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Me and the Sphinx Book 1: It All Begins.
Prologue: How I ended Up With a Giant Cat Goddess
Look, being locked up in a dark room with no light source at all except from a giant cat goddess is actually... hmm... Not bad. As long as she don't lick me every few minutes I'm totally fine with it.
Sorry, where are my manners? My name is Seth Rogers, I'm a 19 year-old teen lived in Phoenix, Arizona. My family is originally from Egypt, yes I'm an Egyptian-American. I have a really, really, tough life. See, my parent got divorced when I was 5, so I lived with my mom every since. There's a thing which I hated called racism. Unfortunately, that's popular at my school. I get bullied or beat up by some random kid just cuz I'm the only Egyptian in the school. I know right? Total racism. But I'm used to it.
I don't even know how did I survived all these years of been called names, beaten, bullied, and laughed at. To be honest, I have to thank those mythology books mom brought me. It really got me into it. Mom has been reading be Egyptian mythologies since I'm in kindergarten, and tell you what, I'm obsessed with it. Cuz why not? I mean, all these stories were awesome and cool, especially the one that mentioned Horus beating the living crap outta Set. But the story I loved the most is about the Sphinx. Because it makes riddles and force you to solve it. I loved riddles, I've been listening to riddles since I was a baby, and was able to make' em at the age of 5, this I found is similar to the Sphinx. So obviously, Sphinx is my life, its riddles from stories and movies kept me alive. As I got older, my mom saw my great intersect in Egyptian stuff and encouraged me to become an archeologist or a mythologist. But... I have a long way to go.
Everything is juts fine and normal until that night, that night when I was playing hero and got hit by a car driving in 50 miles per hour. Don't ask me about whether the driver is drunk or not, cuz I don't care. What I cared is how I woke up in a dark room with no lights in.
So, I was walking home from the library after picking up some books, right when I was about to cross the street, I saw a cat running by. At first I thought it was nothing, but then I saw a car, coming straight for the cat in at least 50 or 55 mph, (Yes I'm good at math) Immediately I dropped the books and lunged towards the cat, covering it with my body. The next thing I knew, I was airborne, feeling the massive pain from my lower body, my vision began to blur, but at the last second I saw the cat running away unharmed. A smile formed in my face as the world blacked out.
(~)
Pain.
Pain.
And pain.
That's what I felt when I woke up. Everything is super dark, like REALLY dark, I can barely see my fingers. Is this hell? I thought as he checked my surroundings, which I later found as something stupid, I'm blind in the dark. But something isn't right, if I'm dead and in hell, how can I still feel my fingers and my body? A ghost don't feel stuff right? That only meant one thing, I'm alive and panicking.
I'm afraid of the dark obviously, I wanted to scream but nothing came out of me, probably too terrified to even squeak.
Suddenly, I heard noises coming from my 6 o'clock, I turned towards the noise, it sounded like snorting. I felt something cold and sharp when I touched my thigh, I grabbed it and felt its shape, and immediately I knew what this thing is: A Khopesh. A sword that were used by the Guards of the Pharaoh back in ancient Egypt, but why do I have one? Did I somehow traveled back in time? I just chuckled at that thought, it's ridiculous.
But at least having a weapon better than having nothing, I placed my Khopesh in a defensive pose as I walked towards the place where the snore is coming from.
The snore stopped once I spoor ached it, it's somehow detecting me. I stopped dead on my way, sweating as hell, I turned my gaze at all the possible location where the noise come from, but nothing came out. I sighed I relief thinking that it was my imagination. But I then saw my shadow on the ground. I felt chills on my back, if there's shadow, then there's a light source. Judging from the position of my shadow, the light source is... Behind me.
I turned swiftly and was met by two glowing orange eyes with dragon-like pupil. I nearly have a heart-attack.
"GAHH!!!" I screamed as I fell on my back, my Khopesh dropped in the floor, the sharp clinging of the metal seemed to startled the creature, in flinched, but kept eye contact with me. I scrambled towards the Khopesh, pointing the blade towards the glowing eyes. Then I heard a female voice, it sounded somehow disappointed.
"Is this how you greet your life-savior?"
I stopped breathing for a second or so, "Who... Who said that?!" I stammered. Then I heard a chuckle, "So you talk, intersecting." Then the chamber I was in begin to light up, I covered my eyes, after been flashbanged for about a minute, I was recovering from the light. And the orange eyes in front of me, no, the creature in front of me... My eyes widened. I rubbed them to get a better look.
"No... No way..." I mumbled. The creature sitting in front of me, is... is a...
"Yes way, strange creature," it said.
Holy shit.... this creature is covered in purple furs, a pair of wings on its back, cat-like legs and tails. I noticed her outfit looked like some ancient Egyptian outfit, I searched through my memories about mythical creature that looked like this one. And I stopped at the thought of the riddle maker.
No.
This... creature right here... right in front of me... Is a living Sphinx. An actual, talking Sphinx.
"Uh... You're... You're the Sphinx right?" I don't know where did that bravely came from, but I asked anyway.
It raised an eyebrow, she looked amused, "So you've heard of me."
"Yeah, of course I do," I said, "you make riddles." Now she looked more amused. I knew what's coming next, riddle time!
"You sound like you're into riddles," she said, "then I'll riddle you. Before we can start, I'm Bast the Sphinx, you?"
"Name's Seth Rogers." I said, sounding proud, "Give it all you've got."
"Here's riddle one: What animal walks on for legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three at night? (This is a famous riddle.)" Bast started, but before she can ask 'what is it', I answered without even a single hesitation, cuz it was too easy, "Humans."
Bast had a surprised look on her face, but it lasted a a brief moment before moving on the the next one, "If two snakes marry, what will their towels say?"
"Hiss and Hers." I said without stopping.
"Only one color, but not one size. Stuck at the bottom, yet I easily fly. Present in sun, but not in rain. Doing no harm, and feeling no pain. What Am I?"
"Shadow."
For a good 30 minutes, Bast said at least 40 riddles, but I've heard them since I was little kid, so you can see how easy that is for me. Just like taking a candy from a baby. Piece of cake. But Bast looked frustrated every time I got her riddles right. Finally, after her 80th riddle, she couldn't hold it back anymore.
"How's that POSSIBLE?!" she cried, "I'M THE RIDDLE MASTER!!! HOW ARE YOU KNOWIN ALL THE ANSWERS?!"
"It's easy," I said, teasing her somehow made me happy, I point at my head, "This and some practice." But what happened next is unexpected, she broke into tears.
"How... If anyone can solve my riddles... then it must means that I'm... I'm bad at it..." she cried, "But you solved every of my riddles... then I'm the worse riddle master! No one will like my riddles! My life is done! Finished! Riddle is my life..."
Seeing a Sphinx cry is... quite an intersecting sight, but it somehow made me feel bad. Guilt started to take over me, I sighed and walked over to her, patting a hand on her paw, her fur is surprisingly soft, but... OMG I'm touching a living Sphinx!
She flinched a bit at first, but relaxed as I slowly and gently brushed her furs. Sphinx are half-cat half-lion creature, and I'm a cat lover, so that worked out just fine. To me surprise, she purred. She turned to face me, I looked her in the yes and said, "I'm sorry, but... no offense you really have to update your riddles. And also, I love riddles too, and your riddles is actually not bad for a beginner." That totally caught her off guard.
"You... Love riddles?" she asked, surprised and somehow a bit relieved, "No one has ever told me my riddles were great, and you said my level is only a beginner?"
"Un-huh, my mother used to riddle me every night before I go tp sleep. And yes, you need some new riddles instead o the old ones." I then said something that grabbed her attention, "I can teach them if you want."
"OH PLEASE!" she sat in front of me like a pet cat.
“Uh..." I wasn't expecting the legendary creature in myths to... purr and wiggling her tails like a pet cat, "Ok... so which one you wanna learn first?"
"Riddles about cats!"
"Sure."
(~)
We spend my first day talking about riddles. Bast seemed really intersected about Egypt, which was the place my family are originally from. I found that the Egyptian cultures were somewhat similar to the culture in this world. Bast told me that I'm on a planet called Equus and in this country called Equestria. I'm in the Pyramid of Peril, which is Bast's house. She figured to that her size may not be comfortable for Seth, so she shrinked herself to about 5 foot tall. Almost the same height as the ponies she'd mentioned.
As the night falls, the temperature began to drop. Shit I should've known this, we're in the desert area, and Sahara is a good example. I was shivering from the freezing cold air, Bast noticed.
"Are you well?" she asked, surprisingly her tone sounded concerned.
"Is... is... is the n-night a-a-always t-this c-c-cold?" I asked through the shivers. Next thing I knew was Bast cuddling next to me, expanding her wings to cover me from the cold air. Her wings were massive, just like a cozy blanket. Immediately I felt my eyes were getting heavy, I felt Bast's head nuzzled me on me cheeks. Damn, who knows Sphinxes likes cuddling?
(Third Person POV)
Bast watched as Seth fell asleep, somehow, Bast found that Seth looked cute when he's asleep. She felt something she'd never felt before during her long life, something unexplained from her heart. This feeling a so... strange.
"Night Bast..." she heard Seth murmured.
Bast looked at the sleeping human, suddenly, without any warning, she kissed him lightly on his cheeks, "Good night, my dear Seth."
Unnoticed by both of them, the neckless on Seth's neck; the eye of Horus, is glowing softly in pale blue light. It then formed a hologram of a certain hawk-headed guy with a blue eye and a golden yellow eye. He looked at the human and Bast, before saying softy, "I hope you realize your destiny soon... My son."
Author's Note
A cliff hanger! Here's chapter one! Hope you guys enjoyed it. Never thought that Sphinx has a soft side eh?
Me and the Sphinx Book 1: It All Begins.
Chapter 1: My Dad is a Bird
Seth thought about his parents back on Earth, are they doing well? How did they react to his sudden disappearance? He'd been up for... god knows how long. Bast was up way earlier then him and vanished, leaving a small letter explaining that she has some business to do. Some bread and fishes were left for me, I wasn't expecting this from a Sphinx. According to what I read from the myths, Sphinx aren't friendly, and one small mistake then you'll get gobble up. But Bast is different, WAY different than the ones in the myth.
I decided to play around with my new toy Khopesh, it turned out to be lighter than I thought. At first I thought it was a replica, but after testing it out on a dummy I made with some random junks, it proved that this is an actual Khopesh. But the material that made up this sword is a mystery to me, its not copper because it just sliced through a 70 millimeter stone like a knife through butter, steel won't do much either. And about the fact that this Khopesh just magically appeared hanging from my thigh is the weirdest of all, but I decided to put the questions down and leave it till later.
God knows how long later, I heard wings flapping outside, a giant shadow roamed across the pyramid. Bast landed on the ground, but what shocked me is that she have newly formed battle scars and cuts. And damn she's losing lot of blood. Immediately I rushed forward.
"Jesus! What happened?!" I asked, somehow feeling hurt to see Bast like this.
"Seth, we have to move," Bast said, "now!" She tried to walk towards me but failed due to the cut on her foreleg. She wobbles and was about to fall, but I came in and watched her.
"What happened?" I asked.
"Tell you later, but something not friendly is coming." Bast said, her teeth gritted and hissing from the pain coming from her cuts. I felt my stomach was tied into a knot, seeing her wounded. Who would dare hurt a Sphinx? Well, whoever did this to her is an idiot.
"Can you still fly?" I asked, bast lifted her wings and revealed some cuts and arrows stuck on them, "Not really." she said.
"Can you run then?" I asked, if she's unable to run, or even walk straight, then we're dead. I mean, I do have a Khopesh, but that doesn't mean I know how to use it. Fortunately, she nodded, "Hop on!" Without a second thought, I stepped on her left paw and onto her back.
"Now hold on tight." she said before taking off in an incredible speed, she rammed the wall, causing it to collapse. I was blinded a few seconds by the venomous sunlight and the intense heat, but when I recovered, I heard yelling and battle cries. I turned and saw a few ponies dressed in ancient Egyptian soldier uniform chasing us with spears and Khopeshes. Some forced off arrows, which luckily missed us due to Bast, who's zig-zagging.
"Bast! What did you do?!" I shouted, not on purpose dude to the wind and the yelling behind us.
"Just passing by! And these idiots went mad the moment they saw me!" Bast replied.
Suddenly, an arrow flew straight towards us and impaled Bast's left foreleg, causing her to scream before falling and rolled onto the ground, unfortunately, I fell head-first. I recovered from the fall and saw these manic soldiers approaching Bast, few kept a safe distance, but there's also a few daredevils slowly approaching to my Sphinx friend with raised weapons. One was about to slice it down.
"NO!!!" I cried as I dashed forward, my hand curled into a fist as I slammed it towards the attacker, "GET AWAY FROM HER!!!"
I don't really remember what happened next, but I do recall my fist glowed in blue light. My neckless glowed in blue as well. Suddenly, the cry I let out turned into an Eagle screech. The punch went straight into the attacker with full force, punching a hole through him while sending him into the air with a scream of agony. A huge shock wave blasted the rest away. I huffed and puffed, the glow faded away, I turned to Bast, who's staring at me with widened eyes.
"Bast! You alright?!" I asked with full concern, Bast recovered from the shock and nuzzled me, "It takes more than an arrow to kill me."
I sighed in relief, though I knew Sphinx is a mythical creature and immortal, but it still scared me just watching her got shot. To my surprise, the arrow vanished into ashes and her wounds healed automatically by itself.
"Hey, you never told me you can do that!" I protested, she could've used this healing magic thingy earlier and fly us outta.
She chucked sheepishly, which is quite cute, "Yeah, but I was worried that you'll get caught by those morons, so that thought didn't light up right away." I was surprised that she's worried about me, like she actually cared about me. No one had every treat me like this except my mom. But I put this thought aside.
"Where are we gonna go?" I asked.
"During my way back, I saw an Oasis nearby," she said, "there we'll rest."
"Then what?"
Bast remained silence for a minute or so before replying, "There's something I need to tell you once we hit the Oasis." I raised an eyebrow, she's keeping a secret from me? But I shrugged that thought off, she has her own reason.
She waited until I was on her back before taking off, we reached at least 1,000 feet above the ground, surprisingly, I wan;t feeling suffocated, probably the protection spell she has on me, but since when did she casted it? Not long after we went airborne, I saw something green not far away, it must the Oasis, but I'm not entirely sure, because desert can play tricks with you, such as Mirage. I asked and got a confirmation from Bast, so that is an Oasis, not some annoying mirage, I trust her eye sight.
Bast landed gently, lowering one of her wings so I can slide off. The Oasis has a huge lake in the center, with lots of trees and grass field surrounding it. But there's something off about this Oasis, according to my knowledge, Oasis is somethings rare to find in deserts, but why did this Oasis just popped up suddenly?
I loved water, back when I was a kid, mom would sometimes take me to the public swimming pool, but after a few incidents involving racism, mom decided to build a private pool in the backyard of my house, and there I learned how to swim free style, backstroke, breast stroke, butterfly, drills, and dives. My mom is a national swimming coach, so I learned swimming pretty well with her.
I took off my shirts and pant and dove into the water, I missed the cool feeling of the water, Bast just sit there watching me, I knew why; Cats hates swimming.
But I could tell she's impressed with all my swimming techniques, through her eyes, I could see something different, but I couldn't tell what it is. The way she looked at me; you ever see a mother cat looks at her kitty or a mate? That's the look she's giving me.
(~)
The sunset is beautiful, but nothing is more beautiful then Ba... Oops! Did I said that out loud?! Sorry, off topic!
Anyway, the sunset is amazing.
I was sitting on the tree branch when I felt a wing wrapped around me, it was Bast, she's back to 5 foot again, for she'll crush the tree. She pulled me closer, against her body, I felt her warmth and the softness of her fur.
"Now, about that secret I'm telling you," she said, "you see, you're actually not the first human-like creature I've seen."
This caught me off guard, "What do you mean?" I asked.
Bast sighed, "1,000 years ago, I met another human-like creature like you, he's handsome, muscular, and cool, just like you." she blushed, "Anyway, he told me he ws trapped here. I challenged him to a riddle game, but surprisingly he passed without making a mistake. He said that he lost something in this desert and asked if I can help him, and I did. Turns out that thing is actually his eye ball."
"Wait what?!" I frowned, "Ugh! Gross!"
She chucked, "See that neckless on you? It looked just like that."
I almost fell off the branch, but Bast caught me with her tail, I stammered, "Wha... What do you mean?"
Bast took a deep breath, "Look, I know something about your planet Earth, at least some of it from him. Tell me, is it true that your parent got divorced when you're five?"
My jaws dropped, just how did she know that?! "Ye... Yes."
"Well, your parent isn't really 'divorced', your father just left you for your safety. I'll tell you the truth with a riddle: 'I controls the sky, my eyes were the source of light, I fright my enemies with a screech of pride, I'm the son of a dead man and an angel, who am I?'" Bast said.
I thought about the riddle for a good 5 minutes, thoughts and possible answers came in and out. Until one came. My eyes widened at the possibility, I nearly fell off the tree again, Bast caught me again. "You really should hold on to something." she said, "What is the answer?"
"Lord of the sky, eyes represented sun and the moon, hawk-headed, son of Osiris and Isis..." I froze, no, no, no. No way on Earth... Wait, I''m not even on Earth. No way on Equus is this real. But I have to accept the truth.
My father... is Horus.
As soon as this thought came out, my neckless began to glow in pale blue light like what it did earlier this day. A trail of blue smoke came out of it, then a light beam, it formed a hologram of a hawk-headed god of the sky. He has a pair of two colored eye, brown skinned. buff like a football player, and a Khopesh hanging on his belt.
he smiled at me.
"About time you reveal your destiny. Seth Rogers, my son."
Author's Note
WHOOO!!! Two chapters a day! Here it is.
HUUUUUGE surprise right?
Me and the Sphinx Book 1: It All Begins.
Just to let you guys know that I'm quite busy with my classes, so there's no exact date when my next update will be, but I'll update it if I have time. Thanks for liking this story, it meant a lot! :)
Me and the Sphinx Book 1: It All Begins.
Chapter 2: Destination Thebes
"D... Dad?" I'm still stammering, I've heard some stories about him from my mom, but she didn't mention him a lot. Every time I asked her where did daddy go, she just stares into space for a brief moment before saying 'He went somewhere far far away.' Because I was young back then, I didn't put up too much thought about that. But as I got older, I began to wonder what does mom mean by 'somewhere far far away.'
But now, the secret identity of my long lost father has been revealed, now I understood what does mom meant about 'somewhere far far away." That place is the Duat. But I'm happy and both upset at the same time, I mean, I know that Horus is a god and a pharaoh, he's a busy man. But why couldn't he take some ti9me off for some visit like a real dad would do instead of burying his head in Duat? Does he know what have I been through?
After pausing for about a minute recovering from the sudden reveal of identity, I finally said something, but not out of happiness, "Why?"
Horus tiled his head, "What do you mean, my son?"
"Why? Why did you leave me with mom? ALONE?!" I couldn't hold back all my anger about him leaving us without telling me, his OWN son. Just... What kind of dad is HE?!
"You know how MUCH I've been through? I kid without a dad? Son of a WIDOW?! HUH?! Exactly!" I continued, ignoring the worried expression on Bast's face, "Oh so now you decided to show up and be innocent, act like mom never existed?! JUST LIKE THAT?! WOW!" But after I let all of the anger out, my mind was back in control again. I suddenly realized who am I yelling at.
I was yelling at the lord of the sky, a god. Damn was I stupid!
Horus did not flinch or startled by my outburst at all, he just had stayed silenced until I finished my yelling.
A few moments later, he spoke, but this time with a tiny bit of guilt in his tone, "Look, Seth Rogers, I did leave you and your mother, but not on purpose. I left because of a deadly danger that will endanger or even KILL you if I stayed." My mind cooled down, but confusion came. What is he hiding?
"Not my uncle Set, he's been surprisingly steady. Have your mother told you the story of Apophis?" he asked, his tone becoming more serious now.
"Yeah, the ex-god of sun and the god of chaos and destruction," I replied without hesitating.
"Well, here's the problem," Horus said, "he escaped, to THIS world."
There's a moment of silence between us three.
"Wha... Wha... WHAT?!" I shouted again. If you know the story of how Ra defeated Apophis, then you should know that this is a REALLY Big deal, "Ok, let's get this straight. A gigantic OVERSIZED snake that EATS NEARLY EVERYTHING prison-broke out and he's coming to EQUESTRIA?!?!"
"Now now, that's the reason why I left you," Horus said, "Apophis saw something in you; you're the barrier of the Element of Nature, an ancient element that'd been in Equestria since the beginning of time. When I first arrived, I was surprised by how peaceful this world is, but as time grew, I noticed Apophis began to plan on swallowing this land. As the result, I immediately contact the rulers of Equestria. Together, we made a new Element besides the Elements of Harmony; the Element of Nature. It can allow its bearer to control the four natural elements: WInd, FIre. Water, and Earth. I forged these powers into four sets of orbs. The WInd orb is the one on your neckless. And that's the reason why Apophis sends his minions after you." Horus explained.
"Wait, if Apophis's minions are here, why couldn't I see them or sense them?" I asked.
"Apophis's minions are invisible to mortals, not to gods and demigods." Horus said, "But somehow, he managed to block their smells from you. Apophis's ultimate goal is to gain the four orbs of nature and turn them into the Element of Nature. He'll use it against us and lastly to destroy Equestria; if he has the Element of Nature, he'll be nearly invincible even to Ra."
Ok, now that's terrifying.
"But luckily, I was able to hide the four elements of nature into four places in Equestria: Thebes, Canterlot, and Mount Aris." Horus said, much to my relief, "The first element you'll seek is the element of fire, which is in the city of Thebes. My uncle Set will be helping you, but don't trust him too much, you knew our stories in the past."
Nani? Set is seriously going the "help" us? Is he sick? I thought.
Horus seemed to know what I have in mind, "I'm surprised too, he volunteered." Then his right hand begins to glow, after the glow vanished, a golden bracelet with the marking of Akeh appeared on my right wrist.
"This is my gift for you, also to apologize for my actions," he said, now that's heartwarming, "this is my Falcon bracelet, once you activate it with your mind, it'll form a Falconer's Glove, it'll release an immortal falcon that'll guide you to your next direction. This will also host your Khopesh in case you have to go on a stealth mission. Now, if you mind, I'll have a private talk with my old friend." he then turned to Bast, who's looking down, but I can tell she's hiding a blush.
Horus waved his hand, a golden barrier appeared and surrounded them. He then whispered something to Bast, she did the same. Horus's face is somehow concerned and both serious. They talked for about 5 minutes before nodding and setting off the barrier.
"Alright, son, I'm afraid my time is up." Horus said, "It's nice meeting and talking to you and Bast."
He then turned to Bast, "My old friend, please look after my son. And also, it's okay to get close to Seth, just not too close." he ended his sentence with a knowing smirk. Bast blushed harder, I just thought about it in confusion before knowing what he meant.
"DAD!" I yelled, my cheek is starting to heat up.
Suddenly, I heard the hologram of my father blur out a bit, then a voice sounded in the background, it sounded like a teenager's voice, "Uh... Coz? A little help here! That snake bastard's minions are driving me crazy!"
"Who's that?" I asked.
"Oh, that's Anubis," Horus said, "Apophis's minions have been stealing souls and hearts, and Anubis is NOT happy. Trust me, you do NOT want to see him in rage mode."
He then shouted something back to Anubis in ancient Egyptian, before waving, "See you later, my son." His hologram then disappeared in a flash of light. So, the information for the day is pretty much like this: Met my bird dad, found out I'm an element bearer, Apophis coming, and my first targeted location. But there's something I've been wondering: What's between Bast and Horus? Are they hiding something from me?
"You heard the old man Bast," I said, "tomorrow we'll leave at 7, the destination is Thebes."
My Sphinx friend nodded and went hunting for dinner. We have roasted fish for dinner, does Bast gets anything besides fish? I understand cats love fishes but at least try something new.
Bast laid next to me, her huge cozy left-wing covering me like a blanket like the first night I spend with her. Bast fell to sleep a few minutes later, leaving me with my thoughts awaken. Why is Bast so friendly with me when we first met? Why did she save me? And most important of all, why did she blush so hard around Horus? I guess I'll leave these thoughts for tomorrow.
Destinies of two worlds lie on my hands, my adventure will begin...
Author's Note
Here it is! Enjoy! :)
What do you think about the mysteries? What'll happen next? And why's Set so eager to help Seth? Is he planning something big?
