Chapter 12: Rebellious Teenagers Don't Belong in the Duat

His eyes were the only things that changed since the last time I saw Andrew before his suicide. Back then, he would rarely lift his eyes to look at anyone. Their focus was never on anything around him, like he didn't want to see the world around him for what it was.

Now he looked directly at me. He didn't shift his gaze but returned my look with a confidence he never had while living. They stayed focused, as though the duat was a reality he could accept than the one he had left behind.

Andrew looked bewildered by my appearance. He opened his mouth to say something, but at the same moment Thoth noticed me and stepped between him and me. "Welcome back, Nakia. Has Anubis already left to see Osiris?"

"Uh, yeah he did," I replied.

"Splendid. The sooner we finish the better. I have four hundred eighty seven million nine hundred ten thousand five hundred and sixty six documents and notes I still need to process and I would rather not delay the work too long. And I presume you will be staying for the Weighing of the Heart? It's quite rare these days. You wouldn't want to miss the opportunity."

I shrugged. "I have nothing else to do."

Thoth stiffened a moment and looked at me surprised. But the moment passed and he sighed, saying, "How simple it is to be a human…" He walked away, once again taking to the laptop wobbling on his palm as he typed on it with the other hand.

Andy walked to me then. I rarely ever see him smile, so the sheepish smile he had now made him seems like another person. "Let me take a guess," he said. "You're not dead, are you?"

"Not yet." I wanted to say more, but I couldn't think of how to comment on his death and still keep the tone casual. Instead, I said, "You missed the pizza party."

"Pizza party?" I told him about my offering and he laughed in a wistful way that surprised me a little. "That's just my luck. But, man," he said shaking his head, "how on the world did I miss a person who hangs out with Gods?"

"I've only known a god since… recently. I've kind of left school so I can help Anubis out."

"That is so cool. And you know him?" he asked pointing to Thoth.

"Thoth? Yeah, I've met him a couple of times. He has the messiest office I have ever seen in my life."

"With the eight billion what papers he said he had, I would believe it. But what was it he called you? Nakia? Why don't you go by Ma–"

Andy was cut off, but not by anyone who had been here before. A black figure as tall as me appeared in front of him and had its hand over Andy's mouth to silence him. The transparent figure I recognized, and sure enough, when I looked to the ground I saw its legs stretched onto the ground until they were under my feet. Andy froze, staring at my shadow in a silent horror. At that moment Thoth's voice broke I stunned silence.

"You should take care to watch what you say. A name has power, and Nakia has adopted a lesser name to protect herself. Do you give your word to never speak her true name?"

Andy nodded stiffly. As soon as he did, my shadow retreated back onto the ground once again moving on the ground as I do. Andy said, "What was that?"

"Nakia's sheut; shadow in your language. Don't worry. The sheut only serve one god."

"Which god is that?" I asked Thoth.

He grinned at me and replied, "I think you can figure that one out yourself."

"…Anubis."

He didn't respond, but only broadened his smile. The next second he turned his head away, abruptly alert. He turned back to me and said, "They are coming. You do what I say, Nakia."

As he spoke, the room around us was changing. The wide open space was being filled with tall pillars that grew from the stone floor like spring flowers. Two rows of pillars stretched either direction on each side of us. Further away the black sand we sailed across poured from the ceiling. When the sand hit the floor, it turned into solid stone that grew taller. When the flow of black sand stopped, the stone revealed two thrones, both solid onyx with intricate reliefs on them.

"Follow me," Thoth said to me. I followed him, leaving Andy behind to wait by the giant scale. We walked to the thrones, and Thoth stood in front of the smaller throne. "Sit on the floor by me," he said and I did so. I looked at the other throne and asked, "Where's Anubis' throne?"

"He doesn't have one."

"Why not?"

"He didn't want it. Shh." Thoth looked straight forward. Between us and Andy, something else grew from the floor the same way the pillars had formed just before. It was like a white stem but it grew thicker and denser until it was eventually in the shape of a human figure. The figure took form and his back was dressed in a white robe and sporting the good old Egyptian bowling pin on his head. Andy straightened up when the figure appeared. He was timid, not really sure how to act it seemed. He finally decided to sink to one knee in a bow.

"What is the true name of the mortal who comes to have his heart weighed?" said the god.

"Andrew Jason Darnell," he said in a shaky reply.

"Andrew Jason Darnell, you have proven yourself by reaching this gate to have courage and strength worthy of being vindicated. If you wish to have your soul judged, you may continue on your journey and reach Aaru. But be warned, for if you don't speak the truth, you will suffer a second death by the jaws of Ammit. What is your will?"

"I will have my heart weighed."

"Very well." The figure turned and strode towards us. Now that I could see his face, he looked like an older Anubis. The only differences were the god's curly black hair, a small beard on his chin, and penetrating silver eyes. He cast those eyes on me, and that serious face showed a goofy grin not so different from the young boy I had met in the duat a couple of weeks before. He reached the throne and Thoth bowed low to him. Osiris nodded, but as Thoth turned to sit in his throne, Osiris gestured with his hand over his head showing how slightly taller he was from Thoth. I avoided Thoth's searching gaze as I stifled a laugh.

I had not noticed Anubis has arrived. He arrived with the hippo crocodile thing, Ammit, who strode to sit by Osiris' throne. Anubis had changed his clothes, and was topless and in a white Egyptian skirt. In his hair was a large, fluffy feather.

He looked terrible. He was paler than usual, and there was sheen of sweat over his body. His face was a mask that showed no pain or discomfort, or even any hints of feeling. He stood in front of Andy, and metronomically stated, "You will be judged against Ma'at, the Goddess of truth, justice, and order. Do you, Andrew Darnell, uphold that you have lived by Ma'at's laws, and you have not committed an evil act that you can be condemned for?"

There was a long silence while Andy stared fixedly at Anubis. I couldn't understand why he was waiting so long. The words seemed to be stuck in his throat. But finally Andy swallowed and said, "I do."

Anubis nodded without a word. He drew the feather from his hair and held outstretched before him. He let go, but the feather didn't drift to the ground. It slowly turned in the air frozen in place. Soon a wind stirred it, and many white feathers started to appear, spinning in tight circles. Many appeared until the feathers were so nit in place that they made a form.

The feathers continued to spin and blow, but they were confined in the shape of a woman's body. Anubis bowed to the figure when she took form. She nodded her head back to him. The feather made body drifted to one side of the scale, where she floated to the side of one of the weights.

Anubis walked directly to Andy. I flinched as his hand went into his chest. There wasn't any blood or anything, but he removed his hand easily with a heart in his hand. The heart didn't move, obviously dead as Andy was. Andy's face went slack, and I was eerily reminded of Anubis' own blank stare.

Anubis took his place on the other side of the scale. In unison, the feathered figure stepped into the metal weight just as Anubis placed Andy's heart in the scale. The scale swung from the new weight and teetered up and down. The feathers would swirl with the movement but stayed contained in the weight. Gently the scale slowed its movement and came to a stop.

There was a metallic clanking as one side rested on the ground.

It took me a moment to know what it meant. My mind finally grasped the old legend my father had told me as Thoth stood beside me.

"This is his judgment," Thoth declared. "The heart of Andrew Jason Darnell has been weighed, and his heart gives testimony on his behalf."

My hands started shaking. I could see Anubis stepping away from the scale, looking not over to me, but the creature growling beside Osiris' throne.

"His heart has been found immoral under the trial of the Great Balance."

I tried to stand up, but my knees were stiff and shaking.

"There has been wickedness found him, for he has slain his own life and shed the blood of man."

The growling grew louder. Anubis wouldn't look at me.

"By Ma'at's judgment, he has broken his word, and shall perish in the jaws of Ammit."

"No!" I cried.

Anubis nodded.

The creature ran with a blur and threw itself in the scale, the side Anubis has been standing by. I heard its growls but I did not see. I had made it to my feet. I was running away. Away from the growls and tearing behind me.

I didn't belong here. I felt so alive it hurt.

I let my legs carry me through the repetitious corridors, trying desperately to find the office I had been before. I wanted to hide, and there wasn't a better place than underneath Thoth's pile of books.

But deep inside I knew I couldn't escape. I was trapped in the duat and it terrified me. The feared for me life. I couldn't put a name to it. I ran from being at the mercy of the gods.

I turned a corner, and there were no longer any halls before me. The area was wide open and bare. Everything continued into darkness. The floor had turned into dark dirt that stretched on as far as was visible.

I turned around to go back, but the hall I left wasn't behind me. It was the same barren field all around me. I staggered, whipping myself around trying to find where I had just come from. My breath came in shaky gasps and I was still shaking. I couldn't move my mind shocked at the sudden change in environment.

Something grabbed my ankle.

I shrieked and fell. I pulled my foot away. A decomposed hand fought against me. Another cry escaped me when I realized what it was. I wrestled me foot free and scrambled away. More decomposed body parts started digging from the earth around me. I was trapped in a horrible version of Thriller, where I would be lucky if they started dancing instead of attacking me.

I started running, trying to keep away from the skeletal bodies that pulled themselves from the ground. I didn't know where I was going. I wasn't even sure if I was going straight, let alone the right direction. As I ran I could hear them whispering behind me.

You are my sweet, smart child.

No daughter of mine can't leave before giving her dad a big old hug.

You know that you can tell me anything, right? If there is something wrong, you can tell me.

My corners of my eyes burned from the voices and the memories connected to them. Part of me wanted to stop and turn back; run to back to my family where I would be safe. I forced myself to keep moving forward. They were gone. There was no going back.

The world shifted. I was flung through the ground, like the world was rotating. For a moment the image of an hourglass being turned stuck in my mind.

I wasn't in the barren waste land anymore. It had the appearance of a natural cave. Stalactites dripped water above me. The place was dark, but there was a natural glow though I couldn't see its source.

As soon as I stepped forward the floor I stood on started to sink. The black sand that had looked solid started to move and ripple. I fell in deeper into the sand as a current started to flow and the sand turned into a river. I was pulled underneath by the current. The sand stung my eyes and I closed them. I was being tossed by the force. It felt heavier than water but moved like it. I could feel bits of rock scraping across my face. I couldn't control where I was going. My throat burned for the air I wanted to breathe.

My direction changed to a vertical pull, and the last thing I remembered was landing forcefully onto the ground.

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I woke in a tunnel. I was covered in clumps of wet, black sand. I was panting. I wasn't sure if I had been out for a long time or only a moment. I slowly got to my knees and whipped off the sand on me.

The tunnel was perfectly round, and the walls were smooth. I stayed still for a moment gathering myself, trying to remember how I got here. My mind was numb and I found recalling what had happened difficult. It was like waking from a dream that slowly slips away as you try to remember what the dream was about.

The tunnel had some light, though it was still dark. Directly above me was looked like a red electrical current stretching down the bath in front and behind me. The constant movements of light made my shadow shake. I looked down each path, not sure which direction to take.

Decide well, mortal. Which way you take will decide whether you die quickly or suffer slowly.

I froze, from the voice that spoke as though whispering by my ear. It made the hairs on the back of my neck prickle. Fear grabbed at my throat, making it hard to breathe.

Which way will you take? How will you die? Don't keep me in suspense.

I tried to speak, but I couldn't make a sound. I spent a moment steadying my breathing, and gained some control over my voice. "Wh-who are you?"

Heh. You wish to know me? There was a moment of silence, and then the voice continued. I am Apep. Do you know of me, mortal?

'He's a scary snake that lives in the duat,' came Horus the Child's voice from the mention of the name.

"Snake…" I managed to croak out.

Ha ha ha. Very good, child. It seems the stories haven't been lost yet.

"Where are you?" I swung around, looking around me, trying to find a snake slithering on the ground or hanging from above near my ear.

Where am I? You are looking at me.

I froze, focusing my gaze directly in front of me. I looked all around, but I couldn't see where the snake was hiding. My breathing was quickening again, and I was finding it difficult to keep myself standing instead of curling up in a corner.

"I can't… can't see…"

The voice laughed again, much deeper than before. Why I'm all around you,

For you are inside me.