Ennead: Ancient Bit: Part 8

She had expected Mahad to be insufferable when he had finally taken his place amongst the High Priests of the Pharaoh and took on a Millennium Item.

She hadn’t expected him to enter her room in the palace, pale and wide eyed, trembling like a leaf, and sit down on her chair, his voice trembling as he spoke, “Ba-Khu-Ra... I...”

“So you finally believe me?” The thief turned temporary ‘servant to the Crown Prince’ so she could be around for the investigation the Princess was pushing, asked as she took in Mahad’s demeanour.

“Y...Yes.” Mahad’s tone echoed his disgust and disbelief as he stared at the Millennium Item in his hand. “How could the Pharaoh do something like that?” He asked, staring at her, eyes still wide, “How could he...?”

“Apparently he couldn’t. He had to send his brother to do it for him, remember?” Ba-Khu-Ra growled, pacing the room.

“I’m going to demand an audience with the Pharaoh.” Mahad decided, “He needs to be told if he doesn’t know already.”

“Why not let her highness confront him? She’s less likely to get the...” Ba-Khu-Ra drew her hand across her throat. “Not that I mind if you want to put your head on the chopping block, but I have plans to fulfil before I die.”

“Because I don’t want the Princess involved.” Mahad shook his head, “Considering the lengths they went to bury this information, I doubt even she would be safe and Egypt needs her.”

“Huh.” Ba-Khu-Ra supposed that made some kind of sense. As much as she wanted the Pharaoh and his brother to pay for their crimes, the anarchy that would befall Egypt if there was no heir when the Pharaoh died wasn’t worth it.

“I’ll go.” Mahad straightened himself out, “I can show him the proof using the Millennium Ring and he’ll have to atone for what he has done.”

“I’ll come with you.” Ba-Khu-Ra surprised Mahad by deciding. “I’ve been waiting for years for someone to confront the Pharaoh with proof and I wouldn’t miss this for the world. Besides someone has got to watch your back. I can’t be bothered to break in a new minion at this point.”

“I am not your minion.” Mahad scowled at her.

“No,” Ba-Khu-Ra allowed, “But you are her highness’s and between the pair of us, we’ve got you well trained.”

Mahad just stared at her for a moment longer before a small smile settled on his features, “Alright, but I’m not sure you’ll want to see the illusion when I show him...”

“The illusion would be nothing compared to living it and I’ve done that already.” The former thief shrugged, “Let’s go.”

Ennead: Ancient Bit: Part 6

“We could take a break if you want?” The Princess offered, easily able to see how frustrated her student was getting.

“No.” The thief grouched, glowering at the hieroglyphs. They were beginning to make sense, but it wasn’t as easy as she had thought it would be. She was actually embarrassed at the amount of trouble she was having. The Princess made it look so easy, but then the eleven year old had learned to read and write at a much younger age, mostly by sneaking into her brother’s lessons. “I’m going to get this.”

Doing so would make breaking in and out of tombs so much easier. She would be able to read the warnings that the architects had left for themselves so they could avoid traps. She would also be able to work out what scrolls were valuable and could be sold to certain parties for a high price.

She just had to understand what the hell each of the symbols actually meant. Hieroglyphs were really complicated and symbols could mean different things if they were paired with different symbols and the whole system of writing made no sense. Hieratic script had been much, much easier to understand, even if she still struggled with it a bit.

Still she had a fellow student now. She was pretty sure it was Mahad’s revenge on the Princess for dropping her on him. Mana, who had been the Princess’s best friend and who had gone home for a while after the Anubis, had returned to the palace to be there for the ‘Prince’ and Mahad. She, of course, had known the difference instantly and had had to swear herself into secrecy along with the rest of the Princess’s small group of confidents, but Mahad had decided that she could catch up on her missed studies by learning from the Princess as he didn’t have time to teach between his own studies and the investigation into Akenaten’s misdeeds.

Frustratingly Mana already knew how to read, but that was fine because Bakura was learning plenty from just watching the Princess try and teach the other girl magic.

“I do have one idea,” Mana commented as the Princess’s stomach rumbled, as she stretched, having taken a break, “What about a trip to the kitchens?”

“Food?” The Princess perked up, having been just as irritated as her student. She knew she was hitting a barrier with Ba-Khu-Ra and she wasn’t sure how to get around it. She wanted to, but she didn’t know how.

“Sure, whatever.” Ba-Khu-Ra wasn’t going to object to a free meal. Money wasn’t too much of an issue any more, not when she tended to make a slight detour each time she left the palace ground. However she had lived with nothing for so long that she wasn’t above taking advantage of free food. “I could use a break anyway.”

They quickly packed up, carrying their tools with them as they made their way past the throne room and down to the kitchens. They were nearly there, in fact they could smell the food cooking when they bumped into the Pharaoh and a couple of the priests.

Well aware of Ba-Khu-Ra’s feelings towards her father and the rest of the High Priests, the Princess subtly gestured to Mana as she spoke with her father. Unfortunately Mana didn’t get a chance to pull the thief girl aside before her father turned to the two girls.

“And who are you two?” He asked, looking them over.

“This is Mana.” The Princess spoke quickly, gesturing to the girl, “And...”

“I’m Ba-Khu-Ra.” The Princess only just managed to keep any signs of distress off of her features as the thief girl stepped forward with a bow and a surprising amount of deference. Still the Princess couldn’t help but hold her breath as the thief straightened and continued, “Of Kul Elna.”

The Pharaoh didn’t respond to the name but Akenaten did. If the Princess had had any doubts about the fact her uncle was involved in what had happened to Ba-Khu-Ra’s village, they vanished as she watched her uncle turn as white as a sheet and backup slightly, staring at the thief as if he had seen a ghost.

Now they just needed hard evidence and they could take it to her father and get justice for the thief girl’s home.

“They’re Mahad’s students.” The Princess spoke up, drawing attention back to her, “We’re learning magic together.”

“And where is Mahad?” The Pharaoh asked, “I require a word with him.”

The Princess hesitated. She wasn’t sure where Mahad was. He had spoke about needing to speak with some contacts and vanished a few hours ago. “I’m not sure.” She said slowly, thinking, “Lessons are over. We were just about to do some extra revision and get a snack.”

“If you see him, send him to the throne room.” Her father nodded, looking thoughtful. “Something important’s come up and I must speak with him urgently.”

“Yes, Father.”