Tut
Page 22
I looked down also, not sure what to say. So I decided to go for the truth. “You know, I haven’t had a real friend in a long time. But then you came along, and … well … anyway, I’m glad we started hanging out.” Okay, that was enough of that. I glanced around. “Where’s Gil?”
“Gone.”
“Gone where?”
“I have no idea,” Henry said. “He took the knife and left. Didn’t say where he was going.”
“Did he say when he was coming back?”
Henry again gave me a look like I should know the answer. “I don’t think he is ever coming back.”
Panic hit me, making my chest tighten. Never coming back?
“Why would you think that?” But as the words came out, I knew. Gil’s final gift to me. How had I missed it? The hole in my chest had vanished, and in its place sat a scarab heart. Gil’s scarab heart.
My face must have shown my thoughts because Henry nodded.
“He did it while you were sleeping,” Henry said. “And then he left.”
Even with the immortality pumping through me, heaviness moved in and sat on my heart. “I told him not to do it.”
“He said it was the only way to make things right,” Henry said.
I sat up straight, feeling the energy pulse through me. “But now he’s mortal.”
“I know,” Henry said. “And I think he’s relieved.”
I thought about everything I knew about Gil. About everything he’d said before I’d fallen asleep. Even though I knew it was what he wanted, it didn’t seem fair. Why should I live when Gil would die? He didn’t owe me anything.
“Do you have any side effects?” I asked, trying to take my mind off of Gil. Henry was now pumped full of immortal energy. That had to make a difference.
Henry pulled at the ends of his hair. “Everything’s growing really fast. Like my nails and my hair. And my eyesight…”
“What about it?”
“It’s perfect. No glasses. People at school won’t recognize me.”
That’s what looked different about Henry. He didn’t have his normal wire-rimmed glasses perched on his nose. That said, people would have no trouble recognizing Henry. He still wore a ridiculous Pluto T-shirt. This one read, BACK IN MY DAY, WE HAD 9 PLANETS. It was actually a pretty cool shirt.
“I’m not going back to school,” I said. The sole benefit I could see of Gil not being here was that I’d never be tricked or coerced into going to school again.
“Yes, you are,” Henry said. “There is no way you are ditching me. And anyway, next year is high school. You can pass as a freshman.”
I knew I could. I had before on numerous occasions. I just didn’t want to.
“Being a freshman guy stinks,” I said. “You’re at the bottom of the food chain. Every single upperclassman in the school picks on freshman guys. And the girls don’t give you the time of day.”
“So it really won’t be any different in that regard,” Henry said.
“Not in your case.”
“You have to go with me,” Henry said.
“I don’t.”
“Please?”
“I’ll think about it.”
Just then Horus jumped in through the fire escape window.
“I see you stopped your curse,” Horus said.
“Horus!” I wanted to hug him but didn’t dare. He wasn’t one for extraneous emotions. But he was right. The curse was gone. It had been from the second I gave up my quest for revenge.
“You won’t believe the week we had,” I started.
Horus held up a paw to stop me. “Did you fight a god and almost get your eye ripped out?”
“No.”
“Did you end up halfway around the world, sacked out in a gutter?”
“No.”
“How about food? Have you eaten in the last week?”
“I get it, Horus. You’ve had a rough week, too.” I looked to Major Rex, who immediately summoned some shabtis to fill Horus’s bowl with milk. Waiting on Horus was below Lieutenants Virgil and Leon. They only waited on me.
“Oh, by the way,” Horus said while he waited for his milk bowl to be filled. “I got summoned to the afterworld. It seems Maat needed a jury to judge Horemheb. Something about the fact that he was an immortal and had Set protecting him.”
“He did make it there, then?” I said. Relief flooded through me. Osiris and the Book of the Dead had not failed me.
“Nice work, Tutankhamun,” Horus said, pulling out the full-name thing. For a second, I thought I heard pride in his voice. I’m sure I was mistaken.
“What did the jury say?” I knew there was no way Horemheb would ever be judged worthy of life in the Fields of the Blessed, even with Set as his benefactor, but I wanted to hear it from Horus’s mouth.
“Let’s just say Ammut had a tasty snack.” Horus lowered his mouth and started lapping at the bowl, but raised it after a couple of seconds. Milk dripped from his tongue. “Oh, and one more thing.”
“What now?” I asked.
He gave me his best pirate scowl. “Now’s not the time to be ungrateful. I brought you a small souvenir. Don’t say I never did anything for you.” He looked to the fire escape window.
In climbed Colonel Cody!
“Great Master,” Colonel Cody said, and bowed to the ground.
“Colonel Cody!” I ran to him and picked him up, hugging him to my chest. “You stupid, brave little shabti. I thought I’d never see you again! Great Osiris, I missed you.” On the last words, my voice cracked. I didn’t care.
“And I missed you as well, Great Master,” Colonel Cody said.
“Don’t ever do that again, okay?” I forced down the lump in my throat.
Colonel Cody tried to bow, but I had my fingers wrapped too tightly around him. “Very good, Great Master. Never again.”
“Thank you, Horus,” I said.
Horus shrugged. “He latched onto me the second I came through the door to the afterworld. Wouldn’t stop begging and pleading with me. Said you would be lost without him.”
That did sound like Colonel Cody.
“Persistent little bugger,” Horus said. “I finally told him I’d take him with me if he promised to shut up.”
Colonel Cody beamed. “It is exactly as the cat god says, Great Master. And now if you’ll please put me down, I’ll set your town house in order once again.”
I knew it would make him the happiest, so I set him down. He ran off and immediately started giving orders.
“So what now?” Henry asked.
What now. It was a perfect question.
“We could play video games.” I picked up a game remote and tossed a second one to him.
Henry stared at me like I’d left my brain at the top of the Washington Monument. “That’s the best you can think of?”
“I’m not working on our project,” I said. “No more.”
Henry laughed. “Don’t worry, Tut. I finished it while you were having your little beauty sleep.”
Thank Amun. “You didn’t have to do that,” I said.
“It was the least I could do,” Henry said. “You saved my life.”
“True.” There was no reason to argue with solid logic.
“You’re going to go looking for him, aren’t you?” Henry asked.
Was I that transparent? Or was Henry just extra observant? Because yes, I was going to find Gil. He’d given his immortality up for me. I had to at least keep him from curling up in a hole and dying.
“He’d do the same thing for me,” I said.
“Any idea where he would go?” Henry asked.
I shook my head. “No. But you know what I’ve noticed?”
“What?”
“I’m lucky.”
Henry snorted. “That’s one way to look at the last few weeks.”
“I’ll find him,” I said. “And Horus will help, won’t you, Horus?”
Horus looked up with his whiskers covered in milk. “Find Gil? Why would I want
to do that?”
“Because if you don’t, I’ll tell your mother.”
Horus scowled in response.
“Do you think he’ll be hard to find?” Henry asked.
I tossed the game remote onto the coffee table. “I guess we’re going to find out.”
27
WHERE I’M IMMORTALLY IN EIGHTH GRADE
I’d like to say that’s where it all ended. But school started back up and Mr. Plant was relentless. He called on Henry and me the first day back.
“Ready to present your project, boys?”
Seth and Tia? They’d vanished. Seth being gone was a blessing from the gods. Tia? I looked for her around every corner. There was no sign of her. I should have asked for her number when I had the chance.
“We’re ready,” Henry said, jumping up from his desk. He carted a cardboard box up to the front of the classroom that looked exactly like the funerary box—my sole contribution to the project. The shabtis had done an amazing job painting it alabaster, with dark hieroglyphs covering it in perfect script.
I followed him up, carrying the trifold display board Henry had finished while I’d been asleep. The shabtis had wanted to redo the whole thing, but Henry would have been way offended, so I made them swear not to offer again.
Mr. Plant grilled us, asking us the names of the heads on the Canopic jars, asking us what went in each one. It was almost like he was looking for a reason to give us a bad grade. But when Henry started in on how the goddess Isis must feel when she looks at a Canopic jar, even Mr. Plant wiped a tear from his eye.
Yes, we got an A.
And yes, the rest of the day went on, and then the next and the next.
I looked for Gil everywhere, thinking he’d just show up after school one day like normal to drive me home, but I never saw him. He’d disappeared. But each day that passed, I formulated a plan to find him. It was my new quest.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
There’s no way I can possibly remember to thank everyone who helped Tut reach publication. If I tried, I’m sure I would forget someone. So instead I’ll trace the path that led to my dream becoming a reality and see where it takes me.
First and foremost, I owe a huge thank-you to Eric Elfman. Eric believed in Tut from the moment I arrived at the Big Sur Writing Workshop in California. Without his enthusiasm, Tut could very well be locked away in a tomb forever, never to see the light of day.
Second, I am filled with gratitude to Laura Rennert, who fell in love with Tut at the Big Sur Writing Workshop, saw the beauty of the concept, and never gave up. Without Laura’s persistence, again, Tut would be in that tomb. I also want to thank Lara Perkins, who, though she came later in the Tut story, shared Laura’s persistence and belief. Also, thank you to all those who help make the Big Sur Writing Workshop such an amazing event. It remains one of my favorite writing memories ever.
Third, there is my editor, Susan Chang. Thank you, Susan, for believing in the idea of a fourteen-year-old immortal King Tut in modern times. Thank you for seeing not only the potential in the King Tut story but also the potential in me. I am so grateful for your wonderful editorial wisdom. And thank you to all the wonderful people at Tor who have helped immortalize the boy king.
There’s a special place in the Fields of the Blessed for writing friends. Thank you beyond words to Jessica Lee Anderson, for always being there. Always. And thank you to Christine Marciniak, for reading Tut nearly as many times as I did.
Incredible communities and relationships are the fabric of happiness. Thank you to my wonderful Texas Sweethearts & Scoundrels, my amazing co-bloggers at The Enchanted Inkpot, my fellow retreaters at the Lodge of Death, the Austin writing/blogging/bookstore community, and the Far Flung Writers. I’m so happy to celebrate all your successes.
And then there is my family, which happens to be the most wonderful family in the world. Thank you, Riley, for your continued support and belief. Thank you, Zachary, for saying you loved Tut even before it was revised. Thank you, Lola, for making me believe I am awesome. Thank you, Mom, for touring D.C. (and Philadelphia for the King Tut treasures) with the kids and me again and again. And thank you, Dad, for providing such a positive example of a lifetime of accomplishment.
The story of publication for Tut has been a long one, filled with plenty of ups and downs. I’m happy it has a happy ending and am so grateful for all the support I have received. Thank you!
A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR
REGARDING TUT …
In 1976, I hopped on a big yellow school bus and headed off for a field trip to the King Tut treasures at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. I wasn’t sure what to expect. Sure, there had been tons of press about the boy king, including articles in Newsweek and the must-hear song by celebrity Steve Martin. But as a six-year-old, field trips for me were just another day out of the classroom. Having grown up near D.C., I was spoiled. The Smithsonian was on my doorstep. It was no big deal. And then I saw the exhibit.
To say the King Tut treasures left a lasting impression on me is the understatement of the millennium. I couldn’t imagine all that shiny gold buried under the sand, undiscovered for thousands of years. And the questions that were left unanswered. How did the tomb remain hidden for so long? What brought about the death of the boy king? Was the curse of King Tut real?
I was hooked. On mythology. On ancient civilizations. On King Tut.
When I started writing Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life, pieces from ancient history and mythology began to fall into the story. I spent copious amounts of time reading books and searching the Internet to make sure I got these pieces right. And once I had all the facts, I twisted them, just a bit, to make my story unique. It’s one of the most fun parts of being an author.
REGARDING GILGAMESH …
First Gil showed up. In Tut, I don’t spend much time on Gil’s back story, because this book is not his tale. If you want to know more about Gil or ancient Mesopotamia, check out the Epic of Gilgamesh. You’ll find that Gil was a king. His best friend died. And he searched for immortality, which he may or may not have found. It’s the stuff of legends … and possibly the premise for another book.
REGARDING HOREMHEB AND AY …
Ancient history talks of the boy king having two main advisors, Horemheb and Ay. The idea makes perfect sense. A boy who inherits the throne at nine-years-old is most likely going to need a bit of guidance. History also suggests that both these advisors may have ruled as pharaoh after the boy king’s demise. I’m willing to disregard Horemheb on the throne because the idea of him locked in a tomb for three thousand years is so much more fun, but if you’re curious about Egyptian pharaohs either before or after King Tut, do a little research and see what you find.
REGARDING AKHENATON …
King Tut’s dad, Akhenaton, caused a huge religious upheaval. He made it illegal to worship any Egyptian god except his favorite one, Aten, who was represented by the disk of the sun. People were not happy. Priests were not happy. Egypt was in utter chaos. And when Akhenaton died, King Tut had to clean up the mess. It’s easy to glance over this religious pandemonium as just a small footnote when reading about Egypt, but this was a major deal. And possibly a dangerous time to be pharaoh. What do you think?
REGARDING HORUS, SET, AND OSIRIS …
Horus, though a cat in my story, is most often seen as a falcon. He’s also the son of Osiris and Isis. Mythology is filled with crazy stories about why the sun crosses the sky, how the earth was made, and where thunder comes from. There’s also a crazy story about how the Egyptian god Set killed his brother Osiris. And an even crazier story of how Osiris’s son, Horus, then came into being after Osiris was already dead. Take a few minutes to read about it on the Internet. You may realize how lucky Horus was to be missing only an eye.
REGARDING THE CURSE …
People have a weird fascination with dark and terrible things, and the curse of King Tut tops the list. Since the tomb’s discovery back in 1922, King Tut’s cur
se has been the topic of debate. Was the curse of King Tut real? Was it caused by a fungus? Was there really an inscription above the tomb? Was the curse responsible for the death of not only a bird and a dog, but also eleven people? You decide.
REGARDING THE MUMMY …
Here’s my challenge question for you. If King Tut was immortal, like in Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life, then who was the mummy that archaeologists found in the tomb? It’s definitely a story for another day!
GLOSSARY
EGYPTIAN GODS
Ammut—crocodile goddess who devours unworthy hearts at the entrance to the Egyptian underworld
Amun/Amun Ra—King of the Gods
Anubis—jackal-headed god of the underworld
Bast—cat goddess
Bes—god of luck
Duamutef (Dua)—jackal-headed god; one of four sons of Horus; in mummification, protected the stomach
Hapi—baboon-headed god; one of four sons of Horus; in mummification, protected the lungs
Horus—son of Osiris and Isis; most often seen with a falcon head (but takes form of a cat in Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life); lost one eye in fight with his uncle Set
Imsety—god (with a normal head); one of four sons of Horus; in mummification, protected the liver
Isis—mother goddess; mother of Horus; wife of Osiris
Khepri—dung beetle god who pushes the sun across the sky each day
Maat—goddess of justice and truth; judges the dead at entrance to Egyptian underworld
Osiris—god of fertility, death, and the afterlife; carries a crook and flail; most often depicted green and partially mummified
Qebehsenuef (Qeb)—falcon-headed god; one of four sons of Horus; in mummification, protected the intestines
Ra—god of the sun
Sekhmet—lion-headed goddess
Set—god of chaos, storms, and infertility; brother and slayer of Osiris
SUMERIAN GODS