Ascension [A Yu-Gi-Oh! FanFiction]

35: Heart

Dawn broke on Satiah like a spear driven into prey, but even as her tired eyes were greeted by harsh daylight, her nightmares lingered on.

She blinked and pushed herself to a sitting position on the stone bench beneath her, casting her face in the shadow of a palm tree overhead. It took her several lethargic moments to even recognize her surroundings: After spending nearly the entire night by Jahar's bedside in the prison cellar, she'd eventually stolen away to a quiet corner of the villa courtyard to sleep off her exhaustion for a few hours.

In truth, she had considered sleeping in the cells at first rather than leaving Jahar's side, but the prison had been crowded all night by a regular rotation of priests and nosy Guardians, and their hovering presence had left her feeling more anxious than ever. Just before she'd left, Seto had come down for his shift, and he'd regarded her with utter disdain the entire time she'd spent tending to her former mentor. She'd tried to ignore his judging eyes, but between the anger and the shame and the fatigue, it simply became too much to bear.

Predictably, Jahar had not woken even once through the night, and though Satiah had told the prison staff to fetch her immediately should his condition change, she was not surprised when no news came. Jahar's ba had been utterly decimated in his battle against the God, and recovering from such a blow would have been a difficult task even for a young and resilient duelist. At first, she'd accepted the fact that it would be some time before he regained his strength, but as the hours wore on, Satiah began to worry that he might never wake up at all.

The thought soon brought tears welling back into her already raw eyes, and anger quickly boiled up along with them. Satiah knew this anger should have been meant for her former mentor, whose unbidden vengeance had uprooted the seeds of peace she'd only just begun to sow. But as hot tears streamed down her face, only one memory flashed itself before Satiah's eyes: That of her husband, his body wrapped in the wicked power of his Pendant — and the ruthlessness with which he gave the order to kill a defenseless man. She still remembered how his eyes had flickered with sadistic pleasure as he awaited the God's final blow — as if nothing but the utter destruction of his enemy would satisfy him.

Fearing this image might be burned forever in her mind, Satiah forced herself to open her eyes and suck in a deep breath. As she lifted her head to the shine of the sun, she found her gaze drawn toward a figure standing in the shadow of a nearby tree. Instantly, her sobs hissed to a stop as she met eyes with Mahad. His serious face was painted with worry, and within moments he was sweeping through the shady grove to where she sat.

"My queen," he whispered, drawing to a stop before her, "is everything alright?"

Frantically, Satiah rubbed her eyes and steadied her quivering breaths. "I'm fine."

"I crossed paths with your handmaiden on my way here," Mahad went on, his voice low and cautious. "She was asking after you." He hesitated. "Have you been here all night?"'

Satiah lowered her head shamefully, unable to muster a reply.

Mahad stood silent for a long time, and Satiah could feel his eyes burning down through the top of her head. "You should return to the residence, my queen," he said. "The Pharaoh is surely worried about you."

Another flicker of anger lashed in her stomach, burning away what was left of her tears. She stole a scornful glance at the Guardian, but she saw in his warm eyes that his concern was genuine — untainted by the obsequiousness that often followed his colleagues.

Slowly, she lifted her head back up. "Tell me, Mahad," she said. "How long have you known the king?"

He looked taken aback for a moment, his brow rising. "Almost my whole life."