Chapter 2: The Chariot

"Victory—By breaking down obstacles he will defeat his enemies and face the future with daring."—the Egyptian Tarot

Since the sudden course change as well as the arrival in London, Jules had the oddest feeling, as if something that shouldn't be onboard was there anyway. Despite reassurances from the Foggs, as well as from Passepartout, Jules found himself uncomfortable onboard the Aurora for the first time since…well, for the first time ever. Even when he first met Fogg, he had not found the airship to be uncomfortable, but rather something who's patrons were frightful and abusive. Now, though, he found himself almost at home on the Aurora, and thus anytime he felt uncomfortable in a place that should've felt like home was something he wasn't going to shrug off.

Even if Fogg did. Jules had been more then tempted to bring up that while he had been on the Prometheus and invited the two onboard, Fogg had kept going on about how much he disliked the ship, as well as the odd feeling of 'evil' he was getting from just being onboard. While Jules didn't have the feeling of evil, he had the feeling of a person who shouldn't be there, as well as the feeling that, no matter what, this person was going to get what they wanted.

And he almost shuddered at that thought. It was odd, as if he knew this person, whoever they were, was ruthless and cunning. Not like Count Gregory…this was far worse. Far darker, but at the same time with a striking different purpose, one which didn't cause the shivers to erupt quite as quickly but still the shivers were there.

There was the sound of something in the hallway and Jules' head quickly shot up from looking at his writing, seeing only what appeared to be an impossible shadow cross the threshold then disappear. Quiet and wary, Jules slowly stood up and crept towards the door, hating the fact that the Foggs and Passepartout were out for the day. Passepartout was getting groceries and had said he didn't need Jules' assistance, and both Foggs were at social engagements, which Jules didn't want to attend. While he had been comfortable on the Aurora for a second, now that comfort was gone.

Swallowing down his fear, Jules felt his hand shaking as he reached the door and hid behind it, praying that whatever was behind the door wasn't what he might have seen, or thought he had seen, the shadow of.

The sound of footsteps caused him to hold his breath, and the steps stopped just outside of the door. The shadow was that of a person who was slightly tall, but it could've been the light, and either way, he didn't want to find out.

He silently began to pray that they would leave, or something, just ignore the door and his room.

There was no sound from outside as well then he felt, a slight pressure at the door, as if someone was about to open it.

This was bad. If he held it closed…but if he let it open…

"I already know you're in there," a female voice caused him to nearly lose his hold on the door, "I simply want to speak to you."

Jules was shaking and now trying not to.

"I can open this door by force or you can let me in. Either way you can't keep me out of the room. I promise I'm not here to hurt you or your friends. I simply wish to talk."

Jules finally swallowed and opened the door, getting a view of the woman was waiting outside. She had dark hair that fell straight down, but despite her dark hair and slightly tanned skin her eyes were a tawny color that reminded him of a cat he sometimes fed if he had extra food. Her body was slim, and her clothing looked much like his, low-class but useable, though they were men's style. Her face was neutral, as if she was assessing him just as he was looking over her.

"You are Jules Verne?" she asked politely. While there were alarms going off in his mind that she could possibly be dangerous, he nodded all the same.

"I see. Then you might know something about a group I am seeking…the League of Darkness?"

"How do you know them?"

"They have stolen something from others, and the others have asked that I retrieve them. While I have managed to get one, the other two are well-guarded, and I heard that you and your friends are particularly large thorns in the League's side."

Jules wasn't about to deny that, but he didn't exactly understand. If she had one of these things already, why did she need his help?

"Why do you need my help, then?"

She looked at him and sighed, then held out her hand. In it appeared a golden ankh-shaped key that was about as long as from his wrist to his elbow. She held it out to him. "This is one of the items, known as the Millennium Ankh. It has the ability to see into a person's Soul Room."

"Soul Room?"

She smiled at him, though the smile made his blood run cold, and said, "Would you like to see?"

Before he could answer, he suddenly felt the cool metal against his forehead and blinked quickly before there was what sounded like a door unlocking.

-o-

Of the Room she could only get a quick glance before some force, one which she wasn't sure of, pushed her out. The room seemed to be littered with drawings and written ideas, scattered on every available surface, and in the middle, locked on a pedestal, was what was she had to guess was partly the reason for her being kicked out so quickly and not of her own will. 1

She quickly replaced the Ankh so that it was within her, and looked at the boy who was now across the room, in reality. His dark brown hair fell in various curls around his face and his eyes were wide and innocent, but showed a slight world-weary attitude as well, like he had seen some things which helped change his point of view. His clothing was much like hers, and currently he was holding what appeared to be a sharpening tool in his hand.

She sighed as she stood from the place she had ended up kneeling. "Perhaps I should apologize for that. I didn't realize this might be a reason for the Items searching for you."

The boy, Jules Verne, looked confused. "'Searching'?"

"You were onboard this ship when it changed course from the other one."

"Yes, but I didn't see what happened to the ship."

She smiled. "I suppose that might be a good thing, though the deck was far cleaner then the inside." She shrugged, "When I started to leave, I felt a tug from some of the residual magic left over from another Item. It pointed me towards the ship, and gave me your name. I came here with the intent of finding out your purpose and to see what you knew about the League. I didn't lie when I said they had two other Items, and that I've been hired to obtain them."

"Wait…you were on the ship? How did you escape?"

She considered calling Merew, but decided that scaring him wasn't going to be good. "It's…complicated."

The boy looked back to the place where the Ankh was shown to reside. "Then what about those Items? You said something about me being special or them 'searching' for me."

She nodded. "I did. You see, due to…circumstances…you are immune to their power. Because you're immune to their power, you can easily pick them up but, as a side effect, you can't use their power at all."

Jules blinked. "Why not?"

"Because of who you are, and what was inside of your Soul Room. Did you see anything in there that didn't look like it was supposed to be there?"

Jules paused then shook his head. "No. Well…a lock on my journal, but that's it."

It amazed her, but not completely, that this boy wouldn't know about the Book of Knowledge or the fact that it resided within him. It was one of the few Great Books which had, long ago, been lost and were either found within people or simply not found. Perhaps because of it, their knowledge and the powers they granted to their retainers was never compatible with the powers or knowledge from other Great Books.

She considered telling him that it wasn't his journal, but finally said, "That was…partly your journal."

"I think I'd know my journal."

"Hear me out. There are certain Books which are lost, and for reasons. Some are because the magic and power within are evil, some because they are simply forgotten about. During the years of early human history, some of them were written, and just as quickly, they were lost. One of those Books created the Item I used, or was used in its creation. Because of that, and because you hold some of another Book within your Soul Room, you can't use or be affected completely by any of the Items."

Jules was silent for a moment before he asked, "What are the books? Perhaps I've heard of them."

"I doubt it, but I'll say them anyway. The one which created the Items I seek was called the Book of Millennium Magic2. A darker magic book was entitled Al Azif, but is commonly known by the Latin name Necronomicon3. The one you have is the Book of Knowledge. Others are scattered and seem to be from every culture which developed a form of writing, though many are simply lesser forms of the whole Book."

Jules lowered his pen knife and asked, "So if I have it in me, I'm not affected by the Items, but they're affected by me in some way."

"Yes."
"And you need me to help you find the others that were stolen…the other two, right?"

"Yes."

"And they're being held by the League?"

"As far as I know they're also being held by the Cult of Osiris and someone who once helped guard the tomb of the Pharaoh…why are you pale?"

Jules looked away and finally said, "um…you mean the one that worshiped spiders, right? Because if so…we killed their Queen a few months ago and put the tomb back where it belonged, so they probably don't like us any more then the League does…if any of them are still around."

She blinked and looked at him before saying, "The Queen? Are you telling me you and your friends killed a Spider Queen of that Cult?"

"Yeah…is that bad?"

She smiled even more and shook her head. "No. In fact, that makes me even more convinced that you and your friends should come with me."

-o-

Passepartout was the first to return and be introduced to the odd stranger, who didn't give a name. She didn't pull out the Ankh, as she had with Jules, but when they were alone Jules explained what he could of the situation to Passepartout in French, hoping the woman didn't understand it. The woman was dangerous but not to them, at least not now. Passepartout had nodded in understanding and decided to wait on the Foggs for their decision, as they were better fighters then either Frenchman.

The woman had lounged in a spare room for the time, obviously not caring about any conspiracies that involved getting her off the dirigible. At one point she walked into the main room and simply stated she needed to go and see about someone's arrival before departing. Jules considered moving the Aurora and then apologizing to Fogg later. He wondered if the excuse of "Well, there was this scary woman, who could make items disappear and who was apparently on the Prometheus when it was being attacked, and we don't want her to come back so we moved it in the hopes she wouldn't notice" would be sufficient.

He and Passepartout were about to make the preparations when the woman came back, this time with what appeared to be a scared man with tanned skin, looking like one of the Egyptians who Jules had met during the incident with the Cult of Osiris. The man's eyes were a violet shade and his hair was covered with a hood, but when he uncovered it appeared that it was shaved and that the dark hair was done in the back of his head in a small ponytail. A golden necklace or choker adorned his neck as the only item that seemed to be of value: the man was dressed in light colored clothing that was common in Egypt and the East, making him stick out anywhere else.

"Jules, Passepartout, this is Saim," she told them, motioning to the man, "he's supposed to help me find the other Items I'm seeking."

Saim nodded to the two, seeming to take both in before speaking in what had to be Egyptian to the woman. She said something back and he bowed to her before turning to Passepartout and Jules, "With permission, I will use the room upstairs that the Mi--."
There was a harsh word from the woman before she walked out and Saim visibly flinched before continuing, "Forgive, I simply wished to use the room she was using."
Jules nodded and decided that more was needed before saying, "I'll show you the way."

Saim nodded and walked up the stairs with Jules before Jules asked him, "What did she stop you from saying?"

"A title of hers which she gained years ago. I am…not worthy of speaking it…according to her."

Jules' eyes narrowed. "That's stupid."

"She is who she is. She has become…how to say…not happy…with my family and those like me for a very long time."

"Why?"

Saim paused at the doorway and placed a hand on the choker. "I am unsure of how to answer such a question…but you must know that my family served the Pharaohs. We have been watching over a specific place for a long time, awaiting something. She, too, is awaiting that something, but has left because of how angry she can get."

"Her anger made her leave?"

"Her anger at some of the other servants of the Pharaoh. She did not wish to destroy them all, so she left to find her way and to wait." Jules paused and Saim smiled slightly, "I have heard the story and I do not blame her. I myself have become slightly angry at one of the others who was supposed to protect the Pharaoh, but did not. Because of the betrayal, we must involve you and your friends. I am sorry, but…" Saim shrugged a little, "Perhaps this will be for the better…for her, at least."

With that, Saim walked into the room and Jules set about to think of a new excuse for the two visitors.

-o-

He stood on the threshold, and a large chariot with wings was before him. At the reigns of this were two people, fighting. The Mighty One and a woman he had seen before in a few of his visions, a woman of fiery red hair and piercing eyes. Saim looked to see that he was the only one in the chariot himself: atop the three beasts that had been described as the Mighty One's beasts were the man who was called Jules, atop a great lion with a mane that looked like a star, and when it turned he saw that it had the face of a man, though it looked like no particular one. Atop a griffin with a razor-edged tail was the valet, Passepartout, and atop the one which had saved him was a man with dark hair, graying perhaps prematurely, his face serious as he turned fully, telling the two not to argue. Before them was the shape of Typhon4, the god of evil, cut into five but just as terrifying, and next to him was Zalika, holding aloft the two remaining Secrets.

The group shielded their faces, and the two women stopped fighting. Instead, both appeared to become the embodiment of the Mighty One, charging the chariot towards Typhon and Zalika.

---He stood before his brother, his head bowed. Next to him was the Mighty One, and behind her were the others. They spoke and his brother yelled angry words back. Saim looked up and saw the division, saw the Rod and the Tauk to one side, while on the other were the Ankh, the Eye, the Scale, and the Ring, and realized his part, as well as what had to be done, and who had to stay alive.

Saim blinked from the vision that the Tauk had sent him, his head aching, as did his back. He gingerly rubbed the still-healing wounds which his brother had seen fit to give him in the hopes that it would stop him from going after Zalika. It hadn't. The moment he could move, even with pain, Saim had taken the ointment to help heal the wounds, what clothing and money he could, and fled towards America, where the Mighty One was supposed to be.

Saim wondered if she knew of his lie. He had not been sent to reclaim the Secrets: rather, he had been punished for mentioning her help, as well as for not foreseeing the event. His brother, who had passed the trial of the Scales, ruled with the same iron fist their father had, and Saim knew that he could no longer offer to lift the protection of the Pharaoh's tomb for the Mighty One.

Saim's thoughts went to the young man who had spoken to him, Jules Verne. The boy's future was large, he was sure of that, and if what the Mighty One had said was true, then this boy held a chapter or more of the Book of Knowledge. That in and of itself was a great accomplishment!

And no matter what, Seftut would not have it, Saim thought sarcastically, he would rather we make them take a trial for even hearing rumors of the Secrets then allow them to leave. Perhaps the Mighty One's presence will calm him…or at least scare him enough to make him reconsider.

Saim was unsure, but he did know that they needed to stay onboard this ship, and they needed the help of those onboard to accomplish what needed to be done.

1—A Soul Room is a place which is only one room (or more, if you have a complicated personality), and reflects a person's wants, desires, and themselves. In the Yugioh manga as well as the anime, the one who possessed the Ankh could enter a person's soul room and look around or change it. Looking gives a person no clue they've been in there. Changing it can either create a 'doll' that obeys the control of the owner. The holder of the Ankh could also have the Soul Room be completely erased, which would destroy a person's personality. The images mentioned are simply items that (I think) would be in Jules' Soul Room. Other Soul Rooms and examples of items inside are:

Yugi—toys on floor, a lot of light in the room (showing how innocent he is)

Yami—a labyrinth to the extent of the one in Labyrinth at the end of the film. It grows more complicated depending on how you feel about your current situation, and behind any door can be a trap or memory, usually a painful one. No one, not even Yami, knows what's behind every door, as they change constantly.

Anzu (Tea)—A ballet/dance studio-room, with a lot of mirrors, and a picture of a mystery man (before she knew about Yami, she heard his voice right before he saved her). Her room reflects how likeable she is and easy to befriend.

As a side note, monsters, especially the early Duel Monsters, were said to reside in the Soul Room of a person, and were what caused them to do evil deeds. During the final arc of the manga and anime, they explain that the monsters are created by evil ka of a person, and thus create monsters. Good ka creates gods/spirits which can be used to aid the person if they know how to use it. The only 'exception' to this rule was Thief Bakura's ka demon Diabond, and the Blue Eyes White Dragon ka.

2—the Book of Millennium Magic is the book which created the Millennium Items in Yugioh. It was written in very early human history, and only partly/completely translated during the reign of Yami Yugi's father (3,000 years ago). The Magic inside is mainly alchemy (which, if you trace the word back, is Arabic for 'al khmet' or, 'of Egypt') and involves human sacrifices to create the gold for the Millennium Items. At the beginning of Chapter 1, the ritual about the 'Ninety-nine' and then the 'nine' to create the items was from the Book of Millennium Magic. As my own side note: the items which Sakhmet has are not the same as the Millennium Items, as they were made later and under different conditions. Because of this, they act and are different from the regular Millennium Items.

3—The Al Azif/Necronomican is a fiction piece of work created by H.P. Lovecraft for many of his Cthulu Mythos. The Al Azif was written by a 'mad Arab' who was later devoured by invisible demons in the middle of the day. While the Al Azif was translated to Latin and later to English, the original writing was lost, and the Latin and English versions are said to be 'corrupted'. Most of the time, the mention of the Necronomicon is when dealing with evil sorcerers who wish to bring in a particularly powerful demon/Elder God, or with the evil itself. There are only a few 'quotes' from the book within some of Lovecraft's literature, but any book that says it's the Necronomican is only based off what Lovecraft wrote (at least in this world).

4—Typhon is depicted as the Devil in my Egyptian Tarot, and supposed to be the Genius of Catastrophes and Evil. In Greek mythology, he is the father of many of the evil animals that Heracles (Hercules) had to defeat, including the Nemean Lion and the Hydra. He is also the father of the Sphinx and of Cerberus. He supposedly tried to attack Olympus but was defeated by Zeus and trapped under a mountain, though he still spits fire and brimstone and such from underneath it. Can you guess who he represents in the vision?