Chapter 10: All Part of the Plan
Deep within the Pharaoh's palace, in one of the most secure rooms, a somber picture was painted. In the chamber of light brown stone walls, tiled floors, and sparse decorations of tapestries, there was a polished, dark brown wooden table, one ornately carved chair at the head and five on either side. At the head, as always, sat Pharaoh Atemu, but the room was oddly unpopulated given the gravity of this situation. Nobody sat to the Pharaoh's immediate right, and although Mahad and Buhen took their usual places on the second and third chairs on that side, the typically occupied fourth chair on that side was also unusually empty. Isis, Karim and Shada filled out the left side of the table, as usual, although those who were present were awfully quiet.
Finally, Karim decided to break the din. "The investigation gave no explanation for the Thief King's escape."
"Perhaps he really was a wizard." Buhen responded, similarly quiet and robotic in speech.
"He wouldn't have bothered taking the vial if he didn't need it." Isis pointed out.
"You can close that investigation." Atemu said, the first words he had spoken since the meeting had commenced, his voice throaty. Everyone turned to look at him intently. "He smuggled some of his magic potion in."
"He was searched a dozen times!" Shada insisted defensively. "It would have-"
"It was in his urine." Atemu explained, the tiniest hints of blushes creeping into the cheeks of his inner circle, through the sorrow and fear. "He planned to be captured, he drank some of his potion before his attack."
"That would never work!" Mahad exclaimed, frowning. "That's...that's completely insane! It could burst into flames inside your stomach!"
"In case you haven't noticed, Mahad, the Thief King takes pride in his insanity." Atem countered quietly.
"He knew he was going to run out of magic eventually." Isis said, looking down at her hands, clasped in front of her laying on the table. "He needed another source. He needed Mana."
"With Mana in the hands of the Thief King, I don't know what our options are." Buhen lamented. "We...we have to get lucky, and lucky soon. Rumors of the Thief King's victory are spreading through Egypt as we speak, it won't be long before all faith is lost in our rule."
"When I was younger, I depended on luck." Atem responded. "A teenaged Pharaoh, forced onto the throne by unfortunate circumstances, the entire world against me. I might have flipped the coin once or twice. But I was young. Now, I make my own luck."
"What would you propose?" Mahad asked.
"My apologies for my tardiness."
Everyone in the room turned to look down the table, away from Atemu, toward the right corner of the opposite wall, where a bronze door had been silently pushed open. The head of High Priest Seto stuck through the gap, surveying the room with his large blue eyes.
"Enter." Atemu instructed, prompting Seto to step his entire body into the chamber and slide the door shut behind him. "Think nothing of it."
Seto quickly swept down the table, ignoring the many pairs of eyes following his movements across the brown tiled floor, coming to a halt behind the chair to the immediate right of Atemu. In a swift motion, he bowed to the Pharaoh, then pulled it out slightly and slid into the seat.
"I...I lost track of time." Seto said, voice shaking slightly.
"I understand." Atemu nodded. "Today is a very sad day, we have lost a great man, and I am truly sorry for your loss."
"Thank you." Seto said quietly.
"He was a role model and teacher to us all." Isis added, prompting nods and murmurs of agreement from everyone else in the room.
"I also must apologize for my words last night." Seto continued, his eyes having never left the Pharaoh's. "I was out of line."
"What you said, you said in anger and grief, and I took no offense." Atemu gave a dismissive wave of his right hand at Seto.
"This Kingdom is in grave danger, and I do not want my grieving to interfere in the slightest with our efforts to protect it." Seto said, his voice stronger now.
Atemu nodded, turning back to face straight down the table. "Meeting dismissed."
Looks of confusion were traded up and down the long rectangular surface as Atemu gave a wan smile.
"Pharaoh, we have to plan out-" Shada began, but Atem silenced him with another dismissive wave.
"As I said. I make my own luck." Atemu repeated, staring Shada down as he did. "You're all about to learn a very important lesson." He turned back to look straight down the table, every other pair of eyes in the room on him. "One way or another, I always win."
"I don't understa-" Karim fell victim to yet another of Atemu's handwaves.
"You are all dismissed." Atemu said, finality in his voice. "Except for Seto." He amended, drawing all the attention toward his right hand man. Seto glared at Atemu, brow furrowed and eyes wide, for all the world looking as if he was a school child being called in for detention.
"Phar-" Mahad tried to get in his own objection, but Atemu merely stepped over his words this time.
"You are all dismissed, except for Seto." He repeated.
A long silence hung over the table. The scraping of Isis's chair as she stood up triggered similar movements all down the table, as everyone slowly got up, bowed, and strode toward the far right corner door.
Just before Isis stepped over the threshhold, Atemu raised his hand at the departing priests, causing them all to halt.
"Isis, could you please go see the girl's mother? She must be a wreck right now."
Isis nodded. "Of course sir."
Finally, the room was vacated outside of the two men, and the massive bronze weight was sealed, Atemu finally turning his gaze onto Seto.
"I again apolog-" Seto blurted out immediately.
"Lost track of the time?" Atemu recalled from the previous conversation, a tiny smile playing across his face.
Seto swallowed audibly, biting his lower lip and turning away from Atemu's gaze slightly. "No sir. I apologize. I...I did not wish to attend today's meeting."
Atemu nodded knowingly. "Truthfully, I did not expect to see you today."
"I offer my most sincere apologies for such disobedience." Seto rushed out.
"Believe it or not, Seto, I understand that my priests are humans. Even my high priest." Atemu said smoothly. "Your reactions are understandable, and I consider it a testament to your faith that you are here now. Now, what motivated you to come here?"
"Kisara." Seto replied simply, turning his eyes back to look at the Pharaoh. "She reminded me of something. Something I know, but chose to ignore. You are kind, wise, and fair. And maybe I don't understand everything, but I don't need to."
"Thank you." Atemu nodded.
"Now, this isn't what you wanted me to stay behind for, is it?" Seto asked, his face taking back on the stony mask that let no emotion out.
"Partially. We do have important matters to discuss." Atemu leaned back in his chair, putting his hands behind his head.
"But you dismissed the meet-" Seto motioned around with his hands at the empty chairs.
"I'm keeping things as self-contained as possible." Atemu said simply, ignoring Seto's raised eyebrow. "I want you to send out a command to the barracks. I want scout teams dispersed everywhere in Egypt, all through the deserts, looking for the Thief King's hideout."
Seto stood stock still for several seconds, waiting for Atem's face to crack into a grin. It didn't happen, so Seto looked away and gave a quick shake of his head. "D-don't joke at a time like this." He mumbled. "Please, sir." He quickly added.
"Do you have a better idea, high priest?" Atemu asked daringly, crossing his arms over his chest.
"W-with all due respect, my Pharaoh, now that the Thief King has taken Mana we need to-" Seto continued to argue, struggling to keep his voice flat.
"Now that he's taken Mana?" Atemu snorted. "He's let the lion into the sheep's den."
Seto could not help but narrow his eyes, trying to find some hint on Atemu's face that he was kidding. A twitching smile, a flash in his eyes...but no. He was an exceedingly good actor, he had to admit.
"Pharaoh." Seto said sternly. "We both saw exactly what Mana is capable of. I was right there in the room."
Atemu merely stared at him for a few seconds, making Seto think he had perhaps gone too far. He was about to voice another apology, but Atemu finally cracked the silence. "I understand, you have many questions. Were I you and you me, it would be the same. I promise to answer everything, in good time. But not right now. I need you to trust me for a little longer. Everything is under control, Egypt is in no danger, and the Thief King is as good as ours. Right now, I need you to send a message to the barracks that scout teams need to be sent out."
Seto slowly stood up from the chair, pushing it away from the table with his back legs. Finally, he gave a small bow. "Of course. And if they ask what they're looking for?"
"Oh...tell them that they won't be able to miss it." Atemu replied cheerfully.
""""
After what felt like days of nothing but dull blackness, Mana's eyes were finally exposed to something different as the thick wool bag was pulled off of her head. She blinked a few times, her eyes adjusting to the bright lights being cast by the massive torches spread throughout the room.
Room being a term used loosely, for as she looked around, seeing the rough and uneven stone that created a sort of dome around and above her, and feeling the bumpy, sharp stone under her, she realized she was in a chamber of what appeared to be a giant cave.
She was on her knees, little hands tied behind her back and ankles bound together. Through slitted eyes she looked at the massive mountains of gold and jewels in every direction. Even given her situation, she couldn't help but be taken aback at the vast riches surrounding her. Finally, her eyes adjusted to the light, and she glared directly in front of her. For standing perhaps ten feet away, separated from Mana by a thin line of gold coins, was the Thief King himself.
"You!" She exclaimed.
"Welcome, my little meal ticket!" Bakura slowly strolled over towards her, as she tested the ropes around her wrists. "My, you are an adorable little thing!"
"Get away from me!" She yelped, falling backwards and scuttling herself across the floor away from Bakura.
"Oh...don't be like that." He hissed, coming to stand over her. "This is why you don't have any friends. You push everyone away." He picked her up by the collar of her shirt, lifting her up so they were nearly nose-to-nose. "I could be a friend to you, little Mana."
She shivered, bending her knees back. Her legs quickly uncoiled right into the Thief King's crotch, drawing a grunt of pain from him as he dropped her to the ground. She landed on her back, looking up to see the Thief King in the fetal position next to her, holding his groin in his hands, face twisted into a grimace.
"Alright. You want to play it that way?" Bakura slowly stood up, still hunched over. "We'll get right to the point."
"You let me go!" She shouted, rolling over onto her stomach.
"Oh, but we have so much to learn about each other!" He righted himself, forcing a malicious grin on his face, crossing his arms over his chest. "You should be excited, now you get to serve the real Pharaoh!"
"I'm not doing ANYTHING for you!" She insisted, looking up at her captor, scowling as strongly as her young face could.
"Oh, I think you'll find you just...won't be able to resist." Bakura said naughtily, sticking his left index finger into his mouth and sucking on it.
She looked around again. "Where are we?"
He raised an eyebrow at her, his crazed grin dropping. "What the hell do you mean, where are we? You're in my palace! The home of the Thief King legend for hundreds of years! Show some respect!" He turned around, walking over to one of the mounds of treasure. Unbeknownst to him, Mana gave a small smile.
"Your palace?" She repeated. The bounds on her wrists and ankles glowed a dark red suddenly, the fibers that made them up disappearing one by one.
"That's right, my palace!" He said, his hands picking up handfuls of the gold. "Of course, we'll be moving camp in a short time." He started rubbing the valuables on his face, enjoying their cold, dead touch. "With your help, soon I'll take the grand palace in Cairo. I'll miss this place, but you can't rule a kingdom in here." He dropped the baubles back into the massive pile. "At least, probably not."
The final strands of the ropes dissolved into nothingness, leaving her free to stand up. Her muscles ached from being tied up for such a long period of time, so she silently stretched her arms and legs out as Bakura continued to play with his treasure.
"I'm not helping you do anything!" She shouted, clenching and wiggling her fingers as she held her hands at her sides.
Bakura simply shrugged. "Hey, if you want to do this the hard way, I'm game." He threw a diamond the size of his fist up over the mountain, sending it flying across the chamber and clanking to the ground on the other side. "I mean, I'd tell you I don't want to hurt you. But I'd be lying, so-" He turned around, his words getting stuck his in throat as he saw the little girl standing there, quite free of any bonds, smiling mischieviously.
She gave a tiny wave as Bakura frowned. "How did you-"
Bakura was rudely interrupted by what felt very much like a steel wall crashing into him at a million miles an hour, crushing the air out of his lungs and sending him flying like a ragdoll across the chamber, as if in hot pursuit of the diamond he just threw. If that was his intention, he overshot it by a good two hundred feet, and the force of his impact on the far wall was more than enough to shatter any remaining ribs the initial impact had left.
Pleased with herself, Mana pointed her right hand up into the air at the stone dome that served as the ceiling to the chamber. With a flick of her wrist, a brilliant, white-blue cone of light was shot straight up, cutting through the stone as if it was parchment, ripping through several layers of rock without so much as a moment's pause as it made it's way to the exterior of the 'palace'.
The cone had expanded to perhaps a fifty foot diameter by the time it broke through to the outside, it's blinding glow roaring up into the skies as if it had an important date with the moon. It tore up right through the atmosphere and into the great unknown, now an unthinkably huge vortex of light.
Every citizen of Egypt gifted with functioning eyes saw it, almost all of them assuming it was a miracle and falling to their knees on the spot. Surrounding countries saw it, most of them hoping that Atemu had finally angered the gods enough for them to strike him down. Countries thousands miles away saw it, many thinking that perhaps those doomsday cults were right after all. And quite frankly, if there's alien life somewhere out there in the great unknown, they probably saw it too, and were probably suddenly very afraid of the capabilities of the humans in an intergalatic war.
So it goes without saying that Egyptian scouts saw it too, and it was only a matter of hours before several thousand soldiers of Pharaoh Atemu were picking up the pieces of the former Thief King's palace, with the dozens of Bakura's men who had survived the magical destruction begging to be arrested and promising to go quietly so long as that damned little girl would stay away from them.
""""
Atemu watched with great satisfaction from the top of the massive marble staircase in front of his palace, looking down at the procession of carriages that slowly beat down the sandy path from left to right using the strength of large, strong horses. To his left, all of his High Priests were aligned, watching the scene play out similarly. At his right side stood Teana, her eyes on the lead carriage, a smirk playing across her face.
"I don't believe it." She muttered. At the front of the carriage, right behind the pulling horse, sat the driver, a short muscular man holding the reigns. To his right, Mana was bouncing up and down in her seat, beaming up at the Pharaoh and his Queen. Behind them, right in front of the covered part of the carriage, was a steel chair with cuffs on the wrists, forearms, neck, chest, stomach, knees, and ankles, currently enclosed around the body of the Thief King, who looked very displeased as he was paraded in front of the palace. "How in the-"
"Pharaoh!" Mana yelled, jumping down from the carriage as it came to a halt. All of the following wagons made a stop in the sands as well, each a few meters apart.
Atemu slowly trotted down the marble, followed by his wife and his inner circle, as Mana took the steps two at a time up toward him.
Several steps later, the small girl met the party near the middle, embracing the Pharaoh's legs in a massive hug. The priests all stiffened at this, looking at Mana with some shock and disdain, but to their relief Atemu merely picked her up by her sides and kissed her on the forehead.
"I have kids, you know." He said tartily to his advisors, still moving down the steps. The priests all shared a quick smile.
"I'm very proud of you, Mana." Atemu said as they came closer and closer to the wagon party. "You've done this country a great service."
"Thank you!" She exclaimed happily, embracing Atemu's chest. "It's the least I can do!"
"Are you feeling alright?" He asked, moving her over to his right arm and holding her there, forearm under her rear. "Tired?"
She shook her head. "Not at all."
"Very good." Atemu nodded. "Very good."
They came to the lead wagon, Bakura still looking straight forward and doing everything he could to not acknowledge their presence.
"Oh, wonderful, you lived!" Atemu taunted. "I mean, I told Mana to give you one good pop just to be safe, but I was hoping you might live through it. You are a tough one!"
He gave a quiet growl. Atemu reached over, grabbing the right back chair leg and yanking it off the wagon, sending in crashing down into the sands. Bakura gave a yelp as gravity guided his graceless fall, the chair laying on it's side.
"This isn't over." He snapped, teeth bared almost like a wild animal. "This. Isn't. Over."
"The only thing that could possibly make this more over is your head mounted on my dining room wall." Atemu retorted, drawing a wrinkled nose from Teana. "We'll get to that shortly."
He looked at his priests and pointed down at the chair. Seto and Shada approached the upturned chair, grabbing the backrest and slowly picking it up. He snarled at them, clamping his jaws at them wildly, teeth still bared.
He was soon uprighted, looking down the sandy path at the line of wagons, his face red from sunburn and his eyes fiery.
Atemu waved his hand toward the wagons, not taking his eyes off the captured Thief King, as the covers on the back of the carriages were whipped off, revealing the countless treasures that had formerly been Bakura's.
"As we can see, my dear Bakura, there is nothing you possess that I can not take away." He smirked, infuriating Bakura. He began to violently shake back and forth in the chair, roaring and growling like a madman.
Several soldiers came forth from the wagons as well, having been sitting in the back of several of them, approaching the scene. They all bowed deeply to the figures of power before them before coming to a halt.
"Mana, you should go see your mother. She's worried sick." He set her down on the sands. Bakura glared at her, mustering up an evil glare that was particularly strong even for him. Mana simply stuck her tongue out at the fallen Thief King, turned to bow to the Pharaoh so her torso was very nearly horizontal with the ground, then started running away from the palace, toward the streets. Two of the soldiers split off from the group to escort her, chasing the excited youth down.
"Take him to the dungeons." He pointed at Bakura, prompting two more soldiers to come forth and carefully grab the backrest, lifting the chair up. "I have special plans for him, just take him to a holding cell."
The two moved as quick as they could with their heavy cargo, running back down the sandy path whence they came, headed for a side entrance that would take them down into the especially secure dungeon rooms. Atemu watched them disappear around his palace, then turned to head back up the steps.
His wife and inner circle were hot on his heels, all crowding around him expectantly. He remained silent as he made the trek up the steps, so all the high priests immediately began shooting glances at each other, none of them wanting the task of asking the all-important question.
Finally, Teana rolled her eyes and jumped in front of Atem, bringing him to a halt near the top of the steps. "Oh, Mighty Pharaoh, we would be eternally grateful if you might grace us mere mortals with your vast intellect and tell us how you managed such an incredible feat of trickery."
"Ah yes." He said playfully, stepping past Teana, picking her up and carrying her up the last few steps before setting her down. "I apologize for all the secret keeping, but now I suppose there is no harm in revealing the tricks of my trade."
He continued to slowly trot down the front entrance to his palace, all the priests leaning in, listening intently, with the exception of Mahad.
"First off, nobody is allowed to get mad at Mahad. I know you've all just been dying to know but he had specific instructions to not tell anyone under any circumstance." Atemu started, drawing the eyes of everyone else to Mana's instructor.
"Yes, yes, get on with it." Teana chided.
"It's been a very long time since black magic was in practice, and over those centuries, one simple fact was lost." Atemu explained, his audience hanging onto his every word. "Black magic feeds off life energy, and no one person contains enough life energy to do a significant amount of black magic." He lead the party into his dining room. "And yet, in the old days, magicians did great and powerful things with their sorcery. So, how did they do it?"
"It was very rarely their life energy." Mahad explained.
"Correct!" Atemu walked past the long wooden table, his companions being towed behind him by his words. "By ancient ritual, the life energy of others could be sacrificed to the magician, who could then use it as he or she saw fit. In the old days, magicians would kidnap and sacrifice dozens of humans before they performed any particularly great feats. Even a prime, well-conditioned man who wielded black magical powers could do little more than knock down a few stone walls before collapsing from exhaustion."
"Was that the missing piece this whole time?" Buhen asked.
"Partially. In any case, I was able to recover the details of the ritual, and after the sacrifice of a hundred criminals who had been previously sentenced to death, Mana had more than enough energy to knock the Thief King for a loop." Atem turned around to face his followers as they came to the head of the table, grinning. "And that about wraps it up."
The priests and Teana all nodded amongst each other.
"How could such an obvious fact be forgotten by the history books?" Isis asked herself, left index finger on her chin.
Atemu shrugged. "People are often careless. What seemed like a given then can be a forgotten treasure now. In any case, as last night's little lightshow has proven, we now have everything we need to re-invigorate our aggressive expansions."
"Wait-wait-wait." Teana interjected, holding her hands out in front of her towards her husband, palms out. "What are you talking about?"
"I never planned for the Thief King's arrival, it was only by happy coincidence I was equipped to handle him." Atemu replied. "Mana's purpose is to guarantee the continued success of Egypt in the war efforts against all opposing countries. It always has been."
"B-but you just found out she existed a few-" Teana stuttered, very confused now.
"I am the reason Mana exists." Atemu interrupted. "Months after I took the throne for the second time, Mahad concocted a potion that would plant the seed for a child with the gift to be born. A man drinks it unknowingly while intoxicated in a bar in the slums, sees a pretty girl, passes the seed to her, dies the next morning. That girl gives birth to a baby girl nine months later, never suspecting she possesses any unnatural talents. I've prepared for the arrival of Mana since that day nearly ten years ago, waiting for the ability to bloom within her. Waiting for the trump card that would win me control of the world for the remainder of my reign."
Teana frowned. "I don't understand. Why didn't you invite Asenath to live in the palace ten years ago?"
"There's a fundamental difference in the mindset of someone who grew up in the palace versus someone who grew up in the slums." Atemu explained coldly. "The one who grew up in the palace, for example, might feel a sense of entitlement, or even be bold enough to raise issues of morality. The slumrat, however, will do anything you ask so long as it gets them off the street. Mana will always serve me with undying loyalty, for she will never forget that I saved her from that hell in the slums."
"So that's all she is?" Teana snapped, scowling. "A means to an end? Something to be exploited?"
"I can assure you that she would not be living within Mahad's palace right now if she did not possess great powers, if that's what you mean." Atemu retorted. With that, he turned to Mahad, even as Teana continued to glare at him. "Mahad, you know what to do. Do start with the undesirables, but from this moment forward, you have complete freedom to take who you want."
"Hey!" Teana shouted. "Don't ignore me! What are you talking about? Mana can't win you a war!"
"Mana can do anything as long as we provide her with the proper tools." Atemu said stonily, taking a step toward his wife threateningly, drawing himself up to his full height.
Teana strode right over to him, looking up at his face and pointing her right index finger right at his nose. "Don't try to intimidate me!" She hissed. "You don't have enough prisoners with death sentences and you know it, stop being delusional!"
"Who said anything about death sentences?" Atemu responded, crossing his arms over his chest. Teana's right arm fell to her side limply, her brow furrowing.
"What do yo-"
"My dungeons. The prisons, loaded to the brim with prisoners of war. Slaves. Non-Egyptians. The Slums." Atemu listed as comprehension dawned on Teana's face. "Lives that lack purpose, lack meaning, every last one of them. There is a reason why, over these last ten years, I've insisted that prisoners of war be taken alive whenever possible. I was just planting the crops, and now comes time to harvest."
"Harvest?" She shrieked, balling her hands into fists. "Just-"
"Half a million prisoners of war, kept alive all this time, many of whom could not be trusted to put to slave labor. Their sacrifice will feed Mana's powers. The criminals, the scum of Egypt, who have only themselves to blame for their punishment, tens of thousands of them. How many hundreds of thousands of replaceable slaves do we have in this kingdom? There's more energy here than Mana could use in a dozen lifetimes."
"Just how many men are you planning to kill!" She shouted, her knuckles white.
Atemu took a step back from her, looking her up and down disdainfully. "I am the Pharaoh of Egypt, he who acts as the voice of the gods in the mortal realm. My concern is this country, and how it stands in a testament to the power of the gods. Gods do not place a great value on the lives of mortals. I...I do not place great value on the lives of mortals. For the glory of Egypt, I would kill them all."
She glared daggers at her husband, huffing large breaths through her nose, as the priests stood to the side and watched the argument in silence.
Her eyes downcast, she opened her mouth. "I...I don't believe it. I knew you had problems, I knew we had disagreements, but I never-"
"Then what would you suggest? How would you protect Egypt?" Atemu shouted, losing his composure.
"END THE WAR!" She cried, stomping her sandaled right foot down on the tile. "All you have to do is end the war and set up defenses! They'd never get through, not in a hundred years! You know it! You have another option! Please-"
"We have already discussed this, Teana." Atemu said sternly. "That is no option. This is the only way." He looked back over at Mahad. "She should be given the chance to rest for a day or two, but I want you to immediate start preparing the ritual for a thousand sacrifices, we'll see what sort of power we can get from-"
"Y-your a monster." Teana said, in a low voice, chin tilted down, looking up at Atem with upturned eyeballs. "I...I really thought you just needed time, that you would come around...but no." She shook her head slowly. "There's nothing left. None of your humanity. Nothing left but cruelty. I can not-"
"Shut up!" He spat. "Not in front of the priests!" He motioned toward his inner circle, resuming his glaring at Teana.
"It wasn't supposed to be like this! I married a man! A good man! Not a monster!" She shrieked, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"You never married a man." Atemu menaced through gritted teeth. "Now stop-"
"There's no humanity left in here!" She stepped forward, starting to pound on Atem's chest with her fists. "There's nothing but the husk of my husband here! I DIDN'T MARRY A HUSK!"
"SHUT UP!" He shouted, grabbing her wrists and holding her fists back. "You are shaming me! STOP IT!" He pushed her back a little, causing her to stumble back a couple steps. She wiped some of the tears from her cheeks, her eyes red and bleary.
"I...I..." she spun around, words escaping her, stomping off towards a passage a few meters to the group's right into a hallway. The clicking of her sandals echoed off the walls for a few seconds before Atemu turned back to his priests.
"They are just so moody when they're pregnant." He moaned. "I mean, did you see that? Not five minutes ago she was all cheery and happy and joking around and...and then she throws that at me?" He sighed. "Sorry you had to see that. Anyway-"
"Pharaoh." Seto said slowly. "With all due respect, you may want to...uh...that is..." he looked over at the hallway through which Teana had departed, gesturing toward it with his body.
"Hey, it's what they do." Atemu said defensively. "They get pregnant, they get moody, these mortal women...all of them. I know a little something about this, this is my third kid you realize. She'll calm down, she'll get over it. I'll run up there later in the afternoon, she'll be apologizing her butt off. It's what they do!"
The priests continued to look at him, unconvinced. Atemu looked back at the hallway, chewing on his tongue.
"Yeah...yeah. Alright." He grumbled. "I'll...I'll go talk to her." He headed off after her, the eyes of all of his inner circle following him out of the room.