The Best Friend's Return
The Best Friend's Return
I was waiting in my room, sitting on a stool and performing my evening ablutions, growing impatient. I knew *she* was about to arrive. The moment her knuckles rapped against my door, I rushed to open it.
Tall, imposing, and proud, Misra stood on the doorstep. Upon catching sight of my face, she flashed a wide, toothy grin, her sharp canines peeking out.
"If it isn’t the Queen of Kedet…"
The warrior bowed, her forehead nearly touching the floor.
"Oh, Chosen of the Six, I salute You in all Your grandeur!" she exclaimed, her words echoing through the corridors of the Temple of Ta-Hapi.
I grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her into my bedroom.
"Enough, Misra! Do not speak to me like that… We moved past that stage a long time ago," I chided, still holding her wrist.
With a look that was almost predatory, she straightened up and hoisted me into the air. I could not help but laugh as she spun me around in her arms. It was clear that we were both overjoyed to finally be reunited.
"Oh, Misra," I breathed, still suspended in the air, "how is it that I only just found out you had been appointed General and Captain of the Apep-Duat?"
"Neferneith, the other general, remains the one with the greatest renown… for now. But I intend to fight both on the battlefield and in the political arena to surpass her. Not to mention the fact that you were absent for a long time, early in your reign…"
I could not tell if this was meant as a reproach or not. But coming from her, it probably was not.
"We have come such a long way, the two of us! On parallel paths, unfortunately… yet both leading to glory."
"It seems they aren’t quite so parallel anymore," the warrior replied, drawing ever closer to me.
Instinctively, I placed a hand against her chest to stop her. Her eyes widened slightly in confusion.
"Oh, Misra… forgive me, you are not aware… I can no longer open my heart to you, at least not the way I once did."
To my great dismay, she burst into laughter.
"Well, you certainly ain’t wastin’ any time! Though I suspect many women would dream of building a life by your side."
Knowing me all too well, she immediately sensed that something was different.
"No, it can’t be…! A man? *You*!? How times have changed since we lived together in that temple, Semet!"
"Stop it!" I protested, striking her shoulder, trying hard not to blush at her teasing. "He is a wonderful man, actually. A bit… peculiar, perhaps, but he is a good person."
Misra was brimming with curiosity, and perhaps a touch of jealousy, but she simply set me back down on the ground with great care. "In that case, I’ll refrain from bombarding you with questions. For now, at least. But tell me, what about the Ssta-Mastaba arch…?"
She had clearly, and quite abruptly, shifted the subject.
"Well… I do not know what to do. Something is happening, that much is certain. But I am paralyzed by fear… That is why I called you back. Destroying these things does not seem to stem the problem… if anything, it is having the opposite effect…"
"You have every right to be afraid, Semet. That said, there’s something you seem to be forgetting."
I tilted my head, questioning her.
"You are no longer Semet the little girl, fleeing from the Grays during a night raid. That Semet has long since ceased to exist. You now stand at the head of the greatest nation in the world. The wealthiest, the strongest, and the most influential. We are a peaceful people, but we are also powerful. Do you remember what happened to the Grays after that attack?"
"Honestly… not really. Everything from that time is a blur."
"Kedet sent the army to wipe them out. While the element of surprise had left us little time to organize and counter their offensive, we held a clear tactical advantage. Not to mention our equipment… Suffice it to say, they stood no chance when we launched our own incursion to eliminate them. The Queen at the time granted them a small patch of land, if only to avoid accusations of genocide, but, for all intents and purposes, they were utterly destroyed."
"I do not understand why you are bringing this up with me, Misra…"
"Kedet is a nation that feels empathy towards humans and other intelligent beings. But should it ever find itself in danger, it begins to bare its teeth. These things, on the other side of the portal, they ain’t even no civilization. They are barely horrific creatures, driven to kill anything that moves. Let’s not give ‘em the chance to strike first. Put me in command of entire legions, and I will purge those cursed lands of their presence the moment it becomes possible to cross over."
"You want… you want me to raise an army to launch a *blind* attack on whatever lies beyond the portal?"
"Exactly. Of course, we’ll need to show a bit more finesse than that… But yes. Let’s get ready."
With a long sigh, I rested my head back against Misra’s shoulder.
"I hope everything goes well. The citizens are counting on me… on us."