I don't own Yugioh.
Chapter 21
Anzu groaned and rubbed her head. She sat up, suddenly aware of her surroundings. Her eyes narrowed. "Great…of all places, I had to end up in a desert wasteland…" she stood up and looked around, noticing her bag next to her, "Well, that'll make it easier, but still…I wonder if anyone else landed here, too." She looked around, "YUGI!? Yami!? Jou!? Seto!? Can you guys hear me!?"
No response.
Anzu sighed, and started walking, "Guess I'd better look for them…"
"This is ridiculous!" Anzu groaned and flopped down in the sand, "How am I supposed to find my friends if I don't even know where I am!!!"
Suddenly, she heard something, and sat up.
"Am I delusional?" Anzu blinked, standing up and walking towards it, "Or do I hear water running…?" She continued going, and came upon a large, wide river.
"Holy crap!" Anzu exclaimed, "I wasn't imagining it!" She stuck her hands in and splashed her face, "Ahh! That feels good! I thought I was gonna die out there in the sun! And where there's a river…there has to be civilization or at least vegetation nearby!" Anzu started to follow the river.
A few miles later, the sun was setting already. She sunk to her knees. For a while, she had been seeing the faint lights of a town in the distance. Now, as the burning sun set casting the desert into coldness that was definitely unusual for a desert, the lights stood out even more.
"Brrr!" Anzu shivered, "It's hot in the day and cold at night! How can anyone want to live like that?" She looked up and sighed, "Doesn't look like I'm getting to that town anytime soon. Great. I'm too tired and hungry to continue. I didn't pack a lot of food. And nobody's here to help…"
Just then, a voice spoke up from the distance. It sounded like someone with a slight accent.
Anzu looked up. "I hope that's not a thief…though, I don't know what they'd want to take…OVER HERE!!" She waved.
The person came closer, and Anzu noted that it was a boy not too different age-wise then she was. He was just slightly taller with white hair and brown eyes. He wore a white sweatshirt over a green button down shirt and jeans with sneakers. He was riding on a camel.
"Izeak," the boy greeted her.
"What?" Anzu frowned, not understanding the language.
"Oh, you don't speak Egyptian. That's alright…" the boy smiled.
Anzu nodded.
"Are you alright, there?" the boy asked her, "Would you like some help?"
"That would be great!" Anzu nodded, standing up, "Um…are you from that town there…?"
The boy nodded, "Come and get on. Two people can ride. Are you traveling alone?"
"Actually, it's a long story," Anzu sighed, "See, I got separated from my friends, and I'm trying to find them, but I don't know where I am…"
"Well, that's easy," the boy blinked, "You're Egypt. Right by the Nile River. That's what you are following there. That river."
"You're kidding…right?" Anzu blanched, "The last place the plane was over was Brazil!! This is nuts!"
The boy gave her a puzzled look, "I request that you explain, but you don't have to if you don't want to. But not here. Well, I can't guarantee it, but I can see if you can stay with me for the night. Maybe I can help you find your friends. Hopefully, my dad won't be in one of his 'moods'. I'll warn you if he is. If he allows you to stay and then gets into one of his 'moods', stay hidden and don't move or make a sound. I don't want you to get hurt."
Anzu blinked, "Um…okay…"
"Oh, I'm sorry!" the boy laughed nervously, "I'll explain more later. Would you like to come?" He offered her his hand to help her up.
"Sure," Anzu nodded, "Thanks. I've never ridden a camel before."
"Oh, they're very tame creatures," the boy smiled, "And great for traveling across the sand because their hooves allow them to walk without much trouble over the dunes of the desert. They're still used often here."
Anzu nodded.
"Hold on," the boy smiled, then prodded the camel on gently, turning it around and heading back towards the town at a leisurely pace.
"By the way…," the boy turned and glanced at her, "I'm Ryou Bakura."
"Mazaki…Anzu, Mazaki."
"Nice to meet you, Miss Mazaki."
"Just 'Anzu' is fine."
"Alright."
Anzu paused, "Ryou, your name doesn't sound Egyptian. It sounds almost Japanese."
"Well, my father was an Egyptian but lived in Japan until recently, so he wanted me to have a Japanese name. My mother was from England. But I was born here in Egypt."
"Wow," Anzu whistled, "That's really something. My family isn't nearly as exciting as that."
"That's not even the half of it," Ryou sighed, "There's something else, too. Apparently, my father has an item that is kind of spooky. I'm not sure exactly what it does, but I don't like the looks of it. And I definitely don't want it. He wants to give it to me when I turn thirteen. But I definitely don't want it."
"When you…? How old are you?"
"Eleven," Ryou responded, "Just turned eleven a month ago."
"Oh. I'm turning eleven in two months," Anzu responded.
"Hmm. About the same age," Ryou smiled, "It's nice."
Anzu nodded. I never expected to end up in Egypt! Not only that, but meet a nice boy here, too. Interesting heritage…She frowned. An Egyptian father and an English mother? Definitely interesting…but still, who cares? He's nice and polite. But I'm getting such a strange feeling about this…
"Father!" Ryou tentatively opened the door, "I'm home! Father?"
"Hello, Ryou!"
Ryou breathed a sigh of relief, and opened the door more, letting Anzu in and then closing the door behind them when they were both inside.
Ryou's father walked up to them. He was a tall man wearing some white and gold Egyptian robes. He had long white hair exactly like Ryou's and blue eyes.
"Welcome home, Ryou," the man nodded, "I just got home from working at the museum. Who's your friend?"
"Father, this is Anzu Mazaki. She was lost in the desert. I was wondering if it was alright if she stayed here until she got her bearings," Ryou said.
The man nodded, "Of course! You're welcome anytime, young lady! I am James Bakura."
Anzu bowed politely, "Thank you!" Of course, this 'house' is just a little smaller then the Kaiba's residence…they must be rich…
"She's looking for her friends whom she got separated from," Ryou continued, "If I have your permission, I would like to aid her in her journey."
James paused, then nodded, "Alright. It's probably better that way. But maybe you want to take the item…"
"No thanks, father," Ryou quickly shook his head, an expression of fear crossing his features.
"Are you sure…?" James blinked.
Ryou nodded, "Come on, Anzu. I will take you to my room."
Anzu nodded and followed.
When they arrived in Ryou's room, the boy closed and locked the door, then breathed a sigh of relief.
Anzu sat down on a chair, "Don't tell me…I'm sleeping in here…?"
"It's safer then by yourself, if you still want to stay here after I explain a bit about why I'm so worried," Ryou sat down on the bed with a sigh.
"Go on," Anzu frowned. She had to admit…she was very curious.
"You see," Ryou shook his head, "About fifteen years ago, before I was born, my father found a strange item at a bazaar in Egypt when he was visiting when he still worked as an archeologist."
Anzu blinked. Yugi said his grandpa is an archeologist, too…
"He found an item…a golden ring with a pyramid in the center and in the center of that, an eye. There were a few golden cones hanging from the curves of the circle, and a strap for even wearing it. Out of curiosity, my father bought it. Things were fine up until a few months ago. Then, sometimes, when he would wear it, he would get violent. His eyes would go dark, and his hair would turn gray. He would become even more evil and violent, and there even seemed to be dark lines under his eyes. When in that 'mood', he would often hurt me or anyone else he came across. He's very unstable like that. He doesn't take that ring off from around his neck, now. And he won't listen to me when I tell him that I think the ring is the cause of the problem."
"What is it you think? Don't worry…I won't think you're insane," Anzu stated.
"I think there's a spirit sealed within the ring. A dark one," Ryou responded, "One that is ancient. In fact, the person who sold my father the ring said that the ring was from ancient Egypt, and had to do with the game Duel Monsters."
"Interesting…," Anzu frowned, "You play?"
Ryou nodded, "I'm not very good. But doesn't something about that story seem out of place?"
"Like what?" Anzu asked.
"Well, the ring seems to be from ancient Egypt," Ryou explained, "But Duel Monsters is new…"
"You're not going to believe this, Ryou," Anzu interrupted, "But Duel Monsters is just as ancient as ancient Egypt! Probably over a millennia ago."
"That's interesting," Ryou frowned, "Because the name of the item my father bought is the Millennium Ring."
"The Millennium Ring…?" Anzu frowned. Another item with the word 'millennium' before it…founded in ancient Egypt…relating to Duel Monsters…and containing a spirit within it. I wonder if it has any relation to the Millennium Puzzle that Yugi used to have. I remember when he solved it. He was so proud. And then we met Yami…
"Anzu?"
"Hmm? Sorry…what did you say?" Anzu blushed.
"I asked if everything is alright with you," Ryou asked, "If you still would like to stay here. It gets dangerous…"
"I'm no stranger to danger," Anzu winked, "Believe it or not. In fact, I've been in more danger within the past week or so then I've ever been in my life. But, Ryou, if your father beats you, why don't you say anything?"
"I don't think it's really my father who is beating me," Ryou looked at the ground, "I think it's the spirit that lives within the ring."
"Hmm…," Anzu thought. I'm sure Yami and Yugi would know what to do. I wish they were here right now. I wonder if there's any way to find out where they are…
"There's another room through my room here," Ryou opened a door within his own room and pointed it out, "It's mainly just a nightstand with a clock and a bed. But that way, you'll have more privacy. I wish I could give you another room, but I really don't want you to get hurt should my father go into one of his 'moods' tonight."
"Well, I'm no stranger to the world of child abuse," Anzu sighed, "Two of my best friends were abused…one more then the other. Much more." Sadness filled her eyes, and she tried to push the tears back.
"I'm sorry," Ryou whispered.
"No, it's alright," Anzu wiped her eyes, "Anyway, I think I can trust you. I get that feeling. I just don't like whatever energy that Millennium Ring your dad has is giving off. For some reason, I think I can sense powers. I'll explain everything I know about the items, Duel Monsters, and what I've been going through. I hope you're a good listener, cause it's a really long story."
"I would like to hear it," Ryou smiled, "I don't have any friends, so I'm happy to talk and listen to another person."
Anzu nodded. I've been meeting a lot of people who don't have friends. Yugi, Jou, and Seto. Even Mokuba. I don't know about Yami…maybe Ryou's heard of him. I should ask when I finish my story, if he doesn't figure it out by then. After all, Yami said he was the pharaoh at one point in Egypt. "Okay. Here's what happened…"
Ryou blinked, taking in all of the information.
"I know it sounds kind of weird…," Anzu laughed nervously.
"It does…but something's telling me that you're speaking the truth," Ryou stated.
Anzu blew out her breath, "Whew…I was afraid you'd think I've gone off the deep end or was in the sun too long…"
"Not at all," Ryou shook his head, "In fact, I think we should look for your friends."
"Only problem is, I don't know where to start," Anzu sighed.
Ryou paused, "Hmm…"
"By the way, Ryou, where's your mom?" Anzu asked.
"She's living in Japan," Ryou responded.
"Ah." Anzu sighed, crossing her arms. It doesn't look like even Ryou can help us out here. I know that there has to be something important that I'm overlooking…
"I think I have an idea," Ryou stated, "If your friend, Yugi, once had a Millennium item, then the Millennium Ring may still be able to help us out. Only problem is…well, we have to get it away from my father for one thing. There's no way I'm taking that thing on a trip with me. I don't want an evil spirit to attack me. Second is that it can only give a basic direction and point with one of the five cones around the circle."
"It's better then nothing," Anzu nodded.
"We should go as soon as possible," Ryou stated, "How about tomorrow morning? We'll get some supplies together. We can go by camel. It's much faster."
Anzu nodded, "And it beats walking."
The next morning, they managed to do exactly as they planned. After getting some supplies and a lot of water, they got onto the camel and started off south, where the ring had pointed.
"I just hope we're going the right way…," Ryou sighed.
"I know we are," Anzu nodded. Hang in there, Yugi. We're coming!
TO BE CONTINUED…