Page 143 of A Thousand Nights Before Dawn
“Thesibyl of the blood moon will suffer chaos’s blade. A child of Re will open Tartarus’s gate, and chaos’s price will be paid.”
Katerina was among them. The mark of the Parsan soldier’s blade was raw on her body. “The timeless king will bear the Pharaohs’ plight, and the children of the eclipse will decide Aur’s fate.”
History spilled into Zahra’s mind as thesibylsrepeated themselves.
Sibylsstrengthened Selene during a lunar eclipse, and the Pharaohs strengthened Re during a solar eclipse. On the day of Asenath’s death, an ancient and evilnetjertried to kill her, but a single breath prolonged Asenath’s life long enough for the lunar eclipse to pass. During a lunar eclipse, Doris was preoccupied giving strength to Selene while her daughter gave birth. When she returned to the tent, she discovered her granddaughter had been born with amber eyes.
Nine years later, a solar eclipse dipped the world in darkness. The Battle of Henen-nesut unfolded before Zahra’s eyes. She saw young Menes, a scrawny prince barely strong enough to wield akhopesh. A soldier with glowing red eyes lifted his weapon to end him. His cousin saved his life, taking the blow so themedjaycould escort the young prince to safety.
In Ionia, the solar eclipse brought about great fires as Parsa attacked the village. A young Rhodopis stood in the carnage, confused by the flames, smoke, and voices. Her eyes glowed with a power she didn’t understand. A Parsan soldier came for her, his eyes bright with the red glow of thenetjerof chaos’s power. Her mother saved her life, handing her the necklace of her ancestors in her final moments.
Ten years later, on the night of a lunar eclipse, the timeless king and a child of the eclipse locked eyes.
Zahra’s voice echoed with that of her ancestors, repeating the words of a prophecy that had come for over five hundred years.
Zahra’s mind reeled as she was pulled back into reality. Namir was retching somewhere behind her, and Ramses was holding her arms, telling her to wake up. The words of the prophecy continued to whisper in the back of her mind as she relaxed her head against the floor of the hidden library.
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The King’s Bride
Namir wiped at his head with a wet cloth, signing once the cloth was in his lap. “I do not believe this. Why would Zosar try to kill me? He has been there all of my life. He has nothing to gain from my death.”
Ramses offered Namir a cup of liquid. “Perhaps he is not who we thought he was.”
“But he was always there for me.” Namir’s gaze shifted to Zahra, and his eyes softened. She was sitting on the ground, hugging her legs. Her eyes were dazed as the words of the prophecy echoed in her mind.
Namir grunted as he scooted closer to her. He had lost some of his color, and Ramses stuck by his side as if he would fall over or puke again. Namir placed his hand on her arm before he signed. “What else did you see?”
So much. Even before their births, thenetjerof chaos had been trying to prevent this day from happening. Now it was here, and Iset and her followers were still fighting.
Ramses signed, “You were saying things in Ionic.”
Zahra nodded. Her voice came out breathless. “A prophecy.”
Ramses looked to Namir in confusion, and Namir translated.
Zahra lifted her hands to sign, but they trembled as she tried to move them.
Namir put his hand on her arm. “I will translate. Tell us when you are ready.”
Zahra thanked him with a nod. She took a deep breath, reciting the words of the prophecy. “Beware the day of a thousand nights. Thesibylof the blood moon will suffer chaos’s blade. A child of Re will open Tartarus’s gate, and chaos’s price will be paid. The timeless King will bear the Pharaohs’ plight, and the children of the eclipse will decide Aur’s fate.”
Namir finished translating, and Ramses’s brow furrowed with worry. “What is Tartarus?”
Zahra summoned her strength and began to sign. “A place where only the most evilnetjeruand spirits dwell. The prophecy has existed since the day of Asenath’s death. Selene knew that Iset would try again, so she sent my ancestors to Aur with a prophecy foretelling Iset’s return.”
Namir’s brow furrowed in thought. “Now that I think about it, there was a papyrus here that said something similar.”
Zahra nodded, and she gestured to one of the shelves. “It is there, with some papyri written in Ionic.”
Namir directed Ramses, and Ramses searched the shelf and pulled out the papyrus. He opened it, squinting to read it in the low light. He nodded. “It is here.”
“But I don’t understand,” Namir signed as Ramses returned to his side. “If the prophecy was written here the whole time, how are we just now hearing about it? I have combed the records in this library many times over.”
“Because of Zosar’s spell,” Zahra explained. “It is why every time I read about Iset, it felt as if a barrier was pushed over myeyes, preventing me from reading further. I did not understand what was holding those memories back, but now I know. Iset did not want us to remember that we met or anything about what she was truly doing.”
Ramses sat beside Namir, gesturing to him. “Would your parents not have known about the prophecy? This place has existed for some time.”
