Silence crept across the desert near the city of Thebes as the sun began to set. Two figures appeared on a hilltop near the city. One of the figures was a white haired man dressed in a kilt and a red robe who was riding a black horse. The other was a woman with black hair dressed in a black brassiere and a black skirt that was slit down the sides who was driving a black chariot pulled by cheetahs. The man and woman looked down at the city from the hilltop with amusement. They watched at the citizens of Thebes close their shops for an early holiday. They saw that gypsies and other entertainers were entering the city and heading to the palace. Nobles and other important officials were entering the palace dressed in their finest clothes, bearing gifts.
"Look at all those arrogant fools, Catahl," remarked the white haired man, glaring at the city.
"I see them, Bakura. Now can we get off of this hill and actually do what we came here to do?" asked the black haired woman who was the Shah Catahl, the most wanted assassin in all of Egypt. She stared at the Thief King impatiently with her bright green eyes, and she played with an obsidian pendant in the shape of a cat's eye that was fastened on a gold chain around her neck. Bakura glared back at her.
"Fine," replied Bakura, waving his hand at her. "Pray tell, what exactly do you plan on doing? You never told me your part of this little plan."
Putting on a black mask, the Shah Catahl smirked and chuckled softly. "I'm going to be a fatal distraction." She replied, signaling her cheetahs to move. The large cats broke into a run and pulled their mistress down the hill towards the city. Bakura nudged his horse into a gallop and followed the Shah Catahl.
The palace's servants and slaves bustled about the throne room, decorating and preparing for the night's celebration. High Priest Seto stood outside the throne room, watching the servants and slaves exit and enter. He leaned against the stone wall, wishing that he could go in, but unfortunately for the priest, the Pharaoh had forbidden him to come inside the throne room today. The reason being that today was Seto's eighteenth birthday, and he was being thrown somewhat a surprise party. Seto of course knew about the celebration, but he did not know what entertainment was booked, or who was coming, or what food they were serving. The High Priest had no control over his own party, and he was becoming aggravated.
"Good evening, Master Seto. Excited for your party?" asked a man wearing a gold headdress, a white tunic, and the Millennium Ring. Seto looked at the man with an emotionless gaze.
"Not particularly, Master Mahad. I just want to know what's going on in there," replied Seto, nodding his head towards the throne room. Then an idea dawned on the High Priest. "Mahad, could you go in the throne room then come back and tell me what's going on?"
"I'm sorry, but I can't. The Pharaoh has forbidden everyone from telling you any details about your party," remarked Mahad, smiling. "Why don't you stop brooding and wait in your room for the party to start. It begins in a half hour."
Seto hated being told what to do, but he saw Mahad's point. It was useless to stand outside the throne room. He pushed himself off the wall and walked back to his room.
Outside in the shadows of the palace, Bakura waited with his horse and the Shah Catahl's cheetahs, waiting for the Shah Catahl to return. His horse didn't like the cheetahs very much, and it continuously snorted and pawed at the ground. The Thief King jerked on the horse's reins, telling it to stop. 'What could be taking her so long?' wondered Bakura, growing impatient. Then, the Shah Catahl came running up to Bakura and the animals, but her appearance was slightly different. Bakura gawked at the sight of his partner's new outfit.
She was not wearing her black ensemble. Instead she wore a bright red brassiere that was embroidered with silver thread and emblazoned with rubies. Strings of red beads fell from the middle of the brassiere and draped down her stomach. She wore a red beaded dancer's belt that was also embroidered with silver thread and emblazoned with rubies. She wore a ruby choker around her neck and a transparent red scarf across the middle of her face that covered her nose, mouth and chin. The outfit didn't leave much to the imagination, and that's how the Shah Catahl wanted it.
"So, Thief King, how do I look?" asked the Shah Catahl, seductively.
Bakura regained his composure. He cleared his throat, and replied, "I don't know about fatal, but you are definitely are going to be distracting, Catahl." He looked her over once more and noticed she was still wearing her cat's eye pendant. "Your pendant might give you away though."
"Those fools will be paying more attention to my body than they will be to my jewelry," snapped the Shah Catahl, defensively. She didn't go anywhere without her cat's eye pendant, and she wasn't about to start. The Thief King glared at her.
"Whatever… Let's go. You've wasted enough time. The celebration or the High Priest has already started," remarked Bakura, letting go of the animals. Then he started the process of sneaking into the Pharaoh's palace.
Once the duo was inside, Bakura climbed up into the rafters of the throne room and hid the shadows. He took out a bow and arrow and waited to get a clear shot of the Pharaoh which was difficult because he was surrounded by his sacred guardians. He hoped that the Shah Catahl would do her job well enough so he could get his revenge.
On the ground, the Shah Catahl walked into the throne room from a side entrance and scanned the room. She knew Bakura was already in the rafters, waiting for her. She watched as other dancers dragged the party guests onto the dance floor. The Shah Catahl noticed most of the guests were also drunk, but she didn't care about them. Her gaze wandered over to the Pharaoh and his priests. They didn't look drunk, but looks could be deceiving. She sauntered over to the Pharaoh and his priests, swaying her hips with the beat of the music.
'The Pharaoh pulled out all of the stops for my celebration,' thought Seto, eating the bit of food that was on his plate. He boredly watched the other guests having fun, thinking about how they were fools for getting drunk. He took a small sip of wine from his gold wine goblet.
"Are you having a good birthday, Seto?" asked a voice to his right.
Seto peered over to his right and saw that it was Pharaoh Atem who had spoken to him. "Yes, I am, Pharaoh," replied Seto, smiling. It was a lie. Seto wasn't enjoying himself at all; he hated parties.
"Excellent," replied the Pharaoh, sitting in his throne.
Seto returned his gaze to the dance floor. His eyes went wide as he saw a black haired woman dressed in red walking towards him. He wondered if she would have the audacity to come and approach him.
The Shah Catahl had the High Priest in her sights. 'If I can get him away from the Pharaoh, then Bakura will have a clear shot,' thought the Shah Catahl, smirking. She slowly made her way up to the priest and walked around his chair. Her fingertips brushed across the High Priest's shoulder and leaned down to make eye contact with him. The High Priest had the most beautiful blue eyes that she had ever seen. He was also one of the most handsome men she had ever seen. This was turning out to be a good job.
"Why do you look so bored, my lord? This is your party. You should be having fun," asked the Shah Catahl, taking Seto's hand in her's. "Why don't you come with me, and I'll show you how to have a good time?"
Her voice was peaceful and seductive. The High Priest was enchanted by her every word. He was about to let this dark haired woman whisk him away, but then he remembered himself.
"I shouldn't. I mu-" started Seto, trying to deny her.
"Oh no. You really should," said the Shah Catahl, cutting off the High Priest's words. She pulled Seto out of his seat and onto the dance floor with the rest of the guests. The Pharaoh and the other sacred guardians watch in amazement when they saw Seto being drag out onto the floor by the beautiful dark haired girl.
Out on floor, the Shah Catahl danced around the High Priest. Seto was a little stunned at first, and he didn't know what to do. Then, he took her by the hand and started to dance with her. Soon they were dancing something that looked like a samba. The Shah Catahl's beaded skirt flared out as she spun around and twirled. She nimbly followed the High Priest as he led her around the dance floor, and as she kept his attention away from the Pharaoh. Most of the other guest that were dancing moved off of the dance floor and watch her and Seto dance. The guests started to clap to the beat. The dance was so enthralling that the Shah Catahl almost forgot why she was at the palace.
Bakura watched the Shah Catahl and the High Priest dance from the rafters. A wicked grin was plastered on his face. 'She is having way too much fun with this job,' thought the Thief King. Though he had to agree her little performance was distracting enough that no one would notice an arrow flying at the Pharaoh. So Bakura nocked his arrow and aimed for the Pharaoh's heart. He let the arrow go and watch it fly towards his enemy.
Unfortunately for Bakura, the High Priest Mahad noticed the arrow and pushed the Pharaoh out of harms way. The arrow pierced the Pharaoh's throne, and the whole room became silent. Seto and the Shah Catahl stopped dancing and turned towards the Pharaoh. The Shah Catahl was displeased to see that the Pharaoh was still alive, but she didn't show it. Suddenly, Bakura swung down from the rafters and landed in the middle of the crowd.
"Well, Pharaoh, this has been a great party, but sadly I must leave you now." remarked Bakura, smirking. He turned to the Shah Catahl, and said, "As usual, Catahl, every man for himself." Then the Thief King ran off.
'Bloody bastard!' screamed the Shah Catahl in her mind. Breaking from Seto's grasp, she sprinted for the door. The guest screamed and moved out of her way, and she ran past them.
It took a second for the High Priest to react. Bakura was in the throne room. The Shah Catahl was in his arms, and now she was sprinting away. Then Seto yelled, "Block the door! Get the assassin!"
Guards with shields and spears blocked the Shah Catahl's exit, but that didn't faze her. She merely aerialed over the guards and their spears and ran down the hallway. She didn't know where she was going, and it was too late to find Bakura. So she just turned down random hallways and ran faster than whomever was chasing her, but she knew she would have to hide soon. She glanced behind her and saw no one and quickly went into the closest room. She quickly closed the door behind her and looked for an exit. There was a balcony, but she couldn't go out there right now. Guards would probably find her and come running in. She ventured further into the room to a wardrobe. The Shah Catahl opened the wardrobe, hoping to find something she could change into, so she could get out of the skimpy dancer's clothes. Unfortunately for her, it was a man's wardrobe, and the only thing she could find was a black robe. 'It's better than nothing,' thought the Shah Catahl, removing the black robe from the wardrobe. Then she heard footsteps outside the room and ran into room connected to the room. She silently closed the door to the connected room and looked for some place to hide. The Shah Catahl soon realized that the connected room was a very large bathroom. Then she saw a column that was wide enough to hide her body and concealed herself behind it and waited.
The High Priest watched the Shah Catahl escape out of the throne room and quickly followed her. He wasn't going to let her escape and make him look like a fool. Seto followed her down the many hallways. He followed her around one corner, but when he turned the corner she disappeared. Uncertain of where the Shah Catahl went, Seto continued to run down the hallway. The other sacred guardians and regular guards joined in Seto's search. They searched for hours, but no one could find the assassin. Pharaoh Atem ended the search since everyone was close to exhaustion.
"That is enough. The Shah Catahl has most likely escaped. There is nothing we can do now," said the Pharaoh to his sacred guardians. High Priest Seto stepped forward and bowed.
"My apologies, Pharaoh. We have failed you," said Seto. The other guardians bowed to the Pharaoh and apologized as well. The Pharaoh did not think his guardians failed him, but he forgave them to make them feel better. Then everyone went there separate ways to go to bed and get what little sleep they could before morning.
The High Priest entered his room and collapsed on his bed. He thought of the black haired assassin that escaped him. Seto became angry at the thought of the Shah Catahl dancing with him and making a fool of him. He sat up and glared angrily around the room. Then he noticed something of place; his wardrobe doors were open. Seto silently grabbed the scimitar near his bed and unsheathed it. He through the sheath on his bed and cautiously walked towards his wardrobe. Seto poke around inside the wardrobe, but no one was in it. Though he did notice his black robe was missing. Being wary, Seto entered his bathroom.
The Shah Catahl heard the bathroom door open, and she held her breath. She heard footsteps that were slowly approaching her. Seto was nearing the column that the Shah Catahl was hiding behind. He rounded around the column, and she rounded around it, trying to keep out of his sight. Unfortunately for her, Seto saw her before she saw him and grabbed her by the wrist.
"Caught you, assassin," stated the High Priest, coldly.
The Shah Catahl tried to release herself from Seto's grasp by twisting and jerking, but the High Priest held strong. Slowly she back up to the edge of the bath that was filled with water. When she felt the water on her toes, she jumped and ran into the High Priest. Seto took this opportunity to twist her arm behind her back and place his sword at her throat. The Shah Catahl stopped squirming when she felt the blade on her skin. She knew fighting was futile at this point. The High Priest felt that his captive stopped moving and he released her arm a little. That was the opening the Shah Catahl needed. With her elbow, she hit the High Priest in the stomach. The pressure from the blow caused Seto to release the Shah Catahl and stumble back. She made a run for the door, but the High Priest recovered quickly and grabbed her wrist again. He pulled back and threw her onto the floor. Seto ran out of the bathroom, closed the door, and locked it. The Shah Catahl tried to open the door, but she couldn't. She was trapped in the High Priest's bathroom. 'At least it's not his bedroom,' thought the Shah Catahl, trying to look on the bright side.
