??
Calm down, Horus said.
“Don’t tell me to calm down!”
Bast frowned. “I didn’t.”
“Talking to him!” I pointed at my forehead.
“This is awful,” Sadie wailed. “How do I get rid of her?”
Bast sniffed. “First off, Sadie, you don’t have all of her. Gods are very powerful. We can exist in many places at once. But yes, part of Isis’s spirit now resides inside you. Just as Carter now carries the spirit of Horus. And frankly, you both should feel honored.”
“Right, very honored,” I said. “Always wanted to be possessed!”
Bast rolled her eyes. “Please, Carter, it’s not possession. Besides, you and Horus want the same thing—to defeat Set, just as Horus did millennia ago, when Set first killed Osiris. If you don’t, your father is doomed, and Set will become king of the earth.”
I glanced at Sadie, but she was no help. She ripped the amulet off her neck and threw it down. “Isis got in through the amulet, didn’t she? Well, I’ll just—”
“I really wouldn’t do that,” Bast warned.
But Sadie pulled out her wand and smashed the amulet. Blue sparks shot up from the ivory boomerang. Sadie yelped and dropped her wand, which was now smoking. Her hand was covered in black scorch marks. The amulet was fine. “Ow!” she said.
Bast sighed. She put her hand on Sadie’s, and the burn marks faded. “I did tell you. Isis channeled her power through the amulet, yes, but she’s not there now. She’s in you. And even so, magical amulets are practically indestructible.”
“So what are we supposed to do?” Sadie said.
“Well, for starters,” Bast said, “Carter must use the power of Horus to defeat Set.”
“Oh, is that all?” I said. “All by myself?”
“No, no. Sadie can help.”
“Oh, super.”
“I’ll guide you as much as possible,” Bast promised, “but in the end, the two of you must fight. Only Horus and Isis can defeat Set and avenge the death of Osiris. That’s the way it was before. That’s the way it must be now.”
“Then we get our dad back?” I asked.
Bast’s smile wavered. “If all goes well.”
She wasn’t telling us everything. No surprise. But my brain was too fuzzy to figure out what I was missing.
I looked down at my hands. They didn’t seem any different—no stronger, no godlier. “If I’ve got the powers of a god, then why am I so...”
“Lame?” Sadie offered.
“Shut up,” I said. “Why can’t I use my powers better?”
“Takes practice,” Bast said. “Unless you wish to give over control to Horus. Then he would use your form, and you would not have to worry.”
I could, a voice said inside me. Let me fight Set. You can trust me.
Yeah, right, I told him. How can I be sure you wouldn’t get me killed and just move on to some other host? How can I be sure you’re not influencing my thoughts right now?
I would not do that, the voice said. I chose you because of your potential, Carter, and because we have the same goal. Upon my honor, if you let me control—
“No,” I said.