Chapter Nineteen: Battlecry

Set's ice blue gaze focussed in on the tombrobber that held his Pharaoh. Jealousy flared up inside his soul. Snarling to himself, he restrained the urge of going over to the young king's bed and strangling the thief where he lay.

'The army still needs him to fight, he's the strongest recruited. Perhaps he will be killed in battle,' Set thought to himself. He continued to watch as Bakura quietly unwrapped his arms from around Atemu and departed by the servant's door.

Set rapidly strode over to the bed where Atemu lay fast asleep. He bent down and placed a kiss on the younger's lips. The Pharaoh's lips were warm and tasted like the sweetest honey. As the priest pulled away, he grinned at the content smile on Atemu's mouth as he hugged his pillow.

Still smirking, Set disappeared into the entrance hallway. Atemu would be his. If the war didn't take Bakura's life, Set would personally see to it that the thief was killed.

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Rays of sun struck Yami's eyes as the sun dawned over the horizon. His crimson orbs were met with bright light as he woke, causing him to blink.

Yami yawned and, for once in his life, didn't feel horrible this morning. Taira cautiously opened the servant's door and walked in, Yami's breakfast on the tray that she carried.

"Good morning Taira. What's for breakfast today?" Yami asked cheerfully. Taira fumbled and almost dropped the tray. She regained her balance and looked back at Yami.

"I see you are in a good mood this morning, Pharaoh. Perhaps it has something to do with Bakura?" she replied and set the tray down. Yami laughed and walked to his balcony.

"I feel wonderful today!" he called to the sun from the stone railing. A few of the servants tending the garden below looked up and smiled at the young king.

Yami returned to the shelter of his room and dropped gracefully to the pillow by his table. Joyfully, he ate the food Taira had brought for him. He even offered a few grapes to Taira, who accepted them gratefully but surprised.

A stern knock echoed through the room, causing Yami's happiness to evaporate. With a curt order, Yami ordered the door to be opened. Akhunadin pushed through the door and gave a polite bow to Yami.

The young king nodded his head in acceptance and motioned for the priest to state his business.

"I am glad to here you are in a good mood this morning, my Pharaoh. Because I have some rather depressing news. The Syrians, it seems, have overcome their fear of us sooner than we had hoped. They are marching for the city at a fast pace," Akhunadin panted, still tired from his evident dash to Yami's rooms. Yami immediately dropped any hope of having a perfectly happy day and took on a serious façade.

"Have the recruits gathered and formed into divisions based on their strengths and weaknesses. I will be down shortly," Yami replied, rising from the comfort of the cushions. Bowing again, Akhunadin took his leave and went to complete his orders.

Taira went to the armoire and pulled out a dark cloak for Yami. Donning the large cloak, Yami added a simple armband to his outfit. The armband displayed the three god monsters intertwined with each other. The sky god Osiris, the sun god Ra and the earth god Obelisk glared up at him with eyes made of the deepest red rubies. After settling the band on his arm, he picked up his father's sword and buckled it tightly to his belt.

The last thing to be adjusted on his outfit was his crown. The gold was cold against his forehead and felt extra heavy today. Once he had gotten used to it, Yami glanced down at himself briefly in his mirror before strolling out of his rooms.

The outer courtyard was full of men, all sorted into haphazardly placed groups ranging in size. Yami was taken by a number of guards to his chariot, which was positioned in the middle of the masses. The chariot was the best in the kingdom and was drawn by two large black horses. Yami stepped into the chariot and his personal escort surrounded him. He was pleased to see that Bakura was among them.

Yami raised his arm and all fell silent.

"Today, we go to war with our enemies. Whether we win or lose, we must give it our best efforts. Although many of you have never fought before, all have seen what war is possible of. The fate of Egypt rests with you. Forward we must go. To victory!" Yami shouted.

"To victory!" the crowds echoed. Yami threw his hand forward and the entourage started to move. Yami maneuvered his own chariot to the front of the column.

The main street to the gate from the palace was lined with people. Children clung to their parents' legs, wives and mothers wept for their husbands and sons as they marched down the road. Yami felt a deep feeling of guilt as he saw their torn faces.

'How many of these men will never return to their families? How many must die?' Yami thought sorrowfully. He wished they could all return unharmed, but he knew his wish could never be fulfilled.

As they left the city gate, Yami could faintly make out a cloud of dust rising in the distance. He knew it had been made by the Syrians. He signaled for the group to move faster and the men behind him began to run.

The two armies clashed at midday with instant deaths on both sides. Yami let them fight with swords, even if they were disadvantaged that way. He planned on saving the monsters for the last minute.

As the battle progressed, the Syrians managed to gain a large advantage. Upon learning this, Yami ordered for the weaker monsters to be summoned; only the weaker ones, to give the Syrians a false understatement of the Egyptians' power.

Once the sun had set behind the mountains and both sides and set up camp, the fighting seemed to cease, to allow the soldiers time to rest. When Yami's scouts returned, however, they reported that the Syrians were planning a surprise attack in the night, so their numbers would be hidden by the shadows. Furious, Yami called the priests to his tent.

"Take those who have dark monsters and attack their camp before they attack ours. Make sure that none of the monsters you take give off any kind of light. You're dismissed," he fumed. The priests bowed respectfully and departed in silence; partially because of the fact they were tired, but also because they didn't want to piss Yami off any further.

Set left in a separate direction than the other five priests. Rapidly, he found the one he was looking for, lying beneath a chariot for shelter.

"Get off your ass thief and make yourself useful," he commanded, kicking Bakura hard in the ribs. Bakura grunted and his eyes ripped open.

"Damn you, Set. Can't you just let me sleep?" Bakura growled and sat up.

"I have orders directly from Atemu to bring all those with dark monsters to the front. And you just happen to be one of them, so get off your lazy ass and follow me," Set sneered.

Bakura pushed himself to his feet, a scowl smeared across his face. With Bakura trailing slightly behind Set, they walked quietly to where the others were waiting.

Yami watched as the mass of men and monsters slowly stalked over the crest of the hill and disappeared towards the Syrian camp.

The first rounds of attacks were successful. But Syrians, obviously expecting something like that, decided to bring out their secret weapon.

A Syrian mage conjured a small, black orb that floated mid-air. In a strange tongue, neither Syrian nor Egyptian, he shouted out a spell. All the surrounding monsters were forced to leave their master's side as they were swept into the vortex.

Once the threat of the monsters had vanished, the Syrians pressed a full- fledged attack on the unprepared Egyptians. Most not knowing how to cope with this kind of attack, the men scattered.

Yami saw the disaster unfold before him and dashed from his tent to the nearest horse. Mounting it bareback, he flew towards the battle scene. He called everyone to stand behind him and prepared to give his life. Reaching into his soul, he grasped for the energy to summon. It was there and it yielded to his will.

A bright light flooded the dark battlefield, as if the sun had somehow reappeared during the night. Both sides looked up at the light with fear as well as awe.

There in the clouds was the sun god Ra. Surrendering all his energy to the mighty creature, he ordered one last attack. Flames erupted from the sun god's mouth and scorched the Syrians to the very sand they stood on. Nothing was left standing.

Yami felt the energy leave his body as the monster disappeared and the light faded away. He was semiconscious of the shouts of victory that exploded around him. A few seconds later, Yami slipped from the horse to the ground, losing consciousness as he hit the sand.

Set was immediately at his side. Lifting the Pharaoh's limp body, he cried out demands to get the injured taken cared of before heading off to the nearest chariot.

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Cao: I hope that wasn't too bad of a battle scene, I can't really write those things.

Dark: It was fine. Only two chapters left! Please RR!