1700 BCE

Full moon...

Obion watched Khonsu-et talking to the acolytes about how the moon god Khonsu taught about 'opening the mouth' which was a ritual of opening the senses of the living and the dead. He was telling the offspring of humans and wolves about how important it was for temple priests and priestesses to use all their senses in life and in death.

Near the middle of the night, many of the children began dozing off. They laid on their mats under the painted ceiling as Khonsu-et told them the stories of the constellations and sang their songs softly. Obion stood watch above the temple listening to the sounds below as one by one the children fell asleep.

Under the full moon, he flew out over the irrigated landscape toward the river, patrolling their territory from the sky. In the bright darkness, he saw a rabbit scurry away from the edge of the water. A moment later, his winged beast caught the tiny morsel in his claws as a gift for his wolf. Turning he flew back towards the temple, and landed on the tower. He leapt down and went into their chambers lifting the lid off the cooling basin in their small kitchen. Lifting out a cooled vessel of bouza, he poured a cup for Khonsu-et, then he skinned the rabbit with his talon-like claws. Obion found his lover standing before the gate of the temple looking toward the city.

"Come and eat," Obion insisted.

Grinning at him, Khonsu-et climbed up the handholds in the pillar at the gate. Obion spread his wings and flew up beside him. They sat in silence and moonlight, staring over the walls at the row houses set side by side, on two sides of the perimeter of the protection barrier. Oil lamps flickered in random windows of the market street on the opposite walls from the homes, but no one stirred. The chorus of frogs and nightbirds was only occasionally interrupted by the growling belch of a crocodile or distant bellow of a hippo.

"Have you ever experienced a more perfect night?" Khonsu-et asked as he wiped his bloody hands after consuming the rabbit.

Obion shook his head as he wrapped his arm and wing around the wolf. "Not in all the memories of my ancestors."

Together they watched the hippo constellation followed the stars of the crane toward the land of the dead. In the distance on the opposite side of the town, at the temple of the wolf deva, Obion noticed someone standing on the roof in the shadow of a pillar. Priestess Oracle Iddoferu was watching them with her hand resting on her prominent pregnant belly. Obion's sensitive eyes could see the tears running down her cheeks then she raised her hand and made a gesture of thanks, before she turned and went inside.

"Your mate envies us," Obion observed.

"You are my mate," Khonsu-et insisted then turned to look south. Obion followed his gaze, but saw no threat in the river or across the desert beyond the great river delta.

Two hours before dawn, Obion flapped his wings lazily as he followed the caravan of donkeys down to the deep part of the river to collect the water for the town. He flew his patrol around the borders of the territory of the two temples of Lycopolis. He sensed his lover's unspoken concern and shared it. Both worried the late Queen's followers would seek revenge on the temple town for her death at the hands of one of the wolf's sons, but beyond the normal movements of daily life in the upper Kingdom, there was no threat he could discern.

Returning to the temple of the moon, Obion landed in a Doum date orchard and gathered several ripe bundles of the fruit for the children to have for breakfast. His sensitive ears picked out a buzzing among the leaves of one tree. He felt the vibration of the bark to discover a beehive. He decided to let them alone for now and return in the future to collect honey as a gift for his beloved. Leaping skyward he raced the dawn. Many children were just waking, when his wings stirred the dust of the courtyard.

"Good morning, little mortals," he greeted them with a chuckle as they greedily held out their hands for the treat of Doum Palm dates.

Khonsu-et offered him a slice of warm bread and cheese, saying to the children, "Do not forget to thank Lord Obion for your food this morning. It still has the dew of the river goddess on it."

As the sun was rising, Khonsu-et began the children's lessons in mathematics, astronomy, and archery while Obion retreated into the shadows from the harsh rays of the sun. He wished he held the memory of the Queens so he could know the secrets of those who petrified before him and be able to access detailed knowledge from the past. Male stone skins could only remember the memories of their lineage. A lucky few males could read blood memories like the queens, but those memories faded like a daydream. Someday he would find a way to walk in the sun beside his beloved. Brooding, he waited for the afternoon rest time when the heat of the day was too oppressive to want to move. The children were asleep in the coolness of the temple, when a messenger came to tell them Iddoferu had begun her birthing cycle.

Khonsu-et hugged Obion after the messenger left. "By morning, Hathor and Wepwawet willing, we will have a family. I'm so happy." The joy in his voice was a song to Obion's heart; Obion licked his temple tasting his endorphins in his salted sweat.

"I am as well," Obion admitted. The scent of his beloved's happiness was like an intoxicant. "We should keep the children tonight so the priests and oracles can care for your mate."

Growling slightly at the last word, Khonsu-et's jealous wolf answered the description. Khonsu-et's eyes changed color as he looked up at Obion. "You are more of a mate than she ever was."

"She rejected you when you were still children. Oracles do not have mates; their lives are not their own. You know this," Obion chastised him, "Heel your beast. She is breaking tradition by giving you her firstborn and keeping the second born for herself."

Unhappy growls rumbled in Khonsu-et's chest as Obion hugged him. "Lay down and rest with the children. I will fan you all with my wings." They kissed before Khonsu-et settled himself at Obion's feet while the latter shifted into his giant winged beast. Standing in front of the doorway to the lower levels, Obion flapped his great wings slowly, ushering cooler air from below ground over the resting human and wolf children. The exertion was unnaturally slow when compared to flying, but worth the effort for the comfort it brought those around him. When they woke, there were more song lessons and a meal of onions, garlic, and cooked grains.

The sun set with moon opposite. The children of wolves and men howled and sang as night came. The night and next day passed the same as the one before.

The next morning before dawn as they ate breakfast, a priest of the wolf came. "The Oracle requests you come and thanks you for keeping the children of the temples."

"I will bring them back after the moon sets." Khonsu-et bowed then asked, "How is Oracle Priestess Iddoferu?"

"She and your son are strong, Priest Khonsu-et. Wepwawet has blessed you." The priest smiled broadly announcing, "He is a red fur like you." He glanced over at Obion standing in the shadows as the sun rose and bowed, "Lord of the night sky, the oracle thanks you for your protection of our city and temples, and our children."

After the sun rose and the moon set later, the wolves howled, and the humans sang a farewell song for the moon's rest during the day. Obion donned his heavy robe and covered his face while the children gathered their bedrolls.

"Obion, you cannot go, the light this late in the morning will hurt you," Khonsu-et refuted him.

"I must scent your child to protect it," Obion insisted, but his lover pushed him back into the darkness of the stairwell.

"I vow I will bring him to you. Please, do not harm yourself." Khonsu-et placed a firm hand on Obion's chest, promising, "I will return soon."

Obion remained in the shadow watching Khonsu-et leave with the other priest and the children. He glanced out at the sun and hated the burning orb represented by the Deva known as Ra to these people. He hated the crafting of the Edenoans that made it so the majority of his species could not walk in the light or make their own blood. After the creators left, a few pale ones were hatched with the ability to not petrify in the sun. He noticed the incense was starting to fade and went to the censers. Adding shredded, dried palm bark, and charcoal made from palm wood, he fanned them with his wings until they caught fire. Using a long trowel, he pulled the coals toward the center, repeating the prayers Khonsu-et said so many times, then placed a soaked bundled incense on the side so it would burn slowly over hours.

"I never expected one of your kind to offer me prayers, guardian." The voice came from a carved statue with green painted flesh. The giant disk above its head shimmered like moonlight on water.

"Deva Khonsu." Obion inclined his head slightly in respect, responding in the clicking, growling language of his species, "It is not for myself but for my beloved that I do this."

"I am aware... My devoted red wolf has a bold and noble spirit. I understand why he is loved and admired by all, especially you." There was silence for the span of a few heartbeats, then the Deva murmured eerily, "Tell me, what do you love in this world besides my priest protector? What would you sacrifice for him?"

Suspecting the question was a trap, Obion asked one in return, "What suffering would a deva like you demand of a stone skin as a sacrifice?"

"The Moon Devas are not like other devas... We do not wish the suffering of the lesser species."

"If you truly cared for them, you would not call them lesser," Obion retorted judgmentally.

"I do not say such a thing in arrogance, stone skin, but in truth. They are lesser than us. They do not endure as we do. It is what makes loving them so beautiful... and so painful." The answer came from far away as though the deva was retreating.

When it didn't speak again, Obion went to the stores and took vessels of flour, day-old milk, and oil. In the kitchen, he mixed the bread then started the fire while it rose. Using his talons, he cut the few leftover Doum Palm Dates into small slivers and mixed it through the risen dough before baking the loaves. He smiled to himself thinking of the honeycomb he found and brought back for the evening meal. Khonsu-et would have his favorite bread with honey to celebrate the birth of his son. Onions and garlic went into a clay vessel with the day's ration of goose liver and grains to be cooked with the bread.

"What are you doing?" Khonsu-et's voice asked from behind him.

Turning, Obion smiled at him. "I am making a celebration feast. I also offered incense to your moon deva for you in honor of your son."

Looking at Obion with shock that faded into surprised admiration and grateful love, Khonsu-et inhaled and exhaled several times as tears leaked from his eyes, creating rivulets of coal down his cheeks. "Thank you."

The bundle in his arms made a small noise so Obion took it. Looking down at the rounded face surrounded by a thick halo of deep red curls, he grinned as he observed, "He looks just like you. What is his name?"

"Iddoferu named him Khons-amet. She says he will be a priest and protector like I am." The pride and happiness in the words squeezed his heart as he gently laid a hand on his child's head. "When he is weaned, we will bring him here to live with us. He will learn everything I know."

"And everything I know," Obion added then he leaned forward and kissed Khonsu-et. "We will be a family."

~~~~

The first night of the new moon...

The children were singing one of the songs of the star beasts with Khonsu-et as they drew the constellations on the floor. A sound caught Obion's ear and he went outside. Climbing the tower, he looked into the distance. Many chariots were rushing toward the city at full speed. The temples outside the walls of the town were vulnerable to attack. Squinting through the inky darkness of the moonless night, he leapt skyward and flew toward them. Before he reached them, he could smell the sweat of men and horses mixed with the scent of Queen Pharoah Sobekneferu's specific incense. He swooped to gain speed then beat the air as hard as he could to outpace the charging chariots toward the Temple of Khonsu.

Landing hard next to Iddoferu who wore Khons-amet in a sling around her chest, he startled her. Looking around, he knew he only had a short span of time to save her and the children in the torch lit courtyard. "Get the children into the town. Queen Sobekneferu's followers are coming to attack us. Khonsu-et get your armor."

The red wolf sprinted to their shared room as two priests rushed the children toward the gates.

Priestess Oracle Iddoferu refuted Obion, "They wouldn't dare. General Wegaf ..."

"Isn't here to stop them. He is a son of Wepwawet, so they come to avenge their dead queen by killing his family," Obion snarled at her as he hurried the children out the back of the temple toward the city gates.

She seemed to shrink back as she murmured through her fingers, "I thought there would be more time."

Seizing her arm, the giant male demanded, "Speak clearly."

She looked at his hand. An icy zap of static stung him, and he jerked his hand back. Moonlight shimmered in her eyes and strange scrolling marks appeared on her skin. An oddly calm, yet terrifying voice came from her lips. "Prepare the courage of your heart, Lord of the night, for by dawn you will be consumed with rage then will be forced to drown your sorrow in the river to hide from the black sun. "

He stared at her unable to speak as the glow faded from her eyes but not from the lines on her skin, she fell back as if in a faint and he caught her with the child between them.

Khonsu-et rushed out to them, ordering the human priests and priestesses, "Evacuate the temples, close the gates and set the archers on the walls." He held out the Wesekh and Nemes to Obion. "What happened?"

"She muttered more nonsense then collapsed," Obion announced, as he walked briskly toward the city.

They laid her on a bed in the first house inside the gate.

"Iddoferu?" Khonsu-et demanded loudly causing her glowing eyes to flutter open. "What do you see?"

"They... They are coming to kill the children of the wolf and the moon to avenge their queen. You must stop them." She clutched their child to her chest. "Aid will not come until after the crescent moon."

Bending his neck, he inhaled deeply of their child's scent before Khonsu-et's eyes looked into Iddoferu's eyes. "Do not let my son forget me."

She sniffed, "Forgive me, I was a terrible mate." Then she looked at Obion, "Remember the words spoken to you. Go, hurry." Confused but without time to ask for clarity, the males stalked out.

As the gates were closed and the city prepared for siege, Khonsu-et asked while he fastened the beaded neck protection on Obion. "What did she say to you?"

"To prepare the courage of my heart, to drown in the river under the black sun, and that in two nights I will find violence as empty as a broken water vessel." Obion grew into his giant inner self. "It makes no sense to me."

"If the servants of the sun's queen came for violence, then they shall find it," Khonsu-et snarled then he grew into his giant red, war-waging wolf form. He began sprinting in the direction of the enemy. Obion flapped his wings then soared low next to the wolf who leapt onto his back. Together, they flew. His wolf-head sniffed the air bringing the scent of the enemy toward them. Obion's beast hissed in a deeply unearthly rumble. The wolf licked his horn then raised his voice in a war howl. Giant wings beat the air and carried them toward the enemy much faster than either could sprint. Snarling, Khonsu-et leapt from Obion's back and tackled the men from the first chariot, plunging the claws of his feet into their soft bellies. He pulled and fired arrow after arrow until both quivers were empty, then he attacked those charging with sword and claw. Obion toppled the chariots, killing steeds and men indiscriminately. Panting, they looked around the plain of blood-soaked sand and grass.

Reaching up, Khonsu-et ripped a arrow from his shoulder then pulled one from his thigh. He growled in the language of his beast, "We have to find where they are crossing the river. Go west, I will go east."

"We should not separate," Obion argued.

"We have to. The river runs on both sides of our territory. Those are southern heavy war chariots from Wase, they could not cross without ships or a bridge of some kind. We must stop them where they are landing." Khonsu-et melted into his giant red wolf then began running away.

With no choice, Obion flapped his bruised wings flying as high as he could, scanning the far edges of the territory. To his horror, he saw his beloved running straight toward the heart of the enemy crossing the river on a strange road made across boats.

"Khonsu-et, stop!" He bellowed a warning in an unearthly tone but Khonsu-et only slowed to shift from wolf to war-waging form and attack the enemy encampment which was not there when Obion made his pre-dawn flight around the territory.

Swooping from the sky like a hawk, he barreled into a group of archers trying to bring his beloved wolf down. The arrows bounced off his stone skin. Slaughtering many more in a desperate scramble to get to Khonsu-et as he rushed toward the floating bridge. Seeing the giant dark beast of Obion slaying the archers and warriors around them. Khonsu-et took his chance to destroy the bridge. The bi-pedal wolf hefted several clay vessels of oil from a parked wagon onto the bridge as more arrows struck him. Khonsu-et staggered and collapsed, crawling toward a torch in a last effort to burn the road over the river. Obion killed the last man on their side of the river. Running he scooped up the torch and tossed it onto the oil spattered boats and planks. The warriors rushing to aid their dead comrades were forced back but some continued to fire arrows blindly over the fire. Under the protection of his wings, Obion choked on his heart as his beloved lay dying in his arms.

"Khonsu-et. Hold on, I'll fly you back to Lycopolis."

"No time... Take my blood while I live... Heal yourself, sleep in the river... So you may... Fight tonight."

"No, I will not take your last blood." With his mouth hanging open in shock, Obion started to shake his head, but Khonsu-et seized his jaw with surprising strength and forced his wrist onto Obion's fangs.

"You will... A black sun... Iddoferu saw an eclipse is coming."

As the blood was drawn into his system, Obion could suddenly see Khonsu-et's memories as the queens did. Before his eyes played out all the cherished memories, his lover had of them together. Stunned by the visions, Obion gently lifted Khonsu-et's wrist off his fangs. He shook uncontrollably because he only realized the depths of Khonsu-et's love when he was dead.

The sky was getting lighter very quickly, but the sunlight was strangely diffuse as though a cloud was on the horizon. There were no clouds. As it became brighter, the light hurt. Realizing Khonsu-et was correct, Obion knew he would be forever petrified if he remained in the light for too long. Eclipses were deadly to his kind, but he vowed he would live long enough to slay all who killed his beloved red wolf.