SO, YEAH. OUR CAT WAS A GODDESS.
What else is new?
She didnโt give us much time to talk about it. She ordered me to the library to grab my dadโs magic kit, and when I came back she was arguing with Sadie about Khufu and Philip.
โWe have to search for them!โ Sadie insisted.
โTheyโll be fine,โ said Bast. โHowever, we will not be, unless we leave now.โ
I raised my hand. โUm, excuse me, Miss Goddess Lady? Amos told us the house wasโโ
โSafe?โ Bast snorted. โCarter, the defenses were too easily breached.
Someone sabotaged them.โ
โWhat do you mean? Whoโโ
โOnly a magician of the House couldโve done it.โ
โAnother magician?โ I asked. โWhy would another magician want to sabotage Amosโs house?โ
โOh, Carter,โ Bast sighed. โSo young, so innocent. Magicians are devious creatures. Could be a million reasons why one would backstab another, but we donโt have time to discuss it. Now, come on!โ
She grabbed our arms and led us out the front door. Sheโd sheathed her knives, but she still had some wicked sharp claws for fingernails that hurt as they dug into my skin. As soon as we stepped outside, the cold wind stung my eyes. We climbed down a long flight of metal stairs into the industrial yard that surrounded the factory.
Dadโs workbag was heavy on my shoulder. The curved sword Iโd strapped across my back felt cold against my thin linen clothes. Iโd started to sweat during the serpopard attack, and now my perspiration felt like it was turning to ice.
I looked around for more monsters, but the yard seemed abandoned. Old construction equipment lay in rusting heapsโa bulldozer, a crane with a wrecking ball, a couple of cement mixers. Piles of sheet metal and stacks of crates made a maze of obstacles between the house and the street a few hundred yards away.
We were about halfway across the yard when an old gray tomcat stepped in our path. One of his ears was torn. His left eye was swollen shut. Judging from his scars, heโd spent most of his life fighting.
Bast crouched and stared at the cat. He looked up at her calmly. โThank you,โ Bast said.
The old tomcat trotted off toward the river. โWhat was that about?โ Sadie asked.
โOne of my subjects, offering help. Heโll spread the news about our predicament. Soon every cat in New York will be on alert.โ
โHe was so battered,โ Sadie said. โIf heโs your subject, couldnโt you heal him?โ
โAnd take away his marks of honor? A catโs battle scars are part of his identity. I couldnโtโโ Suddenly Bast tensed. She dragged us behind a stack of crates.
โWhat is it?โ I whispered.
She flexed her wrists and her knives slid into her hands. She peeped over the top of the crates, every muscle in her body trembling. I tried to see what she was looking at, but there was nothing except the old wrecking-ball crane.
Bastโs mouth twitched with excitement. Her eyes were fixed on the huge metal ball. Iโd seen kittens look like that when they stalked catnip toy mice, or pieces of string, or rubber balls….Balls? No. Bast was an ancient goddess. Surely she wouldnโtโ
โThis could be it.โ She shifted her weight. โStay very very still.โ โThereโs no one there,โ Sadie hissed.
I started to say, โUm…โ
Bast lunged over the crates. She flew thirty feet through the air, knives flashing, and landed on the wrecking ball with such force that she broke the chain. The cat goddess and the huge metal sphere smashed into the dirt and went rolling across the yard.
โRowww!โ Bast wailed. The wrecking ball rolled straight over her, but she didnโt appear hurt. She leaped off and pounced again. Her knives sliced through the metal like wet clay. Within seconds, the wrecking ball was reduced to a mound of scraps.
Bast sheathed her blades. โSafe now!โ Sadie and I looked at each other.
โYou saved us from a metal ball,โ Sadie said.
โYou never know,โ Bast said. โIt couldโve been hostile.โ
Just then a deep boom! shook the ground. I looked back at the mansion.
Tendrils of blue fire curled from the top windows. โCome on,โ Bast said. โOur time is up!โ
I thought maybe sheโd whisk us off by magic, or at least hail a taxi. Instead,
Bast borrowed a silver Lexus convertible.
โOh, yes,โ she purred. โI like this one! Come along, children.โ โBut this isnโt yours,โ I pointed out.
โMy dear, Iโm a cat. Everything I see is mine.โ She touched the ignition and the keyhole sparked. The engine began to purr. [No, Sadie. Not like a cat, like an engine.]
โBast,โ I said, โyou canโt justโโ
Sadie elbowed me. โWeโll work out how to return it later, Carter. Right now weโve got an emergency.โ
She pointed back toward the mansion. Blue flames and smoke now billowed from every window. But that wasnโt the scary partโcoming down the stairs were four men carrying a large box, like an oversize coffin with long handles sticking out at both ends. The box was covered with a black shroud and looked big enough for at least two bodies. The four men wore only kilts and sandals. Their coppery skin glinted in the sun as if made of metal.
โOh, thatโs bad,โ Bast said. โIn the car, please.โ
I decided not to ask questions. Sadie beat me to the shotgun seat so I climbed in back. The four metallic guys with the box were racing across the yard, coming straight for us at an unbelievable speed. Before I even had my seat belt on, Bast hit the gas.
We tore through the streets of Brooklyn, weaving insanely through traffic, riding over sidewalks, narrowly missing pedestrians.
Bast drove with reflexes that were…well, catlike. Any human trying to drive so fast wouldโve had a dozen wrecks, but she got us safely onto the Williamsburg Bridge.
I thought for sure we mustโve lost our pursuers, but when I looked back, the four copper men with the black box were weaving in and out of traffic. They appeared to be jogging at a normal pace, but they passed cars that were doing fifty. Their bodies blurred like choppy images in an old movie, as if they were out of sync with the regular stream of time.
โWhat are they?โ I asked. โShabti?โ
โNo, carriers.โ Bast glanced in the rearview mirror. โSummoned straight from the Duat. Theyโll stop at nothing to find their victims, throw them in the sedanโโ
โThe what?โ Sadie interrupted.
โThe large box,โ Bast said. โItโs a kind of carriage. The carriers capture you, beat you senseless, throw you in, and carry you back to their master. They never lose their prey, and they never give up.โ
โBut what do they want us for?โ
โTrust me,โ Bast growled, โyou donโt want to know.โ
I thought about the fiery man last night in Phoenixโhow heโd fried one
of his servants into a grease spot. I was pretty sure I didnโt want to meet him face-to-face again.
โBast,โ I said, โif youโre a goddess, canโt you just snap your fingers and disintegrate those guys? Or wave your hand and teleport us away?โ
โWouldnโt that be nice? But my power in this host is limited.โ โYou mean Muffin?โ Sadie asked. โBut youโre not a cat anymore.โ
โSheโs still my host, Sadie, my anchor on this side of the Duatโand a very imperfect one. Your call for help allowed me to assume human shape, but that alone takes a great deal of power. Besides, even when Iโm in a powerful host, Setโs magic is stronger than mine.โ
โCould you please say something I actually understand?โ I pleaded. โCarter, we donโt have time for a full discussion on gods and hosts and
the limits of magic! We have to get you to safety.โ
Bast floored the accelerator and shot up the middle of the bridge. The four carriers with the sedan raced after us, blurring the air as they moved, but no cars swerved to avoid them. No one panicked or even looked at them.
โHow can people not see them?โ I said. โDonโt they notice four copper men in skirts running up the bridge with a weird black box?โ
Bast shrugged. โCats can hear many sounds you canโt. Some animals see things in the ultraviolet spectrum that are invisible to humans. Magic is similar. Did you notice the mansion when you first arrived?โ
โWell…no.โ
โAnd you are born to magic,โ Bast said. โImagine how hard it would be for a regular mortal.โ
โBorn to magic?โ I remembered what Amos had said about our family being in the House of Life for a long time. โIf magic, like, runs in the family, why havenโt I ever been able to do it before?โ
Bast smiled in the mirror. โYour sister understands.โ
Sadieโs ears turned red. โNo, I donโt! I still canโt believe youโre a goddess. All these years, youโve been eating crunchy treats, sleeping on my headโโ
โI made a deal with your father,โ Bast said. โHe let me remain in the world as long as I assumed a minor form, a normal housecat, so I could protect and watch over you. It was the least I could do afterโโ She stopped abruptly.
A horrible thought occurred to me. My stomach fluttered, and it had nothing to do with how fast we were going. โAfter our momโs death?โ I guessed.
Bast stared straight ahead out the windshield.
โThatโs it, isnโt it?โ I said. โDad and Mom did some kind of magic ritual at Cleopatraโs Needle. Something went wrong. Our mom died and…and they released you?โ
โThatโs not important right now,โ Bast said. โThe point is I agreed to look after Sadie. And I will.โ
She was hiding something. I was sure of it, but her tone made it clear that the subject was closed.
โIf you gods are so powerful and helpful,โ I said, โwhy does the House of Life forbid magicians from summoning you?โ
Bast swerved into the fast lane. โMagicians are paranoid. Your best hope is to stay with me. Weโll get as far away as possible from New York. Then weโll get help and challenge Set.โ
โWhat help?โ Sadie asked.
Bast raised an eyebrow. โWhy, weโll summon more gods, of course.โ