*Morsi's Mansion*
"Finally, you are mine, Nessy Saadid," Aposis whispered with an evil smile, holding the unconscious Nessy in his arms.
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*Earlier on*
"Don't thank me yet, goddess. We still have a war to wage," Aposis said with authority as he returned to the sofa and sat down.
"What do you mean?" Nut asked, looking at him in confusion.
"Are you going to act dumb at this point?" Aposis asked, irritation creeping into his voice. "I'm talking about Geb. He now knows you are here and will want to hunt you down," he said seriously, stressing the last word.
"But why would he want to do that, demon lord?" Nut asked, tears welling in her eyes. "Doesn't he recognize me? Or has his memory been washed? I am his Nut, for crying out loud," she said between sniffs.
"Ha ha ha ha," Aposis laughed in a very annoying manner, but Nut dared not show her annoyance. "Indeed, goddess, I really underestimated your senselessness. What don't you understand? Geb has moved on and no longer loves nor upholds you. His eyes now behold another, whose innocence and good virtues are so alluring even to spiritual beings of high rank," he said with dreamy eyes as he thought of her.
"And who could that person be, my lord? Who is this one that wants to take my Geb away from me? Just say her name, my lord, and I will find her and kill her myself," Nut said, anger and rage written all over her face.
"Tsk tsk tsk," Aposis stood and walked to Nut. He raised her chin and stared into her ocean eyes. "Not so, goddess. I want her for myself. I would have been the one by her side now if I hadn't been so hell-bent on planning my revenge on the sun god and your brother, Geb." He gritted his teeth at the thought.
"However, this very special mortal has made everything easy for me. By captivating the earth god and making him fall for her, I can simply get my revenge on him by claiming him from her before he does. I still sense her innocence even now, so there is still a chance for me to have her before he does—and that's where you, my dear goddess, come in. It's like killing two birds with one stone," he said with a grin.
Nut followed his words duly and understood what he meant: she was finally going to have her Geb by just helping him get the useless mortal. "What would you have me do, demon lord? Just say the word, and it is done," she said, standing up to face him.
"Good," Aposis sat down again before speaking. "You have nothing else to do but follow my orders on this. If you do well, I will send you and your Geb back to your time. But if you fail, I will destroy your soul and take my revenge on him in the dreadest way possible." He gave Nut a death stare.
"I want this more than you do, Aposis. Just say the words and let me do the actions, so I may have my Geb all to myself," she said with dreamy eyes as she remembered Geb.
"Sure, goddess. Then it's a deal. I, demon god Aposis, give thee my word this day that if thou shalt heed thy words, then I most assuredly shalt heed mine," he spoke with his godly tone, assuring Nut beyond all reasonable doubt that he would never fail her if she kept to her end of the bargain.
"Then we are on the same path," she said with a nod. "Just tell me what to do, Aposis, and it is done." Her voice brimmed with determination.
"It's simple, Nut. All I want is for you to be a good actress, because you're going to play a very important role. You are going to be Nessy Saadid," he said with a wicked smile, as if picturing her in the character.
"Who is Nessy Saadid?" she asked eagerly.
Aposis let out a deep breath before speaking. "She is a rare jewel in the land of mortals. She has an aura of innocence that any demon or god would crave to claim—not just from her chastity, but something else, something deep that I can't help but wonder at. She is also a star, a celebrated and acknowledged mortal in this current Egypt. She is the one your Geb has thoughtlessly fallen for, and because of her, you forfeited your time and his will just to be with her. That's how much influence she has. I'm sure you saw her today clinging to Geb at the sight of us. I believe she sensed our intimidating aura and felt subdued, but I still wonder why she feels relaxed with Geb."
Nut had a quick flashback. She recalled the woman who stood beside Geb earlier, but she hadn't noticed her because she was too engrossed with Geb. 'So she was Nessy,' she thought in disgust.
"But how can that be, Aposis? We both know Geb isn't blind. He will surely realize that I am not Nessy," she said, looking intently at him.
"But of course, Nut. I know he is not blind, and that's exactly why we will make him blind—too blind to see," he answered, placing his hand on his chin thoughtfully.
"What?" Nut couldn't believe her ears. What did he mean by making him blind? She hoped it wasn't literal because she definitely didn't like the idea of staying with her Geb blind. "Please, demon lord Aposis, I do not understand. What do you mean by making him blind?" she asked, trying hard to remain calm.
"Can you ever pretend not to be dumb?" Aposis said, disgust written all over his face. 'Such a dummy,' he sighed to himself.
"What I meant was that you would be in disguise—you will become Nessy," he said seriously. "I shall make you look exactly like her: light-colored skin, thick black curly long hair, sharp brows, straight nose—exactly like her. You shall pretend to be her before Geb, while I keep the real Nessy all to myself. Once I claim her, I shall mark her, and she shall be mine and mine alone. By that time, Geb shall be powerless over her and finally let her go, as he shall remain yours forever. And I promise you, no one shall change that fact," he said with an evil smile.
"Very well then, I agree. But what about her awareness? You know I need it if I truly want to fool Geb."
"But of course, Nut. I shall transfer her awareness to you—at least concerning her company and everything you should know. But mind you, even if you get her awareness and my help where I can, you still need acting—and a lot of it—because Geb is very quick-witted and can find you out at the slightest mistake. Most especially, do not, under any circumstance, let your emotions take the lead, because they may betray you. And once you are ratted out before she has been claimed, then you have failed and will surely get your punishment," Aposis said, giving Nut a long, stern stare.
"I won't fail, Aposis. Just give me the lead and leave the rest to me," she said with a beautiful smile.
Aposis nodded, crossing the distance between them and placing his hand on her head. He began reciting ancient charms as she began to glow gold. The glow engulfed her whole being, shining so brightly that even Aposis closed his eyes as he continued the chant.
After a few minutes, he stopped chanting, and the glow dimmed gradually until it vanished. Aposis himself was surprised at what he saw.
He had never used those chants before to perform magic, so he was shocked by the outcome.
Standing before him was his Nessy—no, not her. It was Nut in Nessy's form. She looked exactly like Nessy; he could have mistaken them for each other if Nessy were present. He had done a good job, but there was one flaw: she still had her god aura.
He gave it a quick thought, scratching his head. Then it dawned on him: all he had to do was take away her will and cover her aura with a bond. As she would no longer be a god, she couldn't break free from the bond—ever! Until she got her will back.
"Aposis," Nut called in amazement. "It really worked," she said, surprised at her new looks and voice.
"What's wrong?" she asked, noticing Aposis's worried expression. "Did something go wrong?"
"No, Nut. Just that I need to take away your will," Aposis said seriously.
"Why?" Nut asked, feeling insecure, as if he didn't trust her.
"You still have your aura, and that shouldn't be. I need to take away your will so I can cover it," he replied.
"Is that the only way?" Nut asked in disappointment. She really didn't want to lose her will as a god.
"I'm afraid it is," he said, giving her an apologetic look.
"Then do it," she said, determined.
Without wasting time, Aposis sucked all her will from her and covered her aura in the process.
"Aaaaah!" Nut screamed at the sharp pain, but it was gone quickly. He also strengthened her after the process, preparing her for the task at hand.
Aposis drew away and stared at her with satisfaction. He had covered her aura and taken her will—she was now ready to go. Immediately, he summoned Nessy's soul with his power as a demon god.
He needed her to go to a place where he could switch her with Nut without Geb's knowledge, so he caused her to go to the bathroom.
As soon as he felt her answer the call of manipulation, he gave Nut a nod, which she returned, coming into his embrace as he teleported them both to Nessy's office restroom where she was.
Aposis moved swiftly, knowing Geb was certain something was wrong. He gave Nut Nessy's important awareness—everything she would need for her acting—while making Nessy weak as she fell unconscious.
"You are now ready, Nut. I have done my part. Better not fail yours," he said sternly.
Nut nodded and teleported back to his mansion with Nessy in his arms…