The Priestess Legacy
Chapter 10
A Lesson in Mortality
"This stinks." Yugi grumbled, kicking a wicker basket along the floor. He and Yami were holed up in the palace kitchens that night after sneaking in. No one had seen them, but on the bright side it meant they had been able to sneak around the palace undetected. None of the other priests had seen them, meaning that as far as Yugi could tell, they were helpless here.
"It makes sense if you think about it." Yami mused aloud. "When you came here to help me, it was destiny that I would need your help to defeat Zorc. But we bent the rules to enter the world this time, so Téa does not need us. That's why she can't see us, this trial is meant to be hers alone."
"That's not fair though. She didn't choose to come here, she was sent here by force! She needs us!" Yugi protested.
"And what could we do for her if she could see us Yugi? You do not know how to get back to your world, I do not know how to get back to mine, and none of us know exactly what Téa is here for." Yami reminded.
"I know, I know…but the last time we were here everything just sort of…fell into place."
"And so it may again. You have to have more faith in the powers of fate." Yami advised.
- - - - - - - - - -
The wooden doors to the room opened, and a candle in a brass holder poked through the small crack. With that done, Roslyn pushed the door open the rest of the way and slipped inside Mana's bedroom. Mana herself was sleeping peacefully in her bed, the curtains of her balcony pulled shut. Roslyn slowly crept forward, the sheath of Barakhan's dagger poking her stomach as she clutched it to herself.
Mana murmured something in her sleep and turned over as Roslyn drew closer. She crept up to the side of Mana's bed and stared down at the slumbering priestess. She put a shaking hand on the handle of Barakhan's dagger and slipped it out, the blade glinting in the candlelight. She closed her eyes and held the dagger out over Mana's body.
"No." Roslyn gasped, yanking the dagger back. She looked herself over and shook her head. "What in Ra's name am I doing?" She looked around the room and spied the Millennium Ring on a table next to Mana's bed. Roslyn set her candle down and picked up the Item, looking it over. Theft was one thing, murder was another. She slipped the Millennium Ring around her neck and tucked it under the neckline of her robe. She slowly crept back to the door to Mana's room.
"Who's there?" Roslyn froze as Mana yawned and sat up, rubbing her eyes.
"It's Roslyn, priestess." Roslyn whispered, her eyes wide. "I'm sorry for waking you."
"Nah, it's okay. Bad dream." Mana explained, slowly slipping out of bed. "What did you…where's the Millennium Ring?" Roslyn gulped as Mana asked. "Roslyn, what's going on?" Roslyn's mouth moved as she tried to explain herself. Under the fabric of her robe, the Millennium Ring glowed.
"Master Barakhan desires his Item back, and I intend to deliver." Roslyn snickered, her eyes glowing gold. Mana began to walk towards her, her head cocked to the side.
"What? What are you talking about?" Mana asked, hoping she had heard wrong.
"The Millennium Ring belongs to my master, and he shall have it back. I've been promised great power if I bring it to him." Roslyn continued. Mana gasped.
"Roslyn, whatever Barakhan has promised you, he's lying, he'll never go through with it." Mana placed a hand of Roslyn shoulder. "Trust me, it's not too late to turn back."
"Not for me. But it's far too late for you." Roslyn sneered, grabbing Mana's wrist and pulling it forward as she spun around. The hand on Mana's wrist clamped over the priestess' mouth, and Roslyn's other hand came forward to bury Barakhan's dagger in Mana's stomach as she was pulled forward. Mana's gasp of pain was muffled by Roslyn's hand, and she looked into Roslyn's golden eyes with a look of horror. "Night night bitch." Roslyn whispered, grinning. She pushed Mana to the ground and withdrew Barakhan's dagger. Mana collapsed at her feet, her eyes staring blankly.
Roslyn blinked rapidly, the golden glow fading from her eyes as the Millennium Ring's glow subsided as well. She grabbed her forehead and collapsed against the stone wall.
"What…my…" she groaned. She lowered her hand and felt something weighty in her other hand. She lifted it and gasped at the blood-cloaked dagger there. Roslyn looked down at Mana's motionless body with side eyes.
- - - - - - - - - -
Téa had been lying awake in bed, musing on how she was going to get home, when a scream of terror pierced the silence of the Egyptian night. Téa sat upright and rushed to her door, pulling the wood open and racing down the corridor. She nearly barreled into Kujaku as she ran to the source of the sound. Finally, they met up with a small crowd that had gathered outside Mana's bedroom. Téa elbowed her way between Otogi and Darek and gasped.
"Oh ym god." Téa breathed, dropping to her knees as she stared at Mana's body. "How?"
"I'm guessing she saw it." Darek muttered. That was when Téa noticed Roslyn against the wall, staring as Mana's body in horror. Next to Mana was a bloody, crooked dagger. Darek picked it up and growled.
"Barakhan." He seethed. "Damn him, he's gone too far this time!" Otogi narrowed his eyes and crossed the room.
"Roslyn, are you alright?" He asked, helping the girl to her feet. Roslyn opened her mouth a few times as she tried to speak, then stopped and opted for a slow nod.
"Let us bring cleanse her spirit and have the servants take her body for cleaning." Darek said. Kujaku frowned and placed her hands on the Millennium Necklace around her throat. Téa watched as Darek placed the Millennium Scale on the ground and clasped Mana's ankle with the other hand. The Scale glowed brightly.
"Her soul is pure and balanced. Let us be thankful she will be able to join her master in the heavens." Darek announced, bowing his head as the Scale's glow subsided.
"Thankful?" Peimune snorted. "Yes, let us be thankful a thief has not only incapacitated our Pharaoh, but slaughtered one of our priestesses! And where is the Millennium Ring?" Otogi gasped.
"No!" He spun around, but Mana's nightstand was empty. "It's gone."
"Damn him, he has two Items now." Darek hissed.
"And he's not done." Everyone but Roslyn turned to stare at Kujaku as she removed her hands from the Necklace. "My Necklace foresees a great darkness ahead of us, almost as great at the darkness of Zorc."
"Is Barakhan going to attempt to resurrect him?" Otogi asked.
"Impossible, we know it cannot be done with the true name of the last great Pharaoh." Darek said, shaking his head. "Kujaku, your Necklace must be failing you."
"I pray it is." She whispered. Téa looked around the room and sighed. Then she noticed something.
"I don't think Barakhan killed Mana." She whispered.
"Why do you say that Lady Teana?" Peimune asked, stepping up behind her.
"If Barakhan had killed her, why are the curtains shut?" She pointed out. "Wouldn't they be open if he had snuck in and fled."
"Perhaps, perhaps not. It doesn't matter. It is his dagger with Mana's blood on it, and her Item that was once his that is gone. Who else could have committed the foul deed?"
"I don't know…" Téa admitted, turning to look down at Mana's body on the ground. She slowly raised her head as Kujuku pressed her hand on her necklace again, Darek finished his prayer, and Otogi led a shaking Roslyn out of the room. Téa's eyes went wide with a gasp of horror.
"Roslyn…" she whispered.
Out of curiosity, what would you guys think of me starting a GX fic after this one? Would you guys read it? If you're curious, it will be an Aster/Alexis/Zane story about life in the Pro Leagues.