Waiting
All the people in the Palace could do was wait for Yuugi to wake up, and in the meantime, life continued as normal for most of the inhabitants. Atem and Set spent the most time sitting in the 'younger Prince's' healing room, but all of the Guardian-rank Priests and the Pharaoh also visited him there for updates. Isis, taking care of the boy with help from her assistant, kept them updated as they came and went, but throughout the night, nothing of his condition changed.
She knew something was wrong, but there was no way to trace it. All she knew was that the problem was neither physical injury, nor poison, nor magical injury—it was something else, something which ran deeper. Prince Atem, sitting quietly on the edge of the pallet where Yuugi lay, suddenly looked up at the exhausted healer and Seer, even as early morning sun shone into the room through the windows. She saw the movement and paused her work preparing another poultice which would help draw the heat from the smaller boy's body.
"Priestess Isis, have you tried to See those lizard-men?" he asked quietly.
With a sigh, the woman answered, "I have had no time to do so. I intend to, as soon as the little Prince has recovered enough for me to leave him unattended." Her hands returned to their work automatically, knowing the motions and measurements by heart, but her attention stayed on him.
"Humor me and try once the poultice is done. I can apply it to his forehead," Atem replied, making her look over at him, hands still again.
"Is there a reason this can't wait?" the Priestess-healer asked quietly.
"...Just a suspicion," the Crown Prince answered softly. "Just...I have a feeling...You won't be able to See them. I have a feeling...they're shielded somehow from your sight, from the Gods' sight...But maybe you'll See something. I don't want you to try too hard, though—don't exhaust yourself trying."
The woman was silent as she finished mixing the herbs and added water and flour to it to form the poultice. As she mixed those in to create a thick paste, she answered, "I am able to make such an attempt, short-lived though it may be. Is there anything in particular you want me to try to See? The survivors of the attack on Prince Yuugi, maybe?"
Shaking his head, Atem—to her immense surprise—said, "No, I want you to See 'their society'. I want you to See parents with children, farmers, hunters, artificers, blacksmiths, tailors...Are they in danger? Is there some reason, something causing them harm, which would lead them to attack us like this? It's obvious the ones from Yuugi's home have...inconsequential reasons, but what of the ones from right here, right now? Is there a reason? If you can See that, See who they are, I would much prefer to have that knowledge than anything else at the moment."
"...Will that change your response to them?" she asked quietly, taking the mixing bowl over to the older Prince with the poultice ready to be applied.
He took the bowl as he said, "To the ones from this land, perhaps. To the ones who have come here from—elsewhere, absolutely not."
"Very well. Apply it all evenly to his forehead, temples, and cheekbones," the woman instructed, and he nodded, so she moved a stool to the wall and leaned against it, drawing in deep breaths as she prepared to open herself to the universal knowledge. While it was often the case for visions to come to her, she could also induce them, and now was such a time...
As her breath evened and she sought out 'the people' she was looking for, she found herself seeing a fog, as a formless force informed her in no uncertain terms that what she sought was not hers to seek. What the force was, she didn't know, but it felt more powerful, yet less 'attached' to any group in particular, than any of the Egyptian Gods were. Any of them, Ancient Elementals or otherwise. She sought the force then, and asked 'why' she couldn't see if they were in danger and needed help. The response shocked her—they were both forsaken and granted favor by a higher power, and would live or die by their own actions, not through meddling. They would never be more than they were without the ability to 'love', and no kindness of others would bring them to understand that.
As it propelled her from the vision, it told her to never allow her own people to lose their love.
Priestess Isis opened her eyes wide to see Atem kneeling in front of her, his gaze worried as he asked, "Are you well? Were you harmed somehow? I am so sorry to have—"
"Stop, Your Highness," she cut him off gently. "I am not harmed, just...greatly surprised by what I made contact with."
"...I see," the Prince murmured, still looking worried. "One of their Seers?"
"No," she answered, rising and looking around. In the time she had been searching for the race and the being, the Crown Prince—of all people!—had not only applied the poultice, but washed his hands, the bowl, and her preparation tools. As such, she went to Yuugi to scan him with her magic, still finding the same traits as before, though now he was slightly cooler as the poultice worked to leech some of the heat from his head.
Sitting back with a small sigh as Atem returned to his place beside the younger and smaller boy, the Priestess said, "It was a being more powerful than our Gods. It told me to pass on to our people to never lose our ability to love, because otherwise, we risk becoming like those beings...both forsaken and granted favor by another being more powerful than our Gods. The favor, I assume, is that I am unable to See anything of them, but the forsaken...That, even should they be in harm's way, we are not allowed to relieve them of it—only their own actions may do so. Should they choose a path of war, so is to be our retaliation, and their own end, because without love, they will never move forward from where they are."
"In other words, there may be a valid reason, but what drives them isn't desperation, it's hatred or some other feeling which doesn't deserve leniency," the Prince sighed, biting his lower lip as he gazed down at Yuugi.
"...So it would seem," the woman agreed, going back to her bench to begin working on another medicine for the younger boy. "Thank you for cleaning up, Your Highness."
"You're welcome. I thought it was only fair, since I was asking you to do something for me which shouldn't have been your concern just now," he answered.
She chuckled at that, but before she could answer, the door opened. Both Atem and Isis glanced over to see Set and Shada there.
The High Priest gave Isis a nod, which she returned, then moved over to the pallet, followed by the Priest of Anubis, who was watching Atem. "Update?" Set asked as he sat beside the Crown Prince.
"No change, though the fever is slightly lowered with the new poultice I prepared," Isis immediately stated, and the two men nodded.
Set then looked at Atem and said, "You need to speak with Shada."
"But—" Atem began in alarm. "Yuugi—"
"Is a poor excuse, and you know it, Atem. We can't do anything but wait now, but you have better things to do with your time," the High Priest replied in a distinctly dry tone. "I'm not saying you need to make a decision right now, but talk with him about it so you have all the complete, correct information."
After a silence, the Prince sighed and gave a small nod. Looking up at Shada, he said, "Mahad mentioned to me that you know of a method of using Time Wizard's power to make emotions seem more distant. He wasn't sure of the details, which is what I want now. In particular, the results if it doesn't work because—I'm not sure I'm ready to let go of the emotions you'd need to make distant."
The older Priest nodded and said, "I had wondered if I should mention that to you myself after the number of times I've seen your turmoil, My Prince. Let me keep the explanation simple, then. Time Wizard manipulates time, and we normally take that to refer to the 'passage of time' in this physical world. To our souls, however, 'time' is a relative term, and so it is to spirits as well. The passage of time dulls events for us, assuming we let them go and do not dwell on them repeatedly, but the events remain fresh should we continue to call up the memory often.
"Emotion is more closely tied with the soul than our thoughts are, so by having a spirit manipulate the 'time' of your spirit, the emotion is able to fade, but not disappear entirely—only mind-healing will accomplish that. In the event that you are too attached yet to the memory and emotion, it will simply do nothing, the only drawback being that there is a gap of time before your soul would be willing to make another attempt. For most, that is a full cycle of the seasons, therefore, it would be best to be sure you wish this before attempting it."
"I see," Atem said quietly, suddenly feeling like a weight had been lifted off him. "Then there is nothing dangerous about the process. That's good to know."
"In this case, no, there is nothing dangerous," Shada agreed. "You may inform me when you're prepared to undergo the distancing."
He turned to go, but was stopped by Atem saying, "If Yuugi hasn't woken by tomorrow evening, do it then. My feelings for the current situation may stay, but everything else—the memories I was given by the Gods—I need to make them distant, otherwise I continue to risk my own sanity."
"I understand," Shada said over his shoulder. "I will prepare, then, while you calm your mind and work to make those emotions ready for release."
"Thank you, Priest Shada," the Crown Prince replied, and Shada left.
"Now, that wasn't so bad, was it?" Set asked with a small smile.
"...No," Atem agreed, also smiling a bit. "Thank you as well."
"Consider it retaliation for all the times you did the same to me before now," the High Priest snorted, but covered Atem's hand with his own.
Isis made an exasperated sound and said, "Kindly take yourselves to the High Priest's chamber if you wish for some intimate time—any other chamber currently and you will be caught." She wasn't facing them, and hadn't faced them, so had Seen it.
Both blushed furiously, but rose. As they were about to leave, Atem asked her, "Are you all right with this, then?"
She lifted her shoulders in an ancient, half-formed equivalent to a shrug, saying, "My Prince, I am a healer. I have seen all manner of unusual relationships, and no longer bother to judge them. Do as you wish, but keep it discreet, that is all I ask."
"Thank you again," Atem said, fully meaning the heart-felt words, then left with Set.
Isis knew he'd be back in a few short hours, and wondered how she could get him to rest properly so his own health wouldn't deteriorate. Then, a sly smile appeared on her lips and she quickly finished the medicine for Yuugi before beginning a different one. She gave the one for Yuugi to her apprentice for the younger woman to apply to the shoulder wound while she mixed a liquid...
PA-HPS-YM-SK
That evening, while Atem sat with Yuugi, Isis handed him a drink with some simple food—a bit of bread, cheese, and fruit. He ate and drank, not noticing anything off about the drink, and drifted quite peacefully into sleep with his head laying on Yuugi's good shoulder. The Priestess heaved a sigh of relief and shifted him to the side a bit, then returned to her duties and care of the younger Prince. The boy's fever finally broke during the night, which meant he was starting to recover, and that was all to the good. When he would wake, however, she didn't know.
Atem woke in the morning feeling refreshed, but groaned as he realized what it meant, so rolled over to scan the room. Only the apprentice healer was there right then, and she was working intently on a medicine while reading a scroll. She was obviously new to the particular medicine she was making, so he didn't want to disturb her.
Instead, while she followed the instructions, she said, "Your Highness, Priestess Isis asked me to inform you that she gave you a mild sedative, knowing you needed your rest if you wished to be prepared for Priest Shada this evening, and to be capable of watching over your younger brother much longer. She does not regret her actions. Also, Prince Yuugi's fever broke in the early morning hours, so she left to rest for a few hours as well."
"I see," he said, then realized he'd been saying those words a lot lately and sighed. "In other words—healer's orders were for me to rest, but knowing how stubborn I am about people I care for, she decided an 'order' wouldn't suffice."
"I am uncertain of my Mistress' reasons, Your Highness, but she felt very strongly that her actions were necessary," the apprentice replied, pausing with a frown as she read the page. "Strain? With what?" she muttered in confusion.
"There's a sheer, white cloth and wooden rim on the far rack. Place it over a jar, secure it, and pour in whatever it is you need to strain," Atem informed her dryly. Admittedly, next to none of their medicines required that action, so it was likely a new tool and process for her. It also meant Yuugi's shoulder wound was still healing.
She looked up at him in surprise, then turned to look at the far rack. As she saw what he meant, she went to fetch it, asking in amusement as she did, "How did you know that, Your Highness? You've never made a study of medicines, have you?"
"No, only some basic ones," he replied. "Unfortunately, I once left a wound from my weapons practice for far too long, and watched her prepare the poultice she needed to heal both the infection and the over-strained injury. It's the same one she's been making for Yuugi's torn wound from that magicked blade."
"I see. Then, thank you very much for pointing me in the right direction, My Prince," she answered with a smile, setting up the cloth for the straining.
"You're welcome," he answered with a small, amused smile. She was indeed a good apprentice for Isis to teach her healing to.
PA-HPS-YM-SK
The day passed quietly after that, and Shada arrived in the evening, meeting Atem's even gaze before nodding and saying, "If you are prepared, My Prince, you should lay down or lean against something. The initial sensation is known to be disorienting as your conscious mind accepts its new state, and you will need a few minutes to re-orient yourself afterwards.
"Understood," the Crown Prince agreed as Isis and her apprentice watched with interest. Atem moved to the corner where the pallet met the wall by the head of the pallet, near where he would normally sit at Yuugi's side. When he was settled against the hard stone to two sides of and under him, Shada moved to stand near his feet.
The Priest extended his hand to the side and called, "Time Wizard, come to my side!" Next to him appeared the odd being, much like a time-keeper with arms, legs, and a face which was visible in the flat of the time-keeper. It looked at Shada patiently, and the man told it, "His Highness needs much of his emotional burden to be made distant. Current emotions immediately present are to be left for him, but he was granted memories by the Gods, and the associated emotions are overwhelming in their current state. Make those emotions only more distant."
Time Wizard made an agreeing noise and tugged on some of Shada's energy and memories in order to focus the correct energy and effect on the Prince. As soon as the bolt of power the creature unleashed hit Atem, he felt dizzy, even as something began picking through the depths of his soul. Things, feelings inside him, began separating into two parts: one part contained guilt, pain, horror, despair, desperation, and even hatred; the other part included his feelings for Yuugi, his love for Set, his current worry, and other immediate concerns.
Suddenly, even as his eyes slid shut, the Crown Prince felt the portion containing the guilt, horror, and hatred being suddenly torn away and shoved. He felt ill as it drew outside his immediate grasp, and he instinctively tried to reach for it—then sighed and let it go. His body relaxed as the emotions were pushed down, away, until they came to settle somewhere which felt far away. They stopped there and the rush of both relief and sickness caused him to slump over, arms tightly clutching his body.
When his head finally stopped spinning, he could feel a hand holding a cool cloth to his forehead, but the hand was too large to be Isis' or her apprentice's. Slowly, he opened his eyes to see Shada, and started to push himself upright, but found his muscles weak as the Guardian-Priest said quietly, "Easy now. Slowly, My Prince, or you may find yourself back in the state you were just in." The man sounded somewhat amused, but gave him a hand as he tried to settle back into the corner he'd chosen.
Finally, he could look up at Shada without feeling like he was underwater, blinking a few times as he met the man's dark eyes. "...Odd...I tried to reach for them, then...let them go..."
"And how do you feel now?" the Priest of Anubis asked softly.
"...Lighter than I have since that day..." the Crown Prince answered equally softly.
"Good," Shada smiled. "Then, it did as it was meant to, and you made the correct decision in that moment. What remains is for you to work through, in a much more controlled environment. Get some rest while your mind finishes adapting."
"I will," Atem agreed, and the older man gave him a smile before lifting him up onto the pallet beside Yuugi. The man then left, and Atem slipped into sleep as Isis placed another cool cloth on his forehead.
PA-HPS-YM-SK
Yuugi had no idea how much time had passed by the time he woke, but he still felt that torn void in his soul. Then, his mind caught up with what he'd just thought, and he realized what he'd thought originally to be pain to his physical body wasn't that at all—it was his soul, spirit, self, which had been damaged! Quickly, he began searching his own soul, starting with his soul room—it still existed, with a hall to nowhere outside it, so logically, it was the first place to go to look for damage.
And he found it. The room had missing walls, floors, and objects, some of the things in it were sheared off to varying degrees, and there was nothing smooth about the damage. There was no pattern to it, either, the damage being randomly scattered about the soul room, resulting in nearly half of it being missing. Searching for the missing pieces also led him to nothing—they weren't there anymore.
Opening his eyes and sitting up fast nearly caused him to pass out, but Atem's familiar voice gasped, "Yuugi!" and the taller's arms caught him before he fell back to the bed.
"It's the soul!" the boy groaned into the Prince's shoulder.
"What are you talking about?" Atem asked in concern. "Your injury has mostly healed and your fever gone down, by the way."
"Remember the duel with Malik, when both you and he had your light halves separate from you and when you took damage, our souls were torn apart?" Yuugi asked tiredly, pushing back to look up at Atem.
"Of course. Why?"
"The sword—it was ripping and tearing at my soul the same way! Look for damage to my soul, not my body, or even my magic, and you'll see it."
The Prince's eyes widened, then he delved into his soul room—currently more resembling his Prince's room, but with a dark labyrinth in one corner—and went to the 'hall to nowhere' outside his room. From it, he stepped over to Yuugi's similar hall, and opened the door to his light half's room. He saw the damage and felt ill. For this to happen to his light...after everything, for this to happen...
Withdrawing from the soul room, Atem hugged the smaller boy tightly, tears running down his cheeks silently as he felt the smaller boy's pain. He was oblivious to the others in the room, they both were, even though they were all staring at the two weeping young men in something like shock and great concern. Yuugi wept on his shoulder, clutching at his chest as he tried to reconcile what was now missing from him, so Atem just held him.
It was all he could do right then.
Finally, Yuugi stopped crying, drifting back into sleep, and Atem looked up at the others in the room, tears still on his cheeks. His father had joined Isis, Set, and Mahad at some point while the two Princes had been crying.
"My son, what happened?" Ahknemkhanen asked, moving over to grip Atem's shoulder comfortingly.
"The sword..." Atem began, then paused to draw in a shuddering breath. "The magic on the sword tore apart his soul much like we do to criminals' souls...but the parts of his soul which were torn off are just...gone," the Prince answered quietly, to the horror of the others in the room. "Nearly a full half of my light's soul is..."
"Atem," the Pharaoh began as Atem laid Yuugi back down on the bed.
"No. Not at this moment," the Prince answered, rising and turning to step outside. "Do not speak to me now." Quietly, he left the room, but all of its current occupants had felt his energy pulsing, trying desperately to break free of his hold. If he were to snap and unleash it, in that moment, he could tear down the Palace himself, and they all knew it.
As such, they let him go.