by Overton, Max
I was never given a pet, so I found my own. I adopted a scarab beetle, grasshoppers and butterflies, crickets and ants, but never caged them, preferring to watch them as they lived their lives unrestrained. In return, they taught me the lessons of creation, how to work unceasingly and how to lift up one's voice in song, to have a reverence for all life.
The gods give us life for a short time but leave it to us to decide how we live it. One day they will demand of us an accounting when our hearts are weighed against the feather of truth in the Halls of the Dead.
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Chapter Fifteen
Ay, God's Father, brother and father to two queens, hurried along the long colonnade that led over the bridge spanning the Royal Road in Akhet-Aten. Arriving in the new capital city only a few short hours before, the news had come to his ears circumspectly, filtered through several layers of slaves and servants, finally whispered by a junior priest in the small Mansion of the Aten, next door to the King's Residence. Ay did not give much credence to the rumor--how could he-- but even the thought of it brought a return of the heart flutterings that plagued him off and on. It brought, in turn, lightheadedness and a feeling of tiredness.
As soon as his duties as priest of Aten permitted, he hurried out the back of the temple to the small House of Life by the Records Office and consulted a physician. Unfortunately, his own consultant, Intef, was out on a call so he suffered the ministrations of another charlatan who plied him with a foul-tasting concoction and offered up a prayer by way of treatment. Ay cursed and left the House of Life, the flutterings having eased of their own accord as they so often did. Ay considered the rumor again, consciously fighting down the feeling of panic in his breast. He must see the king; he would know the truth of it.
The King's servants in the Residence were their usual unhelpful selves. Akhenaten reigned with a light hand and the palace servants knew exactly how far they could carry their disdain and contempt even for the highest in the land. He had seen behavior that under the old king would have brought an instant flogging for the first offence and death for the second. Yet Akhenaten merely smiled and ignored the veiled insults. Nor would he listen to complaints from the visiting lords and high officials. Only once had Ay seen justice meted out for such flagrant disrespect.
Ay smiled despite his worry, remembering the visit the previous month from Horemheb, General of the Eastern Borders. A servant had kept him waiting for no reason other than to demonstrate the power he held over all visitors to the King's Residence. Horemheb had said nothing, merely noting the man's name. After his audience, Horemheb had the man abducted by his own soldiers, flogged senseless and left on the palace doorstep with a papyrus note attached to his loincloth which read 'Learn Manners'. Naturally the man had complained to the king, but as with other complaints the king had done nothing. Unfortunately, manners had not been learned, though Ay suspected Horemheb would not be kept waiting next time.
Perhaps I should emulate the worthy General , Ay thought. He sighed, shaking his head. Who would I get to do it? I have no soldiers at my command .
And so he hurried over the bridge, past the Window of Appearance where the servants were cleaning and bringing in chairs and tables laden with food and drink. Through the Window itself, Ay could see crowds starting to throng the thoroughfare, gathering beneath the arches of the bridge.
In the West palace, he found an old scribe whom he recognized sitting on a stone bench in the gardens. "Nedes," he cried, thinking how men are sometimes given names that eventually mock them. This old graybeard could no longer be called 'young' but must forever be called that. "Have you seen the king? I must speak with him."
"I think he is in the Women's quarters, friend Ay," Nedes mumbled. "If you ask in the palace I am sure they will tell you."
"The servants tell me nothing these days. If ever there is a crisis, it will be over before the king hears of it." Ay turned to leave. "Do you know where in the Women's quarters?"
"He visits his daughters, I believe, so the North Harem."
Ay muttered his thanks and ran back into the palace, turning left along the long pillared portico that ran the length of the palace. He passed the South Harem, the normal abode of the queen, his daughter, when she was not with the king, nodding a greeting to the unsmiling Nubian guards. He reflected on the customs of other lands as he looked at the tough, virile guards. Some kings would have eunuchs guarding the women, but not in Kemet. Here, all women are regarded as untouchable unless they give their assent. And who, of the king's wives would dare give assent to anyone but the king?
He found the king with his daughters in the gardens of the North Harem, together with Queen Neferneferuaten Nefertiti and the nurses of the younger girls. The guards recognized him and let him into the sweet-scented gardens. The princesses, Meryetaten, Meketaten, Ankhesenpaaten, and the youngest, Neferneferouaten-tasherit were playing a game, running along the paths between the flowering shrubs and around the ornamental fish pond, under the watchful eyes of the nurses.
Ay greeted Akhenaten, bowing low with his hands held out in ritual supplication, then after a moment, performed a similar obeisance toward his own daughter.
"Rise, father," Akhenaten said with a fond smile. "The father of my beloved does not have to bow to me. Come, sit beside us and drink, you are indeed welcome here."
Nefertiti came across, dressed in a diaphanous gown and drew her father upright. "Greetings, father, and welcome back to the city of Aten. I hope your journey was a pleasant one?" She examined his taut face with its wrinkled brow. "What concerns you, father?"
Akhenaten laughed and approaching his wife, put his arm around her, hugging her closely. He too was dressed in a filmy gown that looked more like a woman's dress than raiment more suited to a king. The thin fabric hid nothing and despite having seen it before, Ay found himself wondering at what trick of the gods had given the king such a body. Thin-chested and broad-hipped, his swollen thighs made the king waddle like a duck as he walked. It was hard to look at the man and see a god, the anointed ruler of the Two Lands.
Ay hid his thoughts and smiled disarmingly. "Why, daughter, nothing concerns me now that I am in the exalted presence of my beloved king."
"Then come and sit beside us, father, and enjoy the beauties of the Aten's creation." Nefertiti took her father's arm and drew him over to the fishpond, where they all sat on the raised stone lip of the pond and watched the antics of the children. "Something is troubling you, father. Tell us."
Ay shrugged, wondering how to broach the subject of the rumor. Instead, he prevaricated, talking of something else he had noticed on his journey down the river from Waset. "There has been an increase in crime, my lord. When we put in for the evening, we were set upon by brigands who quite openly rob and kill."
"You were unharmed, though, father?" Nefertiti looked concerned.
"The soldiers saw them off, killing several." Ay noticed the king's look of distaste, and hurried on. "Beloved king, I fear these are criminals who were released under your mercy."
In the months following his accession to the full throne of Kemet, Akhenaten had celebrated the love and beauty of his god by emptying the jails and the quarries of criminals and slaves. His view was that under the gentle influence of the Aten, all men would learn to live in peace and harmony. Predictably, the crime rate soared and there were areas of Kemet where one did not travel without an armed escort. The Medjay police did what they could but as penalties had been reduced at the same time, there was little incentive for hardened criminals to work for their bread and beer.
"There have always been those who do what is wrong, father. But as they learn to live in truth, so they will not want to live by hurting others." Akhenaten turned to his wife and took her hands in his. "Beloved, I think the people need to see more of us. Let us make a procession throughout the Two Lands so everyone can see how the Aten has blessed us. When they see our blessings they will embrace the Aten's truth more closely. Wh
y, within a few months we may be able to disband the Medjay."
Nefertiti smiled and gazed admiringly at her husband. "Indeed, husband. We can take the girls too so that they may see this Kemet of ours."
"Then that is settled. Ay, you will make the arrangements. We will leave...when is your moon blood, dearest?"
"In ten days time, beloved," Nefertiti said without embarrassment.
"Then we will leave in sixteen days, Ay."
Ay bowed his head. "It shall be as you wish, my lord."
A deep rumble issued from the king's copious belly and a twinge of pain crossed his countenance. He broke wind, and sniffed openly at the noxious odour. "I must empty my bowels," Akhenaten said. He stood and indicated the Harem. "Will you accompany me?"
Ay raised an eyebrow but said nothing as the three of them crossed the close-cropped lawn to the balconied colonnade of the Women's quarters. They entered through the wide columns and turned aside to the Chamber of the Bath.
"I have had this wonderful new device installed throughout the palace. I have two of them, the queen has one and this one was put in for my daughters three days ago." Akhenaten laughed. "Tell me, father," He waved his arms around the cool tiled floors and walls of the Bath Chamber with its sunken tubs and fountains. "We are in the room where the bowels are voided, but can you detect either the odour of the body's decay or the strong disguising scent of perfume?"
"Er, no, my lord." Ay looked around, not quite sure where the conversation was leading.
Akhenaten broke wind again, the sound reverberating in the large tiled room. A stench of excrement wafted over them. The king walked over to a raised ebony and ivory chair, inlaid with the figures of golden animals, in one corner. A raised channel lay on one side of the chair and a lowered one on the other. Akhenaten pointed at the seat. "See father, it is like any other Seat of Relief, save for this one thing, a small pool of water in the bottom."
Ay peered into the bowl and nodded. "I see it, my lord, but I do not comprehend its purpose."
Nefertiti laughed and clapped her hands with delight. "Show him, husband. I cannot wait to see his face."
Akhenaten swept his gown up and aside and sat down, positioning his buttocks over the hole in the chair. He concentrated and frowned, several small splashes following. He got up and peered into the bowl. "There, father. What do you see?"
Ignoring the smell, for in truth he had smelled worse, Ay peered in at the royal turds. He nodded wisely. "Good, my lord, firm but moist. As the physicians would say--'Of superb consistency'. This indicates your bowels are healthy."
"Ah, but now comes the new thing." Akhenaten crossed to the wall and pulled on a flax cord. A small sluice gate rose where the higher channel met the tiled wall and a tiny flood of water gushed down the chute, swirled through the bowl and carried the excrement away down the lower channel where it disappeared into another opening in the wall. The king released the cord and the gate closed, shutting off the water.
"Remarkable." Ay examined the bowl, finding only a small pool of fresh water. "Where does the channel lead?"
"To a large pot in the next room," Nefertiti said. "Disebek the builder tells us he can run the channel completely out of the palace eventually, but it will mean digging up a lot of the flooring. He is going to get it done when we are next away."
"And the water source has to be filled by slaves," Akhenaten added, slapping the tiled wall with one hand. "No longer do we have to put up with the smell of defecation even for an instant. This is but one of the innovations Disebek and his assistants have come up with. Think of it, father Ay, for centuries our Kemet has done things simply because that was the way they were always done. Now, under the impetus and fire of the Aten, new things can be seen in the Two Kingdoms." Akhenaten started to pace about the room, throwing his arms about, his voice echoing off the walls of the Bath Chamber.
"Take art for instance. You have seen the new drawings and paintings that the court artists are creating? New colours, new styles, new ways of representing the world--all in truth, the truth that is Aten. The statues that they make of me, accurate and truthful, down to the last detail. I will not be represented as some stiff, lifeless king identical to every other, the body held just so, this leg forward, this arm raised. My artists have been instructed to show me as I am." Akhenaten stopped and waved his hands down his body from his head to his thighs. "My beautiful wife too, and my daughters. They are the most beautiful things in all of Aten's creation and I want the world to see her beauty and envy me. I have commissioned a huge pair of statues of the two of us, naked, that all may appreciate every beautiful part of her."
"Alas," Nefertiti said softly. "I am no longer the beauty I was as a young woman. Already my body fades."
"In truth, my wife, in Aten's truth, your breasts sag and your belly protrudes more than it once did. Wrinkles line your face in the mornings before your ladies have attended to you and your delightful bottom and thighs are also creased. The statue will show these things, but also in truth, I love you as much as I ever did."
Nefertiti frowned. "Truth may be carried too far," she muttered.
"Still, enough of this, let us go back out into the garden--unless you would like to use the device, father?"
"Er, no thank you, my lord." Ay joined the king and queen as they walked slowly back to the garden. They stopped in one of the balconies and watched the young princesses at play. "My lord ..." He hesitated, and then tried again. "My lord. If Aten is truth, then how ..."
"If?" Akhenaten interrupted, all the good humor leaving his face.
"My apologies, son of Aten." Ay bowed, extending his hands in silent supplication once more. "I am overcome by the amazing sight I have just seen and I spoke without thinking. Forgive me."
Akhenaten waved a hand nonchalantly. "You are forgiven. What was it you meant to say?"
"Only that with Aten being the truth; how are we to interpret the release of criminals and the army cutbacks?"
The king frowned. "Explain yourself, Ay."
"Criminals do not live by the truth, my lord, yet they were convicted by the truth of witnesses and law. Yet they, who do not live by truth, are now released by truth." Ay essayed a smile. "In truth, my lord, I am confused."
Akhenaten frowned again. "I am the son of Aten, the son of truth. Do you think I have done wrong?"
"Of course not, great king, only...perhaps there should be some division made between those capable of knowing the truth and desiring to follow it; and those who know the truth yet disregard it. There are a number of murderers out there that prey on your innocent subjects, my lord."
Akhenaten rounded on his wife. "And you, beloved. Tell me, have I done wrong by releasing these poor ones of the prisons?"
Nefertiti stroked her husband's arm gently and spoke softly. "You are king, my husband, ruler of the Two Lands, Lord of the Nine Bows, you can do no wrong. Your word is law; your word is the perceived truth. Our father in the heavens inspired you to an act of great mercy. Our father on earth is mistaken."
Akhenaten nodded. "You are wise, my beautiful wife, yet I do not want to leave my subjects groaning in the grasp of murderers and thieves."
"Then have your police round up and imprison any who have abused your leniency and the Aten's great mercy. Thus mercy will have been shown, yet justice will also be served."
The king pursed his lips. "I shall think on it. Your words are sensible yet subtle." He looked back at Ay. "You said something about the army? Do you accuse them of being murderers too?"
"On the contrary, my lord. Just the opposite. Kemet is and always has been beset by enemies, the Nine Enemies, other nations envious of the riches the gods ..."--Akhenaten's eyes narrowed--"... have bestowed on us. The kingdoms of Syria, Lebanon, Byblos, Gezer and Sidon have been a buffer, a shield against the depredations of the wild men, the Hittites, Amorites and Hyksos. Yet to defend these lands, our army needs men and gold. At the very least, faithful men like Ribaddi of Byblos need gold that they might defend th
emselves, and us, against the enemy."
"The Aten is a god of peace. By spreading the words of peace through the nations around us we shall achieve brotherhood and unity without the need for war and bloodshed. Nor will we need to find much gold for the armies and our allies."
Ay frowned. "My lord has seen the reports that come in almost daily from the frontiers?"
Akhenaten yawned. "These things bore me. There is always some general or governor of some little town prattling on about the troubles he has. And always wanting gold, ever more gold." He turned away and watched his daughters at play. A movement in the shrubbery caught his eye and the king extended a finger, laughing with delight as a bright green mantis, about the length of two finger joints ran up onto it and stood there swaying gently from side to side. Akhenaten lifted the insect aloft, positioning it in the bright sunshine as he examined it. "Look how it folds its arms to its body as it faces the sun, beloved wife. It too worships the Aten."
Nefertiti put her hand on her husband's wrist and pulled it down so she could see. "It is looking at me," she cried in delight.
"And no wonder, beloved wife, for it too appreciates your beauty." The king turned and called to his children. "Daughters, quickly, come and see this delight. An insect worships the Aten as we do."
Ay coughed gently. "My lord, it is imperative we discuss the army."
"Later, Ay. It will keep. See, daughters, how this insect has come to me to dance and pray to Aten."
The girls clustered round, wide-eyed, exclaiming at the wonder. "I have seen one of those before, father," Meketaten said. "They eat other insects. I saw one eating a grasshopper it caught." She poked a finger at it and the mantis unfurled delicate green and pink wings and took flight, whirring into the garden. With a scream, Neferneferouaten-tasherit raced after it, the other girls laughing and calling as they followed.