In the Sands of Egypt
Chapter 2
Blue Illusions
Currents of misty vapor drifted into the early morning sky where they faded in the light of the coming dawn. Slick black hooves leisurely slid up and down in the velvety sand as a horse traveled across the lonely desert, its midnight fur indistinguishable from the ethereal shadow that followed close behind. A hand covered in worn leather began stroking the horse's neck, the person's fingers sliding easily through its silky mane. "Easy, Ezra, just a little longer now," the low voice of the rider whispered.
The sun had just risen, causing the vast reaches of sand to glow a valiant crimson, and the morning air was still brisk from the night. Nothing seemed to move in the barren land. A faint humming caught the attention of the rider; as it drew nearer it was determined to be a helicopter flying past.
The swells of sand in its wake whipped through the air, blasting against the horse and its rider before falling back to the ground. The rider pulled at the tough leather reins, leading the horse toward the direction of the helicopter. Sapphire eyes gazed after it, intrigued by the sudden appearance of modern technology.
"Now I wonder what a helicopter is doing way out here?"
Sky-blue eyes wearily revealed themselves as Téa awoke. Pain rushed like floodwaters to her head, so she rested her forehead in her hand in attempts to ease the throbbing. As her eyes began to focus, she looked around at her surroundings; everything was dark and perplexing. Téa was shocked when she felt her stomach lurch; she was obviously moving; she could tell by the vibrating surroundings. "What happened?" she shivered.
All Téa remembered was running away from those thugs in the park; this didn't make any sense. Where was she now? Where were those thugs? She peered ahead of her, and sure enough, two men were there; one was sitting in a seat, his hands gripping a joystick-like device; the other was talking nervously on the phone. The third man, however, seemed to be missing... Téa, though, didn't give it another thought.
"Yes, sir, we've got the items," the man on the phone stated. He paused, listening to the person on the other end of the phone. He would nod now and then, grumble, and agree with whatever was being said. Téa crept quietly over to the two men, hiding behind a large crate. It was very cramped here, boxes and bags were all packed tightly together in a disorderly pile.
"Yes, of course, but what about the girl?"
Téa looked over to the man on the phone; she cupped her hand over her ear, straining to hear. Much to her dismay only incoherent grumbles were heard.
"All right, sir, we'll be landing any minute now," the man's voice trailed off and he hung up his phone.
"Landing?" Téa whispered.
Peering through the piles of items, Téa was shocked by what she saw: an endless glowing red desert was swirling around under her and coming closer. Her hair fluttered in her face at a succession of jerks and jolts that signaled the helicopter's descent.
A flash of gold caught Téa's eye; she bent down to investigate. Her hands groped around the cold floor and she suddenly grasped two slick objects. She picked them up and brought them to her face; the two Millennium Items shined nobly, their golden surfaces reflected mysteriously in Téa's sapphire eyes. "It's a good thing I got these back," she declared.
One final lurch of the helicopter and they were on the ground. Téa searched nervously for an exit; there had to be a way out. Spying a thin streak of light, Tea rushed toward the other side of the helicopter. Her hand grasped the hard metal handle of the door and she pulled it open.
A hot blast of wind and sand knocked her back further into the helicopter. She cringed as the blare of the morning sun blinded her. The terrain wasn't favorable-- no a desert usually isn't favorable-- but she had to escape, and fast. The brunette launched herself from the helicopter and landed into the soft sand.
Noticing this disturbance, the two men rushed outside, screaming unpleasant things at the girl. Escape on them will she? Not on her life!
Panicking, Téa dashed out into the desert with the two men at her heels. "I've got to lose them!" she cried. Running through the desert sand was like trying to escape a black hole; the sand shifted like fluid under her feet, making it difficult for Téa to move. Not wanting to be recaptured, she pressed on, racing aimlessly into the barren wasteland.
"She's slowing down!" shouted one of her pursuers.
Téa jerked her head behind her and saw, in fact, the two men were gaining on her. Anxiety increasing, she sped up, but the sand was indeed against her that day as it shifted from under her feet, causing the girl to plummet to the ground.
The Millennium Necklace flew from her hand, its golden surface sparkling in the sun as it plunged to the sand, falling inches away from Téa's face. She winced, rising from the warm sand onto her knees. Ignoring the tiny grains that were pasted onto her body, she twisted around to see the men advancing on her. Not good.
Quickly rising to her feet, she noticed the golden necklace sticking out of the sand, barely visible in the ecru sand. "I know," Téa whispered, gazing down at the necklace. Hurriedly, she snatched the Millennium Item from the sand like a hawk and dashed up to the top of the sand dune behind her. "I hope this works," she said worriedly.
Seeing the brunette, the two men slowed to stop only feet in front of her. They began to circle toward her like sharks ready for a bite. "Okay, girlie, you're coming with us," one growled.
"I don't think so," Téa disagreed, waving the Millennium Necklace proudly from side to side; the light would catch its golden surface each time it passed across her face. "Not if you want this!"
Using the men's shock to her advantage, Téa hurled the Millennium Necklace into the air; a slight pang of remorse came across her body as its golden form left her hand. Yes, she would be giving that Item to the men, but she didn't know what else to do at the time.
As the golden object soared through the air the men's eyes followed it like hungry dogs. When it fell behind a hill of sand, their eyes instantly shifted back to Téa, now irritated. "Well, you'd better go get it before the sand swallows it," she shouted.
The men remained focused on Téa, who in turn glared coolly back at them, praying that they would go after the Necklace. After about a minute of pure deadlock, the two men gave up and ran in search of the Item. Finally! Seizing this opportunity, Téa dashed out of sight and into the unknown.
The sun beat down on the desert sands, blistering any unlucky beings that happen to settle below it. Téa happened to be one of those unlucky beings. The poor girl trudged through the waterless land aimlessly; the heat from the sand seared up through the soles of her blue sandals and burning her skin with each wandering step. "What am I doing here?" she asked jadedly. She let her arm fall weakly to her side and gazed across the horizon.
Sand.
That's all there was; an endless sea of desert sand, mocking her for daring to venture into its reaches. Téa sighed; there was nothing she could do now. The brunette fell to her knees, ignoring the intense heat from and staring blankly at the sky.
"I shouldn't be here. I'm not some desert cobra; I'm a teenage girl, who happens to live hundreds of miles from here. Instead I'm in some stupid desert in the middle of who knows where," she shouted.
Téa let her head lower in frustration. Tears ran down her face, stinging her cheeks as they fell into the sky, but due to the immense heat, they dried up just before they reached the ground. "I really could use my friends right now...."
It was true; what Téa needed most, besides a bottle of water, right now was to feel the support of her friends. Usually she was the one to support her friends in their time of need, she was always there to give words of encouragement; but this time the tables were turned, and she was the one who needed help-- desperately.
"But they aren't here, are they?"
'Of course not! How are they supposed to find you here?!' her mind shouted in their defense.
Téa glared fiercely at the sand in front of her; it was stupid, everything was stupid; the sand, those men, her friends standing in front of her....
"What?" Téa blinked, looking before her.
Her friends really were there to support her. Téa smiled as she gazed into her friends welcoming smiles. They were all there, cheering her on.
Yugi was there, his violet eyes glittering as he winked at her, and his golden bangs bouncing up and down as he laughed. Tristan, Serenity, Mai, Duke, and Bakura were there also, all giving their own unique ways of support. They were all smiling at her, laughing at her for ever giving up on herself. Téa smiled sweetly at them, then she looked over to see Joey; he flicked his hand across his nose and gave her a thumbs up. He most certainly would have said, "Jeez, can't even handle a little sand? I thought you were tougher than that..."
"Thank you everyone," Téa said, appreciating their encouragement. It didn't even dawn on her that their figures were like waves, rippling slightly in the air.
Téa noticed another figure standing with his back turned to her. She peered at the figure, but gasped, noticing an unmistakable figure standing there; him, of all people, in her circle of friends!
"Kaiba?" she gaped. It was weird!
Answering to her call, the infamous Seto Kaiba, turned around; his icy-blue eyes gazed down at her with a hint of amusement hidden in their depths; a trademark smirk was planted across his face as he faced the brunette girl.
"Téa..." he said, his voice sounding far away.
"Okay, I think the desert's getting to me now," she grumbled.
Téa watched as her friends became dark silhouettes under the desert sun. She reached out to them, her wavering hand stretched out as far as her arm would allow, but she fell short inches away from her friends; the dark shadows of their forms had begun to fade like water.
Soon all that was left was the intense desert air; steam seemed to rise from the sand, shifting like fluid in the sky. The lone girl sunk down into the sand, disappointed by her friends departure, but she soon began to wonder what Seto Kaiba had been doing in her group of friends. Maybe he did care?
"Yeah, and maybe I'm in the tundra," Téa snorted.
The brunette cast her eyes to her lap and rested; she was exhausted from all that running, and now she was seeing illusions. Her hair shifted across her face as a dry wasteland breeze caressed her cheek. She didn't notice the figure standing beside her, sitting on top of a dark horse, she just began to absentmindedly run her fingers through the desert sand. "I'm gonna die... gonna die... Die. Die. Die..."
The figure followed the path of the helicopter, they didn't expect to run into a girl in the middle of the desert. Mounting down from their horse, the person grabbed the leather reins of the jet-black animal and moved in front of Téa, looking down at the dazed girl. She was acting strange.... "Hey," they said in a low voice.
Téa looked up wearily; what she saw was a shadowy figure looking down at her. Their crystal-blue eyes chilled her to the very core. "Another illusion. Okay, Téa, the end is near," the girl said bitterly.
The mysterious person frowned; this girl was obviously suffering from heat exhaustion. They bent down slightly to Téa and looked into the girl's sapphire eyes. As the person's examined Téa, she too got a better glimpse of them; she couldn't see much because they were covered in dark cloaks, but she would have recognized those intense blue eyes anywhere.
"Kaiba?"
Téa peered closely at the person in front of her, but the heat had gotten the better of her and she soon began to get dizzy. The world began spinning before her eyes in an endless whirlpool of sky and sand. The last thing she saw was those intense crystalline eyes gazing down at her, filling her senses with their icy-blue color.