Cursed Times - Only Yesterday! Sequel to Wattys 2015 winner!

Chapter 46: Seisi - Through the Wringer

A little bit earlier ... .

Seisi dropped through the mists swirling around pyramid mountain, an icy draught pulled at his clothes, forcing tears to his eyes and threatening to rip a howling Dog from his arms. He was not familiar with this type of lateral portal, connecting two locations within one world rather than the worlds themselves. In fact, what he was experiencing did not feel like passing through a portal at all. It felt more like he was taking a headlong and unhealthy plunge towards the ground that was rushing towards him with alarming speed. He wondered whether the Pinions of Nekhbet would be enough to prevent him from smashing his body upon impact, then discarded the thought. There was hardly any time left to scream out the invocation.

I only wanted to go home, he thought.

Just as he opened his mouth to the shrieking blast, something shifted, the air suddenly went balmy, a breeze caressed his cheeks—and wet flapping wings wrapped around his body as he tumbled to the ground with a tearing sound.

Silence. Only Dog whimpered briefly.

Seisi wrestled with the white cloud still shrouding him in its clammy tangle. For a conglomeration of water vapour, this particular phenomenon was surprisingly dense, not like a cloud at all. It felt more like a wet sheet that stank of soggy dog... . .

A shrill voice penetrated his reflections.

'Oh, in the name of the Lord Ra, what are these boys up to now? I will show you what I think of you pests. Soiling the results of my labour. You vermin! You will not get away this time. Take this!' With a splat, a bristly object came down on his shoulders.

'And that!' Another splat, this time Dog took the brunt of the attack, yowled once, then started barking furiously. In the close confines of the object still shrouding Seisi, the woman's outburst hurt his ears, and the barking did not help either. By now he had identified the aggressor and he knew he had to show himself fast before the situation deteriorated any further.

She would not like his methods.

Seisi drew on his sun-flow, pushed his palm against the tight fabric and a flame shot through, burning a hole into the linen sheet. He shredded the cloth wrapped around his upper body, threw aside another one flung over his legs—and felt a stab to his groin, as Dog stomped one paw into his privates during her frantic attempt at escape. She was small and not very heavy, but he still did not enjoy the experience.

His trials were not over.

'You!' Like the sibilant hiss of a snake, the voice of his attacker once more pierced his ears. With his inner eye he could see a petite figure looming behind his back, hands balled into fists and pushed into the sides of her greyish working shift. Her face was flustered, the eyes narrowed to slits and she was tapping one sandalled foot on the stone floor. At least, she had dropped the broom she had used for the attack. One had to be grateful for small mercies; Seisi thought as he got up.

'It is good to see you, mother,' he said, not entirely truthfully. Her presence indicated that he had indeed found his way home, a bit more literally than originally intended.

'Pray, explain to me what you are doing among my nice clean washing. And why you felt the urge to burn a hole into the biggest sheet. Oh, and why there is a mongrel bitch on my roof terrace?' Seisi's mother pushed the strands of her straight black hair behind her ears, the one with the grey in it escaped first. She strode towards him; her chin raised aggressively. 'Do not tell me you are saving the world. Again.'

Seisi pulled his fleece jacket over his head; it was too warm for a sunny afternoon in the Nile valley.

'I'm... I am not sure if the situation is salvageable, but I am on a mission of the Gods for certain.'