Incest/Taboo Pharaoh’s Curse

"That might be, yet they aren't the ones with all the memories of every Pharoah that wore this crown," again pointing up at it, "I don't even want all this; nevertheless, I must do what must be done," Andrew said, noting the sweat on their brows due to the heat of the sun. "For now, I want the restoration team to put their focus on the entrance of Karnak and the pathway to Ra's shrine, then I want the Sphinx avenue restored, and Luxor temple to the birthing chamber or as restored as you can get it done in the ten months you have left until the Opet Festival," he spoke, seeing his mother's eyes widening when he said that.

"The Opet Festival?! But that hasn't been practiced since..."

"I know how long, Professor," Andrew cut the woman off.

"Sir, what you're planning it will cause undo harm..."

"To whom? You?" Andrew asked with a pointed look at the middle-aged man. "You think this would be happening if the Gods themselves didn't wish for it to be so? You think I want to be here, standing in a country not of my birth, with this knowledge, and everything that comes with being Pharoah? No, I did not," he sighed before continuing on, "yet our fates are what they are, so we will restore this place, pronounce to the world Egypt remembers its heritage. Where we were one of the most powerful nations of that time where we will once again be. So since I have no idea how to restore this place and keep this ancient site as original as we can keep, it is where you good fellows come in."

"Professor Sanders, you can't possibly believe a word he's saying. This is all hogwash; there are no Gods!" the man hissed at his mother.

"Sekhmet!" Andrew called out, smirking cruelly at the frightened Professors when Sekhmet just materialized out of nowhere and walked behind him only to come to a halt at his left side. "You think lions just appear out of thin air or allow me to rest my hand on its head without it getting bitten off? Thanks, Sekhmet," he said down to the goddess. "Yes, I'll make sure a porterhouse is offered to you," Andrew answered when Sekhmet spoke into his mind for the payment for appearing as he requested. However, he thought she would return to the Duat since she wasn't all that fond of the mortal plane; nevertheless, her golden eye peered up at him as she licked her left paw, telling him she wasn't leaving until she got her steak. "So yes, Gods do exist, and I would warn you about belittling them. Now, I will leave you in Professor Sanders's good hands. Come along, Bast, Sekhmet, we have lots to do," he uttered before he began his journey towards where Ra's golden statue once sat in ancient times. Waving slyly at his mother before one of the giant columns hid him from her view.

He could feel Ma'at's essence on the air as it played along his fingertips. Noting how Sekhmet and her sister opened their mouths every few feet, reinfusing the stones with their godly essence preparing the site for want laid in store in the future. He felt Bast's annoyance at him for not calling on her when she was his wife.

"Well, you aren't really intimidating in that form," Andrew spoke aloud, hearing Sekhmet snicker at her sister when Bast whipped her head around and narrowed her eyes at him.

"Are you saying I'm not intimidating?!" Bast growled in Andrew's head.

"No, that's not what I said, Bast. You're a goddess; being deaf isn't a part of your makeup," Andrew countered.

"Careful husband, I might need a scratching post," Bast hissed, holding up her right paw and unsheathing her claws.

"In or out of the bedroom?" Andrew asked, knowing what the birthing ritual was going to be about at the Opet Festival.

"Inside of it, of course," Bast purred, swaying her hips as she and her sister continued to reenergize the stones for what was to come.

"You know, it's smaller than I remember," Andrew mused to the two goddesses that sat to the sides of him as they looked into the chamber where Ra's statue used to rest.

"Of course, it would be Pharoah," Sekhmet stated.

"You forebears were smaller than you are now," Bast imparted.

"That so?" Andrew hummed as he peered down at the two of them, as they nodded their heads. "No wonder they all have massive egos," he stated aloud as he combed through his memories of the past.

"They were human, what do you expect?" Sekhmet said rhetorically.

"Come, there's somewhere we need to be before we go any further with this," Bast said, peering over at her sister and then up at Andrew.

"You going to fill me in or not?" Andrew uttered; he wasn't moving from his spot until he knew what they were talking about.

"Have you given any thought to what it truly means to undergo the Opet Festival?" Bast asked with a knowing look.

"Umm... I enter the birthing chamber, strip naked, and bathe in its waters that's been kissed by Khonsu," Andrew said, scratching the back of his head as the memories of the New Kingdom Pharoah played out in his mind.

"No, husband, you're remembering what humans did in their limited knowledge of what they truly underwent during the festival." Andrew could have sworn he could feel her light caress on his right cheek it was the same touch she would use when she sought his bed. "It's where we who are divine are reborn through you; why do you think we're married, husband?" Bast asked, her sultry tone played along his mind.

"Come, we've stalled long enough," Sekhmet spoke, turning to her left and walking out through the side chamber.

"You know Sekhmet..."

"Don't you start, Pharoah, or did you not learn your lesson through your travels through the Duat?" Sekhmet cut Andrew off.

"Oh, I remember. I remember a certain goddess is afraid of water," Andrew teased; he only grinned wider when all he got out of her was a 'Hmpf.' Feeling Bast's mirth at the way he teased her sister. "So why are we going this way?"

"You're blood is key to begin the reforging."

"And why are we doing it now?" Andrew asked, confused.

"Time is needed to retune the temples before the festival," Bast answered. Andrew followed after them, wondering if Anta or Carla were out looking for him, given he'd been gone for a while. He wasn't expecting to be accosted by a band of young hooligans; where they had come from, he hadn't a clue. He wasn't perturbed by the blades that were in their hands.

"Hand over that crown, Your Highness," the leader sneered.

"No," Andrew said plainly. "You have no idea what you've done. Did you really think I was alone? That I'm not being watched this very moment?"

"Give it to us, or you're going to get hurt!" the young man growled threateningly.

"Yeah, that's not going to happen," Andrew said, removing his hand from his right pocket. Ra's flail materialized in his hand; its three heads bounced against one another, producing a light metal ting. "I did warn you, now..." His words were stilled as the ground beneath his assailants feet disappeared and swallowed each one, leaving no trace of the young men behind.

"You're welcome, Pharoah," Set's voice rang in Andrew's head.

"You two couldn't have stepped in?" Andrew grumbled, looking down at his escort.

"Please, I knew you could handle those twenty. I did teach you how to fight, did I not?" Bast stated with aloofness as she examined her paw. "Or are you saying that twenty men can overpower you?"

"Just because I could handle it doesn't mean I want to. Bast that is what your guard is for since you have them guarding me all hours of the day," Andrew said. He already had enough fighting on his plate he didn't need anymore. He was waiting for the government of Libya's response to their surrender. He was bringing back a very old practice and making what remained of Libya's government and military into his vassals. Given how fast their military broke apart once they began their push into Libya, his army pretty much marched unhindered to within five hundred miles of the capital city. Where his men were holding their position until they heard word. He had no wish to take any more lives if he could help it.

"You can't slack off if you're going after him. You will die." Andrew didn't need Bast to remind him of that. That was why he was having Halima and Nofre-it spar with him to keep him in shape when he knew they could keep up with him. He knew what he was planning was a ninety percent chance that he was going to die breaching into Heaven. So if that did happen, he wanted to be sure things were in place that would continue on even if he wasn't alive.

"Okay, so what's so special about this particular rock?" Andrew asked, staring perplexing down at it.

"Do you not know what you are seeing?" Sekhmet intoned as she rolled her eyes at Andrew.

"Right," Andrew drew out when Bast nodded her head to his unspoken question. Squatting down, holding out his right over the top of the rock like Sekhmet had asked him too. His hiss of pain played on the air when Sekhmet slashed a single claw along the palm of his hand. Allowing it to well up before upending it and circling his hand over it as he did. Chanting the words Bast spoke into his mind, the light of his divinity danced on the surface of his eyes as the droplets of his blood began to glow. A hum started low and grew and grew, starting to become unbearable before a wave rolled out along the ground, never losing strength as it raced throughout the land of Egypt. There, off in a forgotten temple lost to time and peoples' memories, a cooling breeze built and raced up and down the Nile.

Those caught out working in the heat of the waning spring rose to their feet when their sweat-covered skin was kissed by that sweet-scented cool breeze. Thinking it was only a passing moment, something to treasure in that arid environment. However, their heads turned once again to the north as people later would state that they heard the name Ma'at on the air. What no one was expecting was the thunderhead that rapidly grew and grew, stretching all across the horizon. Lightning danced across the sky in the distance as land that hadn't seen a drop of rain for thousands of years was now drowning under the torrent of water that was spreading southward.

"Andrew, baby, what did you do?" Anta whispered as she knelt down beside him, lightly touching his left arm as she did, bringing Andrew out of the trance he was in.

"Thanks Bast," Andrew said when he noted his now healed hand and rising to his feet. "It's started," he uttered ominously.

"I see, so Ma'at has begun to awaken?" Anta inquired with a knowing smirk at his surprised face. "I am her Lady's high priestess, my Pharoah. My Lady does tell me things."

"Yes, come, let us head to the Palace before the rain arrives," Andrew said, stirring Anta towards where their car awaited.

"Can we watch a romance and snuggle while we do?" Anta asked bashfully, her cheeks heating when she saw the smile she could bring out in him on his lips as he nodded.

"Andy?! Andy?!" Carla and Alex uttered as they hurriedly strode towards him once they caught sight of him. "What's going on? What was with the ground and now this cool breeze that won't stop?!"

"Remember when I told you about how it was during Menes' time?" Andrew asked, seeing his mother nod when he looked over at her. Seeing the sparkle in her eye when he returned her affectionate brush along the side of her index finger. "Well, the Gods have begun their restoration of the land," he said, nodding towards the encroaching clouds.

"Lord Pharoah, we are getting reports of heavy rain. We should leave before the storm makes our departure nonexistent," Nofre-it spoke as his men formed a protective ring around the royal family.

"Right," Andrew nodded.

"Andrew, the storm isn't going to be too bad, will it?" Carla asked worryingly.

"No, it shouldn't be. The people might think that given the days, it will rain all across Egypt. However, this land has been parch for so long, we must restore what's been lost, and that will take a lot of water and time. But from what Geb is telling me, no populated areas should be affected, nor any sites where temples or other ruins are," Andrew answered, seeing his mother wanting to ask that very question as they walked towards their car.

"Pharoah?! Pharoah?!" Voices cried out as Andrew approached the podium that sat at the center of the stage of the press room of his Palace.

"Hello, everyone; I've called this press conference to address the concerns the people of my country have been voicing since the rains started and why it is limited to only Egypt's holdings," Andrew spoke, looking out onto the mass of reporters who have been swarming the areas he had opened to the public so he could address his nation without having to shut down roads and inconvenience his people. "The rains will end in three days; I know some of you don't believe my words. Some of you think I'm some insane dictator. Others think I'm a puppet. I am neither of those, so you can be assured that the rains will stop. As to why it is only in our land and not the rest of Africa? Simple. Ma'at bequeath the people of Kemet with the bounty of the land that our forefathers once enjoyed before the fall of the Old Kingdom. No longer will the people swelter in the heat that has baked this land, sapping it and its people of its strength. This is why Geb cleared out the ancient river bed where the Aur, as the Greeks called our ancient river Nelios, as we now know it as the Nile, once ran to flow again so her people could return to the land instead of being crammed in along the edge of the Nile. I'm already putting together a team to survey the land once the land has stabilized from the amount of rain that's fallen.

Where they will survey the land suitable to build new very affordable housing for those seeking to own land. While most of the land will be set aside for farming, I have introduced a program where everyone within my kingdom will be provided a free fresh loaf of bread a day. I know this does nothing to steam the tide of hunger that those of the lowest ranks feel every day. I get that, but it's a step forward. That bread might be all they have to eat that day. As your Pharaoh, it's my job to ensure every man, woman, and child has enough to eat. And that is why I'm seeking those without a job, down on thier luck, or new to the job market to seek out your local government office for I am searching for farmers that will run the farms that will be developed. You will be trained in the type of farm you will be overseeing. The yields that will come from these government farms will be used to provide for the people of this country. What excess we have will be sold to anyone wishing to trade with us..."

"Will there be private farmers allowed to take part in this?!" asked one reporter.

"Of course, they are welcomed to attend the auction when the plots come up for sale," Andrew said, so for the next thirty minutes, Andrew fielded question after question. "That's for the leaders of Libya to decide. They couldn't police their own country now that we are within hundred of miles of their capital that now they wish to govern. If they agree to my surrender request, then we can start to help them rebuild," he said, answering the question the reporter had asked from the other side of the room. "Yes, we have already started relief efforts in the now-occupied territory of Nuba. Yes, I returned it to its ancient name, which seemed fitting. We are feeding ten million a day.

No expense is spared in helping the very people their former leader over looked," he said to the female reporter a few rows back. "Yeah, they can protest all they want; all they are is talk, nothing more. They don't care one iota about the starvation I saw when I traveled to Khartoum. No, they don't care about the injustice that the former leader levied against his own people. So no, I don't pay much attention to them," Andrew said, speaking to a reporter from Time magazine. Leaning into Halima when the Ambassadors for the USA and United Kingdom were waiting to speak with him. That was not on his schedule, and Andrew had the assumption he had a lot of people nervous, seeing how most countries didn't see Egypt as a threat. Giving his goodbyes to the press who fought to talk over their neighbors in shouting out their questions as Andrew walked away from the podium and neared the fortified door so no one could shoot through it.

Andrew blew Anta and Carla a kiss as they left to attend their afternoon class; as he approached the room, his staff had his visitors to wait in. Stepping out of the way as, someone came around the corner loaded down with boxes; noting how the person was looking away from him as they tried not to run into anything walking down the hall blind. The staff for the council of Nome Governors had hired to oversee the day-to-day function of his palace were in the middle of packing everything up and having it shipped to his new Palace since all the furniture and appliances had been moved in and all that was left was the gardens and the auxiliary buildings that would be on the grounds. Andrew's ire was raised as he pushed open the doors, as he heard the joke one of them told to the other at his people's expense.

The Medjay filed in before him, covering the doors two to a man. His eyes ran over the two men as he walked into the room, seeing the British Ambassador straightening out her suit jacket when the woman got to her feet. While the American had an arrogant look on his face. "This better be good," Andrew stated, flashing the young woman a friendly smile as she handed him a fresh cup of tea. This was her job when they had dignitaries visiting, and he had to admit the woman could make a good cup of tea. While the council of Governors might be paying the Palace staff, he did make each and every one of them take the oath. He wasn't taking chances with his family.

"The United States Government requests the transfer of the political prisoner you currently..."

"No, he will face the consequences of trafficking weapons to a known terrorist organization. You do not come into my home and think I will bow to you," Andrew said indifferently as he took his seat across from the two of them. Thanking the young woman as she placed a small dish of fig tarts on the table beside him, gesturing for them to take their seats.

"Sir..." She felt so silly when Andrew held up a single finger, waiting for her to correct herself. "Pharoah Menes, sir, you must pull back your forces; this war of yours has gone on..."

"I'm going to cut you off there, I'm assuming your speaking for all of NATO?" Andrew asked, looking at the woman, continuing to ignore the man as the woman nodded. "No one, not the USA, UK, NATO, or anyone else, will dictate what Egypt will and will not do. I'm simply cleaning up what your country left behind," he said emotionlessly as he glanced over at the American Ambassador. "Now, if that's all you two are here for, my guards will escort you off the grounds. If you have other business, I'll be happy to discuss it."

"Yes, our government would like to send a team of scientists here to study this strange weather you're country is currently experiencing. Also, I've been instructed by King William he would like to enter talks of trade..."

"I've already honored all the current trade agreements between us, or is your King inferring something new?" Andrew asked before he bit into his tart. He was savoring how the tea and the figs went together.

"Yes, I believe so, Your Lordship," the woman said as if second nature to her it was.

"Hmm, when you have a more detailed thought as to what this new trade deal will be, I'll be open to entertaining it in the future," Andrew said, setting his tea down. "Something I can help you with, Mr. Atwater?"

"Yes, the military contracts we have..."

"Will be honored as well. I am, along with my Generals, are looking forward to seeing what the first shipment of F-35As will do," Andrew said, seeing relief in the man's eyes. He suspected his higher-ups were expecting results. Plus, he knew if he was going to fight a larger-scale war to take the Levant, he would need the best equipment. "Meet with my Minster of War if you two wish to discuss things related to such things."

Two hours later saw Andrew rubbing the back of his neck after leaving the meeting with the two Ambassadors. What they talked about was trivial things, in his opinion, when they weren't the British and Americans thought they could stick their noses in how he ran his country. He did cruelly smirk when Sobek ambled out from beneath the Victorian-inspired loveseat. The man's shriek that he released as he jumped out of his feet had the seasoned soldiers laughing at the man. The sound of the rain striking the umbrella as Andrew walked towards the car that was waiting to take him over to his new Palace while the staff worked to load the last pieces onto the trucks without them underfoot. Also he was having the former Presidential Palace remodeled to operate as an orphanage and a woman's shelter.

New York City, New York, three days later...

Julián peered around the gap in the blinds and down onto the street below them. He was thankful the press hadn't made the connection between him and Andrew. Also, he was thankful that Wilma wasn't being hounded; he didn't want that kind of stress on their baby. Replaying the conversation he had with his son when the news of the Egyptian war was only a day or two old. While he might not like his son waging war on anyone, he couldn't deny Andrew's logic was sound at least to him it was.

"Hey, Dad." Andrew's voice filled his ear once his son accepted his call.

"Hey, son, how are you?"

"Good... okay, not going to lie, so fing bored! If I have to listen to one more person complain to me about such and such. I'll literally explode!" Julián could only chuckle at his son's words, words that he never thought he would ever hear his son speak.

"Andy?"

"What's up, Dad?" A fatherly smile when he heard that familiar tone in his son's voice.

"Anta said we are welcomed to..."

"Want me to send the jet?" How it warmed his heart to know Andrew missed him just as much as he missed him.

"Before that I want to make sure with Wilma's doctor that she's fine to fly," Julián said, turning back towards his desk, hearing the blind bumping lightly against the window. While the press might not have made the ties, his bosses did. They were not happy. Any drop in revenue, no matter how small that revenue might be, was a cause for them to grow upset. Any travel advertisement to Egypt or around it had been severely reduced. Not that he could blame the people; most people wouldn't take their families to counties near conflict zones. So, his bosses were making his life harder than it needed to be. Julián wondered if families that weren't in the royal line had to deal with the collateral damage of their relatives' actions.

"Sure, Dad, it takes a day anyway for the jet to fly to New York. If not, I'll rent a ship for you."

"Son... Andrew, you don't..."

"Dad, you're my dad. Why wouldn't I?" Julián simply smiled at the love he felt in those words as he leaned back in his chair. His eyes roamed over the items that lined the shelves of the bookcases that lined the walls of his office. Some were given to him, many were supplied by the company, so they meant very little to him. His mind finally set on what he should have done the moment his son walked out the door. Leaning forward, powering his computer up, and began to type out his resignation letter.

"Hey, hon," Julián spoke into his phone as he waited for the printer to finish.

"Julián? Is something wrong?"

"No, but see if your doctor will let you fly," Julián said, the corner of his lip lifted at his wife's squeal.

"Baby, does this mean what I think it means?" Wilma asked, hinting at the problems he was having at his job and how her own pretty much had put her on hiatus permanently. It was more of a political move on the board's part than her own inadequacies as a teacher, which was very few given the reports done on her after every year she's been teaching.

"Mmmhmm, I'm sure there are plenty of advertising jobs in Cairo, plus I know there will be a need for very good teachers," Julián said, signing his name to his letter. "So pack everything of ours that we will need for a very long stay."

"Okay, honey, I will, right after I return from the doctor."

"Already out the door, aren't you?" Julián joked.

"Mmmhmm." Saying their goodbyes, Julián walked down the hall to the nearest closet where they stored the boxes of reams of paper for the numerous printers and copiers on the floor. So he knew there would be a few empty boxes. This was one time he was glad that the bodyguards that followed him around were there. If they weren't it would take him two trips to the guard station to drop off the boxes of his belongings before he served his notice.

"Since you and the board think they can dictate what I believe and what I should say to my son, I quit. When my son, the Pharoah of Egypt, needs advertisement for whatever, I'll make sure it isn't with this company," Julián spat. If she was a man, he would have punched him the first time they questioned his parenting or the sanity of his son. "Sorry about the boxes," he apologized to the two Medjay that were waiting for him once he had exited his former boss' office.

"Not a bother," the man said. "So, are we returning to your home?"

"For now, I'm sure whomever you report to will be giving you and the rest new orders," Julián answered, looking over at the man as he kept in stride with him. "Can I ask, these Gods Andrew's been speaking about, they aren't really real, are they?"

"You've seen Bast, our Lordships' companion, and you still doubt?" the man asked with a pointed look.

"Sue me, not every day you learn a goddess has been playing as a cat," Julián muttered, thinking back to how he never once saw a litterbox or ever saw the cat eat.

Julián was packing their bags, stuffing what they could into them. He had even bought four more large ones, knowing he and Wilma would need it. He was currently laying some of Wilma's more expensive dresses lightly into her garment bag when she walked in to the room.

"Julián, honey, we aren't giving this place up, are we?" Wilma asked. The memories of her time within those walls played out in her mind.

"No, we'll use it whenever we want to come back here," Julián said as he moved around their bed. "What did the doctor say?"

"She's given me the all-green to fly, even got my medical records, so my new doctor isn't playing catchup," Wilma stated, seeing the relief in her husband's eyes at the news their baby and she was okay.

"Good, good, I was worried about the two of you," Julián said in a loving tone as he pulled his wife in for a hug. "I've almost got all your clothes packed."

"Oh? When is our flight?" Wilma asked, eager to be in the air, and headed towards her son.

"Andy is sending his jet for us. He said it takes a day to get here," Julián informed her, seeing her widening eyes when he said the word jet. Neither of them had ever flown in a private jet before, so he knew this would be a very special treat for the two of them.

"Then I'll help you pack the rest, then make us a very good dinner for us, then we'll need to clear out the fridge and the cabinets so the food in the house doesn't spoil while we're away," Wilma said, running her hand along Julián's chest as she walked around him to help him pack the rest of their clothes.

It was around six the next morning. With the help of the Medjay, who were there to protect them, they got their bags stowed in the rear of one of the SUVs the men rented to cart their belongings to the private airport where Andrew's plane was located. Julián was thankful for the men's wherewithal in helping his pregnant wife into the back of the SUV. He could tell those that had been guarding him, and Wilma were eager to return home as much as he was excited about seeing his son again. He made sure Wilma was alright when he helped her into her seat before he took his own. He noted as he buckled up, Wilma's eyes moving around the cabin of the airplane, taking in the richness of it.

"This will be a new start for us," Wilma said lovingly as she peered over at her husband as her hand rested over Julián's.

"Yes, it is," Julián spoke, smiling at his wife, feeling the plane starting to move to position itself on the tarmac.

"You just stay away from that woman," Wilma stated sternly.

"Honey, I wasn't even going to entertain that notion," Julián responded as he looked out the window, feeling the plane gaining speed as the markings on the tarmac flew by. Although, the thought of watching Wilma and Alex going at it hadn't left his mind when Andrew told him the truth.

"Andy!" Wilma's squeal could be heard over the sound of the plane's engines powering down as she waved eagerly at him from atop the stairs. The men moved into place once the plane was parked.

Andrew only smiled at her from his spot on the tarmac as he, Anta, and Carla were there to greet them on their landing. Alex had stayed behind, thinking her presence would mar the reunion between him and his father. Plus, she wasn't anywhere near ready to face Julián. Andrew watched as the aircrew unloaded the cargo compartment of his plane. His eyebrow inched upwards with each bag they pulled out of it. Sending three men off to fetch the SUVs so they weren't lugging all those bags across the tarmac. Greeting the men he had sent to protect his Stepmother and Father, nodding along when the leader gave him an updated briefing on what took place before they left. Patting the leader on his right arm as he moved around the man as, Wilma and his father walked hurriedly towards him.

"Andy!" Wilma exclaimed as she wrapped him in her loving embrace. It wasn't lost on her of the cameras and the reporters that lined the fence taking pictures of them. So she couldn't show Andrew just how much she missed him like she really wanted to. Moving off to the side, smiling at the two men in her life as they stared at one another. Her lip trembled as it only took the two of them a second before father and son hugged each other hard.

"Andy." Julián's voice was soft and conveyed his love for his son as his hand gently brushed the back of Andrew's head.

"Hey, Dad," Andrew said, patting his father's back before he eased out of the hug. "Hey, Mom, you weren't too troubled with the flight?"

"No, honey, we're just fine," Wilma said, running her hands over her belly. Still thinking it was Andrew's child, yet newest addition to the McCain family was to be Andrew's brother. She did notice there was something different about Andrew. What that was, she couldn't say; she certainly didn't notice it when he was in New York. She did note how Julián was studying Andrew's face as he gave out orders to the men who had arrived with them. It was a little startling to see the boy she had helped to raise and become a mother figure to him acting... so grown up. How her pussy was on fire just watching him being so commanding, it also wasn't lost on her how he glowed when the sun touched his skin. Then she turned towards Carla and Anta and embraced them warmly like they were her own daughters. "I so love that crown of yours," she said, envious as her eyes ran over the Seshed-Circlet that encircled their foreheads and sat lightly on their hair. She had no idea why there was a cobra. At least to her, it looked like a cobra protruding from the gold band in the center of their foreheads. "So, how's life now that you're the Queens of Egypt?" Wilma asked with a sneaky smile.

"Wouldn't change it for the world," Anta sighed happily as she peered over at Andrew. So very pleased that she had come to know him, to grow closer to him, to know wholeheartedly that he loved her as she did as well.

"Mmmhmm," Carla hummed in agreement. Still a little sad that her parents weren't on board with their marriage. "But the official ceremony won't take place until the Palace at NeoHierakonpolis is finished, so a few more weeks, right Andy?" she asked, peering over at him, flashing him a loving smile as he nodded in agreement.

"Palace?!" Wilma and Julián said as one.

"I am Pharoah, you think I wouldn't live in one?" Andrew retorted with a joking smile. "Shall we?" Andrew asked, gesturing to the limo that had pulled onto the tarmac when he was greeting his parents.

"Andy, you know what you're doing is wrong, right?" Julián spoke. He wasn't trying to pick a fight with Andrew, just to try to get him to see reason.

"To whom? You? Mom? The world? You and the rest don't care about the lives ended because of the chaos around my Kingdom that's been spilling into my country. You don't care about the damage caused to the towns near the border. No, you all sit in your pearly white towers, looking down from on high and thinking to lecture anyone about morals and what's right when you all aren't in the middle of it. What I'm doing is right, or should I allow the people in my Kingdom to die? To me, doing nothing, allowing this injustice to stand would be wrong. I understand your stance, Dad. Yet, as Pharoah I simply don't have the luxury of looking down from on high. It's my duty as their Pharoah to see that their country is secure and their lives go unmolested by bandits and other ilk like them," Andrew said, hearing Carla and Anta chatting away with Wilma. Telling her all the things that's been happening in Egypt that the news wasn't covering. All the news cared about was ratings, not actually giving an objective view of his wars. All they cared about was making themselves look morally superior while they were on the air. They weren't the ones with images of dead children in their heads. He was. "See that their belongings are delivered to the first guest house," he ordered the leader of men he had sent to guard his parents.

"Of course, my Lord, I'll see that their belongings are seen safely to your estate," the man sad as he saluted Andrew.

"Once you've delivered their things, you and your men take a week off. I'm sure you and they are eager to be reunited with their family members," Andrew stated as another guard held the rear passenger door open for his father and Wilma as they climbed into the back followed by Carla and Anta.

"Thank you, Sire. I know my men will enjoy the time off," the man replied, giving Andrew another salute before barking out orders to his team as he walked off.

As Andrew neared the open door, he noticed how Carla and Anta patted the middle of the rear seat they were on, telling him where he was to sit for the ride back to their home. While it wasn't fully completed, the Palace itself was ready to live in, and all that remained to do was put the finishing touches on the gardens. Andrew will admit he thought it would take longer for them to finish the buildings than it did. Not that he was complaining he was happy with his new abode. Waving to the cameras, if they could peer through the tint of the limo's windows, as they drove past them as they headed back towards the city.

"So Andy, what are you planning on doing now that you've started two wars?" Julián asked, wondering what about this place that drove his first wife to flee to it.

"Won two wars," Andrew corrected. "Rebuild, feed the people, the people you're defending starved, fortify my new expanded Kingdom, deal with world leaders thinking they can dictate terms to me on how I run my country. Check on the progress on my Palace in NeoHierakonpolis and Djed," Andrew informed them, noting how that piqued Wilma's interest and his father's as well.

"Andy, what's this... NeoHierakonpolis?" Wilma inquired, hoping she pronounced it correctly.

"The capital of my Kingdom," Andrew said factually.

"Wait... I thought Cairo was," Julián muttered, confused.

"The financial capital, that might be true, but the capital, my city, is NeoHierakonpolis," Andrew said, noting how Wilma pulled out her phone trying to look up its name on the maps on the web. "You won't find it on there, Mom," he stated, causing Wilma to peer up.

"Why not?" Julián asked, shooting his son a questioning look.

"Because it isn't on any map, modern or ancient. It didn't exist..." Reaching up and raising the partition, "until I saved the people of Punt," Andrew said, noticing their shocked eyes and how Anta and Carla nodded in support.

"Who?!" Wilma mused as she inched forward in her seat.

"What is a... Punt?" Julián inquired, looking at the three across from him for answers.

"This doesn't leave this car, understand?" Andrew spoke sternly as he looked at his father and Wilma.

"Andrew, you do not..."

"I do when I'm trying to protect people who aren't from this time," Andrew said, cutting off his father, seeing his and Wilma's confusion on their faces when he said that.

"Okay, Andrew, why don't you start from the beginning," Julián intoned, not pleased with how his own son was speaking to him.

"I'll shorten it, and hopefully, your brains don't ooze out your ears after I do. A few months ago, the four of us went to Atlantis. I know what you're going to say; Mom said the same thing; I'm guessing it's running through your heads that Atlantis doesn't exist," Andrew said, seeing them nodding along. "Well, it does; I have the memories of when it was in this plane of existence and where it is now. Anyway, the reason why we went there in the first place was because of the being. I call him that because he isn't mortal. I honestly don't know what he is. Since he isn't a part of the Egyptian mythos, what he is doesn't matter. So he asked me to travel there to find out why there were pyramids on Atlantis. Mom and these two wouldn't allow me to go on my own, so they tagged along," getting nods of support from Anta and Carla. "then, well... we were sent to Punt. You'll find Punt in Egyptian legends if you don't believe me. So when we arrived the man that brought me to Atlantis was carried off by a being I had no clue of at the time. So once I was strong enough to stand, I went out to meet the people. This being trapped in a bubble of time, it's the best I can describe it to you..."

"And let's say we believe you, Andy. Why were these people trapped in the first place?" Wilma asked, noting how Julián didn't believe a word his son was saying.

"Because four thousand years ago, during the reign of Pharoah Baka, something fell from the skies over the Kingdom of Punt. You can guess what ensued afterward..."

"And just what was this thing that fell from the sky?" Julián asked heatedly, growing tired of this long-winded tale that he only thought of as hogwash.

"A goddess," Carla cut in. "You might be Andy's father, my father-in-law," noting the surprise in their eyes that they were already married unofficially, "but what Andy is telling you is the truth if you still don't believe what he's saying. Anta or I will be glad to show the two of you the video we took as we surveyed the pyramids."

"So in order to free the people of Punt from beneath this fallen goddess' rule, I had to fight her," his eyes took a hard light to them as he peered at his father when he opened his mouth, "so once the fight was over as her punishment she was forced to build a city for the people we saved. Where they're thriving well, given they're still stuck in the bronze age," Andrew said, finishing his tale.​