by Max Overton
"Duck hunting, Son of Re," the Tjaty said. "I remember seeing you often bring down two birds with one arrow."
"There, you see...er, Seti. Well, you must have things to do, so I'll let you go while I wait for my..." The king's voice trailed off.
"Neru pehut, Son of Re. He will be here soon."
"Yes, of course he will. Send in Messuwy if he's here, will you, Seti, there's a good boy."
"Father, Messuwy is in Khent-Min."
"Is he? What's he doing up there? Well, never mind. Off you go then."
Seti left his father's inner chamber, puzzled by his father's words. He knew the king's mind was duller than before, but these latest lapses were alarming. Perhaps it was just the pain that made him forgetful, he thought.
A man came hurrying along the corridor clutching a leather bag to his chest, his eyes darting from side to side. Seti frowned and then recognised the man as physician Ahmes, neru pehut or shepherd of the royal anus. He stopped him, wondering why the man looked anxious, and said, "The king awaits you, Ahmes. Look after him well."
"Of...of course, Noble One." Ahmes bobbed his head and shuffled his feet.
"Well, go on then." Seti watched as the physician scurried away and then dismissed the man from his mind, hurrying off to prepare for his pleasure trip to the south with his lovely Tausret.
* * *
Ahmes hesitated at the doorway when he saw the Tjaty standing next to the king, but he recovered such poise as he possessed and advanced to the bedside.
"How may I serve you, Son of Re?"
"My bowels are blocked again, and I am in pain."
Ahmes examined the king, spreading his cheeks and probing delicately with his finger. "You are quite swollen and red around the anus, Son of Re. Does this hurt?"
"Yes, curse it. Do something."
"I...I have a cream that should be quite er...efficacious." Ahmes took a small stone jar from his leather bag and unstoppered it.
"Let me see that." Merysekhmet held out his hand. Ahmes passed it across with only a moment's hesitation, and the Tjaty sniffed the purplish green ointment. It gave off a sharp smell that made him wrinkle his nostrils. "What is it?"
"Herbs mixed with goose fat. It will help."
Merysekhmet nodded and handed the jar back.
"Do something about my blockage first," Merenptah insisted. "I have the urge to go, but I cannot."
"If I soothe your anus and then flush out your bowels, the liquid will wash the cream away, Son of Re. Perhaps I could soothe you now and come back later to attend to your blockage?"
"Other way round," Merenptah insisted. "A bowel movement will only aggravate my anal pain, so apply the cream afterward."
"It...it would really be b...better..." Ahmes stuttered.
"Just get on with it," the king ordered.
Ahmes had no option but to do as the king said. He called for a brazier and the necessary ingredients, prepared the warm herbal liquid, had the essential prayers intoned over it and greased up the cow's horn. Gently, he inserted the tip into the king's anus, working it past the swollen, bleeding veins, and poured the liquid in, binding up the king's loins afterward to give the mixture time to work.
"When your bowels have emptied, Son of Re, call me and I will apply the soothing cream," Ahmes said, packing up his equipment.
The king gingerly eased himself off the bed and called for his servants to dress him. As he no longer had formal duties that could not be performed by others, he took himself off to a pleasantly furnished room near the royal privy to await the outcome of his treatment. It was not long in coming, and the king's cries of pain echoed through the palace. After a particularly violent episode that had Merenptah collapsed on the floor, curled around himself, the servants sought to send for the neru pehut, but the king stopped them.
"It has not finished," he groaned, sweat standing out on his brow. He had the servants clean him up and carry him to a couch close by where the cool evening breezes off the river soothed him. Seti called upon him to talk and share a cup of wine, but Merenptah's body shook with the effort, so Seti kissed his father and left him to rest.
Further bowel movements over the course of the evening exhausted Merenptah and eventually he fell asleep on his couch. The servants debated whether to wake him and take him to his bed, but decided against it, letting the king sleep through to morning.
Merenptah woke feeling more settled in his belly, though his anus felt stretched and raw. He bathed, and ate a light meal standing up. Merysekhmet came to inquire as to his health and, on hearing of the king's pain, would have sent for the neru pehut immediately.
The king refused. "Later. I must see my son off and utter the prayers for his safe passage. I cannot do that properly if I have been dosed with poppy or whatever is in that cream."
The court gathered on the docks of Men-nefer mid-morning, the population crowding round to cheer the heir and his wife as they set off for Waset. They boarded the barge 'Wisdom of Ptah' which was decorated in festive banners, and the sailors turned out in crisp clean uniforms. Merenptah, surreptitiously supported by Merysekhmet, offered up a sacrifice to Hapi, the deity of the river, and petitioned all the gods to watch over the young couple.
Rams' horns sounded, drums beat and the people cheered as the oars of the barge thrashed the water, slowly easing the boat out into the current. The sail lifted and the gentle north wind filled it and, together with the beat of the oars, started the barge on its long journey upriver.
Merenptah watched it go with a smile. "The people love him, Merysekhmet. Truly the gods smiled when they gave me Seti Meryenptah as my heir. It is as my father Usermaatre said, with a strong young king on the throne of Kemet, the house of Ramesses will prosper and last a thousand years." He winced as he turned away, and almost stumbled.
"Is the pain great, Son of Re? Shall I send for the physician?"
Merenptah drew himself up, hiding his agony. "Do not let the people see my weakness. Help me up to the palace before you send for him."
Chapter Forty-Six
Merenptah speaks:
It is all I can do to maintain my dignity as Merysekhmet assists me back to the palace. Quick thinking and mindful of the fact that I must still appear to be strong, he supports my weight with a hand under my right elbow, leaning close and appearing to talk to me. Whenever someone comes close, he laughs or starts talking loudly so that we appear two old friends deep in conversation and without a care in the world.
By the time we reach the palace, I am staggering, and other servants come to my aid, whisking me to my private quarters and cleaning me up. My anus is on fire and blood trickles down my thighs. An infirm king is not an edifying sight, but my servants are able and discreet, gently washing me and dressing me in clean linen.
"Fetch the neru pehut," I say.
He comes, bearing his leather bag.
"Have your bowels moved, Son of Re?" he asks.
"Extensively, and left my anus as if it is on fire. Do something."
He instructs me to lie face down on the bed. I do so, and he lifts my kilt, spreading my thin cheeks to examine the damage. Guardian of the royal anus, he has not done a very good job so far, but I refrain from telling him so. He tut-tuts and dabs at the blood with a clean cloth.
"I have a cream that will help, Son of Re," he says. "It might sting a bit and the pressure of my finger may be painful, but the fire in your anus will soon be a thing of the past. The cream contains things that will take the pain away."
"Get on with it, Ahmes," I say, stifling a groan.
Ahmes takes out the small stone jar I had seen the previous evening and unstoppers it. A sharp, slightly unpleasant odour assails my nostrils, but this fades as he takes the cream onto his fingertip and lightly smears it onto my tender parts. He is right in that it does hurt when his finger bumps my swollen veins, but it does not sting. Rather, there is only a mild tingling, followed by a pleasant numbness. Ahmes rubs more in, his finger slipping delicately inside me to convey
this medicine to all my affected parts. Then he vigorously wipes his finger on a cloth, stoppers the jar and puts it back in his bag.
"All is complete, Son of Re. It should start its work soon. I recommend you lie still for a while. Any exertion may weaken the effect."
He leaves, and I instruct the servants to see that I am not disturbed. I will sleep for a while, I tell them, secure in the knowledge that all is peaceful and Tjaty Merysekhmet is ministering the kingdoms in my absence. I sleep...
...and wake with my mouth and throat as dry as dust. I call out for a servant to bring water, but all I can manage is a hoarse croak. My head throbs, which I'm sure it should not if the cream are working as it should. I work my way into a sitting position on the bed, hardly noticing that the fire in my buttocks has eased, for nothing in the room seems to be clear. All things are blurred and it is plainly noon and some fool has drawn the curtains back for the intense light blinds me so I have to squint. I try to call out again, with as little success, so I stand, meaning to walk to the door and summon my servants.
My heart races as I take my first step. I clutch at the bed, my senses reeling, and fall to the floor, where I lie with the blood pounding in my temples. What is happening to me? I groan and raise myself to my hands and knees, my head bowed with the exertion and I see a pair of sandaled feet in front of me.
"What took you so long?" I gasp. "Help me up and then send for a physician."
"Is this what my House has come to?"
I raise my head and look upon the face of the person addressing me. It is Usermaatre. I frown and collapse to a sitting position on the stone floor, staring at him.
"I thought you were dead." He must be dead, for I am king and I would not be if he is alive and looking so well.
"My House was to last a thousand years, yet here you are dying on the floor and you have no grandson to mount the throne after your son."
"Our House will last," I say. "Seti is only a young man and will have other sons."
"When I was his age, I had a whole quiverful of sons."
I shake my head. He is talking old news when he should be calling my servants to succour me. Besides, look where his profligacy and long life had got us, a stable, stagnant reign and an old man as king at the end of it, rather than a young energetic one. I would be the one to leave the Kingdoms to a strong heir.
"Why is my son not your heir?"
It is a woman's voice and I look toward the shadowed corner where Takhat stands. I smile as I recognise my junior wife, but I know she too is dead and I wonder why she has left her tomb to walk abroad in the world.
"You know why," I tell her. "I promised the king that my heir would come through Khaemwaset's line. My son by his daughter Isetnofret took precedence over my son by you. If you want to argue the point you must talk to Usermaatre here." I look back to my father, but he has gone...and now Takhat has gone too. What does all this mean? Why do the dead appear before me? And where are my servants? Why have they not come running when they hear me talking to the dead?
I try to call out again, but all I can do is whisper, though my voice sounded strong a moment ago when I talked to Takhat. My heart surges inside my chest and my limbs jerk though I try to control them. What is wrong with me? I have never felt like this before. Am I dying? Have the dead come to take me to the Field of Reeds? No, that cannot be, for they have gone yet I remain. A silent figure stands by the door and I smile, for I see it is my son Seti. He has returned to help me in my extremity.
"Help me up, my son, and call the physician."
He does not move, does not say anything and tears start from my eyes. My son is dead, though I saw him off from the docks this morning, was it this morning? My mind is unclear on this yet his ghost stands before me. Grief overwhelms me and I cry out in my anguish, though only a hoarse whisper passes my dry lips. Why does he appear to me? There is no accusation in his eyes, no markings on his body, only a wine stain on his kilt...
I gasp, and feel the heaviness of grief lift from me. Seti wore that kilt last night when he shared a cup of wine with me. My hand shook and I spilled the wine on him. He was not wearing that kilt this morning, so the figure that now fades from sight is not the ghost of my son but rather a memory, a remembrance. Why then does he appear to me if he is not dead? Is it as a warning? But a warning of what? My death...or his?
What have I achieved? I have sat on the throne for nine years and ruled justly I think. I have protected Kemet against her enemies, crushing them completely at Perire. I have praised the gods, built temples and shrines throughout the Two Lands, and have brought forth a son who will reign after me...
What if it is Seti's death that his image presages?
If he is in danger I must warn him...I cry out again and try to rise, but my heart surges and a great pain grips my chest. My leg jerks out and knocks a table over and this achieves what my voice cannot. A servant enters, cries out and others rush in. They carry me to my bed...the pain is enormous...a physician bends over me...priests...then a man I recognise through the red mists that envelop me, it is Bay. I clutch at his arm and gasp, "Bring back Seti...I must know he is safe..."
I hear him give the orders to recall my son, his voice receding as a great calm washes over me. Even the pain is withdrawing. My limbs relax, I smile, and...
The story of the
Fall of the House of Ramesses
will continue in
Book 2: Seti
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Places, People, Gods & Things in
Fall of the House of Ramesses
Abdju
city of Abydos, near modern day el-'Araba el Madfuna
Abu
city of Elephantine, near modern day Aswan
Achisha
Kaftor Captain
Ahhotepa
noble of Per-Ramesses
Ahmesneru
pehut, Shepherd of the Royal Anus
Ahmose
companion of Messuwy
Amenakht
Governor of Perire
Amenemone
Treasurer under Ramesses II
Amenhotep
(1) junior scribe, tutor to Tausret
(2) Overseer of the Royal Table in Per-Ramesses
(3) Third Prophet of Amun in Waset
Amenmesse
born Messuwy, eldest son of Merenptah, later king
Amenope
Leader of Fifty, broken to the ranks
Ament
Leader of Five, later Leader of Fifty, Guardian of Tausret and Seti, then demoted
Amentep
grain factor of Per-Ramesses
Amun
creator deity, local god of Thebes (Waset), often worshipped as Amun-Re (Amun-Ra)
Amunemopeta
younger son of Ramesses II
Amunherkhepershef eldest son of Ramesses II
Anapepy
Chief Scribe of Merenptah
Aniba
administrative capital of Wawat (Northern Kush)
Asar
Osiris, god of the underworld and resurrection
Ashkelona
Philistine city
Auset
the goddess Isis. Sometimes called Aset or Iset
Baalbeka
Canaanite chieftain
Baenre
throne name of Merenptah
Baka
farmer near Per-Ramesses
Bakenkhons
Second Prophet of Amun in Waset
Bay
a Syrian servant, Scribe, later Royal Butler, also brother of Suterere
Behdet
city south of Waset, modern day Edfu
Bes
god worshipped as protector of mothers, children, childbirth
Besenmut
Commander of the Ptah legion under Merenptah
Da
gon
a god of the Philistines
Disebek
Commander of the Re legion
Djanet
city in the north-east of Ta Mehu, Tanis
Djau
embalmer in Men-nefer
Djed
one of the king's guard
Djedhet
Commander of the Ptah legion under Ramesses II, replaced by Besenmut
Djehutimes
one of the sons of Ramesses II
Djeserkheperure
throne name of Horemheb
Djetmose
Assistant to the Overseer of the King's Table in Per-Ramesses
Duamutefa
protection god of the Canopic jars, son of Heru
Geb
god of the earth
Gebti
or Gebtu, Coptos, modern day town of Qift
Gezera
Philistine city
Hapi
a protection god of the Canopic jars, son of Heru, the river god
Hapire
a soldier in the Amun legion
Hatti
the Hittites
Heka
the Crook, a symbol of kingly authority
Hemaka
embalmer in Men-nefer
Hem-netjer
High Priest
Henen-nesut
Herakleopolis, city near modern day Beni Suef
Henty
hedgehog
Henuttaneb