Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Distance ❯ When Darkness Meets... ( Chapter 8 )

*crawls out from pile of work* I'm…still…here…

Naoya: But your readers aren't anymore.

I'm so sorry about putting this off for so long. I had originally wanted to post this up sooner, but I was bombarded by work and such, so this was put into the bottom of the pile, along with some…other stuff. Good god. But thank you for waiting patiently and all for this installment of "Distance!" On to the disclaimer and then the story!

Disclaimer: Don't own them, sure wish I did…then I can put Seto in a nurse's uniform and Ryou in cute Gothic Lolita dresses.

Chapter 8-When Darkness Meets…

"Your Highness, what are you doing?" Shimon exclaimed as he stood up from the seat he was perched on, a slight look of pain skating across his wrinkled features. Seeing this, Yami balanced the tray of food he had taken from one of the many kitchen staff members on one hand and shot out the other to urge his old mentor to sit back down. Shimon had been sheltering a weak hart that threatened to give out at any moment, and any sudden movements brought him pain, one thing that Yami hoped to prevent. The stout old man drew in a deep breath and settled down, nodding in thanks at his Pharaoh. Seeing his former tutor sit back down, Yami smiled and held the tray with both hands once more.

"I'm just going to take some food to Seth," Yami said. "It's been a while since supper started and he still isn't here…he must be too tired to come down."

"Why can't you have servants do that?" Akhenaton asked, hoping that the High Priest had perhaps died of exhaustion in that high tower chamber.

"Because," Yami ground out, his eyes narrowing dangerously at his cousin. How he wished to be rid of him! But he didn't want to do that same thing his father had to do-kill off a family member. One just had to accept ill fate if a family member turned out like this-one couldn't choose one's family members. "He would most likely be exhausted and apprehensive about people right now considering how you all reacted to his work today," Yami finished his statement after an awkward, pregnant pause had just about settled over the air, leaving a heavy residue on the bottom consisting of the court and all its members. Some of the six priests lowered their own heads in shame at Yami's words, Mahaado one of them. He had not joined their murmuring but he had indeed allowed his own heart to work akin to theirs-he had let doubt and fear of Seth overtake him, even if for one brief moment. Throwing one last disgusted scoff at Akhenaton, Yami turned to go towards Seth's high tower chamber.

"Carry on without me," he announced over the harsh silence. Noise resumed its place over the dining crowd, even though it wasn't as clamorous as it was moments ago. A sideways glimpse at Akhenaton fro the last time told Yami that the man was not at all remorseful for what happened or by the words that Yami said and the young Pharaoh sighed one more time before he slipped into the adjacent hall that will lead to the staircase to Seth's room.

"Seth?" Yami puffed out in front of his High Priest's chamber door. He was all but out of breath by the time he got up to the chamber door. Why in the world was the High Priest's room in such a high tower?! Yami cursed and remember that there really was no choice. Only in such a high place can the High Priest correctly observe the stars and such to predict fortunes of the kingdom. The thin air up here also served to purify the High Priest every night, away from the thick and polluted air below.

Another knock went unanswered when Yami received no answer for five minutes for the first knock. Yami, for one, was not very trained in the patience department, plus the somewhat spoiled Pharaoh inside him could not understand why exactly he should have to wait outside his won High Priest's room and wait for admittance. That through having been rationalized in his head, Yami shrugged and pushed the door open, inviting himself in.

The sight before him was enough for him to drop the tray of food in his hands. The aromatic food spilled onto the ground, the untainted wine ran and seeped through the cracks of the brick floors like the life that was now seeping and evaporating from Seth's body.

"Seth!" Yami yelled. His voice was cruelly mocked and interrupted by the sound of the clay dishes cracking under his feet as he stepped over the food that he spilled, not caring about how they sullied his cloth shoes. He rushed over to the heap on the ground next to the bed that was his High Priest, quickly lifting him up off the ground, away from whatever that black mass was on the floor. Just for good measure, Yami shook the frail, lifeless form and cursed when there was no response. "SETH!" this time Yami resorted to screaming, part of him glad that they were so far from the rest of the palace that his voice wouldn't be heard, but also worried about whether or not help could reach them in time if he were to need it (which he was sure he would now). A half sigh of relief came to formed in his throat when he saw one blue eye peek open from its originally closed state, but the sigh turned sharply into a gasp when Seth quickly covered his mouth as though trying to stop the torrent of black that came spraying from his mouth. The fine mist of black dappled onto Yami's robes, but the young Pharaoh was too stupefied by the spectacle of his High Priest coughing up blackness to really mind his robes. Without another word, Yami scooped Seth's lanky form up in his arms and bolted down the long, spiraling stairs he had ascended less than ten minutes ago.

By the time Yami had reached his own royal chambers, Seth was writhing in pain within his arms. A black snake named Poison swam through his veins, causing him to scream and jolt as Yami settled him onto the sheets of his bed. Seth's lips had turned a frightening color of pale purple, like the color of a worn royal robe that had been over-washed. His skin was now ashen and drenched in cold sweat that created dark spots on the silk sheets of the bed along with the trail of black that continued to froth from Seth's lips. Quickly brushing away the bangs that stuck to Seth's forehead, Yami leaned down and gripped his friend's trembling hand.

"Seth!" he shouted, "What happened to you?!"

Clouded blue eyes looked up at concerned red ones and a meek voice answered him. "Yami…" was all Seth could get out from those darkening lips before he covered them again and clutched his chest, coughing once again. Just the act of speaking seemed to take all the more life force out of Seth, and Yami reprimanded himself for making him speak. He quickly got up from the side of the bed and ran to his doors.

"SOMEONE GET ME THE HEALER! ISHISU, COME HERE!" he shouted down the halls of the palace. Several servants heard his call and immediately bowed in consent and ran off for the palace healer, and Ishisu came immediately from the next wing where the other five priests stayed. She ran to Yami's doors and bowed, but her bow was cut off when Yami dragged her into the room as soon as he saw her. He had only left Seth for a few moments, but by the time he had turned back around to observe the ailing youth, he could see that the condition had just turned from bad to worse.

By now Seth's lips had turned a dangerous hue of black much like the substance he continued to cough up, and somehow whatever was ailing him from the inside had broken through the skin on his body, causing blackness to spill out, turning the sheets on the bed into a large canvas for darkness.

Ishisu made an audible gasp and rushed over to the bed, kneeling down next to Seth. "What's wrong with him?" she whispered, touching Seth on the forehead. A yelp of pain escaped Seth's lips and she yanked her hand away, afraid that her touch at the moment would only unbearably hurt him.

"I have no idea!" Yami shouted, frustrated. "What is taking the healers so long?!" He nearly stomped his foot in irritation when the stout old healer came into the chambers, bowing in Yami's presence. The previous aggravation that clung onto Yami dissipated when he saw the healer and he quickly rushed her over to the bedside. Seeing as to how touching him inflicted such excruciating pain upon his body, the healer took care to not make physical contact with Seth. Instead, she chanted a spell and used it to lift Seth's one limp hand and examine it. But just that act alone tore cuts into the already marred and black-drenched skin and Yami nearly screamed for her to stop.

"He's been inflicted by poison," the old woman murmured after a long pause.

"Then prepare the antidote!" Yami urged, feeling that giving a diagnosis now was a waste of time. She would have plenty of time after she healed Seth to give Yami all the run-down of the High Priest's ailment.

"It's been rooted inside him far too deeply and for too long," the healer sighed, shaking her head. "There is nothing I can do to help him. All we can do now is to try and decrease his pain and suffering before he goes."

Upon hearing that, Yami's blood ran cold and his face became nearly as pale as Seth's face during a good day. Seth was going to die--the idea rang through his head like the sound of a gong during a temple festival or something like that. He couldn't really describe what it was right now, or create some sort of interesting metaphor, nor did he really have the heart to do such a thing. His mind was such a blank; he didn't feel like he had just lost it, it felt like he'd never had it to begin with. "Seth…is going to die?" Yami asked, finally voicing what little thought he had left.

Before the healer even lifted her head back up in the motion of her small nod, Yami heard something, most likely a nerve, snap inside. "Get out!" he shouted to the healer with a sharp turn of his head. "And Ishisu, stay by the door! Keep it open but make sure no one comes in here!!" Ishisu nodded and shooed the healer out the royal chambers, the old woman wobbling out with a heavy sigh; she knew how the Pharaoh felt about the High Priest, she was too old to be that stupid, and it was sad to see such a young boy get so flustered over a first love. Ishisu followed after the healer, sneaking another peek at the two who were like her brothers before her pilgrimage. Yami had now positioned himself right next to the bed; his elbows on the bed, his hands clutched together and pressed against his forehead much like a man in deep prayer. But no prayer was going to help Seth, she was sure of that. At this point, Seth had become quite still with the exception of the occasional shudders as though he were freezing. His lips had turned a very dangerous shade of black-the end was not far from him. She sighed and released the beaded curtains that were behind the heavy oak doors which she was ordered to keep open.

Hearing the clicking of the crystal droplets settling, Yami lifted his head and peered at Seth, who was now fighting even for a small gasp of breath. Not sure of whether or not this was a wise idea, Yami placed his hand on Seth's forehead, somewhat glad that Seth only made a small sniffling sound of discomfort instead of a cry of pain.

"Seth?" he whispered. His Millennium Puzzle made a small clicking sound on the bed next to the golden bangle on Seth's wrists, but Seth did not make a motion to draw his arm away.

"Ya…mi…" was the reply. It was stained and sticking with the blackness that continued to come forth from Seth's lips and it was rasping so badly with each precious breath that Seth took that it wretched Yami's heart.

"Don't talk," Yami urged, lowering his head closer to Seth's. The puzzle made another click as he moved and Yami looked down at the puzzle in a slight feeling of irritation.

//The puzzle…created by father like the other Millennium Items…//

Something suddenly dawned upon Yami's mind then and he lowered his head more so that only Seth can hear him, even though he was sure that with his whispering, no one could really hear them beyond these walls. But he had to be safe.

"Seth," he whispered next to Seth's ear, "Seth, you're going to be all right, don't you worry." With those words, he got up and was about to turn and go out when a hand gripped his rich purple robes, causing him to stumble a bit. He turned to see those cerulean eyes staring up at him with sternness, as clouded as they were. Blackened lips began to quiver and fought to move, and Yami quickly crouched down again to put his ear next to Seth's gasping mouth.

"I'm…going to die…" Seth whispered, a hint of melancholy in his tone.

"No you're not," Yami replied stubbornly. The hand that clutched his robe tightened, shaking in an attempt to concentrate what diminishing strength was in the body. Heavy lids began to curtain those clouded eyes, and Seth fought to speak again. At this distance, his lips were almost kissing Yami's ear, and Yami's golden bangs were tickling his face, not that he could feel much of anything now except for the pain that continued to course through his body.

"Please…keep your promise to me…" he whispered before his hand slipped away. For a second, Yami thought that he was too late, that he had failed in trying to save Seth before he even started, but the small quivers in that pale body told him otherwise and he sighed in half-relief.

"Don't die," he murmured next to Seth's ear, "That's an order, don't die…you're too important to me." He gave one last grunt of frustration and pushed his body upwards, away from Seth, and ran out the door. "Ishisu!" he shouted as he departed, "Give me a yell if something, anything happens in there!" He did not even turn his head around to look and see if she nodded.

As soon as he was gone, the curtains around the large, luxurious (though quite stained) bed swayed without the help of the wind, which was nonexistent at the moment anyway. The purple silk curtains fluttered like the wings of a butterfly that had just torn itself out of a cocoon and a face formed above Seth's lithe body. Slowly, the curtains pulled themselves off the large bed frame and Set settled lightly onto the bed next to Seth, his wings spreading and encircling Seth. Smiling, the God of Chaos and Destruction lifted Seth's head onto his lap and sat there, waiting for the first signs of Seth's ba to be released from the body once his life flees from his flesh. He will eat the ba so that Seth would not have a chance at reincarnation, and imprison his ka to be his slave, just as the pact that he had made with Seth promised years ago. The golden color in his eyes flickered for a brief moment in the moonlight and he grinned.

Yami dashed as quickly as his legs could carry him to the largest temple of the kingdom, the one where all the demons of people's hearts were sealed into stone tablets and placed there below the tablets of the three gods. If he could just get there in time, before Seth died, and maybe persuade the gods…!

"Osiris!" he shouted as he burst through the doors. "Osiris!" Frustrated and completely out of time, Yami ran up the stairs to the altar of the temple where priests stood when they prayed to the gods, facing the three stone tablets of the gods. Before he landed his foot onto the platform of the altar, a figure appeared before him. The creature had blood red eyes, much like Yami's own, but full of wisdom and sadness. It was the jackal-headed god, Anubis.

"Please be quiet in the temple," whispered the smooth voice. Even the voice of Anubis was abysmally sad, much like his eyes. "I will let you see Osiris-sama, dear Pharaoh." With a wave of his hand, Yami found himself in the court of the 42 gods, each of them sitting in their respective places, with Osiris sitting at the very front on a throne not very much unlike Yami's own throne. The Prince of the Underworld shifted in his throne and regarded the mortal Pharaoh with some interest in his gold eyes. A small hint of a smile came to his lips, sending chills down Yami's spine with its complete lack of mirth. The god pushed against the two lion heads on the armrests of his throne and got up, walking, no, floating towards Yami until he was but two feet in front of the young Pharaoh.

"I think I have an idea as to what you want," Osiris said, his arms crossed in front of his chest. "But to give it, is a different issue."

"Please," Yami begged, knowing that such a request was unreasonably selfish. "Please, I don't want him to die."

"But you should remember that promise you made him," Osiris reminded. "For me to grant you this wish would break that promise that you made to him, are you willing to do that? Do you think he'll be happy if you do that?"

"He'd be grateful that I didn't let him die!" Yami reasoned desperately. "I'm willing to do anything if you'll give him eternal life…if you'd just let him live…without having to worry about things like death and illness and old age…"

One delicate eyebrow quirked up as the court around the two rulers of the mortal and immortal worlds began to stir in conversation.

"And what exactly are you willing to do?" Osiris questioned, drawing cries of protest from the court in the idea that he was actually considering this.

"I'm willing to allow you to seal my ka into this puzzle when I die," Yami whispered, holding his Millennium Puzzle up. The court hushed at the gravity of this pact, some of them whispering amongst themselves of how selfish and selfless this young man was at the same time.

One goddess stepped up from her seat, her hand raised in a gesture that she had an opinion to voice. Osiris turned his head and regarded her. "Maat?" he addressed.

"Yes," Maat said. "How can you know that he will not betray in the end? How do you know that…he will not try to use this gift against you?" Yami glared at her; she was always so self-righteous it was almost a bit sickening.

"He won't," Yami retorted. But he thought it over and reconsidered it. "But if he does…then all I have to do is say one word…just one, and he'll be cursed for all eternity. The spell to break the curse will die with me, and only when my ba and my ka are reunited can we find the secret."

Satisfied, Osiris nodded and smiled that strange smile again. He lifted one hand and put it onto the Millennium Puzzle, his lips chanting a spell. A warm glow spread around the golden pyramid and wrapped itself around Yami for a brief moment before shooting off into the distance.

Inside Yami's chambers, Set gasped as he saw the light come in from the window and enter Seth. To the god's dismay, Seth's breathing became leveled again once the light had entered him, and color returned to those once-pale cheeks. Figuring that it was his brother's doing, he growled hatefully and fled from the window in case the young Pharaoh were to return. And return he did; as soon as the magic was done and over with, Yami had to only blink once to find himself back on the platform of the temple's altar where he had ran into. The whole ordeal felt like a strange dream, but it was not the time for Yami to think about dreams at the moment-he had to see if his High Priest was all right. He quickly turned on his heels and sped out the temple, not noticing the black figure with a deep purple cape slipping past him in the shadows.

"Seth!" was the first word that came out from Yami's lips as soon as he threw aside the beaded curtains to his chamber doors. Seth was lying on the bed, silently still, and Yami was afraid that he had been too late, or that the gods had not produced the miracle that he had bargained for. But upon closer inspection, Yami noticed that Seth was merely asleep, and the color on his cheeks told him that his High Priest was going to be all right. A heavy sigh of relief that mixed in with his panting hollowed the breath inside Yami's lungs and he sat down on the edge of the bed, running his fingers through those brown locks of hair. One cerulean eye peeked open and Yami quickly drew his hand away. "Sorry, did I wake you?"

A small shake of the head was his answer.

"Do you want anything?" Yami asked.

"Just some water," Seth answered. His throat was raspy from all that coughing he had done before, and his mouth tasted bitter from all the black substance he had retched. Nodding, Yami stood up and walked out, so ecstatic that Seth was alive that he didn't mind getting the water himself instead of ordering a servant to do it.

Once he was out of the room, Seth sat up on the bed and examined his hands. Yes, he was alive, and he wasn't a living dead, either. He had color to his flesh, and he could feel the warmth of his blood coursing through his veins. But what in the world could have caused this strange reversal of his death? He was so sure that with the complete staining of his blood, his part of the pact was up, so why isn't he dead? Maybe his blood wasn't as black as…well, black could be. Seth tested this thought by biting on his index finger just enough to draw a bit of blood. The thick liquid that oozed out from the small cut was indeed utterly and without a doubt black. So what went wrong? He sighed and scratched his head in confusion. Something felt wrong about this, like he had lost something important. A small whimpering sound reached his ears and Seth looked up to see one of his precious dragons, the one of his father's ka, looking at him with concern.

"I'm all right, Father," Seth reassured him. But the expression on the dragon said that it was concerned about a completely different matter, and Seth sighed. "I cannot return those feelings to Yami, Father, you know that. He has a kingdom to run, he needs to get married, and he needs to produce an heir. I am not the one to get in his way." The silver-white tail of the dragon flicked once and Seth sighed again, not particularly liking the way his father teased and urged him. It's not like Seth didn't like Yami, either, but he would only complicate matters in the kingdom. His role was the High Priest, not the Pharaoh's lover or anything of the sort. He needed to play his role out dutifully, just as how Yami needed to play out his role as a great ruler.

Outside the door, Yami's hand shook with the cup that he had brought Seth his water in. He had shooed Ishisu away on his way to get the water, and now he was the only one who had heard it; though he wished that he didn't hear a thing. Romances between two men were forbidden, yes, especially ones that involved the Pharaoh and the High Priest, of all people, but Yami didn't figure that the blow of disappointment would ring so hard.

Further away from them, Set was storming into the court of the gods, the look of absolute murder on his handsome features. He shoved his son Anubis to the side and growled at Osiris, his golden eyes flashing.

"How DARE you, Brother!" he shouted, the calm and calculating demeanor a faraway tale when he is provoked. "How DARE you get into the way of my contract like that!"

"It wasn't really a fair contract, Set," Osiris answered calmly, waving his hand for the other gods to calm down as well at the rude outburst of Set. Set glared at the face of his twin, of a mirror image that was love instead of him.

"What do you mean it wasn't a fair contract?!" he shouted, his purple wings spreading as his outburst continued.

"Because," raised a voice in the crowd of gods, "the contract was made under the duress of death, and therefore should not be valid."

"Put a lid on it, Thoth," Set growled in the direction of the scribe-god. Osiris nodded in the direction of Thoth, thanking him and silencing him at the same time as he turned back to face his brother.

"I'm afraid that is the ruling, Set," Osiris said, his hand making a small gesture that announced that this conversation was over. Another growl came from Set's lips and he turned, his purple wings now melding into something like a cloak around him.

"Mark my words, DEAR Brother," Set hissed as he retreated from the court, shooting a hateful glare at his own son. "That won't be the only thing you'll be afraid of. You'll wish that you never promised that childish Pharaoh his wish…and I'm sure that Seth will feel the same…" With that, he disappeared back into the mortal crowd, all the other gods staring after him.

Akhenaton was about to get ready for bed after putting away his scrolls and such when he felt a strong wind touch his cheek, taking out the life of the lamps inside his room. What made him feel even more eerie was the sudden sound of a velvety chuckle by his window, and he spun quickly on his heels, knocking over one of his writing tablets.

There, sitting at his window, was a creature with large purple wings and golden eyes that were like glass orbs under the moon. The creature smiled, his smile lacking of mirth.

"Who are you?" Akhenaton whispered, though deep in his heart he knew exactly who this creature was.

"No one."

"W-what do you want?" stammered the man. The creature blew a small breath and the candles were returned their flames, and the creature slipped off the windowsill, walking up to Akhenaton. It was then that the man was sure of his conjecture; that this creature was Set, the God of Chaos and Destruction. "My god, it's you…" he murmured, taking steady steps backwards until his knees hit the low table in his room. "Your eyes…they're the color of…"

"Let's stop worrying about me…" Set whispered, interrupting Akhenaton's examination of his eyes, "and start worrying about what you want. What is it that you want?" The strange smile broadened as Set held out his hand and placed it over Akhenaton's forehead, letting it hover there. "You want the throne, don't you? You want the Pharaoh dead because his father killed your father, don't you?" Akhenaton nodded, and Set continued. "And you…by surface, want the High Priest dead as well, but…" A small chuckle echoed through the room, sending chills down Akhenaton's spine like the cries of the soon-to-be-dead whom he had witnessed the executions of so many times (including his own father's).

"You secretly lust after the High Priest, but you hide it because you are ashamed of the fact that you lust after something that caused your father's death," Set finished, the golden flames inside his eyes flickering. Was it annoyance? Anger? Or amusement? Whatever it was, it frightened Akhenaton, but not so much as to his deepest secret being announced out loud.

"You lie! Be gone!" Akhenaton shouted with an exaggerated wave of his hand.

"I can give it to you," Set whispered. "As long as you promise to keep your hands off Seth and help me get rid of the Pharaoh, I can give you the throne." Akhenaton stared at Set and backed away, his face paling. He would have been appalled by the fact that his shade looked very much like that of a Belgae if he had a mirror.

"But…how?" Akhenaton asked, his mind suddenly a blur. He weighed out the severity of making a pact with Set and the rewards if he did. If he were to get the kingdom, he can finally get rid of all those other unnecessary gods of this horrible religion. Only Ra was the true god over all, why didn't everyone see that? And if he were to succumb to this demon god's deal, he can finally get revenge for his father. He didn't need that High Priest once he became Pharaoh, he would be able to get his own choice in a harem! Seeing the light go off in Akhenaton's eyes, Set smiled. This man had taken the bait.

"You seem interested," Set whispered. "Good, all you have to do is work with the pawns I provide…and help me play this little game with my dear brother…"

"Pawns?"

"The first shipment will come in shortly."

To be continued.

Okay, I'm sorry that this one came so late and is quite crappy. I had originally wanted this chapter to be part of the last chapter, but that would have taken me too long. >o< But basically this chapter marks the beginning of hell, in a way. XD Thank you all again for waiting this long and so patiently for this chapter! I think the gods and such are starting to be hinting at something, right?

At this point I can say that "Distance" has caught up to the pace of "Final Distance" and I will hopefully be able to update that one soon as well!