Nightmarish

Abduction

As I woke up, my head was aching and my hands trembled. Beads of sweat trickled down my forehead as I recall what happened inside my brain last night. I was roaming the First Nome. As I walked, I saw Ra and Chief Lector Iskandar, looking at me with such scorn and grief as if I had done something wrong.

I said, "What's going on?"

Ra said, "What have you done, Zia?"

I said with sheer confusion, "WHAT did I do wrong?"

Chief Lector Iskandar said, "Zia, we do not know what happened, but something is happening inside you. Something not even the gods could explain. They saw your sheut, and what they saw was not you, but a woman with ten arms. We don't know what happened to you, but you must be confined-"

Ra cut him off abruptly, saying, "Enough, Iskandar. Zia Rashid, you are now forbidden to go out of the First Nome. You are to follow-"

I said, "No! I still have to go with Carter to Long Island, and I have to help Amos with his duties. Why are you doing this to me?"

Iskandar was about to say something when Ra cut him off. He was making a fireball and threw it to me. It burned, eating my skin like moth's wings. I tried to put it off, but it only became stronger and seared my flesh. It was slowly making me a skeleton, burning away. The pain became so unbearable that I fell to the floor, quivering like a fly trapped in a spider web. I saw my arms, or what used to be them. In its place were black bones, singed and rotten. I screamed, but realized that I couldn't. I was dying. Slowly, the fire stabbed at my heart. Now my heart was beating slowly. The fire reached it, and it burned painfully.

I had never felt a dream that could be so real, yet so unreal. I put on my clothes and went to see Amos. I didn't tell him about my nightmares, fearing that I would worry him. I had to find out about it somehow, although I didn't know how. I might ask Carter, but he's too busy with the new recruits. Maybe later, after I meet with Amos.

As I went through the hall, I noticed that there was something peculiar in the walls. I looked more closely, and it turned out to be a snake. And it seemed to follow me.

-

The snake was on a statue, its eyes were as black as night. It was perfectly normal snake, until it winked at me. Who could this peculiar snake be? What was he doing here? Was he a minion of Apophis or Apophis himself? How did he get here?

A tumble of questions rushed through me like water. I started to create a fireball, but flickered and went off like a broken light bulb. And then, the weirdest thing happened. He spoke to me, a snake spoke to me!

It said, Zia, do not be afraid. I am a friend. I know you have many questions, but right now you have to come with me.

Just as I threw a sizzling fireball at it, it said something like co-something and wrote a symbol that froze my entire body except for my eyes. I saw the snake slither next to me and say something like pirate nyada and transformed into a boy. He had the same height as me, with a shaved head and tattoos written all over his arms. He was extremely muscular for someone my age, and he was attractive.

I quickly dismissed the thought as he said to me, “I will take care of everything.”

He had a heavy accent and pushed me into Amos’s room. I was extremely terrified that he would find out that I let in an intruder in here.

But, surprisingly he said, “Hello, Zia and Carter? Carter, what are you doing here?”

He said, “Oh, Uncle, I should let you know that Zia and I are going to the Nome in India, because there has been serious movement there. Sadie has her hands full, so I thought Zia could come with me.”