The Love of the Ancient: Part 1

His time had been short. The time, about 4 and a half centuries, had passed by so quickly. And yet, it had changed so much. He had been a normal human being, just like everyone else, when Talpa recruited him. True, he had let his greed get the best of him at that point. But the Ancient gave him a second chance, a debt that Anubis could never repay. Anubis had lived for centuries,and yet something was still missing. He had to find it, in case this conflict with Talpa was his last.

Mia was concerned. Something seemed to be wrong with the Ancient. Or could she just call him Anubis? This whole thing was getting to be way too much for her. When he had put the Jewel of Life around her neck, he had given her a strange look. She couldn’t tell what it was, but his eyes seemed to show something. Was it remorse? Respect? Loneliness? The Ancient, lonely. Heh., her father would probably laugh in her face, and tell her that there were more important things at hand. And there were. Kayura was toying with the Ronins. Talpa was preparing another assault. And the Earth was in constant pain as the Dynasty’s minions struck relentlessly. Anubis’s social life was the least of her concerns.

The wind rustled his hair as he meditated on top of Mt. Fuji. His robes flapped loosely about him, but he was too busy meditating to notice. 448 years, and he still wasn’t satisfied. Why should he be? All of those years of devotion to the Dynasty. Did he even have a friend? Sehkmet hated him, and with good reason. Sehkmet was leader of the Warlords, and the strongest, until Anubis came along and immediately stole his position from him. Yes, he had obtained some respect from the Dark Warlord of Venom, but not much. Kale and Dais had more respect for Anubis, but kept it at a business-relationship. Talpa-well, he was Talpa, enough said. And Kayura had barely known him, and vice versa. He had felt a small attraction to her, but put it to the back of his mind, waving it off as natural. But he did have friends now. Yuli had a strange sort of admiration for Anubis, and Mia…well, Mia was too confusing to figure out. One minute she seemed to admire him, the next she had forgotten about him completely. Still he considered her as a friend. He only wished he had been able to settle down with someone, and lived a normal life. And somewhere, deep inside him, a place he couldn’t see, he wished it was Mia.

She couldn’t believe she was doing this. Packing her clothes. She didn’t want to stay very long, but if the length of the Ronins’ stays there were any indication, she might have to. She had researched as much as possible on the legend of Talpa’s castle, and it felt as if her brain was falling apart. She had given up on Anubis a while ago. She can’t let her own ideals and wishes get in his way, as well as the Ronins’. She didn’t even know how she felt about Anubis, never mind vice versa. But the more that she tried to put the former Warlord of Cruelty out of her mind, the more she would think about him. A full grown woman, having the crush of a little school girl! She tried once again to forget him, knowing she could only hurt him. She got the same results as last time, and she threw herself down on the bed, confused and frustrated.

"What’s wrong, Mia?" The voice startled her, but only for a second. She looked up to see a concerned Yuli attempting to understand why she fell.

"Nothing, Yuli. I just get a little lonely sometimes."

"Well, I’m always here to keep you company!" Yuli smiled, and patted Mia on the back. Sure, if you were about 10 years older, there would be no problem, Mia thought to herself. Yuli jogged off on another happy little jog with White Blaze, and Mia fell asleep, thinking of the thing she wanted to forget most in the world- Anubis.

Anubis knew the time for him was near. He had accomplished so little. And he felt incomplete. For the first time in his life, Anubis did something he would never do again. He cried.