Reignited Page 6
“Yes?” The others thought Nephthys a touch mad when she spoke of her visions, but Seth always took what she said seriously. He knew what it was like to be misunderstood, and now that he thought about it, they had much in common. Her abilities frightened the others. When he revealed his, they would be equally concerned, if not more so. “What did the stars tell you?” he asked.
“I’m to warn you.”
“Warn me of what?”
“That the path you’re taking is a dangerous one.”
Seth laughed. “My path to the stables?”
“No. Your life path.”
“I see. And what would the correct path be?” At first he meant the question as a joke, but the tone of her voice coupled with the expression on her face twisted inside him; he now earnestly wanted to know.
Nephthys pulled a clear stone from her pocket and rubbed her fingers over it. She then cupped it in her hands and held it up to her ear. “There are several you could take,” she said. “Your path has so many twists and turns. So many possibilities. And an important choice comes soon.”
“What is that?” he asked, pointing to the stone.
The corner of her mouth quirked up. “You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”
Seth leaned in, took hold of her shoulder, and squeezed, trying to evoke an air of confidence between them. Winking, he said, “Try me.”
Wetting her lips, Nephthys answered, “I call it the Eye of Prophecy. When the messages from the stars are unclear, I set it to wandering. It’s recently returned, and the things it’s shown are both wonderful and frightening.”
“Will it speak to me?” Seth asked, opening his hand. When she hesitated, he pried the stone from her fingers and lifted it to his ear. That she didn’t seem to mind his taking the stone filled him with a heady sense of power. It was exactly the opposite of what he’d felt during his encounter with Anubis.
Seth didn’t know if she was charmed by him, fearful of him, or was just being polite. It didn’t matter really what her motivation might be. That she knew her place made him appreciate her all the more. Briefly, he wondered just how much Nephthys would allow him to push her.
“No.” Nephthys shook her head sadly. “I wish it would. There’s so much to tell you. So much you need to know. But . . . the time isn’t right.”
“How convenient,” Seth said, allowing a glimmer of his cruelty to show. When he saw her fallen expression, it made him angry. He didn’t like when people were disappointed with him. “Don’t bother me with such things if you don’t have anything concrete to share.”
“But I do have something concrete.”
“Then say it, Nephthys,” he demanded impatiently.
“It’s about your path.” She lowered her eyes. “I mean, our path.” She swallowed and peeked up at him through her lashes.
“Our path?” Seth said with a start. “Do you mean to tell me that we . . . ?”
Nephthys nodded slightly. “It is one of the possibilities. One of the happier ones.” She frowned. “But also one of the terrible ones.”
Seth stood frozen, his hands now gripping her shoulders. He’d never considered taking a woman other than Isis as his companion, but standing there with Nephthys looking at him with a mixture of trust and fear felt somehow right. There was no doubt in his mind that Nephthys’s power was real. She knew too many things.
It reminded him of his mother in some ways. But unlike his mother, Nephthys at least trusted him enough to tell him of the things she’d seen. Nephthys didn’t hold back. Even if what she told him was met with anger. He took a moment to consider what she’d said. That he had the potential for many paths was a good thing. It meant he had choices. That fate hadn’t decided who or what he was to be. He liked that.
Perhaps her visions even meant that he could have both women—one to cast his spells and one to see the future. A man could do much worse. And wouldn’t the other gods be jealous at seeing him toy with the affections of both goddesses while they all remained steadfastly alone? Old bachelors doomed to a life of envy? He imagined the handsome Osiris kneeling before his throne, gazing jealously upon him as his powerful queens sat one on each side competing for his attention. It was a dream potent enough that Seth could almost taste it.
Whether he chose Nephthys now or later was immaterial to him. It couldn’t hurt to keep the goddess on a baited hook for a few centuries. At the very least he wanted to keep the channel of communication open between them. Finally, he spoke. “It is good that you have told me of this.”
“Are you sure?” she asked timidly. “The gods don’t like it when I share too much. It makes them nervous.”
“That will never be the case with me, dear one. I want you to tell me everything.”
“Everything?”
“Absolutely. But first, there is something I need to attend to. Will you meet me later?”
“Yes.”
“Good. I’ll come find you this afternoon. Until then you’ll keep this between us?”
Nephthys nodded. “I will.”
Seth beamed at her, and in his smile Nephthys saw a glimpse of what they could be together. The timing was wrong, she knew, but she also knew of his unhappiness. By telling him what she’d learned, she wanted to offer him something to look forward to and to focus on. If she was successful, she might be able to sway him toward the path she hoped he’d take.
As Nephthys walked away, the stars whispered that she had no control over Seth’s choices and that he’d do what he was going to do anyway. She could only wish he wouldn’t. If he could just see the things she could . . . but none of them did. Not even Isis, her beloved sister.
Nephthys hummed to herself as she made her way through the halls toward Amun-Ra. He was as hardheaded as Seth, and it was a challenge to rouse him to speak of anything other than duty. His dreams were locked away so tightly that no one, not even she, as soft-spoken and perceptive as she was, could bring them to the surface. It didn’t stop her from trying, though. He felt so alone in his responsibilities, and she knew her presence offered him peace and a pleasant distraction.
She signaled a servant to bring tea and settled in the chair where they met each morning. Amun-Ra nodded as he entered and she smiled, her lips hidden behind her steaming teacup as he took the seat next to her. The stars whispered again, but she knew there was no manipulating Amun-Ra. Unlike Seth, there was no swaying him toward one course or another. He’d need to come to the decision on his own and in the time that felt right to him. Nephthys sighed. The wait would be long and tiresome, but it would be worth it. She had to believe that.
While Nephthys and Amun-Ra talked of godly things as they sipped tea and sat in pools of sunshine streaming in through the latticed windows of Amun-Ra’s palace, Isis stood in the darkened stables peering at the curious animal that chewed oats lazily as it watched her. She was sure that the strange creature must be the reason Osiris had called her to the stables, and she let out an irritated breath.
It wasn’t going to work. He was likely hoping to distract her again. He’d done it often over the centuries she’d known him. When she was cross with him over one thing or another, he’d bring her a flower she’d never seen, or a fluffy rabbit or kitten. Soon she’d forget all the reasons she’d been upset and pepper him with questions about his adventures.
She had no idea what this animal was called or where he might have found it, but she had to admit it was interesting. In appearance its face resembled a dog or a jackal but with long, tufted, square-tipped ears that stood straight up. Its legs were also long and lean like that of a gazelle, but this creature was no dog.
In mannerism, it was more like a horse. It was gentle and was putting away oats faster than any animal she’d ever seen. “I guess you’re hungry,” she said with a laugh as she stretched out a hand. Isis touched the creature’s long neck and it moved closer, enjoying her caress. When she began scratching, it made a mewling sort of whine and angled its head so she could reach the best spots.
“I like to think so,” a voice behind her said.
Isis twirled around. “Seth. What are you doing here?” Isis asked.
“Looking for you,” he said with a grin that looked a touch too intense.
“I’m waiting for Osiris, but you can stay until he arrives,” she offered.
The grin slipped from Seth’s face. “As you wish.” He inclined his head, and as he did so, he waved his fingers and unmade a rather significant section of Osiris’s garden, one that would be sorely missed by the god of weeds. Perhaps it would distract Osiris long enough to give him a chance to talk with Isis.
Stepping forward, he leaned over the stall where she watched the animal and wrinkled his nose at the smell. He’d rather take her to a different location, but he knew Isis wouldn’t leave, not when Mr. Too-Handsome-for-His-Own-Good was on his way. Perhaps, though, if he revealed his secret, she’d be shocked enough to agree to a demonstration elsewhere after he confessed.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” Isis said, pointing to the animal.
Seth could see nothing remarkable in the creature. In fact, as far as he could tell, it served no purpose. It was too small to ride upon. It didn’t seem intelligent enough or soft enough to be a pet. It ate grain, which meant it needed to be fed. And as an herbivore, it was essentially useless in keeping the rodent population in check.
“Lovely,” he said drily, no longer looking at the creature. “Isis?” he began.
“Yes?”
“I wanted to speak with you.” Seth’s mouth suddenly went dry and, for the life of him, he couldn’t remember a single rehearsed line. Not when the lovely goddess trained her stormy eyes upon him.
“Go on,” she encouraged, standing up. Her body stiffened, as if bracing itself for what would come next.
Seth stood too, bristling at having to look up at her. He wasn’t short, at least not when compared with mortals, but Isis stood several inches above him. When he took her as a bride he’d make sure to set her throne lower than his. It would not do to have a wife who commanded more attention than he did. “I . . . I wanted to tell you that I’ve come into my power.” He hadn’t meant to state it so bluntly or with the awkward lack of confidence in his voice, but it was the best he seemed able to do. He was slightly mollified when Isis’s face lit with enthusiasm.
“Really? That is wonderful!”
“It is.” He grinned a bit sheepishly. “I wanted you to be the first to hear about it.”
“I’m honored. So?” Isis clasped his hand. “What is it?”
“It’s . . . well . . .” Seth cast his eyes about the stables, looking for something unimportant. He found a small milking stool and set it between them. “Just watch. It’s better if I show you.”
Seth raised his hand and the stool shimmered and then disappeared. Truthfully, it was painfully easy to unmake an inanimate object. He gleaned no additional power from doing such a thing, so he considered it a waste of his energy. Whatever life force the wood of the stool had at one time had long since vanished. Still, it impressed Isis. She clapped her hands.
“That’s amazing!” She spun around. “Where did it go? Can you move anything?” she asked. “What about people?”
“I didn’t move the stool,” Seth said, slightly uneasy. “I . . . unmade it.”
“Unmade? What does that mean?”
“It means it has now ceased to exist.”
“So you destroyed it?”
Seth shook his head. “To destroy is to break something apart. In a case like that, the matter still exists. I erased the thing from the cosmos. And the answer to your former question is yes, I can do it to anything.”
“But what happens when—”
He lifted a hand with a flourish. “Like I said, they cease to exist. If it’s a living thing like a tree or an animal, part of its life essence is transferred to me and the rest of it returns to the Waters of Chaos.”
“The Waters of . . . Are you sure?”
“Very sure. I’ve traveled there myself and tested it.”
“But that means you’ve killed—”
Seth interrupted, holding up a finger. “Unmade.”
Isis fluttered her wings and there was a telltale crease in her forehead that meant she was displeased with him. “Killed, unmade, what’s the difference?” she questioned.
Seth frowned. This conversation wasn’t headed in the direction he wanted. “I think you’re missing the bigger picture.”
“And what picture is that?” Isis asked.
“The Waters of Chaos are being refilled.” He took hold of her shoulder and gritted his teeth when she flinched. “Refilled, Isis. Do you know what that means?”
He paused and was rewarded with the widening of her eyes. “It means more beings can be created,” she answered soberly.
“Yes!” He nodded with overflowing enthusiasm.
The possibilities surged through Isis’s mind. With the Waters of Chaos refilled, she could have a child. Maybe even more than one. She could be a mother.
“Can you fill the Waters by unmaking things without life?” she asked. “Items like the stool?”
“No. Only unmaking the living adds to the Waters. The more potent the life, the more the Waters rise.”
“But to destroy the living is wrong,” she said.
He sighed impatiently. “Not destroy. Unmake. But don’t you see? You can help me.”
“Help you? How so?”
“Help me choose what to unmake. With you by my side we’ll be in perfect balance. Opposites but equals, my chaos and your creation. Your wisdom and goodness will keep me in check. I will be the fiery god of vengeance while you will be my icy counterpart—the goddess who banks the flames and offers relief and healing.”
When she just stared at him, her eyes full of doubt and questions, he pressed, “Isis, I know you dislike the rules as much as I do. Think about what we could do. Together. I can give you what you long for. The mortals and creations you decide to save, I will pass over. Those you love can live for eternity. Surely that’s worth the price of a few trees and flowers.” He deliberately misled her. It would take much more than trees and flowers to make someone immortal, especially if he was absorbing a share of their life energy. But she wasn’t ready to know that. Not yet.
Isis sucked in a breath, struck by an idea. She could save Baniti. It could be done. If she took Seth’s side, he would allow her to do it.
“What is it you want from me, exactly?” Isis asked.
Seth cocked his head and gave her a small sneer. She was coming around to his way of seeing things. He knew it. Watching her had paid off. She was his. Not even the great Isis could deny his power.
“I want you,” he stated simply.
“Me?”
“Yes. Is it really so shocking? You are a beautiful woman. Not only that, but you have the gift of spells and healing. My wish is that we join ourselves together, create a bond between us.”
“But bonds between the gods are forbidden. Besides, even if they were not, I do not love you.”
Seth shrugged as if it was of no concern to him, but in truth he seethed at the idea of her entertaining feelings for someone else. “We will change the rules. And . . . love will come in time,” he said.
“And if it does not?”
He turned away from Isis, not wanting her to see how her words angered him. “If it does not, we will deal with it together, privately,” he said out loud, while inwardly, he wondered at the possibility of unmaking a person’s feelings. Would it damage the mind or the heart? It would be a risk to attempt such a thing on his bride. He’d test it out on others before working his power on her. He’d need her mind to be fully intact so she could write spells.
When Seth stepped away, Isis gripped the rail of the enclosure. She stared at the animal, which came up and rubbed its head against her hand. It was out of oats and was likely nudging her for more. Absentmindedly, she stroked it as she considered Seth’s proposal. The ability to save Baniti and to have her own children was the dearest wish of her heart. But could she sacrifice other creations so that they would live? It came back to Amun-Ra’s answer from before. Who or what would give up their lives to save the ones she loved?
Then there was the fact that Seth wanted her in the way a man desires a woman. Osiris had been right about that. Osiris. Isis couldn’t deny that she’d given great thought to binding herself to another god, despite the edict that forbade it, but she’d never thought it would be with Seth.
Could she walk away from her feelings for Osiris and dedicate herself to Seth? She felt no love for him. Isis had no desire to be near him. She never missed him when he was gone. Truthfully, she rarely gave him any thought when he wasn’t in her presence.
But when Osiris was not at her side, she ached for him. She wanted to be held by him. Longed to be kissed by him again the way he had kissed her the night before. Isis couldn’t imagine an eternity without him.
A cold thought entered her heart: if Seth found out, would he unmake Osiris so that her love would have no other outlet? She could not allow such a thing to happen. As much as she wanted a child, as important as saving Baniti was, she knew that what Seth proposed was wrong.
Isis turned to Seth and gave him a pitying sort of sisterly smirk.
His whole body tightened in response. Seth knew what her answer would be before she even spoke.
“Seth, I want you to know that I’ve given your offer serious thought,” she began, “but I’m afraid —”
Seth seized her arm. Any softness in his face had been replaced with steel. How dare she pity him? “Do not think to refuse me, Isis,” he hissed. “I know this will come as a surprise, but I’ll give you some time to consider my proposal. And be warned, it is my desire that you belong to me, body and soul. I will accept nothing less. I deserve nothing less,” he spat. “And just so you understand the nature of my power . . .”