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*****
Fresh air hit them the moment they stepped out of the ruins ā cool, open, and gloriously sand-storm-free.
And waiting for them, calm as ever with his warriors at his side, stood Ardeth Bay.
The Medjai leader stepped forward and placed a hand over his chest.
"Once again, I offer my thanks for your help in defeating the creature. Our order is in your debt. If you ever require aid, seek us ā we will answer."
Daniel stretched, joints cracking in protest.
"Well, if you truly want to helpā¦" He pointed over his shoulder. "Can you give us some horses? Ours ran away for, uhā¦ very understandable reasons."
Ardeth blinked once.
Then a small, knowing smile touched the corner of his mouth.
For someone who had just displayed inhuman strength, this man asked for something so simple it bordered on charming. Ardeth still could not understand him ā and perhaps that was the strangest part.
He raised his hand in a sharp command.
Two Medjai rode forward, leading several strong desert horses by the reins.
"Take them," Ardeth said. "They will serve you well."
Daniel accepted one with a broad grin. "Now this is service."
Ardeth mounted his own horse, cloak lifting in the rising desert breeze.
"May we meet again, friends," he said, bowing his head before riding off with his warriors.
Silence settled as the dust of their departure drifted away, leaving Daniel, Evelyn, O'Connell, and Jonathan standing alone with their new horses ā and the quiet of a long, exhausting day.
Daniel yawned, stretching his arms behind his head.
"Soā¦ anyone want to stay the night here and leave tomorrow? I'm kinda feeling sleepy."
"No!" all three of them shouted in perfect unison.
The force of it nearly ruffled his hair.
Daniel blinked. "Alright, alright ā no need to yell. I still use these ears, you know."
He turned back toward Hamunaptra ā the City of the Dead now silent, its ruins brooding under the fading light. The shadows were deeper. The secrets were buried again.
"Yeah," Daniel murmured under his breath, "goodbye, you crazy, sand-filled nightmare."
***
Two years laterā¦
Deep inside an ancient Egyptian temple near the Nile, the air hung thick with dust and cobwebs.
"I still can't understand how I keep seeing this place in my dreams," Evelyn muttered, brushing aside a curtain of webs as she walked. "Every nightā¦ the same corridors. The same feeling. It's like it's calling me."
Daniel followed beside her, holding a torch that cast long shadows against the hieroglyph-covered walls.
"Yeah, wellā¦ you having prophetic nightmares is one thing. You screaming at three in the morning and nearly kicking me off the bed? That's another."
Evelyn shot him a glare over her shoulder. "It's not like I do it on purpose."
"I know, I know," Daniel said, smirking. "But seriously, maybe those dreams are from your past life. Maybe you were a princess or something back then."
He said it casually, but it wasn't a guess ā not for him.
That was the truth. Those dreamsā¦ those visionsā¦ that sense of familiarity Evelyn had with ancient Egypt ā it wasn't imagination.
It was memories of her past life.
They continued deeper into the temple, the dust growing thicker, the air colder. Symbols of Anubis lined the walls, carved with unnerving precision ā jackal heads, scales of judgment, and depictions of a massive pyramid.
Daniel paused for a moment, taking in the carvings.
This should be the place, he thought.
The resting site of the Bracelet of Anubis ā the artifact that points the way to the Golden Pyramid hidden deep within a desert oasis.
What was the name of that desert againā¦?
He frowned. Something with an "A"ā¦ Ahm Shere?
Yeah, that was it.
If the movie logic held true, this temple was exactly where it should be.
Evelyn stopped in front of a large stone door etched with more Anubis symbols.
"Danielā¦" she whispered, goosebumps rising along her arms. "I've seen this door. In my dreams."
Daniel lifted the torch higher to see the door.
"Well," Daniel said, a playful grin tugging at his lips, "looks like it's time to find out what your past-life self has been trying to show you."
He placed both hands on the ancient stone doorā¦ and pushed.
Nothing.
The door didn't budge a millimeter. It felt like trying to move a mountain.
Daniel exhaled sharply. "Yeah, okay. Should've expected that."
He rolled his shoulders, stepping back once.
"Evy, mind taking a step back?" he said.
Evelyn blinked, then quickly shuffled several steps away. "Danā¦ what are you planning?"
"Oh, just a bit of manual labor," he said casually.
He planted both palms against the door again ā but this time his eyes flickered, a faint red glow spreading across his irises.
The stone beneath his hands began to tremble. Dust poured down from the top of the frame. Ancient mechanisms groaned awake after centuries of silence.
A deep rumble echoed through the corridor.
Evelyn watched, wide-eyed, as cracks of red light spiderwebbed faintly across the door's surfaceā¦ and thenā
G R R R R R R A A A A A N N Kā
The massive slab of stone slowly shifted aside under Daniel's strength, grinding across the floor like an awakening titan.
Daniel stepped back once the opening was wide enough, dusting his hands off.
"There," Daniel said with a grin. "Old or not, everything opens if you use enough force."
Evelyn exhaled, half impressed, half exasperated.
"I swearā¦ I should just forget archaeology and study more about you."
Even after two years of marriage, she still couldn't fully understand her husband.
Ancient temples made sense. Curses made sense. Hieroglyphs, mummies, rituals ā all logical.
Daniel?
Daniel was the one thing she still couldn't categorize.
Whenever she asked where his strength came from, or why his eyes glowed sometimes, or why he could do things no human should ā
He would just shrug, flash that annoying smile, and say
"I'm a hero destined to save the universe,"
or
"It's a long story ā a fun one, too,"
or
"Don't worry about it, Evy. Destiny stuff."
All complete nonsense to her academic brain.
Evelyn sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"My husband is a mystery I cannot solveā¦"
Daniel leaned closer with a grin. "That's what keeps marriage exciting."
She swatted his arm lightly. "Stop being charming in cursed temples."