So this is the chapter of my brand new fanfiction! I have to say that if you haven't watched this anime yet…then what are you doing reading this story and go watch it! WATCH IT now! Like I meant to watch it ages ago and now that I have I am in love with it…the ending is kinda meh but that's what fanfiction is for!
Anyway, I don't own Gankustou: The Count of Monte Cristo, I only own my OC's.
PS. I am accepting a limited number of OC's (5 at max). The OC template will be at the bottom of this chapter.
ANYWAY ENJOY!
Prologue
Unknown P.O.V
The whips cracked endlessly as I trudged through the disgusting and gritty streets of the London's less than stellar districts, drenched in my own sweat and self-pity. Numerous others like me moved like zombies as we approached what would be our performance and presentation – being sold off as a prize to some wealthy socialite that was most likely hungry for the body of some under aged slave that could be easily violated.
Slave.
The word left a bitter taste in my mouth but I knew that it retained its obligation as a title none the less due to the intense pain coming from a slave brand that was burned onto my eye turning it blind and useless – a rare place for a brand that made someone recognizable as rebellious and their value is less than it would have been originally.
Out of the corner of my eye though, I could see a familiar boy with messy, long black hair and dark blue-grey eyes looking upon me with concern – the boy's name is Yuri Edgar and he is my closest comrade. We had only met and known each other for the few months that I had been a slave but we already knew everything about each other.
Yuri was originally the son of a well-known English Aristocrat that had gotten drunk one night during a trip into the Japan colonies. He then found pleasure in having sex with an available young Japanese woman who was willing to sell her body for money – Yuri was the result of said incident. With no money or interest to care for the bastard child, Yuri was shipped off to live with his father (who begrudgingly accepted him as he had no heir) and the father's real wife (who seemed to be to sickly to care about his background). However, he was sold to slavers as a rare creature the minute that his father's real wife became incredibly sick during a period of successful pregnancy and required overly rare and expensive medicine that out valued that of a bastard child.
I, on the other hand, had a very simple backstory.
I had no memory.
No past.
No family.
No links to any culture.
I was just an empty shell with no known purpose.
The only clues to my past was that I was found by this particular group of slavers underneath a cloth of white stained with blood that was not my own within the confines of a burned down church. I also remembered the blurry image of a man with an elegant rapier standing in front of me with a blood on his clothes but I couldn't ever get a clear look at his face.
But despite my memory loss, I was originally valued at an extremely high price and was treated like royalty (or at least the slave could be treated) until the day when I spoke up for a fellow slave that was being mistreated after a failed auction attempt. The slavers were not taken well to my boldness and punished me with brand so painful and awful that it would never fade along with my better treatment being stripped away. However, the slavers were more furious over their own stupidity for branding someone that was worth so much gold.
That was the day though that Yuri and I became close.
So as my friend gave me continuous looks of concern, I could only smile and say "What's got you so worried Yuri?"
Yuri flinched at the loudness of my voice as the Slavers eyes looked at us in annoyance before huffing and focusing on the pathway in front of them "Keep your voice down! But…this is your first auction correct?"
I nodded uncaringly "Yep, that's right."
"…How…are you still so carefree" he furiously whispered in response "don't you know that you'll be these bastard's main attraction."
I rolled my eyes "Oh what would any of those nobles want with an older girl like myself? I'm even branded…that just makes me even less valuable…"
"You're fucking kidding me right? You're a rarity!"
"…I'm a rarity?"
"Well…how many girls do you know that have blue hair and gold eyes that are speckled with green and yellow?" Yuri questioned me only to be stopped when he noticed me glaring at him "…right…you wouldn't know anyone would you, I'm sorry."
I turned away from Yuri with a huff, not because he had pissed me off (ok that was partially the reason), but because I didn't want him to notice the fear that was slowly making an appearance on my face as the stands of the slavers grand presentation and the crowd of nobles that waiting anxiously set the seriousness of my situation in motion. The fear that I was feeling became even more predominant as the jittering of my fellow slave's chains started to intensify and the slaves helped this fear grow as their whips cracked against the ground faster and faster.
With no one watching me I grasped my chained hands around the only memento of my past that remained – a chain that held a locket with a shiny sapphire embezzled into it – and with the courage I could muster I spoke "If there is a God, let no harm come to me."
We then stopped suddenly and I could feel the air of fear spread across all of the slaves. I looked between the crowd and the stand with calm eyes that hid the inner fear I was feeling, allowing myself to make it easier to allow the slavers to lead me away from my last chance at what I thought was freedom.
But as the slaves started leading us onto the stage, I failed to notice that my necklace was glowing faintly we meant that my prayer was received...
And that I was about to spiral into a life with many twists and turns caused by the man that would steal my heart and allow me to heal his very own.
Haydee shivered as she looked upon the all too familiar stage that would hold the slaves meant for purchase by the disgusting nobles of London's underground. She felt the need to cry when she heard the excited whispers of the crowd when the slaves finally came into view led by the thrilled faces of the slave drivers.
"Pigs…" she muttered to herself "Pigs in human clothing."
"Is something the matter Haydee?"
The fourteen-year-old girl nearly jumped when she heard the calm yet booming voice of a man behind her, bringing her back into reality "Excellency!"
The man she was referring to was known as the Count of Monte Cristo, he was of great height and posture, long wavy dark blue hair that reminded of the stormy ocean, eyes of different colours – one green and the other red – along with his delicate and clear icy blue skin.
He looked upon his young companion with concern "Are you alright Haydee? You seem conflicted…"
Haydee tried to give a smile but it came of shaky "I…I'm fine…I ju-just feel bad for all of those people up there."
"I see now…you are recalling your own past aren't you?"
Haydee nodded sadly "How could I not…it wasn't that long ago that my life changed forever."
"Well then…" The man said with a small smile as he looked as the slaves began to line up on stage "perhaps it would be best that I-!"
The Count was then cut off by a sudden burst of noise that erupted from the crowd leading to some already shouting immense amounts of money at the smirking slavers "What in the world could cause this much noise-!"
He finally saw what the crowd's attention was focused on and even he was amazed as a young girl that was probably only a few years older than Haydee come upon the stage dressed in a white hooded robe. The slavers then removed the robe revealing hair that shinned like the summer sky, eyes that shown like various gems all at once, skin as pale as the snow, clothes that showed her refined grace and purity simply from the white that suited her body so well all this was completed by the elegance that no other person present possessed.
The crowd apparently thought the same as whispers of excitement and sick desire seethed into the Count's ears:
"Such beauty!"
"Is she even human?"
"I would think so but maybe not fully."
"She does seem awfully ethereal…"
"I'm sure that she wouldn't have be defiled then…"
"Ah…Virgins are always the best source of…pleasure."
"Excellency…" Haydee said carefully as she looked on in awe as the girl took her place on the centre stage. The girl showed no emotion at all other than a hint of fear that was present in the girls glittering eyes "that girl is…"
"Beautiful." The word exited the Count's mouth before he could think but what else could describe a woman like her? It was clear that she was human…yet she also appeared far to ethereal to be considered just a regular human."
Bertuccio and Baptisin then approached their master with looks of amusement and concern on each of their respective faces "Is something the matter milord?"
The Count returned to reality and looked at his bodyguard in confusion "Why would you ask that?"
Bertuccio sighed "You…just appeared to be to stunned for words."
Baptisin let out a hearty chuckle "If I didn't know any better, I would say that our Count has fallen head over heels for that little beauty on the stage over there…but who would blame him? She's damn well attractive for her age."
The Count smirked "Then I should acquire her then."
After a few moments of laughter, Baptisin finally stopped as he noticed the seriousness hidden in the Count's words "You're joking right?"
"My…mind is telling me that a girl like that would be of use to me in the coming future" The Count replied as he headed into the crowd of Nobles "After all…I could always use another companion on this journey…Baptisin! Take Haydee back to the carriage and prepare a seat for our new comrade!"
"…hah…he knows that I was joking right?" Baptisin asked to no one in particular as sweat formed upon his brow "There is no way he would take me seriously…"
Bertuccio only shrugged in response as he followed his master into the crowd whilst Haydee returned to the carriage with a rather confused Baptisin as she thought "please excellency, if you could ever do one thing for me…. please save that girl like you saved me."
Unknown P.O.V
"And Sold to her loveliness, the Madame de Claremont from Paris!"
The groans of the crowd wafted onto the stage and into my ears as the chains around Yuri's hands were released and he was handed over to the woman who had purchased him with a smile "be careful milady…this one is a bit of trouble maker."
"I'll take special care with him then" the Madame told the slaver gruffly "something that you would never had done."
The slaver laughed awkwardly "I…well…there is no special treatment among our stock…"
"Indeed."
And with that the Madame began pulling Yuri through the crowd towards a sleek black car that I guessed was her own. Yuri looked back at me with worry but I only smiled at him and mouthed "good luck Yuri."
He gave me one last sorrowful and apologetic expression before entering the car with the madam at his side and then he was gone. I knew that it was likely we would never meet again and only hoped he would have a pleasant life as a servant for that woman. It was this hope that derived me of my own fear for a few moments before the head slaver came up to me with a cruel grin as he forcefully pulled at my chains causing me to stumble and fall to his feet. He gave me a small but hurtful kick that made me get up and walk to the front of the stage with him trailing behind me. He then pushed me down again much to the surprise of the crowd, who whispered fearfully and pointed at me, but they were soon silenced when the slaver looked upon the depraved and pitiful nobles with a fake grin.
"Finally, I present to you our rarest trinket! She was found alone in the ruins of the stunning St. Peter's Basilica in clothes that were decorated with blood and tears! She holds the beauty of no other human with the voice of a siren to match!" the man proclaimed with false charm that it made me want to be sick "Who will make the claim on our prized virgin, Italian Priestess!"
The crowd was stirred by the slavers proclamations and began to make comments over his words.
"So she's not only a virgin…but she's a priestess as well."
"From Italia no less…that place is known as the Holy Sanctum!"
"So? I want to hear more about this 'siren' thing!"
"Yeah! What do you mean by Siren?"
The Slaver looked at me with a sickly smile before he asked/ordered me "A song my dear girl?"
I glared at him and I looked up from the ground slightly only to meet the hungry eyes of many older gentlemen who licked their lips as they looked upon me as if I was prey to their predator whereas the woman looked at me like I was dirt on the side of the road. It made me feel restless and uncomfortable so I started to move away only to be kicked by the slaver who growled at me.
"What do you think you're doing girl?"
I spat at him in anger only for him to slap me in retaliation. I gasped at the pain only to experience more pain when he landed at kick in my stomach causing me to cough immensely "Are you trying to escape what fate has handed you? If you try one more time…"
He crouched down to my level and whispered into my ear "then I'll take more from you than just your eyesight."
I wanted to scream.
I wanted to cry.
I wanted to run.
"Someone…please" I whispered as the slaver returned to the audience in order to calm them down after that display of aggression "please…. save me…"
"$100,000,000!"
The crowd, the slavers and myself all went quiet as a man adorned in dark clothing with a black top hat who hid all of his facial features approached the stage causing the Slaver to speak "What was that my good sir?"
"I said $100,000,000" the man repeated as a dark-skinned, tall and calm man came up to the slaver and presented him with an open brief case that showed an immense amount of gold bars "I will give you all of this for that girl."
The slaver looked back at me and the briefcase with a contemplation. He was thinking between a vast amount of wealth versus the option to defile my purity as punishment and then claim me for his own. The slaver raised an eyebrow at the man "Why do you want this girl? I don't give my slaves away without knowing that they'll be…safe."
I glared at the slave driver with contempt – he just wanted more money out of the deal rather than care about my safety.
The man who desired to purchase me only smiled "I cannot tell you what I plan for this girl because I do not know what I plan to do with her yet. But I can offer you more money…how does $500,000,000 sound?"
The slaver grinned and his eyes glittered with greed "Fine. Take the little bitch and leave the money…but I will always be willing to buy her of you if she becomes too much trouble."
The man nodded and then took the key for my chains away from the slaver who smiled at his immense amount of gold that he now possessed. The betting then started up again as I shakenly got on my knees and attempted to wipe away the tears of relief that had started to fall down my face.
My purchaser knelt down to my level and asked for my hands. In order to avoid any more punishment, I gave them to him only to be shocked by the coldness of his…blue skin?
When he unlocked my chains I looked up at him only to be perplexed by the strangeness of his appearance. I could feel chill come over my body as I sensed a darker and more mysterious presence hiding inside of his body. But despite the fact that my mind told me that my saviour was most probably an alien but my heart was telling me…he was…no is human.
The man noticed by stares and gave me a fanged smile "I am the Count of Monte Cristo…and who are you?"
I would have never have imagined that the next few words I spoke would lead me to a destiny that was filled with pain, sorrow, regret, fear and despair but also friendship, peace, happiness, acceptance and love. But as I stared into the Count's eyes I told him the only known information I had about myself.
"My name is Anika. Anika Mortem."
OC TEMPLATE
NAME:
AGE:
TITLES:
RACE:
GENDER:
BIRTHDATE:
ZODIAC SIGN:
BLOOD TYPE:
NATIONALITY:
PLACE OF ORIGIN:
NATURAL ENEMY:
POSSIBLE ROMANTIC INTEREST:
APPEARANCE:
HAIR COLOUR:
EYE COLOUR:
OUTFIT:
PERSONALITY:
HISTORY:
POWERS AND ABILITIES:
EQUIPMENT:
RELATIONSHIPS:
NOTE: - NOTHING OP PLEASE :)