by Rick Riordan
I remember this. The dot was the light from Liz’s laser pointer. It was probably mean of us to keep flashing it around the room, but…gods of Egypt, we laughed so hard watching Muffin chase it!
ON BEING WITH SADIE
ME: Muffin, why must you always sleep on my head?
MUFFIN: If I didn’t, your ba might take flight.
She might have been right, actually. Whenever I slept over at Liz’s and Emma’s houses, I had disturbing dreams about flying. I realize now those dreams were my ba leaving my body. I never had them when Muffin snuggled on my head.
ME: Muffin, do you have to stare while I practice my dance moves?
MUFFIN: Dance? I thought a demon had taken possession of your body.
I don’t know what she meant by that. My moves were fierce.
ME: Muffin, do you think Dad and Carter ever miss me?
For some reason, the med-wah spell didn’t translate Muffin’s soft meow and gentle purrs here. Maybe because the sounds spoke for themselves.
WELL, this has been fun, folks. But I gotta get going. See, tonight’s the night I say buh-bye to my death as a ghost and howdy to my life as a god. Oh, yes, you heard right. While you were busy reading this book, I was gathering everything I need for my showstopping transformation. A boat with a demonic captain, summoned from the Duat to sail me through the River of Night? Check. The djed amulet, symbol of rebirth, stolen from Carter’s locker? Check. Seawater, conjured from the surf of a distant island? Check.
Oh, by the way, I’ve been dying to point out the happy coincidence of that island’s name, Ilha do Governador! It means Governor’s Island, my friends, the same name as the plastic world within my snow- globe prison. Names have great power, right? So, with a little sympathetic magic razzle-dazzle, I’ll use that cursed globe to take over the island. But I won’t destroy the Ilha do Governador. Oh, no. The island will become my oasis, the seat of my power, the place where I can see and command my vast realm.
But Setne, you ask, how is all this possible? The Book of Thoth, of course. Yes, I found it at last, tucked underneath my one-time prison, of all the stupid places. But it is mine now. Its secrets are mine. Its magic is mine. The ultimate spell of transformation—mine.
And so tonight, I will hook up with my old pal Bloodstained Blade. We’ll sail the River. Toward journey’s end, I’ll get out the Book of Thoth and begin chanting the spell. When the light is just right—that purple-gray shade of predawn—I’ll drop the djed amulet into the seawater. A little more chanting, and the water will turn a magical blue-green. Then, as my boat emerges to greet the first rays of Ra, I’ll pour that water over my head.
Guess what happens next? Oh, you never will, so I’ll tell you.
I will be reborn as Wadj-wer, the Great Blue-Green, the long-lost, long-forgotten, always-overlooked Egyptian god of the sea! Also—and this is a terrific bonus, I gotta say—the goddess of fertility. It’s the two-fer-one immortality deal of the millennium! With his power, I will take over the oceans. With her power, I will repopulate the world.
So get ready. Tomorrow morning, there’ll be a new god in town. And he is me.
YEAH, none of that stuff Setne outlined ever happened. Carter, Zia, Sadie, and I were onto him the whole time. Let me explain.
Setne’s a slippery dude, so we knew he’d break out of his snow globe eventually. We also knew it would be bad if he sneaked out without us noticing. So we orchestrated the timing of his escape by literally cracking open his prison door. I’m a little offended Setne thought I’d miscast my sahad–w’peh. As if I’d be that careless!—Sadie
Once he was out, I took charge of tracking his activities. As the god of death, I can see ghosts even when they’re invisible. Either Setne forgot that, or he wildly underestimated Walt’s death magic, because he moved around as if he owned Brooklyn House. The trapdoor, the supply closet, the basketball court, the library, a few bedrooms—he checked out everything. Oh, gods, tell me my bedroom wasn’t one of them! Ick, ick, and triple ick!—Sadie
He took a few trips off campus, too. He came back from the Needle vibrating with power, but luckily used up most of that energy digging around in Cleo’s brain. Mmm, not sure Cleo found that lucky. She had headaches for days afterward.—Sadie I almost lost him on his visit to the Duat to find Bloodstained Blade. He returned, though, no doubt because he suspected the Book of Thoth was somewhere in Brooklyn House.
He was right about that, and about the book being hidden in plain sight. But he was wrong about finding it. The book underneath his snow globe was called The History of Pavement, on loan from a friend of Carter’s from Long Island and hidden beneath a glamour to look like the Book of Thoth. The real Book of Thoth is in the hands of the god who wrote it. If you want to see it, take a look at the papyrus the statue of Thoth is holding. Don’t wait too long, though. We’ll be moving it to a more secure location soon.
Speaking of secure locations…remember the mysterious mastaba with the sealed trapdoor? Well, one of the perks of hosting Anubis is unlimited free travel to places of death. I popped down, had a look around to make sure there were no nasties lurking about (there weren’t), then impressed my girlfriend by reversing the magic that kept the trapdoor shut and opening it from the underside.
Just don’t plan on visiting the mastaba anytime soon. It’s being haunted by a new ghost—Setne. Multiple containment spells plus a double tas binding of the Seven Ribbons of Hathor, courtesy of Zia and Shelby (that ankle-biter’s power is truly terrifying) should hold that “slimy git,” as Sadie would call him, until Osiris sends for him.
If Setne complains, I’ll find him new quarters. I saw a musical snow globe in the junk Gran and Gramps sent. It should do quite nicely—especially because it plays “The Chicken Dance,” rated one of the most annoying songs of all time by me, over and over and over.—Sadie
TRANSLATION: You’ve reached the end of the book. Why are you still reading? Close it and go play basketball, will you?—Khufu
KHUFU—Not technically a magician because he’s not human, Brooklyn House’s resident baboon can do some magic, such as portal-opening, healing, and communing with gods and animals. He has golden fur, a vibrantly colored bum, and wears a Los Angeles Lakers jersey.
CARTER KANE—The older Kane sibling. He has dark curly hair and dark brown eyes. He once hosted the god Horus and now follows this god’s path. His specialty is combat magic. He was crowned pharaoh of Egypt but chooses to teach magicians-in-training rather than rule.
SADIE KANE—The younger Kane sibling, this former host of the goddess Isis has blue eyes and blond hair with a dyed streak of varying colors. A powerful magician, her abilities include spell casting and opening portals. She is following the path of Isis.
JULIUS KANE/OSIRIS—Carter and Sadie’s father, Ruby’s husband, and Amos’s older brother. He sacrificed himself to become the host of the god Osiris. As Julius, he’s muscular, with a shaved head and goatee, dark brown skin and brown eyes, and wears well-tailored suits. As Osiris, he’s blue-skinned but equally muscular and wears a traditional Egyptian kilt, neckbands, and jewels of the god of the Underworld.
RUBY KANE—Sadie and Carter’s mother, Julius’s wife, and daughter of Gran and Gramps Faust. Blond-haired and blue-eyed like Sadie and a powerful diviner, she died while releasing the cat goddess Bast from the prison abyss. She wears jeans and a T-shirt with an ankh symbol.
ZIA RASHID—A powerful fire elementalist, she has hosted two deities, Ra and Nephthys. Her straight dark hair frames her olive-hued face, dark eyes, and full lips. She is following the path of Ra.
WALT STONE/ANUBIS—Walt died from King Tut’s death curse but lives on as the host of the god Anubis. As Walt, he’s good-looking and muscular with a clean-shaven head and medium-brown skin and wears athletic clothing. As Anubis, he has warm brown eyes, a pale complexion, and tousled black hair, and wears either a T-shirt and jeans with a biker jacket or a traditional Egyptian kilt and a ruby collar. He sometimes appears in his jackal-headed
form. Walt/Anubis is a top-notch death magician and highly skilled sau (charm-maker).
SETNE—The son of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Ramesses II, this evil, manipulative magician stirred up trouble when he was alive and is even worse now that he’s a ghost. Short and scrawny with greasy black hair, a hawkish nose, thin lips, and black eyes, he wears skinny jeans, T-shirts, jackets with padded shoulders, and lots of gold jewelry. Also known as Prince Khaemwaset.
AMOS KANE—Sadie’s and Carter’s uncle, Julius’s younger brother, former host of the god Set, and current Chief Lector of the House of Life. Barrel-chested with dark skin and dark hair in cornrows braided with gems. He wears round glasses, stylish pinstriped suits, and the traditional leopard-skin cloak of the Chief Lector. He is following the path of Set.
DOUGHBOY—Not a magician, but rather a shabti that originally belonged to Julius Kane. Now under Sadie and Carter’s control.
BLOODSTAINED BLADE—A demon with the head of a double-bladed ax, he was bound in servitude to the Kane family as the captain of their boat, the Egyptian Queen.
LEONID FROM ST. PETERSBURG, RUSSIA—A Russian-born teenage magician with enormous ears. He speaks broken English and wears a tattered military uniform. He is following the path of the god Shu.
ISKANDAR—A two-thousand-year-old magician with light brown wrinkled skin and milky eyes, he rescued Zia Rashid when her village was destroyed. The former Chief Lector of the House of Life, he imposed the ancient law that banished the deities deep into the Duat. He died shortly after meeting Carter and Sadie. He currently guards the Gates of the West as a ba.
DISTURBER—A minor blue-skinned and ancient- looking god of the Underworld, he assists the god Osiris.
VLADIMIR MENSHIKOV—An evil magician who plotted to release Apophis from his prison and then host the Chaos serpent. Now deceased, he wore a white suit, and also white sunglasses to cover his eyes, which had been ruined when a spell backfired in his face.
CLEO FROM RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL—Brooklyn House’s brown-haired librarian-magician, she is fluent in many languages and a valuable researcher. She is following the path of Thoth.
FELIX PHILIP—A tween magician with a love of penguins, he hopes to discover the Egyptian god of ice. In the meantime, he’s following the path of Ptah.
SHELBY—The youngest resident of Brooklyn House, this kindergartener—aka “ankle-biter”—has astonishing magical powers.
JAZ FROM NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE—A blond-haired teenage magician and former cheerleader. Brooklyn House’s skilled sunu, or healer, she follows the path of the goddess Sekhmet.
DROWAH—boundary
FAET—pass
FLABBERGASTED
HA-DI—destroy
HAH-RI—quiet
HA-TEP—be at peace
HA-WI—strike
HI-NEHM—join
I’MUN—hide
MAR—retch
MAW—water
MED-WAH—speak
N’DAH—protection
NIDIF—clean
SAHAD—unlock
SINEAN—teeth
SUN-AH—reveal
TAS—bind
AARU—paradise
ANKH—hieroglyph for life
BA—one of five parts of the soul; the personality
BAU—an evil spirit
BENNU—phoenix
CHIEF LECTOR—the leader of the House of Life
DEMOTIC SCRIPT—an informal system of ancient Egyptian writing
DJED—a hieroglyph that stands for stability, strength, and the power of Osiris; also symbolizes Osiris’s rebirth
DUAT—a magical realm that coexists with our world
GLAMOUR—a magical disguise
GODLING—a person who is hosting a god or goddess
HIERATIC SCRIPT—a system of ancient Egyptian writing similar to hieroglyphs, only less formal
HIEROGLYPHICS—a writing system of ancient Egypt, which used symbols or pictures to denote objects, concepts, or sounds
IB—one of the five parts of the soul; the heart
ISFET—chaos
KA—one of the five parts of the soul; the life force
KANDAKE—a warrior queen
KHOPESH—a sword with a hook-shaped blade
MA’AT—order of the universe
MASTABA—an ancient Egyptian tomb with a flat roof and sloped sides
MEHEN—an ancient game with a board shaped like a coiled snake
MENHED—a scribe’s palette
NETJERI BLADE—a knife made of meteoric iron used for the Opening of the Mouth ceremony
NOME—district, region
OSTRACON (pl, ostraca)—broken pieces of pottery used for writing and drawing
PER ANKH—the House of Life
PHARAOH—a ruler of ancient Egypt
REKHET—a magician who specializes in healing magic
REN—one of five parts of the soul; the secret name, identity
SAHLAB—a warm Egyptian drink
SARCOPHAGUS—a stone coffin, often decorated with sculpture and inscriptions
SAU—a charm maker
SCARAB—a beetle known for rolling its dung in a ball
SCRIBE—a magician
SEM PRIEST—an experienced, upper-level magician
SENET—an ancient board game that involves gambling
SERPOPARD—a mythical animal with a long neck
SET ANIMAL—a mythical animal that looks like a dog with cone-shaped ears; a creature of Set, the god of evil
SHABTI—a magical figurine made out of clay or wax
SHEN—eternal; eternity
SHEUT—one of the five parts of the soul; the shadow
SISTRUM—a bronze noisemaker
SUNU—a healer
TJESU HERU—a snake with two heads—one on its tail—and dragon legs
TYET—a magic knot and the symbol of Isis
URAEUS—a winged snake
WAS—power; staff
WEDJAT—the Eye of Horus; a symbol of power and health
Also by Rick Riordan
PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS
Book One: The Lightning Thief
Book Two: The Sea of Monsters
Book Three: The Titan’s Curse
Book Four: The Battle of the Labyrinth
Book Five: The Last Olympian
The Demigod Files
The Lightning Thief: The Graphic Novel
The Sea of Monsters: The Graphic Novel
The Titan’s Curse: The Graphic Novel
Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods
Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes
THE KANE CHRONICLES
Book One: The Red Pyramid
Book Two: The Throne of Fire
Book Three: The Serpent’s Shadow
The Red Pyramid: The Graphic Novel
The Throne of Fire: The Graphic Novel
The Serpent’s Shadow: The Graphic Novel
THE HEROES OF OLYMPUS
Book One: The Lost Hero
Book Two: The Son of Neptune
Book Three: The Mark of Athena
Book Four: The House of Hades
Book Five: The Blood of Olympus
The Demigod Diaries
The Lost Hero: The Graphic Novel
The Son of Neptune: The Graphic Novel Demigods & Magicians
MAGNUS CHASE AND THE GODS OF ASGARD
Book One: The Sword of Summer
Book Two: The Hammer of Thor
Book Three: The Ship of the Dead
THE TRIALS OF APOLLO
Book One: The Hidden Oracle
Book Two: The Dark Prophecy
Book Three: The Burning Maze
RICK RIORDAN, dubbed “storyteller of the gods” by Publishers Weekly, is the author of five New York Times #1 best-selling middle grade series with millions of copies sold throughout the world: Percy Jackson and the Olympians, the Heroes of Olympus, and the Trials of Apollo, based on Greek and Roman mythology; the Kane Chronicles, based on Egyptian mythology; and Magnu
s Chase and the Gods of Asgard, based on Norse mythology. Rick collaborated with illustrator John Rocco on two best-selling collections of Greek myths for the whole family: Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods and Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes. Rick is also the publisher of an imprint at Disney Hyperion, Rick Riordan Presents, dedicated to finding other authors of highly entertaining fiction based on world cultures and mythologies. He lives in Boston, Massachusetts, with his wife and two sons. Follow him on Twitter @camphalfblood. To learn more about him and his books, visit www.RickRiordan.com.
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