Octavia and Ra. Mad forces. The voices Octavia heard were not true. They were her curse. If Ra could shut them out, Lucy knew it would comfort her sister. But Ra wasn’t Octavia’s demon, and he would consume her. Octavia could never Bind Ra. She hadn’t been strong enough to Bind Khun, but Khun hadn’t Bound Octavia either. Why?
Isis said Lucy should contain Ra physically. She could be a prison with the magic in her blood, quite literally a vessel to hold him. Binding Ra would have been preferable to this fate. Now Lucy would be his jailer for life, holding his spirit. She stood on the flat patio by the long ventilation shafts, which let air into the house. Lucy wondered about the nature of gods. Gods had quite a bit to answer for in the way they treated mortals. The gods were dangerous.
Isis was right. Ra could not to be trusted. Lucy before death wanted to believe setting Ra free would spark something noble and good in him. That was wrong, foolish thinking; her weakness, as dangerous as Octavia’s voices.
Isis was no better than Ra. Lucy rubbed an elbow. Isis was another supernatural being who shouldn’t be loose in the world. Why did Isis want to be free? She wanted what Ra wanted.
What did Lucy believe now? Old Lucy believed no beings should be enslaved. Now Lucy believed Solomon was right when he imprisoned the Egyptians. She needed to contain Ra with her mother’s magic and she needed Solomon’s Scroll because no one else in her family could be trusted with it. No one else understood how important ending the alliance Erasmus had started was. Nuit had played Erasmus Klaereon for a fool. Humans were tempted by the power and demons corrupted humans, even those demons who pretended they were gods. Best to keep demons where they belonged. Best to keep everyone safe. That was her responsibility.
Lucy descended the stairs and wandered into the streets of the Egyptian city. It was thriving, gods walking among mortals who were perhaps another illusion. A woman with a lion’s head appraised her, and as Lucy gazed at her thick, tawny fur, she almost ran over people tinier than herself, one a little gnome with his tongue waggling from his mouth.
A hand touched her shoulder, and she jumped. She turned around and Paolo Borgia stood before her, still dressed in his clothes covered in swamp mud and grime.
“You,” she acknowledged him, her voice remarkably flat. This man was the most corrupted she had ever met. She wanted to kill him, but it did not burn inside her. It might be like she would smash a biting bug.
“It is a peculiar place, is it not?” he asked. “Your Abyss? Miss Lucia, it is very late. Why are you out?”
“This is an imaginary day and night, isn’t it, Signor Borgia?”
He nodded.
“Then when I sleep or don’t is of no consequence.”
“You don’t sleep. Because you’ve been touched by the gods?”
“Or something. I’m going to ask you some questions, and you will answer them.”
Paolo pulled one arm over his head and stretched to the opposite side. “Forgive me. I’ve been sleeping in the street.”
“No one here trusts you enough to give you a bed?”
“I am not very welcome here. My reputation…”
“I know firsthand your reputation is deserved.”
Paolo jutted his hips forward, trying to stretch his back. “Our meeting is fortuitous. I wanted to talk to you. Are you angry with me?”
“No. I don’t feel anything. Tell what you have to say.” Lucy sat down on the stone steps. She patted the spot by her, but Paolo remained standing. “There’s nothing you can say which will alter my opinion of what you did.”
Paolo stretched one foot on a higher step and leaned, sighing as his back popped. “It is true I have used everything I could to my advantage in the past. The world is a place of cutthroats, confident men, and thieves. In order to survive in it, you adapt your methods to their methods. In your case, however, my motives were more altruistic. The ends justified the means.”
Lucy weighed the thought. “Not for me. Not for Octavia. Not for Drusus. You’re lying.”
“I did it for Carlo,” said Paolo. “I will explain. I promise you the truth, although why you should believe it, well”—he shrugged—“it’s a good story. I can at least tell you a good story.”
“You didn’t believe you could capture Ra, did you?”
“I could have! I would have saved you in the bargain. You are a terrible Binder. You had the potential to be great, but your father threw your opportunity away. You have other natural talents, which I am pleased you are discovering. But I was performing a service, saving you.”
“First of all, that’s not what I asked you. Secondly, you were performing me no service. Save your simpering for someone who can’t see through it. You promised me truth. Deliver.”
“It is true Ra would have destroyed you.” Paolo smiled, but there was a tick in his right eye.
Not as calm as usual, not as in control, Lucy thought.
“You are right,” Paolo continued. “I did not do anything to save you. I did it for Carlo, and to a lesser extent for his mother. Ra would have destroyed me, yes. It would have been worth it. Who knows? I might have lived if I’d been quick about my business. I wanted him temporarily.”
“To do what?” Lucy asked.
“To right a wrong I have committed,” said Paolo.
“Carlo tells me you do not care about such things. You realize Ra would have devoured you, burned through your corporeal body in a matter of days, if not hours.”
“It would have been enough time.”
“Something worth dying for. Intriguing.”
“You know Carlo’s father is dead?”
“I noticed he was not there. There are many possibilities besides death.”
“You and I have some things in common. We have lost loved ones to these gods. I lost my son. You, your sister. You are the latest in Isis’s schemes, but I was earlier in them. When I was young, I thought I could bend the entire world to my will.”
“You still think so.”
“Yes, but back then, you could see me coming. Isis has always looked for a way to free her people from this place. She thought a child who was part-demon, part-human might hold the key. So we had a child.”
“Carlo’s father was Isis’s son?”
“And mine. The Solomon Scroll is very specific. The human Binds the demon. Well, we thought, what would happen if those elements existed in one entity? Could one person take control of the scroll?”
“Wait. Why would you do this?”
“Having Isis in your back pocket is not a bad thing.”
“You would see it that way,” Lucy agreed. “Why didn’t it work?”
“My child was not a Klaereon. The agreement Erasmus made seems to be important to this puzzle.” Paolo sat down beside her. “Also, the magical families could not approve this blasphemous child. They came calling. Not, mind you, the Klaereons, whom I expected would be the first on the scene. Others felt Arturo should not exist.
“My son tried to save his wife and child from the magicians when they came for him. He didn’t know about his nature, so his demon side consumed his human side. When his abilities activated, he died ablaze. The problem was solved for the magical families and Isis had to conceive of a different plan.”
“Is Carlo in danger of the same fate?”
“I think not. In Carlo, the demon blood is more diluted. You can understand my remorse. I lost a son. Carlo lost a father. Sofia was injured and confined to a wheelchair. She hates me, both for Arturo’s death and for not telling him what he was. Sofia and I, we had an uneasy truce for Carlo’s sake.”
Lucy studied the street. A man with the jackal head paused, then moved on. “Arturo is dead. How could Ra help you?”
“I would return Ra to Isis, and she would have been grateful enough to resurrect our son, like she resurrected you.”
“Ra would have controlled you.”
Paolo’s chest puffed out. “Not me. I could have controlled him long enough. I am not your sister.”
> Lucy tapped her cheek with her index finger. “You said Isis considered Arturo a failure. I doubt she would have helped you.”
“That was the plan’s weakness, but I can be very persuasive.”
Lucy stood up. “You were willing to sacrifice me for your family. I can’t blame you. However, you are much too dangerous to let live, Paolo Borgia. Everything about you screams chaos. As everything surrounding Ra stands now, I cannot risk you trying another stunt at my family or anyone else’s expense.”
Paolo laughed. “You don’t have any emotions, do you?”
“You’re laughing at your own death?”
“I promised myself I would when the time came. Before my demise, I want to ask you a favor.”
Lucy tossed black braids over a shoulder. “Asking me to spare you is not possible.”
“I know this.” Paolo wiped his eyes. “I want to invoke your protection, since you are Isis’s favored one.”
Lucy shook her head. “I am not inclined to protect someone who has betrayed me as you did.”
“Not for myself. For Carlo.”
That was a different matter. Carlo had protected her. “What does Carlo need protection from?”
“Everything. These gods. His mother. Your sister. I can promise you would never have reason to regret extending your patronage to him.”
“Carlo does not need my patronage,” said Lucy. “Carlo needs nothing but the opportunity to make something of himself. I would be very happy to support him. He saved my life.”
“I am glad to hear you remember.”
“I am not likely to ever forget.”
“What do you plan after you kill me, Miss Lucia?”
“I have to find my way back to Octavia and deal with Ra.”
“Have you thought about finding Khun? There must still be a connection between Octavia and Khun.”
“You severed their bond as well, remember?”
“I did nothing to Octavia and Khun. The Isis Scroll didn’t destroy their tie either. I suspect we could magic our way back to Octavia if we had Khun.”
“We?” Lucy stretched. “There is no we.”
“You might want an ally. I want to get you to Carlo. It is my dying wish.”
Lucy considered. “Dangerous. Then again, as long as you are nowhere near Ra, I can handle any threat you represent. Where do you think Khun is?”
“The Abyss. Not this place. The real Abyss.” Paolo smiled. “Because Khun could look like a devil, yes?”
Lucy nodded. It was worth a look. “How do we get to Khun?”
“We go through the desert. Isis won’t help us, but Thoth might. He says he has a vested interest in making sure all turns out well with your sister.”
“Why?”
Paolo scrubbed his hands through his hair, stood up and stretched. He tumbled down the stairs to the street. “Thoth won’t say. No doubt some future or other Thoth will make come to fruition.” They weaved among a group of tiny gods with frog heads. “Your father,” said Paolo. “Do you intend to revenge yourself upon him?”
“I intend to correct matters with him. I don’t know what form correction will take. The same with Octavia.”
“Is anyone else on the slate for execution?”
“I hope not. Octavia may be, but only if there is no choice.”
Two ibis on either side of the door marked the entrance to Thoth’s temple. Lucy remembered Thoth sometimes was the ibis, sometimes the baboon. He said he had chosen the baboon form for her.
As she entered the vestibule, a priest met them. He disappeared to fetch his master. Lucy studied the walls. The temple was painted with an unusual story. In the pictures, the Egyptian gods faced down a bearded man, who cast them into a pit.
“A chronicle of their fall at Solomon’s hands,” said Paolo.
The priest returned and led Paolo and Lucy to Thoth. He sat, brush in paw, drawing on papyrus. “Yes, Vessel of Ra?”
“The mural in the hall?”
“Our apocalypse? You see there how it happened.” Thoth placed the brush in a copper dish. “How can I help you? Is it time for me to tell you about the past? Your parents? Or the future?”
“Someday, Thoth, I want to hear what you can tell me about my parents. Right now, I want to save my sister. I am tired of waiting on Isis’s pleasure.”
Thoth rose from his stool and wiped ink off his paws. “You humans create gods, you know. You made Isis clever and power-hungry. You made Ra clever and power-hungry. Small wonder they both want the same thing. Isis is trapped here, so she reinvents you or brings you to your full potential. You, whatever she might say, are not her tool. How can I help you?”
“Signor Borgia believes Khun is with the true demons of the Abyss.”
“They like him,” said Thoth. “He likes them, because they are more visceral. It is a logical guess. What do you want with Khun?”
“Octavia and Khun never made a decision about their fate. Signor Borgia didn’t sever their tie with the spear,” said Lucy. “He doesn’t believe Ra can break their tie. There is still a question to be settled, a Trial to be had. It is not mine. It is Octavia’s.”
Thoth’s voice chattered. “Smart.”
“Signor Borgia thinks you know how we can cross into the true Abyss.”
“You’re going to trust him again?”
“Unless you want to take me to Khun,” said Lucy. “Then I can kill him now.”
Thoth chattered. “I won’t stop you.”
“Will you speak for me?” said Paolo. “You can see the future. Am I destined to betray her once more?”
Thoth brushed his nose. “There is no particular destiny for anyone. In your case, you will betray someone again, which has nothing to do with me looking at the future.” Thoth closed his eyes. “Lucy, the path you are choosing is a hard one. The path Isis chooses for you is to become Ra’s prison. There are risks.”
“Ra is much too dangerous to be allowed freedom, within the Abyss or without.”
“True. But why should this responsibility be yours? You are alive again and you have no demon, no ties to Binder magic or Klaereon magic. Return to your mother’s family. Be a Julii mage. They would respect you. You owe nothing to the Klaereons or to us.
“Your mother and your father’s story lend weight to what I say. Caius Klaereon cast your father into the Abyss for the same reasons he has always encouraged Octavia to kill you. Your poor mother was destroyed by Abyss demons when she found out. Caius’ lust for power caused him to commit these atrocities. He raised Octavia to be weak and foolish, and she would have killed you at your Trial. Why do you feel responsible for them?”
“I don’t feel anything at all.”
“Then why?”
“Justice,” Lucy said. She stared at Thoth to give her words weight. “Justice for my real father whom I don’t remember. Justice for my mother. Justice for my sister who is like me, who has been manipulated since her birth by men and gods. What she does after this is her own affair, but she deserves a chance to make her own choices.”
“No anger,” said Paolo. “No love, concern, desire for revenge?”
“None,” said Lucy. “The reason I will kill you when it is time, Signor Borgia, is I am convinced you cannot reform. To leave you alive puts the world in more danger than not doing so.”
Thoth growled. “You are no longer burdened with emotions. This is both wonderful and terrible.”
Lucy shrugged. “Octavia’s case is easy. Khun and Ra have tricked her and manipulated her. I hope once she makes a choice about Khun, her life will change for the better.”
Thoth grabbed Lucy’s shoulder. “Octavia is not innocent. Remember, gods are created and manipulated by the humans who worship us. You may not understand our actions, but you direct them.”
Paolo plucked a scroll out of the stack on Thoth’s table. “Will you show us how to get through the desert or not?”
Thoth snatched the scroll back. “This one is not a map.” He found another papyrus. �
��This is the route Horus made when he chased Set into the shadow realms. It may be useful to you. I wish you success, Lucy. I need you to succeed.”
Paolo’s eyebrow arched. “You? What do you have to do with this?”
“This is a pivotal moment. What Lucy does dictates my future, although she does not yet know it. I wish her every success.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Carlo stumbled from the darkness onto a rock shelf on the side of a cliff face. The sky above him reflected bright red on clouds of sulfur. Below, he could see tiny figures and fires, the ground belching smoke and steam. Behind him was a recess into the rock, not quite a cave, but more than a depression. Dirty sweat dripped into his eyes. The Solomon Scroll and its case had made the journey with him. Octavia and Ra didn’t have it for the moment, but they could come and get it. How much time did he have?
Now, this was what Carlo Borgia expected Hell to be like. Like Dante. As he looked down from the cliff shelf, he saw lakes of fire. He assumed it was fire, judging from the screaming souls in torment and the giant demons with horns. According to everything he’d ever read, this Hell fit the specifications. The Borgias could have come from here, he was certain. Or perhaps he was more certain this was where his family would end up.
He stared at the scroll case in his hand. How indestructible was he? His mother stabbed him with her shears and he healed.
Best not to think too much about his mother right now. Later, after he’d helped save the world from Ra and Octavia, he’d go back to Venice and have a quiet breakdown about his mother and his grandfather.
If Carlo decided to jump off the cliff and his bones broke into a thousand pieces, would he heal? He expected yes, but the experiment would take time he wasn’t certain he had. There would be pain and disfigurement. Maybe he would rather climb down. Again an obstacle presented itself—the bone scroll case burned into his left hand. If he ripped the scroll case free, that would be pain of a different sort. He had to make a decision. There’d be no getting down from this ledge without a first step.
The Vessel of Ra Page 20
