Reignited

by Colleen Houck

  “No.” Nephthys shook her head. “That’s not what I—”

  Seth had leaned down during her protest and cut her off. “But you should be,” he murmured in her ear with a seductive voice. “I will always desire her more than you. You will know what it is to be the second choice. The one left behind. Still, you are powerful, and I aim to use your power as I see fit. After all, why should I content myself with one wife, one goddess, when I can have two?”

  Hot tears stung the back of Nephthys’s eyes as she tried not to allow his hurtful words to take root in her heart. “But Osiris—” she started.

  “Can be unmade again,” he said with a sneer. “In fact, I should thank you. Unmaking him a second time will prove an interesting experiment. Perhaps this time I will gain even more of his power.” Seth touched the tip of her nose. “Already the rumors of my power spread. The people of Heliopolis begin to fear me. Soon they will see that I am the most potent of the gods. They will forget all about Amun-Ra.”

  “You aren’t stronger than him.”

  “Maybe not yet. But after I unmake all of the other gods, we’ll see who has the upper hand.”

  Nephthys shivered. It gave Seth pleasure to know that she feared him also. That was much better. He didn’t like thinking that she knew more than he did. He wouldn’t ever allow her to think she was in control.

  “Of course,” he continued, “you are aware that I must punish you appropriately for having gone behind my back. It simply won’t do to have all of Heliopolis know that I have no authority over my wife.”

  Nephthys straightened stiffly as he strode arrogantly in a circle around her, assessing her from every angle. The color drained from her face and her lower lip quivered. She knew exactly what was coming. She’d hoped that her words might sway him to pursue a different course, but in her heart of hearts she knew that there was no diverting him from his desires. Her eyelids drooped and she gathered her wings around her as if to shield herself from what he was going to do.

  Seth then murmured the words that would change her forever, and she gasped at the loss even as it happened. The cut was brutal and swift, the pain of it more psychological than physical, and yet her nerve endings tingled as if a sharp knife still rested upon her skin. Her eyes swam with tears, and she pressed her palms against her face to quell the sobs that racked her frame.

  “There, there,” Seth said, with a pitying look as he pulled her hands from her face and roughly swept away the tears. “It’s your own fault, you know.”

  “How could you?” Nephthys asked, her voice catching.

  His eyes sparked with righteous indignation. “I didn’t want to, Nephthys. You forced my hand. It’s a shame, too.” Leaning closer, he murmured, “Your wings were the only thing I found beautiful about you.”

  Her expression dulled. “I would think that someone who has suffered so much at the hands of others would have more compassion.”

  Seth grunted. “Yes, well . . . perhaps next time you’ll think twice before attempting to thwart me.”

  Turning, he flexed his hands, shaking them out as if he’d touched something unpleasant, and strode toward the door.

  “I wasn’t thwarting you,” Nephthys countered softly at his retreating back. “I was saving you.”

  If he heard her, he didn’t acknowledge it.

  Nephthys crumpled to the floor, and it was there Amun-Ra found her.

  His angry expression blazed with the light of a thousand suns as he gathered her in his arms. “He will die for this,” Amun-Ra promised.

  Nephthys pressed a palm against his cheek. “No. He cannot. Not yet. We need him.”

  Gently, Amun-Ra lifted her and carried her slight form to a settee. Instead of placing her upon it, he settled against the soft cushions himself, positioning her so she lay against him. His arms were strong, and she rested her cheek against his chest. He didn’t speak until her fresh tears subsided.

  “Tell me what we must do,” he said.

  “He’ll go after Osiris,” she said faintly. “If we remove him from Seth’s sight, he will focus his energy on pursuing Isis.”

  “He will threaten her,” Amun-Ra said. “Bend her to his will.”

  “You will limit his reach. As long as he believes he can rightfully persuade her with charm, it will provide sufficient distraction.”

  “And if she succumbs?”

  “She will not. Her love for her husband is sure.”

  “Let us hope you are right. Together they could accomplish Seth’s desires.”

  “Seth’s desires are not those of Isis.” She turned her face up to his, and Amun-Ra’s breath caught. Wet tears clung to her dark lashes. He had never thought her so beautiful. Even with her shorn hair and without her glorious wings, Nephthys was lovely.

  “And what is it that she desires?” Amun-Ra asked huskily.

  “What all women desire,” she replied. “A man who loves her above all else. Who would sacrifice everything for her.”

  “You deserve such a man, too,” he said.

  Reaching up, Nephthys traced the arch of the great god’s brow. “And I will have him someday.”

  Amun-Ra frowned. He wished she trusted him enough to share what she knew. She startled him from his thoughts when she said, “You must allow Isis to have the other wish of her heart.”

  “What wish is that?”

  “A child.”

  “No.” He shook his head. “You know why this is forbidden.”

  “Nevertheless. He must be born.”

  “He?”

  “Yes. When Seth unmade Osiris, a part of his energy was lost. His power has been diminished. He can no longer be the god he once was. If a baby is born, the piece of Osiris that Seth stole will be given to the child.” Turning in his arms, Nephthys clutched his hand. “It is right and natural for parents to grant their children something of themselves.”

  “As the baby grows in power, he would diminish his parents,” Amun-Ra protested. “They might not even survive the birth. Even with Osiris’s remaining life force, there’s not enough energy left to create another god. Perhaps if he was mortal . . .” His voice trailed off.

  “Two gods cannot conceive a mortal child. Besides, Isis and Osiris will survive if you grant the boy a small piece of yourself as well.”

  Amun-Ra rubbed his jaw.

  “The baby will serve as a distraction for Seth,” Nephthys added. “He will waste countless decades in the pursuit of regaining the energy he will lose. He’ll try every means at his disposal to unmake Isis and Osiris’s child, but with the strength you lend him, Seth will remain unsuccessful.”

  “Nephthys, are you certain about this?” Amun-Ra asked, his eyes flickering with an unvoiced emotion. She knew he was asking about more than Isis’s future son.

  She beamed. “With your help, I can handle this.”

  “I still don’t understand why marrying him was necessary. You don’t love him,” he stated, and yet she heard the hesitancy in his words, the underlying question.

  “No. I don’t. But it was a means to an end.”

  “Then promise me that the end, once it comes, will bring you happiness.”

  Taking his hand, she lifted it to her cheek and pressed a soft kiss on his palm. “I promise.”

  Gently, he stroked her bottom lip with his thumb. She shut her eyes, relishing the tender caress, and then he eased back and helped her stand. “I’ll need to take care of this as soon as possible, then. Will you come with me?” he asked. “That is . . . if you’re not in pain,” he added, glancing at her back where her lovely wings used to be.

  “I’ll get accustomed to it. Besides, it will help to have me there. Isis will need me.”

  “Will you still be able to transform into a kite?”

  Nephthys shook her head sadly. “The benu bird will have to fly on his own.”

  Amun-Ra’s jaw tightened. “Then the benu bird will remain grounded until such time as you can join him again.”

  “That might be a very
long time. Won’t you miss flying?” she asked.

  He turned to her, and his eyes were full of regret and the tender new beginnings of something else. “I would miss having you by my side more,” he said.

  Her mouth turned up into a soft smile. “We must go,” she said.

  Amun-Ra took her hand and led her to his sunlit chamber, where she knew Isis and Osiris waited. With the wave of a hand he sent a summons for Seth, one that brooked no argument.

  Nephthys knew that the longer she could delay her new husband from seeking his path of destruction, the better. The stars whispered to her that Wasret would not be born until the dawn of the last great age and that only she would have the power to unmake the unmaker. Until then, Nephthys must perform a complicated dance, move the pieces on the board, and keep Seth too busy to notice the mortal queen until she was ready to rise.

  Epilogue

  Yield

  Nephthys emerged from her place behind Amun-Ra’s throne the moment Seth entered the room and positioned herself alongside her husband, faking a smile as she did so. Isis gave a soft gasp, which probably meant she’d noticed Nephthys’s lack of wings. The act of seeing his chastised wife seemed to appease Seth, and he took hold of her hand, squeezing it possessively. Nephthys noticed Amun-Ra’s frown as he glanced at their hands, and when she gave a slight shake of her head, Amun-Ra focused his frown on Isis and Osiris instead.

  “Tell me everything,” Amun-Ra commanded.

  And they did. Isis and Osiris talked about all they’d seen Seth do, regaled Amun-Ra with information, including the fact that Seth had recently unmade the great forest, turning it into a desert so vast that even Nut could not send rain upon it. During the interview, whenever Seth tried to say something, Amun-Ra simply gave him a look and it served to stifle Seth’s tongue, though he took out his anger on his wife’s hand.

  Despite her determination not to do so, Nephthys winced and Amun-Ra immediately noticed. “Seth,” he said with an air of menace. “You will step away from your wife.”

  Seth obeyed, though he merely slumped into a chair with a disrespectful scowl.

  “Did you use your power to kill Osiris and unmake Nephthys’s wings?” Amun-Ra asked him with an expression that could freeze an erupting volcano. “Did you do all the things they accuse you of?” He indicated Isis and Osiris.

  “I did,” Seth answered straightforwardly. “It was . . . an accident. I didn’t mean to do it. It’s just that when I get angry I can’t always control what I do. Besides, my new wife did the unthinkable. Nephthys diminished the Waters of Chaos to bring back Osiris. It’s unfortunate, but isn’t it right that she should sacrifice something of hers to make up for it? Perhaps it was the cosmos’s way of bringing back balance.”

  Amun-Ra ground his teeth. “You assume much, Seth. You should have brought the matter to me instead of handling it yourself.”

  “Isn’t it a man’s right to handle his own wife?” Seth asked.

  Amun-Ra scoffed. “Any man, mortal or god, knows there is no handling a wife. Women handle themselves and intelligent men get out of the way. But I wouldn’t expect a boy like you to know that yet.”

  Anger lit Seth’s features, but before he could respond, Amun-Ra asked, “Speaking of being wet behind the ears, why didn’t you tell the Ennead about your newly developed power?”

  Seth shrugged. “I didn’t want to say anything until I’d practiced more.”

  “I’d say you’ve had enough practice.”

  Seth’s glower transformed into a crocodile smile when Amun-Ra turned his ire on Isis and Osiris. “As for you two, I’m sorry, but what you’ve done comes with grave consequences.”

  “What?” Osiris wrapped his arm around Isis, tucking her against his body. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean,” Amun-Ra said with a sigh, “your power, Osiris, has been diminished. You have returned to us as half the god you once were. Isis broke the rules. Not once but twice. She wove spells that reworked the nature of the cosmos. I have determined that the two of you cause trouble when you’re together.”

  “What are you saying?” Isis demanded.

  “I’m saying that there is a terrible price that must be paid. Unfortunately, the two of you will need to be separated. Osiris, you are hereby banished to the afterlife, where you will have no contact with Isis until such time as I deem the both of you have learned your lesson.”

  Angry tears sprang to Isis’s eyes. “It wasn’t his fault. It was mine! I’m the one who brought him back. Punish me.”

  “The afterlife is not a punishment. It is a duty,” Amun-Ra said kindly. “One that Osiris will be able to manage as long as he has the help of Anubis and Ma’at. Watching over the fields there will give him a measure of peace, since he’s no longer able to perform the same duties in the mortal realm.”

  “And what about Seth?” Isis demanded. “What is his punishment?”

  Seth stifled the glee he felt over Amun-Ra’s decision and attempted to adopt a mien of contriteness.

  “Seth will make a vow not to use his power against any of the gods ever again. He will be closely supervised by me. I promise you.”

  “That’s all?” Osiris asked. “After everything he’s done, he just gets a rebuke best reserved for a naughty child?”

  “You are not to question my decisions,” Amun-Ra said. “Your job is to see to your duties.” He leaned forward, an expression of sympathy on his face as he turned to the weeping goddess. “I am sorry for this. I truly am. But know this is for your own good. I will grant the two of you a reprieve until tomorrow. Take comfort in the love you feel for one another tonight and I’ll send Anubis to fetch Osiris in the morning.

  “As for you.” He turned to Seth. “Until you have demonstrated to me sufficiently that you know how to treat a wife, you will keep your hands off this one.”

  The corner of Seth’s mouth turned down and he lowered his head in a mock bow. “As you wish,” he replied faintly.

  “And you will not bother these two this night. Let them say goodbye. They will remain in Heliopolis, where they will spend their remaining hours together, and you will spend the evening on Earth and consider the things you have wrought.” Amun-Ra narrowed his gaze on Seth. “I will know if you breach the boundary between our realms.”

  “Of course, mighty one,” Seth said. He gave Nephthys a thoughtful glance, but she shook her head, indicating she was not going to accompany him. Truthfully, he preferred to be on his own for the time being anyway. Tucking his hands behind his back, he made his way to the barrier separating the realms.

  As he disappeared through with a pop, he smiled. Let them have their one night together. He’d have the next day and the day after. Isis would forget Osiris before the year was out. After that it would be only a matter of time until he could sway Isis to his side. With her ability to create spells, he could have anything he wanted. He could even depose Amun-Ra himself. Rubbing his hands as he emerged from the barrier, he lifted his nose to the wind and wondered what fearsome creature he could next unmake.

  #

  An hour later, Nephthys knocked on Amun-Ra’s door.

  “Come in,” he called.

  When he saw it was her, he rose and took her hand, settling her into the soft chair next to his, the ones where they often took tea together. “How is she?” he asked.

  “As can be expected. Osiris has whisked her away.”

  “Did you tell her about Cherty?”

  Nephthys nodded. “I gave her a bag full of your stamped coins. Then I told her Cherty could be bribed to take her to see her husband and that as long as she took care of her responsibilities, no one would be the wiser.”

  “Good,” he said.

  “She asked about the true names. She wants me to tell her Seth’s.”

  “What did you say?”

  “I said that only you had access to that.”

  “That’s smart. It means she’ll come after me. She doesn’t need to know that even I don’t know his true name.�
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  “She thinks I love him,” Nephthys said.

  “Did you tell her the truth?”

  “I merely replied, ‘It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.’”

  Amun-Ra picked up her hand and traced his fingertips across the back of it. “Do you believe that?” he asked, feeling as if everything in him hung upon her answer.

  Nephthys eyes gleamed as they looked at each other. “No,” she answered simply. “Love, once found, is never lost.”

  KEEP READING FOR BONUS CHAPTER OF THE NEXT BOOK IN THE REAWAKENED SERIES

  Reunited

  BY COLLEEN HOUCK

  The Snare Of Love

  With snare in hand I hide me,

  I wait and will not stir;

  The beauteous birds of Araby

  Are perfumed all with myrrh

  Oh all the birds of Araby,

  That down to Egypt come,

  Have wings that waft the fragrance

  Of sweetly smelling gum!

  I would that, when I snare them,

  Together we could be,

  I would that when I hear them

  Alone I were with thee.

  If thou wilt come, my dear one,

  When birds are snared above,

  I’ll take thee and I’ll keep thee

  Within the snare of love.

  *From Egyptian Myths And Legend

  By Donald Mackenzie

  Prologue

  Entombed

  “It begins.”

  “Yes, Master. The chains that bind you are weakening.”

  “It was foolish of them to think that this prison would hold me indefinitely.”

  The darkness that surrounded Seth sat upon his shoulders like a burial shroud weighted with lead. What remained of his grandmother, Tefnut, who once controlled the waters of the earth and sky, swirled around his form—trapping, immobilizing, suffocating.

  When he’d first been imprisoned, Tefnut’s etheric waters lapped against his consciousness and dragged him down to the depths of the blackest holes in the universe, where he was swallowed up. Seth couldn’t imagine any kind of punishment that would have been worse. Admittedly, he’d caused the painful deaths of countless beings, but their lives were insignificant. They were flies. No. They were the tiny microscopic organisms that lived on the backs of flies.