Lilith opened her eyes. The flute player was now beside her. She glanced over and gasped. It was the handsome young man who had greeted her at the door of the Temple Beautiful. A green sheath with flecks of gold covered his muscular body, and she noticed he was absent of his headband but wore a life seal around his neck like Tau. Sweat trickled down his lean arms while he continued to play. His blond hair was neatly pulled back and held in place with a purple crystal. She reached up to touch her purple crystal hairpin, which neatly bound her hair in one place. She caught a whiff of sandalwood oil—her new best friend now that it tamed her hair in this arid climate.
“Don’t move, Lilith,” Tau whispered from behind her.
“What’s he doing?” Lilith asked quietly, using her chin as a guide.
“He’s bewitching the cobra. Mica is what is called a snake charmer,” Tau murmured.
Lilith’s eyes widened. “You know him!”
The snake hissed, and its hood flared.
The snake charmer named Mica stopped playing and glared at Lilith. Even while he showed displeasure, she found no flaws in his beautiful face. She grinned sheepishly at him.
He rolled his eyes, tossed his flute to Tau, and pushed Lilith out of the way in time before the snake lashed out at her. Then Mica jumped to the reptile’s side, moving his hands rapidly around the snake, not giving him anything to aim at. He darted around the snake, going in circles, following the sun’s patterns, bobbing his body up and down, side to side, always moving his hands in front of the snake’s hissing face. Lilith heard the flute trill and squeak as Tau blew on it. She winced as Mica swiftly grasped the snake’s head, its tail wreathing and wrapping around one of his legs. He reached for the open basket on the ground, sat it upright, untwined the snake’s tail from his leg, and eased the snake back into the basket, all the while making clicking sounds with his tongue.
“In you go, Kheti.” He gently patted the lid of the basket. “You’ll get your supper of mice later.”
Lilith heard the snake hiss one last time before the crowd broke out in cheers. A few merchants bowed before Mica and offered him pomegranates, grapes, melons, fish, swathes of fabric, and finely-crafted baskets. Most gave Lilith a stare that would have destroyed Atlantis all over again. She averted her eyes, but it didn’t help. Everyone seemed to be blaming her for what could have resulted in someone getting hurt or killed.
“Why don’t you ever listen?” Tau wagged the flute at her. “I told you to wait. You didn’t. I told you to stop. You didn’t. Do you have a death wish?”
Lilith could feel her eyes well up. She shook her head. “I…I don’t know. I just want to go home.”
Tau sighed loud enough for Lilith to hear. “I will take you home. You live by the Temple of Sacrifice, next to the houses of the temple staff, right?”
Her shoulders sagged. “No. Home to Atlantis.”
Then, Tau started playing the flute. It was worse than Istulo’s chanting. He couldn’t hold a tune if his life depended on it. Lilith covered her ears and glared at Tau. He stopped playing. “You seemed so sad. I thought I’d try to cheer you up.”
Tau sounded so serious, she couldn’t help but giggle. “Cheer me up, or strike me down?”
“That noise would kill my cobra,” a young man said behind Lilith.
Lilith glanced over her shoulder. It was Mica. His tanned arms were full of the gifts he’d received from the grateful merchants. He passed a pomegranate to her and a melon to Tau. “Trade you, Tau.”
Tau handed Mica his flute for the melon. He thumped the round fruit to check for freshness.
“How come you didn’t mention that you knew Tau the day we met at the Temple Beautiful?” Lilith asked, juggling the pomegranate between her hands.
Mica raised a fair brow. “We’ve met?”
Lilith felt her cheeks heat up. She dropped the fruit. Mica caught it before it hit the ground. “You’re right, Tau, this one is clumsy.”
Tau had already started digging into the melon. “Mmm? Oh yes, and she pronounces our language as if she has a handful of live clams in her mouth.”
“I’m with her on that matter,” Mica said, grinning. “Some of your words leave my tongue tied.”
“Exactly,” Lilith blurted. “That white crawler with the stinger tail, um a ser—”
“Serqet,” Mica finished for her. “Yes, I know what you mean. It’s a totally different dialect.”
Lilith pointed at Mica. “Precisely!”
“Are you two finished making fun of my people?” Tau asked with a mouthful of melon.
“No,” Mica replied. “What about you, Lilith?”
“Nope,” Lilith answered. Then her eyes widened. “Hey, you do know me.”
Mica shrugged. “How could I not. You’re the talk of the Temple Beautiful.”
Lilith balked. “I…I am?”
“That’s what I’ve heard through some of the students. And Istulo seems to like you too.”
“S-She…she does?”
“I think Lilith’s also developed a stutter. Now she’ll never say our words properly,” Tau said.
Lilith reached over and shoved a chunk of melon in Tau’s mouth. Mica laughed, then handed Lilith back her pomegranate and winked at her. Startled, and not knowing how to react, her heart flipped-flopped as she said, “Um, that was amazing, what you did with the snake.”
“Thank you. I earn my supper here at the market with my cobra Kheti and learn all I can at the Temple Beautiful. I was recently accepted as a novice to study to be a healer. I know I have many years of training ahead of me, but it will be well worth it.”
“How long have you lived in the Black Land?” Lilith asked, juggling the piece of fruit again.
“Long enough to learn how to pronounce serqet,” he replied, grinning. “But to answer your question, I was about eight when I arrived.”
Lilith nodded, trying to figure out his age in her head. Close to Tau, maybe a year older, she guessed. Lilith decided to fish more. “Do you live with your parents still?”
Mica’s clean-shaven face lost all expression. “My family is gone. All assassinated by the followers of the Sons of Belial. There was nothing left for me in Atlantis, so I left on a trader’s ship. The Black Land was his final stop so I made it my home. It was Istulo who gave me shelter, allowed me into the Temple Beautiful, and finally asked one of the priests to accept me as a student of the healing arts.”
Lilith squeezed the pomegranate so hard it burst all over her white sheath. She heard Tau gasp and mutter something about being clumsy. Red dots splattered all over her as if she’d been attacked by an army of white crawlers. She sighed, dropping the fruit. It hadn’t had a chance to hit the ground when a bird swooped down and claimed it. Lilith jumped out of the way and into Mica’s already full arms.
Mica fell backwards and landed about an arm’s length away from his snake’s basket. Lilith, knowing her face now matched the color of She-Aba’s hair, tried to push herself off of Mica before Tau opened his mouth to say something about her awkwardness. Then she spied it. Her life seal was a finger’s length away from Mica’s ear. She smiled. She needed a good distraction. Reaching over, Lilith scooped up the small ceramic disk.
Her hand was engulfed in mid-air by Mica. “What’s this?”
“Um, my life seal,” she replied, curling her toes. “I…I threw it at Tau in a fit of anger but missed him, and it rolled over here.”
Mica stared at her life seal for a moment, as if mesmerized by it, entranced. Lilith thought that odd—the snake charmer was being charmed. She peeked at his life seal lying on his glistening chest, and her eyes widened. He has spirals on his life seal too! Then, she spotted the coiled serpents also etched upon it, and frowned.
“There are spirals on your life seal.” Mica broke his silence and loosened
the grip he had upon her hand. “Is your father the Keeper of the seventh Arch of Atlantis by chance?”
Lilith rolled off of Mica, managing to keep her distance from the basket. She stood up, looked down at him and nodded. “Yes. Why?”
His face had changed again. It appeared darker, akin to the moon losing its glow. “Because, according to my life seal, it seems—” he started to say as he stood up. Mica brushed himself off before continuing, “—that we are to be mortal enemies.”
4
The Seventh Arch of Atlantis
“It could be worse,” She-Aba said in a consoling tone.
“Worse than mortal enemies?” Lilith sighed. “I don’t see how.”
“Sure. He could have been a redhead.” She-Aba grinned.
Lilith opened her mouth, then burst out laughing.
“Lilith,” Segund said, entering her bed chambers.
Lilith stopped laughing enough to wipe her mouth. “Yes, Father?”
“I’m going to enter the seventh Arch of Atlantis to receive insight from the Children of the Law of One. I must finish documenting Atlantis’s history to store inside the Guardian of the Sands before it is unveiled in seven days time.” He smiled, creating lines of happiness around his eyes. “It’s nice to hear you laugh again.”
Lilith rolled off her bed, the silkiness of her purple sheets making the task easier. She walked over to him, adjusted his linen shirt, and tugged on his full, gold-hued beard. “You look tired, Father. Your hair is a mess, and your beard is scraggly. Maybe you should rest. ”
She-Aba jumped off the other side of Lilith’s bed. “Ohhh, let me do your hair, Segund! I know the perfect blend of oils to use. And while we’re at it, I’ll braid your beard for you, too!”
Segund’s nostrils flared. “Perhaps another day, She-Aba, when time permits.”
“You should listen to She-Aba, Father. After all, it only took her a short time to do this for me,” Lilith said as she opened her arms wide and spun around.
A breeze coming from the open porch made the blue gown she wore billow and flutter. A white seashell belt hugged her waist, and a pair of palm-woven sandals accented with pearls and colored crystals covered her feet. She-Aba had managed to tame her hair with lavender oil and an assortment of clear crystal pins. Her orichalcum snake bracelet crept down her forearm to imprison her slim wrist. Lilith stopped spinning, pushed up her bracelet, placed her palms together, and bowed to her father.
Segund clapped. “Very nice, She-Aba. I may take you up on your offer, yet.”
She-Aba snatched a thick leather belt with stitched on spiked-metal disks from a pile of clothing on the floor, next to her overnight satchel. “At least make yourself presentable for the Children of the Law of One, Segund.” She padded over on bare feet and fastened the belt around his waist.
Segund rolled his eyes. “Fine, She-Aba, but make it quick.”
She-Aba pulled at his shirt and a small, tan book fell out of the waistband of his deep blue pants. She dove to retrieve it. “What’s this?”
“That is my record keeper. It is what I use to scribe the messages I receive from the Law of One.”
“It’s beautifully crafted,” She-Aba whispered, running her finger down the length of its black spine. “Why is there a gold Eye of Ra pressed onto the front cover? I didn’t think people from Atlantis worshipped our gods.”
“Actually, we call that the Eye of One,” Segund said, procuring the book from her. “And, trust me when I tell you, our beliefs don’t stray far from your beliefs.”
“How far have you gotten in documenting our history, Father?”
She-Aba resumed her primping, tugging hard on the belt. Segund flinched. “Only the last one hundred years, before the first major earthquake took a great deal of our land.” Then he frowned. “During the time of Belial’s reign.”
“Will you be late to bed?” Lilith watched She-Aba adjust some of the metal disks.
“Most likely, Lilith,” he replied, pulling at his shirt. “Do not wait up for me.”
She-Abe slapped his hand. “No, Segund, you’ll ruin the look.”
Lilith giggled. “Father’s not going away in body, only in mind.”
“A well-dressed body accentuates a well-trained mind.” She-Aba snapped her fingers. “It’s all about presentation.”
“No, She-Aba, it’s all about preservation.” Segund tweaked her nose. “And that is precisely what I’m going to do—preserve Atlantis’s memories. Good night, girls, and do not stay up too late.”
Segund winked at Lilith and She-Aba, then turned on his sandals and left the room.
“You really are good with making people look their best,” Lilith said, watching her father leave. “I still can’t believe your lifetime occupation has shifted. Has your life seal revealed anything to you?”
She-Aba sighed. “No. Not yet. But I’m determined to change it back. I can’t see myself doing anything else, so I will fake it until I make it so. What about yours?”
Lilith’s shoulders slumped. “Nothing since we talked last by the fountain. I’m still supposed to be a Timekeeper.”
“Atcha-girl!” a voice called from outside.
Lilith jumped.
She-Aba’s eyes widened. “Who’s that?”
There was only one person who called her by that name. Lilith twisted her lips as if she’d eaten something disgusting. “Tau.”
“The goat farmer’s son from the market? The boy who walks around like a rooster?”
“Is there any other?”
“Lilith?” Tau called again. “I know you’re in there. Your room is lit up with glowing crystals and I can smell incense burning.”
Lilith groaned. She padded over to the balcony and peered over. “What is it, bug-boy?”
She-Aba looked down too. She waved. “Hello, Tau.” Then she frowned. “Don’t you ever wear anything bright? Your schenti is so plain.”
Tau looked down at his attire. Lilith looked too. Usually Tau wore a loincloth, but tonight, he wore a pleated loin skirt that reached the top of his knees and was fastened in the front by a plain, thin belt. Hanging from his belt was a small, leather pouch. His life seal hung from his neck, in the middle of his chest, as if it was a cock’s red wattle for all to see.
Tau glared at She-Aba. “Plain suits me fine!”
“Tau, why are you here?” Lilith asked, cutting in.
He reached inside his pouch and produced a small, round disk attached to a thin leather thong. He dangled it. “I believe this belongs to you. I tied it to this leather strip so you wouldn’t lose it again.”
Lilith’s eyes grew big. My life seal! Her mind raced. Lilith knew she had it with her when she left the market after that fiasco with Mica. She mentally retraced her steps. No, not the oil vender, I still had it with me at the time. Her thoughts deepened. She-Aba had met her by the fountain, and she had her life seal then because she showed it to She-Aba in a crying fit, then placed it into her satchel. Giving up, Lilith shrugged.
“Where’d you find?”
Tau jerked. “Don’t you Atchas possess any manners? A thank you would be nice.”
Lilith sighed. “Thank you, Tau, for returning the bane of my existence to me.”
“Life seals are not to be taken lightly.” Tau wagged a finger. “A life seal is your pledge to Ra and should be taken seriously. You must understand this!”
“Yeah, well understand this, bug-boy!” Lilith hurled one of her sandals at him. She missed, as usual. That didn’t stop her. She took off her other sandal and raised it.
“Stop playing around and let me in. I need to get back to assist Mica at the Temple of Sacrifice.”
Lilith froze. Mica? Her heart raced. Tau was with Mica. She dropped her sandal. “Um, sure, come in, Tau, the front door is open.�
��
“What are you doing?” She-Aba asked.
“Showing Tau that I have manners.” Lilith rushed out of her room.
She-Aba clicked her tongue and shouted, “You say manners. I say manure.”
Ignoring She-Aba’s remark, Lilith raced down the stone-cut staircase. Her bare feet slid across the marble tiles. The air seemed heavier tonight, as if she had to cut a path through it. Reaching the door, Lilith wrenched it open, grabbed Tau by the arm, and pulled him in. He stumbled across a few tiles, then stopped and twirled around. His brown eyes were wide, his brow furrowed.
“Have you inhaled a bad batch of incense?” Tau asked.
“No. Why?”
“You’ve never been this eager to see me,” he replied, crossing his arms over his bare chest.
“Eager to see you, no,” She-Aba said, sashaying down the stairs. “But to hear what you have to say about a certain someone would be a definite yes.”
Lilith blinked. She-Aba had completely changed outfits in the time she’d run down the stairs to let Tau in. Instead of wearing the blue-green sheath she arrived in, She-Aba now wore a shorter yellow and white sheath with braided straps and a pearl-embellished belt. Gold bracelets dangled from both wrists, and a mix of coral and diamond rings were set on most of her fingers. A snake-skin satchel and matching open-toed shoes completed her new look.
“How… how did you change so fast?” Lilith gawked at her.
She-Aba grinned. “You have your skills, I have mine.”
“What certain someone?” Tau asked, standing in front of Lilith, his arms still crossed.
Legend of the Timekeepers Page 4
