The Memory Painter

Linz relented and patted his arm. “It’s okay, Steve. Thank you for being … proactive.”


She waited for them to return to their desks and then opened Bryan’s file. The first page started with a detailed psychiatric analysis from twenty years ago. It stated that Bryan suffered from a rare form of schizophrenia, and from there the file only got worse. She read page after page, shaking her head in disbelief. Medicor’s investigators had done a thorough job. Most of the information here shouldn’t even have been accessible. The more she read, the angrier she became … at Bryan, at herself, at her father … Why hadn’t Bryan told her any of this?

She finished reading Bryan’s history and stared into space. She had planned to go to his place and talk to him after work. But not anymore.

The printer finished its job. The Renovo file was waiting in the tray.

*

The Peabody Museum housed the faculty offices for the Archaeology Department. Now that Bryan had Michael’s memories of Harvard, he had no trouble finding it. He had called and spoken to Dr. Hayes that morning, and because of his connection to Claudette and Martin, Dr. Hayes had granted Bryan an interview during his lunch hour.

Bryan found him at his desk, reading a stack of thesis papers. Dr. Hayes must have been at least in his seventies. He had owlish eyes that were framed by square eyeglasses, and an angular face that complemented his frail stature.

“So you have an interest in ancient Egypt?” Dr. Hayes asked, barely looking up from his work. “Please, sit.”

Bryan sat down and took out the drawing. “I was wondering if you’ve ever seen this symbol before?” he asked, getting right to the point.

Dr. Hayes blinked twice at it. “Where did you see this?”

Bryan settled on a simplified version of the truth. “In a dream.”

“I see.” Dr. Hayes looked skeptical. “And why do you think this is Egyptian?” he asked, unable to take his eyes off the drawing.

“Because I was in Egypt in the dream, at the Great Pyramid.” He left out the part about the Egyptian goddess or queen or whoever she was drawing it out of thin air with her finger. He could tell he was already walking a fine line with the professor. “Is it Egyptian?”

“Yes. Yes, it is.” Dr. Hayes looked confounded. “It’s an ancient symbol for Horus.”

“Horus?” Bryan asked with surprise.

Dr. Hayes seemed to mistake his surprise for confusion and went on to explain, “According to Egyptian mythology, Horus was the last god, or super being if you will, to rule Egypt.” He leaned forward, now fully engaged in the conversation. “You see, academia organizes ancient Egypt into several periods, starting with the Early Dynastic Period, which begins right around 3100 BC. From there, we move forward through the First and Second Dynasties, then through the Old Kingdom, Middle Kingdom, and New Kingdom, etcetera. However, the time before 3100 BC has become a subject of great debate.”

“How so?” Bryan asked, curious to see where the professor was headed.

“Our understanding of Egypt’s past is based on the works of a Heliopolitan priest named Manetho, who lived in the third century BC. He compiled a history of Egypt by making lists of the mortal kings. His complete text did not survive. But in the pieces of it we do have, he also describes an even more distant past where gods, not men, ruled the Nile. The Egyptians called it ‘The First Time of the Gods,’ and supposedly, according to Manetho, this time on Earth lasted for over twenty thousand years—well before 3100 BC.”

Bryan nodded. He already knew much of what Dr. Hayes had been describing. Origenes Adamantius had studied Manetho’s complete and original texts as a young man, as well as Diodorus Siculus and Herodotus’ accounts of the history of Egypt, both of which supported Manetho’s claims. Even two thousand years ago, Egypt’s past had felt just as fantastical and mythical to scholars as it did today.

“Academia has largely chosen to ignore this part of Manetho’s tale. Even though his timeline was also complemented by the Greek historians Diodorus Siculus and Herodotus. It would suggest that certain biblical dates are wrong.”

Bryan smiled. Martin had been right, Dr. Hayes was a wizard.

“Regardless of whether Manetho’s account was myth or fact, Horus was recorded as the last ruler of the ‘First Time of the Gods,’ the son of Osiris and Isis. And this,” Dr. Hayes handed the paper back to Bryan, “is his personal emblem.”

Bryan stared at the drawing.

“I hope that was helpful.”

Yes and no. Bryan grimaced. He was glad to have identified the symbol, but he still had no idea why his Egyptian guide had shown it to him. He nodded anyway and stood to leave, “Yes. Thank you for your time.”

Dr. Hayes studied him with a thoughtful eye. “If you happen to dream up any more forgotten symbols of antiquity, I’d like to see them.”