Piece by Piece

60. Big Mistakes

"Yes. I wanted to document our path."

"You didn't keep accurate distances between the traps."

Even in the dim light, it was obvious that Harrison blushed. "I didn't think we would actually use it as a map. It was mostly for me to remember."

"Good enough." Davyn grabbed one of the pencils as well and put the paper on the floor for everyone to see. Then, he drew up what he was sure was the outer wall of the building. "We came in through here. And we're going to end up in this other corner, which is either an exit or a dead end."

"How can you be so sure?" Edwards asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Do tell me where you think a room fits in this portion of temple? And not just any room, but a ceremonial one housing an allegedly sacred artefact."

There was a long silence after this. Davyn picked up the papers and handed them back to Harrison. "You didn't think. You just saw danger and bolted in the other direction without taking time to figure out if that was the best decision."

"Omar is dead, and--"

"And he would have been just as dead in the other direction," Davyn snapped. "The only difference is that we're now scratched, dirty, thirsty, and tired, and we need to go back through all that again."

"No, we don't," Edwards insisted.

"Now you're just being stubborn," Phillip mumbled. "I've heard enough. I'm going with Davyn."

Simon and Rachel also moved towards him in a show of support he truly appreciated.

"You're not going anywhere," Edwards said. "We're not splitting up!"

Davyn shrugged. "Then you're free to follow." And he turned on his heels and left, hopping over the trap door they'd dodged before stopping in that place.

It was no use. Reigning himself in had been a mistake and put them in a position where they needed to trek back through countless traps. They might now know what they were and vaguely remember where they were, but they were also exhausted.

"Davyn, slow down," Walt pleaded.

Davyn gritted his teeth, but complied. He knew the request was mainly due to Ahmed's limp and Omar's dead body, but it made no sense. Why were they dragging Omar around again? What use was it when they had no idea if they would make it out alive? They would need to find an actual door because climbing back where they came through was impossible.

He didn't look over his shoulder, but from the noises coming from behind, the others had decided to follow him, including Edwards. They retraced their steps in silence, only words of warning being spoken quietly from time to time. 

It took them a few hours to reach the position they'd started. Omar's blood still looked unreasonably fresh on the dusty stone. There was no light coming from above, so Davyn assumed night had fallen. He wished they could afford to sleep, but because of Edwards' poor leadership they were behind and needed to catch up.

"Shit, now we don't know what traps we have to face," Alan mumbled.

"Maybe we should rest a little?" Rachel suggested.

Even if he didn't like it, Davyn nodded. After all, they had to face death again in a few feet. He sat too. glancing at the portion of the wall he'd cleared of cobwebs. It felt like a million years ago.

"What is the story on the wall?" he asked, turning to Walt. "The one you said isn't relevant for our search."

Walt pointed his flashlight in that direction and squinted. "It's the legend of Isis, Osiris and Horus. You know, the story where Seth betrays his brother, Osiris, kills him and  scatters his body all over Egypt. Then, it's up to his wife  to retrieve his body and sow it back together. Using ancient magic, she brings him back to life as ruler of the underworld, and they conceive their son, Horus."