Page 158 of A Thousand Nights Before Dawn
“Aseneth was a foolish Queen. She got what she deserved.” Nubia turned to Zosar. “His name is Sadiki.”
“Nubia, no,” the Pharaoh Queen screamed.
Zahra looked back at Namir’s terrified eyes. She nodded to him, glancing at her necklace still tied around his hand. He followed her gaze, and his face calmed.
Zosar grinned, and Iset’s voice came from him. “Sadiki, firstborn of the Pharaohs, heir to Re’s power—you are mine.” As he spoke the last word, a glowing red line burst from his chest, slithering like a snake. His form withered into ash as the red energy darted toward Namir.
Ramses cried out in fear, standing on his good leg and pulling Namir back. Namir stumbled backward, but his gaze focused on the red snake. It went straight for his heart. As it got close, silver light consumed it. It hissed and pulled away from him.
Nubia’s scream filled the air. “No!”
Zahra smirked, and she looked at the glowing red snake swirling above them. “You can’t have him! He is under the protection of Selene.”
There was silence, then Iset let out a raspy laugh. Thekeresbehind them began to speak as one. “You think you are a clever little bird, but you have left yourself vulnerable by protecting him.”
Fear penetrated Zahra’s chest, but she shook it off. “I have Selene’s protection as her servant.”
“During a blood moon? Oh, no, my dear. Your goddess’s power is stretched too thin, and my servant’s sacrifice has yet to be used. That token was the only thing keeping you safe.”
Zahra’s gaze shot to Namir’s, and she stumbled back toward the wall.
Fear filled Namir’s eyes. “Zahra?”
“Y—You don’t know my name,” Zahra said, looking at Nubia, who watched with interest.
Iset chuckled, the snake coiling in the air and looking down at her. “Oh, how little you consider your role in this. It was I who turned the Parsan soldier against you, small child that you were. For so long, I thought the flames in Ionia had consumed you, until I saw you at the young King’s Feast.”
Namir let go of Ramses’s arm, moving toward her. “Zahra!”
Zahra stumbled back, throwing her hand up. “No! Stay back!”
Iset’s voice came beside her, whispering in her ear, “Rhodopis, daughter of Nebthet, sibyl of the blood moon—you are mine.”
Zahra screamed as the snake flew into her chest. Black smoke foamed from her mouth as she keeled over, clawing at her throat. Her stefana tumbled to the ground, her curls falling out of her braid and around her face. Darkness consumed her eyes, and the stench of death surrounded her. She gasped, feeling as if the desert sand was engulfing her, drowning her in its endlessness.
“Zahra,” Namir shouted. “Zahra, fight it!”
Zahra’s body shook as she laughed. Iset’s voice blended with hers as she looked up through her curls, tilting her head at Namir with a cruel smile. “She cannot hear you, boy.”
Namir’s frame trembled as Iset stood. She looked down at her hands, grinning. “I have never claimed a sibyl as my vessel before. My sister’s presence is… empowering.”
“Let her go,” Namir ordered. “Let her go or else?—”
“Or what?” Iset stalked toward him. She lifted her fingers to Namir’s chin, and he whimpered as he looked into Zahra’s hollow eyes. “She was your only hope, and now she is gone. But she does not have to be. Let my servant kill you, and I will release her.”
Namir took her hand in his. “Zahra, can you hear me?”
The Pharaoh Queen reached forward. “Do not let her touch you!”
“Iset cannot hurt me,” he rasped, “and Zahra would never let her.”
“That is right,” Iset cooed, lifting her other hand to his cheek. Her brittle nails, stained by ash, hovered over his skin. “She would never hurt you.”
“I know you are in there,” Namir said, ignoring Iset’s unnerving smile. He looked into Zahra’s eyes. “I am here. Please. Show me you are, too.”
Iset gritted her teeth. “Do you wish to see her die again, boy? I may have called off my beasts, but I can still kill her.” As she said it, a large crack formed down Zahra’s forehead, twisting to the left of her nose bridge, as if she had been struck with a knife. Blood poured from it.
Panic filled Namir’s eyes. “No, please!”
