Dragon Country, Chapter 3 : In the Barrier
Notes: A lesser known character, Kajiki Ryouta is Mako Tsunami in the dub.
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Jounouchi wandered in and out of the stables, peering at the golden labels on the stall doors. The Dragons wholly impressed them, and he wished they could stay a bit longer; if only he could see a multi-headed Dragon. He'd bumped into a handler, who delighted in telling him stories about the kinds of Dragons out there. Apparently, there were wild species living on the outskirts of Dragon Country called Twin-Headed Fire Dragons that were amazing to see.
Also, he'd gotten a chance to look at some Thunder Dragons- instead of breathing fire, they had some weird electrical properties. The same handler, noting his obsession with multiple heads, told him that sometimes in the wild, a mutant Thunder Dragon was born with two heads. How awesome was that?! The handler had described more creatures, each more fantastic-sounding than the next. He wished that Seto had decided to come along with him; he was sure his sullen dorm-mate would have lit up at the descriptions of the Dragons. And of course, the Dragons he'd seen had been thrilling.
He stopped in front of one stall, more elaborately decorated than any of the others. Intricate carvings in the wood surrounded the gold plaque, and the stall door was curved and elegant, made of highly polished wood. He read the name in gold silently, his lips moving. Harpies Pet Dragon…
"Pet?" he wondered aloud.
"It's from an old folk's tale."
Jounouchi spun around too quickly and nearly lost his balance. A woman a little older than he stood there, regarding him with an amused quirk of her lips. She gave a slight toss of her head, and her mass of blonde curls shook. "You know what a Harpy is, right?" she asked in a low, smooth voice, taking a small step forward. Jounouchi audibly gulped, mentally tracing the curves on this woman's body. She was tall and slender, with a sizeable chest, and those looong legs… Damn, he thought hazily.
"Beautiful… deadly…" the woman intoned, advancing farther once it became obvious Jounouchi wasn't going to answer. "Harpies are winged beasts in old stories, said to live in the mountains and lure men to their doom." To Jounouchi's surprise, she winked at him. "Well, legend says that this Dragon once was a servant of the Harpies. When they faded from this world, the Dragon survived. They still live mostly in the mountains, but a couple of our firefighters found this girl a few weeks ago. She was wounded, so we brought her back here to heal."
Jounouchi's eyebrows lifted. "Oh," he managed. "Why… why do you say they're Harpies pets?"
"I'll show you," the woman volunteered, lifting one slender hand. Jounouchi doubted they had nail polish in Dragon Country, but her nails were long and smooth and shiny. He stared, fascinated, until it became apparent that she was shaking something under his nose.
"It's a collar," she said, amused, pulling it away. Jounouchi blushed, a little embarrassed. He eyed the collar- a strange tan material, ending in a very long chain. "Like the Harpies, their Pet Dragons are wild and unpredictable. That's why we only have the one here. We need to be veery careful around them…" Before Jounouchi could raise a protest, she'd flipped the sturdy latch on the stable door and stepped inside, holding it open for him expectantly. Unable to swallow his pride and back out, Jounouchi followed the woman inside.
"Sssh," the woman said, holding a finger to her lips. Her perfectly pink, soft, sweet lips… Jounouchi gave his head a mental shake. "She's sleeping."
Jounouchi followed her gaze and his eyes widened. He understood perfectly why they said the Dragon belonged among the Harpies. Pet Dragon was a brilliant shade of pink; thin but muscled; beautiful but deadly. Her claws were black and vicious-looking, and she sported a mask of deep black running along the top of her face. Most amazing was what looked like one giant gemstone, extending from the top of her forehead and rising up prominently. It was a murky green, spotted with rounded blue stones, and the light streaming in through the lone window caught it and sent out dancing aqua shadows.
"Beautiful…" Jounouchi breathed, and the woman appeared satisfied. Slowly, she crept up to the Dragon and latched the collar around her neck. Harpies Pet Dragon stirred slightly, cracking open one eye. Jounouchi jumped as the shockingly green orb glared out at him from that mask of black.
"Come on, girl," the woman crooned. "It's time for your appointment with the healers…" Shooting a glance at Jounouchi, she explained, "I told you that she was wounded. She apparently got into a scuffle with one of the other Dragons that lives in the mountains." Her brow creased… "Though I could have sworn it wasn't a Dragon claw that made this puncture. I suppose it was worsened when this girl walked around where the rocks jut up." She shrugged, then ran her finger along Harpies Pet Dragon's back leg. "See?"
Jounouchi obediently looked, and his amber eyes grew wide. "Yow. Another Dragon did that?" The scar was still relatively fresh; pink scales were twisted and broken flesh showed through.
The woman shrugged again. "As far as we can tell." She shot him a sidelong glance. "By the way, my name is Kujaku Mai. Everyone calls me Mai."
Jounouchi swallowed. "Jounouchi Katsuya," he said, managing not to sound flustered. "Pleased to meet you."
"Pleasure's all mine," Mai said smoothly, winking at him. Long lashes batted over sparkling purple eyes, and this time Jounouchi really did blush.
"So can I, ah- come watch?"
"What, her appointment with the healers?"
"Yeah," Jounouchi said, blushing furiously. "I think it'd be- cool."
She nodded slightly. "It's not very interesting, but you're welcome to come."
"Neat." Jounouchi fell in step with her as Mai led the Dragon to a back wall. She fiddled with a series of locks, sliding tumblers into place, and the whole wall unhinged and swung partially open. Tugging gently on her collar, Mai guided Harpies Pet Dragon outside into the bright sunlight.
Searching desperately for a conversation topic, Jounouchi blurted, "The wood in that stall's different."
"Yeah," she said, glancing at him over her shoulder. "I told you that this girl was wild. The other Dragons are domesticated, and they won't try and set the place on fire, but we can't be sure of what she'll do. We've always had one or two stalls made of special wood coated in nonflammable substance for the wild ones; we just put her in one."
"Neat," Jounouchi said again, lamely.
Mai turned her head slightly to hide her grin. They headed down the paved sidewalk winding through the center of the stables, and Jounouchi couldn't have stopped his head from whipping back and forth if he'd wanted. There were even more Dragons out here, ranging from tiny greenish ones that scampered around in private fields, chasing one another; to a feathery purple Dragon with four wings and a bird-like face; and then there was one humongous blue Dragon that stood at the edge of his pen and made faces at the people passing him.
"Holy crap," Jounouchi said, scuttling over to the opposite side of the sidewalk. Mai fought to keep her face expressionless as she impassively marched Harpies Pet Dragon beside him. Harpies Pet shot the blue Dragon a look, and reached over as if to snap at his neck, but Mai tugged sharply on the chain and Harpies Pet obediently dropped her head again.
"What in the world is that thing?" Jounouchi asked, staring at it, still too fascinated to break away.
"He's what we feed the criminals to," Mai answered cheerfully.
Jounouchi's eyes bulged. "Seriously?"
She rolled her eyes. "No, Katsuya."
"Oh." He flushed. "Well, I wouldn't be surprised." The Dragon, blue with a red stomach, had a narrow, pointed face and a mouth full of razor teeth, reminding Jounouchi faintly of a dinosaur. His claws were nearly long enough to go through Jounouchi's stomach and out the other side, and he had four of them on each limb. As if that weren't enough, he had horns protruding from his cheekbones and a line of horns along his back, and three oversized ones branching out from each other on his head.
"That's Tri-Horned Dragon," Mai informed him as he finally broke away and hurried to catch up.
"Tri-Horned?" Jounouchi asked doubtfully. "I counted a lot more than three of those nasty spikes."
She sighed and rolled her eyes at him, but Jounouchi was pleased to see that she was laughing. Hopefully it was with him and not at him. "He looks nasty, all right, but he's one of our most playful," she told him fondly. "Except maybe for Ryu-Ran. When the two of them are allowed to play together, just watch out. They're liable to knock over a fence, rolling around like that."
"Has that ever happened?" Jounouchi asked in a panic.
"Once or twice," she said, feigning casualty. "Ryu-Ran has to be careful. Most of his shell grows with him, and works as his scales normally would, for protection. The shell gets extremely hard and smooth once he reaches maturity. So when Tri-Horned Dragon tosses him, he goes rolling at top speed across the grass, gets zero traction, and goes plowing straight through the fence."
Jounouchi whistled lowly. That might be interesting to see, if he was a safe distance away.
"Here," Mai said, turning right and opening another gate. This one was much taller than any of the others, rising well above the height of the Tri-Horned Dragon and nearly doubling the height of Harpies Pet. Mai pushed through, holding it open for Jounouchi could follow. Harpies Dragon went in remarkably quickly, surprising him. Weren't animals supposed to be afraid of the vet?
When he voiced this question, Mai laughed. "I don't know how things are where you're from, Jounouchi," she said cheerfully. "But here, the Dragons looove Shaadi and Isis… after they're done checking them out, the Dragons get a nice warm bath and a massage… oh, and a couple yiine tarts. A fruit," she added. "Dragons go crazy for them."
"Greetings."
The voice came from right beside his ear. Jounouchi yelped and jumped backwards, then spun quickly to see a dark-skinned man regarding him with no apparent expression on his face. "I am Shaadi," he said emotionlessly.
"You're here, Mai?" came another smooth voice, but this one was less monotonous. A slender, dark-haired woman emerged from behind a curtain, wiping her hands on her pale dress. "Wonderful! And I see we have a visitor."
Jounouchi noted that both of these people were wearing trinkets with the golden Millennium Eye on them; they must have been important in the palace.
"Hey. I'm Jounouchi Katsuya," he said cheerfully, trying not to let the man's eerie manner bother him. "Just passing through your world… hope you don't mind…"
"You're from the Other World," the woman stated positively. "When do you plan to leave?"
He scratched behind his ear uncomfortably. "Uh… any hour now, I think. Possibly tomorrow."
Shaadi's face registered surprise, and the smile slipped like water off of Mai's countenance. She turned to Harpies Pet Dragon, busying herself with removing her collar and coiling it around her arm. Jounouchi watched her dejectedly. Another hot girl, down the drain…
The black-haired woman nodded. "I wish you the best of luck. I am Isis," she mentioned, then turned to the Dragon. "She's healing well," Isis remarked, running a careful hand around the injury. "She'll be ready to return to her home soon."
Once again, something in Mai's eyes died, and she bowed her head. "I see," she said carefully. Jounouchi swallowed, feeling bad.
Isis turned to Mai with a smile as Shaadi began inspecting Harpies Pet's claws. "I know you'll miss her. But she belongs in the wild, Mai. There are some things you can't remove from their home."
Jounouchi cast his eyes away. He knew that was true.
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Seto and Jounouchi spent the night in one of the villager's houses. Since it was only for one night, and he had an extra room, Kajiki Ryouta had gladly volunteered to take them in. "As long as you don't mind sharing a room!" he informed the two boys cheerfully.
"Trust me," Seto groaned. "If sharing a dorm with him for the semester hasn't killed me yet, I can survive a night with him anywhere." This faintly puzzled Ryouta, but he accepted it with a broad grin and a nod.
"They told you that I was one of the Other Worlders, right?" he asked at dinner, running a hand through his blue-black hair, casually pulled back into a ponytail.
Seto nearly spit into his soup (prepared with cream and vegetable roots and a certain kind of mushroom, but definitely no Dragon meat. He'd asked.). "No! No one told us."
"You decided to live here?" Jounouchi asked doubtfully. "Forever?"
Ryouta shrugged and took a gulp of his mug of milk. "Honestly, I can't see why that should surprise anyone. This is a great place. It's like moving into one of your dreams! You grow so attached to the Dragons after a while. I found a use here as a seasman. I've always loved the water. Now, I help build ships and every spring, I sail to the far south to trade with the other countries and collect information about new Dragons down there. Did you know that the Spirit Ryu's we have up here are all imported? And that my ship brought half-a-dozen back on our last voyage?" He smiled proudly.
Seto and Jounouchi exchanged blank stares. "What's a Spirit Ryu?" Seto finally asked.
Ryouta looked surprised, and lifted his mug. "Why, I thought you knew! They're the milk-givers. That milk you're drinking? And that cream in your soup? That all came from a Spirit Ryu!"
Jounouchi stopped with his mug half-lifted to his lips, a look of horror on his face.
"Spirit Ryu's are essential to life here," Ryouta added, looking pleased.
Seto shrugged at Jounouchi, tilting his own milk up in an informal toast. "It's no more disgusting that a cow, I suppose," he murmured quietly, and finished off the mug.
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"Why are you here?" Seto asked the next morning, quite rudely, but he couldn't help himself. Anzu looked slightly hurt.
"To see you off," she responded, crossing her arms defensively. They were standing outdoors, on the far side of the stables, next to the chariot that would bring Seto and Jounouchi to the base of the Barrier.
"Oh. Sorry," he added, trying to soften the blow. "I just… I don't know. You seemed angry with me."
She blushed. "I didn't mean to give you that impression… it's just… oh, it's silly." She took a deep breath. "In Dragon Country, we've just grown so accustomed to everyone loving it here. It's sort of an insult when someone wants to rush off right away, without admiring the Dragons or anything…" she took in his startled face. "I told you it was silly!"
"No, no," Seto tried to reassure her, feeling a spark of guilt. "I didn't mean to hurt anyone's feelings. In fact… I didn't want to stay long in case that happened. In case I fell in love with the place." He inhaled deeply as well. "I'm not equipped to live in the perfect world. I belong in the Other World. It's where I'm… most useful."
Anzu looked shocked. "Please tell me you're not leaving because you feel useless!"
He frowned. "Look, I'm a Business and Accounting major. I'm not going to stay here and waste space."
"You don't have to-" she started to protest, but he cut her off, now annoyed.
"No, it's not as simple as that. Never mind. Basically, the fact is that Katsuya and I are leaving. Now. Good-bye."
Her mouth fell open and he spun around, once again wearing his trenchcoat and causing it to billow out dramatically. He strode over determinedly to the chariot Ryou had provided for them, and climbed in stiffly, crossing his arms. The driver, Honda Hiroto, eyed him and Anzu, but wisely decided not to say anything. "Waiting on one more?"
Seto nodded reluctantly, looking around and finally spotting Jounouchi. He was leaning against the wall of the stables, chatting up some leggy blonde. Seto rolled his eyes. Go figure… "Katsuya!" he shouted. "Come on already! We haven't got all day!"
"One second!" Jounouchi shouted back, annoyed. He turned to Mai again: "Eh, sorry about him. He's kind of impatient. He likes to get an early start on everything."
"That's okay, you should probably go," Mai said, looking down and fiddling with her shirt sleeve.
"I guess," Jounouchi said, sighing. "It's really awesome here. I'll be sorry to go."
"Well, it was nice meeting you," she said, flashing him a killer smile.
He grinned back. "Yeah. You too. Take care- of yourself and Harpies Pet."
"She has to go home soon…" Mai said sadly, looking down. Jounouchi shifted uncomfortably.
"Yeah. I'm sorry 'bout that."
She bit her lip. "You ever feel like you just don't belong somewhere?" she asked bluntly, casting her gaze from side to side but not meeting Jounouchi's eyes.
"What?" he asked, startled.
She sighed. "I don't know. I'm sorry for bringing it up. But… this place doesn't feel right for me. It's a tame lifestyle, nothing wild. Nothing important."
"I dunno, I think what you're doing is pretty important," Jounouchi said uncertainly. "Caring for the Dragons and all."
"Yes, but it's not special," Mai said in frustration. "Caring for the Harpies Pet was a lot of fun. She's wild and unpredictable. But now that she's leaving soon, it's back to the same old routine… It can get so monotonous."
"KATSUYA!" Seto hollered again, interrupting whatever Jounouchi's response was going to be. Annoyed, he waved Seto away, but the spell had already been broken.
"Well, good luck," Mai said, rushing back into the stables and leaving Jounouchi gaping after her. Sighing in defeat, he trudged over to Seto.
"Thanks a lot," he grumbled, settling down next to Seto.
"Don't get too attached," was Seto's sharp response.
"All settled in? You have all your belongings?" Honda asked cheerfully. He was a young, sturdy fellow, with spiked brown hair and a solid, reliable disposition.
Seto snorted; that was a joke. They had their clothes, and enough food and water to make it up the mountain, but that was all they'd brought.
"I'll take that as a yes. Hold on tight; the Dragons tend to have a jolty start. Ready? Here we go!"
Honda snapped the rope reins. The Dragon tethered to the front of the chariot- a blue Dragon with giant wings, flapped furiously and rose high into the air. Winged Dragon, nicknamed the Guardian of the Fortress (presumably because Atemu used it in fire safety around the palace), began pulling the chariot forward. It tipped back slightly, then stabled and began rolling along. Seto remained obstinately facing forward, but Jounouchi turned around and waved to the children who had gathered to see them off- Yuugi, Rebecca, Shizuka, Mokuba, and Noa.
They moved quickly, covering ground with astonishing speed. Seto and Jounouchi watched the landscape flash by, and the mountains in the distance grew ever closer. Early on in their travels, Seto caught a glimpse of something in the distance. "What's that?" he asked, after several minutes of struggling with his surly disposition.
Honda glanced over, following his finger. Seto was staring at a sprawling complex to the north. "Eh? Oh, those are the stables."
"More stables for the Dragons?" Jounouchi wondered. "I thought those were back in the village, behind the palace."
Honda laughed. "Those are just the Stables Minor, for the Dragons that need special attention, work with the core firemen, or are otherwise attached to the palace and the village. A few flights away are the Stables Major, what you're looking at now."
Jounouchi whistled. "Those are bigger than the ones at the palace?"
Honda gave him an odd look. "Of course," he said. "The ones at the palace are tiny."
Jounouchi shook his head disbelievingly and slumped back in his seat. "I aint gonna go there."
"What's the white one?" Seto asked, still staring at the Stables Major.
"Aaah, that's the special one!" Honda winked. "See how it's slightly set apart from the others? And how it's made entirely of white wood?"
"Yes," Seto said, sounding irritated. "That's why I asked about it."
"It's called the Stables Primary. That's where Slifer lives," Honda said in a hushed voice.
Seto frowned. "Slifer? I don't know what-"
"Yes you do," Jounouchi broke in, looking excited. "That's the Dragon that went to Atemu as a sign of his rule!"
"O-oh…" Seto said softly, remembering what Anzu had told them in the meadow. "You're right…" He ignored Jounouchi's triumphant grin. "But I thought Atemu was supposed to rule with Slifer at his side?"
"Not literally. You can't expect Slifer to stay at the palace," Honda said with a snort. "It'd be much too cramped for his taste. Trust me, I've seen him. You'll never find a more pampered Dragon, unless it's Red-Eyes. Or perhaps Thousand Dragon and Baby," he added as an afterthought. "The Kawai family got a special grant, and now the two of them live on privately owned land next to the Kawai's house."
"Is that Shizuka?" Jounouchi wondered aloud.
"Kawai Shizuka, that's right," Honda said, sounding pleased. "I love that kid."
Seto rolled his eyes, fixing his gaze on Slifer's stables. "Does Atemu ever visit with Slifer?"
"All the time," Honda replied.
"Oh," Seto answered, and fell silent.
At midday, they broke for lunch- Seto wanted to eat while riding, but Honda insisted on a rest for Winged Dragon. They were off again as soon as possible, and the delay didn't cost them any time.
"Where did the ropes come from?" Jounouchi asked out of the blue, leaning forward and speaking in Honda's ear. The brunette driver, who had taken on a glazed, bored look, snapped out of it and shook his head. "Huh? Ropes?"
"Yeah. The ones tying Winged Dragon to the chariot. Where'd they come from?" Jounouchi asked.
Honda twisted in his seat to give him a weird look. "Plant, I suppose. Why?"
"I just wondered," Jounouchi shrugged. " 'Cause you don't have any animals here, I wondered what you used instead."
"Katsuya," Seto growled. "Ropes are made from plant in our world."
"Oh." Jounouchi blanched. "Sorry. I thought they came from animal tendon or something…"
Seto groaned and leaned back in the seat. Why me?...
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"We'll make camp for the night," Honda said, starting to unload the small tent from the back of the chariot. "And you can leave in the morning, bright and early."
Seto stared at the Barrier. They were right at the foot of the mountains, about four hours before dusk. "Where's the portal?"
Honda dropped the tent and came next to him, back to the sun. "Aaah… there," he said, pointing after a brief search. Seto studied the rock carefully. It had a distinctive, protruding shape; and it was darker than the others.
"That's only about three hours away," Seto said decisively. "We can make it."
Both Honda and Jounouchi sent him disbelieving looks. "I don't think that's such a hot idea, Kaiba," Jounouchi said, shaking his head. "Come on, what's the harm in camping out a night?"
Seto ignored him. "We'll leave now," he said firmly, grabbing his backpack and hoisting it onto his shoulders. "We're well rested already. We just sat in that chariot all day."
Jounouchi groaned and burrowed his head in his hands, but nonetheless fetched the second pack that Ryou had provided, fastening it tightly around his shoulders. At Honda's questioning look, he rolled his eyes and said, "There's no arguing with him."
"All right," Honda said doubtfully. "But I'd never make it back by sunset. I have to camp here the night anyway. Are you sure you don't want to wait?"
"Positive," Seto said quickly, already moving towards the mountains. "Good-bye. And thank you for your help; it's been much appreciated."
"Don't you want more directions?" Honda called after him.
"I can find it!" was Seto's only response.
Jounouchi shrugged helplessly at Honda. "I guess he knows the way. He's usually paranoid about these kinds of things, so I guess I can trust him. Well, bye! Seeya- or, not… Ah, bye again!" He waved frantically, then trotted after Seto and disappeared behind a bend.
Alone, Honda shrugged in bewilderment. "I've never seen anyone so eager to leave Dragon Country," he murmured to Winged Dragon, who merely stretched and yawned. He chuckled. "Sure, buddy. Just give me a second to set up camp, then we'll see about food for you."
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"Kaiba," Jounouchi said, panting.
"Don't say it, Katsuya," Seto ground out, knowing what Jounouchi's comment would be.
"I thought you said you knew the way!" Jounouchi plowed on, ignoring Seto. "But we've been wandering around for way longer than three hours, and it's starting to get dark. And it's cold. And I'm tired. My leg cramped up after sitting all day." He glared accusingly.
Seto clenched his teeth. "I did know the way. It's just harder to find in the…"
"In the dark," Jounouchi said, rolling his eyes.
"When you're on the ground," Seto countered, glaring.
"Whatever. I'm tired. Can we eat?"
Seto simply shook his head, gazing into the distance. "I think that's it, over there," he said finally, pointing.
"Yeah, right," Jounouchi muttered, too tired to look.
"No, really," Seto argued. "I recognize the shape. It's big and it juts out and it looks darker than the others."
Jounouchi sighed. "You run, I follow," he said in a deadpan voice.
"Fine with me," Seto sniffed, striding forward decisively.
They picked their way among boulders for a while, and Jounouchi stumbled in the dark and nearly fell down a ravine. He was saved only by Seto's quick hands, seizing him under the armpits and hauling him to stable ground.
"You bruised me," Jounouchi complained.
Seto didn't bother to argue with him. He had to concede now that they were lost, and it was too dark to advance forward. "Maybe we should stop for the night," he said wearily.
Jounouchi glared. "Fine with me. You know, if we'd camped back there with Honda, we'd have nice soft pillows and a bed and a campfire…"
Seto ignored him, tossing his pack on the ground and putting his head on top of it. Jounouchi sunk down next to him, reluctantly following suit. "We'll be able to find our way better in the morning," he said, willing himself to believe it.
"When will we arrive?" Jounouchi asked sleepily.
"I don't know. It shouldn't take more than a few hours," Seto responded with certainty.
"No, I mean when. When, as in our world-time. Will it be the same time as when we fell through the portal? Will it be weeks later? Years later? Same time passage? 'Cause I remember when we fell into Dragon Country, it was night, but when we arrived here it was early morning."
"I did ask Ryou about that," Seto said, closing his eyes. "He doesn't know. It's not like anyone's ever come back to tell them. The people who leave want to leave."
"Mmm." Jounouchi's voice was drowsy. "Kaiba?"
"What?" he asked, sighing.
"Do you want to leave?"
Seto was silent a moment, before blurting, "Of course I do."
"I think I do," Jounouchi said uncertainly. "I do miss home, although it's great here. But sometimes I wonder about you."
"What? You think I'm a freak? And I belong in a freakish world?" Seto's voice was snappish.
Jounouchi, though he expected the boy to shout back, was surprisingly subdued. "No. I don't think this place is freakish. I think it's fantastic."
Then he was quiet, leaving Seto to mull over what he'd said. Just when Seto was convinced Jounouchi was asleep, he spoke up again. "Kaiba?"
He rolled his eyes inside shut lids. "What now, Katsuya?"
"Do you see a light?"
Reluctantly, Seto pried his eyes open. Then he sat up, all sleepiness gone. "Yes."
Jounouchi rose beside him, picking up his pack. "What do you think it is?"
Seto gazed at the flickering glow, reminiscent of firelight, coming from a crevice several hundred feet ahead of them. "Could be Dragons," he said uncertainly.
"It could be people," Jounouchi said excitedly. "With food, and warmth, and directions."
"We have food," Seto said, annoyed.
"We have sandwiches. And some bread that that Ryou guy gave us. But in case you haven't noticed, Kaiba, it's freezing. And we're dead lost."
Seto scowled in the dark, unwilling to admit he was right. Especially the cold part- the winds whipped through the bleak mountains and tore through the frigid boulders, chilling him to the bone. "It still might be Dragons," he said at last.
"Could be. But you know what? I'm willing to take that risk," Jounouchi said, starting forward and leaving Seto behind. "Come on… let's go."
Seto grimaced, but hurriedly followed Jounouchi, unwilling to be left behind. "Fine, but we're not going to walk right into that campside," he said sternly. "Let's walk up to one of the ledges above it, and we can see if it's people or not. And what kind of people they are."
"You mean sneak up on them?" Jounouchi asked, sounding amused.
"Yes, actually. I do."
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They ended up crawling on their bellies to the edge of the natural shelf, both to keep their balance and not to be seen. "This is really not dignified," Jounouchi whispered, but Seto ignored him.
They peered down below. It was indeed people gathered around the several fires there, and as far as Seto could tell there wasn't a Dragon in sight. Subdued groups laughed and whispered around the fires, tearing off hunks of bread and tossing them around. They didn't look as clean or well-groomed as the people back in Dragon Country, but Seto credited that to their stay in the mountains.
"Who are they?" Jounouchi whispered, but Seto had no answer.
"Ryou told me about a people called the Krawdiites- a not-so-nice people, but I doubt this is them. The Krawdiites aren't supposed to have left their side of the mountain in a thousand years." A figure, standing up in the closest fire, caught his attention. "Wait- isn't that Ryou?" The white hair was unmistakable.
Jounouchi peered uncertainly. "Um, I dunno. I never talked to the guy that much, but that guy down there doesn't look exactly the same. He's… skinnier. And meaner looking. He seems nasty."
Seto frowned down. What Jounouchi said was true, but the uncanny resemblance couldn't be coincidence.
"Marik," the white-haired man spoke in a grating voice, and that sealed it for Seto: that wasn't Ryou. "Did you take down the Dragon?"
A blonde-haired, dark-skinned man at another fire glanced over. "It's impossible to say," he replied in a smooth, but somehow repelling, voice. "I know I hit it, but how badly is the question?"
The white-haired man grunted. "We could have had meat tonight, instead of plain bread," he said in disgust, tossing a piece into the fire and watching as it blackened.
"It's not like I missed on purpose," Marik said tartly, before turning back to his group.
Seto became aware of Jounouchi staring at him, face pale. "Did they just say they wanted to eat the Dragon?" Jounouchi asked, his voice slightly fearful.
"I think this settles it," Seto said grimly. "We don't want to be messing with these people."
"Come on," Jounouchi said, cautiously scooting away from the ledge. They went as quickly as they dared, struggling to remain absolutely silent. They were sure that they didn't want to be caught by the people down there. Seto had one tense moment where he and Jounouchi nearly lost their balance at the same time, but thankfully both recovered without a mishap. He thought that someone back at the camp might have heard it, but they were long gone if anyone ever went to investigate.
Once they were a fair distance from the camps, Seto dared to speak. "Who do you suppose they were?" he asked in disgust, putting his hands on his hips.
"I have no idea, and I really don't think I want to know," Jounouchi responded, shaking his head. "But you had the right idea, Kaiba- the sooner we get out of here, the better."
Seto opened his mouth, then abruptly shut it. "What was that?" he hissed.
"What?" Jounouchi asked, wildly looking around. "What was what?"
"That noise. Sssh…" He held a finger to his lips, and Jounouchi finally heard it. A low moaning, coming from their left.
"Uh-oh…" Jounouchi moaned, but Seto shook his head.
"Don't be stupid, Katsuya- it's not someone from the campside back there. Why would they be crouching in a ravine, moaning? Come on. Let's have a look."
"What?" Jounouchi asked in alarm, but Seto was already moving. He crept carefully among the boulders until he reached a small break in the rocky landscape.
There, lying on a relatively bare patch of dirt, was a Dragon. It was hard to tell in the dark, but Seto thought she was blue. She had an extremely long, narrow head and hugely elongated beak and thin limbs. But most importantly, a crude wooden spear had entered through her stomach on one side and was poking out the other in an extremely painful-looking wound.
"This has to be what that Marik guy was talking about," Seto said grimly, as Jounouchi tentatively came for a look, his amber eyes widening in shock and disgust. "This is the Dragon they took a shot at. I noticed the other wooden spears back there, but didn't know what they were for."
"That's nasty," Jounouchi moaned, noticing the faint trickle of greenish blood.
"I agree." Seto took a deep breath and removed the backpack, taking his trenchcoat off as well and laying it on the ground. "Come on. Let's try and shift the bulk of the Dragon onto the trenchcoat."
"What?" Jounouchi squeaked. "Are you nuts?"
"No, I'm trying to save this Dragon's life," Seto said sharply. "If we leave her here, she'll die. And I'm no expert at healing wounds like this. Are you?" Jounouchi remained silent.
"We help her onto the trenchcoat lengthwise," Seto outlined, taking in deep, calming breaths. "I carry the front, you carry the back. We have to get her back to Honda, at the campside. Honda can bring her back to the palace."
"They've got good healers there," Jounouchi said hopefully, removing his bag and rolling up his sleeves. "All right. I'm in."
Working together, trying to disturb the Dragon as much as possible, they transferred her to the makeshift stretcher. Thankfully, she didn't put up much of a fight; the Dragon seemed to be on the verge of unconsciousness. Huffing and puffing, Seto and Jounouchi maneuvered her carefully all the way down the mountains, steadily making their way back to Honda's campside. It was nearly daybreak when they returned, and Seto was worried: the Dragon hadn't moved in the last hour.
"What in the hellfires of Dragon breath?" was Honda's sleepy response as they grimly awoke him.
"We need to get this Dragon back to the palace," Seto said firmly, hauling Honda to his feet. "She doesn't have much time to live."
Honda took one look at the Dragon and inhaled sharply, his eyes popping out. "That's a Spear Dragon! Who did this?"
"We don't know who they are," Seto tossed grimly over his shoulder, helping Jounouchi settle Spear Dragon securely onto the chariot.
Honda scrambled to his feet, gathering everything up furiously and tossing it at the foot of the chariot. He frantically tethered Winged Dragon to the chariot again, his fingers fumbling with the knots; the recently awoken Dragon peered at his wounded companion. Abruptly, he lifted his blue head and let out a furious roar, sending a stream of fire three feet into the air. Seto cringed, not wanting to be on the wrong side of that blast.
"I'm ready," Honda said, hopping into the driver's seat and taking up the rope reins. He fixed Seto and Jounouchi with a look. "You coming?"
Seto didn't hesitate. "You bet," he said, leaping into the passenger seat of the chariot and letting Jounouchi crowd in after him.