Who Is She? | Jaz Anderson

• eighteen •

There was a crash and Ayden reacted too slowly.

"They're attacking the Hall of Ages!" one of the initiates yelled.

"Oh my gods!" Ayden shouted. "Amos!"

"We must become one, Ayden!" Nephthys demanded. "Now! Please!"

Ayden grabbed her staff and wand and let Nephthys infiltrate her mind. Instantly, power flooded through her.

The bronze doors sealed and Ayden charged, only to be intercepted. She attempted a push kick, but she was blasted backwards. Nephthys absorbed the power for her, delivering it to her magical reserves.

Ayden thrust her staff forward. "Maw!" A stream of water blasted from her staff, sending the magician flying backwards into the wall. Her hieroglyphs were a more sea green than before, changing from emerald green.

The magicians began to focus on her, intercepting the initiates as they charged to help.

Ayden used the goddess in her inventory and fought hand to hand when she could.

"Take that!" Nephthys yelled. She blasted another magician into Walt's hands. He was wrapped in mummy linen immediately.

"Walt!" Ayden exclaimed, nearly dropping her staff. "You're back!"

"Not just Walt," Anubis said.

"Woah, that's weird."

"You think?" Walt snorted. "I just heard Nephthys talking out of your mouth."

"Eh. Get them to focus on us?"

"Good idea."

Ayden and Walt turned back to back and faced down the magicians. Almost immediately, the rebels charged. Ayden struck one with water and kicked another back. When she recovered her stance, she crescent kicked one in the staff and wand. She threw a jab and a cross at another rebel before water-logging three more.

Walt threw one rebel down the hallway with inhuman strength, touching another and instantly encasing the man in mummy linen. He grabbed the staff of a third rebel, and it crumbled to dust. Finally he swept his hand toward the remaining enemies, and they shrank to the size of dolls. Canopic jars — the sort used to bury a mummy, internal organs sprang up around each of the tiny magicians, sealing them in with lids shaped like animal heads. The poor magicians yelled desperately, banging on the clay containers and wobbling about like a line of very unhappy bowling pins.

Walt turned to their friends. "Is everyone all right?"

Ayden gasped and hugged her siblings. "You're okay!"

Carter hugged her back, nodded to Walt. "Everyone's good."

"Get ready," Walt told their troops. "They've sealed the doors, but I can —"

Then he noticed Sadie, and his voice faltered.

"Sadie," he said. "I —"

"Something about opening the doors?" she prompted.

He nodded mutely.

"Amos is in there?" she asked. "Fighting Kwai and Jacobi and who knows what else?"

He nodded again.

"Then stop staring at me and open the doors, you annoying boy!"

Ayden chuckled, squeezing her sister's hand.

Walt had the nerve to smile.

He put his hand on the doors. Gray ash spread across the surface. The bronze crumbled to dust.

"After you," he told Sadie, and they charged into the Hall of Ages.

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I honestly don't know how to write fight scenes so this is where we're at. Really short, barely 500 words.