Sobek had relieved Ana?s of the burden of the leg and handed it over to Anubis at his request. He had wagered that they would reach Amenebis' cenotaph without trouble and travel faster if the jackal god carried his father's flesh. Ana?s had not protested. Their race to the Duat had exhausted her, both mentally and physically, and they still had a few kilometers left to run. If she only had to carry her own weight, she wouldn’t slow him down. Once they reached the ritual site, she could finally breathe and rest. At least, that was what she hoped.

  "I don’t think they’ll try to pass through the Duat again, but I’ll keep watch just in case," Sobek assured them. "Good luck."

  "Thank you!" the lovers called out in unison before stepping through the portal.

  The now-familiar sight of crypts filled with bones greeted them on the other side. Anubis grimaced at his first steps and tried to adjust the weight of the leg so it wouldn’t rest on his injured shoulder. Maybe she should have kept the limb and pushed her limits… Seeing him suffer like this pained her.

  "Are you sure you’ll be okay with your shoulder?" she asked, worried.

  "We’re almost there. I’ll deal with it once we’ve given the leg to my mother."

  There was no point in arguing—Anubis was determined. The only thing she could do was make sure she wasn’t a burden and keep up with his pace.

  The couple slipped out of the necropolis without alerting anyone. At this hour, there was no one outside, and no light to expose them to the priestesses or any guards. With their night-vision eyes and their swift, powerful limbs, the lovers covered the kilometers separating them from the cenotaph in retively little time. Normally, such tombs were built within crypts, but the two goddesses had chosen to construct some in remote caves so they could designate one for the ritual. Performing it in a necropolis was far too risky.

  When the young woman finally caught sight of the cave entrance, a deep sense of relief washed over her. She was exhausted from running. They slowed their pace upon arrival and ventured into the natural cavity, soon greeted by the silhouette of Nephthys, who waited for them nervously with a torch in hand. She led them a few meters further into a rocky corridor that opened into a cavern just rge enough to accommodate a dozen people in addition to the cenotaph standing at its center. There was no artificial light, but the two goddesses had pced several braziers in each corner of the chamber. The embers bathed the cave in a soft, almost mystical glow, creating the perfect atmosphere for a magical ritual.

  "Let’s not waste any time," Isis urged as she saw them arrive. "All the pieces are in pce. We only need the leg."

  Anubis shifted back into his human form after his mother retrieved the flesh of her husband. Ana?s followed suit and quickly moved to her lover’s side to check on his wound. She cast only a brief gnce at the cenotaph, which was, in fact, a rectangur stone sarcophagus the size of a human body.

  "Nephthys will help me prepare the body," the mother goddess announced. "Does Seth know about the ritual?"

  "I don’t know," Anubis replied, pulling back his tunic to inspect his wound. "I’ll defend you if needed."

  "But you’re already injured…" Ana?s said in a trembling voice.

  If the two goddesses were occupied with Osiris’ body, that left only the two lovers to defend them in case of an attack. And Ana?s didn’t know how to fight, even in her jackal form. She didn’t feel capable of fighting like Anubis. Especially not against Seth’s monstrous hounds. Anubis was the only one strong enough to fend off their potential assaints.

  "Here, we have plenty," Nephthys suddenly decred, handing him a small roll of linen bandages.

  Ana?s rushed to retrieve it so Anubis wouldn’t have to move. She urged him to sit against the rock and crouched down to his level. While Isis and Nephthys coated Osiris’ body parts with what looked like oil, Ana?s examined her patient and winced when she saw a canine tooth embedded in his flesh. She couldn’t even imagine the pain he must have endured with every movement during their run, especially with the weight of the leg pulling on his shoulder. Unfortunately, she had no idea how to remove it without tools. Maybe she could try using her magic?

  "What are you doing?" Anubis asked as she covered his wound with her fingers, careful not to touch it so she wouldn’t cause him more pain.

  "Shh, let me concentrate," she ordered, closing her eyes.

  Just as she had focused her magic into her hands for the amulet detection spell, she mimicked the process again, this time channeling it into her fingers. Soon, she felt a slight tingling in both hands and the familiar warmth flowing from her skin. Anubis watched her, both curious and surprised by what she was attempting. With her eyes closed, she visualized the tooth lodged in his flesh, then imagined her magic pulling it free. Three small seconds ter, the sharp tooth met the surface of his skin, and she wrapped her fingers around it.

  "I did it!" she excimed, opening her eyes, a broad smile lighting up her face.

  "Impressive," he praised, mirroring her smile.

  Her proud and satisfied expression remained as she carefully bandaged his shoulder with the linen strips. She couldn’t disinfect or clean the wound under these conditions, but at least the bleeding would stop until the ritual was complete.

  "They're coming," Anubis suddenly announced, standing up.

  "What? Who?!" Ana?s asked, panicked.

  She couldn’t hear anything in her human form, nor could she see outside the cave in the darkness. Yet she knew he wasn’t lying. The two goddesses had only just finished anointing Osiris’ flesh with oil and began wrapping it in the linen bandages meant for the process. The ritual was far from complete, especially since their movements were meticulous rather than rushed.

  I’m going to have to fight... she realized with dread, her throat tightening in fear. The reality of her thirst for adventure hit her hard. The consequences of her choice. If she died, her soul would be erased from existence entirely. The thought terrified her.

  "Seth’s servants," Anubis said gravely. "And there are many of them this time."

  "Ten minutes," Isis called without breaking her focus. "I need ten minutes. Nephthys, go help them."

  The Goddess drew a sharp dagger from beneath the cape draped over her shoulders, ready to defend the body of her former lover and his wife. Her beastly form was that of a bird of prey—a kite, to be exact—an animal that wouldn’t allow her to fight as easily as a jackal.

  Ignoring his freshly bandaged wound, Anubis transformed and immediately nded on all fours. The bandage had followed the wound through his metamorphosis, wrapping around his shoulder and smothering his fur, though it was no longer of much use in its current state. Ana?s shakily imitated him, positioning herself beside the two deities, her four legs trembling slightly. Why hadn’t they brought guards, servants, or anyone else who could have defended them? Even mercenaries would have sufficed... But they could have also betrayed their trust. That would have been an added risk.

  They forgot that they aren’t as fragile as I am…

  In her animal form, she could hear the pounding of paws against the desert sand. Her ears even caught the panting of the approaching beasts, a sign of their frantic pace. Two minutes ter, six enormous canines reached the entrance of the cave. They couldn’t all charge at once due to the narrow corridor, but it wasn’t necessary—they already outnumbered them. Ana?s doubted she could even defeat one of the hounds, let alone two...

  Anubis didn’t wait for one of the beasts to pounce—he leaped forward first, cutting off their charge. He managed to cmp his jaws around the neck of one of Seth’s servants, who wasn’t quick enough to react and snapped it. One down. It didn’t exactly tip the scales in their favor, but it was encouraging.

  The remaining five assaints decided to attack Anubis all at once. Ana?s reacted instantly to their attempted assassination, throwing herself into the fray. Her instincts screamed at her to fight—her mind couldn’t remain indifferent to these hounds that threatened to grievously wound her lover. Even if he couldn’t die, they could still incapacitate him enough for it to be just as bad, as Osiris’ fate had proven.

  The thought of sinking her fangs into their flesh disgusted her; the idea of tasting their blood repulsed her to the core. But she couldn’t cower behind the two gods and wait for them to be torn apart, hoping the ritual would finish in time.

  Nephthys joined her charge, but as she reached them, one of the hounds lunged at her, knocking her backward. She let out a furious scream, stabbing the beast repeatedly from its thighs to its neck. Her blows were random but no less lethal.

  Ana?s, meanwhile, attacked one of Seth’s servants that had leaped onto Anubis’ back, preventing him from biting down on the jackal god’s nape. With a powerful shoulder sm, she sent the beast tumbling several meters away, allowing her lover to get back on his feet. Now there were only four left, but that didn’t mean the battle was won.

  The Goddess shoved the lifeless body aside and rose to stand just behind the two jackals. The four remaining hounds growled, creeping forward, ready to strike at any moment. Anubis and Ana?s mirrored their aggression, responding to their threats with low, warning snarls, but their intimidation attempts had no effect. The enemies weren’t stupid—they knew they had the upper hand.

  Anubis unched himself first, trying to drive them back. He feinted left, but one of the hounds sprang onto his shoulder, nearly tearing away a chunk of flesh. He growled, shoving the attacker off with a heavy paw strike, but the second was already coming at him again.

  Nephthys followed his lead, rushing past Ana?s, who had no choice but to keep up and attack as well if she didn’t want to be deadweight. She feared for her life, but her animal instincts pushed her to defend herself. Her jackal senses told her where to strike, how to cw at her enemy to make them release their grip, and how much force to apply for a fatal wound.

  Each member of the trio fought their own hound—except for Anubis, who struggled against two, doing his best to keep the st one from attacking the two women. Seth’s servants fought fiercely with their fangs and cws. The battles were long, and no one would escape without at least minor wounds, but the pain didn’t matter. Even Ana?s was overtaken by a dull rage, an iron determination to survive and fight. Her fear was forgotten—only the battle and the need to vanquish the enemy remained.

  Nephthys was the first to sy her opponent with her dagger, though not without injury. Her arm was drenched in blood—a bite from the beast had torn into her flesh. Scratches covered her body in various pces. Without hesitation, she pushed aside the lifeless body of Seth’s servant and hurried to aid Anubis, whose waning endurance could no longer sustain fighting two opponents at once without suffering further injury.

  When Ana?s finally managed to break the giant dog's neck, the trio was finally in a position of strength. Under normal circumstances, feeling the animal’s bones snap beneath her jaws, accompanied by the sinister sound that echoed in her ears, would have chilled her enough to make her want to hide under her bnkets and not come out for hours. But she had no time for that. Without hesitation, she leaped at one of the remaining canines to help Nephthys. Two against one, it took them only half a minute to bring the beast down. Meanwhile, Anubis was winning his own fight, now fully focused on a single opponent.

  "Are you hurt?" Anubis asked immediately, stepping closer to Ana?s and pressing his bloodied snout against hers.

  She had a few scratches and light bites here and there, but nothing life-threatening. Under the rush of adrenaline, her wounds didn’t hurt—at least not yet. And they had to be far less painful than Anubis’s injuries. She couldn’t compin about such minor wounds, especially when the two deities beside her had endured far more brutal blows.

  "I’m fine," she reassured him, panting as she tried to catch her breath and calm her racing heart.

  Yet, they were far from safe. The sound of more paws tearing through the desert sand soon reached their jackal ears. There were at least as many as the first wave—if not more. The problem was that the trio was already exhausted from their first battle, their bodies weakened by the wounds inflicted by the canines.

  "How much longer?" the jackal god asked, his voice ced with near desperation.

  "I’m almost done embalming his body," Isis replied, still meticulously focused on her precise movements. "Five minutes, maybe a little more. I need to concentrate."

  "If they see her performing the ritual, they’ll force their way through, and we won’t be able to stop them," Nephthys interjected timidly, wrapping her shredded arm in a strip of fabric torn from her cape.

  "Then we must defend the entrance to the cave," Anubis concluded, taking the lead. "We won’t be able to win against a horde of his servants, but we might be able to buy enough time for my mother to complete the ritual."

  Three against a pack of steroid-fueled war hounds... How are we supposed to buy time? It's suicide, Ana?s feared, though she kept her doubts to herself.

  Slowly, the fear of death slithered back into her, more insidious than before. Her instincts were no longer strong enough to drive it away. She tried to steady the trembling in her legs as they walked the few meters separating them from the cave entrance—but to no avail.

  For a fleeting moment, the thought of turning tail and running before their enemies arrived crossed her mind. But one look at Anubis crushed that idea. No. She had wanted this. She had wished to be part of this adventure. She had agreed to stay by his side until their quest was over. She would see it through to the end, even if it cost her life.

  Ana?s was no longer that young adult, barely out of childhood, who wanted to run away from the responsibilities of modern life. She was now an akh, and the man she had fallen in love with—as well as his family—was counting on her to help them until the very end. Betraying them would have been a fate worse than death.