Post by insanity on Jun 30, 2013 21:16:13 GMT -7
Untitled 2
"Every night, since I was first able to understand them, I gazed at the stars. My mother once told me that they were a gateway to the heavens, but everyone else said that they were the eyes of the gods. So that made me wonder, I think. It also made me question my own existance. It helped me escape the world I lived in. All of the laughter, the pain, and the exicle I felt..." I pause, "It... changed me." I look to the goddess for reasurance. She nods, but doesn't speak a word. We stand in silence for a moment, watching the sun rise over Giza. The red ball of fire sets the pyramids on fire with golden light. When the sun reaches the top of the tallest pyramid, Sekhmet turns to me. She looks at me through a golden eye and says, "The humans want to put a spell on me." She turns away, "They want me to be Hathor by day and Sekhmet by night." Her ear twitches, and a cruel smile spreads accross her face. Her wicked mind always makes me doubt her honesty. Although we're both on the same side, it seems as though we're enemies. She turns to me, and my hand goes to my knife. I don't dare ignore that reckless look in her eyes. I say in a firm voice, "Now we charge." And stare at the horizon. Sekhmet summons her firey steed and mounts. She holds her sword to the sky and calls upon her army of flames. Then, she leads them upon the city of Giza. As soon as the last soldier leaves me standing, I summon my dragon. "Hello, Andini." He says in a voice like Ra's, powerful and assured. His scales are covered with hieroglyphs, most are illegible. Around his neck is a collar, engraved with three heiroglyphs- An Ankh on the right and left of an eye of Horus. It essentially means "Life and Protection." My beast is a god. The eye representing his power. "Hello, Horus." I say with equal confidence. He gives a low growl like the purr of a cat. In our time, all of the gods are represented as they want to be. Sekhmet chose her humanlike form, and Horus chose he form of a beast. I have no godly powers, only the abilities I can manage. "Shall we ride?" I ask Horus. He nods. I mount, my hands holding onto forgotten words. He takes a step back, and shoots into the air. It knocks the breath out of me, the sheer force of breaking gravity in an unprotected form. By the time Horus has leveled out, I'm gasping for air. We sweep down, reigning terror upon Giza. Now, the city burns with more than a sunrise. Sekhmet leads her army, sparing no mercy, while Horus and I burn the pyramids. With his magical fire, even stone will burn. A ball of fire hits Horus in the wing, and we begin to fall. He struggles to keep his altitude, but we're slipping too fast. "Andini!" He shouts, "Please, I won't live much longer, jump off!" The flaming pyramids are coming closer. I brace myself, and jump off. The freefall makes me scream with fear. Sekhmet catches me just before I hit the ground. She laughs and I sigh. I look up just to see Horus be impaled by the tallest pyramid. He gives a final scream, and goes limp. "No!" I shout. Even Sekhmet looks surprised. She turns to me, and with a stern look on her face says, "Come." We both mounted her steed, which starts running at Sekhmet's command. "Where are we going?" I ask. "To see Osiris." She quickly replies with. It is a long ride to the Afterlife. We passed many landscapes. Deserts, and mountains, and lava rocks. Then we finally came to the Afterlife. We walked to the Hall Of Judgement to see Osiris...
"Osiris." Sekhmet says. Her eyes blare a sparkling reddish gold with anger. "Sekhmet, how dare you stand in my hall with battle armor still shining with the blood of Giza!" He raises a hand, and her armor melts into a black dress that's decorated like the sky. "Much better." He says with a polite smile. She crosses her arms. "Stop it, Osiris." She growls. The man's attention moves away from Sekhmet, and focuses on something behind us. He stands and yells, "Anubis!" There's a clang as something metal crashes to the ground. "That goes in the dark room!" Osiris shouts. I turn around, the god Anubis is carrying a blue sheild with golden heiroglyphs. Anubis bears a jackal helmet. The helmet has the head skin of a jackal stretched over it. The ears are even propped up to look alive. He growls at us, and storms off. Sekhmet and Osiris are arguing, "Horus was your flesh and blood!" Sekhmet shouts. "I can't just bring people back to life!" Osiris bellows. "Fine! You can keep your son's soul, and live alone with your mongrel of a scale worker!" Sekhmet screams, and runs outside. Osiris sighs, rubbing his temple. "Women..." He mumbles to himself. He looks down at me from his golden throne. "Oh, I'm sorry. I don't believe we've been properly introduced. I am Osiris, lord of the Afterlife." He nods. I smile, and give a small bow. "I am Antini, champion of Sekhmet." I reply with. The room is ancient, and carved on the walls are heiroglphs as old as time. The king sits in a solid gold throne with a jeweled helmet on his head. "Anubis!" Osiris shouts. The god looks up. "Take that blasted helmet off!" Osris yells. Anubis removes the helmet, it disappears. "Hello. It is my honor to stand in the shadow of such a warrior." He states in a very kind manner, bowing afterwards. "Anubis, I have a meeting to attend to. Please take care of our guest until I return." Osiris says, leaving the room. He slams the door as he exits. Anubis claps and a feast arrives. It sits upon a jade table, and consists of rare delacacies to even the gods. "Sit." He gestures to a chair. I do as he asks, and place some of the food on a gold plate. We eat in silence. Gods always frighten me a bit, being immortal and all, they are invinsible. "How did a mortal get such fame?" Anubis asks. I finish chewing the tender piece of mysteroius meat and answer. "By owing something to the gods." I say grimly. I stare down at my plate. I've lost my appetite, so I push it aside. I look up at Aunbis, who stares at me intently. "Many years ago..." I begin, "I burned down a statue of Ra accidentally." I look down to the table, "Set congradulated me, and, as the child I was, I told him it was an acciendent. He mocked me and told me I was weak, and unless I could prove myself before the sunset on the 3rd day of the 5th year after that..." I was holding back tears, "He would own my immortal soul. Well... I failed that day. But Sekhmet saved me, she gambled with him to win my soul. She saw something in me. And, after that, she made me her champion and right hand man in battle." I try to ignore the god's inquisitve stare,"She... Owns me." I finally look back to him. He shows fear and regret. "I remember you. You died after that statue burned, because you burned wih it. You pleaded and begged Osiris to let you go, but he wouldn't allow it. I tried to convince him, because you were just a child. The feather of truth weighed twice as much as you heart then." He glares at me, "But the godly priviges you were given by Sekhmet made you evil. I regret ever siding with you." He almost snarls the next words, "Now that I know who you are, I banish you to the mortal world! No god will ever endure your presence again! So I cast you to the city of Giza, where you mercilessly slaughtered every soul!" It's amazing how short tempered gods are. He summons a dark doorway, and casts me through it. As I see my last glimse of the god, his face melts into his true form. Set...
My mouth is as dry as a papyrus scroll, and my head rings like the clang of swords. I lift my head. Sand. Everywhere. The city is empty. It burns with sunlight and heat. Mirages of water dance everywhere. I see a slip of a page from a book of the dead. I distinctly recall it. It displays a heart, represented by a tiny me. I put it in my pocket. Walking along, I see another note. This one is also from a book of the dead. It shows the devouror, eating the tiny me. I'm scared, as a shrill wind has just picked up. Another note lies at my feet. I carefully look at it. It shows the tiny me in Set's hand, being crushed, and Set laughing. I put both the notes away, and move on. I'm shaking. Where are the pyramids? I look around. Suddenly, I slam into something. A pyramid. A final note is held up on it by the wind. I take it, and read it. It shows me burning down the statue of Ra. I scream, and throw it to the ground, whjch shatters. I fall through. A searing pain is in my chest. I look down to see that I'm in a pit of spikes, impaled. I clutch the spike in my chest, and fade out into black. My ghostly Ba form shimmers in the candelight. A golden scale sits before me. Along with 42 gods and goddesses, my heart, the feather of truth, and Osiris and Anubis. The actual god looks very different than his impersonaitor, and scowls at me. "This soul is owned by Sekhmet. Because she has died under a goddess's rule, she can either suffer the same fate as her master, or take on the form and mind of Sekmet. May Osiris choose. After the weighing of her heart." Anubis preaches to the judges. The feather is placed on the scale, and my heart breaks the scale and crashes to the ground. I look both ways as all gods of all shapes and sizes run to attack me. With tooth and fang beared, they try to get to me. But some unknown source protects me from the snarling group. "STOP!" Osiris bellows. "Let this innocent soul go!" The gods all turn to him. "The scale was rigged!" Osiris yells to them. With a growl, they all dissapear. "Are you alright, my dear?" Osiris asks. "Yes." I say. "I apologise, I was unaware of the planned ambush from Set." He says politeley. "This is the actual Anubis." He says, gesturing to the god with the ceremonial dog head and spear. Anubis lets out a low growl. "You see, Set recalled your abilities. But I can return them to you. If you will complete, for me, a favor." Osiris says. I nod. "Take this amulet to the goddess Venus." He says, handing me a saphire with an ank shaped with diamonds on it. It's chain is made of gold and jade. "Anubis will go with you, to guard you due to your lack of strength. This will be very safe." Osiris says reassuringly. "But, I'm a Ba!" I say. "Oh, right." Osiris laughs. He claps and I take back my real form, in my armor, with my sword, and my bow. I start to relax. "Now,off you two go!" Osiris says with another clap. Almost in a heartbeat, we're in a diffrent city. Full of different people. A man walks up to me and taps my shoulder. He says something I don't understand, and points to a large building. He looks at Anubis who growls at him. Of course, Osiris gave me a dog to protect me. The man yells the statement again and points with more emphasis. Then puts a hand on his knife. Anubis gives one final growl as we walk to the building. I see now that its open on the top, and covered with statues of gods that aren't our own. Written on a poster held to the building with a knife is the only word I understand in Latin, "Fight." I look down at Anubis. He growls at the sign, then leads the way inside the building. There are rows of seats and the flooring is dirt mixed with blood and gore. "Many lost souls who came to Osiris and I were killed here." Anubis says, "They came to us for forgiveness. Many had won in this arena many times, and pleaded to be released of their murders. Many had been put here invoulentarily, and were killed without mercy." He growls as we step over bits of bone and dried flesh, "It is a place of misery and pain." He says with a dog's whine. He looks up at a bird of prey, which has landed on the head of one of the statues. "Horus." He growls. I look up at the bird. "No," I say staring at the gleam in its eyes, "Isis." The bird flutters closer to us. The grace in its weightless wings is almost impossible. Landing perfectly at my feet, it says in a the sweet voice of a child, "You stupid dogheaded beast!" Anubis growls. "You turned me into this! I want to be a human again!" The bird stomps her tiny foot. "When the time comes, child." Anubis hisses. "Thats the other thing! Why has your spell reversed our ages?!" The bird yells. "It hasnt, people have forgotten you, Isis! Now they know me more!" Anubis howls. "Wait." I say,"That doesnt make any sense." Isis looks up at me, "The more known a god is, the older they are. Anubis here used to be a little child like me. Until he turned me into a bird forever and banished me to the forgotten lands!" Anubis barks at the bird, "It was Horus's idea!" Isis caws at him and says, "You were both mere children before the time of the golden age of our people, the Egyptians. You were both stupid nieve children! Children shouldn't play with Osiris's magic staff!" Anubis growls and whines. "Osiris's magic staff?" I ask. "Yes," Isis says "the Sacred Staff Of The Dead King. It was an offering from his favorite preist, Nahiti." I'm puzzled. "Who is Nahiti?" I ask. "She was his mortal lover, in return for the life of her first son." Isis begins, "She was the wife of a rich scribe from Thebes. They had one son and one daughter. Their daughter was born blessed with the beauty of a goddess yet unable to speak, and their son was born deformed and dead. So Nahiti preyed to Osiris, she offered him her eternal love in return for her son's life. Osiris accepted the offer, and gave her the boy's life. Of course, Nahiti could not leave the mortal world without the guidence of a god, so she would meet Osiris on the bank of the Nile every night. After ten years of her dept, she focused all of her power into a staff that she carved by hand. This surge of power killed her, but made the staff so powerful, it could kill a god. Osiris was heartbroken that his lover had died, so he cast the staff away. Horus and Anubis found it, and played with it like a toy. Then Anubis zapped me with it, and made me a child and him an adult. He suddenly became more known than me, and I was almost forgotten. So now, I remain a bird until humans know my name." A man in a chariot rides up, and stops next to us. "Whats with the dog and the bird, miss?" The man asks. One of his horses snorts and the other stomps. Anubis growls. The man gasps, "Egyptian gods! Thats against the laws!" Anubis quiets him, and says with a deep growl, "We need to talk to Venus." The man frowns and says, "Not again with Horus is it?" Anubis whines and says, "Horus had an accident. He is still weak." The chariot man says, "She is in her home." I thank him and he rides away. "I may be of assistance." Isis chirps. "Then you may follow us." I say, already following Anubis. We reach the house quickly. Its a stone home, and it looks a lot like a temple. We walk inside without asking, and I dont question the god's intentions. Sitting on a chair, talking to a ghostly form across from her, is the godess of love and beauty. "Hello mortal, and immortals." She says without looking at us. Then she gives a light laugh that sounds like mist in a foggy morning. She then looks up at us. Her face is as perfect as a face could be, her skin is fair and clear and flawless. Her greenish blond hair looks like the planet she represents. But her eyes are by far the source of all of her beauty. They glisten and shine like the stars, and if you gaze into them long enough, you can see our galaxy. Sparking now with exitement, the galaxy within twirls and spins gracefully. She's smiling, and showing her pearls of teeth. "What can I help the lot of you with?" She says in a british accent. Isis rolls her bird eyes, and Anubis tries to look away from her. "Now, why are you in your animal forms? Thats no way to greet a goddess." She says, then laughs again. With a snap of her fingers, Anubis and Isis are again human. Isis is now a little girl in a toga, and olive branches in her hair, and Anubis is his usual form. "Much better." The goddess says with a smile. "We have come to give you this." I hand her the amulet. She gasps, "Oh! My amulet!" Then she puts it away. The ghostly form accross from her looks at me in a puzzled way. "Antini?" The ghost asks. "Yes." I say cautiously. "I mistook you for a gladiator! Osiris granted me with one visit to the mortal world. I have come to see my wife, Venus." He says. I almost faint. My friend Horus has not only come back from the dead, but he also has greatly betrayed the god's rule. No meeting gods of other people. "Horus! Thats against the rule! Do you have any idea how dead you will be?! Ra will make sure you are in more peices than Osiris!" Horus shrugs, "I can do what I want." Venus and Isis are talking, and Anubis is outside. Hes back in his dog form, growling at some children. I run outside just before he bites one's hand off. "Anubis!" I shout. The children look up at me. Anubis runs and hides behind me. "Why is there a god here?!" One of them shouts. "Why are there demigod children here?!" Anubis barks. "We aren't both demigod!" One of the children shouts. "Yeah, shes the daughter of Osiris and Aphrodite!" One shouts. The girl he gestures to nods and crosses her arms. "Hes the demigod, son of Augustus and Sekhmet." The girl says with a smirk. "We're both royal." They say in unicin. The girl says, "He's Thaddius, and I'm Sandine." The girl says. Then they both laugh. I lean to one side and cross my arms, "Show me." They both look at each other and laugh. Sandine shoots a bird out of the sky with a burst of flame, then draws out the soul of the creature, and sends it to the afterlife. She mimicks my stance and says, "You have been shown." Anubis whines. The boy draws his small dagger, and cuts a small cut into his forearm. He then heals it magically. Sandine smirks, and Thaddius nods. "Well, I think I can do more than that." I say, and draw my sword. There is a wanted poster with a drawing of a man in a helmet 25 feet away. I aim, and throw the sword. It hits the man right between the eyes. Thaddius retrieves it with magic, and hands it to me. "Thank you. Why are you children here?" I ask. "My father sent me to find a woman. He only sent this bafoon along with me because Sekhmet wants the woman. Anubis is too scared to tell us where she is." Sandine says, kicking Thaddius in the shin. "How is Sekhmet?" I ask Thaddius. "She misses her Champion." He snaps back. I look at my nails in a relaxed manner. "Who is this woman?" I ask. "Oh, shes very weak now. Set took away her abilities, magic, and privliges. Shes also technically dead." Sandine says. Horus runs outside, his form fading. "Sandine! Thaddius! Leave Antini alone!" He shouts. I sigh. The children laugh. "You're Sekhmet's champion?!" Sandine laughs. They're both almost crying from laughter. "Stupid god-children." Anubis whines. Suddenly, we're all in the Hall of The Dead. "Well done Antini, I see you have brought me Isis as well." Osiris bellows. Sandine crosses her arms and says, "When will you teach me to fight?!" Osiris looks at her with hopless eyes and says, "Antini, you have been granted your abilities and some new powers. Now, you are in dept to me, now. Since I have returned your life, and your abilities. So, please teach Sandine and Thaddius some fighting moves. That is all, you will be placed in your new quarters, Antini, Thaddius, and Isis." Osiris claps, and I'm in a luxury room with ancient scrolls hung on the walls. On the floor of the room is a rug made from the skin of Set's animal. Now I know why theres only one. I sigh and sit on the guilded bed. I try to fight my exhaustion, but soon sleep wins the war and my eyes close invoulentarily...
I blink my eyes open. The room is still lit up with candles as it was the day before. The heavy stone door creaks open, and in steps Sekhmet."Hello." She says, her voice still full of its typical power. "Thaddius told me he met you. I wasnt sure if you were still alive, so I had to come see you with my own eyes." She says with a strong-willed voice. She now looks to the skin of the animal. "I dont know why I broke that rule." She says in a solumn voice. "I suppose it was what you mortals call love. I dont understand it, myself for it is a force even beyond us gods." She continues. I nod and say nothing. "One day, you too will understand those words. But for now, I have some good news. Your soul has been released from my command and given to the hands of Osiris. He will have you complete small missions for him, in the name of the Dead King." Sekhmet says, then leaves the room. "Antini! Osiris says you have to teach me to fight today!" Sandine says, running into the room. I'm still in my armor, and my sword is lying on the ground. Sandine looks at me with a pleading stare, and I realize she has the eyes of Venus. She glances away because she knows I noticed. "Yes, they're not natural. Everyone asks about them." She says with a sigh. "No, they're beautiful. Why are they like that?" I ask. "All of the Roman and Greek gods have them, it represents their powers. But only a true god may bear the eyes of the heavens." I nod. "Lets get going." I then say cheerfully...
"Ok, so you cant aim in archery, you're deadly with knives and swords, and magic is only good for illusion and conjuration. I guess you were fine when we started." I say with a shrug. Thaddius is trying to make himself invisible, with no luck. "Thaddius!" I shout, "Shorten your words and say the spell more quickly!" He tries this, and turns invisible for a few seconds. I see Anubis and Horus's ghost talking with the man from the chariot. The man has the same godly eyes as Sandine and Venus. Thaddius, who is failing with a fire spell gets help from the man, who practically lights up a mountain with fire. I run up to him. Around all of us is the Afterlife's garden, for all of the gods who visit. There are plants, and ponds, and a training court for all of them to practice in. "Good morning, Anubis and Horus. Who might you be?" I say to all of them and then ask the man. "Vulcan," he says with a bow, "at your service." I must admit, I'm a bit charmed. "I'm Antini." I say. "Um... Uh... Well..." I cant grasp words very well. "I suppose im at your service?" I finally say. Vulcan laughs and says, "Mortals never were good with words! So, how are you related to the Egyptian gods?" He asks. "I'm Sekhmet's champion, Horus's friend, Set's enemy, Ra's sort of enemy, and worker of Osiris." I say with a bow. "I'm flattered!" He says with laugh. "Vulcan!" Someone calls from far away. "Oh, that'll be the leader." Vulcan says, his face suddenly ghost white. He runs off into a thicket of hedges. Horus has gone inside with the children, leaving me with Anubis. He suspiciously stares at the spot where Vulcan ran. "You know he's just faking it." He says to me with a frown. "Thats his trick, he makes mortals trust him, and then he kills them." Anubis growls. "How could you know?" I ask. He laughs and says, "See, you're defending a stranger. All you know is his name, and his face. You don't know about his past, his powers, or his authority." I stare back at Anubis. "You're wrong." I say, mimicing his growl. "Alright, we'll talk to the mystic tomorrow. The being who defies all of us. He shapeshifts, and reads minds. He'll tell you more about yourself than anyone." Anubis says as he stomps off. I growl again. But what if hes right? What if Vulcan really is bad and I'm falling for his tricks? I suppose the Mystic will know..
"How much farther?" I plead. "We're here." Anubis says, ignoring me. Sandine and Thaddius each groan. We've come to a large opening in the mountain. This mountain towers far above Northern Greece and os known to the humans as "Mount Grammos." We're all shivering from the cold in the altitude and all frightened by the narrow paths our steeds had to cross. Although, being great Roman war horses, they are far more trustworthy than not. Sandine's dapple grey stallion kept purposly scaring her during especially terrifying climbs. You can see it in the animal's eyes that fear is not in his vocabulary. Thaddius rode on his own horse, who was dead silent and never missed a beat while scaling the mountain. Anubis seems afraid of his steed, because ever since we've gotten on them, he's been timid. I could care less about the one I got, a sickly looking black one with bony legs and big hooves. We've come to a cave, so we each dismount and leave our steeds outside. The cave is warm and dry, inside are books piled around, and little candles are burning everywhere. We hear the meow of a cat, who walks up to us and hisses at Thaddius and I. "Mortals?!" The cat screetches, and hisses again. Around the black cat's neck is an amulet with a skull. On it's nose is an ank, and on its cheek is some symbol I'm unfamiliar with. On each foot it a different Greek number, going from 1 to 4. "I couldn't possibly be needed yet! The great war begins in many many years!" The cat whines. "No, we need your skills." Anubis says, then looking at me says, "To prove that Vulcan is bad." He looks away. "And who will that be proven to?" The cat asks. "He's a good person!" I insist. The cat's eyes gleam not like the god's eyes but like the eyes of a mortal. Pure and innocent, this strange creature has the eyes of a human. "Come with me." The cat says, leading me away from the group. We walk up to painting on the wall. It shows a war, with gods, all of them, fighting each other. "This is the Battle of The Gods." The cat begins, "You see, there was a time, long before humans, when the gods were all the same. All of the women looked the same, and all of the men looked the same. They were all just glowing forms of light. Then, a war arose between them all. This is when they were given their names, and their duties and powers. The Greeks and the Romans had sided together, calling themselves brothers and sisters of battle. Then, the Romans betrayed the Greeks, and some great force changed them. So, now each Greek god has a Roman counterpart, and vise versa. My point of all this being, there is one evil counterpart, and one good. This is what balances positive and negative, or good and evil. So, in this case, Vulcan is the evil counterpart. There is nothing you can do about this." The cat looks up at me. "However, there is a prophecy. It clearly speaks of a great war in the future. The only way to stop this war, as mentioned in the prophecy, is to send a hero to that point in the future. Now, how this can be done is unknown. But, I think we will someday find a way." The cat adds, ending his story. "What happens if the war begins?" I ask. "Then the world, and the gods, will all come to an end." The cat says graveley. We walk back to the group, where Anubis is reading, and Sandine and Thaddius are playing a game. "Cat, I want to be that hero." I say. The cat nods and says, "Its actually Mystic, and you will need proper training. In addition to proper equipment." Anubis turns to me and says, "I will inform Osiris of your prolonged stay."
"Straighten your arm! Draw back further! I want a better stance out of you, Thaddius!" Mystic screams commands at us. Sandine and I are vicious with bows, after some extra practice, while Thaddius hasn't quite gotten the stance and draw-back right yet. Sandine and Thaddius insisted on joining in with my training. So far, Sandine has proven herself in archery, knives, swords, and healing magic that Thaddius taught her. Mystic says she will probably one day be a Roman or Greek goddess similar to Sekhmet. Thaddius, on the other hand, seems to have talken to magic like ice and lightning or healing, and even future reading and telepathy. Mystic foretells him as a being who has powers of time and fortune to the Greeks. Mystic says that I am worthy to stop the great war, but only when I have passed his final test. Flying. Mystic is a shapeshifter, a changer of form. He prefers the form of a cat or a bird, but in this case, he needs something more advanced. A pegasus, with wings of flesh and bone, and a back as high as the mountian he calls home. Each one of us must fly upon his back and survive in order to pass the final test. There will be enemies, and dangerous manuvers and flight paths. "Get on, mortal." Mystic says with a growl. The same symbols glow upon his skin, and the same fangs of his cat-self gleam in their gums. I pull myself onto the back of the beast, who immidateley leaps off the edge. Theres a moment of freefall where I feel nothing. It seems as though I've just fallen into the ocean. Right. The ground. I pull up before Mystic and I fall to my death. We soar through the air like a bird, two minds, each knowing what the other wants. Finally, we land next to Thaddius and Sandine. Sandine goes next, then Thaddius. Mystic passes us all, and says that the prophecy will be fulfilled. He returns to his cat form, as well. "I have one gift for each of you, and another for all of you." He begins. Handing Sandine a sword with a blade of ebony, he says, "The Sword Of Pompeii to the Romans, The Blade Of Embers to the Greeks, and The Bite Of The Desert to the Egyptians. Call it what you wish, but be well aware of its power." The sword flickers in the light, it seems almost unpredictable. Mystic hands a dagger to Thaddius, "This is the Dagger of Truth to all of our world. It can make those cowards who stand upon the front line flee if they honestly own no courage. Or, it can bring those weak heroes who stand behind to come and fight." The dagger is made of sapphire, and seems light and easy to use. Mystic comes to me, he hands me a bow and a a sheath of arrows. "These are the Arrows Of The Gods, each one, though unmarked, has the power of one god. This is the Bow Of Poison, it destroys its victim from the inside, when you use regular arrows." He says. I hold the bow tightly, its jade form sleek and flawless. Each arrows is made of something else, one is ruby, one is emerald. But the sheath that holds them all is a gleaming jade, to match the bow. "My final gift," Mystic continues, "Is in the sky, call the name of your weapon's stone to summon it." We all look at each other. "Obsidian!" Sandine cries out. A creature resembling Mystic's strangest form lands before her. It is a winged horse, made of obsidian, with an inside core glowing like lava. It rears up and its wings light on fire, dancing and twirling fire. When is snorts, sparks come from its nostrils. "Sapphire!" Thaddius calls out. A blue winged horse made of sapphire with an inside core glowing bright blue lands before him. Its wings and body are buzzing with lightning. This one is calmer than Sandine's. "Jade!" I call out to the sky. A mist appears, and from it steps a creature made of air. Bubbling, popping air. A jade color, it moves faster than anything, and towers above Mystic's version of it. Brave and fearless, it stares down at me. "Ride them to the Hall Of The Dead. Goodbye, you have all done well." Mystic says with a meow. I mount my pet, so do Sandine and Thaddius. We take off with a sudden jolt, and return home...
I dismount Jade, and smooth back my hair which was messy from the ride. Sandine and Thaddius have already left their steeds to go inside. I try to pet Jade's nose, but mt hand sinks through it. The mist appears, and Jade slowly fades away. But there's a god's gleam in his eyes. I run inside, its been months since I've seen the only place I can really call home. "Antini." Osiris bellows. "I have been told of your couragous volenteer to save us, and I know how to transport you. You will be dead, and your soul will be left in your body, asleep. When the time comes, Mystic will know, I will bring you back to life, as I have done before. You have always been destined to do something this great, I knew it all along." Osiris says. "I will greet you when you have returned to us. You may stay with me." Sandine says. "Now, drink this. We must hurry or your soul will be freed before it will work." Thaddius says, handing me a bottle of dark liquid. I swallow it all, and enjoy the taste for a few seconds before essentially falling asleep..
I'm in a luxury mansion, gleaming with rarities from everywhere. A woman, as beautiful as Venus is kneeling beside me. "Where am I? Who are you?" I ask drowsily. The woman laughs and says, "You've been asleep for hundreds of years, preserved by magic, you're on the Hazelbrook Plantation in Oklahoma, its the year 1828. I'm Sandine, slayer of nightmares, goddess of the undead." I see the sparkling galaxy in her eye and believe her. I stand up, and stretch. "Where is Thaddius? And Osiris? And Mystic? And Anubis? And Horus? Where is Horus?" I ask frantically. "Here." She says, "They are all here. Tonight we celebrate your life." I look away from her and see a person in a strange hat laughing with another person and a ghost. "Horus! Anubis! Thaddius?" I call out, running over to them. The one in the hat takes his hat off and bows, "The great Antini, she who fails to recognise me!" He says with a laugh. "Its been a long time since shes seen us. Besides, you killed her." Anubis growls. Horus fades away, I think his time here is up. "Wheres my bow?" I ask, rather suddenly. Sandine summons it, and hands it to me. "A few people were holding it for you." She says. "Please take it to where I will be staying. I assume you have some work that needs to be done, so leave Anubis to inform me of the past years." I say. Sandine nods, and walks off. Thaddius follows. "How can she age like a mortal but... slower?" I ask Anubis. "Thaddius lifted that trait from us. Everyone is in their adult form again." He says. I notice the amulet hes wearing. Ingraved in gold is an ank. "Whats that?" I wonder out loud. "Sandine gave us amulets to tell which god was of which culture, what with the destruction of the ancient rules, there are more gods." Anubis answers. "What do you mean, 'more gods'?" I ask. "The main ancient rule was to never have relationships with gods of other cultures. Now, since the rules have been destroyed, gods are having both god and demigod children more often. That means their culture could be random. Sandine is Greek and Egyptian, yet is decribed as a Roman goddess. Hence the amulets." Anubis studies me for a minute, as if testing my natural instincts. "Roman goddesses have twins." I say. He smiles, "Ah, smarter than I thought. That rule only describes the major gods and goddesses." For a split second, I feel admired. "Any godly children I dont know about yet?" I ask. "Oh, about four. All of them want to meet you." He answers with a laugh. "Describe them. I have a good imagination." I say, still on my burst of pride. "Theres Dendea, daughter of Zeus and Hathor. Age ten. Shes got pure white hair and never breaks a rule. She likes magic, but hates war. Then theres Zeros, son of Jupiter and Gaia. Age thirteen. He is a very strong person, in mind and reality. He likes everything to be balanced, life and death, war and peace. But he isnt very powerful. Theres Mythra, daugter of Nyx and Mors. Age fourteen. She is as deadly as death. She cant work any magic, excluding charm spells, but is flawless with any weapon. Theres Cascuia, daughter of Pluto and Terra. Age fifteen. She is very powerful, even more so than some of the major gods like Zeus and Jupiter. She reshapes land and uses it against you. However, she is not a weapon specialist. Mythra charms Zeros for fun, and Cascuia often causes earthquakes. They are the two troublemakers." Anubis says, topping it off with one of his growls. A group of childrens walk into the room. There are three girls, and four boys. I recognise Mythra immidiateley, the one with the fancy sword. One of the other girls must be Cascuia, because she wears an earth element amulet along with her Greek one. The third girl must be a demigod, along with the four boys. "Dog, whos the mortal?" A boy asks rudely, a Roman amulet hangs from his neck. "Its the hero!" Mythra says with a laugh. The entire group starts laughing. Anubis growls. "I see I've met the murder princess." I say to Mythra, "Daughter of the Roman death and the Greek goddess of the night? I see no soldier, only perhaps an overestimated spy who gets what she wants using her looks." Mythra draws her sword. "I am a goddess, betrothed from birth to the sword, married to blood and chaos, till death do us part." She says to my face. "Would you like to test those vows?" She adds. The same gleam of space hides in her eyes. "Mythra!" Someone shouts, suddenly running into the room. Its Nyx, I assume. In a gown as black as midnight, to match her dark hair with diamonds weaved into it. "Do not threaten the mortal!" Nyx yells. Mythra says nothing, just angrily scowls as me, and sheaths her sword. Mythra, a figure of beauty and violence. Just as threatening as death itself, yet just as tamed as a domestic dog. "The mortal was irritating Mythy!" One of the group members shouts out. "Please, Nyx! Don't punish Mythra! It wasnt her fault!" Cascuia yelps. "So be it. I will let it slide, but just this once, Mythra." Nyx frowns just before fading away. Mythra snarls in my face, and walks away with the group trailing behind her.
"Every night, since I was first able to understand them, I gazed at the stars. My mother once told me that they were a gateway to the heavens, but everyone else said that they were the eyes of the gods. So that made me wonder, I think. It also made me question my own existance. It helped me escape the world I lived in. All of the laughter, the pain, and the exicle I felt..." I pause, "It... changed me." I look to the goddess for reasurance. She nods, but doesn't speak a word. We stand in silence for a moment, watching the sun rise over Giza. The red ball of fire sets the pyramids on fire with golden light. When the sun reaches the top of the tallest pyramid, Sekhmet turns to me. She looks at me through a golden eye and says, "The humans want to put a spell on me." She turns away, "They want me to be Hathor by day and Sekhmet by night." Her ear twitches, and a cruel smile spreads accross her face. Her wicked mind always makes me doubt her honesty. Although we're both on the same side, it seems as though we're enemies. She turns to me, and my hand goes to my knife. I don't dare ignore that reckless look in her eyes. I say in a firm voice, "Now we charge." And stare at the horizon. Sekhmet summons her firey steed and mounts. She holds her sword to the sky and calls upon her army of flames. Then, she leads them upon the city of Giza. As soon as the last soldier leaves me standing, I summon my dragon. "Hello, Andini." He says in a voice like Ra's, powerful and assured. His scales are covered with hieroglyphs, most are illegible. Around his neck is a collar, engraved with three heiroglyphs- An Ankh on the right and left of an eye of Horus. It essentially means "Life and Protection." My beast is a god. The eye representing his power. "Hello, Horus." I say with equal confidence. He gives a low growl like the purr of a cat. In our time, all of the gods are represented as they want to be. Sekhmet chose her humanlike form, and Horus chose he form of a beast. I have no godly powers, only the abilities I can manage. "Shall we ride?" I ask Horus. He nods. I mount, my hands holding onto forgotten words. He takes a step back, and shoots into the air. It knocks the breath out of me, the sheer force of breaking gravity in an unprotected form. By the time Horus has leveled out, I'm gasping for air. We sweep down, reigning terror upon Giza. Now, the city burns with more than a sunrise. Sekhmet leads her army, sparing no mercy, while Horus and I burn the pyramids. With his magical fire, even stone will burn. A ball of fire hits Horus in the wing, and we begin to fall. He struggles to keep his altitude, but we're slipping too fast. "Andini!" He shouts, "Please, I won't live much longer, jump off!" The flaming pyramids are coming closer. I brace myself, and jump off. The freefall makes me scream with fear. Sekhmet catches me just before I hit the ground. She laughs and I sigh. I look up just to see Horus be impaled by the tallest pyramid. He gives a final scream, and goes limp. "No!" I shout. Even Sekhmet looks surprised. She turns to me, and with a stern look on her face says, "Come." We both mounted her steed, which starts running at Sekhmet's command. "Where are we going?" I ask. "To see Osiris." She quickly replies with. It is a long ride to the Afterlife. We passed many landscapes. Deserts, and mountains, and lava rocks. Then we finally came to the Afterlife. We walked to the Hall Of Judgement to see Osiris...
"Osiris." Sekhmet says. Her eyes blare a sparkling reddish gold with anger. "Sekhmet, how dare you stand in my hall with battle armor still shining with the blood of Giza!" He raises a hand, and her armor melts into a black dress that's decorated like the sky. "Much better." He says with a polite smile. She crosses her arms. "Stop it, Osiris." She growls. The man's attention moves away from Sekhmet, and focuses on something behind us. He stands and yells, "Anubis!" There's a clang as something metal crashes to the ground. "That goes in the dark room!" Osiris shouts. I turn around, the god Anubis is carrying a blue sheild with golden heiroglyphs. Anubis bears a jackal helmet. The helmet has the head skin of a jackal stretched over it. The ears are even propped up to look alive. He growls at us, and storms off. Sekhmet and Osiris are arguing, "Horus was your flesh and blood!" Sekhmet shouts. "I can't just bring people back to life!" Osiris bellows. "Fine! You can keep your son's soul, and live alone with your mongrel of a scale worker!" Sekhmet screams, and runs outside. Osiris sighs, rubbing his temple. "Women..." He mumbles to himself. He looks down at me from his golden throne. "Oh, I'm sorry. I don't believe we've been properly introduced. I am Osiris, lord of the Afterlife." He nods. I smile, and give a small bow. "I am Antini, champion of Sekhmet." I reply with. The room is ancient, and carved on the walls are heiroglphs as old as time. The king sits in a solid gold throne with a jeweled helmet on his head. "Anubis!" Osiris shouts. The god looks up. "Take that blasted helmet off!" Osris yells. Anubis removes the helmet, it disappears. "Hello. It is my honor to stand in the shadow of such a warrior." He states in a very kind manner, bowing afterwards. "Anubis, I have a meeting to attend to. Please take care of our guest until I return." Osiris says, leaving the room. He slams the door as he exits. Anubis claps and a feast arrives. It sits upon a jade table, and consists of rare delacacies to even the gods. "Sit." He gestures to a chair. I do as he asks, and place some of the food on a gold plate. We eat in silence. Gods always frighten me a bit, being immortal and all, they are invinsible. "How did a mortal get such fame?" Anubis asks. I finish chewing the tender piece of mysteroius meat and answer. "By owing something to the gods." I say grimly. I stare down at my plate. I've lost my appetite, so I push it aside. I look up at Aunbis, who stares at me intently. "Many years ago..." I begin, "I burned down a statue of Ra accidentally." I look down to the table, "Set congradulated me, and, as the child I was, I told him it was an acciendent. He mocked me and told me I was weak, and unless I could prove myself before the sunset on the 3rd day of the 5th year after that..." I was holding back tears, "He would own my immortal soul. Well... I failed that day. But Sekhmet saved me, she gambled with him to win my soul. She saw something in me. And, after that, she made me her champion and right hand man in battle." I try to ignore the god's inquisitve stare,"She... Owns me." I finally look back to him. He shows fear and regret. "I remember you. You died after that statue burned, because you burned wih it. You pleaded and begged Osiris to let you go, but he wouldn't allow it. I tried to convince him, because you were just a child. The feather of truth weighed twice as much as you heart then." He glares at me, "But the godly priviges you were given by Sekhmet made you evil. I regret ever siding with you." He almost snarls the next words, "Now that I know who you are, I banish you to the mortal world! No god will ever endure your presence again! So I cast you to the city of Giza, where you mercilessly slaughtered every soul!" It's amazing how short tempered gods are. He summons a dark doorway, and casts me through it. As I see my last glimse of the god, his face melts into his true form. Set...
My mouth is as dry as a papyrus scroll, and my head rings like the clang of swords. I lift my head. Sand. Everywhere. The city is empty. It burns with sunlight and heat. Mirages of water dance everywhere. I see a slip of a page from a book of the dead. I distinctly recall it. It displays a heart, represented by a tiny me. I put it in my pocket. Walking along, I see another note. This one is also from a book of the dead. It shows the devouror, eating the tiny me. I'm scared, as a shrill wind has just picked up. Another note lies at my feet. I carefully look at it. It shows the tiny me in Set's hand, being crushed, and Set laughing. I put both the notes away, and move on. I'm shaking. Where are the pyramids? I look around. Suddenly, I slam into something. A pyramid. A final note is held up on it by the wind. I take it, and read it. It shows me burning down the statue of Ra. I scream, and throw it to the ground, whjch shatters. I fall through. A searing pain is in my chest. I look down to see that I'm in a pit of spikes, impaled. I clutch the spike in my chest, and fade out into black. My ghostly Ba form shimmers in the candelight. A golden scale sits before me. Along with 42 gods and goddesses, my heart, the feather of truth, and Osiris and Anubis. The actual god looks very different than his impersonaitor, and scowls at me. "This soul is owned by Sekhmet. Because she has died under a goddess's rule, she can either suffer the same fate as her master, or take on the form and mind of Sekmet. May Osiris choose. After the weighing of her heart." Anubis preaches to the judges. The feather is placed on the scale, and my heart breaks the scale and crashes to the ground. I look both ways as all gods of all shapes and sizes run to attack me. With tooth and fang beared, they try to get to me. But some unknown source protects me from the snarling group. "STOP!" Osiris bellows. "Let this innocent soul go!" The gods all turn to him. "The scale was rigged!" Osiris yells to them. With a growl, they all dissapear. "Are you alright, my dear?" Osiris asks. "Yes." I say. "I apologise, I was unaware of the planned ambush from Set." He says politeley. "This is the actual Anubis." He says, gesturing to the god with the ceremonial dog head and spear. Anubis lets out a low growl. "You see, Set recalled your abilities. But I can return them to you. If you will complete, for me, a favor." Osiris says. I nod. "Take this amulet to the goddess Venus." He says, handing me a saphire with an ank shaped with diamonds on it. It's chain is made of gold and jade. "Anubis will go with you, to guard you due to your lack of strength. This will be very safe." Osiris says reassuringly. "But, I'm a Ba!" I say. "Oh, right." Osiris laughs. He claps and I take back my real form, in my armor, with my sword, and my bow. I start to relax. "Now,off you two go!" Osiris says with another clap. Almost in a heartbeat, we're in a diffrent city. Full of different people. A man walks up to me and taps my shoulder. He says something I don't understand, and points to a large building. He looks at Anubis who growls at him. Of course, Osiris gave me a dog to protect me. The man yells the statement again and points with more emphasis. Then puts a hand on his knife. Anubis gives one final growl as we walk to the building. I see now that its open on the top, and covered with statues of gods that aren't our own. Written on a poster held to the building with a knife is the only word I understand in Latin, "Fight." I look down at Anubis. He growls at the sign, then leads the way inside the building. There are rows of seats and the flooring is dirt mixed with blood and gore. "Many lost souls who came to Osiris and I were killed here." Anubis says, "They came to us for forgiveness. Many had won in this arena many times, and pleaded to be released of their murders. Many had been put here invoulentarily, and were killed without mercy." He growls as we step over bits of bone and dried flesh, "It is a place of misery and pain." He says with a dog's whine. He looks up at a bird of prey, which has landed on the head of one of the statues. "Horus." He growls. I look up at the bird. "No," I say staring at the gleam in its eyes, "Isis." The bird flutters closer to us. The grace in its weightless wings is almost impossible. Landing perfectly at my feet, it says in a the sweet voice of a child, "You stupid dogheaded beast!" Anubis growls. "You turned me into this! I want to be a human again!" The bird stomps her tiny foot. "When the time comes, child." Anubis hisses. "Thats the other thing! Why has your spell reversed our ages?!" The bird yells. "It hasnt, people have forgotten you, Isis! Now they know me more!" Anubis howls. "Wait." I say,"That doesnt make any sense." Isis looks up at me, "The more known a god is, the older they are. Anubis here used to be a little child like me. Until he turned me into a bird forever and banished me to the forgotten lands!" Anubis barks at the bird, "It was Horus's idea!" Isis caws at him and says, "You were both mere children before the time of the golden age of our people, the Egyptians. You were both stupid nieve children! Children shouldn't play with Osiris's magic staff!" Anubis growls and whines. "Osiris's magic staff?" I ask. "Yes," Isis says "the Sacred Staff Of The Dead King. It was an offering from his favorite preist, Nahiti." I'm puzzled. "Who is Nahiti?" I ask. "She was his mortal lover, in return for the life of her first son." Isis begins, "She was the wife of a rich scribe from Thebes. They had one son and one daughter. Their daughter was born blessed with the beauty of a goddess yet unable to speak, and their son was born deformed and dead. So Nahiti preyed to Osiris, she offered him her eternal love in return for her son's life. Osiris accepted the offer, and gave her the boy's life. Of course, Nahiti could not leave the mortal world without the guidence of a god, so she would meet Osiris on the bank of the Nile every night. After ten years of her dept, she focused all of her power into a staff that she carved by hand. This surge of power killed her, but made the staff so powerful, it could kill a god. Osiris was heartbroken that his lover had died, so he cast the staff away. Horus and Anubis found it, and played with it like a toy. Then Anubis zapped me with it, and made me a child and him an adult. He suddenly became more known than me, and I was almost forgotten. So now, I remain a bird until humans know my name." A man in a chariot rides up, and stops next to us. "Whats with the dog and the bird, miss?" The man asks. One of his horses snorts and the other stomps. Anubis growls. The man gasps, "Egyptian gods! Thats against the laws!" Anubis quiets him, and says with a deep growl, "We need to talk to Venus." The man frowns and says, "Not again with Horus is it?" Anubis whines and says, "Horus had an accident. He is still weak." The chariot man says, "She is in her home." I thank him and he rides away. "I may be of assistance." Isis chirps. "Then you may follow us." I say, already following Anubis. We reach the house quickly. Its a stone home, and it looks a lot like a temple. We walk inside without asking, and I dont question the god's intentions. Sitting on a chair, talking to a ghostly form across from her, is the godess of love and beauty. "Hello mortal, and immortals." She says without looking at us. Then she gives a light laugh that sounds like mist in a foggy morning. She then looks up at us. Her face is as perfect as a face could be, her skin is fair and clear and flawless. Her greenish blond hair looks like the planet she represents. But her eyes are by far the source of all of her beauty. They glisten and shine like the stars, and if you gaze into them long enough, you can see our galaxy. Sparking now with exitement, the galaxy within twirls and spins gracefully. She's smiling, and showing her pearls of teeth. "What can I help the lot of you with?" She says in a british accent. Isis rolls her bird eyes, and Anubis tries to look away from her. "Now, why are you in your animal forms? Thats no way to greet a goddess." She says, then laughs again. With a snap of her fingers, Anubis and Isis are again human. Isis is now a little girl in a toga, and olive branches in her hair, and Anubis is his usual form. "Much better." The goddess says with a smile. "We have come to give you this." I hand her the amulet. She gasps, "Oh! My amulet!" Then she puts it away. The ghostly form accross from her looks at me in a puzzled way. "Antini?" The ghost asks. "Yes." I say cautiously. "I mistook you for a gladiator! Osiris granted me with one visit to the mortal world. I have come to see my wife, Venus." He says. I almost faint. My friend Horus has not only come back from the dead, but he also has greatly betrayed the god's rule. No meeting gods of other people. "Horus! Thats against the rule! Do you have any idea how dead you will be?! Ra will make sure you are in more peices than Osiris!" Horus shrugs, "I can do what I want." Venus and Isis are talking, and Anubis is outside. Hes back in his dog form, growling at some children. I run outside just before he bites one's hand off. "Anubis!" I shout. The children look up at me. Anubis runs and hides behind me. "Why is there a god here?!" One of them shouts. "Why are there demigod children here?!" Anubis barks. "We aren't both demigod!" One of the children shouts. "Yeah, shes the daughter of Osiris and Aphrodite!" One shouts. The girl he gestures to nods and crosses her arms. "Hes the demigod, son of Augustus and Sekhmet." The girl says with a smirk. "We're both royal." They say in unicin. The girl says, "He's Thaddius, and I'm Sandine." The girl says. Then they both laugh. I lean to one side and cross my arms, "Show me." They both look at each other and laugh. Sandine shoots a bird out of the sky with a burst of flame, then draws out the soul of the creature, and sends it to the afterlife. She mimicks my stance and says, "You have been shown." Anubis whines. The boy draws his small dagger, and cuts a small cut into his forearm. He then heals it magically. Sandine smirks, and Thaddius nods. "Well, I think I can do more than that." I say, and draw my sword. There is a wanted poster with a drawing of a man in a helmet 25 feet away. I aim, and throw the sword. It hits the man right between the eyes. Thaddius retrieves it with magic, and hands it to me. "Thank you. Why are you children here?" I ask. "My father sent me to find a woman. He only sent this bafoon along with me because Sekhmet wants the woman. Anubis is too scared to tell us where she is." Sandine says, kicking Thaddius in the shin. "How is Sekhmet?" I ask Thaddius. "She misses her Champion." He snaps back. I look at my nails in a relaxed manner. "Who is this woman?" I ask. "Oh, shes very weak now. Set took away her abilities, magic, and privliges. Shes also technically dead." Sandine says. Horus runs outside, his form fading. "Sandine! Thaddius! Leave Antini alone!" He shouts. I sigh. The children laugh. "You're Sekhmet's champion?!" Sandine laughs. They're both almost crying from laughter. "Stupid god-children." Anubis whines. Suddenly, we're all in the Hall of The Dead. "Well done Antini, I see you have brought me Isis as well." Osiris bellows. Sandine crosses her arms and says, "When will you teach me to fight?!" Osiris looks at her with hopless eyes and says, "Antini, you have been granted your abilities and some new powers. Now, you are in dept to me, now. Since I have returned your life, and your abilities. So, please teach Sandine and Thaddius some fighting moves. That is all, you will be placed in your new quarters, Antini, Thaddius, and Isis." Osiris claps, and I'm in a luxury room with ancient scrolls hung on the walls. On the floor of the room is a rug made from the skin of Set's animal. Now I know why theres only one. I sigh and sit on the guilded bed. I try to fight my exhaustion, but soon sleep wins the war and my eyes close invoulentarily...
I blink my eyes open. The room is still lit up with candles as it was the day before. The heavy stone door creaks open, and in steps Sekhmet."Hello." She says, her voice still full of its typical power. "Thaddius told me he met you. I wasnt sure if you were still alive, so I had to come see you with my own eyes." She says with a strong-willed voice. She now looks to the skin of the animal. "I dont know why I broke that rule." She says in a solumn voice. "I suppose it was what you mortals call love. I dont understand it, myself for it is a force even beyond us gods." She continues. I nod and say nothing. "One day, you too will understand those words. But for now, I have some good news. Your soul has been released from my command and given to the hands of Osiris. He will have you complete small missions for him, in the name of the Dead King." Sekhmet says, then leaves the room. "Antini! Osiris says you have to teach me to fight today!" Sandine says, running into the room. I'm still in my armor, and my sword is lying on the ground. Sandine looks at me with a pleading stare, and I realize she has the eyes of Venus. She glances away because she knows I noticed. "Yes, they're not natural. Everyone asks about them." She says with a sigh. "No, they're beautiful. Why are they like that?" I ask. "All of the Roman and Greek gods have them, it represents their powers. But only a true god may bear the eyes of the heavens." I nod. "Lets get going." I then say cheerfully...
"Ok, so you cant aim in archery, you're deadly with knives and swords, and magic is only good for illusion and conjuration. I guess you were fine when we started." I say with a shrug. Thaddius is trying to make himself invisible, with no luck. "Thaddius!" I shout, "Shorten your words and say the spell more quickly!" He tries this, and turns invisible for a few seconds. I see Anubis and Horus's ghost talking with the man from the chariot. The man has the same godly eyes as Sandine and Venus. Thaddius, who is failing with a fire spell gets help from the man, who practically lights up a mountain with fire. I run up to him. Around all of us is the Afterlife's garden, for all of the gods who visit. There are plants, and ponds, and a training court for all of them to practice in. "Good morning, Anubis and Horus. Who might you be?" I say to all of them and then ask the man. "Vulcan," he says with a bow, "at your service." I must admit, I'm a bit charmed. "I'm Antini." I say. "Um... Uh... Well..." I cant grasp words very well. "I suppose im at your service?" I finally say. Vulcan laughs and says, "Mortals never were good with words! So, how are you related to the Egyptian gods?" He asks. "I'm Sekhmet's champion, Horus's friend, Set's enemy, Ra's sort of enemy, and worker of Osiris." I say with a bow. "I'm flattered!" He says with laugh. "Vulcan!" Someone calls from far away. "Oh, that'll be the leader." Vulcan says, his face suddenly ghost white. He runs off into a thicket of hedges. Horus has gone inside with the children, leaving me with Anubis. He suspiciously stares at the spot where Vulcan ran. "You know he's just faking it." He says to me with a frown. "Thats his trick, he makes mortals trust him, and then he kills them." Anubis growls. "How could you know?" I ask. He laughs and says, "See, you're defending a stranger. All you know is his name, and his face. You don't know about his past, his powers, or his authority." I stare back at Anubis. "You're wrong." I say, mimicing his growl. "Alright, we'll talk to the mystic tomorrow. The being who defies all of us. He shapeshifts, and reads minds. He'll tell you more about yourself than anyone." Anubis says as he stomps off. I growl again. But what if hes right? What if Vulcan really is bad and I'm falling for his tricks? I suppose the Mystic will know..
"How much farther?" I plead. "We're here." Anubis says, ignoring me. Sandine and Thaddius each groan. We've come to a large opening in the mountain. This mountain towers far above Northern Greece and os known to the humans as "Mount Grammos." We're all shivering from the cold in the altitude and all frightened by the narrow paths our steeds had to cross. Although, being great Roman war horses, they are far more trustworthy than not. Sandine's dapple grey stallion kept purposly scaring her during especially terrifying climbs. You can see it in the animal's eyes that fear is not in his vocabulary. Thaddius rode on his own horse, who was dead silent and never missed a beat while scaling the mountain. Anubis seems afraid of his steed, because ever since we've gotten on them, he's been timid. I could care less about the one I got, a sickly looking black one with bony legs and big hooves. We've come to a cave, so we each dismount and leave our steeds outside. The cave is warm and dry, inside are books piled around, and little candles are burning everywhere. We hear the meow of a cat, who walks up to us and hisses at Thaddius and I. "Mortals?!" The cat screetches, and hisses again. Around the black cat's neck is an amulet with a skull. On it's nose is an ank, and on its cheek is some symbol I'm unfamiliar with. On each foot it a different Greek number, going from 1 to 4. "I couldn't possibly be needed yet! The great war begins in many many years!" The cat whines. "No, we need your skills." Anubis says, then looking at me says, "To prove that Vulcan is bad." He looks away. "And who will that be proven to?" The cat asks. "He's a good person!" I insist. The cat's eyes gleam not like the god's eyes but like the eyes of a mortal. Pure and innocent, this strange creature has the eyes of a human. "Come with me." The cat says, leading me away from the group. We walk up to painting on the wall. It shows a war, with gods, all of them, fighting each other. "This is the Battle of The Gods." The cat begins, "You see, there was a time, long before humans, when the gods were all the same. All of the women looked the same, and all of the men looked the same. They were all just glowing forms of light. Then, a war arose between them all. This is when they were given their names, and their duties and powers. The Greeks and the Romans had sided together, calling themselves brothers and sisters of battle. Then, the Romans betrayed the Greeks, and some great force changed them. So, now each Greek god has a Roman counterpart, and vise versa. My point of all this being, there is one evil counterpart, and one good. This is what balances positive and negative, or good and evil. So, in this case, Vulcan is the evil counterpart. There is nothing you can do about this." The cat looks up at me. "However, there is a prophecy. It clearly speaks of a great war in the future. The only way to stop this war, as mentioned in the prophecy, is to send a hero to that point in the future. Now, how this can be done is unknown. But, I think we will someday find a way." The cat adds, ending his story. "What happens if the war begins?" I ask. "Then the world, and the gods, will all come to an end." The cat says graveley. We walk back to the group, where Anubis is reading, and Sandine and Thaddius are playing a game. "Cat, I want to be that hero." I say. The cat nods and says, "Its actually Mystic, and you will need proper training. In addition to proper equipment." Anubis turns to me and says, "I will inform Osiris of your prolonged stay."
"Straighten your arm! Draw back further! I want a better stance out of you, Thaddius!" Mystic screams commands at us. Sandine and I are vicious with bows, after some extra practice, while Thaddius hasn't quite gotten the stance and draw-back right yet. Sandine and Thaddius insisted on joining in with my training. So far, Sandine has proven herself in archery, knives, swords, and healing magic that Thaddius taught her. Mystic says she will probably one day be a Roman or Greek goddess similar to Sekhmet. Thaddius, on the other hand, seems to have talken to magic like ice and lightning or healing, and even future reading and telepathy. Mystic foretells him as a being who has powers of time and fortune to the Greeks. Mystic says that I am worthy to stop the great war, but only when I have passed his final test. Flying. Mystic is a shapeshifter, a changer of form. He prefers the form of a cat or a bird, but in this case, he needs something more advanced. A pegasus, with wings of flesh and bone, and a back as high as the mountian he calls home. Each one of us must fly upon his back and survive in order to pass the final test. There will be enemies, and dangerous manuvers and flight paths. "Get on, mortal." Mystic says with a growl. The same symbols glow upon his skin, and the same fangs of his cat-self gleam in their gums. I pull myself onto the back of the beast, who immidateley leaps off the edge. Theres a moment of freefall where I feel nothing. It seems as though I've just fallen into the ocean. Right. The ground. I pull up before Mystic and I fall to my death. We soar through the air like a bird, two minds, each knowing what the other wants. Finally, we land next to Thaddius and Sandine. Sandine goes next, then Thaddius. Mystic passes us all, and says that the prophecy will be fulfilled. He returns to his cat form, as well. "I have one gift for each of you, and another for all of you." He begins. Handing Sandine a sword with a blade of ebony, he says, "The Sword Of Pompeii to the Romans, The Blade Of Embers to the Greeks, and The Bite Of The Desert to the Egyptians. Call it what you wish, but be well aware of its power." The sword flickers in the light, it seems almost unpredictable. Mystic hands a dagger to Thaddius, "This is the Dagger of Truth to all of our world. It can make those cowards who stand upon the front line flee if they honestly own no courage. Or, it can bring those weak heroes who stand behind to come and fight." The dagger is made of sapphire, and seems light and easy to use. Mystic comes to me, he hands me a bow and a a sheath of arrows. "These are the Arrows Of The Gods, each one, though unmarked, has the power of one god. This is the Bow Of Poison, it destroys its victim from the inside, when you use regular arrows." He says. I hold the bow tightly, its jade form sleek and flawless. Each arrows is made of something else, one is ruby, one is emerald. But the sheath that holds them all is a gleaming jade, to match the bow. "My final gift," Mystic continues, "Is in the sky, call the name of your weapon's stone to summon it." We all look at each other. "Obsidian!" Sandine cries out. A creature resembling Mystic's strangest form lands before her. It is a winged horse, made of obsidian, with an inside core glowing like lava. It rears up and its wings light on fire, dancing and twirling fire. When is snorts, sparks come from its nostrils. "Sapphire!" Thaddius calls out. A blue winged horse made of sapphire with an inside core glowing bright blue lands before him. Its wings and body are buzzing with lightning. This one is calmer than Sandine's. "Jade!" I call out to the sky. A mist appears, and from it steps a creature made of air. Bubbling, popping air. A jade color, it moves faster than anything, and towers above Mystic's version of it. Brave and fearless, it stares down at me. "Ride them to the Hall Of The Dead. Goodbye, you have all done well." Mystic says with a meow. I mount my pet, so do Sandine and Thaddius. We take off with a sudden jolt, and return home...
I dismount Jade, and smooth back my hair which was messy from the ride. Sandine and Thaddius have already left their steeds to go inside. I try to pet Jade's nose, but mt hand sinks through it. The mist appears, and Jade slowly fades away. But there's a god's gleam in his eyes. I run inside, its been months since I've seen the only place I can really call home. "Antini." Osiris bellows. "I have been told of your couragous volenteer to save us, and I know how to transport you. You will be dead, and your soul will be left in your body, asleep. When the time comes, Mystic will know, I will bring you back to life, as I have done before. You have always been destined to do something this great, I knew it all along." Osiris says. "I will greet you when you have returned to us. You may stay with me." Sandine says. "Now, drink this. We must hurry or your soul will be freed before it will work." Thaddius says, handing me a bottle of dark liquid. I swallow it all, and enjoy the taste for a few seconds before essentially falling asleep..
I'm in a luxury mansion, gleaming with rarities from everywhere. A woman, as beautiful as Venus is kneeling beside me. "Where am I? Who are you?" I ask drowsily. The woman laughs and says, "You've been asleep for hundreds of years, preserved by magic, you're on the Hazelbrook Plantation in Oklahoma, its the year 1828. I'm Sandine, slayer of nightmares, goddess of the undead." I see the sparkling galaxy in her eye and believe her. I stand up, and stretch. "Where is Thaddius? And Osiris? And Mystic? And Anubis? And Horus? Where is Horus?" I ask frantically. "Here." She says, "They are all here. Tonight we celebrate your life." I look away from her and see a person in a strange hat laughing with another person and a ghost. "Horus! Anubis! Thaddius?" I call out, running over to them. The one in the hat takes his hat off and bows, "The great Antini, she who fails to recognise me!" He says with a laugh. "Its been a long time since shes seen us. Besides, you killed her." Anubis growls. Horus fades away, I think his time here is up. "Wheres my bow?" I ask, rather suddenly. Sandine summons it, and hands it to me. "A few people were holding it for you." She says. "Please take it to where I will be staying. I assume you have some work that needs to be done, so leave Anubis to inform me of the past years." I say. Sandine nods, and walks off. Thaddius follows. "How can she age like a mortal but... slower?" I ask Anubis. "Thaddius lifted that trait from us. Everyone is in their adult form again." He says. I notice the amulet hes wearing. Ingraved in gold is an ank. "Whats that?" I wonder out loud. "Sandine gave us amulets to tell which god was of which culture, what with the destruction of the ancient rules, there are more gods." Anubis answers. "What do you mean, 'more gods'?" I ask. "The main ancient rule was to never have relationships with gods of other cultures. Now, since the rules have been destroyed, gods are having both god and demigod children more often. That means their culture could be random. Sandine is Greek and Egyptian, yet is decribed as a Roman goddess. Hence the amulets." Anubis studies me for a minute, as if testing my natural instincts. "Roman goddesses have twins." I say. He smiles, "Ah, smarter than I thought. That rule only describes the major gods and goddesses." For a split second, I feel admired. "Any godly children I dont know about yet?" I ask. "Oh, about four. All of them want to meet you." He answers with a laugh. "Describe them. I have a good imagination." I say, still on my burst of pride. "Theres Dendea, daughter of Zeus and Hathor. Age ten. Shes got pure white hair and never breaks a rule. She likes magic, but hates war. Then theres Zeros, son of Jupiter and Gaia. Age thirteen. He is a very strong person, in mind and reality. He likes everything to be balanced, life and death, war and peace. But he isnt very powerful. Theres Mythra, daugter of Nyx and Mors. Age fourteen. She is as deadly as death. She cant work any magic, excluding charm spells, but is flawless with any weapon. Theres Cascuia, daughter of Pluto and Terra. Age fifteen. She is very powerful, even more so than some of the major gods like Zeus and Jupiter. She reshapes land and uses it against you. However, she is not a weapon specialist. Mythra charms Zeros for fun, and Cascuia often causes earthquakes. They are the two troublemakers." Anubis says, topping it off with one of his growls. A group of childrens walk into the room. There are three girls, and four boys. I recognise Mythra immidiateley, the one with the fancy sword. One of the other girls must be Cascuia, because she wears an earth element amulet along with her Greek one. The third girl must be a demigod, along with the four boys. "Dog, whos the mortal?" A boy asks rudely, a Roman amulet hangs from his neck. "Its the hero!" Mythra says with a laugh. The entire group starts laughing. Anubis growls. "I see I've met the murder princess." I say to Mythra, "Daughter of the Roman death and the Greek goddess of the night? I see no soldier, only perhaps an overestimated spy who gets what she wants using her looks." Mythra draws her sword. "I am a goddess, betrothed from birth to the sword, married to blood and chaos, till death do us part." She says to my face. "Would you like to test those vows?" She adds. The same gleam of space hides in her eyes. "Mythra!" Someone shouts, suddenly running into the room. Its Nyx, I assume. In a gown as black as midnight, to match her dark hair with diamonds weaved into it. "Do not threaten the mortal!" Nyx yells. Mythra says nothing, just angrily scowls as me, and sheaths her sword. Mythra, a figure of beauty and violence. Just as threatening as death itself, yet just as tamed as a domestic dog. "The mortal was irritating Mythy!" One of the group members shouts out. "Please, Nyx! Don't punish Mythra! It wasnt her fault!" Cascuia yelps. "So be it. I will let it slide, but just this once, Mythra." Nyx frowns just before fading away. Mythra snarls in my face, and walks away with the group trailing behind her.