He knew now that he had to simply concentrate on a time and a place. With this thought lodged within his mind, he would need to walk back into the blinding light. He would re-enter a world that he imagined. If he kept the image strong, he could imagine his original form, only fitter and more desirable. Claire would have no defense against his charm, charisma and power. He smiled, allowing himself a small amount of self-indulgence. He had managed to pull off an elaborate plan of deceit. He was taught Gieging by Master Xu, under the pretense of helping the Universe. He colluded with the Elders from the Order of the Serpent, a power hungry group. He would promise the delivery of ancient artifacts. He found and secured an ancient crystal, programmed by Cryanna herself.
The final deceit was to hijack the body of a young man, eager to please and gain acceptance. There was no remorse, only pleasure in his newfound power and satisfaction in completing such a complex plan. It was time Paul Smith realized his destiny and he knew that Claire was waiting. She was finally his for the taking. He walked gingerly towards the light before stopping abruptly. He slid his eyes carefully to the right and from the corner of his eye saw a movement. At first he thought the snake had returned but this was different. A muscular grey haired beast emerged. The beast straightened his legs from a low crouching position to reveal his full form. It was a giant wolf. He snarled, licking his nose to intensify his sense of smell. His huge snout rounded in Paul’s direction. He decided to stay still and let the beast pass, like the snake before him.
Wepwawet, the wolf God, had also been drawn to the shoreline by an unusual smell. It was a familiar smell. Confused, he dragged his enormous paws through the hot sand. He thrashed his snout wildly through the dry air, searching for clues. Paul remained stationary as his eyes widened with fear. The unusual snake was scary but the sight of this enormous muscular beast was petrifying.
Wepwawet blocked Paul’s route to the light. He wouldn’t make it if he ran, so his best option was to remain still. He needed to enter the light with the right image in his head. He did not want to be thinking about a giant vicious looking wolf. As Wepwawet drew closer, Paul could see the grey coarse fur covering his muscular body. A large black nose with flared nostrils hungrily searched for the familiar scent. He walked slowly, as if stalking his prey. He would inhale and crinkle his snout, to examine the air swirling around in his nostrils. His eyes darted from side to side, straining to see any movement. A large drooling tongue licked razor sharp teeth. Saliva dropped upon the dry barren sand. Wepwawet moved his front paw closer to Paul.
He could see razor sharp claws protruding from the pads on his paw. He was close now and temporarily stopped his search. His nostrils flared wide as he inhaled noisily, trying to place the scent. He suddenly raised his snout from the ground and leveled his eyes in Paul’s direction. With one powerful swipe of a large paw, the wolf God ripped his claws into Paul’s neck. It caused him to fall hard to his side. Paul’s head was nearly severed, as blood oozed from the open wound. Paul lay dying. He lay on his back motionless hoping the beast would leave. The great wolf God Wepwawet walked calmly over to Paul, as if he could see him plainly. He straddled his fallen prey and snorted his displeasure, his tongue licking his open lips. Paul could barely remain conscious. He could feel the hot breath of the beast close to his face.
Wepwawet was originally a hunting God and he was not about to let his prey escape, no matter what cunning devices were at play. He lunged forward and with open jaws gouged Paul’s heart from his body. Carrying the heart in his mouth, he delivered it to Anubis, for the weighing of the heart ceremony. Wepwawet was not going to let this treacherous soul escape judgment.
Wepwawet has taken many roles through the passage of time. His current one was the “Opener of the ways.” The wolf like God was associated with the one who accompanies the spirits of the dead through Duat. He transported the spirit of Paul Smith deep into the judgment hall, where Anubis himself was waiting to weigh his heart. In life, your decisions and actions will fall into two categories; deeds that help people, or those that don’t. In it’s crudest form thoughts, deeds or actions that support good or those that support evil. Your heart records these deeds and registers them with weight or lightness.
The great snake Nehebkau pulled the discarded carcass into the water, where it eventually rotted away. Wepwawet had collected the Amulet, Golden box and the exquisite Rings. Unsure of there origin, he would return them to Anubis for inspection.
As described in the Book of the Dead, Anubis the jackal headed God, weighs the hearts and souls with a sacred scale. A balanced heart is the same weight as a feather from Ma’at. Any heart, out of balance with the feather, would not be allowed to travel toward the paradise of Aaru. Instead, the Goddess Ammit would devour these damaged, corrupt souls. Ammit was a symbolized demon Goddess. She had the head of a crocodile, the torso of a leopard and the rear end of a hippopotamus. Ammit would sit beneath the scales of justice before the throne of Osiris. She would wait patiently for the steady flow of unworthy souls. If a soul were to be judged unworthy, then Anubis would feed the soul to Ammit for total annihilation.
Wepwawet dropped the heart at Anubis’s feet, proud that his hunting instincts had not let this one get away. Ete assisted with the weighing of the heart and judgment was passed swiftly. The Goddess Ammit was summoned forward and she fed on another unworthy soul. She made short work of Paul Smith, whose crimes resulted in the complete annihilation of his soul.
Wepwawet used his snout to push a collection of artifacts towards Ete. Ete collected them dutifully and presented them to Anubis for inspection.
They both smiled. They had exchanged these items thousands of years ago in the days of King Narmer when Ete was a High Priest. Anubis examined the Golden box, intricately sculptured from his own flesh. He placed it upon his forearm. It melted into his body, returning to its original form. Anubis gazed at the Amulet made in his self-image of sweet smelling wood. He placed it over his head and wore it with pride. He then turned his attention to the Rings. He cupped the Rings within his hands and they melted back into his body. The ancient Egyptians always referred to gold as the skin of the gods.
Two pieces of polished claw remained in his palm. Anubis discarded them by tossing them to the floor. Wepwawet watched intensely. Keen to see what Anubis would do with the worthless stones he watched their trajectory and noted where they landed. Without asking permission, he calmly moved his hulking frame towards the two small objects.
Wepwawet sniffed them with interest and finally flicked his tongue to gather the polished stones. Ete knew only to well where these fragments had originated. Wepwawet crunched down on the hard stones, devouring them. The Golden box and the Amulet would have provided Paul Smith safe passage into the ante-chamber of Duat. From there, he could have left unnoticed, into another time and place. It was the Rings that eventually gave Paul Smith away. Wepwawet had led many hunting trips as the God of War and a Hunting God. His keen wolf nose was trained to discern smells. But there was one smell that he would always recognize: His own.
Wepwawet had recognized the smell of his own claw. The fragments were set within the two Rings, cleverly crafted many years ago. He knew something was wrong when he could smell his scent across the river. It was the Rings that led to Paul’s downfall and discovery. An audacious plan meticulously executed, to win the heart of a woman. Claire had never shown Paul any affection. Lies, murder and deceit had led to the annihilation of his soul. For others, there would be mercy for the odd indiscretion or lack of judgment. When you involve the Gods and their artifacts it can only end one way.
* * * * *
Haworth, West Yorkshire, England, Present day.
“Will these people still come after us,” asked Beth, still shaking from the evening’s events?
David pulled her close, “They may, but now we’re twice as prepared.”
She rested her head on his chest and let the words sink into her thoughts. “I’m still worried. They’ll be mad. They were
double crossed and now they’ll think we have their artifacts.”
David held out his hand. The crystal pendant rested upon his palm. “This is important and it’s the only thing that survived. Don’t worry Beth, whatever we have to face, we’ll face it together. Let’s go for a stiff drink and you can tell me the story behind that little fox tattoo.”
The End …..
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The Skin of the Gods Page 35