Set by Alessa Thorn

27

Set stood outside of Cairo prison, smoking a cigarette and waiting for the guards to clear him for a visit. It had been three weeks since he had last been there and had almost reduced the shit hole to rubble.

This is the last trip you ever have to make to this place, he reminded himself. One meeting, and then he would drive back to Alexandria to Ayla.

"He's ready for you," the guard said, waving him through.

The prison had been cleaned of the blood that Set had left in his wake, but he could still smell the scorch of magic.

As he neared Kader's cell, he had to stop the flood of nightmarish images bombarding him: a laughing Abasi, Kader shouting, Ayla dying in his arms.

"It's good to see you standing and in one piece," Kader said, getting to his feet. The cell still reeked of bleach, and Kader looked as if he had aged ten years overnight.

"I have a good friend who knows his craft well," Set admitted with a grin.

"I know. I met the great sorcerer the night you died. Tell me, is Ayla…"

Perfect in every way? Yes, yes, she is.

"She's doing well and is back home in Alexandria," Set replied, folding his arms. "I wanted to tell you myself that she lives. She told me to pass on the message that she's not ready to talk to you yet."

Kader nodded. "I understand that. To see her at all was more than I had ever hoped for. To have her die in front of me was my worst nightmare. I don't think I'll ever get over that."

"Me neither," Set admitted.

Kader didn't look the least surprised. "I trust you will keep an eye on her."

"Two eyes. At least until I know some other asshole isn't going to try and use her as leverage against you," Set replied. "Look, Kader, I can't work for you anymore."

"I know, and I understand," Kader nodded. "What will you do instead?"

Set smiled. "Your daughter has a list of occupations that she believes will suit me better. She's very convincing when she wants to be."

"You should've met her mother," Kader replied with a deep chuckle. "God, that woman was everything."

"So you did keep in contact with her."

"Of course I did. At least until I agreed to come to this shitty prison cell. After she died, I didn't bother to find a way out of it." Kader shut his eyes for a long moment. "She would've been happy to know that you are watching out for Ayla. She was worried about her being alone."

Set's Ka thrummed inside of him. "You can rest easy, old man. Ayla is never going to be alone again."

* * *

The two-hour rideback to Alexandria passed quickly, Set's mind full of Ayla and the problem of Anubis. He had already received a pointed text from Thoth about not dragging his feet.

Considering Set had a new phone and a new number, which he hadn’t given the sorcerer, it was clear Thoth had used his magic again. Set doubted his friend would be patient much longer.

It can wait until tomorrow.

Set took the stairs to Ayla's apartment and then ran when he smelled smoke. He forced open the front door and found Ayla standing on a chair and trying to turn the smoke alarm off.

"What happened?" Set asked.

"I was going to cook and—" Ayla tossed a kitchen towel at him as he started laughing.

"You have many fine qualities, malikati, but I think we can leave the cooking to me. It is on my list after all," Set said, helping her down and planting a kiss on her cheek.

"Speaking of your list, I have come up with the perfect job," Ayla announced, grabbing her wine glass and the bottle from beside the still smoking stove. She popped herself up on a stool at the counter and had a drink.

Set looked at the chaos around him and tried not to start laughing again as he tried to rectify the situation. He grabbed a beer from the fridge because he knew he was going to need it.

"I thought I already had the perfect job cooking for you and giving you orgasms," Set teased.

"A high and noble calling to be sure, but you can't do that forever, and I'm not about to stop being a doctor."

"You know our plans will have to wait until Anubis is found. Thoth is right. Osiris will try and fuck us even if we do get Anubis back," Set replied. He still didn't think his god magic being spread out between him and Ayla was a happy coincidence.

"I want to find Anubis too, don't worry." Ayla pulled him over to her and between her legs. Set smiled because it was his new favorite place to be.

"But after he is found, I think you should be doing things like you did in Kharga. The world is a mess, and it's not the only place where innocent people are getting killed and kidnapped. You could help them. We could help them."

"You want to be my partner while I murder people?"

Ayla smiled up at him. "I want to be your partner as you go into places so dangerous no one else can risk it, and then I can help the people that you save. I want to be your partner in every way possible."

Set's heart did strange things when she talked like that. "Love me bad, don't you?"

"Immeasurably," Ayla admitted. "But you're not changing the subject."

"I'm concerned that you are still trying to make me into something better than I am. Because you know it doesn't work that way," Set tried to argue.

"Sure it does. I know you can't change what you are, but you can channel it in the right way. Be a protector again," Ayla said. She pulled him down to her, wrapping him in her almond and myrrh scent. "But don't forget about the cooking and the orgasms."

Set pulled her close, the clever, beautiful woman who had awoken his soul and stolen his heart. There was only one answer he was capable of giving her.

"Yes, malikati, let's do it," he whispered against her smile. "All of it."

Then the god of war kissed his queen until her body melted into his, and their shared power burned.