Seratis Daughter of the Sun

by N J Adel

  The music born of such gentle movement of air and sand, the steady soothing tune of nature close by, was melody and chorus all in one. If bodies glowed, mine would exude an aura of happiness. With a smile, I let the dancing rays seep into my pores, wash away a thousand years of darkness.

  I opened my eyes to watch my friends. One look at their faces, and I knew they were as happy as I was.

  Tia spread her arms in the air. “It’s amazing to finally breathe fresh air. What a beautiful day!”

  “Indeed. I’m so grateful we’re back,” Redamun agreed.

  Nur let the sand sift between his fingers. “I will never take another living day for granted again.”

  “We’ve been given a second chance. I’m determined not to make it go to waste. From now on, every moment of our lives count.” My gaze shifted to Drusus. “We must rebuild my experiment hall as soon as we find a dwelling. The sooner we understand our powers, the easier we can design a plan to defeat Bessen Ra.”

  He splashed water from his canteen on his face to wash the blood and dirt residue from the accident. “I’m delighted to tell you that a dwelling of noble standards already awaits the honor of Your Majesty living in it. As for the experiment hall, I am at your disposal, my Queen. Whatever you need.”

  “That dwelling of noble standards is your residence?”

  “No, Majesty. It’s a house we’ve been building for the past few months specially for your return. Not that I wouldn’t be honored for Your Majesty’s stay at mine.”

  I smiled, impressed. “How far is it from here?”

  “Not far. A few hours. We can reach it before sundown if we move now.”

  “Is it safe to use the chariots buried with us without raising suspicion? I didn’t anticipate rides would change drastically after a hundred years, but now…”

  He gestured at the tomb. “Oh, you don’t have to worry about that. My carriage and the camels are right behind the Eastern exit.”

  My smile grew wider. “You came prepared, Drusus.”

  “Your Majesty has no idea how long we’ve been waiting for this day.”

  “Great,” Redamun joined the conversation. “Are there enough beasts to carry our belongings and the gold we were buried with or do we have to make another trip for them later?”

  “I think they’ll do, Guard Redamun,” Drusus answered.

  “Nur, Redamun, lead Drusus back inside and load whatever you can as fast as you can. I’d love to see our new house in the daylight.”

  ***

  The ride in the carriage was much more pleasurable than having to be carried in a chair or standing in an uncovered chariot.

  Tia couldn’t stop grinning as she sat next to me in the luxurious ride. But as I peeked at the boys riding the camels, escorting our cargos, I wouldn’t say they were as excited as she was.

  Even in the comfort of the closed compartments with small windows and sheer curtains they sat in on the backs of the camels.

  Especially Redamun.

  I knew he’d rather be the one in the carriage with me, like he used to escort me everywhere I’d gone, always by my side in the chariot, on a horse or walking next to my carried chair at any of my parades.

  I smiled at him from my own small window. Soon we will be inseparable again, my friend.

  He nodded and smiled back as if he heard my thoughts.

  We passed the gates of Kysis, the city we’d call home for now, with ease. On the way to the house, Drusus bragged about he knew some of the guards well enough to let us in without inspection or paying the allocated customs for our cargos.

  I didn’t need much intelligence to understand he bribed them.

  Kysis was a big city with vast markets and multi-story dwellings for the upper class.

  Villas. That was what they were called.

  People in colorful attires, thousands of them, roamed the busy streets. Merchants yelled, marketing their products. Fresh produce. Fine fabrics. Spices. Honey. Carriages and chariots dragged by donkeys, horses and mules crowded the narrow streets.

  Too much stimulation for my sharp senses on the first day, but I liked the place. No one was looking at us, and we could easily blend in this society without being noticed.

  The horse galloping stopped in front of one of those two-story villas in a rather secluded part of the city, and Drusus hopped off the carriage. “We’re here, Majesty.”

  He opened the compartment and helped me and Tia out of it. Redamun and Nur dismounted the camels once they’d perched.

  “My brothers designed this house.” Drusus started to the entrance. “It’s not as big as Your Majesty’s old palace but comfortable enough. They thought if they made it too big and luxurious, it would draw more attention to it than Your Majesty would prefer.” He opened the yellow and red gates. “The land is spread-out, though. There’s room for expansion if you ever wish to add more to the dwelling.”

  “They thought correctly. Are your brothers architects?” I stepped inside with Tia behind me, instantly smiling.

  He nodded. “This is the vestibulum. The main entrance hall. They did their best to make it look like the old—”

  “Courtyard.” I grinned at the continuous porch of granite pillar rows surrounding the garden and its fountains. “My old palace terraced hall.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Except it’s much smaller, and the pillars are different.” Redamun arrived and stood next to me, his arms folded across his chest. “They’re squared with peculiar tops and paintings for embellishment. What are these? Sheep horns? Is that how the Romans like their columns now?”

  “I’m afraid so.” Drusus clasped his hands behind his back.

  Nur entered. “Still, not so much different for a thousand-year time gap.”

  Tia shrugged. “I think it’s beautiful, and for me, it feels like home.”

  I ambled down the hall, touching the green grass. The sweet smell of the flowers on the trees flanking the courtyard tickled my nose. The hot wind danced through the branches, creating an ever-changing mosaic of light and shade, as water trickled from the fountains along the way.

  Two marble steps at the end of the porch separated me from the house door. I climbed down and spun around. “I love it. I can’t wait to see what’s inside.”

  Drusus and the rest marched to me, and then he opened the door to another vast hall. Surrounded by high-ceilinged entries, it had a slanted tiled roof with a square opening in the center. Directly below was a shallow, rectangular sunken portion of the floor, lined with marble, and a small mosaic around. A place for gathering rainwater, obviously.

  The walls were painted with people celebrating nature in several positions. No hieroglyphs or Egyptian symbols of any kind. The shades of red, yellow, blue and green gave the area a festive energy. A welcoming reception of sorts with sparse furnishings. To give the effect of a large space, I reckoned.

  “And this is the atrium, where guests are received and greeted,” Drusus explained. “Each of these porticoes leads to a guest room. The main chambers are upstairs.” He pointed to the left. “The kitchen and the servant domus are there. And in the back, there’s a pond and another garden.”

  “What about the experiment hall?” Nur asked.

  “The second story is an open area with a roof. It can be transformed into anything. But if you’d like a place more discreet, the underground cellar and vaults are better suited to the task,” Drusus said.

  “Take me to the underground.”

  “How about you show us to our chambers first? I’d like to inspect the security standards of Her Majesty’s quarters, make sure she is safe here,” Redamun said.

  “Majesty said she didn’t wish to waste any moment of our little time before Bessen Ra comes to life. I’d like to rebuild the experiment hall immediately. Anything else can wait,” Nur argued.

  “Safety first, Nur. We settle down then you can rebuild all you want.”

  Drusus looked at me as I twisted my lips, watching my men fighting w
ith words only to show me who was more dedicated to my service than the other. Regular exchanges I’d seen a hundred times between them.

  I missed many things about these two but not those pitiful arguments.

  “How about a bath?” Tia suggested, and the men chopped off their nagging.

  She blinked with a shy smile on her thin lips. “I think we all need that.”

  “I agree.” I gave the men a pointed look, and they bowed their heads. “Lead the way, Drusus.”

  He started to the colossal stairs in the far end of the atrium, and we followed to the first story.

  A narrow, long corridor greeted us. Down the hall, gold statues of two lions stood guard before closed doors. The walls and the ceiling were painted sky blue with drawings of clouds. As we walked farther, I could smell the fragrance of lotus mixed with wet grass.

  Drusus stopped as he reached the doors down the hall. “Your chambers are here, my Queen. There are three adjacent rooms, where the rest of you can stay, each with a private washroom and bath. But if Majesty prefers more privacy, there are more rooms on the other end of the hall to accommodate your companions.”

  “I must stay close to Her Majesty,” Redamun said quickly.

  Nur narrowed his eyes at him. “All of us must stay close to Her Majesty.”

  “Thank you, Drusus. Show us inside, please,” I demanded before they started again.

  “Yes, Majesty.” He pushed the doors open, and the orange sunset light spilled into the dim corridor.

  I stepped into the chambers, my companions in tow, the lotus fragrance filling my nostrils. I took in the spacious sitting area and the gold plated chairs on beautiful brown and red carpets. A well-lit terrace stretched along the chamber length, and I could see the pond from where I stood.

  Ambling forward, I smiled at the view of the vast garden before me, where the sweet smell was coming.

  The bedchamber was on my right. A fireplace took up half a wall. Marble floors with a rectangular mosaic marked out the enormous, ivory canopy bed. One Egyptian Djed pillar stood on either side of it, not Roman ones, decorated with my beloved home words.

  I touched one of the pillars, feeling the cool granite under my fingertips, reading the symbols. “Daughter of the Sun. Meha Seratis. Queen of the Nile and the Valley. Honor is your name. Glory is your destiny.”

  “My brothers thought that since no strangers approach the bedchamber, a few Egyptian embellishments wouldn’t hurt,” Drusus said. “Had they known how Majesty’s bedchamber looked in the past, they would have designed a replica. But Ari never mentioned it anywhere.”

  I shook my head, placing a hand on my heart, tears of joy and pride betraying me. “It’s beautiful.” Lifting my chin up to stop myself from crying, I gazed at him. “Like you and your family.”

  “Your humble servants, my Queen.”

  “Am I going to meet your family soon?”

  “With your permission, I shall send for them any time you wish. They can’t wait to have this honor.”

  “It will be my pleasure. Once we settle and gain control of our new selves, I shall tell you to send for them. In the meantime, I trust I have your discretion regarding our…situation?”

  “Worry not, Majesty. I’ve been keeping a thousand-year-old secret all my life. It’s what I’m good at.”

  “I trust you, but I want you to understand that you can’t even tell any of your family about our powers.”

  “Fully understand. It’s your secret. Your Majesty alone knows when to share it.”

  I nodded my approval and content.

  “Shall you stay here with us?” Redamun asked.

  “Surely, Guard Redamun. I’m here for anything Her Majesty needs. Guidance through the city, running errands, cooking, cleaning, everything. The house is too big for Majesty’s handmaid to take care of alone, and you cannot exactly have resident servants without the risk of exposure.”

  “Great,” Redamun said through his teeth. “Now, come help us unload our cargos and then show us to our chambers. Let Her Majesty have her bath.”

  Drusus looked at me for confirmation, and I nodded once.

  “The bath is on the left. Fully accommodated. I will come back with clothes. Then I will cook some meals. You must be starving,” he said.

  “Absolutely.” Redamun tapped the man’s back, practically pushing him outside the chamber. Nur chuckled and went after them, leaving me and Tia together.

  As silly as the men were, their conversation brought my attention to a strange fact.

  I wasn’t hungry at all.

  I glanced at my handmaid. “Are you starving, Tia?”

  “No. I don’t think he is either. He only wanted to get Drusus away from Your Majesty.” She giggled and closed the door. “He’s still the same.”

  “Who?” I asked, distracted by my discovery.

  “Guard Redamun.” A sheepish smile drew on her face. “It’s not like it wasn’t obvious back then, but now it’s clear as the sun… how much he…”

  I gave her a cunning look. “Wants me?”

  She shook her head. “It’s beyond desire, Majesty. He worships you.”

  “And you reached that insight how?”

  Her shoulder lifted in bafflement. “I can’t tell for sure, but… It’s like I can literally see it…on him somehow. I don’t know… I’ll go fix Your Majesty’s bath.”

  I mused as she disappeared into the bath chamber. Could she be reading Redamun’s feelings, his energy, like I did with Drusus? Did this connection I thought was unique turn out to be another common power we’d gained from the Long Sleep?

  What else had my experiment changed in our bodies, minds or souls?

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  The smell of rosewater and cedar oil soothed me, invited me to let go of my worries and queries, even for a brief period of time. I took off my sandals and joined Tia in the bath chamber.

  She helped me out of my dress and held my hand as I stepped down into the bath. Warm water tickled my feet and quickly submerged my hips when I reached the final step. I turned and rested my back against the marble tiles, the water warmth teasing my breasts and my neck.

  I moaned. “The simple pleasures we’ve taken lightly before. I used to take a bath such as this every single day, and not once appreciated any like the one I’m having now.” I gestured for Tia to join me.

  She blushed, her jaw dropping, her heart suddenly pounding. “I’m your humble handmaid, Majesty. I shall have my bath after you’ve enjoyed yours, in the maid’s bathroom where I belong.”

  Closing my eyes, I tilted my head back, my long hair swimming around my sides, water reaching my scalp. “Tia, don’t be ridiculous. Get in.”

  “I know my place, my Queen.”

  I inclined my head toward her and opened my eyes, droplets of water trickling on my cheeks and down my neck. “And your Queen is telling you to join her. Have you seen the size of this thing? Five people can fit in here. It’s simply easier to bathe me while you’re in it. And we’ll save some time if you have your bath now as well.”

  Her lashes fluttered as she started to take off her clothes. She hid her female bits with her hands and carefully tiptoed into the bath.

  My eyes narrowed at her in disbelief. “Are you shy of me, Tia?”

  “Yes,” she whispered.

  I straightened up, unable to hold off my laughter. “That’s silly. You have seen me naked, given me baths, dressed and groomed me for years.”

  “But Your Majesty hasn’t seen me naked before,” she murmured, swiftly covering her body in the water, her eyes down.

  “You have something I don’t have?”

  She chortled and shook her head. Still, she wouldn’t look me in the eye.

  “There’s something else other than shyness. What is it?”

  “Nothing, my Queen.”

  I tried to dig into her soul and read her feelings, testing my powers simultaneously, but I failed. I grunted and turned my back to her. “You can wash my hair now.�
��

  As she massaged my head with the lined oils and scents on the bath edge, I drifted with the soothing sensation, relaxing all my muscles, banishing the chaos that had invaded my mind. I needed clarity.

  To adapt.

  To conquer.

  To live.

  And for that to happen, I had to forsake every law I’d ever learnt, every belief. The rules of nature didn’t apply any more. My knowledge was an outer crust of something even I hadn’t grasped yet.

  Change.

  Lots of it.

  To survive I had to embrace it, not resist it.

  After washing my hair, Tia’s delicate fingers found my shoulders and fondled them. They slid across my arms, cleaning them softly. The same tingling of joy I experienced when I felt her touch earlier at the tomb traveled over me.

  Sharp senses could come in very handy, an undeniable power for which I was grateful, but this heightened emotions thing was a pain in the rear.

  And awkward.

  At the tomb, I’d convinced myself that my body reacted with this intensity to her touch because it was the first human one I’d had in a millennium. But now…

  Why would I enjoy a woman’s touch so much? One I’d felt on my skin for years without being…aroused.

  Here I said it.

  I was aroused by another woman. My own handmaid.

  Even at the tomb. It wasn’t just a calming sensation. It was sensual. I didn’t want to acknowledge it at the time, but this moment right now was undeniable.

  She was using a washcloth on my back with one hand, the other resting on my waist. I wanted to press back into her, feel her softness against mine. Unconsciously, I moved my hair to the side and tilted my neck, an open invitation for her lips to caress me.

  I laughed under my breath, shaking my head.

  Her hands stilled on my hips. “Are you well, Majesty?”

  I laughed again. “Yes. You may want to work faster, though.”

  “Apologies, my Queen. I will wash your front now.”

  I twirled. The tip of my naked breasts stared at her face. She was shorter than I, and the water covered her from the neck down. I could barely see the outline of her chest under the water. My evil mind groped for a way to make her show me more of her little figure.