9. Osiris and the King

Jaco took each step very carefully, as if he still saw traps everywhere. Every time a noise came from the room, he paused. The ruckus would cease a few beats later and he would creep forward again.

A shrill bang. Three shards fell through the opening onto the bottom step of the stairs. A vague round shadow appeared but did not move.

Jaco reached the last step. The shadow was much larger than a Shadowshifter, and they could now clearly hear someone yelping and roaring.

He crouched down, while Gidi slid off of him. Both took weapons into their mouth: Jaco his dagger and Gidi a glass shard.

They stormed into the room, yelling loudly, though Gidi flung her shard without looking.

“Ow! Stop!”

A large lion lay on the ground. Three chains bound him to the wall, leaving only his tail free to move.

“Finally! My rescuers! I was starting to lose hope.”

Jaco was utterly perplexed—something no trap inside the pyramid had managed to do. He wanted to ask Gidi what he should do, but she had hidden behind him at the lion’s first roar.

“Uh—yeah—of course we’ve come to rescue you. That’s exactly why we’re here, yes. No other reason at all.”

“Well, get on with it then! I can barely feel my legs anymore because of these heavy chains.”

“On one condition, Your Highness. That dune gazelle there is the Queen of Floria. And she’s your rescuer, so don’t you dare harm her.”

“For what kind of barbarian do you take me? Of course I won’t eat my rescuers, especially if they are royal friends. Now, hurry up please.”

On the farthest left chain hung a large lock, with a deep keyhole inside. Jaco stuck his dagger in, turned and pried, until all the chains snapped loose.

The lion let out a gigantic roar and flung the chains against the walls. He stood proudly before them, his head alone larger than Jaco’s entire body.

Jaco didn’t dare look at him and turned his gaze to the room. In the center stood another rectangular table, but bigger than the ones from previous rooms.

On top lay a mummy. Much of the linen wrappings had ripped, revealing a gigantic skeleton. He thought he recognized it as the legendary saber-toothed tiger.

He walked around the skeleton and noticed a particularly pleasant smell. Lavender, thyme, rosemary, and a light oil scent filled the room. Next to the head lay two large fangs, and around the feet lay small diamonds in every conceivable color and shape.

The area around the table was easily traversable, but the rest of the enormous chamber was filled to the top with treasures. Stacks of gold coins held silver crowns and pearl necklaces. Gorgeous fiery rubies—some even larger than the lion’s head—were scattered everywhere.

Gidi jumped into a pile and pretended to swim.

“I assume,” the lion said, “you have a way out of here?”

“Not so fast. First … I’d like to take some of these lovely things with me.”

“As would I, worthy adventurer, but it would be extremely unwise to curse yourself for a few gold coins.”

“A few? A few? You could build fifty new palaces with all the gold here. With these treasures you could easily conquer the rest of the world!”

“Are you trying to bribe a Companion now?”

“No. The Companions don’t exist anymore, not really. They fell apart long ago. After you disappeared, Your Highness.”

“Nonsense, utter nonsense. I will be welcomed as a hero and order will be restored. Lead me to the exit and I’ll forget this greedy outburst.”

Gidi wriggled out of the treasure piles.

“What about Isis?” she whispered.

“Yes, we need to flee before Isis returns! That wretched goddess is the one who locked me up here!”

“I don’t believe that for one second. According to legend, Isis is a kind, benevolent person. Your abduction is what tore us all apart. Besides … you’re remarkably healthy for someone who’s supposedly been imprisoned for years. And—”

The lion lashed out. Jaco dodged with a backwards somersault into a mound of gold coins.

“Furthermore, how did you even get in here? The gods must really hate the aggressive Companions who defeated their kind.”

“Don’t you dare speak to a Companion like that!”

The lion reared up and opened his jaws, but froze when he heard knocking on the walls. Just a light tapping, and he turned into a frightened cat. He forgot to blink and his front paws trembled.

“She’s coming, she’s coming—quick, quick, flee!”

“No. I can’t just stroll out of this pyramid with you. They think I’m the one who abducted you! That’s the whole reason why I’m in exile.”

“Argh! Then hide yourself.”

I still have no idea who this lion is, Gidi thought, but if he’s scared of Isis, I’ll happily hide. She ducked into the small space under the table while Jaco leaped into a pile of coins.

They both saw nothing and had to rely on sound.

Gidi heard a heavy door open. Light footsteps entered the room.

“You really think you can break those chains without me noticing?”

She laughed. Her voice sounded sweet. Gidi heard the lion chattering his teeth and backing away.

“No. I won’t go back in chains. Let me go. You’re committing a grave sin.”

“How interesting. You didn’t seem to think that when you abducted and attacked my family. When they asked over and over if they could leave. And eventually my family …”

“Don’t you dare forget that my father, Tibbowe, fought with your kind in the First Conflict. He tried to save you!”

Isis laughed again, and although it remained cute, Gidi heard a sadness and anger too. She startled at a muffled thud on the table.

“Indeed, I do not forget. These bags of money look familiar, don’t they?”

The lion growled something like “no”.

“Odd. The recipients, like the wolves and turtles, all remember you handing these over. Including the order to—how did you phrase it again?—get other creatures out of the way.”

Another dull thump on the table. The stacks of coins shifted and Jaco had to flip upside down again to conceal his eyes.

“And now? Now there are four temples in Floria. Four dead Companions. And why? Why?”

“I didn’t know you still existed!” the lion yelled in desperation. “I thought all the original gods were gone. And it was good, there was finally peace. But no, it obviously had to be ruined, because a Primal Turtle suddenly rose from the sea! Filled with godly magic, for you obviously couldn’t help yourself and enchanted there eggs, isn’t that right?”

The chains had returned around the lion’s paws, though he showed his strength by pulling at them with every word. He made Gidi doubt the toughness of these walls.

“And those Companions? Those cowards? They allowed all the demigods to live! Mercy, mercy, the Wise Owl only dealt out mercy. Solomon might fool you and change his name to Nephthys, Horus might have been too important because of his amazing falcon’s eyes.

But they wanted to conquer the world—with their unfair advantage of godlike power—and I could not let it happen.”

Silence fell. Until Isis spoke softly: “You would have gotten away with it too, if you hadn’t publicly threatened the Wise Owl in the Council of Came. That worries me the most.”

Her footsteps faded. The lion king tried taking a step. “Please, let me go. Give me some of the treasure and I’ll build a wonderful temple for you, oh goddess, and I’ll apologize for trying to save the world, and—”

“Shall I let you in on a little secret, Anniwe? The gods care nothing for temples, or belief, or stupid offerings. They care about their creatures and that they behave kindly. And you did not do that, end of story.”

“Why did you build this pyramid then? Why not just kill me right away?”

“That is none of your concern. Have a nice evening!”

Chains rattled. The lion groaned. With a loud thump, his body fell back onto the floor.

Gidi ran out from under the table. Jaco jumped from the gold coins as if they bit his behind.

“Wait! Isis! Isis?”

He just glimpsed the black tip of a round, soft tail slipping through the doorway. The stone door fell shut by itself, but he managed to wedge his paw in at the last second.

Furiously, he flung the door open and looked into the hallway.

Isis was nowhere to be seen. An empty hallway ending in a stairwell stared at him, lifelessly. He placed a heavy diamond next to the door to keep it open and walked back inside. Gidi stood next to the lion.

“You … you … mean lion!”

She headbutted him with her black horns, which seemed a little taller than before. He didn’t react.

“I guess you realize we won’t be rescuing you?”

Jaco slung his bag back over his shoulder. The lion remained silent.

“Come, Gidi, grab as many treasures as you can carry, then we’re off.”

“No! We won’t steal from nice Isis.”

“Oh really? You’re growing bolder too. Do you have any idea what you could do with all that gold? You could make Floria big and successful. You could build gorgeous cities out of nothing, invite the most beautiful flowers.”

He smiled at her and made a slight bow.

“After all, you’re the Queen.”

Gidi swallowed, uncertain about everything, too uncertain to even move.

“I don’t want to be queen at all. I want to go on adventures with you. I want to follow Isis—not sit on a throne all day. Besides, how can I ever be a good queen if I steal from the gods?”

Jaco dropped his head until his eyes were level with Gidi’s. He sighed.

“Dear, dear Gidi. I’m not the person you want me to be. I’ve killed Shadowshifters. I’ve wrecked pyramids. I’m accidentally responsible for your family’s downfall. I … I really did rob the bank in Heroeshaven.”

Gidi smacked him hard in the face—he had expected that. What he didn’t expect was the hug afterwards.

“All that may be true. I wasn’t there and you’ve suffered much injustice. Of course your past isn’t perfect. But here, in this desert, you’re the only reason I’m still alive. And why I can sleep soundly at night.”

Tears welled up in Gidi’s eyes. Jaco couldn’t look at her without tears of his own.

“You’re the only family I have left. How would you feel … about becoming Queen of Floria?”

“Ho … wait just a minute … you mean, like, you want to marry me?”

“No silly, I’m retiring, and I’ll name you as my successor. But only if you don’t steal a single gold coin from this room!”

“Oh.” Jaco heaved a long relieved sigh. “That, uh. You know, let’s talk about it after we’ve escaped from this pyramid.”

“Good idea.”

They walked through the passages and quickly reached a spiral staircase, tied to the walls by ropes in all directions. They looked up and saw open air, for the first time in a long while.

Jaco suddenly looked at her intensely. “Wait. I just remembered something I saw when I was hiding among the gold coins.”

He ran back inside. She heard rummaging and tapping against the wall for several minutes. Eventually, he reappeared in the doorway and tapped the stone that had kept it open.

He ran to Gidi holding a parchment scroll in his paw, so worn it barely stayed rolled up.

As Jaco approached, however, his shadow was not that of a jackal, but of a dragon.

He slung his bag around Gidi’s neck and shoved her up the stairs. As if enchanted, just like her deranged grandfather, they raced up the narrow steps after each other.

Below them a squeaking, cracking door opened. They quickened their leaps. The sun stroked their foreheads; the outside air already smelled so close.

“Only a hundred more steps! Hang in there, Jaco!”

The stairs were being battered. Nine foxes approached swiftly.

“Gidi, quick, grab my—”

She reached into the bag and flung the dagger to him.

“Ah, thanks. You have talent!”

As he kept running, he sliced all the ropes. The stairs swayed more and more, like an extremely long tail from a dog very happy to see their owner.

“Just ten more steps!”

The lead Shadowshifter dared a big leap for Jaco’s tail. He missed and tumbled off the staircase.

“We made it!”

Jaco butted his head against the round pearl on the pyramid’s roof, until it came loose. It rolled off the pyramid.

They climbed outside. Gidi gnawed through some cords, while he cut the final thick rope.

The stairs came loose with a crack and fell like the backbone of a crashing dinosaur. Along with it, all the foxes tumbled into the abyss.

Jaco almost slipped on the slick roof—but there was a reason for the slickness. Gidi nudged him, pointed to a slide that seemed an odd addition to a temple like this, and started counting down.

“Five … four … three …”

Jaco jumped and pulled her along.

“Hey, I wasn’t ready yet!”

“I told you I’m bad at math!”

The wind blew through their fur as they received a gorgeous view of all of Floria. An empty, barren, deserted Floria. But Jaco now saw the emptiness as a chance. A chance to rebuild it better with Gidi.

Not much later, they landed in the soft sand near the sea, laughing. That laughter quickly ceased when they heard the pyramid rumble and growl. Will it never end? she thought.

Bits of pearl flew past their ears. As they ran away, a cacophony of stones shattered and groaned as the pyramid collapsed.

They didn’t dare look back until they stood knee-deep in the water. Of the once great, proud pyramid nothing remained but a crooked pile of rubble. Shards of pearl made a new path, this time from the pyramid to the sea. Most pearls and debris had landed in the water, however, and were being carried to the horizon by waves.

Jaco and Gidi looked at a lovely, warm sunset side by side.

“What do you think of my proposal now?”

“Maybe there is beauty in this desert after all. I’ll gladly be king, but only if you’re my queen. Or advisor, or helper, or however you want to call it. It takes two beings to govern this vast territory.”

“Fine, but I want more animal species to come here. And more plants. Oh, and we’re getting a fox as a pet.”

“That’s illegal.”

“Oh.”

“Some would go so far as to call that kidnapping.”

“Oh.”

“I see there’s still much I can teach you.”