The Prince of Egypt: Half Breed

Goodbye Brother

In the early hours of morning, Moses couldn't sleep a wink. His thoughts keeping him awake as he stewed in his doubts and fears. Seeing Moses needed time alone, after making sure he was alright and was not going anywhere, Skylar left him alone and retired to her own chambers with her mother to rest.

Meanwhile, Queen Tuya went to speak to her son after her husband told her what happened, hoping to comfort her son. Finding him in the garden pools she found him as a baby, Moses sat on the steps as the ibis gathered in the water, his eyes gazing towards them, but unseeing as they gazed within himself.

"Moses?" Queen Tuya called out to her son.

"Is this where you found me?" Moses asked, his tone bitter as he acknowledged her presence.

Hearing this, the Queen was hesitant to approach him, but pressed on, trying to reach out to her son. "Moses, please try to understand."

Moses said nothing at first, simply looking at her from the corner of his eye before turning to face her and confront her with the doubts that had plagued him. "So... So everything I thought, everything I am, is a lie."

"No!" Queen Tuya denied as she rushed to his side to comfort him. "You are our son, and we love you!"

"Why did you choose me?" Moses asked.

"We didn't, Moses. The gods did." Queen Tuya answered as she gazed out at the Nile before walking down the stairs, and then sitting down beside her son.

This is your home, my son
Here the river brought you
And it's here the river meant
To be your home

Now you know the truth, love
Now forget and be content
When the gods send you a blessing
You don't ask why it was sent

Gaining a smile from her son at last, Queen Tuya embraced her son as he returned it. Her love anchoring him for the time being.

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Awakening in her chambers and getting ready for the day, Skylar turned to her mother.

"Mother..." she called, gaining said woman's attention. "I fear that the danger may be growing for me and Moses. He knows who he is."

"Of course he knows who he is. He is son of the Pharaoh." Her mother replied.

Sighing and shaking her head, Skylar explained. "No. He is the son of Yocheved. A Hebrew woman that placed him in a basket to save him from the Pharaoh's decree. He knows this now and as I said, there may be danger coming for me and Moses."

"Skylar..." Her mother gasped.

"I think Pharaoh thinks I've placed a curse on him by what I said last night. He may even try to kill me. The time might come for me to leave." Skylar explained.

Skylar watched as he mother took in this information, weighing the dangers before sighing and holding her daughter tight. "I have always feared a day would come when you would be forced to leave. If it is true you are in danger, I will prepare a few things for you if you must leave in a hurry. I will leave it on the outskirts for you." Kissing her daughter's forehead she released her little girl.

"May any God of either heritage protect you." She offered. "I love you. Be safe."

"You too. I love you." Skylar replied as she left in search of Moses.

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Later that day, Skylar found herself accompanying Rameses and Moses back to the temple from yesterday. Placing a pile of a pile of scrolls at the construction site for the new temple, servants moved out of the way as they waited for their next orders. One was operating a fan for Rameses as Hotep and Huy listened to Rameses atop the large piles of sand, a tent put up to keep the out of the sun.

"Last night, the gods granted me a vision. I'm not merely going to restore the temple, I will make it more grand! More splendid than any other in Egypt." Rameses told them, eager to have even more grand temples.

Heading up to join Rameses, Moses and Skylar couldn't help but look at all the Hebrew slaves pulling ropes and carrying sacks of sand on their backs while the slave drivers whipped them to keep working. For Moses, it was as if he was seeing it for the first time in his life. Guilt clawing at him as he watched.

Men pulling at ropes as the rough rope rubbed their hands raw, their backs ached from the labor and the whips dug into their skin. The sun cooking their skin. Others carried heavy sacks of sand, their backs bending under the weight.

Seeing a man stubble and fall, one of the overseers was quick to shout at him, "Get up!" before cracking the whip on the bag, opening it and causing the sand to fall out. But even with the bag between him and the whip, the man still felt pain.

Sighing at the sight, Moses turned away and nearly walked right into one of the workers, moving slightly out of the way, Moses didn't see Rameses coming up behind him as well.

"Moses! Skylar! Look. Fate has turned our little misadventure into a great opportunity." Rameses told them as he guided them around walking away from the scaffolding as a guard was singling out one of the workers.

"Get up, old man!" The guard yelled.

"Father will be so pleased..." Rameses gushed even though Moses and Skylar were only half listening as they both turned to look at the commotion happening behind them.

"Put your back into it! Faster!" The guard yelled, the old man having a hard time lifting the sack much less putting it on his back.

Miriam watched this in dread. Aaron kept his head bent down and kept working. Ignoring it and everything else going on as he had learned to do to keep out of trouble.

"This is just the beginning." Rameses continued, leading them to the tent as he used his arms to gesture what he envisioned. "A gateway will open to an entire new city of white limestone, more dazzling than the sun. And here, a statue of Hapi."

Looking back at the guard, he cracked the whip at the man, mercilessly. "I said, hurry!"

"...two great column halls." Rameses continued.

"Stop it! Somebody's got to stop this!" Miriam yelled, trying to rush to the man's aid.

Grabbing a hold of her, Aaron stopped her. "There's nothing we can do."

All the while, the guard kept whipping the man. Unable to stand it anymore, Moses started to run in the direction of the scaffolds. Looking through the line of workers for anyone who would rush to the old man's aid. Rameses too busy with his grand vision of the temple he didn't even notice Moses and Skylar leaving.

"Stop it. Stop." Moses quietly spoke as he continued on with Skylar at his heels before calling out louder. "Stop it! Leave that man alone!"

"That's enough!" Skylar cried out.

Hearing their voices, Rameses turned around puzzled at their actions. "Moses? Skylar?"

The guard continued to lash with fiendish glee, up until Moses and Skylar jumped on him. Causing the slave driver to lose his balance, toppling over and falling off the edge of the scaffolding. Moses and Skylar kept their balance as they watched in horror as the guard fell to the ground with a crash. Surly dead.

The workers gathered around only to be pushed aside by another guard. "Out of my way. Out of my way. Move!" He yelled before looking for the one responsible. "Who did this?"

"Up there! It's them. Up there." A worker yelled, trying to keep himself and the others safe.

Moses panted, the horror of what he and Skylar had done dawning on him as he turned to look behind them. The workers gathered there jumped back in alarm, all but Miriam and Aaron who stayed in their spots and looked at them with stunned faces.

Grabbing Moses' hand, Skylar knew they had to get out of there. Running away, they were stopped by Miriam.

"Moses!" Miriam called out, latching on to his shoulder. Looking at his sister, Moses could only shake his head and with a tug from Skylar continued to run.

"I'm sorry." Skylar called out, though even she was unsure if it was to Miriam or Moses who she directed these words to.

Changing from the wooden planks of the scaffold to the loose sand, they nearly slipped before continuing to run. Only to slip again and roll down the hill. Picking themselves up, Skylar grabbed his hand again and lead the way as they ran.

However, being focused on Moses, Skylar didn't see Rameses charging at them and grabbing the both of them.

"Moses, Skylar, what's going on?" Rameses demanded to know, only for the two to shove him away and start running again.

"Moses! Skylar!" Rameses he yelled.

But they didn't stop of the prince regent. Leading the way, Skylar ran through the Hebrew streets to the outer gates, seeing the packs her mother prepared for her, Skylar smiled. However, before they could reach the gate, Skylar could hear the sound of a chariot. Turning to look behind them, they saw Rameses coming after them.

"Moses! Skylar!" Rameses cried out. Seeing they would not stop, he urged the horses faster running ahead of them before pulling the chariot in front of them and causing them to stop.

"Let me go!" Moses shouted, slowing down to go around the chariot.

"Let us pass! Even if Moses returns, I can not go back." Skylar told the prince regent, following Moses.

"No, wait." Rameses begged.

"You saw what happened. We just killed a man." Moses reminded his brother.

"We can take care of that. I will make it so it never happened." Rameses said, pleading with his brother and servant. Grabbing Moses' shoulder, trying to reason with him.

"You can lie to yourself all you want." Skylar growled at him.

"Nothing you can say can change what we've done." Moses told his brother, shaking him off his shoulder.

"I am Egypt! The morning and the evening star. If I say day is night, it will be written, and you will be what I say you are." Rameses continued to try and reason with them, walking backwards as the two continued forward. "I say you are innocent!" He yelled, pushing Moses back, trying to stop him.

"What you say does not matter! You don't understand. I can't stay here any longer." Moses shook his head, pushing his brother away.

"And neither can I. Your father would get rid of me anyway. It's better this way if I leave now and don't come back." Skylar declared.

"What are you talking about?" Rameses asked her, only to be ignored.

"Moses! Skylar!" Rameses pleaded, reaching out for them only to have his hands pushed away.

"No! All I've ever known to be true is a lie. I'm not who you think I am." Moses declared, shaking his brother before sighing in despair.

"You have no idea what I really am." Skylar told the prince regent, unable to face him.

Perplexed by their words, Rameses asked them, "What are you talking about?"

Composing himself, Moses spoke evenly. "Go ask the man I once called 'Father.'" Letting go of his brother, Moses accepted Skylar's offered hand as she grabbed the supplies that were waiting for her at the entrance, the two running away.

"Moses? Skylar? Please." Rameses begged, confused and not wanting to lose the two most important people to him.

His face softened as Moses looked at his brother, Rameses' hands offered out, all he would have to do was take it.

But his plea could not stop what was already destined to be.

Filled with sadness, Moses said the last words he would say to his brother for a very long time. "Good-bye, brother."

"Farewell, Rameses. May the Gods have mercy on you." Skylar told him, bowing to him for the last time and turning her back on him.

"Moses! Skylar!" Rameses called out, wanting to stop them but unable to chase after them anymore.

With nothing to hold them back any longer, the two fugitives ran on and into the desert. Their fate in the hands of God.

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Walking on through the desert with the setting sun to their right, Skylar and Moses wandered through the desert, the only proof they were ever there was the footprints in the sand as they walked a top the sand dunes. Neither knew where they were going, only that it was away from the only home they had ever known. Reaching rockier terrain, the two walked down the slopes. When night fell, the wind kicked up sand, blinding them and making it difficult to journey on. The cold nipping at their limbs. When the sun arose, they still didn't stop, jumping over cracks in their path as they helped the other stand when one of them stumbled.

They walked on and on, over dried riverbeds and crawling across the sand dunes, through canyons and more. Mountains behind them, separating them from that which they fled, the setting sun at their backs. They didn't look back to admire the beauty. Skylar focused on the path ahead and Moses fearing what he would do if given the chance to.

Moses barely kept track of the days they wandered in the wilderness. The sun high above their heads and sharp rocks below their feet. He was tired and sweaty, stumbling as they walked. Causing him to trip and tear his sandal on them. Looking at the object as if it offended him, Moses tossed the now useless object away before riding himself of all the other adornments on his person.

Pulling off his ring, he looked at it. The last gift he had received from his brother. Sighing, he slipped it back on to his finger.

Skylar discarded her jewelry that symbolized her as a servant to the Pharaoh. But she didn't get rid of the jewelry that showed her heritage. She couldn't get rid a part of herself.

Taking off the wig, Moses threw it away as well. Looking at it, Skylar was shocked to see it quickly becoming buried in the sand.

Shacking Moses, Skylar showed him what was coming directly towards them. A sand storm.

They could not outrun it, or escape it. Moses opened his arms wide letting the sand scrub his form clean of everything that was from Egypt while Skylar embraced herself.