A/N In no way, shape, or form do I own Yu-Gi-Oh... although it would be nice.

To my reviewers/readers: Thanks for sticking with me. I love reading your reviews and knowing that you guys are out there.


A deep, mocking laughter arose in Seth's throat. "Isn't this cute? The Pharaoh is standing by his wife to the end." His eyes narrowed and an evil grin formed on his lips as he bent down to the floor to retrieve the pearl-handled dagger. When he spoke again, he lowered his voice to a menacing growl. "Unfortunately for you, the end comes now." He raised the dagger into the air once more, and as before, it remained there after he withdrew his hand. Seth began to chant once again in the ancient tongue, and as he did, the blade began to weave back and forth through the air, much like a snake with no forward motion.

Atemu and Safiya watched as a thick black cloud formed behind the blade, increasing in size as the weapon continued to move. Without removing her gaze from the cloud, Safiya whispered, "What is that?" Still unable to respond verbally, Atemu tightened his hold on her waist in a vain attempt to reassure her and himself that everything would be okay.

When Seth deemed the cloud to be big enough, he changed the tone of his chanting. His voice rose to a higher pitch, and he began to speak faster. Slowly, the cloud began to take shape. Leathery wings stretched out of the ethereal blackness and a thin tail extended from the rear of the cloud. Legs and arms sprouted out of the sides, followed finally by a thick neck, which snaked out toward the dagger in the front. A small head materialized behind the dagger, with the tip of the blade forming its nose. When fully formed, the cloud had become a vicious black dragon, not much larger than Seth himself.

Looking over his handiwork, Seth chuckled to himself. "Take note of this, Pharaoh, it will be the last thing you see," he said ominously. Seth raised his hand into the air and the dragon immediately took flight, rising into the dark night sky with amazing speed.

After a few moments of heavy silence, Seth whispered, "This is my favorite part." His face contorted into a wicked sneer as he shouted, "Return!"

The dragon obeyed Seth's command and immediately began its descent. It folded in its wings and plummeted toward the common. Within seconds, the dragon was only a few hundred feet from Atemu and Safiya, and closing fast. Both stood motionless, frozen with fear, as Seth began to laugh.

At the sound of Seth's laughter, Safiya forced herself to overcome her fear, as she had done when he had beaten her. With one quick glance at the dragon, she knew what its target was. With not a moment to spare, she forced Atemu to the ground, out of the dragon's path, and braced herself for the blow that was meant for him.

The shadow dragon dove through her chest, passing directly through her heart. Upon exiting her body, it evaporated, its task complete. Safiya stood motionless for a few seconds, looking over her people with unseeing eyes, before she collapsed to the ground. Marking the exact place where the dragon had passed through her body was the dagger, the intense force of the shadow beast lodging it deep within her heart.

"Safiya!" Oblivious of the fact that he had regained his speech, Atemu scrambled to his knees and crawled to her side. He quickly placed one arm beneath her head and the other on the offending object in order to remove it, but the damage had been done, and there was nothing he could do now but hold her. He took her rapidly weakening form in his arms, holding her close while he still could. Bitter tears cascaded down his cheeks as he helplessly watched her life force ebb away with every beat of her heart.

Her eyelids fluttered and she tried to focus on his face. "Atemu…" She coughed violently, a trail of blood forming at the corner of her lips.

"Yes?" He replied unsteadily.

She slowly raised a hand to frame his face and he quickly enveloped it within his own and placed a feather-soft kiss on her fingers. She spoke slowly, between gasping breaths. "No matter what happens, I will always be with you." Her voice faded away, as she fell into a coughing fit. Her last words to her beloved husband were, "Promise me that you will not allow Seth to win."

"I promise," he whispered, his trembling voice betraying his weakness. With tears staining his cheeks, he brought his wife close for one final kiss. Shortly after their lips touched, Safiya's body went limp, and she breathed her last. Atemu finished the kiss, and gently lowered her body to the ground.

The Pharaoh, having lost all that was dear to him, stood slowly as a righteous anger consumed him. "This ends now Seth!"

"Indeed it does," agreed Seth, planning on ending the Pharaoh's life in one fell swoop.

Atemu placed both hands on the Millennium Puzzle that was never far from his neck and began to chant. He closed his eyes and spoke in the same ancient dialect that Seth had used. While he chanted, a cool breeze began to whip around the palace grounds. The gentle breeze quickly strengthened, becoming a strong wind. As is tore through the palace grounds, it extinguished the blue flames that Seth had ignited, plunging the palace grounds into darkness yet again. But the darkness did not remain for long. The Puzzle began to glow with an intense white light, and Seth's smug confidence quickly vanished as screams tore from his throat.

Seth knew what was about to happen. He knew the words that Atemu was reciting, and he had heard tales concerning the powers of the Millennium Puzzle. But he never put any weight in the tales, figuring them to be nothing more than rumors. Unfortunately for him, the tales were fact, and he turned to run, fleeing for his life.

With tears in his eyes, Atemu gave one final shout in the foreign tongue, and Seth's lifeless body crashed to the ground, mid-stride. At the same moment, Atemu's body fell to the ground, lifeless. And as he fell, the Millennium Puzzle fell with him, until it hit the ground and shattered. The wind died down, as did the glow from the Puzzle pieces, and the people were left to wonder what had happened.

Only a few knew what truly happened that day, and these were the ones who had told the tales. They had spoken of how one day a brave pharaoh would utilize the full power of the Puzzle to sacrifice his soul in order to trap another. In the process, they said, the Puzzle would be broken, and both souls would be sealed within the pieces until someone released them both, by reassembling the Millennium Puzzle. Atemu was that pharaoh, and he had sacrificed his soul in order to stop Seth's evil spirit from bringing about utter destruction.


A/N Keep an eye out for part two of this series, to be uploaded soon. Hope you liked part one. Until we meet again reader, I bid you adieu.