Me: So me and white pedal were talking and she gave me the idea for this. This is set during my 'True blood' story and it's exploring Tenionia's kinda rocky relationship with her mother and her past more in depth. I only own Tenionia. Cleopatra, Delilah, Azeneth and Soraya all belong to the wonderful white pedal, who let me borrow them. Arsinoe is Blood thristy Angle's who I kidnapped from.
Enjoy!
"Where the hell are we going?" Delilah asked Tenionia as they rode across the dessert. Well, Tenionia rode, Delilah was in her lioness form and speaking to the magician through telepathy.
"There is a sacred temple not far from here. There, we can seek shelter and guidance from the spirits."
"I don't get it. I thought in your legends say that spirits stay in the afterlife."
"They do, but there are some magicians that powerful enough to enter the Duat or sustain a spirit's life force long enough to speak with them." Delilah grunted at that.
"I'll never be able to understand Egypt." She muttered and Tenionia chuckled. Soon a large temple made of mud brick and stone loomed ahead of them. Tenionia nudged Abyss forward and dismounted at the foot of the stairs that lead up. Delilah shifted back to her human form with a smirk.
"Probably would be a smart not to be a lion when I go in." Tenionia chuckled.
"That would be wise, I can't have you being killed because of a misunderstanding. Come on!" The pair of women began to climb the stairs.
Tenionia peered inside to find that the temple was empty. No monks or guards. Even the torch baths that lined the corridor were cold.
"Shouldn't someone be here?" Delilah asked and Tenionia lit a number of torches with white fire.
"I don't understand. There should be monks here, where are they?"
"I have no idea." Delilah murmured. Tenionia walked up to a wall and touched the carvings, humming with thought. Suddenly, her pendant felt warm on her chest.
"Delilah! I think I know what to do!" Tenionia pulled the coin over her head and it levitated in the air.
"Show us the way." She whispered. With a flash of white light, the gold trinket floated down one of the corridors with the pair following it. Tenionia lit torches with her fire as they walked passed. Soon they came to a large circular room. Tenionia spun in the center of the room, lighting the torches that encircled the edge of the room. The coin flew back to Tenionia, who caught it by the cord and placed it back around her neck again.
"Now what?" Delilah asked. Tenionia looked to see that Ra was setting.
"It will be night soon. We'll wait until the sun has set and then we'll see what the spirits have to say." Delilah lifted an eyebrow.
"Why do we have to wait?"
"The spirits are most active at night, when Ra is on his journey through the afterlife."
"Sorry I asked." Tenionia turned to the Greek woman.
"You don't need to apologize, Delilah. You were curious, it's perfectly understandable." Tenionia sat cross-legged on the floor with her back straight and her hands in her lap. Delilah's eyebrow crept higher at the magician's odd action.
"What are you doing?" Tenionia opened her eyes.
"I'm meditating. It helps me channel my magic and keep it under control."
"Oh...So... You wish for me to be quiet?"
"That would be nice." Tenionia replied smoothly, closing her eyes again. Delilah muttered about magicians being weird when Tenionia called out.
"I can hear you, Delilah. You just think I am weird because you don't understand." She said with her eyes still closed. Delilah leaned against a column and mumbled 'Whatever.' Tenionia lightly chuckled with her eyes still closed. The pair sat in silence. Tenionia meditated in the center of the circle while Delilah watched the sun slowly dip below the horizon. Delilah wondered about Azeneth and what that crazy witch Cleopatra was doing to her. Soon the last of the sun's rays vanished and Tenionia sharply inhaled.
"There's a spirit coming forward." Delilah walked over next to the princess as she stood. They watched with uneasiness as a small fire glowed. The flame grew and twisted, taking the form of a woman with an elaborate crown on her head. Tenionia's eyes widened. It was Queen Arsinoe.
"What are you doing here?" Tenionia demanded with a scowl.
"Is that anyway to greet your mother, Tenionia?" Delilah looked at Tenionia.
"Mother? You mean-" Tenionia swallowed.
"Yes, This is Queen Arsinoe. My mother." Delilah looked at the former queen.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Arsinoe took a step forward.
"I came to offer wisdom."
"What wisdom?" Tenionia growled.
"You hate Azeneth, just because she is Atem's daughter and Atem's family stopped Teoria from expanding. You probably don't know where Cleopatra is keeping Azeneth." Arsinoe looked sad.
"This isn't about the princess, Tenionia. I came because I wanted to speak with you." Her glassy blue eyes locked with Tenionia's dark purple eyes.
"I am still trying to understand why you betrayed us. Your own family for the Pharaoh and Egypt." Tenionia gritted her teeth.
"I 'betrayed' you, because I didn't want to be used as a weapon. Father only wanted to use my power to conquer Egypt. I wanted no part in it."
"I was helping my people. I had much on my shoulders and many relying on me."
"Be that as it may," Tenionia begin.
"You still had a duty to Silos, Zireria and I. We were your children."
"I agree with the princess." Delilah voiced.
"As a mother, you have to do what you can to protect your children, even if it means that your life is in danger. My mother died protecting me, and the princess and her siblings replied on you and you let them down." Arsinoe glared at Delilah.
"Stay out of this, woman!"
"That's enough!" A new voice roared. Another flame, this one royal blue glowed next to Arsinoe. The three women watched as the flame twisted and took form of a very familiar face. Arsinoe growled as Atem glared at her.
"You have no right to be here, Arsinoe. Tenionia has made it very clear that she wants nothing to do with you, why can't you accept that?"
"She is my daughter!" Arsinoe snapped, but Atem shook his head.
"As far as I can see, Tenionia and her siblings are strangers to you, just as you are a stranger to them. You may have been a good queen when you were alive but you neglected your children and for that caused your downfall. In fact, one of them died and joined us in the afterlife because you couldn't put an end to Akrin's destructive behavior." Arsinoe snorted.
"Coming from the king that had a child with a filthy Hebrew." Atem frowned.
"You left her when she was pregnant with your daughter and only ended up dying without her knowing who you are. Honestly, you're no better then me."
"You're wrong." Arsinoe looked she see Atem giving her the mother of all glares. If she wasn't dead and looks could kill, she would be dead over a hundred times over.
"I didn't know that Soraya was pregnant with Azeneth when I returned to Egypt. I watched as Soraya gave birth to Azeneth with Shadi's help. I didn't care that Soraya was Hebrew, she was half the woman you'll ever be, Arsinoe and you have no right nor place to say that I am like you and that monster you call a husband."
"Atem is correct, Mother." Tenionia growled, with venom in her tone. Delilah was rather surprised to hear that coming from the older woman.
"It isn't fair of you to say such things about Atem. He was the kindest soul that I had ever met and he was a good friend. I wouldn't stand by as you slander his name like that! I understand that Atem wanted nothing more to see his daughter. To hold her, but he couldn't do that." Atem nodded.
"That is what makes you and I different, Arsinoe. Just because I was dead doesn't mean that I didn't stop caring. As much as it hurt to know that I would never be able to help Azeneth when she fell, that didn't mean I couldn't stop watching over her." Atem turned to Delilah and Tenionia.
"Cleopatra is keeping my daughter in a far corner of the palace." Atem winked at Tenionia.
"It was the cell where your brother was kept." Tenionia nodded.
"Thank you, Atem." Arsinoe looked at the younger pharaoh.
"How did you know where she was being held?" Atem winked.
"A father knows, Arsinoe, something that your husband wouldn't understand, and neither would you. Just because I am not in the land of the living, doesn't mean that I can't and won't stop being a father." Tenionia turned to her mother.
"Arsinoe, it's time that you return to the afterlife, and never try to contact my friends or I again, understand?" Arsinoe looked hurt.
"Tenionia..." Atem looked sharply at her.
"She's made her choice, Arsinoe. Now respect it." Arsinoe bowed her head.
"I'm sorry, Tenionia. I truly am." With that, she vanished. Delilah spat at the ground where she was standing.
"And stay dead, queen." Tenionia chuckled and looked back at Atem, who was smirking.
"Thank you, Atem." He nodded.
"Keep her safe, Tenionia. I'm entrusting you with her as her guardian, don't let me down."
"I won't. I promise that, My pharaoh." He looked at Delilah, who didn't falter under his ruby gaze.
"Delilah, I know that you've had a hard past with men, but I seen that Azeneth looks up to you and Tenionia. Please keep her safe, she is the only thing that can save Egypt, now."
"Right. You can count on me."
With one last smile, Atem retreated back to the afterlife. Tenionia touched her coin and eyed where he was standing.
'I'll always be behind you, Tenionia. Never forget.' His voice echoed in her mind and she smiled lightly.
'I won't forget.'
"Come on, Delilah. We have a princess to get back."
"You know where we're going?"
"Of course, I'm returning home." Delilah blinked, and followed Tenionia as she left the temple.