A/N: Hey reviewers! To SasatheShy, mystic48138, pride1289, Dei Riktur, SkywardShadow, Vaseshipper, TripleMelody, unchained shackles, Loverly Light, and Asiera: THANK YOU! I've said it before, but your reviews are everything to me, and you're always so nice. You are my inspiration.

Chapter 13

A light thump reached Bakura's ears as he tossed the sack of supplies through the hole in the wall Mana had shown him. After he was sure no one else had heard the soft sound, he crawled through after it. Briefly he wondered what they would say when they discovered him gone, but since he would never find out their reactions, there was no point in dwelling on it.

He found as he twisted through the small opening that his self-inflicted wound was still sore, but it was completely closed. He should have found a way to sneak some of that salve out as well, but he wasn't going to go back for any. After all, Bakura wasn't planning to injure himself just to escape being caught. He would make sure to stay out of sight, where no one would even know he was there.

Making his way back through the main road while staying hidden by the shadows, something caught his eye, causing him to stop temporarily. Bakura looked around, searching for the glint that had reflected in his vision. When he couldn't find it, he backtracked and tried again. Finally he spotted it on the ground about ten feet away, shining in the pale moonlight.

He approached it carefully, kneeling to lift the golden jewelry with a single finger, losing his focus as old memories resurfaced. It couldn't possibly be that very same necklace as the one he had seen before, but it was very close. A strange hunger twisted his features as he stared at it, and before he knew what he was doing, he pocketed the tiny item. Finders keepers, he thought, retreating back to the darkness with his new treasure.

When he arrived at an isolated alley between a house and the wall of the city just before dawn, he squeezed himself inside. There wasn't much room, but he could hide there until the next night. He pulled out a book and the necklace, enchanted by its brilliance for a moment before cracking open the pages.

He glared at all the glyphs on the page, wondering how on earth he was going to decipher and remember them all, but he still traced his finger across them, following it with his eyes. He was relieved to find most the symbols were simplified images of what they portrayed, but others…he shook his head as he tried to piece them together into some form of word. The sun had risen far into the sky before he tore his gaze away from all the hieroglyphs, his stomach aching with its lack of food.

Bakura knew he wouldn't be able to concentrate with his body protesting, so he shut the cover and thought about what he could do. He had left most of his supplies behind, including any form of hat or cover he could hide underneath. He would have to find one. Also becoming a part of his plan, he looked down at the golden chain, wondering how much he could get for it. Then he could just trade the money or the necklace itself for food. He grinned, realizing if he stole jewelry instead of food, he would get much more food than he had ever stolen. He felt a bit foolish that he had never thought of it before.

Peering carefully around the edge of the house, he made sure no one else was around. He was satisfied and stayed close to the wall, glancing in the window. The house was empty for the time being. Quickly glancing around again, he vaulted himself into the room, moving fast to find a shroud or cloth he could use. Rifling through a cabinet, he found what he was looking for.

The first one he came across jumped out at him, a vivid red. But even as he reached for it, he knew it would be too easily spotted and grabbed the cream colored one behind it. He wrapped it around his hair, making sure no stray strands would be noticeable and jumped out of the same window he had entered through.

Sauntering casually into the marketplace, he arrived at a vendor and examined some of the food he had. Gazing at the man, he held out the necklace.

"How much food could I get for this?" he asked in a no-nonsense sort of way.

The man whistled as he touched it, ignoring Bakura when he jerked back. "For that? You could buy out half of my cart! Where'd you get that necklace?"

Bakura glared. "It belonged to my mother," he lied, feeling a light spasm of guilt that he quickly squashed.

The vendor shook his head. "Your mother? Does she know that you-"

"I'll take whatever you have," Bakura interrupted in a severe yet dead tone. He handed over his treasure and gathered up some dried meat, fruit that was not quite ripe so it would last longer, and a loaf of bread, stuffing it in his bag and walking away, waves of resentment rolling off of him. People asked too many questions! The angry look remained while he went back to his temporary hideout, biting into the bread and opening up the book again.

For a over two years, Bakura remained in hiding in various parts of the vast city, using jewelry to pay for food and spending the majority of every day learning out of the book he had stolen. Finally, he felt confident enough to find some of the scrolls he knew must be hiding inside the palace and pore through them to uncover the secrets he had been waiting for.

Breaking into the palace wasn't even a challenge for the thief anymore, and he took hardly any time to find the altar he had seen that man once before. He doubted the scrolls would be in plain sight, such as the library that he didn't know where to find anyway, so it seemed as good a place to start as any.

He searched through the room, ignoring the weapons in favor of any parchment or books, which he gathered to read later. When he moved a shield, however, he caught sight of a small opening in the floor that disappeared underneath the wall. Clever…he thought, but not clever enough. Reaching down, he felt around for the hidden object, a book, and started to pull it out. Bakura met with some resistance and jerked it harder, eyes widening as he felt something start to close around his hand. Abandoning the book, he barely managed to escape with his fingers when part of the floor snapped up against the ledge created by the gap in the wall.

Bakura glared, confused as he regarded his missed opportunity to retrieve the object he wanted. There had to be a way for him to get it! He knelt down to examine it again. Running his hands across the surface of the wall, he found his answer. Resting in the wall was a minute button that Bakura quickly tapped. The book he had been trying to reach flew out, plopping onto the floor after hitting his shin.

Ignoring the slight new throbbing in his leg, the thief snatched up the book, flipping through it. The first thing that he noticed was the mention of a shadow creature that had once been sealed away. Actually, it was mentioned a lot…it seemed the man was speculating about the presence of the creature among…Bakura's eyes narrowed into slits. The seven items. That couldn't be right. The presence that Bakura had been sensing next to the stone altar couldn't possibly be born of or connected to those wretched things, could it?

After finding nothing but trivial nonsense in the remainder of the pages, Bakura fled the room. It was time to confront the being he hadn't seen in five years.

Once he had procured a horse from the stables, since the last one had fled after his first encounter in the altar, he had practically flown from the palace to Kul Elna. Gazing up as he rode, he saw the darkness increasing in the sky, troubling him slightly. It had been years since he remembered a storm in the desert, meaning this one would be violent if it spawned. Bakura urged his horse faster as the wind picked up.

He arrived at the dead village as the first bolt of lightning streaked through the sky, revealing the vast, black clouds spanning the entirety of his surroundings. One thing was certain; now that he was here, he wouldn't be leaving until the storm died down. Fat raindrops fell as he led the horse further into the ruins, amazed that it hadn't tried to bolt as well.

Shoving open the door to the altar, he shivered as the first blast of cold swept over him, chilling him. But inside was quickly becoming safer than being outside, so he retreated inside and shut the door behind him and his mount.

Bakura was much more comfortable walking towards the stone than he had been before, now knowing a little of what to expect. As he leapt up the steps, he was stopped by the same evil force that he had met once before. He steeled himself before calling out.

"I know what you are," he said calmly.

Really? You think you truly know what I am? the voice mocked, causing Bakura to jump slightly. He wasn't expecting such a quick response.

"I'm fairly certain, yes," the thief quipped back, answering with his own sarcastic tone.

Then tell me. What am I? it questioned, waiting for the young boy to answer. The wind from earlier picked up inside the cavern, matching the now howling gusts from the storm. Bakura took his time, picking his words carefully.

"The old man from the palace wrote about you. A shadow creature that was locked away. He feared you had been released somehow. Is that true?"

A frightening howl of laughter cut through the relative silence of the cave. Is that all he wrote? the voice asked, letting loose another round of sarcastic glee. Did he perhaps forget to mention he locked me in the very place I created? Foolish boy, I'm not just a creature from the shadows! I am the shadows!

"So that is why he's so frightened of you. The evil in the creation of those…abominations unleashed you and he has a feeling that it is true."

Exactly, and you are exactly the one I need to get to him and destroy him, and everyone else in the world.

Bakura was temporarily taken aback. "The entire world? You mean to kill everyone?"

Why not? Humans are a scourge upon the Earth. Why? You don't mean to tell me you've grown fond of those responsible for the massacre here," it mocked again.

The thief glared. "Of course not," he snapped as the words sliced through him. "I care for no one. I'll be more than glad to help you rid the world of them."

Good, then I need you to collect all of those "abominations" as you called them and bring them to me, for then I can be resurrected. You will help me, the voice said as more of a statement than a request.

"How do you expect me to gather all of these? I don't even know where they all are!"

They are all in the same place, with the Pharaoh and his court. But I suppose you are right about asking you to do this on your own. I can help you only a small amount more.

Before Bakura could ask what he meant by this, he was surrounded in the darkness by black figures, all staring at him with the same blood red eyes. "Who are these spirits?" he asked, startled by their sudden appearance, but at the same time knowing they were not of the world he was inhabiting.

The strongest of those killed during the raid, and the ones that thirst most for revenge. They are the only ones strong enough to leave this place, and they will help you find vengeance against whoever you wish. They will not abandon you.

"Very well, as long as they help me accomplish this task you have set upon me, I will accept it," he conceded, noticing a strange whispering at the edges of his senses. His mind was sharpened, and he could feel the hatred and will inside him growing.

By lending you my power, you now carry a part of me inside you. You will grow even stronger, as will your monster. Do not fail in this task.

Bakura grinned. "Of course I won't," he stated, looking forward to what he could do with this newly acquired power. The storm still raged outside, and he approached his horse, which was already resting for the night. Before he settled down beside it, he stopped and turned.

He let his eyes roam over the spirits in front of him and addressed them. "You will obey me, and you will help me bring down both the one who caused this, and the one who allowed this to happen, the Pharaoh. We will triumph and get our revenge. We will make them fall!" he shouted, letting his voice echo around the chamber. With the scrape of steel on cloth, the red-eyed spirits drew their swords in a silent oath.

A/N: School's out for the summer! Hopefully, this will mean more updates, although I'm not sure how much longer this story will actually run. I now have most of the major plot for Bakura's first life down, and there's not much else important I think I will be able to add. So, it might just be winding down soon!

Expect there to be another time skip next chapter, and I hope you have enjoyed it thus far.