Disclaimer: Don't own Yu-Gi-Oh
Chapter 3: The Thirsty Dead
"So what exactly are we doing here?" Yugi asked, gazing around at the rows upon rows of books that filled the Cairo Library.
"I assume that since the Pharaoh has no memory of his past, he does not remember who his father was," Imena stated, walking briskly past the shelves. Yugi nodded mutely.
"So, we are here to find out who his father was." Imena strode up to the librarians desk. The librarian, a short dark man, peered at her severely over small reading glasses. "I need the Old Kingdom Timeline, please." The librarian nodded, stood up silently, and went walking off through the books. A few minutes later found Imena and Yugi seated at a large table, pouring over a thick brown volume.
"What are you looking for?" Yugi asked peering over her shoulder as Imena flipped pages at rapid speed.
"I'm looking for the names of pharaoh's that ruled around the time of the Shadow Games."
"You know about Shadow Games?" Yugi realized he was asking a lot of questions, but he couldn't help it. He had thought that only those possessing Millennium Items knew about Shadow Games.
"Of course. I am a mediator, remember." Imena seemed to think that this answered his question. "Ah, here the period I was looking for." She read from the book. "Several tombs have been found dating back to this time period, which was known for the many myths of bizarre magic said to have been used by the priests. Most of the tombs are so damaged that the mummies they enfold have gone unnamed. In fact, there are only two tombs whose occupant's names are known. The older of the two tombs was the burial place of Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen..." Yugi reeled as a shock ran through the Pharaoh. Imena noticed and looked at him. Yugi nodded vigorously because it took him a minute to find his voice. Finally he rasped out:
"He's the one were looking for. That's the Pharaoh's father. Keep reading." Imena did as he asked.
"The second tomb belonged to Akhenamkhanen's son..." Imena slammed the book shut.
"Why did you stop?" The Pharaoh cried. "I could have learned my name!" He was silenced then by the small librarian, who told them that if they were going to be loud they would have to leave.
Sitting on the steps outside the library, Imena refused to look at him. The Pharaoh was some what calmer know, and was trying to catch her gaze.
"I'm sorry," she said finally, though she still didn't look at him. Instead she focused on some point down the street. "Your name is not something you should learn from a book. You have to remember it on your own." They sat in silence for a few moments more. Then Imena stood up and started walking down the street. The Pharaoh rose and followed her.
"Where are we going now?" he asked, falling in step beside her. She turned to him and grinned.
"I don't suppose you remember how to ride a camel?"
The Pharaoh tried to lean casually against a wooden post. Imena stood a short distance away, arguing animatedly with the owner of a camel train. There was much waving of arms and a few exclamations which the Pharaoh thought must be swear words. He wasn't sure, since his knowledge of Egyptian seemed to have faded with the rest of his memory. Then again, he thought. The language might have changed in five thousand years.
Imena finally walked over to him, leading two camels and grumbling to herself.
"What's wrong?" the Pharaoh asked, taking hold of the tether of one of the camels.
"That guy insisted on knowing where we would be taking the camels. When I told him, he tripled the price. I told him that since it was risky I would pay double and not put a curse on his family. Swindler." The Pharaoh was slightly shocked at this statement and couldn't help but wonder who the real swindler was.
"Where are we going again?" The Pharaoh asked. (A.N. Yes I know he asks that a lot, but Imena is not terribly informative.)
"To a dead tree in the middle of the desert. Now, first you want to calmly stroke the camel's nose and let him get to know you..."
Sunset found Imena and Yugi moving quickly across the Egyptian sands. It had taken a good amount of time for Yugi to get the hang of camel riding, but soon he was able to keep up with Imena's native skill.
"Why couldn't you have just summoned the Pharaoh's father," Yugi asked, moving his camel alongside Imena's.
"First of all," she said. "The Pharaoh's father is not on this plane, he is in the Afterlife. Had he been on this plane, it would not have been wise to simply summon him under the name of "the Pharaoh's father."
"Why not?"
"If you make the summons too general, multiple spirits will come and they will overwhelm you. It is not a pleasant experience and it can be deadly. Look, we are almost there." Imena pointed to a sandy ridge from which a tree that was little more than a withered branch poked from the ground. The sun was now almost completely set, only a thin arch of orange remained above the horizon. At about one hundred yards from the tree, Imena pulled her camel in front of Yugi's, forcing him to stop.
"Pharaoh," she said, though Yugi was the one currently in control of the body. Yugi shivered at the deathly serious tone in her voice. "Here I must ask you to, for the safety and sanity of your lighter side, to take control." The Pharaoh did as she asked.
As the two of them dismounted from the camels, the sun set, and in the fresh twilight, they walked toward the tree. At first the Pharaoh thought it was just his imagination, but then he realized that he really was seeing pearly white shapes moving around the tree. Now he knew why Imena had requested that Yugi no see this. Stay in your soul room, Hikari, the Pharaoh told Yugi. Don't look.
As they drew nearer, the forms of the ghost became more clearly defined. The Pharaoh shivered. Every one of these spirits was as gaunt and withered as the tree. Trying to look at something different, the Pharaoh looked more intently at the tree. Close up, he could see that there were tatters of cloth hanging from it. For some reason, this sight was just as disturbing as the ghosts, whose pale, hollow eyes were gazeing at him hungrily. Finally Imena stopped walking.
"What are they?" the Pharaoh asked her.
"They are called the Thirsty Dead," she explained. "When they were alive they got lost in the desert and, driven mad by thirst, they wandered to this tree, hopping to find water at its roots. When they found that there was no water, they tied whatever cloth they had to the tree in hopes that someone would find them. Nobody ever comes out here."
"So why have we come here?" As he spoke, one of the thirsty dead came a little too close for comfort. Imena passed a hand through it. It disappeared for a moment, and then reformed a few feet away. The Pharaoh thought he heard a hiss on the air that did not come from the wind. Imena continued her explanation.
"With ghosts, there is always something which ties them to the living plane. Once they achieve that, they will go on to the Hall of Judgment. With the thirsty dead, what they want is simple: water. They died wanting it and they want it still. When one of them passes into the next world, we will be able to follow." Yugi shook his head. It all made sense now.
From behind her back, Imena drew a bottle of water. Instantly, they completely caged in by the pale white specters. Touches that felt like whispers brushed against the Pharaoh's arms. Once again Imena waved her hand. The ghost scattered like dandelion seeds in the wind. Then they reformed in a wider circle around the two who were alive. Imena beckoned to the one that had gotten too close the first time. Now the Pharaoh could see that it was the ghost of a young boy and, though with his lost memory he was no expert, the clothing the boy wore definitely seemed to come from an earlier time period. A vague stirring in the back of his mind told him that this boy had probably died during the ancient days, possibly even during his own reign.
The little boy wasn't looking at the Pharaoh now. He was starring avidly at Imena, or more accurately, the bottle of water that she held in her hand. Imena carefully unscrewed the cap on the bottle, eyes flicking around the circle of ghosts in case one should move so much as an inch closer. She then bent down to look the boy directly in his transparent eyes.
"What's your name?" she asked.
"Ranofer," said a quiet voice.
"Be at peace, Ranofer." Imena held the bottle to the boys cracked lips and tipped the liquid down his throat. At first the water ran right through him, splashing on the sand. Then the splashing stopped and the water seemed to be filling Ranofer up. The boy was soon filled with a sparkling clarity that was more than what the water bottle had held. There was a bright flash, and before Imena and the Pharaoh stood a hale, healthy little boy. He smiled radiantly at them, and then began to slowly fade away. Imena grabbed the Pharaoh's hand, grasping at the boy's arm with her other hand. The three of them faded into the twilight.
So, what do you think? Sorry it took me so long to update, I've probably lost all my adoring fans (not that I had many to begin with). The superstition of the thirsty dead is actually a Pakistani (did I spell that right) belief. I found it in the book Shabinu, Daughter of the Wind. I changed a few things. I don't know if Egyptians believe the same thing.
On another note-popcorn with cinnamon is really good. Please review, I love your comments. Even flames are welcome, I like fire.
Question: What would you think if I put in a romance between Imena and the god Anubis (the real god, not the idiotic knock-off they made for Yu-Gi-Oh the Movie.) I'm finding it hard not to put a romance in, so give me suggestions for pairings.