The seal
“My turn, my turn, my turn”
Luke heard another of the goddesses say with great enthusiasm, while he couldn't get out of his stupefaction observing how imposing Din looked dressed like that.
Wow.
His… boyfriend? was now the avatar of a goddess.
And not only that, but she had chosen to dress him as what he was, a king among his own.
Saving the distances and the moments, only once, the Jedi had seen a person dressed in such a way that it had caused a similar impression on him.
Leia.
At the award ceremony after the Battle of Yavin.
Of course, back then, as imaginative and young as he was, he had probably magnified the thing and the reality should have been less shocking than the memory, but still. His sister was the first Princess he knew and, hell, standing in front of the rebel army, higher than the rest of them, dressed stunningly, Leia Organa was someone who shouted her position and power to you.
Din, in silver, with gold details that seemed to float above his armor, red cloak and dark saber, was... more or less, like the figure of those kings of the past and legends.
“Dear. Hellooo”
A voice told him and Luke’s thoughts returned to reality, to find the face of one of the goddesses very close to his, causing the Jedi to give a sharp cry of astonishment, half staggering as he quickly backed away.
Which, obviously, caused the traitors of his brother-in-law and his sister to burst out laughing.
“I’m sorry, I didn't mean to scare you”
The goddess told him once he was able to recover from the astonishment.
“No, no, it's my fault, I was distracted...”
“His brain short circuit drooling for his boyfriend!”
“Han!”
His brother-in-law exclaimed as he was scolded by his sister and, although he was really tempted to turn around and hit the Millennium Falcon pilot on the head for being such a daring idiot, the truth is that it was true.
And he wasn't going to be embarrassed in front of anyone for finding Din attractive and cool, so he smiled at the goddess, sighing, as if to say: I’m sorry too.
“I also think he looks handsome” the deity confessed to him, winking with a giggle and then joining her hands with enthusiasm “but, later there will be time to talk about those things. Now get back to ours. Do you want to be my avatar?”
Luke's eyes widened when he heard the proposal and, logically, he could only ask.
“What?”
“Taweret, by the waters of the Nile, you're going to kill him of a shock” grunted a cat-faced goddess, approaching “Excuse my companion behavior, she usually gets too excited and doesn't explain properly. As it happened to your partner, if you want to fight with the avatar of a god or against a god itself, you must be an avatar of another god. We chose avatars because fighting directly on this plane could cause the destruction of the world in which we fight as well. That is why we channel and moderate our presence through third parties”
“Like the Force with the Jedi” Luke reasoned seeing Anubis who nodded, to then turn to the kind goddess who had spoken to him first “And you want me to be your avatar?”
“I would be delighted if you were” commented the hippopotamus goddess, nodding enthusiastically “You seem like a protective and friendly boy and... well, my thing isn’t... big warriors”
“Taweret is the goddess of fertility, women and children” explained another of the goddesses’ present “While the rest of us represent other qualities. Bastet is a warrior goddess, but also of harmony and family”
“I already have an avatar, so I’m not be included in this request” the cat-headed goddess clarified.
“As I was saying, Bastet, who has already her own avatar” commented the goddess who had been speaking up to that moment, rolling her eyes “Neith, who is the opener of paths and rule over hunting. Pakhet, who is our goddess of war. Sehkmet, who is the protector of kings and pharaohs, as well as a great healer. And I, who am called Wadjet and am the original guardian of this chamber along with Lady Nephthys, since my function is to be the protector of the Ennead, while she is the protector of the Overvoid”
“By the way” added the one who was designated as Nephthys “I’m Anubis mother”
“Mother” pointed out that same god laughing low “try, as Lady Bastet said to Lady Taweret, not to kill my grandchildren with shock”
“Forget it” claimed the goddess laughing too “I plan to assert my family rights, as much as I did with Kebechet”
“Get ready then” commented one of the goddesses who hadn’t been pointed out “Lady Nephthys is a quite intense relative”
“Are you Kebechet?”
One of the other gods asked and everyone present turned to see him.
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The moon god's eyes focused on the figure of the goddess.
His daughter was…exactly the mix of her parents.
Her black and abundant hair that undulated over her back and shoulders, as well as her stunning figure, had definitely been inherited from her mother, the most beautiful among the goddesses. While his skin and deep gray eyes were the exact translation of his when he took human form. Adorned with symbols of the house of Anubis, her body covered in linen and gold, proclaimed her status.
Khonshu wanted to groan and sigh at the same time.
Horus has never been a fool.
None of the gods were.
One glance at the girl and one could tell whose daughter she was.
Both Anubis and Hathor must have had a hard time hiding it.
“Father” the young goddess replied to Khonshu bowing her head, taking the god of the moon out of his thoughts “I will not say that it is a pleasure to meet you, because I have already seen you before”
“Where?” questioned the god amazed.
“In the palace of Osiris in the Overvoid, during your last visit”
Shit.
That had been quite a while ago.
And if he remembered correctly, Khonshu hadn't given the best of images that day. Since he had tried for the last time to get the leader of the gods to agree that the others could intervene in earthly affairs again. Even if it was moderate.
His request was based on the fact that, although their cult was no longer that of the leaders of a major civilization, there were still believers who paid homage to them on Earth and who awaited their presence. That they couldn't keep abandoning them and that, in all honesty, his forces were no longer what they used to be and with everything and avatar, Khonshu wasn’t enough for all of humanity.
Osiris had replied that they weren’t the only ones who had left the planet. So had the Asgardian and Greek gods, dismissing the interventions of several of the gods who had supported Khonshu.
But before being able to answer him adequately, appealing to Osiris's ego, saying that comparing their gods with the other pantheons was lowering himself, Horus had taken the floor and, as usual, had made the god of the moon lose patience.
Hathor's husband had laughed at Khonshu and his intentions, had called him weak, unbalanced and had told him that the "useless" effort he had put into humanity in all those years had made him descend into a shadow of what he had been before and therefore he was no longer the handsome god of the past, causing all the goddesses to simply pity his now hideous face.
The moon god recognized it. He should have seen it coming and not answered that warped hawk face the way he did, but the imbecile had provoked him in public, sitting next to the woman Khonshu loved and couldn't have.
Therefore, the thing had escalated from insults to shouting and fighting in a very short time and all the noble cause that had taken him back to the Overvoid to submit to the court, had ended with the god of the moon banished to earth, alone, with his anger to resolve.
Unfortunately, he hadn't paid any attention to most of those present in the Tribunal, as focused as he had been on Osiris and his mission.
“I’m sorry that...” admitted Khonshu sighing “that was the first impression you have of me”
“It was a good impression” her daughter replied smiling “Mother. Well, she is too calm and polite”
Anubis, hearing what the young woman was saying, began to laugh.
“Lord of mummification” Hathor sighed “Don’t encourage her”
“She’s right, my lady” commented the jackal-headed god still laughing “And you know it. Kebechet, is too similar to his father”
“Wait a minute” Moon Knight's voice was heard “Is this girl the daughter of Khonshu?”
“Marc” the moon god warned his avatar “this is none of your business”
“No, surely not, but I'm curious also” commented the museum's souvenir vendor “Is her or isn’t her your daughter?”
“Steven Grant!” exclaimed the god losing patience “If it's not Marc's business, it's not your business either!”
“Yes, to both” Kebechet replied, highly entertained by the discussion.
“And why do they talk like...?” the Londoner began to question “No. It may be that you didn't know that you had a daughter, you bad tempered pigeon?”
“What? What did you say Steve?”
“He spoke of a first impression and she told him that she had already met him, Marc”
“Shit, that's why he's so bonkers”
“Now... No. No. No. The goddess of beauty. I thought it was just…a harmless flirtation. This god is definitely crazy, Marc”
“I thought it was just something light like a banter, but a daughter, with the wife of Horus. Damn”
“I don't know about you” Han intervened laughing low “but the talk of those two transforming so fast, makes me half dizzy”
“If they had a surface to reflect on, it would be simpler” Layla sighed.
“I'm not complaining” Solo replied “It's quite fun to watch”
“Listen to me, miss... goddess” Steven said crossing his arms “Your dad isn’t the best person. Ii I were you I would consider starting a family relationship with him”
“Steven Grant, you...”
The moon god began to say hitting his staff on the floor, but his daughter's hand stopped him.
“No, Khonshu” Steven raised his voice again “You took advantage of Marc when he was weaker than ever, when he had no choice but to choose to be your avatar. He... nor I... were in a position to do what we did for you. Do you know that Marc remembers every person he killed? Each person. It doesn't matter to him if they were evil, we're not like you or... the goddess of Harrow. Killing is bad for us. It boggles our minds. In our case, Marc created me to deal with... his mother, after the death of his brother. And I can bet that, with every death he's had to deal with, something... or someone new arose within him. Although he's scared enough not to investigate and... the truth is that I am too”
“Steven Grant” Isis asked the avatar before Khonshu could reply “Let me talk to Marc Spector”
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The man's costume changed from its modern appearance to that of the ceremonial one and Moon Knight's eyes gleamed in the chamber.
“Here I am” Marc said to the goddess “What do you want me for?”
“To apologize” the leader of the goddesses sighed “Your situation, I fear, was caused by us and it isn’t only Khonshu's responsibility, although he will have to take care of compensating you for his actions”
“Lady Isis...”
“On your knees lord of the moon!” exclaimed the goddess, turning to see the god with anger, who, compelled by an invisible force, as had happened with Osiris, ended up on his knees over the floor of the chamber “I didn't ask for your opinion!”
“My lady” Thoth said to the goddess smiling while kneeling next to Khonshu “please”
“Your counterpart, Lord of knowledge” murmured the goddess snapping her fingers, releasing Khonshu.
“Don't worry, my lady” Thoth replied, helping the other god to get up “We've all lost patience with Khonshu. And in any case, at this time, he will listen first, and then he will be able to defend himself”
“Of course, he will have the opportunity, I'm not my husband”
The goddess clarified and both gods gently bowed their heads.
Isis then goes back to watch Marc, who swallowed hard.
The woman was obviously extremely powerful if she could silence Khonshu like that and only receive the god's respect in return.
“Marc Spector” the goddess called him again “Come”
The former mercenary advanced until he was in front of the woman, who brought her hands to his face, gently closing the human's eyelids with her thumbs.
Seconds later, Marc felt a soft warmth slide from his temples to his feet. The goddess was using her powers on his person, but it didn't feel invasive or exuberant, more like a light caress.
A gesture of deep affection, which made him choke back a sob as he felt like this, seemed to comfort his heart from within.
Isis's hands gently withdrew from his face, once the caress of her power had passed all the way through it.
“Open your eyes”
The goddess indicated to Moon Knight and when he obeyed was able to observe how the woman's hands were populated with a kind of red gems.
“You are an extremely interesting person, Marc Spector. I’m sorry to say that, despite the circumstances, you are perfect to be the avatar of our mischievous and daring lord of the moon. However, I recognize that it should have been your will that guided the process and not the other way around” Isis admitted indicating the gems with her hands “Especially since one of the conditions that he should have offered you was the power to remove this from within you”
“What are they?”
Asked the former mercenary, but who answered him wasn’t the goddess, but the husband of the Princess who had come to see the woman's hands with the same curiosity as Marc.
“Correct me if I'm wrong, ma'am, but... these are his other... personalities, right?”
The one called Han asked and a shiver ran down the spine of the former mercenary from head to toe.
“What?” he murmured, removing one of the crescent-shaped daggers from his suit to observe his reflection with attention and fear “No, no, no, Steven!”
"Here I am mate. Calm down. Breathe. Nothing happened to me"
The museum memorabilia vendor answered from his reflection, and Marc finally let out the sob he'd been holding since the goddess's powers had swept through him.
Seconds later two arms wrapped around Marc comforting him and he knew that Layla had him in her arms.
Layla.
His wife.
To whom he had imposed a life full of challenges and so many secrets that he didn't really know why the Egyptian kept insisting on being by his side.
Tears slid free down the cheeks that were hidden in Layla's neck.
For the first time in a long time, he was able, as he had been in the underworld, to express himself in such a way.
To allow himself to feel pain and sorrow for his condition. For all that he had had to suffer and over which he had had so little control
“Marc Spector” Isis told him calling his attention “I have only removed from your interior those personalities, as the husband of Anubis's granddaughter calls them, that you don’t recognize and that you no longer need. There's one I couldn't remove and I'm guessing it's the one you call Steven. It is the oldest of all and, you are no longer possible to be separated”
“It's... it's better this way...” he recognized separating a little from Layla “Steven and I...”
“I told you” laugh low his wife “You two come together and it's fine for me”
“Then he only stays with that one and the others will no longer be present, right?” the General asked the goddess.
“It shouldn't be possible for them to generate another personality again” Isis explained, nodding “I sealed the possibility that they could do it, so their mind is protected”
“And with those personalities that you have in your hand, what do you plan to do?” the General questioned again.
“It’s the decision of their host what happens to them” said the goddess.
“Honestly” acknowledged Marc “I don't want to know who they are, or why they were born”
“Neither do I” added Layla “Everything that has happened to Marc and Steven has to have a tragic cut if we ever want to be happy”
“Even if this includes the death of Abdallah El-Faouly?” Thoth asked his own avatar
Layla took a deep breath, turned to look at Marc's eyes and held his hand tightly before answering.
“Even. If it was any of his personalities who hurt or kill my father, it wasn't Marc. He didn't. He couldn't control what was happening to him”
General Solo delicately took from the hands of the goddess the gems that housed the personalities of the mercenary and deposited them on the floor, and then stood up.
“Leia”
He uttered and his spouse and Princess stepped forward to stand beside him, whereupon both husband and wife trampled on the gems, destroying them.