The Complete Kane Chronicles (16 page)

“So you’re immortal?”

His chuckle turned into a racking cough. He doubled over and cupped his hands over his mouth. I wanted to help, but I wasn’t sure how. The glowing hieroglyphs flickered and dimmed around him.

Finally the coughing subsided.

He took a shaky breath. “Hardly immortal, my dear. In fact…” His voice trailed off. “But never mind that. What did you see in your vision?”

I probably should’ve kept quiet. I didn’t want to be turned into a bug for breaking any rules, and the vision had terrified me—especially the moment when I’d changed into the bird of prey. But Iskandar’s kindly expression made it hard to hold back. I ended up telling him everything. Well, almost everything. I left out the bit about the good-looking boy, and yes, I know it was silly, but I was
embarrassed
. I reckoned that part could’ve been my own crazed imagination at work, as Ancient Egyptian gods could
not
have been that gorgeous.

Iskandar sat for a moment, tapping his staff against the steps. “You saw a very old event, Sadie—Set taking the throne of Egypt by force. He hid Osiris’s coffin, you know, and Isis searched the entire world to find it.”

“So she got him back eventually?”

“Not exactly. Osiris was resurrected—but only in the Underworld. He became the king of the dead. When their son, Horus, grew up, Horus challenged Set for the throne of Egypt and won after many hard battles. That is why Horus was called the Avenger. As I said—an old story, but one that the gods have repeated many times in our history.”

“Repeated?”

“The gods follow patterns. In some ways they are quite predictable: acting out the same squabbles, the same jealousies down through the ages. Only the settings change, and the hosts.”

There was that word again:
hosts.
I thought about the poor woman in the New York museum who’d turned into the goddess Serqet.

“In my vision,” I said, “Isis and Osiris were married. Horus was about to be born as their son. But in another story Carter told me, all three of them were siblings, children of the sky goddess.”

“Yes,” Iskandar agreed. “This can be confusing for those who do not know the nature of gods. They cannot walk the earth in their pure form—at least, not for more than a few moments. They must have hosts.”

“Humans, you mean.”

“Or powerful objects, such as statues, amulets, monuments, certain models of cars. But they
prefer
human form. You see gods have great power, but only humans have creativity, the power to change history rather than simply repeat it. Humans can…how do you moderns say it…think outside the cup.”

“The box,” I suggested.

“Yes. The combination of human creativity and godly power can be quite formidable. At any rate, when Osiris and Isis first walked the earth, their hosts were brother and sister. But mortal hosts are not permanent. They die, they wear out. Later in history, Osiris and Isis took new forms—humans who were husband and wife. Horus, who in one lifetime was their brother, was born into a new life as their son.”

“That’s confusing,” I said. “And a little gross.”

Iskandar shrugged. “The gods do not think of relationships the way we humans do. Their hosts are merely like changes of clothes. This is why the ancient stories seem so mixed up. Sometimes the gods are described as married, or siblings, or parent and child, depending on their hosts. The pharaoh himself was called a living god, you know. Egyptologists believe this was just a lot of propaganda, but in fact it was often literally true. The greatest of the pharaohs became hosts for gods, usually Horus. He gave them power and wisdom, and let them build Egypt into a mighty empire.”

“But that’s good, isn’t it? Why is it against the law to host a god?”

Iskandar’s face darkened. “Gods have different agendas than humans do, Sadie. They can overpower their hosts, literally burn them out. That is why so many hosts die young. Tutankhamen, poor boy, died at nineteen. Cleopatra VII was even worse. She tried to host the spirit of Isis without knowing what she was doing, and it shattered her mind. In the old days, the House of Life taught the use of divine magic. Initiates could study the path of Horus, or Isis, or Sekhmet, or any number of gods, learning to channel their powers. We had many more initiates back then.”

Iskandar looked round the empty hall, as if imagining it filled with magicians. “Some adepts could call upon the gods only from time to time. Others attempted to host their spirits…with varying degrees of success. The ultimate goal was to become the ‘eye’ of the god—a perfect union of the two souls, mortal and immortal. Very few achieved this, even among the pharaohs, who were born to the task. Many destroyed themselves trying.” He turned up his palm, which had the most deeply etched lifeline I’d ever seen. “When Egypt finally fell to the Romans, it became clear to us—to
me—
that mankind, our rulers, even the strongest magicians, no longer had the strength of will to master a god’s power. The only ones who could…” His voice faltered.

“What?”

“Nothing, my dear. I talk too much. An old man’s weakness.”

“It’s the blood of the pharaohs, isn’t it?”

He fixed me in his gaze. His eyes no longer looked milky. They burned with intensity. “You are a remarkable young girl. You remind me of your mother.”

My mouth fell open. “You knew her?”

“Of course. She trained here, as did your father. Your mother…well, aside from being a brilliant scientist, she had the gift of divination. One of the most difficult forms of magic, and she was the first in centuries to possess it.”

“Divination?”

“Seeing the future. Tricky business, never perfect, but she saw things that made her seek advice from…
unconventional
places, things that made even
this
old man question some long-held beliefs…”

He drifted off into Memoryland again, which was infuriating enough when my grandparents did it, but when it’s an all-powerful magician who has valuable information, it’s enough to drive one mad.

“Iskandar?”

He looked at me with mild surprise, as if he’d forgotten I was there. “I’m sorry, Sadie. I should come to the point: you have a hard path ahead of you, but I’m convinced now it’s a path you must take, for all our sakes. Your brother will need your guidance.”

I was tempted to laugh. “Carter, need my guidance? For what? What path do you mean?”

“All in good time. Things must take their course.”

Typical adult answer. I tried to bite back my frustration. “And what if
I
need guidance?”

“Zia,” he said, without hesitation. “She is my best pupil, and she is wise. When the time comes, she will know how to help you.”

“Right,” I said, a bit disappointed. “Zia.”

“For now you should rest, my dear. And it seems I, too, can rest at last.” He sounded sad but relieved. I didn’t know what he was talking about, but he didn’t give me the chance to ask.

“I am sorry our time together was so brief,” he said. “Sleep well, Sadie Kane.”

“But—”

Iskandar touched my forehead. And I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

S A D I E

I WOKE TO A BUCKET OF ICE WATER IN MY FACE.

“Sadie! Get up,” Zia said.

“God!” I yelled. “Was that
necessary
?”

“No,” Zia admitted.

I wanted to strangle her, except I was dripping wet, shivering, and still disoriented. How long had I slept? It felt like only a few minutes, but the dormitory was empty. All the other cots were made. The girls must’ve already gone to their morning lessons.

Zia tossed me a towel and some fresh linen clothes. “We’ll meet Carter in the cleansing room.”

“I just
got
a bath, thanks very much. What I need is a proper breakfast.”

“The cleansing prepares you for magic.” Zia slung her bag of tricks over her shoulder and unfolded the long black staff she’d used in New York. “If you survive, we’ll see about food.”

I was tired of being reminded that I might die, but I got dressed and followed her out.

After another endless series of tunnels, we came to a chamber with a roaring waterfall. There was no ceiling, just a shaft above us that seemed to go up forever. Water fell from the darkness into a fountain, splashing over a five-meter-tall statue of that bird-headed god. What was his name—Tooth? No, Thoth. The water cascaded over his head, collected in his palms, then spilled out into the pool.

Carter stood beside the fountain. He was dressed in linen with Dad’s workbag over one shoulder and his sword strapped to his back. His hair was rumpled, as if he hadn’t slept well. At least he hadn’t been doused in ice water. Seeing him, I felt a strange sense of relief. I thought about Iskandar’s words last night:
Your brother will need your guidance.

“What?” Carter asked. “You’re staring at me funny.”

“Nothing,” I said quickly. “How’d you sleep?”

“Badly. I’ll…I’ll tell you about it later.”

Was it my imagination, or did he frown in Zia’s direction?
Hmm,
possible romantic trouble between Miss Magic and my brother? I made a mental note to interrogate him next time we were alone.

Zia went to a nearby cabinet. She brought out two ceramic cups, dipped them into the fountain, then offered them to us. “Drink.”

I glanced at Carter. “After you.”

“It’s only water,” Zia assured me, “but purified by contact with Thoth. It will focus your mind.”

I didn’t see how a statue could purify water. Then I remembered what Iskandar had said, how gods could inhabit anything.

I took a drink. Immediately I felt like I’d had a good strong cup of Gran’s tea. My brain buzzed. My eyesight sharpened. I felt so hyperactive, I almost didn’t miss my chewing gum—almost.

Carter sipped from his cup. “Wow.”

“Now the tattoos,” Zia announced.

“Brilliant!” I said.

“On your tongue,” she added.

“Excuse me?”

Zia stuck out her tongue. Right in the middle was a blue hieroglyph.

“Nith ith Naat,” she tried to say with her tongue out. Then she realized her mistake and stuck her tongue back in. “I mean, this is Ma’at, the symbol of order and harmony. It will help you speak magic clearly. One mistake with a spell—”

“Let me guess,” I said. “We’ll die.”

From her cabinet of horrors, Zia produced a fine-tipped paintbrush and a bowl of blue dye. “It doesn’t hurt. And it’s not permanent.”

“How does it taste?” Carter wondered.

Zia smiled. “Stick out your tongue.”

To answer Carter’s question, the tattoo tasted like burning car tires.

“Ugh.”
I spit a blue gob of “order and harmony” into the fountain. “Never mind breakfast. Lost my appetite.”

Zia pulled a leather satchel out of the cabinet. “Carter will be allowed to keep your father’s magic implements, plus a new staff and wand. Generally speaking, the wand is for defense, the staff is for offense, although, Carter, you may prefer to use your
khopesh.
”

“Khopesh?”

“The curved sword,” Zia said. “A favored weapon of the pharaoh’s guard. It can be used in combat magic. As for Sadie, you will need a full kit.”

“How come
he
gets Dad’s kit?” I complained.

“He is the eldest,” she said, as if that explained everything. Typical.

Zia tossed me the leather satchel. Inside was an ivory wand, a rod that I supposed turned into a staff, some paper, an ink set, a bit of twine, and a lovely chunk of wax. I was less than thrilled.

“What about a little wax man?” I asked. “I want a Doughboy.”

“If you mean a figurine, you must make one yourself. You will be taught how, if you have the skill. We will determine your specialty later.”

“Specialty?” Carter asked. “You mean like Nectanebo specialized in statues?”

Zia nodded. “Nectanebo was extremely skilled in statuary magic. He could make
shabti
so lifelike, they could pass for human. No one has ever been greater at statuary…except perhaps Iskandar. But there are many other disciplines: Healer. Amulet maker. Animal charmer. Elementalist. Combat magician. Necromancer.”

“Diviner?” I asked.

Zia looked at me curiously. “Yes, although that is quite rare. Why do you—”

I cleared my throat. “So how do we know our specialty?”

“It will become clear soon enough,” Zia promised, “but a good magician knows a bit of everything, which is why we start with a basic test. Let us go to the library.”

The First Nome’s library was like Amos’s, but a hundred times bigger, with circular rooms lined with honeycomb shelves that seemed to go on forever, like the world’s largest beehive. Clay
shabti
statues kept popping in and out, retrieving scroll canisters and disappearing, but we saw no other people.

Zia brought us to a wooden table and spread out a long, blank papyrus scroll. She picked up a stylus and dipped it in ink.

“The Egyptian word
shesh
means scribe or writer, but it can also mean magician. This is because magic, at its most basic, turns words into reality. You will create a scroll. Using your own magic, you will send power into the words on paper. When spoken, the words will unleash the magic.”

She handed the stylus to Carter.

“I don’t get it,” he protested.

“A simple word,” she suggested. “It can be anything.”

“In English?”

Zia curled her lip. “If you must. Any language will work, but hieroglyphics are best. They are the language of creation, of magic, of Ma’at. You must be careful, however.”

Before she could explain, Carter drew a simple hieroglyph of a bird.

The picture wriggled, peeled itself off the papyrus, and flew away. It splattered Carter’s head with some hieroglyphic droppings on its way out. I couldn’t help laughing at Carter’s expression.

“A beginner’s mistake,” Zia said, scowling at me to be quiet. “If you use a symbol that stands for something alive, it is wise to write it only partially—leave off a wing, or the legs. Otherwise the magic you channel could make it come alive.”

“And poop on its creator.” Carter sighed, wiping off his hair with a bit of scrap papyrus. “That’s why our father’s wax statue, Doughboy, has no legs, right?”

“The same principle,” Zia agreed. “Now, try again.”

Carter stared at Zia’s staff, which was covered in hieroglyphics. He picked the most obvious one and copied it on the papyrus—the symbol for fire.

Uh-oh,
I thought. But the word did not come alive, which would’ve been rather exciting. It simply dissolved.

“Keep trying,” Zia urged.

“Why am I so tired?” Carter wondered.

He definitely looked exhausted. His face was beaded with sweat.

“You’re channeling magic from within,” Zia said. “For me, fire is easy. But it may not be the most natural type of magic for you. Try something else. Summon…summon a sword.”

Zia showed him how to form the hieroglyph, and Carter wrote it on the papyrus. Nothing happened.

“Speak it,” Zia said.

“Sword,” Carter said. The word glowed and vanished, and a butter knife lay on the papyrus.

I laughed. “Terrifying!”

Carter looked like he was about to pass out, but he managed a grin. He picked up the knife and threatened to poke me with it.

“Very good for a first time,” Zia said. “Remember, you are not creating the knife yourself. You are summoning it from Ma’at—the creative power of the universe. Hieroglyphs are the code we use. That’s why they are called Divine Words. The more powerful the magician, the easier it becomes to control the language.”

I caught my breath. “Those hieroglyphs floating in the Hall of Ages. They seemed to gather around Iskandar. Was he summoning them?”

“Not exactly,” Zia said. “His presence is so strong, he makes the language of the universe visible simply by being in the room. No matter what our specialty, each magician’s greatest hope is to become a speaker of the Divine Words—to know the language of creation so well that we can fashion reality simply by speaking, not even using a scroll.”

“Like saying
shatter,
” I ventured. “And having a door explode.”

Zia scowled. “Yes, but such a thing would take years of practice.”

“Really? Well—”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Carter shaking his head, silently warning me to shut up.

“Um…”
I stammered. “Some day, I’ll learn to do that.”

Zia raised an eyebrow. “First, master the scroll.”

I was getting tired of her attitude, so I picked up the stylus and wrote
Fire
in English.

Zia leaned forward and frowned. “You shouldn’t—”

Before she could finish, a column of flame erupted in her face. I screamed, sure I’d done something horrible, but when the fire died Zia was still there, looking astonished, her eyebrows singed and her bangs smoldering.

“Oh, god,” I said. “Sorry, sorry. Do I die now?”

For three heartbeats, Zia stared at me.

“Now,” she announced. “I think you are ready to duel.”

We used another magic gateway, which Zia summoned right on the library wall. We stepped into a circle of swirling sand and popped out the other side, covered in dust and grit, in the front of some ruins. The harsh sunlight almost blinded me.

“I hate portals,” Carter muttered, brushing the sand out of his hair.

Then he looked around and his eyes widened. “This is Luxor! That’s, like, hundreds of miles south of Cairo.”

I sighed. “And that amazes you after teleporting from New York?”

He was too busy checking out our surroundings to answer.

I suppose the ruins were all right, though once you’ve seen one pile of crumbly Egyptian stuff, you’ve seen them all, I say. We stood on a wide avenue flanked by human-headed beasties, most of which were broken. The road went on behind us as far as I could see, but in front of us it ended at a temple much bigger than the one in the New York museum.

The walls were at least six stories high. Big stone pharaohs stood guard on either side of the entrance, and a single obelisk stood on the left-hand side. It looked as if one used to stand on the right as well, but it was now gone.

“Luxor is a modern name,” Zia said. “This was once the city of Thebes. This temple was one of the most important in Egypt. It is the best place for us to practice.”

“Because it’s already destroyed?” I asked.

Zia gave me one of her famous scowls. “No, Sadie—because it is still full of magic. And it was sacred to your family.”

“Our family?” Carter asked.

Zia didn’t explain, as usual. She just gestured for us to follow.

“I don’t like those ugly sphinxes,” I mumbled as we walked down the path.

“Those ugly sphinxes are creatures of law and order,” Zia said, “protectors of Egypt. They are on
our
side.”

“If you say so.”

Carter nudged me as we passed the obelisk. “You know the missing one is in Paris.”

I rolled my eyes. “Thank you, Mr. Wikipedia. I thought they were in New York and London.”

“That’s a different pair,” Carter said, like I was supposed to care. “The other
Luxor
obelisk is in Paris.”

“Wish I was in Paris,” I said. “Lot better than this place.”

We walked into a dusty courtyard surrounded by crumbling pillars and statues with various missing body parts. Still, I could tell the place had once been quite impressive.

“Where are the people?” I asked. “Middle of the day, winter holidays. Shouldn’t there be loads of tourists?”

Zia made a distasteful expression. “Usually, yes. I have encouraged them to stay away for a few hours.”

“How?”

“Common minds are easy to manipulate.” She looked pointedly at me, and I remembered how she’d forced me to talk in the New York museum. Oh, yes, she was just
begging
for more scorched eyebrows.

“Now, to the duel.” She summoned her staff and drew two circles in the sand about ten meters apart. She directed me to stand in one of them and Carter in the other.

“I’ve got to duel
him
?” I asked.

I found the idea preposterous. The only thing Carter had shown aptitude for was summoning butter knives and pooping birds. Well, all right, and that bit on the chasm bridge deflecting the daggers, but still—what if I hurt him? As annoying as Carter might be, I didn’t want to accidentally summon that glyph I’d made in Amos’s house and explode him to bits.