I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! Hamed, Terry, and Kieran are mine in character if not in name.
Chapter One- New Type of Monster
Aknadin moaned softly as he left his chambers. His body's aches and stiff joints had flared up when he awoke this morning. Being old can be quite inconvenient at times, he thought as he headed for the throne room. My wisdom and experience are highly valued, but my aches and pains do not seem a worthwhile trade. If only I could be rid of the pain forever, I would not mind my age.
He entered the room and took his place: Right by the throne's steps to the right of the throne. Across from him was Isis. She inclined her head at him when she looked at him. He returned the gesture before his gaze slid along the other four members. All of them were young healthy men with Seto, his own son, the youngest of them. He resented that he was so old; only the advisor, Siamun, was as old as he was.
Atem then came in and Aknadin bowed as the other did, a dull ache occurred in his back but he smothered it as he straightened. "As I understand it," Atem said once seated. "We have a criminal to judge today. Mahad, have the criminal brought up."
"Yes, my pharaoh." Mahad left, indicating that he would be one of the ones to bring the prisoner.
Aknadin frowned briefly. It was known that Mahad had watched over Atem when the pharaoh was a child and thus a close friendship had formed; as a result, Atem would call Mahad without the title of Priest or Master preceding it. Then again, I sometimes refer to my fellow court members without a title. And yet, it annoys me. It shouldn't. He is the pharaoh and can conduct affairs as he sees fit.
The sound of footsteps was heard and all looked to see Mahad with two guards behind him who led a man between them, his hands bound behind him. The man appeared slightly strange to Aknadin and he eyed the man carefully before he thought the man's ears seemed pointed thought not very noticeable and dismissed his observation. The man seemed scared which made sense and Aknadin gave that no additional thought. The trial was about to begin and he needed to be alert and prepared to do his part.
"This man was caught stealing fish from a fisherman," Mahad stated. "His actions while being apprehended seemed almost like a…beast for he fought like one."
The man then gave a low growl as if to prove Mahad's point. The man now looked threatening and the guards took hold of his arms to prevent any attempt at escape.
"Begin the Millennium Trial now," Atem declared.
Shada came forward and raised the Key. "I use the Millennium Key to look into this man's soul." The Item glowed and Shada looked within the man to see a shadow creature that bore a resemblance to a fox. "I see a monster with the capacity to be violent and dangerous."
Shada stepped away and Aknadin came forward as a stone sealing tablet was pushed into place. "I will use the power of the Millennium Eye to extract the monster from within." He activated his Item and it glowed. That same glow outlined the man. His mouth opened and a thin tendril of smoke emerged. Aknadin grunted slightly as it felt like the monster was fighting to maintain its place in the man's soul. The man's ears then gained distinctive points and Aknadin focused harder.
A thicker amount of smoke emerged and the points of the ears were lost as the monster finally emerged. Seto wasted no time in capturing it and sealing it. Aknadin breathed a sigh of relief as the tablet and the man were taken away.
Atem's brow furrowed before saying, "That was unusual. Why did his ears become pointed?"
"It could have been because of his monster," Seto said. "It looked like a fox and it is known that foxes prefer fish as food. A monster that looks like an animal could influence its host to act animal-like as the growl he had made earlier is evidence of that. The ears could have been a sign of how strong its influence was."
"It is not unusual for a monster to look like an animal but to influence its host to make sounds like growling or causing him to have unusual features is not something we have encountered before," Atem said. "It seems to me that a new type of shadow monster is making itself known."
"If so, we must know more about it," Aknadin said.
"Agreed. Mahad, question the man. Find out what caused such a beast to grow within him."
"Yes, my pharaoh."
"Good. Meeting adjourned."
The court dispersed and Aknadin wandered through the corridors, thinking of the trail and speculating about the odd events of it. Most trials were the same as far as the judging went but the extraction could vary. Some were simple…most were simple actually while some required more effort, and very, very few require enormous effort. Today's trial fell into the middle category which he thought was curious. Theft of that kind usually produced a weak monster, easily extracted.
Perhaps he had eluded capture long enough for his monster to grow into its present state. That is certainly a possibility. It would also explain why we haven't encountered this type of monster before. I look forward to hearing what Mahad learned from that man.
The court gathered in their tower that night, minus Mahad. Isis passed the time by probing her Items for any visions while the others stared out into the night, Aknadin grimacing slightly from an ache in his arms' joints. He inwardly sighed at the thought of another day of ever increasing aches and pains.
Isis opened her eyes and simply gazed into the fire. This action told them that no visions had occurred. Most often Isis did not have visions when she purposely sought them out and even then her visions were dark.
Mahad then arrived and looked at the court with troubled eyes. Isis asked, "Mahad?"
He took a seat beside her and the others came closer. "I spoke to the man," he finally said. "He told me that he can take the form of a fox. It explained the growl we heard. He said that he usually kept such sounds to his fox form but the monster that grew inside him due to his fox form's instincts prompted him to growl, bark and yip in human form."
"So, he's what?" Seto asked. "A kind of werewolf, but a fox?"
"Exactly. He was quite eager to talk about it and respectful with the monster gone. He told me that he must transform on the night when the moon is dark. He acts like a real fox during that time. He can bite on those same nights and transmit his curse to others. He told me that he can become a fox whenever he wants and is able to talk. He believes that the constant changes caused the monster to be born and grow in addition to looking like a fox."
"What about the ears?" Shada asked.
"The slight points are part of his being able to change shape. Usually the distinctive points are only on the days when he must change. He agreed with me that the monster caused the points in an attempt to resist the extraction.
"I expressed concerns to the pharaoh that others like this man are either living among us or are just passing through. People able to transform into animals could pose a risk to the city."
"I say they can and we should not give them a chance to do so," Seto declared.
"The pharaoh agrees with that and I assured him that my men and I will be extra vigilant during our patrols. We will also ask the citizens to report to us if they see someone acting strange or suspicious."
Everyone else nodded as they left for their chambers. Aknadin knew Seto was right about shapeshifters posing a threat, but surely it was there shadow monsters that were the real threat?