The Great Audience Hall of Per-Atoness gleamed under the golden midday light that filtered through the tall windows shaped like ibis wings. The granite columns, carved like living papyrus stalks, seemed to pulse with ancestral magic. Golden hieroglyphs embedded in the walls shimmered as if the gods themselves were whispering secrets through the stone.
"The Gods test us, but they do not abandon us," Uras said after reading the report on the latest news from the city, the kingdom, and beyond.
The throne of Pharaoh Uras'Diptsur rose upon a dais of black alabaster inlaid with lapis-lazuli eyes. The pharaoh, wrapped in pure white linen and a sacred leopard skin, held the crook and flail firmly in his hands. Upon his head, the blue-and-gold nemes headdress gleamed with the solar disk, imposing and majestic.
Krarvathar stood a little farther away, leaning against one of the columns with his arms crossed over his black tunic. He had said he preferred not to sit. At the table were General Nahkit-Sen, Vizier Rekhnéss, and Priest Ameinemhat. The three of them still appeared tense in the presence of the stranger and had barely touched the food.
Uras was satisfied with what his subjects had done to combat the problems. Although the vizier had important information coming from the governor of the delta region, the pharaoh had something more urgent in mind and said:
"There is something more important to discuss. Tonight the Saharekh—the elves—will arrive here, and their intentions toward me must have changed."
"At the moment when Apophis exerts his dominion: the night," Ameinemhat noted fearfully, adjusting his robe.
"And what might that mean, priest?" Uras asked with a smile. He seemed to enjoy that line of thought.
"That they may not be children of an allied Goddess, as the stories say, but rather children of darkness."
"Pharaoh," General Nahkit coughed after glancing at Krarvathar. He noticed that the man—if one could call him that—had taken interest in the idea. "The fact that they are arriving at night is a strategic and temporal matter. Distance, choice of the best moment and method of attack. As a general, it is simple for me to see this. Besides, the elf who is friends with the prince—"
"With all due respect, General, your strategic mind may not grasp the subtleties of the spirits," the priest interrupted. "It is calculated. They grow stronger at night, when their creator is at full power."
The vizier remained silent. He had never much liked these divine matters; for him, other issues also demanded urgency.
Krarvathar found the information interesting. He recalled reading something similar in the temple hieroglyphs, but had not paid much attention at the time.
So the God who transformed me… is weak at night? Krarvathar wondered. The mind that had once debated the actions of this God of the pharaoh no longer seemed so convinced. Somehow, he had begun to doubt a little. The dragon remained silent, listening attentively.
"In any case, Majesty," said Nahkit-Sen, scratching his chin, "do you believe they will attempt something against the pharaoh?"
Uras did not know, but he considered it a possibility.
"Of course they will. It is obvious," Krarvathar spoke abruptly, startling everyone. "Not the ones coming now, for I will kill them. But others, with that ability to transform into sand, could do something. It would be easy and quick."
The room fell silent. The thought had already crossed Uras's mind, but he had preferred not to dwell on it.
"And what about the alliance?" the vizier finally spoke, looking at the pharaoh. "Attempting to harm the pharaoh is a sin. They would not have the courage." He emphasized the point with a diplomatic tone.
"I would not underestimate them. If I am right—and I usually am—they will use the night to express their malice. But the Gods protected us once and will do so again," said the priest.
"We will maintain defenses at all times in your chambers. Armed soldiers will guard every possible entrance, Pharaoh. There is nothing to fear," added the general.
Indeed, ever since his conversation with Neftraya, Uras had been relying on divine certainty. After the outcome of the sacrifice, he no longer doubted that his life was assured. So he smiled and said:
"Indeed, the Gods preserve my life. No evil shall prevail."
Krarvathar observed that fear and trust in the Gods were very strong among humans, who, lacking sufficient strength of their own, turned to these superior beings.
The dragon then shifted.
"Any problem?" the pharaoh asked.
"It is time for me to withdraw. I must go meet our enemies. The farther I am from the city, the better for you, isn't it?" Krarvathar felt a certain irony in his decision. He, who had flown here to destroy the place, was now leaving to prevent the city from suffering. Although his instinctive side did not care, his capacity for decision chose to maintain the idea.
The pharaoh rose and looked at him.
"Very well. May our Gods be with you." He raised the scepter and positioned it laterally against his chest. The other three also stood, perhaps out of fear or automatism. "Defeat the enemies of Khemet, Krarvathar."
The dragon nodded slightly. In some way, he was beginning to respect the pharaoh. Krarvathar had often sensed fear coming from him, yet he had noticed that the man faced the situation like a true leader, never allowing himself to be subdued.
"Stay alive until I return, Uras'Diptsur," it was the first time he had spoken the pharaoh's full name. "You are an intriguing man."
The dragon then walked toward the great gate, which the soldiers opened for him. But before going to meet the elves, Krarvathar decided he would speak with Neftraya first.