━━ CHAPTER FOUR / the cult of ammit

Five shots deep and Ronny was finally beginning to feel it. Kaylea had ordered them both a Sex on the Beach once they'd gotten off the dance floor again. They were waiting at the bar, talking about nothing in particular until the bartender came over. He passed the cocktails over and Ronny sent him a flirty smile before she looked back to her friend.

"You are such a flirt," Kaylea commented before taking a sip of her cocktail. The club was dark and the flashing lights made it impossible to decipher what colour the liquid was actually supposed to be. But Ronny was too drunk to care. Her anxieties had floated away and she was smiling, properly grinning.

"You have no idea," Ronny responded. Despite her drunken state, her British accent had stayed stable. Another example of the power of the Gods working in her favour. She didn't want one drunken night out and all her secrets to be discovered. It seemed she was safe, for now.

"Are you regretting comin' out now?" Kaylea asked as she placed the cocktail on the bar again. Ronny took a sip, hiding her smile behind the rim of her class. She shrugged.

"If I end up making out with a guy tonight, I won't." Ronny was entirely aware of her words and knew she could stop spilling the truth if she really wanted to but she didn't want to. She wanted to be honest - at least partially. Most of her life she had been lying and she despised it.

"Would you ever make out with a girl?" Kaylea questioned. Ronny tilted her head slightly before leaning forward towards Kaylea.

"Are you asking me to make out with you?" Her voice was lower than before and Kaylea shrugged. A smirk on her lips. Ronny then leant back, "You're not my type, darling." There was a teasing lilt to her tone and Kaylea scoffed, rolling her eyes before she looked back to the crowd. Ronny finished off her cocktail before looking around for the sign to the bathroom. She was desperate for a wee.

"I'm going to the bathroom. Go flirt with someone. That's what you came here to do." Ronny practically ordered and Kaylea did a mock salute before Ronny wandered off. Her red skin-tight dress clung to her hips, showing off her figure. It made her feel confident and people were looking. If she was sober, she would have punched them but in her drunken mindset, she loved the attention. She loved when people noticed. It made her feel powerful.

The queue for the bathroom was surprisingly small and as she leant against the wall, waiting. She spotted Thoth in the crowd. Her eyes narrowed and she felt herself sober up at merely the sight of the God. Then the queue moved and she disappeared into the bathroom stall.

She sat down on the toilet and did her business but when she looked up, Thoth was standing on the other side of the stall door. His staff was just about visible and he was leaning over, away from her. Even the club ceilings were too low for him just like everywhere else.

The door into the bathroom banged closed and Ronny got up from the toilet, sorting herself out before she walked out of the stall. She put soap on her hands and used the mirror to check if anyone was occupying the other stalls. Nobody.

"This is my night off, Thoth." Her sobriety was hitting harder and she longed for that bubbly feeling that the alcohol had given her not a few minutes earlier.

"You don't get nights off. I need you to check on Harrow." Ronny gritted her teeth and washed the soap under the spray of water. Her one night off. Her one night off in years and he made her do something for him.

"You're needy," She snapped, grabbing paper towels from the dispenser and wiping her hands down. She pulled her phone from her bra and pulled up a map, "Where am I going?"

After abandoning the club - and Kaylea - Ronny had walked off down the street. Nobody had bothered her or bumped into her for a few minutes until her body collided and she instantly recognised them. Marc.

"Oh my days, I am so sorry. Are you- are you alright?" He was using his British accent and when Ronny met his gaze, he didn't seem to know who she was. Her head tilted slightly before she realised she hadn't said anything.

"Yeah, yeah, perfect. I totally got distracted by my phone. Sorry." Ronny was quick to apologise, keeping up her British act. But still, Marc didn't say a word. She stepped back from him and sent him an awkward smile before rushing away.

He turned around to call after her but closed his mouth before letting any words escape. Ronny may have been drunk but that was definitely Marc. The same brown eyes and messy hair. His posture had changed but that was characteristic of him pretending to be Steven. Not recognising her confused her. He should have recognised her.

"Thoth. I need your wisdom." She was being half-sarcastic as she called out into thin air but then he appeared. At his full height, his shadow stretched out in front of him, towering over her as he walked in step beside her. He never usually answered her calls.

"That was Marc Spector." She didn't even have to ask. Ronny pursed her lips before glancing back, scrutinising the back of Marc's head. That wasn't him. Why was he here? Why was he walking like that? Why hadn't he recognised her?

"Are you sure because he had no idea who I was," Ronny responded. Thoth nodded his skull and she sighed, glancing around. She ran her fingers through her hair before pulling it up into a ponytail. If she ran into Harrow's men, she might end up in a fight. Although she had had no direct conflict with them yet, they were trying to resurrect Ammit and were stealing artefacts to do so. Their mission from the get-go was wrong but stealing only made it worse.

Thoth followed her until they came up onto the street. It used to be one of the more unsafe areas of London but now, it was calm. There was a real sense of community. A cult-ish community but a community nonetheless. She was an outsider. She knew that from the moment she stepped onto the street.

It only took a few minutes of her walking down the streets for Harrow's men to get suspicious. Why they were even awake at nearing 2am was a question for another time. Ronny's hands swung by her side as she strolled into the community centre. Harrow stood there, waiting, leaning against the table.

"Miss Molina. I can't say I'm surprised to see you." Ronny raised an eyebrow, glancing at Thoth but he gave nothing away. Their connection allowed her to somewhat share his emotions but there was nothing, "Did Thoth bring you here?" He asked.

"Who?" Ronny let her American accent slip back in. Her Brooklyn roots came back to the surface after pretending to be British for so many hours.

"The God of Wisdom, Languages and the Moon. The great negotiator of the Gods. He's here with you, is he not?" Harrow asked. Ronny glanced up at the ibis, knowing that she gave it away. It didn't matter to her whether Harrow knew her position or not.

"Don't inflate his ego." Harrow chuckled and Ronny smiled. The alcohol coursing through her veins was making her cocky and despite the six men crowding behind her, she knew she could get out of this alive. Maybe kill Harrow in the process. It'd save them all a lot of trouble and the cult would fall apart without its charismatic leader, just like others had.

"I think your God believes he can negotiate with me." Ronny glanced at Thoth but he had vanished into thin air. She looked around to see if he was lurking and she spotted him, standing on a platform, towering above them both. It was his way of detaching himself from the situation but still ensuring that Ronny was safe. He had led her into this after all.

"He believes a lot of things. I don't tend to engage in his fantasies." The brunette responded as she looked back down at Harrow. He turned his head back around, after having followed her gaze to see where Thoth was standing. Even if he could not see the God himself, he was curious.

"But you follow his every word?"

Ronny shrugged, "Sometimes."

"Are you aware of my mission?" Ronny rolled her eyes, glancing back. The six men still stood behind her and thankfully, nobody else was in the community centre but Harrow. The men were trying to be inconspicuous but they were clumsy. Clearly not trained as well as Harrow believed.

"Of your ludicrous fantasies?" She questioned before she met his gaze, "Of course I have. Only a true fanatic would try and bring Ammit back. She's a murderer." The alcohol definitely seemed to give Ronny more confidence than she usually had. Fighting somebody was one thing but confronting and insulting a cult leader to their face. It was dangerous. Especially when they had such a dedicated following like Harrow did.

"As are you." His words made Ronny pause. She knew that's what she was. She was aware. She had spilled so much blood but nobody had ever said that to her before. It stunned her even if only for a second.

"Only when it's necessary," She countered, regaining her composure.

"Do you not think Ammit's mission is necessary? Your God and Khonshu punish wrongdoers too late. Ammit pulls evil up at the root. You wouldn't have had to go through so much heartache if the choice of evil was never there." Harrow tried to take advantage of her brief weakness. The pain that her job caused her but she was well aware of what he did. How they drew people in. She had studied people long enough and had the God of Languages whispering in her ear for many years. It wouldn't be so easy to bring her under his thumb.

"There are better ways to deal with sinners than killing them." That was Ronny's morals, she had always believed that. It was her way. Her code. Her entire life for the past ten years. No fanatical cult would make her change.

"That is lies from the Gods. Have you not heard enough?" He asked. She rolled her eyes.

"Innocent people don't deserve to die because they might, possibly, maybe commit a crime in the future. It's backwards." Everything he was doing was backwards and she wouldn't be the last person to think that.

"How different would your life be if Ammit had never been banished? Your husband would still be here. You would never have become an avatar and spilt all that blood. I can see how the guilt eats you up. I don't need to test your scales to see that," He stepped closer. The few feet between them turned into inches and she stepped past. She wouldn't let his stick, his cane that was imbued with Ammit's power, get near her. She knew what her scales would say. Nobody needed to tell her that.

"I've met men like you before."

"You've never met anyone like me." Ronny took another step back and she heard the gunshot but before it could touch her skin Thoth summoned the suit. The papyrus-paper bandages wrapped around her skin, creating a thick barrier between the bullet and her skin. It bounced off the bandages and landed on the floor with a weak ping. The papyrus-paper bandages were covered in hieroglyphs of protective charms and healing magic. A cape and hood of vibrant emerald green accompanied her suit, they appeared over her shoulders and finally, the vibranium mask grew across her cheeks, moulding perfectly to her jaw and nose.

"Thoth would never leave me unprotected. Either I leave now or this becomes a blood bath." Ronny hated when she was forced into the suit. It kept her from harm but the vibranium mask squeezed her face and left it bruised for days even if it was only worn for a few moments.

"Let her go," Harrow called. Ronny stared at him for a moment. Her eyes were still visible, the mask only protected the bottom half of her face, "I'll be seeing you again." Ronny turned around and ran, jumping up and now with the powers of the suit, she reached the roof of the house with ease. She landed steadily and walked along the roof tiles.

Thoth appeared beside her and her mask and hood disappeared from her face, "You're needed in Brazil."

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NOTE; got a lil hint of steven/ronny interaction and ronny in her suit!! and of course, meeting our favourite cult leader - arthur harrow!! i had so much fun writing this!! i hope you enjoyed <333