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‘Oh, very good! Very threatening! And your friends here … Let me guess. You keep me occupied while they set some amazing trap to contain the newly made god?’
‘You’re not a god yet.’
He waved off the comment. ‘I suppose Carter is lurking around here too, all stealthy and invisible? Hi, Carter!’
If Carter was nearby, he didn’t respond. Smart guy.
Setne raised his stump of a wrist. ‘Wherever you are, Carter, I was impressed with the hand-cutting-off spell. Your father would be proud. That’s what matters to you, isn’t it? Making your father proud? But think what would be possible if you joined me. I intend to change the rules of the game. We could bring your father back to life – I mean real life, not that horrible half life he’s got in the Underworld. Anything is possible once I’m a god!’
Around Setne’s wrist, the Mist curled, solidifying into a new hand. ‘What do you say, Carter?’
Above the magician, the air shimmered. A giant blue fist the size of a refrigerator appeared over Setne’s head and pounded him into the ground like a nail into soft wood.
‘I say no.’ Carter appeared across the field, Annabeth’s Yankees cap in his hand.
I stared at the crown of Ptolemy – the only part of Setne still visible above ground.
‘You were supposed to wait,’ I told Carter. ‘Set the trap. Let me deal with Setne.’
Carter shrugged. ‘He shouldn’t have brought up my father.’
‘Never mind that!’ Annabeth said. ‘Get the crown!’
I realized she was right. I would’ve sprung into action, except Nekhbet and I had a moment of paralysis. The goddess wanted her hat back. But I took one look at the crown’s eerie glow, remembered the way the cobra goddess had been devoured and decided I was not touching that crown without latex gloves and maybe a hazmat suit.
Before Nekhbet and I could resolve our differences, the earth rumbled.
Setne rose from the ground as if on an elevator platform and glared at Carter. ‘I make you a perfectly fair offer, and you hit me with a giant fist? Perhaps your father wouldn’t be proud, after all.’
Carter’s face contorted. His whole body glowed with blue light. He levitated off the ground as the avatar of Horus took shape around him.
Setne didn’t look worried. He curled his newly regrown fingers in a come here gesture, and Carter’s avatar shattered. The blue light swirled towards Setne and was engulfed in his growing aura. Carter collapsed, motionless, on the wet ground.
‘SETNE!’ Sadie shouted, raising her staff. ‘Over here, you little weasel!’
She blasted the magician with a jet of white fire. Setne caught it on his chest and absorbed the energy.
‘Sadie, hon,’ he chided. ‘Don’t be mad. Carter has always been the boring one. I didn’t really want to grant him eternal life. But you – why don’t you work with me, eh? We can have tons of fun! Tearing up the universe, destroying things as we see fit!’
‘That’s – that’s not fair,’ Sadie said, her voice trembling. ‘Tempting me with destruction.’
She tried for her usual sassy tone, but her eyes stayed fixed on Carter, who still wasn’t moving.
I knew I should do something. We’d had a plan … But I couldn’t remember it. The vulture goddess in my head was flying circles on autopilot. Even Annabeth looked like she was struggling to concentrate. Being so close to Setne was like standing next to a waterfall. His white noise drowned out everything.
‘You know,’ Setne continued, as if we were planning a party together, ‘I think this island will be perfect. My palace will go right here, in the new centre of the universe!’
‘A muddy soccer field,’ Annabeth noted.
‘Oh, come now, child of Athena! You can see the possibilities. That old fool Serapis had the right idea: gather all the wisdom of Greece and Egypt together in one place and use that power to rule the world! Except Serapis didn’t have my vision. I’ll consume the old pantheons – Zeus, Osiris, all those dusty deities. Who needs them? I’ll just take the bits and pieces I can use from all of them. I’ll become the head of a new race of gods. Humans will come here from all over the world to make offerings and buy souvenirs.’
‘Souvenirs?’ I said. ‘You want immortality so you can sell T-shirts?’
‘And snow globes!’ Setne got a dreamy look in his eyes. ‘I love snow globes. Anyway, there’s room for more than one new god. Sadie Kane – you’d be perfect. I know you love breaking rules. Let’s break all of them! Your friends can come along too!’
Behind the magician, Carter groaned and began to stir.
Setne glanced back with distaste. ‘Not dead yet? Tough kid. Well … I suppose we can include him in our plans. Although, if you’d prefer, Sadie, I can certainly finish him off.’
