The Golden Queen

Three

What if this was all just a dream? If I went forward into the city to the palace, would I encounter Pharaoh? And where was the mysterious man who never failed to come to me?

I looked around at the people that passed me in the streets. Most were in a mood of celebration, but others glared at me like I was an ancient plague. As a foreigner, I wasn't welcomed into their city. Their mistrusting eyes made that quite clear. I averted their gazes and wandered around the crowd. The leaves of a nearby palm tree made a nice shade to rest under while I considered what to do.

I felt like a phantom, standing amidst people who had been dead for millennia. I glanced down at my legs to find my snug jeans, unchanged and the same as this morning. The curious glances from the people embarrassed me; I was an atrocity for them, as they were bronzed skinned, dark haired, and clad in thin tunics.

A woman passed by, grasping her child's hand. These were barbaric times, though Egypt's law codes were more generous to women than other ancient empires, it was still dangerous here. Of everyone around me, they seemed least threatening. I started to ask for help, but wondered if they would understand English or if I could speak Egyptian.

My clothes were tight fitting, my jeans snug and my blouse buttoned low in a fashionable way, attracting the attention of passersby that gawked at me. Then I was approached by a couple of men. One reached out to stroke my hair while the other circled around me to marvel my curves. He actually had the audacity to grasp my backside. They both grinned at me hungrily, entranced by my exotic nature. I swatted them away, but they wouldn't leave me alone. Frightened, I headed through the crowd, hoping to lose them.

But they pursued me. They seemed amused by my attempts to evade them. They skulked after me slowly at first, but quickened pace as I bolted down the street. The people looked on as if nothing was happening. Fear suddenly gripped me. Women had few rights during these times and were seen as inferior to men, and foreigners had no rights. Either way, my situation was grim. I had to get away somehow, to protect myself in a legal way, but when I glanced back into their wild eyes, I knew I might have to fight them. Why was the man who always came to me in my dreams absent when I desperately needed him now? He had to be in the city somewhere, looking for me. If I kept running...I would find him somehow... If we could find each other, he would protect me.

A red banner flapped in the wind, and out of my blind frenzy, I remembered the palace. If I went there and sought out the pharaoh, maybe he would help me. Maybe he would be there. Maybe they would provide me with protection. I had to hurry and reach them before my pursuers caught up with me.

I bumped past people that were in my way. They grumbled and some even shouted at me, ignoring the two men who were chasing me. The buildings were a white blur as I passed by them, under shadows that blotted the streets.

Children, impoverished and malnourished, were clothed in tattered rags and begged for coins on each side of the street. Their innocent faces were scarred by hard times and sadness. My beautiful dream was suddenly becoming a nightmare!

A hoard of cries came from the direction I was headed, the direction of Pharaoh's palace. Now people stopped to see what was happening. My two pursuers seemed to be distracted as well. I took the opportunity to slip out of sight.

I darted around the people in front of me and looked behind me to see if I was still being followed. I separated from the crowd, and their eyes remained forward. Time seemed to slow; my heart thudded in a sluggish cadence as everything seemed to stop. The celebration came to an abrupt end and the eyes of the crowd grew wide with terror. Each face was mingled with curious dread. I took a step back, and another, until I was several feet away from them.