The Child

I screamed, but no sound came, my eyes darting quickly from form to form in the swirling darkness. They were all around me, a mass of fang and claw in the blackness. I stumbled, and fell weakly to the hot sands, my ragged breath catching in my throat. Something hard and sharp dragged across my back, ripping the skin away like wet parchment. I gasped as the creatures descended, each crueler and greedier than the last. Suddenly, within the grains I felt a child's hand reach out and clasp mine. I awoke once more, lying atop a rough-hewn altar of stone, my body feeling at once alien and familiar. My clothes were as tattered as ancient paper and the hairs on my arms were gray. In my arms was a child who sobbed with the voice of a grown man. His name was Khnum, and he promised to bring prosperity.