Gate of Memoirs/Ma'at

The impartial Arbiter is forced to act in order to save the world from endless chaos.
Portrait 	Dialogue
Music: "Roaring Soul"	Music: "Roaring Soul"
 	
*Set: Enough!
*Set: What's the point of killing me? Nothing will change!
 	
*Set: I am the LAST ally you could possibly have right now.
 	
*A wry smile quirks the Deceiver's lips as Aesys draws back, wincing as though struck.
 	
*Aesys: I'm not falling for that.
 	
*Set glowers at Aesys, but continues in a calm voice.
*Set: Use your head. Did you think you'd land unscathed had you tempted the *God-King*?
*Set: You're *welcome* for that safe arrival, Sister.
*Set: Trust me, attuning to your violent rift-tearing was not easy on my own.
 	
*Thoth: So, it really *is* her doing as well.
Music: "Overcome" 	Music: "Overcome"
 	
*The figure does not answer, but she does incline her head ever so slightly in Thoth's direction.
*She seemed content merely to weave her hands as if in ritual,
*participating only marginally in the altercation that had played out mere moments ago.
*But with every sweep and gesture, each felt the strands of their being twining around each other.
 	
*Thoth: Centuries upon centuries... How long has it been?
*Thoth: Has even the Architect ever beheld thee in thy glory? Or merely guided by thy Voice?
 	
*Thoth: Ma'at, O Arbiter.
*Thoth: We finally meet.
 	
*The sound that issued forth next was not so much language as it was a lilting note upon their souls.
*Ma'at's lips did not move, but still her voice reached into that place far within,
*and it was then that the previously invisible threads manifested as beams of gold, almost too bright to look upon.
 	
*Ma'at: One, by one, by one, the Cycle tumbles forward unto eternity. 
*Ma'at: Unchanging yet ever-writhing...
 	
*Ma'at: By my hand all are Ordained, and by Deceiver's word I shall keep.
*Ma'at: Before thee, I grant a Vision—
*Ma'at: Open thy eyes, and see.
Portrait	Dialogue
 	
*A ruined palace unravels before them—a mere echo of a past event, steeped in convoluted time.
*Hundreds of ghostly figures pass in and out of the courts, and a dazed figure with a gleaming headdress rises to her feet.
 	
*Hetepheres: (Oww...That was a trip...)
 	
*Hetepheres: (...?! Where's my voice?)
*Hetepheres: (Where in the world am I...?)
 	
*As she raises her head to look, a man swathed in wavering light hovers before an empty throne.
*The rotting carpets and defaced statues were all emblematic of the God-King's court, but this scene shimmered like a vague memory.
*Wisps of shadow formed a silhouette standing atop the despoiled dais.
*?: What a surprise to see the Father himself in my court.
*?: To what do I owe your magnanimous presence?
 	
*Ptah: I will not utter your cursed name, Serpent.
*Ptah: Countless empires have risen and fallen in the life of this world, half of them your insidious doing...
 	
*Ptah: ...And now you wish to destroy the Balance entirely by unmaking everything I labored to create.
*Ptah: Know that the Light will not tolerate your crimes.
 	
*Hetepheres winces as a rasping laughter scrapes across her ears.
 	
*?: The first thing you did was run, coward!
*?: You were afraid, Architect. Afraid that only death awaits you.
 	
*Ptah: I feared not the end of myself, but the end of the Cycle. Of all existence.
*Ptah: It is true—I abandoned this world before, believing it was the hand of Fate.
*Ptah: No longer. I will banish you from this world entirely.
 	
*Ptah: I am the true Creator of this world!
 	
*?: Have you forgotten whose realm you now stand in?
*?: Who you should be grateful for to even stand and draw breath?
*?: "Your" world is finished.
 	
*Hetepheres: Ah-
 	
*Before Hetepheres could react, both figures launched a barrage of magical energies at the other.
Portrait 	Dialogue
 	
*With another burst of light, the two planes overlap, collapsing back into the ruined arena.
*Hetepheres lands in a heap as the court is shattered to pieces, shunted violently through dimensions.
 	
*Neferet: T-Teph?!
 	
*Rahotep: How did you—
 	
*Hetepheres: Whoever said cats always landed on their feet was dead wrong.
 	
*Blinking stars from her eyes, Aesys glares up at Ma'at, whose outstretched hand was clenched in concentration.
 	
*Aesys: ...What was that about?
 	
*Thoth: Aesys, calm yourself. It seems that the different planes in this realm have crossed.
 	
*Thoth: ...More importantly, we have a visitor.
 	
*Rahotep draws his blade, the sound of his blade sending a ripple of tension across the group.
 	
*Neferet's face remained impassive, though her white-knuckled grip betrayed her innermost feelings.
Music: "Battle Spirit"	Music: "Battle Spirit"
 	
*After all, neither of them counted on seeing that sunken face so soon—or ever.
*Gaunt, slit-eyed, and with a large gash down one side of his face to his chest, the God-King otherwise looked the same as he did in life.
*His sneer held every bit of malice he had while atop his throne of blood, stirring resentment in some and defiance in others.
*God-King: Good, good. You're all here.
*God-King: That simplifies matters. And to think back in the day I had to go chasing each of you.
 	
*Aesys only snarls in response, low and dangerous.
*She throws a dirty look at Set, who merely fixes her gaze forward.
 	
*Set: Surely you're not here simply to wag your tongue at us.
*Set: Get to the point.
 	
*God-King: So eager to die.
*God-King: But first things first. I am not as cruel as you, to let you suffer alone.
*God-King: Here. Now, *all* the pieces are in place.
 	
*The Lord of Life slinks like a puppet on a string through a rift in space, shackles from his makeshift tomb broken in places.
*No life burned in his eyes until the God-King snapped his bony fingers, and as he raises his head, he catches Aesys' pained gaze.
*Osiris: ... ...
 	
*Relishing in Aesys' look of pure anguish at her mindless husband,
*the God-King snaps his fingers again, and at once the former Lord of Life raises his flail...
 	
*...Only to swing it backward, clipping his master with its cruel edge.
*God-King: You IDIOT! What—
 	
*A cascade of metallic feathers descends as Ma'at draws her hand back, revealing a similar thread linking Osiris to her.
*The Arbiter's slight smile does not escape the God-King, who narrows his eyes in consternation.
 	
*Set: I told you to trust me.
 	
*Thoth: These threads... Fate?!
*Thoth: She's intervening on our behalf...
 	
*Set: ...Consider it a leveling of the playing field.
 	
*Set: Now, go! He's wide open!