Week 5 Story: Suspicious Sibling on Asking Anubis
Bibliography
"The Death of Osiris" from Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie | Read it here
Author's Note
This story is part of a collection of stories about the Egyptian gods and goddesses. The one I've selected describes how Osiris's brother Set schemes against him and finally succeeds in overthrowing his brother from the throne after many attempts to do so. Previously, Isis (Osiris & Set's brother and Osiris's wife) had managed to stop Set, but this time she was absent. Set tricks Osiris into getting into the coffin, and his followers nail the coffin shut and send it down the river. This story is sort of the explanation of how Osiris became lord of the underworld, as Set kills him and eventually Osiris ends up in the underworld and begins ruling. In my story, the events are told from Set's perspective.
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"The sun sets on all things when it is their time. Just as dusk is a natural part of the day, so too is death a natural part of life. But there's no need to be afraid, any questions or concerns you may have about the end of your days are welcome here on Asking Anubis."
"Asking Anubis is your advice hotline for all things afterlife. Today we are helping an anonymous caller who is concerned about his relationship with his brother."
"Suspicious Sibling, how is the sun shining on you today?"
"It's rather dark today, Anubis."
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Do you mean as in your sun is setting or you're just troubled?"
"I'm simply quite troubled. As I mentioned, I don't have the best relationship with my brother. With either of my siblings, really."
"I see. Yes, family relations can be quite tricky. As you know, however, this show is focused around end of life problems and I'm really only qualified to provide advice about that topic. Are you struggling with anything surrounding that?"
"Not exactly, but I do think that you specifically would be able to help open some doors for me, Anubis."
"Is that so? I'm wondering how that might be."
"Well, I'm making a coffin as a present and I was hoping you could answer a couple questions for me."
"That's a very strange present, but I suppose I can help. What do you need to know?"
"I want to make it a very impressive, fine looking coffin. What sort of materials do you think would really stand out and make someone want to get in it?"
"Uh... well I suppose wood is a pretty typical material, but if you're really wanting to impress then granite is definitely the way to go. That's the only material you'll really need, but it's the decoration and treatment of the material that matters. Make sure to hire only the best craftsmen, and the more detailed carvings they can inscribe, the better."
"That's very helpful, thanks Anubis. I'll be sure to show you the finished product."
"No problem! Well I guess that did end up being in my area of expertise anyways. Just out of curiosity, why do you need such an impressive coffin?"
"Oh, you know, the same old reason. Gotta impress some folks at a party."
"Aren't there easier ways to do that?"
"No, I think this really is the best way. Very effective."
"If you say so. You do sound familiar, too. Perhaps we met in past life."
"Or even this one."
"Wait, do I know you?"
"..."
"Hello? Are you there? Well, folks it looks like we dropped the signal, and now it is time for the sun to rise again and for our show to end. Today's call was rather strange, but I hope you've learned something from it anyways. I'm Anubis, and I'll see you next time on Asking Anubis."
"The Death of Osiris" from Egyptian Myth and Legend by Donald Mackenzie | Read it here
Author's Note
This story is part of a collection of stories about the Egyptian gods and goddesses. The one I've selected describes how Osiris's brother Set schemes against him and finally succeeds in overthrowing his brother from the throne after many attempts to do so. Previously, Isis (Osiris & Set's brother and Osiris's wife) had managed to stop Set, but this time she was absent. Set tricks Osiris into getting into the coffin, and his followers nail the coffin shut and send it down the river. This story is sort of the explanation of how Osiris became lord of the underworld, as Set kills him and eventually Osiris ends up in the underworld and begins ruling. In my story, the events are told from Set's perspective.
----------
"The sun sets on all things when it is their time. Just as dusk is a natural part of the day, so too is death a natural part of life. But there's no need to be afraid, any questions or concerns you may have about the end of your days are welcome here on Asking Anubis."
"Asking Anubis is your advice hotline for all things afterlife. Today we are helping an anonymous caller who is concerned about his relationship with his brother."
"Suspicious Sibling, how is the sun shining on you today?"
"It's rather dark today, Anubis."
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Do you mean as in your sun is setting or you're just troubled?"
"I'm simply quite troubled. As I mentioned, I don't have the best relationship with my brother. With either of my siblings, really."
"I see. Yes, family relations can be quite tricky. As you know, however, this show is focused around end of life problems and I'm really only qualified to provide advice about that topic. Are you struggling with anything surrounding that?"
"Not exactly, but I do think that you specifically would be able to help open some doors for me, Anubis."
"Is that so? I'm wondering how that might be."
"Well, I'm making a coffin as a present and I was hoping you could answer a couple questions for me."
"That's a very strange present, but I suppose I can help. What do you need to know?"
"I want to make it a very impressive, fine looking coffin. What sort of materials do you think would really stand out and make someone want to get in it?"
"Uh... well I suppose wood is a pretty typical material, but if you're really wanting to impress then granite is definitely the way to go. That's the only material you'll really need, but it's the decoration and treatment of the material that matters. Make sure to hire only the best craftsmen, and the more detailed carvings they can inscribe, the better."
"That's very helpful, thanks Anubis. I'll be sure to show you the finished product."
"No problem! Well I guess that did end up being in my area of expertise anyways. Just out of curiosity, why do you need such an impressive coffin?"
"Oh, you know, the same old reason. Gotta impress some folks at a party."
"Aren't there easier ways to do that?"
"No, I think this really is the best way. Very effective."
"If you say so. You do sound familiar, too. Perhaps we met in past life."
"Or even this one."
"Wait, do I know you?"
"..."
"Hello? Are you there? Well, folks it looks like we dropped the signal, and now it is time for the sun to rise again and for our show to end. Today's call was rather strange, but I hope you've learned something from it anyways. I'm Anubis, and I'll see you next time on Asking Anubis."
A pretty impressive sarcophagus, but maybe not as impressive as Set's.
(Image source: Rachel Bostwick on Pixabay)
Alyx,
ReplyDeleteThat was quite a story! I loved how you retold it in such a creative way. I have read many of these posts, and few have showed so much creativity as yours, so I applaud you for that. I am assuming it was Set that was on the phone with Anubis right?
Lastly, I must say Osiris is pretty foolish for willingly getting into a coffin? That just seems silly to me. Either Osiris wasn't the brightest or Set is unbelievably cunning.
Brady J
Hey Alyx, great job and great story! I really appreciate the way you changed up the original story to re-tell it in your own unique way, while still respecting the original and doing it justice. I also love Egyptian mythology, so it was really cool to see Osiris and Anubis in another light from the traditional way they are portrayed. Well done!
ReplyDeleteHey Alyx! This was super original and fun to read, I think you did a wonderful job! Your use of dialogue was very effective and easy to follow along, too. I really appreciate stories that don't require an entire paragraph to describe the setting and characters (besides what is needed in the author's note), and your skill at writing really shone through! The lightheartedness of it all was like a breath of fresh air, I think any reader would really enjoy this short, sweet little story. Keep up the great work! I look forward to reading your other stories in the future!
ReplyDeleteHey Alex, this is Anubis, host of the show, just checking in. I really liked how you told this story with the plot being on a radio station. I think it helped explain the dialogue between me and Set. Why do you think Set didn't ask more questions? I believe it would have made the call better if he would've. In addition to this, when I first read the story I was a little bit confused on the characters. After analyzing deeper, I realized I was the one on the microphone and Set was the caller. Just a personal preference but I think it would help with the clarity of the story if the named were mentioned a little bit more. Aside from those minor things I really enjoyed how you retold the story! I thought it was really creative and I was able to visualize it very well. I look forward to potentially reading more of your stories and seeing what other cool ideas you can implement. Anubis out!
ReplyDeleteAlyx,
ReplyDeleteI love the idea and execution behind this. It’s so much more than a simple re-telling. With the overall story in mind, you’ve managed to create a captivating short story that accounts for a small fraction of the actual timeline in the story. I wrote a story on my portfolio from this same source material, so I love this story and how it could all tie in.
Great job!
-Lance J.