War and Healing (Gods of Egypt)

Chapter Eight

Someone had stolen the eye of Horus from Set. A mortal. Sekhmet could almost laugh at the irony of this news but now was not the time. A war was about to start.

As Sekhmet walked back to her chambers, finally back from another one of Set's sieges of neighboring powers, she had heard his servant, the Master Builder, whisper his fears of Set's reaction to the robbery. Sekhmet acted fast to gather her weapons and proper fighting attire. Stealing Horus' eye most likely meant the mortal would return the eye to its rightful owner and that meant she had to go to his temple. She took a deep breath at the thought.

The goddess hadn't seen Horus in over half a year since Set became king. The first couple of months consisted of Sekhmet caring for the lethargic god despite the growing wish to not do so. How long could you bear resentful silence to harsh words and actions? No, Sekhmet did not feel guilty for leaving the god, but she would not leave the people. Horus most definitely had areas to work on as king, but he would be a better ruler than Set. People would no longer live in fear of their final judgment in the Afterlife.

Sekhmet lowered herself to the height of a human, of which she has done regularly to slip under Set's attention, and donned a servant's hood to cover her gleaming armor and weaponry. Slipping out the servant's entrance, she bolted once declaring the area clear. Sekhmet ran until she reached the wealthier section of the city. After leaving enough coin to cover the horse she stole from a wealthy man's home, the goddess rode toward the god of air's temple.

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Sekhmet strode past the carriage tethered to two white horses, property of the Master Builder. She hoped this was evidence that the thief remained in the temple with Horus.

"You've done nothing! Spend the rest of your days wandering around sightless. I have nothing to lose. Do you understand? I will do anything to see her again or I'll die trying." Judging by the anger in the voice echoing from the temple, Horus was still there for only he could cause such frustration. Marching down the steps that lead into the temple was like entering the depth of a humid cave littered with bat feces. Sekhmet only wished she could choose that option instead.

The goddess came to stand a few stairs from the ground of the temple. Her eyes quickly adapted to the darkness of Horus' hideaway.

"Where's the other?" Horus stared down at a young mortal. The man had wavy brown hair and the body of a slave. Strong but tired. He was definitely fierce in his strength and intelligence. Sekhmet had no doubt this was the thief to successfully break into Set's royal treasury.

The young man, seemingly just passed boyhood, spoke with apprehension and confidence. "Well, I'm not exactly sure, but I-" Horus' hand clenched around the mortal's neck, interrupting his excuse.

Horus applied more pressure. "I'll snap your neck."

"You must hate Set for what he did to your father," the human gasped. This enraged Horus further, lifting the mortal from the ground by his delicate neck. Realizing the god's threat was valid, he decided to show his value, "The pyramid, I know how to get into Set's pyramid."

Horus continued to strangle the mortal. "How?"

Before the mortal could pass out, Sekhmet intervened. "Horus. Put the boy down." The god's eye snapped to her own. So what she heard was true, he did have his eye. Horus was shocked by her sudden appearance and held onto the mortal. Sekhmet huffed and rushed over to pry the mortal from the god's grip.

Bek dropped from the god's hand and fell to the ground, gasping. He jerked away as the strange woman laid her hands on his throat only to find that her touch was soothing. Watching in apprehension, Bek's eyes widened as her hair, eyes, and hands began to shine a violent light. He supposed he made a mistake believing this lady was a mortal.

Sekhmet leaned back as she squatted near the man. "There, the damage caused by that foolish brute is all healed. Just catch your breath." She rose to the full height of a goddess, removing the tattered cloak to reveal the gleaming armor that clung to her body and glaring at the god who watched her so intently. "I suppose that is your custom on how to treat those who help you." Sekhmet remained confident as Horus continued to gaze into her eyes, mouth agape, but she had to contain how it affected her.

Blinking rapidly, Horus seemed to return to the living. He stepped towards Sekhmet only to find that she stepped back in response. The god cleared his throat and released the quietest intelligible sound, "Sekhmet...I, uh..."

"Wow," Bek stood near Sekhmet, hands solidified to his hips, "never thought I'd see a god spee-" The veins entwined in Horus' neck popped, "Set's, uh, Set's pyramid, huh? It's where he keeps his power locked up, right? If I could get you inside, could you kill him?"

Horus shoved Bek with one hand making the man, once again, fall to the floor. "How would you do that?"

Sekhmet rolled her eyes, that was unnecessary. "I will be outside. Be quick. Set is on his way no doubt."

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The sky was painted with an array of colors as the sun descended. All land and rivers in sight were covered by a golden blanket as the unlikely group climbed up a steep, rocky mountain. This mountain was one of the highest in Egypt and harbored the entrance to the presence of Ra.

Sekhmet was impressed by the resilience of the mortal beside her. Bek, she learned his name when they began their journey, was maintaining a steady speed that matched that of Horus who was climbing above both of them.

Bek's muscles strained as he gripped yet another protruding rock and pulled himself up. His hair whipped in all directions as the air was harsh at such an altitude. The cold air was so strong that the multitude of sweat Bek was producing immediately dried. "You healed my sister once." He remained focused on climbing, falling to death would not help Zaya now.

"Did I?" The goddess glanced at him with curiosity. The mortal seemed focused on annoying Horus with his talking but this was focused on Sekhmet.

"I was young at the time, she was only two. You healed her scraped leg when we were on our way home." Sekhmet 'ahhed' and nodded her head in understanding as she remembered. "Thank you," Bek said after a quick glance in her direction.

The goddess smiled. "Of course." What she didn't know was that a young Bek would have been punished...severely if his sister came home with any mark on her body. A drunk for a father would do that. "From what I understand, you are not a believer of the gods," he made no move to disagree, "so why are you helping Horus?" She spoke quietly to decrease the chances of Horus hearing.

"We made a deal. If I get him through Set's pyramid then he will bring Zaya back."

Sekhmet's eyebrows furrowed. "And Zaya is your...love?" He nodded. "And she's dead?"

"Yes. Hopefully not for long. Once Horus becomes king he can bring her back." Both returned to a comfortable silence. Bek focused on climbing while Sekhmet was shocked by the promise Horus made. Or maybe it should have been expected for Horus was very good at manipulation. She would address this later. "So what is your plan?" Bek shouted up at Horus.

The god did not look down but pressed onward. "To kill the god of the desert, we must kill the desert itself."

His face scrunched. "Kill the desert? How do you kill the desert?" They finally reached the top of the mountain that plateaued into a rocky surface. The outline of the sun standing tall to cast its shadow over Egypt as the blazing sun passed through the sky. Horus reached his hand out to help Sekhmet over the final ledge but his offer was plainly ignored. Bek reached for the stunned god's hand but slipped as Horus pulled it away, leaving Bek to grumble and pull himself up.

"We must go to my grandfather's," Horus replied as he caught his breath. "He'll help us with our task."