He stood clearly upright, keeping a trained eye on Pegasus and Seto the
whole time as he set to the task of collecting the items from the ground
and shoving them forcefully back into his back. He adjusted his belt,
through his bag over his shoulder, and continued his forceful gaze at the
frightened heap of Pegasus.
"You. . . It's you. . . The spirit of the Millenium Puzzle." The silver locks pressed against the wall as the artist lay in shock, pointing and gasping. The figure just smiled, pulling a few of the blonde tresses free from his face. But there was no sense of denial in his expression. Walking with heavy steps, one foot after the other, the dark figure leaned down and picked up the center of attention. The Millenium Eye was warm in his hand, and he gripped it tight.
"I've been having dreams lately you see. The boy has witnessed them with me. I'm sure the shock on Kaiba's face is proof that he's been having the same." The watchful gaze turned to Seto for a moment, and then darted back to the distraught artist again. He began to take step after step until finally Pegasus and he were only an inch or so apart. The one that was called many things; Pharaoh, Atem, Yami; lifted up the black flap over Pegasus's eye.
The empty pit of flesh was too much for Seto, he turned and coughed something up. Pegasus shouted and struggled, but for some reason had no effect on the strength of the dark figure before them. He forced the metal sphere into the socket so that the symbol would face out, and then let the flap close over it.
At first, there was nothing. . . And then a slight feeling of eclipse began as light poured from around the patch, eventually the patch itself let light pour through. At one point, the symbol on the eye itself was burned like fire through the black cloth, but soon after the entire thing incinerated and the black cord keeping it around Pegasus's head fell to the ground.
There was silence for a short time, and then an animalistic howl. Pegasus clawed at the ground, sinking as he lean against the wall into a sitting position. He tried to cover his eyes but he still screamed in terror. Tears streamed down one cheek where a natural eye still functioned. He chanted cries for an end to the horror, but eventually died down into simmering wimpers.
"What was it?" The ancient king leaned down to look Pegasus straight on at eye level. The sadness in the man's face was terrible, but forced himself to stutter out one word to describe his terror.
"H-H.... Horus."
---
"Describe it."
Anzu along side Jounouchi helped Pegasus into the bed. The celebration of the new sets were still going on in the ball room not more than a hall away, but she had seen Seto, Pegasus, and Yugi run off at the start of the festivities. Although, she could tell it wasn't Yugi anymore. It was Atem, that's how she thought of him.
Pegasus rolled his head over, lying on his back on a sofa against the wall he had the opportunity to avoid the piercing gaze that Atem had. Anzu was still trying to catch up on everything that happened. Apparently, that restless dream that Yugi had been having on the plane plagued Atem, Kaiba and Pegasus also in various forms.
"I said, describe it."
"It was. . . Constantly changing. . . It was growing. It started off harmless enough, but it grew. And I could see the stars, and the earth. It was so hot. . . It burned so much. . ." Pegasus sounded like a madman, a homeless traveler who had taken in too much ale. Atem stood at the end of the bed, arms crossed and eyes focused on Pegasus's turned face. He seemed adamant in getting a crystal clear answer. Jounouchi stood silently, leaning on furniture that probably cost more than he was paid in a year. Anzu smirked at the idea of him leaning too hard and being in debt to Pegasus, but she calmed herself and paid attention to the situation.
"Clearer, slower."
"It was. . . I can describe it. Give me some time and I'll paint it. But. . . It was hot. I could see the stars, and the planets. Our planets. I could see Earth from behind a curtain of fire. And I saw it. . . And I knew what it was. I knew what it was called. Yugi-boy, do you know what the symbols on the Millenium Items represent?"
Atem shook his head, he was still distanced from his own culture because of the double life that he lived of a small Japanese boy who enjoyed games. He had been returned his name and much of his past, but his cultural heritage was still slightly faded. Pegasus leaned up in his position, pulling back the hair in his face to make clear the Millenium Eye.
"In Egyptian Mythology, there was a legendary warrior named Horus who lost his eye. This symbol is the eye of Horus. It is represented on all of the Millenium Items. I'm not really sure which tradition they are following when they do this, or why. . . If only he were here." Pegasus gestured towards one of the many paintings in the room. Anzu didn't seem to recognized the eastern gentleman depicted, but Atem nodded to it. The cold set blue eyes against the dark skin denoted he was from Egypt much like Isis and Malik before all of this. . . But his gaze was as piercing as Atem's, maybe even more so.
"Shadi is retired, he wanders the Earth no longer." Atem and Pegasus exchanged glances, and then turned away to stare into space. It seemed they both felt for the man they spoke of, and missed his presence dearly. Anzu had never heard the name, nor seen the face before, but she was understanding of the lack of guidance present.
"Tell me this, Yugi-boy. . . Why do you have all of the Millenium Items?" Pegasus let his hair fall back into his eyes, as maybe a way to camolflauge the Millenium Eye. Anzu decided he was unwilling to part with it again, so he didn't want to keep it in Atem's attention too long.
"They are rightfully mine, and I defeated the Dark Master who threatened it." Atem scowled at his own words, and Anzu remembered the ordeal and the Dark Master that Ryou Bakura's darker side served to further his own motives. The hideous plum beast that was tackled by the combined powers of Egyptian Gods and the fallen allies of Seto and Atem's efforts 5,000 years ago. She shook a little herself as she thought about it.
"That is it then. Yugi-boy, do you understand the game of I-Go? It's a Japanese game, also known as Wei'chi. Players take turns placing stones to take territory to further their advantage over their opponent. You see, the Egyptians tapped into a very large game of I-Go. But there were 6 different colors of stones instead of just Black and White. That's where Duel Monsters comes along, I reduplicated the ancient magic that was in a sense a technological reduplication of the war between the balances in nature. I look into your mind and I recall the experiences, and I thank you for permitting me to do so. You've done a grave thing destroying the Dark instead of keeping it at bay like you were supposed to."
"What do you mean by that!?" Atem took a step forward, the momentum of the Millenium Puzzle swinging after him. Anzu could hear the other items quietly bounce off one another in his bag, and she glanced over to Seto to see the Millenium Rod tucked firmly into a strap on his belt. Five thousand years of Egyptian history lie in this room, shifting balance back and forth from owner to owner.
"I mean that now that there aren't any black stones on the playing field, there's a great deal of territory that various other stones could take other. Light, Fire, Earth, Wind, Water. These are the remaining elements represented in Duel Monster cards that are also prevalent in the massive territorial battle between the 6 elements. You've upset the balance, and Horus is coming because of that."
"No, this can't. . . Why didn't you warn. . . Why. . ." Atem stammered out his sentences, obviously running himself in circles. He couldn't find the right question to ask, there seemed to be so much at hand already. Anzu reached over to put a hand on his shoulder, but his nervous movements made him pull away instinctively.
"Ah, I see that my workings on Ra, Osiris, and Obelisk affected you. Do you know what the Egyptian God monsters really are?" Pegasus seemed too calm in this, while Atem was distraught. Anzu could feel the tension between the two, but she kept silent like everyone else in the room. Seto seemed to hang on each word with great weight, Jounouchi was confused by it all as usual, and Honda tried to make himself understand the mess that was at hand so that he could be his usual collected self.
"They are an attempt in Egyptian technology to extinguish the threat of any of the 6 elemental powers. Did you notice on the cards that they were marked Divine? I mark each element so that in a Shadow Game these monsters can be clearly affected by the natural balance of the universe."
"How do you know so much!?" Atem finally had an outburst, he was confused as to how Pegasus could know so much obviously. Anzu tried to hone in on what was going on but she was starting to run in circles just as Atem seemed to. She wanted to comfort him, she wanted to help him. . . But now didn't seem like an opportune moment where she could offer any constructive support.
"You awakened each of the Millenium Items when you regained your memory. They have grown in your care. While initially yours, you should know that they drift from owner to owner through the course of history as to fulfill certain preordained events."
"Tell me more about Horus." The tension in the room seemed to fade to a sense of defeat. There was nothing that could be done except to allow Pegasus to reach out into the universe and see all with his Millenium Eye. It was interesting, because Anzu always thought the Millenium Necklace was a bearer of the past, present, and future. . . But somehow, Pegasus's gift with the Millenium Eye brought so much to the table that everyone gather round just to listen.
"Horus, like Zork, is a divinity of Fire. I cannot describe the horrors I felt witnessing him. He is power without need for any ambition like the Dark things you have fought against. He does not bargain, he does not wish for anything. He will move in now that the Dark does not threaten him. I'm not sure what can be said about any of the other four elements. You've laid waste to the Dark for a while, Yugi-boy. . . That's a big pair of shoes to fill."
"What can be done?" Atem glanced at the grandfather clock at the other end of the room, it triggered Anzu to do so as well. They had spent about an hour listening to Pegasus since they had first arrived in the private study. No one would come looking for them as the evening still had a few hours to it left before closing time.
"You'll have to wait for things to become tangible. I don't know quite what I saw. I only know what I've studied and what will likely come from what I see now. I'm not a fortune-teller, I'm an artist and an archaeologist." Pegasus finally rose to his feet, and while there was a depressed expression on his face he still managed to crack a smile at everyone in the room who had come to listen to him. He clapped his hands twice as a method of snapping everyone's attention.
"Come, the night is still young."
"You. . . It's you. . . The spirit of the Millenium Puzzle." The silver locks pressed against the wall as the artist lay in shock, pointing and gasping. The figure just smiled, pulling a few of the blonde tresses free from his face. But there was no sense of denial in his expression. Walking with heavy steps, one foot after the other, the dark figure leaned down and picked up the center of attention. The Millenium Eye was warm in his hand, and he gripped it tight.
"I've been having dreams lately you see. The boy has witnessed them with me. I'm sure the shock on Kaiba's face is proof that he's been having the same." The watchful gaze turned to Seto for a moment, and then darted back to the distraught artist again. He began to take step after step until finally Pegasus and he were only an inch or so apart. The one that was called many things; Pharaoh, Atem, Yami; lifted up the black flap over Pegasus's eye.
The empty pit of flesh was too much for Seto, he turned and coughed something up. Pegasus shouted and struggled, but for some reason had no effect on the strength of the dark figure before them. He forced the metal sphere into the socket so that the symbol would face out, and then let the flap close over it.
At first, there was nothing. . . And then a slight feeling of eclipse began as light poured from around the patch, eventually the patch itself let light pour through. At one point, the symbol on the eye itself was burned like fire through the black cloth, but soon after the entire thing incinerated and the black cord keeping it around Pegasus's head fell to the ground.
There was silence for a short time, and then an animalistic howl. Pegasus clawed at the ground, sinking as he lean against the wall into a sitting position. He tried to cover his eyes but he still screamed in terror. Tears streamed down one cheek where a natural eye still functioned. He chanted cries for an end to the horror, but eventually died down into simmering wimpers.
"What was it?" The ancient king leaned down to look Pegasus straight on at eye level. The sadness in the man's face was terrible, but forced himself to stutter out one word to describe his terror.
"H-H.... Horus."
---
"Describe it."
Anzu along side Jounouchi helped Pegasus into the bed. The celebration of the new sets were still going on in the ball room not more than a hall away, but she had seen Seto, Pegasus, and Yugi run off at the start of the festivities. Although, she could tell it wasn't Yugi anymore. It was Atem, that's how she thought of him.
Pegasus rolled his head over, lying on his back on a sofa against the wall he had the opportunity to avoid the piercing gaze that Atem had. Anzu was still trying to catch up on everything that happened. Apparently, that restless dream that Yugi had been having on the plane plagued Atem, Kaiba and Pegasus also in various forms.
"I said, describe it."
"It was. . . Constantly changing. . . It was growing. It started off harmless enough, but it grew. And I could see the stars, and the earth. It was so hot. . . It burned so much. . ." Pegasus sounded like a madman, a homeless traveler who had taken in too much ale. Atem stood at the end of the bed, arms crossed and eyes focused on Pegasus's turned face. He seemed adamant in getting a crystal clear answer. Jounouchi stood silently, leaning on furniture that probably cost more than he was paid in a year. Anzu smirked at the idea of him leaning too hard and being in debt to Pegasus, but she calmed herself and paid attention to the situation.
"Clearer, slower."
"It was. . . I can describe it. Give me some time and I'll paint it. But. . . It was hot. I could see the stars, and the planets. Our planets. I could see Earth from behind a curtain of fire. And I saw it. . . And I knew what it was. I knew what it was called. Yugi-boy, do you know what the symbols on the Millenium Items represent?"
Atem shook his head, he was still distanced from his own culture because of the double life that he lived of a small Japanese boy who enjoyed games. He had been returned his name and much of his past, but his cultural heritage was still slightly faded. Pegasus leaned up in his position, pulling back the hair in his face to make clear the Millenium Eye.
"In Egyptian Mythology, there was a legendary warrior named Horus who lost his eye. This symbol is the eye of Horus. It is represented on all of the Millenium Items. I'm not really sure which tradition they are following when they do this, or why. . . If only he were here." Pegasus gestured towards one of the many paintings in the room. Anzu didn't seem to recognized the eastern gentleman depicted, but Atem nodded to it. The cold set blue eyes against the dark skin denoted he was from Egypt much like Isis and Malik before all of this. . . But his gaze was as piercing as Atem's, maybe even more so.
"Shadi is retired, he wanders the Earth no longer." Atem and Pegasus exchanged glances, and then turned away to stare into space. It seemed they both felt for the man they spoke of, and missed his presence dearly. Anzu had never heard the name, nor seen the face before, but she was understanding of the lack of guidance present.
"Tell me this, Yugi-boy. . . Why do you have all of the Millenium Items?" Pegasus let his hair fall back into his eyes, as maybe a way to camolflauge the Millenium Eye. Anzu decided he was unwilling to part with it again, so he didn't want to keep it in Atem's attention too long.
"They are rightfully mine, and I defeated the Dark Master who threatened it." Atem scowled at his own words, and Anzu remembered the ordeal and the Dark Master that Ryou Bakura's darker side served to further his own motives. The hideous plum beast that was tackled by the combined powers of Egyptian Gods and the fallen allies of Seto and Atem's efforts 5,000 years ago. She shook a little herself as she thought about it.
"That is it then. Yugi-boy, do you understand the game of I-Go? It's a Japanese game, also known as Wei'chi. Players take turns placing stones to take territory to further their advantage over their opponent. You see, the Egyptians tapped into a very large game of I-Go. But there were 6 different colors of stones instead of just Black and White. That's where Duel Monsters comes along, I reduplicated the ancient magic that was in a sense a technological reduplication of the war between the balances in nature. I look into your mind and I recall the experiences, and I thank you for permitting me to do so. You've done a grave thing destroying the Dark instead of keeping it at bay like you were supposed to."
"What do you mean by that!?" Atem took a step forward, the momentum of the Millenium Puzzle swinging after him. Anzu could hear the other items quietly bounce off one another in his bag, and she glanced over to Seto to see the Millenium Rod tucked firmly into a strap on his belt. Five thousand years of Egyptian history lie in this room, shifting balance back and forth from owner to owner.
"I mean that now that there aren't any black stones on the playing field, there's a great deal of territory that various other stones could take other. Light, Fire, Earth, Wind, Water. These are the remaining elements represented in Duel Monster cards that are also prevalent in the massive territorial battle between the 6 elements. You've upset the balance, and Horus is coming because of that."
"No, this can't. . . Why didn't you warn. . . Why. . ." Atem stammered out his sentences, obviously running himself in circles. He couldn't find the right question to ask, there seemed to be so much at hand already. Anzu reached over to put a hand on his shoulder, but his nervous movements made him pull away instinctively.
"Ah, I see that my workings on Ra, Osiris, and Obelisk affected you. Do you know what the Egyptian God monsters really are?" Pegasus seemed too calm in this, while Atem was distraught. Anzu could feel the tension between the two, but she kept silent like everyone else in the room. Seto seemed to hang on each word with great weight, Jounouchi was confused by it all as usual, and Honda tried to make himself understand the mess that was at hand so that he could be his usual collected self.
"They are an attempt in Egyptian technology to extinguish the threat of any of the 6 elemental powers. Did you notice on the cards that they were marked Divine? I mark each element so that in a Shadow Game these monsters can be clearly affected by the natural balance of the universe."
"How do you know so much!?" Atem finally had an outburst, he was confused as to how Pegasus could know so much obviously. Anzu tried to hone in on what was going on but she was starting to run in circles just as Atem seemed to. She wanted to comfort him, she wanted to help him. . . But now didn't seem like an opportune moment where she could offer any constructive support.
"You awakened each of the Millenium Items when you regained your memory. They have grown in your care. While initially yours, you should know that they drift from owner to owner through the course of history as to fulfill certain preordained events."
"Tell me more about Horus." The tension in the room seemed to fade to a sense of defeat. There was nothing that could be done except to allow Pegasus to reach out into the universe and see all with his Millenium Eye. It was interesting, because Anzu always thought the Millenium Necklace was a bearer of the past, present, and future. . . But somehow, Pegasus's gift with the Millenium Eye brought so much to the table that everyone gather round just to listen.
"Horus, like Zork, is a divinity of Fire. I cannot describe the horrors I felt witnessing him. He is power without need for any ambition like the Dark things you have fought against. He does not bargain, he does not wish for anything. He will move in now that the Dark does not threaten him. I'm not sure what can be said about any of the other four elements. You've laid waste to the Dark for a while, Yugi-boy. . . That's a big pair of shoes to fill."
"What can be done?" Atem glanced at the grandfather clock at the other end of the room, it triggered Anzu to do so as well. They had spent about an hour listening to Pegasus since they had first arrived in the private study. No one would come looking for them as the evening still had a few hours to it left before closing time.
"You'll have to wait for things to become tangible. I don't know quite what I saw. I only know what I've studied and what will likely come from what I see now. I'm not a fortune-teller, I'm an artist and an archaeologist." Pegasus finally rose to his feet, and while there was a depressed expression on his face he still managed to crack a smile at everyone in the room who had come to listen to him. He clapped his hands twice as a method of snapping everyone's attention.
"Come, the night is still young."