The Pharaoh and the Wayfarer (Atem/Yami Yugi x Spirit! Reader)

Chapter 9: Both of Our Resolves

I own nothing.
Chapter 9: The Gift of Knowledge

For an indeterminate amount of time, the group was forced to follow the lead of Bakura through the dark tunnels in hopes that it would lead to an exit. It seems they were getting somewhere considering the tunnels went from a standard cave to actual man made structures.
"So, we gettin' anywhere, Bakura?" Tristan asked. "It feels like we've been walking forever. Just seems like this place is one big maze."
"Pretty sure that's what this is." Rain said, brushing her hand against the wall. "At the very least, these walls are clearly man-made, so we're getting somewhere."
"Do you think someone could be living down here?" Tea asked as their female friend shrugged.
"Who knows?"
"They'd have to be mole people." Joey said as they turned a corner.
Yugi looked concerned. "Look at all these corridors. There must be a dozen different directions we could go."
"Which is why we're following the Millennium Ring." Rain reinforced as their guide suddenly stopped. "Which way next, Bakura?"
"This way!" He said as he ran around a corner. "The Ring is pulling me this way."
"Well, tell it to pull slower!" Joey yelled as they all chased after him.
After a few more sharp twists, the group stopped in what seemed like the center of the maze. Before them was a large room with an arena in the center.
"What is this place?" Tea asked.
"You have entered sacred grounds." A voice called out. "Where only duelists can be found."
Another voice joined in. "Before you pass across this chamber, you must agree to face the danger."
Two men appeared, flipping and sparring with one another, and generally baffling the group who had no clue what was going on.
They spoke together now. "So let the contest now begin. Notify your next of kin. You're trapped and the doors are all locked, you face the Brothers Paradox! Employed by Pegasus as Eliminators to take all your star chip indicators."
Rain raised a brow at them. "Are you sure your names aren't the Brothers Sues?"
Joey high fived her for the burn and looked at his best friend. "Yugi, looks like we gotta duel these goons."
"And if by some crazy fluke you manage to win-," The orange robed brother started as the green robed one finished.
"Why then, a puzzling new test shall begin. For over my shoulder, you see a door, and over my brother's, you'll see-,"
"One door more. The test? A choice..."
"...That you must make."
"But which of these doors will you take?" They both asked.
"One door leads to an endless maze-,"
"Where you will wander all your days."
"The other's path you need."
"Choose correctly and be freed."
"But which door leads out?"
"And which leads to woe?"
"That's for you to guess-,"
"And for the Brothers Paradox to know."
Tea gritted her teeth. "So even if Rain or Yugi win the match, we could still wind up lost in the caves forever?"
"Against us, one mere duelist would be creamed." The orange brother taunted.
"So you must duel as a team." The green brother informed them.
"2-on-2 then." Bakura said.
"This will be a cake walk!" Joey declared. "Yugi and Rain have already dueled as a tag team!"
Yugi glanced at Rain with a serious look. "Rain, can I count on you again?"
She smirked. "Like you need to ask."
The orange brother smirked. "Your partner will not be the knowledge seeker."
"What?!" Both duelists demanded.
The green brother pointed at Rain. "She must match wits with the knowledge keeper."
A trap door suddenly opened beneath Rain. She shrieked as she fell.
"Rain!" Yugi dove to try and save her, but his hand was just short of hers.
"Yugi!" She called back as she plummeted into the darkness.
The abyss curved like a slide, but given the distance they traveled, (Y/N) thought it best she took over. At the end of the demented slide, (Y/N) was dropped into a dark chamber, a ways off the ground. She quickly rolled, avoiding twisting or breaking an ankle. Rain appeared beside her as the spirit dusted off their shared body.
"What a pair of jerks! I bet they only dropped us here because they knew they wouldn't stand a chance against us with Yugi!"
"Perhaps." (Y/N) said, standing up. "They may have also feared we'd figure out the right door. Whatever the case, they're vastly underestimating Yugi and Joey."
The spirit glanced around the room. Once her eyes had adjusted to the dim light, she noted they were surrounded by towering bookcases filled with text, tomes, and even scrolls that seemed ancient. The way they were organized was strikingly familiar to the spirit. She then noted a symbol above the shelves: a spiral surrounding a star, encircled by wings. Though there were no colors, (Y/N) knew the wings were that of a raven, because that is what Rain had been taught. This was the mark of the tribe.
"This...it's a Wayfarer Archive."
Rain blinked. "What!? What's one of our archives doing under Pegasus's island!?"
"Perhaps he purchased this island specifically because it was here."
"That doesn't make sense. Why didn't the family who tended this archive not say anything? We all already know Pegasus has been looking for trouble. This place should have been brought up!"
"The Paradox Brothers said our opponent was the 'knowledge keeper'. So, what does that entail?"
Suddenly, the torches illuminated, though with blue flames that barely brought up visibility. An arena rose up from the center of the room.
"Welcome, young Wayfarer."
Across from the arena, (Y/N) and Rain could make out a woman sitting on what appeared to be a gaudy throne carved to look like laurel branches with owls. A dark robed woman sat haughtily on the throne, smirking. The female spirit immediately felt annoyed by this woman. She screamed arrogance.
"Who are you?"
The woman stood up, intentionally drawing out her strut, much to (Y/N)'s irritation.
"She's wearing an old scholar's robe." Rain noted.
The stranger was tall and lean, with dark locks and gray eyes that studied the spirit's form intensely. (Y/N)'s (E/C) eyes remained narrowed and focused, daring the woman to try something.
"It's an honor to have the great heir to the Wayfarer Tribe in my presence, Rain (L/N)."
"Who. Are. You?" (Y/N) repeated, a bit more threateningly.
"I am Avaria, and this is my archive."
"This is a Wayfarer Archive." The spirit corrected.
Avaria tsked. "What a shame the heir can't recognize members of her own tribe."
She held up the back of her right hand, revealing a blackish blue tattoo of the Wayfarer sigil. In the old days, high ranking or gifted members of the tribe bore the sigil on their right hand to signify their rank. Nowadays, Wayfarers primarily got it simply to show affiliation with the tribe, usually receiving it after their training was completed, typically around the age of 21. Carter had a sigil of his own and Samson and Rain had spoken at length over the summer about getting theirs early. Still, something was wrong with Avaria's. There were jagged scars that gave the appearance that the sigil had cracked. (Y/N) smirked, shaking her head.
"Former member, it seems. Don't think I'm so young that I don't know what the cracked sigil means. You abandon the path of a Wayfarer. You must have done something truly despicable to be exiled."
Avaria's smug look faded into one of disgust and anger. "Ha! I did this myself! The so-called 'Path of a Wayfarer' is an outdated shackle that has robbed the tribe of glory! We were once a great people, the secrets we held could destroy nations and build new ones, yet weak, old leaders clinging to ancient traditions and codes of honor have left us divided!"
"I will not let my tribe be insulted by a cowardly defector!" (Y/N) roared. "Why did you have the Paradox Brothers drop me here with you?"
Avaria smirked again. "To prove what Wayfarers are truly capable of if we were to use the knowledge we gain for ourselves! Rain (L/N), granddaughter of interim leader Carter (L/N), the new master of the Millennium Bracelet, you represent all that is wrong with our tribe: upholding dead traditions, clinging to chivalrous myths about generosity and kinship, and divulging secrets to outsiders, just like that boy, Yugi Muto. You told him about the Millennium Items."
"Yugi holds the Millennium Puzzle. It is my duty as a Wayfarer to guide him to use it for good!"
"Pah! You should have taken it from him! The items are the rights of our tribe! We alone should be the ones to wield their power, not some pathetic outsider!"
"The Millennium Bracelet is the only item of pure Wayfarer descent." (Y/N) corrected. "The other items were forged and wielded by those not of the tribe, or need I remind you of the relationship of the bracelet and puzzle's previous masters?"
The older woman huffed. "As if I would be subjected to such nonsense. That story only proves what happens when we divulge our knowledge, our power, to outsiders. The Wayfarers spent generations collecting the secrets of the world. That knowledge should belong only to us and should be used only for our sake."
(Y/N) closed her eyes, frowning. "Now I see why you were exiled. You believe knowledge is a treasure to be hoarded and used for one's own gain, and that there are only a selected few entitled to it."
"Only those with the strength and lineage should hold that power!"
"You're wrong. Knowledge is a gift meant to be shared, to better the world. Our ancestors were united under a common goal: to protect the world using what they learned and would learn. The tribe has its own forbidden knowledge, but we have fought for generations to suppress ignorance to bring about a better world. That is why we are Wayfarers!"
"Pretty words for one ruled by the past."
"The past is our greatest teacher. It echoes into the present and marks the trail for the future." She opened her eyes. "You brought me down here to duel, did you not?"
"I have no respect for Pegasus." Avaria said. "I fully intend to take back the item he stole, but his little card game tournament not only provided me with a wonderful hiding space for the collection I rightfully took back from my family, but also with the perfect opportunity to dispose of a lesser Wayfarer, take the Millennium Bracelet, and prove what path the Wayfarer's should be following! I have the only key to the path out of here. Defeat me in a duel, or let this be your final resting place!"
"Bold talk." (Y/N) mocked as she stepped towards the arena. "Let's see if you can back it up."
Avaria took her position on the opposite side of the field.
"Let's duel!"