Apep and the Sacred Scrolls of Duat

Chapter 13: The Sea Peoples

King Taresh was a tall, imposing man with a grey beard, neatly plaited and with gold beads woven into it. Atop his head was a golden headdress fitted with colourful feathers and his black hair, greying slightly at the temples, fell neatly onto his shoulders. He had piercing green eyes, well muscled, tanned skin and he wore an elaborately decorated tunic. He wore gold bands around his arms and he had a sword hanging from a leather belt at his waist.

He stood with his people at his back, men and women dressed quite differently to the Egyptians around them. They stood just as tall and proud, completely undaunted by the golden splendour of Egypt all around them.

"The Lord of the Two Lands, High Priest of the Temples, He who is Most Beloved of Amun, the Morning and the Evening Star, the mighty Pharaoh Atemu bids you welcome, King Taresh, lord and commander of the Sea People," Shimon declared with a bow.

The pharaoh himself sat silently on his throne, his arms crossed over his chest holding the crook and flail as his royal vizier listed his titles grandiosely and continued.

"We are relieved beyond all measure that you and your entourage have arrived in safety," Shimon said.

"We have arrived, that much is true," declared a spokesperson for King Taresh. "But the magicians of my King's Court are weary and in need of rest. We were attacked by the foul serpents which threaten us all when we attempted to set foot on land. It was most fortunate that our sorcerers are of such skill that we were able to survive."

"Of course, we are all thankful of that. Those who are in need of rest must have it," Shimon turned to the Pharaoh who nodded once. "By the grace of the Pharaoh, your people may rest easy in the safety of the palace. High Priest Seto, sacred guardian of the royal court will escort them personally," he said.

Seto stepped forward and gave an elegant bow, holding the Millennium Rod to his chest. "I am honoured to serve our guests," he declared respectfully, though anyone who knew him, knew what an utter lie that would have been.

"Is it just me…or does it seem more…stuffy in here than usual?" Joey asked quietly.

"Oh yeah." Mana snorted. "When we have guests it gets way worse than normal. More gold, more ceremony, more, more, more. That's the Court for you. No one ever says what they think or what they want and it's all just...stupid," she whispered.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Solomon retorted, beaming with happiness. "This is amazing. Seeing the inner working of the Egyptian Royal Court with a foreign visitor…albeit, a visitor who could start a war."

"It is rather like a dream come true," the professor agreed quietly.

"Trust me, this Court stuff…it gets old real fast," Mana told them.

"No kidding," Rebecca grumbled.

"At least people aren't staring at us this time though," Yugi said, looking up at the Pharaoh on his throne.

It seemed to Yugi that sitting up on the throne was a rather lonely place in the large, imposing room. Those few steps up to the golden throne made quite a difference in separating the king from the rest of the room. It was still quite a shock for them to actually see their friend, covered in gold sitting on his throne as a king.

"Good point," his girlfriend replied.

"We have travelled far and through many dangers," the spokesman for King Taresh declared. "So we will gladly accept the hospitality of our honoured allies," he said, loftily.

"It would appear that we are not the first peoples to accept this offer," King Taresh himself spoke in a deep voice. "On our journey through the streets we saw a great many peoples gathered here."

"Indeed," Shimon said. "We have seen many refugees fleeing from many lands and all are welcome here. This evil threatens us all and we must unite in order to survive," he said.

"Masterful words to be sure," king Taresh said, his deep, confident voice filling the room "However, one cannot help but wonder…just why…when our own cities are overrun with serpents, here…there are none, and even the countless refugees are safe," he said, boldly.

A murmur of discontent echoed through the chamber then and everyone's eyes were on the foreign king.

"We have worked tirelessly against this enemy and we are by no means completely safe. The city is under siege constantly," Shimon said, calmly.

"As were we," king Taresh replied.

"Then you will understand our fears and why we need to join forces," the old vizier countered.

"Indeed," the king said. "I meant no accusation," he added, smoothly even though it was clear that he had indeed meant to accuse.

"None was taken, I assure you," Shimon assured him, calmly. "If our nations stand together, we shall certainly be victorious over our ruthless enemy," he added.

"And is this the opinion of a united Egypt?" King Taresh asked and another quiet murmur quickly escalated through the court.

It stopped abruptly when the pharaoh held his hand up slightly. He didn't have to even speak to silence the entire room.

"This nation stands united, both in its desire to defeat the enemy and to honour our treaties," he declared. "You see before you, an ally and friend. As it has been since our treaties were signed; I've no quarrel with you or your people. You entered my lands on peaceful terms and you stand here as a friend to this country. Do you not?" Atemu said, staring right at King Taresh.

"Of course," the king said. "I would have it no other way. And as such, my people and I present to you, a show of our friendship," he added. He then turned to a young woman who had been standing quietly at his side.

She had long black hair, elaborately woven with gold beads and she was dressed just as elaborately as the king himself. She had striking green eyes and had the lithe body of a warrior. She too had a sword, like her father.

"The princess Ayten, first born daughter of King Taresh," the spokesperson announced.

The princess gave a slight bow and from one of her people, she took a small ivory carved box. Then she moved slowly, yet confidently towards the Pharaoh and stopped at the foot of the steps leading up to the throne. She knelt and held up the box.

"A gift for the Pharaoh from my people and my family," she declared.

Seto walked towards her, picked up the box from her tanned, jewelled hands and then gave it to the Pharaoh.

He lifted the lid on the box and held up a jewel encrusted, golden ring of exquisite beauty. He examined it carefully for a moment before he looked back at the princess who still knelt on the floor.

"It was made by our most skilled craftsmen," she explained. "And we present it to you, Pharaoh, in honour of our alliance," she said.

"A most thoughtful gift. Of course I accept it and I thank you," he said. Then he placed the ring on his finger and she stood slowly. "We shall declare three days of festivities to celebrate your safe arrival…the situation permitting, naturally. A chance at celebration may give both of our nations some joy," he added.

The princess bowed and rejoined her father who nodded at the Pharaoh. "I will speak with you again, King Taresh when you and your people are settled," the pharaoh said and stood up himself.

Then without another word, he left. The gong at the far end of the room sounded and everyone else dispersed. Seto led the Sea People out of the room and the Egyptians began to talk among themselves as they left the room.

In his chambers once more, surrounded by his friends both old and new, Atemu pursed his lip and he sat at his desk, setting aside the crook and flail.

"This will not end well," he muttered.

"Indeed. It does not take Isis' abilities to foresee that," Seto remarked.

"That man personally slaughtered thousands of Egyptians," Atemu said.

"I am aware. I was there," Seto said, calmly.

"As were we all," Mahad said. "But we have little choice than to welcome him into the city despite our unfortunate history," he added.

"We may be able to keep ourself in check but what about outside the palace walls? People who fought against the very nation that I am now forced to welcome?" Atemu asked. "What am I supposed to do when people begin to riot?"

"What you have always done; keep the peace by upholding justice," Seto said quickly.

"You can't mean that I dole out punishment? I cannot imprison people for being discontent or afraid," he said, sounding appalled.

"If they break the law and violate our treaties with other nations, yes, you can. You are the king," Seto replied.

"I am as discontent and afraid as everyone else; should I therefore imprison myself as well?"

"That would be neither productive nor advisable," Shimon drawled.

"Neither is imprisoning the people. I will not rule by fear," Atemu said.

"I do not believe that I suggested such a thing. I simply meant, that perhaps an example should be made if such an unfortunate occurrence were to happen…" Seto said.

"No," Atemu repeated. He stood quickly and stormed over to the balcony overlooking the city.

"We share your concerns, Pharaoh, but I fear that Seto makes a valid point. You would be left with little recourse if fights broke out in the city between our two nations," Shimon said as calmly as ever. "Better to imprison a few than to loose more in another pointless war."

The Pharaoh let out and exasperated sigh and rested his hand on the balcony, leaning heavily on it.

Before he could speak, there was a knock at the main door and two place guards entered.

The pharaoh turned to face them and they bowed.

"Pharaoh, the Princess Ayten has requested an audience," one of the guards said, his head bowed low as he knelt.

"Very well, show her in," he replied and they left. "This discussion is far from over," he said to his advisors and they nodded.

A second later, the young princess strode confidently into the room and bowed low in front of Atemu.

"Princess," he said and she stood.

She looked around at the others and then back to him.

"My request was to speak with you, alone," she said.

"They are my family," he said, "Whatever it is you wish to tell me may be said before them in confidence."

"As you say," she nodded. "Then I will speak frankly. I came to ask for your understanding," she said.

"My understanding," the Pharaoh repeated stoically. "Of what exactly?" he asked.

"My family is a proud one. We are descended from a line of conquerors and it is not easy for men such as father to look for allies rather than enemies. I do not seek to make excuses, I merely explain. We are here because we have no choice; I am sure that must be obvious to you and your court. It is not in our interest to seek out a war but there will always be tension between our two nations. I will do all in my power to prove, both your people and to mine, that our nations can co-exist," she said.

"As I made plain to your father the King, I do not wish for war," he said, cautiously.

"My honoured father is the one who bid me to speak to you," she said with a smile. "I have acted as his diplomat and emissary for many years and I am here as a friend. I am here to offer my help and my support as well as his."

"Is it customary to offer friendship and aid in secret in your court, princess?" Atemu asked.

"Not all of my people wish for a peaceful alliance. Surely some of yours have the same reservations," Ayten said. "I will work to disprove them, at my father's behest, but I shall need your assistance."

"All I have ever done is advocate for peace. What more would you have me do?"

"You are a keen horseman, I am told, is this so?"

"It is," he said, raising a curious eyebrow at the suddenly change in topic.

"Good. I would suggest that my brother the crown prince and my younger sisters accompany you and your trusted family in a ride through the city," she said. "If this is agreeable to your majesty," she added with a beautiful smile. "Such a public display would be beneficial to both our people."

"I cannot disagree with you," Atemu remarked after a moment. "Perhaps it would. However, I have much to attend to at present and I believe that your family would find a short rest to be of more immediate benefit. I would suggest that I send for you when I am free of my obligations later this day and when your family have fully recovered from their arduous journey."

"Of course," she inclined her head. "That is most thoughtful of you."

"I thank you for your kind offer of friendship and for your support," he said and she bowed.

"Good day, Pharaoh," the princess replied, sending her dismissal. She bowed low once more and then she left.

When she was gone. Atemu turned to Shimon after he hummed aloud.

"You are thinking much too loudly," the king said to him.

"Indeed?" the old man smirked. "She did not waste much time, did she? I was thinking only that she is quite a formidable young woman. You did rather well to maintain the upper hand."

"And?" Atemu prompted.

"Clearly I do not need to spell it out that she is after far more than a mere political alliance," Shimon remarked.

"Yes, I think she made it rather obvious. A remarkable feat considering she did not say the words," Karim added.

"I was aware of her implication," the king rolled his eyes. "You'll also notice, that I dismissed her. I will not be manipulated…by anyone…into forming an alliance based on a marriage," Atemu said, confidently.

"Marriage?!" Teà exclaimed and then covered a hand over her mouth in embarrassment.

"Wasn't it obvious? The princess, and indeed her father with their little stunt on the throne room, have submitted her as a candidate for marriage. A marriage between herself and the Pharaoh would be a traditional way of keeping the peace," Mahad explained.

"She has a good claim to do so," Shimon said. "She is the first born of a king. She is, from what I have heard, a fearsome warrior, a great intellect, speaks several languages, and she has been raised in a court. She knows court politics and she is certainly confident enough to approach a king for her own ends."

"That's as may be," Atemu sighed. "But I will not marry for convenience," he reiterated.

"She's rather beautiful too," Shimon added.

The pharaoh sighed and stared at him, unimpressed. "A mere observation," the old vizier shrugged.

"Then, as you find her so agreeable, you are more than welcome to marry her as I have no wish to do so," Atemu remarked.

"Pharaoh…"

"Shimon, I quite literally gave my life for my duty. Is it too much to ask that my afterlife not be dictated by it, at least in this one aspect, if nothing else," he interrupted the old vizier, with an exasperated, almost desperate tone.

"Perhaps not," Shimon sighed, deeply. "However, to refuse her offer would pose a risk to the treaties between our two nations," he added.

"Only if I acknowledge the merest possibility of such a union," he said. "She cannot openly declare her desire for marriage so, for the present, this will remain between us."

"That is true," the old man nodded.

"If needs must, she could always marry you, Seto," Atemu remarked after a moment. "You are a member of the royal family," he added with an amused glance at his cousin.

"I doubt that such a calculating woman would be satisfied with a mere prince when she has a king in her sights," Seto replied just as sarcastically.

"Well, either way, I would advise you be on your guard, both of you. A woman can be infinitely more deadly than any supernatural force…to a king or a prince," Shimon said, knowingly.

"Come on," Mana said, urging them through the palace with a grin. Behind her, was Teà, Serenity, Mai and Rebecca.

"Why are we doing this again?" Teà sighed.

"Well, if the Pharaoh is gonna go riding through the city with Princess what's-her-name, then you're gonna have to go too otherwise she's gonna propose right in the middle of town and the Pharaoh won't be able to say no!"

"I doubt that," she grumbled.

"I don't," Mana said quickly. "And if she does, he won't be able to say no without insulting her people and starting a war."

"Seems a bit dramatic," Serenity remarked.

"Well, that's royalty for you," the young magician in training shrugged. "But you're gonna have to fight back unless you wanna loose to princess pouty," she added.

"Err…pouty?" Teà blushed.

"Yeah, she did this weird kinda pout when the pharaoh said he'd send for her when he was free, didn't you see it?"

"Err…no…"

"I did," Mai said.

"Hah!" Mana grinned happily. "Anyway, you don't have long to learn how to ride a horse properly 'cause I know he's not gonna rush to take her up on her offer but he can't really wait all day either. You should've seen the last girl who wanted to marry him. Wouldn't take no for an answer. She was a Egyptian noblewoman so at least he could turn her down without starting a war."

"It's err..happened before then?" Serenity asked, glancing at Teà.

"Of course. He's the Pharaoh! Every woman wants to marry him and be queen! And even if he got married it's not like he can only have one wife. He's the king! He could have a hundred wives if he wanted! So it's not gonna stop even when he does marry someone."

"Erm…" Serenity blinked.

"And it's not like he's ugly or anything," Mana added with a shrug.

"Mana!" Teà exclaimed.

"What?! He's my best friend! If he was ugly I'd be the first one to tell him," she said and Mai chuckled. "And he better not marry that pouty princess. 'Cause then I'd have to call her 'my queen' and I don't really wanna do that," she shuddered. "And anyway, you're waaaaay nicer than she is," she said to Teà.

"Erm…what?" Teà blinked.

"I think she wants you to be queen…" Serenity said to her.

"Say what?!"

"Oh come on, you'd be great at it," Mana said.

"I'm not even…but I'm not…I don't know anything about…we can't even stay here…y'know there the whole…land of the dead thing…" Teà stammered.

"Dead shmed," she said dismissively. "Who cares?"

Not sure exactly what to say to that, Teà, Serenity, Mai and Rebecca stared at her in silence.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Mana asked, slowly noticing. "Do I have something on my face or something?"

"Err…no," Serenity answered.

"Oh, good," the young magician smiled happily. "And look, we're here!" she said sweeping an arm over at the royal stables that they were not standing in front of.

"Well, I already know how to ride a horse," Rebecca said smugly.

"Great," Mana said, "You can help me teach the others."

"I'll probably be fine," Mai shrugged, dismissively. "I haven't been riding for years but my family used to keep horses when I was little."

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Serenity asked, warily.

"Sure it is," she replied. "And there's only the best horses here, you'll be fine, really."

"And you better learn quick," Mai whispered to Teà. "Unless you want to loose to princes pouty," she added with a grin.

Teà glared at her but she only laughed at her indignant expression.

"There they are!" Yugi exclaimed some time later. He and the others had been looking all over the palace and now that Yugi had spotted them, he pointed over at the girls.

"They're…riding horses…" Tristan remarked.

"Errr…where's the camels? Shouldn't they be riding camels? It's Egypt!" Joey exclaimed.

"Ancient Egypt didn't actually have camels," Yugi's grandfather told him.

"Says who?" Joey crossed his arms.

"Says me, that's who," Solomon replied, haughtily.

"But there's always camels in the movies!"

"They weren't used as a common method of transport until around 500 BC, several thousand years away. And considering that I have spent my life studying ancient cultures, particularly this one, I think I'm a little more reliable than Hollywood."

"Good point," Joey sighed, sheepishly.

"So, what else did the movies get wrong?" Duke asked.

"Quite a lot, now that you mention it," Solomon said and Professor Hawkins nodded.

"Particularly the belief that the pyramids were built by slaves," the professor remarked.

"They weren't?" Joey asked.

"No," Solomon answered.

"Huh," Joey and the others hummed in surprise. "So…they weren't built by aliens either…right?"

"No," Solomon rolled his eyes.

"Hey!" Mana called over to them. "Did you guys wanna try too?" she urged her horse to run across to them and stopped skilfully.

"Why?" Yugi asked.

"So we can go with the pharaoh when he has to ride out in the city with…" she began to exclaim but stopped when she saw the pharaoh walking not far from them with his guardian priests around him. "Ah…maybe he heard me…" she muttered. "Hey, Pharoah! Over here!" she called out, waving.

When he saw them he and the others walked across and stood beside Yugi.

"Riding lessons?" Atemu raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, well, I figured Teà and Serenity should learn since they're here," Mana shrugged. "Turns out Mai's really good," she added. "I think she'd even manage to keep up with you in race," she said.

Mai was still riding quickly around the enclosure, her horse leaping over the obstacles easily.

"Hey, Mai!" Mana yelled to her. "You gotta race the pharaoh before you guys leave, okay?!"

"Ah yeah, now we're talkin'," Joey said, excited.

Mai rode over to them, her long blonde hair was windswept and she smiled at the pharaoh smugly. "I'll do it if you will," she said.

"I'd be delighted," he smiled back.

"Anyway, they're pretty good, too," Mana said glancing at Teà and Serenity. "So, we can all go with you," she declared.

"Where?" he asked.

"With princess pouty, of course," she replied.

He raised an eyebrow at her unsavoury nickname for the foreign princess.

"Shall I assume that you mean the princess Ayten?"

"Yup," he nodded. "Wait…you saw it too right? Her stupid little pout when you said…"

"Please show some respect, Mana. She is a princess, and if anyone were to hear you…"

"But you saw it?" Mana pressed.

Atemu said nothing, but the slightest twitch of his lip told his oldest friend all she needed to know.

"Hah! You did! You totally saw! I knew it!" she exclaimed victoriously.

"Mana," he sighed.

"What?" she asked, innocently. "Oh, live a little…well, you know what I mean. You used to know what 'fun' meant and then you got all serious," she waved her magical staff dismissively at him.

"You mean when I became king?"

"Nope. Before that."

"When father…became ill," he muttered.

"Yep," she nodded and then panicked. "Whaaa…oh my gods, I'm sorry, I didn't mean…"

"I know," he said, giving her a sad smile.

The truth was, that he had been a king in all but name for years even before his father had died. King Aknankanan's health had declined after so many years of war and the truth of how the Millennium items had been created had hit him hard. His young son had been left to rule with his mother and his court to aid him it had been then that Atemu's life had changed forever. He had been forced to take life much more seriously and so his 'escapes' from the palace had stopped and gradually, he smiled less frequently and 'fun' became a luxury.

But even the healers had throught that Aknankanan had been recovering and that the young princes' burden would be eased once his father could resume his duties. And then, one day out of the blue, the king had taken a sudden turn for the worse and had died, leaving the nation, and his family in mourning and leaving his young son as pharaoh.

"I'm sorry," Mana said again, genuinely. She jumped down off her horse and stood beside the king. "You know most of the time I talk without thinking and…"

"…Well, maybe so…but you were right," he said quietly.

"I was?" she blinked, confused.

"Yes. She did pout," he whispered to her and Mana clamped her hand over her mouth to try and contain her sudden laughter.

"Err…is she okay?" Yugi asked, looking at the comical expression on Mana's face and the loud chortling she was letting out.

"Perfectly," Atemu said, dryly.

"Hahahahahahhahahah!" Mana laughed and waved her staff around in the air. "…Pouty! He admitted it!" she exclaimed.

"Err…okaaaaay…" Yugi furrowed his brow.

"Don't ask," Rebecca rolled her eyes from atop her grey horse.

After a moment, Mana's laughter quietened and she wiped a tear from her eye. "Now there's the prince I remember," she said a moment after and playfully patted his shoulder. "How about we switch the heads on the temple statues again just to see the look on Shimon's face," she suggested.

"Unfortunately, I think that would be in very poor taste considering that I am supposed to be the lord and protector of those temples," he replied, dryly.

"Aaaand there's the serious pharaoh again," she sighed, dramatically.

"Wait…you switched the heads on some statues?" Yugi turned to him.

"We switched about twenty or so before we got caught. With magic," Mana replied and proudly waved her staff.

"And we were then unable to switch them back again," Atemu said.

"Yeaaaah…and we kinda got into a lot of trouble," Mana added. "And Master Mahad had to fix them and he gave us a loooooong lecture on why messing with magic in the temples is a bad idea. It won't like I was trying to cause trouble. I only did it to cheer you up!" she said to Atemu.

"So it was my fault?"

"Exactly!"

"I think we must be remembering it rather differently. It was your idea after all," he said, crossing his arms.

"Because you were so moody that day!"

"Moody?" he scoffed.

"Moody," she nodded and the others were laughing.

"I don't recall any such thing. I suppose we'll simply have to agree to disagree," Atemu said.

"Fine," she shrugged. "But it was still your fault," she grumbled.

"I heard that."

"Heard what?" she said, innocently and he rolled his eyes.

"So…race?" Mai asked Atemu. "I might as well have some fun while we're stuck here," she said.

"I'll get your horse!" Mana declared and ran off towards the stables.