D E S E R T ❁ D E S I R ES// A.BAY

MEMORIES OF A LIFE BEFORE

----Thebes, 3,000 years ago, Temple of Sekhmet----

Inside the temple's prayer room, one lone priestess kneeled before a statue. The gold cast likeness of the feline goddess Sekhmet stood looking forward, a staff clutched in hand. The priestess prayed among the swirling incense smoke, giving thanks to her matron deity. Her peaceful atmosphere was disturbed by the sound of hurried footsteps rushing down the corridor.

"High priestess Tiye!" One of the temples retainers was panting and out of breath. They had sprinted all the way from the temple entrance with urgency. 

"Why have I been disturbed during my prayer hour?" Tiye turned towards the retainer.

"Apologies but t-the Pharoah a-at the palace-!"

"Catch your breath before you speak, I can't understand what you are saying."

The retainer had rushed over to prayer room as soon as the palace attendant brought forth the news. As one of the Pharoah's spiritual confidants, Tiye was between her priestly responsibilities and her political duties. The retainer regained their composure and straightened their posture. "The Pharoah has been murdered. He was stabbed to death in his chambers by his mistress."

"What?!"That treacherous woman! Has she been arrested?!" Tiye was up from the floor; prayers will have to wait.

"She killed herself just has the Medjay found them."

"I must go to the palace at once. Only the Gods know what kind of uproar this will cause."

"Princess Nefertiti has also died tonight. She alerted the Medjay to the scene and they later found her fallen from her balcony. They believe the shock of seeing her father's murder caused her to faint and fall over the edge." Tiye's face soured. Princess Nefertiti had not only trained under Tiye, but she considered her a friend as well.

"Then I must make haste." Tiye walked through the halls of the temple and straight for the stables. She would ride straight to the palace. The fate of the kingdom now laid in the hands of Seti's oldest son, a boy of only 8 years old. The boy lost both a father and a sister in one night, but he won't have the time to mourn them properly, he has just inherited an empire.

Tiye was let through the palace entrance without a word from the guards. She was well known around the palace for assisting the royal family. The Medjay were on high alert. The murderer was dead, but they stayed on guard none the less. Among the shuffling guards she spotted Zahur, one of the commanders of the Medjay. He was ordering his men with firm authority before he made eye contact with Tiye. 

He dismissed the men in front of him as she approached. She was the first of the Pharoah's confidants to arrive. Zahur usually had an aversion to the company the pharaoh tended to keep but Tiye was a priestess above all else. She used her position to serve her Goddess and her people first. "Zahur." she greeted.

"High Priestess Tiye."

"I'd like to see them." Zahur didn't say a word. He quietly led her to the room the three bodies lay in. She skipped over the first one knowing exactly who was under the sheet. The hand that stuck out belonged to Nefertiti without a doubt, as the bracelet Tiye gifted her sat proudly on her cold wrist. Tiya pulled the sheet neatly down the body of the pharaoh. 

"I see why you have your men on alert Commander." Tiye had seen her fair share of battle wounds. She's inflicted and treated every kind imaginable so she can tell with a glance some of the wounds were caused by a sword while the others we're inflicted by a smaller blade. "Two murderers, one dead, and another on the loose."

"Both weapons had been left in the room. I think there may be more people involved than we believe." Zaher said sternly.

"Most likely. It would be hard to get away covered in blood without being seen. No one's come forward so the culprit must have other accomplices." Tiye had pulled the sheet back over Seti gently. She moved to Anksunamun's body next. She saw the self-inflicted stab wound but not much else. Her body paint was smeared in some places, but that could have been from the incident or when the body was moved. She pulled the sheet back over, the murderous mistress.