“Do we not have a military force in the south?”
“We do, but it is small, and Ra'um, the Egyptian governor of the south, uses it to keep order in the towns.”
“What might be the feelings of the Nubians toward us, following the invasion?”
“The Nubians love us and submit willingly to our rule. That is why Ra'um finds no difficulty in ruling the towns with an insignificant force. Were they to rebel, they would find no one to discipline them.”
The men's eyes lit up with dreams. Ahmose had told them how the two traders had managed to cross the border and visit the governor, and how Isfmis was going to present Apophis with a gift at the victory feast. Ham asked with displeasure, “And what do you hope to gain by presenting your gift to Apophis?”
Isfmis said, “To stir his greed, so that he will give me permission to carry on trade between Nubia and Egypt and exchange gold for grain.”
The men were silent and Isfmis said nothing for a while, thinking. Finally he decided to take a new step on the road of his mission. He said solemnly, “Listen well, gentlemen. The goal we seek to achieve is not trade and it is not proper that trade should be the goal of people presented to you in the house of the widow of our great commander Pepi. What we do hope is to link Egypt to Nubia by means of our convoy and to employ some of you as workers, in appearance, and transport you to our brothers in the south. We shall carry gold to Egypt and return with grain and men and maybe we shall come back one day, with men only….”
Everyone listened with astonishment mixed with joy and their eyes flashed with a sudden light. Ebana cried, “Lord! What lovely voice is this that revives the dead hopes in our hearts?”
Ham cried, “Dear God! Life stirs again in the graveyard of Thebes.”
And Kom exclaimed, “Young man, whose voice resurrects our dead hearts, we were living till now without hope or future, weighed down by the misery of our present and finding no escape from it but in recalling the glorious past and mourning it. Now you have opened the curtain on a splendid future.”
Isfinis was overjoyed and hope filled his heart. In his beautiful, stirring voice he said, “Weeping is no use, gentlemen. The past will disappear into ancient times and obliteration so long as you are content to do nothing but mourn it. Its glory will remain close at hand only if you work it energetically. Let it not sadden you that today you are merchants, for soon you will be soldiers with the world in the palms of your hands and its fortresses at your feet. But tell me the truth, do you have trust in all your brethren?”
With one breath they responded, “As we trust ourselves!”
“You are not afraid of spies?”
“The Herdsmen are mindless tyrants. They have been lulled by their ability to keep us slaves for ten years and take no precautions.”
Isfinis clapped his hands in delight and said, “Go to your faithful brethren and tell them the good news of fresh hope and bring us together as often as you can so that we may exchange views and advice and pass on to them the message of the south. If the Egyptians of Napata are angry in their safe haven, you have even better reason to be so.”
The men eagerly gave their assent to what he had said and Deeb said, “We are angry, noble youth. Our efforts will prove to you that we are angrier than our brethren of Napata.”
They bowed to the two traders and departed, overcome by an upsurge of anger and eagerness for battle that would neither quieten nor go away. The two men heard Ebana sigh and say, “Lord! Who will direct us to the family of our martyred sovereign? And where on the face of the earth is he?”
Two weeks passed, during which Isfinis and his older companion did not taste rest. They met with Thebes’ hidden men at the house of Ebana and made known to them the hopes of the Egyptians in exile, thus planting hope and life in their hearts and pouring strength and a thirst for battle into their souls till the whole of the fishermen's quarter was waiting impatiently and anxiously for the hour when Isfinis would be summoned to the royal palace.
The days passed until one day one of the chamberlains of the governor of the South came to the fishermen's quarter asking after the convoy of the one named Isfmis, then handed him a letter from the governor permitting him to enter the royal palace at a certain time on the day of the feast. Many saw the messenger and rejoiced, hope dawning in their hearts.
On that evening, as the convoy slept, Isfmis remained alone on deck in the calm and glory of the quiet night, bathed in the moonlight, which poured gemstones and pearls of light, shining and glittering, over his noble face. A feeling of lightness entered him and he felt a delightful sense of satisfaction as his imagination wandered at will between the recent past and the extraordinary present. He thought of the moment of departure in Napata and of his grandmother Tetisheri giving him the good news that the spirit of Amun had inspired her to send him to Egypt, while his father Kamose stood nearby and counseled him in his deep, impressive voice. He remembered his mother, the queen Setkimus, as she kissed his brow and his wife Nefertari as she cast upon him a farewell glance from between moist eyelashes. A look of tenderness as pure and modest as the light of the moon appeared in his eyes and droplets of the beauty that charged the space between the sky and the water of the Nile seeped into his heart. He felt refreshed and intoxicated with a divine ambrosia. But an image of light and splendor stealthily invaded his imaginings, causing his body to shudder, and, closing his eyes as to fly from it, he whispered to himself in exasperation, “God, I think of her more than I should. And I shouldn't think of her at all.”
13
The day of the feast came. Isfmis spent the daylight hours on board the ship, then, in the evening, put on his best clothes, combed his flowing locks, applied perfume, and left the ship, followed by slaves carrying an ivory casket and a litter with lowered drapes. They took the road to the palace. Thebes was making merry, the air resounding to the beating of tambourines and the sound of song. The moon lit up streets crammed with drunken soldiers roaring songs and the carriages of the nobles and the notables making their way toward the royal palace, preceded by servants carrying torches. The youth was plunged into deep dejection and said to himself sorrowfully, “It is my fate to share — with these people in the feast — with — which they commemorate the fall of Thebes and the killing of Seqenenra,” and directed an angry look toward the clamorous soldiery, remembering the — words of the physician Kagemni, “When soldiers get used to drinking, their arms grow feeble and they loathe to fight.”
He followed the stream of people till he reached the edge of the square in front of the palace, — whose — walls and windows appeared to his eyes like light piled upon light. The sight made him feel — wretched, his heart beat violently, and a perfumed breeze, fragrant with memories of his youth, found him, as it passed over his fevered head, sad at heart and distracted. He went on, his sadness growing ever greater the closer his steps brought him to the cradle of his childhood and the playground of his youth.
Isfmis approached one of the chamberlains and showed him Governor Khanzar's letter. The man looked at it closely, then called a guard and ordered him to lead the trader and his train to the waiting area in the garden. The youth followed him, turning behind him into one of the side paths of the courtyard because the central path was so crowded with guests, chamberlains, and guards. Isfmis remembered the place very well and felt as though he had quit it for the last time only yesterday. When they reached the great colonnade that led to the garden, his heart beat faster and he became so agitated that he bit his lower lip, remembering how he had used to play in this colonnade with Nefertari, blindfolding himself until she had hidden herself behind one of the huge pillars, then removing the blindfold and searching everywhere until he found her. At that moment it seemed to his imagination that he heard her small feet and the echo of her sweet laugh. They used to carve their names on one of the pillars… would it still bear the traces? He would have liked to forget about his guard and search for the vestiges ofthat beautiful past, but the man hurried on, unaware of the melting heart an arm's length from him. When they reached the garden, the guard pointed to a bench and said to the youth, “Wait right here until the herald comes.”
The garden — was alight — with brilliant lamps and the breeze wafted the scent of sweet herbs and the fragrance of flowers from all sides. His eyes sought the place where the statue of Seqenenra used to stand at the end of the grassy pathway that divided the garden in two. In its place he found a new statue, lacking in artistry, representing a stocky individual with a huge frame, large head, curved nose, long beard, and wide, protuberant eyes. He had no doubt that he was before Apophis, King of the Herdsmen. He gazed at it long and balefully, then threw a bitter glance, burning with anger and hatred, at the guards. Everything in the palace and the garden was as
