Sienna: This is basically the same story that was in the two chapters posted before, but when I transferred it to my laptop, I retyped the whole thing, editing it along the way. So the parts are much, much better!! And the storyline makes more sense. If you read it, please read it again, because it is different enough to be confusing if you skip it. Thanks for all your patience!! Now for my reviewers...
to Darkness' Creation: Thank you so much for the great review!! You really think the story is that good? I'll keep typing, and hopefully get more done soon! I hope you like the re-write!!
Sienna: Now, on with the story!! Oh wait...
Rokealo: Sienna does not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or any of it's characters. Sad, really...
Sienna: Yeah, you'd see a whole lot more of my favorite bishounen if I did...
Namesake
by SiennaFox
"Brother?"
"Be brave. I will find a way to free you."
"Where am I? What is this place, Atem? Why can't I see you, brother?"
"Hush now, dear sister. You are safe. Rest."
"...May Osiris and Ra guide you and be with you, my brother."
If only life were that easy. Yami sat in his soul room, replaying that final conversation over and over. He didn't notice when Yugi pounded loudly on his soul room's door, or even when the young boy nervously opened the door and entered the room. He wouldn't have even noticed the boy's presence beside him at all if Yugi hadn't tripped and practically fallen on top of the brooding spirit.
"Y-Yami? What's the matter?"
The Pharaoh sighed, "It's nothing. Just a memory from long ago. There's nothing I can do about it now."
The younger boy seemed to accept this, although he gave his yami a concerned look. "Oh. Alright. I was just wondering, since you've been in here for hours and you haven't said a single word." He stood up to leave, and then turned towards his darker half, looking down at his feet.
The look was not lost on Yami. "What is it, Yugi?"
"Um... If you ever want to talk about it, you know that I'll always listen."
"I know, Yugi. Thanks."
The teen grinned, bobbing his head and sending his spiky hair flying, then dashed out of the room.
Ishizu quietly watched the darkening clouds out the window of the large Kaiba Corp blimp. They swirled chaotically around the aircraft, imitating the thoughts and feelings inside of Ishizu. Questions plagued her mind; what could she do to help her brother - to free him from that evil influence before it completely consumed him? Yes, he was a troublemaker, but this Malik was not the brother she once knew. Even as the questions assaulted her, no answers would come, leaving her mind in as much turmoil as ever.
Her Sennen Necklace hummed and she shifted her blue eyes down towards it. Its gold surface began to glow as she reached her hand to gently touch it. Another Vision? She hadn't had one in a long while. Perhaps this one would present her with a way to help her brother! Her hope swelled slightly, but she repressed it with her doubt, knowing that a Vision alone could not change anything. Feeling the familiar tug of the ancient magic, she closed her eyes and concentrated.
She recognized that the Vision took place in Egypt, for she was once again standing on the dark sand by one of the numerous temples. A figure nearby caught her eye. Observing closer, she realized that the figure was female, but the surrounding area was so dark that it was impossible to distinguish any features beside the white cloak that graced the shoulders of the girl. Hastily the Egyptian girl entered the temple, walking as one who knew the area well, yet she also cautiously looked around as she entered as if she were unsure of whether or not to go on. Ishizu, finding herself curious, followed after her, confident that she was invisible to all in this Vision.
The temple was fairly dark, but it resembled those that Ishizu had seen in her Visions before. The Vision followed silently behind the cloaked figure, who suddenly stopped and fled behind one of the stone columns. The girl peered around the column into the large center room, her hesitant movements indicating both surprise and uncertain fear. The Vision suddenly shifted to the inner room, and Ishizu wondered what could be in there to cause such a reaction in the mysterious Egyptian girl.
The inner chamber was brightly lit with the torches that lined the room, illuminating the endless hieroglyphs that adorned the dull stone walls. Focusing farther in the room, Ishizu caught sight of movement near a large statue of Osiris. Near the far wall stood the young Pharaoh, his hand outstretched towards a huge stone tablet, upon which the form of the Dark Magician was carved. Resting beside that tablet were several others, all with the different figures of beasts from the Shadow Realm engraved on them. As in her other Visions, Ishizu saw the Priest - ancestor of Seto - facing against the Pharaoh, his own tablets by his side, including the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Their voices began to filter out to her, and Ishizu was intent on hearing what was said. Perhaps there was something here that she had missed before? Or some part that was missing from the other Visions...?
"Priest Seth..." She saw the Pharaoh clench his fist angrily, "...why do you insist on continuing this?!" Ishizu felt the same commanding power in his voice that he reflected now as Yami.
The dark-robed priest scoffed - his laughter reminiscent of that of Seto Kaiba's. "Don't tell me, Pharaoh, that you've never craved the power that comes with the Shadow Games." He turned his head disdainfully, a chuckle escaping his lips. "Hmph. I don't even know why you bother, Atemu. You and I both know that you will bow down to my awesome power."
The Pharaoh's voice took on a harsh, forceful tone. "Seth! You do not understand all that depends on this duel!"
"Ah, but I do, Pharaoh Atem. I know exactly what they are..."
The Vision shifted away from the heated conversation and refocused on the figure hunched behind the column. The girl fearfully spun around, her fear only hidden by the shadows cast on her face. A tear glistened of her cheek, dropping silently to the dusty floor. "Brother..."
Ishizu's eyes widened at the word she heard spoken in a weak, trembling voice. Without hesitation, the girl silently turned and tore off deeper into the temple, white cloak flowing behind her.
Ishizu blinked when she noticed a young man with white hair standing nearby, half submerged in a shadowed corner. He gazed after the retreating girl, a secret grin reaching across his tanned face. Ishizu noted a rough scar across his cheek just before he dashed after the white-cloaked girl, his own red and white robes trailing behind him.
It took a few seconds of staring at the dull gray walls of the blimp for her to realize that the Vision had subsided. "I...I don't understand..." What was the point if it were not to show the outcome of that fatal duel? Could it be that it was not the duel she was meant to see?
"Another Vision, Ishizu?"
Ishizu snapped to attention, finding Shaadi sitting near her. "Shaadi... you surprised me..." She sighed, gazing uncertainly out the widow again. "Yes. I received another Vision from the Necklace. How did you know?"
Shaadi chuckled. "You always have this concentrated look when you get a Vision. You've held it for a few minutes now. I thought I'd see what this one was about."
Adjusting her Necklace, Ishizu turned back to Shaadi, "It was much like the other Visions, but much different at the same time. I saw the same temple of the past, where the Pharaoh and the High Priest were in the midst of the Shadow Game." She closed her eyes to aid her in remembrance, willing pieces of the Vision to replay behind her eyelids. "I believe it may have been the final duel that is depicted on the stones, yet I did not witness the result of it." She sighed, but continued, "What was strange was that the duel was not the center of the Vision, but rather a girl wearing a white cloak. She watched the duel, but ran off before it finished, whispering 'brother'. I do not understand why, though..."
She stopped when Shaadi rose quickly to his feet, concentration lacing his features. "A girl, you say? Calling one of them her brother? Hmm..." He touched the Sennen Key, which hung around his neck. "I know not whether the Priest had a sister, but there is rumor that the Pharaoh had a younger sister. But she, as rumor goes, disappeared suddenly; no one knew what had happened to her..." He looked back at Ishizu. "Is Yami still missing his memory of his past?"
"I'm not sure... But that was not the end of my Vision... A young man followed her. He had white hair and a scar on his cheek." She looked towards the door of the room. "He looked much like Yugi's friend Bakura Ryou...Perhaps..." She stared harder at the door, as if it would confirm what she thought. "...perhaps he was the spirit that is now in Sennen Ring that Ryou holds."
"Wh-where am I? Am I no longer...?""Who are you? What are you doing in here?"
The deep voice startled the girl to a standing position. Across the room stood a man in dark clothing, his pale lavender eyes narrowed like a predator watching its prey. Afraid, she turned and fled to her left, where she found a doorway out of the strange room, away from the malice in those beautiful, burning orbs.
Malik flared at the doorway through which the girl had fled. Who she was, he didn't care. But why was she in the room belonging to the hikari of that fool Bakura? Attempting to steal the Sennen Ring, perhaps? No matter, she was gone; now he could finally be rid of this useless fool and go on to crush that wretched Pharaoh.
"Looking for me?
Growling, Malik turned toward the arrogant voice, eyes slitted. 'What a fool...'
"Did you really think that you could catch me unawares in my own room - the room of the Thief King?" the dark spirit proclaimed haughtily. His listless brown eyes bore boldly into Malik's own. Abruptly Malik's face contorted into that of venomous mirth, his laughter erupting in a rain of fiery embers, scalding the bold, contemptuous smile that had spread the tomb robber's features. Bakura recoiled in furious shock, narrowing his stun-widened eyes and flashing an angry sneer. 'How dare he laugh at me...' "What are you laughing at, you fool?"
The thundering eruption of laughter ceased and the blond Egyptian's mouth tightened into a dark smirk. "Who's the real fool? The corner of his mouth lifted slightly, emphasizing the smug gleam in his eyes. "Let's settle this once and for all, with a Shadow Game - a real Shadow Game."
Fleeing down the peculiar hall with growing alarm, her feet blindly carried her as her mind followed its own cryptic paths. "Brother?" She gazed uncertainly around the unfamiliar halls. "Ka? Why won't you answer? Atem?" 'Where could they be? On second thought: where am IWhat had happened? She had been in the quiet, rune-filled stone room in the Item, where she had been for...she was unsure for how long. And her ka had been with her, but where was it now? Maybe he had released her? "Brother? Bah-!"
She was thrown to the ground when she collided with something in her path. "Ow..." With minimal effort, she peered up shakily, prepared to flee again. As she tilted her head up, two figures encompassed her hazy vision. The faint light of the halls glinted off of gold, and her perception cleared, all details of the two figures lost except for the gleaming, burning gold. "N-no..." The golden glimmer seared her vision, tearing through her being, and she heard the faint cry of her ka before her mind was dragged away from consciousness.
Joey lay lazily stretched out on his bed, shifting through his cards. He had to create the greatest deck ever if he wanted even a chance to win this tournament, no matter if it took him all night. It was already starting to get dark, but Joey figured he could manage a few more hours before dropping into snooze land.
His younger friend Yugi rested on the floor by the bed, looking through his own skillfully built deck. If only he, spontaneous Joey Wheeler, could be as skilled as his small friend, or as understanding and patient. 'Heh, wouldn't that be the day...' Joey smirked, sighed, then returned to examining his deck. 'Okay, if I use Jinzo...'
Yami sat staring at his deck, not focused enough to concentrate on schemes and strategies. Yugi had finally convinced him to come out of his soul room, but for some reason he couldn't get his sister's last words off of his mind. With mildly curious eyes, he gazed around Joey's room, which was identical to his own on the huge Kaiba Corp blimp. The nightstand caught his attention, where he noticed a framed picture standing solitary on the sleek wooden surface. The face was one he knew, Joey's younger sister Serenity, whom Joey cared for deeply even though they had been separated for years. They both have a younger sister, yet their relationships with them differed. Joey would give anything for his sister; would, Yami wondered, he have done the same for his own?
"Joey?" He gave a short pause, sorting his thoughts. "In some things... we are much alike."
The startled teen put down his cards and faced his friend. Sometimes it was so hard to tell whether it was Yugi or the Puzzle spirit, they seemed the same at times it was easy to forget that there were two of them. 'This must be Yami... Yuug is never this serious. Plus he sounds older... better see what's up.' He gazed down at the spiky haired boy, finding his serious side and pulling it to the surface. "You're Yami... right?"
The spirit only nodded in confirmation, closing his large eyes. "We have things in common, but at the same time we are so... different..."
"What do ya mean?"
Yugi's spirit form emerged from the Puzzle, sitting nearby on the floor, ready to listen. He gently urged his darker half. [Go on Yami...]
Yami's piercing eyes turned first to Yugi and then to Joey, an inner sadness underlining the amethyst orbs. "You have a younger sister whom you care about and for whom you'd do anything..." He turned his gaze to his hands, which he found resting rigidly on the golden pyramid tied to his destiny. That pyramid, that Puzzle... "I, too, have a younger sister..." Subconsciously his long fingers gripped the ancient artifact in his grasp. "...She and I were the only two children, I the elder. When we were young, we were just as close as you and Serenity, but as I grew, I became more involved in my role as the Pharaoh's heir and later the actual responsibility of the Pharaoh. We...began to drift as I became absorbed with my duties under my father. I would go weeks at a time without speaking to her or even seeing her. Most of the time she was left to herself, and she often wandered about the city dressed as a commoner, just to get away from the confines of the Palace. When our father found her one day in the city, he punished her... yet I provided her no comfort. I treated her like some errant child, but she was so much wiser than I can hope to ever be.
"In the last years of my father's life, my father discovered her friendship with a thief from the small village of Kuru Eruna, a village filled with despicable thieves and tomb robbers; that was the village my father and I subjugated to create the seven Sennen Items. When he forbid her to ever see that boy again, the thief fled and my sister hid herself in her room. I was too afraid to contradict my father's decree, so I watched her carefully in hopes that I could keep her out of danger. When our father died, I watched her, but no so carefully.
"The fight for the Sennen Items and the battle over the control of Shadow Monsters increased in force, and I feared for my sister, who possessed some sort of mystical power that I still don't understand. Maybe it has to do with her namesake, but I do not know. Yet I was unable to protect her, as I was dragged further and further into the chaos. It was such a poor excuse..." The ancient spirit stopped to take a calming breath, his eyes shut tightly in memory. Both Joey and Yugi listened intently, much to the Pharaoh's gratitude. "One night, while I was trying to keep the sorcerers from controlling the Shadow Monsters, she...disappeared. I do not know what happened to her, but I was able to speak with her spirit using the Sennen Puzzle. I promised her that I would find a way to restore her spirit, but it has been over five thousand years... I have failed you, Senna..." The Pharaoh's head dropped down to face his softly pulsing Puzzle, staring at its strange light. Fighting back forgotten tears, he tightened his dampening eyes.
A hand rested softly on the ancient king's slouched shoulder, and he gazed up to see Joey standing behind him, face serious. "Don't worry, Yami. You said you'd free her, and you will. I'll help ya. And I'm sure Yugi and the others will too." He flashed his trademark Wheeler smile, causing the Pharaoh's sorrowful expression to lift.
[I'm sure we'll find her, Yami] came Yugi's silent reply, [No matter what!]
With renewed vigor, Yami raised himself to his feet. "Alright then. Thank you Joey." [And you too, Yugi.] The violet-eyed teen stood up as well, nodding his head and grinning.
The large corporate blimp shuddered, nearly tossing them to the floor. "What the...?" Joey fell roughly over his bed, and landed with a thump on the other side. He slowly raised himself up as the room stilled, steadying himself on the bedpost, and rubbing his head. "Oww...What the heck was that all about? Kaiba's really gotta learn how to fly this thing. Geez..."
The lean duelist turned to face his muttering friend. "I don't know. But perhaps we should go find out."
The pale-washed room was calmly quiet as the two Egyptians looked at the younger girl they had quite literally run into in the hall. Her Necklace and Shaadi's Key had reacted to her presence, and then the young girl passed out. She looked painstakingly familiar to Ishizu, with her tanned skin and traditional Egyptian garb, and Ishizu couldn't help but notice the ring and headband, both gold and crystal and adorned with what looked like the seal of royalty. The Vision she had had earlier that day played again through her mind. This girl was wearing the same white cloak as the young girl of her Vision. But she couldn't possibly be...
Shaadi placed his outstretched hand on Ishizu's shoulder, drawing her out of her vigil. "Ishizu. I believe she is waking up. Do you think...?"
The tall woman stood up, turning first to the girl, and then to Shaadi. "I am not sure. Let us ask her."
It was so unreal, she had dreamt that she was in some unfamiliar place, where the walls were white and long, and the light peered down from the top of the narrow hallways and not from the usual flaming torches. And she had seen the Items again. But that wasn't possible, since she was presently imprisoned in one. What a strange dream...
Her golden-brown eyes fluttered open. Above her the walls were pale, but not stone, and those strange sources of light hung over her head. 'I...wasn't dreaming.' Of course she wasn't - it was too real to be a dream. Somehow... she was brought back. She was no longer a spirit trapped in an Item with her ka, but physically somewhere. But everything was not as she had imagined it to be, it was strange, different, wrong. 'Where's Atem? Or Bahku? He couldn't have...' She sat up. Where was she? Where were the familiar things that she knew? The only comforting attribute of the two standing before her was the sun-tanned skin of the people she knew as her own. That... and the golden Sennen Items.
Raising herself up, she gathered her confusion, forming questions in her mind. Hopefully they could provide her with the answers, or at least where to find them. "You carry three of the Sennen Items." She motioned to the Necklace and the Key, innately knowing the presence of the Scales as well. It brought back so many memories... but where were the holders that she knew to possess these Items? "The Sennen Items...my...namesake." She glanced up at them. "How did you come to behold these Items? Where are the guardians?"
The blue-eyed Egyptian, touching the ancient Item around her neck, stepped forward. "Your namesake? Tell me, what is your name?"
Proudly, and with a touch of sadness, the girl replied, "I am Senna, sister of the great Pharaoh Atemu. I was born before the Items were created, but I was named after the objects that were to bring peace to my people. I did not, however, see the outcome of my brother's efforts... Tell me, where is Atemu?"
Ishizu shifted from the girl's expectant gaze and looked uncertainly at Shaadi. "Senna... I don't know if you know, but it's been five thousand years since your brother's reign..."
"Five...thousand...years?" Senna slowly seated herself back down. "I have been in the Ring for that long...? Then Atem... a-and Bahku...?"
Questions fluttered through Shaadi's mind. It was difficult to understand it all. How had it happened? Why had the lost sister of the Pharaoh suddenly shown up now? She had no Item in her possession. Yet she had somehow known that he held the Scales, which he primarily kept hidden from sight. And she had mentioned being in the Ring. But Bakura had the Ring! He gazed at the young girl with questioning eyes. "How...? There have been many rumors of your disappearance long ago. What happened, and why are you here now? And how do you know so much about the Items when you do not possess one yourself?" And, as a quiet afterthought: "We must go get Yami as well..."
A mysterious smile graced the lips of the lost royalty. She closed her eyes and stretched her long fingers to touch the gleaming relic strung around his neck. "Perhaps it would be better for you to see for yourselves..." Her soft voice faded as Shaadi and Ishizu were enveloped in a golden mist, prepared to become the first beholders of a long hidden tale.
A young Egyptian girl ran out of the stone palace, bare feet dusting through the night cooled sand. She slowed, gazing back towards her home, grinned, and continued on her way. She could see her friend again, the only friend she really had outside her family and household attendants. The poor boy had recently lost his home, although she didn't understand why, and lived wherever he could manage. She once offered to bring him to her home in the palace - it was surely large enough to spare one room for the small boy - but he had refused. Again she didn't understand why, but she trusted that he was capable of taking care of himself if he said so. So why question what was out of her control?
She first caught sight of his pale, white hair in the moonlight, and waved, a broad smile crossing her face.
"Bahku!"
With a warm smile, he gave her a low bow, almost touching the sand with his snowy locks. "Senna, how good it is to see you again."
Still grinning, she playfully poked him on the head. "You stop that now! My father is the Pharaoh, not me!"
The young boy grinned ever so slightly, raising his large brownish eyes to gaze into hers. So sorry, my lady." he chuckled at her frustration, "Sorry...but look what I found!"
"What is it?" Curious, Senna excitedly watched the young boy reach into the flap of the robe covering his chest. The pale moonlight beamed dimly on the object in his hand, and the young girl froze, fear suddenly seizing her body. As the moon-washed object became fully visible, her form shuddered, and she stepped away, golden eyes wide. A piece of her mind recognized the pale-golden item, urging her away; the rest of her mind balked at the sudden fear that had overcome her and planter her feet in the ground. With warring emotions, she was trapped in place, at a loss for what was happening.
Bahku's face dropped as he registered the fear in her molten eyes, confused and alarmed. He ran over to her, the golden ring temporarily forgotten as it fell with a faint thud on the sand behind him, and reached a hand to her trembling shoulder. "Senna... what happened? I didn't mean to..."
Straining a smile, the Pharaoh's daughter looked up at him, silencing him with a hand. "It's okay, Bahku... it's not you. I...I don't know what happened..." Her body shuddered involuntarily again as she attempted to peer around the boy. "I've just got a bad feeling about that item, like it is made of death or something..." She turned her attention back to her concerned friend, dropping her eyes away from his gaze. "No, it's nothing. I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me."
Bahku wasn't so easily convinced. "Are you sure...?"
The girl nodded, shifting her shoulder out from under his hand. She hastened over to where the grand circular object had dropped onto the sand. Kneeling down, she examined it, reaching a tense hand out to touch its cool surface. The internal sense of fear wasn't as strong as it had been the first time she laid eyes upon it. 'Why did I react that way when I saw it? It's not that bad...' The moonlight reflecting off of it shimmered pleasantly. "It's beautiful, though. Especially in the light."
She raised herself, dusting off her sand-dusted dress, and turned to Bahku, who had joined her in her observation. He nodded in agreement, unsure of her mixed reactions. But he knew that she'd love how it shined. She'd always loved shiny things, no matter how insignificant. It could have been a rock and she would have loved it, he was sure. "It looks even better in the sunlight." 'Too bad she'll probably never see it during the daylight, since we're unable to meet each other during the day...'
Both young Egyptians gazed at each other when a light hissing sound rose from behind them. Figuring that it was one of the cobras that frequented that area of the desert, Bahku pulled out a small dagger that his father had given him for protection. He turned first to Senna, then the two of them tentatively looked towards the sound. What met their eyes wasn't a hissing cobra, but the golden object that had been the focus of much of the night. Bahku looked questioningly at his friend. "I don't see anything..." The hissing grew louder, and they realized the sound was coming from the object, which was bathed in a light of its own. The rays of light flared up in lucid streams, temporarily obscuring their sight.
The light faded, and in its wake crouched a monstrous creature, its eyes gleaming a dangerous red. It hissed and growled, snarling at the two Egyptians, and lunged forward at them, sharpened claws outstretched. Without second thought, Bahku leaped to the side, pulling a stunned Senna down to the sand with him.
Recovering quickly, he stood up, looking down at Senna. "Senna, are you alright?"
"Uh huh..."The girl nodded and looked up, spotting movement behind his lean body. "Bahku, behind you!" She tried to reach him, but he was out of her grasp.
Turning swiftly, Bahku barely missed being severed by the creature's claws, which instead grazed over the side of his face. Losing his balance, he fell to the ground, unhurt except for the gash on his cheek, which had slowly begun to bleed a deep red.
Senna pushed herself to her feet, her full intent set on going to her fallen friend, but was forced to twist around in another direction as the creature's swift claws skimmed her upper arm. The soft fabric of her robe's sleeve tore under the razor talons, leaving strips of rags over the angry red lines on her tan skin. As she stared, dumbfounded, at the wound, she felt a surge of power course through her body - what felt like her entire soul - and a strange sense of comfort sought her mind. 'Oh Ra... this can't be happening! Help us!' Dropping to her knees in the soft sand, she gazed blearily up into the dark sky. A large, crystalline creature soared across her vision and descended upon the mist-shrouded beast below. The shimmering, winged beast gave her an odd feeling of tranquility. Subconsciously, she reached up and touched her bleeding upper-arm, coating the tips of her slender fingers with her own lifeblood, and blackness overtook her.
Eyes glazed, Bahku looked up just in time to see the dragon-like creature disappear into the ebony sky. He shook his head to clear it, gingerly touching his bleeding cheek. "What... happened?" Where did those creatures come from, and why did the second one help them? He climbed to his feet when he remembered hazily seeing the dark creature attack Senna, and gazed around, noticing her still form on the sand. He knelt down beside her. She looked as though she had simply fallen asleep in the sand, like it was a normal thing to do. "Senna...?" He carefully touched her arm, hoping that she was still alive, and found that warmth lingered on her skin. "Oh Ra, please let her be alright..." He delicately pulled her light body into his lap, examining her face and closed eyes. She looked so peaceful... His hand brushed against something warm and wet, and he noticed with dismay the crimson seeping from her upper arm. "Holy Ra!" Tearing off a strip of his dark robe, he tied it around her upper arm to relieve the bleeding.
As he tied the makeshift bandage, Senna half opened her eyes, fading in and out of consciousness. "B-Bah...ku... Sc...r..." She lifted her free hand up and touched his wet cheek, wetting her fingers with his blood. Her hand dropped dully to the ground and she slid once again out of consciousness, head rolling back. Bahku sighted. 'At least she's alive and I managed to stop the bleeding before she lost too much blood... But what could have knocked her out? And what am I going to do now? If anyone finds me out here with the unconscious daughter of the Pharaoh, he'd surely blame the whole thing on me without a second thought.' He gazed at the golden ring that lay innocently on the sand next to them. 'How had...'
Hr felt the beating of hooves before he heard them. A troupe of horses was heading in his direction. Even from the distance between himself and the animals, he recognized the golden gear on the lead mount. The Pharaoh was coming...
"Father, no!"The Pharaoh turned an angry eye on his sand-dusted daughter, who was being escorted to the palace baths after he had found her half-awake in the desert with that miserable pilferer. Oh how much she looked like her mother, standing there in commoner's clothes... "No, Senna. You are never to see that boy again. He is a thief - a wretch - as was his father. He probably stole that Ring just to spite me! That little..." He began to fume to himself, muttering curses on the boy, when he realized that his daughter was still in the room. She held her right hand tightly around her cloth-wrapped upper arm. Her jaw was set tight, but her eyes betrayed her anger and sorrow. 'Just like her mother...' The Pharaoh turned his back on her gaze. "I am done speaking with her. Get her cleaned up. And keep a careful watch of her at all times from now on."
The two maidservants nodded, ushering Senna down the hall again. She looked imploringly to her older brother, who stood near the door. He looked at her with sympathy, tilting his tanned head toward her, but hardened his expression when their father turned back around. Hurt, his younger sister looked away, down at the smooth stone floor.
As Senna and the two servants turned the corner, she heard her father's stern voice, "I should have killed that wretched little thief when we found out that he was the soul survivor from that... thief town! Now he has stolen the Sennen Ring from Mahaado, and he's even deceived Senna into believing that he's her friend! He's doubtlessly trying to use her to get to me..." and Senna broke free from the servants and ran to her room, tears streaming down her face, sand and all.
The evening desert lay for miles beyond her vision. For the past few years she'd been doing this, going to the desert at night. Ever since her brother started leaving the palace in the evening and not returning until late morning, she was able to slip away from her room in the palace and go out into the desert surrounded by the pyramid's and temples that encompassed her father's tomb. Only Akhmet, her father's old scribe and her own personal mentor and teacher, knew anything about her nightly wanderings. He was a good man, and did not alert her brother or his servants, but kept watch that she returned in the morning before the Pharaoh noticed. Other than the times spent being taught all the histories and legends of Egypt, these times in the desert taught her more about herself than any other. She knew she was safe - her guardian was there - and Akhmet understood that as well.
If only her brother was as willing to understand as the old scribe had been.
This wasn't the first time she had followed her brother to a mid-sized temple in the sandy wilderness. He thought that she didn't know about the Shadow Realm, and that she was innocent to the knowledge of the secrets of the Items.
But she knew. They were her namesake, after all.
She walked around the halls, reading the script on the walls. As a child she used to watch the scribes and try to learn a little of the text from listening to them, and her father's scribe kindly obliged to teach her to read the various types of writing, giving her an education beyond that of any girl in the country. She perhaps knew more about the Egyptian scripts than her older brother. Akhmet had taught her well. The Pharaoh himself didn't even know of her knowledge, and he wouldn't have approved of it either, if he were still alive. She sighted, 'Why Father? Why must I be kept in the dark? The only way for me to find out what is going on is to do this - follow my brother - and do it all in secret. What is it about this ancient magic that I do not understand?'
She laughed silently when her brother emerged from the next room, his hair a mess and an frustrated scowl on his face, followed by a few of his robed servants. He stalked down the hall with an angry gait, cloak askew. His voice echoed in the dim halls as he headed in the opposite direction, "Seth! Where have you gone? Enough with this foolery - this isn't over!" Senna wondered why they followed this strange tradition every night, searching for the High Priest and his followers. She knew about the Shadow Realm, but all of her knowledge did not provide her with a full comprehension of the reality of it.
With a sigh, she leaned against the wall. "Oh my brother, what are you trying to hide? Trying to protect me from?" It had been weeks since he had actually talked to her, and the conversation wasn't anything of merit. He was holding something back from her, she knew, probably trying to keep her safe in ignorance. And she had a sinking feeling that she knew it had something to so wit the secret trips at night, and the Sennen Puzzle slung around his neck. He would just gaze at her with sad, somber eyes, but would say nothing beyond formalities.
Whatever it was, it was changing the brother she once knew into someone completely different, and she didn't like it.
Wrapping herself tighter in her white cloak, its edges embroidered with basic hieroglyphics, including simple images of the Sennen Items, she turned to follow her brother. Her mind returned to the first time she had ever seen one of the Items, a time before she had even know of their existence. After that incident, she had done all she could to find out about that Item, and found in the readings that Akhmet found for her that there were seven different entities made of gold that contained the Egyptian magic connected with the Shadow Realm. When she read the account of the destroyed village and the sacrifices made to create the Items - hearing details from the old scribe who himself had written the account - she had been shocked at her father, and ashamed of her family. Maybe they had been created to stop evil from using the increasing shadow powers to corrupt the world, but to destroy a whole village for that was too much for the girl to bear.
She followed her brother out of the temple to another, larger temple. It loomed darkly over her head, and she cautiously followed in. Her cloak's hood did well to shroud her face as she slipped by one of the inattentive guards of the temple. The gold band around her slender neck glittered in the torchlight, and she nervously covered it with her hand. Suddenly her brother's attendant came out of the nearby room, and she pressed herself against the nearest column, holding in a sharp breath. She watched as they, and the priest's attendants after them, disappeared; some went out of the temple while others retreated down the shadowed halls. A few curses were exchanged among the servants as they left, angry at the harsh dismissal made by their two opposing leaders.
'Thank Ra.' Senna sighed in relief as the men hastily left without noticing her. If they had found her, she knew her brother wouldn't be pleased. That is, if they even recognized her as the Pharaoh's sister. If they didn't... well, she had heard enough stories of what they did to young women they found alone to be glad that they hadn't seen her at all.
The sound of stone scraping against stone was enough to draw her out of her thoughts. She peered into the next room, from which the robed men had emerged moments before. Her brother stood at one end of the long room. Behind him was the stone shrine to Osiris, laden with golden symbols of praise. He looked little like the image she remembered of their father, but he stood with the same air of authority as the former Pharaoh. She was awed at how powerful he appeared in his position as the king of Egypt, even as young as he was. That same golden pyramid - the Sennen Puzzle was the name given to it in the scripts - hung loosely about his neck as it once had her father's, the Eye of Horus glowing faintly.
He spoke, but the words escaped her when she noticed the large stone tablet levitating a little to his left. Upon the stone carving was an image of a great monster. She blandly recalled seeing the image before, in the texts about the Shadow Realm and its mysterious existence.
With mild curiosity she continued to watch. On the other side of the room stood the richly robed High Priest, Seth. Senna recalled seeing him mine times in the various temples and even in the palace, but he never really paid any mind to her. She noticed a golden rod in his hand, and she realized that he held one of the Sennen Items. She had always just thought the golden rod he carried was one piece in his gaudy array of possessions, yet as she looked at it now, the center Eye glowing dimly, she recognized that she had been wrong. That was no simple priest's staff.
The Priest spoke, and the large stone tablet groaned as it rose from the ground, as if awakening from a deep sleep. The image of a monster was carved on this stone as well, although it was different from the other. More words were spoken, and suddenly a ghostly image emerged form the stone. It took the form of the creature depicted on the tablet. Its body was slightly transparent, and Senna could not fully believe what she was beholding. With a terrible screech it let out a blast of energy, amazing directly at the tablet at her brother's side. The impact crushed the stone image and she wanted to scream out, but her breath caught in her throat. What was this? It was...awful... This was what her brother was hiding from her? These monstrous...duels?
A second stone rose up at her brother's command, releasing a creature and its crushing fury. Senna quickly turned away as it surged toward the Priest's stone. Was this...? How could Atem...? Is that what the texts she read were referring to? How could that be?
She shuddered, glancing back again. She cringed and turned back around, unable to stand anymore. Emotions welled insider her: anger, sadness, confusion, fear, disgust. 'How could you, Atemu? Why, my...'
"Brother..."
Her own voice startled her. She lifted her head as she noticed the nearby guard running toward the outer door. The sounds of a heated conflict filtered over to her. She couldn't go out that way, or she'd surely be caught. She glanced down the long stone hallway. It was a good thing that she knew an alternate route out of the massive temple.
Tears threatened to spill as she heard the terrible cries of the monsters within. The sounds of the outside scuffle were nearing her, and she fled. Down the wide hall she ran, bypassing multiple side paths. An eerie feeling was in the musty air, and she slowed to a walk, concentrating on where she was in relation to we she knew the hidden entrance to be. The walls were pale and lifeless, and she ran a hand along the rough surface as she walked. There was little torchlight in this narrow area of the temple, but a large gleam of light flickered somewhere up ahead of her.
She cautiously walked closer to the bright light, wondering what could be so far in the labyrinthine temple. By the time she realized that it was one of the High Priest's sorcerers lighting the hall torches with his own flaming torch, it was too late for her to turn back because he had spotted her with beady black eyes.
"Halt!" he barked, raising a ring-adorned hand. He narrowed his eyes. "What are you - ungh!" His accusatory glare faltered as his eyes rolled up towards the ceiling and he dropped to the floor.
She uncertainly stepped towards the mage, reaching for his dropped torch. Her hand flew to her mouth when she saw the cause of the man's sudden lack of motion. A glittering ebony dagger handle stood at a rigid angle out of his back.
She stepped back, forgetting all about the sputtering torch on the ground, her eyes focused on the masterfully designed hilt of the weapon. "Who could have...?" As she stared at the dagger, a hand reached forward and carefully pulled it out of the mage's robes, the blade coated in rivulets of scarlet. The person belonging to the hand stepped into the light of the fallen torch, carefully wiping the blade on crimson robes and replacing it in the folds of robe. Senna gazed at the strange man. He wore red and white robes, and a few gold pieces adorned his tanned skin. His hair was pale, white, and his face... "Ba...Bahku?"
"Surprised?"
His voice was deep and rich, but it sounded empty, devoid of any emotion. "I-I..."She couldn't do anything but stare, her jaw working jerkily as she fumbled for words; her eyes taking in the changed yet familiar features of the man who had once been the closest thing to a best friend. Her gaze glided over him; his tall, muscular body; the same, moonlight-white hair; his earthy-brown eyes. Her own golden-brown eyes came to rest on his face, and as they caught the pale scar on his cheek, her trembling fingers subconsciously reached to touch her shoulder where her own, similar scar rest. She wanted to run to him, to embraced him. She wanted it to become the reunion of lost friends that she had pictured over and over, both in sleep and insomnia. But something was holding her back, keeping her where she stood.
She sensed it before she saw it. Resting upon his bared chest was the golden Ring, shimmering in the torchlight.
He watched her patiently, waiting for her reaction. He hoped she hadn't become as jaded as he over the years.
Her voice finally returned to her, "The Sennen Ring... you still have it?" The Egyptian girl looked uncertainly at him. She received a grunt in reply. She looked down apologetically. "After all these years... Bahku... I searched for you, but my father forbade it..." Her voice weakened as she returned a helpless gaze to her childhood friend.
He laughed; it was a dark, mysterious laugh, melancholy even. "I know. Your father was a fool." He looked at her. "Your brother, too."
It was then that she realized that he wasn't the same young boy she had known as a child.
"They destroyed my life, Senna."
"Bahku... I..."
"They destroyed my home and my family. The whole village went up in flames..."
Suddenly, it fell into place. "...Kuru Eruna." The child Bahku losing his home and family, refusing her offer to live at the Palace... It was all because of her father, the great and mighty Pharaoh...
He lifted a pale eyebrow, only slightly surprised at her knowledge. "You've heard about it, then. I'm sure your father wasn't the one to tell you. He wouldn't even speak the name of the village he destroyed." He lifted the golden Ring from his chest. The little golden arrows chimed as they moved. "The blood of my home...all for these... "
Senna felt her guardian stir at the threat of the Item, which contained the deadly shadow magic. "No!" Terrified that her ka would attack Bahku, Senna turned to stop it. The crystalline dragon cried in anger as it ran head-first into a shimmering barrier between itself and Senna. The barrier was made of shining white sword-shaped silhouettes that laced the narrow hall from one wall to the other, locking the ka in a box of stone and light behind Senna.
Senna turned back around to face Bahku. The Ring in his hand was faintly glowing. He dropped it to his chest. "How...?"
"I've gotten quite familiar with this Ring, as it has been my only companion for the past few years..." He looked at her. "And I know all about your ka. I have one too. I... I couldn't have it interfering, so I used my Ring to keep it safely aside. No harm done."
"But... how did you know? I didn't even know until months after..."
"A scribe told me where to find you, after much... persuasion..."
Senna gasped. "Akhmet! You didn't..." The picture of the dagger hilt sticking out of the mage's back flashed through her mind.
Bahku let himself grim. "No. You trust him, and so will I. It was a long time ago when he told me. I've... followed you, every night, from a distance. I couldn't approach you because of that blasted father of yours. And then your fool brother. Not only did they destroy my life, but they took away the only one willing to underdressed me - you." He reached his hand, almost guiltily, and touched the scar on her shoulder, running desert roughened fingers over the pale mark.
Senna didn't know whether to be frightened or flattered. Just a second ago she had entertained the thought that he had harmed her beloved mentor, yet she couldn't help seeing the young boy that had been her only real friend in those deep eyes. It seemed hard to imagine that he was capable of killing, even as the dead mage lay forgotten by their feet.
He was inches from her now, and she nervously took a step back, pressing herself up against the barrier of light. There was a darkness in his eyes that hadn't been there before, his innocence had been stolen from him at a young age. The words clenched at her heart. She felt compassion and longing for her old friend, but she couldn't help the fear welling up in her. 'What is he going to do?' Her ka screeched from the other side of the barrier as it sensed her fear. "Bahku..."
He looked at her, eyes narrowed, then broke into melancholy laughter. "Senna, there is nothing for you to fear from me. You have done nothing wrong." He leaned closer to her, bringing his lips next to her ear. She felt a strand of his hair brush her cheek, and it brought her shivers. "But your family, my dear, is another story..." He pulled back, so that their foreheads were touching.
She stared into his dark eyes, but could see nothing. She sensed what he felt rather than saw it in him, she knew he was telling her the truth, and the fear for herself shifted to fear for her brother. "...Bahku, no... I cannot let you..."
"I know..." Bahku felt a pang of guilt in his gut as he thought of what he must do. How could he have thought this would have been easy? Even though they hadn't seen each other for years, the simple bond of lost friends still remained, fresh on the surface. 'She has suffered too...'
He placed a hand on her cheek and she shivered at the unfamiliar contact. "If I have to suffer without you, then so will they..." On the last word, he brought his mouth to hers in a kiss. He felt his stomach churn. 'This is the only way,' he thought to himself, 'the only way...'
He had expected her to fight him, to try and push him away.
She must have been as lonely as he felt.
He saw the brief fear and hesitance in her eyes, but loosened his guard when they melted into her characteristic trust as she closed her eyes and ceased her halfhearted resistance. To fight against one she cared about for another she cared about - it was a losing battle.
Her silvery ka let out a mournful cry that faded into an understanding rumble.
A golden haze surrounded them both, and then he was alone.
The young thief gazed sorrowfully down at his Ring. "I'm sorry, Senna. But you'll be safe in there, until this is all over..." He closed his eyes, turning away and walking down the empty hall, his hand resting on his Ring.