Ancient Egypt looked out through the floor length window of the high alabaster temple. She looked out at her land, a large sprawling city, the mighty Nile carving its rebellion through the land, and the pyramids, rising above the palm trees and city walls. Demanding homage, to all who laid eyes on it.
Sighing, she looked down towards the harbor, a ship was pulling in. Not that ships pulling into the busy Egyptian port, was unusual, but this ship was of a different structure than the usual, staring harder a couple of memories swirled up from the ancient dust in her mind, none of them clear enough to make any sense of. Straining her eyes she made out the emblem of a flag, a non-Egyptian flag. A fearful thrill rocked up her spine, and her hand immediately went to shield the nearly invisible bump, that would one day become modern day Egypt. Not that she knew that.
Squinting now, she tried to make out the symbol of the ships flag, worrying about the Romans, who were becoming a force to fear in the Mediterranean, or could it possibly be Ancient Greece? She had no qualms with the Grecian lady, yet they weren't close enough friends to call on each other without sending word first.
The door opened behind her, and turning around, she saw her handmaiden, Ipu. A kind enough lady, sentenced till the end of her days to make sure Ancient Egypt was presentable in all situations.
"My lady," Ipu murmured bowing her head respectively, "Pharaoh requires your presence." She said, her voice nearly dropping to a whisper, folding her hands behind her simple linen sheath. Very much aware of her lady's contempt for this one Pharaoh.
Ancient Egypt said nothing, narrowing her malachite outlined eyes, and tearing her unwilling hand away from her stomach; she swept out of the room, the lapis beads from her wig clanging against each other. Her white sheath swirled around her, cinched at the waist from her gold belt, reaching the tips of her gold ankle bands.
She walked through the long hallway, the tall alabaster columns marking her every five yards. Looking down onto the port, she saw a small group of people walk off the strange boat, from where she was, it seemed like they were conversing, or bribing, the port guards, who made sure no boat docked in another's area. Glancing down at her stomach, she wondered if the contents of her stomach being thrown up this morning were what she thought it was, hopefully it was just something that hadn't agreed with her.
Pushing open the doors she entered the throne room, walking up to Pharaoh she nodded her head, not wiling to bow before this one.
"Amunet, we have visitors, of…another nation." Pharaoh stated, raising his chin off of his hands to look at the woman who was his realm. The woman who was as old as the first dynasty of Pharaohs, "It would please me…if you got to know him."
"A him?" Ancient Egypt, said, speaking for the first time in days, her strong voice rose and fell with each syllable, the power of Egypt in her words.
"I do not know if it is a female, you are the country, you should make ties with this one, I do not know if you remember, but the ship's messenger came, and apparently we have done some dealing with them a while back." Pharaoh's eyes snapped towards the door.
A breathless soldier stood, panting before the two, he immediately threw himself to the floor, obviously realizing his disrespect at not prostrating himself towards his lord immediately.
"My lord Pharaoh, they have asked for entrance, so that the captain may speak with you."
"Hmm, let them in, they may dock their ships on our harbor." Pharaoh said, looking at Ancient Egypt, as if daring her to object.
Ancient Egypt let the corners of her lips curl into a smirk; the foreigners had already docked without this Pharaoh's permission. But the small ghost of a smile vanished; as she tried to remember who this nation was…they had traded before? She closed her eyes, trying to concentrate, there had been one nation when she was very little…they used to be such good friends…but deep trenches had been dug between them, and Ancient Egypt couldn't find the rest of the memories.
Opening her eyes frustrated, she took long strides and passed the Pharaoh, and opened the very thin screen, which hid her chair and thus herself, from the visitors. The screen covered a small hollow behind the Pharaoh, close enough so that if Ancient Egypt decided to give advice she could without being seen. It was to hide her from visitors who may take a woman advising a man the wrong way. Visitors who were not visitors at all, but spies sent to assassinate her.
Letting the screen fall behind her, she folded herself onto her chair and waited for the foreign guests.
Allowing her head to rest on the chair, her hand found her nearly non-existent bump. Closing her eyes once more she thought about the seriousness of a possible child. If she a powerful, empire-nation was bearing child, what did that mean for her land? Was the child a symbol of a colony they would find in the future? Was it a new country near her land? Was it evil Set, cursing her with the torture of a demon, in place of a baby, for an eager new mother? Of course it could be the representation of a group of rebels who would try to rise against her/the nation and try to be one on its own. Or, and this was a thought that she dreaded, was it to be her successor? Not that she wouldn't die for her maybe-child, but if she died, what was her land going to be? What if the child was weak, and needed her guidance before she left it?
Before the panic could consume for the worst, the door again opened, and the soldier who had carried the news back and forth, stepped up, bowed to Pharaoh and Pharaoh nodding his assent to let him speak, leaned backward in his chair, to glance at the shadow behind the screen; before beckoning forth the announcer of the strange people.
" My name is Abibaal, I am no announcer, I am the son of the king of our lands." A proud handsome man had stepped forth, he was dark and his eyes were a rustic tawny, brimming with pride, his clothes were of a nation Ancient Egypt knew, but could not place at the moment, "I am here for many things, Pharaoh of Egypt, I have come to trade a new color, I am here to discuss politics on behalf of my noble father, but I am also here, because me and my people have heard, that you harbor a nation, that represents your empire."
Ancient Egypt was not shocked by many things, but she was most definitely in shock by the man's words. Glancing at Pharaoh's rigid posture, she could not tell what he would say. When he opened his mouth, she cringed, for what the reaction might be from the words that would pour forth out of his mouth, wars, plague, angered gods, how could she raise her child?
Gasping aloud, she bit her tongue in anger; she was already thinking of the bump as a child she would have to take care of? What of your country? She asked herself, but motherly instincts are one you can never defeat, she countered herself.
"I am Pharaoh of Egypt, I speak for all of Egypt when I talk, and I ask you, Abibaal, son of a king I do not know, who are you? Where do you come from, and why do you ask of a nation that may not exist?"
Ancient Egypt smirked, pleased at the Pharaoh's counterattack, but her wave of triumph was crushed by the confidence of a person, who stepped forth.
The figure pushed past the prince, who stepped back all too willingly. The figure was too slight to be male, and the strong voice that erupted from the delicate frame was most definitely feminine.
"Only fair, Pharaoh that you should ask of who we are. We, Pharaoh of Egypt, are sea farers, the inhabitants of the land of milk and flowing honey, the people of purple, children of the cedars, worshippers of Baal and the beginners of many other things, I, Pharaoh, am an empire that could rival yours, for I am Phoenicia."
Uh, I haven't updated in a long while on any of my stories, but after vacationing in the middle east I realized that the ancients didn't get much attention, so I decided to write this little thing up, so I would really really really! Like it, if you reviewed, you know, just mention if you liked it or not. Thanks for reading =D
~P.W.