Chapter Explanations:

-Little reminder: Edom is the ancient, Hebrew but used by other civilisations, name of the Red Sea, located to the east of the Egyptian continent.

-Amduat: The Duat is - in Egyptian mythology - the realm of the dead where the soul of the deceased remains after their death while waiting for them to be resurrected at the same time as the Sun. It is a world of trials, divided into twelve hours. By analogy, Amduat is a book telling the story of the god Ra who, crossing the Duat during the hours of the night, travels daily from west to east in order to fight against Apophis who embodies the primordial chaos so that the sun (that Ra embodies) can rise up every morning and bring light and order to the earth.

"I'm sorry… I can't seem to find him… "

"It's all right, Isis. You can call Spiria back. "

"Yes… "

"This is impossible. How can he manage to escape even Spiria's eyes? "

"Either he's too far away for her, or he's involved in some sort of magical ritual that allows him not to be found. "

"Neither of these solutions seems likely, though. "

"It is quite possible that Heba has found refuge in a temple or on a sacred site, if so, none of our beasts will be able to locate him. "

"Perhaps should we call on a higher instance then? "

"Who do you suggest? "

"It's enough, Shimon… I've had enough. Leave now. All of you. "

The doors to the council chamber closed as he was rubbing his eyes wearily, preventing a sigh from crossing his lips. Something seemed to envelop him in a deadly embrace, warning him of the worst; a feeling, a sensation, buried deep within his heart as a harbinger of a terrible event to come. He was pondering, unsure of what it was related to. He didn't seem to be able to sort through all of his current responsibilities that occupied his mind all the time. For how long could he still pretend he was a worthy sovereign to his people when all he cared about was an insignificant foreboding that he couldn't even understand?

The sand from the hourglass was slowly flowing to its doom. It was up to him to stop its countdown, but he ignored how… Between his trembling fingers, the millennium puzzle flickered imperceptibly: danger was ahead, and nothing could avoid it. When the last grain would fall, he would face either victory and live, or defeat and pass away in the dust of battle...

However, he refused to give up just yet. Even though it meant going against the gods' will, he would persevere and ensure his crushing power over his enemies. He was the greatest Pharaoh of this dynasty, the Chosen One, and he couldn't let history forget him because he would have failed. His name would not be erased because of his own weakness. The game had barely started and he was far from short of playing cards… he was ready to win at any cost, even if it meant cheating…

##########

The blue flame flickered slightly under his breath before springing back up as he rose from his seat, stronger and brighter than ever. Taking a few steps around the room to calm himself down, he watched out of the corner of his eye as his interlocutor remained inexorably silent, his eyelids closed and his head lowered.

Sighing, he walked over to the balcony, leaning against the doorframe while crossing his arms, his gaze turned towards the stars appearing little by little in that midnight-blue ocean. But even the darkness of the evening that had previously always relaxed him could no longer suppress the oppression that weighed on his chest.

Shada half-turned to the man sitting at the table behind him, narrowing his eyes with interest. If the events of the past had taught him one thing, it was that he was closer to the second heirs to the throne than to the other sacred guardians. Whether it was the brother of the former Pharaoh or the cousin of the current regent, their moral sense differed markedly from that of the members of the royal palace. For them, whose life had been fraught with difficulties, the end justified the means.

Yet, and in this he distinguished himself from the father and the son, he also believed that every price paid deserved equal reward, thus making him someone apart, with a very unique sense of justice.

He had lived all these years just withdrawing into silence unless someone asked him for his opinion directly. He was, after all, not a man of words but of action, devoted to his king and his friends. However, that didn't mean that he couldn't touch other people's hearts if he abided by the rules… he simply wondered if the old priest behind him was ready to listen or not.

"No one can believe themselves lighter than Ma'at's feather. " he said at last, going all in. "None of us can claim to be free from all sins, not even His Majesty. Nonetheless, it is up to us to correct these mistakes. "

Straightening up, the high priest resumed his place around the table, and clutching his millennium key with one hand, he gripped the old man's wrist with the other, clearing his mind and concentrating on his words.

"Think about your son, I know you've only acted for his own good. Although you must have been separated, not a day has passed without you thinking about him and his mother. Think of your brother, for whom you sacrificed everything to help him in his role as protector of the country. You who have always been guided only by your love for your family, do not allow darkness to invade your heart. Don't let it be corrupted by your jealousy and overflowing ambition. "

Slowly, the bearer of the millennium eye lifted his head, his dark gaze plunging into Shada's cobalt one. Suddenly more alert, Aknadin noticed the faint glow the ankh emitted between his companion's fingers and frowned as he tried to extricate himself from his grip, to no avail, the latter holding him so firmly that his fingernails were digging in the very flesh of his palm.

"Are you trying to wrest the truth from me, you damn vicious snake?! "

The sacred guardian's silence only annoyed him further and in turn, he focused on his millennium item, seeking to enter the mind of his persecutor.

"You know this won't have any effect on me, my key is resistant to all forms of magic, including that of the other millennium items. You are their creator, you should know that better than anyone. "

"Damn you! "

"Stop resisting for nothing, I only seek to appease your soul in the grip of the torments of the past. Have you no remorse at all then? Do you want to sin so until the day when your faults resurface on your son? "

"What are you saying? "

"What do you think? That the court and our sovereign will not end up resenting Seth for your own crimes? Especially when you'll have left this world, the shadow of your atrocities will follow him forever. "

"Seth is innocent! He does not know anything! "

"Not that innocent. He too made mistakes that brought shame on his name, and because he is a member of the royal family, he also tarnished the Pharaoh's name. "

"He didn't know who he really was… " huffed Aknadin, stunned.

"It doesn't matter. But fortunately, he repented and asked for absolution from the gods. " Shada indicated while shaking his head, feeling that he was close to his objective. "Your turn. I know you are not completely bad. In the name of Seth, repent to the gods and reaffirm your loyalty to our Pharaoh. "

"Do you think yourself above everyone else, little arrogant?! Do you think yourself as better than the rest of us?! " hissed the old priest fiercely, upset once again.

"On the contrary, we are more alike than you might think. " the sacred guardian declared under his breath, looking lost. If he really wanted to reach the man he was going to have to be more honest than he had been until then. "I am a sinner too. I have harmed many people, I have shed the blood of many innocent people, and I have killed just as many criminals with my bare hands. I have no regrets, far from it. I have always acted according to my conscience, and I am proud of it. But I readily admit that my conscience has more than once deceived me. Neither the soul nor the heart is infallible and in truth, I am probably guilty of more faults than I can count… but I confess to being ignorant of all that is and all that will be. I do not judge you, Grand Prince. I know that your feelings were once pure. "

Grand Prince… he hadn't been called that way for many years. When he was just a child horsing around in the royal gardens with his twin brother, and that the servants, unable to differentiate one from the other, were calling them so to avoid committing a faux pas by using the wrong name. His brother... who on his deathbed had demanded his presence, afraid to leave this world without them having had time to say goodbye. His brother… who had considered his nephew as his own son until he himself became a father. The same brother who had stood by his side when he had to separate from his family. And he had hated him so much… He who had never had to sacrifice anything for his kingdom. He had hated him so much for designating a boy barely able to walk to be the next Pharaoh instead of him who had lost everything, instead of his son who had never received anything...

"Hatred only breeds hatred, and only the reward for our sacrifices as for our benefits awaits us in the Afterlife. This world is only a transition. When we would have joined Osiris, we will be as rich and powerful as the gods themselves. But in order for your soul to join that of the ancient Pharaoh Aknamkanon, in order for it to stand by Seth's side when his time comes, it must first escape the divine punishment of Ammut... "

Aknadin finally relaxed as tears streamed endlessly from his charcoal pupil to his right cheek, his jaw quivering under his uncontrollable sobs, and Shada smiled gently as he loosened his grip, resting a hand on the old man's shoulder in comfort.

"Tell me, what happened to His Highness Hussein? What kind of deal did you have with him? "

##########

Dawn was rising slowly over the mountains and reliefs, the grey clouds from yesterday's storm scattering one by one across the sky as an amber light gradually covered the landscape, and through the dark mist separating day from night, the endless desert looked like an expanse of pristine snow. He was moving cautiously, observing the remnants of a lost era looming before him, dilapidated pyramids and abandoned obelisks crossing his path as he was finally drawing closer to his final destination.

Above his head were flying brown-necked ravens and sacred ibises, their piercing eyes probably watching for the moment when they could prey upon his lifeless carcass which they would feast on for days. They hovered indistinctly in the canopy of heaven, overflying with startling ease the hot, suffocating breeze caressing his face reddened by heat.

The interstice of a crumbling-walled shrine then presented itself to him and he stepped inside without the slightest hesitation, not stopping until he had walked through the entire structure, a whole new environment suddenly facing him. As if having crossed the gate leading from the terrestrial world to the Afterlife, the area around him abruptly changed, and the ruins gave way to a greige and gold coloured citadel trapped in an eternal sparkling daybreak.

A few towers with pointed tops and immense green palm trees framed a long stone path leading to a white limestone staircase connecting a portico opening towards the city-state of wonders. Riding down his mount, he crossed the colonnade and froze in front of the unrealistic architecture of the place.

Separated into two distinct parts by a river as vast and deep as the Edom Sea itself, the sun, majestic, reflecting on its dreamy turquoise water, the city-state seemed to stretch endlessly through the vegetation and the sand which composed it. Pyramids by the thousands swamped the horizon, so big that they seemed to be able to reach the divine skies, tall statues with delicate features accompanying the ancient hieroglyphs adorning their smooth and citrine facades. Hundreds of buildings, large and small, of all kinds and for all uses, congested the centre, their flamboyant red colours giving an air of furnace to the fortress; And to the east, towering over the dwellings, rose obelisks of all sizes while a row of fierce-looking sphinxes guarded the west, jealously watching over its ghost inhabitants.

For he felt it around him, the spirits were reigning over the city of the gods, threatening him with their black energies with each step he took inside the hamlet, ordering him to quickly leave this place or suffer their wrath. But he couldn't care less, Kul Elna's vengeful souls had accompanied him for so long that nothing from the world of the dead could yet frighten him. The innocence of his childhood gone, he now stood on the dawn of his new life like a warrior preparing for the battle to come.

At the other end of a quartzite bridge connecting the entrance to the funeral pyramids, was standing the temple of Amduat in all its greatness, an altar surmounted by columns and gigantic marble idols adorning the opening concealed behind a sombre stone slab with archaic writings. There his journey would end...

"Here we are, kid. "