The Feast of The Tail Ch. 11

Isis arrived at the temple of Isis and headed directly for the High Priestess. "I had a dream," Isis said to Tem, a tall woman with fair skin and sharp cheekbones, garbed in a black robe, "two dreams, actually. Messages from Netjer Isis."

"Come." Tem replied in her unusually deep voice, gesturing towards the sacrarium.

They walked past paintings of green, red and blue, of palm leaves and lily pads. They walked under the winged scarab archways, inhaling the solar kyphi that rose from large ceramic pots, as priestesses murmured and chanted all around them. There were no priests in the temple of Isis, not this one. Isis' eyes adjusted to the dimness inside the temple, and the coolness of the stone around them, a welcome respite from the heat of the sun. She saw Nefi as she looked around, their eyes met and something passed between them, but Isis looked towards Tem, telling Nefi with her eyes that the time for talk would come later. Together they passed down a corridor lined with giant granite cows under a canopy of blue tiles and white stars. The walls were covered with kites taking flight, circling the room.

"In here," Tem directed Isis to the antechamber of the temple, "then we may speak in private."

After Isis entered, Tem closed the door behind them using a key in the shape of an ankh to close the stone behind them and seal them inside. "Now," she said, "tell me everything."

Isis related to her the vision of Djhutmose on the throne, with green skin. She retold the story of Hatshepsut's conception. She told Tem of the blood, and rejuvenation, of the golden light and the city she had never seen that reached to the sky. The High Priestess listened attentively, never taking her eyes of Isis, while she pressed her palms together and rested her fingers over her lips.

"I even saw Egypt buried under the sands. Tem, what do you think it means?"

"There is a lot to take in. Do you remember all of it?"

"There are some parts I may have forgotten. There was just so much happening, and all this in two nights of dreams!"

"You said there was a child?"

"Yes, my child. A Horus child."

"That is quite a prophecy."

"Yes. Do you think it could be a son of Djhutmose?"

"Let me think on these things." The High Priestess replied as she breathed in deeply and closed her eyes, Isis knew Tem was drawing her magic inwards, directing her attention towards the future, sending out her questions to the goddess who spoke within her. "Yes. The son of Djhutmose. A child of your union will be a holy child. But the visions are unclear, full of chaos. You said you dreamt of Djhutmose in pieces? Of a burning library? What else?"

"Sitamun, I think she was hurt." Isis frowned, sadness spreading across her face. "There were so many symbols. Tem, what do I do?"

"If there is a danger of our knowledge being lost to fire I must tell The House of Life to make copies of every papyrus, to preserve every hymn and sacred utterance. I will seal our knowledge away safely. I cannot risk it being lost. I will do this today."

"But High Priestess, what of my brother? And my sister? Are they safe?"

Tem turned to Isis, her eyes full of sorrow. "Ibib, we cannot prevent things from coming to pass. The scrolls I can save, if only one library burns. But your family?" Tem sighed a heavy sigh and lay a hand on Isis' shoulder, "I cannot say that they are safe. And any effort to prevent what you saw could cause it to happen. But, do not weigh your heart just yet, what you see in your visions may not be true in the way you expect. Dreams have a strange way of showing us the path."

Isis began to cry. "But Tem, I cannot let that happen. You just said that Djhuti's son would be a holy child. That is my destiny, he cannot die if that is my destiny."

"No, I do not think that it will. The symbolism around Djhutmose is the same as the story of Osiris. Perhaps it only means he will be betrayed, or that he must descend before he can rise again. You saw him on the throne. You have a child by him, a child you saw, whose face you would recognise. That much is certain. It would be very strange for those omens to enter a dream otherwise. If it were the shadow of a child, I would saw it was the beginning of something new, not an actual child. Em hotep. Do not let the dreams rule your life. They do not mean what you think. Do not carry fear any longer, it will only do you harm."

"Yes, you are right," she sniffed, composing herself, "I will be at peace. I will let the goddess guide me."

"Good. After all, in your visions you have great power and sit the throne, no? There is much that is pleasing. "Now tell me, do you see any part of your life which aligns with these dreams?"

"Yes, I can see myself by Djhuti's side. I have already spoken to him about it. But Tem, in my dream Netjer Isis lifted her veil for me, she said I am the resurrection, she said I am magic, she said I will make the next Pharaoh. But in my first dream I did not know how to open the way, I couldn't do what was needed. Tem, I must learn the magic of the temple now. Forgive me, but I do not think it can wait."

The High Priestess was silent, but she looked Isis up and down, as if weighing her heart. "If Isis has willed it, so it will be. I would have initiated you to the sacred rites sooner or later, but a dream such as this cannot be ignored. First, I must go to Per Ankh, the House of Life, to preserve the sacred scrolls, the hymns and the spells of the Neteru. I will consult the Book of Nut, we must wait for the next full moon, on that night we will make you a full priestess of Isis. Speak with me tomorrow, I must go now."

"Nehem ta, High Priestess." Isis bowed her head as she was dismissed. She left the way she had come, leaving Tem to her work and divination. On her way out she saw Nefitari dressing the statues of Isis in fresh robes.

"Nefi, I have spoken to the High Priestess about my dreams. I still didn't tell you how Isis lifted her veil."

"I am free, my ears will listen." Nefi replied, as she continued to wrap fresh cloth over the statue, slowly and reverently.

Isis retold the whole thing to Nefitari, the visions of Djhutmose and the throne, and of the blood and magic, of the child and the city being lost under the sands. "Is there anything you can unveil, does your eye see something I or the High Priestess have not?"

Nefi looked at her thoughtfully, then began to lay fresh flowers at the feet of the statue, fragrant lotuses and marigolds whose scent permeated the air. Isis waited for her friend to reply, and helped her to separate the flowers from their stems before scattering them at the base of every statue in the hall.

Finally Nefi began to speak, "Isis had black skin in your vision, the colour of inundation. A sign of fertility, regrowth, the cycles of life. You become gold, you transmute yourself, you become light. But in the dream, the ankh that Netjer Isis gave to you, you give to Djhutmose. Isis I am worried that the dream tells us that you will give your life for his."

"You think I am in danger?"

"Yes. I think it is you that is in danger, not Djhutmose. And there is another message: Isis, I think you are destined to become Pharaoh instead of him. In our stories Osiris is resurrected, yes. But he remains in the Duat while Isis raises her son Horus to rule on earth. I think Hatshepsut is guiding you, telling you that you will be Pharaoh of Egypt, but that they will try to stop you. They do not want a woman to sit the throne again. They will try to erase your name, but you cannot let them. As for the rest, I cannot make sense of it."

"But that doesn't make sense, Nefi. How could I be Pharaoh when my father has many sons?"

"I don't k-" Before she could finish speaking a woman ran breathless into the temple.

"Your majesty, I am sorry to interrupt," said the woman as she flung herself at their feet, "but your mother has requested your presence at the palace. It is nearly noon, and she says it cannot wait."

"Alright, I will come now." Isis spoke to the servant before addressing Nefitari. "I will speak with you again later, irek heru nofer." She knew her mother was probably angry with her for her disappearance last night, so she began to prepare her excuses.

Notes for this chapter on the ancient Egyptian language

The House of Life - Places of learning where knowledge was kept in written and pictorial form. In some ways similar to a library. Priests and scribes would learn and teach how to write the sacred hieroglyphs (holy writing).

Per Ankh - Literally means the 'House of Life'

The Book of Nut - an astrological text containing myths and charts depicting the course of the stars, the planets and the movements of the sun and moon.

Nehem ta - Thank you (to a female)

Irek heru nofer - Have a nice day