Author's Notes: Well, I decided to continue with this. It's much more fun to write than I had thought it would be, even if nobody reviewed it. Heheh. There may be some unusual mistakes, since my spellchecker decided to go on a rampage at random points. RoughDraft is a fickle mistress.
Chapter 2: Accusations
The ballroom exploded into a frenzy as the guards directed panicked partygoers into other parts of the palace. Some of the more intoxicated guests hadn't realized the danger just yet, and posed a problem to the guards trying to maintain an orderly evacuation of the ballroom. Progress was slow.
Shaada and Kalim stepped in front of Atem. Anyone wanting to get at him would have to go through them to do so. Still stunned by the abrupt outbreak of chaos, Atem stood his ground behind his Knights, peering around them and tensely watching the open doors. Mahaado rushed in moments later, followed closely by Simon. Simon was an old man, even older than Atem's father had been, and had been more of a nurse to Atem than a Knight. He was still an able man in battle, however, so few made an issue of it.
"You should not be here," Simon intoned darkly, shifting his gaze momentarily from the door to Atem. Mahaado nodded slowly, silently echoing the sentiment.
The king scowled and took on the haughtiest stance he could muster. "I would rather stay," he said. "Whomever it is, it's obvious that he wants to see me, not cause havoc."
The old man whipped his head around and glowered at Atem, who started despite himself. Simon's wrath still meant more to him than a minor argument. After all, it is the child's nurse's duty to discipline as well as guard and nurture. Atem still associated Simon's anger with a stern caning at worst. "That was my point!" Simon snapped. "He wants you and... Oh, gods," he muttered in irritation. "Miss Delitia should leave as well."
Atem looked over his shoulder. Sure enough, the girl he had encountered earlier had made her return at a most inopportune time. "Get out of here," he hissed, allowing decorum to leave him for a moment. She only looked back at him with those glassy blue eyes and twirled a lock of hair around her dainty index finger. It felt like what Atem imagined speaking to a rock would. He made a shooing motion and received the same glazed response. He returned his attention to the door and wondered where Ishizu, his uncle, and his cousin Seth were. Possibly trying to restore order outside the ballroom. Seth did always make the best peace, after all.
A bright flash in the hall outside, accompanied by frantic shouts, caught their attention, and the distinct scent of magic wafted into the room. "So he's a mage," Mahaado said softly, a slight smile playing across his face. Mahaado had never been a braggart or one to flaunt his skills about, but it could not be denied that the man relished the odd excuse to throw his magic around.
Another brilliant flash struck, closer now. The group grew tenser and the party guests that remained in the ballroom trembled, frozen in place by terror. A figure rounded a corner far up the hall and approached the ballroom doors. He wore a heavy cloak and seemed to be dragging a large travel bag behind him by a length of rope. Magic arced and sparked about him, and the vague outline of a hulking, monstrous shape could be seen looming over him.
"A mage with a Spirit Beast," Kalim observed. The words sent a cold shiver down Atem's spine. He knew all about the Spirit Beasts. They were embodiments of a person's soul, capable of feats ranging from simple tricks to those thought capable only by the gods themselves. As king, Atem had three such creatures by his birth right. Very few people, however, could manage to bring the Beasts out of their minds and into the physical world. After an entire year, Atem still barely had a strong enough grip on his abilities to summon even one of them for very long. Even with three Knights and their Millennium Items, as well as his own to defend them, it would be far from necessary force to fend off a powerful Spirit Beast. So far, their situation looked grim.
"Greetings, Knights," the strange man said coolly as he stepped through the doors. The Beast's shadow moved through the surrounding stone walls as if they weren't there at all. The man smiled sharply, the white of his teeth just barely visible in the shadows under his hooded cloak. He gave the rope a sharp yank, sending what he had been lugging along skidding on the floor toward the Knights. It was not a travel bag, but a large straw dummy, dressed in some farcical semblance of a nobleman's clothes. Its canvas-wrapped head was even topped with a crown, obviously fashioned from an old pot or frying pan. Atem cringed upon examining the painted face, with its neat beard and stern features. An effigy of his dead father, or so it seemed. He shoved his way past Kalim and Shaada, his patience with this insolent man already wearing thin. Simon made a half-hearted grab for him, but allowed him to go. Atem appreciated that. He placed his feet far apart in an attempt to steady himself in the event of an attack.
"What is your business in my palace?" he asked the hooded man heatedly. The man threw his head back with an unhinged cackle, his response confounding everyone in the room.
"Who're you?" he asked after his cackle faded into bemused chortling. "You can't be the king, can you? You're not more than a little boy!"
"I am the king, and you will treat me with the respect that I deserve," Atem said, willing the fires of rage growing inside of him to burn slow instead of consuming him. He was determined to remain calm. The Knights behind him stayed in place, ready for action the moment the man made a move for Atem.
"And what respect would that be, little highness?" the intruder asked. He pulled his hood back, revealing a face with feral eyes and a grinning mouth, framed by shaggy white hair. There were several astonished gasps at the savage appearance of the man. "You've put prisoners to death that deserve more respect than you."
A hush fell over the ballroom, the man's brash words shocking the Knights and guests into silence. He stood their, smug and proud in his defiance. Atem wanted badly to strike him, simply to wipe that cool smirk from his lips, but he could not. He would not. If he so much as approached the man, the Spirit Beast that accompanied him may bat him away with one swing of its massive arm before the Knights could react. It was a strange thing, the beast. A man's body from the waist up, and a snake in place of legs. Atem considered it a fair representation of its master, save for one detail. Huge, feathery wings fanned out behind it, skewing the demonic appearance of the thing. Its huge eyes stared down at Atem, watching him, holding him spellbound for a moment. He shook his head violently to clear it, returning his attention to the cloaked intruder.
"Insolence!" he barked. Delitia gasped and started, startled out of the daze she had fallen into. She hurried back to the crowd of guests and huddled close to her husband. "I told you to treat me with respect, and you will!" He took a step back and nodded to Mahaado. the knight nodded back. He was prepared to defend Atem if need be. "Explain yourself," Atem commanded. "Who are you, and why have you come here?"
"Calm yourself, little highness," the man said with an amused chuckle. His Beast settled, its wings folding as it relaxed at some silent command he had given. "I didn't come to fight you or lay siege to your palace. I only come with a message."
A voice piped up from the crowd at the back of the room. "What is the meaning of this?" Headmaster Anum demanded. "What sort of message requires you to injure several of the king's soldiers and terrify so many people?"
Another cackle erupted from the man's throat, filling the room with echoes of an almost melodious insanity. "One long overdue!" he proclaimed. He made a wide, sweeping gesture, grinning as wildly as ever. "Oath breakers, all of you! A disgusting, spoilt bunch of deceitful betrayers!"
Before Atem could voice his displeasure at the insolent accusations, Delitia shoved her (rather indignant) husband aside and stormed closer to the white-haired man. "You've got no right to talk to my Anum like that!" she snapped shrilly. Atem and the Knights could only boggle at her newfound courage. Or foolishness. It was becoming more and more obvious that, with this girl, the two most likely overlapped.
"Silence!" the intruder commanded. Some unseen force shoved Delitia back, sending her toppling backward in an undignified heap. A few of the braver guests rushed over to examine her for injuries while Anum stayed in the back. "Ridiculous strumpet. I don't think any of you understand, and she's the perfect example! Woman, ask your husband how long it's been since he's spent his day practicing his spells instead of counting the tuition fees from students! Make him prove to you that his gift hasn't abandoned him in his lethargy!"
Anum seethed, his thin, creased face turning a bright red. "Lies!" he screeched. "Slanderous lies! I haven't missed one day of study since I was a green apprentice!"
"Then show us," the strange man said with a sneer. "Show us what your years of practice have given you, besides a glamorous home and a lovely young bride."
"Such a frivolous display of my abilities would be a waste," the man retorted after some thought.
"A likely excuse!" the intruder said almost proudly. "And I suppose I'd receive similar 'noble' excuses if I asked the little king's general how he became so very, very wealthy on what shouldn't be much more than a soldier's salary, or how the prison is filled with more petty, lower class thieves than high class murders, or-"
The man was cut off abruptly as Atem rushed over and slapped him hard across the face. His Knights were left behind, taken aback by the king's foolhardy action. "Be silent, now!" he bellowed. "If you could show restraint in your actions and speak with respect to those you accuse, I would hear you out, but you have done nothing of the sort! If you have come with a message, stop this blustering drivel and get on with it!"
In one fluid motion, the translucent Spirit Beast scooped its master up in a huge hand and stood upright. The Knight braced for attack while Atem stood his ground. He wouldn't back down to some petty party crashing revolutionary who had brought nothing more than his own abilities. The beast towered over him, its pale body filling almost a fourth of the huge ballroom.
"Say the king who's scarcely ever been outside the walls of his own palace!" the intruder sneered from his vantage point. "Admit it! You're all growing fat and lazy off the pain and blood of the people you claim to serve, and you don't even know it yet! You're no king; you're just a sheltered, spoilt child. I came here looking for a king and found a boy barely old enough for breeches. I'm almost disappointed, but not quite surprised. Good evening to you all; you'll see me again!"
With that, the Beast turned around and glided out of the room. To the awe of all near enough to watch it leave, it and its master disappeared a moment later.
Atem sighed, his shoulders falling as he turned to address his Knights. "Have the uninjured guards comb the palace and make certain he is not hiding anywhere," he instructed. "Have the guests move out into the courtyard and continue the festivities."
"You're certain, sire?" Simon asked. He frowned, obviously concerned. "That man may still be in the palace."
"All the more reason for our guests to be outside," Atem said bluntly, stepping past the Knights. "Send a small group of guards out as well, and have Kalim and Shaada accompany them. I'm going to prepare for bed. Good night, everyone."
Atem yawned and stepped out of the steaming bathwater and began thoroughly drying himself off. The short bath had helped alleviate some of the stress from the unusual party crashing, but his mind still raced. Anum was obviously a crooked man, but he managed the academy so well that the court has more or less ignored his avarice, but the general? He had never expressed any unusually greedy traits. In fact, Atem had considered him a decent man, if a bit timid for his line of work. He slipped his robe on and shook the last of the large droplets of water from his hair before stepping out into the hall. The sounds from the party were wafting up from the courtyard, and he peered out one of the huge windows to watch. The Knights had made certain that the party was still as festive as possible, even in the improvised setting. Hanging lanterns had been hastily brought out and light, outdoor furniture set up while the small band played on. He smiled sleepily and turned away, more interested in his musings and his bed than in the party.
He wasn't really a spoilt brat, was he? He knew that he had been sheltered as a child, and not had the time to mature before taking the throne, but he had never thought of himself as a brat. "Loud-mouthed showoff," he muttered to himself. "He doesn't know half as much about managing a country as I do, so what right has he to talk?"
"No right at all, sire," a familiar voice piped up from behind. Atem shuddered as he turned around. He was almost surprised to see Delitia gliding toward him in her tent of a dress.
"How did you get in here?" he asked coldly.
"I was very impressed with how you handled that man, sire," she said, tactfully avoiding the question. "My Anum isn't much like that. He's usually not the temperamental sort, but when he gets riled, woo boy!"
Atem gave a long, exasperated sigh at Delitia's eloquent choice of 'woo boy' as an exclamation. "I'm flattered that you enjoyed that performance, but I am very tired, and I would like to go to bed," he explained slowly. "Now, how did you get all the way up here?"
"I snuck in!" she said proudly, puffing her overstuffed chest out.
"It's 'sneaked, not 'snuck,' you know," Atem said, turning away from Delitia and stomping off in the direction of his room. "Now sneak back out!"