The Morning Star

According to the Companion, the Morning Star could only be carried by one who could walk both the worlds of the living and the dead. A necromancer who knew the secrets of the ka and the shadows. One who knew how to coax the ka back to the land of the living.

I was still reading the book when Mala knocked and opened my door well before dawn. "Duchess, these are your clothes for the ritual." She handed me a white linen robe. I was surprised she did not have a golden headdress for me as well.

"Am I to appear as Cleopatra?" I asked, taking the robe and tossing it onto the bed.

"You are to dress as a proper Egyptian priestess." She stopped at the door and turned around with a vicious smile. "A proper virgin Egyptian priestess."

I wanted to roll my eyes at her. "How close are we to Abydos?" I asked, but she'd already closed the door behind her. I peeked out the tiny window and could see palm trees lining the dark green river. I had no idea where we were.

I ignored the priestess robe on my bed and was going to continue reading about old Egyptian gods when I spotted the medical text I'd found in Cairo. I opened it up instead. I was amazed at how far I'd come in my Greek lessons. I only had a little trouble reading some of the ancient Greek words.

The physician Galen wrote mostly of the organs of apes and pigs that he had dissected. The Roman Empire forbade human dissection, so he made do with animals whose anatomies were similar to our own. I soon grew tired of reading about intestines and lung tissue. I fell asleep dreaming about a pig that wore the headdress of a pharaoh.

A sudden lurch of the boat awakened me. My head bumped up against the wall. Rubbing the sore spot tenderly, I crawled out of bed and tried my door, but it was still locked. I could hear footsteps and shouting above as people scrambled up to the deck.

It was not long before someone came to check on me. The elder Grigori opened the door. "Are you unhurt, Duchess?" he asked.

"I'm fine. What has happened?"

"The boat has run aground on a sandbar. The captain is refusing to continue to sail in the dark."

"I take it the crown prince is not happy."

"They are arguing right now. It is perhaps better if you remain in your cabin."

I sighed. "No, perhaps I can calm him down." The crown prince's temper was nowhere near as volatile as the lich tsar's. I hoped between me and Mala we'd be able to make him see reason. I followed the Grigori up the steps to the deck.

Danilo was shouting at the captain, who looked frightened but who refused to send his crewmen down to the sandbar until daylight. It was too risky.

"Your Majesty, the Nile is full of crocodiles and other hungry creatures," Mala said, most rationally. "The men will be of no use to us if they get eaten."

But the crown prince would not listen. "We have no time to be cautious! Send your men down to make their repairs. I will guarantee their safety."

"How can you make such a promise?" the captain asked.

"I shall cast a spell of protection around them. They will be safe as long as they stay within the light."

The crew looked at the crown prince warily but finally agreed to climb down to the sandbar. A generous-sized bag of golden coins helped persuade them. One of the younger Grigori accompanied them as well.

The lich tsar's green eyes flashed as Danilo spoke an incantation in ancient Egyptian. Mala stood next to me, gazing at him in silent adoration. Her worship of the lich tsar was unsettling. I understood her gratitude toward Princess Cantacuzene, but that did not mean she was obligated to follow Konstantin blindly. Unless, of course, she was starting to have romantic feelings for the crown prince as well. She certainly seemed to have forgotten all about the tsarevitch.

The lich tsar's spell was empowered with a drop of Danilo's blood. He pricked a finger with his penknife and held it out over the river. It was only a single drop, but it was enough to create a magical barrier around the sandbar.

It was also enough to attract a very large crocodile that had been dozing nearby. A dark shape just under the water approached the sandbar. It couldn't come any closer because of Danilo's spell, so it hovered in the dark muddy waters and waited.

The men did not notice the reptile as they hurried to dig the boat free. Danilo sent two more of the Grigori to help push the boat back into the water. Their inhuman strength was invaluable, and they were able to free the boat in no time at all.

But as the Grigori pushed the boat, the crew moved beyond Danilo's circle of protection. Suddenly, there was a great splash followed by a piercing cry. I saw one of the ship's men disappear into the river. My stomach turned.

The rest of the men scampered to board the boat while the Grigori searched the water for the man who'd gone under. But there was nothing left of him to save. The waters turned bloody, and the man's red cap floated up to the surface.

Mala reached for my hand silently, and I squeezed it. The captain removed his own fez and wept. Danilo said something to him quietly, but it did not sound like words of comfort.

"You are a monster, my lord!" the captain said. "What kind of evil have you brought down upon us all?" Ignoring the rest of us, he returned to the wheelhouse to continue our journey.

The Grigori climbed back onto the ship empty-handed and silent.

Mala joined Danilo, who stood at the rail, gazing down into the river. "All great leaders make great sacrifices," she said to him. "It will be worth it in the end, Your Imperial Majesty."

Danilo said nothing to her, and at last she walked away to return to her own cabin, glaring at me as she passed.

I turned to go as well, but the crown prince finally spoke. "They will say this is a bad omen."

I walked over to him by the railing. The sky was beginning to grow lighter. It would be dawn soon. "Perhaps it is."

He gave me a dark look. "You have never been superstitious, my dear Katerina," he said. "You are far too intelligent for that."

I wished I had the strength and the courage to push the crown prince overboard. That would be a certain way to solve our problems. But the Grigori hovered nearby and I did not think they would let me harm their master.

And I had to believe there was a way to destroy the lich tsar without harming the crown prince. "And are you superstitious?" I asked.

"I come from Montenegro, a country steeped in superstitions." With that, he left me alone at the rail wondering what he planned to do next.

I remained outside to watch the sunrise, and the Grigori let me be. I guessed they were certain I would not make any attempt to swim for the shore now. I made the sign of the cross over my heart for the man we had just lost. I prayed for his soul and then said another prayer for my own.