Namesake | By : lotusbalm Category: M through R > Mummy, The (All) > Mummy, The (All) Views: 5765 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0 |
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Namesake
Chapter 10 The black clad women veered to the left, leading Tiri and Laxmi along a curved sand path carved into the mountain by man-made methods. Almost as soon as they were on the path they were swallowed up by natural earthen coverage; large boulders, hills and shrubs blocked their view of the group of men they had just left behind. Tiri peered around curiously as they walked along the nature path between the two mountains, every once in a while catching a glimpse of a tiny dark figure curiously peering back down at her from within large stone archways seamlessly blending into the mountain landscape. The pathway inclined; large slabs of stone laid down as steps were now necessary to make the steep climb. At the top of the climb was a severe cut into the earth. A perfectly level sandstone courtyard lay sprawling before them. The enormous space was nestled within the surrounding mountains, giving it the benefit of shade during the times of day when the sun wasn't at its height. This was one of those times as the sun was slowly sinking behind the mountains. The courtyard buzzed with hundreds of bodies. Taking up most of the space was a large formation of black clad warriors who were doing some sort of Medjai exercise drills with their scimitars. Their superiors walked along the paths of men, crying out indistinct instructions before the warriors sharply melted into a new warring pose. On the outskirts surrounding these men were women, children, and the elderly either idly talking amongst their groups of friends, frolicking (in the children's cases), or watching the drills that the warriors did with a keen eye. When Tiri and Laxmi stepped into the courtyard with the small group of women leading them the people surrounding them, and even warriors close enough to them, stopped what they were doing and stared at the newcomers. Tiri felt like she was under the microscope. 'Oh Gods look at all of them!' she thought with a lurch to her stomach. Somehow this seemed to make the supernatural secrets even more believable than Hamunaptra itself! All these people were dedicating their lives to guarding the secrets of Egypt... A young warrior suddenly wolf whistled. Almost immediately his superior disarmed the distracted warrior and elbowed him in the gut with the hilt of his scimitar, leaving him gasping for air. The courtyard was filled with laughter. Tiri was absolutely mortified at this point. She crossed her arms over her chest, wishing with all her might for a shirt of a normal length. Another warrior nearby, taking the opportune moment of everyone's laughter, nodded in Tiri's direction and asked the girls leading them along, "Whose Medjai bride is that?" The veiled girls leading Tiri and Laxmi along tittered amongst themselves and picked up the pace. The veiled girls escorted them into a room built into the base of a mountain clear across the other side of the courtyard from which they came. They pushed through thick black linen cloth to enter the room. It was a vast communal bath where young and old Medjai women alike primped and washed and gossiped amongst themselves. The women in this space were in various states of undress, so Laxmi and Tiri didn't stick out as much with their bare midriffs showing. Still, they gained brief curious stares as they were led along a path to a soothing room swathed in gleaming dark blue tile and natural stone cut bathing areas. It was quiet obvious that everyone knew everyone in this large, secret village, and visitors came few and far in between and were therefore a hot commodity. Laxmi, who had been uncharacteristically quite while taking in her surroundings, finally turned to Tiri. She was practically buzzing with excitement. She gave an indulgent sigh. "Did you see all of those hot young warriors? I think I've died and gone to paradise!" Tiri watched the veiled girls go over to a tiled counter filled with vials and pots of aromatic substances. They started to mix ingredients together. Tiri turned back to Laxmi and whispered, "Yeah, well, in our get-ups those warriors probably think that we're 'entertainment!'" Laxmi gasped - but there was an absurd little smile on her face. Trust Laxmi to be amused by the thought that someone had mistaken her for a prostitute. "What'd that warrior say?" Tiri clammed up and suddenly was unable to meet Laxmi's gaze. Laxmi peered at her. Her eyes were slitted. "What'd he say?" She sighed in exasperation when Tiri wasn't too forthcoming. "Damn, I should've paid attention to mum's boring Arabic lessons. All I can say is-" She proceeded to spurt stereotypical and lewd Arabic phrases. The veiled girls gasped at Laxmi's crudeness. "Laxmi!" Tiri hissed out in rebuke. Tiri apologized to the girls, but one stepped forward with a little laugh. "Do not apologize," she spoke in English with a heavy Arabic lilt. 'Oh,' Tiri thought with some surprise. The girl continued, "Your friend is funny. It is nice to have western visitors. You will find that, outside of the city, Egypt is a very conservative place. The Medjai has always been more lenient with how our women are brought up. We only veil ourselves in the harshest heat of the day and when greeting visitors... Just in case there is someone easily offended lurking about," she finished with a wink, pulling off her robes to show that she was in a rather pretty black and silver tunic dress reminiscent of the material that Ardeth Bay wore that night in the library. The dress bared most of her shoulders and her legs from the knee downwards. The other two girls took it as their cue to eagerly take off their stifling robes as well. Tiri noticed the fact that these young women were all excellently toned. She had a feeling they did some Medjai training of their own. The same girl spoke again. "I am Jahira, and these are my cousins Aaliyah," she said, pointing to the shorter of the two remaining girls, "and Karawan." The girls lightly bowed their greetings. "I'm Laxmi," Tiri's best friend said with a grin and a moxie waggle of her fingers in a wave. The Medjai girls laughed at her silliness. "Tiri," she introduced herself. "It's nice to meet you all," she said with a gracious smile. "We would never ever force you into being someone's bride!" Aaliyah, the short one, squeaked out in a rush all of the sudden. Laxmi raised a brow at that very strange outburst while Tiri, who knew what the warrior had asked, blushed. Jahira took it as her cue to explain, "Tiri has a streak of blue in her hair. It is our custom in our culture that when a girl becomes a women she gets blue dyed into her hair. It is considered a mark of beauty to the Medjai. Just as our men get the sacred marks on their face, arms and hands when they become a man. Aqil was misinformed," she said with a sigh and a roll of her eyes. "He asked us who Tiri was betrothed to because he saw the blue in her hair. Most Medjai girls have blue in their hair when they wed but it is not truly a sign that they are betrothed, just that they have blossomed into a woman." "Oh," Tiri said in dawning understanding, toying with the streak in her hair. "I've never heard of such a custom in all the stories my grandfather's told me. How long has that tradition been around?" Jahira started her tale with a smile as the other two Medjai girls continued making the salve for Tiri's neck wound. "The custom started long ago when the Medjai first started guarding the City of the Dead for Pharaoh Seti I. At that time," Jahira continued, "the Medjai was led by Head Chieftain Menetnashte. He was known throughout Egypt as 'the Powerful One Who Thrives in the Harshest of Deserts' and he had twelve sons that he brought up to be just as powerful, if not more so, than he... "Each was made Chieftain of his own army of Medjai warriors, who were loyal to him and his region of Egypt. Head Chieftain Menetnashte's youngest son was given the task of protecting Hamunaptra. You see," she said conspiratorially, "Pharaoh was very anxious to gain the approval and influence of the Medjai - because the Medjai would be a most powerful ally to his empire. Our ancestors had kept invaders from breaking through Egypt's borders for centuries and, in truth, the Medjai's vast army greatly outnumbered Pharaoh's own Egyptian army, so appeasing the Medjai was a necessity for the Pharaoh to keep harmony in his empire. It was as the Pharaoh was entertaining Head Chieftain Menetnashte and his twelve sons that our custom first formed," she said, while caressing her own indigo streak for emphasis. "For the youngest Medjai Chieftain came to fall in love with Nefertiri, the princess of Egypt. It was forbidden, however, because the princess was betrothed to her brother, Ramses II." Tiri suddenly flashed back to the colossal statue of Ramses II housed in the Cairo Museum of Antiquities. It is what she had been looking at with a feeling of déjà vu... "Ramses II was Seti I's successor to the throne of Egypt. He was, however, off expanding Egypt's borders at the time. So the young Medjai Chieftain and the princess had time to grow close. Princess Nefertiri was known for her beauty throughout the land, and one of the favorite beautifiers that ancient Egyptians liked to employ was henna or blue-black Nubian wigs. The princess was, of course, a trendsetter and, during the time she and the Medjai Chieftain fell in love, she had fashioned her hair to have one streak of blue at the nape of her neck. It, of course, became the fashion, and after her untimely death, Medjai women tried to ensnare the young Medjai Chieftain by doing their hair in the same style as his beloved princess had. The tradition stuck with our people, and that is why it is seen as a symbol of beauty," Jahira concluded. Jahira's tragic Medjai love story made Tiri's hair stand on end. She inaudibly shivered from the sudden hypersensitivity to her skin. Suddenly there was way more to Nefertiri than just a princess who had fallen off a balcony. "Wow," Laxmi said, impressed with the story. "No wonder Ardeth Bay couldn't keep his hands off you," she added jokingly to Tiri. "You were tempting him with your blue beauty mark!" A palpable silence descended upon the room. Tiri wanted to throttle her unfiltered best friend. Laxmi's eyes widened when she finally realized that she'd put her foot in her mouth. "Oh, um... None of you are his wife, are you?" Jahira shook her head adamantly in the negative. All three Medjai girls were staring at Tiri in wonder. "The Head Chieftain has never taken a wife... Is he pursuing you? Truly?" Tiri shifted her eyes around the room. She was horribly tongue-tied in this moment. What if it was against their law or something that he kiss an outsider? She didn't want to have Ardeth Bay getting in trouble with his people on her conscience. Plus, in truth, she really didn't have the first clue what Ardeth Bay was doing with her. Warning her of impending danger while copping a feel while he was at it? ...Was that how Medjai men courted girls? For some reason in all this weirdness the answer to that question seemed like a yes... "N-no, of course not. Laxmi just likes to joke around is all." "Oh... Funny," Jahira said unconvincingly. "You have a wound that needs cleaning," she said briskly all of the sudden. She turned and brought the silver tray with the mixture the other two girls had finished making, plus a moistened cloth. She came forward to start cleansing the sand and grime away from the wound. Tiri protested, "Oh no you don't have to go through the trouble of doing that. I'll do it mysel-" Jahira batted her hand away. With a friendly smile, she said "Guarding the secrets of Egypt is not all that we Medjai are known for. We also are a hospitable people to those that we care for." Tiri didn't know what to say to that. So she just let Jahira clean the wound while the other two girls drew a bath the size of a small lap pool. The girls quickly worked in silence, filling the bath with scented oils. The smell of vanilla and jasmine filled the air. Jahira instructed both Tiri and Laxmi to undress and get into the bath. She told them that she and the other girls would come back with clothing for them to wear. Tiri gratefully slipped off the ridiculously little top and undid her jeans. As the Medjai girls were just departing from the room, the clang of a heavy metal object crashed to the floor. 'Oh Gods. Ardeth Bay's golden dagger.' Somehow she had forgotten. The Medjai girls quickly whipped around at the sound to make sure everything was all right. Tiri's eyes locked on Jahira as the young Medjai woman stared at the golden dagger on the floor. Recognition flashed in her eyes, and she turned her gaze on Tiri. She did the strangest thing. She smiled, and then, without a word, departed from the room, the two other girl's trailing after her. Tiri quickly retrieved the dagger and nestled it inside her pile of clothes so it could no longer be seen.Jahira, Aaliyah, and Karawan were back within half an hour. Tiri and Laxmi were both freshly bathed and wearing black linen Medjai robes that had been left for them. They had collected friends. A very rambunctious six year old girl named Sahara was pestering them with questions in English (for Laxmi's benefit) while her dutiful mother Nafre tried to keep her in check.
"Do you like it here? Because if you do you can stay," the little girl said excitedly. Her two front baby teeth had recently fallen out, so she spoke with a lisp. "You can live in my room with me! We can play princesses every day and kill the bad mummies!" There was a collective laugh around the room, and Jahira presented Tiri with a cloth bundle of black and silver while Karawan handed one to Laxmi as well. Tiri thanked her and started to dress, feeling so very comfortable and at ease in this community-oriented tribe. "Sahara," her mother said with a laugh. "I think you should ask your father and I first before you invite people to live in your room with you." "Oh," the little girl said, seeming to remember herself. "Mummy, can they li-" "No," her mother Nafre said in good-nature. "I'm sure Tiri and Laxmi have homes and families of their own." Tiri smiled as she smoothed her black dress down. She noticed that it was different in make than all of the other womens. The Medjai girls had even dressed Laxmi the same as them in the pretty knee length silver and black tunic dress. But Tiri was dressed in a solid black gown that skimmed to the floor. Her arms were encased in long black sleeves and the neckline to the front of the dress plunged in a narrow V-line down to just above her bellybutton. Two slim bands of silver - one linked under her bust, and the other at the narrowest part of her waist - kept the dress in place. Tiri was too polite to ask why she was dressed differently...but she had a sneaking suspicion that it had to do with the smile that Jahira had given her after she saw that Tiri had Ardeth Bay's jewel encrusted gold dagger. "Wow," little Sahara said in awe. Her eyes were as round as saucers. "Mummy, she looks like a princess! Can she sit with us at dinner?" Nafre looked from Jahira's impish face to Tiri, and said with a bemused smile, "I believe our guests will be dining at Head Chieftain Ardeth Bay's table tonight."Jahira, Aaliyah, and Karawan led Laxmi and Tiri to the group of men they had originally come with. They were in the base of another mountain, in an echoing dining hall furnished in a blend of ornate Egyptian textiles and colored glass reliefs of Egyptian mythology scenes. The rich aroma of spice blends wafted through the air, and Tiri could hear murmurs and clanking pots and pans from the very back of the room, where the open air kitchen was filled with tribesman and women cooking up a storm. She noticed that most of the Medjai had taken off their outer robes to enjoy the forgiving dusk weather.
There were rows upon rows of very low, long tables that were furnished with thick black table clothes and thick, antique gold pillar candles which added the scents of Sandalwood, Cinnamon, Frankincense, and Cypress to the air . Upon the tables were silver goblets, plates, eating utensils, and black linen cloth napkins shimmering with silver geometric and calligraphic designs. There was a black pillow to signify each individual seat. Tiri and Laxmi were led to the head table, which was the most ornate, with black and gold candle holders in the form of Isis with scarab wings and silver candle holders with lotus flower motifs and dangling Ankh symbols, which stood for Eternal Life. Her family and the Casablancas men, now all cloaked in black thanks to the Medjai, sat with Ardeth Bay. As she sat down on a pillow at the low table with her family she noticed that the Medjai girls that had bandaged her wound and dressed her did not stay around very long. They strode away very fast, giggling, as if they did not want to get reprimanded for doing something very naughty. Tiri warily turned away from the trickster Medjai girls and directed her attention to the table. They had led her to sit directly across from Ardeth Bay. Tiri lowered her kohl lined eyes - but not fast enough to miss the mesmerizing complexities swimming within the depths of the dark warriors eyes as he stared at her. It was like that first time at the museum all over again...how he had stared at her from across the room... And then she had woken up the next day to mysteriously find her Egyptian necklace on and a pure white lotus flower in her hair... And then there was the kiss in the library, and that searing night in the bathroom that she would never forget no matter how hard she tried... The memory of his taut, bronzed flesh came unbidden to her mind... "...Tiri? Tiri, dear girl, where's your mind off to?" Tiri's attention snapped to her grandfather with an unintelligent, "Huh?" Her grandfather smiled at her kindly. "I was telling you that the Medjai have graciously asked us to stay the night. They are going to have a feast, singing, and a ceremonial Medjai demonstration for us tonight. Isn't that wonderful?" "Oh, yes," she said, meaning it. She dared not look at Ardeth Bay - as if looking at him would somehow betray herself of where her thoughts had wandered to. Laxmi, who was sitting on Tiri's other side, spoke to Ardeth Bay. "So... Are Medjai warriors allowed to date outside of the Medjai social sphere?" Tiri almost choked on the water she was drinking. Her best friend was giving a rather handsome warrior a few tables down the old hairy eyeball. The warrior was staring back. It seemed to be a mutual ogling. Ardeth Bay looked at Laxmi as if she was a rather bizarre new species because of her blunt way of talking, but he smiled at her, and it wasn't unfriendly. "Medjai men and women are allowed to leave the tribe, if they wish, to pursue higher learning and find a life partner." A wicked smile that could rival the Grinch's settled on Laxmi's face. She pinched Tiri's arm under the table. Oh, well of course she had ulterior motives! Something about the way her best friend was trying to play match maker stiffened Tiri's resolve. She pinched Laxmi back and met Ardeth Bay's gaze head on, challenging him with a stare that said 'you don't intimidate me OR electrify my senses'. '...Until you talk, that is,' she mentally added as he spoke again. "But you will find that committing yourself to a Medjai should not be taken lightly," he spoke the words to Laxmi, but he only had eyes for Tiri. "For the bond between man and woman has always been sacred to our people. Our society is built on trust and honor. If you ensnare a warrior of the Medjai, he will hold you above all else and devote his life to protecting you. It is our way." Suddenly Laxmi - who was a total commitment phobe - could not meet the gaze of the handsome Medjai warrior a few tables down. Tiri didn't know what to make of the implication in Ardeth Bay's gaze. All she knew was that she suddenly felt naked before his heated dark eyes - and, oh wait, that's when she made the connection that she HAD been naked before his gaze before. She broke eye contact with him then, her blush all too obvious to the immortal Head Medjai Chieftain across the table from her. She did her best to avoid eye contact with the dark warrior for the rest of dinner, and it was agonizing because it was long - drawn out by idle conversation and twelve courses. After the sixth course was an interlude in which Medjai singers took to the front of the room while hundreds of black clad individuals watched from their comfortable seated positions on pillows. Most of the ballads were in Arabic and about honor, strength, devotion to Allah and the ancient Gods of Egypt...and love. (These ballads made her feel especially uncomfortable with Ardeth Bay's gaze fastened on her.) There was one singer who made Tiri forget her predicament for a short time. A beautiful girl with mocha colored skin, a swan-like neck, and dark red hair sang ballads in ancient Egyptian. Her voice was the most hypnotizing. It was a smokey voice, that oozed dulcet honey tones. Tiri was lulled into enchantment by this voice - so when the Medjai fighting demonstrations commenced she was suddenly jolted into alertness. Man competed against man, and woman competed against woman. It was spectacular to behold! Suddenly Tiri fully understood what Jahira meant about the Medjai being more tolerant in their culture. For more darkly tanned skin was showing than was covered on the Medjai fighters! The men wore short black kilts and black headdresses while the women wore black skirts with silver chains holding up the intricate ceremonial garb and silver breastplates. They wielded daggers and scimitars and even many ancient weapons that Tiri had never seen before. After the demonstrations were over the dining hall buzzed with renewed conversation as everyone discussed their favorite parts of the performances. The last six courses were brought out one by one. Just when Tiri was sure she would burst from the abundance of herb and spice laden food it was announced that, after prayer, dinner would be over, and it would be time for all to go to bed - especially warriors who had early morning patrols out in the desert. Hundreds of Medjai unfurled their prayer mats and got into prayer position. Tiri's group bowed their heads and waited for the Medjai out of respect. After ten minutes of silent prayer the Medjai rolled up their mats. Friends said a few last parting words before departing to their quarters. It was Ardeth Bay himself who led the group of foreigners to the guest rooms that they would be sleeping in for the night. Tiri and Laxmi's room was the last stop. Tiri, Laxmi and Ardeth Bay stood before the sandstone archway that was the entrance to the girls' room. "K, well...goodnight," Laxmi said breezily to Ardeth Bay. She disappeared through the linen cloth covering. Tiri made to follow her without a word but a hand on her wrist stopped her. She stared at the black linen barrier, not yet turning to face him. "Walk with me." The words formed a command, but Tiri detected a plea in there. She gave a heavy sigh and said over her shoulder, "As long as you promise not to kiss me. I can't - When you do that it's hard to think." He gave a low chuckle. "I will try my hardest to keep my hands and lips to myself." She looked pointedly at his large, tattooed hand encompassing her wrist. He let go with a conciliatory smile. With a look full of resolve, as if she was about to go into battle, she turned to face him fully and waited for him to lead the way. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Author's Note: You know you wanna review. Hehe :)While AFF and its agents attempt to remove all illegal works from the site as quickly and thoroughly as possible, there is always the possibility that some submissions may be overlooked or dismissed in error. The AFF system includes a rigorous and complex abuse control system in order to prevent improper use of the AFF service, and we hope that its deployment indicates a good-faith effort to eliminate any illegal material on the site in a fair and unbiased manner. This abuse control system is run in accordance with the strict guidelines specified above.
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