Raymond smiled with satisfaction into the bright sunlight as he let the intense white heat cascade over him. The sun’s rays reached down from the heavens and caressed him like a long-pined-for lover. He breathed in the heady scent of Egypt, the arid desert and damp marshland.
The Nile gently lapped against the hull of his boat, filling him with an easy joy.
He opened his eyes, taking in the timeless dichotomy of Egypt. The vibrant, razor-thin strip of green allowed life and culture to flourish, and beyond lay the desolate and deadly sand-colored cliffs. A crane swooped in and stood amid the swaying river grass, its long, skinny legs submerged in the cool, rich river silt, patiently waiting for its hapless prey to shimmy by.
Not unlike Raymond.
He wanted to burn this moment into his memory, so he would remember how it felt to be surrounded by perfection and balance. Thankfully, the humans would soon have a strong hand to guide them. Then they would understand perfection like this. Raymond was familiar with their willful ways and assumed they would initially put up a fight against his imposed yoke. But that wouldn’t last long. They should be grateful he chose to rule and not exterminate them. How could fragile mortals ever expect to best a God?
His thoughts rolled back to the ridiculous celebration the city officials had given him in honor of the indecently large cash contribution he’d made to their “conservation fund.” Raymond was certain that by giving him their prized hovercraft they were showing him a deep respect. His gaze wandered over to the sand-colored hulking machine parked in the distance. Raymond wasn’t exactly sure what he was going to do with the craft, but he couldn’t refuse it once the gift was offered. One thing Raymond was sure of, his “donation” wasn’t going to restore any temples or tombs. That suited him just fine. All he wanted was to be left alone, and in Egypt cash could buy solitude.
What did he care about the temples of humans anyway? No one worshipped or made offerings to the Gods any longer. The crumbling stones did his kind no good. If they had, he and his family wouldn’t be stuck in this unbearable situation. The humans would soon have a leader who would pull in the reins and save them from themselves.
The sound of a minion’s heavy and determined footsteps slamming against the teak deck broke his contemplative mood. The minions’ performance was disappointing. As soon as he had full command of the power source, they would be eliminated. Once he had limitless powers he would be able to create much more dependable servants.
“Great Master, we are at your command. The captive will not awake from the severing spell until after we are scheduled to sail tonight. What will you have us do with him?”
Raymond sighed. That idiot Jorge had turned up again. Hadn’t he warned the man to stay away from himself and Others? He’d been useful in the past in gathering information. But in this instance he was useless.
These minions were not much better at orders than that mortal, Jorge.
They needed everything completely spelled out for them. They were pretty close to useless. Was it the many centuries of waiting to be called to duty that had greatly diminished their abilities? “Take him away. Leave him where he will be easily found.”
“Yes, Oh Golden One. We will take him right away.” The minion turned and walked away.
Raymond shook his head with disgust. “After dark, you imbecile,” he yelled at the retreating minion.
It spun around and faced Raymond. “Yes, Light of the World. After dark it will be.” It turned and made its way below decks.
Raymond cringed at the god-awful monikers they were compelled to call him. Yet another reason to toss them in the trash heap. If they were worth their salt, he would have already had this Alex Philothea in his grasp.
She probably had no idea what it was she was up against. Probably those idiots at KHNM were bungling their side of things. She probably wouldn’t be pursuing him so hard if she knew everything. He chuckled to himself. The pathetic futility of it all. The date doesn’t fall far from the tree. He’d killed her father all those years ago, over the artifact, and now he was eager to coat his hands in the blood of Phillip’s daughter. Put an end to that balderdash of a prophecy.
At least Raymond knew his quarry was heading toward him. It didn’t take much interrogation to get the information out of the pathetic creature his daughter had dragged on board last night. She’d found him sniffing around Raymond’s boat. Witnessing a severing spell was never pleasant, even when it was spun by as skilled a practitioner as she. Besides all the screaming and pleading, listening to Jorge rant on about aliens and some stargate pushed the limits of Raymond’s patience.
Jorge turned out to be a special case. Each severing spell cast on him pulled his personal orbit ever closer to the Others, the magical residue within him putting him on a tragic trajectory. The mortal mind can only handle so much. He’d had so many severing spells the synaptic connections between what he experienced and the memory implants must have become indecipherable and distorted like an old, over-played cassette tape. No wonder he had fixated on aliens. Over the years Jorge became like a sick mongrel dog the family couldn’t quite ignore or put out of its misery. Did it stem from a grudging affection or sheer entertainment value?
Raymond guessed the latter.
His chest tightened as he thought of the sad cargo stored below decks. Nearly the entire set of his family’s sacrificial essences were encased in sterile delicate glass tubes. Anxiety snaked its way through him. Dead. They were dead. By his hand. Only two more of the required were left to find.
He must get to his sacred space.
Where was his daughter? She should be there by now. The task just involved a little light stalking. She should be able to handle that.
Raymond reached for his binoculars, surveying the surrounding marshland. As he searched for his daughter’s small craft, a felucca in the distance caught his eye. He zoomed in. The vision came into focus. He spotted a plain-looking brunette with glasses reading a book, all alone.
His smile returned.