Okay, angering Aurelio at the party last night was probably not the smartest move, but seeing Foxglove there was startling. I knew Aurelio was probably going to go behind my back and interrogate Seth. However, knowing that he most likely gave him over to Fox was too much. I know how she relished interrogation, but I miscalculated when I took her as my student. She quickly succumbed to the darkness of the art, and her madness only grew once I refused to teach her. All of it is now directed at me, she has sworn to gain my respect or fear. If she finds out that Seth is connected to me… I shuddered.

Moving around my room for what felt like the hundredth time I realized my body was starting to slow. All those sleepless nights were starting to catch up to me. If I was being honest, I was lucky that my body lasted this long. A month was nice, but even I needed to sleep eventually, demigod or not.

I stumbled to the bed. My head felt disconnected from everything, and my feet dragged. ‘I hope there are no nightmares this time.’ Was all I could think as I hit the mattress.

Suddenly, I was back home in Thebes, standing in a patch of papyrus on the bank of the Nile. I could smell the water, and feel the dry heat bake into me. Looking down I saw I was wearing a kalasiris, a long linen dress that started just below my chest, and a matching linen shall over my shoulders.

Looking out at the watter I remembered coming here to get away from all the drama at court. All of my father’s wives hated me, but the Great Royal Wife, queen Ankhesenamun, had an unparalleled amount of rage. It wasn’t my fault that the pharaoh had an illegitimate daughter, and my goddess of a mother left me to his care. Though, no one knew at the time that my mother was a goddess, but my father took me in, against his advisors’ objections.

With my father long dead, the current pharaoh, Ay, let me do what I wanted as long as I didn’t try for the throne. After the wedding, Ay wanted to make me one of his lesser wives when I was of age, with me being the only heir to the throne it was perfect, but Ankhesenamun had protested. Instead, she suggested that I was to be killed. I can’t try for the throne if I was dead, but Ay thought that was unnecessary. So here I was, standing by the Nile and hoping to live, when I heard my name being screamed out.

“Ah, so it’s this dream.” I thought. Of course my head would replay the event that started the living hell that was my life. “Gods! Can I not catch a break!”

“Anhkset!” I flinched at the name. It was insulting, and most people used Mau instead, as a sign of respect.

I lived in northern Egypt where the god Amun is favored, but I was given the name meaning life of Set. Set was favored in the South, where my father met my mother, and he named me using the god’s name in honor of her. Sometimes people in the court who didn’t know me well called me Anhkamun. This had been going on so long now that anyone who used my given name did so to politely insult me.

I sighed as I turned around to face the woman who called me, the Great Royal Wife herself Ankhesenamun. She never looked for me, but today was a special day. It was this day that her prayers came true. I was no longer going to be their problem. In fact, I was going to help them with a political problem Ay had gotten into.

Technically I didn’t know that was going to happen until I got to the throne room, but this dream has plagued my sleep for thousands of years now that my mind is self aware. It feels like rewatching a movie as Ankhesenamun grabs my arm.

“There you are. The pharaoh has summoned you, and you are making him wait.” She says as she drags me towards the palace.

All of a sudden I am in front of the pharaoh as he proclaims that I am to be married to the rising high priest of Amun. This marriage will ensure the pharaoh will have the backing of the gods, and subsequently the people.

I could feel my body panicking at the news, but my head knew that this was inevitable. I would be married to the man for five long years. As I thought of this my dream shifted to the day I became his.

I walked over the threshold and into his home. Looking at him I could tell, this was only to appease the pharaoh and continue a lineage. We hated each other instantly, but asking for a devorce would anger the pharaoh. So, we were stuck. I didn’t want kids nor to lay with him, and he wanted a family with a happy mother.

Over the next two years we tried to find a compromise, but the man repulsed me. However, nothing prepared me for when he found out how I was keeping myself from getting pregnant. Now, abortions were not uncommon, but the fact that I was purposely avoiding having children ruined any chance we had at a peaceful marriage. He became violent and repeatedly forced me to stay at home so I couldn’t ensure I wasn’t with child. What he didn’t account for was the sympathetic women and men I had befriended while being here. They would help me at home when my husband was at the temple, but even these efforts were quickly found out.

My dream shifted again, and I was preparing a drink for my husband. What he didn’t know was that, after three years of his repeated abuse, I decided enough was enough. I grabbed the plant I knew would end my suffering. What is now known as poison hemlock, I added flower after flower so that I knew it would work.

Suddenly, I was walking back from the funeral, headed towards my favorite spot by the Nile to calm myself. I was a little upset that it ended this way, but I was finally free. Being an unmarried nineteen year old would prove to be a little challenging, but I was sure I could find a temple or something that would let me live the life I wanted, but I knew what happened next. It was as inevitable as the marriage, and was the worst part of the dream. My death.

I saw the man approche from the side and shove me to the ground. He screamed on how I had killed his best friend and on why couldn’t I just have his kid. That’s when pain enveloped me. I could see the dagger protruding from my chest, but I was still alive. The would-be avenger had stabbed the blade perpendicular to my ribs. This caused the blade to get stuck in the ribs over my heart, but due to the rounder nature of the blade, it wasn’t a killing shot. I reached for the blade, but before I could try and pull it out my assailant threw all his weight onto the blade with a resounding crack.

I felt like I was drowning, As I clawed for air the burning sensation in my chest was slowly replaced with a cold numbing emptiness. He pulled out the knife with a sickening squelch, and the blade dripped onto my face and into my mouth. Suddenly, I saw the world tilt and water flowing around my body. As I faded into the waters of the Nile, my human life ended.