Anubis continued, “You see, a body is much like a pyramid. It can channel vast amounts of energy. It can house a soul, and yet it is made of natural materials that eventually return to the dust from whence it came. But, to fashion a mummy is to create an everlasting body—one that will be fit enough so that the ka, or the soul, that leaves it, may take it up once again.
“To accomplish this, there are certain things that must be done when a person dies. The first is to preserve the body, as I am doing now.” The wrappings had now reached Amon’s neck and I could no longer hold back my tears as the linen cloths completed the process and covered his head. Anubis peered at me underneath Amon’s floating body, and said, “I am attempting to comfort you. Please pay attention.”
I glared at the god, but he ignored me and went happily back to his macabre duties. He fashioned a beautiful sarcophagus out of the sand—a polished wooden casket, richly ornate with carvings depicting Amon’s recent battle with Sebak and his army of the undead. I gasped when I noticed a likeness of myself standing with Amon at the top of the pyramid.
“It…it’s lovely,” I said in awe as I reached out to run my hand over it. With my fingertips, I traced a depiction of a girl with sun-streaked hair, wrapping her arms around a man gleaming with the sparkling rays of the sun.
“Do you like it? Sarcophagus art is one of my specialties.” Anubis cleared his throat and I stepped back as Amon’s wrapped form floated toward the coffin and then settled into it. “As I was saying, to create a mummy three things must happen.”
“Preserve the body,” I whispered as I stood to see what Anubis was doing. He was stooped over Amon. He created beautiful jeweled brooches from the sand and then placed them one by one in the sarcophagus next to Amon.
“Very good,” the god of mummification said. “You have been listening.”
“What are those?” I asked.
“Protective amulets. They will ward off those who seek to do evil as Amon’s body sleeps. Even though the current grand vizier is approaching through the tunnels and will be here soon enough to remove the brothers to a hidden location, I feel it is now imperative to take every precaution. I did not think the amulets were necessary before, but the fact that Amon’s body had been removed from the vizier’s care this millennium proves that no safeguard should be ignored. Now—” Anubis lifted his hand to draw up more sand, but nothing appeared. “That is odd,” he murmured.
“What’s wrong?”
“The last piece is the one that goes over the heart. It is in the shape of a scarab.”
“A heart scarab?” I asked.
“Yes.” Anubis peered at me. “Do you know where his is?”
My throat tightened, and instead of answering, I asked a question. “What happens if you don’t have it?”
Anubis scratched his ear. “Nothing, I suppose. The heart scarab only helps the wandering ka find its body, but Amon should not have a problem with that.”
“Good.” I decided then to keep the heart scarab a secret. If there wasn’t anything detrimental about me keeping it, then I wanted it. It was the only piece of Amon I’d have after all this was over.
“There. The body is finished.”
“So what’s the third thing?”
“The third? We haven’t even performed the second.”
“Oh. I thought the amulets were the second thing.”
“No. The second part is invigorating the body by providing sustenance.”
“Won’t food, you know, rot after a few days?”
“Yes, but I did not say I would provide food. The word I used was ‘sustenance.’?”
I frowned and folded my arms. “I believe I do have some familiarity with the word.”
“Many people misunderstand it,” he said, ignoring my statement. “By sustenance, I mean that I provide energy, enough that the body will be sustained for at least a millennium, and perhaps a bit longer. The strength necessary to maintain Amon’s body when he wakens is contained in his canopic jars.”
“Which is why he needed me when he couldn’t find them.”
“Yes.”
“But won’t sharing your energy drain you?”