Before the Throne

12

HORUS HAILED, “King Ahmose the First!”

A svelte man entered, walking in his winding sheet until he stood before the throne.

Thoth, Recorder of the Sacred Court, read aloud, “He took his father’s place when the latter succumbed. He never flinched in fighting the foe, completing his preparations to shift from defense to attack. He affirmed a gift for leadership equal to his personal valor as he swept from victory to victory, besieging the Hyksos’ capital at Avaris until he overcame it. Afterward, he hounded the enemy into Asia, where he chopped him up and scattered the pieces.”

Osiris asked him to speak.

“In truth, I reaped the fruits of my family’s long preparations,” Ahmose I admitted, “and I was aided in my struggle by a son of the common people, the Commander Ahmose, son of Ebana. Each time that we won a battle, the warlike spirit rose in my men — as it fell among the forces of the enemy. From that point forward, we could not imagine that we would lose, while he could not imagine that he would win. With the fall of their city, the rule of the Hyksos came to an end, and Egypt again was free. My mind would not rest until we had driven them beyond our eastern borders, so that they could not reestablish themselves anywhere or contemplate revenge. I devoted the rest of my life to purging the land of their monuments and their appointees, in reorganizing the administration, and in reforming irrigation and the management of lands. When my era came to a close, Egypt was welcoming a new generation of her sons — resplendent with the courage of warriors, dreaming of foreign forays, and blazing with the spirit of martial expansion.”

“Such a nature is new,” remarked Khufu.

“And splendid, too,” added Djoser.

“But perhaps not lacking in evil,” cautioned Ptahhotep.

“Among such savages, there is no other path to an honorable life,” said Seqenenra.

Isis interjected, “Then let us bless this son who has liberated our land.”

Osiris told him, “Go to your seat among the Immortals.”