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Kaiba’s footsteps echoed throughout the cavernous great hall of the Ishtar's castle, silencing the group of advisors seated around the table located in the centre of the room.
As he reached them the queen looked up at him.
“You’re late.” She reprimanded him, the tone holding underlying hints of annoyance, disappointment, and fury.
“I could have not shown up, if you’d have preferred. But then again, you need me. So deal with it.” Kaiba’s voice was bored - he just wanted to get on with the task ahead, rather than sit and talk about it.
As he stood leaning against one of the vacant chairs, he noticed the advisors looking at him as though he’d offended each and every one of them. Some even looked ready to attack him.
“What’s with all the faces?” He inquired, not that he cared. He’d be gone soon.
“You’ve dishonoured their Queen.”
Kaiba’s whole body went rigid, and he felt as though he’d been dunked in the iciest lake the world had to offer.
No way.
Not him!
Slowly, he turned to look at his left, and to his complete horror Kaiba spotted the biggest challenge he has yet to overcome. To make matters worse, he was sitting next to Prince Marik.
“What are you doing here!?” He spat angrily, his voice barely above a whisper as he was too stunned and too furious to shout.
“I was invited here, just like you, Kaiba.” Atem spoke calmly, unphased at the amount of unpleasantness directed towards him.
He was used to it.
Kaiba, meanwhile, opened his mouth as though he was going to shout some insult. However, he couldn‘t think of one. Instead what he muttered instead was “Why?”.
“Because,” Queen Ishizu spoke up. “It will take both of you to see this quest through. It is dark, and dangerous. Many of our warriors have already failed. Some are fortunate enough to have been escorted safely back to the palace for medical treatment. Many more have not been so lucky.”
Kaiba rolled his eyes.
“And I bet Katsuya was one of them? You know that’s what you get for over exaggerating the talent you have. In Katsuya’s case, that’s none.”
“That’s enough, Kaiba!” Atem stood up from where he sat and slammed his fists on the table, the noise echoing off the walls and silencing the whole room. His crimson eyes glinted dangerously in the candle lit room as he stared at Kaiba. When he spoke next, his voice was nothing more than a whisper, yet the authority that clung to every syllable ensured that he had everyone’s attention.
“Jounouchi is a great warrior, Kaiba. Whether you’d like to admit it or not, you know this to be true. However, even if that were not the case, his bravery should be rewarded and acknowledged for what it is. Not mocked and belittled while he lies on a bed, fighting for his life, as his sister weeps for him to open his eyes.”
The silence that followed Atem’s speech was filled with suffocating tension as the full extent of the quest was realised. They were no longer battling for the safety of the realm, but for the safety of mankind. And in the hopes of waking those who have been injured in the process, and avenging those who died.
However, one man in the room didn’t care for such nonsense.
“Ha! Very moving, Pharaoh, but you see, I didn’t come here for some act of heroism. I came here because of the glory. And glory I shall have when I slay the monster. Not you.”
“Enough.” The Queen's voice reverberated throughout the Great Hall. “This is no time for silly feuds, Seto Kaiba. This isn’t some measly troll, or ogre. This is a beast that has never been seen before. It has injured Odion, Mai, and Jounouchi. Bakura has never been seen since his own run in with the beast. I have lost hundreds of soldiers, and my brother’s own specialist hunters have failed. All lost to the shadows.” She sighed and shut her eyes, clearly distressed over the situation. Although, when she opened them again, her eyes were filled with conviction. “For this to work, you both have to work together! I fear of what might come of the world if you fail.”
Kaiba sensed everyone’s eyes on him. He had to admit, her words held a certain gravity to them that even he was pulled in slightly. At the same time, he didn’t see why he had to work with the Pharaoh. After all, he was better than the rest of the losers put together.
And he’ll show them.
“Whatever. Let’s just get this over with.” He turned and walked back towards the doors, his head held high, not caring that he was being rude once more. As he strode away he spoke to Atem over his shoulder. “And the world will soon see which of us is the better monster slayer, Pharaoh, when I return and you don’t!”
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“Kaiba.” Atem called out from where he sat on top of his horse. 10 feet in front of him, he noticed the brunet tense from where he was sitting astride his own white stallion. If Atem knew Kaiba - which he did - he knew that Kaiba had also rolled his eyes. Despite the lack of verbal response, the Pharaoh knew that the King of Domino was listening. “Kaiba, there's no point being so far ahead of me. We have to work together! You know this to be true.”
“What I know, Pharaoh, is that you being here is a waste of time. I am perfectly capable of doing this on my own! And I certainly don’t need you here!”
Exasperated, Atem growled and nudged his steed into a small canter to catch up. He brought his horse in front of Kaiba’s own, effectively cutting him off. He turned to stare deep into the icy azure depths of the other man’s eyes.
“ Listen! For once in your life, just open your ears and listen to what others are saying! This is more dangerous than the quest with the Minotaur. Or the quest with the Sphynx. This isn't some dragon you can wrangle and tame. This isn’t a magician’s work! We don’t know what we’re up against. All we know is that it is more dangerous and daunting than anything else we have faced! Kaiba, we have to work together! If not, then we face losing everything. Our kingdoms, our friends. Our families! Think of Mokuba, Kaiba! What of him? What will happen if you don’t return because you were so pig-headed and foolish to listen to advice, and work with me? Come to your senses! You know this to be true!”
Atem watched as Kaiba sat and thought about what he had just said. He knew that mentioning Mokuba would be an effective technique. Kaiba would never risk his younger brother's life - not even for glory. Atem waited patiently for Kaiba's answer, hoping that it will be the one he was after.
It wasn’t.
“You think emotional blackmail will work on me? Let’s just see what happens when we get there, hmm? And then I’ll save you from the Great Nightmare, as the peasants are calling it!” With that, Kaiba urged his horse forwards, rounding Atem’s own, and galloping off into the distance.
Praying to Ra for the strength to carry on, and the patience to cope with Kaiba, Atem nudged his own steed into a gallop, and followed.
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It was almost dusk when they arrived at the road that led to the monster’s lair. Despite all of Kaiba’s bravado, Atem could tell in the way he had set his shoulders, and the grimace on his face, that some of the fear had caught up with him.
Maybe now he’ll listen to reason?
“Kaiba -.”
“Enough, Atem! I won’t hear it again!”
Before Atem could stop him, Kaiba was already halfway down the forest’s path. Growling, the Pharaoh swiftly followed, cursing the other King in his mind.
However, in no time at all, Atem heard a piercing sound not too far ahead of him as a horse cried out in pain.
“Kaiba!” Atem yelled, encouraging his own horse to gallop faster.
As he arrived at the scene, he took in everything around him.
The pure white, prized stallion that Kaiba favoured above all others, was now drenched in crimson blood, mangled in its mane. It had poured out of the large wound at the neck where something had ripped the head nearly all of the way off. Most worrying of all was the fact that Kaiba was nowhere to be seen.
Atem’s own horse whinnied lowly, as it teetered on the spot nervously.
Danger was very close.
Dismounting his own black stallion, he sent it back down the road. He would continue on his own.
Keeping to the trees, and using all of his senses, he crept forward. He was hoping there would be some indication as to what had befallen Kaiba.
As he neared the fallen horse, he noticed faint tracks a mere four feet away from it, as though someone had fallen there and crawled away with an injured leg. It led over to a bush.
Quickly surveying the area for any immediate danger, Atem ran from his place of cover to the huge array of bushes on the other side of the forest road, kneeling down and deciding to crawl through them. Trying not to make too much noise, Atem tried to pick up the track again. However, given the large amount of twigs that kept scratching his face and the fast approaching darkness of night, it was a very difficult task.
Closing his eyes against the onslaught of branches, he used his hands to guide the way. He felt earth, leaves, animal droppings and roots. Atem was starting to fear that he was disrupting the track too much and that he would never find Kaiba again. Lost in his agitation, he hit his hand against a boulder hidden in the bushes with a lot of force, that he almost screamed out in unexpected pain.
At least, Atem thought it was a boulder, until it reached out and pulled him down beside it.
Opening his eyes he realised that the boulder was actually Kaiba. He could have cried in relief but The Dragon Tamer placed a hand over his mouth to silence him. They looked at each other, and Atem noticed the weeping cut above Kaiba’s eye and the scratches decorating the rest of his face. However, his eyes were alert which was all that mattered to Atem.
On the other hand, they also held something that the Pharaoh never saw in Kaiba’s eyes, unless Mokuba was taken hostage.
Fear.
Wrenching the other man’s hand away from his mouth, Atem mouthed a question.
“What is it?”
The answer that he received left him shaken to the core, his whole body encompassed in a blanket of fear.
“Hydra.”
It was something that had only been heard about in great myths of times gone by. A creature with many different heads. A creature that was nearly impossible to kill, due to its regenerative abilities. A creature that had poisonous breath, and venomous blood. A creature everyone was sure never existed, except for in nightmares.
No wonder no one has been able to defeat it. The mere thought of knowing of its existence has shaken Atem to the core.
Taking deep shaky breaths, he refocused his attention onto Kaiba. They were here now and they had to see it through. If they were distracted, the creature would win.
“What do we do?” He mouthed, trying to come up with a strategy to defeat the monster. Kaiba just shook his head.
He’d already experienced the monster - he was overcome with such fear that his brain had shut down. He was also sure that his right leg was broken.
Atem, sensing that Kaiba was slipping into shock, took off his cloak and wrapped it around his comrade. Leaning down, he whispered in his ear.
“Kaiba, listen. To get through this we have to work together. Now what did you see?”
Kaiba opened and closed his mouth a few times before stuttering out a few words.
“Nine. It had - it had nine he-heads. It’s big. Atem, it’s almost taller than the giant we vanquished nearly nine moons ago!”
Awesome. Just what they needed.
Composing himself again, a plan formed in his head.
“Okay. Kaiba, can you walk?”
The King shook his head.
“Can you fly?”
Eyebrows creased together in confusion, Kaiba through of the question.
Can he fly? To fly he needed to climb. To climb he needed to walk. So no. But why would he need to fly? Unless…
“Fire destroys the heads.” He recalled from the stories. Atem nodded.
“I can use my magic to subdue and distract the creature, while you call upon your dragon, climb on top of it, and burn the heads until the creature lives no more.”
Kaiba thought of it. As far as plans go, it’s a good one, and possibly the only one that will work. There is still the question of his leg though.
“My leg. It’s broken. I won’t be able to…”
“Don’t worry. I’ll help you up. Just tell me when. This plan is all about timing, Kaiba. One false move, and we're both dead and lost to the eternal shadows.”
Kaiba sighed.
“Okay. Are you ready?” He saw The Pharaoh give a curt nod, so he lifted a whistle that was tied to a cord around his neck, and gave two quick sharp blows into it, making a high pitched sound echo around them.
As soon as the last whistle died around them, a fearsome roar filled the sky.
The Hydra was close.
Jumping out of the bushes, Atem stood in front of the beast.
It truly was a thing to behold.
Its scaly serpentine body glinted in the moonlight, while 18 terrible, slitted eyes fixed themselves onto Atem. It started to crawl towards him, ready to pounce on its prey, while its tails whipped with excitement behind it. Remembering how potent its breath is, Atem conjured a bubble around himself so that there was no risk of the breath affecting him.
Muttering an incantation under his breath, Atem caused the trees to his right to shake, distracting the Hydra. He approached the wooded area, so that the creature would not notice Kaiba. Keeping one eye on the sky, Atem quickly cast spell after spell to keep all heads fixed on him. However, they were soon losing interest and were starting to advance on him, quicker than before.
“Come on, Kaiba!” He muttered under his breath, nerves starting to get the best of him. However, he wasn’t renowned as the best magician the realm had to offer for no reason. He cast a spell, and immobilised the Hydra for the time being, allowing himself to retreat further away, while piercing sounds from each of the nine heads filled the night sky.
However, one sound was not caused by them. A roar came from the sky above Atem, and he could have leaped for joy! Circling lower and lower, one of the most frightful beasts he had ever faced began its descent to the ground. Its body shone like an iridescent pearl, while its eyes were bluer than the surface of the lake they were near.
Kaiba's time to act had arrived.
“Atem, now!” The brunet yelled from where he had managed to stumble to his feet in the bushes.
Casting one more spell, he levitated Kaiba up onto the back of his white dragon, and they flew to the sky once more. The hex causing the Hydra to stay immobilised had worn off, but it was not important anymore. Muttering one last incantation, Atem sent nine daggers through the air, cutting off each of the heads, just as Kaiba circled around and commanded the dragon to burn the stumps before more heads could grow back.
As the necks burned, the hydra’s body fell to the floor with a resounding thud, disturbing the leaves and moss underfoot.
Atem stared at the body, vaguely aware of Kaiba descending to the ground near him. A thought suddenly appeared in his mind, and he conjured a few vials. Grabbing hold of them, he approached the dead creature.
“What are you doing?” Kaiba inquired wearily.
Without looking up, Atem answered.
“What if Mai, Jounouchi, and the rest that are in medical care, were poisoned by the Hydra? If I extract some of its venom, maybe the healers can make an antidote that will revive them.”
“Huh.” Kaiba muttered. “Maybe.”
He watched from atop of his White dragon as Atem set to work, expertly extracting what he needed.
“Done.” He announced as he straightened up, and looked at Kaiba.
Blushing slightly, Kaiba muttered something that Atem couldn’t make out.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t quite catch that. Can you repeat it please?”
“I said,” Kaiba started, disgruntled and annoyed. “Do you want a ride back to the palace. We can be there in an hour.”
Caught off guard at the uncharacteristic offer of help, Atem could only nod his consent.
“Well get on then!” Kaiba ordered, as Atem just stood there.
“Oh, right.” It was now Atem’s turn to blush.
Climbing on top of the dragon, Kaiba helped him up, telling him to keep his arms wrapped around his body. Atem clenched his eyes shut as they lifted off, only opening them once they were soaring in the air.
It was a beautiful experience as he saw landscapes quickly change below them, and they flew in the clouds.
He stared at the back of Kaiba’s head.
Does he always appreciate this beauty?
For some reason, Atem thinks that he does. They’ve worked together many times before, that Atem has learned to see the real Seto Kaiba in moments where he lets his guard down. He’s not nearly as bad as most know him to be.
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Sooner than he’d like, they were back at the palace. Kaiba commanded the dragon to land in the courtyard and they dismounted, Atem helping Kaiba due to his injured leg. Acting as a crutch, Atem helped Kaiba hobble into the healers ward, lowering him onto a bed. As a healer went to help Kaiba, Atem quickly handed the vials to another, explaining his theories. He then went and sat next to Shizuka who had woken in the commotion.
“He’ll be fine soon, Shizuka, I promise.” He placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder and squeezed. As he looked around he noticed Mai and Odion - the Prince’s favoured servant - in adjacent beds.
Atem hoped his theory proved to be correct.
Not long after their arrival, footsteps scurrying outside the door drew the Pharaoh’s attention away from the patients. He turned towards the door as the Queen and the Prince entered the ward.
He stood and bowed to them.
“My Queen. My Prince.” He straightened up and looked at them. “You’d be pleased to know that the evil that has been hovering over you over recent months has been destroyed. Your kingdom is once again safe.” The relief that passed their faces was everything Atem needed. He didn’t need gold, or glory. He needed people to be happy and safe.
Ishizu gripped his hands tight and bowed her head to him.
“Thank you, My Pharaoh.” She released him and strode over to Kaiba, gripping his hand as well. “And thank you, Seto Kaiba.” She looked between the two of them. “I can never repay you. You’ve saved my people and my family. I am forever in your debts.”
“It was nothing, my Queen. You’re a friend, and friends help each other in need. There is no debt.” Atem looked at Kaiba, raising an eyebrow, inviting him to challenge what he said.
“Yeah, what he said. You don’t need to reward us.” Kaiba muttered, causing everyone to gape at him in shock. In that moment, much to Kaiba’s relief, the patients who had been unconscious and administered the antidote started to rouse.
“Jou!” Shizuka screamed in joy, embracing her brother as his eyes opened. Meanwhile, Atem strode over to Mai’s bed, gripping the blonde’s hand tightly as she woke.
“Odion!” Marik exclaimed, forgetting all royal mannerisms and throwing himself onto his dearest friend. Ishizu following in his wake.
As Atem surveyed the room that had been filled with such misery and uncertainty, he basked in the unadulterated love that now filled in. He caught Kaiba’s eyes and they stared at each other.
This had been a perilous trip for them both, and Atem was sure something had changed between them. Kaiba had noticed it to. Blushing, they looked away, confused. Instead of thinking about what it all meant, they closed their eyes, and enjoyed the moment.
Tomorrow there would be a feast in their honour and celebrations. The day after, they will depart and go their separate ways, only to meet again on the next quest!