How It All Goes Down
I Visit the Star-Spangled Goddess
- This is Sadie's first time on a ba-trip, so it's pretty disturbing to her when her soul hovers above her body and she gets to see how dirty and ratty she looks.
- Sadie tries to get her ba to settle into a normal human form instead of a demented chicken. It works, and she looks like a see-through version of herself.
- The currents of the Duat sweep her away, and the next thing she sees is a dark void—followed by that yummy-looking pale guy she'd seen in her vision in the Hall of Ages.
- When she manages to find her voice and ask what he's doing there, he replies that spirit travel and death are very similar. Then he opens a door and ushers Sadie through.
- Sadie finds herself standing in a flat (apartment) in the middle of the sky: there are no walls, there's no ceiling, and she can see through the floor to the ground far, far below.
- The place is nicely decorated, with paintings supported by invisible walls, and comfy-looking couches. A woman is making tea in one corner.
- The woman greets Sadie, and once Sadie gets a look at her, she realizes that this is Nut, the sky goddess.
- Nut invites Sadie to have some sahlab with her. Sahlab is an Egyptian drink like hot chocolate but with vanilla instead. They sit and talk.
- Sadie asks whether Nut is inside a human host. Nut says that the sky itself is her body, and this is merely a manifestation. Since Nut is essentially a spirit of the air, the House never managed to catch and imprison her.
- Nut gets to her first point: a battle between the gods and magicians would only feed the forces of chaos, which would be bad for everyone.
- Sadie agrees that they've got to defeat Set—but Nut says it's not necessarily that simple. Set is one of her children, too. In fact, Set used to fight under Ra, and Set joined the other gods to fight Apophis, the serpent of chaos, who was truly evil.
- While talking about family, Nut bitterly describes how she is kept apart forever from her husband Geb as punishment for having kids together. She's exiled to the sky, while he cannot leave the earth.
- Nut suggests that Sadie seek out Thoth, who is currently living in Memphis. As she's a sky goddess, Nut guarantees safe passage, and she gives Sadie three first-class airplane tickets.
- Before Sadie goes, Nut reminds her that she bore five children during the Demon Days. If Julius had released them all, where is the fifth? Nut warns Sadie about Set's minion closing in, too.
- Nut also asks a favor of Sadie: to deliver a letter to Geb if she sees him. Sadie agrees.
- When Sadie wakes up, she tells Carter and Bast about her vision and finds the airline tickets and sealed letter in her magician's bag.
- As for Set's minion… Carter looks out the window and says that it's here.