Embers Glowing

Ruler(--------------------------------------------------------------------------------) --> Change in setting

.x.x.x.-change in POV

"blah" -->talking

'blah'-->thinking

Fate.

A moment in time beyond our reach

In the hands of the gods

Yami’s POV

I slowly rose from the ground, propping myself on my right elbow. A river of sweat trickled down my face, leaving lines of tan on my dirt-smeared face. Shaking my head, I ran my hands through my hair. The texture was different than before. It was softer, silkier now. I rose up farther, transferring my weight from my elbow to my bottom as I sat up fully. I clutched my head with both hands, fighting against the headache that hammered my head into a pulp. I struggled against it for a few moments, and then finally gave up, falling back to the hard ground. I whacked my head against the hard earth accidentally, sending vibrations through my head, which seemed to refresh me for a moment, as if shaking off an annoying mosquito. Seizing the chance, I stood up from the ground, only to meet a crashing wave of dizziness. Losing my balance, I fell against a tree, leaning my seemingly unbearable weight on its trunk. I waited for the sensation to end with a queasy stomach. When it was over, I noticed my headache had gone as well. Now I had a moment to think. I didn’t smell anything except the morning dew on the trees. I didn’t hear anything except the occasional chatter of a squirrel and the call of a bird. But when I stopped to feel, I felt something weighting down the pocket of my pants. Raising an eyebrow, I shoved my hand in the pocket, feeling around for the cause of the weight. Suddenly, I knocked my knuckle against a hard, rectangular object. I grasped it between my fingers and brought it out to the light. I was greeted by a brilliant light that shone into my eyes, blinding me for a moment. When I moved the object away, the light vanished. My eyebrow rose farther up my forehead. In my hand was a rectangular piece of gold. When I brought it close to my face, I saw an eye staring back at me. ‘The eye of Horus,’ I thought. I did not know how I had known this. Then again, I didn’t even know where this thing had come from, either.

Suddenly, I did remember. I remembered everything that had happened to me. I remember every horrific detail, every painful moment. I remembered the reason why things were now worse than ever.

-x- Flashback -x-

1765 A.D.

Mid-America

Yami’s POV

I stood over the man’s body, tasting his fear. I sucked it in, savoring it. In one quick movement I leaped on his neck, puncturing his soft skin. He was in his early 20’s, the peak of flavor. The warm blood flowed from his neck, slowly trickling down the fall on the soggy earth of the marsh. Unable to stand the sight of such a delicious thing going to waste, I bent down and placed my lips around the two fatal wounds on his neck and began to suck them hungrily, half-starved. Good food was so hard to come by. I could hear his desperate screams vibrating beneath my mouth, but I knew I had nothing to fear. This man was lost and alone. There had been a fire in the nearby village and this coward had run rather than stay and help. No one would be looking for him until later. By the time they found him, this pathetic creature would be long gone. Who would come to look for the vile man anyways?

Soon, the man was dead and I was full. I was about to step away when I noticed a golden light shining from his hand. Curious, I bent down and pried his dead fingers from the object. As I took it in my hand, it began to glow, brighter and brighter. Suddenly, its light consumed me.


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2996 B.C.

Ancient Egypt

Yami’s POV

I awoke to find myself covered with scorching sand and a hot sun beaming down on my shoulders. I blinked. 'Where am I?' Suddenly, a man with flaming red hair and red eyes that seemed to burn through my skin far harder than the sun appeared before me.

“Hello, little vampire,” He said calmly.

I stared up at his man in horror. Suddenly, other beings began to form behind him. They were all different in appearances. Some appeared to be almost human, while others had body parts like animals.

“W-Who are you?” I stuttered.

The man smirked. “We are the god’s and goddesses of Egypt, protectors and enemies of the people of Egypt.”

“W-What do you want from me?” I asked in a voice as equally as shaky as that of it’s former.

From behind the man with the red hair came a beautiful, naked woman. “We have brought you here to punish Egypt for their wrong doings. What better punishment than to have a ruthless vampire rule as Pharaoh?” The woman’s voice was thick with honey and her manner was seductive. All freewill seemed to vanish as words spilled from my mouth. I don't know why I succumbed to her will. This was defiantly not how I had planned to spend the day.

“What must I do?”


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2996 B.C.

Ancient Egypt/In the hands of the God of Evil and the Goddess of Seduction

Yami’s POV

In a matter of days, the gods had me sitting on the throne of the palace. The man with the red hair, who’s name I found to be Set, was my main coach. With Set came the seductive Qadesh, who pushed me and kept me in line with her words and actions. They said they would stay by my side until they were positive I was ready.

As I was coached, I began to notice changes in my appearances. My blue eyes slowly began to turn a shade of purple, day-by-day growing darker until finally my irises were a red that rivaled Set’s. My hair was not left alone either. Its fiery red changed to ebony black and was tipped with a red the shade of my eyes. It rose to a height that seemed to defy gravity as it formed an odd shape. Strands of blonde streaked it in lightning shaped patterns while some fell around my face. One day, I questioned Set about my appearance. He merely chuckled and said, “The image of the man will now reflect the evil within.”

One day, I awoke to find Set and Qadesh gone. I was left to do as they pleased, to meet every whim and demand that came from them.

At first I found it easy to do the evil they bid, yet slowly, as time wore on, I grew soft in heart and began to enjoy the pleasures of Egypt. I punished in ways less harmful than before and spoke in a voice less cold and heartless. Yet, somewhere in my heart, I knew the gods were angry.

Then, one night as I made myself ready to bed, Set appeared in my quarters. His eyes shone with fire as he stepped toward me.

“You miserable bastard!” he said to me. He struck me hard on the face, sending me flying against the wall. He walked toward me, his hands shining with a red light the color of blood. “To Anubis you go! And may your fate be the worst!”

Suddenly, I was engulfed by the red light at Set’s fingers. After a few moments, the light faded to a gentle white fog and a soft, gentle woman’s voice floated about the empty space.

“Dear Yami,” said the voice, “The fate bestowed upon you is not meant for you. I grant you this chance to escape from this fate. When the time comes, your savior will release you. You will than have one month’s time to save your self. Achieve this, and you will be mortal and safe. Love is the key, it’s a key that you have to find and unlock the door….”

I blinked at this babble. What was she talking about? Soon, the blackness around me enveloped me completely.

-x- End Flashback -x-

A moment in time beyond our reach

In the hands of the gods

Yami’s POV

I shook my head. What had that been all about?

I bent down to look at the golden rectangle, only to find in gone. Frantic, I began to search the ground for it, looking to see if I had dropped it by mistake.

“You won’t find it here, love. It’s gone, and for a good reason.”

‘That’s the same voice from the fog!’ I spun around, looking for the owner of the voice. I was greeted with the sight of Bastet. Despite the fact that her head was that of a cat, she was a very beautiful woman who seemed to glow with kindness.

“Where am I?” I asked timidly. Questions seemed to keep getting me in trouble.

Bastet smiled at me, her eyes dancing with sorrow and kindness. “This, my dear Yami, is the Realm of the Lost.”

“Why am I here?” I asked, although I was pretty sure I knew the answer.

“Set, the God of Evil has placed a cruel punishment upon you. If it were not for my influence, you would be under the judgment of Anubis’ scales right now.”

“Is it true, what you said to me? I mean, you were the one who said it, right?”

Bastet nodded sadly. “I am afraid so. But fear not, little Yami, for you will be freed in time.”

I nodded sadly, knowing this was not true. The wrath of a man who has earned to title of the God of Evil cannot be something you can escape easily.

Bastet placed a soft hand on my shoulder and smiled kindly. “Be brave, Yami.”

With those final words, Bastet disappeared in a flash of light, leaving me alone in the Realm of the Lost.

The air was cool and misty, a sense of desolation and death written on its breath. The silence enveloped me, incasing me within its grasp. I cannot explain my current position in a way to do it justice, for there are no words to describe it. I sat in the darkness of the Realm of the Lost, clutching my head. The world around me is deserted, and it leaves me for the jaws of death. At one point I had a stick, in which I made a notch for each day I was here. It was all too soon before the stick disappeared. And then the next stick disappeared, and the next stick. I has abandoned my idea after some time. I knew not how many days I had been there, and I could not even imagine. The days blended together into a mass of nothing that consumed my soul and ate at my heart. All that I once loved had vanished beneath my feet, leaving me to fall into the abyss. The darkness fed on my life, devouring it completely. It touched my soul with delicate hands, bidding its time before it stroke me dead. I felt so helpless, and all I could do was wait for the darkness to swallow me. I was so alone in that damned place.

Suddenly, a sound awakened me from my depressed stage. It is a sound I had not heard since I was back in my village, so long ago. The familiar sound of metal crashing upon metal…The Blacksmith! There were a few clinks, and then a clunk, like metal sliding into a metal groove. Then there would be more clinks. After a few couple of minutes of the clinking, there would be another clunk. And so the rhythm continued its song, clinks and clunks galore.

"What is that?" I asked no one in particular. My voice was so thin and hoarse that I barely recognized my own voice. After spending so much time alone, I had grown accustomed to not talking to anyone. Never in my wildest dreams had I actually expected a reply.

"That, darling, it the sound of your freedom," said a smooth female voice. "It grows ever closer as each piece falls into place."

I spun around to see Bastet beside me, smiling down at me with one of her kind smiles. Her cat-like eyes bore down at my own. They flickered in the light that fell down on us, a shade of pale green, thanks to the tree canopy that loomed over us. I felt myself tense at her words. My freedom? I was getting out?

"Dear lady," I said, giving the best bow I could from my current position, which was leaning against a tall rock. "It has been long since we last spoke."

Bastet smiled at me. "It has, hasn't it?" Suddenly, her smile vanished. "Yami, we have things to speak of...important things."

I frowned back at her. "What things?"

Bastet sighed and began speaking. "Amun held a meeting yesterday with his advising gods. Their job was to decide what to do with you. I'm afraid I wasn't able to relieve you of all punishment. I know that it seems unfair, as Set approached you VERY informally, but they cannot ignore your so called 'ignorance of the wishes of your higher.' They've decided to lay your fate in your own hands." Bastet stopped for a moment to smile at me. "Think of it as a challenge."

I raised my eyebrow in curiosity. "What sort of challenge?"

Bastet's smile disappeared and was replaced by another frown. She picked up again, her voice soft and smooth, like silk. "A challenge of life or death. Yami, that clicking you hear is the sounds of a golden puzzle, which a 15-year-old boy slaves over every chance he gets. When the puzzle is fully formed, you will be admitted into the world once more, but only for a month. You have one month on earth. In this time, you must prove yourself."

I frowned as well. 'Prove myself?' "How do I do that?"

Bastet gave me a smile as soft as her voice, "That, Yami is for you to figure out, but remember what I said about the key."

I smiled again, looking up at the floating Bastet with a mischievous grin on my face. “No problem," I said my smile wide enough to show my over-sized canines.

Bastet gave a harsh look and opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted.

"There are rules, Yami."

I turned behind me to see a glowing man floating behind me. He wore the traditional Egyptian male skirt with a pale blue shirt. The eye of Horus glowed on his tanned forehead, which was also clothed with lines of age. His body was sturdy and muscular and was nearly as dark as the dirt of the realm we inhabited. His voice was smooth and coarse at the same time, his tone a deep tone of a powerful man. He was everything that the prefect male would look and sound like.

Bastet purred like the part-cat she was at the sight of him. "Amun," she said, her voice coated with feline grace, "I did not know you would be coming."

I turned to stare at her; a look of amazement masked my fear. This was Amun? Why had he come?

"I wanted to see that the proceedings go smoothly," he said, shifting himself to rest on a tall rock I had been leaning against.

Bastet sighed, a slight frown etched back into her face. "Do you want to continue, Amun?"

Amun sighed heavily, but began to speak anyway. "Yami, I'm afraid I cannot allow you to harm anyone during your stay in Japan-"

" JAPAN!" I cried, leaping to my feet. "Why Japan?"

"That is where the boy lives," Amun said patiently. "He lives in Domino, Japan. He lives in his Grandpa's game shop. For his birthday, he received a golden puzzle. Inside of each piece of the puzzle is a piece of your soul. When the puzzle has fully been assembled, you will be released. After this, you have one month to prove yourself worthy of a life on earth."

"And if I can't?" I asked, dreading the answer.

"Then, you will remain here, for all eternity." Amun said this as if he were explaining plans for a dinner when presented with the idea that the turkey may be cold. 'We'll just have to go somewhere else.'

"Is there any escape from it?" I asked hopefully.

Bastet laughed nervously. "Yami, you act as if you think you're going to fail."

I sighed. "How do I know if I've proven myself?"

Bastet patted my shoulder reassuringly. "Don't worry, you'll know."

"How will YOU know?"

Amun cackled kindly. "We have our ways, my dear child. We have our ways."

"How will I be able to reach you?" I asked hopefully.

Bastet's eyes dropped. "We are not allowed to interfere. This is your task and your task alone."

I clutched my head, breathing in deeply, thinking over my current situation. I dropped back to the ground, resting my weary back against the stone where Amun still remained perched. 'Find a way to prove myself worthy of life to the gods, or be banished to this Ra-damned place for all of eternity. I choose life. I will unlock that door.'

I looked up at Bastet. She smiled kindly down at me, warming the air around me that clung like icy daggers to my skin. The trees waved in the gentle breeze of my realm. The luscious green leaves make crinkling sounds, adding to the constant clicking that I had nearly forgotten. I closed my eyes again, listening to everything around me.

"How long until he solves the puzzle?" I asked my voice hoarse and scratchy with pain. I could feel my stomach twist and churn, as if a woman were churning it to make butter.

"I give it a week or two," Bastet said softly. "The boy is very persistent."

I nodded, sighing. To think, all of this had started with that stupid block of gold...block of gold...gold...puzzle...

Suddenly, Yami found himself electrocuted by an idea that scared him to the heart.

"Bastet?" I asked shakily. "What happened to that other puzzle piece?"

Bastet's eyes grew clouded with pain. "It is in the hands of Jounouchi, a peer of the boy's. He and the boy don't, well, get along that well."

"So how's the boy supposed to get the puzzle piece?" I asked.

"I don't know," Bastet said wearily. "The puzzle has a mind of its own. It knows what is to come, and how to achieve glory. The puzzle does no wrong." Bastet seemed to contemplate her next words carefully. She opened her mouth with caution and the words came out slow and think like chilled honey. “This is not only your task, but Yugi’s as well. The puzzle was made in the intrest of the well-being of man-kind, so the puzzle is doing all it can to help as many people as possible during it’s life on earth.”

"So, my life is in the hands of a savage and a nutty puzzle?" I asked, my voice rough and cold. This was horrible.

"Not a savage," Bastet said. "A misled youth. Such as yourself."

I frowned and turned away, walking to the stream that ran through this place. Its water twinkled in the sunlight, sparkling with all its purity. I bent down and looked into its smooth surface. The reflection in it was not the one I was used to.

I said softly, "What have I become?"

Bastet sighed, as did Amun.

"You mustn’t worry about such things, young one," said Amun. "Things will be as they were if you succeed."

I sighed. "I hope so."


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