The Temple of Thebes
There's a strong wind blowing the sand of the desert surrounding an ancient temple outside of Thebes. An off-road vehicle parked near the entrance; its occupants slowly enter.
Inside the temple, dozens of giant pillars rise up from the rock-strewn floor to the cracked ceiling above. A shaft of dusty sunlight shines in through a doorway. Klaus, Elijah, and Stefan are the first to enter the temple, for safety reasons since they are not easily killed. Omorose and Evie follow behind the men. Omo moves to a large, metal mirror, and tries to pick it up. Klaus' instantly next to her and picks up the mirror with ease. He looks at her and asks, "What is this for?" Omo doesn't understand what he said but does understand the expression on his face. She points to the small ray of sunlight then to the mirror.
Evie had found another mirror and was moving to direct it into the proper position to catch the sunlight. Elijah helps her while Stefan finds a third mirror, stands it up, and dust off the sand. "These are to catch the sunlight and provide light as long as the sun is up," Evie says as she wipes away the sand and reveals the reflective surface. Omo has Klaus pivot her mirror to catch the sun ray and reflect it on the second mirror. The sunlight is reflected off the rest of the mirrors, lighting up the chamber they are in. A fourth mirror catches the sun ray then reflects it to the next one until a hall is lit up.
"Oh, that is neat," Stefan is in awe. So are Elijah and Klaus, they just hide it better. Klaus looked around the room seeing the various broken vases, a scaffold leaning against one of the pillars, and several cartouches and mosaics chiseled into the walls. Stefan moves to stand next to his former best friend, "I'm wondering how this place is still standing and mostly undisturbed?" Klaus shakes his head, "No clue, mate. Best stay out here, in case others show up." Stefan nodded and went and sat down on the bottom platform of the scaffold.
Omorose and Evie walked further into the temple, Omo was leading but Evie had a sense of Deja Vu. She voiced this to Omo, "I have never been here, but I feel I've been here." "Nefertiti reborn," Omo shrugged. Evie thought about the possibility that she may be Nefertiti reincarnated. Omo and Evie came to what looked like a solid wall with an engraving of two Egyptian women in hand-to-hand combat. Evie hears a hissing at her feet, she looks down and sees a big black snake, "Go away." She hooks her foot underneath the snake and tosses it across the way from her. Elijah was standing in the general direction the snake landed in, "Asps are quite poisonous." Evie turns to Elijah, "Only if they bite you."
Klaus snorts, "Dead end?" Before making another remark Omo presses on the engraving where one of the women is holding a weapon, a Sai, that was bent at an awkward angle. The Sai 'pops' out of the wall so Omo could twist it into the proper position then press it back into the wall which swings open like a massive door. The room is revealed to be filled with Scorpions, Tarantulas, poisonous Asps, and half-eaten mummies. With a newly lit torch that Elijah has, he waved it across the ground to clear a path. Evie reached the sealed door on the other side first, the sense of Deja Vu is strong, "I truly believe I have been here before." She reaches up and pulls a torch holder mounted on the wall beside the sealed door and it opens revealing a passage.
"Love, nobody has been here in centuries," Klaus says as he follows Omo and Evie. Evie turns to the Hybrid, "Then how do I seem to know exactly where I'm going?" They move down the passage to another sealed door. Omorose moves to a Sundial that is covered in cobwebs. She grabs it; turns it twice to the right, and once to left and the door opens. The chamber is not very big. It has two mummified warriors standing on either side of an ornate chest. Evie and Omo move closer to the chest. Evie reads the hieroglyphs and the top, "He who disturbs this chest will drink from the Nile." Omo shakes her head, "Drown...Not Drink." "Oh, we can't have that," Evie studies the chest intensely.
Elijah approaches Evie, "Can't have what, Miss Evelyn?" Evie keeps looking at the chest, "If we remove the chest, the room will flood with the waters of the Nile." Evie notices the lock on the chest looks like a smaller version of the key from Hamunaptra, she looks around the chamber and sees the small key hanging from one of the warrior mummies' necks. She pulled the chain and the mummy's head fell off, "Oops. Sorry." Elijah's lips twitch upward.
Klaus kept his eyes on Omo, she had moved to the back wall and opened a secret chamber. She was struggling to pull out a heavy box containing her personal spell books. She had hidden them here because they were valuable to her. Klaus grabs the box from her, "Let me help you, love." Omo was glad for the help; she had forgotten how heavy they were. She speaks to Evie, "Tell him it contains my magic books." Evie nods, "She says it contains her magic books." Klaus and Elijah share a look. A Grimoire from Ancient Egypt would be invaluable.
Stefan was becoming bored. He was concentrating on the noise going on outside when he heard several vehicles approaching. He warns the Originals, "We got company!" Elijah and Klaus hear him loud and clear. Klaus plans quickly, "I grab Omo and her box. You grab Evie and the chest." Elijah nods. Evie noticed their shift in behavior, "What's going on?" Elijah grabs Evie around the waist, "We have company." Klaus grabs onto Omo and her box and whooshes out of there. Elijah warns Evie, "I'm going to grab the chest and we're going to follow Klaus. Hold on." Evie wraps her arms around Elijah's neck and closes her eyes. The moment Elijah picks up the chest, the walls start to shake and crumble. Elijah whooshes out of the chamber as the walls give way to the rushing waters of the Nile.
They are almost out to the front of the temple when the floor gives way beneath their feet. The room they fell into overlooks a deep chasm; its walls filled with thousands of shelves packed with papyrus scrolls. Water from the Nile is flooding into the room. Evie is in a panic, "No! The Library of Alexandria!" Momentarily Elijah is torn. He feels similar to Evelyn seeing these precious scrolls becoming soaked, but he is unable to do anything about it. Klaus has jumped out of the hole in the floor and is rushing back to the front of the temple. Elijah hesitates before following his brother. Both Elijah and Evie were heartbroken to leave such a find behind to get destroyed.
When they reached the front of the temple, Stefan had killed a few of the armed men that entered the temple. These mercenaries belonged to the High Priest that is organizing Imhotep's resurrection. They were tasked with retrieving the Bracelet of Anubis as well as a cursed chest filled with Ankh-Su-Namu's canopic jars. They had found the cursed chest in a chamber off to the side of the main entrance but were unable to go any further. The mercs were being attacked by Stefan, then Klaus and Elijah joined the fight. Three of the mercs escaped with the cursed chest. They were to meet with the High Priest on the train in a couple of days.
Klaus and Elijah kept the women out of sight for their safety, not knowing both Omo and Evie knew how to fight. Once the fight was over, the group loaded the chests and themselves into their vehicle and drove out of there. Elijah had pulled his phone out to make a few calls. Evie kept looking back at the temple not even bothering to hide her sadness at the loss of the ancient library. Stefan was driving, Elijah in the passenger seat, Klaus in the back next to Omo. Elijah hung up his cell and turned to Evie, "I contacted some people I trust to excavate the temple and try to savage the library. They were instructed to give credit for the find to you, Miss Evelyn." Evie sighs in relief, "Thank you, Elijah." The Original nodded and turned back to face the front as they traveled back to Elijah's Estate.
Omo leaned over her seat to the box containing her books and opened it. She smiled when she saw all five were still in there, as well as THE Scepter of Osiris. Picking up the top one, Omo opened it. The book was carved from stone and only had a few "pages". Evie read the page closest to her, "This book reads like the Book of the Dead. It's an exact copy." Elijah turns to face the woman from the passenger seat, "Is that a good thing, Miss Evelyn?" Evie nods, "It is. The Book of the Dead gives life. While the Book of Amun-Ra takes it." Elijah purses his lips, "Interesting."
Evie looks to the back of the SUV at the Chest of Anubis, "The Bracelet of Anubis cannot get into Imhotep's hands." Evie could tell everyone was listening, "It is believed that it is a map that leads the wearer to Ahm Shere, the Scorpion King's Oasis. The Ancients believe Ahm Shere is where the evil Army of Anubis awaits the order to destroy mankind commanded by the vicious warrior, the Scorpion King. It's written that the Scorpion King awaits a challenger, one who may defeat him and wrest control of his army. If the victor is good, the world is saved." Klaus cuts in, "So, I'm out of the running as a contender?"
British Museum
Kol, Damon, Rick, Bonnie, and Ardeth have snuck onto the second floor of the museum through an open window. They can hear chanting. Kol and Damon peaked over the railing at the scene below. Damon squats down next to Bonnie, "Thirteen men. Six bowing and chanting along with, I think, a High Priest, and six armed men. Several crates labeled as explosives. And a semi-translucent rock with a body in the middle. That's probably our guy." Bonnie nods, "That's who we don't want to bring back." Bonnie stands to peer over the railing, "Maybe I should set the crates on fire, and we run?" Kol smirks, "Sounds good to me."
The group heard a door open beneath them and watched a woman, Meela, walk into the room to stand next to the encased Imhotep. Bonnie, Damon, and Kol now understood why Omorose thought Elena was Anck-Su-Namun. Bonnie gasped, "Oh my god." Ardeth heard the witch, "What is it?" Damon answered for her, "She looks exactly like Elena." Rick looked at the woman and noticed how she was dressed, "I think it's Anck-Su-Namun."
While they were planning and observing everything, the High Priest reached a crescendo in his chants, the body inside the rock twitches before bursting out. His tissue starts to repair itself until he is partially human-like. Damon looks down, "Change of plan. See if you can mummify him." Bonnie stands in view of the men down below and begins to chant the spell her mother used to capture Mikael. Kol takes her hand so she can channel him, so she doesn't lose her magic. Rick turns to Damon, "Can you grab those books with that super speed yall have?" Damon looks down and sees what books Rick was asking for, "What are they?" "The Book of the Dead and the Book of Amun-Ra. We'll need them," Rick says. Damon nods then he is gone.
Imhotep feels the magic from the spell and becomes angry, even moreso when he sees a blur run past him and snatch the two ancient tomes. Imhotep grabs a black urn containing his servants, "Rise ye my servants!" He rips the lid off and sand explodes out of it and forms four soldier mummies. Damon returns to the group with both the Book of the Dead which still has the key attached and the Book of Amun-Ra. Rick stands next to Ardeth, "Not these guys again!" Imhotep points to the group and sends the soldiers after them. The group runs out of the museum. Bonnie sees a heavy bench near the door they ran out of and starts to pull it in front of the door. Rick turns back to grab Bonnie, "Come on! They don't use doors." Bonnie faces the museum, "What?!" Right as she asks that, the mummy soldiers break through the wall and rush at them.
Ardeth and Rick are firing their guns at the mummies as they climb into their vehicle. Kol is at the wheel and floors the accelerator once Damon shoves Bonnie into the back seat. The vehicle swerves to miss one of the soldiers, but the mummies give chase. Damon yells at Kol, "Come on, dude. Lose 'em!" Kol is frustrated, "I'm trying!" Rick and Ardeth are hanging out the back windows and shooting at the running mummies. Two of the mummies have taken enough damage that they can no longer run behind the vehicle. The other two jump onto the side of buildings and continue to chase them. Damon watches this, "That's something you don't see everyday."
Several rounds later the mummies have lost the ability to continue the chase. The mummies try to piece themselves back together but get run over by other cars and trucks. The group relaxes for the rest of the drive, but their minds are reeling with the fact that they were unable to stop Imhotep from resurrecting. Rick sat back in his seat mummering under his breath, "I hate mummies." He pulls out his phone and calls Evie, "Hey, honey. How are you guys doing?" The vampires can hear Evie, "We got the bracelet. Currently, we are heading back to Elijah's home. How did you fare?" Rick sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose, "Not good. He's up and about." "I figured as much. When we get back, we need to hide the bracelet. If they can't find it, they can't reach Ahm Shere," Evie thinks out loud. "We'll figure it out once we are all back," Rick and Evie say their goodbyes then hang up.
Elijah's Estate
Once everyone had made it back to Elijah's home, they went over everything that had happened so as to come up with a plan. The hybrids that accompanied them reported their findings. "We scoped the village. Several armed men raided homes of various families. They seemed to be targeting certain families, all dressed in similar fashion as Ardeth," Bradley said. Ardeth responded, "Mercenaries of the High Priest attacking Medjai and their families in order to stop them from interfering." Rick nodded, "Sounds about right. They're not going to stop until they find that Bracelet."
Damon voiced what they saw at the museum, "Before the fugly mummy popped out of his prison, a woman came into the room. I think she is the original Doppelganger. If she was wearing more modern clothes, she could be mistaken for Elena." Stefan, Klaus, and Elijah were shocked. Bonnie thought out loud, "Could she be a Doppelganger? Do we know when the first one was born?" The Originals shook their heads. "I don't think Tatia was the first. We'll look into it later, let's focus on the problem at hand," Kol responded.
The group had sat down for dinner when all hell broke loose. The supernaturals were beheading and pulling hearts of the mercenaries who ambushed the estate. Ardeth was combating a man he was familiar with. They were sword fighting in the middle of the dining room when Lock-Nah knocked Ardeth unconscious. Evie and Omo had barricaded themselves into Elijah's study with the ancient tomes and the bracelet of Anubis. The women were holding a bookcase in front of the door as someone was trying to break it down. Omorose and Evie looked at each other knowing they were going to have to fight.
They stepped away from the door and waited for it to break open. While this was happening, Omo had opened the chest holding the Bracelet of Anubis and put it on. She thought if she was wearing it and hid it on her person it was less likely to be found. The bulky, heavy gold bracelet clamped onto Omorose's wrist to her forearm. With how large it was, Omo realized too late that it was a mistake to put it on. Now, she couldn't take it off. Before she said anything to Evie, a mirage of the Pyramids at Giza then whoosh, across the desert to Karnak. The images faded right as the door burst open and three men entered. Evie and Omo took defensive stances as the men stalked over to them. Omo whispered to Evie, "I put the bracelet on." Evie turns to Omo in shock, but Omo continues, "It showed me the pyramids and then Karnak. We need to follow it to Karnak!" Evie nods then dodges a punch to her face.
Omo was fighting two men at once; they were backing her into a corner of the study. She looked over their shoulders and saw Evie knocked to the floor. The two men took that moment to capture Omo, one of the men threw her over his shoulder. One of the other two men crashed through a window to escape, the other two followed with a kicking and screaming Omorose. She was thrown into the back of a vehicle that sped off.
Klaus had been in a room closest to the study holding the heart of the last of the mercenaries when he heard Omo's screams and a vehicle speeding off. He jumped through the nearest window and chased after them. He didn't get very far before his neck was magically snapped. It seems these mercenaries had a witch or two with them. These mercs must have been watching them as well. Damon brought Klaus inside and laid him on a sofa. Rick carried his wife into the room, "Omorose is gone and so is the bracelet." He gently set Evie down. She groaned from the head injury then bolted upright, "Omo?" Rick shook his head. Evie tried to stand but Rick stopped her, "Whoa, Evie." She stubbornly moved to stand, "We need to get to Karnak. Omo put the bracelet on, and it showed her the pyramids then moved to Karnak."
The hybrids were told to help gather with the Medjai, Ardeth explained what to say so the Medjai knew who they were. The rest of the group got ready to leave. Bonnie has a map of Egypt trying to locate Omorose, "I can't find her. She's been cloaked." That just proves Imhotep and the High Priest have witches with them. Rick sighs, "Hopefully we can cut them off at Karnak. I know a guy." Evie rolled her eyes, "Rick, the last time you spoke to Izzy, he was healing from a gunshot wound to his backside." Damon, Kol, and Klaus snorted in amusement. Rick shrugs, "Well, I'll have to convince he won't get shot...This time."
AN: Alex is not in the story and Jonathan is traveling.