Apep and the Sacred Scrolls of Duat.

Chapter 4: Missing in the Desert.


"I hate this part," Joey grumbled, looking out at the desert.

"Huh?" Mana frowned.

"The waitin'," he muttered back, "Just...standin' by and watchin' 'cause we can't help him."

"...Oh," the young magician nodded in understanding. "That part...so do I," she added, sadly.

"But you're a magician, aren't you?" Yugi asked her.

"Well...kind of," she shrugged with a sheepish smile, "Not nearly as good as them...I'd probably just get in the way...or...at least...that's what Master Mahad says...and Seto...he says that too."

"Yeah, well, he's a jerk no matter where he is," Joey said and she snorted, inelegantly.

"Here, here," Tristan nodded, along with Duke.

"Look, there they are," Serenity exclaimed, craning her neck and leaning on the balcony to see the Pharaoh and his Priests ride through the main thoroughfare of the city on horseback.

"Good luck, Pharaoh," Yugi sighed and his friends nodded.


"Isis!" the Pharaoh spoke as they rode through the city. "Do you see Mahad and Shada?" he asked. They had left the city not long ago and if the entire desert was covered by those demonic snakes, then what fate could have befallen them?

"No, my King," Isis answered, concerned, "I see nothing...nothing but shadows."

"Those creatures are closer than ever before," Seto noted as the city gates opened for them and they were lead, with the Pharaoh at the front, out into the open desert.

"Yes," Atemu sighed, readying his DiaDhank. "However...this time I will ensure that they cannot return," he said as both his Millennium Puzzle and the ancient duel disk began to shine a brilliant gold. "Winged Dragon of Ra!" he cried as the sky began to glow as well.

His loyal friends around him, as well as everyone in the city were forced to shield their eyes from the blinding light that rained down from the sky as the Winged Dragon emerged proudly with its wings outstretched as it roared. It was generally the King's habit not to summon the Gods unless it were a dire situation but he had no other option. His priority now was to destroy the serpents and find his friends.

The Winged Dragon soared through the sky and began to blaze in golden fire, then it descended from the sky and breezed across the desert sands, obliterating the hissing snakes but not the city walls.

"The Kingdom is safe. No creature could withstand an attack from the Winged Dragon of Ra," Seto declared, smugly.

"As always, my friend, I hope that you are right," the Pharaoh replied, watching intently as the snakes began to vanish.

Tense minutes later, when the last of the serpents was gone, the Great Dragon reverted back to its usual form and roared in victory before it too vanished and its golden light faded away.

The Pharaoh let out a quiet sigh of relief before he turned to Isis. "Now...Isis, with me. We must locate Mahad and Shada..."

"My Pharaoh, it is not safe for you to..." Seto began.

"I will not abandon them, Seto," he replied in a tone of finality which the loyal Priest knew all too well. "In the mean time, I want you both to return to the palace and check the temple of Amun."

"What are we to look for, my Pharaoh?" Karim asked after both he and Seto gave a bow of acknowledgment.

"For any trace of those...creatures, if any remains...I want you to keep a close eye on Yugi and the others, as well. There must be a reason why they appeared there, in that specific place and there must be a reason why," he answered. "If we have not returned before sun down you are to seal the gates and assume the throne," he told Seto.

"I..."

"Captain Renni," the Pharaoh called out to the open gates, looking at the Captain of the Guards who was on duty.

The Egyptian army had a rigorous hierarchy. It was divided into troops of about 250 with a Captain of each one, and each of those Captains worked in a rotor, reporting to a Commander and he to an Overseer. Oddly, many people thought, the King knew the names of most, if not all of the soldiers he came into contact with.

"Yes, my Pharaoh?" the Captain bowed on one knee. He was a middle aged man, well built and battle scared, wearing light, but effective armour, with a sword at his hip.

"Bring some of your men," he said, "We are to search the desert and we will not return until we find our missing Priests."

"Sir," the soldier nodded, standing up and returning to his soldiers.

"If Mahad and Shada cannot survive these beasts then we can assume that our foreign allies have perished in their journey to us as well. If we also fall, your only hope is to defend yourselves and the people as best you can...Best of luck, my friends and may the Gods be with you."

After a solemn pause, Seto and Karim bowed and could only watch as the Pharaoh along with Isis and a handful of soldiers, rode off into the desert. A desert which, only moments ago, was covered with demonic serpents.


Lady Meskhenet breathed a sigh of relief, just as her son had done, as the Winged Dragon of Ra faded from the sky but her apprehension returned when she saw him ride off into the desert. At least he wasn't alone. She knew as well as the Palace Priests that the King had a tendency to try and deal with things alone, leaving them behind to panic and organise frantic search parties only for him to return most of the time and tell them not to worry so much, after apologising of course.

The throne room was quiet and empty now as she walked through to meet the returning Priests but found that she wasn't as alone as she first thought. Mana was there too, as well as the modern day teenagers who looked extremely out of place there.

"Why has the Pharaoh not returned, Seto?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"My lady, he has gone in search of Mahad and Shada in the desert," Seto bowed, lightly.

"I see," she sighed.

"Who's that?" Joey muttered to Mana.

"The former Pharaoh's Queen," she whispered back. "Lady Meskhenet...the Pharaoh's mother," she simplified when they blinked in confusion.

"That's his mom?!" Joey, Tristan and Duke exclaimed simultaneously, eliciting glares from the people around them.

"And...who are you?" Meskhenet asked, curiously.

"They are guests of the Pharaoh, my Lady," Seto replied. "The king himself has assured us that they can be trusted," he added.

"But guests? Here? In the land of the dead?" she whispered. She, like the Priests and the Pharaoh, were the only ones who knew that they were all in fact, dead.

"Yes, my lady," he nodded. "It is a mystery the Pharaoh wants solved. Come, Karim, we have our orders to search the temple," he said to his fellow Priest and they left.

"So...'guests of the Pharaoh'," the elegant woman smiled at them, "Would you do me the honour of explaining yourselves?"

"...That's kind of a long story...err...your majesty," Yugi rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

"Then I suggest you get get started, young one. Start with your name...and why you look so similar to my son."


"...I...understand," Meskhenet sighed, heavily. After leading them to her own private, ancient version of a living room, she listened intently to their explanation and she was both saddened and furious but at the moment, her sadness was the stronger of the two.

"Y'do?" Joey furrowed his brow, "That was fast. Took us ages to get it. We was callin' him 'Yugi' for ages, weren't we?" he asked his friends.

"I am familiar with magic and its consequences. What my son did to seal away the darkness had a price...and he paid it with his memories and with his name. Names have power to us...particularly the name of a King. But to hear that he was alone for 3,000 years...without any knowledge of who he was...no mother wants to hear such a thing."

"Don't really know how he stayed sane, t'be honest," Joey mumbled. "The Millennium Puzzle wasn't all comfy cushions and...good food," he said, eating a grape from the selection of fruit in front of them in fine jars and bowls. "Last time we saw it it was..." he stopped when he saw his friends glaring at him and when he saw the Queen's expression. "Erm...sorry, ma'am," he grumbled.

She just smiled ruefully and shook her head, her blond fringe falling elegantly as she moved. "So," she began, "This makes you...his descendant?" she asked Yugi.

"I erm...I guess so. I never really thought about it like that," he answered.

"That makes you my descendant too," the lady declared, "Which makes you a Prince."

"I...I'm really...really not," Yugi said, embarrassed.

"Prince Yugi," Rebecca smiled, hugging his left arm closer.

"Hehehehe..." Yugi laughed, nervously as he blushed.

"But it really is quite remarkable," Meskhenet said, "You are almost identical to my son...almost."

"Except for the tan," Joey muttered with a mouthful of food.

"And the muscles," Tristan added with a smirk.

"Oh, and the height," Joey said.

"And the scary eyes," Duke added.

"I can do the scary eyes!" Yugi exclaimed.

"Urgh," Teà sighed.

"Go on then, Yug," Joey dared him, "Do the eyes."

"Scary eyes?" Serenity frowned.

"Yeah, y'must've seen the Pharaoh do the scary look," Joey said, enthusiastically, "Like when he's really, really, really mad and..."

"And he sends the bad guys to the Shadow Realm," Tristan said, clicking his fingers.

"Right!" Joey nodded.

"Man, I feel kinda bad for those guys," the blonde shook his head. "That place is bad enough without having the living daylights scared outta you by the guy sending you there in the first place," he said.

"They deserved it," Duke shrugged.

"It sounds as though you had quite a difficult time...where you are from...this future world of yours..." Meskhenet remarked.

"Yeah, but...things have been pretty quiet lately...'till we were attacked by snakes, I mean," Duke replied.

"Here also," she said. "All was quiet...as it was meant to be, until the serpents arrived. Since then...we have had no peace. And if you know my son as well as you claim then you know that he is..."

"Try'na do everything at once?" Tristan guessed.

"Burnin' the candle at both ends?" Joey said.

"What's that even mean?" Duke asked him.

"Trying to save everyone," Yugi sighed, "Even if it means putting himself in harms' way?"

"Quite," she nodded, sadly.


At the same time, out in the desert with the sun setting in the distance and night drawing ever closer, Spiria soared over the heads of the Pharaoh and his entourage as they raced across the sand dunes. So far they had seen not a trace of the serpents but the King was getting anxious. The longer they spent outside the protective walls of the city, the more danger they were all in.

"Anything?" he asked Isis.

"...I see...wait...my King! I see them!" she exclaimed suddenly, opening her eyes. "Go, Spiria, quickly now. We will follow!" she ordered.

The Pharaoh urged his fast white horse onward, following in the winged creature's shadow with the others close behind him.


"Mahad! Shada!" the Pharaoh cried out as the slumped forms of his Priests came into view. They appeared to have taken refuge in the remains of a battered old fort which had long since been abandoned and they were both unconscious. There was nothing around them to indicate that the serpents had been there at all just like the rest of the desert they'd passed through.

Leaping from his horse, Atemu knelt beside the unconscious men both quickly noticed that they were both breathing. They didn't seem to be wounded either. "They appear unharmed," he said, turning Mahad over into his back, gently. "Mahad, wake up," he ordered. "Shada," he said, turning to the other man.

"My King, the sun...it will be night soon," Captain Renni observed. "It would be unwise to remain here much longer," he said.

"Agreed," the Pharaoh nodded. "We shall return to the palace," he said, without taking his deeply concerned eyes from the Priests.

.

It was well last nightfall when news of the Pharaoh's return was announced. The news spread quickly from the city walls to the palace so that when he and the Priests entered the palace once again, he was met by his mother and his friends.

"Take them to the healers," the Pharaoh ordered the guards who were carrying the two unconscious Priests. "Send word to me if they awake," he said before they left. "Captain," he turned to Renni who immediately stood at attention, "Thank you for your help," the King said, "You and your men."

"The honour is to serve, my king," the man bowed.

"Welcome home," Meskhenet said once the guards had gone.

"Oh, boy, this isn't gonna be good," Mana muttered.

"What?" Yugi asked.

"She's mad. She's really, really mad," the magician replied.

"Mother...I thought you would be asleep," Atemu blinked at her and she crossed her arms.

"I have been talking to your guests, my son," Meskhenet said. "They told me quite a tale, I must say," she added.

"What exactly..."

"3 millennia," the woman emphasised, "3,000 years! How could you do something so...reckless?!"

"Ah...yes...that tale," he uttered, glaring over at them for a second.

"Dude...you ever see anyone tell the Pharaoh off before?" Tristan whispered.

"Nu-uh," Duke muttered back.

"I had no..." Atemu began.

"Don't tell me you had no choice."

"I didn't have any choice."

"You didn't say anything about it. Not once..."

"I didn't want you to worry," he retorted, "What's done is done. I'm here now. That's all that matters."

"If this...serpent...problem requires the same solution..."

"It won't."

"But if it did..."

"Then I'd do it again," he said, honestly.

"...You're just like your father," Meskhenet lamented.

"I'll take that as a compliment," Atemu smiled at her. "Now, I have to go and check the scrolls. I'll ask that some rooms be made up for you," he then said to the others. "I'm sorry, my friends but what was done to you is no simple magic. Until we know why and how you were sent here, there is little we can do to help you. I truly am sorry. For now, I suggest you rest. I will do everything I can to fix this, I promise you. Good night, mother, goodnight, my friends," he said.


Some time later, Serenity was wide awake, staring out over the ancient city, she was captivated by the fact that the place never seemed to sleep. Due to the fact that the desert was ridiculously warm in the day, at night, most people were busy doing chores or even working because it was much cooler to do so.

"Can't sleep either, huh?" Teà smiled, yawning as she walked over to her friend. They'd chosen to share quarters despite the fact that they'd been assured that the palace was large enough to give them both their own set of rooms.

"Oh, I didn't mean to wake you," Serenity replied, sheepishly but Teà just shrugged as she stood beside her.

"It's...beautiful here, isn't it?" she asked, leaning over the stone balcony.

"Mmm," the younger girl nodded. "I keep thinking it's all dream. I've seen some...strange things...but this is...it's something else," she said.

"And all those strange things happened when you started hanging out with us," Teà scoffed.

"I don't really mind it all, I guess...I could stand here for ages and just..." Serenity trailed off, her eyes fixed on the ancient world of the Pharaoh.

"It all looks so peaceful now...hard to believe there's some killer snakes out to get us."

"What's gonna happen to us?"

"Wish I knew. Weird things always happen to us, don't they? But...things usually work out in the end."

"Yeah, they do," Serenity nodded. "It's hard to believe this is all real, though. Is this like last time for you guys? When you...went into the Pharaoh's memories?" she asked.

"It all looks the same, I guess...but we didn't really have time to look around all that much. And...I guess this is supposed to be paradise," Teà said.

"Paradise?"

"I erm...after we went to the museum...and erm...maybe before that...I did a lot of reading about ancient Egypt. They said that when you die, you go to a world that's just like when you're alive...but it's...better somehow. Like...there's always enough food...you're happy even if you're working...and I guess the desert doesn't feel so hot...or something like that."

"Oh," Serenity said, intrigued. "What else did you find out?" she asked.

"That hieroglyphs make no sense to me at all," Teà smirked.

"And...they're everywhere," Serenity remarked, looking at the stone walls. Many of them were intricately carved, plastered and painted with beautiful scenes of wildlife or palace life but almost all of them had hieroglyphics on them.

"Yeah...too bad Mr. Muto isn't here. He'd be having a field day with all this."

"Can Yugi read them?"

"Nope. But the Pharaoh could even when he didn't have his memories." (*1)

"That's strange," Serenity said. "You erm...you missed him when he...left, didn't you?" she asked, cautiously.

"Of course I did. He's our friend. We all missed him."

"I mean...you missed him...as more than a friend...right?" Serenity gently asked.

"What? Why would you..."

"Teà..."

"Look, Serenity, I really don't..."

"If you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. Really," Serenity said, quickly and Teà sighed.

"Can't hide anything from you, huh?" she grumbled. "You're the total opposite of Joey y'know about this stuff. He's completely clueless," she said.

"Maybe," Serenity laughed. "So...the Pharaoh?" she prompted.

"What about him?"

"Come on. When are you ever gonna get a chance to see him again? I saw what you were like when he left..."

"We were all..." Teà began but a sceptical glance from her friend made her purse her lip. "Okay, okay, I missed him. But it's not like we were...y'know? We had one date...and I'm not even sure it was a date. We were so focused on finding out about his past and everything...I mean, the guy had a lot to deal with and going on a date was probably the last thing on his mind," she ranted.

"Mmm-hmmm," her friend encouraged.

"And it's not like we're even...I'm not...I mean he's..."

"...Dead?" Serenity finished for her, sadly.

"Yeah...that," Teà muttered and they both wore identical, rueful smiles.

"I'm sorry, Teà," Serenity said, placing a pale hand over her friends'.

"Me too."


(*1) In a Capsule Monsters episode, Yugi clearly can't read the hieroglyphics but the Pharaoh could. I can't remember if it's mentioned anywhere else in the anime so I'm just gonna go with this.