Page 171 of A Thousand Nights Before Dawn
Zahra thrust herpsycheout, blowing away thekeresin front of Namir.
He turned back to her with wide eyes, his lip bleeding. “Where are the horses?!”
Zahra grabbed his hand, which glowed with sunlight, and looked up at him. “We can stop this.”
Waaiz grunted as he held off the other twokeres. “Pharaohs, what are you doing?!”
“We can’t.” Namir threw light at an approachingker. “There are too many!”
“But we have the sky’s power with us,” Zahra insisted. “You said it yourself. Iset can’t take away what Re has given us. We have his power, and we have my connection to Selene. We can still use the might of the sun and moon, but we are stronger together.”
Namir’s panicked eyes looked at the approachingkeres. “Zahra, I?—”
“Namir,” Zahra begged. “Trust me. Trust in ournetjeru.”
Namir clenched his jaw and nodded. “How do we do this?”
“We must make a shield like before, but bigger—as big as we can!”
Waaiz grunted, stepping back as morekeresarrived at his feet. “Pharaohs!”
Zahra pulled Namir to her and placed his forehead against hers. They held hands as they focused on the power shared between them—the sun’s power—channeling it into a small ball of fire.
A horse came barreling from the stable house, Omar atop it. The bag with the Thoth was tied over his shoulder, and he held a horse whip in his free hand. Thekeresshrieked as the horse ran over them, and Omar whipped at the feet of the otherkeres. “Stay back, beasts!”
Zahra focused, and hersibylmark glowed on her forehead. Silver light intertwined with the ball of fire, and it began to glow a brilliant blue.
Zahra and Namir turned toward thekeres, holding each other’s hand while thrusting their other hand out. The ball of fire erupted from their hands, sending a blue light out in a circle around them. Thekerescried out as the light became hard walls, forcing them away.
Zahra grunted, blood dripping from her and Namir’s noses as the light became a large dome, growing bigger, encompassing the temple and the road near the Pharaohs’ Library. Thekeresshrieked, turning into ash as the dome threw them back. Finally, when the lastkeresnear them had been destroyed, they dropped the shield, leaving the area blanketed in darkness once more.
Namir collapsed against a building once they had made it to an Ionian village, huffing as sweat caked his brow. Zahra sat on the ground with the bag in hand, holding her side. The rest of the people followed, thanking the Ionians who came to help transport the wounded into homes. Waaiz shuffled with the others, directing the people and ensuring everyone was taken care of. Omar took him aside to treat his leg, which was bloody from where thekerhad bit him.
Zahra’s lip trembled, and she turned to the rest of those coming in. The people were helping each other walk. On the road from where they had come from,medjaywere leading others to another village nearby.
Zahra took in a quivering breath. “We saved so many.”
Namir followed her gaze. He wiped at his bloody nose and lip. “We almost did not make it out alive.”
Zahra’s nose dripped blood on her hand as she wiped it once more. Though the shield had gotten rid of most of thekeresand allowed many time to escape, it had exacted a heavy toll on both Zahra and Namir.
Zahra wrapped her hand around her necklace. “We only made it because we relied on thenetjeru. Thekereswould have followed us if we had not done what we did.” She eyed the bag containing the Thoth, recalling what she had felt when she held it. “Perhaps there is a way to end this.”
Namir followed her gaze. “End this?” He leaned forward, lowering his voice. “Thisisthe end! We can’t escape out to Sea, and Iset will surely catch up with us if we try to run south. With Re’s gift, we can protect ourselves and a few others, but for howlong can we hold out against thekeresin this endless night?” He buried his face in his hands. “We havefailed.”
Zahra clenched her jaw. One of themedjaythey had sent north had found them on his ride back. Iset had taken her path of destruction to the cities northward; Khem was among those fallen. She had appeared to be going north toward the Sea, likely to attack what few boats they had.
They were stranded, and they didn’t have long before Iset would turn back this way or find a way for herkeresto break through their defenses.
Zahra swallowed. “You saw what we were capable of when we relied on their power. Despite what has happened so far, the prophecy is not yet fulfilled. There is more we can do.”
“The prophecy foretold our failure,” Namir said, shaking his head. “Thenetjeruhave doomed us all. If they knew this was going to happen, they should have told the Pharaohs themselves instead of sending thesibylsto do it. They should have known my ancestors would not listen.”
“Thenetjeruwill not meddle in our affairs more than necessary,” Zahra stated. “They sent warnings through thesibylsbecause that is Selene’s role—to protect and serve Re. The task couldn’t be given to another.”
Namir gritted his teeth, a deep sadness seeping through his angry facade. “But there isnothingleft we can do.” His voice broke as he spoke. “Thenetjeruare gone, and we cannot fight Iset on our own.”
“Re is not gone, and neither is Selene.” She gestured to the sky. “Just because we cannot see them does not mean they’re not there. The sun and moon are on our side. All we must do is reach out to them.”
