*Ancient Egypt*
(Sun City, Sun God Ra's Abode)
"How is that even possible?" Ra asked, his rage slowly overcoming him. His eyes burned with fury.
He had ordered Shu to bring Nut out for her judgment earlier today at the judgment council, where all other immortals and mortals had gathered for her trial. But she was reported missing, and Shu himself was badly injured—his mortal and god forms trapped in a trance due to their weakened state. He needed time to rejuvenate.
Ra was shocked to the core by the news and swore in his godly tone and aura that anyone—mortal, immortal, god, or demon—who did this must pay with their soul.
However, he couldn't think of any immortal or mortal who could challenge him in such a way, nor dare to hurt the Air God and escape with a prisoner from the Dark Hole—a prison or place of punishment for all Egyptian gods. No one would dare challenge him so brazenly.
"Supreme Father, please take some rest. Once Air God Shu awakens, we will ask him to tell us exactly who committed such a hideous crime. He or she, be it mortal, immortal, or god, shall be punished severely," Horus, the god of sky and war, spoke to Ra in a soothing tone to calm him down.
Horus had taken over the ruling of the sky since Nut was reprimanded, and his divine authority had increased accordingly. He now sat to Ra's left at the god council. Since both Geb and Nut were out of the picture, he claimed the position immediately, his recognition among mortals rising. He was now a proud god.
"Horus?" Ra called.
"Yes, Supreme Father," he replied with a slight bow.
"Summon all other gods. I am calling for an impromptu god council."
"Okay, Supreme Father," Horus bowed and turned to leave. He took a few paces to the window of the council chamber and flew outside swiftly. He was already in his god form, as mortal bodies could not enter Sun City, especially not Ra's abode.
Minutes later, other gods arrived and took their seats accordingly in the council chamber, waiting for Ra to call the meeting to order. When all were seated, including Horus who had summoned the meeting, Ra took a deep breath before beginning.
"My fellow gods of Egypt," he said, "I, the Supreme Father, have called you all to deliberate on the matter at hand: the hurting of my son, the Egyptian god of air, Shu, and the disappearance of my granddaughter, the Egyptian goddess of sky, Nut. She was supposed to face judgment today by our very hands but is now nowhere to be found.
"So, fellow gods and goddesses, rulers of Egypt, please give me your opinions so this issue might be resolved, and the prisoner brought back to justice." Ra ended with authority.
"Supreme Father," Isis began, waiting for Ra's approval to continue.
"Speak, Isis," Ra ordered.
"I can find out who did this," she said confidently.
"Really, Isis? Can you?" Ra asked, eyes widening in amazement.
The other gods, especially Horus, were surprised by her words.
"Is that even possible, Isis? I mean, can you find out who did this without Air God Shu's testimony?" Horus asked, still trying to understand her claim.
"Yes, Supreme Father, fellow gods and rulers of Egypt, I can. All I need to do is visit the Dark Hole, then ask nature herself to bear witness and testify to me what happened and who committed such atrocity against a god of Egypt," she said with confidence, her aura glowing dangerously.
"Good, Isis," Ra breathed. "Then you shall be accompanied by Horus. You both must return with a tangible answer by the next sun's morrow. Remember, Isis, I don't like being disappointed."
"You won't be disappointed, Supreme Father. Trust in me and my will," Isis said with a smile.
"With that being said, you all may return to your abodes. We shall gather again by the first sun of the morrow to hear what Isis has to share." With that, Ra dismissed the council.
Ra trusted Isis's will. She was believed to be powerful in the ways of magic, capable of creating and destroying life with mere words. She not only knew the words that needed to be spoken to cause certain things to occur, but was also able to use exact pronunciation and emphasis for the desired effect. This made her the most powerful goddess of Egypt—even more powerful than Nut.
Ra just hoped the being responsible for the crime wasn't who he feared.
On the night of the incident, he had felt the presence of a strong darkness—just like Aposis's—hovering over Egypt. But he knew all the borders were well guarded and protected by the gods and goddesses, so there was absolutely nothing to worry about.
And even if it was Aposis—which he was sure it wasn't—that wasn't possible. He had joined forces with Geb in the past and cast Aposis into internal darkness, with no way of escape. Geb was actually his best weapon against Aposis when he attacked, and due to the nature of his will, they had defeated the demon lord and sent him to a dungeon of the underworld.
He was very certain that Aposis would never bother Egypt again. If that were so, then what was this strange darkness he felt last night…?
---
*Air God Shu's Abode*
(The Dark Hole)
Isis and Horus went to the Dark Hole, the light of the moon shining upon them, bestowed by Lah, the moon goddess.
They went to the place where Shu's body had been found and took it as the scene of the attack. Isis squatted and let her palm touch the earth, preparing to start the ancient spells when Horus spoke.
"Isis, I really feel there is no need for this. I mean, there is no use for you to use your will for this, when it's visible enough for everyone to see who the culprit is," he said in a convincing tone.
"If I may ask," Isis began, "Horus, who is it that you are suspecting? And how are you so sure that the one you suspect is guilty? Remember, you're not a god of divinity—how sure are you that what you say is true?" Isis stared at him with dread, shaking her head.
"I know you won't believe me, Isis, but something in me tells me that Geb is responsible for this. I mean, you check it yourself—what if he broke the bonds of the hourglass, was able to make it to our time, and took his lover with him back to where he was?" He said, his voice full of anger.
"Horus, be patient. Whatever feelings or suspicions you have will be settled now," Isis said as she began the ancient charms.
She chanted until she transformed into her god form, glowing with golden light and blazing sparkles radiating from her head and gold eyes.
The sight was too bright for Horus to behold; he had to turn away, looking to the other side, backing Isis.
Isis kept chanting loudly, increasing her tempo until she let out a loud scream and entered a trance.
---
*The Trance*
Isis opened her eyes and saw Shu standing above the Dark Hole, staring into it. He couldn't see her, nor she him, because it was a trance and not real life.
He stood there for some time, deep in thought, then decided to leave. He stepped back from the entrance of the hole and walked to his abode. Suddenly, he stopped abruptly. He sensed the presence of another immortal—a god or maybe a demon. He turned swiftly to meet the fiery eyes of the demon god himself.
"Aposis?!" Shu exclaimed.
'Aposis?!' Isis gasped as well but kept her composure, observing carefully.
"Shu," Aposis breathed, "it's been long—about… let me think," he said, placing his hand on his chin thoughtfully. "Oh yes, it's been hundreds of centuries since I last saw you. And I must say, you look good—not quite affected by what was going on." He said with an evil smirk. Isis felt disgusted but kept the trance going, wanting to know all that happened.
"Aposis… leave now before I send word to the Supreme Father and Geb as well. I'm sure you wouldn't like to be banished a second time," Shu said fearlessly.
"Ha ha ha," Aposis laughed loudly. "Please, Shu, I'm not here for jokes. I just came for Nut because I know where she can find the one god she's still living for—Geb," he said with a grin.
Isis knew what would happen next: the two would break into a fight—and so it happened.
The fight lasted a few minutes before the demon lord gained the upper hand. Shu lost. Aposis lifted him by his tail and flung him far away to the other side of the serene.
He turned back to his mortal form and walked to the entrance of the hole. He opened it to find an almost lifeless Nut, who felt alive when her eyes met his.
"Aposis?!" she called in disbelief.
Isis wanted to continue the illusion, but she was at her limit and couldn't keep it up. She let out a loud scream as it became unbearable.
"Aaaaaah!" she screamed as she heard Horus telling her to let go of the trance. She did so immediately and jolted back to the real world.
"Isis, are you okay?" Horus asked with genuine care.
"I'm fine," she replied between heavy pants.
"What did you find out?" he asked, eyes darting across her face as if the answers were written there.
Isis looked at him for a few seconds before finally speaking:
"The demon god is back..."