Ahmose looks after the menagerie at the temple of Amon Ra and a secret devotee of the Aton. The vengeful Ra transforms him into a golden bird, damned to live forever and only turn into a man for a few days every five centuries. The curse of Ra is also drawn down onto those Ahmose encounters. The alchemists, Helen Maat and Dinan, and the soldier, Gerard Jorden, are also condemned to immortality.