by Max Overton
Ahead of them, hurrying along the road, was a rabble of men driving beasts before them and laden with spoils. When they saw the chariots behind them, they scattered, some keeping to the road but others cutting across the fields. Siptah hesitated only for a moment before signalling to his chariots to fan out while he continued on down the packed earth road. At once, the narrow wheels of the chariots to either side of him cut through the turf and sank into the soft soil beneath, slowing their progress and disrupting the charging line of chariots. The pace of the king's own chariot continued unabated and soon he was alone, racing up the road toward the fleeing enemy.
Ament and his men, at the rear of the squadron, swore loudly and whipped their horses into a gallop, jostling and cursing as they pursued the king in single file down the narrow road. Ahead, Ament could see the king's chariot run down the hindmost fleeing men, Siptah himself leaning out and loosing arrows as fast as he could draw his bow. The other running men suddenly became aware that only a single chariot faced them and turned with weapons in hand. Copper blades caught the sunlight as spears stabbed, and all of a sudden a horse was down and the charioteer was falling, bright blood staining his tunic.
Ament raised a hoarse cry of horror and urged his own chariot on; now close enough to attract the attention of the enemy warriors surrounding the king's chariot. Moments later he charged into them, crushing men beneath hooves and wheels, his own spear stabbing and thrusting. Men threw themselves aside, and then turned to run as the rest of Ament's chariots arrived and, a little behind them, the rest of the squadron. The enemy was cut down, and several chariots headed off to chase down the rest of the enemy that had fled earlier.
Siptah stood in the body of his chariot, holding on as the living horse bucked and shied away from its dead companion. A man ran to cut the dead horse away and the king grinned as Ament turned and drove back.
"You are unhurt, Son of Re?"
Siptah lifted a hand to the blue leather of his war crown and fingered the rough streak of unstained leather where a blade had ripped its way past him.
"Untouched, Ament. You saw? How I fought against great odds, slaying my enemy so they fell like wheat before the reaper? It was magnificent."
"Tell that to your dead charioteer."
Siptah's smile slipped, and he turned to look at the man crumpled on the road. His lip trembled. "Poor Apet." He shook his head and looked away. "How many enemy died? I killed most of them."
Ament looked around at a dozen corpses, a few more scattered over the fields. He stepped down from his chariot and squatted beside one of the bodies, that of a grey-bearded man with a bloody wound in his chest.
"There's something odd here," Ament said, pointing at an ornament around the man's neck. He pulled at it, snapping the cord and examined it. "It's an amulet--a scarab. What is a Ribu doing wearing a scarab? They don't believe in our gods."
"So he robbed it off a Kemetu," Siptah said. "Is that an arrow wound in his chest? Is it from one of mine?"
"I think it's from a spear, Son of Re." Ament walked over to other bodies and gave them a cursory examination, lifting a few tunics and moving aside a few arms. Then he walked back to where the king was standing, drinking from a flask of water handed him by one of Ament's men.
"These men are cut," Ament said. "Circumcised."
"So?"
"The Ribu don't do that."
Siptah shrugged. "They're hardly more than beasts. Who can say what they get up to in their own lands?"
Ament frowned and opened his mouth to say something more but then thought better of it. He had his men clear the corpses from the road and harvested the right hands of each of them. He was finishing up as the rest of the chariot squadron returned and the first Troop of the Ptah legion came into view. The king ordered camp to be set up, though it was scarcely past noon, and retired to his tent.
Ament sought out Besenmut and showed him the fired clay scarab he had taken off the dead man.
"They're circumcised too. I don't think they're Ribu."
Besenmut fingered the scarab and drank from a cup of wine before answering. "Who is to say they are not Ribu who have taken up Kemetu ways?"
"There is one other thing I have not mentioned," Ament continued. "Two of the men were branded under the left arm. They're criminals, not foreigners."
"Can't they be both?"
"Of course, but take into account how badly armed they are, the lack of purpose in their movements, the circumcisions, and now the branding. Are these really Ribu we're facing?"
Besenmut looked at Ament. "What else could they be? The reports that came in from the Governor at Perire were of a Ribu incursion. Why would he lie?"
Ament shook his head. "I don't know. I could be wrong, but I think it's suspicious."
"Implying what though? These are still men taking up arms against the king. Are you saying we should ignore it just because they're not who they're supposed to be?"
"Of course not." Ament glowered and paced in Besenmut's tent. "Oh, forget I said anything. It doesn't matter whether they're Ribu or not. They must still be eradicated."
"Have you said anything to the king about this?"
"I told him they were circumcised but he shrugged it off."
"Then don't say anything more," Besenmut said. "This is his big chance to prove he's a warrior king. Don't spoil it for him."
Ament stared at the legion commander. "You knew." When Besenmut remained silent, he went on. "Who are these men? Really?"
"Criminals, bandits, a few disaffected peasants. Possibly even a few real Ribu. They've been promised gold if they put up a good show."
"But why?"
"I told you--to make the king look like a real king. An enemy invades Ta Mehu, he leads a legion out and crushes the enemy. Can you think of something else that would raise his self-esteem more?"
"Kemet lacks real enemies?"
Besenmut laughed. "Would you risk that headstrong boy by letting him battle the Sea Peoples or the Amurri? You've seen him in action, Ament. Brave but reckless. We don't need a king of Kemet dying in battle and throwing the Two Lands into turmoil again. Far better to let him play at war without risk."
"Except for the soldiers who die while he plays his games. His charioteer was killed alongside him today."
"You can't make bread without grinding the barley. Soldiers know the risks."
Ament shook his head. "All so the king can feel like a man. Whose idea was this? Bay?"
"It was his suggestion, yes. I was happy to oblige."
"I thought you loathed the man. You were strongly in support of Seti-Merenptah at the succession council."
Besenmut inclined his head. "He's shown himself a capable minister since then and Akhenre is a decent enough king as long as he's guided."
"By Bay, I suppose you mean?"
"He is the boy's uncle."
"And what of Queen Tausret? The Regent? Shouldn't she be the one guiding him?"
"She has a lot to do, ruling in Akhenre's name. Why not let Bay help her? He's competent enough to be a regent alongside her." Besenmut stepped across and put his arm around Ament's shoulders. "Come, Ament, as fellow commanders, shouldn't we be thinking of the good of all Kemet? And what better way than by strengthening the king's status? Who loses by letting Akhenre become a strong king?"
"Even if it's a sham?"
"A sham now, perhaps, but the boy is cutting his teeth on something harmless. Let him learn the art of war today, and then tomorrow when one of the Nine Bows invades, we'll have a strong king to lead the army."
"What of Seti-Merenptah then?"
"What of him? Nothing has changed; he is still the heir. Look Ament, it could be ten years before the babe's old enough to sit on the throne and we need a proper king in the meantime. Better a strong king than a weakling who is king in name only."
"And the gold comes in handy too, I suppose?"
Besenmut's arm dropped from Ament's shoulders. "What are you implying?"
"Bay co
ntrols the treasury and you change your allegiance. How much gold did it take?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Besenmut said stiffly. "If you're accusing me of taking a bribe, I resent it. I support the king, that's all."
Ament stared at the other legion commander. "We all support the king, Besenmut, but some of us have not forgotten our oaths."
"I think you had better leave, Ament, before I have you arrested."
"You don't have the power. My authority comes directly from the Regent."
"Then get back to Men-nefer and look after the Queen's interests, while I look after the king's."
"I have a job to do here, so I'm staying, but you'll regret the day you forsook Queen Tausret for Chancellor Bay."
***
The enemy, whether Ribu or something else, dispersed ahead of the advancing Ptah legion and the squadron of chariots led by the young king. He swept north and west around Perire, killing any stray person he found under arms, and then circled back around the city and made for the river again. The pile of hands obtained from the first two battles grew slowly and rotted faster in the heat, and carrying the sacks of hands became a duty Besenmut gave to defaulters.
Ament and his men remained close to the king, but he was no longer in any danger as the opposition to him had almost evaporated. So little resistance was put up that Siptah ordered villages burnt and fields trampled if he could find no Ribu to fight. Ament had been determined not to remonstrate with Siptah again, but he could not ignore these latest acts.
"Son of Re, is this wise?" Ament asked. "These are just the villages of poor peasant farmers. They are Kemetu, and the people you should be protecting, yet you wage war against them."
"Not against innocent Kemetu, Commander Ament, but against traitors. These villages have been sheltering the Ribu invaders. How else could the enemy just disappear so quickly? They must learn that their king will not countenance such treason."
"You are wrong, Son of Re. The Ribu--if they were ever here at all--have gone back to their own lands. These people here are Kemetu men, women and children suffering under your hand."
"How dare you speak to me like that, Commander? I am the king and my word is law. I cannot be wrong."
"Then you have been led astray by false counsel and inaccurate reports," Ament said. "Give up this campaign and return to Men-nefer before you lose the goodwill of the people of Ta Mehu."
Siptah glared at Ament and turned his face from him. "If you were not the Regent's man I would have you executed. Now leave my presence and don't return. I don't want you near me."
Ament had no choice but to retire, though he wondered how he was going to protect the king if he was no longer allowed near him. Luckily, that was not a problem as the king decided he had had enough of warfare against a foe that would not face him and ordered the legion back to Men-nefer.
Siptah, with Besenmut's encouragement, decided to make a show of his victory over Kemet's enemies. He commandeered wagons from towns closest to the capital and loaded them with the weapons and farm implements he had captured, together with the severed hands of the fallen, and a number of so-called prisoners. None of the Ribu had actually been captured, so Besenmut rounded up a hundred or so peasants, bound them with copper chains and had them led behind the wagons. They were told to keep their mouths shut if they wanted to return to their villages afterward.
The king also declared that every soldier of the Ptah legion would receive a deben of silver, and every officer above Hundred rank a deben of gold for their part in the campaign. The Kemetu dead, numbering only five, including the king's charioteer and a man who died of snakebite, were brought home in honour and Siptah declared he would see them all buried at his expense. Neither the Regent, nor Bay was happy with this profligate expenditure, but as the king had announced it all publicly, there was nothing they could do.
The Ptah legion entered Men-nefer in triumph, the young king riding in his chariot at the front, resplendent in gold and wearing his blue war crown. The soldiers, looking forward to spending their wealth, cheered him until they were hoarse, and the populace joined in, rejoicing that they had a valiant young king to protect them. Siptah ordered cattle to be killed and the meat distributed, together with bread and beer, for everyone to celebrate his victory. Scribes were sent for, and the account of the campaign, outrageously embellished, was dictated for inclusion on victory steles to be set up near the north gate and at the site of the main victory near Perire.
Bay heard the report of Besenmut that night and was pleased with the outcome of the punitive expedition, while Tausret listened to Ament's report and was less pleased. Both rulers, however, recognised that Akhenre Siptah had grown in stature and would now be more difficult to control.
Chapter 19
Year 3 of Akhenre Siptah
The ben-ben or primordial mound, the preeminent land that rose from the original waters in the first act of creation, was honoured in the great pyramids of stone that housed the remains of the ancient kings of Kemet and in the capstones of steles that were erected to honour later kings. So too, the power within Kemet was also in the shape of a ben-ben, with the king at the apex, his Tjaties below him, through successive layers of officials, overseers and army commanders, down to the common people who formed the broad base of society.
In the days of Akhenre Siptah, however, the integrity of the capstone of power was shattered by the presence of a regent who was both above and below the king, and by powerful men moving up through the layers of society to grasp power for themselves. Ramesse Kha'amen-teru Bay was foremost of these, having seized control through the inexperience of his nephew the king and now vied with the official regent as the power behind the throne. He had brought men with him--men eager to exchange loyalty for gold and land, for honours and favour.
Bay had, through his offices of the Chancellor and Treasurer, redistributed the wealth of Kemet, buying men through the guise of loyalty to the king. Men had changed sides--not openly, as that would invite retribution by the still powerful Regent, but subtly, agreeing more often with Bay's ideas than with the Queen's. If the Queen Regent or her followers disagreed with Bay's pronouncements, then all he had to do was appeal to the king. Ultimate power still resided in the Regent, but the days of the king's minority were passing, and one day soon, men whispered, the king would claim full power and his word--and Bay's--would become Law. Better to be seen more loyal to the coming power than to the failing one.
Ament too, had risen in the Land. Though technically still just Commander of the Set legion, his army duties devolved more and more to his officers, while he performed other functions closer to the Queen Regent. He was often to be found hurrying from one part of Kemet to another, carrying out discreet orders from Tausret, or if within the palace at Men-nefer, spending many hours in her company.
"Bay grows too powerful, my lady," Ament said one day, some months after the king's triumphant return from conquering the 'Ribu'. "On my way back from Waset, I saw inscriptions where his image appears with yours and the king's--and the same size. He elevates himself to the rank of Regent alongside you."
"Effectively, that is what he is," Tausret murmured. "There is little I can do about it."
Ament hid his feelings, but the apathy in the Queen's voice shocked him. It was indicative of her lack of interest that they now so often met in the palace gardens or the nearby menagerie rather than in one of the palace chambers or her suite.
"You are Regent and Great Wife, my lady. Of course you can do something about it. Say the word and I will do it for you."
Tausret sighed and looked across to where several small monkeys screeched and hooted in a large cage. "Do what exactly, Ament?"
"Whatever you want, my lady. Have Bay arrested or executed."
"That would risk tipping Kemet into civil war again. You must be aware of how powerful he has grown."
"Yes, but he is still a commoner. He may be Chancellor, but no noble would support him."
"H
e doesn't need nobles when he has the army behind him. By my count he has four legion commanders in his pay, maybe more. There is even talk that General of the North Iurudef has turned."
"Commanders and Generals can be replaced, my lady."
"Once they might have been," Tausret agreed. "If I tried to do it now, I might precipitate the civil war I'm trying to avoid."
Several small boys, sons of palace officials, were poking sticks at the monkeys who responded by screaming and hurling faeces at their tormentors. The boys laughed and dodged, and some of them threw stones back. The noise attracted a gardener, who ran off to find an overseer.
"So what do we do?" Ament demanded. "Give up, and hand Kemet to Bay on a platter?"
"What can I do?" Tausret asked. "When my husband died, I thought it would be a simple matter to rule as Regent until our son Seti-Merenptah came of age and then retire while he led Kemet to new heights of power and glory." She uttered a short, bitter laugh. "Siptah was forced upon me and with him came his uncle Bay and everything has been falling to pieces since then. Seti-Merenptah is still officially heir, but the chances of him actually ascending the throne are diminishing daily. I've tried to love Siptah, Ament, but it's hard--and I loathe Bay. Now I am in a cleft stick. I either continue as I am, letting Bay's power and influence grow slowly, or I strike out at him and risk a war I cannot be sure of winning."
"I can't believe the army would so forget itself as to rebel against you, my lady. The people love you and you have amply shown you care for Kemet."
"People's memories are short, and Bay has bought forgetfulness with gold."
"Kemet's gold, not his," Ament growled. "He uses his position as Treasurer to rob the Kingdoms."
An overseer appeared and remonstrated with the boys around the monkey cage. They laughed at the man and poked their tongues out at him.
"It is the king's gold," Tausret pointed out, "and the king has made it abundantly clear that he is happy for his gold to be spent where Bay sees fit."
