Seven Ancient Wonders - Matthew Reilly [73]
ENTER THE EMBRACE OF ANUBIS WILLINGLY, AND YOU SHALL LIVE BEYOND THE COMING OF RA.
ENTER AGAINST YOUR WILL, AND YOUR PEOPLE SHALL RULE FOR BUT ONE EON, BUT YOU SHALL LIVE NO MORE.
ENTER NOT AT ALL, AND THE WORLD SHALL BE NO MORE.
‘What do you reckon?’ West asked suddenly, not turning to face her.
Lily froze, put on the spot. ‘I . . . I don’t know. . . ’
West swivelled. ‘I’m thinking it’s about death and the afterlife, in the form of an address from Amun to the Jesus-like character, Horus. “The embrace of Anubis” is death. If Horus accepts his death willingly, he will rise again and confer a benefit on his people. A bit like Christ dying on the cross. But enough of that. What brings you here today, kiddo?’
A vigorous discussion followed about Australian–American relations, about the rise of America as a sole superpower, and the concerns of Australia that its friend was becoming something of a global bully. ‘Sometimes a good friend,’ West said, ‘has to show tough love. It’s also much better to get taught a difficult lesson from your friend than from your enemy.’
West then abruptly changed the subject. ‘Lily, there’s something I have to tell you. When all this comes to a head, if it turns out as I hope it will, I’m probably going to have to go away for a while—’
‘Go away?’ Lily said, alarmed.
‘Yes. Lie low. Go someplace where no-one can find me. Disappear.’
‘Disappear. . . ’ Lily gulped.
‘But I want you to be able to find me, Lily,’ West said, smiling. ‘Now, I can’t tell you where I’m going, but I can point you in the right direction. If you can solve this riddle, you’ll find me.’
He handed her a slip of paper, on which was written:
My new home is home to both tigers and crocodiles.
To find it, pay the boatman, take your chances and journey
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell.
There you will find me, protected by a great villain.
‘And that, kiddo, is all I’ll say. Now scram.’
Lily scampered out of the study, gripping the slip of paper.
She would pore over West’s riddle for months—even going so far as to punch every word of it into Google—trying to figure it out.
She had other questions, however, which were answered.
Such as where West had acquired Horus.
‘Horus’s former owner was once Huntsman’s teacher,’ Wizard said, as the two of them sat outside in the brilliant African sunshine.
‘He was a nasty man named Marshall Judah. Judah was an American colonel who taught Jack how to be a better soldier at a place called Coronado.
‘Judah would walk around the Coronado base with Horus on his shoulder, yelling at the troops. And as an example to them, he would beat Horus if she didn’t perform as she had been trained. He would say, “The only way to get obedience is through discipline and brute force!”
‘Huntsman didn’t like this. Didn’t like seeing Judah being so cruel to the falcon. So when West left Coronado, he stole the bird from her cage in Judah’s office. Ever since, Jack has treated Horus with kindness and love, and she returns his affection tenfold.
‘Lily, as you grow up, you’ll find that some people in this world are not very nice at all. They favour cruelty over kindness, power over sharing, anger over understanding.
‘These people think only of themselves. They seek to rule over others, not for others’ sakes, but for their own desire for power. Lily, one day you are going to be very powerful—very powerful— and I hope that if you learn nothing else from us here, you learn that the truly great people think of others first and themselves last.
‘For an example of this, look no further than Huntsman and Horus. A beaten bird will obey a cruel master out of fear. But a kind master it will die for.’
One day, Lily was helping Wizard organise some of his ancient scrolls.
She loved all his old stuff—the parchments, the tablets. To her, they held within them all the mysteries of ancient faraway times.
On that particular day Wizard was