D E S E R T ❁ D E S I R ES// A.BAY

RUFFLED FEATHERS

(Lidia's Point of view)

"Do you realize were standing in a room no one's entered in over 3000 years?"

"And here we are, about to desecrate it." I got my torch lit as Evie walked over to something on the other side of the room. Jonathan had landed while complaining about the smell. I'm surprised that we've been traveling with each other for days and he's just now noticing the awful smell coming off the warden. 

"And then there was light." Evie turned the mirror, allowing light to fill the space. It's funny how in all my years of exploring I've never seen this trick before. 

"Hey, that is a neat trick." Rick looked around now that the room was lit a bit better.

"Oh my god. It's a sah-netjer." Evie looked around happily.   

"What?

"It's a preparation room." Evie elaborated.

"Preparation for what?" Rick asked cautiously. 

"For entering the afterlife." Rick took out his gun without hesitation. He's always been a bit superstitious. I wonder how he'd react if he knew he was right to be afraid? He seems to know something isn't right with this place. If the attack from the Medjay weren't a clue in itself, it's the energy. It feels like the cold is seeping into my soul. There's something down here that isn't meant to be fucked with and I have no idea what it is. Someone's going to touch it without knowing and then this whole trip will be going to hell in a handbasket.

"Mummies my good son, this is where they made the mummies." 

I kept my eyes peeled as we made our way through the long-forgotten city. The warden complained about bugs, but I think bugs will be the least of our problems. We continued forward in search of the base of Anubis. I know Evie is in search of the book of the dead, but I wonder how much she'd freak out if she knew that there was technically more than one copy in existence. Egypt was an expansive kingdom, and the rituals detailed in the book were performed in other places beside Hamunaptra. Did anyone seriously think one copy would suffice? The only real issue is the contents of the books itself. 

The original creator of the book is unknown. Some say a powerful sorcerer was responsible while others claim it was the gods. Regardless, the words between the pages of any copy of that book are dangerous. The copies that were discovered are usually incomplete. We speculated it was a counter measure to keep the power of the book from accidently falling in the wrong hands. There are forces that man was not meant to be privy to, and that is one of them. Besides spells and incantations pertaining to death or life, there are different kinds of enchantments included. Since the book falls under the jurisdiction of the Medjay, we've given them any copy or fragment the guardians come across as part of our agreement. What the Medjay have done with them is unknown to us.

We we're able to find the base of Anubis, standing tall as the day it was built. Evie looked more than ready to start excavating, but we came to a halt when we heard a noise. I stuck my torch into the ground and wrapped my hands around my pistols. We turned the corner only to be met face to face with the other expedition party. They similarly had their guns drawn, ready for whatever they might encounter. 

"You scared the bejesus out of us, O'Connell." 

"Likewise."

"Hey that's my toolkit." Burns pointed out. Evie clutched the kit tighter to her chest in response.

"No, I don't think so." With that, the guns were back up in the air. 

"Okay, perhaps I was mistaken." Burns backed up cautiously.