The two men stood and watched the youth in the garden.

"He fades yet more today."

"As many of our children have."

"Yet we remain."

"Why, do you think?"

"I do not know?"

"Do our Gods fail us?"

"Do we not yet remain?"

"Our people fail us."

"Could it be so?"

"In truth, I do not know."

"Come, let us see if we can bring this child away from the garden."

"You go. I shall remain here. There is a thing about this that disrupts my very soul."

*

"Come child, you must leave the garden."

The child did not raise his head, nor remove his eyes from the flower he held in his hand, "I cannot, sir. Even if I felt to move my feet, my heart would yet remain. I feel empty outside these walls, there is naught else for me without."

"What of your servants, your women, your home. Can you find no comfort there?"

"Vanished. All that was is gone; my house is empty. I am all that remains of my life and my past, and yet so - I feel hollow, as though an empty vessel. For three thousand years, I have been here -surrounded by all things that bring me peace and happiness. They are all gone, yet I remain, such as I am. I am alone. I am afraid."

"Come with me to my home then. There you shall find comfort."

"I cannot. I fear that if I rise from this spot I shall not be any longer."

And then without warning, without a cry, without a sound - he was gone.

Elsewhere:

Today, in far away Egypt, renowned archeologist Howard Carter has made a discovery that astounded the world. After thirty-one years of searching the Valley of the Kings, Howard Carter, accompanied by his sponsor, Lord Carnarvon has uncovered what they believe to be the tomb of the Pharaoh Tutankhamen. The two men stated that...

Keyword: afterlife egypt king tut gravedigging

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Comments (15)

Posted by harmattan 2008-08-24 16:16:36 Child in Garden Whistful, but satisfying. Mystical feel to it. But I am glad you printed the rider or I could have gone off at half cock. About twelve years ago I took a photo of the entrance to this tomb. Of the five hundred photos I took on a Nile cruise, this was the only one fuzzy and out of focus........ The old atomobile horn is still there by the portal, and the sign is still legible. It says "Toot and come in!". Harmattan + Report this comment
Posted by philneale1952 2008-08-24 16:38:03 Poignant Puts grave robbing poignantly into context. You can take the King out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the King. I know its a paraphrase, but it just seemed so apt here. Very good piece which stirs the emotions and debate, David. Phil + Report this comment
Posted by antheerr 2008-08-24 17:20:17 Int-er-est-ing Wow - this is good. I never consider that sort of twist on the whole Egyptology thing. Poor Tut. + Report this comment
Posted by ams 2008-08-24 20:17:57 .... this was very good and nicely written. at first, i thought it was going to be like a secret garden thing, but halfway through i was thinking the Garden of Eden. the whole egyptian thing was a nice twist. + Report this comment
Posted by Dirkin 2008-08-24 20:48:26 .... Very interesting, and surreal. This had a biblical tone to the dialogue + Report this comment
Posted by Zombie Punk 2008-08-24 22:56:26 A Child In The Garden This was weird and very interesting. Good story, David. + Report this comment
Posted by hrosv 2008-08-25 10:38:54 Devastating What happened, in reality, is one of the saddest things in history. Your story conveys this emotion well with well chosen words. Very nice + Report this comment
Posted by lemon 2008-08-25 16:22:55 .... This was really interesting. I liked the way this was written and the little twist there at the end. At first I also thought it was going to be a secret garden type thing. Nice work Mr. Tarhead =] + Report this comment
Posted by r.e.potter 2008-08-25 19:10:01 .... Good piece of writing Mr. Neve. In a way, one could scratch his head and say, what was this about. But on the other, they could say (awesome) I choose the latter. I bet Heraldo Rivera is quite upset. + Report this comment
Posted by wcromart03 2008-08-25 21:25:33 Amazing I liked it. In that short paragraph you made me think of what happens when the after world is robbed in this world. All in all amazing. + Report this comment
Posted by thickblueline 2008-08-26 03:21:48 ... Well done. I really didn't know what to make of it until the last paragraph. Then I had to reread the whole thing again. It was an interesting twist that you put on a new subject. Good job. + Report this comment
Posted by Ashutosh 2008-08-27 09:34:36 .... Very well written, David. Good dialogue. Though I guess I kind of missed the point here. Is this science fiction? Well, well-written whatevr the case. + Report this comment
Posted by Something Indecent 2008-09-04 14:59:42 .... Strange if not somewhat haunting piece. I think I should probably look up the tomb this is about. Since I'm not too knowledgable on the subject. The next time I'm on the street and I see a kid dissappear I'm going to look for treasure. :) + Report this comment
Posted by HelentheCelt 2008-09-05 12:51:07 .... The lyricism of thie piece is amazing. The story provides greater effect as it centres around a 'child'- especially one so alone. A different angle from the usual crazed mummy story which is usually relates to Egypt + Report this comment
Posted by Terry Collett 2008-09-14 09:59:05 .... At first glance one thinks what can possibly be here to hold us? but then its draws you in and engages you and although short it is nonetheless, satisfying, like a good malt whiskey. + Report this comment

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