Ring of Aandaleeb: The Hidden Ones (The Djinn Chronicles Book 1)

by Hutchins, S. S.

  Henry and Pharaoh Djoser were both spat out of the marker simultaneously.

  They looked up and they both saw that the djinn was in trouble. He was holding on by a thread; it was obvious that this was the reason why their scenarios were overlapping.

  “You have passed the seventh marker; a king blesses the lives of others. Ancient kings made it a habit to bless those whom they trusted and to be instrumental in blessing those whom they led. It has long been known that kings operate as the link, the conduit between the gods and earth. A king who wishes to see his people prosper will use his ability of blessing on them, their land and their cattle/livestock. He understands that when his subjects prosper, he prospers.

  “History shows us time and time again that great patriarchs leave a blessing for both their children and their subjects before dying.”

  King Djoser charged past Henry, knocking him over, and touched the eighth marker. Henry looked to his left and he saw Anka frantically flapping his wings and Wally waving at him to get up. Henry pushed himself up and ran and touched the last marker.

  “Imhotep, Imhotep, Imhotep!” The crowd roared. The Imhotep cult of Memphis was in full regalia, honoring their commoner turned deity figure. Henry saw the procession walk by him, the joy and adulation evident on everyone’s face, from the lowliest child to the adults weeping and dancing. Henry followed them as if compelled. Under a fig tree he saw Pharaoh Djoser. He was normal, no jackal head, and no bull behind. Henry watched him as Djoser’s eyes trailed behind the procession. A sense of melancholy and sadness was obvious. Djoser turned and saw Henry, beckoning him to come over.

  Henry was both shocked and surprised. This had been the man/ghost/creature that had been trying to kill him or get him killed, not sure which or most likely both. Henry walked over with some trepidation. Djoser patted the earth next to him underneath the fig tree. Henry sat down and was instantly hit with a deep, sweet, slightly perfumed fragrance that only a ripe fig can give off. He enjoyed the smell, the quietness, and sat quietly alongside Djoser, neither of them saying anything, just appreciating the silence and the quiet before the chaos.

  “This is the marker that I have truly lost, long before you came here this twilight. This is the marker of Legacy. I was supposed to have gone through barzakh, become a djinn and become a child of the North Star, just like you.”

  “What is barzakh?”

  “It is said that when a human dies, if caught at the moment of death they can enter into barzakh, a kind of djinn afterlife. Once the series of trials are performed, you can transform from a creature of flesh and blood to one of that comes from the hottest part of the flame, a djinn.”

  “Has anyone been successful at this?”

  “I wasn’t and I doomed myself and subjects for an eternity. I failed in my legacy and was then forgotten by history.”

  “You have a pyramid named after you, the Pyramid of Djoser. History hasn’t forgotten you.”

  “Yet it stands empty, my remains and the remains of my subjects’ whereabouts are not known. This is because we walk in the twilight like the djinn, but we are monstrosities outcast by all.”

  Henry looked down at his feet. He had taken in a lot. Barzakh may be a way to save his family, but the consequences of it going terribly were obvious when he looked at Djoser and his subjects.

  “Couple that with the fact that Imhotep and I worked on transforming the mastaba into what is now known as pyramids. The djinn gets all of the credit and I am just known as the pharaoh of that era.”

  Henry looked at Imhotep and understood that his legacy was a legacy of help. So much pain had been caused by the djinn/ human interaction that had not been righted.

  “I will help you, King Djoser. I will help right this wrong that Imhotep left you with. I believe that, by working together, we can find a way.”

  King Djoser looked at Henry in stunned silence. He reached in and began to hug Henry.

  “Thank you so much, you don’t know what this means to me.”

  As King Djoser was embracing Henry, the scene changed, the landscape became barren, the fig tree was scorched and he found himself being embraced not by the human looking Djoser but by the massive arms of the jackal headed bull.

  “You stupid, arrogant fool. Just like Imhotep, you wish to steal my legacy of saving and protecting my people.”

  Henry tried to squirm free from the death grip of Djoser’s embrace.

  “NO!” Henry shouted, “I’m just trying to help.”

  “So was Imhotep—the one that comes in peace, is with peace. I am done with djinn help.”

  King Djoser slammed Henry into the ground. If not for Henry’s djinn resilience, he would have broken his back.

  “Only I, King Djoser, will unite Upper and Lower Egypt, only I can find a way to save my subjects, only I will be triumphant in the face of adversity. I am the pharaoh and no one will share my light again.”

  Then he was gone.

  Henry had lost the race, an impossible race that had left him beaten, battered and somewhat discouraged. He knew his prize was gone; he knew Sarah was involved somehow. Yet in his gut he knew he had to fix the pyramid of Djoser, he had to release the pharaoh and his subjects from the curse that Imhotep had left on them.

  He got up and dusted himself off, then he appeared in the Heb-sed courtyard.

  “You alone have passed the eighth and final marker. As above so below, as below so above. You have united upper and lower and come back again. You are the Suleyman we have been waiting for.”

  The djinn fell from his floating position, hitting the dirt. Both Anka and Henry rushed over.

  “I am getting my much deserved death. I am sorry I have embarrassed you; now that I have met the Suleyman I am impressed. Kings throughout history have been obsessed with their legacy. They have built empires, created phenomenal buildings, codified rules and changed the calendar. They have sought to become immortal hoping to leave behind a testament to their greatness that would remind all future generations of their lives and their greatness. Unfortunately, so many are like Djoser, they miss that the greatest legacy of all can come from the lives we’ve touched, the friends we’ve made and the unconditional help we can give our brothers.”

  The djinn was extinguished and on the wind they heard his final words, “You will find a way.” There was nothing left in the temple—no Djoser, no crowd, just the wailing that was either the wind or the remnants of the crowd. In the end, it was only Henry, Anka and Wally left empty handed.

  Chapter Forty: Expect the unexpected

  Sarah was furious. She had touched legion with her sword and had managed to rattle him enough to stop him and to get him to shrink down in size.

  She could not believe Samyaza had essentially sent an assassin after her and her friends in order to force her hand, and it had succeeded.

  She had not intended to go along with Samyaza’s plan of destroying the djinn, but now she was on a head long collision course with destiny.

  If only she could turn back time and tell Wally and Henry what the situation was earlier, they could have possibly helped her. It was too late for that now. There was nothing she could say to them to redeem her or make them forgive her for taking one of the two objects they needed, the book of Asmodeus. She patted her bag and could feel the heft and weight of the book. Still there, she thought to herself.

  “Legion, where were you supposed to meet after taking the book?”

  Like five sets of fingers on a chalkboard, “The gathering is in Petra and then we are off to the Alhambra to see the final ending of the djinn and the end of our earthly bondage. Then they cackled in unison. Sarah dropped Legion towards the desert sand. Massive tentacles shot from underneath his robe. The tentacles hit the desert floor. They rose at least 20 ft above the desert floor supporting the robed legion body, looking more like a desert boat skimming along the surface, with Sarah flying behind. They were headed to Petra. She looked back at the ruins of the step Pyramid of Djoser and hoped Henry w
ould be able to find her there. She cut a doorway in the sky and it linked her and Legion to Jordan and the city of Petra.

  Chapter Forty-One: Equinox arrival

  Yoshi, Amirah and Silas’ mandala opened upon the outskirts of Petra. Among djinn folk it was well known that you do not attempt to sneak into Petra. They were well protected from mandalas, tapestry and even natural movers.

  Petra had been a Nabetean stronghold, a virtual fortress carved from red sandstone rock. It was believed that the sandstone itself kept people from “moving” themselves into Petra via most conventional djinn and other methods. Petra’s people were also very special. The city for centuries had housed an aamaar colony of djinn that had lived side by side with humans and sometimes intermarried.

  All of the inhabitants of Petra were known for two things, trade and cunning. It was said that whenever invaders came, they were met with little to no resistance, in fact, the Nabeteans would help them take back as many spices and as much incense and gold as they could carry. Once in the surrounding desert, they would then ambush the invaders and not only take back their goods, but their lives also.

  In the human world it had long been thought abandoned, but, like many djinn cities, the Nabeteans had simply decided to sidestep and live in the twilight. Empire after empire had done business with and through Petra, now they simply worked with djinn exclusively.

  As they approached the wall that narrowed into a one man entrance, Yoshi and Silas could not help but notice the ancient wards that kept the city protected from other Djinn tribes. Amirah had no such worry. She marched up to the guardsman.

  “I am Amirah, first lieutenant to the one in green, of the City of Qaf. I ask for passage for myself and my companions.”

  The guards pulled out their apple iPads, typed in the information Amirah told them, and a mandala appeared with a full size image of her.

  “You are who you say you are, but we need to document your companions.” The guard looked suspiciously at Yoshi and Silas.

  Silas had seen this before, a blend of Sihr and technology. The Petrans were on the cutting edge of this. Silas walked up to the guard and handed him a scroll of paper. The guard rolled it out, looked at Silas and his companions and waived them through. His partner began to say something, but the guard simply shook his head and let them pass, while giving the scroll back to Silas.

  Both Amirah and Yoshi were dumbfounded.

  “What was on the note?” Yoshi was impressed.

  “Yeah, what was on the note?” Amirah said, very curious.

  Silas looked at his companions, “Do you really want to know?”

  “Yes,” they said in unison.

  “It was a note from his boss telling him to let us into the city, we are secret inspectors. Tell no one and your bonus will be tripled this year.”

  “How did you get a note like that?” Amirah was taken aback.

  “I didn’t, it’s old Sihr. The paper simply shows the viewer a combination of their desires and what you want them to see. It is quite effective. ”

  Yoshi and Amirah made faces at one another.

  “You see there are uses for my hacked Ghilan magic after all. Your formal training never trained you for that, Amirah.”

  Amirah’s face remained stoic, but her insides were doing back flips. She had not expected to be impressed, but she was sufficiently so.

  The city of Petra was beautiful. It was the only djinn city that really celebrated the equinox. It was done up with decorations of the sun and the moon all over the place. Some were half and half symbols. Silver and gold streamers and ribbons abounded. There was a sense of revelry and excitement in the air. Every year the veil between the djinn realm and the human realm weakened the most on the equinox, at twilight, dusk and dawn.

  During this time, mirages become more prevalent; people can hear the voices of djinns see the lights. Djinn cities such as Shangri La and Atlantis even open their doors to Mount Qaf and rejoin the djinn tribes for the annual party. The djinn tribes of both of those cities were a different breed. Their environments dictated that they operate and function on different levels from other tribes, but that did not make them better, even if they thought so.

  Yoshi had not participated in an equinox festival since he was a boy, he had forgotten how exciting and lively they were. He remembered the sweets, dates, figs and pastries from around the world; the games of moving tag; the Imhotep processions; all of the temples, mosques and churches filled with the believers. His parents would let him stay up all day and night long to see the transitions of twilight and how it would just be twilight for the entire 24 hours for the djinn. It was amazing.

  “Your face has nostalgia written all over it, are you okay?” Silas looked at Yoshi’s big frame floating a few inches above the ground.

  Yoshi smiled as he lightly put his feet back on solid ground.

  “This is my favorite festival, my favorite time of the year.” Yoshi walked over to one of the street vendors and grabbed himself a stick of candied fruit as well as some stuffed mussels. He offered some to Silas and Amirah who politely declined.

  “Amirah, I am not quite sure I understand why you are here helping us.”

  Amirah looked down, then looked back at Silas. Amirah knew it would be hard to explain, but it had to be made clear, even if just a little bit.

  “After I attacked you, Henry and Sarah at the Haoma Tree,” she looked sheepishly at Silas, “The Haoma Tree pulled me in. It showed me a glimpse of my future and a glimpse of the future without Henry. It wasn’t pretty. It told me that I needed a mission, a real mission in life; that I had to be a part of the solution, not a part of the problem.”

  Silas found himself touched by the sincerity in her voice. He knew what it meant to need purpose and to find it.

  “Well, with your skills and your good natured personality,” Silas snickered as Amirah gave him a swift elbow to the ribs, “You are an invaluable asset.” Silas put his arm around her waist and looked up at her and smiled.

  Yoshi came back, arms loaded with meat, buns, sweets, along with dozens of things on a stick.

  “You have got to try this,” Yoshi said as he took a bite of another exotic snack, “next year I am definitely getting a stand here. We will make a killing.”

  Silas and Amirah looked at each other and burst out laughing. They both thought the same thing, if there is a next year.

  Unknown to them, Ornias watched their whole interaction as he gnawed on a deceased man’s left amputated thumb.

  Chapter Forty-Two: Found and lost

  “We’re losing Anka.” Henry looked at his newly resurrected friend and thought to himself how magnificent Anka looked. But obviously it would take more than that.

  Wally walked over to Henry, “You have to be proud of yourself. You have succeeded in defeating King Djoser and you proved to have the qualities of a king, in one of the most rigorous and grueling contests. I know that I could not have braved it, let alone have succeeded in completing it.”

  Henry felt that wasn’t true, but he didn’t have the strength to argue. The girl he was falling for, Sarah, had become a turncoat at the most inopportune moment.

  “Why would she steal the book?” Henry thought aloud.

  It was difficult enough to obtain the book, without someone you trust and love stealing it from right under your nose.

  “What could she possibly want from the book?” Henry held his head. “We missed something that would have given us an idea of who she was all about.” Henry was trying to figure it out.

  Wally placed a hand on Henry’s shoulder. “You cannot prepare for every contingency. She betrayed us, that’s her problem, not ours. Now we pick up the pieces.”

  Henry knew that Wally was right.

  “I also believe I may have figured out a little bit about her from the giant’s rampage.” Henry listened intently as Wally continued. “While you were trying to win the race, the giant shouted out that she was the daughter of Samyaza.”

 
“Who is Samyaza?” Henry’s curiosity was piqued.

  “Samyaza is the leader of one of the other races, the Nephilim.”

  “The Nephilim, aren’t they fallen angels?” Henry piped in.

  “Yes, in a way. Except they did something that should have never been done by any of them, they took human wives and then had children.”

  Henry paced in circles as he attempted to sort all of this out. Sarah was the daughter of a Nephilim. But that didn’t explain why she wanted the book.

  “The most important thing about this is that the Nephilim are bound to the depths of Hell and yet the monster was freely roaming.”

  “You think it was a Nephilim, too?” Henry was shocked and bewildered.

  “It had to have been; it sounded and looked too much like the legend. In all of my years I have never met a Nephilim. While they may have been out of commission there are many Grigori, like Sarah and myself, great grandchildren of the Nephilim. But no Nephilim have walked the earth. We have all hoped to survive to see the day. Now that I have seen one, I am concerned.”

  Henry was shocked at Wally’s overall reaction, “What do you mean?”

  “This is an omen, a not-so-good one. We will have to proceed with utmost care. If they are leaving their home in hell, then that means that during the equinox they are coming. The veil between the human world and the djinn stronghold will be at its weakest. If they are planning any type of attack it will be then. “

  “Do you know where? “ Henry was getting positive about the prospects of catching Sarah.

  “There is really only one city that will have any activity and most likely will be the exchange point for the book or at the very least we can learn about what is happening with her.”

  Henry felt like this was going nowhere fast. He had no way of contacting the other guys, he’d lost the book, and he was now on the verge of losing his sanity.

  Then Henry saw Wally staring into the desert and he followed his eyes.