by Jean Murray
Asar measured Kit. “You can ask your questions in my presence.”
“I will meet with him,” Kit blurted out.
“May I speak with you alone?” Asar glared at Kit.
She nodded and followed the Lord of the Underworld down the hall. He turned to her when they were around the corner. “I made a promise to Kamen to keep you safe. I do not trust the Chancellor. His soul is unreadable, which causes me great concern. If anything happened to you…”
“This is important to the Pantheon. Maybe I can find out what he is up to and in the process lift the ban.”
“I do not have a good feeling about it.”
“We both know Thoth will drag this out until you agree. We have very little time. We need this.”
“Kamen will not take kindly to you getting hurt.”
“I faced the beast, remember, and survived. I think I can handle the ostrich.” She jerked her thumb over her shoulder in the direction of the Chancellor.
The edges of Asar’s lip circled up. “Ostrich? Never thought of that one, but it fits.” He stepped back. “Thoth is almost as old as I am. Very intelligent and cunning. Be careful not to agree to anything. A simple word could bind you to something you do not want.”
“Ammut will keep me safe.” Kit tapped her heart.
Asar’s eyes softened. “I was worried how your bonding to Kamen might affect you. To be honest, I am surprised the beast seems very content.”
“Kamen said the same thing.”
Asar steamed out a breath. “Ten minutes, not a second more.”
“Thank you.” Kit followed Asar back to the group.
“You get ten minutes, Thoth. And so help me if you go back on your word.”
“Shall we.” Thoth smiled and held out his hand, guiding Kit to his personal chambers.
Kit entered the gleaming ornate office. She ran her fingertip along the gold desk and stopped next to an open text with a gold quill. Black hieroglyphics spanned the parchment and stopped in the middle of the page. The scribe, the librarian to the Pantheon. Author of the sacred texts, she reminded herself.
“So, do you make this stuff up as you go along? Or do you actually write about the events that have come to pass?”
“Please do not touch that, my dear,” Thoth stated when she picked up the quill and ran her fingers over the plume.
She brought the soft feathers to her nose. A floral scent filled her senses. “So this is how you write what gods decree?” She set the quill down and continued to survey the bookcase filled to the ceiling.
Thoth shifted the pen back into its original position. “Yes.”
“Do you record the decree or what happens as a result?”
He tracked her procession around the room. “I thought it was I who was to ask the questions.”
Kit stopped and faced him. “Sorry, I’m just so fascinated by your role in this. I apologize if my curiosity makes you uncomfortable.”
His gaze drifted down the front of her and paused where the slit in her gown exposed her long leg. “You are an enigma. So unlike your mother.”
Sensing the Chancellor’s attraction to her to the point of arousal, she smiled. Creepy, but something she could use against him. “My mother and I have little in common.” In fact, Kit had made it her mission to be as dissimilar to her mother as possible, something she would have to get over if they were to make amends.
“So you have questions of me, Chancellor Thoth.” She sauntered up to the god and stopped just within his personal space. Filtering through the different scents, she detected no foul odors that would indicate he was compromised. She reminded herself that Nebt had fooled everyone, and she was in deep with Apep.
He stared her in the eyes. “Yes.” He looked away and cleared his throat. “Your mother has taken a great risk siring you.”
Kit exhaled a long breath and sat down in the closest chair. “Siring demi-gods is illegal, I know.”
“I have little concern over her breaching the law or your sisters.”
“You don’t like me,” she said out loud.
“You are a great risk,” he said matter-of-factly.
She crossed her legs, allowing her gown to slide free to expose her entire leg up to her thigh. “A great risk to whom? You or Apep?” Or both, she surmised.
He sat on the edge of his desk, quiet for several minutes. Uncomfortable with his silence, she resisted the urge to shift in her chair.
“You’re ten minutes are almost up, Chancellor.” She bounced her crossed leg in time with the seconds ticking by without his questions being asked or answered.
“You are a risk to everyone.” He rose and moved to the wall and grabbed a book from the shelf. “You have no idea how powerful you are, do you?” he asked, returning with the book.
She frowned, not liking what he was insinuating. “If you brought me in here to insult me, you have succeeded.” Furious, she rose from her chair.
“The sacred books were never meant to be together. Too powerful, they were separated. Your mother was foolish to do what she has done.”
“What are you saying?” Kit snapped, annoyed how ten minutes could take so long.
Thoth glared at her. “The Demotic text was given to Asar. The Creation text to an unnamed warrior. The third your mother hid in a place unknown to anyone. We already know Nebt has defected and taken the Demotic text. Apep just needs to find the third, and he will break free of his prison.”
“And, you think I know where the third text is?” Kit laughed. “If that is the question you wanted answered, I’m sorry, but you are going to be disappointed.” She moved to the door.
“You are the third text.”
Kit paused with her hand on the knob. She turned to stare at the god. “I’m a book?”
“Not a book. The book. The future of the Pantheon. A scripture that has yet to be written. She put it inside of you.”
Stunned and not certain she could believe him, she stood frozen. She wanted to deny the puny god’s accusation, but her fear of the truth stayed her tongue.
“Mut has put the fate of the Pantheon in you.” His voice rose along with the redness of his face. Fury filled his eyes.
The beast stirred along with her fear. Not of him, but the chance that what he spoke was true.
“If Apep has awoken, as Asar claims, then you decreed it.”
Kit genuinely laughed. This male was a fool. She didn’t bring this upon her family. “You’re mad to think I did this. This started with Menthu and Kepi, long before I was born. With you and all of those self-righteous gods out there. The prophecy of Apep’s rising was written by you.”
“The Dark Lord will rise and you will be his queen.”
“Shut up, you don’t know what the hell you are talking about unless you have been consorting with Apep.” Pain and fire raced up her spine as flames lit up her vision.
The Chancellor’s eyes widened.
She stalked forward and grabbed him by the throat and pulled him in close to her face. Staring into his eyes, she could see the black shimmer behind the light blue. “I am coming for you,” she growled, her voice feral and deeper than her own. “I will destroy you.”
Thoth’s eyes rolled back into his head. When he refocused, they were black as oil. The god smiled. “We meet again, Ammut. My love.”
Kit felt the beast’s fury. The hunger. Both of want and vengeance. “I made the mistake of letting you live before. I will not show you mercy again,” Kit heard herself speak.
“I shall look forward to it and the day you will bow before me on the bones of the ones you love.”
“I will not let that happen. The Mother Goddess has seen to release me from my bonds. I will destroy all until nothing of you is left.”
Thoth chuckled. “Do not fool yourself, Ammut. I am far stronger now than when we last met. My reach is limitless. Just ask Katherine. She has seen what is to come. You will finally be mine.”
Under control of the beast, Kit tightened her grip on Thoth’s throat and pu
lled the vial from her pocket. Forcing his mouth open, she poured the iridescent fluid down his throat. “The tears of our ancestors will banish you. I am a vessel of their will, power and law.”
Thoth’s whole body violently shook. Blackness receded from his eyes. He gasped and his chest heaved, expelling wisps of black air. Kit sealed her lips over the god’s mouth and inhaled, sucking the wickedness into her lungs. Fire burned in her gaze as the beast consumed the evil and released the power into Kit’s body.
Kit staggered back, sickened as a wave of nausea rolled through her. God, what had the beast made her do?
“It is happening. The war. Apep.” Thoth grabbed onto the desk, his eyes wide, the blinders ripped away. The truth shined bright in his eyes.
“It’s what we have been trying to tell you.” Kit leaned up against the wall and covered her stomach with her hand.
“I have always served the Pantheon. How could Apep get to me?”
“The day we think we are above reproach is often when he sneaks in, darkening our soul,” Kit heard herself say. She wondered if she had let Apep in long before the siravant infected her. He had been there during her childhood, coaxing her to run away to make her father pay. Fueling her hateful words to him.
She met Thoth’s gaze. “If you serve the Pantheon then prove your loyalty. Lift the law against the Underworld.” The flames flickered in her vision. “Before Apep escapes Duat. Do your part to save this world before it is too late.”
A loud knock at the door made Thoth jump. “Time is up, Thoth.” Asar opened the door.
The scribe jerked his gaze from Kit to Asar. The god’s hands trembled as he passed out the door and into the Council Chambers.
Lilly grabbed Kit’s hand. “Are you okay? You’re so pale.”
Shaken, she nodded in the face of the stark reality of Thoth’s information. Apep knew what she was and had tainted her to possess the power of the book. Her thoughts wandered back to her abduction. She shuddered to think how close she was to death. If not for Kamen and the beast, she would be under Apep’s control.
Why hadn’t her mother shared this information with her?
She prayed that the presence of the beast in her soul would be enough to protect her against the Dark Lord when she returned to Duat to make up to her father all the suffering she had caused him. She had to find the courage to go back and free the souls.
“Kit.” Lilly squeezed her hand. “Are you okay? Did he hurt you?”
“No, I’m okay,” she lied. This battle was more than just Apep wanting power. Ammut had its own agenda and had power over Kit’s soul and the future. The question was, what would be left when Ammut was through cleansing Apep from the realms. According to her visions, not much would be left standing.
“They are calling the session back to order. We need to return to the Council.” Asar opened the door for them to pass.
Settling down in her seat, Kit ignored the concerned stares of her sisters and Asar. If Thoth did as she asked, this all would be over soon.
The Chancellor cleared his throat. “After a long deliberation, I have reassessed my position on the Underworld law. I have been shown evidence to support the Underworld’s claim that Apep is making ready his forces to breach this realm.”
Murmurs and shouts burst throughout the chamber.
Asar’s gaze slide to Kit, his eyes narrow.
“Oh my god, what did you say to him,” Kendra asked on an astonished whisper.
“I told him the truth,” Kit said, evading her sister’s question.
“I’m sorry to doubt your powers of persuasion.” Kendra smiled as the arguments ensued. But the dissention died to only a few as Thoth gave his most convincing speech.
If Apep could get to Thoth, how many countless Creations had been affected too? Kit looked towards the Chancellor and found Bast staring at her. The Cat goddess appeared unaffected by the sudden change in Thoth’s position. She almost looked pleased, if for a brief moment before she looked away. Of all people, Kit could not imagine Bast wanting the ban lifted, not after the pain she put Siya and Bomani through. But then again, Bast and her mother were close. Very close.
Kit inhaled a breath, realizing her mother’s premeditation was a well-orchestrated plan.
“So it is undone,” Thoth announced. “The ban shall be lifted.”
There was an audible gasp in the room before several members stood and bowed towards Asar. The Underworld Lord stood and returned a bow before the Council. “The Underworld thanks you and vows to shed the blood of our enemy.”
“Do not disappoint us,” Thoth said, his gaze drifting from Asar to Kit. Several members of the Council moved forward to greet Asar. Thankful for the distraction, Kit slipped out into the hall.
Bast stood, leaning against the white alabaster wall. Her green eyes measured Kit. “Mother Goddess said you would be the one. I just did not believe it.”
Kit didn’t do a thing. Ammut did. “I’m beginning to suspect you’re in collusion with my mother, despite your actions to the contrary.” Bast had attempted to kidnap Lilly, forced Bomani into servitude, and hunted Siya. Despite all Bast’s efforts, Lilly and Asar, Bomani and Siya, were closer than ever. But—maybe that had been her mother’s intent all along. Providing every reason why they shouldn’t be together, yet against adversity they were stronger for it. Her mother couldn’t do it directly by herself, but an external source could. One, willing and able to inflict pain. It’s about the journey, her father had told her the night before he died. A part of her believed without Nebt’s kidnaping and Apep tainting her soul, Kamen and she may have never come to terms.
“I do not know what you are talking about.” The Cat goddess pushed off the wall.
Bast’s lie prickled against her skin. “Has my mother told you what is to come next?”
With lips pressed into a thin line, Bast’s eyes darkened. “As I told you, I haven’t seen or talked to the Mother Goddess.”
Again, Kit’s nerves bristled, the beast detecting the lie and the fear in her voice. Bast could put up a charade of being the hateful goddess, but Kit knew the truth. The goddess was knee deep in her mother’s plan against Apep, which was coming to an end. “The Underworld cannot do this alone.”
Bast ground her teeth. Her eyes darted to the Council door. “It will be a cold day in Duat before the Creation serves the Underworld. Do not celebrate your victory too soon.”
“And what is that supposed to mean?”
Bast’s gaze raked down the front of Kit and back up. “You already know the answer. And, if you do not, you soon will. Sacrifices will need to be made. When it comes time, will you be strong enough to commit?”
Kit’s breath caught in her throat, remembering Kamen’s death in her visions. That was a sacrifice she wasn’t willing to make. There had to be another way.
“There will always be a Duat and a master to rule it all. Just as there is one boat and one captain.”
Kit stepped back, not liking Bast’s words. “So Apep can’t be destroyed?”
“That is not what I said.”
“Then please explain? What has my mother told you?”
The door burst open and gods and goddesses filed out of the Council hall. Bast turned and disappeared into the crowd before Kit could get answers.
“Time to go,” Lilly said, grabbing Kit’s hand.
“Yeah.” Kit pivoted and headed towards the rainbow bridge. To the arms of a male who would make her feel safe. Like there was a future beyond the war.
Beyond death.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
A maelstrom of warriors ran through the palace halls to match the black clouds rolling across the once bright sky. Asar’s face darkened and he grabbed the closest warrior. “What has happened?”
“The river has overflowed its banks. We fear Aaru is under attack.” The warrior’s golden stare swept over the group.
A loud cry echoed down the stone passageway.
“Siya.” Lilly gasped.
&
nbsp; Asar grabbed Lilly. “Go to her. Take Kendra and Kit with you.”
Lilly nodded. “Com’on, let’s go.”
Kit stepped back and shook her head. “I need to find Kamen.”
“He went to the dungeon,” the warrior said.
Asar turned to her. “Kit, I need you to go with Lilly. I want you safe with your sisters. I will find him.”
Lilly jerked Kit’s arm. “I need your help with Siya.”
With great reservation, Kit succumbed to her sister’s command. A rumble shook beneath her feet as she ran to follow Lilly and Kendra to Siya’s room. Kit looked out over the open wall. Black water rose to the banks of the palace, washing away the beautiful beach and consuming the statuary garden.
“How could this have happened?” Kendra asked alarmed. “Apep should not have enough power, not yet.”
“Let’s worry about the whys later.” Lilly jerked open Siya’s door. Younglings scattered out of the way.
The blood assaulted Kit’s nose the minute the door was open. Uncertain how the beast would react, she hung back. Kamen had warned her even the smallest scent of demon blood could trigger her to shift. After what happened with Thoth and being under the beast’s complete control, Kit feared Ammut would mark the baby as a threat and god forbid harm someone.
Siya’s whimper drove Kit forward, despite her fear. The Goddess of War was in pain. The younglings parted to reveal the blood soaked sheets. Lilly already had her hands on Siya’s abdomen.
“I thought I was going into labor, but something is wrong.” Siya grimaced.
“The baby is under severe distress,” Lilly said to Siya and Bomani.
“Why is this happening? The baby is not due for two more days,” Bomani said as he gripped Siya’s hand.
“The baby is the first of its kind. The delivery date is only an estimate. I will slow things down and control the bleeding, so we can get a better understanding of what’s happening. You may get sleepy Siya but don’t panic. Try to slow your breathing and relax.”
“I want Kamen here when the baby comes,” Siya groaned as another contraction contorted her face. She grabbed Kit’s hand and pressed it to her hard belly.