The first three colonies were various forms of fun for the Five Elements. But New Zerzura was not. A desert was definitely not an ideal environment for them. There were no trees for Huoxing and Muxing to climb. The scorching heat was unbearable for Jinxing. Shuixing was reluctant to swim in the Nile because it was so murky and she wasn't sure that non-uplifted crocodiles would be lurking near. And Tuxing didn't care much for the white cotton dresses that local customs made them wear. As such, the five of them weren't planning on stay in New Zerzura long. Besides, they needed to head back before the SAMAS started. But there was at least a few places they could visit.
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The palace at New Zerzura was no longer the seat of power for a pharaoh. Instead of all the power being invested in one man, there was now a council made up of members who share equal weight in decisions. There were several Animalians on this council, each representing a different Egyptian god. There was a hawk, a falcon, a cat, a lioness, a jackal, an ibis, a crocodile, and a cow. There were also some humans on the council who represented the gods who did not have animal-based heads. Some of the members of the council were notable. For instance, Bast, the caracal cat who was known for her 'reincarnated' memories of ancient Egypt was on the council representing her namesake. The Five Elements had a couple of questions for some of the members.
"Are you wearing black dye?" asked Tuxing, peering close at the Anubis councilman.
"Yes," said the councilman, "Melanistic jackals are extremely rare and there haven't found yet to acquire DNA from yet. But like the Anubis Guards, I dye my fur black to honor Anubis. Black is a traditional color for a death god after all."
"I think I remember reading somewhere that Anubis was more of a god of embalming than actual death," said Tuxing, "I think Osiris is the actual king of the dead."
"Anubis had other duties besides embalming," said the Anubis councilman, sounding slightly annoyed.
"So are these all the animal-headed gods?" asked Jinxing to the Ra councilman.
"Not really," said the Ra councilman, "Some had heads that would impossible to recreate, like Kephri. He had a scarab beetle for a head."
"A whole beetle? How would that have worked?" asked Jinxing.
The Ra councilman shrugged and said, "I don't know the minds of ancient Egyptians that well, but the Animalian virus couldn't work on beetles anyways."
"Anyone else absent?" asked Jinxing.
"The one you'd most likely know would be Set," said the Ra councilman, "He's not represented here just because he was one of the less favorable gods. No one is quite sure what animal is supposed to represent him."
"Really?" asked Jinxing.
"Yes, the Set animal is possibly mythical or extinct. Probably the former as no fossils have been found that could match the beast's description. Archeologists and zoologists have argued whether the Set animal is a donkey, a giraffe, an aardvark, or some other kind of creature."
"Huh, wonder if that was one of the reasons he was so unpopular," said Jinxing.
Muxing was speaking to one of the human council members. "So, you're supposed to be Isis, right?" asked Muxing.
"Yes, but I'd rather go by my own name," said the councilwoman, "Call me Isa."
"I'm guessing you prefer that because of the other ISIS," said Muxing.
Isa frowned and said, "Their organization has nothing to do with Egypt and the name was not even intended to resemble Isis. Yet still they continue to commit crimes against their own people and drag Isis's name through the mud."
"I can get that," said Muxing, "But I would think that people are smart enough to tell the difference between an Egyptian goddess and a terrorist organization."
"You'd think so, but people can be so narrow-minded," said Isa.
Shuixing's conversation with the Hathor councilwoman was much more mundane. "Huh, I didn't know ancient Egyptians made cheeses," she said.
"Of course they do," said the Hathor councilwoman, "Cheeses have been around since the dawn of civilization."
"I don't think I'd want to eat cheeses that old," said Shuixing.
"You know, no matter how often I hear that joke, it's still funny," said the Hathor councilwoman.
Huoxing was looking at the burly hippopotamus that was standing by the door. "So, which god do you represent?" she asked.
The hippo shrugged and said, "I'm just the bailiff, ma'am."
Huoxing looked the burly hippo up and down. His mass was less fat and more muscle than one would expect with a hippo. "And I'm sure you make a darn good one," said Huoxing.
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While their stay had been educational, the Five Elements were eager to leave Egypt and head back to Lyre. The SAMAS will be starting before long and they'd rather not miss it. The others can go to that wedding they were talking about, but the Chinese quintet were heading back home.