~Some Conversations Are Mental~
Erase The Shadow
IV. Let The Tests Begin!
Prince Yugi could feel his cousins' ire piercing holes into his back. He understood Kaiba's concerns. A war wasn't something they needed. "Seto, please don't look so distressed. Atem knows what he's doing." He promised. They walked down the dimly lit stairwell, slowly. A slight chill carried between them - and it wasn't just the brunet's foul mood.
The Knight muttered an inaudible curse under his breath and halted in step. "I doubt that. To go through all of this trouble, he's nothing but an overly sympathetic moron. Yugi, the rabble begging us back there should've been thrown out on the street - or preferably executed for having the audacity of seeking our aide against the problem they created. There is no benefit to dragging our people into a war unrelated to us." He informed and resumed walking. Yugi frowned as the taller passed him.
Minutes rolled by as the two parties waited for the Prince and the Guardian Knight to return. Ryou sat down on his knees and sighed heavily. He appeared pensive and deeply nervous. The quietness was chilling. He kept up his stoic expression but there was a lurking emptiness that hung over him.
Atem sat on his throne and studied the white-haired teen intently. There was something peculiar about the other that grabbed his attention. The King thought to himself, 'I don't believe him to be lying but there is something off about him. Mn, I don't believe it is anything deceitful. But there is more to him than he is letting on. But what is it?' He didn't know what but he was intrigued. His eyes carried over to the small group traveling with the homeless Prince and as silence was not something he enjoyed, decided to feed his curiosity. "Prince of Whildern, who are these retainers of yours?" He asked after eyeing each individually.
Prince Ryou nodded as he stood and turned to his trusted friends. "Yes. Of course." His retainers lined up side by side on cue. "This is Ishizu Ishtar, she has served as Whildern's court Mage since she was fifteen years old. She is also the reason I am alive today." He gave a warm, genuine smile in gratitude to her.
She bowed and smiled slightly. Prince Ryou went to the other three and gestured towards the blond-haired teen, "This is Katsuya Jounouchi, he is a Knight I met shortly after my Kingdom was destroyed. He and his companions, Honda Hiroto, a hardworking blacksmith and Anzu Mazaki, a Mage specializing in healing and medicinal treatments." Ryou glanced at his friends warmly and brought his gaze up at the seated King, with a slight bow he continued, "They are definitely very talented and skilled in their respective fields and would be a great asset, I assure you."His voice was insistent and certain. It was evident the young Prince cared for them dearly.
Atem nodded slowly. "They appear to be fine people. Let us hope their hearts reflect the same openness I see on their faces." He stood to his feet and offered a checkered smile, "Since you have so kindly expressed your intentions and have introduced your retainers, allow me to introduce myself and my Retainers. My name is Atem Mutoh, King of Denzenar. This is my Guardian Mage, Mahado. He is renowned for his knowledge and skill when it comes to the Dark Arts." Ryou nodded and seemed to have heard of the man. Mahado bowed in turn. The King continued. "My younger brother who left moments ago is named Yugi Mutoh and is of course, Prince of Denzenar. The taller man that accompanied my brother, is Guardian Knight Seto Kaiba. He is also of great renown."
"Yes. I have heard many things about both in my travels actually. It is truly an honor to be standing before such esteemed luminaries. I have come to meet many people who have only dreamt of being where I stand right now." Prince Ryou commented in a much more relaxed tone. The Prince seemed quite interested indeed. Atem was taken aback by the sudden burst from the other. 'He seems to really respect the two. It's the first time since I've seen his eyes spark like that since they entered.'
"I do not know if you're aware, but Denzenar is house to several special artifacts known as the Millennium Items. They grant their Chosen Masters immense power. Powers that are beyond any other.." He made his way down the few steps, and approached Prince Ryou, "Now then, let's get to the proposal you have placed on the table. I respect the courage you had to come here, Prince of Whildern. If everything you've told me is true, then I look forward to another conversation with you." Prince Ryou nodded insistently. He couldn't speak as the other was right in front of him and something about the other made his body chill. "I'm sure you understand that I will require a test of you and your companions, before we make a decision. As I stated, if your hearts are true, there will be no problem." At this time, the door was opened and Prince Yugi along with Knight Seto Kaiba reentered the room. "A simple test that will allow us to see into your hearts."
The white haired teen seemed to understand and nodded once again. Atem turned to the returned two and smiled. "My cousin is the Wielder of the Millennium Rod. My brother wields the Millennium Puzzle. Mahado is the Keeper of the Millennium Ring. This is the Millennium Scales." Atem took the Item from Seto and spared a moment to introduce each guest with Yugi and the others. His attention returned to them. "Now then, let me think a moment on how to do this." He eyed the group and started deciding who would test whom.
Knight Seto held the Millennium Rod in his hands tightly. He detested the item as much as he detested the previous wielder of it. It was because of these simpletons that he had to touch it again. No. It wasn't them. His cold blue eyes flickered and glared at the stoic King. All because of his sympathetic cousin, he had to lay eyes and wield this accursed thing. 'Atem. I will be the judge of this test. It is pointless enough that we are even having it, but if you insist, then I will be the one to conduct it.' The brunet mentally demanded to the King. It was part of the Millennium Rod's special and terrible power. It had the power of telepathy, controlling minds, as well as destroying them, not to mention a few other just as dangerous abilities.
Atem sighed. 'I understand your frustration Seto. But if I allowed you to be judge of the whole lot, they would be on the execution list. Although, I do respect your opinion-'
'Cut the crap, Atem. I don't want to hear about your soft-hearted illness. You and Yugi are always jeopardizing Denzenar with your half-hearted leadership. A leader cannot bow to those lesser than himself, whenever they come begging for scraps. Whildern dug their grave when they allowed a homicidal madman to roam their halls. Let these stragglers climb themselves out.'
The King turned to glare back at the other. 'What do you think they're attempting to do, Seto? How do you expect them to do so, if everyone turns their back to them? I haven't decided on anything, that is what the purpose of this test is for.'
Seto's eyes glowered over at the guests, 'Do you expect me to just sit back and watch you guys fall for their sob story?'
'I expect you to stop with this childish ranting of yours and understand the situation before judging them so harshly. I can only take so much of your selfish behavior, now sober up before I am forced to remove you from this exercise.' He warned, bearing his deep amethysts' eyes into the brunet.
Yugi began to sweat drop. 'Uhm, you guys both need to calm down. Please.' The two both brought their attention onto the shorter. Yugi's Millennium Puzzle shone ever slightly. It's power was unique, it had the ability to connect with other items and even intercept. There were also a few other hidden powers of course. 'Listen, you both have some very solid points. Seto please just bear through this. I know you only want to keep our People protected and prevent any danger from coming this way. We understand, but Bakura is a threat to us as it is. Someone like that... It's only a matter of time before he attacks us anyway. And Atem, we are always caving in. Our cousin has a point. They could easily be working WITH his brother for all we know. But that's why we are doing this. By conducting this test, we can learn a lot of valuable information from them, whether their mission is true, or false. Can't you both agree on that?' The Knight and King were quiet for a long while before sighing in unison. Once more Prince Yugi had diffused a heated argument between the two hot-headed teens. He smiled outwardly. 'So then, let's save the debate for after we get all the facts we can from them.' The two nodded in understanding.
Mahado didn't know what all the silence was for, but he could tell by the pulsing of his Millennium Ring there was an exchange of something going back and forth between his Lord and his fellow Guardian. A sigh escaped his lips as well. 'Seto was probably being unreasonable again.' He straightened his stance as Atem cleared his throat.
"Alright. Sorry about that. I was just deciding on the arrangement of this test." Jounouchi's brows furrowed. He didn't seem to understand what the other meant by 'tests'. He wanted to speak up but Ryou didn't seem at all surprised. The blond didn't know anything, personally, about these golden objects the others' were wearing but they looked similar to Ishizu's necklace. And just like her necklace, they made him uneasy and wary. His eyes glanced over to Anzu, who seemed enthralled by the Prince and King. His brow quirked in confusion. He stared over at Honda, but the brunet seemed to be staring off at nothing. Jounouchi rolled his eyes, that wasn't anything unusual. He'd probably be doing the same, if not for the queasy feeling from all the Items in the room. "So then, Mahado shall judge your Mage⦠Ishizu as well as your Blacksmith Honda." He started.
'Who are you testing brother?' Yugi asked Atem mentally. A long story short, the two siblings had a special ability called 'Mind Link', that allowed them to converse with each other mentally as long as they were in the same room.
'Who? Yugi I thought that would be obvious. I shall judge Whildern's Prince.' He replied certainly.
Yugi smiled and shook his head. 'I don't think that would be the best way of going about this. Do you mind if I reassign you to someone else?'
Atem wondered briefly if Yugi wanted to test the Prince before them. 'I suppose you have a point. The Prince of Denzenar should just the Prince of Whildern.' He conceded.
The King stiffened at Yugi's light chuckle through their Link. 'Oh I'm not testing him!'
The older brother cringed. 'Wait, Yugi, you don't intend to-'
Yugi stepped forward and smiled brightly. "I, Prince of Denzenar, shall judge your Healer. My Brother, the King, shall judge your Knight." Yugi paused and approached the other Prince. His smile softened warmly, "Prince Ryou, it takes a lot to stand up to a force as strong as this Bakura that wrecked The Kingdom of Whildern. I admire you for doing so. Unfortunately, accepting you would be declaring war on a force boasting a terrible army. This isn't something you can imagine us doing easily. Which is why, you will be tested by my cousin, Knight Seto. He is the harshest but also the most honest of us here. If he believes in you then I know I can trust you without any doubt whatsoever."
Prince Ryou stared over at the daunting brunet that seemed very intense and angry. He gulped, but nodded slow. "Yugi." Seto started warily, what was Yugi up to? Did he really trust the brunet or was that a bunch of talk? 'What are you thinking? I could just as easily say he is deceiving us and plotting with his brother.'
Yugi laughed lightly at the brunet, mentally. 'But I know, unless that were true, you wouldn't say that. I know you don't want them here, but you have never been the type to lie about anything. Whether its mean or brutal, you have always told me the truth. I trust you completely Seto, so I know if you test the Prince, you'll do it fairly despite your personal opinion on the matter.'
The Knight swallowed hard. He hated the way Yugi spoke to him in that irritatingly overly sweet and kind manner. He hated it because by using honeyed words, he could get others do what he wanted. Just like this, after hearing all of that, how could the brunet not do this properly. 'You really are a force to be reckoned with, Yugi.'
The shorter chuckled once more. 'You're scary, you know that?' Atem said to his brother with a heavy exhale.
'Ah. Seto just said something similar to me.' Yugi flashed their guests another warm smile. "Okay, everyone follow us this way and we will take you to separate chambers to conduct this test. Afterwards we shall lead you to a much nicer room where you may relax while he debate on your offer."
The King shook his head. His younger brother really knew how to speak with others. Everyone left the room except for Knight Seto and Prince Ryou. "Alright, Prince. We are heading to the Chamber of Moonlight. This way." He motioned for the other to follow, and the white-haired teen nodded without a word.
They walked through a different door than the others, and continued down a long ominous corridor until finally they came to a much larger set of double doors that had a shining moon-shaped crystal embedded on both doors. The brunet muttered something under his breath and the way was opened. What met the fairer skinned teen's eyes was a stunning royal blue room with gold and light blue coils that spiraled the floor in a cool pattern that as Ryou stared at it in its entirety, could make out the shape of a beautiful blue dragon. His eyes moved above him and he could see the ceiling and even the upper parts of the walls were aligned with stars and many brilliant constellations. "This room is breathtaking." He found himself murmuring in amazement.
"Hm." The proud Knight smirked, somewhat pleased by the compliment. The look of utter excitement irked him, he didn't want a reason to like this peasant after all. He replaced his only-slightly-flattered expression with a stern scowl. "Yes. But now we shall begin your test. I, Seto Kaiba, Master of the Millennium Rod, shall judge you."
Suddenly Ryou's vision went blurry and then black. His thoughts disappeared and finally he was unconscious. The teen fell forward but with the Knights' Magic, he was carefully laid onto a table that erected from the floor. A chair appeared behind the brunet. He sat in it and with the Rod in hand, closed his eyes and entered the other's mind.
