Sample of “Spite”

Spite

“I have not spoken rudely to any child below the age of six while intoxicated with stolen beverages.” No, I’d been completely clear of mind when I’d told that child to jump into its mother’s grave and never return. The beverage I’d held was not stolen, nor had it intoxicated me, but the amber cloak that had flowed from my shoulders had not been in my possession, nor that of a vendor, a couple days prior. Despite this, my assertion was truthful, and there were only forty-one of them left for me to surmise. Once this was completed, I would allow my worn, tired soles to experience the spike of a freshly manured pasture, breathe in the vile scent, and lark before her unbelieving eyes.

Three figures towered before me, and my eyes skirted past them only to identify each before returning to the stone ground; Anubis stood in the center. Despite his earlier kindness in guiding me to this place, the jackal’s head on his shoulders seemed ready to reach into my ribcage and dislodge my still-beating heart with its fangs, crushing the arteries with one powerful snap. I knew, however, that particular duty would fall to his wretched servant, no more than a pet, Amut. Its beady eyes rested on my chest. To the right was Osiris, who was not currently my priority; his concern did not lie on my words, but on the weight of my heart. To the left was where my attention was centered; Thoth, the god of Truth. His elongated beak was turned towards me, and I was careful not to meet his eyes.

The forty-two judges roared in outrage, their shadows extending across the stone walls, flickering with the flames that cast them. I knew they all rested behind me, but I dared not look back. Thoth, towering at least ten times my own height, shifted slightly forward. A wind blasted, rippling furiously throughout the room, threatening to blow me straight into the furious mass behind me. It silenced as the torches were blown out. A deafening snap like a thousand whips made the fire come back to life.  I was told to continue.

I tasted blood as I kept the desired smirk from so much as lifting my cheek.

“I have not laughed in the face of forty-two judges upon being granted permission to continue my plea of innocence.” And that one I’d earned, for it might have been the most difficult feat I’d accomplished yet.

If time passed, the sun gave no indication. I got the feeling Ra didn’t much deal with the dead. Statement after statement, my lips wove absolute truths that, despite the ongoing rage, could not be contradicted. Though my eyes stayed firmly on the ground, I could see the dark shadow to my left growing darker, leaning closer. I supposed no one had attempted this, at least not with the level of success I was displaying. As I uttered the last syllables, I stood perfectly still.