Chapter Eleven: Infection

Atemu took a deep, settling breath in front of the door to his bedroom, his mind racing with the different ways to approach this. In truth, he had never known Teana to fly into such a rage before, and was a tad intimidated by having to confront her. Finally, he swallowed and reached forward to throw the door open.

"Teana, I-" He quickly rushed out, but was silenced by the scene. Teana was swiftly walking from the right side of the room towards the bed, carrying several dresses in her arms. He looked over into the right side of the room to see the closet door open.

She threw the contents of her arms onto the bed. Atemu stepped into the room as she moved back towards the closet, blocking her path.

"What do you think you're doing?" He asked, grabbing her right wrist in his right hand, holding it up in front of his chest.

"I...I'm leaving!" She shouted, wresting her hand out of his grasp. "I can't do this anymore!" She stormed past him, his eyes following her movements.

"Do this?" He repeated. "All you do is sleep and get massages."

She ignored his barb, going up to a cabinet against the far wall and pulling the bottom drawer open. "I wanted this to work, Atemu, I really did, but it's done! Done! I have to end this!"

"Look...I'm...I'm sorry-"

"No you're not!" She shrieked, pulling a sheaf of parchment out of the drawer. "You don't even know what you're sorry for!"

"Teana. Stop it." He replied icily as she marched past him, throwing the papers on the bed.

"I can't! I can't do it anymore." She continued, turning to face her husband with her small hands clenched into fists at her sides. "I can't just sit as your side as you murder the whole world! I can't live with being the Queen of a country that commits such atrocities! I can't stand behind you any more!"

Atemu gave a tiny wry smile, approaching her slowly. "You've developed a taste for the royal life." He said easily. "You think you can walk away from all that?"

She frowned at his grin, pointing her right index finger up into his face. "I would live on the streets of the slums before I would sit at the side of a monster like you! One day, when I pass on and face Anubis, I will not have to answer for standing beside a man who committed mass genocide!"

"I am the voice of the Gods in the mortal realm." He replied as she turned around went over to the wall by the door, lifting a small wooden picture frame hanging there. "It is their will I hear before I act."

"Then you have lost your hearing!" She threw the picture onto the bed.

"Please, you're very emotional right now." Atemu said, willing himself to remain calm. "Just...just stop this nonsense. You're pregnant, and you're not thinking straight." She tried to walk past him, but he again grabbed her hands in his and pulled her towards him. "Please, stop this. Take a nap, eat a snack, you'll feel better."

She tried to pull away, but this time his grip was prepared and she could only flail in his grasp. "This has nothing to do with my pregnancy! I will not go down in the Egyptian history books as the Queen who stood by and looked pretty as the Pharaoh lost his humanity and became a monster!"

Atemu's grin dropped, his control soon to follow. "And I will not go down as the first Pharaoh in recorded history to separate from his wife." He said darkly as she continued to try and break away from his grasp. "I won't."

"Let me go!" She demanded, pulling as hard as she could against his hands. He slowly loosened his grip and allowed her to slip out. "It's too late, Atemu! You'll just have to find a new one!" She marched over toward the shelf in the far right corner of the room. "Maybe you can marry one of your harem whores!"

"Teana." He said quietly, glaring at her back.

"O-or maybe one of the servant girls! That's what you want, isn't it? A pretty obedient wife who just sits there? There are a million of those out there!" Teana grabbed a couple of trinkets off the 3rd level of the shelf, sweeping them into a small pile in her hands.

His face now slightly red, he marched forward towards her, meeting her before she could get to the bed and grabbing her shoulders, roughly turning her towards him.

"And need I remind you that you currently carry my third child? A potential heir to the throne of the most powerful being in the mortal realm? A descendant of the gods?" He hissed as she looked away. "Do you think I would even consider letting you leave me while you carry my child?"

"I already gave you two!" She ripped away from him and threw the trinkets on the bed. "Two more than I should have! I am not just a vessel for carrying children!"

She turned around, but Atemu had moved right behind her, grabbing the front collar of her dress and pulling her slightly towards him. "Perhaps I'm not making myself clear." He threw her back onto the bed, next to her pile of objections, landing on her back. "I forbid it."

"You can't force me to stay!" She scrambled to her feet. Atemu merely stepped forward and pushed her back onto the bed.

"There's nothing I can't do." He said, his voice low and cold. "You are nothing but a citizen of Egypt, one who would be wise to remember how unfathomably lucky you are to even be here. You are still my subject."

She laid there, glaring at Atemu with all of her hatred, shaking with anger.

"I will not allow you to make such a foolish decision now, when circumstances have played with your emotions so." He said. "I am not cruel enough to let you do that. From this moment forward, every time you leave the palace, you must report to the head of security where you are going and what time you will be back by, or agree to an escort. You may not leave the palace after dark under any circumstance."

"Y-you can't ground me!" Teana sat up on the bed, looking up at Atemu in angry disbelief.

"I just did." He countered. "I have no desire to lock you inside the guest bedroom, but if you violate my terms, I will have no other choice." Finally, he stepped around the bed slowly, their eyes never parting as he moved. "I will not allow you to let the emotions of your pregnancy make such a foolish decision, even if it means I have to tie you down."

""""

Atemu surveyed the handiwork of his slaves, right out in front of his palace, just beyond the courtyard walls. A square prison, about twenty five feet long in all three dimensions, grids of iron making up the barriers on all sides and the ceiling. Currently, there was nothing inside but air and sand, but a crowd of hundreds of Egyptian civilians had gathered around it all the same.

Atemu was standing in front of the gates to his palace, turning to face the crowd. He cleared his throat and began his prepared speech. "Welcome, everyone." He said in a clear, booming voice. He knew many in the back might not hear him, but they would get the message eventually. "I have some unfinished business to take care of here today, and I wanted all of Egypt to be able to witness it."

With that, the gates to the palace opened, and from behind the left wall a pair of guards emerged, carrying the chair that held Thief King Bakura between them. He maintained a stoic expression, betraying no emotion as a roar of jeers erupted from the crowd. He was eventually set down right next to the prison, as Atemu motioned his hand down towards the ground a few times to prompt the silence of the crowd.

"The Thief King Bakura has committed a long list of atrocities against Egypt, and will now own up to them in front of Egypt." Atemu explained as one of the guards used a large bronze key to unlock the only gate on the structure. "He will experience pain beyond pain, with all of Egypt watching. To those who feel anger at the Thief King for what he has done, witness his suffering as a form of catharsis. And to those who have doubted me, doubted my rule, witness his suffering as a reminder of what happens to those who dare cross me."

This time, a roar of cheers sprung forth from the crowd as Bakura's imprisoning chair was heaved into the cell, still stony faced as the heavy iron gate was slammed shut behind him. Atemu took the chance to smile and wave at the crowd.

As he did, a half dozen robed men emerged from behind the right wall, aligning up into a line behind the Pharaoh and bowing to the crowd. Atemu again gestured his right hand toward the ground, silencing the roar.

"These six men will introduce Bakura to that pain, for your viewing pleasure. We will take everything from him." Slowly, he walked toward the cell, Bakura looking at his crowd. "We have taken his riches, his followers, his palace, his livelyhood, his freedom...all that he has left is his pride. And we will have it!" A sharp, quick cheer came from the crowd, taking only a few seconds to quiet down. "His pain will be endless, until his pride has been ripped from his body. He will suffer all the agony a mortal man can suffer, until he lays broken at my feet. Until he acknowledges me as the true Pharaoh, the greatest being in the mortal realm, and himself as a deluded fool who deserves to suffer for his blasphemy. I will grant him death only when he begs for it."

"Never!" Bakura spat, turning his head as much as he could toward the Pharaoh as he stopped just outside the prison. "Don't waste your time, false Pharaoh. No amount of pain can bring me to stoop that low."

"We have all the time in the world, and I am a patient man." Atemu countered easily. "Before this is done, you will have renounced your beliefs in front of all of Egypt."

"I have a legacy of resisting torture in my family, in case you've forgotten." Bakura retorted, teeth gritted. "I will not let down my ancestors."

"They say enough pain can drive a sane man insane." Atemu said eerily. "Now, you're already barking mad, and I personally can't wait to see the kind of effect it has on you. I think it might knock some sense into that head of yours."

He walked away from the cage toward the line of interrogators as the roar of jeers resumed from the crowd directed at the defeated Thief King, sitting in the large metal cell, unable to move in any meaningful way.

He came to a stop before his half-dozen men, and they all bowed to their waists. "Two rules, gentlemen. First, if any of you are stupid enough to be taken hostage by Bakura, you'll be killed immediately by the guards I'm going to post around the prison. Second, anyone who accidentally kills him before I give the order gets to take his place. Understood?"

They all nodded as one. Atemu gestured his right hand toward the metal structure and the six cloaked men approached it. Atemu continued to march past where they had been standing, back behind the palace walls, as the iron wrought gates slowly shut behind him.

"Very good, my Pharaoh." High Priest Seto said as he strode over towards him from his position against the right side of that wall. "They'll love it."

"The whole world should know what happens to my enemies." Atemu replied as the two walked in stride toward the palace. A great scream rose from just outside the gates, followed by cheers, letting the pair know that the torture had begun.

"I'm surprised you don't want to watch." Seto said, looking back at the gates as the expanding throng of bodies built up further.

"There will be plenty of time for watching later." Atemu took the first of the marble steps up toward his palace. "Are we prepped for tonight?"

"Yes. A thousand have been sacrificed as you commanded. Byzantium is the target." Seto responded.

"I want to be able to see it." Atemu said. "The whole world should see it. Feel it. Know what is coming and still feel powerless to do anything about it."

"If you don't mind me asking, my Pharaoh, how are things between you and Queen Teana?" Seto finally dared to tread.

"I do very much mind. But you did ask." Atemu replied. "Her pregnancy is affecting her emotions more than I expected. Since her outburst of three days ago, she hasn't said a word to me. Perhaps the third child is simply more straining on the female."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Seto said, the pair now halfway up the steps. "Perhaps a-"

"Don't worry about it." Atemu cut him off. "I've had the jewelers prepare a particularly special pendant for tonight. Sometimes you just have to appeal to the base instinct of a woman."

"Best of luck, sir." Seto nodded as they came to the top of the steps. "I'm sure she'll come around."

"You ever get jewelry for that girl of yours?" Atemu asked out of the blue as the two most powerful men in the world came to a stop at the peak of the marble.

Seto couldn't quite manage to keep the red from his face as he stared in shock at the man he served. "I'm...I'm sorry, sir?"

"You know, that girl...Kiya. You ever get her jewelry?" Atemu gave a wry smile.

"K-k-kisara, sir. And of course not, my Pharaoh. She's a slave, such a possession would be grounds for severe punishment." He looked down at the ground in front of Atemu, his hands behind his back. "I would never even-"

Atemu whipped his right hand up through the air, casting a glinting object up in an arc toward's his High Priest. Seto smoothly caught it in his left, looking down at a thin golden chain with a small sapphire embedded at the middle point on the length and tiny golden clasps on both ends.

Atemu turned to start walking past the massive pillars that held up the stone cover above his palace's entrance.

"My Pharaoh, there's no need to-" Seto insisted, quickly following his trail, holding the small necklace in his hand.

"You've been good, High Priest. She's been good. I believe in rewarding those who serve me well." He turned to Seto, clasping his right hand over his left shoulder. "Hey, come on now. You're going through a tough time, and you've proven your loyalty. I want you to know that I care. I don't need you to start resenting me or something." He turned away to continue his walk into the palace.

"Oh, my Pharaoh, not in a million years would I ever-"

"We both know that's not true." Atemu cut him off, waving his left hand dismissively in the air.

Seto looked down at the small necklace, running the chain through his fingers. "She's not...not really that sort of girl." He said lamely.

"What kind of girl is that?" Atemu asked, turning back around to face his High Priest.

"The...the jewelry type of girl, my Pharaoh." Seto went even redder, embarrassed that he was even having this mundane conversation.

The Pharaoh shrugged. "Maybe because she's never had any before."

"Thank you, almighty Pharaoh." Seto bowed his head slightly. "Should I tell her it's from you?"

Atemu scoffed. "Sure. And while you're at it, send a messenger up to fetch me tonight and I'll come on down and screw her for you." With that, he spun around and headed into the inner workings of his grand palace.

""""

"I really wish you could be happy for me." Atemu said softly, his hands on the backrest of the chair in front of him, looking down at his wife seated on the cushion. She ignored him, staring into the mirror built into the desk she was sitting in front of, contemplating only her reflection, eyes wide and face hollow. He looked down and could see the tiny bulge in her stomach, not yet noticable to all but the most careful eye, that would eventually become his third child.

"Nothing would make me happier." Atemu continued. "Today is the first day of eternal Egyptian dominance over the civilized world. And you sit by the throne which is the very seat of that power. Right at the side of the head. You mean to tell me this does nothing for you?"

She continued to act as if he wasn't there, or anything except her reflection wasn't there for that matter.

"If it doesn't, can you not find it in yourself to be happy for me? For my success? My victory?" He stood up, looking into the mirror. "Search deep within, my sweet. Past the wretched emotion of your pregnancy. Beyond the uncontrollable urges to act unreasonably. You'll find it."

She only continued her pattern of inhaling and exhaling, blinking every so often.

"It would mean a lot to me if you might come and watch tonight." He said slowly, extending his right hand out in front and above her face. He slowly opened his fingers, letting a heart-shaped ruby gem the size of a plum fall and hang from a golden chain. Every link of the chain had a tiny emerald in it. It hovered there in front of her, heavy in the Pharaoh's hands. "The fruits of my labor. The culmination of everything. It would mean a lot."

He allowed the priceless necklace to clatter to the desktop in front of her when she made no move to take it. "Think about it, won't you?" He said, sweeping past her toward the door to leave the bedroom, just to Teana's right.

"Please let me leave." She whispered, the Pharaoh freezing and turning to his wife in surprise. "I'm going to ask you one last time. There is no love left in this relationship, I am certain of it." She turned to look up at him, tears starting to well up in her eyes. "I have tried, for years I have tried with every ounce of strength in my body, but I can't do it."

He turned to square up to her, hands behind his back.

"I always told myself it would get better. That you would grow out of your anger and hatred, and then it would just be us." A couple tears streaked down her face. "I wanted it so much. I told myself it would be worth it. But you have been consumed." She turned away and shook her head. "Consumed by your obsession with the gods, your obsession with thinking yourself a god. You place no value on humans anymore, we're just tools to you."

"I place great value on you." He insisted, glancing down at the massive trinket he had just given to her. "My priests as well. Don't say such things."

"I know what you plan to do tonight." She continued, turning to look to her left. "Wipe a city off the map. Create a spectacle of destruction so all the world can tremble at your feet. Kill further thousands. I know the havoc you will unleash tonight, and you'll use a sweet little girl who isn't even old enough to understand what she's doing to do it." She turned to look at him. "Please. I am begging you. Do not force me to be the wife of the man who would do that. This has nothing to do with my pregnancy, I have never been more clear-minded in my life."

Atemu looked over at the door, sighing. "If you don't want to watch, I won't make you." He said simply. With that, he turned to leave the room, leaving Teana to sit there and weep.

"I gave you a chance." She said just as he was about to close the door behind him. "Remember that. I gave you a chance to just let me out."

Atemu stood there for a brief second before shutting the door behind him.

""""

In the far left corner of the grand palace of Egypt, like the other three corners, there was a thin, stone tower that reached up toward the heavens. Nearly a thousand feet above the ground, it was the closest to the skies one inside the palace could possibly get. Right now, four very powerful figures stood, looking toward the north.

"Showtime." Atemu said. Mahad patted Mana on the top of her head. Seto just looked off into the seemingly infinite nothingness of the desert.

Mana raised her little right hand up into the air. The three older men looked up into the sky above them. It was a clear Egyptian evening, little blocking the view of the the great unknown up above, tiny pinpricks of light numbering in the thousands decorating the black.

It was a clear Egyptian evening. Was.

Immediately, large wisps of smoke started swirling up above, perhaps a dozen of them converging together up above.

"She does understand the palace isn't the target, doesn't she?" High Priest Seto asked sarcastically.

"Yes. If we were to wipe the eyesore that is your palace off the map, however, I would have no objection." Mahad watched as the cloud began to float to the north, ominous rumbles of thunder ripping through the air.

"And then what would your palace aspire to be?" Seto shot back, the eyes of the three men following the cloud, starting to pick up speed.

"Shh." Atemu waved his hand at the two.

Flashes of light now popping up within the cloud of smoke, it left the city of Cairo, moving faster and faster.

"Where are the others?" Seto asked, eyes not pulling away from the cloud that only grew in size as it pulled away, not fading from view.

"Praying for our success." Atemu said flatly. Seto gave him a look with a raised eyebrow. "I don't want them here."

Seto contemplated asking further questions, tongue pressed against the inside of his left cheek. Atemu superceded him.

"I don't trust them." Atemu explained, folding his arms across his chest. "They don't need to be here, I need to protect my investment." He looked down at the small girl, eyes closed in concentration.

Seto pursed his lips. "I don't need to be here." He thought out loud. "So you trust me?"

Atemu turned to look at him, face emotionless. "That depends." He replied dryly. "Are you here right now?"

Seto flushed slightly as the Pharaoh turned back to look at the huge cloud in the sky. "T-thank you, my Pharaoh." He gave a small bow.

Mahad shot a half smirk at Seto, shuffling back a step so he was standing next to him. "So you trust me?" He repeated mockingly in his ear.

Seto scowled at him, looking at him out of the corner of his eye. "Kiss the darkest part of my-"

"Hush." Atemu whispered. A few brilliant streaks of white light shot down from the cloud, striking the ground before disappearing.

"I'm there." Mana said throatily.

In the next second, a couple dozen more bolts of lightning ripped down from the large cloud. They could not see the aftermath from their vantage point a thousand miles away, but they all knew that the bolts were wreaking havoc on the city of Byzantium, a valued Turkish territory that King Abbas had managed to protect from the armies of Egypt all these years. In the next few seconds, they saw huge vortexes of swirling smoke descend toward the ground.

"I am impressed." Seto admitted, a sidelong glance at Mahad.

"Hardly a difficult reaction to get out of you." Mahad replied.

"Not every day you see a nine year old girl with a few weeks training do what a middle aged man with nearly three decades of it can't." Seto explained. "Are you entirely sure you were reading the right scrolls all those years?"

"You couldn't tell a black magic scroll from a Hummus recipe." Mahad retorted.

"Please, continue!" Atemu said loudly, turning to look at his two trusted priests. The pair froze, staring at the Pharaoh with wide eyes. "No, no, this is much more entertaining and interesting! To hell with me establishing my continued dominance over the rest of the world, my priests are fighting like teenaged girls! Please!" He put his left index finger down the stone wall in front of him that came up to his waist, providing a barrier between the tower roof and the long fall down to the ground. "Kindly put your cocks on here and I'll measure them for you!"

The pair looked down at the ground at the Pharaoh's feet, flushing.

"My apologizes, Pharaoh." Mahad grumbled.

"It won't happen again." Seto added.

Atemu shook his head, turning back to look off into the distance, little flashes of fire kicking up from underneath and within the cloud. "You're lucky I'm in a good mood."

Those tiny sparks in the distance got gradually bigger and bigger, faint cracks ringing in the air even over the great distance.

"I wish we could be closer." Atemu commented, rubbing his chin. "I can only imagine the chaos down there."

Finally, Mana lowered her hand, and the sparks ceased. "It's done." She said, sweat dripping from her brow. "Just a big pile of ruins and some scrambling survivors."

"Very good." Atemu nodded. "How do you feel?"

"Tired, sir." She put her hands down on her knees, bending over to breathe heavily.

"You've done wonderfully tonight. Mahad will take you home, the architects can wait until tomorrow."

"A-architects?" Mana looked up at the Pharaoh.

"Well, it's not fair for Mahad to have to share his palace with you and your mother." He explained lightly. "I think it's about time you moved out on your own." He extended his right hand out towards her. "All we need is your preferred style of palace."

She slowly took his hand with both of hers, eyes lighting up. "T-thank you, mighty Pharaoh." She said in a tiny voice.

He turned to Mahad as Mana used his hand to assist her in standing up. "Now the world has seen the extent of our power. I don't want to let them down. Starting tomorrow, Mana is to participate in all future battles fought by the Egyptian army. You have complete freedom in gathering for the required sacrifices, I trust your judgement."

"It will be done." Mahad nodded.

"Seto, kindly send word out that aggressive expansion begins anew tomorrow." Atemu added, moving toward the flight of stairs that spiraled down through the tower. "All units out on the borders will make a push with Mana assisting. This was just a showcase, from now on I want cities to be taken intact and prisoners taken alive."

"Of course." Seto watched the Pharaoh disappear down the steps, the faintest of footsteps padding along as he made the long descent.

After several seconds, Seto turned to Mahad. Giving a small smirk, he extended his right hand out toward Mahad, and it was accepted by the other in a quick handshake.

"I suppose we'll need to synchronize on this." Seto said, looking over at Mana still standing by the ledge.

"Come." Mahad beckoned, prompting her to run up to him. He bent down on one knee, back turned to her, allowing her to wrap her arms around his neck. He stood back up, the small girl clinging to him.

"How adorable." Seto commented dryly as the two began to descend the stairs.

"I suppose you wouldn't know anything about the embrace of a female." Mahad replied airily, grabbing her knees in his hands.

"I do outrank you, you know." Seto pointed out.

"Are you going to fire me?" Mahad looked over his right shoulder, up at Mana, giving her a comfort smile.

"I'm considering it." Seto smiled to himself. "Mana could do your job. She probably wouldn't be such a whiner too."

"Oh, I'm a whiner? What does that make you?" Mahad rubbed Mana's right foot in his hand as she rested her head against the back of his.

"The colleague of a whiner." Seto answered tartily.

"Hush." Mana whispered, causing both of the men to look back at her figure as she let the rocking motion of Mahad descending the stairs lull her to sleep.

""""

Atemu swung the door to his bedroom open, eyes scanning the room for his estranged wife. He found her, curiously enough, seated on the bed in the fetal position, knees up to her chest, rocking back and forth.

"Honey, look at this." He exclaimed, trying to ignore her curious seating arrangement. He walked up to her, holding up a six inch dagger glowing blue in one hand and a large diamond in the other. "Look what Mana cooked up."

She didn't raise her eyes from their downcast state, looking down at her toes.

"This blade has been enhanced to cut through anything, yet is light as a feather." He explained. "Imagine an entire army of Egyptian soldiers wielding these." With that, he deftly cut the knife through the diamond, neatly sawing it in half. Placing the two crystals down on the bed, he held the small blade up. "You woun't have to imagine it for very long, I'll have a million of these running around and wreaking havoc against all my enemies in a matter of days."

She paid him no heed, only shallowly breathing.

He straightened up, licking his lips. "I wish you could see the battle reports. It's back to the way it used to be. Casualties are nearly non-existent. Mana barely leaves anything for the soldiers to do but celebrate." He grabbed her right hand and held it between his. "The world is mine, darling. Soon, the warmongering will be over. Don't you see? Once I finish crushing my enemies, there will be no one left to fight. This is good. This is good news. You should be happy."

She gave him a tiny upward glance that faded immediately, back down to her feet.

"Okay." Atemu grunted. He sat down on the bed next to her, looking her over with a frown. "This needs to stop. You need to stop. Right now. I don't know what demons have taken hold of you to make you act like this, but you were never half this bad during your first two pregnancies." He grabbed her head by her cheeks and forcefully turned her to face him. "Now, I am not going to suffer the indignity of separating from my marriage to a mortal woman, not for anything. I don't care if you're of clear mind or not. So you can either sit there and mope forever, or get over it."

She continued to look at him after he let her face go, unfurling her legs down onto the ground as she did so. His expression softened, feeling as if he was almost there.

"Now. In four or five moons, you'll have a newborn. You'll feel a great joy at bringing new life into this world. You'll take pride and joy out of raising this child. You'll look at him, and your heart will soar. All of these negative thoughts and emotions will be purged from your body. Half a year from now, you will be the happiest woman in Egypt again, and you'll forget all about all of this nonsense." He watched her slowly stand up, not taking her eyes off of his. "Things are going better than they ever have within this kingdom, and I've never been happier. Please, join me in my happiness. Think on the child that sits within you now. Think on your third child."

She now stood straight up in front of Atemu, eyes still wide and on his, breathing heavily. Finally, she opened her mouth to speak slightly, but her words were mumbled and low.

"I'm sorry, sweetie?" Atemu asked, giving her a tiny comfort smile.

"I said, we're not having a third child." She said throatily, swallowing hard after those words left. "There's no child in me."

Atemu raised an eyebrow before cracking a grin. "Don't be absurd. The doctors did all the tests, you have the same emotional reactions, the same strange taste in fo-"

"No!" She said sharply. "No. You don't understand." She extended a shaking left fist toward Atemu slowly, letting a crumpled piece of paper fall into his lap.

He picked it up in his fingers and slowly opened it up, smoothing out the creases in the parchment.

"I...I don't have a child in me. Because it was taken out." She blubbered, her words now shaking like her entire body.

Atemu felt a cold, clammy hand grip his stomach as he looked the parchment over. A small seal of red ink that he recognized as the insignia of a well-known Cairo Physician. While much of the rest of it was legal terminology and medical phrases, he was able to clearly understand one of the paragraphs near the bottom.

By signing this, you are agreeing to undergo a process that is experimental and potentially dangerous. You also understand that the process, if successful, will remove the unborn, un-developed human from within your womb. You also understand that the process is not reversible, and that the unborn human can not be saved.

At the bottom, he saw what he knew to be Teana's signature. His hands started to shake.

"An abortion." Teana said through tears. "That's what they're calling it. An abortion."

Atemu dropped the paper to the ground, slowly tilting his head up to look back at her, smile long faded.

"You didn't give me a choice." She said huskily, more tears streaming down her face. "Our child. I had it killed, Atemu, because I can't do this anymore. I can't."

His forehead slowly wrinkled, jaw locked in a scowl, breath coming in and out of him in large huffs.

"All of this...this god-blood, royal family stuff, I can't do it!" She shrieked, refusing to drop her gaze from Atemu even as his glare threatened to kill her on anger alone. "I saw what it did to you! It corrupted, consumed, destroyed you! Destroyed the man I love! I remember the man I fell in love with, and he's nothing like you, all of this Pharaoh business did this!"

His jaw quivered, hands still shaking, balling up into fists.

She refused to back down. Not now.

"I won't give you another child to infect! Infect, like your father did you, and his father did him! I-it's too late for Ammon and Asenath, b-b-but this I can do!" She sobbed, her face contorted into an ugly, tear-stained mess. "I could save this one!" Her lip quivered. "A-and I d-d-did, the o-only way I could!"

Atemu's nostrils started to flare, though he remained seated on the bed, his entire body starting to shake.

"You won't forgive this." She forced out, her voice starting to steady itself. "I-I know you won't. You will never forgive this. I can see it in your eyes, you're repulsed by the sight of me now!" She again lost control, starting to cry openly. "P-please, please, just let me leave this horrible p-p-place! I can't be a part of it a-a-anymore, and you can't stand the sight of me any more, just please let me-"

"BITCH!" He roared, jumping up and punching her in the cheek with his right hand. She fell back to the floor from the impact, laying on her back, left hand up against the welt on her cheek.

Atemu looked down at her for awhile, breathing heavily, eyes wide and jaw locked in a burning scowl. She continued to stare him down, still holding her ground.

He slowly moved past her, walking over to his desk opposite the doorway, each footstep a tiny tap.

He pulled the chair out and sat down it in, looking at his reflection in the mirror against the wall. Teana just watched him, still weeping silently, hand pressed against her cheek.

Atemu folder his hands together in front of his face, supporting his elbows on the desk and pressing his forehead against his hands. He closed his eyes for a few seconds, his breath the only noise within the chamber.

He re-opened his eyelids, looking at the bottom right corner of the mirror to see Teana's reflection, still laying on the ground and rubbing her red cheek.

"Get out." He growled in a low, menacing voice. Quickly, she jumped to her feet, not needing to be told twice as she swept toward the door.

As she was just about to exit the room, she couldn't help but throw one last glance at the Pharaoh, a pitying look in her eyes as she searched for something to say. She couldn't find it, so she simply departed the room, leaving Atemu alone with his thoughts.

He again closed his eyes, sighing deeply, using his right hand to rub his forehead.