They reconvened in the safety of Ziara's apartment.
Isfet, Anuka and Nathanial learned nothing new from Carn at the markets, nor did he show any sign of the Forbidden Art. He sat in the armchair, muttering softly to himself with a vacant expression. He hadn't spoken since the morning and it unsettled Wraith somewhat, as if he were biding his time.
"The Water of Truth seems to be our only other option," Isfet produced a scroll from his pocket and pressed it between his palms. "I've never heard the name Abraxas, his fables probably died out before our time but the idea of Ungifted channelled hekka perplexes me. Who knew they were capable of emulating our strength?"
The papyrus disintegrated and the granules of sand created a swirling vortex at his feet. Isfet gestured for the Children to jump. Elijah squeezed Lacy's hand tight and closed his eyes in the void, Nathanial cradled Ibu and whooped with excitement before Anuka shoved Carn in, diving in straight after. Wraith nodded for Isfet to take his leave, wanting to utilise the last few moments with Ziara whilst they still had privacy.
She'd changed from her business attire into another pair of patterned cotton shorts and a white shirt which she'd tied with a hair elastic at the front to expose a sliver of muscle. She'd been quiet since leaving the museum—Wraith presumed she was in a state of shock after learning Mariette was a Son of Horus.
He extended his arm to her, "Your new beginning starts now as the Head Daughter of Sekhmet. . .there is nothing to tie you to Luxor anymore. I promise you; we will find your father."
She gave him a small smile but even he could tell it was half hearted. She ran her fingers down his exposed forearm but did not take hold of his hand. He frowned slightly when she turned her back on him and stepped into the portal.
The fall wasn't as bad as last time. Wraith prepared himself to hit the ground, but instead was greeted with the intrusive prickle of pine needles. He'd landed on the canopy of a palm—the closest forest was a few kilometres from the Cynopolis, that was comforting to know at least Isfet got the destination somewhat right.
Wraith ruffled the barbs from the nape of his neck and hair and rolled onto his side to glance at the rest of the group which had fallen into the dense marsh.
A splash echoed, indicating that a body fell into the shallow cusp of the Nile. Anuka rose with a gasp and pulled Carn by the neck of his shirt. The Head Son of Horus spat out algae and discarded plastic as Anuka used him as a shield to part the papyri fronds by the bank, "Can I drown him yet?"
"No!" yelled the prophetess. "I want to do it."
Lacy and Elijah were already standing and in the process of brushing off the mud and algae from their clothes. Nathanial and Ibu were already starting to walk in the direction of the temple with Isfet.
There was an echo like a gun shot and Ziara came down, her hair flapping wildly around her. Unlike the others, she opened her eyes before impact and barrel rolled to the ground avoiding all of the muck.
Wraith slid from the palm and landed on his haunches. His lips turned down as the sky faded into darkness. There was no way they'd be able to search for Harry Massit at this time, even if they extracted the information from Carn immediately it was too dangerous to travel at night unprepared.
"North," Wraith jerked his chin in Nathanial's direction. "Shouldn't take too long."
They walked at an Ungifted pace, exhausted and fed up. Carn continued his blessed silence as Anuka pushed him through the brush and mud, not caring if he stumbled or tripped. Lacy and Elijah caught up to Isfet and discussed the prophecy while Nathanial threw a stick for Ibu to fetch and bring back.
Wraith rolled his shoulders back and kept Ziara's pace, "Your father, was he a good man?"
Her lips pressed together, "Harry Massit was an amazing Egyptologist and mentor, but that's where it ended. He didn't know how to parent. My first job was essentially an internship with him, being his own personal assistant. As I got older after graduating high school, he let me have a bit more input into projects and then again once I left university, he almost considered me a rival."
Wraith nodded silently and let her vent.
"I was definitely the more affectionate one in the relationship, despite all of our intellectual and creative differences, I'd always let him win because that made him happy. I'd accompany him to every press conference or lecture and praise him despite contributing to the majority of his work with hardly any acknowledgement. I would always tell him how much he meant to me and that I loved him. . .I never expected much from his as a father, I was fine to look after myself. But looking back on it, hindsight is twenty-twenty. . .I should never have gotten close to Carn or any of the other people in my life, it's obvious that we were getting used but I always brushed it off and complained that he was just being an overly attached helicopter."
"I won't lie, it's been liberating not having him sit on my arse all day about work but at the same time I feel lost without him. In his own way, he always wanted the best for me and pushed me to succeed—I got the best tertiary education and had the best connections outside of my double degree with honours. He had me learn Egyptian with a language teacher before I learned English and then insisted I studied Ancient Egyptian in high school so I could become a specialist in ancient languages, but my passion had always been theology. It's ironic almost."
"I can assure you he misses you," Wraith ducked beneath a date tree. "Anyone would."
She scoffed, "What were your parents like? You mentioned you weren't born Head Son but chosen."
Wraith guffawed, "Like you, my parents weren't suitable. I was an unexpected child and was used to try and elevate our position in the caste. My mother, Tawet, had no occupation but tried her hand at herbal remedies and concoctions for the old and lonely whilst my father Ahu gave up the trade of embalming to serve in Amenhotep's army with Anuka's father. He wanted me to succeed in like and become a scribe, but education did not interest me—however, neither did combat. There was no recognition of soldiers who fought in Pharaoh's army and I hated the politics of it. My father died in a campaign to the Kush, they were ambushed and well. . .my mother shortly followed."
"And yet here you are as Head Son," Ziara quipped. "You talk with such resentment towards them, they just wanted the best for you."
"One day I might show you the short comings of my parents," Wraith shrugged. "That's why I put all of my faith in the Great Father, he turned out better than my own."
• • •
Wraith sliced his palm against the angled Khepesh and pressed it against the wall. The blood trickled to the floor and released the mechanisms guarding the Ritual Room. He inhaled deeply, the scent of home, he felt safe underneath the layers of dolomite.
The statues of the Forty-Two glared down on them as he scuffed his heels against the gravel. The iridescent cascade of the Water of Truth silently collected in a large basin, illuminating the smaller statues of the Gatekeepers at the base of each Judge.
Nathanial manipulated one of the Gatekeepers, Eater-Of-Shades. Its stone arm contorted and lifted Nathanial onto its kilted lap before taking its customary seated position. Eater-Of-Shades crocodile jaws glistened in the reflection of the Water of Truth and gave it a lively sheen as if the granite it was calved from sweated.
"If this doesn't work, I suggest a battle royale," Nathanial reclined in Eater-Of-Shades lap. "Winner gets to gut the rat."
Anuka pressed his foot in the sensitive spot behind Carn's knees, causing him to buckle beside the pool. Carn collapsed and narrowly missed the rock with his teeth. He struggled to roll into a sitting position and winced. Wraith scowled at this, even though they'd allowed him brief freedom, his face was a mosaic of bruises and cuts—there was no indication of healing.
"May I, Head Son?" the clay cup trembled between Lacy's fingers.
"Be my guest," Wraith wrapped his hand around Carn's forearm and twisted it behind his back. Carn showed no resistance to being restrained and was limp in Wraith's grip.
Lacy fisted her hand his Carn's hair and pulled his head up. Her grey eyes seemed to search his Wadjet for any sign of recognition as tears broke their banks. She inhaled a hiccupped breath and rammed the cup between Carn's front teeth.
"When did you figure out your position as a Son of Horus?"
"Head Son," Carn corrected. "Hatem informed me; he is my second in command. Apparently, he'd been searching for Horwedja's successor for ages—he told me how close he was with your sister."
His replies weren't robotic or forced like Ziara's had been. In fact, Carn seemed too relaxed. Not only were Carn's physical episodes more frequent, his behavioural traits reflected the increasing strength of the Forbidden Art.
Lacy flinched at the mention of Rennenet, "I was aware of their engagement, I supported it up until recently. . .why did you attack my temple?"
He swallowed another mouthful, "I needed information about Ziara. I learned about the Head Son of Anubis' brutality and didn't want her to meet the same fate as the other Children."
Wraith twisted Carn's wrist at a forty-five-degree angle causing him to wince.
"Careful now. . .Ziara is still under my compulsion. You don't want her to intervene, do you?" he breathed heavily.
Wraith looked over his shoulder at Ziara, she sat in Ra's carved lap. Her mismatched eyes narrowed at them, she didn't seem to be in a state of compulsion, but Wraith could see the tenseness of her muscles, he didn't think Carn's threat was veiled.
"Who told you of Akhenaten's prophecy?" Lacy asked.
"Horus, he informed me in a dream," Carn smirked.
Another mouthful.
"What did you do with Ziara's father?"
Silence.
Lacy looked at Wraith for advice and tipped more into Carn's mouth, "Where is he?"
He began to cough deeply. He spat the water in Lacy's face, causing her to shriek and drop the cup. She quickly wiped the congealed spit before it could burn her. The remnants of the Water of Truth bubbled and thickened into a black tar-like liquid, causing the pebbles beneath it to melt.
Wraith's grip spasmed violently and before he knew it, he was strangling Carn. He wrapped his forearm around Carn's throat whilst the other fisted in his hair. Wraith plunged Carn's entire head into the pool. The expectation was that the Head Son would combust, but he simply thrashed about.
"Wraith. . .don't," warned Lacy.
Carn kicked and writhed as Wraith submerged more of him. The Water of Truth was up to his forearm as he dunked Carn further until his shoulders were immersed.
"Head Son, he warned us before," Lacy tried pulling on Wraith's shirt. "Listen to me, look at what's happening to Ziara!"
He didn't realise the adverse reaction until he looked up. Ziara had fallen from Ra's statue and was now on all fours like an animal. Her bones clicked into their newfound positions and her eyes rolled back into her head. This was more than compulsion.
Her voice was no longer a frustration hum but a neutral snarl, "An melu en aner tut her uah set aarat. An res-tu bu entuf an qem. Ushti ware antef akh banu yentu pashkef."
He cannot be sculpted in stone; in the images on which men place crowns. He cannot manifest nor be drawn from mystery. Nothing can be known from the place where he is.
"Mother of Lotus," Anuka pulled the Blade of Duamutef from his shoulders. "Let the rat go."
Wraith pushed away from Carn as his heart jumped into his throat. He pressed his hands into the ground and summoned earth in an attempt to restrain Ziara's convulsing body. The dolomite wrapped around her torso when she prepared to kick-off on all fours, the stone wrapped tight around her waist, but it couldn't hold her. She twisted like a snake and shattered her bonds with a twist of her hips.
Carn sat upright and laughed as the water evaporated off his skin, "I erased his memory and I didn't stick around to keep tabs on him. . .but I hope he meets his end soon, I had plans for him."
Wraith dug his heels into the ground when Ziara tried to tackle him. He shoved her back and raised his arms defensively. Her back arch and she hissed like a feral animal. Wraith covered his face with his forearms when she jumped at him again, nails extended. He pivoted on his heel and elbowed her in the throat and before she could properly recover, Wraith squeezed one arm around her neck and the other around her waist, pinning her to him.
"Ziara, I need you to fight this," Wraith planted his feet further into the ground as she writhed. "You have the strength to do it, centre yourself."
She gasped, digging her nails into his forearm, "H–He wants my W–Wadj. . .et."
Ziara sunk to her knees, gulping for breath. A thin line of blood trickled from her nose as her back arched.
"Let her go!" Anuka swung his blade but hit the invisible barrier.
"I'm getting that Wadjet one way oranother," Carn sneered.