It was time to pack up her notes and go home for the night when there was a firm tap on her office door. Emily Lieberman sighed, knowing that after hours visits that were unscheduled tended to be deities...who seemed to have no actual concept of time as only a handful ever showed up on their appointment days. The visitor did not wait to be invited in but simply stepped inside leaving Emily absolutely stunned. She knew him immediately by the golden wings on his sandals and the caduceus he carried. But to see Hermes in her office wearing nothing else took her by surprise. Before she could stop herself she thought, ‘The statues did you no justice at all!’ and he smiled, as if hearing the naughty thought. This God of travel (between worlds as well), of writers, of transitions...he had a very endearing smile. If he truly was the playful trickster stories sometimes made him out to be, Emily could clearly see how he got away with it. Bowing to her as if she were the deity, his black curly hair closely resembling Athena’s, he lifted his head to reveal that he was still smiling. How could she not smile back?
“I know who you are.” Emily declared when the silence around them grew uncomfortable. She was getting used to Gods and Goddesses coming to her with their pain and their secrets but this was something different. This was a spark unlike anything she ever felt before. Part of her wanted to clear off her desk immediately and invite him to come on over...What was it about him that was so seductive to her? It wasn’t the nudity. She came of age in a time when porn was all around and she was no virgin herself. No, it was...Well, what it was she could not say but it was making her rather uncomfortable.
Standing up straight, he sat on the edge of her desk as if he were taunting her and he declared, “I prepared a wonderful introduction for you. May I recite it despite the fact that you know who I am, Doctor Lieberman?”
The way he said her title put a tingle down her spine. Oh, this was not good at all! “Yes.” She said softly.
“I am Hermes, son of Zeus and Maia. I am the patron of writers and athletes, of trade, travelers, and thieves. I am one of few who are free to go to any realm and as such, I have been dispatched by the Goddess Sekhmet...do you know of Her?”
“A bit.” She answered.
“She is an old friend of mine going back to when our cultures nearly collided and I had to negotiate my way out of a war between us and the Egyptian Gods. She and Hathor are both wonderful in Their separate ways but I have always had a soft spot for my dear Sekhmet. Anyway, She cannot come to you. I know you treat vampires as well so you may already know but if you do not...Her very presence, the energy of this Goddess that is most like a vampire, it will drive any vampire absolutely mad if they come near it. Because of that, She requests that you join Her in the Land of the Egyptian Gods. Will you come with me?”
“Of course.” That was what she said aloud but in her mind all she could think was ‘Do I really have a choice?’
Rising from her desk, Hermes picked Emily up as if she weighed nothing at all and he pressed her against him causing electricity to stir like crazy in Emily’s body and in her mind. She wanted him. She could not believe it herself but...she wanted to sleep with Hermes. And the way he smiled at her each time a dirty image of the two of them popped into her head, she was fairly certain that he wanted her as well. But there was no time for such complications in her life. As far as she could tell, her life was complicated enough as it were. Closing her eyes, Emily listened as Hermes prepared her to meet one of the most powerful and bloodthirsty Goddesses of ancient Egypt. “First and foremost, if you did not know already, Sekhmet has the head of a lioness. This is sometimes disconcerting for humans when they encounter Her. In the time of Her creation into a form humans could understand, this was a sign of Her strength and power but now...it is a source of shame for Her. So whatever you do, do not stare or think mocking thoughts about Her appearance. It is perhaps Her only weakness. She will read your mind. She always does. So I suggest you remember that. She is determined to tell you all in case we do not make it. As time is of no relevance in our realms, you may be gone a few moments or a few days but fear not. When I take you home, I will return you to the moment we left.”
“You can do that?” Emily questioned, her eyes still closed as if through some primal instinct that told her it was best not to see.
“I can do a great many things, Doctor Lieberman. You may open your eyes now. We are here.”
Emily did as he said and she was astounded to see that she was standing in what could only be Ancient Egypt. Emily knew enough to know that Sekhmet’s first temple on record was constructed in Middle Egypt so she assumed that was where she was. The temple that stood before her was not as grand as those that came later but it was stunning all the same. Following Hermes inside, Emily wanted to stop and look at the gorgeous paintings on the walls, paintings with colors that would never fade. It was not a big surprise to her that the Land of the Egyptian Gods looked like Their ancient world, as closely involved as They remained with the humans They assisted and attended to. Still, it seemed unreal to be standing in a temple that was prehistoric seeing it as it must have looked the day that it was finished. Although Hermes gave her no time to stop and enjoy the paintings she passed, she could clearly see multiple images of Sekhmet. This was Her place down to the incense that was streaming through the halls and the offerings of blood left at every statue. Perhaps it wasn’t blood...but it was made to look that way. Emily could not be certain. What she was certain of she couldn’t help but say aloud. “I feel as if I could spend eternity in this place.”
Taking her hand, Hermes replied, “Yes, this place does have that effect on live humans that happen to come. But worry not. I will return when Sekhmet summons me and I will take you home. Remember to bow. And as I said...make no mention of Her head. You do not want to make her angry.”
In a flash, Hermes was gone and Emily found herself standing in a great room with a beautiful lioness sitting on Her throne. The throne itself seemed to be made of something closely resembling the Sun, yet upon Her head sat a crown of the Moon in all of her phases. This crown was never depicted in the images of Sekhmet so far as Emily knew nor was it ever mentioned. Getting down on the floor, she stretched her upper body forward with her arms out before her as if she were in a yoga pose. Never had she done this with the others but with Sekhmet it seemed natural. Suddenly she had the feeling that all she knew about this ancient Goddess was about to be ripped to shreds.
“You may rise and sit, child. I can feel your respect. We will be fast friends, I think. And that is good as I have much to share.”
Looking behind her, Emily found her desk and chair waiting as it was not just a moment before. It seemed as if Sekhmet intended to be treated like everybody else despite the extraordinary circumstances literally surrounding their session. Though it seemed strange to be in such an ancient place and have her modern desk with her, it also seemed natural. It was as if Sekhmet could make anything right if she chose.
“You know who I am. You know the stories that were told of me. But no one living on your earth today, including those in Egypt who were once my children, know the truth of me. If we are to die, I want someone to know it all. If we are to live…” The lioness smiled a radiant smile more brilliant than any deity’s Emily had ever seen. The power coming from that Goddess could’ve provided electricity for a small city, or so Emily surmised. It was not just the unusual circumstance that made this meeting different from the rest. Sekhmet was different. And yet, as Emily was about to find out, many things were still the same with the twisting of Her story.
“It is believed that Ra is my father. He is not nor did he birth Hathor and I from his head. That is as ludacris as Zeus proclaiming the same. I have a mother though her name has been lost to time in your world. It was She who created us all. It was She who pulled this world and your’s from the void. Later, when the men laid claim to everything, they called Her a man and they told ridiculous stories of this “god” vomiting up “his” children...Nonsense! I do not know how humans could’ve been so mislead...but we were mislead as well. Ra is my brother. That I know for certain. We share this primordial creatress of a Mother. I am older than the others, although I am never named with the original Gods. Hathor and I were actually our Mother’s first children, Her experiment. This is how we came to be two women sharing one body, the Dark Goddess and the Light. In the womb we were twins and then we absorbed one another. We love each other more than we love anyone or anything else but we often disagree, as you might imagine. One day when my work is done, I will retreat to the place we go when the other comes out and I will let her do her own work. This is how we have lived since the dawn of our birth. We came with the first sunrise and that is how we came to be associated with the Sun. But as our Mother had not yet worked out Her system, it was also the first night that the Moon shone. With our birth rose both, something that flows inside of us even now.”
Emily was engrossed in Sekhmet’s story. Only briefly did it hit her that this made Sekhmet and Hathor the first Egyptian deities to be born from a Goddess and not from the void. This was an incredible revelation given what humans believed about Them and how They came to be. So what Sekhmet told her next was easier to believe with such knowledge in mind. “It was I who created pharos once Egypt came to be. They were meant to be women. It was women who created society...literally. Women birthed the next generation, women taught them, women shaped them. Sometimes they knew who fathered their offspring but back then, that mattered not as the women raised their children together without much help from men. Because of their physical attributes, men fought predators, they brought home the meat for the women and children, and, as society grew, they fought each other. Women did everything else. The primal instinct of the male is to destroy. The primal energy of the female is to create. Both energies exist within each person just as my sister and I exist inside of this body. But humans tend to exhibit more of one or the other. It was women who made peace when there was war...a trait that goes back to a woman’s instinct to ensure the safety and wellness of their offspring. And so it was to women that I entrusted this power of leadership when we, the Gods, decided it was needed. For thousands of years, it was mostly women who ruled Egypt. And those were prosperous, happy years over all.”
“So what happened? How did it come to be men who sat on the throne and women who were wiped from the history books?”
To watch the lioness laugh was quite strange but laugh she did. “Come now, doctor. You are smarter than that. Have you not spoken with the Greeks? As with Zeus, Ra became jealous of the Goddesses around him. He became jealous of the fact that we alone had the power to make new life. And as he grew jealous so did the men of Egypt. They saw their women decide whether or not to make a life, a decision that belonged entirely to the woman as it should be, and they were envious. They could do many things that women could do. They could create art and monuments to themselves. They could map the stars and create spells. But never, no matter what they did, could they ever control the gift of life that a woman bestows upon her offspring. If they could not control a woman’s body, they were determined to control the society that belonged to her. They had no business on that throne. But Ra was spreading his nonsense about his male mother and his own position as my mother, giving these fools some hope that maybe one day they, too, could create such life...men have destroyed the world in just about three thousand years of having all of the control. Like Hera and Athena and Hecate, I’ve had it with the lies and the nonesene. I decided some time ago that I would rather see Egypt razed to the ground than see it as it is today. Yes, there was the start of a revolution not long ago but that overthrowing of an unjust man only led to more unjust men taking his place. I will see a woman on the throne in Egypt once more or I will continue my rage until we end this life.”
“What are your feelings toward Ra now?” Emily asked. It seemed like such a human question but it was habit to ask such things.
“I can forgive his lies about us, the Gods of Egypt, but I will never forgive him the sickness that he helped to spread throughout your world. It was never meant to be this way. He knew that all along. We would never be on the brink of such massive destruction if men would’ve stayed where we put them. Women protected the children, the family, the society. That is what a ruler is meant to do. That is what every good mother that has ever lived has done. Men never belonged in such a place. Now their silly wars and their hatred and their greed...all of the worst aspects of male energy...has awoken the beasts we’ll soon face. Ra and Zeus are as guilty of ending us, should that be what happens, as the beasts who create the destruction! I cannot forgive that.”
Emily felt Hermes near and she knew it was time to make the journey home. “Is there anything else you would like to say before he takes me?”
Sekhmet smiled her lioness smile once more. “Not today. Should I need you once more, I will send my friend to pick you up. It seems the two of you get on nicely. Just watch your step. Gods make greedy lovers.”
Emily’s face turned red with embarrassment as she turned toward the still-naked Hermes. As soon as his hand touched her’s, that electricity she felt before shot down her spine. It nearly blotted out all else but just as Hermes was about to take her away, Emily stopped him. There was one thing she had to know before she went back to earth. “I have one question to ask you, if you don’t mind.” Sekhmet gestured with her human hand for Emily to go on. “On earth there is a great debate about the people of Egypt and what race they were…”
“Oh, my, not that! Very well. Since you allowed me a voice, I will answer what you ask. The people of Upper Egypt looked quite a bit like the people of the Mediterranean. Some were as white as alabaster. The people of Middle Egypt looked more like the people in the modern day Middle East. But the people of Lower Egypt were black. The racists of your earth must soon accept the proof as I believe they are on the brink of finding it. In my Egypt, I knew that it was all the same. So did my people. Should we survive and the women take over once more, hopefully we may truly restore that attitude. Have a wonderful night, Emily Lieberman. You have made a friend of Sekhmet and of Hathor. We will not forget your kindness.”
When Emily and her desk were once more in her office, it seemed so drab. It certainly could not be compared with the place she came from. But she felt an enormous peace wash over her, even with the tension between her and her ride home. “Would you see me if I asked you out to dine?” Hermes asked. “I will even wear clothes.”
Emily was quite surprised by the question. She did not take Gods as the dating types. There were many stories of copulation among them all but very few of candle lit dinners and walks under the stars. Tempting as the offer was, Emily shook her head. “It wouldn’t be professional of me to do that. I am treating half of your family.”
“But you are not treating me. I helped write that oath you swore. I know the ethics code by heart. You cannot fool me. You are afraid because of what I am. But you want me. I can read your mind and I see your smile. I am sure that Sekhmet is not yet finished with you so we will see eachother again. Until then…” Snapping his fingers together, he disappeared and all that was left was a very perverted scenario he planted in Emily’s head. She almost didn’t make it home before she had to touch herself for release. Afterward she lay on her living room floor watching old episodes of one housewives show or another eating cookie dough straight from the roll. She didn’t bother to put her clothes back on after her rondevoux for one because there would’ve been no point. The dark blinds in her place were closed and she was alone. The vision of her body and the body of the messenger God was so real it made her skin tingle. Each time she thought of it, she had to touch herself once more. Finally she fell asleep with the empty Toll House wrapper at her side and she dreamed of an ancient world colliding with her own...of women straightening out the messes of the universe as women often do. Was it the past or the future? She couldn’t tell. But what she did know was that it was the only hope for humanity and the Gods alike.
Moral of the Story?: History is written by the conquerors so dig deeper if you want real truth.
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