Fall of the House of Ramesses, Book 1: Merenptah

by Max Overton

  "Sea People many," the man said, adding a string of unintelligible words. "Kaftor one not many."

  So, one tribe within a confederation..."What your name?"

  When the man remained silent, she tapped herself on the chest and said, 'Tausret'. The man now nodded and said, 'Rath'.

  "And what name of Kaftor king?"

  "You not see king. Take you Seren Achish."

  "What Seren Achish? City?"

  Rath snorted. "Achish man. Seren rank, high but not very high."

  So we are to be brought before a man of high rank called Achish. Does this help me? Tausret had to admit it did not. She would like to have asked what sort of man Achish was, but could not dredge up enough words of dialect to convey her questions.

  "Achish good man?"

  Rath frowned, picking his words with care. "What mean good? Strong man, yes. Command men good, yes. Good for woman, don't know. I not woman." He laughed. "Maybe you tell me."

  Tausret thought that this Seren Achish was not the sort of person she wanted to meet, but as she undoubtedly was going to be brought before him, she should think about what to say or do when she did.

  Her mind, not wanting to dwell on her uncertain future, was easily distracted. Ahead and to their right, still a great distance away, a great dust cloud arose and, muted with distance, sounds of battle drifted in the hot desert air. She tugged on Rath's arm and pointed. The Kaftor charioteer stared and then bellowed out to the others, slowing his horses to a walk. Rath listened to his officer and argued with him, pointing to the west and seeming to disagree with the officer's desire to join the battle. The other man lent his support to Rath, pointing at the women captives, and the officer gave in, ordering them all onward.

  Their path swung closer to the battle, so close in fact that they could see the shapes of men and chariots. Banners distinguished the armies, and it seemed to Tausret that the Kemetu army stood still while the Sea Peoples' army streamed away to the west. Her heart lifted at the sight and she allowed herself a faint hope of rescue.

  Will it come soon enough to save us though? Tausret thought about ripping off her dress and waving it to attract attention, but decided that might give the Kaftor the wrong idea. Could I overpower Rath? She looked sideways at the man and reluctantly decided against it. She might topple him by a surprise attack, but she would never be able to control the chariot. Besides, even if she could somehow flee toward the Kemetu army, she could not leave Ti-ament in the clutches of the enemy. No, I'll have to wait for a better opportunity.

  The Kaftor chariots continued their westward course and soon left the Kemetu legions behind. Once they were parallel with the retreating Sea Peoples, they altered course to intercept them, and as they drew near, other chariots came out to meet them. The drivers called out and the Kaftor answered, talking a mixture of the Kaftor tongue, the common trading language of Ta Mehu, and something else that Tausret guessed must be the language of one of the other tribes. The newcomers waved them through, pointing toward a segment of the marching army, and Rath guided his chariot into the stream of men. As they trundled alongside a column of Kaftor, men called out to greet the three charioteers and some obviously ribald remarks were made concerning their two passengers. They returned the banter, and asked after the battle. Some men shrugged by way of answer, or told of friends who had fallen, but others spoke of victory.

  "We fought the Kemetu to a standstill."

  "A bloody battle, and they're licking their wounds like the dogs they are."

  "We'll be back to finish the job."

  "More of them died, so we won."

  A harsh voice cut through the babble, demanding their report. The officer manoeuvred his chariot alongside a heavy war chariot carrying a tall, grizzled warrior in dusty bronze armour.

  "Hail Seren Achish. We have caught two spies," cried the officer. He pointed to the two captured women in the other chariots.

  Seren Achish looked Tausret and Ti-ament over slowly, lingering on the younger girl. "They don't look much like spies, Mardek." The officer said nothing. "I think you have just found two women for your own amusement."

  "Oh, no sir. We found them in the desert with a donkey, heading toward us, and could give us no good explanation of what they were doing there. What else could they be but spies?"

  "Can they speak Kaftor? Any of the Sea Peoples languages?"

  "I don't think so, sir. At least not well. We spoke in Kemetu and border dialects."

  "So you really have no idea who they are or what they were doing out here?" Achish looked them over again. "I will question them myself. Bring them to my tent tonight and Mardek, I want them untouched and whole. You can pleasure yourself with them after I've finished, not before. Do you understand?"

  "Yes, Seren." Mardek saluted and the three chariots peeled away and took up their station further down the column.

  The next half day exhausted the two young women. They were hungry and thirsty to begin with and now had to stand in a lightweight chariot without a chance to relax or refresh themselves, with the dust of a thousand men rising in choking clouds to spread an acrid coating over them. At midday, there was a brief respite when they halted. Bread and water were passed around from supply wagons but only a taste was offered to the prisoners. Privacy to attend to bodily functions was even harder to come by, but Tausret and Ti-ament took it in turns to squat while the other shielded her from view by spreading her dress. It did not save them from crude utterances, but by then they no longer cared, and they took the opportunity to snatch a few words together.

  "What's going to happen, do you think?" Tausret asked.

  Ti-ament did not answer for a moment, then, "Isn't it obvious? We are to be delivered to that warrior's tent tonight, and you can be sure he won't be treating us with respect."

  "He...he wouldn't do...that, would he?"

  "You have led a sheltered life, haven't you Tau? This happens to women in war. We have no choice in the matter. All we can do is put up with it and hope they lose interest or give us an opportunity to escape."

  "But to take a woman against her will, what sort of savages are they?"

  "It's not unknown even among Kemetu, you know. And in times of war, it's common." Ti-ament shrugged. "We can resist and be raped anyway, probably get hurt too, or go along with it and hope they're not too rough. Not much of a choice, is it?"

  They were separated again as the march resumed. Tausret thought about her friend's revelations and felt panic slowly grip her. To distract herself from that evening, she engaged Rath in conversation again, trying to get him to tell her about the Kaftor units and who exactly the Sea Peoples were.

  "You are spy. I knew."

  "That's not why I'm asking. The Kemetu commanders must know who the Sea Peoples are, but I don't. I'd hardly heard of them, but I'm interested now. Won't you tell me? Please?"

  "Sea Peoples is Kemetu name. We many tribes, many peoples. Kaftor me, from coast near Hatti...you know Hatti?" Tausret nodded. "Ekwesh in north, also Denyen, Teresh, Peleset, Shekelesh and Sherden from west of Great Sea. Many people, many custom. Get together for spoils...you understand 'spoils'? Plunder? Yes. Also look place to settle, make farm." Rath pointed to himself. "Me farmer. Like vines, sheep. Look for rich soil." He looked around at the stony, sandy desert and grimaced. "Not like here."

  "Kemet has rich soil," Tausret said. "That's probably why you invade our land. In the north, where the Great River branches before it flows into the Great Sea, there are wide pastures with sheep and cattle, great farms growing all sorts of fruit and vegetables, reed beds abounding in wildfowl and the river is full of fish, and vineyards that produce wine, even for the king's palace. You'd love it."

  "When Sea Peoples conquer Kemet, I make farm in this place maybe."

  "If you conquer. Kemet is very strong; there are many legions. You only faced two of them today, and despite your men calling it a victory, you fled the battle leaving the Kemetu the field."

  Rath grunted. "Sea Peoples have
big army too. This only small part."

  Tausret was silent for a time, watching the marching men of this varied army. She wondered how much of what Rath said was true, and how much was boastfulness. She tried another route into the man's mind.

  "It is a pity men must fight. It would be much better for men to work the fields together and then sit and eat and drink the produce of their land."

  Rath nodded. "When one man has and another not, must fight for land. Winner eats and drinks."

  "You should come down to Kemet."

  Rath laughed. "We will, soon."

  Tausret smiled in return. "No, just you, Rath. My father would show you round his estates, feed you on fatted calf, give you unwatered wine and call upon musicians and dancers to entertain you. That is better than fighting, isn't it?"

  "Your father rich? Big man? Much land?"

  "Important, you mean?" Tausret hesitated, uncertain how much to reveal. "Yes, he is held in very high regard, and he loves me very much."

  "Other girl with you, she have rich father too?"

  "Not as rich as mine, but she is great lady too. Her name is Ti-ament."

  "You tell Seren Achish this. Maybe he get gold for you from fathers, not just make you his woman." Rath shrugged. "Maybe both."

  "My father would be very angry if I was harmed, but would pay much gold for my release."

  "Tell Achish. He is Seren, not me. I just driver of chariot."

  "A pity, Rath. I like you, and I'd much rather you got the gold than this Achish."

  Rath just shrugged again and discouraged further talk, merely replying in monosyllables when he could be bothered speaking. Tausret curled up on the floor of the chariot and managed to doze off, despite the jolting and the noise of the column of marching men.

  She woke as the sun dropped toward the western horizon and looked around with growing unease as she saw signs that the Sea Peoples were starting to set up camp nearby. Already the column was dispersing and the supply wagons were being drawn into a group. Light chariots raced out in all directions, and Rath looked envious. He saw Tausret's inquiring look.

  "I should be go, help my countrymen, rather than guard foolish girl."

  "Go on then. I'll wait for you here."

  This dragged a slight smile out of Rath. "Would Kemetu be so trusting?"

  "Probably not, but it was worth a try."

  "And if I leave you, what then? You just walk out of camp, leaving friend behind?"

  Tausret bit her lip rather than admit she had forgotten about Ti-ament. "I can't stay here. Neither of us can. You know we're not spies, we just got too close to the fighting."

  "You tell Seren Achish. He let you go for ransom."

  Tausret lowered her gaze. "You heard him. That's not all he wants from us."

  "There worse fates than Seren Achish. He not brute like some officers. He question you; you tell him your father rich. Then he take you to bed and afterward put you in cell until father pay ransom. Look after. He not be young man but I hear no complaints from women about strength and stamina."

  "And what if I don't want his attentions?"

  Rath shrugged. "How avoid? You captured woman. Must do as Achish say."

  "My father would pay more for me if I was untouched. He'd pay anyone who delivered me and Ti-ament unharmed. Gold, land, vineyards."

  Rath stared at Tausret. "Father pay Achish?"

  "Or anyone who delivered us."

  "How pay land or vineyards? Can carry gold, not land."

  "Well," Tausret smiled encouragingly. "I suppose that if someone wanted land or a vineyard, they'd have to stay in Ta Mehu. My father would make him welcome and reward him greatly. Do you think Achish would like to settle in Kemet and give up war?"

  Rath laughed. "Him? No, but some...maybe."

  "How about you, Rath? You said you were a farmer, not a soldier. If you take me home, my father will give you a prime vineyard and rich pastures for sheep."

  "And if Achish catch, me dead, you go to soldiers. You might prefer Achish."

  "I'd prefer to go home, and see you settled on good fertile land."

  Rath shook his head. "Not possible."

  "Will you at least think about it?"

  "Nothing think about. Not possible."

  Tausret sighed. Well, it was worth trying. What do I do about this Achish? Would he accept an offer of land and gold? That's the whole point of ransom, you fool...yes, but you know what I mean, to return me untouched...and Ti-ament. She shuddered at the thought of what might be stored up for her by fate. If I must endure it, it will be without crying out. I know what happens between a man and a woman even if I haven't experienced it yet. People do it all the time. Even Ti-ament has done it. How bad can it be?

  Camp fires were lit and the soldiers gathered round them to cook the evening meal. They common soldiers had no tents like the Kemetu legions and just lay on the bare earth with only a thin cloak as covering or relied on the fire to ward off the desert chill during the night. Tausret and Ti-ament were fed bread and gristly meat, washed down with a few swallows of tepid water. Afterward, they were given a little water in a bowl and ordered to tidy themselves up before they were taken to Achish.

  "May the demons take them," Ti-ament declared. "I'm not making myself look good for that beast."

  "I think perhaps we should," Tausret said. "Look, I've been thinking...and talking to my charioteer. We're obviously not spies, so our only hope is to convince him we are worthy of ransom. To do that, we have to look less like washerwomen and more like high-born Kemetu ladies."

  "That's easy for you. I'm just the daughter of a fisherman. He'll know I'm not a lady as soon as I open my mouth."

  "So don't speak. I'll say you are my little sister and very shy. I'll do all the talking."

  "What does it matter anyway?" Ti-ament asked. "Whether commoner or noble, he's going to have his way with us, even if he did ransom us, and that's another thing, who's going to ransom me? My father's a poor man and my brother Ament is only a soldier. I can't see Achish accepting a basket of fish as ransom for me."

  "As I said, you're my sister. My father will ransom both of us."

  "Huh. I can just see the king handing over gold for a camp follower in his army. I think I'd be better off accepting my fate quietly. There are worse things than being used for a man's pleasure."

  "Try it my way first, Ti. Please?"

  They beat the dust out of their clothes and washed their hair and faces, before Rath and the other charioteer, Zeben, came to collect them. They walked through the camp, with men turning to stare at them, until they arrived at a low tent, lit from within by guttering oil lamps.

  Rath called out, and when told to enter, pushed the women ahead of him. He saluted the tall warrior sitting in a chair, eating his evening meal off a low table.

  "Seren Achish, the two prisoners for your interrogation."

  Achish looked them up and down while he picked his teeth with a fingernail. "You are Kemetu?"

  Tausret glanced at her friend and took a step forward, easing herself in front of Ti-ament. "Yes."

  "What were you doing in the desert, so far away from your army?"

  "We were lost."

  Achish examined his fingernail and flicked a scrap of food he had found in his teeth onto the ground. He rose to his feet and strolled over to his prisoners, examining them afresh. "I think you are spies," he said.

  "Kemet does not use women as spies."

  "No? When a man is relaxed and sated, lying naked beside a woman, he might say anything. You came to do just this thing, didn't you? Seduce a Sea Peoples' captain like me, and see what you could find out."

  "To accuse me of such an action is an insult, Seren Achish," Tausret said. "I am a lady of the Kemetu court, and this is my sister."

  Achish fingered the fabric of Tausret's dress. "This is coarse material. A lady would not wear this."

  "I do not wear it from choice. King Baenre's court follows him to war and my sister and I were with it. I
decided to venture out and see the desert, an unfortunate and distressing time, as it turns out, and of course I was not going to wear the finest linens out in the heat and dust."

  Achish grunted. "Well, you talk like a lady at least. Lots of words and an argument for everything. What is your name?"

  "Tausret. And this is my sister Ti-ament."

  Achish stared at the younger girl. "You do not look alike."

  "Same father, different mothers," Tausret said.

  "Very different. Your skin is coarser, more tanned," Achish said to Ti-ament. "What do you say to that?"

  "Leave my sister alone," Tausret said. "You are scaring her. Our father has several wives, and her mother is of lower rank, so she gets outside more. I am forced to stay within the palace, out of the sun."

  "Your father has several wives? Only high-ranking Kemetu have several wives. Who is your father, girl?"

  Tausret drew herself up and stared back at the Seren. "My father is King Baenre Merenptah, Son of Re, Lord of the Two Lands, and you would do well to remember that."

  "Indeed?" Achish said dryly. "And just what is King Baenre going to do about it if I take you to my bed and then pass you on to my men for their pleasure?"

  "He will lay waste the land of Kaftor and kill every man, woman and child, throw down your cities, destroy your monuments, expunging even the name of Kaftor from the memory of the nations."

  Achish laughed. "All that? He must value you highly."

  "He does. I am his eldest daughter and will marry the heir to the Double Throne. One day I will be Queen."

  "If you live. How do I know you are who you say you are?"

  "Ask any Kemetu from the court. They will know me."

  "Unfortunately, they are in short supply at the moment. Maybe after the next battle I will have plenty of prisoners."

  "Send word to my father then. He will give you your weight in gold for my safe return, and that of my sister."

  "Perhaps I will; and perhaps I will just enjoy you and cast you aside first."

  "We are in your hand, Seren Achish, but know that my value as a hostage would be much diminished if I was polluted by a foreigner. My brother would not take me as his queen, and so my father would pay no gold for our return."