marched ahead of us. The city streets were hauntingly silent and empty. It must have taken the full two hours’ waiting that Pharaoh had enforced upon us to clear the streets of the customary swarming crowds. When we reached the palace the gates swung open seemingly of their own accord, without fanfare or cheering multitudes gathered to welcome us.
We climbed the wide staircase to the entrance of the royal audience hall, but the cavernous building was empty and silent except for the echoes of our bronze-shod sandals. We marched down the aisle of empty stone seats and approached the throne on its high dais at the far end of the hall.
We halted before the empty throne. Captain Weneg turned to me and his voice was harsh, his manner brusque. ‘Wait here!’ he snapped, and then without lightening his expression he silently mouthed the words which I had no difficulty lip-reading: ‘Forgive me, my Lord Taita. This form of welcome is not of my choosing. I, personally, hold you in the highest esteem.’
‘Thank you, Captain,’ I replied. ‘You have performed your duty admirably.’ Weneg acknowledged me with a clenched fist held to his chest. He led his men away. Hurotas and I were left standing at attention before the empty throne.
I did not need to warn him that we were certainly under observation from some hidden peephole in the stone walls. Nevertheless I felt my own patience under strain from the strange and unnatural antics of this new Pharaoh.
Finally I heard the sound of voices and distant laughter, which became closer and louder until the curtains covering the entrance to the hall behind the throne were jerked aside and the Pharaoh Utteric Turo, self-styled the Great, strolled into the audience hall. His hair was dressed in ringlets which hung to his shoulders. There were garlands of flowers around his neck. He was eating a pomegranate and spitting the pips on to the stone floor. He ignored Hurotas and me as he ascended the throne and made himself comfortable on the pile of cushions.
Utteric Turo was followed by a half-dozen young boys in various stages of dress and undress. All of them were decked with flowers and most of them had painted their faces with blood-crimson lips and blue or green shades around their eyes. Some of them were munching fruit or sweetmeats as Pharaoh was doing but two or three of them carried cups of wine which they sipped from as they chatted and giggled together.
Pharaoh hurled one of his cushions at the leading boy and there were squeals of laughter as it knocked the wine cup from his hands and the contents spilled down his tunic.
‘Oh, you naughty Pharaoh!’ the boy protested. ‘Now, just look what you have done to my pretty garment!’
‘Please forgive me, my dear Anent.’ Pharaoh rolled his eyes in penitence. ‘Come and sit beside me. This will not take too long, I promise you, but I have to speak to these two fine fellows first.’ Pharaoh looked directly at Hurotas and me for the first time since he had entered the hall. ‘Greetings, good Taita. I hope you are in excellent health as always?’ Then he switched his gaze towards my companion. ‘And who is this you have with you? I don’t think I know him, do I?’
‘May I present King Hurotas, monarch of the Kingdom of Lacedaemon? Without his assistance we could never have overcome the forces of the Hyksos who were slavering at the very gates of your mighty city of Luxor.’ I spread my arms to indicate the man at my side. ‘We owe him a deep debt of gratitude for the continued survival of our nation …’
Pharaoh held up his right hand, effectively cutting short my impassioned speech, and he stared at Hurotas thoughtfully for what seemed to me an unnecessary length of time. ‘King Hurotas, you say? But he reminds me of somebody else.’
I was taken off balance and could think of nothing to say to contradict him, which was uncharacteristic of me. But before my eyes this feeble and apathetic sprig of the House of Tamose was being transformed into an angry and formidable monster. His countenance darkened and his eyes blazed. His shoulders began to tremble with fury as he pointed to my companion.
‘Does he not resemble someone named Captain Zaras, a common soldier in the army of my glorious father, Pharaoh Tamose? Surely you remember that rogue, do you not, Taita? Even though I was a very young child at the time I certainly remember this Zaras person. I remember his evil leering countenance and his insolent manner.’ Pharaoh Utteric’s voice rose to a shriek; spittle flew from his lips. ‘My father, the Great and Glorious Pharaoh Tamose, sent this Zaras creature on a mission to Knossos, the capital city of the Supreme Minos on the island of Crete. He was charged with the safe conduct of my two aunts, Princess Tehuti and Princess Bekatha, to Crete. They were to be married to the Supreme Minos in order to consolidate the treaty of friendship between our two great empires. In the event this Zaras creature abducted my royal relatives, and spirited them away to some barbaric and desolate place at the very edge of the world. They have never been heard of again since then. I loved both my aunties, they were so beautiful …’
Pharaoh was forced to break off his string of accusations. He panted wildly in an effort to calm his breathing and regain his composure, but he continued to point his shaking forefinger at Hurotas.
‘Your Majesty …’ I stepped forward and spread both my hands in an attempt to divert his wild and irrational anger, but he rounded on me just as furiously.
‘You, you treacherous scoundrel! You may have duped my father and all his court, but I never trusted you. I always saw through your wiles and machinations. I have always known you for what you are. You are a forked-tongued liar, a scheming black-hearted villain …’ Pharaoh shrieked wildly, and looked around for his guards. ‘Arrest these men. I will have them executed for treachery …’
Pharaoh’s voice sank and dried up. A profound silence filled the royal audience chamber.
‘Where are my bodyguards?’ Pharaoh enquired querulously. His young companions huddled behind him, pale-faced and terrified. Finally the one he called Anent spoke up.
‘You dismissed your guards, darling. And I am not going to arrest anyone; especially not those two thugs. They look like blatant killers to me.’ He turned and trotted back through the curtained doorway, followed immediately by the rest of Pharaoh’s pretty boys.
‘Where are my royal guards? Where is everybody?’ Pharaoh’s voice sank to an uncertain, almost apologetic pitch. ‘I ordered them to wait in readiness to make the arrests. Where are they now?’ But silence answered him. He looked back at the two of us suited in our armour, gauntleted hands gripping the pommels of our swords and our faces scowling. He backed away towards the curtained exit in the rear wall. I strode after him and now his expression became one of unmitigated terror. He sank to his knees facing me, arms outstretched towards me as though to fend off the blows of my sword.
‘Taita, my dear Taita. It was just a little joke. It was all in good-natured fun. I meant no harm. You are my friend, and the dear protector of my family. Don’t hurt me. I’ll do anything …’ And then an extraordinary thing happened. Pharaoh shat himself. He did it so loudly and malodorously that for a stunned moment he stopped me like a statue, with my one foot in the air, suspended in mid-stride.
Behind me Hurotas exploded in a burst of delighted laughter. ‘The royal salute, Taita! The ruler of mighty Egypt greets you with the highest honour in the land.’
I don’t know how I stopped myself from laughing along with Hurotas, but I managed to keep my expression serious and, stepping forward, I reached down and took a firm grip of Pharaoh’s hands with which he was trying to fend off my putative attack. I lifted him to his feet and told him gently, ‘My poor Utteric Turo; I have upset you. The great god Horus knows I never meant to do so. Go up to your royal suite now and bathe yourself. Put on fresh robes. However, before you do so please give me and King Hurotas your permission to take your glorious
