.^^ Set-Apep ^^

— James —

Convincing Lady Durham that it was time to attack the rebels in the Gobi Sanctuary was literally the easiest thing I'd ever done in my life. I didn't even think I could call it convincing, I just said 'I'm going to attack the Gobi Sanctuary,' and she was instantly onboard.

I had shared all my new magic, evenly, with half of it going straight to the Ancestors, who accepted it happily. Seeing as the line actually went all the way back to Africa, and Northern Africa at that, Bast was a goddess they were familiar with, even though they hadn't ever worshipped her. They were all for being adopted by a goddess.

The Parthenos and Peterson Clans were a bit trickier, but they also agreed that being able to draw on power like that was a boon to anyone, even though they still had limits to how much they could safely draw, and the Master Mages had their own god-patrons that they didn't want to offend. I informed them of how to change the energy into their own gods', avoiding that catastrophe altogether, and the last wrinkles smoothed themselves out.

—

The Gobi Sanctuary was hidden inside a massive cave complex, the only sanctuary that didn't have a Barrier, because of its inconvenient location, right in the middle of one of the largest deserts on earth. That meant literally anyone could get in, regardless of their intentions.

According to Vanessa's latest intel, and Qin Long's as well, the remaining rebels had been entrenched here for nearly seven months, and grown comfortable.

I kicked down the front gate, smashing the 400-year-old desert willow down casually, and walking past the guards who attempted to stop me. They crashed into me, and I kept walking, barely even feeling them touch me.

Once in the main square, I stopped, and looked around. "Hello, everyone, I'd like your attention, please? My name is James Athenos Parthenos-Peterson, Son of the Peterson and Parthenos Lines, the Chosen Clan of Bast, Egyptian goddess of War and Beauty, the Matron of Cats. I am here for a simple reason. If you don't know what that is, simply based on my name, I would like you to go and hide away in your little cubbyholes, and stay out of my sight, because I am not here for you. Go now, or be counted as collateral damage."

The square emptied quickly, but was then filled with Fae, of many different breeds and even kinds. At the front were six women who smelled of Unterkin, and three giant men who smelled of Demigod, as well as several dozen Fae men who were standing mindlessly behind the Unterqueen's. One of the women stepped forward gracefully, and smiled. "Little Cousin, have you come to broker a peace?"

I drew my sword, and stabbed it into the stones next to me. "Interesting thought, Cousin, but I'm pretty sure it's going to be a very solid 'Fuck You'."

She sighed, shaking her head dramatically. "You're too young to die so stupidly. Perhaps you should go home, and come back when you are a Man."

"Perhaps you should take your own advice. You're too young to be behaving so stupidly." I shrugged.

She raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"You thought that you could just... rebel? Attack and kill other Unterkin, slaughter your way across the world, and no one would come for you? Really? You thought gathering a few powerful people was enough to make the entire world sit up and take notice? Darling Cousin, it's so naïve it's honestly painful to watch..." I sighed.

She frowned, and then shook her head. "I do not care for your opinion, child, nor did I ask for it. Now either surrender and leave, or be executed for the Mutt you are." She growled, showing her true colors.

"Mutt? You dare insult my Blood?" Aunty Durham stepped from the shadows, armed with a simple spear made of the same smoky crystal she'd given me.

The women flinched, but regrouped, sure of their numbers. "Like sheep, grouping together. Pathetic. I thought I was here for a challenge, not a slaughter!" I commented, making Durham laugh softly, agreeing.

When they made to comment, I shook my head, and drew my sword from the stones. "I'm really not interested in speaking to you anymore. I am usually one for a nice chat, but I've got to ask someone out on a date later, and the way I see it, you're in my way. That's not the best place for you to be, so if you'd rather just deal with Lady Durham, or surrender, do so quickly. After this, there's no mercy." I cracked my neck, and waited for about ten seconds.

The moment that was up, and none of them had moved, I surged forward, and slammed my boot into one of the Demigods in front, launching him back savagely, though not as far away as I'd have liked. That served to galvanize the rest of them, as they leapt to attention, and began treating me as a threat.

I really preferred not to kill them, but rather to send them to my new prison, where they could be drained of magic, as well as being punished for the horrible things they did in their long, disastrous lives.

To that effect, I basically perfected the Spartan Kick, sending them all into my portal, (which opened up into my bag, in front of the second portal into the prison,) one by one. They weren't that much of a challenge, but it was time-consuming, dealing with them all, one by one.

A solid force slammed into my left side, shoving me a step to my right, and I looked down at the Demigod wrapped around my chest, apparently trying to tackle me. I raised an eyebrow. "Seriously?" I asked, and gripped his neck like a cat, and tossed him into my portal casually.

"How is it possible for you to have power like this? The laws of magic are clear: with power like that, you shouldn't be able to use it more than a few times before you die!" The Ünterqueen who'd taken the lead gasped.

I laughed. "True, unless I'm paying a massive price. Mine is that I don't get an afterlife. When I die, I become a servant of Bast, and fight Apep for the rest of all Time. I'd say the Laws of Magic are being followed to a Tee."

"You arrogant Little Mutt!!! You shouldn't even have a Dog in this Fight! All we want is to be free to follow the Old Traditions!!! Leave us Be, Meddler!!!" She growled at me, and then dragged her sisters into a Rift, closing it behind them.

I snorted, sheathing my sword. "Honestly, the Gall of her to say that I don't have a dog in this fight!!! They tried to murder my mother! Talk about deluded." I shook my head sadly, and then called Riley through a portal. "Alright, girl, find me the Ünterqueen's that just ran away!"

She barked once, and sniffed the ground carefully, walking in a circle, then stopped, body straight like an arrow, except for one head that was chewing on an itch. "There!"

I laughed and leapt through the new rift, landing on a dinner table of some kind, one that could easily sit twenty people. The six people lounging around it yelped, standing quickly, and I shook my head.

"You guys, are you seriously that stupid? You just... went straight home? No detours to confuse me, just straight to the secret secret base? Come on!!! I expect a little challenge from you after all your big talk!!! It's the least you can do for me." I shrugged off the magic they threw at me, and leapt off the table nimbly.

"You arrogant little Ponce!!!" One of the shrieked, growing rose-vines out of the ground, with crystal thorns.

I paused, then looked at them all, coming to a realization. "Wait Wait Wait... so all my Blood Magic... you're sharing it too?"

She raised an eyebrow. "We are your cousins, Imbecile. Of course we share your blood."

I hummed. "Yeah, I guess that makes sense... thought I cut you gals off a long time ago... oh well." I opened my portal under them, one by one, and nodded in satisfaction, at the empty house.

Riley sniffed the air, and then cocked her head, whining curiously at a black metal door that didn't have a handle.

"Wonder where this place actually is. Probably around Egypt, where the rest of the safe-houses are. Makes me wonder, though... if our clan started in Egypt, how are we Irish?" I asked Riley a rhetorical question, and walked away from the door, looking for a window or a front door.

The only door in the place turned out to be the metal one, so I took the precaution of building a little atmosphere around myself, (just in case we were underwater or in outer space,) and then touched the door.

It blasted itself open, sending me hurtling back like a cannonball. I stopped Just short of the table, a good thirty feet away from the door, by digging my feet in, but it was still impressive.

The being that had thrown open the door turned out to be a Demigod of some sort, decked out in traditional Egyptian Godly Armor, in the shape of the Set Animal, but with a Cobra's hood.

"Cool helmet, who made it for you? Oh! Was it Bes, patron of Ugly Dwarves?" I taunted, grinning.

He growled softly, and the room got noticeably colder. "I am an Avatar of a God, and you will show respect where it is due, child!"

"I always show respect where it's due. But Seeing as Amun-Ra himself declared me a Young God, maybe it's you who should show some respect!!!" I quipped, and stood straight, drawing my sword.

He cocked his head slowly, and then hummed. "You do smell of Liquid Gold... an interesting revelation, to be sure, but regardless, I am Set-Apep, and you will show deference to the true Pharoah of Egypt!"

I dug a bit of earwax out of my ear, confused. "Did I hear you right? You think you're a Pharoah? There is no Pharoah of Egypt, you outdated old dust-bag! The last Pharoah was Cleopatra, two thousand years ago! Egypt is a constitutional democracy now! Run for President all you like, but you can't just claim the entire country for yourself, especially not on 2,000-year-old credentials." I shrugged.

He snarled, and grew long, ink-Black claws, while the gold in his skin turned black slowly. "You dare Mock me, Set-Apep, the true God of Chaos and Destruction?"

"Well... Yes, sort of. I do dare, but I'm also entirely serious. There is no King of Egypt anymore. Just like there's no King of Greece, or Caesar of Rome, or Emperor of the Turks, or... well, the Caliphates still exist, but in a very small role, more as wealthy businessmen than anything else." I explained casually.

"Enough!!!" He snarled again, and his teeth sharpened, as he leapt towards me, apparently done talking.

I kicked him in the gut as hard as my body would allow, and negated his forward momentum, but his Obsidian-colored skin didn't even bend around my foot. "Hm. Interesting." I nodded, and ducked under his claws, slicing a small nick in his skin with my sword.

He grinned. "You see? My hide is too thick for you to-...what... is this?!?" He gasped, clutching his throat.

I shrugged. "Poison on the blade from Apep and a few other creatures. Not the most honorable of methods, but it definitely does the job. Have fun in the Crystal Oasis, my friend!" I opened a portal under him, and hummed in happiness, closing the hole and walking through the door he'd opened.

It led into a large cave, filled with what looked like ceremonial offerings to both Set and Apep, which made sense, seeing as the rebels had been helping them both to try to escape the Duat for quite some time.

I sighed, and trashed the place, recycling much of the marble to reshape it into a shrine to Bast and Amun-Ra, because I figured this room was meant for two gods, and they were besties.

"Besties? Really?" She asked dryly, stepping into the room through a rift.

"You know what, I'm getting sick and tired of people using Rifts to dramatically talk to me! Seriously! They're just breaks between dimensions, you still have to walk between them and teleport to your final destination!!! They're halfway useless, and unpredictable!" I crossed my arms.

She laughed. "Perhaps, but very convenient when you're low on magic. How did your battle with the Rebels go?" She asked, lounging on the plush cat-bed in front of her Shrine.

"Boring, really, until an Avatar of Set-Apep appeared. He's in the Oasis I told you about, with Apep, though they're mostly unaware of each other. He'll die soon, but for now the illusions will hold him, in his weaker state." I shrugged.

She nodded slowly. "I see... of course Set is also a part of this nonsense... what is your plan? No matter how powerful your prison, it isn't powerful enough to hold two gods of destruction."

"Actually, the more powerful beings inside of it, the more powerful it becomes, ad infinitum. It's like a kinetic energy barrier. Hitting it only makes it stronger." I grinned.

She blinked slowly, then purred deeply. "I like the way you think... but either way, Set is a necessary god for the Balance to remain, so you shouldn't imprison him."

"Alright, then I'll just fuck with him a bit, get him focused on me, instead of whatever mischief he's got planned." I shrugged, and laid on her new couch, in front of her.

She raised an eyebrow. "This is Mine."

"I'm aware, as I made it for you, just now." I nodded, closing my eyes. "It is very comfortable. I did well."

She hummed, and then sat on top of me grumpily. "You know cats don't share."

"I know that cats will get over themselves if you show them affection." I pet her hair casually, and she laid down involuntarily, and glared at me, even though she was purring. "I also know that if you've adopted me, it doesn't really matter either way. Now I'm going to get some sleep, and hopefully someone will find Set-Apep before I wake up." I sent out a casual request through all my avenues, and then sighed, relaxing.

She sighed, laying down on top of my chest as a very large Egyptian Mau with gold and black fur. "You know, as much as I enjoy you becoming more powerful, you have to be careful... power never comes without a price, not even to gods."

"And what was yours?" I asked.

She flicked her ears at me, irritated, but answered after a moment. "I was once a mortal being, a Cat. My favorite servant was the wife of a Pharoah, I can't remember either of their names..."

"Sorry, servant? You mean owner?" I asked, laughing softly.

She dug her claws into my skin carefully, glaring at me. "No one OWNS a Cat, my dear boy... now as I was saying, I was a Cat. When I had lived a long time, through all Three of my lives, it was time for me to die..."

"Wait, Three Lives? Cats really have extra lives? And I thought-"

"Yes, Yes, you thought it was Nine. A bit of propaganda, by yours truly." She smirked, and then retracted her claws. "Anyway, Yes, Egyptian Mau's, we had the blood of an older Goddess in our veins, we were the Favored Beings Of Isis, mother of Horus, and, some would say, the Mother of Egypt itself."

"I heard about that, Cats were her favored animals; before you became the Matron of Cats, that was her schtick." I nodded.

"Exactly. Anyway, it was time for me to die, so I made a deal with Ra. He was only Ra, then, Not Amun-Ra. He hadn't yet merged with the Hidden One. The deal was, I would serve as protector of Ra, and in exchange, I would become a Goddess. Rather simple, yes? But the price, that was one that just kept taking. I've lived a long time, and in that time, my pain and suffering has made many other gods pale in fear. It is how I became a goddess of War, instead of just a goddess of Cats, or Beauty or Grace. I fought for hundreds of years, and was acknowledged as the best warrior in the entire Pantheon." She sat primly, her fur fluffing itself magically.

"And your price? Just pain and suffering? That's it? You gained what most would call ultimate power, and you suffered for a few millennia. I call that an even trade." I scoffed softly.

She laughed. "Maybe... maybe. But think of Osiris. His power came from his death. He can never again live, and that is his one wish in life. Isis? She wants her children to be free and kind, and her children will fight for eternity, unless she dies. The Price of power is decided by Fate. And it's always the one thing you want more than anything else. The only reason I only received pain and suffering is because I just wanted a Home. Family. Instead, I got people who respect, but fear me. Other than Amun-Ra, Osiris, and Anubis, I am the most powerful Egyptian God, and the most lonely."

I hummed, and chuckled. "Well, What I want Most is much more simple. I want my family to be happy, like Isis. Unlike Isis, I know that's not possible, so instead I just want the power to destroy their enemies and mine. I seek power for selfish and unselfish reasons alike, so the Price will likely be my death, one day, at the worst possible time."

She nodded. "You're probably right. And you're okay with that?"

"Not really, but I also know that the people who fight Fate are the ones who die the bloodiest deaths. I intend to simply live. Fate can have me when it's ready, but until then, I won't allow fear of failure to destroy my life." I smiled, and closed my eyes again. "So let your Avatar's keep watch, and get some real sleep, Bast. You've earned it."

She smiled, and curled up, her eyes slowly dimming to normal gold, instead of neon, then closing, as her host fell asleep.