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I straightened my bow tie, and looked at myself in the mirror. I was wearing a classic tuxedo with a white shirt, a black vest, black slacks, and a black bow tie that looked a little goofy, but it was all I had. My socks were pressed, my shoes were polished, and my hair was perfectly in place. I must say that I looked a little like James Bond, a character from a movie that Sadie had recently introduced to me after the war with Apophis was over.
It had been a long, hard war. Many brave people had been sacrificed, and the Duat had been flooded with more souls than it had ever had at one time. Even Walt, the poor boy, had used the last bit of his life force in the final battle. Everyone had been crushed, especially Sadie. Later, when I had met Walt while testing his heart against the feather of truth (he had passed, of course), he had told me that he would never regret anything. He also told me to take care of Sadie-as if she needed taking care of!
Sadie and I had grown closer over the past two weeks since the war had ended; I'd been there when she'd needed comfort, and we'd shared a few happy times. Tonight, we were all gathering at Brooklyn House for dinner and a bit of music to celebrate the end of the war now that Ma'at was finally restored. Most of the gods were still hard at work, putting the universe back in order and such. However, Lord Osiris-or should I call him Julius Kane, Sadie's all-powerful father? That is a rather awkward situation, now isn't it? The girl that I've been falling in love with is my boss' daughter. Anyway, Lord Osiris had given me leave so that I could enjoy the festivities.
I decided that I was ready and quickly created a portal to Brooklyn House before I could change my mind. I appeared at the front door of the mansion and knocked. When the door opened, Sadie Kane came into view. The first thing I noticed was her beautiful blond hair with her trademark strawberry red streak. Next, I noticed her dress. I'd never seen her in a dress before, and this one seemed to be just her style. It was mostly red, matching the streak in her hair, but it had some black stripes going diagonally across the middle like sashes, and was snug against her figure; with her combat boots completing the look, she was breathtaking.
"Hey, Anubis," she said, a small smile on her face and a slight blush. It wasn't until then that I noticed that I was staring.
"Hello, Lady Kane," I replied, using a name that I knew would get a response out of her.
"How many times have I told you to call me Sadie?" She sounded a little exasperated, but when I smiled at her, she snickered and punched me lightly on the shoulder.
Our moment alone, however, ended when Carter appeared behind his sister. Ever since Sadie and I had started hanging out after the end of the war, I had sensed a bit of hostility between Carter and me. He hadn't really said anything, but I could tell by some of the looks he had given me and the tone in his voice whenever he addressed me. Whenever he realized that Sadie and I were alone or having a moment, he would quickly intrude and separate us. I had heard of overprotective brothers, but this was ridiculous!
"Sadie, Bast wants to talk to you." Carter said somewhat harshly. Sadie glared at him before turning back to me.
"I'd better go. Carter here will show you to the Great Room." Sadie gave Carter one last dirty look before she was out of sight.
"Follow me, jackal face." I was quite taken aback at this, but I didn't say anything. It was bad enough that Sadie's brother hated me. I didn't know what would happen to my relationship with Sadie if Carter and I had a confrontation right here where everyone could see. Besides, I didn't want to hurt him; I was an Egyptian god and all, and even if he was a powerful magician from the Kane family, he was still Carter.
As I stepped into the Great Hall, I took in the absolute chaos. It was a good kind of chaos, with nearly a hundred trainees running about and enjoying themselves, but I still wondered if the other gods could feel the disturbance of Ma'at all the way from here. Speaking of the other gods, I realized that Bes, Tawaret, Bast, and I were the only gods here. Bes and Tawaret were together, laughing about something. They had started a relationship when the war had ended and Bes had been cured. I caught Bast's eye, and we smiled at each other. Everyone seems to think that we hate each other because of the cat and dog thing, but we're above that, and she is Sadie's protector, after all.
After a while, things started to quiet down, and everyone started to take their seats at the large table in the middle of the room. I looked for Sadie, and found her sitting next to Bast. I walked towards her so as to take the seat next to her, but Carter soon appeared from nowhere and quickly took the coveted seat as Zia sat down next to him. The table began to get a little crowded, so I quickly took a seat on the other side of the table next to Khufu and Felix. We had a delicious meal of soup, pasta, and assorted deserts served by magic; I noticed with slight amusement that Khufu was eating Gazpacho, SpaghettiOs, and jello. I had a good time talking to Felix about penguins and the many possibilities of a magical penguin army, especially when he stuck a few of his pasta noodles into his nose. After dinner was over, the tables were magically pushed aside and some light jazz came on as my eyes started to wander over to Sadie.
"You should ask her to dance." I jumped. I looked behind me and discovered the source of the voice: Bast.
"Do you really think so? Carter's been watching her like a hawk all night—no pun intended!"
"I think Carter's a little busy," she replied, pointing to Carter who was now dancing with-or should I say clumsily avoiding stepping on the feet of-Zia. I spotted Sadie standing off to the side, swaying to the music gracefully.
"Thanks," I sighed. I strode over to Sadie, trying to look confident.
"Want to dance?" Sadie looked up and grinned before answering.
"Of course." I took her hand and led her to the middle of the dance floor. I began to take up the proper ballroom stance, but before I could, I felt her arms around my neck, leaving me to place my hands around her waist. We danced for a while, gliding around the dance floor, before she spoke up. "You know, this is the first time that we've been alone all night. Carter's been a stupid git ever since the war ended."
"He probably just wants to protect you. Honestly, I would do the same thing." I knew that this was a mistake before the words came out of my mouth.
"I do not need protection! I am a twenty-first century girl, not to mention a magician who can ha-di anyone I want, including you!"
I chuckled in defeat. "You're right," I said simply, knowing fully well that I would never win this conversation. "This has been a fun night. I still can't believe that the war is finally over."
Sadie's eyes started to brim with tears, something you don't usually see. "I just wish Walt were here to enjoy it."
I instinctively placed my hand on her cheek. "He's in a good place. He passed the test."
"I know. I just miss him."
My heart gave a tug, but I knew that Sadie needed comfort. "When I met him in the Duat, Walt told me that he had no regrets, and that he didn't want anyone to blame themselves for his death. He also told me that it was now my job to make sure you were okay."
A tear rolled down her cheek, and she silently put her head on my shoulder. We stayed like that for a few more minutes. Finally, Sadie poked her head up.
"Thanks," she whispered.
"I'd do anything for you, Sadie Kane." Before I knew it, Sadie leaned in so close that out foreheads were touching. I started to close the distance. Our lips were centimeters away when we were interrupted.
For a second, I was sure that it was Carter. However, I quickly realized that it was an earthquake. Chunks of the ceiling started to fall and some of the trainees started to scream. Sadie started to fall, and I caught her, placing her gently on the ground. I shielded her from falling debris with my body. She instantly tried a few spells to stop the debris from falling, but to no avail. In fact, no one seemed to be able to use their magic.
"It's Apophis! He's come back, and we have no magic!" cried one of the trainees.
"It's okay, guys. We defeated him. Everything's going to be fine. We'll figure all of this out." That was my Sadie. Always good in a crisis.
"Okay, I want everyone to split into twos. All of the trainees should be together. The older ones should pair off with the younger kids. Next, I want all of the teachers to pair off with a god or goddess. I'll stay with Bast, Zia will go with Tawaret, Amos will find Bes, and Anubis, you're with Carter." In a whisper, she said, "Sorry. That was the only way I could even it up."
"Great," I muttered. I gave her hand a squeeze before I walked over to Carter.
"Now, I want half of the trainees to patrol the first floor, which is also where Khufu will be in case you need any help. The other half of the trainees will protect the grounds outside, where Philip can help you. Watch your backs and protect each other. The rest of us will take the upper floors. Zia, you and Tawaret will look through the second floor. Bast and I will take the third floor. Amos, you and Bes will go to the fourth floor.. That leaves the fifth floor to Carter and Anubis. If anyone finds anything, call for the others."
With that, we split up into our groups and headed to our designated levels of the mansion. Carter and I reached the fifth floor of the mansion without saying a word. We checked a few of the rooms that had been converted into more guest rooms for the trainees. Nothing out of the ordinary happened. Carter's khopesh, which he had found right before the final battle with Apophis, was out, and I have to admit that Carter did look a bit imposing. We entered the second to last room in the hallway, and that's when it happened. The house started to shake, and an aftershock caused a humongous chunk of the ceiling to come crashing down right in front of the door.
"No!" Carter yelled, trying to use various magic spells to remove the debris. I tried my best to move it as well, but to no avail. We still didn't have our magic back.
"I guess we're stuck here until whatever is happening is over or until someone comes and gets us out of here," I said, knowing full well that there was no way to move the debris by ourselves without magic. Carter, however, refused to listen and tried to lift the brick by hand. Of course, this didn't work, and after a few minutes of futile labor, he slid to the floor, exhausted.
"You know, if you actually tried, instead of just sitting there, maybe we could get out!" Carter yelled at me. That struck a cord.
"No, we couldn't! I've never been without my magic, okay? I've never done anything without my magic! I've never had to. I'm a god, Carter. Whenever I want anything, I just snap my fingers and it appears. No one's ever taught me how to do things myself, because they figured that I'd never need to."
Carter was silent for a while. "Figures," he muttered after a few minutes. We sat in silence for what seemed like forever. It felt like it would take a chainsaw to cut the tension. Finally, I spoke up.
"Since it seems that we're going to be here for a while, I have a question." I knew that we needed to get this out of the way. When I heard no reply, I continued, trying to keep my voice as even as possible. "Why have you been so hostile to me lately?"
"What do you mean, hostile? Like what?" His tone almost seemed mocking.
"Like today, calling me a jackal face!" He had to know what he was doing!
"Maybe that's just a nickname I thought up. Your face does look like a jackal, you know." He said it as if it were a fact of life.
"Not to everyone, you know. Sadie never-" I was quickly interrupted, but what Carter had to say was immensely more interesting.
"Sadie, Sadie, Sadie! You just can't stop throwing that around, can you? She's my little sister, just in case you didn't know! First it was Walt, a boy three years older than her. But at least I knew and trusted him. And then, the second he dies, you swoop in and try to take advantage of her when she's at her most vulnerable! And at least Walt was human! You're five thousand years older than her! She's only fourteen! She'll die in less than a century, and then you'll move on. You'll break her heart!"
By the time Carter was done, he was out of breath. He slammed the closest wall with his fist.
"So you don't trust me? Is that what this is all about? Well, too bad. Sadie is old enough to make her own decisions without her brother. She knows what she's doing. And our relationship is between her and me!"
This might not have been the smartest thing to say. Before I knew it, Carter was on top of me, trying to pound me into a pulp. Earlier, I had thought that he was pretty weak compared to a god. I was sure that I could take him without a problem. However, something that I hadn't noticed was that he was pretty strong from hours of training, and if you took magic away, he was more than a match for me. He had taken me by surprise, and even without his khopesh, I was pinned and defenseless.
Finally, after he got in a few good shots, his grip started to weaken and I was able to turn the fight around, struggling with him until I had my knees on his stomach and my arms were restraining his. We both tried to catch our breath, and when I was sure that he was done, I released Carter from my hold and scooted away from him. After a while, he spoke up, his voice still a little shaky.
"You had me towards the end. Why didn't you take any shots?" He said it as if me not hitting him was an insult to his pride.
"Because you're Sadie's brother. She really does love you, even if you can be very annoying at times." As I said this, I rubbed my left eye. There was sure to be a bruise there, and I'd be lucky if it was anything short of a black eye. "Besides, I respect you. You've kept Sadie safe, and we couldn't have won the war against Apophis without you." After a brief pause, I added, "I really do love her. I'd never hurt her. I'd do anything for her."
Carter studied me for a little bit. "I know," he whispered. "I just want to make sure she's safe and happy."
"I'll make sure she is. And as to the fact that she's mortal, I have a few ideas. I want to talk to some of the other gods about making her immortal. Surely they'll allow it, after all she's done."
"And what if Sadie refuses? You know her. She can be very... unpredictable." He was right, and I'd thought of another idea.
"If she refuses, I'll make her my queen when she dies, just like your mother is your father's queen in the Duat."
"One last question," he said. "In Egyptian mythology, you have a wife named Anput and a daughter named Kebechet. How do you explain that?"
I couldn't help it. I laughed. "Carter, you know Egyptian mythology is often incorrect or slightly embellished because words get twisted around or someone decides to make up a story about someone else. Some people used to think that I was Ra's son before we got that straightened out! It caused quite a scandal. Anyway, Anput is actually my sister, who had an affair with Ammon, the filthy mut, and ended up pregnant with Kebechet, my niece. We had to make up the story that she was actually my wife and that Kebechet was mine so as to spare my sister from the shame. So I know what it's like to want to make sure that your sister won't get hurt. But you can trust me. I would never force your sister into anything, and I'll make sure that I make an honest woman out of her. I was actually hoping to... ask for her hand in a few years, when she's a little older."
I looked Carter in the eyes, and he understood. "You've got my permission," he sighed after a while. "I trust you." I smiled at him, and he gave me a small grin. "You are going to be my brother soon, so I guess we'd better start acting like it."
Suddenly, we could hear the door being jammed against the debris in front of it. A few magical words were said, and the chunk of ceiling was shattered into hundreds of pieces. The door was thrown open, and Carter and I jumped up, Carter with his kopesh in his hands, and me ready to use my jackal instincts. However, when we saw Amos, we both relaxed.
"We finished inspecting the house, and by the time we got to the first floor, everyone had their magic back. Everyone was there except for you two. Then we heard some noises up here, and we came looking for you." He gestured to Bes, who stood behind him. Then he noticed me. "What happened to you?"
Carter and I exchanged a look. "You don't want to know," I said. "We had better get downstairs before anyone gets too worried." We quickly ran down the stairs, and emerged into the Great Room on the first floor.
"Anubis! Carter! I was so worried!" That was Sadie, and she ran straight into the arms of her brother.
"So, does anyone know what happened?" I asked.
"We do. As it turns out, when the war with Apophis ended, there was still plenty of chaos in the world. I guess that earthquake was the universe's way of achieving perfect Ma'at." This came from Bast.
"Perfect Ma'at..." I whispered, and as I said it, I realized that Carter and I had said it at the same time, realizing the same thing. That earthquake really had brought perfect Ma'at, perfect order, perfect understanding. We looked at each other, and as we did, Sadie moved from Carter to me.
"I'm so glad you're okay. But what happened? Why do you have a black eye?"
Carter gave me an apologetic look, and I quickly said, "Oh, some debris fell from the ceiling, locking us into one of the rooms, and, you know..." I smiled at Carter as Sadie inspected my eye. Then she moved in closer until our foreheads were once again touching. I gave Carter a questioning look, and he understood instantly. He gave a slight nod, as if to say, fine.
I moved into the kiss, closing the distance, and our lips met. She wrapped her arms around my neck. I pulled her in closer as I placed one hand on the small of her back and used the other to sift through her hair. We enjoyed our long awaited kiss for a few more minutes until I heard Carter clear his throat. I smiled. Carter had his arm around Zia. I looked at Sadie, and she placed her head on my shoulder. Yes, the universe had finally achieved perfect Ma'at.