Dripping Wings

Atemu was more weary than he'd ever been in his life as he entered Yuugi's room. It was hard to think of it as his room too when he'd barely slept in it for a few hours only once.

The Healer Ryou was sitting over Yuugi. He was pushing his hand against Yuugi's forehead and checked his energy readings. Yuugi, of course, was still sound asleep.

"How is he?" Atemu asked.

Ryou leaned back in his chair and sighed. He wiped a bead of sweat away from his forehead. The heat of the desert was nearly stifling, even inside the palace, as it was past noon-day. Tiny granules of dust could be seen dancing their way up the beams of sunlight that streamed in from the windows. "Honestly?"

Atemu shifted in position. The heat was making everything uncomfortable. "Yes, honestly. What are his chances of waking up?"

Ryou mindlessly started to massage more soothing energy into Yuugi's arms. "Honestly, then, he's half dead. Every other patient I've ever had that was in this bad of shape died in a fortnight." He shook his head. "But then again, honestly, he was much worse yesterday. He should have been pronounced dead yesterday. Yuugi is definitely unique." His eyebrows narrowed. "Yuugi's insides were kind of...burned. I assume you know the difference between a fire burn and an electrical burn?"

Atemu nodded.

"Well, this burn is also very different from any of the others. He's been overexerting himself. Imagine your blood becoming very hot in your veins, and causing dis-figuration to your veins. Holes in some areas, black marks in others. The tiny ends becoming frayed. The circulatory system for Yuugi's gifts has been burned in a manner similar to this. Yesterday, he had half a circulatory system left. Right now, just the ends of his veins are left healing. Judging by how fast he's been healing, I'd say he'll probably wake up a few hours before sunrise tomorrow."

Atemu felt a small weight lift from his shoulders, and felt a painful squeeze settle around his chest instead. So Yuugi would indeed live longer, only to die more painfully. He walked up to Yuugi's side and leaned over him, brushing his fingers through his lover's hair as he did so.

"This is madness," Ryou tried to reason.

Atemu's lips thinned. "So I've been told."

Ryou felt himself flush with frustration. "How can you expect so much from him? He's been turned into a sacrificial lamb, when he's a person! This isn't fair to him! Why can't we all do more?"

Atemu did not meet Ryou's eyes when he replied to him. After all, he'd had this argument with himself every day since Northern Reach. "It's not for us to decide what happens to him. I've already challenged the fates, and it only angered them. I can only watch helplessly."

"Atemu...!" the Healer pressed.

"That is enough!" the King snapped. Dark ruby eyes locked onto Ryou. "I will hear no more of it." With that, he turned around swiftly and left the room.

The Silver-Class Healer realized that he was, for the first time in his life that he could remember, angry.

In fact, he was downright furious. He'd never felt so much anger boiling through his veins. All of them were acting like sheep! How could the King of Sekesha not see this?

xxx

Jono, Atemu, Marik, and the city's council was currently convening in one of the palace's many conference rooms. "The city should be evacuated," Atemu was saying. He pointed to one of the most accessible exits out of the city on the map. "We'll have someone make a portal, and we'll send every citizen unwilling or unable to fight somewhere safe. Even if we have to send them to the Divine City, they need to leave for the battle."

"Agreed," Marik replied. "Tristan and some of his platoon leaders can organize the evacuation. The faster this is done, the better. The only thing I'm worried about-"

The doors slammed open loudly and purposefully, effectively cutting off what Marik was about to say. A man with white hair and wild blue eyes stormed into the room, a permanent scowl on his face. "What madness walks into this city and turns everything upside down? Whose bright idea was it to get slaughtered at Barrier?"

"Hold your tongue!" Atemu barked. "What right have you to criticize your King?"

Marik cleared his throat. "You'll have to forgive my Captain. He can be a little overzealous at times."

The man with white hair growled. "My name is Barkura, Cavalry Captain of El-Ekehrah's Third Battalion. You're the moron who got my soldiers killed?"

Atemu pinched the bridge of his nose. "Don't act like it was planned that way. We were flying blind. How in the seven hells were we supposed to know necromancers would show up again?"

The Captain snarled. "How about some scouting? We have trained ones for a reason!"

"There wasn't time!" Atemu barked.

"That's enough, Bakura," Marik warned.

"The hell it's enough!" He roared. "Now we've got ten thousand men marching up to the city's very walls! The farmland is going to get ruined! You lot are just sitting around and letting it happen!"

Atemu's eyes narrowed. "Don't be a fool! Sitting here doing nothing? You are the one that's mad. We're doing everything! In fact, we'd probably have started the evacuation if we weren't currently bickering with you!"

"Oh, no," Bakura interjected. "I'm only bickering with you, your Highness."

Marik walked up and grabbed the Captain by the front of his shirt. "What is wrong with you?"

"If I remember my decorum correctly," Atemu began, "you swore your allegiance to the Sekeshan Monarchy when you took your oath to become a Guardian. You owe your allegiance and loyalty to me."

Bakura spat on the ground. "I swore my honor and loyalty to serve the Noble House, not a dimwit such as yourself. You've got us all sitting here like helpless infants while you set it up for your Bonded to commit suicide trying to subdue the enemy all alone."

"What Yuugi must do is out of any of our hands! It is the Goddesses that will be taking his life, not me! I would stop this if I could! Don't you dare accuse me of abandoning him!" Atemu's anger was growing. Red and black energies cackled and fizzed around his form dangerously.

"Oh, yes," the Captain still mocked, ignoring the hand that was squeezing tighter on his shirt. "The King would know this, of course. 'The Goddesses want him.' How can you put so much stock in those bloody prophecies? Don't tell me you still believe the Royal Family is actually descended from the Goddesses too! How could you possibly know what will happen?"

There was a deafening 'pop' as Atemu's Shadow energy snapped, and a gust of wind rolled through the room. "Because," he seethed. His wings were released, then flapped angrily behind him a few times. "I am descended from the Goddesses! I spoke with them! I angered them! I accused them that what they are requesting of my Bonded, also your King, is wrong! Enochnral is marching on the doorstep of the Sanctuaries beyond just as His army marches on us! Yuugi isn't meant to kill an army, he's supposed to kill a God!"

Bakura was silenced by the news, but his face didn't look any less angry. "Fine, so Yuugi has bigger fish to fry. I get it! Then what are the rest of us supposed to do in the mean time, sit around and chew our nails?!"

"Of course not!" Atemu snapped. The King paced for a moment, then sighed. His energy levels settled back down to normal. "But Questchal isn't playing by the normal rules anymore. They are using dirty, underhanded magick, and divine forces we have never faced before." He looked up at Bakura. "We still aren't sure the best way to stop these forces decisively. I'm not sure if we know how."

Marik felt it was once again safe to release Bakura and stepped back. The Captain crossed his arms and stared at Atemu. "Then why don't we use the dirtiest, lowest tricks that we know? Everything terrible, forbidden, and illegal, magicks that we're not even allowed to talk about- let's use them! You know the enemy will not stop until every single one of us is dead. If they've changed the rules, so can we!"

"Don't be absurd," Atemu replied. "Those arts are forbidden for a reason. They're dangerous. Our fighters could hurt themselves more than the enemy. Besides that, the ends do not justify the means. We have morals."

"Will you really allow your country to die by its morals? There won't be a different outcome for us except death unless we change our tactics! What good will it be for Enochnral to be dead if the rest of us don't survive!?"

Atemu did not answer right away. Even the council could see he was clearly thinking it out.

The silence stretched on for nearly five minutes.

"I agree," Jono spoke up.

Atemu's eyes were wide with surprise when he looked at him. "Why?"

"Yuugi's sacrifice will mean nothing if we can't even survive the week."

"I agree as well," Marik replied.

Atemu turned to the council. The men and women looked at him expectantly. "And what is the City of El-Ekehrah's opinion? Should we allow our people to use the magicks that have always been forbidden? Blood magick, summons, mind destruction, possession, sacrifices?"

The council shifted in position for a moment. They looked at each other, silent body language communicating volumes. The head of the council looked up at the King. "We...agree. Let it be known the records of these unspeakable events should be destroyed, should we live long enough to have them."

Atemu sighed. "All right. We'll do it." He looked over at the now eager blue eyes of the Cavalry Captain. "Bakura, I want you to head this operation. I'm sure you've already entertained a few suggestions for how these tricks should be implemented."

Bakura grinned. "You have no idea."

xxx

Yuugi felt himself wake very slowly. His chest felt strangely heavy, but it wasn't uncomfortable. He wondered briefly how long he'd been out of it this time. He sucked in a larger breath in an attempt to get more oxygen to his brain and opened his eyes. He saw that Ryou was sitting next to him, watching him as he woke. "Hey, Ryou."

Ryou smiled thinly. "Hello, Yuugi."

Yuugi rubbed his eyes. "How long have I been asleep?"

"About a day and a half."

He pushed himself onto his side as he attempted to sit up. "Ugh. I feel like I've been hit by a truck."

At this, the Healer grinned. "A big, fiery red semi with horns on the grill."

Yuugi sat up a little straighter. "How did you...Ryou, are you a drop-in too?"

His friend grinned. "Yeah. I came from the Chicago area originally."

"I never knew. You never mentioned..."

Ryou shrugged. "It didn't seem pertinent to mention. With my white hair, I fit in so well. Everyone in the Divine City has pale, pastel colored hair. After what I went through where I cam from, I just wanted to fit in. I didn't get a chance to know you long enough and tell you before you were whisked away to the palace."

Yuugi nodded. "I can understand that." He sighed. He really didn't feel like getting up, but he knew he would have to. "When is the army going to get here?"

Ryou shrugged. "Depends, really."

Yuugi looked up. "On what?"

"On how well the traps work."

"Traps?"

The Healer smiled. "We haven't been idle while you recovered, you know."

The King sighed. "I suppose I shouldn't have to worry about it. I'll have plenty of other things to focus on." He swung his legs to the side of the bed and let them dangle. Ryou was quiet next to him as he gathered his thoughts. "Do you think it'll hurt, Ryou?"

"What's that, Yuugi?"

"Dying."

Ryou hissed. "Those are dark thoughts, Yuugi. You shouldn't worry."

"It's coming, though. How can I not?" He hugged his arms to himself. "I'm afraid."

"Don't be," his friend pressed. "If the Goddesses are really going to go through with this, I know that they won't be cruel. You won't feel a thing."

"Said the dentist with the drill."

Ryou grinned. "I'm not a dentist, and they don't have drills in this world. Now you're being a pessimist."

Yuugi smiled. Ryou was really trying to cheer him up, and he appreciated it so much. Suddenly, his thoughts turned elsewhere. "What are you doing down here, Ryou, in El-Ekehrah?"

The Healer grinned. "What can I say? I fell in love."

"With the city?"

He shook his head. "No, with a Cavalry Captain. He's currently the mad-man behind the traps being set up for the Questchal army."

"I see."

"It'll be okay, Yuugi. I promise. I can feel it."

Yuugi smiled. "I hope your intuition is better than mine." He met eyes with him. "Thank you."

xxx

Bakura walked his olive green Sacred up and down the Guardians lined up before him. He had taken about six platoons out on the trap setting mission; people he knew, people he'd worked with before, and people he had suspicions that they'd toyed with the forbidden magicks and never told anyone. "I have brought you all here for a very special reason, and to spread the word when we get done here discreetly, quickly, and accurately. The Kings of Sekesha have decided that it is necessary, with some persuasion from knowledgeable sources, for our survival to use the tricks of a dark magician. Any thing you know, the darkest, dirtiest, most cunning and underhanded schemes that you know, now is the time to use them! I don't care how illegal it is, how wrong, or horrible, the worse the magick the better our chances of winning. Use it! In fact, you'll all be held for treason if you don't use the dark arts!"

A ripple of shock very clearly made it's way through the people gathered before him. He might have been overdoing it a little bit, but it was necessary. He couldn't afford any hesitation from anyone.

"Does anyone have any protests to this?"

There was minor shuffling, but no one said a word. Good. He knew he picked these Guardians for a reason. "All right then. It's settled. Now, onto further matters. We need to set a nasty little trap for our soon to be guests. Necromancers will be among them. Anyone got any bright ideas?"

More shuffling. Bakura frowned. They better not be cowards and actually do something now that they could.

"We could spike them," someone suggested.

Bakura pointed at them. "Reynick, good. Come up here."

Reynick, a small, meek individual that was no more intimidating that a piece of cotton walked to the front of the line. He was an earth gifted mage that was rumored to have moved a small mountain whilst in training. He was fresh out of schooling and newly picked by a Sacred. Bakura had worked with him briefly, and knew from his gut instinct that this individual had dabbled in some dark things.

"Spike them how, Reynick?"

The dark haired Guardian gestured to the ground before them. "You know, set up spikes dug into the ground, then hide them. Then let the army walk right into the trap. Considering the way Sekesha has been fighting its wars recently, they won't be expecting anything like it."

"Good," Bakura nodded. "Now, make it worse. Anyone else have suggestions?"

A tall, lanky woman raised her hand. Bakura didn't even recognize her to be female at first, considering her body shape. She was homely looking, but talented. "There's...something that can be done to the spikes. It's complicated, but effective."

"Explain further."

She grabbed at her arm in hesitation. After all, these were things that she wasn't supposed to know how to do, but she did anyway. No one was supposed to talk about these things. "I could use blood magick, and turn the spikes into a sacrificial pit. Once the enemy's blood hit the spikes, it would bind their souls to me, and their bodies would be mine to control. I could use the bodies to send up a noxious gas that could poison those above them."

"Very good!" Bakura cheered. "The nastier the better! I don't care if there is nothing left of the Questchal army's existence, in this life or the next, when we get done with them! More ideas! How are we supposed to deal with these necromancers?"

"That's easy," someone spoke up. "The way to a necromancer is through the corpse they are using. The corpse has no mind, and is directly linked to the mage in question. If a soldier has the ability, simply making eye contact with the corpse is all that is needed. Use the link to send conflicting and confusing thoughts to the necromancer. When using blood magick like that, if the necromancer gets confused and the link with the corpse is messed with, the magick will revolt, and the necromancer will eventually...explode from within. Their blood vessels will collapse and the magick will burst."

"Excellent! Mind control tactics! Next!" Bakura roared. He was getting excited now. These were the things that were necessary to destroy their enemy!

"Turn the necromancy to our side!" Someone replied.

"Poisons that are air-borne, and only activated by the God-Magick of Enochnral!"

"Summon daemons from the Droll Realm to help us! They drag their pray into the next realm with them!"

Bakura laughed maniacally on the inside. "Wonderful! We will survive this!" He cried. "Questchal won't destroy us! Now! Reynick, make your pit. Karlehna, coat it with your blood magick! Teach your tricks to your comrades if you can! We have a lot of preparation to do in order to greet our guests properly."

Some of the people even grinned. Perhaps they could do this.