Trouble on way home
Disclaimer: Nope, the characters here aren't mine (bit I wish Rick was... sigh... just kidding). Some material may pose a resemblance to scenes from TM or TMR, but I wrote this as a fan and don't intend to violate any copyrights.
Chapter 1
The sun begins to set as Rick, Evelyn and Jonathan slap the reins of their camels and head off into the desert once again. The scorching heat is gradually becoming bearable, even pleasant as a cool breeze wafts over the sandy dunes.
Rick is perched upon the bigger of the two camels, Evelyn sitting just behind him, clutching his waits, cuddling and cooing. Jonathan, who has a camel all to himself, just looks away, making it clear he has nothing to do with the mushy stuff. "Oh come on, cheer up, Jonathan!" Evie begs as she rests her chin on O'Connell's shoulder.
Jonathan turns to look at her. His furious expression says it all! "Cheer up? How can I cheer up? All that treasure just disappeared underneath the sand. Who cares if Allah will always smile on us? Who is Allah, anyway? I could have just grabbed a handful of that gold as we ran past! But of course I didn't. And now it's all sunken down into this filthy sand. I hate going home emptyhanded!" He underlines that last statement with frantic gestures, then utters a deep sigh and stares back glumly at the cloud of dust covering the site where once stood the ancient city of the dead, Hamunaptra.
Rick leans round in the saddle and smiles at Evelyn. She smiles back at him and he kisses her. "I know somebody who isn't going home emptyhanded..." He comments. "Me too." Evie adds sweetly.
She brushes a stray lock of brown hair out his face. Suddenly the expression on Rick's face changes. "No no no no stop! Hold on. This isn't good!" Evelyn is slightly startled. He continues " I have to twist myself in all sorts of weird directions to be able to look at you!" Evelyn giggles, but before she knows it he leans back, grabs her and pulls her up in front of him, placing her sideways at the front of the saddle. "That's better!"
"Yes, it is." Sitting sideways like in an armchair, legs dangling down one side of the camel, she leans back against Rick, holding onto him, closing her eyes.
Jonathan just snorts.
Chapter 2
A chill in the air announces the arrival of nighttime. The two camels start to slow. The sun has now turned into a red ball of fire just above the horizon.
"It's getting dark, we'd better reach that oasis of yours soon, O'Connell!" Jonathan is starting to recover from his extreme disappointment. Rick gives him a look. "Get off it, Jonathan! It's "Rick"!"
The features on Jonathan's face lighten a little. It might be the attempt of a smile. "Well we'd better be reaching that oasis soon, Rick."
"Yeah don't worry, it's shouldn't be far now."
Evelyn has fallen asleep and is snoring ever so slightly. Rick puts an arm around her to make sure she doesn't tip off the saddle.
Jonathan turns all of a sudden. "I say Rick! Guess it was quite an adventure, wasn't it, ey?"
"Beats getting hanged at the Cairo prison, that's for sure." They both chuckle.
Minutes later the oasis, which they already had stopped by on their journey towards Hamunaptra several days ago, comes into view. The small area of desert covered by lush greenery seems oddly misplaced. Nevertheless, the few sturdy trees would provide good shelter for the night.
"Oh good!" Jonathan beams.
Rick turns his attention back down to the peacefully sleeping Evelyn (not that he had been thinking of anything other than her for the whole evening, or the whole last half of the last week in fact). She looked so content that waking her seemed like a sin. "Evie, wake up darling. We're here."
Chapter 3
With the camels eagerly homing in on the oasis, they reach it in no time. The three exhausted heroes get off and start making preparations for the night. The little nap had given Evie new energy and as Jonathan and Rick do their best at setting up two tents, she starts a fire.
"I'll get the supplies from the saddle bag" Jonathan says, leaving Rick to secure the hooks at the corners of the tents. "Looks sturdy enough to me" he finally adds, stepping back a few feet to admire their work.
Evie, Rick and Jonathan install themselves around the warm fire and quickly consume a meal of boring canned food. Nobody talks much, the food isn't exactly the quality to inspire a conversation. But, as they all know, it's luxury compared to what the desert has to offer. Nobody mentions the adventures they had had during this strange, seemingly endless day. Nearly the only sound heard is the soft crackling of the fire.
"I'm calling it a day" Jonathan tells his sister and her boyfriend. "I could sleep like a log."
"Night, Jonathan!" "Sleep tight."
"Night you two."
With that Jonathan disappears into one of the tents, closing the zip after him.
Evie slips an arm round Rick's waist and cuddles in closer to him. "I'm cold."
"Honey, you're shivering" he notices as he holds her tight, giving her warmth, "let's seek the help of those thick sleeping bags, huh?" She nods.
They slowly get up, ditch some sand on the fire to put it out and make their way towards the remaining tent.
Chapter 4
Evie has lit a candle and tucked herself into a sleeping bag, pulling it right up under her chin. Rick pulls the zip shut after him and kneels down beside her. "Poor ol' Jonathan is all alone"
Evelyn gives him that librarian-who's-proud-of-what-she-is look. "Don't worry about him. I know my brother. He has no problem with that."
This makes Rick laugh. He unrolls his sleeping bag and takes off his filthy, torn-up shirt, revealing deep bloody cuts and gashes all over his shoulders,
chest and arms. The remaining evidence of a fight with a dozen of walking-talking soldier mummies. "Oh my god, Rick!" Evelyn remarks in horror, sitting up and examining the wounds. "Curse those mummies!"
Rick smiles. "They are, honey." It takes two seconds for her to understand. "Whoops... Darling, let me put a dressing on these nasty ones!"
"Nah, honestly, it's nothing." "What are you talking about, these look really painful. Why didn't you say something?" He just shrugs.
Evelyn insists. Rick lets himself fall on his back onto his sleeping bag, allowing Evie to clean and bandage the nastiest of the cuts with equipment from the first aid kit.
Rick watches Evie the Nurse's every move calmly, wincing as the disinfectant fluid stings.
"There, the rest isn't too bad."
"Thanks Evie." The two of them lock eyes. The way they look in each other's eyes speaks volumes. He raises his big hand to touch her cheek.
Not a good move, because just at that moment his elbow knocks the candle, pitching it onto ground. It's now pitch black inside the tent. "Aah!" Rick flops back down on his back, annoyed. Evie takes it in good humor. "Oh dear. I hope you remembered where you put the matches!" Rick groans, but his groan soon turns into a silly giggle. "I thought you had them?"
Outside the two camels have sat down on their knees like donkeys, resting their heads on each other's shoulders. Ever so often one of them would roll over onto its side, trying to figure out which position was more comfortable. The sun has now vanished from the sky and in its place a beautiful silver full moon shines among an array of bright little stars, giving just enough light to make out the sleek contours of the head of Jonathan's camel, once again trying out a different sleeping position. A rhythmic, steady snore can be heard from Jonathan's tent.
Chapter 5
It's dawn when Rick O'Connell awakes. He half opens his eyes, closes them again, but then forces himself to open them again. Faint light fills their tent, just enough to make out the surroundings. He becomes aware of Evie, who is lying half next to him, half on top of him, her arms clutching him, her beautifully carved face resting in the middle of his chest, sound asleep. He smiles and gingerly tries to pull himself up onto an improvised pillow - in fact, his gunny-sack underneath the top of the sleeping bag, highly uncomfortable - without waking Evelyn. It is definitely not a decent substitute for a pillow, but nevertheless, the American rests his head on it, realizing how the previous day, swinging swords and slaying mummies, has made the muscles in his arms ache. It is then that it strikes him how much the little thoughtful things in life matter. At that moment, he would give anything for a good headrest. Well, almost anything.
Evie moans in her sleep, and in a flash, she is awake. She groggily turns her head to look up at Rick, but not shifting her position. "Sorry, didn't mean to wake ya" he whispers tenderly. She lifts her head, her soft brown tresses hanging down in her face. "This is the nicest wake-up call I've ever had" the librarian answers in a similar soft tone of voice, filled with emotion, accompanied by an affectionate, even lustful smile. Rick doesn't answer, but the expression on his face shows he shares the sentiment. "Dream any nice things?" "Nah, Evie, I don't need to." He leans in to kiss her, and she returns it.
The sun is appearing from under the horizon and is gradually starting to lighten up the desert once again.
The two camels wake up, they stretch their necks, opening their mouths to utter a deep groaning noise, the equivalent of a yawn. Then the larger one stands up rather stiffly. The unusual sound coming from inside one of those strange material structures their masters had built yesterday wakes its curiosity. The big camel lowers its head and starts to move in.
"Okay, let's get packed up, wake Jonathan and get a move on!" Evie suggests.
They tuck their stuff together, but just as Evelyn fishes the candle off the ground -
A bone-freezing "AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!" comes from outside.
For a second, Rick and Evie exchange startled looks, then Rick reacts to the sudden cry for help, grabs one of his revolvers and bounds out the tent, jaw tight, eyes hard, assuming full adventurer mode!
He braces himself, aims his weapon at - a camel standing in front of Jonathan's tent, swishing it's short tail, it's head stuck down deep inside Jon's sleeping quarters.
"Oh... Jonathaaan", Rick sighs, then he calls back to the anxious Evie, "it's okay, baby, false alarm. It's only your brother!" She breathes a sigh of relief.
O'Connell walks up to the adventurous camel "Come on you, get outa there!" he urges, gently levering the camels head out and leading it back to it's companion.
Chapter 6
After nibbling some more canned stuff for breakfast, Evie and Rick tack up the camels. Jonathan keeps a respectable distance. Soon they have loaded up what little cargo they have and set off out into the desert. Again Rick and Evie share a camel and Jonathan has one all to himself.
Despite the time that has passed since the incident and all the encouragement he received from his pals, Jonathan is still under shock.
"I say, ol' son, why do we have to leave at the crack of dawn?"
Rick opens his mouth to answer but Jon's sister answers in his place. "Rick thinks if we leave early we can avoid most of the heat there is during the day."
"Oh yes, good thinking, smashing thought, partner." His camel snorts and spits. "Ouu... I'm telling you once we're out of here I am never going to go near one of these filthy fleabags, ever again!"
Evie has her head rested on Rick's shoulder. "Well it did take quite a bit of coaxing to get you up into the saddle", she remarks.
"Yes! It did!" Jonathan Carnahan shifts his weight around, displaying his discomfort. He soon stops, realizing how childish he is behaving.
Evie leans way from Rick and yawns. "Are you still thinking about that treasure we failed to get?"
"Nah..." he lies. Jonathan grits his teeth and swats a fly in anger. His bad temper is gradually starting to annoy Evie.
"Honestly Jonathan! I do wish you would stop complaining. It didn't mean to scare you." "Oh it didn't, did it? Then why did it come to my tent and not yours, huh?"
"Ehh..." Evie honestly doesn't know what to say and Rick tries hard not to laugh. He is concentrating on the horizon and the position of the sun, and finds this argument rather amusing.
Jonathan continues in his distinct British accent, "Well it scared the wits out of me anyhow! Filthy beast. That was the most horrid wake-up call I ever got!"
This phrase seems to ring a bell to Rick. He hugs Evie and they share a smile.
Evelyn raises her chin. "Well I like them." She reaches forward to ruffle the hair on their camel's head. Then she leans back into Rick. 'They're just like you, Rick - ".
"Excuse me?" he gives her confused and slightly insulted look.
" - Irresistible!" she adds cheackily.
Jonathan turns to look over the dunes, avoiding the romantic view. He senses he is not going to get any attention from either his sister or O'Connell for quite a while. The conversation is well and truly finished. For heaven's sake, when will this adventure end...
The journey goes on. The endless monotony of landscape is hypnotic.
Jonathan has dropped off again, snoring peacefully and rocking with the movement of the camel. Rick has his work cut out trying to stay alert. The dunes become blurred. His limbs are numb, his eyes are heavy, slowly but surely he drops off, just as:
"Rick", Evelyn gently pinches him, "you've got to stay awake, darling."
"Yeah yeah I'm here..." he answers, yawning, pulling himself together.
They traverse another dune, and nobody realizes they are swerving off course, angling deep into strange unknown territory...
Rick opens the top four buttons of his shirt, rolls up his sleeves and shakes his head, chasing off flies. Jonathan does the same and holds Rick's gunny-sack up as a shield from the sun. Evelyn huddles in Rick's shadow, waving her long hair about, using it as a fan.
"I wish I was a camel..." Jonathan grumbles.
They travel for hours on end, getting absolutely nowhere.
As the temperature gets cooler towards the evening, Rick coughs.
"Eh... you guys? ... I think we're lost."
"Oh boy", Jonathan moans.
"No..." Evie is terrified. She knows only too well how dangerous it is to get lost in the desert. She clutches Rick's waist tighter, seeking the safety of his strong arms.
"What do we do now?"
Rick shakes his head. "Well there's no point going on and making things worse. We'll shelter near those rocks over there."
Evie agrees. "Let's set up a camp here for the night there."
Jonathan nods anxiously, "what if we run out of food or water?"
"We'll worry about that when the time comes".
Chapter 7
Rick, Evelyn and Jonathan couldn't have known they were being watched.
A dozen fierce Tuareg horsemen look down at the three travelers from some rocks nearby. They eye the three intruders, sitting motionless upon massive Arab stallions.
"Intruders" one of the men snarls in his native tongue. The leader, a hideous looking man in turban and robes, commands. "They pose a threat. Kill them!"
Jonathan grabs a saddle cloth and sits down next to Evie. Rick is poking around in the fire. "Sorry about our tents, but that's all we have left to burn..."
"I tell you this whole desert is cursed" Jonathan says shakily, tossing a pebble into the small camp fire. As if by the flick of a switch the fire goes out. In an instant, it gets cold again.
Rick and Jonathan look at each other nervously in the darkness.
"Stop it, you two!" Evelyn orders.
"Don't tell me you still don't believe in curses, ol' mum?"
Evelyn doesn't answer. Neither does Rick. "No use... the fire's dead."
He backs away from the hopeless camp fire, sits down and pulls Evelyn close.
"There's always a way out, don't worry, darling." "I hope so, Rick." She crawls up onto his lap. "I'm so scared." "I'm not going to let anything happen to you, ever."
Restless, Jonathan starts brushing sand off his dusty boots with his finger. Somehow it would have made him feel much better if Rick had mentioned him, as well.
Rick doesn't admit it, but he is scared, too. He can't remember ever being lost before, let alone lost in the desert. He feels Evelyn's trembling body in is arms. He knows he will do all in his power to protect this woman. He has a sudden urge to hold her tight and to never let her go again.
Evie looks up and reads his ever thought just by looking into Rick's blue eyes. It arouses that special feeling in her that makes her realize just how madly in love she is. She's thinking about leaning up to kiss him, just as -
"Look!" Jonathan calls, startling the two lovers.
Evie jumps. "Damn-it, Jonathan!" "What is it?"
"I saw something on the top of those rocks!"
"What was it?" Rick scans the horizon but can't make out anything except sand and rocks.
"Something was moving on the top of those rocks."
Evelyn curls up in Rick's lap, trying to stay warm. "Jonathan, you're seeing things. It was probably nothing."
Jonathan frowns, feeling insulted. "I'll have you know that I..." - but Rick quickly interrupts to prevent another argument.
"We'd better be prepared, even if it was just nothing." With that he grabs his shotgun.
Evelyn hides her face. She knows Rick is protect her, whatever it takes, but right now she wishes for nothing more than being away from all this. She wishes they could have as much fun together as they had had the previous evenings.
They sit like that more quite some time, burying themselves in saddle cloths. Rick grabs the rug from around his shoulders and wraps it around Evelyn.
Suddenly, Rick raises his head and listens...
Evelyn sees it. "What's..."
"Shhh!"
Jonathan sees it, too. "'scuse me..."
"Hey, shut up, alright? Trying to listen" he growls back. Jonathan quickly shuts up and lances a startled look at Evelyn.
"Ah never mind" Rick shakes his head, assuming he's just hearing things. It's all getting a bit much...
At that moment the Tuareg warriors start their attack! The commander bellows a command and the thirteen vicious horsemen kick their steeds and gallop towards the intruders!
They charge at the trio of adventurers, raising their rifles and knives!
Evie is the first to sense the hoof beats. "Rick... what's that?"
Rick looks round and stares at the huge horses charging straight at them!
"Damn-it, Jonathan! You were right!"
"Oh boy..." Jonathan's eyes are wide with fear.
They all jump up, Rick grabs his shotgun.
"Tuaregs, desert people. Looks like we've strayed onto their land!"
"Not too good with strangers, huh?"
"Not at all!"
The attackers come closer and closer! Their powerful mounts eat up the ground with every stride. The warriors utter their horrible "Oooolooo-loooo!!!" shriek, displaying rotten teeth and gums. Within seconds they would be on top of Rick, Evie and Jonathan.
"Get back! GET BACK!"
Rick shoves Jonathan and Evelyn towards the safety of the ruins. "Hide somewhere! Run!" All three of them hit the deck, racing towards the dense ruins, weaving in and out of rocks and pillars.
"OOOOLOOO-LOOO! OOOLLOOO!!!"
The Tuaregs open fire! Shots blaze past O'Connell, Jonathan and his sister, chipping off stone and dislodging rocks. The galloping horses are now right on their heels, kicking up sand. A shot grazes Jonathan's arm! He cries out, clutching it, but Rick pushes him on "Keep going, keep going!"
Rick turns on his heels and blasts two of the Tuaregs clean off their mounts. Evie clings onto his hand.
As the attackers reload and open fire just as the three round a corner. The shots dislodge a big boulder, which crashes to the ground like an explosion. Two of the horses nearest the boulder take fright and bolt away in opposite direction, dragging their helpless riders on their backs with them.
The rest rip round the corner. Rick shoots another of them, causing his now riderless and confused horse to block the path of the rest, giving the 'intruders' a head start. Three of the riders fall off, hitting the ground hard.
Jonathan runs on bravely, gritting his teeth, and Evie clings onto Rick's hand, but suddenly, - "Rick!" - they all stop dead in their tracks - they have reached a dead end!
Rick curses out loud, a huge wall is blocking their path. They are trapped!
Jonathan panics. "We're trapped, ol' son!"
Within seconds the remaining five Tuareg warriors have cornered them, halt and aim their rifles. Rick's weapon goes empty. He tosses it away and stands protectively in front of Evelyn, Jonathan at his side.
Evie's heart is racing, she buries her face in Rick's shirt. They are trapped, cornered. In a few seconds they will be shot to pieces, screaming in agony. There's no way out. For the first time in their lives, there really is no way out.
The Tuareg on the big brown horse is about the squeeze the trigger as his horse suddenly shies back dramatically! A huge big boil of sand rises out of the ground like a volcano ready to erupt. It swells bigger and bigger.
"Scarabs!" Evie screams in horror!
The horsemen are amazed by it, they turn their attention away from their quarry and watch the boil of sand as it starts quivering. Not certain whether to scarper or not, the Tuareg attackers just stand there, peering down at the strange structure forming. An ominous chittering sound is all too familiar! The boil suddenly explodes and hundreds of flesh-eating scarab beetles hatch out of it!
The horses immediately rear up and run off bucking and kicking, three of the riders are thrown off. Immediately the scarabs dig under their skin and start eating them alive.
As they helplessly scream in pain and agony, Rick sees a chance. "Time to get out of here! Move!"
They hotfoot it out of the dead end and race past the preoccupied scarabs. The single surviving Tuareg warrior soon overtakes them, ditches his rifle, frantically urging his horse on in his own tongue, bolting out into the desert and away. Rick, Evelyn and Jonathan climb up onto a high ledge and watch as the scarabs finish their grueling meal of desert warriors and vanish deep down into the sands just as miraculously as they had appeared, leaving behind three perfectly clean human skeletons...
Chapter 8
Up on the ledge, Evelyn, Jonathan and Rick are breathing hard.
Jonathan's the first to speak.
"Ouch" he utters sarcastically. Rick looks concerned.
"How's the arm, Jonathan?"
"Ah, it's nothing."
"Sure? Let me see..."
"Absolutely... ouch"
"Oh good, it's only a scratch, pal. It's heal it no time!" He smiles and pats Jonathan's shoulder as if he were a horse.
Evie sneaks up behind Rick and wraps her arms around his waist, pulling herself close to him.
"And how about you darling? Alright?"
"Sure honey, couldn't be better."
Jonathan turns from studying the sandy hoof prints in the desert sand to announce a fresh idea of his. "I say, why don't we... oh bother..."
He rolls his eyes at the sight of Rick and Evie kissing again!
As they mount their camels and turn to leave, the sun starts to rise once more.
"Well we spent one day longer than planned in the desert" Rick comments sarcastically.
"I can't wait to get home" Evelyn says, peering out over their camel's head.
"Me makes three!" Jonathan adds. "You seem to know where we are, I gather?"
"Sure do! Meeting those Tuareg buddies freshened up my memory. We're on their land, which means we're just a little too far east."
Evie turns to look him deep in the eyes. "What memories did they bring up?"
"I'll tell you when we're home, love."
"Sounds good!"
THE END
Disclaimer: Nope, the characters here aren't mine (bit I wish Rick was... sigh... just kidding). Some material may pose a resemblance to scenes from TM or TMR, but I wrote this as a fan and don't intend to violate any copyrights.
Chapter 1
The sun begins to set as Rick, Evelyn and Jonathan slap the reins of their camels and head off into the desert once again. The scorching heat is gradually becoming bearable, even pleasant as a cool breeze wafts over the sandy dunes.
Rick is perched upon the bigger of the two camels, Evelyn sitting just behind him, clutching his waits, cuddling and cooing. Jonathan, who has a camel all to himself, just looks away, making it clear he has nothing to do with the mushy stuff. "Oh come on, cheer up, Jonathan!" Evie begs as she rests her chin on O'Connell's shoulder.
Jonathan turns to look at her. His furious expression says it all! "Cheer up? How can I cheer up? All that treasure just disappeared underneath the sand. Who cares if Allah will always smile on us? Who is Allah, anyway? I could have just grabbed a handful of that gold as we ran past! But of course I didn't. And now it's all sunken down into this filthy sand. I hate going home emptyhanded!" He underlines that last statement with frantic gestures, then utters a deep sigh and stares back glumly at the cloud of dust covering the site where once stood the ancient city of the dead, Hamunaptra.
Rick leans round in the saddle and smiles at Evelyn. She smiles back at him and he kisses her. "I know somebody who isn't going home emptyhanded..." He comments. "Me too." Evie adds sweetly.
She brushes a stray lock of brown hair out his face. Suddenly the expression on Rick's face changes. "No no no no stop! Hold on. This isn't good!" Evelyn is slightly startled. He continues " I have to twist myself in all sorts of weird directions to be able to look at you!" Evelyn giggles, but before she knows it he leans back, grabs her and pulls her up in front of him, placing her sideways at the front of the saddle. "That's better!"
"Yes, it is." Sitting sideways like in an armchair, legs dangling down one side of the camel, she leans back against Rick, holding onto him, closing her eyes.
Jonathan just snorts.
Chapter 2
A chill in the air announces the arrival of nighttime. The two camels start to slow. The sun has now turned into a red ball of fire just above the horizon.
"It's getting dark, we'd better reach that oasis of yours soon, O'Connell!" Jonathan is starting to recover from his extreme disappointment. Rick gives him a look. "Get off it, Jonathan! It's "Rick"!"
The features on Jonathan's face lighten a little. It might be the attempt of a smile. "Well we'd better be reaching that oasis soon, Rick."
"Yeah don't worry, it's shouldn't be far now."
Evelyn has fallen asleep and is snoring ever so slightly. Rick puts an arm around her to make sure she doesn't tip off the saddle.
Jonathan turns all of a sudden. "I say Rick! Guess it was quite an adventure, wasn't it, ey?"
"Beats getting hanged at the Cairo prison, that's for sure." They both chuckle.
Minutes later the oasis, which they already had stopped by on their journey towards Hamunaptra several days ago, comes into view. The small area of desert covered by lush greenery seems oddly misplaced. Nevertheless, the few sturdy trees would provide good shelter for the night.
"Oh good!" Jonathan beams.
Rick turns his attention back down to the peacefully sleeping Evelyn (not that he had been thinking of anything other than her for the whole evening, or the whole last half of the last week in fact). She looked so content that waking her seemed like a sin. "Evie, wake up darling. We're here."
Chapter 3
With the camels eagerly homing in on the oasis, they reach it in no time. The three exhausted heroes get off and start making preparations for the night. The little nap had given Evie new energy and as Jonathan and Rick do their best at setting up two tents, she starts a fire.
"I'll get the supplies from the saddle bag" Jonathan says, leaving Rick to secure the hooks at the corners of the tents. "Looks sturdy enough to me" he finally adds, stepping back a few feet to admire their work.
Evie, Rick and Jonathan install themselves around the warm fire and quickly consume a meal of boring canned food. Nobody talks much, the food isn't exactly the quality to inspire a conversation. But, as they all know, it's luxury compared to what the desert has to offer. Nobody mentions the adventures they had had during this strange, seemingly endless day. Nearly the only sound heard is the soft crackling of the fire.
"I'm calling it a day" Jonathan tells his sister and her boyfriend. "I could sleep like a log."
"Night, Jonathan!" "Sleep tight."
"Night you two."
With that Jonathan disappears into one of the tents, closing the zip after him.
Evie slips an arm round Rick's waist and cuddles in closer to him. "I'm cold."
"Honey, you're shivering" he notices as he holds her tight, giving her warmth, "let's seek the help of those thick sleeping bags, huh?" She nods.
They slowly get up, ditch some sand on the fire to put it out and make their way towards the remaining tent.
Chapter 4
Evie has lit a candle and tucked herself into a sleeping bag, pulling it right up under her chin. Rick pulls the zip shut after him and kneels down beside her. "Poor ol' Jonathan is all alone"
Evelyn gives him that librarian-who's-proud-of-what-she-is look. "Don't worry about him. I know my brother. He has no problem with that."
This makes Rick laugh. He unrolls his sleeping bag and takes off his filthy, torn-up shirt, revealing deep bloody cuts and gashes all over his shoulders,
chest and arms. The remaining evidence of a fight with a dozen of walking-talking soldier mummies. "Oh my god, Rick!" Evelyn remarks in horror, sitting up and examining the wounds. "Curse those mummies!"
Rick smiles. "They are, honey." It takes two seconds for her to understand. "Whoops... Darling, let me put a dressing on these nasty ones!"
"Nah, honestly, it's nothing." "What are you talking about, these look really painful. Why didn't you say something?" He just shrugs.
Evelyn insists. Rick lets himself fall on his back onto his sleeping bag, allowing Evie to clean and bandage the nastiest of the cuts with equipment from the first aid kit.
Rick watches Evie the Nurse's every move calmly, wincing as the disinfectant fluid stings.
"There, the rest isn't too bad."
"Thanks Evie." The two of them lock eyes. The way they look in each other's eyes speaks volumes. He raises his big hand to touch her cheek.
Not a good move, because just at that moment his elbow knocks the candle, pitching it onto ground. It's now pitch black inside the tent. "Aah!" Rick flops back down on his back, annoyed. Evie takes it in good humor. "Oh dear. I hope you remembered where you put the matches!" Rick groans, but his groan soon turns into a silly giggle. "I thought you had them?"
Outside the two camels have sat down on their knees like donkeys, resting their heads on each other's shoulders. Ever so often one of them would roll over onto its side, trying to figure out which position was more comfortable. The sun has now vanished from the sky and in its place a beautiful silver full moon shines among an array of bright little stars, giving just enough light to make out the sleek contours of the head of Jonathan's camel, once again trying out a different sleeping position. A rhythmic, steady snore can be heard from Jonathan's tent.
Chapter 5
It's dawn when Rick O'Connell awakes. He half opens his eyes, closes them again, but then forces himself to open them again. Faint light fills their tent, just enough to make out the surroundings. He becomes aware of Evie, who is lying half next to him, half on top of him, her arms clutching him, her beautifully carved face resting in the middle of his chest, sound asleep. He smiles and gingerly tries to pull himself up onto an improvised pillow - in fact, his gunny-sack underneath the top of the sleeping bag, highly uncomfortable - without waking Evelyn. It is definitely not a decent substitute for a pillow, but nevertheless, the American rests his head on it, realizing how the previous day, swinging swords and slaying mummies, has made the muscles in his arms ache. It is then that it strikes him how much the little thoughtful things in life matter. At that moment, he would give anything for a good headrest. Well, almost anything.
Evie moans in her sleep, and in a flash, she is awake. She groggily turns her head to look up at Rick, but not shifting her position. "Sorry, didn't mean to wake ya" he whispers tenderly. She lifts her head, her soft brown tresses hanging down in her face. "This is the nicest wake-up call I've ever had" the librarian answers in a similar soft tone of voice, filled with emotion, accompanied by an affectionate, even lustful smile. Rick doesn't answer, but the expression on his face shows he shares the sentiment. "Dream any nice things?" "Nah, Evie, I don't need to." He leans in to kiss her, and she returns it.
The sun is appearing from under the horizon and is gradually starting to lighten up the desert once again.
The two camels wake up, they stretch their necks, opening their mouths to utter a deep groaning noise, the equivalent of a yawn. Then the larger one stands up rather stiffly. The unusual sound coming from inside one of those strange material structures their masters had built yesterday wakes its curiosity. The big camel lowers its head and starts to move in.
"Okay, let's get packed up, wake Jonathan and get a move on!" Evie suggests.
They tuck their stuff together, but just as Evelyn fishes the candle off the ground -
A bone-freezing "AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!" comes from outside.
For a second, Rick and Evie exchange startled looks, then Rick reacts to the sudden cry for help, grabs one of his revolvers and bounds out the tent, jaw tight, eyes hard, assuming full adventurer mode!
He braces himself, aims his weapon at - a camel standing in front of Jonathan's tent, swishing it's short tail, it's head stuck down deep inside Jon's sleeping quarters.
"Oh... Jonathaaan", Rick sighs, then he calls back to the anxious Evie, "it's okay, baby, false alarm. It's only your brother!" She breathes a sigh of relief.
O'Connell walks up to the adventurous camel "Come on you, get outa there!" he urges, gently levering the camels head out and leading it back to it's companion.
Chapter 6
After nibbling some more canned stuff for breakfast, Evie and Rick tack up the camels. Jonathan keeps a respectable distance. Soon they have loaded up what little cargo they have and set off out into the desert. Again Rick and Evie share a camel and Jonathan has one all to himself.
Despite the time that has passed since the incident and all the encouragement he received from his pals, Jonathan is still under shock.
"I say, ol' son, why do we have to leave at the crack of dawn?"
Rick opens his mouth to answer but Jon's sister answers in his place. "Rick thinks if we leave early we can avoid most of the heat there is during the day."
"Oh yes, good thinking, smashing thought, partner." His camel snorts and spits. "Ouu... I'm telling you once we're out of here I am never going to go near one of these filthy fleabags, ever again!"
Evie has her head rested on Rick's shoulder. "Well it did take quite a bit of coaxing to get you up into the saddle", she remarks.
"Yes! It did!" Jonathan Carnahan shifts his weight around, displaying his discomfort. He soon stops, realizing how childish he is behaving.
Evie leans way from Rick and yawns. "Are you still thinking about that treasure we failed to get?"
"Nah..." he lies. Jonathan grits his teeth and swats a fly in anger. His bad temper is gradually starting to annoy Evie.
"Honestly Jonathan! I do wish you would stop complaining. It didn't mean to scare you." "Oh it didn't, did it? Then why did it come to my tent and not yours, huh?"
"Ehh..." Evie honestly doesn't know what to say and Rick tries hard not to laugh. He is concentrating on the horizon and the position of the sun, and finds this argument rather amusing.
Jonathan continues in his distinct British accent, "Well it scared the wits out of me anyhow! Filthy beast. That was the most horrid wake-up call I ever got!"
This phrase seems to ring a bell to Rick. He hugs Evie and they share a smile.
Evelyn raises her chin. "Well I like them." She reaches forward to ruffle the hair on their camel's head. Then she leans back into Rick. 'They're just like you, Rick - ".
"Excuse me?" he gives her confused and slightly insulted look.
" - Irresistible!" she adds cheackily.
Jonathan turns to look over the dunes, avoiding the romantic view. He senses he is not going to get any attention from either his sister or O'Connell for quite a while. The conversation is well and truly finished. For heaven's sake, when will this adventure end...
The journey goes on. The endless monotony of landscape is hypnotic.
Jonathan has dropped off again, snoring peacefully and rocking with the movement of the camel. Rick has his work cut out trying to stay alert. The dunes become blurred. His limbs are numb, his eyes are heavy, slowly but surely he drops off, just as:
"Rick", Evelyn gently pinches him, "you've got to stay awake, darling."
"Yeah yeah I'm here..." he answers, yawning, pulling himself together.
They traverse another dune, and nobody realizes they are swerving off course, angling deep into strange unknown territory...
Rick opens the top four buttons of his shirt, rolls up his sleeves and shakes his head, chasing off flies. Jonathan does the same and holds Rick's gunny-sack up as a shield from the sun. Evelyn huddles in Rick's shadow, waving her long hair about, using it as a fan.
"I wish I was a camel..." Jonathan grumbles.
They travel for hours on end, getting absolutely nowhere.
As the temperature gets cooler towards the evening, Rick coughs.
"Eh... you guys? ... I think we're lost."
"Oh boy", Jonathan moans.
"No..." Evie is terrified. She knows only too well how dangerous it is to get lost in the desert. She clutches Rick's waist tighter, seeking the safety of his strong arms.
"What do we do now?"
Rick shakes his head. "Well there's no point going on and making things worse. We'll shelter near those rocks over there."
Evie agrees. "Let's set up a camp here for the night there."
Jonathan nods anxiously, "what if we run out of food or water?"
"We'll worry about that when the time comes".
Chapter 7
Rick, Evelyn and Jonathan couldn't have known they were being watched.
A dozen fierce Tuareg horsemen look down at the three travelers from some rocks nearby. They eye the three intruders, sitting motionless upon massive Arab stallions.
"Intruders" one of the men snarls in his native tongue. The leader, a hideous looking man in turban and robes, commands. "They pose a threat. Kill them!"
Jonathan grabs a saddle cloth and sits down next to Evie. Rick is poking around in the fire. "Sorry about our tents, but that's all we have left to burn..."
"I tell you this whole desert is cursed" Jonathan says shakily, tossing a pebble into the small camp fire. As if by the flick of a switch the fire goes out. In an instant, it gets cold again.
Rick and Jonathan look at each other nervously in the darkness.
"Stop it, you two!" Evelyn orders.
"Don't tell me you still don't believe in curses, ol' mum?"
Evelyn doesn't answer. Neither does Rick. "No use... the fire's dead."
He backs away from the hopeless camp fire, sits down and pulls Evelyn close.
"There's always a way out, don't worry, darling." "I hope so, Rick." She crawls up onto his lap. "I'm so scared." "I'm not going to let anything happen to you, ever."
Restless, Jonathan starts brushing sand off his dusty boots with his finger. Somehow it would have made him feel much better if Rick had mentioned him, as well.
Rick doesn't admit it, but he is scared, too. He can't remember ever being lost before, let alone lost in the desert. He feels Evelyn's trembling body in is arms. He knows he will do all in his power to protect this woman. He has a sudden urge to hold her tight and to never let her go again.
Evie looks up and reads his ever thought just by looking into Rick's blue eyes. It arouses that special feeling in her that makes her realize just how madly in love she is. She's thinking about leaning up to kiss him, just as -
"Look!" Jonathan calls, startling the two lovers.
Evie jumps. "Damn-it, Jonathan!" "What is it?"
"I saw something on the top of those rocks!"
"What was it?" Rick scans the horizon but can't make out anything except sand and rocks.
"Something was moving on the top of those rocks."
Evelyn curls up in Rick's lap, trying to stay warm. "Jonathan, you're seeing things. It was probably nothing."
Jonathan frowns, feeling insulted. "I'll have you know that I..." - but Rick quickly interrupts to prevent another argument.
"We'd better be prepared, even if it was just nothing." With that he grabs his shotgun.
Evelyn hides her face. She knows Rick is protect her, whatever it takes, but right now she wishes for nothing more than being away from all this. She wishes they could have as much fun together as they had had the previous evenings.
They sit like that more quite some time, burying themselves in saddle cloths. Rick grabs the rug from around his shoulders and wraps it around Evelyn.
Suddenly, Rick raises his head and listens...
Evelyn sees it. "What's..."
"Shhh!"
Jonathan sees it, too. "'scuse me..."
"Hey, shut up, alright? Trying to listen" he growls back. Jonathan quickly shuts up and lances a startled look at Evelyn.
"Ah never mind" Rick shakes his head, assuming he's just hearing things. It's all getting a bit much...
At that moment the Tuareg warriors start their attack! The commander bellows a command and the thirteen vicious horsemen kick their steeds and gallop towards the intruders!
They charge at the trio of adventurers, raising their rifles and knives!
Evie is the first to sense the hoof beats. "Rick... what's that?"
Rick looks round and stares at the huge horses charging straight at them!
"Damn-it, Jonathan! You were right!"
"Oh boy..." Jonathan's eyes are wide with fear.
They all jump up, Rick grabs his shotgun.
"Tuaregs, desert people. Looks like we've strayed onto their land!"
"Not too good with strangers, huh?"
"Not at all!"
The attackers come closer and closer! Their powerful mounts eat up the ground with every stride. The warriors utter their horrible "Oooolooo-loooo!!!" shriek, displaying rotten teeth and gums. Within seconds they would be on top of Rick, Evie and Jonathan.
"Get back! GET BACK!"
Rick shoves Jonathan and Evelyn towards the safety of the ruins. "Hide somewhere! Run!" All three of them hit the deck, racing towards the dense ruins, weaving in and out of rocks and pillars.
"OOOOLOOO-LOOO! OOOLLOOO!!!"
The Tuaregs open fire! Shots blaze past O'Connell, Jonathan and his sister, chipping off stone and dislodging rocks. The galloping horses are now right on their heels, kicking up sand. A shot grazes Jonathan's arm! He cries out, clutching it, but Rick pushes him on "Keep going, keep going!"
Rick turns on his heels and blasts two of the Tuaregs clean off their mounts. Evie clings onto his hand.
As the attackers reload and open fire just as the three round a corner. The shots dislodge a big boulder, which crashes to the ground like an explosion. Two of the horses nearest the boulder take fright and bolt away in opposite direction, dragging their helpless riders on their backs with them.
The rest rip round the corner. Rick shoots another of them, causing his now riderless and confused horse to block the path of the rest, giving the 'intruders' a head start. Three of the riders fall off, hitting the ground hard.
Jonathan runs on bravely, gritting his teeth, and Evie clings onto Rick's hand, but suddenly, - "Rick!" - they all stop dead in their tracks - they have reached a dead end!
Rick curses out loud, a huge wall is blocking their path. They are trapped!
Jonathan panics. "We're trapped, ol' son!"
Within seconds the remaining five Tuareg warriors have cornered them, halt and aim their rifles. Rick's weapon goes empty. He tosses it away and stands protectively in front of Evelyn, Jonathan at his side.
Evie's heart is racing, she buries her face in Rick's shirt. They are trapped, cornered. In a few seconds they will be shot to pieces, screaming in agony. There's no way out. For the first time in their lives, there really is no way out.
The Tuareg on the big brown horse is about the squeeze the trigger as his horse suddenly shies back dramatically! A huge big boil of sand rises out of the ground like a volcano ready to erupt. It swells bigger and bigger.
"Scarabs!" Evie screams in horror!
The horsemen are amazed by it, they turn their attention away from their quarry and watch the boil of sand as it starts quivering. Not certain whether to scarper or not, the Tuareg attackers just stand there, peering down at the strange structure forming. An ominous chittering sound is all too familiar! The boil suddenly explodes and hundreds of flesh-eating scarab beetles hatch out of it!
The horses immediately rear up and run off bucking and kicking, three of the riders are thrown off. Immediately the scarabs dig under their skin and start eating them alive.
As they helplessly scream in pain and agony, Rick sees a chance. "Time to get out of here! Move!"
They hotfoot it out of the dead end and race past the preoccupied scarabs. The single surviving Tuareg warrior soon overtakes them, ditches his rifle, frantically urging his horse on in his own tongue, bolting out into the desert and away. Rick, Evelyn and Jonathan climb up onto a high ledge and watch as the scarabs finish their grueling meal of desert warriors and vanish deep down into the sands just as miraculously as they had appeared, leaving behind three perfectly clean human skeletons...
Chapter 8
Up on the ledge, Evelyn, Jonathan and Rick are breathing hard.
Jonathan's the first to speak.
"Ouch" he utters sarcastically. Rick looks concerned.
"How's the arm, Jonathan?"
"Ah, it's nothing."
"Sure? Let me see..."
"Absolutely... ouch"
"Oh good, it's only a scratch, pal. It's heal it no time!" He smiles and pats Jonathan's shoulder as if he were a horse.
Evie sneaks up behind Rick and wraps her arms around his waist, pulling herself close to him.
"And how about you darling? Alright?"
"Sure honey, couldn't be better."
Jonathan turns from studying the sandy hoof prints in the desert sand to announce a fresh idea of his. "I say, why don't we... oh bother..."
He rolls his eyes at the sight of Rick and Evie kissing again!
As they mount their camels and turn to leave, the sun starts to rise once more.
"Well we spent one day longer than planned in the desert" Rick comments sarcastically.
"I can't wait to get home" Evelyn says, peering out over their camel's head.
"Me makes three!" Jonathan adds. "You seem to know where we are, I gather?"
"Sure do! Meeting those Tuareg buddies freshened up my memory. We're on their land, which means we're just a little too far east."
Evie turns to look him deep in the eyes. "What memories did they bring up?"
"I'll tell you when we're home, love."
"Sounds good!"
THE END