Mummy: The Resurrection

Over the course of thousands of years, ancient Egyptians perfected the art of preserving the bodies of the dead. Their intent was to maintain the body for the family of the deceased. After death, the individual's soul passed into Duat, the Egyptian Underworld. There, in the spirit city of Amenti, Osiris ruled over the dead. The god Anubis guided new arrivals before the judges of the afterlife, so that they could determine the spirit's reward for its life. When incorporated with the mummification ceremony, the Spell of Life that had been set down by Osiris and his sister-wife Isis created an eternal link between soul and corpse. Although the spirit still ventured into the underworld upon its death ,it could now return across the Shroud (which divides the living and spirit worlds), infusing its dead flesh with life. Proper service in the underworld realm of Amenti allowed the mummy to gather sufficient spiritual energy to return to the living world. Months, even years might pass, but a mummy would always eventually return to life no matter how many times he was slain. The followers of Isis and Osiris performed the resurrection ceremony on a small number of their members. Because of an imperfect understanding by Osiris and Isis when they created the spell, however, the ancient mummies were subtly flawed. Although their flesh was warm and their hearts beat, the touch of death never left them entirely. Although they had been infused with life eternal, they were completely sterile. Mystics found mummies' auras dull and their blood strangely lacking in life force. Despite being small in number, the undying breed made formidable opponents. Horus, the son of Osiris and greatest of the Undying, led most of the mummies in a crusade to cleanse the world of his murderous uncle, Set --- who was himself a servant of Apophis. The faithful Followers of Horus, the Shemsu-heru, returned again and again from beyond the grave to stand against the evil of set and the dark god's venomous children. The handful of mummies battled Set's corruption down through the millennia. Then came the Dja-akh, the ghost storm, that ravaged the underworld. Even the eternal Shemsu-heru could not withstand the fury of the Dja-akh, and many of their number perished in the destruction of great Amenti, the Dark Kingdom of Sand. Without the wisdom of Osiris, the god of resurrection, all might have been lost. He rose from his centuries long-slumber, from which he had emerged less than five times in the passing millennia, and used his power to shield the city... but even he had his limits. He bought time for the spirits of Amenti to escape into the world, and then took refuge in the web of faith interconnecting greatest sites of Egypt and the Holy Lands, collectively known as the Lands of Faith.

In the aftermath of the spirit storm, the old Spell of Life had lost its potency. It now bestows not so much as a twitch in a warm corpse. Osiris, active and interested in the affairs of the living for the first time in generations, has delivered a new Spell of Life to priests and priestesses of unwavering integrity and honor. Osiris' centuries beyond the Shroud may have given him greater insight into the bond between spirit and flesh. This new spell is without flaw, and it is far more powerful than its predecessor. The newest spell of resurrection imbues the dead with a life force that flows as strong as the great river Nile. Part of the spell's strength comes from the new manner in which the Reborn (as the mummies are also called) are created. Those resurrected in the wake of the Dja-akh are the product of a union of one of the storm-shattered souls from Amenti and the flawed soul of a mortal who has died recently. Only the strongest shards of the souls of the ancient Egyptian dead were able to survive the maelstrom's savage winds. At Osiris' behest, the remnants of these ancient spirits --- including many old mummies whose souls were fractured by the howling soul tide of the Dja-Akh --- are spreading across the world seeking those whose weaknesses need their strength. They solicit a bond with individuals whom they can complete and complement. From the perspective of those in the underworld, a person who is soon to meet with death evinces a mark or sign shortly before his end in the physical world. Spirits call these prophetic markings "death marks." When one of the Amenti spirits finds a compatible individual bearing the spiritual death marks, the tattered entity waits nearby in the tumultuous ghost world. At the moment of death, the Amenti spirit fragment reveals itself to the newly deceased and offers to restore him to life. Should he agree, the shard of the Egyptian soul animates the individuals dying form with just enough life energy to make a desperate pilgrimage. The spirit's goal is the Web of Faith, infused with the life force of Osiris himself --- a life force that is vital to the resurrection ceremony. In the Lands of Faith, the priests and priestesses of Isis and Osiris wait for the joined spirits and their sacred magic calls to the returning dead. Once the animated corpse is taken in at one of the secret sites, the beloved of Isis and Osiris perform the divine ritual of resurrection. While the exact practice of the ritual of rebirth varies from cult to cult, the key elements remain consistent. The body is soaked in natron (a salt mixture common to the Egyptian embalming process) and wrapped in protective bandages that have been inscribed with spells. As long as the ritual is performed within the Web of Faith, the deceased is flooded with a surge of life force. The power of Osiris flows into the corpse, burning away the weak portions of its soul. The fragment of the ancient Egyptian soul replaces the flawed or impure portion of the modern soul, and it is called the tem-akh, or "completing spirit." The new soul joins seamlessly with the old; the hybrid then faces the Judges of Ma'at. After receiving this arcane spiritual body's judgement, the newly empowered soul merges once more with the body. The resurrected individual --- referred to formally as an Amenti in honor of the lost city of the dead --- may undergo small changes as the body adjusts to its new, more powerful life force, although these alterations tend to be subtle ones. The most significant changes that the Spell of Life brings are clear. The recipient has come back to life, and the weakest portion of his soul has been replaced with the powerful tem-akh.

Before death and subsequent rebirth, a person who experienced the resurrection invariably led a stunted and largely hollow life due to some weakness or flaw in his character. Being made whole by the tem-akh grants the individual an entirely new way to experience life. Some describe it as finding a conscience that they never had. Some compare it to finding a new best friend that they will never lose. Some describe it as awakening a great hunger for justice that cannot be denied. None go unchallenged. In the new mummy, the child of the modern age and the abandoned child of a lost time come together. Two lives fuse. Each portion grants strength where the other was weak. Millennia worth of wisdom combine with the enlightened attitudes of a new world. The fading essence of the tem-akh merges with the frenetic energy of the modern mind, and the resultant soul brings a unique perspective into being. The self-styled Undying refer to this existence as the Third Life. Upon Returning to life, the Amenti is more alive than ever before. His senses are more refined, and sensation is more intense. Lights seem more colorful and brighter. Sex is more fulfilling. Food is more flavorful. As every tactile sense is heightened, life becomes indescribably more sensuous. Although the mummy still spends periods of inactivity within the dead realms, the joys that life has to offer remind him constantly to strive to return. The world that the Modeler has created is too beautiful not to savor, and the spark of the divine wakes an incomparable appreciation for living. With a deep awareness of the preciousness of life comes a heavy feeling of responsibility. Most of the Resurrected realize that they have been called back to life to help retake the world from the corrupting forces of Set's master, Apophis. Some seek to improve the societies that have adopted them in the Lands of Faith. Others return to their previous lives in hopes of healing the damage that they caused through their thoughtlessness or selfishness. Those who understand the principles of Ma'at best are inspired endlessly to change the world for the better and drive out the minions of darkness.

Mummies are not the only supernatural beings in the world. The Lands of Faith are home to a variety of preternatural creatures, some of which are as ageless and trackless as the desert itself. Islamic texts speak of the djinn, beings created from smokeless fire by Allah before the coming of man. A handful of mystics believe that those who are slain and rise as vampires are actually reanimated by the bestial spirit of a lesser djinn known as a ghul, whcih flows into the body along with the tainted blood and inspires an unholy hunger. The same scholars say that the shapeshifters, nature spirits and faeries of legend are but forms of djinn and ifrit as well. Tales of King Solomon trapping thousands of djinn within various magical vessels continue to inspire wonder. Wizards sometimes seek to follow in the Biblical King's footsteps by binding djinn to perform great tasks.

The entity known as Apophis knows only one thing: corruption. It has been around since time began, and it exists to defile and destroy. It is the ultimate trickster, the overwhelming darkness and the unceasing perversion. Among the minions of Isis and Osiris, Apophis is considered the source of all evil. Many are drawn into the Great Serpent's snare unwittingly as their natural desires for success and wealth grow slowly tainted by Apophis' insidious influence. The Great Serpent does not fear engaging in outright conflict, but it is just as skilled at using subtlety to achieve its goals. Likewise, its minions are corruption incarnate, perverting the innocent and defiling the unspoiled. Set was the Corrupter's mightiest champion, slaying Osiris and battling Horus through the march of year. The greatest threat Apophis presents comes from the subtle depravities it uses to influence even the staunchest of its opponents. The corrupted Bane Mummies are but one example of the Great Serpent's ability to turn its enemies into its tools.

The Quest for Ma'at guides most mummies in the modern world. "Ma'at" translates simultaneously as truth, balance, and justice, and is both a concept and a deity. This godlike being represents one of the faces of the divine order established by the Creator of all, known in certain ancient Egyptian faiths as Amen-Ptah-Khenmu, though even the pure sahu who have returned from the Fields of Paradise have found only his servants, and the eldest mummies, followers of Horus, say that even Anubis has not spoken of the All-Fatherin a very long time. In the eyes of the faithful, only two beings know the divine will: Osiris, as proven by his inviolable form during his millennia upon the throne ofAmenti, and Ma'at, due to her dominion over the Judges of Balance. Both gods are responsible for the new resurrection. The fact that the god of life placed his own heart upon the scales of Ma'at more than once, and if holy Osiris finds the divine order more important than his own eternal life, so then must the mummies to whom he grants new vitality. There exist 42 beings, called simply the Judges of Ma'at, who consider every soul that Anubis brings before them. Souls that they find wanting are tossed to Oblivion, while the rest are allowed to carry on theirduties in the underworld. The Amenti do not know exactly who or what the Judges of Ma'at are, but each time a mummy is killed, her spirit journeys into the underworld and stands before one of the Judges, and she must prove herself worthy of retaining the gift of immortality before she is allowed to return to her mortal form.

Resurrected Factions: These are the various groups that perform the Ceremony of Life on the walking dead who make their way to the web of faith, and they influence the outlook of the mummy thanks to their training and resources.

The Cult of Isis - Inspired by the actions of the mother-goddess of the Egyptian pantheon, the Cult has long had a reputation for guiding the forces of Horus and passing down magical arts that their goddess learned from Thoth and Ra. Though the forces of Set nearly destroyed the cult in the time of Cleopatra, and managed to corrupt members of it even before that, the Roman's invasion of Egypt ironically ensured the survival of the sect, spreading throughout the invaders' empire. The cult dispersed, however, each branch taking on different forms and many forgetting their divine origins. As the new millenium neared, attuned cult members who were still faithful to Osiris received visions of a future that promised his return, and they rushed to the lands of faith to prepare, working frantically to be ready. When the first Amenti made their way to the lands of faith, the Cult of Isis was ready. Many members consider the modern mummies as the chosen of the gods, and they consider it their duty to teach the Amenti the sorcery and mystical knowledge that their tem-akh may have lost, making them the most nurturing of the faithful. Many of them do expect favors in return, though, and see the Undying as the ones to carry out those favors as the intermediaries of the human and divine worlds.

The Children of Osiris - The eldest members of the Children of Osiris claim that they were once ghuls --- what the Europeans call Vampires. When Osiris proclaimed an end to cannibalism, some ghuls rebelled and were burned to death by Ra's fury for their defiance. The surviving blood demons slipped into the shadows and carried on their vile ways. Then a wise ghul named Khetamon turned from the path of darkness and cast himself before Osiris. The god-king looked Khetamon's heart and saw that he truly wished to cease feasting on the living, but that he could not.The First Pharaoh blessed the repentant Khetamon and taught him how to fight against the corruption that lurked within his spirit. It is rumored that Osiris even let Khetamon drink his blood for purification. Upon seeing the god-king's mercy, other blood demons sought redemption for themselves. Since Osiris' strict religious discipline and deep philosophical teachings gave themnew meaning, the repentant ghuls began to call themselves the Children of Osiris. Through the dark times following Osiris' death, many ghuls fell back to their own base natures or even the service of Apophis or Set, but when the turn of the century came, Osiris awoke and destroyed the betrayers of his followers with gouts of flame, while rewarding those who remained faithful by turning them into humans once more, with all the included joys and limitations. They have gathered human followers with them, and teach Osiris' will without question. The Children of Osiris frequently care for those who receive the Spell of Life but who are dangerous due to their frightening khaibits, and the Children help these mummies control their bestial sides. However, the other factions show little trust for a group built around what once were blood-sucking creatures of darkness.

Shemsu-Heru - Orginally numbering one for each of the 42 Judges of Ma'at, these followers of Horus (including the Immortal Avenger himself) have been winnowed down by centuries of tragedy and despair. When Osiris returned, he had his son gather his followers for a ritual that ended in their deaths... allowing them, too, to receive the new Spell of Life, which has since made their return to the world that much more vivid and wonderful. The return of Horus (who has since become so powerful that he acts through intermediaries of his surviving comrades, themselves leaders of the Shemsu-Heru) has sparked the restoration of the ancient city of Edfu, between Isna and Aswan, where Horus' temple once stood, and faith in Horus is rising throughout the land, upsetting Muslim purists and resulting in stricter security.

Eset-A: Splinter faiths of the Cult of Isis and the Children of Osiris believe that each of the resting places of Osiris' body parts held relics that absorbed portions of the god-king's divine energy. They seek to collect the artifacts that hold Osiris' Sekhem so that they might rebuild him on the earthly realm again. Other factions feel that this approach borders on blashphemy, especially since some Eset-a insist that the god-king's heart is the Islamic holy Ka'ba. Osiris was reputedly torn into 16 parts: his head, the soles of his feet, his bones, his arms his heart, his interior, his tongue, his eye, his fist, his fingers, his back, his ears, his loins, his body, his head with the face of a ram and his hair. Supposedly, the sites linked to these parts are Ament of Koptos, Aa-ab in Elephantine, At-rut-f in Herkaleopolis Magna, Kusae, Heliopolis, An-Ament in Sma-behutet (Diopolis), Letopolis, Pa-Thuhenin Sais, Meh-ta-f in Hermopolis, Athribis, Aq (Scedia),Ab in the Lybyan nome, Het-sera in the city of Netert and Apis. Most Eset-a believe this inconsistency of 16 parts and 14 locations can be solved if one takes the "face of a ram" as an allegory for a representation of the Creator, and abides by the legend that Osiris' "loins" were swaloweed by a naru fish. Unfortunately, many of the sites of the god's remnants have been pillaged over the millenia, and their artifacts have been scattered around the world. Other factions worry that their willingness to steal and bribe in order to recover their artifacts is just as dangerous to the principles of Ma'at as outright opposition.

Ashkukhi Corporation - By all accounts, the fortunesof the Ashukhi Corporation changed when a distracted driver struck the little import business' owners.Until then, the uninspired company struggledfor its very existence. Afterthe couple's descendants sold it to a new interest for an embarrassingly small sum, Ashukhi found unexpected aid and new direction. Along with adopting a new Egyptian rams-head logo, the company began a path of investments in a bizarre mix of innovative new technologies and archaeological study that would baffle most analysts' understanding. Similarly, although it is often difficult to discern a consistent pattern, the organization's continuing financial growth and incredible charitable contributions to various education institutions indicates both genius in the improvement of mankind's future and respect for his past. In reality, the Ashukhi Corporation invests in people. The mummies and mortals alike who work with the Ashukhi Corporation hope to build a betterworld. They striveto create an appropriate source of wealthand technological power for Osiris to inherit upon his return. Competing directly against the gigantic corporations that shape the modern world is currently beyond Ashukhi's scope, but the company does provide one way for mummies to bury their assets between lives. Other, more overtly religious groups wonder at the Ashukhi Corporation's true usefulness, and whether the distraction of pursuing investments might take away from hunting down the minions of Apophis.

Kher-Minu: The Tomb Watchers.
The Egyptians envisioned the Ka spirit as the portion of the soul that remained near the khat (body), protecting it until its resurrection. While the ka rarely had problems protecting its body from ghosts and the other dead, the relentless encroachment of thieves, new religions and invaders in the physical world was more problematic. Generations of greed and plunder ravaged the ka's mystical wards, violated the sacred tomb and scattered the many treasures held therein --- including the khat itself. Physicians and charlatans ground some bodies into medicine. Fortune-hunters stripped others of their amulets, wrappings and coffins, displaying them naked for public amusement.The Ka despaired as they lost their charges. Only a handful defended their corpses successfully throughout the centuries. Then the Dark Kingdom of Sand was battered to dust by the Dja-akh. Those who survived held to a passion for duty that endured, unflagging, through countless ravages of the centuries. These Kher-minu possess a love of life and a respect for the body as the ultimate temple to the divine. The ka chooses its mortal host from among those people who bear little protective instinct or love for their own lives and bodies. Sometimes, however, the chosen is a beautiful wallflower who gazed into the mirror of the world and saw only ugliness reflected back. Being a devout admirer of the physical, the Kher-minu revels in the knowledge that all forms are beautiful in their own way. The modern partner is almost always a casualty of a tragic or self-destructive lifestyle, particular an individual of notable talent. The ka typically avoids choosing a famous host, although figures like James Dean, Kurt Cobain and Marilyn Monroe offer a good parallel. Instead, its chosen nehem-sen often stands at the edges of renown, a poor soul who shuffled from this earthly coil while enjoying only some minor stardom at best. Obsessions with vice are a hallmark of the mortal's living days. The ideal host is quite attractive, but he lacks purpose. He gets lost in unhappiness and dies before his time. With the Third Life, the Kher-minu is immune to the temptation of the old vices, although he remembers his former desperation with crystal clarity. He becomes fit, learns self-defense styles, sets up precautions, and resists the urge to take stupid risks while abandoning drugs, cigarettes and alcohol. He realizes that life is a precious thing that is not to be wasted by frivolous and perilous behavior. Many also become morticians, cemetery overseers, doctors, bodyguards, or fitness teachers. Eventually, as a Kher-Minu progresses along the path of Ma'at, he or she will become more concerned with all life and consider it an extension of him/herself. As befits his role as a defender of bodies and tombs, the Kher-minu specializes in Hekau (magic) that creates magical amulets. This magic invests articles of jewelry or clothing with protective or empowering abilities. As a special ability, the powerful ka can try to redirect chance to protect the mummy's body from attack through what seems like luck, though it takes a supreme effort of will to knowingly do something potentially damaging to themselves.

Khri-habi: Scroll-Bearers or Bearers of the Book
The ba spirit appears in Egyptian art as a bird with a human head. Its reputed role was to perform duties in the afterlife that would ensure the body's resurrection. The world's constant denial of Ma'at seemed destined to prevent most of them from ever seeing their promised resurrections, but the will of the undying ba was unyielding. As the most movable parts of the soul, they held many positions in the city of Amenti, and got their title of Scroll-Bearers for their roles as teachers and messengers and priests. The ba is the spiritual embodiment of the conscious mind, and they bear qualities of wisdom and leadership. The ba spirit finds it easiest to bind itself to a mortal with a weak psyche, someone with minimal levels of conscious thought. THe flawed vessel that the ba seeks to complete is one ruled by instinct, habit, or dogma. A ba host tends to have underdeveloped personal morals or a weak sense of individual identity. She is dominated by the influences of peers, authority figures, tradition, habit and routine. Such vessels include soldiers following orders mindlessly, members of highly dogmatic conservative religions, weak-willed victims of popular culture, members of collegiate Greek systems who need a hive mentality to function or even petty criminals who lack any personal code of ethics. The lost souls of the modern age seek a sense of direction, and once they die, the old souls of a past era give it to them. In their third lives, eager to find out more about the diverse world around them and open to new possibilities, they shrug off thoughtless behaviors and many become therapists, psychologists, doctors, faith healers, astrologers, and mystics. The feeling of responsibility for others grows as the Khri-habi sheds her former dullard existence and soars to new heights... while seeing the ways others waste their potential. As alchemy seeks to turn base metals to gold, the Khri-habi seeks to remove the shackles on the minds of those she encounters. As a special ability, the ba soul can fly free and return every sunrise with spiritual energy like a mother bird bringing food to her nest, and the Scroll-bearer can use it to heal her body or that of another. However, in many situations the Ba self must dig for the knowledge, reflexes, or instincts that she needs from her partner, and precious time is lost deciding what to do.

Mesektet: Night Suns or Vessels of Ra
The Egyptians viewed the Sahu as the incorruptible and everlasting portion of the soul that passed onward to heaven. The destruction of Amenti and the ravages the underworld suffered pulled the fahu from A'aru as a cruel reminder of the debt they still owed the living. Many sahu had long ago turned their attention away from the fate of the rest of their collective being. With trepidation --- but with an even stronger sense of duty --- the sahu turned their attention back to the mortal realm. After the perfection of A'aru, many sahu saw the living world as a dark place lost to the light of Ma'at. They saw themselves as the bringers of that light, and they took the name Mesektet, the Night Suns or Vessels of Ra. A sahu seeks to complete a mortal whose life revolved around deception, superficiality and shortsighted folly; someone ruled by a desire to lie or cheat. Such an individual is marked by impatience and dominated by temporal concerns as she deceives herself and others. A charlatan seeking a quick dollar, a dreamer who dreams to escape rather than for inspiration, a politician grabbing a fast vote with no plans for tomorrow --- each is an example of someone with whom a sahu hopes to join. The sahu brings integrity - the practice of keeping his deeds in line with his words - and honesty - the practice of keeping his words in line with his deeds. More than other mummies, the Mesektet is more likely to attempt to repair the damage cause in his former life and learn to balance new insight with discretion. It is said that the design of Ma'at is written in the stars. The Night Sun sees those stars with a spiritual clarity unhindered by smog and deceit of the mundane world, and with practice, one who has been to heaven may call down the fires of the sky and command the storms. Each day, the Mesektet may attempt to predict the events that will come to pass and achieve what looks like supernatural luck, though at sunset, the Sahu spirit leaves the Amenti, leaving them weakened and confused. Some say that their souls slip back to A'aru to recover and refresh themselves, while others claim they go to aid Ra in his nightly battle with Apophis. Regardless, many Mesektet sleep in a death-like state during this time, though some continue to struggle on at night.

Sakhmu: The Spirit Scepters
The ancient Egyptians understood the Khu to be an aura that linked the individual's physical and spiritual forms. More accurately, the khu served as a kind of shield and spirit anchor. When a person died, the khu wrapped her soul in a protective ectoplasmic caul that carried the spirit safely across the Shroud that separates the physical and spiritual worlds. The khu then served as the link between the spirit world and the individual's body. After the Dja-Akh, they took the name Sakhmu after the carved wooden sword-maces representing the bond between temporal duty and that of the divine. In each khu shines the light of brilliance. To achieve the Third Life, the khu seeks out one who was dull and selfish or plodding and self-centered in life. A mortal with an empty life already seeking something of the divine and begging for it to touch her. Typically, this mortal struggled to create something of permanence, but she lacked inner illumination. One might have scrambled over others in her climb up the corporate ladder only to reach an empty top rung. Another might have search for an elusive secret to success in business or relationships, but looked for all the wrong signs. One could have grown old and bitter, so wrapped up in the sel-absorbed bustle of the daily grind that she never saw the beauty of the world around her. Such a person hungered to be the center of the world and never found her place within it. The khu opens the eyes of the spiritually blind and reveals the powerful vision found at the gateway between the realms, allowing them to see both the dazzling and horrifying truths of the worlds, as well as the greater works and lessons found within. This insight into the connection between the spiritual and the physical inspires the Sakhmu to invest their crafts with a spark of the divine, creating Effigies or Ushabti that bear their own life. A Sakhmu can use her inspiration to perform incredible acts of creativity, but her inner light will somehow attract the attention of others when she attempts to be stealthy and impress herself upon the memories of others (even if, in a police lineup, she wasn't the one who did it... she just seems so vividly present to the viewer).

Sefekhi: The Unbandaged Ones
The khaibit is the driving and aggressive essence of the being. It epitomizes drives of all sorts: rage and lust as well as the desire for mastery and success. As a "shadow" of the soul, the khaibit usually remained attached to the ka or ba in the afterlife. In the absence of the khaibit, apathy and stasis prevail. The khaibit, consequently, is one of the most enduring parts of the being. In the aftermath of the Dja-akh, many khaibit wandered aimlessly about the destruction, though the call of Osiris gives them new direction: tracking down a mortal whose darker half is pale and weak. The shadow-soul invariably partners with a new spirit that is timid, restrained or unassertive. This quiescence may be due to a lack of drive or aggressive tendencies, a strong will, pacifism or rigid self-discipline. Endowed with supernatural strength and limitless drive, the khaibit drives its corpse on the hajj to resurrection with terrifying determination. The feral khaibit's journey to the Lands of Faith has not escaped the attention of the waiting resurrection cults. The Children of Osiris began a practice that has since spread to the other groups, by sending out a heavily armed group to hunt down the rampaging corpse. The ritual for resurrection frequently involves deep cuts into the body, following the wounds inflicted by Set on Osiris, meant to let the shadows spill out of the body and balance the Amenti while weakening that ferocious drive, though many remain shaven headed in their third lives. The Sefekhi's third life is marked by a growing mastery of his savage urges, which he views as necessary and natural in all mankind, and he becomes a soldier of Ma'at who understands all too well the dangers of apathy, inaction, and passivity. The khaibit's primitive connection with the darker forces of the underworld, combined with the mortuary practices of the cults that capture the driven corpse, has led the shadow-born to specialize in the Hekau of Necromancy. A Sefekhi can ignore or shrug off debilitating injuries as part of their berserk singlemindedness, but he also radiates a frightening, predatory sense of ferocity that unnerves most humans around him.

Udja-sen: The Judged Ones
Much can go wrong in joining a tem-akh with a dying mortal. In some cases, the tem-akh replaces the weak or underdeveloped portion of the deceased's soul, but a remaining portion of the modern soul may be too weak to withstand the rigors of immortality. When an individual receives the Rite of Rebirth, Anubis leads the joined soul before the Judges of Ma'at, where it is weighed against the feather of Ma'at. If the soul if found wanting, it is devoured by the beast Amemait. However, sometimes the judges remove the corrupt portion in order to prevent the whole being from falling to Apophis. The tem-akh is them warped from its natural state --- stretched, in a sense, to cover the mummy's spiritual wounds. Any function the tem-akh may have served as well as most of its memories, is forgotten. The resultant bond of body and soul remain capable of resurrection, but it possesses a sort of mystical wound that serves as an eternal reminder of its judgment. Many who have fallen prey to this fate think it unfair at best. They are looked down upon by other mummies, and their past failings are often held up against them, while they lack the guidance of a tem-akh or any true experience with Osiris's presence in the world, for their magics draw energy painfully through their bodies instead of the web of faith. In time, the Judged One must come to see his place on the edge not as a curse, but a blessing. His distance from other mummies - and his greater freedom to travel outside the Lands of Faith, where the other mummies cannot replenish their spiritual energy as easily - grants the Udja-sen access to viewpoints and information that others may never come across. Likewise, he may choose to serve Osiris or spend his immortality cultivating Ma'at in other ways. Since their tem-akh is some other soul and they lack any memories, they can have any Hekau as their primary path, even the powerful art of nomenclature. Every time they use magic or feel magic being used on them, their wounded soul cries out in painful agony, and their body reacts similarly. However, this sensitivity allows them to draw on magic from the world outside the lands of faith and channel it to their own reserves or those of others.

The ancient Egyptian word for magic was Hekau --- which means literally "words of power." Most tem-akh learned at least some basic charms of protection during their lives in ancient Egypt, and the Amenti return to life at the hands of cults possessing great arcane knowledge. In the resurrection of the Amenti, 6000 years of mystical tradition have found new life and power. The six paths of Hekau divide the occult praxes of Isis, Thoth and millennia of sorcerers into distinct magical sciences. A truly puissant magician will eventually gain knowledge of every art, but most of the young Amenti struggle to recapture even a fraction of the glory that built mighty Egypt. Each Amenti finds that a certain path comes more naturally to her ancient soul fragment, whether due to old memories or instinctual bent. There are two main kinds of magic within each path: spells (instant effects) and rituals (prolonged and more lasting and powerful enchantments). The six mystical paths include:

ALCHEMY
Named for Al Khem, or the Black Land, the art of Alchemy was one of the greatest gifts from Egypt to the mysticism of the West. The search for the elixer of life, the panacea of universal medicine and the transmutation of base substances into gold led to the creation of an encyclopedia of potions, poisons, and cures for nearly every occasion. The Egyptian priesthood naturally expanded the care for the spiritual well being of their charges to cover their physical welfare, and they commanded the greatest libraries of mystical formulas. The Scroll-Bearers guarded a priceless trove of knowledge during their reign in the underworld as lords of Amenti. The return of the Khri-Habi has unfurled the scrolls of wisdom once again. Alchemists may create a salve, essence, potion, or powder, analyze the properties of an object, transform something into something else, bestow different properties, control emotions, heal, and create various chemical reactions (including those involving heat).

AMULETS
The Hekau path of Amulets --- also referred to as meket --- is the art of crafting charms that focus magical power, most often for protection against evil, sickness or sorcery. Deceased Egyptians were usually buried with a number of amulets that were designed to ward them from various calamities that might befall them in the underworld. These items ranged from tiny carved trinkets hidden in the mummy's wrappings to a Pharaoh's full regalia. Tomb Watchers commonly learned to use at least a few warding spells while defending the khat. Each of the Kher-minu possesses at least some talent for the path of Amulets. Include any inscription, including scrolls, jewelry, tokens, and body art. Can allow a master to change his appearance, influence the senses, protect against damage, increased luck, various transportation powers, binding and imprisonment, and curses on intruders.

CELESTIAL
Ra progresses through the sky each day, while the stars reflect the writings of Thoth's great tomes at night. A Celestial magician learns to tap into these heavenly forces to see what is to come and to command the phenomena of nature with her will. Although it is often subtle, Celestial magic has a broad scope. These spells alter fate and fortune, influence the weather and even call upon the gods themselves for succor. Dedicated Celestial practitioners often seem like astrologer-priests, who create their magic by petitioning the gods and studying complex patterns of connection between the heavens and the earth. The cycle of Ra reflects the existence of the Mesektet, who naturally gravitate toward Celestial magic. The Night Suns reverberate with the heavenly cycles, so they find themselves attuned to the ebb and flow of stars, moons, and planets. This includes manipulating good and ill fortune, obscuring one's presence in the sky from other attempts to scry, lightning, solar energy, temperature, wind, meteors, sandstorms, plagues, thunder, and earthquakes.

EFFIGY
This magical art derives its power from the sympathetic link between a physical representation and the original or ideal. Ushabti or "answerers" are common creations of this art. These magical statues are designed to perform any tasks assigned to the deceased in the afterlife. The path includes concepts of architectural magic as well as spiritual symbolism. The Sakhmu artisans of the Hekau path of Effigy created much of the grandeur of Egypt, from intricate golden masks to the eternal pyramids. The Spirit Scepters erected the gateways to the afterlife, communicated the divine vision to the populace and built the vessels that carried the dead to Paradise. The effigies created can be everything from images of tools and weapons done to scale that grow to full size when commanded, or figurines of any animal that can come to (full-sized) life, as well as halting and taking control of the effigies built by others, invisible secret passages, the destruction of objects so that their spirits can be used in the underworld, and vessels of stored sekhem (magical energy).

NECROMANCY
An understanding of the soul is paramount for beings who travel between the lands of life and death. Egyptians recognized multiple parts of the soul, as reflected in the varied Resurrected. It is no wonder, then, that they had such a keen understanding of Necromancy and its principles. A necromancer channels the energy of the khaibit (the blackened soul-shadow) and uses its necrotic powers to influence the underworld and the dead. Such incantations can summon or banish ghosts, protect the Reborn's soul as it wanders the afterlife or even energize the mummy with the entropy of death itself. The magician must always be cautious, though, lest the malefic powers at his command become unruly or the khaibit itself claim too much dominion. Necromancy is a balancing act and a reconciliation between life and death that brings the living and dead worlds closer together. With their strengthened Khaibit, the Sefeki find Necromancy an alluring study. Darkness --- and command over it --- comes naturally to the Unbandaged Ones. Some of the other Resurrected worry that it comes to them all TOO naturally. Spells preserve bodies, provide powers for traveling in the underworld, manipulate the soul, and protections against the storms of the underworld.

NOMENCLATURE
The Creator spoke the Word, and the Word brought the universe into being. Nomenclature Hekau was called ren or naming, by the Egyptian sorcerers, and it is the ultimate mastery of the language of the divine. The evolution of language and its corruption in the face of the erosion of time has clouded most memory of the Creator's speech. Of widely studied languages, only ancient Egyptian and Sanskrit still bear any truly significant trace of the First Tongue. Rare survivors of the elder Shemsu-heru are among the few remaining inheritors of the Nomenclature of gods. This Hekau allows a master to communicate with all things, as well as controlling most aspects of matter, reality, shape, thoughts, and bindings.

(Note: There are lists of different spells for each Hekau, but for space's sake, I held off on adding them. If you have an interest in any path in particular, ask and I will post the spells/rituals for each rank (five of each, beginning characters can have training in any three ranks, one of which must be their tem-akh's attuned path. You might be able to take three levels in one path, two in one and one in another, or one in three separate paths (for example, a Khri-Habi could have three ranks of Alchemy, but not three ranks of Necromancy. A Sakhmu might be able to use two ranks of Effigy and empower her sculptures with the wards and enchantments of one rank of Amulet. A Mesektet might know one rank of Celestial, one rank of Alchemy to empower him during the weakened hours after sundown, and one rank of Nomenclature). It should be noted that having mastered a rank in a path is not a guarantee that you actually know any spells/rituals... you have to have a teacher for those, though some of them stir a sense of deja vu in the Amenti)

*Alchemy 1
Analyze Material - Determines the makeup of any object.
Cloud of Smoke - Causes even the smallest spark of fire to emit a cloud of smoke the obscures at least a ten foot cube of space.
Drink of Seven Days' Rest - Instantly relieves fatigue for 4 hours, restoring vitality and a bit of health.
Mild Poison/
Potion of Resilience - Supernatural anesthetic that lets someone keep going when they'd be unconscious or hurt.
Simple Elixir - may boost any 1 attribute for 4 hrs (Strength, Dexterity, Stamina, Charisma, Manipulation, Appearance, Perception, Intelligence, Wits). Each must be learned separately.
Simple Philtre - Inspires a particular emotion for 4 hrs - fear, love, anger, courage, hate, etc. Each must be learned separately.
Simple Tonic - Heals a small amount of damage
Stasis - 1 hr duration... nonliving objects the mummy's size or smaller resist change (a bucket of water won't freeze or evaporate, a log won't burn or be hacked apart).

*Alchemy 2
Blood of the Snake - Defends against poison for 4 hrs.
Cobra Spit - Often stored in gold or glass containers, this is a vitriolic acid that eats through other non-living barriers.
Essence of Longing - Perfume mild aphrodisiac, increasing the wearer's appearance and charisma (effects anyone, no matter orientation, causing uncomfortable nervousness in some people as a result).
Eyes of the Ka - Applied to eyes and ears, allows the user to see and hear into the realm of Duat closest to the world, seeing invisible spirits.
Ice of the Desert - Turns a substance's state to another by one step (mercury to solid, gold to liquid gold, diamonds or steel become softer, air becomes liquid) for a few minutes despite temperature. Can't affect the air in people's lungs, but could turn the air above their heads to water.
Lesser Quiddity - Every substance has an inherent essence of spiritual properties. Lion's mane lets one have a dominant effect on animals, moss helps survival and direction, willow bark heals, etc. This concoction grants those properties to the user for an hour.
Reed of Hidden Currents - A mystical litmus test, uses an enchanted bit of hay, straw, or grass to detect specific other substance by throwing it in the air or on water and following the direction... has a range of one mile for each level of Alchemy mastered.
Spark of Ra - Starts a fire with sheer force of will, words, and a non-living flammable substance.

*Alchemy 3
Complex Elixir - Can grant benefits to 2 attributes (or twice the effect on one).
Complex Philtre - More potent, more difficult to resist.
Complex Tonic - Heals moderate amount of health from disease or injury.
Dangerous Poison/
One Hundred Thousand Tongues - Allows user to speak and understand any language... applied to hands and eyes would work for sign language and Braille, ears and mouth best for speaking and listening.
Potion of Valor - Like potion of resilience, but also actually increases the health of a person temporarily, so that they can sustain massive damage... but must receive healing magic or medical attention before 4 hrs pass lest they fall down dead.
Salts of the Dead - By touching a bit of salt and speaking words of power, user assumes protective characteristics of the dead and ignores any damage that would affect only the living (such as poison gas, but not stabbing) and lessens other forms of damage
Tears of Isis - Stores points of Sekhem, to be used later to temporarily increase the amount of Sekhem the user can store.

*Alchemy 4
Ashes to Ashes
Greater Quiddity
Panacea
Philosopher's Stone
Potion of the Separable Ka

*Alchemy 5
Catalyst Crucible
Deadly Poison
Dust to Dust
Flesh of the Gods
Potent Elixir
Potent Philtre
Potent Tonic
Potion of the Divine
Potion of the Vile Body

^Amulets 1
Ashen Shroud - Smearing dirt or ash on his face, the user takes on the appearance of the walking dead for an hr.
Eye of the Horizon - Links any single image of an eye (action figure eye, ancient hieroglyph, eye scrawled on a napkin with crayon) to the user's own senses until the next sunset, though the user can't be separated from the eye by the curve of the horizon (approx 12 miles at sea level) or the spell ends.
Simple Ward - A variety of defensive effects against one particular type of harm. Each must be learned separately. Could protect specific parts of the body (Ab protects the heart) or protect against particular types of magic effects (ren protects against Nomenclature Hekau). The Eye of Horus is an example (protects against all magic that affects the user's health as a whole, such as poisons and spells that effect the whole body).
Warding Sign - A simple gesture that protects against bad luck and danger.
Wood Ward - Makes wearer resistant to any object made of wood, which bounce off skin or shatter (which can cause structural damage to wooden objects touched or grasped or sat against, and really offends nature spirits).

^Amulets 2
Amulet of Cloud Walking - Lifts wearer to the level of the clouds in the sky (with or without cloud cover) and the wearer walks 10,000 feet above sea level to desired location at ground speed... though lucky or creative attempts make the user move a distance that would take days in minutes. Upon reaching the destination, the wearer floats to the ground.
Lesser Talisman - Wearer gains a boost to a specific attribute (see Elixir).
Lesser Ward - Slightly greater protection.
Prayer of the Aken - Aken are boatmen who assist Anubis in directing the dead to their proper place in the underworld. Summons an Aken to carry those present safely to Underworld destination when used in Duat.
Scarab of Life - When worn by living, resists any effect that would reduce any attributes. When worn by a mummy's khat, allows the mummy to return to life and repair her body with greater ease.

^Amulets 3
Metal Ward - Like wood ward, but affects metal instead.
Major Ward - Increased protection.
Sign of Luck - Allows a tiny superstitious ritual (finding a penny, avoiding cracks, tossing spilled salt over one's shoulder) to actually work... though overuse will trigger backlash from Luck itself.
Veil of Amaunet -Renders wearer undetectable to all senses that animals possess (sight, touch, sound, taste, or smell).
Wrappings of Imhotep - Inscribed bandages, cloth, or paper with healing properties when applied to wounds.

^Amulets 4
Ebon Binding
Eye of Sekhmet
Geb's Blessing
Greater Veil of Amaunet
Greater Talisman
Greater Ward

^Amulets 5
Buckle of Isis
Princely Talisman
Princely Ward
Scarab of Death
Ward of Permanence
Wrappings of Osiris

+Celestial 1
Becalm - Deflects adverse weather conditions within an arm's length of the caster, or decreases the intensity of the weather over a larger area.
Grip the Water - causes a body of water to slowly rise or fall in response to continued chanting as long as the mummy concentrates on the ritual.
Hanging the Stars - After an hour long ritual, mummy performs another ritual... and delays that effect by "storing" it in the stars until the mummy calls on it over the next few days.
Hiding the Stars - Doesn't alter the heavens, but veils the mummy from celestial forces, so that the mummy is defended against enemy divination.
Simple Weather Magic -Slight control over the course of the weather... mild winds, create fog, adjust existing conditions slightly, temperature change
Weather Sight - Lets the mummy sense the coming weather conditions... and draw from surrounding wind currents detailed information about the terrain and inhabitants.

+Celestial 2
Book of Thoth - Attuned to Thoth's book, the caster can detect anything secret, concealed, or subtexts in the surrounding area for an hr.
Lesser Weather Magic - Dust or sandstorm, light rain
Read the Stars - Reveals auspicious times and places for certain Hekau paths, or reveals times and places of import.
Sahu-Ra - Mummy takes on mantle of Ra, shining with sunlight for a few minutes, illuminating dark places, injuring vampires, etc.
Weather Whispers - Draws sounds and voices and conversations from upwind to the mummy's ear.

+Celestial 3
Call the Stars - Calls on Nuit to blast a designated area with a rain of burning meteorites.
Divine Forms - Calls on one of the gods to bless the mummy with a characteristic that increases an attribute (stamina for Geb, Intelligence for Ptah, etc)
Major Weather Magic - Desert wing, driving rain, affect cloud cover to reveal or hide light, significant changes in temperature.

+Celestial 4
Greater Weather Magic
Ra's Awakening
Read the Tree of Life
Sandstorm
Wisdom of Isis

+Celestial 5
Divine Greatness
Plague of Ma'at
Potent Weather Magic
Rousing Apophis

-Effigy 1
Command Simple Implement - With an quick inscription of any available material (even spittle) the artisan takes control of the spiritual essence of a simple object with no moving parts object and gains power over it (chisel helps sculpt, scroll easier to translate, a knife deflects, etc).
Simple Creature - Artisan creates figurine of a tiny creature (scorpion, rat, frog, bird, etc). Can come to life and perform simple tasks, delivering written messages, searching small areas, but is no more intelligent than the natural animal (though it does understand simple commands) and natural weapons and sensory ability though no complex capabilities (no venom, sonar, web spinning).
Simple Inertion - Deactivates someone else's effigy creation with a touch.
Simple Servitor - Small figurine of clay, wood, or stone made as a servant, easily made in large numbers, but it can't carry out more complex orders than dig, sweep, pick up, carry, follow, and stop, and is incapable of fighting.
Simple Wrest - Tries to wrest control of an effigy from its master.

-Effigy 2
Command Lesser Implement - Affects objects with moving parts (firearms, action figures, bicycles, door locks, etc).
False Door - Creates a magical portal through a solid object with a thickness of up to one foot per mummy's mastery of effigy. If drawn well and intricately, the mummy can make it a permanent secret passage.
Lesser Chattel - Creates a small model of a simple common object to turn into a full-sized functional item. Beds, swords, rowboats, skateboards, buckets.
Lesser Creature - Small creatures (cat, vulture, cobra, large bird), more loyal than simple creature and more intelligent.
Lesser Inertion
Lesser Wrest

-Effigy 3
Command Complex Implement - Can empower items as large or complex as small houses, cars, boats, etc.
Complex Chattel - Model of fairly large and/or complex items - pistol, small cottage, motorboat or car, but not an airplane or computer.
Major Bond of Fate - Links a model created by the artisan with the original. Fate of one affects the other. Linked object or structure may be no larger than a medium sized house, and may not be a living creature or a corpse.
Major Creature - Models become medium-sized animals (dog, lynx, hyena, monkey, etc) AND possesses special traits (like venom, etc) and will serve well.
Major Inertion
Major Relic - Casts this spell and destroys an object, freeing the item's spiritual form so that it can be summoned in the underworld. Can be no larger than a king-sized bed and limited complexity (revolver, but not motorcycle) and must be destroyed completely to work.
Major Wrest
Modest Reflection - Cast on a normal object no larger than a four-poster bed and no more complex than a bike, creates a spiritual double that can be used in Duat... though this allows the spirits to use the original object. A bike ridden by a spirit would appear to move on its own, while a sword wielded in the material realm would strike a ghost.
Overseer - Animates statues to command servitors and interpret complex commands for them, digging ditches and irrigating fields, building walls that protect from point A to point B with provided bricks, and barring entry to a tomb to anyone who doesn't know the password. But still not particularly good defense, though it can command servitors and guards (see next level spell).
Sekhem Vessel - A jar, bottle, bucket, box, poison ring, film canister, ampoule, anything that stores sekhem for later use.

-Effigy 4
Greater Relic
Guard
Majestic Reflection
Superior Bond of Fate
Superior Chattel
Superior Creature
Superior Inertion
Superior Wrest

-Effigy 5
Ka Vessel
Living Bond of Fate
Princely Chattel
Princely Creature
Princely Inertion
Princely Reflection
Princely Relic
Princely Wrest

%Necromancy 1
Body Preservation - Lends resilience to the mummy's khat while she is travelling in Duat.
Death's Shroud - Using a mask or covering over the heart and eyes, the soul and spirit and mind is protected from other spells once dead.
Ghost Lantern - Illuminates the underworld.
Judge the Soul - Weighs the purity of the subject's soul, judging the corruption of Apophis or the harmony of Ma'at.
Separate Ka - The mummy's khat lies down and the ka emerges, linked by the khu to the body, so that the ka may do battle with nearby spirits.
Stormwalk - After attuning herself to any place in Duat, the mummy can rely on the Dja-akh's winds to help sense the quickest route to that location.
Summon the Dead - Summons ghosts or souls of the dead to the land of the living.

%Necromancy 2
Banish the Dead - Drives a single ghost 50 yards away so it cannot approach from a few minutes to a month depending on how successful it was.
Bind the Dead - Pits the strength of the necromancer's khaibit against the ghost's will, and if successful, thereafter the ghost will obey the letter and spirit of the commands, which can be simple or complex.
Fertility of Osiris - Used by Isis, this ritual allows a deceased male to impregnate a living mortal woman, who gives birth to a normal mortal child. Depending on the caster, this might be a romantic experience like a dream, or a nightmarish and repulsive situation. This also works on undead and those who have lost the ability to reproduce somehow.
Revisit Death - Draws out images and memories buried in the flesh of the khat, gaining flashes of insight tied to recent circumstances around the body.
Sense the Dead - Attunes necromancer to an area (ten square feet per success with the casting, up to 50 square feet), preternaturally sensitive to the passage of the dead.
Storm Shield - The necromancer invokes her status as a champion of Ma'at to extend her purity like a bulwark against the spirit storm and all spiritually inflicted damage.

%Necromancy 3
Bind the Living - After performing a ritual and explaining what he is doing, the necromancer may bind the soul of a living person so that if she dies, he will have bound their soul as in Bind the Dead. He doesn't have to give the whole truth, and is allowed to mislead them, and they don't have to be willing, but they must be aware that he is keeping their soul in the material world instead of passing on.
Death's Hand - Blasts opponent with spectral energy with a touch of her bare palm, though the mummy herself suffers damage for acting as a conduit for the dark energies of the underworld itself. Frequent use permanently stains the mummy's hand and arm black.
Manifestation - Allows the deceased mummy's soul to appear in the physical world as a forceful (if of jelly-like consistency) for up to an hour.
Separate Ba - Like Separate ka, except that the mummy's soul can travel not just the Duat's reflection of the area in which her body resides, but anywhere in the underworld.
Shadow Portal - Tears the fabric of the underworld itself to step from one place in the lands of the dead to another in moments, and can pull additional travelers with her, but takes time to perform.

%Necromancy 4
Amenti's Grace
Animate Corpse
Khaibit's Embrace
Sever Soul
Sin-Eating

%Necromancy 5
Call the Khaibit
Entrap the Ba
Heart of Life
Panoply of Shadow
Reshape the Lost Soul
Scouring Oblivion

@Nomenclature 1
Asking the Trees - Plants respond to commands, growing rapidly, dying off, making simple motions, entangling a subject with vines or tendrils or holding something up. Trees wave and bend, possibly dropping branches or leaning to block paths. Grasses cover tracks or reveal paths.
Forgetting the Stone - By uttering the name for a stone or metal and describing the specific piece in question, the caster can erase it from the Book of Thoth, making it vanish from existence.
Forgetting the Tree - As above, but affects vegetation.
Name the Secret - Helps analyze an object, person, mystical entity, place, etc, and works out the secrets strengths, weaknesses, etc... which, depending on the complexity, could take anywhere from an hour to years of study.
Naming the Warning - Warns away an animal with its true name, causing it to flee.

@Nomenclature 2
Becoming the Stone - For an hour, the mummy can name himself transformed into stone or metal, becoming pebbles, a rough rock or pile of stones, cut gemstones, tempered swords or suit of armor, fine dust, or any other mineral form, immobile, not needing to breathe, hard to damage, and silent, but perfectly disguised. Can still sense surroundings perfectly and think.
Becoming the Tree - As above, but turns into a tree, field of grass, or stand of seaweed.
Cloud the Name - Slightly, randomly changes the name of an object or person, causing a small shift in personality or fortunes, but also requiring everyone to re-study and re-learn the new name... some have even used this spell on themselves.
Command the Beast - Controls any animal.
Mend Flesh - By speaking the word for flesh and the word of mending or healing, the caster heals bashing or lethal damage.

@Nomenclature 3
Become Animal - As Becoming the Stone, except that the caster must know the name of the animal (or mythical animal, though these names are rare and hard to find) she becomes and gains all the instincts and abilities of that animal (though she runs the risk of losing herself in that new form).
Command Thought - Commands a thinking being to do something, though this command only lasts a short period of time.
Name of Hekau - Undoes the effects of a spell or ritual by making the universe forget about it... requires deep understanding of the world.
Whispers to the Heart - Mummy gazes at a target and whispers the true name of an emotion... such as fear, hate, anger, lust, longing, compassion, sympathy, love, hope, confusion, trust, ambivalence, boredom, or wistfulness, and the target is suddenly overcome by that emotion.

@Nomenclature 4
Enslave
Fortify Flesh
Naming the Body's Destruction
Speaking All Names

@Nomenclature 5
Forgetting the Person
Ptah's Word
Whispers to the Body
Word of Authority

(Note: For starting spells, you may pick three from any level of any Hekau that isn't your chosen path (or most common path, if you are an Udja-Sen) and four from each level of your type's primary Hekau. These spells are considered to be either memories of your first life, or (in the case of non-primary-Hekau spells) were taught to you by whichever faction performed the Spell of Life on you. So, a Mesektet with Celestial 3 would know 12 Celestial spells (four for each level, usually), while an Udja-sen with Nomenclature 2, Amulets 1 would know three first level Amulet spells and eight 1st and 2nd level Nomenclature spells. If the Udja-sen had Nomenclature 1, Amulets 2, he would know eight Amulet spells and three Nomenclature ones (due to the odd memories and lack of a set spell favoritism among the Udja-sen).

NAME: Tiffani Morris
TEM-AKH: Ba of Wrereset, Priestess of Hapi
TYPE: Khri-Habi
FACTION: Cult of Isis
APPEARANCE: Tiffani has long blond curly hair, bright blue eyes, a beautiful smile, and a spectacular (some of her old detractors would have said "fake") figure. Since awakening into her third life, she is fond of dressing simply and peacefully, but still favors a bit of jewelry here and there.
MAGIC: Alchemy 2, Effigy 1
SPELLS/RITES: Command Simple Implement, Simple Servitor, Simple Creature, Eyes of the Ka, Spark of Ra, Ice of the Desert, Cobra Spit, Simple Tonic, Simple Philtre (Love), Drink of Seven Days' Rest, Analyze Material.
BACKGROUND: Tiffani was a little girl who dreamed of a life like in fairy tales and story books and Disney movies, where she'd get a magic potion and meet a handsome prince and be saved by fairy godmothers and ride off into the sunset. She was her minister father's pride and joy. Her mother drummed into her the need to be beautiful and peaceful (re: silent) and friendly (to the right people) and to listen to others to know what to do. She was the most beautiful girl in high school, and the follower of the latest fads and fashions with perfect mimicry, but everyone could tell that none of it was real, despite her amiable demeanor. They just wanted her around for decoration and party quality. This prompted her to rebel ever so slightly, by going to increasingly rowdier parties. When she went away to college, Tiffani fell into the Sorority system, and the cycle continued. To catch the eyes of the right boys, to befriend the right sisters, to get the right classes, it all became strangling, and Tiffani was never able to pursue her own dreams of simple romance, so caught up was she in all of the excess. Then came the fateful night when she sat on Rick's (her football-playing all-star boyfriend) lap in a car ride when he convinced her that "It'll be fine, Ah'm nah thah drrrunk, don' be suss a worrrryworp." This sense of comfort lasted until he slammed into a tree at 75mph on a dare from his buddies. Tiffani was the only one seriously injured, because she obviously hadn't been wearing a seatbelt, and she died on the impact. It was then that the angel or fairy godmother with brightly-colored wings came to her and offered her a new chance at life. Tiffani, finally seeing a chance at the magic and romance she craved, accepted, and her horrified and drunken "friends" watched in astonishment as she picked herself up off the ground whispered something in a language they'd have sworn "Tiffani-with-hearts-dotting-the-I's" couldn't have known, and powerwalked to the city airport, bought a ticket to Cairo with her credit card, and tried to ignore the stares of other passengers at her disheveled, dusty, and oddly-smelling appearance. Once in Cairo, she wandered off to the outskirts, and was picked up by a Cult of Isis, who took her to their temple, cleaned her, and prepared her for the Spell of Life. When she was resurrected, Tiffani felt like Snow White or Sleeping Beauty, and her fairytale had truly begun. She learned enough to master some odd alchemy effects and was taught Effigy magic by a Sakhmu mummy who had been a priest of Ptah, and decided that she had to return home and complete her education and reassure her friends, but she has been communicating with the mummies and the Cult of Isis via the internet and continuing her magical training, and her newfound alliance with Wrereset has made her change her major to psychology, and she plans to be a social worker in the Middle East, where she can help people and be in the action. She is eager to learn more magic, and is interested in Celestial and Amulet magic as well due to their fairytale-like abilities. In the meantime, she has arranged to study abroad in Cairo, and in the meantime she has cleaned up her sorority, and broke up with Rick. Her mother is, of course, terribly upset with this new Tiffani, but the Khri-habi doesn't have time to deal with the woman. There are too many lives to save, too many happy endings to bring about, too much salvation needed by the world to be cowed by fear of disapproval and manipulation.