Song of the Crimson Nile: The Red Nile

Prologue - The Red Nile

Author Notes:

This story mentions real events of the past, however, the majority of the plot is fictional and does not claim to be historically correct. And please take note that the characters and book cover are credits from Romance Club, the story is only Fanfic and is entertainment purpose only.

If you read more characters that has been added, the other characters are made from me. That is all and thank you!

Over 5,000 years ago in Ancient Egypt, there were people living with magic, a magic that was forbidden by Pharaoh Menes II. People called them Shesmu. They were dark magicians who practiced two skills of art: the art of Necromancy and the art of Oneiromancy. A Shesmu had the skill to step into people's dreams (Oneiromancy) and could communicate with the dead (Necromancy).

That's why all Shesmu had no place to stay anymore, not even in Egypt. The Pharaoh had hunters and a supreme Epistates, the ones who captured, tortured, and executed the Shesmu in public places. That's why the Shesmu were forced to run away, hide like rats, and conceal their identities from anyone just to survive and avoid being caught and killed on the spot.

But then something tragic happened that started to change everything...

When the most important person to the Pharaoh was killed in his sleep, it was Supreme Epistates Ahmose. At first, his death was mysterious, and no one knew who killed him. But thanks to someone who had the instinct to see things that ordinary people can't see, he was able to tell them who the murderer was. It was a shesmu; a shesmu worked through Oneiromancy skills to kill the Epistates.

One more thing: after 5 years of Ahmose's death, another victim was killed. The victim was also a shesmu, a Oneiromancer, and a Necromancer. Their son managed to run away and survive, but his parents were killed and died by the hands of their mentor, who was a shesmu. Everyone in Memphis, the capital city of Egypt, was convinced that everything was the shesmu's doing. They started to protest, banning the dark magic arts and executing whoever practiced and studied dark magic.

The Pharaoh then decided that all Oneiromancers must die and executed them, leaving the Necromancer alone. It was said that the Shesmu who were killed by their mentor were also Oneiromancers, and all of them (Oneiromancers) were considered dangerous and needed to be killed. As much as the Pharaoh couldn't bear it, he needed to act for the sake of his people.

Once again, on July 24 of 345 BC, the Pharaoh died from illness. But some believed that it was the work of a dark magician, and it couldn't be the Oneiromancers because they were already dead. And they had one to blame: the Necromancer. On August 5 of 345 BC, Menes II was crowned as Pharaoh. The first thing he did was ban the practice of dark magic, as such skills were dangerous for people outside the palace because they could be used for bad purposes and pose a threat.

And he commands his hunters to execute those who practice dark magic, and aside from that, only priests under him can perform Necromancy and nothing more.

Since then, all Shesmu are hiding from the world. They have gone from having the freedom to practice and study their skills to hiding from performing them. Other Oneirmancers are alive and safe. More Shesmu have broken the law of the Pharaoh; they still practice dark magic because doing so allows them to earn money and survive, especially the young children.

Shesmu and the laws of the Pharaoh continue. The more Shesmu do their work, the more deaths result from it.

321 B.C., Hermopolis, Ancient Egypt

"Eva, wake up." Evthys opened her eyes and slowly stretched her arms and back, yawning. "Ramesses, I must say... you are distracting me from my sleep," she said while her sleepy eyes closed. "You overslept last night. I guess your 'other world' made your mind go crazy," Ramesses, a young student, chuckled lightly. Opening her eyes, she rubbed her eyes and stared at the young man.

I remember when I first got here. It was scary when a spear was right on my neck, threatening me. "Oh, will you just leave me alone?" Evthys rolled her eyes and waved her hand off to Ramesses as if pushing him away, wanting him to leave her alone. "Evthys, you should know that our class will be starting in a few minutes, and you're still not ready," another voice joined their conversation

"Ugh, not you too, Dia?" Evthys groaned as Dia walked towards them, her hip swaying and her long dress following her movements, accompanied by the sound of her expensive accessories. "Evthys, get up right now and get ready!" Her roommate clicked her tongue and forced Eva to stand up.

"Don't be late; Remmao will scold you again for being late. He hates it when someone makes him wait," Dia said giving up and leave Eva alone. Eva snorted and shook her head. She looked at herself in the mirror and said, "Time to get ready."

To be continue...