Raymond rushed down the stone stairway leading to his cavernous lair. Stray pebbles skittered to the ground below. His usual grace was lost to fatigue. Killing Seth drained him emotionally and physically. The scene was one of great violence, Seth becoming a regrettable outlet for Raymond’s frustrations with Horatio. As Gods, none of them ever experienced exhaustion until they chose to walk among humankind as Immortals. He couldn’t wait to never feel it again.
The ushabtis would ease his burdens. He already had too much familial blood on his hands. Once the ushabtis were brought to life, they would serve at his bidding and kill the three remaining Others. Or at least he hoped that would be the case, that the ancient magic would still take hold and breathe life into their cold stone forms.
Two minions were what he needed. In time he would create an entire army of servants. But before then, two would be sufficient.
Marceline was always going to be the test. The Others would be on high alert once her Ba-soul had flown. Horatio had always seemed a natural second. A gift between friends. But Raymond misjudged that situation completely. With that failed attempt, Horatio would be on guard. Seth was the obvious choice to have been the next sacrifice, as his powers were weaker than those of Isis and Osiris.
Raymond had guessed that as soon as Horatio regained consciousness in his penthouse he would search for Seth himself. There was a time, before the change, when Horatio and Seth fought epic battles, but once they walked among mortals the two of them formed a strange kind of friendship.
It hadn’t taken Raymond long to track Seth down. Over all these years each of them became creatures of habit. The fact that none of the Others knew where Seth was bought Raymond much-needed time. After the last breakup between Seth and Marceline, Seth had taken to the life of a transient. As much as he could, he cut ties with the Others. Until the day when he came to Raymond’s lab asking if he could use science to cure Marceline’s ambrosia addiction. It was ironic that fateful meeting sealed all their paths toward this current trajectory.
When Raymond reached the bottom, he took in the vast rock-hewn cave that stretched out before him. The upturned lights created hard-edged shadow patterns on the dome above.
Suspended from the dome rested his glass-clad circular laboratory. The visual contrast of the ultrasleek lab and the craggy grey mountain rock filled him with an aesthetic joy.
Up against the glass walls Raymond could pick out the distant shapes of what must be the sarcophagi his daughter promised and, most importantly, the creatures within. Hopefully they were ready to serve.
Walking toward his lab he thought about the first time he’d brought his daughter here.
The look of shock that flashed across her face. He wasn’t sure if it was disgust he detected when he shared his plan with her. Maybe he was just getting paranoid. Planning to kill your entire family certainly could cause a number of psychological tremors.
This partnership with his daughter could bring misfortune like his past trials. A bitter tang filled his mouth as he remembered the failed partnership he initiated all those eons ago with that misfit of a pharaoh Akhenaten. A wave of disgust filled Raymond. Bargaining with a mortal was a big mistake. Eventually the king became so enraptured with the powers he gained through their pact that Raymond had no choice but to finish him off, close shop, and wait.
The Pharaoh got what he deserved, an unmarked grave in the endless desert outside of his newly built city. His name was disgraced, known to the ancients from that day forward as the heretic. After his day in the sun, it was a curse to say his name aloud. It wasn’t until modern times, when his story was viewed through the eyes of monotheism, that he got the reputation as a poetic visionary. This always struck Raymond as odd and ironic simultaneously.
He would continue to use his daughter . . . so long as she was useful.
He entered the security code in the keypad, and the door swished open. Raymond made haste to the upright sarcophagi at the far end of the lab, excited to see what awaited him. His eye caught a glimmer of dark royal blue on the table in front of the coffins. It belonged to a deep-blue ribbon that bulged atop a long white box. He pulled out a card that was slipped under the silky fabric. To vanquish your enemies—Written in his daughter’s hand.
He pulled at the ribbon, and it slid away with a soft swoosh. Inside, cushioned by a layer of thick blue velvet, lay the most beautiful weapon he’d ever seen. It was a long rod with a ball at the end, a mace finely crafted of electrum and encrusted with turquoise, lapis, and carnelian.
Along its shaft were magical victory texts engraved in tight vertical columns. It was perfect for bashing in the heads of your subdued enemies.
He recognized it instantly: the Mace of Prophecy. He pulled the mace out of the box, examining the intricate metalwork. She must have understood the implication. Whoever possesses it masters the future of the human race. Could it be his daughter was true of heart? Raymond set the heavy scepter into its velvet nest with a soft thud.
He wandered over to inspect the two newly made coffins that stood upright at the opposite end of the room. He leaned in and smelled them. The strong lacquer-like smell of bitumen enhanced his high spirits. He swung them open and gazed at the stone faces lifelessly staring back at him from their diorite eyes. Propped up in a row beyond these two specimens were other ushabtis to be used if needed.
Raymond rubbed the rough edges where the magical spells were carved into their legs. Pride welled up within as he examined the fine handiwork of his daughter. No matter how well written the texts were, the question still remained: Would the old magic work on these centuries-old statues? Would they hear his call as they did over two millennia ago? Or would his voice be forever silenced to their ears?
Neatly folded stacks of clothing lay at the feet of each ushabti, like practical offerings. They would need to wear something once awakened. He picked up a khaki sun hat that lay next to the Set statue’s feet and smiled to himself. A cover of tourist garb will do well enough to hide them.
The moment of truth was upon him. Would these life-sized statues animate to do his bidding?
On the small table behind him lay a silver ceremonial adze, the ancient tool used to magically breathe life into the inanimate, and two crystal vessels that contained a small portion of the golden-hued lifeblood from Nephthys and Seth. Raymond knew the value of this rare liquid. He would use it sparingly. The delicate chalices were engraved with the donor’s magical name in beautifully rendered hieroglyphs. Raymond picked up the one marked Nephthys and swirled the golden liquid around. The movement made it separate and bead like gilded mercury.
Everything was ready. He grabbed the adze with his free hand and placed it on the mouth of the ushabti nearest him and tipped the crystal cup, allowing the liquid to slowly move toward the immobile mouth as he spoke the spell. “Oh ushabti figure of the great Goddess Nephthys, Lady of the Mansion, daughter of Geb of the Earth and Nut of the Sky, you live again, you breathe again.”
Nephthys’s essence rolled across the statue’s mouth and down its chin. The black stone surface of the statue lightened until it was the color of flesh. He rubbed the ushabti’s forearm; not only did it look like skin, but it felt like skin. His spirits lifted. The face morphed into that of Nephthys. The spell was working. Elation filled Raymond. “If I be called, or if I be judged—behold, let the judgment fall upon you instead of upon me always, in the matter of smiting of enemies, of filling my vessel with power, and of bringing the sands of the east to the west.”
Her eyes fluttered open. “I am here and will come wherever you bid me.”
Raymond’s heart skipped a beat.
The ushabti continued on, “I have come to be your protection. My protection is behind you eternally. Your summons is made by Re, your voice made true of the Gods. Your justification is raised after what was done against you. I will fell your enemies. There is decreed action against your wrongdoer. Your head is not to be taken from you for eternity.”
His heart swelled with elation. The old magic was not dead. He quickly recast the spell to awaken the other. Within minutes both ushabtis stared at him with wide, expectant eyes, awaiting their first command. It was both sad and appropriate that Nephthys and Set would be the first to serve him. If they couldn’t be together in this life, they would be together in death.
Raymond pointed at the one he’d awoken first with Nephthys’s essence. “Your name is Victory in Thebes, born of Re, but you will be known only as Victoria, so no one will know your true name, and will therefore be unable to lay a curse upon you. You will find and follow the One of Prophecy. Do not engage. Report back to me what you find.”
Victoria locked eyes with Raymond and nodded in assent.
He turned to the other, who stood stock-still. His head was topped with a long mane of red hair just like Set. “I name you Mut Is Satisfied, but you will be known as Neith so no one will know your name and be able to curse you. You will find Horus and kill him.”
Neith bowed.
Raymond pointed to the clothes that lay on the floor. “Remove your starched sheaths, collars, and jewels. Replace them with the ones at your feet. I command thee, minions, make haste toward your task.”
They replied in unison, “Yes, Master, Sacred Ram of the West.” They grabbed the clothes and quickly dressed. Without a word, they ascended the stairs to the outside world. They had a stiff gait, but looked suitably human. Mortals were reliably unaware and more than likely would never take a second look at them. Raymond chuckled as he watched them depart.
If humans do notice, they will be in for quite a surprise.