-Walt Stone-
Taking a deep breath to relax my nerves, I knock on the door to Carter's room.
I'm certain Sadie would be here to comfort her brother. Except she's out looking for her uncle in the guise of visiting her grandparents in London. She didn't tell me this, might I add, Anubis did. While slightly annoyed that I, her boyfriend, am not allowed in on this information, I understood why she probably felt she couldn't let anyone know. Carter would have freaked out, more than he is right now.
Cleo and Jaz approached me this morning to address their concerns for Carter. Apparently, Khufu had decided to hand him a few items, a certain Chief Lector cape being one, and he had locked himself in his room since. It's been a full day now.
Since the news a month ago, the Brooklyn House hasn't been the same. Grief took a week for most. Sadie is still adamant that her uncle must be alive, and Carter seems to want to believe the matter. With the Romans not contacting him back when he'd try to reach him, it led to obvious frustration that the initiates all knew of.
I'm bracing myself for whatever is beyond the door. I get Carter wanting space, but the girls reasoned he needs to have someone to talk to rather than stay locked up in his emotions. I'm not good with the whole comforting thing, but they had elected it should be me since Zia is out this week for dress shopping.
Carter opened the door only a crack to peer at me. "Hey Walt, everything alright?"
I'm caught off guard a bit, especially by how calm he appears to be. "Yeah, I uh, wanted to check in with you."
"Oh," he seemed surprised by that, opening the door more. "Sorry, I didn't realize how long I was reading."
"Can I come in?" I ask, and he nods and steps back to allow me entry.
The room is still fairly clean, he hadn't taken his anger out on anything from what I can tell. The window is opened a bit for fresh air to come in. Several papers have taken over the desk and bed. The leopard cape is draped with care over the chair at the desk, which seems odd with the dried mud still on it.
Carter sits on the floor and takes a few papers from the bed. Not sure where I should position myself, I'm standing there watching him scan the paper in front of him before peering back up at me. "You can sit, sorry you caught me reading through the stack of papers Khufu handed me."
I hesitate but sit next to the Eye of Horus. He seems fairly calm reading through whatever this is, I suppose I should take that as a good sign? I don't allow myself to get too comfortable yet.
Carter hands me the papers he had collected, I hesitate but he nods an okay to verify. Immediately I clear my throat as I read it to be the Will of Julius Kane. While an odd thing for Carter to be reading, I notice there's blue ink scribbled all over the edges.
Carter points to one at the very top. "That's Amos calling his brother an ass for having been handed this by Desjardins while he was healing in the First."
I look at it closer and realize it's in Arabic. I know Carter told me he was learning the language from Zia, not wanting to mention it around his uncle because his reasoning to do so was thanks to his grandfather. "And who knows, could come in handy when he least expects that I know what he is saying."
Carter points to another section of Arabic scribbles further down the page. "He's pointing out the irony that Dad had told him before everything happened that he didn't want his kids being introduced to the Per Ankh. Taking over my dead body a bit literally, are we?"
He gestures I turn to the next page. I do so and there's a lot more ink here, but it had switched to a red pen halfway. "I think he had started to freak out writing this part," Carter admits. "Took me a bit to translate it all. But mostly, he's upset that Dad put him down as guardian for both of us. The red ink, is him theorizing that Mum saw something regarding Amos and neglected to say so. You told me to stay with the Per Ankh, even though they were forcing me to not see my family again. Did you forget? You wanted me to tell them to fuck off if it ever came to it?"
"He goes on about how they should have told him if they knew who he was going to end up hosting. Could have taken more precautions, something. Did you keep me out because you knew?" Carter pauses a bit. "The rest of this is unhinged. But it helped me understand him better, I guess? Also, he was writing this while Chief Lector, because he does mention in his theory that Dad knew he needed to be in said position."
I'm not comfortable with Carter bringing me into their family's dirty laundry. But I take a moment to note how Carter seems to be processing all of the papers before him. He's coping, and using his uncle's wild notes in his grief. I flip the page over and see a different red ink on the other side, Carter seeming eager to explain the jest of it.
"Here is when he is sure about his theory at this point. Dad sent Jackson and Chase to Cairo after they fell into the duat. You still should have told me, Ass. The rest is him theorizing how to go about defeating Gaea. Would a shabti work? This isn't a hosting situation like we are used to."
Carter stands to grab some more papers from the desk now. I can't help but frown as my heart feels so heavy from all of this. Having been cured of the curse I was living with; I didn't think I would find myself in the situation of helping people mourning. Worse that a part of it is notes his uncle had scribbled down in his grieving process for his brother's passing too.
I grab a paper from the bed, recognizing the red ink, but this time in fine-printed English. Rough draft is written above the rest of it. I scan through it to process it as an attempt to write a note to Carter for when his time comes. Sadly, he hadn't been able to overly perfect it like he wanted to, but the little I did read made me decide to put it back.
"He gathered up literally every form and paperwork I would need." Carter breaks the silence. "I have to put the warehouse under my name, he wrote up what would be needed from me. Did you know that this warehouse is supposed to be storage for Egyptian imports, mostly fabrics?"
I guess I hadn't thought much about how the warehouse below us was supposed to appear in the normal world. Or explaining the people that seemingly own it. A man dressed like a jazz musician owning a warehouse of Egyptian imports makes some degree of sense if I try to ignore everything I do know from the Per Ankh aspect. Or at least explains why he seemed out of place when he was, and the amount of cash he seemed more than happy to throw around.
I put Julius' Will on top of the note Amos hadn't completed. It would appear that Khufu had simply handed everything Amos had been working on towards his own Will to Carter. While not the cleanest passing of affairs, it was comforting Carter to grasp at a different side of his uncle he probably never got to see.
"Have you eaten anything?" I ask, breaking him from his studying of the forms in front of him.
"Uh," Carter peers at the clock before him, "no."
"You've locked yourself in here for thirty hours straight, Carter." He seems shocked by that bit of information. "Care to join us for lunch today? I don't think your uncle would be happy you've been starving yourself translating him angrily bashing his older brother."
"The not eating or translating part?"
"Maybe both." I doubt Amos had meant for his niece and nephew to see his angry scribbles towards his brother. Probably why it was in Arabic in the first place, in case they stumbled on it.
"Has Anubis reported anything yet?" Carter asks the question he had asked from the start of all of this.
The answer is a resounding no. And I'm not about to tell him the update he gave me on what his sister is up to. I shake my head at his question. Carter lets out a sigh filled with stress, sadness, and frustration: emotions he's been reigning in rather than sharing with anyone.
"I reckon I should eat then," He sets the papers in his hands to rest on the desk again.
-Trevor Starr-
If you had told me that ambushing a nome would be the first thing on our agenda, I would have called you crazy. I give an annoyed sigh as I take in the Sixtieth Nome up ahead, facing all three Hunters that had volunteered to come with. "This isn't some solo rescue mission," as Kate had put it.
Kyra Teal reached me. Disbelief that Carter would make steps towards war with Camp Jupiter. A member of the San Francisco Nome contacted her that Whittaker had taken control of their nome. Kurtz hadn't stood down and was now technically considered a traitor for not cooperating with the House. "To be brought before Pharaoh by tomorrow."
Even if they are telling the truth, and Sebastian gets an audience with Carter on the subject, Sabat and I agreed that if there was ever an action for us to first take, this was it. Kyra seemed alarmed by our decision, caving and telling us to head to her nome in Seattle if we were able to be successful.
Abby suggests we split into two groups. Would increase our chances of finding where they are keeping Kurtz before they catch on. I hesitate to agree to the idea and frown as they suggest the girls take the first and second floor while Max and I take the third and fourth.
"The group that finds him first gets a bowl of ice cream," Kate extends a hand for me to shake on the arrangement. "Losers buy."
"Kate, this isn't some game-" I start to scowl.
Max meets her hand to shake on the deal. "Motivation to make sure we are in and out fast? I'll take it."
Kate grins before gesturing to Abby to follow her inside. Thankfully it's dark out, so their figures are only faint getting to a side window to slip in. I roll my eyes as I face Max now. "There are people that consider what we are doing as their job, you guys do know that right?"
Max huffs at that as we go about circling the premise. "I think you forget sometimes that I was friends with the Kane Brothers."
"And those two took their job seriously."
"I also would applaud the idea of a fifteen and thirteen-year-old having to do this kind of shit because their dad said they had to." Max stops and tests the emergency rung ladder to make sure it won't fall off if we use it.
"Mel is one of them," I add the cherry on top. And boy, she still takes her job seriously. "This isn't going to be some vacation here."
Max stops and just blinks at me for a few seconds. "You regretting stepping down? I thought you were all about 'standing for your personal beliefs' and whatever."
I sigh in annoyance at that. "That doesn't mean I'm not allowed to regret my choices, Max. Now start climbing."
While a bit sketchy of a ladder, we successfully made it to the top floor. Max made quick ease of the window's magic seal, helping me get inside shortly after getting in. The building is nice and dark for the sleeping inhabitants. Which leads to why Max decided to morph into a wolf.
I hold back from expressing annoyance on the matter and follow him continuing down the hall. Quietly, I pull my khopesh out in case we come face to face with someone. The last person I'd want to see is Mel right now.
There's hardly any light to help distinguish where Max is, so I'm hoping he knows what he is doing at this point. As far as I know, he's tracking a scent, but that could just be a sandwich he is following for all I know. I inhale to keep myself straight and focus on the main goal, my job is to at least have Max's back if we do stumble upon trouble.
We're at the end of the fourth floor, but Max stops suddenly rather than proceed down the stairs to the third floor. I strain my eyes to try and make out what he is doing, to find he's now back in human form. "Find something?" I hush out.
"Roof," is his response.
"Knock it off," I make sure he is aware of my annoyance at his playing around.
A thud sounds ahead of me, and it's as if Max had jumped to purposely stomp both of his feet on the floor. It set my nerves into overload and then glared in Max's direction. "You idiot, you trying to get us caught?"
"No," Max grips my left hand and directs it towards him until I feel a chilled metal bar in my reach. "You're the blind moron here, and you're welcome."
I feel the bar a bit more to find it ascends. Stairs. I look up and see the moonlight beaming on Max as he continues up to the rooftop. Annoyed at my stupidity, I quickly follow him up the stairs. Once up, I go to pull the stairs back. It'll be a matter of time before someone responds to the noise we just made, and whatever I can do to give us more time the better.
"Trevor," Max sounds panicked.
I snap the stairs in place before turning in the direction of his voice. The moonlight makes it far easier to see, and I spot Max inspecting the door to the shed nearby. "They sealed it."
I'm confused about why Max wants into this shed, but I approach to see what he is looking at. He moves to the side for me, and I immediately notice that the metal door has been melted along the sides to prevent easy opening. What a weird thing to do to a shed on the roof. I'm about to question the Animal Charmer at this point, but I'm alerted to a faint cough beyond the door.
Immediately, I go to beat on this door with the side of my body. Finding it would only give way some, I hand my khopesh to Max before backing up. Max is about to protest but I run at the door before he can. Slamming into the door this time broke pieces of the seal they made on it, but the door is bent enough at the top for me to work with.
Max sets my weapon carefully to the side and helps me destroy the rest of the seal. We're able to make quick work to make the door open finally, and my companion immediately bolts inside. I can hardly take in what is inside, but I can make out Max kneeling to something on the floor. I go to grab my khopesh as I hear a creak by the stairs.
"Time's up Max," I warn quickly.
"Sebastian?" His worried tone sets me further on alert.
If he's in bad shape, I doubt he'll be able to make it down the ladder that I hoped to use for an escape. I keep my eyes on the stairs they seem to be struggling a bit to get to cooperate. "Update, Max? Am I going to have to fight whoever is trying to get to us?"
"He's not going to be moving on his own," Max explains quickly before returning to comfort his friend.
"Shit," I position myself to stand right at the stairs so they can't get past me once they do open it.
They seemed to have puzzled it out, and panic rose in me as I recognized the feminine figure staring up at me, her khopesh drawn as well. And this time, not a friendly duel. I barely register her rushing up the stairs, and our swords clash immediately before she can land a blow.
She moves to the other side, and I parry that. A strike again, and I misjudged the angle. I scream as I register the blade slicing into my right arm, backing up.
She's glaring at me rather than following up. "You decided you want to be a traitor to your Pharaoh instead? I gave you an easy out, Starr."
I swallow down the pain as the sting is starting to ease off with the blood slowly gushing out. "I figured that to be boring," I humor a bit. "Mind explaining why you're keeping a 'traitor' in a sealed shed outside?"
"That exceeds your concern, Trevor."
"Not a good enough answer, Sis."
She smirks at me, and dread settles in fast to that. I prepare myself for her to launch at me again, but she hesitates a moment. "Are you going to persist in causing problems? If so, we might as well finish this argument now."
"That all depends on if you are going to keep acting like this," I snap back.
"You are all causing this," Mel snarls. "We should be on the same side, Starr."
"War with the Romans isn't it. Why are you not seeing that?" I huff to ease off some more of the sting from my arm.
"They killed our General in cold blood, Trevor! Am I supposed to brush it off? Like how he forgave them for stabbing his nephew? Or how they've wrought destruction on the Per Ankh? How does this act of aggression not classify for action from us?"
"The only evidence you have is your word, Mel. Tell me how that's supposed to want me to side with you?"
She frowned at that, and that was the only warning I was given of her launching into attacking me again. I parry three times before she decides to use her foot to trip me. As I'm processing my back screaming at me for the fall, the curve of her weapon rests under my chin, using it to lift my head to gain eye contact again.
"I'm protecting us because I failed to protect Kane. I can't have anyone get in my way. I hope you understand." She lifts her sword, about to deal a blow.
I go to roll to the right, hurting my arm further. A clash of metal rings from above me, and I look over to find, with much surprise, my old man had stopped Mel's weapon. "Get your friend in the boat!" He instructs quickly.
I scramble back on my feet as Mel is processing the newest combatant. More clashing of their khopeshs as I peer back into the shed. Max peers up at me, and I can tell he's distraught and hasn't made much progress in getting his fellow Animal Charmer out of the shed. "He's fading in and out, I-"
I gesture him to get out so I can get into this tiny shed. Max hurries out and watches as I kneel on the cold floor to try and make out what is going on. Kurtz's eyes are shut, but he's shivering. Blood is caked in areas, and barely registered the Ribbons. I cave and go to carry the San Fransisco Nome Leader.
Max is holding my khopesh as he keeps the door open enough for me to safely get us out of the shed. Peering around the rooftop, I see my father is holding far better against Mel than I would ever hope to, much to her annoyance. A little more to the side and I spot a yacht floating to the side of the Nome. I want to be annoyed by my father's mode of transportation, but I shake it off for now and board.
Max boards as I'm heading into the cabin. Lights inside hurt my eyes some to adjust to, but I managed to lay the injured Animal Charmer on the bed. Upon doing so, I'm able to take in his condition completely. Thankfully Max is all over tending to him because I'm frozen in place.
Kurtz just came to, and his friend is making sure he sees him. Despite the clear head trauma they committed, his eyes can open some despite the bruising that is darkening. But there's a layer of disbelief in what is happening on his face, and I swiftly move on as Max is trying to comfort him all over again.
They had cut him up good, arms caked in blood, and his left shin has a puncture as well. Being reminded of the binding, I ask Max for my khopesh back. He quickly gives it over and goes back to Sebastian as I go to the other side of the bed. Careful to not draw the Nome Leader's attention, I go to remove the ribbons. Max does a good job of keeping what little of Kurtz's attention on him.
I nod to him and make my way back outside. Despite not wanting to deal with it, I did just leave Mel to fend for herself from a student of Jabari Kane's. Leaving the cabin, I see my father board before summoning a spell that sends Mel backward. He then yells instructions to a demon with a saw for a head.
I peer over and see a very ticked-off Whittaker staring back. Eyes glaring us down as the boat drifts away from the roof. Except they seem to be glowing red, rather than the dark green I know.
"What, you want a fight too?"
It takes a moment before I realize the boat has dipped into the duat. I quickly turn to my father, who seems to be watching me now. "Did you see that?" I ask.
He's giving me a studying look before nodding. "Of course I did, girl reeked of chaos."
"She's hosting? Is it Set?"
He shakes his head as he loops his khopesh to his side. "Not even close, Set would have probably beaten me at this point. I'm too damn old for this shit, kid." He pauses a moment before facing me again. "You've seen that before?"
I give a nervous laugh before caving to answer. "We had two goddesses try to jump Amos a year ago. Still gives me the creeps."
He nods in understanding before deciding to collapse on the seat towards the front. Muttering something under his breath, he then turns to me again to gesture for me to sit as well. "That's the Whittaker girl? The new General of Armies?"
I sit across from him, "Sadly, yes." I freeze as I remember Max's sisters. "Wait, we need to go back!"
The older combat magician immediately shakes his head at that. "No, Max's twin sisters are still in that nome!" I go to explain.
"Absolutely not. We're lucky we got away as we did, Trevor. Thoth's spit, you're lucky Teal reached out. Girl knew it was too dangerous for some rookies to be pulling the shit you just did."
I glare at him. "That's real nice of you to call us rookies."
"That's sadly what you are. Not one of you has done any prior work under Chief Lector Iskandar. If Amos was still alive, I'd bet he'd reprimand you as much as I am."
I doubt that, given the fact that his nephew and niece have done far more dangerous shit at this point. "Wait, Kyra contacted you? I thought you said she pretty much doesn't want anything to do with you after confessing that you killed her parents?"
He glares at me for a moment. "I didn't kill them, I was there-"
"You were an accomplice," I glare back. After all, he gave me his journal, I've read it all twice over.
He caves on that argument, as he should. "The point is that Kyra knew enough from her cousins to know it was too risky for you to be out here. And you're lucky you have a father that gives a shit, unlike them, might I add."
"Yeah, thank you for the bare minimum," I spit back. "Would be a real tragedy if you were just like Jabari, wouldn't it?"
A gruff is the answer I get to that. "How's the kid?"
I glare at him, but he motions his head to the cabin. Loosening up my gaze I realize he is talking about Kurtz and not his granddaughter to try and turn my anger around. Now I'm just upset, processing how he appeared under the lights. "They beat the hell out of him. Max is tending to his injuries."
While Sebastian and I had rammed heads in the past over how we differ in what a Nome Leader's priorities should be, he didn't deserve this. He had simply stood his ground as the newly promoted General decided to take over. This was an extreme reaction to his defiance.
"Brave of him to stand his ground," my father compliments. "Not even Vika was willing to do that. Stupid, but brave."
I was unable to do so when Friedrich was in my nome. And my attempt to take my nome back was swiftly ruined by him getting what he had wanted. But if I had tried, I fear I would have faced what Kurtz just endured. I nod in agreement with his statement, though it hurts my soul knowing the fact.
Emerging from the duat, my father's yacht is parked floating alongside the rooftop of a different nome. Kyra's voice sending orders for her members to board tells me we are in Seattle now. Floyd and I stay seated as they enter the cabin, Kyra boarding last as she takes us in, and she seems to be pissed as she glares at me.
"What you did was stupid."
I clear my throat before speaking. "As far as you and my father say, sure. But we saved Kurtz, Teal."
She's about to snap back, but the cabin's door opens to them carrying Kurtz on a stretcher. It's dark out here, but Kyra is already getting visibly upset as she's processing what she can of him. Following her members and Max, my father and I get up now.
The Seattle members leave after they safely switch him to a bed in the infirmary. This is where Kyra can fully take in his condition, and my father decided to dismiss himself after seeing for himself. Their healer is immediately tending to the open wounds as Kurtz takes Kyra in. He heaves a breath as he struggles to say her name.
She gingerly brings her left hand to his face, being careful to not touch any of the bruising. "You're safe."
His eyes read that he doesn't believe her, but croaks out Amos' name. I was alerted to that but it was immediately washed over by the fact that he proceeded to seize. I pull Kyra away so the healers can do what they need. Her eyes are stuck on her ex-boyfriend convulsing as I make her leave the infirmary.
Her hands are shaking as I let go of her and close the door. "We need to talk," I start, feeling horrible for it having to be now when she's upset. But she can't help him, and neither can I.
