Laucian and Aya set off for the Grand Temple of Anubis the next morning. It was at the western edge of the Island of the Gods. The Grand Temples of Anubis and Osiris were together as both the deities’ priests played a role in the funeral ceremonies in Draconia. The Grand Temple of Anubis was on the eastern side of the complex while the Grand Temple of Osiris was on the west. The complex was adjacent to a private harbor where a funeral barge was docked. This barge was used to take the body of a deceased person to their final resting place at the Sacred Cemetery of the Mountain.
When Laucian and Aya arrived at the gates of the Temple Complex, they found the gates guarded and locked. The sentry at the gate asked, “What business do you have here? This is a closed house of worship.”
Laucian responded, “I seek an audience with the High Priest of Anubis.”
The sentry said, “His Worship does not allow visitors to come so unannounced as you have. It is unlikely he would see you.”
Laucian and Aya looked at each other; they had not expected this. They had assumed because the Grand Temple of Thoth was so open to the public that they all would be. They had not considered that some might not be so welcoming.
Just then, a voice came from behind them. “I say, what are you doing here.” They turned, startled, to see a sullen sort of man. Everything about this man was sullen. He wore black robes and had sunken eyes lined with kohl. His cheeks were also sunken. In other words, he was obviously a follower of Anubis.
“Who are you?” Laucian asked.
“I am Cardinal Cyna Hihill. I am one of the Seven Wandering Cardinals of Anubis and I believe I asked you a question.”
Laucian replied, “I am Laucian Xiloscient, and this is my sister Aya. We wanted an audience with the High Priest of Anubis.”
“His Worship is not here at the moment. He had an urgent matter to attend to at the Sacred Cemetery that required his personal attention. Perhaps you could discuss the matter with me.” Laucian nodded his okay and the Cardinal turned to the sentry. “Please open the gate to let us through.”
The sentry looked uneasy, “Sir, you know His Worship doesn’t like…”
Cardinal Hihill cut the sentry off; “These two are my guests. They enter on my authority.”
The sentry reluctantly opened the gate with a wave of his hand and Laucian and Aya followed the Cardinal into the Courtyard. In contrast to the people who dwelled within the Temple, the grounds were exquisitely decorated. The trees were in full blossom and so were the flowers that lined the path in beds. The smell was such that one could lay down on the soft, thick grass and sleep for ages. To contrast this, the smell inside the Temple Proper was less pleasant; it was a mixture of decay and formaldehyde that no number of flowers that lined the walls could mask. “You get used to the smell,” Cardinal Hihill said as he led them through to his office on the second floor of the compound.
When they were seated in the Cardinal’s office, he said, “Now, what did you need to discuss. I assume it has nothing to do with a funeral, as people do not often come to the Grand Temple of Anubis for that. Most are satisfied with the service at the Auxiliary Temples.”
“No,” Laucian replied. “This is not about a funeral. This is about someone who has been dead for a while. I wanted to know what could be done to allow a person to talk with someone who has already passed on.”
Cardinal Hihill did not look impressed by this. He said, very sternly, “There is nothing anyone can do to do this; the dead do not belong in this world. To summon them back would go against the teachings of Anubis.”
“I know it’s possible,” Laucian said, insistently. “Necromancers are able to do it.”
“Necromancers can do nothing of the sort. They cannot bring back the soul of a dead person, they can only revive the body; without the soul, it’s not really the same person.”
“But surely,” Laucian pressed, desperate now. “There is something you can do. It is surely within Anubis’s power to bring a soul back to the mortal world.”
“Calm down. Why do you ask this?” Cardinal Hihill wondered.
“I need to speak to my mother who has been dead for many years. It’s a personal matter.”
“I lied,” Cardinal Hihill admitted. “There is a way to open communication with the deceased. It is not known to many outside of the Cardinals and we don’t make a habit of using it. I could not justify using it for ‘personal reasons.’ Why do you need to speak to your mother?”
“I feel she could give me guidance that I cannot receive from the living. Please, you would be aiding me in a quest assigned to me by Horus.” This last part was a stretch, but Laucian didn’t care; he needed to see his mother.
“Even if I wanted to help you, I can’t. I know how to perform the ceremony, but I do not have the proper authority. Only the High Priest does. I have to get authority from him or a unanimous authorization of my fellow Cardinals.”
“Please,” Laucian pleaded. “Help me. No one would have to know.”
Cardinal Hihill looked affronted. “Are you suggesting I go against everything I believe in? Everything I’ve dedicated my life to just to help you? It won’t work anyway. If it is not done by the proper authority, I can’t do it. The power will not come.”
Just then, the door opened and in stepped a man in clean, white robes wearing a double ankh around his neck. There was only one person who wore a double ankh pendant: this was the High Priest of Osiris. The High Priest spoke, “Cardinal Hihill, in the absence of the High Priest of Anubis and with the rest of the Cardinals absent, I come to you as the presiding Priest at the Temple of Anubis. I crave an answer as to why your priests refused to conduct a funeral for General Turnhill.”
Cardinal Hihill replied simply, “I would be happy to tell you why: later. Right now, I have guests.” The High Priest of Osiris turned to look at Laucian and Aya and Laucian noticed something strange; something in the High Priest’s face, like he had been put into a trance. A moment later, it was gone, and the High Priest turned back to Cardinal Hihill, “Of course. We can discuss this later. Attend to your guests and give them whatever they ask for. They are in the service of Lord Osiris’s son.”
The High Priest left and Laucian wanted to speak but was too afraid to press his luck. Finally, he spoke up. “I think he just gave you permission to perform the ceremony.”
Cardinal Hihill disagreed with, “It’s not that simple. He’s the High Priest of Osiris, not Anubis.”
“So,” Laucian replied. “Anubis serves Osiris.” Laucian decided to throw caution to the wind and continued: “Please, Cardinal Hihill, I don’t mean to sound childish but I’m struggling to get through a bad break-up and my mother is the only person who can clear my mind enough to allow me to focus on this impossible quest that Horus gave me. I need to speak to her.”
For the first time, Cardinal Hihill smiled; the effect was not at all pleasant. “That was the first thing you said that I truly believe. I will help you.” With that he led them to the chapel on the first floor, where funerals were held. He walked over to a closed door off to the right side. He said, “Every Temple of Anubis has one of these rooms, though few people have ever seen the inside or even know what it is. This is the Holy of Holies. This is the most sacred space in the entire Temple. In here, the Veil between the worlds is thinnest; before I take you inside, I must have your solemn word that you will never tell another living soul what you see in here, including anything your mother tells you. What happens in this room stays in this room.” When Laucian nodded, the Cardinal continued, “Very well. Your sister will need to wait out here.”
When Laucian entered the Holy of Holies, he found it a little underwhelming. The room was small and empty, except for an alter that stood before a white veil. This veil obscured half the room from view. Laucian suspected that there was nothing behind the veil, but the veil did part down the middle. The Cardinal took his place behind the alter, on the side of the veil, and gestured for Laucian to kneel opposite him. The Cardinal asked, “What is your mother’s name?”
“Enwel Forladrin Xiloscient.” Laucian replied
The Cardinal pulled an ankh from around his neck and clasping it in both hands, began saying:
"Oh Lord Anubis; Thou who holds dominion over death. Look down on me, thy humble servant; Look down on this, a lowly mortal. I charge thee, by the power that I hold, Send us the soul of Enwel Forladrin Xiloscient; For her son greatly desires to speak to her, To look on her face, and to hear her voice of comfort. In this, I ask you, humbly, in thy sacred name, Amen."
The Priest then stepped back and disappeared behind the veil. Laucian waited a few moments and then another man stepped out from behind the veil. He was bare chested, muscular, and wearing a shendyt, a type of kilt. He radiated a power that made it clear that this was Anubis himself. Anubis spoke, “I have answered your prayer, Laucian Xiloscient, uttered by the mouth of my servant. I will give you what you desire: your mother, for fifteen minutes of your time.” Anubis reached his hand back through the veil and led out a woman of such beauty and radiance, that the stars themselves would have died of shame. His mother was more beautiful than Laucian remembered. When Anubis stepped back through the veil, Enwel Xiloscient held out her arms to her only son. Hardly daring to believe he could, Laucian stepped around the alter and embraced his mother. Her embrace felt so warm to Laucian, and he was so happy to see her that it precluded all his pain. After a minute, his mother said, “We don’t have much time. Why have you called me here?”
“I needed to see you mother. I needed to talk to you.”
“About Ulceaon?” asked his mother, casually.
“How did you know?” Laucian asked, surprised.
“Do you think death could stop me from looking after my son? I have watched you grow up into a wonderful young adult. You have your father’s eyes.”
“Don’t say that.”
“You mustn’t hold this anger toward your father. I know he hasn’t always been kind to you. But he cares in his own way.”
“He’s charging me with treason!” Laucian exclaimed.
“Don’t take that tone with me young man,” his mother warned. “I think your father is strict on you because he loves you. He’s lost so many of the people he loves, and I think he’s afraid of losing you too. But we didn’t come here to talk about your father; we came to talk about Ulceaon.”
“I loved him, mother.” Laucian said, starting to cry.
“I know you did son. You have an incredible gift. To love so much that it hurts is a gift beyond all others.”
“I don’t want it to hurt. I want to stop hurting.”
“That is a simple thing. Surely, you don’t need me to tell you how to stop hurting, do you?”
“I don’t know how.”
“Laucian, I’m surprised at you. I would have thought all my lessons would have taught you better. If you want to get past this pain, all you need to do is forgive.”
“I don’t know if I can. How can I continue to love someone who has betrayed me?”
“It is within you to do so. To love someone so much that you can overlook their faults is a gift that even I am jealous of. Don’t go to your grave like I did: angry and in pain.”
“What do you mean?” Laucian asked, confused.
“You found out that you are related to Galdore, who was your childhood friend. I remember the two of you together, getting into all sorts of trouble around the palace. At first, I was afraid of your friendship because I didn’t want you to find out the truth. You see, I knew about your father’s affair. It drove the two of us apart because I was never able to forgive him.”
“Why did you stay?” Laucian asked.
“I stayed for you. I stayed for Aya. I stayed for all my children. But you most of all. Don’t tell your sisters but you were always my favorite child. I’d always wanted a boy but after three girls, I was beginning to lose hope of that dream coming true. Then I fell pregnant again and something told me that this was it, that Isis had heard my prayers. And I had you, and I could not have been happier. To have been your mother was the greatest blessing I could have asked for, even though our time was cut short.”
“So, you don’t think I’m a shame on the family name?”
“How could you ever think that?”
“Because father believes it.”
“Your father is a traditionalist. He doesn’t understand why things have to change. You are your own person, Laucian. And before you ask it: I don’t care that you’re homosexual. I’ve known that since before you have. In fact, I almost feared that you and Galdore were getting too close, and I would have to tell you the truth. You are your own man. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. It’s one of the things I am proudest of; that you are determined to live the life you want, regardless of what others say. Ultimately, that’s the only advice I can give. I want you to be happy. Ulceaon has made you happy and can continue to make you happy. Forgive him. It’s within your power.”
Anubis stepped into view and gestured that time was up. Laucian said, “I don’t want you to go. There are so many things that I never got to say to you.”
“You’ll have time to say them later. Remember, I’m not completely out of your life. I’ll always be watching. And we will see each other again someday.”
They both embraced and his mother began to sing. It was a song that only his mother ever sang to him; Aya didn’t know it. It was his favorite song. He felt calm wash over him and he no longer carried any anger. He sank to the floor and fell asleep to the sound of his mother’s voice.
When Laucian awoke, he was lying on the floor of the Holy of Holies with Cardinal Hihill staring up at him. Laucian stood up and walked with the Cardinal back into the Chapel. Aya stood up from where she had been sitting in the pews. A crowd of priests, monks, and paladins was starting to come into the Chapel. Cardinal Hihill said, “You’ll have to find your own way out. Evening service is about to begin.” Laucian and Aya walked through the Temple to the exit and proceeded to the gate. The gate was opened to let them pass.
