Page 81 of A Thousand Nights Before Dawn
Zahra tried to step back, but he was too fast. With one hand, he grabbed the side of Zahra’s head and slammed her skull into a rock wall.
Zahra gasped, opening her eyes to the golden sands of the Duat. Zahra scrambled to her knees. Severalkeresstood on a hill near her. They stared at her, but showed no signs of aggression or intent of attacking. After several moments, the jackals turned and ran away.
Zahra gulped in a breath and brought her trembling hands to her face. The cracks in the tips of her fingers grew longer, covering her nails. The skin beneath the cracks looked like grains of sand.
Zahra clenched her jaw and slammed her fists into the sand as she screamed.
18
A Walk With an Eagle
Zahra hugged her shivering frame as she left Bahiti’s estate. The sun had breached the horizon, but the world was still cold.
“Zahra.” Jala ran out of the house after her. “Zahra, where are you going?”
Zahra dug her nails into her arms, glancing back at Jala. “Leave me, Jala. I wish to be alone.”
Jala came to a stop, watching Zahra disappear into the trees. Zahra only focused on what was in front of her, and her vision blurred with tears that she couldn’t stop. The river came into view, but she continued on mindlessly, until the plants and trees were so frequent she felt she wouldn’t be disturbed.
Zahra fell to her knees, noticing one of her sandals was gone. Her nightdress was thin, and her shoulders and back were exposed. A small stream trickled by her leg. The images of last night spurred her whimpers into sobs. The lives of the innocentssat heavy on her shoulders. She could still see Ahmose’s lifeless eyes and hear Eboni’s cries.
So much suffering. So much pain. And it was all her fault.
A branch of a tree creaked above her, and Zahra looked up. Katerina was sitting on the tree, looking down at her somberly.
Zahra dug her fists into the earth, grinding her teeth as hot tears streamed down her face. “Why? Why did Selene punish my people because of me? They did nothing wrong!”
Katerina lifted her wings and pushed herself into the air. She looped in the sky, coming down by Zahra’s side. As she neared the ground, her form grew in size, and the plants and stream made way for the endless sands of the Duat.
Katerina landed in front of Zahra and lifted her head high. “They were not punished.”
“It was because of my curse that they were attacked.” Zahra’s lip trembled. “Why didn’t you warn me? Why did you show me a useless vision instead?”
“There was a reason you were shown the hours leading up to Asenath’s death,” Katerina said, “but it was not because of what happened last night, nor was the violence because of your curse.”
“But I saw thekeresthere,” Zahra countered, confused.
Katerina nodded. “In the people that came close to you, yes, but their rage was all their own. The deaths that occurred would have happened regardless of your presence there.”
Zahra struggled to understand. “Then why did Selene not intervene?”
“She did,” Katerina said. “Why do you think you were there in the first place?”
Understanding dawned in Zahra’s mind. It had been shown to her early on in the night, but she had not realized it. Yes, Namir was meant to see her people’s ways, but he was also meant to see their sufferings, so that he could prevent the deaths that occurred. Ahmose, Eboni’s mother, and everyone elsewould be safe. She and Namir would ensure it. The realization left her speechless, and she hugged herself as the information swirled around in her head.
After several moments, Katerina turned and motioned with her head. “Walk with me.”
Zahra got to her feet, following the eagle numbly through the Duat. A soft wind blew golden sand over her bare feet. She looked down at her hands, considering all that occurred yesterday—her vision of the night Asenath died, her conversation with Namir, and the attack on her people’s village. She had so questions and things she did not understand.
Katerina waited expectantly as they walked, looking down at Zahra when she finally spoke. “Thesibylin the vision you showed me—are you her?”
“No,” Katerina answered. “Her name was Chreste. She was your ancestor, and she was tasked with protecting Asenath and stopping a prophecy from coming to pass.”
Zahra thought of Chreste’s lifeless eyes. “But she failed.”
“She prevented a worse fate.”
Zahra raised her eyebrows in doubt. “Worse than the war that divided Aur?”
