Chapter 28 A Vision of the Thoth #2
Zahra looked at him with worried eyes as he lifted her onto Victory’s back. “What did you tell the Pharaoh Queen this morning?”
“The same thing as always,” Namir said, hoisting himself up behind her. He thanked the priests and motioned for Ramses to follow, wrapping his arms around Zahra as he urged the horse forward. “I must have done something to incite a different reaction.”
Doubt stirred in Zahra’s heart. “What if someone in the royal court remembers?”
Namir let out a heavy sigh. “Zahra, we have talked about this.”
“I know what I saw.” She looked back at him. “I know they’re your family, but we have looked everywhere else.”
“We are not even close to exhausting our other options,” Namir reminded her. “I promise, once we have broken your curse, I will continue my investigations and locate the one with the mark. Until then, my priorities lie elsewhere.”
With me. Zahra leaned against him, letting out a heavy sigh.
Her chest grew tight as her worries filled her mind.
Zosar was a powerful priest of Re. He would be able to help her, or tell Namir if the effort was pointless.
Either way, she decided to let it go, at least until they visited Zosar like Namir wished.
The pr-aa was eerily quiet as Namir led Zahra toward the throne room. He turned to Ramses. “Please, stay out here with her while I speak to them.”
Zahra stepped forward, catching his eye. “I am coming with you.”
Hesitance sat in his features, but he nodded grimly.
Waaiz’s voice rang down the hall. “He announced that assassins will attack him tonight, and then he left! He is avoiding his duties and putting his life in jeopardy.”
“The boy has always been independent,” Zosar said. “I am sure he is doing all he can to keep himself out of danger while ensuring the Thoth’s safety.”
“He is in danger,” Waaiz insisted, “and he treats this as if it is some game!”
The Pharaoh Queen listened in silence, observing everyone in the room. Her gaze landed on Namir and Zahra as the guards opened the doors the rest of the way for them. She raised her head. “Menes, where have you been?”
“Hiding the Thoth somewhere safe,” Namir answered. He pulled Zahra to his side. “And fetching my bride.”
Zahra’s cheeks flared with heat, and she looked up at Namir with wide eyes. “Namir!”
The Pharaoh Queen raised an eyebrow. “You have chosen an Ionian for your bride?”
“Yes.” He said it with such little hesitance that Zahra couldn’t help but smile.
The others in the room shared shocked glances at this proclamation. Waaiz and Zosar stood off to the left, but Nubia stood beside the Pharaoh Queen.
Waaiz narrowed his eyes and spoke, pulling Zahra’s attention back to the conversation. “If you have chosen, then why are we still living this day?”
“Because I know where the assassins will be.”
Zahra knew it was a lie, yet one he must have felt needed to be told.
Namir continued. “And I want to ensure they and whoever is responsible for them cannot escape.”
The Pharaoh Queen considered him. She sighed. “If that is what you think is best, then proceed with your plan.”
Waaiz looked at the Pharaoh Queen in disbelief. “What if he is killed? The assassins will surely follow him. He will be safer if he remains here.”
Zahra studied Waaiz. Though his features were cold and stern, she noticed the slightest look of panic in his eyes. Was it genuine fear for Namir’s safety, or was there another reason?
The priests had claimed the Pharaoh Queen had called for a meeting, but that did not mean she was the one who remembered. The corrupt soul could have been anyone in that room. All Zahra had to do was figure out who.
Nubia cleared her throat. “Menes, who is your bride? I would like to know her name, at least.”
“Yes, bring her forward,” the Pharaoh Queen agreed.
Zahra held tight to Namir’s hand, apprehension working its way up her throat. She recalled her last interaction with the Pharaoh Queen and how her eyes had felt like a raging fire.
“Another time,” Namir said, to her surprise. “There are other matters that need attending to. Once this day is over, we can all get properly acquainted.”
The Pharaoh Queen’s eyes narrowed in disapproval, but she said nothing.
Zahra stepped forward and bowed. “I am Zahra, my Pharaoh.” She stood tall. “I look forward to getting to know you better.”
The Pharaoh Queen regarded Zahra with uncertainty. Zahra studied her reaction, looking for any signs of familiarity. A hint of a smile played on the Pharaoh Queen’s lips. “As do I.”
An impression came to Zahra, and she agreed with it. The Pharaoh Queen did not remember the day was repeating. Then, who?
Namir cleared his throat, clearly trying not to smile at Zahra. “Zosar, I require your attention on a matter.”
Zosar’s brows lifted in surprise. He bowed his head. “Of course.”
“But we are not finished speaking,” Waaiz argued. “There is still much you have not told us, and—”
“You may not be finished, but I am.” Namir turned and guided Zahra out of the room, leading them to a small room with some couches on the first floor. Zosar looked unhappy when he followed them into the space.
“What is it, my King? I have much to attend to back at the temple.”
“I need your opinion,” Namir said, gesturing to Zahra.
Zosar lifted his brow. “On your choice of bride?”
Namir’s jaw ticked. “No. She is cursed. We need help freeing her from it.”
“Cursed?” Zosar stepped back, apprehension in his features. “You are certain of this?”
Namir nodded. “She dies every night.”
Understanding dawned on Zosar’s face. “I see why you have not ended the spell.”
A knock came at the door. Nubia popped her head in. Her eyes widened upon seeing the small crowd. “I apologize. I did not mean to interrupt.”
“You may come in.” Zosar turned to Namir. “Have her sit on the couch. I will see what I can do, but I cannot promise that I can do anything to help. If she truly dies every night, the curse on her must be powerful.”
“Die?” Nubia asked, horrified.
Ramses smiled at her and guided her to a chair.
Namir held Zahra’s hand, offering a comforting smile as he sat her down. “Just breathe. I will be right here.”
Zahra took in a deep breath and nodded.
Namir sat down on the other couch beside Nubia, who took his hand and started whispering to him, her eyebrows knitted in worry. He whispered back, gesturing to Zahra as he explained.
Zosar stood in front of Zahra, blocking her view of Namir.
He lifted her arm, examining it. Though she was sure the others couldn’t see it, she could see green glitter dance around his eyes as he looked her over.
He turned his attention to her other arm, then her legs and feet.
She flinched as he touched her face, his wrinkled hands soft yet firm as he pulled at her cheeks and nose.
“Her ka is injured, but I can see no trace of what wounded her.”
“I saw that, too,” Namir said. “Can you see anything else?”
Zosar leaned back to look at Zahra’s entirety. He shook his head. “I see nothing else.”
Nubia rubbed Namir’s back. “Please, Hem-netjer, there must be something.”
“There is nothing,” Zosar insisted. “I—Wait, what is this?” He reached forward, touching her shoulder. There was a flash of red, and Zahra gasped as she saw a snake in place of Zosar. She shoved it away from her.
Everyone in the room stood, except Zosar, who sat on the floor. Horror was painted onto everyone’s faces.
“What is that?” Nubia cried, tears in her eyes.
“Oh,” Zosar whispered. “My dear boy.”
Zahra looked down. The snake she had seen on herself in the Duat was wrapped around her chest. Its eyes glowed, and its teeth were hooked into the skin over her heart. The snake had grown, now wrapping around her lower torso.
Namir helped Zosar off the floor. “You have to help her!”
“This is powerful magic,” Zosar said, steadying himself. “I have only seen its kind in ancient scrolls.”
“Then there must be a cure,” Namir insisted.
Zosar shook his head. “Not that I have read.”
Namir grabbed Zosar’s arm. “Please, Zosar. You said you would be there to help me when I became King. This is it. I need your help.”
Zosar sighed. “I will see what I can do, son.”
“Thank you.” Namir moved toward Zahra, but Zosar stopped him.
“Stay back,” he hissed. “It may turn on you once it leaves her.” He faced Zahra. “Lie down on the floor.”
An eagle’s cry sounded from outside, and Zahra turned to the window. There was nothing at first, but then she saw her mother fly past, letting out another shriek.
“Zahra,” Namir said. “Please.”
Zosar reached for her arm, and Zahra gulped as he guided her to the ground. Anxiety buzzed through her body as Zosar knelt over her. “W—Will it hurt?”
Zosar did not answer. Without warning, he grabbed the serpent by the head and pulled.
Zahra gasped, throwing her head back as visions overtook her mind.
The keres were chasing her as they had chased Asenath.
The Iteru dried up before her eyes, and every plant, animal, and person shriveled into dust. There were screams, and Zahra saw Asenath’s hollow eyes as darkness spread over her face.
“Hold her down,” Zosar cried as Zahra’s arms and legs flailed.
Hands secured her limbs, and Zahra shook her head, whimpering.
“Zahra, breathe,” she heard Namir say.
Green light vibrated from Zosar’s hands, wrapping around the snake. It shrieked, its tail growing longer and wrapping around Zahra’s right leg. It seemed to coil around her mind, pressing a fog deep into her memories.
Katerina’s cries faded into the recesses of her mind.
Zahra screamed as her memories of the day of the Pa-sekhemty Feast flowed before her eyes.
Each image faded into darkness. She couldn’t remember her conversations with Ramses or her time spent learning to ride a horse or use a dagger.
She could see Namir, but his eyes were unfamiliar. Then he, too, faded into nothing.
The endless days merged into one, and all she could remember was a stranger in the dark, talking to her as they watched the stars.
The memory faded from her eyes, and Zahra’s limbs fell limp. She wheezed, exhaustion pulling at her eyelids. Everything ached, but she didn’t know why.
A hand landed on her cheek, and she moved away from it. It rested softly on her forehead, while another hand went to her arm.
“I am sorry, my boy,” a gravelly voice said. “There is nothing more I can do. If you do not wish for her to suffer more, then you must end this day.”
The hands on her trembled.
“Oh, Menes,” another voice said. “I am so sorry.”
“There is nothing else I can do, my boy.”
“You must let her go.”
Gentle arms lifted and carried her, setting her on something soft. She tried to focus on the things around her, but she couldn’t make sense of the vivid colors and expensive stone. Her eyelids were heavy, and she could barely move.
A hand brushed her curls from her face, and a soft voice came. “Zahra, I am going to the library. Ramses will be here for you when you wake up.”
Zahra groaned, scrunching her eyelids. “Who?”
“Ramses.” The hand moved to her cheek. “Breathe. You need rest.”
Zahra turned her head, and sunlight shone on her face. She took in a sharp breath, panic filling her thoughts as she tried to sit up. “No, no, no. I am late.”
“Zahra.”
“Femi and Keket need me. I am supposed to go to the Feast with them.”
“What? Zahra, look at me.” The hand rested on her arm, helping her sit upright. “Please. You need sleep.”
Zahra flinched. She looked up, seeing a man with black eyes. She pulled away from his grasp, falling backward on the bed. “Who are you? Where am I?”
His face fell. “Zahra, it’s me. It’s Namir.”
She leaned away from him, her curls falling in front of her tear-filled eyes. “How do you know my name?”
His face contorted in pain. He stood from the bed, stumbling back toward the door. A medjay was standing there. He tried to speak to the man, but the man pushed past him.
The medjay turned toward her, and he signed to her. Zahra’s brow furrowed at the unfamiliar language. When the medjay saw that she did not understand, he spoke. “Rest. You are safe here.”
Exhaustion tugged at Zahra’s limbs. She collapsed into the mattress and fell asleep.