The Death Trials

THE DEATH TRIALS│5

ANUBIS COCKED HIS HEAD TO the side, a wicked grin splayed on his lips as mischief danced in his eyes. "Let us get started."  

Thoth clapped his hands and Zaina felt weightless. Seconds later, she fell to the ground. Her eyes shot wide open and she was met with grains of sand. She quickly got up and dusted her dress, knowing how hard her mother would have scolded her if she had been there. In front of them, pyramids were lined up side by side. Just like the tents, each pyramid had a flag with a rafiq on it. The other gods had appeared, standing behind the god of death.

"To make this more interesting," he pointed to the sundial on the ground, "you have until the shadow of the sun is ten metres. Go!"

Zaina ran into her pyramid, pausing when she had entered. She turned around just as the doorway was closing. Before the gods were out of sight, Anubis' smile took on a darker edge, curling towards one side, eyes darkening.

Shaken by what she had just seen, she stumbled back. Zaina took a moment to reassure her that it was a trick of light—surely that was not meant for her. Taking a deep breath, she turned around, examining her surroundings. Ahead of her lay a torch lit hallway. Grabbing one of the torches, she ventured forwards, admiring the images that littered the walls.

She kicked a pebble lightly, listening as it bounced and came to a stop. She did same a few more times till she kicked one pebble and didn't hear anything. Her hearbeat quickened. Hands shaking, she searched for a new pebble. She found one but did not kick it like the times before. Instead, she threw it. 

Once more, the soothing thuds of the pebble's rebounding did not reach her ears. Tentatively, Zaina leaned forward and extended the torch. She was met with the sight of a multitude of staircases, running in both directions. She glanced downwards, her heart almost flying out of her chest—she stood precariously near the tip of a ledge.

Panting softly and palms sweaty, she stepped off and back into the comfort of the hallway. Then. she heard it, the light thuds. At first, she assumed it was her heart, still experiencing the aftermath of her near death experience. It grew louder, drawing closer.

 Placing a hand on her chest, she drew in deep breaths, her mind racing to understand the source of the noise. Then it clicked, she was not the only one in the pyramid. Not wasting anytime, she flew up the stairs, not bothering with a plan. But, no matter how far or fast she run, she always heard the gentle, occasionally loud, footfalls of the thieves.

Finding a corner, she slipped into it, hoping they would pass her by. When she began to feel hotter than normal, her clothes warming up and her skin dripping with sweat, she realised how stupid she was. The torch was pressed to her chest. She quickly threw it to the ground, fear mounting as the fire refused to die. Zaina leaned towards the edge, wondering if she would see them.

The sight that met her wide, innocent eyes sunk her heart, fastened her to her spot and drew out a scream from her lungs. The thieves had found her. They were three—two large and bulky men with shaved heads and a slender woman who twirled a blade in her hand.

One of the men was tattooed, strange inscriptions covering every visible inch of his skin. He tilted his head, his nose ring glinting in the fiery glow of the surrounding torches. The other one was worse; he had no teeth, just decaying and receding gums. 

The woman stepped forward, the bangles on her arm clinking as she tossed the blade, gaze trained on Zaina. Her hair, like her dark eyes, ran wild.

The men grabbed her, pushing her to the ground. She tried to move backwards, only to be pulled back by one of the men. The woman straddled her waist and delivered a swift punch, causing Zaina's head to snap to the side. The men laughed, egging her on. Zaina struggled but it proved futile. The woman continued to lay waste to her face, spitting on her once or twice.