-50-
Kol
"I am not a servant which can be summoned at your leisure, Amun."
Where Isolde had spawned ripples in the floor now stood a man. A graying middle aged man. He stood with a straight back and power that wafted off of him in waves that reminded Kol of how the sea crashed against cliffs amidst a storm.
Kol had never encountered such unimaginable power. Not in his thousand years of dedication to studying magic. This amount was obscene.
This being's presence alone was stirring Kol's fight of flight response and the urge to flee was overwhelming. He could hardly breathe, but he couldn't move. He was stuck, frozen in place by his own body. A quick glance at his brothers told him they felt the same way.
Kol could feel the rumble of the newcomers' words deep within his soul, the being's clear disapproval felt like a gallon of cement solidifying in his belly and he realized that even should he attempt to flee, he would only succeed in sinking to his knees and kissing the cold marble floor.
Kol looked to Isolde. Concerned that she'd summoned something ethereal, something she shouldn't have, by accident. He was shocked by the uncaring look on her face.
Isolde stood before the newcomer with crossed arms and a raised brow. As if none of the power that flowed off of him phased her at all.
Was it because she was a deity and he a mere Vampire? Or was there something else to it that he didn't know?
What was this creature? What had Isolde invited amongst them, and did she realize how powerful it was?
Isolde
"Had I another choice I would not have called for you." Isolde quipped, eyes focused solely on the asshole in front of her. She just needed to get him to do one thing for her and leave so his oppressive divine presence could stop weighing on the boys before they all ended up passed out from it.
Then, after a moment, she backpedaled and dropped the attitude because she knew she shouldn't be so disrespectful when begging a favor.
"Thank you for heeding my call."
Briefly, she felt badly for how Kai slumped over once again. His constitution was far weaker than the Mikaelsons and therefore unable to remain upright and conscious in the presence of a Creator at full power.
And Yahweh wasn't going to bother to keep it contained to make it easier on them, either.
"What are you?" Was whispered behind Yahweh, and she wasn't sure which of the brothers it came from but she thought it might've been Finn.
Yahweh turned his head, slowly, to face them. The universe swirled in his eyes and his lip quirked up to one side. A brief gentleness he expressed for his Creations that he would never exude amongst his fellow Creators softened his features for a single moment before it was gone again.
"I Am that I Am." His presence rumbled through the room and Isolde watched all of the boys flinch.
"He is Yahweh." Isolde told them by way of introduction as each of their legs buckled underneath them. She remembered her first time meeting a Creator. It got easier to tolerate their presence over time. Better still if it was someone like Phanes who was conscientious of how it felt and kept it under control. "One of the ten Creators and the being that formed the core of the Earth."
This was the kind of situation that gave Yahweh a superiority complex in the first place. Isolde swallowed her irritation.
"You're going to hurt them." Isolde warned, stepping up beside the Creator. "The mortal is already unconscious."
"Mankind was not meant to remain in my presence for long periods." He acknowledged taking no steps to alleviate the situation.
Well, you would know. Isolde thought. You created them.
"I've called out to you to beg a favor."
"Your enemies converge upon this location, as others converge around my Earth. You seek to merge with Ra and put an end to this torment. The body of your brother, Anubis of the Underworld lies beneath our feet, the path untenable until millennia of Earth is moved. Part of his soul has latched to you and you wish to see it returned unto him. "
"Indeed." Isolde nodded. Omniscient jerk.
"The path forward is clear." Yahweh told her, turning away from the Mikaelsons, who she was pretty sure were on the verge of losing consciousness, and Kai. "You will merge with the eldest of Creators. At that time, your purpose is to forever keep the inferno of his fury contained. You must minimize collateral damage, and harm no man that does not seek to harm you and yours. Harm not the Earth in ways that cannot be restored. Swear this unto me, and I shall aid you."
"I swear it." There was no other option, and Isolde didn't want to do any harm that could be prevented anyway.
But perhaps Yahweh knew something about Ra that she didn't. It sounded like Ra might hold a grudge she wasn't previously aware of.
Yahweh's swirling eyes watched her for a moment longer. His gaze pierced her soul and she knew that he knew every thought she'd ever had. Every deed she'd ever done. Her failures, her triumphs. All of it. Everything.
Including the plans she'd made with Klaus.
He paused, but gave no indication of anything on his face. He seemed to come to a conclusion, when with a wave of a hand a portion of the floor gave way to a descending staircase and without another word he was gone. Dissipated into the aether, taking his oppressive presence with him.
Each of the boys took in a shuddering breath as if released from a chokehold.
Isolde had to stop herself from racing down those steps.
Anubis would appreciate it if she checked on Kai, first.
Her boys already seemed to be bouncing back and getting to their feet so she wasn't too worried about them. Kai was still on the ground, though, and that was concerning. She brushed her fingers over each of their hands as she moved past them to get to Kai, just for a little reassurance.
The last thing she wanted to do was make them feel like they were on the back burner.
"Sorry about that." Isolde said, stepping around broken glass and crouching down by Kai, who blinked in confusion as his sudden slumber ebbed away. "He doesn't hold back his power for any reason but he was the best one for me to call upon at this time. Thankfully the Creators don't believe it prudent to hang around unnecessarily. They're Eternal, and yet they have zero patience. Kind of like Klaus."
She heard Klaus scoff and mumble something from behind her and could almost feel his eye roll.
"My dad once threatened to send me to meet my maker. Pre-Prison World." Kai grumbled, accepting Isolde's hand to help him stagger to his feet. "Never wanted to. So, thanks for that experience. Don't really want a repeat, if we can manage it."
Isolde cracked a small smile. "That's twice I've placed you in a precarious situation in less than a half hour. Sorry about that."
"It's okay bestie." Kai returned her smile, raising a hand to pat her shoulder. "I'm free because of you. But like, just one little thing though." Kai held up a finger and Isolde nodded for him to continue. "You're mega rich, right? Buy me so much stuff when we're done here. I literally just have the clothes on my back. And they're like… two decades outdated."
"You got it. Two birds and one stone; my brother is going to need everything too." Isolde laughed and wrapped him in a one armed hug, Kai sagged against her and she turned to her bonds, all in varying states of confusion. Except Klaus who, big surprise, looked furious. "Are you guys alright? Need blood or anything before we head down?"
"We're wasting time." Klaus reminded her, gesturing pointedly toward the stairs. "In case you've managed to forget that the military is converging as we linger here? I know half of my family has no idea what modern warfare is like but I'd rather not be here should they decide to use explosives."
"Not to mention we'd all have to become meat shields to protect Malachai." Elijah said, his tone clipped and jaw set. "We should get moving. The sooner Anubis is returned to his own body the sooner we can leave this place."
Elijah was also angry.
Well, damn. She hadn't wanted everyone to be upset with her.
"The rest of you go ahead. Finn, if you would be so inclined I'd like you to stay with me." Klaus gestured towards the eldest brother and Isolde looked at him, wondering what he was up to. An expression that was mirrored on Elijah's face.
"Care to share your plan with the rest of us, Nik?" Kol asked, suddenly beside her. His hand wrapped around hers and she threaded their fingers together, eyes never leaving Klaus. "Come now, we have no need for secrets, do we?"
"Call it spontaneous inspiration. I've found a solution to a problem that's been vexing me." Klaus made pointed eye contact with her and she understood. Whatever it was he wanted to do, it had to do with the secret they were keeping from the others. She blinked, knowing she couldn't nod even a fraction or the others would pick up on it. "We'll catch up before you know it, love. Don't fret for us."
"Okay." Isolde nodded, instead of saying anything about it. She let Kol's hand drop from hers and stepped up to Klaus.
She didn't have to do anything, Klaus' arms seized her and dragged the rest of the way to him. He placed a long kiss to the side of her head and a short one to her lips. She smiled at him when he pulled back. She should've known he'd be too reserved to kiss her properly in front of his brothers. Quite sweet of him, really.
"Go, fetch your brother. Let Finn and I handle some things up here and we will meet you."
She was released and immediately swept up into Finn's large frame, who also kissed the side of her head.
"We will be along soon, kærasta."
Kol stepped forward to take her hand again and pulled her toward the stairs. Isolde struggled against the rock that was forming as they took the first few steps down and Isolde remembered that they were heading into a tomb.
Elijah
Elijah was irritated. Angry. No. No, not angry. Upset. He was upset.
He hated feeling weak but in the presence of Yahweh he was powerless.
Was that how it would feel to be around Isolde once she merged? How was he to keep up with such a presence?
Under his breath, in a tone so low that Isolde and Malachai wouldn't be able to hear, Niklaus had continued as Kol and Isolde made for the stairs. Drawing Elijah out of his self-deprecating thoughts.
"I need the two of you to stay glued to her. You are quite literally heading into a tomb and you both recall how she reacted the last time.."
As if they needed the reminder.
The question was, why would Niklaus leave his mate's side so soon after consummating the bond? What could possibly take precedence over her at this moment? A time in which she will be most vulnerable, and with the enemy surrounding them?
He shot his brother a questioning look, but Niklaus simply ignored it.
As Kol, Isolde, and Malachai started down the steps to Anubis' tomb, Elijah hesitated.
"Go. Keep her safe in our absence." Niklaus said, nodding toward the steps. "I trust you."
After a brief conflicted moment Elijah decided there was nothing for it. Niklaus had asked for Finn to remain behind and aid him in whatever task he'd decided he needed doing at this most inopportune time.
So Elijah would put his thoughts away for now to focus his efforts on keeping Isolde grounded in the present. With a swift nod, he followed the descending three.
One of whom's heart was beating frantically, and it wasn't Malachai's.
"It's ironic," Isolde was saying, a slight tremor in her voice that wasn't there usually, when he'd caught up to them on the torchlit winding stairs, "that Marcus was looking to use Anubis instead of Renenutet and my brother was just a thousand feet below their research and development center the whole time."
Elijah's lip twitched as he fell into step beside Malachai, behind his brother and bond.
"What are the odds?"
"Did anyone beside you know that you'd stashed your brother here? Your other siblings?" Kol asked, his hand caught in Isolde's white knuckled vice grip.
Elijah laid one of his hands on her shoulder, giving her as much support as he could. The stairs were too narrow for him to be right beside her like Kol.
"No. I wouldn't tell them where he was. Klaus didn't tell me what Anubis showed you of our childhood but I gathered he showed you enough to know why I might be disinclined to share this with them."
"Emeric and the twins were unkind to him." Elijah said, hoping that keeping Isolde talking about her siblings, loathe as he was to bring up the three he wanted to destroy, would keep her from all out panic. "That much was clear."
'They were unkind to you, too. You just never realized it.' He refrained from saying aloud.
"Yeah." Isolde confirmed with a nod, then shrugged, letting the fingers of her free hand drag along the wall as they went. "I decided they didn't deserve to see him. Wouldn't even let them say his nickname for me. Wouldn't let them mourn him in any way, either. I was… well, a huge bitch about the death of his body for a long time."
"Sounds like your other siblings are douchebags. The whole 'protective sibling' thing eludes me, because I killed most of mine, but I feel like your siblings are probably lucky to have you."
"How do you figure that?" Isolde asked Kai, Elijah heart her heart beat starting to even out and he was glad the conversation seemed to be helping. "I've been a drain on them for thousands of years."
Well he didn't like that line of thought.
Neither did Kol, by the way he frowned and looked down at the top of their bond's head.
"Well, as I previously established I'm not a sibling expert or anything but it's pretty clear you and Jack are close. So close that five thousand years of separation was nothing to you the second you were back together even briefly. He's been living inside you for, like, ever and you weren't even upset about it. They were awful to him, and you protected his body for five thousand years. And despite doing what I'm sure was all kinds of bad shit to you over the years, you still give a damn about them all, anyway, right? So yeah, they're lucky."
Elijah had to agree with Malachai's assessment. The others were lucky to have a sister like Isolde.
Isolde laughed. It was a dry, sarcastic sound that Elijah did not like.
"Sorry but you'll have to excuse me if I feel the need to dodge that heavy halo you're trying to place on my head. I am no saint. You're right about one thing, though, Kai." Isolde said as they finally made it to the bottom of the stairs. "Jack and I have always been close, five millenia would do nothing to dull that bond."
They stepped out into the darkness of the tomb. The light ended at the bottom of the stairs and Isolde reached up to take the torch on the left side of the entrance, and Elijah grabbed the other one.
"So you don't care about your other siblings?" Kai asked, disappearing back into the stairwell, and reappearing with a torch. "I don't believe that."
Elijah watched Kai flex his fingers and then small balls of flame separated from the torch in his hand. They hovered over his palm for a moment, until made a motion like he was throwing a ball, and the little flames flew from his hand. They each impacted wide basins around the room and one by one the large chamber was illuminated.
"Holy shit you really are loaded." Kai said, eyes blown wide as the flames flickered over what had to be hundreds of millions worth of gold and priceless artifacts of the ancient Egyptian empire.
"Nice bit of magic, mate." Kol acknowledged, though his gaze, as well as Elijah's own, was on the solid gold sarcophagus in the center of the room. "Gods there's got to be millions worth in gold down here."
"Not to sound pretentious or anything but this is nothing compared to what's in my private vaults in Empathia." Isolde told them. "Really, after this, I should arrange for some Egyptian archaeologists to 'discover' this place."
"You built this, did you not?" Kol asked, running a hand over an intricately carved column. There were several around the enormous chamber.
"I did. That's why the wall art is crude." Isolde laughed, directing their attention to the paintings that encompassed the walls from floor to ceiling all the way around. "I'm an architect, not a painter, but I refused to bring anyone else down here so I did that part too. I painted the story of us–I'm glad to see that it's still intact and hasn't faded too terribly. But if you tell Klaus I painted all this I'll deny that I told you that. He's too good, he'd definitely make fun of me for this."
Elijah felt a burst of affection for his bond. Something about hearing her admit that she wasn't good at something helped him shake the vestiges of that prickling fear of inadequacy that was eating at him just a few minutes ago.
"And I'm not saying I don't care." Isolde continued, pausing to glance at Kai for a moment. She dropped Kol's hand and stepped toward the platform that Anubis was resting atop. "I do." She reached it, rubbing her hand through the inches of dust and sand that had accumulated for millennia.
Elijah watched her, but she seemed to be far, far from this place. He wondered where her head was.
"But–" Isolde's voice was barely a notch above a whisper, now, and she seemed to be in a trance-like state. Elijah met Kol's eyes, his concern written plain to mirror his own. "I have been like a pawn in their games for so long I'd lost sight of who was for almost as long as I have been."
She glanced up as Elijah and Kol circled the sarcophagus to look at her, her eyes seemed haunted and Elijah fought the urge to lay his hand over hers. Now didn't seem like the time for affection. Just steadfast support.
This was something she had to do. They could only help when and if she asked.
Isolde looked back down at the decorated coffin, brushing away dust absentmindedly.
"I stopped fighting them after a while. They told me where to go, and I went. Told me not to intervene, so I didn't." Isolde admitted, a harsh laugh escaping from her throat. He watched her grit her teeth. "They wore me down until I just…stopped. The world spun on and I with it. Neither a participant nor an observer. Merely existing, even though I no longer wished to."
Isolde stopped breathing.
"I was right, they're douchebags." Malachai Parker told her, since it seemed like Kai was leading this conversation.
It was rare that words failed Elijah like they were now. He didn't know what he could say to her, didn't know what would be appropriate or what could help. There were things he couldn't say because Anubis had asked for their silence and right now that secret was like a lump in his throat stopping words from forming.
Then, Isolde kissed her teeth and scoffed.
"So yeah," her tone changed and she seemed as though she was coming out of her recollection, her eyes cleared and she flashed a brilliant smile. Her next statement came in a rush. "I care and I love them. But at the same time I'm never going to let them get away with that bullshit ever again, and neither will Anubis. So I guess this is just me trying to manage your expectations."
Then she shoved the sarcophagus open.
A burst of darkness sprung from her chest, enveloping the room. Isolde hit her knees before any of them could catch her.
Isolde
When the 'monster' had entered the fragmented parts of her soul four thousand years ago, Isolde had hardly felt it.
As easy as it was going in, Bis was a bitch on his way out.
Isolde bit at her lips to keep from screaming outright. There was no need to worry the boys more than they already were after her little tangent a moment ago.
Just as quickly as Anubis' soul began spilling from her body into his own, his presence within her was gone and she slumped to the ground, weak.
'Fuck, I forgot what it felt like to just be Amunet.' Isolde thought to herself, hands braced on the cold ground before her. She felt two sets of hands on her arms and her back before she saw Kol and Elijah knelt down beside her.
"Are you alright, darling? What can we do?" Kol was asking, but Isolde's head was spinning and her body was weak. She couldn't hold herself up, let alone respond.
With a soft whimper, Isolde's muscles gave out. Kol was quick to compensate for that for her, and she appreciated the way he swept her into his arms and sat down in the dirt with her in his lap.
"Bit tired, are we?" He breathed into her ear. Usually Isolde would find that incredibly attractive but she didn't have it in her to lust at the moment. "Rest. I've got you."
Elijah's hands were on her face. "She's freezing." He said, and then he was shucking off his suit jacket. He laid it over her and tucked it under her back so that she was tightly cocooned.
"Shouldn't he be moving?" Kai asked, leaning over Bis' tightly wrapped body. "Restoring? Anything?"
Isolde tried to open her mouth and tell him to give it a few minutes but she really couldn't move.
Kol was rubbing his hands up and down her arms. Elijah's face continued to look worried, as he had since he'd joined them in the tunnel.
A loud bang sounded from above them and the chamber shook, some pieces of rock and dirt fell from the roof of the mastaba.
"So they've gone with explosives, then." Elijah said, his eyes trained up, hand clutching one of hers.
Isolde wanted to tell him it was okay, he could go find Klaus and Finn. She would be alright, they were the ones up there and far closer to the fighting she was sure was taking place up top, but her body still would not respond.
"We're bloody idiots." Kol suddenly scoffed, releasing one arm from around her and bringing his wrist to his mouth, biting a deep wound into it. "Here, darling, drink up. It should help."
He pressed his wrist to her lips and Isolde wasn't sure it would work but she would try it. As the blood flowed easily down her throat and into her system she was actually surprised to feel herself coming back to normal.
Well, what had been normal for her four thousand years ago.
She tapped his forearm to signal she was returning to strength and Kol pulled his wrist back. When he did, she slid her hand up over his cheek, looking up at him with a grateful smile.
"Grazie, dolce metà."
His face broke into a wide grin. "Have you regressed into Italian, love? Forgotten English entirely?"
"I do think Italian is the superior language but no, I haven't forgotten English. Yet." Isolde hummed, kissing the underside of his jaw because it was all she could reach at this angle. She dropped her hand from Kol's face and reached out to wrap it around Elijah's tie. "Thanks for the jacket. I was freezing. I'm… much weaker than I have been in a long time right now. My body wasn't prepared for it."
"I suspect you'll be far stronger than you've ever imagined in a short time to compensate." Elijah retorted, letting her tug him close until his lips met hers for a brief moment.
She just wanted to reassure herself that they were okay, and so was she.
"Finn and Klaus haven't come." Isolde said, letting Elijah go. "I'm getting worried."
"And Jack still isn't coming around." Kai said, stepping up to them with his thumb pointed over his shoulder. "Think the blood trick would help him, too? We don't really have much time."
Elijah and Kol made eye contact and something passed between them, Isolde wasn't sure what it was, then Elijah stood.
"It may." He said, undoing his cufflink and rolling his shirt sleeve up his forearm with slow precision that, were the situation different, she would think he was doing it to tease her. "He is a corpse, it could be taking time for his system to restart. Blood is how it works for us. It can't hurt him to try."
He stepped up to the sarcophagus and reached inside, pulling old linen sheets away from where Isolde figured her brother's face was. She was glad to be on the floor, she didn't want to see him like that.
As Elijah bit into his wrist and started dripping blood into Bis' system, Kai dropped down to sit in front of her, elbows resting on his thighs. There was another loud boom that rattled the chamber and suddenly, Finn and Klaus were right beside them.
"Good of you to join us, Nik, Finn." Kol quipped as Klaus hit his knees, practically shoving Kai out of his way as his hands cradled her face. "Sounds rather explosive up there."
"Shut up Kol." Klaus growled as he tilted Isolde's head from side to side and looked her over, assessing for any injuries. "What happened?"
"Releasing a soul that's been wrapped up with mine for about four thousand years is kind of painful. Also, now I don't have Bis' power so I'm back to my weak old Shade-only self and my body wasn't ready for that adjustment." Isolde explained as Klaus sighed in relief and dipped his forehead until it pressed against hers. "I'm fine, though. Kol had an idea to give me blood and it worked. Elijah's trying it on Bis."
"Are we going to settle on a name? Is he Anubis, Bis, or Jack?" Kai mused aloud and was, once again, ignored.
Finn knelt down next to her and grasped one of her hands in both of his, expression imploring. "But you are well?"
Isolde smiled at him as Klaus pulled back. "Yes, I'm well. Weak. Severely weak but alright otherwise."
A sputtering came from the direction of Bis and Elijah and all heads swiveled in time to see Elijah helping the mummy from what was meant to be his final resting place.
His feet hit the ground and his arms reached up, pulling the rest of the wrappings from his head and releasing a cloud of dirt and sand with a harsh cough.
"I prefer Jack, thank you for asking Kai." Her twin brother coughed, voice a little raspy and still looking rather pale but then Bis had always been on the paler side. "But my dear Mune can get away with calling me whatever she wishes."
Bis' large, child-like eyes rested upon her and he smiled. The same smile he'd always share with her, unchanged in all the years of separation. He threw his arms wide and, no matter how weak she'd been just moments before, Isolde found the strength to wrench herself out of Kol's lap, Finn's hand, and Klaus' proximity and into her twin's actual, physical embrace for the first time in five thousand years.
It felt like coming home.
Like coming home after being imprisoned for a long, long time.
By the way he squeezed her back, she assumed his thoughts mirrored hers.
"Awww. That's just precious." Kai said from behind them. "You two are adorable. Hate to spoil the mood–"
"-then don't." Finn grumbled.
"-but the Egyptian military is trying to bring the roof down on our heads in case you've forgotten that part."
"It's not the Egyptian military, it's Pharaoh's Armed Forces. Berserkers, mostly." Jack told them, pulling back from her but not releasing her outright. That was fine. Isolde was content where she was. "Some Tumaini as well. That's who those scientists up in that lab were, by the way. Tumaini. Ren will have it under control for another, oh, ten minutes give or take."
Isolde felt herself go rigid.
She hadn't suspected Vera's involvement.
"Do you know everything that happens or is going to happen?" Kol asked as he got to his feet, exasperated.
Bis rubbed his hand up and down her arm, she assumed he felt how ridged she was. He ignored Kol, focusing his whole attention on her "There's… a lot that's been going on you don't know about, Mune."
Isolde sighed heavily as another tremor rocked the earth above them. She rubbed a hand over her forehead.
"Well." Isolde sighed, withdrawing but leaving one arm around her brother's waist. "Best tell me before I go say hello to the Sun."
"Completely different connotation for you, but hearing those words from your lips makes me nervous." Elijah said, stepping up beside her and taking her hand, raising it to press a kiss to the back of it before letting it go and walking over to his brothers.
"Definitely won't have the same result as you would if you took off your ring." Isolde gave him a small smile. She'd thank him for giving his blood to her brother later. At length. She let that thought go and got back to the task at hand, turning back to Bis. "Fill me in."
That set off a bunch of nervous energy in the room that hadn't been there before, despite the escalating conflict outside. She looked at her bonds and they each shifted.
"Ah. This has something to do with what you're hiding." Isolde understood what was going on now. "Okay. So what is it?"
And so Bis wrapped a hand around her head, placing his thumb against her temple, and showed her what he'd shown the Mikaelsons.
The meeting between Theon and the assassin that would kill her son.
The assassin that killed Harim.
Isolde's hand came up to clutch at her brother's forearm. Her eyes met his.
"Again."
He acquiesced and she watched it again.
"One more time."
"Love…" Klaus began, but she held up a single finger and watched it one last time.
Isolde took a step back, brows knit together as her mind tried to process all of the information she'd seen.
"Isolde." Elijah and Klaus were both taking steps toward her, slowly. Like she was an injured frightened animal to be cautious around lest she tear out their throats.
"Mune?" Bis said, lowering his hand to her shoulder. He bent his knees just a little so he could stare into her eyes and assess what she was thinking.
"That's not…" she tried but the words got caught in her throat around the lump that was forming. "That was…"
"Kærasta?"
"That wasn't Theo. That was–" She managed to whisper, right before the ceiling above them blew apart, raining down a shower of ruble.
Note: If I was religious I might be concerned I'm gonna get smote by the end of this story. I wasn't going to use any gifs for Yahweh but in my head he looks like Joaquin Phoenix. This one ended up being longer than anticipated so I have to move the battle to the next chapter.