Egypt Incarnate

By Dragonblooded and The Chuckinator

Chapter 1: The Three Gods

In the land of Ancient Egypt, there were three gods: Ra, Anubis and Horus. They watched over the land with pride, and sometimes came down to Egypt as animals to see how things were doing. They chose their animals with care and made sure they were capable creatures, for not just anyone could be a god. So when the gods discovered creatures that could walk, talk and fight as humans, better than humans, they were thrilled beyond belief. The three had transformed into anthropomorphic hedgehogs. Horus was a blue hedgehog, Anubis was black, and Ra was silver-white.

"We should see how the Pharaoh is doing," Anubis said to the others.

Ra and Horus nodded, then walked into the palace. The Pharaoh was a black hedgehog that looked like Anubis in his hedgehog form. Shuet looked at them and spoke.

"How lovely to see you." Shuet rumbled, nodding to each of the hedgehogs. "What are you three gods doing here in mortal forms?"

Ra smiled. "We just came to see how things are doing in the mortal world."

Shuet smiled. "All is well here. There has not been a war in a long time. Drought and famine are out of the question. The schools are flourishing. I feel as if we are coming upon the beginning of a long period of peace - a Pax Romana of Egypt."

"That is good."

Anubis chuckled. "It makes my work much easier."

The Pharaoh nodded. "What are you three going to do now?"

"I am not sure about you two, but I have a date with a sun boat very shortly." Ra declared. "The Duat isn't going to traverse itself."

Shuet looked to Anubis and Horus. "What of you two? Shall you be accompanying him?"

"I suppose," Horus said. "It was nice to see you, Shuet."

The three gods left the palace and closed their eyes, transforming into their sacred animal forms: Ra a dragon, Horus a falcon and Anubis a jackal.

Ra looked up at the yellowing sky. "We best be going," he growled, beating his wings.

Anubis jumped on his back, standing on his shoulder blades. "Mind if I hitch a ride?" The dog asked.

The dragon nodded. It flapped its wings and flew into the air as the three vanished.

The three soon landed on a long low ship, The Boat of a Million Years. Morphing into hedgehogs one more, Anubis and Horus stood flanking Ra, who tapped the side of the boat lovingly. "Come now. We still have to fetch Isis and Osiris." At his command, the boat lifted into the air and sped off.

"Where are we going?" Horus asked Ra, who looked at him.

"We need to check on Set," the white hedgehog said.

"Why?" Anubis asked, "He can handle himself."

"He's been getting a bit...rowdy lately. And as pharaoh of the gods, and Set's great-grandfather, I have to make sure he doesn't go and do something stupid and kill Osiris again...who knows with that one..." Ra muttered.

"Speaking of killing Osiris, he doesn't seem to be taking the punishment well." Horus chimed, "He's a dastardly little social butterfly; he needs his partners in crime." Horus laughed.

Ra chuckled and nodded, still rowing the boat.

"Um, Ra?" Anubis asked.

"Yes, Anubis. Do you need something?"

"No, I'm just wondering why you're rowing the boat in the air?"

Ra looked down at the oar in his hands. He lifted it up. The boat continued to move even though nothing was propelling it. "Ah. Yes. I forgot it does that."

Suddenly his eyes widened and he held his head in pain. A few minutes later, he looked at the two hedgehogs. "A...vision came to me," he said. "Someone is going to betray us."

Horus blinked. "Betray us? Who would betray us? You are Ra, Pharaoh of the gods. One would have to be insane to-" Horus stopped suddenly, eyes widening fearfully in recognition. "We must hurry."

Ra nodded, and they spend on. Once they reached their destination, the three hedgehogs looked around.

"Well, well." A deep voice declared, accompanying the creature that sauntered out from behind a rock, "What do we have here? Why are the almighty Ra and his cronies paying a visit to little ol' me?" The animal strolled out, wincing when manacles around its hands yanked it backwards.

Horus jumped out of the boat and held a khopesh to the god's throat. "What are you planning, Set?" he growled, pressing the blade against the animal's neck.

Set grinned evilly. "Nice to see you too, Horus. Why are you being so uptight? Are you still mad about that battle all those years ago? Y'know, that battle where you failed to behead me and all that..." Horus snarled.

The blue hedgehog glared at him. "Ra has had a vision of someone betraying us."

Set gasped mockingly. "And you think I would betray him?" He gasped again. "Well...I never."

Ra walked up to Set and glared at it. "You have done it before, and you WILL do it again." Ra declared, his eyes glowing ominously, "Now tell me what mutiny you have planned THIS time, and I just MIGHT spare you of my wrath."

Set laughed, waving his manacled hands and shrieking in fake fright. "Oh noooo! What are you gonna do, Ra? Lock me up?" He jangled his chains. "Been there, done that. Isolate me?" He gestured to the empty rock he was stranded on. "Yawn. Face it, Ra. You've lost your...magic touch. There's not all that more to do. I mean, you could kill me, but then I'd be down there with my dear brother Osiris and well, we all know how that would end up. As the humans say, you can talk the talk, but can you walk the walk?"

The white hedgehog looked at the hydra, then turned and walked back to Anubis and Horus. A few seconds later, a beam of energy went through their chests. Blood came from the wounds and they fell to the ground. Set laughed.

Ra's eyes widened. He turned to Set. "What have you done, you fiend?!"

"Oh relax, you old codger. I just sent Anubis home. And Horus went to see his daddy."

Ra gasped even though he wouldn't put it past Set to do this sort of thing. He had done it before, after all. "You...you've killed them?! You killed your own son?"

"Yes, and my nephew." Set declared, an evil sparkle in his eyes, "And my grandfather."

Ra reeled backwards, drawing his crook and flail, but it was too late. The same beam of light engulfed him.

The last thing Ra saw was darkness. At the last minute, though, their souls were separated from their bodies. Ra couldn't see a thing. He tried to blink, to open his eyes, but he couldn't. It was as if he didn't have them. He couldn't hear anything, as if he didn't have ears. It was if he didn't exist, and for one who has been around since the dawn of time, that is a scary thing. It was if it was the dawn of the universe all over again, when all was dark but him.

And leave it to Horus to destroy the feeling. HELP ME I'M STUCK IN A ROCK!

Ra growled; he knew what they were. Shut up, Horus. Set has killed us, turning us into Chaos Emeralds.

Anubis smirked...well, the equivalent of smirking without a mouth. You know, for a brave, valiant warrior god, you sure don't see very fond of enclosed spaces.

Claustrophobia is a justified fear!

Ra chuckled. It's not a problem. Set has done us a favor by turning us into the most powerful things on the planet. Now all we have to do is wait until we are reincarnated.

Anubis agreed, as did Horus, and the three Chaos Emeralds disappeared.