Hello everyone!

So this chapter came out much quicker than I expected (and it's even longer then intended - double score!). Ok, explanation time: I'm currently writing two stories at once, and so far my process has been to upload one chapter for one story then one chapter for the other story and back and forth and so on...Since this chapter went so well, though, I think I shall be writing a bit more (read another chapter) for this story before going back to the usual routine. It can be a kind of Christmas bonus if you celebrate Christmas. If you don't celebrate Christmas, then it's a bonus for you being awesomely patient with me! :)

Enjoy!

Chapter 3: Gods and Tasks

I kept my eyes on the figure who spoke last and was surprised once again when I found myself standing in front of them only a moment later. As I looked down, a pair of golden eyes looked up at me from a very familiar black cat.

"You."

A person closer to the burning embers scoffed. "'You.' I can tell she's intelligent enough for this."

"Well, at least she has yet to faint. That has been a common reaction for chosen ones past. Besides, need I remind you, Sobek, that I shall be the one to pass judgement on her intelligence and not you."

"Of course, Thoth, of course. But I'm in charge of judging her military genius and I honestly doubt she has any, which means she'll surely fail."

"Fail? Am I going to be taking a test? I don't even like them when I'm awake, why would I take one in my sleep?"

A chuckle from the cat at my feet drew my attention from the argument by the fire. "Welcome, Cassandra, to your first meeting of the gods. I am Bastet, and it was I who chose you for the task ahead." Bastet continued to speak while leading me closer to the flames, her tail raised high in the air behind her and swishing back and forth as we walked through the strangest group of people I thought I would ever see. The two who had spoken earlier were the first we passed and it started to unnerve me when they followed us. One, Thoth if I remembered correctly, looked to be a bearded young man holding a roll of papyrus and feather pen and was always taking notes of some kind. The other, Sobek, seemed considerably older, though it was hard to tell as he had the head of a crocodile. His cold, calculating eyes narrowed a little when we made eye contact, but even if they were cold I got the sense that he was only sizing me up. Perhaps he wasn't as icy as he looked. Either way I pulled my attention back to Bastet, who was still talking - it seems she either didn't notice my lack of focus or just decided not to mention it.

"Every time our people are in need of a strong leader, we choose a person to fulfill that role. Each of us takes a turn choosing who it will be, but all chosen ones must be approved by the rest of the gods, which is why you will be given tasks, tests if you will, one for each of us. If you pass all the tests you will be deemed fit and shall carry out whatever destiny has in store for you."

At this point we had reached the fire and Bastet had settled down in the lap of another god sitting by the fire's edge, turning around a few times before facing me. The short pause she used to get situated gave me time to sit down myself. I wasn't surprised or shocked by anything she had said, though that may have been because I was still dreaming and nothing ever seems out of place in a dream. But I had to admit it to myself - the dream blanket of calm security felt really nice at the moment.

"This first meeting, however, will be more of a formality than one of the tests. As I stated earlier, it was I who chose you and so it will be I who will help you when you need it most. For tonight, I am simply presenting you as my chosen one. If another god here will second my decision, then we can proceed with the first test."

Even though I still felt mostly calm, a ball of worry rooted itself in my stomach, forcing me to interrupt. "Wait a second. You're talking as if everything has already been decided. Don't I get a say in what happens to me? And what exactly is this destiny-task-thing I'll be doing anyway?" I was starting to snowball. The more I continued speaking, the higher and more frantic my voice became until it echoed around the huge cavern. "I'm not even a leader. I'm a wallflower! I sit there, become invisible to everyone around me, and observe - that's it! I don't talk. I don't lead. I just fly under the radar and live an average life. A peril-free, drama-free, test-free, safe life!"

"I told you she wasn't cut out for this. There is no way she can be a match for my chosen one," Sobek snorted from behind me, his voice filled with condescension.

The effect of his words was an immediate chill in the air as Bastet narrowed her eyes, and even though the fire beside me was still roaring and she wasn't focused on me, I shivered under the glare she was sending to the crocodile-man behind me. I was about to start scrambling out of the way when a warm hand landed just above my knee, effectively holding me in place but in a very comforting way. I felt rather than saw the god whose lap was currently Bastet's cushion lean closer, and his teeth clicked after every few words as he whispered into my ear. "It is alright. It is not you she is angry with, and since Sobek specializes in war, he is quite talented in starting fights. Bastet, however, is better at finishing them."

Though I'm sure no one else heard what he said, Bastet seemed determined to prove him right. Her words were clipped and barbed when she spoke, her eyes beginning to get a dangerous gleam in them, and I could sense all of the surrounding gods, including Sobek, start leaning away from her fury.

"Do you dare doubt my judgement and seek to insult me by claiming outright that I failed to present a worthy chosen one? Simply because she has yet to realize her full strength and capability does not mean that she is incompetent. And since I have watched over her for some time now, I know that not only will she surpass all of our expectations but she will push your chosen one to heights even we did not realize he could go."

Her speech left a tense silence in its wake, save for the still-clicking whisper next to my ear. "You see," it reassured, "Bastet is merely making a point."

I looked over to thank him for not letting me spiral into a bloody panic when I saw who exactly had been talking to me. Not four inches from my face was a giant scarab beetle with small, beady black eyes that stared right into mine. Thankfully my thank you didn't die in my throat like I thought it was going to. Instead it came out as a timidly whispered "t-thanks," which honestly wasn't much better in my opinion. The beetle, which I now noticed with slight terror was filling in for the god's head, chuckled a bit, his pincers making the clicking I had heard in his voice earlier. He leaned away, giving me some room to breathe, though he kept his hand on my leg to steady me. "You are braver than I thought. Not to many can keep eye contact with me, let alone speak or even thank me."

As he finished speaking, I noticed that Bastet's cold temper from before had all but evaporated and she was now practically purring in smugness as my actions backed up her earlier rant.

Finally, a voice I could only describe as ancient came from within the fire. Looking in, I saw a proud hawk sitting just above the flames on a branch that surprisingly wasn't even charred. His voice rang out in a commanding tone as he stated, "We shall begin the first meeting."

He let out a deep breath before continuing, "Bastet, today you have brought your chosen one, who will act with Sobek's to bring about a great change for our Egypt. Is this the woman you deem fit for this task?"

Bastet answered, her smugness still evident in her voice. "It is."

"Very well. Is there any here who will second her choice and be next to approve the chosen one?"

The scarab guy clicked his pincers, and if beetles could smile, I swear he would be grinning from ear to ear as he said, "I will second Bastet's choice. The girl has much to learn, but I agree that she will succeed. She has already passed the expectations I have held of her."

"If Kepre seconds, then the first meeting is done. Hathor shall be the first to test her."

As the hawk finished talking, all of the gods and goddesses started vanishing, and soon there was only Bastet, now standing, in front of me.

"You have done well, child, more so than most past chosen ones."

"Does everyone go through that? And where's Hathor? Isn't she supposed to give me a test?"

Bastet didn't laugh at my confusion, but her eyes were sparkling with amusement when she answered. "Not everyone goes through a meeting like today's. Only those who have a strong spirit, such as a priest or priestess, can enter our home. All others receive signs in the physical world and are often tested without even knowing what they face is a test. Such was the case with your partner.

"As for Hathor - she is a very prominent goddess, so she shall seek you out when it is time for her to do so. Also, I am currently the only one that can find you outside of our home, as I was the first to seek you out. In order for the others to find you when they desire, I must give you a maegix. With the maegix in place any of us can seek you and speak with you in your more physical world."

With that Bastet jumped up to my shoulder, barely giving me enough time to catch and steady her before she leaned down to touch her nose underneath my left eye's outer corner. As my world turned a searing white I could hear Bastet speaking from a distance, saying that if I didn't wake up soon, I would be late for school.

Coming out of the dream, I expected the white-hot light to disappear, but as my eyes adjusted to the brightening room the searing hot I had felt in the dream wasn't going away. In fact, it was concentrating itself at the spot where Bastet's nose had touched me, and it hurt. My cheek felt as though it had been sunburned for days, so much so that my eyes started leaking tears as I tore my way into the bathroom and turned the sink's cold tap as far as it could go before shoving my face under the stream of water.

Sighing in relief, I stayed hunched like that for a few minutes, letting the cold water steadily suck the heat from my cheek. When I felt better (and was no longer crying) I stood upright to look in the mirror and check the damage. Under my left eye where some people had beauty marks, I now had a smallish white ankh branded to my skin, almost if it had been tattooed there. The edges were still crusted over and bleeding slightly, so I reached for the emergency medical kit stored in my cupboard and got to work with only one thought in my mind.

I personally love cats, but if Bastet didn't have a damned good explanation for this pain and easy-to-see 'maegix' as she called it, she would be one dead cat.

About an hour later I was showered, dressed, and ready for school. I was already late by the time I had woken up, so I decided to take my time, figuring I'd get there eventually. I ended up using a band-aid patch to cover the ankh - I had figured that while the band-aid stood out the ankh would stand out more, so as the lesser of the two evils I had picked the band-aid.

After reaching the school and explaining that I had accidentally overslept to my very unhappy vice-principal, I was told to go to my third class with a note for the teacher and to report to detention after school today, which I was told would be held in the gymnasium. It wasn't until I reached my locker to put away my bag that I remembered Sophia's unspoken vow to make my life a living hell. Because of the dream and learning that I was somehow going to become a great leader alongside a person I didn't even know yet I had completely forgotten all of the school drama I would have to face today, but taking a long look at my locker said it all. Today was not going to be my day.

Someone, or more likely someones, had taped some very creative notes and drawings all over my locker, leaving no spot untouched, and some of them were disturbingly graphic. Figuring that they would just post more if I took everything down, I tore off just enough to open my locker before shoving my stuff inside and heading to third period.

Thankfully, most of the day passed without too much harassment from my fellow students and I made it to the last class unharmed. At lunch someone almost ran me over and while I managed to not hit the floor, my lunch wasn't as fortunate. I had also found some more colorful notes in my textbooks, and one book had somehow ended up submerged in a full sink of the girl's bathroom, but I myself had yet to receive anything directly, which honestly I found odd.

I came into the library to find my partners already seated at the far back table. Sophia had claimed the chair next to Darren, much to Drake's disappointment and my inner joy, so I took the seat to Drake's right, trying to avoid entering the conversation. It seemed though, that I had become far too noticeable because Darren spoke almost as soon as I had sat down.

"Are you alright? You don't look so good."

His concern was touching, honestly, but with the bristling Sophia next to him, I was more annoyed by the attention than anything else. Still, I figured being polite and distant was the best way to go, so I just replied, "I'm fine. My cat, Bassy, and I just had a slight disagreement this morning." It wasn't an outright lie...kind of...more like a warped version of the truth. Bastet and I disagreed on this maegix being a necessity, and it being painful.

"Oh yeah. Cats can be the worst sometimes." Man, he was just too good of heart for this school.

Then, in a rare show of fake concern, Sophia spoke up. "I'm sure Bassy will come around at some point," she said, her mouth starting to smirk as she continued, "but you know, the best revenge for a cat is to get them wet." The gleam in her eyes didn't look all that good, but since there wasn't much I could do about it, I decided to ignore the barely disguised threat for now. Luckily Mr. Harmel chose that moment to call the class to attention and the subject was dropped.

Sitting in the gym alone for detention was not fun, and since the teacher had too much to do to sit around for an hour and a half and watch me sit around for an hour and a half, she had moved back into her office to finish up some paperwork. I was sitting back on the bleachers when a familiar voice came from beside me. "I see the maegix has cemented itself well."

That had me bolting upright to glare at the curled up cat laying next to me.

"Was that really necessary? It hurt, you know!" I snarled, not bothering to keep my voice down.

"Of course it was necessary," Bastet scoffed, not missing a beat, "without it, you could neither see nor communicate with any of us, and as a priestess, you will need to do both."

"But it hurt!"

"The pain will have diminished by sunset. It is already hurting less, is it not?"

I opened my mouth to say no but I noticed with some chagrin that she was right. After the first pain this morning, it had been hurting less and less so now it was only a small ache, almost unnoticeable. Bastet seemed to have sensed she won the discussion, so she changed topics. "I actually came here to tell you Hathor will be coming soon. Be sure to remember all she says, for unlike me she does not have much patience and will not stand for any arguments or complaints." Bastet stood up, stretching as she continued to speak, "And as for a parting word of caution: only you can see us and hear us. Anyone around you will only hear your side of the conversation."

"So you mean I'm now going to start looking like some nutjob that talks to herself." It was a statement, not a question, but Bastet replied with a smile anyway.

"Only to those who do not understand or believe." And without any goodbyes, she vanished into thin air.

"Well, well, well. So the jealous whore and loner is also crazy. Who knew?" A sudden fit of laughter swooped up towards me as I felt dread creeping up my spine. Of course Sophia had to witness me talking to 'myself,' or worse, my 'imaginary friend.' Looking past the group - it seemed Sophia had recruited the entire boxing club - I noticed that the gym teacher had left without even mentioning detention was over, which didn't help my current situation in the least. Deciding to just get this over with (and silently cursing all gym teachers), I began walking down the bleacher steps and towards the group, keeping my eyes focused on a point behind them.

Our boxing club was the pride and joy of the school because they had won both regional and state championships for the past five years in a row. I wasn't that bad at fighting myself, but I knew I would never be able to win against all of them at once. My best bet, I decided, would be to knock through them and hopefully have enough time to run before they caught on to my plan. When I reached the last step I acted. I delivered a solid kick to the closest guy's chest, sending him flying into his friends and creating a temporary hole. I ran through the gap they left and felt the thrill of success until another one grabbed my arm and flipped me over onto my back. I was up in a moment, but it was still a moment too late as I felt a well-placed fist land on my temple, sending my head reeling and spinning.

I was still somewhat out of it by the time they had half-dragged me into a different room, and it wasn't until I smelled chlorine that I really began to wake up. By that time, though, I was already sputtering in the water and listening to the group's laughter fade away as they slammed the door behind them. A part of my brain was nice enough to point out that at least they weren't stupid enough to throw me in while I was unconscious. If they had done that, I probably wouldn't be thinking at all right now. Still, my maegix had begun to sting a little from the chemicals in the pool and my head felt like it was splitting open, so whatever consolation my brain had cooked up wasn't enough to help my mood.

My mood soured even more when I reached the side of the pool only to see a pair of sandaled feet standing at the edge, blocking my way out of the water. I looked up, prepared to give the person a piece of my mind, when I saw who, or what, really, was standing in my way. Remembering Bastet's advice, I tried to keep my voice polite. "Um, I'm guessing that you are Hathor? Bastet said you would be coming soon."

Honestly, she looked tired, worn out and downright stressed, but her smile was genuine when she looked down at me. "I am. I see you can listen well to others' advice. That is a skill you will need in the coming years, of that I am certain." She paused for a moment before continuing, as if she were searching for the right words.

"My task for you is simple. All I ask is that you find your partner, the person you will lead beside and love for the rest of your life. If you find that person and speak their name to me, I will give you my consent, chosen one.

"And since you have proved you can listen, I will also give you a head start. Many people practice magic in our land, and they can provide a path into the Egypt of our time and pull you to them. I shall place you on one such path, though once they pull you through, you shall be on your own."

Hathor kneeled down as I sighed in relief, at least she would help me get the ball rolling, and maybe the person who pulled me through would be the one I was to partner with. That would probably be too easy, but it would be nice after a day like today. My thanks to Hathor died on my lips, however, when she placed her hand on my head and proceeded to shove me back under the water.

I opened my mouth to start yelling at her, but water filled my lungs and I ended up choking instead. I felt a pull on the back of my neck dragging me deeper into the water as the gym's ceiling disappeared, and before I reached my destination the surrounding water turned black.