The more Ramuna worked on deciphering the book the more she realized that the book did not contain just stories but history. Real history of Atann. How can a book contain fact and fiction? Shouldn't the stories be separated and put in separate books? What was even more memorizing was after so many pages of details of major events of Atann history there would always be a random page every now and then that made no sense. The pages would contain pictures of the human body and show planets around the human body.
Hieroglyphics that were not even on the page the Jackal gave her were on these pages. Were they incantations? Was this a way to learn Heka magic and he just didn't want her to figure that out yet? Or maybe even he did not understand these pages. None of the alphabet she was given even lined up with the hieroglyphics on these rare pages that showed up in the book. Ramuna made a note on a spare piece of paper she got from the pub owner to ask the Jackal about these pages.
Another day had passed in the fever dream world she was in. Ramuna still wondered if this was her permanent residence now and that her physical body in the real world was long gone. Was time also different here too? What if a day in Kemet was a year or even ten years in the world she was used to?
Ramuna felt something she was not very familiar with. Despair. Hopelessness. Fear. Was this what it felt like to lack meaning? She truly did feel like her life had already stopped the moment she arrived in Kemet. What was her true importance here?
Ramuna left her chaise on the balcony that she was using to study the book and rushed into her room and locked the door of her room. She could not control her heart from racing, from the tears that were now escaping her eyes. The overwhelming emotions of all the incidents that had been unraveling around her were finally getting to her.
What was worse? Oh what was worse was that she had no control. She had no 'Heka' magic. She had no way off Kemet. Even if she did she had no control of her own life in the real world. Ramuna was truly trapped.
In a fit of rage she slammed the book on her nightstand and fell onto the bed to finally weep. Something she truly had not been able to do since she had been betrayed by her fiance. The truth was Ramuna was scared and felt like something big was coming and who knows what it was. She knew one thing though. Whatever was coming she could do nothing about it. Perhaps it was her own death that was on its way?
Ramuna did not know how much time had passed when she received a knock on her door. She had spent a long time crying and staring at the ceiling of her room. She even thought of not answering the door but she was afraid it would only irritate the Jackal more if it was him at the door.
In defeat she got up and opened the door. Of course it was him at the door.
To her surprise he held a small glass of brown liquid. The aroma from the glass was powerful and it hit her nose almost immediately. Something she had not smelled since she got to Kemet.
"Why do you have bourbon?"
The Jackal laughed quietly. "Not what was expected of my visit. I know."
Ramuna stepped to the side to let him in the room. All this time and yet he never took that giant mask off his head. Didn't he feel exposed or vulnerable only wearing a jackal mask and kilt? No matter how many encounters she had with him he never put a damn shirt on.
The magic happened almost as fast as her thought of his exposure. The Jackal was now in a dark blue suit with a white tie and white belt the only thing that remained was the mask.
The Jackal stepped into the room without saying a word, handing her the glass as he passed. He looked like he was looking over the room for differences when really the only thing that was different about the room was that he was in it.
"No complaints this time after reading my mind?" Ramuna asked.
"I was trying to be a decent man given you just had a bit of an existential crisis…" The Jackal said, looking over to the nightstand and going to retrieve the book. "Besides, you aren't the only one. I am also struggling to understand what to do."
Ramuna felt her heart sink. She was hoping he would give more detail as to why he brought her here but maybe he had even forgotten as well. Or maybe his plan had come to a dead end?
"To answer another one of your endless questions the answer is yes, my plan has come to a dead end. I was hoping there was a way to fix what you have done and I fear there is nothing that can be done because this situation is now beyond you or me." The Jackal sounded very remorseful as he started to walk back towards the door with a book.
"So studying is useless now? Even if it means nothing I don't mind still learning."
The Jackal paused his hand still on the door and his back to her. "A little late on your care for Atann's people. The place no longer exists. Just in the souls that are here."
Ramuna sighed. Even she did not feel like arguing. It's almost like she could feel the same energy and emotions she had been feeling earlier coming off him too. They both were in defeat. She then remembered the pages she wanted to ask him about that were in the book. If anything she would at least like that answer.
"Before you leave. I would like to ask one more question."
The Jackal turned to her, even with the mask she could tell he was starting to get a little agitated.
"Go on."
"There are pages in the book that have hieroglyphics that you did not give me that's part of the Atann alphabet. With pictures of the human body and planets surrounding it. What are they? Did you not want me to study them?"
The Jackal didn't respond, instead he stayed standing there staring her down.
Ramuna felt uncomfortable. Something was wrong. Was he about to snap like she did earlier? She actually expected him to start chasing her down like he did inside the pyramid where they first met the way his stance was.
"Are you okay…?" She managed to squeak out realizing her fear of the unknown was starting to really get to her. Ramuna also noticed something else that actually came as a surprise. His hands were trembling.
The moment he noticed her observing him too well he snapped out of his frozen state and flung the door open. "There is nothing like that in this book. You must be getting delusions from never sleeping in this world. I urge you to drink some of that and get some rest."
With that he was gone slamming the door behind him.
Ramuna felt awful. Did he just lie to her? Or maybe he was right. There were no pages like that in the book and only she could see them. They were so random and sometimes abruptly right in the middle of a story. Was there something out there toying with her? Something that was not the Jackal? Some divine being? Some deity from Atann? What was happening?
It was obvious they both were turning into an infinite state of dread and if something was scaring him then she should definitely be afraid.
Ramuna took the drink in her hand and even to her own shock was able to drink it all in one gulp. The glass had about five shots full of bourbon and she chugged it without a single thought. She wondered if she could even get drunk in Kemet? What if it had no effects?
Ramuna learned to listen in a few moments when she felt warmth in her chest and felt utterly dizzy. Maybe being able to sleep in this world would do her good instead of being awake all the time.
She fell into the bed and before she could even put the blanket over her she fell asleep, drifting off into a peaceful sleep. Or so she thought.
It was almost as if the moment she fell asleep she woke up somewhere else. She found herself in a room with a wooden floor and black bookcases all around her. Some of the bookcases were shaped as a round sphere floating in the middle of the room. Where was she?
Ramuna started to walk to the center of the room to where there was a wooden desk and to her surprise the book the Jackal had taken away was sitting there. She opened it up to see the book was no longer full of stories and histories but the pages that the Jackal claimed never existed and so much more.
Ramuna went through each page wishing she could understand what was written through the pages of the book. As she was deep in concentration she heard someone in front of her clear their throat. She quickly looked up to see that there was now someone sitting at the desk.
She jumped back in shock at the sight of the man. He had yellow eyes like the Jackal had but he had no mask. This man was dark skinned and had long dreads and was dressed in black armor and a huge tomahawk was strapped to his back.
A chair appeared next to her. It moved on its own as it went to go behind her as if to sit down.
"Who are you?" Ramuna asked.
"Please. Sit. I mean you no harm. My name is Tafari and I have traveled through time waiting for you to be in a dream state to meet you Ramuna. We do not have much time till you wake up but I am here to teach you the pages I have been trying to show you."