The sun was bright…so bright and so hot that it gave the impression that it could literally burn human flesh… However, people had gathered at the gardens of a great palace, that was showered in the sunlight making even the common stone that it was made of, look like gold! People were calling in union:
"Pharaoh! Pharaoh! Pharaoh!"
They were calling all together in a steady rhythm as if their heartbeats were beating in union too. In the palace balcony doors a man was standing… He was wearing linen royal clothes with numerous pieces of jewelry on him… He was also wearing a long cape in royal blue color made from the best linen in Egypt… His hair was unique tri-colored and spiky while his eyes even more unique were bloody-red like two liquid rubies… The man took a deep breath and then walked with all his pride and dignity to the balcony…getting out in the sun. Everyone was now ecstatic as they were yelling
"Pharaoh! Pharaoh! Pharaoh! Pharaoh!"
The man raised his arm saluting his people… Every single man, woman and child kneeled on earth and then stretched their arms at the height of their knees, in the deepest bow possible to greet their Pharaoh…the living god on earth! The Pharaoh smirked a little satisfied at the sight. He then started heading inside again… He had received the best education possible. He could speak many languages and he could play four different musical instruments. Even if he was young he had the body of an athlete since he was practicing the bow, horse riding and martial arts since he was a little child. He had learnt to defeat opponents more than twice his size and he had perfectly mastered the ancient martial art of Kuta…. He was a bit overconfident but he was fair and just with his people. He tried his best so everyone would have the right treatment… No one had complains about that. However his reign was stained by multiple murders… Meaning that…once every month…a person was found dead to the town around the palace…brutally murdered as if a wild animal had attacked him… Pieces of them were missing…as if the animal was so hungry that it ate the human body… Today it was the Pharaoh's birthday and even now he was thinking about it… He walked in and sat on his throne… The throne room was full with people…his soldiers and bodyguards…his High Priests and his dancers and musicians… Food and wine and beer were all plenty for everyone… The female dancers were dancing with graceful moves and wonderful dresses while the soldiers were sitting all around on the floor in small groups and they were eating, chatting or looking at the dancers… The Pharaoh was sitting on his throne watching the festivities while drinking from a golden goblet once in a while… Today was supposed to be the day his birthday would be celebrated and his birthday only! However he couldn't stop himself from thinking…
"Every month a victim… A victim that has been mangled by some famished animal… For how long…for how long this rumor…will continue to exist…?"
He sighed a little and took another sip from his wine slowly.
"…And also…for how long…will my reign be continuing…?"
That was true…the specific Pharaoh had many things that no one ever had before… His skin was pale. At least paler than the usual Egyptians…and most importantly…his reign had lasted almost thirteen years but still…his characteristics hadn't changed at all… He was still young and strong like a twenty-year-old man… His people would think that it was the blessings from the gods that had made him this way… Being pale and even so never getting burnt from the sun…His strong eyes that would see every lie in humans' souls…and most of all his long youth… Everything was making him a king blessed from the gods…
"…Or the demons…" the young king thought
Because he knew…he knew the answers to all those questions…however he would never tell anyone about it… He knew but the reality was too awful to be spoken by anyone's mouth. Suddenly the doors opened to reveal ten people all dressed in those strange clothes they wore in western places. They were dressed in black and gray (gray was the color of mourning for Egypt). They were wearing gray shirts and black pants that would fit to the style of Arabic nations that were coming in Egypt once in a while and they were also wearing black coat-like clothes over the shirts. They were wearing much jewelry all in silver… Silver belts, bracelets, rings, earrings…even their swords at their belts had silver color. The Pharaoh raised a brow as the men, with only one man leading them (for sure their leader, came in front of the throne. The leader that had silver-colored hair (looked not too young but not old either) kneeled in front of him and the others mimicked him.
"Your Grace…" he said in a low voice
"Rise and speak!" the Pharaoh said, "Who are you and what is the purpose of your visit in Egypt and my palace?"
The men raised their heads from the floor and the man leading them spoke.
"Your Majesty…may your gods provide you with life and health!"
He then looked at him and his gray eyes were observing the young Pharaoh from top to bottom…
"I can see that the rumors about you were true after all… Time doesn't seem to touch you…"
The young king frowned his eyebrows looking at him. He could sense accusation or irony under the man's words.
"I will repeat my question. What are you seeking here in Egypt and in my palace?"
"Oh, yes…of course… We are named the Silver Order" the man said pulling his jacket aside.
He revealed a badge-like object made of silver. On it, it had engraved a sword.
"The Silver Order?"
"That's right. We are just travelers and also…we are delivering justice to those who need it. We're hunting down monsters that are threatening innocent lives… We heard about incidents that are happening recently in this city… We heard about the attacks."
The king's face darkened a little.
"Really?" he questioned with some irony
"Yes. We are here to tell to your Grace that there is no need to worry… We will catch that monster and bring it to justice!"
The young king seemed thoughtful.
"Should I let them do that? What if they… Nah! That is not possible!" he thought
He looked at them. Only ten of them. What could they do?
"So what do you want from me?" he asked them
"The only thing we need from you my king is your support and maybe the liberty to interrogate those who seem suspicious to us…"
"He says that he will search for the beast that is doing this…" the young king thought again, "I cannot allow them to continue this! Maybe they will do good work and then… No. No, hold on a second. Why am I so anxious about it? I mean they do not suspect it and if they do, they will never believe it or be able to proceed into actions!"
The young king looked at them.
"Very well. I give you the permission to stay here and do your job. However my people do not like being interrogated like criminals! Do not proceed to such actions unless you find it absolutely necessary!"
He might have been saying this but in his mind…it was different.
"It is impossible for me to forbid them do this investigation! This will seem suspicious! I can't let those ten discover the whole truth… I would like them to leave before the next full moon but I cannot put them limits to the investigation…or else I will show to the others that I don't want the beast to be found…"
He felt a drop of sweat running down his back.
"…However I cannot let them see…I cannot let them stay till the next full moon! What should I do if they stay…? Maybe…kill them? No! What am I thinking?! I do not kill innocent people…well…except that victim every month but…but that is when I need to survive… This is my nature and my contact…"
He closed his eyes.
"…My reign lasted thirteen years already…during the first years I would leave no trace of the body behind…but now I need all the less human flesh… That means that I am starting to control it…that means that I am starting not to need it… I cannot possibly let these ten to find out… Wait a minute…I shouldn't be panicking… They do not suspect and they will never know… After all…they can't kill me. No matter what they do they can't kill me… For now…I must stay calm…"
He opened his eyes again and looked at them.
"Very well then. Do whatever you need to do and whatever new you find, you must come and report it to me" he told them
"Yes your Majesty…that is exactly what we were planning to do…" he said in a low voice…
Then, they all stood up, turned around and walked out of the throne room…
The days passed and soon the full moon climbed in the sky…silver and pale. The night was calm… The ten men were hidden around corners like the thieves that are expecting their victims to approach. Their silver accessories were glowing in the moonlight once in a while. Nothing could be heard. Silence… The man had started losing his temper…
"Come on, beast… We're waiting for you…"
Suddenly they heard a scream. Another victim! The beast had attacked again! Two of the ten that were closer (the silver man included) ran there right away. The subordinate kicked the door open easily and they entered the mud-built hut. And then they saw it… There was a big creature over a dead body…inside a pool of blood… The creature was in the dark but its eyes were glowing red like blood rubies in the darkness… The dark silhouette of the monster appeared to have a pair of dragon-like wings on its back and legs that would resemble a dragon… The creature was growling in a hollow growl. Its lips were half open and revealed sharp sabers in the darkness. From its half-opened jaws the blood was still running fresh. The shadow also showed that the creature had horns and elf-like ears. Its tail would end to something that resembled a blade. Two thorns came out of each one of its elbows. Its head was shaped as a…star? Around its waist it was wearing a piece of rag that once should be a kilt. The creature was now glaring at them, growling while his slit-pupil eyes were now staring straight into the silver man's…its nails (its hands were human-like) now digging the dirt underneath. The silver man looked at the creature with apathy and drew his sword out slowly. The moonlight danced on the blade.
"Surrender!" he said, "You are with no future, demon!"
The creature growled and then rushed upon him with a roar! The man wasted no time and jumped aside. His blade cut through the creature's side. The demonic creature roared in pain.
"Surrender!" the silver man repeated
The creature's lips pulled back into something like a mocking smirk. As if it was provoking him. As if it was saying "come on! Is this the best you can do?" The silver man drew out of his belt a silver blowing-pipe and blew. A silver arrow torn the air and got stabbed into the creature's shoulder. It growled a little but then it grabbed the arrow and with a strong move it pulled it out of its wound. Before the man's eyes the wound healed right away. The demon looked back at the silver man and grinned. The man prepared himself for the worst but the hit never came. The creature looked at the sky over its shoulder and growled in frustration. After that it flapped its wings and flew out of a small window destroying part of the wall in the process. It took some moments for the man to catch his breath. His subordinate approached him.
"Sir…that creature was…"
"No more words needed young man!" he told him
He walked in the center of the small hut and picked a small piece of linen cloth. It might have fallen from the creature's torn cloth.
"What kind of devil needs clothes to wear huh?" he monologized with a satisfied smirk, "I believe that we are getting closer and closer to our pray…"
Like promised, the next morning the silver man bowed in front of the king's throne. The young Pharaoh was leaning on the throne arm and he looked a bit of tired or bored.
"Your Majesty…" the silver man said
"I am listening. What new can you tell me?"
"You will be glad to hear that we are getting closer and closer to discover the identity of the monster that has been killing your people"
The young Pharaoh didn't show his surprise or the fact that he got alarmed.
"How so? What did you find?"
"The beast is changing its form. I believe that he takes the form of a human so he can leave among the others!"
Again the king hid the fact that he got alarmed.
"How did you come to this conclusion?"
The silver man took out of his pocked the small piece of linen.
"A monster doesn't need clothes to wear! A human does!" he said with triumph shining in his eyes, "And the fact that the cloth was torn proves that the transformation is violent and maybe painful, but for sure it is sudden. Also…"
He grinned revealing his white teeth.
"…The linen is really expensive and good. Meaning that the monster is someone wealthy! Someone that can afford such good cloth!"
The king's heart skipped a beat but again he hid it.
"No way!" he thought, "I knew I shouldn't have let him proceed to investigation! No…calm down… He hasn't come to you yet…"
The young Pharaoh looked at the silver man with his bloody eyes.
"I see. That's an interesting theory indeed. How long will it take you to finish the investigation and catch that beast?"
Inside his head he was thinking:
"Good. If I look impatient for the matter to be solved…"
"Soon my king. Soon. I believe that in less than a month we will have the beast in our hands!"
"A month…" the king thought
He sighed.
"Fine. I give you this one-month. However you know that you are no longer accusing my people for knowing something about the beast. You are accusing them for actually being this beast! You will not proceed into accusations unless you have proofs about it! Understood?"
"Of course…your Majesty… Your orders will be followed…"
The Pharaoh could see a slight irony and a strange sparkle into the man's eyes…
The month passed and soon the day for the new full moon was coming closer. The silver man was now walking towards the palace… He wanted to speak with the king again. When he entered the throne room he managed to see the Pharaoh clenching his teeth in pain clenching his tunic at the spot over his heart. He was covered in sweat. A servant had his arms around the king's shoulders and he was leading him away. The silver man raised a brow.
"What happened to the king?" he asked the servant a little later.
"His Majesty has such pains once in a while…" the servant said
"How often?" the silver man's gray eyes were staring at the boy
The servant gulped.
"Well…let's see… O-Once every…m-month…" the servant stuttered
"Every…month…" the man whispered and then a grin appeared to his face…
At night the Pharaoh was feeling worse. The pain was unbearable. He was sweating all over and he could feel it coming.
"It is starting…again…it won't be long…"
He growled in pain taking rasped breaths. Then a servant came to his room.
"My king!" he said in a panic
"What is it?" the Pharaoh said harshly with a growl trying not to let that take over him
"Th-There are p-people under y-your b-balcony…" the servant stuttered
The king's eyes widened.
"How many?"
"A-All of them!"
Without having a second to lose, despite his pain, the king ran to the balcony. What he saw made his eyes widen once again in horror. The entire city was under his balcony! They were holding anything they could use as a weapon! They were also holding lit torches. The fire was also in their eyes that were looking at him with a mix of pure fear and hatred. And then he saw him…the silver man walked casually in front of them and looked up at him with a mocking smirk.
"Good evening…your Majesty…" he said the last one with heavy irony
"What's the meaning of this!" the king yelled trying to sound insulted and not uneasy or scared.
"You are asking…my king…?" he mocked again and then he turned to the people.
He spoke…and his voice was clear as a bell.
"My friends! Listen to me! This man has outsmarted you all! Look at him! He doesn't age, he rarely gets tired, he has the eyes at the color of your demons, he has pale skin but he won't burn of the sun…"
He grinned as he said the rest:
"…And his shadow matches the creature! I saw it with my bare eyes the previous time! The creature had the same hair as he does and also the linen that was wearing around its waist is royal linen! It can be found only to the houses of wealthy people or royalties! And look at him! Look at him how he is sweating and how he is shivering in pain! The transformation is taking over him again! He is not a god on earth my friends! He is a demon! Destroy him! Destroy him!"
The mob started running to the gates! The Pharaoh's eyes widened in terror.
"Guards!" he yelled, "Guards!"
However the guars were with them…they opened the doors to let them in! The Pharaoh looked up at the moon. It was almost midnight! He didn't have much time! He ran inside the palace trying to find a way out but he fell on his own servants that were also holding anything they could use as a weapon, from single pieces of wood to knives used in the palace kitchen. The Pharaoh could hear the others coming too and the voice of the silver man yelling:
"Don't be afraid! Eliminate him! Eliminate him!"
The Pharaoh, struggling not to let panic take over him, he ran to some rooms to find something to defend himself…and he was running out of time! The skin on his hand had started to change…or rather to frazzle and the skin of the monster had started to reveal…his fingers were already partly formed and his nails were visible. And then he saw the silver man in front of him.
"This is it…your…Majesty…"
He drew out the sword. The Pharaoh was prepared and used a move of Kuta to throw his opponent to the ground. Even in pain, he was a really strong opponent. The silver man fell to the floor and the sword fell from his hands. The king growled in pain and stood up again. The silver man licked his slit lip (he had bitten it when he fell by mistake) and grabbed something that was close to him and he could use it as a weapon…a golden piece of jewelry that had broken from the king's arm. He threw it and the small object got stabbed into the king's arm (the one that had transformed). The king growled in pain and drew it out of the wound but then he saw…he saw in terror that the wound didn't heal and blood continued coming out! The silver man smirked.
"Gold! Gold can harm him! Grab every golden object you can use my friends!" he yelled for everyone to hear
The young and now chased king ran away from that room only to fall on the mob that were now holding anything gold they could find! Their shadows were dancing on the walls and they seemed giant from the torches they were holding. The Pharaoh ran to a room and then pain took over him as he fell on his knees. The full moon was in the center of the sky. It was midnight. He roared loudly and his back arched upwards… The skin of his back had started to tear and it gave its place slowly to the dark, thick skin of the demon. Two wings torn his skin as well and stretched out while the tail came out as well! The demonic king stood on his knees and torn his tunic and his own human skin with his bare hands and claws and his chest also evolved to that of a monster…and so did his face…but he was still in the dark so details were not visible. The mob that entered the room only saw the dark silhouette in the darkness and the two slit-pupil eyes glowing like lit coals in the darkness. They started taking steps back as the hollow roar of the monster.
"Don't be afraid!" the silver man said again, "Kill him! Kill him with the gold!"
Then the demonic figure roared and rushed upon the silver man and his sharp sabers sank into the man's neck that let out a last scream. Everyone screamed in terror and took steps back as the creature raised its head from the man's neck. However the anger and all the bottled up feelings took over as they started heading towards him again. The demonic creature knew that they were too many to face them all together. He roared loudly, standing on its two feet and spreading its wings to scare them and then flapped its wings and flew outside the window in the night…
"It ran away! After him! After him!"
He could still hear their voices after it… It flew away and it hid among the mud-built huts. It could still hear them. Then the moon hid behind some clouds. Then the demonic king knew that he could take his human form again. He couldn't control the transformation unless the moon was hidden. So he did. He turned into a human again. His once royal clothes were now torn. The linen, torn kilt around his waist was barely hiding his nudity. His wound was still bleeding. He stuck his back against the mud-built wall and ran through the shadows. He heard them closer… Everything was lost… The moon appeared again and he transformed again… The demonic creature spread its wings again and flew in the night…and got lost…
Soon after, in the darkness, a little before dawn a horse was running away in the desert…a white…royal horse… The chased king, that was now in his human form again, wearing common clothes that he had taken from a hut before running away and then he had taken a horse from the palace stables while the others were looking for him in the village, he was storming away… He had time to take just a small flask of water with him and some bread to eat…and he was storming off in the desert…not knowing where to go…not knowing what to do…the only thing he wanted was to run away and save his life! Everything was lost… The horse's strong legs were running in the golden sand of the desert leaving a thick cloud of dust behind it… The exile king didn't stop…he didn't stop anywhere… He ate his bread on the horse's back…he drank his water or poured some of it on his head on his horse! He didn't stop…and the sun was burning his flesh…he didn't stop even when a sandstorm hit him… His horse fell on the ground and died of fatigue…but he kept going on foot now in the scorching desert having his arm in front of his face to protect his eyes from the sand that was whipping his face with no mercy… Sweat was running down his body but he didn't stop… His legs sometimes were sank till the knee in the sand but he didn't stop… He continued in the night as well when the temperature was freezing… He had the stars to guide him…and he kept on…and on…and on… And finally fatigue took over him too… He fell on his knees and then on the ground…the sun scorching him…he had no strength left to stand up… And then he heard voices…human ones… He barely could look up from where he was lieing… He saw, with the sun blinding him, some human shadowy silhouettes over his head…and then he heard the sound of a stopper being pulled out…and then everything turned black… The last thing he felt before losing consciousness was the cool, liquid water running on his dried lips…
And it was the most delicious thing he had ever tasted…
Yay~! I reached the 20 chapters! I am so glad!
Anyway this is all written in italics because it is Yami's dream. This is how the Pharaoh Atem lost his palace and he ran away, chased by his people...
Don't be in a hurry though, his memory is far from being restored! For now what he sees are memories but he sees them like we see a movie or a dream...in order to remember he has a long way to go... I hope you liked it!
Also Kuta was a type or wrestling or kick boxing in ancient Egypt. Now it is named Hikuta I think
Please review! ^^
Enjoy!