The Forgotten: Aten's Last Queen (65 page)

“I know you’re in pain right now, but you must listen to me. The God of the heavens still is watching over us. You must let faith enter your heart again. That person at Saqqara, that was my heart selfishly without Aten. But now --”

He stalked toward me. His eyes were aflame. They looked just like… just like Father’s had. Or at least, the man I had once thought my father.

“I saved you
and
your daughter! Not just that hunk of metal in your hands.”

“And I believed in you when no one else did! Stop this game!” I said with a stomp of my foot.

Tutankhamun stormed over to the wall. He took off his headpiece, and threw it against the stones. I could hear the gold uraeus make contact and crack before dropping to the ground. Next he ripped the head cloth off of his scalp and threw it too, but it went no further than a step away from him. He paced around with his arms folded. I was not sure what I could say. I had never seen him like this.

After a few circles, he stalked off without a glance my way. I was left alone and dumbfounded. So I stood there and stared at my husband’s profile etched in stone, but even that face was devoid of the happiness that used to paint it.

*****

A storm came that night. Lightning split open the sky, and rain beat down on everything. I could hear it through the ceiling. The servants were frantic to cover what they considered precious pieces of our lives. I sat in my room on a couch and watched the light dance outside. I had never seen such a strong storm sweep through the capital before.

Tia came in to check on me. She put a sheep’s skin around me to keep the chill off of my skin, but she quickly left to make sure her daughter’s lands were not being flooded.

On my second glass of wine, I heard my doors open again. The guards announced Tawaret. I was surprised and almost dropped my glass at the sight of her. Ever since Tia-Sitre had come to Man-nefer, I had not seen Tawaret. Of course, I had been preoccupied with burying another daughter. There had been no opportunity. Seeing her walk over to me, my heart beat heavily in my chest as it swelled with joy.

“Tawaret, you make me so happy this evening. Please, come sit.”

I moved my legs off of the couch, and she sat down beside me.

“I wanted to make sure you were all right,” she said as she scooted into a comfortable position.

“Thank you. I am as well as can be expected. Tell me how you are! Have you continued your studies since coming back here?”

“Well, yes. It’s been more difficult. I’ve had to help out around my mother’s house with Seti. She is pregnant again and has been very ill.”

“You are a wonderful daughter. I know Tia-Sitre appreciates you and loves you so much.”

Tawaret sighed, “I
guess
I know that. I mean, she’s been different to me since we returned here. Tushari is almost never at her house anymore. He stays with Father. Everything feels so… out of place? I’m not sure. It just feels wrong.”

I put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

“No, no, don’t be. I’m sorry. These past few moons could not have been easy for you at all. Look at me, being so selfish and only talking of myself. I really wanted to see you again. How have you been? I cannot imagine losing…” She stopped, unable to say the words.

So much rushed into my heart at that moment. I thought of all the births, especially Tawaret’s. But hers was not so clear anymore. It was as if the sharpness of it was chipping away in my memory. The years had worn it thin and made it brittle.

“I’m ashamed to say that it does get easier, this being my third loss.”

“Three? I thought there was only two.”

Thunder cracked outside. Our faces seemed to radiate light for a breath. Then darkness descended again.

“There was one other. You were too young to remember.”

“My queen, if there is anything I can do for you --”

“You’ve done so much just by coming here today,” I said quickly, cutting off the rest of her thoughts for they were so unnecessary. How much children undervalued their presence as a gift in itself.

She smiled at me.

“Let’s talk about you.” I continued. “You’re always so caring to me and Tia-Sitre, but what do you want most in life?”

“I… I guess I’m not sure. Things have changed drastically since coming here. People have changed. I’m not sure if being a priestess is my path anymore.”

“Well when you figure it out, let me know. I will make sure you get it.”

“Oh no, queen, I cannot ask you to waste gold and food on me.”

“When you comfort a queen, expect great things in return, sweetheart,” I replied with a sly smile. After a pause, she laughed a little.

“Truly, it was not my intention,” she replied at the end of her laugh.

“I know. It is by your selflessness that you gain so much. Remember that, my sweet girl. Seeking attention and fortune only hurts yourself… and those you love…”

Thunder lit up the sky again. It looked like stones cracking above us, like walls of rock being split open to make tombs. Perhaps the floor of Aten’s house was not as sturdy as I had once believed. With the entire nation turning away from Him, what gave Him His strength?

“I have a confession to make, Queen,” Tawaret said quietly.

“What is it?”

“Storms scare me.”

I smiled and wrapped my sheep skin around her and myself, encircling her with my left arm. We sat back on the cushions and watched the sky for a while. She trembled a little, so I sang a song about baby hippos.

“Your voice is so beautiful,” Tawaret said dreamily. “And it’s familiar… did you sing in the temple?”

I did not respond. Soon she began to snore.

I prayed,
Thank you, Aten, for this
.

The Falcon That Flew Away
1322 B.C
.

Pharaoh Ay’s Coronation

I opened my eyes, and the world was filled with blood.

Mutbenret fell away from the blade that had pierced her right breast. Ay tripped backward, fell back onto a couch, and dropped the sword. I heard its clatter upon the tiles. It sounded almost like alabaster. That’s when Nahkt-min swept through the guards intent on Ay. Murder was in his eyes as if Death had taken possession of him.

Nahkt-min thrust and blocked the guards’ blades, but there were so many. Nakht-min’s movements were sharp and swift. It was as if each attack was a cobra strike. Horemheb tried to yell to him, to get him to stop, but Nahkt-min did not hear. He kept moving forward. Nahkt-min took cuts and slices upon his body, but he did not stop. He was howling for Ay’s blood. Two guards fell under Nakht-min’s blade. He stepped closer to Ay. All the while, Ay was staring down at Mutbenret and crying.

I knew I must still be alive as I could feel Tia’s nails digging into my shoulders as she pulled me backward. He had meant to strike me, but Mutbenret had stepped in the way.

I turned and looked into her eyes. I touched her left hand with my right, and she let go of me. As my thoughts cleared, I lunged for a sheet from my bed and dropped down beside Mutbenret. I held it over her wound, willing the blood to stop pouring out from her. Her eyes fluttered open like the wings of a butterfly. She called out Nahkt-min’s name. He hesitated and looked over to her. His expression softened for a heartbeat of time, but then he saw the blood soaking my sheet and the skin of my hand. He turned back to the guard who was blocking his latest strike. His nostrils flared as he felled the man. Another rushed to meet him. Horemheb was trying to hold back the others, but it was for naught. Two more closed the gap to Nakht-min. In a few blinks of an eye, swift as that of butterfly wings, they had given Nakht-min mortal wounds. He fell to the floor, his eyes wide with pain and sadness.

“Stop!” Horemheb yelled. His voice echoed off the walls. Life seemed to cease, except for that which was escaping across the floor.

Horemheb shoved aside the guards, bent down, and picked up Nakht-min. He carried him over to Mutbenret, whose face was a river of tears. Nakht-min and Horemheb had always been similar in height and build, and I was thankful Horemheb found the strength to carry his fallen comrade over to the woman they both loved.

“My friend, you have gotten fat over the years,” Horemheb said lightly to Nakht-min as he set him beside Mutbenret.

“Perhaps it is you who have gotten weak,” Nakht-min replied with a cough.

The two grasped forearms for a moment, and I could see in their eyes only one thing: Forgiveness. Then Horemheb stepped away and left husband and wife alone. I wanted to leave too but feared removing my hand from Mutbenret’s wound. I sat as quietly as I could. My ears filled with Ay’s loud cries.

“I thought I told you to control your temper,” Mutbenret said, trying to smile. But her lips would not curl upward. Sadness and shock were overwhelming her. I could see her body beginning to quiver.

“And didn’t I tell you not to do anything foolish?” he replied. His lips were beginning to stain with his blood. They were as red as the hues used in tomb paintings.

“I hope our children are always as brave as their father.”

“I hope they are as beautiful and wise as their mother.” With effort, Nakht-min reached over and took Mutbenret’s hand within his. They locked eyes.

I heard a tumble from the couches. Ay had fallen to the floor, his body racked with sobs. He must have truly loved Mutbenret, the one daughter who talked back to him, resisted his firm grasp, but who was always by his side. I did not think Ay capable of any such emotion, but watching him in grief, I found myself confused at what really made up this man who had today officially became Pharaoh.

I could feel a breeze begin to sweep around us. It picked up my hair and whipped it around my face. It gained strength as breath moved through my chest. Looking up, I could see a cloud forming at my ceiling. It was the softest, purest white I had ever seen. As the wind picked up, the cloud seemed to grow and reach down to the floor. It was coming down on Mutbenret! I tried to hold her with my arms, using my back as a shield against the rolling tendrils, but a strong wind struck me like a hand and flung me backward. Amyntas was there, and he caught me. I watched the cloud creep down over Mutbenret which quickly hid her from our eyes.

Ay screamed. He ran toward the cloud screaming, “Not her, not her!” As he reached its edge, suddenly the cloud disappeared as if part of a dream. He found himself instead locked in a hug, his arms wrapped around Mutbenret. I could see him weeping on her shoulders.

She was standing tall and beautiful. There was not a scratch on her. Her wound was gone. The linen sheet was gone, as if it had evaporated. And there was another figure there. One hand grasped tightly to a walking stick. He wore robes that were as white as the clouds had been. He had long, curly, peppered hair. His eyes were bright. When he spoke, I knew in a snap who it was.

The man spoke in a voice that was crisp and clear like water. “You say you were left to the slaughter, but you know that is not true.”

Ay stepped away from his daughter, fear gripping his face. “No, how can it be?”

“With Elohim, all things are possible,” Djhutmose said.

The prophet and his God had returned to Kemet.

Chapter 4

My Eyes are Heavy… My Heart is Weary

1322 B.C. – Ninth year of Tutankhamun’s reign

“I cannot leave their crimes unanswered!” Pharaoh spoke in front of the court. He stood tall with the war crown mounted atop his head. “I have decided to lead another campaign against the Hittites. With me I will take my most successful and trusted advisor, Horemheb. I reinstate his title of General and make him second-in-command after me.”

There was applause that Horemheb tried to silence with his hands. This only made his former soldiers cheer louder and slap him on the back harder.

“In his stead, I trust command of all that Amun touches to his high priest, Pa-ramessu. For this pivotal role as not only our land’s chief priest under the pharaoh but now as overseer of this great country in my stead, I appoint him Ramesses the First, exalted steward for our nation and eloquent guide of our faith! May your reign,
brief
reign in my absence may I remind you, be as successful as our campaign!”

More cheers filled the hall, but I felt as empty as my wine glass. Tutankhamun put Pa-ramessu, no… Ramesses, in charge instead of me. He no longer trusted me. If I thought on it, though, I couldn’t say I entirely blamed him. Though this realization did nothing for the ache in my heart. I wished I could have made him understand how much I had disappointed myself. I had so wanted to make him happy! Was that possible anymore?

I heard glasses clink together. Beer sloshed on the floor. I turned to leave and found Nakht-min solemnly standing before me instead of an empty doorway. I about dropped my glass in shock.

He put a reassuring hand on my arm. “I apologize, Queen. I did not mean to frighten you. But I have news for your ears. Please follow me.”

I twisted my head back to the celebration. Tutankhamun did not look my way. Everyone was praising and lauding him. He soaked it up like water to parched lips. He needed them, not me, at this point in time. I knew my presence would not be missed. So I followed Nakht-min out of the throne room through a side entrance and down quiet hallways. The only sound was the echoes of laughter we had left behind.

He turned and began down a hall towards the royal apartments. At first I wondered why he was taking me to my rooms. Then I realized that we were traveling in the opposite direction from my apartment. I had been so disoriented since returning to Waset that I had lost the faculties even to keep track of the sun boat’s position in the sky.

When we came to a stop, we were at a familiar doorway. It was Nakht-min’s and Mutbenret’s quarters. A smile lit up my face for but a moment as I thought about seeing my aunt again. She had been so silent during the recent turn of events that I realized now how much I missed her calming voice.

We entered, and I beheld strange men surrounding a center table. There was a papyrus rolled out with markings on it. I walked over and saw cartouches all along a center line that wove itself gently across the page. I recognized some of the names. I felt the hairs on the back of my neck begin to prickle. The sensation traveled up and along my scalp as I read further.