The Curse in Her Blood

Chapter 24

Robin

I had been given the very big task of picking what would be my future crown.

Nonsense, of course, because I'd never be crowned, but I knew a test when I saw one.

I assumed that this wouldn't be the crown Astarte ended up with in the end, that she had gone through this and had one done as well and I was right. I then had asked if he could just make the one that Astarte had originally ordered, but that had been this massive, heavy, bejeweled contraption that looked like it would hurt.

I also found out that it cost a lot of money. Like, more money then I've ever seen. So making one like that was out of the question.

My goal was to make something that I liked that was tasteful, regal and yet not too expensive.

So I asked to see what Set's crown looked like. Needed to start somewhere, right?

Set's crown was a head dress with a veil of finely spun gold. The circlet, too, was made with gold with two oblong horns made from obsidian. Around the base of each horn was a rim of small rubies. But that was it.

So I would do the same.

It made sense if we matched... right?

I requested the same kind of headdress, with the veil of spun gold. But instead of the oblong horns, I asked for smaller antler type horns, like a deer. They too would be made of obsidian, and were a good couple inches shorter than Set's. The base of my horns too would have rubies rimming them, and I asked for golden veins to be drawn into the obsidian if at all possible. Which it was.

I asked if this would be too expensive, but I was in luck, it was nowhere near the cost of Astarte's crown. In fact Phthah seemed awfully pleased with my choice in crown.

I was even sure to tell him to take his time making the crown. Since this was a last minute commission I didn't expect him to drop all the other projects he got to make this one. He had reminded me that as a royal, it was sort of expected that he get it done for me as quickly as possible but I had countered with ah yes, but I'm not a royal yet.

That too had earned me a pleased smile from the older god. He assured me that he would get the crown done in a timely fashion and then he recommended I head back to the palace.

Except Set was supposed to come and get me.

Phthah had said that the younger gods were always forgetting their commitments and that if I was willing to wait he'd get one of his errand boys to escort me back to the palace.

But I was very clear about not needing an escort. I'd just walk back by myself, no problem. Phthah had tried to stop me but I wasn't haven't any of it. I wasn't going to waste anyone's time waiting for me.

I walked back to the palace, being stopped by villagers who wanted to ask me questions. Each wanted to ask me the same thing: when they would get their blessings? Oh they asked how I was and how I was liking things first, but that almost always segued into them wanting to know when the land would be blessed.

I did my best to assure them that as soon as we could, we'd be handing out the blessings. We just needed more time to assess the situation.

They all seemed pleased with my answers and then all told me how grateful they were to see that Set was back. With him back, they all seemed to think that everything would finally get better for them.

So maybe his people liked him more than he thought.

When I got to the palace the servants were waiting me. They too were dressed in black, their skin still grey, and each of them were bowing lowly at me.

"I told you to stop doing that, I can't hear you when you do that," I reminded them. After we came back from the Hathor's birthday party I could finally hear them talk they just spoke so low that I couldn't hear them well, especially when they were bowing like that.

"Is Set here?" I ask once they straighten and they all nod and then point.

"Room," they say together.

Great so he was here and he was in his room. "Okay, thank you. I'll call if you're needed, try to relax or something..."

I make my way back up to his room, ready to tear him a new one. When I get there I find that the door is closed, which is not abnormal, but the torches have all been dimmed to the point that the room is shrouded in darkness. It was the kind of thing you'd see in romance movies, where the bedroom is dimly lit and covered in rose petals.

Except Set isn't romantically interested in me, so there was no way he'd do that for me.

Maybe for another girl. Did he have another girl? Was I walking into a sex scene?

"Uhm... Set?" I call into the room. "Are you alone?"

There's a beat of silence before I hear him call back: "Yes," except there's something wrong with his voice. It sounds strained.

"Are you lying to me?"

"No... I just... uhm..."

"Okay, so you're not alone but you couldn't come meet me? I mean you were the one who said you'd come back, I didn't ask you to. The least you could have done is tell me you had to return to the palace."

I had walked in while talking, completely ignoring his insistence to stop me. I literally had no idea what he was so worried about. If he was naked he could just poof some clothes onto himself, it was also so dark in there I wouldn't be able to notice right away.

I came to a sudden halt though when I realized what it was that was in front of me. Cause it wasn't Set, at least it wasn't the version of him I recognized.

It was the mummy again.

The shrivelled, gooey, husk of a corpse that he had been when I first met him. He looked like he walked right out of that pool again. He was missing his eyes, his teeth were all visible, and he was literally dripping.

"Please... don't..."

I didn't wait to hear what it was he was trying to say, I just burst out screaming and ran out of the room. Not entirely sure where I was going just knowing that I needed to get out of there.