I don't have that much to say this time around, but this update is a teensy bit longer to make up for my absence. Also, I'm laughing at the title of this chapter. Thank you to everyone who has been following, reviewing, and reading, and I hope you enjoy this update!

Content warning: non-graphic injury description, someone's covered in blood, and Ishtar tries mind control shenanigans again.

Jean Claude eyed the crowd that was milling about the front hall. Behind him was the throne room, the large space converted into a chapel for today's special occasion. The previously empty room had been lined with twenty elegantly carved wooden benches and an altar in front of the throne. Gorgeous summer flowers hung in every corner of the room, white cosmos with bright pink carnations intermixed; Jean Claude had picked out the colors himself. The room had been decked out in white lace with gold-trim thread.

Only one more hour, and then he'd be married. He'd have a kingdom and a beautiful wife, and nothing could stop him. That miserable idiot Jousef was probably nothing more than a slobbering stupid beast by now, and his sister would die without his beloved knowing. While he was away on his honeymoon, he'd have Jou's remaining guards and those in the dungeon executed.

He turned to the mirror and studied his reflection. He'd had some of the old king's wardrobe refitted, so that now he was clad in pure white leggings, a tunic with large, gold trimmed padded shoulders, and boots. He wore a long red velvet cape, and at his side hung his sword; the final addition to his wardrobe aside from the pink carnation pinned to his chest was the orichalcum pendant.

He frowned when he realized he had not yet seen Ishtar that day. The Enterran, who had been skulking about so sullenly for the past few days, had suddenly seemed to cheer up overnight. He had not said why, only that he was now excited for the wedding to begin. Strange, since the man had not seemed to care one way or another, but then that was the enigma named Ishtar. He'd let him be for now.

Jean Claude straightened his cloak one more time, then he looked to the musicians in the hall and motioned for them to start playing their music. Gentle, sophisticated music rang through the hall and the nobles, sensing this was a cue of sorts, began to file into the throne room to take their seats.

Jean Claude beamed. He motioned Gurimo over to him—in twenty minutes, the wedding would begin.

"I was wandering the grounds one day when I fell against a loose grating and found myself in these tunnels," Jou explained as he walked through the dark. "After I clued Tristan in, we started mapping. It was hard to explore because most of them were threatening to cave in, and we had to keep track of where we had been. We had to fix it on our own, basically, but it was worth it. We can get to almost anywhere in the castle."

"You mentioned earlier that you couldn't get in from outside the walls. Why is that?" asked Marik with a frown.

"You could at one point," Jou snorted with some annoyance. "That passage goes from the throne room and under the moat, though, and my dad didn't bother maintaining the tunnels. That path flooded last spring—we had to block the passage so that the moat didn't flood out the other tunnels."

"And the architects were magically absent?"

"Hiring them cost gold. Because after all, good ale is better than letting the men who are supposed to fix the tunnels do their jobs."

"Look, I don' care none 'bout these stupid tunnels or your daddy issues. I jus' wanna know 'ow far away we are from gettin' out," Valon called out from behind them, an edge in his voice. The combination of his inherent fear of small, dark places and his concern for Raphael was severely testing his patience.

Jou could understand Valon's concern; his own worry for his younger sister had been growing steadily, setting in the moment he had crossed the drawbridge into his home. It was all he could do to stay their current course, rather than beeline for the abandoned north tower. Three months ago, he might have charged straight in, but hard-earned experience had taught him that he needed to be slightly more patient. Besides, the potential of a trap lying in wait for them was far too great.

Jou halted and lifted the torch higher, revealing a three-pronged crossroad in front of them. They noted that a little way down the left path there was nothing but cobblestone completely filling the passage; the group assumed that was the flooded tunnel, for they could see a small pool of water gathered at the base of the barricade. That left two passages to them, and a moment later Jou made a small noise of triumph.

"This way," he said decisively, taking off down the right passage. "Only a couple more minutes, and then we'll be there. It'll let out into a cell, so hopefully no one is occupying it. Otherwise, we're out of luck and we'll have to find another way in."

After they had traveled up one last narrow winding stairway (much to Valon's discomfort), the group found themselves being led into a small cell, dimly lit by torches outside in the hallway. Once Jou had made sure the passage door was shut, he carefully pushed on the cell door, holding his breath as he pulled on the ring. Oh please be unlocked, don't be locked, please please pleaaaaase…

To Jou's great relief, the thick oak door creaked open. He relaxed, turning to give a thumbs up to the others. "Door's open," he said in a low voice. "I don't know about guards down here, so be careful coming out."

Jou eased the door open to prevent the hinges from creaking, moving to the wall to allow everyone behind him into the passageway. It was a narrow passage, with cell doors spaced evenly to their left and ending behind them in a small cul-de-sac; the passage abruptly turned to the right, hiding the rest of the cells from view. Unlike the roughly hewn stone that formed the underground catacombs beneath them, the dungeons were built with the same stone that the rest of the castle was, though considerably darker than the stones above them. Aside from the flickering torches overhead, there was no other light.

"Where do we go now?" Valon asked, but Marik motioned for him to lower his voice. Rolling his eyes, the Aurosian continued with a whispered, "Jou, where is everyone?"

"This wing remains mostly unoccupied if I'm not much mistaken, because it's so distant from the entrance," Jou responded with a frown, trying to remember. "Up ahead there's a common room that acts as a hub to the other three passages. I don't know how many people Jean Claude's thrown down here, though…we'll have to check each cell."

Valon noticed an opening in the wall, and when he wandered over to examine it his eyes fell on an anvil sitting on a small wooden cart; there was also a giant metal sledgehammer leaning against the anvil. On the surface of both the anvil and the hammer was what looked like flakes of dried rust.

All the bones below his elbows were broken multiple times, to the point where the bones splintered and came through his skin…

The Aurosian backed away with a noise of disgust and horror. Jou turned and saw the anvil as well, his own expression darkening with anger. "I'll melt that down when this is over," Jou promised grimly.

They tensed when they heard footsteps and loud voices approaching. Judging by Jou's expression, the other group was not to be considered allies.

Marik shot a look to Rishid before turning to Jou and Valon. "Leave them to us," he whispered. "Move further down this passage. Douse the torches as you go."

"But—!"

Marik silenced him with an almost predatory smirk, one that caused the hair on Jou's arms to rise. "Rishid and I grew up in the dark. We're more at an advantage when the light can't reach us," he continued quietly. "Go."

Jou and Valon exchanged glances before the brown-haired man reached for a nearby torch and dropped it into a nearby barrel of water, the flame vanishing with a hiss. Jou followed suit, and within minutes the entire passage was filled with nothing but oppressive dark. Neither Jou nor Valon could see their hands in front of their faces.

Marik, on the other hand, welcomed the darkness like an old friend. His eyes instantly adjusted to the darkened passage, and he knew Rishid could already see as if the torches had not been put out. The two of them waited calmly, almost patiently, as the footsteps drew nearer.

There were three guards, Marik noted as they turned, not any one of them wearing armor. The torches thankfully were spaced out enough so that the last torch was further away from the turn of the passage, and as the men rounded the corner they halted in confusion. Marik could see their laid-back attitude vanish as they registered the absence of light, uneasily hesitating in the passage.

And it was then that Marik and Rishid moved in tandem, silent predators in the dark.

Marik caught the first one off guard, dazing him with an elbow to the jaw. He turned on the second quickly, going for the man's windpipe with a quick punch. It was not enough pressure to kill him, but the man went down clutching his throat in panic. Marik then rounded on the first man, noticing that he was already rising to his feet. Remembering what Valon had said about the diaphragm, Marik kicked hard in the guard's middle. He heard the gust of air leave his target and his opponent soundlessly collapsed.

He looked over his shoulder to see if Rishid needed help, but his brother was standing silently over the unconscious guards. "They are all subdued, Master."

Marik bit back the annoyed and often repeated retort, instead looking down the passage. "The coast is clear," he called softly.

As they heard Jou and Valon move slowly up the passageway, Marik glanced at Rishid before rounding the corner. "Stay there and wait for them."

Marik came to the first torch he could find, grabbing it and lifting it out of the iron grating it was in. As he moved past another cell door, however, he heard a startled gasp and his head turned sharply. He caught a pair of dark eyes watching him from behind the bars on the cell door.

"I'm a friend, I promise. Do any of you know Jou?" he asked then.

The other person stared soundlessly at him before vanishing from sight, and he heard a fiercely whispered conversation begin. He waited to see if anyone would come to the door, but when no one returned Marik made his way back to the corner where Rishid was waiting. Jou and Valon had nearly reached the older Enterran, though Jou was bending down to grab three sets of key rings from the unmoving guards.

"There are no more guards up this way, but there are people in a cell nearby," Marik reported. "I saw someone come to the door as I passed. Dark blue eyes, black hair, blue cloth across his forehead…sound familiar?"

Jou grinned. "Yeah," he said, sounding both relieved and surprised. "I can't imagine why he's down here, though. Let's go say hello, but we'd better hide these guys," he continued, nudging one guard's head none too gently with his boot.

The men were placed in an empty cell, chained to the wall, and for good measure the three of them were gagged; it would not be in their favor if the alarm was sounded. Once the men were secure, Jou turned the corner and, after listening for the whispers, moved to the cell door.

As he came up on the door, he heard more than one familiar voice in the cell. He put his face to the window. He could not see in the small space all that clearly, but then Marik came behind him with a torch and illuminated the interior of the dingy little room.

The person Marik had seen had his back turned to the door and was speaking to three figures smaller than he was. Jou winced when he saw that the prisoner still had on a blue sleeveless shirt, tan shorts, and straw sandals. The dungeons were cold and damp—wearing such clothes could not be a fun experience in such a place.

Jou knew this person. This was Mako, a fisherman who often came into port along the river. He was unaware of Jou's identity, counting him as one of the few friends Jou had outside the wall. Sometimes when Jou had sneaked out of the castle he'd meet with Mako; it had been the fisherman who had taught him how to swim.

To Mako's left was a mint-haired young teenager, wearing a shirt that was an eclectic mix of pink with black stripes and pale colored pants; a short, white cloak sat on his shoulders, and his straight hair hung to his shoulders. To the right of this individual was a blue-haired young man with spectacles, distinctly shorter than everyone else. On Mako's right was a short man with long brown hair, the bangs oddly colored lavender; he was wearing a long green jacket with a yellow tunic underneath it, khaki pants tucked into ankle-high boots.

Realizing he was being watched and after seeing the light on the wall, Mako turned. A grin split his features as he processed who was peering at him. "Jousef, my friend, it has been so long since I saw you last!" he said eagerly. "We were worried!"

It seemed that Mako had not been placed under a gag spell, for he had just used his full name. There was not a gag spell on any of the others, for he did not see anyone stiffen with trepidation when Jou's name had been mentioned.

"So was I, friend. As the prince, I say you're all pardoned from whatever bogus excuse Jean Claude had for putting you here," Jou said with a wide smile, unlocking the door. "Out with you."

Weevil and the brown-haired boy—Rex, if Jou was not much mistaken—were the first to hurry out the door. They had been messengers for the former king. While Rex grudgingly liked Jou, Weevil flat-out disliked him. The feelings were mutual. Neither of them knew Jou's identity either, as there had been no time to formally introduce himself as the prince.

The last individual was someone Jou was not familiar with. "Who's this?" he asked Mako, gesturing to the newcomer.

"His name is Espa. He's a clairvoyant who's also training to be a healer," said Mako. "He has four younger brothers, but they were placed in different parts of the dungeon. What did you mean by you're the prince?"

"Long story behind that one. Do you know if anyone else was thrown down here with you?" Jou asked.

Mako glanced to the others, all of whom shrugged. "I am afraid not, old friend. We're a lot more isolated down here than you realize. A few days ago, we heard that the former captain of the guard had been put down here—the guards gossip all the time—but we are not sure where he would be."

Valon perked up at that bit of news. "Is 'e alive?" he asked urgently.

Rex answered with a clouded expression. "I heard he was a couple days ago, but it's hard to keep track of things. We barely know what day it is."

"Did you happen to overhear where they were keeping him? The captain," Jou clarified when Rex shot him a baffled look.

This time it was Weevil who answered. "West passage," he said almost lazily. "By the entrance into the castle. I heard that's where they kept the more important prisoners, though we're just as important don't you think? We should be up front too—"

"Shut up," Jou groaned, smacking the back of Weevil's head. He then looked over to his friends and said, "Up ahead there's a common room. Wait for me there. I've got to get these guys to safety."

Once Valon, Rishid, and Marik had disappeared, Jou then turned to Mako and the others. "I'm going to show you where to go. You've got to stay put, but we'll be back soon. Are there any other guards down here?"

"No," said Mako promptly. "All the other guards were called away this morning to help with something going on in the castle. I heard them complaining about it when they passed by us earlier."

As Jou led them back to the cell with the passage in it, he listened as the former prisoners told him how they had come to be in the dungeon. Weevil's and Rex's stories were almost the same, in that Jean Claude had imprisoned them simply because they could not be trusted to stay free.

Mako had walked in on Jean Claude gloating about disposing of the former prince quite by accident, when he had entered the throne room to renew his annual permit to sell fish in the markets. When it had become obvious Mako could not be bought, he too had been imprisoned.

Espa and his brothers, however, had been kidnapped from a neighboring village. With the threat of harm coming to his family, Espa had been forced into caring for Princess Serena in the tower—something that had instantly piqued Jou's interest. He waited until he had shown them the cell with the passage in it before he called Espa aside. "How is Serena faring?" he asked, hoping desperately for good news.

"I'm really not supposed to discuss it with anyone but her kin—"

"I'm her older brother," said Jou. At Espa's doubtful look he scowled. "I'm not lying."

"Prove it."

"Shehas a birthmark in the shape of a dove on her left shoulder," Jou said promptly.

Espa instantly relaxed. "All right, that's proof enough," he said. He sobered. "There was someone in my village that had the same illness your sister had, but he died before he turned thirty. I have some knowledge of how to keep such a terrible condition at bay, but it's still worsening."

"How is she?" he asked anxiously. "I haven't gotten any specific news on her in months."

"Her sight's been almost completely obliterated. You can't even touch her now without nearly breaking one of her bones. I was with her until two days ago, but she was alive then," he said. "I've told those idiots to take her out of that drafty tower and place her back in the castle, but they won't listen. They really need to move both women out of that tower, especially because of the handmaiden's condition. She won't be able to help your sister for much longer."

Jou's heart sank at the news. Serena's bones had grown more and more brittle as time had gone on. It had gotten to the point that moving was sheer torture for his sister. She had been confined to her bed after taking a step one day and snapping her ankle. Though there had been steps to curb it, no one yet had been able to fully get rid of the malady. His sister had not yet reached the permanent stage of the disease. There was time to heal and restore her to a healthy young woman—if he reached her in time.

He thanked Espa quietly, promising to find Espa's younger brothers, then he instructed the four of them to remain in the cell until his return (something both Rex and Weevil loudly objected to). He did not watch the door close as he moved down the hall and toward the common area.

While Jou had hung back to discuss his sister with Espa, Valon had surged ahead of even Rishid and Marik. He exercised caution as he came to a large common area in the dungeon, briefly pausing to make sure he did not walk headlong into a trap. He waited impatiently until the others caught up to him. "Jou, where?"

Jou, who was bringing up the rear, tossed him a set of keys and pointed to Valon's left. "That way. Go."

Valon did not even wait for Jou to finish speaking, already out of sight. Jou looked at the two Enterrans. "Both of you take a passageway. Free anyone you encounter and make sure they meet in this room," he ordered, and then he followed after Valon. The brown-haired man had already gone halfway down the hallway, barely stopping to check inside the cells.

"Give me the keys if you're not going to look!" Jou called in a low voice.

Valon turned and tossed the keyring back to the other man, and Jou started looking through the cells far more thoroughly; there was not anyone in the cells he passed. It seemed Jean Claude had mostly banished everyone who posed a threat—he'd had to check with Rishid and Marik to see if they had found anyone.

It was not until Jou rounded the corner and the castle entrance came to view when he peered into a cell and saw a figure with a hood over their head. There was only one reason that someone would have their identity obscured in such a manner—they were someone easily recognized.

Jou unlocked the door and hurried into the cell. At the sound of the door opening the slender figure jerked, an angry but muffled shout rising; when Jou approached, several frustrated kicks were directed at Jou's shins. The prisoner's arms had been chained over their head, preventing them from moving too far, but he did not want to be in range of those kicks.

"It's me, Tristan," said Jou with mild exasperation, reaching down to yank the hood away.

The other young man—no older than Jou, sporting brown hair and hazel eyes—stared up at him with a disbelieving expression. His words were lost behind the gag over his mouth, but Jou recognized the reverently spoken curse. He kneeled and pulled the gag down before he started working on the manacles.

"He told me you were dead," Tristan said hoarsely, one of his now-free arms dropping to his side. "He even showed me your sword to prove he was telling the truth."

"Did you believe him?" asked Jou with raised eyebrows.

Tristan shook his head, a small smirk quirking his lips. "Of course not," he replied with a broadening grin. "You're too stupid to stay dead."

"If you didn't look like crap, I'd hit you."

"Aw, going soft on me?"

"Hardly. You'd just whine about me hitting a man while he's down."

"Actually, I'd make some smart-aleck comment about the timing of your arrival—like 'you're late'."

Jou paused at that, his smile disappearing instantly. "You warned me not to go, and you were right."

Tristan rolled his shoulders, beginning to massage his wrists. "Notice how hard I tried to stop you. We'll just call this a favor—next time there's a dangerous quest to go on, leave it to me, huh?"

Jou laughed and held a hand out to his friend, and Tristan clasped it firmly before hauling himself to his feet. He did not release Jou, however, and instead pulled him into a brief hug. "I'm really glad you're not dead."

There was a small pause, and then Jou and Tristan parted awkwardly. "Promise I won't mention the hug if you won't," said Jou gruffly.

"You got it." Tristan hissed as he wobbled uncertainly on his feet. "I'm out of shape. Jean Claude's been keeping me here in the dungeon, trying to get me to talk about the secrets of the kingdom or how the coronation works. I wouldn't tell him anything," he said somewhat proudly. "Unfortunately, he took that a signal that I wanted to be thrown into a cell."

"Did you manage to wound him?" asked Jou hopefully.

Tristan looked regretful at the question. "I wish. He came into the throne room one morning, as bold as you please, and asked if I would be oh-so-kind to get off his throne. When he came at me with a sword I tried to fight back. That was when I saw he had your sword, and when I let my guard down…I don't know how else to describe it, man. One minute I was in the throne room, the next—"

"You were in the dungeon, without any memory of what happened. That's a recurring issue circling this kingdom as of late," said Jou tiredly.

"I wish I wasn't so shaky!" Tristan burst out angrily, trying to regain his balance. "I haven't been able to walk since I got thrown down here."

"Take a few moments to regain your feet. I understand—this is the first full day I've been human," Jou replied sympathetically. At Tristan's confused look he said, "There's a longer explanation coming, but simply put I've been a dragon for the past few months."

Tristan paused, looking briefly surprised before sighing. "Now why couldn't I have been cursed as a dragon while you had to stay in the dungeon cell?" he lamented.

Valon was not far ahead of Jou, though he had slowed once he realized that he was barely able to see into the next few cells. He saw Jou vanish into one and he nearly doubled back to see who he'd found, but when he heard an unfamiliar voice come from inside the cell he turned around and continued forward.

He arrived at the last cell in the block and paused, peering in hopefully. "Raph?"

At first, he did not get an answer. As his vision adjusted, he spotted something moving in a corner and a familiar outline. His breath came in a sharp gasp—he had found Raphael.

Valon turned his attention to the keyhole but cursed when he remembered that Jou still had the keys. Without another word he brought his leg up and kicked as hard as he could along the lock. A few more powerful kicks, followed by one attempt to break the door down with his body, caused the door to give way with an ear-splitting crack.

So much for stealth, Valon thought with a snort.

He moved into the cell without any further thought, his first concern for the older man. He pulled off the sackcloth away from his friend's head, blond hair coming into view almost instantly. Raphael's chin was resting on his chest, and even in the dark Valon was alarmed by the almost alabaster hue his older friend's face was. Raphael's eyes were closed, his breathing just a shallow wheeze.

"Raph?" Valon asked, using the back of his hand to tap Raphael's cheek gently. "C'mon, fella, wake up."

Raphael's eyes slid open weakly, looking at his rescuer. It was quite apparent, however, that while he was semi-conscious the man had no idea what was going on around him. The gaze being directed at Valon was going through him, not focused on him.

"Give me jus' a bit, Raph. I'll be righ' back," he promised, rising to his feet.

He half-jogged out of the cell to return to the one Jou was in. He saw the other young man soon enough with someone he did not recognize. "Give me the keys."

Without asking Jou tossed the keyring back to Valon. He was out of the cell and back into the one Raphael was in within seconds. Valon reached his friend's side and started undoing the cuffs. The cuts on Raphael's arms were inflamed and still sluggishly bleeding, but these didn't appear to be terrible…but then again, Valon hadn't checked his friend for other injuries yet.

As the last manacle was undone Raphael slumped sideways. Valon cursed and lunged, catching him by his arm to haul him back up. As he did, he caught sight of the back of Raphael's body. Every thought he had screeched to a halt. "Oh Raph…"

Even in the dim light he could see that the back of Raphael's head was nothing but blood. He could see the starts of a bruise at the base of Raphael's neck, but with all the blood on the back of the man's shirt it was impossible to tell where the bruise was and where the injury that was bleeding began; there was no way to tell if it was a new injury or more from the initial lashings Raphael had taken. The wall behind him was sticky with blood as well, and Valon felt sick—how long had Raphael been bleeding like this, alone and in the dark? God, it was a miracle Raphael was still breathing.

"Okay," he said, his voice a shaky exhalation. "Okay, Raph, let's get you patched up."

Valon pulled out the vials and set them down, then carefully moved to prop the other man against the wall. Raphael's eyes slid open again, and Valon didn't like how long it was taking for the man to focus. "Heya, fella, I've got something you need to take."

The moment his eyes went to the vials, Raphael weakly shook his head. "No," he mumbled, his voice thick with exhaustion and confusion. "No more potion. Don' wan' it."

Valon scooted closer, holding the green potion in one hand. "I know, Jean Claude was a git 'n' gave you a gumby potion, but you've got t' take this one or you're not gonna make it. You gotta let me help, fella."

Raphael turned his head away, and Valon growled under his breath. He set the potion down, reached forward and took Raphael's shoulders, and forced the man to make eye contact with him. "Dyin' best friend or not, Raphael, I will absolutely kick your stupid butt through the wall if you don't take the damn potions!"

Raphael didn't reply, but he didn't argue either. Valon grabbed the vial of potion and helped Raphael drink it, praying all the while that his friend would not spit it out or pass out before he finished. Once the green one was finished, Valon went for the yellow one and repeated the process. Words couldn't express the relief he felt as he watched the cuts in Raphael's arms start to heal.

It was just as the last of the golden potion was swallowed when Valon saw a spark enter the blue eyes. He leaned back, relief crashing through him as Raphael started looking more aware of his surroundings. His eyes were still dazed, but as they locked onto Valon recognition lit them. "…Valon?"

Raphael's voice was stronger, sharper now that he was starting to recover. The man tried straightening up, though he promptly started slumping again. Valon caught him and steadied him.

"Easy, fella, you've 'ad a time of it. You're covered in blood, y'know that?" he asked, trying to inject humor in his voice. "What are you tryin' to do, lure some stinkin' bear to you? You could draw all of them out of the woods the way you're covered right now. Here, take this last potion for me," Valon added, handing the last bottle to his friend as he spoke.

Raphael did not seem to hear him, the vial loosely held in one of his hands. "You aren't supposed to be here," he said, urgency in his voice as it rose. "Valon, it isn't safe! You need to—"

Valon set a hand on Raphael's mouth. "Mate, when 'ave I ever been safe?" he pointed out. "Trouble always finds me no matter wha' I do. Now quit arguin', you've got one more potion to take and then you'll start feelin' better."

He moved his hand away when he was certain the older man wasn't going to argue with him. After a moment, Raphael pulled out the cork from the vial and downed the last potion. The man shuddered and grimaced, and he stoppered the vial before setting it down. "That tasted like I was drinking blood."

"Given how much you lost? Wouldn't be surprised," Valon said. "Ryou was really specific about how you were supposed to take the potions. Now, you just sit a minute and let the potions go to work before you try standin', okay?"

"How did you get here?" Raphael asked, frowning. Worry lined every one of his features. "I'm being deadly serious when I say you can't be here. If they catch you, Valon, they'll—"

"Do to me what they did to Alister?" Valon asked, a sudden snap in his voice. It wasn't fair to be angry at Raphael, but with his older friend no longer at Death's door and recovering his own worry was being replaced with anger. "Yeah, I saw that. Seems like you two have been 'aving a lotta fun up here."

Raphael stiffened. "You…saw him?" he asked slowly, his expression unreadable.

Valon pressed his lips together but didn't reply. As much as he wanted to tell Raphael that their red-haired friend yet lived, Ryou and Alister both had advised him against it; their sole advantage lay in keeping Alister's whereabouts in the dark.

The older man looked away, taking Valon's silence as an answer. "I see," he said, and Valon caught both resignation and grief in the quiet sentence.

"Raph, why didn' you just come back?" Valon asked, his voice angry and hurt. "You didn' even tell me what was goin' on, you just…stayed. You coulda just told me what was happening! Yeah, I know, a sick little sister to a prince and they both need help, and I know you couldn't ignore it—but Raph, look at what happened!"

"Valon—"

"Worse yet, you got Adias and Yugi to lie about you fellas being back in the forest!" Valon snapped, eyes flashing. "Raph, if you'd just told me what was happening, I would have stayed away! You know I would have! But you just…you left! You and Alister left me alone, and you didn't even give me a chance to make my own decision about coming with you, or coming here, or—or—anything! I'm not some damn kid, mate, I can take care of myself—!"

"Do you think I wanted to lie to you?" Raphael thundered, startling Valon into silence. "Do you think I honestly wanted any of this to happen? We tried! We tried to reach out to you, but we couldn't find you and then everything here happened—then we physically couldn't tell you. If I'd known what was to come, I'd have just left! If I had, she'd be safe and Alister would still be alive! I failed those two, I failed the prince and his sister, and I couldn't bear failing you too!"

Both stared at each other in the dim light. Valon felt the anger bleed out of him as he studied his friend's features. He sighed, picking a spot on the wall next to Raphael that was not covered in blood and deliberately leaned against him. "You're a stupid git, but you're still my friend," he said gruffly. "Just…next time, try not to leave me in the dark. I'd rather know what's happenin' than not. It was bad enough findin' Alister. I was scared I'd lost both my friends…you two are all I've got."

After a moment of hesitation, a large hand rested gently on his shoulder. Raphael did not say anything, but there was more conveyed to Valon in that one single gesture than anything the older man could have said. Valon relaxed under the touch.

Eventually, Raphael's hand moved. Valon looked over towards his older friend, studying him. "How're you feelin'?" he asked.

"Better than I was earlier," Raphael said, his hand starting to move up to rub the back of his head. "My head doesn't hurt as bad."

Valon caught his friend's arm. "Mate, I wasn' kiddin' about you bein' covered in blood," he said flatly. "You might not wanna do tha'. We'll 'ave to get you cleaned up a bit so you don' give everyone a fright."

"I asked you earlier, but you didn't answer. How did you get here without anyone seeing you?" Raphael asked after a beat of silence.

Valon did not get to reply. A new voice, sounding somewhat sheepish at intruding on the conversation, answered Raphael instead.

"That's because of me."

When Valon had gotten the keys from him, Jou had known what it had meant. After briefly explaining to Tristan who Valon was, he helped his friend back down the hall and into the common area. Marik and Rishid had waited patiently for his return, having only found ten others in the dungeon; five of them had been former guards, one an elderly butler who had waited on the king, and the remaining four identified as Espa's imprisoned younger brothers.

He left Tristan in the care of the two Enterrans, and then returned down the hall to check on Valon. He had come into the last cell while Valon and Raphael had been talking, though he had waited until the conversation had turned in his direction before speaking. Raphael looked awfully pale and haggard, though color was washing back into his features and his gaze was alert. He was recovering, at least.

Almost immediately after Jou had spoken, Raphael froze, his face going ashen again as his eyes rounded. When his sharp gaze found Jou standing at the back of the cell he almost shot to his feet, stunned into silence for several long seconds. There was a minute stagger to the movement that had Valon moving to steady him.

"Jou, you make him pass out and I'll break your nose," Valon warned, flanking his friend's side. "He's just gotten his feet under him."

Raphael didn't seem to hear Valon, his eyes only on Jou. "You're alive?" he asked at last. "Where have you been?"

Jou flushed and looked away awkwardly. "Yeah, um. About that. Don't suppose you remember the black dragon you used the catapults on?"

A look of mortified horror crossed the older man's features. "Oh."

"Never mind me, are you alright?" Jou asked, assessing Raphael. He felt a wave of nausea at the sight of the blood. "Oh hell…you look like death warmed over."

"I mean, he did try to check out," Valon said, and there was no hiding the concern in his own gaze. "He looks a sorry mess. Don't suppose you've got a change of clothin' on you?"

"No, but we can always search some of the other guards down here, swap their clothes out."

Jou bit his lip, then met Raphael's gaze. "I'm sorry…I did you wrong, and you and yours paid for it. I should have just let you go home."

"It was a two-way decision," Raphael replied evenly. "You asked me to stay, but I chose to remain here. I'll accept your apology if you accept mine, for allowing Jean Claude to take the kingdom in your absence."

"Fair enough," said Jou, relaxing with a small smile. "Can you travel?"

"Definitely."

"Great, then let's get out of here. Never did like the dungeons much, and I call it fair to say you don't enjoy them either."

Raphael was about to leave when he stopped, returning to where the bench was set in the wall. "Hold on a moment," he said over his shoulder, rummaging in a small crevice in the wall. He pulled something out and held it out to Jou. Even with as little light that he had, Jou still recognized the royal purple bag.

"I don't know how much time has passed since I saw her last, but Princess Mai was down here at one point," the taller man explained. "She had her memory altered again, but she asked me to hide this in case something went wrong. She had some sort of plan in place, but I don't know what it was."

Jou flinched at that. Mai must have known her memory would be erased again, so she had left behind the memory gem in the hopes that the right person would give it to her and restore her memory. That sounded like the Mai he knew, not like the simpering woman he'd seen when Sivya had spied on her in the castle.

"Thanks. I'll make sure this gets to her," Jou said gruffly, and then he turned out of the cell. "Come on. We've still got work to do."

When they returned to the entrance of the secret passage, there were a lot more people than the original four who had traveled it. At length, it was decided that Tristan and Jou would take the lead, with the former prisoners sandwiched between them; Rishid and Marik took up the absolute rear, while Valon and Raphael remained in front of the two Enterrans.

"We're using the tunnels, then?" asked Tristan as they descended the narrow staircase once again. "I figured that's how you'd gotten in without attracting attention."

"It also helped 'e was dressed like a lady," Valon called, grinning shamelessly as Jou blazed red. "I think 'e even got someone to whistle at him."

"I'll come back there," Jou threatened.

Valon in turn gave him a very lazy and much pointed yawn. Marik snorted in amusement, and the action called Valon's attention to him. "Hey, did Ishtar try anythin' yet?" the teenager asked then.

Marik's features darkened the same time Raphael's did. "No," replied the Enterran flatly. "He's still keeping quiet."

Raphael turned to look over his shoulder at Marik, and the younger man understood the silent question. "I didn't know," he added when he noticed Raphael, correctly interpreting the other man's stormy gaze. "Up until yesterday, I had no idea he existed. My siblings had to tell me."

Raphael's mouth tightened, but he also glanced to Rishid. "You found your family?"

"Yes. Mai helped. She'll never let me hear the end of it when I see her next," said Marik gloomily. His eyes were alight, however, and so Raphael knew Marik was not entirely distressed about who had found his family.

Jou paused at a smaller tunnel to his right, looking over his shoulder at the servants behind him. "This lets out into a secret chamber adjacent to the kitchen. No one ever goes in there, so if any of you want to sit the upcoming battle out you can stay here. I won't forget and let you all out once the dust settles. I also won't think any less of you if you choose to hide."

He had been looking at Tristan pointedly, hoping that his friend would take him up on his offer, but Tristan remained steadfastly where he was. Instead, nearly the entire group moved toward the stepladder. The loyal guards who had been in the dungeon, as much as they wished to join the fight, also knew their strength. Not one of them was up to the battle to come, as they had not been able to move freely in months; they could guard those they were with, though.

When the last of the servants and prisoners had been helped into the room above and the passageway was immersed in near darkness once again, Jou looked to Tristan with a scowl. "You were supposed to go with them, you idiot."

"And miss the action? Nice try, but no," Tristan said firmly. "I have a score to settle with that imposter."

Jou shook his head ruefully. He had wanted his friend to have time to recover, but it seemed that Jou's return and the promise of avenging himself on Jean Claude had bolstered Tristan's weakened appearance. "Fine," he said with a sigh. "Just don't make me regret letting you come with me."

It was right around then when Marik's head felt as if it had split open and he sank without a sound.

It's about time you arrived.

Marik grit his teeth and tried to push Ishtar out of his thoughts. In retaliation, an even stronger wave of pressure and pain came. He whimpered, finally going to his knees.

It's not so easy to be rid of me. I'm here to discuss a small problem I have. You see, here you are in the castle and going about your business. I've held up my end of the bargain, but I've yet to see your side fulfilled. Tell me, now: where are the Shadow Items?

Concerned voices converged around him, the sounds cresting into another agonizing throbbing in his skull. He wished they'd stop talking, but he could not banish either the presence in his mind or the sounds around him and instead he focused on not passing out. His watering eyes caught Rishid's, but he held up a hand. If push came to shove, he'd rely on Rishid to help push Ishtar back. Right now, this was between him and the entity he had created.

Get…out…he growled at last. We did bring the wretched things.

Why can I not sense them, then?

Marik fought to conjure up the memory of Ryou in the passage, showing him the satchel that currently hid Yugi, Yami, and Bakura from sight. The memory was snatched away from him as it started playing back in fragmented, unconnected portions.

Satisfied? Marik asked sarcastically.

I'd be a lot happier if you came with me. How about it, Little Marik? Feel like coming with me into the darkness?

Feeling more than a little vindictive, Marik forced a memory of Rishid to the front of his thoughts, focusing especially hard on the scars on the man's features. A venomous hiss, followed by the tension easing out of his head, proved that Marik's little maneuver had worked. Ishtar was leaving.

You won't always have that man around to defend you. When that time comes, you will be mine.

As suddenly as it had come the pain vanished. Marik slumped dizzily, nearly falling face first before Rishid caught him. Unlike last time, the pain was not enough to nauseate Marik, but his stomach still rolled in unpleasant waves. "It's okay," he assured them when he opened his eyes. "He was just…chatting."

The term had been light, designed to lessen the impact of Ishtar taking control from him for the second time, but Marik still felt a burning anger roiling inside of him. He despised having his freedom taken from him in such a manner, and he would be damned if he would allow it to happen a third time.

Jou frowned. "About what?"

"The thing Ryou brought in the bag," said Marik, already starting to feel better. "He couldn't sense them. He wanted to make sure we brought them. I think he's waiting for us to move first."

Jou nodded. "Right, then we'd better not keep him or the others waiting. Let's go."

Tristan looked more than unsettled by recent events, as did Raphael, but Jou motioned them to his side and as they started walking the prince began explaining Marik's connection to Ishtar in an undertone. Rishid hovered next to Marik, ready to keep his younger brother standing if necessary.

Ryou was still on guard and waved at them cheerfully when he saw them. "So far there hasn't been any disturbances that I can hear," he reported once they reached him. "I—oh!"

Ryou had seen Raphael. Immediately, he hurried to the man's side, already fumbling for a potion at his belt. "I'll not hear a word of argument from you, Raphael," he said firmly, pulling a vial filled with what looked like clear liquid. He poured an amount in his hand, and all of them were startled when the substance jiggled. "You're getting that blood off you before you go anywhere else. Don't worry, it's only a cleansing potion, it won't hurt."

Ryou rose to his tiptoes and slid the gelatinous potion onto the burly man's shoulder. Raphael jumped as the substance started automatically moving across his skin, making a face but otherwise doing the best he could to stay still as it started moving over his body.

Jou opened the door into the guardhouse and led everyone else inside. They had armed themselves with what they could; Gurimo had confiscated their weapons and most of their armor, but they had managed to squirrel away some pieces of armor and what weapons they could manage to smuggle out of sight.

When Raphael finally exited the tunnels, there was a delighted gasp from the guards inside. Jou was secretly glad Ryou had not allowed Raphael to leave covered in blood, as they would have thought he was a ghost. It was clear that they were all glad to see their former captain, if the way they gathered around him was any indication.

One of the weapons they'd hidden was Raphael's sword, stowed inside a panel near the fireplace. Corda regretfully informed the much taller man that they had not been able to save the armor, but Raphael was not sad to see it go. It wasn't his own armor and had never fit him properly, as it had belonged to the castle. Besides, he had been taught how to wield a sword without using heavy chainmail and bulky armor.

Valon had not agreed with Raphael's decision to go without armor, given how close to death his eldest companion had been earlier, but Raphael firmly declined any attempt to give him armor. "Still wish 'e'd at least wear chainmail," he grumbled to Marik.

Marik glanced at him, his head pounding. Ishtar was skulking in the back of his mind, but since Rishid was standing next to him Ishtar had done nothing so far. "Well then tell him as such," he said, somewhat irritable.

Valon raised an eyebrow. "You don' have to bite my head off, y'know," he pointed out.

Marik did not get to reply, because by then Jou had come over to them. He motioned to the passage. "We've gotta sneak into the castle through the armory," Jou explained. "You first, Valon."

The Aurosian groaned at the thought of more narrow tunnels but complied, vanishing reluctantly down into the passage. One by one, the guards followed after Valon; there was a moment of trepidation from the men in the house, fearful of activating Ishtar's curse, but thankfully nothing happened. By the time Jou came down, there were at least thirty-five men in the tunnel waiting patiently.

The trek to the armory was a lot shorter than they expected, as they arrived at the entrance to the room within three minutes. Jou and Tristan moved up the stairs first, quietly passing down swords, spears, and armor; except for the Enterrans, Valon, and Raphael, every one of the guards quickly but silently pulled on the armor and armed themselves.

While Tristan managed to find a suit of armor that would allow him to move quickly and shield him, Jou did not armor himself. Like Raphael, he had chosen to go in with nothing but his sword; Jean Claude had a sword made from White Dragon scales, so he'd stowed Jou's sword in the armory.

His mother had given it to him for his seventh birthday, right before he had been taken to the castle. It was a family heirloom, forged from the volcanic rock that had surrounded him at the mountain. The blade was the same shade that his scales as a dragon had been. It was light but durable, stronger than it appeared to be. Sometimes he swore it glowed with an inner fire when he used it for an extended period.

Once everyone had suited up and had been armed, Jou motioned for them to enter the room one at a time. He peered outside the door, his eyes taking in the familiar sights of the castle interior; from the direction of the throne room came music, and it took him only seconds to realize what it meant.

"Okay, start lining up on the walls. Keep out of sight," he ordered quietly. Marik was the last one through the room, and after closing the door the group began cautiously moving through the castle, trying to stay as silent as they could and hoping they were not too late.

"It's going to happen," Mai whispered under her breath, already excited. Miho could understand the enthusiasm behind Mai's behavior, but she also noticed that her gaze seemed to be sweeping the crowd of nobles beyond them as if she was searching for someone. Miho wished her luck on that, for there were easily over one hundred nobles in the room. "Oh goodness, this is really about to happen."

Miho felt the comment sounded odd, and not just because of pre-marriage jitters. Then she noticed Jean Claude at the throne waving them over. She swallowed nervously as the music started and leaned to gather the hem of Mai's wedding gown. "We had best be going."

Mai let out an impatient sound before the princess turned and smiled. "Let's be off, then, Miho," she said, and they advanced into the room.

Heads already began turning, and as they cleared the doors two guards shut them, quietly bolting them into place to avoid anyone disturbing the wedding. Before the doors closed, however, Miho caught sight of someone turning the corner and she paused. Who was that? Mai had kept going forward, however, and Miho had to keep moving.

Jean Claude beamed at their approach, not seeming to notice the hesitation in the procession. As Mai moved across from Jean Claude at the throne Miho made to slip away, but a stern look from Jean Claude halted her.

The aging priest, who had been summoned earlier that day, waited until the music died before he began to speak. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today…"

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" Jou snarled, pushing on the door with all his weight. "Why did they lock the doors?"

"Gee, it couldn't be because there's a wedding going on inside," Tristan retorted sarcastically. He and the others had tried to help push open the doors, but they were too thick to budge and with the bolts in place entry was all but impossible.

Jou leaned back to study the door. He had spotted Miho going into the room right before the doors had closed, and he knew she had seen him. He could hope that she would find a way to get them inside, but by then it would be too late—Mai would be married, the defensive spell would activate, and he'd lose both Serena and Mai.

"Come on, think. The tunnels don't lead into the throne room, the windows are outside and reinforced…" Jou muttered, his thoughts racing a mile a minute.

He could hear the voice of the priest faintly through the door and he growled, his fist slamming into the wall. He looked up to the heavens and said angrily, "We could use some help right about now!"

As if in answer, his wrist ignited with hot fire.

Jou yelped in surprise, his eyes shooting to the obsidian pendant. It glowed like an ember, heat rising from inside the dragon pendant—Yami's enchantment was finally activating.

Jou stifled a curse as he fought to pull the leather strap off his wrist. He successfully freed his hand from the pendant but found that he could not hold onto it for long. After his palm was burnt twice, he snarled and tossed it with some fury against the door.

The pendant shattered and the world exploded in a cacophony of lightning, smoke, and fire.

"I do," Jean Claude declared proudly, gazing fondly at Mai.

They had been nearing the end of the wedding vows when the smell of electricity and smoke began filtering through the room, an unseen charge and pressure beginning to rise. Jean Claude frowned but motioned for the priest to continue. It couldn't be a fire, because someone would have raised the alarm. What was going on?

"And do you, Princess Mai of Thystia, take Jean Claude to be your lawfully wedded husband, to love and to cherish for all your days?" the priest asked, his mild gaze sharpening just a bit as his eyes landed on Mai. Jean Claude noted that Miho nearly moved to speak out but then flinched and looked away when she saw him looking at her. Good.

Before Mai could even speak, a draconic roar broke the reverent silence and caused the entire room to vibrate with the creature's fury.

Jean Claude's hands went to his sword, drawing it swiftly as he ushered the beautiful woman behind him. He should have made Ishtar do more than he had to keep that idiotic Jousef away! How had he gotten to Hermos without any sort of alarm being set off? Surely someone would have seen a huge hulking beast descending from the sky, especially in broad daylight—

A blow from beyond the throne room entrance forced the thick oak doors open, smoke hurtling into the room and rapidly taking shape. Wind followed the dark shape, and with a powerful gust nearly three quarters of the benches were overturned. No one was immediately hurt, but there was more than one pained cry as guests were dislodged from their seats.

The nobles, both sitting and lying on the floor, were paralyzed with fear, watching as red-tinted lightning began racing through the aisles in tall pillars. The smoke rose to the balcony above the throne room, and there it took shape—claws came into view, teeth forming while scales shaped its body. Proud ruby eyes gleamed as it began looking at the people below them.

The dragon eyed them all haughtily before it roared again, a sound that deafened all who heard it and caused more than one person to sink to their knees. From within the smoke came a voice that echoed like thunder.

DISPULSO!

A powerful blast of gold and red lightning erupted from the dragon, aimed at the ceiling. Those in the throne room shrieked in alarm as the blast met a previously invisible barrier, one that crackled with menacing green lightning. Sparks danced from the two forces of magic, but the dragon's blast won out.

With the sound of shattering glass, every spell fueled by the orichalcum broke. From within Jean Claude's pendant came the sound of a crack, and the man looked down in horror as the orichalcum in his pendant split clean in half, the only thing holding it together being the gold surrounding the gem.

The dragon then took wing over the room, flying low enough to frighten all beneath it before flying through the nearest glass window. Glass shards rained down on the others beneath them, and Jean Claude threw up his cloak to shield the woman at his side. Once outside, the beast flew straight for the nearest wall and threw itself with one final cry against the only thing preventing magic from entering the castle: the barrier formed by Shadow magic. It vanished, but as it disappeared so did the magic-fueled shield.

In the immediate aftermath of the dragon's entrance there was no sound, everyone stunned into complete silence by what had happened. Heavy, dense smoke still hung in the air and the overpowering smell of lightning stifled the room; the flowers had been ravaged by the gusting wind, leaving nothing but petals in the room. In different parts of the room, the guests were shakily rising to their feet.

It was right around then when a voice, half choked by smoke, broke the silence.

"Dammit, Yami, you could have killed us with that!" a young man coughed out. "That's it! I'm never letting you give me a gift again! Never again! I was wearing that thing and it could have exploded? I was almost blown up, you deranged lunatic!"

Several confused looks were exchanged as an affronted buzz rose through the hall, many turning their attention to the door. Mai peered out from under Jean Claude's cloak, violet eyes wide and startled. Miho's expression immediately lit up with joy.

Jean Claude, on the other hand, turned pale with dread.

The smoke suddenly dispersed to bring a young man with shaggy blond hair and brown eyes into view. While the man was still coughing, he was already standing tall as he realized that more than one pair of eyes was upon him; those closest to the doorway could see that this young man was accompanied by thirty or so armed guards behind him.

As the last of the smoke vanished from sight, Jou eyed the room with the same amount of affronted pride that the dragon had. There was a steely, flinty edge to his gaze, and as it landed on Jean Claude it shifted into white-hot fury.

"Well, ladies and gentlemen," Jou announced, his voice buoyant but hard, "I suppose you're wondering about what the absolute hell is going on here. Don't worry, I have no intentions of getting you involved. Apart from that sniveling, pathetic excuse of a human named Jean Claude, everyone needs to leave. This is the real Prince of Hermos talking to you. I'm giving you five minutes to get out of this room. If you stay, I'm throwing you in the dungeon for being morons."

At that, Jou sidestepped the door and the others behind him followed suit, parting to expose the doorway. The bewildered, smoke covered, and downright frightened nobles instantly moved as one mass out of the throne room. Within seconds, the only ones remaining were Miho, Jean Claude, the priest, and Mai.

From two side doors of the room Jean Claude's own men were beginning to file in. Gurimo had snuck out once the dragon had entered and had rallied his men. From behind him, Jou he heard his own allies entering the room in a fan. The nobles had gone by then—now, it was a stalemate between the two sides.

Jou waited only a moment before his gaze went directly to the priest, who instantly quailed underneath his flinty glare. "I'm not much for formalities. The wedding's off."