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“The ritual Coulton did to imprison you in the sarcophagus,” Jasper began. “It’s not commonly known magic. I know a lot of different types of Egyptian magic, but this strain is known only to the followers of Apophis.”
“You said this on the boat. Are you saying Coulton is working for Apophis and not Golden Dawn?” Tory asked, her eyes darting back to mine.
“Oh, he’s definitely been working for Golden Dawn. In fact, from what we’ve turned up, he’s been practically running it for the last few years. This branch at least. It would explain why they’ve suddenly started coming after you in the last few decades, and you above the other gods, when before they weren’t really that interested. Coulton is using them to further his cause.”
“And what exactly would that cause be?” Teddy asked.
I shrugged. “That’s what we’ve been trying to find out. It could be something as simple as he sees Tor as his master’s true opponent, so he has been trying to take her out of the picture so Apophis can return to earth.”
“Can he do that?” Tory asked in horror.
“Return to earth? Not likely,” Zayn replied. “It would take far more power that Apophis has alone.”
“More power... like the power of several gods rather than one?” Teddy questioned, his face turning pale.
I felt like he’d thumped me in the chest. I turned to Jasper. “Is that possible? Could he take power from other gods?”
Jasper’s mouth fell open. “I... I don’t know... I’ve never known of it being done before. Wesley?”
Wes was also looking slightly pale as he grabbed one of the books he had previously discarded back off the pile. “I mean... I don’t recall... gods combining powers... well, I mean obviously... but then again...”
“Wes!” I growled. “In English, not nerd please!”
“Oh, um, right, sure, sorry, West. It’s just that there’s only one time when gods have combined powers, but of course, we’ve all heard of that one.”
I clenched my fist under the table. “Let’s pretend for shits and giggles that we haven’t.”
Wesley stared at me. “Well, you have, West. The Great Ennead.”
This time, it was my turn for my mouth to fall open in shock. “Fuck.”
“What’s the Great Ennead,” Tory queried as the other faces around the table displayed similar signs of sudden understanding.
“Thousands of years ago, the nine greatest gods in Egypt came together as a council of sorts. It was just after you defeated Apophis the first time. They decided it would be better for humanity if the most powerful of gods removed themselves from the world so humans could live without the threat of being caught in a war between the gods should it ever happen again. Many thousands of people had died during the previous war, and they didn’t want to risk it happening again, so they created the Ennead—nine gods who combined their powers to lay a blessing or a curse, however you interpret it, on the minor gods. They would reincarnate as humans and live among them, bestowing their blessings but not ruling or being worshipped. They would guard humanity, while the more powerful gods slept. The Great Ennead is the reason we are all here.”
Jack frowned. “But why didn’t the nine reincarnate as well?”
“They were too powerful,” Jasper replied before Wesley could answer. It was hard enough containing the essence of a minor god in a human body, and that’s why the stronger ones need their priests, their outlets.” His eyes locked with Tory’s, and she nodded.
“That’s what Neith said to me in the garden, that we needed an outlet for our power, our energy, when it became too strong for our bodies to handle.”
“My point is,” Wesley broke in, “that the blessing needed the power of all nine gods to bestow it. They found a way to combine their power to achieve one aim. Maybe Apophis has found a way of doing the same, and that’s why he’s kidnapping gods.”
We all fell silent for a moment as the weight of that possibility settled over us like a dark cloud.
“So he would need nine. Nine gods to break him out,” I mused. “So who’s already missing? Hedetet, Khenmu, and Nehkbet.”
“Hattie,” Tory said quietly.
“Plus Sobek, Taweret, and Khepri,” Jasper added.
“That’s only seven,” Wesley said. “He’s still two short, so we’ve got time.”
“That’s if what we think is correct,” Zayn cautioned. “I mean, we don’t know this for sure. It’s pure conjecture.”
“It is,” I agreed, “but it does sound like something he’d come up with.”
“He’s got eight,” Wesley corrected grimly.
