The goddess of war and healing led the group to a large, twisted tree. Roots of surrounding mangroves plunged to become one with this tree that stood above the rest. Pushing aside tangled lily pads, she reached a pale hand into the waters, grabbing a thick vine out of the water. Mechanical sounds rippled through the air as the pulled vine seemed to trigger moving gears to open a hidden door in the trunk of the tree.

They walked through a dark tunnel that emptied into a circular room. Marble and gold covered the floor, reaching toward a high ceiling, barely visible. The trunk of the tree was emptied creating the main room they entered. Other tunnels spread out from the glowing room like the legs of a large spider.

Like ants, clones of Thoth walked in strategic lines each mumbling their own confounding logic or observing some common object with unwavering attention.

Bek's eyes bounced to each identical god that walked past them. "Is that him? Them?"

The group continued walking to the center of the room. "Of course not," Horus said.

"Then who are they?"

"His trusted servants. He only trusts himself."

Each god looked at Thoth, the real one, with varying levels of interest. Hathor was filled with complete boredom while Sekhmet watched in amusement as the god inspected a head of lettuce.

"Rich with generous compost. Colorful. Mainly in the green and red spectrums. Variegated varieties with inflorescences composed of multiple florets, each with a modified calyx."

Thoth was focused. No attention sparred for his three guests... intruders. He spoke in clipped statements, no room for emotion as that wasted time. If this was not necessary, Horus would not be able to stand with such patience.

"Wise Lord of the Sacred Word, we seek your counsel." The only sign that Thoth heard the god was a raised finger held in his direction.

"Once, a weed, uprooted and burned. Now prized for the vigor of its oils and the sustenance of its leaves." He sat before the strange group, casually propping his feet on an obsidian desk. The lettuce remained his sole focus. "But what is its truth?"

He tossed the lettuce over his shoulder and finally looked toward the three gods and the mortal. Thoth pointed a finger at Hathor. "You! Turn around."

She smirked. "You prefer the view from behind?"

"No, I... Well, yes." He rolled his eyes in exasperation. "You know I can't lie. Turn." As Hathor turned her back, Thoth said, "I'm not going to risk looking at those tricky eyes of yours."

Standing, Thoth's gaze slid to Horus. "Forty-seven."

The god frowned, this pointless rambling was wasting time. "Excuse me?"

Thoth paced slowly, his fingers entwined at his back. "The percentage of knowledge I have so far recorded. I'm not even half done."

"Thoth, I only need-"

"The answer to the riddle of the Sphinx," Thoth finished. Sekhmet laid a light touch on Horus' arm, reminding him to be patient. They needed this smart yet irritating god. "A child could deduce why you're here. Go ask the riddle and come back and relay it to me. I'll solve it," he stated simply before stalking off.

Horus shook his head, hands open by his sides. "One of us would have to die."

This amused Thoth. "Well, draw lots."

"Come with us."

"Ha!"

Hathor looped an arm around Sekhmet's shoulders causing her sister to raise a brow in question. "One night. We'll give you one night."

"Hathor!" Sekhmet gasped as Thoth appeared thoughtful, considering the offer.

"No, they won't." Horus strode up to Thoth. "Set must be stopped before he destroys us all. You see the wisdom in that, don't you?"

The god tapped his temple. "This is far too important to risk. I can recite the true names of the stars."

"I know."

"I've seen the world created from sand and water."

"Mmm-hmm."

"I contain all the wisdom in the universe. More precious than some crown. Ha! I have it!" Thoth rushed to his desk, grabbing a quill and the discarded lettuce. "Its mystery. Its essence. Its truth."

Sekhmet snatched the vegetable from his grasp, tearing it apart before throwing it to the ground. "It's just lettuce!"

She took a deep breath as her eyes darted to those watching her. Even the Thoth duplicates stopped for a moment. Hathor smirked as she watched her sister bring her annoyance back in control. There was the lioness she missed.

Sekhmet cleared her throat, embarrassed by her outburst. "Excuse me." Her gaze returned soft to meet Thoth's curious eyes. "Thoth, with such wisdom you must realize Set will ultimately kill us all if we don't do anything. What good is your knowledge when you're dead? And don't tell me you're wise enough to ward off death for that is the most foolish thought of all."

Thoth angled his head in consideration. "I have missed this," he admitted.

"Missed what?" Horus asked quickly, eye jumping between Sekhmet and Thoth.

The god of wisdom hummed before turning to the god whose jaw was clenched, twitching from imaginative thoughts. Yes, Thoth missed the energy that came from being questioned and contradicted. This was absent from his life after a year of only being surrounded by copies of himself.

"Your father dropped his guard. That was not only extremely stupid, but now I'm forced to write down everything I know as a defense against the remote possibility that Set's war finds me."

"I'm sorry that the corpses of my parents have inconvenienced you," Horus spat lowly.

"Apology accepted. Now, get out!" Thoth demanded.

Horus was desperate and angry. A dangerous combination. With that, he clutched Thoth's shoulders, pinning him against the desk. "You will help us."

Sekhmet gripped the hilt of her sword as the surrounding clones unsheathed their weapons to defend their creator.

"Careful. I outnumber you." Horus glanced down to find a dagger against his abdomen. His senses were weakened by his emotions, perhaps being flat like Thoth was a gift.

Bek rushed to distinguish the tense atmosphere of the room. "It's fine. I'll do it. I told you I'd be the one to face the Sphinx," he spoke to Horus as the god backed away.

Thoth examined the mortal. "Your chance of failure is overwhelming."

The stare Bek fixed on Thoth was unwavering. "I'm sure. But before it kills me I'm going to tell it that I asked the god of wisdom to come but he was afraid he'd get the answer wrong."

His interest flickered. "This is the cleverest strategy you could devise? Playing on my ego? How vain do you think I am?"

The gods stood with anticipation, none knowing what Thoth would decide.

"Yes, well... Fine. Fine! Let's go." The god walked out as if he was never in such disagreement.

"Well done," Horus said as he passed Bek.

Sekhmet couldn't stop the smile as she watched Bek glow from the compliment.