A day before
Hom-Dai is carried out
Imhotep glanced around
the room, ornate pillars rose up around him carved with pictures of the gods,
hieroglyphics covered the walls telling tales of the gods and goddesses. Over forty or some odd tanned faces looked back
at him with almost worship-like expressions.
This group of young people was to become the next generation of priests,
their red and black robes declaring them to be the lowest on the hierarchy of
priests. Since all the other priests
were at the temples honoring the gods he had been forced to teach them about
the gods and the ways of the priest. It
was not something he despised, he enjoyed teaching, but he would rather be
spending the time with Anck-su-namun, his lover.
/ This isn't so bad
though, they treat me like a god / Imhotep thought.
It had been almost a month now, and the group
had become more loyal to him than even his own priests. They all felt honored to be taught by the
pharaohs high priest himself, and would do anything for him. To them, he seemed to be the perfect person,
most had come from a life of hard work, this being the first time they had been
in the company of such a revered person.
Finished with his lesson on the goddess Isis, he dismissed the
class. Standing quietly they bowed
deeply to him and left the ornate hall where they were studying. After the last red and black clothed figure
had gone, he slipped out a side exit to go see Anck-su-namun, though their love was forbidden he couldn't
stand being away from her for so long.
Sadly it would be his last time seeing her.
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Directly after the Med-Jai stop Imhotep from
resurrecting Anck-su-namun
Quickly
the Med-Jai dragged Imhotep and his golden priests to the pharaohs throne room,
Imhotep desperately attempting to break away from the stone-faced Med-Jai the
whole way. He knew he shouldn't have
killed the pharaoh, he was like a cousin to him, but what choice had he
had? It was him or Seti, Imhoteps love
for Anck-su-namun was to great for them to be broken up by some foolish
pharaoh. Though now he was definitely
doubting his chances of ever seeing her again, alive or dead. As the doors to
the throne room opened any shred of hope left him as he saw who now sat at the
throne.
Entering the throne
room, Imhotep was throne down hard on the polished stone floor before
Nefertiri, the temporary pharaoh, because of her father's murder at the hands
of the man kneeling in front of her.
From the looks of her she was about ready to tear the next person she
saw apart, or fall asleep in her chair.
The past day's events had apparently taken their toll on her.
Nefertiri tried her hardest to keep her
emotions in check, but it wasn't working.
She wanted nothing but the worst punishment for this "high priest". She
knew what had been going on between him and Anck-su-namun, but every time she
attempted to tell her father he just told her she was upset over having a new
mother. Which she of course was, she
couldn't understand how anyone liked Anck-su-namun, especially for a
stepmother, but that hadn't been the reason for her warning her father. In a way she now felt responsible for not
forcing her father to see what was going on, this feeling only infuriated her
more.
Finally she thought of
a punishment that she felt suited Imhotep's crimes the best, she had remembered it from a story a Med-Jai
had told her when she was younger. The
story then had just been to frighten her so she would stop tormenting her guards,
but now it seemed the perfect solution.
"You ,Imhotep, are
condemned to the Hom-Dai, the rest of you" she said
indicating the golden painted priests "are to be mummified, alive."
Nefertiri stated in an eerily calm voice, a collective gasp going around the
room, "for acts of treason, and murder of the pharaoh" she finished,
glaring unmercifully at Imhotep.
"NOOOO! You cannot do that!"
Someone yelled out, a collection of similar cries followed the first as
Imhotep's students ran in from the outer chamber hearing of his
punishment. They were quickly batted
back by the Med-Jai away from Nefertiri.
The students stared on in shock and anger; they could not comprehend
what was going on. To them Imhotep was
one of the most revered people, next to the pharaoh, he didn't deserve that
kind of punishment.
Glaring across the
room at the arrogant students Nefertiri was about ready to condemn them to the
same fate as Imhotep's priests, but she could see most were only around 17
summers old. Though they were
considered adults, she still saw them as too young to be put through that. It still infuriated her though that they
would attempt to save such a vile man.
"Med-Jai take them
away! You are all hereby exiled to the
sands, never return here, or I will see to it myself that you are fed to the
scarabs!" She ordered, glaring at the mob as the Med-Jai
moved them back out the huge doors.
Nefertiri watched as
the Med-Jai quickly herded the group out the door, they tried to fight back as
best they could, but it was to no avail.
Finally the last one was taken out, yelling that they would all pay for
what they were doing and that Imhotep would be avenged. Sighing as the angry mob was finally gone
she turned her attention to Imhotep who was silently praying.
/ Probably to Anubis /
she thought angrily.
"Take him away for his
punishment" She ordered and watched as Imhotep was
practically carried out of the great hall to his fate. She felt only a small amount of pity for
him.
/ He's getting what he
deserves / She thought as she stood.
Staring at the throne for a moment, tears began forming in her
eyes. Quickly she left the throne room
to her chambers. There the past days
events finally took their toll and she silently cried herself into a troubled
sleep.
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"We
WILL be back, have no doubt of that!" Yelled Kah- Loc at the retreating
backs of the Med-Jai who had driven them out into the middle of nowhere. All around them sand rose up in wind-swept
dunes, a small cliff jutted up behind
them providing little protection from the blazing sun and sandy wind.
Moving towards a large
outcropping in the cliff the group took one last glance at what had once been
their home and home to those who had betrayed them. Gathering in the outcropping they huddled together unsure of what
to do next, all felt hurt, angry, and uncertain, and if they didn't figure out
what to do soon they wouldn't be feeling anything at all.
Kah-Loc was the first
to speak "Listen, we're going to be fine, we know how to survive out here,
and we will have our vengeance!" he said loudly enough for all to hear
him. Looking around he saw some had
renewed confidence in their eyes, but most still looked like the frightened
children they really were. "Come on
we'll stay here tonight, and in the morning we'll figure out exactly what were
going to do."
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Over the next few months the group slowly got their lives
put back together, they were able to set up a temporary 'village' in an alcove
created by to large rock formations.
All the while they were haunted by what had happened months ago. No one felt satisfied to be just alive and
well they wanted revenge, and they planned on getting it one way or another.
TBC…
