Douglas Coburn: "Ah can make it
disappear. Ah don't believe ah have the right to destroy it, but ah can get it
away from the Setites forever."
Mayati: She
pauses a moment, rolling her lips between her teeth. "The Cup of Osiris is
called that for a reason. It was stolen by Set. Do you not think it should be
returned to Osiris, or rather, those that are his inheritors?"
Douglas Coburn: "Long-term, yes." He nods
curtly. "Short term, ah believe it is wisest to get it away from the Setites."
Mayati: "What
if you can accomplish both, short-term?" She watches him, taking a drag off the
clove.
Douglas Coburn: He gazes at her
thoughtfully. "You say it," he counters. "It is not a conclusion ah wish to leap
to without proof."
Mayati: She
flicks some ash into the cigarette behind the counter. "You seem a knolwedgable
man, Douglas. What do you know of the Amenti?"
Douglas Coburn: He purses his lips. "Ah
believe the Cup is a component of the Spell of Life."
Mayati: She
shrugs a little. "It was not intended as such, but yes, I believe it can
substitute as such, conceivably. But you didn't answer the question."
Douglas Coburn: "Ah believe ah just did, in
a way."
Mayati: "You
hinted at it, sure." She smiles. "But knowing the Spell of Life and knowing
about the Amenti themselves can be entirely separate things."
Douglas Coburn: "An intelligent woman would
have comprehended meaning within the context of the conversation." He blinks
owlishly.
Mayati: She
gives him a look. "I understand your meaning, DOuglas. Mine is to see how much
of what you know is fact, and how much is rumor and misinterpreted details."
Douglas Coburn: He tugs his pocketwatch out
of a pocket and flips it open, glancing to it. "Mine," he counters, "is to get
the Cup of Osiris away from the Setites before they can corrupt the intent of
the Spell of Life and flood this earth with undyin' obedient servants of Set."
He glances across at her, snapping the watch closed with finger and thumb and
slipping it away once more.
Mayati: "Obediant
servants of Apep, to be specific, but yes, as I said, I understand. And I
contend that the best way to do that is to get it into the Amenti's hands." She
pauses. "I respect your intent, and I'll tell you what I can to help you, as we
both work toward one of the same goals, at least."
Douglas Coburn: "The Amenti aren't the only
ones who would say they are the followers of Osiris," he murmurs. "I hand the
cup to one or the other of you an' there's goin' to be war. No, Myati. Ah'll
find the cup and ah'll make it disappear. You an' the Children make peace with
one another an' approach me together, an' ah'll hand it over."
Mayati: "The
Children of Osiris are sadly long-gone, to my knowledge, Douglas. But that's
another situation." She pauses, collecting her thoughts. "Peter Geren had the
Cup of Osiris, of course. He came to my store, from what I can gather, on a day
I wasn't here. He wanted to sell it to me, or at least see if I was interested
in bidding on it. Knowing I was not a teenaged-boy with too much eyeliner on, he
moved on. He died soon after, when he contacts several black market dealers
about putting it up for auction."
Douglas Coburn: He nods. "Either the
theives didn't know what they were lookin' for, or they took everythin' to hide
the reason for the break-in. Ah suspect the latter, since they smooshed his
brain an' leaked it outta his nose."
Mayati: "I
don't think they got it." She smiles a little. "You know of the Amenti,
obviously. What of the Apepnu?"
Douglas Coburn: "Servants of Apep," he
murmurs, clearly thinking on the fly, "but in your context, ah would imagine
Amenti that follow Apep rather'n Re?"
Mayati: "Sort
of." She takes a last drag off the clove and stubs it out. "Set stole more then
the Cup of Osiris. He actually stole the Spell of Life...a corrupted version. It
infused those who underwent the ritual with malign spirits, making them
abominations, loyal to Apep himself. These seven wander the earth, the Amenti's
eternal enemies." She pauses. "I believe one is here in New York. And I believe
it's still searching for the Cup."
Douglas Coburn: He frowns. "Oh dear."
Mayati: "Oh
dear, is right." She nods. "One of it's servants assaulted me some time ago.
While it was dispatched, it shows me that the Apepnu in question is desperate,
yet careful enough to not send itself. And thus, I don't believe it has the Cup.
Which means it wasn't in Geren's house."
Douglas Coburn: "An' it's usin' the
Setites instead."
Mayati:
"Quite possibly." She nods. "It wasn't a Setite that assaulted me...was what we
call a Reaper. But the possibility of it using the Setites would not be outside
the realm of possibility."
Douglas Coburn: "But unlikely, considerin'
the Setites know nothing."
Mayati: She
shrugs. "As grunts to do the footwork, they wouldn't be bad choices. Most of the
Apepnu are hideous, I'm told...luckily, I've never seen one face-to-face.
Someone less repulsive would attract less attention."
Douglas Coburn: He purses his lips. "So,
where do you think the Cup is?"
Mayati: She
sighs. "Geren had to have passed it off to someone, Douglas. Someone for
safekeeping. There's no way he would have trusted it to the dealers, and he had
no friends in the academic community, due to his less-then-sterling reputation.
I've been trying to dig up information, but I have to be careful on what I ask
and where."
Douglas Coburn: He nods. "Thank you. Ah'll
let you know if ah find anything." He begins limping to the door.
Mayati: "And
I will do the same. Thank you, Douglas. And please, be careful. You seem like an
honorable man, being what you are. I would not want harm to come to you."
Douglas Coburn: "Believe me, ah wouldn't
either." He smiles a little, then unlocks the door and heads out.
Mayati: She
smiles, watching him leave, and leaves the "Closed" sign up, locking the door
behind him.