Chapter 21: The King’s Harem
The wooden double doors revealed the golden-armored figure of King Horus. For Nia, the striking, almost heroic cut of the hawk king made her think for a second that she was looking at an angel of light—as if in front of her stood St. Michael the Archangel in the disguise of a hawkman.
Nia and Thalya, both now members of the king’s harem, knelt, not so much in deference but out of self-preservation, though there had been more instinctive deference than either would ever care to admit.
Along the king’s side came the hawkwoman Actae. She moved towards the harem, ready to order the women to approach the king side-by-side but the powerful arm of the king kept her back.
“That won’t be necessary, Actae,” Horus said.
The hawkwoman nodded with obedience. “Yes, Your Highness.”
“Now, my brides,” Horus said, putting his hands forward. “You may both be at ease.”
The two women did as was told, including Nia even as she bristled at the thought of being someone else’s bride against her will.
Standing seemingly in between the two captive women, Horus first looked to Thalya, whose outfit certainly left little to the imagination; the hawk king could not undress her with his eyes because in truth, there was little to be undressed. The red-skinned princess was thus the first to be approached.
“Oho,” Horus said. “It’s the dragon princess herself, playing the role of the temptress.”
As the hawk king said this, he took her in his arms, and held her tight.
Thalya responded by putting her hands to caress the cheeks of Horus.
“I am here to serve, Your Highness,” she said. “In any way you like.”
Those words were said in such soothing ways; had Horus been just a little bit tipsy, he would have believed it; in fact, he wanted desperately to believe that Thalya was being genuine. Yet he knew full well that Thalya was lying through her teeth.
The words of the temptress taste of honey, but they are laced with poison, thought the hawk king. Yet he spoke as if satisfied, “Very good, my lovely”.
Horus released Thalya, then turned to Nia. It wasn’t lost on the hawk king that the Sethite woman remained in the very same clothing he had taken her in. Yet somehow, that simply made her even more beautiful.
“The Sethite woman,” Horus said. “Nia, is it?”
“T-that’s me,” responded Nia, her tone nervous.
“You didn’t change,” the hawk king stated flatly.
Nia nodded. “Apologies, I mean no offense. This is who I am, Your Highness. And I have no intention of hiding that.”
“Is that so?” Horus said, his tone amused.
Almost suddenly, Horus reached to grab Nia, but as soon as the hawk king touched her, Nia recoiled and fell behind—like a frightened kitten trying to get away from the grasp of a predatory hawk.
Nia quickly realized her mistake, and she looked to Horus, half expecting that the hawk king would now strike her dead.
But instead, Horus laughed heartily, and he laughed for a good few seconds before he calmed down. Nia did not know if she should be relieved, or offended.
“This is… delicious,” Horus said. “Nia Ennis, you truly are as you appear.”
Nia said nothing in response; she truly was at a loss for words.
The hawk king spared alternating glances—first towards Thalya, then at Nia. His voice boomed once more, “You have thus far lived up to my expectations… both of you. Now I shall retire myself to my chambers for now, be sure to expect my summons, hoho.”
With that, King Horus of Ra turned to leave, followed by his servant Actae who tailed him like a shadow.
***
The gilded cage was quiet and tense after the departure of Horus. From across the room, Nia could see Thalya giving her a dirty look as if she had just condemned her to death.
Nia spoke, “Something you want say, Thalya?”
Thalya frowned, her hands looked as if she might throw a punch. “As a matter of fact, there is. What was that before? You’re going to get me killed!”
“Well excuse me for not knowing how to act like a whore!” Nia shot back.
“How dare you!”
But the double-door opened once more, and Actae stepped into the room.
“Greetings, Nia Ennis,” Actae said. “His Majesty King Horus desires your presence.”
Nia’s eyes widened. “Me?”
The UEC Lieutenant did not want to comply, but in truth there was nothing she could have done at this point. She would just have to go face-to-face against the hawk king and hope for the best.
And Thalya from a distance smirked as she watched Nia being taken out of the room. The thought of her hated rival alone and at the mercy of the hawk king was simply too good to not dwell upon.
***
The hallways of the Hawk King’s domain looked grand and otherworldly at the same time. The stone walls had hints of purple—Nia did not know it yet, but she was looking at the float-stones that made up much of the Floating City of Ra. But of more interest was actually Actae, the hawkwoman currently escorting her.
Following her from behind, Nia couldn’t help but catch a strange sight, at times blocked by her wings, but visible enough that the Earthwoman couldn’t look away—it was a scar at the neck of the hawkwoman.
“Actae,” Nia said, almost casually. “Or should I call you Lady Actae?”
Actae didn’t answer, but Nia was far from deterred by the hawkwoman’s silence, so she continued,
“If you don’t mind me asking… why do you have a wound at the back of your neck? Are you hurt?”
Once again, Actae remained silent, as she was trying her hardest not to humor the sudden intrusion of an unexpectedly nosy Sethite woman.
“Not even the medic gun could…”
“Lady Nia,” Actae interrupted, finally speaking. “Have you ever heard about the tragedy of Lady Claudia, the first wife of King Horus?”
“No,” Nia said, shaking her head. “I can’t say I have.”
“Then listen to me well, ye daughter of Seth,” Actae said. “Lady Claudia… Queen Claudia was the deeply beloved wife of Lord Horus, King of Ra. But when the king’s own mother plotted against him to put his younger brother on the throne, Horus had them both killed. But matricide and fratricide, even in self-defense, has a way of leaving a mark on one’s soul. One day, while King Horus was by himself in the dark of his chambers, Queen Claudia entered, so worried she was for her husband. But Horus thought his Queen was trying to kill him also, and so he had her beheaded in a fit of rage. By the time he realized his error, it was too late. Queen Claudia lost her head, because she couldn’t leave things well enough alone.”
Nia’s eyes widened. “O-okay. I think I get the message.”
“Do you?” said Actae.
Nia nodded. It was an extreme way to ward off another person from poking into one’s business, but it was certainly effective.
It was at this point that Actae and Nia finally reached another double-door, one of polished gold intermixed with silver with a hint of purplish float-stone.
“Beyond here is His Highness King Horus,” Actae said, pushing the door open as she continued to face Nia. “May you enjoy your time with him.”
Nia, still in awe, resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the last statement. Instead, she entered to find the hawk king Horus at a distance next to a bed; not in the intimidating golden armor that he wore before, but instead in the toga that made him seem… approachable, even with the imperial purple adorning it.
Then the double-door closed, leaving Nia now locked in with King Horus.
“Y-your Highness,” said Nia.
“My Sethite Queen, Nia Ennis,” Horus said, tapping the bed with a hand. “Come, there’s no need to be shy.”
But Nia remained rooted to the spot, and she shook her head. “I can’t.”
Horus narrowed his eyes. “Surely you jest, Nia Ennis. You know what is expected of you.”
“P-please, Your Majesty,” Nia said.
Horus ignored Nia’s plea and flew straight at her, and immediately he pinned Nia to the wall.
For Nia, a look at the hawk king’s eyes told all, a man simply consumed by his own passions. Try as she might, she simply could not dislodge King Horus; he was simply too strong. It was at this point that the gravity of what was about to happen dawned on Nia. Yet even with that very prospect, she thought not for her own sake but for her beloved—what he would have thought when he found her defiled. Tears began flowing from her eyes.
“I’m sorry, Abel,” she said, sniffing.
It was that very mention of the name that held Horus in his tracks, his eyes widened. “Did you say… Abel?”
Nia nodded weakly.
Horus spoke again, his tone aggressive and demanding. “This Abel, who is he to you?”
“Abel…,” Nia began, her face drenched in tears, “is the man I love. The man I wish to marry, to bear his children, to grow old with, and to go to Heaven together. Forever.”
The hawk king paused, frankly flabbergasted to hear the spirited and tearful confession of the woman in front of him. He then thought of this Abel she spoke of, Abel Ramsey of whom he knew of—of whom he had wronged. The Abel Ramsey whose cries of anguish he still remembered as he fled with the woman he surely loved.
King Horus loosened his hold, and released Nia from his grasp. The hawk king turned his back on the Earthwoman, as if he couldn’t bear to look her in the eye.
“Go,” he said. “I dare not violate the love of so many tears.”
And to make his point further, King Horus called for Actae. The servant arrived with a punctual efficiency, and took Nia away from the king’s chambers as was ordered. In all honesty, it was all a blur for Nia after the hawk king had released her; she was simply too overwhelmed, a part of her still struggled to believe it. But in time, she began to calm down, and had regained her bearings by the time she was returned back to her gilded cage.
Nia entered to see Thalya, seemingly smug and smirking, but soon her face turned to frown for reasons she did not quite catch.
Then, it was Thalya’s turn to face the hawk king.
***
Thalya was not happy; in fact, she seethed with great anger. She had been taking great inward pleasure of imagining how anguished Nia Ennis must have been when King Horus finally took her innocence. Instead, she looked calm, as if nothing had happened. And worst of all, Actae had all but confirmed her suspicion… that nothing indeed happened, and Horus simply returned the Sethite woman back, just like that.
A part of her wanted to contradict the hawkwoman, but she knew better. There was no reason to suspect lying on her part. And if anything, it would make sense. Very little time had passed; in truth, Thalya had expected Nia to be gone for much longer.
Before the Kruptosian Princess knew it, Lady Actae had opened the polished-gold double-door, revealing King Horus inside.
Reluctantly but with a brave face, Thalya entered the king’s chambers. The door quickly closed behind her, leaving the Princess of Kruptos alone with the King of Ra.
Horus tapped the bed next to him. “I have been denied once today. I will not be denied a second time.”
Thalya moved ever closer.
***
Nia lied down on her bed. As she looked to the ceiling above, a part of her still thought of her very-near experience. Yet there was no guarantee that King Horus would not change his mind in the near future. She also thought of Abel; deep in her heart, she knew he was coming, he must.
Sleep soon overtook her.
…
Light returned to Nia’s vision, and she soon realized that she must have dozed off. Maybe Thalya had a point about the beauty sleep thing, Nia thought.
It was then that she realized Thalya was still missing, meaning that she had been gone for a while.
As if on cue, the double door shook. Nia waited, fully expecting to see Thalya back, but instead she only saw Actae.
“Lady Actae?” Nia said, confused. “I thought you’d be with Thalya.”
“At the moment, the Hawk Tribe is currently in union with the Dragon Tribe,” responded Actae.
Though the hawkwoman’s response sounded like a non-answer, Nia caught the implication immediately.
“I… I see,” Nia said. “But then what are you doing here?”
Actae sat on the bed, next to Nia. With the two women now side-by-side, Actae spoke:
“I wish to confess, Lady Nia.”
“Confess? About what?”
“Who I really am. For my true name is not Actae…”
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