Egypt—one of the four great civilizations of the world. People were already settling and growing crops there as early as 5000 BCE. While much of the land was dominated by infertile desert, every summer, the inundation of the Nile River moisturized the ground, creating rich soil. The area the native peoples cultivated with this boon came to be known as “Kemet,” meaning “the black lands,” which referred to the dark soil the Nile blessed them with annually—it would not be known as “Egypt” until much later on.
Time continued to pass, and civilizations within the land continued to rise and fall, until finally, in 3500 BCE, the land was consolidated into two main regions. These are what is now known as Upper Egypt, an area dominated by the upper basin of the Nile; and Lower Egypt, occupied by the Nile’s lower basin. Then, in 3150 BCE, the pharaoh Narmer of Upper Egypt conquered Lower Egypt, bringing it under his rule and unifying the two Egypts in the process, giving rise to what is now known as the First Dynasty of Egypt. Several other dynasties subsequently rose up and crumbled until 16 BCE, when Ahmose I expelled the Hyksos from Lower Egypt and unified the country once more, ushering in the Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt...
“Tch! Mother understands nothing!”
Within a room of the Great Temple of Amen, a young man spat vitriol. Looking to be in his midtwenties, he possessed piercing eyes, a muscular build, and a dominating presence that called to mind that of a lion or tiger. Even from just these qualities, there was little doubt that this man was destined for greatness. His name was Thutmose III, and he currently stood at the apex of Kemet as its pharaoh. However, ever since his infancy, his stepmother Hatshepsut had in fact held all the power, relegating his status to a mere figurehead.
“Why must we settle things calmly? Peacefully? Amicably? Nonsense. Those Mittani barbarians formed an alliance to bring Kemet to its knees, took back the city of Megiddo, erased the hegemony of the Four Regions Kibratim Arba’im, and you’re still going on about peace?!” Unable to find another outlet for his anger, he slammed his fist on top of a nearby desk. Half of that anger was directed toward himself. Despite the severity of the situation, he was simply too powerless to usurp authority from his mother. While her blunders concerning the Four Regions were egregious indeed, Kemet itself was currently at peace, and its citizens were living in the lap of luxury, so she had many supporters.
Thutmose III had heard the same excuses time and again.
“The barbarians will have a hard time invading thanks to Kemet’s geography. All we need to do is hold the line.”
“We have the blessing of Mother Nile on our side, after all.”
“What else could we possibly require?”
Those in the royal palace refused to see a need to change the status quo.
“Cowards, all of them! Have we as a society all forgotten the humiliation our predecessors suffered at the hands of the Hyksos?!” Kemet’s geography may have made it difficult for outsiders to invade, but Thutmose III had learned enough from history to know that such an advantage was far from an absolute defense. Kemet wasn’t infallible, nor impenetrable. After having taken the Megiddo region with so little resistance, that fact had no doubt become clear to the anti-Kemet alliance as well. At this rate, there was nothing stopping them from coming after the Nile’s blessing next.
“By the time that happens, it will be too late. We must reclaim the land of Megiddo first and show them the true might of Kemet!” Thutmose III gripped his fist tightly, determination burning within his heart. Though currently a pharaoh in name only, this was the man who would one day go on to conquer the most territory in all of Egypt’s history and gain a reputation as the “Egyptian Napoleon.”
“I see... So this is the city of Megiddo.” Muttering to himself, Thutmose III gazed up curiously at the towering fortress wall before him. There was nothing like this in Kemet—being surrounded by a desert was enough of a defense on its own. Well, “nothing” was saying a bit much—there were a few fortifications here and there, but it was the first time he’d ever laid eyes on one this majestic.
“Ph-Pharaoh, forgive my impertinence, but we shouldn’t be here. We’ll only put ourselves at risk with these insufficient numbers.” The young man cowering behind him, his foster brother and trusted confidant, spoke timidly. His name was Radames, and he was serving as Thutmose III’s bodyguard today. He was certainly loyal, and he knew his way around a sword. However...
“Fool, don’t call me pharaoh here. Doing so places us at great risk of discovery.”
...for all his strength, Radames was a coward and a dunce, marring an otherwise shining jewel.
“H-Huh?! F-Forgive me, Lord Thut!”
“You’re forgiven. Just be careful, and calm down, will you? You’re going to make us seem suspicious.”
“F-Forgive me!” Seeing Radames retreat further and further into himself, Thutmose III let out an exasperated sigh. His brother could be the ultimate bodyguard if he just had a bit more courage—although Thutmose III acknowledged people couldn’t change overnight.
“Well, be at ease for now. I highly doubt anyone suspects that I came here to snoop around.” A wide, mischievous grin appeared on his lips. They had come to the city of Megiddo for reconnaissance. By staking out the city, Thutmose III hoped to piece together some sort of strategy for a counterattack. Naturally, it was bold and reckless for a pharaoh to take it upon himself to do grunt work like this, but failure was absolutely no longer an option. He had to see it with his own eyes to make absolutely certain. As it happened, he’d already learned much. Particularly valuable was a greater understanding of the geography of the city of Megiddo. There was only so much one could learn from hearsay alone.
“Seems like a direct attack will be more difficult than I’d anticipated.” The towering Carmel Mountain Range to the west would be particularly problematic. They would have to circle around the mountains from either the north or south, but both options would involve a time-consuming detour. In war, pincer attacks were usually the quickest path to victory, but with the mountains in the way, it would be difficult to coordinate. Their logistics would be stretched thin. What’s more, the enemy had likely already deduced the Kemet army would need to travel around the mountains from one of two directions and planned a suitable counterattack. No matter how he looked at it, it was too risky.
“Next!”
“Oh, looks like it’s my...no, our turn,” Thutmose III said.
Once the guardsman at the gate called for the next person in line, they paid the entry fee and passed through the gates.