Only The Beginning
By
Christine Hall
Title: Only the Beginning
Author: Christina Hall, aka Trillium
Rating: R for violence, sexual situations, and the usual bad attitudes
Special thanks to Kao Vang for editing and many good suggestions
Disclaimer: The Mummy and the characters therein are the property of
Universal Studios.
No infringement intended. I am making no money off of
this.
Chapter 4
Imhotep made his daily rounds of the Temple, inspecting, checking,
making sure all in his domain was in order. He stopped in the preparation
chamber to discuss certain matters with the embalmers, walked down the row
of scribes busy in their workroom. His eyes fell critically on everything.
He knew he made many of the temple functionaries nervous, but that was all
to the good. It kept them on their toes. After all, if Thebes was ever lax
in its observances to Osiris, it was ultimately Imhotep's fault, as High
Priest. But he did not allow anyone to slack, and everyone obeyed him or
faced the consequences.
He made his way into the sanctuary where several priests each
attended to a small knot of worshipers come to make an offering or a
request. Imhotep's eyes fell on a group of about eight women that he
recognized as being from the royal palace. For a moment his heart leapt
with hope, but no, she was not among them. He turned and left the huge
hall, disappointed, but also annoyed with himself. She was a temptation to
him and he knew it. That stunt he had pulled in the palace gardens- he had
actually allowed himself to touch her- proved that he had little self
control where she was concerned. It would be better for all concerned if he
never saw Anak-sun-amun again.
He turned his steps to the new, smaller hall at the left side of the
main sanctuary. The work on the sculptures had been progressing even faster
than anticipated, and the workers had been given today off as a reward.
Right now the room should be deserted. A perfect place to seek some peace
and quiet.
It took his eyes a minute to adjust to the dim light, but when they
did, he made out a figure at the far end of the room, walking slowly along
the base of the statues and looking up at them. He was about to order the
intruder out, when he realized it was a woman, scantily clad and painted
gold and black. Anak-sun-amun. So she had come to the temple with her
fellows.
She did not hear him approach till he was very near, for Imhotep
could move with almost unnatural silence when the situation required it.
She turned and looked at him warily, perhaps expecting to be told to leave,
but Imhotep was not inclined to do that. He stood beside her, and they both
looked up at the sculptures for several moments.
"You like them?" he finally asked. Anak-sun-amun nodded,
contemplating a half-finished statue of Anubis that seemed to be stepping
forth from the living rock itself.
"They look as if they might speak," she observed solemnly.
Imhotep shrugged. "Perhaps."
She turned to him, a smile visible in her eyes if not in her mouth.
"Don't the gods speak to you, High Priest?"
"It is hard to tell when the gods are speaking. But sometimes, in
dreams..." Imhotep trailed off. Any mystical explanation he would normally
give to a awe-struck worshiper seemed painfully inadequate for a person of
Anak-sun-amun's perception. There was nothing he could say, and her
presence, even the soft sound of her breathing, was distracting him again.
"I dreamed last night," she stated, as if daring him to press her
for details. Against his better judgment, Imhotep decided to take the bait.
"Of what?"
"I was taken to the Pharaoh's chamber as usual. Two Med-jai guards
escorted me there. They left me at the door, and I went in," she paused
briefly. "But when I pushed aside the curtain, it was not Pharaoh there,
but you instead." She stopped and turned to look him in the eyes. "And my
heart rejoiced."
Clever, clever woman, Imhotep thought appreciatively. She was
testing him. Whether she had actually dreamt that or merely made it up was
irrelevant. With just a few sentences, she had neatly placed him in a
position where he would be forced to reveal his hand. Would he rebuke her
for having such thoughts, even in sleep, or would he seem to approve?
They stood there looking at each other, the tension between them
almost thick enough to touch. Then Anak-sun-amun shifted her posture
slightly, relaxed her shoulders, and raised her eyebrows as if to say
"Well?" It couldn't have been intentional on her part, but he found that
small movement incredibly alluring, and in that instant he made his
decision.
Slowly and deliberately, so she could escape if she chose, he placed
his hands on the wall on either side of her head. "I would rejoice too, if
it were true," he whispered, and lowered his lips to hers.
At first he only brushed them lightly, testing her reaction. When
she sighed with pleasure and leaned into the kiss, he deepened it, slipping
his tongue into her mouth and exploring gently. She matched his enthusiasm,
until he was lost in her sweetness and softness and sandalwood perfume. How
hard it was not to put his arms around her and pull her against him! She
must have been thinking the same thing, for she made a small sound of
frustration and took a step closer. Summoning all his willpower, Imhotep
reluctantly broke the kiss and stood back.
"Go, before I shame us both," he said, not looking at her.
"It is not only your fault," she protested, trying to catch his eye.
Imhotep smiled ruefully. "I would not have you punished for any
reason. Go, before we are both covered in paint."
Anak-sun-amun nodded. She understood that this was not the time or
the place. Soon the group she had come with would want to return home, and
they should not have to come looking for her. She hesitated only a second
longer, and then left the room with quick steps, not looking back.
"My treasure," Imhotep murmured, the endearment falling of its own
accord from his lips as he watched her retreating figure. He did not look
away until she rejoined her group, well out into the main sanctuary. Then
he turned to gaze up at the forbidding expressions of the stone images
around him. They had seen everything, but they could not tell of it. Or
could they? For the first time in his tenure as a priest, Imhotep found
himself nervous in the presence of the gods, and he left the room as though
he was being pursued.
| |
|
|
|
|