Chapter 3 – A Solution
Isis watched as Osiris Apparated to the per hetjer of Hathor before leaving for her own home, her mind nearly exploding with excitement.
As she walked down her hypostyle hall, passed her Sacred Lake, and into the depths of her sparingly decorated inner sanctum, she knew with malicious joy her place in the pantheon would be guaranteed at last. Now, more than ever, with the threat of eternal exile or even death, she needed her place on the platform secured. Even after (if, she corrected herself, if) the gods were gone, the statues would forever remain in the pantheon, her image forever reminding the world the power, the glory she had. A place on the platform would keep her alive in human hearts; a piece of her would always remain.
The only way to move a statue, or even to enter, in the pantheon deep in the oasis would be to declare Re the Sun God’s pure and true name.
If Osiris won’t tell me, she thought gleefully, I’ll get it from the pharaoh himself.
She headed to the farthest corner of her room where a woven basket stood alone, half-hidden by the shadows. She scrutinized the creatures that hissed inside before selecting one.
“Oh Wadjet,” she purred as she stroked the black and orange spitting cobra, the last of its kind that was given to her as a gift from her sister, the goddess of snakes. “Who knew your fetish for cobras would come in handy?”
Even as Osiris approached the courtyard of Hathor, he already felt uneasy. What his wife had suggested he do to the non-magicals…He shuddered, yet deep inside, he knew it would be the only option available.
Focus on Hathor.
“Hathor?” he called when he reached the courtyard. He didn’t venture further, respecting the privacy of Hathor’s home. “Hathor?”
“Ah Osiris, you’ve come to visit me.” A tall, dark woman appeared from the shadows. She wore a crown with two horns protruding from it over her cow-like ears. “Where’s your lady?” she asked innocently and sultrily.
“I’m here to take you to Re. He’s summoned for us.”
Hathor nodded solemnly as she walked – no, glided – to Osiris. “About the revolt?” Osiris nodded in response, ignoring Hathor’s hand as it felt along his exposed chest. “The end of the world.” She sighed. “Did you ever expect it to come so soon?”
Osiris looked down in surprise. “Soon? It’s been…millennia since the Creation.”
Hathor twitched her hips seductively. “Yes. But it seems as if it happened just yesterday.” She glanced up at Osiris through thick eyelashes with heavily-lined eyes. “Don’t you still have things to do? Sights to see? People to…meet?”
Osiris laughed at Hathor’s teasings. “You play your role as goddess of sex too well, Hathor.”
Hathor stopped moving her hips and rubbing his chest. She smiled childishly as she exclaimed, “Don’t tell me you didn’t fall for it at all!”
Osiris shook his head. “Not one moment, I’m afraid.”
Hathor wrinkled her nose. “Too deeply in love with Isis?” she jested. When she noticed the cloud pass over Osiris’ face, she quickly changed the subject. “I have to have some fun with this title of mine.” She grinned cheekily. “The other day in the priests’ headquarters, I charmed-“
“Hathor!” Osiris’ eyes widened in surprise. “The priests’ headquarters are for priests only! What would Re think if he knew you were seducing his priests?” He frowned in disapproval.
Hathor wrinkled her nose again “Fine. Let’s not talk about that. You say the pharaoh wanted to see us?”
“Pharaoh Re!” For the second time that morning, Thoth ran down the hall toward the pharaoh’s private chambers. “Pharaoh! They’re here!”
Re rubbed his sore eyes. “What, Thoth? Who’s here?”
Thoth stopped wide-eyed in front of the pharaoh, his usually tan face scarlet. He glanced around carefully as if expecting an eavesdropper in the hidden room. “The gods,” he whispered.
Re sat up immediately, his dark eyes narrowed. “They’re outside? Have you let them in yet?”
Thoth shook his head. “They’re being detained by the guards. Apparently the guards don’t trust their shepherd disguises.” Thoth hid a smile behind his hand. “The gods, I’m afraid, don’t seem to remember it isn’t the Early Ages anymore,” he snorted. “I knew at once it was them.”
“Lead them into the throne room.” As Thoth ran back to the palace gates, Re Apparated to the throne room with a determined face.
“May the gods grant you a bountiful harvest,” the two cloaked figures who’d been brought before him by four wary guards, kneeled in greeting. Re barely hid the laughter at the sight. Both shepherds had on cotton dresses tied at the waist with rope, each hiding their faces with a simple farmer’s hat, the only normal article of clothing the pair wore.
“You may rise,” Re solemnly nodded after collecting himself. Thoth, who’d preceded the newcomers, took his place next to Re’s sun dais.
As the shepherds stood, the guards shifted uneasily. A few pairs of hands crept up toward the hilt of their swords. Re smiled at them; apparently there were at least some non-magicals still loyal to him.
“You may leave,” he stated, “I will speak to these visitors alone.”
The men glanced at each other nervously. They’d heard talk of the revolution, and they’d die before allowing any harm to come to their sun god. Finally, one of them, Re recognized as the young captain, stepped forward, his eyes cast down in respect. “Great Pharaoh, we would rather remain to ensure your safety from these…” the captain glared suspiciously at the two figures who still hid their faces, “…shepherds.”
Re waved a hand dismissively but offered a kind smile. “Not your concern, captain, but I thank you all the same. They are no threat, I assure you. You may leave.” As the guards turned hesitantly toward the doors, Re added almost pleadingly, “If you would please keep this between us, it would be much appreciated.” Who knew what the revolution leaders would say if they ever found out about this meeting.
The young captain turned his head and nodded, a gleam of determination shining in his eyes. “This will remain between us and the gods,” he promised.
You have no idea, Re thought wearily.
“I bestow upon you a hearty harvest,” Re wished upon them as he raised a hand in blessing. The guards turned and bowed to receive it before proceeding quietly out the room.
As soon as the heavy doors clicked shut, the two “shepherds” vanished. In their place stood a young shirtless man and a naked woman who resembled a cow.
“Oh!” the woman let out a breath as she patted her sweaty hair. “You’d think humans would be more practical in their fashion, wouldn’t you? Give them all the resources to make the best clothes, or better yet, a full body with all the glorious essentials, and here they are, creating suffocating…garbage!” The woman shook her head in disgust.
Re chuckled as he descended the steps from his throne, Thoth at his heels. “Osiris, Hathor, good to see you again.” Re smiled, his eyes twinkling in merriment. “I assume you’re more familiar with the dress code of the priesthood and have not the slightest idea of the fashion amongst the people? Your choices,” he said, “hadn’t been seen for at least a millennium by the public. The only ones who wear what you wore are priests, and they’re not even human!”
Osiris joined in the laughter. “It seems we are behind the times,” he chuckled. Suddenly, he remembered why he was in the sun temple. “Re.” His laugh lines disappeared. “Is this about the revolt?”
“Oh, yes.” Re’s face immediately aged several hundred years. “The humans are more determined than ever to conquer the land. They’ve enlisted more to join their cause, appealing to complaints the people have had for centuries. They’re upset because Isis isn’t distributing her power as widely anymore. Because some gods have become lax in their duties. The flooding of the Nile this past season certainly didn’t help in my defense either. They’ve decided the world would be a better place without us.” Re shook his head, despair etched in every corner of his face. “Now I’ve asked for your council. What say you?”
Osiris hesitated. Did he dare give Re the horrible advice Isis had just given him? There was no doubt in his mind that what she’d said was the truth, that somehow, the humans needed to be dealt with swiftly and harshly. He thought back to the other times he’d presented Re with her advice. Re’d praised him for ingenuity, cunning, and skill. He’d even told Osiris his birth name, placing him on the platform of the Egyptian Pantheon. All with the help of his wife, whose name was still tainted with vile and deception.
“Well,” Osiris proceeded cautiously. He knew this solution would grieve Re even more. “We could ask Sekhmet to help us.”
Re’s eyes snapped shut painfully. Sekhmet. The goddess of war and death. Sekhmet, a seemingly mild and peaceful woman, had chosen her title specifically, much to the other gods’ surprise. She became deadly and uncontrollable, always traveling to watch battles with an expression that could chill any soldier right to his bones. Her whispers in a sleeping man’s ear could cause a massacre of hundreds of people. Her gaze could make any man bloodthirsty – literally.
Re shivered at the thought of the woman wild among the non-magicals he’d learned to love. For all their mistakes, tragedies, and naivety, he still loved them.
“No, Osiris. I can’t do that.”
Hathor placed a cool hand on Re’s burning forearm. “Re, it’s the only thing you can do. Sekhmet will not only kill instigators but also provide a warning for the generations to come. It’s the only effective way.”
Re stared at Hathor and Osiris, his most trusted friends and advisors. He saw their sincerity and their remorse for what needed to be done. Re knew this was what it would come down to, but he still wasn’t ready to face it.
“Fine,” he sighed. “Osiris, prepare for the entries into the realm of the dead. Hathor, tell Sekhmet the targets are in the Siwa Oasis.”
As the gods departed, Re felt the burden on his shoulders get heavier. He knew he was doing the right thing. But why did he feel like he’d just signed a death warrant?
This story does not comply with Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. However, it does support ideas used in the entire Harry Potter series.
After rereading my story, I realize that I haven't clarified the situation under which these events are happening. So I will do so in my next chapter, I promise, which is already in the works. Again, sorry for the long delay!