A Star Story: The Star Aligned Girl 2p111f

A STAR STORY

The Star Aligned Girl

Maryam Scott-Edeson

Copyright © 2020 by Maryam Scott-Edeson.

ISBN: Softcover 978-1-9845-9313-9 eBook 978-1-9845-9312-2

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only. Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 01/02/2020

Xlibris 800-056-3182 www.Xlibrispublishing.co.uk

805321

DEDICATION

This book wouldn’t have been possible without his and help.

I dedicate this book to my husband, Abbas Haider.

CONTENTS

Dedication

Chapter 1 Introduction

Chapter 2 The Old Prophesy

Chapter 3 The Night Sky

Chapter 4 Who would be the new Pharaoh?

Chapter 5 The Girl with the Stars on her arm

Chapter 6 Levi: Back home in the small village

Chapter 7 Jamilla and her mandolin

Chapter 8 Levi : a journey to glory

Chapter 9 Constellations are talking: Jamilla

Chapter 10 Who will be the spy? Time is running out: Priest (17th of December)

Chapter 11 Mother and son will meet today: (After February Half Term)February 2019

Chapter 12 Bazaar

Chapter 13 The Blue Lotus

Chapter 14 Will they recognize each other? Potions

Chapter 15 Sobek: the fertility God

Chapter 16 The Night of the ceremony: Prophecy is fulfilled

Chapter 17 The new priestess

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

There was many, many years ago an Egyptian pharaoh who was very wise and very old and who wanted to on his heritage and his throne to someone as wise as him. His sons were all very silly and lacking a sense of self-discipline so he was trying to find someone who will take his rule for some time and will show his sons how a good ruler should be. As time ed and his search continued for many, many years he became weary and started thinking he will never find his successor. He will die an old man without a sensible follower, so he started worrying. …But he had nothing to worry about … In another part of the pharaoh’s empire, there was a small village and there lived a small family: a farmer and his three daughters, who were all married and who were looking after their own families now. There was nothing special about the farmer’s older daughters but the youngest of them all always had been very reluctant to marry and have children, and so she cried on her wedding night. Both the farmer and his wife were very worried about her but as time ed almost everyone in the village forgot about this unfortunate incident and people moved on. She remained as quiet as ever and served her family and her husband as best as she could. Only sometimes, late at night, when everyone else was sleeping, she would stand by the window and lift the tip of her sleeve and reveal the top of her arm where one could see a group of dots …They were shaped as a star constellation: three on one side in the form of a line and on the other side: six more, in the form of a square or a small box…As she put her arm directly under the Moon light they started to shine. It was the tradition in the empire that the High Priest at the Temple will change his servants once a year and refill his court with younger servants and concubines. In Egypt at the time it was considered a huge honor to be the High Priest’s concubine. Why? Because the women who got this far in their position in life here, in this world, were promised huge riches and eternal life in the Afterlife, so naturally a number of women were dreaming of becoming servants one day. Once a year the High Priest would gather an army and send it to round off the most beautiful young women across the land. They started their trip this year. As always they started riding around the capital city first, but to their surprise they couldn’t find many beautiful women there. They reported to the Priest their findings were slim this year and he was very displeased.

He ordered them to widen their search and to continue searching anywhere in the country but to bring him at least ten beautiful young girls. Months ed and after many days of searching and riding for thousands of miles the soldiers finally returned with ten girls. The young ladies were washed and prepared to be displayed to the High priest for his approval. They lived for a few weeks far away from prying eyes in the centre of the Priest’s Court in a small centre piece that looked like a garden and many quiet fountains gently played in the court yard. They were not allowed to see anyone or to talk to anyone but amongst themselves and as most of them came from different parts of the land they all spoke different languages and dialects and couldn’t always understand each other. After a while though, they started devising a silent language of their own and using their hands, they started communicating and “speaking” to each other. Finally, after a whole week of preparation, the Priest declared that he wants to see them. They were lined up and some expensive perfume splashed all over them and beautiful fresh rose petals were laid down on the floor. The girls started walking slowly towards the court of the Priest and he patiently examined them one by one. Every girl was expected to lift her veil and show her face and to lift her sleeves and show her arms to the Priest. One by one, they filed down the long corridor and displayed their face and arms, in complete silence. The Priest would look at them quietly and with one nod either approve them or disapprove of the candidates, so this went on for some time. When it was turn of one of the girls to lift her sleeve, she flinched and refused to lift it to the very top. But luckily for her, the Priest was too distracted by looking at her beautiful face and didn’t notice that small mistake. He really liked her so he nodded at his senior official and she was pulled out of the line, along with a few other girls. That girl was the youngest daughter of the farmer that we met before.

CHAPTER 2 THE OLD PROPHESY

According to old traditions and legends in Egypt the Priest would be expected to find the most convenient time for the Pharaoh to choose his successor. The old Priests and priestesses were reading the stars in the sky and there was an old prophesy. It said that when the stars were aligned in the form of one particular constellation, Small Bear (Ursa Minor), then it was time for the new pharaoh to start his rule. The shapes of the stars were being monitored every night and the findings of the astrologers were recorded meticulously every day before sunrise. Now there came a time when the old Pharaoh couldn’t wait any longer and he wanted to know when the new ruler would be selected, so he went to visit the High Priest. Pharaohs and High Priests were always good friends when it came to who would be the next ruler and they worked together to ensure their position stays as strong as it had been so far. So the Priest welcomed the King with a huge banquet and said to him to be as comfortable as possible before they started their discussions. However, the Pharaoh was impatient, and ordered the meal to be cancelled and started dealing with the problem at hand straight away. He asked the priest when would be the best time for his successor to be chosen and what the prophecy would say about it. The Priest had to oblige and promised he would check the next night and report back to the Pharaoh. As time went by, the young concubines got used to the new court and its demands. They started reading old books and learning new languages, and those who were interested in music, could learn to play an ancient musical instrument as well. Some chose the lyre and others the flute, and the young girl with the stars on her arm chose the mandolin. She was particularly talented and everyone would come to court to listen to her exquisite performance. Her tender, slim fingers were like small white pearls playing and dancing along the strings and the sweetest music was cascading around the listeners, so much so that the Priest was completely enchanted with it. He made a point of talking to this mysterious girl who could play so beautifully. But more urgent things were not going to wait for long, so he occupied himself with the reading of the stars that very night.

CHAPTER 3 THE NIGHT SKY

It was a pitch black night and the clouds had moved in. The Priest was so dissatisfied with this that he ordered the astrologers to wait on the roof of the temple until sunrise and to make sure they come up with some recording of the stars and no fail was permissible. Their job wasn’t easy: they kept staring at the sky and praying that the wind will blow away the last vestiges of the cloud curtain. Finally, their patience was rewarded. Finally, towards sunrise and only a few minutes before the new sun went up, they saw the pale trace of the Small Bear or the constellation that predicted that it was time! The prophecy was true! The young priests couldn’t believe their eyes. They thought they should check it again and make sure but it was too late by then: the first sign of sunlight was slowly creeping in. The stars and the constellations were gone. Very reluctantly they climbed down from the flat roof and went to report to the High Priest. He welcomed them with a frozen look on his face and demanded that he should know all their findings of the night. When he heard that they had seen the Star constellation of the Small Bear he refused to believe them. He became very angry and agitated. He called them “Young fools “and “incompetent dogs” and threw them out of court. Was it possible that the Prophecy was true? This meant that the Pharaoh should choose his successor and he still hadn’t found a worthy candidate for his throne. He began to panic.

CHAPTER 4 WHO WOULD BE THE NEW PHARAOH?

Power and control have always been at the heart of ruler ship and this Pharaoh was no different. He was getting too old to rule but he didn’t want to hand over his rule to a total stranger and therefore he had to devise a new plan, and be quick about it. He decided to pretend to be very sick and called all his sons and relations from far away and set them a task. If anyone from his immediate family was to successfully complete the task, that relative would be selected as the next ruler. He just wanted to make sure that nobody knew about the Prophecy and he hoped that the common people and his nation had long forgotten about the legend of the Stars. He wanted to exit gracefully and with dignity from his post and he wanted his successor to be strong and highly motivated. The only problem was: What sort of task should he set for the candidates? He couldn’t think of anything that would be challenging enough… The next day, at dawn, he summoned the whole court. The family was intrigued by the immediacy of their meeting and they nervously waited for the King to make an entrance. The Pharaoh had donned the best and the most expensive clothes that money could buy and black slaves gracefully stood either side of the throne, waving with beautiful fans made of ostrich feathers and gold. There was silence in the court. Then he began to speak. His voice was very weary and he played the part of the old and sick man very well. Almost all believed him when he said that it was time for him to step down. He announced that there would be a competition and tonight he would set a challenge for anyone who would like to take his place on the throne. He deliberately didn’t mention the Prophecy and he gave all the competitors only one month. The challenge was to bring a type of ink that was invisible, a type of papyrus that didn’t become yellow with age and a pen that would be used indefinitely and never run out. The task was very difficult but as so many people in the court wanted to become the new Pharaoh they immediately jumped at the opportunity and declared they would bring all three items in less than a month, without any delay. They set out on the very next day to fulfill their promise to the Pharaoh.

CHAPTER 5 THE GIRL WITH THE STARS ON HER ARM

What about the girl with the stars on her arm? She was now the favorite concubine in the Priest’s court and overnight her name had become a legend. She was ired by many other concubines and also she was envied by many who wanted to be in her place. Still no one knew her little secret: the stars on her arm that came alive under direct Moon light. She was given many privileges at Court and many irers came just to listen to her play for a few minutes. She was moved to her own quarters and she was given an additional allowance because now she represented the Priest and he was very vein: because of her talent he had become very quickly popular with the nation. The Court gave her a new name which she was supposed to use only before her performances started. They called her Jamilla. (e.g. The Beautiful one). Jamilla preferred her old life when she was a quiet servant and nobody knew her name and she led a peaceful existence: she was very shy and never thought that one day her name will become synonymous with fame and fortune. Many times, late at night when all the other servants and maids slept, she would get up and walk softly towards the window and stand under the direct Moon light. She appeared to be even more beautiful then. A warm glow would spread all around her and her upper arm would start to shine through her dress. Her face was pale and yet so tender and so gentle that to the onlooker it would appear she was talking to the Moon and the stars… Little did she know that she was the bearer of the most important prophecy in the whole Kingdom!

CHAPTER 6 LEVI: BACK HOME IN THE SMALL VILLAGE

The family of the girl continued living their normal life. As time went by, their memories of the youngest daughter became paler and paler, but what we didn’t mention was that she had a young son when she left her home. He grew into a handsome young man and the whole village ired him. He was an excellent rider and he was working in the stables of the local village priest. His name was Levi. He had a head full of curly, black hair and some of the most fantastic wide shoulders that you have ever seen. His large black eyes would scorch you if he was to look at you even for a minute; he was both the most handsome and the most reckless youth in the area and all the young women would swan around him like he was the most beautiful bird in the flock. Everyone wanted to have a small piece of him, but he was totally indifferent to them and their fancies. Levi would go about his daily business and attend to the horses and talk to them while he was feeding them. Like his mom, he had some exceptional qualities when it came to communicating. He could speak to anything that was alive and he believed that they were speaking back to him. He kept himself to himself and hardly ever went out, so some people in the village started gossiping about him, saying he had magical powers. Levi ignored that and continued looking after the horses, grooming them and talking to them softly… Time ed and it was time for Levi to get married. Egyptian men at the village got married quite young and as he already had a job and was very good at it, the family decided to find a wife for him. Little did they know that Levi would never agree to marry a girl who was a complete stranger? So the big day came and Levi’s family arranged to meet the family of the future bride. Everyone gathered around the table and nervously expected a knock on the door, and there it was …Huge baskets full of dates, sweets and dried fruit were laid down on the ground and the future in –laws brought in the young girl who was to be married. Everyone was cheering and everyone was ready to accept the new comer. Her face was veiled as it was in the customs of that time and everyone was dying to see her face. Was she pretty? As pretty as the neighbors said? Could she be a match for the gorgeous black hair of Levi and his

broad shoulders? Certainly he was the most eligible bachelor in the village. His mom called out his name and then she realized that he wasn’t there. The whole family was up in arms and they all were searching for him, but there was no Levi to be found. He had disappeared. His horse was also gone, so they assumed that he had decided to flee.

CHAPTER 7 JAMILLA AND HER MANDOLIN

A few months ed by and the concubines were selected to play in front of the High Priest and to display the beauty of their new dresses. They had become skillful players and musicians and the best of them all was Jamilla. She could capture only in a few musical notes the feelings of sadness and the delights of extreme happiness and everyone who ever heard her play could never forget her. People came from far and wide, from the four corners of the world. Some had travelled for months to come here. Others had taken the slow caravans carrying spices and frankincense to the Middle East and the desert and after many tiring sleepless nights in the hot sand dunes they had come to see the face of the most talented mandolin player in the Kingdom. Their faces were covered with dust and their clothes were filthy and torn but they didn’t care in the least. Their hearts had craved the sound of her mandolin for so long and their feet hurt so badly that as soon as she struck the first cord they were overwhelmed and their fatigue disappeared instantaneously. Have you ever heard the sound of a mandolin? Even though it is a small string instrument it produces the most delicate sounds ever and the most soothing and playful music comes out …quite magical! It is like cascading water over a Rocky River bed: up and down and up and down again! The night of the musical came and the guests were invited in. The Priest was supposed to be seated at the highest point in the hall so he could enjoy the music the most, and in any case the acoustic of the room was so magnificent. It had no roof and was open at the top so that the audience could see the stars and listen to the players as the waves of sound swept across the seats and the chairs. That night the sky was crystal clear and shone like a diamond. Every small and big star was visible and the whole Milky Way could be followed. Jamilla was so nervous that night. When her turn came she stumbled to the main seat designed for her and the other concubines to sit in. Her hands were so expressive and moved so fast that it was difficult for the audience to see them. She placed her right hand on the mandolin and took a deep breath! Could she prove that indeed she was an amazing musician? Soothing notes came from the little instrument and the talking stopped. Everyone was absolutely quiet. And then the music was lifting and rising higher and higher as if it wanted to reach the stars themselves… And the listeners could see the

picture of the small village where Jamilla was born and raised, and the small fishing boats and the waves of the sea. There were boats gliding on the sea and there were little children playing on the beach. She closed her eyes to see them all in her mind and then to tell her story to everyone listening: the bliss of a simple girl growing in a small village, as free as a bird, and as innocent as the white sand. She could hear still the sound of seagulls screeching as they were fishing in the shallow waters by her house. There was nothing more beautiful than that. She could tell it all only with a few pulls at the strings. As her hands continued to move faster and faster the sleeve on her arm came off and revealed a small group of dots which somehow magically started to glow as she was seated directly under the Moon light. The Priest spotted them and held his breath: Did he see what he thought he saw? He raised his arm and signaled that the music should stop. Jamilla suddenly stopped playing and half of the people listening couldn’t believe it. Everyone signed with disappointment. Everyone asked himself why she had stopped so unexpectedly. Why?

CHAPTER 8 LEVI : A JOURNEY TO GLORY

After his sudden escape from home and family Levi headed towards the capital city of Alexandria. On a fairly cold winter’s day his small boat was heading towards the big capital city. It was a foggy morning and the way ahead was not clear so most of the sailors made a torch and lit it up … They led the way to the most magnificent building ever built in Ancient Egypt: The Lighthouse of Alexandria. Inside the lighthouse there were stairs leading to the balcony. It was between 393 and 450 feet tall and was one of the most expensive buildings in the Ancient World. Everyone, from the little children to the old men, called it The Pharos of Alexandria. (Pharos is the Greek word for Lighthouse) The blankets of fog lifted slowly as Levi’s boat was approaching the harbor. When he put his foot down on the solid ground after many days at sea he realized that he was still feeling dizzy. Firm ground felt so good! The narrow streets were crowded and thousands of small stalls and merchants were selling millions of different goods from all over the world. The noise was quite simply unbearable and he lifted his hands to cover his ears. Many different languages were spoken in Alexandria at that time. Levi couldn’t understand some of them but that didn’t stop him from being curious and courageous. What was lying ahead of him was the busiest hub of trade and he knew that this meant a number of adventures and some successes as well as some failures. He took that risk on that day when he decided to leave behind all he knew and face the open seas. His hands were sweating and his heart started beating faster and faster. He might make it here or he might just disappear in the midst of this busy crowd. No one was expecting him here so no one would miss him. But none of these thoughts were obvious on his face: to the outsider he was simply a handsome young man and only a small pulsating nerve at the bottom of his neck was giving away the fact he was nervous. His eyes were scanning the roads ahead and his gaze was focused and clear. He was heading to the Royal Stables in search of work as a horse trainer.

CHAPTER 9 CONSTELLATIONS ARE TALKING: JAMILLA

This part of our story starts with a poem. Please, reader, be patient and listen to it first. This poem will lead us to the next part of the story of Jamilla.

Experience : released

If my hand was a stream, you glide over it. There are storms and hazards on the way But you navigate through them with ease Fingers, palms and toes are velvet The softest of the soft I’ve ever seen.

Eyes are warm and big, and soothing Heart is beating, racing in a dream.

Deliver me from this, amaze me! Unshackle me from every chain! Absorb the light, undo the sadness! Unleash the things that ask to be unleashed.

The day begins, the birds are singing

Alas they missed the sound of your heart. I guess the hand that gently touched me will touch another, making her believe.

It’s time to go. The sun is rising! Don’t fail me! Seek me! Find me and caress me! The stream is flowing and the boat is floating The child in you is ready to swim.

Antonina Scott-Edeson (Jamilla) 16.12.2018

The day that Levi entered the city was an important day for Jamilla. She had no idea that her first born son was entering the city of Alexandria. She got up in exactly the same way as any other day and prepared food for herself and the girls in the temple. Her delicate white hands prepared the dough and made some bread and then she baked it in the oven and then handed over a piece to each girl. She was as skillful with that as she was with the musical instruments: short and swift movements of the hands, a few touches here and there and the bread became round and plump and hot steam raising from it ...It made it look irresistible. A few dates on the top would be the last and the only sweetener that girls would use. Only one day after the performance and her sudden interruption she also had no idea that the High Priest will be looking out for her. He did that very soon after breakfast. The girls were still eating their breads when there was a knock on the door. A few messengers were standing outside. They said just one name and that was “Jamilla”. The Priest wanted to see her immediately. She quickly covered her head and her shoulders and put her beautiful golden

sandals on. Her hair was still untidy and struggling to jump from under her scarf but she had no time to brush it and put it away, so a sweeping wave of black wavy thick hair flowed behind her when she was leaving. Her hair was another thing about her that everyone ired and everyone was jealous of. Where were they taking her? What did they want with her? The stairs were leading down into a dark and deep chamber that was way too far from the temple, and she realized she didn’t know of its existence. They ed through a few gates, slammed behind them and after the third set of gates the guards stopped and ushered her inside a deeper chamber where no one was allowed to enter. Big, heavy doors slammed behind her and she stood, completely alone. There was a seat that looked neither like a pharaoh’s chair nor is a king’s thrown. There was no one around. It was pitch black and apart from a slow glow in one of the corners she couldn’t see anyone or anything. Yet she wasn’t afraid. It took some time for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. The smell of a burning torch and animal fat was everywhere … She breathed in. What was this place? Has she ever been here before? She was asking millions of questions and her mind was racing. Then suddenly there was a swishing noise and a side door slowly opened. A tall and lean figure stood in the door way but it didn’t speak. Instead he approached the chair and sat down quietly. It was impossible for her to discern any face or any features but she knew this was a man of some importance because of the way he walked and the way he was sitting up with his back straight. He sat there for a while, then stood up and lit a few more torches. The light being better now, she could see he was a person of high standing, either royal or someone very important at the Temple. Finally, he spoke and his voice echoed through the chamber…the space was hollow and deep under the ground. “Do you know who I am, child?” he said. “No.” she replied. “There are many things about this temple that most people don’t know. But you

may have seen my face during ceremonies during Solar Eclipse and summer and winter solstice”, he added. She immediately ed attending one of them a few months ago and the fear in her when she saw so many animals being slaughtered and sacrificed to the Gods. It was terribly unsettling and she wished she would forget that dreadful day altogether. What was the point in killing innocent animals for the sake of comforting the Gods? She could never understand that. That happened usually on summer and Winter Solstice when Egyptians believed that the day and the night are fighting to take supremacy over each other as the day and the night were equal length. His eyes were probing her and he was carefully thinking out every word he said. He didn’t mean to scare her but at the same time he wanted to find out about her as much as possible. There is a fine line between being scared and being curious. He seemed friendlier now and he approached her. “So how long have you been at the Temple?” he asked. “Only a few months, your highness” she replied. As she didn’t quite know his ranking she decided to show respect by using the appropriate form of address for a royalty. “Have they been treating you well?” he asked. “Yes, your highness. I have been treated very well.” “I am glad to hear that.” Then he continued by closing on her and reaching out to her arms and shoulders. “I heard that around the Court you are known to be a great mandolin player and everyone is inspired by your performances. Is that true?” Her eyes were starting to ache from straining as she really couldn’t see him and only his voice, echoing in the lower chamber, made her feel terribly nervous. “Yes, Your Highness. Some courtiers say that my music is more beautiful than

anyone else’s but that is not for me to say. I am playing the mandolin from a very young age and for me playing is like breathing. It comes easily. It’s something I do quite spontaneously.” He went quiet for a few minutes. Time seemed to stop. Was he upset or was he simply considering his next few words carefully? She began to wonder if she had said something that she shouldn’t have said. “Can I see your hands, child?” She felt uncomfortable because she didn’t want to lift the sleeves covering her arms and show him their tenderness. Their whiteness was so obvious and her skin was so soft that she feared that he would touch her and then continue to explore them. She had no choice but to obey. She raised her arms and stretched them forward. These arms had never seen hard work or any physical discomfort. They were so fragile and yet so strong and so pale. Their light was reflected in the slow glimmer in the chamber and one small group of lights shimmered a bit brighter than anything else: there were a group of shining dots on her upper right arm. Now that the sleeve had slipped away, she could clearly see them. He made a step back when he saw them. A strange mixture of both surprise and horror was on his face and his eyes closed for a split second. Could this be true? Could this be the constellation that predicted his ruin and the rise of the new Priest or Priestess of the Temple? Is this group of stars even a constellation or was this just his imagination? He had to make sure, so he drew closer to her again and he pulled the sleeve even higher and looked at them again. Yes, indeed there were small dots and the shape they took was exactly as the Ursa Minor or the Small Bear. There was no mistake: this was the Old Prophecy and she, unknowingly, carried the signs of the new Priestess of the Temple. However, she was quite innocent and he could clearly see that she had no idea what her arms were saying to the rest of the world. He had to come up quickly with a new plan. But what plan?

He pulled down the sleeves of her robe and gently covered her arms. For the time being she was no threat to his power and his influence and for as long as she didn’t know anything about the Prophecy she couldn’t do anyone any harm. But having said that, as soon as she found out that she was the prophecy child, she could become greedy and he feared that day, so he had to act quickly. “You can go back now” he said quietly. “Make sure that you always cover your face and arms and your robes are long enough to cover the rest of your body properly” he added carefully afterwards. Now there was a touch of softness and kindness in his voice and he seemed old and tired. What he had feared the most for many years had come true. He didn’t wish to dwell on it. He wanted her to be safe and to be well taken care of, but she should also be followed and spied on, as she could be very dangerous. This part of the plan emerged almost instantaneously. So he should get someone to follow her everywhere and make sure she doesn’t slip out of the Temple. Ever!

CHAPTER 10 WHO WILL BE THE SPY? TIME IS RUNNING OUT: PRIEST (17TH OF DECEMBER)

He spent a sleepless night that night after she was gone. She was the chosen one, but the good news was she didn’t know what she was or what her destiny would be, and he had to prepare things in case someone told her. But first things first: he needed someone who would be relatively new to the Court and the Temple and who would be prepared to work for him for relatively little money. His or her job would be to be Jamilla’s shadow and follow her around without being seen, someone nimble and agile, and in a pretty good shape. His task for this week was to find the most appropriate candidate for the job. His secretary was a bit overwhelmed this morning and annoyed by the fact that too many jobs were waiting to be done and the Priest was so indifferent to them. His eyes had been wondering aimlessly over the last few days and he seemed to be absent minded. The life of the Temple and its running was clearly of no interest to him, and his secretary kept repeating that things need to be done, and they can’t wait. Today some papers needed g and some decrees looked over so his secretary brought him a huge pile of papyruses …It was going to be a long day! There were some newly employed workers as well: a new stable boy and a couple of hand maids.

17th of December 2018 Monday

Heart beats

In the beat of a heart or in the flash of a light The broken waves of the sounds cascading You were here, you were mine, and then you disappeared.

I am waiting for a new awakening….

Where are you now? Where is the light you bring? I am counting the minutes when I will meet you. I am turning pages of experience behind, And imagining you near me and nearer me…

Deprived of sound, deprived of image, You must be just a figment of my imagination. I am searching to revive the pictures of your face. I am tired but I am searching, finding, searching, finding…

Delete me, make me disappear! Is this the pain of being done and gone? I have no power to oppose you and to stop you. I am eternal. I am mortal and I am done.

Antonina Scott-Edeson (Jamilla)

***

CHAPTER 11 MOTHER AND SON WILL MEET TODAY: (AFTER FEBRUARY HALF TERM)FEBRUARY 2019

February 2019, 25th of February, Monday

Once the Priest had a look at the description of the stable boy he immediately decided that this person should be the ideal candidate for a spy, and he immediately made up his mind. He summoned his secretary. When the man came in the only question that the Priest asked was: “Where is this boy? Can you bring him to me?” The secretary said quietly: “Your majesty, he is sleeping but I could wake him up for you”. That’s all the priest was waiting for: he sent for the boy straight away and half an hour later Levi was presented to the High Priest of Egypt. He was nervous and his whole body was shaking and moving so much so that he could hardly cover for his nerves. Never before had he been introduced to such a high ranking official in his life, he had never met a high priest and so therefore he didn’t quite know how to begin. The priest looked at him with a tinge of curiosity as the boy looked rather gentle and refined to be working as a stable boy and grooming the horses. He had a delicate bone structure and his face was very familiar, if not the whole face at least the eyes, and the priest was wondering why he had the feeling he had met him before. The task was how to tell him about his new job as a spy without raising any suspicions in the Court and the boy himself. So the priest had to devise a very clever strategy to lure him in without raising suspicions. He walked across the hall and approached the young man, and then he took his hands in his and looked at them, examining them for a while. They were still young man’s hands. Very gentle and yet the boy’s hands looked like a musician’s hands, not a stable boy. He looked at the face, so delicate yet so strong willed and then asked the boy to look at him. It was a very old Egyptian tradition always to look down in the presence of royalty and anyone from Court: it was considered extremely disrespectful to look at them and to address them directly.

Then the priest spoke, and his voice was soft but demanding respect. “So how long have you been working at the Royal stables, boy?” “For about two months, sir”, he replied. There was no feeling of any kind in this response and the priest asked himself if the boy enjoyed this boring job at all. “This is your chance to make something more of yourself, rather than only tend to the horses. You will start as of today, please. You will be delivering something every day, early in the morning: a letter or a papyrus. You will pick it up from me, here in this room where it will wait for you, on my desk. Then you will deliver it to the concubines’ lodge and get it signed by the head concubine (mother) and then return it back to me, here in my chambers at night, every night, no exceptions. Is that clear? “, asked the priest. “Yes, sir,” said Levi. “Good, that’s the right response.” The priest was pleased with his obedient response. “If I am not here, and my secretary is also out, and there is no one to accept you in my chambers, you should leave the papyrus on my desk. Under no circumstances are you allowed to open and read the scrolls …or and, if I ever find out that you have opened and read them then you will lose your life for that terrible mistake. Is that clear?, added the priest. “Yes, sir, “replied the stable boy. So far everything was going according to plan, really. The priest was beginning to make way towards getting to know this mortal better and he was feeling his influence on him. “Not a bad looking boy,” the priest thought. He would make a very good eunuch one day, he added to himself. He has a very fine bone structure but he is strong and slim and refined in manners, even though he is not well educated. He has a fine pair of hands and he will make an excellent servant, too. Maybe in a few months from now I will reassign him to another job somewhere in court, closer to me, as he doesn’t deserve to work with the rough stable boys in the royal stables, surely.” As he carried on thinking, he seemed to like his plans more and more and a small smile appeared on the priest’s face. So without any delay, he pointed at the scroll sitting and waiting on his desk and ordered the following instructions.

“This is today’s scroll, boy. I want it delivered to the head concubines lodge and signed. As soon as she has signed it, you must bring it back to me. See it’s done. Do you have any questions?” “No, sir”, Levi replied. “You may go now, then.” Levi walked quickly to the priest’s desk and grabbed the scroll and in a few seconds was gone. He was indeed very fast at walking and running and very athletic. The Priest looked at his quick leave and his sudden departure, and somehow the room suddenly felt empty and he was alone again. Solitude closed in on him again. This was a familiar feeling for the priest, and he had stopped fighting it back.

***

Levi was so relieved once he had left the chambers of the priest. This was one of the most powerful people at Egyptian Court and quite naturally he was scared when he was asked to see him today. He had no idea or an inkling why the High Priest would want to see him or talk to him and this new approach to his new job was quite unsettling. Why would he be chosen to do this job? Why him? Why not someone who has worked for the priest longer and who would be more reliable? Levi had no answers to any of those questions and he had no choice but to leave it like that. “Let’s hope that some answers would come later,” he said to himself. He ran towards the concubines’ headquarters. His tunic was flowing gently over his arms and shoulders like the two wings of a white bird. As soon as he got to the main entrance of the concubines’ lodge he had to slow down: there was no one here.

CHAPTER 12 BAZAAR

April 2019 (14th of April) Bazaar: Mission Accomplished

The concubines were out, the mother concubine was out too and the rooms were empty. Levi stood there, by the main entrance not quite sure what his next step should be, as he knew that the Priest had requested a signature from the Mother. He realized he had to come up with a new plan. This was urgent and couldn’t wait. He simply couldn’t go back and face the Priest with no signature. The scroll felt as hot as a piece of coal in his warm, sweaty palm. He looked around and saw a servant standing by the other entrance to the Harem. He approached him and looking puzzled he asked him where everyone had gone today. The servant said that they had gone to the bazaar and would be back in about three hours. They had gone to buy pomegranates: the fruit was considered to be a powerful aphrodisiac. Levi looked at the sun up in the sky and it was far away from midday so he decided to go to the bazaar and if he was lucky he would find the Mother concubine there. Then he said “Bye” and left. This bazaar must have been by far the biggest and the noisiest place that Levi had ever been to. The merchants from as far away as Oman and the Arabian Sea had come here to sell their produce and some were from Europe and others from Africa. At this time Egypt was a powerful empire and all merchants were eager to sell their goods in Egypt. The profits would be usually worth the long journeys they had to make to get here. The wonderfully scented frankincense grains were sold here too. They could be found only in one place alone: on the hot planes and dunes of Oman, where nothing else survived but the frankincense trees. There were also fruits as exotic as pomegranates, oranges, bananas, pineapples and mangos from as far away as Africa and Asia. There were scents and perfumes and herbs and spices from as far as India, and the lands of the Elephants. Who wouldn’t want to come here and smell these wonderful scented foods? Don’t ask about the quality of the fabrics and the cotton and the silks!

They had travelled for months if not years to reach the stalls of Cairo Bazaar. The bazaar was buzzing with people and bargaining customers and noise. Everyone was dealing and wheeling and that was exactly why here the customer could find such good deals on some of the best produce ever made. Everyone had the right to undercut the others but the stall owners were still civil to each other. There were days when there would be fights between them but Levi hoped that today wasn’t going to be one of them. After many hours of weaving between stalls and many questions he managed to track down a small group of girls covered completely from head to foot and led by an elderly lady. She was also very grumpy because she was stuck in the middle of a very difficult bargain with a merchant who refused to give her a discount. She insisted she was entitled to one because she was buying more than one meter of the most gorgeous silk that human eyes had ever laid eyes on. The silk was very, very expensive: it had come all the way from China. She could afford to pay but she was a selfish and shrewd business woman herself. The merchant wouldn’t drop the price and she wouldn’t budge either. The young girls were getting nervous and restless as the crowds surrounding them grew bigger and bigger. Everyone was intrigued by this very stubborn merchant who wouldn’t sell for less money to the Head Concubine. She insisted this was for the Royal Concubines and the Priest would be very unhappy when he would hear of this bad deal. Finally, the two of them came to an arrangement and the bargain was struck. The concubines signed a sigh of relief: they could go on to explore the rest of the bazaar now. Their faces lit with big smiles. It was just then that Levi spotted them in the middle of a large crowd. He could hear the different languages spoken and the voice of the Mother concubine well above everyone else’s. Her Arabic was the one spoken by well educated people and the servants of the High Court, which was different from the language spoken by the common people on the streets of Cairo. He drew closer and heard the last few words of the conversation. He wasn’t sure how long it would take before the concubines would notice him, so he decided to act straight away. A young girl was standing right next to her and noticed him first. Then she took

a step back to make room for him. Her eyes were very sad and very big. She looked down as a concubine she wouldn’t have been allowed to look a man in the eye and it would be very offensive and very rude. With the corner of his eye Levi spotted her but didn’t have the time to think anything of her. As their eyes met, he dismissed her, and approached the Head Concubine. She was annoyed to see a young man standing right next to her so she stopped talking to the merchant and looked at him severely. “What are you staring at? What is your business here?, she asked him in a very displeased voice. He looked back at her and apologized for intruding first and foremost and then he put the scroll from the Priest in her hand. Levi explained that he had been sent to her and he would ask her to read it and sign it promptly. As soon as she heard the name of the High Priest being mentioned she abandoned the negotiations and the deal and grabbed the scroll with both hands. She opened it quickly and started reading it immediately. She was amused and annoyed at the same time. She nodded and said to Levi she would sign it straight away and sent him back to Court. Since she was the head of the Harem she had a special ring with a stamp in the middle that was frequently used as a signature in cases of legal papers and/or royal papers. She removed her ring from her finger and looked around for somewhere where she could put some color on it before she stamped the letter (the scroll). She found a ripe open pomegranate on the stall in front of her; she dipped it in and stamped the letter. A few minutes later the messenger was back on his way to the Court and the High Priest. Mission accomplished.

CHAPTER 13 THE BLUE LOTUS

Jamilla went back with the rest of the girls in a state of turmoil. Where had she seen this face before or where had she seen these eyes before? She wasn’t herself by the time she was standing by the back gates of the Royal Court and the Harem. She knew that these eyes were reminding her of someone she had known in the past but who? She kept asking herself this question all afternoon and the following night, which clearly was a sleepless one …Despite of her efforts she still couldn’t place the face she saw at the bazaar the day before. Her intuition was telling her that the boy wasn’t a stranger yet she knew she had never seen him before. Why are the eyes so similar to hers? That same night Levi went to bed absolutely exhausted He had had a very busy and unusual day. There was something bothering him about the face of the concubine: she was staring at him and she was questioning something about him, as if in surprise? Or was she someone he had seen before? Having no clues to go along he dismissed that thought and tried to sleep. He simply was imagining seeing her before. She was the same as any other concubine and she was definitely a stranger, happening to look like someone he knew in the past…The face and the eyes were haunting him all night. He couldn’t see half of her face as she was covered and just the eyes..? She could be anyone. Summer Solstice: Jamilla and preparations

The next day the sun was up early in the morning as if by the touch of a magician’s wand. He had no recollections of how he fell asleep, and the day was hot right from the start. The heavy mist of the cool morning air was hovering above the dunes in the distance, and the black birds were listless. The beginning of a mirage … The custodians of the tombs those were responsible for the tombs were already clearing the entrance to the tomb and the way to the stairs. This was where the Priest on the platform raised high above the crowds would perform a ceremony on the Day of the Summer Solstice.

As that day was approaching the preparations for the big day were in full swing. The High priest, accompanied by the few chosen concubines, would walk slowly up the stairs and look at the night sky. He would take a reading and the night would finish with some music especially designed for the night. A magnificent dance with the best looking concubines at Court will be the last touch. Plenty of food and drinks would be lavished on the few privileged guests to the ceremony. What were they looking for? They would look for a particular combination of stars: they appeared only once in thousands of years and the next day they would disappear and the summer season would start. This would be a significant sign. If that combination was in a certain shape that would indicate there would be a change in power and the Old Pharaoh would be replaced by a new one. Everyone was busy trying to predict who the new ruler would be, but no one dared to make any predictions as they knew the will of the Present Pharaoh was very clear: no predictions before the day of the Summer Solstice. Or their heads would be chopped off. Being in the centre of the Court and one of the concubines Jamilla was gripped by the same fervor as anyone else. But she had other things on her mind too: she would catch herself thinking about the messenger at the bazaar that day. Every time she thought of him, the stars on her right arm would start to shine. Sometimes she would be aware of it, sometimes she wouldn’t be. She felt like picking up her mandolin and playing in sheer ecstasy. But playing to whom, to what audience? She had no idea, she just felt the connection. As the day drew closer and closer she felt more and more restless, and she wanted to pick up her instrument and play. Maybe she was inspired by the very thought of meeting Levi? A few days before the Official Ceremony she was asked to start practicing. Her performance on the mandolin would be following the ceremony and the reading of the stars in the night sky. She started straight away. Many hours after her fingers started to hurt, she wasn’t ready yet and she grew more and more nervous. Never before she had performed in front of so many people and such a big crowd! It would be a night to either make her future or to destroy her, surely! The most aromatic and delightful blue lotus leaves and petals were collected and

placed in large pots full of water to leave the water to evaporate and remain as delightful scent on the bottom. This was a very basic and primitive way to distill perfume from flower petals but it worked. Thousands of maids were busy picking the petals and the roots of the blue lotus flower. After crashing them they would spread them on the terraces of the Palace. Another big group of servants was busy preparing a scented ointment that was to be rubbed into the skin of the Priest and the few chosen concubines (priestesses) and their bodies were to be washed in a ceremonial bath. Some claimed that the Pharaoh actually bathed in a bath full of milk that would help him continue to keep his youthful looks. Their feet would carry a special tattoo that said: “Follow me!” That way they made sure that anyone following the priestesses, killed during the ceremony, would be allowed life after death. For Jamilla and the rest of the Egyptians after life was just as important as this life. Singing and dancing for the Pharaohs was considered the same as dancing and singing for the Egyptian gods. A group of girls were preparing the bath and another slightly smaller group was preparing the robes and the perfumes for the big day. As the court was a very busy and noisy place Jamilla was forced to retrieve to a smaller and quieter part of the Court where no one could disturb her. One day, soon after sunrise, she performed her normal prayer and she went to the bottom of the courtyard to fill in some jars with water. It had started as a fairly cool day and she was enjoying the cool morning breeze. As she approached the well she heard some servants speak in the distance in whispers. They were talking about one of the stable boys who always would carry messages between the Priest and the Head of the Harem. They were all just gossiping as so early in the morning the rest of the court was still asleep. They were not aware of Jamilla’s presence. One of them said that this boy had been very lucky as he had gained the confidence of the Priest only a few days after he had arrived. Some couldn’t believe it and so they gasped in disbelief. The boy had been allowed to enter the domains of the High priest and talk to him, something that was completely forbidden for anyone working in the Court. He had started listening to the commands and delivering these mysterious messages in the form of scrolls between these two: Head of Harem and Priest. The papyruses looked completely

normal on the outside but no one knew what they contained on the inside. What could these messages be all about? Is it to do with the ancient prophecy of a new pharaoh? Or was it something that no one could even guess? Some servants guessed that would be something about the new Pharaoh as everyone knew that the Priest wanted to become the next ruler. He simply didn’t dare express his ambitions in front of the Pharaoh, as he knew he would be disgraced in front of them all. Secondly, he had a powerful ally in the face of the Head concubine who also wanted to have a slice of that new power. Servants knew there were many people who were vying for the new post but who would be the new ruler? Will the Priest accept a defeat and a lost opportunity again? Or would he fight this time and succeed to the throne? His best confident, Levi, was under close scrutiny, and was being watched carefully by everyone, yet nobody knew if he would read the messages he delivered or not. Would he be brave enough? Or would he be willing to put his life on the line? They guessed he was way too naïve and too innocent to try to interfere in any way. One servant added that if it was him, he wouldn’t even think of opening and reading these messages. It was way too risky. She overheard only some of their conversation and she thought she would be very intrigued to find out who the boy was. She still felt somehow mysteriously drawn to him, like there was an invisible connection between them. She decided to make some secret enquiries on the next day. She filled her jar with fresh water and silently sneaked out of the courtyard.

CHAPTER 14 WILL THEY RECOGNIZE EACH OTHER? POTIONS

It was only two days away from Summer solstice. The preparations were still going on and restless Jamilla now could feel time slipping away from under her feet. She should practice more, and she would do it better if she didn’t constantly think of a way to meet Levi, the stable boy. He had preoccupied her thoughts since that faithful day when she overheard the servants. He was getting up early like her as he had to water the horses before sunrise and clean the stables before the rest of the day was underway. So she decided to seek him out when everyone was still sleeping and surprise him. Despite of many questions put to some other servants she couldn’t find out any more about him. He had recently arrived and came off a small ship at Alexandria, after many weeks of sailing and he just got a new job as a stable boy. Soon afterwards, he had become the priest’s messenger. The rest was complete mystery to the rest of the servants. He was very quiet and very private keeping himself to himself most of the time. He shared no information about the scrolls he was delivering because he had taken an oath of silence in front of the High priest. His private life was an enigma and no one knew where exactly he had come from. Jamilla knew that if he were to know who she really was, a concubine, he wouldn’t dare speak to her because all concubines were officially the property of the Pharaoh. She decided to disguise herself. The current Pharaoh had up to one thousand concubines. She prepared a small bottle full of most mysterious potion which if he were to drink, he would be very willing to chat to her, under the influence. It was a combination of opium and something else she had never used before. She decided to pour it into something he would normally drink in the morning. With her plan ready, she set out to meet him on the very next day.

Levi’s story

Next day Levi got up really early as he had so many small chores to finish before

he was to be asked to deliver a papyrus. He got dressed quickly and after a quick splash of water on his face he headed to the stables. There the horses were quietly chomping at the hay and it was peaceful and dark. He sat next to his favorite horse and started listening for any signs of life at Court. This was his most favorite and sacred time of day, when the rest of the world had almost completely forgotten about him and he could focus on his own thoughts and feelings. Was there any particular reason why he felt so anxious today? The ceremony was only a day away and he didn’t feel prepared for it. He had not attended this event before so he didn’t know what to expect. By birth he came from a small peaceful village where people rarely celebrated anything, except for marriages and births and deaths. This was the Royal Court and he suddenly realized that his life had changed completely over the last few weeks, and he hadn’t had even the chance to comprehend it completely. Was he the same person that arrived only a month ago at the port of Alexandria? As he was dwelling on this question, he heard some noise behind him and he turned around. There, in front of him, in the dusk was the short and delicate figure of a woman. She was covered from head to toe and only a small slit in the middle of her scarf indicated that this was a woman, not a man. He jumped up and was ready to speak when she just gestured with her hand as if to say: Be quiet! Don’t make a sound!, so he sat down again. He wasn’t surprised: he was shocked to see her in this place. She was very quiet and very calm, sat down next to him and then spoke softly. “Don’t be afraid and don’t be shocked. I am here to speak to you, that is all”. Her face was kind and peaceful. He looked more closely at her and tried to where before he had seen these eyes again. Then as a flash he ed: at the bazaar! This was the same woman who looked at him at the bazaar on the day he met the Mother concubine. He was intrigued again; he had no idea who she was. She introduced herself and said she was one of the concubines. She said she was also a musician and she blushed as she added that most people loved listening to her play. Then she revealed her face and he saw the same big soft eyes and the

sadness inside them. “I am Jamilla, nice to meet you.” Her voice sounded so soft and so delicate that he was afraid to speak back to her. He was both intrigued and so comfortable with her presence that a few minutes later they were deep in conversation, describing their first days at Royal Court and how they ed the time. Their experiences were very similar: the fear of the unknown at the beginning and then the millions of questions about their future. He had come seeking a job and she had come to please the High Priest and the Pharaoh, the most powerful person on this land. But they both had come to experience the loneliness and the fear and the anxiety …they were almost identical, but they were different ages. She told him she had a small boy before she had left in her village and she had no idea what had happened to him lately she would think of him all the time. And she would cry for hours on end. He nodded thinking of his own mom, and his own family back home. He was big enough to be her son, and he wandered what may have happened to her since he left his own small village. Somehow things seemed the same yet different and half of the morning had gone by the time they finished their stories. Life was full of surprises, they both thought and somehow they had a lot in common, which was nice. They didn’t belong to this place. They both craved a simpler and more ordinary life. It was almost past six o clock when suddenly noises coming from the court woke up everyone and that meant they had to stop chatting. She had to go back to the Palace. He was late for the first chore of the day and he was still very nervous about tomorrow. She did the best she could to reassure him, and said that she was also very nervous. She mentioned she would be playing at the ceremony the next day and she would be delighted to see him there. He couldn’t promise her anything but he said he would try to attend. Then she picked up her silk scarf, wrapped it around her head and she was gone, just as quietly as she had arrived. For a few minutes he asked himself if what just had happened was a dream or was reality.

CHAPTER 15 SOBEK: THE FERTILITY GOD

Finally, the big day was here. Then all the preparations wouldn’t have been in vain if the crowd and the Priest and the Pharaoh were happy. All servants had worked long shifts and day and night and now just wanted the day to be over. Jamilla’s fingers had become sore and she was aching all over, especially her finger tips but she was keen to see the ceremony and the Pharaoh who she had never seen before. Levi was also very excited and very nervous. The High priestesses working in the Temple were the most significant of participants in this day. They were expected to carry in their arms big bowls full of dates that symbolized fertility and also the juice of the petals of the lotus flower, which was another powerful symbol of eternal life. It was also considered a strong aphrodisiac that was given only to the most prestigious part of the Egyptian court. Other priestesses were carrying bowls full of aromatic incense as an offering to the Gods. They were dressed in pure white robes that signified their purity and the fact that they were virgins. On the previous day they had been washed in special baths full of milk and honey. Afterwards their body had been treated with special aromatic oils that would make their body smell exquisitely. Their dress was made of the finest linen and of the highest quality as Egyptian cotton was also very much preferred in official ceremonies but was not fine enough. They would wear special sandals made of crocodile skin as the crocodile God Sobek was highly respected. According to legends he was responsible for the fertility along the river Nile, which was the biggest river in the kingdom. He was usually carved out of soft wood and he would have the body of a human and the head of a crocodile. Everyone in Egypt worshipped him and prayed to Him. Jamilla was also expected to be dressed as a high priestess and to wear crocodile skin sandals. She was getting her ceremonial dress ready when someone suddenly entered her chambers. “Are you ready for tonight?” The Priest had suddenly placed himself right next to her and demanding an answer. “Yes, I am ready”, she said and she wandered if she really was or just wanted desperately to be.

He seemed to be satisfied with her answer and he took his leave quickly. She rearranged the material on her dress and checked that the leather around her ankles would be strong enough to carry her up the stairs without breaking half way up. Then she checked her ceremonial bowl and cleaned it again. Then she placed some dry blue lotus petals and some dry dates inside, mixing it with some perfumes. Now she was almost ready to get dressed.

The Priest Story

As he was descending downs the stairs and practicing going up and down yet again, he was wondering how successful this night would be. This would be the most important night of the year for him. What would the Egyptian Gods say tonight? What about the stars and the constellations? There were so many important factors tonight and each and everyone could be either his doom or his success. He said to himself to be ready for all would be the best plan. So he had decided to prepare well in case there was any disaster or any failure. He had asked a couple of servants to prepare a secret age behind the Temple and to take him out in case of emergency after the Ceremony were over. He had forced them to make an oath to be quiet and not to share this with anyone, under the threat of taking their lives. The mask of a crocodile was sitting quietly on the throne in front of him, waiting to be put on his head. The Priest laughed! He had spent hundreds of hours getting ready for this day and finally the day was here! His tomb was also waiting: now that it was ready and fully furnished for his after life, he was so pleased that he started the preparations early. He had time to finish everything. His most loyal servants had been given clear instructions and a small vial of poison should they need to him in his afterlife and his trip to there. A golden chariot was sitting in the middle of the tomb and the chests were full of food and drink. There were even some musical instruments that would accompany him on the way. He asked himself if he had done enough to please the Gods, especially Sobek, the God of Fertility and Osiris and Isis. The hideous smile on the mask

was looking at him as if to say: Did you do enough to please me?” The Priest sighed and walked out onto the courtyard. Then he inspected the stairs, the footpath leading to the steps and the secret gates that led to the age. Everything was exactly as it should be. He was satisfied. He turned around and silently left the stage.

CHAPTER 16 THE NIGHT OF THE CEREMONY: PROPHECY IS FULFILLED

That night was to be ed as one of the most significant nights of the Egyptian society. The few signs were pointing at the election of a new pharaoh and a lot of people were afraid of the outcome of the reading of the High Priest and Priestesses tonight. For thousands of years the story of the Egyptian rulers was written by the sayings and the words of the priests, they were the only ones entitled to read the language of the stars. They were the only ones that knew how to do it. They would take the markers off the night stars at the night of beginning of summer because the God of Sun was reborn on that night and the sunrise at the start of a new day usually also meant the rise of a new dynasty of rulers. That meant a time of turmoil for the ordinary people of Egypt and they feared these ceremonies as much as they ired them for the Pharaohs were always lavishing all the guests, even the mere mortals, with a lot of gifts and a number of dignitaries and kings and queens were invited to this ritual. This was a big day for everyone, from the slaves and the prostitutes to the richest parts of Egyptian society, the Royal Court and the Concubines in the Harem. Everyone was expecting it with their own set of expectations and yet no one would know the outcome: the stars would speak and their destiny would be etched in the star charts drawn by the helpers to the Priests court. They would triangulate the positions of a group of stars and from there they would draw a conclusion about the future ruler. The days of the Big Prophesy were drawing near. Who would live to see the new priest and the new pharaoh? And who would live and who would die? Approaching midnight the procession of priests and their servants were lined up in front of the gates and led towards the Temple and its chambers. For this very special day and night the engineers had built a special scaffolding and a small platform that rose high above the rest of the temple, so that everyone down below could see the priest and his actions and hear his words. He wouldn’t normally say much but whatever he did say was of uttermost significance and concerned everyone, the whole nation. He had been preparing for months but he was very nervous tonight. As he climbed up the steps he almost fell because he tripped over his long white

gown and a few servants leaped up to hold him. He was embarrassed and a bit ashamed: was this going to be a night of a disaster? He had done this so many times before but then he was younger and stronger and these stairs didn’t present a challenge. But now it was different: he was getting older and his legs were caving in. He stood in the middle of the platform and raised his arms up. He looked at the night sky, there were no clouds and a brilliant display of big stars was straight above him. This was a good omen. Then he started chanting and swaying and his arms were growing heavier and heavier and his eyelids closed as if he was dreaming. He grasped a small bowl full of a liquid no one knew he had prepared the day before. He raised it and drank, then continued chanting …He made sure that everyone could hear him. His eyelids were closed now, and he started listening to the whispers of the crowd that was growing impatient with him. Then he opened his eyes and looked up at the sky. He didn’t need an instrument to measure anything: there, in the space far ahead, he could see the stars in the shape of the Small Bear. He knew straight away the meaning of the prophecy and he was terrified by this moment. How would he say this news to the Pharaoh and to the people of Egypt? But he had no choice. Resolved now and determined more than ever before, he kneeled and he raised his arms even higher then. He stopped chanting and he said aloud only a couple of words. No one knew what they meant because the language of the High priests was different from anyone else. He gestured with one arm and he was given a piece of papyrus to write or to draw on. No, wait, this was no ordinary papyrus: it was actually a chart or a drawing of all the constellations one could see on the night. He was simply looking for a pattern that signified this was the Small Bear. He found it in the right hand corner of the map and then he sighed. It was true! There was no time to lose, he needed to inform the Pharaoh and save himself, if the Ruler would save his life and not get his head chopped off. Shaking and scared he raised from the platform and his bones themselves were shaking inside his body. He was about to close the ceremony when someone in the crowd in front of him shouted: “what are the stars saying your Highness?’ He wouldn’t want to answer the question. He just collapsed back on the stage.

Two younger priestesses came down to help him rise and carried him off the stage delicately as he was now very old and frail. The chanting of the rest of them continued and the crowds were getting ready to disperse. The Pharaoh got up and immediately drew closer to the priest. He couldn’t wait any longer. He snatched the star map from the old man’s hands and shouted at him. Well? What did they say? The Priest went quiet for a minute longer, and then he gathered his courage and said very quietly: “This is the old prophesy. The stars have spoken; there will be a new Pharaoh soon.” In his anger and frustration the Ruler screamed in total despair and was rushed out of the temple chambers. His guards followed him and then his servants and maids. The priest collected himself and ordered the priestesses to escort him back to his rooms. There was to be no celebrations and no music tonight. That meant that Jamilla didn’t need to play on her mandolin, so she felt relieved. She picked up her instrument and slowly walked back to her chambers. At the top of her right arm a gentle glow of light was barely visible and only the High priest knew what it meant. Little did she know that she was destined to become the new High Priestess!

CHAPTER 17 THE NEW PRIESTESS

She couldn’t understand the full meaning of the events that took place tonight but she had a bad premonition. Her servant was also very restless that night and kept checking if there was someone at the door. Finally, just before dawn she must have fallen asleep. When she woke up a few hours later there was noise and commotion all around. The servants were wailing and the girls were packing their belongings as if they were getting ready to leave. Everyone was running around. She got up and rushed to the main door. Her servant was also packing. She looked scared and she didn’t look at Jamilla. “What’s going on? Where is everyone going?” She asked. “Miss, the priest is dead and everyone is trying to save their life. The Pharaoh has ordered everyone working for the High Priest to be killed and to be replaced by a new priest and priestesses. “She looked terrified. Jamilla sat down on the floor. What would she do now? If she was right and the priest was really dead, there was only one way out: she would have to flee like everyone else. She ran towards his chambers and knocked on the main gate to the Priests chamber. She kept knocking but there was no answer. A few seconds later the guards ran down the doors and the crowd rushed in. There was no sign of the High Priest. He had gone. The map with the constellations was also gone. But there, next to the throne where he would normally sit during ceremonies, she found a small piece of papyrus. It was folded into four parts so she snatched it and ran out as quickly as possible. There was an inscription on the papers. She intended to decipher what it said. As she moved the group of stars on her arm started to glow again faintly under her robe.

Levi’s Story

Levi didn’t see the whole ceremony because he had so much to do and take care of the horses and all the carriages. Some chariots were glamorous and made of pure cover of gold so were really heavy, and others were simpler and easier to move. They were made of high quality wood. He went to bed late, like Jamilla and he was looking forward to a good night’s sleep. However, he was soon woken up by the noise and commotion at the Temple. He ran towards it hoping to find some small fight between two servants but what he found there, definitely exceeded his expectations. People were screaming that the High Priest had gone and there was no trace of him. No one knew his whereabouts and no one could find his servants and his maids. His clothes were gone too and his throne was empty. Levi was so scared. He didn’t know what to expect. A new priest would spell troubles for all of them, including him. Pharaoh’s guards were standing in front of the main gate, not letting anyone , except for the Pharaoh himself. There was no end to the panic that had set in. Thousands of people were being pushed out of the way as the guards were searching for the Priests possessions and ripping open everything in their way. Furniture, chairs and tables and other pieces and still nothing was found. He decided to find another servant working in the stables and ask him about the most recent events. He ran out and started looking but the stables were empty too and everyone working for the priest had gone.

Jamilla’s story

She ran out of there and headed to the stables because there she would find some peace and quiet, away from the busy crowds …She sat down and unfolded the paper, there she could read only one sentence. It said:” The first born of the woman with the stars on her arm is the new Pharaoh of this land”. As she did that she felt the first touch of sunlight on her right arm and when she looked up at it she could see the stars shining and glowing. The sunrise on the

very first day of summer! She couldn’t believe what she saw! She re read the words once more and then she looked up at her own arm to see, yet again, the same group of small tiny stars shining. They were shaped as the small Bear and that must be significant, although she wasn’t quite sure how. The words were written on a piece of the parchment used as the night stars chart. So she was destined to be the New Priestess at the Temple and her son to be the new Pharaoh!