Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh, the great anime show. But the story is mine.

Author's notes: This is my first fan fic. It takes place in the past, not Egypt though. I hope you guys will like it and support it. If there are any suggestions or comments, just post messages. Thank you.

The Spirit of the Sword

Chapter 1

The Forgotten Past

In the beautiful garden, a low sniffling sound was heard. The sky was clear and blue. The bushes and trees were the healthy green, with a variety of colorful flowers every where. Such a beautiful day should be filled with laughter. This was the public garden near the gigantic castle.

"Joey, where are you… (sob)…" a voice of a child said. "Don't leave me…I'm scared…"

Meanwhile, a twelve-year-old boy walked slowly through the garden. He had dark brown hair and a pair of dark blue eyes. He seemed exhausted and extremely tiresome. From his clothing, one can tell he is not an ordinary citizen of the kingdom. He was the prince, Seto Kaiba.

He heard the sobs, but he didn't see anyone. His keen hearing led him to a bush near the lake. As he walked around the bush, he saw a little girl, about the age of nine. She had long auburn hair. She was kneeling on the floor, with hands covering her face.

"What are you doing here?" Seto asked with an emotionless voice.

"Ah…" the girl was frightened by the sudden voice. She turned around and saw Seto. "Who.. (sniff, sniff) who are… you?"

"I'm Seto Kaiba. What's your name?"

"My name is…" she paused. She remembered that Joey, her big brother, told her not to talk to stranger.

"Well? What's your name?" Seto asked again, a bit impatience.

"Serenity" she whispered.

"Why are you crying?" Seto asked. He was usually quiet and uncaring around others, but this little girl… she was just like his little brother Mokuba. He loves his only brother Mokuba dearly. Perhaps the girl reminded him of his brother. He wanted to comfort her a little.

"Mommy moved out from the house and she brings me to this place. I want to see Joey. He always takes care of me. I don't want to leave him. I miss him! (sniff, sniff)." She began to cry again.

"Don't cry." His comfort sounded more like a command. It was not his fault. His step-father, King Gozaburo was forcing him to learn many subjects every day to prepare him for the seat of king. The training was exceedingly tiresome. It was Mokuba who motivated Seto to continue and hang in there. As the training continues, Seto became colder toward others, and he grows more comfortable to give orders.

(flashback)

In a dark room, only a candle was lit. Seto was sitting at the end of the long wooden table. Piles of textbooks were stacked on the table. He seemed very weary and sleepy.

Whip! A long stick smacked Seto's back. He immediately jumped up and kneeled down. The whip was painful.

"Get up!!!" A rough voice scolded Seto. "What do you think you are doing? You didn't finish reading the textbook yet! Are you being lazy? Such a meek boy can never become a king!"

It was King Gozaburo, Seto's step father. He was a big man with scornful features. His angry face revealed his cruel nature.

"Listen up! Here's tomorrow's training schedule. In the morning, get up at 6:00, go to practice the skills of swords and blades until 9:00. From 9:00 to 12:00, learn geography of the kingdoms and their history. There is a 30 minute lunch break. Then, continue the study of war strategies until 2:00. From 2:00 to 5:00, learn more about science and math. At 5:00 to 6:00, you can go stay with Mokuba if you want. From 6:00 to 9:00, help me with the problems in my kingdom. At 9:00 in the night, go eat dinner for 30 minutes. Then, go back to the library and continue your study. Do not go to bed until you finish your assignment! Is that clear? I don't want to see you being lazy again!"

"But… I'm really tired" Seto said with a low voice. He was very angry and frustrated at the tasks Gozaburo gave him. But he threatened to take Mokuba away, so Seto suppressed his anger and tried to be submissive.

"What did you say?!?" yelled Gozaburo. "Don't ever say that again! Only the strong can survive in this era. The weak will be devoured soon! If failure is what you want, you can get out right now! I can't expect such a weak-minded person to take the seat of king. The kingdom will only be destroyed unless a strong leader can be the king!"

With that last sentence, Gozaburo slammed the door shut and walked away angrily.

(end of flashback)

The sniffling continued. Serenity's brown eyes were still filled with tears.

"Listen. You shouldn't cry. You can visit your brother when you grow up a bit. It is dangerous to be alone out here in the morning. You should go back to your mother" Seto told Serenity.

"But… but Mommy doesn't love me. She doesn't care…" Serenity looked sad.

"Be strong. Weak people can never survive in this world!" Seto sounded annoyed at her feeble statement.

Seto reached into his pocket and took out a white jade necklace. The jade was really pretty; it becomes transparent if one looks at it under the sunlight. The jade was the shape of a blue eye white dragon, with blue rocks as the eyes. He had four of these same blue eye jades. He wore one on his neck, and he gave one to Mokuba. The other two was useless to him. He had four of the same jades because he asked the jewelry makers in the palace to make them. Blue-eyes was his favorite dragon from the ancient Egypt kingdom that he once read about from one of those heavy history textbooks.

"Here. Take this with you. This will give you courage. You can go back and find your brother when you grow up, but only if you have the courage to do it" Seto gave the jade to Serenity.

"(sniff, sniff) Really? I'll be strong then… Thank you" Serenity says shyly. "I better go now, bye!"

Seto didn't say anything. His morning walk in the beautiful garden helped him relax from all the heavy training. He walked away, without looking back at the little girl. She was just someone he met once, not important at all. He had a much important goal to accomplish: take over the kingdom and give Mokuba a better live. They both hated their step-father, the cruel and evil king.

Serenity walked toward the exit of the garden. She looked at the beautiful jade in her hand. It was a dragon! Although she didn't know the name of the dragon, she liked the jade very much.

"Ah! It's clear!" Serenity gasped. The jade turned almost into a translucent color under the sunlight. "You are magical, right? Give me courage, please. I must find Joey when I can leave Mommy!"

As she walked home, she held onto the jade. Then, she put the jade onto her neck and put it into her shirt. I will never take it off again.

Serenity was really happy that she met Seto. He was really nice to her, in her opinion. He supported her and comforted her. Although the memory of Seto faded too, she remembered that there was a boy in the garden that helped her when she was lost and lonely. He gave her the dragon necklace. However, the face of the boy and the name of the boy have been forgotten. All she remembers is the beautiful blue eyes…

Seto never saw that little girl again in the garden. Soon, he forgot her name. Then, he forgot that there is even such a person named Serenity. All he remembered was that he must forget the unhappy past he had. He doesn't want to remember anything from the past. He only looked forward. He no longer cared for other people, only his little brother Mokuba…

I know this is short, because it is the past. Just to provide backgrounds for the characters. What do you think? How's the story so far? The next chapter will definitely be longer. Please review so that I can improve my story. Thanks for taking your time and read the story, I hope you like it.