Disclaimer: I don't effing own Yuugioh. Stop rubbing my nose in it.

Sorry I didn't update as quickly as I said I would. I had to rewrite the chapter because I didn't like it. But now it's better.

Under Pressure

Ebony and the Riddle

Loud explosions and crashes from outside the debris of the cavern shook the ground and shattered windows in the village around the palace. But Yuugi could hear nothing. All he heard was his heart thumping in his ears, blaring out every thought except Atemu is dead. Atemu is dead. Atemu is dead. Yuugi could remember placing his fingers on Atemu's wrist and his neck, desperately searching for a pulse, but could find nothing.

"No," whispered Yuugi, falling limply to his knees. "You can't be dead…"

But Atemu didn't move. After cutting Atemu free of the ropes that had tied him to the chair, Yuugi closed Atemu's hollow eyes, his stomach plunging every time he saw the dull, gray eyes. Why, why did this happen? He held Atemu protectively against his chest, feeling his fallen friend's dead, icy skin against his arms. Yuugi's body had gone numb. Finally, after his years of fighting, Atemu had died, leaving everyone behind. Suddenly, Yuugi dropped his arms, letting Atemu fall to the ground, hatred and fury boiling up in his stomach

Atemu didn't die! He was murdered! Yuugi reached up and clutched his head, tears falling down his deathly pale skin. Atemu was dead! He had left Mahaado, he had left Mokuba… he had left Yuugi. Yuugi felt his mind trying to think up anything to keep him going… and rage was the first thing it discovered. He stood up suddenly, drawing the attention of the snow leopard at his side from the corpse to the boy.

Yuugi's mind kept pulling up people to be furious at, people to punish. Aura… the horrible wretch that had slaughtered Atemu. Mahaado… he had promised to protect Atemu but failed magnificently. Triton… if he had let them leave the palace they could have gotten there before Aura killed Atemu. Typhoon… if that woman hadn't dragged them all here in the first place, Atemu would still be here with Yuugi. Atemu… Yuugi was possibly angrier with Atemu than any one else.

"WHY?" screamed Yuugi at Atemu's body, his voice cracking and shaking. His throat felt as though it were on fire as he continued to scream unrelentingly at Atemu. "WHY? YOU SWORE YOU'D ALWAYS BE THERE FOR ME WHEN I NEEDED YOUR HELP! BUT YOU LEFT ME! YOU LEFT ME!" He sank to his knees once again and then collapsed, his face cut by the rocks on the ground.

The leopard didn't move at all when Yuugi had begun to shout. In fact, it seemed extremely interested in what Yuugi had to say to people who were obviously dead. Only when Yuugi's body gave out did the leopard move toward him. It nudged Yuugi's head as if to comfort the boy.

Yuugi rolled onto his back and looked at the gentle animal. It's beautiful, sharp face was a unique blend of black, gray, and black, its shiny, wet nose black and then the rest of its face gradually getting lighter. Yuugi, blinking tears back, reached up and wrapped his arms around the leopard's neck, his fingers clutching its soft, warm fur.

"You won't leave me, will you?" he asked it, his voice thick with tears. The leopard looked down at Yuugi with a pitying look in its eyes. It lay down with Yuugi, resting its large head on the boy's chest and sighed loudly. Sounds of the battle with Aura echoed loudly throughout the remains of the Cavern. Tears slid down Yuugi's face and into the leopard's fur, as they waited for someone, anyone to come for them. Yuugi didn't think he could bear touching Atemu's ice-cold skin again.

It seemed like hours before the noises of dying Sprites and Aura's dragon roars died away. A loud whooshing noise blew a large gust wind onto Yuugi and the leopard and was soon followed by Mahaado yelling, "GET BACK HERE, YOU COWARD!" Loud footsteps echoed around the Cavern once more followed by several gasps. Yuugi raised his head a bit to see Mahaado, bleeding profusely from his wound in his stomach and many new injuries, including what looked like a broken nose. Triton was slung over Mahaado's back, crimson trickling down one arm and dripping on to the dirt ground. There was an immense amount of soldiers missing from the group surrounding Mahaado and Triton.

Mahaado swaggered a few steps forward and then, once a Sprite took the injured Triton off his back, stepped ahead, the noise abnormally loud. He ran the rest of the way and pulled Atemu into his bloody arms and let out a mangled cry of despair.

"Aura…" choked Mahaado, his eyes large and shining, "she… drained his life energy." He took on of Atemu's gray arms and examined it. "She stole his power."

There were murmurs of sadness and disgust among the remaining Sprites. One, a woman with vibrant green hair and eyes, stepped forward and wrapped an arm around Yuugi. Yuugi saw that she had a pretty face that was hidden under blood and many scars from past battles. Her long emerald hair was tied up in a bun with a bloodstained ribbon; her bangs fell stubbornly into her eyes.

"Come boy, bring your pet and I'll will escort you back to the palace," she whispered. Mahaado suddenly glanced up and stared at Yuugi.

"Pet? What pet?"

Yuugi suddenly felt worried for the snow leopard. There was no way Mahaado would allow for it to return to the palace with Yuugi if it could be possibly dangerous. Yuugi's violet eyes shot toward the snow leopard, which was looking at Yuugi happily, and rested on the animal's black nose.

"Yes, Mahaado, pet," said Yuugi slowly. "His name is… Ebony."

Mahaado didn't seem to want to care about Ebony. His gaze returned to Atemu's limp body, and as much as it pained him, he gripped Atemu closer to his body. The soldier Sprite with green hair touched Yuugi's shoulder and pulled a rope off her belt.

"Come, Master Yuugi," she said, bending down and tying the rope around Ebony's neck. "What Magician Mahaado need now is privacy. Your friends will be anxious to see you." She straightened up and put the rope into Yuugi's hand.

But Yuugi didn't want to leave yet. Atemu was here. He didn't know why he wanted to be this close, seeing Atemu, cold and colorless, made his stomach turn. All he knew is that he felt as though he was betraying Atemu by not staying by his side. The Sprite caught his expression and placed a hand on Yuugi's shoulder.

"He will be brought back to the palace. There… you can say…" she hesitated and then looked Yuugi in his eyes, "goodbye." Her hand still on Yuugi's shoulder, she steered the boy through the tiny crowd of Sprites, away from the sound of Mahaado's weeping, and toward the exit, Ebony trailing obediently at Yuugi's heels. The Sprite holding Triton wrapped some of Triton's wounds and then flung him on her back and began toward the exit as well. Yuugi expected them to fall behind, Triton's bulk weighing the poor soldier Sprite down.

As they left, the sound of Mahaado's cries could still be heard echoing mournfully around the Cavern. The Sprite's hand still on his shoulder, Yuugi walked slowly as if being led to his own execution, his legs threatening to buckle from under him, his vision blurred with his tears. Ebony walked at Yuugi's side, his head down, his shoulder blades rotating slightly, and his tail low.

"That's a well train leopard you got there," remarked the Sprite. "How long have you had him?"

"Three years," Yuugi said mechanically. "Won him at a county fair." The Sprite looked very curious as to what a county fair might have been, but decided against asking Yuugi anymore questions.

As the tower from which Proteus had been thrown came into view, Yuugi felt, suddenly, something he had never felt before in his life. He didn't want to see his friends. He didn't want them asking what happened to their friend. What right did they have to ask him anyway? Atemu had been closest friends, his first friend… he should have been allowed to mourn Atemu's passing before being harassed about it by Joey and Tea.

Yuugi felt himself enter a feeling of utter and complete apathy for everything and anything around him. The only thing that held meaning for him was the snow leopard, and Yuugi couldn't place his finger on why. Perhaps it was for the one second… he was alone… Ebony had comforted him and gave him something to hold on to. Yuugi glanced dully at Ebony, who seemed exhausted and sad as well. Where did this leopard come from? A thought floated lazily through Yuugi's head… maybe the leopard is Ate-

A loud wailing sound filled the air. The first thing they saw when they neared the palace entrance was Calypso, weeping into Neptune's shoulder. Yuugi thought for a fleeting moment that they already knew about Atemu, but how could they? They would have seen Mahaado fly over them and they would have past any Sprites. Yuugi felt the Sprite tighten her grip on his shoulder that her talons were digging into his skin.

"She's dead!" wailed Calypso, gripping Neptune's arms roughly. "Empress Typhoon died!" For some reason, Yuugi couldn't get mournful for Typhoon's death. The empty feeling in his heart from seeing Atemu, his head hanging limply, his arms and torso bounded tightly to that chair, the blood dripping from his stomach and from the tips of his fingers, the red streaks against his dull colored skin…

The Sprite bent to Yuugi's ear.

"Do you want to tell them about Lord Atemu, or do you want to?" her voice was shaking and hollow; the death of Typhoon seemed to effect her more than Yuugi.

He glanced at her, and muttered, "You." She nodded and Yuugi felt a rush of affection toward her, though he didn't even know what her name was. She straightened her back, planted her feet and cleared her throat. Neptune glanced at her, his face worn and sad. Calypso continued to sob into his shoulder, though she quieted down so Neptune could hear.

"What is it?" he asked quietly.

"It is… my duty…" she paused to blink away some tears, "to inform Generals Calypso and Neptune that… Lord Atemu, the Shadow Guardian… is dead." Even Calypso stopped her lament to look at the Sprite, a look of utter and complete disbelief on her face.

"No, it can't be…"

"Magician Mahaado seemed to need time to… pay his respects. He and the other Sprites will be returning with the body shortly." She bent her head slightly, her bright green bangs falling into her eyes and then looked back up. "It is Magician Mahaado's belief that the Traitor Princess Aura drained the Lord Guardian of his Shadow powers and life energy." Calypso clapped her hand to her mouth to prevent her from letting out a noise and Neptune placed his hand over his eyes and allowed himself a few quiet sobs before regaining his composure. The Sprite stepped forward and lowered her voice. "Captain Triton was severely injured during the battle with Aura in her new form. Holly is bringing him as we speak."

Neptune stumbled as he caught Calypso, her body becoming limp and her consciousness quickly leaving her. The emerald-haired Sprite hurried forward and lifted Calypso. She quickly ran inside the palace, up the thick stairs, up to the infirmary, Calypso in tow. Neptune closed his eyes and clutched his head in his hands.

"Master Yuugi, I think it's time you and I went inside," he said. Ebony sighed again and then yawned, as though thoroughly exhausted, showing off his sharp, vicious teeth. Neptune looked down at Ebony, into the leopard's small, sharp eyes and his eyes suddenly became very large.

"Master Yuugi… is that-"

"NEPTUNE! NEPTUNE!" Neptune stared over Yuugi's shoulder as the purple eyed boy spun around. The Sprite that had Triton on her back was sprinting up to the palace, her haggard, oval face shining with tears. Triton was still on her back, but he looked abnormally pale and limp. Yuugi felt his heart drop. Behind him, he felt Neptune swagger slightly but the sturdy Sprite stayed on his feet.

"NEPTUNE!" she screamed again, clutching to Triton's body as she sprinted to the palace doors. She was covered in blood that wasn't hers. She stopped in front of Yuugi and Neptune, her sobs being mixed in with desperate gasps for air. She pulled Triton off her back and held him in her arms. If Yuugi's mind hadn't been thinking of the shocking news that they were about to get, he would have been extremely impressed that that one Sprite could have carried the thick limbed Triton.

"Neptune… he… he… died on the way here…" Holly gasped, falling to her knees, suddenly feeling the fatigue of carrying Triton. Triton was drenched in blood, his entire body covered in the wounds that Aura had delivered him, the most pronounce, a deep, vicious slash across the Sprite's handsome face. "I tried to get here but here sooner but he was heavy and I didn't want to hurt his wounds any worse than they already were and I was still shaken up from seeing Lord Atemu's body and… and…"

So Triton was dead too. Proteus, Atemu, Typhoon, and Triton, thought Yuugi, who's next? Ebony was tugging against his leash to get to Triton's dead body. Yuugi untied the animal, deciding that Ebony was not really his to start with; he did not have a right to keep the leopard on a leash. The leopard sniffed Triton's arm but drew back immediately, as if smelling something that made him nervous or sick. Neptune suddenly crouched onto his knees in front of Holly and Triton and wrapped his arm around Ebony's neck. Like Yuugi, the Sprite seemed to need something soft and warm to hold onto.

"Triton," whispered Neptune, "I'm sorry I wasn't there." Triton was right. I can't take care of myself… or anyone else.

Triton had always been angry with Neptune, calling him irresponsible. Neptune simply brushed off Triton's complaints, always using the fact that Neptune was higher ranked in Typhoon's army as an excuse not to listen to his brother. But in Triton never showed any ambition to rank himself higher, only joining the army to watch over Neptune. But Triton hadn't started off as a captain.

"Neptune, you shouldn't do that. It's dangerous, you'll get hurt."

But Neptune was bigger than Triton! What did he care what Triton had to say? He could handle himself; Triton was just a nag.

"Neptune, you can't do that! What's the matter with you? Have you completely gone out of your head? What sort of leader are you? You can't take care of these people! You can barely take care of yourself! Follow orders for once on your life!"

Follow orders? Not likely. How was Typhoon going to find out that he was breaking the few rules that she had set down? She wouldn't. No one had a problem with bending the orders around except for Triton. It would be simple and easy. What could go wrong? And who was Triton to question Neptune's leadership? He could watch himself; he didn't need Triton hovering over him like a vulture.

Thirteen soldiers died in that mission. Triton took the blame and suffered Typhoon's anger and was stripped of his general ranking, forcing him to have to follow Neptune's orders. In fact, Triton always managed to pick up the slack for when Neptune didn't do his job. Like this evening, for instance. Neptune couldn't make the orders so Triton did and Triton was the one who had to go gather Mahaado…

The noise of feet against the cobblestone street snapped Neptune out of his memories. Magician Mahaado, followed by all of the surviving Sprites, trudged up the way, Atemu's body, wrapped tightly in a black blanket that a Sprite had been carrying, in his arms. One pearly white hand, streaked with bright red, slipped out of the blanket, almost glowing against the black. Mahaado's face was expressionless. His eyes stared ahead, empty like two dark tunnels. The leopard stood suddenly and trotted toward Mahaado, his tail high in the air, a soft purring noise in his throat.

But Mahaado ignored Ebony and walked past the leopard. Ebony looked slightly taken aback but shook his head and turned around to follow the magician. Mahaado seemed to not to even to notice the animal trying to get his attention. He looked dead on his feet, like a soulless vessel walking among the living without a purpose.

Neptune looked up at the palace, looming eerily over the village and remembered a time when he looked up at the palace and felt joy and pride. Now he only felt empty. He winced as his eyes slid over the highest tower and a vision of silver haired Proteus falling from it flashed through his mind. He remembered when he only thought Proteus had been knocked unconscious. What he wouldn't give for that to be true.

Mahaado reached Neptune and seemed as though he were about to collapse. Though Mahaado's wounds had stopped bleeding, he was still covered in the crimson liquid. His robes were torn and stained, his face was marble white, and his hair was matted and tangled. The sight of Mahaado in his weakened, beaten, empty state seemed to be easier for Neptune to look at, rather then the mass of blanket wrapped tightly around the thin body. And the sickly pale hand, proving what Neptune's mind had been trying so hard to keep out.

"Is this the Lord Guardian?" asked Neptune quietly.

"Yes," said Mahaado, his voice dead and dull. His eyes fell on the gory mess that was Triton.

"Triton is dead," said Neptune. He looked into Mahaado's eyes to see a flicker of sympathy and mourning darken the magician's icy blues. Mahaado suddenly glanced down. Yuugi and Neptune's gaze followed to see Ebony leaning against Mahaado's leg, purring softly.

"Where did you say you found this leopard?" asked Neptune, glancing at Yuugi.

"He was in the Cavern," said Yuugi, watching Ebony walk around in a circle a few times before laying down, dropping his head on Mahaado's foot. Looking bemused, Mahaado looked at Yuugi. "He seemed friendly," said Yuugi, shrugging.

"Never mind the animal," said Neptune. "We have much to discus and plan. As Typhoon's will, Calypso will become Empress. We need to return Master Yuugi and his friends to their realm before anymore harm befalls them. Leucothea will need to plan Calypso's coronation as quickly as possible. The sooner we can fill the empty throne, the better. And we'll need to plan… funerals…"

Mahaado nodded as two middle-aged menservants stepped out of the palace. Neptune pointed to the body in Mahaado's arms and the body in Holly's arms. The men nodded and collected Atemu and Triton, their hands shaking as they did so. They quickly returned into the palace as though to finish their task as quickly as possible. The remaining Sprites looked at Neptune for directions.

"Go up to the infirmary if you need to. If not, return to your rooms and… and… try and forget what you had to see tonight," said Neptune, watching the Sprites murmur among themselves. They were, of course, all going to their rooms. They had no intention of seeing dead bodies, smelling the foul smell of air sanitizer trying to cover up the scent of dead flesh, or listening to the sorrowful weeps of loved ones. There would be tears in the soldier's hall tonight.

Mahaado watched them pass him, giving him looks of awe and apology, as though it was somehow their fault that Atemu was dead. Neptune sat down on one of the front steps and looked up at Mahaado.

"You don't mind do you? I really don't want to go into the palace right now."

"Neither do I," said Mahaado, shaking his foot slightly, jerking Ebony out his slumber. Watching Ebony look lovingly up at him as he sat down, Mahaado sat down, stroking the snow leopard's head. Yuugi watched this for a moment, feeling slightly abandoned. Why did Ebony like Mahaado so much? Yuugi sat down, a few feet from Mahaado and looked at both of the tired looking men.

"What about Proteus's funeral?" asked Yuugi, softly.

"It was scheduled for tomorrow, but it will have to postponed, I guess," said Neptune.

"Well…" Mahaado open his mouth to say something but the doors to the palace burst open. Mana, followed closely by Tea, Kaiba, Joey, and Tristan filed out of the door, their faces pale and disbelief etched on every line of their faces.

"Yuugi!" gasped Tea, lurching forward and clinging on to him. "Please! Tell us, please! It can't be true! It just can't be!"

"What?" asked Yuugi dully.

"Yuugi…" Joey stepped forward and looked from Mahaado's tear stained face to Neptune's gaunt dead expression to Yuugi's blank, empty eyes. Assuming the worst, Joey swallowed deeply, his throat now constricting, and continued. "Is Atemu… is Atem… dead?"

"Yes."

"No!" cried Mana, her pure blue eyes shining. "NO!" Mana threw herself into Mahaado's arms, wrapping hers around his shoulders and buried her face in his chest. Her muffled sobs, her tearful embrace shook Mahaado's body, his face taut with dismay, tears streaming silently down his face, dropping into Mana's hair.

Yuugi watched Mahaado's frame shake with anguish and felt a slight vindictive pleasure. The pain surging through Mahaado's heart couldn't have been any worse then the turmoil flowing in Yuugi's head and heart, threatening to asphyxiate him, plunge him into emptiness and nothingness… someone else deserved to feel this pain!

Then Yuugi felt shame. The pair of magicians, who had been nothing but kind to Yuugi, deserved none of what Yuugi was wishing upon them and suddenly, he felt Atemu's eyes upon him. What would Atemu think if he saw Yuugi acting this way?

Suddenly, an image of Atemu flashed through Yuugi's mind. Atemu's smooth, slightly hoarse voice slipped in and out of Yuugi's mind. Yuugi closed his eyes. Atemu was so close… if Yuugi reached forward, he was sure he would feel Atemu's thin shoulder. Atemu was speaking to Yuugi.

"Yuugi, this isn't you. Where is your pure heart? Where is your kindness?"

"It's gone Atemu. Just like you. You left me. You promised you'd always be there for me, but you lied."

"Yuugi, I will never leave you. I swore to protect you, and I always shall. You know better to think that I, of all people, would lie to you."

"Why did you have to go?"

"I'm not gone, Young One. I will always be with you."

"Young One? You haven't called me that in a while."

"No… I haven't… have I? I thought perhaps…you were too old to be called such a term. But your youth is what I need. Maybe with your young eyes, you can spot the truth. See the light leading to darkness."

"What truth? Light leading to darkness?"

"'What truth?' Yuugi, use your brain; if Aura had actually taken all of my life energy, as Mahaado correctly guessed she did, she would be in impending danger that my life energy would destroy her. Surely that makes sense?"

"Yes…"

"She knew that, but she thought she had taken enough energy to where I would die anyway. But not all of it. With the last of my strength I transferred the last of my life energy to another vessel. You've always been good at spotting the light in people. Now I need you to find the shadows. You need to find me. You're a smart boy. Use what you know, your cat-like cunning. I can't tell you where I am; Aura and I are too closely connected, I can't afford for her to hear where I am, lest she try and. But you'll find me. "

"But Atem!"

But Atemu didn't answer. Yuugi opened his eyes and suddenly found that there was shouting around him, coming from the person Yuugi had least expected to shout at this time. To everyone's immense surprise, Tristan had rounded on Kaiba like a violent wolf trapping prey.

"WELL?" shouted Tristan. "DO YOU MISS HIM NOW?"

Kaiba looked ill; his face was thin and haggard but his eyes darted around to every face desperately trying to find someone to help him, and then he closed his eyes.

"No… no… no…" whispered Kaiba, shaking his head. "I don't… I don't need him… I don't need anyone."

A slight whisper brushed past Yuugi. The boy jumped only to spot Ebony looking up sadly at Kaiba. The snow leopard sat in front of Kaiba, sitting in its unusually straight way, its head still and cocked slightly to the side. Kaiba opened his icy blue eyes and stared down at the animal.

He squinted at Ebony suddenly and crouched down with the leopard. Taking Ebony's face in his hands, Kaiba stared into the leopard eyes. "Atemu?" he whispered.

Mahaado and Mana's head jerked up so quickly it would have given anyone else whiplash. Yuugi dashed to the animal's side. Of course! How could he have been so blind? So stupid?

Atemu's hints… spot the truth… cat-like cunning… Yuugi saw that Ebony's face started of black at the nose but around his eyes was pure white. Light leading into the shadows... the white fur leading into the Shadow Guardian's eyes. And the way the animal acted should have been enough. The way he was calm and dignified. The way he loved Yuugi and Mahaado so much. The way his cocked his head to the side when thinking or longing to say something.

"It is you, isn't it Atemu?" breathed Yuugi. The leopard looked as though it could have smiled. He got on its hind legs and placed his front paws on Yuugi's shoulders, but quickly lost balance and had to sit again.

"Yuugi… what's going on?" asked Mahaado.

"Atemu talked to me… somehow, I don't know but he said that Aura didn't steal all his energy and he transferred the last of his energy into the leopard before he died." Yuugi said all of this in one breath, his heart swelling with an emotion he thought he'd never feel again. Happiness.

While Neptune, Tea, Kaiba, Joey, and Tristan looked thoroughly bemused, Mana and Mahaado seemed to have taken this in with great ease. They looked at each other and then at the leopard.

"Of course," muttered Mana, tugging at her hair and beginning to pace. "Atemu's life energy had so much power it could have overwhelmed Aura and shallow her whole."

"So she had no choice but to leave a tiny portion left," continued Mahaado, looking at the leopard as though he had brought all of the magician's dreams true. "Atemu! You're alive!" Mahaado swooped forward and wrapped his arms around the leopard. A loud purring filled the night air followed closely by loud whoops and shrieks of cheer.

-

- - -

-

Having collected Atemu's body from the morticians, Neptune placed it on a bed in the infirmary. Nurses and doctors swooped down on Atemu's body instantly and began nursing his wounds from Aura, using magic to heal almost everything, not having to worry about being attacked by Shadows like Mahaado did.

Calypso had sprinted to the infirmary to see that Atemu was alive and repeated what Joey and Tristan's first question to Mahaado was. "How do we get Atemu back into his body?"

"We can't do that now," said Mahaado sharply. "He doesn't have enough life energy to sustain life in a human's body. He'd die almost instantly if we transfer him back into that body. And as long as he has enough energy to stay alive in that leopard's body, it's not going to make more life energy. We have to get the energy Aura stole back."

Mahaado placed his head on his fist, watching as Mokuba dangled a piece of yarn above Atemu's head, a slight smile on the magician's face. Atemu swatted at the yarn desperately, but Mokuba continued to jerk it out of the leopard's reach just before the claws caught it.

"Why is Atemu acting like a cat?" asked Joey.

"Like a feline?" corrected Mana, as she stroked Atemu's large head. "He's in a leopard's body. Of course he's going to have some feline characteristics in that body. Probably even when he gets back into his body."

"What so you mean?" asked Tea.

"Nothing much, most likely. He'll probably move a little more stealthily, that's it," said Mahaado, looking out of the window nervously. "Why do you think Aura hasn't attacked the palace yet?"

"Who knows?" said Tristan. "How are we going to get Atemu's life energy back from Aura? And what about his Shadow powers?"

"We have to wound her deeply enough for Mahaado to perform a Drainage Spell like Aura did," said Mana, looking affectionately at Mahaado. "Then he'll use a Transfer Spell to put the Shadows and energy back into Atemu's body. Then we'll take the energy from the leopard and return the energy back to Atemu's body."

"How are we going to hurt Aura enough to use the full Drainage Spell without Atemu's help?" asked Kaiba, eyeing the leopard as Mokuba wrapped his arms around Atemu and squeezed, collecting his soft, warm fur between his fingers.

"That's that trick, isn't it?" said Mahaado darkly. Even Atemu lay down as everyone sat in silence, watching Mahaado think.

Suddenly, an ear-splitting roar split the silence, shattering windows, knocking over loose objects and shaking the palace itself. And then, just as quickly as the roar had split the sky, there was quiet once again. Mokuba was clutching on to Atemu, weeping slightly, his breath ragged and terrified as Atemu, now suddenly on all fours, bared his teeth and growled menacingly.

"Aura…" breathed Mahaado, brushing the glass off of Mana, ignoring his own fresh cuts and looking out of the window. "She's coming."