Behold our queen’s salvation!

The skies opened, and the wrath of the gods had fallen upon us. As the storm raged outside, and the ship pitched and rolled with the waves, so our queen writhed and tossed in her own struggle against the poison in her veins. I knew in my heart, that the long shadow of Ammit was upon us, and that we would soon be returned to the abyssal waters of Nun, from which all life flowed. Then suddenly, salvation came. From within the fog, I beheld a man, wrapped in linen with a crown atop his head. In his hands, he carried the crook and flail of his office, and I knew that he must be the great lord Osiris, father of all Pharaohs, and judge of all that is mortal. All who dared look upon him knew he was not of our realm, for not even the guards dared to stir from their posts at his intrusion. Lady Charmion prostrated herself before him, pleading for his intercession with our queen – our Cleopatra, daughter of Isis. His daughter! He proclaimed that he had been riven by Sutekh, but that our Queen’s presence had roused him from deathless torpor. He would deliver her from mouth of the crocodile unto the Land of Reeds, where she would reign forever. Lady Charimon kissed the hands of our deliverer, and at his approach, a stillness fell over the Queen. He took her in his embrace, and they both vanished in a flare of light. Outside, the rocking of the ship abated, and the wind has grown quiet. I could hear the soft cackle of the gull far off in the distance. Praise be to Osiris, who has weighed my heart against his feather, and found me unburdened by sin! Iras, Handmaid to Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt