Hell vs The Underworld II

Life Before Death

I heard someone banging at the door. I looked over to Mitori and she was still asleep. I crept out of bed and answered the door. As the half broken wooden door creaked open it revealed the landlord. He leaned on the wall as he said, "Your mom owes me money, she hasn't paid in weeks," in his deep ground shaking voice.
As he loomed over me I told him, "Our mom has been sick, she hasn't been able to work."
He growled and said, "You're not sick are you? Why aren't you working?" 
I glared at him and said, "Like I said. My mom is sick and I have to take care of her and my sister."          
He looked into my eyes as I looked into his. The bugs of the night sung its chorus repeatedly before he broke the silence and told me, "Living here isn't free. If I don't have the money by the end of the month you're getting kicked out." Then a wicked smile flashed on his face "Or you and your sister can work for me."
"I'm sure we'll have it," I said as I closed the door in his face.  I heard my mom cough and quickly walked to her room.
"Who was that?" she asked in a sickly cracked voice.
"No one important, go back to sleep. You need you're rest," I told my mom.
"I love you Yogami,"
"I love you to okasan," I said as I walked out quietly. I went back in my room and Mitori was still asleep. I go into my bed and hoped for the best.
The morning sun stabbed through the holes and cracks in our wooden shack. I stretched my arms and left my bed to check on our mother. Mitori must've heard me getting up and whispered. "Hi Yogami, are you going to check on mom?"
"Yes. She still hasn't gotten over her flu," I responded. I walked to mother's room over to her bed. Her brown eyes were wide open looking at me, but she didn't say anything. Her yellow sandy skin already started to lose its color turning a sickly blue. My eyes widened, my breathing became erratic, my heart started to beat rapidly. A single tear almost formed in my eye, but then I heard Mitori behind me. I ran my hands through my short black hair and calmed myself down, I controlled my breathing, and then my heartbeat started to slow, almost to a stop.
"What's wrong with mama?" Mitori said with her voice cracking with panic.
"She's dead," I told her solemnly, almost not wanting to hear it myself. Mitori looked like she was hit in the back with an arrow. Her mouth hung open and her eyes swelled with tears. I closed our mom's eyes. "Come on Mitori. We have to leave," I said. She fell to her knees, so I picked her up by her skinny arms and took her out the house as she sobbed. When we were outside I grabbed her shoulders and shook her, then said, "Listen, mother owed the landlord a lot of money. If we don't get out of here we'll be made into slaves." Mitori nodded her head and her long black hair bobbed back and forth with her.
It was a day before we arrived at an abandoned old building. I kicked open the door and Mitori and I sat down with our backs against a bookshelf. The library's roof decorated in spider webs. The smell of old water drenched wood lingered in the air. I looked at Mitori as she stared a despondent stare sitting in the fetal position. I started to think about how we were going to get food and water. Then thoughts of my mom came into my head. Visions of her lifeless stare. I couldn't cry. Mitori is already at the breaking point. I had to keep my emotions in. I had to be strong for both of us even though my heart felt like an Oni had bitten into it. Then something seemed to call to me. I walked over to one of the worn bookshelves. I picked up a clean white book that stood out from the other dust covered books. The cover was white, and the material it was made of looked jagged, but was soft and smooth to the touch like leather. In the middle was a black dot with a golden title inside of it. I rubbed my finger across the black spot and it was rugged and unpleasant like walking barefoot on gravel. The title was in Chinese. It read,
Guāng Móshù de Yang
I turned the book over the other side was like polished black granite. I could see my reflection in it; I noticed beads of sweat roll down my dirty face. The material looked smooth, but was coarse, rough and unpleasant to the touch like the dot in the font. I turned the book right-side-up and the amethyst title read,
Hēi'àn Mèi de Yin
I turned the book back to the other side and started to read from the Guāng Móshù de Yang. The book had Chinese characters, but they had transformed into Japanese. I almost dropped the book in astonishment. As I started to read I realized it was a book on how to perform magic. "This is it. This is how we can survive," I said to myself." I ran over to Mitori and sat down next her. I said, "Mitori, if we read this book we will be able to protect ourselves."
"How?" She asked in confusion.
"It can teach us sorcery," I said slightly enthused with my discovery.
"Magic isn't real," Mitori said flatly.
"Fine I'll just show you," I said confidently. I skimmed through the book and saw a spell to conjure water. I moved the book into my left hand and said, "Majikku Izumi," out loud. Nothing happened. My sister looked at me unimpressed then hung her head between her knees. I went back to the beginning of the book and read the first sentence aloud, "Light of day and dark of night. May you course through my veins? I wish to cause my enemies no pain." The book started to glow and an invisible force sent me flying into a bookshelf.
"Yogami!" Mitori yelled out.
"I'm fine!" I yelled back. I got up and said, "Majikku Izumi," out loud again. A small fountain of water appeared in the palm of my hand. Mitori walked over to me a gazed at the water as it spouted from my hand. "Cup you're hands," I said. When she did I put some of the water in her small hands and she drank it quickly. It started to get harder to concentrate on the spell. I stopped thinking about then the water splashed on the old wooden floor. I looked for the book and when I found it I walked over to Mitori and said, "You can learn it to." She nodded her head and I gave her the book.
I walked behind her and braced her. Then in her sweet voice she nervously recited the chant, "Light of day and dark of night. May you course through my veins? I wish to cause my enemies no pain." She flew back into my arms and we both fell to the ground with me cushioning her fall. She regained her composure she said, "Majikku Izumi." We read from the book all day, practicing the spells. We learned must've learned almost every spell I made a small fire pit to keep Mitori warm as she slept.
I was fascinated by the book, yet also cautious of it. "Why would someone leave this here?" I asked myself. I turned the book over to the Hēi'àn Mèi de Yin. The title had changed to Japanese. It read Demon Magic of Yin. Holding the book on this side made it seem that all the sounds of the night had ceased. All I could hear was my heart booming inside of my chest. I peeled open the book and the first sentence read
Dark of night and light of day. I command you to course through my veins. I wish my enemies pain.
I dared not speak it out. I looked through the pages and saw images of dark spells being used to maim and kill. Powers used to control people's will. It was horrifying. The same spells that were supposed to use for good, were bastardized and distorted to be used for evil. I closed the book and went to sleep.
A deep blackness surrounded me. My dream picked up when we had first arrived in Kyoto a day after we found the book. I heard a voice. It was quiet, but then got louder.
"Yogami," The voice said. Then it yelled out, "Yogami! I'm so hungry," it was Mitori complaining. My stomach growled in agreement with Mitori. I looked around bustling town, full of people at the shops. I could smell all the different tachigui, the broth of the noodles at the sobaya, the smell of the beef being cooked at the nikuya, the fresh bread under the red canopy at the panya. I held my sister's hand and we walked across the tan hoof trotted dirt road to the bakery stall.
I knelt down and whispered to Mirtori, "O.k. Take the book and distract them with your magic and I'll take some bread."
Mitori turned to me and looked into my eyes and whispered back, "We can't do that."
"Do you want to starve?" I asked her. She let out a sigh took the book, and then dragged her feet as she walked over in front of the stall.
"Hey everybody, check this out!" Mitori yelled ash she dropped the book and then yelled, "Majikku Sukeru!" Then a white flame started to dance in her hands. She juggled it back and forth, successfully distracting the patrons. I quickly grabbed three loaves of bread.
"Hey kid, stop!" the shop owner yelled.
Mitori put out the fire picked up the book and shouted, "Suterusu!"  Then she turned invisible.
I started to run away as the shop owner yelled, "Thief!"
"I hope this works," I said to myself. Then I shouted "Majikku Kuuki!" A gust of wind surrounded my body and I jumped on top of a building. I looked for Mitori below, but there were too many people to see who was who. Then I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned and it was Mitori. "How did? Why didn't you tell me you could turn invisible," I said somewhat annoyed.
"Because I didn't know we were becoming thieves," She said snidely as she dropped the book and took a loaf of bread.
"Heh, don't worry sis we won't make a habit of this," I said reassuring her. I walked over and picked the book up. Then I held out my hand and said, "Koori." Water appeared in my hand then turned to ice. I shaped the ice into a knife and cut the bread so it would fit into my pockets. I took the third load and started to toast it with the Sukeru spell. As I was eating the bread I looked at the sky and the sun was high in the light blue cloudless sky. The clambering of the people below was almost soothing. The sound of the people's voices, the sound of life, made me a little happier. The death of my mom almost became an afterthought; I guess trying surviving on your own will do that. Mitori stood up and put the rest of her bread in her dingy grey pants pocket. I stood up as well and we both jumped off of the roof to the alley below. Then I heard someone playing a biwa. I followed the where the music was coming from and my sister followed me. When I reached the source of the music, there was a lady in a pink silk gown, plucking the stings of the wooden instrument with a small yellow ivory plectrum. The body of it was made of a dark brown wood and was pear shaped and highly decorated with wooden inlays of white cherry blossoms. The neck was skinny and separated into five frets by pieces of wood jutting horizontally from the neck. I looked into the ladies eyes were white as snow. I waved my hand in front her face, but then she placed her hand on all of the strings and stopped playing. "Can I help you?" she asked. Her voice was stern, but compassionate.
"Um, uh, no. Excuse me," I said. "I just always liked the sound of the biwa," I added "And I didn't know it could be played by someone who is..." I stopped myself, not wanting to offend her.
"Blind," she said finishing my sentence. "All you have to do is train the mind and the body will do," she added. She started to sing The Tale of the Heike. The biwa and the blind lady seemed to sing together.
"The sound of the Gion Shōja bells echoes the impermanence of all things; the color of the sāla flowers reveals the truth that the prosperous must decline. The proud do not endure, they are like a dream on a spring night; the mighty fall at last, they are as dust before the wind."
We were there all day listing to her play, but near the end a man interrupted her and took her inside of the paper lantern lit building she was sitting in front of. I turned and tears streamed down her face. I even felt tears forming in my eyes. I had remembered that our mom had sung that song to us almost many times. I held Mitori's hand as we walked to the outskirts of town. I made a small hut out of earth as Mitori made a fire. Mitori and I took the pieces of bread out of our pockets and ate around the fire. The moon was waning into a crescent. It looked like it hung in the sky by a nail with the stars glinting in the violet-purple sky.
"What are we going to do Yogami?" Mitori asked. "We can't live like this forever," she added.
"I'll have to get a job," I replied. "Maybe if beg well enough we can both get jobs," I added.
Mitori sighed then went into the tent and went to sleep. I started to read the book. I felt tempted to read the book of Yin, but I closed the book and went to sleep.
My "dream" was succumbed by darkness. We lived like rats for days, stealing food when we could. Then the black veil lifted, I saw the owner of the bakery,
"And why shouldn't I call the guards?" he said. His head gleamed in the sun and his white apron hung over his brown shirt. 
I looked at his big stomach and said, "Because I want to make a deal with you. We work for free and you give us a closet to sleep in," trying to broker a deal.
He puckered his big lips, squinted his eyes in disbelief, and then asked, "How old are you that you are trying to get a job anyway? Why do you kids need a place to stay?"
"I'm seven and my sister is six, and— our mother died a few days ago and …we, never knew our father, "I answered.
"Oh," he said sympathetically he looked over to my sister and back to me. "Fine you can stay, but if you hinder my business you're out!"
"We'll do our best sir thank you," We bowed to him and he showed us inside of his shop.
Happy memories plague my 'dream'. Thirteen years of memories. Of having me having someone to care about, someone caring about me. The bakery owner, Mizazu Okashi, was a good man. He taught us his trade. We were able to buy our own house. As we grew so did our skills with magic. Everything was starting to look a little brighter. But like all good things in my life, it came to an end.
"Angry Face, close up for the night," Mizazu told me.
"Why do you call me 'Angry Face'," I asked him
"Because you look like you're always about to kill somebody. Now close up," he said
Yes Okashi-san I said as I picked up the keys. "Mitori let's go!" I yelled.
She was talking to one of the customers. "Fine!" she yelled back with a grunt. We walked out of the stall and I locked the back door. We walked down the lantern lit and I heard someone playing the biwa. It sounded like they were playing The Tale of the Heike.
"Mitori take the key I'll be home soon. I have to check something out. " I said.
"Be safe," she said. I looked at Mitori in the moonlight. She had grown into a beautiful woman. Her black hair hung to her back and glistened like polished stone. When I looked in her brown eyes I saw a hope that I thought was lost long ago. "Yogami are you O.k.?" she asked
"Yea," I told her snapping myself out of my stare "I'll be back," I said as I ran and followed the music to the biwa.
When I arrived it was the blind Geisha.
"Who that?" she asked upon hearing my footsteps.
"Somebody who likes to listen to the biwa," I told her. She smiled and continued to play. Then I heard a scream burst through the quiet hum of the city. "That sounded like Mitori!" I yelled to myself.  I ran to the scream and I saw someone with a gaping hole in his chest with smoke rising from it and Mitori on all four panting. I ran over to Mitori and picked her up and asked franticly, "What happened?"
"A group of guys tried to attack me. I can't believe I killed him. I...  I didn't mean to," she said horrified with what she had done.
"We have to get out of hear the guards will be here soon," I said. I moved a chunk of the earth with my magic and buried his body. We ran to our house and closed the wooden door. I looked over to Mitori was still shook up. She put her hand on her hand and leaned against the wall. "Are you alright? Did he hurt you?" I asked.
She was still panting heavily, "He didn't hurt me, after I used my powers to kill him, I feel dizzy, out of energy, like I just ran from Takachiho to Akan-ho," she said while wheezing.
"Did you ever look at the Demon Magic of Yin?" I asked.
"No. Why?" she responded.
"In the book of Yin there is a phrase like in the book of Yang, but it's evil. Further in the book of Yin there are spells, similar to the ones we know, but are used to harm," I said.
"I wish to cause my enemies no harm," Mitori said remembering the phrase of Yang. "Do you think the powers know when we use them harm or kill?" Mitori asked.
"It's possible," I responded "Let's hope we don't have to find out," I added. We went to our rooms and tried to sleep. I laid on my bed thinking about the book of Yin and Yang. Why did it choose us? Why do I feel so attracted to the book of Yin? Mitori seems to not even know it exist even though it's just on the other side. We heard a thunderous slamming on the door. I got up from my bed crept to the door. Mitori got up and I saw she had a worried look on her face. I opened the door and five guardsmen were brandishing their weapons.
An older one came forward and asked in a gravelly voice, "What's your name boy?"
"Yogami Handuko," I said sternly.
"Handuko? Like Daimyo Handuko?"
It felt like my heart was stabbed by one-thousand spears when he said that name. The name of the man who is responsible for our family's hardships, the name that caused my mother's death, the name of my father.
"I guess, I doubt I would be living here if I were related to him though," I responded. Rage built up in my stomach, it made my heart slam against my chest. "Can I help you with something?" I asked.
"One of the Daimyo advisors, Atori Hamana, was killed tonight and some witnesses say they saw you and somebody else running in this direction. We wanted to search your house," the guard said.
"I have nothing to hide," I said, "Mitori come here and let the guards search the house." She walked out of her room. I could tell she was trying to keep her composure.
"Is this your wife?" one of the guards said with a polite smile.
"No, it's my sister," I said while pushing her behind me.
As the guardsmen searched the house one of them found the book. He picked it up then said, "Why do you have a book written in Chinese?"
"My mom gave it to us before she died," I responded. "I can't read it, but I keep it to remember her," I added.
"What is thing made of?" the guard said as he threw the book on the floor.
The old guard walked up to me and asked, "Why were you two out so late?"
"We work at Mizazu Okashi's saboya. We were closing up." I answered. He looked into my eyes then in a bolt of movement one of the guards that was standing outside grabbed Mitori then I grabbed the old guard and put a wall of earth separating us from the other guards in our house. I held a fireball to the old guard's head as the guard outside illuminated by the moonlight held Mitori with a dagger to her neck. "Leave her alone it's me you want. I killed Atori,"
Mitori yelled out, "NoYogam-!" the guard clenched her neck.
"Dammit it's me you want let her go and let your captain go," I pleaded. The guard holding Mitori looked into the old guards eyes then back to mine. The old guard nodded his head and the other guard let go of Mitori and I extinguished the fireball and let go of the old guard. I put down that wall of earth behind me and the three guards tackled me to the ground and bound my hands in rope. I looked at Mitori, and then I felt a hard hit to the back of my head.
Blackness surrounded me again. Blackness always seems to find me, only this time I didn't run from it.   
I woke up in a jail cell with iron bars. I looked at to the cell in front me and I saw Mitori on her knees.
"Yogami!" she shouted as I got up.
"Where are we?" I asked.
"In Daimyo Handuko's estate," she answered. "Do you know him? Why does he have our last name?" she asked.
"He's our father. He left mom when she was pregnant with you. She told me it was because 'It would tarnish his reputation' to be affiliated with a geisha," I answered.
"Our mom was—," Mitori said as she broke into tears.
"Yes, I never wanted you to know, I never wanted to know, she told me the day before she died," I said. Mitori slumped to her knees and tears fell from her eyes. I felt terrible, why was I always the bearer of bad news. I went into a corner of the grey stone prison and sat. I looked at the mould covered ceiling and tried to think of a way out of here without killing anyone. Guards came into the prison and took Mitori from her prison "GET YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF OF HER!" I yelled. I summoned the earth and broke the iron bars. One of the guards ran at me with a katana. I summoned a blade of white and gold fire and slashed through his chest. The other guard came at me and I stabbed him through the head. As his body caught on fire I started to get dizzy, my vision started to haze, I collapsed.
I awoke with my arms bound behind my back with rope. Daimyo Handuko stood in front of me with a katana. Mitori was also bound by rope and facing me kneeling by my father.
"You unholy abominations will be brought to justice!" father said.
"You speak of justice and you're about to kill an innocent girl," "YOUR OWN DAUGHTER!"
"You're no family of mine," Father retorted.
"Don't do it!" I pleaded, "I don't want to have to use them," I added as tears swelled up in my eyes.
Father stared at me with a look of confusion then unsheathed his sword then cut of Mitori's head. When it hit the ground father kicked it over to me. "Now it is your turn. Bring him over here," he said pointing his sword at me.
"You... you monster; you abandon our mother, leaving her to die, and then kill your own daughter. You are right... you have no family. Do you want to see dark magic? Do you want to see true evil? Dark of night and light of day. I command you to course through my veins. I wish my enemies pain!"
Purple flame engulfed all of the guards around me. As the rope burned to ash and the flames raced across the courtyard father looked at me stunned for a second then charged at me with his sword above his head. I reached my hand out and a purple beam shot from it and grabbed father's neck. His sword dropped clanging on the stone ground. The estate around me burned all around me. As he was dangling from his neck off the ground I told him, "You have taken everything from me, for no just cause other than existing. Well today is your last day to live," His face started to turn red from lack of air. I clenched the purple beam tighter and tighter. "You should be proud, with this power your putrid name will live forever," Then I slammed the beam around his neck closed decapitating him. His headless lifeless body plopped on the ground. I summoned black flame in both of my hands, "So this is true power. I like it," I summoned the violet flames in my hands and bathed everything in fire, the estate, my horrid father, and Mitori. I made myself invisible and flew to Kyoto and got the book. I fled to the library atop a mountain overlooking a village and started to learn everything I could about black magic and tried to learn how to escape death.

The Fourth Horsemen

I opened my eyes for the first time in months and my arm was completely healed. "The only way to escape death, was to become it," I said to myself. I picked myself up and stretched it out and tore open a portal to Barael's courtyard. "Ah Barael I didn't expect to see you so eager to see me," I said when I saw Barael and his guards waiting.
"I was waiting for the Four Horsemen to arrive." Barael said.
I asked, "How long was I gone. And who are the Four Horsemen."
"About six months, and the short version is, to lessen the effects of the Apocalypse," he responded
"How lovely," I stated blandly.  Then a golden portal opened and three horsemen walked through. "I thought you said Four,"
"You are the Forth," Barael said.
"Has it been an eternity already?" the horsemen on a red steed said as he looked at Barael puzzlingly.
"This is only an avatar," Barael responded.
"We have no time to waste," I said angrily.
"I suppose not," the horsemen, on the semi-transparent gold tinted steed, said. He tossed me a pair of reins. "Mount up we must sure up our defences," he added. I caught the reins and immediately felt the power coursing through them. A quick smile flashed onto my face. I held the reins in the air with one fist and a sickly green horse appeared in front of me.
"I wonder?" I asked myself. I got onto the horse and my powers infused with it making the horse's mane a dark blue fire its light green skin turned to a violet purple and its black glassy eyes turned blood red. I turned to the gold horsemen and he muttered something. He tore open a portal and we ran though to the Battlefield.

Thief

As arrows plummeted from the ramparts of the castle walls, I looked at the solid gold sphere with letters that looked like Sanskrit engraved in silver. "What the hell is this thing?" I asked myself. A bell wrung out piercing the night sky. Palace Knights started to pour out of the castle fully clad in white armour with heraldic design on their breast plates of a grey shield with three lions in the middle of it. I started to think to myself "Why am I doing this?" I looked behind me and the Palace Knights had unsheathed their gleaming silver swords. I quickly looked ahead of me as I was crossing a small stone bridge. I looked at my reflection in the water under the bridge and saw myself smiling. "What is wrong with me?"
         I ran into the bustling city market full of people bartering and peddlers shouting how amazing, whatever they had, was. I dashed across the dirt road and quickly penetrated the crowd. 
         "Thief!" one of the Palace Knights yelled in a deep booming voice. "The man in black! Stop him!"
         A panic arose from the crowd and screams broke the dull roar of the market. I ran behind a building and peeked my head around a wall to see if the knights were still there. They were and they were still looking for me trying to disperse the crowd. A couple seconds passed as I pressed my body against a wall I walked quickly to the next building. I heard the steel clank of the knight's heavy greaves so I jumped through an open window hoping that no one was inside.
         When I landed I crouch and ran as quietly as I could to another window. When I reached it I peered out of it to see if any knights were near me. When I saw that they weren't I leapt out of a window and ran over to a river and dove in. I swam to the outskirts of town before getting out. I took the golden orb out of my pocket and let out a sigh of relief. I ran to the tree where I hitched my horse "Sorry I'm all wet buddy," I said to my horse as I got on him. I spurred him couple time and he started to gallop.
         A few hours later I arrived at the hut where I was supposed to meet the buyer. I brought my horse to a halt and hitched him on an old wooden fence. As I walked to the cellar I took out the orb again. Every time I looked at that thing I felt ... strange. It felt as if nothing bad would happen, my insides felt... warm. I shoved the orb back in my pocket, and then opened the cellar door. I looked around me before I walked down the stairs. When I went down into the cellar I looked around the lantern lit cobweb infested room. I heard someone's feet shuffling so I turned an in the corner of the room was the buyer. A small sickly looking man with a black robe on he broke the silence and asked,
"Do you have the prize?"
"Yes," I took the orb out. "It's right here,"
"Good," The old man started to slowly walk over to me.
"If you don't mind me asking why do you want this? Does it have any purpose?" I asked.
"Hmm. You can say that I am a collector. And let's say alone it has little purpose,"
"Alone? You mean there is more to it?" I asked.
"Well, yes. Since you did so well, I was going to commission you to get the second piece," The old man said. He reached into his robe and took out a large coin purse filled to the brim. I gave the old man the orb and he handed me the purse. I opened and saw it full of silver marks. "Don't you worry there is ten thousand liked we agreed,"
"Sure. So about that commission, how much are we talking about?" I asked.
"Fifty thousand," The old man said.
"What?! Fifty thousand! What am I stealing the Arc of the Covenant?" I said in shock.
"Close to it," The man said with a slight chuckle "I want you to steal the Staff of Moses," I looked at him with a blank stare dumbfounded at what I heard.
"You want me, to go where ever the Staff of Moses is, and steal it," I said in disbelief.
"Yes and I'll even bring you to where it is," The old man said with a wicked smile.
"Fifty thousand..," I said to myself. "Fine I'll do it, but you have to tell me one thing,"
"What is it?" the old man asked.
"What is your name?" I questioned.
"My name... is Sainan Barker" the old man answered.
"Sainan huh? Alright now how are we going to get wherever we are going?" I asked.
"Follow me outside we have to get on our horses," The old man said. Sainan and I went up the stairs and I saw a jet black horse hitched near my brown steed.
"How did that get here?" I asked myself. The old man unhitched his horse then climbed on it and I did the same. I looked to the old man as he got a bottle from his robes.
"Drink this," I looked at the silver liquid puzzlingly, but drank it without question. A short while after I drank the liquid my vision started to blur it started to feel like I was falling from my horse and when I tried to regain my balance I blacked out.
         I don't know how many hours, days, or possibly even weeks passed. But when I awoke I was in a desert.
"Dear god. Where am I? What happened?" I asked aloud.
"As for the what, I sedated you and for the where, you are in Anatolia. A long way from England," A voice said to me. I turned to where I heard it and it was Sainan sitting on his black horse.
"Where is my horse?" I asked.
"Behind you," The Sainan said. I turned and my horse was sleeping behind me.
"Lazy beast," I said with a smile. "So. Where is the staff Sainan?" I asked as I walked over to my horse.
"It is in the Tomb of Heth. Over there," I looked to him and he had his hand raised and was pointing as something in the distance. I looked to where he was pointing, thought to myself "Nobody mentioned a tomb," When I looked upon the massive rectangular tomb I was awestruck. "That thing is made of pure gold!" I exclaimed.
"Yes and it's plated with diamond," Sainan said in an uninterested tone. "What we're after has more value than human life let alone some gold and diamonds," He added. I woke my horse up and Sainan and I galloped to the tomb. As the sun was beating down on us I asked,
"Who is Heth?"
"The Heth, are a sect of people, considered to be the guardians of the Promised Land," Sainan answered.
"They're all dead?" I questioned.
"You'll find out," Sainan said with a smile. When we got close to the tomb, the desert heat seemed to fade. It felt comfortably warm a cool breeze blew my brown hair slightly and cooled the sweat on my back. "You'll have to go in alone," Sainan said.

"Why is that" I asked.
"Do you really want a frail old man to get in your way?" he responded.
"No, but I might want a frail old man to tell me what I have to do," I snapped back.
"I like you," The old man said with a laugh. "You don't hold your tongue. Don't worry once you get in the rest is easy," He added
"I'm sure it is," I said not believing him. He got of his horse and reached into his robes and pulled out the gold orb.
"Place this in the imprint in the door. And may God be with you," Sainan said.

"Ehh," I responded "Oh, and take this dagger," Sainan added quickly. I then got off my horse and took the orb and dagger from Sainan and put both in my pockets. I patted my horse on his head and then walked toward the door. I saw the imprint in the door and I placed the orb in it. At first nothing happened so I looked back to Sainan, but he was gone. I looked back at the door and removed the orb. Then I heard stone rubbing against stone and the heavy door lifted upwards. I put the orb in my pocket and ventured into the tomb.
         The door grinded closed and for a moment everything around me was black. Then the walls started to glow a feint white light. I started to follow the light down the corridors of the tombs. I looked down at the brown stone floor then to the walls with a single stream of light running down the corridor. I looked ahead of me and the lights stopped at a door. When I reached the door the white lights lit up an imprint of a hand. I placed my hand on the stone and it was surprisingly warm. Then the lights spread rapidly to every corner of the tomb. Then I heard a voice in my head,
"The Seven Sins. The Seven Virtues,"
"What was that? I didn't think that... did I?" I whispered to myself. "Am I already going crazy down here?" I heard stones sliding against each other behind me so I turned and there was door coming from the ceiling I tried to run to it, but the faster I ran the faster the door closed. Finally as I reached it, the door was closed all the way. I turned and my vision started to get hazy. I walked slowly to the door with the hand imprint on it. No matter how fast I tried to move my body wouldn't respond, when opened my eyes, I saw a pink mist seeping out of the bottom of the black walls and up from the floors. I started to feel... aroused. My body got hot, my pants started to tighten, and all I could think of, was sex. 
"Not a big difference there," I said to myself laughing. Then I heard a feint giggle I turned and there was a naked lady. "Well hello," I said quietly.
"Come here," I heard a voice so I turned and saw three more naked ladies.
"Hmm," The women started to walk towards me grabbing at my parts and trying to pull my clothes off. Only a few seconds passed and I was being mobbed my women.
"Henry!" I heard a voice cry out.
"Allis? Allis where are you?" I tried to push the women off of me.
"Come on, your wife is dead, have some fun," One of the women said in a sultry voice.
"Henry!" my wife's voice yelled out.
"A man has his needs," The sultry voice called out. I pushed and shoved some more getting closer Allis's voice. Then I finally saw her. Her red curly hair and pale skin and freckles, her brown eyes that I would get always get lost in. Her adorable Scottish drawl, and her unwavering kindness and charity this is why I loved her, why I still love her. I held her in my arms tight and whispered, "I would never betray you," She whispered back,
"You never did," Then all of the sudden she disappeared making me stumble forward a bit. I looked to the wall in front of me and it read "Lust". I turned to the door and it read "Chastity". Then at the sound of yet another sliding door, I let out a sigh and walked through. I closed my eyes to blink and when I opened them I was in the small wooden shack I grew up in. I looked down at my legs and arms and notice there were short and covered in ragged clothing. I was a child again. I looked up and saw my father. I looked him in his one brown eye and one dead eye; he stood up stretching his lanky arms and legs.
"Why don't you do anything?" He said in his gravelly voice. Then memoires of my childhood flashed into my head. One in specific repeated. The death of my mother.
"You've been moping around for months, while your brother is practicing to become a soldier. You're pathetic,"
"My mother is dead, what do you want from me,"
"I want you to stop acting like you're dead! I want you to act like-"
"Like who? Like Jack!" I yelled. "I will do something I will be better than Jack I'll be better than you, better than anybody!" I turned and ran out of the shack and I noticed I wasn't a boy anymore. I felt water hit my face I looked up and there was a sky and it was raining. I looked behind be and someone was being buried. More memories raced into my head.
"My wife she's dead," I fell to my knees in the thick mud. Tears fell from eyes, more than the rain was falling from the sky. I felt like I couldn't move.
"Everyone you love has died," Jacks arrogant voice said. "And the person you despise most died a hero's death," The more he spoke the more depressed I got.
"Leave me alone," I said lazily. My body slumped down and my face landed in the mud. As lightning ripped through the sky my brother's voice said,
"You do nothing because that is what you are, Nothing! That is why I was father's favourite child"
"No... I was better than you," I rebutted "I am better then you!" I picked my body up and ran towards my wife's grave, then everything went black for an instant then I when I could see again I was in the tomb. I looked ahead of me and saw a door that read "Sloth". I turned and the ahead of me read "Diligence". I then heard a door slide open, so I turned and walked through it
         When I stepped through the door voices started to boom in my head, "You aren't the best thief. Any fool that can run can do what you can," The room went dark then lit back up and I was in King Henry's castle.
"I'll show you that I'm the best," I yelled out proudly. I ran down the white corridor decorated with red flags with the Royal Banner on it. I heard a guard walking towards me so I jumped into a room that was close by. I then carefully closed the door. As the guard was walking past the door I started to think to myself "Why I am doing this, what do I have to prove?"
"You have to prove that you're worth me spitting in your direction," My father voice said in my head. "You have to prove that you can be as good as your brother,"
"I wouldn't have to do much to be better than that monster," I said. "I don't have to prove I'm better than anyone I live a happy life... well... I used to," The castle faded around me and I was in the tomb again. I looked to the door and it read "Hubris". I backed up from the door and walked toward the next in anticipation it read "Humility". The door started to slowly rise.
         I walked into the room, and then I looked to the ceiling that had the same lantern my safe house had. I looked back in front of me and there was a table with all my loot on it. "What the hell? How did this get here?" I walked over to it and picked a bag of silver marks. I blinked my eyes and when I opened them I was outside in the streets of Kent. I looked to the sky and it looked like the gray sky was about to burst. I felt a tugging at my shirt so I looked down only to see a small child,
"Can I get a shilling sir? My mom is sick and we need food,"
"NO!" a voiced boomed in my head. "What have the poor done for you what has anybody done to deserve your kindness. Let the weak die,"
"My wife would have done it," I thought to myself. "No you can't have a shilling. But you can have these silver marks," I handed the child the entire bag.
"Thank you sir!" the child said. The illusion faded away and the door in front of me read "Greedy Glutton". I turned to the door and it read "Charitable Temperance". As it slid open I and dragged my feet as I walked to it.
         As I walked through the door the room went black and then I was in London.
"London? Wait this is around where I used to live," Memoires hit me like a hammer. "No!" I yelled. I ran down the dirt road running pass all of my old friends.
"How's your brother Henry,"
"I heard your brother is joining the battle to stop Scotland's rebellion,"
"What are you even doing with your life?"
"How can you blame your brother of a crime like that he died in battle to protect us?"
"I won't do business with a traitor like you,"
"When I got to my house the door was already kicked in. I ran inside and the house was wrecked. The curtains wore torn, vases were shattered, and the walls were shredded. I heard my brother walking out of a room.
"Henry. I didn't expect to see you," He said with a smile. I looked at his sword and it was dripping with blood.
"Why?" I asked quivering with anger.
"She was a Scottish whore and thus enemy of the state that's why," He retorted. I ran up to him and unsheathed the dagger that Sainan gave me. Jack moved out of the way, but not before I could slash his arm. I turned quickly then ducked when he swung his sword. I slashed at his legs and then tackled him to the ground. I got up and then kicked his sword away from him.
"You killed my wife! She was pregnant dammit!" I yelled pointing the dagger at him.
"Kill him, do it, now is your chance, you couldn't do it before, you didn't do it before, bring him to ice,"
"Come on kill me, or are you as weak as father says," Jack said.
"AHHHHHHHH!!!" I yelled as I slammed the dagger down at him. I missed, only hitting the wooden floor next to his head. "I am better than you. You are nothing," I stood up and walked away and the house faded away. I looked at the ground and the dagger was still in the ground. I decided to leave it there. I looked to the door and it read "Wrath". I looked in front of me and the door read "Patience" the door slid open I walked through it.
         The room I was in was gigantic, but only had a single chair in the middle. I looked around, but then I heard a creak so I snapped my head back to the chair and there sitting was my father.
"Useless," He said while coughing.
"Nice to see you too father," I said.
"I can't believe you blamed your own brother for killing your wife,"
"HE DID, and I don't care what you say because you never loved me. You praise Jack like he's some big war hero, but he wasn't he was a lying murdering sod,"
"How dare you say that?!" my father said.
"Say what? That your beloved Jack isn't a monster! Well he is!" all these feelings of rage were bursting into my head. I remember that I was envious of Jack, to a point where I started to hate my own father. He started to cough loudly.
"Father, I don't think I ever told you this.... but no matter what I did it was to get you to love me,"
"How can you say I didn't love you? You are my son. I hated the person you became, blaming yourself for things not in your control," I walked over to my father and he got up and walked over to me. "I know I was hard on you, but I didn't know any other way,"
"I love you," I told him.
"I love you to," He responded. He turned into a wisp of white smoke then rose into the air the room faded away and the door appeared in front of me. "Envy" I turned and the door read "Kindness". I walked up to it as it opened and entered the final room.
When I entered the room I saw the Staff on a raised pedestal with stairs leading to it in the middle of the room in a glass container, on the side of the case were two hourglasses the half the size of a man. The room was massive and had slits in the ceiling with the sun peering through them. I walked up to the stairs and touched tried to break the glass container, but nothing happened. I looked at one of the hourglasses and it looked like it started all over again. While still looking at the hourglass I hit the glass again and it did restart. I looked over the edge and saw hundreds of thousands of what looked like coffins.
"So that's why they call it the Tomb of Heath, how did they all die?" I walked backwards and sat at the bottom of the stairs. "I guess I have to wait,"
"Come on take it, it's right there" a voice said in my head.
"Come on the sooner you take it the sooner we can be together Henry," Allis voice said.
"Are you too much of a waste of life that you can't reach out and grab something that's right in front of you," My father's voice said.
"Don't worry father where Henry fails, I will succeed, like always," Jacks voice said.
Several minutes passed as I sat there as the voices coaxed me into taking it. Then the glass around the Staff shattered and the pedestal lowered. I picked myself up and walked towards it. It was made of wood, but had streams of gold leading to the top. On the very tip of the staff was a notch I guess to hold the golden sphere. I took the sphere from my pocket and put it in the notch. The staff then turned to silver streaked with gold. I held out the staff, and then I was teleported outside of the tomb.
"What the hell happened?"
"Ahh, you attached the Philosophers Stone to the Staff of Moses," Sainan said.
"What is the deal with thing? Who are you really?"
"I'm just an old man tired of being trapped. Do you happen to have the dagger I gave you?"
"No I left it in the tomb,"
"Hmm I was hoping you weren't going to say that," Sainan held his hand out and the staff flew from my hands into his.
"What are you?" I questioned frantically.
"Satan," he held out his hand and a flame came from his hand piercing my chest. My innards started to burn, and sizzle. "Damn," I uttered. All the memories I tried to repress came into my head at once. Allis, my mother and father, and Even Jack, all dead, and now it's my turn.