"Wake
up! He will scold us if he finds you have fallen asleep yet again!"
Daniel
moaned softly, bringing one of his hands to his eyes, and rubbed away the
weariness he felt. Stifling a yawn, Daniel extended his legs and stretched his
arms over his head.
"You
are impossible. We shall be punished for sure!"
Daniel
opened up one eye, watching as a man much younger than himself scurried off in
a huff. Frowning slightly, while his vision adjusted to the lighting, Daniel
studied the stranger, watching him fret throughout the palace.
Who
was that?
What
was that man wearing?
Wait,
palace?
Daniel
bolted upright, fully awake. Eyes wide, he soaked in the features of the
grandiose room, noticing several tables and plants lining the perimeter. Several scrolls were rolled and stacked in
the far right corner, while soft sunlight streamed through the open doorway.
Daniel even thought he could smell freshly baked bread.
Confused,
and feeling slightly disoriented, Daniel slowly rose to his feet, nearly
tripping over his leather sandals.
Surprised, he looked down, finding he was wearing nothing more than a
fresh white linen kilt.
Daniel
nearly fell over in shock. He heard an amused chuckle.
"See,
that's what you get for sleeping while you should be studying," the younger
man admonished, shaking his head.
"Eyes are watching," he explained, pointing to his face and
then to the door.
Daniel
had no idea what this man was talking about.
"Uh…excuse
me," Daniel began, quickly catching up with the man. "What--?"
"Don't
just stand there. Help me before the Teacher arrives." The man bent over
and picked up three small slabs of limestone, handing them to Daniel.
Daniel
just stared at him.
He
huffed. "Today is not the day to play the fool. Place them in the center of
the room as always."
"Why?"
"Why?"
The other man's face was turning a shade darker. "You know why." He
sighed. "And where is Kemsa?"
Daniel
blinked at him. "Who?"
Another
heavy sigh. "Never mind. He is
more of a fool than you."
Okay…
Daniel
turned around, placed the stone slabs on the floor and proceeded to head for
the door.
"Hey,"
the stranger called. "Where are you going? Lessons are about to begin!"
Daniel
ignored him, walking out into the light, and away from this bizarre place.
Right
into another bizarre place.
The
sun was bright, and reflected brilliantly off the nearby pool. Several children were playing outside. A few
naked boys, with a single braid hanging on one side of their shaved heads,
toyed lazily with some cats that were resting in the garden. Not too far from them, Daniel noted a couple
of young girls, their dark hair in pigtails, playing with their leather bound
dolls.
An
older woman, seated on a small bench in the garden, looked over to him and
waved.
Smiling
shyly, he waved back and hurried back into the palace in a panic.
Dozens
of questions flooded him as his mind sharpened, and he became more aware of his
surroundings and himself. Where was he? What was he doing here? Shouldn't he be
somewhere else?
"Ah,
that was quick," the man mumbled.
Daniel
blew off the stranger. He felt a rise of panic as he searched the room, a room
just moments ago he had drifted around in a daze, as he struggling to figure
out where he was or how he got here.
"This
has to be an alternate reality, or something," he muttered to himself as
he ignored the strange looks the other man was giving him.
Maybe
he'd touched something? A Goa'uld
device?
Daniel
patted his body, looking for anything suspect.
All he found were rings, bracelets, and a necklace. What was this on his face? He rubbed at his
eye again and looked at his hand. Kohl?
This
was getting too weird, even for him.
Cringing,
Daniel attempted to pry the rings off his fingers.
"Ah,
student, what are you doing?"
Daniel
froze, lifting his head to gaze at the doorway. A man was standing there, engulfed by the light, his features
nearly unreadable. But Daniel could tell just by his profile that he was a
learned man, a scholar, and, more obviously, the teacher.
"Uh…hello,"
Daniel uttered uneasily.
The
new stranger chuckled, walking into the room and away from the bright light. He
was a thin man, but healthy, with dark skin and shining eyes. He held much more
of a presence than the younger man who had already begun to annoy Daniel.
"Oh,
great Teacher!" the annoying man said, bowing. "We were just
preparing for your arrival."
"I
can see," the one known as Teacher stated patiently. "Sadji, where is
Kemsa?"
"He
is not here."
Nothing
like stating the obvious, Daniel thought.
He
thought he saw Teacher smile.
"Then,
we shall start without him." Teacher motioned to the center of the room,
urging his students to sit near the stone slabs. "Before we start with the
text, first I shall begin with the verbal lesson of the day."
Strangely,
Daniel found himself obeying, easing himself onto the floor, while muttering to
himself as he attempted to sit cross-legged with the kilt. It took him three
tries to get completely comfortable, but at least he was becoming accustomed to
the jingling of his jewelry.
Sadji
sat beside him, his expression bright and full of glee. He waited, watching Teacher expectantly,
making Daniel groan.
Then,
it occurred to Daniel. He should be
more concerned than he was. He had no
idea what was happening or where he was.
He had the distinct feeling he should be somewhere else, doing something
else…
Yet,
at the same time, he felt content, like he could do this all the time, like he
had been doing this every day for several years.
Shaking
his head, Daniel decided to fight the complacency he felt, and leaned forward.
"Excuse
me," he began, frowning. "Who are you?"
Sadji
groaned, shaking his head. "This is not today's lesson," he said
matter-of-factly.
"Well,
Sadji, let's think on that for a moment," Teacher stated, coming to sit
with them. "Who are we? What are
we? What makes us who we are?"
"Yeah,
those are great questions and all, but you didn't answer my
question," Daniel emphasized, pressing him.
"Such
a question holds many answers," Teacher admitted, nodding his head.
"Okay,
then where am I?"
"You
are where you are."
I'm
talking to Oma Desala's male counterpart, Daniel thought wearily as he glared at Teacher.
Struggling for help, Daniel looked over at Sadji. The man appeared as lost as he was.
"A
dream? Is this a dream?"
"A
dream to one person may be reality to another. And reality may be nothing more
than a fleeting memory."
Daniel
pursed his lips. Now, he was getting frustrated. Why couldn't they speak in
simple English terms?
I'm
not speaking English, Daniel realized. I'm speaking Ancient Egyptian.
Daniel
opened his mouth to say something, but Teacher just smiled, a knowing smile,
and spoke before Daniel could say a word.
"Well, it appears we have many questions for
the day. Shall we begin?"
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