Ife walks back to her village as if she is stepping on the clouds. For the first time in her life she feels drawn to a stranger. Who is this man and where did he come from? She ponders for the rest of the day. They conversed for hours as if they were old friends or something. Lost in thought about Roderick a man runs up to her screaming.
“Miss Ife how many times do I have to tell you to stop sneaking off! What would your betrothed think if you left all night? What were you doing!?” The man asks. Ife bursts out laughing and keels over.
“Who cares? He’s twice my age, and I am sure he would be too busy with another anyway.” She quips.
“Those are nasty rumors, and you know it! What would your father think then? He was the one who promised you to General Apophis. Do you really think causing problems is a good idea the week before he leads your father’s army to retake Lower Egypt and unify our people? Not to mention your wedding is in five days!” He screams.
“Can we just go home in silence please?” She begs. Her guard relents and walks her back to the palace. He seemed like he has never seen a Pyramid before. Where did he come from? She thinks. That night when she slept it was as if something deep in her mind had been stirred by meeting him. Her dreams were so vivid they almost felt like memories. She was running as a large wolf made of darkness chased her. It snarled and snapped at her as she runs through the dark forest. Terror grips her as she knows if this beast catches her, she will be devoured. Breathing heavily, she sprints through the woods, tree branches slap her body, but she runs harder. Glancing back at the wolf its eyes are glowing yellow and all she can see is teeth snarling at her. The beast leaps at her and snaps its jaws towards her le but she dives forward at the last moment and lands in clearing on a cliff. She tumbles hard and cuts her arm open on a nearby sharp rock. Blood begins to drip from her wound and the wolf steps towards her and licks his lips. She closes her eyes as it lunges towards her. A gust of wind blows through her hair and when she opens her eyes a man with long dark hair and shirtless stands before her. He caught the beast’s jaws in his hands, and he is somehow holding it back.
“I won’t let you die again.” He says with confidence as he rips the beast’s mouth open and kills it. Her heart flutters and the man turns to look back at her. His eyes are shining blue, and she is struck by their beauty. He turns towards her and leans down to meet her at eye level. Placing his hand on her wounded arm his eyes begin to dilate. The blood is now covered her arm completely and he opens his mouth to reveal sharp teeth. She tries to scream but he bites down into her arm and the pain is excruciating but somehow pleasurable. Ife wakes in her bed as the wind blows through her room from the open balcony door. The moon is full and she watches it with wonder. I wish I had more time to get to know him, if only the wedding wasn’t so soon. She ponders. Stepping out onto her balcony the night air is crisp and she wraps herself tightly with her blanket. Not a cloud in the sky as the stars all twinkle in the night sky.
The cosmos themselves stare back down at her almost questioning the path she intends to walk. Should she get married to the man her father, the Pharoah told her to? Or should she choose her own destiny? She always followed her father’s commands to the letter and never once questioned her place in the world. To give birth to many sons and ensure her families dynasty would continue through time. A gust of wind blows through which sends a chill to her bones and a memory begins to form in her mind. She sits at a bonfire and a man with long dark hair and a loin cloth stands in front of her. Something in the darkness around them has him on edge but this man looks back at her and as the fire flickers his face becomes illuminated. He smiles and winks at her and his blue eyes catch the reflection of the fire. Ife collapses down onto her knees as she grabs her head. Roderick? What is happening to me? Was that a memory? She thinks as her mind races. She passes out and the birds chirping wakes her up as the sun begins to rise. She is in her bed now. She agreed to meet him sunrise and spend the day together. She hurriedly gets dressed and rushes out to meet him but as she opens her door her father stands looking down at her disapprovingly. A beast of a man he easily towers over her. His golden headdress hangs down to his chest. His metallic wrist bands and necklace clink as he steps forward.
“Where do you think you’re going?” He commands. Ife steps back and summons the voice from deep inside. All her frustrations at her father have built into a mountain of emotions.
“To town! I want to enjoy our city before that old man you promised me to brings me to some random desert and impregnates me with his disgusting offspring!” She screams. Her father slaps her in the face hard and sends her tumbling to the ground. She lands with a crash and even his guards look uneasy at the display of violence. She touches her lip that is beginning to swell, and a drop of blood is on her fingertip. Her father kneels to look at her in her eyes.
“How dare you raise your voice to me! I am the Divine ruler of all our world! You will birth many heirs and our dynasty will rule for thousands of years! You forget your place in the grand destiny we were chosen for.” He bellows as the walks towards the door. “Guards you are to keep my beloved daughter locked in here. Only to leave when I allow. No other visitors but I will be allowed in. Do you understand!?” He asks. The guards nod meekly, and the tyrant leaves his daughter to collect her composure alone. Trapped like a prisoner in her own room as if she is a child. She stares out her window as the sun begins to rise higher now.