No, this is NOT a new chapter. I repeat, NOT A NEW CHAPTER. I really just hated chapter 9, and trying to edit it all was too big of a task, so, I cut it in half. This is the half that I cut off, Yugi's soul room part, up until the end. Chapter nine was heavily edited, so please, do re-read it and feedback would be adored. However, I'm not mean. I will be updating chapter 11, the new chapter, in a few hours. Thanks!

i, your review made me want to laugh and cry at the same time, so I just settled for the old face in pillow with scrambled thoughts for a few minutes. xD Please, tell me I did better! Your help is greatly appreciated.

Enjoy!

And I apologise for raising your hopes.

Secrets Underground

Chapter 10

My body felt light. It felt as if I was floating through space in complete darkness, only to suddenly see light behind my closed eyes. It got brighter and brighter the more I drifted along until it seemed as if I had only closed my eyes in a bright room. And then suddenly, out of nowhere, I stopped flying.

Slowly, like a feather, I was put to stand on my feet in this light. The ground was cold; that was the first thing my mind started to register other than the lightness, and I could feel my arms gently return to my sides. Just what was happening to me? The first thing that popped into my head was the appearance of another dream, so as soon as I felt some weight return to my body, without wasting any time I opened my eyes only to be hit with a blinding light. I snapped my eyelids shut and stepped back, using my arms to shield my vision from the brightness. I stood there, breathing through my teeth, too afraid to even move my now cold feet. I had no idea where I was, and one thing was for sure, I was definitely not in Ramose's home any more. Then, where am I? What was this place? I would never find out if I just hid my face like this, so hesitantly and very slowly I removed my arms and opened my eyes to look around me. My eyes adjusted easier this time, and as soon as I was able to see, I stepped back in shock. This… this looked like…

"We finally meet again, Yugi."

Still in mild disbelief, my head instantly spun around to see the one who had spoken. My heart twisted in my chest as I stared at Shadi who was standing by the doorway, looking at me with that expressionless face of his. I gulped when he took a step into the square, light blue painted room, easily avoiding the familiar history books and games scattered across the entire floor. Just like I predicted- he returned. But, now what? What am I to do? What was he going to do? One after another, questions rammed my brain, but so far none received any answer.

"Wh-Where am I?" I asked, my voice shaking with fear and confusion as I looked at him before returning my gaze to the bedroom I was in. My bedroom. A double sized bed with white pillows and a light blue bedsheet, my history books sitting across the floor like they usually are at home, and my toys and games that I keep on my shelves, laying on the ground for all eyes to see. None of this was making any sense to me. There were no windows in this room like my bedroom, and the pitch black hall outside the door was a big sign that kept me assured that I was not back at the Game Shop where I lived. So, where was I?

"Where am I?" I asked again, and with trembling hands I made fists before staring at him with as much confidence I could muster. I've had enough of the questions, and fearing him so badly. Now, I was going to make sure I got some answers. If he wants me to save his Pharaoh, then he'll have to do this for me because I couldn't take it anymore.

Calm as ever, he locked eyes with me for a while. He was studying me, and the more he stared, the more I had to fight back the nerves and clutch my courage tightly. I swallowed uneasily, but stayed strong. Then, he spoke.

"This is your soul room," Shadi answered, and at that I loosened my fists and just watched him with trepidation because I had never heard of such a thing.

"My, soul room?" I repeated, and I glanced around the room again, uneasy.

"Yes," Shadi confirmed. "This is a room in your mind which is connected to your heart. It depicts your life, your dreams, your goals and wishes. It holds your secrets, and most importantly, it holds who you are, and what you yourself may not know what you will become."

"Who I am?" I asked with wide eyes, and he slowly nodded. I watched as he took a step forward, but just as quickly I stepped away from him and eyed him wearily. I had no proper reason to trust this man, ghost, or, whatever he is.

"Why have you brought me here?" I then asked, the words coming out harsher than I intended, but from his unchanging expression, I couldn't tell if he minded or not.

"I had to speak with you," he replied.

I just continued to stare at him. He remained silent, looking at me intently, and when he said nothing more, my mouth opened and my frustration poured out like a fountain.

"About what? Are you going to clarify to me why I'm here? If so, I already know. I'm in Ancient Egypt, during Pharaoh Aknamkanon's rule, with his son, the Nameless Pharaoh, the one you want me to save, just a few steps away from me." I glared. "So tell me. Explain! Because frankly I'm tired of all the questions."

"That is what I've come to do," he said, and I listened closely to what he had to say even though the spark of anger that lit up inside of me the minute I began to speak grew bigger.

"Indeed, you are here in Pharaoh Aknamkanon's time, and it is in this time period that you will fulfill your destiny."

Somehow, hearing him say the word "destiny" once again, it caused the fire burning to be put out, and tears welled up in my eyes. Destiny? My destiny took me back thousands of years into the past? What the heck. This was a horrible nightmare. It had to be. My destiny couldn't have possibly brought me back here, to an evil, or not evil, King's time. No way.

"Why do you keep saying that?" I asked, my voice shaking. "I don't want this destiny. I don't want to save him, so just leave me alone, okay? Take me back home. Take me back."

"I'm sorry, but I cannot do that."

"Why not!?" I shrieked. "Why me? Why do I have to save him?" and in despair I dropped to my knees, my bare legs making contact with the cold floor. I could sense Shadi's eyes on me, but I couldn't care any less. The first time I step foot into Egypt, a few days after I'm hunted down by a ghost and thrown into Ancient Egypt, fearing for my life the minute I entered, stuck with saving, quite possibly, the evilest and mysterious Pharaoh to have ever lived.

"Because you're the only one that knows how."

"What do you mean?" I asked between watery eyes, and I gazed up at him. He was looking down at me, and I looked on as he stepped forward before crouching down infront of me. With one of his legs up and one bent to the ground, I shivered when he brought a hand and rested it on my shoulder. It felt like a real hand and I had to remind myself that he was just a spirit. A ghost. And as I reassured myself of that, goosebumps broke out on my flesh and I couldn't bring myself to get away from him.

"I know that this is a frightening experience for you, and I know that you are afraid of me, but you have to trust me when I say that you are the only one that knows how to save the Nameless Pharaoh. He needs you right now, so you have to stay here and remember all that you've lost so that you could save his soul from destruction."

"What is it that I have to remember? What do I know? I know nothing," I began to say to the ground, and I clenched my eyes when he tightened his hold around my shoulder. The Nameless Pharaoh needs my help, and Shadi thinks that I know, when in truth I don't know anything about the Nameless Pharaoh. No one does. So, what makes him think that I hold all the secrets? And remember? Remember what exactly? Nothing was making any sense to me.

"Yes you do. You hold all the answers and it is I that know nothing," Shadi said. "I am merely your guide. I'm here to guide you towards retrieving the memories of your past life," and as soon as those words left his mouth, I froze. Slowly, my eyes wavering from shock, too afraid to wonder whether or not my ears deceived me, I looked up at him.

"Past life? What are you talking about?" I asked, fear and worry rising within me, and I gulped when he closed his eyes for a moment before reopening them. I looked on as he stood, and with a small glow of his eyes, I watched as the four walls of the square room I was in collapsed around us one by one. As they fell, my eyes got bigger and bigger and I gawked in horror once I saw what was hidden beyond the walls of my so called soul room. Slowly I got to my feet, and just stared.

Stairs. Hundreds, thousands of stairs ran up and down, sideways and upside down, left and right, each one leading to an iron door filled with mystery. The room was thick with the scent of Egypt everywhere. Sand covered the floor, and limestone bricks created everything from what I could see. It reminded me of an Egyptian home, tomb, or a palace filled with answers that only the owner knew, that was how grand it was. I took a step forward, and then another, my eyes locked on the strange place. I kept walking across the blue, fallen walls of my room, and standing at the boundary of the blue and the cold limestone, I stopped, gulping nervously.

"Now that the time has arrived," Shadi started, "I can make you aware of your first life that was hidden from you until this moment. This room… represents the memories that you have forgotten. This is the soul room of your past existence."

"I don't understand…" I began, clenching my teeth together and gulping as I looked around before turning back to Shadi. "Are you saying that I lived before?"

"Yes," Shadi replied, and seeing his eyes, I saw that they held no uncertainty. He was sure and so confident about what he was saying, however it was all too hard for me to believe.

"You have lived in Egypt, during this time before. You didn't live as an Egyptian though, but as a Greek who was very close to the Nameless Pharaoh. His name was Timaeus, named after a legendary warrior in Greece. And while you were alive, you knew things that no one else did about the Pharaoh."

"What did I know?" I asked, and I wrapped my arms around my tunic, my toes curling from anxiety. I had said my name was Timaeus, and now Shadi's saying my so-called past-self was also named Timaeus who was also Greek, just like the lies I said. This was nonsense. It had to be.

"I am not sure about what you knew, for not even I existed to know because I was created the day your past-self died. He told me this though. He was sacrificing his life and allowing himself to be reborn in a different form, memories and all, just so that he could rescue his King. He, you, entrusted me with one mission- to get his reborn self to finish what he couldn't. You are the only one who can do it, and the fact that you lied to Ramose and told him you were Greek proved that the memories within are reawakening."

"What did I start, and what do I have to finish? And why am I the only one with the ability to complete it?" I whispered, the weight of the revelation causing dread to well up inside of me. "I thought I was supposed to save the Nameless Pharaoh, and still I don't know what I'm supposed to rescue him from. Save him from what? Don't you have any answers?"

"No. But, I can tell you one thing. Just go along the day, and hopefully you will recall as you spend more time here."

I paused to think to myself carefully, my eyes running across the millions of stairs before me. As much as I wanted to deny everything that I has seen, now that I was thinking carefully about it, it couldn't be a hallucination. My past self and life, and then seeing all of this? It was all too real. And I'm not even going to forget the dreams I started to have the minute I entered the Nameless Pharaoh's tomb. Maybe I am connected some way, and this destiny did have some truth? It would explain the reason I'm here, stuck in Ancient Egypt to fulfill my so-called purpose. I wasn't so sure about the past-self thing though. Rebirth was something I was a bit iffy with, but Shadi seemed to be so sure that I held all the answers somewhere within me. I sighed, closing my eyes, unsure of what I was supposed to do. Shadi though wasn't going to let me leave, so, I might as well just go with it, right?

"Alright," I said, gathering determination to try to figure out how to deal with this destiny of mine. "I'll do it. I'll follow along, but I don't know what I'm supposed to do and there's still a tiny part of me that doesn't even think that this is all real." I looked up at Shadi. "So tell me. What is it exactly that I have to do? What is my destiny?"

"You have to save the Nameless Pharaoh," Shadi said, and I nodded, already knowing that little fact. "Something happened to him, and it wasn't right, but that cannot be changed. However, in his tomb sits something that has be spurring alive within his body. I've seen it as I watched over his soul that has still not passed on. It's growing stronger, and right now it's on the brink of causing havoc across the world. That's why you need to do this now."

"Do I know how to stop him?" I asked, and Shadi bobbed his head.

"You do, but since you forgot, you have to go through the life of your past self to put the pieces back together. You will get knowledge here in Ancient Egypt, and you already know the outcome of our land because you're from the future. That is why only you can do it. You have both sides while your past self only had one. Your past self didn't know what laid in store for him, but since you're reborn, you can say you saw a bit of the future. You will still die, because that's how your past self will end, but you will be transported back to the future. Before then though, set things in place that you will need once you return. Prepare."

"But how do I know?" I cried. "How can I remember?"

"Let yourself be guided," Shadi answered. "Everything will play out, and right now, you are just following the footsteps of your past self, just like you did with where you were from. Follow your heart and make your decisions wisely until you slowly regain your memories."

"So, I'm just redoing things?" I asked, trying to swallow the information he was giving me even though it caused my stomach to churn.

"Yes," Shadi answered, and I took a few breaths slowly only to have my eyes widen when I remembered something, something that started to make a little bit of sense now that I know of my apparent past self.

"Is that why the necklace was there? Did my past-self put it in the Nameless Pharaoh's sarcophagus, knowing that I would find it? It did lead me to the village," I explained. "Without it I may not have found my way."

Shadi looked at me blankly, and slowly he nodded. "Perhaps." But then another thing popped up for me to question.

"But I thought he, my past self, didn't know of the future. If he didn't know, why did he put the necklace there for me? How did he know that I would get the neckless? How did he even know that he would be reborn in me?" I watched as a smile graced Shadi's lips, and seeing him show such a bold expression unnerved me.

"That, I believe, Yugi, is faith. He had faith that evil will be destroyed, something that I hope you start believing in as well."

"So does that mean the Nameless Pharaoh truly is evil?" I said slowly, but Shadi did not give me a straight answer.

"You will have to figure that out on your own. I do not want what I say influencing your decisions. They have to be as pure and untouched just like your past self's choices were."

Unable to think of anything that could counter what he said, I just remained mum, brooding silently to myself only to speak again once I remembered what had happened to the strange, little trinket. However, when I looked up, I saw that he was walking away, his form getting dimmer and more translucent.

"Shadi!" I yelled, and he stopped after a few steps to look at me. "The necklace is gone though. I dropped it and Priest Set found it."

"Don't worry," he said. "It is with the person it should be with. Again, it is the past playing out. If you weren't to have it, then you won't have it. If you need it again, you will know how to retrieve it." And he began to walk again, disappearing quickly, a sure sign that our conversation was over. Feeling fearful again, I couldn't help but call out once more.

"Shadi!" I shouted, but a bright, blinding light invaded my vision once again. Just like before it got bright and brighter and I got lighter and lighter. A moment later, everything started to dim, and I opened my eyes again when I saw pitch black behind my lids. Darkness greeted me, and I realised that I was back in the small home, laying on the cot in Merimose's room.

Flopping down, I clenched my teeth together, and with one movement I sat up and allowed my feet to touch the dusty ground. I stared at my hands which were in my lap, and shaking I brought them up to my face in hopes that I may be able to ease the pounding of my heart. Slowly I took deep breaths in, and then out, but nothing seemed to work to get me to calm down. I was in a world that wasn't my own. People I don't know, a culture that I didn't understand and wasn't used to. How could I deal with this? And then my destiny. Saving the Nameless Pharaoh.

With a sigh I leaned down into the cot and slowly brought my legs up. As I adjusted the sheet over my body, I stared at the darkened wall, picturing the dark, with a tint of blue, sky that laid outside. My eyes slipped shut, and slowly my body returned to its normal breathing pattern. There was nothing more I would want to do than go home. But, I will try to fulfill this destiny of mine. The world apparently rested in my hands. I won't stay here forever, that was clear through Shadi's words though. Eventually, I'll wake up and I'll really find myself at home with my Grandpa. Everything will go back to normal. I just have to continue to have faith that everything will return to how it was.

So there we have it. I do hope you liked it. If you had read the before, tell me what you think of them both now. I'm really trying my best to make this story as perfect as I can, and all of you, readers, are encouraged to point out any flaws you can see, no matter how little. :) I see your reviews, and it warms my heart reading your kind words of encouragement. It fills me with hope and determination, and trust me, I will continue to write until the end, even if I do take some time to update.

Thank you once again, and I look forward to seeing you all next chapter for the "official" new update.

Bye~