There was
Ra, and his children. Nut the sky goddess joined in a union
with Geb the earth god. According to some legends, Ra cursed
the pair because Nut was his wife and he was jealous of
her infidelity. Some legends say the curse was because Ra
knew that the children of the pair were destined to overthrow
him. In any case, Nut was curse to not bear her child in
any month or year. Thoth, god of wisdom, who also loved
Nut went to Silene goddess of the moon. They gambled, and
Silene lost some of her light. Thoth used this light, and
created days in which Nut could bear her children; Osiris,
Set, Isis, and Nephthys.
In
time, Osiris came to rule over all Egypt, with his sister-wife
Isis at his side. Set grew jealous of his brothers power.
After all, was it not he who guarded the barge of Ra each
day from the serpent Apep. And his wife, Nephthys bore Osiris
a son, Anubis, Set plotted to kill his brother, and called
together seventy two conspirators. Set made a beautiful
coffin exactly to fit his brother, and then invited him
to dinner. At the dinner, the coffin was offered to whomever
fit it exactly. Osiris lay down into the coffin to see if
it fit. Set nailed the coffin shut, and cast it into the
Nile.
Isis
used her magic, which she had won from Ra, to recover the
body of her husband. She used her magic to conceive a child
from the body of Osiris. Set discovered the body, tore it
into fourteen pieces and scattered them through the land.
Isis gathered the pieces, and used her magic to create a
whole body from each piece, which she them buried. Osiris
became Lord of the Underworld.
When
Horus grew to be a man, he challenged Set, with the help
of Isis and Set's faithless wife Nephthys. In the fight,
Horus lost an eye, but he castrated Set. The Gods restored
both of them to full health, and set in judgment over the
case. Isis took the guise of Nephthys and with her sister's
help, tricked Set into giving up his claim upon Egypt.
Or
at least that is what is written in many versions of the
historic Egyptian legends. Anyone who can open a book of
Egyptian myth can learn of these myths. The World of Darkness
tells us of a different story, a different truth.
At Lore 5, the following is known to you:
Set as a Vampire
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The version
that most characters know is that both Osiris and Set were
vampires of the third Generation. Set was embraced by Irad
the strong-armed, who had also created Malkav and Saulot.
Set was away from the Second city when the 3rd generation
slew their sires. Set swore vengeance for his Sire's death,
and returned to Egypt. In his absence, Osiris has also been
embraced. Set and Osiris fought for centuries across the
face of Egypt, through both their mortal pawns and their
children. Till at lasts, Osiris was driven into the underworld,
to guard the land of Khem.
We
fight the children of the 3rd generations Vampires for their
treachery against Set's sire. We corrupt morals to have
them better serve Set, and to aid us in our holy war.
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However,
there is a darker side to the story, one that only the oldest
of the Setite know about. When Horus was judged as the new
king of Egypt, Ra cursed Set to live in darkness forever.
Set was thrown into Duat, the dark underworld where the
river of death runs. Set battled Apep and consumed his heart,
taking the power of Ra's great enemy into himself. Set learned
the truth that Ra had hidden from him and all humanity.
That all souls could become great, and only the web of lies
spun by Ra and the other gods kept them in place.
Set
escaped from the underworld, swearing to free the souls
held in bondage by Ra. Having tasted the waters of Duat,
he was not truly alive, and the curse of Ra bared him from
the day. Set found twelve disciples, and the mingled their
blood together, drinking it to swear an oath against the
tyranny of the Gods. As this rite ended, the great gods
appeared. Ra cursed them al to feed on blood alone. The
disciples betrayed set and begged for mercy from Ra. Angered
at their betrayer, Set swore to destroy them as well. Having
been a god, while they were mortals before the curse, Set
was the mightiest of them all.
We
fight the 12 clans for their betrayal of Set. Each of the
other twelve was taken in and taught by one of the great
gods, wrapped in the lies and weakness of the Maat. They
fight amongst themselves, making them weaker. We seek to
free kindred and mortals from their bonds to the Aeons,
the gods, and the world of order the Aeons use to imprison
the souls of all.
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Yet
another tale speaks to us of the river of Du'at. When Osiris
rose to power of the People of the Nile, he began binding
their lives in rules and laws. Set saw this was wrong, and
went to Ra, asking for Upper Egypt as a birthright of his
own. Ra refused, banishing Set from the lands. Set wandered
in the desert, till he was half mad with thirst. Digging
into the ground for 7 Days and 7 night, water flowed to
the surface. Set drank of the waters of Du'at and became
undying, the first of his kind.
The Mummy Horus and the Cult of Isis
After
Set slew Horus, his mother Isis performed the great Spell
of Life over her son. The spirit of Horus, and the other
Mummies or "reborn" would sojourn for only a small
time, each time they died, before returning to another body.
They were ultimately unkillable, due to the fact that each
time they were slain, they returned. Set stole the spell,
and used it to create the Bane Mummies, twisted insane parodies
created by a corrupted spell of life.
Historically,
the cult of Isis lasted far longer than the pharaohs did.
In the Roman Empire, the cult of Isis was very popular throughout
the Mediterranean area. It focused on the celebration of
the mysteries of the death and the resurrection of Osiris.
The cult of Isis continued to be practiced throughout the
former Roman Empire right up to the sixth century AD when
it was finally driven underground by Christianity. Isis
lived on within certain esoteric traditions throughout the
middle ages and continues to be an important part of the
Alchemical tradition.
In
the World of Darkness, the cult of Isis remains even this
night. They were formed as both the keepers of Isis wisdom
and the spell of life, and as the guardians and helpers
of the reborn. After the spell of life was stolen, many
of the reborn did not trust them fully again. The cult was
kept alive through the centuries, helped by it's popularity
in Roman times. In the last few decades, the cult has become
active once more, seeking the spell of life and trying to
help the sprits of the reborn. With the recent upheaval
in the underworld, the cults purpose seems to have changed,
but for what reason….
