“How is that possible?” she breathed, running her hands through his hair and around his face as she took him in with wide, adoring eyes. “It was not that long ago.”
“You birthed gods,” Anubis explained. “We grew into adulthood faster than humans. Though we do love her, we have long known Isis is not our true mother. Horus is content watching over Father, but I have always searched for you.”
Nephthys let out a tiny sob, hugging him tightly. “Oh, sweet boy. You do not know how long I have waited to meet you.” She pulled away suddenly, looking down at her wrists. “Though I suppose it is too late now.”
“No,” Anubis rose to his feet. “You are in the place between worlds and I have the authority to oust you from the Underworld. You will not sacrifice yourself to Set and live out your days in misery. I will not allow it.”
He lifted her out of the mire. In an instant, they were back at the small clearing in distant woods where she’d tried to end her life. He shivered, the air much colder than in their homeland. He realized she’d hidden herself far away from the place from which they hailed.
Nephthys looked down to see that her wounds had healed and sighed at the revelation. “If I do not die, then what shall I make of this life? I once had a purpose—there is no purpose in hiding.”
“Then create one,” Anubis suggested. “Perhaps you are meant to become a different goddess. One that is earthbound, rather than a ruler of the dead. If it is purposeful work that you seek, that work can be found in any realm.”
She stared at him, considering his words. “Perhaps you are right. How did you become so wise so quickly?” She beamed at him proudly, color coming back into her cheeks.
Anubis found himself smiling as well. “May I visit you again?” he asked.
“Of course.” She knelt down to retrieve a box, opening it to reveal a collection of animal bones and dried herbs. She pulled out a delicate black feather and handed it to him. “When you want to visit me, use this. It is a crow feather.”
“A crow?”
“I discovered them during my travels,” she explained. “It is a beautiful onyx bird whose temperament reminds me of the raptors of home.”
Anubis took the sleek, unusual feather and tucked it into his belt. “I will visit you as often as you let me,” he promised.
Nephthys threw her arms around him, squeezing tightly. “I will never be too far from where you can reach me,” she promised.
The memory faded, the present day Morrigan peering at him with the same eyes through a different face. “You were traveling through memory,” she observed.
Anubis blinked, momentarily unnerved by how vivid and frequent his visions were becoming. “They are coming stronger than ever before.”
Morrigan nodded. “You see like your father. It's more intense now because we are all together. What were you remembering?”
Anubis gave her a small, sad smile. “When we first met.”
“Ah.” She looked away, her eyes drifting back towards the open window. “I was so lost then.”
“You have found your way,” he said, rising to pour himself a glass of the tainted rum he kept nearby.
“Not so much,” she admitted with a sigh. “Even after all these years, I’m still reconciling, even as the world around us falls apart.”
“You have reincarnated quite a few times,” Anubis pointed out as he slunk back into his chair. “This is my first time as an earthbound creature and I have my struggles. It is hard to bear so many lifetimes.”
Morrigan smiled at him. “You have always been so wise and kind.”
Anubis looked away, feeling uncharacteristically bashful. He took a quick sip of his drink.
“Though I should have your head for giving me up to Lucius,” she added playfully.
He flinched, unaware that she knew.
“I know, I know. It was to protect me.” She rose from the couch to stand back at the window, committing to her initial urge to stare out of it. “You were both right—it was Discordia all along who threatened us, and we were none the wiser.”
“Well, her time of threatening us is over,” Anubis declared, setting down his drink with emphasis. “She has no chance against us all.”
“If we remain united.”
“So, your reunion with Lucius in the Underworld wasn’t quite as happy as he hoped?”
“No, it was,” she sighed, a look of guilt flashing across her face. “It was perfect, actually. For the first time in our lives, we were committed to working through our antagonistic past, instead of me running and him following behind me, setting the world ablaze.”
“What happened?”
“Discordia killed us both. We reincarnated separately and before he could find me again, I found David. He and I reunited instead, both of us completely unaware of the decision I’d made in the Underworld.”
“Oh.” Anubis winced.
“The worst part was that David and I found out together, and Lucius found out shortly after that, which painted me back into the corner I seem to be perpetually trapped in.” She sighed again, deciding to resume her spot back on the couch.
“Then paint yourself out of it,” he suggested.
“Do you believe Lucius has truly changed?” she asked him, searching his eyes. “He told me that you forgave him for all that transpired.”
“I don't believe living creatures are capable of change,” Anubis replied, honestly. “We are who we are. I think Lucius has always been a mix of darkness and light, but has let his rage take him to places many of us never see. I also believe David is capable of doing the same, even more so because he has never truly examined and confronted the darker part of himself.”
Morrigan stared at him.
“Think about it. All of us—you, Lucius, Libraean, and I—have examined the shadows of who we are, whether we wanted to or not. We all felt our rage, waged our wars, made our mistakes. It made us strong. Isis, on the other hand, was so intent on being a beacon of light that it left her vulnerable to the darkness. David has that same quality about him—he runs solely on guilt and his own concept of morality. It is why he struggles to understand you and Lucius, why he falls into spells of discontent, why he is prone to anesthetize. He fits easily into the role of a hero—but only when Lucius plays the villain. But Lucius has faced his darkest parts and risen above them; he chooses to do right now because he wants to, not because he feels he has to. His existence in this life challenges David and causes him to question everything he has ever known about himself. It is up to them to resolve this dynamic between them, regardless of you being caught in the middle.”
