A/N: Hello, hello, hello… It was THIS chapter that took me long, eventually, and not the previous one… oopsie! XD I started lessons again… God damn it! I only hope I'll make this fic worth it!
Chapter 3: Ways to RevengeWill was pacing non-constantly up and down in the tent. She couldn't stop thinking of what had happened just the day before. All of the sudden, from an entire clan, there were only six Amazons remaining; them. She wasn't even sure if they were properly alive. Their settlement slaughtered... The soldiers… The Pharaoh… Them alone… The powers…
Around her, Taranee was playing with little flames coming out her fingers, Cornelia was 'helping' some flowers grow from the ground, Hay Lin was whiffing her black bangs, Orube was looking at her nails and Irma…
"Will you stop doing that! Sit down at last, you're giving me a headache!"
…Was mad from the boredom ruling in the air.
"Well excuse me!" Will placed her hands at her hips, resembling the mad-mother figure. "I'm sorry for being worried about us after what happened!" She was glaring, but so was Irma.
The chestnut-haired girl shot up from her sit, infuriated. "Those bastards burnt our settlement, killed our sisters, kidnapped our Peace Queen, killed US, and you can't do anything else than walking inside this tent?!"
Will's eyes narrowed and she lowered her head, looking to the ground. "If it was so easy to get revenge, don't you think I'd have already done so?"
Cornelia groaned. "You always refuse to take action immediately! I wonder why we ever gave you the title of our War Queen…"
"Ariadne!" Taranee tried to stop her, but it was too late.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Will shouted to the blond girl, engulfed with hot, flaming rage. She was sick, sick of being doubted all the time!
Cornelia didn't even blink; instead, she merely folded her arms across her chest. "It means you're useless, and you don't deserve such a high title. There is no solution to what happened, only hatred and revenge. Something that we, the Amazons, treasure. But you still hesitate."
"We. Are. Fucking. Six! In number!" Will's eyes were glowing now. "Why don't you try to leave the mighty talk and take the decisions!"
"Oh, I could just fine!" Now Cornelia shouted. "We know who did all this! We don't need to kill the entire Pharaoh's army, just him! Him and his damn High Priest!"
"What do you suggest, Corny?" Hay Lin asked her innocently, to stop the fight. She was also curious. "We won't make it, you know it. It's not like we have anything to lose, but still…" The girl looked questioningly the other two, who had nothing to answer to this.
"We can make it." They heard Orube's voice, and they all turned towards her. The amber-eyed girl was still looking at her nails. "First, we'll insert a spy into Pharaoh's palace, as a mere servant. Preferably, one of us. This one will approach the High Priest, (it will be easier than approaching the Pharaoh) and seduce him, so she can enter freely in his room and steal important documents, or hear conversations about strategy in battle. Using that information, we will call Erato and her clan of Amazons from the North. They will be very pissed for the slaughter in here. They will surely help us. When we have all the necessary information so we can win in the battle, this one spy will kill the High Priest and join us to the final battle, where our army will confront the army of the Pharaoh. We kill the Pharaoh and our revenge complete."
When Orube looked up, she realized they were all staring at her with awe.
"What? It is simple strategy! Weren't you paying attention at all when we were taught all this?" She scolded at them, and they preferred looking somewhere else.
"Nerd." Irma murmured. Orube was about to give her a good piece of her mind, when Taranee interfered:
"Sounds good a plan to me, but there are still a million things that could go wrong!" The black girl protested.
"Well, it's not like we have a better idea or anything." Hay Lin sighed. Will nodded, and so did Cornelia. After some moments into thick silence of acceptance, Will decided:
"So, since we don't have other options, there's no meaning in slacking. We must see who from us will go spying on the High Priest." She announced with severe tone.
"In other words, who will sleep with that creep." Irma reminded them through gritted teeth. "Losing our purity to this… this filthy monster who ordered the murder of our sisters and the kidnapping of our Peace Queen. One of us, the Tal Kyrti, the Free Women, submitting herself and having this bastard for master! The miasma isn't going to leave this one, ever." Flames of hatred were glazing through her sea – green eyes. She couldn't stand the mere idea.
No one spoke after that. They knew the intentions were good for them, they knew it would be a sacrifice worth it, but still… It wasn't easy. Irma saw that the effect of her words had saddened immensely her friends.
Could she accept this to happen to one of them? Could she stand seeing them losing the most important thing from themselves?
Yeah, sure. As long as she didn't!
…Right?
Oh, it wasn't that! She was sure that, if she was given this mission, she could make it through the end! But the others? Could they? She wasn't sure… If you want something to be done well, better do it yourself!
I must be out of my mind. Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid!! "I'll go." She suddenly stated, and they all turned abruptly towards her.
"Excuse me? Weren't you the one saying right now about miasma and stuff?" Cornelia arched an eyebrow.
"I know…" Irma closed her eyes and sighed. "I have water powers, they won't help as much as the rest of yours in battle. See it practically."
"But… but…" Hay Lin stuttered.
"She's right. Let her go." Orube interrupted any protest. Then she turned to Irma, smirking: "You'd better come out of this alive, you brat, otherwise I'll kill you for sure."
A vein popped out of Irma's forehead. "Who. Did. You. Call. A brat, you scabby cat??"
Before Orube could answer, Will came in the way. "Okay, okay, we know you're worried, now stop that and let's move!" Orube and Irma turned their backs to each other, fuming. Will continued: "We're lucky, I found some letters in that leader's tent. It appears they were orders. High Priest Seto isn't far from here, Irma if you hurry and leave now, you'll catch up with him by night."
"Leave… now?" Hay Lin almost squeaked. "But it's too soon! We need to settle our strategy first! We need to talk, maybe there's some other way we can…IRMA!"
Irma was already out, jumping onto the back of a random horse they had managed to save from yesterday's slaughter. "I'll be back soon! Wish me luck, you girls!" She giggled, but Hay Lin caught the painful glimpse in her friend's eyes. They were just staring as Irma's form was shrinking second by second in the horizon.
Will turned and got into the tent. "Now, who will go to Erato?"
SXIXSXIXSXIXSXI
Irma was already exhausted. She was riding her horse all day long, and still no sign of High Priest Seto's caravan. Well, he must have been in a caravan, didn't he? Damn, she wasn't even sure she'd taken the right way; she'd left so hurryingly! No one told her to stop from behind though, thing that meant she had taken the right direction. Apparently she just had to keep going…
She idly wondered how High Priest Seto would look like, or what kind of a man he was. Ok, she knew that he would definitely be a bastard. She wasn't even sure if she could stand him. The determination from before was long gone, now replaced by serious doubts. How stupid could she be? She was the most short-tempered of the group that was common knowledge! How could she put up with a man like this? For being a High Priest, he must be old to gain this title… How? How the hell could she stand an old and so despicable man touching her and… and… And she would have to be more than docile for this plan to work… What seemed so easy back then, now she was nearing at it, and she knew, was making her losing her courage.
She stopped her horse and shut her eyes closed tightly, breathing deeply and not letting the tears to fall. She was an Amazon! She wasn't allowed to be weak like this! She should be able to have a heart from stone and take it!
Suddenly, she heard noise, snapping her out of her trance. Talking…? And… was this fire she was seeing?
The caravan! She had made it!
SXIXSXIXSXIXSXI
Pharaoh Atem, or better Prince Atem, was walking down the hallways of his palace boringly. So it seemed.
I haven't even started my kingship, and something tells me I 'royally' screwed up before I sat typically on the throne. He mused, and sighed heavily. Atem had serious doubts for the Amazon's issue. He trusted his life at Seto, sure, but… was this the right way to deal with it? An Amazon for wife… What guaranteed she wouldn't try to kill him?
And truly, it wasn't his safety he was concerned about. The possibility of having done something wrong against Egypt and his people, was much more frightening. What if the Amazons tried a way to revenge, what then?
"I agreed too hastily to this…" He murmured. Though the more he thought of the plan, the better he was finding it if they didn't want killings, but… he had to admit it was fragile. And cunning too, this was Seto, but...
"Yo, Ateeem!!" A girl with dark brown hair popped out a column in his way. He would have been momentarily startled, if this wasn't happening every day.
"Nice to see you too, Mana." He smiled at her, and she caught up with him as he continued walking.
"This is a nice day, huh?" She commented carelessly, looking at the ceiling, and then out of a window. "I wonder what Mahado's doing right now."
He turned. "Weren't you supposed to be with him and practice your magic?"
"Yes, but it was boring and I ran away, so shush!" She placed her finger at her lips and smiled with guilt. Mana was training to be a magician since she was born. She was also used to following Atem everywhere, since they were best friends.
"Oh, Mana… again?" He gave her a fake pained expression, joking.
"I kinda wanted to talk to you…" She stopped walking, and Atem stopped with her. "Look Atem… I'm sorry for your father. I know it hurts you that he isn't here anymore…" Mana's expression was sad.
Atem was left speechless. How could she know, every time?
"Just know that I'm here for you…"
Mana hadn't managed to finish her sentence and Atem was hugging her tightly. "Thank you." He just told her, and she hugged him back.
SXIXSXIXSXIXSXI
When she walked inside the tent in the morning, Irma was left gawking. This had absolutely nothing to do with the simple and severe tents her clan was using, where there were only a piece of cloth and the ground. This was like a palace's miniature! Kirmans, desks, closets, gold …jewels? - here and there, and then a bed with silky blue sheets, were a boy in her age was sleeping.
Wait a minute…
…A boy? In her age? An 18-year-old boy in High Priest Seto's tent – no, bed?
She approached the boy carefully, as if she didn't want to wake him up. She scanned his face. Chestnut hair falling, covering his forehead, straight nose, high cheekbones, lips full fine for a man and a strong jaw line were completing his features. She was scrutinizing him over ten minutes, and she couldn't find a flaw. The sheets were dragged until his waist, leaving him bare-chested. She observed his broad chest falling up and down with each breath, then his arms. He was fit. Very nice…
For the love of Gods, would she find a flaw somewhere?
She shot up straight, realizing she had leaned way too much in to watch him. She pressed her forehead, think, think, think! Her job wasn't to eye this man! She had to find High Priest Seto!
The first thought that crossed her mind was that she had walked into the wrong tent. But then again… She had clearly heard the guardians say that this was his tent! And she had heard it not from two, or three, but from ten different guardians, as she had stolen new clothes (she couldn't walk in with the Amazon's attire) and she was changing into them in her hide-hole. She didn't like the thought forming in her head.
No no no, don't tell me…She thought, almost panicked. Don't tell me High Priest Seto likes boys!
So was this boy a…
She turned from the other side, her cheeks glowing bright red. Please somebody tell me that I'm wrong!! She inwardly pleaded. What an inglorious ending for their mission! She couldn't believe it, this was… was… Argh! She was fuming now. Orube, this was all her fault!
"May I help you with anything?"
She almost yelped when she heard the deep voice. She turned abruptly, and saw the boy fully awake, looking at her with piercing dark blue eyes.
She lost her voice for a second. Dark blue eyes? No Egyptian has those eyes. She almost drowned in them; she had never seen anything like this. They were cold, maybe even menacing, but they were so… mysterious and beautiful. Like gems, clear sapphires…
What was she doing she hadn't time for those thoughts! The second passed.
"I'm sorry, I'm looking for High Priest Seto. Do you know were he is?" She asked steadily but politely.
"Really? High Priest Seto?" To her great surprise, the boy smirked. Were those eyes amused now?
Before she could utter a word, the boy shoved the sheets covering him away and got up. Sure he was naked underneath, it was a miracle how she restrained herself from closing her eyes when she saw him moving. But it was proved, to her relief, that he was wearing a short piece of cloth draped around his hips.
Refrain from looking at his legs! Don't look at his legs! Face, face, better face! Irma was now fuming to herself. She had to look at his face either way, when he spoke again:
"Well, what do you want him for?"
She sighed. If she was to tell the story, better tell it again and again to make it believable. Even to High Priest Seto's… She couldn't believe the boy was this, he had something so dignified and royal… Oh, who cares now? "I came to ask for a job in the palace." She ignored the arched eyebrow of his and continued: "You see, the Amazons destroyed my village some nights ago. They slaughtered everyone and my little brother in front of my eyes." That had really happened, long ago. Technically, she didn't remember a thing she was too little. She had a lump in the throat, but she fought it back. She didn't know why, but she would never show weakness to him. "High Priest Seto had talked about confronting the Amazons. Since our village was unfortunate, I came just to have another chance."
She saw him studying her for a while. She felt the blue jewels piercing her through her very soul. Obviously to see if she was lying. Too bad, because her words had double meaning.
"You understand that what you ask isn't easy, do you?" He asked her calculatingly, continuing gazing at her with those eyes. "You must know how to cook, how to clean, how to obey orders…"
"Yes, yes, and yes." She interrupted him smiling. "Of course I know."
He smirked mischievously. "And you must go to their beds if they ask you to. What will happen if High Priest Seto, who you seek so intensely to get his permission, ask you so?"
She rolled her eyes. "I highly doubt that, since it was you sleeping in his bed!"
Both of the man's eyebrows shot up and disappear under the chocolate bangs in his forehead, but he wasn't able to suppress the light smile. "Oh. Really." His tone was the one someone has when he refrains from laughter.
She rolled her eyes again; she was getting tired of this. The man was eye-candy, but she had better things to do. "Look, do you know where High Priest Seto is, or am I just spending my time here with no reason?"
He said nothing, just smirked. The next moment, a tiny man bolted inside the tent and kneeled to the man's feet. Before Irma could ask what was going on, he spoke: "High Priest Seto, your majesty, its nearly time. We wait your signal to gather things and continue towards Thebes."
"Very well, go on." The blue-eyed man waved and the obvious servant got out shouting orders to the others.
Irma was left petrified. No. Fucking. Way…
"So now," Seto said, as he was grabbing his clothes and started dressing up, "Mind explaining me why I shouldn't be sleeping in my own bed?" He snickered.
Irma had so many emotions that she didn't know what should she use. Embarrassment? Relief? Anger? Hatred? Her impulse took over: "YOU are High Priest Seto?" Her cheeks were tainted red. "But… how the hell…? You're too young!"
"So many people think. I'm eighteen." He said as he was tying his golden waistband around his blue robes.
"I figured that much out!" Now she was blushing not only from embarrassment, but from anger as well. "Why didn't you tell me you were High Priest Seto, but you left me thinking…"
"…That I was his whore?" He interrupted her. Now he was doing up some papyruses in his desk.
"If you didn't like it, you could say it was you from the start! Why didn't you?" How was this man's mind working??
"I never said I wasn't. Maybe you were too quick to jump in conclusions." He picked up and wore his hat. He despised that thing, but he had to wear it outside.
"I…I…" I'll slay you like a pig when the time comes, and I'll enjoy it immensely! She thought, while she was lowering her head in order for him not to see the pure hatred in her sea-green eyes. His beauty didn't matter anymore, it would never matter! "I'm so dead, right?" She asked through gritted teeth.
"No." He turned to face her. "You're so hired."
"What?!" Her head shot up from its own, for her eyes to meet his. He was smirking again.
"Isn't that what you wanted?" He asked, once again amused.
She was in a loss of words. "Well… yeah…"
"Then don't waste time like this. Come with me, we're going to Thebes." And with that, he walked past her and got outside the tent. Irma remained at the spot. What had happened in so little time?
"Hey, wait!" She called after him and followed him outside. She didn't pay the least bit of attention in the camels and the frantic confusion ruling about the preparations of leaving. He stopped so suddenly that she bumped into his back and almost fell.
He looked at her again with that expression of amusement, thing she already hated.
"Warn me when you'll stop next time, will ya?" She almost yelled at him.
He just shrugged. "Whatever. Move your ass now. The camels won't wait for you."
"Why you-"
"And by the way," He interrupted her once more. "I never said I didn't like it." She looked at him dumbfounded. "It was funny." He chuckled and left her once again behind.
"You're EVIL!" She shouted and followed him quickly. Won't the time come when I'll kill you? We'll see how you'll be able to scoff and use the sarcasm then! She mused, and allowed herself a smirk of her own. The first part of their plan, complete!
A/N: I know, I know, short huh? Erato is Elyon's other name. She will make an appearance later. I think that the chapters of this fic will be about this length approximately. Anyways, I hope you liked it guys! ;) REVIEW! Pls?
