After they had searched every corner in the city, the priests took off on their horses, splitting into two groups. Isis and Karim took the north, while Akhenaden and Shada took to the east. They released their shadow monsters, so that they could search as well.

Meanwhile, back in the city, Sakhmet, Seto, and Mahad were already fighting against the gods. The gods used their own shadow creatures, ones more powerful than the priests'. Sakhmet's Chimera the Mythical Beast held up pretty well; but Mahad and Seto were forced to bring out some of their strongest creatures.

"Come, Dark Magician!" Mahad yelled, and the mage appeared, blocking an attack from the Blackwing Armor Master. Seto held out his hand, "Blue Eyes White Dragon! Come forth!" The huge white beast roared and bit in half Silverwind the Ascendent. It disappeared, screaming.

"Mahad! Look out!" Sakhmet shouted, alerting her friend to the swing of Darklord Zerato's sword. He quickly turned around, his Dark Magician too slow to reach him; but Seto's Blue Eyes quickly took care of the monster, having more attack points than it. Mahad nodded in thanks, while Sakhmet used her Chimera to take out one more of the monsters attacking the city. She descended to Mahad's side, Seto joining them.

"This is ridiculous! How many more of them are there!" She screamed in frustration. Seto grimaced while Mahad looked up to the sky, where the two figures behind all of the damage were.

"If only we could reach them. But they just keep summoning more shadow creatures left and right," Seto put into words what Mahad was thinking.

"We could easily fly up there if there were not as many monsters around. And who knows? They could easily summon much more powerful monsters... stronger than your Blue Eyes, Seto," Sakhmet pondered, trying to imagine a stronger monster other than the three Egyptian god monsters.

Their three monsters were still fighting the ten monsters controlled by the gods. All of them were level six monsters or higher, which gave the three priests quite a challenge. If they didn't think of something soon, the city didn't stand a chance.

"Okay, I think I may have a plan-" Seto began, but Sakhmet interrupted him, "Listen, no one wants to hear your stupid-" Mahad interrupted her, "Sakhmet, let him continue."

"Fine," she grumbled.

"As I was saying, I may have a plan that could work. Sakhmet, you're going to have to summon the strongest monsters you have. Same with you Mahad. I know that it will take a lot out of both of you, but if you keep the monsters controlled by the gods busy, then I can slip through and take them out with my Blue Eyes."

They both stared at him for some time before before Sakhmet snickered, "Trying to be the hero? Is it because you think the Pharaoh might like you better if you save his city? Or is it just a pride thing?"

He growled, "Like you have a better plan?"

"Well... no, not exactly. But both Mahad and I have stronger monsters than your Blue Eyes, so why use yours?"

"Because of that very reason. If your stronger monsters take out the monsters already out there, then it will give my Blue Eyes a chance to get past them."

"But I am sure that the gods will be able to handle your Blue Eyes. My Sorcerer of Dark Magic is stronger than it."

"Sakhmet..." Mahad put his hand on her shoulder, shaking his head, "This is not the time. His plan is our only hope. Let's go along with it for the time being."

She scowled and glanced at Seto, threatening, "Fine. But when this is over and we are exhausted because of how much we expanded our ba, he is going to wish he had not thought of this plan..." She shrugged Mahad's hand off her shoulder and held out her duel disk. Three more of the slots filled as she yelled, "I summon Sorcerer of Black Magic, Divine Grace-Northwemko, and Ancient Dragon!"

The three monsters appeared in flashes of light, surrounding their master. Mahad held up his duel disk as well, with four more slots filling up.

"I summon Ancient Flamvell Deity, Blizzard Princess, Dark End Dragon, and Dark Horus!" He shouted as the four creatures appeared next to Sakhmet's, "Now, Dark Horus and Blizzard Princess, attack their Blackwing Armor Master and their Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon!" They did as they were commanded and attacked, while Sakhmet shouted, "Northwemko! Attack their Chakra!" The sorceress raised her staff and a piercing ray of light shone on the fiend.

She made her Sorcerer of Black Magic and Ancient Dragon attack two other creatures while Mahad used Ancient Flamvell Deity and Dark End Dragon to attack three more. Seto commanded his Blue Eyes to fly through the opening up to the the gods, but once the white dragon reached the deities, they disappeared.

"What? They're gone!" Seto shouted in surprise, getting the attention of Sakhmet and Mahad.

"What did you say...?" Sakhmet looked up to the opening to see exactly what he had said, "No way... where did they go?" She scoured the sky, looking for them, but all three of them spun around when the heard two women laughing behind them.

Standing there were the two gods, a woman with the head of a lion and a woman with the head of a cow. The three priests recognized them immediately.

"Hathor!" Seto shouted while Sakhmet backed down slightly, "S-Sekhmet?"

"You cannot beat the gods. Don't you know that?" The lion-headed woman sneered.

"We can try," her namesake growled, "because if you threaten the Pharaoh, you threaten us."

"As if. That boy you call Pharaoh will soon no longer have that title. It's about time that a new dynasty came into play."

"Atem will finish this dynasty! You can change the dynasty after he is dead. Do not expect us to back down just because you say you need a change in the government."

"How are you supposed to protect your Pharaoh if you don't even have a clue of where he is? Horus has probably taken care of him already. Your kingdom, your home, everything will fall! Without a king, this land has nothing!" She cackled and raised her hand, "Hathor, let us rid the world of these pathetic humans!"

Her associate shook her head, "That is not what we were ordered to do. You're getting carried away again."

"Who cares? I'll do what I want! Forget what he told us! If I wanna kill, I'll kill!"

Sakhmet cut in, "I know that you are the warrior goddess, but... you are also known as the protector of the Pharaoh! So why do you seek to kill him!"

The goddess glanced at her sideways, "You are Sakhmet, daughter of Thoth. You are my human namesake, yet you show no sign of bloodlust... you are not fit to be my counterpart."

"The name does not always make the person; however, I do have one close attribute to you. I am the protector of the Pharaoh, yet I am ashamed to say I failed."

"Failed? You should be proud! You're helping your new dynasty come alive!"

"And who is this new king?" Seto asked.

Sekhmet began, "He is-" but Hathor interrupted her, "You have no reason to know."

"Oh?" Mahad, "And why not?"

"He has not allowed us to-" she was cut off as a huge fireball erupted between the two sides. The fire continued to burn the stone houses and palm trees around them, alighting more and more of the city. The blast knocked back Sakhmet, Seto, and Mahad, but they quickly regained themselves as they heard a loud voice cry out, "Sekhmet! Hathor! He wants us back!"

Through the smoke, the priests saw a man with the head of a hawk: Horus. Now all three of the gods were together.

"Why!" Sekhmet shouted, upset that she was not allowed to kill her enemies in front of her.

"He did not explain! Do not question his authority. Let us go back!" Horus shouted again, disappearing. Hathor nodded and grabbed Sekhmet's wrist, "Let us go."

The fiery goddess glowered, her lips forming into a snarl, but she did not fight the other goddess. She too disappeared with Hathor, and so the beasts they had conjured faded away as well.

Seto stared at the spot in the smoke he had seen Horus, his brain already planning what to do next.

"Alright, Sakhmet, you go and make sure the people here are safe! Mahad, you try to stop this fire!"

"And what, pray, are you going to do?" Sakhmet asked, annoyed that he was once again giving orders.

"I will help you get everyone out after I talk to the soldiers. They should be able to help as well."

"Good, glad to see you are not just making us do the dirty work like you usually do," she sneered. Seto grimaced, "As much as I'd like to argue, this isn't the time."

"Oh, Priest Seto is being mature all of a sudden? That is something new."

"Like you're one to talk."

"So you do want to argue. I knew you could not resist."

Mahad looked up to the sky and groaned, "Can we discuss this later? There might be people who need our help."

"Alright, alright, I will get going," Sakhmet rolled her eyes and hopped onto her Ancient Dragon. She called back the rest of her shadow creatures before flying over to one of the area's in need of the most help.

Atem opened his eyes slowly, squinting from the light of the sun as it set. He had been there for several hours, just roasting in the heat. How he hated himself for not thinking to put on his diadankh that morning so he could summon one of his monsters and get them to take him back home. That was certainly stupid of him.

He had decided he was going to try to find his way back home at night, when the desert cooled off. The surrounding cliffs kept him isolated from the sight of his city, and even though they would be even more treacherous in the dark, he wouldn't be able to bear the sun while traveling.

He sat up and immediately felt a wave of nausea creep up on him. His stomach felt awful, as he had not eaten that entire day. But despite the ache, he got to his feet as the sun lowered itself behind the sandy hills in the horizon, leaving the Pharaoh shrouded in darkness.

It took quite some effort for him to walk, but who knew when someone was going to find him? It was best if he at least attempted to get somewhere, near any civilization. Surely he could find some landmark to tell him the direction of home. Maybe a star, after all, Atem had been taught astronomy as a child.

But the stars looked unfamiliar, so he continued to wander the desert without a clue of where he was. After a short while though, he began to grow tired, and his throat grew even drier-something he thought wasn't even possible. He had barely any energy to even strand, let alone traverse cliffs and sandy hills. He was determined though. He was going to go as far as he could with what little energy he possessed.

An hour or so passed, and the Pharaoh finally reached the brink of the cliffs. What lay ahead of him was an ocean of sand. No city. No civilization. No Nile River. Just his luck. And of course, he had reached his limit. The young man collapsed onto the sand face first once again, and let sleep take him.

"Atem? Atem? My son, where are you?"

The prince sat up from beneath the tree and stretched, responding to his father's call, "Yes, father?"

King Aknamkanon beckoned his son to his side, and the fourteen year old did as he was told, catching a glimpse of the stranger behind his father.

"My son, I have someone here that I want you to meet." His father motioned to the stranger behind him, and a young girl stepped out for him to see. She had dark purple hair that was held back in a loose braid all the way down to the backs of her knees, a creme tunic held tight around her waist by a gold belt, not quite unlike his own, and fiery red eyes that bore the secrets of her past. Another object caught the young man's eye: a diadankh was strapped to her arm. Was she another guardian?

"This is Sakhmet, a priestess in training. She will be replacing Mahad as your protector now that Mahad has become a guardian."

"She's... replacing Mahad?"

"Go on and introduce yourself. I must go inside and meet with the guardians. You two get to know each other." Aknamkanon patted his son on the head and then walked back inside.

Atem looked at Sakhmet met warily. She gave off a cold aura. Almost like she hated him.

"Hello. I'm Prince Atem. It's nice to meet my new guardian," he held out his hand, waiting for her to take it. She stared at it blankly and didn't say anything. He tried again, "You're Sakhmet? I've never seen you around here. You lived in the city right?"

She mumbled, "I have lived in a lot of places."

"Oh. I see... like where?"

"That is none of your business," she snapped, looking off at the pond by one of the garden walls. Atem was taken aback. Why was she so mean? He was just doing as his father had told him. He frowned, "What is your problem?"

"My problem is that I am stuck babysitting a royal brat against my will."

"What?" His temper flared, "What did you just call me!"

"You heard me. Now, leave me alone. Go do whatever it is you normally do. Just because I'm watching over you does not mean I have to talk to you."

The prince gritted his teeth, furious at this new girl. Who did she think she was! She was the most irritating girl he had ever met!

"Okay then, fine! I was trying to be nice but you just had to spit in my face about it. You can go back to wherever it is you came from, because I don't want you here."

"I wish I could!"

"Hello! Is anyone in there! I am here to help you! Please, tell me where you are!" Sakhmet called, ducking underneath a burning archway. Someone screamed from inside, so she carefully maneuvered her way farther into the building. When she rounded a corner, she saw two huddled figures amidst the flames: a mother and her child.

"Hello! Please follow me! I can get you out of here!"

They looked up and saw the priestess, quickly gathering themselves and dodging burning rubble.

"This way!" She shouted, grabbing the wrist of the mother. she guided them back through, but some of the stones caved and blocked their exit.

Sakhmet quickly looked around, searching desperately for another exit. With no other way out, and the flames growing higher and smoke entering their lungs, Sakhmet raised her hand, "Sorcerer of Black Magic, come to our aid, I beseech thee!"

The mage appeared, and his master commanded, "Find us another way out!" He nodded and flew around, disappearing through walls of fire. After what felt like an eternity, he came back, motioning for them to follow.

"Come on," Sakhmet pulled them in the direction of her shadow creature. After dodging flaming stone and wood, they could see the open air beyond. Sakhmet ordered her Sorcerer to take the mother and son first, to ensure their safety. But as they escaped, with Sakhmet right behind them, the foundation crumbled, closing down on Sakhmet's right hand. She screamed in pain as the debris crushed her hand and the flame ate at her skin, climbing her tunic sleeve.

The Sorcerer raised his staff and aimed it at his master's entrapment. A blast of energy broke away the stone and he pulled her away from the inferno. The woman she had helped took off her cloak and wrapped it around her savior's arm, suffocating the fire.

"Thank you! Thank you so much! How can we ever repay you?" The woman cried, holding her son close. The little boy was whimpering, the initial shock of the fire fading away.

"No need-argh-to thank... me," Sakhmet muttered through gritted teeth, trying to bear the pain of her throbbing and stinging arm. There was nothing her Sorcerer could do either. He used dark magic, not ice or water.

"But there must be something we can do to-" The woman pleaded, but Sakhmet shook her head, "There might be others, so I must be off. Please, just get out of here and to somewhere safe."

"Sakhmet!"

She looked up in the direction of the voice, and up in the sky was Seto on his Blue Eyes.

"Seto!"

He landed and motioned for the woman and the boy, "They should come with me. We are guiding all the citizens to the palace courtyard. They should be safe there."

"Alright," she nodded. The little boy wouldn't budge, much to his mother's dismay. He looked at the shadow creature in horror, muttering, "Mama... that's a... that's a big dragon..."

"It's alright, sweetie. This nice man will take us to safety. But in order to do that, we must get on his dragon."

Sakhmet snorted at the woman calling Seto a 'nice man'. She could feel Seto glaring at her, but she tried to ignore him.

"B-But..."

"Please? Don't you want to see Daddy again?"

The little boy nodded his head vigorously, wiping his nose and sniffling. The mother smiled, "Then let's go." She took her son's hand and led him to Blue Eyes, where Seto helped the little boy up as well as the mother. He glanced at Sakhmet, "What happened to you?"

"Aw, does Seto actually care about me?" She asked sarcastically. Seto rolled his eyes, "Fine then, forget I asked."

"If you would like to know, my right hand was crushed and burned from being caught in some falling stones while getting these two out," She took the woman's cloak at tossed it to her, "Thank you, but I do not need it."

Sakhmet looked down at her arm for the first time and saw the inflamed raw skin. Her hand looked a little deformed as well, and she assumed it was broken, but she tried not to make too much of a fuss about it in front of Seto.

"You had better go. I will search for any others that might still be trapped."

"I don't need you telling me what to do."

Sakhmet rolled her eyes and waved her left hand as she walked away, "Goodbye."

The little boy waved heartily back, "Thank you lady!"

Sakhmet couldn't help but smile. The little boy was so adorable. She was happy he was safe.

The priestess beckoned her Sorcerer to follow as she searched the rest of the burning buildings for any stray citizens.