Page 57 of Ra
Azi rubbed her thumb over the scarab she still held in her hand. She looked up at Abasi. “You knew all along it would be me.”
Abasi inclined his head one single time, maintaining eye contact with her, taking full responsibility for his part in it. “I deduced properly. I knew in order for all the parts to fall correctly into place, the individual to activate the prophecy would have be someone who loves Egypt the way my people do. When I met your father, which I arranged to seem it was quite by chance, he had a little daughter. I placed all my faith on the fact that you would be the one we’d awaited. I was right.”
“Because you made it so.”
“I did not make it so. I simply gave you all the pieces if you chose to act upon your destiny.”
“You knew where the temple was. You knew that I was supposed to stumble upon it, release Ra, and fall in love with him. You arranged it so that I would find the temple.”
“I did. But I didn’t force you to free him by inserting your scarab into the hollow in the wall. I didn’t force you to spend time with him. Those parts were you. It was instinct on your part.”
“You started tapping around the interior of the temple, looking for something, being sure that I would see it so that I’d be curious to do the same after you left.”
Abasi, lifted his hands ever so slightly into the air. “It was simply an unspoken suggestion. You didn’t have to follow it.”
“Apparently, I did,” Azi said. She looked at her father, tears slightly dampening her gaze. “Where did you get this scarab?”
“Abasi found it. He gifted it to me, suggested I could turn it into a piece of jewelry for you. He said he found it in the market, it wasn’t actually from ancient times. I knew better, and told him so. That was when he told me of The Scarab Prophecy, and how he believed it would be you to free the gods of ancient Egypt. The Egyptologist in me, couldn’t look away. I had the scarab set on a brass band and gave it to you, knowing you were meant for greatness!” Dr. Clement said excitedly. “I wanted so badly to meet them. I was consumed with a need to witness their existence for myself. And I knew that you would feel the same! It was a gift!”
“It wasn’t a gift. I stopped being your daughter and became a puzzle piece.”
“That’s not true, Azenath. I always knew you were my daughter. I did what I did for your future, too!”
Azi shook her head. “You are my father. You were supposed to protect me. Guide me. Not use me for some grandiose scheme to bring the gods of the ancient world back to life!”
“I am, and I did. Can you imagine beingtheEgyptologist to bring them all back to the world? The fame you would gain! The notoriety! Not to mention, the power! You'd be forever associated with the gods of Egypt, Azenath! Your name would live forever! I hope you can imagine it, because that is what’s about to happen! What better gift could a father give to his daughter? All the things you would gain as a result of fulfilling the prophecy would far outweigh the little white lies we all had to tell in order to nudge you toward the truth,” her father said.
“Little white lies? You structured my entire life to have me standing in this exact spot at this exact time. You influencedevery interest I ever had. If I so much as glanced in a different direction you corralled me! You put your own grandiose dreams into play, using me to do it.”
“But aren’t you happy, Azenath? Aren’t you fulfilled? Do you not love him?” her father asked.
Azi closed her eyes as she tried to ground herself, doing her best to work through the emotions so that her decisions and actions wouldn’t be driven by hurt and deception. In order to do that, she needed more facts. “Did you know it would be me? Did you destine me for this particular task?” she asked Neith.
Neith considered any number of answers she could give, including none at all. Finally, she decided the truth, draped in a bit of a needs-to-know basis was best. “I knew itcouldbe you.”
“How long have you known?” she asked, turning her attention to Ra.
He’d remained somewhat quiet, knowing that eventually she’d turn her hurt his way. He’d already decided the only way to address this was with honesty. None of the others had given her that until she’d already been made aware of what was going on, and still they made excuses for their behavior. “I have always known the terms of the prophecy. I did not know of you personally until the day that you and your assistant stepped into the temple.”
Azi shook her head. “So, you’ve known that in order to live your life again, or still, you would have to make some unknowing human fall in love with you, and you never hesitated to do so.”
“No! That is absolutely wrong!”
“How so, Ra?” she asked, disgust practically dripping from her words. “You watched me. You knew it would be me! How much more planned could it have been?”
“I did watch you. I admired you. Your intelligence. Your curiosity. Your love of my culture. Your strength. Your determination. Your beauty. I watched you, for years. Youtreated every single inch of my temple with reverence. You whispered prayers to me and the others in thanks for allowing you into our midst. You protected and preserved everything you found, every single little thing you came across with the utmost care and respect. And that wasn’t all. You spoke to those working for you with kindness and respect. At the time I still believed they were your servants, and I’d never seen anyone display such a kindness and caring toward their servants. You even worked alongside them, rather than simply giving direction and walking away. You loved everything about my world, about my people, about my history. I knew then that not only were you special, but that you were the one I’d waited for, for thousands of years. The only one that could save me from the nothingness I’d been locked in. But do you hear what I’m saying, Azi? I watched you and admired you long before I had no further doubts that you were the one I waited for.”
“You behaved as though you didn’t know me when you first arrived,” Azi challenged.
“I couldn’t very well say, I’m here! I’ve been watching you! Help me live forever! It would have gone against the rules Neith set out. But I knew who you were. I knew what I thought of you already. I knew the respect and regard I had already developed for you. From the moment I chased you out of the temple, every single thing I did and said was real. There was no pretense. The world and all its oddities, I didn’t know! How could I? I was astounded, astonished, lost and even a little frightened after I figured out I was no more than a human myself. But despite your own fear of me and everything you were experiencing, you guided me through it, you taught me, you took care of me.” His eyes widened as he realized what had happened without either of them even noticing, even before they became more than friends. “Azi, you opened your heart to me. You gave your heart willinglyto help me, to protect me and show me how to live in your world.”
“Anyone would have,” she said resignedly.
“No, they wouldn’t. Please understand that not a single thing I’ve said or done has been false. None of it has been untrue in any way. All I felt, all I did, all I’ve wanted, you’ve seen and witnessed. It’s real, Azi. And the whole time, all I’ve needed has been you. Ultimately, all I want is you. Life, with you.”
“This is certainly an interesting turn of events. I must say, I never expected it,” Neith said.
“This is not one of your games, Neith. This is her life!” Ra bellowed.
