Three Novels of Ancient Egypt

The young commander did not know how he would realize his longed-for desire. The time for getting ready passed very swiftly, until there came that day when it was decided that the army would march on the following morning. The gods chose to grant him ease after his tribulations, and to bring near to him that for which he had so long suffered. Hence, the princess came to pay a surprise visit to her brother, while Khafra had gone to inspect the troops’ barracks. The chief of the guards learned of the princess's progress and flew off in haste to await her arrival. Meresankh was not absent for long within the palace when her enchanting face appeared as the chief chamberlain bid her farewell. The youth received her with a forwardness that he had not shown in her presence, except one time only on the banks of the Nile. He gave her a military salute, then escorted her by himself after the chamberlain remained within the palace entrance. He kept two steps behind her, and was able to fill his eyes with the comeliness of her figure, the gracefulness of her form, and the charm of her movements. Inflamed with emotion, he wanted to spread himself on the ground beneath her feet. Then he would feel the fall of her footsteps, the touch of her fingertips, and the rhythm of her breathing in his innermost heart. How amazing! Nature, in her wisdom, hardly lacks a sense of humor. Look at this soldier, how she endows him with victory over the most gargantuan foes. And look at Meresankh, how he bends his neck to this marvelous, delicate creature, who was not made for the rigors of war!

They traversed the long promenade decorated on each side with roses and fragrant flowers, statues, and obelisks, with unhurried steps. The pharaonic boat loomed in the distance, moored at the end of the garden steps. Worry gripped the young man: it seemed impossible to him that she would leave without a word of farewell. He grew anxious to deliver the speech that he wanted to make to her beloved ears. Yet her indifference offered him no opportunity to speak, as he saw the path growing shorter and the ship drawing ever closer. More and more desperate, a moment of recklessness overcame him and loosened the knot around his tongue.

“How happy I am to see you, Your Highness,” he said, with a quavering voice, “before our departure tomorrow.”

She seemed surprised when he spoke. “You have reached, O Commander, a high position,” she said, glaring at him with a look both cruel and bewildered. “So why do I see you gambling with your glory and your future?”

“My glory and my future, Your Highness?” he replied, disdainfully. “Death renders them both meaningless.”

“I see that my father has put at the head of his army a commander who is obsessed by the despairs of Death, rather than by victory and triumph,” she answered with scorn.

“I am aware of my duty, Your Highness,” he said with pride, his handsome face flushing, “and I shall carry it out as befits an Egyptian commander whom the gods have honored by granting him the trust of his sovereign. And I shall sacrifice my life as the price ofthat trust.”

“The man of courage does not forget his past, nor does he violate his traditions, even unto death.”

The foolhardy spirit prevailed over him for an instant longer when he said, “This is true, but what is my life if these traditions prevent my tongue from expressing what beats in my heart? I'm leaving tomorrow, and I prayed to the gods that I would see you before going away. My wish was granted — so how could I repudiate the divine favor with cowardly silence?”

“It would be better for you if you learned the virtue of silence.”

“After I have said one word.”

“What do you want to say?”

His ardor plain on his face, he blurted, “I love you, My Mistress. I loved you the moment I first laid eyes upon you. This is a solemn fact: the courage to express it to Your Highness would not have come to me if it weren't for its transcendent power within me. I beg your pardon, Your Highness.”

“This is what you call one word?” she replied, mockingly. “Regardless, what good can your speech do you, when I heard it before one troublesome day on the bank of the Nile?”

She jolted both him and his memory by saying “on the bank of the Nile.” So he replied, “I never tire of repeating those words for one minute of my life, O My Mistress, for it is the most vital thing that my tongue can say, the most beautiful thing my ears have heard.”

They had reached the marbled steps. Anxiety seized him again, as he said with fervor, “And what shall you say for farewell?”

“I call upon the gods for you, O Commander,” she said. “I pray to Mighty Ptah that you achieve victory for your beloved homeland.”

Then she descended the staircase to the boat with deliberateness and dignity.