When Anaïs's eyelids fluttered open, her eyes met only the darkness of the night. It took a few moments for her sleepy mind to recall what had happened the previous evening. Images of her union with Anubis flooded her memory and a flush of red colored her cheeks at the thought of having fainted during this intimate moment. The physical and magical sensations their closeness had given her had been far too overwhelming for her still-human mind. She had exhausted her magic, letting it flow out of her like a cascading waterfall, until the peak of her ecstasy had finally drained the last remnants of energy from her being.

I waited for this moment for days, and I passed out after just a few minutes... she mentally whined, grimacing. How embarrassing!

She turned toward the center of the bed, burying her face in her hands. That was when she noticed something warm breathing softly against her fingers. An unknown source of heat radiated from the space beside her, and when she reached out to discover what it was, her hand encountered a firm chest rising and falling with the rhythm of steady breaths. She quickly realized it was Anubis and that, this time, he had decided to stay and share her bed. The thought delighted her, and she took advantage of his sleeping state to trail her fingers up toward his shoulders and face, brushing his skin lightly.

In the darkness of the night, she couldn't see much, but she traced his features with gentle touches to avoid waking him. His body radiated warmth, tempting her to burrow into his arms, though she resisted, not wanting to disturb him.

"You should get a bit more sleep," Anubis murmured softly, startling her. "We’ll leave in a few hours to search for the fragments you located yesterday."

Anaïs froze, surprised that he was awake, but before she could pull her hand away, the jackal god caught it and pressed a kiss to her palm. She blushed at the tenderness of the gesture, still embarrassed by how the evening had ended.

"Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you," she whispered, careful not to break the tranquility of the moment. "I was just surprised you stayed after... everything that happened..."

She heard him chuckle before his arms wrapped around her waist, pulling their bodies closer. Her chest pressed against his, and she tucked her head under his chin, hugging him back. They were both still naked, which stirred Anaïs’s desire anew as she felt his warm skin against hers.

"I wanted to make sure you’d be okay after expending so much energy," he replied teasingly.

Anaïs groaned at his mockery, pulling back slightly to capture his lips in a kiss. Anubis returned the kiss at first, but just as she deepened it, she felt him smile against her lips before pulling away and gently nudging her back into their original position, her head resting under his chin.

"Sleep," he commanded playfully.

The warmth of his body against hers and the comfort of his protective embrace eventually lulled her into compliance. Sleep claimed her about ten minutes later, forcing her to suppress her desire to join their bodies once more.

We’ll have plenty of time to enjoy each other in the future, she tried to convince herself before drifting off. After all, she had gained eternity by accepting to become an Akh.

The second time she woke, daylight had finally broken. However, she was no longer wrapped in Anubis’s comforting arms, as he was now trying to rise quietly without disturbing her—though his efforts had failed. She must have slept for at least ten hours due to her magical exhaustion, but she felt completely rejuvenated now.

"I was planning to wake you a little later," he informed her as he slipped into the clothes he had thoughtfully brought to her room the night before. "We’ll be leaving by mid-morning; I still need to finalize our route for the day."

"Which ones are we going after today?" she asked, sighing at the thought of potentially spending hours in a swamp.

She rose as well and grabbed the clothes that a servant had placed behind the screen during the night. The idea of servants entering her room while she slept created a slight unease in her, but she tried to remind herself that they were so discreet she wasn’t even sure they were truly alive.

"I was thinking of dealing with the crocodile this morning, but I need to locate a nearby necropolis to take us there," Anubis explained as he finished dressing. "If we’ve gathered enough information about the security of the Abydos temple by midday, we’ll head there this afternoon."

After breakfast, the jackal god allowed her to accompany him to his office for the first time. She couldn’t assist with his cartographic analysis, but she appreciated being able to stay in his presence, even if it meant simply watching him work. The room was divided into two sections: one side was a study area with a large desk covered in scrolls and shelves behind the chair holding jars and various artifacts. The other side was a library filled with what they called volumen. This term referred to a type of book made of sheets of papyrus glued together and rolled around two wooden or ivory rods. Since papyrus was too fragile to fold, these scrolls were relatively thick and took up a lot of space. Owning a library was a luxury, even in the afterlife.

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Unfortunately, Anaïs couldn’t read them. She contented herself with observing the books that contained pictures, like a child, while Anubis studied the maps. When he announced that they would soon be leaving, she went to prepare herself.

Today, Isis wasn’t accompanying them. Her son had sent a message the night before, notifying her of the fragments' discovery. In return, she had entrusted them to handle the task on their own, as she was busy with ritual preparations. Anaïs wasn’t about to complain.

Anubis had chosen the necropolis of Pnepheros near the city of Fayoum, located south of Memphis, the capital. It was a wetland area fed by a small branch of the Nile, divided between marshes and highly fertile farmland. The place overflowed with greenery thanks to the abundant water, so it was no surprise to find the crocodile they were seeking there.

"Couldn’t we have asked Sobek for help? He’s the crocodile god, isn’t he?" Anaïs asked as they approached the beast, which easily weighed half a ton.

The crocodile lay lazily by the water’s edge, unaware of what was about to happen. Since the fragment was inside its stomach, they had no choice but to kill it and retrieve the piece. Reasoning with it or asking it to regurgitate Osiris’s flesh was out of the question. Yet the idea of killing an innocent animal broke Anaïs’s heart. If it could be avoided, they should try.

"He’s the crocodile god, not the god of crocodiles," Anubis retorted, drawing a dagger from his satchel as he approached the beast. "He has no authority over those who don’t serve him."

"Fine," she sighed, turning her back. "I’d rather not watch."

The animal didn’t put up much of a fight against a man armed with a blade. Within minutes, its stomach’s contents were exposed. That was a relief for Anaïs, as the sound of the knife cutting through the crocodile’s flesh for several minutes had left her feeling queasy.

When Anubis cleared his throat awkwardly, however, she couldn’t resist glancing at the scene. His hands were buried inside the crocodile, and he stared at the contents with a bewildered expression, making no move to retrieve Osiris’s flesh and store it in his satchel.

"What’s wrong?" she asked, suddenly concerned.

"Nothing, it’s just... I never thought I’d hold something like this in my hands..."

Anaïs squinted in curiosity and stepped closer. Finally, he extracted the fragment and placed it on a cloth to clean it quickly, allowing her to catch a glimpse of the part in question.

"Don’t tell me that’s..." she began, only to burst into laughter at the absurdity of the situation. "I mean, the myth does mention the search for that... intimate part of Osiris, but I never thought it was literal!"

And there it was—Osiris’s son now held his father’s severed virility in his hands. The situation couldn’t have been more absurd. Anaïs’s uncontrollable laughter only deepened Anubis’s embarrassment. Tears streamed down her cheeks as the jackal god’s expression grew more irritated, her amusement making it nearly impossible to stay upright. Her ribs ached from laughing so hard, but she couldn’t stop. It was a moment she’d never forget, much to her lover’s dismay.

By midday, they returned to Imentet to enjoy a quiet meal at the villa. Upon their arrival, Anubis’s servants were already waiting with reports about the Abydos temple. Spies had monitored the site throughout the night and morning, ensuring there were no hidden guards or security measures. From what they had gathered, the temple priestesses, loyal to Osiris, had kept their possession of the fragment a closely guarded secret. As a result, they would willingly relinquish the piece without resistance or alerting anyone to the visitors’ presence.

"This seems a little too easy, doesn’t it?" Anaïs mused aloud. "Even if it’s unguarded, that doesn’t mean no one will notice we were there. What if Seth has spies lurking around the temple?"

"I’m not sure..." Anubis replied, uncertain. "If Seth knew about the fragment, he probably would’ve tried to lure us into a trap, like he did at the Pilak temple. If the piece is truly a secret, there’s no bait for us to fall for."

"Yes, you’re probably right," she conceded after a moment of thought.

After their meal, the pair once again ventured into the now-familiar gray desert to reach the portal that would transport them to the crypts beneath the Abydos temple. Each sanctuary maintained its own necropolis, a direct connection to the gods that conveniently brought them right to their destination.

The crypt they entered was dimly lit, forcing Anaïs to cling to Anubis to avoid stumbling. They traversed several rooms filled with tombs—and the skeletal remains within them, something she would never fully get used to—until they spotted a wide staircase leading to the surface.

"We have been expecting you, God Anubis and Akh Anepout," a female voice suddenly called from the top of the stairs.

How does she know my name? Anaïs wondered, still unaccustomed to the sudden renown her new existence seemed to bring her.

The speaker was a young woman dressed in immaculate white. Her robe covered every inch of her skin, while a hood concealed the crown of her head, leaving only her long, side-braided hair visible. She wore no makeup, and her complexion was as pale as snow—a stark contrast to the sun that should have at least kissed her skin. The priestesses must rarely leave the temple, or they meticulously avoided sunlight. She was strikingly beautiful, with piercing eyes that seemed to hold the world’s wisdom.

"I am the Oracle Amenâ," the woman continued, introducing herself as the pair reached her. "We have hidden the head of Osiris in anticipation of your arrival."

Anaïs swallowed hard. If finding Osiris’s virility had been laughable, retrieving his head was something she was far less eager to face. The thought of standing before the severed head, its empty eye sockets a haunting void thanks to Seth’s cruelty, made her stomach churn.

The more she reflected on it, the clearer it became that Seth had dismembered Osiris in a deliberate effort to desecrate and mock him. The choice of fragments seemed almost calculated to ridicule his brother’s legacy. Cutting off Osiris’s virility was unsurprising, given that Anubis himself was the product of an adulterous union between Osiris’s wife and Seth’s brother. The mutilation reflected Seth’s deep-seated hatred for the slain god, each severed piece a twisted symbol of his contempt.