“The utukkai said she’d been promised to them as a child. They were pleased when I offered her. It’s not my fault she escaped.” Nidiamhet was back to whining.
“Foolish one, even approaching the utukkai of Qemtusheb without safeguards and proper rituals of appeasement can be fatal. You had almost no chance of actually winning Qemtusheb’s favor with the sacrifice of the priestess, and you expended a huge amount of energy needlessly when you summoned his lower level servants to strike the deal.” There was a pause as Jadikiria evidently took a few breaths to calm herself. “The ring is powerful, but no one talisman is enough to bring victory. The gods themselves fought when Nat-re-Akhte defeated the Usurper. But you can learn other powers, become a disciple of Qemtusheb directly, not have to work through his servants.”
Nidiamhet apparently felt a bit suspicious of Jadikiria, as her next question held a tinge of cynicism. “With your help?”
“Of course. I’m a loyal servant of Qemtusheb. My parents fled to the land of Minos when the Usurper fell. We’ve quite a colony of believers there nowadays. King Minos is tolerant as long as we take no steps against his throne or his gods. Qemtusheb has no appetite for Crete, he craves Egypt, which was so nearly his.”
“I might ally with Qemtusheb, but I wouldn’t hand my country over to the Hyksos,” Nidiamhet said, her tone lofty.
Yes, you would, stupid girl. You’d be nothing but their puppet. Tyema was impatient for the women to conclude whatever else they wanted to discuss and leave, so she could make her escape. She craned her head to see if there might be another exit, just in case.
“Clearly the ring was meant to pass from Lynefaraht to you, as one queen to another.” Jadikiria was so fawning now Tyema became even more suspicious of the Minoan’s true motives. Did this group of Hyksos she represented really want to enact a convoluted plan in hopes of seating spoiled, arrogant Nidiamhet on the throne someday? Or were the enemy perhaps after the ring and the death spell?
“So what are my next steps?” It seemed Nidiamhet was capitulating.
“You’ll need an advanced tutor,” Jadikiria said. “To acquire such a level of skill is beyond what I can teach you.”
“Where am I to find such a person in Thebes? Pharaoh forbids the use of black magic on pain of death. Not that he’d ever suspect me. I’m a great favorite with the queen.”
The very woman you now want to kill and replace. Tyema’s disgust roiled her gut.
“I told you, a small party of my people, including priests skilled in the use of devices like the ring, was traveling to Egypt in secret. This morning I’ve received word they’re camped in the Forbidden Valley, waiting to meet you.”
Tyema wondered where this valley might be.
Nidiamhet’s question gave her a partial answer. “Where the Usurper built her tomb?”
“She was also building a small temple to Qemtusheb there, which is where they wait to meet you.” Unsuspecting they were being overheard, Jadikiria enlightened both her pupil and Tyema. “We should go there today, in case the priestess regains her memory and accuses you. You need to be able to deal with her without wasting the death spell.”
“I can leave now,” Nidiamhet said. “Let me just secure the scroll we came for and we can take your donkey cart and be off.”
Panic struck Tyema as she realized the women were leaving the table and coming in her direction. Barefoot, she ran down the aisle, trapped between the shelves, seeking a hiding place, knowing she only had a moment before her enemies would come around the corner and discover her. Nidiamhet wouldn‘t hesitate to use Qemtusheb’s death spell if she had to. Tyema wasn’t any too sure her amulet was enough protection, and was afraid to rely on Sobek appearing in time to save her.
She reached the back wall of the library and spun, trapped. Frantically she tried sending a mental plea to Sobek but felt no sign he was listening. Closing her eyes in despair, she resolved to fight as hard as humanly possible, once the enemy discovered her. At least Sahure is on his guard, at least he’ll warn Pharaoh.
A white glow penetrated her closed eyelids and Tyema cautiously reopened them. The Great One Mut stood in front of her, face to face, expansive white wings curving to embrace her. Thinking she was dreaming, Tyema opened her mouth to speak but Mut shook her head, finger to her lips.
“Close your eyes,” the goddess whispered.
Obediently, Tyema shut her eyes and the soft feathers closed around her like a blanket. Next moment there was a rush of air and she felt herself being lifted. Tyema knew wind gusted past, for she could feel the feathers fluttering against her bare skin, but how they left the library or where they were going she had no idea. It seemed but a moment before she felt hot sand under her feet and Mut unfolded her wings.
“You can look now. You’re quite safe.” The goddess sounded somewhat amused.
Tyema found herself standing in the middle of a road, out in the deserted countryside. “Where are we?”
“On the trail between Pharaoh’s private hunting grounds and Thebes. He and your man will be along soon.” Mut’s wings arched and she flung them wide open, obviously preparing to ascend.
Tyema reached out and touched her arm. “Thank you, Great One, for rescuing me today and for your gift of a feather the other day. I put it to good use as a weapon against one of the utukkai.”
“Then you did well with my present and I give you another.”
Tyema saw Mut was holding her hand out, a small, carved ivory feather on a golden chain resting in her soft palm. As she took the necklace, Tyema said, “I’m grateful but—”
“But why am I helping you?” Mut smiled and Tyema felt warm and comforted just gazing at the goddess’s beautiful face.
Nodding, she said, “Well, yes. I’m sworn to Sobek.”
“I heard your prayer the day you visited my temple. And I have a soft place in my heart for a young mother who’s been given a nearly impossible task by one of the old gods. You’ve done amazingly well, my dear, but what Sobek sent you to Thebes to do was beyond human scope. So I helped a little.” Mut glanced at the sky, where a flock of white vultures circled, calling to her in their hoarse voices. “And while this pharaoh doesn’t swear fealty to me or my husband Amun-Ra, his son will, if their bloodline retains the throne. It has been foretold, this family is the key to the rise of my husband’s power among gods. So I have an interest in Nat-re-Akhte’s health.”
“Oh.” Tyema was at a loss for words, dismayed by discussion of changes among the gods and unable to agree to any criticism of Sobek. She busied herself putting the new amulet around her neck.
Mut leaned closer and the delicious perfume of the Nile lotus wafted around Tyema. “But the main reason I involved myself is that the perfect little meditation grove your Sahure designed for me is my favorite place in all of the Black Lands. You may tell him I said so.” She laughed and the sound was like lilting music.
Tyema wished she could capture the beauty of Mut’s laughter in a song. “I would have gladly served you, my lady, if I weren’t already a priestess for another.”
Mut hugged her close. “I know, daughter, and I would have been the fortunate one.”
Tyema allowed herself to relax into the motherly embrace of the goddess for a moment, heartened, encouraged and consoled to the depths of her ka, all at once, in a way the touch of no other being—not even Sahure or Merys—had ever accomplished. It was as if an old wound had been healed and ceased to hurt, scars vanishing.
All too soon Mut kissed her on the forehead and stepped away, great wings flaring to catch the wind. As she rose into the sky, the goddess pointed to the west. “They come. You won’t have to wait in the sun more than a moment or two. And Tyema, although Ibis Nome is far removed from my domain, I will hear you, if ever you sing for me.”
Shielding her eyes with one hand, Tyema watched as the Great One continued her rapid ascent, vanishing into the sun, until only a flock of white vultures could be seen, winging their way to the Nile. With a sigh, Tyem
a turned to face the oncoming chariots.
In a great, choking cloud of dust, the drivers of the five speeding chariots reined their horses to a halt a few feet short of where Tyema stood. The next moment Sahure jumped from his vehicle, running to embrace her. “What in the seven hells are you doing out here? How did you get here? What’s happened?”
“Yes, Lady Tyema, I too will be most curious to hear your answers.” Pharaoh came striding through the settling dust, cobalt-and-gold flail in his hand, bodyguards at his heels.
Kissing Sahure quickly on the cheek, keeping her hold on his hand, Tyema turned to Nat-re-Akhte. Making a small head bob to show proper deference, she said, “The goddess Mut brought me to meet you on the road, Great One. She rescued me when I was trapped in the library.” She coughed as she inhaled some of the clogged air.
Pharaoh gave an order to the nearest soldier. “Bring water for the lady.” He gestured to Sahure. “Escort her to my chariot, where she may sit and tell us of the new developments.”
“You promised me you’d stay in your rooms,” Sahure said in a low, angry voice as he followed orders and conducted her to the large, gold-encrusted chariot in the center of the group.
“Just as well I didn’t, since I now know vital new information.” Tyema sank down on the end of Pharaoh’s chariot and gratefully accepted the water skin from a soldier.
Nat-re-Akhte ordered his guards to stand watch in a loose perimeter before he was ready to confer with Tyema. “Sahure has told me of your terrifying journey in the underworld, gave me the name of the traitor, whose life is now forfeit, let me assure you. As soon as I lay hands on her, Nidiamhet is a dead woman and her bones will be scattered in the desert.”
His cold anger was terrifying to behold, but Tyema was compelled to give him the new information she’d gleaned. “Matters grow even worse, sir. I overheard her plotting in the library earlier today with Jadikiria, her accomplice. There’s no delicate way to say this, so forgive me, Great One, but now they plan to kill your wife with the spell the utukkai gave Nidiamhet in exchange for sending me to them.”
Pharaoh swore a violent oath. Hands on his hips, he stared at Tyema. “Imagining they can then beguile me to look to Nidiamhet herself to console my broken ka? When there has never been any other woman for my heart but my Ashayet? Fools.” He spat.
Tyema nodded. “The threat isn’t imminent, not to be carried out at once. Nidiamhet needs more training in the black arts to accomplish the entire plot, or so Jadikiria says. A party of Hyksos and priests of Qemtusheb has traveled into the Black Lands to tutor Nidiamhet and assist her. They’re camping out somewhere in the Forbidden Valley. At a temple the Usurper Pharaoh was building there, next to her tomb?”
Pharaoh pondered the information. “Are these infiltrators there now?”
Tyema nodded. “Nidiamhet and Jadikiria were going to drive to the temple today to meet with the priests.”
Nat-re-Akhte and Sahure exchanged glances. “We’re closer to the Forbidden Valley than to Thebes, sir,” Sahure said. He asked Tyema, “How many were in this party of Hyksos, did Jadikiria say?”
She shook her head. “No, just described them as a small group.”
“We know where the enemy is today,” Pharaoh said. “By tomorrow they may have scattered or moved to a new location. Mount up, we’re going to the Forbidden Valley. No time to summon reinforcements.”
Sahure took Tyema’s hand and drew her away from Pharaoh’s chariot. “You ride with me.”
“Are we actually going into battle?” she asked.
“Probably.” Sahure helped her into the chariot. “It’s not a thing I’d normally ever do, taking the woman I love into mortal danger but—”
“But we’ve been there together before.” She squeezed his hand as he unhooked the reins and prepared to give the horses the signal to move. “I’ll be fine. I think it’s meant for me to be with you and Pharaoh for the final chapter of this adventure.”
His jaw was clenched, one muscle twitching. “Our child can’t lose both of us.” As the horses accelerated from a walk to full gallop, Sahure shouted over the rumbling of the wheels, “When the fighting begins, take my shield to protect yourself and stay in the chariot. We’ll keep the enemy too occupied to even notice you.”
“And what of Nidiamhet?”
“She’s my first target,” he said. “I plan to kill her before she can use the death spell.”
I only hope preventing disaster is going to be that easy. Tyema clung to the top rail of the chariot for dear life as they barreled along in formation behind and to the right of Pharaoh’s vehicle.
*****
Some indeterminate time later, Pharaoh signaled for them to halt. Tyema unclenched her stiff fingers from the rail and hopped from the chariot behind Sahure, anxious to know what the plans were.
“The Forbidden Valley lies over the next ridge,” Nat-re-Akhte was saying to Sahure as she walked up to join them. “I’ve sent a man ahead on foot to reconnoiter and report back. Never charge blindly into a situation, Lady Tyema.” He grinned. The prospect of combat seemed to have energized Pharaoh, making him appear younger and more care-free than she’d ever seen him.
“I’ll remember your advice, sir.”
Sahure glanced at the sky. “We have a few hours of daylight left, thank the gods. I wouldn’t want to be fighting over this terrain in the dark.”
“True. And the enemy might slip away under cover of night. I intend to make an example of them, execute at least a few publicly if we can capture rather than kill them outright. I need to send King Minos a strong message to keep better control of the exiles he gives sanctuary within his borders. He should also choose his own diplomatic personnel with more care. But the traitor within my own Court won’t survive the day.” Eyebrows raised, Nat-re-Akhte gave Sahure a sharp glance.
“No, sir.”
There wasn’t much further conversation while they waited for the scout to report back. Sahure took Tyema to his chariot and gave her his belt dagger. Sitting on the tail of the chariot, he watched her tuck the knife into her belt. Catching her hand, he said, “Tell me why you broke our agreement and went to the library?”
“Does it matter now? I wouldn’t have known about the enemies in the valley if I hadn’t gone.” Tyema was surprised to find how calm she felt. Apparently an incipient battle didn’t set off her physical ills the way any social gathering would. “I hope Sobek will be listening. We’ll need his help.”
“Should you pray to him now, perhaps? Before we get into the heat of the battle?” Sahure pulled her into a hug. “Gods, listen to me—I can’t believe I’m taking the woman I love into combat.”
“No choice,” she said. “I’m not going to wait here while you and Pharaoh finish this.”
“And I hear no trace of fear in your voice.” His tone was admiring.
“Apparently I’ve moved beyond fear.” The next moment they were summoned to Pharaoh’s side to hear what the scout had to report.
“A detachment of five men guards the entrance to the half finished temple. There are three small carts and two chariots waiting.”
“One of the carts belongs to Nidiamhet and Jadikiria,” Tyema volunteered.
“So probably only another five or six people inside, at most.” Nat-re-Akhte glanced at his own party consisting of Sahure, four chariot drivers, and six heavily armed members of his select regiment. “Some of those at the temple are noncombatants, which further reduces the odds. Better and better.”
“But there will be a threat of magic,” Tyema warned, not shy at all about speaking up in this gathering when it came to aspects of the coming battle which concerned her.
“I expect you and Sobek to combat the sorcery, priestess.” The seriousness in Pharaoh’s voice implied he wasn’t making the declaration lightly.
Hand on her amulet, comforted by the feeling of Mut’s feather alongside the emerald, Tyema straightened her shoulders and sent a swift prayer for assistance into the sky. If only
Sobek isn’t otherwise occupied with some problem concerning the Nile today and thus oblivious to my appeal. Even Merys herself couldn’t reach him when she faced the Hyksos by herself on the fateful day long ago.
“Is there a back door to the temple?” asked one of the soldiers.
“No, we have them nicely trapped, like vipers in a basket, which makes now the ideal time to strike, as I’d hoped,” Pharaoh answered. “Mount up.”
Tyema walked back to Sahure’s chariot, still fingering her amulet, thinking to Sobek. I need your help, Great One! Pharaoh requires protection.
Sahure grabbed her elbow, hustling her into the chariot, breaking her train of thought. “Come on, Pharaoh is moving out already. We’re to bring up the rear, but we mustn’t lag.”
She barely had a chance to grab at the rail before the horses were galloping to catch up with the rest of their war party. The chariots swept up the road leading to the valley and crested the rise with a dizzying burst of speed. Tyema almost lost her footing as the vehicle rose in the air when it hit a rut and landed again on the sturdy wooden wheels, charging forward in Pharaoh’s wake. She saw the archers taking aim as the Egyptian chariots barreled down the slope toward the enemy. Just when it seemed the chariot horses would surely slam into the stone walls of the cliff housing the temple, the drivers wheeled their teams and the arrows flew, taking down the Hyksos soldiers guarding the entrance.
Sword and shield raised, Pharaoh jumped from his still moving chariot and ran toward the temple entrance, his bodyguards close behind. Sahure pulled his team to a halt, grabbed his sword and sprinted to join the battle as more soldiers boiled from the temple.
Crouched low in the chariot, shield angled to protect herself as ordered, Tyema peered through the opening, doubly terrified for Sahure now she realized the Hyksos party had been twice the size originally believed to have been present. She saw one of Pharaoh’s bodyguards fall, but the Great One and his men, including Sahure, were fighting fiercely and gaining the upper hand as far as she could tell.
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