Chapter 9.
Amon had observed the evolution of civilization from its very beginning. He had literally, been there. He had experienced it first hand. He and his ‘brothers’ had been instrumental in its development. Now, so many centuries later, with the fate of that civilization hanging in the balance, he felt compelled to intervene.
The Egyptian Empire was the first self-sustaining large scale civilization on the planet. Several other smaller ones had survived for a short time. But inevitably they had failed, collapsing from within due to poor leadership.
Advances in technology had been influential in the success of the Egyptians. But, despite those advances, political intrigue had set in.
Power, avarice, greed, lust. All the worst characteristics of human-kind were threatening to impede, if not completely destroy the advancement of civilization. The decadence he had witnessed during the reign of Khufu’s father Snefru, had continued unabated into this generation and now threatened to destroy the very fabric of morality.
Secret combinations among the Nubians had begun filtering northward, threatening to overwhelm the communities along the northern Nile valley and Mediterranean coastline, and by extension, the kingdom of the Pharaohs.
The reign of Snefru had been one of continuing confrontations with the dozens of small tribes to the south. It seemed that every community, every oasis, even every roaming caravan had its own despot, eager to exercise his power.
Amon recognized early on that, though Snefru was a mighty pharaoh who commanded huge armies, he was a weak leader. He was easily manipulated by power-hungry individuals within his own organization. The added pressure of negotiating with the decadent Nubians might easily cause him to capitulate, allowing them to infiltrate and erode his already tenuous grip on power.
Amon had seen the subterfuge develop, but was unable to prevent it. To have done so would have exposed Amon for who he really was.
Ironically, Snefru’s death at the hand of his own Chief Priest had forestalled infiltration of the Nubians.
Snefru’s own wife had colluded with the Chief Priest to fill the power void they saw the pharaoh as having created. There was no altruism in their motives. They wanted power for their own selfish ends, and were quite willing to do what ever was necessary to obtain it.
Amon recognized this, and when the young Khufu was elevated to pharaoh status, he saw a chance to intervene, to place himself in a position where he could influence events for the benefit of the citizens without exposing himself.
What better way to do this than to pose as someone he was not; to take advantage of the mystique which had become associated with his name; to cloak himself in the robes of a priest; to ingratiate himself with royalty; and in so doing, to hide in plain sight.