Book of the Forgotten: the Bearded Queen

Chapter 5

"Much better. Now, we really must be going, or we will most certainly miss everything," Viv exclaimed, clapping her hands with delight and agitation.

Ava did not move. "What the heck was that?" She cried, dazzled by the swirling colours that were clinging to her skin. "And where are my clothes?" Gone were her constricting jeans and long sleeve sweater. In their place, a tight-fitting, white, tube dress fell to her ankles and was held up by two thick straps. A thin shrug hung over her shoulders, elegantly woven and pleated. Ava instantly felt cooler. Her skin was covered, but the material allowed for air flow.

"You cannot walk around Ancient Egypt in your jeans. You will stick out like a sore thumb. The kalasiris is what women of the New Kingdom wore, usually white or dyed in bright colours if you could afford it. But we really do not have time for a history lesson. I will explain on the way!" Viv began to walk away again, her own white kalasiris swishing around her ankles.

Ava struggled to catch up (the kalasiris may have cooled her off a little bit, but it was still very hot). Breathing rapidly and sweating profusely, she finally caught up to Viv, matching her stride. "Okay, where are we going and why?"

Viv sighed deeply, and muttered "I love Deedee deeply, but that woman sure loves her surprises. Did she tell you nothing at all?"

"Nothing at all about what?" Ava threw her hands up, nearly falling flat on her face. As they walked across the sand, a city began to loom above them. Mud brick buildings crowded the outer limits of the city, beyond them, magnificent columns and brilliant white temples crowned the sky. Ava watched people scurry down dirt packed streets, all of them rushing towards the same destination.

"Nothing about my book?" Viv questioned, heading in the same direction as the others.

"She said it was magic, but I..."

As they walked through the city, Ava couldn't help but be distracted. Each mud building seemed to be a home, but they were unlike any home Ava had ever known. Square and squat, each one had a small enclosed yard with roaming goats and a chicken or two. Their thick walls boasted small, high windows, and protruding wooden porch roofs. People lounged under the wooden awnings on their rooftops, snoozing in the afternoon shade. The smells and sounds hit her at once. The cacophony of so many people talking and laughing as they rushed forward mixed with the harmony of squawking chickens and bleating goats. Somewhere in the distance, Ava could make out the mournful mooing of a cow.

"You did not believe her, and that is why you ignored me, yes?"

Viv's question jolted Ava out of her sightseeing, and she blushed, guilt whistling through her. "I didn't mean to ignore you. I honestly thought Auntie Deedee had finally lost it. That, or she was exaggerating. She thinks every book is magic. How was I supposed to know this book was literal magic, and that I would be..."?

The words died on her tongue as they came across a great courtyard, overflowing with people of all ages. The women were a wash of colour in their kalasiris, and their hair was worn in tight curls with narrow braids. The men wore no shirts above their wraparound skirts, and the children, well, they wore nothing at all. A dozen naked toddlers rushed past Ava, who watched them go with confusion. Viv only laughed.

The most eye-catching part of the crowd, however, was the jewelry. Each adult was decked out in colourful, heavy jewelry. Earrings, bracelets, rings, necklaces, diadems, and neck collars of gold were decorated with beads and precious gems of all colours. Ava was dazzled by the splendor of it all, but the splendor did not end with the people.

Beyond the courtyard sat a large complex. Dozens of homes and buildings, fields, and manmade pools surrounded a grand palace of limestone. Its white walls shone in the sun, lending an angelic air to the palace. Spiraling columns engraved with colourful hieroglyphics stood guard at the top of a long ramp, lined with soldiers, all carrying short swords at their belts and axes against their backs.

Viv turned to Ava with a grin, and motioning towards the opalescent palace, said with a laugh, "Welcome to Thebes, the capital of ancient Egypt."