Years passed since Montu lost his life fighting Rothbart. After this, the lives of those who loved and admired the griffon warrior normalized.
The kingdom of Coltypt, over the years, developed further, with their technology getting more refined and prosperity growing increasingly. But the kingdom was not the only thing that grew.
The children who inhabited the castle grew to become strong and healthy young adults. Kefer, Anubis and Horus should not be more than nineteen years now. The only physical difference that they had in addition to the passage of time were their Cutie Marks. Kefer had a crossed hekat sceptre and sword and Anubis had a crossed nekhakha and sword. Both Cutie Marks represented the great potential that the twins had to lead and one day to become pharaohs. Horus, who had the same size as a grown stallion due to his pony heritage, also had a Cutie Mark that was the Eye of Horus Egyptian symbol.
The three grew up as best friends. They began training with Apis to be warriors at the same time, which allowed them to train together and, when necessary, battle as a cohesive team. However, the development of their personalities created some disruption in the inseparable trio. Horus and Kefer remained best friends, as both were quite similar in terms of personality with their respective father, being the reason why their friendship was very close. They had a common goal: to become Golden Warriors.
However, Anubis began moving away a little from them two, training alone and intensely, desiring to be the better fighter. He also started to become too much confident of his own capabilities, in addition to being convinced that he would be who would succeed Amun when it was time for one of his children to succeed as a new pharaoh for being the older, despite knowing that, as he and Kefer were twins, fit only to his father to decide.
During a training section, Kefer trained the use of his sword using magic, waving it in the air. However, Horus was training with his talons, which had the metal gloves that belonged to his father, using a training dummy.
"Do you think we're really ready for the test, Kefer?" Horus asked. "After all, we are talking about Apis’ labyrinth."
"We already were there, remember, Horus?" Kefer asked, while he handled the sword.
"Yeah, but we were only in the first levels and we were just kids" Horus reminded. "At that time, Apis took easy on us."
"Oh, so fight giant scorpions is taking easy" Kefer said in his joke tone.
"You can make fun all you want, Kefer, but don't forget that many tried to get the bracelets and almost all failed" Horus said, making a blow so hard with his talons that he ended up beheading the training dummy. "Only a warrior was capable of such a feat."
Horus’ voice became heavier and Kefer realized why. Montu, his father, was the only warrior to get a golden bracelet through the challenge of Apis’ labyrinth. The young prince could feel the longing that his friend had for his father.
"Are you okay, Horus?" Kefer asked.
"Yes, it's just..." he replied, looking at one of his metal gloves. "I wish he was here to see me as I'm getting stronger and becoming the warrior that he wanted me to become."
Kefer approached his friend and told him, putting a hoof on his shoulder:
"I'm sure he would be proud."
"Thank you, Kefer" Horus thanked. "I think he'd be proud."
"What sentimental" a voice said.
They turned and saw Anubis approaching. He had on his back a sheath that had a sword similar to Kefer’s.
"I didn't know warriors could give in so easily to emotions" Anubis said.
"There's nothing wrong with that, brother" Kefer said. "After all, emotions are what makes us ponies."
"Yes, and, in Horus’ case, half-pony" Anubis replied.
That made Horus look angry to Anubis, but seeing his friend's reaction, Kefer told him:
"Don't listen to him, Horus. You know how Anubis is. He likes to tease."
Horus calmed down and Anubis said, while he took his sword:
"You two are still convinced that you can pass the test of the labyrinth?"
"Why not?" Kefer asked. "Do you think we can't?"
"Who cares about my opinion?" Anubis asked, while he began to strike the sword on a training dummy. "If you are determined to try, who am I to stop you?"
"And don't you want to join us?" Kefer asked.
"Why?" Anubis asked, continuing to train. "I know what my fate is and it is not venturing in a maze full of dangers just to get some fancy bracelets. I have my eyes on something bigger."
"And what's that?" Horus asked.
Anubis stopped striking, turned to Horus and Kefer and replied:
"Become pharaoh, of course."
"The decision is not up to you, Anubis" Horus asked. "It's up to your father. Don't forget that both you and Kefer can be elected."
"Personally, I don't care if I become Pharaoh or not, Horus" Kefer said. "As long as I can contribute to the protection of our kingdom, nothing else matters."
"But if you wanted to, little brother, I don't know how you could overcome me" Anubis said. "After all, I'm older and a lot better than you in combat."
"If I were you, Anubis, I wouldn't be bragging so much" a voice said.
They turned and saw Apis appearing.
"The confidence of a warrior can be an advantage as a disadvantage for him or her" Apis continued.
"I know, Apis, but you can't deny that I overcame my brother most of the times that we faced each other" Anubis said.
"The strength of a warrior is not measured only in physical strength, Anubis" Apis said. "I thought I had taught it to you. Maybe you learned more about it, if you follow Kefer and Horus’ example. After all, they are about to face the last level of my maze to win the golden bracelets."
"I'm sorry, but I prefer to continue my training" Anubis said. "I don't need a bracelet to make me stronger."
"The golden bracelets should not be used for personal purposes, Anubis" Apis said.
"It's true, Anubis" Kefer said, putting his sword in the sheath that, like his brother’s, was on his back. "Their power should only be used to defend Coltypt from the Lord of Chaos and his followers."
"Exactly, Kefer" Apis said. "I'm glad that at least one of you has paid attention to my lessons."
"Teacher's pet" Anubis grumbled to his brother.
"In my case, in addition to protect Coltypt, I want to also honor my father’s memory" Horus said.
"And I'm sure he would be proud of you, Horus" Apis said. "And I believe that you and Kefer are prepared."
"That's why we were waiting for, Apis" Kefer said.
"Although I’m still not quite sure if I'm ready, I want to risk" Horus said.
"If that's what you want, then be it" Apis said.
Apis advanced to the entrance of the inside of the labyrinth and slammed his staff on the ground and a portal appeared. Then turned to Kefer and Horus and said:
"You can go. If you want to quit, just yell."
"That's not going to happen, Apis" Kefer secured.
And he and Horus advanced to the portal and crossed-in and, as soon as they did, the portal closed and, after crossing the portal, Kefer and Horus found themselves deep in the labyrinth. There were plenty of corridors that crossed each other.
"Very well, we have to find a way out of the labyrinth" Kefer said, using his magic to draw his sword. "We have to be careful with the creatures that Apis has here."
"Not to mention the traps" Horus said. "If the ones in the upper levels were fairly well hidden, so here they are still more concealed."
"That is why we have to be careful where we step" Kefer said.
But after he said that, Kefer stepped an activation device that made appear on the walls slots from where arrows were fired. Reacting quickly, Kefer used his sword to defend himself, while Horus used his speed and talons to deflect or defend himself from the arrows. When they stopped, Horus asked cynically to Kefer:
"What was that you said?"
"Not to commit the error that I just did" he replied.
The two friends continued to advance through the maze, taking the corridor they thought that could drive them out. After walking for a while, taking care not to activate any trap, Kefer put his hoof in front of Horus to make him stop and said:
"Wait."
"What is it?" Horus asked.
Kefer looked around and asked:
"I think we've been here at least three times."
"You mean we've been walking around?" Horus asked. "I think it's no wonder. At this level of the labyrinth, all the corridors look the same. I can't tell which ones we already passed."
"I think that was one of the main reasons why many have failed this test" Kefer said.
Horus looked at his talons and, having an idea, said:
"But I think we won't have that problem."
He advanced to one of the corridors and, using his talon, marked the arcade.
"Good idea, Horus" Kefer said. "That way, we will not get lost."
"I think my father had the same idea and that's probably how he managed to escape from the labyrinth" Horus said.
"It's better not to waste time" Kefer said. "The sooner we get out of here, the better."
And the two continued to advance in the labyrinth, with Horus marking all the corridors they went to ensure that they didn’t get lost. It was then that they started to hear something.
"Did you hear that?" Horus asked to Kefer.
"Yes, and I think it's a very familiar sound, don't you think?" Kefer asked.
Hearing the sound coming up from behind, they turned and saw its origin. They were facing a deadly scorpion, similar to what they used to fight in the upper levels of the labyrinth, but this one was larger and more threatening, with a large stinger on the tip of the tail.
"I have a question for you, Kefer" Horus said. "Have you ever fought a scorpion like this one?"
"No, I didn’t" Kefer replied, while he and Horus kept a safe distance from the scorpion.
"So what do you think we should do?"
"I don't know, maybe..."
He then saw the scorpion lifting the tail to attack and Kefer exclaimed:
"Run!"
The Scorpion attacked with its Stinger, but Kefer and Horus made a big jump back to avoid it and then began to pull away as fast as they could. But it was then that a second scorpion appeared in front of them. They were trapped. The two friends placed themselves back to back to face the two scorpions.
"It seems that this will not be an easy task" Horus said.
"I didn't expect anything less from Apis" Kefer said.
Horus’s scorpion shook its tail to attack, but Horus jumped up and, using his talons, tried to penetrate the scorpion’s hard shell, but without success. The scorpion then shook its tail, hitting Horus and throwing him against the wall. Upon realizing what had happened, Kefer called:
"Horus!"
He wanted to help his best friend, but he had bigger problems to deal with. His scorpion progressed to him, preparing to subdue him. Using his sword, Kefer managed to stop it, starting a battle of strength. It seemed that the young prince would not withstand the force of the scorpion, but seeing the other moving to Horus and preparing to use its stinger, Kefer rallied to launch a magic beam from his horn against his scorpion, throwing it against a wall, leaving it unconscious.
He then advanced to Horus and, when he saw the scorpion downing the stinger, he placed himself between it and Horus. Using his sword, he tried to stop the sting. Despite having been able to stop it, he failed to prevent it from penetrating a little on his shoulder, what made him moan a little of pain. Horus, recovering his senses, saw what was happening and said:
"Kefer..."
"Hurry, Horus, get out of here!" Kefer exclaimed, who was using all of his forces to hold the scorpion.
For a moment, Horus pondered obey Kefer, but then he remembered what his father would do in a situation like that. He wasn't going to let his best friend sacrifice himself for him, not when he could still help him. He then noticed at the bottom of the scorpion and remembered that that part was less armored than the rest of the body, so he got up and told Kefer:
"You know I can't do that, my friend. At least, not without you."
And, using his talons, he attacked the lower part of the scorpion who groaned in pain, falling back. After this, Horus advanced to it and gave it a kick with his hind hooves that threw him hard against the wall, leaving it out of combat.
"Impressive, Horus" Kefer said. "You took advantage of your griffon and pony characteristics."
Suddenly, Kefer felt quite weak and fell on his hooves. Horus approached and asked:
"Kefer, are you okay?"
"Yes, I am..." he replied, starting to get up. "I just felt a light-headed."
Horus noticed his wound and realized:
"It must be the poison of the scorpion. You need medical help and quick. But for that, we need to get out of here."
Horus and Kefer continued to walk with the former supporting the latter. It was then they saw what should be the exit.
"Finally, the exit" Horus said.
"Looks like we made it" Kefer said.
"And all because of you" Horus said. "You saved me back there."
"And you did the same for me, so we're even" Kefer said.
The two advanced to the exit and got out from where they had entered. Seeing them getting out, Apis exclaimed:
"What a great surprise! I never thought you could made at the first try. Even Montu needed to repeat the challenge twice before he could overcome it."
He then noticed Kefer’s wound and asked:
"What happened with Prince Kefer?"
"It was one of your scorpions” Horus replied. "We need to get him to Osiris as soon as possible."
"Of course" Apis said, turning then to Anubis who was training nearby. "Prince Anubis, what if you helped to take your brother to Osiris’ lab."
Stopping his training, Anubis sighed and said, while he kept his sword:
"If I have to..."
And relieving the load Kefer was to Horus, Anubis helped his brother to go to Osiris’ lab, followed by Horus and Apis.
Osiris was a unicorn stallion who was seemingly middle-age with a deep gamboge coat with a flame wrapped by a snake as Cutie Mark, bald but with a grey tail and dark grayish emerald green eyes. He wore a tall cap and a long fake beard. He was a servant of the Lord of Order that had been order by him after Montu’s death to act as a doctor and scientist in the kingdom.
When he received Kefer in his lab, he made him sit on the stretcher that was there and began to administrate the antidote for the poison. Once he did that, he began to involve Kefer’s wound with a bandage, saying:
"You're very lucky that the stinger didn’t penetrate more on your body, or the effects of the poison would be worse" Osiris said to Kefer.
"Don't worry, Osiris, I tolerated well the poison" Kefer said.
"I just don't get warriors" Osiris said. "They're always playing with their own life.”
So he ended up connecting the bandage, Hathor and Amun entered.
"Oh, my son!" Hathor exclaimed, running to Kefer and hugging him. "Are you okay?"
"Yes, mom, but can you let me go?" Kefer asked, feeling his wound hurting.
"Sorry, dear" Hathor said, dropping Kefer. "But I was really worried when I heard what happened."
She then turned to Apis and told him:
"Do you really have to put those monsters in your labyrinth? It wasn’t enough for you having put my sons to fight them when they were colts?"
Apis was a little flustered by the queen’s lecture, but Amun tried to calm his wife down:
"Relax, Hathor, the important thing is that Kefer is okay. In addition, Apis has a duty to ensure that those who enter the labyrinth have not their life facilitated to get out of there."
"If you allow me, Your Highness, it's my fault" Horus said to Hathor. "Kefer got hurt trying to save me."
"Don't be ridiculous, Horus" Kefer said. "If I did what I did was because I wanted to. I couldn't let my friend get hurt."
"Well done, my son" Amun said, turning then to Hathor. "In addition to that he's okay now."
Seeing that she was outnumbered, Hathor said:
"Okay, but I hope you don't put me nervous again, Kefer. I'd hate anything to happen to you. And this also applies to you, Anubis. With your training, you leave me even more concerned with you than with Kefer."
"I don't have to worry about me, mom, I can take care of myself" Anubis said. "And speaking of my training, it is better to continue them. There is no reason to continue be here, since Kefer is okay.”
And, having said that, he got out of Osiris laboratory.
"That son of ours doesn't seem to learn" Amun said to Hathor. "But one thing at a time. Looks like you guys, Horus and Kefer, managed to pass the challenge of Apis’s labyrinth. It seems to me that you have something to them, don't you, old friend?"
He turned to Apis who replied:
"Indeed, Your Highness. For the first time since Montu overcame my challenge, it seems we have warriors worthy of the golden bracelets."
And, having said this, he extended his hand and, in a burst of light, two bracelets appeared, one of which were the one that belonged to Montu. The bracelets went to their respective new owners, with Horus receiving the one that belonged to his father. They put themselves and, after that, Horus and Kefer felt an immense power .
"This is amazing!" Horus exclaimed.
"I've never felt something like this" Kefer said.
"These bracelets just charged the light of your star seeds" Apis said. "I hope you use them wisely."
"Don't worry, Apis, this was the moment that we both waited" Kefer said. "We're not going to disappoint you. You too, dad."
Amun gave him a nod and then headed to Horus:
"Your mom will be very proud when she hears about this, Horus, and I'm sure your father would be too."
"Thank you, sir" Horus thanked, bowing his head to Amun.
"Now if you excuse me, I need to get back to the throne room" the Pharaoh said.
"Go, dear, I'll be here with our son a little bit longer" Hathor said.
And so Amun got out of Osiris’s lab, heading to the throne room. Once he got there, he sat at the throne. After some time, he felt the presence of the Lord of Order, who was leaning against the back of the throne.
"I'm glad that your younger son managed to earn a golden bracelet" the Lord of Order said.
"Thank you, my lord, but I suspect you didn’t come here to congratulate me" Amun said.
"And your suspicions are corrected" he said. "I came here to tell you that you have to make a decision about who of your twin sons will succeed you."
"Can I ask you about what you think about what will be their reaction?" Amun asked.
"The only way to know for certain is communicating the decision, because it all depends on who you choose" the Lord of Order. "I'm sure Kefer will be okay, but Anubis is another story. Although I have to say that your question doesn't make any sense, once you've already made your decision and you’ve already predicted what will happen when you communicate it."
As always, the Lord of Order knew what was going on in Amun’s head. He said:
"You're right, your lordship. I have made my decision. I just wanted to confirm what I know that will happen. But, after all, I've been watching my children since they were born and my choice is completely fair and logical."
"If that’s so, then you should tell to the Council your choice" the Lord of Order said. "After all, they also have a word to say."
And, having said that, the Lord of Order disappeared.
"I will do what you said, master" Amun said. "And, for better or for worse, I'm sure I made the right decision."