You make your choice. You gather all of your strength and place your paws on the obelisk. With a fierce roar, the already-damaged structure cracks under the pressure of your power. The giant stone slab falls into place with a loud thud, and, thanks to its sturdy composition of granite, it does not break in the middle. You have created a bridge to the temple of Anubis.

You slowly stand at the feet of the fallen obelisk and look at the temple before you. The entrance reminds you of a tomb. The open passage lets you gaze into the cold darkness that hasn't been touched for thousands of years. The smell of sulphurous gases makes you a little dizzy. This passage won't be a fun stroll.

You cross the bridge slowly, as it is dangerously narrow. Dust and pebbles crack away under your weight. You look down and immediately regret it, as you see lava flowing into the chasm below you. You take a slow, deep breath and walk towards the temple a little faster. Thankfully, the obelisk lays still. It doesn't seem as if it will be falling any time soon.

You take a few steps to allow your eyes to adjust to the darkness of the tomb. You have heard about the ancient cultures of Egypt before, but you had no idea that the gods fell into a deep slumber until the world was ready for their assistance again. Moreover, you had no idea they could interact with mere animals like yourself. You look around the corridors, admiring the hieroglyphs, paintings, and sculptures dedicated to Anubis. The tomb is very old, and you see that it's cracked in several places due to the earthquakes, but it looks like it's safe to stay here. You notice a few chambers, some sealed tight, others open and stacked full with artifacts, vases, sculptures, and offerings. It does not look like the place where an ancient god would sleep. It looks just like one of those temples where one would worship Anubis.

You see a chamber filled with amazing artifacts and sculptures dedicated to the god. As you approach, a stone golem in the shape of a jackal cracks and moves, looking at you warily. It must be protecting the tomb from looters, and it's the first sign you've seen that the supernatural presence of Anubis is indeed filling this place somehow. You decide to step back and check out another chamber, where rows of sarcophagi filled with ancient mummies of priests and servants can be seen. Some are partially destroyed. Everything seems dead.

You walk around until you notice a golden altar covered in sand and dust. It is very dark, but when you blow at it to dissipate the dust, you notice that the altar is actually a coffin with Anubis glyphs carved all over it. You don't understand it, but these pictures make a pretty clear point. You stand up and push hard, moving the lid just enough for it to fall down and uncover what's inside. In a royal gilded sarcophagus, a small, black, curled mummy of a canid creature is laying there, smelling like some kind of ancient incense.

You gently mrowr at the mummy, but nothing happens. You feel a little perplexed as to what you should do next, as the vision gave you very little direction on how to behave. A little scared that it would offend the god, but left with no other choice, you reach out and gently touch the dry, black body. The warmth of your paw and the energy that sparks from you is actually visible and audible, like a stronger version of static shocks that always happen when a cub is playfully rubbing against your fur. The mummy opens its eyes, staring at you with an eerie, blue glow. When it slowly turns its head towards you, you can hear rustling, as if the dried tissue was crackling and stretching. It's so overwhelmingly unnatural that you feel absolutely frightened. You know you have to speak. Be brave.

The mummy looks at you, its eldritch eyes seeming to pierce your thoughts a bit like Shai did, but nothing happens for a long time. It seems so tiny and dead. You're unsure how you can help, or how it could kill anything. You did not expect a god to be this decayed.

"[NAME]," the mummy hisses with barely-perceptible sound. "I have been dreaming about you in my thousands of years of slumber. I have been dreading for this day to be a reality, and hoped it was just a nightmare. I am nothing without my worshipers. This is overwhelming, as I am very powerless, curled up deep down in the abyss of the afterlife... Never spoken of, never thought of, never prayed to anymore. I no longer have a body, even if I did, I wouldn't be of much help. Maybe it is time for the world to decay with us." It's not quite what you expected a god of death to say. You lean down a little bit and touch the mummy again. You want to help. Didn't the ancient Egyptians worship rebirth? Wasn't eternal life the whole point?

"This is very noble of you, but the concept of rebirth to us was transferring our energy and essence of thoughts into a new dimension. I cannot go back. This vessel... I used it to communicate with my worshipers, but it is too weak. Look at it. It is a mere jackal. It had no skills other than helping the dead with their passage. I was never a warrior. I don't know why you chose me. A powerful vessel would do the trick - it would give me the ability to see everything myself, to move, to hear, to fight. This one is worthless, even if restored." You snarl, upset that the god is unwilling to come back. The world needs him.

"Mmm. There is a war deity, a powerful wolf, whose vessel is stored in this chamber with me, as we often visited the Duat world together. Wepwawet surely won't mind if I use his vessel." Anubis starts to show signs of cooperation, which makes you feel a little better. You ask how you can help. The mummy cracks as it talks. "In the Underworld, the Serpent always had his chthonic minions by his side. They are vessels that extend his thoughts as well. If they are around, perhaps you can bind a few using the incense located in the tomb, and trap their energy in an Ankh that is attached to the mummy you're speaking with. When you're back, wrap the Ankh around Wepwawet's neck. I should be able to establish the connection and absorb the essence that will make it somewhat alive."

"Do what you please," the mummy mutters, closing its eyes. It makes it a little bit less creepy, at the very least. You lean down and grab the Ankh with your claw. It comes right off. You gently wrap it around your wrist and step back. You just spoke to an ancient, nearly-forgotten god. It's a lot to take in, so you take a minute to think about everything and sort it out in your head. Big, scary serpent demons... Great! You rummage through the chests located in the sarcophagus room and find incense oils. You push a few that seem to be good enough for firing up into a small sack and get ready for the scary adventure.

You sit down on the safe side of the rift. With your heart still pounding in awe of the gigantic chasm, you look around the devastated landscape. It's time to bring back some slithering essence to the vessel of Anubis.

You have currently collected 0/5 essence.

You sit down on the safe side of the rift. With your heart still pounding in awe of the gigantic chasm, you look around the devastated landscape. It's time to bring back some slithering essence to the vessel of Anubis.

You have currently collected 5/5 essence.

You walk back to the temple, surefooted this time, and just like before, you let your eyes slowly adapt to the darkness. You find Wepwawet's chamber and open its sarcophagus. This mummy is indeed so much bigger. Carefully, you let the Ankh slip from your paw and lie down on the vessel's chest. With a familiar crinkling noise, the creature opens its eyes and looks at you. "It's working already. I can feel the energy siphoning through. This will need some time before the connection is strong enough. Check on me tomorrow, and see if I am whole by then. If not, let us repeat the process." The mummy stays in its place, but does not close its eyes. You shiver and step back.