Prologue

Washington State Maximum Security Prison

2020

Secluded within the concrete darkness of his cell, a man with longish brown hair and a distinctive protruding chin laid somewhat peacefully on his bed. He didn't mind the isolation, he preferred it that way. But he didn't belong there and he told himself that. He makes one mistake and that suddenly flushes his life down the pipes while his little brother gets everything handed to him on a silver platter? Damn the justice system and damn parental favoritism.

His thoughts are interrupted by a loud clang on his cell door.

"Shortman, get up," said the guard.

Oh, how he hated being referred to by his supposed last name.

"You have visitors. Let's go," the guard continued as he presented cuffs.

The man cooperated and was soon guided to the visiting booth. How odd, why would anyone want to visit him? At this point everyone he once knew probably wiped him from their consciousness. Once seated, he found himself staring face to face with an overweight Caucasian man dressed in a sweater vest and khaki pants. His attire gave the impression that he was either a scientist or representative of some sort, though the scruffy beard might tell you otherwise.

'This ought to be rich', the inmate thought as he grabbed his speaker phone, "Yeah?"

"Good day, Mr. Shortman," said the man on the other side in a British accent, "My name is…"

"Clint," the inmate interrupted.

"Pardon?"

"Clint," the inmate repeated, "I prefer not to be called by my last name."

"Right, Clint," said the man as he gathered his train of thought, "As I was saying, my name is Seymour Hartley. I represent an archeology group in Egypt…"

"Ugh," Clint rolled his eyes, "I'm gonna stop you there, Blubber-Boy. If you're looking for an arche-whatever bullshit, look for my worthless runt of a little brother. I'm wasting my time with this crap."

"Mr. Shortman," Seymour began.

"Clint!"

"Clint, please listen. My group is well aware of the work of your brother Miles and his wife, but you are key part of this excavation. What if I told you there is a book with untold powers? Powers so great that it could make one invincible?"

Once again, Clint rolled his eyes, not buying a single word. Seymour then glanced around making sure no one was truly listening, before showing Clint a more devious look.

"What if I told you that my superior would pay for your release in full and give you…a "reunion" with your brother?"

This caught Clint's attention.

"I'm listening," he said.

After a few minutes of explanations from Seymour, Clint gave a sly smile.

"So, do we have an agreement, Clint?" said Seymour.

"A chance to see my little bro again?" Clint chuckled, "how can I not pass this up?"

"Excellent! You should hear from us again in a few days with the paperwork for your release. More instructions will follow."

"Look forward to it, Blubber-Boy."

"Please don't call me that," deadpanned Seymour before leaving.

Once away from the prison, he dialed his superior on his phone.

"He's in, my master," he said.

There was a long pause on the other end.

"Perfect."

A/N: What's going on fellow readers? After years of being on this site, I'm finally making my very first Hey Arnold fanfic. The idea for this story legitimately came to me in a dream and I'll admit was a bit nervous put it down on paper. I have to thank fellow writer CallMeNettie for encouraging me to get this started (Go read her fic, "A Slice of Life"! It's Awesome!).

Most people know that TJM had drew comparisons to the Indiana Jones series, so this story here is going to somewhat be comparable to "The Mummy" films. Also, I am fully aware of the fic "The Shadow Around His Heart" by Arnold's Love (which I also recommend) and I'm going to do my best to try and make this be it's own thing and not a copy of that story or the films.

Updates will be semi-slow as the real world takes up a lot of my time and I will have to do more research about ancient Egypt as I go along, however I will be taking creative liberties as well, so some of those elements will not be 100% accurate.

That's all I have to say for now. I hope you're on board for the ride.

Also, yes, every chapter (including the title) will be named after Iron Maiden songs. It's my rodeo, I do what I want.