The Red Pyramid

by Rick Riordan

  As I said at the beginning: the whole story hasn’t happened yet. Our parents promised to see us again, so I know we’ll have to go back to the Land of the Dead eventually, which I think is fine with Sadie, as long as Anubis is there.

  Zia is out there somewhere—the real Zia. I intend to find her.

  Most of all, chaos is rising. Apophis is gaining strength. Which means we have to gain strength too—gods and men, united like in olden times. It’s the only way the world won’t be destroyed.

  So the Kane family has a lot of work to do. And so do you.

  Maybe you’ll want to follow the path of Horus or Isis, Thoth or Anubis, or even Bast. I don’t know. But whatever you decide, the House of Life needs new blood if we’re going to survive.

  So this is Carter and Sadie Kane signing off.

  Come to Brooklyn. We’ll be waiting.

  AUTHOR’S NOTE

  Much of this story is based on fact, which makes me think that either the two narrators, Sadie and Carter, did a great deal of research...or they are telling the truth.

  The House of Life did exist, and was an important part of Egyptian society for several millennia. Whether or not it still exists today—that is something I cannot answer. But it is undeniable that Egyptian magicians were famed throughout the ancient world, and many of the spells they could supposedly cast are exactly as described in this story.

  The way the narrators portray Egyptian magic is also supported by archaeological evidence. Shabti, curved wands, and magicians’ boxes have survived, and can be viewed in many museums. All of the artifacts and monuments Sadie and Carter mention actually exist—with the possible exception of the red pyramid. There is a “Red Pyramid” at Giza, but it is only called that because the original white casing stones were stripped away, revealing the pink granite blocks underneath. In fact the pyramid’s owner, Senefru, would be horrified to learn his pyramid is now red, the color of Set. As for the magical red pyramid mentioned in the story, we can only hope that it has been destroyed.

  Should further recordings fall into my hands, I will relay the information. Until then, we can only hope that Carter and Sadie are wrong in their predictions about the rise of chaos....