Happy Birthday

Kimiko jumps back, desperate to escape from the captain’s hold. The oni that had moved out of the way now step forward in order to both protect their master and attack the enemy.

“No, no, no. We have to play fair…”

Belogun immediately reacts, pushing his way forward to meet Kimiko head on in mid-air. Dozens of new mummies immigrate into the scene, moving to hold the oni back and make way for their own master.

“...this time, it’s my turn.”

Kimiko attempts to strike Belogun by swinging her sword from the side, slicing through the air in the swiftest of motions. However, Belogun times his attack with a block, simultaneously palming away the incoming blade away from his neck, while striking his fist into Kimiko’s defenseless stomach. In the same motion, before either of them are able to land, Belogun strikes Kimiko’s face directly, forcing her to fly backwards at a tremendous speed.

As Kimiko lands against the same wall she had before, the impact forces her to smash through the wall, and leave her flying down the dungeon’s ever-changing trap. Eventually, tens of levels deeper than where she had previously been before, she lands hard against a set of stairs, which knocks her out.

“Hmph.” Belogun pouts, “I guess that’s all the rumored priestess was truly capable of.”

In the state she’s in, it wouldn’t be much of a fight anymore. Let’s let the guards downstairs deal with her, instead.

Belogun turns around, “Now then. Since it’s already getting late, I’d say it’s time we prepare you for tonight, my King.”

“...wouldn’t want to keep your dear sister waiting.” he finishes with a grin.

“As acting queen of Eydo…and in the case of treason against the empire…I pronounce my younger brother, King Kayin…”

“Guilty!”

Kayin remains silent, but his demeanor changes.

The mummies and oni continue to fight around them, but two of the mummies move towards Kayin, in order to carry him to his fated end.

However, as soon as the mummies lift up Kayin, they remain in place.

Belogun quickly takes notice. “...what’s the matter with you two? Quickly, carry him to the public death chamber. I’ll handle the rest of…”

Belogun’s words fade, as he stares intensely at the two mummies carrying the king.

“...who are you?” he asks calmly.

Kayin glances up, and after noticing the intense stare of Belogun, he glances to his left and then to his right. Even without his vision, Kayin comes to a quick understanding of his situation.

Kayin lowers his head.

And softly laughs.

Immediately, two streaks of lightning blast down from the sky, and strike the two mummies standing to the sides of Kayin. The energy surrounding the area blasts away plenty of the mummies and oni that were still fighting in the dungeon hall, and also forces Belogun to jump back in fright.

That same energy begins to course through Kayin’s veins, and slowly mutate his hands and feet to a semi-recoverable state. Kayin breathes out what seems like fire and smoke, before standing on his feet properly.

“T-This can’t be…” Belogun softly iterates.

To the sides of the king stands two divine presences, appearing like identical female twins. Both stand with thin white rags only surrounding their private areas, and with black beads along their ankles and wrists. Their rich and long black hair flows gracefully through the gust of smoke that now surrounds the area, but their mean mugs towards the captain of the dungeon guards gives anything but grace.

“...Shango already denied trial by combat…he can no longer interfere…so why?...”

“That’s the thing…”

Kayin stretches his neck, and tightens the cloth that covers his empty eyes.

“...Oshé isn’t Shango.”

The two deities morph into two halves of a battle axe, before merging together and moving into place within the clutches of the king.

“Lead me!” Kayin demands.

Kayin rushes forward, and even with his lack of vision, is capable of knowing the exact location where Belogun remains in place. Belogun grits his teeth, and summons the ankh to his hand, using it to block the attack from Kayin. However, the tide of strength has now shifted, as even with him managing to block the attack, he is still pushed backwards to a great deal. Barely managing to keep himself within the same hall, rather than falling to the same fate that Kimiko found herself, Belogun attempts to retalia-

“Too slow.”

Now directly beside Belogun, instead of in front of him, Kayin lands a deadly blow to the side of Belogun’s head, smashing the captain through many walls, until he finds himself in the middle of an empty cell.

An insanely loud ringing echoes through Belogun’s ears, and his vision fades between darkness and light, until he manages to stand up once again. However, he immediately falls after his body realizes it no longer has the strength to stand.

…huh?!

Finally, Kayin reaches the new area of the dungeon that Belogun finds himself in, and begins to circle around him.

“Come on, come on. You’re not done yet, right?” Kayin asks in an angry but mocking tone.

Belogun holds out his hand, and multiple mummies begin to swarm the cell from all sides, trapping the king.

“Good. That’s good.”

Kayin lights up the room with a single motion of the battle axe, causing a sharp streak of lightning to cut cleanly through every single mummy, and even through the walls of the dungeon cell.

“But that’s not it right?”

Belogun laughs, “...yeah…You’re right! That savior of yours is all alone! Not enough of her demons to save her! All it takes is enough of my mummies, and she’s-!”

Immediately, Kayin drops his battle axe to the floor, causing the two heads of the axe to separate and return to their original forms. The two deities blitz through the entire area, completely sweeping away every entity that had remained in the dungeon hall. In what seems like less than a second, every one of the dungeon guards throughout all of the dungeon halls were knocked out cold onto the floor, before the two deities return with Kimiko in tow.

Belogun simply could not believe his eyes.

Kayin moves towards where Kimiko is held, and touches around her body until he manages to find her face.

“So this is what you look like,” he says with a smile, “Leave her on the floor for now.”

As soon as Oshé puts Kimiko down, Kayin’s attention returns to Belogun.

“Be-lo-gun. My ‘friend’. Captain of the Menira…”

Belogun immediately bows in order to show reverence, “My Ki-!”

Kayin kicks Belogun’s jaw swiftly, knocking a few teeth out.

“Whoa! Don’t go changing your tune now, captain! You seemed very happy to streak my back with blood every day for the past year! Where’s your blood lust gone?!”

Kayin kicks Belogun again.

“Wherever it is, I need you to find it! You’re captain of the Menira, aren't you?! GET UP AND FIGHT!”

Kayin kicks Belogun again.

“WHERE IS ANUBIS?!” Kayin yells.

“I am here.”

Kayin turns around, and Oshé steps in front of the king to guard him from the god of death. Anubis steps forward, with his arms folded.

“Tell me, Anubis. Between my sister and this man, whose idea has it been for my incessant suffering?!”

Anubis slowly looks down towards his avatar wielder, before returning his gaze to the king.

“It was the acting queen’s order that you be flogged every day, and be given lower rations than others. However, for the past year, it was Belogun that insisted on a hundred floggings instead of the original twenty, and for no rations to be given to you unless it was a creature you were known to have cared for. It was also his idea that you be thrown into the harshest of cells within the dungeon, and have your eyes be torn off by the wielder of Horus.”

“Then have everything imparted to me be returned to him in your realm.” Kayin calmly demands.

Anubis holds out his hand, and his ankh returns to him.

“Understood.”

“Where…is the key? I need it to escape from this place.”

“Has it always been your plan to escape?”

Kayin pauses.

“You have endured everything for the past year. Your name has been tarnished beyond recognition. All for the sake of your sister’s ascension to the throne.”

Kayin slowly glances over at Kimiko.

“So why? Why choose to suddenly fight back?”

Kayin smiles, and faces Anubis once more.

“You and I both know…that I’ve been fighting this entire time.”

Anubis says nothing, but closes his eyes and nods. He places a certain object into the king’s hands, before turning around and walking away.

“On his behalf, I apologize, great king. Believe it or not, he was once a humble man.”

Anubis draws up a spatial warp, and transfers Belogun's half-dead body to his side.

“As I’ve seen many times before, it is often power that changes men. I can only hope the same isn’t true for you.”

***

The ambience of the desert night provides the sound of soft wind breezing’s through one’s ears, as the sound of another’s mouth begins to groan as they awaken.

“Welcome back to the land of the living, priestess.”

Kimiko struggles to lift her body upwards, as she looks towards Kayin’s calm appearance.

“Land of the living? You’re telling me…we won?”

“We?” Kayin says mockingly, “You must be speaking one of your foreign languages.”

“We are speaking the same language, bastard!” Kimiko screams as she sit up properly, “Seriously, what happened? Everything’s foggy.”

“I beat the captain of the guards, cleared out the dungeon, unlocked the center ring, and dragged you all the way out here.”

Kayin points to the dungeon base that is situated miles away from them, “I can’t see it, but I’m sure there’s a ruckus going on about our escape.”

Kimiko takes her time looking over at the dungeon.

He really managed to defeat that guy…I guess he isn’t the king for nothing…

Kimiko breathes a sigh of relief, “...so you finally grew some balls and fought for your freedom. Praise be…”

“Couldn’t have done it without you, partner!”

Immediately, Kimiko’s katana reappears in front of Kayin’s neck once again. Kayin holds his hands up, as if pleading for mercy.

“Now, it’s time for you to answer my questions! Since you’ve given us this opportunity, we’ve got a lot of time…before I cut off your head myself!”

“So first you want me to fight so that I can keep my head, and now you want to take it from me instead. Women, seriously…”

“First questi-”

“A year ago, I was accused of treason against the empire. The council betrayed me, and placed my older sister on the throne. While keeping me locked in the dungeon, their plan has been to rally hatred, posing me a tyrant. That way, when my sister usurps me from the throne, and shows off my head to the people, they will not only accept her as the rightful ruler, they will obey her every command.”

Kimiko stares at Kayin for a full minute without uttering a sound.

“Today was supposed to be the day that they killed me. A spectacle for specific nobles and councilmen, along with my sister.”

“...but why today? Of all days?”

“...it’s my eighteenth birthday. The day I was supposed to take over as king from my father.”

“...oh.”

“...yeah.”

After a brief and awkward pause, Kimiko retracts her sword, and returns to her original seated position. The two of them bask in the moonlight, as the people in the dungeon continue in chaos over the absence of the king.

“...Happy Birthday, by the way.”

“...thanks.”