice place though considering it is underground. I can't wait to see the Uromastyx lizard family he spoke of.' Miko broke herself from her thoughts when she accidently bumped into a low ceiling.

Marik stopped and looked back at her. "You have to watch out for them you know. We should be far enough back that we can talk."

"How much further is it?" Miko asked while rubbing the small bruise that was beginning to form on the top of her head.

Marik jumped down a few feet into a lower room. He turned around and held out his hand for her. "Not that much further really, we should start seeing them any minute."

Miko took Marik's hand and let him help her down. "Marik, how do you even know where you're going? Everything looks the same now down here. I wouldn't be able to even tell you the way back out."

Marik smiled and walked into a very large chamber. "Like I said earlier, I grew up here. When I was younger I used to run around down here to get away from my father. He never could find me when I hid in this room. If you look closely at the walls you might be able to find some of the drawings I did. Boy, my father would have been mad if he ever found out I drew all over the tomb walls."

Miko laughed and looked around the chamber. The fire from the torch cast eerie shadows on the remains for the statues. A large throne was barely standing on top of a raised platform in the center. Marik walked over to one of the remaining columns and lit a small torch, brightening up the room. Miko smiled when she could finally see more of the room. The walls were covered from floor to ceiling in ancient hieroglyphs. She saw in a few spots closer to the ground that was covered in small childlike drawings. She giggled at the pictures of the sun and outside world. 'Marik must have always dreamed about leaving this place. I wonder if he has ever been out of Egypt.'

Marik pointed over to the left side of the throne. "The little family made a home up by the throne. The babies will normally run right up to you but the mom will just sit and watch."

Marik led the way to the throne. Before they ascended the stairs he placed the torch in a makeshift holder on a standing column. He ran quietly up the stairs and plopped himself in the throne. Miko laughed at him and bowed. "My Pharaoh, what is your bidding?" she joked.

Marik crossed his arms and tried to put on his most serious face. "I wish that the sun would shine forever." He gazes up at the ceiling, his eyes glazed over. He seemed to be wishing the ceiling would collapse so he could see the sky. He whispered, "I want to be free."

Miko stood up and smiled wide. She walked up the stairs, and said, "I might not understand completely why you are forced to stay here but you know you can be free. Anyone can change their destiny if they fight hard enough. You just need to find out what you want in your life and work hard, with everything that is in your body, to achieve that goal."

Marik smiled wide and turned to face the left side of the throne. He peaked over the side and pointed down at the small lizards. "Hey there buddies, I brought a friend to see you. This is Miko and she's a very nice lady so be on your best behavior!"

Miko giggled as she watched Marik wag his finger at the babies. She sat down on one of the steps, right next to the babies nest. The mother looked at her suspiciously but made no move to attack. Miko smiled wide, her eyes twinkling at the sight. "They are so precious! Thank you Marik." She pulled out her notebook and started sketching the small family together. The notebook lay on the ground as she sketched.

Marik watched her. He pointed to the mother. "I named her Isis. I named all of the babies too but they run around so much I might get them mixed up sometimes."

One of the smaller male lizards ran up to Miko, jumping onto her notebook. He looked quizzically up at her. "I think this one likes me, Marik."

Marik picked him up, the mother coming out to watch him carefully. "This one is Horus. He's the most curious and loves to run up your arms and legs." He looks down at Isis.

Miko finished her drawings and began to write notes about each of the lizards. Marik would tell her the personality and names of each when she asked him. Without realizing it, two hours had passed as Marik and Miko played with the babies. Isis calmed down enough, learning to trust the new comer. Suddenly, without warning, a deep voice boomed throughout the cavern.

Marik bolted up when he heard the approaching voice. "Oh no, we stayed to long." Marik raced down the stairs.

It was too late to hide. A tall man jumped down and into the room with them. Miko froze on the stairs, staring at the stranger. 'That's the man I saw on my first day here. He looks angry.'

The tall man approached them, walking very fast. He wore a purple cloak over his clothes so Miko couldn't see exactly how built he was. The man's head was mostly bald except for a small ponytail of black hair. He had ancient rune tattoos on his face and his yellow eyes were burning in anger. "Master Marik, who is this outsider and what is she doing here?" he yelled as he approached Marik.