Okay, so I know I SAID I was going to post before leaving for Cinci this past weekend, and...well, that didn't work. :P Sorry! :D; But hey, chapter three's here now, everyone rejoice with exceeding great joy!
So, this is the part of the Authoress' Notes where I pass out free assorted candies to my reviewers. HOWEVER, I didn't get any new ones yet. :( You know what makes Mayflowers happy and makes them post more? Reviews. :D Even if you think the story sucks, let me have it, I don't care. (Okay, I DO care - it's not nice to come right out and say, "OMG!1! TH1Z STORY SUXX!1 U SUX!1! N00b13!11!". Plus, it should physically hurt you to write like that, so please save everyone the eye-bleeding drama.)
Okay, so introductory crap over with - onto chapter three!
LAWYERBOT SAYS: ...Man. :(
Sorry, kiddies - nothing wrong with this chapter! Read away! :D
CHAPTER THREE: THE LAST VAMPIRE
My heart, my mother
My heart, my mother
My heart, my coming into being!
May there be nothing to resist me at judgment;
May there be no opposition to me from the Tchatcha;
May there be no parting of thee from me in the presence of him who keepeth the scales!
Thou art my ka within my body, knitteth and strengtheneth my limbs.
Mayest thou come forth to the place of happiness to which I am advancing.
May the Shenit not cause my name to stink,
And may no lies be spoken against me in the presence of the god!
Good it is for thee-
Seto's chants were cut short when a small candle in the corner of his chamber suddenly sparked to life. In the corner of this underground ritual room was a shrine, one carved to mimic the pharaoh's sacred puzzle, and atop this shrine was a single candle that hadn't seen flame in nearly five millenia.
Yet there it was - the little yellow spark dancing upon its perch, flickering light and shadow across the hieroglyphs and murals on the wall behind it.
Seto couldn't help but smirk. 'It took you long enough, dear cousin.' His Sennen Light was enchanted only to burn when the King of Vampires had returned to the living plane - and with everything that he had been sensing, he knew that the time was close at hand. The night pulsated with evils, like a vampire takeover loomed around every corner.
Not that Seto was bothered - fear becomes little more than the ideals of the mortal and weak after five-thousand years. If he managed to escape the pharaoh's vampire purge in the days of ancient Egypt, he was CERTAINLY powerful enough to conquer anything the modern world had to throw at him.
Speaking of the modern world, it was time the dark priest returned to it. The brunette sighed as he removed his headdress and began to disrobe. He enjoyed his nightly ventures into his private ritual chamber - it was his time to pray, to meditate, to bathe in his ancient robes, to put the daily stresses of his persona behind him...but his visits needed to remain short, for fear of attracting attention from his staff.
And so, after a quick change into his more-usual black ensemble with sharp white trenchcoat, Priest Seto of the Egyptian sanguivores became Seto Kaiba, worldwide mogul of the gaming market and multibillionare. An exhausting life to live, but "eccentric billionaire" was the only way to protect his privacy...and his secret. Seeing the coast was clear, he casually walked into the main corridor, using a touch of Shadow magic to blend the door to his chamber back into the wall, hiding it until his next visit.
Seto's long wait for his cousin's return was finally over - now came the hard part. Where did he go from here? Should he seek out his fallen cousin? Or the one who completed the Millenium Puzzle? And what of the evil forces that came closer and closer with each nightfall?
With an irritated sigh, he entered his private study and sat at his desk, looking out at the Domino cityscape below. He would have to see what had become of the King of Vampires, that was a priority. He had no idea what else was waiting for him, so he decided to take a gamble of the devil he thought he knew.
"Aniki? Is something wrong?"
Seto gave one of his rare smiles. "Come in, Mokuba."
Being alive five-thousand years, there's always the occasional mortal who finds out more than they should and discovers the existance of vampires. Ninety-nine percent of the time, these people die - it's simply too risky to keep them around. But then there was little Mokuba, an orphan child who accidently discovered a freezer of blood when he broke into the Kaiba mansion, looking for food. Luckily, Seto interuppted the burglary before the rest of his staff saw the refrigerator, but Mokuba had seen too much. And yet, when Seto went to snap his neck...he simply couldn't do it. Mokuba was too young, too innocent to suffer such an untimely demise.
So the next day, Seto adopted himself a new little brother. Mokuba had proven plenty trustworthy, as well as good company - he loved Seto's stories of the past, and he was becoming a gamesmaster almost as strategic as the age-old priest himself.
Mokuba came over, and Seto placed the orphan child on his lap. The contrasts in their appearances was almost comical. Seto was tall and bronzed from his many years in the Egyptian sun, with hardened sapphire eyes and thin, streamlined brunette hair. Mokuba, on the other hand, was still pale and fragile from his years of suffering in the orphanage, with wide turquoise eyes hidden under an impenetrable mop of black frizz. And yet, they shared a very special brotherly bond, despite the differences between them.
"Aniki, you've been acting weird lately," Mokuba pointed out with a pout - he hated being left out of his older brother's plans. "What's goin' on?"
Seto affectionately ruffled up his adopted brother's hair. "I'm sorry, Mokuba - things have just been taking up my attention lately."
Mokuba's eyes lit up. "You mean like...vampire things?" he hissed, clearly excited but trying his best to keep the "v-word" quiet.
Seto nodded, chuckling a bit at Mokuba's naïvity. "This time, yes, it is."
"Whoa! So cool! Like what?"
"Well, do you remember when I explained everything to you the first time, and I told you that I'm the only vampire left?"
"Yeah - what about it?"
Seto's eyes turned back to the pitch-black of the nighttime Domino streets outside. "I lied."
So in case anyone's dying to know, the prayer from the beginning is the translation of Plate III from the Egyptian Book of the Dead. So now Kaiba and Mokuba are thrown into the mix - what other beloved YuGiOh! characters will make a dramatic entrance? And what of our heroes? Do YOU know what happens next? Of course not! :D Stay tuned (and drop a review) to find out!
§ Tucker's Mayflower, signing off! §