A hand gently brushing against her shoulder before shaking her lightly slowly brought Anaïs out of her reverie. She sat up, yawned, and rubbed her eyes, her mind still clouded by sleep. It took her a few moments to understand where she was and why. Anubis was waiting patiently beside her, in his human form.

"Are we leaving already?" she asked, yawning again, almost dislocating her jaw.

"No, the sun hasn’t risen yet. It won’t be up for a few more hours."

Indeed, the night reigned supreme around them. However, a soft full moonlight illuminated the gardens. The sky was filled with stars shining brightly, without the visual pollution characteristic of modern times. She didn’t often have the chance to observe such a beautiful night.

Other than that, it looked like the same sky... just five millennia earlier.

"You will be well received, don’t worry," Anubis interrupted her thoughts. "I know this isn’t your world and you must feel lost, but you won’t be alone. You will stay with a local family until you find your bearings. They will explain everything you need to know to live well here."

Would she really be able to get used to the minimalist comfort of ancient Egypt? Without public transport, without a phone, without the internet? Yet, her pants seemed quite full... Anaïs distractedly rummaged through her pocket. She pulled out her mobile phone, a metro ticket, her work keys, a used tissue, and some coins. Not only did she still have all her belongings, but her phone was still functional. Except it only had thirty percent battery left and no network coverage here.

I doubt I’ll find an electrical outlet in the afterlife or ancient Egypt...

A silly idea suddenly struck her. Without warning, she jumped next to Anubis, wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and positioned her phone for a selfie. The device captured Anaïs’s mischievous smile and the Egyptian god’s confused expression, immortalizing their faces. Anubis nonchalantly pulled away from the young woman's embrace and stepped back, his haughty gaze lingering on her face.

"What is that?"

Anaïs giggled as she looked at the photo and showed it to him. Anubis, surprised, placed two fingers on the touchscreen, not understanding how the device worked.

"It’s a photo, but you are far from knowing this technology," she explained, satisfied with her act and explanations.

"A photo? How does it work?"

"Ehm... It's something about a black box and light sensors, I couldn't explain it in more detail."

"I see. Humans have indeed evolved, from what little I've seen of your era. Even though the appearance of your cities is... hideous. I have difficulty understanding your attraction to all that gray and those buildings packed closely together. You've annihilated nature for your dreadful houses, such a thing baffles me..."

"Ha, ha. It's a long story. Especially since I doubt you really want to know how humans evolved. It's not a pretty story. Far from it, even. Now that I know the Gods exist, I would even say I think they abandoned us."

Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

"Abandoned? What God would do such a thing? Some are... malevolent, but we need humans as much as you need us."

"All of them? It's been centuries since we've had any proof of your existence, apart from myths and legends. Without proof, humans end up doubting. And it happened very quickly since monotheistic religions have completely erased the various pantheons from popular beliefs. Now, many individuals believe in nothing."

"I see. Our two worlds decided not to confront each other somewhere between our two eras. I didn’t think such a thing was possible."

So a God was just a mundane individual without anyone to revere them. A bit like another species of humanoid, a people who had access to magic, unlike simple humans like Anaïs. If they deemed themselves superior, it was only because humanity itself thought humans were inferior to these magical beings. Except that humans had evolved in such a way that they no longer needed the help of the Gods to survive. In her modern era, they were at best what one could call wizards if they had no one to revere them, at worst mere relics of the past, myths without foundation.

"What are we going to do for the rest of the night? I’m not sleepy anymore after my little nap," she announced, putting her phone away in her pants after turning it off.

Even if she had no network, the device could prove useful if she managed to conserve some battery. One photo was enough of a waste of the precious resource that was electrical energy.

"I can show you around the city, but..." he began, looking hesitant and suddenly avoiding her gaze.

"But what?"

Anaïs swallowed hard, waiting for the God’s response. She had only known him for a few hours, but it was enough to understand that he wasn’t the type to joke. His serious expression was clearly a sign of bad news.

"I told you, the living have no place in the Duat. Only the Gods and judged souls are allowed to reside here. Once you return to the world of the living, your memories of the afterlife will fade."

"So... I won't remember anything at all in a few hours?" she asked to confirm his words, half horrified.

"Yes. I am sorry."

Her body froze in place as her mind raced. This meant she would potentially forget her encounter with the Egyptian god, and therefore the very existence of the polytheistic pantheon.

"And my previous life? Will I wake up in ancient Egypt as if nothing happened with no one to explain what's going on?"

"It will be like transitioning from your era to ours directly, and I will be there to explain again what happened. You will only lose a few hours of memories."

He explained it as if it wasn’t a big deal, as if the concept of having a part of her memory stolen – however small – wasn’t dramatic at all. She didn’t want to forget what she had seen here, and the situation made much more sense with the information she had obtained in the Duat.

"There’s no way to prevent this, I suppose?"

"No."

A sigh escaped the young woman’s lips. None of her actions mattered in the afterlife anymore, now that she knew she was going to forget everything. She was free to do whatever she wanted. The main question spinning in her head was: what was she going to do with this freedom? She was in an unknown world in the company of an Egyptian god who would abandon her to her fate in a few hours. A very attractive god, with his chocolate eyes, piercing gaze, and calculating, intelligent glint.

Could she boast of having kissed a god? Even if she did such a thing, she wouldn’t remember it in a few hours. Yet, Anaïs acted on the impulse that suddenly crossed her mind, like a whim, a somewhat dubious experience, and the next moment, her human lips pressed against those of Anubis, who didn’t react, too surprised by the gesture. He didn’t have time to push her away, as she pulled back on her own after placing a simple kiss on his outraged face, and couldn’t help but burst into laughter as she saw him touch his lips with his fingers to make sure he hadn’t dreamed what had just happened.

“Who do you think you are, human?” he asked, his voice devoid of emotion.

A simple question, no accusation in his neutral tone. It was clear from his gaze that he didn’t know how to react to the young woman’s affront.