Hehehe. In this chapter you learn where a certain someone kept visiting whenever they leave for a few days so that's fun. And Carter's just there like 'Hmmm, that's a bit odd.'
Replies:
Undeath9087: I gotta say, it is not going to go how they'd like it to. And if you think the trauma from Khonsu is gonna be bad for them you have no idea. It'll get so much worse for them. So so much worse.
Guest: Desjardins suspects that Menshikov is up to something which is why he ordered for Percy to be brought to him. Menshikov is still pretending to be loyal so he sent Percy to Desjardins but he needs her, so he's got a demon ready to take Percy on his command and ensure Desjardins doesn't get in the way, does that make sense?
Stalker: Menshikov is gonna be long dead by then.
Pati456632: I will be continuing onto the PJO plotline, and right now Poseidon believes she's dead as he cannot find her at all, or Sally for that matter.
Guest: Ye.

On one hand, the fact that they now had the throne of fire could only be a good thing, and Ra's hospital gown had changed into his old outfit, even if he still looked like an old man, and he still kept rambling about Zebras and Weasels, they'd even managed to sit him in the throne- though all he did was go to sleep in it.

Carter hadn't feel like such a failure before, not ever. And he hated the thought of how disappointed their dad would be when they saw him- and he had to be right? Carter had failed at everything. Percy was gone, Ra was old and weak, and they were going to be too late.

Even the sight of lost souls rushing to the riverbank to watch them pass in awe at the sight of Ra once more- even if he wasn't as glorious as he'd once been.

And thankfully the Fifth and Sixth houses passed quickly, though there was no way of telling how much time actually went by
They saw ghost villages, beaches made of bones, entire caverns where winged ba flew around in confusion, bonking into walls and swarming the sun boat like moths around a porch light. They navigated scary rapids which Carter was sure Percy would have loved, and a few times dragonlike monsters rose out of the river, but Bes yelled, "Boo!" and the monsters whimpered and sank beneath the water. Ra slept through it all, snoring fitfully on his burning throne.

Finally the river slowed and widened. The water turned as smooth as melted chocolate. The sun boat entered a new cavern, and the ceiling overhead blazed with blue crystals, reflecting Ra's light so it looked like the regular sun was crossing a brilliant blue sky. Marsh grass and palm trees lined the shore. Farther away, rolling green hills were dotted with cozy-looking white adobe cottages. A flock of geese flew overhead. The air smelled like jasmine and fresh-baked bread. Carter's whole body relaxed—the way you might feel after a long trip, when you walk into your house and finally get to collapse on your bed. "Aaru," Bes announced. He didn't sound as grumpy now. The worry lines on his face faded. "The Egyptian afterlife. The Seventh House. I suppose you'd call it Paradise."

"Not that I'm complaining," Sadie said. "It's much nicer than Sunny Acres, and I smell decent food at last. But does this mean we're dead?"

Bes shook his head. "This was a regular part of Ra's nightly route—his pit stop, I guess you'd say. He would hang out for a while with his host, eat, drink, and rest up before the last stretch of his journey, which was the most dangerous."

On one hand that wasn't comforting, the last part anyway, but- "His host." his voice wobbled slightly. And as he asked the question the boat turned toward a dock, where a man and a woman stood waiting for them. Their dad wore his usual brown suit. His skin glowed with a bluish tint. And their mom shimmered in ghostly white, her feet not quite touching the boards.

"Of course," Bes said. "This is the House of Osiris."

"Dad-" and then his dad was in front of him and Carter almost let out a sob as he was pulled into a hug along with Sadie- he felt so solid and human, so much like his old self that it took all his willpower not to break down in tears. His goatee was neatly trimmed.
His bald head gleamed. Even his cologne smelled the same: the faint scent of amber.

Then he held them at arms length to look at them, his eyes shining- and if he wanted to Carter could pretend, pretend that he was still a normal person but if he looked closely he could see another layer to his appearance, like a fuzzy superimposed image: a blue-skinned man in white robes and the crown of a pharaoh. Around his neck was a djed amulet, the symbol of Osiris.

"Dad-" Carter whispered the words, "Dad we failed- we failed... Percy-"

"Hush now-" Julius' voice was gentle, incredibly soft, "What happened with Percy was not your fault, neither of you-" he looked at Sadie too as he said that, "And Percy is strong- she's safe enough for now I have no doubt. When I checked in some hours ago Desjardins had her, he will protect her from Menshikov- he doesn't trust him." and Carter felt weight melting off of his shoulders at his dads words, the gentle reassuring tone. "It's time to rest and renew now."

"We've been watching your progress." Ruby Kane spoke up softly, and Carter wanted to cry all over again- he wished he could hug her but- he knew she wasn't physically there. She was just a spirit, when her hand brushed against his face it felt like nothing more than a warm breeze. "You've both been so brave- so strong. I'm proud of you." Ruby's voice was soft, "Come, we've prepared a feast- and there's someone here you might both want to see." and Carter and Sadie followed their parents almost in a daze as they were led ashore. Bes took charge of carrying the sun god, who seemed in a good mood after head-butting the mast and taking a nap. Ra gave everyone a toothless grin and said, "Oh, pretty. Feast? Zebras?"

Ghostly servants in Ancient Egyptian clothes ushered them toward an outdoor pavilion lined with life-size statues of the gods. They crossed a footbridge over a moat full of albino crocodiles, which made Carter think about Philip of Macedonia, and what might be happening back at Brooklyn House.

Then he stepped inside of the pavilion and his jaw dropped.

A feast was spread out on a long mahogany table—the old dining table from the house in L.A. Carter could even see the notch he'd carved in the wood with his first Swiss Army knife—the only time he could recall his dad getting really mad at him. The chairs were stainless steel with leather seats, just like he remembered; and when he looked outside, the view shimmered back and forth —now the grassy hills and glittering blue sky of the afterlife, now the white walls and huge glass windows of the old house.

"Oh…" Sadie said in a small voice. Her eyes were fixed on the centre of the table. Among platters of pizza, bowls of sugar-coated strawberries, and every other kind of food you could imagine was a white-and-blue ice-cream cake, the exact same cake that they'd exploded on Sadie's sixth birthday.

And then- then Carter's gaze focused on the other figure there- at the end of the table, and he didn't even hesitate, sprinting towards her- and he heard Sadie's shocked cry and they they both collided with Sally at the same time, and she wrapped her arms around them both gently in return.

"Oh my babies." her voice was soft, "Oh my sweet babies." and Sally's voice cracked slightly and Carter could see that she'd been crying, could hear it in her voice. "Thank the gods you're safe." he could hear his dad talking to Bes quietly but Carter didn't care.

"We- Percy-" Sadie couldn't even get the words out as she sobbed, and Sally's fingers gently combed through Sadie's hair.

"Don't- don't even think about it Sadie Kane." Sally pressed her lips to the top of Sadie's head, "You did the best you could. Percy is stubborn she'll be just fine as I'm sure your father told you." she sniffled slightly and Carter hugged her tighter, "She'll be just fine- she'll come back to us like she did last time she got captured."

And that- that was slightly reassuring- he'd been so worried then- and then she'd burst out of the water after saving him and Sadie with that wide grin she always got when she'd had a good fight.

Then Carter pulled back slightly as Ruby moved so that she was just behind Sally, a hand resting over her shoulder- and- Carter blinked as Sally turned her face and smiled weakly at his ghostly mother. There was something almost warm about it, beneath the grief in the woman's eyes.

"Sally- l-" Ruby cut herself off, "Come, we should all sit."

And Carter nodded, moving to the table- there were eight chairs. Ra was seated at the head of the table, next to Bes and Julius- and again, Carter was slightly surprised to realise that Sally moved so that she was sat between Ruby and Julius- that was- weird right?

Still, Carter sat down next to his mom, with Sadie sitting next to Bes.

Carter paused, there were seven of them but eight chairs.

"Is someone else coming?"

"Anubis?" Sadie piped up- which made Carter give her and incredulous look. Because seriously? His sister was worse than he was with Zia!

Fortunately- or not, if you were Sadie, Julius chuckled, "Not Anubis, though I'm sure he'd be here if he could."

Sadie slumped as if someone had let the air out of her. "Where is he, then?" she asked.

And Julius' hesitation made his discomfort very obvious. "Anyway, let's eat shall we?"

And- as bad as things were Carter was hungry, so he did accept a slice of birthday cake from one of the ghostly waiters.

The cake was chocolate with vanilla ice cream. It tasted perfect. Before Carter knew it, he'd polished off his slice and was loading his plate with pepperoni pizza.

The statues of the gods stood behind them, Horus, Isis, Thoth, Sobek—all keeping silent watch as they ate. Outside the pavilion, the lands of Aaru spread out as if the cavern were endless—green hills and meadows, herds of fat cattle, fields of grain, orchards full of date trees. Streams cut the marshes into a patchwork of islands, just like the Nile Delta, with picture-perfect villages for the blessed dead. Sailboats cruised the river.

"This is what it looks like to the Ancient Egyptians," Julius said, as if reading his thoughts. "But each soul sees Aaru slightly
differently."

"Like our house in L.A?" Carter asked, "Our family all together around a dining table- the only one missing is Percy right? Is this even real?"

Julius' eyes turned sad, "This birthday cake is good eh-"

"Julius!" Sally snapped his name, "I love you but you're being foolish. I know you want to help the children relax and take a brief breather but that won't work right now. They know how serious their situation is and neither of them want to sit pretending it's normal."

And Julius looked sheepish at that, deflating- and Carter really did love his mom.

"She's right." Sadie's voice wavered slightly, and Carter grabbed her hand, "We- we failed-"

And as if to prove the point Ra spoke again, his tone helpful, "Moon pie." he had a beard of cake frosting smeared across his mouth and he started to fall out of his chair- Bes had to push him back into place.

"Sadie is right." Carter swallowed hard, "Ra's in worse shape than we imagined. Even if we could get him back to the mortal world, he could never defeat Apophis—unless Apophis laughs to death."

Julius frowned. "Carter, he is still Ra, pharaoh of the gods. Show some respect."

"Don't like bubbles!" Ra swatted at a glowing servant light that was trying to wipe his mouth.

"Lord Ra," Julius said, "do you remember me? I'm Osiris. You dined here at my table every night, resting before your journey toward the dawn. Do you recall?"

"Want a weasel," Ra said.

Sadie slapped the table. "What does that even mean?"

Bes scooped up a fistful of chocolate-covered things—Carter was afraid they might be grasshoppers—and tossed them into his mouth. "We haven't finished the Book of Ra. We'd need to find Khepri."

Julius stroked his goatee at that. "Yes, the scarab god, Ra's form as the rising sun. Perhaps if you found Khepri, Ra could be fully reborn. But you would need to pass through the gates of the Eighth House."

"Which are closed," Carter pointed out. "We'd have to, like, reverse time."

Bes stopped munching grasshoppers. His eyes widened like he'd just had a revelation. He looked at Julius incredulously. "Him? You invited him?" and Carter noticed that both of his moms looked unhappy and worried.

"Who. What do you mean?" but Julius wouldn't meet his eyes. "Dad what is it? There's a way through the gates? Can you teleport us to the other side or something?"

"I wish I could, Carter. But the journey must be followed. It is part of Ra's rebirth. I can't interfere with that. However, you're right: you need extra time. There might be a way, though I'd never suggest it if the stakes weren't so high—"

"It's dangerous." Ruby shot Julius an annoyed look, "I think it's too dangerous."

"What's too dangerous?" Sadie demanded.

"Me I suppose." the voice came from behind Carter, and he twisted quickly, gaze focusing on a man standing with his hands on the back of his chair