In which the nerdy ibis god comes back from a break, only to find out that he REALLY shouldn't have had one in the first place.
oooOOOooo
Spots
Ah, yes, there is nothing better than taking a long swim in one of the pools at noon, mused Thoth, rubbing himself with a towel. It felt good to take a break every once in a while from his diary-writing and doing something relaxing. It really refreshed his mind. Now he was ready to go on from where he left off.
After all, there was a lot to do. Ever since the gods of Egypt were once more called upon the Earth, Thoth realized that this new world could surprise him every single day. Everything had changed, even Egypt wasn't what it used to be. Thoth didn't really know how the others coped with this, he personally felt like being hit by an atomic bomb of information and it was hard to process even for him, the God of Wisdom and Learning. He didn't even know how to feel about the modern world. On one hand he was happy and thrilled that humanity has reached such a level of existence. On the other hand he was devastated and even disgusted at what they sometimes used their technology for.
With all this new information, it was really hard to find a point of reference, so Thoth decided to write down everything new he learned. This was his so-called "diary". Today he even had more time to work on it since his wife, Ma'at, Goddess of Justice and Order was busy. In the Hall of Judgment, the Scale of Heart needed some repairs. Ammut, curse that dimwitted demon, bumped into it, turning it over, ripping some of the strings in the process. Ma'at and Ptah, God of Craftsmanship were assigned to mend it, and since it was not an ordinary scale, it took some time.
So Thoth was ready to get back to surveying the Overworld, taking note and after that showing it to the other gods, or at least to two of them: Bastet and Anubis. The three of them had been rather close, even though they weren't a family. It was rather unheard of that three differing gods would be friends but here they were, still together. Thoth, being one of the eldest gods, had taught Bastet and Anubis when they were kids (he taught pretty much all the gods following after himself and Ra) and they really grew close to him even after they became adults.
The ibis god walked into his temple then stopped dead on his tracks. Wait, he forgot something… Oh right! He turned to the small cupboard next to his desk and opened it. He wanted to make sure it was tidy so he started looking for ink spots around the bottles, even around those he rarely used. After a couple of minutes he got to the crystal bottle of the red ink. His eyes widened a little as he saw a small blob next to it. Out of all the inks in there, it was the last one he expected to be used. Immediately he rushed to the night table next to his bed and out of one of the drawers he took a pair of special gloves made of demon skin. Trying them on, he rushed back to the cupboard, carefully lifting up the crystal bottle. Was it cracked? No, the case was perfectly intact. Then how did that spot got there? The last time he used it was literally ages ago… almost six thousand years ago! And after that one occasion he vowed never to use it again… Unless the situation was extremely dire.
- What has happened here? – he wondered aloud as he pulled out the brush. The golden handle was covered in the ink, showing that it was used recently.
But that couldn't be! He didn't even glance into its direction and neither did Ma'at… he told her not to.
Thoth tried his best to come up with an explanation but couldn't. And that was something. He slowly shook his head, placing the bottle back to its place. Then he brushed the spot off with his gloves, watching it soak into the texture, disappearing from sight. With a heavy sigh he took them off and placed them onto his desk then left the temple. Maybe a walk would help him solve this mystery.
Thoth almost bumped into Horus around the corner.
- Oh… excuse me – he mumbled.
- Nah, it's okay – the falcon god smiled, he looked very content –, Is something the matter?
- No, no, nothing… Just thinking…
- Yeah, I can see that. Hey, did you happen to see Hathor somewhere?
- Oh, she is at the pool, I believe.
- Thanks – smirked Horus and hurried off.
Something must have really worked out for him today.
Thoth absentmindedly set course to Anubis' temple. When he got there, he stopped. Maybe together they would find the answer. The jackal god's way of thinking often differed from his, but it might be an advantage in this situation.
So he walked in. Total emptiness greeted him. Weird, Anubis usually spent his time here, he liked being by himself. Thoth, unsure of what to do now, looked around slowly. Even weirder, the bed of the god looked like it had been used minutes ago. The black pillow still held the imprints of his head… or his arms, or something. The ibis god went a little closer. Okay, so Anubis probably had just gotten up from a nap, maybe he'll be back soon. Thoth's eyes slowly casted onto the ground before him.
He stumbled back, almost falling over.
Only two centimeters away from where his toe was originally, a large bright red blob covered the ground. In the shape of an evilly smirking, distorted face.
The ibis god stared at it, body frozen but mind racing like a sandstorm. Recently used red ink… Horus having a day-off and being very content… a big ink blob next to Anubis' bed…
Thoth spun around on his heels and ran out of the temple, looking for Horus. In the meantime he prayed he was wrong.
There is just no way the falcon god used that ink on Anubis! Right?!
oooOOOooo
Anubis woke up with a sneeze. The dust irritated his nose… dust?!
What the…?, he sprung to his feet.
It was dark. Really dark. And the air was cool. Something was not right here. He remembered lying on his berth before falling asleep. So where was he if not in the Underworld?
His eyes hadn't adopted the darkness yet. He heard strange, booming voices, buzz and clatter that totally confused him. He could smell something really bad, like it was the mixture smoke and trash. Suddenly a flash of light passed by behind him. He didn't have time to turn around, was frozen by the sight his eyes caught in that split second.
He was surrounded by brick walls on three sides. The place was full of dust and trash bins. He was staring at a curious black cat that was thin and hungry, but this newcomer got its attention.
It was an alleyway.
He forced himself to turn around. Behind him, where the flash passed by, a four-lane highway extended with lamp posts and passing carts… cars that had bright lights coming out of the front. Giant buildings towered over it all, their roofs disappeared into the night sky as no light could reach up that high. Some windows were yellow, most were dark.
Okkkay, so he was in the Overworld. How did he get here again? Anubis stared at the highway, before turning back to the alley. The black cat was still there, still looking at him with sparkling emerald eyes.
- Oh I get it! – snorted Anubis after a few seconds of silence then raised his voice a little bit. – Horus! I know you can hear me!
No answer.
- Nice trick, you overgrown sparrow! I almost fell for it, truly – continued Anubis. – I really hope you can find a good hiding place now, because I shall bury you under your own throne!
No answer.
The jackal god snapped his fingers then placed his hands onto his hips expectantly. Nothing happened. A portal should have appeared by now next to him…
He tried again. The result was the same.
- Horus? – he called out again, not as certain as before. – Stop this, alright? I do not know how you are doing this but… Fine, you win! Let me go home already!
This time he tried a somewhat more complicated enchanting, waving his hand around. But the portal refused to open up.
- Horus! – he snapped. – This is not funny anymore! … Horus?
The black cat tilted its head a little, but nothing more.
Anubis felt his mouth dry out. Something was not right here. He slowly turned around and carefully went closer to the highway. Apparently, the alley was between two shops, both having big display windows on the front wall. As the jackal scanned the highway, his eyes accidentally casted there as well. He froze to his spot.
What has happened to him?!
The golden outline around his eyes were gone, instead it was red and had a different shape. He shook his head. Maybe all those weird lights made him hallucinate. He looked at the reflection again. That new, somewhat… fierce pattern was still there. He had seen it before somewhere…
It took him two whole minutes to finally recognize it. His desperate scream however was overwhelmed by a nearby passing truck.