Prologue One Month Later
The world has mostly forgotten the giant winged skeleton attack in Turkey.
Arther Indiana Croft hasn't.
He's spent the last month hiding in a military medical tent, pretending he hurt his back even though the only thing injured was his pride. Jamie visits occasionally just to poke fun at him.
And the skeleton?
Gone. Disappeared into thin air.
Most people think the whole event was dust, heat-stroke, and mass panic.
Arther knows better.
Very unfortunately… he's about to be proven right.
Chapter 1 The Box He Shouldn't Have Opened
Arther is transferred to a base in Egypt "for his own safety," which he suspects translates to "so he stops annoying the Turkish commander."
He sits alone in a dusty storage tent, sorting through old crates of unearthed artifacts.
"This is good," he mutters. "No monsters, no wings, no undead trying to slap me through a floor."
He opens a wooden crate that wasn't on the inventory list.
Inside is a small golden box covered in symbols he absolutely does not recognize.
"That's not suspicious at all."
The lid rattles.
Arther drops the box.The box rattles harder.
"NOPE. No. Nooooo. Closed boxes do NOT rattle!"
He kicks it into a corner.
The box stops.
He stares at it for three seconds.
"…I'm opening it."
The moment the lid lifts, a blast of sand explodes outward, swirling into a miniature tornado.
A deep voice growls:
"RELEASED… AT LAST…"
Arther slams the lid shut.The tornado stops instantly.
He shakes the box like a broken TV remote.
"What the hell did I just unleash?!"
The box answers by cracking.
"OH COME ON!"
Chapter 2 The Pharaoh of Storms
The sandstorm bursts out of the box, forming the shape of a tall, armored figure with glowing blue eyes.
Arther's voice cracks like a dying bird.
"Jamie is going to kill me."
The figure points a finger at him.
"Where… is my army?"
Arther blinks. "Your what now?"
The being rises until his head nearly scrapes the tent roof.
"I am Nefkare, Pharaoh of Storms. I slept until the world needed me."
Arther scrambles backward. "Yeah, well, the world DOESN'T need you. The world needs less skeletons, storms, and whatever your whole vibe is."
The Pharaoh lifts a hand.
A massive sandstorm erupts outside, swallowing vehicles and tents.
Soldiers scream.
Jamie sprints into the tent.
"ARTHER! WHAT DID YOU DO?!"
Arther points at the storm-god."That!"
Jamie sighs. "Why is it always you?!"
Chapter 3 The Skeleton Returns (Unfortunately)
Amid the roaring storm, a new shape emerges massive wings, bony claws, and a familiar skull.
The winged skeleton.
It lands with a thud that shakes the entire camp.
Nefkare turns toward it.
"You… are not of my kingdom."
The skeleton roars.
Arther throws his arms up."OH GREAT! BOTH OF YOU?! WHAT NEXT AN UNDEAD CAMEL?!"
The skeleton lunges at the Pharaoh.The Pharaoh catches it by the neck.
An ancient rivalry sparks to life.
Arther stares at Jamie.
"Should we run?"
Jamie shakes his head."No. We should leave Egypt. Forever."
Chapter 4 Arther's Brilliant (Terrible) Plan
As the two ancient beings destroy the base, Arther pulls Jamie behind an overturned jeep.
"I have a plan."
Jamie facepalms. "Oh no."
"We trap them back where they came from."
Jamie looks at the collapsing tents."And HOW do we trap a skeleton demon and the Pharaoh of freaking storms?!"
"With bait."
Jamie narrows his eyes."And who's the bait?"
Arther points at himself without hesitation.
"I'm the idiot who started this."
Jamie groans. "That's… fair."
Chapter 5 Into the Eye
Arther runs straight toward the two monsters.
"HEY! OVER HERE! THE GUY WHO OPENED THE BOX AND THE TOMB! YEAH, THAT'S ME!"
Both creatures turn toward him.
Arther nearly regrets existing.
He holds up the golden box.
"You want this? Come and get it!"
He bolts into the desert, both monsters chasing him, their combined fury turning the sand into a swirling battlefield.
Jamie speeds behind him in a jeep.
"ARTHER, IF YOU LIVE THROUGH THIS, I'M GOING TO PUNCH YOU!"
Chapter 6 The Box's Secret
Arther skids to a stop at the top of a dune.
He opens the golden box again.
Instead of sand, this time a glowing orb floats out.
Symbols swirl around it.
Nefkare roars: "YOU FOUND MY SOUL!"
The skeleton shrieks back at him.
Arther holds the orb between them.
"You two want this? Fight over it somewhere else!"
The orb explodes in light.
Both monsters vanish sucked into the golden box as it reseals itself.
Arther drops to his knees.
"I am NEVER opening anything ancient again."
Jamie runs up, panting.
"You said that last time!"
Arther sighs."I know."
Epilogue The Box Isn't Done
Night falls.
Arther sits alone, staring at the closed golden box.
He nudges it with a stick.
It rattles.
He whispers:
"…Book three is going to suck, isn't it?"
The box rattles harder.