Roderick finds a nearby stream and begins to bathe himself. His skin is tanned, and he looks like any other Egyptian save for his eyes. Using his sharp nails, he gives himself a haircut along with a beard trim. When was the last time I cared about my appearance? He ponders. His mind races with possibilities and for the first time in a long time and he feels happy to be alive. He never thought he would see her again, never considered she would be reborn. I must play it safe and not reveal too much. I do not want to scare her off saying we used to be together. She would think I’ve lost my mind. He thinks with a smirk. After the stream he makes his way into town and every woman he walks by can’t help but stare. They have never seen a man as muscular and handsome before. Upon walking up to a local street vendor, he looks at her various wares. She has some bracelets and a necklace that he thinks would look perfect on Reina. His eyes meet hers and they begin to shimmer ever so slightly.
“Would you be able to donate some of this to me? I’m new here and haven’t had a chance to earn any money.” He says with a smile as he ever so slightly touches her forearm. The shop owner is drawn into his eyes, and she finds herself in an almost hypnotic state. This mysterious dark haired stranger calls to the deepest parts of her mind. The primal place where we all are nothing more than animals. The place where rage, fight or flight and even lust slumbers. Waiting to be woken up in the right situation.
“Sure honey, take anything you desire.” She replies flirtatiously with a smirk and wink. Roderick nods and picks out some new clothes as well as the necklace and bracelet. As he walks away he looks back at the woman staring at him.
“Thank you so much, you really saved me a headache.” He replies as he disappears into the crowd of shoppers. He can hear her husband yelling at her for letting a shop lifter escape and he makes his way towards the palace. He intends on finding where his beloved lays her head at night. This new world humans have created is a wonder to him, their technology has developed so much farther than before. A loud snap fills his ears followed by the cry of a man. He rushes to follow the sounds of pain and comes upon a man with a whip. He is hitting a younger man who is crouched over a woman who he is protecting.
“Leave her alone! She is pregnant with our child, and you keep hitting her! I promise I’ll do her share of the work and even stay all night if I have to. Just let her rest!” He pleads. The slave driver smiles and throws his arm back to deliver the hardest one yet when Roderick grabs his forearm. He has seen enough violence and this man is enjoying it way too much.
“Leave them alone!” He yells with the force of ten men.
“You dare touch me? The Pharoah himself charged me with masking sure his tomb is built to perfection! It isn’t my fault he impregnated a slave. An Egyptian laying with one of them is a disgrace to our people! He should have been executed.” The man yells. Roderick snaps the mans wrist with relative ease and before he can scream out in pain he grabs the man by his mouth.
“You think you have any say in who one can love? Let me teach you about the pain you love to dish out.” He says coldly as he begins squeezing his face. Moments later a loud crunch is heard with the sound of a liquid dripping onto the sand. He has crushed the man’s jaw and blood is pouring out of his mouth. Barely alive he throws the man back and he hits the ground hard. Coughing and wheezing he crawls away fleeing for his life. The man he rescued glares at Roderick which confuses him.
“Why did you do that? Now we must flee, or we will be blamed for this. Our families are as good as dead now!” He exclaims as he helps his wife to her feet. Confused Roderick watches them limp away and hopefully escape retribution. What kind of society willingly enslaves one another? They are just as tribal as back then. He thinks as the memories of when he was beaten for merely being born different begin to replay in his mind. Blood dripping on the sand brings him back to reality as he was squeezing his fist so hard it began to bleed. Get it together, you cannot show her this side of you. She will never want to be with a violent monster! He berates himself inside his mind. He hears several footsteps approaching and leaps away onto a nearby roof. Four soldiers arrive and check on the slave driver, he has passed on from this world due to choking on his own blood. Tuning into their vocal frequency allows Roderick to hear as if he standing next to them.
“Should we report this to the Guards Captain?” One of them asks.
“With the General’s wedding preparations, the last thing he wants is an investigation of a murder. Besides other Generals will be arriving tomorrow, and we can’t look like our own civilians are unruly. Dump him in the desert and let nature do its job.” The other soldier replies coldly. The two of them drag the body off and Roderick breathes a sigh of relief. At least the couple will have a chance of survival now. Roderick closes his eyes and conjures his beloved in his mind. He wishes to find her and when he opens them he is met with a new ability. He sees a pink trail of energy off in the distance. Could that be hers? He thinks as he follows the trail deeper into the city. Day is quickly turning towards sunset and as he follows the energy trail, he notices there are many soldiers moving about the city the closer he gets towards the center. The buildings are becoming more elaborate. Gone are the merchant stands and small homes and they are replaced with sprawling obelisks and towers. He comes upon a statue that stands over twenty feet tall of a man with a headdress. He inspects it to find a strange writing with pictures. As he runs his hand over them, he closes his eyes and words begin to flood his mind. I must have picked up this written language from her when we touched hands. He thinks. This statue is to commemorate our newest Divine Ruler and God descended upon us, Father of All and Protector of our lands. Promising to unify our people and stop the division between Upper and Lower Egypt. Two soldiers walk by, and he listens in on their conversation.