. . .
After supper she sent for the high priestess and Bakku, her faithful counselor. They sat by a balcony room looking at the evening sky shading down into blue and violet. The sun had already fallen below the horizon but its blue halo lingered like the fog of a cool morning. The stars were large and brilliant and the first moon was rising. Nimnet. The first lady of the night. She and Bakku now sat drinking scorpion wine while the high priestess stood by her side, taking no wine. Bakku sucked on a honeyed beetle and date delicacy. The priestess of the temple of Nimnet had traveled with her to see about the transfer of the most sacred objects of the rite, the bones of King Khalit. It was rare for a high priestess to leave a temple once she was brought there to live and train but this was most momentous and the queen would have her by her side at this occasion. The wine was strong and bitter. It calmed her nerves for she was growing wild with excitement.
"The temple is nearly finished, my queen. Soon you shall join Nimnet an Elyshe and what was two will now become a triune. Nothing like this has ever been attempted before in the world!" She said.
"Lady Culyma, will it be done on the proper day? Are we too late for this?" Asked the queen. Culyma frowned and seemed to look inward, then closed her eyes. She then shook her head.
"No. It is in time for the perfect day. Or the night. All on that front goes well in my Sight. But there is still the problem of that renegade priest and the boy. They must be found. There is something I have seen in my visions." The queen brightened.
"Do tell!" Said Bakku.
"What?"
"As you well know, the boy has his father's blood in him, he is of the Reshaim and so are you." The priestess gave her a sharp look. Taliat hated to hear it. When the high priestess first told her it threw her into a black mood. She remembered that week more servants than usual had been tortured because of her foul mood. There was only one other time that she was told of this and it was by her mother, Eilannat. Their family had Reshaim blood in them from ages ago. How she knew this, Taliat would never know and she never dared to ask her father or anyone else a thing about it. The Red Kings were hated by her family for some reason - some gross imperfection she had heard. When she had grown older, she heard Yadua singing a song about the Red Kings and thinking she was cursing the family house and name, Taliat, still only a young girl but old enough to command her own household, had her tongue cut out. After all, the Red Kings were something to be hated. They were imperfect and low. Her father and mother had both said this.
Eilannat. She had an older sister that she never knew, an outcast, who, her mother once told her in acid tones, was proud of this heritage and wanted to know more about it. She even had the gall to marry a man who was Aishanna-La. This sister was subsequently cut off from the family. So no, it was not welcome news. But it was necessary. The prophecy of Ilim, that the destruction of Jhis would come, had started poisoning even Culyma's dreams. Taliat's own dreams were frightening to her and to the high priestess. So they delved into the prophecies of the First One to see and to peer and understand. Ilim and the boy had to be destroyed and they had finally found out how they might achieve this, and her own plan.
"I have long said that Ilim is dangerous but powerful. I have tried to get rid of him and each time has failed. He is protected by his god. How can we subvert these prophecies of his?" Asked the queen.
"Ilim is one of the men to be wondered at. A desert prophet." Bakku said reluctantly.
"A thaumaturgist." Said the queen.
"He does not belong to any guild like that, Your Greatness. He is alone in his work but if he lived here he would be seen that way, yes." said Bakku.
"But the blood of such a man is powerful. He must be sacrificed along with the boy on the day. Only then will your ascension be assured and all true threats will be gone. I have had many dreams and one of them show him caught like prey in the temple dungeons. You may have failed before but you will succeed. It requires patience." Said the high priestess.
"So long I have waited for this. This is good news! I cannot allow anyone to stop the plan." Said the queen.
"Find them, continue on the path and nothing can stop you, my queen. Do not give out," said the high priestess. Bakku straightened himself on his divan with an eager look on his face.
"She speaks truth, my queen. And what of me? Where shall I fit in when you ascend?" She turned and smiled.
"You shall always be my favorite, Bakku. You have always been faithful and loyal to me. Think not that I will forget this. Have I not given you a palace already? You shall continue to be my mouthpiece. Perhaps I shall make you a priest of a great temple. A high priest or king. You will be rewarded."
Bakku sat back feeling delirious with happiness. His eyes were glazed.
"Just remember, our work is not yet done, Your Greatness. Everything must be in place. Find that priest and your son. In their blood you can rise up. Only with their deaths can your life be assured," warned Culyma.
"Yes! Even if you were to remain a mortal queen, the boy's very existence is a threat to your power on the throne, as he is Khalit's son. If it is found out that he is alive, your enemies will rally around him and help him. Ilim's proclamations and prophecies fuel the desires of many of the kingdom. He emboldens these traitors to speak and act against you. He foments rebellion, masking it as prophecy. Their very existences both work hand in hand against you!" Added Bakku. The priestess nodded vigorously.
"He speaks right."
"I sent my hunstman to kill him but I have changed my mind now. You are wise, Lady Culyma. The boy must be found and brought to me, alive. Royal bones, royal blood and the blood of a man of powerful magic. And so, now we reach the last arm of the plan. Lady Culyma, let it be known that I shall go to the tombs tomorrow morning. There is no time to waste. And Bakku, I have commanded the Lord-Chieftain to bring me those who are conspiring against me. Make sure he does and set a watch upon him as well, if you can, secretly. I believe he is behind it. If you can get information on his doings bring it to me. I know you have people here. He is of noble birth. If he displeases me, he may find himself on the altar as well. And also his two eldest sons." Bakku and Lady Culyma stood up, bowed low and left. The queen got up and went to the balcony and looked out on the night and the city below. The lantern lights twinkled and fluttered like tiny moths from her vantage point. The sharp, steep mountain tops stood like shadowed statues in the early night. The shadow of the Soudan mountains farther out were only just visible. She lifted up her eyes to the sky and gazed at the moon. The second lady was now just beginning to rise. Vala appeared, seemingly out of nowhere and approached the balcony and lept onto the balustrade. Perhaps she shall be a queen too. Taliat said to herself, stroking Vala's back.
"One day," she murmured in pride, "one day I shall join with you both. And I shall be greater than both of you. As Nimnet overshadowed Elyshe, I shall overshadow Nimnet. The first Queen of Night."
Chapter Seven
The distance was not far now. She was nearing the mountainous region of Habad, near the northern city of Galieh. In Egi this same mountain range was called the Soudan. She felt as if she had been running for days. Her mind raced through frightened, ragged, fleeting thoughts but her body, now accustomed to searing heat and strenuous work seemed to wind, fly and cut through the air and over the sand gracefully like a sidewinder. The men were getting closer, their long strides becoming almost as swift as hers. Her heart pounded wildly but she had no time to panic. Panic would only lead to death. Ilim's lessons had taught her well. Where is it? Where? Her eyes flicked across the merciless wall of horizon and sand. She knew the hiding places, some of them. Over a steep hill she strode. It lessening her pace which meant that theirs too would be slowed. She heard the soft whoosh of a weapon. A spear sailed past her, grazing her side. They had gone on like this for hours it seemed. Years. Except most Hatchet Men did not have the stamina to hunt in the open desert, high or deep. These men were different. They were more experienced in hunting a
nd fighting and they were dogged in their pursuit. These were no simple city toughs. Mercenaries. The queen was serious this time.
There! She found the small formation of rock that jutted out of the ground, looking like a fat tree limb. The poison from the spear tip started its work and she could feel herself tiring, feel the poison making her limbs want to seize up. She would need to hurry to find safety and counter-act it before it was too late. She swung herself around the rock and dove into the sand in front of it as if diving into water. Down she sank into a womb of sand until she was underground in a cave. Her wooden staff dropped with a dull thump beside her. Only the tribal people - and the desert prophets - knew the secret places. She pulled her skin bag around and dug into it looking for her medicines. The darkness was pitch black but she felt and found what she was looking for by touch. She drank the draught and rested in blind silence for what seemed like hours, feeling the poison weaken and lesson in her body like a slow drain. The fight between the poison and the draught both enlivened her and made her feel sick. She vomited but when she was done her belly and head felt rested. She sat there and went to sleep for a time and then awoke and felt around in her bag for her flint rocks. She used them to light a spark and set the cloth wrapped end of her staff with fire light to see by. The air was cool and draped with dust particles. Her hands felt like those of an old woman. The skin was so dry they felt like cracked, dead blades of long grass. She had no more tallow salve and very little water left. Anet was used to this by now. Such was the life of a desert prophetess or prophet. Especially one with a message no one wanted to hear.
She gathered her strength and took in a deep breath. The scent of the air was strong with dust and old rock, a comforting smell. She wondered when she might run into a tribesman. She carried a group of wooden teraphim along a string at her side from the Karig and one from the Raea on the other side. People knew she was an honorary member of both tribes by these. After her feats and her bravery she was regarded as the "little mother of the desert", a holy woman. No one dared to show her disrespect. Not among the tribes, anyway. It was a different tale with those outside of the citadel and the tribes. Among most others she was known as the Witch of Shima. At first it angered her and then it saddened her but she took heart that those who understood what she was doing knew she meant them no harm. Others she could not say for. She began traveling her way, looking for the signs that would lead her farther north to Galieh. Soon the ground climbed upward and light slowly faded in, a pervasive, warm light. Shafts of sunlight fell down to the ground from high above as she approached the junction of three paths. She took the right hand path and continued on.
Anet had grown into a long and lean woman with long, thick hair full of loose black waves and curls, now twenty-five years. Many times she had thought of marriage, of love and there were times when she felt terribly alone. This did not last long for her work was all-consuming. The visions were always vivid and now God had seen fit to give her visions of a youth; the future king of Hybron. He was alive and well, somewhere in the world and she would have to look to his safety and care at some point in the future. No time for marriage.
She traveled under great caves and underground streams. She drank her fill and filled her waterskin, then climbed her way from underground back onto the high desert of northern Hybron. It was two more days before she came within sight of the city.
Galieh.
It was the red iron forge that armored the fist of Hybron. The kingdom's military might existed because of this city. A city of metal, rock and stone and land and wood from the strong dragon trees that dotted the mountains. Galieh was not a beautiful city but it had the distinction of being regarded as a blessed place because long ago during the Age of Creation it was pummeled with thousands of falling stars. This rock that fell from the heavens was plentiful in this part of the land and the rock itself was plentiful in star-strong iron, superior than the iron found from Chialis itself and from it the strongest metal work was made and many alloys that were superior to the iron alloys in other places as well.
She would wait until the evening before she would enter the city by stealth. As she approached, she saw the tower of the temple of Nimnet. After this night Nimnet and Elyshe would be greatly offended. She felt fear rising in her at this prospect. But she feared what would happen even more if she failed. These temples had arisen everywhere in the land it seemed and had usurped the First One long ago; temples to foreign gods that were seductive and cruel, like the queen who worshiped them.
She made her way through the mountains where she could see the city below, laid out like a game board. She heard a voice in her mind, strong and confident, speaking words that disturbed her. She knew the voice and it rose to her ears and encompassed her like the powerful vegetal scents of the dye pits in Galieh and Yallas-By-The-Sea. It was the prophet Abulom of Elyshe who had risen up against her. It was he who made the start of calling her the Witch of Shima and now he was denouncing her and Ilim, saying that there would be no destruction and that Nimnet and Elyshe shall rise up in Hybron. It angered her to no end, this pestilent, false prophet. She waited patiently for the sun to go down. In darkness she would take care of business.
. . .
It seemed she spent much of her life crawling through holes and caves underground if not running. She smiled dryly at this thought. When she was a child she used to have dreams of running in the desert, dreams about the future. She was now living those dreams and they had taken her hither and thither all over the land. She found the old familiar spot, a hole in the rock that led to another tunnel that enabled her to pass unseen into the city. The path was more of a narrow ledge and below the ledge was a deep stream. Her staff lit the way as she made her way towards the temple. There was the rotten, sweet odor that faded in and as she continued on it became more foul until she wanted to retch. She knew instantly she was near the temple. It was the stench of the dead, corpses thrown down far beneath the temple. She heard the hum of swarms of flies as she approached. She pulled her head covering over her face but it did no good. Ahead, lodged into hollowed-out holes in the wall, she could barely make them out, were a vast wall of clay pots. Corpse pots. After about an hour she reached the long, grueling stair. It was so high she could barely see the top. She began the climb up. The steps were slippery with water and the stone stained with blood. She stopped suddenly, thinking she heard something.
"God be with me now." She whispered, her eyes wide and her heart pummeling with fear. She heard only the wild beating of her own heart in her ears. She continued on, reaching the top. Finally she came to the top and instead of a door there was the top of a shallow, wide-mouthed well. She ascended the last of the stairs and stepped over the lip and she was in one of the under rooms. The temples of Nimnet were greatly feared and she understood why. She sensed shadowy figures that lurked about.
The chamber itself was vast and cavernous with only a few torches for light. She thought she heard voices, intoning words she could not understand. The rites here were secret, a thing unheard of in Hybron and she distrusted dark and secret things. It was a cultural thing from Egi, one more thing she detested from that land. At first the walls - it was a round room - seemed to have no doorway leading out. She went to the wall ahead of her and the doorway to another stair gradually appeared before her. Whether this was just because her eyes were adjusting to the dark or whether it was some dark power, she could not guess and did not think on it long. Her staff light grew brighter still and she could feel the familiar current of power in it growing stronger. She would need it before the end. She felt the essence of the shades following her behind at a distance and her skin crawled with the sensation but they did not molest her or follow her out of the room. As she climbed she prayed the khuliom to give her strength while in the dark void. It gave strength and power when weak, courage when fearful or in doubt and solace to the despairing one. Ilim had once told her that all the judges, warriors and prophets of old at one time or another used it.
She needed it now.
"My God, give me strength to pass through. Give me courage to pass through. Give me power to triumph through. Ellah Kaifah." She whispered. She entered the arched doorway that led to another vast chamber with halls and long, thin columns in front and in back. In the center is what she sought. There, deep in recessed rooms far off were low fires burning. She heard footsteps coming from down the hall to the right. She stepped back into the doorway and around the corner and into the shadows. She could feel the evil essence that oppressed this place. It was a beautiful place and eerie. A small group of priestesses passed through the room on their way through another hall. Curious, she followed them and hoped this was not a mistake. She trailed them far behind as they walked solemnly, dressed in nearly translucent veils over their heads and nothing else. One of them, the head priestess, wore a diadem of silver and jade with moon ornaments. They disappeared into a room down the hall behind a wide, black curtain. As she drew closer she thought she heard something else. The crying of a baby. Her heart lept in dread. She had to do something. She did not see or hear anyone else around.
"God be with me now. Be merciful or let me die fighting." She felt power drawing up into her and when she opened her eyes her staff tip was bright with deadly red fire, the battle light. She strode forward and rent the curtain apart. The women were standing around a great altar. Above the altar was the image of the goddess Nimnet but to her astonishment this image of her was quite different from what was seen of images outside of the temples. It was not serene or composed. It had eyes of rubies which glistened like pools of blood and a mouth opened wide in a silent howl with cruel fangs. The She-demon of Egi. In her belly was a black hole, a deep well where people were thrown in after being killed upon the altar. Anet had seen this image more than once in her dreams and now she saw it. Anet was so transfixed by the hideous thing that she barely heard the startled and angry cry of the officiating priestess. The woman had taken off her veil and was holding a curved, black metal dagger. There was a baby lying on the smooth stone surface of the altar. The others turned to face her, surprised. The head priestess lifted the dagger to kill the child as if she knew why Anet was there. Anet lifted her staff and banged it into the floor. The floor cracked and the crack ran and widened down the stone floor, spidering out across the room. The light of the staff flared out. Anet lifted her staff again and banged it on the floor two more times and the building began to shake. This stopped the woman dead and the others began to panic. The head priestess, however, was still as stone.
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