Sisters of Divine Sands

	There are many things they say about the desert. About how those who venture into its plains never return to their families. About how the sandstorms which blow across its fields will tear the skin off of your bone, leaving you a husk for the scavengers to devour and your bones to become one with the wasteland. About how the sun beats down upon its surface with no mercy, roasting anything that dares to trek through the sand covered wastes of the desert without any second thoughts.

	And about how they hold a treasure deep within the ruins of Pyramids, owned by great pharaohs who ruled the lands with iron fists. Great monoliths built in their honor.  Structures where kings used to live within. About how the desert long ago was more of a beautiful land: A land of peace, of rivers that tore through the earth, dividing the land into an almost grid like fashion. Crops of wheat and corn, mud and clay which was used to construct homes and other assorted things, trees and bushes where great fruit such as grapes grew; this is what the desert once was. A place of tranquility.

	But then the great drought came, wrought by a corrupt Pharaoh who wanted the land for herself. She defiled the will of the gods, and was punished for it. Once great hills of crops were destroyed by the scorching rays of the sun. Rivers and lakes which brought food and water to the villages were dried up, their grooves in the earth and the corpses of underwater wildlife turning to dust. Rich Earth from Gaia was rendered useless. Winds from the North blew with might, destroying homes and creating great dust storms which blinded many and killed few. Rain never came to the land, and daylight seemed to last forever. The great pharaoh who ruled the lands was blamed for the condition the land was in, and was executed by her own people, left tied to a cross in the idle of the desert to roast in the sun.

	But the Pharaoh wasn’t always a corrupt woman. She was a fine young Lamia by the name of Memphis, part of the only Lamia family in the desert; a race with beautiful brown skin and diamond printed scales. She was friends with a young human girl, her one and only friend Nefertiti. A girl who grew to become a fine woman; one who won the hearts of many.

	At the time, the two were inseparable. They would always be together, running through the fields of wheat, playing with the animals and creatures which resided in the desert. Although she was afraid of snakes, her tan skinned human friend was fascinated in them. Ironically, Memphis didn’t see the appeal of snakes, calling them disgusting creatures that were better off eradicated than to have continue to terrorize crops and poison the village with their toxins.

	But Nefertiti didn’t see this. She saw them as creatures that were misunderstood. People feared them because of their looks; because of their strange way of movement and how they eat. But she saw them as beings that only used their venom as a defence. Beings that feared us more than the other way around. Nefertiti never feared Memphis because she was her friend. And even when under the wraps in which she would cover herself with so as to not scare the village folk, Nefertiti saw a beautiful woman, not a snake.

	But even with the flattery, Memphis was always jealous of her friend. Nefertiti was a beautiful girl; A girl who grew to be a beautiful woman. Curves that were in the right areas, long flowing black hair which seemed to blow gracefully in the warm winds of the desert, emerald eyes which were like great gemstone, hands which gave you comfort when touched, a smile of innocence and purity; it was everything Memphis didn’t have. She didn’t have soft flowing hair, but coarse unmanaged locks. She didn’t have soft hands, but rough hands covered in dirt and grim, flakes of skin and scales. She didn’t have a cute smile, but a mouth with crooked razor sharp teeth. She didn’t have eyes of gemstone, but piercing amber eyes with slit irises which drove fear into the hearts of many.

	She didn’t have legs, but a long scaly tail.

	Jealousy never made Memphis act, however. Through the jealousy she was still a friend, and a loyal one at that. The people of the village always wondered who her thick robed friend who followed her was, but Nefertiti always responded that it was her best friend. Through thick and thin, Memphis was there for her friend, and through thick and thin, so was her Nefertiti. The two had a bond that not even Nefertiti’s father, Pharaoh Aaron could separate. Although he knew the identity of Memphis as a Lamia, he never dared to separate or ruin their friendship, instead adopting her as family.

	It wasn’t until years later, on Nefertiti’s 14th birthday, that a terrible time had approached them both. It was a dark time for the whole village. A terrible plague had wrought her father, and finally it took his life. The great Pharaoh Aaron was dead. With no other family to take her in during the dark time, and no other heir to the throne, the desert was left without a Pharaoh to rule its lands. A drought began to settle across the land. With no leader to rule, riots became common. Stealing was nothing out of the ordinary. Chaos reigned across the land.

	But suddenly, through the darkness, there was light. A being of power had descended from the heavens. Ra herself had appeared. The goddess of the sun.

	In legends, the heir to the throne to become Pharaoh was always destined to be a man. The king of kings. The king of the land was named such for only a man could rule without failure. The strength of the land was demonstrated by the strength of the Pharaoh. When a Pharaoh was to fall, the prince would take their place as king. That is how it has been for generations and generations to come.

	But Pharaoh Aaron never had a son, but only a daughter. Try as he might, his many wives only produced more woman, and not a single man. After many attempts of gaining children, he would banish them, saying vulgar things that all the woman he would lay were impure, and that their children are a blight to the land. He demanded to his many helpers to bring him a pure wife, a wife who had never been touched by another man other from her own father. And try as they might, but it was the same result.

	It was then that he met Abbey, the most beautiful woman he had ever set eyes upon. His helpers told him that she was the purest that they’d ever come, with long black hair and fair brown skin which was untouched by the sun. But Aaron didn’t listen to their description of her, for his eyes saw everything in which needed to be seen. He had met his wife, and she had met her husband.

	But even though she was the fairest of them all, he was still brought with a daughter. Appalled and shocked, he said that he was cursed. He told Abbey to leave him, for he would bring her nothing but pain and anguish. But she never left. She found her love, and would never leave his side until death do them part. Aaron was baffled. Such a beautiful woman who would marry a cursed man such as him, a beautiful woman who would stand defiant against his delusions of being cursed, and yet would be loyal to him to the end. Through tears of fear and failure were tears of joy, and the two stayed together, naming their daughter after the beauty of her mother and the beauty in which she will grow up to be. Nefertiti.

	The goddess of the sun approached the young Nefertiti. Her divine light and appearance is indescribable even to this day. Through the light which enveloped her, Ra declared Nefertiti as the new Pharaoh of Egypt. The village-folk were baffled, claiming that the goddess was tossing away eons of tradition in favour of a man who was cursed to have daughters. But the goddess was never questioned, for she blessed the new pharaoh with her love and being. She was given a ring, one of the many which were on Ra’s fingers. The great Ring of Ra. The golden ring, imprinted with the eye of Ra and engraved in the hieroglyphics of the gods around its sides, was said to have given Nefertiti the power to raise and lower the sun. A feat only reserved to Ra herself. Nefertiti was blessed by the god, and with no further arguments, was the spanning deserts new Pharaoh. Anything that her light touched was hers.

	After the goddess of the sun had left, the desert was returned back to its normal state. Fresh water once again flowed down the dried up rivers and lakes that divided the desert. Crops began to grow anew, blessed by the light of the new Pharaoh. Houses were constructed and rebuilt, with the help of Nefertiti who although was discouraged by her families nobles, helped with the rebuilding and blessing of her land and the care of her people. Great statues and monoliths were constructed in her honour, in tribute to their Pharaoh, who was embarrassed that she was regarded as such. She never thought that she would become Pharaoh, and was overwhelmed by the love and affection her people gave her. But though the hardships, she never was discouraged to lead her people to peace and give them back the tranquility her father gave her.

	But her rule came at a price. With such a busy schedule, Nefertiti never had the time to play with her friend. As much as she tried to help her people, Memphis was pulled away from her friend. Before, they would play and run around the temple grounds and the village, discovering new places and new things. But now, with all of Nefertiti’s tasks she must commit to protect and bless her land and people, she never had time to play with her friend.

	Memphis wasn’t jealous; Far from it. She was proud that her friend, who always saw the good in her people even though thick and thin, and wanted peace between her people and the Lamian race, was finally doing her dream in becoming Pharaoh. But the sorrow and loneliness of losing her friend kept gripping her heart. Since her crowning in becoming Pharaoh, the two have grown more distant. They only saw each other for short times before Nefertiti was pulled away to handle a problem. Even as they met during the late hours of the night to talk, or what Nefertiti saw as a breather, it just wasn’t the same. Memphis was scared of losing her friend, her only friend who saw her as something more than a monster or as a demon as some called her. She didn’t want to go back to the loneliness of living in the streets and alleyways, eating leftover bread and other foods to survive. She didn’t want that life. She didn’t want to go back. She didn’t want to return back to being homeless when a family had just accepted her as one of them.

	And then it hit her. She was one of them. Memphis was considered family to Nefertiti and her father. She was her kin. And yet she was tossed away like nothing. She wasn’t crowned as the Pharaoh; No, Nefertiti was. She was practically her sister and yet Ra had ignored her every being and focused on her sister. Her more beautiful sister. Even when she was accepted into the family, not regarded by her looks, or spat at by her race, she was still seen as nothing. As what she had been since she had lived in the streets. Nefertiti didn’t help her when they first met out of kindness, but out of pity. Of course out of pity. Everyone else ignored her as a stain on the sand than a being that was on her last breath before being claimed by death. Of course Ra would ignore her; who would want a disgusting creature such as her to lead such a beautiful land. The great goddess of the sun didn’t even give her a glance during that day all those years ago.

	A beauty must rule the lands. Not a reviled creature.

	Jealousy began to take hold of Memphis. She was jealous of Nefertiti’s beauty. She was jealous that her people praised her for all she’s done because of her simple blessing by Ra. If Ra gave her the blessing, would they praise her too? Of course not, they would’ve spat and swore under her breath even when she did an act of kindness. That’s what they always did when she was around. Even when she was with her friend during their childhood, she heard the whispers. The remarks behind her back about her. They never liked her or her presence. They only tolerated her because Nefertiti called her as her friend.

	But Nefertiti defended her even though the remarks. She protected her from danger and never regarded her looks as horrifying or disgusting. Where most would run away from her, Nefertiti was drawn in by her curiosity. She always liked Memphis’ scales, and her amber eyes. She never saw Memphis as a monster, but as a misunderstood beauty seen as a beast. She wasn’t discouraged by the words and rumours people would create to shoo their princess away from her, instead strengthening the bond between them. Nefertiti was her friend.

	But where was Nefertiti now? She would rather sit on her throne eating grapes freshly picked for her than to help her friend in need. She probably regarded her as nothing more as an insect, an annoying snake that slithered through the crops trying to be invisible when all can see its disgusting body and its horrifying eyes. Nefertiti didn’t care for her anymore. She cared more for her people than her own friend. Her own family.

	But that was a lie. Nefertiti cared for her family. She always cared and nurtured even her step sisters whose mothers were banished because they only gave her father daughters. She reserved time in her schedule to find them all and give them houses and better living conditions. She cared for them all.

	Except for her, who was her family? Why was she ignored while everyone was given love? Why was it that she took the time out to care for them and love them, but didn’t take the time out for her? Why was it that Memphis could only talk to her under the light of the moon while her ‘real’ family was given the treatment she gave her years ago under the glow of her sun?

	And then Memphis realized why. She was never her family. She was never her friend. She was just something she played with until she got bored, and was tossed away. She pitied her, not loved her. She never cared, she was never curious; it was all just a façade. Why would anyone care about her? Why would a beauty such as Nefertiti care for such a vile creature? A disgusting creature. A monster that hid herself from others even when she was accepted by Nefertiti. Why did she hide herself? To not be noticed as as lamia? No, it was to save the vision of others by not having them look upon her horror.

	It was during her battle with herself, her drifting insanity of talking in circles that a dark being had set their eyes upon her. The being is said to have disguised itself as a cobra, its deep purple scales reflecting the light of the moon which hung in the dark sky. But instead of being horrified by the snake, she was drawn to it. Drawn to its golden eyes and black sclera. Even when it spoke to her, a feat which snakes could never do, she listened. It asked what gave her such sorrow, and she told it her issue. It listened, and gave her its input, trying to help her along. It reminded her of Nefertiti when she first met the Lamia, and it laughed.

	It told her that her suffering was unmerited. That such a beautiful being such as her shouldn’t be putting up with what her former friend was treating her like. That what Ra did was wrong. That what Nefertiti did was wrong. That she shouldn’t be sitting in a back alley, sulking to herself, but ruling over Egypt like she was meant to do. And Memphis agreed. She should be ruling over the land instead of Nefertiti. That Ra was racist and didn’t deserve to be a god. But her inner conflict disagreed. She still cared for Nefrertiti, and even though she’s been treating her wrongly, she was still her friend and wished her the best in being Pharaoh.

	But the snake edged her on. Nefertiti was being pulled away from her. Other were stealing away her Nefertiti, her friend. Was she really OK with that? With having her friend, her family, be stolen away by others? Nefertiti was hers and hers alone, but she was ok with someone else taking her away? She was already not giving her the love she used to, and instead giving that love to her family. Her ‘family’. But wasn’t she family? So why did she not receive the same love and affection? Why was she excluded? And if she were to get married, what then? Would she just ignore her every being?

	Memphis didn’t want to hear it, but the snake was right. Nefertiti was her and hers alone. And yet the two have drifted apart. What had happened to the strong bond they once had? Had that been tossed away like how Nefertiti had tossed her away like yesterday’s meal? Was the love she gave her once sided? Memphis didn’t want to believe it. She loved Nefertiti as a sister, and yet they’ve grown so distant.

	The snake told her that she should reclaim her love once more. That she should make her as the focus to Nefertiti’s affection. She’s the only family that she needs, not those whores who were banished. Why should she be looking towards those that were banished for their curse in which they inflicted onto the great Pharaoh? She should be looking towards Memphis. She was her friend. She was her family. Her only family. The only family she needs. The only friend she needs. Nefertiti was hers, and she was Nefertiti’s.

	It was after the revelation with the snake that the murders became apparent. Night after night, there was always a scream at the mid of night. Woman and their daughters found in their beds, their throats ripped open by what seemed to be claws. Blood soaked cloths and beds sat below the bodies, and no traces of the killer. They say that witnesses who saw or heard the murders saw a figure leaving the scene. A long, dark figure with amber eyes that sat in darkness which glowed in the light of the moon. Of long, sickly claws which were stained in blood. Of a sick and twisted smile which looked of morbidity and corruption which matched its long purple scaled tail and deep purple skin.

	The village soon began to name it Apophis.

	It was then, after the murders began to draw near 14 that the nobles realised that the chains of murders were connected. All of the families that have been mauled and butchered were the sisters and aunts of the great Pharaoh Nefertiti. The palace in which the Pharaoh resided within increased its guards. The pharaoh was forbidden from venturing outside at the darkest hours of the night, even with or without escort. She was told that the night was dangerous, and that the god Apophis was trying to hurt Ra by hurting her.

	But Nefertiti was always a crafty person, even now. Even when they increased the presence of guards, Nefertiti still snuck out at the dusk of midnight no meet with her friend. With her sister. They always met near the courtyard, near the sun dial. Even though she was sneaking out to get away from the palace, it was mainly because she was worried about Memphis. This Apophis was hunting down her family, and Memphis was considered her family, by the grace and declaration of her father years ago. She wanted to meet with her one last time, to tell her to move within the palace with her so she would be safe from the demon. So that they could be together forever.

	But when she met her friend, something was off. Memphis was covered in rags, more than she usually wore. She shrouded her face with a large hood, making her beautiful copper skin useable under the light of the moon. Her tail was completely covered up, a feat in which Nefertiti knew was impossible for Memphis without her help. Her hands were wrapped, making her rough and scaled skin hidden. Even as they spoke, there was something off. Memphis’ usual bubbly voice was replaced with something dark, almost twisted as if she had a sore throat. She didn’t even glance at her once, instead staring down at the floor or looking away to hide her features.

	Nefertiti couldn’t take it. She wanted to know what was bothering her friend, but her constant dodges of the question was beginning to get on her nerves. It was then she grabbed the rags which covered her friend and tore them off, in a fit of anger and confusion and the desire to know. But what she was met with was something different than the friend that she knew. Her once beautiful brown skin was now a deep purple. Her long copper brown and black diamond scaled tail was replaced with a shade of violet with small patches of brown. Her beautiful amber eyes sat in darkness instead of light. But it wasn’t that which made Nefertiti the most shocked.

	It was her crimson stained hands.

	Memphis tried to explain, but she saw the shock and horror in her friends face. When she tried to approach her, the pharaoh backed away. When she tried to touch her, the pharaoh held her arms up in defence. It was true. It was all true. Her friend was disgusted in her. She was horrified by her and now with her status raised she can finally toss away the façade and show her true self to her friend. What she thought was concern in her trying to look at her from under her rags was her wanting to see her horrifying body once more so she could be disgusted. It was all true. Nefertiti never saw her as a friend, but a tool. A plaything. All the feelings she gave her was one sided. Once she became Pharaoh, she would toss her away as she did. Even when she killed her family so she would be the focus of her affection, she still saw her as a creature. A disgusting taint on the land.

	Her heart was melting. Her chest ached. She didn’t even notice the tears which were flowing down her purple cheeks. How could she? How could she just use her? Her friend. Her family. It was all a lie. A chain of lies to give her false sense of hope. She reached out once more, to confirm her suspicions, and Nefertiti took a step back. She feared her. She was afraid of her. No, she was disgusted by her. By her inhuman form. By her degenerate skin. By her unholy body. She looked at her friend, her ‘friend’, one last time. She etched the fear and horror of her expression into her face before she slithered off into the night, disappearing into the darkness. She never glanced back. She never thought of nothing more than Nefertiti being the focus of her hate instead of her love.

	She never saw the outstretched hand of her beloved friend and her soothing but cracked voice calling her back.

	They say that the final murder was bloody. The nobles didn’t even tell Nefertiti what the guards saw. It was of a woman by her age, her closest step sister. Her body was found in the street on a pike, with her entrails torn out. They say the body was dressed in a mock-up of what the Pharaoh wore, almost looking exactly like Nefertiti. They saw it as a threat, and the palace guards were increased to such a degree that tributes were forbidden.

	But Nefertiti never heard the news. She refused to leave her room, locking herself within its walls. The nobles saw it as something for the better, but her mother was worried by her condition. For three days and two nights she was in her room, curled up into a ball on her bed. It was the same image which played in her mind over and over again. Of her once beautiful and divine friend Memphis corrupted into what the villagers called her as Apophis. Her blood stained hands made a shiver go down her spine every time she thought of it. She couldn’t close her eyes without seeing her beautiful friend as that horror. Her once innocent lamia friend she met at the age of 3 not a murderer that butchered her family. And why? Why was she doing this? What had she become? The thought, the fear in which gripped her mind, swayed her away from sleep. Dark circles began to form under her emerald eyes. Her beautiful form was a shivering and shaking mess. Her mother always brought her food, but she barely ate it.

	The sound of something heavy thumping against the sandstone floors was said to drive her out of her fears. It was night, and the light of the moon shone through the windows of her room. But it also shone against a large figure which was at the window. It slithered into her room, its scales rubbing against the ground, creating a faint dragging sound. Two amber eyes never left the fear stricken eyes of Nefertiti’s. A large, almost cobra-like hood made its eyes sit in almost a void of darkness. They seemed dilated, as if the creature that was slithering before her was mad. Its heavy and raspy breaths echoed in her mind, and its sick and twisted smile made her heart race in fear.

	But why was she afraid? This wasn’t a creature, but her friend. This was Memphis. Not was, this is Memphis. She called to her friend, to her beloved, but it called to deaf ears. It was drawing closer, its rough breaths becoming louder and hot breath feeling near. She wanted to back away, in fear and horror. But there was nothing to fear. This wasn’t what the villagers named Apophis, this was her friend Memphis. She never feared her before and there was no reason to fear her now. For she was her friend. She was always her friend. Nefertiti never took a step back, but instead too three steps forward.

	Memphis didn’t know what to do when Nefertiti’s arms enveloped her in a warm hug. She stood in silence, almost surprised that the action was made. But it was the sound of crying that shot her out of her delusions of evil. The warm and wet feeling of tears made her glance at the black and silky hair which was resting on her shoulder. Nefertiti was crying. Her hug began to feel tighter as she sniffled and cried, making Memphis feel confused. But through the tears, the lamia heard her friends’ voice. Her cracking yet soothing voice.

	She was saying she was sorry.

	She was sorry for neglecting her which she upheld her duties as a Pharaoh. She was sorry that they couldn’t be together like they were usually. She was sorry that she was afraid of her when they met days ago. She even laughed at the fact that she was afraid of her own friend. Why would she be? They’d known each other for years and years. The pharaoh began to bury her head onto Memphis’ shoulder as she cried. But they weren’t tears of sorrow, she told the lamia, but tears of regret. She regretted that she treated her friend, her best friend, so unfairly. She wanted them to be together forever, even negotiating with her nobles to allow her to live with them inside the palace instead of out in the slums. She was family. And she should be treated as family.

	Memphis didn’t know what to think. Her heart was pounding against her chest. She had done so much wrong. She had hated her for so long. But it was all unwarranted. Nefertiti wasn’t ignoring her, but trying to make it so they could be together. Her hands were stained in the blood of what was her family. She murdered and killed for Nefertiti’s attention. She didn’t deserve her affection now. She wasn’t the Memphis she knew, but a monster. A demon which deserved to be executed without mercy. She was even beginning to cry.

	But Nefertiti didn’t see it that way. She may have been a murderer and a killer, but she was still her friend. She would always be her friend. Even if it weren’t meant to be, she would always be there for her, as she was. She cooed her bawling friend, who clutched against her in tears. Her soft hands stroked her head, brushing through Memphis’ hair. She forgave her.

	But a voice began to speak to Memphis. A voice in which only she heard. A voice which reminded her of Nefertiti’s backstabbing. About how it was all a pawn to lower her guard. The guards would come through the door and arrest her the minute she stopped crying. Nefertiti would never forgive someone who murdered her family. She was lying to Memphis. She was telling her things she wanted to hear, just like how she always did. But it was all lies. Even when she was hugging her now, she was probably disgusted that her divine and beautiful body was pressing against a disgusting and filthy creature such as her. Memphis pushed herself out of Nefertiti’s clutches. Realization was beginning to kick into the lamia’s mind. This was all just acts. Acts orchestrated by a manipulator who saw everything as just toys that she could play with and toss away when something new came out. Even when she gazed upon her once best friend, she saw the fear in her eyes. The fear of being found out.

	When Memphis’ hand plunged into Nefertiti’s stomach, there was no sign of resistance. Nefertiti didn’t try to stop the hand from going into her, nor did she try to pull it out as she was lowered to the ground. Instead, she smiled. But it wasn’t a smug smile, but a smile a mother would give their child when they would make a mistake. A smile which made Memphis began to tear up without notice. Her emerald eye met the damp eyes of her killer, who felt regret wash over her shoulders. She just killed her friend. Her best friend. Her only friend. She lowered her head, trying to hold back the tears which kept flowing without end. Why? Why did she do it? Out of jealousy? Out of anger? Was it a syndrome that she began to not care that she was used by Nefertiti, with the falseness of having a fake friend?

	The warm touch made her freeze. Nefertiti’s hand caressed her check, her warm smile and emerald eyes gazing at the grief stricken lamia. She told her not to cry. That it wasn’t her fault, that she shouldn’t blame herself. She told her that it was all her fault for neglecting her, and saw it as such. What she did was wrong, and she deserved her fate. But even in her passing, even though she killed her, Nefertiti still saw her as her friend. No, as her family. As her sister.

	Memphis held her hand as she cried. She bit her lip in tears when the life which was in Nefertiti’s emerald eyes began to fade like a fire. Her throat began to feel dry, causing her to gulp some air. Sniffles echoed across the room and out the windows and doors. She held her friends hand against her cheek for what felt like hours, rubbing her damp cheeks against it as she cried. She didn’t even give a glance towards the palace guards who entered wondering what all the commotion was all about to see the scene. She didn’t even acknowledge Nefertiti’s mother tell the guards not to attack, and instead watched the scene with misty eyes.

	Pharaoh Nefertiti was dead.

	News spread like wildfire about the death of the beautiful Nefertiti. The village was stricken with grief and sorrow for days on end. But even then, a new pharaoh was made. The family bloodline was continued to the next heir in the family, which happened to be the being that raised the sun in the morning. The new pharaoh Apophis. The village ridiculed Memphis when she became pharaoh, saying that it was her who murdered their beloved pharaoh, and that no monster should rule. But as the last living member of Aaron’s family other from Nefertiti’s mother, she was the only heir. She was given the ring of Ra, the divine trinket which seemed to burn her with such intensity when she first placed it on her finger. But it still gave her the power to raise the sun. Memphis was finally pharaoh, an occupation which should’ve been hers from the beginning, and which she strove to have it belong to its rightful owner.

	But even as she sat on the throne, she never felt the satisfaction she once yearned. She felt guilt. She felt sorrow. She felt regret that she killed her best friend, her only friend, her family, to claim this. And for what? All the bloodshed, the murders. Out of jealousy? Only a child would be driven by jealousy and their emotions. And now what? She had it all. She had the land, the rule, everything. And yet, Memphis didn’t feel like she did. She didn’t feel like she had everything. She didn’t feel like she deserved the gold which hung off her and the status to boss around nobles and village folk too do her bidding. For if she had everything, she would have Nefertiti.

	She didn’t even realise how long she had been standing and staring at Nefertiti’s sarcophagus. She didn’t even realise she was crying until her tears began to patter against the floor.

	It wasn’t until years later that Memphis began to pay for her sins. When she was supposed to lower the sun to mark the end of the day, the sun never moved. When she commanded it to lower, it stayed. When she pointed the ring at the ball of fire to move it, it never budged. When she called upon Ra to ask what the meaning of this defiance was, the ring scorched her in response. Memphis was infuriated. She was pharaoh. She was the new demigoddess of the sun. Through days which began to turn into weeks, the sun never moved from the center of the sky. The heat seemed to increase as days passed, scorching the earth and drying up the rivers. Crops turned to dust and cattle began to die in the heat. Heavy winds began to blow through the village in anger, picking up dust and creating strong sandstorms. Villagers began to die of plagues and of heatstrokes.

	The villagers were enraged. Their lives were being tossed away by a pharaoh who killed her way to her position and now couldn’t even lower the sun. The ones that survived the winds and the drought stormed the palace gates. Apophis ordered her guards to protect her, to kill anyone that tried to threaten her. Fear began to grip her heart as she was beginning to be backed into a corner. Her people were turning on her. Her people who she ruled were going to kill her. They were going to murder her, like how she murdered all those people.

	But then it occurred to her that this wasn’t anything to fear. This was divine punishment for her sins in which she had committed. She deserved to be punished. She deserved to be hated by all. She deserved to die. She called off her guards and surrendered to the angry villagers. Even when she was tossed and kicked around, even when she was stoned, she smiled. She deserved it all. She deserved their hatred and mistrust. She deserved their disgust. She even began to cry, but not in sorrow, but in the revelation of her sins. And even as she was dragged across the sands, and nailed to a cross and stood up to point directly at the sun before being left to be cooked, she never did protest. What was there to protest? She had killed her family. She had mistreated her people. Her people in which she didn’t even deserve to call.

	She killed her friend.

	Tears rolled down her cheeks as she hung. She stared up at the sun, and saw the face of her friend. But it wasn’t a face of disgust, but of happiness. It was an infectious smile which made the lamia smile back. She wanted to say something, but her throat was coarse and dry. They say that when she finally died, the sun began to lower, and the moon rose over the horizon. But a new constellation was within the starry skies of the night.

	Of two figures; a young girl and a young lamia, playing in the sky.